Shrimpers, Not Oil? A Dead Turtle Inquiry

http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/05/shrimpers-not-oil-a-dead-turtle-inquiry/?ref=science

Since Sunday, about 35 endangered sea turtles have washed up dead on beaches along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Some believe that this was due to the growing oil spill. Scientists have not found that the spill has anything to do with the turtle’s deaths and autopsies are showing no sign of any ingested oil. While some believe that the turtle’s are dying from the oil spill, others believe that it is due to nets of shrimpers that are in the ocean from a rig explosion and the turtle’s are getting caught in them and suffocating. So far this year, more than 200 sea turtles have washed up dead on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico.

I believe that the turtles have not died from the oil spill. Seeing that 200+ sea turtles have died since the beginning of this year, it leads me to think that this could be normal. I think that if the oil spill is not taken care of very soon, we will start to see an increase in the number of turtles dying. I would like to know approximately how many sea turtles there are left being that they are endangered and dying at a fairly quick rate.

Lapses Allowed Suspect to Board Plane

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/05/nyregion/05plane.html?bl

Just minutes before a flight was due to takeoff for Dubai, the FBI arrested Faisal Shahzad who is the suspected man for the Times Square terrorism case. Twenty-four hours previous to this arrest, Shahzah’s name was released as a suspect learning he might be connected to the attempted bombing. It is only normal to ask yourself how he managed to get on this flight and almost make his escape. While some people are speculating that the arrest was not made quickly enough, others believe it was a job well done by the government. People are pointing their fingers toward the FBI for losing track of Shahzad in his home state of Connecticut. However, Obama administrators and some members of Congress praised the government’s hand in the arrest because he was identified, tracked, and arrested before he could escape.

I believe that the government did a good job making this arrest being that it was a successful one. Although there may have been a few flaws in the government’s plan, it worked out in the end. If Shahzad ended up leaving the country and escaping then I would not praise the government. I would like to know the details about how the FBI managed to lose Shahzad in Connecticut.

Russia Suspends Adoptions by Americans

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/16/world/europe/16adopt.html?hp=&pagewanted=print
MOSCOW, Russia. With more than 50,000 adoptions of Russian children since 1991, foreign minister Sergey V. Lavrov has proposed a suspension on Americans adopting Russian children. The decision was made after what is being called “the last straw” when American mother Torry Ann Hansen, sent back seven-year-old Artyom to Moscow, who she adopted about a year ago. Hansen is a registered nurse from Shelbyville, Tenn. and has claimed that Artyom, who she named Justin, was “violent and has severe psychopathic issues.” She also feels as though she “was lied to and misled by the Russian orphanage workers.” Even though some 3,000 American families have begun the adoption process, the Russian Foreign Ministry has given no indication about how long this suspension will last.
While Torry Ann Hansen and her family believe Artyom was a danger to their family, Russian authorities feel as though he is just a normal boy. Russian authorities also believe Hansen to be an unfit mother who could not take care of the boy. The Russian authorities now have custody of the boy and said that he behaves normally and have harshly criticized Hansen for sending the boy back. Fourteen Russian children have died of abuse or bneglect at the expense of adoptive American parents since 1996 so therefore I think that it is fair that the Russians have suspended the rights of American parents adopting their kids. Although majority of children go to fit families and are very taken care of, the Russians need to show us Americans that this behavior will not be tolerated and adoption is not some sort of game. I would just like to know what kind of behavior Hansen has seen from this seven-year-old boy, Artyom. The child is only seven so I would really be interested in learning about the “psychopathic” behavior this child performed.

Rescue Suspended at Mine as Death Toll Reaches 25

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/07/us/07westvirginia.html?ref=us&pagewanted=print

In Montcoal, West Virginia, April 5, 2010, a mine exploded at 3 p.m. at the Upper Big Branch mine leaving many miners left for dead. Tuesday morning, April 6, 2010, the death toll has reached at least 25, making it the worst mining accident in the US since December 19, 1984 where 27 workers died in a fire at the Wilberg Mine in Orangeville, Utah. A recovery operation was called off Tuesday morning because high levels of methane gas made it unsafe for rescuers. Four miners are still left missing and it is likely that they have been killed as well. The state’s mine health safety director, Ronald L. Wooten said “The bodies will not be recovered until the mine is ventilated.” The explosion has left “train rails looking like they had been twisted like a pretzel.” The explosion destroyed all communication lines inside the mine. However, there were two rescue chambers near the site of the explosion, and if the miners reached them, the chambers are stocked with food, water, and enough air for them to live for four days. Dennis O’Dell said the explosion may have been caused by a buildup of methane gas in a sealed-off section of the mine. The ignition source may have been from a device that carries workers in and out of the mine.
While some believe this was just misfortune, others believe that it was due to Upper Big Branch mine’s poor safety regulations. The mine had 458 violations in 2009, with $897,325 in safety fines, of which it has paid $168, 393. Federal regulations passed after the Sago Mine disaster in West Virginia as well. The regulations increased the monitoring of air quality in active AND sealed sections of mines to avoid methane buildup. Personally, I think this has been such a tragedy. It sounds to me though that this whole disaster has occurred due to violations to federal regulations. I would like to know why operations are being called off though when it is not clear if there are any survivors or not? Is there really no way to speed up the process? Four days worth of food, water, and air would give these miners until hopefully Friday if they have reached the rescue chambers. To even succeed in finding one survivor would be a miracle. I sure hope they do.

