Congress, The White House And The Future Of The Iran Nuclear Agreement (Diane Rehm Show)

The agreement the U.S. and five other world powers negotiated with Iran cleared a critical hurdle in Washington this week. President Barack Obama now has enough support in the Senate to prevent congress from blocking the deal. Per the agreement finalized in July, economic sanctions against Iran will be lifted in exchange for Iran halting nuclear weapons development. But debate over the deal is far from over: Critics charge it’s a windfall for Iran that fails to effectively rein in the country’s nuclear ambitions. Supporters concede there are problems, but say it’s better than the alternative. We look at what’s next for the agreement with Iran.
Interview:
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2015-09-03/congress-the-white-house-and-the-future-of-the-iran-nuclear-agreement

Journalists Under Pressure (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

We all know journalists take risks to bring us the news. Think of casualties in war. Beheadings by ISIS. Lately, established governments have become a greater and greater threat to reporters. Look at the headlines from just the last week. Vice News reporters jailed in Turkey. Al Jazeera reporters in prison in Cairo. The Washington Post’s Jason Rezaian still held in Iran. A top finance reporter detained in China. A top photojournalist murdered — executed — in Mexico. A seven-year sentence in Azerbaijan. On and on. Even in the USA. This hour on On Point: Journalists under pressure, worldwide. / Tom Ashbrook
Interview:
https://onpoint.wbur.org/2015/09/03/journalists-under-pressure

Should The Fed Raise Interest Rates? (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

We all come to the meal of the American economy — feast or beans, depending where you sit. But the Federal Reserve Bank sets the table. For years now, since the onslaught of the Great Recession, the Fed has kept its key benchmark interest rate at essentially zero. Easy money, almost free, to boost the U.S. economy. It’s been a busy for small savers — look at your bank returns. A boon for high-rollers — look where the stock market’s been. Now the Fed wants to push interest rates up. Critics say it’s too soon. Jobs and wages will suffer. Stocks are shaky. But is it time? This hour on On Point: weighing the end of free money. /Tom Ashbrook
Interview:
http://onpoint.wbur.org/2015/09/03/federal-reserve-raising-rates

Our Grandmother Fish & 200th Special!

Our 200th Episode has Sarah Morehead, Jonathan Tweet, Ryan Bell, Phil Ferguson, Fact Check Yo Mama, Issues for the next president from listeners and Kim Davis refuses same sex marriage licenses
http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/dogma-debate-with-david-smalley?refid=stpr

The GOP’s True Form Has Finally Been Revealed: A Revolting Frankenstein Monster

As we continue to watch Donald Trump’s ascension as the GOP’s unwanted golden child, we’re truly beginning to see the right-wing base for what it truly is. Trump is literally forcing the GOP establishment to follow him down the treacherous road of the true Republican agenda.
https://youtu.be/B83kkE6nIWQ

Atheist Experience #931: Viewer Calls

https://youtu.be/sKBYrdcaDhg?t=6m30s

UN: Gaza may be uninhabitable by 2020 on current trends

New report reveals impact of 2014 Israel war on strip, which sent "almost all of the population into destitution".  Read more

Dan Savage Lays Into Hypocritical KY Clerk And Her Four Marriages

All I can say is it's about time someone finally gave this hypocritical wingnut grifter the treatment she deserves on national television. I can't tel...  Read more

Red Cross: Water being used as weapon of war in Syria

Civilians in Aleppo city undergoing huge suffering because of deliberate cuts to water supply, humanitarian agency says.  Read more

Ted Cruz Thinks Employers Should Be Allowed To Deny Their Employees Paid Family Leave

He said he values paid leave but that the government "shouldn't be in the business of mandating" it.  ... Read more

O’Reilly Asks Expert If Black Lives Matter Is To Blame For Police Murders. Then Things Got Awkward.

Despite his best efforts, O'Reilly could not get the answer he wanted.  ... Read more

Gulag Appalachia?: Ky. Clerk Claims Persecution, Refuses To Obey Supreme Court Verdict

Whatever the outcome of her case, Davis only has herself to blame for her dilemma. She clearly understood that she’d likely have to confront marriage equality as county clerk, and yet ran for the office anyway... Read more

Egyptian billionaire wants to buy island to house migrants.

Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris has asked Greece and Italy to sell him an island so that he can develop it for the hundreds of thousands of refugees in the area.
Read more

Life for Pot? Only if You’re Black

After serving 21 years of his life sentence for a nonviolent marijuana crime, 62-year-old Jeff Mizanskey walked out of prison Tuesday a free man. In j...  Read more

The Hillary Email Double Standard

Watching the news about Hillary Clinton's emails, it is remarkable to see how many people now have opinions about the overclassification of informatio...  Read more

Week In The News: Europe’s Migrant Crisis, Kentucky Clerk Gets Jail Time, Deflategate (Tom Ashbrook, On Point)

Refugee crisis this week, with images out of Europe as heart-rending as any seen since the chaos of World War II. The three-year-old boy on the beach. The desperate throngs in Hungary. Nightmare. In the U.S., a county clerk in Kentucky who would not budge on her religion and gay marriage is now in jail. On the campaign trail, Jeb Bush takes the globes off on Donald Trump. Trump, of course, hits back. We’ve got the votes for the Iran deal, the president in Alaska, another dead policeman — and Tom Brady, cleared to play. This hour on On Point: our weekly news roundtable goes behind the headlines.
Interview:
http://onpoint.wbur.org/2015/09/04/europe-migrant-kentucky-clerk-tom-brady

Friday News Roundup – Domestic (Diane Rehm Show, 2015-09-04)

The U.S. economy added 173,000 jobs last month, fewer than expected. But at 5.1 percent, the unemployment rate is the lowest it’s been since April 2008. President Barack Obama wins critical backing for the Iran nuclear deal as the August congressional recess nears an end. A county clerk in Kentucky is in jail after refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses. A former staffer says he will invoke the Fifth Amendment to avoid testifying about Hillary Clinton’s State Department emails. Donald Trump pledges loyalty to the Republican Party. CNN amends its debate criteria, making space on the stage for candidate Carly Fiorina. And Pope Francis says he will make it easier for the Roman Catholic Church to forgive women who have had abortions. A panel of journalists joins guest host Tamara Keith of NPR for analysis of the week’s top national news stories.
Interview:
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2015-09-04/friday-news-roundup-domestic

Friday News Roundup – International (Diane Rehm Show, 2015-09-04)

A photograph of a drowned three year old boy from Syria made international headlines and brought worldwide attention to the migrant crisis in Europe. European leaders have, so far, been unable to come up with a way to deal with the hundreds of thousands of people trying to make their way into Europe from Africa and the Middle East. Yesterday Iran’s supreme leader ordered the country’s parliament to vote on the nuclear agreement with the US and five other world powers, and a Chinese military parade featuring fighter jets, tanks and missiles highlights what some say is China’ s growing effort to project military strength in the face of economic uncertainty. Join us to discuss these and other top international stories of the week.
Interview:
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2015-09-04/friday-news-roundup-international

PHILOSOPHY - The Good Life: Plato [HD]

Chris Surprenant (UNO) discusses the account of human well-being and the good life presented by Socrates in Plato's dialogues. He explains why Socrates closely connects his account of the good life with justice, a concept understood not just as a political arrangement but also as a state of a well-ordered individual's soul.
Interview:
https://youtu.be/-oJs5u_GAYA

Because The Bible Says So - Stupid Christian Comments #13

Welcome to Stupid Christian Comments #13. This video series dives head first into stupid christian comments found on the internet. Marvel at the stupidity and enjoy!
https://youtu.be/Ats2QY9vlEU

One man's mission to teach children his love of literature

About 80% of South African schools don't have a library, but Neo Mathetsa has opened an underground library.
https://youtu.be/uEdhW-3rO9Y

San Jose inmate violently beaten to death

Michael Tyree was allegedly beaten to death in Santa Clara County Jail by deputies and wasn't even supposed to be there...
https://youtu.be/to765s7YXyQ

Why do Evangelical Christians Support Donald Trump?

"There are plenty of reasons to not like Donald Trump if you're a liberal like I am, but I'm especially confused by the fact that he has so much support in evangelical circles.

Here's just a brief rundown of what he's done in terms of religion recently:

-- He said he doesn't ask God for forgiveness if he makes a mistake. He just tries to fix the problem himself. I love that answer as an atheist, but if you're Christian, asking God for forgiveness is a big deal!

-- He atoned for that comment by saying he always eats the "little cracker" as if that should count for something. I mean, he called a communion wafer a "little cracker."

