News Nuggets 563

 Rare black rhinoceroses at the St Louis Zoo. From Zooborns.

UP-FRONT WISCONSIN NUGGET!!
Wisconsin Dems' Recall Efforts Off to Strong Start from Firedoglake
"The Wisconsin recall effort is only a day old, but it’s going strong. The state Democratic Party has launched a website called Recall the Republican 8 to coordinate events. They have volunteer and contribution pages. There’s also a separate ActBlue page set up for the recall. A separate effort to air a powerful TV ad from the PCCC and DFA, filmed on the day of the 100,000-plus protests last Saturday, has already raised over $225,000."

UP-FRONT ECONOMIC NEWS!!
U.S. Payrolls Rose 192,000; Jobless Rate at 8.9% in February from Bloomberg News Service
"U.S. employers added 192,000 workers in February, amid an improving economy and more seasonable weather, and the unemployment rate unexpectedly declined to 8.9 percent, the lowest level since April 2009."
See the Washington Post's coverage HERE.

Protests Break Out in Libyan Capital After Friday Prayers from the New York Times
"Several thousand protesters streamed out of a mosque in a restive neighborhood of Tripoli after noon prayers on Friday, chanting slogans against Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi and defying the authorities’ attempt to lock down the capital completely. But the protest soon thinned out, reflecting a pervasive fear of reprisals, and only several hundred demonstrators remained, keeping close to the mosque itself."
These people are exceptionally brave!

Libya Rebels Seek Air Strikes Against Gaddafi (Mohammed Abbas) from RealClearWorld
"Libyan rebels calling for air strikes to set up a "no-fly" zone came under attack by a warplane for a third day on Friday as Muammar Gaddafi tried to loosen the opposition's expanding grip on a key coast road. Eastern-based rebels spearheading a two-week-old revolt told Reuters they were open to talks only on Gaddafi's exile or resignation following attacks on civilians that have brought global condemnation and triggered a probe at the war crimes court."

Six Considerations for Discussing the Imposition of a Libyan No-fly Zone (Thomas Ricks) from Foreign Policy Magazine
"I wish everyone talking about imposing a no-fly zone on Libya would take a deep breath. Americans have an odd habit of backing into war . We first deployed ground combat forces into Vietnam in the spring of 1965 simply to protect American air bases, for example. … Here are some of the issues that need to be examined. Anyone who advocates a no-fly zone should be required to answer them."

Baghdad Protesters Converge on Liberation Square from the Guardian [of the UK]
"Anti-government demonstrations held across Iraq, despite tight security and bans on driving."

The Collapse of the Old Oil Order: How the Petroleum Age Will End (Michael Klare) from Le Monde Diplomatique [of France in English]
"Whatever the outcome of the protests, uprisings, and rebellions now sweeping the Middle East, one thing is guaranteed: the world of oil will be permanently transformed. Consider everything that’s now happening as just the first tremor of an oilquake that will shake our world to its core."

A Sledgehammer Blow to Turkish Democracy (Dani Rodrik) from the Financial Times [of London]
"Turkey is a rare Middle Eastern success: a predominantly Muslim country with a modern, secular state. Yet just as the world looks to it as a possible model for Arab societies in turmoil, Turkey’s democratic promise is being squandered under the weight of the country’s history and the political machinations of its present leaders."



Jewish Prayers for Egypt's Uprising (Editorial) from Al Jazeera English"Many Jews from around the world support Egyptian self-determination because of Judaism's own historic past with Egypt."

Less Drama in White House After Staff Changes from the New York Times
"The new team that Mr. Obama has assembled to run the White House is just starting to make its mark. But together Mr. Daley and Mr. Plouffe are bringing a new order and a different management style for different times, say people within the West Wing and others who deal with them."

The Fear-mongering Meets Reality on Health Care (Steve Kornacki) from Salon
"In other words, a law that opponents billed as a sinister socialist plot that would fundamentally alter and disrupt Americans' daily lives has been in effect for months now -- and nearly half the country doesn't know it."
Well, just as a broken clock can be right at least twice a day, so I guess COMPLETE ignorance can be good once in a while.  More seriously though -- I think this further showcases how BADLY the Dems and Obama did in selling health care reform in the first place.  The Dems right now are so shell-shocked from that experience that, for the most part, they view it as a good day when H-C reform doesn't come up.  Sad.

Note to Republicans: Cuts Don't Cut It (Eugene Robinson) from the Washington Post
"After slamming Democrats for not focusing on "jobs, jobs, jobs," Republicans have decided to ignore their own winning message in favor of "cuts, cuts, cuts." This is bad economics - and bad politics."

More on the topic:
How Americans Want -- and Don't Want -- to Balance the Budget (Ezra Klein) from the Washington Post
"Voters don't like deficits or most of the things that have to be done to reduce deficits. They disapprove of cutting most government programs but sometimes approve of them if they're not phrased as program cuts. If something does have to be done to reduce the deficit, they'd prefer to see it done to rich people, rich corporations or the military. But who wants words when you can have graphs?"

Wisconsin Governor Says He Will Begin Issuing Layoff Warnings to Unions from the New York Times
"Scott Walker, the Republican governor of Wisconsin, said Thursday that he would begin issuing layoff warnings to unions representing 1,500 state employees on Friday if his bill to sharply reduce collective bargaining rights and benefits for public sector employees remained at an impasse in the Legislature."
The problem Walker is confronting here is that he has left the Dems with NO REASON to show up.  If they suddenly appeared, would he choose NOT to lay off the workers?  No!!  All these punitive measures he and the state senate are ramming through would STILL be rammed through without any Democratic input.

Sununu: I'll Work Against Huntsman in NH from RealClearPolitics
"ormer New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu is no fan of former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman and intends to work against him in the Granite State's Republican presidential primary if he decides to launch a bid for the White House this cycle."
Sununu and his son are big wheels in the NH GOP. 

GOP Pres: 2012: Yes, Maybe, and Unelectable (Scot LeHigh) from the Boston Globe
"Thus it’s time for a (subjective) look at some of the Republican Party’s prospective 2012 candidates. If you start with the assumption that a candidate must have a plausible path to both the nomination and the presidency, the prospects of the might-be candidates fall into three categories: Believable, conceivable, and unachievable."

BEACH FRONT CONDO NUGGET!!
Moshe Safdie's Golden Dream Bay Sky Garden Apartments (PICTURES) from the Huffington Post
"If you've ever wanted to live inside of a pixelated dream world, check out Moshe Safdie's massive residential complex design for Qinhuangdao, China."
Pretty amazing designs!