**IF YOU CAN'T ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE, CONTACT US ATrays.list@comcast.net and we'll be happy to send the full article.
=
Orlando Sentinel
http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/sports_magic/2007/02/so_meech_is_gay.html
So Meech Is Gay? Yawn
Posted on Feb 7, 2007 1:44:02 PM
I knew John Amaechi about as well as anybody when he played with the Magic,as we collaborated on a weekly Magic Confidential feature called "Tea WithMeech."
It was just witty insights from Meech, and his take on all kinds of things.Without a doubt, he's one of the most refreshing athletes I've ever beenaround. He actually read books.
The tea reference, of course, was played off the fact that he's British.
And now he is something else: Gay.
=
Baltimore Sun
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/bal-sp.steele08feb08,1,624528,print.column?coll=bal-home-columnists&ctrack=1&cset=true
Gay players shouldn't wait to come out
David Steele
February 8, 2007
Former NBA player John Amaechi's story about being a gay athlete on aprofessional sports team -- told in an upcoming book, an upcoming TVinterview and likely several hundred interviews in the upcoming weeks --sounds like a brave move.
It was just as brave when former NFL player Esera Tuaolo told his story acouple years ago.
And former NFL player Roy Simmons a couple years before that.
And former major league baseball player Billy Bean a couple years before
that. And former umpire Dave Pallone before that, and more than 30 yearsago, former NFL player Dave Kopay.
=
Advocate.com
http://advocate.com/print_article_ektid41947.asp
Haggard's quick conversion draws skepticism from conservative Christians
Some conservative Christians are questioning the speed with which formerevangelical leader Ted Haggard was "cured" of his homosexuality.
Reports that disgraced U.S. evangelical leader Ted Haggard, felled last yearin a gay sex scandal, had gone "straight" with the aid of therapy may nothave surprised conservative Christians who argue that sexual orientation isa choice. But what did surprise some who also "made the switch" but tookyears to do so was the speed of the declared transformation: three weeks.
In the eyes of many conservative U.S. Christians, homosexuality is a sinfullifestyle choice that can be reversed through prayer and counsel. Gayactivists say they don't choose their sexual orientation and there isnothing sinful about it.
=
Express Gay News
http://www.expressgaynews.com/2007/2-9/view/columns/9986.cfm
Sins of omission
Log Cabin misrepresented Senator Baucus' position on key gay rightsinitiative.
By Jo Wyrick
Friday, February 09, 2007
MY LITTLE THIRD-grade Sunday school class at the First Baptist Church inGreensboro, N.C., taught me the important lesson that sins of omission andcommission are equal in nature.
Telling my mom that I had eaten my broccoli, when I had really just nibbledoff a taste before scraping it into the trash, could technically beconstrued as true. However, conveniently leaving out a few key factsactually made my story as much of a malicious lie as telling her a flat-outfib.
I was reminded of that lesson last week when an inflammatory action alertfrom the Log Cabin Republicans incorrectly warned that Sen. Max Baucus(D-Mont.) was prohibiting a piece of pro-gay legislation from moving forwardin his role as chair of the Senate Finance Committee.
=
Express Gay News
http://www.expressgaynews.com/2007/2-9/view/editorial/editorial.cfm
Just the facts
From Wikipedia to the Washington Post, more media outlets are covering gayissues, with decidedly mixed results.
Friday, February 09, 2007
KEEPING TABS ON mainstream media coverage of gay issues is becoming afull-time job as gay visibility increases and more outlets devote time andspace to our plight.
Two recent examples illustrate ways in which old-school journalists andonline upstarts still get our stories wrong.
A Blade reader e-mailed an interesting tidbit last week. It seems there'sbeen a debate raging at Wikipedia about the biographical entry for openlycloseted CNN anchor Anderson Cooper.
The Blade and numerous other publications have written for years aboutCooper's sexual orientation. Cooper refuses to discuss his private life,even though he's more than happy to sit for endless interviews and to befeatured on magazine covers and in CNN's ubiquitous ad campaigns promotinghis show.
=
365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020907billboard.htm
Preacher Appeals To Supreme Court To Erect Homophobic Billboard
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: February 9, 2007 - 9:00 pm ET
(New York City) A conservative pastor who is battling the Borough of StatenIsland for ordering the removal of a billboard containing a Biblicalcondemnation of homosexuality has filed a petition with the US SupremeCourt.
State and federal courts already have dismissed lawsuits brought by the Rev.Kristopher Okwedy, founder of Keyword Ministries.
Okwedy says the billboard message is protected under his constitutionalright to practice his religion. He is being represented by a lawyerfurnished by the American Family Association.
=
Express Gay News
http://www.expressgaynews.com/2007/2-9/news/national/national.cfm
Gay vets group receives government recognition
New IRS status lists group as veterans service organization
By PHIL LaPADULA
Friday, February 09, 2007
The American Veterans for Equal Rights, a national gay vets organization,has just received official recognition from the Internal Revenue Service asa veteran's service organization. The group is the first gay veteransorganization to be granted such an IRS status, according to Mark LaFontaine,national treasurer of AVER.
"The IRS status moves AVER a step closer toward being on equal footing withsuch esteemed organizations as the American Legion and the Veterans ofForeign Wars," LaFontaine said in an interview with the Express.
As a result of the new status, LaFontaine also announced this week that AVERwill expand its services for veterans. He said the group eventually plans tohave veterans service officers, who will be trained by the U.S. VeteransAdministration.
=
The current issue of The Express Gay News is online
http://expressgaynews.com/
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/09/AR2007020902265.html
ASK AMY
Saturday, February 10, 2007; Page C03
Dear Amy:
I am a 33-year-old gay male in a happy relationship. I live in D.C., and myparents live in New York.
Recently, my boyfriend and I drove to Atlantic City for vacation while myparents were there. My mother agreed to have dinner with us, but my fatherwould not meet me unless I left my boyfriend elsewhere. I decided that itwould be terribly disrespectful to my relationship and my boyfriend to leavehim, even temporarily, so I didn't see my father during the trip.
My mother believes that I was terribly cruel not to meet my father, and thatI was ethically wrong, given the pain that my sexual orientation has causedhim. I never had a close relationship with my father, who was somewhatphysically and emotionally abusive to me as a child, and I view my mother ashis enabler, as she has always made excuses for his behavior.
Was I wrong not to see my father?
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/news/news-rights-gays-adoption.html?pagewanted=print
February 10, 2007
Maine Lesbian "Adoptee" Case Tests Legal Bounds
By REUTERS
Filed at 9:08 a.m. ET
ROCKLAND, Maine (Reuters) - Olive Watson, daughter of a wealthy computermagnate, adopted her 44-year-old lesbian lover, Patricia Spado, in a Mainecourtroom in 1991 to provide her partner with greater financial security.
Fast-forward 16 years. The two have split up and the Watson family isseeking to annul the adoption in a complex legal case that provides aglimpse into efforts by same-sex couples to use adoption laws to establishlegal rights including inheritance.
Gay-rights advocates say it illustrates the difficulties homosexuals in theUnited States face in protecting the financial interest of their partners,defending the use of adoption as a last-ditch effort to provide protectionsotherwise unavailable to many gay and lesbian couples.
=
The Sun-Sentinel
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/ats-ap_politics18feb09,0,2372420,print.story
Huckabee Defends Traditional Marriages
By PHILIP ELLIOTT
Associated Press Writer
February 9, 2007, 9:25 PM EST
NASHUA, N.H. -- Republican Mike Huckabee said Friday that marriage shouldn'tbe treated as an experiment in response to questions about whether VicePresident Dick Cheney's lesbian daughter should have the right to wed.
The former Arkansas governor, who is seeking the GOP presidentialnomination, said heterosexual marriages face enough challenges withoutadding new configurations to the mix.
"Taking on a new definition doesn't make sense right now," Huckabee said inan interview with The Associated Press after speaking to business leaders inNew Hampshire.
=
SOVO.com
http://www.sovo.com/print.cfm?content_id=6479
Anti-smoking experts urged to target gays
Atlanta conference includes strategies to reach gay smokers
By RYAN LEE
Feb. 09, 2007
From the pervasive presence of cigarettes in gay bars and some socialcircles, to gay-targeted ads and promotions that make smoking look sexy andpopular, there are many social and marketing forces that contribute to gaymen, lesbians and transgender individuals being an estimated 40-70 percentmore likely to be addicted to smoking than other groups.
But there is little counter-messaging being done by either mainstreamanti-smoking initiatives or gay health groups, experts said during adiscussion Wednesday at the annual meeting of the National Network ofTobacco Cessation Quitlines in Atlanta.
"You don't get the other side of the story," said Bob Witeck, CEO ofWiteck-Combs Communications, a gay marketing and consulting firm.
=
365gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020907alaska.htm
Alaska To Spend $1.2 Million To Poll Public On Gay Benefits
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: February 10, 2007 - 12:01 am ET
(Juneau, Alaska) A plebiscite pushed through by Republican lawmakers inAlaska that would ask voters their opinion on amending the Alaskaconstitution to prevent the same-sex domestic partners of state workers fromreceiving health benefits will cost four times the estimated cost of thebenefits it was learned this week.
In 2005 the state Supreme Court ruled the state must establish benefits tosame-sex partners of its employees in response to an action filed by theAmerican Civil Liberties Union and nine Alaska couples.
The high court ruled that because the state constitution has been amended tobar same-sex marriage, denying gay and lesbian couples insurance rightsextended to married couples deprives them of equal protection guaranteedunder the Alaska Constitution.
=
The Miami Herald
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/breaking_news/16667172.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
Posted on Sat, Feb. 10, 2007
SPORTS
Gays await athlete who says 'I'm out'
Former NBA player John Amaechi came out and said he is gay -- but as thesports world discusses the issue, no active athlete has made such anannouncement.
BY MICHELLE KAUFMAN
mkaufman@MiamiHerald.com
Billy Bean had been hearing the rumors and reading the buzz on gay websitesfor weeks, and he was itching for the news to get out: An NBA player wasgoing to publicly say he is gay.
This was the day Bean, a gay former Major League baseball player, had beenlonging for, when an active pro in a men's team sport would bust open thelocker room door, take a deep breath and announce he is gay. Bean hoped theday would come when an openly gay athlete could confront teammates andexplain he was living a lie, that he doesn't find queer jokes funny, that itmakes him uncomfortable to hear endless bragging about teammates' sexualexploits with women.
=
Sioux City Journal
http://www.siouxcityjournal.com/articles/2007/02/09/news/latest_news/bf23e403490ea5968625727d00652f24.prt
Date posted online: Friday, February 09, 2007
Romney defends stand on gay marriage
12:25 PM
By Charlotte Eby
Lee Newspapers
Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney said Friday he has always beenagainst gay marriage and that Iowa voters can look at his record if they areconcerned about his conservative credentials.
The former Massachusetts governor, who will formally enter the presidentialrace next week, said opposition campaigns are trying to confuse people onhis position on the issue but have yet to find any action or statement tocontradict that.
"I have been an ardent defender of traditional marriage, and have foughtsame-sex marriage in every way I could conceive," Romney said. As governor,Romney pushed for a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.But critics are pointing to his expressions of support for gay rights duringhis U.S. Senate campaign in 1994.
On abortion, Romney compared himself to former President Ronald Reagan, whohad a change of heart on the issue. Romney now describes himself aspro-life.
=
The Miami Herald
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/breaking_news/16667172.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
Posted on Sat, Feb. 10, 2007
Gays await athlete who says 'I'm out'
Former NBA player John Amaechi came out and said he is gay -- but as thesports world discusses the issue, no active athlete has made such anannouncement.
BY MICHELLE KAUFMAN
mkaufman@MiamiHerald.com
Billy Bean had been hearing the rumors and reading the buzz on gay websitesfor weeks, and he was itching for the news to get out: An NBA player wasgoing to publicly say he is gay.
This was the day Bean, a gay former Major League baseball player, had beenlonging for, when an active pro in a men's team sport would bust open thelocker room door, take a deep breath and announce he is gay. Bean hoped theday would come when an openly gay athlete could confront teammates andexplain he was living a lie, that he doesn't find queer jokes funny, that itmakes him uncomfortable to hear endless bragging about teammates' sexualexploits with women.
''I'd be in the front row, wearing that guy's jersey, cheering for him,''said Bean, who lives in Miami Beach.
=
ILGA-Europe.org
www.ilga-europe.org
9 February 2007
For immediate release
Russian government supports freedom of assembly for sexual minorities
In a remarkable statement on the banning of Moscow Pride, the Russiangovernment has strongly supported the right of sexual minorities to freedomof assembly.
The statement was made by the Russian Federation in its role as Chairman ofthe Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, a position it held fromAugust 2006 to January 2007. While acknowledging that the Moscow gay pridedemonstration was banned, and that a case is pending before the courts, itunderlined that:
People belonging to sexual minorities enjoy the same right to freedom ofexpression and freedom of assembly as any other individual
Not only can peaceful demonstrations in favour of sexual minority rightssimply not be banned, but the police has a duty to protect suchmanifestations when they take place
A general ban of a peaceful demonstration can only be justified if there isa real danger of disorder which cannot be prevented by reasonable andappropriate measures
The ban on Moscow Pride is the subject of a case against the Russianauthorities at the European Court of Human Rights.Patricia Prendiville, Executive Director of ILGA-Europe, said:
"The strength of the statement, coming with the agreement of the 46 memberstates, is important for many countries, particularly in Central and EasternEurope, where LGBT freedom of assembly has been challenged on manyoccasions."
[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net]
#####
Saturday, February 10, 2007
FLORIDA DIGEST February 10, 2007
**IF YOU CAN'T ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE, CONTACT US ATrays.list@comcast.net and we'll be happy to send the full article.
=
The Miami Herald
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/16667208.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
Posted on Sat, Feb. 10, 2007
Local perspectives
FORT LAUDERDALE
NAUGLE SHOULD SIGN CLIMATE AGREEMENT
This month the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change -- aninternational group of scientists -- made it official: Human activities --namely, the release of carbon dioxide and other air pollutants calledgreenhouse gases -- are a cause of global warming. Try telling that to FortLauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle, who acknowledges that Earth is warming butrejects that mankind is causing it. Unlike 24 other South Florida mayors,Mr. Naugle refuses to support the Kyoto Treaty, an international agreementto reduce the greenhouse gases that cause global warming.
The Broward County Audubon Society has asked the county's mayorsto sign the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, brainchild ofSeattle's mayor. The agreement is intended to build awareness of and supportfor the treaty, which more than 30 countries have ratified. They havecommitted to reducing greenhouse gases to below 1990 levels by 2012. Some375 U.S. mayors have signed the mayoral agreement, which commits theircities to such sensible measures as using energy-saving light bulbs ingovernment offices and encouraging residents to plant trees, which absorbcarbon dioxide.
=
Sun-Sentinel.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/florida/sfl-fcash10feb10,0,5567510,print.story?coll=sfla-news-florida
Tax revenue falling below projections
Gov. Crist reconsidering state budget
By Jason Garcia
Tallahassee Bureau
February 10, 2007
Tallahassee · Florida budget writers were handed grim news Friday, with anew report showing state tax collections falling far short of expectations.
In response, Gov. Charlie Crist's office acknowledged it has begun to weighchanges to the $71.2 billion budget the governor submitted to theLegislature last week -- a spending plan that would include higher teacherpay, stem cell research and a host of other high-profile initiatives.
"We are starting to look at our options," Jerry McDaniel, the head ofCrist's budget office, told members of the House Policy and Budget Council.
=
PalmBeachPost.com
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/politics/content/state/epaper/2007/02/10/a18a_flabud_0209.html
Slide in sales-tax collections could shackle Crist's budget
By Michael C. Bender
Palm Beach Post Capital Bureau
Saturday, February 10, 2007
TALLAHASSEE - Gov. Charlie Crist's budget request could turn out to belittle more than a wish-list if state sales taxes do not rebound from arecent slump, the chairman of the House's top budget committee warnedFriday.
"If the trend continues, what we're really looking at is ... what we fundedlast year, we'll try to fund this year. Nothing new," said Ray Sansom,R-Destin, chairman of the House Policy and Budget Council.
Sansom urged caution after general fund revenues for Januaryfell short ofestimates for the third month in a row.
=
SPTimes.com
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/02/10/news_pf/Hillsborough/Executioner_s_words_d.shtml
Executioner's words disturb panel
By CHRIS TISCH, Times Staff Writer
Published February 10, 2007
TAMPA - The lead executioner in a botched lethal injection testified onFriday that the team had to empty 14 syringes of chemicals and salinesolution into Angel Diaz.
The executioner told a panel studying the state's lethal injection protocolsthat they pumped the cocktail into both of Diaz's arm. He surprised someobservers by saying he had gone to the second arm in other executions aswell.
He added that he did that on those other occasions on his own volition - noton the advice of medical staff.
=
Sun-Sentinel.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-clegis10feb10,0,7125466,print.story
Manors leader, activist vie for seat
State House may get first openly gay legislator
By Anthony Man
Political Writer
February 10, 2007
The primary is 19 months away, but a Broward County seat in the FloridaHouse of Representatives already has two candidates, and there's a goodchance voters could elect the state's first openly gay state legislator.
Vying for the Democratic nomination so far are Gary Resnick, a member of theWilton Manors City Commission, and Mark J. LaFontaine a Wilton Manors civicactivist.
The seat will open when term limits force state Rep. Jack Seiler, D-WiltonManors, to leave office. He was unopposed for re-election last year.
Seiler's House District 92 takes in parts of Deerfield Beach, FortLauderdale, Oakland Park, Pompano Beach and Wilton Manors. Wilton Manors andthe Victoria Park neighborhood of Fort Lauderdale have many gay residents.
=
Sun-Sentinel.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/editorial/sfl-editdlbustacap3feb10,0,3770576,print.story
Concealed Guns
South Florida Sun-Sentinel Editorial Board
February 10, 2007
ISSUE: An influential senator says `"no" to sweeping changes in gunlicensing.
Political reality being what it is, the recent comments by state Sen. NancyArgenziano, R-Dunnellon, on amending Florida's concealed-weapons lawshouldn't come as a big surprise to anyone.
As chairwoman of her chamber's Criminal Justice Committee, Argenziano canplay a meaningful role in reshaping the state's licensing process to betterkeep firearms away from people who have pleaded guilty or no contest tofelonies.
Unfortunately, she has decided against supporting any sweeping changes tothe law, choosing instead to target individuals convicted of actingrecklessly with guns. It's a start, albeit a disappointing one.
=
The Express Gay News
http://expressgaynews.com/
http://www.expressgaynews.com/print.cfm?content_id=3426
Police crime briefing draws big crowd at GLCC
Officials offer prevention tips as gay residents voice concerns
By PHIL LAPADULA
Feb. 09, 2007
A crime briefing and prevention seminar presented by Fort Lauderdale andWilton Manors police officials drew a large crowd Feb. 7 at the Gay &Lesbian Community Center of South Florida.
"There's been a lot of concern about crime in the gay community recently,"said Doug White, vice president of the South Middle River Civic Association,who helped to organize the event. "The main purpose of this meeting tonightis to prevent crime."
Police officials said there was no evidence that criminals were specificallytargeting gay residents. But when interviewed after the meeting, threepolice officials confirmed that the general crime rate in Florida andnationwide has increased lately. Officials also said bar patrons leavingclubs at night may be more vulnerable to crimes if they do not remain alertand aware of their surroundings. And Wilton Manors Det. Chuck Howard saidthere has been an increase in burglaries of vehicles during the daytime. Heurged motorists to put any valuable belongings out of view, such as in thetrunk.
[ Send your comments about any of the articles in Ray's List Digest toRays.List@Comcast.net ]
#####
=
The Miami Herald
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/16667208.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
Posted on Sat, Feb. 10, 2007
Local perspectives
FORT LAUDERDALE
NAUGLE SHOULD SIGN CLIMATE AGREEMENT
This month the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change -- aninternational group of scientists -- made it official: Human activities --namely, the release of carbon dioxide and other air pollutants calledgreenhouse gases -- are a cause of global warming. Try telling that to FortLauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle, who acknowledges that Earth is warming butrejects that mankind is causing it. Unlike 24 other South Florida mayors,Mr. Naugle refuses to support the Kyoto Treaty, an international agreementto reduce the greenhouse gases that cause global warming.
The Broward County Audubon Society has asked the county's mayorsto sign the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, brainchild ofSeattle's mayor. The agreement is intended to build awareness of and supportfor the treaty, which more than 30 countries have ratified. They havecommitted to reducing greenhouse gases to below 1990 levels by 2012. Some375 U.S. mayors have signed the mayoral agreement, which commits theircities to such sensible measures as using energy-saving light bulbs ingovernment offices and encouraging residents to plant trees, which absorbcarbon dioxide.
=
Sun-Sentinel.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/florida/sfl-fcash10feb10,0,5567510,print.story?coll=sfla-news-florida
Tax revenue falling below projections
Gov. Crist reconsidering state budget
By Jason Garcia
Tallahassee Bureau
February 10, 2007
Tallahassee · Florida budget writers were handed grim news Friday, with anew report showing state tax collections falling far short of expectations.
In response, Gov. Charlie Crist's office acknowledged it has begun to weighchanges to the $71.2 billion budget the governor submitted to theLegislature last week -- a spending plan that would include higher teacherpay, stem cell research and a host of other high-profile initiatives.
