| |
|
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
|
|
Opinions You Should Have: "Last week, President Bush instructed his former counsel, Harriet Miers, not to comply with a House subpoena in order to conceal his role in not having anything to do with the U.S. Attorney firings. Miers, in turn, failed to testify about their complete non-communication."
"2008 pres"
6:38:20 PM 
|
|
Andrew Sullivan says of Ron Paul, "Many Republican candidates talk the talk. But only one truly walks the walk."
Pollster.com:
A new Zogby telephone survey of likely voters (conducted 7/12 through 7/14) finds:
- Among 396 Democrats, Sen. Hillary Clinton leads Sen. Barack Obama (37% to 25%) in a national primary; former Sen. John Edwards trails at 11%, former Gov. Bill Richardson at 3%.
- Among 364 Republicans, former Sen. Fred Thompson edges out former Mayor Rudy Giuliani (22% to 21%) in a national primary; former Gov. Mitt Romney trails at 11%, Sen. John McCain at 9%, former Gov. Mike Huckabee at 5%.
Political Wire: "The latest Gallup Poll finds Sen. Hillary Clinton continues to lead the Democratic presidential race with 40%, followed by Sen. Barack Obama at 28% and John Edwards at 13%. In the Republican race, Rudy Giuliani continues to overshadow his opponents with 33%, followed by Fred Thompson at 21%, Sen. John McCain at 16%, and Mitt Romney at 8%. Meanwhile, an Associated Press-Ipsos poll finds no clear frontrunner among Republicans with nearly a quarter of respondents unwilling to support any of the leading four candidates."
"2008 pres"
6:00:45 PM
|
|
Andrew Sullivan: "Pro-war Libertarians: They exist."
ABC: "The FBI is investigating an alleged human smuggling operation based in Chaparral, N.M., that agents say is bringing "Iraqis and other Middle Eastern" individuals across the Rio Grande from Mexico. An FBI intelligence report distributed by the Washington, D.C. Joint Terrorism Task Force, obtained by the Blotter on ABCNews.com, says the illegal ring has been bringing Iraqis across the border illegally for more than a year."
Thanks to Captain's Quarters for the link.
Washington Post:
If U.S. combat forces withdraw from Iraq in the near future, three developments would be likely to unfold. Majority Shiites would drive Sunnis out of ethnically mixed areas west to Anbar province. Southern Iraq would erupt in civil war between Shiite groups. And the Kurdish north would solidify its borders and invite a U.S. troop presence there. In short, Iraq would effectively become three separate nations. That was the conclusion reached in recent "war games" exercises conducted for the U.S. military by retired Marine Col. Gary Anderson. "I honestly don't think it will be apocalyptic," said Anderson, who has served in Iraq and now works for a major defense contractor. But "it will be ugly."
Thanks to Josh Marshall for the link.
"2008 pres"
5:53:20 PM
|
|
Here's an update about the opposition to PowerTech's proposed uranium mining operation in Weld County, from The Denver Post. They write:
Powertech Uranium Corp. is proposing a 5,760-acre development in western Weld County that eventually could produce 8 million pounds of the nuclear fuel.
At the current price of $129 a pound, the operation could generate $1 billion in revenue. Yet the $20 million proposal has generated strong opposition from northern Colorado landowners who fear environmental damage and health problems from the mine. "A lot of people just don't want to see this happen," said Jay Davis, who with his wife, Robin, owns an 80-acre horse pasture near Nunn. "We're very concerned about the health issues once the mining starts." The Davises and other opponents fear that the project will contaminate groundwater and leach toxins into surrounding soil and aquifers...
Powertech will hold a community meeting Thursday from 4 to 7:30 p.m. at the community center in the Nunn Town Hall, 185 Lincoln Ave. [ed. emphasis ours] The company is proposing a mining process known as "in-situ" in which a solvent solution is injected underground to dissolve uranium and pump it to the surface. The process is safer and less invasive than traditional open-pit or underground mining, said Richard Blubaugh, vice president of environmental health and safety resources for Powertech. "The issue is widely misunderstood by opponents," he said. "There is no likelihood of contaminating drinking water. We'll certainly be able to contain the process." Blubaugh said the process of injecting sodium bicarbonate and oxygen into the deposits inherently causes some of the uranium and attached heavy metals to dissipate into surrounding soils, but not enough to contaminate aquifers. "We plan to use good engineering, proper instrumentation, good operator training, and have a series of groundwater-monitoring wells," he said...
Powertech also is pursuing a uranium mine in southwestern South Dakota and is proposing a uranium-processing facility at an undisclosed location in Wyoming. As recently as 2002, uranium was trading at $7 a pound. But prices surged to a record $138 in May because stores of processed uranium have been exhausted and demand is growing with plans for up to 100 new nuclear power plants around the world. Prices have fallen 6.5 percent in the past three weeks as higher mine production resulted in a temporary glut of uranium. Boosters say nuclear power is a partial solution to global warming because the plants emit no carbon, unlike conventional coal- and natural-gas- fired generators.
More Coyote Gulch coverage here.
"2008 pres"
6:19:13 AM
|
|
|
© Copyright 2009 John Orr.
Last update: 3/15/09; 1:10:47 PM.
|
|
|
