Feb 09
High political winds were gusting before the nor’easter truly started whipping through New Hampshire on Feb. 8.
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Feb 09
When he was little more than a child running around a national political convention, his grandfather had spotted him and joked that “he’s our little darkie.”
The grandfather was President George H.W. Bush, and no one knew exactly what to make of his comment about his dark-skinned grandson, George P. Bush, the son of Jeb Bush and his Mexican-born wife Columba.
Was it a racist comment, especially at a time when Republicans were beginning their worst period of disfavor among Hispanics? Was it simply politically incorrect? Or just insensitive? It also was a comment about a child, and not just any child but a quite privileged one.
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More on Latino Politics
Feb 09
The Curiosity rover on Mars has been keeping itself quite busy lately, most recently boring into Mars’ red surface in order to find signs of life. However, in its downtime, the rover likes to take a lot of photos, including self-portraits, but this time around, Curiosity came across a strange chunk of metal sticking out of the ground? What could it be?
The photo was snapped on January 30 using one of the rover’s MastCam cameras to get shots of the landscape, and it ended up getting this odd piece of metal in the frame. NASA’s scientists aren’t 100% sure what it is, but they think it may be a chunk from a meteorite, or possibly a chunk of ore that became exposed by some sort of erosion.
It’s said that the object is only a half-centimeter tall, so it’s extremely tiny compared to how big it looks in the image. NASA hasn’t said whether or not it will check out the piece of metal, or if they’ll just ignore it and continue on with their planned experiments. After all, they do have more holes to drill.
However, while some think it’s simply a tiny piece of metal, Elisabetta Bonora of Alive Universe Images, mentions that the hunk of metal takes up about 35 pixels in the image. Taking into account the camera’s resolution and the distance between the rover and the object, the size of the chunk of metal may actually be larger than just 0.5 cm — it’s possible that it’s up to a foot tall. At this point, we’ll never know, unless NASA decides to investigate, but it’s very possible they just might let it be and continue on as scheduled.
[via Universe Today]
Curiosity rover discovers strange piece of metal on Mars is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Feb 09
JOHANNESBURG — Hundreds of mourners have gathered in South Africa for the funeral of a 17-year-old girl whose brutal rape has sparked national outrage.
The funeral took place Saturday in Bredasdorp, a Western Cape town. It is there where the girl was raped and her body was carved open from her stomach to her genitals by her attackers. She lived long enough to identify one of her killers.
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Feb 09
* Without USDA inspectors, meat plants would have to close
* Production losses of $10 billion possible
* White House ties budget cuts to everyday life (Meatpackers say USDA can avoid mass shutdowns)
By Charles Abbott
WASHINGTON, Feb 8 (Reuters) – The Obama administration warned on Friday that across-the-board spending cuts set to take effect in March may result in furloughing every U.S. meat and poultry inspector for two weeks, causing the meat industry to shut down.
By law, meatpackers and processors are not allowed to ship beef, pork, lamb and poultry meat without the Agriculture Department’s inspection seal.
The prospect of mass furloughs of meat and food inspectors was part of a broader White House warning about the effects of the potential spending cuts on everyday life. Meatpackers said a shut-down would devastate consumers as well as their industry.
President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans still must resolve differences over spending cuts and tax increases, dubbed the “fiscal cliff,” which essentially was delayed by both sides from happening on Jan. 1 and was pushed back until March.
“USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service may have to furlough all employees for approximately two weeks,” a White House statement said.
An estimated $10 billion in production would be lost during a two-week furlough, said a USDA official, and consumers could see meat shortages and higher prices as a result.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack lamented across-the-board spending cuts during a speech to state agriculture directors earlier this week.
“There is not much we can do when Congress says to cut every line item by a certain percent,” Vilsack said. He said employee pay accounted for the bulk of spending at the meat safety agency.
USDA spends about $1 billion on meat safety annually and has 8,400 inspectors at 6,290 slaughter and processing plants.
The American Meat Institute, a trade group, said the USDA should try to keep meat plants open while meeting targets for cuts, rather than going ahead with a mass furlough.
It said the agency could suspend non-essential programs and furlough employees other than inspectors to avoid “inflicting unnecessary hardship” on the meat industry.
A trade group for ranchers and cattle feeders said “food safety is a partnership” that requires government participation. “Our common goal is to ensure that inspections remain unhindered,” the National Cattleman’s Beef Association said.
