http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2012/10/30/1111331/paul-ryans-budget-and-gop-sequesteration-plan-would-slash-hurricane-prediction-capabilities/
Paul Ryan’s Budget And GOP Sequesteration Plan Would Slash Hurricane Prediction Capabilities
By Climate Guest Blogger on Oct 30, 2012
by Michael Conathan
As Hurricane Sandy spins its way north across the eastern Great Lakes and into Canada, the northeast coast woke up today to find at least 25 people dead, almost 10 million without power, and monetary damages likely to approach the $20 billion mark. Wall Street is dark, coastal icons like the Atlantic City boardwalk have sustained heavy damage, and homes are flooded from Maine to the Carolinas.
First of all, we should all take a moment to thank the brilliant and tireless forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Weather Service. Without their remarkably accurate and timely forecasting capabilities, these numbers could have been so much worse. Unfortunately, if Congressional Republicans and Vice-Presidential nominee Paul Ryan get their way, next time they will be worse.
Our nation’s environmental satellites are aging, and replacements have been slow to come online. When Congress passed last year’s spending bills, cutting more than $150 million from President Obama’s request for the satellite program, the Government Accountability Office predicted that “there will likely be a gap in satellite data lasting 17 to 53 months” between the time the old satellite shuts down and when its replacement can come online.
In his proposed budget, GOP Vice-Presidential nominee Paul Ryan recommended further cuts to environmental programs—14.6 percent across the board. If these cuts were distributed equally, NOAA’s satellite program would lose more than $250 million from its 2012 funded levels.
And according to multiple sources, including the Washington Post, Palm Beach Sentinel, and the Center for American Progress’ Senior Fellow Scott Lilly, the sequestration process looming over Congress’ lame duck session would cost the program an additional $182 million.
So what does this gap in service mean for our prediction capabilities? NOAA ran an analysis in 2011 that found without data from the satellite closest to the end of its shelf life, the accuracy of its forecasts for major storms like blizzards and hurricanes would decrease by approximately 50 percent. This means more uncertainty about the storm’s intensity and direction.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Romney’s lax regulation may have fueled meningitis outbreak
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/30/romneys_lax_regulation_fueled_meningitis_outbreak/
Tuesday, Oct 30, 2012 07:45 AM EDT
by Craig Unger
The fatal meningitis epidemic sweeping the United States can now be traced to the failure of then-Gov. Mitt Romney to adequately regulate the Massachusetts pharmaceutical company that is being blamed for the deaths.
At least 344 people in 18 states have been infected by the growing public health crisis and 25 have died so far.
But the epidemic may also play a role in the presidential campaign, now that state records reveal that a Massachusetts regulatory agency found that the New England Compounding Co., the pharmaceutical company tied to the epidemic, repeatedly failed to meet accepted standards in 2004 — but a reprimand was withdrawn by the Romney administration in apparent deference to the company’s business interests.
“It goes all the way up to Mitt Romney,” said Alyson Oliver, a Michigan attorney representing victims of the outbreak. According to Oliver, on at least six occasions, NECC was cited by authorities for failure to meet regulatory standards and almost subjected to a three-year probation. “It goes directly to the heart of what Romney says about regulation, ‘Hands off. Let the companies do their thing.’”
“When the person who is supposed to be in charge of oversight does not believe oversight is necessary, this is what happens,” Oliver added.
“The philosophy of the Romney administration was to have lax regulations across the board,” Philip Johnston, a former secretary of health and human services in Massachusetts before the Romney administration, told Salon. “It speaks volumes about the tragic outcome of Romney’s view on regulatory issues. There are two dozen people who died needlessly. It was clearly the responsibility of the company to protect them, but it was also the responsibility of the government at various levels, and, as far as I’m concerned, they failed.”
.....
The owners of NECC have made campaign donations both to Romney and to Massachusetts Republican senatorial candidate Scott Brown, Salon has learned.
.....
WCVB-TV in Boston has reported that NEC president Greg Coniglario hosted a fundraiser for Sen. Scott Brown, bringing in $37,000 for the Brown campaign against Elizabeth Warren. Conigliaro and members of his family have reportedly given $10,000 of their own money to Brown.
In July, Brown was one of 10 senators to sign a letter to the Drug Enforcement Agency arguing that regulations on the compounding industry should be loosened.
Conigliaro also contributed $2,500 to the Romney for president campaign.
Tuesday, Oct 30, 2012 07:45 AM EDT
by Craig Unger
The fatal meningitis epidemic sweeping the United States can now be traced to the failure of then-Gov. Mitt Romney to adequately regulate the Massachusetts pharmaceutical company that is being blamed for the deaths.
At least 344 people in 18 states have been infected by the growing public health crisis and 25 have died so far.
But the epidemic may also play a role in the presidential campaign, now that state records reveal that a Massachusetts regulatory agency found that the New England Compounding Co., the pharmaceutical company tied to the epidemic, repeatedly failed to meet accepted standards in 2004 — but a reprimand was withdrawn by the Romney administration in apparent deference to the company’s business interests.
“It goes all the way up to Mitt Romney,” said Alyson Oliver, a Michigan attorney representing victims of the outbreak. According to Oliver, on at least six occasions, NECC was cited by authorities for failure to meet regulatory standards and almost subjected to a three-year probation. “It goes directly to the heart of what Romney says about regulation, ‘Hands off. Let the companies do their thing.’”
“When the person who is supposed to be in charge of oversight does not believe oversight is necessary, this is what happens,” Oliver added.
“The philosophy of the Romney administration was to have lax regulations across the board,” Philip Johnston, a former secretary of health and human services in Massachusetts before the Romney administration, told Salon. “It speaks volumes about the tragic outcome of Romney’s view on regulatory issues. There are two dozen people who died needlessly. It was clearly the responsibility of the company to protect them, but it was also the responsibility of the government at various levels, and, as far as I’m concerned, they failed.”
.....
The owners of NECC have made campaign donations both to Romney and to Massachusetts Republican senatorial candidate Scott Brown, Salon has learned.
.....
WCVB-TV in Boston has reported that NEC president Greg Coniglario hosted a fundraiser for Sen. Scott Brown, bringing in $37,000 for the Brown campaign against Elizabeth Warren. Conigliaro and members of his family have reportedly given $10,000 of their own money to Brown.
In July, Brown was one of 10 senators to sign a letter to the Drug Enforcement Agency arguing that regulations on the compounding industry should be loosened.
Conigliaro also contributed $2,500 to the Romney for president campaign.
Nasty campaign tactics: Phony voting instructions
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20121030/DA281HD82.html
By CURT ANDERSON
MIAMI (AP) - With a week to go until Election Day, the nasty campaign tactics are coming out.
People in Florida, Virginia and Indiana have gotten calls falsely telling them they can vote early by phone and don't need to go to a polling place. In suburban Broward County, Fla., a handful of elderly voters who requested absentee ballots say they were visited by unknown people claiming to be authorized to collect the ballots.
And there's a mysterious DVD popping up in mailboxes that purports to be a documentary raising questions about the true identity of President Barack Obama's father.
It's one more indication of just how close this presidential election is. Voting rights advocates say reports of political deception and underhandedness are on the rise.
"Unfortunately it seems like the shadowy individuals that want to prevent people from voting are doing things earlier," said Eric Marshall, legal mobilization manager at the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The organization is part of a coalition called Election Protection that is monitoring voting access and rights nationwide, including a toll-free hotline set up to take complaints.
