Fox Vox Redux

think-progress: Virginia is poised to pass legislation that...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 17:16:12 -0500

Virginia is poised to pass legislation that would require women to endure this invasive ultrasound, for no medical reason, before receiving an abortion.

Pat Buchanan gets the ax from MSNBC

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 16:53:00 -0500

Pat Buchanan gets the ax from MSNBC: About. Fucking. Time.(I’m sure a Fox contract is in his...

nefariousnewt: manicchill: Clay Bennett of the Chattanooga...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 16:22:20 -0500

nefariousnewt:

manicchill:

Clay Bennett of the Chattanooga Times Free Press

*Snicker*

liberalsarecool: The enormous mistake Mitt can never admit On...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:43:42 -0500

liberalsarecool:

The enormous mistake Mitt can never admit

On the subject of the federal government’s bailout of Chrysler and General Motors, it has become essentially impossible for Mitt Romney to say anything coherent.

Romney’s problem, of course, is that he positioned himself as the face of bailout opposition, arguing in a November 18, 2008 New York Times Op-Ed that “if General Motors, Ford and Chrysler get the bailout that their chief executives asked for yesterday, you can kiss the American automotive industry goodbye.” But with the passage of time, that position has become more and more laughable — especially on a day like Thursday, when GM announced record profits ($7.6 billion) for 2011, which will result in nearly 50,000 hourly workers receiving profit-sharing checks of $7,000.

By any reasonable standard, the federal government’s auto industry bailout has been a smashing success, but to admit this Romney would be admitting that he was wrong in a big way. And not just on any issue. After all, Romney grew up in Michigan as the son of the president of American Motors, and he presents himself to voters as a turnaround specialist whose unique insight into the world of business and industry will translate into a booming economy if he’s elected president. But now it looks like Barack Obama (and George W. Bush, for that matter) knew better than him.

Typical of all Republicans, Romney can never admit he was wrong.

Do you hear the steady drumbeat of war with Iran?

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:42:17 -0500

Do you hear the steady drumbeat of war with Iran?: think-progress: Rep. Keith Ellison (R-MN) does,...

good: It’s Time to Bust the Myth That Girls Don’t Like...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:38:58 -0500

good:

It’s Time to Bust the Myth That Girls Don’t Like Science

Research shows that girls are interested in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields, but aren’t given information about the opportunities.

If schools focus their efforts on ensuring that girls are informed about STEM opportunities, the number of women becoming computer scientists, engineers, and mathematicians is sure to soar.

Read it on GOOD→

The unholy alliance between Catholic bishops and the GOP, by Robert Shrum for The Week.

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:38:00 -0500

The unholy alliance between Catholic bishops and the GOP, by Robert Shrum for The Week.:...

solitaryforager: Police ‘Tank’ Purchase Riles New Hampshire...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:37:23 -0500

solitaryforager:

Police ‘Tank’ Purchase Riles New Hampshire Town

Since the 1990s, the Pentagon has made military equipment available to local police departments for free or at steep discounts. This, along with drug war-related policies, has spurred a trend toward a more militarized domestic police force in America. Law enforcement and elected officials have argued for years that better-armed, high-powered police departments are needed to fight the war on drugs.

Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the war on terror has accelerated the trend toward militarization. Homeland Security hands out anti-terrorism grants to cities and towns, many specifically to buy military-grade equipment from companies like Lenco. In December, the Center for Investigative Journalism reported that Homeland Security grants totalled $34 billion, and went to such unlikely terrorism targets as Fargo, N.D.; Fon du Lac, Wisc.; and Canyon County, Idaho. The report noted that because of the grants, defense contractors that long served the Pentagon exclusively have increasingly turned looked to police departments, hoping to tap a “homeland security market” expected to reach $19 billion by 2014.

Until only recently, public and press reaction to these grants and the gear purchased with them has been positive or non-existent. Most towns obtain and use the grants without much discussion or news coverage. At most, the local paper might run a supportive story touting the police department’s new acquisition, usually without controversy. But it has been different in Keene, in part because Clark and a group of libertarian activists have made the Bearcat an issue.

Jim Massery, the government sales manager for Pittsfield, Mass.-based Lenco, dismissed critics who wonder why a town with almost no crime would need a $300,000 armored truck. “I don’t think there’s any place in the country where you can say, ‘That isn’t a likely terrorist target,’” Massery said. “How would you know? We don’ t know what the terrorists are thinking. No one predicted that terrorists would take over airplanes on Sept. 11. If a group of terrorists decide to shoot up a shopping mall in a town like Keene, wouldn’t you rather be prepared?”

#OpGlobalBlackout - Could Anonymous Take Down the Internet?

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:48:45 -0500

#OpGlobalBlackout - Could Anonymous Take Down the Internet?: thenextweb: The idea is seemingly...

thepoliticalnotebook: If you enjoy hating on Rick Santorum,...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:47:51 -0500

thepoliticalnotebook:

If you enjoy hating on Rick Santorum, then you should all check out my piece over at The Risky Shift challenging him on his arguments about women in the military.

