Tuesday News Bucket

19 Comments

1. 

   Oui on February 6, 2007 at 7:35 am

   .

   Cascade of 30,000 centrifuges required

   … The New York Times noted that Western nuclear analysts have determined that Iran “still lack[s] the parts and materials to make droves of the highly complex [centrifuges] which can spin uranium into fuel rich enough for use in nuclear reactors or atom bombs.”

   MIT – The Multinational centrifuge plant (pdf file)

   Urenco, a German-Dutch enterprise

   Designs stolen by Pakistan spy – AQ Khan

   "But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."

   • 

     Nag on February 6, 2007 at 8:53 am

     I’ve read this claim before. It’s so tragic that Iran keeps posturing and Bush/Cheney keep using that to spread their “axis of evil” lies. Ahmadinejad, with those beady eyes and all that chest thumping plays right into the neocons’ plans. It’s really painful to watch, waiting for the next war.

   • 

     rba on February 6, 2007 at 9:42 am

     Mohammad Ezz Al Deen/GulfNews:   Gulf nuclear plans take shape, says Al Attiyah.  “Abu Dhabi: The Gulf states are expected to begin building a nuclear industry as a “sustainable and clean” source of power by 2009, a top official said yesterday.“

2. 

   CabinGirl on February 6, 2007 at 7:52 am

   the nonbinding resolution: WashPo

   At issue are four separate measures. The main resolution, worked out by Sen. John W. Warner (R-Va.) and Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.), would put the Senate on record as opposing the additional troop deployment while calling for a diplomatic initiative to settle the conflict. It would oppose a cutoff of funds for troops in the field of battle.

   The Republican leadership’s alternative, drafted by John McCain (R-Ariz.), Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) and Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.), would establish tough new benchmarks for the Iraqi government to achieve but would not oppose the planned deployment.

   …The Democratic leadership gave Republicans a choice: Allow all four versions to come to a vote, with a simple majority needed for passing any of them, or debate and vote on the Warner and McCain resolutions, with both needing 60 votes to pass.

   McConnell wanted all four resolutions to meet a 60-vote threshold, for a simple reason: Both Democrats and Republicans think the only measure that could attract 60 votes is Gregg’s, because Democrats would be concerned about the political ramifications of appearing to take action that might harm troops in battle.

   Good of the WashPo to call Dems wimps that were worried about re-election, since all of them voted for the resolution yesterday.  OH but wait, they do mention that afterwards:

   But Democrats believe Republicans may be losing politically, by defying what they perceive as a growing public desire for a robust war debate. Some Democratic senators were surprised that two Republican allies of Warner — Collins and Coleman — parted ways with their caucus and with Warner himself on the procedural vote.

   After the vote, Collins issued a statement saying: “Since I returned from my third visit to Iraq in December, I have been convinced that it would be a mistake to send additional troops to Iraq. I believe that this is one of the most important issues facing our nation and that it is important for the Senate to go on record in opposition to the president’s plan.”

3. 

   AndiF on February 6, 2007 at 8:10 am

   Full story

   Some men in Japan are worried about falling marriage and birth rates but, shockingly, do not blame women for it.

   They even hope they’ll help curb the nation’s declining marriage rate, fueled not only by an increase in divorce but also by delayed marriage among women, whose mean age for marrying has increased 2.5 years in the past two decades, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

   The more educated a Japanese woman, the more likely she will wait for wedlock; among women aged 25 to 29, 40 percent are single, but among university graduates of similar ages 54 percent are single.

   “If husbands will not change, the future will be very dark for Japan, so we are enticing men to join our group and learn to change their attitudes,” says 54-year-old Shuichi Amano, who founded Japan’s National Chauvinistic Husband’s Association in 1999 after his wife threatened to divorce him. “Families will adjust and then Japan will change in a positive way.”

   Ito Itamoto, a Tokyo marriage counselor, agrees.

   “Japanese women are choosing to marry later, so they can only have one child, or not marry at all,” Itamoto says. “Seventy percent of divorces are filed by women. It used to be because of domestic violence or gambling, but these days it is because women realize their husband’s priority is the company they work for and not their families. The women also say men do not know how to communicate.”

   Amano, a resident of Fukuoka City, Kyuushu Island, says his wife woke him up to the need save his marriage.

   “It happened when I came home late one evening from work and asked my wife if she thought it was strange that suddenly all the middle-aged men around me were getting divorced,” he said. “My wife said, ‘Well, I think you will be next.'”

   • 

     CabinGirl on February 6, 2007 at 8:13 am

     I love the last line!

     • 

       AndiF on February 6, 2007 at 8:23 am

       I did the whole post just so I could include that line.

       • 

         CabinGirl on February 6, 2007 at 8:33 am

         It’s also interesting in light of the reports that Japanese women have a ealth decline that occurs when their husbands retire.  Just sayin’.  🙂

   • 

     Nag on February 6, 2007 at 8:47 am

     We may not be the ‘stronger’ sex, but ‘smarter’ is good. 🙂

   • 

     AP on February 6, 2007 at 9:16 am

     Wow. They did not blame women or go on a harangue against feminism. Unbelievable.

