We can only hope and pray that the path of Gustav will keep New Orleans out of the most harm (*although looking at long range models, Hanna may also be a fear*).. but today we are learning that those who stay in New Orleans during Gustav will have on shelter .. Police with bullhorns going through the streets of the city this weekend announcing that if you don't leave now, there will be no shelter, you are on your own.. The doors of the Superdome are going to be locked this time around.
GUSTAV EXPLODING IN GULF; THOUSANDS EVACUATING FROM NEW ORLEANS, OTHER CITIES; UNCERTAIN PATH AS NEW COMPUTER MODELS COME IN
PHOTO: AFP Weather is not an exact science, but when you are just getting over a major hurricane three years ago and see another on the horizon, you want exact..New computer models are showing a frighteningly strengthening Gustav in the Gulf.. Exploding into a powerful category 3 storm--some weather forecasters expect a cat 4 before it's over, a few have worried aloud that a Cat 5 storm may not be out of the question.
President Bush has declared a state of emergency in Louisiana--and Texas. The latest projected path shows landfall 2am Tuesday Southwest of New Orleans--however new models shown on the Weather Channel this morning show a curve at the last minute away from the United States and back South into the Gulf! Possibly strengthening even more..
As the storms gets stronger, nonessential oil workers in the Gulf have been evacuated.. Worries over $4 a gallon gas for Labor Day--even $5 a gallon if the storm hits Gulf oil fields and causes widespread damage..
And it's not over after Gustav--Hanna is next. And "Ike" is in its making off the coast of Africa..
Ladies and gentlemen, and readers of all shapes and sizes: Gas up the cars before Tuesday. This could get bad...
PEOPLE magazine placing the McCains and Palins on the cover.. the new happy family of politics.. Maybe.. but I noticed watching the talking heads that, for even those that really dislike VPILF candidate Sarah Palin, they are having lots of trouble being critical. Being very careful..
Besides Keith Olbermann..
The POLITICO this morning issues a hit on McCain's motives, calling the once declared maverick 'desperate'..
Authors Jim VandeHei and John F. Harris explain the six things that the Palin pick says about McCain: He's desperate; he's willing to gamble — bigtime; he's worried about the political implications of his age; he's not worried about the actuarial implications of the age issue, he's worried about his conservative base; and at the end of the day, "McCain is still McCain," marching to his own beat..
But on the heels of Obama's convention address, the most amazing political speech since Lincoln addressed Gettysburg during war, McCain needed some good press. Sure, he only met Palin once or twice, and sure, maybe her husband is not even a Republican, and sure, maybe she wasn't quite sure what a Vice President did.. And for a candidate that just turned 72 trying to distance himself from George W. Bush, what could be better than a PEOPLE magazine cover with his new attractive young Vice Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin?
Palin's husband is a member of the Steelworkers union, but tonight the union has issued a press release from USW International President Leo W. Gerard on the Palin choice takes away some of those union hugs.. We'll see how long the McCain camp uses the union line..
MSNBC has been criticized this week for its coverage of the Democratic National Convention, moderated mainly by COUNTDOWN's Keith Olbermann..
But ignorant to the critics, Olbermann went furthest during live post-Obama speech coverage last night.. Calling the AP a failure.. Calling out Charles Babbington.. telling him, directly, "Find new work."
REUTERS PHOTO
Until today, Alasksa Governor Sarah Palin was unknown in the lower 48 states..
The Obama campaign wanted today to be all about Barack.. the speech, the 75,000+ in attendance at Invesco, and the 40 million record viewers watching on television around the world..
But instead of typing and talking about the monumental speech last night given by Obama, the media quickly turned its attention to the world's best kept secret until about 10:50am today: John McCain's vice presidential pick..
The 'hockey mom' and tough governor often took on her own party.. she opposed the bridge to nowhere.. (however, she is until scrutiny in her state now after firing someone that did not fire a state trooper..) .. she also hid her pregnancy from the public until about 8 months.. she opposes abortion--tested by her youngest child, born with down syndrome. She wanted to keep her baby.. Her oldest son enlisted in the military and is headed to Iraq..
