Jan 27, 2012
HyperSolar harnesses sunlight to produce cleaner-than-clean hydrogen fuel
Stop Embarrassing Wastage of Food in the U.S. of more than 34 million tons of food waste each year - 14% of the total solid waste stream.
EPA Food Recovery Challenge Aims to Halt Embarrassing Wastage of Food in the U.S. The US generates more than 34 million tons of food waste each year, accounting for almost 14 percent of the total municipal solid waste stream. Food waste now represents the single largest component of municipal solid waste reaching landfills and incinerators. The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Food Recovery Challenge is a new initiative that challenges participants to reduce as much of their food waste as possible. Parties sign up through EPA’s Waste Wise program and then must conduct a food waste assessment within 60 days of joining. They then commit to a three-year goal for reducing the amount of food waste reaching landfills accompanied by tracking and reporting on their successes through steps such as modifying food purchasing, changing food production and handling practices, reducing excessive portion size, donations to the needy, and composting/anaerobic digestion. VIA - David Schaller of Sustainable Practices
India Now Produces Power More Cheaply FromSolar Than From Diesel - Bloomberg
Bloomberg - India is producing power from solar cells more cheaply than by burning diesel for the first time, spurring billionaire Sunil Mittal and Coca-Cola Company’s mango supplier to jettison the fuel in favor of photovoltaic panels. The cost of solar energy in India declined by 28 percent since December 2010, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. The cause was a 51 percent drop in panel prices last year as the world’s 10 largest manufacturers doubled output capacity. India has a goal to have installed 20,000 megawatts of solar-energy capacity by 2022, about equal to 18 new nuclear reactors. India joins pockets of Italy, Spain and Hawaii where rising fuel costs and lower panel prices make solar pay for itself without state subsidies.
VIA - David Schaller of Sustainable Practices
VIA - David Schaller of Sustainable Practices
Big planning for $10 billion dollar "Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act Reauthorization of 2011" Bill s.1855
Please see full s.1855 at CBO:
Excerpts below
s.1855 would amend the Public Health Service Act and the United States Code to authorize funding for certain activities carried out by the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Veterans Affairs (VA) that would support the readiness of the public health system to address public health and medical emergencies.
Based on information provided by HHS, VA, and other outside experts, CBO estimates that implementing the bill would cost about $10 billion over the 2012-2017 period,
Strategic National Stockpile.
The Strategic National Stockpile is a national repository of pharmaceuticals, medical supplies, and other equipment for the rapid delivery of medical countermeasures in response to a catastrophic health event. Procurement of Countermeasures.
Project Bioshield, a fund established for the procurement of biodefense countermeasures, Advance Development of Countermeasures.
The Biomedical Advance Research and Development Authority (BARDA) office supports the advance development of medical countermeasures to respond to bioterrorism and other public health emergencies.
Hospital Preparedness.
The bill would authorize a grant program that provides funding to entities such as states, localities, or health care facilities to enhance hospital capacity to handle a surge of patients in the event of a public health emergency.
National Disaster Medical System (NDMS).
The bill would authorize funding for the NDMS, which is a partnership between HHS, VA, and the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security. It provides for medical assistance to states and localities when responding to a large-scale public health emergency. National Advisory Committee on Children and Disasters.
S. 1855 would establish a National Advisory Committee on Children and Disasters. This committee would provide advice regarding the needs of children in relation to the preparation for and response to hazards and emergencies. The committee would contain as many as 15 people, most drawn from federal agencies. Spending Subject to Appropriation for the Department of Veterans Affairs
S. 1855 would authorize the appropriation of $157 million for each year over the 2012-2016 period for emergency preparedness activities at medical centers operated by VA. Funding for emergency preparedness activities in 2012 and 2013 were provided in advance appropriations. Those funding levels are largely consistent with both the 2011 appropriation of $155 million and the proposed authorization levels in S. 1855; therefore, CBO estimates that no additional funding would be required for 2012 or 2013. Assuming appropriation of authorized amounts for years after 2013, CBO estimates that implementing this provision would cost $465 million over the 2014-2017 period.
Direct Spending
Project Bioshield, a special reserve fund established for the procurement of biodefense countermeasures, is funded by an appropriation of approximately $5.6 billion for fiscal years 2004-2013. S. 1855 would change the contract terms for Project Bioshield procurements from a maximum of eight years to a maximum of 10 years. PLEASE read full at:
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/127xx/doc12706/s1855.pdf
Excerpts below
s.1855 would amend the Public Health Service Act and the United States Code to authorize funding for certain activities carried out by the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Veterans Affairs (VA) that would support the readiness of the public health system to address public health and medical emergencies.
Based on information provided by HHS, VA, and other outside experts, CBO estimates that implementing the bill would cost about $10 billion over the 2012-2017 period,
- The bill contains provisions that would authorize funding for activities administered by HHS and the VA to improve the coordination of preparedness activities and to increase medical system capacity in the event of a public health emergency.
- Spending Subject to Appropriation for the Department of Health and Human Services
- The majority of HHS activities would be carried out by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Health, and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. S. 1855 would authorize funding through 2016 for activities related to preparing for a public health emergency at levels similar to the appropriations for recent years.
- State and Local Public Health Security. S. 1855 would allow CDC to continue to administer cooperative agreements with state and local governments to help prepare for public health emergencies. S. 1855 would require entities receiving funding through those cooperative agreements to include planning for pandemic influenza as part of their all-hazards public health emergency preparedness and response plan.
Strategic National Stockpile.
The Strategic National Stockpile is a national repository of pharmaceuticals, medical supplies, and other equipment for the rapid delivery of medical countermeasures in response to a catastrophic health event. Procurement of Countermeasures.
Project Bioshield, a fund established for the procurement of biodefense countermeasures, Advance Development of Countermeasures.
The Biomedical Advance Research and Development Authority (BARDA) office supports the advance development of medical countermeasures to respond to bioterrorism and other public health emergencies.
Hospital Preparedness.
The bill would authorize a grant program that provides funding to entities such as states, localities, or health care facilities to enhance hospital capacity to handle a surge of patients in the event of a public health emergency.
National Disaster Medical System (NDMS).
The bill would authorize funding for the NDMS, which is a partnership between HHS, VA, and the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security. It provides for medical assistance to states and localities when responding to a large-scale public health emergency. National Advisory Committee on Children and Disasters.
