Marx Cafe tonight!

Yeah! Tonight I'll be at Marx Cafe playing my careful selection of 2-step, UKG and 4/4 bassline house. Drink specials haven't changed, $4 Chimay and $5 Dekonekke. seeya there!

3203 Mt. Pleasant St. NW

US Debt knows no celing!

We all knew this was coming, just a matter of time really.

Treasury asks Congress to raise U.S. debt limit
By Robert Schroeder
Last Update: 4:00 PM ET Jul 30, 2007

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The U.S. will hit its debt limit of nearly $9 trillion in early October, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told Congress on Monday, and asked lawmakers to raise the limit "as soon as possible." The debt limit is currently $8.965 billion. In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., Paulson said a congressional decision to raise the limit would spare Treasury the need to take special actions that could create "unnecessary uncertainty" for financial markets.

Iraq wins the asia cup!!!1

It may not get the power turned back in Baghdad, but it's something to lift the spirits of that war torn nation.

IRAQ CLAIM ASIAN CUP

A 71st minute header from Younes Mahmoud earned Iraq a historic 1-0 win over Saudi Arabia and their first-ever AFC Asian Cup title at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium.

The 24-year-old striker converted Hawar Mulla Mohammed's corner to give the war-torn nation the trophy and end Saudi Arabia's hopes of a record-breaking fourth continental title.

The win is the pinnacle of a fairytale run to the title by the Iraqis, who were forced to prepare for the tournament outside their homeland as a result of the continuing security situation.

Iraq made the first foray towards goal in the sixth minute when Qusay Munir managed to fire a shot that was just wide of Yasser Al Mosailem's right post.

Two minutes later Mahmoud's overhead kick angled across the face of the Saudi goal, while Karrar Jassim's close control saw him beat two defenders before firing a shot that Al Mosailem had to steer around a post.

Despite going into the final as the less fancied of the two teams, the Iraqis always looked the more likely to score and Jorvan Vieira's team tried their luck again three minutes before the break when Jassim sent his effort wide from long range.

Yasser Al Qahtani threatened for the Saudis prior to the interval when he beat the Iraqi defence, only to see his shot deflected wide for a corner.

But that was a rare foray forward by a Saudi side pinned back in their own half for much of the first 45 minutes, and it was a similar story in the second half.

Nashat Akram's shot on the turn was blocked by defender Walid Abdrabh in the 57th minute, while five minutes later, Al Mosailem was forced into a double save to keep the scores level as Iraq hit on the break.

Mahmoud's effort was the first to be kept out by the Al Ahli goalkeeper when he parried away from goal only for the ball to fall at the feet of Akram, but his attempt was also blocked by Al Mosailem.

That came just seconds after Noor Sabri had dived at full stretch to his right to deny Taiseer Al Jassam from distance at the other end.

The Iraqi dominance continued, however, as Mohammed's inviting cross was headed narrowly wide by Mahmoud in the 66th minute.

But five minutes later the Al Gharafa striker made no mistake.

Mohammed sent over a corner from the Iraqi right, Al Mosailem miss-read the flight of the ball and Mahmoud appeared at the far post to head home.

With 13 minutes to go Iraq could have made the game safe when Akram released Mahmoud, only for Al Mosailem to redeem himself by saving with his feet.

But it proved to be insignificant as the tournament underdogs held on for victory and recorded a truly remarkable triumph against all the odds.

Iraq coach Jorvan Vieira will not continue in his job despite guiding the nation to a surprise win.

"It's over. I don't have any offers, but it's over," said the Brazilian, who took over the team on May 23.

"It's good for my family, it's good for my son and he can be proud of his father."

Vieira has been linked with the vacancy at South Korea, whose former coach Pim Verbeek stood down after their third-place finish in the competition.

Rather than looking to the future, however, 54-year-old Vieira highlighted the importance of the win to the people of war-torn Iraq.

"I wish that we could help Iraq and that this could be the transport to help them," he said.

"I'm very proud because it is very good when you can do good things. I didn't just win the Asian Cup, I did something good for the country by winning the Asian Cup.

"What we have done in this competition is help the country and it's very important for the Iraq people what we did for them."

