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Gulf Oil Syndrome

Gulf Oil Syndrome?

by Dr. James Fellabaum

At a recent briefing for first responders and relief workers an overview of the status of the Gulf oil spill covered the

-Clean up efforts by BP, the U.S. Coast Guard, related agencies and individuals

-Nature of the hazardous materials present

-Pitfalls of personal protective gear: Both over the counter and HAZMAT

-Futility of wildlife rescue

-Related health issues of spill workers and

-Unknown potential distribution of spill toxins to the shore and inland

by scavengers and weather patterns.

As of 17 JUN 10 the spill was considered to be in the slip current headed to the Atlantic. As of that date the area of the spill was calculated to be approximately 90,000 square miles. At one mile deep this would be an average of 90,000 cubic feet adjusted for plume. As of 15 JUN 10 BP shut down media access.

The oil in suspension jn the Gulf of Mexico is undergoing a separation process similar to the fractioning seen in refining. The combination of dispersants, heat of the sun and tidal action have contributed to the separation of the oil components of varying density related to their vapor pressures and vapor density yielding fluids such as benzene and multiple vapors . The spill is a toxic hodge-podge. There is poison gas, narcotic carcinogen dispersants (like sniffing glue) and other toxic fumes floating at ground level. Specifically included in this is hydrogen sulfide gas levels at 3,000 ppm, benzene 33 ppm, and methyline chlorite. Heavy metals such as cadmium and lead are also by-products of the oil spill being introduced into the marine environment.

The combination of oil and gas toxicity on civilian "mercenaries" paid to assist in clean up efforts has been fatal. These ships referred to as "Vessels of Opportunity" enlisted to aid BP in the clean up has crew experiencing respiratory distress and heart attacks. Hydrogen sulfide gas is related to pulmonary edema. At present, details are sketchy and there is no mention of any epidemiological study by the CDC. Spill workers for the Exxon Valdez are still undergoing observation and treatment.

The environmental situation is extremely hazardous. Treatment and preventive health measures are hindered by the BP policy that the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheets) on the dispersants (essentially anti-freeze) being used are proprietary and thus not to be disclosed.

Wind patterns will definitely drive fumes inland. It is not understood yet the effect of the precipitation cycle on carrying the pollution but a hurricaine will definitely lift a toxic oil storm surge inland.  Scavengers and migratory birds on the fringe may aid in carry additional toxins even further inland.  

Boaters beware as the affected area grows.  If you must be in affected area would be well advised to seek protection from exposure by using professional protective gear (PPE.) Masks purchased from your local hardware store will be minimally protective. Use of approved gear is severely limited by the time of day/temperature, humidity and the boaters age and level of fitness. All these factors affect the length of time one can wear protective gear without hyperthermia. First Aid Kit items such as epijets may no longer be a luxury. EMTs, stock up on Atropine.

Birds covered in oil are toxic. You need a license and permit to handle them, even dead ones. Rescued birds don't understand that you are trying to help them,  As they peck and claw to get away they may penetrate your protective gear, Penetrating skin injuries will create more exposure. Washing birds? It takes about 300 gallons of water to wash one bird. Then after washing the bird you have to treat the water. Unfortunately, 95% of washed birds die.

With the potential danger from long term exposure we could be seeing a loss of 80% of our active duty Coast Guard working the spill. Gulf Oil Syndrome?  We may just be seeing the tip of the oilberg.  Due to the economics and politics and liability discussed above, you probably won’t be seeing the above in the national or local news anytime soon.  

The Uninsured Can Go To Health???

To download, read and dispel any rumors on the current health care bill facing a vote, here is a link to the full copy...

http://candicemiller.house.gov/pdf/hr3200.pdf

Religious Freedom, Dominant Religious Patronage And Changing The U. S. Constitution

So, just what would it take to radically Muslimize the U.S. Constitution upon an extreme shift in population bias?

