Tuesday, September 7, 2010 at 8:58AM | Geoff Holtzman | Share Article | Email Article | Print Article The commander of all U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan delivered an acute message to a Florida pastor who wants to commemorate the upcoming anniversary of the 9/11 attacks by burning copies of the Islamic holy book. The Wall Street Journal has more…
UPDATE, 6:00PM - The Coast Guard is backing away from a report it issued earlier today that a fire on an oil rig off the Louisiana coast created a 100 mile-wide oil slick in the Gulf. The Washington Post has more on the story…
WDSU in New Orleans is reporting the following: “One person is missing after a rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico, about 80 miles south of Vermilion Bay, the U.S. Coast Guard said.It happened around 9 a.m., and as of 10:15 a.m., the rig was still burning, the Coast Guard said. Rescue crews from New Orleans and Houston are responding.Officials said there were 13 people aboard the rig, and all but one are accounted for.Two helicopters from Houston and three from New Orleans are responding to the blast. Two other fixed-wing planes and two cutter ships are also responding, the Coast Guard said.The rig is owned by Mariner Energy.Stay with WDSU.com for the latest on this developing story.”
House Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence (R-Ind.) told CNBC’s Larry Kudlow that outgoing White House economic adviser Christina Romer was wrong to yesterday promote increased government spending.
Republicans, said Pence, are “going to continue to demand that this administration and this Congress make it clear that no American will see a tax increase in January of next year. You know, it really is extraordinary to hear Christina Romer on her last day on the job continuing to advocate higher taxes on job creators in this country.”
BP is scheduled to remove a failed blowout preventer from the Maconda well that spilled millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.
The removal of the equipment will likely happen either Saturday or Sunday and precedes final steps towards plugging the leak for good. Retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen said in a briefing that due to rough seas likely caused by Hurricane Earl had prevented BP from continuing with the removal.
“We believe in the next 24 to 36 hours, we will enter a weather window that will allow us to proceed,” he said.
The relief well being drilled is nearing its target depth, lacking only 50 feet before it intersects with the Macondo well and is projected to reach the damaged well after the Labor Day holiday.
The non-profit organization Drums and Disabilities (DAD) has submitted a proposal to New York Governor David Paterson and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to build a therapy center in place of a proposed Islamic community center and Mosque.
“Our proposal calls for a state-of-the art DAD Program Therapy Center that will replace the Mosque at Ground Zero, immediately,” says DAD Program President/CEO Pat Gesualdo. “It will be a facility that will serve all religions, from Christian to Muslim, and everything in between, and will be funded by our own organization, our own community, and our own Government. We will include free therapy services for special needs children whose parents were victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Police, Fire and Rescue Workers, and Wounded Troops.”
