Secretary of Defense Robert Gates wants to hear what's on your mind, so this past week he launched what is being described as "interactive, virtual town-hall sessions" by which he will take questions via the Internet from anyone on any subject, and -- eventually -- answer them.
But, even in this era of instant communication, the Pentagon remains a bureaucratic behemoth where "plod" is the operative verb.
So, first you'll go to http://www.defense.gov, click on "Ask the Secretary" and pose your question for Gates. After two weeks, all the questions will be compiled, and you'll then have two weeks to vote on which of the submitted questions you'd most like answered.
Then, replies will be drafted by aides, run up the flagpole, tinkered with and -- eventually -- posted. And, presuming you can even remember by then what the heck you asked, you'll have your answer.
Meanwhile, the industry publication Defense News reports that 40 percent of key senior Pentagon jobs remain unfilled, even as Gates has embarked on a dramatic change in the future course of the U.S. military simultaneously while fighting two tough wars. Despite President Obama's intent to fill the slots fast, vetting miscues and new ethics rules have led to delays, the newsweekly says.
Will Medicare cover air conditioning by 2050?
A new synthesis of climate models indicates that, by then, the average number of August days with temperatures 95 and above will triple in American cities from New York and Boston all the way to Seattle, while the average number of 100-plus days will double.
Compared to the general population, people in their 60s and older are most vulnerable to such heat waves, with up to 92 percent more deaths occurring in this age group on stretches of days with 95-and-above heat.
There's no debate that the annual count of tropical storms and hurricanes has grown since the start of the 20th century. What has been unclear is why. A new study attributes the increase not to global warming or other climatological changes but to improvements in scientists' tools and analysis techniques.
The study published recently in the American Meteorological Society's Journal of Climate found that scientists have gotten better at detecting short-lived storms -- those lasting two days or less -- than in the past, when less-refined methods simply missed them.
In fact, 2007's Andrea, Chantal, Jerry and Melissa tropical storms, and Arthur and Nana in 2008, would not have even been classified as such without the advanced satellite observations and sophisticated computer analyses in use today, according to the study, by a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-led team of scientists.
The Democrats' lock on the White House and Congress hasn't translated into a significantly bigger heap of campaign cash than that collected by the Republicans this year.
Federal Election Commission reports show the Democrats' state, local and national fund-raising committees amassed $109.8 million in the first six months of the year, compared to $104.7 million by the out-of-power Republicans.
When it comes to holding on to the dough and limiting debt, the GOP is on top. At the end of June, the Republican Party committees had $54 million on hand and debts of about $7 million.
The Democrats reported about $38 million in cash and nearly $16 million in debt.
(SHNS science and health correspondent Lee Bowman contributed to this column. E-mail him at bowmanl(at)shns.com and Lisa Hoffman at hoffmanl(at)shns.com.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)
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