Motley Moose – Archive

Interrogatories

In the Bush Jr. presidency, do you think Bush was in control of his agenda, or do you think his agenda was controlled by others, and if the latter, who do you think was controlling?

What kind of souvenirs do you collect on your travels?

What sounds do you hear around you right now?

The Twitter Emitter

Some educators, who are quick to say "These students just don't want to learn”, should instead be saying "I suck at my job”.

— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) January 8, 2014

Instead of voting Republican, why not just poison your own water and blow up your own factory?

— Peter Flom (@peterflom) February 15, 2014

So the Florida rules are: No hoodies, no Skittles, no loud music, and especially — don't be black. #DunnTrial

— Barracks O'Bama (@P0TUS) February 15, 2014

There is something really wrong when a white man's right to fear is more valued than a black man's right to live. #DunnTrial #JordanDavis

— Kristen Howerton (@kristenhowerton) February 16, 2014

Hypothesis: the people who most want to carry are the very last people on earth who should be allowed to carry.

— davidfrum (@davidfrum) February 16, 2014

Homeopathic air capsules. Take 2 a day for 14 days at $7.50 each. Natural Organic Gluten-free Homeopathic Air. EZ Terms. Layway! Call me!

— Justice Putnam (@justiceputnam) February 16, 2014

So MTP has become the Dancing With The Stars for past-their-prime politicians? #saygoodbyeMitt

— Sam Seaborn (@SamSeaborn) February 16, 2014

Johnny Weir makes me painfully aware of my acute unfabulousness.

— pourmecoffee (@pourmecoffee) February 16, 2014

Did Bill Nye bring a signed note from Jesus saying climate change is real? If not, he lost.

— William K. Wolfrum (@Wolfrum) February 16, 2014

There's no more dangerous creature in the world than a person who is willing to proclaim ignorance in support of an ideology.

— kara vallow (@teenagesleuth) February 16, 2014

On This Day

In 1621, Myles Standish was appointed as first commander of Plymouth colony.

In 1801, an electoral tie between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr was resolved when Jefferson was chosen as President and Burr made Vice President by the House of Representatives.

In 1964, in Wesberry v. Sanders, the Supreme Court ruled that congressional districts have to be approximately equal in population. If only they’d ruled that they have to make geographic sense, too.

In 1996, world chess champion Garry Kasparov beat IBM supercomputer “Deep Blue,” winning a six-game match in Philadelphia.

In 2002, the new Transportation Security Administration took over supervision of aviation security from the airline industry and the Federal Aviation Administration.

In 2005, President George W. Bush named John Negroponte to be the first national intelligence director.

In 2009, President Barack Obama signed a $757 billion economic stimulus package into law.

Born on This Day

1519 – Francis, Duke of Guise, French soldier and politician (d. 1563)

1524 – Charles of Guise, French cardinal (d. 1574)

1675 – Dirk Valkenburg, Dutch painter (d. 1727)

1754 – Nicolas Baudin, French explorer (d. 1803)

1774 – Raphaelle Peale, American painter (d. 1825)

1800 – Ludovico Lipparini, Italian painter (d. 1856)

1821 – Lola Montez, Irish dancer (d. 1861)

1837 – Pierre Auguste Cot, French academic painter (d. 1883)

1877 – André Maginot, French politician (d. 1932)

1910 – Arthur Hunnicutt, American actor (d. 1979) and epitome of the “grizzled prospector” character.

1911 – Orrin Tucker, American bandleader and composer (d. 2011)

1912 – Andre Norton, American author (d. 2005)

1914 – Arthur Kennedy, American actor (d. 1990)

1916 – Raf Vallone, Italian actor (d. 2002)

1919 – Kathleen Freeman, American actress (d. 2001)

1920 – Curt Swan, American comics artist (d. 1996)

1922 – Enrico Banducci, American nightclub owner (d. 2007)

1925 – Hal Holbrook, American actor

1928 – Marta Romero, Puerto Rican actress and singer (d. 2013)

1929 – Chaim Potok, American author (d. 2002)

1930 – Ruth Rendell, English mystery writer, whose Inspector Wexford series is great, and whose standalone mysteries as well as those written under the name Barbara Vine are also excellent.