-- He uses mild swears in his speeches, like "damn" and "hell." Again, I don't mind, but you'd think evangelical Christians would.

-- He claimed that his book The Art of the Deal was only his second favorite book because the first was the Bible. "Nothing beats the Bible." He says that line all the time now because he knows it gets applause. I just don't buy the sincerity of it.

-- Trump was asked about his favorite Bible verse, and he said it was personal. Like he was offended by the question. I'm surprised he go all Sarah Palin and just say "all of them"

-- When he was asked if he's an Old Testament or New Testament kind of guy, he said, "Probably equal." What sort of answer is that? The answer is the New Testament! That's the one with Jesus!

So Trump isn't your typical evangelical Christian favorite. He's so obviously pandering to them by saying a few buzzwords... and they're totally falling for it.

That has to infuriate guys like Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum. They have been courting the Christian vote their entire careers, and Trump comes in, says I love the Bible, gives a thumbs up, and evangelicals are swarming around him!

It shouldn't make any sense!

What's also amazing is that Trump doesn't seem to match supposed evangelical ethics in any real way.

He says horrible things about immigrants, he reduces women down to their looks, he's been married multiple times, he's obviously greedy, he's thinks everything is all about him, not Him.

But they don't seem to care.

I think they're just so desperate to back a winner, that they'll go after any bone a Republican front-runner will throw their way.

It seems like what evangelicals want isn't someone who agrees with their values. It's someone who will pander to them while demonizing everyone they don't like.

If you think about it, that is what evangelicals do, isn't it? They just love tearing into people who don't agree with them.

They talk about how their God is all about love... then use the Bible to discriminate against LGBT people.

They talk about helping the less fortunate, but they allow megachurch pastors to make millions of dollars with no transparency whatsoever and they support politicians who oppose minimum wage increases and who want to overhaul the welfare system.

They claim to be pro-life but they supported George W. Bush, who took us to war.

Evangelicals tend to be all talk. They love chatting up how great they are. But in practice, we see the horrible consequences of their beliefs.

They'll even file lawsuits in order to keep discriminating against people.

So I guess in a way, it does make sense that they support Donald Trump.

Mike Huckabee had it all wrong; they weren't looking for someone who embodies their values and speaks their language.

They were looking for someone who's as big of a hypocrite as so many of them are."
https://youtu.be/pEpnwxC1DeU

Six Great Skeptic Movies

https://youtu.be/ANiEdcsHH6E

The Religious Beliefs Of Kim Davis, The Anti-Gay Clerk Who Refuses To Do Her Job, Explained

Her views are more common than you think, but they still don't make much sense.  ... Read more

Chris Wallace Pretends Fake 'Fetal Body Parts-For-Sale' Video Is Real

The deception tactics employed in making a supposedly controversial video that purports to show an ob/gyn doctor offering to sell fetal body parts fro...  Read more

China announces massive troop cuts at WWII anniversary

President Xi Jinping pledges to cut 300,000 troops from 2.3-million strong army as it flexes its military might.  Read more

Vatican Rules That Transgender People Cannot Be Godparents

"It is clear that this person does not meet the requirement of carrying out a life conforming to the faith and the position of ... Read more

The Nation’s Most Populous State Just Voted To Divest From Coal

If signed into law, the measure would be the first of its kind in the country.  ... Read more

The Lifelong Effects Of The Gender Wage Gap

While both men and women don't have enough saved for retirement, women fall much further behind. ... Read more

Bernie Sanders Talks Socialism, Middle Class, Social Security, Equality & Racism: Seattle Rally

Bernie Sanders Talks Socialism, Middle Class, Social Security, Equality & Racism: Seattle Rally.
https://youtu.be/GKiuqI9GbMo

TN Judge Refuses To Divorce Couple, Blaming SCOTUS Gay Marriage Ruling

A judge in Tennessee told a married couple seeking a divorce that he could not grant one for them, arguing that the Supreme Court's same-sex marriage ... Read more

Justice Department: Police overreach is not just a Ferguson problem.

The Department of Justice's final report on the police response to the unrest in Ferguson details a litany of missteps, including violation of protest... Read more

Ted Cruz Makes His Stand Against The Rule Of Law

Here's a taste of what President Paul or President Cruz would do, if ever elected to the highest office in the land. Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Ted Cr...  Read more

Millennials don't think much of themselves, report says.

