Stasa's "Blog This!"

"Single Ladies" Collection

2010-05-04T17:45:00.003-04:00

Yes, it's true -- I'm collecting remakes of the "Single Ladies" video. Click here to check them out. Some of them are simply silly, some feature amazing dancing. Enjoy!

Purple Haze: my favorite

2010-05-04T17:09:00.004-04:00

I tend to think of this one as "Brian Harlan Brooks' compliments to Bob Fosse": I first encountered it on Brooks' FB videos, and Fosse did the original choreography (yes, for the Beyonce version). Add in the queer sensibility... This is definitely my fave.

Brooks, Crenshaw, and Kingsberry performing this at Defying Inequality:

Whew! (*fans herself*)

Pomplamoose's "Single Ladies"

2010-05-04T16:52:00.003-04:00

Country version of "Single Ladies"

2010-05-03T21:39:00.009-04:00

Woo-hoo! Another one for my collection. ;-)

Magazine Preview - The Estrogen Dilemma - NYTimes.com

2010-04-16T13:30:00.000-04:00

Wow. Amazing, amazing article on depression, estrogen, hormone replacement therapy, and the Women's Health Initiative Study. Long, but readable, and worth the read. - sm

Magazine Preview - The Estrogen Dilemma - NYTimes.com:

Berry turned out to be right, of course; she wasn’t on the placebo, which the N.I.H. doctors told her when she finished the study. And as she hurried to fill her own patch prescription, she found her gratitude mixed with more than a little frustration. “Why did my primary-care physician give me an antidepressant when I could have had something simple, like estrogen?” she asked. “Why don’t they know?”

We talked about breast cancer, because that is the nightmare illness in nearly all our calculations, for most of us the visual closest to hand. Three of my best friends have endured the full breast-cancer horror show and by now have retired their wigs. All have survived. None had been on hormone replacement. This is information that batters me steadily but not helpfully, like my ex-smoker paternal aunt’s fatal lung cancer and the fact that I’m a lifetime nonsmoker and regular exerciser with extremely good cholesterol levels. How do my lowered risks from one column balance against my question marks over in another column? What to do?

Read article...

Is Marriage Good for Your Health? - NYTimes.com

2010-04-16T13:11:00.000-04:00

Is Marriage Good for Your Health? - NYTimes.com:

While Farr’s own study is no longer relevant to the social realities of today’s world — his three categories exclude couples living together, gay couples and the divorced, for instance — his overarching finding about the health benefits of marriage seems to have stood the test of time. Critics, of course, have rightly cautioned about the risk of conflating correlation with causation. (Better health among the married sometimes simply reflects the fact that healthy people are more likely to get married in the first place.) But in the 150 years since Farr’s work, scientists have continued to document the “marriage advantage”: the fact that married people, on average, appear to be healthier and live longer than unmarried people...

But while it’s clear that marriage is profoundly connected to health and well-being, new research is increasingly presenting a more nuanced view of the so-called marriage advantage. Several new studies, for instance, show that the marriage advantage doesn’t extend to those in troubled relationships, which can leave a person far less healthy than if he or she had never married at all. One recent study suggests that a stressful marriage can be as bad for the heart as a regular smoking habit. And despite years of research suggesting that single people have poorer health than those who marry, a major study released last year concluded that single people who have never married have better health than those who married and then divorced.

All of which suggests that while Farr’s exploration into the conjugal condition pointed us in the right direction, it exaggerated the importance of the institution of marriage and underestimated the quality and character of the marriage itself.

Read article

Donovan McNabb: 'I'd Like To Thank The Ungrateful, Over-Expecting,Oftentimes-Racist Fans Of Philadelphia' | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

2010-04-11T15:32:00.000-04:00

Donovan McNabb: 'I'd Like To Thank The Ungrateful, Over-Expecting,Oftentimes-Racist Fans Of Philadelphia' | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

Census to Gay Couples: Call Yourselves Married - Bureau doesn't need to see a marriage license: 'We don't do that for straight people'

2010-04-06T18:00:00.000-04:00

Census to Gay Couples: Call Yourselves Married - Bureau doesn't need to see a marriage license: 'We don't do that for straight people':

Only five states have legalized gay marriage, but the Bureau says same-sex couples in any state who consider themselves married should feel free to check the 'husband' or 'wife' boxes rather than 'unmarried partner.' Conservatives complain that allowing couples to define their own relationships is confusing and lends legitimacy to gay marriages, but the Census Bureau defends the practice.'There's a respect factor there,' one official said. 'We've never asked people to show us their marriage licenses. We don't do that for straight people.'

ACLU Can Sue Catholic Bishops for Refusing Reproductive Healthcare to Trafficked Women | End Human Trafficking | Change.org

2010-04-06T17:49:00.000-04:00

ACLU Can Sue Catholic Bishops for Refusing Reproductive Healthcare to Trafficked Women | End Human Trafficking | Change.org:

But the ACLU points out that since [the US Conference of Catholic Bishops] gets the overwhelming portion of federal dollars to take care of trafficked people, women who want access to birth control or abortions may not have anywhere else to go.

Read article...

h/t Jennifer M!

Cherokee Nation

2010-04-06T17:05:00.000-04:00

Cherokee Nation:

Wilma Mankiller, former Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, passed away this morning. Mankiller served 12 years in elective office at the Cherokee Nation, the first two as Deputy Principal Chief followed by 10 years as Principal Chief. She retired from public office in 1995. Among her many honors, Mankiller was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Clinton.

A New Tradition at the White House - the Seder - NYTimes.com

2010-03-27T13:38:00.000-04:00

I found this to be a moving story of a family Passover Seder, rather than a PR event. Gefilte fish in the White House!

A New Tradition at the White House - the Seder - NYTimes.com

That event was the first-ever presidential Seder, and also probably “the first time in history that gefilte fish had been placed on White House dishware,” said Eric Lesser, the former baggage handler, who organizes each year’s ritual.
As in many Jewish households, the Obama Seder seems to take on new meaning each year, depending on what is happening in the world and in participants’ lives (for this group, the former is often the same as the latter)...
Indeed, the same group, with a few additions, has now made the Seder an Executive Mansion tradition. (No one ever considered inviting prominent rabbis or other Jewish leaders; it is a private event.)...
Ms. Tubman and Desirée Rogers, then the White House social secretary, tried to plan an informal meal last year, with little or even no wait staff required. White House ushers reacted with what seemed like polite horror. The president and the first lady simply do not serve themselves, they explained. The two sides negotiated a compromise: the gefilte fish would be preplated, the brisket passed family-style...
The Seder originated with Jewish staff members on the campaign trail who could not go home, but now some celebrate at the White House by choice. Participants say their ties are practically familial by this point anyway. “Some of the most challenging experiences of our life we’ve shared together,” Ms. Jarrett said.

Read article...

Op-Ed Columnist - Whose Country Is It? - NYTimes.com

2010-03-27T10:51:00.000-04:00

Op-Ed Columnist - Whose Country Is It? - NYTimes.com

Even the optics must be irritating. A woman (Nancy Pelosi) pushed the health care bill through the House. The bill’s most visible and vocal proponents included a gay man (Barney Frank) and a Jew (Anthony Weiner). And the black man in the White House signed the bill into law. It’s enough to make a good old boy go crazy...
A Quinnipiac University poll released on Wednesday took a look at the Tea Party members and found them to be just as anachronistic to the direction of the country’s demographics as the Republican Party. For instance, they were disproportionately white, evangelical Christian and “less educated ... than the average Joe and Jane Six-Pack.” This at a time when the country is becoming more diverse (some demographers believe that 2010 could be the first year that most children born in the country will be nonwhite), less doctrinally dogmatic, and college enrollment is through the roof. The Tea Party, my friends, is not the future.
You may want “your country back,” but you can’t have it. That sound you hear is the relentless, irrepressible march of change. Welcome to America: The Remix.

Read the article...

Official member: Evil Gay Conspiracy

2010-03-26T14:19:00.000-04:00

Oh, this is excellent.

Official member: Evil Gay Conspiracy

It ain't easy extolling the idea that God is not what you think she is, that you have far more spiritual freedom than they tell you, that gender is fluid and love is a liquid pulse, and you are already hot like wicked sunshine with divine perfection. Not to mention how Jesus was just a weird mystic anarchist who hung out with hookers and freaks and would have completely rejected/abhorred every megachurch, pastor, pope and homophobic GOP doctrine in world history.
Turns out many people hate hearing that stuff. Just can't handle it. Personally, I can't count how many times I've been told I'm going straight to hell for whatever reason: championing gay rights, sex-positivism, proposing free Hitachis for every 14-year-old girl, that sort of thing. A hundred? A thousand? So far, I feel pretty good. Nothing's fallen off. Nothing on fire. At least, not in a bad way. We'll just have to see.
Speaking of the kids, we all take turns with the tutoring. Every couple weeks I spend a solid day with a few dozen or so, training them in the Beautiful Dark Ways, filling their sweet, innocent heads with simply luscious lies suggesting that, say, homosexuals are very nice people, gender and sexuality are far from fixed in nature, history is mostly spin and PR, Catholic schoolgirls are shockingly/delightfully well versed in doing quite nasty things with their mouths.

UC Davis Health System: UC Davis study finds reproductive coercion often is accompanied...

2010-03-25T18:33:00.000-04:00

UC Davis Health System: UC Davis study finds reproductive coercion often is accompanied by physical or sexual violence:

Young women and teenage girls often face efforts by male partners to sabotage birth control or coerce pregnancy — including damaging condoms and destroying contraceptives — and these efforts, defined as “reproductive coercion,” frequently are associated with physical or sexual violence, a study by a team of researchers led by UC Davis has found...
“We have known about the association between partner violence and unintended pregnancy for many years,” said Jay Silverman, the study’s senior author and an associate professor of society, human development and health in the Harvard School of Public Health. “What this study shows is that reproductive coercion likely explains why unintended pregnancies are far more common among abused women and teens.”

...The study also highlights the importance of working with young men to prevent both violence against female partners and coercion around pregnancy.

Read article...

Op-Ed Columnist - An Absence of Class in the G.O.P. - NYTimes.com

2010-03-23T16:48:00.000-04:00

Op-Ed Columnist - An Absence of Class in the G.O.P. - NYTimes.com:

If you’re all fired up about Republican-inspired tales of Democrats planning to send grandma to some death chamber, you’ll never get to the G.O.P.’s war against the right of ordinary workers to organize and negotiate in their own best interests — a war that has diminished living standards for working people for decades.

