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Edited on Thu Jun-28-07 07:57 AM by Caro
Morning headlines brought to you by Carolyn Kay MakeThemAccountable.com Top StoriesSenate subpoenas Cheney's office, forcing him to claim executive privelege
But of course, Cheney just said he and his office are not part of the executive branch. But he'll have to change his tune immediately in order to squash the subpoena by claiming executive privelege. And that is why the subpoena was issued right now, to force Cheney to recant his recent claim that he's a new and independent 4th branch of government. Two points for the Dems.
Cheney Admits He's Part of the Executive Branch
Vice President Dick Cheney’s office "will not pursue the argument that he is separate from the executive branch," senior administration officials tell The Politico. "The decision follows a threat by Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-IL), the No. 3 House Democrat, to try to cut off the office’s $4.8 million in executive-branch funding." Emanuel had scheduled a vote on Cheney’s funding for Thursday.
Make that four points for the Dems.—Caro Mark Fiore
Click here to view the animation.
The WorldGlobal Unease with Major World Powers and Leaders
A 47-nation survey finds global public opinion increasingly wary of the world's dominant nations and disapproving of their leaders. Anti-Americanism is extensive, as it has been for the past five years. At the same time, the image of China has slipped significantly among the publics of other major nations. Opinion about Russia is mixed, but confidence in its president, Vladimir Putin, has declined sharply… to the point that they mirror the nearly worldwide lack of confidence in George W. Bush.
Car bombing near Shiite shrine kills 14
America's No. 2 diplomat in Iraq predicted progress by fall on bringing together Iraq's feuding factions as violence claimed more lives Wednesday, including 14 people killed in a late night car bombing near a Shiite shrine in the capital.
Car bomb kills 20 at Baghdad bus station
BAGHDAD - A parked car bomb exploded at rush hour Thursday in a busy bus station in southwest Baghdad, killing at least 20 people, a day after America's No. 2 diplomat in Iraq predicted progress by fall on bringing together Iraq's feuding factions.
5 killed in fighting in northern Lebanon
BEIRUT, Lebanon - Lebanese troops killed at least five Islamic militants during a gunbattle in northern Lebanon on Thursday, a military official said.
Israeli troops battle Fatah militants
NABLUS, West Bank - Israeli troops imposed a curfew on downtown Nablus and clashed with Fatah militants as the army's activities moved Thursday from Gaza to the West Bank.
Suicide bomber kills American in Kabul
KABUL, Afghanistan - A suicide car bomber hit a convoy of security contractors in the Afghan capital Thursday, killing an American and a Nepalese citizen and wounding three other Americans, police said. The Taliban claimed responsibility. The NationCongressional Battle Over Iraq Heats Up
The battle over the Iraq War intensified when two more Senate Republicans urged President Bush to start bringing U.S. troops home. Meanwhile, a federal investigation concluded that $19 billion has been wasted on training Iraqi troops.
Poll: GOP support for Iraq war beginning to waver
In the latest CNN-Opinion Research Corporation poll released Tuesday, 69 percent of those polled believe things are going badly in Iraq… Thirty percent of Americans polled say they favor the war, the lowest level of support on record. Two-thirds are opposed. Anti-war sentiment among Republican poll respondents has suddenly increased with 38 percent of Republicans now saying they oppose the war.
Batiste: Let's Not Conflate al-Qaeda and Iraqi Insurgents
At an acrimonious hearing underway of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on the surge, retired Major General John Batiste, a former division commander in Iraq turned critic of the war, got on the administration's case for recently attributing most violence in Iraq to al-Qaeda.
GOP tax cuts equal the amount of the current deficit
The House Budget Committee held a hearing with Dr. Peter R. Orszag, Director of the Congressional Budget Office. Orszag says that the amount of money lost to Bush's tax cuts equals the amount of the current deficit.
Dollars, Not Sense: Government Contracting Under the Bush Administration
Under the Bush Administration, the “shadow government” of private companies working under federal contract has exploded in size. Between 2000 and 2005, procurement spending increased by over $175 billion dollars, making federal contracts the fastest growing component of federal discretionary spending. This growth in federal procurement has enriched private contractors. But it has also come at a steep cost for federal taxpayers. Overcharging has been frequent, and billions of dollars of taxpayer money have been squandered.
New Post-Katrina Investigations Reveal More Federal Waste And Incompetence
Three new investigations shed further light on how the Bush administration betrayed Gulf Coast residents during Hurricane Katrina, and how New Orleans and other affected areas are still suffering from federal waste and incompetence.
More deadly problems with cheap imports from China
In this day and age, why do people have to die to highlight these problems? This latest case of tire recalls is only now going public because the importer of the cheap tires is being sued in connection with deadly road accidents that could be directly related to defective tires. The importer is alleged to have known about the problem two years ago but only came forward - to ask for help for funding the recall - after being sued.
And Republicans want to stop our only defense against lawless businesses, the ability to sue.—Caro
Poll: Gore Leading In New Hampshire
(A) new Suffolk University poll find(s) that a whopping 32% of the state's Democrats would back Al Gore, making him the leader in the Democratic primary there. Hillary Clinton would be particularly damaged by his hypothetical entry, losing a quarter of her support. Without Gore, Clinton leads with 37% of likely Democratic voters, leading Barack Obama at 19%, and John Edwards and Bill Richardson, both at 9%. MediaPermanent link to MTA daily media news
TV news divisions do pay for interviews, say media writers
"NBC News has paid for interviews," writes David Blum. "So have CBS and ABC. They just don't like it when the seller goes public with the terms of the deal." || Gail Shister adds: "Instead of network-news divisions continuing their pretense of - wink, wink - not paying for big interviews, they should come out of the closet and tell viewers how much was ponied up."
