State of the Union-esque Address

Obama has laid out a firm timetable for US troop withdrawal from Iraq in 18 months. One war will finally end. Unfortunately, there is still Afghanistan.

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Nevermind that State of the Union speeches are usually delivered after at least a year in office. From President Obama’s address to a joint session of Congress:

We know the country that harnesses the power of clean, renewable energy will lead the 21st century. And yet, it is China that has launched the largest effort in history to make their economy energy efficient. We invented solar technology, but we’ve fallen behind countries like Germany and Japan in producing it. New plug-in hybrids roll off our assembly lines, but they will run on batteries made in Korea. 

Well I do not accept a future where the jobs and industries of tomorrow take root beyond our borders – and I know you don’t either. It is time for America to lead again.

Thanks to our recovery plan, we will double this nation’s supply of renewable energy in the next three years. We have also made the largest investment in basic research funding in American history – an investment that will spur not only new discoveries in energy, but breakthroughs in medicine, science, and technology. We will soon lay down thousands of miles of power lines that can carry new energy to cities and towns across this country. And we will put Americans to work making our homes and buildings more efficient so that we can save billions of dollars on our energy bills.

But to truly transform our economy, protect our security, and save our planet from the ravages of climate change, we need to ultimately make clean, renewable energy the profitable kind of energy. So I ask this Congress to send me legislation that places a market-based cap on carbon pollution and drives the production of more renewable energy in America. And to support that innovation, we will invest fifteen billion dollars a year to develop technologies like wind power and solar power; advanced biofuels, clean coal, and more fuel-efficient cars and trucks built right here in America.

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[America's Untapped Energy Resource: Boosting Efficiency via TIME]

It turns out to be much less expensive, destructive and time-intensive to reduce demand through efficiency than to increase supply through new drilling or new power plants. A nationwide push to save “negawatts” instead of building more megawatts could help reverse our unsustainable increases in energy-hogging and carbon-spewing while creating a slew of jobs and saving a load of cash…

There are two basic ways to save energy without deprivation or daily effort. We can use more efficient machinery, like fuel-efficient cars that guzzle less gas, or those pigtailed compact fluorescent lightbulbs that use 75% less power than traditional bulbs, or state-of-the-art refrigerators that are three times as efficient as 1973 models. We can also use machinery more productively. That can be as simple as insulating pipes and ducts, caulking doors and windows and otherwise weatherizing our homes to avoid heating our attics and the outdoors. Or installing motion sensors and programmable thermostats that turn out lights and air conditioners when no one’s in the room.

What’s in the $825B Economic Stimulus Plan?

The stimulus bill was passed in the House of Representatives today, 244 votes to 188, strictly along party lines without any Republican support. The Senate is due to vote on it sometime next week. Senate committees have already added several amendments, bringing it to a hefty total of $887 billion.

Per Obama’s amendment to ban earmarks in 2009, there are no senseless expenditures. It breaks down to roughly $550 billion in spending and $275 in tax cuts. Here’s the meat of stimulus bill: 

1. Education. $117 Billion to school districts & public universities and to increase Pell Grants.
2. Aid to the Jobless. $106 Billion to extend unemployment & social security benefits.
3. State Aid. $119 Billion for Medicaid, law enforcement, and public safety.
4. Infrastructure. $90 Billion to improve roads, bridges, mass transit, and waterways.
5. Energy. $54 Billion to upgrade the electrical grid and weatherize houses.
6. Science. $16 Billion towards research funding, upgrading facilities, and providing broadband internet services in rural areas. [Source]

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The stimulus package, also known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, is a bill “making supplemental appropriations for job preservation and creation, infrastructure investment, energy efficiency and science, assistance to the unemployed, and State and local fiscal stabilization, for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009, and for other purposes.”

The legislation and accompanying reports are dry reads in PDF format, so I’d suggest over to ReadTheStimulus.org, which presents the various documents ofthe stimulus bill in a fully searchable, web-friendly format. There are even GoogleDoc spreadsheets that detail exactly where all those billions are headed. All the zeros make my head spin.

