US plans to shoot down spy satellite: defense official

Spy satellite heading for Earth
Good news-bad news.

Note: The first link below is actually a more complete story from the administration with bravado and everything. But lazy ass bloggers don't re-do a post they've already written. It specifies exactly where on the satellite they will be aiming.

OK, I know you want the bad news first. It comes in two parts.

If they fuck this up the US military is going to look incompetent to the world and no country is gonna be afraid of "accurate" missile launches against their spy satellites.

Hydrazine is a highly toxic substance, harmful to the human central nervous system and the satellite has half a ton of it.

The good news. Also in two parts.

If they are successful it will vastly improve other counties' opinions of the US military's capabilities to hit what they target.

The Hydrazine breaks down quickly in heat and ultra-violet light. Both of which should be in abundance once the thing starts burning up in the atmosphere.

OK, one more bad news. Other wire stories I've read said the thing's the size of a fucking school bus.

A US defense official said Thursday that the Pentagon plans to shoot down a malfunctioning US spy satellite before it re-enters the Earth's atmosphere next month.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said an Associated Press report, which said the preferred option was to fire a missile at it from a Navy cruiser, "is accurate."

The Pentagon, meanwhile, announced a press conference later Thursday with senior officials to discuss how they plan to deal with the satellite, including "any military aspects with respect to the way ahead."

Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman would not confirm that the plans call for shooting down the satellite, but he pointedly refrained from disputing media reports to that effect.

"I'm pretty good about correcting things that I see that are out there that are wrong," he said.

...

He said parts of the mass of the 2,500 pound satellite will likely survive re-entry to the Earth's atmosphere. It includes a 1,000 pounds of a highly toxic propellant called hydrazine.

Hydrazine is harmful to the human central nervous system and can be fatal in big doses. However, it breaks down quickly in heat and ultra-violet light, the French security agency Ineris said in a report.

It gets more and more interesting. This from the WaPo.

The malfunctioning spy satellite is roughly the size of a school bus and is believed to weigh between 5,000 to 10,000 pounds, small for a spy satellite [emphasis mine].

Uh, believed to weight? Can they launch something into orbit without knowing exactly what it weighs? Doesn't the weight of the payload affect trajectory? Just asking.

Via AFP.

Must read IMHO

Or lazy ass blogging at it finest.

A taste of what politics used to be....

A temporary stay of execution for the Fourth Amendment

Latest Earthquakes in the World

The map at the first link.
There's more info at link.

Have you felt one? Earthquake you silly rabbit.

It seemed to me there have been a hell of a lot of earthquakes lately. So I researched it a bit. A little bit because I'm lazy ass.

Not sure this is normal activity or not, but it sure appears intense.

UPDATE: Just in the time it took for me to write this post, there were two more.

World map of 205 earthquakes around the world in the last seven days.

You can also go here for a list of earthquakes in the last seven days.

World map of for last eight to 30 days.

SPIIDERWEB™ Rulz!

Only a U.S. Withdrawal Will Stop Al Qaeda in Iraq

I'm sure I'm preaching to the choir, but this stuff is true. Perhaps if we keep sending it out over the internets tubes enough times some people will "get it".

Who am I kidding?

One of the last justifications for continuing the U.S. occupation of Iraq despite overwhelming opposition from Iraqis, Americans and the rest of humanity has come down to this: U.S. forces must remain in order to battle "al Qaeda in Iraq."

Like so many of the arguments presented in the United States, the idea is not only intellectually bankrupt, it's also the 180-degree opposite of reality. The truth of the matter is that only the presence of U.S. forces allows the group called "al Qaeda in Iraq" (AQI) to survive and function, and setting a timetable for the occupation to end is the best way to beat them. You won't hear that perspective in Washington, but according to Iraqis with whom we spoke, it is the conventional wisdom in much of the country.

The Bush administration has made much of what it calls "progress" in the Sunni-dominated provinces of central Iraq. But when we spoke to leaders there, the message we got was very different from what supporters of a long-term occupation claim: Many Sunnis are, indeed, lined up against groups like AQI, but that doesn't mean they are "joining" with coalition forces or throwing their support behind the Iraqi government.

Several sources we reached in the Sunni community agreed that AQI, a predominantly Sunni insurgent group that did not exist prior to the U.S. invasion -- it started in 2005 -- will not exist for long after coalition forces depart. AQI is universally detested by large majorities of Iraqis of all ethnic and sectarian backgrounds because of its fundamentalist interpretation of religious law and efforts to set up a separate Sunni state, and its only support -- and it obviously does enjoy some support -- is based solely on its opposition to the deeply unpopular U.S.-led occupation of Iraq. [emphasis mine]

AQI didn't exist until two years ago.

So the US effectively created AQI, or provided the atmosphere for its creation, and now needs them as the bogeyman. Always have to have bogeymen.

