Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Fwd: Urgent - Ben Sawyer Memorial Swing Bridge Cosure - Mile 462.2


Urgent News From Waterway Guide

Coast Guard Announces 10-day Closure of Ben Sawyer Memorial Swing Bridge During Peak ICW Travel Season
 
BRIDGE PICTURE By Gary Reich
Oct. 13, 2009

The U.S. Coast Guard last week issued a Marine Safety Information Bulletin (MSIB) regarding the replacement of the Ben Sawyer Memorial Swing Bridge span (Mile 462.2), which will have a significant impact on ICW travelers headed south.

From the MSIB:

"Due to the scheduled replacement of the swing span of the Ben Sawyer Bridge, the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (AICW) will be closed to marine traffic from Friday, November 13, 2009 at 12:00 A.M. to Monday, November 23, 2009 at 11:59 P.M.

A safety zone will be enforced around the Ben Sawyer Bridge during the entire 10 day closure. The safety zone will encompass the entire waterway from 180 yards northwest of the bridge, and 220 yards southwest of the bridge. No one may enter the safety zone without prior authorization from the Captain of the Port Charleston or his designated representative.

Mariners are encouraged to listen to the broadcast notice to mariners for updates on VHF Ch 16. CG Sector Charleston will broadcast the closure, as well as the implementation and rescission of the corresponding safety zone for the bridge. Updates to the schedule are dependent on weather and will be made to this MSIB, as necessary. For questions regarding the bridge construction call Julie Hussey with PCL at (843) 224-1096 or Kim Partenheimer with PB Americas at (843) 972-1775. For Coast Guard issues, please contact the Coast Guard's 24 hour Command Center Line at (843) 740-7050."

Waterway Guide is working on a work-around route for cruisers that we will post later today.

Waterway Guide will continue to monitor the situation and post information on our Web site.
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Sunday, October 11, 2009

Bush and Blair Nominated Twice for Nobel Peace Prize. That would have been the real joke.

Everyone seems to be joking about Obama winning the Nobel Peace prize.  Even SNL made it the opening skit last night.  Well the argument is that he was nominated after being in office for only 11 days.  In fact the voting did not occur until just recently and there were over 300 nominees and anyone can be nominated for the peace prize even George Bush who was nominated twice as shown below.  If he had won that would have been the real joke. 

"(BBC)Wednesday, 13 February, 2002, 13:42 GMT
US President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair have been nominated for the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize."

"Fri January 30, 2004 08:03 AM ET Bush and Blair nominated for Nobel peace prize

By Alister Doyle

OSLO (Reuters) - President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair are among nominees for the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize before a Sunday deadline for nominations despite failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq."




Friday, October 9, 2009

The Obama Hate Factor

I just love the fact that so many the Republicans just hate Obama.  I hated Bush for 8 years.  I could not stand to listen to him, to see him or to even think about him.  I was embarrassed when I knew he was speaking that I would change the channel or turn it off.  I just knew that everyone else in the world was listening and thinking how in hell could the American people elect someone like that for two terms.  During the 2004 elections I became so involved in trying to defeat Bush that I probably got a little sick and I know it was one (but only only one) cause of the end of my second marriage.  So I just love the fact that the right wing has such a hate campaign against Obama.  Now they know what I went through for the last 8 years. 

So Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize.  Not only should it bring prestige to the the United States, but it lends credence to the push for world peace, a reduction in the world complement of nuclear weapons and the possibility that nations can join together to reduce the effects of climate change through greenhouse gasses.  Immediately the right wingnuts come out with: Well he was only president for 12 days before he was nominated.  Well loh de da.  So the frick what.  He was president for 8 months before the voting and there were over 300 nominations.  Big fricking deal.  No matter what Barrack Obama does or does not do the right is going to find some way to criticize him, so forget about it, screw the Republicans and get on with our Democratic agenda.  I love Rep. Alan Grayson.  He said this even before the Nobel was announced:

"If Barack Obama were somehow able to cure hunger in the world, the Republicans would blame him for overpopulation.

If Barack Obama could somehow bring about world peace, they'd blame him for destroying the defense industry.

In fact, if Barack Obama has a BLT sandwich tomorrow for lunch, they will try to ban bacon."

So we know where the Republicans stand, the time has come for "All good men to come to the aid of their country" as I typed hundreds of times in my typing class 40 some years ago.  Lets roll. 

Go Grayson, you Rock

 


Monday, October 5, 2009

Who Trains the Taliban

Every time I hear someone say we have to put more trainers on the ground in Afghanistan to train the militia or the local federal army I wonder who trains the other side.  We pour millions into the effort, buy uniforms, give them huge amounts of equipment, support them with air power, medical facilities, etc.  Yet it seems that the Taliban fighters are just recruited from the population, given an AK47 with lots of rounds of ammo and sent out into the field as Mujaheddin.  They defeated the Russians and it looks like they are winning the war against us.  If these Afghanistan fighters are so good why do we need to train them.  Maybe they should be training us to fight in their environment.  How is it that the Northern Alliance, in 2002, with just a few hundred of our special operations guys were able to totally defeat the Taliban in a matter of weeks or even days?  What happened to those guys?  Are they now the Taliban?  It seems that while we were off fighting a war we did not need to fight in Iraq, this whole Afghanistan thing has slipped away.  I really don't understand it and I really wonder if the upper echelon of our military really understand it. 

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Richard Burton, Publisher
The Harborwalk Press
Lowcountry Dining Guide
www.theharborwalk.com/lowcountry_dining.htm

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