Month: January 2013

Obama Takes a Last Look

Trish

Andrew Kacynski (@BuzzFeedAndrew) at Buzzfeed tweeted this bittersweet snippet of film, just after Pres. Obama’s inauguration today.

The president stops as he leaves the reviewing stand and looks back at the capacity crowd gathered to celebrate the start of his second term, and explains to those around him, “I want to look out one more time. I’ll never see this again.” After Kacynski tweeted the moment, @BarackObama himself retweeted it.

Take a moment and watch.

Obama Has a Lot of Fight Left in Him. We Need to Be Equal to the Job Ahead.

Trish

No matter how unhappy it makes Rep. John Boehner (at least that’s how he looks in this great picture from The Atlantic), Pres. Obama is in Day Two of his second term. His address to the inaugural crowd included the first explicit reference to gay Americans during an inaugural speech. The Washington Post has the full transcript.

He also promised to address climate change, but only with the help of those of us who support that, and reminded us that our help didn’t end when we voted for him. If you haven’t signed up for Organizing for Action yet, hurry. There’s no time to waste.

We are a Nation of Conspiracy Theorists

Buck Banks

63%

Of registered voters buy into at least one political conspiracy theory, a new Fairleigh Dickinson University poll finds. The nationwide survey asked Americans to evaluate four political conspiracy theories: 56% of Democrats and 75% of Republicans say that at least one is likely true. That includes 36% who think President Obama is hiding information about his background and early life, 25% who think the government knew about 9/11 in advance, and 19% who think the 2012 Presidential election was stolen.

Pro-Life, Pro-Guns?

Trish

I think we should stick to our guns.

Rick Santorum, former senator and failed Republican presidential candidate, sharing his opinion on how gun advocates should respond to efforts to control gun violence. Santorum was known in the Senate for his almost obsessive objection to abortion and contraception because of his belief in the sanctity of life, at least up to the moment of birth.

Good Thing It’s So Easy for Responsible Gun Owners to Avoid Unintended Shootings

Trish

5

Number of shootings during Gun Appreciation Day, all by “responsible gun owners.” The highest toll was at a gun show in North Carolina, where three people were shot when a man removed his 12-gauge shotgun from its case. In Ohio, a man was shot by a 9-mm semi-automatic handgun held by his business partner, and another in Indiana shot himself as he loaded his .45-caliber semi-automatic. There were no shootings reported that day from music, food, or cultural festivals, reinforcing the notion that the very presence of guns makes people less safe.

Floridians Were All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Vote

Trish

201,000

Number of Floridians disenfranchised on Election Day 2012 because of long lines, according to new research on voter patterns and precinct-closing times which showed turnout fell by 2.3% for each hour of waiting. Republicans in Florida’s state houses cut the number of early voting days while crowding the ballot with 11 constitutional amendments that totaled more than 3,000 words (or about six college-level term papers), resulting in up to a five-hour wait in some precincts. The study was narrowly structured, but its researcher suspected even more people missed voting. “My gut is telling me that the real number deterred is likely higher,” he said.