Posts from — May 2011

The BBC reports that the ‘Rapture’ apocalypse prediction sparks atheist reaction

US atheists are to hold parties in response to an evangelical broadcaster’s prediction that Saturday will be “judgement day”.

The Rapture After Party in North Carolina – “the best damned party in NC” – is among the planned events.

Harold Camping, 89, predicts that Jesus Christ will return to earth on Saturday and true believers will be swept up, or “raptured”, to heaven.

He has used broadcasts and billboards to publicise his ideas.

He says biblical texts indicate that a giant earthquake on Saturday will mark the start of the world’s destruction, and that by 21 October all non-believers will be dead.

Mr Camping has predicted an apocalypse once before, in 1994, though followers now say that only referred to an intermediary stage.

On Sunday the followers will discover that it is a “twelve-step program’.

It is possible that it was already attempted but there weren’t 200 million suitable candidates, so it was called off.

Why would G*d schedule a major project for His only day off?

Tonto’s Kitten Too

Cheese?

[Editor: Tonto’s kitten yesterday sitting outside my Mother’s kitchen.]

Friday Ark

The BBC notes, as expected, Israeli PM Netanyahu rejects Obama ‘1967 borders’ view

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected comments from US President Obama that a future Palestinian state must be based on the 1967 borders.

In a major speech to the State Department, Mr Obama said “mutually agreed swaps” would help create “a viable Palestine, and a secure Israel”.

But Mr Netanyahu said those borders, which existed before the 1967 Middle East war, were “indefensible”.

Mr Netanyahu is preparing to meet Mr Obama for talks at the White House.

An estimated 300,000 Israelis live in settlements built in the West Bank, which lies outside those borders.

The settlements are illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this.

Israel refuses to recognize international law, but demands other people recognize Israel. The Likud don’t negotiate, they just make demands. They take and never give.

Israel is not an ally of the US, and has never made any real effort to support US policy. Turkey is an ally of the US, and its troops have fought along side US troops in many locations, like the Korean War.

There will be no peace in the Middle East until there is a resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli problem, and the Likud will not agree to anything that might actually mean a fair settlement.

Dr Masters looks at the NOAA 2011 hurricane forecast:

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued its 2011 Atlantic hurricane season forecast today. NOAA forecasts a very active and possibly hyperactive season. They give a 65% chance of an above-normal season, a 25% chance of a near-normal season, and just a 10% chance of a below-normal season. NOAA predicts a 70% chance that there will be 12 – 18 named storms, 6 – 10 hurricanes, and 3 – 6 major hurricanes, with an Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) 105% – 200% of the median. If we take the midpoint of these numbers, NOAA is calling for 15 named storms, 8 hurricanes, 4.5 major hurricanes, and an ACE index 152% of normal. A season with an ACE index over 165% is considered “hyperactive.” An average season has 10 – 11 named storms, 6 hurricanes, and 2 intense hurricanes. Hurricane seasons during 1995-2010 have averaged about 15 named storms, 8 hurricanes, and 4 major hurricanes, with an ACE index 151% of the median. NOAA classifies 11 of the 16 seasons since 1995 as above normal, with eight being hyperactive. Only five seasons since 1995 have not been above normal, which include four El Niño years (1997, 2002, 2006, and 2009), and the 2007 season.

Last year’s La Niña has faded and the current projection is a neutral season, which is very good news for Australia after what the “Baby Girl” brought them last year, but the sea surface temperatures are high and conducive to tropical storm formation.

This is an informed guess, which is better than a WAG [wild ass guess], but only marginally so. Things are not working like they used to, so you plan for the worst and hope for the best.

They got to him, reports the BBC: Europe backs EU candidate for IMF

Leading voices in Europe say another European should head the International Monetary Fund (IMF) following the resignation of Dominique Strauss-Kahn.

Germany’s Angela Merkel and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso’s comments come amid debate over whether the next IMF chief should come from the developing world.

Ms Merkel said a European was needed in light of the eurozone’s problems.
…

Mr Strauss-Kahn had been coming under mounting international pressure to leave his post amid the furore over his arrest.

In a statement posted on the IMF website late on Wednesday, he said he resigned with “infinite sadness”, but wanted to “devote all my strength, all my time, and all my energy to proving my innocence”.

