Everything's okay I'm from the government I'm here to help

Here's a clash of government agencys that's sure to please. Who would you believe?
CDC on formaldehyde
FEMA wants to hand out emergency trailers for housing to the people who've lost their homes to the tornadoes. Only problem, the trailers are new and still outgassing formaldehyde. CDC has been studying the problem since Katrina but the final report hasn't been published yet. A little background about the CDC. I get a lot of good info from their website for what I do for a living, but I have to say they are very conservative on their approach to health issues. An example is the info they put out on mold. According to them mold might cause minor respiratory problems in people prone to allergys, yet I've seen at least four cases in the last few years of extreme reactions from mold exposures to the point where individuals were bleeding from the nose and ears.
(For some reason the link above will not work and when I went back to the yahoo story from their main news site it was changed)
Here's the code for the original article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080214/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/toxic_trailers;_ylt=Ap_lAx9gXbEz4Hj.8PtvdHis0NUE

So what can you do it you get stuck with one of these trailers? Ventilate as much as you can. Open the windows during the day as much as possible. I realize it's cold outside but the gas level rises the longer the doors and windows are closed. Turn on any vent fans and run them constantly especially when you sleep. Try to spend as much time outside the trailer as you can. If you experience burning eyes and shortness of breath get out of the trailer and see a doctor and let him/her know that you are living in one of these trailers and you suspect formaldehyde exposure.
To be quite honest I don't recall exactly how long it takes to outgas formaldehyde. My educated guess would be between several months to a few years depending on factors like ventilation and humidity. The CDC doesn't give any information about that issue.

When the oil runs out

Cool car


I had considered a gas electric like the Toyota Prius until I saw this little critter. The thing about the Toyota is the batteries need to be replaced at a cost of $7000. The air car gets 120 mpg, gets a power kick from a small engine and would cost much less than any hybred on the road now. Oh, did I mention it runs on compressed air.

Just when you thought things couldn't get worse

After reading about the telcos getting away with illegal wiretaps I happened upon this little ditty:

Spying

And for those of you who thought Chavez was bluffing about cutting off the oil...
Hugo cuts off oil today

One last item of note a wonderful example of poorly trained police officers in Florida.
Don't jaywalk in this city
Wonder if they got their training in L.A.?

various items

Chavez planning to stop oil to U.S.

For those out there who have investments in oil futures it looks like they are about to go up. Check the oil prices Monday.

The Bush budget

Looking at the federal budget brought no rays of sunshine. It seems that any scrap of benefit to most Americans was cut from the budget and sent to Iraq. This is not the final budget as it's not yet been approved but it will give you an indication of the mind set of this misadministration. So if you are having problems sleeping you might consider reading this budget, but I warn you it might cause nightmares. But if you're a war monger it could cause priapism.

Blast! blogger isn't working right but I'll post this anyway so it isn't lost.

Short attention span

A quick search of the U.S.news about the tornadoes in the south late Friday night revealed... nothing, nada, zip! Went to the BBC news and there was a story under Americas. As usual The BBC does a better job of all reporting. If you want to find out what NBC ABC and CBS did not mention then you know where to go.
For some reason eblogger wouldn't let me post an aftermath scene of the tornado so I thought I'd just post this soggy beaver instead.
I hope we can get a little feedback from the aid organizations down there just to know help is actually getting there.

More good news from disaster

This little guy was thrown 150 yards by a tornado and is still going strong.

Kyson Stowell, 11 months, is shown in a hospital in Nashville, Tenn., Thursday, Feb. 7,...

A call for help

My friend and fellow blogger Monkeyfister has asked for help for the people down south in dealing with the tornados. He's has some awesome and scary photos of the storms on his website.

I'd like to direct your donations to the following web site:
Donate here

I can't say enough about the good work these guys do. They were some of the first on the scene after Katrina feeding people and providing food and water to the people down there. You can say what you will about other organizations but with the Salvation Army over 90% of what you donate actually goes to those in need. They already have their mobile kitchen in action in the area and are waiting for direction from local emergency managers to go to other areas.

If you're not sure about the above link or by chance someone has messed with it feel free to google them and go there directly. You know how such things bring out the best and the worst in people during these times.