"We are starting to look at our options," Jerry McDaniel, the head ofCrist's budget office, told members of the House Policy and Budget Council.
=
PalmBeachPost.com
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/politics/content/state/epaper/2007/02/10/a18a_flabud_0209.html
Slide in sales-tax collections could shackle Crist's budget
By Michael C. Bender
Palm Beach Post Capital Bureau
Saturday, February 10, 2007
TALLAHASSEE - Gov. Charlie Crist's budget request could turn out to belittle more than a wish-list if state sales taxes do not rebound from arecent slump, the chairman of the House's top budget committee warnedFriday.
"If the trend continues, what we're really looking at is ... what we fundedlast year, we'll try to fund this year. Nothing new," said Ray Sansom,R-Destin, chairman of the House Policy and Budget Council.
Sansom urged caution after general fund revenues for Januaryfell short ofestimates for the third month in a row.
=
SPTimes.com
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/02/10/news_pf/Hillsborough/Executioner_s_words_d.shtml
Executioner's words disturb panel
By CHRIS TISCH, Times Staff Writer
Published February 10, 2007
TAMPA - The lead executioner in a botched lethal injection testified onFriday that the team had to empty 14 syringes of chemicals and salinesolution into Angel Diaz.
The executioner told a panel studying the state's lethal injection protocolsthat they pumped the cocktail into both of Diaz's arm. He surprised someobservers by saying he had gone to the second arm in other executions aswell.
He added that he did that on those other occasions on his own volition - noton the advice of medical staff.
=
Sun-Sentinel.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-clegis10feb10,0,7125466,print.story
Manors leader, activist vie for seat
State House may get first openly gay legislator
By Anthony Man
Political Writer
February 10, 2007
The primary is 19 months away, but a Broward County seat in the FloridaHouse of Representatives already has two candidates, and there's a goodchance voters could elect the state's first openly gay state legislator.
Vying for the Democratic nomination so far are Gary Resnick, a member of theWilton Manors City Commission, and Mark J. LaFontaine a Wilton Manors civicactivist.
The seat will open when term limits force state Rep. Jack Seiler, D-WiltonManors, to leave office. He was unopposed for re-election last year.
Seiler's House District 92 takes in parts of Deerfield Beach, FortLauderdale, Oakland Park, Pompano Beach and Wilton Manors. Wilton Manors andthe Victoria Park neighborhood of Fort Lauderdale have many gay residents.
=
Sun-Sentinel.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/editorial/sfl-editdlbustacap3feb10,0,3770576,print.story
Concealed Guns
South Florida Sun-Sentinel Editorial Board
February 10, 2007
ISSUE: An influential senator says `"no" to sweeping changes in gunlicensing.
Political reality being what it is, the recent comments by state Sen. NancyArgenziano, R-Dunnellon, on amending Florida's concealed-weapons lawshouldn't come as a big surprise to anyone.
As chairwoman of her chamber's Criminal Justice Committee, Argenziano canplay a meaningful role in reshaping the state's licensing process to betterkeep firearms away from people who have pleaded guilty or no contest tofelonies.
Unfortunately, she has decided against supporting any sweeping changes tothe law, choosing instead to target individuals convicted of actingrecklessly with guns. It's a start, albeit a disappointing one.
=
The Express Gay News
http://expressgaynews.com/
http://www.expressgaynews.com/print.cfm?content_id=3426
Police crime briefing draws big crowd at GLCC
Officials offer prevention tips as gay residents voice concerns
By PHIL LAPADULA
Feb. 09, 2007
A crime briefing and prevention seminar presented by Fort Lauderdale andWilton Manors police officials drew a large crowd Feb. 7 at the Gay &Lesbian Community Center of South Florida.
"There's been a lot of concern about crime in the gay community recently,"said Doug White, vice president of the South Middle River Civic Association,who helped to organize the event. "The main purpose of this meeting tonightis to prevent crime."
Police officials said there was no evidence that criminals were specificallytargeting gay residents. But when interviewed after the meeting, threepolice officials confirmed that the general crime rate in Florida andnationwide has increased lately. Officials also said bar patrons leavingclubs at night may be more vulnerable to crimes if they do not remain alertand aware of their surroundings. And Wilton Manors Det. Chuck Howard saidthere has been an increase in burglaries of vehicles during the daytime. Heurged motorists to put any valuable belongings out of view, such as in thetrunk.
[ Send your comments about any of the articles in Ray's List Digest toRays.List@Comcast.net ]
#####
NATIONAL & WORLD DIGEST February 10, 2007
**IF YOU CAN'T ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE, CONTACT US ATrays.list@comcast.net and we'll be happy to send the full article.
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/09/AR2007020902294_pf.html
Al-Qaeda Suspects Color White House Debate Over Iran
By Dafna Linzer
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, February 10, 2007; A01
Last week, the CIA sent an urgent report to President Bush's NationalSecurity Council: Iranian authorities had arrested two al-Qaeda operativestraveling through Iran on their way from Pakistan to Iraq. The suspects werecaught along a well-worn, if little-noticed, route for militants determinedto fight U.S. troops on Iraqi soil, according to a senior intelligenceofficial.
The arrests were presented to Bush's senior policy advisers as evidence thatIran appears committed to stopping al-Qaeda foot traffic across its borders,the intelligence official said. That assessment comes at a time when theBush administration, in an effort to push for further U.N. sanctions on theIslamic republic, is preparing to publicly accuse Tehran of cooperating withand harboring al-Qaeda suspects.
The strategy has sparked a growing debate within the administration and theintelligence community, according to U.S. intelligence and governmentofficials. One faction is pressing for more economic embargoes against Iran,including asset freezes and travel bans for the country's top leaders.
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/09/AR2007020900220_pf.html
Woman Chosen to Lead Harvard
Collegial Historian to Follow Summers's Stormy Tenure
By Valerie Strauss and Susan Kinzie
Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, February 10, 2007; A01
Harvard University is about to name its first woman president since itsfounding in 1636, tapping a Civil War historian to succeed Lawrence Summers,whose tumultuous tenure was marked by controversial remarks about women andclashes with faculty members.
Drew Gilpin Faust, 59, dean of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Studyand a leading historian on the American South, will be formally appointedpresident as early as this weekend, according to a source with knowledge ofthe decision.
With Faust's selection, half of the eight Ivy League schools will be run bywomen: Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University andBrown University.
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/09/AR2007020901680_pf.html
Gifted Minds We Need to Nurture
By Joann DiGennaro
Saturday, February 10, 2007; A17
At an educators' meeting in Washington last fall, conversation turned towhether the federal government should support programming for this nation'smost gifted and talented high school students. Educators overwhelmingly saidthat top students in secondary schools need no assistance, much to mydismay. Priority must be given to those not meeting the minimal standards inscience and math, they reasoned.
The ugly secret is that our most talented students are falling through thecracks. Not one program of such major governmental agencies as the NationalInstitutes of Health, the National Science Foundation or NASA specificallytargets the top 5 percent of students who have demonstrated academicexcellence and have the greatest potential for becoming our inventors,creators and groundbreaking scientists. An international assessment of mathproblem-solving skills of 15-year-olds in 2004, along with more recentstudies, found that the United States had the fewest top performers and thelargest percentage of low performers compared with other participatingcountries. By the time students reach 12th grade in math and science, theyare near the bottom or dead last compared with international competition,according to the Education Department. These are the critical years forsupporting students in science and math, for it is when they makecareer-determining decisions for college studies.
During a trip to China last fall, I visited several Key High Schools, whichare dedicated to preparing top young scholars for science and technologycareers. The Chinese government has targeted upward of $20 million tosupport advanced learning and laboratories in each of the 34 Key HighSchools.
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/09/AR2007020901949_pf.html
Congress Must Act On Iraq
By Tom Vilsack
Saturday, February 10, 2007; A17
Think of the last time you were in a public place with 1,000 people -- asports event, a Fourth of July parade, a concert.
Now imagine all 1,000 of those people dead.
If the number of American military deaths in Iraq in recent years is anyguide, that's how many Americans will die in that country in the next yearif Congress doesn't act immediately to take our troops out of harm's way inIraq's civil war.
=
The Miami Herald
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/16667597.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
Posted on Sat, Feb. 10, 2007
Judge limits sex offender restrictions
STEVE LAWRENCE
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - A federal judge ruled Friday that California's ban onsex offenders living within 2,000 feet of places where children gather can'tbe applied retroactively.
U.S. District Judge Lawrence Karlton said there was nothing in the so-calledJessica's Law that specified its provisions were intended to be appliedretroactively. He added that state law requires the statute apply from thedate it takes effect.
More than 70 percent of voters approved the measure, Proposition 83, on Nov.7 and it took effect the next day.
The law prohibits registered sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet ofa school or park, effectively banning paroled sex offenders from manyCalifornia communities. It also requires lifetime satellite tracking forsome paroled sex criminals upon their release from prison.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/10/opinion/10sat2.html?pagewanted=print
February 10, 2007
Editorial
Bad Faith on Social Security
In 2005, President Bush put his political capital where his mouth was, andlost. He went all-out to convince Congress and the American people thatprivatizing Social Security would be good and necessary. It's neither - andhis plan was justifiably and soundly rejected. This year, with his politicalcapital on empty, Mr. Bush is talking about a bipartisan effort to reformSocial Security. But his actions suggest that he has no intention of makingany serious compromises.
In his new budget, Mr. Bush allocates $29.3 billion to establish privateaccounts in 2012, totaling $637 billion through 2017. That suggests thateither Mr. Bush still hasn't figured out that private accounts are apolitical nonstarter, or he's hoping to use them as a bargaining chip infuture negotiations. Either way, that attitude virtually ensures that SocialSecurity reform will stall in this Congress, just as it did when theRepublicans were in charge.
Mr. Bush is proving similarly tone-deaf when it comes to choosing membersfor the Social Security board of trustees.
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/10/opinion/10sat1.html?pagewanted=print
February 10, 2007
Editorial
The Build-a-War Workshop
It took far too long, but a report by the Pentagon inspector general hasfinally confirmed that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's do-it-yourselfintelligence office cooked up a link between Iraq and Al Qaeda to helpjustify an unjustifiable war.
The report said the team headed by Douglas Feith, under secretary of defensefor policy, developed "alternative" assessments of intelligence on Iraq thatcontradicted the intelligence community and drew conclusions "that were notsupported by the available intelligence." Mr. Feith certainly knew theCentral Intelligence Agency would cry foul, so he hid his findings from theC.I.A. Then Vice President Dick Cheney used them as proof ofcloak-and-dagger meetings that never happened, long-term conspiraciesbetween Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden that didn't exist, and - mostunforgivable - "possible Iraqi coordination" on the 9/11 attacks, which noserious intelligence analyst believed.
The inspector general did not recommend criminal charges against Mr. Feithbecause Mr. Rumsfeld or his deputy, Paul Wolfowitz, approved theirsubordinate's "inappropriate" operations. The renegade intelligence buffsaid he was relieved.
=
New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/10/washington/10religion.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1171118690-5B9JlK/bh2a1mjDYTVXo/Q&pagewanted=print
February 10, 2007
Religion Journal
Congressman's Imam Is Taking a Lead in Interfaith Efforts
By SAMUEL G. FREEDMAN
MINNEAPOLIS - On the evening after Minnesota's Democratic primary lastSeptember, Makram El-Amin picked up his ringing cellphone to hear the raspy,exhausted voice of Keith Ellison. The men had known each other for a decade,long enough for Mr. El-Amin to become the imam of a mosque in their NorthMinneapolis neighborhood and Mr. Ellison to win a seat as the area's staterepresentative.
Now Mr. Ellison had survived a bruising campaign for the Democraticnomination for Congress and was headed into a general election. It was boundto include even more scrutiny and vitriol from opponents, based on his pastin the Nation of Islam and his present as a Sunni Muslim.
So Mr. Ellison was calling, as Mr. El-Amin recounted the other day, not as apolitician but as a congregant, seeking pastoral counsel.
"Be the person you've been all along," Mr. El-Amin recalls telling Mr.Ellison in the 20-minute conversation. "Be a public servant, not an Islamicspokesman. Keep the interest of all the people in the forefront. That's whatMuhammad himself would do."
=
Express Gay News
http://www.expressgaynews.com/2007/2-9/view/columns/9985.cfm
Hillary Clinton for president
Electing a woman president will send a message that the U.S. has moved intothe 21st century.
By Peter Rosenstein
Friday, February 09, 2007
I WANT TO declare my choice for president now. I am an avowed Hillary RodhamClinton supporter and believe that she not only can, but will win. A votefor Clinton is a vote for real change.
A fair question is why does electing Hillary Clinton make a difference to meas a gay man? The difference will be the real change in both the tone andfocus of our government. The fact that she has not come out for gay marriagedoes bother me, but the reality is that marriage is not a federal issue andHillary will support legislation to give us all the federal benefits ofmarriage.
I have come to understand that women view the world a little differentlythan men do. Most of my friends who came out to their families came out totheir mothers, as did I. They felt that they would receive a gentler andmore accepting response. This is not to say that women can't be strong. Wejust need to look at Margaret Thatcher and Golda Meir among others.
=
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6349287.stm
Putin attacks 'very dangerous' US
Russian President Vladimir Putin has attacked the United States for what hesaid was its "almost uncontained" use of force around the world.America's "very dangerous" approach to global relations was fuelling anuclear arms race, he told a security summit.
Correspondents say the strident speech may signal a more assertive Russia.
Earlier German chancellor Angela Merkel told the delegates in Munich thatthe international community was determined to stop Iran getting nuclearweapons.
=
New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/business/08cnd-harvard.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Harvard Plans to Name Its First Female President
By ALAN FINDER and SARA RIMER
Harvard University is planning to name the first woman president in its371-year history - Drew Gilpin Faust, a historian who runs a researchinstitute at the university, according to university officials close toselection process.
Dr. Faust's ascension would come a year after Lawrence H. Summers, a formerTreasury secretary, resigned from the post amid fierce faculty discontent.The opposition erupted in part over Dr. Summers suggestion that intrinsicaptitude could help explain why fewer women than men reach the highest ranksof science and math in universities.
Harvard's 30-member Board of Overseers is to meet Sunday and is expected togive her final approval, according to the officials.Dr. Faust is currentlydean of the Radcliffe Institute of Advanced Study, by far the smallest ofHarvard's schools. Much of the research sponsored by the institute, which isnamed after Radcliffe College, once the women's college at Harvard,emphasizes the study of women, gender and society.
=
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6346093.stm
Jerusalem 'tense' after clashes
A tense calm is reported in the Old City of Jerusalem after clashes betweenIsraeli police and Palestinians erupted at a contested holy site.
Dozens of people were hurt when police moved in to quell violent protestsagainst excavation work in the area.
Skirmishes in other parts of the city have also been reported.
The violence flared over the digging work, which protesters say threatensthe foundations of the al-Aqsa mosque - Islam's third holiest site.
The compound containing the mosque is also revered by Jews as the site oftheir biblical temples.
=
Guardian Unlimited
http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,2010086,00.html
Target Iran: US able to strike in the spring
Despite denials, Pentagon plans for possible attack on nuclear sites arewell advanced
Ewen MacAskill in Washington
Saturday February 10, 2007
US preparations for an air strike against Iran are at an advanced stage, inspite of repeated public denials by the Bush administration, according toinformed sources in Washington.
The present military build-up in the Gulf would allow the US to mount anattack by the spring. But the sources said that if there was an attack, itwas more likely next year, just before Mr Bush leaves office.
Neo-conservatives, particularly at the Washington-based American EnterpriseInstitute, are urging Mr Bush to open a new front against Iran. So too isthe vice-president, Dick Cheney. The state department and the Pentagon areopposed, as are Democratic congressmen and the overwhelming majority ofRepublicans. The sources said Mr Bush had not yet made a decision. The Bushadministration insists the military build-up is not offensive but aimed atcontaining Iran and forcing it to make diplomatic concessions. The aim is topersuade Tehran to curb its suspect nuclear weapons programme and abandonambitions for regional expansion.
=
From MoveOn.Org
Dear friend,
Thanks for asking Congress to save public radio and TV once and for all.
Please take a moment to invite your friends and colleagues to sign. You canjust forward the sample letter below.
Spreading the word is critical, but please only pass this message along tothose who know you—spam hurts our campaign.
Thanks for all you do.
–The MoveOn.org Civic Action Team
=
Dear MoveOn member,
Incredible!
Since Thursday afternoon, over 370,017 of us have called on Congress to saveNPR and PBS once and for all. 370,000 of us in 36 hours!
So we're aiming higher. We want to get to 500,000 signers-so Congress has tolisten. But to make that happen, we'll all need to reach out to our friends,family, colleagues and neighbors. This is an issue everyone can agree on: Weneed to keep NPR and PBS strong and independent. President Bush cannot beallowed to slash strong journalism and shows like "Sesame Street."
Can you forward the message below? It just takes a minute or two-but itcould make a big difference. Thanks for an amazing start to this importantcampaign,
-Noah
=
http://www.gaycitynews.com/site/news.asp?brd=2729
PUTIN'S CONTESTED WORDS ON GAYS
An Interview with Russia's Leading Gay Activist
By: DOUG IRELAND
Gay City News, 02/08/2007
Russian President Vladimir Putin last Thursday spoke in public for the firsttime ever about gays - but interpretations diverge about the meaning of whathe said.
At his annual, nationally televised winter press conference February 1,before an audience of hundreds - mostly Russian, but including foreigncorrespondents as well - Putin was asked by a correspondent from AgenceFrance Presse for his opinion about Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov's condemnationof Gay Pride parades as "satanic."
"My approach towards gay parades and sexual minorities is very simple,'Putin replied, according to Reuters. "It is directly linked to myresponsibilities. One of the key problems of our country is the demographicproblem."
At that point, the Reuters report continued, "The auditorium exploded inlaughter and applause. The Kremlin leader quickly added, 'I respect thefreedom of people in all respects. What was the other question?'"
=
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6346069.stm
Brain scan 'can read your mind'
Brain scans have been developed which it is claimed can predict what aperson is about to do.
German, British and Japanese scientists were able to "read minds" usingsophisticated functional magnetic imaging (fMRI) and computer programs.
Current Biology reported people were asked to think about adding orsubtracting - scientists were able to read intentions in 70% of cases.
A UK expert advised caution, but said such technologies would develop.
We shouldn't go overboard about the power of these technologies at themoment
Professor Colin Blakemore, Medical Research Council
Such techniques could be used to help people who are paralysed - there arealready some steps being taken towards helping people usingcomputer-assisted prosthetic devices linked to computers.
=
Sun-Sentinel.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-ajews08feb08,0,6831139,print.story?coll=sfla-news-sfla
Study boosts number of Jews in the U.S. to high of 6.4 million
By James D. Davis
Religion Editor
February 8, 2007
America is home to almost 20 percent more Jews than previously estimated,according to a study released Wednesday by Brandeis University.
There are 6 million to 6.4 million American Jews, rather than the 5.2million counted by the 2000-01 National Jewish Population Study. Children,young adults and non-Orthodox Jews came in at higher percentages in the newstudy, done by the Massachusetts university's Steinhardt Social ResearchInstitute.
"American Judaism is expanding," Len Saxe, director of the institute, saidWednesday. "The texture may be different, but it's not a melting ice cube,as some have said. Larger numbers identify with their Judaism than had beenthought."
Still another million Americans were raised in Jewish homes, mostly whereone parent was Jewish, "and could be considered Jewish," the Brandeis studyadds.
[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net]
#####
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/09/AR2007020902294_pf.html
Al-Qaeda Suspects Color White House Debate Over Iran
By Dafna Linzer
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, February 10, 2007; A01
Last week, the CIA sent an urgent report to President Bush's NationalSecurity Council: Iranian authorities had arrested two al-Qaeda operativestraveling through Iran on their way from Pakistan to Iraq. The suspects werecaught along a well-worn, if little-noticed, route for militants determinedto fight U.S. troops on Iraqi soil, according to a senior intelligenceofficial.
The arrests were presented to Bush's senior policy advisers as evidence thatIran appears committed to stopping al-Qaeda foot traffic across its borders,the intelligence official said. That assessment comes at a time when theBush administration, in an effort to push for further U.N. sanctions on theIslamic republic, is preparing to publicly accuse Tehran of cooperating withand harboring al-Qaeda suspects.
The strategy has sparked a growing debate within the administration and theintelligence community, according to U.S. intelligence and governmentofficials. One faction is pressing for more economic embargoes against Iran,including asset freezes and travel bans for the country's top leaders.
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/09/AR2007020900220_pf.html
Woman Chosen to Lead Harvard
Collegial Historian to Follow Summers's Stormy Tenure
By Valerie Strauss and Susan Kinzie
Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, February 10, 2007; A01
Harvard University is about to name its first woman president since itsfounding in 1636, tapping a Civil War historian to succeed Lawrence Summers,whose tumultuous tenure was marked by controversial remarks about women andclashes with faculty members.
Drew Gilpin Faust, 59, dean of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Studyand a leading historian on the American South, will be formally appointedpresident as early as this weekend, according to a source with knowledge ofthe decision.
With Faust's selection, half of the eight Ivy League schools will be run bywomen: Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University andBrown University.
