Are there creationist penguins? Suppose you’re a bird that cannot fly and that has to waddle 70 miles from the ocean to the nesting grounds through minus 50 degree snowstorms – barefoot – or scooting on your belly to take a turn standing for months in minus 50 degree snowstorms, balancing your one egg on [...]

The US government has deployed heavily armed mercenaries from the Blackwater private security firm to patrol the “streets” of New Orleans. Armed mercenaries patrolling a US city on behalf of the US government? That seems like a very disturbing precedent to me. The mercs are a bit surprised, too: “This is a totally new thing [...]

Two reports on National Public Radio chronicle the government response to Hurricane Katrina (via DKos Diary). The second report in particular highlights the disconnect between the reality on the ground and the proclamations of Bush administration officials, like Chertoff and Brown. The most shocking aspect of that disconnect is that Bush required Louisiana officials to [...]

For Big Oil the disruption of the oil supply due to Hurricane Katrina was better than a license to print money. They jacked up the fuel prices, and they are keeping them up. Exxon Mobil is making $110 million profit a day this quarter. So President Bush hurries to their rescue and makes sure they [...]

… and the president is on vacation. Maybe he is working on finishing My Pet Goat? Apparently he never read the FEMA reports on the probability of the second most devastating disaster to hit the US during his presidency: In 2001, the Federal Emergency Management Agency ranked a major hurricane strike on New Orleans as [...]

Religious so-called leaders calling for terror against other nations? Not exactly an original concept! Does Pat Robertson aspire to be the Christian Osama Bin Laden? In a Aug. 22 broadcast on cable television, the wealthy American televangelist called for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez: You know, I don’t know about this doctrine of [...]

Congratulations to NASA – the space shuttle is back in one piece. Now it’s time to put those big clunkers in a nice museum and charge foreign tourists money to see them (I think that US taxpayers have already paid their admission fees). At an average cost of $1.3 billion per launch, and a total [...]

Like everyone else, I am shocked and saddened by the attacks on innocent civilians in Sharm al-Sheikh. Our thoughts are with the victims and their families, and with all affected by these cruel, barbaric acts of terrorism.

Massacre of school children and adults in northern Kenya: Hundreds of armed men surrounded a primary school and nearby houses and opened fire as children were making their way to school early on Tuesday. Security forces say 56 people – including 22 children – died in the revenge attack by raiders feuding over water and [...]

I know that Londoners are a resilient bunch and won’t be intimidated by these act of violence against civilians. But I do want to express my sorrow and solidarity with all Londoners. Over at Back to Iraq, Chris Albritton has posted a translation of a message that was supposedly generated by the perpetrators of these [...]

When Dr. Bush exhorted the benefits of renewable fuels recently, I was suspicious. This snake-oil salesman of a president has put one over the American taxpayer so many times, I am not inclined to take anything he says at face value. Point in case: the biodiesel tax incentive could potentially damage the nascent biodiesel industry [...]

Considering the Chinese government’s record of dealing with public health issues (SARS!), I had been wondering about all these reassurances from Chinese officials that “Everything is OK. Don’t worry. Just a couple of dead birds …” But if there is no reason to be alarmed, why has China rushed to shut down all its national [...]

Togo’s Interior Minister, Esso Boko, last night called for a suspension of the “suicidal electoral process” of his country – and was promptly sacked by his boss, Interim President Abass Bonfoh. The BBC’s Elizabeth Blunt in Togo says Mr Boko is a former military man and a political heavyweight, whose ministry is responsible for conducting [...]

Carrying on his fathers legacy of intimidation and violence, Faure Gnassingbe arrived in Lomé Sunday after his RPT thugs had “prepared” the capital of Togo using tear gas, nail-studded clubs and guns the day before. IRIN reported six deaths and AFP reported seven deaths and 150 injured. Saturday’s clashes occurred as opposition supporters spilled into [...]

This NY Times editorial highlights the fate of two young women in NYC who were arrested and accused of plotting to become suicide bombers. If there is a real reason to believe that charge, officials are obviously right to have acted. But so far, they have said little about the evidence against the girls, and [...]

TOMBSTONE, ARIZONA – A frat boy/reality-TV/border vigilante/republican prankster caused a serious border incident when he shared a cereal bowl with a hungry and thirsty guy from Mexico walking across the Arizona desert. The ACLU says the Mexican man was held against his will and photographed with a mocking slogan. Jesus’ General has a photo and [...]

At a February fundraiser in South Carolina for the victims of the devastating Indian Ocean Tsunami, former New York mayor and “Man of the Year” 2001 Rudi Giuliani charged a $100,000 fee and donated $20,000 to the fundraiser. How generous. He still made a nice $80,000, which is $20,000 more than the total raised at [...]

Yeah – poor OPEC. These guys are hard at work trying to control the price for their precious black gold, so that people in Minnesota can afford to heat their homes. Yet, it’s out of their hands. sorry! They are pumping like mad, there is nothing else they can do, Reuters.com reports: With its output [...]