In 2005, the state of Texas adopted an amendment to its Constitution that said marriage in the state could only be between one man and one woman. The amendment also declared: “This state or a political subdivision of this state may not create or recognize any legal status identical or similar to marriage.” Now, Barbara Ann Radnofsky, a Houston lawyer and Democratic candidate for attorney general, is saying that the second section effectively “eliminates marriage in Texas”: She calls it a “massive mistake”

Abraham Lincoln, the nation's 16th president, who led the country through the Civil War, famously said that "A house divided against itself cannot stand." He was, of course, referring to the nation after the secession of 16 Southern states to the Confederacy. But who would have thought that, nearly 150 years after he was elected president, Lincoln's words would apply to the very Republican Party he helped co-found in Ripon, Wisconsin in 1854 with other anti-slavery expansion activists? Today, the GOP bears no resemblance to the Party of Lincoln and is on the brink of being torn asunder in its own ideological civil war. . .

The Lysistrata Movement, by Joy B. - the ultimate power of life and continuance, the power men most fear above all things, belongs to women - Most of us are familiar with the plot line of Lysistrata, how this frustrated and angry woman rallied the women of Athens to seize the Acropolis and convinced the women of Sparta to join in a Sex Strike to bring an end to the conflict. - The Stupak amendment is the final insult for me. - Begin now, pick a month in which the strikes begin.

Why Bart Stupak’s last-minute amendment to the health care bill is even more radical than you think.

HR676 firmly establishes health care as a Civil Right, consistent with the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States and Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution which defines a purpose of government "to promote the General Welfare," now therefore, I HEREBY EXPRESS MY STRONG SUPPORT FOR HR676, SINGLE PAYER HEALTH CARE, AND THE PRINCIPLES OF ECONOMIC JUSTICE FOR WHICH IT STANDS:

The US Supreme Court has declined to decide whether the federal statute of limitations bars the prosecution of a former Ku Klux Klan (KKK) member accused of kidnapping and murdering two black teens in 1964. James Ford Seale was tried, convicted, and sentenced to three life prison terms in 2007. His lawyers challenged the prosecution on grounds that a five-year statute of limitations for kidnapping had long since passed. By declining to take up the case, the high court's action leaves in place a decision by Mr. Seale's trial judge allowing his prosecution to go forward and upholding his conviction and life sentences. But the issue remains unresolved in future cases. The statute of limitations issue is significant because it could undermine efforts by the Justice Department to prosecute suspects in as many as 22 other alleged racially-motivated killings and civil rights crimes dating to the 1950s and 1960s. Justices John Paul Stevens and Antonin Scalia issued a statement saying the high court should have agreed to resolve the issue now. "The question is narrow, debatable, and important," Justice Stevens wrote. "I see no benefit and significant cost to postponing the question's resolution. A prompt answer from this court will expedite the termination of this litigation and determine whether other similar cases may be prosecuted," he wrote. A 40-year-old case

Matthew Hoh says that occupying Afghanistan is not going to defeat them. Hoh has gained support from troops in the military which does not understand what they are fighting for, according to Hoh. Within the Pashtun society there is a civil war and that war has noting to do with us. This is a divide amongst the Pashtuns between the urban Pashtuns and the rural Pashtuns; and just like with the Soviets this war is unwinnable and has lasted for centuries. Karzai is from the urban wealthy Pastuns. You will find his interview with Fareed and his letter here: http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/fareed.zakaria.gps/ Listen to what Hoh has to say:

An interesting historical piece, pointing out that Revolutions sustained by the poor and working class can still end up just chainging one boss for the next.

This may be the cutest protest going, and it will definitely be far more entertaining than the gay rights march on Washington this past weekend. Long live creative protests, especially by those fighting for gay and lesbian rights.