.....
In the Broward County, Fla., case, elderly voters "were told, 'I'm an official and I'm here to pick up your absentee ballot,'" said Alma Gonzalez, a senior Florida Democratic Party official working on voter protection efforts. "There is no official who picks up your ballot."
.....
Another mysterious batch of mailings to voters in at least 23 Florida counties is being investigated by the FBI and state officials. These anonymous letters, which were postmarked from Seattle, raise questions about the voter's citizenship and provide a form that supposedly must immediately be filled out and returned to elections officials. Otherwise, the letter says, the voter's name will be purged from the rolls.
"A nonregistered voter who casts a vote in the State of Florida may be subject to arrest, imprisonment, and/or other criminal sanctions," warns one of the official-looking letters complete with eagle-and-flag logo, which appear to have been aimed mainly at registered Republicans.
Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner has asked all of the state's supervisors of elections to report any similar letters. There could also be federal charges against those responsible.
Voting rights advocates also say there have been scattered complaints of bosses ordering employees to support a particular presidential candidate or face job repercussions. And in the past, students and other groups have been the targets of robocalls falsely saying they can vote on the day after Election Day if the lines are too long.
Marshall said such misinformation tactics surface election after election because it's not illegal in most states to deceive someone about the timing or place of an election, or to lie about a candidate's political affiliation. Most laws, he said, are more geared toward preventing voter intimidation and ensuring physical access to polling places. Those who do get caught in deception usually claim it was all a big misunderstanding.
"It's very difficult to stop," he said. "The tactics have evolved but the law hasn't."
By CURT ANDERSON
MIAMI (AP) - With a week to go until Election Day, the nasty campaign tactics are coming out.
People in Florida, Virginia and Indiana have gotten calls falsely telling them they can vote early by phone and don't need to go to a polling place. In suburban Broward County, Fla., a handful of elderly voters who requested absentee ballots say they were visited by unknown people claiming to be authorized to collect the ballots.
And there's a mysterious DVD popping up in mailboxes that purports to be a documentary raising questions about the true identity of President Barack Obama's father.
It's one more indication of just how close this presidential election is. Voting rights advocates say reports of political deception and underhandedness are on the rise.
"Unfortunately it seems like the shadowy individuals that want to prevent people from voting are doing things earlier," said Eric Marshall, legal mobilization manager at the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The organization is part of a coalition called Election Protection that is monitoring voting access and rights nationwide, including a toll-free hotline set up to take complaints.
.....
In the Broward County, Fla., case, elderly voters "were told, 'I'm an official and I'm here to pick up your absentee ballot,'" said Alma Gonzalez, a senior Florida Democratic Party official working on voter protection efforts. "There is no official who picks up your ballot."
.....
Another mysterious batch of mailings to voters in at least 23 Florida counties is being investigated by the FBI and state officials. These anonymous letters, which were postmarked from Seattle, raise questions about the voter's citizenship and provide a form that supposedly must immediately be filled out and returned to elections officials. Otherwise, the letter says, the voter's name will be purged from the rolls.
"A nonregistered voter who casts a vote in the State of Florida may be subject to arrest, imprisonment, and/or other criminal sanctions," warns one of the official-looking letters complete with eagle-and-flag logo, which appear to have been aimed mainly at registered Republicans.
Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner has asked all of the state's supervisors of elections to report any similar letters. There could also be federal charges against those responsible.
Voting rights advocates also say there have been scattered complaints of bosses ordering employees to support a particular presidential candidate or face job repercussions. And in the past, students and other groups have been the targets of robocalls falsely saying they can vote on the day after Election Day if the lines are too long.
Marshall said such misinformation tactics surface election after election because it's not illegal in most states to deceive someone about the timing or place of an election, or to lie about a candidate's political affiliation. Most laws, he said, are more geared toward preventing voter intimidation and ensuring physical access to polling places. Those who do get caught in deception usually claim it was all a big misunderstanding.
"It's very difficult to stop," he said. "The tactics have evolved but the law hasn't."
ConEd prepped for big storm, got even bigger 1 Email this Story
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20121031/DA286VA80.html
Oct 30, 8:24 PM (ET)
JEFF DONN, JONATHAN FAHEY and DAVE CARPENTER
NEW YORK (AP) - Blame a very high tide driven by a full moon, the worst storm surge in nearly 200 years, and the placement of underground electrical equipment in flood-prone areas for the most extensive power outage in New York City's history.
It's like what happened at the Fukushima nuclear complex in Japan last year - without the radiation. At a Consolidated Edison substation in Manhattan's East Village, a gigantic wall of water defied elaborate planning and expectations, swamped underground electrical equipment, and left about 250,000 lower Manhattan customers without power.
Last year, the surge from Hurricane Irene reached 9.5 feet at the substation. ConEd figured it had that covered.
The utility also figured the infrastructure could handle a repeat of the highest surge on record for the area - 11 feet during a hurricane in 1821, according to the National Weather Service. After all, the substation was designed to withstand a surge of 12.5 feet.
With all the planning, and all the predictions, planning big was not big enough. Superstorm Sandy went bigger - a surge of 14 feet.
"Nobody predicted it would be that high," said ConEd spokesman Allan Drury.
At one point, nearly 1 million ConEd customers lost electricity in and near the city - a record number for the utility. But the signature event came when a surge of water pushed forward by the storm's winds poured over the banks of the East River near the substation on 13th Street.
As water poured into the substation Monday night, the blinding flash of an explosion lit the most famous skyline in the world. A huge section of the city that never sleeps fell into darkness.
.....
The most densely populated parts of the city, mostly in Manhattan and Brooklyn, are served by underground transmission wires. These offer protection from wind and falling tree limbs that plague overhead wires and make the suburbs far more vulnerable to outages.
But underground wires can flood and be more difficult to repair, especially in low-lying areas. It can be harder for workers to get to the wires because manholes flood. When water recedes, it can be harder to find problems, pull out wires and equipment, dry them, fix them, and slide them back into place.
Oct 30, 8:24 PM (ET)
JEFF DONN, JONATHAN FAHEY and DAVE CARPENTER
NEW YORK (AP) - Blame a very high tide driven by a full moon, the worst storm surge in nearly 200 years, and the placement of underground electrical equipment in flood-prone areas for the most extensive power outage in New York City's history.
It's like what happened at the Fukushima nuclear complex in Japan last year - without the radiation. At a Consolidated Edison substation in Manhattan's East Village, a gigantic wall of water defied elaborate planning and expectations, swamped underground electrical equipment, and left about 250,000 lower Manhattan customers without power.
Last year, the surge from Hurricane Irene reached 9.5 feet at the substation. ConEd figured it had that covered.
The utility also figured the infrastructure could handle a repeat of the highest surge on record for the area - 11 feet during a hurricane in 1821, according to the National Weather Service. After all, the substation was designed to withstand a surge of 12.5 feet.
With all the planning, and all the predictions, planning big was not big enough. Superstorm Sandy went bigger - a surge of 14 feet.
"Nobody predicted it would be that high," said ConEd spokesman Allan Drury.
At one point, nearly 1 million ConEd customers lost electricity in and near the city - a record number for the utility. But the signature event came when a surge of water pushed forward by the storm's winds poured over the banks of the East River near the substation on 13th Street.
