Show for February 3, 2008

Guests to include TJ Johnson and Geov Parrish

Local
* Building heigh limits in Olympia, Olympian
- group forms to oppose new development that would block view of Puget Sound from Capitol, Friends of the Waterfront.
* Educational levies: Districts seek to fill budget gaps, Olympian via TJ
* Logistics center meets opposition, Tacoma News Tribune
* Bush's State of the Union speech fails to impress panel of readers, Seattle PI
* House panels give glimpse of Democrats' budget plans, Olympian
* Ports look at 3 sites besides Maytown; 2 new possibilities for rail logistics center proposed in Thurston County, Olympian

National / International
* Ralph DiGia, 93, Pacifist Leader & Activist Is Dead, After Downing Street via Geov Parrish
- link to War Resisters League website.
* Iraq not using oil cash to rebuild, Washington Times
* Bush Issues Signing Statement On Defense Act, Waiving Ban On Permanent Bases In Iraq, Think Progress via Geov Parrish
* U.S. To Oppose Treaty Barring Space Weapons, Nukes of Hazzard via TJ
* Biowar Experiments HAVE BEGUN at Livermore Lab, SFGate.com via TJ
- link to Watchdog group based in the East Bay area - Tri-Valley Communities Against a Radioactive Environment (CARE)

"Considering the anthrax strain that killed postal workers and was mailed to the two top Democrats opposed to the Patriot Act had originated in a government laboratory, and considering after all these years the FBI hasn't been able to find who did it, I sure hope that they keep a close eye on the people working there."

* Bush Trying to Sidestep Congress on Permanent Bases Question, Guardian Unlimited UK via Truthout.org via TJ
* O'Reilly: Seattle Post-Intelligencer is the nation's worst newspaper; publisher is "beyond pinhead", BlatherWatch
* Arming the Middle East, Common Dreams via Foreign Policy in Focus via TJ
- "Excellent peiece on the US's primary export - weapons. - tj"
* Bush moves on Alaska as backs are turned, Joel Connelly, Seattle PI
* Polar Bears Threatened: Million Of Acres To Be Opened To Oil And Gas Activities, Science Daily
* In a Strategic Reversal, Dutch Embrace Floods, Joe Palca from NPR.org
- check out this cool site that shows how the Maeslant barrier works

Good News!
* CSNY Speak Out and Listen In “Deja Vu”, Common Dreams via Reuters via TJ (confessed CSNY fan)

Show for January 27th, 2008

Guests to include TJ Johnson and Geov Parrish

Local
* Cleanup fees overdue from 1 in 4 businesses; Olympia owed $34,900, threatens to send bills to collections, Olympian via TJ
* South Thurston County looks for bus service, Olympian via TJ
* Housing deal may cost city $223,000; money added by new estimate for cleanup, Olympian via TJ
* Lawmakers pushed to stop pharmaceutical 'data-mining'; drug makers buy information on prescriptions, Olympian via TJ

National
* Study: Bush Led US To War on ‘False Pretenses’, Common Dreams via TJ
* Stimulus rebates may come by mid-May, Olympian

So, the answer to the problems created by our fantasy economy is... more
fantasy? Borrow more money from the Chinese, give it to people so they can buy more
consumer crap (on credit cards) made in China. Everyone on Wall Street
lives happily ever after in their gated communities.

* FBI Denies File Exposing Nuclear Secrets Theft, The Times Online/UK via Common Dreams via TJ

Sibel Edmonds, a 37-year-old former Turkish language translator, says the FBI was investigating a Turkish and Israeli-run network that paid high-ranking American officials to steal nuclear weapons secrets. These were then sold on the international black market to countries such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

* Toyota and Ford plug in their hybrids, C|Net News Blog via TWiT
* LA Times editor fired in budget dispute, AP
* White House missing CIA, Iraq e-mails, AP

International
* Gazans Fear Crisis After Four Days of Blockade, Washington Post

Show for January 20th, 2008

Below are some headlines I am following, however, in honor of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., I'll be airing a special from the Pacifica Archives featuring original speeches from Dr. King and others.
For information about the series, visit From the Vault on the web.