S. 1855 would establish a National Advisory Committee on Children and Disasters. This committee would provide advice regarding the needs of children in relation to the preparation for and response to hazards and emergencies. The committee would contain as many as 15 people, most drawn from federal agencies. Spending Subject to Appropriation for the Department of Veterans Affairs
S. 1855 would authorize the appropriation of $157 million for each year over the 2012-2016 period for emergency preparedness activities at medical centers operated by VA. Funding for emergency preparedness activities in 2012 and 2013 were provided in advance appropriations. Those funding levels are largely consistent with both the 2011 appropriation of $155 million and the proposed authorization levels in S. 1855; therefore, CBO estimates that no additional funding would be required for 2012 or 2013. Assuming appropriation of authorized amounts for years after 2013, CBO estimates that implementing this provision would cost $465 million over the 2014-2017 period.
Direct Spending
Project Bioshield, a special reserve fund established for the procurement of biodefense countermeasures, is funded by an appropriation of approximately $5.6 billion for fiscal years 2004-2013. S. 1855 would change the contract terms for Project Bioshield procurements from a maximum of eight years to a maximum of 10 years. PLEASE read full at:
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/127xx/doc12706/s1855.pdf
Smartest words on primary debate... and dumbest. Wow these two are our choices?
How would Newt and Mitt handle U.S. future crisis...By distracting from the crisis?
thestatecolumn.com...The final Republican presidential candidate debate before the Florida primary election featured a lot of back and forth “distracting” from the issues between Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney, according to Rick Santorum....After the crowd had seemingly become transfixed on the quarreling between the two front runners..
...That took the attention away from the original intent of the question, which asked how each of the candidates would prevent a future crisis from happening again.
Haase - I think Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Sounded the most political when she Noted:
"The good news is maybe we can even get more done if they are not paying attention, so just factor that in." And just when I thought these two antagonist's couldn't bicker anymore about nothing issues... Newt drops a bomb shell:
"By the end of my second term, we will have the first permanent base on the moon and it will be American," Mr Gingrich said. Haase - I would only remind Newt that we already have plans for a moon base partnership... and that I would even caution against that until we have proven that we have intelligent life here on earth, to save ourselves, from ourselves.
thestatecolumn.com...The final Republican presidential candidate debate before the Florida primary election featured a lot of back and forth “distracting” from the issues between Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney, according to Rick Santorum....After the crowd had seemingly become transfixed on the quarreling between the two front runners..
“These two gentlemen, who are out distracting from the most important issues we have been playing petty personal politics,” said Mr. Santorum. “Can we set aside that Newt was a member of Congress and used the skills that he developed as a member of Congress to go out and advise companies — and that Mitt Romney is a wealthy guy because he worked hard and he’s going out and working hard? And you guys should that alone and focus on the issues.”
...That took the attention away from the original intent of the question, which asked how each of the candidates would prevent a future crisis from happening again.
Haase - I think Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Sounded the most political when she Noted:
"The good news is maybe we can even get more done if they are not paying attention, so just factor that in." And just when I thought these two antagonist's couldn't bicker anymore about nothing issues... Newt drops a bomb shell:
"By the end of my second term, we will have the first permanent base on the moon and it will be American," Mr Gingrich said. Haase - I would only remind Newt that we already have plans for a moon base partnership... and that I would even caution against that until we have proven that we have intelligent life here on earth, to save ourselves, from ourselves.
S. 1149, Geothermal Production Expansion Act of 2011
CBO- S. 1149 would authorize BLM to offer noncompetitive leases of up to 640 acres for lands adjacent to known geothermal discoveries. Under the bill, a company that identified a geothermal resource that extended onto federal land adjacent to company-controlled lands could acquire the lease for a specified amount (bonus bid) determined by BLM to be equivalent to the fair market value rather than an amount determined through a competitive auction. In addition to paying fair market value for the parcel, the bill would require any company awarded such a noncompetitive lease to make annual rental payments equal to those required for lands that are leased competitively. Finally, a company could receive only one noncompetitive lease for each known geothermal discovery.
Under current law, 75 percent of all receipts from bonus bids, rents, and royalties related to the development of geothermal resources on federal lands is paid to the states and counties in which those lands are located. The remaining 25 percent is deposited in the U.S. Treasury. CBO estimates that awarding noncompetitive leases for lands adjacent to known geothermal discoveries could reduce bonus bids on those parcels; however, because the legislation would require the companies that are awarded those leases to pay fair market value for them, we estimate that implementing the bill would not reduce the amount of receipts deposited in the U.S. Treasury by more than $500,000 in any year.
Please continue reading at:
Update: America Has A $16.4 Trillion Debt Ceiling In 52-44 Senate Vote | ZeroHedge
Update: the Senate has failed to reject a bid to stop the debt ceiling hike with a simple 52 vote majority all of it along party lines. The US now has $16.4 trillion in debt capacity as of Friday. Since roughly $100 billion was plundered from Pension Funds in the past month, The US will have about $15.4 trillion in debt with the Monday DTS. The question then is how long will the $1 trillion in debt capacity last: at $125 billion/month it won't be enough to carry the US past the election without another massive debt ceiling spectacle.
Lawmakers question Google on its new privacy practices - Computerworld
Google's decision this week to share user data across its online services has caught the attention of eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives, with the lawmakers asking whether the changes will compromise privacy. Please continue reading at:
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9223749/Lawmakers_question_Google_on_i...
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9223749/Lawmakers_question_Google_on_i...
Apple customers voice mixed reaction to reports of poor working conditions
Amid renewed reports of poor working conditions at factories making Apple products in China, it's unclear whether customers will demand change.
If The Economy Is Improving….?
Everywhere you turn these days, someone is proclaiming that the economy is improving.
When they try to convince you that the economy is getting better, ask them these questions....
If the economy is getting better, then why did new home sales in the United States hit a brand new all-time record low during 2011?
If the economy is getting better, then why are there 6 million less jobs in America today than there were before the recession started?
If the economy is getting better, then why is the average duration of unemployment in this country close to an all-time record high?
If the economy is getting better, then why has the number of homeless female veterans more than doubled?
If the economy is getting better, then why has the number of Americans on food stamps increased by 3 million since this time last year and by more than 14 million since Barack Obama entered the White House?
If the economy is getting better, then why has the number of children living in poverty in America risen for four years in a row?
