The hurricane which became tropical storm Irene ended up doing more damage with its precipitation than it did with its winds. In parts of the East Coast, August was already the rainiest month on record prior to the storm. So the waterways were swelled and more prone to flooding. Apparently Vermont got some of the worst of it, with much of the state flooded. And the storm knocked out power to millions of residents as well. The death toll is at least at 24, and that could rise.

Clearly, we need to import more minimum wage jobs from California or take more federal bailouts from the Obama administration.

Good day, friends. It’s taken quite a bit of effort to move all of the archives, er, furniture here to the new Blend Coffeehouse, but we’re open for business. Our reporting and commentary is here as it always has been for you all to debate and discuss, and you’ll occasionally encounter personal essays by the PHB team of baristas bringing you fresh Blend each day. There has always been a mix of the personal and political, and that will remain part of the banter here in the coffeehouse.

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After a day off Sunday because of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene, the Tar Sands Action in front of the White House will resume with more arrests expected Monday. On Saturday, protest supporters assembled in front of the White House, but as planned, did not force arrests. However, the sit-ins and arrests should resume Monday.

So there we have it; Thomas Friedman is once again letting his poor grasp of economics and arithmetic invent grand problems where there are none. What would be do without him?

It’s going to be a big day on FDL. Pam’s House Blend officially joins us starting today, I’ll be in court with Lt. Dan Choi who is being put on trial by the Justice Department for protesting in front of the White House last November, and Bill McKibben will be coming to court to support Dan after day 10 of the Tar Sands sit-ins conclude. I can’t have electronic devices in the court room but I’ll be posting updates on Twitter and here at FDL as I can throughout the day.

• Measuring Irene, state by state.
• The endgame in Libya.
• A Ponzi scheme, a lie — which is it?
• Who the hell cares what Powell thinks?
• Baker vs. Friedman (guess who wins?).

The nuts of the Right-Wing continue to say insane things — allowing the middle to move ever Right — and Rick Perry wishes to be their empty-headed patron saint.

Eric Clapton – Good Night Irene and Eric Clapton – Double Trouble (With Steve Winwood)