Angus Anguish: Is Angus Beef Worth the Money?

Source: http://cheaphealthygood.blogspot.com/2008/09/angus-anguish-is-angus-beef-worth-money.html

September 17, 2008

Within the last few years, Angus beef has leapt beyond a little known, well-respected meat to an omnipresent leviathan. From Food Lion to McDonald’s to that dinky Irish Pub half a block from the bank, it’s become the go-to beef for discerning (and not-so-discerning) dining establishments, as well as freezers across our fair nation. In fact, the way things are going, it’s just a matter of time before lunch ladies offer Angus Tacos instead of Mystery Meat Tacos on Taco Tuesdays.

But what exactly IS Angus beef? Why has it become so popular lately? Does it really taste better than regular beef? Is it healthier? Is it worth paying higher prices for? Let’s discuss.

Q: What is Angus beef?

A: It’s not, as some have suggested, bovine anus. Nor is it a cut of beef, or the region from which the cattle hails. Instead, Angus beef is the meat from Angus cattle, “the most popular beef breed of cattle in the U.S.” (Wiki). Known for their adaptability, they “mature at around two years of age, and have a high carcass yield with marbled meat” (Wiki).

Widely assumed to be better tasting and tenderer than regular beef, Angus doesn’t come cheap. Supermarkets and fast food joints sell it at higher prices because it’s cultivated a good reputation through careful marketing and good word of mouth.

Q: Okay. Got it. So what is Certified Angus Beef?

A: Certified Angus Beef is a company brand. Owned by the American Angus Association, CAB’s mission is to “increase demand for registered Angus cattle through a specification-based, branded beef program to identify consistent, high quality beef with superior taste.”

In other words, CAB monitors meat, and gives their special stamp of approval to that which exceeds 10 stringent, self-determined criteria. According to their own website, “only 8 percent of beef makes the grade.”

Q: Is there a difference?

A: Yep. CAB-stamped beef is harder to find, and generally considered to be of higher quality than mere Angus beef.

Q: Okay. So what’s the problem?

A: The problem is, CAB did their jobs so well that we Americans started to associate the word “Angus” (as opposed to “Certified Angus Beef”) with high-quality meat. Now, every crummy supermarket and two-bit fast food joint can market Angus Beef, and consumers assume it’s the good stuff. It’s been wonderful for cattlemen, who’ve taken some PR hits in recent years.

CAB itself claims: “Since its origin in 1978, our company has established an extremely positive reputation for the brand. Subsequently, this has led to imitators in other Angus programs. Many have specifications below our ‘modest or higher’ marbling level, and most do not monitor product use and promotion in restaurants and grocery stores as we do. Unfortunately, the growing number of Angus brands creates confusion among consumers and producers alike.”

Q: So, we’re charged more for Angus beef, even though it isn’t necessarily a better meat.

A: Yes.

Q: But, whether or not it has a CAB stamp, I heard Angus beef just tastes better. Is this true?

A: Not exactly. While Angus beef does seem to be tenderer, many feel the flavor isn’t that much different from regular beef. One NPR expert says, “Trained experts can taste the difference … But if you go to a USDA Choice piece of meat that has the right kind of marbling, they’re all going to be just about the same.”

Still, taste is relative. If somebody truly finds Angus beef more delicious than Brand X, who’s to argue?

Q: Okay. So here’s the next question: why wasn’t Angus beef popular before now? Why has it only hit the big time in the last few years?

A: Marketing and consumer demand, man.

Despite recent health trends, it turns out that a LOT of Americans want big, rich food. Not only that, but they want it done well, and they’re willing to shell out more money for it. Restaurants have responded to with fancier breads (ciabatta), better produce (portobello mushrooms), and supposedly higher-quality meats (Angus beef). Supermarkets have done the same, with a wider range of upscale offerings.

It’s a trend marketing folk call “premiumization,” and it’s proven enormously profitable for the food industry. Angus beef is a great (if not the best) example.

Q: And now, even places like McDonald’s and Burger King are catching on.

A: Yes. Let’s take McDonald’s as our example. Historically, it’s “‘long suffered’ from poor ratings when it comes to overall food quality” (Luna). To remedy that situation, Ray Kroc’s megacorp is offering premium foods. Among other items, it includes a range of Angus burgers, replete with “crisp green iceberg lettuce, sliced red tomatoes, [and a] bakery-style sesame seed roll.” They go for around $4 or so (Hamburger).

Of course, while the nicer fixins are great, this can’t be overstated: Mickey D’s isn’t serving the high-quality Certified Angus Beef. It’s just regular ol’ Angus beef, which hasn’t been proven to taste any better.

Q: And they’re making mad dough from it?

A: Yep again. According to CNN, McDonald’s shares went up 18 percent by mid—2007, just months after the burgers were introduced. The story is similar in other companies.

Q: How could this be bad?

A: McDonald’s is a major player in the beef industry. There haven’t been shortages reported yet, but if Angus burgers become the norm, they’re bound to happen. Plus, the bigger an operation gets, the more difficult it becomes to maintain quality control. Those halfway decent Deluxe burgers you get today? Could be chemical-riddled approximations of beef tomorrow.