Local
* Board can't tackle complaint, Olympian via TJ
- update on school board member resignation
* Plan could elevate Olympia's skyline, Olympian via TJ
- Jeannette Hawkins is at it again . . .
* Gregoire sets tone for session and campaign, Olympian via TJ
- let the campaign distortions begin!

National
* Quality of Nuclear Devices Questioned, AP
* Year of the Fat Cats, Common Dreams

The poster child for this new trend is Robert Nardelli. In five years as CEO at Home Depot, he lost shareholders 40 percent of the stock’s value, more than $25 billion. When he was eventually pushed out the door, he walked away with a compensation package worth more than $200 million. Call it “pay for nonperformance.”

* Ruling Quashes Kucinich’s Hope of Joining Lineup, NY Times via TJ

International
* US: Attacks by Iranian-Made Bombs Drop, AP
* Opium Fields Spread Across Iraq as Farmers Try to Make Ends Meet, Independent/UK via Common Dreams via Hofgren!
* Escalating Ice Loss Found in Antarctica, Washington Post
* Bush urges OPEC to pump more oil, AP via TJ

Show for January 13, 2008

Local
* Clear-cutting, nature blamed for landslides; Logging officials defend practices, Olympian
* Army won't pay Aberdeen for port security during protests, Olympian
* School board member resigns over conflict, Olympian

National
* Major allegations of vote fraud in New Hampshire are circulating after Hillary Clinton reversed a mammoth pre-polling deficit to defeat Barack Obama with the aid of Diebold electronic voting machines, Boston 911 Truth (thanks Jen!)
* Clear Evidence Of Widespread Vote Fraud In New Hampshire, Prison Planet
* Iraq/Afghan veterans have killed 121 after coming home, NY Times
* 80 Arrested Outside Supreme Court demanding closure of Guantanamo Bay; worldwide protests accompany action, CBS News via Digg

International
* Bush Urges Allies to Join U.S. Efforts to Confront Iran, Washington Post

Bush is trying to persuade Arab countries to join U.S. efforts to pressure Iran, though many have displayed ambivalence about the administration's campaign amid a new U.S. intelligence report that concluded Iran stopped a nuclear weapons program in 2003.

The president will travel Monday to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, viewed by many inside and out of the administration as the lynchpin of its efforts to develop an anti-Iran coalition. As part of an effort to show its commitment to Saudi Arabia, a senior administration official said the White House plans to notify Congress about a substantial package of arms sales for Saudi Arabia; it seemed likely to be on the order of $20 billion.

* Official Version of Naval Incident Starts to Unravel, InterPress Service via Common Dreams
- echoes of Tonkin?
* Declassified study puts Vietnam events in new light, Christian Science Monitor

January 6, 2008 No Talking Heads

Local
* Port cancels dredging project due to lack of funds, Olympian
* Tumwater brewery a financial black hole, Olympian
* Ruling appealed in Tumwater Wal-Mart case, Olympian
* Report underscores dearth of social workers in Washington; study: CPS in need of 1,540 staffers, Olympian
* Seattle viaduct must go, says feisty Gregoire, AP via News Tribune
- I'm lovin' Gregoire's quotes in this article.

National
* Can You Count on Voting Machines?, NY Times Sunday Magazine, January 6th, 2008
* Legal voters thrown off rolls; database woes could be 'sleeper issue of 2008', USA Today
* Justice Department Opens Criminal Investigation Over C.I.A. Tapes, AP via NY Times
- Stonewalled by the C.I.A., Thomas H. Kean and Lee H. Hamilton Op-ed in NY Times
* Video of Sleeping Guards Shakes Nuclear Industry, Sight of Guards Asleep Shakes Industry, Washington Post
* California Sues EPA Over Emissions Rules; 15 Other States Back Effort to Win Waiver to Allow the Setting of Tougher Standards, Washington Post

Post-Show Links
* Angry Bush will stonewall CIA probe - Orders White House aides to stall investigators, Capitol Hill Blue via Geov