Week In The News: CIA, Overtime, A Missing Airline (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

The plane that couldn’t be found was all over the news this week.  Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.  Vanished.  But plenty more news very visible.  Russian troops, massed along Ukraine’s border – and many across it as Crimea prepares for a Sunday vote on secession.  Big threats from the U.S. and Europe.  Moscow, plowing ahead.  The CIA and the Senate at war.  The President pushes for more overtime pay for wage earners.  Eric Holder would trim drug offender prison sentences.  G.M. recalls.  A corner of New York explodes.  This hour On Point: our weekly news roundtable goes behind the headlines. / Tom Ashbrook

Interview:
http://onpoint.wbur.org/2014/03/14/flight-370-cia-senate-overtime

Friday News Roundup - Domestic (Diane Rehm Show)

Health insurance enrollment under the Affordable Care Act passes 4 million, well below target. Republican David Jolly defeats Democrat Alex Sink in a special House election in Florida. And the Justice Department investigates the General Motors recall. A panel of journalists joins guest host Susan Page for analysis of the week's top domestic news stories.
 

Interview:

http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2014-03-14/friday-news-roundup-domestic

 

 

Friday News Roundup - International (Diane Rehm Show)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and the Russian foreign minister hold talks in London on the Ukraine crisis, before the anticipated vote on a referendum in Crimea on Sunday. The head of the U.N. urges the U.S. and Russia to salvage Syrian peace talks. UNICEF reports that Syria is one of the most dangerous places on earth for children. And the search for the missing Malaysian airliner shifts West into the Indian Ocean after new data hints the plane was airborne hours after it lost contact. A panel of journalists join guest host Susan Page for analysis of the week's top international news stories.
 

Interview:

thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2014-03-14/friday-news-roundup-international

 

"Written in Stone" Brian Switek on Atheist Talk #93, Sunday, November 21, 2010

 Paleontology is a set of tools of discovery in science.  Explorers look to the rocks, and the quarries and the fossils encased within to read the story of the evolution of life on Earth, from which single-celled beings radiated to what Darwin described as "Endless forms most beautiful."  Brian Switek is a science writer and blogger whose new book explains the processes by which paleontologists from the 17th century forward analyzed the bones of past eras and eons to give us avian dinosaurs (we call them birds), whales, elephants and more. 

 Despite creationist claims, there are transitional fossils.  Brian's book is written clearly and with an entertaining voice and I have been thoroughly enjoying it.

Interview: 

http://mnatheists.org/news-and-media/podcast/523-qwritten-in-stoneq-brian-switek-on-atheist-talk-93-sunday-november-21-2010

"Jesus Lied" CJ Werleman on Atheists Talk #91, Sunday, November 7, 2010

"Lunatic, Liar or Lord?" is referred to as Lewis' Trilemma. C.S. Lewis in his book Mere Christianity looked at the life of Jesus to conclude that he couldn't have been either a lunatic or a liar so he must have been God. Not so fast, according to our guest. C. J.Werlemen checks out he story of Jesus as according to the gospels and the epistles and the Acts of the Apostles and based on the contradictory stories and versions of stories told in the New Testament Jesus was more likely a liar. If Jesus existed at all, CJ finds, there is no way we can say that he was Lord.
I am going to talk to C.J. about his new book from Dangerous Little Books. Jesus Lied - He Was Only Human: Debunking the New Testament is one of the most entertaining examples I have ever read of good Christian Unapologetics. It also contains some swear words, so be forewarned if you are offended by such things. We won't allow C.J. to swear on the radio. Also of note, we will be calling to his home in Indonesia, which is the farthest-flung guest shot we have ever had on the show.
C.J. is a native Australian. He's an atheist in a majority Muslim country and a funny writer who also penned God Hates You, Hate Him Back. If you are seeking a solid review of the full Bible, C J. goes after the Almighty with both guns ablaze.