On a more personal note, as a former employee (along with 10% of the rest of the U.S. according to Fast Food Nation), I can tell you firsthand that McDonald’s isn’t particularly concerned with the product it presents to the public. I’m guessing it’s a matter of time before the fixins morph into half-rotted iceberg lettuce, floppy tomato wannabes, and something kind of resembling bread. But, uh … that’s just me.

Q: You look like you want to say something else on this.

A: I do. There’s also the cost/quality issue. As we mentioned, no one’s proved that (non-CAB) Angus beef necessarily tastes better. Yet, consumers are still shelling out $4 a pop for Angus burgers, or corresponding amounts for Angus beef at their local Pathmark.

Q: I thought this was a healthy eating blog. What about the nutrition?

A: Beef is beef. It’s not the healthiest thing in the world, nor will it ever be. If there’s any added danger, it’s that Angus beef burgers are often marketed as indulgences, meaning they’re made larger and include additional perks (more toppings, bigger buns, etc.). To wit: a Big Mac has 540 calories and 29 grams of fat. An Angus Burger Deluxe has 740 calories and 41 grams of fat. If given the choice between the two, which would you opt for?

Q: Um. The Big Mac?

A: Uh … I guess. Actually, I’m not sure what I was going for with that question. Next!

Q: Second-to-last question: if I want a really good piece of Angus beef, what should I look for?

A: Look for the USDA grade (Premium, Choice, Select, etc.). A CAB-certified Prime cut of Angus beef will cost a small fortune, but could make you forget about other meats permanently.

Q: Final question: how do you, Kris, feel about all this?

A: To be honest, I’m not sure. But all of a sudden, I want a burger.

Readers? What do you think? Chime in on the comment thread.

~~~

If you like this post, you might also dig:

• The Problem With Diet Foods
• Food Labels That Ate My Sanity
• Food, Frugality, and Fighting Brand Loyalty

~~~

SOURCES

• “Angus Cattle.” Wikipedia.org.
• CertifiedAngusBeef.com.
• Cuozzo, Steve. “How to Tell if it’s Prime Time.” The New York Post. 9/6/07.
• Enis, Matthew. “Consumers Eat Up Meat Marketers' Gourmet Branding.” Supermarket News. 6/4/07.
• Gentile, Gary. “CKE Sues Rival Over Angus Burger TV Ads.” Associated Press. 5/26/07.
• Hamburger, Zoe. “The Big Apple Welcomes the Big Angus!” PR Newswire. 8/21/07.
• Kavilanz, Parija B. “Bigger is always better for this burger chain.” CNNMoney.com. 5/22/07.
• Luna, Nancy. “McDonald's set to roll out premium patties Monday.” The Orange County Register (California). 3/1/07.
• Macarthur, Kate. “They may not know what Angus is, exactly, but diners and shoppers shell out for higher quality.” Advertising Age. 5/7/07.
• Mahon, Paul. “From the Editor's Desk.” Ontario Farmer (Canada). 5/20/08.
• McDonalds.com.
• Walkup, Carolyn. “Fast feeders fill up menus with premium beef offerings: Angus, sirloin items join upgraded fare at major QSR players.” Nation’s Restaurant News. 3/26/07.
• Ydstie, John. “Cattle Branding: The Rise of Black Angus Beef” All Things Considered. NPR. 10/3/04.
• Yavorcik, Carin. “Angus label doesn't necessarily ensure high quality.”
  The Columbus Dispatch (Ohio). 8/29/07.

(Photos courtesy of dlb Angus, StarCinema Grill, and Telegraph.co.uk.)

Chelsea Clinton Weds at Exclusive New York Estate

Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/07/31/chelsea-clinton-weds-exclusive-new-york-estate/

RHINEBECK, New York -- Chelsea Clinton married her longtime boyfriend Saturday night at an exclusive estate along New York's Hudson River.

Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton announced in a statement that their daughter wed investment banker Marc Mezvinsky after weeks of secrecy and buildup that had celebrity watchers flocking to the small village of Rhinebeck for the evening nuptials.

"Today, we watched with great pride and overwhelming emotion as Chelsea and Marc wed in a beautiful ceremony at Astor Courts, surrounded by family and their close friends," the Clintons said. "We could not have asked for a more perfect day to celebrate the beginning of their life together, and we are so happy to welcome Marc into our family. On behalf of the newlyweds, we want to give special thanks to the people of Rhinebeck for welcoming us and to everyone for their well-wishes on this special day."

More than 400 guests were expected at the historic estate. Details of the wedding were kept fanatically close to the vest, with shopkeepers, innkeepers, vendors and restaurateurs sworn to secrecy.

Officials restricted airspace over the estate, and the area will remain a no-fly zone until 3:30 a.m. local time Sunday. Roads were also blocked off, and inconvenienced neighbors were soothed with a complimentary bottle of wine.

Some of the celebrities spotted in Rhinebeck for the event included actors Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen, fashion designer Vera Wang and Madeleine Albright, who was secretary of state during Bill Clinton's second term as president.