NASA needs better pre-employment screening procedures!!

Wow, first the insane love torn diaper wearing murder attempting astronaut, now an inside man working to possibly crash the shuttle or ISS? Get your shit in order NASA! Who hates America enough to try and crash the space shuttle? I really hope this guy, or gal, goes away to prison for a long time. That shit is not funny.

NASA Reports Sabotage of Space Computer

By MARCIA DUNN
The Associated Press
Thursday, July 26, 2007; 5:49 PM

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- A space program worker deliberately damaged a computer that is supposed to fly aboard shuttle Endeavour in less than two weeks, an act of sabotage that was caught before the equipment was loaded onto the spaceship, NASA said Thursday.

The unidentified employee, who works for a NASA subcontractor, cut wires inside the computer that is supposed to be delivered to the international space station by Endeavour, officials said.

The space agency declined to speculate on a motive.

The computer is supposed to measure the strain on a space station beam and relay the information to flight controllers on Earth.

The damage would have posed no danger to either shuttle or station astronauts, said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA's space operations chief.

The worker also damaged a similar computer that was not meant to fly in space, Gerstenmaier said.

Gerstenmaier did not identify the subcontractor or where the damage took place. The subcontractor notified NASA 1 1/2 weeks ago about the matter, as soon as it discovered the damage to the non-flying computer.

NASA immediately checked the computer at the Kennedy Space Center and discovered the additional damage. Officials would have caught the problem through testing before flight, even if the subcontractor had not alerted NASA beforehand, Gerstenmaier said.

"The damage is very obvious. It's easy to detect. It's not a mystery to us," he said.

NASA hopes to fix the computer and launch it Aug. 7 as planned aboard Endeavour.

NASA's inspector general office is investigating.

"I don't want to speculate on motivation," Gerstenmaier said.

Gerstenmaier declined to provide any information on the employee or company, but stressed that the tampering had nothing to do with an ongoing strike at the space center by a machinists union. He said the damage occurred outside Florida.

"There's an active investigation going on and I'd rather let that get handled that way," he said.

The subcontractor supplies computer equipment and strain gauges for the international space station, as well as wing sensor systems for the shuttle. NASA has surveyed all the parts that were provided by the subcontractor, Gerstenmaier said.

"There's no concern about anything that's on orbit," he added.

___

On the Net:

NASA: http://spaceflight.nasa.gov

Oh the black eyes just don't stop coming for the embattled space agency! Found this here. I see a huge future here, a mini series on the Discovery channel, it will be called DRUNKS IN SPACE!!1

Aviation Week & Space Technology reported on its Web site that a special panel studying astronaut health found that on two occasions, astronauts were allowed to fly after flight surgeons and other astronauts warned they were so drunk they posed a safety risk.

The independent panel also found "heavy use of alcohol" before launch — within the standard 12-hour "bottle-to-throttle" rule, the magazine reported.

Iraq beats South Korea to advance!!!

YEEAAHHH!!! They are going to the big showdown with the Saudi team!

Iraq Advances to First Asian Cup Final

By JOHN PYE
The Associated Press
Wednesday, July 25, 2007; 10:33 AM

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Noor Sabri made the crucial save and Iraq advanced to its first Asian Cup final by winning a penalty shootout 4-3 over South Korea on Wednesday.

Heavy celebratory gunfire rang out across the Iraqi capital and thousands of fans gathered in the central Baghdad district of Karradah to celebrate by dancing, beating drums and chanting "Iraq, Iraq." Elsewhere in the city, traffic snarled as drivers honked their horns _ Iraqi flags flying from their windows _ amid hundreds of fans.

read the rest here.

Marx Cafe tonight!

Hey all, I'll be at the Marx tonight playing records from 10-2 or somewheres there abouts. Come on down, belgian beer specials $4 Chimay and $5 Bolleke. Seeya there!

Oh did you hear, Drew Carey is the new host of the Price Is Right! Cheers!

3203 Mt. Pleasant St. NW

Iraqi football team prepares for Jihad

Great news, I wish these games were being broadcast here in the US? Does anybody know what it takes to tune these games?

