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Thursday, September 23, 2010

News Nuggets 440

A massive wind farm off the Kentish coast in the UK.  See the Energy Nuggets below.  From Discovery News.

"Iran increasingly appears willing to enter into negotiations in the near future over its nuclear program, diplomats close to the talks said Wednesday, a move that would restart a process that ended abruptly last fall."

Cuba Move is a Victory for US Policy from Foreign Policy Magazine
"The Castro regime's stunning announcement that it is planning to lay off more than 500,000 state workers in the next six months, dropping fully one-tenth of the country's labor force into a barely existent "private sector" has sparked a flurry of commentary on just what the move portends for the captive island's future."

"Rising frictions between China and its neighbors in recent weeks over security issues have handed the United States an opportunity to reassert itself — one the Obama administration has been keen to take advantage of."

"As one of his advisers bluntly put it, the president "doesn't like new people."
Like it or not, he will soon be surrounded by them as an expected staff shuffle will deprive Obama of two of his closest aides and an influx of replacements will take their places within the West Wing."

Exodus Could Shift White House Tone from the Wall Street Journal
"White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel is likely to resign in a matter of weeks, hastening a remake of the Obama White House that could lead to a lower-key, more cooperative approach after the November midterm elections."

The Massive Resistance Movement Against Obama (Sherrilyn Ifill) from The Root
"The right has adopted tactics that echo efforts to block school desegregation in the 1950s. This time they may permanently damage our political system."

Divided and Conquer?  The GOP and the Defense Budget (Heather Hulbert) from the Democratic Strategist
"The GOP spent the summer using Islam-bashing to paper over a canyon-sized fissure on national security. But the word "fissure" makes the problem sound neat and orderly, where what is going on beneath the surface is more of a free-for-all among old-fashioned realists, neocons, paleocons, Tea Partiers and libertarians."

"My colleague Ben Adler brought the quick reaction yesterday evening, arguing that the plan is unlikely to inspire. And so, far it looks like he's mostly right."

"It’s the culmination of a cool relationship that dates back to 2002, when Palin lost out to Murkowski in the sweepstakes to win appointment to the Senate seat left vacant by Murkowski’s father, Frank, who had just been elected governor."

CIVIL RIGHTS HISTORY NUGGET!!
"The flesh-and-blood Rosa Parks was a lot more interesting than the one we read about in history books. A new book details how she was a warrior for justice for black women who were brutally raped by white men in the segregated South."

ENERGY NUGGET!!
"The world's largest offshore wind farm opened in Britain on Thursday, as part of the government's bid to reduce the carbon emissions that drive climate change.  The project received a qualified welcome from environmental campaigners.  The site, a forest of giant turbines in the North Sea off the east Kent coast, has 100 turbines installed so far with a total of 341 planned."

A related story is:
Is Wind Power Green? from Discovery News
"As the U.S. energy industry inches away from reliance on fossil fuels, experts have heralded various greener technologies, such as ethanol, solar and geothermal power, as choice alternatives. And while each of those alternatives holds marked environmental advantages over dirty oil and coal, none match wind power’s squeaky clean performance."

MILITARY HISTORY NUGGET!!
The Most Under-rated General in American History: You be the Judge (Thomas Ricks) from Foreign Policy Magazine
"So, who is the most under-rated? My guess is that it will come down to O.P. Smith, Nathaniel Greene and George Thomas, with Thomas winning. "
Like his choices for  his earlier "Worst Generals" list, this one is interesting.

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