A New Era of Government

President Obama moved swiftly on Wednesday to impose new rules on government transparency and ethics, using his first full day in office to freeze the salaries of his senior aides, mandate new limits on lobbyists and demand that the government disclose more information. [via CNN]

Also, President Barack Obama issued four executive orders Thursday to demonstrate a clean break from the Bush administration on the war on terror, including one requiring that the U.S. military detention facility at Guantanamo Bay be closed within a year. A second executive order formally bans torture by requiring that the Army field manual be used as the guide for terror interrogations. [via CNN]

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REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT 
IN WELCOMING SENIOR STAFF AND CABINET SECRETARIES 
TO THE WHITE HOUSE [via US News]

Let me say it as simply as I can: Transparency and the rule of law will be the touchstones of this presidency. 

Our commitment to openness means more than simply informing the American people about how decisions are made. It means recognizing that government does not have all the answers, and that public officials need to draw on what citizens know. And that’s why, as of today, I’m directing members of my administration to find new ways of tapping the knowledge and experience of ordinary Americans — scientists and civic leaders, educators and entrepreneurs — because the way to solve the problem of our time is — the way to solve the problems of our time, as one nation, is by involving the American people in shaping the policies that affect their lives.

The executive orders and directives I’m issuing today will not by themselves make government as honest and transparent as it needs to be. And they do not go as far as we need to go towards restoring accountability and fiscal restraint in Washington. But these historic measures do mark the beginning of a new era of openness in our country. And I will, I hope, do something to make government trustworthy in the eyes of the American people in the days and weeks, months and years to come. That’s a pretty good place to start. 

President Obama 1.21.09

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It amuses me to no end that the White House has a blog. That new website is so slick and informative; there must be an army of people working on keeping it up-to-date. I <3 our new president.

The Inauguration of #44

1.5 million flooded the National Mall Tuesday for the inauguration of Barack Obama, according to an analysis of satellite imagery. The event was witnessed by millions more through television and Internet coverage.

Collected here are photographs of the event, the participants, and some of the witnesses around the world. [via The Big Picture]

The inauguration went off without a hitch — nevermind that Chief Justice Roberts flubbed some words and had to re-administer the oath of presidency later (to make it official). In case you missed the inaugural address, click here for a full transcript.

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In keeping with the theme that swept President Obama into the Oval Office, change also came to the official White House Website. Almost at the instant Obama was sworn in, whitehouse.gov relaunched with a redesign to signal a new era in government. Gone was the staid site of the Bush White House, replaced by a dynamic new site reflective of his tech savvy successor.

And yes, Obama will be keeping his Blackberry (dubbed the “BarackBerry”), although access will be limited to a select few.

Science Wins Big in the $825B Stimulus Bill; Inaugural Art

House Dems offer $825B stimulus bill

After weeks of talks with President-elect Barack Obama’s top aides, House Democrats on Thursday released an expansive economic recovery plan that calls for $550 billion in spending and aid to states and $275 billion in tax cuts. [via CNNMoney]

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Congressional stimulus package includes billions in extra research funding.

Democratic leadership in the US House of Representatives unveiled on Thursday an $825 billion economic stimulus bill that includes tens of billions of dollars in new funding for basic research, science infrastructure and clean-energy initiatives.

Organizations representing the research community applauded the proposal, citing massive infusions of cash for both physical and biological sciences throughout the federal science agencies. But some questioned whether the one-time infusion would matter much to agencies whose budgets have flatlined or been lower than expected in recent years.

As part of a massive collection of tax cuts and spending initiatives, the 258-page blueprint released by House appropriators would pump $3 billion into the National Science Foundation (NSF), $2 billion into the National Institutes of Health (NIH), $1.9 billion into the Department of Energy and $1.5 billion into university research facilities. Much of that money would be directed toward science infrastructure like renovating buildings or laboratories, but the NSF and NIH would receive $2 billion and $1.5 billion respectively that could be used to pay for thousands of basic research grants that have already been approved but for which there was previously not enough money. [via Nature]
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I’m quite keen on this new commemorative inaugural print by Shepard Fairey. This would look great as a shirt. [via ObeyGiant]
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This weekend, America’s capital city will welcome thousands of government officials and dignitaries from the U.S. and around the world. Over 10,000 buses will carry 500,000 riders into Washington, D.C., doubling the city’s population. On Inauguration Day, the Metro is expected to have a 17-hour rush hour. District bars will be open 24-hours a day for five straight days. To manage an event of this scale, the District of Columbia will spend a mammoth $47 million. It is not enough.