1934 – Alan Bates, English actor (d. 2003)

1942 – Huey P. Newton, American political activist (d. 1989)

1946 – Dodie Stevens, American singer

1949 – Fred Frith, English musician and composer (Henry Cow, Art Bears, Massacre and Skeleton Crew)

1954 – Rene Russo, American actress

1962 – David McComb, Australian musician (The Triffids) (d. 1999)

1963 – Michael Jordan, American basketball player

1966 – Michael Lepond, American musician (Symphony X)

1972 – Billie Joe Armstrong, American musician (Green Day)

1972 – Taylor Hawkins, American musician (Foo Fighters and Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders)

1981 – Joseph Gordon-Levitt, American actor

1981 – Paris Hilton, American heiress, famous for being rich

Died on This Day

1554 – Giuliano Bugiardini, Italian painter (b. 1475)

1600 – Giordano Bruno, Italian philosopher (burned at the stake) (b. 1548)

1609 – Ferdinando I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (b. 1549)

1781 – Jacques Dumont le Romain, French painter (b. 1701)

who knew and was painted by…

1788 – Maurice Quentin de la Tour, French portrait painter (b. 1704)

so let’s kill two painters with one brush, here’s le Romain by de la Tour:

1847 – William Collins, English landscape and genre painter (b. 1788)

1854 – John Martin, English painter (b. 1789)

1875 – Léopold Fertbauer, Austrian painter (b. 1802)

1909 – Geronimo, Apache leader (b. 1829)

1943 – Konstantin Bogaevsky, Russian painter (b. 1872)

1943 – Armand J. Piron, American jazz violinist and composer (b. 1888)

1944 – Fausto Agnelli, Italian painter (b. 1879)

1961 – Nita Naldi, American actress (b. 1897)

1966 – Gail Kane, American actress (b. 1885)

1980 – Graham Sutherland, English etcher, lithographer, and painter (b. 1903)

1982 – Thelonious Monk, American jazz pianist (b. 1917)

1982 – Lee Strasberg, Austrian-born actor (b. 1901)

1987 – Verree Teasdale, American actress (b. 1903)

1988 – María Antonia Dans, Spanish painter (b. 1922)

1994 – Randy Shilts, American author and activist (b. 1951)

2006 – Bill Cowsill, American singer (The Cowsills) (b. 1948)

2010 – Kathryn Grayson, American actress and singer (b. 1922)

Today is

Champion Crab Races Day

National Cafe au Lait Day

National Cabbage Day

Random Acts of Kindness Day

My Way Day

  Good morning Motley Meese! Hope your weekend was lovely. Sorry it’s over so soon.

The check-in is an open thread and general social hour. Come back when time allows through the day – the conversation continues.

It’s traditional but not obligatory to give us a weather check where you are and let us know what’s new, interesting, challenging or even routine in your life lately. Nothing is particularly obligatory here except:

Always remember the Moose Golden (Purple?) Rule:

Be kind to each other… or else.

What could be simpler than that, right?

I post a weekly diary of historical notes, arts & science items, foreign news (often receiving little notice in the US) and whimsical pieces from the outside world that I often feature in “Cheers & Jeers”.  

OK, you’ve been warned – here is this week’s tomfoolery material that I posted.

ART NOTES – an exhibition of pastels by Edgar Degas is at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri through July 20th.

LATER THIS YEAR the two surviving members of The Who plan to record their first studio album in eight years, then retiring after a final, 50th anniversary tour.

CONTINUING A SERIES of analyses to mark the run-up to its 100th anniversary: the essay What World War I Did to the Middle East …. indicates its legacy has not ended.

THURSDAY’s CHILD is Flint the Cat – a kitteh that a Louisiana shelter is nursing back from burns, and will be available for adoption following a full recovery.

FILM NOTES – a biopic on the late singer James Brown – with Mick Jagger among its producers – features Chadwick Boseman in the title role ….. who last year portrayed another icon: Jackie Robinson in the film “42”.

ALTHOUGH predictions of it have been made before, a quiet boom in manufacturing in Africa is now taking place.

BRAIN TEASER – try this Quiz of the Week’s News from the BBC.

FRIDAY’s CHILD is leading in an online British poll (run by a shelter) to find a “Purr Minister” in a bid to raise money and attract publicity. However, some contestants think that Bosun the Cat has been the beneficiary of vote-rigging.

HAIL and FAREWELL to the patriarch of the television show “The Waltons”, actor Ralph Waite – having twice (unsuccessfully) sought elected office as a Democrat – who has died at age 85. And to the long-time owner of NYC’s longest-living rock club, Paul Colby – having run The Bitter End for the past forty-five years – who has died at the age of 96. A few years back, Neil Diamond did a free show there, in gratitude for the help Colby gave him early in his career.

