By GottaLaff
Tazzz over at DailyKos has graciously given me permission to cross-post her work here at TPC.
We're done with the media pushing Rushpublic memes. Time to start one of our own:
By GottaLaff
Witnesses and emergency response authorities said as many as 100 people were injured and at least two were dead following a massive explosion, which homeowners more than 10 miles away mistook for an earth quake, blew up a power plant being built on the Connecticut River in the southern section of Middletown at about 11 a.m. Sunday.My Twitter pal JFKFan told me he felt the "earthquake". Scary stuff.
Medical rescue personnel said four of the 100 were injured, four critically, and two were dead at the site of the Kleen Energy Systems plant on River Road.
"There are bodies everywhere," a witness said. Another witness said many victims may be buried in rubble.
Santostefano said the explosion was related in some fashion to natural gas, but he did not know how. A neighbor of the plant said the plant may have used natural gas in its power generating systems.There's more. What a sad, tragic story.
Other neighbors said as many as 100 employees may have been working there when the explosion took place. A witness said the explosion took place when workers switched on the plant's energy generating systems during a test.
Ahem. I've know a couple "explosive packets" in my day, and they looked nothing like this. Whew, I know this is serious business, but I just can't stop laughing. Via.
By GottaLaff
A 23-year-old Nigerian man was charged in a federal criminal complaint today with attempting to destroy a Northwest Airlines aircraft on its final approach to Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Christmas Day and with placing a destructive device on the aircraft.Now back to the Tee Vee Machine news dee jays' endless 24/7 speculation already in progress.According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, a Nigerian national, boarded Northwest Flight 253 in Amsterdam, Netherlands on December 24, 2009 and had a device attached to his body. As the flight was approaching Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Abdulmutallab set off the device, which resulted in a fire and what appears to have been an explosion. Abdulmutallab was then subdued and restrained by the passengers and flight crew. The airplane landed shortly thereafter, and he was taken into custody by Customs and Border Patrol officers.
A preliminary FBI analysis found that the device contained PETN, also known as pentaerythritol, a high explosive. Further analysis is ongoing. In addition, FBI agents recovered what appear to be the remnants of the syringe from the vicinity of Abdulmutallab’s seat, believed to have been part of the device.
“This alleged attack on a U.S. airplane on Christmas Day shows that we must remain vigilant in the fight against terrorism at all times,” Attorney General Eric Holder said. “Had this alleged plot to destroy an airplane been successful, scores of innocent people would have been killed or injured. We will continue to investigate this matter vigorously, and we will use all measures available to our government to ensure that anyone responsible for this attempted attack is brought to justice
Abdulmutallab required medical treatment and was transported to the University of Michigan Medical Center after the plane landed. He will make his initial court appearance later today.
Interviews of all of the passengers and crew of Flight 253 revealed that prior to the incident, Abdulmutallab went to the bathroom for approximately 20 minutes, according to the affidavit. Upon returning to his seat, Abdulmutallab stated that his stomach was upset, and he pulled a blanket over himself. Passengers then heard popping noises similar to firecrackers, smelled an odor, and some observed Abdulmutallab’s pants leg and the wall of the airplane on fire. Passengers and crew then subdued Abdulmutallab and used blankets and fire extinguishers to put out the flames. Passengers reported that Abdulmutallab was calm and lucid throughout. One flight attendant asked him what he had had in his pocket, and he replied “explosive device.”
These prosecutions are being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, with assistance from the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.
The investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the Joint Terrorism Task Force. The public is reminded that criminal complaints contain mere allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
By GottaLaff
Breathless CNN video:
Original posts here and here.
Per Ed Henry on CNN:
This administration has expressed skepticism of the color chart alert system. They're concentrating more on improving security checkpoints and other measures at airports, not colors.
Susan Collins on Homeland Security committee says she's expecting a briefing soon, wonders how the passenger got explosives on the plane to begin with, and if he actually does have ties to any terrorist organization.
Passenger Richard Griffith, who was on the plane, just said the explosives must have been in the guys pocket, ended up "in his crotch".
That wouldn't have ended well at all for the suspect's afterlife.
By GottaLaff
Via an e-mail alert from Yahoo news:WASHINGTON (AP) U.S. intelligence official: Passenger on Detroit flight was attempting to blow up plane.
Original story:A passenger was subdued after igniting fireworks aboard a Northwest Airlines flight from Amsterdam to the US city of Detroit, US media reported on Friday.
Waiting for more details to emerge.
More here:
The man told investigators that he wanted to set off a bomb over the United States, and the incident is being handled as a possibile terrorism attack by both law enforcement and intelligence agencies, senior counterterrorism officials said.UPDATE:
The man was subdued by the flight crew of Flight 253 from Amsterdam, one counterterrorism official said. The official said the man left Lagos, Nigeria, on Thursday, then boarded the Northwest Flight 253 in Amsterdam on Friday.
Fox News confirms suspect in Detroit plane incident told investigators he is connected to Al Qaeda
A male passenger reportedly linked to terrorist organization al-Qaeda ignited a powdery substance prior to landing on a Delta Airlines flight to Detroit Friday. The suspect is believed to be Nigerian, Fox News reported.
By GottaLaff
(This is a really short video, about 25 seconds)
Oh that Saxby, always causing a ruckus. He's probably just upset about his name.
Here's another, slightly longer video (h/t: Jon Lester) to give you some background:Facing a runoff election in a few weeks — and recently hit with a subpoena to testify about his ties to the sugar company whose refinery exploded in February, killing 14 — the Georgia Republican has turned his frustration on the media, giving a light shove to a cameraman yesterday who appears to get to close to the embattled senator.
The Democrats are hoping to make the subpoena (not to mention the shove) an issue in Chambliss’s Dec. 2 runoff against Democratic challenger Jim Martin — which, by the way, can’t come quickly enough.
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