Tag Archives: clinton

Top UN Climate Chief: Idea of a "Big Bang" Agreement a "Myth" (Video)

Photo via CGI I’d been meaning to write about this statement, made by Christiana Figueres, the new UN Climate Chief, since she made it a couple days ago, at a panel I attended at this year’s Clinton Global Initiative. What she’s talking about, of course, is the persistent hope among many for a binding international treaty that can be agreed upon by all parties and nations — that which never materialized at Copenhagen, and for which the meeting was labeled a colossal failure. In the video after the jump, Figueres explained why such a “big bang” agreem… Read the full story on TreeHugger

Follow this link:
Top UN Climate Chief: Idea of a "Big Bang" Agreement a "Myth" (Video)

Kevin Rudd: 3 Good Things Came Out of Copenhagen (Video)

Unless you’re a climate policy wonk or a close follower of all things global warming, here’s what you probably remember about Copenhagen: It sucked. It was a failure. Crash and Burn. In reality, it wasn’t the absolute loss that many perceive and still others claim it to be. At this year’s Clinton Global Initiative, former Prime Minister (and current Foreign Minister) of Australia Kevin Rudd articulated exactly this sentiment. And it’s a useful one to keep in mind, if only to remember that tangible progress is indeed being made to address climate change on an international level, despite what media narrative-seekers would have you bel… Read the full story on TreeHugger

See more here:
Kevin Rudd: 3 Good Things Came Out of Copenhagen (Video)

Ecstasy Used In Therapy To Treat PTSD

Approximately 18 percent of U.S. soldiers returning from the Iraq and Afghan wars in the first decade of the 21st century have been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a condition characterized by debilitating anxiety. New research published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology investigated the safety and efficacy of MDMA, a controlled substance known on the street as “ecstasy,” for treatment of PTSD. The researchers found 58 percent of subjects experienced improved symptoms compared to placebo. This double-blind pilot study involved 20 test subjects. To be eligible, they had to meet all the criteria for crime or war-related chronic PTSD. Their symptoms had to be moderate to severe, as well as resistant to at least three months of prior treatment with traditional PTSD drugs. The researchers split the test subjects into two groups. In the experimental group, 12 subjects underwent two 8-hour psychotherapy sessions while dosed with MDMA. In the control group, 8 subjects underwent two 8-hour psychotherapy sessions while dosed with a placebo. To measure the outcomes, the researchers used the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) test to assess the subjects’ symptoms before treatment, four days after treatment, and two months after treatment. At all three measured points in time, 10 of the 12 MDMA-treated patients (83 percent) showed a clinical response to the treatment, whereas only 2 of the 8 placebo-treated patients (25 percent) did. Furthermore, those in the placebo group were offered to be treated with MDMA after they completed the first trial and 100 percent no longer met the criteria for PTSD. An unexpected result of the study was the return of three participants to work, who were previously unable due to PTSD symptoms. Treatment with MDMA was safe, though subjects showed elevated blood pressure and body temperature while on the drug, these effects did not last. PTSD poses a significant risk to those afflicted with it. Traditional drug therapy for PTSD effectively treats about 45 to 47 percent of the patients. Victims of the condition tend to experience much higher incidences of disability, emotional suffering, drug abuse, and suicide. The researchers suspected that MDMA might help PTSD patients because the drug is known to “decrease feelings of fear while maintaining a clear-headed, alert state of consciousness.” added by: singrrr

Corporations Want to Control Your Intertubes.