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/09/AR2007020901680_pf.html
Gifted Minds We Need to Nurture
By Joann DiGennaro
Saturday, February 10, 2007; A17
At an educators' meeting in Washington last fall, conversation turned towhether the federal government should support programming for this nation'smost gifted and talented high school students. Educators overwhelmingly saidthat top students in secondary schools need no assistance, much to mydismay. Priority must be given to those not meeting the minimal standards inscience and math, they reasoned.
The ugly secret is that our most talented students are falling through thecracks. Not one program of such major governmental agencies as the NationalInstitutes of Health, the National Science Foundation or NASA specificallytargets the top 5 percent of students who have demonstrated academicexcellence and have the greatest potential for becoming our inventors,creators and groundbreaking scientists. An international assessment of mathproblem-solving skills of 15-year-olds in 2004, along with more recentstudies, found that the United States had the fewest top performers and thelargest percentage of low performers compared with other participatingcountries. By the time students reach 12th grade in math and science, theyare near the bottom or dead last compared with international competition,according to the Education Department. These are the critical years forsupporting students in science and math, for it is when they makecareer-determining decisions for college studies.
During a trip to China last fall, I visited several Key High Schools, whichare dedicated to preparing top young scholars for science and technologycareers. The Chinese government has targeted upward of $20 million tosupport advanced learning and laboratories in each of the 34 Key HighSchools.
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/09/AR2007020901949_pf.html
Congress Must Act On Iraq
By Tom Vilsack
Saturday, February 10, 2007; A17
Think of the last time you were in a public place with 1,000 people -- asports event, a Fourth of July parade, a concert.
Now imagine all 1,000 of those people dead.
If the number of American military deaths in Iraq in recent years is anyguide, that's how many Americans will die in that country in the next yearif Congress doesn't act immediately to take our troops out of harm's way inIraq's civil war.
=
The Miami Herald
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/16667597.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
Posted on Sat, Feb. 10, 2007
Judge limits sex offender restrictions
STEVE LAWRENCE
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - A federal judge ruled Friday that California's ban onsex offenders living within 2,000 feet of places where children gather can'tbe applied retroactively.
U.S. District Judge Lawrence Karlton said there was nothing in the so-calledJessica's Law that specified its provisions were intended to be appliedretroactively. He added that state law requires the statute apply from thedate it takes effect.
More than 70 percent of voters approved the measure, Proposition 83, on Nov.7 and it took effect the next day.
The law prohibits registered sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet ofa school or park, effectively banning paroled sex offenders from manyCalifornia communities. It also requires lifetime satellite tracking forsome paroled sex criminals upon their release from prison.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/10/opinion/10sat2.html?pagewanted=print
February 10, 2007
Editorial
Bad Faith on Social Security
In 2005, President Bush put his political capital where his mouth was, andlost. He went all-out to convince Congress and the American people thatprivatizing Social Security would be good and necessary. It's neither - andhis plan was justifiably and soundly rejected. This year, with his politicalcapital on empty, Mr. Bush is talking about a bipartisan effort to reformSocial Security. But his actions suggest that he has no intention of makingany serious compromises.
In his new budget, Mr. Bush allocates $29.3 billion to establish privateaccounts in 2012, totaling $637 billion through 2017. That suggests thateither Mr. Bush still hasn't figured out that private accounts are apolitical nonstarter, or he's hoping to use them as a bargaining chip infuture negotiations. Either way, that attitude virtually ensures that SocialSecurity reform will stall in this Congress, just as it did when theRepublicans were in charge.
Mr. Bush is proving similarly tone-deaf when it comes to choosing membersfor the Social Security board of trustees.
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/10/opinion/10sat1.html?pagewanted=print
February 10, 2007
Editorial
The Build-a-War Workshop
It took far too long, but a report by the Pentagon inspector general hasfinally confirmed that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's do-it-yourselfintelligence office cooked up a link between Iraq and Al Qaeda to helpjustify an unjustifiable war.
The report said the team headed by Douglas Feith, under secretary of defensefor policy, developed "alternative" assessments of intelligence on Iraq thatcontradicted the intelligence community and drew conclusions "that were notsupported by the available intelligence." Mr. Feith certainly knew theCentral Intelligence Agency would cry foul, so he hid his findings from theC.I.A. Then Vice President Dick Cheney used them as proof ofcloak-and-dagger meetings that never happened, long-term conspiraciesbetween Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden that didn't exist, and - mostunforgivable - "possible Iraqi coordination" on the 9/11 attacks, which noserious intelligence analyst believed.
The inspector general did not recommend criminal charges against Mr. Feithbecause Mr. Rumsfeld or his deputy, Paul Wolfowitz, approved theirsubordinate's "inappropriate" operations. The renegade intelligence buffsaid he was relieved.
=
New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/10/washington/10religion.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1171118690-5B9JlK/bh2a1mjDYTVXo/Q&pagewanted=print
February 10, 2007
Religion Journal
Congressman's Imam Is Taking a Lead in Interfaith Efforts
By SAMUEL G. FREEDMAN
MINNEAPOLIS - On the evening after Minnesota's Democratic primary lastSeptember, Makram El-Amin picked up his ringing cellphone to hear the raspy,exhausted voice of Keith Ellison. The men had known each other for a decade,long enough for Mr. El-Amin to become the imam of a mosque in their NorthMinneapolis neighborhood and Mr. Ellison to win a seat as the area's staterepresentative.
Now Mr. Ellison had survived a bruising campaign for the Democraticnomination for Congress and was headed into a general election. It was boundto include even more scrutiny and vitriol from opponents, based on his pastin the Nation of Islam and his present as a Sunni Muslim.
So Mr. Ellison was calling, as Mr. El-Amin recounted the other day, not as apolitician but as a congregant, seeking pastoral counsel.
"Be the person you've been all along," Mr. El-Amin recalls telling Mr.Ellison in the 20-minute conversation. "Be a public servant, not an Islamicspokesman. Keep the interest of all the people in the forefront. That's whatMuhammad himself would do."
=
Express Gay News
http://www.expressgaynews.com/2007/2-9/view/columns/9985.cfm
Hillary Clinton for president
Electing a woman president will send a message that the U.S. has moved intothe 21st century.
By Peter Rosenstein
Friday, February 09, 2007
I WANT TO declare my choice for president now. I am an avowed Hillary RodhamClinton supporter and believe that she not only can, but will win. A votefor Clinton is a vote for real change.
A fair question is why does electing Hillary Clinton make a difference to meas a gay man? The difference will be the real change in both the tone andfocus of our government. The fact that she has not come out for gay marriagedoes bother me, but the reality is that marriage is not a federal issue andHillary will support legislation to give us all the federal benefits ofmarriage.
I have come to understand that women view the world a little differentlythan men do. Most of my friends who came out to their families came out totheir mothers, as did I. They felt that they would receive a gentler andmore accepting response. This is not to say that women can't be strong. Wejust need to look at Margaret Thatcher and Golda Meir among others.
=
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6349287.stm
Putin attacks 'very dangerous' US
Russian President Vladimir Putin has attacked the United States for what hesaid was its "almost uncontained" use of force around the world.America's "very dangerous" approach to global relations was fuelling anuclear arms race, he told a security summit.
Correspondents say the strident speech may signal a more assertive Russia.
Earlier German chancellor Angela Merkel told the delegates in Munich thatthe international community was determined to stop Iran getting nuclearweapons.
=
New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/business/08cnd-harvard.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Harvard Plans to Name Its First Female President
By ALAN FINDER and SARA RIMER
Harvard University is planning to name the first woman president in its371-year history - Drew Gilpin Faust, a historian who runs a researchinstitute at the university, according to university officials close toselection process.
Dr. Faust's ascension would come a year after Lawrence H. Summers, a formerTreasury secretary, resigned from the post amid fierce faculty discontent.The opposition erupted in part over Dr. Summers suggestion that intrinsicaptitude could help explain why fewer women than men reach the highest ranksof science and math in universities.
Harvard's 30-member Board of Overseers is to meet Sunday and is expected togive her final approval, according to the officials.Dr. Faust is currentlydean of the Radcliffe Institute of Advanced Study, by far the smallest ofHarvard's schools. Much of the research sponsored by the institute, which isnamed after Radcliffe College, once the women's college at Harvard,emphasizes the study of women, gender and society.
=
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6346093.stm
Jerusalem 'tense' after clashes
A tense calm is reported in the Old City of Jerusalem after clashes betweenIsraeli police and Palestinians erupted at a contested holy site.
Dozens of people were hurt when police moved in to quell violent protestsagainst excavation work in the area.
Skirmishes in other parts of the city have also been reported.
The violence flared over the digging work, which protesters say threatensthe foundations of the al-Aqsa mosque - Islam's third holiest site.
The compound containing the mosque is also revered by Jews as the site oftheir biblical temples.
=
Guardian Unlimited
http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,2010086,00.html
Target Iran: US able to strike in the spring
Despite denials, Pentagon plans for possible attack on nuclear sites arewell advanced
Ewen MacAskill in Washington
Saturday February 10, 2007
US preparations for an air strike against Iran are at an advanced stage, inspite of repeated public denials by the Bush administration, according toinformed sources in Washington.
The present military build-up in the Gulf would allow the US to mount anattack by the spring. But the sources said that if there was an attack, itwas more likely next year, just before Mr Bush leaves office.
Neo-conservatives, particularly at the Washington-based American EnterpriseInstitute, are urging Mr Bush to open a new front against Iran. So too isthe vice-president, Dick Cheney. The state department and the Pentagon areopposed, as are Democratic congressmen and the overwhelming majority ofRepublicans. The sources said Mr Bush had not yet made a decision. The Bushadministration insists the military build-up is not offensive but aimed atcontaining Iran and forcing it to make diplomatic concessions. The aim is topersuade Tehran to curb its suspect nuclear weapons programme and abandonambitions for regional expansion.
=
From MoveOn.Org
Dear friend,
Thanks for asking Congress to save public radio and TV once and for all.
Please take a moment to invite your friends and colleagues to sign. You canjust forward the sample letter below.
Spreading the word is critical, but please only pass this message along tothose who know you—spam hurts our campaign.
Thanks for all you do.
–The MoveOn.org Civic Action Team
=
Dear MoveOn member,
Incredible!
Since Thursday afternoon, over 370,017 of us have called on Congress to saveNPR and PBS once and for all. 370,000 of us in 36 hours!
So we're aiming higher. We want to get to 500,000 signers-so Congress has tolisten. But to make that happen, we'll all need to reach out to our friends,family, colleagues and neighbors. This is an issue everyone can agree on: Weneed to keep NPR and PBS strong and independent. President Bush cannot beallowed to slash strong journalism and shows like "Sesame Street."
Can you forward the message below? It just takes a minute or two-but itcould make a big difference. Thanks for an amazing start to this importantcampaign,
-Noah
=
http://www.gaycitynews.com/site/news.asp?brd=2729
PUTIN'S CONTESTED WORDS ON GAYS
An Interview with Russia's Leading Gay Activist
By: DOUG IRELAND
Gay City News, 02/08/2007
Russian President Vladimir Putin last Thursday spoke in public for the firsttime ever about gays - but interpretations diverge about the meaning of whathe said.
At his annual, nationally televised winter press conference February 1,before an audience of hundreds - mostly Russian, but including foreigncorrespondents as well - Putin was asked by a correspondent from AgenceFrance Presse for his opinion about Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov's condemnationof Gay Pride parades as "satanic."
"My approach towards gay parades and sexual minorities is very simple,'Putin replied, according to Reuters. "It is directly linked to myresponsibilities. One of the key problems of our country is the demographicproblem."
At that point, the Reuters report continued, "The auditorium exploded inlaughter and applause. The Kremlin leader quickly added, 'I respect thefreedom of people in all respects. What was the other question?'"
=
BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6346069.stm
Brain scan 'can read your mind'
Brain scans have been developed which it is claimed can predict what aperson is about to do.
German, British and Japanese scientists were able to "read minds" usingsophisticated functional magnetic imaging (fMRI) and computer programs.
Current Biology reported people were asked to think about adding orsubtracting - scientists were able to read intentions in 70% of cases.
A UK expert advised caution, but said such technologies would develop.
We shouldn't go overboard about the power of these technologies at themoment
Professor Colin Blakemore, Medical Research Council
Such techniques could be used to help people who are paralysed - there arealready some steps being taken towards helping people usingcomputer-assisted prosthetic devices linked to computers.
=
Sun-Sentinel.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-ajews08feb08,0,6831139,print.story?coll=sfla-news-sfla
Study boosts number of Jews in the U.S. to high of 6.4 million
By James D. Davis
Religion Editor
February 8, 2007
America is home to almost 20 percent more Jews than previously estimated,according to a study released Wednesday by Brandeis University.
There are 6 million to 6.4 million American Jews, rather than the 5.2million counted by the 2000-01 National Jewish Population Study. Children,young adults and non-Orthodox Jews came in at higher percentages in the newstudy, done by the Massachusetts university's Steinhardt Social ResearchInstitute.
"American Judaism is expanding," Len Saxe, director of the institute, saidWednesday. "The texture may be different, but it's not a melting ice cube,as some have said. Larger numbers identify with their Judaism than had beenthought."
Still another million Americans were raised in Jewish homes, mostly whereone parent was Jewish, "and could be considered Jewish," the Brandeis studyadds.
[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net]
#####
Friday, February 09, 2007
GLBT DIGEST - February 09, 2007
**IF YOU CAN'T ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE, CONTACT US ATrays.list@comcast.net and we'll be happy to send the full article.
=
Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.newsobserver.com/105/story/540759.html
Tension builds in shades of 'Grey'
Scott Collins, Los Angeles Times
HOLLYWOOD - That "Grey's Anatomy" has grown entangled in the IsaiahWashington gay-baiting scandal has to be among the strangest developments ofthis TV season. The many fans of ABC's hospital soap might even dub itMcIronic.
The scandal also has heightened usually unseen tensions among various campsin the black and gay communities.
"The reality," BET host Keith Boykin, who is black and gay, said last week,"is that race is as much a factor at play here as sexuality."
All we know for certain about the "Grey's" dust-up is this: Backstage at theJan. 15 Golden Globes, when series creator Shonda Rhimes was asked about awidely reported on-set altercation last year involving Washington, who playsthoracic surgeon Dr. Preston Burke, the actor unexpectedly strode to themicrophone and said, "No, I did not call T.R. a [slur against gays]. Neverhappened, never happened."
=
Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.topix.net/content/ap/4095610044119768411403100005563870216379?threadid=6RL5I76TJLICL82F
Judge Mulls Suit Over Gay Classroom Talk
The Associated Press
By DENISE LAVOIE
February 07, 2007
Officials from a suburban Massachusetts school district asked a federaljudge Wednesday to dismiss a lawsuit filed by two couples who claim theirparental rights were violated when homosexuality was discussed in theirchildren's classrooms.
U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf did not immediately issue a decision in thecase from Lexington, but peppered lawyers on both sides with questions andsaid he understood the importance of the case to both parents and schooladministrators.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20070207&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=702070694&SectionCat=FRONTPAGE&Template=printart
Feb 7, 2007
Gay community is urged to fight for rights
Shepard's mother at HC
By Richard Nangle TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
rnangle@telegram.com
WORCESTER- Stand up and be counted. Come out of the closet. Organize for gaymarriage.
That is Judy Shepard's message to the gay community, which she says risksmissing out on one of the great civil rights movements of modern timessimply because of its own complacency.
Speaking last night to an overflow crowd of more than 500 in the HoganCampus Center Ballroom at the College of the Holy Cross, Mrs. Shepard saidwhile she is frustrated that sexual orientation has not been added to thefederal hate crimes law, she believes the Democratic takeover of Congressprovides a new opportunity for gay rights activists.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.alternet.org/stories/47679/
The Rise of Christian Fascism and Its Threat to American Democracy
By Chris Hedges, Truthdig
Posted on February 8, 2007, Printed on February 9, 2007
http://www.alternet.org/story/47679/
Dr. James Luther Adams, my ethics professor at Harvard Divinity School, toldhis students that when we were his age -- he was then close to 80 -- wewould all be fighting the "Christian fascists."
The warning, given 25 years ago, came at the moment Pat Robertson and otherradio and television evangelists began speaking about a new politicalreligion that would direct its efforts toward taking control of allinstitutions, including mainstream denominations and the government. Itsstated goal was to use the United States to create a global Christianempire. This call for fundamentalists and evangelicals to take politicalpower was a radical and ominous mutation of traditional Christianity. It washard, at the time, to take such fantastic rhetoric seriously, especiallygiven the buffoonish quality of those who expounded it. But Adams warned usagainst the blindness caused by intellectual snobbery. The Nazis, he said,were not going to return with swastikas and brown shirts. Their ideologicalinheritors had found a mask for fascism in the pages of the Bible.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17033258/
Court weighs same-sex story read to kids
Parents sued when Mass. teacher read 'King and King' at public school
Reuters
Updated: 5:44 a.m. ET Feb 8, 2007
BOSTON - As gay rights supporters and foes gathered outside, a federal courton Wednesday took up the question of whether a Massachusetts town and itsschool district infringed on parents' rights when a teacher read youngstudents a book with a gay theme.
Two Lexington, Mass. families last year filed the suit asserting that thereading of the book "King & King" and the handing out to elementary schoolstudents of other children's books that discussed homosexuality withoutfirst notifying parents was a violation of their religious rights.
"What they fear is their children are being brainwashed," Robert Sinsheimer,who represented the families, told the court in Boston. "It's a form ofpropaganda specifically intended to wipe out their way of life."
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070207/NEWS02/702070338/0/OPINION02&template=printart
Article published Feb 7, 2007
Gay marriage debate to begin at Statehouse
MONTPELIER - Lawmakers are expected to propose a bill today that would allowgay marriage in the state, a move advocates said would put same-sex coupleson a truly equal legal footing.
The proposal is not likely to be nearly as controversial as the state's 2000civil union law, which provided same-sex couples with many of the samebenefits as married couples for the first time in the country. The fightover that law resulted in many tough - and some unsuccessful - re-electionfights for lawmakers who supported the bill.
However, the state should take the next step toward a gay marriage law,similar to the one passed in Massachusetts, said Beth Robinson, chair of theVermont Freedom to Marry Task Force.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6341593.stm
Rights for Colombia gay couples
Homosexual couples in Colombia should have the same property rights as theirheterosexual counterparts, the nation's Constitutional Court has ruled.The decision applies to those who have been living together for two years.
A gay rights group, which had sought the clarification from the court, saidat least 100,000 couples would benefit.
A court source said it did not mean same-sex civil unions - which are partof a bill currently being debated in Congress - had been approved.
'Great step'
The court said the expression "men and women" used in a 1990 law which givesproperty rights to de-facto couples was unconstitutional.
=
Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.topix.net/content/ap/3750042804364713143534513474912336210943?threadid=4MEN4UB0E13SPD1B
'Platoon of lesbians': New York congressman skewers U.S. policy
The Associated Press
By DEVLIN BARRETT
February 07, 2007
A New York congressman on Wednesday jokingly suggested the Bushadministration may fear a 'platoon of lesbians' more than terrorists inBaghdad, given the military's resistance to letting homosexuals openlyserve.
Rep. Gary Ackerman's criticism of Pentagon policy came as Secretary of StateCondoleezza Rice testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
Ackerman, a New York City Democrat, complained to Rice that the military hadfired Arabic and Farsi translators after learning they were gay.
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FortWayne.com
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/16652087.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
Posted on Thu, Feb. 08, 2007
Teen students: Gay and straight together
By Steve Rothaus
McClatchy Newspapers
(MCT)
Kelcie Currier of Tamarac, Fla., says her world changed the day she joinedher high school's gay-straight alliance club.
"Just knowing that there are other kids like me, or who care about the sameissue that I do, it makes me feel great. Less alone. That life is nothopeless," said Kelcie, 17, a junior at J.P. Taravella High in CoralSprings, Fla., who came out as a lesbian about four years ago.
Gay-straight alliances (GSAs) are student-led clubs, usually at high schooland middle schools, that promote respect and address antigay name-calling,bullying and harassment. Spectrum, the Taravella club, is one of more than3,000 GSAs nationally.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/health/fitness/Sports/020907sports.htm
What 'Man In The Middle' Says To Younger Jocks And The Rest Of Us
by Cyd Zeigler Jr., Outsports.com
had been waiting for over a year to read John Amaechi's book, "Man In TheMiddle". My expectations had been rising for 52 weeks and I was anticipatinga juicy gay tell-all book with some basketball thrown in. I got all that andthen some.
"Man in the Middle" is a gripping tale of one man's difficult struggle tostay afloat in a sports league an ocean away from his home. While many toppro-sports stars, who coasted with a safety net most of their careers, havewritten best-sellers with tips on how to get to the pinnacle of sports,Amaechi and co-author Chris Bull have crafted a roller-coaster story ofstruggle that goes much deeper than simply being a gay man in the NBA.
The book is unmistakably the story of John Amaechi. It begins with hischildhood, following his mother as a toddler back to England from his Bostonbirthplace to escape his father. Maybe most importantly, the book givesgreat insight into Amaechi's deep-seated dedication to helping kids. As anoverweight, 6-foot-10 black man in England, he stood out like a BostonCeltics fan in L.A. in the '80s; And he was ridiculed as such, withmerciless kids referring to him as the "whale."
