Free Republic

N. Korea appears to be readying more missile testing: source SEOUL, Oct. 13 (Yonhap) -- North Korea appeared to be readying to test-fire short-range missiles off its west coast on Tuesday, a day after it launched five from the east, a South Korean source said. North Korea earlier announced a navigation ban on both coasts from Oct. 10-20, according to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The communist state test-fired KN-02 missiles from its east coast on Monday. Data picture "There are signs that the missile launches are being prepared on the west coast," the source said, adding...

The threat of a devastating tsunami hitting the U.S. West Coast might be higher than previously thought, scientists say, based on a new study of earthquake faults off the coast of Alaska. Tsunamis are often triggered by earthquakes, as was the case with the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, which was sparked by the 9.3-magnitude Sumatra-Andaman subduction quake in the same ocean. The tsunami killed nearly a quarter of a million people. The new research suggests that future tsunamis could reach a scale far beyond that suffered in a 1964 tsunami generated by the great 9.2-magnitude Alaskan earthquake — "the most...

LOS ANGELES -- An arbitrator has ordered the union that represents dockworkers at West Coast ports to tell members they must report to work Thursday and not take the day off to protest U.S. military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. A wide enough walkout could cause a slowdown at West Coast ports -- the nation's major gateway for cargo from the Far East. Arbitrator John Kagel issued his decision today after holding a hearing by phone with the employers' group, Pacific Maritime Association, and International Longshore and Warehouse Union, according to a document outlining the ruling. The union previously asked...

Sometimes the truth just has a way of coming to light. A public information officer with the Texas Department of Transportation this week wrote a column in the Herald-Press describing the financial woes facing TxDOT and how because of those problems the state’s transportation department doesn’t have the money to deal with many of the state’s transportation issues. Apparently, several of the state’s senators do not feel that is the case at all. David Dewhurst called out the state’s interim chairwoman of the Texas Transportation Commission, Hope Andrade, on this very issue, according to a story from the Associated Press....

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has boosted his environmental profile by signing global warming agreements with states and foreign governments, most recently one this month with the Australian state of Victoria. Schwarzenegger officials say the agreements are intended to force the federal government to take a more stringent approach to tackling global warming. But some critics note the signings have given Schwarzenegger opportunities for photo-ops with foreign leaders, and Democrats have raised concerns that the Republican governor is using the deals to predispose California to a market-based system in which companies can buy their way out of emissions reductions. Each of the...

MOSCOW - Russia is standing on a small and shrinking patch of middle ground as it tries to protect its huge business relationship with Iran while finding a diplomatic resolution for U.S. and European concerns that Iran has a secret nuclear-weapons program.

Federal regulators have voted to impose severe restrictions on salmon fishing off the coasts of Oregon and Northern California to protect dwindling populations in the Klamath River. The Pacific Fishery Management Council decided to close about 700 miles of coastline to commercial salmon fishing for most of June and July. Those are generally the most productive months of the season.

LOS ANGELES (AP) - An Arab company's potential takeover of some marine terminals at six major ports on the East Coast has raised questions about foreign operations at seaport facilities. Such arrangements have been commonplace at West Coast ports for years. Most of the cargo that enters the country comes through huge ports in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland and the Seattle-Tacoma area of Washington. Each has marine terminals operated by foreign shipping lines - many from Europe and Asia. "On the West Coast, almost all the ports have their terminals operated by foreign companies," said Ivan Eland, senior fellow...

ENSENADA, Mexico (AP) - In late 2003, Sempra Energy's bid to build the first liquefied natural gas terminal in western North America was in deep trouble. Plans to import gas from Bolivia sparked a popular uprising that killed dozens of people and toppled the government there. Today, Sempra is leading the race. It turned to Indonesia for the gas, and is building a $1-billion plant on Mexico's pristine coastline, just 50 miles south of San Diego. The terminal, to be completed in early 2008, will be a key fuel source for California homes and businesses for decades to come. The...

Bush Offers Detail of 2002 Attack Plot Feb 09 10:49 AM US/Eastern Email this story WASHINGTON President Bush said Thursday a 2002 al-Qaida plot against the tallest building on the West Coast was foiled by U.S. counter terrorism efforts. Speaking at the National Guard Memorial Building in Washington, the president said plotters planned to use hijacked commercial airplanes to strike the Library Tower in Los Angeles, now known as the US Bank Tower. Bush has referred to the plot before, but White House officials had said would provide more specifics in a speech Thursday. In an address last October, Bush...

