Open Thread – Wishbone Hill
Attention South Central Alaskans! Not a big fan of the idea of the Matanuska Valley being covered in coal dust? Then listen up. This Tuesday, November 15, from 6:00pm – 9:00pm is the last chance to voice your concerns about the proposed Wishbone Hill Strip Mine! Please join us to send a strong message to the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. Testimony will be heard at the Sutton Elementary School at 11672 North Wright Way in Sutton. Don’t feel like driving from Anchorage to Sutton? No problem! Join the Alaska Center for the Environment carpool. They will be meeting at…
Open Thread – Crude Awakening Book Salon TODAY!
Join me and author Amanda Coyne of Alaska Dispatch today at firedoglake.com for a book salon featuring the new release Crude Awakening – Money, Mavericks and Mayhem in Alaska by Coyne and co-author Tony Hopfinger. Details below. Hope to see you there! [Cross-posted from Alaska Dispatch] Jeanne Devon, AKA AK Muckraker, who runs the popular Alaska-based website The Mudflats, is hosting an online discussion Sunday, Nov. 13, of “Crude Awakening: Money, Mavericks and Mayhem in Alaska.” The discussion will be held at Firedoglake Book Salon. “Crude Awakening” was penned by Alaska Dispatch founders Amanda Coyne and Tony Hopfinger. Coyne will…
Vulture’s Picnic – My Home is Now a Strange Place (Installment 3)
[This is the third installment of Chapter 7, My Home is Now a Strange Place from Greg Palast’s Vulture’s Picnic. Many thanks to Mr. Palast for providing The Mudflats with an exclusive of this story that is so critical to the state of Alaska, and reveals so much about the corporate interests that still dominate here.] By Greg Palast PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND, ALASKA, 1989 State Inspector Dan Lawn, grabbing a fast launch from Valdez, was the first to reach the shipwrecked tanker, risking the ride through the sickening fumes and fountains of crude that could explode with the touch…
Vultures Picnic – My Home is Now a Strange Place (Installment 2)
By Zach Roberts It’s weird where life takes you. In 2006, I started working for Greg Palast. He was one of my heroes. Most people know him for breaking the story of the stolen 2000 election. That was how I was introduced to his work as well, but the story that made me want to work for him was one of the lesser known ones from his best-seller The Best Democracy Money Can Buy “A Well-Designed Disaster: The Untold Story of the Exxon Valdez.” It blew me away. Everything I knew about one of the most important events in American history…
A Tale of Transfer – How Northrim Bank Lost My Money
I have to confess, I felt a little wistful about Move Your Money Day. The idea was that on Saturday, November 5, everyone who was fed up with the big banks, their unsound business practices, their bailouts and bonuses, should pull their money out of those banks, and instead open an account at a local bank or credit union. I thought this was a great idea, and I planned to promote it on the blog. But that’s where it would end for me, because I already have my money in a local bank. I’ve had multiple accounts, both personal and…
Alaska Disasta! Conoco Net Income Looks Grim…
Forgive me a second while I try to calm down. I… it’s…. I’m sorry. Just… just give me a second. (You kindly wait while I compose myself) You know how Governor Parnell tells us that we have to give $2 billion back to the oil companies every year? It’s not that he really wants to, but you know, they have to make a living. They invest a lot in our state, and we need to show a little gratitude. We can’t be all greedy and hog it all to ourselves, or they will just be lose their incentive, and will…
Governor Sean Parnell Supports Destruction of Thriving Salmon Habitat for Coal
Mudflats readers will remember coverage over the last year of the issue of the “Unsuitable Lands Petition” that Cook Inletkeeper and the Chuitna Citizens Coalition submitted to the state. Basically, what this petition did was to put forth the idea that certain areas are just plain unsuitable for coal strip mining – specifically the areas directly on either side of the Chuit River (above), and its tributaries that were deemed “important salmon habitat” for Cook Inlet. The petition, if successful, would ensure that a narrow ribbon of land – 50 feet on either side of tributaries, and 100 feet on…
Alaska’s Business Report Card – F is for Fabulous, and A is for Asshat
Senator Bill Wielechowski and Rep. Les Gara held a press conference yesterday talking about how corporations attempt to wield their power over the Alaska legislature through the use of the Alaska Business “Report Card.” Let’s listen to what this is all about from Rep. Les Gara. Now, think about corporations for a moment. I have equated corporations to polar bears before. Polar bears are not inherently evil, but they can be dangerous, and they do have an agenda that doesn’t always match that of people. The internal programming of a polar bear is simple – if it moves, it’s food….
Corrupt Bastard Double Feature – Kott and Kohring Sentenced
Yesterday, a long dark chapter in the history of Alaska politics came to an end. I decided that even though the day didn’t promise to hold any shocking news or big surprises, that I ought to be there nonetheless. The last of the self-described “Corrupt Bastards Club” have pleaded guilty and were sentenced by Judge Ralph Beistline. Courtroom 2 in the Federal Courthouse was busy today. No cameras were allowed in the courtroom so, as usual, you will have to rely upon my masterful and detailed court drawings that will make you feel like you were really there. First up:…
Vulture’s Picnic by Greg Palast – A Mudflats Exclusive Excerpt
By Zach Roberts Hey Mudflatters – In addition to my duties as New York Bureau Chief of The Mudflats, I’ve taken on working with Greg Palast. You might have heard him on the Shannyn Moore Show talking about the Exxon Valdez oil spill. He was a forensic economist for the Chugach Natives – kind of a Sam Spade, except with numbers (not as sexy… and no whips). He uncovered the fact that it wasn’t the drunk Captain, but Exxon being cheap that caused that man-made disaster. The story made him give up his day job and start working as a…