Millennials are the most willing to describe their own generation negatively, a new Pew Research Center study found. ... Read more

Bernie Sanders FULL Speech at Wing Ding Dinner in Clear Lake, Iowa August 14-2015

https://youtu.be/aNeHIKxc9i8

Bernie Sanders Interview: Attacks From The Establishment | MSNBC

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders joins Andrea Mitchell to talk about a new poll that shows he is closing the gap between his and Hillary Clinton’s campaign. Sanders also responds to possible attacks against his campaign from “establishment” candidates.
https://youtu.be/eCSnWL3Der0

Lawyer: Let Them Drive To Another County So Kim Davis Isn't Tainted By Having To Do Her Job

"These Christianists are so tiresome. They really do believe the nation should revolve around their distorted and violent interpretation of Christianity, and the rest of the country should be forced to play along..." Read more

Huckabee Is Now The Holy Abortion Crusader

During a recent Google hangout with right-wing activists, Mike Huckabee pledged that if he becomes president he will sic the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service on Planned Parenthood, but also said that such steps are “secondary” to his “more important” plan of outlawing abortion through a sweeping executive fiat that grants personhood rights to zygotes...
http://crooksandliars.com/2015/09/huckabee-now-holy-abortion-crusader
https://youtu.be/JybI6wzIJz8

Bizarre Brief: Pastors Tell Texas Court That Religious Schools Have ‘Religious Freedom’ Right To Public Support

Essentially, these pastors are trying to use the First Amendment to justify a church-state merger, ... Read more

Debunking Donald Trump's Five Extreme Statements About Immigrants And Mexico

Republican front-runner Donald Trump has sparked outrage among Mexicans and Latinos over comments he made when he kicked-off his Presidential bid abou...  Read more

11 Things Smart People Won't Say

There are some things you simply never want to say at work. These phrases carry special power: they have an uncanny ability to make you look bad even...  Read more

The Case for Philosophy in America's High Schools - Part 1

Adolescents are a skeptical lot. Anything and everything is fair game to them, and woe betide what is found wanting. Criticism comes easily to these p... Read more

Robert Greenwald Discusses Iran Peace Agreement on MSNBC • BRAVE NEW FILMS

http://youtu.be/P3dM1tlnpH8

On barren hilltop, Israeli settler vigilantism blurs into Jewish theocracy

A recent arson attack on a Palestinian village spurred a crackdown by authorities on what they call a small group of 'Jewish terrorists' among settler... Read more

Fox's Ablow Accuses President Obama Of Putting A 'Target On The Backs Of American Police Officers'

Fox's resident quack, "doctor" Keith Ablow seems to be having just a little bit of trouble telling the difference between wanting to see some transpar...  Read more

White Supremacist Jared Taylor Explains Why Trump Is His Guy

American Renaissance leader Jared Taylor has once again popped up like a bad penny to explain why white supremacists love Donald Trump. Speaking to A...  Read more

Brazilian wasp venom kills cancer cells by opening them up

"Cancer therapies that attack the lipid composition of the cell membrane would be an entirely new class of anticancer drugs," says co-senior study author Paul Beales, of the University of Leeds in the UK. "This could be useful in developing new combination therapies, where multiple drugs are used simultaneously to treat a cancer by attacking different parts of the cancer cells at the same time."...
Read more

4 Reasons the Christian Right's Claims of Moral Superiority Over the Rest of Us Just Don't Hold Water

Atheists — even Satanists! — are exhibiting more moral behavior than the Bible thumpers.
...  Read more

Nationwide Poll: Majority of Republicans Have Nakedly Racist Worldview—Trump Has Found the Way to Unleash It

“Trump has sent a message that it’s okay to be racist,” he said. “So maybe some racist attitudes you previously held, or were not allowed to say in public, now one of the leading presidential candidates is saying them and not apologizing at all.”
...  Read more

The Psychological Warfare Being Waged Against Black Lives Matter

Black Lives Matter has been demonized following the unrelated murder of a police officer. Here's why.
...  Read more

10 Times White Nationalists Supported Donald Trump (and Why This Should Scare You)

An emerging trend, a media still asleep at the wheel...
...  Read more

Limited KickBack, Temporal Sickback

Home Alone 4. Kevin's 80. Care Home. Alone. Credits.
No houses were burnt during the leaving of one ItsameMyleo at home. Many pastas were microwaved and harmed.
http://youtu.be/p8zdjAhLKi4

