Republican Votes Swung The Global Warming Bill That Nobody Read

The Waxman-Markey global warming bill passed through the US Congress Friday night 219-212 -- a margin of seven votes. Fully forty-four Democrats opposed the bill. But eight Republicans voted for it. If those Republicans had voted against the bill it would have been defeated by a margin of one vote.

Citizens who worry about massive political action based on disputed science might want to know who those Republicans were who voted for "the biggest tax in American history" and how did the Democrats get to them.

And wrap your head around this: Although this bill is now passed, there exists no complete copy. Americans cannot just print one off or even buy one. The thousand-plus page bill and its 300-pages of amendments are not combined in a single file making the bill sheer drudgery to read. So nobody has. And it's already passed the congress.

Perhaps the US Senators will now read the bill before they vote. For if they do not they will set a frightful precedent: Legislation that has not yet been written can be passed into law.

America, America wherefore art thou?

Read the comments too.

"An Immense Static"

Rex Murphy comments on the media frenzy surrounding the death of Michael Jackson while delivering a caveat to Barack Obama about the wages of celebrity.

What Logos Really Mean

From kottke.org:

"Deep in the conservative bowels of corporations and brand identity firms, they've got cute little nicknames for logos. The GE logo is The Meatball, the AT&T logo is The Death Star, and the Warner logo is Two and a Half Hot Dogs."

Back in the old days the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's logo was known as The Pizza. When animated for TV it was the "Exploding Pizza":

Ants In Your Peonies?

We were looking at the giant peony flower under our front window today and observed the buds to be teeming with ants. Ants are attracted to the sugary moisture exuded by the plant. An old gardeners tale suggests that ants are essential for peonies to bloom (they are not). I expect the ants also keep other nuisance insects like aphids away.

All of this led to a general discussion about how ants really own the world, not us. Be sure to check out the photo gallery too.

Starship Google: Shields Up!

From CNET:

Google has confirmed that the surge of Michael Jackson-related searches on Google News Thursday was first interpreted as an attack on its service.

Powerful New Lithium Battery Concept

Slashdot reports:

"A company called PolyPlus has developed lithium metal-air batteries that have 10 times the energy density of regular lithium-ion batteries."

You have to wonder though--where will all that lithium come from? And how will we dispose of the depleted batteries? Especially the big ones from worn out cars.

So, Global Warming Got You Boggled?

At TED Blog, have a look at this tricky illusion of a different kind. If you can bear it!

Warmists' Slim Victory No Reason To Celebrate

The 1200-page Waxman-Markey cap and trade global warming bill squeaked through the US Congress by seven votes this evening, 219-212.

While Democrats are hailing this as a huge victory, the future of the bill is by no means certain, especially with the narrow margin of the win and the new and better climate science that is emerging.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier today:

"...the Senate isn’t anywhere close to passing a climate-change bill—and has scuttled attempts to speed up the process. The top Republican on the Senate environment committee, noted global warming skeptic James Inhofe, has said flatly that the Senate version of the bill won’t pass. “It’s just not going to happen,” the Oklahoma Republican said recently."

As an interested outsider, I hope they are right.

And this from yesterday:

"The house of cards that is the science behind "climate change" is collapsing at exactly the same time it is being imposed by the Obama administration and Congress as an ideological "truth." America is facing the perfect storm of an imploding scientific theory that will be enforced by the rule of law.

Macleans: "Why Barack Obama Is Bad For Canada"

In this week's Macleans Magazine: The new President’s ambitions could have a devastating effect on our economy.

"...it turns out that Obama has a knack for making people feel good when perhaps they ought to be watching their back. “Then the realities begin to take root when you look at what is taking place here in Washington,” says Tom Corcoran, a former Republican congressman from Illinois.

The reality is that Obama is leading an aggressive effort to remake American energy policy with potentially severe consequences for the oil sands, and by extension, the Canadian economy."

Settled Science Unsettled Is Unsettling Scientists III

Could the Australians blow apart the great global warming scare? Via SDA, this is from Australian Senator Steve Fielding:

"Until recently I, like most Australians, simply accepted without question the notion that global warming was a result of increased carbon emissions. However, after speaking to a cross-section of noted scientists, including Ian Plimer, a professor at the University of Adelaide and author of Heaven and Earth, I quickly began to understand that the science on this issue was by no means conclusive…. As a federal senator, I would be derelict in my duty to the Australian people if I did not even consider whether or not the scientific assumptions underpinning this debate were in fact correct."