Health Care’s Obstacle: No Will to Cut

Obama's health reform plan has been called "a terribly mixed bag." One of Barack's big plans was to make health care more affordable and have it work in a citizen's favor. It seems that 14 months into his presidency, that was obviously not his major goal. Now people are finally seeing this. Obama's plan would not cut Medicare's long term budget deficit. This is a huge problem for the American people. However, insurance exchanges would create more competition, a Medicare oversight board would gain authority over reimbursement rates, and hospitals that have committed certain medical errors that were harmful and costly would face financial penalties.
While some are in favor of what the plan actually does, others are pointing out what it fails to do. There is no actual solution to this though. People must follow what they believe. The question is which side would you choose? It is only which of the two evils you think is better than the healthcare plan that we have today. This is such a huge issue that not many people take seriously. We, as taxpayers, are paying for most of our healthcare. We are paying indirectly through taxes and paycheck deductions. This makes people think that healthcare is actually free. This is not quite the case. We can wish that Congress would come up with a popular plan that would cut costs in a drastic way, but that day seems far from today. "Waiting for that day to arrive, though, doesn’t seem very conservative."

Study: Warming to bring stronger hurricanes

Researchers are beginning to agree now that due to global warming, hurricanes are likely to get stronger. There will be fewer hurricanes but much stronger than any we've ever seen. Studies are not proven yet but indicate that the wind speed of hurricanes will rise by 2-11%, but there would be 6-34% fewer storms in number. This may sound like a good thing, but there will be less weak and moderate storms and more of the huge damaging ones. Put it this way, an 11% increase in wind speed turns into a roughly 60% increase in damage. These storms would carry more rain which in turn means even more damage.
Although some researchers believe there will be an increase in damage, others believe that there will not be. Unfortunately, a study was performed last month focussing on the Atlantic hurricane basin and it has been predicted that there will be an increase of 28% in damage to America alone. This is despite fewer storms. Category 4 and 5 Atlantic hurricanes will hit America. These will carry winds at more than 130 mph. Put it this way. Hurrican Katrina was only a category 3 hurricane and look how much damage that caused. We are still suffering.

Aerial Photos of Trade Center on 9/11 Released

www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/02/10/us/AP-US-Sept-11-Photos.html?_r=1&hp
The Associated Press has released aerial photos of the 9/11 attack back in 2001. These images were taken by ex-NYPD Aviation Unit Detective Greg Semendinger. He and his pilot were the first team up in the air after the attacks; sent to look for survivors on the rooftop. They actually saw the second plane hit into the south tower from their helicopter. Semendinger took 3 rolls of film with his Minolta camera and 245 digital images. He released these photos to the 9/11 Commission. Nine of these images turned up in a book called "Above Hallowed Ground: A Photographic Record of Sept. 11." Semendinger claims that he did not give his permission for these photos to be entered into the book. Semendinger ends the article with, "Looking at it now it's amazing I took those pictures. The images are...stunning." I would have to agree.While it is said the NYPD aviation unit only had permission to be flying in downtown Manhattan people believe some of the pictures were taken from the Hudson River.
My main question is, why did it take so long for these pictures to be released? It has been almost nine years and we are just seeing these surreal images for the first time? If you read the article, it says ABC got hold of these images. How did ABC even know that these images existed? Also, how is it that the book "Above Hallowed..." did not get in trouble for giving credit to the man who took these photos?

Louisiana Wins Bid For Money For Hospital

Sack, Kevin. “Louisiana Win in Bid For Money For Hospital.” New York Times. January 28, 2010. A14.
Charity Hospital, in Louisiana, will finally receive $474.8 million to be replaced after the Hurricane Katrina disaster nearly five years ago. This has been one of the longest, ongoing disputes left by the storm. Hurricane Katrina has caused damage totaling “more than half the hospital’s value.” This would mean it has met the state’s standard to be replaced. Officials like Governor Bobby Jindal are excited to begin the construction of putting up the new hospital. Charity Hospital has been closed since Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana but has no estimated deadline for construction to finish.
While lawyers and others argue that the damages to Charity Hospital were caused from Hurricane Katrina, others are skeptical that a lot of the damages were initially there.
While I believe that majority of the damages were caused by Hurricane Katrina, I cannot help but ask myself how old the hospital actually was and how much damage could have been there in the first place. I would also ask why this court case has taken so long when one of Louisiana’s state hospitals was shut down for so long. I would like to know who the lawyers were as well for each side.