Judge Let Charges Against Police Stand in Freddie Gray Death

BALTIMORE — A circuit court judge Wednesday refused to dismiss charges against six police officers in the death of Freddie Gray, and denied a request by defense lawyers who sought to have force Marilyn J. Mosby, the state’s attorney for Baltimore City, removed from the case on grounds of prosecutorial misconduct...
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/03/us/hearing-baltimore-freddie-gray.html

The Plot Against Planned Parenthood and John Boehner

Conservatives want to defund the group, even if it means shutting down the government. And they’re holding the GOP leadership accountable.
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/09/the-plot-against-planned-parenthood-and-john-boehner/403348/

These Mothers Want Justice For Their Sons Killed By Police

After her unarmed son, Dontre Hamilton, was shot and killed by a Milwaukee police officer in 2014, Maria Hamilton formed Mothers for Justice to bring together women who have lost their children to police or vigilante violence. After months of organizing, the mothers took their demands to Washington, DC.
https://youtu.be/1cH1jS6wbHk

Wrong-house shooting in DeKalb: ‘Why did they shoot me? My dog?’

...McKinley, 36, was shot in the leg, and his dog, a female boxer, was killed. One of the officers — identified Tuesday afternoon as Travis Jones — was shot in the hip by a colleague, the GBI said...
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/cop-shot-responding-to-wrong-house-gbi-leading-inv/nnWKr/

Rachel Maddow New National gop Poll Results Election 2016

The brilliant, canny and witty Rachel Maddow runs down the most recent national poll figures on the seemingly infinite number of gop Kooks taking a soon to be failed shot at moving in to Our White House.
https://youtu.be/eNw3yUJ4gPo

Could this Quran fragment really be older than Muhammad?

Radio carbon dating of fragments of the world's oldest Quran, found in Birmingham, England, in July, suggest the document could be older than the prop... Read more

In new UN goals, an evolving vision of how to change the world

Global development has often begun with big checks from foreign aid budgets. But the UN's new Sustainable Development Goals take a very different appr... Read more

Six bad habits that are ruining your career

Learning the best way to navigate an office is often difficult, but make sure these habits are ruining your chances at that upcoming promotion. ... Read more

An Unequal Recovery In New Orleans: Racial Disparities Grow In City 10 Years After Katrina (Democracy Now)

Democracy Now spent the hour marking the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina this past Friday. If you missed it, it's a stark reminder of just how f...  Read more

Bill O’Reilly Announces He Will Put #BlackLivesMatter ‘Out Of Business’

Bill O'Reilly's hatred for #BlackLivesMatter has finally gotten the better of him. O'Reilly has hated #BlackLivesMatter protesters ever since George ...  Read more

A Modest Proposal

A pro-immigration rally gets a dose of humor. Via Question Everything...

"Twelve million republicans instantly removed would cause pay day lenders, porn sites, religious grafters and liquor stores to go out of business in red States. We would have equal pay, decent health care, modern transportation, renewable energy and women would be free to choose, wow, can't wait."

... Read more

GOP Rep Terrifies Kids With Tales Of Iranian Suicide Bombers, Nukes

If I were the parent of one of these kids, I'd be organizing right now to make sure that guy never sees the halls of Congress again after 2016, much l...  Read more

ELI5 Why does peeling an egg sometimes work and other times becomes a complete mess?

Read more

Police Deaths Are Being Linked With #BlackLivesMatter Movement

Fox Lake police officer Joe Gliniewicz was shot and killed in Illinois. He was the fourth officer to be shot in two weeks. Some are linking the recent high-profile cop deaths to the Black Lives Matter movement, a comparison that others find baseless and problematic.
https://youtu.be/4ezv-Hn7YtE

Are Headlines Dooming Bernie Sanders’ Campaign?

The problem with comparing Sanders to Shirley Chisholm and Jesse Jackson. ... Read more

9 Ridiculous Passages From Dick Cheney’s New Book

The book essentially lays out the worldview and agenda of a Cheney presidency. .. Read more

School Year Kicks Off With Student Walkouts And Parent Protests Over Transgender Bathroom Use

Two schools are doing the right thing to support their transgender students, but parents and classmates don't agree.  ... Read more

Chicago’s Impending Toll Road Strike And How Outsourcing Government Services Can Be A Bad Bet

The publicly-built, privately-managed Chicago Skyway is the fastest way to vacation destinations on the shore. .. Read more