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807nba.htm
Reaction From Players, Coaches To Amaechi's Coming Out Mainly Positive
by The Associated Press
Posted: February 8, 2007 - 11:00 am ET
(Boston, Massachusetts) Sure, Doc Rivers heard whispers about John Amaechi'ssexuality when they were both in Orlando. But here's what the former Magiccoach knew for sure: Amaechi was a good scorer, a decent rebounder, a littlebit of a defensive liability and "a fantastic kid."
"He's better than a good kid; he's a fantastic kid," Rivers said Wednesdaynight after learning that Amaechi acknowledged he is gay. "John Amaechi,when I was coaching him, was a great kid. He did as much charity work asanybody in our city, and he's still doing it. That's what I wish we focusedon.
"Unfortunately, we're talking about his sexual orientation, which I couldn'tcare a flying flip about."
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807edwards.htm
Edwards' Gay-Positive Bloggers Apologize
by The Associated Press
Posted: February 8, 2007 - 1:00 pm ET
(Washington) Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards said Thursday hewas personally offended by the provocative messages two of his campaignbloggers wrote criticizing the Catholic church, but he's not firing them.
Edwards issued a written statement about the fate of Amanda Marcotte andMelissa McEwen, two days after the head of the conservative Catholic Leaguefor Religious and Civil Rights demanded they be fired for messages theywrote before working on the campaign. (story)
The campaign distributed written apologies from the two women, who stressedthey were writing on personal blogs and not on behalf of the campaign.Edwards said he believes in giving everyone a "fair shake."
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Advocate.com
http://advocate.com/print_article_ektid41863.asp
February 09, 2007
Canadian immigration board denies asylum to gay runaway from Nicaragua
The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada has refused to grant a gayrunaway from Nicaragua asylum because they do not believe he is gay. AlvaroAntonio Orozco, who ran away from his home country when he was 12, washoping to find sanctuary from the abuse he endured from his family becauseof his sexuality, reports The [Toronto] Globe and Mail.
"My father called me 'marica' [an antigay slur] and told me he would beat itout of me," Orozco, now 21, told the paper.
IRB member Deborah Lamont heard Orozco’s case via videoconference butconcluded that she did not believe Orozco was gay. She said her reason wasthat Orozco was not sexually active as a teenager and that he also did notspecify his sexuality when he left Nicaragua.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807italy.htm
Italian Cabinet OK Civil Partnership Bill
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: February 8, 2007 - 3:00 pm ET
(Rome) The cabinet of Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi on Thursdayapproved legislation creating civil unions for gay and lesbian couples.
The bill is expected to be presented to Parliament later this month but itspassage is far from certain. Prodi's left of center coalition has a razorthin majority and the the opposition right of center coalition, led bySilvio Berlusconi and aligned with the Vatican, is opposed to the measure.
That Prodi was able to secure cabinet approval is considered a majoraccomplishment. A loose coalition of nine small parties, his government hasbeen grappling with civil partnerships for moths. Communists on the the farleft of the coalition have been pressing for full marriage. The tiny UDEURParty is opposed to any legislation.
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Advocate.com
http://advocate.com/print_article_ektid41909.asp
February 09, 2007
Colombia court orders property rights for gay couples
Colombia's constitutional court ruled Wednesday that same-sex couples shouldhave the same property rights as straight couples. The landmark decisionwill apply to those couples who have lived together for a minimum of twoyears.
The court concluded that the expression "men and women" used in a 1990 law,granting property rights only to straight couples, was unconstitutional.
Gay rights group Colombia Diversa claimed that at least 100,000 coupleswould benefit from the new legislation.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807unions.htm
Problems Arise In NJ Civil Unions Form
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: February 9, 2007 - 12:01 am ET
(Trenton, New Jersey) With just over a week before same-sex couples in NewJersey can begin applying for civil union licenses the state has begundistributing to local clerks the forms to be used and LGBT rights groups arenot happy with the wording.
Garden State Equality and the American Civil Liberties Union in a letter tostate authorities say same-sex couples are being asked more probingquestions than are opposite-sex couples applying for marriage licenses.
"Currently, the proposed Application for Civil Union/Reaffirmation of CivilUnion License form requires much more information of an applicant than doesa marriage application form; yet the State has just as much interest inknowing whether a partner to a heterosexual marriage has previously been in,or still is in, a civil union or domestic partnership, and knowing if aperson seeking a civil union has previously been married," the letter says.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/entertainment/news-gossip/020907shownews.htm
Is Rant Rehab Real Remorse Or Just Damage Control?
by John Rogers, Associated Press
(Hollywood, California) It used to be that celebrities sought treatment forthings they put into their mouths. Now it's for things that come out ofthem.
Michael Richards warmly regarded for his oddball Kramer character on"Seinfeld," began psychiatric counseling to control his anger just daysafter unleashing a racist tirade against black patrons at a comedy club.More recently, "Grey's Anatomy" star Isaiah Washington said he would seekhelp after receiving a torrent of negative publicity for using a gay slur.
"With the support of my family and friends, I have begun counseling,"Washington announced after admitting, then denying, then admitting once andfor all that he used the invective last fall when referring to fellow castmember T.R. Knight, who soon after declared he is gay.
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020802047_pf.html
Lutheran Panel Votes to Expel Gay Minister
By Alan Cooperman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, February 9, 2007; A05
A disciplinary committee of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ruledyesterday that a gay pastor in Atlanta must give up his pulpit, saying itwas reluctantly enforcing a "bad policy."
Following a five-day church trial last month, seven of the committee's 12members voted to remove the Rev. Bradley E. Schmeling, 44, from the clergyas of Aug. 15.
The committee set that date to give the denomination an opportunity toreconsider its policies on homosexuality at its next churchwide assembly,Aug. 6-12 in Chicago. Activists on both sides of the issue predict thatSchmeling's case will stir vigorous debate at the Chicago session.
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020801047_pf.html
Schools Picked to Pilot Sex-Ed Lessons
By Daniel de Vise
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, February 9, 2007; B02
Montgomery County school Superintendent Jerry D. Weast yesterday named sixschools that will be the first in the county to introduce the topics ofsexual orientation to students, an effort three citizen groups are fighting.
The county's new sex-education lessons, approved by the school board lastmonth, will be introduced in field tests next month at Argyle Middle Schoolin Silver Spring, Julius West Middle in Rockville, Westland Middle inBethesda, Bethesda-Chevy Chase High, Sherwood High in Sandy Spring andWatkins Mill High in Gaithersburg.
Should the pilot program go forward, it would mark the first time sexualorientation has been addressed directly in eighth- and 10th-grade countyhealth classes. Current curriculum allows teachers to broach the topic onlyin response to student inquiries.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807pastFolo.htm
Gays Find Silver Lining In Pastor Verdict
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: February 8, 2007 - 5:00 pm ET
(Atlanta) Despite a ruling by an the Evangelical Lutheran Churchecclesiastic court that an openly gay Atlanta pastor who told his bishopthat he is in a same-sex relationship be removed from the clergy the panelthat made up the court calls the policy barring clergy in gay relationshipsdiscriminatory and possibly a violation of the church's own constitution.
The Rev. Bradley E. Schmeling, who had the support of parishioners at St.John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Atlanta, learned his fate Thursday.(story)
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070207/NEWS02/702070338/1003/NEWS02
The Times Argus
February 7, 2007
By Louis Porter Vermont Press Bureau
Gay marriage debate to begin at Statehouse
MONTPELIER - Lawmakers are expected to propose a bill today that would allowgay marriage in the state, a move advocates said would put same-sex coupleson a truly equal legal footing.
The proposal is not likely to be nearly as controversial as the state's 2000civil union law, which provided same-sex couples with many of the samebenefits as married couples for the first time in the country. The fightover that law resulted in many tough - and some unsuccessful - re-electionfights for lawmakers who supported the bill.
However, the state should take the next step toward a gay marriage law,similar to the one passed in Massachusetts, said Beth Robinson, chair of theVermont Freedom to Marry Task Force.
=
Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
Montel Williams Show: Abomination, AGLP Reparative TherapyDocumentary
Alicia Salzer says:
The episode airs on Tuesday February 20th, you will have to check locallistings but in NYC it is at 11AM on channel 9. You can also go to ourwebsite www.montelshow.com and look under the tab "where to watch" to findout local times in your city.
Meanwhile if you want to see the film in its entirety. you can purchase itby going to the website of the Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists(www.aglp.org) and then clicking on the link to "Educational DVD's availablefrom AGLP."
Thank you all for your support and be sure to tune in to Montel on Feb20th!!
=
Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/orl-myword0707feb07,0,3516026.story?coll=orl-opinion-headlines
Orlando Sentinel
Bill Maier |
Posted February 7, 2007
Gay adoption law: An opposing view
In criticizing Florida's law banning gay adoption and Focus on the Family'ssupport of that law, Sentinel columnist Mike Thomas rustles up a bushel ofapples to compare to our oranges ("It's Time to Do the Right Thing on GayAdoption," Jan. 30).
Our point is a macro one: Public policy on matters such as same-sex marriageand adoption must be based on what's best for all of society.
Thomas' point is a micro one, citing one admittedly tragic story to justifythe institutionalization of a radical social experiment that could havedisastrous effects for millions of children.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://activerain.com/blogsview/42951/Do-gay-communities-violate
<file:///blogsview/42951/Do-gay-communities-violate>
Do gay communities violate Fair Housing?
This post s based on a recent article by Amy Sullivan. If you are afull-time Realtor and haven't thought about this type of housing question,know that it is just a matter of time before you will be faced with havingto consider it.
With only 17 states protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgenderhomebuyers from discrimination, developers and other real estate pros arefinding ways to accommodate the population by sprouting "targeted"communities and Realtor "specialty" groups. But is this new way ofprotecting one class actually discriminating against another? Read on tofind out what one developer had to say about his proposed gay community inBoston and how agents should do business when faced with a local FairHousing battle of wills.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.townonline.com/cambridge/opinion/8998949036962611199
Cambridge Chronicle
By Polyxane Cobb
Wednesday, February 07, 2007 - Updated: 11:26 AM EST
Same-sex marriage debate should be left to the law
Elizabeth Harmer-Dionne ("The Right View") is in error when she describesthe ruling of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) in Goodridge v.Department of Public Health. Massachusetts does not have same-sex marriagebecause "four members of the SJC decided that we should." What we have inMassachusetts is marriage available to couples who wish to enter that state,whatever their gender. The SJC decision held the state Constitution did notpermit discrimination, in this case, gender discrimination, in marriage. Itis compatible with earlier findings that people of different races had theright to marry. Ms. Harmer-Dionne may not be comfortable with the fact thatpeople of the samegender are attracted to each other and wish to live together in marriage,but why should her discomfort dictate their access to this fundamentalsocial contract?
The Massachusetts Constitution says that the commonwealth may not provideprivileges that are exclusive to one group. Those that petitioned the SJCfor access to marriage did so on that basis. The state provides economicprotections and privileges to married couples that it does not provide tounmarried couples. Since civil marriage is an economic arrangement betweenthe state and the couple, providing those benefits to certain couples, butnot all couples, is discrimination.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200703/tim-gill
Atlantic Monthly profile of Tim Gill
The Atlantic Monthly
March 2007
(The software mogul Tim Gill has a mission: Stop the Rick Santorums oftomorrow before they get started. How a network of gay political donors isstealthily fighting sexual discrimination and reshaping American politics)
They Won't Know What Hit Them
by Joshua Green
A tough loss can be hard to swallow, and plenty of defeated politicians havebeen known to grumble about sinister conspiracies. When they are risingstars like Danny Carroll, the Republican speaker pro tempore of Iowa's Houseof Representatives, and the loss is unexpected, the urge to blame unseenforces can be even stronger--and in Carroll's case, it would have theadditional distinction of being justified. Carroll was among the dozens oftargets of a group of rich gay philanthropists who quietly joined forceslast year, under the leadership of a reclusive Colorado technology mogul, tocounter the tide of antigay politics in America that has generated, amongother things, a succession of state ballot initiatives banning gay marriage.Carroll had sponsored such a bill in Iowa and guided it to passage in thestate House of Representatives, the first step toward getting it on theballot.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
MA: Editorial--Marriage issue wed to Mass. politics
http://media.www.tuftsdaily.com/media/storage/paper856/news/2007/02/07/Editorial/Marriage.Issue.Wed.To.Mass.Politics-2702146.shtml?sourcedomain=www.tuftsdaily.com&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com
The Tufts Daily
2/7/07
Editorial--Marriage issue wed to Mass. politics
With the 2006 campaign behind us, issues for future campaigns are beginningto emerge. The future of Massachusetts' experiment with same-sex marriagewill make the commonwealth a nationwide leader on another cutting-edgeissue.
Massachusetts has a long history of being the first to enact legislation therest of the nation soon adopts. From the first constitution in the UnitedStates in 1780 to the first minimum wage in 1912, the state has a history ofblazing trails that soon become part of the nation's political fabric.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070207/COLUMNIST13
/702070443
Herald Tribune
February 07. 2007 6:51AM
Guest columnist
LEGALIZING GAY MARRIAGE
Laws that could help children
Gilbert Cranberg, a part-time resident of Longboat Key, is former editor ofThe Des Moines Register's editorial pages.
FL: Opinion--LEGALIZING GAY MARRIAGE; Laws that could help children
Vice president Richard Cheney became especially testy during a recentinterview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer when the subject turned to the pregnancyof Cheney's unmarried daughter, Mary. Twice, Cheney bluntly told Blitzer,"You're out of line" when Blitzer asked the vice president to respond toconservative critics of Mary Cheney's decision to "conceive a child outsideof the relationship of a married mother and father."
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Tackling anti-gay bullying at work - new Stonewall guide to help employers
Stonewall has launched a new guide aimed at dealing with the bullying andharassment of lesbian and gay employees. Bullying: preventing the bullyingand harassment of gay employees, the third in Stonewall’s Workplace Guideseries, offers clear and practical advice on how to tackle anti-gay bullyingand harassment at work.
The guide is published in the week that a gay man secured £17,000 incompensation from his employers, Parkam Foods, after the Yorkshire-basedfirm failed to tackle homophobic harassment in the workplace. Supported byUBS investment bank, Preventing the Bullying and Harassment of Gay Employeesis aimed at managers and HR professionals who want to maintain a workingenvironment free from discrimination.
The guide explains the difficulties gay employees can face when reportingbullying and looks at the ways in which employers can deal with the problemof anti-gay bulling and harassment at work. It also features practicalexamples of good practice currently being developed by a range of Stonewall’spartner organisations including BT, Accenture, Manchester City Council, theRoyal Navy and Barnado’s.
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The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020802247_pf.html
Sexuality Disclosed, Ignorance Exposed
By Michael Wilbon
Friday, February 9, 2007; E01
Just as it would be a relief to arrive at the place in time when the colorof the coaches in the Super Bowl matters not one bit, it would be fabulousto reach the day when a male athlete in a team sport doesn't have to worryabout the reaction of declaring his homosexuality.
But that day isn't here just yet, as we found out this week now that JohnAmaechi has become the first former NBA player to publicly say he's gay. Thereaction to Amaechi's announcement in advance of his soon-to-be-releasedautobiography, "Man in the Middle," is all over the place, from appropriateindifference to utterances that border on homophobic to, well, stockignorance
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.gay.com/content/tools/print.html?coll=news_articles&sernum=2007/02/07/2&navpath=channels/news
Solo Atlantic row aims to raise black HIV awareness
published Wednesday, February 7, 2007
An AIDS activist plans to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean later this yearto draw attention to the high rate of HIV in the U.S. black community.Victor Mooney's first attempt two years ago ended less than two hours afterhe started from the coast of Senegal when his boat leaked. But he says he isbetter prepared now and determined to succeed.
"It's important that I continue this quest, because this disease ispreventable," he said Wednesday, also National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
He has lost a brother to AIDS, and another brother has HIV.
Mooney, 41, wants to be the first black person to row solo across theAtlantic. He plans to follow the trans-Atlantic slave trade route thatbrought blacks to the Americas from Africa and to connect the plight of AIDSin the two continents.
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http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0706,sutton,75759,9.html
Link to cartoon: Mary Cheney's Non-Political Baby Shower
[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net]
#####
=
Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.newsobserver.com/105/story/540759.html
Tension builds in shades of 'Grey'
Scott Collins, Los Angeles Times
HOLLYWOOD - That "Grey's Anatomy" has grown entangled in the IsaiahWashington gay-baiting scandal has to be among the strangest developments ofthis TV season. The many fans of ABC's hospital soap might even dub itMcIronic.
The scandal also has heightened usually unseen tensions among various campsin the black and gay communities.
"The reality," BET host Keith Boykin, who is black and gay, said last week,"is that race is as much a factor at play here as sexuality."
All we know for certain about the "Grey's" dust-up is this: Backstage at theJan. 15 Golden Globes, when series creator Shonda Rhimes was asked about awidely reported on-set altercation last year involving Washington, who playsthoracic surgeon Dr. Preston Burke, the actor unexpectedly strode to themicrophone and said, "No, I did not call T.R. a [slur against gays]. Neverhappened, never happened."
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.topix.net/content/ap/4095610044119768411403100005563870216379?threadid=6RL5I76TJLICL82F
Judge Mulls Suit Over Gay Classroom Talk
The Associated Press
By DENISE LAVOIE
February 07, 2007
Officials from a suburban Massachusetts school district asked a federaljudge Wednesday to dismiss a lawsuit filed by two couples who claim theirparental rights were violated when homosexuality was discussed in theirchildren's classrooms.
U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf did not immediately issue a decision in thecase from Lexington, but peppered lawyers on both sides with questions andsaid he understood the importance of the case to both parents and schooladministrators.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
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dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20070207&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=702070694&SectionCat=FRONTPAGE&Template=printart
Feb 7, 2007
Gay community is urged to fight for rights
Shepard's mother at HC
By Richard Nangle TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
rnangle@telegram.com
WORCESTER- Stand up and be counted. Come out of the closet. Organize for gaymarriage.
That is Judy Shepard's message to the gay community, which she says risksmissing out on one of the great civil rights movements of modern timessimply because of its own complacency.
Speaking last night to an overflow crowd of more than 500 in the HoganCampus Center Ballroom at the College of the Holy Cross, Mrs. Shepard saidwhile she is frustrated that sexual orientation has not been added to thefederal hate crimes law, she believes the Democratic takeover of Congressprovides a new opportunity for gay rights activists.
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http://www.alternet.org/stories/47679/
The Rise of Christian Fascism and Its Threat to American Democracy
By Chris Hedges, Truthdig
Posted on February 8, 2007, Printed on February 9, 2007
http://www.alternet.org/story/47679/
Dr. James Luther Adams, my ethics professor at Harvard Divinity School, toldhis students that when we were his age -- he was then close to 80 -- wewould all be fighting the "Christian fascists."
The warning, given 25 years ago, came at the moment Pat Robertson and otherradio and television evangelists began speaking about a new politicalreligion that would direct its efforts toward taking control of allinstitutions, including mainstream denominations and the government. Itsstated goal was to use the United States to create a global Christianempire. This call for fundamentalists and evangelicals to take politicalpower was a radical and ominous mutation of traditional Christianity. It washard, at the time, to take such fantastic rhetoric seriously, especiallygiven the buffoonish quality of those who expounded it. But Adams warned usagainst the blindness caused by intellectual snobbery. The Nazis, he said,were not going to return with swastikas and brown shirts. Their ideologicalinheritors had found a mask for fascism in the pages of the Bible.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
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http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17033258/
Court weighs same-sex story read to kids
Parents sued when Mass. teacher read 'King and King' at public school
Reuters
Updated: 5:44 a.m. ET Feb 8, 2007
BOSTON - As gay rights supporters and foes gathered outside, a federal courton Wednesday took up the question of whether a Massachusetts town and itsschool district infringed on parents' rights when a teacher read youngstudents a book with a gay theme.
Two Lexington, Mass. families last year filed the suit asserting that thereading of the book "King & King" and the handing out to elementary schoolstudents of other children's books that discussed homosexuality withoutfirst notifying parents was a violation of their religious rights.
"What they fear is their children are being brainwashed," Robert Sinsheimer,who represented the families, told the court in Boston. "It's a form ofpropaganda specifically intended to wipe out their way of life."
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http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070207/NEWS02/702070338/0/OPINION02&template=printart
Article published Feb 7, 2007
Gay marriage debate to begin at Statehouse
MONTPELIER - Lawmakers are expected to propose a bill today that would allowgay marriage in the state, a move advocates said would put same-sex coupleson a truly equal legal footing.
The proposal is not likely to be nearly as controversial as the state's 2000civil union law, which provided same-sex couples with many of the samebenefits as married couples for the first time in the country. The fightover that law resulted in many tough - and some unsuccessful - re-electionfights for lawmakers who supported the bill.
However, the state should take the next step toward a gay marriage law,similar to the one passed in Massachusetts, said Beth Robinson, chair of theVermont Freedom to Marry Task Force.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6341593.stm
Rights for Colombia gay couples
Homosexual couples in Colombia should have the same property rights as theirheterosexual counterparts, the nation's Constitutional Court has ruled.The decision applies to those who have been living together for two years.
A gay rights group, which had sought the clarification from the court, saidat least 100,000 couples would benefit.
A court source said it did not mean same-sex civil unions - which are partof a bill currently being debated in Congress - had been approved.
'Great step'
The court said the expression "men and women" used in a 1990 law which givesproperty rights to de-facto couples was unconstitutional.
