No GOPer on House Energy Committee is willing to say climate change is real

TPM:

Thirty-one Republicans on the House Energy And Commerce Committee -- the entire Republican contingent on the panel -- declined on Tuesday to vote in support of the very idea that climate change exists.

Absolutely terrified of their base. Read the rest of this post...

NPR and the V-word

First, a short humorous video about NPR:



And now, a short humorous video about the GOP effort to defund Planned Parenthood:

Read the rest of this post...

Guess which Americans don't have passports? Hint: Jesusland

Fascinating map from Richard Florida in the Atlantic:


If they got out there and saw how the rest of the world lives, they might be less interested in voting solely based on gays, guns and abortion. They also might realize that in many areas, including health care, we're hardly "number one." Read the rest of this post...

Obama looking for ways around Congress on gun policy

Good news, if there's actual follow through. This would be quite a leap for the President, learning to go it alone, expose himself, and risk the ire of his political enemiesSam Stein at Huff Post:

Faced with a Congress hostile to even slight restrictions of Second Amendment rights, the Obama administration is exploring potential changes to gun laws that can be secured strictly through executive action, administration officials say. The Department of Justice held the first in what is expected to be a series of meetings on Tuesday afternoon with a group of stakeholders in the ongoing gun-policy debates. Before the meeting, officials said part of the discussion was expected to center around the White House's options for shaping policy on its own or through its adjoining agencies and departments -- on issues ranging from beefing up background checks to encouraging better data-sharing.

The NRA said it wouldn't be caught dead attending the meetings. Perhaps the President has had enough with the GOP snubs. Read the rest of this post...

Congr. Rush Holt (also a physicist) on the U.S. exposure to nuclear disaster

A nice Rachel Maddow segment on what the disaster in Japan means for us in the U.S. How safe are we? Congressman Rush Holt of NJ, also a physicist, makes several excellent points.



As the congressman says, "We need an energy plan. We don't know how we're going to get out of our energy predicament." (But wait — ExxonMobil hasn't sold us its last drop of oil yet. Can't let that happen. Big Money says maybe we should wait.)

By the way, few people are making the point made in this excellent post by John about fail-safe nuclear plants. Yes, Virginia, they exist.

GP Read the rest of this post...

Maddow: Here's what a 'nuclear meltdown' actually is

Rachel Maddow has a very nice segment explaining — technically for lay types — what's happening inside those Japanese reactors. That is, what happened to cause the first two reactor explosions (Saturday and Monday Japan-time), and what's happening with the most recent one (Reactor No. 2). Watch:



Note the description of "total fuel meltdown" as opposed to "partial fuel meltdown" (5:10 in the clip). Total meltdown of the fuel used to be called a "China Syndrome" event — fuel so hot and corrosive that it burns through the earth to China (from a U.S. perspective). This fuel is in Japan. Would that make it a "New York Syndrome" event?

Her description of the explosion at Reactor 2, and how it is different from the others, starts at 6:05. The interview with nuclear engineer David Lochbaum (at 7:35) is also instructive.

Yours in staying informed,

GP

[Update: The term "China Syndrome" was always a metaphor. Just so no one's confused. Of course the nuclear pile would stop at the earth's core, if not a whole lot sooner — like, say, four feet down or so.] Read the rest of this post...

$10 pregnancy drug now $1500 a shot after FDA grants exclusive license

Best medical care in the world.

Many doctors are particularly frustrated with the price hike because to date, KV Pharmaceuticals has not had to bear the cost of the clinical trials used to get the drug approved, but they have announced plans to conduct further trials in the future.

"All the upfront development of the drug was done by the National Institute of Health. You and I paid for that with our tax dollars, it's not like this pharmaceutical company is trying to recoup its investments in research and development, as is usually the reason for the price of new drugs," says Dr. Kevin Ault, associate professor of gynecology and obstetrics at Emory University School of Medicine.

"And at $1,500 a shot ... to put it in perspective: If I were your obstetrician, and you had a normal delivery, including about eight office visits, I would be paid $2,500 in total for that. It's hard for me to believe that we're going to tack on 10 times that amount just for one treatment," he says.