As water poured into the substation Monday night, the blinding flash of an explosion lit the most famous skyline in the world. A huge section of the city that never sleeps fell into darkness.
.....
The most densely populated parts of the city, mostly in Manhattan and Brooklyn, are served by underground transmission wires. These offer protection from wind and falling tree limbs that plague overhead wires and make the suburbs far more vulnerable to outages.
But underground wires can flood and be more difficult to repair, especially in low-lying areas. It can be harder for workers to get to the wires because manholes flood. When water recedes, it can be harder to find problems, pull out wires and equipment, dry them, fix them, and slide them back into place.
Pay Satisfaction Key Driver of Work-Family Conflict
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121030143142.htm
ScienceDaily (Oct. 29, 2012) — Employees who are more satisfied with their pay report lower levels of work-family conflict, a study by a University of Illinois labor and employment relations professor shows.
A worker's actual salary is as important as pay satisfaction in determining a worker's happiness, according to the research by professor Amit Kramer.
"Pay, as you might expect, is a relative thing," Kramer said. "I think most people would agree that a certain level of pay that allows you to meet your needs is critical. However, beyond that level, relative pay becomes an issue and with it, perception of pay or pay satisfaction."
A worker's actual salary is as important as pay satisfaction in determining a worker's happiness, according to the research by professor Amit Kramer.
"Pay, as you might expect, is a relative thing," Kramer said. "I think most people would agree that a certain level of pay that allows you to meet your needs is critical. However, beyond that level, relative pay becomes an issue and with it, perception of pay or pay satisfaction."
.....
With Americans among the world leaders in hours worked and worker productivity, Kramer says the research speaks to the need for more family- and life-friendly policies in the workplace.
.....
ScienceDaily (Oct. 29, 2012) — Employees who are more satisfied with their pay report lower levels of work-family conflict, a study by a University of Illinois labor and employment relations professor shows.
A worker's actual salary is as important as pay satisfaction in determining a worker's happiness, according to the research by professor Amit Kramer.
"Pay, as you might expect, is a relative thing," Kramer said. "I think most people would agree that a certain level of pay that allows you to meet your needs is critical. However, beyond that level, relative pay becomes an issue and with it, perception of pay or pay satisfaction."
A worker's actual salary is as important as pay satisfaction in determining a worker's happiness, according to the research by professor Amit Kramer.
"Pay, as you might expect, is a relative thing," Kramer said. "I think most people would agree that a certain level of pay that allows you to meet your needs is critical. However, beyond that level, relative pay becomes an issue and with it, perception of pay or pay satisfaction."
.....
With Americans among the world leaders in hours worked and worker productivity, Kramer says the research speaks to the need for more family- and life-friendly policies in the workplace.
.....
Republican Senator endorses President Barack Obama for re-election
http://www.examiner.com/article/republican-senator-endorses-president-barack-obama-for-re-election
October 9, 2012
By: Lou Colagiovanni
The great Republican legislator Larry Pressler, who served South Dakota in the U.S. House and Senate for a span of 22 years, has written an article describing why he voted for Barack Obama in 2008 and why he will be voting for the president's re-election in November.
Pressler says:
This decision is not easy for any lifelong Republican.
He cites his party's dramatic changes:
Drifting toward a dangerous path that put extreme party ideology above national interest. Mitt Romney heads a party remaining on that dangerous path, proving the emptiness of their praise as they abandon our service members, veterans and military families along the way.
Senator Pressler is one of thousands of Republicans that are part of a mass exodus to the Democratic party. The Republican party has become infested with those who are uninterested in morality and civic duty, and only in corporate profits. Pressler elaborates:
.....
Unlike many others who politically pontificate Larry Pressler is one of a handful of people on the planet who knows the United States budget's intricate detail. He once served as Chairman of the Commerce Committee, and was a member of both the U.S. Senate Budget Committee and the Senate Finance Committee. He is a man who leaves little room for argument when he so directly says in his article posted by The Huffington Post:
Let's be clear, Romney and Ryan would be disastrous for America's service members, veterans and military families.
Pressler closes by reaffirming his support for President Obama:
As a life-long Republican, I stand by him as he stands by all of us, putting national allegiance ahead of party affiliation. I endorse President Obama for re-election in 2012.
October 9, 2012
By: Lou Colagiovanni
The great Republican legislator Larry Pressler, who served South Dakota in the U.S. House and Senate for a span of 22 years, has written an article describing why he voted for Barack Obama in 2008 and why he will be voting for the president's re-election in November.
Pressler says:
This decision is not easy for any lifelong Republican.
He cites his party's dramatic changes:
Drifting toward a dangerous path that put extreme party ideology above national interest. Mitt Romney heads a party remaining on that dangerous path, proving the emptiness of their praise as they abandon our service members, veterans and military families along the way.
Senator Pressler is one of thousands of Republicans that are part of a mass exodus to the Democratic party. The Republican party has become infested with those who are uninterested in morality and civic duty, and only in corporate profits. Pressler elaborates:
.....
Unlike many others who politically pontificate Larry Pressler is one of a handful of people on the planet who knows the United States budget's intricate detail. He once served as Chairman of the Commerce Committee, and was a member of both the U.S. Senate Budget Committee and the Senate Finance Committee. He is a man who leaves little room for argument when he so directly says in his article posted by The Huffington Post:
Let's be clear, Romney and Ryan would be disastrous for America's service members, veterans and military families.
Pressler closes by reaffirming his support for President Obama:
As a life-long Republican, I stand by him as he stands by all of us, putting national allegiance ahead of party affiliation. I endorse President Obama for re-election in 2012.
Republican Senate Candidate’s Company Collected Millions In State Subsidies While Laying Off Workers
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/10/29/1103091/linda-mcmahon-state-subsidies/
By Pat Garofalo posted from ThinkProgress Economy on Oct 29, 2012
On her campaign website, Republican senate candidate Linda McMahon (CT) rails against “reckless” and “out of control” government spending. She calls for the institution of a Balanced Budget Amendment (despite the widespread economic damage such an amendment could cause), and specifically singles out earmarks, claiming that they displace private sector job creation. McMahon has also called for “an end to corporate welfare.”
However, at the CT Post reported, McMahon was all too happy to accept government subsidies for her company, World Wrestling Entertainment, even when the company was laying off workers:
The Stamford-based WWE empire received about $37 million in state tax credits for staging and recording its wrestling spectacles dating back to July of 2009, state officials reported Friday.
The state Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD), in response to a request by Hearst Connecticut Newspapers, indicated that the WWE has received 20 separate tax credits totaling $36.7 million.
Three of the 20 credits, awarded as part of state legislation aimed at fostering film, TV and digital production in the state, totaled more than $5 million each in 2010, 2011 and 2012, according to a summary released under the state’s Freedom of Information Act.
Jim Watson, spokesman for the DECD, said Friday that the credits were granted, without strings, based on how much money the WWE had spent in Connecticut on producing its events.
“There are no job creation or retention requirements for them to earn the credits,” Watson said. “The credits are awarded based on qualified expenditures made in the state.”
In 2009, WWE collected $9 million in subsidies after announcing plans to lay off 60 workers.
Most states in the U.S. provide tax credits for movie and television production, despite the dubious effect they have promoting job creation. In 2007, Connecticut’s own Department of Community and Economic Development found that its film production credits were not worth the cost.
