Time to start off a new week. Let’s hope this week has less tragedy than last week.
Will Japan get their nuclear power plants under control? Will fighting in Libya stop? Will the Government keep running? Will we have a break from man-made and natural disasters?
And then there is that secret Leprechaun and pot o’ gold coming up on Thursday. Any good recipes or events? Where is the best place to drink green beer?
Your choice of conversation.
State department spokesman P.J. Crowley was forced to resign after his controversial comments about suspected WikiLeaker Bradley Manning, according to multiple reports.
The abrupt resignation came after he criticized the Defense Department‘s treatment of Manning, who is being held in a military prison accused of giving classified documents to WikiLeaks.
Speaking at an MIT seminar last week, Crowley said Manning was being “mistreated”.
“What is being done to Bradley Manning is ridiculous and counterproductive and stupid on the part of the Department of Defense,” he said.
An 11-page letter from Manning’s lawyer released last week detailed treatment of the Army private that included him being stripped naked, held in solitary confinement and allegedly harassed by prison guards.
Crowley did say that Manning was in the right place.
“There is sometimes a need for secrets,” he said.
Crowley, who operated a popular Twitter feed, last tweeted about the emergency in Japan on Friday.
The following sites are accepting donations for Japanese relief. Please leave other places under the comment section as they become available:
(Thanks Cato the Elder)
U.S. organizations accepting donations to assist Japan included:
Japan: Explosion at Fukushima nuclear power plant
According to the Daily Beast:
Japan’s nuclear crisis seems to be getting worse, as officials say they think partial meltdowns have occurred at two reactors damaged by the earthquake and tsunami, and four others experienced serious cooling problems. They also said they were bracing for a second explosion, similar to the one that happened at the No. 1 reactor at Fukushima Daiichi Saturday when they vented hydrogen from the overheating plant, as they try to release pressure at the second failing reactor. The Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said as many as 160 people may have been exposed to radiation around the plant, and the Japanese news media said three workers at the station were suffering from radiation sickness. Though officials insist that the radiation leaks were small and didn’t pose a major health risk, they did distribute iodine tablets to keep the thyroid gland from being exposed to radiation.
First off, how many countries have been hit with a triple whammy like Japan has? A huge 8.9 earthquake, killer tsunamis, and now potential nuclear disasters are crushing down on Japan. Nations from around the world are speeding towards Japan to offer humanitarian aid, rescue personnel and expertise, food, medical supplies, blankets, technical advice. Japan has not faced anything like this disaster since WWII.