Iraqi fans stock up on petrol and ammunition

By Mussab Al-Khairalla

BAGHDAD, July 24 (Reuters) - Iraqi fans have been stocking up on petrol and ammunition in preparation for their national soccer team's Asian Cup semi-final against South Korea on Wednesday.

Ibrahim al-Musawi said he had already brought 20 litres of petrol to make sure he could fuel his small generator to watch the whole match as Iraq's national power grid provides electricity for only a few hours a day.

"This is one of the strongest Iraqi sides ever and they fill us with pride," Musawi told Reuters.

"We are tired of the sadness that always surrounds us. I sometimes wish we are always playing in international tournaments so we can remain happy."

A convincing 3-1 victory over pre-tournament favourites Australia helped Iraq top Group A before a 2-0 victory knocked out Vietnam, one of the four co-hosts, in the quarter-finals.

Each time Iraq have played the streets back home have almost emptied with a scattering of pedestrians left outside standing to watch at the nearest shop displaying the game on small televisions. Each time the final whistle has triggered euphoric, ear-shattering celebrations.

Youths drape themselves and their cars in large Iraqi flags and parade around the streets to loud music and dancing.

Others prefer the tribal tradition of firing their weapons into the air in deafening, often deadly barrages.

Three people died and about 50 were wounded when bullets fired in celebration of Iraq's victory over Vietnam on Saturday came back down at lethal speed.

The enthusiasm and optimism back home will increase the pressure on the Iraq team ahead of the showdown with twice Asian champions South Korea, with the players hoping to bring some much-needed relief to their chaotic homeland.

Goalkeeper Noor Sabri Abbas said the players were aware of the football fever gripping their country after contacting friends and relatives.

"We really want to do well for the people of Iraq," he said.

"We have a really good chance to make history for Iraqi football and the whole country is behind us."

(Additional reporting by Nazvi Careem in Kuala Lumpur)

Iraq oil production; still a horrible failure

These guys were sooooooo wrong. What a bunch of half-wits.

Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz told the House Appropriations Committee March 27 reconstruction could largely be covered by proceeds from Iraqi oil and foreign donations.

"There's a lot of money to pay for this. It doesn't have to be U.S. taxpayer money. And it starts with the assets of the Iraqi people. They will now own those assets instead of a dictator that owns them, and they should spend them for their own welfare," Wolfowitz said. "We are dealing with a country that can really finance its own reconstruction and relatively soon."

.....

"It is not wise to seek to put any more debt on to the Iraqis, even if it's in the form of collateralizing future oil revenues which also has the disadvantages ... of making it look as if we -- even no matter how you do it -- we are in some way taking a lien against oil revenues and therefore that's why we fought the war," Bremer told the Senate Appropriations Committee Sept. 25.

Michigan Democrat Sen. Carl Levin presented an amendment Friday to have Iraq finance its reconstruction by getting a loan on the world capital market to be secured by its oil wealth and guaranteed by the United States.

GAO: Iraqi Oil Sector in Tatters
July 19, 2007 02:52 PM ET

Even after spending $2.7 billion in U.S. reconstruction funds, Iraq's oil sector has failed to achieve any of the goals to boost production, according to a new report by the Government Accountability Office.

Indeed, the highest production levels were reached back in 2004 and have not been equaled since then. In addition, the State Department's oil data for Iraq may dramatically overstate the actual production levels by as much as $5.5 billion a year, because of inadequate metering, corruption, theft, and sabotage. Security remains the biggest of the challenges, but future investment will be difficult as well.

Nearly 80 percent of U.S. funds destined for the oil sector have already been spent and the rest of the international community has yet to offer any of its own financial support.

For its part, the Iraqi government has failed to spend more than 3 percent of the $3.5 billion it approved for oil reconstruction projects last year. On the political side, the Iraqi government's effort to pass laws to govern exploration and revenue distribution for the oil sector remain stalled and foreign investment will be minimal until that legislation is in place.

--Kevin Whitelaw

Free energy is for real.

http://www.taiwanheadlines.gov.tw/ct....

