hey Brian, I know you are always looking for stories that show how the economy is efficting the basics of life.  At my local McDonalds, the five piece chicken nugget was off the dollar menu.  It was now a $1.40!  First Starbucks is downsizing, and now this...it is getting scary out there!

Hi Brian and Friends I hope everyone had a great 4th of July and let's hope we get our country back.

Laural: Yes Peaches and I were in DC and saw the parade and the fireworks from the National Mall. The crowd was great and the fireworks were wonderful. I do hope the American people can get the White House back next year.

The G-8 Summit will mean nothing for the US. Connie Rice continues to play golf even with the problems around the World but she hasn't done anything anyway.
AG Mukasey has to testify again at the Congressional hearing and he'll have to stall again as that's what he was appointed to do.  As World Leaders show respect to the United States President, George W. Bush shows he has no class or manners by calling the Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, by calling out Yo Harper. This shows the World the current President has poor up bringing and no manners, let's hope our kids don't show such disrespect.


The Stock Market is going down and A-Rod is getting a divorce.  As I travel this summer many people speak freely of how hard it is in this recession. Peaches has a Toyota and it's great on gas as the prices are so high.

My prayers go to Officer Dwyer who killed himself after his return from Iraq. So many of our soldiers are not getting the help they need as the White House doesn't see it as a problem. As long as Iraq and the Bush Contractors get money for nothing our troops will continue to suffer.

Let's hope Americans put a President in office that can be part of the World team and bring progress to the USA. What I see happening today happen before. Yes as a Leader thinks he/she can take over the World it always ends in failure.

Best to my friends Lisa, Laural, Stephanie, Claudia, Anne and Matt

Hi Brian -

I'm still thinking about that tennis match - and I don't play tennis, but I watched every moment of it, up to and including Nadal's climb up through the Wimbledon stands to greet family and friends.  Unforgettable.

And I cannot understand a man who blithely plays on while his family is disintegrating. Out of sight, out of mind I guess. Jacqueline Kennedy had a quote I've never forgotten - "If you bungle raising your children, nothing else you do in life matters".  Maybe Alex has never heard of her........

Joan

Good Evening Mr.Williams,Great to have you back at the newsdesk this evening. I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend with your family. Surprising landing at Lambert Field in St.Louis for the Obama campaign. These unplanned changes certainly test out the way everything is handled and how well. On another note what a long mens final at Wimbledon! Those men sure played their hearts out this Sunday. And Mr Holt did an excellent job as usual filling in for you! Looking forward to the broadcast. Peace to you and to all!

Lots of Love to Laurel,Jackie,Stephanie,Celine,Claudia,Anna,and Matt!
Loved the updated "War Zone Diary 2008"! Anything Richard does I just love!
Be Well Always!
XOXO  

Brian -  I hope NBC News will keep an eye on the  changes in regulations that will be made in the final months of the Bush administration like the enviornmental regulations discussed in the Detroit Free Press yesterday.  See the article at http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008807060513

Hi Brian,
Take no offense, but if YOU are concerned about fuel prices at the marina what do you think of the average guy that makes $500/week, has a car loan for 60 months, has to pay rent, insurance and tries to take his boat out here in Rhode Island on Narragansett Bay once or twice a week to relax?
In relative terms I don't think the price of gas should even be on YOUR radar screen, although I know you're trying to appeal to your stations demographics.

Ouch on your pain at the boat gas pump, Brian.  Now I don't' feel bad that I don't' have a boat!  I hope the rest of your vacation was relaxing and a good time with the family.  Maine Turnpike Authority says there were less cars on the road, and coming in and out of the state, but I couldn't tell by looking at the main roads.  

I'm so glad to hear that the troops in Afghanistan are getting a boost in manpower.  It's about time!  I suppose its also good that they can pull them from Iraq because the violence is less; I just hope that removing them from Iraq doesn't cause that country's front lines to deteriorate and the situation to reverse.  

Pringles aren't potato chips?  That's a kick in the stomach.  Did the British judge also explain if they are more healthy than regular chips?  Of all the bad news you've reported over the past few weeks...this one is enough to put me over the edge.  Obviously I'm kidding; I'm not fond of Pringles & now I know why!

Allow me to mention a not-quite-so-favorable comment about tonight's broadcast.  No mention of the London subway bombing anniversary today?  (That was 3 years ago, for those of you who are counting but can't remember the precise date.)  Here I thought 9/11 made us a more "awake" country on events and such going on in the rest of the world, but we can't remember this significant terrorist strike to a close ally when it supports us with our War on Terror?  

