"Weakened dam stable but 'extremely volatile'"
 

Yeah, that makes sense. Stable, yet not stable.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/10/19/mas....ap/index.html

cnn is desperate for ratings

Extremely volatile huh? Must be a bust.

On many days, that sounds like an accurate description of my wife.

Huh? Don't get me wrong- they are ratings whores with a lot of useless trumped up stories but that description is from the mayor of the town's comments, hence the quotes.

SI

The Mayor said it was under control but extremely volatile, which makes a hell of alot more sense

I understand that the words seem incompatible at first, but it's not unusual for a situation to be both stable and volatile.

The dam is currently holding the water. It's stable. However, that condition could possibly change dramatically and suddenly. That's volatile.

Think of a pressurized container of hydrogen. Stable and volatile. Volatile often means that a new, additional input to the situation can cause something dramatic to happen. Doesn't mean the situation isn't stable on its own.

Better words would provide that distinction, like the mayor saying "under control." For the most part, stable is an antonym of volatile. To say something is "extremely volatile" makes it even worse to me. "Stable" doesn't just mean currently in control, it means "not subject to extreme change of fluctuation." So, to me the headline is nonsense.