Interview: 
http://mnatheists.org/news-and-media/podcast/520-jesus-lied-cj-werleman-on-atheists-talk-91-sunday-november-7-2010

"Christian Nation", Fred Rich on Atheists Talk #258, February 23, 2014

What do people like Sarah Palin mean when they say the U.S. is a "Christian nation"? What would their vision look like if it were made real? Could they ever really succeed in taking control of the country? Author Fred Rich tackles all these questions in his recent book, Christian Nation: A Novel. From the publisher's description:

In the spirit of Philip Roth’s The Plot Against America, one of America’s foremost lawyers lays out in chilling detail what such a future might look like: constitutional protections dismantled; all aspects of life dominated by an authoritarian law called “The Blessing,” enforced by a totally integrated digital world known as the "Purity Web." Readers will find themselves haunted by the questions the narrator struggles to answer in this fictional memoir: "What happened, why did it happen, how could it have happened?"

Interview: http://mnatheists.org/news-and-media/podcast/948-fred-rich-christian-nation

The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe, March 8, 2014

This Day in Skepticism: Tilly Shilling
News Items: Countering Anti-Vaccine Fears, Dowsing in CA, Capturing Earth's Energy, Crank Sues NASA
Who's That Noisy
Your Questions and E-mails: Michio Kaku, Dealing with Negativity
Name That Logical Fallacy: Eating Meat
Science or Fiction

Interview:
http://www.theskepticsguide.org/podcast/sgu/452

Judith Schlesinger Exposes the Myth of the Mad Genius (Rationally Speaking)

Creative geniuses are always a little bit cuckoo, right? At least, that's the impression you'd get from TV, movies, and plenty of common wisdom. In this episode of Rationally Speaking, Massimo and Julia are joined by psychologist Judith Schlesinger, author of The Insanity Hoax: Exposing the Myth of the Mad Genius, who explains why she thinks the "mad genius" archetype is simply the result of folklore, misunderstanding, and bad research.

Judith's advice: Re-enjoy the geniuses that you have always loved, pull down a Beethoven Symphony and listen to it, go to the museum and look at Van Gogh's beautiful paintings, and if you focus more on the beauty and less on the rumor, we will all be better off.

Interview:
http://rationallyspeakingpodcast.org/show/rs99-judith-schlesinger-exposes-the-myth-of-the-mad-genius.html

Jerome Wakefield on Psychiatric Diagnoses: Science or Pseudoscience? (Rationally Speaking)

What qualifies someone as mentally ill? The standard for diagnosis is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), which just released a 5th edition in 2013 -- but just how objective is it? This episode of Rationally Speaking features Dr. Jerome Wakefield, psychiatrist, PhD in philosophy, and author of "The Loss of Sadness: How Psychiatry Transformed Normal Sorrow into Depressive Disorder." Julia, Massimo and Jerome talk about the arbitrariness of the DSM and the controversies around the boundaries of various mental disorders, including depression and sexual fetishes.

Interview:
http://rationallyspeakingpodcast.org/show/rs98-jerome-wakefield-on-psychiatric-diagnoses-science-or-ps.html

Peter Singer on Being a Utilitarian in the Real World (Rationally Speaking)

Few philosophers have as wide of an impact on the general public as ethicist Peter Singer, this week's guest on Rationally Speaking podcast. Singer's utilitarian arguments about how we should treat animals, why we have a moral obligation to give to charity, whether infants should count as "people," and more have won him widespread fame -- and notoriety -- over the last few decades, and launched multiple movements. Tune in to hear his discussion with Massimo and Julia about why he's a utilitarian, and how his views of utilitarianism have recently changed (and find out how he influenced Massimo's life years ago).

 Interview:
http://rationallyspeakingpodcast.org/show/rs97-peter-singer-on-being-a-utilitarian-in-the-real-world.html

Waking up with Sam Harris

LECTURE SERIES AND ONLINE COURSE

https://www.samharris.org/store/event_series/waking-up-with-sam-harris

Congressman Destroys DEA Official On Marijuana BS

"A senior U.S. drug enforcement official refused to state whether alcohol was more or less dangerous than marijuana during a House oversight committee hearing on Tuesday.

Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) asked DEA deputy director Thomas Harrigan about recent comments made by his colleague, DEA administrator Michele Leonhart.

At the National Sheriffs' Association's annual meeting in January, Leonhart blasted President Barack Obama for saying that marijuana is no more dangerous than alcohol. She added that the hemp flag flown over the Capitol on July 4 was the lowest point of her career."

http://youtu.be/oGp3T8zjY0U

It's Time to Stop the Crash of 2016

Thom Hartmann shares his concerns over the next big economic crash and offers some solutions.

http://youtu.be/xRgHs9tymrE

Man Facing Execution Pens Chilling Letter Full Of Truths You Can't Deny

"A death row inmate scheduled to be put to death later this month compared prison sentences to slavery in a stinging indictment of the US judicial system.