Settled Science Unsettled Is Unsettling Scientists I is here.
Settled Science Unsettled Is Unsettling Scientists II is here.

Carbongate: Suppressed EPA Report Released

From Watts Up With That: Carbongate.

"The Competitive Enterprise Institute is today making public an internal study on climate science which was suppressed by the Environmental Protection Agency. Internal EPA email messages, released by CEI earlier in the week, indicate that the report was kept under wraps and its author silenced because of pressure to support the Administration’s agenda of regulating carbon dioxide.

The report finds that EPA, by adopting the United Nations’ 2007 “Fourth Assessment” report, is relying on outdated research and is ignoring major new developments. Those developments include a continued decline in global temperatures, a new consensus that future hurricanes will not be more frequent or intense, and new findings that water vapor will moderate, rather than exacerbate, temperature.

New data also indicate that ocean cycles are probably the most important single factor in explaining temperature fluctuations, though solar cycles may play a role as well, and that reliable satellite data undercut the likelihood of endangerment from greenhouse gases. All of this demonstrates EPA should independently analyze the science, rather than just adopt the conclusions of outside organizations."

Read it all. The censored report is here.

Will America Punish Itself?

Will the Waxman-Markey global warming bill pass in the US Congress today? Many fine minds hope not. But the Democrats are determined to force the bill through. Yesterday The Wall Street Journal said "the Democrats would have to destroy the discipline of economics" to pass the bill and called it "the biggest tax in American history."

But are there enough votes to defeat the bill? That depends on whether representatives vote for politics over science. From today's Wall Street Journal:

"Among the many reasons President Barack Obama and the Democratic majority are so intent on quickly jamming a cap-and-trade system through Congress is because the global warming tide is again shifting.

It turns out Al Gore and the United Nations (with an assist from the media), did a little too vociferous a job smearing anyone who disagreed with them as "deniers." The backlash has brought the scientific debate roaring back to life."

But will the reality of climate science over climate politics sink in before it's too late? Is the US preparing to severely punish itself for its lifestyle just when the alarmism over the failed hypothesis of anthropogenic global warming is collapsing under the weight of scientific truth?

Whatever the outcome of Waxman-Markey, two things are certain: The bill will have virtually zero effect on global temperatures and time is on the side of the "deniers". I believe history will not treat Al Gore and other Democrats of this era kindly.

Rebuilding A Wonder Of The World

From Cairo's Al-Ahram:

"After it had ceased to be a beacon of light indicating the harbour to homecoming sailors, [the great lighthouse at Pharos] remained in universal memory as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Now there is talk of recreating this epitome of a landmark."

World's Oldest Handcrafted Musical Instrument

Via Instapundit:

"Scientists say they've found what they consider to be the earliest handcrafted musical instrument in a cave in southwest Germany, less than a yard away from the oldest-known carving of a human. The flute fragments as well as the ivory figurine of a "prehistoric Venus" date back more than 35,000 years."

US Cap And Trade Climate Bill Gets Closer

From the Wall Street Journal:

"Americans should know that those Members who vote for this climate bill are voting for what is likely to be the biggest tax in American history."

Citizentube Covers Iran

Citizentube is YouTube's political blog. Right now it features dozens of YouTube videos from Iran in one place. Citizentube's Blogger Profile is here.

Michael Jackson Has Died

He was just 50. More at The National Post.

Farrah Fawcett Has Died

She was 62. More from ABC News.

Very Strange Indeed

For Steve Dittmann, 55, unemployment has been surreal:

"It's like there's two worlds out there: People who are still working, who are still living the same lives they always had, and I feel like I'm on the other side of a Plexiglass wall looking in," said Dittmann, who lives in Kansas. "I know I'm not unique. It's like you can't get back into that world. It's very strange."

Age discrimination is very real especially if you are used to making a professional salary. I think we have to give up looking for regular jobs--that seems increasingly futile--and employ ourselves. That way our age, experience and wisdom become assets and not the liabilities they apparently are in the world of regular jobs.

And, by the way, if you would like to hire me, see "Do You Have A Job For Me?" at right...

