Thursday, June 24, 2010

On The Internets 06.24.2010

  • BP is justifiably taking a lot of crap for the explosion at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, and the two month long environmental disaster that is still ongoing. But, did you know that another company owns 25% of that rig? Texas based Anadarko Petroleum owns that 25% but has escaped all public scrutiny. So has the Japanese company called Mitsui, which owns 10%. Why are they not being held to account for their percentage of the liability? Have they made arrangements with BP?
  • Is it raining oil in Louisiana? There is some compelling evidence that it might be happening. "Video is circulating which purports to show the effects of an oily rain coming down off the coast of Louisiana. It could be as simple as the sheen which develops on the road following rain on a dirty road or someone attempting a sensationalist hoax. At this point nobody knows. A smattering of reports from along the coast indicate similar occurrences accompanied by a strong odor of oil."
  • A new documentary called Please Remove Your Shoes argues that despite spending millions and millions after 9/11 to improve airport safety, we are no more safe. Most security procedures are just for show. "What we've got now is nothing but security theater, meaning all these bells and whistles that you see are only meant to make you feel safe," former federal air marshal P. Jeffrey Black says in the documentary. "I honestly think we were safer before 9/11 than we are now." Scary.
  • A Southwest Airlines employee in Little Rock, Arkansas discovered 40-60 severed human heads in a package aboard a plane. The package was destined for a medical research company in Ft. Worth, Texas. "We've come to the conclusion that there is a black market out there for human body parts for research or for whatever reason," according to Pulaski County coroner Garland Camper. "We just want to make sure these specimens here aren't a part of that black market and underground trade."
  • News Corp president Rupert Murdoch said on the network he owns, Fox News, that the media should be used to advance the agenda of legalizing undocumented immigrants. "Well you just gotta keep the pressure on the congressmen. You gotta do it on the press and on the television. It’s a political thing. They gotta fess up to it...I think we can show to the public the benefit of having migrants and the jobs that go with them" Interesting. For one, I thought the media reported the news, not tried to influence it (this is a joke, of course, since we're talking about Fox). Second, has Murdoch watched Fox News in the last five years or so? His network is pushing the exact opposite of what he is saying. It is the "no amnesty" channel. Really, Rupert, you might want to watch once in a while.
  • Talking Points Memo has details about the sexual assault allegations made against Al Gore. The allegations seem baseless, and the two prior investigations concluded that there was no evidence of wrongdoing. According to police, "The case was not investigated any further because detectives concluded there was insufficient evidence to support the allegations." The woman making the allegations has been trying to sell the story for the last two years.
  • San Francisco band Deerhoof is playing at The Waiting Room tomorrow night. Tim at Lazy-I has an interview with the eclectic band.
  • Freaks and Geeks is one my all-time favorite television shows even though it only lasted one season. Manofest has a gallery of Linda Cardellini (Lindsay Weir) all grown up and looking hot.
  • Lastly, despite the media narrative that the Democrats are going to lose big this November, the reality is likely to be quite a bit different. Conservative Eli Lehrer has a post at FrumForum that argues that the Democrats will be celebrating instead. "But there’s little reason to count on a massive Republican rout come November. There are at least five reasons why any Republican who claims this is simply overconfident."

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