Net neutrality is one of the bedrock principles of the Internet. It means that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) must treat all websites equally. They cannot make it easier load some websites, and more difficult to load others. It's what ensures your ISP can't privilege Fox News over Daily Kos. But net neutrality is not the law of the land, so ISPs can abandon it at any time. In fact, Google and Verizon have proposed that net neutrality be abandoned for the mobile web. And they have proposed other violations of net neutrality which would end the Internet as we know it. We cannot allow this to happen. http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/netneutrality_dkos/index2.html Nothing good is likely to make its way through Congress anytime soon, so Daily Kos is joining with CREDO to urge Julius Genachowski, the Chair of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), to take action. http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/netneutrality_dkos/index2.html Tell FCC Chairman Genachowski to act–don't let corporations write their own rules. Yesterday was the one-year anniversary of Chairman Genachowski's first major speech as head of the FCC, in which he committed to protecting net neutrality. However, despite having the votes on the FCC to pass strong net neutrality rules, Genachowski has avoided taking the necessary action to do so. There's no good excuse for his dithering. The regulatory vacuum his inaction has created set the stage for the Google and Verizon proposal, in which they are attempting to write the rules that would govern their behavior. To see what happens when large corporations write their own rules, we just need look at Wall Street, or the Gulf of Mexico. We can't let that to happen to the Internet, too. We must push Chairman Genachowski to act before it's too late. http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/netneutrality_dkos/index2.html Sign the petition–tell Chairman Genachowski to protect net neutrality.. The Daily Kos community is only possible because of net neutrality. It created the free and open Internet, which allowed netroots activism to flourish. Without net neutrality, it would be impossible for smaller websites, such as ours, to compete. FCC chair Genachowski needs to step up. Join with thousands of others to remind Genachowski to fulfill his promise before it's too late. Make the FCC stop dithering–sign the letter to protect net neutrality now! Save the Intertubes, Joan McCarter, Daily Kos added by: neocongo

Jimmy Carter Talks Tea Party And Masturbation On Daily Show

When Bill Clinton appeared on the Daily Show last week, he kept things all business, giving an intricate discussion of the ways America can fix its economy. His Democratic presidential predecessor however, was there to have fun. Jimmy Carter, promoting his new book White House Diary, was jovial from the beginning, telling Jon Stewart that he was looking forward to the Rally to Restore Sanity. He even joined in on the media’s favorite pastime of the moment; making fun of Christine O’Donnell. Stewart asked Carter if, looking over his old diary entries, he felt hope in the direction the country was going. Carter responded with a quick “no,” citing the polarization of the nation which he partly blamed on Fox News. However, he then made a point of comparing himself as a candidate to the Tea Party of today, saying he “occupied the same position,” that of being a “fresh face” going up against the establishment. Still, though, he made an important differentiation between himself and the movement; he’s never dabbled in witchcraft. If that wasn’t enough, Carter then told Stewart he had “one more confession to make.” Looking the host in the eye, Carter told him that, as a young man, he was not “100% against…” Stewart silenced him before he could finish the sentence. No matter what you feel about Jimmy Carter, how many other 85 year old former presidents are going to go on comedy shows and discuss their personal histories with…being personal? I mean, sure, Rutherford B. Hayes would have if television had been invented (legend has it that the hair on his palms were as bushy as his beard), but that’s about it. So kudos to you, Jimmy Carter! added by: TimALoftis

Rick Sanchez: Fox News ‘Essentially the Voice of the Republican Party’