The Global Warming House Of Cards

"The house of cards that is the science behind "climate change" is collapsing at exactly the same time it is being imposed by the Obama administration and Congress as an ideological "truth." America is facing the perfect storm of an imploding scientific theory that will be enforced by the rule of law.

Make no mistake: the big bad wolf of truth is about to blow the straw house of global warming to bits. "

Hitler's Stealth Fighter Plane

Via Slashdot:

"Aviation Week reports on a television special from the National Geographic Channel on what may have been the world's first true stealth fighter, the Horten Ho 229, a wooden design that was to include a layer of carbon material sandwiched in the leading edge to defeat radar."

The National Geographic documentary airs this Sunday June 28.

Neda Soltan's Place In History

Jessica Ravitz at CNN provides historical context to the murder of Neda Agha-Soltan:

"A 14-year-old girl stoops and screams above the body of a Kent State University student killed in 1970 by an Ohio National Guardsman.

A police chief executes a Vietcong prisoner in 1968 on a Saigon street.

And an unarmed man in Beijing, China, stands defiantly in front of a column of tanks as they rolled into Tiananmen Square in 1989.

But while these photographs -- chronicling a single, silent moment -- were taken by seasoned photographers, two of whom won Pulitzer Prizes, this time amateur cell phone video is grabbing worldwide attention. It captures the death of a young woman named Neda Agha-Soltan, galvanizing protesters."

Some Say The Stig Is...

So Top Gear, my favorite BBC TV show is back on the air in Britain and this past Sunday night they outed their famous tame racing driver, The Stig.

Some say he's Formula One ace Michael Schumacher. Well, Top Gear says.

But Jalopnik says that over the years Stiggy has been played by at least eight drivers.

All we know is... it's a crying shame that the BBC edition of Top Gear is only available sporadically in North America in cut-down episodes. There has been an attempt at a US version of Top Gear but British shows don't usually fare well with American makeovers.

Perhaps this is why British Top Gear has become one of the most-downloaded programs of all time on numerous bit-torrent sites.

US Government Suppresses Contrary Climate Science

The politicization of science is one of the anti-intellectual travesties of our time. Marc Sheppard writes at Amercian Thinker:

"Surely climate alarmists enjoy enough unfair advantage over their rational counterparts, what with the mainstream media shamelessly suppressing the findings of the latter for political purposes. But now there’s compelling evidence that alarmists within [the US] government have also taken unfair advantage, suppressing the results of their own climate study for the same nefarious reasons."

Update: Carbongate.

MySpace Beginning To Fade

Jacqui Cheng reports from Ars Technica:

"MySpace continues to bleed employees as it slowly fades into Internet obscurity. The company announced this week that it's considering chopping more than half its international staff and closing a number of offices that are outside the US. Talk of this plan comes only a week after MySpace laid off 30 percent of its US staff, another reminder of its fall from dominance."

As Quick As I Think Stuff Up, It Happens.

Just yesterday I wondered why I was paying a fee for internet service and cable TV when I watch most video online now.

Well, with that Time Warner, one of the world's largest entertainment companies, and Comcast, the largest cable TV and internet service provider in the US, announced today they'll start online video trials in July putting cable TV fare on the internet.

That won't help me since I am, er, Canadian, and can't even watch Hulu. But the migration of technology should happen here too, sooner rather than later.

"Milking" Algae Oil

Scientists in Canada and India are proposing a surprising new solution to the global energy crisis —"milking" oil from the tiny, single-cell algae known as diatoms.

Kinetic Energy - Coming To A Supermarket Near You

"Kinetic energy harvesting is one of the newest and hottest fields in alternative energy. With the world's inhabitants constantly in motion -- particularly people and cars -- there's ample opportunity to find ways to turn some of this energy into power...

California-based AEST has developed a road plate technology that creates electricity when pressure is applied to it, such as a car driving over it."

"Holy Crap!"

Scary video of a deHavilland Beaver float plane crashing at Lake Hood in Anchorage, Alaska, on June 7. The title "Holy Crap!" is the cameraman's one line of dialog after the plane zooms right over top of him. I believe he was remarkably restrained. Everybody got out OK. Via My Flying Blog.

