How I feel: angry

This woman is amazing, and there should be more people like her.

There's also a story about this on HuffPost, but since I don't know how to do links, I couldn't add it. Sorry bbs!

ETA: Here is the link to the Source.

How I feel: sleepy

By Michael Levenson
Globe Staff / December 8, 2009

For more than a century, it has been a bastion of backslapping, brotherly bonhomie. Judges, governors, cardinals, and mayors have accepted the club’s invitation to hold court over dinner. Club members, wearing clover-leaf pendants over their tuxedoes, sing ribald songs, perform farcical skits in wigs and dresses, and roast their honored guests.

But Governor Deval Patrick, the nation’s former top civil rights official and the first black governor of Massachusetts, has suddenly sparked a debate about the propriety of the 126-year-old Clover Club’s thrice-a-year dinner, by deciding at the last minute to cancel his scheduled appearance last Saturday night. His reason: The club does not accept women.

Shock: American Bankers Association Comes Out Against Bank Reform

The American Bankers Association is glad that the House Financial Services Committee made a number of changes to a financial reform package that it requested, but, regretfully, will have to oppose the bill on the floor, the lobby said in a letter to House members Monday.

The interest group first thanks the committee for including "a very important" bank-backed change to the way accounting is done -- or, more accurately, not done. The amendment the bankers are so grateful for would allow traditional accounting rules to be defenestrated when a crisis could threaten the financial system.

The lobby's principal objection, however, is the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency. The banks argue that consumers protections must be considered at the same time the "safety and soundness" of the financial industry is taken into account. Preventing banks from ripping people off, apparently, could hurt their ability to be profitable.

"ABA has consistently maintained that consumer protection should not be separated from safety and soundness in the regulation of insured depository institutions," reads the letter.

It goes on to complain: "The CFPA would have broad authority to impose 'fairness' standards and set sales practices. The agency would write rules for banks, both large and small, and this consumer regulatory authority would not be responsible for considering safety and soundness."

The House Rules Committee will determine on Tuesday what amendments will be allowed and the bill will hit the floor later in the week. One particular amendment will only increase the zeal of banks' opposition: Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) are pushing an amendment that would allow bankruptcy judges to renegotiate home mortgages. Known as cramdown, the measure is fiercely opposed by banks and has been defeated on the floor in the past.
( Read more )

Corporate employers got scarce flu vaccine

When the swine flu vaccine was most scarce, health officials gave thousands of doses to corporate clinics at Walt Disney World, Toyota, defense contractors, oil companies and cruise lines, according to a USA TODAY review of vaccine distribution data from three states.

USA TODAY examined how state health departments distributed H1N1 vaccine after public outcry last month over Wall Street firms such as Goldman Sachs receiving doses while doctors and hospitals encountered shortages. The data show other companies got the vaccine in October and early November. In some cases, early doses went to people not deemed most at risk by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Now we have evidence of what my suspicions were," said U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., chair of a House health subcommittee. "I'm afraid when you have these corporate initiatives, it's not primarily needs-based."

Pallone said he would send the CDC a letter Tuesday asking it to revise guidelines to states on the use of corporate health clinics.

Each state health department must decide how to provide the vaccine to people most at risk, and employers are a legitimate venue, said Anne Schuchat, the CDC's immunization director. CDC's priority groups include pregnant women, people with chronic health conditions, health care workers and people ages 6 months to 24 years. "This is much less about what you do for a living and much more about how do you get the vaccine in the path of those target populations," she said.

The Toyota Family Health Center in San Antonio, which got 2,120 doses, initially focused on the CDC's priority groups, but since Nov. 16 has offered the vaccine to any employee, contractor or family member, spokesman Craig Mullenbach said.

Norwegian Cruise Line in Miami used its 300 doses "to vaccinate critical on-board staff on our ships," spokeswoman AnneMarie Mathews said. She said recipients included medical staff, youth counselors and "key officers responsible for the safe operation of the vessel" but did not address how the counselors and officers fit into CDC's priority groups.

Of the 2.42 million doses in Texas and 2 million in Florida distributed through mid-November, fewer than 1% went to employers, according to USA TODAY's analysis of data obtained under state open-records acts. Thousands of registered providers — doctors, hospitals, schools, pharmacies — in Texas alone got no doses in that period.
( Read more )

How I feel: thoughtful

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court on Monday seemed headed toward telling police they must explicitly advise criminal suspects that their lawyer can be present during any interrogation.

