New studies by scientists at the University of Edinburgh and Japan's National Institute of Health Sciences have raised disturbing new concerns that the physical structure of a particular type of carbon nanotube fiber, one that is already in use in the real world, may be as hazardous to your health as asbestos.

As the saying goes, if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s reasonable to assume it’s a duck. In light of a new rodent study, environmental scientists worry that the same might apply to asbestos.

Certain long carbon nanotubes — tiny cylinders only 20 micrometers long and perhaps a few micrometers wide — have the same basic dimensions as toxic asbestos fibers. A broad body of data has suggested that the damage caused by asbestos traces more to its physical dimensions than its chemical recipe. So scientists had begun over the past few years expressing concerns that long nanotubes could trigger characteristic asbestos disease, especially mesothelioma — an unusual cancer that is nearly always fatal.

The biggest test all along for the liberal and progressive blogospheres has been how to function with the Democrats in power (if even only partially so).  

Would the life, would the spirit, remain?  Would we still apply the appropriate grassroots pressure, or would the netroots sell out?

Would the reliance on principles and values that sustained this movement survive the infection of the political operatives?

I'm not sure that question has been answered, or that those who have ventured to answer it have found conclusions we would like to hear.

I am interested in hearing what everyone thinks about this, and this is not a timely diary, you can answer any time.

It's gratifying to get through this phase of the Plame affair without any speed bumps.  Libby will face responsibility for his egregious actions in exposing a United States intelligence official for reasons best described as "self-interest".  Fitzgerald will now lean on Libby during the sentencing process to come clean and redeem his name.  The infamy of a presidential pardon from the worst president in American history doesn't seem very appetizing.

Meanwhile, Dick Cheney suddenly has a blood clot in his leg and will likely soon step down.  Nothing could be more convenient, after the suspicous incident in Afghanistan to generate sympathy for the old fart.  Some would call me an uncivil and uncouth liberal extremist for calling Cheney a "fart", but that's what he smells like, and I'm standing by it (not behind it).  Obviously, Cheney is ruined, as it is all but known now that all the lies Bush told about Libby not being involved, and his administration not being involved, in the Plame outing is a blatant and damning lie.

I've been on hiatus from site for awhile, so imagine my surprise this morning to see that YearlyKos07 is going to be in Chicago this year...sweet.  So I'm thinking I should check Pollstar to see what gigs might be scheduled this early for Chicago in August, and lo and behold the only item listed is the Holy Grail of festivals...Lollapalooza!  I've got a huge place in my heart for Lollapalooza after actually going to the 1st one (and the 3rd one), so I'm stoked.  

Thanks to a comment below (shout out to Vivian Darkbloom), I have now realized that the lineup hasn't been set yet (I was looking at last year's), but hopefully it's a sweet one and worth attending (last year's lineup was killer).  

If so, I'm thinking that's going to be one wild and crazy weekend, because I'm going to squeeze all of it in...days with YKos, evenings with Lollapalooza, late nights with Kossacks again at the parties, clubs, and Buddy Guy's Legends.  I'm going to start stocking up the premium ginseng roots right now babies.

America should never condone torture. Such brutality is contrary to our very being. We are founded on the inherent dignity of humanity, and the inherent fallibility of humanity. Due to this combination of dignity and fallibility, we have enshrined certain principles, and claimed certain rights, and secured certain protections against tyranny. Equal treatment under the law is one very important principle that cannot be violated. Habeas corpus ought not to be either. If we are truly desiring to spread our principles and way of life and governance to the world, why the hell are we flushing them down the toilet 5 years after 9-11, which has not been repeated here in the homeland? And doing so in a mad rush before a mid-term election? Shame on the president and the GOP.

A revised United Nations draft on Lebanon is expected on Friday and calls for a "progressive" Israeli withdrawal, a senior Lebanese political source said on Thursday.

"The Americans have moved their position. A deal with the French is very close in the next hours, but most likely on Friday," he told Reuters.

"The breakthrough is based on the inclusion in the call for a cessation of hostilities for a progressive Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory to go simultaneously with the deployment of the Lebanese army backed by reinforced U.N. peacekeepers."

