Prometheus 6

Quote of note:

The Swedish researchers have now repeated the experiment but with the addition of gay men as a third group. The gay men responded to the two chemicals in the same way as did women, Dr. Savic reports, as if the hypothalamus's response is determined not by biological sex but by the owner's sexual orientation.

Gay Men Are Found to Have Different Scent of Attraction
By NICHOLAS WADE

Using a brain imaging technique, Swedish researchers have shown that homosexual and heterosexual men respond differently to two odors that may be involved in sexual arousal, and that the gay men respond in the same way as women.

Quote of note:

Grover Norquist, the president of Americans for Tax Reform and a leading figure in both the DeLay and Bush political operations, chose more colorful post-election language to describe the future. "Once the minority of House and Senate are comfortable in their minority status, they will have no problem socializing with the Republicans," he told Richard Leiby of The Post. "Any farmer will tell you that certain animals run around and are unpleasant. But when they've been 'fixed,' then they are happy and sedate. They are contented and cheerful."

A GOP Plan to 'Fix' the Democrats
By E. J. Dionne Jr.
Tuesday, May 10, 2005; Page A21

Virtual Secretary Puts New Face on Pakistan
Despite Area's Instability, More U.S. Firms Are Offshoring There
By S. Mitra Kalita
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, May 10, 2005; A01

In a chic downtown lobby across the street from the Old Executive Office Building, Saadia Musa answers phones, orders sandwiches and lets in the FedEx guy.

And she does it all from Karachi, Pakistan.

As receptionist for the Resource Group, Musa greets employees and visitors via a flat screen hanging on the lobby's wall. Although they are nine hours behind and nearly 7,500 miles away, her U.S.-based bosses rely on her to keep order during the traffic of calls and meetings.

Quote of note:

Without strong and sustained support for the superintendent's new academic standards, his plans to rebuild and repair schools, his determination to put better teachers and principals in the schools, and his desire to enlist more parents and volunteers to become involved in the schools, Mr. Janey will most assuredly join the list of other D.C. school chiefs who -- after being undercut by the board, overruled by the politicians, picked apart by school activists and abandoned by parents -- have thrown up their hands and departed.

Will D.C. Support Mr. Janey?
Tuesday, May 10, 2005; Page A20

CLIFFORD B. JANEY became D.C. school superintendent eight months ago, but the countdown on his stewardship actually began last week. That is when he unveiled his "Declaration of Education" -- his plan to raise student academic achievement "in every classroom in every school." Mr. Janey pledged to convert the school system's broken procurement, human resources, technology and other support activities into high-performing systems that undergird student achievement. And he promised to create a "culture of increased transparency, open communications" that will engage teachers, principals, parents and the community and increase participation in the schools. Achieving those goals, he said, will take three to five years. (In a meeting at The Post last month, he said it could take as long as seven years.) The overarching aim of Mr. Janey's plan is to improve student learning, beginning in the core subjects of English language arts and mathematics, and to boost graduation and attendance rates, while reducing truancy and dropout rates.

DHS Considers Alternatives To Color-Coded Warnings
By John Mintz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, May 10, 2005; A06

Responding to widespread criticism, Department of Homeland Security officials are considering changes to the color-coded terrorism warning system and other methods of providing more useful information to the public without causing panic or disclosing closely held intelligence.

Among the possibilities forwarded to Secretary Michael Chertoff are issuing lower-key alerts on the department's Web site -- as the State Department does now with travel advisories -- rather than by holding news conferences, and changing the color categories to numbers or letters, current and former officials said.

George Will on This Week, speaking about Russia:

Yes, into the eyes of his good friend Vladimir he peered famously (chuckles from his peers) and found a soul that he liked. Well, that's the soul of a product of the thug culture of the KGB who is nostalgic for the Soviet Union, the collapse of which he has termed 'the greatest geopolitical disaster of the 20th century.'

Mr. Putin want Russia to be a superpower. The problem is it's not even a developed nation anymore...it's not even a developing nation. It has an economy larger than, but only slightly larger than, Los Angeles County.There's an alcohol problem such that 80% of Russian men drink and the 80% who drink, drink on average five bottles of vodka per week. They have a public health problem worse than sub-Saharan Africa (chuckles from his peers). I mean, it's a collapsing country and we're supposed to be... (cut off by Cokie)

I'm pretty sure the sheriff had other issues and hit on this excuse. I guess he figured if it was good enough for Ashcroft when he went after Greenpeace it's good enough to bully employees.