Your comment on Secret Service scrambling has me wondering: just when does a presidential candidate get protection from the service, and when does it end if the candidate isn't elected?  In related news, that crumpled nose of a other airplane in the news.

One note of trivia on today's Hurricane Bertha courtesy of the local CBS affiliate:  as hurricane names are recycled every 6 years, the last Hurricane Bertha because a hurricane on.... July 7, 2002.  

Happy Monday to all the regular posters whether they are home or on staycations!  

Good Evening Mr.Williams, Welcome back! We missed you! I hope you had a great holiday weekend. Mr.Holt did an excellent job filling in for you! As always! First of all the report concerning the deadly suicide bombing in Kabul,Afghanistan killing over 40 people is so very tragic. It is terrible for the US troops that the level of violence has escalated so high. I recall your reports from the region when the Commanders were saying their resources and supplies were short. It is good that more US Carriers are now concentrating towards that country to lend some help. I really hope the level of violence decreases. Those troops have been over in Afghanistan so long and they need all the military assistance they can receive. God Bless them all!
On another note I'm glad the Midwest Airline flight landed safely with Senator Obama and everyone aboard. Senator Obama is in Atlanta this evening having a big fundraiser and tomorrow a town hall meeting. There have been alot of advertisements lately for Senator Obama on the local airwaves. Very interesting race.
Regarding the four day work week report by Anne Thompson it does sound like a good idea and helps many workers with the price of gas because they are saving money. Maybe more businesses will do the same thing. I liked the comment you made about Pringles chips how all of a sudden you realize you've eaten 200 of them. If is baked dough I guess those of us eating them really hadn't noticed. They do taste good. As does many other kinds of chips. Finally, I think that it is super Dara Torres won those swimming races and is going to her fifth Olympics. I hope she wins more medals! Thank you for the broadcast Mr.Williams. Peace to you and to all!

Lots of Love to Laurel,Jackie,Stephanie,Celine,Claudia,Anna and Matt!
Be Well Always!
XOXO

In 1973 and 74 the OPEC oil embargo cut supplies and drove up prices.  The price increase made exploration in the the  North Atlantic (Brent), in Alaska (North Slope), in Wyoming and Utah (Overthrust), and the Gulf of Mexico economically possible. In my opinion this was something that OPEC didn't factor into their desire for an increase in the price for their product and stabilized the futures market.  Now that these fields have peaked and the cry is to open new fields and increase production.  My question is this: Are we being asked to prepay for new exploration in exchange for a possible cut in future prices?  Maybe you can get an interview with the American Petroleum Institute and ask them my question.

Hello Brian,

I am a big fan of NBC News and appreciate the objective and thorough job you all do. I was surprised and disappointed to see recent advertisements by Exxon/ Mobil concerning new technologies that help find oil and recover it in an "environmentally" responsible way. However clean their new extraction process may be, they ignore the fact that our continued large consumption of oil is warming the earth at an unprecedented and dangerous rate. I'm wondering if you attempt to provide a balance in the advertisements you sell and if you give equal airtime to truly environmentally friendly organizations. One way you could avoid the shock at the pump when you are leisure boating is to kayak instead of motoring around. You see and experience much more by being at water level in a quiet smooth ride.
Thanks for your great reporting!
Bob Daniels

Tonight's Obama / McCain report was more balanced than past reports on the Nightly News. McCain took a few shots for once. There were still some glaring problems with the coverage though.

Before we even got to the real news of today, the candidates' economic proposals, we were given every last detail of some minor plane trouble. Minor plane trouble is not important and knowing about it contributes zero to an audience member's knowledge of the candidates or what happened in the race today.  NBC even put out an additional plane trouble account on the web, as if one detailed account wasn't enough. To make room for the plane details, NBC left out coverage of the big story, Obama's economic speech today. That's somewhat fair, because McCain's speech wasn't covered either.  Both should have been covered. Instead we were given an analytical comparison of both candidates' economic proposals.

The report listed three areas in which McCain would cut taxes, but did not mention McCain's plans to raise taxes on employees by taxing their health care benefits. When Obama was evaluated, two areas where Obama would raise taxes were reported while his tax cuts were only quickly mentioned as "rebates." NBC did not include studies that show that Obama's proposals would give far more benefits to the working and middle classes than McCain's, while McCain's tax cuts would primarily benefit the rich.

The two candidates disagreed about whether Obama would raise taxes. Rather than sorting out the facts, NBC declared that neither candidate was telling the truth and offered the opinion of an economics expert to settle it. But the expert only discussed the economic impacts of the tax packages and didn't say whether Obama would raise taxes or not.