However, just by reporting this, my blogging life is in extreme danger, as Markos already has it out for me for once defending Greens on this site, and now I've disobeyed him a second time, by leaking this information in the interests of journalism, free speech, and my own fame and prestige, and for you, and I may disappear from the blogosphere faster than Jimmy Hoffa after this. So please put in a good word for me.

We're not giving up jack because of 9-11.  Osama takes nothing away from me unless he comes and takes it himself.  This whole episode of focusing on DailyKos and other blogs, proclaiming the whole thing fascist, this whole tendency of politically manipulating a military occupation that has killed tens of thousands of Iraqis and taken hundreds of American lives, our friends and family, in a steady stream of bloodshed and futility is absurd.

The world faces "a permanent oil shock" and will have to adjust to sustained high prices in the next two decades, the International Monetary Fund said on Thursday in the starkest official warning yet about the long-term outlook for energy supplies.

Predicting surging demand from emerging countries and limited new supplies from outside the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries after 2010, Raghuram Rajan, IMF chief economist, said: "We should expect to live with high oil prices."

"Oil prices will continue to present a serious risk to the global economy," he added.

Where we last left, a merry band of us were on an exodus through the Stratosphere, wondering if we'd ever find the elevator to the Tower.  Soon, we did, where we were met by metal detectors and security folks, almost as if we were going to fly to the tower, or be summarily processed as traitors before a kangaroo court.  Okay, it wasn't really that bad, but a bit annoying nonetheless, and in the end nothing worse than entering your local courthouse for a traffic ticket. I was a little worried that they'd think the ginseng roots I was carrying (and some of us were chomping like chewing tobacco) were magic mushrooms or something, but it never became an issue. Thank God.

Anyone driving out from SoCali?  I can meet you anywhere in LA, OC, or San Diego.  I'll make an excellent compadre for the road trip.

Peace,

Free
freelixir@yahoo.com

Here is a headline on Drudge:

Iran Test-Fires Long-Range Missile

Upon reading this I was immediately puzzled, since having just seen another headline elsewhere on a news site that read along the lines of "Iran tests mid-range missile".

Hmmm.  Which was true? I followed the Drudge link to the story, and was met yet again with a "long-range" missile headline.  Only here's the first paragraph of said story (carried by the notorious black ops distributor, The Jerusalem Post):

Iran conducted a test launch Tuesday night of the Shihab-3 intermediate-range ballistic missile, which is capable of reaching Israel and US targets in the region, Israel Radio reported.

So, with that in mind, I want to make sure everyone knows about Cursor, which, in my humble opinion, is the best progressive center for news and links on the Internet.

Nearly every day (weekends often off), Cursor gives an excellent stream of leads and links referring to the previous day's progressive news, blogs, magazines, etc.  If you have the time to review only one site other than DKos, you could do no wrong by choosing Cursor, and you would not miss a progressive beat.

What's my point?

His latest, World Beware!, is not available yet in the United States, but will soon be, and is already available at Cody's.  This is going to be a great event, and there should be a lot of great folks in attendance, and even some not so great, like myself.

On that note, I'm wondering if any Bay Area Kossacks have a spare couch available for Monday night, as I'll be coming up from Surf City and would rather not throw another $39 bucks at the Berkeley YMCA Hostel if I can avoid it (if so, note in comments or send me email at freelixir yahoo com).  I make a wonderful guest, and would much rather spend the money on fine microbrews or a bottle of wine.

On the flip, I'll provide some representative links for Roszak so you can get a feel for him.

Thus, if this program was a huge boondoggle, as has been reported, and a total waste of time and resources, it would be hard to argue that it was "necessary", especially after it became obvious that it was a huge boondoggle wasting time and resources (but was continued regardless).

It becomes even harder to justify as "necessary" when it has never been clear why the FISA courts have not been consulted, as the law passed by Congress commands, and when Bush very easily may have gone to Congress and asked for authorization (perhaps rolling the rules back to 1995, or asking to modify them further per program specifics).

(flip)