Obama’s Inauguration is expected to be the largest inaugural event in American history–and the most challenging to orchestrate. A committee of local elected officials estimates that ensuring the safety and wellbeing of everyone involved in the festivities will cost over $75 million. [via Forbes]

Yikes, the logistics are nightmarish (it’s like hosting a gargantuan statewide rock concert). It’s going to be a crazy four days until 1.20.09! I will most likely be living vicariously through friends who snatched up tickets to the inauguration.

Recap: Thanksgiving Weekend In Headlines

The year of holiday thrift
Black Friday Turnout: No Miracle on 34th Street
Wal-Mart worker dies in rush; two killed at toy store

Oil prices at near 22-month low
Falling Prices Point To A Struggling Economy
Opec refuses oil production cuts
The Truth Behind Low Oil Prices
Can U.S. Go ‘Green’ Even When Oil Prices Drop?
GM Pondering Brand Cuts

Hopefully, the economy will shape up after January. Sales were meager this Black Friday.

Although falling gas prices appear to be a timely blessing, the ramifications beyond the gas pump worries me. Demand lessened drastically when the price of crude oil shot over $100 a barrel and prices have finally fallen, as a result. But prices will inevitably go up as soon as demand increases or as soon as OPEC decides to slow down production.

The downside of low prices is that the need for alternative fuels seem less urgent. Oh, it’s about damn time that the General Motors considers killing off some of its brands (Saab, Pontiac, Volvo, and Hummer) because it is seriously over-branded. GM doesn’t deserve any money from Congress; it is the company’s fault for producing inefficient cars and failing to capture market shares & consumer interest.

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24 hours of carnage leave 120 dead
Death toll climbs past 150 as city reels from terror attack
Mumbai counts the cost
Pakistan Denies Role In Mumbai Attacks

Barbara Walters | Michelle Obama Interview
New first lady pitches into ‘mommy wars’

Bill O’Reilly | Barack Obama Interview
President 2.0 – How will he use the power of the Web now?
Your Weekly Address from the President-Elect
Obama’s confidence-rating: High, steady
Washington faces overload as millions rush to see president sworn in
First Couple-to-be could be relationship role models for nation, experts say

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• Airless Tires for the Troops
• Microsoft in $20bn Yahoo deal
• A new study in PLoS ONE explores the gendered nature of American voting behavior.
• Born to Run? Little Ones Get Test for Sports Gene & The ACTN3 sports gene test: what can it really tell you?

The State of American Health Care

The biggest problem with the U.S. health-care system is that it has long been designed to respond to illness rather than prevent it. [America's Health Checkup via TIME]

“If you’re like 67% of Americans, you’re currently overweight or obese. If you’re like 27%, your blood pressure is too high. If you’re like a whopping 96% of the population, you may not be able to recall the last time you had a salad, since you’re one of the hundreds of millions of Americans who rarely eat enough vegetables. And what you do eat, you don’t burn off — assuming you’re like the 40% of us who get no exercise. Most troubling of all, if you’re like any parent of any child anywhere in the world, you may be passing your health habits to your children, which explains why experts fear that this generation of American kids may be the first ever to have a shorter life span than their parents do…”

“By too many measures, America is a lot less healthy than a developed nation has any business being. But just how sick — or just how well — are we? Broad national averages are limited things — very good at telling you the what, but notoriously bad at telling you much more. Who are the one-third of Americans who don’t have a weight problem, and how can the rest of us become like them? Why do some of us get our cancer screenings and make sure our kids are vaccinated while others don’t? It’s hard enough to get a thorough profile of any one person’s health outlook. Now imagine putting 300 million of us on the examining table together. That’s where TIME’s inaugural national health checkup can help. For this first annual feature, we’ve gone straight to the numbers to measure the vital signs of a 232-year-old nation that, let’s be honest, has let itself go a little lately. The results of such a collective physical are something that should concern us all.”