Finally, with the death of Shirley Temple – there are only four people (besides Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr) featured on the cover of the Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper” album who are still alive. Two are not well-known by the general public: the Canadian-born singer/actor Bobby Breen and the artist/sculptor Larry Bell. The other two are: singers Dion (and the Belmonts) DeMucci ….. and Bob Dylan.

THIS TUESDAY EVENING is a TV documentary for anyone who likes trains, architecture, preserving landmarks and urban history.

Fifty years ago last year, New York’s main rail complex Pennsylvania Station was demolished; with the resulting structure being extremely cramped, bustling and a place you’re glad to exit (as I can attest to many times over). This PBS special tells the story of Penn Station … and what might have been.

The city’s other rail terminal, Grand Central was slated for a similar fate a decade later: but a spirited response (led by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis in 1975) saved it. I’m sure that will be mentioned in this special.

FATHER-SON? – the actor Jerry Mathers – yes, of “Leave It to Beaver” fame – and a high school photo of Bill in Portland, Maine’s better half ……. Common Sense Mainer.

   

……and finally, for a song of the week …………… while the music genre known as power pop isn’t my style, one practitioner of it that I have always liked is Marshall Crenshaw – who admits he is a bit off-put by the term. His influences range from the British Invasion to R&B to Burt Bacharach to Buddy Holly – whose visual resemblance to him paid off in a particular movie role. And while Crenshaw has not been in the pop vanguard since the 1980’s, he has been active in a wide range of activities in the music world.

Growing up in the Detroit suburbs, he played in several high school bands. (One of his classmates was Curtis Armstrong who later appeared on the hit TV series “Moonlighting”, the “Revenge of the Nerds” films and portrayed Atlantic Records president Ahmet Ertegun in the film “Ray”).

One of the bands that Marshall Crenshaw was a member of was named ASTIGFA – an acronym for “A splendid time is guaranteed for all”, a line from the Beatles song Being For the Benefit of Mr. Kite. That indicated one of his childhood influences, as he later responded to an ad in Rolling Stone and auditioned for a role in the Broadway musical Beatlemania. He was hired as a John Lennon understudy, then later performed the role when the show took to the road. Afterwards, he began a trio with his younger brother (Robert) on drums and bassist Chris Donato, based in New York City during the New Wave/punk era.

His break came from Alan Betrock, who like the band’s music and had them record a single for his indie label Shake Records – and “Something’s Gonna Happen” did well enough for major labels to express interest, leading to an offer from Warner Brothers in 1982, where he remained for the next seven years.

His self-titled debut album had as its hit single Someday, Someway – what would prove to be his only Top 40 hit. The next album “Field Day” also garnered some favorable reviews and he went on to three more Warners recordings that did well on AOR (album-oriented rock) radio stations before leaving to record one album (1989’s Life’s Too Short) for MCA before taking a hiatus of a few years.

Re-emerging in the mid-1990’s, he was no longer part of the pop vanguard: but went on to several more recordings that garnered critical praise, including a 1994 live album with his new label. In 1996 he co-wrote the tune Til I Hear It from You for the Gin Blossoms – who reached the Top Ten with it. His 1999 recording 447 garnered some of his best reviews in years.

All along the way, he has done other musical projects not involving performing. He has appeared on TV (on the Nickelodeon series “Pete and Pete”) and in films: as a bandleader in Peggy Sue Got Married and most notably portraying Buddy Holly in La Bamba in 1987.

He published the book Hollywood Rock – A Guide to Rock & Roll in the Movies in 1994 and has contributed chapters to books on vintage guitar collecting. And (due in part to his own extensive personal record collection) he has helped record labels assemble music anthologies, most notably Hillbilly Music … Thank God – which garnered critical praise from some reviewers.

In recent years, he wrote the title track for the 2007 film Walk Hard – which (as sung by the film’s star John C. Reilly) received a Golden Globe nomination. He had a guest spot with some fellow Detroit musicians when the MC-5 reunited a few years back, released his latest studio album in 2009 and in 2011 began hosting a show on Fordham University’s radio station WFUV-FM (which has a 50-year history, dating back to future NYC disk jockey Pete Fornatale in 1964). And he appears to have liberal politics, with some caustic comments about our former president last decade.

His songs have been recorded by several performers in different genres. Some are “Someday, Someway” (by the rockabilly musician Robert Gordon), the Diane Warren-written song Some Hearts (of which Crenshaw’s original recording spawned a cover by Carrie Underwood), “Brand New Lover” (by the blues singer Lou Ann Barton), “Whatever Way the Wind Blows” (by the alt-country singer Kelly Willis) and most of all You’re My Favorite Waste of Time by several singers including Bette Midler.

