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Richardson: Clinton camp 'really ticked me off'

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 02:37:10 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Before he endorsed Barack Obama, before he drew the wrath of the Clintons and was likened to Judas, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson nearly endorsed Hillary Rodham Clinton for president.

But Richardson hesitated, and as the Democratic campaign turned ugly, he grew angry.

There were some ham-fisted phone calls from Clinton backers, who questioned Richardson's honor and suggested that the governor, who served in President Clinton's Cabinet, owed Hillary Clinton his support. "That really ticked me off," Richardson said.

He was impressed by the mostly positive tone of Obama's campaign, and grew to appreciate the substance and depth of their private conversations. The more Richardson heard from the Washington heavyweights backing Clinton, the more convinced he became of the need for a change inside the Beltway.

Tags: politics, clinton, obama, president

'Breakthrough' At Stonehenge Dig

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 02:33:51 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Archaeologists carrying out an excavation at Stonehenge say they have broken through to a layer that may finally explain why the site was built.

The team has reached sockets that once held bluestones - smaller stones, most now missing or uprooted, which formed the site's original structure.

The researchers believe that the bluestones could reveal that Stonehenge was once a place of healing.

The team now needs to extract organic material from these holes to date when the stones first arrived.

Professors Darvill and Wainwright say that finding out more about the history of the bluestones could be key to solving the mystery of why the 4,500-year-old landmark was erected.

Professor Geoffrey Wainwright said the site could have been a "Neolithic Lourdes".

Tags: england, history, pagan, stonehenge, healing, landmark

Obama wants 'don't ask' repealed

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 02:32:33 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

Sen. Barack Obama says if elected president he won't require that his appointees to the Joint Chiefs of Staff support allowing gays to serve openly in the military.

The Democratic presidential front-runner told The Advocate, a gay magazine, that he wants to repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays, which was instituted during the Clinton administration.

He said his priority for the Joint Chiefs will be that they make decisions to strengthen the military and keep the country safe, not their position on the policy.

"I would never make this a litmus test for the Joint Chiefs of Staff," Obama said in an interview with The Advocate.

"But I think there's increasing recognition within the Armed Forces that this is a counterproductive strategy," he said.

"We're spending large sums of money to kick highly qualified gays or lesbians out of our military, some of whom possess specialties like Arab-language capabilities that we desperately need. That doesn't make us more safe."

Tags: politics, obama, gay, military

Why Bill Clinton Is Fighting So Hard

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 02:30:55 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.newsweek.com

The reason he's working so hard on his wife's behalf is that he sincerely believes she would make a good president, better than he was, if daughter Chelsea's word is taken to heart. He's also doing penance for how much he humiliated her when he was president, and even for some of his missteps in this campaign, mostly having to do with race. But perhaps most important, Clinton understands that if Barack Obama is elected, his presidency becomes an asterisk.

Clinton knows that through the long view of history, he'll be viewed a lot less positively if the bridge he set about building to the next century leads to a president with the ability to overshadow him legislatively, as opposed to one who carries on his name and legacy.

Obama rankled Clinton earlier in the campaign when he remarked in an interview that was a transformational president, seeming to dismiss the eight Clinton years as incidental

Tags: clinton, politics, president, legacy

Parents Argue Over Which Gang 4-Year-Old Son Should Join

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 02:26:53 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

A couple can't agree on which gang their 4-year-old toddler should join.

A fight about the decision led to a public disturbance with the father's arrest. Joseph Manzanares went to the video store where his girlfriend worked, threatened to kill her and knocked over several video displays, police told KMGH Denver.

The girlfriend told authorities they were fighting over which gang their son should join. The girlfriend, who is black, is a member of the Crips while Manzanares, who is Hispanic, belongs to the Westside Ballers.

"They have different ideas on how the baby should be raised," Sandoval said. "Basically, she said they cannot agree on which gang the baby would 'claim.'"

Tags: parenting, gangs, stupid, children