=
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http://www.topix.net/content/ap/3750042804364713143534513474912336210943?threadid=4MEN4UB0E13SPD1B
'Platoon of lesbians': New York congressman skewers U.S. policy
The Associated Press
By DEVLIN BARRETT
February 07, 2007
A New York congressman on Wednesday jokingly suggested the Bushadministration may fear a 'platoon of lesbians' more than terrorists inBaghdad, given the military's resistance to letting homosexuals openlyserve.
Rep. Gary Ackerman's criticism of Pentagon policy came as Secretary of StateCondoleezza Rice testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
Ackerman, a New York City Democrat, complained to Rice that the military hadfired Arabic and Farsi translators after learning they were gay.
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FortWayne.com
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/16652087.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
Posted on Thu, Feb. 08, 2007
Teen students: Gay and straight together
By Steve Rothaus
McClatchy Newspapers
(MCT)
Kelcie Currier of Tamarac, Fla., says her world changed the day she joinedher high school's gay-straight alliance club.
"Just knowing that there are other kids like me, or who care about the sameissue that I do, it makes me feel great. Less alone. That life is nothopeless," said Kelcie, 17, a junior at J.P. Taravella High in CoralSprings, Fla., who came out as a lesbian about four years ago.
Gay-straight alliances (GSAs) are student-led clubs, usually at high schooland middle schools, that promote respect and address antigay name-calling,bullying and harassment. Spectrum, the Taravella club, is one of more than3,000 GSAs nationally.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/health/fitness/Sports/020907sports.htm
What 'Man In The Middle' Says To Younger Jocks And The Rest Of Us
by Cyd Zeigler Jr., Outsports.com
had been waiting for over a year to read John Amaechi's book, "Man In TheMiddle". My expectations had been rising for 52 weeks and I was anticipatinga juicy gay tell-all book with some basketball thrown in. I got all that andthen some.
"Man in the Middle" is a gripping tale of one man's difficult struggle tostay afloat in a sports league an ocean away from his home. While many toppro-sports stars, who coasted with a safety net most of their careers, havewritten best-sellers with tips on how to get to the pinnacle of sports,Amaechi and co-author Chris Bull have crafted a roller-coaster story ofstruggle that goes much deeper than simply being a gay man in the NBA.
The book is unmistakably the story of John Amaechi. It begins with hischildhood, following his mother as a toddler back to England from his Bostonbirthplace to escape his father. Maybe most importantly, the book givesgreat insight into Amaechi's deep-seated dedication to helping kids. As anoverweight, 6-foot-10 black man in England, he stood out like a BostonCeltics fan in L.A. in the '80s; And he was ridiculed as such, withmerciless kids referring to him as the "whale."
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807nba.htm
Reaction From Players, Coaches To Amaechi's Coming Out Mainly Positive
by The Associated Press
Posted: February 8, 2007 - 11:00 am ET
(Boston, Massachusetts) Sure, Doc Rivers heard whispers about John Amaechi'ssexuality when they were both in Orlando. But here's what the former Magiccoach knew for sure: Amaechi was a good scorer, a decent rebounder, a littlebit of a defensive liability and "a fantastic kid."
"He's better than a good kid; he's a fantastic kid," Rivers said Wednesdaynight after learning that Amaechi acknowledged he is gay. "John Amaechi,when I was coaching him, was a great kid. He did as much charity work asanybody in our city, and he's still doing it. That's what I wish we focusedon.
"Unfortunately, we're talking about his sexual orientation, which I couldn'tcare a flying flip about."
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807edwards.htm
Edwards' Gay-Positive Bloggers Apologize
by The Associated Press
Posted: February 8, 2007 - 1:00 pm ET
(Washington) Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards said Thursday hewas personally offended by the provocative messages two of his campaignbloggers wrote criticizing the Catholic church, but he's not firing them.
Edwards issued a written statement about the fate of Amanda Marcotte andMelissa McEwen, two days after the head of the conservative Catholic Leaguefor Religious and Civil Rights demanded they be fired for messages theywrote before working on the campaign. (story)
The campaign distributed written apologies from the two women, who stressedthey were writing on personal blogs and not on behalf of the campaign.Edwards said he believes in giving everyone a "fair shake."
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Advocate.com
http://advocate.com/print_article_ektid41863.asp
February 09, 2007
Canadian immigration board denies asylum to gay runaway from Nicaragua
The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada has refused to grant a gayrunaway from Nicaragua asylum because they do not believe he is gay. AlvaroAntonio Orozco, who ran away from his home country when he was 12, washoping to find sanctuary from the abuse he endured from his family becauseof his sexuality, reports The [Toronto] Globe and Mail.
"My father called me 'marica' [an antigay slur] and told me he would beat itout of me," Orozco, now 21, told the paper.
IRB member Deborah Lamont heard Orozco’s case via videoconference butconcluded that she did not believe Orozco was gay. She said her reason wasthat Orozco was not sexually active as a teenager and that he also did notspecify his sexuality when he left Nicaragua.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807italy.htm
Italian Cabinet OK Civil Partnership Bill
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: February 8, 2007 - 3:00 pm ET
(Rome) The cabinet of Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi on Thursdayapproved legislation creating civil unions for gay and lesbian couples.
The bill is expected to be presented to Parliament later this month but itspassage is far from certain. Prodi's left of center coalition has a razorthin majority and the the opposition right of center coalition, led bySilvio Berlusconi and aligned with the Vatican, is opposed to the measure.
That Prodi was able to secure cabinet approval is considered a majoraccomplishment. A loose coalition of nine small parties, his government hasbeen grappling with civil partnerships for moths. Communists on the the farleft of the coalition have been pressing for full marriage. The tiny UDEURParty is opposed to any legislation.
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Advocate.com
http://advocate.com/print_article_ektid41909.asp
February 09, 2007
Colombia court orders property rights for gay couples
Colombia's constitutional court ruled Wednesday that same-sex couples shouldhave the same property rights as straight couples. The landmark decisionwill apply to those couples who have lived together for a minimum of twoyears.
The court concluded that the expression "men and women" used in a 1990 law,granting property rights only to straight couples, was unconstitutional.
Gay rights group Colombia Diversa claimed that at least 100,000 coupleswould benefit from the new legislation.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807unions.htm
Problems Arise In NJ Civil Unions Form
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: February 9, 2007 - 12:01 am ET
(Trenton, New Jersey) With just over a week before same-sex couples in NewJersey can begin applying for civil union licenses the state has begundistributing to local clerks the forms to be used and LGBT rights groups arenot happy with the wording.
Garden State Equality and the American Civil Liberties Union in a letter tostate authorities say same-sex couples are being asked more probingquestions than are opposite-sex couples applying for marriage licenses.
"Currently, the proposed Application for Civil Union/Reaffirmation of CivilUnion License form requires much more information of an applicant than doesa marriage application form; yet the State has just as much interest inknowing whether a partner to a heterosexual marriage has previously been in,or still is in, a civil union or domestic partnership, and knowing if aperson seeking a civil union has previously been married," the letter says.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/entertainment/news-gossip/020907shownews.htm
Is Rant Rehab Real Remorse Or Just Damage Control?
by John Rogers, Associated Press
(Hollywood, California) It used to be that celebrities sought treatment forthings they put into their mouths. Now it's for things that come out ofthem.
Michael Richards warmly regarded for his oddball Kramer character on"Seinfeld," began psychiatric counseling to control his anger just daysafter unleashing a racist tirade against black patrons at a comedy club.More recently, "Grey's Anatomy" star Isaiah Washington said he would seekhelp after receiving a torrent of negative publicity for using a gay slur.
"With the support of my family and friends, I have begun counseling,"Washington announced after admitting, then denying, then admitting once andfor all that he used the invective last fall when referring to fellow castmember T.R. Knight, who soon after declared he is gay.
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The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020802047_pf.html
Lutheran Panel Votes to Expel Gay Minister
By Alan Cooperman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, February 9, 2007; A05
A disciplinary committee of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ruledyesterday that a gay pastor in Atlanta must give up his pulpit, saying itwas reluctantly enforcing a "bad policy."
Following a five-day church trial last month, seven of the committee's 12members voted to remove the Rev. Bradley E. Schmeling, 44, from the clergyas of Aug. 15.
The committee set that date to give the denomination an opportunity toreconsider its policies on homosexuality at its next churchwide assembly,Aug. 6-12 in Chicago. Activists on both sides of the issue predict thatSchmeling's case will stir vigorous debate at the Chicago session.
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The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020801047_pf.html
Schools Picked to Pilot Sex-Ed Lessons
By Daniel de Vise
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, February 9, 2007; B02
Montgomery County school Superintendent Jerry D. Weast yesterday named sixschools that will be the first in the county to introduce the topics ofsexual orientation to students, an effort three citizen groups are fighting.
The county's new sex-education lessons, approved by the school board lastmonth, will be introduced in field tests next month at Argyle Middle Schoolin Silver Spring, Julius West Middle in Rockville, Westland Middle inBethesda, Bethesda-Chevy Chase High, Sherwood High in Sandy Spring andWatkins Mill High in Gaithersburg.
Should the pilot program go forward, it would mark the first time sexualorientation has been addressed directly in eighth- and 10th-grade countyhealth classes. Current curriculum allows teachers to broach the topic onlyin response to student inquiries.
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365Gay
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/02/020807pastFolo.htm
Gays Find Silver Lining In Pastor Verdict
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: February 8, 2007 - 5:00 pm ET
(Atlanta) Despite a ruling by an the Evangelical Lutheran Churchecclesiastic court that an openly gay Atlanta pastor who told his bishopthat he is in a same-sex relationship be removed from the clergy the panelthat made up the court calls the policy barring clergy in gay relationshipsdiscriminatory and possibly a violation of the church's own constitution.
The Rev. Bradley E. Schmeling, who had the support of parishioners at St.John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Atlanta, learned his fate Thursday.(story)
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070207/NEWS02/702070338/1003/NEWS02
The Times Argus
February 7, 2007
By Louis Porter Vermont Press Bureau
Gay marriage debate to begin at Statehouse
MONTPELIER - Lawmakers are expected to propose a bill today that would allowgay marriage in the state, a move advocates said would put same-sex coupleson a truly equal legal footing.
The proposal is not likely to be nearly as controversial as the state's 2000civil union law, which provided same-sex couples with many of the samebenefits as married couples for the first time in the country. The fightover that law resulted in many tough - and some unsuccessful - re-electionfights for lawmakers who supported the bill.
However, the state should take the next step toward a gay marriage law,similar to the one passed in Massachusetts, said Beth Robinson, chair of theVermont Freedom to Marry Task Force.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
Montel Williams Show: Abomination, AGLP Reparative TherapyDocumentary
Alicia Salzer says:
The episode airs on Tuesday February 20th, you will have to check locallistings but in NYC it is at 11AM on channel 9. You can also go to ourwebsite www.montelshow.com and look under the tab "where to watch" to findout local times in your city.
Meanwhile if you want to see the film in its entirety. you can purchase itby going to the website of the Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists(www.aglp.org) and then clicking on the link to "Educational DVD's availablefrom AGLP."
Thank you all for your support and be sure to tune in to Montel on Feb20th!!
=
Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/orl-myword0707feb07,0,3516026.story?coll=orl-opinion-headlines
Orlando Sentinel
Bill Maier |
Posted February 7, 2007
Gay adoption law: An opposing view
In criticizing Florida's law banning gay adoption and Focus on the Family'ssupport of that law, Sentinel columnist Mike Thomas rustles up a bushel ofapples to compare to our oranges ("It's Time to Do the Right Thing on GayAdoption," Jan. 30).
Our point is a macro one: Public policy on matters such as same-sex marriageand adoption must be based on what's best for all of society.
Thomas' point is a micro one, citing one admittedly tragic story to justifythe institutionalization of a radical social experiment that could havedisastrous effects for millions of children.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
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kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://activerain.com/blogsview/42951/Do-gay-communities-violate
<file:///blogsview/42951/Do-gay-communities-violate>
Do gay communities violate Fair Housing?
This post s based on a recent article by Amy Sullivan. If you are afull-time Realtor and haven't thought about this type of housing question,know that it is just a matter of time before you will be faced with havingto consider it.
With only 17 states protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgenderhomebuyers from discrimination, developers and other real estate pros arefinding ways to accommodate the population by sprouting "targeted"communities and Realtor "specialty" groups. But is this new way ofprotecting one class actually discriminating against another? Read on tofind out what one developer had to say about his proposed gay community inBoston and how agents should do business when faced with a local FairHousing battle of wills.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.townonline.com/cambridge/opinion/8998949036962611199
Cambridge Chronicle
By Polyxane Cobb
Wednesday, February 07, 2007 - Updated: 11:26 AM EST
Same-sex marriage debate should be left to the law
Elizabeth Harmer-Dionne ("The Right View") is in error when she describesthe ruling of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) in Goodridge v.Department of Public Health. Massachusetts does not have same-sex marriagebecause "four members of the SJC decided that we should." What we have inMassachusetts is marriage available to couples who wish to enter that state,whatever their gender. The SJC decision held the state Constitution did notpermit discrimination, in this case, gender discrimination, in marriage. Itis compatible with earlier findings that people of different races had theright to marry. Ms. Harmer-Dionne may not be comfortable with the fact thatpeople of the samegender are attracted to each other and wish to live together in marriage,but why should her discomfort dictate their access to this fundamentalsocial contract?
The Massachusetts Constitution says that the commonwealth may not provideprivileges that are exclusive to one group. Those that petitioned the SJCfor access to marriage did so on that basis. The state provides economicprotections and privileges to married couples that it does not provide tounmarried couples. Since civil marriage is an economic arrangement betweenthe state and the couple, providing those benefits to certain couples, butnot all couples, is discrimination.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200703/tim-gill
Atlantic Monthly profile of Tim Gill
The Atlantic Monthly
March 2007
(The software mogul Tim Gill has a mission: Stop the Rick Santorums oftomorrow before they get started. How a network of gay political donors isstealthily fighting sexual discrimination and reshaping American politics)
They Won't Know What Hit Them
by Joshua Green
A tough loss can be hard to swallow, and plenty of defeated politicians havebeen known to grumble about sinister conspiracies. When they are risingstars like Danny Carroll, the Republican speaker pro tempore of Iowa's Houseof Representatives, and the loss is unexpected, the urge to blame unseenforces can be even stronger--and in Carroll's case, it would have theadditional distinction of being justified. Carroll was among the dozens oftargets of a group of rich gay philanthropists who quietly joined forceslast year, under the leadership of a reclusive Colorado technology mogul, tocounter the tide of antigay politics in America that has generated, amongother things, a succession of state ballot initiatives banning gay marriage.Carroll had sponsored such a bill in Iowa and guided it to passage in thestate House of Representatives, the first step toward getting it on theballot.
=
Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
MA: Editorial--Marriage issue wed to Mass. politics
http://media.www.tuftsdaily.com/media/storage/paper856/news/2007/02/07/Editorial/Marriage.Issue.Wed.To.Mass.Politics-2702146.shtml?sourcedomain=www.tuftsdaily.com&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com
The Tufts Daily
2/7/07
Editorial--Marriage issue wed to Mass. politics
With the 2006 campaign behind us, issues for future campaigns are beginningto emerge. The future of Massachusetts' experiment with same-sex marriagewill make the commonwealth a nationwide leader on another cutting-edgeissue.
Massachusetts has a long history of being the first to enact legislation therest of the nation soon adopts. From the first constitution in the UnitedStates in 1780 to the first minimum wage in 1912, the state has a history ofblazing trails that soon become part of the nation's political fabric.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070207/COLUMNIST13
/702070443
Herald Tribune
February 07. 2007 6:51AM
Guest columnist
LEGALIZING GAY MARRIAGE
Laws that could help children
Gilbert Cranberg, a part-time resident of Longboat Key, is former editor ofThe Des Moines Register's editorial pages.
FL: Opinion--LEGALIZING GAY MARRIAGE; Laws that could help children
Vice president Richard Cheney became especially testy during a recentinterview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer when the subject turned to the pregnancyof Cheney's unmarried daughter, Mary. Twice, Cheney bluntly told Blitzer,"You're out of line" when Blitzer asked the vice president to respond toconservative critics of Mary Cheney's decision to "conceive a child outsideof the relationship of a married mother and father."
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Tackling anti-gay bullying at work - new Stonewall guide to help employers
Stonewall has launched a new guide aimed at dealing with the bullying andharassment of lesbian and gay employees. Bullying: preventing the bullyingand harassment of gay employees, the third in Stonewall’s Workplace Guideseries, offers clear and practical advice on how to tackle anti-gay bullyingand harassment at work.
The guide is published in the week that a gay man secured £17,000 incompensation from his employers, Parkam Foods, after the Yorkshire-basedfirm failed to tackle homophobic harassment in the workplace. Supported byUBS investment bank, Preventing the Bullying and Harassment of Gay Employeesis aimed at managers and HR professionals who want to maintain a workingenvironment free from discrimination.
The guide explains the difficulties gay employees can face when reportingbullying and looks at the ways in which employers can deal with the problemof anti-gay bulling and harassment at work. It also features practicalexamples of good practice currently being developed by a range of Stonewall’spartner organisations including BT, Accenture, Manchester City Council, theRoyal Navy and Barnado’s.
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The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020802247_pf.html
Sexuality Disclosed, Ignorance Exposed
By Michael Wilbon
Friday, February 9, 2007; E01
Just as it would be a relief to arrive at the place in time when the colorof the coaches in the Super Bowl matters not one bit, it would be fabulousto reach the day when a male athlete in a team sport doesn't have to worryabout the reaction of declaring his homosexuality.
But that day isn't here just yet, as we found out this week now that JohnAmaechi has become the first former NBA player to publicly say he's gay. Thereaction to Amaechi's announcement in advance of his soon-to-be-releasedautobiography, "Man in the Middle," is all over the place, from appropriateindifference to utterances that border on homophobic to, well, stockignorance
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.gay.com/content/tools/print.html?coll=news_articles&sernum=2007/02/07/2&navpath=channels/news
Solo Atlantic row aims to raise black HIV awareness
published Wednesday, February 7, 2007
An AIDS activist plans to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean later this yearto draw attention to the high rate of HIV in the U.S. black community.Victor Mooney's first attempt two years ago ended less than two hours afterhe started from the coast of Senegal when his boat leaked. But he says he isbetter prepared now and determined to succeed.
"It's important that I continue this quest, because this disease ispreventable," he said Wednesday, also National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
He has lost a brother to AIDS, and another brother has HIV.
Mooney, 41, wants to be the first black person to row solo across theAtlantic. He plans to follow the trans-Atlantic slave trade route thatbrought blacks to the Americas from Africa and to connect the plight of AIDSin the two continents.
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http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0706,sutton,75759,9.html
Link to cartoon: Mary Cheney's Non-Political Baby Shower
[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net]
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NATIONAL & WORLD DIGEST Friday, February 9, 2007
**IF YOU CAN'T ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE, CONTACT US ATrays.list@comcast.net and we'll be happy to send the full article.
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Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/02/09/an_experienced_democratic_field?mode=PF
SCOT LEHIGH
An experienced Democratic field
By Scot Lehigh | February 9, 2007
BARACK OBAMA HAS proved to be the next new thing in the Democraticpresidential pre-season, but John Edwards apparently isn't worried.
He believes this race for the nomination will boil down to a contest betweenHillary Clinton and himself.
As for Obama? Voters aren't going to nominate a candidate with such limitedexperience, the North Carolinian is saying as he makes the rounds.
Irony, thy name is John Reid Edwards.
Certainly it's true that Obama is a relative rookie, having logged only twoyears in the US Senate; before that, he was a state senator.
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Los Angeles Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-bundle9feb09,1,6573579,print.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Fundraising, with no names attached
People called 'bundlers' round up donors on behalf of presidential hopefuls.
They also potentially collect clout under the public's radar.
By Tom Hamburger
Times Staff Writer
February 9, 2007
WASHINGTON - When Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) laid out thefinancial goals for her budding presidential campaign in a private meetingat her Washington home earlier this week, a key element in her fundraisingplan was a time-honored technique that relies on supporters who promise toround up big dollars - in this case, as much as $1 million each.
Instead of going through the slow, expensive process of obtainingcontributions one at a time, the technique - known in fundraising parlanceas "bundling" - relies on well-connected individuals such as lobbyists andother insiders to canvass blocs of potential donors from businesses, unionsand other groups. These canvassers then present the candidate with bundlesof checks that add up to significant amounts.
Clinton is not alone in embracing the technique, which over the years hasproved both lucrative and efficient. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and otherDemocratic hopefuls are using it too. So are Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), afront-runner for the GOP presidential nomination, and most of his Republicanrivals, including former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former New YorkCity Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani.
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Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2007/02/08/gore_supporters_plotting_way_to_get_him_to_run_in_2008?mode=PF
Gore supporters plotting way to get him to run in 2008
By Philip Elliott, Associated Press Writer | February 8, 2007
CONCORD, N.H. --Veterans of Al Gore's past are quietly assembling a campaignto draft the former vice president into the 2008 presidential race --despite his repeated statements that he's not running.
His top policy adviser from his 2000 presidential campaign and other keysupporters met Thursday in Boston to mull a potential Gore campaign. Theparticipants and Gore's Nashville office both said Gore, who is in London,is not involved.
