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Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - Mar 6, 2012
March 6, 2012
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Auto World /Gas Guzzlin' Update:
Nearly two years after the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, deepwater drilling has regained momentum in that region and around the world.
Now that the yearlong drilling moratorium has been lifted, many oil companies, including BP, have resumed drilling in the area, often in waters out of American control, but where an accident would still impact the United States.
The pace of drilling is likely to surpass the levels before the accident, because of the high worldwide demand for energy. One energy expert told the NY Times, "We need oil. The industry will have to improve and regulators will have to adjust, but the public will have to deal with the risk of drilling in deep waters or get out of their cars."
Editor's note: Does this mean that we can now increase the government subsidies to Big Oil? I hope so, cuz I gots me lotsa stock in them boys. (Maiman)
FYI: The oil and gas industry has nearly 72-hundred permits permitting them to drill on public lands. They go back as far as 2007, although most were issued by the Obama administration. The industry has yet to drill on them. The point being, if they have all these permits, how can anyone argued the Obama administration is sitting on its hands while trying to restrict oil and gas production. (Maiman)Money Talks:
The $52 billion dollar-store industry has been expanding as middle-class shoppers continue to embrace extreme discounting. IBISWorld retail analyst Justin Waterman tells the San Diego Union-Tribune that dollar-store sales have grown 4.3%, on average, in each of the past five years. He projects that the dollar-store industry will continue growing at an average of 2.6 percent a year for the next five years. (Kaye)
The Airlines:
When it comes to long-distance travel, we don’t have a lot of choices, but driving yourself may be the safest bet.
About 25-percent of airline pilots admit sleepiness is affecting their job performance. About as many train operators say the same thing. Fourteen-percent of truck drivers say they’ve had a near-miss because of lack of sleep. A new poll conducted by the National Sleep Foundation finds about 17-percent of non-transportation workers claim sleepiness is affecting the quality of their work.
Half the pilots and two-thirds of the train operators told pollsters they don’t get a good night’s sleep before going to work. By comparison, 42-percent of non-transportation workers don’t sleep well on work nights.
According to USA Today, part of the problem is varied shifts. Only six-percent work the same schedule each day compared with 76-percent of people who don’t work in the transportation industry. (Page)Like You Really Care:
PINK has dyed her hair --wait for it-- pink. People magazine says the singer sent out a Twitter pic with the message: “The hair is the palest pink. You know what that means. New Record Time!.” Pink is actually behind the trend this time. KATY PERRY, DAKOTA FANNING, LAUREN CONRAD, ASHLEY TISDALE and CHLOE MORETZ are just a handful of stars who have been dipping in the pink last few months. No additional info yet on the new album. (Bartha)
Reality Round-Up:
Could TIM TEBOW be the next “Bachelor?" The show’s host, CHRIS HARRISON, told “Access Hollywood” that he asked the Denver Broncos quarterback if he would star on the reality series. Tebow was apparently interested. But Harrison says Tebow would never do it because of his previous commitments to touchdown-pass-throwing and God-thanking.
Editor’s note:
--Upside of being on "The Bachelor": Tebow can get down on one knee and thank God for being surrounded by 25 desperate women.
--Downside of being on "The Bachelor": Some of those women are so bat-crazy, they’ll think he’s proposing all the time. One would eventually have to kill him.Small town, small people:
Experts have tracked down the 'strongest children in the world.'
The Mirror says two brothers in Romania, ages five and seven, have been lifting weights since they were just 2-years-old. Now, CLAUDIO STROE and his brother GIULIANO can lift more than an average men. Videos of the pair working out have gone viral (here). But, some critics say children that young shouldn't be lifting weights at all. (Still) -
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