DEMOCRATIC WALLWEED Judging by where Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean has spent the last few days, he almost certainly attempted to get invited to Sen. Hillary Clinton's and Sen. Harry Reid's fundraising events in Los Angeles. According to DNC sources, Dean intentionally planned a West Coast swing around the dates Clinton and Reid had circled for their events. On Sunday, Dean was in Seattle, a quick shot down the Left Coast to Los Angeles, with plans to fly to San Francisco for events Monday. Before Seattle, Dean spent time with Democratic donors in Montana. There is an increasing whiff...

It just never fails to amaze me how, throughout history and, in particular, the last century, nations great and small saw what was coming and yet were unable or unwilling to stop two world wars and an endless spate of smaller, but no less deadly conflicts. Which brings us to today where we peer across the vast Pacific Ocean at North Korea and wonder whether its leader is insane enough to launch a nuclear missile at us or maybe just at South Korea or Japan. That’s the kind of calculus the President has to do every day while the rest...

The Appearance Of The United States Will Change Stephen Hanson Jan. 30, 2005 [21] For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now--and never to be equaled again. [22] If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. Matt. 24 “There is a place that you can run to and hide when the storms come upon this world. There is a place that you will be sheltered from the storms. I tell you that you can run to...

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A computer model that can predict the impact of a tsunami from the San Francisco Bay area to Alaska is helping scientists plot danger zones in coastal cities to guide emergency planning. The model can be combined with maps to show the detailed effects on the narrow inlets and bays sandwiched between the high cliffs and mountains that make up much of the West Coast.

Across the world the red/blue map of America's voting preferences is being shown. Wrongly we hear “So all the blue states voted for Kerry. The West Coast is all Kerry” NO! I am proud to say that in my California 4.4 million voted for Bush, to Kerry's 5.5 million. We are not a totally God-forsaken state!!! And...

MEDIA WILL TRY TO CALL THE ELECTION BEFORE POLLS CLOSE IN THE WEST AND HAWAII. KEEP VOTING... NO MATTER WHAT!

The FBI office in Denver has received 'numerous' calls about the seven people believed to be associated with Al Qaeda pictured Wednesday in the newspapers.Samuel Mac, manager of the Denny's in Avon Co., said two men-he subsequently identified from their photographs as Adnan G. El Shukrijumah and Abderrauof Jdey-came into his Denny's which is just off Interstate 70, Wednesday about 8PM.One ordered a chicken sandwich and a salad, the other just a salad, Mac said. They were demanding, rude and obnoxious, he said.They said they were from Iran and were driving from New York to the West Coast.Monique Kelso, spokswoman...

Tyler, TX – A virtually unnoticed federal arrest here this Spring of a well-educated Pakistani man caught trying to buy illegal silencers, firearms and C-4 explosives has set off a nationwide FBI counterterrorism investigation, CBS-11 has learned. The investigation centers on whether Osama Haroon Satti, 35, came to Tyler on behalf of a terrorist cell hoping to arm for a plot to rob and murder wealthy Jews and other non-Muslims on the West Coast, sources familiar with the FBI investigation tell CBS-11. Satti is currently in federal custody on charges of buying an illegal silencer and handgun. Federal prosecutors connected...

<p>LONDON — Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, al Qaeda's purported operations chief, has told U.S. interrogators that the group had been planning attacks on the Library Tower in Los Angeles and the Sears Tower in Chicago on the heels of the September 11, 2001, terror strikes.</p>

<p>An autopsy is scheduled for today for a fetus found early Friday in the trash container of a west-central Fresno apartment complex. A resident of the Ashmark Arms apartments found the full-term female fetus wrapped in a blood-soaked bed comforter while he dumped garbage about 3:15 a.m., Fresno police Lt. Dennis Bridges said.</p>

I was watching the NHL hockey game finals last night and ABC News was running promos for the Hillary book interview.They said that on the West Coast Sunday, the show would air after the NBA Finals Game which could be 7:30 or 8 depending on the length of the contest with pregame and an extended halftime 'Super Bowl' style concert be folk singer Jewel.Everywhere else the show will air at 7PM EST and 6PM Central.