To be fair, this isn't strictly a GOP or US political affliction. All countries' leaders need bogeymen to keep the people focused, motivated, supportive, willing to sacrifice and such.

The only difference I've noticed between leaders is how evil, imminent, dangerous, vile the perceived threats posited to the people. Some are mild and iterate a few simple trade problems which need correcting. The really "great" leaders like, (Jesus H Christ with a Honda dealership, but I can't believe this name is coming) Bush warn of imminent destruction or defilement of all the people from the bogeymen.

China is poisoning our food and children. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won't be happy until he nukes the US. NoKo also wants to nuke US. Al-Qaeda wants to eat our young. That is the ones we lefties haven't eaten. Cuba would destroy our way of life. Especially by sending doctors to help in NOLA. Chavez? He has horns doesn't he? Its a matter of time until he will be building nukes too. Syria, Lebanon, Palestinian Authority, Canada, Iraq, the Taliban, Osama bin Laden, Hezbollah, Muslims, brown people, gays. All threats.

I apologize for being a lazy ass blogger, but you have to find your own links to all of the accusations in the previous paragraph.

Well, not so much Canada. They just send US a little meat with mad cow disease and tainted food isn't really a problem for the king who has tasters.


California somehow gets a pass, what with the E coli thing. Perhaps they forget most lettuce from California is picked by brown people. And Europe gets a pass with the frog in lettuce thing. Which is true. Such maroons.

Bush and his fellow hyenas have done a remarkable job of finding bogeymen of which we need be afraid.

SPIIDERWEB™ Rulz!

Via Reuters.

must read

This is about as lazy ass blogging as you can find. Please follow the link.
Via Left I on the News.

Challenges brew over 'state secrets'

Sometimes I'm surprised by what seems to go unnoticed by bloggers.

Take this story for example. Taking a closer look at Bush's invoking of the "state secrets" doctrine could have monumental consequences in what he can continue doing, do in the future and what future presidents can do.

Yes, its very early in this game, but to ignore the game has started seems queer.

In federal courts and on Capitol Hill, challenges are brewing to a key legal strategy President Bush is using to protect a secret surveillance program that monitors phone calls and e-mails inside the United States.

Under grilling from lawmakers and attack by lawsuits alleging Bush authorized the illegal wiretapping of Americans, the White House has invoked a legal defense known as the "state secrets" doctrine — a claim that the president has inherent and unchecked power to shield national security information from disclosure, either to plaintiffs in court or to congressional overseers.

The principle was established a half-century ago when, ruling in a wrongful-death case brought by the widows of civilians killed in a military plane crash, the Supreme Court upheld the Air Force's refusal to provide an accident report to the plaintiffs. The government contended releasing the document would compromise information about a secret mission and intelligence equipment.

Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, the senior Republican on the Judiciary Committee, believes the White House has gone too far in invoking state secrets to halt civil lawsuits.

"We have the authority to define the state secrets doctrine," Specter says. "I don't think that the simple assertion of state secrets ought to be the end of the matter."

Specter, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and others are working on legislation that would direct federal judges to review the president's state secrets claims and allow cases with merit to go forward.

Practices among judges vary. Some accept state secrets claims outright, dismissing cases on the government's word. Others read the privileged information and decide for themselves, but almost invariably side with the government, according to legal scholars.

If I don't fall back into my normal lazy ass mode, I'll try to keep up on this story for ya.

Via BlackListedNews.

Lazy-ass blogging

Technically this isn't lazy ass at all. As fucked up as this computer is, its a chore.

I click on a link, go have a snack, go pea pee (I always spell that goddamn word wrong) and have a cigarette in the bathroom. Incidentally, the only room I smoke in because it has two open windows on either side. Great design for a bathroom for odor control. When I come back the site is still loading. Argh!!!1!! Just shoot me.

But anyway, go to the link and read about the goddamn insanity of Iran. Perhaps you'll need a firearm too.

Via Left I on the News.

Failing to Serve America's Heroes on the Home Front

May we suggest you investigate a charity claiming to help veterans before you donate.

Or just burn your donation money. Your choice.

In the last two years, generous Americans answering appeals to help wounded and paralyzed veterans have given more than $464 million to charities that have been given an F in a new report card from a leading charity watchdog group.

Those failing charities include the National Veterans Services Fund, of Darien, Conn., which took in more than $6 million in contributions last year supposedly to help veterans' families.

It got a report grade of F from the American Institute of Philanthropy, which says the charity gave out only two percent of its money for charity.

In case you're more lazy ass than I am, I'll do the math for you. If you donate $20 to the National Veterans Services Fund, 40¢ goes to help the vets. Gives you the warm fuzzies doesn't it?

There's much more ugly information at the link.

Via The Blotter.