If the economy is getting better, then why is the percentage of Americans living in "extreme poverty" at an all-time high?
If the economy is getting better, then why is the Federal Housing Administration on the verge of a financial collapse?
If the economy is getting better, then why do only 23 percent of American companies plan to hire more employees in 2012?
If the economy is getting better, then why has the number of self-employed Americans fallen by more than 2 million since 2006?
If the economy is getting better, then why did an all-time record low percentage of U.S. teens have a job last summer?
If the economy is getting better, then why does median household income keep declining? Overall, median household income in the United States has declined by a total of 6.8% since December 2007 once you account for inflation.
If the economy is getting better, then why has the number of Americans living below the poverty line increased by 10 million since 2006?
If the economy is getting better, then why is the average age of a vehicle in America now sitting at an all-time high?
If the economy is getting better, then why are 18 percent of all homes in the state of Florida currently sitting vacant?
If the economy is getting better, then why are 19 percent of all American men between the ages of 25 and 34 living with their parents?
If the economy is getting better, then why does the number of "long-term unemployed workers" stay so high? When Barack Obama first took office, the number of "long-term unemployed workers" in the United States was approximately 2.6 million. Today, that number is sitting at 5.6 million.
Jan 26, 2012
Warren Buffett's Long Quest to Build A Geothermal Power Plant
Forbes has an article on Warren Buffett's interest in geothermal power - Warren Buffett's Long Quest to Build A Geothermal Power Plant.
Here’s a sobering sign of the challenges facing the geothermal industry: Even Warren Buffett has spent the better part of a decade trying to build a single geothermal power plant in California.MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company, which is controlled by Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, received the green light from state regulators back in 2003 for its 159-megawatt Black Rock project in the desert east of San Diego. But by 2008, MidAmerican’s CalEnergy subsidiary had yet to break ground on Black Rock as required by its license, and with the economy in free fall as the financial crisis took hold the California Energy Commission granted the company a three-year extension to begin construction.With that deadline approaching last month, regulators gave CalEnergy another three-year extension after the company cited obstacles ranging from financing and securing a spot on the transmission system to a steam pipe shortage, according to commission records. CalEnergy now has until Dec. 18, 2014 to start putting steel into the ground.“I’d love to see this industry develop faster,” Karen Douglas, a member of the California Energy Commission, said in something of an understatement at a geothermal industry roundtable discussion in San Francisco on Wednesday.That’s not just a bureaucratic platitude. Douglas, the former chair of the energy commission, noted that existing geothermal plants currently provide 4.5% of California’s electricity and are crucial to meeting the state’s ambitious renewable energy targets, especially as aging nuclear power plants are mothballed in the years ahead as their licenses expire. ...After all, geothermal plants, which tap reservoirs of underground hot water to create steam that drives electricity-generating turbines, use decades-old technology that produces power around the clock, unlike solar and wind. And given there’s a potential 7,000 to 8,000 megawatts of geothermal energy to be tapped in California, the opportunity would seem to be boundless.
Please continue reading at:
Australian Government tries to hide its own peak oil report
peakenergy - I find myself somewhat surprised some local peak oil activists managed to get the odious Piers Akerman at the awful Daily Telegraph to print this story, but I guess stranger things have happened - TOD ANZ points to the story - Australian Government tries to hide its own peak oil report.
The Daily Telegraph has revealed how the Australian government has attempted to suppress its own report on peak oil. The response from the New Zealand government had been equally secretive and obfuscating.The Report by the Australian Bureau of Infrastructure Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE) is called “Transport Energy Futures; long-term oil supply trends and predictions” and can be downloaded as a pdf
The 470 page report concludes that world oil production will peak in approximately 2016 and then begin to decline for the rest of the century and beyond."Given the growth in deep and non-conventional oil balancing the shallow decline in conventional production, it is predicted that we have entered about 2006 onto a slightly upward slanting plateau in potential oil production that will last only to about 2016-eight years from now (2008).
Please continue reading at:
Why Is Type 1 Diabetes Rising Worldwide? wired.com
wired.com - One of the best-elaborated hypothesis suggests that lack of exposure to infections in childhood keeps the various components of the immune system from learning how to hold themselves in balance. If this sounds familiar, it’s because it’s a version of the “hygiene hypothesis” (past posts here, here and here), which says that a too-clean childhood can lead to allergies later in life.
The diabetes version of this hypothesis explores whether conditions that are a proxy for exposure to infections — not having older siblings in the house, not attending day care, being born by Caesarean — can have an effect on the occurrence of diabetes. No clear culprit has been found yet.
Some researchers say it is possible that obesity may play a role. In type 2 diabetes, tissues in the body that receive the hormone insulin, which regulates blood sugar, become insensitive to it. In type 1, the body destroys the insulin-producing cells. But an “overload” hypothesis is now suggesting that if a child is obese to begin with, that could prime the insulin-producing cells for failure, with the auto-immune attack pushing them over the edge.
If obesity is an explanation, it’s not a comforting one. As the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics noted today, a whopping percentage of United States adults — 36 percent — are obese. And the trend is not reversing. By 2048, according to Johns Hopkins researchers whose work is discussed in my story, every adult in America will be at least obese of the current trend continues.
Jan 25, 2012
Local Public Health Preparedness for Radiological and Nuclear Incidents
Local Public Health Preparedness for Radiological and Nuclear Incidents (PDF)Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General Why We Did This Study According to the 2010 National Security Strategy, the American people face no greater or more urgent danger than a terrorist attack with a nuclear weapon. If State and local [...]
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CRS — Nuclear Power Plant Design and Seismic Safety Considerations
Nuclear Power Plant Design and Seismic Safety Considerations (PDF) Source: Congressional Research Service (via Federation of American Scientists) The earthquake and subsequent tsunami that devastated Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station and the earthquake that forced the North Anna, VA, nuclear power plant’s temporary shutdown have focused attention on the seismic criteria applied to siting [...]
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CRS — Economic Downturns and Crime
Economic Downturns and Crime (PDF) Source: Congressional Research Service (via Federation of American Scientists) The United States is currently recovering from a broad recession that is considered the longest- lasting economic downturn since World War II. Various indicators of economic strength, such as the unemployment rate and foreclosures, reached their worst showings in decades during [...]