Later, the cameraman is still shooting. Another Beaver float plane takes off heading straight at him. Dialog: "You know, I just don't like that point of view anymore." Plane makes safe takeoff, circles around and lands on the water. "That was a good one. Much better."

1001 Rules For My Unborn Son

Whether you have a son or not these are good rules. Here's an incomplete but growing list by author Walker Lamond.

The site navigation is a bit odd but that doesn't really detract from the inspirational tone of the site. Lamond's book Rules For My Unborn Son comes out in November.

More Killing In Iran

Here is an update from inside Iran on the real war that Iran is waging against its people.

Is Cyber War Real War?

At Vmyths.com, Rob Rosenberger lampoons claims by Foreign Ministry spokesman Hassan Qashqavi that CNN is waging a "cyber war" against Iran.

Teacher Loses Web Ranking Lawsuit

A German teacher who had sued to shut down a website where pupils rank their instructors according to competence and "coolness" lost her battle in court yesterday.

Toy Car Auction Brings Real Car Prices

A few months back Hemmings Auto Blogs told us about the auctions of the toy car collection belonging to Donald Kaufman, one of the co-founders of K-B Toys. Hemmings is just now getting the results of the first of those auctions, at which $4.2 million worth of antique toys changed hands, including one that sold for more than $103,000.

Volcano Eruption Seen From Space

A chance recording by astronauts on the International Space Station has captured the moment a volcano explosively erupted, sending massive shockwaves through the atmosphere.

The Final Moments of KAGYUA

Japan's KAGUYA probe crashed on the Moon on June 10. There are lots of fantastic photos taken before the crash here and here.

Now more spectacular Moon video has been released of the final moments of KAGYUA.

How To Get On "The List"

Jennifer Lynch is the head of the Canadian Human Rights Commission. Her policies and attitudes have come under increasing scrutiny after high profile journalists such as Ezra Levant and Mark Steyn have accused the CHRC of being a kangaroo court. Now it turns out she has been keeping a list of critics. From The National Post:

"We have experienced 16 months of invective hurled at us, and at any time when anybody has tried to speak up and correct misinformation, gross distortions, caricaturizations, then the very next day there's been some full-frontal assault through the blogs, through mainstream media. I have a file. I'm sure I have 1,200, certainly several hundred of these things," she said."

According to the National Post, this list of CHRC critics will obviously include Levant and Steyn, but also such mainstream entities as the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, some Jewish advocacy groups, and also almost every newspaper editorial board in Canada. Not to mention all those bloggers...

Among the complaints against the CHRC:

"...the lack of a legal defense of truth or scholarly or journalistic intent; the practice of accepting identical complaints simultaneously in different jurisdictions; controversial online investigative procedures such as joining white supremacist discussion groups to investigate targets; and the potential for human rights tribunals to be hijacked as political platforms."

The Murder Of Neda Soltan

"Protesters in Iran are hailing 26-year-old Neda Soltan as a martyr after graphic videos of her apparent murder at a protest in Tehran hit the Internet. Iran experts say images of her bloody death have galvanized the country and that mourning for her — which has been banned by authorities — will bring deeper unrest."

Video of her death has been posted to YouTube but requires registration due to graphically bloody images.

Update: Via Andrew Sullivan--Borzou Daragahi compiles a superb report on Neda Agha-Soltan.

Kodak Kodachrome Is No More

Eastman Kodak has announced it will stop producing its iconic Kodachrome camera film. Kodachrome has been in production since 1935 and was the film of choice for professionals and amateurs because of the richness and depth of its colour reproduction.

"The film's durability and ability to capture rich, vibrant colors made it a favorite among professional photographers for many years. For all of its magic, however, Kodachrome is a complex film to manufacture and an even more complex film to process.

There is only one remaining photofinishing lab in the world – Dwayne’s Photo in Parsons, Kansas that processes Kodachrome film, precisely because of the difficulty of processing. This lack of widespread processing availability, as well as the features of newer films introduced over the years, has accelerated the decline of demand for the once popular film."

Ahmadinejad Breaks His Silence

Is it really true that "Twitter" in Farsi means "ex-dictator"?

ABC News Sells Out (Buys In?)

On Wednesday ABC News will move its entire news operation into the White House for the day and will devote its entire news schedule to the Obama administration's trillion-dollar plan to nationalize U.S. health care. No opposition views will be aired and ABC will accept no paid advertising from opposing viewpoints.

