#Houston port Authority

[tmxintermodallatx]

http://www.tmxintermodal.com/

Phone: (833) 307-3700

Address: 1532 W F St, La Porte, TX 77571

Email: tmxcsr@tmxintermodal.com

TMX Intermodal is an asset based trucking company. providing fast and accurate container drayage service from New Jersey Ports, New York Ports, Norfolk Ports, Houston Ports, Wilmington Ports, Charleston Ports, Savannah Ports, Jacksonville Ports, Atlanta Rails, Mobile Ports, Boston Ports, Houston Ports Philadelphia Ports, Baltimore Ports, and Richmond Ports..

[lonestarbattleship]

Battleship Texas much closer to securing permanent home in Galveston

The first step is a ten-year lease with the port, coming in at $20,000 a month or more depending on the weather

By Chris Gray

"This artist's rendering projects what the USS Texas could look like once it is safely housed along the heart of Galveston's waterfront. "

"Battleship Texas cleared an important hurdle in its quest for a permanent home this week. During its regular meeting on Tuesday, the Galveston Wharves board of trustees authorized the creation of a lease between the Port of Galveston and the Battleship Texas Foundation, which operates and maintains the historic warship.

'It’s a big step for us,' said Tony Gregory, the foundation’s president and CEO. 'We feel like it's a big win. It’s taken a while to convince the port that we should be where we're going to go, but in the end their leadership responded. We think we have a good agreement, and we're excited to move forward on it.'

The proposed lease would be for 10 years with two additional 10-year options, explained port director and CEO of Galveston Wharves Rodger Rees. Once it has been drafted and signed, which Rees said could happen at the board’s next meeting later this month, the foundation would pay the port $20,000 per month in rent; plus $1.2 million (another $20,000 a month) in case an extreme-weather event or other dire scenario forced the port managers to take drastic measures with the ship like towing her out to sea.

Now, 'there's some hoops they've got to jump through but not ours,' Rees said. 'What we did is try to help them with their permitting process by giving them a home.'

The ship, which served with distinction in both World Wars, was towed from the San Jacinto Monument to a dry-dock facility in Galveston's harbor in August 2022.

Greg Eckmann Photography/Battleship Texas Foundation

According to Gregory, now that the foundation has struck a deal with the port, it can finalize its agreement with Landry’s, Inc. for the multibillion-dollar company founded by island native and Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta to manage the ship’s day-to-day operations, effectively adding it to a portfolio that also includes Kemah Boardwalk and Pleasure Pier. The foundation plans to permanently berth the ship in the area around Piers 19 and 20, the most commercial area of the port and property already controlled by Landry’s.

'Landry’s is excited about the positive progress made to secure a permanent home for the Battleship Texas in Galveston,' said Landry's deputy general counsel Dash Kohlhausen in a statement. 'We look forward to continue working with the City, the Wharves Board, and the Battleship Texas Foundation to make this a reality for Galveston.'

The next step for the foundation, which towed the USS Texas to Galveston from its longstanding home at the San Jacinto Monument in August 2022, is to secure the necessary permits from the trio of agencies which share jurisdiction over the waterway: the U.S. Coast Guard; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and Galveston Texas City Pilots, an association of ship captains whose boats escort larger vessels in and out of the port. It could take up to a year for those permits to be approved, Rees said.

Meanwhile, the ship, which served in both World Wars — notably off Omaha Beach during D-Day and as part of Operation Torch in North Africa — has been undergoing an estimated $60 million in dry-dock repairs since arriving at the Gulf Copper facility on Pelican Island. According to Gregory, those repairs are scheduled to be completed next summer. The foundation has already started a capital campaign to raise another $15 million for construction of its permanent housing, including the necessary mooring plus a ticket-sales building, public restrooms, and exhibit space.

Finally, hovering over all this is the not-insignificant question of whether the old battleship will sell enough tickets — about 283,000 a year, according to the foundation’s math — to offset the necessary maintenance, restoration, and marketing costs. On this count, at least, Gregory is confident she will.

'We feel like the reason our agreement with the port is such a big step is because we are in the best spot to attract the most tourists on the waterfront,' he said. 'We have two cruise terminals to our West, one cruise terminal to our East, with another being negotiated. We're near the restaurants, the Elissa, the bars; we’re near the Strand.

It could take another $15 million to prepare the necessary facilities to house the ship along Piers 19 and 20, foundation CEO Tony Gregory said.

Battleship Texas Foundation

'It’s a little bit like the real estate agent said: ‘Location, location, location' Gregory added. 'It’s the best location in Galveston for being successful in attracting people to come onto the ship.'

For the foundation, which took over upkeep of the ship from Texas Parks and Wildlife in 2019, the end is now in sight. The extraordinary patience necessary to steward the Texas through this painstaking and expensive process finally seems to be yielding tangible results.

'I tell people all the time, if you get involved with the Battleship Texas, whether you're a vendor or a regulatory agency, it's a legacy project and you need to be a little more patient and a little more committed to get it done, because she's an old ship and she needs a lot of care,' Gregory said.

'So we're confident,' he added. 'Believe me, there's always regulatory obstacles, and we've overcome a lot of them in the past couple or years. We’re optimistic that we can address whatever else needs to be addressed.'"

Article from the Houston Chronicle: link

[mtaartsdesign]

The subway is filled with timeless works of art, some newly commissioned and others dating back to the early days of our program. Take our self-guided tour “Selections from the Beginning 1986-1996 (1 line)” on the Bloomberg Connects app to explore artworks that built the foundation of our ever-growing collection. Beginning at Houston St (1) station with Deborah Brown’s mosaic artwork "Platform Diving" (1994), continue on the 1 line to see artworks by Lee Brozgol, Norman B Colp (accessible off the 1 at Times Sq-42 St, located in the passage near the A,C,E at 42 St-Port Authority), Liliana Porter, Nitza Tufiño, Michelle Greene, and Steve Wood.

📸: MTA A&D/Rob Wilson

[oww666]

Thanks joe ...venezuelan oil to the EU but we can’t pump our oil or run cdn oil through pipelines

[texasobserver]

From “The Who Behind ‘Where Wolf’” by culture correspondent Nguyên Lê:

Sorry, Waldo, but folks won’t ask for your whereabouts this time around.

