Westboro Baptist Church Plans 29 Anti-Gay/Jewish/Military Protests in San Diego (Links)
California: America’s first failed state? The state that was once held up as the epitome of the boundless opportunities of America has collapsed. Westboro Baptist Church planning 29 anti-gay/Jewish/military protests in San Diego The Kansas-based church known for its anti-gay, anti-Semitic and anti-military protests is planning four days of demonstrations at 29 locations in San Diego County next week. Happy birthday, War in Afghanistan (photos) Violence in Afghanistan has reached its most intense of the eight-year-old war despite record levels of U.S. and NATO troops being sent to fight the Taliban. War: Bipartisanship Republicans can get behind Up until now President Obama has been unable to round up any Republican backing for his major initiatives. Finally, though, it appears that the GOP will come to his rescue—because he doesn’t have enough backing within his own party. Earth feels ‘massive relief’ that Obama is in office “What’s really remarkable is that in all my years studying national reputation, I have never seen any country experience such a dramatic change in its standing as we see for the United States for 2009.” Census Bureau: U.S. lost ground on every major economic measurement under Bush Thursday’s annual Census Bureau report on income, poverty and access to health care-the Bureau’s principal report card on the well-being of average Americans-closes the books on the economic record of George W. Bush. They tortured a man they knew to be innocent We now know that torturing a human being to get proof that he deserved to be tortured was not just a theoretical fear of mine. It happened. Bob Dole: now or never on health care If the reform proves popular, then the GOP will forever be tarred as the party that refused to help more people get health insurance or to tackle healthcare costs. Dick Cheney’s daughter to bring another ‘innocent child’ into her ‘lesbianic home’ The right-wing base loves Dick and Liz, but it dislikes the way Mary Cheney is gay and having children with her life partner. Texas gov. Perry acts to derail wrongful execution hearing Texas Gov. Rick Perry has shaken up a state commission looking into whether a man was wrongly executed in 2004. Life without parole for minors: cruel and unusual? The United States Supreme court will soon weigh in, and the question will be an early test of whether Justice Sonia Sotomayor, a former prosecutor, will align herself with the court’s tough-on-crime conservatives or join with its liberals to strike down prison policies perceived as going too far. Raines: Safire’s ‘rigid’ GOP loyalty contrasted with his openness to new information Bill Safire’s “rigid loyalty to the Republican Party stood in contrast to his intellectual habits, which were liberal in the old-fashioned sense of being comprehensive and open to new information,” writes Howell Raines. Glenn Beck uses Vaporub to get the “tears” flowing Now we see how Glenn Beck gets himself properly weepy for the cameras: a little Vicks Vaporub. He also can’t explain what he meant by ‘white culture’ Er, well, oh, er… Bill Gates has fifty thousand million dollars It’s that time of the year again when Forbes publishes their annual list of the 400 richest Americans, and the rest of us look at the billions they own, dream away for a minute or two, and then get back to reality, remembering we’ve forgotten to pay our cell phone bill.
Obama Wins I’m-Not-George-W.-Bush Prize
President Obama, the liberal media announced this morning, has won the Nobel Peace Prize®.
The third sitting president to receive the award, Obama is honored by the bestowal and, frankly, a little relieved. “I am honored by the bestowal and, frankly, a little relieved. Maybe now people will forget that I couldn’t bring the 2016 Olympics to the United States,” the president probably said. “Also, it’s great to get the recognition because I was worried that I wasn’t really doing anything. Clearly, that can’t be true. They don’t just give these things out for political reasons to show predecessors just how much the international community didn’t like them.” (more…)
Non-Profit Group Unveils Winner of Scientific Integrity Contest (Cartoons)
The Union of Concerned Scientists, a non-profit group that advocates for scientific integrity, recently released the winners of its 2009 Science Idol contest. According to the organization,
The UCS asked 12 artists to draw humorous attention to the not-so-funny issue of political interference in federal government science. After more than 10,000 votes were cast, Jesse Springer of Eugene, OR came out on top with a cartoon about science and the Endangered Species Act (above).
The UCS famously blew the whistle on Bush Adminstration interference at the U.S. Interior Department, which led to a federal investigation and the resignation of Julie A. MacDonald, a high ranking administration official. The investigation found that MacDonald had repeatedly violated the Code of Federal Regulations “basic obligation of public service” by giving confidential information to oil and land developers and tampering with two-thirds of the Endangered Species Act decisions under her charge. Investigators also found that MacDonald’s “abrupt and abrasive, if not abusive” management style “demoralized…her staff as well as her subordinate managers.” U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said that “this report makes it crystal clear how one person’s contempt for the public trust can infect an entire agency. MacDonald caused significant harm to the integrity of the Endangered Species Act and untold waste of hundreds of thousands of taxpayers’ dollars.”
