January 16, 2012 archive

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On this Day In History January 16

Cross posted from The Stars Hollow Gazette

This is your morning Open Thread. Pour your favorite beverage and review the past and comment on the future.

Find the past “On This Day in History” here.

January 16 is the 16th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 349 days remaining until the end of the year (350 in leap years).

On this day in 1919, the 18th Amendment to the US Constitution, prohibiting the “manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes,” is ratified.

The movement for the prohibition of alcohol began in the early 19th century, when Americans concerned about the adverse effects of drinking began forming temperance societies. By the late 19th century, these groups had become a powerful political force, campaigning on the state level and calling for total national abstinence. In December 1917, the 18th Amendment, also known as the Prohibition Amendment, was passed by Congress and sent to the states for ratification.

The amendment and its enabling legislation did not ban the consumption of alcohol, but made it difficult to obtain it legally.

Following significant pressure on lawmakers from the temperance movement, the House of Representatives passed the amendment on December 18, 1917. It was certified as ratified on January 16, 1919, having been approved by 36 states. It went into effect one year after ratification, on January 17, 1920. Many state legislatures had already enacted statewide prohibition prior to the ratification of the Eighteenth Amendment.

When Congress submitted this amendment to the states for ratification, it was the first time a proposed amendment contained a provision setting a deadline for its ratification. The validity of that clause of the amendment was challenged and reached the Supreme Court, which upheld the constitutionality of such a deadline in Dillon v. Gloss (1921).

Because many Americans attempted to evade the restrictions of Prohibition, there was a considerable growth in violent and organized crime in the United States in response to public demand for illegal alcohol. The amendment was repealed by the Twenty-First Amendment on December 5, 1933. It remains the only constitutional amendment to be repealed in its entirety.

To define the language used in the Amendment, Congress enacted enabling legislation called the National Prohibition Act, better known as the Volstead Act, on October 28, 1919. President Woodrow Wilson vetoed that bill, but the House of Representatives immediately voted to override the veto and the Senate voted similarly the next day. The Volstead Act set the starting date for nationwide prohibition for January 17, 1920, which was the earliest date allowed by the 18th Amendment.Volstead Act, on October 28, 1919. President Woodrow Wilson vetoed that bill, but the House of Representatives immediately voted to override the veto and the Senate voted similarly the next day. The Volstead Act set the starting date for nationwide prohibition for January 17, 1920, which was the earliest date allowed by the 18th Amendment.

On the 10th Anniversary of GITMO, An Interview with Boumediene

Cross posted from The Stars Hollow Gazette

On Saturday MSNBC’s Chris Hayes aired an exclusive taped interview with former Guantanamo detainee Lakhdar Boumediene. Boumediene, , a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina, was arrested with five Algerian men in Bosnia in October, 2001 and charged with plotting to blow up the American embassy in Sarajevo. He was held for seven years at Guantanamo without charges or explanation. Boumediene was the lead plaintiff in Boumediene v. Bush, a 2008 U.S. Supreme Court decision that Guantanamo detainees have the right to file writs of habeas corpus in U.S. federal courts. He and the five other detainees were released from Guantanamo on May 15, 2009 after a US Federal Judge found that “the Bush administration relied on insufficient evidence to imprison them indefinitely as ‘enemy combatants.

Through a translator, Boumediene explains life as a Guantanamo prisoner, about his torture, and his life after his release.

Muse in the Morning

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Muse in the Morning
It’s hard to think of yourself as a loser at 2 years old.

–Jeff Foxworthy



Subdivisions

Jon Stewart: Indecision 2012 – Black to the Future

Adapted from The Stars Hollow Gazette

Indecision 2012 Black to the Future

Some may quibble with the idea that Newt Gingrich must enter into the bowels of the inner city to explain to black people the power of the paycheck.

Indecision 2012 – Black to the Future – Newt Gingrich’s Timing

Wyatt Cenac analyzes why it took Newt Gingrich so long to be condescending and dickish to African Americans.

Late Night Karaoke

Scottish fantasies

IOZ will get his wish.
For those who can afford to eat,
He’ll teach us how to cook our fish

I wouldn’t want to be a fish.
One likes to think of fish as free
But most end up on plate or dish.

There’s almost none left to, uh, “fish.”
The fish ain’t free and nor are we
I think I’ll just enjoy my shish

Kebob, the reveries of richer
Times. We’ll fell the final tree.
The final bug we’ll cook or squish.

The frogs are surely doomed, ask Mish.
“Apocalyptic thinking” reveals
We need another liquorice,

Ricard, with a splash! And splish.
We want the stress to leap,
The bullish thing’s a balls-out freak.
We short our longs. Sort-of-ish.

TEA TIN

Greetings, I am  michael mendiola Most recently from Nebraska, originally from the Quad cities area and grew up there.

I enjoy my free time,I prefer all dry weather , specially the Fall and with all its colors.

High Tech has been a part of my life for the last 6 years and most recently primarily on the Web.

I love the Internet.

As tough as it is right now, more and more people are seeking help from people who have walked the walk and can teach others how to benefit from their experience. Message me if you need my help

I am a designer in the field of Science and Engineering project management software.

check out my favorite sites , TIN CONTAINERS The best of all tin products found here TEA TIN  GIFT BOX

I love to ask questions

when possible I volunteer for for valid causes that help the environment.

Its great to be a part of this site and look forward to meeting you online here.

Verizon Fios

I Lasthorseman and my wife state that.

The new Verizon Fios menu/channel selection system screen sucks because.

The fonts plus color scheme is hard on aged eyes.  All you get is a sparse description of how crappy said entertainment venue actually is.  Many of the offerings are repeats of the same thing/channel only in high definition which I could give two shits about.  I don’t really care about sports, or rather stopped caring about sports during this extinction of our family’s and extended family’s former status of lower middle class hardworking Americans.

Pique the Geek 20120115: Trichomoniasis, a Very Common STD

Trichomoniasis is probably the most commonly spread sexually transmitted disease (STD) in the US at present, yet hardly anyone has heard of it.  The main reason is that there are many “silent” cases, with no symptoms at all.

The purpose of this piece is to raise awareness of this infection in the hope of doing a small part to have people get themselves tested.  Unlike HPV Strains 16 and 18, it is not strongly linked to cervical cancer, there is evidence that it can increase the risk of this disease to a small extent, but any increase in risk for cervical cancer is too big an increase.  By the way, we covered HPV some time ago, here.

Fortunately, after diagnosis it is easily treated and cured in the course of a week or two, depending on the regimen used.  We shall get into that near the end of the piece.

This is sort of an unusual piece for me, because many years ago, before the former Mrs. Translator and I were an item, I became infected with this parasite.  As we cover the subject, I shall insert my personal observations where appropriate.