Newly disclosed Coast Guard documents warned that 336,000 gallons per day of oil could spew into the Gulf of Mexico if an underwater well had a complete blowout. Coast Guard logs show the prediction came a day after a rig exploded on April 20, triggering the worst oil spill in the nation's history from that well.
The well didn't have such a failure. But the volume turned out to be much closer to that figure than the 42,000 gallons per day that BP first estimated. Weeks later that was revised to 210,000 gallons.
Coast Guard warned of 336,000 gallon per day leak from well
GAO says millions of dollars are wasted on federal courthouses that are too big
Some federal judges and court workers occupy courthouses that are bigger than necessary, according to a preliminary report by government auditors.
The Government Accountability Office revealed last week that 27 of the 33 federal courthouses built by the General Services Administration since 2000 contain about 3.6 million square feet of extra space -- or 28 percent of the total federal court space built in the last decade. The excess space has soaked up $835 million in construction costs and $51 million in annual rent and operations costs, the GAO said.
Is The Army Forcing Out a Gitmo Whistleblower?
Lt. Col. Darrel Vandeveld exposed the injustices of the military commissions at Guantanamo. Now his career is on the line.
For an Army officer, criticizing the military commissions at Guantanamo as a perversion of justice probably isn't the best career move. That goes double if you also happen to be a former top military prosecutor at Gitmo. That's why Lt. Colonel Darrel Vandeveld, a US army reservist with nearly 20 years of service under his belt, fears the worst when a military promotion board renders its decision in his case this week.
Feds halt new drilling in Gulf
The Obama administration is blocking all new offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, a day after regulators approved a new permit for drilling in shallow water.
The Minerals Management Service, which oversees offshore drilling, says in an e-mail from its Gulf Coast office that "until further notice" no new drilling is being allowed in the Gulf, "no matter the water depth." A copy of the e-mail was obtained by The Associated Press.
Israel's use of 'captured' video draws criticism
Israel's military is using video confiscated from people on the Gaza-bound aid flotilla to justify opening fire during its deadly raid on the ships, drawing sharp criticism Thursday from foreign correspondents who say some of the footage was shot by journalists.
At least two videos posted to the army spokesperson's YouTube channel are labeled "captured" from the Mavi Marmara, the Turkish ship Israeli commandos stormed in a nighttime raid Monday that left nine people dead.
Voting equipment maker Diebold settles accounting fraud charges for $25 million
Diebold, the maker of electronic voting equipment that has links to alleged voting irregularities in the 2004 presidential election, agreed Wednesday to pay $25 million to settle accounting fraud charges brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Former Diebold chief executive Walden O'Dell, who stirred protest when he promised to deliver Ohio to President George W. Bush in 2004, agreed under the settlement to give the company back $470,000 in cash bonuses, $1 million in stock and 85,000 stock options for compensation related to the fraud.
SWAT Raids Gone Wrong -- Paramilitary Policing Is Out of Control
Secretive Bilderberg Club ready for protests
It is all terribly confidential — breathe a word about it and you’re out of the club — but the Bilderberg watcher Daniel Estulin claims to have a copy of the agenda. The big question this time around is whether the euro will survive. “They are afraid that the countries in trouble will leave and the euro will fall apart,” said Mr Estulin. “The biggest nightmare is if EU members return to nationally orientated policies.”
Halliburton campaign donations spike
As Congress investigated its role in the doomed Deep Horizon oil rig, Halliburton donated $17,000 to candidates running for federal office, giving money to several lawmakers on committees that have launched inquiries into the massive spill.
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