...A party that promotes ignorance (“Just say no to global warming”) and provides a safe house for bigotry cannot serve the best interests of our country.

Read article...

Payback for Prochoicers

2010-03-23T16:18:00.000-04:00

Tell it, Katha.

Payback for Prochoicers:

NARAL, Planned Parenthood and NOW stepped back. You can call prochoice leaders hypocritical or cowardly or feeble or excessively deferential to the president's agenda. But one thing you can't call them is selfishly obsessed with their own political purity. That would be the antichoicers--the Catholic bishops, Bart Stupak, Ben Nelson. They were the big evil babies who were willing to let millions suffer and 45,000 people die every year unless they got to deprive women of their reproductive rights.

Read article...

Bleckley school officials allowing gay prom date - Living - Macon.com

2010-03-23T15:51:00.000-04:00

A small town in GA does the right thing.

Bleckley school officials allowing gay prom date - Living - Macon.com:

Martin said he could have settled for what he did last year and simply attend the prom with a female friend, but he didn’t want to do that this year. “It’s standing up for the rights thing, especially after the Mississippi canceled prom,” he said. “It’s senior prom. It’s pretty big.”

Read article...

Twelve States Plan Lawsuit Over Obama Health Overhaul (Update2) - BusinessWeek

2010-03-23T15:39:00.000-04:00

Via Otter.

If you live in AL, FL, MI, NE, ND, PA, SC, SD, TX, UT, VA, or WA, you might want to call your Attorney General's office and tell them you do NOT want them to do this.

To find your Attorney General's number, do a web search for "attorney general WA" (or whatever state you live in).

Twelve States Plan Lawsuit Over Obama Health Overhaul (Update2) - BusinessWeek:

Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum said Florida, Texas and Pennsylvania are among 11 states that will sue “as soon as the president signs the bill,” claiming it places a burden on already cash-strapped states to pay for an expanded Medicaid program and build an exchange so individuals can find affordable insurance. Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli also said in a statement his state would sue on the similar grounds.

Read article...

Bias Called Persistent Hurdle for Women in Sciences - NYTimes.com

2010-03-22T14:32:00.000-04:00

Bias Called Persistent Hurdle for Women in Sciences - NYTimes.com

The report found ample evidence of continuing cultural bias. One study of postdoctoral applicants, for example, found that women had to publish 3 more papers in prestigious journals, or 20 more in less-known publications, to be judged as productive as male applicants.
Making judgments about an individual’s abilities based on his or her sex is a classic form of discrimination, said Nancy Hopkins, an M.I.T. biology professor who created an academic stir in the 1990s by documenting pervasive, but largely unintentional, discrimination against women at the university.

Even if male math geniuses outnumbered female geniuses 3 to 1, Dr. Hopkins said, it would be reasonable to expect one female math professor for every three male professors at places like Harvard and M.I.T. “But in fact, Harvard just tenured its first female, after 375 years,” said Dr. Hopkins, who, famously, walked out of the room after Mr. Summers made his controversial remarks.
The university women’s report cited research showing that girls’ performance suffers from any suggestion that they do poorly at math. In one experiment, college students with strong math backgrounds and similar abilities were divided into two groups and tested on math. One group was told that men perform better on the test, the other that there was no difference in performance between the sexes. Their results were starkly different: in the group told that men do better, men indeed did much better, with an average score of 25 compared with the women’s 5. In the group told there was no difference, women scored 17 and men 19.
Any suggestion of advantage based on sex affects results, the research shows, even where there is no cultural stereotype.
In an experiment ostensibly testing “contrast sensitivity ability” — a made-up skill — men and women in a group told there was no difference between the sexes in such sensitivity rated their own ability equally. But in a group told that men were better at it, men rated their skills far higher than women did.
Teaching girls about how stereotypes affect performance, the report found, can diminish such effects.

Read article...

How Christian Were the Founders? - NYTimes.com

2010-03-22T09:44:00.000-04:00

How Christian Were the Founders? - NYTimes.com

The one thing that underlies the entire program of the nation’s Christian conservative activists is, naturally, religion. But it isn’t merely the case that their Christian orientation shapes their opinions on gay marriage, abortion and government spending. More elementally, they hold that the United States was founded by devout Christians and according to biblical precepts. This belief provides what they consider not only a theological but also, ultimately, a judicial grounding to their positions on social questions. When they proclaim that the United States is a “Christian nation,” they are not referring to the percentage of the population that ticks a certain box in a survey or census but to the country’s roots and the intent of the founders.

Read article...

Talk Deeply, Be Happy? - Well Blog - NYTimes.com

2010-03-20T10:41:00.000-04:00

Talk Deeply, Be Happy? - Well Blog - NYTimes.com:

But, he proposed, substantive conversation seemed to hold the key to happiness for two main reasons: both because human beings are driven to find and create meaning in their lives, and because we are social animals who want and need to connect with other people.

“By engaging in meaningful conversations, we manage to impose meaning on an otherwise pretty chaotic world,” Dr. Mehl said. “And interpersonally, as you find this meaning, you bond with your interactive partner, and we know that interpersonal connection and integration is a core fundamental foundation of happiness.”

Read article...

Stuff My Children Will Eat -- and political rants: Bread is not simple

2010-03-19T15:11:00.000-04:00

Stuff My Children Will Eat -- and political rants: Bread is not simple:

Bread is in many ways not simply a food, it is for us in the west the Ur food. It's nickname is The Staff of Life. The phrases 'give us this day our daily bread,' and living on 'bread and water,' suggest that bread is not just any old nibble, it is the one food we need every day, the one food that sustains life. (Recent low carbiness aside.)

Read article...

AL-KHALIIL (HEBRON): Unrest continues in Hebron | Christian Peacemaker Teams

2010-03-19T14:42:00.000-04:00

AL-KHALIIL (HEBRON): Unrest continues in Hebron | Christian Peacemaker Teams

When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced three weeks ago that the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron and Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem would be included in a national heritage restoration plan, many Palestinians saw decision as an intentional provocation. Netanyahu chose the week of the sixteenth anniversary of Israeli settler Baruch Goldstein killing twenty-nine Palestinians as they prayed in the Il-Ibrahimi Mosque to make the announcement. Palestinian friends of CPT Hebron told team members they thought Netanyahu wished to incite anger and violence, which would in turn provide justification for military crackdowns and increased land seizures in the West Bank...
Responding to the issue of rising tensions throughout the West Bank, a Palestinian member of the CPT Al Khalil Advisory Council told CPT "We will resist Israeli attacks on our holy places. But we will resist peacefully, not with violence."

Read article...

How Come Straight Girls Get to Go To Prom With Other Ladies, But Not Lesbians Like Constance McMillen? / Queerty

2010-03-18T11:43:00.000-04:00

How Come Straight Girls Get to Go To Prom With Other Ladies, But Not Lesbians Like Constance McMillen? / Queerty

But aren't critics of McMillen — namely, her high school administrators — forgetting that girls go to prom with other girls all the time?
Whether it's because they are dateless or just want to send the message that "we don't need boys," straight girls have been arriving to hotel reception halls in limos, sans men, for decades. There has never been any serious criticism of this choice, at least no more than creepy father-daughter dance events. Not only do these girls sometimes arrive together, often, they dance together too!
Which is worth noting, because Itawamba High specifically told McMillen she cannot arrive with her same-sex girlfriend (who is also a student there, and whose name is, curiously, missing from press reports), and she will be asked to leave the prom if other students report they are made "uncomfortable" around McMillen and her date, presumably while they are dancing together and getting all lez.

NYC's St. Patrick's Day Parade Still Doesn't Want the Gays. And That's Their Right / Queerty

2010-03-18T11:32:00.000-04:00

NYC's St. Patrick's Day Parade Still Doesn't Want the Gays. And That's Their Right / Queerty

The St. Patrick's Day Parade is a "private" event. It is not hosted or produced by the city or a government office. It is considered the "official" St. Patrick's Day Parade because it is the largest and most well-covered, but it is not the only. Being a private event, it maintains the freedom to discriminate — the same way any gay pride parade gives us to the freedom to exclude groups, sponsors, and citizens that terrorize, discriminate, or harass LGBTs. That's a fair policy, is rooted in the First Amendment, and one we entirely support, even if parade chairman John Dunleavy was stupid enough to say excluding queers was the same as excluding Nazis from an Israeli pride parade or the KKK from a black pride parade.

(The only grey area you'll find us wading through is Hibernians' use of taxpayer resources, including police security and post-parade sanitation workers cleaning the streets, to execute the event, although we understand the city is paid a fee to cover the costs.)...
But this isn't a debate over one of our "rights"; it's a debate over a privilege. Thankfully, and perhaps in spite of any of their delusions, the Hibernians do not represent all Irish people, and nor do their discriminatory parades.

Read article...

Shortcuts - When a Cap Full of Soap Is Not a Good Thing - NYTimes.com

2010-03-17T11:17:00.000-04:00

Shortcuts - When a Cap Full of Soap Is Not a Good Thing - NYTimes.com

How much soap should I put in my washing machine and dishwasher?
Do I need to do more for my dryer than clean that little pull-out lint catcher?
Should I rinse my dishes before putting them in the dishwasher?
...“Nobody thinks they use too much soap,” said Vernon Schmidt, who has been a repairman for almost 35 years...

Too much detergent can make your clothes stiff and shorten the life of your machine. An excess of soap can also cause a buildup of mold and mildew, said Jill Notini, a spokeswoman for the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers, a trade group...
“If people see suds, they think their clothes are getting clean, but that’s wrong — it means you’re using a lot of extra detergent,” Ms. Notini said.
Here is Mr. Schmidt’s test to determine if you’re oversoaping...

Read article...

How Privacy Vanishes Online, a Bit at a Time - NYTimes.com

2010-03-17T00:48:00.000-04:00

How Privacy Vanishes Online, a Bit at a Time - NYTimes.com

Even more unnerving to privacy advocates is the work of two researchers from Carnegie Mellon University. In a paper published last year, Alessandro Acquisti and Ralph Gross reported that they could accurately predict the full, nine-digit Social Security numbers for 8.5 percent of the people born in the United States between 1989 and 2003 — nearly five million individuals.
Social Security numbers are prized by identity thieves because they are used both as identifiers and to authenticate banking, credit card and other transactions.
The Carnegie Mellon researchers used publicly available information from many sources, including profiles on social networks, to narrow their search for two pieces of data crucial to identifying people — birthdates and city or state of birth.

