Britain and France, meanwhile, have vocally supported a vote today to authorize air strikes in Libya and sanction military action on the ground in the immediate future. The US was convinced by the UK and France earlier this week to support a no-fly zone over Libya, though no official vote has yet to be held. Susan Rice, an ambassador for the US, says a no-fly zone would not go far enough to protect Libyan forces facing the onslaught of Gaddafi’s forces.
The first reactor explodes in Japan, but more threats remain….
The Japanese government says that a second explosion at a nuclear facility is very possible after hydrogen gases are said the have built up to dangerous levels. In the aftermath of the earthquake, tsunami and over a hundred aftershocks, the Japanese people still face the threat of nuclear meltdown and widespread radiation dangers.
The explosion that rocked the first reactor in the Fukishima plan gave the world a scare, but the threat for another such event strains the already fatigued and mourning population in the country. The third reactor is likely the explode though operators have worked to release the built up hydrogen gases that caused explosions. The danger is that such a blast would break the concrete structure housing the main reactor itself, which would cause the leak of dangerous radioactive materials.
In an effort to conserve energy, the Japanese government has called for three hour blackouts in order to confront the roughly 10 million kilowatt shortage faced by the shutdown nuclear facilities.
The government has repeatedly promised that no radiation dangers currently exist, though other sources claim that radiation levels around the plant have been higher in a single hour than in an entire year. Nine people have been tested for high radiation levels but doctors have no yet released their findings. Roughly 200, 000 people live within twelve miles of the plant.
To help the victims of the earthquake and tsunami, please visit http://www.redcross.org/ .
Check back with the Update throughout the day for more…
As always, the Bohunk waits a day on major news story so that more actual information can be included in the post. By waiting these 24 hours, the events in Japan have only gotten worse and more complicated.
Tsunami wave crashes almost six miles inland over the Japanese coastline…
As an ‘virtual’ seismologist (dedicated readers will remember the online documentation) the Bohunk would like to give a quick analysis of a tsunami. In a subduction zone, the lighter, less dense continental plate ‘floats’ on top of the thicker, more dense ocean plate. As the ocean plate is subducted under the continental plate, it catches and is dragged down as well, though not far. Because the plate is far enough away from the molten mantle layer underneath the crust, it remains brittle but retains some aspects of elasticity. At some point, at a certain degree of stress, it snaps back up to its former position. We cannot say just how power this action is. The crust affected by this movement could be miles thick of rock; the amount of force needed to move anything this rigid and heavy in unthinkable. The force is so strong that it moves the ocean above it, causing a ripple with a surge of water high than the actual sea level. The result is a tsnami, which travels over 500mph toward show. The amount of force in the weight of this water is equally astounding.
The tsunami reached as far away as Chile in South America…
The effect on Japan has been unbelievable as well. Estimates are now at over 1,000 dead with over 10,000 officially listed as missing, 9,500 of them in one small coastal town. Traffic is completely stopped though some limited railways have reopened away from the coast. Cars have been deemed useless, with bike shops selling out of bikes, bought by people desperately trying to get home, if they have a home left. The USGS has measured over 89 aftershocks over a magnitude of 5 in the past 21 hours, making the rescue efforts even more dangerous. Fires still burn from broken gas lines and nuclear power plants are beginning to overheat, one already reportedly giving off radiation levels in an hour equal to that given off in an entire year. The additional aftershocks are continuing to damage and weaken the buildings still standing, causing delayed failures in buildings thought to be safe by survivors.
The wave carried cars, houses, boats and everything else it met for miles inland, dumping them far from the coastline before retreating…
Overseas, thousands of miles from the epicenter, little damage has been reported. Hawaii and Midway survived a 3-6 foot wave and the surge never quite reached the North American coast the way it was expected, measuring under two feet in height. South America fared just as well, with negligible damage. Tsunami alert systems were tested by the event and experts are impressed with the effectiveness of the systems from the US, Canada and South America as well. Buoys miles off shore measure tsunami surges and relay that information to the coast, giving warning to residents near the sea. All tsunami warnings have been cancelled in North and South America.
The tsunami rising over the coast and sweeping inland…
The 8.9 magnitude that triggered the tsunami is the fifth largest earthquake in recorded history. The epicenter was less roughly 100 miles off the coast of Japan, closest to the Sendai region onshore. The Bohunk counted 39 aftershocks over 5.0 magnitude in the first three hours after the initial quake. Much, much more on this as news comes out, with a special focus on the nuclear reactor, currently believed to be in danger of a meltdown and already leaking massive amounts of radiation relative to normal emissions…
The US loves freedom, just as long as everybody stays nicely in
line, especially in oil producing nations.