TAIWAN TO EMBARK ON OCEAN CURRENT POWER GENERATION
07/02/2007 (CNA)
Taipei, July 2 (CNA) The government is now discussing the possibility of large-scale ocean current power generation, using the strong Kuroshio current off the east coast of Taiwan to generate up to 1.68 trillion kilowatt-hours per year, officials at cabinet-level Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) said Monday.

The project task force, led by Chen Fa-lin -- director of Energy and Environment Research Laboratory under Hsinchu-based Industrial Technology Research Institute, is currently working on fine-tuning the guidelines, which will be presented to CEPD senior officials in August or September.

After the project is green-lighted, the possible first step should be setting up a five-megawatt marine turbine off Taiwan's east coast on a trial basis, with the goal of testing both related technologies and power-generating efficiency, CEPD officials, adding that hopefully, the project can enter the next stage in three years.

"Current power generation is not a new idea, " officials noted. "Countries like Britain, Canada, Norway, and Australia all have experience in deploying offshore marine turbines with capacities ranging from one megawatt to eight megawatts to support the electricity demand of hundreds to thousands of households."

"The problem is not the technology itself but how to locate a suitable site -- with a current strong enough, an undersea shelf not too deep, and a distance short enough to achieve power supply efficiency," they added.

However, they explained that based on the surveys done by National Taiwan University (NTU) , the sea area of some 6,000 square kilometers between the eastern county of Taitung and the outlying Green Island in the Pacific Ocean appears to meet all the requirements, and that the maximum potential capacity there exceeds 1.68 trillion kilowatt- hours per year -- while Taiwan's current annual demand of electricity is only about 98 billion kilowatt-hours.

According to the estimates of the project task force, a given site of 25 square kilometers located in the "shallow, high-speed zone" could support the deployment of 1,000 one-megawatt marine turbines, which would have a peak capacity of 1,000 megawatts: equal to the output of Taiwan's second nuclear power plant.

Chen, the project leader, noted that once the turbines enter commercial operation, Taiwan's existing coal power plants could be retired, while the nuclear power generators could be used as a backup system -- thereby resulting in a great reduction in Taiwan's total carbon dioxide emissions. (By Zep Hu)



This story has been viewed 229 times.

http://www.dreamofpassamaquoddy.com/

“Man needs only to exercise his engineering ingenuity to convert the ocean’s surge into a great national asset.”
—John F. Kennedy, July 16th, 1963