Rumors today that John McCain really didn't know Palin.. perhaps it's a surgical strike against the Democrats, a hopeful play in the year everyone wants change.. And the year everyone is talking about that glass ceiling..
Revealed tonight on Hardball, Palin and her husband was a fan of Pat Buchanan back in 1996..
She's a lifelong NRA member.. She was a runner up for beauty queen.. Her husband works in oil. She likes basketball and hockey..
And the world is reacting.. A sampling:
Comedy Central: Superhot Alaska Governor Palin picked for VP ..
Palin is 44..
AP: "McCain 'taps' Alaska governor"Andrea Mitchell reporting that McCain has only met Palin once!TIME mag: Unclear what her foreign policy beliefs are..Palin gets PEOPLE magazine treatment..
One day after the historic Obama moment: McCain set to name his veep..
No Romney.. Is it Pawlenty, is it Palin? While Denver cleans the mile high city, Alaska wonders if their hockey mom Palin will be nominated.. Or Ridge.. Or Lieberman
All the news unfit to print for Thursday, August 28, 2008
OBAMA'S PROFOUND ROAR: "ENOUGH!"
"Tonight, I say to the American people, to Democrats and Republicans and Independents across this great land - enough! This moment - this election - is our chance to keep, in the 21st century, the American promise alive. Because next week, in Minnesota, the same party that brought you two terms of George Bush and Dick Cheney will ask this country for a third. And we are here because we love this country too much to let the next four years look like the last eight. On November 4th, we must stand up and say: "Eight is enough.""
"It is that promise that has always set this country apart – that through hard work and sacrifice, each of us can pursue our individual dreams but still come together as one American family, to ensure that the next generation can pursue their dreams as well.
That's why I stand here tonight. Because for two hundred and thirty two years, at each moment when that promise was in jeopardy, ordinary men and women – students and soldiers, farmers and teachers, nurses and janitors -- found the courage to keep it alive.
The truth is, on issue after issue that would make a difference in your lives – on health care and education and the economy – Senator McCain has been anything but independent. He said that our economy has made "great progress" under this President. He said that the fundamentals of the economy are strong. And when one of his chief advisors – the man who wrote his economic plan – was talking about the anxiety Americans are feeling, he said that we were just suffering from a "mental recession," and that we've become, and I quote, "a nation of whiners."
A nation of whiners? Tell that to the proud auto workers at a Michigan plant who, after they found out it was closing, kept showing up every day and working as hard as ever, because they knew there were people who counted on the brakes that they made. Tell that to the military families who shoulder their burdens silently as they watch their loved ones leave for their third or fourth or fifth tour of duty. These are not whiners. They work hard and give back and keep going without complaint. These are the Americans that I know.
We may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country. The reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than for those plagued by gang-violence in Cleveland, but don't tell me we can't uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals. I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in the hospital and to live lives free of discrimination. Passions fly on immigration, but I don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts American wages by hiring illegal workers. This too is part of America's promise – the promise of a democracy where we can find the strength and grace to bridge divides and unite in common effort.
Change means a tax code that doesn't reward the lobbyists who wrote it, but the American workers and small businesses who deserve it.
Unlike John McCain, I will stop giving tax breaks to corporations that ship jobs overseas, and I will start giving them to companies that create good jobs right here in America.
I will eliminate capital gains taxes for the small businesses and the start-ups that will create the high-wage, high-tech jobs of tomorrow.
I will cut taxes – cut taxes – for 95% of all working families. Because in an economy like this, the last thing we should do is raise taxes on the middle-class.
America, we cannot turn back. Not with so much work to be done. Not with so many children to educate, and so many veterans to care for. Not with an economy to fix and cities to rebuild and farms to save. Not with so many families to protect and so many lives to mend. America, we cannot turn back. We cannot walk alone. At this moment, in this election, we must pledge once more to march into the future. Let us keep that promise – that American promise – and in the words of Scripture hold firmly, without wavering, to the hope that we confess.
