Drudge Retort: Rcade's blog

'The Bill is Passed'

rcade — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 23:30:00 -0500

The House of Representatives passed legislation for the first time Saturday night that would provide health coverage to almost every American after nearly a century of false starts and un-kept campaign promises. The final vote was 220-215. In all, 219 Democrats voted to approve the measure in a largely party-line vote, with 39 Democrats voting no. One Republican supported the bill, Rep. Joseph Cao (R-La.).

9/11 Memorial Stalled by Muslim Mention

rcade — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:16:40 -0500

Town officials in Kent, Connecticut are balking at the wording of a proposed memorial to a local victim of the 9/11 attacks. Because the victim's father insists that the memorial call the attackers as "Muslim terrorists," officials have said that it's inappropriate to single out a religion in a tax-funded project. "We're a very welcoming, caring community," said First Selectwoman Ruth Epstein. "To disparage a particular religious group would not be appropriate.

Supremes Consider Life-Long Imprisonment of Minors

rcade — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 18:11:11 -0500

On Monday, the Supreme Court will hear a case to decide whether the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against "cruel and unusual punishment" precludes life sentences without parole for juvenile offenders who have not committed capital crimes.

Abortion Amendment Faces Vote

rcade — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 14:51:03 -0500

House Democratic leaders agreed Friday night to settle an impasse over abortion by letting the entire House vote on a proposed solution, a risky decision that could determine the fate of their trillion-dollar overhaul of the nation's health care system. Under the agreement, anti-abortion Democrats will be permitted to offer an amendment on the House floor to the health-care overhaul bill. The amendment would prohibit a new government-run insurance plan created by the health-care bill from offering to cover abortion services, congressional sources said. It would also block people who received federal subsidies for the purchase of health insurance from buying policies that offered coverage for abortions.

Obama Reminds Nation of Military's Diversity

rcade — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 14:07:16 -0500

President Obama, extending condolences to Fort Hood, Texas, reminded Americans that people of all faiths and none serve in the military -- an oblique attempt to prevent a backlash against Muslims. "They are Americans of every race, faith and station," he said. "They are Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus and nonbelievers. They are descendants of immigrants, and immigrants themselves. They reflect the diversity that makes this America. But what they share is a patriotism like no other."

Census Worker Death May Be Suicide

rcade — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 11:08:00 -0500

Investigators probing the death of a Kentucky census worker found hanging from a tree with the word "fed" scrawled on his chest increasingly doubt he was killed because of his government job and are pursuing the possibility he committed suicide, two unnamed officials told AP. Bill Sparkman, 51, was found naked and hanged from a tree Sept. 12 in the Daniel Boone National Forest near Manchester, Ky.

VW Van Stolen in 1974 Recovered

rcade — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:34:31 -0500

A 1965 Volkswagen van stolen 35 years ago in Spokane, Washington, was found by customs agents in a shipping container in the Los Angeles port last month.

Man Earns $85,000 Wearing T-Shirts

rcade — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:11:39 -0500

Entrepreneur Jason Sadler, has earned $85,000 this year by wearing a T-shirt each day supplied by any company and using social media tools to promote the firm.

Fiorina: Sorry for Poor Voting Record

rcade — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:12:03 -0500

U.S. Senate candidate Carly Fiorina has become the second prominent Republican candidate in California to apologize for her spotty record of voting in elections. "I'm a lifelong registered Republican but I haven't always voted," she said Thursday. "And I will provide no excuse for it."

Book Tackles Evangelical Questions on Climate Change

rcade — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:25:43 -0500

As an evangelical Christian living in Texas, climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe found that many conservatives had questions about climate change based on things they'd heard on talk radio. So Hayhoe and her husband, Andrew Farley, the pastor of a nondenominational church in Lubbock, Texas, decided to answer the questions in a new book, A Climate for Change: Global Warming Facts for Faith-based Decisions. When it comes to conservative Christians, I think the real question is who can we trust on this issue?" Farley said.

Letter from Fort Hood

rcade — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:42:31 -0500

A firsthand account from a soldier present during the Fort Hood shootings, according to Kevin Drum at Mother Jones: "I was walking into the medical SRP building when he started firing (he never made it to the main SRP building ... the media accounts are understandably pretty off right now). He was calmly and methodically shooting everyone. Like every non-deployed military post, no one was armed. For the first time in my life I really wish I had a weapon. I don't know how to explain what it feels like to have someone shoot at you while you're unarmed. He missed me but didn't miss a lot of others."

Hitler's House for Sale in Austria

rcade — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:45:22 -0500

Adolf Hitler's family home in the Austrian town of Braunau am Inn has been put on the market for $3.3 million, triggering concern that it could become a Nazi shrine.

Fort Hood Gunman Shouted 'Allahu Akhbar'

rcade — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:32:13 -0500

Maj. Nidal Malik Hasasn, the Army psychiatrist suspected of killing 12 soldiers at Fort Hood during a shooting rampage Thursday, shouted "Allahu Akhbar" ("God is great" in Arabic) during the shooting spree, officials quoted witnesses as saying.

Researchers Probe Duke Co-Eds with Sex Toys

rcade — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:40:35 -0500

At Duke University, a sex toy study being conducted by a behavioral economist and student health workers has aroused criticism. Researchers recruited female Duke students to take part in a "sexually explicit" study on Tupperware-style parties for sex toys.