NASA scientists dispute climate change: like trying to sell Brooklyn Bridge to gullible public ... by gimleteye...

The conservative blogs lit up with "news" yesterday that non-climate scientists from NASA "signed a letter" against climate change. This is the latest weird media plant by climate change deniers who wear the cloak of respectability but lack both credentials and science to support their opinions. Climate change deniers are a minority shrinking faster than glaciers. What's to account for the phenomenon? Most likely: the pile-up of extreme weather events -- the non-winter that affected much of the nation and March tornado madness -- has big polluters and conservative foundations they fund all knotted in a bunch.

The blog, Skeptical Science, quickly responded to the latest, "NASA Climate 'Skeptics' Respond with Science! Just Kidding". Calling them out as another in a line of "fake experts", here is the response, posted on 12 April 2012 by dana1981

"Almost exactly two years ago, John Cook wrote about the 5 characteristics of science denialism. The second point on the list involved fake experts. These are individuals purporting to be experts but whose views are inconsistent with established knowledge. Fake experts have been used extensively by the tobacco industry who developed a strategy to recruit scientists who would counteract the growing evidence on the harmful effects of second-hand smoke."

We have seen many examples of climate denialists producing long lists of fake experts, for example the Oregon Petition and the Wall Street Journal 16. Now we have yet another of these lists of fake experts. 49 former National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) employees (led by Harrison Schmitt, who was also one of the Wall Street Journal 16) have registered their objection to mainstream climate science through the most popular medium of expressing climate contrarianism - a letter. As is usually the case in these climate contrarian letters, this one has no scientific content, and is written by individuals with not an ounce of climate science expertise, but who nevertheless have the audacity to tell climate scientists what they should think about climate science..."

People are entitled to their own opinions but not their own facts. For facts: read here, on the denialists.

Allen West Must Go ... by gimleteye

Allen West says many Dems in Congress are communists. The embarrassment made network news last night. Florida really does boast a grab bag of corrupt, ill-informed, and ignorant politicians, but Congressman Allen West takes the prize.

At a town hall in Jensen Beach Tuesday, a man asked West, “what percentage of the American Legislature do you think are card-carrying Marxists (something garbled) Socialists?” American Legislature? WTF?

West's reply: “That’s a good question. I believe its about 78 to 81 members of the Democratic Party are members of the Communist Party.”

PolitiFact asked West’s spkeswoman Angela Melvin for an explanation today: “The Congressman was referring to the 76 members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The Communist Party has publicly referred to the Progressive Caucus as its allies. The Progressive Caucus speaks for itself. These individuals certainly aren't proponents of free markets or individual economic freedom.” Lie. Lie. Lie.

Dumb and dumber doesn't begin to describe Congressman Allen West who is up for re-election, opposed in Broward by Patrick Murphy. Murphy could use your support right about now.

Burythelines.com : check it out ... by gimleteye

The following is from a website: burythelines.com  The question is: when will FPL ratepayers be allowed to save money and stop paying FPL for new nuclear reactors that will never be built? This is from the website:

"The Early Cost Recovery (ECR) scam, is not new and has been used for years by utilities across the nation to gouge their customers (over whom they hold a monopoly) in order to pay for improvements to their own infrastructure and capital base.

In 2007, after a year in which FPL handed out nearly $1.3 million in campaign contributions, the legislature passed Florida statute 366.93, which allows for “Cost recovery for the siting, design, licensing, and construction of nuclear and integrated gasification combined cycle power plants.” An electric utility can take our money, up front, for any and all of the following:

Candidates Campaign Reports. By Geniusofdespair

In the Miami Dade County's Mayoral race Joe Martinez has raised $111,774.50 and Carlos Gimenez has raised $694,955. Bruno Barreiro is at $108,025. That isn't very good for a sitting Commissioner with 3 challengers. Juan Zapata, in District 11, is up to $92,597.52.  Joe Martinez has a lot of the production home builders like Shoma and Century giving multiple contributions from different corporations.

An interesting race looks like the County Court Judge in Group 33. John M. Rodriguez is challenging the incumbent Teretha Lundy Thomas. Rodriquez has $135,455 and Thomas has $56,616.35. Usually the incumbent has more money but in this case Rodriguez lent his campaign $100,000. Also targeted with challengers in the Judges races are Fleur Jeannine Lobree (Group 20) and Charlie Johnson (Group 39). Most of the other Judges have not drawn challengers. Judges that have non-Hispanic names are challenged by candidates with Hispanic names. It seems to work in their favor most of the time, unless they are complete idiots.  We lost a lot of very good judges because they had non-Hispanic names.  Judges now put a lot of money in their campaign account to scare off challengers. For instance Andrew Stuart Hague lent his campaign $200,000. It isn't fair but it is the reality of  ethnic politics.

In State Senate District 34, boundaries not set yet,, Alex Diaz de la Portilla is reporting no funds. Gwen Margolis is reporting about $200,000 of which $160,000 are loans to her campaign.