The wedding took place at Astor Courts, a secluded estate along the Hudson River built as a Beaux Arts style playground for John Jacob Astor IV more than a century ago. The estate features the sort of commanding view that once inspired Hudson River School painters, as well as 50 acres (20 hectares) of buffer space to shield the party from prying eyes.

Chelsea Clinton and Mezvinsky were friends as teenagers in Washington, and both attended Stanford University. They now live in New York, where Mezvinsky works at G3 Capital, a Manhattan hedge fund. Mezvinsky worked previously at Goldman Sachs as an investment banker.

Clinton completed her master's degree in public health earlier this year at the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University.

Mezvinsky is a son of former U.S. Reps. Marjorie Margolies-Mezvinsky of Pennsylvania and Ed Mezvinsky of Iowa, longtime friends of the Clintons. His parents are divorced.

Mel Gibson Could Serve Four Years if Found Guilty of Felony Assault By Hollie McKay

Source: http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2010/07/09/mel-gibson-serve-years-guilty-felony-domestic-abuse/

July 09, 2010

The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department released a statement Thursday confirming they had launched an investigation into domestic violence claims involving actor Mel Gibson and his ex girlfriend, Oksana Grigorieva, emanating from an alleged incident that occurred on January 6, 2010.

Grigorieva claims that on that date, the “Edge of Darkness” actor punched her in the face "more than once", knocking out a veneer, and causing a concussion and a broken tooth.

Sources close to Gibson denied the allegations to People magazine, and said he was solely attempting to stop her from shaking their 8-month-old daughter, Lucia.

Steve Whitmore, a spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Department stated that the current investigation is preliminary in nature and no further information is available at this time. However an inside source told Pop Tarts that authorities are taking the alleged victim’s assertions extremely seriously.

“It is hard to think she would just break her own teeth – somebody did it to her, and if it was Gibson, he won’t get away with it,” the source said. “Investigators are treating this case very carefully; they’ll be determined to nail him. It’s highly likely he’ll do time (in jail) for this if found guilty.”

The case will be submitted to the District Attorney’s office once the investigation is complete, which could take up to a month.

A rep for Gibson declined to comment on the allegations, but said he was hoping to release a statement on his client’s behalf this week.

The estranged couple is currently embroiled in a custody battle over daughter Lucia, and filed duel restraining orders against one another in June. Last week Gibson also hit the headlines after multiple reports cited audio tapes in which the actor allegedly embarks on profanity-laced, racist and derogatory tirades aimed toward Grigorieva.

So what consequences could the actor face if charged with domestic violence?

California trail lawyer, Mark Geragos, who said he has listened first-hand to the tapes that are currently under seal in the L.A Superior Court during the custody battle, said that prosecutors could potentially present a very solid case against Gibson if he is found to have acted unlawfully toward his former flame.

“It may be considered a domestic violence charge, which is battery or unlawful touching. This is generally classified as a misdemeanor which carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail. But if he hurt her severely, the courts could upgrade the charge to assault with enhancement of great bodily injury,” Geragos explained. “The maximum penalty for that is four years behind bars in a state prison, and the DA’s office almost always seeks state prison under those charges.”

California attorney Stephen Scherzer told Pop Tarts that Gibson, given his high public profile and reputation, was likely to be a “great target” for the DA’s office should they chose to make an example of him. But he said it is doubtful Gibson would serve out a maximum sentence, even if charged with a felony.

“Mel doesn’t appear to be a habitual batterer, and if even he’s found guilty his lawyers could broker a deal – perhaps spend 90 days in jail and then a probation period,” Scherzer said.

According to Harold Copus, former FBI agent and owner of the Atlanta-based Copus Security Consultants, it may be difficult for investigators to even charge Gibson, due in large part to California’s enforcement of the two-party consent law. This law requires both parties to agree on being recorded in private situations, and Grigorieva reportedly recorded Gibson’s rant without his knowledge, which could be deemed inadmissable in court.

“It is mostly likely that Gibson’s lawyers will ask for the tapes to be court-suppressed and will do all they can to have thrown out as evidence,” Copus said. “Generally, domestic violence incidences like this to do happen behind closed doors and it’s a classic he said/she said situation. The judge isn’t stupid and I’m sure would have a good understanding of what is really going on – but the question is, how much evidence does Oksana have against him without those tapes?”

On the flipside, Geragos said that the two-party consent code carries exceptions when violence or extortion are involved, and that may provide strong enough grounds for the prosecution to freely use the tapes in the court of law if the situation arises.

Another determinant that could possibly work in Gibson’s favor is the fact that Grigorieva’s alleged domestic abuse claims are now six months old.

“Unfortunately when the evidence is not fresh, it is less likely that the case is taken to court,” Geragos said. “If Oksana had filed a complaint to police on the day in early January, they would have arrested Gibson straight away. Police have a zero tolerance policy in these circumstances.”

