Congressman Paul Ryan, the newly minted Republican vice presidential candidate, claimed today that he welcomes a campaign on his proposal to privatize Medicare. Well, that’s one thing he has in common with Democrats.
** QUICK HITS. Governor Jerry Brown joined with Silicon Valley leaders this afternoon to announce and sign a memorandum of understanding with Japan’s Samsung Semiconductor to build a new and expanded research and development facility in San Jose. The company, which has long had a presence in Silicon Valley, had been looking at other options for expanding its R&D capacity in the US. … A new CNN poll shows that the Obama/Biden ticket still has the edge in Wisconsin even after the ballyhooed roll-out of Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney’s running mate.
** NEW COLUMN COMING UP … RECALLING TOTAL RECALL: WHAT’S MISSING FROM THE REMAKES?
** NEW SURVEY: COMPUTER INDUSTRY HELD IN HIGHEST REGARD, OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY LOWEST. A new Gallup Poll survey points up another big problem for the Romney/Ryan ticket, if President Barack Obama will take advantage.
According to a new Gallup Poll survey, the industry they are most closely affiliated with, along with the financial industry, of course, is by far the least popular major industry in America. Not that you needed a poll to know this.
Obama is supported by most of the best known computer industry figures who have taken a stand.
Only the federal government, of major institutions, is rated as poorly as the petroleum industry, the bedrock of the old energy economy.
Americans continue to give the computer industry the most positive ratings out of 25 business and industry sectors tested, with the restaurant industry in second place. The oil and gas industry and the federal government have the least positive images, as they did last year. …
Americans have widely differing opinions of these business sectors, with positive ratings ranging from 73% for the computer industry to 22% for the oil and gas industry, and negative ratings going from 10% for the computer and restaurant industries to 61% for oil and gas.
Five of the six highest-rated business and industry sectors, according to their net positive scores, are related to either the computer or the food sector of the economy. The one exception is the “retail” industry, which is in third place this year. The images of both the oil and gas industry and the federal government have improved this year compared with last, but they remain at the bottom of the list.
More broadly, the positive ratings of several industries improved significantly this year — the healthcare, education, and retail sector ratings are up the most. Banking, farming/agriculture, and electric and gas utilities are among the smaller group of industries whose images worsened slightly this year. …
Seven American troops are among the 11 people who died in a Blackhawk helicopter crash today in southern Afghanistan. A Taliban spokesman says the insurgents shot down the aircraft.
** OBAMA TODAY. President Barack Obama is in Washington.
Yesterday Obama wrapped up the third day of a three-day bus tour of Iowa, the swing state which afforded him his big breakthrough in the 2008 Iowa presidential caucuses.
Obama and Vice President Joe Biden received the daily intelligence and economic briefings in the Oval Office.
They then met with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the Oval Office.
Following that, Obama and Biden held a lunch meeting in the Private Dining Room.
At 11 AM Pacific, Obama and Biden meet with Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner in the Oval Office.
The new Romney-Ryan Republican ticket, seeing the running mate pick turning the election into a matter of ideology rather than efficacy, is busy complaining that Obama and Biden are conducting a negative campaign.
Lots of luck with that, boys.
Of course, it’s only annoying if you have no taste for irony. Romney won his nomination with a relentlessly negative campaign, one that was frequently fact-free.
But, despite my taste for irony, I don’t find it all that amusing. But then, I got bored with Romney a few years ago.
Fortunately, I won’t have to think too much about him in the future.
In other action, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who sought refuge in the Ecuadorean embassy in London after the UK decided to extradite him to Sweden to face some rather hazy sex charges — Assange’s supporters believe it’s a ruse to get him headed to the US for prosecution on espionage-related charges — has been granted asylum in the Latin American country.
Ecuador claims that the UK has threatened to storm the Ecuadorean embassy to stop Assange from escaping. It’s not at all clear that he can be gotten out of the country.
Obama is monitoring several geopolitical crises involving the Arab Awakening, Iran and Israel, Syria, Iraq, AfPak, and the South China Sea.
Military Crisis Zone Times: The Arabian Gulf is ten hours ahead of Pacific time and Afghanistan is eleven and a half hours ahead of Pacific time. The time in Manila, on the South China Sea, is fifteen hours ahead of Pacific time.
** FROM THE JERRY FILES. Governor Jerry Brown is in Northern California.
At 3 PM , Brown joins San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors President George Shirakawa, and officials from Samsung Semiconductor Inc. for a major announcement about the company’s future plans.
Samsung is planning a major expansion of its presence in California.
Brown kicked off the pre-Labor Day portion of his drive for the Proposition 30 revenue initiative yesterday with an appearance at New Technology High School, a charter school in south Sacramento.
The No on 30 campaign, as well as the Molly Munger Initiative campaign, tried to draft off Brown’s press coverage, to little avail.