Read article...

Atheist group offers to hold gay friendly prom

2010-03-16T22:19:00.000-04:00

Atheist group offers to hold gay friendly prom

The Itawamba County Agricultural High School in Mississippi in which McMillen attends, decided that it was better to cancel the entire prom for everyone rather than allow Constance to bring her girlfriend to the dance.
The school district however stated that they hoped that private citizens in the community would organize a dance. A private dance would be legally allowed to invite or in this case not invite who ever they choose. Presumably the school seemed to think that a Church or other religious organization would hold a dance which would exclude Constance and her girlfriend.
What they probably did not expect was that The American Humanist Association (AHA) would be the private group who would step in to organize the dance. Thanks to a $20,000 donation, the AHA is making preparations for an LGBT-inclusive dance. No discrimination, everyone is allowed to have fun.

Read article...

Humanists Prepare to Hold LGBT-Inclusive Prom in Mississippi

2010-03-16T22:17:00.000-04:00

Humanists Prepare to Hold LGBT-Inclusive Prom in Mississippi:

(Washington, DC, March 12, 2010) The American Humanist Association (AHA) stepped forward today and offered to plan and fund a prom for the Itawamba County Agricultural High School in Mississippi. The Itawamba County School District made headlines earlier this week by cancelling their prom rather than letting a lesbian student, Constance McMillen, bring her girlfriend as her date.

Lesbian Sgt. Discharged After Police Tell Military - NYTimes.com

2010-03-16T13:21:00.000-04:00

h/t Karen S.

Lesbian Sgt. Discharged After Police Tell Military - NYTimes.com

Jene Newsome played by the rules as an Air Force sergeant: She never told anyone in the military she was a lesbian. The 28-year-old's honorable discharge under the ''don't ask, don't tell'' policy came only after police officers in Rapid City, S.D., saw an Iowa marriage certificate in her home and told the nearby Ellsworth Air Force Base.
Newsome and the American Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint against the western South Dakota police department, claiming the officers violated her privacy when they informed the military about her sexual orientation. The case also highlights concerns over the ability of third parties to ''out'' service members, especially as the Pentagon has started reviewing the 1993 ''don't ask, don't tell'' law.
''I played by 'don't ask, don't tell,''' Newsome told The Associated Press by telephone.

Read article...

LGBTQ folks: how to fill out your census form accurately

2010-03-16T12:35:00.002-04:00

Our Families Count � About the Form

Questions include:

What gender do I check if I'm transgender?
What do I check off if I'm in a same-gender relationship?
Should I identify as head of household if I'm a person of color and my partner is white?
Is the government going to us this against me?

From the article:

The Census form asks you to list the person who owns or rents the house as “Person 1” and then indicate how everyone in the household is related to “Person 1”. In order to be counted as a same-sex couple, one of the partners must be listed as “Person 1”. Same-sex couples who have been legally married or consider themselves to be spouses should identify the other person as a “husband or wife”. Those terms fit some – but certainly not all – LGBT households.

Other same-sex couples may be more comfortable using the term “unmarried partner”. In general, this term is designed to capture couples who are in a “close personal relationship” and are not legally married or do not think of themselves as spouses. Census forms do not provide an option yet to explicitly designate a couple as united by civil union or a public domestic partner registry.
...Census reports some statistics based on the race/ethnicity of the “household”. In these cases, they categorize households by the race/ethnicity of Person 1 (head of household). Given that people of color are often under counted, LGBT people of color in bi-racial relationships should consider identifying as the head of household.

Read the article...

The Associated Press: Stubborn storm darkens, floods much of Northeast

2010-03-15T22:47:00.001-04:00

The Associated Press: Stubborn storm darkens, floods much of Northeast:

Stubborn storm darkens, floods much of Northeast

By DAVID PORTER (AP) – 3 hours ago

BOUND BROOK, N.J. — Torrential rains and high winds pounded the Northeast for a third day Monday, taking a heavy toll on people and property in a region that only recently restored power or finished digging out from the last of several major winter storms.

The rain and accompanying wind have toppled trees, flooded roads and forced hundreds of people to evacuate their homes. At least nine people have died in storm-related accidents, and nearly a half-million people lost power at the peak of the storm in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.

Backyard Bunnies Are the New Urban Chickens - GOOD Blog - GOOD

2010-03-15T15:52:00.000-04:00

Backyard Bunnies Are the New Urban Chickens - GOOD Blog - GOOD

By now we all know that eating a lot of meat—especially factory-farmed meat—isn’t very good for the planet. Fortunately for meat eaters, some meats are more sustainable than others. And as it turns out, rabbit is one of the healthiest, leanest, and most environmentally friendly meats you can eat.

There are many reasons for this. Mark Pasternak of the famed Devil’s Gulch Ranch explains, “The biggest reason that rabbits are a sustainable meat choice is that they eat forage, which is not useful for humans. This means that rabbits don’t compete with us for food calories." Rabbits are also, as Meatpaper editor and co-founder Sasha Wizansky points out, an ideal choice for urban farmers. Rabbits are small and can easily be raised and butchered by the DIY homesteader. They are easy to fit in a small backyard, and are happy to help you compost your leftover food. “You can feed a rabbit on your kitchen scraps,” says Wizansky, and then use their waste as fertilizer. (Pasternak advises against feeding them too much fruit, however.)

... The meat is also good for you. According to Pasternak, “rabbits are a healthier meat. The quality of their protein is very good, they are high in good fats, and because they are a pseudo-ruminant they have higher levels of CLAs [Conjugated Linoleic Acid] which are high in the Omega-3 fats that you find in grass fed-beef and lamb.”

Sara Hurwitz’s ‘Rabba’ Title Sparks Orthodox Jewish Condemnation | Sexuality & Gender | ReligionDispatches

2010-03-12T14:56:00.000-05:00

h/t Jo Ann.

Sara Hurwitz’s ‘Rabba’ Title Sparks Orthodox Jewish Condemnation | Sexuality & Gender | ReligionDispatches

Because women aren’t permitted to be rabbis in the Orthodox Jewish tradition, Sara Hurwitz was given the made-up title Mahara”t upon her ordination. A little while later, after she was quietly given the title rabba, the Orthodox Jewish world responded with condemnations.
...In early March, just six weeks after Sara Hurwitz was granted the title of “rabba”—a feminized version of “rabbi”—that title is in jeopardy. Hurwitz, an Orthodox Jew and one of three leaders of an Orthodox congregation in Riverdale, was ordained last year by Rabbi Avi Weiss. At the time the Jewish world took note, though it wasn’t until she was given the titular equivalent of rabbi that the controversy really began.
...her mentor, Rabbi Avi Weiss, announced early this year that henceforth Hurwitz would be known as Rabba (It’s actually the term most Israeli women rabbis use for themselves, though it’s largely unknown outside of Israel.).

Read the article...

Women's National Book Association Nominates Big Blue Marble for award!

2010-03-11T22:26:00.001-05:00

Big Blue Marble nominated for award!!

WNBA Announces Bookseller Award Nominees

The Women’s National Book Association is proud to announce the nominees for the 2010 WNBA Pannell Award. Established in 1981 to honor Lucile Micheels Pannell, a model book woman and children’s bookseller, the Pannell Award recognizes retail bookstores that excel at inspiring the interest of young people in books and reading. WNBA will present this year’s award to two bookstores—one general and one children’s specialty store—at BookExpoAmerica in New York.

Each recipient will receive a check for $1,000 and a framed piece of original art by a children’s book illustrator. In addition to the WNBA, the award is sponsored by Penguin Young Readers Group, a leading publisher of books for young people. This year’s nominees represent a wide range of stores from all over the country:

Big Blue Marble Bookstore –Philadelphia, PA
Blue Willow Bookshop – Houston, TX
Bookshelf at Hooligan Rocks – Truckee, CA
Books, Inc. – San Francisco, CA
Green Toad Bookstore – Oneonta, NY
Hicklebee’s – Willow Glen, CA
Ladels Children’s Book Boutique—Detroit, MI
Literary Life Bookstore – Grand Rapids, MI
Little Shop of Stories – Decatur, GA
Parkplace Books – Kirkland, WA
Park Road Books – Charlotte, NC
The Bookworm of Edwards – Edwards, CO
Third Place Books – Lake Forest Park, WA

A jury of five book industry professionals will select the award winners based on the store’s demonstration of creativity, responsiveness to community needs, passion and a genuine understanding of making the connection between books and young people. Submissions can be electronic or hard copy sent by mail.

No consensus in definitions of 'had sex,' study finds

2010-03-11T19:12:00.000-05:00

No consensus in definitions of 'had sex,' study finds

Is oral sex considered sex? It wasn't to around 30 percent of the study participants. How about anal sex? For around 20 percent of the participants, no. A surprising number of older men did not consider penile-vaginal intercourse to be sex. More than idle gossip, the answers to questions about sex can inform -- or misinform -- research, medical advice and health education efforts...
Hill said it is common for a doctor, when seeing a patient with symptoms of sexually transmitted infections, to ask how many sexual partners the patient has or has had. The number will differ according to the patients' definitions of sex.

Read the article...

Emore: Ghosts of racism still haunt us - Opinion Extra - TheState.com

2010-03-11T13:27:00.000-05:00

Emore: Ghosts of racism still haunt us - Opinion Extra - TheState.com

This is the lesson I learned after moving to South Carolina: It was time for whites like me to yield the floor to those blacks I wanted to help. They didn't always need my help, after all. The Ben Chavises and Golden Frinkses of this world blazed new paths for the younger ones who came behind them.
But I feel the bitter aftertaste still lingering here where the Confederate flag has flown since integration. We live with the sad legacy of having avoided change for so long - people who feel defeated and tired, whose anger has simmered down into grudging daily half-participation in our still-flawed, still-racist society; young adults who don't remember that their grandmothers and great-grandfathers were not allowed to vote and don't bother to do so themselves; and growing ranks of disenfranchised youth who channel both their anger and their ennui into gang activity.
"Blood Done Sign My Name" reminded me of a time when hope drew us to our feet, made us march, made us reach for a hand that looked different from our own. I was never so happy as Nov. 10 when I stood in line for hours to vote, a wave of young black men and women all around me. We grinned at each other foolishly during that long wait, sensing that we were about to make history. I hope some of them will go stand in line to see "Blood Done Sign My Name."