Elaine Kamarck, a veteran of the Clinton White House and Gore's policy guruin 2000, said the meeting was informal and shouldn't be taken as a signthere will be a Gore 2008 campaign.
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Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/02/08/democrats_weigh_plan_to_clear_out_gitmo?mode=PF
Democrats weigh plan to clear out Gitmo
By David Espo, AP Special Correspondent | February 8, 2007
WASHINGTON --Key House Democrats said Thursday they are considering a planto close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, by the end of 2008, with theexception of several dozen detainees in the war on terror who would be keptat the facility and tried there.
Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., said he hopes to include the provision inlegislation this spring that Democrats also intend to use to try to preventfurther increases in troop strength in the war in Iraq.
Without public notice, Murtha dispatched Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., to thedetention center at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay on a one-day triplate last month to recommend ways for closing it. Both men said the prisonhas become counterproductive as the United States tries to win convertsoverseas in the war on terror.
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Detroit News
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070209/NATION/702090375/1020/rss09&template=printart
Rising Dem star loses luster
San Francisco mayor's admissions of affair, alcohol problems take veneer offhis success.
John M. Glionna and Lee Romney / Los Angeles Times
SAN FRANCISCO -- He's considered a darling of Democratic Party politics, asmooth-talking young millionaire with Kennedy good looks who has basked inthe media limelight while being courted as a possible national politicalfigure.
But beneath the surface, Mayor Gavin Newsom's Camelot has been crumbling.
After admitting recently to adultery and alcohol abuse, Newsom has suffereda public political meltdown that has rocked City Hall and led one countysupervisor to call for his resignation.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/47773/
A Budget for Permanent War
By Ari Berman, The Nation
Need proof that George W. Bush is not planning to withdraw US troops fromIraq on his watch? Just look at his latest budget.
The Bush Administration will ask Congress for $100 billion for Iraq andAfghanistan this year -- on top of the $70 billion already allocated -- and$145 billion for 2008. Why ask for the money if you're not planning to useit?
Administration officials, according to the Washington Post, "warned thateven more money will probably will be needed." The Los Angeles Times saysthe military wants "even larger defense budgets."
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The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020801678_pf.html
The War And the Words
By Charles Krauthammer
Friday, February 9, 2007; A19
National Intelligence Estimates are not supposed to be amusing. And thelatest NIE on the situation in Iraq was uniformly grim. But the document'sdetermined effort to split the difference on the use of the phrase "civilwar" did verge on the comical. One can only imagine the interagencywrangling that produced the classic bureaucratic compromise: "TheIntelligence Community judges that the term 'civil war' does not adequatelycapture the complexity of the conflict," but "nonetheless, the term 'civilwar' accurately describes key elements of the Iraqi conflict."
In other words: yes, no, maybe. Multiple civil strife, but way too messy torank with the classics such as America in the 1860s or Spain in the 1930s.
I don't deny that this is a fair application of "civil war" to the currentsituation. What I note with dismay, however, is how important -- andabsurdly irrelevant -- the application of certain loaded words to thesituation has become.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/washington/08waxman.html?pagewanted=print
February 8, 2007
Army Says It Will Withhold $19.6 Million From Halliburton, Citing PotentialContract Breach
By PHILIP SHENON
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 - The Army announced during a House oversight committeehearing on Wednesday that it would withhold $19.6 million from theHalliburton Company after recently discovering that the contractor had hiredthe company Blackwater USA to provide armed security guards in Iraq, apotential breach of its government contract.
The Army has said that its contracts with Halliburton, which has afive-year, $16 billion deal to support American military operations in Iraq,generally barred the company and its subcontractors from using private armedguards. But in a statement, Halliburton disagreed with the Army'sinterpretation and suggested that there was nothing to prohibit Halliburton'ssubcontractors from hiring such guards.
The announcement came during a hearing of the House Government OversightCommittee that included emotional testimony about the killing of fourBlackwater employees in Falluja, Iraq, in 2004.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/washington/08asylum.html?_r=1&adxnnl=0&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1170978638-fUA5A//B99TXnPoX1B434w&pagewanted=print
February 8, 2007
U.S. May Be Mishandling Asylum Seekers, Panel Says
By RACHEL L. SWARNS
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 - A bipartisan federal commission warned on Wednesdaythat the Bush administration, in its zeal to secure the nation's borders andstem the tide of illegal immigrants, may be leaving asylum seekersvulnerable to deportation and harsh treatment.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, whichCongress asked to assess asylum regulations, found two years ago that someimmigration officials were improperly processing asylum seekers fordeportation. The commission, which also found that asylum seekers were oftenstrip-searched, shackled and held in jails, called for safeguards in thesystem of speedy deportations known as expedited removal, to protect thosefleeing persecution.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09feith.html?ei=5094&en=4eabd30f5f83ce6a&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Prewar Intelligence Unit at Pentagon Is Criticized
By DAVID S. CLOUD and MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — A Pentagon investigation into the handling of prewarintelligence has criticized civilian Pentagon officials for conducting theirown intelligence analysis to find links between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda,but said the officials did not violate any laws or mislead Congress,according to Congressional officials who have read the report.
The long-awaited report by the Pentagon’s acting inspector general, ThomasF. Gimble, was sent to Congress on Thursday. It is the first major review torebuke senior officials working for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld forthe way intelligence was used before the invasion of Iraq early in 2003.
Working under Douglas J. Feith, who at the time was under secretary ofdefense for policy, the group “developed, produced and then disseminatedalternative intelligence assessments on the Iraq and Al Qaeda relationship,which included some conclusions that were inconsistent with the consensus ofthe Intelligence Community, to senior decision-makers,” the reportconcluded. Excerpts were quoted by Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democratwho has long been critical of Mr. Feith and other Pentagon officials.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09cong.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Democrats Set House Debate to Rebuke Bush Over Iraq Policy
By JEFF ZELENY
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — House Democratic leaders persuaded members of theirparty on Thursday to limit the scope of an Iraq war resolution next week toa simple repudiation of President Bush’s troop buildup plan, hoping totemporarily set aside divisive decisions over war financing and troopredeployments.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California, and other party leaders metprivately for more than an hour with other Democratic lawmakers. They soughtto reassure Democrats that the symbolic, nonbinding resolution devised torebuke Mr. Bush was a first step — but not a final one — toward assertingCongressional powers on Iraq.
After winning control of Congress, in part because of discontent over theIraq war, Democrats are eager to send a strong signal of disapproval to theWhite House. To make the proposal palatable to at least some Republicans,the Democrats said their resolution would express support for the troops,but reject the plan to send 21,500 more of them to Iraq.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09libby.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
NBC’s Russert Wraps Up Prosecution Case in Libby Trial
By NEIL A. LEWIS
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — The prosecution finished presenting its case in theperjury trial of I. Lewis Libby Jr. on Thursday, leaving his defense lawyersto try to undo the government’s contention that Mr. Libby lied under oathduring an investigation into the leak of a C.I.A. officer’s identity.
Mr. Libby’s legal team will begin with a parade of Washington journalists aswitnesses for the defense when the proceedings resume Monday. But lawyersfor Mr. Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, leftit a mystery as to whether they would call the two star attractions on theirwitness list: Mr. Cheney and Mr. Libby himself.
The last day of the prosecution’s case was largely consumed with an intensebattle of wills between Mr. Libby’s chief defense lawyer, Theodore V. WellsJr., and the final prosecution witness, Tim Russert of NBC News. Before thejurors left for a long weekend, they were bombarded as they have been eachday with a fast-moving and complex torrent of information.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09fri3.html?pagewanted=print
January 9, 2007
Editorial
The A.B.A.’s Judicial Ethics Mess
At a moment when judicial independence is under heightened political attack,the nation’s legal establishment should be doing everything it can to shoreup public trust. Instead, the special commission charged with recommendingrevisions to the Model Code of Judicial Conduct of the American BarAssociation has been flip-flopping around on some of the most importantaspects of the code, which the states use to set standards for their courts.
For decades, the code’s overarching charge to judges has been to avoid notonly actual impropriety, but also the appearance of impropriety. Recently,however, quietly adopted changes to the commission’s “final” report demotedthis gold standard of judicial conduct from an enforceable rule to a mereaspirational guideline.
When the misguided switch came to light, the panel reversed field againyesterday and went back to the previous formulation. But that does notexcuse the fact that the panel was following internal politics, not soundlegal principle. The change might have eluded pubic attention if RobertTembeckjian, the administrator of the New York State Commission on JudicialConduct, had not protested and Adam Liptak had not reported on the matter inThe Times this week.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09feith.html?ei=5094&en=4eabd30f5f83ce6a&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Pentagon Group Criticized for Prewar Intelligence Analysis
By DAVID S. CLOUD and MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — A Pentagon investigation into the handling of prewarintelligence has criticized civilian Pentagon officials for conducting theirown intelligence analysis to find links between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda,but said the officials did not violate any laws or mislead Congress,according to Congressional officials who have read the report.
The long-awaited report by the Pentagon’s acting inspector general, ThomasF. Gimble, was sent to Congress on Thursday. It is the first major review torebuke senior officials working for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld forthe way intelligence was used before the invasion of Iraq early in 2003.
Working under Douglas J. Feith, who at the time was under secretary ofdefense for policy, the group “developed, produced and then disseminatedalternative intelligence assessments on the Iraq and Al Qaeda relationship,which included some conclusions that were inconsistent with the consensus ofthe Intelligence Community, to senior decision-makers,” the reportconcluded. Excerpts were quoted by Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democratwho has long been critical of Mr. Feith and other Pentagon officials.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09fri1.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Editorial
Making Democracy Credible
Time is growing short to head off more embarrassing voting machine scandals.The presidential election looms, yet nearly half of the states offer noreassuring paper trail so voters who use electronic voting machines cancheck that their ballot choices are accurately recorded.
With a proper sense of urgency, Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California,who leads the Senate committee in charge of elections, is asking all of theright questions about voting technology. This week, she ordered aninvestigation of the case of as many as 18,000 electronic votes that turnedup missing in a tight Congressional race in Florida last November.
Senator Feinstein called on the Government Accountability Office and theNational Institute of Standards and Technology to conduct “top to bottom”federal investigations of the machines used in Sarasota County, where the18,000 votes may have disappeared. Florida is now moving to toss outelectronic voting machines that do not produce a paper trail. But this is nocomfort to Christine Jennings, the Democrat in the 13th CongressionalDistrict race, which includes Sarasota County. She lost by 369 votes and isnow in court trying to find out what went wrong in the election.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/world/middleeast/09saudi.html?ei=5094&en=b8db4692c77bc501&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Accord Is Signed by Palestinians to Stop Feuding
By HASSAN M. FATTAH
MECCA, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 8 — The main rival Palestinian factions agreedlate Thursday to form a government of national unity aimed at ending a waveof violence between them and an international boycott.
The agreement, signed here in Islam’s holiest city under Saudi auspices,appeared likely to end, at least for now, weeks of fighting that had ravagedthe West Bank and Gaza Strip. Still, it seemed to stop short of meeting thedemands of the international community for resuming relations and supportfor the Palestinian Authority.
The accord, signed by Khaled Meshal of Hamas and Mahmoud Abbas, thePalestinian Authority president and leader of Fatah, its main rival, is thefirst time that the two parties have agreed to share authority. It sets outprinciples for a coalition government, like the distribution of ministerialportfolios, but leaves many of the details for later.
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Forwarded from Leon Van Dyke
Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2007 8:58 PM
Subject: NEW Scam on Visa & Master Card
I checked on snopes.com to verify that this was true and felt it was worthsharing with everyone..... Note boldface paragraph below. --The bulk of thetext as passed to me, I also verified as issuing from snopes.com
Leon
Hi Everyone, this came from a friend who works at a Bank:
We have received the following from at Whitford City - you may need to readand take note. This could be relevant to all of us.
FYI... This one is pretty slick since they provide YOU with all theinformation, except the one piece they want.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorialsopinion/2003559797_spoofed07
.html
Editorial--Go forth and initiate
Good message, bad tactic. Of the many ways to make a point, using - or inthis case, misusing - the citizen initiative process is not the best way towin an argument.
A group of gay-marriage supporters plans to begin gathering signatures for astatewide initiative that would limit the institution of marriage to coupleswho have children. And not those who have children at just any old time inthe marriage - within three years of the vows.
Otherwise, the marriage would be dissolved. No one means any of this tooseriously; the initiative is designed to take a purposeful dig at a stateSupreme Court ruling denying gays the right to marry in part because suchunions don't advance procreation.
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The New York Times
http://select.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09friedman.html
February 9, 2007
Op-Ed Columnist
Not Their Parents’ Russia
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
MOSCOW
Russia today is a country that takes three hands to describe.
On the one hand, it is impossible any more to call Vladimir Putin’sgovernment “democratic,” given the way it has neutered the RussianParliament, intimidated or taken over much of the Russian press,subordinated the judiciary and coercively extended its control over thecountry’s key energy companies.
On the other hand, it is obvious talking to Russians how much thehumiliating and dispiriting turmoil that accompanied Boris Yeltsin’s firststab at democracy — after the collapse of Communism — left many people herestarved for a strong leader, a stable economy and stores with Westernconsumer goods. Mr. Putin is popular for a reason.
And on the third hand, while today’s Russia may be a crazy quilt ofcapitalist czars, mobsters, nationalists and aspiring democrats, it is notthe totalitarian Soviet Union. It has more than a touch of theauthoritarianism of postwar Gaullist France and a large spoonful of thecorruption and messiness of postwar Italy — when those countries emergedfrom World War II as less than perfect democracies.
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From recent past...
Fox News: "The more you watch the less you know." Quote from the MemphisMedia Conference.
medialifemagazine.com
Cable
Fox News ratings take a steep tumble
By Kevin Downey
Nov 2, 2006, 01:20
October was the 10th anniversary of Fox News, and in that 10 years it hasrisen to the No. 1 cable news network, riding on the tagline "Fair andBalanced."
Yet Fox News is showing serious signs of aging, led by steep audiencedeclines.
Fox News’s total audience fell 24 percent in the past year, to 1.3 millionviewers from 1.7 million, and its key primetime audience, viewers ages25-54, was down 7 percent in October on a year-to-year basis, to an average363,000 viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research data.
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http://civ.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/o.pl?id=9851-5533006-xEmkt7ienmASzh651m4wsA&t=3
George W. Bush is trying—yet again—to slash funding for NPR and PBS.
This week, Bush proposed a new budget with devastating cuts to publicbroadcasting.1 "Sesame Street" and other ad-free kids' shows are under theknife. So is the independent journalism our country needs.
Enough is enough. We've fought this fight before and won—but we can't affordthe risk anymore. With the new Congress, we can make sure this never happensagain. We need Congress to insulate NPR and PBS from the political winds.
We can make it happen if enough of us sign this petition: "Congress mustsave NPR and PBS once and for all. Congress should guarantee permanentfunding and independence from partisan meddling." Clicking here will addyour name to the petition:
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Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2007/02/08/gore_supporters_plotting_way_to_get_him_to_run_in_2008?mode=PF
Gore supporters plotting way to get him to run in 2008
By Philip Elliott, Associated Press Writer | February 8, 2007
CONCORD, N.H. --Veterans of Al Gore's past are quietly assembling a campaignto draft the former vice president into the 2008 presidential race --despite his repeated statements that he's not running.
His top policy adviser from his 2000 presidential campaign and other keysupporters met Thursday in Boston to mull a potential Gore campaign. Theparticipants and Gore's Nashville office both said Gore, who is in London,is not involved.
Elaine Kamarck, a veteran of the Clinton White House and Gore's policy guruin 2000, said the meeting was informal and shouldn't be taken as a signthere will be a Gore 2008 campaign.
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Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/02/08/democrats_weigh_plan_to_clear_out_gitmo?mode=PF
Democrats weigh plan to clear out Gitmo
By David Espo, AP Special Correspondent | February 8, 2007
WASHINGTON --Key House Democrats said Thursday they are considering a planto close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, by the end of 2008, with theexception of several dozen detainees in the war on terror who would be keptat the facility and tried there.
Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., said he hopes to include the provision inlegislation this spring that Democrats also intend to use to try to preventfurther increases in troop strength in the war in Iraq.
Without public notice, Murtha dispatched Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., to thedetention center at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay on a one-day triplate last month to recommend ways for closing it. Both men said the prisonhas become counterproductive as the United States tries to win convertsoverseas in the war on terror.
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Detroit News
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070209/NATION/702090375/1020/rss09&template=printart
Rising Dem star loses luster
San Francisco mayor's admissions of affair, alcohol problems take veneer offhis success.
John M. Glionna and Lee Romney / Los Angeles Times
SAN FRANCISCO -- He's considered a darling of Democratic Party politics, asmooth-talking young millionaire with Kennedy good looks who has basked inthe media limelight while being courted as a possible national politicalfigure.
But beneath the surface, Mayor Gavin Newsom's Camelot has been crumbling.
After admitting recently to adultery and alcohol abuse, Newsom has suffereda public political meltdown that has rocked City Hall and led one countysupervisor to call for his resignation.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/47773/
A Budget for Permanent War
By Ari Berman, The Nation
Need proof that George W. Bush is not planning to withdraw US troops fromIraq on his watch? Just look at his latest budget.
The Bush Administration will ask Congress for $100 billion for Iraq andAfghanistan this year -- on top of the $70 billion already allocated -- and$145 billion for 2008. Why ask for the money if you're not planning to useit?
Administration officials, according to the Washington Post, "warned thateven more money will probably will be needed." The Los Angeles Times saysthe military wants "even larger defense budgets."
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The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020801678_pf.html
The War And the Words
By Charles Krauthammer
Friday, February 9, 2007; A19
National Intelligence Estimates are not supposed to be amusing. And thelatest NIE on the situation in Iraq was uniformly grim. But the document'sdetermined effort to split the difference on the use of the phrase "civilwar" did verge on the comical. One can only imagine the interagencywrangling that produced the classic bureaucratic compromise: "TheIntelligence Community judges that the term 'civil war' does not adequatelycapture the complexity of the conflict," but "nonetheless, the term 'civilwar' accurately describes key elements of the Iraqi conflict."
In other words: yes, no, maybe. Multiple civil strife, but way too messy torank with the classics such as America in the 1860s or Spain in the 1930s.
I don't deny that this is a fair application of "civil war" to the currentsituation. What I note with dismay, however, is how important -- andabsurdly irrelevant -- the application of certain loaded words to thesituation has become.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/washington/08waxman.html?pagewanted=print
February 8, 2007
Army Says It Will Withhold $19.6 Million From Halliburton, Citing PotentialContract Breach
By PHILIP SHENON
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 - The Army announced during a House oversight committeehearing on Wednesday that it would withhold $19.6 million from theHalliburton Company after recently discovering that the contractor had hiredthe company Blackwater USA to provide armed security guards in Iraq, apotential breach of its government contract.
The Army has said that its contracts with Halliburton, which has afive-year, $16 billion deal to support American military operations in Iraq,generally barred the company and its subcontractors from using private armedguards. But in a statement, Halliburton disagreed with the Army'sinterpretation and suggested that there was nothing to prohibit Halliburton'ssubcontractors from hiring such guards.
The announcement came during a hearing of the House Government OversightCommittee that included emotional testimony about the killing of fourBlackwater employees in Falluja, Iraq, in 2004.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/washington/08asylum.html?_r=1&adxnnl=0&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1170978638-fUA5A//B99TXnPoX1B434w&pagewanted=print
February 8, 2007
U.S. May Be Mishandling Asylum Seekers, Panel Says
By RACHEL L. SWARNS
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 - A bipartisan federal commission warned on Wednesdaythat the Bush administration, in its zeal to secure the nation's borders andstem the tide of illegal immigrants, may be leaving asylum seekersvulnerable to deportation and harsh treatment.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, whichCongress asked to assess asylum regulations, found two years ago that someimmigration officials were improperly processing asylum seekers fordeportation. The commission, which also found that asylum seekers were oftenstrip-searched, shackled and held in jails, called for safeguards in thesystem of speedy deportations known as expedited removal, to protect thosefleeing persecution.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09feith.html?ei=5094&en=4eabd30f5f83ce6a&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Prewar Intelligence Unit at Pentagon Is Criticized
By DAVID S. CLOUD and MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — A Pentagon investigation into the handling of prewarintelligence has criticized civilian Pentagon officials for conducting theirown intelligence analysis to find links between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda,but said the officials did not violate any laws or mislead Congress,according to Congressional officials who have read the report.
The long-awaited report by the Pentagon’s acting inspector general, ThomasF. Gimble, was sent to Congress on Thursday. It is the first major review torebuke senior officials working for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld forthe way intelligence was used before the invasion of Iraq early in 2003.
Working under Douglas J. Feith, who at the time was under secretary ofdefense for policy, the group “developed, produced and then disseminatedalternative intelligence assessments on the Iraq and Al Qaeda relationship,which included some conclusions that were inconsistent with the consensus ofthe Intelligence Community, to senior decision-makers,” the reportconcluded. Excerpts were quoted by Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democratwho has long been critical of Mr. Feith and other Pentagon officials.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09cong.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Democrats Set House Debate to Rebuke Bush Over Iraq Policy
By JEFF ZELENY
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — House Democratic leaders persuaded members of theirparty on Thursday to limit the scope of an Iraq war resolution next week toa simple repudiation of President Bush’s troop buildup plan, hoping totemporarily set aside divisive decisions over war financing and troopredeployments.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California, and other party leaders metprivately for more than an hour with other Democratic lawmakers. They soughtto reassure Democrats that the symbolic, nonbinding resolution devised torebuke Mr. Bush was a first step — but not a final one — toward assertingCongressional powers on Iraq.