** NEW COLUMN COMING UP … RECALLING TOTAL RECALL.
** LONDON’S GRAND OLYMPICS, ON AND OFF THE TRACK. … From my August 13th essay.
** GORE VIDAL: REMEMBERING A BRILLIANT, CONTROVERSIAL LEGEND OF THE SORT WE DON’T FOSTER ANY MORE. … From my August 3rd essay.
** ROMNEY’S DANGEROUS BUFFOONERY. … From my August 1st essay.
** SUNRISE IN CALIFORNIA? … From my July 26th feature.
** CHINA MOVES SWIFTLY ON NEW “CITY” ENCOMPASSING SOUTH CHINA SEA, GULF CRISIS SIMMERS. … From my July 24th feature.
** THE DARK KNIGHT SHOOTINGS: “ALL IT TAKES IS A LITTLE PUSH.” … From my July 21st column.
** MITT WHITMAN = MEG ROMNEY. … From my July 19th column.
** CRISES CHAOTIC AND BUBBLING: THE GULF AND THE SOUTH CHINA SEA. … From my July 17th essay.
** FROM GOVERNATOR TO MOONBEAM. … From my January 3rd, 2011 feature.
** OBAMA: RIDING WITH HISTORY. (NOTE: As Barack Obama was inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States, this column was the featured column on the top of the front page of the Huffington Post.) … From my January 19th, 2009 Huffington Post column.
Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Chuck Norris, Terry Crews and Dolph Lundgren discuss future co-stars in a possible sequel to The Expendables 2 at the film’s Los Angeles premiere. Schwarzenegger’s suggestions include John Wayne and Charles Bronson. Olympic swimming superstar Ryan Lochte, who says Sylvester Stallone is his favorite action star, was on hand.
** 24/7 LIVE TV NEWS FEED FROM AL JAZEERA. With the US entangled in major military operations in the region, and the Arab awakening underway, it’s valuable to keep up with news and perspectives from the leading Middle Eastern-based TV news network. Click here for a live TV news feed on your computer. The NWN live link to AJ does not constitute an endorsement of the channel’s views. It’s presented as an otherwise unavailable new media window.
** 24/7 LIVE TV NEWS FEED FROM RUSSIA TODAY. Russia has re-emerged as one of the world’s great powers. Click here for a live TV news feed on your computer from the Russia Today channel. The NWN live link to RT does not constitute an endorsement of the state-run channel’s views. It’s presented as an otherwise unavailable new media window.
** TRACK GLOBAL AND NATIONAL ENERGY PRICES IN NEAR REAL TIME VIA BLOOMBERG ENERGY MARKET WATCH. Having crashed over $147 for yet another record on July 11th, 2008, crude oil is trading around $95 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
This is up about $61 from the low of $34 per barrel prior to enactment of the Obama economic recovery program, reflecting a low point in global economic activity, and down about $19 per barrel from the price at the time of the Osama bin Laden raid.
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| Comments (29) |
Good bad news news video about the 7 American soldiers killed in Afghanistan.
Nice news video of Arnold and “boys” at their movie premier.
Israel and Iran crisis video today?
Sad…
Jonas says:
August 16, 2012 at 12:26 pm
Good bad news news video about the 7 American soldiers killed in Afghanistan.
Yah, Arnold, dig up John Wayne for Expendables III… He is older than you!
Jonas says:
August 16, 2012 at 12:28 pm
Nice news video of Arnold and “boys” at their movie premier.
JB is getting it done!!
Let the Denialists whine.
BB:At 3 PM , Brown joins San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors President George Shirakawa, and officials from Samsung Semiconductor Inc. for a major announcement about the company’s future plans.
Samsung is planning a major expansion of its presence in California.
Brown kicked off the pre-Labor Day portion of his drive for the Proposition 30 revenue initiative yesterday with an appearance at New Technology High School, a charter school in south Sacramento.
The No on 30 campaign, as well as the Molly Munger Initiative campaign, tried to draft off Brown’s press coverage, to little avail.
Hahah, I love it!!
BB:The new Romney-Ryan Republican ticket, seeing the running mate pick turning the election into a matter of ideology rather than efficacy, is busy complaining that Obama and Biden are conducting a negative campaign.
Lots of luck with that, boys.
Of course, it’s only annoying if you have no taste for irony. Romney won his nomination with a relentlessly negative campaign, one that was frequently fact-free.
But, despite my taste for irony, I don’t find it all that amusing. But then, I got bored with Romney a few years ago.
Fortunately, I won’t have to think too much about him in the future.
Pres. Obama’s been talking wind energy up and bashing Romney for oil this week. Hopefully he will continue.
Yeah, hopefully… Obama has a way of letting up.
Romney is a cry baby like most bullies.
Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 2:46 pm
Hahah, I love it!!
BB:The new Romney-Ryan Republican ticket, seeing the running mate pick turning the election into a matter of ideology rather than efficacy, is busy complaining that Obama and Biden are conducting a negative campaign.
Lots of luck with that, boys.
Of course, it’s only annoying if you have no taste for irony. Romney won his nomination with a relentlessly negative campaign, one that was frequently fact-free.
But, despite my taste for irony, I don’t find it all that amusing. But then, I got bored with Romney a few years ago.
