November 19, 2009 – Page 2

Nov 19 2009

Docudharma Times Thursday November 19

Thursday’s Headlines:

Senate Health Plan Seeks to Add Coverage to 31 Million

Copenhagen climate change talks stall as CO2 emissions rise

Holder answers to 9/11 relatives about trials in U.S.

Army Corps of Engineers blamed for Hurricane Katrina levee breaches

Afghan president Hamid Karzai sworn in for second term

Rise and fall of the Indian rope trick

Envoy lets slip EU presidency pact by France and Germany

Italian town dreaming of a White Christmas

New sanctions on Iran to target LNG technology

Spirit of the past inspires Congo campaign

Maersk Alabama fends off another Somali pirate attack

Guns and journalism – reporting from South America’s drugs frontline

Docudharma Times

Nov 19 2009

When Hate in Religion

By Michael Gass in Media, Philosophy

In case you missed it, Texas has now banned gay marriages. Oh wait, that isn’t all — they have now banned ALL marriages in Texas!

AUSTIN – Texans: Are you really married?

Maybe not.

Barbara Ann Radnofsky, a Houston lawyer and Democratic candidate for attorney general, says that a 22-word clause in a 2005 constitutional amendment designed to ban gay marriages erroneously endangers the legal status of all marriages in the state.

Here is the money quote from the legislation:

The amendment, approved by the Legislature and overwhelmingly ratified by voters, declares that “marriage in this state shall consist only of the union of one man and one woman.” But the troublemaking phrase, as Radnofsky sees it, is Subsection B, which declares:

“This state or a political subdivision of this state may not create or recognize any legal status identical or similar to marriage.“

Is marriage dead in Texas due to hate?

Nov 19 2009

Late Night Karaoke

Open Thread

Nov 19 2009

Quit shooting up my neighborhood!

By Miep

Last Saturday, I was sitting around here in my homestead, drinking a little wine. It was about ten p.m. and I was early with this.

Gunshots from just down the street. Maybe two blocks down? I had no idea. I do not know shit of the sounds of guns. I’m an amateur about that.

One shot. Several seconds. Nine shots, then. Very consistently. About just a little more than a half second apart.

I’m back here in the back of my house where I live. No windows with lights. It’s about ten PM.

I do not know shit of the sounds of guns, but I know a few things about guns.

First: pellet guns do not sound so resoundingly.

Next: shotguns don’t go off in nine rounds so nicely, and also they are more loud.

After this interesting repeating gunshot event, I cowered in my house. Then several minutes later I heard dim gunshots from maybe ten blocks away, briefly.

Then I stayed in my little house with my dog. No, I didn’t call the cops. I thought the gunshots were from a couple of blocks away.

Apparently not, the cops came in a phalanx of squad cars about 20 minutes or so later (I was watching through the dark side of the house).

No sirens. No ambluances. No fire trucks.

Apparently nobody got gunned down. Just somebody doing their semi thing.

The cops walked around and talked to some guy down the street a few blocks. I watched through the window of the door.

Very quiet.

They laughed some, as they eventually walked back to their cars.

Nov 19 2009

Overnight Caption Contest

By Night Owl

Nov 19 2009

Honduras: the farcical agreement is exposed – boycott the elections!

By rjones2818

Original article, by Jorge Martin, via Socialist Appeal (UK):

As we explained in a previous article , the Tegucigalpa/San José Accord signed on October 30 by representatives of the legitimate president of Honduras, Mel Zelaya, and those of the coup regime of Micheletti, was in reality a farce.

Nov 19 2009

Cut Up Your Credit Cards

By Edger

Hat tip to Armando for this: GOP Protects Credit Card Companies, at your expense of course…

From Digby, 11/18/2009 3:30PM

If Democrats can’t make something out of this they deserve to lose their majority and be sued for political malpractice.

Moments ago, Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic proposal to freeze credit card rates on existing balances through the holiday season. The bill, sponsored by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), would prevent credit card companies from hiking rates and fees on existing balances until the industry reforms passed by Congress earlier this year take effect. Although a few provisions of that law took hold in August, most don’t launch until February or August of 2010. In the meantime, many card companies are hiking rates and fees to beat the law.

“The industry has tried to make one last grab at their customers’ pocketbooks,” Dodd said, just before asking for the consent of Republicans to pass the bill unanimously.

No dice. Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) objected “on behalf of several senators on this side of the aisle.” There’s no word yet which other lawmakers he was referring to.