In Robert Saucedo’s horror-comedy graphic novel Where Wolf, a lycanthrope is racking up quite the body count in College Station, prompting journalist Larry Chaney to track it down. The hunt also provides Chaney relief from the occupational “ennui” he’s experiencing. His search soon puts him in touch with the local furry community, where the part-man, part-canis lupus assailant has gone to blend in—and to feast.

A real life furry emailed Saucedo when the first chapter (of the 12 in his book) went live as a webcomic on the horror publication Fangoria. This furry reader asked if his inclusion of that subculture stemmed from hatred. 

The reaction had him recalling when he was the features editor of the Battalion, Texas A&M University’s student newspaper: “I assigned a story to one of the reporters about the local furry population. That was one of the most controversial stories in the paper—we had hate mail coming in for months!”

He countered the assumption by sending a link to Where Wolf’s first four chapters and earned an admirer who would also give him self-created fan art and that from others. He added, “I never thought I would get erotic fan art of something I wrote, but I’ll take it!”

The graphic novel is Saucedo’s first—and a self-financed—leap into the world of sequential art, one that also features illustrations and coloring from Debora Lancianese plus lettering from former Marvel staffer Jack Morelli.

To the latter, Saucedo has captured lightning in a bottle. Over email, he wrote that “The body language and facial expressions are flawless, as is the storytelling, all moving seamlessly from horror to humor to pathos to gore and back again.”

Saucedo, a Port Arthur native who has spent time in McAllen, Bryan/College Station, and now lives in Houston, said three figures served as inspirations for Where Wolf’s Larry Chaney: the protagonist and the actor playing him in the 1941 film The Wolf Man, the namesake of Gregory Mcdonald’s Fletch series, and the author’s own experience. 

Indeed, Saucedo worked for a Bryan–College Station Eagle as a reporter for about a year until dissatisfaction reared its head. He wasn’t confident enough in his writing. The switch to copy editing also didn’t work out. He added, “Larry is kind of like an avatar of where I thought I might be, professionally and emotionally, had I stayed in journalism, which is, to say, also not happy.”

His initial vision for the project was, in fact, a tribute to the journalism profession. 

“When Larry finds out that there’s a werewolf attacking the town,” Saucedo said, “he sees this as a big chance to get all the fame and glory he has been chasing his entire life. That’s where I was at in my life—I spent most of my 20s and 30s chasing that ‘fame and glory’ before realizing you kind of have to work for what you want to get.”

Saucedo found plenty of time to work on Where Wolf in 2020 when COVID hit and the Alamo Drafthouse, where he had programmed films, furloughed him. He applied the “a chapter a day” mantra and finished a full draft in less than two weeks. At this stage, his work was an online novel. (“No one was reading it—I could see the traffic on my website”). He briefly considered turning it into a podcast, but plans were scrapped after he realized he would need a sound editor (and an industry pro he met quoted him $10,000).

A graphic novel, then, became the best medium for Where Wolf.  He could invest in artists and nourish his love for cinema. 

“Having watched as many movies as I have, you kind of think in a very cinematic way when you’re trying to tell a story,” Saucedo said. “The rule of thumb I basically had when I talked to Deb was, ‘Even if you take out all the dialogue, the page still needs to look funny.’”

Read more on the Texas Observer.

[rockfleet]

POS: $414,375,000 Port of Houston Authority of Harris County First Lien Revenue Bonds, Series 2023 (Non-AMT)

Structure: 2024-2053 Ratings: Aa3/AA+/NR/NR Roadshow Available https://bit.ly/3I4sDpp

[xtruss]

Greg Abbott's Rio Grande Border Policies Condemned as 'Definition of Evil'

— By James Bickerton | July 18th, 2023 | Newsweek

Governor Greg Abbott's migration policies have been slammed as the "definition of evil" after a Texas state trooper claimed border guards had been ordered to push back migrants, including small children, into the Rio Grande, as well as denying them access to water. The allegations have been dismissed in part by the department, which insists there is no policy against handing water to migrants.

Democratic politicians have also hit out at the deployment of floating buoys in the Rio Grande, designed to impede illegal immigration, which one congress member said "are going to force people to drown."

Authorities across the U.S. are struggling to cope with a surge in unauthorized immigration, with law enforcement stopping a record 2.76 million migrants after they crossed the U.S.-Mexico border in the 2022 fiscal year, according to Customs and Border Protection data. Immigration is likely to play a prominent role in the 2024 presidential election campaign, with Republican frontrunner Donald Trump vowing to end "automatic citizenship" for the children of undocumented migrants "on day one" if elected.

On Monday, the Houston Chronicle published an email from a Texas state trooper, sent to a superior, who said migrants had been pushed back into the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass, causing one 4-year-old girl to pass out from heat exhaustion, and denied water.

Migrants wave as they walk near concertina wire in the water along the Rio Grande border with Mexico in Eagle Pass, Texas, on July 16, 2023. Reports of border guards being ordered to push migrants back into the river, and refuse them water, have sparked outrage online. Anne Cordeiro/AF/Getty

The trooper wrote: "Due to the extreme heat, the order to not give people water needs to be immediately reversed as well...I believe we have stepped over a line into the inhumane."

In response Travis Considine, a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Public Safety, said law enforcement hadn't been instructed to deny water to migrants.

The unverified claims caused fury on social media, with progressive social media activist Jack Cocchiaretta sharing a post on Twitter blaming Abbott, who he described as "the definition of evil," to his 348,000 followers.

Nessa Diosdado, a Texas-based "Gen-Z activist," called on the president to intervene. She said: "Migrants are human beings. What Greg Abbott is doing at the border with children and babies is not what this country stands for. He must be stopped. We need President Biden to step in."

There was anger at Abbott from Democratic lawmakers at the placement of buoys in the Rio Grande, in a bid to deter illegal migration.

Speaking to CNN, Texas Representative Joaquin Castro said: "What he [Abbott] intends to put out are drowning devices. Those things are going to force people to drown. Children, disabled people, mothers, and others."

Representative Veronica Escobar, who also represents the Democrats in the House, tweeted: "The buoys being deployed by Greg Abbott in the Rio Grande will not stop desperate people; they pose a danger to Border Patrol agents and put migrants at risk of drowning."

In a statement sent to the Houston Chronicle, Abbott's press secretary, Andrew Mahaleris, defended the governor's policies.