Navy Sending Seven Ships From West Coast 1 hour, 31 minutes ago Add White House - AP Cabinet & State to My Yahoo! By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer WASHINGTON - Building up for a possible war against Iraq, the Navy is deploying a seven-ship armada with up to 7,000 Marines from California, matching a force already under way from the East Coast. The new amphibious task force would mirror a seven-ship deployment of Marines that headed out over the weekend from bases on the Virginia coast, Navy officials said Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity. Together the task forces...

<p>In the northern Sierra Nevada, forest service officials worried Friday of possible avalanches as up to 2 feet of snow were expected to pile onto peaks already burdened with several feet of snow in the past several days.</p> <p>In San Francisco Bay area, persistent rain Thursday flooded streets, knocked out power to thousands of residents and kicked up surf. Further north, the storm caused rivers and creeks to rise, and left parts of the Napa Valley wine region with a dusting of snow.</p>

<p>High winds and rain force vehicles on Highway 215 South to proceed slowly on Monday, Dec. 16, 2002, in Devore, Calif.</p> <p>SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A winter storm system spewing driving rain and high winds along the Pacific Coast has contributed to several deaths, cut power to thousands of people and toppled numerous trees.</p>

<p>Changing technology has long been one of the most contentious yet unavoidable realities in the evolution of industrial businesses such as shipping.</p> <p>But today's pressure for innovation, which often pulls companies and their employees in opposite directions, has risen to a point that could threaten the stability of shipping on the West Coast and Hawai'i.</p>

Via CNBC Europe: Dock strike talks have fallen apart and broken off. More TK.

<p>The Consumer, a CSX Lines ship loaded with food, paper products and other necessities of life on an isolated Pacific island is to depart Los Angeles and set sail for Hawai'i this morning, shipping officials said yesterday.</p> <p>Despite labor tensions and an ongoing lockout of union workers at West Coast harbors, an exemption granted the 50th state late Friday has opened the gates for at least a half-dozen ships to load up and head across the Pacific this week.</p>

<p>OAKLAND, CALIF. -- To American unions, globalization is a nefarious force that has wiped out the jobs of millions of well-paid blue-collar workers.</p> <p>But the members of one union have played the global-trading system as well as any international investor: the longshoremen. They wield so much power that they have managed to obtain cradle-to-grave benefits and salaries to make many white-collar college graduates envious. For the longshoremen, globalization has been nothing but a blessing.</p>

OAKLAND -- The contract stalemate between dockworkers and shippers boils down to how new technology will be manned at West Coast ports. The shippers want to modernize ports, which would eliminate hundreds of union jobs. The dockworkers want any jobs involving new technology to be under union control. The Pacific Maritime Association, which represents shipping companies, offered to keep 100 percent health-care benefits if the dockworkers would cut a deal on the technology issues. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union, which represents 10,500 dockworkers, rejected such a deal. However, of all the issues in the labor dispute, health care is...

Hawaii consumers, afraid of being caught with their pants down, cleaned out toilet paper and rice from store shelves the last time West Coast dockworkers threatened to strike. Three years later, history may repeat itself. Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, already has been taking steps in Hawaii to guard against a work slowdown or a strike. On Oahu, both the Mililani and Waipahu stores have been stocking up on consumable items even though customers have yet to hit the panic button. "We're preparing for the worst," said Debbie Shima, assistant manager of Wal-Mart's Mililani store. "We've been building up slowly...

June 21, 2002 ........ Fears for Jobs Could Bring Shutdown of West Coast PortsBy STEVEN GREENHOUSE ONG BEACH, Calif., June 19 — For decades, the West Coast longshoremen's union could boast that its members had some of the highest-paying blue-collar jobs in the nation. Workers who unload ships commonly earn more than $90,000 a year.But now the longshoremen fear that their jobs — and those of future generations of longshoremen — are under siege. Those fears could lead to a shutdown of all seaports from San Diego to Seattle on July 1, a move that could send shock waves...

JOSEPH PERKINS Terrorists setting sights on West Coast? Joseph Perkins SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE May 24, 2002 Perkins can be reached via e-mail at joseph.perkins@uniontrib.com. New York City was in virtual lockdown this week after federal and local law enforcement authorities warned of threats against the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge. Law enforcement authorities said the warning was based on information that came during interrogation of an al-Qaeda detainee. But, as The New York Times reported, there were no specifics about the plot. No estimated time. No probable method of attack. And what really troubled were the remarks of...