News Clips

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
Make of it what you will. I never heard of anything like this. historically you might point to the 'Revolt of the Admirals' in 1949 where senior and very distinguished members of the Navy were at odd with their civilian secretary but that was a different kettle of fish. This will all be written off as partisan politics.

Could be, probably is - buy Joe's f*****g wobbly.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nati...196288-fdf9-11ea-9ceb-061d646d9c67_story.html

Nearly 500 former senior military, civilian leaders signal support for Biden
September 24, 2020 at 5:30 a.m. EDT By Karen DeYoung

Nearly 500 retired senior military officers, as well as former Cabinet secretaries, service chiefs and other officials, have signed an open letter in support of former vice president Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, saying that he has “the character, principles, wisdom and leadership necessary to address a world on fire.”

The letter, published Thursday morning by National Security Leaders for Biden, is the latest in a series of calls for President Trump’s defeat in the November election.

“We are former public servants who have devoted our careers, and in many cases risked our lives, for the United States,” it says. “We are generals, admirals, senior noncommissioned officers, ambassadors and senior civilian national security leaders. We are Republicans and Democrats, and Independents. We love our country.

“Unfortunately, we also fear for it.”

The letter has been signed by 489 people.

Not all of those Republicans who previously have broken ranks with Trump have called for Biden’s election, although the numbers are growing. Last month, more than 60 former national security officials who served in Republican administrations, including Trump’s, signed a statement calling him “unfit to serve as President.” Noting that some of them held different policy positions from Biden, they nonetheless called for his election, saying it was “imperative that we stop Trump’s assault on our nation’s values and institutions and reinstate the moral foundations of our democracy.”


Other former Trump officials, including retired Gen. Jim Mattis, who served as defense secretary, and former national security adviser John Bolton, who have been sharply critical of Trump, have neither signed any of the missives nor said they would vote for Biden.

The names of some who signed the new letter have appeared on previous statements this year — and a handful were “Never Trumpers” in 2016. But most are new to the growing number of prominent national security figures publicly urging Biden’s election.

Retired Air Force Gen. Charles G. Boyd, who signed the new letter, recorded a video for the group’s Twitter account.

“I spent 36 years in the United States Air Force, almost seven of those as a prisoner of war in Vietnam,” he said in the video. “Since my return, I’ve been a Republican, but quietly.”

“I fervently believe that military officers should not be involved in presidential politics, even when retired,” said Boyd, who is the only former POW to have reached four-star rank, and served as deputy commander of the U.S. European Command. “But this year is different. Donald Trump’s assault on the rule of law that makes a democracy possible has been so egregious I’ve decided to speak out. . . . We need to vote for Joe Biden this year. I’m going to vote for him. I hope you do, too.”

Trump has spoken often of what he believes is his support from the military, although earlier this month he said that some leaders at the Pentagon probably weren’t “in love with me.” Some military leaders, he said, “want to do nothing but fight wars so that all of those wonderful companies that make the bombs and make the planes and make everything else stay happy.”

The troops, he indicated, were happy with him. His remarks came at a White House news conference after an article in the Atlantic quoted unnamed senior administration officials as saying Trump had called American troops “suckers” and “losers” for dying in battle.

A poll of active-duty service members conducted last month by Military Times, in conjunction with the Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University, indicated a drop in military support for Trump. It showed Biden with a 41 percent to 37 percent advantage over the president, with remaining active-duty service members saying they were planning either not to vote or to support a third-party candidate. A similarly timed survey by the Military Times in 2016 gave Trump a two-to-one advantage over Hillary Clinton.

The new letter, addressed “To Our Fellow Citizens,” says that Trump “has demonstrated he is not equal to the enormous responsibilities of his office; he cannot rise to meet challenges large or small. Thanks to his disdainful attitude and his failures, our allies no longer trust or respect us, and our enemies no longer fear us.

“Climate change continues unabated, as does North Korea’s nuclear program. The president has ceded influence to a Russian adversary who puts bounties on the heads of American military personnel, and his trade war against China has only harmed America’s farmers and manufacturers.”