All 12 entrants in the Science Idol contest will be featured in the Union of Concerned Scientists’ annual calendar, which can be purchased on their website for $10. The calendar is meant to serve as “a constant reminder of how vigilant we must be in defending science from politics.”
They’re certainly doing their part. Check out all 12 of the cartoons below. (more…)
The Guns Are Out, the Risks Are Real (Links)
Cheney: We Didn’t Go Far Enough Former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney believes that the Bush Administration’s policies should have been pushed much further. Whores on Terror The documentation of “sexual humiliation,” sodomy, and other forms of “enhanced interrogation” conducted by U.S. personnel are too extensive to be denied or pawned off on a couple of redneck privates. Ten of Obama’s Health-Care Missteps What the White House did wrong, in no particular order. Obama Isn’t Saying the Right Thing He should be saying, “Stop lying.” At Health Care Events, Guns Are Out, and the Risks Are Real It’s not enough for conservatives to repudiate violence, as some are belatedly beginning to do. Krugman: Extreme Opponents of Health Care Unappeasable “What they hate is the whole idea of any kind of health reform and more broadly what they hate is the whole idea of Democrats actually holding the White House.” In Alaska, Palin Leaves Behind Mismanaged Health Care System—Hundreds Die Waiting For Care The situation is so bad that the federal government has forbidden Alaska from signing up new people; no other state in the nation is under such a moratorium. A Case of Affinity Fraud The peddlers of anti-progressive lies are managing to convince a certain kind of American—white, socially conservative, etc.—that the hate-mongers are people like them; and, even more important, that progressives are Those People, people not like them. Them Versus Us By 1900, the U.S. had become more diverse and densely populated, with an industrial economy dominated by large corporations, and it had became abundantly clear that government power was necessary to regulate the marketplace, provide a safety net for the poor and elderly, and protect the environment. O’Reilly gloats that Fox’s ratings are due to its ‘fair and balanced’ approach You know how when someone says, “Now, I’m not trying to be a jerk, but…”, you can be certain that what will follow is them being a jerk. Ironic Divorce Protector of traditional marriage Doug Manchester is leaving his wife of 43 years.
Pastor Urges His Flock to Bring Guns to Church (Links)
An Incoherent Truth On health care, the conservative Democrats can’t extract major concessions on the shape of health care reform without dooming the whole project. What’s Cost Got to Do With It? Costs have skewed the debate on health care much like they have the debate on climate change—as if business-as-usual on either of them will be magically cost-free. Bush Officials: Where Are They Now? A guide to who’s cashing in. A Day of Reckoning for Bush’s ‘Torture’ Lawyers Eric Holder must decide whether to pursue Bush administration lawyers and one sitting federal judge who set the legal stage for officially sanctioned torture and other degrading practices that violated fundamental principles of international law. Barack Obama is More Likely Than Bush to Get Things Right We have a fox in the Oval Office, and he has replaced a hedgehog. U.S. Guns Fuel Canada And Mexico Crimes, UK Gun Crime Remains Rare Guns smuggled from the US arm criminals in Canada and Mexico, contributing to a higher murder rate in Canada and more intense drug crime conflict near the Mexican border, according to a study. Gun Flow South is a Crisis for Two Nations A report says the U.S. failure to curb smuggling has strengthened drug cartels. Pastor Urges His Flock to Bring Guns to Church In Louisville, Kentucky, Ken Pagano’s congregation is a sign that American gun culture is thriving despite, or perhaps because of, President Obama. Winning the Ultimate Battle: How Humans Could End War Optimists called the first world war “the war to end all wars.” She Broke the G.O.P. and Now She Owns It As the Republicans’ lone charismatic performer, Sarah Palin has come to represent a dwindling white nonurban America that is aflame with grievances. Robert McNamara in Context Should the Vietnam-era secretary of defense be remembered as a public servant, hawk, technocrat, hero, or all of the above? Assassination: A Brief History Governments can bomb faceless troops of enemy conscripts with impunity, but are questioned closely about bombing photographable individuals. Numbers numb; identity humanizes. That’s the general rule. Does Religion Have a Monopoly on ‘Enchantment’? Weber linked rationalisation with ‘the disenchantment of the world,’ but is it fair to equate the lack of religion to an absence of magic and mystery? The Bachmann Comic So how is the new comic book about our favorite House GOP backbencher, Michele Bachmann (R-MN)?