A comparison of the two candidates' trade policies was offered. A statement said that Obama "NOW"  wants to renegotiate NAFTA, implying that Obama had a different position in the past. That claim is straight out of McCain's bogus propaganda. Obama has never seen NAFTA as black and white. I found reports of Obama's renegotiation position on the web at least as far back as 2006. There is no flip flop. Since Obama has mixed feelings about NAFTA, he's said some positive and negative things about it.  The McCain propagandists took some negative quotes out of context and compared them to some positive quotes out of context to make it appear as though Obama flip flopped. Tonight's NBC report also said renegotiating NAFTA is impossible, which is too strong a word to be accurate.

Still, tonight was an improvement and I hope NBC will drift further toward providing balanced reporting on the presidential race.

I didn't know D.B. Cooper worked for the Obama campaign.

Hi Brian,

Thank you to NBC for covering the Dara Torres story.  Her accomplishments in and out of the pool are amazing.  Dara trains smart and is so talented that it's scary.  Those who feel that she must be juiced to achieve her times, do not know her or much about competitive swimming.  

Torres has been a freak of nature since she was a youngster.  Because of impeccable technique, smart training, heart and hard work, she has another opportunity to medal at the 2008 Olympics.  It's going to be spectacular and thrilling to watch.  

Thank you for putting the sport of competitive swimming and its athletes front and center.  I agree that as a result of Dara's achievement, more folks will break out their goggles and suits.  

Quick Notes to all...

Jackie. I'm jealous.. concert and fireworks at the Mall!
That's got to be the moment of a life time!

Oddly attendance at both the local parade and the Street fair the next day here was down, when I thought it would be up. People seemed to go to the lake anyway. However, we got more voter registrations this year. To my mind always a good thing.

Lisa, I just checked the MSNBC documentaries, don't see War Diary listed. Please let me know if you happen to notice it.

Josh, I wouldn't have thought you were old enough to make that joke!

Brian, you bravely resisted Brittany stories, please do the same with A_Rod. At what point did we decide that those who preform in public have no right whatsoever to a privet life? The old "It's none of our business, really" has been overtaken by every lurid detail, and in this day and age, everyone's opinion of same. This will raise a few eyebrows, but I honestly feel sorry for the A-Rods and the Angelina Jolies of the world. They, like most of the rest of us ought to be allowed to do their job, go home and slam the the door and not answer the phone.

Thanks to Andrea Mitchell for her very informative analysis of the respective economic positions of McCain and Obama. Well done!

If anyone is interested in more coverage of economics, CNBC will air a series of debates between the two candidates' economic advisors beginning 7:30 AM Thursday.

And thanks to Richard Engel for his "War Zone Diary 2008". Richard--you showed us war as few people see, but all should. I kept thinking: How can anyone ever romanticize war in film or print? Your report was excellent--but hard to watch, and that was your point--wasn't it?

Keep up the good work and be safe.

Hello to all the regulars! Take care-

The # 1 issue on the planet is to end U.S. military involvement in the middle east.The # 2 issue is to wrestle the Oil and Auto industries into compliance with domestic Fuel production, and fuel efficient vehicles. If we can solve these two problems, then our economy, standard of living, and hope for future generations of Americans will have promise. Mr. Obama MUST stick to his position on ending the war in the middle east A.S.A.P.. Any backtracking or change of this position would be out of step with the will of the American people. Mr. Obama is WRONG on returning to the failed windfall profits scenario which destroyed the economies (for years) in Texas & Oklahoma last time around. It only suceeded in motivating the oil industry to cut back on R&D, and alternative technologies. A return to the national 55 MPH speed limit is a MUST, and the auto industry MUST create a fuel efficient product, using any number of technilogies which they have bought out over the years, and already own. Our government MUST implement an aggresive domestic oil drilling alternative to middle east dependance, as well as strict auto manufacturing standards for American cars with an MPG standard of at least 50 miles to the gallon . These are not unrealistic goals. The oil industry already has the capability for domestic oil production, and auto industries the technology for a fuel efficient vehicle. It just takes the willingness of the American people to demand that these actions be implemented by our lawmakers coupled with honorable leadership by the next elected president. Our current Congress and Mr. Bush have failed us . We need to send them a wakeup call in November, as well as our (we the people) cooperation in this endeavor. The American people need to study the past, learn the lessons of the last greatest generation which did not take on loans they could not afford to pay back, and a banking industry which only made loans within the means of those asking for them. My Mother who lived through the depression, and WW2 has taught me (a baby boomer) this lesson, and perhaps our generation has failed in passing on this wisdom to the next.