Via Kickstarter, he began a new program for his fans: with a series of exclusive three-song 10-inch, 45-rpm vinyl EPs (on Addie-Ville Records) over a two-year period.

At age 60, he has a fine 2000 compilation album to discover his music and begins a tour next week in Montclair, New Jersey with some dates including The Bottle Rockets …. and with so many pots on the stove, chances are the music world hasn’t seen the last of him.

   

Of all of his songs, it is one from his second album Field Day that is my favorite. Whenever You’re On My Mind has been covered by singers Marti Jones and former Ronettes singer Ronnie Spector. And below you can hear it.

  Make sure you let your peeps

  know where to find you!  

The morning check-in is an open thread posted to give you a place to visit with the meeses. Feel free to chat about your weather, share a bit of your life, grump (if you must), rave (if you can). The diarist du jour sometimes posts and runs, other times sticks around for a bit, often returns throughout the day and always cares that meeses are happy … or at least contented.

On weekends (and holidays), you may find the check-in thread earlier or later than normal because … it is the weekend! Moosies need their beauty rest:

For those new to the Moose, Kysen left a Moose Welcome Mat (Part Deux) so, please, wipe your feet before you walk in the front door start posting.

The important stuff to get you started:

– Comments do not Auto-refresh. Click the refresh/reload on your tab to see new ones. Only click Post once for comments. When a diary’s comment threads grow, the page takes longer to refresh and the comment may not display right away.

– To check for replies to your comments, click the “My Comments” link in the right-hand column (or go to “My Moose”). Comments will be listed and a link to Recent Replies will be shown. (Note: Tending comments builds community)

– Ratings: Fierce means Thumbs Up, Fail means Thumbs Down, Meh means one of three things: I am unFailing you but I can’t Fierce you, I am unFiercing after a mistaken Fierce … or Meh. Just Meh. (p.s. Ratings don’t bestow mojo, online behaviour does).

– The Recommended list has a prominent place on the Front Page because it reflects the interests of the Moose. When people drive-by, we want them to see what we are talking about: news, politics, science, history, personal stories, culture. The list is based on number of recs and days on the list. Per Kysen: “The best way to control Rec List content is to ONLY rec diaries you WANT to see ON the list.”

– Finally, the posting rules for a new diary: “Be excellent to each other… or else”

(Some other commenting/posting/tending notes for newbies can be found in this past check-in and, of course, consult Meese Mehta for all your questions on meesely decorum.)

You can follow the daily moosetrails here: Motley Moose Recent Comments.

~

Let the greetings begin!

~

My brother Reid, the man I am caregiver for, told me the other day that he was gay. I have known it for a long, long time. He tried coming out once before but experienced so much pressure from the family that he decided he was mistaken. It was especially hard for the youngest brother to accept. They were very close. Jerry is a hard core right wing born again Christian. He and I have clashed many, many times over the years. We may be clashing again over this.

Reid sent a message to Jerry this morning telling him. He tried to call but couldn’t get a clear connection. He hasn’t heard one word back. I can tell he is hurting and trying to hide it. That in turns hurts me.

Reid and I don’t always see eye to eye and we were estranged for many years. It took the sudden death of our brother Mike to bring us back together. Mike’s death reconnected Jerry and I but not as closely as it did Reid and I.

In the late 90s I was in a marriage from hell. My therapist told me to get out of the abusive marriage but be careful because my husband might try to kill me if I left him. Having experienced his driving when he was mad at me I can well believe that my life was in danger. I know California law required a therapist to warn someone if they feel that person is in danger from someone they are counseling.

A gay couple moved me across the country into their home until I could get on my feet. If I had stayed in California I would be forever looking over my shoulder. I am alive because of them.

That move to the Midwest gave me the opportunity to be caregiver to my Mom for six years. I tried to help my brother Mike and moved down to North Carolina to be near his daughter and grandchildren. He was supposed to join me. Instead the demons of Vietnam finally destroyed him. I cleaned up his financial mess and cleaned and sold my parent’s house.

I moved Reid out here when I realized how sick he had become. I was shocked when I saw him for the first time in years. He looks 20 years older than me and I’m seven and a half years older than he is. He is in a wheelchair now. We are constantly seeing doctors and therapists and nurses trying desperately to get him some more control over his wasted body. He was in the hospital for a week after collapsing. He is in constant pain. If he is rejected by family and friends he will be in even more pain.

