Tuesday Open Thread
Welcome to another snow day Tuesday! Even though we only got a dusting last night, it was enough to make the commute a nightmare this morning. So, what’s on your mind? Let’s get started.
One story that has been fascinating me lately is the story of Amy Bishop, the Harvard-trained Ph.D. biologists who shot 6 faculty members after a tenure hearing. I guess it hits home for me because both my brother and sister-in-law are biology professors and my husband is a chemistry lecturer. It’s just part of that “small world” feeling you get in academia. The more her story comes out, the more you see the big blinking warning signs all over the place that were ignored or covered up by others. One big warning sign, the “accidental” killing of her own brother in 1986:
To bring you up to speed, the accounts of those who were on the scene shortly after crime or familiar with incidents surrounding it hold that Bishop discharged the gun in her bedroom, then fired the fatal shot into her brother in the kitchen, then discharged the gun again in the house as she fled the residence. She then ran with the gun down the street apparently looking for a getaway car. In that search she reportedly threatened two others — one in an attempt to get him to stop his vehicle (presumably so she could take it) and another at an auto repair shop where she was rifling through a collection of keys trying to steal a car.
…
Hours later, as Bishop was being booked, the booking officer received a call from the then-Chief of Police, or someone calling on his behalf, instructing him to release Bishop into the custody of her mother, who at the time sat on the town Board of Personnel.
The one report that still exists is that of the State Police who did a subsequent investigation, apparently at the behest of the District Attorney’s office, with interviews conducted some time later. The key was that Bishop’s mother claimed to have witnessed the shooting. And she insisted that it was accidental.
The investigative report of the incident no longer exists, but the police insist there’s no cover-up.
Cheney’s chest-thumping aside, Obama’s cooperative foreign policy initiatives appear to be brining success. A joint Pakistan/U.S. military operation captured the #2 Taliban figure in Pakistan.
The Taliban’s top military commander was captured several days ago in Karachi, Pakistan, in a secret joint operation by Pakistani and American intelligence forces, according to American government officials.
The commander, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, is an Afghan described by American officials as the most significant Taliban figure to be detained since the American-led war in Afghanistan started more than eight years ago. He ranks second in influence only to Mullah Muhammad Omar, the Taliban’s founder and a close associate of Osama bin Laden before the Sept. 11 attacks.
Mullah Baradar has been in Pakistani custody for several days, with American and Pakistani intelligence officials both taking part in interrogations, according to the officials.
Tags: Open Thread
The NYT did an in-depth story about the Tea Party.
What a campus tragedy. The whole tenure thing…makes one wonder if going “postal”, has met “published and perished”. So sad.
UI, it’s deeper and weirder… she was also a suspect in a letter bomb attach on one of her Prof’s at Harvard.
Seems this woman had a whole lot of people covering up/making excuses for her. Looking at her crazy history this tragedy seemed like it was only a matter of time.
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo.foxnews.com%2Fv%2F4016232%2Fcollege-skews-political-spectrum&h=4c820dfb9fde044d0502f663a21ae91b
stupid smart educated liberals.
4 Staffers Leave Sestak
The Blog At BillLawrenceOnline.Com ^ | 2-16-10
Important cogs of Congressman Joe Sestak’s (D-7) Senate campaign have come off the wheel. . .
Political Director Rich Culbert and press operative Garry Ritterstein left soon after the Democratic State Committee, Feb. 7, endorsed Specter over Admiral Joe.
Others who left were Jason Henry, who was effectively the campaign’s political director for western Pennsylvania who took his leave in mid-January and Andrew Blum of volunteer operations who left in late January.
FWIW Digby is the best blogger in the world. Just read a few of the recent posts if you feel like getting suicidal.
Obama announces loan guarantees for two nuclear reactors
CNN ^ | February 16, 2010
Washington (CNN) — President Obama announced $8.3 billion in loan guarantees Tuesday for two nuclear reactors to be built in Burke County, Georgia. No new nuclear power plants have been built in the United States in three decades. The new reactors are to be part of an expansion of an existing nuclear facility near Augusta, Georgia, operated by Atlanta-based Southern Co. The loan guarantees will help create 3,500 on-site construction jobs and 850 permanent operations jobs, administration officials claimed. The reactors will help provide power to over 550,000 homes and 1.4 million people, it said.
So, Lizard, how do you feel about the fact that you cannot buy insurance against a nuclear accident? Fair or not?
if the almighty FREE MARKET, Praise and Blessings and Money be Unto HIM, WANTED nuclear power insurance, HE would instruct God (HIS servant) to speak to our leaders (of business) and they would bestow it upon us.
duh
True enough, a.p, but I’m trying to see whether Lizard is really in favor of people vs. corporations, or is just a Tea Party poseur.