Biden, it says, “has the character, principles, wisdom, and leadership necessary to address a world on fire. That is why Joe Biden must be the next President of the United States; why we vigorously support his election; and why we urge our fellow citizens to do the same.”

Retired Navy Adm. Charles S. “Steve” Abbot, who joined the newly formed National Security Leaders for Biden last spring and is part of its leadership team, served as commander of the U.S. Sixth Fleet and deputy commander of the U.S. European Command. After retiring from the military, he became deputy homeland security adviser to former president George W. Bush.

It was while he was in the White House during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Abbot said in an interview, that he gained “some appreciation for what it’s like in the White House when you have to deal with a major crisis. . . . I thought they did it with skill,” he said.

It was what he considered Trump’s leadership failures in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic that led him to speak out, Abbot said. “I think the ship of state is listing badly, and we need a new captain.”




 

nivek

As Above So Below
America under siege on Biden's watch as cyberattackers cripple the country

They cut off a pipeline to the Eastern Seaboard for days, tried to poison a Florida water-treatment plant, held hospital IT systems hostage and stole an undetermined trove of information in the SolarWinds hack – all as the Biden administration searches for a way to respond.

Cyberattacks are on the rise, and they’re increasingly targeting major infrastructure installations, like transportation hubs, energy facilities and utility companies.

The technology to prevent many of these attacks already exists, experts say, and hacks targeting critical infrastructure, which can threaten American lives, are akin to acts of war.

(More on the link)

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JahaRa

Noble
America under siege on Biden's watch as cyberattackers cripple the country

They cut off a pipeline to the Eastern Seaboard for days, tried to poison a Florida water-treatment plant, held hospital IT systems hostage and stole an undetermined trove of information in the SolarWinds hack – all as the Biden administration searches for a way to respond.

Cyberattacks are on the rise, and they’re increasingly targeting major infrastructure installations, like transportation hubs, energy facilities and utility companies.

The technology to prevent many of these attacks already exists, experts say, and hacks targeting critical infrastructure, which can threaten American lives, are akin to acts of war.

(More on the link)

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Who is "They" and is it one group or many? No way I am convinced these things would not happen with other presidents. It is silly to blame the president.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Gas runs out in Biden's backyard: 88% of D.C's gas stations are empty as fuel price climbs to $3.04 a gallon after Colonial Pipeline reopens: Russian hackers DarkSide 'shut down' after getting $5M ransom



Nearly 90 percent of Washington DC's gas stations had run out of fuel by Friday. It came despite Colonial Pipeline ramping up deliveries in the wake of the cyberattack that shut down its system for six days. Widespread panic buying is still ongoing, which has left filling stations across the Southeast out of gas - even in areas far from the pipeline. The average national gasoline price climbed to almost $3.04 on Friday, which the most expensive since October 2014.

President Biden said supplies should start to return to normal this weekend. Colonial Pipeline announced late Thursday it had restarted its entire pipeline system after the six-day disruptive shutdown. Some states experienced modest improvements but still had a lot of gasoline outages, including North Carolina 70 percent of gas stations had run dry.


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nivek

As Above So Below
The White House is apparently overrun with flies

The White House is abuzz, and not just with political gossip.

In a recent call with President Biden's senior adviser Cedric Richmond, former Trump adviser Jared Kushner offered not only job advice, but also his condolences regarding the White House fly problem, sources told Politico.


"Yeah man, they're like bats," Kushner said to Richmond in what Politico called a rare "point of agreement" between the two officials. "Good luck," Kushner added.

The White House's bug issue is reportedly ongoing, extending back through the Trump presidency to at least the Obama administration, per Politico. Former National Security spokesman under President Barack Obama Tommy Vietor said, "We had bug zappers going 24/7."


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JahaRa

Noble
The White House is apparently overrun with flies

The White House is abuzz, and not just with political gossip.

In a recent call with President Biden's senior adviser Cedric Richmond, former Trump adviser Jared Kushner offered not only job advice, but also his condolences regarding the White House fly problem, sources told Politico.


"Yeah man, they're like bats," Kushner said to Richmond in what Politico called a rare "point of agreement" between the two officials. "Good luck," Kushner added.

