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FPRIVATE "TYPE=PICT;ALT=rense.com" First FA-22 Fighters Delivered To Langley AFB Source Unknown 5-20-8 These are Great In-flight Photos of the F/A-22 as the first Aircraft Delivery was being made to Langley AFB in Va. Langley is to be first Operational AFB for the F/A-22. It is a very beautiful AFB, located in a picturesque location, as you can see in these photos, near Norfolk and Hampton, Va. The Aircraft flying along with the F/A-22 in the last of these photos is the F-15, w hich will be replaced by the F/A-22 which is several times better than the F-15. In Actual In-flight (simulated) Combat Operations against the F-15, two F/A-22s were able to operate without detection while it went Head to Head against (8) F-15s. The F/A-22s scored Missile Hits (Kills) against all the F-15 Aircraft and the F/A-22s were never Detected by either the F-15s or Ground Based Radar. Maj. Gen. Rick Lewis said: 'The Raptor Operated Against All Adversaries with Virtual Impunity; Ground Based Systems Couldn't Engage and NO Adversary Aircraft Survived' F/A-22-- America's Most Advanced Fighter Aircraft for the 21st Century They're a titanium and carbon fiber dagger. They're so advanced that if their on-board locator is switched off even our own satellites can lose track of them. They're the first military aircraft ever built that is equipped with a 'black-out button'. What that means is this ... The best conditioned fighter pilots are capable of maintaining consciousness up to in the vicinity of 15+ G. The Raptor is capable of making 22+ G turns. If some day an adversary builds a missile that is capable of catching up to one of these airplanes and a Raptor pilot sees that a strike is imminent, he hits the 'b.o.b.' and the airplane makes a virtual U-turn, leaving the missile to pass right on by. They know that in the process he'll temporarily lose consciousness, so the Raptor then automatically comes back to straight and level flight until he wakes back up. Enjoy the Photos

Gas jumps above $3.67, oil passes $126 on Venezuela concerns By JOHN WILEN,AP Posted: 2008-05-09 15:51:54 NEW YORK (AP) - Oil rose above $126 a barrel for the first time Friday, bringing its advance this week to nearly $10, as investors questioned whether a possible confrontation between the U.S. and Venezuela could cut exports from the OPEC member. Gas prices, meanwhile, rose above an average $3.67 a gallon at the pump, following oil's recent path higher. On Friday, The Wall Street Journal published a report that suggested closer ties between Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and rebels attempting to overthrow Colombia's government. Chavez has been linked to Colombian rebels previously, but the paper reported it had reviewed computer files indicating concrete offers by Venezuela's leader to arm guerillas. That appears to heighten the chances that the U.S. could impose sanctions on one of its biggest oil suppliers. "If we put on sanctions, I'm sure Chavez would threaten to cut off our oil supply," said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Alaron Trading Corp. "Obviously that would have a major impact on oil prices." Light, sweet crude for June delivery vaulted to a new record of $126.25 on the New York Mercantile Exchange before retreating slightly to settle up $2.27 at a record $125.96. Oil futures set new records for the fifth straight day, and ended the week up $9.64, or 8.3 percent. Even if Chavez cut oil shipments to the U.S., Venezuelan oil would still make its way to the U.S. via middle men, who would buy it from Venezuela and resell it to the U.S., Flynn said. But that new layer in the supply chain would bump up costs. Oil prices also were boosted Friday by the dollar, which declined against the euro. The European Central Bank said it was unlikely to consider interest rate cuts to cool the strong euro against the slumping dollar. Investors often buy commodities such as oil as a hedge against inflation when the greenback falls. A weaker dollar also makes oil less expensive to overseas investors. Many analysts believe the dollar's protracted decline has much to do with the doubling in oil prices since this time last year. Another school of thought thinks tight global supplies of oil, driven by growing demand in countries such as China, Brazil and India, is the primary factor driving oil higher. Oil's surge is pushing retail gas prices higher. The national average price of a gallon of regular gas jumped 2.6 cents overnight to a record $3.671 a gallon according to a survey of stations by AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. The Energy Department expects prices to peak at a monthly average of $3.73 in June, though many analysts say national average prices could rise as high as $4. Consumers in many regions, including parts of California and Hawaii, are already paying that much. Demand for diesel fuel is also growing worldwide, but supplies of distillates, which include diesel and heating oil, fell unexpectedly last week, the Energy Department said Wednesday. That's pushing U.S. diesel prices to record highs and inflating heating oil prices in the futures market; heating oil futures are often viewed as a proxy for diesel. Heating oil for June delivery rose 12.62 cents to settle at $3.636 on the Nymex after earlier setting a trading record of $3.6524. At truck stops, retail diesel prices rose 1.8 cents overnight to a record national average of $4.269 a gallon, Diesel is used to move most of the world's food, consumer and industrial goods via truck, ship and rail. Skyrocketing diesel prices are part of the reason food and consumer goods prices are so high. In other Nymex trading Friday, June gasoline futures rose 6.34 cents to settle at a record $3.2012 a gallon after rising to its own record of $3.2038, and June natural gas futures rose 27.4 cents to settle at $11.537 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, June Brent crude futures rose $2.56 to settle at $125.40 a barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange. Associated Press Writer Pablo Gorondi in Budapest and AP Business Writer Thomas Hogue in Bangkok, Thailand, contributed to this report. Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL. 05/09/08 15:50 EDT

For Immediate Release, May 9, 2008 Contact: Noah Greenwald, (503) 484-7495 Bush Sets New Record in Refusing to Protect Endangered Species As Polar Bear Decision Looms, Department of the Interior Crosses Two-year Mark Without Any New Species Protected Under the Endangered Species Act WASHINGTON , D.C.— Today marks two years since the Department of the Interior last protected a new U.S. species under the Endangered Species Act. This period includes the entire tenure of Dirk Kempthorne as Secretary of the Interior and is by far the longest period without a new species being protected since the landmark federal law was passed, surpassing even James Watt, who, under Reagan, in 1981 and 1982 went 382 days without protecting a species. “The Bush administration has been an unmitigated disaster for the nation’s endangered species, delaying and denying protection for hundreds of animals and plants,” said Noah Greenwald, science director at the Center for Biological Diversity. The drought in new species protections is not for lack of species in need. Indeed, the Fish and Wildlife Service currently maintains a list of 280 candidate species that are recognized as warranting protection, many desperately, but for which the agency claims they lack resources to provide such protection. On average, these 280 candidate species have been waiting for protection for 19 years. Such delays have real consequences, with at least 24 species having gone extinct after being designated candidates for protection. “Because extinction is forever, delays in protection of the nation’s most imperiled species are unacceptable,” said Greenwald. “The Endangered Species Act can save these 280 species, but only once they’re granted endangered status.” Overall, the Bush administration has protected the fewest species of any administration in the history of the Endangered Species Act, to date protecting only 59 species, compared to 522 under the Clinton administration and 231 under Bush Sr.’s administration. On average, the administration has listed only seven species per year. By contrast, an average of 65 species per year were listed during the Clinton administration, and 58 species per year were listed during the first Bush administration. “This is the slowest rate of protecting species of any administration in history,” said Greenwald. “The nation’s endangered wildlife needs protection, not foot-dragging.” In accordance with a court order, the administration must issue a decision on protection of the polar bear by next Thursday. The administration unsuccessfully tried to persuade the court that the decision should be delayed further; as a result of the court’s action, the polar bear may thus become the first U.S. species protected by the Department of the Interior under the Endangered Species Act in over two years. The last species protected were 12 species of Hawaiian picture-wing flies on May 9, 2006. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- more press releases. . . Go back