Clipmarks | State Clips

Gays and doctors in CA

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 17:03:24 GMT

clipped by: chipperdean

California: Gays and Medical Treatment

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: August 18, 2008

The State Supreme Court barred doctors from invoking their religious beliefs as a reason to deny treatment to gay men and lesbians, ruling that state law prohibiting sexual orientation discrimination extended to the medical profession. Justice Joyce Kennard wrote that two Christian fertility doctors who refused to artificially inseminate a lesbian have neither a free speech right nor a religious exemption from the state’s law, which “imposes on business establishments certain antidiscrimination obligations.”

Tags: homosexuality

Louisiana Governor Says 'A Lot More Work Ahead' After Gustav, New Orleans Largely Spared

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 11:58:38 GMT

clipped by: arthurahmed56

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

Louisiana Governor Says 'A Lot More Work Ahead' After Gustav, New Orleans Largely Spared

Though New Orleans was spared the devastating damage many feared Hurricane Gustav could unleash, the Louisiana governor warned Tuesday that the state had still sustained a significant hit.

Gov. Bobby Jindal told reporters that the most serious threats remained strong downpours and the possibility of tornados.

"The greatest dangers are heavy rains," Jindal said. "Many of us are relieved ... We didn't have widespread flooding. But this is still a very, very serious storm that has caused major, major damage in our state."

He said there have been unconfirmed reports that parts of northern Louisiana had been badly battered, and there was a lot of work still to be done.

Tags: louisiana, governor

Every Alaskan gets $3200 from oil money - for nothing!

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 04:49:36 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: $22,400 for a family of 7, like Palin's. When oil companies pay taxes to Alaska, they deduct it from their federal taxes, and we of the other 49 make up the difference. 85% of budget from oil companies; residents pay no income or sales taxes, and state is rolling in dough, while most states are laying off teachers.
How ironic, when an Alaska Republican opposes a windfall profits tax, and favor reduced government services - when they live, in part, off of government handouts from revenue the oil industry pays them to get oil to us!

Clip Source: www.alternet.org

Welcome to the People's Republic of Alaska, where every resident this year will get a $3,200 payout, thanks in no small measure to the efforts of Sarah Palin, the state's Republican governor. That's $22,400 for a family of seven, like Palin's. Since 1982, the Alaska Permanent Fund, which invests oil revenues from state lands, has paid out a dividend on invested oil loot to everyone who has been in the state for a year.

No wonder she is popular with voters in a state whose residents pay no income or sales taxes but are blessed with state coffers rolling in cash at a time when all other states are suffering. Indeed, when the oil companies pay more taxes to the state of Alaska, they get to write that off against their federal tax obligation, leaving the rest of us to make up the shortfall.

Alaska

was getting upward of 85 percent of its budget from the oil companies

Why is it a good thing for the folks up in Alaska to get a cut of exorbitant oil company profits, but not the rest of us

Tags: alaska

Palin

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:05:10 GMT

clipped by: lp97702

Clip Source: www.bloglines.com

I suspended the state fuel tax, and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress. Strike One.

I told the Congress “thanks, but no thanks,” for that Bridge to Nowhere. Strike Two.

If our state wanted a bridge, we’d build it ourselves. When oil and gas prices went up dramatically, and filled up the state treasury, I sent a large share of that revenue back where it belonged - directly to the people of Alaska. Strike Three.

Palin in 2007 (Newsweek)

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 22:38:03 GMT

clipped by: sillysam
clipper's remarks: What a difference a year makes. Last year they loved Palin.

