Once again, Keith says what is in my heart so much better than I can
11 NovOlbermann: Gay marriage is a question of love
Finally tonight as promised, a Special Comment on the passage, last week, of Proposition Eight in California, which rescinded the right of same-sex couples to marry, and tilted the balance on this issue, from coast to coast. […]
What is this, to you? Nobody is asking you to embrace their expression of love. But don’t you, as human beings, have to embrace… that love? The world is barren enough.
It is stacked against love, and against hope, and against those very few and precious emotions that enable us to go forward. Your marriage only stands a 50-50 chance of lasting, no matter how much you feel and how hard you work.
And here are people overjoyed at the prospect of just that chance, and that work, just for the hope of having that feeling. With so much hate in the world, with so much meaningless division, and people pitted against people for no good reason, this is what your religion tells you to do? With your experience of life and this world and all its sadnesses, this is what your conscience tells you to do? […]
Go read the entire piece. It’s well worth your time. Or better yet, when you get to the page, click the link to launch the video, and listen to Keith directly. You won’t be sorry.
Honoring those who served
11 NovTo all veterans who may see this, know that I honor your service every day, not just on this the designated day to do so. Thank you.
Because I helped spread the myth…
10 NovI feel obliged to help undo it as well.
Facts Belie the Scapegoating of Black People for Prop. 8
[…] Black people are to blame for the passage of Proposition 8 here in California. It is an idea grounded in utter myth, a complete lack of knowledge about anything related to Black people’s presence in California, and just plain old scapegoating.
Hoepfully[sic], this diary will help put all that to rest, and we can get back to work trying to beat back the hateful results of Tuesday’s vote. […]
Consider this my mea culpa for the earlier post of this. I reacted to poorly researched “journalism”, and let my generally higher level of trust for foreign news sources carry too much weight. For that, I sincerely apologize. I also suggest reading this from Kathryn Kolbert, President, People For the American Way Foundation.
[…] Before we give Religious Right leaders more reasons to rejoice by deepening the divisions they have worked so hard to create between African Americans and the broader progressive community, let’s be clear about who is responsible for gay couples in California losing the right to get married, and let’s think strategically about a way forward that broadens and strengthens support for equality. […]
What Glenn said.
10 NovGlenn Greenwald: Salon.Com: Orin Kerr and the responsibility of elites for the last eight years
[…] Over the last eight years (at least), we have not only crossed the line of what ought to be within the realm of reasonable, respectful debate, but we have crossed it repeatedly, severely, and with great harm to our political system and huge numbers of people. And one of the prime reasons that happened is because those with the most vocal platforms and with the greatest claims to expertise failed in their responsibility to oppose it passionately and to describe its extremism, and, instead, eagerly served as apologists for it. Those who seek now to depict their tepidness in the face of all of that as some elevated form of enlightened reason are merely illustrating one of the key mechanisms that enabled all of it to happen.
I hate Daylight Savings Time
9 NovI admit it. I’m one of those people who always hated Daylight Savings Time. I always feel better, and get more rest, on Standard Time. I put up with it because it saves energy, or so I have always been told. Guess what? That’s apparently not true.
Freakonomics: More Ammunition for People Who Hate Daylight Savings Time
Even if you hate daylight saving time, you tell yourself: Hey, I shouldn’t be so selfish, it’s good for the economy, or for the environment, or for farmers, or something. Right?
Well, um, perhaps not. Consider a new working paper, “Does Daylight Saving Time Save Energy? Evidence From a Natural Experiment in Indiana,” by Matthew J. Kotchen and Laura E. Grant: […]
Read more at the link. You’ll even find a link to the full research paper in question. I have to admit, though, I liked this line by the blog author (Stephen J. Dubner) best:
On the bright side, if President-elect Obama is looking for some quick hits on energy conservation, here’s one that’s all teed up and ready to go: Kill D.S.T.!
I’m all for that one!
ACLU: Actions for Restoring America
6 NovHow to Begin Repairing the Damage to Freedom in America After Bush
Barack Obama will become chief executive of a nation that has been greatly weakened – in particular, our freedoms, our values, and our international reputation have been greatly undermined by the policies of the past eight years.
Presidents have enormous power not only to set the legislative agenda, but also to establish policy by executive order, federal regulation, or simply by refocusing the efforts and emphases of the executive agencies. The new president must use all of these tools to restore our freedoms and move the country forward.
Doing so will require determined action in the face of inevitable opposition. It will require conveying to the American people why grants of unchecked power do not actually make us safer, and why Americans must stand firm in protecting the values that at our best we have always represented and defended at home and around the world.
It will not be easy to undo eight years of sustained damage to our fundamental rights. But it can be done.
This paper lists many of the actions that the new president should take in order to decisively signal a restoration of American values and a rejection of the shameful policies of the past eight years.
The first year of any new administration is crucial and sets the stage for what will follow. The new President needs to hit the ground running and to make full use of that first crucial year.
We have grouped needed actions into those that the new president should take on day one, in the 100 days and then the first year. Those actions include executive orders as well as mandates or directives from the president to his cabinet secretaries and agency heads.
See the entire list, broken down by First Day, First 100 Days, and First Year priorities, at the link. I like what I see, and strongly support every suggested action.
An Aging Trans Woman 