The arguments in front of the justices were the latest over how explicit the Miranda warning rights have to be, as justices debated whether the warnings police gave Kevin Dwayne Powell made clear to him that he could have a lawyer present while being interrogated by police.
Read more at the source

For those who haven't seen the ad:

Roll-out for Richard Branson's spaceliner

Sir Richard Branson is unveiling the rocket plane he will use to take fare-paying passengers into space.

SpaceShipTwo is being presented to the world in Mojave, California.

The vehicle will undergo testing over the next 18 months before being allowed to take ticketed individuals on short-hop trips just above the atmosphere.

Sir Richard, who heads the Virgin Group, intends to run the first flights out of New Mexico before extending operations around the globe.

Built from lightweight carbon composite materials and powered by a hybrid rocket motor, SS2 is based on the X-Prize-winning SpaceShipOne concept - a rocket plane that is lifted initially by a carrier vehicle before blasting skywards.

"We want this programme to be a whole new beginning in a commercial era of space travel," Sir Richard told reporters before the official unveiling.

Full video at the link.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8400353.stm

The new Spaceport in New Mexico US

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8111243.stm

U.S. won't join landmine ban, administration decides


The United States won't join its NATO allies and many other countries in formally banning landmines, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said during his midday briefing Tuesday.

"This administration undertook a policy review and we decided our landmine policy remains in effect," Kelly said in response to a question. "We made our policy review and we determined that we would not be able to meet our national defense needs nor our security commitments to our friends and allies if we sign this convention."

Opponents of the U.S. landmine policy said they were surprised.

"It is a disturbing development," said Steve Goose of Human Rights Watch. "The administration never said a policy review was under way."

Goose said the decision to leave the policy in place is at odds with the administration's professed commitments to international agreements and humanitarian issues.

"The international treaty against landmines has made a a huge difference and it is a very strong deterrent," Goose said. "It has to have been a very fast and cursory review."

The United States will attend an international conference on landmines next week in Cartagena, Colombia, sending an inter-agency delegation from the State and Defense departments as observers.

Kelly said the United States continues to work with governments as well as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to help remove landmines.

"The U.S. is proud to be the world's single largest supporter of humanitarian mine action," Kelly said. "Since 1993 the U.S. has provided more than $1.5 billion worldwide dedicated to building new partnerships with more than 50 post-conflict countries and supporting efforts by dozens of NGOs to promote stability and set the stage for recovery and development through mine clearance and conventional-weapons destruction programs."

The United States is the only member of NATO that will not sign the landmine treaty, Goose said. Russia and China also have not joined the 156 nations that have endorsed the ban, he said.


CNN Sauce

I think this is so awful. D: Landmines really hurt the civilian population more than anyone else, and that for DECADES. I might be terribly naive, but I really thought the use of landmines was a thing of the past. It's not like we don't still have enough of the OLD ones buried and waiting to go off. >_>;;;

How I feel: nostalgic

Santorum ‘absolutely’ considering 2012 bid, says Palin has ‘some explaining’ to do if she runs.



In September, former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) told Catholic leaders that he was “thinking about” a run for the GOP nomination for president in 2012. “I hate to be calculating, but I see that 2012 is not just throwing somebody out to be eaten, but it’s a real opportunity for success,” he said. Today on ABC’s Top Line, Santorum appeared to be leaning more towards running. “Absolutely — absolutely taking a look,” he said, adding, “[W]e need to stand foursquare on the traditional values.” When asked if Sarah Palin — another potential GOP candidate — is qualified to be president, Santorum dodged and later took a veiled shot at the former Alaska governor:

SANTORUM: No, I’ll let the people decide that. I think, you know, she’s done a lot to draw attention to herself that’s positive. She’s done some things that, you know, certainly are going to cause her to have to do some explaining if she runs for president. But right now I think she’s on a roll, she’s having a good time, she’s having an impact.

WASHINGTON – Senate Democratic liberals are seeking expansion of two large federal programs, Medicare and Medicaid, in exchange for dropping a government-sold insurance option from health care legislation sought by President Barack Obama, several lawmakers said Monday.
Under the potential trade-off with party moderates, near-retirees beginning at age 55 or 60 who lack affordable insurance would be permitted to purchase coverage under Medicare, which generally provides medical care beginning at 65. Medicaid, the federal-state health care program for the poor, would be open to all comers under 300 percent of poverty, or slightly over $66,000 for a family of four.
Senators and aides said the changes have been discussed extensively in recent days as a small group of moderate and liberal Democrats search for a middle ground to assure passage of the bill atop Obama's domestic agenda.
Given the complexities of the two programs, and the White House's goal of passing legislation by year's end, it wasn't clear whether the negotiations would ultimately prove successful, or whether they merely were a last stab by liberals to salvage some concession in a monthslong debate.
( Read more... )

Jim Manley, a spokesman for Reid, said in response, "Today's feigned outrage is nothing but a ploy to distract from the fact they (Republicans) have no plan to lower the cost of health care, stop insurance company abuses or protect Medicare.

source

GOP Would Require President, Cabinet, Staff To Enroll In Public Option

Senate Republicans opposed to a public health-insurance option intend to introduce an amendment Monday that would require not just members of Congress to enroll in any such plan -- but also the president, vice president, cabinet officials and all political staff.

