Bozeman, Montana just UNANIMOUSLY passed the city’s equality resolution!

I could probably write an entire book on the reasons GB needs his ass handed to him, but today I want to focus on just one of them. Beck is organizing a “non-political” rally to honor the troops and servicewomen/men for August 28 in Washington, D.C. Now why would this matter so much, you might ask? Well, August 28 just so happens to be the 47th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Is this just a coincidence? Nope!

Beck has decided to “restore honor” to King’s legacy by holding this rally on the Lincoln Memorial, the same place King gave his speech 47 years ago. Beck believes he better understands MLK’s intentions, and will rally the American public behind Beck’s “vision” for America. MLK’s dream speech is a sacred piece of American history, and he’s about to piss all over it. Did I mention this “rally” of Beck’s was originally designed as a well-orchestrated publicity stunt for his new book launch? Yeah. Classy. To read up on Beck’s plan, you can check out the official website. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention this — one Sarah Palin is a guest speaker. It just keeps getting better, dontchaknow.

Want to help crush this idiot? You can hop on over to Celebrate The Dream, and check out their plans for the counter-rally, honoring the Civil Rights Movement and King’s legacy.

Need another reason to stop this? Bill O’Reilly promised Glenn Beck that if 100,000 people show up to Beck’s rally, he will hand over his coveted time slot on Fox News. Meaning, Beck’s viewership would rise exponentially. *SHUDDER*

I’m about to go on vacation, so instead of a big post on an issue currently facing the Queer community, I have decided to do a Queer News Roundup instead! Enjoy!

• Army Lieutenant Dan Choi has been officially discharged under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. He vows to continue fighting this legislation. If you’ll remember, Choi became famous after coming out on Rachel Maddow’s show last year.
• Seven gay couples in Montana have banded together to sue the state, claiming the state is violating the Montana constitution by denying rights to those in a committed relationship. The Bozeman Daily Chronicle published a lovely article about two of those couples.
• And in more news about suing states, six couples from Hawaii are suing that state, seeking equal rights under the law. This, following Governor Lingle’s decision to overturn the domestic partnership legislation that would have granted similar rights and responsibilities of marriage to gay couples.
• Popular sketch comedy troupe, Second City, posted a video on Youtube mocking a hiker’s enthusiastic Yosemite video “Double Rainbow.” Youtube requested that Second City censor the video, because it contained two women kissing.
• Janis Fullilove, whose name is perhaps painfully applicable to her situation, has received death threats, and even a dead cat on her lawn, purportedly in response to her support of the proposed anti-discrimination ordinance in Memphis, Tennessee.
• The Episcopal Church is working on a liturgical rite for gay couples.
• One woman has made her feelings known to Target, after the formerly queer-positive corporation donated $150,000 to anti-gay politician Tom Emmer’s Minnesota gubernatorial campaign.
  
• After Argentina legalized same-sex marriage last week, the first gay couples have wed in that country.

I was perusing Facebook last week for the usual summer trip and photo updates from my friends when something exploded on my Newsfeed. Apparently, Helena, Montana is considering the adoption of a new health curriculum that includes a human sexuality component. As an educator originally from Montana, I had a hard time believing the sensational headlines could be true. Here’s one example of what showed up on my Newsfeed:

First-graders would learn about gay sex?!? In Montana?!? That can’t be right, I thought.  So I did a little investigating. The controversy lies in the details of the proposed curriculum. Various news sources have inaccurately described the content of the curriculum as teaching kindergartners about gay sex, and fifth-graders how anal penetration works. Bill O’Reilly threw his hat into the ring last week with this obviously well-informed piece:

The Fox News article from above states that kindergartners would be taught such terms as penis, vagina, breasts, nipples, scrotum, etc. (which is clearly a rehashing of this article from the AP). Incidentally, when I went back to a friend’s Facebook page to track down the original Fox News link that came up on my Newsfeed, I discovered they changed their headline to something a little less sensational (and inaccurate). Another area of the curriculum that is taking heat: the teaching of “erotic art” to high school students.

The truth is, the document in question is a 62-page K-12 Health Enhancement Curriculum in detail. The human sexuality component is only five pages of this curriculum. If you’re interested in reading the whole curriculum for yourself, here it is. The Human Sexuality portion of the curriculum is on pages 45-50.

So let’s address some of the controversies people have highlighted in these various news stories.

1) Teaches kindergartners the correct anatomical terms for the human sexual anatomy.

FALSE: The topics covered in kindergarten are: a) decision-making regarding clothing, toys, and friends, b) that children need adult help to make some decisions and c) a healthy relationship has respect and boundaries.

2) Teaches first-graders about “gay love.”

TRUE: The curriculum states that children will “understand people can love people of the same gender, or of another gender.” (Emphasis mine.)

3) Teaches fifth-graders the different ways in which people have intercourse.

TRUEish: The actual language of the curriculum is not nearly as sensational as it would appear. By fifth grade, students should “understand that sexual intercourse includes but is not limited to, vaginal, oral or anal penetration.” Now, I could see how this might ruffle some feathers. However, from reading the entire human sexuality component of the curriculum, I surmise that intercourse is mentioned briefly in fifth grade, but not explained in detail until sixth and seventh grade, which seems quite normal, considering the age at which sexual maturation begins.

4) Teaches high school students about “erotic art.”

NOT EXACTLY: This one perhaps gets me hottest under the collar. The misrepresentation of what the language of the curriculum actually means here is outrageous. High school students should “understand erotic images in art reflect society’s views about sexuality, and help people understand sexuality.” Do you see what they did there? The creators of this curriculum are attempting to address that how we see sex portrayed in the media effects what we think about sex. Instead, it’s been misconstrued by “reporters” to say that teenagers will be learning about porn at school. Give me a break.

5) Teach about sexual performance anxiety.

Well, now this one is just ridiculous.: As close as I can tell, this one came from the standard that states high school students should “understand seeking professional help can be a sign of strength when people are in need of guidance.” I assume this standard is actually referring to identity issues and/or rape, which leads me to what is really AWESOME about this proposed curriculum.

The human sexuality component, though a very small portion of the overall health curriculum, does delve into some extremely important issues not otherwise covered or discussed with students. Here are my favorite areas of the curriculum:

1) Teaches second-graders that making fun of people by calling them “gay,” “fag,” “queer,” “homo,” etc. is disrespectful and hurtful. (No comment needed on this one.)

2) Teaches third-graders that the media presents “an unrealistic image of what it means to be male or female, what it means to be in love, and what parenthood and marriages look like.” Now Suzy, who lives at home with her single mother and three cousins, no longer feels like the outcast. And Tina, who thinks Edward Cullen is OMG!!1! TO DIE FOR!!1!, understands that perhaps that really isn’t what falling in love looks like.

3) Hammers home the concept of consent from seventh grade on!

4) Teaches sixth-graders that sexual identity is part of one’s personality, and that coming out is a difficult journey.

5) And my favorites: teaches high school students that sexual abuse is not limited to touching and intercourse, but also includes being forced to see things you don’t want to see, and that coercion is not just physical, but also emotional and mental.

My list of favorites could actually go on and on. The curriculum appears to pretty extensively cover issues of contraception, STI & HIV prevention, women’s rights, laws, etc. Am I surprised that this is drawing such outrage from parents in Montana? Absolutely not. I do take umbrage with O’Reilly’s stereotyping of Montana. Montana is a conservative state, this is true, but it is also one filled with people who believe wholeheartedly in an individual’s right to live however he or she wants to live (within reason, of course). And we’re realists. We know teenagers have sex, and we know they need to learn how to do so safely. Did I get some double and triple looks when I walked down the streets of Bozeman hand-in-hand with my girlfriend? Of course I did. But that was it. No name-calling, threats, shameful looks, or the general ass-hattery I’ve experienced in the “liberal” state of Washington.

I understand if some of the curriculum is tamed down a bit over the coming weeks, but I hope the majority of it stays as is. It is a science-based curriculum that follows State and National Standards concerning Health & PE curricula. I hope the Big Sky State I know and love will ignore the criticism and media attention from the outside, and focus on what’s best for Helena’s students.

]]> http://jezpolitics.wordpress.com/2010/07/22/penises-vaginas-and-fingers-oh-my/feed/ 3 lezebelinchief sexed2 foxnewsheadline http://jezpolitics.wordpress.com/2010/07/20/uk-and-european-news%c2%a0roundup%c2%a0/ http://jezpolitics.wordpress.com/2010/07/20/uk-and-european-news%c2%a0roundup%c2%a0/#comments Tue, 20 Jul 2010 14:37:10 +0000 Cactus http://jezpolitics.wordpress.com/?p=125 ]]> Welcome to today’s UK and European Roundup. This week I’ve linked to some fascinating opinion pieces as well as the top political news stories of the week. I also want to apologise for some of UK-centric aspects of this post. It’s been a busy week and a lot of news flies under my radar. Remember, use the tips page if there’s anything you’d like me to cover.

Greek investigative journalist shot dead

Sokratis Giolias was murdered outside of his home in Athens yesterday. His death has been linked to the far-left terrorist group ‘The Sect of Revolutionaries’ after police confirmed that that bullets and casings from the shooting matched those found in other Sect of Revolutionaries attacks. Mr. Giolias was a contributor to a well know political scandal blog and it has been suggested that prior to his death, he had been working on allegations of business and political corruption.

Big Society or a budget cut distraction?

David Cameron is pressing ahead with his plans for UK ‘Big Society’ despite doubts over funding and criticism from various charities and unions. The ’Big Society’ scheme aims to engage and empower people within their local communities but critics have argued that the real aim is to cut government responsibilities and rely heavily on voluntary and non-profit organisations at a time when budgets are being cut. Ed Miliband who is currently running for the position of Labour leader stated: “The problem with what he is saying today is it comes at the same time as there are very big cuts in funding to the voluntary sector, This is essentially a 19th century or US-style view of our welfare state which is cut back the welfare state and somehow civic society will thrive. That is the reality.” The scheme will initially run in four areas of the country.

Legal action taken to clarify the law on ‘mercy killing’ in the UK

Tony Nicklinson suffers from ’Locked-in’ syndrome and wishes to end his life but the only legal option would be to refuse food and liquid. He wants his wife to administer a lethal dose of drugs but under current laws, this could leave his wife open to a murder charge. So-called mercy killing is a very grey area in UK law and an action taken by Mr Nicklinson’s lawyers will ask the Director of Public Prosecutions to clarify the law’s stance. The DPP issued Assisted Suicide guidelines in February but these do not extend to either mercy killing or euthanasia.

What would you do with £20bn?

A dispute has erupted in the British cabinet over funding for the new Trident missile system. The Ministry of Defence has argued that as Trident is a matter of national security, it should be funded by the Treasury. The MoD is worried that the cost of Trident would make it very difficult to maintain the MoD’s other responsibilities, especially at a time when cuts to the armed forces are highly probable. Trident is estimated to cost £20bn over the next decade.

French troops called in after village riots

There were riots in the Loire Valley on Sunday after a gendarme shot and killed a traveller who was driving through a checkpoint. A group of travellers then responded by attacking the local village police station. Troops have since been patrolling the area. In Grenoble, youths clashed with police after the death of Karim Boudouda. Mr Boudouda had been shot by police during a chase.

Lockerbie Bomber “should have died in jail”

David Cameron seems to have sold out the Scottish Government with his recent comments regarding the release of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi. “I will say to them (the senators) that I agree that the decision to release al-Megrahi was wrong. I said it was wrong at the time,” he told National Public Radio in Washington.

“It was the Scottish Government that took that decision. They took it after proper process and what they saw as the right, compassionate reasons. I just happen to think it was profoundly misguided.”

Articles you should check out this week:

Hamburg Mayer Ole Von Beust resigns

Whilst the news that Ole Von Beust has resigned is not particularly shocking, it has come hot on the heels of several other high profile resignations. The linked Spiegel article looks at the changing nature of German ‘Feet First’ politics and what it might mean for Angela Merkel’s party.

Warsaw Europride 2010

This weekend saw pride marchers hit the streets of Warsaw. The linked article is a brief but interesting look at the acceptance of gay rights in modern Catholic Poland.

Royals and Racism

Yasmin Alibai-Brown’s opinion piece on the wastefulness of the British Monarchy and the reaction to British Black and Asian Republicans.

Earlier this month Hawaii’s Governor, Linda Lingle, vetoed a civil union bill granting same-sex couples in Hawaii similar rights as heterosexual married couples. This turn of events was a bit surprising, considering Lingle waited until the last minute to exercise her veto, and because Hawaii was the first state in the United States to offer same-sex couples any kind of State recognition (Hawaii enacted the Reciprocal Beneficiary Registration in 1997). She reasoned that House Bill 444 was “essentially marriage by another name,” and that the people of Hawaii should be given the opportunity to vote on such an important social issue.

Putting aside the asinine logic of placing the oppressive majority in charge of the rights of the oppressed minority, Lingle’s statement concerning marriage is perhaps the most upsetting part of this ordeal. Let me get this straight—we can’t have marriage, because that’s a religious institution, but we can’t have civil unions because they look like marriage? Time and again, same-sex marriage detractors have stated that they believe homosexuals should be allowed some form of relationship recognition, so long as it’s not called “marriage.” This makes Lingle’s decision all the more troublesome. If civil unions are too close to “the real thing,” then what is it we deserve?

This past fall I worked on the Approve 71 campaign here in Washington State. Referendum 71 was a measure that would expand domestic partnerships to resemble marriage as closely as possible; it was even nicknamed the “Everything But Marriage Bill”. When it came time to campaign, this name proved to be quite the struggle to overcome. Fortunately, Referendum 71 passed, but it was the first time in United States history that a comprehensive recognition of same-sex couples was approved by voters. I worry this splitting of hairs in Hawaii will be too difficult to overcome. Where is the line drawn between marriage and a relationship that looks like marriage? And who is in charge of determining that difference? I’m afraid I’m not going to like the answers to these questions.

So where does that leave us? Well, this past week we’ve seen some really awesome progress on the equality front. First, a federal district court judge in Boston ruled that sections of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) are unconstitutional, particularly those that infringe upon individual state’s rights. This in and of itself does not overturn DOMA, but it does open the door for new strides towards doing just that. Also, today the DC Court of Appeals struck down an attempt by anti-equality groups to put a same-sex marriage ban on the November ballot, which would have invalidated the recent legalization of same-sex marriage. And, in the best news of the week, Argentina legalized same-sex marriage, despite an incredible amount of opposition from the Catholic Church.

Certainly we have a long way to go on the road to equality, but history is on our side. Let’s hope Hawaii, and the rest of the US, stands on the side of love come November.

• Goldman Sachs has settled with the SEC for $550 million, or about two weeks’ profit. [ProPublica]
• In an article befitting US Weekly, you can learn all about Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s miraculous diet and weight loss. The Kirsten Gillibrand diet, revealed! No, seriously, that’s actually the headline. [Capital NY]
• Alan Greenspan thinks Congress should let the Bush tax cuts expire. As Politico’s Mike Allen says, good luck with that. [Bloomberg]
• An Arizona policeman is suing over the immigration law. He says that if he enforces the law, he could be sued by a private citizen for racial profiling; if he doesn’t enforce it, he could also be sued by a private citizen for not enforcing the law, since it provides that a private citizen may sue a police officer if they believe the officer isn’t enforcing the law to its fullest extent. The policeman’s lawyer also argues that Arizona’s law usurps federal authority over immigration issues, and that the state cannot force their police to violate federal law. This should be a good case to watch, but it seems unlikely to work. [WSJ]
• In sad statistics news, June was the worst month in recent history for Army suicides. Thirty two soldiers killed themselves last month, which is a number not seen since the Vietnam era. Military records show that seven of those suicides occurred while the soldiers were deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan. [CNN]
• Environmental and energy groups have been meeting with lawmakers and their aides to negotiate the terms and provisions that will be included in the new comprehensive climate and energy legislation that Senators Kerry and Lieberman have been working on. Senate debate on energy reform is scheduled to begin July 26, which doesn’t leave those working on the legislation much time to hammer out the details; nor does it leave much time for discussion and even a chance at voting on the bill before the Senate recesses August 6 for a month. Word is that the talks are going well, though. [The Hill]
• Contrary to what many top officials during the Bush administration claimed about waterboarding being a rather rare occurrence in the military’s interrogation of suspected terrorists, an ex-DOJ official now says that the technique was used excessively. The DOJ official, John Bybee, wrote some of the memos authorizing particular interrogation techniques, and has now said that interrogators used some techniques that were not approved, such as kicking and dousing prisoners with cold water. A CIA report from last year states that interrogators went beyond the legal guidelines, but Bybee’s statements carry particular weight because he has intimate knowledge of the discussions and legal reasoning behind everything that was approved (or not). This has, predictably, started up a firestorm on the Hill, with lawmakers calling for investigation. [WaPo]
• Check out this interesting article about Google’s ties with Washington. [Politico]
• The cap on the oil spill is working! For now… [WSJ]
• Financial reform just passed yesterday, but Republicans are already agitating for it to be repealed. [Politico]

• Argentina, in the wee hours of the morning today, became the first South American country to legalize same-sex marriage.  The landmark legislation also allows for same-sex couples to adopt children, a right that is still denied in many states of the USA. [The Advocate]
• The Office of Congressional Ethics is investigating eight House members of both parties who solicited and took large contributions from financial institutions, while in the midst of debating regulatory reform for those same institutions. [NY Times]
• In the wake of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling striking down gun bans, many were worried that the ruling meant that violent offenders would now be able to possess handguns. On Tuesday, the federal appeals court for the 7th Circuit, in Chicago,  clarified what that SCOTUS ruling would mean, and upheld a gun ban for those who have been convicted of domestic violence. [HuffPo]
• The White House has released a list of preventive healthcare measures that must be provided, co-pay free, under the new healthcare reform legislation. Birth control is not on that list, because the White House gave in to conservative ranting. Prenatal care and breast feeding support, as well as STI screening and genetic testing for breast cancer are included. These new rules go into effect September 24, and reproductive rights advocates are working on getting birth control covered under the next round of requirements, to be released in the next 6-18 months. [Daily Beast]
• Forty-six warships and 7,000 marines are in Costa Rica now to interrupt the narcotics trade. [We Love Costa Rica]
• John Stagliano, aka “Buttman,” is on trial for obscenity due to his company’s pornographic films, and faces 32 years in prison and $7 million in fines. The case is an interesting and important test of First Amendment rights – can film containing “depraved” acts by consenting adults, that is available only to an adult that consents to see it, really be deemed legally obscene? The case will test the bounds of the Obscenity Prosecution Task Force, created by the Bush administration and dedicated “exclusively to the protection of America’s children and families through the enforcement of our Nation’s obscenity laws” and decide, potentially, whether something created by, and exclusively consumed by, consenting adults can be determined to threaten children and families. [Salon]
• Watch Bill Nye the Science Guy explain the cap on the BP oil well and why it’s so hard to fix this thing. [CNN]
• Nine states are backing up Arizona in its fight against the federal government to preserve its immigration law. In case you want to know who to direct your anger toward, those states are: Alabama, Florida, Michigan, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Virginia. [HuffPo]
• The Senate voted 60-38 this morning to end debate on the financial reform bill currently pending. The bill will likely come up for a final vote later today. [CSPAN]
• President Obama is in Holland, Michigan today to talk up the economic stimulus package that nobody but the White House seems to think is working. [WSJ]
• If the President opens up a newspaper while in Michigan, though, he’ll see that Rep. John Boehner (R-Asshatville) has written an editorial in the Detroit News entitled “Spending Spree Won’t Fix Our Economy.” [Detroit News]
• Mitt Romney is really trying to be a frontrunner for the 2012 Republican nomination, and it looks like he’s succeeding. Figures reported today to the Federal Election Commission show that Romney has raised almost $3.5 million in the first half of this year, a sum that “dwarfs” and “eclipses” that of his opponents. [Boston Globe]
• As House and Senate leaders consider new energy legislation, a new poll shows that 60% of likely 2010 voters support “an energy and climate bill that would limit pollution, invest in domestic energy sources and encourage companies to use and develop clean energy. It would do this in part by charging energy companies for carbon pollution in electricity or fuels like gas.” Just 35% were opposed to it, and the findings show higher support among Democrats than among Republicans, and that the sky is blue. Read the very-well-presented poll results in full here.
• While the majority of Americans may favor comprehensive energy reform, apparently 73% of Americans still support deepwater drilling, and oppose the administration’s attempted ban. [Bloomberg]
• Documents that have just been declassified show that the British government tortured some of its own citizens in the wake of 9/11, and implicate former Prime Minister Tony Blair’s office in many of the events. Current Prime Minister David Cameron has announced an investigation. [Guardian]
• Afghan forces will attack the Taliban, a plan that was approved by the Afghan government after extensive talks with NATO commanders. The program could work in two ways – attacking the Taliban, and as a sort of job creation program that will (hopefully) constructively employ up to 10,000 men. President Hamid Karzai is concerned that the forces will turn into militias that his weak government cannot handle, but Gen. David Petraeus managed to convince him that the plan will work well. [NY Times]
• Sarah Palin is probably going to run for President. This will likely not work out well for her, for the Republican party, or both. [Daily Beast]

Good morning, fair reader. I apologize for posting so late this morning, I was quite tired and slept in a bit. Without further ado, let’s get started!

• Today John Kerry, in his capacity as Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, will release over 1,000 pages of Vietnam-era Senate testimony. These documents were previously classified, and their release has been coordinated with the Pentagon, CIA, State Department, and National Security Agency. I recommend that you read Sen. Kerry’s preface to the documents here. The full set of documents will be published at www.foreign.senate.gov and contains tons of interesting testimony and reports, including from Sen. Albert Gore Sr. and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara.
• The White House will release a report later today on the Recovery Act, saying that the stimulus package “saved or created about 3 million American jobs, and is on track to meet its goal of 3.5 million American jobs by the end of this year,”  according to a White House official. [Politico Playbook]
• In breaking news, Republicans aren’t too fond of jobless people (aka “the unemployed”). This morning, the always lovely Jim Bunning (R-Kentucky) and Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma) blocked the extension of unemployment benefits, and John Kyl (R-Ariz.) said that supporting the unemployed is a “necessary evil.” Check out this roundup of all the positively joyful things that Republicans have had to say about people without jobs lately. [TPM]
• The US Chamber of Commerce is holding a jobs summit today, and will host Members of Congress and others “for a discussion on the role of government in creating an atmosphere in which the private sector can thrive, and policies needed to generate jobs, accelerate economic growth, and bolster our free enterprise system.” [US CoC]
• Chuck Norris thinks that Obama hates the Boy Scouts. [Wonkette]
• BP CEO Tony Hayward is taking flak from a group of US Senators over BP’s role in the early release of a Libyan terrorist, which they say the company helped negotiate in order to gain access to Libya’s oil fields. Abdel Basset al Megrahi had been imprisoned since 2001 for the bombing of a PanAm flight over Lockerbie, Scotland; he was released in 2009 on humanitarian grounds due to his advanced prostate cancer. BP has admitted to mentioning Megrahi’s continued imprisonment as an obstacle to oil access in Libya. American companies ExxonMobil, Shell, Hess, and others obtained licenses to drill in Libya before BP and were the unknowing beneficiaries of BP’s successful negotiations. Hayward and other top BP executives are upset at the toll that this news may take on the already flailing company. [Daily Beast]
• That twelfth Russian man involved in the spy ring has been deported. [LA Times]
• Here’s an interesting article on what goes on behind the scenes at the State Department. [WaPo]
• An Iranian scientist has claimed, on Iranian state television, that the United States kidnapped him and tried to force him, through psychological torture, to give up secrets about Iran’s nuclear program. There are way too many twists to this story for me to summarize here, so go read for yourself. [CNN]
• Obama warned Africans not to be sucked in by al Qaeda and other terrorist groups, which he says do not value African lives. [SABC]
• The South African Broadcasting Corporation reports that 93 billion Rand ($1.23 billion) flowed into South Africa during the World Cup. [SABC]
• The National League won the Major League Baseball All Star game last night. This is bad news for Democrats – a win by the National League has preceded every election with huge GOP gains in the House since 1950. Similarly, since 1948, every time the National League has won the Senate has picked up 5 or more seats. [Politico]
• An anonymous Utah group has leaked a list of illegal immigrants’ names (almost all of which are Latino) to the media and local and state agencies. The list includes social security numbers, the names and dates of birth of children, and the due dates of several pregnant women. The list/letter was signed by “Concerned Citizens of the United States” and demands immediate deportation of the people whose names they provided. [Daily Beast]
• Levi Johnston and Bristol Palin are engaged, and say they have been for two weeks, though their parents, including Sarah Palin, haven’t yet been told of the pair’s plans. Perhaps this is behind Levi’s recent apology to the Palin family? Well, congrats, kids! [US Weekly]
• Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) will vote no on the DISCLOSE Act, the bill that would remedy the Citizens United SCOTUS ruling. You can read his letter explaining why here. [Politico]
• It is now ok to curse on television, so long as you don’t do it to purposefully shock people. Suck it, FCC! [LA Times]
• In the last two days, 12 coalition troops have been killed in Afghanistan. [CNN]
• The NAACP passed a resolution yesterday condemning racism in the Tea Party movement. Final text of the resolution has not been made available yet, but it is expected to condemn “explicitly racist behavior” and call on people, both inside and outside the Tea Party, to “repudiate” the racist elements of the movement. [CBS News]