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The Report on Carcinogens: What Went Wrong and What Can Be Done to Fix It
The Report on Carcinogens: What Went Wrong and What Can Be Done to Fix It Source: Competitive Enterprise Institute There is nothing wrong in principle with publishing periodic reports identifying substances that pose carcinogenic risks to humans. Cancer remains a serious disease even though advances in diagnosis and treatment have rendered most types much less [...]
Please continue reading at:
CRS — Chemical Facility Security: Issues and Options for the 112th Congress
Chemical Facility Security: Issues and Options for the 112th Congress (PDF) Source: Congressional Research Service (via Federation of American Scientists) The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has statutory authority to regulate chemical facilities for security purposes. The 112th Congress has extended this authority through October 4, 2012. The 112th Congress has debated the scope and [...]
Please continue reading at:
The High-Radiation Lives and Risks of Nuclear-Nomad Subcontractors
"Gabrielle Hecht has an interesting piece on the subcontracted workers of the nuclear energy industry, in Japan and elsewhere. These workers face far more exposure to radiation than salaried workers; in Japan, 90% of the nuclear workforce is contracted. This is an eye-opening look at a practice that 'carries exceptional risks and implications. And until these are recognized and documented, complex social and physiological realities will continue to be hidden.' A good read, but I would like to know how the Fukushima 50 are doing."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Ultra-sustainable zHome becomes the first community of WaterSense labeled new homes in the Nation (W
zHome – the ultra-sustainable, 10-unit townhome development in Issaquah, WA that is redefining the future of housing – is also the first community in the Nation in which every home has earned the WaterSense label for new homes
Please continue reading at:
EPA Awards Over $470,000 to Provide Safe, Reliable Drinking Water to Louisiana Residents (LA)
A new grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will help provide safe, reliable drinking water to the people of Louisiana
Please continue reading at:
Jon Stewart finds being rich... Hard to believe?
Filed under... Very Funny.
Jon Stewart: I Can't Believe Mitt Romney Makes $57,000 Per Day
...That's So Much More Unbelievable Than My Own $41,000 Per Day
Chinese firms selling solar panels for less than cost
Here comes that trade war over solar panels we’ve been hearing about — the one that will have unfortunate consequences for the domestic rollout of solar power.
A forthcoming study by the federal government could finally set this snowball in motion. The study reveals that Chinese solar panel makers are selling their wares at a loss, either because they have the cash reserves to take the hit or because their government is propping them up, reports Kevin Bullis at Technology Review.
The results of the study are being prepared for publication, and could be out next month. The U.S. solar panel makers who asked for the investigation have asked the U.S. government to impose tariffs that would double the price of solar panels imported from China, saying that unfair pricing has hurt their ability to be profitable.
Please continue reading by Christopher Mims at: http://grist.org/list/chinese-firms-selling-solar-panels-for-less-than-cost/
The more they make, the more they take...Gingrich slams Obama for tax on millionaires
NOTE: Obama said anyone making $1 million should pay at least 30% in income taxes, and Gingrich said the economic destruction that would follow would look like ... Wonder what Mitt thought of it :-)
The Blueprint for an America Built to Last...promotes homegrown and alternative energy sources.
whitehouse.gov, the President outlined a series of ideas to build an economy that works for everyone, one that will bring about a new era of American manufacturing, and promote homegrown and alternative energy sources.
Taken together, those ideas represent a blueprint for the future - Check it out
State of the Union Deep Dive - WhiteHouse.gov
Americans who watched an online broadcast of President Obama's 2012 State of the Union address saw something a little different: a side by side display of charts, graphs and other visual representations of why the President's policies are so important for our country and our economy. You can see the slides here, or download them at slideshare
State of the Union - Enhanced Graphics
View more documents from White House
ACA to Host Free Webinar on Chemical Data Reporting Rule; EPA Says it Will Post More Information on Byproducts by Feb. 1
ACA is hosting a free webinar for its members on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) new Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) rule requirements and electronic reporting tool. ACA’s Virtual Learning Conference will take place on Feb. 15, from 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm EST, and will be conducted by Martha Marrapese and Amanda Price of the international law firm Keller and Heckman. The focus of the new CDR information requirements is for chemical manufacturers and chemical importers, and mandates the use of new and complex electronic (online) reporting tools.
Please continue reading at:
SCAQMD Rule 1107 Continues on Hold
California's South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) remains in a holding pattern with its amendments to Rule 1107 for limiting volatile organic compounds (VOC) in the Coating of Metal Parts and Products as it works to determine how to model worker exposure to tertiary butyl acetate (TBAc) and dimethyl carbonate (DMC). Please continue reading at:
http://paint.org/news/industry-news/item/745-scaqmd-rule-1107-continues-on-ho...
http://paint.org/news/industry-news/item/745-scaqmd-rule-1107-continues-on-ho...
EPA and California DTSC Sign Memorandum of Understanding to Partner on Green Chemistry
California's Green Chemistry Initiative is being designed by its Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC). Its latest draft (Oct. 31, 2011) of the Safer Consumer Product Alternatives Regulations to implement the initiative broadens the scope of the program, and the time frames for identifying chemicals of concern and for building a priority list of products is shortened from previous iterations.
Please continue reading at:
Hackers Manipulated Railway Computers, TSA Memo Says
"Hackers, possibly from abroad, executed an attack on a Northwest rail company's computers that disrupted railway signals for two days in December, according to a government memo recapping outreach with the transportation sector during the emergency. ... While government and critical industry sectors have made strides in sharing threat intelligence, less attention has been paid to translating those analyses into usable information for the people in the trenches, who are running the subways, highways and other transit systems, some former federal officials say. The recent TSA outreach was unique in that officials told operators how the breach interrupted the railway's normal activities, said Steve Carver, a retired Federal Aviation Administration information security manager, now an aviation industry consultant, who reviewed the memo."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Amateur UAV Pilot Exposes Texas River of Blood
"Carlton Purvis of Security Management News reports that a tip from an amateur UAV enthusiast 'is what led Texas authorities to open a major criminal investigation into the waste practices of a Dallas meat packing plant.' The photo shows a river of blood."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Massive Abuse in Jails » Blog of Rights
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| Read the report >> |
aclu.org...Juan Pablo Reyes was punched by Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies over and over again in the ribs, mouth and eyes, breaking his eye socket and leaving his body badly bruised. After falling to the ground, the deputies continued to kick Reyes, an inmate at the Los Angeles County Jail, with their steel-toed boots, ignoring his cries.