Clip Source: www.newsweek.com

In Alaska, Palin is challenging the dominant, sometimes corrupting, role of oil companies in the state's political culture. "The public has put a lot of faith in us," says Palin during a meeting with lawmakers in her downtown Anchorage office, where—as if to drive the point home—the giant letters on the side of the ConocoPhillips skyscraper fill an entire wall of windows. "They're saying, 'Here's your shot, clean it up'." For Palin, that has meant tackling the cozy relationship between the state's political elite and the energy industry that provides 85 percent of Alaska's tax revenues—and distancing herself from fellow Republicans, including the state's senior U.S. senator, Ted Stevens,

In an interview with NEWSWEEK, Palin said it's time for Alaska to "grow up" and end its reliance on pork-barrel spending. Shortly after taking office, Palin canceled funding for the "Bridge to Nowhere," a $330 million project

"Northrop in electric blaster cannon milestone"

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 19:04:41 GMT

clipped by: cakebelly

Clip Source: www.theregister.co.uk

Northrop in electric blaster cannon milestone

Weapons grade fry-ray to debut 'this year'

Download free whitepaper - Eliminating the Security Risk of Sending Confidential Information by Email Gartner Report: How IT Management Can "Green" the Data Center - Free Download

US war-tech behemoth Northrop Grumman announced yesterday that it had achieved another milestone in its battlefield raygun programme - ahead of schedule. Company blaster cannon execs believe that the first tests at combat power - 100 kilowatts - will take place as planned by the end of this year.

Northrop's Joint High Power Solid State Laser (JHPSSL) programme for the US forces is different from existing rayguns, as it uses electrically powered solid state equipment. Older efforts such as the famous nuke-nobbling jumbo jet for the Missile Defence people and the silent, deniable flying sniper gunship for the US special forces use chemical lasers instead.

Gov. Sarah Palin was for "Bridge to Nowhere"

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:08:04 GMT

clipped by: zizzy
clipper's remarks:

In fact, the Palin administration has spent "tens of millions of dollars" in federal funds to start building a road on Gravina Island that is supposed to link up to the yet-to-be-built bridge, Weinstein said. Republican Mike Elerding also told McClatchy Newspapers, “he would have a hard time voting for the McCain ticket because of Palin's subsequent neglect of Ketchikan and her flip-flop on the "Ralph Bartholomew Veterans Memorial Bridge."

Yet another outing of Liepublicans.

Clip Source: therealnews.com

On October 20, 2006, the Associated Press reported that "Republican Sarah Palin's spokesman, Curtis Smith, said Palin supports the Ketchikan bridge project.

In August 2007 after political pressure over pork barrel projects brought national attention to the so-called “bridge to nowhere”, Congress removed the stipulation - that the money be used for the bridge to the airport, but gave the money to the state anyway, to use in whatever way they wanted

On September 21, 2007 A press release from the Governors office said that since project costs had ballooned to 398 million dollars the state would be considering alternatives to the bridge

Govern Palin said “we are about $329 million short of full funding for the bridge project, and it’s clear that Congress has little interest in spending any more money on a bridge between Ketchikan and Gravina Island

The state, however, never gave back any of the money that was originally earmarked for the Gravina Island bridge

Clip Source: www.youtube.com

[Video]

USA minus Alaska

Tue, 02 Sep 2008 17:03:38 GMT

clipped by: AtlLiberal
clipper's remarks: If all you look at is Fox Noise or read is The Washington Times then you may have missed this tidbit. It stands as yet another example in a growing list of examples of poor choices that McCain has recently made.

Clip Source: www.dailykos.com

Recapping Palin's Secession Scandal

If you spent yesterday at a Labor Day picnic rather than at the computer, you missed the story that broke here regarding Sarah Palin's 1990s membership in the Alaskan Independence Party (AIP).

Note I said Independence not Independent. It's not just an "independent" party--it is a party whose explicit goal is to have a vote on Alaskan independence.

As user Liz Arnett first informed us yesterday morning, the AIP is a political party in Alaska whose motto is "Alaska First." It's goal is to have a vote on Alaska's state status so that Alaskans may decide whether the state should secede, become a territory, become a commonwealth, or remain a state.

Yesterday night, it was is confirmed that Sarah Palin and her husband were members of the AIP at least in 1994. Indeed, Palin reportedly attended the AIP convention.

