August | 2009 | Wellsy's World

Browsing All Posts published on »August, 2009«

A molecule captured for the human eye

August 31, 2009

Above is the actual image of a molecule of pentacene, captured by atomic force microscopy by a team at IBM. Forgive this science geek’s momentary wonder at the actual physical representation of what we all saw via ball-and-stick models in chemistry. Images like this and those of the Hubble Space Telescope capture the power of […]

Barney Frank joins Ron Paul in push for Fed audit

August 31, 2009

At a recent town hall, Rep. Barney Frank told his constituents he planned legislation to restrict the Federal Reserve’s emergency lending powers and to subject the central bank to a “complete audit.” He’s coming late to the party started by Rep. Ron Paul, whose bill to audit the Federal Reserve has the support of over […]

Lockerbie bomber set free for oil deals, leaked docs show

August 30, 2009

Ever since the release to Libya of the bomber of Pan Am Flight 103, which exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland and killed 270 people, the decision has been steeped in well-deserved controversy. Even if you take at face value the claims of the Scottish government that it freed Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi on humanitarian grounds due to […]

Health care bill to give union health plans $10 billion

August 29, 2009

Earlier in the week, the Detroit Free Press reported that HR 3200, among its other provisions, gives $10 billion to the health plans of unions, which supporters say still isn’t enough. It’s yet another huge reason why the current health care reform proposal is unacceptable and another unnecessary bailout of an industry that has had a […]

Honduras makes Zelaya an offer he can’t refuse

August 28, 2009

In a move designed to both end the political standoff and box in the deposed leader, Honduran interim President Roberto Micheletti has made a surprising offer to the exiled Manuel Zelaya. Under the terms of the offer, Zelaya could renounce any claim to the office and return as a private citizen with no fear of […]

North Korean weapons seized on the way to Iran

August 28, 2009

The United Arab Emirates seized a ship carrying weapons made by North Korea that were on their way to Iran. The weapons, disguised as oil equipment, includes rocket launchers, detonators, and munitions for rocket-propelled grenades (Gee, you think Iran would be using that stuff against us in Iraq?) This is quite obviously a huge breach of the […]

After 26 years, Reading Rainbow ends

August 28, 2009

A PBS staple for two and a half decades, the children’s show Reading Rainbow ended today. Hosted by LeVar Burton, it was the third longest-running children’s show in PBS history. Anyone who watched the show knows Burton’s trademark line before the kids start in with their own book reviews – ” … but you don’t […]

Is the NEA pushing Obama’s agenda?

August 26, 2009

In a must-read article on Big Hollywood, Patrick Courrielche relates his musing related to conference call on August 10th hosted by the National Endowment for the Arts, the White House Office of Public Engagement, and United We Serve. The call was aimed at “a group of artists, producers, promoters, organizers, influencers, marketers, taste-makers, leaders or […]

17% of UK households don’t work, 5M Brits haven’t worked since ’97

August 26, 2009

From the Daily Mail comes a set of shocking statistics out of Great Britain that show 16.9% of households have no adult with a job, the highest rate since 1999. What’s more, the Daily Mail’s analysis says 5 million Brits haven’t worked at all since the Labour government took power in 1997. More depressing numbers include the 40% […]

Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts has died

August 26, 2009

Sen. Edward “Ted” Kennedy lost his battle with brain cancer late on Tuesday night at the age of 77. His death marks the end of an era that saw him serve in the Senate since 1962. He goes to that eternal sleep to be greeted by his brothers, John and Robert, long ago cut down […]

Get your drink on – here’s more great economic news

August 25, 2009

The title of the post says it all, really. The Office of Management and Budget released figures that show, along with an increased 10-year deficit projection of $9 trillion, a doubling of the federal debt by 2019 that will be 75% of America’s GDP. What’s more, unemployment is expected to hit 10% this year and […]

Probe of CIA questioning, new interrogation group announced

August 24, 2009

Continuing the political theater over the CIA and its interrogation practices, Attorney General Eric Holder announced he would appoint prosecutor John Durham to probe several cases where the agency may have violated laws. The move has created tension between the White House and the CIA, with freshly minted CIA Director Leon Panetta involved in a profanity-filled […]

NYT: 57% of Obama appointments not yet filled

August 24, 2009

Shortly after the election, I heard several pronouncements extolling Obama’s transition as the smoothest in American history among other accolades, all of which were hyperbolic works of extreme aggrandizement. Never mind the several appointees that had tax problems and other issues, but that’s neither here nor there. What’s interesting is that seven months in, the […]

FactCheck.org – Actually, abortion will be covered under health care bill

August 23, 2009

In addition to other rebuttals against opponents of the current health care bill, President Obama and other members of the left have laughed off suggestions that abortions will be paid for under the House proposal. The President called it a “fabrication,” and I’ve read many other articles treating the charge as ridiculous as stating the earth […]

Obama admin increases deficit projections to $9 trillion

August 21, 2009

In a Friday news dump, the Obama administration revised upward its deficit projection for the next 10 years by $2 trillion. The old figure was $7.108 trillion, which was awful enough, but the new projected budget shortfalls over the next decade is a whopping $9 trillion. Such a massive disparity is unsustainable if ignored or, […]