And the deputies didn't stop there.
They ordered Reyes to strip and forced him to walk naked up and down the hallway of a housing module, in full view of other inmates. One deputy yelled, "Gay boy walking." Reyes began to cry, but the deputies just looked on and laughed. They then put him in a cell where he was beaten and sexually assaulted by other inmates. He desperately pled for help and to be removed from the cell, but to no avail.
Please continue reading at:
Mass Incarceration and Criminal Justice in America : The New Yorker
Over 6 million caged in America... More than under Stalin at its height
For a great many poor people in America, particularly poor black men, prison is a destination that braids through an ordinary life, much as high school and college do for rich white ones. More than half of all black men without a high-school diploma go to prison at some time in their lives. Mass incarceration on a scale almost unexampled in human history is a fundamental fact of our country today—perhaps the fundamental fact, as slavery was the fundamental fact of 1850. In truth, there are more black men in the grip of the criminal-justice system—in prison, on probation, or on parole—than were in slavery then. Over all, there are now more people under “correctional supervision” in
America—more than six million—than were in the Gulag Archipelago under Stalin at its height. That city of the confined and the controlled, Lockuptown, is now the second largest in the United States.
Please continue reading at:
Unemployment down mainly because people have left workforce
The NYT mentioned the drop in the unemployment rate to 8.5 percent from a peak of 10.0 percent in 2009 as evidence of the economy's recovery. Most of this decline is the result of people leaving the labor force. (Workers are only counted as being unemployed if they are still looking for work.) The employment to population ratio, the percentage of people with jobs, is only 0.3 percentage points above its low-point for the downturn.
The Free Press.... people of Vermont are in a race against time to prevent another Fukushima in their back yard---which is also all of ours.
In 2003 Entergy made a deal with the state of Vermont. The Louisiana-based nuke speculator said that if it could buy and operate the decrepit Vermont Yankee reactor under certain terms and conditions, the company would then agree to shut it down if the state denied it a permit to continue. The drop dead date: March 21, 2012. In the interim, VY has been found leaking radioactive tritium and much more into the ground and the nearby Connecticut River. Under oath, in public testimony, the company had denied that the pipes that leaked even existed. One of Yankee's cooling towers has also collapsed...just plain crumbled. One of Yankee's siblings---Fukushima One---has melted and exploded (VY is one of some two dozen Fukushima clones licensed in the US). In the face of these events, the legislature, in partnership with Vermont's governor, voted 26-4 to deny Entergy a permit to continue. But the company is determined to continue reaping huge profits on a 35-year-old reactor -- long since amortized at public expense -- with very cheap overhead based on slipshod operating techniques where safety always comes second. Along the way Entergy has also tried to stick Vermont Yankee into an underfunded corporate shell aimed at shielding it from all economic liabilities. To allow VY to continue fissioning, Judge Garvin Murtha latched onto Entergy's argument that the state legislature committed the horrible sin of actually discussing safety issues. These, by federal law, are reserved for Nuclear Regulatory Commission. He chose to ignore the serious breach of contract issues involved. As Deb Katz of the Citizens Awareness Network puts it: "Entergy's lawyers cherry-picked legislators' questions about safety" from a previous debate relating to nuclear waste. "Judge Murtha supported the corporation over the will of the people." Please continue reading at:
http://www.freepress.org/columns/display/7/2012/1918
http://www.freepress.org/columns/display/7/2012/1918
Google to spy on users' private data including calendars and emails
FAQ: Google’s new privacy policy - The Washington Post
What is Google doing?: In a nutshell, Google is taking information from almost all of your Google services — including Gmail, Picasa, YouTube and search — and integrating the data so that they can learn more about you. (Information from Google Books, Google Wallet and Google Chrome will not be integrated, partly for legal reasons.)
What kind of information are they collecting and integrating?:
Almost anything that’s already in the Google ecosystem: calendar appointments, location data, search preferences, contacts, personal habits based on Gmail chatter, device information and search queries, to name a few.
Can they do that?: Not under the company’s current privacy policies, but Google is introducing a new, unified policy that you can’t opt-out of.
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Why Newt Could Win? Oh.... The horror.
Politico - “Speaker Gingrich has also been a leader,” ...he was a failed leader and he had to resign in disgrace. I don’t know whether you knew that, he actually resigned after four years, in disgrace.
Romney continued: “He was investigated over an ethics panel and had to make a payment associated with that and then his fellow Republicans, 88 percent of his Republicans voted to reprimand Speaker Gingrich. He has not had a record of successful leadership.”
Then Romney got into Gingrich’s post-congressional career.
“Over the last 15 years since he left the House, he talks about great bold movements and ideas,” he told the crowd of several hundred people gathered at a building materials company here. “Well, what’s he been doing for 15 years? He’s been working as a lobbyist, yeah, he’s been working as a lobbyist and selling influence around Washington.”
www.politico.com/news/stories/0112/71802.html
Federal employees owe $1.03 billion in unpaid taxes - The Washington Post
The Washington Post...Congressional staffers owed about $10.6 million in unpaid taxes in 2010, a slight increase from the previous year and a growing slice of the roughly $1 billion owed by federal and postal workers nationwide. The figures come as Republican efforts to pass legislationallowing federal agencies to fire tax delinquent federal employeeshave slowed and as the White House continues to crack down on improper payments made by agencies to delinquent government contractors and federal beneficiaries.
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Are Expensive Batteries Worth the Extra Cost? | Wired.com
Wired... Clearly, these cheaper batteries are not nearly as good as the more expensive ones. Ok, but what about the total energy? If I integrate these three curves, I get the following stored energies:
- DG (Dollar Store) = 2983 Joules (0.829 Watt*hours).
- Energizer = 10,798 Joules (3.00 Watt*hours)
- Duracell = 9,398 Joules (2.61 Watt*hours)
It seems that maybe the Duracell and Energizer are essentially the same. Yes, the Energizer has a higher stored energy, but it also has that small jump in the current that may or may not be real. Other than that current hiccup, the curves for those two batteries look quite similar.
Are They Worth It?
Yes, the better batteries have more energy. But how much do they cost? First, for the DG batteries. I thought these were a great deal since they cost $4 for a pack of twenty. That is 20 cents per battery. You can’t beat that with a stick. What about the energy per dollar? Really, you are paying for energy – right?