By Pat Garofalo posted from ThinkProgress Economy on Oct 29, 2012
On her campaign website, Republican senate candidate Linda McMahon (CT) rails against “reckless” and “out of control” government spending. She calls for the institution of a Balanced Budget Amendment (despite the widespread economic damage such an amendment could cause), and specifically singles out earmarks, claiming that they displace private sector job creation. McMahon has also called for “an end to corporate welfare.”
However, at the CT Post reported, McMahon was all too happy to accept government subsidies for her company, World Wrestling Entertainment, even when the company was laying off workers:
The Stamford-based WWE empire received about $37 million in state tax credits for staging and recording its wrestling spectacles dating back to July of 2009, state officials reported Friday.
The state Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD), in response to a request by Hearst Connecticut Newspapers, indicated that the WWE has received 20 separate tax credits totaling $36.7 million.
Three of the 20 credits, awarded as part of state legislation aimed at fostering film, TV and digital production in the state, totaled more than $5 million each in 2010, 2011 and 2012, according to a summary released under the state’s Freedom of Information Act.
Jim Watson, spokesman for the DECD, said Friday that the credits were granted, without strings, based on how much money the WWE had spent in Connecticut on producing its events.
“There are no job creation or retention requirements for them to earn the credits,” Watson said. “The credits are awarded based on qualified expenditures made in the state.”
In 2009, WWE collected $9 million in subsidies after announcing plans to lay off 60 workers.
Most states in the U.S. provide tax credits for movie and television production, despite the dubious effect they have promoting job creation. In 2007, Connecticut’s own Department of Community and Economic Development found that its film production credits were not worth the cost.
How Economic Inequality Makes Hurricanes More Deadly
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/10/29/1104111/economic-inequality-hurricanes/
By Zack Beauchamp posted from ThinkProgress Economy on Oct 29, 2012
While the Eastern seaboard braces for Hurricane Sandy, 65 people have already been killed by the storm in the Caribbean. The tragic death toll and accompanying widespread property damage are caused in part by poor infrastructure and poverty — problems that aren’t limited to the Caribbean. Indeed, America’s inequality problem is a key reason why natural disasters wreak such havoc inside the United States.
That our stratified society makes storms more deadly is nearly universally believed by disaster experts. According to a paper by three experts at the University of South Carolina (Cutter et al.), “[t]here is a general consensus within the social science community” that some key causes of vulnerability to storms include “lack of access to resources (including information, knowledge, and technology); limited access to political power and representation; social capital, including social networks and connections; beliefs and customs; building stock and age; frail and physically limited individuals; and type and density of infrastructure and lifelines.” Inequality was, the researchers found, the single most important predictor of vulnerability to storm damage — variation in the wealth of individual counties alone explained 12.4 percent of the differences in the impact of natural disasters between counties.
The reasons for this are fairly clear — poorer communities have less resources to evacuate and prepare for storms, and also live in housing that’s less likely to be build to withstand nature’s wrath.
By Zack Beauchamp posted from ThinkProgress Economy on Oct 29, 2012
While the Eastern seaboard braces for Hurricane Sandy, 65 people have already been killed by the storm in the Caribbean. The tragic death toll and accompanying widespread property damage are caused in part by poor infrastructure and poverty — problems that aren’t limited to the Caribbean. Indeed, America’s inequality problem is a key reason why natural disasters wreak such havoc inside the United States.
That our stratified society makes storms more deadly is nearly universally believed by disaster experts. According to a paper by three experts at the University of South Carolina (Cutter et al.), “[t]here is a general consensus within the social science community” that some key causes of vulnerability to storms include “lack of access to resources (including information, knowledge, and technology); limited access to political power and representation; social capital, including social networks and connections; beliefs and customs; building stock and age; frail and physically limited individuals; and type and density of infrastructure and lifelines.” Inequality was, the researchers found, the single most important predictor of vulnerability to storm damage — variation in the wealth of individual counties alone explained 12.4 percent of the differences in the impact of natural disasters between counties.
The reasons for this are fairly clear — poorer communities have less resources to evacuate and prepare for storms, and also live in housing that’s less likely to be build to withstand nature’s wrath.
House GOP Voted To Cut Disaster Relief In Order To Preserve Military Spending
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/10/29/1105201/disaster-relief-program-cut/
By Pat Garofalo posted from ThinkProgress Economy on Oct 29, 2012
As part of their bill to void the military spending cuts included in the Budget Control Act — which was passed as a result of 2011′s GOP inspired debt ceiling standoff — House Republicans proposed eliminating a program that helps states and localities respond to disasters like hurricanes.
The House Republicans’ Sequester Replacement Reconciliation Act of 2012, which was passed without a single Democratic vote, called for zeroing out funding for the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG), a program that provides funding to state and local governments to aid needy children, adults, and the disabled. As the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities noted, the SSBG also offers assistance for disaster relief:
The SSBG has served as a conduit for emergency appropriations to help residents and communities respond to the additional social service and health needs resulting from natural disasters, such as floods, wildfires, and hurricanes.
For example, in response to the 2005 Gulf Coast Hurricanes — including Hurricane Katrina —Congress provided an additional $550 million in emergency funding to states via SSBG for use by public, non-profit, and private entities to repair, renovate, or construct health care facilities, among other purposes. The funds were disbursed promptly — within two monthsa — and SSBG’s flexibility allowed states to streamline eligibility for services funded by the emergency appropriations. Eliminating SSBG could make it harder to provide this sort of flexible human services funding in the face of emergencies.
President Obama’s budget proposed maintaining the SSBG’s annual funding of $1.7 billion; it has had that funding level since 2001. As CBPP noted, “Although the SSBG has received bipartisan support from governors and members of Congress, it has lost 77 percent of its value since 1981, due to inflation, funding freezes, and budget cuts.”
Republicans last year held disaster relief funding hostage several times, demanding offsetting budget cuts. They also attempted to slash disaster funding in a 2011 continuing resolution. The Budget Control Act itself, meanwhile, cuts $900 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
By Pat Garofalo posted from ThinkProgress Economy on Oct 29, 2012
As part of their bill to void the military spending cuts included in the Budget Control Act — which was passed as a result of 2011′s GOP inspired debt ceiling standoff — House Republicans proposed eliminating a program that helps states and localities respond to disasters like hurricanes.
The House Republicans’ Sequester Replacement Reconciliation Act of 2012, which was passed without a single Democratic vote, called for zeroing out funding for the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG), a program that provides funding to state and local governments to aid needy children, adults, and the disabled. As the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities noted, the SSBG also offers assistance for disaster relief:
The SSBG has served as a conduit for emergency appropriations to help residents and communities respond to the additional social service and health needs resulting from natural disasters, such as floods, wildfires, and hurricanes.
For example, in response to the 2005 Gulf Coast Hurricanes — including Hurricane Katrina —Congress provided an additional $550 million in emergency funding to states via SSBG for use by public, non-profit, and private entities to repair, renovate, or construct health care facilities, among other purposes. The funds were disbursed promptly — within two monthsa — and SSBG’s flexibility allowed states to streamline eligibility for services funded by the emergency appropriations. Eliminating SSBG could make it harder to provide this sort of flexible human services funding in the face of emergencies.
