What did the GOP learn from their election failures in 2012? Are they more sensitive now to the will of the People in taking care of everyone, especially the poor and the unwell? Do they understand that Americans are rejecting extremism, whether religious or militant? Will they now recognize that the era of rich white men is over, and the United States must embrace diversity? Are they ready to turn over a new leaf in 2013 and make the world a better place?
In a word ~ No.
In all the hubbub over the Fiscal Cliff, the 112th Congress failed to do anything about the Violence Against Women Act which has been in place for 18 years.
Why? Because Democrats wanted to add language protecting lesbians, Native American women, and illegal immigrants. Yeah - even though all those women were ostensibly protected by the law anyway, the GOP threw out the entire law rather than compromise on a few sentences that would have clarified some legal problems for minority women and those from other countries afraid to call 911 in case they might be deported. It can be introduced again, and surely will, but this is a great example of the fact that the GOP has not dropped the "War on Women" and indeed, they seem to be doubling down.
Another example: The very first bill proposed in the 113th Congress came from none other than wingnut extraordinaire Michele Bachmann, R-Minnesota. And what was her "fresh start" idea for a bill?
And there were plenty of other back-sliding proposals and actions the national Tea Party Republicans and their friends at the state level have made just in the past week. The New GOP is just like the old GOP, only possibly more deluded (if that's even possible).
After passing the "Fiscal Cliff" bill late on January 1st, the GOP leadership fled the building and refused to deal with a pressing major bill - relief for the victims of Hurricane Sandy in New York, New Jersey and other states. Was Speaker John Boehner trying to make a point of "punishing" New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie for cooperating and even praising President Obama just before the Nov. 7 election. which some believe led to Obama's reelection? Who knows - but it was a damn stupid, heartless and irresponsible thing for the GOP to do, and today Christie absolutely lambasted Boehner for it.
"There's only one group to blame for the continued suffering of these innocent victims: The House Majority and their Speaker, John Boehner."
"Last night, politics was placed before an oath to serve our citizens. For me, it was disappointing and disgusting to watch."
. . . "Despite our willingness to help (other states), we've been left to wait six times longer than the victimes of Katrina, with no end in sight."
"Americans are tired of the palace intrigue and political partisanship of this Congress, which places oneupsmanship ahead of the lives of citizens who sent these people to Washington D.C. in the first place. New Jersyians and New Yorkers are tired of being treated like second-class citizens."
"New York deserves better than the selfishness we saw on display last night. New Jersey deserves better than the duplicity we saw on display last night. America deserves better than just another example of a government that has forgotten who they are there to serve and why."
"66 Days and counting. Shame on you! Shame on Congress."
(I will post the complete video when I find a good copy)
NOAA and the National Hurricane Center have been doing some soul-searching about how they handled Hurricane Sandy, the superstorm that devastated the Eastern Seabord. Now they realize it was a big mistake to change the storm's status just as it came ashore, telling local weather forecasters it was no longer a hurricane even though obviously there were hurricane force winds happening over a wide area. It's actually cringe-worthy that some guys far inland, no matter how well-meaning, thought they could just brush off a mega-storm onto local officials while trees were crashing, homes were being destroyed, electricity was failing, and the storm surge was flooding huge areas of New York and New Jersey. It really makes no sense and I'm glad they are fixing the problem.
Following the criticism of the National Hurricane Center's handling of Hurricane Sandy and the non-issuance of hurricane warnings north of North Carolina, it has been decided that the NHC will now have more flexibility in their policy regarding the issuance of advisories.
Beginning in 2013, the NHC will have the flexibility to issue multiple advisories on post-tropical cyclones for landfalling systems or close bypassers.
According to the NHC, this required a revision of the Hurricane Warning definition, which will now be as follows:
An announcement that sustained winds of 74 mph or higher are expected somewhere within the specified area in association with a tropical, sub-tropical, or post-tropical cyclone. Because hurricane preparedness activities become difficult once winds reach tropical storm force, the warning is issued 36 hours in advance of the anticipated onset of tropical-storm-force winds. The warning can remain in effect when dangerously high water or a combination of dangerously high water and waves continue, even though winds may be less than hurricane force.