I can cope with giving him sponge baths, cleaning him after he uses the portable commode, cleaning out urinals, picking him up literally when he falls, feeding him, checking his blood sugars, helping him take his insulin, getting him in and out of the car, all that is doable. What is going to be rough is if he is cut off by someone he loves.

I have hugged him and told him I love him and I think he is very brave. I am here to be his caregiver because two gay men rescued me when my life was in danger. I owe it to them to help others and especially those in the LGBT community who have so much hate thrown at them.

Reid says he thinks Jerry is going to blame this all on me. Let him. I’m a caregiver. I can handle anything.

 

I haven’t been around much since I am a daily caregiver. Reid has been really sick and my whole day has been dedicated to caring for him.

From the White House – Weekly Address

This week, President Obama took action to lift more workers’ wages by requiring that federal contractors pay their employees a fair wage of at least $10.10 an hour. In this week’s address, he highlights that executive action and calls on Congress to pass a bill to raise the federal minimum wage for all workers.

Transcript: Calling on Congress to Raise the Minimum Wage

Hi, everybody. In this year of action, I said I’d do everything in my power to expand opportunity for more Americans.  And this week, I took action to lift more workers’ wages by requiring federal contractors to pay their employees a fair wage of at least $10.10 an hour.  These are workers who serve our troops’ meals, wash their dishes, care for our veterans – Americans who work hard and will get a raise as these contracts come up.  This will be good for contractors, for taxpayers, and for America’s bottom line.

We know why this is important.  Our economy has been growing for four years.  Our businesses have created eight and a half million new jobs.  But while those at the top are doing better than ever, average wages have barely budged.  Too many Americans are working harder than ever just to get by, let alone get ahead.  And that’s been true since long before the recession hit.

That’s why we’ve got to build an economy that works for everybody, not just a fortunate few.  We’ve got to restore opportunity for all – the notion that no matter who you are or how you started out, with hard work and responsibility, you can get ahead in America.

The opportunity agenda I’ve laid out is built on more new jobs that pay good wages; better training for folks to fill those jobs; a smarter education for our kids; and making sure honest work is rewarded.  And the action I took this week will reward hard work for more Americans.

But to finish the job, Congress needs to act.  In the year since I first asked Congress to raise the minimum wage, six states have passed laws to raise theirs.  More states, cities, counties, and companies are taking steps to join them.  An overwhelming majority of Americans support raising a minimum wage that’s worth about 20% less than when Ronald Reagan took office.

Right now, there’s a bill in Congress that would boost America’s minimum wage to $10.10 an hour.  That’s easy to remember: ten-ten.  And remember, the average worker who would get a raise if Congress acts is about 35 years old.  Most lower-wage jobs are held by women.  And raising the minimum wage wouldn’t just raise their wages – its effect would lift wages for about 28 million Americans. It would lift millions of Americans out of poverty, and help millions more work their way out of poverty – without requiring a single dollar in new taxes or spending.  It will give more businesses more customers with more money to spend – and that means growing the economy for everyone.

You deserve to know where the people who represent you stand on this.  If they don’t support raising the federal minimum wage to ten-ten an hour, ask them “why not?”  The opponents of raising folks’ wages have deployed the same old arguments for years, and time and again, they’ve been proven wrong.  Let’s prove them wrong again, and give America a raise.  Let’s make opportunity easier to come by for every American who’s willing to work for it.

Thanks, and have a great weekend.

Bolding added.

~

Editor’s Note: The President’s Weekly Address diary is also the weekend open news thread. Feel free to leave links to other news items in the comment threads.

  Make sure you let your peeps

  know where to find you!  

The morning check-in is an open thread posted to give you a place to visit with the meeses. Feel free to chat about your weather, share a bit of your life, grump (if you must), rave (if you can). The diarist du jour sometimes posts and runs, other times sticks around for a bit, often returns throughout the day and always cares that meeses are happy … or at least contented.

On weekends (and holidays), you may find the check-in thread earlier or later than normal because … it is the weekend! Moosies need their beauty rest:

For those new to the Moose, Kysen left a Moose Welcome Mat (Part Deux) so, please, wipe your feet before you walk in the front door start posting.

The important stuff to get you started:

– Comments do not Auto-refresh. Click the refresh/reload on your tab to see new ones. Only click Post once for comments. When a diary’s comment threads grow, the page takes longer to refresh and the comment may not display right away.

– To check for replies to your comments, click the “My Comments” link in the right-hand column (or go to “My Moose”). Comments will be listed and a link to Recent Replies will be shown. (Note: Tending comments builds community)

– Ratings: Fierce means Thumbs Up, Fail means Thumbs Down, Meh means one of three things: I am unFailing you but I can’t Fierce you, I am unFiercing after a mistaken Fierce, or Meh. Just Meh. (p.s. Ratings don’t bestow mojo, online behaviour does).

