Medical Marijuana
April 1, 2012
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Posted by Bob Lord I’ve always supported medical marijuana. But I’ve never had any real life experiences to justify it. Until now. Some months ago, a close friend of mine called to let me know he couldn’t make it to my daughter’s wedding. He would be traveling back to the mid-west to spend time with … Read more
Update on Texas Voter ID case
April 1, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: The D.C. District Court has set a trial in Texas’ voter ID suit for July 9-13. Texas Redistricting blog, http://txredistricting.org/, reports Court sets July 9 trial date in Texas voter ID case: [T]he court also directed that issues related to the constitutionality of section 5 of the Voting Rights Act be bifurcated … Read more
President Obama’s message to Planned Parenthood supporters
April 1, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Transcript via Daily Kos:
For you, and for most Americans, protecting women's health is a mission that stands above politics. And yet, over the past year, you've had to stand up to politicians who want to deny millions of women the care they rely on, and inject themselves into decisions that are best made between a woman and her doctor.
Let's be clear here: Women are not an interest group.
They're mothers, and daughters, and sisters, and wives. They're half of this country. They're perfectly capable of making their own choices about their health.
So we're grateful that, through it all, you never forgot who you're fighting for: The woman with a new lease on life because a mammogram caught her cancer in time; the woman who can sleep easier at night because of a cervical cancer screening; the woman who is able to choose when to start a family, because she could afford contraception.
So when some professional politicians casually say that they'll "get rid of" Planned Parenthood, don't forget what they're really talking about: Eliminating the funding for preventive care that millions of women rely on, and leaving them to fend for themselves.
That's why, last year, when Republicans in Congress threatened to shut down the government unless we stopped funding Planned Parenthood, I had a simple answer: No.
But we know this debate is far from over. We must continue to send the message loud and clear: If you truly value families, you shouldn't play politics with a woman's health.
It's why I know that Planned Parenthood will continue providing care, no matter what. I know you'll never stop fighting to protect the healthcare and the choices that America's women deserve.
As long as I have the privilege of being your president, neither will I. Thanks.
Video below thwe fold.
The coming week…
April 1, 2012
By Craig McDermott, cross-posted from Random Musings As usual, all agendas and calendars are subject to change without notice. And given that the lege is expected to end its session within the next few weeks, things could start getting crazy down there…well, crazier than usual, anyway. 🙂 …On the House side of the Capitol … Read more
Breaking: Obama Will Appoint a Federal Special Master For Arizona
April 1, 2012
By Michael Bryan
Today President Obama announced that pursuant to a secret executive order, six Republican-dominated states that have veto-proof majorities and the Governorship, including Arizona, Florida, Vermont, Texas, Alabama, and South Carolina, will be immediately placed in federal receivership. It is expected that a further twenty states with GOP controlled state governments will be placed in receivership by the end of next week.
The effect of Obama's secret executive order, which was apparently issued shortly after Obama taking office in 2009, will be to dissolve all state governmental authority within the targeted states. The Governors and state legislatures will be banned from meeting or conducting governmental business, and briefly held in federal detention pending final debriefing and liquidation. The President will then unilaterally appoint a Special Master to administer each state covered by the order.
The Special Master for Arizona will be Janet Napolitano, who will also retain her position as Homeland Security director. Said Napolitano at the press conference announcing the receivership, "I look forward to cleaning house in Arizona and putting right all the harm done in the three years since I left office in Arizona. Republicans had better go get their guns, because we are coming for them. We'll pry them from your cold dead fingers, if necessary."
Already, the DHS has begun distribution of the new rules under which Arizonans will live during the receivership. The pamphlet is entitled "Sharia Law and You". Napolitano announced that Muslim legal scholars from Iran would be flown in to act as ad visors to the new Special Master's administration.
On a personal note, I have to admit, it seems the Republicans were right. It seems that Obama was angling at dictatorship, domination, and the destruction of the American way of life, all along. What I ignorantly called their paranoid rantings were actually well-informed and accurate desciptions of the designs the President had on taking all power for himself and his cronies. I deeply apologize to my Republican brethren for my ignorance and lack of foresight.
Learn more about these surprising developments after the flip…
The difficult (and necessary) process of urban infill
April 1, 2012
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by David Safier You can read a healthy battle of opinions in the Star on the proposed urban infill in the area around the new streetcar line. One one side is Janice Cervelli, dean of the College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture at the University of Arizona who is deeply involved in the development plans … Read more
Fast and Furious never connected the dots
April 1, 2012
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by David Safier The tragedy of Operation Fast and Furious is the death of Brian Terry. The travesty is the witch hunt by Reps. Issa and Grassley who want to use Fast and Furious against the Obama administration while they distract from the genuine problem of gun running due to our lax gun sales laws. … Read more
Opening Day: For Love of The Game
April 1, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
The 2012 Major League Baseball season will open with the christening of one ballpark, a 20th-anniversary celebration of the ballpark that changed everything, and the hope of a World Series that will end in October. MLB unveils schedule for 2012 season:
The Cardinals and Miami Marlins will begin the season with the opening of Florida's new ballpark on Wednesday, April 4, followed by six openers the next day.
The Marlins will host the inaugural game by replacing the legacy of the Orange Bowl in Little Havana, west of downtown Miami, with a venue that will seat 37,000 fans. New Marlins Ballpark will feature a retractable roof and offer spectacular views of downtown Miami, hence the 2012 team name change.
There will be six Thursday openers for the second time in as many seasons. Those games include Phillies at Pirates, Blue Jays at Indians, Red Sox at Tigers, Braves at Mets, Nationals at Cubs, and Dodgers at Padres. Vin Scully will be back in the broadcast booth that day, returning for an amazing 63rd season with the Dodgers.
Ten games, including nine more openers, are scheduled for Friday, April 6. The Orioles will be host that day to the Twins, and it will mark the 20th anniversary of Oriole Park at Camden Yards — the HOK-designed ballpark that began the now-common trend of retro-modern parks.
The first full slate of 15 games is scheduled for Saturday.