In the Erik Fresen race, he has $107,550.  Eduardo Gonzalez has raised $113,871 (he brought over $99,353 as a redesignation). Eduardo is from Hialeah and Pepe Riesco is his treasurer.  I am not so sure they are running against each other as I can't make heads or tails yet of the districts in the State races.  But if they are, this indeed will be a good one to watch.  The third Republican, Amory Bodin, has raised $2,658. The Dem...well he had better make some calls for dough.

My Mac is out of commission and I am on a Dell that I can't stand, so I can't really analyze these reports. Sorry.

Corrupt: in Florida, this is how we roll ... by gimleteye

Last week FBI Robert Mueller III spoke to the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce to enlist the business community in rooting out the pervasive corruption in South Florida. According to The Watchdog Report, Mueller noted: "... there were 2600 active mortgage fraud cases each over $1 million, where buyers lied about their income, or the appraiser 'inflated the home prices'." The statistic gives some sense of the scale of the rampant corruption tied to the housing boom that soared in the early 2000's as the Bush White House deployed the Federal Reserve to save the economy from 9/11.

Picking Florida's carcass clean didn't start with the Bush presidency or even Jeb Bush, who in two terms as Florida governor, steered the state in the direction of policies to accommodate production home builders and land speculators who formed his political base in Miami. Florida's economy has relied, for generations, on the conversion of wetlands into developable lots where economies of scale could flourish where wading birds once nested.

Along this line, it comes as no surprise to learn from The Palm Beach Post that the second-in-command at the South Florida Water Management District, Bob Brown, "conducted personal business with a close friend whose companies were regulated by departments Brown headed for years." The Post details the inside dealings that have always marred the District; in particular, the operation of the canal system to benefit Big Sugar at the expense of the Everglades. Brown is the former director of environmental compliance and permitting.

"Brown's friend made millions when he sold a mined-out shell pit in Okeechobee County to the district for $8.1 million -- 18 percent over its appraised value and just five years after he bought it for $150,000. While the deal was in the planning stages, Brown headed the district's Okeechobee office."

"Bob Brown is as honest as the day is long," said the son of the friend, now deceased.

The same would be said of Miami's land speculators of each other, including many in Mueller's audience at the Greater Miami Chamber who could honestly claim that their business activities -- production homebuilding in wetlands, for example -- are only following what is allowed by code and by regulation.

Recently, county commissioner Lynda Bell demonstrated just how slippery and slimy the slope is; through which taxpayers are saddled with immense liabilities in order to foster "what the free market wants". Bell -- whose proudly lists her support among evangelical faithful as a motivation for her political activities -- has launched a jihad against county environmental regulations. The net result will be to make it much easier for development and rock mines to spread into wetlands and open space. Yet in local newspapers she has written about "restoring faith in government".

In the local Community Newspaper she wrote, "We must learn from the egregious actions of Jack Abramoff (the powerful Republican lobbyist and felon who served a prison sentence for public corruption) in the halls of Congress and other examples of government at its worst. We need to take steps to ensure that history is not repeated."

Yet it is repeated time and again, and by Bell herself who ends her editorial, "... trust is all we have and we have ignored it to further our own ambitions once again."

Whatever.

Councilman Gerado Silva in Medley. By Geniusofdespair

I reported on a vote in the town of Medley a couple of weeks ago. in that article I mentioned Gerado Silva, saying he was the only person I ever met in the industrial-heavy Town, I think I said he seemed like a 'nice guy'.

Today the Miami Herald reported that he was blemished with a grand-theft record, a long running bitter legal battle with his wife, a crazy 911 call and some questionable spending with the Town credit card (why do they have credit cards?). The grand-theft was of his repossessed SUV (he was tasered during the incident and he had his two young daughters with him).  Don't think he sounds that bad if that is what he stole. Bitter divorces can get ugly and Silva said the charges were dropped. You have to cut this guy some slack, he lives in Medley and that would make me sort of crazy.  He was the lone "no" vote on the Council in my previous report. I wonder if someone connected to some deal in the Town is trying to disgrace him? Granted, he is doing a pretty good job on his own but I think someone handed all these charges to the reporter in a bundle, ready to go -- reporters just don't have time for this kind of research on little fish.

Candidate Romero Roses Runs Against David Rivera in 26th Congressional District. By Geniusofdespair

As I speculated last week, Gloria Romero Roses IS going to run against Republican Congressman David Rivera. The Miami Herald says:

After years of working in real estate, Roses, who was born in Bogotá, now manages Nexus Homes, a business that pairs up investors with Florida assisted-living operators. She and her husband, Tom Roses, have a daughter, Alexandra.

“As a real estate professional, I have seen the boom-bust cycle of our local economy that comes from our reliance on construction and housing to be the economic engine,” she said in a statement. “Florida’s growth has been stagnant coming out of this downturn in part because Congressman David Rivera has been too focused on defending himself in his ongoing scandals rather than fighting for jobs and strengthening our small businesses.”