Does Brian Williams and the NBC producers actually believe that Nightly News has any credibility when reporting on the pharmaceutical industry?  Their broadcast is virtually underwritten by the drug companies on a nightly basis!  On any given night, more than half of Nightly News's commercials are from the pharmaceutical industry.  Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline regularly sponsor segments of the broadcast (or the entire broadcast, as Pfizer did as recently as June 9).  Tonight's story, about how the FDA has approved statins to lower cholesterol in children as young as 8, must have made the pharmaceutical company executives jump for joy.  A whole new market has now opened up for them.  It's as if the FDA suddenly approved cigarettes for 8-year-old children (please don't be naive enough to believe that there's any moral distinction between the pharmaceutical companies and the tobacco companies).  And here's something I found very interesting:  All through her report, Nancy Snyderman referred only to "statins" (the generic term for cholesterol-lowering drugs).  That was appropriate and professional.  But when Brian chatted with Nancy after the story, he said, "The idea of Lipitor for an 8-year-old takes some getting used to."  Way to go, Brian!  He slipped in a shameless plug for Lipitor, which is made by Pfizer!  Pfizer also makes Aricept.  And who sponsored that evening's "What Works" segment?  Aricept!  Does anyone really believe these events are unrelated?  NBC is always more than happy to report on good news for the pharmaceutical industry--and as a special favor, they'll even make it their lead story (Brian went the extra few yards by plugging Lipitor).  But even when NBC reports on bad news for the pharmaceutical industry (such as when a certain drug is pulled from the market because it has been linked to deaths), how can we be sure they are telling us the whole story?  Maybe there are facts that we aren't being given.  Maybe the news is even worse than NBC lets on.

Because of all the advertising and sponsorship money NBC accepts from the drug companies, they should recuse themselves from reporting on any story related to the pharmaceutical industry.  Can you imagine a judge ruling on a case involving a pharmaceutical company when the judge sits on the board of that very company?  That would be completely unethical, and any lawyer working on the case would demand that the judge recuse himself/herself or demand a mistrial.  But that's exactly what NBC does.  They report on an industry that has paid them perhaps a billion dollars over the years.  That is unethical, to say the least.  When a story on the pharmaceutical industry needs to be reported, NBC News should commission it (or purchase it) from an independent source, like the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation or an independent producer with no ties to the subject of the story.  And prior to airing any report on the pharmaceutical industry, Brian should offer a disclosure statement, indicating that NBC accepts advertising and sponsorship money from the industry (and he should tell us whether they have accepted any money from the specific company or companies mentioned in the report).  I think that when it comes to the news, it isn't enough to avoid impropriety.  News organizations must avoid even the appearance of impropriety.  NBC News continually fails to do this.

Well, it's one month until the Olympics, and I see that NBC News has already started using valuable news time to promote the Beijing Games.  Tonight's story on Dara Torres was nothing more than a 2:20 commercial for the upcoming Olympics.  And we can expect this shameless self-promotion to continue non-stop through the Olympic closing ceremonies on August 24.  Using "The Today Show" or "Dateline" to shamelessly promote the Olympics is okay, since those are entertainment shows.  But using the news to promote the Olympics is not okay.  Nightly News should be held to a higher standard than those other shows.  Viewers trust NBC News to air the most important and newsworthy stories each night, but instead, they are giving us promotional ads for other NBC properties.  Shame on you, NBC.  How many actual news stories could they have aired in that time?  Not to mention the 50 seconds they wasted telling us that Pringles are not actually potato chips.  Wow, you should have attached a "Breaking News" tag to that story!  Meanwhile, that night NBC News did not air a single story from South America, Africa, Europe or China.  But at least we know all about Pringles.  Well done.  Keep up the good work.

Hello Brian
 The thought came to me one eve, watching Obma it seems like another Hitler is in the makeing, I mean just the way the people are shouting Yelling changeect.
Hitler sure had the people loveing him and look what he did for them!      
                       VERY CONCERENED

Again, no mention of Iraq-we know that when Iraq is not mentioned, things must be going well. Thanks, though, for mentioning the G8 summit-I thought since there was no word of protesters, that it would not be covered-thank you for coverint the G8. Also, no mention of 550 tons of yellow cake discovered in Iraq? Is this not news?

I am sorry to get off topic, but I need help.

I have for 9 months been receiving spam email directly from the Barack Obama Campaign. I have repeatedly asked to be removed and all that happens is the volume increases.

I have gone to the point of explaining in my emails for removal, that they are breaking the Canit Spam Laws of the United States and this has not help. This is a Federal Crime being done in the name of a Presidential candidate.

If Barach Obama can't control his campaign staff and their actions under his domain name how can he run this country.