President Obama’s budget proposed maintaining the SSBG’s annual funding of $1.7 billion; it has had that funding level since 2001. As CBPP noted, “Although the SSBG has received bipartisan support from governors and members of Congress, it has lost 77 percent of its value since 1981, due to inflation, funding freezes, and budget cuts.”
Republicans last year held disaster relief funding hostage several times, demanding offsetting budget cuts. They also attempted to slash disaster funding in a 2011 continuing resolution. The Budget Control Act itself, meanwhile, cuts $900 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Parsing the meaning of 'campaign event'
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/10/30/14805057-parsing-the-meaning-of-campaign-event?lite
By Steve Benen
Tue Oct 30, 2012 10:47 AM EDT
The Romney/Ryan campaign won some plaudits yesterday for agreeing to scrap its scheduled events as Hurricane Sandy battered the East coast. It turns out, however, there may have been some fine print.
Yesterday, the Republican team said it had canceled today's campaign event in Ohio. Mitt Romney was set to headline a "victory rally" at a specific venue in Dayton, alongside specific celebrity guests, but out of sensitivity, the event was scrapped.
Instead, Romney will appear at the exact same venue at the exact same time with the exact same celebrity guests, but it will be billed as a "storm relief event." What about yesterday's promise about cancellations? A Republican official said Romney/Ryan hadn't broken its word because, technically, this is "not a campaign event per se."
Hmm. The badge for today's "storm relief event" says "victory rally"; the sign on the door described the event as a "campaign rally"; they're playing the campaign warm-up songs for the audience; and before the "storm relief event" could begin, campaign officials showed the official campaign video on Romney's awesomeness.
But don't worry, it's "not a campaign event per se."
Those who praised Romney/Ryan for their restraint in the face of a national disaster yesterday may want to rethink the acclaim.
By Steve Benen
Tue Oct 30, 2012 10:47 AM EDT
The Romney/Ryan campaign won some plaudits yesterday for agreeing to scrap its scheduled events as Hurricane Sandy battered the East coast. It turns out, however, there may have been some fine print.
Yesterday, the Republican team said it had canceled today's campaign event in Ohio. Mitt Romney was set to headline a "victory rally" at a specific venue in Dayton, alongside specific celebrity guests, but out of sensitivity, the event was scrapped.
Instead, Romney will appear at the exact same venue at the exact same time with the exact same celebrity guests, but it will be billed as a "storm relief event." What about yesterday's promise about cancellations? A Republican official said Romney/Ryan hadn't broken its word because, technically, this is "not a campaign event per se."
Hmm. The badge for today's "storm relief event" says "victory rally"; the sign on the door described the event as a "campaign rally"; they're playing the campaign warm-up songs for the audience; and before the "storm relief event" could begin, campaign officials showed the official campaign video on Romney's awesomeness.
But don't worry, it's "not a campaign event per se."
Those who praised Romney/Ryan for their restraint in the face of a national disaster yesterday may want to rethink the acclaim.
Romney campaign “hindering” and “impeding” Hurricane Sandy relief
Romney is old enough that he should already know this. So he is either too ignorant to be president or is just doing this to get votes.
I never designate a donation to a specific disaster because one like this that gets a lot of media attention often gets more than is needed, while subsequent ones get less than needed, esp. if they come soon after another disaster.
http://americablog.com/2012/10/hurricane-sandy-romney-relief-red-cross.html
10/29/2012 7:00am by John Aravosis
Yesterday we learned via ABC’s Emily Friedman that Romney campaign was pitching in and gathering supplies to donate for hurricane relief:
All well and good except, of course, that it’s the opposite of what disaster relief experts advise you to do. In fact, they warn that such efforts actually “hinder” relief. Had the Romney campaign bothered reading the Red Cross Web site to see WHAT was needed, or even simply asked someone at the Red Cross,they’d have known this.
And I quote from the Red Cross Web site:
Unfortunately, due to logistical constraints the Red Cross does not accept or solicit individual donations or collections of items. Items such as collected food, used clothing and shoes must be sorted, cleaned, repackaged and transported which impedes the valuable resources of money, time, and personnel.
It “impedes” relief efforts, it doesn’t help. The Red Cross prefers money because it’s far easier to handle, and can be spent where it’s most needed and on what is most needed.
Anti-abortion Tea Party congressman demands mistress get an abortion
http://www.examiner.com/article/anti-abortion-tea-party-congressman-demands-mistress-get-an-abortion
October 10, 2012
By: Lou Colagiovanni
Tea Party Congressman Scott DesJarlais of Tennessee is facing national scrutiny because damning evidence has surfaced which implicates him in adultery and shows him negotiating with his sexual partner outside of his marriage to have an abortion.
DesJarlais was swept into office along with many other Tea Party candidates in the 2010 Midterm elections. The congressman ran on a platform of being anti-abortion, pro-god, and pro-morality. Now it seems that DesJarlais, a registered physician, is at odds with his own political platform.
This story was originally broken by The Huffington Post. The unknown female in question was actually a patient of the good doctor
.....
October 10, 2012
By: Lou Colagiovanni
Tea Party Congressman Scott DesJarlais of Tennessee is facing national scrutiny because damning evidence has surfaced which implicates him in adultery and shows him negotiating with his sexual partner outside of his marriage to have an abortion.
DesJarlais was swept into office along with many other Tea Party candidates in the 2010 Midterm elections. The congressman ran on a platform of being anti-abortion, pro-god, and pro-morality. Now it seems that DesJarlais, a registered physician, is at odds with his own political platform.
This story was originally broken by The Huffington Post. The unknown female in question was actually a patient of the good doctor
.....
Top Bank of England director admits Occupy movement had a point
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/top-bank-of-england-director-admits-occupy-movement-had-a-point-8231521.html
Richard Hall Author Biography
Monday 29 October 2012
The Occupy movement received vindication from unlikely source tonight, as a senior executive at the Bank of England credited it with stirring a “reformation of finance”.
In a glowing appraisal of the movement’s achievements, Andrew Haldane, executive director of financial stability, said Occupy protesters had been “both loud and persuasive”, and had attracted public support because “they are right”.
“Some have suggested … that Occupy’s voice has been loud but vague, long on problems, short on solutions. Others have argued that the fault-lines in the global financial system, which chasmed during the crisis, are essentially unaltered, that reform has failed,” Mr Haldane said in a speech tonight.
“I wish to argue that both are wrong – that Occupy’s voice has been both loud and persuasive and that policymakers have listened and are acting in ways which will close those fault-lines. In fact, I want to argue that we are in the early stages of a reformation of finance, a reformation which Occupy has helped stir.”
Speaking at an Occupy Economics event in central London, Mr Haldane said that Occupy had been “successful in its efforts to popularise the problems of the global financial system for one very simple reason: they are right.” He added that protesters who camped out near St Paul’s Catherdal in London and dozens of other cities including New York,“touched a moral nerve in pointing to growing inequities in the allocation of wealth”.
Mr Haldane ended with a direct appeal to activists to continue putting pressure on governments and regulators. He said: “You have put the arguments. You have helped win the debate. And policymakers, like me, will need your continuing support in delivering that radical change.”
Richard Hall Author Biography
Monday 29 October 2012
The Occupy movement received vindication from unlikely source tonight, as a senior executive at the Bank of England credited it with stirring a “reformation of finance”.
In a glowing appraisal of the movement’s achievements, Andrew Haldane, executive director of financial stability, said Occupy protesters had been “both loud and persuasive”, and had attracted public support because “they are right”.