After winning control of Congress, in part because of discontent over theIraq war, Democrats are eager to send a strong signal of disapproval to theWhite House. To make the proposal palatable to at least some Republicans,the Democrats said their resolution would express support for the troops,but reject the plan to send 21,500 more of them to Iraq.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09libby.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
NBC’s Russert Wraps Up Prosecution Case in Libby Trial
By NEIL A. LEWIS
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — The prosecution finished presenting its case in theperjury trial of I. Lewis Libby Jr. on Thursday, leaving his defense lawyersto try to undo the government’s contention that Mr. Libby lied under oathduring an investigation into the leak of a C.I.A. officer’s identity.
Mr. Libby’s legal team will begin with a parade of Washington journalists aswitnesses for the defense when the proceedings resume Monday. But lawyersfor Mr. Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, leftit a mystery as to whether they would call the two star attractions on theirwitness list: Mr. Cheney and Mr. Libby himself.
The last day of the prosecution’s case was largely consumed with an intensebattle of wills between Mr. Libby’s chief defense lawyer, Theodore V. WellsJr., and the final prosecution witness, Tim Russert of NBC News. Before thejurors left for a long weekend, they were bombarded as they have been eachday with a fast-moving and complex torrent of information.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09fri3.html?pagewanted=print
January 9, 2007
Editorial
The A.B.A.’s Judicial Ethics Mess
At a moment when judicial independence is under heightened political attack,the nation’s legal establishment should be doing everything it can to shoreup public trust. Instead, the special commission charged with recommendingrevisions to the Model Code of Judicial Conduct of the American BarAssociation has been flip-flopping around on some of the most importantaspects of the code, which the states use to set standards for their courts.
For decades, the code’s overarching charge to judges has been to avoid notonly actual impropriety, but also the appearance of impropriety. Recently,however, quietly adopted changes to the commission’s “final” report demotedthis gold standard of judicial conduct from an enforceable rule to a mereaspirational guideline.
When the misguided switch came to light, the panel reversed field againyesterday and went back to the previous formulation. But that does notexcuse the fact that the panel was following internal politics, not soundlegal principle. The change might have eluded pubic attention if RobertTembeckjian, the administrator of the New York State Commission on JudicialConduct, had not protested and Adam Liptak had not reported on the matter inThe Times this week.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09feith.html?ei=5094&en=4eabd30f5f83ce6a&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Pentagon Group Criticized for Prewar Intelligence Analysis
By DAVID S. CLOUD and MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — A Pentagon investigation into the handling of prewarintelligence has criticized civilian Pentagon officials for conducting theirown intelligence analysis to find links between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda,but said the officials did not violate any laws or mislead Congress,according to Congressional officials who have read the report.
The long-awaited report by the Pentagon’s acting inspector general, ThomasF. Gimble, was sent to Congress on Thursday. It is the first major review torebuke senior officials working for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld forthe way intelligence was used before the invasion of Iraq early in 2003.
Working under Douglas J. Feith, who at the time was under secretary ofdefense for policy, the group “developed, produced and then disseminatedalternative intelligence assessments on the Iraq and Al Qaeda relationship,which included some conclusions that were inconsistent with the consensus ofthe Intelligence Community, to senior decision-makers,” the reportconcluded. Excerpts were quoted by Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democratwho has long been critical of Mr. Feith and other Pentagon officials.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09fri1.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Editorial
Making Democracy Credible
Time is growing short to head off more embarrassing voting machine scandals.The presidential election looms, yet nearly half of the states offer noreassuring paper trail so voters who use electronic voting machines cancheck that their ballot choices are accurately recorded.
With a proper sense of urgency, Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California,who leads the Senate committee in charge of elections, is asking all of theright questions about voting technology. This week, she ordered aninvestigation of the case of as many as 18,000 electronic votes that turnedup missing in a tight Congressional race in Florida last November.
Senator Feinstein called on the Government Accountability Office and theNational Institute of Standards and Technology to conduct “top to bottom”federal investigations of the machines used in Sarasota County, where the18,000 votes may have disappeared. Florida is now moving to toss outelectronic voting machines that do not produce a paper trail. But this is nocomfort to Christine Jennings, the Democrat in the 13th CongressionalDistrict race, which includes Sarasota County. She lost by 369 votes and isnow in court trying to find out what went wrong in the election.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/world/middleeast/09saudi.html?ei=5094&en=b8db4692c77bc501&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Accord Is Signed by Palestinians to Stop Feuding
By HASSAN M. FATTAH
MECCA, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 8 — The main rival Palestinian factions agreedlate Thursday to form a government of national unity aimed at ending a waveof violence between them and an international boycott.
The agreement, signed here in Islam’s holiest city under Saudi auspices,appeared likely to end, at least for now, weeks of fighting that had ravagedthe West Bank and Gaza Strip. Still, it seemed to stop short of meeting thedemands of the international community for resuming relations and supportfor the Palestinian Authority.
The accord, signed by Khaled Meshal of Hamas and Mahmoud Abbas, thePalestinian Authority president and leader of Fatah, its main rival, is thefirst time that the two parties have agreed to share authority. It sets outprinciples for a coalition government, like the distribution of ministerialportfolios, but leaves many of the details for later.
=
Forwarded from Leon Van Dyke
Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2007 8:58 PM
Subject: NEW Scam on Visa & Master Card
I checked on snopes.com to verify that this was true and felt it was worthsharing with everyone..... Note boldface paragraph below. --The bulk of thetext as passed to me, I also verified as issuing from snopes.com
Leon
Hi Everyone, this came from a friend who works at a Bank:
We have received the following from at Whitford City - you may need to readand take note. This could be relevant to all of us.
FYI... This one is pretty slick since they provide YOU with all theinformation, except the one piece they want.
=
Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorialsopinion/2003559797_spoofed07
.html
Editorial--Go forth and initiate
Good message, bad tactic. Of the many ways to make a point, using - or inthis case, misusing - the citizen initiative process is not the best way towin an argument.
A group of gay-marriage supporters plans to begin gathering signatures for astatewide initiative that would limit the institution of marriage to coupleswho have children. And not those who have children at just any old time inthe marriage - within three years of the vows.
Otherwise, the marriage would be dissolved. No one means any of this tooseriously; the initiative is designed to take a purposeful dig at a stateSupreme Court ruling denying gays the right to marry in part because suchunions don't advance procreation.
=
The New York Times
http://select.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09friedman.html
February 9, 2007
Op-Ed Columnist
Not Their Parents’ Russia
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
MOSCOW
Russia today is a country that takes three hands to describe.
On the one hand, it is impossible any more to call Vladimir Putin’sgovernment “democratic,” given the way it has neutered the RussianParliament, intimidated or taken over much of the Russian press,subordinated the judiciary and coercively extended its control over thecountry’s key energy companies.
On the other hand, it is obvious talking to Russians how much thehumiliating and dispiriting turmoil that accompanied Boris Yeltsin’s firststab at democracy — after the collapse of Communism — left many people herestarved for a strong leader, a stable economy and stores with Westernconsumer goods. Mr. Putin is popular for a reason.
And on the third hand, while today’s Russia may be a crazy quilt ofcapitalist czars, mobsters, nationalists and aspiring democrats, it is notthe totalitarian Soviet Union. It has more than a touch of theauthoritarianism of postwar Gaullist France and a large spoonful of thecorruption and messiness of postwar Italy — when those countries emergedfrom World War II as less than perfect democracies.
=
From recent past...
Fox News: "The more you watch the less you know." Quote from the MemphisMedia Conference.
medialifemagazine.com
Cable
Fox News ratings take a steep tumble
By Kevin Downey
Nov 2, 2006, 01:20
October was the 10th anniversary of Fox News, and in that 10 years it hasrisen to the No. 1 cable news network, riding on the tagline "Fair andBalanced."
Yet Fox News is showing serious signs of aging, led by steep audiencedeclines.
Fox News’s total audience fell 24 percent in the past year, to 1.3 millionviewers from 1.7 million, and its key primetime audience, viewers ages25-54, was down 7 percent in October on a year-to-year basis, to an average363,000 viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research data.
=
http://civ.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/o.pl?id=9851-5533006-xEmkt7ienmASzh651m4wsA&t=3
George W. Bush is trying—yet again—to slash funding for NPR and PBS.
This week, Bush proposed a new budget with devastating cuts to publicbroadcasting.1 "Sesame Street" and other ad-free kids' shows are under theknife. So is the independent journalism our country needs.
Enough is enough. We've fought this fight before and won—but we can't affordthe risk anymore. With the new Congress, we can make sure this never happensagain. We need Congress to insulate NPR and PBS from the political winds.
We can make it happen if enough of us sign this petition: "Congress mustsave NPR and PBS once and for all. Congress should guarantee permanentfunding and independence from partisan meddling." Clicking here will addyour name to the petition:
[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net]
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ray's List is a news clipping service for the Progressive GLBT and FriendsCommunity.
Ray's List publishes Daily News Digests (GLBT, National/World, and Florida)on the web at http://www.rayslistglbtnews.blogspot.com/
Ray's List is forwarded through QueerNet, a project of Online Policy Group,Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to online policy research,outreach, and social action. Online Policy Group's activities and resources,are provided at no charge and without commercial advertising and are fullysupported by contributions from subscribers and allies.
To subscribe, unsubscribe, or post announcements and articles, to Ray's Listsend a message to Ray Rideout and Michael Cooper at Rays.List@comcast.net
[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net]
#####
=
Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/02/09/an_experienced_democratic_field?mode=PF
SCOT LEHIGH
An experienced Democratic field
By Scot Lehigh | February 9, 2007
BARACK OBAMA HAS proved to be the next new thing in the Democraticpresidential pre-season, but John Edwards apparently isn't worried.
He believes this race for the nomination will boil down to a contest betweenHillary Clinton and himself.
As for Obama? Voters aren't going to nominate a candidate with such limitedexperience, the North Carolinian is saying as he makes the rounds.
Irony, thy name is John Reid Edwards.
Certainly it's true that Obama is a relative rookie, having logged only twoyears in the US Senate; before that, he was a state senator.
=
Los Angeles Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-bundle9feb09,1,6573579,print.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Fundraising, with no names attached
People called 'bundlers' round up donors on behalf of presidential hopefuls.
They also potentially collect clout under the public's radar.
By Tom Hamburger
Times Staff Writer
February 9, 2007
WASHINGTON - When Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) laid out thefinancial goals for her budding presidential campaign in a private meetingat her Washington home earlier this week, a key element in her fundraisingplan was a time-honored technique that relies on supporters who promise toround up big dollars - in this case, as much as $1 million each.
Instead of going through the slow, expensive process of obtainingcontributions one at a time, the technique - known in fundraising parlanceas "bundling" - relies on well-connected individuals such as lobbyists andother insiders to canvass blocs of potential donors from businesses, unionsand other groups. These canvassers then present the candidate with bundlesof checks that add up to significant amounts.
Clinton is not alone in embracing the technique, which over the years hasproved both lucrative and efficient. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and otherDemocratic hopefuls are using it too. So are Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), afront-runner for the GOP presidential nomination, and most of his Republicanrivals, including former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former New YorkCity Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani.
=
Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2007/02/08/gore_supporters_plotting_way_to_get_him_to_run_in_2008?mode=PF
Gore supporters plotting way to get him to run in 2008
By Philip Elliott, Associated Press Writer | February 8, 2007
CONCORD, N.H. --Veterans of Al Gore's past are quietly assembling a campaignto draft the former vice president into the 2008 presidential race --despite his repeated statements that he's not running.
His top policy adviser from his 2000 presidential campaign and other keysupporters met Thursday in Boston to mull a potential Gore campaign. Theparticipants and Gore's Nashville office both said Gore, who is in London,is not involved.
Elaine Kamarck, a veteran of the Clinton White House and Gore's policy guruin 2000, said the meeting was informal and shouldn't be taken as a signthere will be a Gore 2008 campaign.
=
Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/02/08/democrats_weigh_plan_to_clear_out_gitmo?mode=PF
Democrats weigh plan to clear out Gitmo
By David Espo, AP Special Correspondent | February 8, 2007
WASHINGTON --Key House Democrats said Thursday they are considering a planto close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, by the end of 2008, with theexception of several dozen detainees in the war on terror who would be keptat the facility and tried there.
Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., said he hopes to include the provision inlegislation this spring that Democrats also intend to use to try to preventfurther increases in troop strength in the war in Iraq.
Without public notice, Murtha dispatched Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., to thedetention center at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay on a one-day triplate last month to recommend ways for closing it. Both men said the prisonhas become counterproductive as the United States tries to win convertsoverseas in the war on terror.
=
Detroit News
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070209/NATION/702090375/1020/rss09&template=printart
Rising Dem star loses luster
San Francisco mayor's admissions of affair, alcohol problems take veneer offhis success.
John M. Glionna and Lee Romney / Los Angeles Times
SAN FRANCISCO -- He's considered a darling of Democratic Party politics, asmooth-talking young millionaire with Kennedy good looks who has basked inthe media limelight while being courted as a possible national politicalfigure.
But beneath the surface, Mayor Gavin Newsom's Camelot has been crumbling.
After admitting recently to adultery and alcohol abuse, Newsom has suffereda public political meltdown that has rocked City Hall and led one countysupervisor to call for his resignation.
=
Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/47773/
A Budget for Permanent War
By Ari Berman, The Nation
Need proof that George W. Bush is not planning to withdraw US troops fromIraq on his watch? Just look at his latest budget.
The Bush Administration will ask Congress for $100 billion for Iraq andAfghanistan this year -- on top of the $70 billion already allocated -- and$145 billion for 2008. Why ask for the money if you're not planning to useit?
Administration officials, according to the Washington Post, "warned thateven more money will probably will be needed." The Los Angeles Times saysthe military wants "even larger defense budgets."
=
The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020801678_pf.html
The War And the Words
By Charles Krauthammer
Friday, February 9, 2007; A19
National Intelligence Estimates are not supposed to be amusing. And thelatest NIE on the situation in Iraq was uniformly grim. But the document'sdetermined effort to split the difference on the use of the phrase "civilwar" did verge on the comical. One can only imagine the interagencywrangling that produced the classic bureaucratic compromise: "TheIntelligence Community judges that the term 'civil war' does not adequatelycapture the complexity of the conflict," but "nonetheless, the term 'civilwar' accurately describes key elements of the Iraqi conflict."
In other words: yes, no, maybe. Multiple civil strife, but way too messy torank with the classics such as America in the 1860s or Spain in the 1930s.
I don't deny that this is a fair application of "civil war" to the currentsituation. What I note with dismay, however, is how important -- andabsurdly irrelevant -- the application of certain loaded words to thesituation has become.
=
Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/washington/08waxman.html?pagewanted=print
February 8, 2007
Army Says It Will Withhold $19.6 Million From Halliburton, Citing PotentialContract Breach
By PHILIP SHENON
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 - The Army announced during a House oversight committeehearing on Wednesday that it would withhold $19.6 million from theHalliburton Company after recently discovering that the contractor had hiredthe company Blackwater USA to provide armed security guards in Iraq, apotential breach of its government contract.
The Army has said that its contracts with Halliburton, which has afive-year, $16 billion deal to support American military operations in Iraq,generally barred the company and its subcontractors from using private armedguards. But in a statement, Halliburton disagreed with the Army'sinterpretation and suggested that there was nothing to prohibit Halliburton'ssubcontractors from hiring such guards.
The announcement came during a hearing of the House Government OversightCommittee that included emotional testimony about the killing of fourBlackwater employees in Falluja, Iraq, in 2004.
=
Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/washington/08asylum.html?_r=1&adxnnl=0&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1170978638-fUA5A//B99TXnPoX1B434w&pagewanted=print
February 8, 2007
U.S. May Be Mishandling Asylum Seekers, Panel Says
By RACHEL L. SWARNS
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 - A bipartisan federal commission warned on Wednesdaythat the Bush administration, in its zeal to secure the nation's borders andstem the tide of illegal immigrants, may be leaving asylum seekersvulnerable to deportation and harsh treatment.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, whichCongress asked to assess asylum regulations, found two years ago that someimmigration officials were improperly processing asylum seekers fordeportation. The commission, which also found that asylum seekers were oftenstrip-searched, shackled and held in jails, called for safeguards in thesystem of speedy deportations known as expedited removal, to protect thosefleeing persecution.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09feith.html?ei=5094&en=4eabd30f5f83ce6a&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Prewar Intelligence Unit at Pentagon Is Criticized
By DAVID S. CLOUD and MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — A Pentagon investigation into the handling of prewarintelligence has criticized civilian Pentagon officials for conducting theirown intelligence analysis to find links between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda,but said the officials did not violate any laws or mislead Congress,according to Congressional officials who have read the report.
The long-awaited report by the Pentagon’s acting inspector general, ThomasF. Gimble, was sent to Congress on Thursday. It is the first major review torebuke senior officials working for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld forthe way intelligence was used before the invasion of Iraq early in 2003.
Working under Douglas J. Feith, who at the time was under secretary ofdefense for policy, the group “developed, produced and then disseminatedalternative intelligence assessments on the Iraq and Al Qaeda relationship,which included some conclusions that were inconsistent with the consensus ofthe Intelligence Community, to senior decision-makers,” the reportconcluded. Excerpts were quoted by Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democratwho has long been critical of Mr. Feith and other Pentagon officials.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09cong.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Democrats Set House Debate to Rebuke Bush Over Iraq Policy
By JEFF ZELENY
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — House Democratic leaders persuaded members of theirparty on Thursday to limit the scope of an Iraq war resolution next week toa simple repudiation of President Bush’s troop buildup plan, hoping totemporarily set aside divisive decisions over war financing and troopredeployments.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California, and other party leaders metprivately for more than an hour with other Democratic lawmakers. They soughtto reassure Democrats that the symbolic, nonbinding resolution devised torebuke Mr. Bush was a first step — but not a final one — toward assertingCongressional powers on Iraq.
After winning control of Congress, in part because of discontent over theIraq war, Democrats are eager to send a strong signal of disapproval to theWhite House. To make the proposal palatable to at least some Republicans,the Democrats said their resolution would express support for the troops,but reject the plan to send 21,500 more of them to Iraq.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09libby.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
NBC’s Russert Wraps Up Prosecution Case in Libby Trial
By NEIL A. LEWIS
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — The prosecution finished presenting its case in theperjury trial of I. Lewis Libby Jr. on Thursday, leaving his defense lawyersto try to undo the government’s contention that Mr. Libby lied under oathduring an investigation into the leak of a C.I.A. officer’s identity.
Mr. Libby’s legal team will begin with a parade of Washington journalists aswitnesses for the defense when the proceedings resume Monday. But lawyersfor Mr. Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, leftit a mystery as to whether they would call the two star attractions on theirwitness list: Mr. Cheney and Mr. Libby himself.
The last day of the prosecution’s case was largely consumed with an intensebattle of wills between Mr. Libby’s chief defense lawyer, Theodore V. WellsJr., and the final prosecution witness, Tim Russert of NBC News. Before thejurors left for a long weekend, they were bombarded as they have been eachday with a fast-moving and complex torrent of information.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09fri3.html?pagewanted=print
January 9, 2007
Editorial
The A.B.A.’s Judicial Ethics Mess
At a moment when judicial independence is under heightened political attack,the nation’s legal establishment should be doing everything it can to shoreup public trust. Instead, the special commission charged with recommendingrevisions to the Model Code of Judicial Conduct of the American BarAssociation has been flip-flopping around on some of the most importantaspects of the code, which the states use to set standards for their courts.
For decades, the code’s overarching charge to judges has been to avoid notonly actual impropriety, but also the appearance of impropriety. Recently,however, quietly adopted changes to the commission’s “final” report demotedthis gold standard of judicial conduct from an enforceable rule to a mereaspirational guideline.
When the misguided switch came to light, the panel reversed field againyesterday and went back to the previous formulation. But that does notexcuse the fact that the panel was following internal politics, not soundlegal principle. The change might have eluded pubic attention if RobertTembeckjian, the administrator of the New York State Commission on JudicialConduct, had not protested and Adam Liptak had not reported on the matter inThe Times this week.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09feith.html?ei=5094&en=4eabd30f5f83ce6a&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Pentagon Group Criticized for Prewar Intelligence Analysis
By DAVID S. CLOUD and MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — A Pentagon investigation into the handling of prewarintelligence has criticized civilian Pentagon officials for conducting theirown intelligence analysis to find links between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda,but said the officials did not violate any laws or mislead Congress,according to Congressional officials who have read the report.
The long-awaited report by the Pentagon’s acting inspector general, ThomasF. Gimble, was sent to Congress on Thursday. It is the first major review torebuke senior officials working for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld forthe way intelligence was used before the invasion of Iraq early in 2003.
Working under Douglas J. Feith, who at the time was under secretary ofdefense for policy, the group “developed, produced and then disseminatedalternative intelligence assessments on the Iraq and Al Qaeda relationship,which included some conclusions that were inconsistent with the consensus ofthe Intelligence Community, to senior decision-makers,” the reportconcluded. Excerpts were quoted by Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democratwho has long been critical of Mr. Feith and other Pentagon officials.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09fri1.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Editorial
Making Democracy Credible
Time is growing short to head off more embarrassing voting machine scandals.The presidential election looms, yet nearly half of the states offer noreassuring paper trail so voters who use electronic voting machines cancheck that their ballot choices are accurately recorded.