Mr Strauss-Kahn’s deputy, John Lipsky, has been placed in interim control of the organisation, and the IMF says it will release information “in the near future” about the appointment of a permanent successor.

Sorry, eurozone, but Timmy didn’t grease the skids for another European to take over. The real question is who does Goldman Sachs and Wall Street want? Timmy follows orders and isn’t swayed by outside influences. The problem with having a non-European at the top of the IMF is that they might not go along with what Angela wants and might even mention some of the anomalies at the ECB.

It would be nice to think that the next chair of the IMF was someone who warned about the collapse, but that wouldn’t do. No one really important likes shrill people who insist on reality.

The business community won’t even wait for an indictment: Carney given 10:1 odds of IMF job

Prime Minister Harper thinks Mark Carney is a wonderful central banker — others think so too.

The Bank of Canada governor who was named by Time magazine as one of the world’s most influential men is being taken seriously in international circles as a possible replacement for disgraced International Monetary Fund head Dominique Strauss-Kahn.
…

London bookmaker William Hill has placed Carney as a 10:1 pick for the prestigious international job.

Those are still long odds — the favourite is Turkish politician and economist Kemal Dervis at 5:2, but it places the Canadian banker who made his name working at Goldman Sachs in elite company.

Oh, by all means, let give even more power to those associated with one of the prime movers in the global meltdown.

In a related note, some think that al Qaeda has selected an acting leader. Oddly enough, there is no mention of a Wall Street financial company in his CV.

Problems in Canada: Leaking dike poses new threat in Manitoba

Manitobans hoping for a break in the flooding disaster got more bad news on Wednesday, as officials said there’s a new crisis area in the flood zone, along the Portage Diversion where the west bank of the channel dike has been seeping and needs major repair.

That could have a ripple effect along the Assiniboine River, said Steve Ashton, the minister of emergency measures.

“The real issue here is whether we can repair it without drawing down the Portage Diversion,” Ashton said. “If we draw down the Portage Diversion, that will reduce the flows through.”

Soldiers are doing their best to plug the dike, said Steve Topping of Manitoba Water Stewardship.

“It is key on the progress that the military makes today on that,” he told CBC News. “We could not get equipment in there — heavy equipment — because of the seepage zone, so that’s going to be the issue.”

High, fast water for an extended period will exploit every weakness in the levees/dikes, and the system has never been tested to this extent before.

[Read more →]

The BBC reports that Strauss-Kahn ‘cannot run’ IMF – Treasury chief Geithner

Dominique Strauss-Kahn is “not in a position to run” the International Monetary Fund after his arrest over an alleged sexual assault, US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has said.

Mr Geithner said the IMF’s executive board should designate an interim head.
…

Addressing the Harvard Club in New York on Tuesday, Mr Geithner said the most important thing for the IMF was that it found a leader to fill Mr Strauss-Kahn’s shoes.

“He is obviously not in a position to run the IMF,” Mr Geithner said.

“It is important that the board of the IMF formally put in place for an interim period someone to act as managing director.”

[Imagine I’m bending over and saying this very slowly, as one talks to small children] Timmy, the IMF has a deputy chairperson who has already taken over control. They issued a press release and everything. You should also be aware that crime bosses have no problem running their organizations from inside prison, so why should the IMF be any different?

Actually, I would point out that a speech at the Harvard Club is not an official announcement, and anything Timmy said should be considered personal, not official.

Dr Masters continues to cover the flooding and notes:

With the Morganza, Bonnet Carre’, and Birds Point-New Madrid Spillways all open, the Army Corps of Engineers has now opened all of its major spillways simultaneously for the first time ever.
…

In Manitoba, Canada, heavy spring snow melt in combination with heavy rains have combined to create record flooding on the Assiniboine River. Authorities intentionally breached a levee over the weekend to save hundreds of homes, but inundated huge areas of farmland as a result. The flood is being called a 300-year flood, and damages are already in excess of $1 billion.

The flood on the Mississippi is the “Project Flood”, the event that the control structures were designed to handle. While things seem to be well in hand at the moment, what happens if the next event is worse? There are no more tools available.

