Below is a roundup of news, politics science, and humor. I plan on doing this about once a week as long as people seem interested. I hope you enjoy.
Happy Independence Day. In honor of our nation's birthday I want to present my friend Norman Siegel, former head of the NYCLU, reading the Constitution on July 4th, 2008:
This week I want to highlight three Congressional candidates supported by VoteVets.com.
Three Great Veteran Leaders
Tammy Duckworth needs no introduction - she sacrificed in service and returned home to become one of the great veterans' advocates in the House of Representatives.
Jim Mowrer is an Iraq War veteran running against xenophobe Tea Party ringleader Steve King in Iowa. He has a chance to win this November... with your support.
As an Iraq War veteran, Ruben Gallego has been a VoteVets State Captain for years and is the leading candidate in a race to fill an open Arizona House seat.
CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT THESE THREE VETERANS RUNNING FOR CONGRESS.
And for those who know how important reforming the NY State Government is, we have a good year to win some key races that will make NY State the progressive state it should be. But we need your help: https://secure.actblue.com/...
More news, science and randomness below...
HEALTH, SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS:
Carbon taxes...good for the environment AND the economy? B.C. put a price on carbon. What happened next will surprise you
Awww...can these be marketed for Valentine's Day? Mini-hearts grown to study disease
Tibetan link to extinct human species gives them evolutionary advantage at high altitude: Tibetan altitude gene inherited 'from extinct species'
Chimp language translated: Chimpanzee language: Communication gestures translated
Ranking the carmakers: America doesn't measure up in efficiency. Automaker Rankings 2014: The Environmental Performance of Car Companies
From the Union of Concerned Scientists...the military leads the way?
Book review: A preview of Going Ape: Florida's Battles over Evolution in the Classroom
POLITICAL NEWS:
The Article Google Doesn't Want you to see: Merrill's mess. Google has deleted this article from its European web searches. That means I consider it worth highlighting to you. (from 2007).
Supreme Court decision puts corporate religious rights over women's personal rights: Decision Elevates Employers’ Religious Views Over Employees’ Rights, Church-State Watchdog Says
Mr. Sulu on the decision: Hobby Lobby Ain’t A Church, It’s a For Profit Business.
In case we all forget, Hobby Lobby isn't the only right wing company to be refusing to cover women's contraception. Eden Soy caters to health conscious lefties but is run by a right wing president: Fundie President of Eden Foods Responds. Time to intensify the boycott of Eden Foods?
Republican self-destruction? College GOP chairman resigns, joining Democrats
Bank of America and Chase aren't the only corrupt banks...Barclays and 'deceit' – here we go again. Local and regional banks are often better. For example, my apartment building co-op recently switched to First National Bank of Long Island and were VERY impressed. For more on moving your money to safer, less corrupt institutions that actually still have reasonable customer service, read my Move Your Money article.
Domestic terrorists: From a house of hate, an outburst of violence
I remember when Eritrea first gained independence. It seemed like such a reasonable development. Sadly, reality didn't turn out so well: Eritrea faces UN human rights probe
HISTORY:
There was this thing called the Declaration of Independence. It didn't begin the revolution. It didn't end it. But it was pretty much a point of no return and the point at which the United States and the Articles of Confederation got their start. Funny thing is, no one wanted to write the thing. Jefferson was pretty much the last choice and he couldn't get out of it. What we don't fully realize now is that even at the time it was widely recognized, in America and in Europe, as being fundamentally a hypocritical document given the existence of slavery. This fundamental contradiction between our ideals and our formal government documents (eventually the Constitution) would haunt us until slavery was ended by the Civil War. And, of course, the echoes of that haunting remain with us today and the political divides of today can in many ways be traced to how different political factions faced that hypocrisy.
100 years ago WW I began thanks to a single shot: Sarajevo marks 100 years since Archduke Franz Ferdinand shooting. In Serbia today, the assassin remains a hero. People love to blame Germany for WWI, but Serbia's support of terrorism in Austria-Hungary and Russian mobilization in support of Serbia were far more to blame than anything Germany did. Germany mainly went wrong when they invaded Belgium. Prior to that most of the wrong moves leading to war were on the Allied side.
July 2nd, 1964: LBJ Signs Landmark Civil Rights Act: Civil Rights Act of 1964
RANDOMNESS:
Why hate someone just because they are better protected against the sun than you are?
--my son Jacob commenting no racism
Jon Stewart Moment of Zen:
Justice is blind. And deaf. And dumb.
A real moment of Zen: The Ten Bulls (an allegory of Zen practice and discovery)
This week's moment of jbou:
Great Quotes:
America does not go abroad in search of monsters to destroy. She is the well-wisher to freedom and independence of all.
--John Quincy Adams
From
BBC News: Today's African Proverb:
“If a lizard decides to wear trousers, it should know where to put the tail”
--A Soga proverb sent by Jivram Orsbourne Rosenburg, Uganda
For last week's issue:
Mole's Cool News Roundup 11