With a proper sense of urgency, Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California,who leads the Senate committee in charge of elections, is asking all of theright questions about voting technology. This week, she ordered aninvestigation of the case of as many as 18,000 electronic votes that turnedup missing in a tight Congressional race in Florida last November.
Senator Feinstein called on the Government Accountability Office and theNational Institute of Standards and Technology to conduct “top to bottom”federal investigations of the machines used in Sarasota County, where the18,000 votes may have disappeared. Florida is now moving to toss outelectronic voting machines that do not produce a paper trail. But this is nocomfort to Christine Jennings, the Democrat in the 13th CongressionalDistrict race, which includes Sarasota County. She lost by 369 votes and isnow in court trying to find out what went wrong in the election.
=
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/world/middleeast/09saudi.html?ei=5094&en=b8db4692c77bc501&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Accord Is Signed by Palestinians to Stop Feuding
By HASSAN M. FATTAH
MECCA, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 8 — The main rival Palestinian factions agreedlate Thursday to form a government of national unity aimed at ending a waveof violence between them and an international boycott.
The agreement, signed here in Islam’s holiest city under Saudi auspices,appeared likely to end, at least for now, weeks of fighting that had ravagedthe West Bank and Gaza Strip. Still, it seemed to stop short of meeting thedemands of the international community for resuming relations and supportfor the Palestinian Authority.
The accord, signed by Khaled Meshal of Hamas and Mahmoud Abbas, thePalestinian Authority president and leader of Fatah, its main rival, is thefirst time that the two parties have agreed to share authority. It sets outprinciples for a coalition government, like the distribution of ministerialportfolios, but leaves many of the details for later.
=
Forwarded from Leon Van Dyke
Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2007 8:58 PM
Subject: NEW Scam on Visa & Master Card
I checked on snopes.com to verify that this was true and felt it was worthsharing with everyone..... Note boldface paragraph below. --The bulk of thetext as passed to me, I also verified as issuing from snopes.com
Leon
Hi Everyone, this came from a friend who works at a Bank:
We have received the following from at Whitford City - you may need to readand take note. This could be relevant to all of us.
FYI... This one is pretty slick since they provide YOU with all theinformation, except the one piece they want.
=
Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorialsopinion/2003559797_spoofed07
.html
Editorial--Go forth and initiate
Good message, bad tactic. Of the many ways to make a point, using - or inthis case, misusing - the citizen initiative process is not the best way towin an argument.
A group of gay-marriage supporters plans to begin gathering signatures for astatewide initiative that would limit the institution of marriage to coupleswho have children. And not those who have children at just any old time inthe marriage - within three years of the vows.
Otherwise, the marriage would be dissolved. No one means any of this tooseriously; the initiative is designed to take a purposeful dig at a stateSupreme Court ruling denying gays the right to marry in part because suchunions don't advance procreation.
=
The New York Times
http://select.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09friedman.html
February 9, 2007
Op-Ed Columnist
Not Their Parents’ Russia
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
MOSCOW
Russia today is a country that takes three hands to describe.
On the one hand, it is impossible any more to call Vladimir Putin’sgovernment “democratic,” given the way it has neutered the RussianParliament, intimidated or taken over much of the Russian press,subordinated the judiciary and coercively extended its control over thecountry’s key energy companies.
On the other hand, it is obvious talking to Russians how much thehumiliating and dispiriting turmoil that accompanied Boris Yeltsin’s firststab at democracy — after the collapse of Communism — left many people herestarved for a strong leader, a stable economy and stores with Westernconsumer goods. Mr. Putin is popular for a reason.
And on the third hand, while today’s Russia may be a crazy quilt ofcapitalist czars, mobsters, nationalists and aspiring democrats, it is notthe totalitarian Soviet Union. It has more than a touch of theauthoritarianism of postwar Gaullist France and a large spoonful of thecorruption and messiness of postwar Italy — when those countries emergedfrom World War II as less than perfect democracies.
=
From recent past...
Fox News: "The more you watch the less you know." Quote from the MemphisMedia Conference.
medialifemagazine.com
Cable
Fox News ratings take a steep tumble
By Kevin Downey
Nov 2, 2006, 01:20
October was the 10th anniversary of Fox News, and in that 10 years it hasrisen to the No. 1 cable news network, riding on the tagline "Fair andBalanced."
Yet Fox News is showing serious signs of aging, led by steep audiencedeclines.
Fox News’s total audience fell 24 percent in the past year, to 1.3 millionviewers from 1.7 million, and its key primetime audience, viewers ages25-54, was down 7 percent in October on a year-to-year basis, to an average363,000 viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research data.
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http://civ.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/o.pl?id=9851-5533006-xEmkt7ienmASzh651m4wsA&t=3
George W. Bush is trying—yet again—to slash funding for NPR and PBS.
This week, Bush proposed a new budget with devastating cuts to publicbroadcasting.1 "Sesame Street" and other ad-free kids' shows are under theknife. So is the independent journalism our country needs.
Enough is enough. We've fought this fight before and won—but we can't affordthe risk anymore. With the new Congress, we can make sure this never happensagain. We need Congress to insulate NPR and PBS from the political winds.
We can make it happen if enough of us sign this petition: "Congress mustsave NPR and PBS once and for all. Congress should guarantee permanentfunding and independence from partisan meddling." Clicking here will addyour name to the petition:
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Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2007/02/08/gore_supporters_plotting_way_to_get_him_to_run_in_2008?mode=PF
Gore supporters plotting way to get him to run in 2008
By Philip Elliott, Associated Press Writer | February 8, 2007
CONCORD, N.H. --Veterans of Al Gore's past are quietly assembling a campaignto draft the former vice president into the 2008 presidential race --despite his repeated statements that he's not running.
His top policy adviser from his 2000 presidential campaign and other keysupporters met Thursday in Boston to mull a potential Gore campaign. Theparticipants and Gore's Nashville office both said Gore, who is in London,is not involved.
Elaine Kamarck, a veteran of the Clinton White House and Gore's policy guruin 2000, said the meeting was informal and shouldn't be taken as a signthere will be a Gore 2008 campaign.
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Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/02/08/democrats_weigh_plan_to_clear_out_gitmo?mode=PF
Democrats weigh plan to clear out Gitmo
By David Espo, AP Special Correspondent | February 8, 2007
WASHINGTON --Key House Democrats said Thursday they are considering a planto close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, by the end of 2008, with theexception of several dozen detainees in the war on terror who would be keptat the facility and tried there.
Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., said he hopes to include the provision inlegislation this spring that Democrats also intend to use to try to preventfurther increases in troop strength in the war in Iraq.
Without public notice, Murtha dispatched Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., to thedetention center at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay on a one-day triplate last month to recommend ways for closing it. Both men said the prisonhas become counterproductive as the United States tries to win convertsoverseas in the war on terror.
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Detroit News
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070209/NATION/702090375/1020/rss09&template=printart
Rising Dem star loses luster
San Francisco mayor's admissions of affair, alcohol problems take veneer offhis success.
John M. Glionna and Lee Romney / Los Angeles Times
SAN FRANCISCO -- He's considered a darling of Democratic Party politics, asmooth-talking young millionaire with Kennedy good looks who has basked inthe media limelight while being courted as a possible national politicalfigure.
But beneath the surface, Mayor Gavin Newsom's Camelot has been crumbling.
After admitting recently to adultery and alcohol abuse, Newsom has suffereda public political meltdown that has rocked City Hall and led one countysupervisor to call for his resignation.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/47773/
A Budget for Permanent War
By Ari Berman, The Nation
Need proof that George W. Bush is not planning to withdraw US troops fromIraq on his watch? Just look at his latest budget.
The Bush Administration will ask Congress for $100 billion for Iraq andAfghanistan this year -- on top of the $70 billion already allocated -- and$145 billion for 2008. Why ask for the money if you're not planning to useit?
Administration officials, according to the Washington Post, "warned thateven more money will probably will be needed." The Los Angeles Times saysthe military wants "even larger defense budgets."
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The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/08/AR2007020801678_pf.html
The War And the Words
By Charles Krauthammer
Friday, February 9, 2007; A19
National Intelligence Estimates are not supposed to be amusing. And thelatest NIE on the situation in Iraq was uniformly grim. But the document'sdetermined effort to split the difference on the use of the phrase "civilwar" did verge on the comical. One can only imagine the interagencywrangling that produced the classic bureaucratic compromise: "TheIntelligence Community judges that the term 'civil war' does not adequatelycapture the complexity of the conflict," but "nonetheless, the term 'civilwar' accurately describes key elements of the Iraqi conflict."
In other words: yes, no, maybe. Multiple civil strife, but way too messy torank with the classics such as America in the 1860s or Spain in the 1930s.
I don't deny that this is a fair application of "civil war" to the currentsituation. What I note with dismay, however, is how important -- andabsurdly irrelevant -- the application of certain loaded words to thesituation has become.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/washington/08waxman.html?pagewanted=print
February 8, 2007
Army Says It Will Withhold $19.6 Million From Halliburton, Citing PotentialContract Breach
By PHILIP SHENON
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 - The Army announced during a House oversight committeehearing on Wednesday that it would withhold $19.6 million from theHalliburton Company after recently discovering that the contractor had hiredthe company Blackwater USA to provide armed security guards in Iraq, apotential breach of its government contract.
The Army has said that its contracts with Halliburton, which has afive-year, $16 billion deal to support American military operations in Iraq,generally barred the company and its subcontractors from using private armedguards. But in a statement, Halliburton disagreed with the Army'sinterpretation and suggested that there was nothing to prohibit Halliburton'ssubcontractors from hiring such guards.
The announcement came during a hearing of the House Government OversightCommittee that included emotional testimony about the killing of fourBlackwater employees in Falluja, Iraq, in 2004.
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Forwarded from Victoria Lavin
Daily Queer News
dailyqueernews@yahoo.com
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/washington/08asylum.html?_r=1&adxnnl=0&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1170978638-fUA5A//B99TXnPoX1B434w&pagewanted=print
February 8, 2007
U.S. May Be Mishandling Asylum Seekers, Panel Says
By RACHEL L. SWARNS
WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 - A bipartisan federal commission warned on Wednesdaythat the Bush administration, in its zeal to secure the nation's borders andstem the tide of illegal immigrants, may be leaving asylum seekersvulnerable to deportation and harsh treatment.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, whichCongress asked to assess asylum regulations, found two years ago that someimmigration officials were improperly processing asylum seekers fordeportation. The commission, which also found that asylum seekers were oftenstrip-searched, shackled and held in jails, called for safeguards in thesystem of speedy deportations known as expedited removal, to protect thosefleeing persecution.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09feith.html?ei=5094&en=4eabd30f5f83ce6a&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Prewar Intelligence Unit at Pentagon Is Criticized
By DAVID S. CLOUD and MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — A Pentagon investigation into the handling of prewarintelligence has criticized civilian Pentagon officials for conducting theirown intelligence analysis to find links between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda,but said the officials did not violate any laws or mislead Congress,according to Congressional officials who have read the report.
The long-awaited report by the Pentagon’s acting inspector general, ThomasF. Gimble, was sent to Congress on Thursday. It is the first major review torebuke senior officials working for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld forthe way intelligence was used before the invasion of Iraq early in 2003.
Working under Douglas J. Feith, who at the time was under secretary ofdefense for policy, the group “developed, produced and then disseminatedalternative intelligence assessments on the Iraq and Al Qaeda relationship,which included some conclusions that were inconsistent with the consensus ofthe Intelligence Community, to senior decision-makers,” the reportconcluded. Excerpts were quoted by Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democratwho has long been critical of Mr. Feith and other Pentagon officials.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09cong.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Democrats Set House Debate to Rebuke Bush Over Iraq Policy
By JEFF ZELENY
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — House Democratic leaders persuaded members of theirparty on Thursday to limit the scope of an Iraq war resolution next week toa simple repudiation of President Bush’s troop buildup plan, hoping totemporarily set aside divisive decisions over war financing and troopredeployments.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California, and other party leaders metprivately for more than an hour with other Democratic lawmakers. They soughtto reassure Democrats that the symbolic, nonbinding resolution devised torebuke Mr. Bush was a first step — but not a final one — toward assertingCongressional powers on Iraq.
After winning control of Congress, in part because of discontent over theIraq war, Democrats are eager to send a strong signal of disapproval to theWhite House. To make the proposal palatable to at least some Republicans,the Democrats said their resolution would express support for the troops,but reject the plan to send 21,500 more of them to Iraq.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09libby.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
NBC’s Russert Wraps Up Prosecution Case in Libby Trial
By NEIL A. LEWIS
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — The prosecution finished presenting its case in theperjury trial of I. Lewis Libby Jr. on Thursday, leaving his defense lawyersto try to undo the government’s contention that Mr. Libby lied under oathduring an investigation into the leak of a C.I.A. officer’s identity.
Mr. Libby’s legal team will begin with a parade of Washington journalists aswitnesses for the defense when the proceedings resume Monday. But lawyersfor Mr. Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, leftit a mystery as to whether they would call the two star attractions on theirwitness list: Mr. Cheney and Mr. Libby himself.
The last day of the prosecution’s case was largely consumed with an intensebattle of wills between Mr. Libby’s chief defense lawyer, Theodore V. WellsJr., and the final prosecution witness, Tim Russert of NBC News. Before thejurors left for a long weekend, they were bombarded as they have been eachday with a fast-moving and complex torrent of information.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09fri3.html?pagewanted=print
January 9, 2007
Editorial
The A.B.A.’s Judicial Ethics Mess
At a moment when judicial independence is under heightened political attack,the nation’s legal establishment should be doing everything it can to shoreup public trust. Instead, the special commission charged with recommendingrevisions to the Model Code of Judicial Conduct of the American BarAssociation has been flip-flopping around on some of the most importantaspects of the code, which the states use to set standards for their courts.
For decades, the code’s overarching charge to judges has been to avoid notonly actual impropriety, but also the appearance of impropriety. Recently,however, quietly adopted changes to the commission’s “final” report demotedthis gold standard of judicial conduct from an enforceable rule to a mereaspirational guideline.
When the misguided switch came to light, the panel reversed field againyesterday and went back to the previous formulation. But that does notexcuse the fact that the panel was following internal politics, not soundlegal principle. The change might have eluded pubic attention if RobertTembeckjian, the administrator of the New York State Commission on JudicialConduct, had not protested and Adam Liptak had not reported on the matter inThe Times this week.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/washington/09feith.html?ei=5094&en=4eabd30f5f83ce6a&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Pentagon Group Criticized for Prewar Intelligence Analysis
By DAVID S. CLOUD and MARK MAZZETTI
WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — A Pentagon investigation into the handling of prewarintelligence has criticized civilian Pentagon officials for conducting theirown intelligence analysis to find links between Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda,but said the officials did not violate any laws or mislead Congress,according to Congressional officials who have read the report.
The long-awaited report by the Pentagon’s acting inspector general, ThomasF. Gimble, was sent to Congress on Thursday. It is the first major review torebuke senior officials working for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld forthe way intelligence was used before the invasion of Iraq early in 2003.
Working under Douglas J. Feith, who at the time was under secretary ofdefense for policy, the group “developed, produced and then disseminatedalternative intelligence assessments on the Iraq and Al Qaeda relationship,which included some conclusions that were inconsistent with the consensus ofthe Intelligence Community, to senior decision-makers,” the reportconcluded. Excerpts were quoted by Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democratwho has long been critical of Mr. Feith and other Pentagon officials.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09fri1.html?pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Editorial
Making Democracy Credible
Time is growing short to head off more embarrassing voting machine scandals.The presidential election looms, yet nearly half of the states offer noreassuring paper trail so voters who use electronic voting machines cancheck that their ballot choices are accurately recorded.
With a proper sense of urgency, Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California,who leads the Senate committee in charge of elections, is asking all of theright questions about voting technology. This week, she ordered aninvestigation of the case of as many as 18,000 electronic votes that turnedup missing in a tight Congressional race in Florida last November.
Senator Feinstein called on the Government Accountability Office and theNational Institute of Standards and Technology to conduct “top to bottom”federal investigations of the machines used in Sarasota County, where the18,000 votes may have disappeared. Florida is now moving to toss outelectronic voting machines that do not produce a paper trail. But this is nocomfort to Christine Jennings, the Democrat in the 13th CongressionalDistrict race, which includes Sarasota County. She lost by 369 votes and isnow in court trying to find out what went wrong in the election.
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The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/world/middleeast/09saudi.html?ei=5094&en=b8db4692c77bc501&hp=&ex=1171083600&partner=homepage&pagewanted=print
February 9, 2007
Accord Is Signed by Palestinians to Stop Feuding
By HASSAN M. FATTAH
MECCA, Saudi Arabia, Feb. 8 — The main rival Palestinian factions agreedlate Thursday to form a government of national unity aimed at ending a waveof violence between them and an international boycott.
The agreement, signed here in Islam’s holiest city under Saudi auspices,appeared likely to end, at least for now, weeks of fighting that had ravagedthe West Bank and Gaza Strip. Still, it seemed to stop short of meeting thedemands of the international community for resuming relations and supportfor the Palestinian Authority.
The accord, signed by Khaled Meshal of Hamas and Mahmoud Abbas, thePalestinian Authority president and leader of Fatah, its main rival, is thefirst time that the two parties have agreed to share authority. It sets outprinciples for a coalition government, like the distribution of ministerialportfolios, but leaves many of the details for later.
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Forwarded from Leon Van Dyke
Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2007 8:58 PM
Subject: NEW Scam on Visa & Master Card
I checked on snopes.com to verify that this was true and felt it was worthsharing with everyone..... Note boldface paragraph below. --The bulk of thetext as passed to me, I also verified as issuing from snopes.com
Leon
Hi Everyone, this came from a friend who works at a Bank:
We have received the following from at Whitford City - you may need to readand take note. This could be relevant to all of us.
FYI... This one is pretty slick since they provide YOU with all theinformation, except the one piece they want.
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Forwarded from Kenneth Sherrill - Ken's List
Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorialsopinion/2003559797_spoofed07
.html
Editorial--Go forth and initiate
Good message, bad tactic. Of the many ways to make a point, using - or inthis case, misusing - the citizen initiative process is not the best way towin an argument.
A group of gay-marriage supporters plans to begin gathering signatures for astatewide initiative that would limit the institution of marriage to coupleswho have children. And not those who have children at just any old time inthe marriage - within three years of the vows.
Otherwise, the marriage would be dissolved. No one means any of this tooseriously; the initiative is designed to take a purposeful dig at a stateSupreme Court ruling denying gays the right to marry in part because suchunions don't advance procreation.
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The New York Times
http://select.nytimes.com/2007/02/09/opinion/09friedman.html
February 9, 2007
Op-Ed Columnist
Not Their Parents’ Russia
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
MOSCOW
Russia today is a country that takes three hands to describe.
On the one hand, it is impossible any more to call Vladimir Putin’sgovernment “democratic,” given the way it has neutered the RussianParliament, intimidated or taken over much of the Russian press,subordinated the judiciary and coercively extended its control over thecountry’s key energy companies.
On the other hand, it is obvious talking to Russians how much thehumiliating and dispiriting turmoil that accompanied Boris Yeltsin’s firststab at democracy — after the collapse of Communism — left many people herestarved for a strong leader, a stable economy and stores with Westernconsumer goods. Mr. Putin is popular for a reason.
And on the third hand, while today’s Russia may be a crazy quilt ofcapitalist czars, mobsters, nationalists and aspiring democrats, it is notthe totalitarian Soviet Union. It has more than a touch of theauthoritarianism of postwar Gaullist France and a large spoonful of thecorruption and messiness of postwar Italy — when those countries emergedfrom World War II as less than perfect democracies.
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From recent past...
Fox News: "The more you watch the less you know." Quote from the MemphisMedia Conference.
medialifemagazine.com
Cable
Fox News ratings take a steep tumble
By Kevin Downey
Nov 2, 2006, 01:20
October was the 10th anniversary of Fox News, and in that 10 years it hasrisen to the No. 1 cable news network, riding on the tagline "Fair andBalanced."
Yet Fox News is showing serious signs of aging, led by steep audiencedeclines.
Fox News’s total audience fell 24 percent in the past year, to 1.3 millionviewers from 1.7 million, and its key primetime audience, viewers ages25-54, was down 7 percent in October on a year-to-year basis, to an average363,000 viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research data.
=
http://civ.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/o.pl?id=9851-5533006-xEmkt7ienmASzh651m4wsA&t=3
George W. Bush is trying—yet again—to slash funding for NPR and PBS.
This week, Bush proposed a new budget with devastating cuts to publicbroadcasting.1 "Sesame Street" and other ad-free kids' shows are under theknife. So is the independent journalism our country needs.
Enough is enough. We've fought this fight before and won—but we can't affordthe risk anymore. With the new Congress, we can make sure this never happensagain. We need Congress to insulate NPR and PBS from the political winds.
We can make it happen if enough of us sign this petition: "Congress mustsave NPR and PBS once and for all. Congress should guarantee permanentfunding and independence from partisan meddling." Clicking here will addyour name to the petition:
[Send your comments about articles to Rays.List@Comcast.net]
~~~~~~~~~~~~
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