Breaking--Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo

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Friday May 12, 2017 · 1:32 PM PDT

2017/05/12 · 13:32

The WHO has just declared an outbreak of the Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo, after one person tested positive for the virus.

New Ebola outbreak declared in Democratic Republic of Congo

Three people are confirmed dead of hemorrhagic fever, nine are suspected of having contracted the virus, and six have been hospitalized. The person who tested positive had the Zaire strain of the virus, generally regarded as the most lethal strain.

DR Congo has extensive experience in dealing with Ebola epidemics; unlike the 2014-2015 outbreak in West Africa, which infected 28,600 people and killed 11,300, this one is likely to be smaller-scale and more easily contained. Nonetheless, any epidemic of Ebola is considered an international public health crisis.

The WHO has dispatched a response team to the area to investigate, monitor, and contain the outbreak. An experimental vaccine for the Ebola virus has been developed, but the WHO has not yet decided whether to deploy it.

Italy Votes "No" in Constitutional Referendum

limpidglass

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Sunday December 04, 2016 · 2:42 PM PST

2016/12/04 · 14:42

Early exit polls indicate that the "No" camp has won the Italian constitutional referendum by a decisive margin. This is in line with the pre-election polls which indicated that "No" was winning.

Polls for national broadcaster Rai and the La7 television channel both called the vote for the No camp by a margin of at least 54 per cent to 46 per cent for the Yes camp, and by an average of between 56.7and 43.3 per cent.

Voter turnout is currently estimated at 68.33%, and could top 70% when the final results are in. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi is scheduled to give a press conference at 12:00 AM CET.

The result is significant because it means Renzi will most likely resign, leading to the formation of a new government and potentially a fresh round of general elections which might benefit euroskeptic political parties.

Italy is going through a banking crisis now, and many are worried that this may hamper the government's ability to deal with the crisis. The EU is also not stable right now, and this election creates a fresh source of instability.

limpidglass

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Wednesday June 18, 2014 · 11:57 AM PDT

2014/06/18 · 11:57

There's been a lot of debate over what the US response will be to the chaos currently engulfing Iraq. What are the options? Military, non-military? Is it even our business to be there?

Well, now the Iraqi government (whatever's left of it, anyhow) has officially put its thumb on the scale by requesting the US use its air power against ISIS.

Poll

30 votes Show Results

What should we do?

30 votes Vote Now!

What should we do?

Bomb a little.

2 votes

Bomb a lot.

5 votes

Don't bomb.

19 votes

Rhubarb pie.

1 vote

I don't like rhubarb, don't you have another flavor?

3 votes

Oil and Obama's New Asian Cold War

limpidglass

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Tuesday December 27, 2011 · 5:30 PM PST

2011/12/27 · 17:30

With the recent death of Kim Jong-Il and the concomitant worries about the continued stability of the Korean peninsula, American foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific has entered the spotlight.

Foreign policy often seems an arcane and incomprehensible field, an obscure, convoluted chess game being played by Machiavellian geostrategists for incomprehensible ends.

But as with so much of our foreign policy, the current administration's Asia policy turns out to be largely driven by something very simple: the need for energy, specifically, oil. And that foreign policy, in turn, will have a huge impact domestically on the environment.

Follow me past the jump for more details.

Poll

91 votes Show Results

Can we do better than this?

91 votes Vote Now!

Can we do better than this?

Yes, we can develop a more enlightened and sustainable policy.

61 votes

No, this is the best we can do.

15 votes

Uh, don't look at me. I have no idea.

4 votes

Mmmmmmmm, pie.

11 votes

I'm Betting

limpidglass

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Wednesday October 14, 2009 · 3:01 PM PDT

2009/10/14 · 15:01

This healthcare debate is really complicated and it's been dragging on for a long time. Because of the stress, there has been a recent spate of betting on this and that trying to determine the outcome. Bets have been placed on (and sometimes against) President Obama, Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean, John McCain, Sarah Palin, betting itself, reality, and many other things too numerous to name.

Well, I thought I'd join in and let you all in on what I'm betting on. It's a surefire winner.

Look below the fold to find out.

Poll

39 votes Show Results

Was This a Cheap Trick?

39 votes Vote Now!

Was This a Cheap Trick?

It was.

9 votes

It wasn't.

0 votes

The pootie was adequate recompense.

21 votes

Hey man, I liked that band.

4 votes

Soote soote cherie pye.

5 votes

Senate Finance Committee Votes "No" on Public Option

limpidglass

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Tuesday September 29, 2009 · 12:26 PM PDT

2009/09/29 · 12:26

The title says it all. This is a ~~huge~~ significant setback.

limpidglass

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Saturday September 26, 2009 · 1:40 AM PDT

2009/09/26 · 01:40

This may be considered a sequel to my not-so-wildly successful diary, Dollhouse Season Finale: WTF?