“Some have suggested … that Occupy’s voice has been loud but vague, long on problems, short on solutions. Others have argued that the fault-lines in the global financial system, which chasmed during the crisis, are essentially unaltered, that reform has failed,” Mr Haldane said in a speech tonight.
“I wish to argue that both are wrong – that Occupy’s voice has been both loud and persuasive and that policymakers have listened and are acting in ways which will close those fault-lines. In fact, I want to argue that we are in the early stages of a reformation of finance, a reformation which Occupy has helped stir.”
Speaking at an Occupy Economics event in central London, Mr Haldane said that Occupy had been “successful in its efforts to popularise the problems of the global financial system for one very simple reason: they are right.” He added that protesters who camped out near St Paul’s Catherdal in London and dozens of other cities including New York,“touched a moral nerve in pointing to growing inequities in the allocation of wealth”.
Mr Haldane ended with a direct appeal to activists to continue putting pressure on governments and regulators. He said: “You have put the arguments. You have helped win the debate. And policymakers, like me, will need your continuing support in delivering that radical change.”
Monday, October 29, 2012
Romney Avoids Taxes for 15 years via Loophole
Note this is from the conservative Bloomberg company.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-29/romney-avoids-taxes-via-loophole-cutting-mormon-donations.html
By Jesse Drucker - Oct 29, 2012
In 1997, Congress cracked down on a popular tax shelter that allowed rich people to take advantage of the exempt status of charities without actually giving away much money.
Individuals who had already set up these vehicles were allowed to keep them. That included Mitt Romney, then the chief executive officer of Bain Capital, who had just established such an arrangement in June 1996.
The charitable remainder unitrust, as it is known, is one of several strategies Romney has adopted over his career to reduce his tax bill. While Romney’s tax avoidance is legal and common among high-net-worth individuals, it has become an issue in the campaign. President Barack Obama attacked him in their second debate for paying “lower tax rates than somebody who makes a lot less.”
In this instance, Romney used the tax-exempt status of a charity -- the Mormon Church, according to a 2007 filing -- to defer taxes for more than 15 years. At the same time he is benefitting, the trust will probably leave the church with less than what current law requires, according to tax returns obtained by Bloomberg this month through a Freedom of Information Act request.
In general, charities don’t owe capital gains taxes when they sell assets for a profit. Trusts like Romney’s permit funders to benefit from that tax-free treatment, said Jonathan Blattmachr, a trusts and estates lawyer who set up hundreds of such vehicles in the 1990s.
“The main benefit from a charitable remainder trust is the renting from your favorite charity of its exemption from taxation,” Blattmachr said. Despite the name, giving a gift or getting a charitable deduction “is just a throwaway,” he said. “I used to structure them so the value dedicated to charity was as close to zero as possible without being zero.”
When individuals fund a charitable remainder unitrust, or “CRUT,” they defer capital gains taxes on any profit from the sale of the assets, and receive a small upfront charitable deduction and a stream of yearly cash payments. Like an individual retirement account, the trust allows money to grow tax deferred, while like an annuity it also pays Romney a steady income. After the funder’s death, the trust’s remaining assets go to a designated charity.
Romney’s CRUT, which is only a small part of the $250 million that Romney’s campaign cites as his net worth, has been paying him 8 percent of its assets each year. As the Romneys have received these payments, the money that will potentially be left for charity has declined from at least $750,000 in 2001 to $421,203 at the end of 2011.
.....
Giant Marble Harvests Energy from Sun and Moon
Note that light from the moon is reflected sunlight.
http://news.discovery.com/tech/rawlemon-globe-harvests-energy-sun-moon-120918.html
Analysis by Tracy Staedter
Tue Sep 18, 2012
It looks like a giant, glass marble. But this globe is no game. It's a sun-tracking, solar energy concentrator created by Barcelona-based architects and, according to the designers, is able to collect not just sunlight but moonlight as well.
The Rawlemon project revolves around a weatherproof sphere that's designed to rotate and follow the sun across the sky. It's so sensitive to light that at night, it can even harvest moonlight and convert it into electricity.
Andre Broessel, the architect and designer, says his spherical, sun-tracking glass globe is able to concentrate sunlight and moonlight up to 10,000 times and that the system is 35 percent more efficient than photovoltaic designs that track the sun. One of Rawlemon's idea is to build these globes into the exterior walls of buildings and use them to generate electricity.
Hurricane Sandy’s Transition to a Post-Tropical Cyclone
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/news/20121027_pa_sandyTransition.pdf
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) issues advisories, forecasts, and warnings on tropical cyclones – the generic term for hurricanes, tropical storms, and tropical depressions. Sometime prior to making landfall, Hurricane Sandy is expected to lose its characteristics as a tropical cyclone and take on the structure of a wintertime low-pressure area. Because the National Hurricane Center only issues advisories on tropical cyclones, there will be changes in the flow of information coming out of the NWS when this transition occurs.
The primary difference between a tropical cyclone and a wintertime cyclone is the energy source. Tropical cyclones extract heat from the ocean and grow by releasing that heat in the atmosphere near the storm center. Wintertime cyclones (also called extratropical or frontal lows), on the other hand, get most of their energy from temperature contrasts in the atmosphere, and this energy usually gets distributed over larger areas. Because of these differences, tropical cyclones tend to have more compact wind fields, tend to be more symmetric, and have a well-defined inner core of strong winds. Wintertime lows have strong temperature contrasts or fronts attached to them, have a broader wind field, and more complex distributions of rain or snow.
The official NWS term for a tropical cyclone that has evolved into something else is “Posttropical cyclone”, where the post in post-tropical simply means after. Thus, once Sandy loses its tropical cyclone status it will be known as “Post-tropical Cyclone Sandy” in NWS products. Some aspects of this transition are already occurring, and NWS forecasts of storm impacts are based on this expected evolution. Regardless of when this transition formally occurs, Sandy is expected to bring significant wind, surge, rainfall and inland flooding hazards over an extremely large area, and snowfall to more limited areas.
Because Sandy is expected to make this transition before reaching the coast, the NWS has been using non-tropical wind watches and warnings, issued by local NWS Weather Forecast Offices (WFOs), to communicate the wind threat posed by Sandy in the Mid-Atlantic States and New England. (This is why NHC’s tropical storm warnings extend only into North Carolina.) The NWS plans to continue using non-tropical watches and warnings issued by local offices in the Mid-Atlantic States and northward throughout this event. By using non-tropical warnings in these areas from the start, we avoid or minimize the significant confusion that could occur if the warning suite changed from tropical to non-tropical in the middle of the event.
.....
=======================================
see the above link for more info about how the storm will be reported.
The National Weather Service (NWS) web site is http://www.weather.gov/
Info on Sandy is at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) site http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/#SANDY
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) issues advisories, forecasts, and warnings on tropical cyclones – the generic term for hurricanes, tropical storms, and tropical depressions. Sometime prior to making landfall, Hurricane Sandy is expected to lose its characteristics as a tropical cyclone and take on the structure of a wintertime low-pressure area. Because the National Hurricane Center only issues advisories on tropical cyclones, there will be changes in the flow of information coming out of the NWS when this transition occurs.