He said: "Texas is deploying every tool and strategy to deter and repel illegal crossings between ports of entry as President Biden's dangerous open border policies entice migrants from over 150 countries to risk their lives entering the country illegally.

"President Biden has unleashed a chaos on the border that's unsustainable, and we have a constitutional duty to respond to this unprecedented crisis."

In a statement sent to Newsweek,Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa and Maverick County Democratic Party Chair Juanita Martinez called for federal intervention in response to claims migrants had been denied water and pushed back into the Rio Grande.

They said: "Greg Abbott and his political cronies in the DPS [Texas Department of Public Safety] reached a new level of depravity earlier this summer with their floating buoys in the river, intended to deter asylum-seeking migrants with the threat of drowning rather than legal repercussions.

"But today's uncovering of the borderline torturous activity against migrants—including all but intentionally drowning babies—deserves a swift and thorough investigation by the federal government.

"In addition, with this state-sanctioned violence against migrants, it's time for federal authorities to assert their constitutional duty and shut down Greg Abbott's unconstitutional rogue 'law enforcement.'"

Newsweek has also reached out to Abbott's press office for comment via telephone and voicemail message.

In June, Abbott said Texas had "bused over 23,500 migrants to sanctuary cities," including Washington, D.C., New York and Los Angeles.

[hakesbros]

Homes For Sale San Antonio Tx

The quantity residents spend on on a regular basis bills, such as food and transportation, is barely less than what the typical American pays. This is a diversified neighborhood, with homes representing a wide range of durations and styles. In general, homes in Oakland Estates are about $135,000 – $750,000 and sit on 2-acre heaps with 4 bedrooms and three loos. It can additionally be a fantastic area for rental property funding as greater than 85% of the population comprises renters. The typical home value in Oakland Estates is $387,865 and residential values have gone up 24.6% over the past year.

Let’s undergo some of the finest components of San Antonio collectively. MHVillage could replace this policy with out notice from time to time, so you must check this web page regularly. "It's such a distinctive property that it will take a really specific buyer," she stated. When a military base closes, this could be a severe blow to the financial system of a metropolis.

In addition to houses in San Antonio, there were additionally 224 condos, 121 townhouses, and forty one multi-family units for sale in San Antonio last month. This home has been just about staged for instance its potential. Build your new home within minutes of HWY 90, HWY 151, Downtown San Antonio, Lackland AFB, and the brand new Tech Port Center.

Titles are awarded primarily based on the amount of most money raised for King and Queen, Prince and Princess, Duke and Duchess, Count and Countess. Royalty make appearances not solely at River Walk occasions however at various events throughout the town. Not only is being a River Walk royal a fantastic honor, but it is also a accountability. One must perfect the royal wave, experience in countless parades, and look nice homes for sale san antonio sporting a crown. As the 4th largest county in Texas and the 17th largest county nationally, Bexar County is steeped in rich historical past and custom, while at the same time quickly rising with a inhabitants approaching two million. Home of the first ever digital library, BiblioTech, Bexar County is also the home of such treasures because the San Antonio Riverwalk, the Alamo, and our historic Missions, which are a World Heritage Site.

Another survey of 1,000 folks by Real Estate Witch, an training platform for home consumers and sellers, found comparable outcomes, with forty four p.c of respondents saying that they’ve lived in a haunted house. The Counselors of Real Estate® is a company of commercial property specialists worldwide who provide seasoned, objective advice on actual property and land-related matters. Only 1,a hundred professionals from all disciplines of real property, academia and authorities maintain the CRE credential. Membership is selective and prolonged by invitation, though commercial actual property practitioners with 10 years of confirmed expertise could apply. Houston’s funding prospects were likely boosted by elevated oil prices, however the region has benefited from a broader, pandemic-induced migration boom that has solid a good gentle over the Sun Belt. Strong inhabitants and job growth drive progress in actual estate markets, attracting investors to Houston and different metropolitan areas within the South.

At ZeroDown, we make homeownership extra accessible for more homebuyers regardless of what a mortgage lender is telling them right now. Even should you aren’t mortgage-ready at present, you might be eligible to qualify for ZeroDown’s rent-to-own program. The home you’re renting will finally be yours, so if you want to paint it, you can! You can even redo the floors, change the kitchen cupboards, and more. We encourage future householders to make homes really feel like their own. For a full listing of permissible renovations, you can examine our pointers.

You may enter the building through the Justice Center on Dolorosa or the Paul Elizondo Tower on Nueva St. . In order to be timely, cost mailing or frequent carrier of taxes must homes for sale san antonio be postmarked or receipted on or before the due date of January thirty first. When visiting downtown San Antonio for Bexar County places of work we recommend the Bexar County Parking Garage.

Make your appointment right now and make this house a place you call HOME. Welcome home to this majestic gem, tucked away in the Oak Ridge Village! four Bedroom, three.5 toilet, 2 household homes for sale san antonio areas, Oversized Sunroom, High ceilings and so forth. Conveniently positioned near Major purchasing areas, Restaurants, downtown San Antonio, and San Antonio International Airport.

[wabashmfginc]

Meet The Summit Staff: Custom Truck Body Manufacturer & Gross Sales Group

Take a glance inside our factory in Gallatin, Tennessee to see how a Wil-Ro truck body is crafted and verified for quality at each step of the process. Manufactured and crafted with expert precision, Wil-Ro crafts the highest quality truck our bodies in America. EnPak systems give users custom truck body manufacturers full jobsite functionality — with the work truck’s engine turned off. The result's significant savings on fuel prices and truck maintenance whereas improving jobsite conditions and increasing work truck life.

Solid Attention to Detail When you need a top quality alternative to the run of the mill dump body, get with us to specify the longest enduring galvanized solution on the planet. High quality stainless and bronze parts custom truck body manufacturers go the space for superior service. Choose from drop sides, aluminum device packing containers, alternative of crane installations, hitch options, tailgates and racks to complete ...

Our objective is to hold up loyalty with excellent service by matching or exceeding industry requirements. At Complete, we build truck our bodies for our customers…the identical way we might want somebody to build a truck body for us. Enoven Truck Body + Equipment is a premier custom truck gear provider and up-fitter with companions in California and Texas. With 15 places nationwide Supreme Corporation provides the most effective in manufacturing and repair to our customers. The farther away from standard, the longer it'll take to build. As truck body manufacturers have strived to mirror the Ford assembly line approach for standard merchandise, custom bodies have historically been manufactured in a bay as an alternative of a line.