Low levels of testosterone in men linked to fractures, depression, diabetes and heart disease By Katie Charles

Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/health/2010/06/16/2010-06-16_low_levels_of_testosterone_in_men_linked_to_fractures_depression_diabetes_and_he.html

June 16th 2010

Monaster/News Doctors should look for underlying ­disease instead of just prescribing extra testosterone, says Dr. Ronald Tamler.

THE SPECIALIST: DR. RONALD TAMLER ON MEN’S HEALTH AND LOW TESTOSTERONE

The director of the Men’s Health Program at Mount Sinai Medical Center, Tamler is an endocrinologist who specializes in treating men with low testosterone, erectile dysfunction, osteoporosis and diabetes.

WHO’S AT RISK

Low testosterone is a problem for about 15 million American men, most of whom remain undiagnosed and untreated. “Testosterone is the main male hormone,” says Tamler. “It’s what makes guys guys and drives sexual desire, but it also has other health functions, like protecting against osteoporosis and preserving lean body mass. And low testosterone is highly predictive of future heart disease and diabetes.”

Testosterone levels go down naturally as men age. Men over the age of 45 are considered at especially high risk of having low testosterone — also called hypogonadism — if they are obese or have sleep apnea, heart disease or diabetes. These conditions can cause low testosterone, or they can be caused by low testosterone. “It’s a chicken-or-the-egg thing,” says Tamler.

Other risk factors include chronic kidney or liver disease, HIV, certain medications and excessive alcohol intake. “Men who experience trouble with fertility should be tested, as should men who get a fracture, especially an unexplained one,” says Tamler. “Hypogonadism is a big risk factor for osteoporosis in men.”

Low testosterone is an increasingly common problem, in part due to rising rates of obesity in this country. “Fat mass turns male hormones into female hormones, hence the breast enlargement experienced by obese men,” says Tamler.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS

The classic symptoms of hypogonadism are decreased libido, erectile dysfunction, fatigue, loss of muscle mass and depression. “So many men have come to me not because of erectile dysfunction, but because they’re feeling low energy,” says Tamler. “Their significant others say, ‘This has been going on too long,’ and chase them into my office.”

Other warning signs of low testosterone include brittle bones and poor focus. “Many patients report that they feel like they have brain fog,” says Tamler. “Often, that fog lifts once I treat them.”

Studies have shown that sex steroids have a cognitive effect on the brain. “If you feel low-energy all the time, it’s going to be difficult to do well on the job,” notes Tamler.

TRADITIONAL TREATMENT

Now that doctors know that lower testosterone is predictive of higher mortality, it’s all the more important to seek out treatment.

“Mount Sinai now offers a comprehensive network of health professionals who are interested in men’s health,” says Tamler. “As an endocrinologist, I screen the patient for depression and heart disease and send him to the urologist, or the sleep lab for sleep apnea. Similarly, my counterparts know to screen for low testosterone when they are seeing their patients.”

Mount Sinai doctors plan the treatment for low testosterone to fit the individual patient. “Often there’s an underlying disease that causes the low testosterone. Anyone can paint over it and prescribe testosterone, but with our comprehensive approach at Mount Sinai, we can solve the underlying problem and bring up testosterone levels naturally,” says Tamler, who is also a nutrition-support physician. For instance, losing weight often causes levels to bounce back, and a recent Mount Sinai study showed dramatic effects after weight-loss surgery.

For patients who can’t manage their low testosterone in other ways, there is testosterone replacement. “Testosterone treatment is either a gel that needs to be applied daily, a patch or an injection,” says Tamler. “Injections are every two weeks, and there is also a long-term pellet injection that lasts for four to six months.” Oral replacement isn’t currently available in this country.

Testosterone replacement can have dramatic benefits. “My patients report that libido and energy come back, and they can build more muscle mass. It can be transformative, not just for a patient’s sex life, but for his relationship and overall well-being,” says Tamler.

RESEARCH BREAKTHROUGHS

In recent years, studies have established that men with low testosterone have a much higher risk of diabetes, heart disease and early mortality. “Erectile dysfunction, especially in young men, can be the earliest warning sign for blood-vessel changes throughout the entire body and for future heart disease,” says Tamler. “Men wheeled into the ER with their first heart attack will report onset of erectile dysfunction years earlier.”

QUESTIONS FOR YOUR DOCTOR

If you are feeling low desire and fatigue, ask, “Could I have low testosterone?” Another good question is, “Could low testosterone be contributing to my diabetes?” If you have low testosterone, the symptoms you chalk up to normal aging may be far more treatable than you imagine. “Treatment can bring huge benefits and relief,” says Tamler.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

Get screened. Men who feel fatigue and low desire, have erectile dysfunction or suspect they have low testosterone should be screened with a morning blood draw. “It has to be between 8 and 10 in the morning, the peak of testosterone levels,” says Tamler. For a screening, contact Mount Sinai’s Men’s Health Program at (212) 241-GUYS.

Keep a healthy lifestyle. Work to keep a normal weight and healthy activity level. “What’s good for the heart is good for your sexual activity,” says Tamler.

Pay attention to fractures. A fracture out of nowhere can be a sign of osteoporosis, which can be the result of low testosterone.