– The Recommended list has a prominent place on the Front Page because it reflects the interests of the Moose. When people drive-by, we want them to see what we are talking about: news, politics, science, history, personal stories, culture. The list is based on number of recs and days on the list. Per Kysen: “The best way to control Rec List content is to ONLY rec diaries you WANT to see ON the list.”

– Finally, the posting rules for a new diary: “Be excellent to each other… or else”

(Some other commenting/posting/tending notes for newbies can be found in this past check-in and, of course, consult Meese Mehta for all your questions on meesely decorum.)

You can follow the daily moosetrails here: Motley Moose Recent Comments.

~

Let the greetings begin!

~

Happy Valentines Day!  Just a little reminder, my favorite See’s candy is the espresso flavored creme filling. 😉

Interrogatories

How many animals do you have in your home? Who has the upper hand, you or them?

The penny: A useful piece of currency or a total waste of resources?

Who was/is your favorite TV/movie/or literature sidekick?

The Twitter Emitter

It was white outside yesterday!

#SoWhiteOutside Trey Radel is snorting the sidewalk.

— Allan Brauer (@allanbrauer) February 13, 2014

#SoWhiteOutside it just got an apology from @msnbc.

— BWD (@theonlyadult) February 13, 2014

#SoWhiteOutside that some of its best friends are “Black ice” and “mixed sleet.”

— TriniPrincess (@TriniPrincess) February 13, 2014

#SoWhiteOutside the snow is falling offbeat

— Buddha Lee Raye (@LynchNineBows) February 13, 2014

#SoWhiteOutside that it's praising Macklemore for saving hip hop.

— Jeff Fecke (@jkfecke) February 13, 2014

It's #SoWhiteOutside I just caught a case of affluenza.

— Nicholas Coleman (@pedanticprof) February 13, 2014

#SoWhiteOutside it's already been acquitted

— foggy hedgehog (@mazzie) February 13, 2014

#SoWhiteOutside it thinks this hashtag is racist

— Mychal Denzel Smith (@mychalsmith) February 13, 2014

#sowhiteoutside it can't get its wife elected to the Denver school board but thinks it's smarter about politics than you.

— Allan Brauer (@allanbrauer) February 13, 2014

There was other stuff going on, too:

Time Warner merging with Comcast is like Justin Bieber merging with Nickleback and that's the only thing you can listen to.

— Jamie Kilstein (@jamiekilstein) February 13, 2014

So if I am drunk at a bar and I rob another drunk, are they as much to blame because we were both drunk?

— Lizz Winstead (@lizzwinstead) February 13, 2014

RT @Big6domino I'm taking donations to get #MichaelDunn cell mate two 12 inch Woofers and NWA's complete catalog. #DunnTrial

— Candace Brown (@CandaceTX) February 13, 2014

Every time a US Congressman announces they won't run for reelection it represents one new job they've managed to create.

— John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) February 13, 2014

On This Day

In 1849, James Polk became the first serving President to be photographed.

In 1855, Texas was linked to the rest of the United States by telegraph. Communication remains garbled, though. I think it’s the textbooks they use.

In 1859, Oregon was admitted to the Union as the 33rd state.

In 1899, Congress approved the use of voting machines in Federal elections.

In 1903, the U.S. Department of Commerce and Labor was established.

In 1912, when Jan Brewer was just a young lass, Arizona became the 48th state of the Union.

In 1920, the League of Women Voters was established.

In 1979, Afghanistan’s U.S. ambassador, Adolph Dubs, was kidnapped by Muslim extremists in Kabul and died in a shootout between his abductors and police. Of course Lindsey Graham and John McCain held a gazillion hearings to get to the bottom of this incident. (not)

In 1989, Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini called on Muslims to kill Salman Rushdie, author of “The Satanic Verses,” a novel Khomeini condemned as blasphemous. A few of the translators of the book were attacked, as were many bookstores that carried it. Rushdie went into hiding for a time, but never suffered any harm.

In 2006, the first mammal cloned from an adult, Dolly the sheep, was put down at age 6 due to premature aging and disease. I hope this does not mean that premature aging is punishable by death!

In 2008, five students were shot to death in a lecture hall at Northern Illinois University before the killer, a former student, killed himself.

In 2013, an Area Man forgot to get his wife a gift, resulting in the silent treatment for several weeks.