Ray Jasper, a Texas inmate, submitted his letter to media blog Gawker. Jasper was convicted for participating in the 1998 robbery and murder of recording studio owner David Alejandro and sentenced to death as a teen.

Gawker initially reached out to all death row inmates with scheduled executions this year back in December 2013. In January it published a letter Jasper wrote in response, detailing his experience on death row."* The Young Turks hosts Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian break it down.

http://youtu.be/ZRCe_7qemEs

Selling God (repost)

A quick look at some of the techinques used by evangelists and street preachers.

http://youtu.be/uikkBGyebzc

Prostitutes Cuffed, Forced Into Church, And Taxpayers Get Billed

"Rather than being taken to jail, sex workers apprehended on the streets of Phoenix, Arizona are being handcuffed and brought to a church, where they can decide if they would rather be incarcerated by the state or undergo diversion therapy.

The policy, known as Project ROSE, is a Phoenix program that, according to Vice News, has aimed to help more than 350 people since it began in 2011.

Police sweep the streets and browse the internet searching for prostitution listings. They may catch dozens of women during any given sting operation but, instead of hauling them into jail, the police handcuff them and bring them to the Arizona State School of Social Work.""* The Young Turks hosts Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian break it down.

http://youtu.be/GjFQeFTKYb8

CIA Torturers Hide Report, But That's Not The Worst Part

"The CIA Inspector General's Office has asked the Justice Department to investigate allegations of malfeasance at the spy agency in connection with a yet-to-be released Senate Intelligence Committee report into the CIA's secret detention and interrogation program, McClatchy has learned.

The criminal referral may be related to what several knowledgeable people said was CIA monitoring of computers used by Senate aides to prepare the study. The monitoring may have violated an agreement between the committee and the agency.

The development marks an unprecedented breakdown in relations between the CIA and its congressional overseers amid an extraordinary closed-door battle over the 6,300-page report on the agency's use of waterboarding and harsh interrogation techniques on suspected terrorists held in secret overseas prisons. The report is said to be a searing indictment of the program. The CIA has disputed some of the reports findings."* The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur breaks it down.

http://youtu.be/11rJWtQLW6g

Fox News Blames Obama For Russian Troops In Ukraine?

Fox News coverage of events in Ukraine, Russia, and the Crimean Peninsula seemed focused on furthering a partisan narrative about the supposedly weak foreign policy of President Barack Obama and the supposedly strong, strategic leadership of Vladimir Putin, as I show in this video.

http://youtu.be/ARojOLo4GEY

RWW News: Pastor Larry Tomczak Claims God Is Punishing 'Effeminate' Men and 'Mannish' Women

Right Wing Watch reports on the extreme rhetoric and activities of key right-wing figures and organizations by showing their views in their own words. In this video, pastor Larry Tomczak claims that God is punishing gay men by making them "effeminate" and lesbians by making them "mannish."

Guess Who's Picking The 2016 Presidential Candidates?

*Billionaire Wilbur Ross invited Paul Ryan over for lunch. Goldman Sachs (GS) Group Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) bankers met with Rand Paul at a fundraiser in Atlanta. Investor Rob Arnott dropped in on Ted Cruz. Wall Street Republicans have begun their White House dance less than halfway into a second Barack Obama term they tried to prevent with record donations to Mitt Romney. As investigations slow Chris Christie, whose backers have included a troop of billionaires, donors are looking for a candidate who can replace the constraints they detest with appreciation they think is due. That's led to fervor for Jeb Bush, admiration for Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and even flirtation with Tea Party senators, according to more than a dozen interviews with fund managers, bankers and investors who open wallets for politics...* What about the 2016 Democratic Presidential candidates? The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur breaks it down.

http://youtu.be/mSvHYrodn3k

Absurd Argument Against Overtime Pay By Fox News Host

*Fox Business host Stuart Varney on Thursday asserted that paying overtime could stifle companies like Google, and that a proposed White House change to overtime rules was essentially "buying votes."