Quote of note:

"Certainly the government has no business regulating relationships between consenting adults in the privacy of their own homes," said Jennifer Rudinger, state executive director of the ACLU. "This law is 200 years old, and a lot of people are very surprised that we even have it on the books."

The sheriff told the Star-News of Wilmington last year that Hobbs's employment was a moral issue as well as a legal question. He said he tries to avoid hiring people who openly live together but does not send out deputies to enforce the law.

ACLU Challenges N.C. Cohabitation Law
Woman Fired for Living With Boyfriend

This could become semi-regular because

1. I have to take a walk every day
2. I frequently have a thought I'd like to follow up on while I'm nowhere near paper and pen
   

Quote of note:

Reid Calls Bush 'A Loser,' Then Apologizes
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid Calls Bush 'A Loser,' Apologizes to White House Official
By CHRISTINA ALMEIDA
The Associated Press

May. 9, 2005 - Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid called President Bush "a loser" during a civics discussion with a group of teenagers at a high school on Friday.

"The man's father is a wonderful human being," Reid, D-Nev., told students at Del Sol High School when asked about the president's policies. "I think this guy is a loser."

Shortly after the event Reid called the White House to apologize, his spokeswoman Tessa Hafen said. Reid spoke with Bush adviser Karl Rove, asking him to convey the apology to Bush, who was traveling in Europe.

The Nevada Democrat expressed "regret for the comments, that it was inappropriate," Hafen said. Reid was giving a late speech in Salt Lake City and was unavailable for comment, she said.

Reid Offers Olive Branch on Bush Nominee
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid Gives Support to a Bush Judicial Nominee As Goodwill Gesture
By JESSE J. HOLLAND Associated Press Writer

Bush: Americans Ready to Invest S.S. Funds
Bush Says Americans From All Backgrounds Are Comfortable With Investing Retirement Funds
The Associated Press

May. 4, 2005 - President Bush said Wednesday that private investment accounts created from Social Security payroll taxes is an idea whose time has come as more Americans are comfortable with putting their retirement funds in the market.

Bush told the Latino Small Business Economic Conference that "people from all walks of life" are investing in 401k retirement accounts offered by their employers.

"I went down to the Nissan plant in Canton, Mississippi, (Tuesday) and it was a very diverse audience, a lot of assembly line workers," Bush said. "And I said, `How many of you all have got your own 401k?' I mean, the number of hands that went up was astounding."

Now ask them what's in the 401K.

Quote of note:

...the US efforts have been frustrated by a block of developing countries, led by Egypt, that have insisted the gathering should also address US disarmament pledges.

The United States is under fire for what some nations see as its violations of agreements made under the nonproliferation treaty in 1995 and 2000 to dismantle some of its weapons. In preparatory meetings with other countries before this year's conference, the Bush administration distanced itself from those commitments and refused to sign on to an agenda for the conference that explicitly referenced past pledges, saying those commitments were not binding, according to the UN officials and delegates involved.

That assertion alarmed many arms-control advocates.

Nations say US shirks its arms vows
The spotlight shifts at nuclear conference
By Farah Stockman, Globe Staff  |  May 9, 2005

Orrr....when they embarrass themselves?

Bride prosecuted on '96 shoplifting charge
May 9, 2005

ATLANTA --The attorney for runaway bride Jennifer Wilbanks previously prosecuted her for shoplifting nearly a decade ago and, in another case, Wilbanks served jail time for shoplifting, according to court records.

Lydia Sartain -- Wilbanks' current attorney -- prosecuted her in 1996 for allegedly shoplifting $1,740 in merchandise from a Gainesville mall, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported, citing court records.

Sartain, who was then Hall County district attorney, dropped the felony charge after the then 24-year-old completed a pretrial diversion program, which included 75 hours of community service and restitution, according to court records.

Quote of note:

But significantly, the fact that George Bush's black votes in Ohio doubled since 2000 (8% to 16%), and given the margin of victory at a little over 100,000 votes, these voters probably delivered victory for the president.

Whut?

I thought Bush owed his victory to the Religious Right.

Now, if Bush owes his victory to Black folks, are we going to start getting pork?

GOP Whispers To Black Voters
By Lisa Fabrizio
May 9, 2005

As if America's 'loyal opposition' didn't have enough trouble, another issue is quietly trickling its way into the public eye. An editorial piece in the Philadelphia Enquirer entitled, "Black Voters Warm to GOP," overtly states what, up to now, could only be whispered within Beltway confines: some black voters are leaving the Democratic Party.

This

...is not work safe, but is funny as hell.

This

...is work safe, but perhaps shouldn't be.

Stop being dicks.