We make your new field truck or flatbed truck in accordance with your specifications with particular or industry necessities such as an aluminum inside, plastic chemline, foam insulation and secure cabinets to name a quantity of. Robertson Truck Group is a respected and established truck and trucking gear company in Columbus, Ohio. With a big campus and devoted full-service auto mechanic body store, Ohio Truck Equipment is prepared to service the needs of any industrial company automobile fleet with precision, professionalism, and expertise.

We are the proper partner to plan or enhance your service truck needs. We are there that can help you with new elements and replacements that can hold your service truck acting at its best. The easy facet is designed to accomodate black high custom truck body manufacturers and gravel. This body has the square corner of the western type with out facet braces just like the elliptical. We maximize compartment dimensions to give you the most in cubic ft of storage, which is the prime purpose you purchase a truck body.

SH Truck Bodies offers high quality workmanship together with a big selection of job store manufacturing providers, such as welded truck our bodies. SH Truck Bodies is a frontrunner within the fabrication of truck bodies…from pickup truck bodies, to massive dump trucks, and every thing in between. Located in Houston, Texas, RKI manufactures a spread of service truck bodies, truck packing containers, cranes and winches. RKI merchandise are sold via their community of Authorized RKI Distributors. Located in Charlotte, North Carolina, Adkins Truck Equipment manufactures a variety of service truck bodies, together with custom truck bodies, gross sales, parts, and service.

It is straightforward to get lost in the litter, however the products that we offer will let you concentrate on extra necessary features of your corporation. Manufacturer of attachments for big mining and building gear. Products embrace highway truck our bodies, dump trailers, bulldozer blades, loader/shovel buckets, water truck bodies, mini web site tools trailers, tailgates and frames. We design, build, and fabricate truck gear from all the major manufacturers and suppliers. We also perform body adjustments, repairs, scheduled providers, and portray providers.

[hatchetfield-bang]

NIGHTMARE TIME EPISODE 𐤃: DELTA BLUE

Author: Abel @carvour​

Artist: Marc @emothenerd​

Rating: Teen and Up Audiences

Pairings: Deb (Horowitz)/Alice Woodward, mentioned Tom Houston/Becky Barnes

Warnings: Major Character Death, Graphic Descriptions of Violence, General Horror Content Warning, Swearing, Body Horror, Violence, Guns, Depictions of Mutilation, Murder, mentioned Death of Children

Pizza Pete’s, the all time family fun arcade and restaurant, is quickly becoming a thing of the past with the competition of home consoles and the ever expanding internet age. But, when a new arcade cabinet arrives, the place suspiciously booms in business, kids lining up almost out the door in order to slot their quarters and grab the joysticks. Kids go in . . . but none seem to make it back out. After Tim Houston is pressured into playing the game and his fears are disregarded by his father, he must gather his determination to find a way or face his bullies’ torment. Does he have what it takes to conquer the landscape of . . . DELTA BLUE?

(Art teaser by Marc)

Excerpt below the cut!

The cabinet was close to not being seen. Behind an old, broken port of Ms. Pac-Man and the tabletop Galaga, the weathered paint down its side was not without its fair share of scratches and holes. On it, an ombre patterned crest of waves cascading down the side pooling into the stencil shape of a rocky shore, on it painted (once) electric yellow the words DELTA BLUE in bright font.

Arthur’s broom was discarded when he stepped closer to observe, the thick layer of dust and the occasional stain peppering the control panel and joysticks, lint stuck in the vents and the grill. Coughing and sputtering plenty to try and wipe the dust away, the cloud gives eyes to the black snaking cord curling to the floor, gives Arthur reason to follow its path. He looks behind, grunts and strains muscle in order to pull the cabinet away from the stucco wall to peer into the dark crevice. 

The plug was sitting by the outlet. (He looks up to find a single quarter standing up against the screen that wasn't there before.)

[fivepercentgodsandearths]

[sleepysera]

Sep 6 Headlines

WORLD NEWS

Guinea: As apparent coup unfolds, President Condé arrested (CNN)

"A Guinean military officer broadcast a statement Sunday announcing that Guinea's Constitution has been dissolved in an apparent coup. The location of the 83-year-old, who won a heavily disputed election last year, is unclear. In the video, Doumbouya -- wearing a special forces uniform -- says they have arrested Conde and suspended the constitution, the government and all other institutions. He also announced the closing of land and air borders. The video has been widely circulated and reported by local media."

Afghanistan: Taliban claim to have seized holdout Afghan valley (BBC)

"The Taliban say they are in complete control of the Afghan province of Panjshir. The valley "has been cleared today completely", a spokesman told a news conference in Kabul. But fighters resisting Taliban rule have disputed Taliban claims and say fighting continues. As recently as Sunday, their leader Ahmad Massoud had said he was open to peace talks. The Taliban took control of the rest of Afghanistan three weeks ago, following the collapse of the Western-backed government."

Israel: 6 Palestinian prisoners escape jail through tunnel (BBC)

"Israeli authorities have launched a massive manhunt after six Palestinian prisoners escaped from one of the country's most secure jails overnight. The men are believed to have dug a tunnel from their cell over several months that led to a road outside Gilboa Prison's walls. Officials were alerted by farmers who noticed them running through fields. The fugitives include a former leader of the militant group Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade and five Islamic Jihad members."

US NEWS

Gun Violence: Floridan gunman killed 4, including mom still holding baby (AP)

"A man wearing full body armor fatally shot four people, including a mother and the 3-month-old baby she was cradling, and engaged in a massive gunfight with police and deputies before he was wounded and surrendered in Lakeland, Florida, a sheriff said Sunday. An 11-year-old girl who was shot seven times survived. Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said during a press conference that even after 33-year-old Bryan Riley was arrested Sunday morning, he was so aggressive that he tried to wrestle a gun from police as he lay on his hospital gurney."