President John F. Kennedy, Remarks in Response to a Report on the Passamaquoddy Tidal Power Project, July 16th, 1963:
I AM pleased to meet today with Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives from New England to discuss the report on the International Passamaquoddy Tidal Project submitted by Secretary Udall. Two years ago, I asked Secretary Udall, in cooperation with the Corps of Engineers, to restudy the proposed project, and the hydroelectric potential of the St. John River in Maine to determine whether recent developments in electric power technology had enhanced the economic feasibility of these projects.
This report has been presented to me this morning, and its major conclusions are most encouraging. The report reveals that this unique international power complex can provide American and Canadian markets with over a million kilowatts for the daily peak period in addition to 250,000 kilowatts of firm power. Electric power rates in the New England region are among the highest in the United States, and the survey indicates that a massive block of power can be produced and delivered at a cost of about 4 mills, approximately 25 percent below the current wholesale cost of power in the region.
I am pleased to note also that the development plan proposed would preserve the superb recreational areas of the Allagash River from flooding, and that an area suitable for a new national park would be preserved in this scenic part of Maine.
Any proposed resource development project must, of course, meet the national interest test. It must strengthen the economy of the whole country and enable America to compete better in the market places of the world. I understand that, measured by the customary feasibility standards, the Passamaquoddy-St. John project now meets the national interest test.
During the last three decades American taxpayers, through their Federal Government, have invested vast sums of money in developing the water resources of the great rivers of this country–the Columbia, the Missouri, the Colorado, the Tennessee, and others. These investments are producing daily dividends for our country, and it is reasonable to assume that a similar investment in conserving the resources of New England will also benefit the Nation. It is also reasonable to assume that a New England development will stimulate more diversified industry, increase commerce, and provide more jobs.
Our experience in other regions and river valleys shows that private utility customers as well as public agency power users benefit from lowering the basic cost of electric energy.
Harnessing the energy of the tides is an exciting technological undertaking. France and the Soviet Union are already doing pioneering work in this field. Each day, over a million kilowatts of power surge in and out of the Passamaquoddy Bay. Man needs only to exercise his engineering ingenuity to convert the ocean’s surge into a great national asset. It is clear, however, that any development of this magnitude and new approach must also be considered in the context of the National Energy Study currently being undertaken by an interdepartmental committee under the chairmanship of the Director of the Office of Science and Technology, Dr. Wiesner.
These projects involve international waters, and equitable agreements must therefore be reached with the Canadian Government. Therefore, I am requesting the Secretary of State to initiate negotiations immediately with the Government of Canada looking toward a satisfactory arrangement for the sharing of the benefits of these two projects. Also, to insure full consideration of these proposals, I am directing that the Interior Department and the Corps of Engineers accelerate their work on the remaining studies of details.
The power-producing utilities of the United States are second to none in the world. The combined effort of science, private industry, and Government will surely keep this Nation in the forefront of technological progress in energy and electric power.
I think that this can be one of the most astonishing and beneficial joint enterprises that the people of the United States have ever undertaken and, therefore, I want to commend the Department of the Interior for its initiative in working on this matter the past 2 years, the congressional delegation from Maine which has been interested in this for many years, and the Members of Congress from New England who have supported this great effort. I think it will mean a good deal to New England and a good deal to the country.
Note: The President spoke at 10 a.m. in the Flower Garden at the White House. The text of brief remarks by Secretary of the Interior Stewart L. Udall and Senators Margaret Chase Smith and Edmund S. Muskie of Maine was also released.
The report (93 pp.) is dated July 1963 and entitled “The International Passamaquoddy Tidal Power Project and Upper Saint John River Hydroelectric Power Development.” A 24-page “Summary Report” was also released.
For the President’s request for a restudy of the project, see 1961 volume, this series, Item 197.

RON PAUL OUTRANKS ALL OTHERS IN MILITARY DONATIONS

Ron Paul was #1 in contributions from military personnel.

read about it here.

This support from active duty personnel is an early indicator that Dr. Paul's campaign shouldn't allow them selves to be marginalized. Keep up the good fight, good things are coming.

Found some more info here. Apparently this data was compiled for every donation over $200, that's the limit where the law requires you to report your employer.

NAME: TOTAL [ARMY] [NAVY] [AIRFORCE] [VETERAN] [USMC**]

RON PAUL: 24,965 [6,975] [6,765] [4,650] [5,075] [1,500]
MoneyMcCain: 17,475 [6925] [6305] [1795] [800] [1600]
Romney: 3,551 [2,051] [0] [1500] [0]
Giuliani: 2,320 [1,450] [370] [250] [250]
Hunter: 1000 [0] [1000] [0]
Huckabee: 750 [250] [0] [500]
Tancredo: 350 [350] [0] [0]
Brownback: 71 [71] [0] [0]
Thompson: 0 [0] [0] [0]

Units are contributions in dollars by employees of the respective military organizations.

Rave sports!!

Wow, this sounds like fun!

Make way for the greatest sport ever invented

Blackminton - in all its Day-Glo shuttlecocks-in-the-dark glory - is the first time the spheres of cool and sport have collided.

Steven Wells

July 19, 2007 1:50 PM

Some sports are so patently in need of improvement, and those improvements are so ridiculously obvious, that one suspects the status quo is only maintained by some vast and sinister conspiracy.

Rugby union, for instance, would obviously be massively improved if it became rugby league. And who wouldn't much rather see Tiger Woods weave his way through an insanely imaginative miniature/crazy golf course - as opposed to the tedious every-hole-the-bloody-same borathons he slogs through at present?

Basketball would be way cooler if it got rid of all the breaks and time-outs. Baseball could learn from all the crazy innovations that have recently made cricket watchable for the first time in 300+ years. And American football would be way cooler if the squads were halved so the same players had to play attack and defence and weren't allowed to trot off for oxygen, massages, Gatorade and a nice long sit down every time it looked like the precious lambs might be about to break into a bit of a sweat.