Financial Deform

Source: http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article/538630/201006251913/Financial-Deform.aspx

Regulation: The financial reform bill that's about to be passed is reform in name only. It does little to correct the problems that led to our meltdown, and may do more harm by giving people a false sense of security.

The media have called this "compromise" legislation the most sweeping change in U.S. financial regulation since the 1930s. Which is saying a lot.

The two sponsors, Rep. Barney Frank and Sen. Chris Dodd, are as much responsible for the financial crisis as any two people in America. Yet, we're now supposed to believe that they, and their flailing party, which can't even meet its legal obligation to produce a budget, have now fixed our financial system.

President Obama crowed about it in the press, and planned to use the bill as leverage in negotiations with his European counterparts at the G-20 meeting. Obama hopes to sign the bill by July 4.

Before you get too excited, you should know the "compromise" in Dodd-Frank isn't between Republicans and Democrats, but between Democrats and Democrats. In short, it's the left's idea of how to regulate Wall Street. And while some things in the bill aren't bad, most of it is.

We won't go into everything the bill would do, since the 2,000-page tome can't be distilled into a few easy-to-digest bullet points. But what we can tell you is what it doesn't do, which is plenty. In fact, the bill fails to address any of the key issues raised by the 2007-08 market meltdown, while imposing onerous new restrictions on both banks and consumers.

For instance: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which were inarguably at the heart of the financial crisis, and which have already cost U.S. taxpayers $146 billion (with hundreds of billions more on the way), aren't addressed in this bill at all.

This is insane, given the role these two government-sponsored enterprises played both in encouraging lending to poor, unqualified homebuyers and repackaging those securitized loans for resale to banks and investors around the world.

Worse, the bill does nothing to amend the "too-big-to-fail" doctrine that has guided U.S. banking policy for decades. Any bank that runs into trouble can still walk up to Uncle Sam's borrowing window and, hand outstretched, ask for money. And if the bank is politically connected or very large, it will get it.

This puts every small bank, investor or lender at a huge disadvantage, since they're most certainly not "too big to fail." This is a big reason why the biggest U.S. banks didn't squawk too much about the legislation. As bad as it is, it gives them a competitive edge.

The bill also gives federal regulators sweeping new powers to seize and break up financial firms. Good idea, you say? Remember: The government also gets to decide what is a "financial" firm. Does GM, which makes loans, fall into that category? How about Wal-Mart, which issues its own credit cards?

In effect, this lets the government seize and dismantle the assets of almost any company — and then force others to pay for it.

The bill also creates a new agency inside the Federal Reserve that will have extensive power over consumer lenders. Hold the applause, because likely new limits on checking account fees and interest on credit cards will mean less access to credit, not more.

Another part of the bill, and one that's gotten little attention, makes changes to the amount of capital banks must keep to back up their loans. Banks eventually will be forced to raise more capital, or to reduce their lending. It also gives the government oversight over the $600 trillion derivatives market, without telling us what the rules will be. That, no doubt, will be left to bureaucrats.

We've just scratched the surface here. We'll have more to say in coming weeks as we plow through this monster of a bill that appears to reform little but harm a lot.

World's largest oil skimmer heads to Gulf spill By Tom Breen & Jay Reeves

Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gIXWYBTpLtSayJtg41LKXpxSxVPAD9GLV2700

NEW ORLEANS — With hurricane-whipped waves pushing more oil onto the Gulf of Mexico's once-white beaches, the government pinned its latest cleanup hopes Wednesday on a huge new piece of equipment: the world's largest oil-skimming vessel.

The Taiwanese-flagged former tanker named the "A Whale" is the length of 3 1/2 football fields and stands 10 stories high. It just emerged from an extensive retrofitting to prepare it specifically for the Gulf, where officials hope it will be able to suck up as much as 21 million gallons of oil-fouled water per day.

"It is absolutely gigantic. It's unbelievable," said Louisiana State University environmental sciences professor Ed Overton, who saw the ship last week in Norfolk, Va.

As the monstrous vessel made its way toward the Gulf Coast, large waves churned up by distant Hurricane Alex left Alabama beaches splattered with oil and tar balls the size of apples. The rough seas forced most smaller skimming boats into port for a second consecutive day, putting many cleanup crews at a standstill.

The ship looks like a typical tanker, but it takes in contaminated water through 12 vents on either side of the bow. The oil is then supposed to be separated from the water and transferred to another vessel. The water is channeled back into the sea.

But the ship has never been tested, and many questions remain about how it will operate. For instance, the seawater retains trace amounts of oil, even after getting filtered, so the Environmental Protection Agency will have to sign off on allowing the treated water back into the Gulf.

"This is a no-brainer," Overton said. "You're bringing in really dirty, oily water and you're putting back much cleaner water."

The vessel, owned by the Taiwanese shipping firm TMT Group, was completed as a tanker earlier this year in South Korea. But after the Gulf spill, the company's CEO and founder, Nobu Su, ordered it changed into a giant skimmer. The vessel was sent to Portugal for the refit and embarked for the Gulf as soon as it was finished.

The ship arrived Wednesday in Louisiana coastal waters, where TMT officials planned to meet with the Coast Guard to plan a tryout of the ship.