Bloomberg News reported this week that the Obama administration was considering directing the Labor Department to make more American workers eligible for overtime pay. The rule change was expected to target fast food and retail companies which often label workers as "supervisors" or "managers" so they do not have to be paid for more than 40 hours of work.

The Washington-based Economic Policy Institute has said it supports the rule change for workers who make less than $50,000...* The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur breaks it down.

http://youtu.be/gpLyq0T8N0A

Flood Of Money Decides Yet Another Election

*GOP groups flooded the race with about $5 million, compensating for Jolly's weak fundraising and lackluster campaign. Buoyed by a political environment favoring Republicans, the outside organizations worked in harmony, complementing one another's tactics in a successful outing that followed a quiet 2013 and a disappointing 2012. "The Florida CD-13 special was an important test market and there was unprecedented cooperation among outside groups," said Steven Law, CEO of American Crossroads, a conservative group that spent about $500,000 to help Jolly...* The Young Turk host Cenk Uygur breaks it down.

http://youtu.be/MFOUXklj4_Y

Catholic 'Human Rights' Leader Wants Liberal Professors 'Taken Out And Shot' (AUDIO)

Austin Ruse is a devout Catholic who advocates for human rights. Both are evident in the name of the organization he heads up. 

..."I do hope that they go to a Christian college or university and to keep them so far away from the hard left, human-hating people that run modern universities, who should all be taken out and shot." ... Read more

Jon Stewart Hits Back At Fox Host For Trying To 'School' Him On Food Stamps (VIDEO)

"..."You thought we were ridiculing you for exposing government waste? No, that's a reasonable thing to expose," Stewart said, serious for a moment on Thursday's "The Daily Show." "What we were ridiculing was the way you exaggerate the scope of public assistance abuse through random, often unprovable anecdotes."..."

The Daily Show
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,The Daily Show on Facebook

The Daily Show
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,The Daily Show on Facebook

The Jeep Plant Mitt Romney Said Was Moving To China Is Booming In Ohio

"...In a last-ditch effort to swing Ohio into the Republican column in the waning days of the campaign, Romney's team aired an ad that gave the impression that Chrysler would ship jobs to China because of President Obama's auto rescue..."

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/obama-romney-jeep-ad

Conservatives Will Turn Obama Into Dick Nixon If It's The Last Thing They Do

Ted Cruz said last week at the Conservative Political Action Conference that Richard Nixon had nothing on the current lawbreaker occupying the White H... Read more

Hate the hell

Read more

Outside Political Groups Are Spending Record Amounts Of Money To Deny Poor People Health Care

The 2014 election cycle has already seen 12 times as many anti-Obamacare ads as a comparable period in 2010.The post Outside ... Read more

Norway’s Sovereign Wealth Fund To Mandate Investment In Renewable Energy

The fund is the largest in the world.The post Norway's Sovereign Wealth Fund To Mandate Investment In Renewable Energy ... Read more

Navigating the Junk Science of Fetal Pain

"...In response to scientific discourse pertaining to the utility of fetal anesthesia during abortion procedures, many double-blind peer-reviewed studies have tackled both the assertion of fetal pain and the suggestion of anesthetics in neutralizing fetal pain. Consequently, comprehensive studies of fetal pain have concluded that fetuses do not feel pain at the 20-week mark. And the most exhaustive review of studies finds that claims of fetal pain are unsupported by peer-reviewed science. These studies suggest that while the neural pathways to experience pain begin forming around 23 weeks gestation, the pathways are not functional and cannot transmit the noxious stimuli to the brain before 29 or 30 weeks..."

