News Nuggets 378

Yes -- this is a living creature called the Sphinx cat, a new breed, on display in the UK. From the Daily Mail. See the Pet Nugget below.

Cut Defense Spending (Lawrence Korb and Chris Preble) from the National Interest

"A few Americans, meanwhile, benefit handsomely from military spending, and wish for the bonanza to continue unimpeded. As so often happens, the voices of the interested few outweigh those of the disinterested many. That might be changing. As more Americans come to understand the high costs and dubious benefits of U.S. military dominance, a backlash is all but inevitable."

Poll: Strong Public Support for Mandatory Carbon Reductions from National Journal

"There is strong public sentiment for limiting carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions in energy legislation, according to the latest Society for Human Resource Management/National Journal Congressional Connection Poll, conducted by the Pew Research Center."

A Glimmer of Leadership in Obama's Oval Office Speech (David Ignatius) from the Washington Post

"Given all the idiotic advice President Obama has gotten about what to do about the BP oil spill, I thought his Oval Office address Tuesday night had it about right. Call to arms. Three-point plan. End our energy addiction. God bless America."

A Jobs Mismatch in Higher Ed from Inside Higher Education

A VERY import set of conclusions are sounded here.

"The United States economy is in serious danger from a growing mismatch between the skills that will be needed for jobs being created and the educational backgrounds (or lack thereof) of would-be workers. That is the conclusion of a mammoth analysis of jobs data being released today by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. The new report says that the United States is "on a collision course with the future" since far too few Americans complete college. ... the lead author of the report said in an interview that the report should also shake up colleges -- and challenge most of them to be much more career-oriented than they have been and to overhaul the way they educate students, to much more closely align the curriculum with specific jobs."

I sooo agree with many of the report's conclusions! Given the fights our partisan gov't is having about higher ed, jobs, etc., it is almost guaranteed that nothing will occur here. I hope I'm wrong.

Report: Japan Pays Small Nations for Support on Whaling from Agence France Presse via Yahoo News

"The Sunday Times said it found officials from St Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Guinea and Ivory Coast were willing to discuss selling their votes at the International Whaling Commission (IWC). ... the IWC commissioner for Tanzania said "good girls" were made available for ministers and senior fisheries officials during all-expenses paid trips to Japan."

And what do UN officials and US and European IWC people say? They'd better find a way past these shills!

Have Republicans Already Blown Their Chances to Recapture the Senate? from TalkingPointsMemo

"Until just a few weeks ago, Republicans considered winning a Senate majority a long shot but by no means out of reach. But the euphoria over Scott Brown's victory in Massachusetts in January seems a distant memory now, especially after the latest round of primary results last week."

Poll: Americans Want Democrats, Not Republicans, to Control Next Congress from the Associated Press

"There's encouraging news for Democrats battling to retain control of Congress in this fall's elections, with the party holding a slender edge in public trust for shepherding the economy and small gains in those saying their finances are healthy, according to a new poll."

FL-Sen: Dems Flirt with Backing Crist from Politico

"The emergence of a politically unknown billionaire self-funder in the Florida Senate race is prompting top Democrats in the state to say publicly what some have been whispering for weeks: If Jeff Greene, who got rich betting on the collapse of the housing market, becomes their nominee, many in the party will have the cover they need to get behind Republican-turned-independent Gov. Charlie Crist."

I thought this would occur eventually -- but I'm surprised this issue is coming up this soon!

IL-Sen: Kirk's Problems Get a Little Worse (Steve Benen) from Washington Monthly

"Republican Senate candidate Mark Kirk ran into trouble recently when a variety of claims about his military service -- in speeches, in correspondence, and in written materials -- were proven to be untrue. Making matters worse for the Illinois Republican, the story isn't quite done yet. As of about a week ago, I think the list was up to eight separate incidents:"

SC-Sen: Lindsey Graham Would Back S.C. Election Probe from Politico

"Graham told POLITICO's Manu Raju just now that he has "basic questions," such as how Alvin Greene got the money for his $10,400 filing fee."

Now THIS is interesting. Why would he do this? Because he's such a PRINCIPLED guy!? Not a chance. This sounds like some intra-GOP payback between Graham and DeMint. I'm curious if Graham knows something the rest of us don't.

SC-Sen: Democrat Alvin Greene Sees SC Republicans Come to His Aide from The Hill

"It’s unusual, especially in an election year, to hear Republicans coming to the defense of a Democrat who is aiming to take out one of their colleagues. But that’s what happened on Tuesday when several South Carolina Republicans came to the aid of embattled 32-year-old Democratic Senate candidate Alvin Greene. "

The Greene candidacy looks more and more rancid by the day. I'm still missing the picture however.

ENVIRONMENT NUGGET!!

Europe's New Wind Power Rivals Gas from the New York Times

"The amount of power generated by new wind turbines in the European Union this year will be about the same as the amount from new gas plants, according to the European Wind Energy Association, an industry group."

PET NUGGET!! [of a sort]

Sphynx Cats Fetch Up to £3,000 Each in Latest Must-Have Pet Craze from the Daily Mail [of the UK]

"They may look like a cross between ET and a Gremlin, but these bald Sphynx cats are fetching up to £3,000 a time as the latest must-have pet. The odd-looking wrinkly felines are a rare breed which have only recently found their way to England in the last few years."