"The main issue is: we want people to get ready for hurricane conditions, and that's why we are changing the definition of hurricane warning to be a little more inclusive of other things than just a hurricane," Chris Landsea, Science and Operations Officer at the National Hurricane Center, told AccuWeather.com.
Additionally, the NHC eventually plans to begin differentiating between wind hazards and storm surge hazards.
"Sandy was not ideal, and the way we handled it was not right. But we're fixing it," Landsea told AccuWeather.com.
"We realize this was not satisfactory and we want to make it better for next year."
Two amazing videos by Casey Neistat. The networks should hire him because their footage couldn't really compare with this. In the second video about Staten Island we find out that he sold some of the original footage to a documentary film maker working for Al Gore. I hope he keeps making movies about New York as the clean-up continues.
*Bipartisan" ;) Presser of Gov. Chris Christie and Sec. of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano with updates on FEMA, the Red Cross, schools, the gasoline shortage and more:
On Thursday the bodies of two young boys who were swept away from their mother’s grasp during the storm surge were recovered, NBC News reported. A missing husband and wife were also found dead Thursday, NBCNewYork.com reported.
That brought the toll on the island to 19, NBCNewYork.com reported. On Thursday, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Superstorm Sandy is responsible for the deaths of at least 37 New Yorkers.
. . . Staten Island, which took a direct blow from Sandy, is a scene of immeasurable misery and utter devastation, with homes obliterated, others off their foundations in addition to widespread flooding.
"The city of New York right now is talking about getting water out of the Battery Tunnel and preparing for a marathon," U.S. Rep. Rep. Michael Grimm said. "We're pulling bodies out of the water. You see the disconnect here?"
NYPD officials have denied to NBC News that Staten Island’s working class neighborhoods have come after wealthier areas.
“We are heading into the area where there is major destruction now,” Red Cross spokeswoman Anne Marie Borrego told NBC News late Thursday.
“We will get our beaches restored,” New York senior said outside a water treatment facility in Long Beach that has been inoperable since Monday, leaving residents without running water.
Schumer toured parts of Long Beach on foot Wednesday afternoon and surveyed Fire Island by helicopter. ”Much of the beach is gone,” he said. “And the beach is what Fire Island is.”
He said the beaches could be restored with the help of the Army Corp of Engineers, which could use sand from dredging projects to rebuild them. In Long Beach, he said FEMA would pay for the rebuilding of the boardwalk that had been twisted and torn up by the storm.
“The far bigger problem is global warming which is causing these storms to threaten our coastline,” Schumer said.
Mayor Bloomberg today insisted the New York City Marathon should go on as scheduled, even as huge swaths of Gotham remain in ruins and with no electricity.
The famed five -borough race is set for Sunday, starting at the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and ending in Central Park.
The mayor is banking on the restoration of electricity on several blocks of Manhattan, below 34th Street, thus relieving some police burden there.
“The marathon is not going to redirect any focus. Keep in mind by Sunday we’ll have electricity back downtown,” Bloomberg said. “That will free up an enormous number of police. Also, a lot of the transportation needs that we have during the week aren’t there on the weekends.”
Former Comptroller Bill Thompson said he appreciates the importance the marathon -- but believes there are too many other issues to address in New York right now.
"The New York City Marathon is one of our country’s quintessential events, but in the wake of the natural disaster that has struck our city and its residents we need to focus on more important priorities," Thompson wrote on his Facebook page tonight.
"New Yorkers are suffering. Lives have been lost, homes destroyed, seniors stranded in public housing with no electricity and entire neighborhoods are suffering with scant access to fresh water, food and electricity. While I understand the importance of this event and the fact that it draws people from all over the world to watch and participate, I believe this year’s race needs to be postponed to a later date."
Hindsight is always 20-20 especially when dealing with predicting the weather. But with Sandy, the forecasters got it all too right, even though many on Twitter and elsewhere made fun of the moniker "Frankenstorm," and CNN News supposedly banned the use of the name. Yet the hurricane really developed into the worst of the worst-case-scenarios and everyone's nightmare storm.
Luckily local officials listened to the scientists at NOAA and science saved lives.