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Jan. 25, 1945: Fluoridation — Better Teeth, or Commie Plot? | Wired.com
...Grand Rapids undertook a study before implementing its fluoridation project, meant to clear up any safety concerns. Fluoride protects tooth enamel but is nevertheless toxic, even potentially lethal, in concentrated form. The Grand Rapids study concluded that the benefits strongly outweighed any risks, and the program got the green light.
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New Obesity Prevention Campaign ...insensitive words and pictures are absolutely harmful to our health
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) sponsored two new billboards in Albany, NY, warning residents that cheese makes you fat in what is possibly most irresponsible way ever. The first features an obese man’s disembodied torso and the words, “Your abs on cheese.” The second features an obese woman’s butt and thighs and the words, “Your thighs on cheese.” The images make a very clear statement: fat people are disgusting.
... In Albany, home to several dairy farms, 63 percent of adults are obese. This is higher than the statewide obesity level of 59 percent. Obesity prevention is a valid cause, to be sure, but at what cost to other health issues?
According to their website, the PCRM is “a nonprofit health organization that promotes preventive medicine, conducts clinical research, and encourages higher standards for ethics and effectiveness in research.” For an organization so concerned with ethical standards, the PCRM has sunk pretty low with this offensive and damaging campaign. In the jargon of health communication ethics, the PCRM have committed a common and classic misstep: the failure to consider the unintended consequences of their message.
Just like a single food item (in this case, cheese) is not responsible for the entire obesity epidemic, obesity is not the only serious health problem facing Americans. We are also struggling with our body image and self-esteem as we cope with the barrage of photoshopped and unrealistic “ideal bodies” in the media. The National Eating Disorders Association states that “in the United States, as many as 10 million women and 1 million men are fighting a life and death battle with an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia. Millions more are struggling with binge eating disorder.”
...Physicians are taught to “do no harm.” The PRCM needs to understand that insensitive words and pictures are absolutely harmful to our health. There are better ways to educate and motivate people to make healthier food choices; ethical health campaigns do not sacrifice one health issue to promote another.
Please read more from: http://thesocietypages.org/socimages
Genius Unveils World’s First Battery-Free Wireless Mouse - inhabitat
Genius just took a big step forward for computer peripherals by launching the world’s first wireless battery-free mouse. The mighty mouse eschews wasteful AAAs and heavier lithium-ion batteries in favor of an electric double-layer ultracapacitor that requires just a quick 3 minute charge each day. The Genius DX-Eco runs on a 2.4 Ghz connection, is rated to last for 100,000 charges, and is expected to hit store shelves soon at a price point of $39.99.
Via Tech2
Please read more from: http://inhabitat.com/genius-unveils-worlds-first-battery-free-wireless-mouse/
Photo captures Westinghouse's nuclear knowledge flying around China
The NRC has been slow to embrace the latest nuclear designs. Not so the People's Republic. Will the sale of expertise to Beijing come back to haunt the U.S.?
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State of the Union highlights: energy is a top priority
President Obama's State of the Union address was heavily focused on energy development and investments into renewable energy technologies. Americans should not have to choose been environmental...
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Jan 24, 2012
Defence News | Bulletproof balls deliver fuel to front line
....The Air Portable Fuel Containers Mk 5 are enormous rubber balls which enable essential fuel supplies to be delivered by air to more remote areas of operations.
The balloon-like containers, which hold up to two tonnes of fuel each, also contain the polymer Kevlar, a flexible plastic commonly used in body armour, to keep the contents protected from enemy fire.
Measuring 4.5 feet (1.37m) in diameter when full, the Mk 5 containers can be easily transported in a sling under a helicopter or in the back of a transport aircraft. The Kevlar protection means they can also be parachuted into locations or dropped from heights of up to 25 feet (7.62m).
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HT- tartanmarine
Oyster Mushrooms Shown to Completely Destroy Disposable Diapers in 4 Months.
Disposable diapers can take as long as 500 years to break down, which means the very first disposable diaper created 40 years ago is still sitting in a dump somewhere. Now, Alethia Vázquez-Morillas, a scientist from the Autonomous Metropolitan University in Mexico City has found a way to turn that 500-year span to a mere 4 months, by using oyster mushrooms to accelerate the breakdown. Oyster mushrooms break down cellulose, the same substance that makes up the bulk of disposable diapers.Putting the two together results in 90% decomposition of the diapers in just 2 months, with full results in 4. In this particular application people would be most interested with the fact that the mushrooms get rid of diaper waste and not really care whether they were edible afterward. Read more from Discovery
Source and much thanks as always to David Schaller of Sustainable Practices, former EPA Region 8 sustainability coordinator at http://www.sustainablepractices.info
New Study Finds Huge Role for Energy Efficiency in Job Creation and Money Savings.
A major new report from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), titled “The Long-Term Energy Efficiency Potential: What the Evidence Suggests,” outlines three scenarios under which the U.S. could either continue on its current path or cut energy consumption by the year 2050 almost 60 percent, add nearly two million net jobs in 2050 and save energy consumers as much as $400 billion per year (the equivalent of $2600 per household). ACEEE Director of Economic and Social Analysis John A. “Skip” Laitner states that “The U.S. would prosper more if investments in new energy were not crowding out needed investments in energy efficiency. According to the ACEEE Report, after paying for the program costs and making the necessary investments over time, the economy will benefit from a net energy bill savings that ranges from 12 to 16 trillion dollars cumulatively from 2012 through 2050. Read on at ACEEE
UK’S First Marine Energy Park to Harvest 27 Gigawatts of Wave Power by 2050 - INHABITAT
The UK’s climate Change Minister Greg Barker announced today that South West England will soon be home to the country’s first Marine Energy Park. The park, once completed, will stretch from Bristol to the Isles of Scilly and will have the potential to generate 27 gigawatts of power from the waves and tides of the area by 2050 – the same amount of power generated by 8 coal-fired plants. The project will draw on public and private resources with a huge boost from the world’s leading wave energy research and development facilities located along the future Marine Energy Park’s coastline.