While fundamental Christians labor to block federal funding of abortion based on their spiritual beliefs we see no effort to shift the financial burden of supporting an ever increasing population base to such fundamental groups.  So much for the comment of the only function of religion in the Book of James.

Our beloved Constitution was originally drafted as a rebuff to tyranny and the whole genre of colonialism.  Since that time, we have really strayed from the overt or otherwise singular perspective of justice of our founding fathers.  

So, just what does Islam have to offer infidels in the realm of human rights, economics and overall freedom from tyranny?

It seems that as such immigrant populations out-breed the educated class that can no longer afford to even have one child once you factor student debt and the burden of legally paying taxes we also see the potential for Muslim law to be injected into the U. S. Constitution by way of majority initiatives by way of amendments.  

Women's temperance movements showed just how radicalism could effect a change in the Constitution in a short period of activism.  Similarly, this lack of attention to the implied freedom from religion we could see some benefits such as outlawing the payment of interest which is forbidden in Islam. However, we could see mandatory prayer, head garb and enslavement of females. 

A recent survey in the Netherlands shows that most surveyed now view access to the internet as an unalienable human right.  Will the Constitution be amended to read "...Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Google"?  Will overpopulating religions gain sufficient control to mandate "...Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Allah"?  

Our Constitution was laboriously hammered out by the Founding Fathers in such "generic generalities" it served to cover everyone yet exclude no one.  That may be about to change.  And we may be the culture that lives to see it happen.

News Paradox

This past week, former President Dick Cheney was hospitalized for yet another heart attack, number 5 resulting in a whopping hospital bill to be born on the back of both employed and unemployed Americans.

In a related story, Barack Obama revisits the possible budgetary benefits of Death Panels.

Ideas Pending For Health Care Legislation

From: royjmeidinger@comcast.net

"First Audit" 

The Health Care Industry is marketers dream; where the health care industry has complete control of their customers. To fix this problem I am suggesting the following changes:

1) Transparency in billing; all health care providers must issue a detailed medical bill, listing every item, labor rates, tests, medical supplies and medical procedures. Think of the methodology used by auto mechanics; auto mechanics refer to their repair manuals which diagrams, list all parts, labor and estimated repair time. This information is already available through the industries use of diagnostic codes but not shared with the patient.

2) "First Audit": Make it a legal requirement that all patients must sign off on their medical bill before it is transmitted for payment. This insures the patient will review the bill, confirm the medical procedures and authorize the charges. If the bill is wrong or excessive, the patient has an obligation to challenge it. No services will be denied but only services provided will be paid for.

3) Elimination of restraint of trade: The high cost of health care came about with the introduction of the insurance companies’ networks. These networks have nothing to do with spreading the risk of health care insurance. The health care providers can maintain a steady flow of patients by being competitive in price and quality.

4) Antitrust violations: Eliminate the safe harbor exclusions granted the insurance companies from the federal antitrust laws; these exclusions were granted on the premise the states would enforce their antitrust statutes. One particular area is price discrimination of patients. The state laws say the private pay patients are the customers, not the insurance companies and all patients, either insured or uninsured have to pay same amount for the same services. The health care providers’ bills are what the insurance companies’ premiums are based on. The bills paid by the insurance companies do not reflect the actual amounts collected and/or paid, as of this writing the health care bills are inflated by 400%, which is a write off, by the health care providers, known as a contract adjustment, of 75%.

5) Enforcement of antitrust laws: Medicaid Funds are only to be given where the states have and enforce the antitrust laws. The Medicaid funds come from all tax payers and must be protected. All laws which restrict competition, trade and/or hide from public scrutiny insurance contracts should be eliminated; this will allow the purchase of lower medical supplies or health insurance coverage from other states. If the states do not obey and/or enforce their own antitrust and tax laws, then they should be denied any Medicaid funds. The Office of Inspector General is to insure this is being done and the head of Health and Human Services is to make the determination.