I have contacted the National Democratic Party through their website with no luck.

My goal is not to drive a political view home my GOAL IS TO STOP RECEIVING EMAIL FOR BARCKOBAMA.COM AND ANYONE REPRESENTING THIS SITE.

Can someone please help me?

Why does NBC nightly News put a 20 year old picture of John McCain on every night, next to Barrack O'Bama , when discussing the two?

can you tell me why ,when& who enacted laws restricting the price of oil produced in the USA and forcing gas producers to buy foriegn oil.

@Claudia I'm 27, but I have an old soul, I suppose. ;)

What I can't figure out is how the oil inventories keep falling in spite of the fact that oil consumption in the US is down by 5% in the last few months.

From a simple math point of view, if the same amount of oil is still getting delivered and consumption decreases, oil reserves have to increase.  Where is the oil going?  Don't confuse it with world demand, because that's not part of this issue.  That can affect cost, but not supply.

Any thoughts?

Welcome back. It is nice that Tom Brokaw is doing MEET THE PRESS till November. I wonder who will take over permenently. I thought David Gregory was good. I like Andrea Mitchell too. Oh yeah and Chuck.
I still miss Tim:(

I didn't go anywhere this past July fourth, couldn't afford the gas. I preserved what was in my tank for my commute to and from work each day. Life in California has felt the blow harder than the rest of the country, as our inane leaders still have not invested any vision or plan for public transportation, which I would gladly utilize if it existed. I don't discount however, the misery that the north eastern portions of the U.S. will feel for heating oil this winter.

Phil Gram's comment about all of us being 'whiners' is worth a closer look.  
Yeah, gas has gotten much more expensive, and it's beginning to cut into our lifestyles.  But there's a substantial probability that there we may be reaching a cross-over point with world-wide oil supply and demand.  Supply may be just tight right now due to circumstances in the oil producing nations, or it may be that we are just beginning to see the point of peak oil production where demand overtakes supply.  Either way, if this is the case then the price for oil will necessarily rise sharply for demand to match supply.  
The world's current way of life depends on cheap and plentiful oil.  There is tremendous momentum world-wide for oil with demand rising 3%-5% per year.  When we do eventually reach the point of oil demand outstripping a finite supply one should expect substantial changes in our usage of oil.  Airlines and big cars/SUVs will be an early casualty.  This is happening now.  
The price of oil will likely cycle up and down, but the up tics will be more than the down tics and the respite will be limited.  Longer view, at the point of world oil supply falling far short of demand it will be hard on all of us as the world adjusts to a suddenly scarce and decreasing commodity.  It's likely that we will drain our remaining easy oil reservoirs before learning how to live with less oil -- coastal shelves and Alaska's ANWAR are probably just years from oil development.
Our current complaints and 'whining' about expensive gas could well be premature compared to what's coming just down the road.  I think Gram's right -- we are 'whining' about what's mostly an inconvience right now -- our lifestyle is still intact and gas remains easy to find.
NBC should consider doing a continuing series in more depth on the role oil and energy has played in our daily life and what's to come when the world finally starts to feel the eventual limits of a finite oil supply and increasing demand.  There are no alternate energy sources anywhere near as rich and useful as oil.  When talking about biofuel, solar, nuclear, coal, and wind it's useful to compare the amount of energy obtained with the energy expended in gallons of oil equivalent.  This puts alternative energy in a more realistic perspective.
I think it's time for a deeper discussion of oil, energy, finite limits of usage, and how all of this fits into a daily life of limited oil.

Brian, This is about the 'Want to see where some of your gas money goes' piece which was broadcast 7/11. It was a good piece of a story.  Don't you wonder where the Middle Eastern countries buy the things your reporter was filming in abundance?  For the most part, they buy them from the oil-importing countries. I worked in Saudi Arabia for ten years. Everything from the urinals to the Cray computers was made in the U.S.A. Even the sand for the concrete used in the buildings and highways was, as I heard it, imported from New Jersey (Saudi sand is too round and smooth from blowing about for centuries). Most of the Saudis I worked with had graduated from Universities in the U.S.; with full tuition and generous spending accounts.  The Saudis I met and worked with were some of the nicest and most generous people I have ever met.  And I don't just mean the ones who had a share of the oil, even the seeming poor nomads have a tradition of generosity.
So yes, the Middle East is enjoying the benefit of their vast reserves of a resource the world can't seem to live without; as is Texas, Oklahoma, Alaska, and other fortunate people.  Next time, try to tell the complete story; show the money cycle.

(Sorry to use this blog, couldn't find another way to contact you)

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