Thompson's ABC Radio commentaries riddled with misinformation
Since April 2007, ABC Radio Networks has featured a daily commentary from former Sen. Fred Thompson (R-TN), titled the "Fred Thompson Report." ABC Radio launched the "Fred Thompson Report" amid growing speculation that Thompson would run for president in 2008… A Media Matters for America review of Thompson's commentaries for ABC Radio Networks revealed that he has repeatedly advanced conservative misinformation on a variety of issues.
Howard Kurtz—an Unreliable Source?
The Nation's editor wants to know, "Why is it that the mainstream media treats single-payer healthcare (Medicare for all) as a fringe idea—when, in fact, it has broad support?"
See FAIR's Action Alert: CBS's 'Sicko' Spin: Americans Don't Want Single-Payer Health—Except They Do
Rumsfeld Shopping Memoir On Iraq Failures For ‘Large Cash Advance’
The ever-shrinking group of Americans who believe invading Iraq was a good idea may soon receive some support, in the form of a memoir by one of its key architects, Donald Rumsfeld. The former defense secretary has the publishing world “abuzz” over the possibility that he may write a book “justifying the military strategy for the war in Iraq.”
Find out what people are saying online
Wondering what new parents really think about co-sleeping and Ferberizing? Or what Harry Potter fans are saying about the possible spoilers circulating around the Internet? Whatever your subject, find out what folks are saying online using Omgili, a relatively new site that searches online discussions very effectively. Omgili's engine scans millions of online discussions on more than 100,000 message boards and forums.
There will be less and less need for experts, friends. And that’s a very good thing. Except it scares some folks. See below.—Caro
Cult of the Amateur
Andrew Keen, the founder of Audiocafe.com, is making waves with his latest book on The Cult of the Amateur. He stopped by to tape this Video View on how user-generated content and companies like Google and YouTube are destroying our culture. “It’s creating an increasingly inane and trivialized culture,” he told me. “One imaginary dystopia is that in 25 or 50 years, there will be no mainstream media. There’s nothing inevitable about Hollywood. There’s nothing inevitable about the music industry. The replacement for mainstream media is Twitter, it’s YouTube, it’s Wikipedia … If you read it on the Internet, it likely isn’t true.”
A lot of what we read in the mainstream media isn’t true, either, Mr. Keen. And as for inane and trivialized content, well, need I say more?—Caro Technology & ScienceToo much video gaming not addiction, yet
CHICAGO - The American Medical Association on Wednesday backed off calling excessive video-game playing a formal psychiatric addiction, saying instead that more research is needed.
Pew: One-Third of Online Teens Harassed
NEW YORK (AP) - Nearly a third of online teens say they have been harassed on the Internet, with girls and participants of social-networking sites more likely to be targets, a study finds. However, two-thirds of teens say bullying and harassment occur more often offline.
"Missing link" stem cells may speed race for cures
LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists have discovered a new type of embryonic stem cell in mice and rats that should speed up research into regenerative medicine and help in the hunt for cures to a range of diseases.
Gene therapy treatment offers Parkinson's relief
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two studies published on Thursday offer new hope for Parkinson's disease -- one using gene therapy to treat the symptoms and another investigating a drug that might stop the incurable disease in its tracks.
Sharpening Your Wits Could Outwit Alzheimer's
WEDNESDAY, June 27 (HealthDay News) -- Doing plenty of mentally-stimulating activities -- such as playing chess, reading a newspaper, or attending a play -- in old age helps reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease, according to a study of more than 700 elderly Americans… The study, published June 27 in the journal Neurology, also found that frequent mental stimulation was associated with a reduced risk of mild cognitive impairment -- a transitional stage between normal aging and dementia -- and less rapid decline in cognitive function.
“ASSOCIATED WITH.” Did you get that? Here’s another situation where they don’t seem to have determined cause-effect. What if people who are suffering from the effects of the onset of Alzheimer’s just don’t want to do mentally stimulating activities? Will forcing them to do these activities stop the disease? How will we know, if scientists keep assuming, instead of determining, which is the cause and which is the result, when there’s a correlation?—Caro
Lucy fossil approved for US tour
WASHINGTON - A fossil tour doesn't have to mean an aging rock band's reunion concerts. The State Department gave final approval Wednesday for one of the world's most famous fossils — the 3.2 million-year-old Lucy skeleton unearthed in Ethiopia in 1974 — to tour the U.S. on exhibit for the first time. EnvironmentHouse Democrats Boosting Funding for Parks, Environmental Protection
The House put spending hikes for the environment, national parks and global warming research center stage Tuesday as lawmakers worked through the Interior appropriations bill.
Bald Eagle No Longer Endangered
The American bald eagle, once nearly extinct, is making a comeback and will be removed from the list of protected species. Conservationists have hailed the successful recovery as clear evidence that the Endangered Species Act can work.
Tourism Levy of 0.5 Percent Urged To Protect Wildlife
An extra 0.5 percent should be levied on all tourism revenues and spent on protecting animals and plants from threats ranging from loss of habitats to climate change, an environmental expert said on Monday.
Researchers: Antarctica Ice Sheet Stable
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) - An ice sheet in Antarctica that is the world's largest - with enough water to raise global sea levels by 200 feet - is relatively stable and poses no immediate threat, according to new research.
U.N. Report: Desertification a Threat
BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) - Desertification represents one of the "greatest environmental challenge of our times" and could set off mass migrations of people fleeing degraded homelands, a United Nations report warned Thursday.
How to cover your 'carbon footprints' at home
Greg Whitmore isn't saving any time by going green at home. But that's all right with him. "We spend about three hours a week on recycling alone, probably. Maybe about 15 hours overall on things like that," says the 29-year-old resident of Martha's Vineyard, Mass. For more headlines, visit MakeThemAccountable.com. |
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