The words that will be said .. the rest will be history..
GUSTAV'S FIRST STRIKE: BUSH MAY NOT SPEAK AT GOP CONVENTION!
The irony of ironies.. Gustav is poised to strike the Gulf Coast, somewhere, maybe even New Orleans, early next week..
Conversations are underway tonight behind closed doors.. FEMA director already down in the South, and the President may not speak at the GOP convention..
Katrina hit New Orleans three years ago this week.. Gustav poised to take a strikingly similar pattern and path.. It's also expected to intensify to a Cat 3, if not stronger, storm by next Monday or Tuesday when it hits land..
Developing..
AP Photo/Ted S. Warren As Barack Obama gets ready to speak to the nation, and world, a quote is making its way across the net, Digg, and Stumble.. Joe Biden from 2001, one day before 9/11:
"We will have diverted all that money to address the least likely threat while the real threats come into this country in the hold of a ship, or the belly of a plane, or are smuggled into a city in the middle of the night in a vial in a backpack"
Republican candidate John McCain doing his best to try to take the spotlight away from the Obama acceptance speech tonight at Invesco field, Denver..
Rumors have circulated all day of who may be his choice for Vice President.. But the news may not be nearly as exciting as Obama's speech before 80,000 screaming fans..
Tonight, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty has abruptly canceled numerous public appearances..
Palenty's stock has been rising within the McCain camp this week.. McCain himself, reports claim, has narrowed his search down to Leiberman, the unlikely, Romney, the conversatives' creepy friend, and Tim Pawlenty, who seems to be angering no one but also exciting anyone..
The McCain camp has also planned an ad blitz tonight--during Obama's speech.. In the ad, the McCain team said, the Republican will 'speak directly' to Obama..
ACCUWEATHER SAYS UNLIKELY.. HURRICANE KATRINA WAS A SUPER HURRICANE..
However, Accuweather goes on to say that no one can rule out Gustav gaining strength..
A few forecasters in weather circles have been watching Gustav for days.. The meandering cone of impact has slendered in recent hours.. The point of impact appears to be Louisiana.. near New Orleans..
ALREADY: MANY MOCKING OBAMA'S SET CHOICE FOR TONIGHT'S SPEECH
It was bound to happen.. I asked yesterday what was the Obama team thinking?
Rumors circulated Wednesday that the stage set for the Obama acceptance speech tonight at Invesco Field gave the impression of an ancient Greek temple.. The Parthenon.. Mt Olympus..
One story in the Rocky Mountain News said the "stars were aligned" for the speech tonight..
The McCain camp was quick to mock the choice, New York tabloids piled on.. Murdoch's NY POST began their story this morning, "Democrats will kneel before the "Temple of Obama" tonight. As if a Rocky Mountain coronation were not lofty enough, Barack Obama will aim for Mount Olympus when he accepts his party's nomination atop an enormous, Greek-columned stage - built by the same cheesy set team that put together Britney Spears' last tour. "
Stevie Wonder and Cheryl Crow are going to take part in the festival.. Also expect to see John Legend
While the set looks Greek, at night it may give off the impression that Obama is standing in front of the White House..
And predictably, according to the Politico, senior Democrats are nervous about the Obama approach to his acceptance speech. Nervous about 80,000 cheering fans, the weather, the stage design, and about the chance that the McCain campaign could use images of the rock star appearance to slam Obama as.. a rock star (like they did a few weeks back)..
While the world may be watching tonight, each part of that world will form their own opinion .. And it's not going to be a toga party for everyone..
John McCain is set to notify his pick for vice president today-- a pick that will surely leak out before the big Obama speech at the temple set design before 75,000 people tonight..
Even more, team McCdin plans an ad in which McCain will speak "directly to" Obama right at the time the Democratic nominee talks from the Obama-thenon in Denver
Will McCain go with the safe but creepy Romney.. Or an unconventional pick?(or... Woman?)
Computer models put Gustav dangerously close to New Orleans
Can it happen again??
Yes. And has before, most likely timeless times throughout history..
