We're having a tea party! No, not the kind where Republicans with picket signs gather in public places and complain about liberals, or Democrats, or Obama, or taxes, or health care, or whatever it is they're complaining about (don't tell me, I don't want to know.) We're having a real tea party, with tea and crumpets and little crustless ( Read more... )

I heard the song Los Hermanos by Mercedes Sosa today and struck me as so beautiful that I had to stop what I was doing, find the Spanish lyrics and (roughly) translate them into English:

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( English lyrics here )

A day late, but a Happy Fourth of July to everyone with this video depiction of exactly what I like to celebrate about this country:

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The news today is full of the stupids. First, SC governor Sanford, who was first reported missing, and then was reported to be hiking the Appalachian trail, turned out to be visiting Argentina, where he is having an affair with a woman who is not his wife. Way to get elected president, jerk! Then, the Obama administration has rescinded ( Read more... )

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( Not that their decision was unexpected, but they still suck. )

Next Tuesday, the California Supreme Court will issue its ruling in the Proposition 8 case -- they will respond to the challenges to Prop 8 filed by several California counties, hundreds of organizations, and millions of Californians who believe that Prop 8, despite being passed by a majority of voters, is unconstitutional ( Read more... )

Interesting article on child abductions. The news around here has been filled lately with a scary story of the murder of a local girl. While these stories are horrifying, they always make me wonder. This article's point is well-taken -- these crimes are only newsworthy when they happen to little white girls.

A lot of you have probably heard about the newest efforts of the homophobes -- they've got this ridiculous new anti-marriage equality organization with a national ad campaign. Their website, which contains the ad, is quite interesting. They are completely up-front about their dishonesty. Their site says things like:

Language to avoid at all ( Read more... )

There was this woman I met twice years ago at grad school parties, the friend of someone in my grad program. Both times I met her, she brought up the same topic -- people on food stamps who bought things with them that this woman didn't think they should buy. This was precipitated by an occasion -- one incident that this woman witnessed -- upon ( Read more... )