Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 12, 2010 · 97 Comments
This one is just mind-blowing. Joe Barton (the one who apologized to BP’s Tony Haward for the White House’s “shakedown”) actually asks Energy Secretery Dr. Steven Chu where all that oil in Alaska came from. Barton implies that because oil exists under the Arctic Ocean, then it must have been warmer there once. Yessirree, the representative from Texas’ 6th district sure done schooled that Nobel Prize winner about “climate change.” If you’re thinking to yourself, “I would have laughed out loud if he’d asked me that question,” you’re not alone. Chu actually did laugh. We can give Mr. Barton one…
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Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 11, 2010 · 20 Comments
My thoughts today turn to the special veterans in my life. This year, those thoughts are sadder with the passing in July of a special man, Vietnam Veteran, and dear friend Maurice Bailey. Mo served as leader of the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), Wasilla Chapter and was founder of the Veteran’s Aviation Outreach, whose primary focus was to help the forgotten vets across the state especially in Rural Alaska. Bailey was also awarded the Alaska Governor’s Veterans Advocacy Award in 2007. From Senator Mark Begich’s comments on Mo’s death: “Mo’s tireless efforts on behalf of rural veterans were instrumental…
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Category Barack Obama, Election 2010, Lisa Murkowski, Mark Begich, Teabaggery, Uncategorized, Veterans · Tags Barack Obama, Federal Employment, Mo Bailey, Paula Frueh, Republicans, Veterans day
Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 11, 2010 · 44 Comments
BP didn’t cut safety corners to save money in Gulf – Say what? By Rick Steiner, professor, marine consultant With the ludicrous assertion this week by the presidential Oil Spill Commission that BP did not cut corners on safety to save money on their failed Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico, the credibility of the Commission is seriously in doubt. The counsel for the Commission, Fred Bartlit, stated that: “We see no instance where a decision-making person or group of people sat there aware of safety risks, aware of costs, and opted to give up safety for costs.” He…
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Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 11, 2010 · 49 Comments
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from the Mudflats History Department! But here with today’s lesson on Veterans Day, is Mrs. D., back again! ************************ At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918, the Allies and Germany signed the Armistice at Compiegne, France, ending World War I in Western Europe. Twenty million died. In the U.K. it is known as Remembrance Day. In the U.S. it was known as Armistice Day until the end of the Korean War. The poppy has become the symbol of Veterans’ Day since the poem “In Flanders Field”…
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Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 10, 2010 · 52 Comments
[If you were watching the ballot count on TV, you were treated to an endless loop of the soundtrack of Titanic. You can replicate the experience by playing the Youtube video above as you read my account of the visual experience of the day’s events. For those of you who are more concerned with the actual news events of the day, you can check out the ADN politics blog which has been frequently updated by Sean Cockerham. Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to get back to my entertainment for the evening…] Woman in black pullover stares at book…
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Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 10, 2010 · 216 Comments
Streeeeetch….. streeetch your minds back, Mudflatters. It’s February of 2009, and Sarah Palin wings her way to the remote village of Russian Mission to address the problems of the food/fuel crisis that was causing rural residents to have to choose between heating their homes and feeding their families. Palin’s solution? No, not a state of emergency, silly. That would be a government public sector-type solution. The private sector provided her with evangelical preacher Franklin Graham, a cushy private jet, some boxes of food with a sprinkling of religious literature, and a plate of Sarah’s homemade cookies. Really. She brought cookies. Cookies that…
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Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 10, 2010 · 12 Comments
Whenever Lisa Murkowski did something against the interest of the state and the nation just to toe the party line and appease leadership, my classic explanation to anyone who brought it to my attention was, “Obey the Turtle.” It usually took some explanation, but eventually they understood. But flyinureye nailed it, and we never even had the conversation!
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Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 9, 2010 · 121 Comments
One of the two Republican attorneys vying for the U.S. Senate seat in Alaska is suing. (Hint: It’s the one with the half-beard, not the one who failed the Bar exam four times) Yes, Joe Miller filed a lawsuit today, just hours before the write-in ballots are due to be counted in Juneau. What he wants, he says, is for the state to follow “the letter of the law” when determining which write-in ballots should count, and which ones should be chucked. Miller’s attorney, Thomas Van Flein, said the campaign is seeking a hearing on the matter as early as…
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Category Alaska Senate Race, Election 2010, Ethics, Joe Miller, Lisa Murkowski, Republicans, Strategery · Tags Alaska Senate Race, Alaska voter intent, Alaska write in ballots, Joe Miller, Miller sues, Murkowski, Thomas Van Flein
Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 9, 2010 · 123 Comments
By Elstun Lauesen Dear Senator Murkowski, Congratulations. You made history. You persuaded 10s of thousands of Democrats and Independents who otherwise would have voted for Scott McAdams to write you in. We will see what the final count is, but it appears that your margin is substantial and may well carry you forward for another six-year term. One of the persistent arguments that we heard from your supporters during the campaign was that you were going to be independent, because the Party leadership ‘threw you under the bus’ (though it is difficult to see how supporting the nominee of the…
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Category Alaska Senate Race, Election 2010, Environment, Ethics, Lisa Murkowski, Rural Issues · Tags Alaska Senate Race, Citizens United, climate change, Joe Miller, Lisa Murkowski, Mitch McConnell, Scott McAdams
Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 9, 2010 · 44 Comments
Aren’t you excited? It’s Counting Day for the absentee ballots! The Millerbots are apparently on watch, burning the midnight oil, counting down the hours and ready to tackle the hinkiness head on, with the help of the RNSC. The Murkowskibots on Twitter have been mostly silent. Murkowski herself is in DC trying to raise money to contest the contesting of the ballots. And although she has not claimed victory, her website has. “Help Us Protect Lisa’s Historic Victory!” the headline proclaims. Weren’t these the people who were all over Joe Miller for picking out the office furniture prematurely? Just saying.
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