Read the rest of UK’S First Marine Energy Park to Harvest 27 Gigawatts of Wave Power
Biggest radiation storm since 2005 headed for Earth - GizMag
Another zero-emissions powerplant emerges - the Dearman Engine runs on liquid air - GizMag
Jan 23, 2012
Is OSHA Getting Tougher? For 2nd Time Ever, Federal Agency Pushes Company-Wide Settlement
inthesetimes—When the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) cites a company for workplace safety violations, it usually tells it to fix the problems at the specific location where the violation was discovered. But in an unusual—and for safety advocates, promising—move, the Department of Labor (DOL) agency is pushing for "enterprise-wide" changes as part of a violation settlement.
Last week, for the second time in OSHA history, the Labor Department told the agency to force more than 60 locations of a New England-based grocery chain to comply with federal standards protecting workers from falls and lacerations.
On Wednesday, DOL’s regional solicitor in Boston filed a complaint against the Demoulas Super Markets grocery chain, also known as Market Basket. OSHA inspections of a handful of the company's facilities revealed company-wide “fall hazards from unguarded, open-sided work and storage areas." Inspections of a number of facilities also found that the company “allegedly failed to protect employees in produce, deli, and bakery department against laceration hazards from knives and cutting instruments," according to this report. Employees at two Market Basket locations sustained at least 40 hand lacerations between 2008 and 2011.
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Toyota finds way to avoid using rare earth: report | Reuters
TOKYO (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp has developed a way to make hybrid and electric vehicles without the use of expensive rare earth metals, in which China has a near-monopoly, Japan's Kyodo News reported.
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Jan 22, 2012
California Sets Standard For Efficient Chargers | EarthTechling
The estimated 170 million chargers in California households have been wasting some serious energy. They consume 8,000 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity each year, and nearly two-thirds of that energy is wasted by inefficiency, often as heat. Battery chargers use energy in three different modes: when they are actively charging the battery; after the battery is fully charged, but the charger is still plugged in; and when disconnected from the device, but still plugged into an outlet. The new efficiency standards set limits to how much energy can be consumed during each of these modes, reducing wasted energy by 40 percent.
The California Energy Commission says that once fully implemented, the efficient chargers will save an estimated 2,200 GWh each year – enough to power 350,000 homes – while trimming Californians’ utility bills by a total of $300 million and sparing 1 million metric tons of carbon emissions.
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Toxic Schools Risk Making Kids and Teachers Sick -INHABITAT
As part of his “Toxic America” series, CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta has been investigating schools, and his findings are not good. Research suggests that at least one-third of U.S. schools have mold, dust and other indoor air quality issues that can cause asthma in students and staff. It gets worse: According to Healthy Schools Network, as many as 5 million U.S. children may be attending K-12 schools where poor air quality, hazardous chemicals and other unhealthy conditions can make everyone sick. And it isn’t just indoor air quality that’s the problem — the outdoor air at many schools is toxic enough to cause asthma and cancer.
READ MORE here
Idaho Samizdat: Safety first in Idaho...an uncontrolled release of radioactivity from plutonium reactor fuel.
An editorial published by the Idaho Falls Post Register nails it in one
On November 8 a group of 16 workers at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Materials Fuels Complex (MFC) were contaminated by an uncontrolled release of radioactivity from plutonium reactor fuel.An accident investigation report prepared by the Department of Energy released Jan 19 says the accident was preventable and that lab management missed several opportunities to take steps to stop something like it from injuring workers.The report also found that the lab erred in not activating its emergency response quickly enough which may have compromised the medical treatment of the affected workers.The 16 workers were exposed to plutonium when a container holding a fuel element was opened in the process of preparing it to be shipped to another facility. Among the 16 exposed, 13 tested positive for radioactive contamination on their clothes and two were found to have inhaled radioactive particles. A lab spokesman said it is believed the exposure levels were "minimal" and all 16 workers were back on the job the next day with no signs of radiation sickness.The DOE safety report says that the lab's prime contractor, the Battelle Energy Alliance (BEA), should have paid more attention to the documentation about the plutonium fuel elements and taken more precautions in guiding the work. 
According to the report, knowledge of the fuel was not transferred to the lab when the Argonne National Laboratory - West site was transferred from the Office of Science to the Office on Nuclear Energy in 2005. It noted that a 2009 White Paper by an Independent Safety Review Committee that described problems with the plutonium fuel elements went unrecognized for its significance by the current lab management.Finally, the DOE report said the work order for the project lacked an appropriate hazard analysis and the identification of means of mitigating any problems.The decommissioned nuclear reactor involved in the accident is part of a massive cleanup project involving spent nuclear fuel, radioactive waste, and other irradiated materials.
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| The Materials Fuel Complex (MFC) located 26 miles west of Idaho Falls, ID |
According to the report, knowledge of the fuel was not transferred to the lab when the Argonne National Laboratory - West site was transferred from the Office of Science to the Office on Nuclear Energy in 2005. It noted that a 2009 White Paper by an Independent Safety Review Committee that described problems with the plutonium fuel elements went unrecognized for its significance by the current lab management.Finally, the DOE report said the work order for the project lacked an appropriate hazard analysis and the identification of means of mitigating any problems.The decommissioned nuclear reactor involved in the accident is part of a massive cleanup project involving spent nuclear fuel, radioactive waste, and other irradiated materials.Please continue reading at:
H.R. 3404 is about time... We started drug testing in the gov sector
A bill to establish in the Department of the Interior an Under Secretary for Energy, Lands, and Minerals and a Bureau of Ocean Energy, an Ocean Energy Safety Service, and an Office for Natural Resources Revenue, and for other purposes
$5.8 trillion...The Cost of U.S. Nuclear Weapons - Brookings Institution
Brookings Institution...It took four years of sifting through government records and doing rigorous analysis to come up with the bottom line: $5.5 trillion dollars. If future cleanup, stockpiling and dismantlement is included, that rises to $5.8 trillion. Even with the Cold War over, the United States is spending $35 billion a year—14 percent of the defense budget, or $96 million a day—on nuclear efforts of which about $25 billion goes for operation and maintenance of the nuclear arsenal. The rest is spent on cleanup, arms control verification, and ballistic missile defense research. http://www.brookings.edu/projects/archive/nucweapons/silverberg.aspx
Why High Tech Manufacturing Jobs Aren’t Coming Back to the U.S. - NYTimes.com
...Why can’t that work come home? Mr. Obama asked. Mr. Jobs’s reply was unambiguous. “Those jobs aren’t coming back,” he said, according to another dinner guest. (at Apple)...A foreman immediately roused 8,000 workers inside the company’s dormitories, according to the executive. Each employee was given a biscuit and a cup of tea, guided to a workstation and within half an hour started a 12-hour shift fitting glass screens into beveled frames. Within 96 hours, the plant was producing over 10,000 iPhones a day. “The speed and flexibility is breathtaking,” the executive said. “There’s no American plant that can match that.” …“The entire supply chain is in China now,” said another former high-ranking Apple executive. “You need a thousand rubber gaskets? That’s the factory next door. You need a million screws? That factory is a block away. You need that screw made a little bit different? It will take three hours.” Please continue reading at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/business/apple-america-and-a-squeezed-middl...