An earlier, narrower version of the amendment just covering Congress, proposed by Sens. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and David Vitter (R-La.), led to a Capitol spectacle on Friday as some Democrats called their bluff.

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) tried to join their effort, but told the Hill that he was rebuffed. A Coburn spokesman said Brown would have been welcome to join and that the office had simply yet to get back to him.

Regardless, Sens. Al Franken (D-Minn.), Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and Brown all went to the Senate floor to ask unanimous consent to be added to the amendment, a request that was approved.

Franken said on the Senate floor that he had discussed the situation with his wife Frannie and they had agreed to go on the public option if the bill became law. (If the amendment doesn't become law, Franken wouldn't legally be able to make that choice since he has employer-provided coverage.)
( Read more )Read the five page amendment here.

http://motherjones.com/mojo/2009/12/expert-discusses-bringing-gay-troops-repeal-debate

Last week's call for temporary immunity to "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" for gay soldiers testifying at Congressional hearings for repeal, introduced in a bill by Rep. Alcee L. Hastings, could put more pressure on the Obama administration to end the counterproductive and incredibly expensive Clinton-era compromise. Today I spoke with Nathaniel Frank, author of Unfriendly Fire: How the Gay Ban Undermines the Military and Weakens America and senior research fellow at the Palm Center at the University of California in Santa Barbara, about the latest developments. Read the interview here.

     

How I feel: intrigued

Music swells, lights flash and the contestants strut on to the stage, waving and blowing kisses. All wear high heels, bikinis and wide smiles.

It is another beauty pageant in Venezuela, a self-styled "beauty superpower" which worships physical perfection and has won the two most recent Miss Universe titles. But this show in Caracas is different. Even from the back of the theatre you noticesomething striking about the contestants. They are men. Large, chubby men.
( Read more... )
An interesting article, and I really liked it, despite the conflation of drag queens and trans women. Still, it's nice to see something a little different from the norm.

How I feel: sympathetic

Saving Grace: One Family's Struggle With Abortion and the Catholic Church

Wednesday 02 December 2009

by: Amanda Mueller, t r u t h o u t

At the home of Gail and Robert Anderson, a large statue of the Virgin Mary sits in the yard, welcoming guests into the home while protecting the family that lives there. Next to the statue of Mary, inside a labyrinth of daisies, daffodils, tulips and roses is a stone engraved with the word grace. For the Andersons' grace is not just a word or a concept taught through their strong Catholic faith, but the name of the daughter their hopes and dreams hung onto. It is the name of the daughter they said goodbye to in the Kansas office of a man named Dr. George Tiller.

( Read more... )

This is just gutting. Not only do you go through something like that, but then to have a total lack of support from the people who should care for you, should be there in a time of suffering and need...stories like this add to my cynicism about organized religion.

Sarah Palin's Popularity Grows, Poll Finds

The Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund has filed an employment discrimination suit against an Orlando McDonald's after learning that a manager had left a voicemail for a transgender applicant stating, "We don't hire faggots." Zikerria Bellamy, 17, had applied online for a job with the restaurant. The TLDEF notes:

Zikerria’s story is all too common. Transgender people face tremendous discrimination in the workplace. According to a recent survey by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality, 47% of transgender people report being fired, or denied a job or promotion, just because of who they are. Few protections exist for transgender people who experience employment discrimination. In 38 states, there is no law protecting transgender people from being fired because of who they are. Federal law similarly offers no job protection for transgender people. In Florida, while no law explicitly addresses discrimination based on gender identity, administrative agencies in Florida have ruled that transgender people are protected by the Florida Human Rights Act’s prohibitions on sex and disability discrimination. The Competitive Workforce Bill, which would add gender identity and sexual orientation to the Florida Civil Rights Act, was introduced in the Florida legislature on November 20.

The man misses and hits an officer instead

Published : Monday, 07 Dec 2009, 2:35 PM PST

Maggie Habashy

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (FOX 9) - A man was arrested for throwing tomatoes at Sarah Palin during her book signing on Monday at the Mall of America.

The man allegedly threw two tomatoes from the second balcony, however did not come close to hitting Palin.

Bloomington Police report that a Bloomington commander was struck in the face with one of the tomatoes and may face charges for assaulting a police officer. The suspect was booked at the Bloomington jail.

More than 1,000 people turned out at the Mall of America Rotunda on Monday for Sarah Palin's "Going Rogue" book signing.

Palin started signing books at noon for those brave enough to wait in a long line that started around 5 a.m.

Those hoping to get their copy of "Going Rogue" signed on Monday must come prepared. According to MOA organizers, you must have a mall-issued wristband, which requires a copy of the book purchased from Barnes and Noble or a Barnes and Noble receipt proving your purchase. "Going Rogue" sold more than 700,000 copies in its first week, outpacing President Barack Obama's 2006 book "The Audacity of Hope," which sold fewer than 100,000 first-week copies and Hilary Clinton's 2003 book "Living History," which sold roughly 600,000 copies. Palin recently passed the 1,000,000 book mark and has sat atop the New York Times bestseller list for two weeks.

The former Republican vice presidential candidate topped a Washington Post poll in November as the top choice among likely Republican voters if their caucus or primary were to take place today.

Following the book signing, Palin is scheduled to appear a private event at a Bloomington, Minnesota hotel hosted by The Freedom Club State PAC. Entry to the invitation-only event costs $5,000 per person or couple.

The invitation says all proceeds will go toward electing Republicans to the Minnesota House.

source: http://www.myfoxla.com/dpp/news/dpgo-Man-Chucks-Tomatoes-Sarah-Palin-dec-07-20091260228521363?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Artists' lawsuit: major record labels are the real pirates - Between $50 million and $60 billion may be owed to musicians and artists in Canada, but not from your run-of-the-mill file sharers. The Canadian recording industry itself is being accused of massive copyright infringement, and the list of miffed artists just keeps getting longer.

Given how aggressively the recording industry likes to pursue file sharers, one would assume that the industry itself is in the clear when it comes to copyright infringement. But that assumption has been put to the test in Canada, where a massive infringement lawsuit is brewing against some major players. Members of the Canadian Recording Industry Association, including the Big Four (Warner Music Canada, Sony BMG Music Canada, EMI Music Canada, and Universal Music Canada), face the prospect of damages ranging from $50 million up to $60 billion due to their use of artists' music without permission. That's right: $60 billion.

The lawsuit in question goes back to October 2008, but continues to be dragged up in the news because new plaintiffs keep joining the case. Most recently, jazz musician Chet Baker's estate has joined the growing list of musicians and artists who are getting on the music industry's case for their abuse of a certain aspect of Canadian copyright practices—something that the labels themselves don't even deny doing.

( Record industries could use songs as long as they pinky swore they would get authorization and pay the artist for it eventually. )

--

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA, I hope the record companies lose and lose big time.

Oh, sweet hypocrisy.

The national battle over abortion, for decades firmly planted outside the Kansas clinic of Dr. George R. Tiller, has erupted here in suburban Omaha, where a longtime colleague has taken up the cause of late-term abortions.

Since Dr. Tiller was shot to death in May, his colleague, Dr. LeRoy H. Carhart, has hired two people who worked at Dr. Tiller’s clinic and has trained his own staff members in the technical intricacies of performing late-term abortions.

Dr. Carhart has also begun performing some abortions “past 24 weeks,” he said in an interview, and is prepared to perform them still later if they meet legal requirements and if he considers them medically necessary.

“There is a need, and I feel deeply about it,” said Dr. Carhart, visibly weary after a day when eight patients had appointments at his clinic here.

The late-term abortions, coming after the earliest point when a fetus might survive outside the womb, are the most controversial, even among some who favor abortion rights. A few of Dr. Carhart’s employees quit when he told them of his plans to expand the clinic’s work.

Opponents of abortion, who had devoted decades to trying to stop Dr. Tiller’s business with protests and calls for investigations, are now turning their efforts to stopping Dr. Carhart. Troy Newman, the president of Operation Rescue, an anti-abortion group, said he had traveled from the group’s headquarters in Wichita, Kan., to Nebraska six times in recent months, portraying this suburb of fewer than 50,000 as a new battlefield in the abortion fight.

( Read more... )

Source.

How I feel: accomplished

Passed my final comprehensive exam!

That Master's degree is MINE!