Gulf of Mexico: Divers discover dislodged and broken pipeline that likely triggered oil spill (CNN)

"Divers using underwater sonar discovered a 12-inch oil pipeline Sunday that had become dislodged and is possibly the source of an oil spill discovered off the coast of Louisiana, officials said. Houston-based Talos Energy said in a statement that it was informed of a potential oil release Tuesday by Clean Gulf Associates, a non-profit oil spill cooperative, because it previously leased the oil block in Bay Marchand off the coast of Port Fourchon, Louisiana."

Environment: Treasured US West trout streams wither amid heat, drought (AP)

"But both torrent and trickle have afflicted storied trout streams in the American West in recent years amid the havoc of climate change, which has made the region hotter and drier and fueled severe weather events. Blistering heat waves and extended drought have raised water temperatures and imperiled fish species in several states."

[rjzimmerman]

Oil slick seen off the coast of Louisiana. Satellite imagery taken Sept. 2. Source: Satellite image by Planet Labs. By Blacki Migliozzi

Flyover image of the likely origin site. Aerial imagery taken Sept. 1. Source: NOAA Hurricane IDA Aerial Imagery Response. By Blacki Migliozzi

Excerpt from this New York Times story:

Cleanup crews are working to contain what experts called a substantial oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, according to an examination of satellite and aerial survey images, ship tracking data and interviews with local officials and others involved in the spill response.

The spill, one of multiple plumes spotted off the Louisiana coast in the wake of Hurricane Ida, was identified in satellite imagery captured Thursday by the space technology companies Planet Labs and Maxar Technologies.

A black expanse and rainbow sheen of oil spanning at least 10 miles was spreading in coastal waters about two miles off Port Fourchon, an oil and gas hub. An aerial survey image of the spill was captured Wednesday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

It was unclear how much oil had spilled into the Gulf, according to a person with direct knowledge of the cleanup. The spill, possibly from an old pipeline no longer in use that was damaged by the storm, was first spotted on Monday from reconnaissance flights led by a number of Gulf Coast producers, and was reported to the Coast Guard, said the person who was not authorized to speak publicly about the cleanup effort.

By Saturday morning, two more boats appeared to join the cleanup. James Hanzalik, assistant executive director of Clean Gulf Associates, a nonprofit oil spill cooperative set up by the industry, confirmed Friday afternoon that a leak was ongoing and that a cleanup was underway.

Lt. John Edwards of the U.S. Coast Guard said that the spill was believed to be crude oil from an old pipeline owned by the Houston-based oil and gas exploration company, Talos Energy. A cleanup vessel hired by Talos was using skimmers to recover the oil and had placed a containment boom in the area to try to contain the spread, he said. Talos Energy declined to comment on the record.

[koreaunderground]

(2021/05/31) US Sells Off 2 Million Barrels of Stolen Iranian Oil For About $110 million

[news.antiwar.com][1]

  [1]: <https://news.antiwar.com/2021/05/31/us-sells-off-2-million-barrels-of-stolen-iranian-oil/>

# US Sells Off 2 Million Barrels of Stolen Iranian Oil - News From Antiwar.com

Author: Dave DeCamp

2 minutes

* * *

The US sold about 2 million barrels of stolen Iranian crude oil it acquired by seizing a tanker off the coast of the UAE in February, [_The Associated Press_ reported on Monday.][3]

  [3]: <https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-middle-east-iran-iran-nuclear-global-trade-826ea21eb3d9f9fed3681b0ae6b4aa3a>

The Iranian oil came from the MT Achilleas, a tanker the US seized near the UAE port city of Fujairah. The US justified stealing the oil and seizing the tanker under the guise of sanctions enforcement. According to _AP_ , US court documents allege that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) tried to sell the oil to China.

The Trump administration designated the IRGC as a terrorist organization, giving the US government the ability to seize IRGC assets. The US forced the Achilleas to sail to Houston, Texas. The US government then sold the 2 million barrels of oil for about $110 million.

The Iranian oil showed up [in figures released by the US Information Energy Agency][4]. The figures listed about 1 million barrels of crude oil that it said was “imported” from Iran, raising eyebrows since the US stopped buying Iranian oil decades ago.

  [4]: <https://www.eia.gov/petroleum/imports/companylevel/>

Although the process of stealing the oil began before the US and Iran started indirect negotiations to revive the nuclear deal in April, it is certainly a provocative move that sends a bad signal to Tehran. It also shows a continuation of Trump-era policies, as [the Trump administration’s Department of Justice stole several shipments ][5]of Iranian gasoline that was headed for Venezuela.

  [5]: <https://news.antiwar.com/2020/10/02/iranian-fuel-stolen-by-us-discharges-in-new-york/>

[sjrresearch]

Bataan and Corregidor 1941-42 - Part 1

Last Stand of the “Battered Ba%$$rds”

(This article is credited to Jason Weiser. Jason is a long-time wargamer with published works in the Journal of the Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers; Miniature Wargames Magazine; and Wargames, Strategy, and Soldier.)

At the start of the Pacific War, the Philippines became a central target for the Japanese, and the islands were turned into a battleground. The events that unfolded at Bataan and Corregidor during the Japanese assault is not only an important piece of World War II history, it provides an incredible framework for potential wargaming scenarios.

Over a series of three posts, we will look at Bataan and Corregidor in-depth, starting with the lead up to the Philippines’ conflict and ending with an understanding of how learning about these locations can help construct wargaming scenarios. It has also been fodder for several fine boardgames on the topic.

Part 1, The Forces Gather

Author’s Note: Though both Philippine and American units fought in Bataan, I will refer to them as “American” collectively. 

 Most Americans aren’t familiar with names like Bataan and Corregidor. Like most historical topics in grade school, it’s quickly taught and forgotten by everyone, save for historical enthusiasts. In the Philippines, it’s akin to Bunker Hill, or Yorktown. To them, these places are where the modern Philippine nation was founded. Like many others, it was a nation bred on the battlefield.

The Philippines was in a unique state since 1898, when the United States had assumed control of the islands in the wake of the Spanish-American War. In 1935, the Philippines was made an American commonwealth, and a gradual process of making the islands ready for independence by 1946 was begun. To help form an independent Philippine armed forces, General Douglas McArthur was brought in by a Philippine government with the lofty rank of Field Marshal to try to modernize the defenses of the Philippines.