Read the rest of this post...

Live Japanese TV coverage of disaster (in English)

I can't get the embed to work, you can watch it here. Read the rest of this post...

Independents abandoning GOPers on economy

The Republicans stormed into the Capitol promising to deliver on jobs. Not so much. So far, they've gone after the health care bill, cut funding for the IRS, PBS and Planned Parenthood -- and decided to spend millions to defend DOMA. Jobs and fixing the economy get a lot of lip service, but no action. And, people are noticing:

In a new ABC News/Washington Post poll out today, just 43 percent of Americans approve of the way President Obama is handling the economy, though more Americans say they trust Obama (46 percent) on the issue than Republicans in Congress (34 percent). http://abcn.ws/gpFL1H

What's more, by a 9-point margin Americans now see Obama as better able to handle the deficit than GOP lawmakers in Congress. That represents an 11-point drop for the GOP since December -- a period when Republicans have made cutting federal spending a centerpiece of their agenda.

And here’s another interesting fact, according to ABC polling analyst Gary Langer: “The drop in trust to handle the economy has occurred chiefly among independents, now drawing away from the GOP after rallying to its side. As recently as January, 42 percent of independents preferred the Republicans in Congress over Obama to handle the economy. Today just 29 percent say the same, and there's been a rise in the number who volunteer that they don't trust either side.”

The much sought after Independents are bailing on the GOPers.

What do the numbers mean? Here's ABC's take:

BOTTOM LINE: Voters want results, not rhetoric. And, they don't see that either side is delivering. Moreover, Americans, unlike many in Washington, aren't dogmatic about their approach to solving our fiscal woes. When asked best way to fix deficit, just 31 percent said “cutting federal spending,” just 3 percent picked “raise taxes” while a whopping 64 percent picked a “combination of both.” The basic message: neither side has a winning hand. So, trying to win this fight on “voter mandate” is a sure loser.

All the Republicans have is rhetoric. But, Americans aren't sold on the Democratic response. People in DC get very caught up in the process, but, in the real world, people want results. Not seeing so much so far. Read the rest of this post...

Possible 'worse than meltdown' scenario brewing at Japanese nuclear plant

Kyodo News:

A nuclear crisis at the quake-hit Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant deepened Tuesday as fresh explosions occurred at the site and its operator said water in a pool storing spent nuclear fuel rods may be boiling, an ominous sign for the release of high-level radioactive materials from the fuel.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. said water levels in the pool storing the spent fuel rods at its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant's No. 4 reactor may have dropped, exposing the rods. The firm said it has not yet confirmed the current water levels or started operations to pour water into the facility.

Unless the spent fuel rods are cooled down, they could be damaged and emit radioactive substances. The government's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency urged TEPCO to inject water into the pool soon to prevent heating of the fuel rods.

More from the NYT, apparently it's a VERY bad thing:

The pools, which sit on the top level of the reactor buildings and keep spent fuel submerged in water, have lost their cooling systems and the Japanese have been unable to take emergency steps because of the multiplying crises.

By late Tuesday, the water meant to cool spent fuel rods in the No. 4 reactor was boiling, Japan’s nuclear watchdog said. If the water evaporates and the rods run dry, they could overheat and catch fire, potentially spreading radioactive materials in dangerous clouds.

If any of the spent fuel rods in the pools do indeed catch fire, nuclear experts say, the high heat would loft the radiation in clouds that would spread the radioactivity.

“It’s worse than a meltdown,” said David A. Lochbaum, a nuclear engineer at the Union of Concerned Scientists who worked as an instructor on the kinds of General Electric reactors used in Japan.

Read the rest of this post...

Upon opening, US stock markets 'tumbled' as result of Japanese disaster

The calamity in Japan is having a negative economic impact on the rest of world, including the world's largest economy:

U.S. stocks plunged deep into the red, joining a global market selloff that started in Tokyo as Japan's nuclear crisis deepened and worries escalated over the human and economic toll of last week's earthquake.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dived 285 points, or 2.4%, to 11703, while the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index shed 35 points, or 2.7%, to 1261. The Nasdaq Composite tumbled 77 points, or 2.9%, to 2623.