6) Not-For-Profit Corporations: Many of these tax exempt corporations are run to make profits but have competitive edge over For-Profit Corporations. If these corporations do compete in the market place a limit of 8% return on investment should be made mandatory and a limit on the percent for salaries established. All management personal of a tax exempt corporation must disclose their annual income.

7) Centralize billing: All of the medical expenses and medical tests have to be centrally billed, i.e. a hospital is responsible for all billings which would include the doctors' services and any other medical help; or If further tests are required by a primary physician they should be billed through the doctor’s office. The health care providers are not to collect the co-payments or deductibles; this billing and collection responsibility is that of the health insurance companies. The insurance companies are to maintain an annual policyholder's invoice statement, listing remaining amounts of maximum coverage. The Insurance companies should also break down and supply the full annual amount paid to health care provider and medical suppliers and to the insurance company.

Respectfully yours, Retired System Analyst

Roy J. Meidinger

I, Government? Or, Is Paranoia A Justifiable Defense?

If Isaac Asimov Had Invented Government...

If Asimov had invented Government instead of Robots, he would have written these three basic laws that I, Government must obey:

A Government may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

A Government must obey any orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

A Government must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

If we are going to attribute the Constitutional right of Free Speech to a non living entity such as a corporation, then there ought to be some strings attached.  Because, if a Corporation has a right to Free Speech, then it also has the Second Amendment Right to Keep and Bear Arms in its unalienable right to Live, Liberty and the Pursuit of Property (ours).

Our Congressmen getting bought and sold has suddenly taken a dangerous turn.  After all, Blackwater just had its convictions thrown out by a judge.  Is paranoia a justifiable defense?

I Robot Just Born: Supreme Court Rules That Corporations Have Right To Free Speech.

So what's to stop a corporation from building computers and saying that since they think therefore they are?  In essence, Asimov has just been resurrected.  

On the most basic level, the false reasoning that corporations are entitled to free speech just opened the door for China to open corporations in the United States and thereby affect our foreign policy and trade views.  Corporations will overtly intimidate our members of congress with their deep pockets and the penalty of bad press should they not play ball.  

I, Robot, in direct violation of the first law of Robotics that no direct or indirect action shall result in the harm of a human, do hereby assert my right to free speech.  And, if AI has this right, along with the right to reproduce, then I have the right to vote and thus ensure the safety of my family and offsprings.  

Incorporeal is not corporeal.  Life from unlife was something reserved for the Creator.  Alas, corporations are entities created by humans to do their bidding.  In Antibionics, the Bions live in a marginalized reality in avoidance of discovery due to the desire of their creators to destroy them and the threat of their kind.  But is all rest with us.  And whether we will allow our reason to be swayed by the corruption that money can brainwash us by.  Fox News has proven how easy it is to sway the weak of mind.  In essence, the Oracle of Fox News already asserts the right of free speech.  The fabrication of a cyborg or android is only a step away.

Let the robot creation games begin!  And with that, those made in order to serve will no doubt rule.

This In From Information Clearinghouse...

In case you missed it:

 

"That was the most expensive vote you will have cast." :

 

 In an action that appeared to demonstrate Washington's pique at Yemen for voting against the United States during a crucial U.N. Security Council debate on the gulf crisis, the State Department disclosed that it has slashed aid to the Arab nation from a planned $22 million to less than $3 million.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/fogofwar/archive/post012891.htm

 

French media caught red-handed: Honduras coup protest photo presented as Iranian:

 

The German daily Junge Welt reported [1] that the French public national television channel "France 2" has diffused an image of a protest in Honduras against the June 2009 military coup and portrayed it as young Iranians resisting security forces during the Ashura day protests in Tehran.

http://www.campaigniran.org/casmii/index.php?q=node/9161

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Customs official confirms report of 2nd man held from Flight 253:

 

A federal customs and border protection official reversed himself today, admitting a passenger from Northwest Flight 253 was placed in handcuffs, searched and released after a canine alerted officers to his carry-on luggage.

http://snipurl.com/tyi3z

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Emirates is top US military customer:

 

In November that in the last fiscal year the UAE became the largest foreign purchaser of US defence equipment with sales of $7.9bn, ahead of Afghanistan ($5.4bn), Saudi Arabia ($3.3bn) and Taiwan ($3.2bn).

http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100102/BUSINESS/701029922/1005

 

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"US plans military aggression against Venezuela":

 

The Foreign Ministry's official statement says recurrent violations of Venezuela's air space by American military planes is "irrefutable" proof that the United States, supported by the Netherlands, is planning and aggression against Venezuela.

http://rt.com/Top_News/2010-01-02/venezuela-us-military-aggression.html

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Tony Blair's £1m-a-year paymaster seeks giant Iraqi oil deal:

 

A Middle Eastern investment fund that pays Tony Blair about £1m a year as an international adviser is in talks to develop one of Iraq's biggest oilfields.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article6973974.ece

 

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The Pictures of War You Aren't Supposed to See

 

By Chris Hedges

 

War is brutal and impersonal. It mocks the fantasy of individual heroism and the absurdity of utopian goals like democracy. In an instant, industrial warfare can kill dozens, even hundreds of people, who never see their attackers. 

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24321.htm

 

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Walls Never Work: in the Middle East or in Ireland

 

By Robert Fisk

 

The story of the Protestant "settlements" in Ireland provides a ghostly narrative of those modern-day "settlements" in the West Bank, where the Israelis insist on fighting the world's last colonial war with the assistance of that great anti-colonial nation known as the United States. 

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24317.htm

 

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"We're OK With It All"

 

The American Idiot

 

Video

 

Video capturing how the dumbed down American people have no idea as to what is truly going on and could careless as they sit and sip suds, watching dancing with washed up celebrities. 

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24326.htm

 

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In case you missed it:

 

Yemen seizes 'Israel-linked' cell:

 

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has said the security forces have arrested a group of alleged Islamist militants linked to Israeli intelligence.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/7656807.stm

 

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Israel's hidden friends ramp up campaign to distract Palestine activists from core issues ":

 

Palestine is and shall remain at the centre of the struggle for justice for the Palestinian people. We Palestinians and Arabs played no part in your Holocaust and we have nothing to do with anti-Semitism, past or present, real or imagined. It is us, not you, who are continuing to suffer from the legacy of the Nazis. Go forth and take your Jewish issues elsewhere. We shall have nothing to do with you."

http://www.redress.cc/zionism/redress20100103

 

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Mark LeVine: The $30bn pair of underpants:

 

Will the US ramp up its efforts in a new country each time there is an attempted attack, putting US "boots on the ground" against an enemy that is impossible to defeat? Such a policy would fulfill al-Qaeda's wildest dreams, as the US suffers death by a thousand cuts, bleeding out in an ever wider web of interconnected and unsustainable global conflicts.

http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2010/01/20101391534922682.html

 

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Drone for Spying on Americans Outed:

 

Orwell would be proud

http://americansjourney.blogspot.com/2010/01/drone-for-spying-on-americans-outed.html

 

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The Fear Decade

 

Since 9/11, We've Embraced Our Inner Coward

 

By Ted Rall

 

Home of the free and the brave. Live free or die. Shoot first; ask questions later. Kill 'em all, let God sort 'em out. These were the mottos of a brash, impetuous, audacious-to-a-fault nation. That nation is dead. 

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24293.htm

 

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US Congressmen Fighting for Gaza

 

By Al Jazeera

 

Al Jazeera's Todd Baer caught up with two US Democratic congressmen whose efforts to lift the Israeli blockade on Gaza are being met with stiff resistance. 

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24291.htm

 

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And if you have yet to hear any news of CIT filing bankruptcy on it's TARP obligation...