McArthur was seemingly a good choice for advising the nascent Philippine Republic, having served in the islands in his first assignment (1903-1906) after graduation from West Point while his father was Governor-General. He then spent time touring Japan (the future enemy of the Philippines) as his father’s aide de camp, and thus, had seen the Japanese soldier up close. Furthermore, Douglas McArthur and the president of the Philippines, Manuel Quezon, also had a personal relationship, as President Quezon had been friends with McArthur’s father during the latter’s time as Governor-General of the Philippines 35 years before. All of this made McArthur a shoo-in for the job of building a Philippine army. 

There were also other incentives to McArthur taking the job. He had just concluded his term as Army Chief of Staff, and his relationship with the new Roosevelt administration was poor, at best (he had been involved in the suppression of the Bonus Marchers in 1932). Though McArthur completed his term in October of 1935, he probably hoped for a change of scenery. One of the assistants McArthur brought with him on this assignment was none other than Dwight D. Eisenhower. 

What they found was an army that existed only on paper. Weapons were cast-offs from U.S. service and were of dubious provenance. The first class of trainees wasn’t due for another two years, and the camps to train them hadn’t been built either. And the budget to accomplish all of this was paltry at best. The Philippine Army lacked basics, like uniforms and even boots, with many divisions having to make do with the despised blue denim uniforms that had just been put out of U.S. service. The Navy and Air Corps weren’t doing much better, with the latter only forming their first squadron in 1939. 

Worse, the level of training of the Army was poor, with one source stating:

“The men in the 31st Infantry [Division] were more fortunate than those in other regiments, many of whom had never even fired a rifle before entering combat. Nor had their previous five and a half months training under Philippine Army supervision been of much value…Practically none of the men…had fired as many as five rounds with the rifle or the .30 -caliber machine gun. None had fired the .50 caliber machine gun or the mortar.” (pp 29. The Fall of the Philippines, Morton, Lewis, US Army Center for Military History, Washington DC, 1953)

Contrast this with his Japanese opponent, who was most likely a veteran of the ten-year war in China, and was, supply deficiencies aside, well-trained and more than willing to come to grips with his opponent. The Philippine soldier was not ready for war, but war would be thrust upon him anyhow.  This wasn’t true of all Filipino soldiers, as the Philippine Scouts, who numbered 12,000, were considered some of the best troops in the pre-war U.S. Army and were relatively well-equipped. However, they were under direct American command, and not under the command of the Philippine Army.  

The U.S. troops in the islands themselves numbered 31,095 on the eve of war, and they had their own deficiencies. Funds were short for many years, and until September 1941, no reinforcements had arrived from the United States. 

In September, the 200th Coast Artillery Regiment (Anti-Aircraft) arrived, bringing much needed additional anti-aircraft guns. In October, two tank battalions, the 192nd and the 194th, arrived in the islands, with 108 M3 Light Tanks between them, both units were soon formed into a Provisional Tank Group. 

In addition, more P-40s and B-17s arrived to reinforce the U.S. Army Air Corps (USAAC) squadrons deployed throughout the islands. These were some of the most modern aircraft in the USAAC at the time, so this was meant as a deterrent to Japan and a signal that the United States was making a major investment in defense of the islands. At the outbreak of war, there were 277 USAAC aircraft of all types in the Philippines, most either at Clark or Nichols Fields on the main island of Luzon. There was also the construction of additional airfields, and many of them were built just in time. However, early warning capabilities against Japanese air attacks were woefully inadequate, and this would come back to haunt the Americans. For example, of the seven radar sets present in the islands, only two had been set up and were working. 

Meanwhile, the naval presence in the islands was reliant on the U.S. and consisted of the Asiatic Fleet under Admiral Thomas Hart. His force was more to protect American commercial interests in China and “show the flag” rather than be any real impediment to Japanese aggression. The heaviest he had available was the heavy cruiser Houston, and most of the ships he had were of World War I vintage. His air arm consisted of some PBY patrol aircraft, which were useful, and he had at his disposal the 4th Marine Regiment in Shanghai at the beginning of 1941, but the regiment evacuated to the Philippines in late-November. Hart’s hope was that he could rely on support either from the British, or the Dutch, who had larger fleets in Southeast Asia, or the Pacific Fleet in Hawaii. All of these hopes were, of course, to be cruelly dashed when war came. The only ships Hart had in abundance were submarines, having 29 available as of November 1941. However, American torpedo design did little to help these submarines, as the standard Mark 14 torpedo had a high dud rate, and often, American subs were frustrated in the early part of the war in sinking targets they would have otherwise destroyed had they had better torpedoes.

In March 1941, McArthur was recalled to the U.S. Army and was placed in command of all American forces in the Philippines. Despite assurances and little to work with, McArthur had put together a force of 100,000 men to defend the Philippines. But the force still had many deficiencies, and not all of them, despite efforts on both sides of the Pacific to address them, were rectified in time. Many of these deficiencies would haunt the defenders of Bataan in the months to come.

Japanese Forces and Plans

The Japanese invasion plan for the Philippines was part of an even larger strategy that had been arrived at by the Imperial General Headquarters. It had been derived from separate Army and Navy plans, which had differed little in content. The strategic goal was simple: Seize Malaya for its rubber, the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) for its oil, and expand a defensive perimeter as far out as possible to ensure that any attempt to push the Japanese back was a bloody one, and the Americans and British would prefer a negotiated peace to a long, intractable war. Many of the planned assaults were scheduled to occur within hours of the attack on Pearl Harbor. 

The Philippines was an objective for two reasons. First, it was a linchpin in the sea lines of communication (SLOC) with the proposed advance into the Dutch East Indies and Malaya. The islands needed to fall to ensure the Japanese had a secure rear area. Secondly, Manila harbor was, and still is, one of the finest deep-water ports in Southeast Asia. The Japanese needed access to that as well to sustain their advance to the south. 

The plan as it stood was for simultaneous air attacks on all American installations within hours of the attack on Pearl Harbor. While this was going on, the Japanese 14th Army was to land along the north coast of Luzon and at Davao on the island of Mindanao. Both islands were the most populated in the Philippine chain. The initial objective was to seize airfields to allow the Japanese Army Air Force to provide direct air support to the forces ashore. Once the main part of the USAAC strength was wiped out, the bulk of the 14th Army was to land in Lingayen Gulf just north of Manila and Limon Bay, southeast of Manila. The two prongs of advance were then to advance quickly to Manila, trap the Americans between them, and destroy the enemy in a decisive battle somewhere near Manila. The 14th Army, under the command of General Masaharu Homma, had been given 50 days to complete this task, whereupon half of his command and most of his air support would leave to support operations to the south. As we shall see, the Japanese came nowhere close to meeting this ambitious timetable.