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[5 Truths About Health Care in America via TIME]

1. The U.S. spends far more on health care than any other nation.
2. Yet the U.S. is not healthier for the money. We live shorter lives and have a higher infant-mortality rate than many other developed nations.
3. Although smoking has been on the decline, Americans still don’t live heatlhy lives.
4. The good news that more awareness and better treatments are curbing America’s top killers.
5. Millions of Americans are at risk because they don’t have insurance or easy access to a doctor.

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[President -Elect Obama's FireWire Chats: Transparency Redefined? via RWW]

“…President Elect Obama’s transition team announced the weekly Democratic address will be posted on YouTube. Today we saw the first of these fireside chats go live on the new video wire. It’s clear that Obama and his team are extremely competent when it comes to the social Web, but it might be useful to examine some of the reasons behind his phenomenal success online, and look at a potential misconception.”

Clinton as Secretary of State?…And macroscopic protists!

Hillary Rodham Clinton has decided to give up her Senate seat and accept the nomination for secretary of state after additional discussion with President-elect Barack Obama about the nature of her role, two confidants of Mrs. Clinton said Friday. 
[Clinton to Accept Secretary of State Nomination, Confidants Say via NYT]

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I can’t wait for Obama’s historic inaugration in January! Security is being heavily intensified for the record turnout (4 million?). I’m expecting a crowd of most epic proportions.

“…the overwhelming demand to attend the swearing-in ceremony has caused online scalping at sites like eBay’s ticket venture StubHub and Craigslist for prices reaching as much as $40,000.” [eBay bans sale of Obama inauguration tickets via The Register]

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Speaking of epic proportions:

This article alerted me about paper in Current Biology that I had to hunt down:
Matz et al., Giant Deep-Sea Protist Produces Bilaterian-like Traces, Current Biology (2008), doi:10.1016/j.cub.2008.10.028

Scarce fossil evidence in the Precambrian makes it difficult to pin down when organisms with bilateral symmetry first arose. Did it occur before, as molecular evidence suggests, or concurrently with the massive speciation during the Cambrian? Matz et al. suggests that trace fossils currently assigned to early Bilaterians could also be attributed to megaprotozoans.

The thought of gargantuan amoebas lumbering along the ocean floors, leaving Bilaterian tracks and fooling paleontologists all the while, makes me chuckle – what a wonderful oxymoron!

I <3 unicellular organisms.

In Other News

[730 front pages from 66 countries via Newseum]

[The Electoral Map - A whimsical electoral map created by Chris Harris and Stephanie Chen via NY Times]

Victory Speech at Grant Park, Chicago IL

Not long after the last polls closed in California, as more battleground states turned over to Obama, the election was called (early) by every major network and news radio station. McCain, overwhelmingly defeated, made a concession and our victorious presidential elect rose to speak to a sea of exhilarated voters.

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[Images via The Chicago Tribune]

…I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn’t start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington. It began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston. It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give $5 and $10 and $20 to the cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation’s apathy who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep. It drew strength from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on doors of perfect strangers, and from the millions of Americans who volunteered and organized and proved that more than two centuries later a government of the people, by the people, and for the people has not perished from the Earth.

This is your victory. And I know you didn’t do this just to win an election. And I know you didn’t do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime — two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century…

…What began 21 months ago in the depths of winter cannot end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It can’t happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves but each other. Let us remember that, if this financial crisis taught us anything, it’s that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers. In this country, we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. Let’s resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let’s remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House, a party founded on the values of self-reliance and individual liberty and national unity. Those are values that we all share. And while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress.

As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, we are not enemies but friends. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn, I may not have won your vote tonight, but I hear your voices. I need your help. And I will be your president, too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces, to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of the world, our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those — to those who would tear the world down: We will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security: We support you. And to all those who have wondered if America’s beacon still burns as bright: Tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.

That’s the true genius of America: that America can change. Our union can be perfected. What we’ve already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow…

[Full transcript of Obama's victory speech available via CNN]

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CHANGE IS HERE! An amazing win (with party switches in seven states).

Waiting on the House/Senate results.