Born on This Day

1575 – Giovanni-Andrea Donducci “il Mastelletta”, Italian painter (d. 1655)

1790 – Pierre Duval Le Camus, French painter (d. 1854)

1790 – Louise Joséphine Sarazin de Belmont, French landscape painter (d. 1870)

1799 – Walenty Wańkowicz, Polish painter (d. 1842)

1812 – Alfred Thomas Agate, American artist who traveled extensively and documented much of what he saw, especially landscapes and natives. (d. 1846)

1814 – Joseph Urbain Mélin, French painter (d. 1886)

1818 – Frederick Douglass, American abolitionist (d. 1895)

1838 – Valentine Cameron Prinsep, British Pre-Raphaelite painter (d. 1904)

1847 – Anna Howard Shaw, American suffragette (d. 1919)

1854 – Rudolf Ernst, Austrian Orientalist painter   (d. 1932)

1861 – Peder Vilhelm Ilsted, Danish painter (d. 1933)

1873 – Albert Guillaume, French painter and caricaturist (d. 1942)

1878 – George Herbert Baker, American landscape painter (d. 1943)

1880 – Aida Overton Walker, African American dancer and singer (d. 1914)

1890 – Nina Hamnett, Welsh artist’s model, artist, designer, and self styled Queen of Bohemia (d. 1956) (Painting by Roger Fry)

1894 – Jack Benny, American actor and comedian (d. 1974)

1913 – Jimmy Hoffa, American labor union leader (presumed d. 1975)

1921 – Hugh Downs, American television host

1922 – Murray the K, American impresario and disk jockey (d. 1982)

1927 – Lois Maxwell, Canadian actress (d. 2007)

1929 – Vic Morrow, American actor (d. 1982)

1931 – Phyllis McGuire, American singer (The McGuire Sisters)

1937 – Magic Sam, American blues musician (d. 1969)

1941 – Big Jim Sullivan, English session guitarist (d. 2012)

1941 – Paul Tsongas, American politician (d. 1997)

1942 – Michael Bloomberg, American media mogul and politician

1943 – Eric Andersen, American singer-songwriter

1943 – Maceo Parker, American musician (P-Funk)

1946 – Gregory Hines, American dancer and actor (d. 2003)

1947 – Tim Buckley, American singer-songwriter (d. 1975)

1947 – Judd Gregg, American politician

1948 – Teller, American magician (Penn and Teller)

1952 – Nancy Keenan, American reproductive-rights advocate

1956 – Dave Dravecky, American baseball player

1960 – Jim Kelly, American football player

1968 – Scott McClellan, 25th White House Press Secretary and star of the late lamented “Scotty Show” on Daily Kos.

1972 – Rob Thomas, American musician (Matchbox Twenty)

1975 – Scott Owen, Australian bass player (The Living End)

Died on This Day

1400 – King Richard II of England (murdered) (b. 1367)

1779 – James Cook, British naval captain and explorer (b. 1728)

1780 – Gabriel Jacques de Saint-Aubin, French painter and etcher (b. 1724)

1864 – William Dyce, Scottish painter (b. 1806)

1888 – Arthur Johann Severin Nikutowski, German painter (b. 1830)

1907 – Adolf Seel, German painter (b. 1829)

1943 – Dora Gerson, German actress, cabaret singer, and Holocaust victim (b. 1899)

1950 – Karl Guthe Jansky, American Discoverer of cosmic radio waves (b. 1905)

1950 – Cecilio Guzmán de Rojas, the first known Bolivian Ameridian painter (b. 1899)

1959 – Baby Dodds, American jazz drummer (b. 1898)

1967 – Sig Ruman, German-American actor (b. 1884)

1975 – P. G. Wodehouse, English writer (b. 1881)

2009 – Louie Bellson, American jazz drummer (b. 1924) and husband of Pearl Bailey.

2010 – Doug Fieger, American musician (The Knack) (b. 1952)

2010 – Dick Francis, British jockey-turned-novelist (b. 1920)

Today is

Valentine’s Day

Ferris Wheel Day

National Organ Donor Day

Singles Awareness Day

National Crème-filled Chocolates Day

The domino effect …

From Justice Antonin Scalia’s DOMA dissent:

“As I have said, the real rationale of today’s opinion, whatever disappearing trail of its legalistic argle-bargle one chooses to follow, is that DOMA is motivated by ‘bare . . . desire to harm’ couples in same-sex marriages. How easy it is, indeed how inevitable, to reach the same conclusion with regard to state laws denying same-sex couples marital status.”