I welcome thoughts, below. This time I'm not drunk. I promise.

Spoilers abound, so do not read if you do not want to know.

Poll

19 votes Show Results

Should this diary have a poll?

19 votes Vote Now!

Should this diary have a poll?

Yes.

0 votes

No.

3 votes

I ownno.

0 votes

I'm mad because I thought this would be an Ibsen diary

6 votes

The ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter

10 votes

Next Up: An Executive Order to Block Detainee Photos?

limpidglass

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Tuesday June 16, 2009 · 4:13 PM PDT

2009/06/16 · 16:13

It's well-known that as pressure has mounted from the right, the administration has changed its mind and opposed the release of photos which reveal the abuses suffered by detainees in American military custody. Now it appears that the administration may take the next step and use an executive order to prevent the release of the photos.

limpidglass

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Friday May 08, 2009 · 10:29 PM PDT

2009/05/08 · 22:29

I just got done with watching the season finale of Dollhouse.

I welcome thoughts, below. Spoilers abound, so do not look if you do not want to know.

Poll

63 votes Show Results

how was the Dollhouse season finale?

63 votes Vote Now!

how was the Dollhouse season finale?

kicked ass

16 votes

blew chunks

9 votes

was entirely predictable. I saw it from the opening credits.

3 votes

was so-so

5 votes

I love Joss Whedon and want to have his babies

9 votes

I thought a dollhouse was a children's toy

10 votes

Now you're telling me it's a TV show?

5 votes

No pie option. Sorry.

2 votes

This is a long-ass poll!

4 votes

Hank Paulson Can't Just Do Whatever He Wants, Can He?

limpidglass

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Friday November 14, 2008 · 10:50 AM PST

2008/11/14 · 10:50

Hello.

It seems like such a long time ago that they passed the bailout bill. The one that gave Hank Paulson, ex-CEO of Goldman Sachs and current Treasury Secretary, unprecedented power to intervene directly in our economy.

There's been so much to deal with recently, including Barack Obama's historic victory, that we haven't been able to digest everything that's going on. But now that Obama is officially America's next president, perhaps we have time to take a step back and look at just what has happened since then.

So, to the $700 billion question: just what is Hank Paulson doing with our money?

limpidglass

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Sunday March 09, 2008 · 9:19 PM PDT

2008/03/09 · 21:19

Today is the broadcast of the series finale of one of my favorite shows, The Wire.

For those who don't know about the show (which seems to be most people), it's about Baltimore cops and the criminals--mostly drug gangs--that they pursue. But it speaks about far more substantial and enduring themes: poverty, racism, undereducation, corruption, government neglect, and the futility of the war on drugs.

To mark the occasion, I'd like to talk a little bit about the costs of the war on drugs, and what one of our major presidential candidates has said about it.

Poll

120 votes Show Results

What should we do about the war on drugs?

120 votes Vote Now!

What should we do about the war on drugs?

I have no clue.

3 votes

I have no clue, but legalizing weed's a start.

26 votes

Legalize some drugs.

36 votes

Legalize all illicit drugs, and regulate their sale like we do other drugs.

51 votes

We can win this war!

0 votes

Sweet, sweet cherry pie.

4 votes

A Huckabee Sampler: More Batshit Than You Realized

limpidglass

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Thursday February 14, 2008 · 10:48 AM PST

2008/02/14 · 10:48

Even some people here are charmed by Mike Huckabee. And why not? He chats amiably with pundits like Tim Russert, humorously discussing his squirrel-eating college days. He's appeared on Colbert Report, promising to make Stephen Colbert his vice president if he wins the nomination. His economic populism and apparent desire to fight poverty are a breath of fresh air after the soak-the-poor ethos of the Bush years.

But none of this should disguise the fact that Mike Huckabee espouses a reactionary, fundamentalist worldview that can only be described as "batshit insane."

I have provided below a sampler of colorful quotes from Huckabee's own mouth that I think best embody his extremism.

Newer
Older

RSS

Breaking--Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo

Italy Votes "No" in Constitutional Referendum

Iraqi Gov't Requests US Airstrikes

Oil and Obama's New Asian Cold War

I'm Betting

Senate Finance Committee Votes "No" on Public Option

Dollhouse season 2 premiere: Huh?

Next Up: An Executive Order to Block Detainee Photos?

Dollhouse Season Finale: WTF?

Hank Paulson Can't Just Do Whatever He Wants, Can He?

The Wire, Barack Obama, and the War on Drugs

A Huckabee Sampler: More Batshit Than You Realized