Chicago livestock traders mostly viewed the White House threat as a budgetary bluff.
“Can you imagine the flak?” asked Joseph Ocrant, a trader who said he was skeptical the White House would pull inspectors out of plants for two weeks.
Americans consume more than 200 pounds (91 kg) of meat apiece each year, an average of slightly more than one-half pound a day. (Additional reporting by Theopolis Waters in Chicago; Editing by Ros Krasny and Paul Simao)
Feb 09
Boy Scouts Gay Ban Controversy Highlights Growing Tug-Of-War Between Right And Left
Posted in: Today's ChiliWhen the Boy Scouts of America announced this week that it was delaying a decision to end a ban on openly gay troops and leaders, some noted that the organization seemed to be walking a treacherous line.
The Scouts have long had a policy forbidding openly gay children and adults from participating in the program, and more than a decade ago, the Supreme Court upheld its right to the ban. But in recent months, pressure from gay rights activists, corporate donors and religious organizations has increased, and the Scouts’ decision to delay a vote on ending the ban reveals the difficulty organizations with anti-gay policies face as gay rights become increasingly mainstream.
Much of the pressure is coming from corporate America, which has shifted dramatically over the last several years, creating internal policies that protect gay and lesbian employees and publicly supporting same-sex marriage. Last April, when the Scouts declared at an annual meeting that it would not change gay-members ban, a number of its biggest corporate donors stopped giving. UPS, Intel, Merck and United Way halted contributions, each citing its own internal anti-discrimination policies.
Feb 09
Betty Shabazz At Malcolm X’s Funeral: Black History Photo Of The Day (PHOTO)
Posted in: Today's ChiliA picture is certainly worth a thousand words. What better way to celebrate Black History Month than by taking a moment to acknowledge the snapshots of time that represent the struggle and triumph of African-Americans through the years?
As part of our Black History Month coverage, we will be featuring one photo a day that honors years of groundbreaking achievements within the black community. These photos bring tears to our eyes, instill pride in our hearts and motivate us to carry on the legacy of strength and perseverance.
Today’s photo was taken on February 26, 1965, showing Betty Shabazz, wife of legendary activist Malcolm X, leaving his funeral in Hartsdale, New York. It is reported that an estimated 1,500 people attended the Civil Rights advocate’s funeral in Harlem, where he was described as a “shining black prince.”
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More on Black History
Feb 09
In a way, Google already is a porn machine; it is what you make of it. But it turns out that a handful of bizarre, technically impossible search queries turn the raunchiness up like 20 notches and cause the engine to return porn results almost exclusively. The searches themselves aren’t dirty in the slightest, either. It’s ridiculous. More »
Feb 09
WASHINGTON — The Republican Party’s problems with minority voters have preoccupied strategists since November, and it’s possible those difficulties will persist or worsen.
But an opening for marked improvements in GOP-minority relations may be at hand, or at least close by.
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More on Barack Obama
Feb 09
Annette Schavan Resigns: German Education Minister Quits Amid Plagiarism Scandal
Posted in: Today's ChiliBy Annika Breidthardt
BERLIN, Feb 9 (Reuters) – German Education Minister Annette Schavan resigned on Saturday after being stripped of her doctorate for alleged plagiarism, in an embarrassing blow to her ally Angela Merkel.
The move came four days after the University of Duesseldorf ruled Schavan, a close confidante to the chancellor, had “systematically and intentionally” copied parts of her thesis, and withdrew her Ph.D, granted more than 30 years ago.
“Annette Schavan offered her resignation last night,” Merkel told reporters.
“I accepted this resignation with a very heavy heart,” the chancellor added, saying Schavan was putting the public good ahead of her own welfare.
Merkel, who lost her defence minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg in a similar scandal two years ago, made no mention of the charges against Schavan.
Schavan, who said their friendship would last, reiterated she would fight the university’s decision to strip her of her degree.
“I will not accept the decision and will take legal action against it,” Schavan told reporters. “When an (education) minister sues a university, then that comes with strains, for my office, for the ministry, the government and for the Christian Democrats. I want to avoid just that.”
While awkward for Merkel, Schavan’s resignation is seen as unlikely to weaken the chancellor’s chances to win a third term in elections on Sept. 22. Her Christian Democrats regularly poll above 40 percent, giving them an easy lead over the main opposition Social Democrats. (Reporting by Berlin bureau, writing by Annika Breidthardt; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
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