Democratic Congressman Thinks Guam May Tip & Capsize
All I'm going to say in my own words is: How do these peple get elected?
http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/93533?fp=1
Concerns Over Guam Create a Stir on the Web
by Mike Krumboltz
On April 1, anything suspiciously bizarre or interesting is to be taken with a shaker full of salt. Still, a recent comment from Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA) has many wondering if he's misguided on gravity and geography or just a very gifted deadpan comedian.
At a March 25 meeting of the Armed Services Committee, of which Rep. Johnson is a member, the esteemed congressman had an interesting discussion with Robert Willard, commander of the United States Pacific fleet. The topic: Guam. Specifically, how an influx of Marines and their families may cause the tiny island to "tip over and capsize."
The comments were delivered without a clear hint of sarcasm or irony, however Rep. Johnson is now insisting through a comment issued by a spokesperson that he was simply using a metaphor.
"I was using a metaphor to say that with the addition of 8,000 Marines and their dependents -- an additional 80,000 people during peak construction to the port on the tiny island with a population of 180,000 -- could be a tipping point which would adversely affect the island’s fragile ecosystem and overburden its already overstressed infrastructure."
Maybe so, but Admiral Willard responded to the question with the utmost sincerity. His answer to Rep. Johnson's concerns over Guam capsizing like a lily pad playing host to an obese frog (our words)...
"We don’t anticipate that. The Guam population, I think, currently about 175,000, and again, with 8,000 marines and their families, it’s an addition of about 25,000 more into the population."
We're inclined to give Rep. Johnson the benefit of the doubt, but many Web searchers aren't so sure. After news of the bizarre exchange hit the Internet, online lookups for "hank johnson guam" and "guam sinking" both roared to life. The odd comment and clarification have also proven irresistible fodder for talk radio hosts, notes Atlanta Journal Constitution writer Jim Galloway.
Below, a clip of the exchange. Concerns over Guam's ability to stay literally or figuratively afloat occur at around the 1:18 mark.