After two weeks of demonstrations and protests, Saudi Arabia has officially banned protests in its country. And public protest will not be dealt with by police and military forces according to a statement released by the nation. After revolutions in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya, the Saudis are pushing to avoid the freedom bandwagon trooping through the Arab world. The country’s clerics announced that all protests are forbidden, saying “The correct way in sharia law of realizing common interest is by advising, which is what the Prophet Muhammad established.” The law is grouped in with regulations already in place banning political parties which they also claim not to be in keeping with Islamic law. Over 17,000 people joined two demonstrations this month in Saudi Arabia, the largest taking place on Friday. Facing them are the nation’s clerics who have sweeping powers in the nation, including the ability to run their own private police squads to enforce religious laws and prosecute those deemed to have violated those laws. After the Gulf War in 1991, some clerics pushed to force King Abdullah to allow an elected Parliament, though nothing in that area has evolved in the past twenty years. After demonstrations, Abdullah recently pledged an extra $37 billion to the citizens of his country.
Give him an eye patch and this guy is James
Bond’s worst nightmare…
WikiLeaks founder and ready-made James Bond villain Julian Assange lost his extradition case in London. The Swedish government won their case to bring Assange back to Sweden to face charges of sexual assault against two women. Legal experts believe an appeal will be filed by Assange’s lawyers soon, dragging the case on for much longer, even moving up to the Supreme Court of the European Court of Human Rights. Assange must file his appeal within the next seven days and meet bail to go free. The bail has not been discussed or assessed in the courtroom thus far. A main part of the Assange case brought forth by lawyers is the “toxic atmosphere” in Swdedn where Assange is seen as the nation’s “public enemy number one”, so much that they do not believe Assange could ever have a fair trial in the country. WikiLeaks’ staff has yet to issue a comment on the ruling and US and other officials around the globe are still uncovering information in tens of thousands of leaked cables from the past five years of international communication. Assange’’s legal team has raised the possibility of Assange being handed over to the US after he was extradited. Sweden’s comment, “Nu-uh.”
The Libyan want to get rid of this guy, Col. Gaddafi.
The Libyan government, facing protests of increasing voracity and media coverage, fired on protestors for the second time in is many days. Witnesses say armed militia around the capital of Tripoli have repeatedly fired on crowds near Green Square and the surrounding neighborhoods. The militia, hired by the government and consisting mostly of foreign mercenaries, arrived in Toyota pick ups and began firing into the penned in crowds around the square, essentially strafing the protestors and forcing people from the location. The protestors are into their second week of demonstrations to oust the military rule in Libya, led by Col. Muammar el-Qaddifi. The protests started in the past weeks but the revolt has only taken place in the last six days, scattering police and government officials and leaving the capital in a state of chaos. Fires and trash burn around the city, with many streets run by organized gangs of protestors to limit the security forces trying to end the demonstrations. Activists claim that well over 220 people have been killed so far, with many hundreds or even thousands more wounded by the gunfire. Businesses and schools remain closed in the capital and in some suburbs.
The “Nerd” and new governor of Michigan Rick Snyder is coming in doing exactly what we anticipated; cutting tax exemptions for the poor and leaving breaks for corporations in place. Snyder is pushing to eliminate the Michigan Earned Income Tax Credit, which benefits low income workers. If is is passed, it would save the state about $360 million dollars. Great. Snyder is also pushing for a $1.2 BILLION tax CUT for Michigan businesses, hoping it will create more jobs. So, to recap, taking away $360 million from low income Michigan residents is a measure to balance the budget, but letting big business keep almost three times that amount is okay? Roughly 780,000 families received the tax credit in the 2009 fiscal year. Snyder defended the plan on Friday by saying the money would go to help Medicare in the state, though later admitted only roughly 20% of that tax would actually find its way to benefit Medicare recipients.
“Heil! I mean, Hey!” ~ Gov. Rick Snyder
In addition, without the METIC, an additional 25,000 families would fall below the poverty line in the state. To give my Dear Readers a rough idea of the amount of money the METIC equates to annually per household, a couple of two with an annual income of $30,000 would receive a credit of $643, or roughly enough to pay a year’s worth of utilities.
Just to be sure you are paying attention, police fired on protestors in Bahrain and Iraq in the past two days as protests sweep the Middle East. In Bahrain, police and military forces swarmed the town square, site of a political protests with thousands of angry men and women. The military forces opened fire on five people, at least two of them asleep at the time. Some 200 other protesters were wounded in addition to the five fatalities. The government now claims it has banned protests and they control all of the city.
Actual photo from Bahrain of police opening fire on protesters, who are shown running from the square.