And, of course, as anyone who tried to sit though the arse-aching slogfest of this year's men's tournament at Wimbledon can testify, tennis should be first to 21 - inna old skool ping pong stylee.

And then there's badminton, which is much more fun than tennis. In fact - as Lee Calvert pointed out on this very site - badminton kicks tennis's ass.

But can badminton be improved? Hell yes.

There's speedminton - faster than badminton with a bigger, harder shuttlecock. With speedminton you can say goodbye to boring old net misery and play across rooftops, on mountains and in deserted swimming pools and shit. It's todally sick.

And then there's Blackminton - invented by the same crazy Germans who invented speedminton.

As sick as speedminton is, blackminton is way sicker, deffer and phatter. It's speedminton played in black light with a luminous shuttlecock while wearing crazy Day-Glo fluorescent rave slap. And is therefore the best sport ever invented ever by anyone.

In the words of New York based cultural critic Tom Cowell: "It's less about exercise and more about dressing up like a cyberpunk-rocker and pretending to be in the movie Tron. Rules take a back seat to sprinting about like an electrified lunatic and looking really cool doing it. For a helpful image, think of the street gangs from The Warriors playing laser tag with squash rackets while recreating the video for Pop Will Eat Itself's Ich Bin Ein Auslander as directed by Steven Wells and Nick Small of Gob TV. This is the answer to America's obesity crisis."

So blackminton is an improvement on speedminton which is an improvement on badminton which is an improvement on tennis which isn't quite as good as ping pong.

But blackminton is also a massive improvement on the disco dancing phenomenon known as raving. At a rave young people who have taken a drug that makes them twitch to simple music designed to be twitched to by people who've taken the aforementioned drug, twitch. While covered in crazy Day-Glo fluorescent rave slap and waving glo-sticks.

Well blackminton is exactly like that but without the drugs and with someone keeping score. In short, it's the first ever cool sport. Meaning two spheres that have been kept entirely separate for millennia - cool shit that bad teenagers like doing and sport - have been joined to create a sexy Siamese new thing.

This collision of cool and anti-cool might result in an explosion that destroys the universe. Or it might not. My bet is the innate German-ness of blackminton will act as a safety valve, rendering the sport just uncool enough to avert any potential matter-meets-antimatter style meltdown. Praise be.

Marx Cafe tonight!

Yes, you heard it right. Belgian beer night rolls on! $4 Chimay and $5 Bolleke, both on tap! I'll be playing records from 10pm until whenever, UKG, 4/4 Bassline and 2-step. Seeya there!

3203 Mt. Pleasant St. NW

Burning women alive, life in prison??!!

Why does this article mention life in prison for this shitbag? This happened in texas, get ol' sparky ready to go!

Police: Texas Man Accused of Burning Girlfriend Alive During Fight Has Shown 'Little Remorse'

Murder charges were filed Monday in the burning death of Texas child-welfare caseworker Terry Leigh Lee, allegedly at the hands of her new boyfriend — who has shown "little remorse," police told FOXNews.com.

John Marshall Dodd, 42, is behind bars, accused of pouring gasoline on his girlfriend of just a few months after striking her during an ugly fight, then setting her on fire. Dodd initially lied to neighbors and investigators about what happened, saying Lee had been burned in a kitchen accident, according to authorities.

He faces life in prison if convicted and is currently in the Montgomery County Jail on $250,000 bail.

More than 90 percent of Lee's body and face were scorched in the attack late Saturday night at her home in Conroe, Texas, a suburban community about 30 miles outside of Houston. The 44-year-old caseworker of the state's Child Protective Services died Sunday night of her injuries at an area hospital.

Conroe Police Sgt. Mike Tindall told FOXNews.com in a phone interview that authorities pieced together what happened based on a statement Dodd gave them, as well as evidence they gathered from the scene — but said the suspect hasn't expressed regret at what he allegedly did to Lee.

Read the rest here.

Oil may hit $95 a barrel

Good news for the Oil sector and their investors! bad news for everybody else.