The White House's bug issue is reportedly ongoing, extending back through the Trump presidency to at least the Obama administration, per Politico. Former National Security spokesman under President Barack Obama Tommy Vietor said, "We had bug zappers going 24/7."


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They probably need to clean the dead bodies out of the closets.
 

JahaRa

Noble
Who wants to be an astronaut?

Discovery Channel's 'Who Wants To Be An Astronaut' will launch a contest winner into orbit with Axiom Space | Space

The Discovery Channel is launching a new reality show competition series, "Who Wants To Be An Astronaut," that aims to send ordinary people into space, the network announced Today (May 18).


Axiom Space says it will rocket the lucky winner of the competition to the International Space Station for an eight-day mission. They aim for this mission to follow the launch of the world's first all-private mission to the orbiting complex, which the company hopes to launch in 2022.

signed a Space Act Agreement with NASA, but the agency clarified that so far, the agreement doesn't say that the winner can fly to the space station as the series advertises.
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
I'm sure Ford appreciated the gaffe a whole bunch

Biden takes new F-150 for a test drive: 'This sucker's quick' - CNNPolitics

Biden takes new electric F-150 for a test drive: 'This sucker's quick'
(CNN)It's not every day an American president gets to speed down a driving course in an electric pick-up truck trailed by Secret Service. But on Tuesday, President Joe Biden did just that.

Biden made an unscheduled visit to a Ford driving course at which safety tests are normally conducted, and had the opportunity to test drive the new Ford F-150 Lightning -- the electric vehicle Ford is manufacturing at a plant in Dearborn, Michigan.
"This sucker's quick," said Biden, donning aviator sunglasses, from the driver's seat after pulling the truck up to reporters and photographers.
Asked if he would buy one of the vehicles, Biden said he would, and that he thinks he went 0-60 miles per hour in about 4.4 seconds -- information it appears he wasn't supposed to share. A Ford representative told reporters at the course that the information about the vehicle's speed wasn't supposed to be public until the truck's official reveal tomorrow, but said it was OK and laughed.


Biden declined to respond to a question about Israel, a topic that loomed over the Tuesday trip to Dearborn, which has one of the largest Arab American populations in the country. Over the weekend and into this week, protests have taken place in the city outside Detroit in support of Palestinians in Gaza amid ongoing violence in the Middle East between Hamas and Israel.
When a reporter asked if they could ask about Israel, Biden responded, "No, you can't, not unless you get in front of the car as I step on it. I'm only teasing." The joke elicited a couple laughs from the press corps but largely fell flat.
Then he floored it across the driving course.
The unscheduled stop was part of a larger tour to promote the new pick-up and the President's infrastructure proposal.
This isn't the first time Biden has gotten behind the wheel to advocate for getting more electrical vehicles on the road.
During his 2020 president campaign, Biden released an ad called: "Joe Biden Gets Vetted."
Sitting behind the wheel of his 1967 Corvette, Biden talked about the potential for an electric model, saying, "I believe that we can own the 21st century market again by moving to electric vehicles."



4.4 seconds 0-60 is actually pretty fast. Here's a dated comparison:

1969-Chevrolet-Corvette-427.jpg

1969 Chevrolet Corvette 427 — 5.3 seconds
September 1969

So take the most badass old muscle car you can think of and that electric pickup truck will get up and walk away from it from a traffic light. Same for my current F150 with a little bitty 2.7 liter Ecoboost. Steve McQueen would ditch that Mustang in a blink for one of these.
 

JahaRa

Noble
Rare plutonium from space found in deep-sea crust | Space

Rare plutonium from space found in deep-sea crust

A rare version of the radioactive element plutonium embedded in Earth's crust below the deep sea is providing new clues as to how heavy metals form in the stars.


The new research finds that the isotope, called plutonium-244, may arrive on Earth in tandem with iron-60, a lighter metal known to form in supernovas, explosions that occur during the death throes of many types of stars. This finding suggests that supernovas may create both heavy metals — although it's possible that other events, such as the mergers of neutron stars, are responsible for at least some of the plutonium-244.
 
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