Fortunately, I won’t have to think too much about him in the future.
I do hope he’s not going to rely on bad jokes in this comeback of his…
Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 2:38 pm
Yah, Arnold, dig up John Wayne for Expendables III… He is older than you!
Jonas says:
August 16, 2012 at 12:28 pm
Nice news video of Arnold and “boys” at their movie premier.
I’d be mad if the news wasn’t so goddamned old.
Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 2:30 pm
Sad…
Jonas says:
August 16, 2012 at 12:26 pm
Good bad news news video about the 7 American soldiers killed in Afghanistan.
Good video of Cong. Ryan “welcoming” Medicare debate.
I’d like to see a movie with Schwarzenegger and John Wayne.
JB, getting it done.
** QUICK HITS. Governor Jerry Brown joined with Silicon Valley leaders this afternoon to announce and sign a memorandum of understanding with Japan’s Samsung Semiconductor to build a new and expanded research and development facility in San Jose. The company, which has long had a presence in Silicon Valley, had been looking at other options for expanding its R&D capacity in the US. …
Why am I not surprised??
… A new CNN poll shows that the Obama/Biden ticket still hast the edge in Wisconsin even after the ballyhooed roll-out of Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney’s running mate.
Good video of the 25 year old Cong. Ryan.
Nice. He’s 42.
Because you’re paying attention?
> Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 5:15 pm (Edit)
Why am I not surprised??
… A new CNN poll shows that the Obama/Biden ticket still hast the edge in Wisconsin even after the ballyhooed roll-out of Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney’s running mate.
Indeed.
> Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 5:15 pm (Edit)
JB, getting it done.
** QUICK HITS. Governor Jerry Brown joined with Silicon Valley leaders this afternoon to announce and sign a memorandum of understanding with Japan’s Samsung Semiconductor to build a new and expanded research and development facility in San Jose. The company, which has long had a presence in Silicon Valley, had been looking at other options for expanding its R&D capacity in the US. …
Well, I’ve seen CGI Steve McQueen, so you never know …
> Cooper Hawks says:
August 16, 2012 at 4:35 pm (Edit)
I’d like to see a movie with Schwarzenegger and John Wayne.
There is that.
>
Jack Aubrey says:
August 16, 2012 at 4:05 pm (Edit)
I’d be mad if the news wasn’t so goddamned old.
Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 2:30 pm
Sad…
Jonas says:
August 16, 2012 at 12:26 pm
Good bad news news video about the 7 American soldiers killed in Afghanistan.
That would be preferable.
> Jack Aubrey says:
August 16, 2012 at 4:00 pm (Edit)
I do hope he’s not going to rely on bad jokes in this comeback of his…
Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 2:38 pm
Yah, Arnold, dig up John Wayne for Expendables III… He is older than you!
Jonas says:
August 16, 2012 at 12:28 pm
Nice news video of Arnold and “boys” at their movie premier.
He might have a leg to stand on if he were not so monstrously hypocritical.
> Jack Aubrey says:
August 16, 2012 at 3:45 pm (Edit)
Romney is a cry baby like most bullies.
Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 2:46 pm
Hahah, I love it!!
BB:The new Romney-Ryan Republican ticket, seeing the running mate pick turning the election into a matter of ideology rather than efficacy, is busy complaining that Obama and Biden are conducting a negative campaign.
Lots of luck with that, boys.
Of course, it’s only annoying if you have no taste for irony. Romney won his nomination with a relentlessly negative campaign, one that was frequently fact-free.
But, despite my taste for irony, I don’t find it all that amusing. But then, I got bored with Romney a few years ago.
Fortunately, I won’t have to think too much about him in the future.
This is true.
> Jack Aubrey says:
August 16, 2012 at 3:44 pm (Edit)
Yeah, hopefully… Obama has a way of letting up.
He has gotten a lot better at repetition …
> Requiem says:
August 16, 2012 at 3:15 pm (Edit)
Pres. Obama’s been talking wind energy up and bashing Romney for oil this week. Hopefully he will continue.
They will, still.
> Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 2:42 pm (Edit)
JB is getting it done!!
Let the Denialists whine.
BB:At 3 PM , Brown joins San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors President George Shirakawa, and officials from Samsung Semiconductor Inc. for a major announcement about the company’s future plans.
Samsung is planning a major expansion of its presence in California.
Brown kicked off the pre-Labor Day portion of his drive for the Proposition 30 revenue initiative yesterday with an appearance at New Technology High School, a charter school in south Sacramento.
The No on 30 campaign, as well as the Molly Munger Initiative campaign, tried to draft off Brown’s press coverage, to little avail.
Indeed.
> Capitol Boy says:
August 16, 2012 at 2:30 pm (Edit)
Sad…
Jonas says:
August 16, 2012 at 12:26 pm
Good bad news news video about the 7 American soldiers killed in Afghanistan.
The problem is that I don’t see good video on this.
> Jonas says:
August 16, 2012 at 2:01 pm (Edit)
Israel and Iran crisis video today?