From the air, the coast of New Jersey looks like a sandbox full of broken toy Monopoly houses in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the ironically named mega-storm. Ferris Wheels and roller coasters are twisted and stranded, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. Boardwalks and docks are in splinters. Boats are tossed this way and that in the middle of towns and highways. It's very much like the scene after the tsunami in Japan, and the scope is just as epic.
Governor Chris Christie is doing a great job of putting his state first and politics second, and has had nothing but praise for President Obama. This is what statesmanship looks like, my friends. A week before the election, politics doesn't seem like the priority anymore. Some people can put partisan feelings aside and work together, and I hope this will continue. I believe the main thing Christie and Obama have in common is they both seem to have a lot of heart for the people of this country, and that's why they are suddenly bonding together. Mitt, not so much. He tried to fake it today while packing canned goods in Ohio, but he came across as oddly cheerful in the wake of other people's misfortune.
Survival is the key, and a big part of that is the Federal Emergency Management Organization, or FEMA. Voters watching this story unfold should remember that both Romney and Ryan have called for the end of FEMA without explaining how states or the private sector would begin paying for the cleanup of such a disaster. There really is no answer because it is the government's job to take care of its own. The National Guard and Coast Guard are helping in the rescue, the Army Corps of Engineers are going to pump out the subways, and Federal Assistance will help pay to get the lights and water back on, and provide disaster loans to get homes and businesses rebuilt.
And while charity organizations and volunteers will be needed in droves for the next few months as winter sets in, the bottom line is that the Federal Government is the only hope of millions right now. Their homes are flooded, their jobs are gone, their schools are in shambles. This is not the time to start lecturing people that they don't need "hand-outs" and they shouldn't be "moochers" or "takers." If Mitt, Ryan and other extreme Republicans don't understand that now, they never will. But they aren't known for the empathy or compassion.
Sandy isn't a normal storm - it's a Mega Monster Storm. Not only is it destroying piers, boats, beaches, and homes along the complete Eastern Shore of the United States, but it's also going to bring in a blizzard of snow - 1-2 FEET - in the Appalachian Mountain region. And then it's going to move into Canada and God only knows what sort of weather they will receive.
I'm saying a prayer for everyone in the path of this storm. Stay safe, and stay home.
Airlines have canceled more than 12,000 flights along the East Coast due to Hurricane #Sandy: on.wsj.com/SoHoau
— Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) October 29, 2012
NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL182012
200 PM EDT MON OCT 29 2012
...SANDY MOVING MORE QUICKLY TOWARD SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY...
...LANDFALL EXPECTED EARLY THIS EVENING...
SUMMARY OF 200 PM EDT...1800 UTC...INFORMATION
----------------------------------------------
LOCATION...38.3N 73.1W
ABOUT 110 MI...180 KM SE OF ATLANTIC CITY NEW JERSEY
ABOUT 175 MI...285 KM SSE OF NEW YORK CITY
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS...90 MPH...150 KM/H
PRESENT MOVEMENT...NW OR 305 DEGREES AT 28 MPH...44 KM/H
MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE...940 MB...27.76 INCHES
WATCHES AND WARNINGS
--------------------
CHANGES WITH THIS ADVISORY...
NONE
SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT...
A TROPICAL STORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR...
* NORTH OF SURF CITY TO DUCK NORTH CAROLINA
* PAMLICO AND ALBEMARLE SOUNDS
IN ADDITION...HURRICANE-FORCE WINDS ARE EXPECTED ALONG PORTIONS OFbTHE COAST BETWEEN CHINCOTEAGUE VIRGINIA AND CHATHAM MASSACHUSETTS.
THIS INCLUDES THE TIDAL POTOMAC FROM COBB ISLAND TO SMITH POINT... THE MIDDLE AND UPPER CHESAPEAKE BAY...DELAWARE BAY...AND THE COASTS OF THE NORTHERN DELMARVA PENINSULA...NEW JERSEY...THE NEW YORK CITY AREA...LONG ISLAND...CONNECTICUT...AND RHODE ISLAND.
TROPICAL-STORM-FORCE WINDS ARE EXPECTED NORTH OF CHATHAM TO MERRIMACK RIVER MASSACHUSETTS...THE LOWER CHESAPEAKE BAY...AND SOUTH OF CHINCOTEAGUE TO DUCK NORTH CAROLINA...THE NORTHERN ENDPOINT OF THE TROPICAL STORM WARNING.
