Update 1: An EU official has just stated that they will not make any adjustments to the interest rate for Ireland from the EFSF. This supports the statement by another official a few hours ago that "Ireland's debt is Ireland's problem." In other words, the Irish Jig will need to be attempted with no legs.
Today's game: Guess this image.
Give up?
With all the comparisons of Fukushima and Chernobyl published on a daily basis these days, it's easy to forget, perhaps the most significant difference between the two - location. With Chernobyl being located hundreds of miles inland and away from any major source of water, and Fukushima being located directly on the shore of the Pacific Ocean, one has to ponder where will all of that radioactive water go and what will be the consequences on aquatic life. After all, millions of gallons of sea water were pumped onto the reactors in order to keep them cool for the past 3 weeks. It turns out, as expected, untold tens of thousands of gallons of highly radioactive water have leaked into the sea uncontrollably. Now, TEPCO has admitted this and has released pictures of the leak and their plans to correct this situation. Unfortunately, with plutonium's long half life, the damage is already done to the world's oceans. As CNN is reporting, TEPCO is rushing to "dump" 3 million gallons (11,500 tons) of radioactive water into the Pacific ocean, in a effort to advert an even worse catastrophe from occurring. In essence, they are replacing just radioactive water with highly radioactive water - or the lesser of two evils.
Needless to say, as reported here, they are simply buying time to gather the materials necessary for a Chernobyl like tomb. They can't keep workers there much longer with radiation now above 1 sievert per hour and now that other problems are arising. As can bee seen by these new high resolution photos, the plant can't be saved. It may be time to come up with a long term viable plan that can be accomplished quickly.
Now that you know radioactive particles will be encircling the globe shortly, here is what Pop Sci has published about radiation and its impact on the human body. Now remember, this article was published on the 16th of March and at that time, the readings were not much higher than 400 mSv/hour; they are currently above 1000 mSv/hour. We suppose despite this, Ann Coulter followers still believe radiation is healthy for you.
Moving on to other bullish news, Defense News is reporting that Sweden has approved the use of 8 of its jets for use in Libya to enforce the no-fly zone. Interestingly, this is the first time Sweden has become involved in a foreign war in 50 years. One has to ponder if this is strictly for humanitarian efforts or more is involved. Scratch that. We know - the future of delicious Swedish Fish are at stake.
Of course, we couldn't have another rally day for the DOW without more good reasons. Libya and Japan are reason enough to rally, right? Al Jazeera is reporting that hundreds of protesters in Yemen have been seriously injured from live rounds. This of course is the start of a wave of uprisings around the world and many more to come.
Since you are aware that the "recession" officially ended in June 2009, it might be good to take a look at the key driver of the US economy and its current condition. Perhaps this 60 Minutes presentation can provide some insight into the matter. If that video doesn't provide enough detail, then perhaps this CNN Money article which shows 11.4% of all US homes are vacant will. Should be bullish for home builders and the economy, no doubt.
Finally, we leave you with two interesting tidbits of information which you can use as you see fit:
1- "Genetically Modified Cows Produce Human Milk" is an interesting read into the world of
2- Jobs are back! McDonald's is looking to fill 50k jobs nationwide on the 19th of April, so if you lost your regular full time job at a tax payer funded Too Big To Fail Bank or other Record Bonus Pay For Exec's Only Institution, you can always flip hamburgers for a living.