Even with the structures in place, the Coast Guard has halted traffic on the Mississippi at Natchez to avoid any additional stress from the movement of barges. Even bow waves are considered a possible hazard at this point. It is down to waiting for the crest to pass.

Update: The BBC reports Section of flooding Mississippi River re-opens to ships

The US Coast Guard has re-opened a section of the swollen Mississippi River to shipping, after closing it to protect strained flood defences.

The authorities halted barge traffic at the port in Natchez, Mississippi, earlier on Tuesday, warning ship wakes could increase pressure on the levees.

An extended closure could have cost those who rely on the route to transport grain millions of dollars.
…
[Read more →]

The New Orleans Times-Picayune uses tags on its stories so this link will provide a listing to all of them.

Two stories caught my eye:

Mississippi River shooting through Bonnet Carre Spillway faster than expected

Even though only 330 of its 350 bays are open, an estimated 316,000 cubic feet of water per second is passing through the control structure, more than the structure’s rated capacity of 250,000 cfs, spillway manager Chris Brantley said Monday.

They are watching the side levees for signs of weakness caused by the faster than rated flow. If there is a failure, things will get complicated very quickly as the water pressure will sweep out a major hole.

Meanwhile from over at the Morganza Spillway – Mississippi River flooding threat brings out one town’s Cajun ingenuity

STEPHENSVILLE – A drive through this low-lying town surrounded by water provided a lesson in Cajun ingenuity Monday as residents floodproofed their homes against Mississippi River floodwaters rushing down the Atchafalaya basin from the Morganza Floodway.
…
[Read more →]

The CBC reports that the Assiniboine River flood crest in sight

The worst of Manitoba’s flooding could soon be over as the Assiniboine River is cresting in Brandon and set to peak at the dike breach point on Tuesday.

But it will be weeks, if not months, before things return to normal.

Brandon Mayor Shari Decter Hirst said the high water levels are expected to last for quite while, which means people forced from their homes could be displaced for some time yet.

A commenter pointed out that one of the reasons for increased flooding has been the leveling of the land to facilitate large mechanized farms. The small variations and natural retention areas have been eliminated to facilitate huge farms, and the result is more and faster run-off.

Add to that the levees to eliminate minor flooding and the result is more water in the major rivers, so that even minor increases in seasonal rains cause major problems.

The Captain Louis Renault Award to the media for being “Shocked, shocked I tell you” that Dominique Strauss-Kahn has been accused of inappropriate sexual behavior. They have been acting like this was without precedent in his life … and then someone started looking back at the record to find that this is definitely not the first time he has been involved in something that may have been a good deal more serious than what was reported.

[Update below the fold.]

IMF chief may face new sex charge

IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s troubles are mounting, 24 hours after he was charged with attacking and attempting to rape a hotel maid.

Mr Strauss-Kahn, who is set to appear at a New York court on Monday morning, denies the charges.

His court hearing was delayed to allow forensic tests to be carried out.

Now French writer Tristane Banon, 31, has indicated she is considering filing a complaint of sexual assault over a 2002 incident, her lawyer says.
…

Ms Banon’s mother, Anne Mansouret, herself a politician from Mr Strauss-Kahn’s centre-left Socialist Party, said she persuaded her daughter not to file a complaint at the time.

“I just want to say that the only reason she didn’t press charges at the time is because I convinced her not to, because I thought it was better for her,” Ms Mansouret told French state TV.
…
[Read more →]

While Manitoba is dealing with the floods along the Assiniboine River, just east of the Rocky Mountains, Canada’s problem is wildfires. The CBC reports that Slave Lake firefighters struggle to save town

Provincial officials say 40 per cent of the town of Slave Lake, Alta., has been destroyed or damaged by wildfires which swept into the community with little warning Sunday night, forcing thousands to flee their homes.

Most the destruction happened in the southwestern section of town, said Alberta Municipal Affairs spokesperson John Muir, where half the homes were consumed by flames.

The town’s mall, town hall and many downtown businesses were all destroyed, though the hospital and the town’s schools look to be safe, he said.

The fire is still considered out of control.

Being a real news organization they provide a Map.

Alberta runs north of Montana on the East side of the Continental Divide. The town in on the Lesser Slave Lake, not the Great Slave Lake. As usual, low humidity coupled with high, gusty winds pushes even small initial fires out of control on the prairies.