Diseased Leadership, Poisoned Water

BUZZHARSH!

EPA to Americans: Drink rocket fuel!
Amidst news of the Wall Street bailout and the release of Sarah Palin's tax returns, this was one Friday-afternoon announcement from the Bush administration that was easy to miss. It was yet another instance of the Environmental Protection Agency declaring that it plans to do not much of anything much to protect the environment or your health.

This time the toxin in question is the main explosive ingredient in rocket fuel known as perchlorate, which has been discovered in drinking water in some 35 states, much of it lurking there thanks to the carelessness of the Department of Defense and the aerospace industry. Friday, the E.P.A. announced that it will do nothing to regulate the amount of perchlorate that's safe to drink in water, despite the fact that by the agency's own reckoning perchlorate is found in the drinking water of 16.6 million American. The agency is taking public comment for the next 30 days before finalizing its decision.

Exposure to the toxin may cause thyroid problems in women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The chemical is known to contaminate breast milk. The health risks have led Massachusetts and California to enact their own regulations of the chemical in water supplies.

The EPA's do-nothing decision raised the ire of Sen. Barbara Boxer, who said in a statement: "The Bush EPA's failure to set a standard for perchlorate, a dangerous contaminant found in drinking water, is outrageous and I will do everything in my power to reverse it. Perchlorate contamination endangers the health of our families, especially pregnant women and children, and to simply allow it to remain in our drinking water is immoral."

How many more days until the next President takes office again?

― Katharine Mieszkowski

"We Have Not Got To Allow The Partisanship That Has Really Been Entrenched In Washington"

Spouting a mashup of soundbites, and doggone it, she's scarier than ever. What a surreal experience.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jane-hamsher/its-official-gop-ticket-n_b_131628.html

"Forget the tight stripper skirt, forget the metallic eyeshadow inappropriate for anyone over the age of 40, forget the cloying sitcom delivery, the lies, the cruel and calculated needling of Biden by calling his college professor wife a "school teacher" and saying "she'll get her reward in Heaven" (to a man whose first wife died in a car accident) -- she's an idiot.

I cannot believe that we are seriously thinking of placing this dodo bird within reach of the Presidency." - -

Jane Hamsher blogs at firedoglake.com

Mean Nasty Rotten Stupid Liberal Media Is CENSORING Sarah!!

"Getting to speak directly to Americans without that filter of mainstream media trying to I think maybe censor some of my comments as we lay out those contrasts between these two different tickets."

She's No Spiro Agnew.

Bruce Elliott, whose wife owns the Old Town Ale House, painted this nude portrait of Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. He said his daughter, who does a good impression of the Alaska governor, served as model. (Kuni Takahashi, Chicago Tribune / September 29, 2008)

House Republicans Throw ONE TRILLION DOLLAR Hissy Fit!

House defeat of bailout legislation will deepen impact of financial crisis

-Houston Chronicle

The bailout legislation defeated in the U.S. House Monday was better than any proposal that had come before, deserved to be passed and would have been better than passing no legislation.


Investors, evidently, agreed, causing the stock market to experience its biggest one-day loss. The market plunged 777 points, exceeding the 684-point fall on the first trading day after Sept. 11, 2001.

Most House Republicans and many Democrats voted against the bill, no doubt reacting to calls and letters from constituents who resent having their tax dollars spent to bail out the greedy denizens of Wall Street. But the financial crisis is not limited to Wall Street and its investment banking firms. The failure of Washington Mutual and the forced sale of Wachovia bank to Citigroup are but two more of the crisis' many victims.

The crisis has now spread around the world as foreign stock exchanges plunge and some European banks follow their troubled U.S. counterparts and require government intervention.

The proposed $700 billion bailout fund was not aimed at rescuing rich bankers. It is needed to unfreeze sources of credit — for businesses, homebuyers and consumers.

Total Financial Meltdown, Markets Plunge Worldwide, Sarah Goes To Debate Camp

Lamest Duck Ever powerless to prevent chickens coming home to roost.
13 banks have failed, the FDIC has a watchlist of 117 that are on the edge....

Maverick Avoids Eye Contact For 90 Minutes

Conflict resolution skills, anyone? Take a deep breath as we enter these final, desperate weeks. It's all in the hands of Fate and The VeepBot now....