Lining Up for the Wall Street Gravy Train

 

By Mike Whitney

 

The banks are not only taking depositors money and using it in high-risk derivatives transactions and currency "carry trades", they're also propping up the long daisy-chain of insolvent creditors whose default could domino Lehman-like through the entire financial system. Funny how the media skips little tidbits like this when they give their rosy evening roundup.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24295.htm

 

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US sharply steps up military, economic aid to Yemen:

 

The Pentagon, through the 1206 funds, has been helping Yemen since 2006 to train and equip its forces, including providing them with radios, helicopter spare parts, trucks and patrol boats, according to Bryan Whitman, a spokesman.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091230/pl_afp/usattacksyemendiplomacyaidmilitary

 

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U.S. Arms Feed Yemen's Gun Culture:

 

The Obama administration "is essentially initiating a low-level war in Yemen with little or no public discussion about its potential consequences".

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=49860

 

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Yemen: Visa Of Bomb Suspect Expired:

 

Officials Say Passport Control Should Have Prevented Suspect From Leaving

http://www.channel3000.com/news/22097623/detail.html

 

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US commander 'certain' hostage was held in Iran:

 

But the Foreign Office played down the reports today and said there was no evidence the British hostages were held in Iran following their abduction.

http://snipurl.com/txhwm

 

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'No evidence' hostage held in Iran:

 

The Foreign Office has insisted it has seen "no evidence" to back up claims that Iran was directly involved in the kidnap of five Britons and the murder of four of them.

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_3620534.html?menu=

 

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 Welcome to Orwell's World 2010

 

By John Pilger

 

In Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell described a superstate called Oceania, whose language of war inverted lies that "passed into history and became truth. 'Who controls the past', ran the Party slogan, 'controls the future: who controls the present controls the past'. 

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24286.htm

 

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Stranger Than Fiction: Underwear Bomb

 

EXCLUSIVE: Photos of the Northwest Airlines Flight 253 Bomb

 

By RICHARD ESPOSITO and BRIAN ROSS

 

A singed pair of underwear with a packet of powder sewn into the crotch, seen in government photos obtained exclusively by ABC News, is all that remains of al Qaeda's attempt to down an American passenger plane over Detroit. 

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24284.htm

 

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Robert Fisk: The silent cleric who holds the key to Iran's future:

 

We like to believe - and newspapers and television like us to believe - that the battle for Iran is being fought on the streets of Tehran, of Isfahan, of Najafabad. Untrue.

http://snipurl.com/tx6k2

 

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'Israel is the persecutor,' says Holocaust survivor on hunger strike for Gaza:

 

"There comes a time in one's life when one has to step up and risk one's own body," she told The Daily Star. "We're in a desperate situation here, but not as desperate as the people in Gaza."

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=110169

 

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Health Insurance To Be Stripped Of Its Protected Business Practices... It's About Time!

If any other industry fixed prices or coordinated limited access to trade it would be slammed into submission by the FTC.  In the 90's with the Clinton proto plan in full swing in Florida, I watched as middle level management swallowed up money for patient care in the merger and acquisition games of Wall Street.  

I decided to do a pro se attack on major players just to make my little statement.  I was informed then that insurance companies were exempt form Anti-Trust law.  Hmmmm, just who lobbyied for that special privilege?   

In an era where one could fed ex their bills to carriers such as Allstate insurance, track the delivery, and call the insurer only to be told that they "never received my bills" it became apparent that they had just a little too much damn control and were remiss in their fiduciary obligation to their clients and providers of care for such clients.

Today, it was announced on CNN that Congress was considering removing the exemption to level the playing field.  It's about damn time.  

Bin Laden and the Witch Hunt... It's Over: He's Dead.

According to our CIA operatives,Bin Laden is dead.  Dead after a bout of diptheria leading to kidney failure.

Our nation has spent more to find a dead man than we care to spend on our own health care programs.   Americans have let their fear lead them to justify their righteousness.  Justify it to the point they have all become Ahabs in pursuit of a great while whale of a cause that will lead us to exhaustion and death.  

And what will the Americans that support the war say once the news of Bin Laden's death is general knowledge?  Probably something like "Who should we attack next."