OTHER COASTAL AND INLAND WATCHES AND WARNINGS ARE IN EFFECT FOR THESE AREAS. PLEASE SEE STATEMENTS FROM LOCAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICES.
FOR STORM INFORMATION SPECIFIC TO YOUR AREA...INCLUDING POSSIBLE INLAND WATCHES AND WARNINGS...PLEASE MONITOR PRODUCTS ISSUED BY YOUR LOCAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE.
DISCUSSION AND 48-HOUR OUTLOOK
------------------------------
AT 200 PM EDT...1800 UTC...THE CENTER OF HURRICANE SANDY WAS LOCATED BY AN AIR FORCE RESERVE HURRICANE HUNTER AIRCRAFT AND NOAA DOPPLER WEATHER RADARS TO BE NEAR LATITUDE 38.3 NORTH...LONGITUDE 73.1 WEST. SANDY IS NOW MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHWEST NEAR 28 MPH...
44 KM/H. THIS GENERAL MOTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING UNTIL LANDFALL OCCURS...FOLLOWED BY A TURN TOWARD THE WEST-NORTHWEST TONIGHT. ON THE FORECAST TRACK...THE CENTER OF SANDY IS EXPECTED TO MAKE LANDFALL ALONG OR JUST SOUTH OF
THE SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY COAST BY EARLY EVENING.
REPORTS FROM THE HURRICANE HUNTER AIRCRAFT INDICATE THAT THE MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS REMAIN NEAR 90 MPH...150 KM/H...WITH HIGHER GUSTS. SANDY IS EXPECTED TO TRANSITION INTO A FRONTAL OR WINTERTIME LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM LATER TODAY OR TONIGHT. HOWEVER...THIS TRANSITION
WILL NOT BE ACCOMPANIED BY A WEAKENING OF THE SYSTEM...AND LITTLE CHANGE IN STRENGTH IS EXPECTED PRIOR TO LANDFALL. SANDY IS FORECAST TO WEAKEN AFTER MOVING WELL INLAND.
HURRICANE-FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO 175 MILES...280 KM... MAINLY SOUTHWEST OF THE CENTER...AND TROPICAL-STORM-FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO 485 MILES...780 KM. SUSTAINED WINDS TO TROPICAL STORM FORCE ARE OCCURRING FROM SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND THROUGH LONG ISLAND AND LONG ISLAND SOUND...AND SOUTHWARD ALONG THE COASTS OF NEW JERSEY...DELAWARE...AND EASTERN VIRGINIA...AND INCLUDING ALL OF THE CHESAPEAKE AND DELAWARE BAYS. A WEATHERFLOW INSTRUMENT RECENTLY REPORTED A SUSTAINED WIND OF 54 MPH...87 KM/H...WITH A GUST TO 63 MPH...102 KM/H...ON LONG ISLAND AT EATONS NECK NEW YORK.
ALSO...A UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT BUOY LOCATED IN WESTERN LONG ISLAND SOUND RECENTLY REPORTED A SUSTAINED WIND OF 38 MPH...61 KM/H...WITH A GUST TO 54 MPH...87 KM/H...AT A HEIGHT OF 10 FEET ABOVE THE WATER.
THE ESTIMATED MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE BASED ON REPORTS FROM RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT IS 940 MB...27.76 INCHES.
HAZARDS AFFECTING LAND
----------------------
WIND...GALE/TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS ARE ALREADY OCCURRING OVER PORTIONS OF THE MID-ATLANTIC STATES FROM NORTH CAROLINA NORTHWARD TO SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND. GALE-FORCE WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO SPREAD OVER OTHER PORTIONS OF THE MID-ATLANTIC STATES OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS. HURRICANE-FORCE WINDS COULD REACH THE MID-ATLANTIC STATES... INCLUDING NEW YORK CITY AND LONG ISLAND...BY LATE THIS AFTERNOON.
IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT WINDS AFFECTING THE UPPER FLOORS OF HIGH-RISE BUILDINGS WILL BE SIGNIFICANTLY STRONGER THAN THOSE NEAR GROUND LEVEL.