After the health-insurance lobby spent millions to astroturf the Tea Baggers’ rage rants, after all the death panel lies, after armed goons loitered menacingly outside public forums, after Baggers threatened civil war for no loftier goal than protecting the health insurance industry’s $200 bil-plus profits — a new poll finds that only 26 percent of Americans oppose a government option for people the private plans refuse to cover.

A Baltimore Raven, Pro Bowler Brendan Ayanbadejo, is speaking at events supportive of gay marriage. That sure busts up a stereotype.

In a remark extraordinary even by the standards of conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh, the right-wing radio heavyweight declared on his program Wednesday that the United States needed to return to racially segregated buses.

Oh, bummer, bummer, bummer......

A group of House Democrats are mobilizing behind a bill that would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, the 1996 law that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.In remarks prepared for the news conference, Mr. Nadler, a New York Democrat, said that same-sex couples “have debunked the baseless myth that their marriages would somehow undermine or destroy the institution of marriage. The sky has not fallen, as our opponents had argued it would.” The true harm of the law, he said, “is the harm it causes same-sex couples and their families.”The bill already has roughly 90 cosponsors, though at least one name is conspicuously absent from that list: Representative Barney Frank...Mr. Polis, a freshman from Colorado and the first openly gay man elected to a first term in Congress, also cautioned in an interview that it could take a while to pass repeal. “But the process has to get started somewhere,” he added. “We have momentum, and we will only continue to build momentum.” President Obama endorsed repealing the law during last year’s campaign, while his administration has defended it in court, to the dismay of many gay activists.

Thoreau states concepts and ideas in Civil Disobedience that are often concealed on public airwaves from the citizenry today by media corporations allowed to increase or maintain their profits by favorable legislation as well as public and private institutions subsidized by government largess.“If a thousand men were not to pay their tax-bills this year, that would not be a violent and bloody measure, as it would be to pay them and enable the state to commit violence and shed innocent blood. This is, in fact, the definition of a peaceful revolution, if any such is possible.” Civil Disobedience is an instrument of democracy that Thoreau used and passed on. It is a legacy for the citizenry to uphold the challenge of democracy. He asked the ultimate question about humanity on this planet: “What is the use of a house if you haven’t got a tolerable planet to put it on?”

“I was looking at people's arms and hands, thinking, ‘I could draw from that,'” Dowell said. It's all part of training he and a select cadre of officers in Idaho and Texas have received in recent months to draw blood from those suspected of drunken or drugged driving. The federal program's aim is to determine if blood draws by cops can be an effective tool against drunk drivers and aid in their prosecution. If the results seem promising after a year or two, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will encourage police nationwide to undergo similar training.“I would imagine that a lot of people would be wary of having their blood drawn by an officer on the hood of their police vehicle,” said Steve Oberman, chair of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers' DUI Committee.

The pirate party reknown from Sweden (pirate bay) and Berlin-Kreuzbergs anticapitalist block were on the demonstration counting 10.000 participants. When the Anticapitalist block tried to leave the official route and tried to break thru a police barrier empowered by some loudspeaker truck throwing bottles, police changed method. Certain people seem to have been severly injured by beating and kicking policemen.

Robert McDonnell is campaigning for Governor of Virginia, and he has in the past led the fight for the purity of his fellow Virginia office holders when it comes to the possible commitment of “Crimes Against Nature,” which are illegal in VA. However, Bob McDonnell himself cannot recall if he’s committed such act.

Big FAIL in Iowa for the bigoted National Organization for Marriage, and they will fail in their endeavors in California and New York and Rhode Island and Maine as well. So shouldn’t they just forget about protecting their precious opposite marriage obsession and get ready for the Rapture already? Emails to write, dog care to arrange!

Two lesbians walk into a church in search of the man they want to support in the election for mayor of Memphis. There they find a bizarre set-up, with a Pastor dressed as a Trekkie and a ritual dance that evolved into a ritual wilding. They escaped with minor injuries, but doesn’t this sound more like a reality show than like a house of worship?