How easy, how inevitable, indeed. And disdainful eye-rolling by Justice Scalia becomes precedent for district court judges across the country.

Federal Judge: Virginia Gay Marriage Unconstitutional

A federal judge ruled Thursday that Virginia’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, making it the first state in the South to have its voter-approved prohibition overturned.

U.S. District Judge Arenda Wright Allen issued a stay of her order while it is appealed, meaning that gay couples in Virginia will still not be able to marry until the case is ultimately resolved. Both sides believe the case won’t be settled until the Supreme Court decides to hear it or one like it.

Allen’s ruling makes Virginia the second state in the South to issue a ruling recognizing the legality of gay marriages.

“Through its decision today, the court has upheld the principles of equality upon which this nation was founded,” the plaintiffs’ lead co-counsel, Theodore B. Olson, said in a statement.

The Virginia Attorney General’s Office took the unusual step of not defending the law because it believes the ban violates the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. In her ruling, Wright Allen agreed.

Kentucky Judge Turns Gay Marriage Tide in the South

On Wednesday, a federal judge with deep ties to the Republican Party became the first in the South to rule in favor of gay marriage, offering the best proof yet that the balance in the nation’s long and contentious clash over how to define marriage has been tipped irrevocably in favor of gay rights.

The brief but remarkable ruling by U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn, a former lawyer for Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell who was put on the bench 22 years ago by President George H.W. Bush, invalidates a key part of Kentucky’s ban on gay marriage, and requires the state to recognize as valid same-sex unions sealed elsewhere.[…]

Borrowing heavily from Kennedy’s reasoning in last year’s decision, and in plain language aimed directly at the many voters in Kentucky who still oppose gay marriage, Heyburn found gay marriage laws are illegal for the simplest of reasons. At worst, he ruled, they are aimed at hurting gays and at best, are based on religious convictions that can’t pass constitutional muster.

“Kentucky’s laws treat gay and lesbian persons differently in a way that demeans them,” wrote Heyburn. Since none of the reasons put forward to justify that treatment can withstand constitutional scrutiny, he ruled that the laws are invalid.

More …

5 States That Could Legalize Same-Sex Marriage

– Oregon: This November, voters in Oregon will have the opportunity to legalize same-sex marriage, making their state the 18th in the nation to do so.

– Ohio: The question of marriage equality will probably make it to the ballot in Ohio –  where a 2013 Quinnipiac poll showed a majority of voters have come to support legalization – in 2016. But LGBT groups are hoping they can advance the issue by 2014.

– Michigan: At the end of 2013, Vote Equal – formerly known as Marriage Michigan PAC – announced it would collect over 300,000 signatures and raise millions of dollars to put same-sex marriage on Michigan’s ballot by 2016.

– Nevada: The decision to drop the defense of the ban does not legalize same-sex marriage in the state, but it does open the door for doing so in the coming years. And with 57 percent of Nevada voters voicing their opposition to the ban prior to Masto’s decision, it seems the state is poised to advance marriage equality if the issue ends up on the ballot in 2016.

The 5th state was Virginia: “On February 4, Virginia’s ban on same-sex marriage was challenged in a federal court. The court is expected to make a decision soon”. Soon? How about 9 days?

Currently, 16 states allow same-sex marriages to take place. Along with the 5 states where the district courts have ruled in favor of marriage equality (and which are under review, or will soon be under review, in the appeals courts) litigation is pending in 22 states at the district court level: Freedom to Marry – Litigation.

And one state runs counter to the trend, trying to set those dominoes back up on their edges:

Indiana Marriage Amendment Proposal Will Not Be On 2014 Ballot

A proposed constitutional ban on marriage for same-sex couples in Indiana will not appear on the November 2014 ballot.

House Joint Resolution 3 was called for a second-reading before the GOP-controlled Indiana Senate Thursday, but amendments to put the measure back on track for being decided by voters this November were not presented on floor. Now, the soonest it can appear on the Indiana ballot is 2016, according to Freedom Indiana.

Even Indiana can’t muster enough “bare … desire to harm same-sex couples” to get this on the ballot this year. 2016 will probably be too late.

Good morning, Moosekind. TGIF!

Friday Coffee Hour and check-in is an open thread and general social hour. Come back when time allows through the day – the conversation continues.

It’s traditional but not obligatory to give us a weather check where you are and let us know what’s new, interesting, challenging or even routine in your life lately. Nothing is particularly obligatory here except:

Always remember the Moose Golden (Purple?) Rule:

Be kind to each other… or else.

What could be simpler than that, right?