U.S. oil may hit $95 if OPEC does not hike output: Goldman NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. crude price could top $90 a barrel this autumn and hit $95 by the end of the year if OPEC keeps oil production capped at current levels, Goldman Sachs said in a report issued on Monday.

U.S. oil prices have risen to near $74 per barrel, driven this month by higher demand and lower supplies, the report said, pointed out that such fundamentals could tighten further unless key OPEC members hike output.

"We believe an increase in Saudi Arabian, Kuwaiti and UAE (United Arab Emirate) production by the end of the summer is critical to avoid prices spiking above $90 a barrel this autumn," the report stated.

OPEC agreed last year to lower output by 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd), and Goldman said global oil production is down about 1 million bpd from last summer's levels.

Disappointing output growth from non-OPEC producers also helped tighten supplies, Goldman said, adding global demand was up by 1 million bpd from year-ago levels.

"Our estimates show that keeping OPEC production at current levels and assuming normal weather this coming winter, total petroleum inventories would fall by over 150 million barrels or 6.5 percent by the end of the year, which would push prices to $95 a barrel without a demand response," the report forecast.

Bush is a crass buffon

WTF?? When someone mentioned to me that commander cookoo bananas had openly mocked the reporters assembled for a presidential press conference, I found it a little hard to believe. What was he drunk??!! File under things you don't want to actually be heard saying in public.

"Let me cut the ribbon ... and then why don't you all yell simultaneously -- really loudly -- and that way you might get noticed. I'll listen, internalize, play like I'm going to answer the question and then smile at you and just say God, thanks, thanks for such a solid, sound question," Bush said at the end of his remarks.

Marx Cafe tonight!

Hey all, I'm going to be at Marx Cafe tonight playing my signature set of 2-step and modern garage classics, music starts at ten. Beer speicials - $5 DeKonneke and $4 Chimay. Seeya there!

3203 Mount Pleasant St. NW

Arms Control event

I think I might stop by and hear this talk tommorow nite.

Bomb Scare
The History and Future of Nuclear Weapons

Wednesday, July 11, 2007
5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
(Light Refreshments Served)

Busboys and Poets
Langston Room
2021 14th Street, NW
Washington, DC

Featured Speakers
Joseph Cirincione
Senior Fellow and Director for Nuclear Policy, Center for American Progress
Author, Bomb Scare

Jeffrey G. Lewis
Director, Nuclear Strategy and Nonproliferation Initiative
New America Foundation

Joseph Cirincione is one of America’s best known weapons experts. His new book, Bomb Scare, begins with the first atomic discoveries of the 1930s and covers the history of their growth all the way to the current crisis with Iran. Cirincione unravels the science, strategy, and politics that have fueled the development of nuclear stockpiles and increased the chance of a nuclear attack. He also explains why many nations choose not to pursue nuclear weapons and pulls from this a corrective to the current failed policies: a balance of force and diplomacy, enforcement, and engagement that yields a steady decrease in these deadly arsenals.

Joseph Cirincione is Senior Fellow and Director for Nuclear Policy at the Center for American Progress in Washington, D.C. He is the author of the new book, Bomb Scare: The History and Future of Nuclear Weapons (Columbia University Press, 2007). Cirincione also teaches at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and served for eight years as director for nonproliferation at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He worked for over nine years on the professional staff of the Armed Services Committee and the Government Operations Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Join the New America Foundation for an engaging discussion of nuclear weapons with Joseph Cirincione and Jeffrey Lewis.

The New York Review of Books says, “Cirincione writes as a seasoned Washington observer…his invaluable new book…ought to be read by everyone as a matter of life and death.”

Richard Rhodes, Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Making of the Atomic Bomb, says that Bomb Scare is “Succinct and smart, informed by insight drawn from long experience, Bomb Scare is the best one-volume examination of the history and challenges of the nuclear arms race yet written.”

Robert Gallucci, Dean of the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, says Bomb Scare is “a compact, balanced, and wise treatment of an issue that is of critical importance to our security.”

To RSVP for this event, reply to this email: communications [AT] newamerica.net with name, affiliation, and contact information.