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Monday, October 7, 2013

News Nuggets 1311


DAYLEE PICTURE: Lightening over the Bay of Bengal south of India.  From National Geographic.

U.S. Raids in Libya and Somalia Strike Terror Targets from the New York Times
"American commandos carried out raids on Saturday in two far-flung African countries in a powerful flex of military muscle aimed at capturing fugitive terrorist suspects. American troops assisted by F.B.I. and C.I.A. agents seized a suspected leader of Al Qaeda on the streets of Tripoli, Libya, while Navy SEALs raided the seaside villa of a militant leader in a predawn firefight on the coast of Somalia."

Obama’s Diplomatic Opportunity (David Ignatius) from the Washington Post 
"What was unthinkable only a few months ago with Iran and Syria now appears to be in motion. On Iran, Obama has talked directly with President Hassan Rouhani about quickly negotiating a deal to limit the Iranian nuclear program. On Syria, the United States and Russia have agreed on a U.N. plan to destroy President Bashar al-Assad’s stockpile of chemical weapons."

The Folly of Banning Greece’s Neo-Nazi Party (James Kirchick) from the Daily Beast
"The Neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party is populated by thuggish, racist halfwits. But banning them won’t destroy their toxic ideology, writes Jamie Kirchick."

Getting Older, Growing Poorer from the Editorial Board of the New York Times
"In analyzing the recent Census Bureau report on poverty, researchers at the National Women’s Law Center found that from 2011 to 2012, the rate of extreme poverty rose by a statistically significant amount among those 65 and older, meaning that a growing number of them were living at or below 50 percent of the poverty line. In 2012, this was $11,011 a year for an older person living alone."

Health-Law Implementation to Vary by State from the Wall Street Journal 
""Your prices, your consumer experience will differ dramatically across states or even regions in states," said Joel Ario, managing director at Manatt Health Solutions, a New York-based health-care consulting practice. Rural areas will likely have fewer insurer choices than urban areas, where insurers are competing more vigorously for new customers. The divergences could make it harder to judge the law's success, at least initially."

Obamacare 101: What Owners of Small Businesses Need to Know (Linda Feldmann) from the Christian Science Monitor
"Obamacare includes a separate online health-insurance marketplace for small businesses, those with fewer than 50 employees. Here is a Q-and-A on how it works."

The Factoid That Explains Why You Want to Live in a Blue State from the New Republic
"How much of a difference does living in a Democratic-run state make? Here's the difference between what a family of three—a working parent with two dependants—would have to make in Minnesota and Alabama in order to qualify for subsidized insurance."

GOP In Grave Danger Of Losing House In 2014, PPP Polls Show from the Huffington Post
"A series of polls released Sunday show just how damaging the shutdown has been for the GOP. ...  For Democrats to win a House majority, 17 seats would need to switch to their party's favor. Results show that would be within reach, as Republican incumbents are behind in 17 of the districts analyzed..."

Government Shutdown: The Latest Conservative Litmus Test from Politico 
"In primary campaigns where there’s not much daylight on policy between establishment Republicans and conservative challengers, how willing a candidate or incumbent was to close the government – and opposed to a compromise on Obamacare that would reopen it – looks like the base’s latest test of who’s a true believer or a squish. And for Republican elders who were urging an end to the intra-party warfare that cost the GOP Senate seats the past two election cycles, it’s another reminder the party isn’t remotely close."

Endgame is Here: Republicans are Breaking (Ian Reifowitz) from Daily Kos 
"... if some Republicans act responsibly and then have to face tea party challengers accusing them of being RINOs, the Chamber will have the back of those reasonable Republicans. It's a civil war within the GOP, folks. That's how far off the deep end the tea party and right-wing House Republicans have gone. They've lost the Chamber of Commerce."

The Rise of the New Confederacy (Colbert King) from the Washington Post 
"Today there is a New Confederacy, an insurgent political force that has captured the Republican Party and is taking up where the Old Confederacy left off in its efforts to bring down the federal government."

John Boehner’s Turn to Give In (Eugene Robinson) from the Washington Post 
"Republicans in Congress are like a dog that chases cars and finally catches one. There is a fleeting sense of accomplishment, followed by sheer panic. ...Having caught the car, Boehner would be wise to let it go. Even at the expense of a little dignity."

The GOP Keeps Getting Whiter (Charlie Cook) from National Journal
"While the country is becoming more racially diverse, Republican congressional districts are becoming less."

5 Reasons The Republican Party Is Now The Tea Party (And 1 Reason This Will Tear It Apart) (Jason Sattler) from the National Memo
"The organizing prowess of self-proclaimed Tea Partiers has given them control of the party, so much so that the Tea Party’s agenda is now the GOP’s agenda. With the help of new research from Democracy Corps, here are five reasons why the Tea Party took over the GOP — and one reason why it will eventually tear the Republican Party apart."


Drunk And Disorderly: How Republican Extremists Are Shredding Every Principle The GOP Claims To Uphold (Joe Conason) from the National Memo
"Republicans used to tell us, often with a self-righteous air, that they were the true upholders of constitutional order, the rule of law, fiscal probity, personal responsibility, majority rights, and market principles. In their unquenchable zeal to oppose President Obama and all his works, they have discarded every one of those ideals."


Women See GOP Drifting Further From Them from the National Journal 
"United Technologies/National Journal Congressional Connection Poll finds just 14 percent of women think the GOP is now closer to representing their views."

Frankenstein Goes to Congress (Gail Collins) from the New York Times
"Over the past few years, Republicans have terrified their most fervent followers about Obamacare in order to disguise the fact that they no longer knew what to say about their old bête noir, entitlements. Now they can’t turn the temperature down. ... They’ve created a monster. And now the rest of the country is turning into peasants with torches, storming their castle."

WORLD WAR II NUGGET!!
Hitler’s Killer Women Revealed in New History (Wendy Lower) from the Daily Beast
"A new book pulls back the veil on the widespread involvement of women in the Third Reich’s most murderous and brutal activities. An exclusive excerpt from Wendy Lower’s Hitler’s Furies."

GREAT MASTERS NUGGET!!
Lost Leonardo da Vinci Painting of a Noblewoman with Same Smile as the Mona Lisa Discovered in Swiss Vault after 500 years from the Daily Mail [of the UK]

"The oil portrait of Isabella d'Este had been missing for five centuries.  It was discovered in a family's bank vault in Switzerland.  It is a rendering of a well-known pencil sketch, which hangs in the Louvre.  'There is no doubt the portrait is the work of Leonardo,' says world expert."

EXOTIC PET NUGGET!!
There are No Ants in her Pants! Woman Keeps Pet Anteaters in Washing Machine to Keep Insects at Bay from the Daily Mail [of the UK]


"Angela Goodwin keeps Pua and Aurora in her home in Oakridge, Oregon.  They sleep in her washing machine by day and roam her house at night.  They love nothing more than raiding her fridge for their tipple of chilled ants."


HOPE-FOR-PAWS VIDEO NUGGET!!
A Tribute To The Heroes Among Us - The Work of Hope For Paws - Please Share!!

SHARK VIDEO NUGGET!!
Rare Dragon/Shark Found In Japan

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