The Secret Strategy Behind 20-Week Abortion Bans

This is what the anti-choice community doesn't want you to know about the "fetal pain" movement.The post The Secret Strategy ... Read more

Patients Are Already Suffering From Tar Sands, Nurses Say

"If you think health care costs are up and health care is an issue now, it can only get worse from here." The post Patients Are ... Read more

Measles Is Spreading In Our Largest Cities Because People Aren’t Vaccinating Their Kids

 The concrete consequences of anti-vaccine propaganda. The post Measles Is Spreading In Our Largest Cities Because People ... Read more

Exercise can prevent, reverse dementia

Physical exercise is as important in staving off dementia as keeping your mind active, scientists have said.

http://www.wisconsingazette.com/health-and-wellness/exercise-can-prevent-reverse-dimentia.html

Check Your Utility Bill For Fraud From This New Scam - Forbes

"Several suppliers of electricity that service various markets in the United States recently more than doubled their rates without any warning to customers. Some of the firms involved apparently claim that the skyrocketing prices resulted from unusually cold weather in the Northeast USA which caused their supply costs to increase. This claim, however, is suspicious, as other providers of power did not make similar increases, leading one to wonder whether these firms mismanaged their purchasing processes, or if something more sinister is at play. I tried to reach one of the suppliers, but, not surprisingly, my email and phone messages went unreturned..."

http://www.forbes.com/sites/josephsteinberg/2014/03/09/check-your-utility-bill-for-fraud-from-this-new-scam/

Losing Faith: 21 Percent Say Religion 'Not That Important'

One in five Americans say religion does not play an important role in their lives, a new NBC/WSJ journal poll shows – the highest percentage since the poll began asking participants about their focus on faith in 1997.

http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/losing-faith-21-percent-say-religion-not-important-n51256

Cosmos Edited for Creationists/Fox News Neil deGrasse Tyson (Family Guy joke updated)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmdGFWS0m54

The Intellectual Snobbery of Loud Atheism

Atheism is intellectually fashionable. In the past month, The New York Times has run several stories about lack of faith in its series on religion. Th... Read more

David Barton: More Christians Died for Their Faith in 2013 Than the Previous 2,000 Years Combined. The Math Disagrees

It’s hard to imagine because it’s not true.

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2014/03/11/david-barton-more-christians-died-for-their-faith-in-2013-than-the-previous-2000-years-combined-the-math-disagrees/

Neil DeGrasse Tyson: 'Enlightened Religious People Don't Use The Bible As A Textbook'

"...He continued, “If you start using your scripture, your religious text as a source of your science, that’s where you run into problems, and there is no example of someone reading their scripture and saying ‘I have a prediction about the world that no one knows yet because this gave me insight.’”...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/11/neil-degrasse-tyson-bible_n_4940980.html

Missouri lawmakers consider changing abortion law

"...The bill would triple Missouri's current 24-hour waiting period and put the state in line with Utah and South Dakota as the only states to mandate a 72-hour time frame. The Missouri House vote came hours after a few hundred anti-abortion advocates rallied at the state Capitol in support of the measure..."

http://www.krmg.com/news/news/local/missouri-lawmakers-consider-changing-abortion-law/nfBKy/

U.S. Hate Group Makes Trouble in Ukraine, Blames Gays

"It's a well-established fact that American evangelicals have been increasingly exporting their homophobia abroad as their losses pile up at home.

One of the places where that bigotry has most firmly taken root, of course, is Russia, where the government is cracking down on the basic rights of LGBT people and turning a blind eye to a shocking upsurge in anti-LGBT vigilante violence..."

http://www.bilerico.com/2014/03/hate_group_stirs_up_trouble_in_ukraine_blames_gays.php

New York Bill Would Outlaw Bosses From Discriminating Based on Employees’ Reproductive Health Decisions

"Critic of 'failed' public model vies for lieutenant governor...A new entry in the race for the state’s No. 2 post, lieutenant governor candidate E. Ray Moore, says he also would like to help improve education... By taking kids out of public schools. Putting them in Christian schools. And in homeschools..."

http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/03/11/new-york-bill-outlaw-bosses-discriminating-based-employees-reproductive-health-decisions/

Candidate: Take kids out of public schools

Critic of 'failed' public model vies for lieutenant governor...A new entry in the race for the state’s No. 2 post, lieutenant governor candidate E. Ray Moore, says he also would like to help improve education... By taking kids out of public schools. Putting them in Christian schools. And in homeschools...

http://www.wnd.com/2014/03/candidate-take-kids-out-of-public-schools/

Alabama Tea Party leader rails: Common Core teaches children ‘that homosexuality is OK’

The leader of an Alabama Tea Party contingent told state lawmakers on Tuesday that the “Common Core” educational curriculum system was an attempt to undermine Christianity by normalizing homosexuality, Right Wing Watch reported.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/03/11/alabama-tea-party-leader-rails-common-core-teaches-children-that-homosexuality-is-ok/

Ohio State Rep: 'Public Education In America Is Socialism, What Is The Solution?'