In Iraq, a small protest in the town of Kut ended in gunfire as police officials opened fire on protestors outside the provincial governors office. Some cars were set alight and some reported fires in the building itself. The provincial governor was in Baghdad at the time of the protest. The town is close to the Iraq-Iran border, where similar protests have been brutally silenced. The Iranian government arrested over 1,400 people in a single day over the weekend after protests in Tehran. They will not allow a repeat of Egypt in their own country.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarack has handed over all power to the Egyptian military and retreated to his expansive, awesome crib in Sharm el-Sheik, according to announcement by VP Omar Suleiman. While prayers were being said in Tahrir Square, the VP informed thousands of protestors of the transition, which was responded to with applause and joy, and more than a bit of crying. The Egyptian military quickly followed with a communique vowing to adhere strictly to the Egyptian constitution (which, the Bohunk notes, says only people from Mubarack’s party can old office) and to supervise the myriad and sweeping reforms called for by weeks of mass protest. No timetable for the military to cede power to an elected official has been set down, nor is the real structure of power being revealed in any detail. According to the constitution in place, power can only be transferred to the VP in times of crisis, and is only meant for short term or temporary time periods. It is possible that the military will claim control….Or that Mubarack is calling the shots via Skype from his pimped out palace in the south of Egypt.
Note to embattled asshole and President of Egypt: Do not gather three million people together to give them news they do not want to hear. Nearly every major US and international news outlet announced that Mubarak would step down from his office today, and when the President stepped up to the plate, he did everything but that. Mubarack said he would hand over presidential power to the vice president, ending in 30 years of control in the country. Many believe a sort of behind-the-scenes military coup has taken place, though the Egyptian people or government have made such a proclamation. The military released “Communique No. 1”, (the equivalent of Order 66 in Star Wars Episode III, to score a second nerd point on the day) which announced the military's commitment to keeping, or enforcing, the peace in Egypt. Other nations have yet to comment on whether or not they believe or can confirm the coup, but the top general in Egypt, a man named Roweny, has circled Tahrir Square with US made Abrams tanks, ‘urging’ the protesters to sing the national anthem. Egypt has the tenth largest army in the world with over 468,000 troops with which to rule the country.
Protestors mount a US made tank to oust the US backed Mubarack…
The official US stance, according to the CIA, is that Mubarack will step down completely in the next six to twelve hours. It also points out that, according to the Egyptian constitution, the President cannot, in fact, turn over any power to the Vice President, instead indicating that Parliament would assume the executive powers.
What a dicktator. Mubarack vows to hand over power, but will retain President until elections are held in September.
If you are not watching a news outlet, and that does not include Fox News, please tune in; this is an amazing historic moment worth witnessing.
Representative Christopher Lee (not the famous British actor who played Count Dooku in Star Wars) resigned from his position after photos of himself surfaced on the Internet. To be fair, he did, in fact, put them there. Lee responded to a “Women Seeking Men” ad on Craigslist by emailing the woman with a photo taken from the reflection of a mirror, with Lee shirtless and flexing his guns. The woman grew suspicious that Lee was lying (oh and he was) and broke of contact, but later gave the emails and photos to Gawker, a website that reveals scandals. (The Flying Bohunk Update would like to recognize that it covers other news as well) Lee is another shining example of Republican awesomeness; he received an 88% approval rating from the American Conservative Union and was a dedicated opponent to the repeal of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Act. He also voted against any funding for abortion for rape victims (classy, Lee) and was known for his “Family Values” voting record. Lee is married and has one child with his wife.
An appropriate photo for a legislator includes a shirt and tie…
You all know the Bohunk’s attachment to the word swashbuckling and this story offers a prime example to use it. The Greek government announced that a tanker it owns was attacked and seized by swashbuckling pirates Wednesday morning, and have lost all contact with the ship shortly after the attack. The tanker was carrying 266 tons of crude oil and 25 crewmen, seven of them Greek, seventeen Filipino and a Ukrainian. The ship was on course for the Gulf of Mexico.
The Somali version of the Black Pearl…
As noted in earlier Updates, the pirates have seized ships worth hundreds of millions of dollars, held hundreds of crewmen hostage, some for years, and have effectively shrugged off some of the world’s most powerful navies for years now. All because the world failed to enforce their right to exclusive fishing rights in their own waters, where Somalis have been fishing for thousands of years. Here’s to their big swashbuckling “Screw you, International Community”.