Read the article...

"Te Quiero" - Benedetti/Favero

2010-03-11T12:41:00.008-05:00

Many years ago, I sang this with an SSAA choir, and loved it. It also came to me at the wedding of F/friends.

This piece recently came up on the UUMN listserv, and Dara provided this video link:

Here is a link to two translations, and the original in Spanish.

http://redwedding.blogspot.com/2004_06_01_archive.html

"te quiero porque tus manos
trabajan por la justicia...
si te quiero es porque sos
mi amor mi cómplice y todo
y en la calle codo a codo
somos mucho más que dos
somos mucho más que dos"

"I love you because your hands
work for justice...
If I love you it's because you are
my love my accomplice and all
and in the street arm in arm
we are much more than two
we are much more than two"

Cheap hot water? Just add sunshine

2010-03-11T11:12:00.000-05:00

Very neat article on easily adding a solar hot water heater to your home.

Cheap hot water? Just add sunshine

As more homeowners are discovering, you don't need a super-hot climate and tens of thousands of dollars to go solar. In many cases, all it takes to offset two-thirds of your hot-water bill is a couple of panels resembling skylights, an 80-gallon water storage tank and some shade-free southern rooftop exposure. Costs range from about $2,000 to $10,000, sums that can be halved thanks to hefty new federal and state incentives. Just last week, California launched a cash-rebate program that will average $1,500 for residents to install solar water heaters at home.

When most people think of solar energy, they imagine using it to generate electricity, and that's where a lot of buzz and venture-capital investment dollars currently go. But in the average home, harnessing the sun's free energy for daily hot-water needs can be a more practical and affordable bet. Water heating is the third-largest energy expense in most households, after space heating and air conditioning, according to the Energy Department. This year, Hawaii began mandating solar water heaters in most new homes, and cold-weather locales such as New York and Colorado are among the state leaders in installations.

Read the article...

Great civilizations aren't ruled by guns :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Jesse Jackson

2010-03-09T16:11:00.000-05:00

h/t David A.

Great civilizations aren't ruled by guns :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Jesse Jackson

We undervalue the power of nonviolence. In fact, the whole measure of civilization, to some essential degree, is premised on civil order.

Ironically, the positive changes that have transformed the world have largely come from nonviolence. World War I led only to the next global war. World War II led to the armed camps of the Cold War.

But the suffragists did not need guns to win women's right to vote. Dr. King did not need guns to bring down the Cotton Curtain. Gandhi did not need guns to free India. Lech Walesa did not need guns to lift up Solidarity in Poland. Vaclav Havel did not need guns for Czechoslovakia's Velvet Revolution. Chile did not need guns to bring Pinochet to justice.

When the Berlin Wall came down, the protesters did not wave their AK-47s; they sang "We Shall Overcome."
...Whatever a divided Supreme Court rules, at the end of the day, we will decide. It is time to think again about guns and about nonviolence.

Remembering Vashti’s Victory: McCollum Decision Is Landmark Of Liberty � The Wall of Separation

2010-03-09T10:59:00.000-05:00

h/t Holli.

Remembering Vashti’s Victory: McCollum Decision Is Landmark Of Liberty � The Wall of Separation

It seems that the right cries “judicial activism” any time the high court renders a decision that maintains the separation of church and state regardless of legal precedent or the clear mandates of the Constitution. In 1963, the Religious Right cried activism when the Supreme Court held school-sponsored Bible reading in the public schools to be unconstitutional. Madalyn Murray O’Hair, an atheist and one of the plaintiffs, became “America’s most hated woman,” according to a 1964 edition of Life Magazine.

Even after her tragic death, agents of the right continued to blame O’Hair for removing prayer and religion from the public schools. But how short their memory; McCollum was decided fifteen years earlier. Decade after decade, the court has held that the public schools are no place for government-sanctioned religious indoctrination. McCollum set an enduring precedent.

Today, as we commemorate the 62nd anniversary of the McCollum decision, the world also celebrates International Women’s Day by recognizing the achievements of women in all spheres of public life. So, we trumpet Vashti McCollum for her bravery and dedication to the Constitution, the public schools and true religious liberty.

Avant Game: Super Better - or how to turn recovery into a multi-player experience

2010-03-09T10:52:00.000-05:00

What a great post. h/t Oliver Danni.

Avant Game: Super Better - or how to turn recovery into a multi-player experience

I’m either going to kill myself, or I’m going to turn this into a game. After the four most miserable weeks of my life, those seemed like the only two options left...

My doctor had told me that it was normal to feel anxious or depressed after a concussion. But she also said that anxiety and depression exacerbate concussion symptoms and make it much harder for the brain to heal itself. The more depressed or anxious you get, the more concussed you feel, and the longer recovery takes. Of course, the worse the symptoms are and the longer they last, the more likely you are to be anxious or depressed. In other words, it’s a vicious cycle. And the only way to get better, faster, is to interrupt the cycle.

I knew I was trapped in that cycle. And the only thing I could think of that could possibly make me optimistic enough to break it was a game....

From various medical journals and reports, I pieced together what experts agree are the three most important strategies for getting better and coping more effectively – not only from concussions, but any injury or chronic illness.

First: Stay optimistic, set goals, and focus on any positive progress you make. Second: Get support from friends and family. You can’t do it alone. And third: Learn to read your symptoms like a ‘temperature gauge’. How you feel tells you when to do more, do less, or take breaks, so you can gradually work your way up to more demanding activity.[i]

Of course, it immediately occurred to me that these three strategies sound exactly like what you do when you’re playing a good multi-player game...

Still Brave | The Feminist Press

2010-03-09T10:17:00.000-05:00

Still Brave | The Feminist Press

Still Brave
The Evolution of Black Women's Studies

Edited by Stanlie M. James, Frances Smith Foster & Beverly Guy-Sheftall

Read the Introduction

Cheryl Clarke, Angela Davis, bell hooks, June Jordan, Audre Lorde, and Alice Walker—from the pioneers of black women’s studies comes Still Brave, the definitive collection of race and gender writings today. Including Alice Walker’s groundbreaking elucidation of the term “womanist,” discussions of women’s rights as human rights, and a piece on the Obama factor, the collection speaks to the ways that feminism has evolved and how black women have confronted racism within it.

HowStuffWorks "How Flavor Tripping Works"

2010-03-09T09:53:00.000-05:00

h/t Joe D.

HowStuffWorks "How Flavor Tripping Works": "No drugs were involved in the scenario above, even though the partygoers' perceptions were altered. The only change was their sense of taste, as they were engaged in a phenomenon known as flavor tripping. Flavor tripping occurs when you consume a berry known as miracle fruit. The berry coats your tongue in such a way that foods taste differently. Specifically, sour foods taste sweet. A lemon suddenly tastes like lemonade. Cheese tastes like frosting, and vinegar tastes like apple juice."

Read more: http://health.howstuffworks.com/flavor-tripping.htm

Palin Crossed Border For Canadian Health Care

2010-03-09T09:51:00.000-05:00

h/t Marshall.

Palin Crossed Border For Canadian Health Care: "Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin -- who has gone to great lengths to hype the supposed dangers of a big government takeover of American health care -- admitted over the weekend that she used to get her treatment in Canada's single-payer system."

Read the article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/08/palin-crossed-border-for_n_490080.html

The Woman Behind 'My Sharona' : NPR

2010-03-07T18:25:00.000-05:00

This is actually a very sweet, ordinary, human story. Hooray.

The Woman Behind 'My Sharona' : NPR:

The Knack's lead singer Doug Fieger wrote the song for the then-teenager who would become his girlfriend, Sharona Alperin. Fieger died last month after a battle with lung cancer. Alperin, who stayed friends with him, was one of the people at his side during those last days.

Corrie witnesses testify next week

2010-03-06T00:22:00.000-05:00

Corrie witnesses testify next week:

The hearing of witnesses in the civil tort filed by the family of Rachel Corrie – a member of the pro-Palestinian International Solidarity Movement (ISM) who was crushed to death by an IDF bulldozer in 2003 – is due to begin next week in the Haifa District Court.

The plaintiffs – Corrie’s father, Craig; her mother, Cynthia; her brother, Christopher; and her sister Sarah Simpson – are suing the state for $324,424 in damages in what they charge was her wrongful death, caused by the use of “deliberate and utterly unreasonable force by the bulldozer driver” who ran over her over.

Read article...

Rachel Corrie's family bring civil suit over human shield's death in Gaza | World news | The Guardian

2010-03-06T00:18:00.001-05:00

Rachel Corrie's family bring civil suit over human shield's death in Gaza | World news | The Guardian

The family of the American activist Rachel Corrie, who was killed by an Israeli army bulldozer in Gaza seven years ago, is to bring a civil suit over her death against the Israeli defence ministry.
The case, which begins on 10 March in Haifa, northern Israel, is seen by her parents as an opportunity to put on public record the events that led to their daughter's death in March 2003. Four key witnesses – three Britons and an American – who were at the scene in Rafah when Corrie was killed will give evidence, according the family lawyer, Hussein Abu Hussein...
Other foreigners killed by Israeli forces
Iain Hook, 54, a British UN official, was shot dead by an Israeli army sniper in Jenin in November 2002. A British inquest found he had been unlawfully killed. The Israeli government paid an undisclosed sum in compensation to Hook's family.
Tom Hurndall, a 22-year-old British photography student, was shot in the head in Rafah, Gaza, in April 2003 while helping to pull Palestinian children to safety. In August 2005 an Israeli soldier was sentenced to eight years for manslaughter.
James Miller, 34, a British cameraman, was shot dead in Gaza in May 2003. He was leaving the home of a Palestinian family in Rafah refugee camp at night, waving a white flag. An inquest in Britain found Miller had been murdered. Last year Israel paid about £1.5m in damages to Miller's family.

Read the article...

9NEWS.com | Denver | Colorado's Online News Leader | Gay couple's child denied re-enrollment at Catholic school

2010-03-05T16:26:00.000-05:00

9NEWS.com | Denver | Colorado's Online News Leader | Gay couple's child denied re-enrollment at Catholic school:

According to the Archdiocese, parents who enroll their kids at Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic School are expected to follow the Catholic Church's beliefs.

