The Florida Republicans should just “go Galt” and leave people alone.

The Miami Herald reports that according to a recent Poll: Rick Scott among the least-liked governors in nation

“The data on the perceived fairness of the governor’s budget is crucial. When voters by almost 2-1 say his approach is unfair to them, that’s a giant flashing political warning sign for Scott,” Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said in a written statement. “When voters don’t think they are being treated fairly, they tend to react negatively.”

As far as Job Approval, 57% say he sucks, and 56% say the legislature sucks.

Only 24% approve of the new budget, while 53% think it sucks. Only 29% think they were treated fairly by the budget, while 53% think they were screwed.

As to the effects of the budget cuts on the economy, 23% think they will help, 31% think the cuts are irrelevant, and 38% think the economy is screwed.

The voters got what a majority of them asked for, so I can’t feel sorry for them. It was well known what Scott was, and people voted for him anyway, so they can stop complaining about the higher telephone and utility bills, the soaring cost of property insurance, and the unemployment above the national average – they voted for it.

The CBC reports that Strong winds push Quebec river to new record

Towns and cities along the Richelieu River are on high alert as strong winds force water from Lake Champlain to spill into the river southeast of Montreal.

Southerly winds reaching speeds of up to 80 km/h [50 mph] on Monday pushed water levels higher than the all-time record set on May 6.

Rain and wind have been causing the river to rise steadily since Sunday with some areas along the shoreline going up four centimetres [1½ inches], while others have seen the water rise as much as 10 centimetres [4 inches].

The previous record was from the mid-19^th century.

Lake Champlain is on the border between New York and Vermont and extends to Canada at the North end. It is fed by the snow pack and streams in the two states and exits to the St. Lawrence River via the Richelieu, which flows to the North.

I have moved Dr Masters blog, the Tornado Map, and added the Severe Weather Threat Map to a new Weather section on the right sidebar, because this is looking like it is going to be a long term problem. Folks, the National Weather Service’s severe weather people had to evacuate their building in Oklahoma because of tornadoes yesterday. Today it looks like the mid-Mississippi Valley, although the area in around Chicago is already under severe thunderstorm/tornado watches.

Dr Masters has the recap on yesterday and the caution for today:

America’s deadliest tornado season since 1953 continued its relentless onslaught of violent tornadoes yesterday. Numerous destructive and deadly tornadoes raked Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, and Arkansas, killing at least nine people. Yesterday’s deadliest tornado hit El Reno and Piedmont, Oklahoma, about 30 miles to the west and northwest of Oklahoma City. Four people died, and one child is missing. Video of the damage from this tornado near the town of Piedmont shot by a news9.com helicopter shows damage characteristic of an EF-4 tornado, with many homes completely demolished and swept off their foundations. This tornado produced a wind gust of 151 mph at an Oklahoma Mesonet station in El Reno, Oklahoma.
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[Read more →]

Position: 14.2N 127.0E [ 3PM CST 2100 UTC 0600 JST].
Movement: North-Northwest [340°] near 7 mph [11 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 130 mph [215 kph].
Wind Gusts: 160 mph [260 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 140 miles [220 km].
Hurricane Wind Radius: 45 miles [ 75 km].

Currently about 420 miles [ 675 km] East of Manila, Philippines.

The storm has intensified to a minimal Category 4 and has begun its forecasted turn to the North. It is too soon to be certain, but it would appear that the Philippines and Taiwan can relax a bit. Okinawa should be paying attention.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

Towel Day

Oh, the Vogon constructor ship misfiled the work order from Harold Camping, so we’re still here. Rumor has it that the job has been rescheduled for October.

Democratic millionaire Kathy Hochul has defeated Republican millionaire Jane Corwin. The Republicans will claim it was the presence of Tea Party millionaire Jack Davis, but that just shows that they know no more about the 26^th Congressional district of New York than their candidate.

The race was decided by who didn’t vote, not who voted for Jack Davis.

Corwin spent all of her time running against Davis, while Hochul stayed on message. Hochul got Democrats to go to the polls, but Corwin couldn’t turn out the troops. The district is overwhelmingly Republican, but they didn’t go to the polls.