The Japanese planning and information gathering had been meticulous, and they had a very good idea what they would be facing in the Philippines. The Japanese were of the opinion that Americans were good soldiers, but not up to the task of prolonged combat in the tropical jungles that made up a good portion of Luzon. Additionally, Japan did not think much of the Philippine soldier at all. 

The main flaw in the Japanese invasion planning was they expected the American force would make its last stand around Manila, and then die in place. The Japanese had no plan for any contingency where the Americans withdrew into Bataan and fortified the peninsula. 

As the Japanese expected a relatively easy campaign, they only allotted two divisions, the 16th and 48th Infantry Divisions. It was this over-confidence and optimistic planning that would cost them dearly in the campaign to come. 

To be continued in Part 2 – The Curtain Rises – War Comes to the Philippines 

At SJR Research, we specialize in creating compelling narratives and provide research to give your game the kind of details that engage your players and create a resonant world they want to spend time in. If you are interested in learning more about our gaming research services, you can browse SJR Research’s service on our site at SJR Research.

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Tuesday, October 27, 2020

To many Americans, the future looks dark if the other side wins (Washington Post) A minister who believes the United States is God’s chosen nation decides that a Joe Biden presidential victory would mean doom, a crushing of the nation’s essence. And a filmmaker whose work has celebrated the raucous mess of U.S. politics concludes that the reelection of President Trump would be “the end of democracy.” In almost every generation, politicians pose certain elections as the most important of their time. But the 2020 vote is taking place with the country in a historically dark mood—low on hope, running on spiritual empty, convinced that the wrong outcome will bring disaster. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Frank Luntz, a Republican political consultant who has been convening focus groups of undecided voters for seven presidential cycles. “Even the most balanced, mainstream people are talking about this election in language that is more caffeinated and cataclysmic than anything I’ve ever heard. “If you are a believer in climate change, reelecting Trump is literally the end of the world. If taxes are your issue, you think a Biden victory will bankrupt you. If your top concern is health care, you think a Biden loss will kill you.” There’s a long history of lurid foreboding in American politics. Among the nation’s founders were pamphleteers who made their names decrying the dire future the colonists faced if their revolution failed. But the current language is so apocalyptic that even those who are steeped in the country’s episodes of extreme rhetoric are alarmed.

Why Millennials Are Moving Into Convents With Nuns (Reasons to Be Cheerful) Young people are eschewing organized religion at record rates. Yet, many Millennials view their struggle for social justice as its own higher calling. In this way, they’re following in the footsteps of the countless nuns who, over the years, have combined their service to God with a mission to uplift the vulnerable and marginalized. So perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that “spiritually diverse” people in their twenties and thirties are moving into convents through a program called Nuns and Nones. / According to Carol Zinn (executive director of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious) millennials are interested in a life of spirituality, solidarity, service and sustainability, both financially and as a way of life. And what the “nones” see in women religious, she said, “is this very long story, like centuries, of living lives of spirituality, solidarity, service, in a way that has been, in fact, sustained. That’s the core attraction.”

Barrett confirmed as Supreme Court justice (AP) Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed to the Supreme Court late Monday by a deeply divided Senate, Republicans overpowering Democrats to install President Donald Trump’s nominee days before the election and secure a likely conservative court majority for years to come. Barrett is 48, and her lifetime appointment as the 115th justice will solidify the court’s rightward tilt.

Feeding Houston’s hungry: 1M pounds of food daily for needy (AP) Distributions by the Houston Food Bank now average about 800,000 pounds (363,000 kilograms) daily after reaching the unprecedented 1 million pound mark for the first time in the spring, a level that the organization still delivers periodically. Before the coronavirus struck, the group’s average daily distribution was 450,000 pounds (184,000 kilograms), said Houston Food Bank President Brian Greene. Then workers in Houston and millions around the country were suddenly thrown out of work and forced to rely on the handouts. “It had that feeling of a disaster, like the hurricanes in the Gulf,” Greene recalled. “It was shocking how the lines exploded so quickly.” Many people in Houston and around the U.S. live paycheck to paycheck and were caught off guard by the economic fallout from the coronavirus that initially cost the nation 22 million jobs, with 10.7 million that haven’t come back. “Forty percent of households have less than $400 in order to weather a storm,” Greene said, referring to a Federal Reserve survey. “So, when this crisis hit the number of families who needed assistance was immediate and very large.”

Low expectations in Mexico as US election approaches (AP) A week before U.S. elections, expectations and attention are unusually low in a foreign country that may have more at stake than any other. Many Mexicans would be glad to see a more neighborly president who hasn’t called Mexicans rapists or threatened to build a wall against them, but the relationship has survived a Donald Trump presidency, so there’s a feeling it can handle any outcome. In the streets, few can name Democratic candidate Joe Biden, but there’s a general sense that Mexicans are ready to take their chances with someone other than Trump. “No Mexican, no human being likes to be called a rapist, a thief, told that you’re not liked,” said Ana Vanessa Cárdenas Zanatta, a political science professor at Monterrey Technological and Anahuac universities in Mexico City. “The least that any human being, and the Mexicans in this bilateral relationship, can hope for is respect.” Respect can be especially important when roughly three-quarters of a country’s exports go to the United States and hundreds of millions of people cross the border in both directions yearly for work, shopping, family visits or vacations.

Chileans vote by millions to tear up Pinochet’s constitution (Reuters) Chileans poured into the country’s main squares on Sunday night after voters gave a ringing endorsement to a plan to tear up the country’s Pinochet-era constitution in favour of a new charter drafted by citizens. In Santiago’s Plaza Italia, the focus of the massive and often violent social protests last year which sparked the demand for a new magna carta, fireworks rose above a crowd of tens of thousands of jubilant people singing in unison as the word “rebirth” was beamed onto a tower above. With more than three quarters of the votes counted, 78.12% of voters had opted for a new charter. Many have expressed hopes that a new text will temper an unabashedly capitalist ethos with guarantees of more equal rights to healthcare, pensions and education.