Tags: politics, mccain, alaska, palin

Vetting of Palin is raising questions

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 13:27:58 GMT

clipped by: lifecyce1898
clipper's remarks: McCain says the process was thorough, but others describe a more cursory examination.

Clip Source: www.latimes.com

The way McCain weighed and discarded vice presidential prospects over that time has come under scrutiny as the choice of Palin turns politically perilous. The question is whether McCain carefully vetted his selection and, if he did not, what that says about the judgment and decision-making the presumed Republican nominee would bring to the White House.

Lyda Green, president of the Republican-run Alaska State Senate, said she never heard from anyone connected with the McCain campaign, nor did others in the state whom Green considered obvious sources of useful information.

"I would definitely have talked to people in the [Republican] party," said Green, a onetime ally of Palin whose relationship soured when she became governor. "I would have gone to the business community . . . major political folks around the state. I've not heard of anybody who's been talked to or interviewed or questioned."

Fred Thompson Speaks on Service to Our Country

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 06:18:43 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: She is from a small town, with small town values, but that's not good enough for those folks who are attacking her and her family.

Some Washington pundits and media big shots are in a frenzy over the selection of a woman who has actually governed rather than just talked a good game on the Sunday talk shows and hit the Washington cocktail circuit. Well, give me a tough Alaskan governor who has taken on the political establishment in the largest state in the union -- and won -- over the beltway business-as-usual crowd any day of the week.

Let's be clear ... the selection of Gov. Palin has the other side and their friends in the media in a state of panic. She is a courageous, successful, reformer, who is not afraid to take on the establishment.

Sound like anyone else we know?

She has run a municipality and she has run a state.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/09/02/thompson.transcript/index.html

Excerpt of Fred Thompson below:

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

Sen. Thompson: Tonight our thoughts are still with our friends and fellow citizens in the Gulf Coast area, and our thanks go to those who have worked so hard to keep them safe. There can be no more important work than this.

But what we are doing at this convention is also important to our country.

We are going to nominate the next president and vice president of the United States of America.

We do so while taking a different view of our country than that of the other party.

Listening to them you'd think that we were in the middle of a Great Depression; that we are down, disrespected and incapable of prevailing against challenges facing us.

We know that we have challenges -- always have, always will.

But we also know that we live in the freest, strongest, most generous and prosperous nation in the history of the world and we are thankful.

Speaking of the vice presidential nominee, what a breath of fresh air Gov. Sarah Palin is.

Tags: rnc, fred thompson, gov sarah palin, john mccain

Urban Revival in Cincinnati

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:22:26 GMT

clipped by: presohio

Clip Source: www.cleveland.com

Sensational Cincinnati: Lively museums, dining lead cultural revival of the 'Queen City'

If any city suffers from more image problems than Cleveland, it's Cincinnati.

The last decades have tainted the "Queen City" with racial unrest (following the 2001 police shooting of an unarmed black man) and a reputation for intolerance (following the unsuccessful prosecution of the Contemporary Arts Center and director Dennis Barrie on charges of "pandering obscenity" for a 1990 Robert Mapplethorpe exhibit).

But the last few years have seen a cultural revival in Cincinnati, which sits regally at the southwestern end of the state on the Ohio River. A visitor will find world-class museums, a vibrant night life and dining scene, and a rich look at Ohio history.

Less than a four-hour drive from Cleveland, Cincinnati is as different as a place in the same state can be, with a warmer climate, more leisurely Southern pace, strong German heritage, hilly geography and a lovely river location.

Tags: revitalization, cincinnati

"Troopergate"

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 05:16:31 GMT

clipped by: sillysam

Clip Source: corner.nationalreview.com

“Of course this issue came up in the vetting, and this is what we discovered,” the source said. “The man who was fired has said on the record that he was never pressured by the governor or the governor’s husband on the issue of firing Trooper Wooten. The governor had a vision for how she wanted that department to be run. The commissioner had a different vision.”