The primary difference between a tropical cyclone and a wintertime cyclone is the energy source. Tropical cyclones extract heat from the ocean and grow by releasing that heat in the atmosphere near the storm center. Wintertime cyclones (also called extratropical or frontal lows), on the other hand, get most of their energy from temperature contrasts in the atmosphere, and this energy usually gets distributed over larger areas. Because of these differences, tropical cyclones tend to have more compact wind fields, tend to be more symmetric, and have a well-defined inner core of strong winds. Wintertime lows have strong temperature contrasts or fronts attached to them, have a broader wind field, and more complex distributions of rain or snow.
The official NWS term for a tropical cyclone that has evolved into something else is “Posttropical cyclone”, where the post in post-tropical simply means after. Thus, once Sandy loses its tropical cyclone status it will be known as “Post-tropical Cyclone Sandy” in NWS products. Some aspects of this transition are already occurring, and NWS forecasts of storm impacts are based on this expected evolution. Regardless of when this transition formally occurs, Sandy is expected to bring significant wind, surge, rainfall and inland flooding hazards over an extremely large area, and snowfall to more limited areas.
Because Sandy is expected to make this transition before reaching the coast, the NWS has been using non-tropical wind watches and warnings, issued by local NWS Weather Forecast Offices (WFOs), to communicate the wind threat posed by Sandy in the Mid-Atlantic States and New England. (This is why NHC’s tropical storm warnings extend only into North Carolina.) The NWS plans to continue using non-tropical watches and warnings issued by local offices in the Mid-Atlantic States and northward throughout this event. By using non-tropical warnings in these areas from the start, we avoid or minimize the significant confusion that could occur if the warning suite changed from tropical to non-tropical in the middle of the event.
.....
=======================================
see the above link for more info about how the storm will be reported.
The National Weather Service (NWS) web site is http://www.weather.gov/
Info on Sandy is at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) site http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/#SANDY
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Dietary Supplements Can Cause Liver Injury
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121026124837.htm
ScienceDaily (Oct. 26, 2012) — Niacin, comfrey, Kava and even green tea in high doses can cause liver injury. A Loyola liver specialist praises the new LiverTox free online database of drugs and explains acetaminophen is just one of many drugs taken that negatively impacts liver health.
Dose-dependent (acetaminophen) and idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is the leading cause of acute liver failure in the United States, responsible for approximately 50 percent of all reported cases. "Awareness of the dangers of acetaminophen has risen but many consumers and even many health care professionals are not aware that certain popular herbal and dietary supplements can also cause liver damage," says Steven Scaglione, MD, hepatology, Loyola University Health System (LUHS) and the Stritch School of Medicine (SSOM). "Kava, comfrey, valerian, vitamin A, niacin and even green tea, when consumed in high doses, have been linked to liver disease."
.....
Acetaminophen is one of the most widely used over-the-counter pain relievers and more than 25 billion doses are sold yearly. "Therapeutic doses of acetaminophen have been associated with liver toxicity," says Scaglione, who cares for liver patients at Loyola. Acetaminophen is also a basic component in many over-the-counter cold and flu remedies for adults and children.
.....
ScienceDaily (Oct. 26, 2012) — Niacin, comfrey, Kava and even green tea in high doses can cause liver injury. A Loyola liver specialist praises the new LiverTox free online database of drugs and explains acetaminophen is just one of many drugs taken that negatively impacts liver health.
Dose-dependent (acetaminophen) and idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is the leading cause of acute liver failure in the United States, responsible for approximately 50 percent of all reported cases. "Awareness of the dangers of acetaminophen has risen but many consumers and even many health care professionals are not aware that certain popular herbal and dietary supplements can also cause liver damage," says Steven Scaglione, MD, hepatology, Loyola University Health System (LUHS) and the Stritch School of Medicine (SSOM). "Kava, comfrey, valerian, vitamin A, niacin and even green tea, when consumed in high doses, have been linked to liver disease."
.....
Acetaminophen is one of the most widely used over-the-counter pain relievers and more than 25 billion doses are sold yearly. "Therapeutic doses of acetaminophen have been associated with liver toxicity," says Scaglione, who cares for liver patients at Loyola. Acetaminophen is also a basic component in many over-the-counter cold and flu remedies for adults and children.
.....
Hurricane Sandy: State by state impact forecasts
The following link has forecasts for impacts by hurricane Sandy.
See the link for more state info.
http://www.wunderground.com/blog/angelafritz/comment.html?entrynum=30
Posted by: Angela Fritz, 11:43 PM GMT on October 28, 2012
Massachusetts
• Storm tide and surge: Up to 4 feet of storm surge on top of tides, with a 10-20% chance of surge exceeding 5 feet.
Storm tide forecast for Buzzards Bay, MA is 7-8 feet.
Storm tide forecast for Woods Hole, MA is 6-7 feet.
Storm tide forecast for Nantucket, MA is 6-7 feet.
• Wind: 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 60 mph. The strongest winds will occur Monday afternoon and evening
• Rain: Widespread totals from 1.5 to 3 inches, with isolated amounts up to 5 inches
• Inland Flooding: Significant urban and small stream flooding is possible, which could linger into Tuesday.
• Power outages: Spotty power outages are possible as wind takes down branches and trees
Rhode Island
.....
=====================================
http://www.locustfork.net/
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20121028/DA26PJO80.html
Sandy and storm surge pose 'worst case scenario'
Email this Story
Oct 28, 4:47 PM (ET)
By SETH BORENSTEIN
AP writer Jennifer Peltz in New York contributed to this story.
KENSINGTON, Md. (AP) - The projected storm surge from Hurricane Sandy is a "worst case scenario" with devastating waves and tides predicted for the highly populated New York City metro area, government forecasters said Sunday.
The more they observe it, the more the experts worry about the water - which usually kills and does more damage than winds in hurricanes.
In this case, seas will be amped up by giant waves and full-moon-powered high tides. That will combine with drenching rains, triggering inland flooding as the hurricane merges with a winter storm system that will worsen it and hold it in place for days.
Louis Uccellini, environmental prediction chief for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, told The Associated Press that given Sandy's due east-to-west track into New Jersey, that puts the worst of the storm surge just north in New York City, Long Island and northern New Jersey. "Yes, this is the worst case scenario," he said.
In a measurement of pure kinetic energy, NOAA's hurricane research division on Sunday ranked the surge and wave "destruction potential" for Sandy - just the hurricane, not the hybrid storm it will eventually become - at 5.8 on a 0 to 6 scale. The damage expected from winds will be far less, experts said. Weather Underground meteorologist Jeff Masters says that surge destruction potential number is a record and it's due to the storm's massive size.
"You have a lot of wind acting over a long distance of water for hundreds of miles" and that piles the storm surge up when it finally comes ashore, Masters said. Even though it doesn't pack much power in maximum wind speed, the tremendous size of Sandy - more than 1,000 miles across with tropical storm force winds - adds to the pummelling power when it comes ashore, he said.
The storm surge energy numbers are bigger than the deadly 2005 Hurricane Katrina, but that can be misleading. Katrina's destruction was concentrated in a small area, making it much worse, Masters said. Sandy's storm surge energy is spread over a wider area. Also, Katrina hit a city that is below sea level and had problems with levees.
.....
The good news about inland flooding is that the rivers and ground aren't as saturated as they were last year when Hurricane Irene struck, causing nearly $16 billion in damage, much of it from inland flooding in places like Vermont, Uccellini and Masters said.
