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From the blogs

Quiz: Which African Country Just Proposed Legislation Making Being Gay a Crime Punishable By Up to Life in Prison?

by CaitieCat, Shakesville

Here's a great letter-writing opportunity.

Supremes to Decide if Idle Rich's Scenic Ocean Views More Important than Public Beaches, the Environment

by Joshua Holland, AlterNet

A popular coastal reclamation program is being threatened by short-sighted scumbags.

Video: Utah Senator: "I Don't Want The Gays Stuffin' It Down My Throat"

by Adele Stan, AlterNet

In an interview about a proposed anti-discrimination measure, Utah State Sen. Chris Buttars reveals some deep-seated fears.

Gun Lobby's Absurd New Claim: Healthcare Reform Will Take Away Your Guns

by , Think Progress

Gun Owners of America is sending action alerts warning that the Senate health care bill could "jeopardize their ability to obtain a firearms license."

Obama Is Playing Politics With Gitmo

by Nick Baumann, Mother Jones Online

When it comes to some of the worst "war on terror" excesses of the Bush era, Obama's actions are deeply at odds with the image he cultivated during his campaign.

How Congress May Keep Bloggers Out of Jail

by Ari Melber, TheNation.com

Harvard's Citizen Media Law Project will provide free legal services for online media, just as Congress is trying to provide protection for traditional journalists and bloggers.

Hard-liners Peddle Zombie Lies About Immigrants and Crime

by Walter Ewing, Immigration Impact

A new report flies in the face of 100 years of data showing immigrants are less likely to commit serious crimes than the native-born.

Tiny Michigan Town Tells Liz Cheney to Take her Fearmongering Elsewhere

by BarbinMD, Daily Kos

Someplace where they're all wusses.

Utah Lawmaker: I Don't Mind "the Gays," but "I Don’t Want ‘Em Stuffing it Down My Throat all the Time"

by Zaid Jilani, Think Progress

"Certainly not in my kid's face."

Krauthammer Commits Terrorist Act on the Opinion Pages of the Washington Post

by Joshua Holland, AlterNet

Terrorists terrorize -- it's what they do.

Sex, Beer, Heroin and Cocaine: How Prosecutors Pay Off Criminal Snitches

Ryan Blitstein, Miller-McCune.com. November 26, 2009.
All too often, prosecutors aid and abet the crimes of their informants. And that's just one disheartening outcome of American law enforcement's bungled dealings with snitches.

Citing "National Defense Needs," Obama Administration Says it Won't Sign Ban on Land Mines

Amy Goodman, Democracy Now!. November 26, 2009.
Stephen Goose, director of Human Rights Watch's arms division, called the decision to keep the Bush-era policy "an appalling decision."

Murder at Guantanamo? The Mysterious, Unsolved Death of Mohammad Saleh al Hanashi

Jeffrey S. Kaye, TruthOut.org. November 25, 2009.
Mohammad Saleh al Hanashi was found dead inside a psych ward at Guantanamo. It was ruled a suicide. But disturbing evidence suggest the truth may be far uglier.

What Nidal Hasan, Timothy McVeigh, and the Beltway Sniper Have in Common: All Were Scarred by Pointless U.S. Wars

Nora Eisenberg, AlterNet. November 25, 2009.
Some of the most notorious massacres of the past 15 years have been committed by veterans whose brains have been severely damaged from trauma or exposure to toxic chemicals.

Black Teacher May Get 15 Years in Prison for Cutting in Line at Wal-Mart

Devona Walker, The Loop. November 25, 2009.
This is not how our criminal justice system is supposed to operate.

Hate Group, FAIR, Is Looking for "Ethnically Ambiguous" Actors to Amplify Its Racism

Adam Luna, America's Voice. November 24, 2009.
The Federation for American Immigration Reform is holding auditions to promote hate. Here's how you can get the part!

Obama Quietly Backs Renewing Patriot Act Surveillance Provisions

Willam Fisher, IPS News. November 24, 2009.
Three contentious provisions are scheduled to expire next month; opponents of these sections have been pushing to roll them back. But Obama seems ready to renew them.

Feeling Nervous? 3,000 Behavior Detection Officers Will Be Watching You at the Airport This Thanksgiving

Liliana Segura, AlterNet. November 24, 2009.
Nearly 100,000 passengers were pulled aside by TSA behavior watchers last year, and it remains to be proven whether you can spot terrorists by the looks on their faces.

The Memory Scrub About Why Ft. Hood Happened Is Almost Complete ... If It Weren't for Archives

Mark Ames, AlterNet. November 23, 2009.
That Maj. Hasan tried to get a military discharge before the massacre is largely being erased -- we're supposed to keep focusing on the Muslim part.

Army Sends Mom to Afghanistan, Infant to Protective Services

Dahr Jamail, AlterNet. November 21, 2009.
"This would do irreparable harm to her child. I think they are doing this to punish her."

Dobbs' Resignation Was Long Overdue

Janet Murguía, AlterNet. November 21, 2009.
My problems with Dobbs surfaced more than two years ago, during the debate over the last version of immigration reform.