'No person shall be admitted as a student in any Catholic school unless that person and his/her parent(s) subscribe to the school's philosophy and agree to abide by the educational policies and regulations of the school and Archdiocese,' the statement said.

So this preschooler is getting kicked out b/c... Zir parents use birth control? Advocate for the death penalty? Had pre-marital sex? Had an abortion??

Nope: they're lesbians.

Argh!!

Read the whole article here.

Black Male Privilege? : NPR

2010-03-05T16:07:00.000-05:00

Black Male Privilege? : NPR:

a fancy way of saying, we are absolutely used to talking about African-American men in crisis. And we can talk about this crisis so much that we miss the ways in which black men are oppressed and can also serve as oppressors

Shakesville: Today in Rape Culture

2010-03-05T16:03:00.000-05:00

h/t Courtney.

Shakesville: Today in Rape Culture

Where is his advice for men who hurt women? Nowhere to be found, naturally, because Jenkins is just another passive recipient of rape culture narratives who lazily accepts that there will always be monsters in the world, oh well whaddaya gonna do?, and thus regards the only solution as exclusively tasking victims with rape prevention...

If Jenkins wants to make a serious contribution to a conversation about rape prevention, he could try writing something that answers this question: Why is it always more important to lecture women on what they should be doing to avoid rape than to talk to men about the fact that they do not have the right to women's bodies without express consent?

...The only thing that the victim of every rapist shares in common is the bad fucking luck of being in the presence of a rapist.

Rapists are determined to rape. And if Chelsea King hadn't crossed John Albert Gardner's path, someone else would have.

Victim-blaming is based on the damnably fucked-up notion that people (and women in particular) allow themselves to be victimized by virtue of carelessness or stupidity, and they need to be warned and educated and lectured and hectored and cajoled and shamed into never being victims (again).

No.

No one has ever been a victim of sexual violence without someone determined to do it to them.

Enough victim blaming. Enough.

News: Different Paths to Full Professor - Inside Higher Ed

2010-03-05T15:54:00.000-05:00

h/t Kendra.

News: Different Paths to Full Professor - Inside Higher Ed

...Not only does Ohio State want to end the all-out dominance of research considerations in reviews for full professor, but the university wants to explore options where some academics might earn promotions based largely on research (and have their subsequent careers reshaped with that focus) while others might earn promotions based largely on teaching (and similarly have career expectations adjusted). Both could earn the title of full professor.
Further, the university wants to pay attention to questions of impact -- for both teaching and research. The concept in play would end the myth that candidates for full professor (and maybe, someday, candidates for tenure) should be great in everything. Why? Because most professors aren't great at everything.
Using a religious analogy in an interview, Gee said that there should be "multiple ways to salvation." Associate professors should be able to find "their real callings" and to focus on them, not fearing that following those passions will doom their chances of promotion for deviating from an equal balance between research, teaching and service. Ohio State's provost, Joseph A. Alutto, has started working with faculty members on redefining promotion guidelines, and faculty leaders are backing the effort.

It may not be racist, but it's a question I'm tired of hearing | Ariane Sherine | Comment is free | The Guardian

2010-03-05T11:29:00.000-05:00

Oh, this is excellent. h/t Ann S.

It may not be racist, but it's a question I'm tired of hearing | Ariane Sherine | Comment is free | The Guardian:

Last weekend, I had The Conversation for the 3,897th time – and this time, it took place in central London just two roads away from the hospital where I was born. As usual, it went like this... [snip]
At this point, I have to explain that it's hard to go back to somewhere you have never been. I've lived in London since I was a zygote, have a London accent and don't speak any languages except English – yet just because I'm cashew-coloured, I'm often questioned about my heritage. Over the last five years, I've been asked: "What's your caste?" (I haven't broken any bones); "Do you go to temple?" (only on my way to Embankment); and "Do you need special food?" (as though the answer's going to be: "Yes, St Peter isn't going to let me in if I've munched on a bit of dead pig/cow/giraffe").

Can hand sanitizers like Purell really stop people from getting the flu? - By Darshak Sanghavi - Slate Magazine

2010-03-03T15:30:00.000-05:00

Well, dang. Who knew? And here I thought the research *supported* using hand sanitizer and more frequent handwashing.

Can hand sanitizers like Purell really stop people from getting the flu? - By Darshak Sanghavi - Slate Magazine

Yet the data tell a less compelling story about sanitizers like Purell. In 2005, Boston-based doctors published the very first clinical trial of alcohol-based hand sanitizers in homes and enrolled about 300 families with young children in day care. For five months, half the families got free hand sanitizer and a "vigorous hand-hygiene" curriculum. But the spread of respiratory infections in homes didn't budge, a result that "somewhat surprised" the researchers. A Columbia University study also found no reduction in common infections among inner-city families given free antibacterial hand soap, detergent, and cleaning supplies. The same year, University of Michigan epidemiologist Allison Aiello summarized data on hand hygiene for the FDA and pointed out that three out of four studies showed that alcohol-based hand sanitizers didn't prevent respiratory infections. Then, in 2008, the Boston group repeated the study—this time in elementary schools—and threw in free Clorox disinfecting wipes for classrooms. Again, the rate of respiratory infections remained unchanged, though the rate of gastrointestinal infections, which are less common than respiratory infections, did fall slightly. Finally, last October, a report ordered by the Public Health Agency of Canada concluded that there is no good evidence that vigorous hand hygiene practices prevent flu transmission.
...So you can believe all the germ hype and end up like the obsessive-compulsive billionaire Howard Hughes. Or you can follow the data and get a flu shot, wash your hands sensibly after using the bathroom and around meals, and stop wasting money on hand sanitizers.

Plainly Pagan: Unqualified Hireling Ministers

2010-03-03T12:06:00.000-05:00

Fascinating. I'm really curious about what my Pagan friends -- especially folks at Cherry Hill -- think of what Hystery has to say. And some about what my Quaker friends think of what Hystery has to say. - sm

Plainly Pagan: Unqualified Hireling Ministers

I'm still floored whenever I hear about anyone in the paid ministry who has not completed a graduate education. How does that work, exactly? With a graduate degree, one can justify asking for a salary. A qualified minister has undergone coursework in topics such as biblical scholarship, theology, hymnity, and pastoral counseling. Their parishioners can expect a level of expertise, discipline, and access to information that will enhance the well-being of the community. But what if they just show up for work filled with the Spirit of the Lord but pretty light on credentials? What gives them the right to dispense religious teaching any more than the next person? Because they want to? Because they have a special interest? I'd like to teach anthropology to grad students. I've taken two introductory classes in community college. That should qualify me, right? My husband would like to fly a helicopter. He does own a model that actually flies. Maybe that's enough. I say we let him wing it. My father used to assist in autopsies. I say he should give surgery a shot.

Sure, some people are called to the ministry. Fine. So minister. But when you get paid to do that work, you set yourself up as one with authority to whom people in really serious trouble will turn. People respect that authority and they can be hurt by that authority. Badly hurt. I've seen it happen far too many times. This is why responsible people insist upon certain protocols in determining which individuals may provide which services and under what circumstances. Professional clergy must be responsible to a set of standards to which they are held not only by their congregations but also by a governing body outside the congregation.

I see the role of professional clergy as educators, advisors, and administrators. Their usefulness rests in their training and they should be trained to execute the tasks of research, counsel, and business. Their spiritual authority should not exceed that of any other member of the congregation. We should not hire clergy primarily because of their enthusiasm for their faith any more than we should hire college presidents for their enthusiasm for academics. How would that look, anyway?

Parliament votes to recognise religious same-sex partnerships | Ekklesia

2010-03-03T11:43:00.000-05:00

Hooray! Friends in Edinburgh were talking about and working on this when we were there in late January. h/t Brad L.

Parliament votes to recognise religious same-sex partnerships | Ekklesia

In a dramatic development, the House of Lords has voted to allow the use of religious premises and religious language in same-sex partnerships...
The current law on same-sex civil partnerships prohibits religious elements. Campaigners point out that this means that whereas a mixed-sex couple can choose between a civil or religious wedding, a same-sex couple are denied this choice.

Industrial Strength Stormwater Fix — Sightline Daily - Northwest News that Matters

2010-03-03T11:25:00.001-05:00

h/t Laura T: "A project I'm working on for school made the news. Well, the environmental news anyway. The article is about an "Industrial Strength" natural drainage project in Georgetown, with a call for an easier process for property owners. Also, the photos in the article are mine. W00t!"

Industrial Strength Stormwater Fix — Sightline Daily - Northwest News that Matters:

While Markey was trying to resolve its stormwater troubles, a community group comprised of nearby businesses, residents, local government employees, and others was working to improve the area through an effort called the Georgetown Riverview Restoration Project.The group teamed up with LeCoque to create a plan that was more environmentally friendly and cheaper than traditional stormwater infrastructure. They proposed what was essentially a large rain garden in the heart of one of Seattle’s grittiest industrial zones.

The Associated Press: In DC, blacks were crucial to gay marriage debate

2010-03-02T22:44:00.000-05:00

The Associated Press: In DC, blacks were crucial to gay marriage debate:

'In D.C., outreach to African-Americans wasn't part of the campaign. It was the campaign,' said Michael Crawford, the leader of a pro-same-sex union group, D.C. For Marriage.

Crawford, who is black, said other residents weren't ignored, but his group and others weighed the city's racial makeup in planning their message. That made the debate here different than in other places that have considered gay marriage — places like California, where about 7 percent of residents are black, or Maine, where 1 percent are. Voters in both states struck down gay marriage laws.

Living together leads to marriage for most - Behavior- msnbc.com

2010-03-02T22:13:00.000-05:00

Living together leads to marriage for most - Behavior- msnbc.com

According to a new report being issued today by the government’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention... most Americans share Lopes’ experience of moving in with a lover before marriage, and most couples — 51 percent according to the CDC data — who do move in together wind up married within three years, just like Lopes. About two-thirds of cohabiters get married within five years.
The report, "Marriage and Cohabitation in the United States," shows that more people than ever are living together without being married. And, it also shows that marriage itself is doing just fine, thanks. Contrary to past dogma, the study also shows that there is no longer a meaningful divorce gap between those who live together first and those who didn’t.

...Most importantly though, the data show that those who live together have just as good a chance of staying married as those who do not live together first... Cohabitation has become such a standard part of the eventual transition to marriage, he said, that the old argument that cohabitation is risky for a future marriage “doesn’t hold water any more.”

