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| Current Topic: Politics and Law |
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Council Passes a Bill to Shorten the Line at the Ladies' Room |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
9:28 am EDT, May 26, 2005 |
The measure, called the Women's Restroom Equity Bill, will require all new establishments falling under the terms of the legislation to maintain roughly a two-to-one ratio of women's bathroom stalls to men's stalls and urinals. "If there was ever a bill I was afraid of being on the wrong side of, it is this bill," said a councilman. Council Passes a Bill to Shorten the Line at the Ladies' Room |
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U.S. Memo Faults Afghan Leader on Heroin Fight |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
12:07 pm EDT, May 22, 2005 |
Since beginning work last month, Afghanistan's Central Poppy Eradication Force, an American-trained group, has destroyed less than 250 acres, according to the two American officials. Its original goal was to eradicate 37,000 acres, but that target has recently been reduced to 17,000 acres. With the poppy harvest already under way, the actual eradication levels will probably be far lower. The department's annual drug-trafficking report, released in March, warned that Afghanistan was "on the verge of becoming a narcotics state." A State Department official said that the United States remained optimistic that, through a combination of eradication and reduced plantings, it could achieve a 70,000-acre reduction in poppy planting from last year's record crop, which was estimated at more than 500,000 acres. U.S. Memo Faults Afghan Leader on Heroin Fight |
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Sleepy Election Is Jolted by Evolution |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
9:41 am EDT, May 17, 2005 |
The election may draw only a few thousand voters, and the central issue involves a policy of just 162 words. But a school board election on Tuesday in this rural community is being closely watched across the nation because of its implications for the contentious debate over evolution. At stake are seven seats on the Dover School Board currently held by supporters of a policy approved last fall requiring high school biology students to be made aware of the "intelligent design" theory, an alternative to Darwin's theory of evolution. The policy, considered the first of its type in the nation, does not authorize the teaching of intelligent design. But in its direct challenge to evolution - it says that Darwin's theory has "gaps" for which "there is no evidence" - it has sparked a federal lawsuit and Dover's liveliest school board election in memory. Sleepy Election Is Jolted by Evolution |
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Toward a Revolution in Intelligence Affairs |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
12:09 pm EDT, Apr 14, 2005 |
As the global war on terrorism continues to expand and the post-Cold War security environment remains in flux, both the strengths and weaknesses of U.S. intelligence have been thrust into the public spotlight. The author advances the argument that a “Revolution in Intelligence Affairs” is needed to prepare the Intelligence Community to meet its future challenges. In this report, she presents a framework for how the United States should consider specific changes to its intelligence enterprise to improve its effectiveness. Toward a Revolution in Intelligence Affairs |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
6:49 pm EDT, Apr 9, 2005 |
A double dose of the Constitution in action. Here's the latest evidence that the first amendment dutifully protects America's whackos even as it enables the press to show us how very silly (but no less frightening) they are. Ominously, Vieira said his "bottom line" for dealing with the Supreme Court comes from Joseph Stalin. "He had a slogan, and it worked very well for him, whenever he ran into difficulty: 'no man, no problem,' " Vieira said. And people make fun of Hollywood! Forget about the Scientologists ... the truth in Washington is stranger yet. Michael Farris told the crowd he is "sick and tired of having to lobby people I helped get elected." A better-educated citizenry, he said, would know that "Medicare is a bad idea" and that "Social Security is a horrible idea when run by the government." Oh, yes -- much better to hire lackeys and yes-men to do your political and judicial bidding. One man, one problem. |
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The National Counterintelligence Strategy of the United States [PDF] |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
1:33 pm EDT, Apr 9, 2005 |
The Strategy seeks to defend the peace by fighting terrorists and tyrants, to preserve the peace by building good relations among the great powers, and to extend the peace by encouraging free and open societies on every continent. As used here, counterintelligence includes defensive and offensive activities conducted at home and abroad to protect against the traditional and emerging foreign intelligence threats of the 21st century. * US counterintelligence will shift from a reactive posture to a proactive strategy of seizing advantage.
* We will reach out to the private sector ... No real surprises here, but worth a look. The National Counterintelligence Strategy of the United States [PDF] |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
6:18 am EST, Mar 24, 2005 |
President Bush just appointed Karen Hughes, his former media adviser, to head up yet another US campaign to improve America's image in the Arab world. I have a suggestion: Just find out who were the cabinet, CIA and military officers on whose watch these 26 homicides occurred and fire them. Congress's hypocrisy is not going to win any PR battles. George W. to George W. |
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FCC's New Standards-Bearer |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
9:26 am EST, Mar 17, 2005 |
President Bush has chosen Kevin J. Martin, one of the Federal Communication Commission's leaders in the crackdown on indecency, to succeed the agency's outgoing chairman, Michael K. Powell. The FCC under Martin is likely to be more active on indecency than under Powell. FCC's New Standards-Bearer |
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Thinking About Political Polarization |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
9:22 am EST, Feb 15, 2005 |
American politics are said to have become bitterly polarized. The passions and polemics of maximalists, we are told, are crowding out the preferences of moderates. The country's traditions of pragmatic accommodation and centrist policymaking are supposedly at risk in this hardened political landscape. Much of this caricature can be debunked. Nonetheless, there remains reason to explore the nation's supposed political polarization, for not all of it is a fiction. Causes, consequences, and possible correctives need to be better understood. Thinking About Political Polarization |
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Fair and Balanced Inauguration |
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| Topic: Politics and Law |
11:40 am EST, Jan 30, 2005 |
A Fox News anchor flips out when a guest dares to question the nature of Bush's elaborate 2nd inauguration. Frank Rich wrote: "Judy Bachrach, a writer for Vanity Fair, dared say on Fox News that the inaugural's military ball and prayer service would not keep troops 'safe and warm' in their 'flimsy' Humvees in Iraq. She was promptly given the hook." Fair and Balanced Inauguration |
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