New computer models tonight are putting Hurricane Gustav dangerously close to New Orleans..
...Louisiana has already declared a State of Emergency and has mobilized the National Guard... Weather circles tonight are abuzz over the implications of a direct hit--again--on New Orleans..
..on the eve of a convention..
..three years to the week after Katrina..
....in a state not recovered..
Bill Clinton coming through again.. as the convention rolls on, finally someone took to the stage and showed the differences between the Republican and Democrat party.. Clinton actually mentioned some bad things about McCain--and mentioned KATRINA!
Katrina.. a word that was so easy to bring up but something no Democrats talked about for days now! James Carville will sleep well tonight..
Bill Clinton's simple message, "In this case, the third time is not the charm"..
Clinton's got the magic. And after 16 years, dreamy-eyed Dems are still happy with Bill..
A whirlwind of a week..
I am typing this while I attend an online class and watch Bill Clinton address the Democratic convention..
What a world.
And by the way, Bill Clinton is now delivering the most powerful speech ever concerning Barack Obama and why he should be president.. Dreamy eyed Democrats looking on at Bill like he's still in charge (and if wasn't for Franklin Roosevelt, Bill Clinton still would be in charge..) And finally, from Bill, RED MEAT! Real differences in parties. Real slams on Bush/McCain! James Carville has been going nuts on CNN that all the Democrats speaking have been more like a PBS Barney show than a political convention. Bill came along...and in his magical way, took the Democrats back to that fighting mode they felt during the entire 90s..
Meanwhile, a hurricane is getting stronger.. the name is Gustav--and it appears Gustav is on a collision course with the United States *at least according to models today..
I am nervous on the possibility of another storm striking New Orleans .. Another storm almost three years to the day after Hurricane Katrina struck... And frightfully, after reading some more weather sites and examining a few models coming from computers that may know, it appears that New Orleans has reason to fear. At least four models are taking the storm dead center to New Orleans by next Monday or Tuesday..
A frightful prospective.. And we will be watching (*and going to school.*) ...
What a world.
All the news unfit to print for Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Another convention note..
So far, the only exciting speech came from Dennis Kucinich, who mentioned other things Democrats seem fearful of: War, terror, domestic spying, torture.
The lone warrior...And the convention goers loved it.
PHOTO: AFP/Leon Neal Fake controversies produced for the audience causing a stir..
Madonna's tour is back on the road--and she couldn't ask for more attention than what she is getting today: The "Sweet and Sticky" tour off to a political start..
Madonna kicked off her international tour Saturday night at Millennium Stadium in Wales, with a video of global destruction, Mugabe, Hitler--and McCain.
In China, the size matters: British segment of closing ceremonies get re-write
Olympic organizers were fearful that Led Zeppelin's classic song "Whole Lotta Love" would offend some, so they changed the words..
The line, "I'm gonna give you every inch of my love" to "every bit" of my love..
The London TELEGRAPH reports more..Other lyrics from the song:
"Way down inside honey, you need it"
"Shake for me, girl"
"I wanna be your backdoor man"
London 2012. Less inches.. less love.
I start school tomorrow.. Back to school. I'm not nearly as old as Rodney Dangerfield but I will soon by in the age group that gets polled with older people. It's not making me feel strange, but maybe it will when I'm sitting in a classroom filled with others a little younger than me--and maybe some older. Bachelors degree here we come .. after a few classes sure to wreeck my brain.. School full time and work full time, with a side job thrown in that I may consider quitting--and Schmuckraker.com.. I will still update, sure.. But don't expect a lot on Mondays and Wednesdays, unless I get bored and blog via phone.
Until then, it's the Sunday morning sidewalk .. a collection of links and stories from around the world at war..
It always happens.. The summer ends, the school year begins, and one last hurrah takes place at box offices for mindless summer fun..
This year, it's the HOUSE BUNNY, which will end up being number 1 for the weekend..
The low budget comedy stars Anna Faris and features Hugh Hefner's PLAYBOY blondes..
The movie did well among teenage men.
Lampooned by critics, eaten up by audiences..
The summer's over.