...By referring to divorce as a failed marriage, or a cohabiting relationship as a “failure” if there’s a breakup, we’re creating potentially misleading perceptions.
“Before I met my current husband, I had a fiancé I lived with,” recalled Maire. “I learned a lot about him by living with him.” The couple broke up, but she considers the relationship a resounding success since the whole point of living together was to avoid what she called “nasty surprises” once married.
Similarly, marriages full of conflict have repeatedly been shown to be harmful for children. So while growing up in a happy two-parent home is best, a divorce can be a success, too, if it saves a child from constant turmoil.

Friends of Gaile

2010-03-02T11:54:00.000-05:00

Friends of Gaile

Gaile Owens is ... A mother. A grandmother. A friend.
Creating a meaningful life for herself and others. A valued adviser.
A model prisoner.

Gaile is a battered woman on death row.
And she needs our support.

Click here to learn more
Click here to sign the petition

MSN Careers - What Not to Wear to Work: 15 Things - Career Advice Article

2010-03-01T13:00:00.000-05:00

I've had this conversation myself... *sigh*

MSN Careers - What Not to Wear to Work: 15 Things - Career Advice Article

Young and ambitious, Olga showed up for her first day of work at a transportation company wearing a low-cut top, fishnet stockings and stiletto heels so high she could take only mincing steps. Olga was a head-turner all right -- but for the wrong reasons. After watching Olga get ogled for three days, her new boss asked Beth, a young HR manager, to speak to her about her wardrobe.
"I tried to impress upon her the image of trust and credibility the firm was trying to project," Beth explained earnestly. "I told her that while her outfits were great for clubbing, they were sending the wrong signals here at work." Olga's response shocked her. "She unabashedly told me that she couldn't help it if people felt threatened or turned on by her. She was who she was and those people bothered by it were probably older, fatter and jealous."

The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia

2010-02-28T14:05:00.000-05:00

h/t Tom Z. This is a fabulous newspaper. I wish it existed in real life. And the ads are fabulous, too. - sm

The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia

Sierra Leone Diamond Miner Devastated By News Of Broken-Off Engagement | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

2010-02-27T12:58:00.000-05:00

h/t Deb O. This is amazing.

Sierra Leone Diamond Miner Devastated By News Of Broken-Off Engagement | The Onion - America's Finest News Source:

KENEMA, SIERRA LEONE—Standing waist-deep in one of the many gravel pits that surround the city of Kenema, and struggling to fight off the harsh African sun, local diamond miner Muwomba D'akari was deeply saddened Monday to learn of Linda Hines and David Meyer's recently canceled wedding engagement.

Lambda Legal: Why Include the T?

2010-02-25T17:35:00.000-05:00

Excellent article. h/t Denise B-K.

Lambda Legal: Why Include the T?

Shannon Minter wrote, "The question that calls for an explanation is not whether transgender people can justify their claims to gay rights, but rather how did a movement launched by bull daggers, drag queens, and transsexuals in 1969 end up viewing transgender people as outsiders less than thirty years later?"...

When a 10-year-old is teased with anti-gay slurs on a playground, is it because of who he chooses to love, or rather, because of how he expresses his gender?...

The Ignorant Righteous v. The Lower Merion School District: The Rush to Judgment | CommonDreams.org

2010-02-25T13:23:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm glad I'm not the only one who finds this lawsuit, or its news coverage, disturbing. At least 500 other people in Lower Merion Township (where I used to live) do, too.

h/t David A.

The Ignorant Righteous v. The Lower Merion School District: The Rush to Judgment | CommonDreams.org

In the case as it is described in the complaint, we are presented with vague allegations leaving much to inference. Nowhere does it state basic facts like who took the alleged photo, what it showed or where the school district saw it, or whether the feature was activated because the computer was reported lost or whether there was a deliberate attempt to spy on a student in legal possession of a computer. Rather it omits these vital facts with bearing on the merits of the case, and jumps to inferring cyber spying with a view toward pedophilia...

Here is something I understand: all students in the school district were aware of the existence of the webcam feature on their computers as well as the district's laptop recovery capability; the only oversight that is indisputable is that the district did not require written consent specific to this aspect of the program. Here's another: There were eighteen computers recovered after 42 separate instances of activating the recovery software in a district with more than 2000 computers out on loan. And a third: there were no official complaints made to the district about the existence of this software, or about the methods used to recover those lost computers, until one student went, without any discussion, from being asked, as far back as November 11, 2009, about his possible involvement in activities prohibited by the school -- after a snapshot was allegedly taken of him on a laptop that, it is alleged, had been reported missing -- to a class action lawsuit in February.

Queers United: The Cisgender Privilege Checklist

2010-02-25T12:28:00.000-05:00

h/t Marla M.

Queers United: The Cisgender Privilege Checklist:

'There appears to be little in the way of a comprehensive cisgender (non transgender) privilege list. These lists are generally written in the first person relative to having the privilege. Number #1 speaks to both heterosexual and cisgender privilege. The remainder of the list focuses on cisgender privilege.'

Please read and re-post this list to make people aware of the hardships often faced by transgender individuals that cisgender people take for granted on a daily basis.

(Read more...)

The Christian Century

2010-02-25T12:26:00.000-05:00

via numerous F/friends... - sm

The Christian Century:

The listening place
by Gordon Atkinson

An 18th-century painting of a Quaker meeting hangs in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. In it a figure, perhaps George Fox himself, stands speaking with such passion that his hand is clutching his breast. Around him are gathered members of the Society of Friends. A woman sits with her chin in her hand. A man's finger is laid alongside his cheek. Another man's hands are atop his cane with his chin resting on them. These people are listening with all their hearts, souls and minds. Even their bodies are bent to the task of listening. The painting captures something wonderful that I have found at Quaker meetings.

These people know how to listen.

Last summer my wife and I attended our first Quaker meeting.

(Read more...)

The little-told story of how the U.S. government poisoned alcohol during Prohibition. - By Deborah Blum - Slate Magazine

2010-02-22T16:41:00.000-05:00

The little-told story of how the U.S. government poisoned alcohol during Prohibition. - By Deborah Blum - Slate Magazine: "The Chemist's WarThe little-told story of how the U.S. government poisoned alcohol during Prohibition with deadly consequences."

Vitamin D deficiency / hypovitaminosis D

2010-02-18T10:19:00.003-05:00

Late last fall or early this winter, I started to do a bit of a literature search about conditions and symptoms associated with low levels of serum vitamin D.

My chain of thought was prompted by the neurological problems some folks I knew were having this fall, and by conversations I had had with an MS neuro in Ann Arbor a couple of years ago about new research in MS and vit D deficiency in MS patients.

It was then fueled by conversations with a friend in Seattle whose husband had been very ill when his vitamin D was very low; living for the last four years in two of the cities in the US that are cloudiest in fall and winter (although Seattle's one of the sunniest during the summer); signs in my PCP's office in Princeton about how to avoid getting the 'flu that included getting vaccinated and getting your vit D checked; and bits of pieces of things I'd seen over time.

What I found indicated correlations between low vit D and inflammatory diseases, depression, neurological issues, and chronic pain. Hmmm.

I now know people whose serum vit D levels have been as low as 17-22 (ng/ml). While there's not a good consensus on normal range, the lower limits I've seen vary from 20 to 50. Note that 17 does not fall within anyone's definition of normal range.

Here's what I've found in a more thorough review of the information available on the web about vitamin D.

Vitamin D deficiency has long been known to cause rickets and osteopenia (low bone density).

Vitamin D deficiency has been shown to be connected with:

MS
other neurological and autoimmune diseases and syndromes
generalized inflammatory response
asthma
depression (dysthymia, major depressive disorder, and SAD or seasonal affective disorder)
chronic pain
heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular disease
osteoporosis
headache
rheumatological diseases (including arthritis)
calcium deficiency
tuberculosis
type I diabetes
insulin resistance
allergic diseases/increased allergic response (in individuals and population-wide)
some cancers (especially breast, colorectal, prostate)
chronic fatigue and related diseases and disorders
periodontal disease
parathyroid issues
Crohn's disease
persistent non-specific musculoskeletal pain
muscle weakness and muscle aches
psoriasis
increased mortality

It's important to note that there's been no good research yet that's determined cause and effect. Vitamin D deficiency may be associated with all these things, or even have a high correlation with all these things, but it's not known if the vit D deficiency is a cause, an effect, or something else entirely. One exception to this seems to be exacerbations in asthma patients, where vit D deficiency seems to be recognized as a cause.

Sources

"If it's on the internet, it must be true!" Or, "If it's on the internet, it must not be true!"

There's tons of stuff on the web about vit D deficiency; as usual with what one finds on line, some of it is crap, and some of it is very good. Everything I've listed above comes from one or more reputable sites, or at least one peer-reviewed published scientific article in a journal I trust.

http://www.about.com/health/
Mayo Clinic News, http://newsblog.mayoclinic.org/2009/03/20/mayo-clinic-researchers-link-vitamin-d-and-chronic-pain-relief/
Mayo Clinic Proceedings, http://www.mayoclinicproceedings.com/content/78/12/1463.abstract
Mayo Clinic Proceedings, http://www.mayoclinicproceedings.com/content/78/12/1457.full.pdf+html (excellent article)
American Society of Anesthesiologists, http://www.asaabstracts.com/strands/asaabstracts/abstract.htm;jsessionid=42FFC3FE27082E0E918EE721AFCD432F?year=2007&index=3&absnum=1501
Vitamin D Council, http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/vdds.shtml
http://www.webmd.com/

Broadsheet - Salon.com

2010-02-16T19:20:00.000-05:00

Fat people, flying, and accessibility.

Broadsheet - Salon.com:

But that agonizing day of asking my mother to please hang on a little longer... is the first thing I always think of when the debate about whether fat people deserve affordable air travel comes up. You think of some lumbering beast who had the gall to 'steal' an inch of your seat that one time. I think of a dying woman waiting for the last of her babies to say goodbye.

Read more...