"As much of the U.S. private sector, including health care providers, resists government takeovers, what a sorry sight to see ABC News leap forward to make itself a propaganda arm of the government."

And this:

"It all amounts to a sad corruption of American journalism. Once upon a time, people would go into journalism to expose the seamy underbelly of American politics. Today, ABC News, in its abject submission to the Obama administration on health care, has decided to become the seamy underbelly."

Personal note to Americans from this Canadian: When it comes to socialized medicine, be careful what you wish for.

Remembering George Carlin

George Carlin died a year ago today. Here's what he had to say about saving the planet (in remembering George Carlin you also have to remember he was the man who actually said all seven of the the seven words you can't say on TV):

Auto-Tune The News

As hateful as Auto-Tune is when applied to music, it does a pretty good job on the news. Brilliant, and hilarious. They are up to #4 now. This is #1:

Ebert Reviews Reality

Roger Ebert on contemporary TV talking, er shouting heads, especially Fox's Bill O'Reilly:

"What are TV shouters telling their viewers? They use such anger in expressing their opinions. Who are they trying to convince? They're preaching to the choir. Their viewers already agree with them. No minds are going to be changed. Why are they so mad? In a sense they're saying: You're right, but you're not right ENOUGH! I'm angrier about this than you are! Viewers may get the notion that there's unfinished business to be done, and it's up to them to do it."

"There is little comfort to be had from today's polarized shouters. They are discontented, and they think you should be, too. They inspire fear and suspicion. There is a conspiracy, and you are the target. Dark forces are at work. There was a time when ordinary Americans would have been deeply offended by the way O'Reilly speaks about their President--any President."

If nothing else, be sure you click on the kinescope of the 1953 radio broadcast of Don McNeil's Breakfast Club. As Ebert suggests, close your eyes.

Going Grey? Be Happy

The processes that produce grey hair are now better understood and could be protecting us from cancer.

That Car Is So Ugly...

"Now somebody needs to buy it and stick it in a warehouse where it will never inflict pain upon the eyes of human beings ever again."

The 'copter-boat is kinda cool though.

Cows Burp Too

What's bigger than coal mines, landfills and sewage treatment plants? What's being left out of efforts by the Obama administration to limit greenhouse gas emissions?

Cow burps.

Update: Canadian scientists are breeding a special type of cow designed to burp less, a breakthrough that could reduce a big source of methane. Strangely, no one seems to be addressing cow farts. Only burps.

Jammie Thomas Fined $2M for File Sharing

A woman named Jammie Thomas uploaded 24 songs to the internet. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) took her to court.

In a retrial this week, "a jury found Thomas guilty of sharing 24 tracks by Green Day, Aerosmith, and Guns 'n Roses. It chose to fine her a shocking $80,000 per song, for a total of $1,920,000 USD, nearly 10 times the original verdict."

"Thomas, who works as a natural- resources coordinator for the Mille Lacs Band of the Ojibwe, met the verdict with shock and frustration, stating, "There was nothing I could do. Now the record industry has a $2 million award against me. The only thing I can say is good luck trying to get it, because you can’t get blood out of a turnip."

There is something seriously wrong with all of this. None of these artists is exactly hurting from file-sharing. But the RIAA suits are. They are indeed the real losers here. The old music industry business models are obsolete. I doubt crushing ordinary citizens with massively punitive fines will prevent downloading-as-usual.

Update: Jammie's lawyer could have used this from Michael Geist maybe.

Dramatic Outcomes In Prostate Cancer Study

From Science Daily:

"Two Mayo Clinic patients whose prostate cancer had been considered inoperable are now cancer free thanks in part to an experimental drug therapy that was used in combination with standardized hormone treatment and radiation therapy.

"The tumors had shrunk dramatically," says Michael Blute, M.D., Mayo urologist, co-investigator and surgeon, who operated on both men. "I had never seen anything like this before. I had a hard time finding the cancer. At one point the pathologist (who was working during surgery) asked if we were sending him samples from the same patient."

Keep in mind this was just two cases but successes such as this will spur further research and treatments.

Update: Via Instapundit, here is the story from the Mayo Clinic's online research magazine Discovery's Edge.