The selloff came after news of two more explosions at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear-power plant that released large amounts of nuclear material into the atmosphere. Prime Minister Naoto Kan warned of "substantial" radiation leaks. Tokyo also suffered an aftershock in the late evening, according to Dow Jones Newswires.

The markets have picked up a bit since the opening. As of this post, the Dow is "only" down 200 points. Read the rest of this post...

Nukes: privatized profits, socialized risk

Up late last night, preoccupied by events in Japan -- what looks like a full-on nuclear power plant disaster. Melt down. Explosions. Wind-blown radiation.

On NHK TV, a government spokesman offered some advice: Don't use air ventilators to heat your cold homes. Don't go outside. If your laundry is hanging outside, don't bring it in. "You should not be exposed to the outdoor atmosphere," he said.

But rest assured, Americans: if any such thing ever happens here, the for-profit nuclear power industry will be secure. They'll be off the hook for most of the cost of any similar accident, and we, the taxpayers, will cover the bulk of any cost. Even in the event of gross negligence or willful misconduct.

What a relief. Read the rest of this post...

Latest from Reuters: 'Japan faced a potential catastrophe on Tuesday'

"Catastrophe" and "Crisis" seems to be the key words being used to describe the situation in Japan. CNN's chyron reads "Japan's Nuclear Crisis Deepens." Latest update from Reuters:

Japan faced a potential catastrophe on Tuesday after a quake-crippled nuclear power plant exploded and sent low levels of radiation floating toward Tokyo, prompting some people to flee the capital and others to stock up on essential supplies.

Prime Minister Naoto Kan urged people within 30 km (18 miles) of the facility north of Tokyo -- a population of 140,000 -- to remain indoors amid the world's most serious nuclear accident since the Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine in 1986.

Around eight hours after the explosions, the U.N. weather agency said winds were dispersing radioactive material over the Pacific Ocean, away from Japan and other Asian countries. The Geneva-based World Meteorological Organization added that weather conditions could change.

You know, this sounds like something out of the 70s or 80s. Naively, I assumed nuclear power plant operators and nations that house them would have thought through contingencies like earthquakes and tsunamis.

And, as one might expect, the economic impacts continue to grow. Japan is the the third largest economy in the world -- after the U.S. and China:

As concern about the crippling economic impact of the nuclear and earthquake disasters mounted, Japanese stocks fell as much as 14 percent before ending down 9.5 percent, compounding a slide of 7.5 percent the day before. The two-day fall has wiped some $620 billion off the market.

Read the rest of this post...

NYT editorial: The abuse of Private Manning

NYT editorial:

Philip Crowley, a State Department spokesman, committed the classic mistake of a Washington mouthpiece by telling the truth about Private Manning to a small group (including a blogger): that the military’s treatment of Private Manning was “ridiculous and counterproductive and stupid.” He resigned on Sunday.

Far more troubling is why President Obama, who has forcefully denounced prisoner abuse, is condoning this treatment. Last week, at a news conference, he said the Pentagon had assured him that the terms of the private’s confinement “are appropriate and are meeting our basic standards.” He said he could not go into details, but details are precisely what is needed to explain and correct an abuse that should never have begun.

Read the rest of this post...

NRA refuses to meet with Obama

Now there's a shocker. Someone on the right refusing to find common ground.

Let's hope the President fights the instinct to give them something for nothing in order to woo them to the table.“Why should I or the N.R.A. go sit down with a group of people that have spent a lifetime trying to destroy the Second Amendment in the United States?” said Wayne LaPierre, the longtime chief executive of the National Rifle Association.

He named Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who has almost no role in gun-related policies, and Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr.

Sounds like a lovely man. Read the rest of this post...

GOP 2012 presidential hopeful Pawlenty suddenly adopts fake southern accent to woo voters

Hey, if thrice married and multiple adulterer Newt Gingrich can woo the religious right as a family values conservative who claims he banged his mistress on his office desk because he loved his country so darn much, then Pawlenty can adopt a fake accent to trick naive GOP voters. Read the rest of this post...