Congressman Worries Guam Could Capsize
(April 1) -- At first, people suspected it might have been an April Fools joke, but the following story is not, despite all hopes to the contrary, an April Fools' Day prank.
During a House Armed Services Committee hearing on the proposed relocation of naval personnel to the island of Guam, Rep. Hank Johnson expressed his concern for the stability of the tiny U.S. territory -- not its political stability or its economic stability, but its basic, physical stability.
"My fear that the whole island will become so overly populated that it will tip over and capsize," the Georgia Democrat said, making a tipping motion with his hands.
"We don't anticipate that," Adm. Robert Willard responded.
Guam, like many islands, is attached to the sea floor, and thus unlikely to tip over under normal stresses.
The blogosphere had a field day with the bizarre incident. Many brought up the fact that Johnson's battle with hepatitis C may have had an effect on his brain.
Allahpundit on HotAir.com asks: "If that's what's going on here, a polite question for madam speaker arises. What's he doing at these hearings instead of resting?"
One blogger at Annuit Coeptis thought that now might be a good opportunity to drug test members of Congress.
Johnson later explained in a statement that he was merely using the concept of capsizing as a metaphor for the stress that 8,000 soldiers and their families could put on the tiny island.
Guam Rep. Madeleine Bordallo doesn't believe the congressman was serious. "He was saying that in jest. I don't know how it was said or when, but I know Congressman Johnson; he's been here. I'm sure it was just a joke," she told KUAM radio.
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”Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy." ~H. L. Mencken
@themorrigan1972
Subject: Guam will capsize 
Thu Apr 08, 2010 7:37 pm