Science-Fiction Music: Monsters, Aliens In 'Filk' : NPR

2010-02-09T21:30:00.000-05:00

Science-Fiction Music: Monsters, Aliens In 'Filk' : NPR:

As science fiction spread within music, fans began to share songs with one another, and the movement became known as Filk. It took its name from a 1950s article about these unusual songs, which misspelled 'Folk' as 'Filk.' Bill Sutton is the president of Interfilk, an organization that helps fans and musicians attend Filk conventions. Sutton says otherworldly ideas in popular music, combined with excitement about the space program, made people believe that technology could save everything.

National Weather Service Watch Warning Advisory Summary

2010-02-08T19:40:00.000-05:00

Quote of the day:

National Weather Service Watch Warning Advisory Summary: ".AN EXPLOSIVELY DEVELOPING NOR/EASTER WILL BRING HEAVY SNOW TO MUCH OF OUR AREA STARTING LATE TUESDAY AND TUESDAY EVENING AND PERSISTING THROUGH WEDNESDAY."

The preacher’s fallacy or, no, the Greeks didn’t have a word for it

2010-02-08T10:18:00.000-05:00

Via Marshall M. This is great! (Thoughtful/religion-and-linguistic geeky, and funny to boot.)

The preacher’s fallacy or, no, the Greeks didn’t have a word for it:

One of the biggest warning flags in a sermon comes when the preacher says: “Now, in Greek, the word is … which (literally) means …” Sometimes they know what they’re talking about. More often they are about to pull a fast one.

Constitutionally illiterate - baltimoresun.com

2010-02-05T18:43:00.000-05:00

I think it's a problem when a public servant who is sworn to defend the Constitution has no idea what's in the Constitution and what isn't. (Did you know "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed with the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is from the Constitution? Riiight...)

Constitutionally illiterate - baltimoresun.com:

The value of constitutional literacy and the lack of it are obvious, the nature of it less so. What are the minimum conditions for constitutional literacy? This should be the topic of public conversation and consensus. To that end, here are some preliminary suggestions that distinguish eight levels of constitutional literacy. At each level, one should know:

(Click here to continue)

Snow Advice For The Frantic Mid-Atlantic : NPR

2010-02-05T16:21:00.000-05:00

Hilarious.

Snow Advice For The Frantic Mid-Atlantic : NPR:

Some advice for you folks in the Mid-Atlantic on snowstorms: You can trust me, I live in the Midwest. We get phenomenal amounts of snow pretty regularly… though I could see where you might not know that, because we have to get, like, apocalyptic amounts of ice before anyone on the Weather Channel bothers to point it out. So anyway, here are my rules for a safe, healthy, happy snow experience.

The Search - Back to School, as an Adjunct - NYTimes.com

2010-02-04T21:03:00.000-05:00

I cannot believe the NYT seems to be advocating work as an adjunct. !!

The Search - Back to School, as an Adjunct - NYTimes.com: "IN this time of job insecurity, the question may have occurred to you: Should you consider part-time teaching as a way to improve your finances and expand your career opportunities?"

People who make $250,000 or more a year can afford a tax hike. - By Daniel Gross - Slate Magazine

2010-02-04T18:13:00.000-05:00

People who make $250,000 or more a year can afford a tax hike. - By Daniel Gross - Slate Magazine:

As I argued in an article in August 2008, now reprised and updated, I have two pieces of bad news for the over-$250,000 crowd. First, the reversal of some of the temporary Bush tax cuts is probably inevitable, given the appalling mismanagement of fiscal affairs between 2001 and 2008. (It's rich when Bush-era economic officials, like Edward Lazear, Greg Mankiw, and Keith Hennessey, carp about the fiscal situation.) Second, for those of you making more than $250,000, I regret to inform you yet again: Yes, you are indeed rich—any way you slice it...

But people in Georgetown mansions don't necessarily compare themselves with fellow Washingtonians in Anacostia. Relative income works mostly at the neighborhood level. As we know from the work of Cornell economist Robert Frank, people assess their well-being not so much on how much they make and consume, but on how much they make and consume compared with their neighbors. After all, you have to compete with them for status and for important positional goods such as housing and schools. And here the $250,000-isn't-rich crowd has a point. In a few ZIP codes and neighborhoods, to be sure, brandishing a $250,000 salary is like bringing a knife to a gunfight. There are significant numbers of rich people—including a healthy contingent of filthy rich people—in places like New York City and San Francisco. If you want to live in a neighborhood where starter homes cost $1 million, and you want to send your kids to private schools, and you want to go on great vacations and have a beach house, then $250,000 likely won't cut it. When the investment banker down the street just got a $2 million bonus, the knowledge that you're doing better than 98 percent of your fellow Americans is little solace...
Once again, I await the tidal wave of e-mails, blog posts, and comments from hardworking, self-made people who earn $250,000 a year but don't feel financially secure and don't consider themselves rich, especially compared with the venture capitalist next door. Having spent my entire adult life in and around Washington, Boston, and New York, I feel your pain. I'm eager to listen and empathize. Tell me all about how insanely expensive housing is in any area with good public schools. Tell me about how many seemingly undeserving neighbors make so much more than you do. Tell me about how you want an income tax system that accounts for geographic differences in the cost of living (the Alternative Yuppie Tax?). Just don't tell me you're not rich.

What to do when you forget whether something can be recycled. - By Nina Shen Rastogi - Slate Magazine

2010-02-04T17:59:00.002-05:00

What to do when you forget whether something can be recycled. - By Nina Shen Rastogi - Slate Magazine:

I wonder about this one when I'm sorting kitchen waste: If you don't know whether something is recyclable, what's the best approach? Is it better to put the inscrutable item in the blue recycling bin, or should you just throw it in the trash?

Although it may seem sacrilegious—since being an ardent recycler is the sine qua non of old-school environmentalism—when in doubt, you should throw it out.
...The next time you find yourself hovering indecisively over a set of trash bins, here are some rules of thumb. Plastics marked No. 1 or No. 2 are virtually guaranteed to be accepted, so go ahead and toss them in with your recycling. Newspaper, corrugated cardboard, magazines, and office paper are almost always good to go as well. If your mystery object doesn't fall into one of those categories, trash it.

Bald Eagle Tired Of Everyone Just Assuming It Supports War | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

2010-02-04T17:17:00.000-05:00

Bald Eagle Tired Of Everyone Just Assuming It Supports War | The Onion - America's Finest News Source: "'I'm not a hawk or a dove,' he added. 'I'm an eagle.'"

Op-Ed Columnist - From ‘Oprah’ to Building a Sisterhood in Congo - NYTimes.com

2010-02-04T10:41:00.000-05:00

h/t Elizabeth KR. This is a great story.

Op-Ed Columnist - From ‘Oprah’ to Building a Sisterhood in Congo - NYTimes.com:

Maybe that’s why I gravitate toward Lisa’s story. In a land where so many “responsible” leaders eschew responsibility, Lisa has gone out of her way to assume responsibility and try to make a difference. Along with an unbelievable cast of plucky Congolese survivors such as Generose, she evokes hope.

On this visit to Congo, Lisa is organizing a Run for Congo Women right here in Bukavu, for Feb. 28, with Congolese rape survivors participating. You can sponsor them at www.runforCongowomen.org. And one of those participating in the run, hobbling along on crutches and her one leg, will be Generose.

National Briefing - New England - Massachusetts - Sex Change Tax Benefits - NYTimes.com

2010-02-03T13:42:00.000-05:00

National Briefing - New England - Massachusetts - Sex Change Tax Benefits - NYTimes.com: "The United States Tax Court has ruled that a Massachusetts woman should be allowed to deduct the costs of her sex-change operation in a decision that could have wide-ranging consequences. Rhiannon O’Donnabhain, who was born a man, sued the Internal Revenue Service in 2007. The agency had disallowed a $5,000 deduction for $25,000 in medical expenses associated with the sex-change surgery, saying it was cosmetic and not medically necessary. The tax court said the I.R.S. position was rebutted by medical evidence."

best of craigslist: 10 reasons why gay marriage should be illegal

2010-02-03T11:37:00.000-05:00

h/t Karen S.

best of craigslist: 10 reasons why gay marriage should be illegal:

10 Reasons Why Gay Marriage is Wrong

01) Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.

Read more...

UK Medical Journal Retracts Flawed Vaccine Study - NYTimes.com

2010-02-02T13:06:00.000-05:00

Hooray! At last! (h/t Carrie ES)

UK Medical Journal Retracts Flawed Vaccine Study - NYTimes.com:

LONDON (AP) -- A major British medical journal on Tuesday retracted a flawed study linking the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine to autism and bowel disease.

The retraction by The Lancet comes a day after a competing medical journal, BMJ, issued an embargoed commentary calling for The Lancet to formally retract the study. The commentary was to have been published on Wednesday...

Last week, Britain's General Medical Council ruled that Wakefield had shown a ''callous disregard'' for the children used in his study and acted unethically. Wakefield and the two colleagues who have not renounced the study face being stripped of their right to practice medicine in Britain.

Click here to read the whole article.

Wordisms: Introducing the iCodex

2010-02-01T11:40:00.001-05:00

h/t Johanna R.

Wordisms: Introducing the iCodex:

Today, St. Stephen of Jobs announced the newest creation from the monks at Abbey Apple: the iCodex, which he believes will revolutionize the way people work and play.

Click here for more...

Old-School Learning :: Opinion :: Philadelphia City Paper :: Philadelphia Events, Arts, Restaurants, Music, Movies, Jobs, Classifieds, Blogs

2010-01-30T23:46:00.000-05:00

Old-School Learning :: Opinion :: Philadelphia City Paper :: Philadelphia Events, Arts, Restaurants, Music, Movies, Jobs, Classifieds, Blogs: "In this neighborhood, fear trumps civility. Which is why, five years ago, a couple of academics, a community advocate and real estate developer Jonathan Weiss opened what Weiss calls 'a community center posing as a bookstore.'"

Air Force Builds Worship Space for Wiccans - News

2010-01-30T19:16:00.000-05:00

Air Force Builds Worship Space for Wiccans - News:

(RNS) The U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado will set aside a worship space for followers of 'Earth-centered' religions such as Wicca and Druidism, according to an Air Force news release.

A stone circle atop a hill on the base in Colorado Springs will likely be dedicated in a ceremony March 10, according to the release, and be available to cadets and other service members who live in the area. The base already has worship spaces for Protestants, Catholics, Muslims and Buddhist, the release said.

The Air Force has been accused of allowing evangelical officers to openly proselytize and pressure cadets of other faiths. In 2005, the Air Force issued new guidelines pledging to 'accommodate free exercise of religion and other personal beliefs.'