Really interesting article on Roger Ebert. I really had no idea he was so sick. BTW, he’s great to follow on Twitter, a real progressive. @ebertchicago
The NJ Judge whose 1973 ruling opened up Little League to girls — Judge Sylvia Pressler — died yesterday.
Thank you, Judge Pressler, for making sure little girls get included everywhere.
If there is a God, someone will infiltrate this thing and send back lots of video footage.
Wow. I would love to get to that thing. Maybe I can enlist the help of one of my DC zombies. 🙂
You have DC zombies? I’m so jealous!
I don’t think I’d last too long at an extreme hip-hop conservative gathering. I don’t think I’d laugh at the jokes about how Hillary has fat ankles and Janet Reno is ugly.
Hip-hop? Really? Really?
Well, as long as they are just picking on women, I’d be fine… 🙂
It is exactly the kind of event that sounds like it would be fun to infiltrate, but would end in some sort of Hunter Thompson/Hells Angels stomping if you made a false move. Sort of like the tea party that I attended.
You might be too distracted laughing at the extreme conservative hip hop to even hear the lame-ass chick jokes.
I couldn’t go — I’d just be a threat to your cover… 🙄
True Dat! Do you have a waitstaff uniform? 😀
I will totally hurt you, LG!
I know. I am currently hiding in the corner of the room awaiting the severe ass-beating.
http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2010/02/16/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry6212912.shtml?tag=stack
i guess Saint Sarah only lets Rush use satire. what a fraud….. btw NO WHERE in that funny funny episode did they use the word “retard” and the main message was that the girl was no different than anyone else…. but saint sarah doesnt see her child as anything more that a chance at ratings and money.
Sarah told us it was o.k. to use that word. What’s her problem?
Education bloggers get press: http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20100217/NEWS03/2170328/1008/Board-members–blogs-keep-Del.-posted
Hey John Young!! Awesome. And the WNJ even linked directly to the blogs online. Good for them.
Too bad they didn’t give Kilroy a shout out too. He has a killer thread going now that has got a UD student so interested that she’s on the trail of connecting the dots between the Delaware Blue Bloods, the pols (often one and the same (Pete duPont/DUPONT and Chris Coons/GORE, Jack Markell/Nextel) and the charter schools movement national and local nexus in the Race To The Top.
http://kilroysdelaware.wordpress.com/2010/02/16/markells-ed-puppets-at-delaware-doe-ineffective/
Cynicism starts young when the government appears to run amok….so in-your-face:
Heather – “I think I should finish my degree at UD this spring and open a corporation in delaware and hire a friend and start charging 50 thousand a month to help a school. that is more than my salary would be a year. wanna join me? what is going on? I want Kilroy to figure out how the dots line up.. how did Renissance get more work for Mass Insight in our state. I want the name of one school Mass Insight ever turned around.”
Kilroy
“Rodel is one of the major players and if your look at their ADVISORY COUNCIL
The Honorable Tom Carper
The Honorable Pierre S. du Pont
Robert Buccini
Chris Coons
Stephanie Clark Fitzgerald
Lois Hobbs
John Hollis
Maria Matos
Carol King-Ries
Laurisa Schutt
Kristen Williams
“The Rodel Foundation of Delaware and The Broad Foundation, based in Los Angeles, are supporting the development of the plan, which will serve as a prospectus for additional investments by national, state and local funders to ensure successful
implementation. “The opportunity to create a world-class plan would not be possible without the interest, involvement, and support of The Broad Foundation,” said Paul Herdman, President and CEO of the Rodel Foundation of Delaware.”
“The Broad Foundation supports Teach For America because unlike so many silver bullet ideas in education, Teach For America’s commitment to children is clear, successful and long term. I am proud to have played a small part in this venture and know that long into the future, Teach For America’s work will positively shape America’s future,” Broad concluded.””
And as John will attest, the Broad Foundation is behind Joe Wise, Lillian Lowery and for the ‘perfect’ trifecta, the current Christina School District Superindent.
Read through Transparent Christina and Children and Educator’s First and it will break your heart but toughen your resolve to stand up to cronyism and corporatism and the race by the elite to privatize the gain and socialize the pain. Will the Delaware Liberals rise up to the Challenge and Questio Authority like good little Americans should?
These education bloggers are brave souls indeed. I salute you.
The influence of the Broad Foundation on Delaware education should be investigated by an organization that has no fear of litigation. They are a bunch of litigious bastards. I have been personally threatened by one of their acolytes for a blog post.