4. 

   CabinGirl on February 6, 2007 at 8:23 am

   Back in Baghdad Gulf Daily News

   Three car bombs killed 24 people and wounded scores in Baghdad yesterday as war-weary residents awaited the start of a sweeping US-Iraqi crackdown on sectarian violence in the city.In the worst blast yesterday, a car bomb targeting a petrol station in the southern neighbourhood of Saidiya killed 10 people and wounded 62, while eight people were killed and 40 wounded when a car bomb exploded in a garage.

   Can you imagine the outcry if that were a daily occurrence here in the US?  And Baghdad is just one city.

5. 

   Oui on February 6, 2007 at 9:41 am

   .
   At BooMan Tribune, NEWS is back on top of the RECOMMENDED list!

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   How very refreshing …

   "But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."

6. 

   Nag on February 6, 2007 at 10:14 am

   Link

   Bush’s `08 Budget Slashes Middle-Class Assistance

   [snip]

   Bush’s 2008 budget cuts crucial aid for America’s middle class:

   – “$77 billion in funding cuts for Medicare and Medicaid over the next five years, and $280 billion over the next 10.”

   – $223 million in funding cuts (4 percent decrease from this year’s levels) to the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

   – “$4.9 billion, or 8 percent, cut in education, training, employment and social services” grants.

   – $100 million cut for Head Start, which provides child development services to economically disadvantaged children and families.

   – “$2.4 billion cut in community and regional development grants — which often provide funding for low- and middle-income communities — to $16.5 billion from $18.9 billion.

   – $400 million — 18 percent — cut in the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, “which provides $2.2 billion to help people pay heating bills this year.”

   – $172 million — nearly 25 percent — cut in funding for housing for low-income seniors.

   While Bush forgot about the middle class in the new budget, he made sure to look out for the wealthy. As the Tax Policy Center notes, “People with incomes of more than $1 million would get tax cuts averaging $162,000 a year (in 2012 dollars) in perpetuity.”

   Middle/lower classes are being asked forced to take yet another hit, make yet more sacrifices so the Moron in Chief can have his endless wars and his rich cronies can get richer on the broken backs of the rest of the nation. Looting the Treasury seems to be a Republican trait.

   • 

     AP on February 6, 2007 at 10:23 am

     Do I ever loathe this administration!

     So I suppose it was still 60 degrees in most of the country with their proposed LIHEAP cut. All of the cuts are patently insane, but for me, cutting Head Start is particularly insane. It’s such a comprehensive program and an all-around win/win/win for kids, their parents and their community.

     Lord have mercy, these venal people!

     • 

       Nag on February 6, 2007 at 10:43 am

       Having been an educator for 25 years, I totally agree with you on Head Start. The kids the program reaches need it so desperately… especially these days when so many Kindergarten classrooms are focusing on reading skills the moment those kids walk through the door. Just another way to make sure the lower classes stay in line and don’t rise above their station.

       • 

         AP on February 6, 2007 at 11:25 am

         And they’ve been trying to wreck Head Start since they gained power, as you probably know. My MIL was a former educator–more than 35 years, mostly in classroom but also as principal and administrator, so I clearly have a soft spot for you! :<)

7. 

   Nag on February 6, 2007 at 10:38 am

   Link

   Disaster: Bush Says He’ll Continue Meddling in Middle East After His Presidency

   George Bush has informed his inner circle that after he leaves office he plans to invite leaders from Middle East to his think tank, which will be part of his $500 million library, where he will give them guidance on the finer points of democratic governance:

   Indeed, senior officials close to Bush [say] that Bush’s plan after he leaves the White House is to continue to promote the spread of democracy in the Middle East by inviting world leaders to his own policy institute, to be built alongside his presidential library.

   A man who can’t think himself out of a paper bag is starting a think tank. It should have a giant blow-up clown with cowboy boots sitting on the top of the building, bobbing in the wind. Oh, I’m sure Middle Eastern leaders will be clamoring for an invite.

   • 

     Oui on February 6, 2007 at 12:09 pm

     .
     Cheney doesn’t have that many years ahead of him to whisper in GWB’s ears.

     
     The Bulge

     "But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."

8. 

   Man Eegee on February 6, 2007 at 10:43 am

   The Ku Klux Klan, which just a few years ago seemed static or even moribund compared to other white supremacist movements such as neo-Nazis, experienced “a surprising and troubling resurgence” during the past year due to the successful exploitation of hot-button issues including immigration, gay marriage and urban crime, according to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).

   The League, which monitors the activities of racist hate groups and reports its findings to law enforcement and policymakers, has documented a noticeable spike in activity by Klan chapters across the country.  The KKK believes that the U.S. is “drowning” in a tide of non-white immigration, controlled and orchestrated by Jews, and is vigorously trying to bring this message to Americans concerned or fearful about immigration. – linkage