“The reason that members of the Palin family were having discussions with the head of the state police about this state trooper, who was her ex-brother-in-law, was because he had made threats against the family. He threatened to kill the governor's daughter, her father, and her sister. He tasered her 11-year-old stepson. And that is why the Palin family was concerned about this trooper.”

From our conversation, it was clear that the McCain campaign paid a lot of attention to the so-called “Troopergate” issue

Tale of the Tape: Palin vs. Obama

Sun, 31 Aug 2008 12:56:14 GMT

clipped by: Smoke TNT
clipper's remarks: Energy:
Palin-
Believes energy independence is a matter of national security;

For drilling in ANWR, which is in her state

Obama-
Says Americans should "get tune-ups" and "check tire pressure";

Says "we can't expect the world to be okay with" our use of heating and air conditioning

Theme:
Palin-
Change and Clean Government
Obama-
Hope and Change; "Bringing Change from Outside Washington"

What they've done to live that theme:
Palin-
Replaced entire Board of Agriculture and Conservation because of conflict of interest;

Resigned from position of Ethics Commissioner of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission in order to expose corruption among members of own party

Obama-
Selected 36-year incumbent Senator as running mate

Family Affairs:
Palin-
May have removed State Public Safety Commissioner as part of effort to protect sister in messy divorce and child custody battle

Obama-
Often says, "I am my brother's keeper";

Brother lives in a hut in

Clip Source: www.redstate.com

Sarah Palin

Barack Obama

Executive Experience

Governor for 2 years;

Mayor for 10 years

None

Previous Public Jobs

Mayor of Wasilla, AK (1996-2002); President of Alaska Conference of Mayors;

City Council member (1992-1996)

State Senator (1997-2004);

Community Organizer

Reaction to spouse's political success

Quit 17-year BP oil job when BP became involved in natural gas pipeline negotiations with wife's administration

Promoted and given 160% pay raise by UofC hospitals within months of husband's election to U.S. Senate;

Employer received $1,000,000.00 federal earmark, requested by husband, after her promotion

Legislative Record

Passed a landmark ethics reform bill;

Used veto to cut budgetary spending;

Prevented "bridge to nowhere" that would have cost taxpayers $400 million dollars.

Voted "present" over 100 times as IL state senator

Earmarks

Said Alaska should avoid relying on federal money for projects;

Secured federal earmarks for wife's employer and for campaign bundlers

Tags: obama, jackass

An indefinite state of war

Sun, 31 Aug 2008 06:44:45 GMT

clipped by: deusdiabolus

Clip Source: rawstory.com

As the nation focuses on Sen. John McCain's choice of running mate, President Bush has quietly moved to expand the reach of presidential power by ensuring that America remains in a state of permanent war.

Buried in a recent proposal by the Administration is a sentence that has received scant attention -- and was buried itself in the very newspaper that exposed it Saturday. It is an affirmation that the United States remains at war with al Qaeda, the Taliban and "associated organizations."

Part of a proposal for Guantanamo Bay legal detainees, the provision before Congress seeks to “acknowledge again and explicitly that this nation remains engaged in an armed conflict with Al Qaeda, the Taliban, and associated organizations, who have already proclaimed themselves at war with us and who are dedicated to the slaughter of Americans.”

Palin investigation

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:55:39 GMT

clipped by: lp97702
clipper's remarks: More of the same old Republican dirty tricks. She must be scared...

Clip Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

The Alaska state senator running an investigation of Gov. Palin says the McCain campaign is using stall tactics to prevent him from releasing his final report by Oct. 31, four days before the November election.

"It's likely to be damaging to the Governor," said Senator Hollis French, a Democrat, appointed the project manager for a bi-partisan State Senate Legislative Counsel Committee investigation of claims that Palin abused her office to get the Alaska public safety commissioner, Walt Monegan, fired.

An Anchorage Daily News story suggests that Palin's lawyer is helping stall the investigation. He's trying to get the probe into the hands of a governor-appointed board: