Headlines - Monday

h/t Dick: Why do people often vote against their own interests? http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8474611.stm

 

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Greenwald: Remember the illegal destruction of Iraq?

 

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Insurance industry paid $20 million for Obama

 

In your heart you already knew this, didn't you?

While some sunlight has been shed on the hefty sums shoveled into congressional campaign coffers in an effort to influence the Democrats' massive healthcare bill, little attention has been focused on the far larger sums received by President Barack Obama while he was a candidate in 2008.

A new figure, based on an exclusive analysis created for Raw Story by the Center for Responsive Politics, shows that President Obama received a staggering $20,175,303 from the healthcare industry during the 2008 election cycle, nearly three times the amount of his presidential rival John McCain. McCain took in $7,758,289, the Center found.

The new figure, obtained by Raw Story through an independent custom research request performed by the Center for Responsive Politics -- a nonprofit, nonpartisan group that tracks money in politics -- is the most comprehensive breakdown yet available of healthcare industry contributions to Obama during the 2008 election cycle.

Just thought you might want to know exactly how much it takes to buy a President these days. Just in case you wanted to buy one, you know?

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c

San Francisco Rickrolls Westboro

On Friday the Westboro Baptist Church descended on the San Francisco headquarters of Twitter, because God hates social networking. Or something. The above photo from the exuberant counter-protest was sent in by JMG reader Craig. Go here for many more hilarious signs.

 

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American Family Association radio host Bryan Fischer has called for sending homosexuals to prison for forced reparative therapy, a move he says is sanctioned by the Bible. 

 

In November, Fischer called for banning all Muslims from the U.S. military. In addition to his radio show for the American Family Association, Fischer is the executive director of the Idaho Family Alliance. 

 

Remember folks, the Christianist right is not about hatred and bigotry. It's about the gentle redemptive love of Jesus, forced upon you at the barrel of a gun in prison as they beat the gay out of you.

 

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Amazing! Bird sounds from the lyre bird - David Attenborough - BBC wildlife: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjE0Kdfos4Y&feature=player_embedded

 

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US christian group arrested in Haiti on child trafficking charges

This is not exactly what true Christianity is about:

Haitian police detained 10 members of a US Christian group after they allegedly tried to leave the country with more than 30 children who survived the country's devastating earthquake. [...]

Police had arrested five men and five women with US passports, as well as two Haitians, as they tried to cross into the neighboring Dominican Republic with 33 children late Friday, Haitian authorities said. [...]

The Americans were members of an Idaho-based charity called New Life Children's Refuge, said Social Affairs Minister Yves Christallin, adding: "This is an abduction, not an adoption." [...]

Patricia Vargas, head of an international center caring for the youngsters, said that officials at the Haitian Institute of Social Welfare, which deals with adoptions, told her "most of the kids have family."

Some of the older children had spoken to aid workers and "say their parents are alive, and some of them gave us an address and phone numbers," she said.

The US embassy confirmed that ten US citizens were being held for "alleged violations of Haitian laws related to immigration."

At least they were caught. This time.

 

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Rolling Stone: The Eco-Warrior

 

President Obama has appointed the most progressive EPA chief in history — and she's moving swiftly to clean up the mess left by Bush.

 

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Sign the petition to tell CBS not to air the anti-choice Tim Tebow ad.

 

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From little acorns mighty liars grow

 

The Brad Blog graciously sends us the Harshbarger report detailing the results of former Mass Att Gen. Scott Harshbarger's investigation into James O'Keefe's "sting" operation of the ACORN offices. It turns out those inflammatory videos were highly edited and manipulated.

 

Shocking, innit?

 

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Enough is enough: Goldman Sachs, the world's richest investment bank, could be about to pay its chief executive a bumper bonus of up to $100 million in defiance of moves by President Obama to take action against such payouts.

 

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No surprise here: Plan to oust Saddam drawn up two years before the invasion.

 

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Krugman calls FOX News 'deliberate misinformation' to Roger Ailes' face. 

 

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Matt Taibbi has a new piece on David Brooks' column on the Haitian earthquake in which he blames the victims. Ouch.

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President Obama will unveil a $3.8 trillion budget for 2011 today, that will add "billions of dollars in new spending to combat persistently high unemployment and bolster a battered middle class," increase war spending, "raise taxes on banks and the wealthy to help rein in soaring budget deficits," cut spending on some discretionary domestic programs, and help rein in the deficit (which will hit a record 1.556 trillion dollars in the current fiscal year to September).