A 30-Million-Year-Old Virgin's Secret To Success : NPR

2010-01-29T20:30:00.000-05:00

A 30-Million-Year-Old Virgin's Secret To Success : NPR:

If sex is so great, how has the bdelloid rotifer been able to do without it for 30 million years? That's a puzzle scientists at Cornell University think they have an answer to.

But what is a bdelloid rotifer anyhow?

Patient Money - Migraines Force Sufferers to Do Their Homework - NYTimes.com

2010-01-29T18:23:00.000-05:00

Quite a good article on migraines and how to get help for them; even I learned something.

Patient Money - Migraines Force Sufferers to Do Their Homework - NYTimes.com:

If that sounds murky, one thing is not: early intervention is important. If you get a migraine every few months and can cope by taking an over-the-counter med, great — you’ve got the problem somewhat under control. But if recurring pain is not responding to your own efforts, seek expert help.

“Some early data suggests that if you let headache pain go without treatment it can lower your threshold for pain down the line,” Dr. Saper said. In other words, untreated headaches can make you more vulnerable to pain...

Researchers are learning that pain and the medications used to treat pain can potentially change the biology of the brain.
Receiving good treatment can help you function more effectively, and will probably also save you money over the long term. And if you have health insurance, it should cover most of the relevant medical evaluations and treatments.
Here are suggestions for getting help.

Letter of the day: Haiti suffers, and Robertson sees the hand of Satan | StarTribune.com

2010-01-18T00:07:00.000-05:00

Letter of the day: Haiti suffers, and Robertson sees the hand of Satan | StarTribune.com:

Dear Pat Robertson, I know that you know that all press is good press, so I appreciate the shout-out. And you make God look like a big mean bully who kicks people when they are down, so I'm all over that action.

But when you say that Haiti has made a pact with me, it is totally humiliating. I may be evil incarnate, but I'm no welcher. The way you put it, making a deal with me leaves folks desperate and impoverished.

Sure, in the afterlife, but when I strike bargains with people, they first get something here on earth -- glamour, beauty, talent, wealth, fame, glory, a golden fiddle. Those Haitians have nothing, and I mean nothing. And that was before the earthquake. Haven't you seen 'Crossroads'? Or 'Damn Yankees'?

If I had a thing going with Haiti, there'd be lots of banks, skyscrapers, SUVs, exclusive night clubs, Botox -- that kind of thing. An 80 percent poverty rate is so not my style. Nothing against it -- I'm just saying: Not how I roll.

You're doing great work, Pat, and I don't want to clip your wings -- just, come on, you're making me look bad. And not the good kind of bad. Keep blaming God. That's working. But leave me out of it, please. Or we may need to renegotiate your own contract.

Best,
Satan

LILY COYLE, MINNEAPOLIS

God Responds to Pat Robertson | A Midsummer Night’s Blog

2010-01-15T15:14:00.000-05:00

h/t Niffer.

God Responds to Pat Robertson | A Midsummer Night’s Blog: "Yesterday, Pat Robertson claimed that God was punishing the people of Haiti with a devastating earthquake. In an attempt to be fair and balanced we contacted God and offered him a chance to respond."

Doctor and Patient - Looking Beyond MCATs to Pick Future Doctors - NYTimes.com

2010-01-15T14:58:00.000-05:00

Whoah. Excellent.

Doctor and Patient - Looking Beyond MCATs to Pick Future Doctors - NYTimes.com:

According to a recent study in The Journal of Applied Psychology, there is another kind of exam that may be more predictive of how successful students will be in medicine: personality testing.

,,,The investigators found that the results of the personality test had a striking correlation with the students’ performance. Neuroticism, or an individual’s likelihood of becoming emotionally upset, was a constant predictor of a student’s poor academic performance and even attrition. Being conscientious, on the other hand, was a particularly important predictor of success throughout medical school. And the importance of openness and agreeableness increased over time, though neither did as significantly as extraversion. Extraverts invariably struggled early on but ended up excelling as their training entailed less time in the classroom and more time with patients.

...While standardized tests like the MCAT and the SAT have been criticized for putting certain population groups at a disadvantage, the particular personality test used in this study has been shown to work consistently across different cultures and backgrounds. “This test shows virtually none or very tiny differences between different ethnic or minority groups,” Dr. Ones noted. Because of this reliability, the test is a potentially invaluable adjunct to more traditional knowledge-based testing. “It could work as an additional predictive tool in the system,” she said.

...But these standardized tests, personality or cognitive, can be useful only after medical schools, and the public they serve, decide what characteristics are most important for the next generation of doctors. “If a medical school is all about graduating great researchers, then I would tell them not to weigh the results of the personality test that heavily,” Dr. Ones said. “But if you want doctors who are practitioners, valued members in terms of serving greater public, then you have to pay close attention to these results.”

When The Tooth Fairy Overbooks, Helpers Step In : NPR

2010-01-15T14:43:00.000-05:00

What a great story.

When The Tooth Fairy Overbooks, Helpers Step In : NPR: "Lisa Ray doesn't have many distinct memories of her father — he died in 1971, when she was just 6 years old. But she does recall one episode that reveals a lot about him."

D.C. judge rules against marriage referendum - washingtonpost.com

2010-01-15T14:24:00.000-05:00

W00t!!!

D.C. judge rules against marriage referendum - washingtonpost.com: "A D.C. Superior Court judge ruled Thursday that same-sex marriage opponents do not have a right to call for a referendum to determine whether such unions should be legal in the District."

'Mythbusters' Grant Imahara Explains Something Gross (Not Safe For Lunch) - Monkey See Blog : NPR

2010-01-15T14:11:00.000-05:00

This was so funny, I literally laughed til I had tears in my eyes. "Meat Man"... and candles made of earwax... not for the faint of heart. Oh, and seriously, put down your drink first.

'Mythbusters' Grant Imahara Explains Something Gross (Not Safe For Lunch) - Monkey See Blog : NPR:

I cornered Grant Imahara, part of the build team on Discovery's Mythbusters, at an event on Thursday night and told him that I wanted to discuss what I said was -- and maintain is -- the single most amazing thing I have ever seen on television...

Mr. Rogers quote about scary things, and disasters

2010-01-15T14:06:00.001-05:00

Don't know if this is really his... but whoever said this is right. h/t Maya A.

"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping." To this day especially in times of "disaster," I remember my mother's words, and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers--so many caring people in this world." -Mister Rogers

You Can Drive 55 - The Slow Issue - GOOD

2010-01-15T13:36:00.000-05:00

Help save the planet and defeat the terrorists. This reminds me of my F/friend Phyllis' campaign of "civil obedience" back in the fall of 2001, where she urged Friends to drive the speed limit for just these reasons. - sm

You Can Drive 55 - The Slow Issue - GOOD

But the latest case for driving the posted speed limit, and lowering that speed limit altogether, is not about safety (though even a rudimentary understanding of physics would support that argument). Rather, it’s about saving money and reducing carbon emissions. A car’s gas mileage peaks at speeds around 40 miles per hour (depending on the car), and then decreases rapidly. This is because air resistance increases exponentially as a car goes faster. At high speeds, a car’s engine is using the majority of its energy simply to overcome that resistance—rather than accelerating—which wastes fuel...

Tim Castleman, a California native, thinks we should all slow down. He started his Drive 55 campaign in the wake of 9/11, after concluding that a reliance on foreign oil was the root cause of the disaster.

American Red Cross Disaster Newsroom

2010-01-15T02:05:00.000-05:00

American Red Cross Disaster Newsroom

Updates from the situation in Haiti.

Airlines organizing Haiti earthquake aid - CNN.com

2010-01-14T15:12:00.000-05:00

Thanks, Michelle!

Airlines organizing Haiti earthquake aid - CNN.com:

Twitter reports that the airline is flying aid workers to Haiti are false, Smith said Thursday.

'Last night's hoax on Twitter about American and JetBlue flying doctors and nurses to Haiti for free was just that -- a hoax. We do not know who is responsible. We cannot fly any passengers to Haiti at this time,' he said.

The airline is offering its frequent-flier program members mileage incentives for contributing to the Red Cross. Starting Thursday, members can earn a one-time bonus of 250 miles for a minimum donation of $50 or 500 miles for a donation of $100 or more through February 28, according to American's Web site.

'We invite our customers to join us in supporting the American Red Cross, and it is with our deepest appreciation that we acknowledge their generosity with this opportunity to earn AAdvantage miles,' said Peter J. Dolara, an American senior vice president, in a statement.

BBC News - US editor at Palestinian agency fights Israel entry ban

2010-01-14T15:08:00.000-05:00

BBC News - US editor at Palestinian agency fights Israel entry ban:

A US citizen working as an editor for a the Palestinian news agency Maan is appealing against Israel's refusal to allow him entry at Tel Aviv airport.

Jared Malsin has been detained since he returned from a holiday in Prague on Tuesday evening, his colleagues said.

Haitian Earthquake Relief

2010-01-14T10:32:00.002-05:00

Looking to donate money to Haitian earthquake relief? There are lots of potential places to send your money. How do you know who does the most good?

It helps if you're familiar with the organization to which you're donating. I mean, truly familiar, not just familiar with their solicitation materials: you've been active with them, you're familiar with their financial reports, you've volunteered or worked for them, you have friends who are active with them. You feel confident that you know what they do with your money.

A number of people have told me they find Charity Navigator helpful. Click here for Charity Navigator's list of and assessment of groups responding to the crisis in Haiti. Charity Navigator adds:

Please also remember to follow our Tips for Giving in Times of Crisis and our guide for Protecting Yourself From Online Scams to help ensure that your gift gets to those who need it the most.

Religious groups do not always appear in Charity Navigator's lists, since their financial filing requirements are different than 501 (c) 3 s.

Click here for Charity Watch's list of and assessment of groups responding to the crisis in Haiti.

I am deliberately not including a list of charities here -- even though I easily could, based on the criteria I've outlined above, and even though I have strong opinions about several different relief organizations from my experience in humanitarian work. While I've been part of some good conversations on Facebook about different charities -- and thank you if you've been part of those -- I am pretty tired of the way this disaster has so quickly turned into fans of different charities plugging for those specific ones. I think it's actually quite important to think for yourself about this, and make up your own mind.

So here are some tools.

And if you comment, please don't plug a specific organization, okay? Thanks.