The storm, which threatens roughly 50 million in the eastern third of the country, began as three systems. Two of those - an Arctic blast from the north and a normal winter storm front with a low-pressure trough- have combined. Hurricane Sandy will meld with those once it comes ashore, creating a hybrid storm with some of the nastier characteristics of a hurricane and a nor'easter, experts have said.
See the link for more state info.
http://www.wunderground.com/blog/angelafritz/comment.html?entrynum=30
Posted by: Angela Fritz, 11:43 PM GMT on October 28, 2012
Massachusetts
• Storm tide and surge: Up to 4 feet of storm surge on top of tides, with a 10-20% chance of surge exceeding 5 feet.
Storm tide forecast for Buzzards Bay, MA is 7-8 feet.
Storm tide forecast for Woods Hole, MA is 6-7 feet.
Storm tide forecast for Nantucket, MA is 6-7 feet.
• Wind: 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 60 mph. The strongest winds will occur Monday afternoon and evening
• Rain: Widespread totals from 1.5 to 3 inches, with isolated amounts up to 5 inches
• Inland Flooding: Significant urban and small stream flooding is possible, which could linger into Tuesday.
• Power outages: Spotty power outages are possible as wind takes down branches and trees
Rhode Island
.....
=====================================
http://www.locustfork.net/
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20121028/DA26PJO80.html
Sandy and storm surge pose 'worst case scenario'
Email this Story
Oct 28, 4:47 PM (ET)
By SETH BORENSTEIN
AP writer Jennifer Peltz in New York contributed to this story.
KENSINGTON, Md. (AP) - The projected storm surge from Hurricane Sandy is a "worst case scenario" with devastating waves and tides predicted for the highly populated New York City metro area, government forecasters said Sunday.
The more they observe it, the more the experts worry about the water - which usually kills and does more damage than winds in hurricanes.
In this case, seas will be amped up by giant waves and full-moon-powered high tides. That will combine with drenching rains, triggering inland flooding as the hurricane merges with a winter storm system that will worsen it and hold it in place for days.
Louis Uccellini, environmental prediction chief for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, told The Associated Press that given Sandy's due east-to-west track into New Jersey, that puts the worst of the storm surge just north in New York City, Long Island and northern New Jersey. "Yes, this is the worst case scenario," he said.
In a measurement of pure kinetic energy, NOAA's hurricane research division on Sunday ranked the surge and wave "destruction potential" for Sandy - just the hurricane, not the hybrid storm it will eventually become - at 5.8 on a 0 to 6 scale. The damage expected from winds will be far less, experts said. Weather Underground meteorologist Jeff Masters says that surge destruction potential number is a record and it's due to the storm's massive size.
"You have a lot of wind acting over a long distance of water for hundreds of miles" and that piles the storm surge up when it finally comes ashore, Masters said. Even though it doesn't pack much power in maximum wind speed, the tremendous size of Sandy - more than 1,000 miles across with tropical storm force winds - adds to the pummelling power when it comes ashore, he said.
The storm surge energy numbers are bigger than the deadly 2005 Hurricane Katrina, but that can be misleading. Katrina's destruction was concentrated in a small area, making it much worse, Masters said. Sandy's storm surge energy is spread over a wider area. Also, Katrina hit a city that is below sea level and had problems with levees.
.....
The good news about inland flooding is that the rivers and ground aren't as saturated as they were last year when Hurricane Irene struck, causing nearly $16 billion in damage, much of it from inland flooding in places like Vermont, Uccellini and Masters said.
The storm, which threatens roughly 50 million in the eastern third of the country, began as three systems. Two of those - an Arctic blast from the north and a normal winter storm front with a low-pressure trough- have combined. Hurricane Sandy will meld with those once it comes ashore, creating a hybrid storm with some of the nastier characteristics of a hurricane and a nor'easter, experts have said.
Family sold everything to move cross country to a non-existent job, now stranded
http://www.examiner.com/article/family-sold-everything-to-move-cross-country-to-a-non-existent-job-now-stranded
September 10, 2012
By: Lou Colagiovanni
The Alberts family was unemployed, struggling, and looking for a lifeline when Erinn Alberts, mother of three, received word that she had been selected for a new job as a Production Accountant at a prestigious firm. The caveat? The job was located in Florida, and the family lived in New Hampshire. After being promised employment Erinn and her husband, also named Aaron, seized the opportunity and quickly sold their possessions for traveling money. Within a week they hit the road with their three young children to start a new better life for their family. Except when they arrived in Florida the job that was promised no longer existed and the family is now stranded with little money, and no employment leads.
The company in question is "Digital Domain Media Group" which specializes in CG animation, effects, and digital production for the entertainment and advertising industries.
Aaron Alberts went on the record with local news station wptv.com and said:
"We were about five minutes before the exit to get here, and we got this phone call from our relocation specialist, the lady who helped us find this apartment for the next 29 days," said Aaron. "She goes, 'Have you talked to HR yet?' I'm like, 'No, why?' thinking, is this going to be bad, is this going to be bad?"
That is when they received the news - Digital Domain was shuttering its Florida offices and issued a press release to that end on the very day the Alberts family came 1,400 miles for a job. 280 other employees also lost their jobs because Digital Domain defaulted on a $35 million loan.
There has been no response yet from Digital Domain if they are aware of the situation, or if they are willing to offer relief to this family that is now in turmoil.
The CEO of Digital Domain, John Textor, resigned on the same day as the Florida office closing. It is a matter of public record that Textor donated over $20,000 to Republican candidates in 2011.
Aaron Alberts, while surely troubled, has more immediate problems such as keeping his family fed and sheltered. He is seeking employment of any kind. Please contact ajalberts11@hotmail.com.
September 10, 2012
By: Lou Colagiovanni
The Alberts family was unemployed, struggling, and looking for a lifeline when Erinn Alberts, mother of three, received word that she had been selected for a new job as a Production Accountant at a prestigious firm. The caveat? The job was located in Florida, and the family lived in New Hampshire. After being promised employment Erinn and her husband, also named Aaron, seized the opportunity and quickly sold their possessions for traveling money. Within a week they hit the road with their three young children to start a new better life for their family. Except when they arrived in Florida the job that was promised no longer existed and the family is now stranded with little money, and no employment leads.
The company in question is "Digital Domain Media Group" which specializes in CG animation, effects, and digital production for the entertainment and advertising industries.
Aaron Alberts went on the record with local news station wptv.com and said:
"We were about five minutes before the exit to get here, and we got this phone call from our relocation specialist, the lady who helped us find this apartment for the next 29 days," said Aaron. "She goes, 'Have you talked to HR yet?' I'm like, 'No, why?' thinking, is this going to be bad, is this going to be bad?"
That is when they received the news - Digital Domain was shuttering its Florida offices and issued a press release to that end on the very day the Alberts family came 1,400 miles for a job. 280 other employees also lost their jobs because Digital Domain defaulted on a $35 million loan.
There has been no response yet from Digital Domain if they are aware of the situation, or if they are willing to offer relief to this family that is now in turmoil.
The CEO of Digital Domain, John Textor, resigned on the same day as the Florida office closing. It is a matter of public record that Textor donated over $20,000 to Republican candidates in 2011.
Aaron Alberts, while surely troubled, has more immediate problems such as keeping his family fed and sheltered. He is seeking employment of any kind. Please contact ajalberts11@hotmail.com.
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