GOP lawmaker in Ohio is pretty sure that "public education in America is socialism." By the way, he's the vice-chair of the Ohio House Education Committee.. Read more

Canadian Health Care Expert Schools A Republican U.S. Senator

"...Thank you for your question, senator," Martin said. "If I didn’t express myself in a way to make myself understood, I apologize. There are no doctors exiting the public system in Canada, and in fact we see a net influx of physicians from the United States into the Canadian system over the last number of years."
Later on, Burr asked Martin: "On average, how many Canadian patients on a waiting list die each year? Do you know?"
"I don’t, sir, but I know that there are 45,000 in America who die waiting because they don’t have insurance at all," Martin said.
You can watch the whole hearing here (the Burr/Martin exchange begins around 1:00:00)...

Read more

Interview:

Easy to be 'Misunderstood' When You Cite 'Experts' Who Say Blacks Are Inferior to Whites

"When you start off by basing your arguments around the work of Charles Murray you just lose your credibility from the start as someone actually interested in addressing poverty or joblessness or really doing anything other than coming up with reasons to cut off what little assistance society provides for its most marginalized members or, alternatively, pumping up people with racial resentments against black people and giving them ersatz 'scholarship' to justify their racial antipathies..."
... Read more

If You Want To Fix U.S. Broadband Competition, Start By Killing State-Level Protectionist Laws Written By Duopolists

"...Yes, god forbid you'd have to face a new competitor and adjust your business model accordingly; you might even have to work with a local government to determine what works best in each region! Meanwhile, Google Fiber's recent announcement to help 34 cities in nine regional markets examine local fiber needs should bring greater attention to the issue. Google intentionally targeted regions like North and South Carolina, where regional incumbent Time Warner Cable passed protectionist bills a few years ago (on their fourth try). It only took fifteen years, but we're only just starting to see people realize that perhaps letting your regional duopolists write laws dictating what you can and can't do for your own community might not be the best idea."
Read more

The Tube of Mystery

Illusion...
http://youtu.be/TM0oG2ozUYA

The 5 Craziest Things That GOP Lawmakers Said About Abortion Last Night

"Republicans have struggled with effectively connecting with female voters over the past several years, and insensitive comments related to abortion access actually cost some GOP candidates their races in 2012. Nonetheless, the party has recently indicated it has no plans to back down from this issue. The RNC recently approved a “Resolution on Republican Pro-Life Strategy” that urges GOP candidates to speak openly about their firm opposition to abortion — and many lawmakers are already taking that to heart.

On Wednesday night, a group of potential presidential contenders attended a gala thrown by the right-wing Susan B. Anthony List. The elected officials — likely trying to appeal to the prominent anti-choice group, which is trying to decide who to support in the upcoming 2016 primaries — weren’t shy about expressing their feelings about abortion rights. Here are the greatest hits from Republicans lawmakers on this topic..." Read more

Just Who’s Lazy?

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) has a history of attacking anti-poverty programs under the guise of helping the poor. His most recent budgets have gotten two-thirds of their cuts from programs helping low and moderate income Americans, while proposing lopsided tax cuts for millionaires. And in his recent report looking at poverty 50 years after Lyndon Johnson’s “War On Poverty,” he concluded that many aspects of the social safety net were “making it worse” (he tried to cite social science research when doing so, but that didn’t work out so well).

But yesterday, Ryan made controversial comments on Bill Bennett’s radio program that went beyond just policy programs — and have set off a flurry of activity since. We’ve put together a timeline of the events to get you up to speed.... Read more

5 Things We Learned From Today’s Senate Hearing On Keystone XL

The president’s decision on whether or not to approve the Keystone XL pipeline is drawing closer, and if recent protests and hearings are any indication, the arguments around the issue are only heating up.