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/business/apple-america-and-a-squeezed-middl...
Vermont Can’t Shut Down Nuclear Plant, Judge Rules - NYTimes.com
Federal judge says states can't protect themselves against nuclear plants...
NY Times - A federal judge on Thursday blocked Vermont from forcing the Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor to shut down when its license expires in March, saying that the state is trying to regulate nuclear safety, which only the federal government can do.
The nuclear operator filed a lawsuit last year challenging the constitutionality of a state law giving the Vermont Legislature veto power over operation of the reactor when its original 40-year license expires.
In an extensive review of the legislative record, Judge Murtha pointed out in his ruling that in remarks “too numerous to recount here,” state lawmakers and witnesses made clear that their effort to close the plant was “grounded in radiological safety concerns” — the province of the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The commission has already granted Vermont Yankee a 20-year license extension.
...Gov. Peter Shumlin said in a statement that he was “very disappointed” in the decision, adding, “I continue to believe that it is in Vermont’s best interest to retire the plant.” He said he would wait to hear from the state attorney general before commenting on an appeal.
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Full Text Reports...Waste-to-Energy Facilities Provide Significant Economic Benefits (PDF)
Source: Solid Waste Association of North America
From press release (PDF):
The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) released a white paper titled “Waste-to-Energy Facilities Provide Significant Economic Benefits.” The purpose of this white paper is to illustrate the financial success of waste-to-energy operations throughout the United States. Waste-to-energy is a reliable and renewable form of energy that has become the basis for many of the most successful solid waste management systems in North America. More than 80 waste-to-energy plants throughout the United States have allowed municipalities to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and waste to landfills, while providing significant financial benefits to their communities.
The paper highlights a number of economic benefits communities achieve by investing in waste-to-energy such as additional revenues generated from the sale of recovered metals and renewable energy. These revenue streams have been used to fund other solid waste activities as well as loan re-payment.
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Full Text Reports...The long-term energy efficiency potential: What the evidence suggests
Source: American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy
America is thinking too small when it comes to energy efficiency, while also making the mistake of “crowding out” economically beneficial investments in energy efficiency by focusing on riskier and more expensive bids to develop new energy sources, according to a major new report from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).
Titled The Long-Term Energy Efficiency Potential: What the Evidence Suggests, the new ACEEE report outlines three scenarios under which the U.S. could either continue on its current path or cut energy consumption by the year 2050 almost 60 percent, add nearly two million net jobs in 2050, and save energy consumers as much as $400 billion per year (the equivalent of $2600 per household annually).
According to ACEEE, the secret to major economic gains from energy efficiency is a more productive investment pattern of increased investments in energy efficiency, which would allow lower investments in power plants and other supply infrastructure, thereby substantially lowering overall energy expenditures on an economy-wide basis in the residential, commercial, industrial, transportation, and electric power sectors.
Quote from: http://fulltextreports.com/2012/01/18/the-long-term-energy-efficiency-potential-what-the-evidence-suggests/
Jan 21, 2012
Utah gives green light to nuclear power plant | The Salt Lake Tribune
Plans for Utah’s first nuclear power plant cleared a big hurdle Friday, when State Engineer Kent Jones OK’d the use of Green River water to cool the proposed reactors.
Proponents called the decision an important step, made after lengthy and painstaking review. But critics said lawsuits are almost certain in light of the desert river’s importance for farmers, recreationists, endangered fish and some of the other 25 million people who rely on the water downstream.
"The state of Utah has decided to up the contention over the Colorado," said John Weisheit, whose Moab-based environmental group was among the 200 organizations and individuals to protest the water proposal.
"There’s going to be litigation between the states," he predicted, "because [Utah officials] are allocating water that isn’t there. Someone upstream or someone downstream is going to suffer."
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OBAMA BY THE NUMBERS | RNC: Republican National Committee | GOP
NOTE- While a powerful figure... President Obama, is only one person in our government and hardly the only person responsible for this fiscal disaster. Yes he is on the list, but I would put him somewhere towards the bottom of the blame pile.
Yet if I am the RNC, I would have a field day... Too bad they don't have a candidate even they support for more than a couple weeks.
$45.1 Trillion: Total Federal Spending Proposed By Obama’s FY2012 Budget Through 2021.(OMB, 9/1/11)
$24.0 Trillion: Projected Federal Debt In 2021 Due To Obama’s Binge Spending. (OMB, 9/1/11)
$15.2 Trillion: Current National Debt ($15,236,541,899,973.10). (U.S. Treasury Department, Accessed 1/9/12)
$9.1 Trillion: Amount Obama’s FY2012 Budget Would Add To The Debt Through FY2021.(OMB, 9/1/11)
$6.4 Trillion: Cumulative Deficits Caused By President Obama’s Deficit Reduction Proposal. (OMB, 9/19/11)
$5.2 Trillion:
Total Interest Payments On The National Debt Due To Obama’s Proposed Budget, FY2012-2021. (OMB, 9/1/11)
$4.6 Trillion:
Added To The National Debt Since Obama Took Office. (U.S. Treasury Department, Accessed 1/9/12)
$2.6 Trillion:
True Cost Of ObamaCare Once Fully Implemented. (Office Of The Speaker Of The U.S. House Of Representatives, Report, 1/6/11)
$1.75 Trillion:
Annual Cost Of Federal Regulations. (Small Business Administration, September 2010)
$1.57 Trillion:
Tax Hikes In Obama’s Deficit Reduction Proposal. (OMB, 9/19/11)
$1.416 Trillion:
Federal Budget Deficit For FY2009 – Highest In U.S. History. (aaaa
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