from wben: Karen Eckert, whose sister Beverly Eckert died in the crash of Flight 3407 in Clarence, will attend President Obama'sState of the Union speech tonight as a guest of Senator Charles Schumer. Since the February 2009 crash, Eckert and other families of crash victims have worked to make historic improvements in flight safety. Her sister Beverly was a key leader of 9/11 family groups. Beverly Eckert lost her husband, Sean Rooney, when the Twin Towers fell. Schumer said Karen Eckert has worked to pressure decision makers to make much-needed improvements in pilot training and air passenger awareness and safety.
from mike whitney: Barack Obama rode into office in January, 2008 on a wave of optimism. By the time the ballots are counted in Tuesday's midterm elections, Obama's personal approval ratings will have fallen to historic lows and he will be universally recognized as the man who brought ruin on the Democratic party.
While still popular among party loyalists, the president has become radioactive among independents--the critical group of “swing voters” who have fled Camp Obama en masse frustrated with both the lack of audacity and/or change. No one figured they were electing George W. Bush to a third term in office when they cast their vote for the inspiring senator from Illinois two years ago. But that's what they got. To say that supporters are disappointed in Obama's performance, is a gross understatement of the pessimism that's spread like Kudzu among the party faithful. People have become increasingly cynical as they realize that neither party provides a path to real structural change. The system is broken; Obama has merely exposed the rot at the heart of American democracy.
from wvgazette: A third party candidate in West Virginia's U.S. Senate race questions whether the Sept. 11 attacks were masterminded by Osama bin Laden and carried out by al-Qaida terrorists. Mountain Party nominee Jesse Johnson told The Associated Press that he is also not convinced that hijacked airliners caused the collapse of buildings at the World Trade Center. Calling 9/11 a crime of the century, Johnson said it has never been investigated. He discounts the work of the bipartisan commission that issued a 585-page report on the attacks in 2004. Johnson at first declined to say what he thinks happened or who was behind it. He later said he did not know who the culprits were. But he also questioned why U.S. air defenses did not stop the hijacked airplanes. Johnson spoke to the AP Tuesday.
video update2: constitution party senate candidate in wv questions 'foreknowledge' of wtc7 collapse in live tv debate from aaron dykes: Jeff Becker, running for Senate in West Virginia in the Constitution Party, raised questions about the "foreknowledge" of WTC Building 7′s collapse on September 11th during a live televised debate that was carried nationally on C-SPAN. Indeed, even announces proudly at the very top of his homepage that he "Becker’s campaign websitecalls for new Senate investigation of 9/11." During the October 18 debate, Becker responded to a question about the "continued build-up of troops in Afghanistan” by telling the audience that “We need to first take a look at what happened on 9/11. There were actually three buildings that collapsed on September 11th.”
what obama won't say from juan cole: Fellow Americans, and Iraqis who are watching this speech, I have come here this evening not to declare a victory or to mourn a defeat on the battlefield, but to apologize from the bottom of my heart for a series of illegal actions and grossly incompetent policies pursued by the government of the United States of America, in defiance of domestic US law, international treaty obligations, and both American and Iraqi public opinion... We cannot undo what has been done. We cannot pretend that the United States did not violate the United Nations charter and the Geneva Conventions. But we can make amends. We can seek redemption as a nation. And our salvation lies in forswearing permanent war, aggressive war, undeclared war, and police actions as a way of life.
Byrd, a nine-term Democrat, was known as a master of the chamber's often-arcane rules and as the self-proclaimed "champion of the Constitution," a jealous guardian of congressional power.
He was also known as the "King of Pork," using top positions on the Senate Appropriations Committee to steer federal spending to his home state -- one of the nation's poorest.
Byrd relished the title.
"Pork, to the critic, is service to the people who enjoy some of the good things in life, and I've been happy to bring to West Virginia the projects to which they refer. I have no apology for it," he said.
He was an outspoken opponent of the war in Iraq, calling his 2002 vote against a "blind and improvident" authorization of military action the proudest moment of his career.
When Byrd entered Congress in January 1953, a postage stamp cost 3 cents and American kids were clamoring for a new toy called Mr. Potato Head. Harry Truman was president, Winston Churchill was Britain's prime minister, and Josef Stalin was still the Soviet Union's leader.
update: virginia label to reissue sen. byrd's 1978 album from ap: A Virginia record label plans to reissue a bluegrass album recorded by the late U.S. Sen. Robert Byrd of West Virginia. The West Virginia Democrat was the longest-serving member of the Senate. He died Monday at 92. The 1978 "Mountain Fiddler" album features Byrd performing old-time and bluegrass songs on fiddle, along with Country Gentlemen band members Doyle Lawson on guitar, James Bailey on banjo, and Spider Gilliam on bass. County Records owner Dave Freeman says the reissue project had been in the works for about 18 months. The CD will be available nationally July 27.
They had to create an access road above it before they could begin drilling four shafts to release methane and carbon monoxide. Gov. Joe Manchin said at a news briefing Tuesday that it could be Wednesday night before the first hole is drilled.
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from wvrecord: The Justice Department on Tuesday announced an agreement with Alpha Natural Resources totaling nearly $210 million in payments connected to the 2010 Upper Big Branch mine disaster. An explosion on April 5, 2010, claimed the lives of 29 miners at the site, which was then owned by Massey Energy. Alpha took over Massey in a merger earlier this year. The agreement announced Tuesday -- which coincidentally was West Virginia Miner's Day -- is the largest ever for the resolution of a criminal investigation of a mine disaster. A press release from U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin says the agreement "addresses only the corporate criminal liability of the former Massey, not potential criminal charges for any individual."