David Rivera was called "Corrupt" by the Democratic Executive Director and I tend to agree. He is ethically challenged at best. I would vote for Gloria Romero Roses in a heartbeat. Don't complain that she doesn't live in the District. Rivera doesn't either and his legacy of positives during his political career is woefully anemic. Anyway, send her money pronto!

TSA: Please take your computer out of your bag ... by gimleteye

If you fly, you will instantly recognize one of the most irritating features of the TSA screening at airports: please remove your computer from your bag and place it in a separate tray. The New York Times sent a reporter out to investigate if any purpose is served removing laptops and computers from carry-on bags. The Times discovers: it doesn't. It is "security theater", meant to make travelers feel safer. Well, bul@#$@ to that. If it serves no purpose, stop making us, trained monkeys.

Japan's Nuke Plants 1 Year Later and Turkey Point. By Geniusofdespair

A year after Japan's triple nuclear plant meltdown, only one of their 54 nuke plants are operating. They are back to using oil, natural gas and coal and at the same time we are in the midst of expanding our nuke plant at Turkey Point.  Does this 'point'  make us look like 'turkeys'?  The local communities and local governments in Japan are keeping the reactors off line. We could do the same thing here if we had the fortitude. Instead, as I reported last week, Turkey Point is gearing up. According to the Washington Post:

"In February, nuclear plants produced just 3 percent of the total power generated in Japan. By next month, when the sole remaining reactor, on the northern island of Hokkaido, is due to shut down, Japan will be nuclear-free just as temperatures begin to climb."

Are we idiots here in Miami? In Japan, meanwhile, the No. 2 reactor's containment chamber is at over 10 times a fatal dose of radiation:

"The plant operator will have to develop special equipment and technology to tolerate the harsh environment and decommission the plant, a process expected to last decades. The other two reactors that had meltdowns could be in even worse shape. The No 2 reactor is the only one plant workers have been able to closely examine so far" according to the Sydney Morning Herald. And, the plant workers got the data on reactor 2 with a probe.

From Smart Planet

They have dangerous radiation levels 100 miles from the reactors in Japan. 100 miles from Turkey Point puts us North of West Palm Beach! We are ALL paying for the Turkey Point expansion. Stupid us.

Also read this "Threat to Humanity" warning from the Washington Blog's on the dangers of Japan's Fuel Pool. They say:

Happy Easter Everyone! By Geniusofdespair

Not exactly feeling warm and fuzzy today.

HBO Luck, out of luck: a review ... by gimleteye

From media reports, the death of a third horse during the filming of the HBO series "Luck" forced its cancellation. I'm ambivalent about that. I wanted the show to have a life, even though the horses died.

I'm not a fan of horse racing. I've never placed a single bet. But the creator, David Milch, I once bet on; as a college student I finagled to help cover some of Milch's debts in return for a percentage of his first screenplay. (how that worked out is another story) Then, Milch was a star, drug-addled as the case may have been.

It turns out that "Luck" is the third Milch show in a row, that HBO carried to early cancellation. Of all, I enjoyed "Deadwood" most; a startling venture in the long-form TV drama format that tangled in Milch's own drama. His rebound, "John from Cincinatti", began with great promise and dissolved in its own ether. I had high expectations for "Luck", matching Milch to Michael Mann's skill in directing and delivery. Milch's secondary characters have always been very special and very entertaining. Think of Wu, the butcher in "Deadwood". Or, the motel maintenance men in "Cincinatti". The quartet he created in "Luck" of common gamblers who lucked their way to a winning claim horse had huge spirit and life. I loved what the series did for venerable actors Nick Nolte and Dustin Hoffman. Both were terrific. It was gratifying to watch Hoffman in a role that served his immense talent. There were miles and miles to go for the ensemble cast as well as its stars.

Michael Mann's filming of horse racing was extraordinary. In each of the season's seven episodes when it came to filming the big race I wondered, how did they do that? There was no question -- even from my living room -- the cost and difficulty were at the high end. Still.

Milch and Mann were able to convey a sense of the primordial attachment we have to animals, especially those magnificent horses. I started to understand the ecosystem of horse racing that captivated Milch at an early age. I wanted the series to go on, even though three horses died.

PETA certainly disagrees; it was a PETA campaign that seemingly brought HBO to cancel the series.

Horse racing is a nasty business, and human behavior can be messy to the point of disgusting. That Milch has succeeded exposing the complexity and drama of conflicting desires in a medium that can be perversely shallow is remarkable.

The three horses that died in the filming should have been celebrated. And so, too, if it had been twelve or twenty horses. Would it have been inhumane? Any more inhumane than using horses for leather, glue, or food?

We've used and abused horses for tens of thousands of years; maybe there was something more to the delineation of the abuse we inflict on ourselves and our loved ones that made HBO flinch. I wanted to watch Dustin Hoffman's character change and had an idea how Milch was winding up to make that happen. In any case, this viewer is sorry to see "Luck" finish without the ending it deserved.