The Coast Guard will have the final say in whether the vessel can operate in the Gulf. TMT will have to come to separate terms with BP, which is paying for the cleanup.

"I don't know whether it's going to work or not, but it certainly needs to be given the opportunity," Overton said.

Meanwhile along parts of the Gulf, red flags snapped in strong gusts, warning people to stay out of the water, and long stretches of beach were stained brown from tar balls and crude oil that had been pushed as far as 60 yards from the water.

Oil deposits appeared worse than in past days, and local officials feared the temporary halt to skimming operations near the coast would only make matters worse ahead of the July 4 holiday weekend.

"I'm real worried about what is going to happen with those boats not running. It can't help," said Tony Kennon, mayor of Orange Beach, Ala.

As of Wednesday, between 71.2 million and 139 million gallons of oil have gushed into the Gulf of Mexico from the leak caused by the April 20 explosion aboard the drilling rig Deepwater Horizon. The blast killed 11 oil workers on the platform, which was owned by Transocean Ltd. and leased by BP PLC.

To try to raise spirits, singer Jimmy Buffett put on an impromptu free show at his sister's restaurant in Gulf Shores, Ala. Word spread quickly through Facebook and the grapevine and hundreds of people showed up at Lulu's, owned by Lucy Buffett.

The singer known for his love of the beach life grew up in the area. He and other singing stars were supposed to do a free show on Thursday to bring tourists to the oil-stained beaches. But the show was postponed until July 11 because of high surf kicked up by the hurricane.

That storm halted skimming operations and the laying of oil-corralling booms across the Gulf. But vessels that collect and burn oil and gas at the site of the explosion were still operating. Efforts to drill relief wells that experts hope will stop the leak also continued unabated.

The weather delayed efforts to bring a third vessel, the Helix Producer, out to the broken well head. The ship can capture up to 25,000 barrels of oil a day and connects to the leak through a flexible hose that allows it to leave the site quickly in case of a hurricane.

Officials had hoped the vessel would be connected Wednesday, but in a news briefing Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said the choppy conditions were too perilous for now. The ship was expected to get to work next week.

In Florida, lumps of tar the size of dinner plates filled a large swath of beach east of Pensacola after rough waves tossed the mess onto shore.

"The weather has hampered the cleanup. Our night crews went out there to try and verify exactly how much it was, and it's about half a mile," said Santa Rosa County spokeswoman Joy Tsubooka.

Streaks of the rust-red oil could be seen in the waves off Pensacola Beach as cleanup crews worked in the rough weather to prepare the beach for the holiday weekend.

In Louisiana, heavy rains pounded the Grand Isle region, causing flash flooding in low-lying areas. Long bolts of lightning streaked the dark skies, keeping oil-cleanup operations locked down. A pounding surf had moved some of the boom that lines the beach.

Coast Guard Cmdr. Joe Higgens said the booms protecting the region would probably take a beating because of heavy seas and storm surge, and workers will start putting the barriers back in place once the weather clears.

Richard Ambrose, director of the environmental science and engineering program at UCLA, said the decision to halt cleanup and containment efforts presents two distinct threats: That much more oil will wash up on beaches, and that the storm will be strong enough to push oil farther inland into vulnerable wetlands.

"Stormy weather can bring oil places it wouldn't have gone otherwise," Ambrose said.

On Wednesday evening, Alex strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of 100 mph. The National Weather Service predicted the storm would make landfall on the Mexican Gulf Coast and south Texas later Wednesday night.

Reeves reported from Orange Beach, Ala. Associated Press writers Mary Foster in Grand Isle, La., and Melissa Nelson in Pensacola Beach, Fla., contributed to this report.

Obama Was NOT Born In U.S. By The Globe

Source: http://www.globemagazine.com/story/520



Title of full article in July 12, 2010 print edition (pp. 16-17) is:
Hawaiian state records clerk reveals:

No Proof Obama Was Born in the U.S.A.
Now his critics insist his presidency is totally illegal
This is about the recent story:

"A former Hawaii records official is sending shock waves through Washington, D.C. by revealing there is absolutely no birth certificate for Barack Obama!

"The bombshell revelation backs up long-standing claims that Obama--who insists he was born in a Honolulu hospital--really took his first breath in Kenya and, as a result, violates the U.S. Constitution's requirements for the President to be a 'natural born' American.

"'I had direct access to the Social Security database, the national crime computer, state driver's license information, international passport information, basically just about anything you can imagine to get someone's identity,' said Timothy Adams, who served as senior government records clerk in Honolulu in 2008. 'There is no birth certificate. I was informed by my boss that we did not have Obama's birth record."

West Virginia Sen. Robert Byrd dead at 92

West Virginia Sen. Robert Byrd dead at 92

By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press Writer
1 hr 12 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Sen. Robert Byrd of West Virginia, a fiery orator versed in the classics and a hard-charging power broker who steered billions of federal dollars to the state of his Depression-era upbringing, died Monday. He was 92.

A spokesman for the family, Jesse Jacobs, said Byrd died peacefully at about 3 a.m. at Inova Hospital in Fairfax, Va. He had been in the hospital since late last week.

At first Byrd was believed to be suffering from heat exhaustion and severe dehydration, but other medical conditions developed. He had been in frail health for several years.

Byrd, a Democrat, was the longest-serving senator in history, holding his seat for more than 50 years. He was the Senate's majority leader for six of those years and was third in the line of succession to the presidency, behind House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Sen. Jay Rockefeller, a fellow West Virginian in the Senate, said it was his "greatest privilege" to serve with Byrd.

"I looked up to him, I fought next to him, and I am deeply saddened that he is gone," Rockefeller said.

In comportment and style, Byrd often seemed a Senate throwback to a courtlier 19th century. He could recite poetry, quote the Bible, discuss the Constitutional Convention and detail the Peloponnesian Wars — and frequently did in Senate debates.

Yet there was nothing particularly courtly about Byrd's pursuit or exercise of power.

Byrd was a master of the Senate's bewildering rules and longtime chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which controls a third of the $3 trillion federal budget. He was willing to use both to reward friends and punish those he viewed as having slighted him.

"Bob is a living encyclopedia, and legislative graveyards are filled with the bones of those who underestimated him," former House Speaker Jim Wright, D-Texas, once said in remarks Byrd later displayed in his office.

In 1971, Byrd ousted Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts as the Democrats' second in command. He was elected majority leader in 1976 and held the post until Democrats lost control of the Senate four years later. He remained his party's leader through six years in the minority, then spent another two years as majority leader.

"I have tangled with him. He usually wins," former Sen. Dennis DeConcini, D-Ariz., once recalled.

DeConcini supported Byrd's bid for majority leader. "He reciprocated by helping me get on the Appropriations Committee," DeConcini said. Years later, DeConcini said, he displeased Byrd on another issue. "I didn't get on the Intelligence Committee when I thought I was up to get on it."

Byrd stepped aside as majority leader in 1989 when Democrats sought a more contemporary television spokesman. "I ran the Senate like a stern parent," Byrd wrote in his memoir, "Child of the Appalachian Coalfields." His consolation price was the chairmanship of the Appropriations Committee, with control over almost limitless federal spending.

Within two years, he surpassed his announced five-year goal of making sure more than $1 billion in federal funds was sent back to West Virginia, money used to build highways, bridges, buildings and other facilities, some named after him.

In 2006 and with 64 percent of the vote, Byrd won an unprecedented ninth term in the Senate just months after surpassing South Carolinian Strom Thurmond's record as its longest-serving member. His more than 18,500 roll call votes were another record.

But Byrd also seemed to slow after the death of Erma, his wife of almost 69 years, in 2006. Frail and at times wistful, he used two canes to walk haltingly and needed help from aides to make his way about the Senate. He often hesitated at unscripted moments. By 2009, aides were bringing him to and from the Senate floor in a wheelchair.

Though his hands trembled in later years, Byrd only recently lost his grip on power. Last November he surrendered his chairmanship of the Appropriations Committee.

Byrd's lodestar was protecting the Constitution. He frequently pulled out a dog-eared copy of it from a pocket in one of his trademark three-piece suits. He also defended the Senate in its age-old rivalry with the executive branch, no matter which party held the White House.

Unlike other prominent Senate Democrats such as 2004 presidential nominee John Kerry of Massachusetts, who voted to authorize the war in Iraq, Byrd stood firm in opposition — and felt gratified when public opinion swung behind him.

"The people are becoming more and more aware that we were hoodwinked, that the leaders of this country misrepresented or exaggerated the necessity for invading Iraq," Byrd said.

He cited Iraq when he endorsed then-Sen. Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination in May 2008, calling Obama "a shining young statesman, who possesses the personal temperament and courage necessary to extricate our country from this costly misadventure."

Byrd's accomplishments followed a childhood of poverty in West Virginia, and his success on the national stage came despite a complicated history on racial matters. As a young man, we was a member of the Ku Klux Klan for a brief period, and he joined Southern Democrats in an unsuccessful filibuster against the landmark 1964 Civil Rights Act.

He later apologized for both actions, saying intolerance has no place in America. While supporting later civil rights bills, he opposed busing to integrate schools.

Byrd briefly sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 1976 and later told associates he had once been approached by President Richard M. Nixon, a Republican, about accepting an appointment to the Supreme Court.

But he was a creature — and defender — of Congress across a career that began in 1952 with his election to the House. He served three terms there before winning his Senate seat in 1958, when Dwight D. Eisenhower was in the White House.

He clashed with presidents in both parties and was implacably against proposed balanced budget amendments to the Constitution.

"He is a fierce defender of the Senate and its prerogatives in ways that I think the founding fathers really intended the Senate to be," said one-time rival Kennedy.

In a measure of his tenacity, Byrd took a decade of night courses to earn a law degree in 1963, and completed his long-delayed bachelor's degree at West Virginia's Marshall University in 1994 with correspondence classes.

Byrd was a near-deity in economically struggling West Virginia, to which he delivered countless federally financed projects. Entire government bureaus opened there, including the FBI's repository for computerized fingerprint records. Even the Coast Guard had a facility in the landlocked state. Critics portrayed him as the personification of Congress' thirst for wasteful "pork" spending projects.

Robert Carlyle Byrd was born Nov. 20, 1917, in North Wilkesboro, N.C., as Cornelius Calvin Sale Jr., the youngest of five children.

Before he was 1, his mother died and his father sent him to live with an aunt and uncle, Vlurma and Titus Byrd, who renamed him and moved to the coal-mining town of Stotesbury, W.Va. He didn't learn his original name until he was 16 and his real birthday until he was 54.

Byrd's foster father was a miner who frequently changed jobs, and Byrd recalled that the family's house was "without electricity, ... no running water, no telephone, a little wooden outhouse."

He graduated from high school but could not afford college. Married in 1936 to high school sweetheart Erma Ora James — with whom he had two daughters — he pumped gas, cut meat and during World War II was a shipyard welder.

Returning to meat cutting in West Virginia, he became popular for his fundamentalist Bible lectures. A grand dragon of the Ku Klux Klan suggested he run for office.

He won his first race — for the state's House of Delegates — in 1946, distinguishing himself from 12 rivals by singing and fiddling mountain tunes. His fiddle became a fixture; he later played it on the television show "Hee Haw" and recorded an album. He abandoned it only after a grandson's traumatic death in 1982 and when his shaky hands left him unable to play.

At his 90th birthday party in 2007, however, Byrd joined bluegrass band Lonesome Highway in singing a few tunes and topped off the night with a rendition of "Old Joe Clark."

After six years in the West Virginia legislature, Byrd was elected to the U.S. House in 1952 in a race in which his brief Klan membership became an issue. He said he joined because of its anti-communism.

Byrd entered Congress as one of its most conservative Democrats. He was an early supporter of the Vietnam War, and his 14-hour, 13-minute filibuster against the 1964 civil rights bill remains one of the longest ever. His views gradually moderated, particularly on economic issues, but he always sided with his state's coal interests in confrontations with environmentalists.

His love of Senate traditions inspired him to write a four-volume history of the chamber. It also led him to oppose laptops on the Senate floor and to object when a blind aide tried bringing her seeing-eye dog into the chamber.

In 2004, Byrd got Congress to require schools and colleges to teach about the Constitution every Sept. 17, the day the document was adopted in 1787.

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Gov. Bobby Jindal: Taking matters into our own hands

Source: http://www.shreveporttimes.com/article/20100621/OPINION03/6210302/Gov-Bobby-Jindal-Taking-matters-into-our-own-hands

June 21, 2010

We are fighting a war. There is no doubt that the ongoing BP oil spill is a full frontal assault on our Louisiana way of life.

From the beginning of this disaster more than 50 days ago, there have been many sorrowful sights of devastation in our wetlands and wildlife habitats. But there also have been true heroes emerging in the battles to protect our coast.

In the first weeks of the spill, we asked BP and the Coast Guard for their detailed plan for responding to an oil spill of this magnitude. As the oil started to come ashore and boom was late arriving in many areas, we again appealed to BP and the Coast Guard to meet the requests for resources outlined in our detailed parish plans. We were told to wait while they found more boom. Again, we did not wait. We moved ahead on our own, mobilizing the Louisiana National Guard to begin filling dozens of gaps in barrier islands along our coast.

Wind and weather conditions moved the oil into our coast again and again. We knew this oil spill was not going to be a single event for Louisiana; it is a war we will need to fight on many fronts.

We proposed 24 segments of sand booms to fortify against the oil. While the Corps' review process drug on, we took matters into our own hands and redirected our state-operated dredger on East Grand Terre to begin creating a sand boom wall of protection on that island. Only days after we directed this work, oil hit that area and today the sand boom on East Grand Terre is actively holding oil back from entering interior wetlands and waterways.

After weeks of delay, the Corps finally approved six segments in our plan. But the Coast Guard announced it would only call on BP to pay for one segment. We wouldn't take no for an answer. We got together again with coastal parish leaders and met with the president and National Incident Commander Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen.

We told BP to stop sending us lawyers and lobbyists; they had two choices — either begin work on the segments or get out of the way and let us begin the dredging work ourselves. We chose option two for them and signed an emergency contract to begin work on the sand boom segments ourselves — again taking matters into our own hands to protect our coast.

The war against this oil spill continues today, and our commitment to winning this war has only grown stronger. We will not wait on bureaucracy or wishful thinking. We will continue to move forward on our own to implement our own ideas for protecting coastal Louisiana, even when BP and the Coast Guard don't agree with our plans.

I know we can do this because of the many heroes we have fighting in this war alongside us — our coastal parish presidents, our National Guard troops, the fishermen who are laying out boom and the communities that are banding together to help one another in their time of need. We will protect our people and our communities and industries that make Louisiana the greatest state in the world.

And we will not rest until every drop of oil is off of our coast and out of our marshes and our water — and our seafood and our coastline are 100 percent whole again.

Bobby Jindal is Louisiana's governor.