If you’ve been following the Update, you know all about the south Sudanese secession vote, which, the Bohunk notes, officially entered the books on Monday with an 98% voter approval tally. Repeat, no US politician can again claim a landslide victory until they enter the 90% margin of domination. With the vote comes the act of secession and the building of their independent state from scratch. The new nation suffered its first set back with the murder of its newly appointed Minister of Cooperatives and Rural Developments Jimmy Lemi. Lemi was shot dead after a man, reportedly a relative and the murdered man’s driver, burst into his office in Juba and shot him. No one can deduce any real motive for the action, and the murder greatly reduces the widespread jubilation of the south Sudan country. President Obama announced he and his government would be able to recognize South Sudan and its government by this summer, possibly July, a great boost for the growing country’s legitimacy. All the best for Lemi’s family, who cannot replace a father, husband and friend.
In just a super cool move, Google and Twitter teamed up yesterday to let Egyptians voice their concerns and communicate whilst overthrowing their government, or at least attempting to. The Egyptian government attempted to remove all Internet access in the nation, eliminating social networking sites like Twitter that had been fueling protest organization and the massive outpouring of citizens intent on removing longtime President Mubarack. On Saturday and Sunday of the past week, engineers put together a system to let Egyptians post tweets by phone call, either from their cell or a landline, that would be converted into a tweet and branded with the #Egypt hash tag. Yesterday’s protest swelled to tens of thousands of people in spite of the loss of Internet, and, so the government claims, the shut off of all cellular phones. Up until Sunday, only a limited number of institutions in Egypt had these services, which are now, supposedly, completely shut down.
Very clear statement, kudos to the writing department…
The Egyptian military has vowed not to fire on protestors as the largest march in these seven days of protests takes shape. Tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of people are in the streets and gathering near Liberation Square and calling for the ousting of President Mubarack as soon as, well, immediately. For the first time, the military has voiced its outright refusal to fire on protestors, regardless of their actions, as the government is beginning to show signs of collapse. More and more Egyptians are leaving their jobs and homes and flocking to the city centers of Cairo and Alexandria. Alexandria, in particular, is essentially run by protestors, who have constructed road blocks and armed check points to monitor traffic and to search for fleeing government officials, at times with the assistance with the local police and security forces. Cairo is under similar strain, with pockets and gangs of protestors roaming the streets on their way to the Liberation Square to add their voices to a revolution.
Crowds protest Mubarack and the Egyptian government…
In a testament to the foresight of these protests, a human wall has grown up around the city’s most important items and institutions, including the National Museum in Cairo, which houses much of the world’s artifacts from the days of ancient Egypt and Africa. For the most part, looting has not affected these national treasures.
Mubarack has not made any statements so far that differ in anyway from prior comments. He flatly refused to remove himself from power and replaced a handful of government officials in an attempt to appease the thousands of protestors outside his door. He has not replaced important figures such as foreign secretary or of the interior. The economy has suffered, and international firms with interests in the offshore oil operations run by Egypt have voiced concerns about their partnerships, while international embassies are assisting their citizens in leaving the turbulent country.
In an effort to get ‘Murica to back out of the groceries and to get the US off the podium for fattest country in the world, the government released a new guideline of what we should and should not be eating. One in three American children are obese (not just overweight, obese) and well over half adults are committed porkers themselves. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said, “…this is a crisis we can no longer ignore.” One tip they offered was that consumers (that’s you and me) switched to low fat or, preferably, skim milk. The switch to skim milk from even 2% can result in consuming roughly 7 pounds of fat worth of calories less per year, or the equivalent to one fat roll in your midsection. The guideline also stressed that switching to water in the stead of soda or juice could help children’s blood sugar and weight. Also, the Bohunk recommends skipping that drunken double cheeseburger you long for after an evening of binge drinking. Saves you a ton of calories.
If this is you, reevaluate your dietary habits; and if this is literally a picture of you, I apologize.
In his commitment to bipartisan dealing and a mutual feeling of respect, Rep. John Boehner has challenged, er, offered to share a round of golf with President Barack Obama. But the House Crier (Speaker) had to add a jibe in there, because, if he didn’t, he may lose his reputation as Top Republican Ass Hole. Boehner said he would “have to give <Obama> a few strokes” if they were to play. To be fair, this is very true. Boehner, (your paid representative Ohio) played 18 holes roughly 120 times last year; Obama played approximately half that. David Axelrod, advisor to Obama, said the match-up could take place, serving as a way to get Boehner to engage in talks, potentially even on the debt ceiling, healthcare reform and other issues. The Bohunk offers this scenario; one round of golf, a one-on-one basketball game (Obama would kill Boehner) with both competitions aired nationally. Everyone would nap through the golf game, then shout and holler like a Rucker Park And1 special while Obama dunked of John till he cried. Wouldn’t you tune in to see that?