STORM SURGE...THE COMBINATION OF AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS STORM SURGE AND THE TIDE WILL CAUSE NORMALLY DRY AREAS NEAR THE COAST TO BE FLOODED BY RISING WATERS. THE WATER COULD REACH THE FOLLOWING DEPTHS ABOVE GROUND IF THE PEAK SURGE OCCURS AT THE TIME OF HIGH TIDE...
NC NORTH OF SURF CITY INCLUDING PAMLICO/ALBEMARLE SOUNDS...4 TO 6 FT
SE VA AND DELMARVA INCLUDING LOWER CHESAPEAKE BAY...2 TO 4 FT
UPPER AND MIDDLE CHESAPEAKE BAY...1 TO 3 FT
LONG ISLAND SOUND...RARITAN BAY...AND NEW YORK HARBOR...6 TO 11 FT
ELSEWHERE FROM OCEAN CITY MD TO THE CT/RI BORDER...4 TO 8 FT
CT/RI BORDER TO THE SOUTH SHORE OF CAPE COD INCLUDING BUZZARDS
BAY AND NARRAGANSETT BAY...3 TO 6 FT
CAPE COD TO THE MA/NH BORDER INCLUDING CAPE COD BAY...2 TO 4 FT
MA/NH BORDER TO THE U.S./CANADA BORDER...1 TO 3 FT
SURGE-RELATED FLOODING DEPENDS ON THE RELATIVE TIMING OF THE SURGE AND THE TIDAL CYCLE...AND CAN VARY GREATLY OVER SHORT DISTANCES. GIVEN THE LARGE WIND FIELD ASSOCIATED WITH SANDY...ELEVATED WATER LEVELS COULD SPAN MULTIPLE TIDE CYCLES RESULTING IN REPEATED AND
EXTENDED PERIODS OF COASTAL AND BAYSIDE FLOODING. IN ADDITION... ELEVATED WATERS COULD OCCUR FAR REMOVED FROM THE CENTER OF SANDY. FURTHERMORE...THESE CONDITIONS WILL OCCUR REGARDLESS OF WHETHER SANDY IS A TROPICAL OR POST-TROPICAL CYCLONE. FOR INFORMATION
SPECIFIC TO YOUR AREA...PLEASE SEE PRODUCTS ISSUED BY YOUR LOCAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE.
RAINFALL...RAINFALL TOTALS OF 3 TO 6 INCHES ARE EXPECTED OVER FAR NORTHEASTERN NORTH CAROLINA WITH ISOLATED MAXIMUM TOTALS OF 8 INCHES POSSIBLE. RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 4 TO 8 INCHES ARE EXPECTED OVER PORTIONS OF THE MID ATLANTIC STATES...INCLUDING THE DELMARVA
PENINSULA...WITH ISOLATED MAXIMUM AMOUNTS OF 12 INCHES POSSIBLE. RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 3 INCHES WITH ISOLATED MAXIMUM AMOUNTS OF 5 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE FROM THE SOUTHERN TIER OF NEW YORK STATE NORTHEASTWARD THROUGH NEW ENGLAND.
SNOWFALL..SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 2 TO 3 FEET ARE EXPECTED IN THE MOUNTAINS OF WEST VIRGINIA WITH LOCALLY HIGHER TOTALS TODAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. SNOWFALL OF 1 TO 2 FEET IS EXPECTED IN THE MOUNTAINS OF SOUTHWESTERN VIRGINIA TO THE KENTUCKY BORDER...WITH 12 TO 18 INCHES OF SNOW EXPECTED IN THE MOUNTAINS NEAR THE NORTH CAROLINA/TENNESSEE BORDER AND IN THE MOUNTAINS OF WESTERN MARYLAND.
SURF...DANGEROUS SURF CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE FROM FLORIDA THROUGH
NEW ENGLAND FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS.
NEXT ADVISORY
------------- NEXT COMPLETE ADVISORY...500 PM EDT.
TROPICAL CYCLONE UPDATES WILL BE ISSUED AT 300 AND 400 PM EDT.
$$
FORECASTER STEWART