New Right-Wing Craze: Using Bible Quote to Pray That Obama’s 'Days Be Few'

Amanda Terkel, Think Progress. November 20, 2009.
A new slogan is making its way onto t-shirts and even teddy bears: 'Pray for Obama: Psalm 109:8,' which reads, 'Let his days be few; and let another take his office.”

Maddow: Anti-Muslim 'McCarthyism' Making Us Less Safe

David Edwards, Raw Story. November 20, 2009.
Wave of prejudice among Republican politicians may actually be frustrating anti-terrorism efforts Maddow says.

Economic Crisis Is Getting Bloody -- Violent Deaths Are Now Following Evictions, Foreclosures and Job Losses

Nick Turse, AlterNet. November 20, 2009.
Despite ever rosier economic predictions and a surging stock market, the body count from the economic crisis is destined only to grow in the weeks and months ahead.

Why Is Congress Demonizing an Investigation of Israel's War Crimes in Gaza?

Bill Moyers, Bill Moyers Journal. November 20, 2009.
Recognition of human rights expert Richard Goldston's investigation is essential to the peace process in Israel and Palestine -- and the Congress is trying to demonize it.

Organizers Fire up Grassroots for Immigration Reform Fight Ahead

Marcelo Ballve, AlterNet. November 19, 2009.
Organizers are putting together a series of “house parties” after the White House said it was preparing to push Congress on immigration reform early in 2010.

Rachel Maddow Interview with Former Evangelist Frank Schaeffer: Christian Right Is 'Trolling for Assassins'

AlterNet. November 19, 2009.
Schaeffer: "There is a crazy fringe [receiving] messages that have been pouring out of FOX News ... talking about doing away with Obama, asking God to kill him."

Is House Health Care Bill a Threat to Our Constitution?

Barry W. Lynn, Americans United for Separation of Church and State. November 18, 2009.
The House health-care bill isn't just a threat to women's rights; with the Stupak amendment, it's a breach of the Constitution.

U.S. Christian Right Activists Pushing Death Penalty for Homosexuals in Poor African State

Christi van der Westhuizen, IPS News. November 18, 2009.
Some believe a slew of new, homophobic laws are an attempt to preserve Uganda's shaky patriarchy.

Anti-Abortion Group to Protest Palin

Stephanie Mencimer, Mother Jones Online. November 18, 2009.
To liberals, she epitomizes the anti-choice far right of the GOP. But to American Right to Life, Sarah Palin is not pure enough.

Still No Justice for Priests in Notorious El Salvador Massacre 20 Years Later

Norman Stockwell, AlterNet. November 18, 2009.
In 1989, six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and her daughter, were brutally murdered in El Salvador. Two decades later, the extent of U.S. complicity remains largely unspoken.

NYC 9/11 Trial Will Shine the Lights on the Roots of Terrorism

Ray McGovern, Consortium News. November 17, 2009.
As Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and the other alleged 9/11 conspirators go to trial, the corporate media's embargo on the truth about the Bush years will be under great strain.

Does Racism Drive Opposition to Health Reform?

Tom Jacobs, Miller-McCune.com. November 17, 2009.
In a recent study, prejudiced people were more likely to support the health plan when it was linked to Bill Clinton, than when it was linked to Obama.

American Youth in the 21st Century: Pathologized, Criminalized and Disposable

Henry A. Giroux, AlterNet. November 16, 2009.
Young people today face imprisonment, the prescription of psychotropic drugs, psychiatric confinement, and zero tolerance policies that model schools after prisons.

Immigration Hardliners Gearing Up to Kill Pragmatic Reform Once Again

Maribel Hastings, America's Voice. November 16, 2009.
Organized anti-immigrant groups range from extremist neo-Nazi organizations to respected Washington, D.C.-based think tanks.

Decision to Try Terror Suspects in New York Draws Praise from Human Rights Activists

Willam Fisher, IPS News. November 16, 2009.
At the same time, the Justice Department is being strongly criticized for keeping the military commissions in place to try some suspects.

Napolitano Signals Reform to Come in First Major Discussion of Immigration

Mary Giovagnoli, Immigration Impact. November 15, 2009.
Napolitano challenged Congress to do its share, to be brave enough to give her the tools she needs to enforce and transform our immigration laws.

The Relentless War on Drug Users Is Escalating Violence in the US: It's Time for Harm Reduction

Don Hazen, AlterNet. November 14, 2009.
Hundreds gather in Albuquerque to celebrate a new dawn of wider acceptance of drug reform, while still feeling a little nervous about the path ahead.

The Pentagon's Long-Term Plan to Get Back on Campus

Michael Schwartz, AlterNet. November 13, 2009.
The military wants to integrate itself into campus life and therefore gain routine access to rank-and file students to recruit regular soldiers

9/11 Plotters Will Be Tried in New York

Agence France Presse. November 13, 2009.
The trial will be held not far from Ground Zero, once the site of the World Trade Center destroyed by two hijacked planes in the September 11 attacks.

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