Santorum is arguing that when women are present on the battlefield it activates a male urge to engage in risky behavior in order protect them. This argument is a sneaky ploy; it’s the “it’s not about the women, it’s about the men” claim. At least, that’s what it is superficially. This argument side-steps trying to respond to the incredibly convincing evidence that women have proven their battlefield mettle repeatedly and instead goes for an assertion about male nature and military culture that embeds itself in social assumptions about gender not necessarily factual evidence.

inothernews: The thing I can’t stand about the Flash crash...

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:46:34 -0500

inothernews:

The thing I can’t stand about the Flash crash message is that Lego doesn’t crash, fuckers, unless you push that shit off a table.

30 Years of the Space Shuttle

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:45:48 -0500

30 Years of the Space Shuttle: truth-has-a-liberal-bias: jtotheizzoe: moderation: 30 Years of the...

Photo

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:44:38 -0500

thedailywhat: RIP: Whitney Houston, pop superstar known for her...

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 23:56:11 -0500

thedailywhat:

RIP: Whitney Houston, pop superstar known for her hits as much as for her troubles with substance abuse, passed away today at 48.

Details concerning cause of death remain unknown at this time, but Houston is believed to have been found in her Beverly Hilton hotel room by her bodyguard. Paramedics who arrived at the scene found Houston unresponsive. All efforts to resuscitate the singer failed and she was pronounced dead at 3:55 PM local time.

No foul play is suspected at this time; an investigation has been launched. BBC Correspondent Alastair Leithead reports that she may have been under the influence “of substances” at the time of her death.

Houston leaves behind a musical legacy that spans multiple decades. She was the recipient of 415 awards throughout her storied career — the most ever by a female singer — including two Emmy Awards, six Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, and 22 American Music Awards.

She also leaves behind a daughter, Bobbi Kristina Houston Brown, whom she had with then-husband Bobby Brown.

[usatoday / tmz.]

motherjones: “But dear God, we should not be putting civil...

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:32:01 -0500

motherjones:

“But dear God, we should not be putting civil rights issues to a popular vote to be subject to the sentiments, the passions of the day. No minority should have their rights subject to the passions and sentiments of the majority. This is a fundamental bedrock of what our nation stands for.”

Chris Christie, check your gay-marriage milkshake. Cory Booker just drank it.

Five minutes well spent.

stfuconservatives: thedailywhat: What The Kids Are Eating of...

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:21:02 -0500

stfuconservatives:

thedailywhat:

What The Kids Are Eating of the Day: Ruled not good enough by America’s largest fast-food chains, the so-called “pink slime” — meat and meat by-products treated with ammonia — is still A-OK by U.S. Department of Agriculture standards.

In fact, the USDA will reportedly purchase over 7 million pounds of the gunk to turn into hamburgers and tacos for cafeterias feeding America’s schoolchildren.

McDonald’s, Burger King, and Taco Bell were all persuaded to stop using ammonia-treated meat after the practice of rinsing dog-grade meat with ammonia to wash away harmful bacteria was brought to the attention of consumers by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver.

“We’re taking a product that would be sold in its cheaper form for dogs,” said Oliver on his TV show Food Revolution. “After this process, we can give it to humans.”

But a USDA spokesman said there were no plans to stop using pink slime as part of the national school lunch program.

“The U.S. Food and Drug Administration as well as the Food Safety and Inspection Service considers ammonium hydroxide as ‘generally recognized as safe,’” said the spokesman, Aaron Lavallee. “FSIS reviewed the suitability of Beef Products Inc.’s use of ammonium hydroxide in order to assess its effectiveness in performing the intended technical purpose of use, at lowest level necessary, and to ensure that the product is not adulterated or misleading to consumers.”

However, since ammonia beef falls outside the jurisdiction of federal labeling requirements, parents have no way of knowing what exactly is being served to their kids.

[thedaily.]

Wow, I remember when that image was circulating around as “what chicken mcnuggets are made of.” I’m shocked to learn that it is in fact much grosser and scarier than that.

-Joe

The Cancerous Politics and Ideology of the Susan G. Komen Foundation

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 13:55:08 -0500

The Cancerous Politics and Ideology of the Susan G. Komen Foundation: stfuhypocrisy: This week it...

Photo

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 11:47:27 -0500

Transatlantic? Cool. Transatlantic featuring Steve Hackett? ...

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:17:28 -0500

Transatlantic? Cool. Transatlantic featuring Steve Hackett? Awesome. Transatlantic featuring Steve Hackett performing “Return of the Giant Hogweed”? HO. LEE. SHIT. Serious prog-asm, folks! :) (Especially the back and forth between Steve and Roine Stolt in the middle…awesome guitar work from two of the best.)

wilwheaton: The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA)...

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 12:35:57 -0500

wilwheaton:

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) claims that SOPA and PIPA are aimed at stopping online piracy. But as this infographic demonstrates, it’s really about fighting innovation.

(Embiggen at Infographic: Why the movie industry is so wrong about SOPA)