On Thursday, the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held a hearing to discuss whether or not approving the Keystone XL pipeline was in the national interest, a decision that is now in the hands of President Obama. The hearing saw impassioned exchanges from Senators and panelists on both sides of the pipeline debate, but there were a few that stood out. Here are 5 of the most important lessons from the Senate’s Keystone hearing...
... Read more

McDonald's workers sue for wage theft

McDonald's workers filed seven class-action lawsuits in New York, California and Michigan Thursday over wage theft violations.
The suits allege that McDonald's has forced employees to work off the clock, not paid them overtime and struck hours off their time cards.
Read more

Ruling On Gay Juror May Cause Ripples In Same-Sex Marriage Cases

In a dispute involving two drugmakers, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that an attorney can't dismiss a potential juror because of that ju... Read more

Report: Small-Scale Attacks Could Bring Down U.S. Power Grid

The nation's entire power grid could be blacked out for months if as few as nine of the nation's 55,000 electric substations were put out of commission by saboteurs, , citing a "previously unreported" study by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
... Read more

What's Holding Up Ukraine Aid Bill In Congress? Anger Over IRS

What's Holding Up Ukraine Aid Bill In Congress? Anger Over IRS by Peter Overby March 13, 2014 1:18 PM i i Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn. (from left), Uk... Read more

Obama: If You 'Work More, You Should Get Paid More'

Obama: If You 'Work More, You Should Get Paid More' by Eyder Peralta March 13, 2014 2:47 PM Flanked by a cadre of salaried workers, President Obama... Read more

Americans Are Huge: 5 Surprising Reasons Why We May Be Getting Fatter

Everything from livestock fatteners to government marketing dooms Americans looking to lose weight.

 ... Read more

9 Valiant Religious Right Efforts to End Masturbation Forever (Hint: They Failed)

The emergence of Internet porn has re-occasioned a moral freakout over masturbation.

 ... Read more

Fox News Has “Angry Grandpa” Freakout

O'Reilly's upset that Democrats can reach young non-cable viewers because it's dooming his network -- and his party.

http://www.alternet.org/fox-news-has-angry-grandpa-freakout

Dexter cancer patient who called health care 'unaffordable' will save more than $1K

"...By contrast, the Blues’ plan premium costs $571 a month or $6,852 for the year. Since out-of-pocket costs are capped at $5,100 for in-network doctors and hospitals, including deductibles, the maximum Boonstra would pay this year for all of her cancer treatment is $11,952.

When advised of the details of her Blues’ plan, Boonstra said the idea that it would be cheaper “can’t be true.”

“I personally do not believe that,” Boonstra said...

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140310/LIFESTYLE03/303100100

10 Tough Truths From Harry Reid About The Kochs’ Lies, Propaganda and Radical Un-American Agenda

The Democratic Senate Majority Leader has had enough.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a former boxer, has taken off the gloves to fight back against the Republican Party’s richest patrons: the libertarian billionaire oil barons, David and Charles Koch. Speaking from the U.S. Senate floor and in press conferences, Reid has forcefully started to do what much of the Democratic Party hasn’t so far—hit back at multi-million dollar political campaigns filled with lies about Obamacare, propaganda that climate change is a myth, and efforts by lobbyists and elected Republicans to gut public health laws and other safety nets.
What follows are 10 excerpts from Reid’s speeches in the past two weeks that begin to rebut the Koch’s political falsehoods and expose their real agenda.  

... Read more

'The Daily Show' Fact Checks Andrew Napolitano's Civil War Revisionism With A Game Show

Jon Stewart on "The Daily Show" on Tuesday took his mockery of Fox News' Andrew Napolitano to the next level, hosting a mini-game show to debunk the commentator's revisionist views on the Civil War and American slavery.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/daily-show-napolitano-civil-war

Note: The video takes a long time to load, for some reason.

Steven Pinker: 'We don't throw virgins into volcanoes any more'

"In the week that I interview the cognitive psychologist and bestselling author Steven Pinker in his office at Harvard, police release the agonizing recordings of emergency calls made during the Sandy Hook school shootings. In Yemen, a suicide attack on the defense ministry kills more than 50 people. An American teacher is shot dead as he goes jogging in Libya. Several people are killed in riots between political factions in Thailand, and peacekeepers have to be dispatched to the Central African Republic.
In short, it's not hard to find anecdotes that seem to contradict a guiding principle behind much of Pinker's work -- which is that science and human reason are, slowly but unmistakably, making the world a better place..."

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/05/world/steven-pinker-interview/index.html