‘Angel’ and ‘Devil’ Parts of the Brain Battle for Supremacy (Links)
Obama Returns of Science to Endangered Species Act Interior Secretary Ken Salazar rescinded eleventh-hour Bush administration changes to Endangered Species Act regulations that allowed federal agencies to decide for themselves if their own projects—such as roads and dams—would threaten imperiled species. Fish and Wildlife Salamander Study Could Limit L.A. Sprawl If the Tehachapi slender salamander, which lives north of L.A., becomes a protected species, urban growth could be limited. Southern California Beetle Destroying Oaks A beetle that was first detected in California in 2004 has now attacked 67 percent of the oak trees in an area 30 miles east of San Diego. Why Invasive Plants Take Over New research shows that two key causes of plant invasion—escape from natural enemies, and increases in plant resources—act in concert. Stimulus Reinvigorates Underfinanced Superfund Program The Superfund program, established nearly 30 years ago to clean up the nation’s most contaminated industrial sites, has been underfinanced since a tax expired in 1995. Turtle Deformed After Being Trapped in a Six-Pack Plastic Ring A snapping turtle affectionately named Mae West suffered deformities from being trapped within a plastic ring. Fire an Overlooked Contributor to Climate Change Intentional deforestation fires alone contribute up to one-fifth of the human-caused increase in emissions of carbon dioxide, a heat-trapping gas that increases global temperature. ‘Angel’ and ‘Devil’ Parts of the Brain Battle for Supremacy People have “angel” and “devil” parts of the brain that are in constant battle over their self control a study has shown. Nuclear Tests Help to ID Fake Whisky Radioactive material is helping scientists to fight the multimillion pound trade in counterfeit antique malt whisky. Palm Oil Not a Healthy Substitute for Trans Fats Both trans fatty acids and saturated fatty acids are associated with elevated heart disease risk factors. No Natives Allowed Over the last century, the conservation movement has created some beautiful parks–and millions of refugees.
The Angry Man, the Droll, the Perv (Links)
Ronald Reagan: A Vengeful, Score-Settling, Hard Left Ideologue? How severely has our political spectrum shifted in the last two decades? The Banality of Bush White House Evil Torture was a tool in the campaign to exploit 9/11 so that fearful Americans would support a war that had nothing to do with Al Qaeda. Orwell on Law Scholarship In the quest to adopt a simpler and more direct style in legal discussion, lawyers could learn a lot from Orwell. Op-Ed Art That Was Rejected by NYT Editors Milton Glaser drew an alien for a Valentine’s Day manuscript in 1996, but an editor determined that its beak “looked like a taboo human part.” Human Landscapes From Above (Photos) Photographer Jason Hawkes has been carrying his Nikon D3 aboard helicopters around the world, hanging out the doorway and capturing landscapes—most somehow affected by humans—below. What Kind of Web Commenter Are You? The Angry Man? The Droll? The Perv?
Glenn Beck and the ‘Coming Civil War’
Ryan Chittum looks at the wonderful public service currently being provided by Glenn Beck.
Beck’s show on Fox News raises apocalyptic free-for-all as a very real possibility. With images of swarthy people burning American flags, refugees, rioters, and military on the move, it was the very definition of public-service reporting, if by ‘public service’ you mean ‘losing your mind.’
Geronimo Relative Sues Skull and Bones Frat
OMG!!1111 Does this mean that the typically juvenile and banal shocking rituals of this secret fraternity will finally be revealed?
The great-grandson of Apache warrior Geronimo argues in a lawsuit that a secretive society at Yale University holds the remains of his great-grandfather.
[CNN]
Bush to Befuddle His Way Across the Globe in March
Former President George W. Bush will embark next month on a series of speeches that will take him to Canada, the U.S., Europe and Asia, advisers said.
The former president already has plans for about 10 speeches over the next year, and will do more.
[Politico]
Bipartisan Bill Would Punish Presidents Who Mislead into War
U.S. Rep. Walter Jones (R-North Carolina) and Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii make a clear point about wars currently being waged by the United States.
U.S. Rep. Walter Jones (R-North Carolina) introduced legislation that would impose fines or prison time on presidents or executive-branch officials who ‘knowingly and willfully’ mislead Congress to gain authorization to use U.S. military forces.
The Executive Accountability Act was introduced last week and is co-sponsored by Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii. If passed, the act would apply only to current and future presidential administrations and executive branches. The act calls for fines or up to 10 years in prison for leaders found guilty of misleading Congress in order to get authorization to go to war.
Bush 'Torture Architect' John Yoo Escapes From Berkeley
UC Berkeley Professor John Yoo is now Chapman School of Law Professor John Yoo, after intense protesting drove him out of the Berkeley community.
In Berkeley, city leaders branded him a war criminal and human rights activists put up a billboard to denounce him. But in suburban Orange County, John Yoo–the primary architect of the Bush administration’s policy on harsh interrogation techniques that many consider torture–has found relatively calmer waters.
[LAT]
Pentagon Mistreated Journalists, AP Head Charges
In a recent speech, Associated Press head Tom Curley charged that the Bush Pentagon had systematically targeted and mistreated journalists as a part of a propaganda program developed by Donald Rumsfeld.
We are the only force out there to keep the government in check and to hold it accountable…Top [U.S. military] commanders told me that if [the AP and I stood by] journalistic principles, the AP and I would be ruined.
According to the AP, “the Pentagon is spending at least $4.7 billion this year on ‘influence operations‘ and has more than 27,000 employees devoted to such activities.”
[Harper's]
Toxic Chinook Salmon is Killing Killer Whales (Links)
Scientists say human-caused climate change is…real? Clear days have exacerbated climate change in Europe. The termite insecticide used when pest control guys tented your house has been found to be a potent greenhouse gas. Department of It Takes a Catastrophe: After December’s toxic spill in Tennessee, a West Virginia lawmaker has introduced legislation to set federal standards for storing the waste. Department of Sounds Familiar: 3,600 years ago, a natural disaster destroyed a civilization, after 2,000 years of ‘no incentive to change.’ Grist looks at the green aspects of the $825 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Ecologists have identified invasive plants that pose the biggest threats to southern forest ecosystems in 2009. Bush must’ve dropped the ball on preventing this one: the U.S. government may kind of try to offset environmental damage from the construction of hundreds of miles of walls along the Mexican border. Once as ‘divided as oil and water,’ labor unions and environmental groups are uniting over health care worries shared in workplaces and communities. Toxic Chinook salmon is killing killer whales. Frogs (and their legs) are being eaten to extinction. The LA Times profiles the civil disobedience of Tim DeChristopher, who found a loophole in Bush rules and threw a monkeywrench into Utah public land sales. The Economist looks at the staggering rate of species extinction in the world’s tropical forests. Indonesian orangutans are on the verge of extinction because forests are being clear-cut and burned meet world demand for palm oil. Human hunting and fishing is accelerating the speed of evolution in some species as it removes whole generations of large adults that would otherwise reproduce. Side effects include ‘changes in eyelid pigmentation,’ but the enhanced eyelash growth is probably worth it. You’ve had three cups of coffee. Are you hallucinating?
Grover Norquist, Guns, Sexting (Links)
How many guns do you own? Grover Norquist grills GOP Party Chair candidates about their conservative credentials. Harper’s posts a statistical retrospective of the Bush Administration. Bill O’Reilly: Senators Leahy and Sanders would ‘torture the hell out of Bush if they could.’ Bush’s 2005 inauguration was actually 4x more expensive per person than Obama’s. Politico lists ‘seven reasons for healthy skepticism.’ Six Pennsylvania teens face child porn charges after taking nude photos of themselves. John McCain says that Sarah Palin could be president someday. Meanwhile, Palin has reportedly hired D.C. lawyer Robert Barnett help land a book or TV deal. Gail Collins compares Bush’s long goodbye with ‘one of those reconstituted rock bands that have been on a farewell tour since 1982.’ Frank Rich examines ‘eight years of Madoffs.’
Greenwashing the Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger has been hailed as leader in the fight against climate change, but he expects something in return for his efforts. In what he evidently sees as a fair trade for pledging to cut emissions, the California governor is asking that environmental protections be stripped from 10 big highway projects, citing the economy as a good reason for the sacrifice.
ESA, UCS, SEX (Links)
Hot on the heels of the Bush Administration’s order to remove science from the Endangered Species Act, a new government report has found more interference with ESA decisions. The EPA has released a ‘most wanted’ list. Maryland State Police used their anti-terror powers to spy on peaceful environmentalists. The UCS has released a guide to low-carbon vacations. Diesel trucks in California must meet new pollution guidelines. Chemicals are killing your sex drive. A group of students ages 9-18 have found a way to stop curb 90% of roadkills. Researchers are trying to find a way to meet golfers and enviros halfway. CSM explores America’s Great Lakes. Ocean fish farming spreads infection to wild fish. A deep sea expedition in the Gulf of California found unprecedented biodiversity and a troubling breadth of human impact. Recyclables are currently worth the same as trash—and aren’t being recycled. After almost 20 years, Exxon Valdez victims have received their first settlement payments. Enviros ‘counter’ clean coal oxymorons. Soldiers returning to the Middle East can look forward to breathing smoke from open air incinerators burning human remains and toxic waste. CNN has laid off its entire environmental, science, and technology news staff.
‘So What’ About the ‘Beef’?
When an interviewer pointed out that Al Qaeda was not in Iraq prior to the U.S. invasion, Bush responded by saying ‘So what?’
Let’s call it the Al Qaida defense.
Bush also used the Al Qaida defense when asked about Muntather Zaidi, the Iraqi journalist who on Sunday threw his shoes at the President—a grave insult in Islamic culture—and shouted:
This is a gift from the Iraqis. This is the farewell kiss, you dog…This is from the widows, the orphans and those who were killed in Iraq.
Of Zaidi, who has been kidnapped by ‘gangs’ in Baghdad and detained twice by U.S. forces, Bush also said ‘I don’t know what the guy’s beef is.’