Animal Rights Activists Step Up Attacks in N.Y.
Families of Drug Executives Are Harassed
By Michelle Garcia
Special to The Washington Post
Monday, May 9, 2005; Page A03

LAUREL HOLLOW, N.Y. -- Early one recent morning, the wife of a pharmaceutical executive was followed to her workplace, her car was broken into and her credit cards were stolen; later $20,000 in unauthorized charitable donations were billed on the cards.

It was the latest in a series of attacks by the Animal Liberation Front on the Long Island family. The activists, who have asserted responsibility, once scrawled "Puppy Killer" in red paint on the executive's house and have posted the couple's phone, license plate and bank account numbers on the Internet, along with this threat: "If we find a dime of that money granted to those charities was taken back, we will strip you bare."

An Assertive Scientific Advisory Group Challenges Federal Policies

By PHILIP M. BOFFEY

The National Academy of Sciences, once thought of as a timid, somnolent adviser on national affairs, has shown an unusually tough and independent streak in recent weeks. In rapid succession the academy's operating arm, the National Research Council, has criticized some pet projects and policies of powerful federal agencies and even the White House. That is a welcome onslaught of truth-telling at a time when rabid partisans routinely shade the facts for political gain.

The academy, which is based in Washington, operates a vast array of advisory committees that provide advice to the federal government and other sponsors who contract for its services. Typically, Congress or a federal agency might ask the academy to review the evidence and render a verdict on some important technical issue - everything from improving the census to protecting the environment from genetically engineered animals. The academy will then round up experts to produce a report that is supposed to be the definitive word on the subject.

Quote of note:

Teen birthrates fell by 30% between 1991 and 2002. The number of violent crimes in schools was halved between 1992 and 2002. Teen homicide rates dropped to their lowest level since 1966. Teen suicides decreased by 25%, and drug abuse, binge drinking and smoking all fell.

Yet the number of couples living together unmarried increased by more than 70% over the decade; the population at large increased by only 13% during this period. Gay and lesbian parenting became more common. The number of families headed by single mothers rose five times faster than the number of married-couple families.

Obviously, attributing the improvements of the 1990s to the continued increases in families headed by single moms is as absurd as blaming all the social ills of the 1980s on divorce.

Our Kids Are Not Doomed
By Stephanie Coontz
Stephanie Coontz, author of "Marriage, a History" (Viking, 2005), teaches family history at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Wash.
May 9, 2005

Bush and Putin Stand Unified on Terrorism
- By TERENCE HUNT, AP White House Correspondent
Sunday, May 8, 2005

Changing the tone from tough talk to friendship, President Bush and Vladimir Putin went out of their way to take a unified stand on Middle East peace and terrorism Sunday after sharp words in recent days about democratic backsliding and postwar Soviet domination.

A smiling Putin even put Bush behind the wheel of his prized 1956 Volga, a pristine white sedan, and let him take it for a spin around the grounds of his private compound 25 miles west of Moscow. Putin also kidded the president about Laura Bush's recent comedy routine. The happy picture of the two presidents summed up a theme that aides on both sides described   powerful leaders who have a strong relationship and can discuss their disagreements.

The wedding dance:

Mac users running Safari: First:

Type "remove widget" into Apple Help, and you find out:

You cannot remove widgets from the Widget Bar or change their order.

Most of those reading this are probably aware of the workaround - just remove the offending widget from ~/Library/Widgets/. The Dashboard bar is not very good about updating when a widget is removed, but eventually it figures things out.

Also:

Daniel Naito
When the GreenZap Widget is downloaded, there are two very easy ways to delete it without rebooting:
1. In terminal, type "kill zaptastic_evil\ DashboardClient"
2. Use Activity Monitor to force the offending widget to quit.

The reason I mention it is someone figured out how to make and autoinstall evil widgets...which are much easier to monitor and get rid of than ActiveX controls are, but still...

GOP, Like Companies, Wants Workers to Carry the Safety Net
Ronald Brownstein
Washington Outlook
May 9, 2005

In an era when employers are retreating from the guaranteed benefits that once defined the American social safety net, should government accelerate or resist the trend?

...Bush and other Republicans are looking to limit government's financial exposure and shift more of the risk for ensuring pension and healthcare security to workers and retirees in the name of increasing choice.

That's exactly what employers have done for a generation, replacing plans that guaranteed workers a fixed monthly pension with systems that obligate employers to make only a monthly contribution to investment accounts workers manage themselves. On healthcare as well, employers are replacing programs that provided workers a defined benefit with alternatives that promise only a defined contribution.