British special forces storm oil tanker in English Channel to arrest stowaways who threatened crew (Washington Post) British marine police and special forces, in fast boats and helicopters, stormed aboard an oil tanker in the English Channel and arrested seven stowaways who had threatened the crew, authorities said Monday. The Liberia-flagged vessel Nave Andromeda was scheduled to dock Sunday at the port of Southampton on England’s southern coast when reports emerged that the 748-foot vessel was steering erratically out in the channel, one of the most heavily trafficked waterways in the world. The Defense Ministry initially called the incident a “suspected hijacking.” Later reports said the seven stowaways, believed to be Nigerians seeking asylum in Britain, became threatening when they were ordered into a locked cabin. British special forces responded to a request for help from police on Sunday evening. The BBC said the special forces “ended a 10-hour standoff which started when stowaways on board the ship reportedly became violent.” The special forces descended to the ship’s deck from helicopters hovering above.

New Cardinals (Religion News Service) On Sunday Pope Francis named 13 new cardinals, four of whom are over the age of 80 and are not eligible to vote for the next pope were the need to arise, and the other eight eligible to be able to vote in such a conclave. Those figures are arguably important for a pope hoping to secure a legacy that will not be immediately reversed by a different faction within the diverse, globe-spanning church administrative structure. When the newly-appointed group become full-fledged cardinals, there will be 128 cardinal electors, 57 percent of whom were chosen by Francis himself, 30 percent of whom were selected by his papal predecessor Pope Benedict XVI, and 13 percent chosen by Pope John Paul II. The conclave that elected Francis was 52 percent European (24 percent Italian) and after November it’ll be 41 percent European (and just 17 percent Italian). The global south—Asia, Africa, and Latin America—holds 45 percent of the electors, up from 35 percent when Francis was installed.

Belarus Opposition Calls for National Strike (Foreign Policy) Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko’s future may depend on whether his fellow citizens turn up for work today. Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the remaining opposition candidate in August’s rigged presidential election, has called for a national strike today after Lukashenko refused her “People’s Ultimatum” to resign by last night. The move comes after police appeared to use stun grenades on protesters in Minsk yesterday—the 11th successive Sunday that protests have rocked the capital. According to a local human rights group, at least 216 people were detained by police. Speaking from the relative safety of her exile in Lithuania, Tikhanovskaya won’t be leading the picket lines from the front (and as she is self-isolating after a possible COVID-19 exposure, that’s probably just as well.) Belarus’s largely leaderless masses will decide whether today’s strike succeeds where others in the previous weeks have failed.

Turkish leader backs boycott of French goods over cartoon row (Reuters) Turkish leader Tayyip Erdogan asked his compatriots to stop buying French goods on Monday in the latest expression of anger in the Muslim world over images being displayed in France of the Prophet Mohammad, which some Muslims consider blasphemous. In Bangladesh on Monday, protesters unfurled placards with a caricature of French President Emmanuel Macron and the words: “Macron is the enemy of peace”, while Pakistan summoned France’s ambassador in Islamabad to issue a protest. Erdogan, who has a history of fraught relations with Macron, said France was pursuing an anti-Islam agenda. “I am calling to all my citizens from here to never help French brands or buy them,” Erdogan said. In Turkey, French autos are among the highest selling cars, and French-Turkish bilateral trade overall was worth nearly $15 billion last year. The Turkish president has made similar boycott calls in the past, including an appeal not to buy U.S. electronic goods in 2018 which was not followed through.

Airstrikes kill or injure dozens of fighters in camp for Turkish-backed rebels in Syria (Washington Post) Airstrikes on a training camp for Turkish-backed rebels in northwestern Syria killed or injured dozens of fighters Monday, according to a rebel spokesman, who estimated that more than 170 people died or were wounded. The strikes killed 35 fighters from the Sham Legion, a rebel group that falls under the Turkish-backed National Front for Liberation, an umbrella organization for rebels in northwestern Syria, a member of the group said. Another 77 were wounded. Russia accuses the Sham Legion of sending some of its troops to Libya and Azerbaijan to fight as mercenaries on behalf of Turkey against forces aligned with Russia. The airstrike came amid an escalating air campaign in northwestern Syria over the past week by both Syrian and Russian warplanes. A rivalry between Russia and Turkey has heated up as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expands his military reach abroad, including into areas where Moscow is also pursuing its own interests. Over the past few years, the primary area of Turkish-Russian competition has been Idlib, Syria’s impoverished and rebel-held northwestern province. Last year, Russia backed a Syrian government attempt to recapture the province, and Turkey countered by supporting rebel groups and deploying in its own military to prevent the Russian-Syrian advance.

China Aims to End Extreme Poverty, but Covid-19 Exposes Gaps (NYT) Xu Rudong, a farmer in eastern China, thought he had left poverty behind long ago. He turned a small plot of land into a flourishing field of leeks, selling enough to pay for luxuries like fish and meat for his wife and four children. He even had money left over to buy an electric scooter. Now Mr. Xu is once again struggling to pay for basic necessities like food and medicine. The economic slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic has hurt his income, and severe flooding has devastated his crops. “We are poor, poor people,” Mr. Xu, 48, said in a recent telephone interview from his home in Wangjiaba, a village of 36,000 in Anhui Province. “We don’t eat meat anymore.” China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, is expected to declare victory in the next two months in a campaign to eliminate extreme poverty in the country. The Chinese economy is once again gaining strength, and the Communist Party’s achievements in reducing poverty are expected to feature prominently this week at a conclave of party leaders in Beijing. Mr. Xi’s antipoverty drive is focused on around five million people who earn less than 92 cents a day, down from nearly 56 million five years ago. But the pandemic has exposed the party’s shortcomings in providing its most vulnerable citizens with more than the barest of social safeguards, especially in rural areas.

Iran reports COVID-19 death every five minutes, hospitals struggle (Reuters) Hospitals in many Iranian provinces are running out of capacity to handle COVID-19 cases, health authorities say, with novel coronavirus now killing around 300 people a day or one person every five minutes. Schools, mosques, shops, restaurants and other public institutions in Tehran have been closed since Oct. 3. As COVID-19 cases and deaths continued to hit record levels, the closure was extended until Nov. 20, state TV reported.