On Tuesday’s Rick’s List, CNN’s Rick Sanchez again bashed Fox News and the conservative media, two of his favorite subjects of ire. Sanchez stated that President Obama was being “dogged” and blamed ” conservative talk radio hosts … lambasting this man 24/7 …. [and] Fox News, which is essentially the voice of the Republican Party, whose job it is to make this man look bad no matter what he does ” . The CNN anchor brought on political correspondent Jessica Yellin at the bottom of the 3 pm Eastern hour to discuss the President’s town hall meeting on Monday. After playing a clip of Velma Hart, an Obama supporter who bluntly told the chief executive that she was “exhausted of defending” him, Sanchez asked Yellin for her take on whether “others out there are thinking in many of the ways that she [Hart] expressed herself.” The liberal correspondent spouted the current administration talking point that “clearly, President Obama inherited this terrible economy and we’re still working our way out of it,” but continued that “the White House, at some point, has to be looking back and questioning their strategy both within Washington and their larger communication strategy outside, and how they’re messaging to the broader public. And it would seem that they’ve made crucial missteps on both fronts, and they have to take some blame for that.” Later, Yellin looked to the last Democratic president as a possible example for the current administration: YELLIN: [Y]ou’ve got to ask, is he messaging correctly? And, you know, with Bill Clinton out on the scene so much lately, it’s a reminder of how effective he is at hitting emotional chords, using anecdotes to help you relate to where he’s coming from, and help you understand his approach to policy. Whereas, President Obama tends to focus on these little examples or- you know, brass tacks sort of technician-type details of what he’s done, instead of giving you this overarching emotional frame. So you don’t end up connecting to it, and that’s one of the ways he seems to be misfiring on this message. Sanchez responded to this with his attack on his regular foes: SANCHEZ: All right- good stuff. It’s an interesting conversation, and I bet you it’s the kind of stuff that people are talking about. And then, of course, there’s the fact that- you know, he is dogged. There’s no question. You’d have to be a fool to not look at the landscape and see conservative talk radio hosts- YELLIN: Of course- SANCHEZ: Literally lambasting this man 24/7. And then, there’s Fox News, which is essentially the voice of the Republican Party, whose job it is to make this man look bad no matter what he does. So, you know, it’s a difficult thing that- YELLIN: Well, this is the time for political jujitsu. SANCHEZ: What’s that? YELLIN: It’s the time for political jujitsu. SANCHEZ: Yes (laughs)- YELLIN: You know, use it against them, right? So, effect- if he could do that- right. SANCHEZ: It all depends on how well he’s able to fight that. And, you know what? He’s got to do it, if he wants to survive in this, certainly up until November. Good conversation, Jessica. Exactly a year ago, on September 21, 2009, the anchor hinted that Fox News wasn’t a “real news organization,” and questioned his competitor’s legitimacy on August 2 of this year. On August 18 , Sanchez labeled Fox News ” way, way, way to the right ,” while putting his own network in the ” middle .” Earlier this summer, the CNN personality, along with guest Roland Martin, targeted Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh .

Link:
Rick Sanchez: Fox News ‘Essentially the Voice of the Republican Party’

US Invests $50 Million in Cleaner Cook Stoves

It’s one of the great under-recognized threats around the globe: cooking smoke. In developing nations the world over, women cook with crude wood-burning stoves, often in exceedingly poorly ventilated houses and rooms. The smoke poses not only a dangerous health risk — the toxic smoke coats the lungs of family members, especially endangering women, who typically spend more time indoors by the stove, and children. So this year, at the 2010 Clinton Global Initiative, Secretary of State Hilary Clinton announced the creation of the Global Alliance for Clean Cook Stoves, a US-lead effort to bring safer, and yes, cl… Read the full story on TreeHugger

See the rest here:
US Invests $50 Million in Cleaner Cook Stoves

US $50 Million Pledge For Cleaner Cookstoves is Big Win For Women, Forests & Climate

photo: Procsilas Moscas via flickr Today Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to announce a $50 million pledge of seed money, distributed over five years, to help the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves provide 100 million clean-burning biomass cookstoves by 2020 to people in Africa, Asia and South America… Read the full story on TreeHugger

See the article here:
US $50 Million Pledge For Cleaner Cookstoves is Big Win For Women, Forests & Climate

Today Show Hypes Christine O’Donnell’s Witchcraft Past

Today co-anchor Matt Lauer, on Monday morning, couldn’t wait to tell viewers about the revelation that Christine O’Donnell once admitted to practicing witchcraft, as he greeted viewers at the top of the very top of the show: “Casting a spell. She’s already won her state’s Republican Senate primary and captured headlines across the country. Now a video surfaces showing Christine O’Donnell admitting she dabbled in witchcraft as a high schooler.” Lauer’s colleague Kelly O’Donnell, then went on to dredge up clips from Bill Maher’s old Politically Incorrect show as she called the Delaware GOP Senate nominee a “tempest in the Tea Party.” While most of Kelly O’Donnell’s piece was devoted to Christine O’Donnell’s “witchcraft talk” that didn’t keep her from mentioning that the Tea Party was causing “tension” in the Alaska Senate race: “And there’s more Tea Party tension brewing for Republicans. Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, who lost her primary, jumped back in the race.” O’Donnell also aired a clip of Murkowski claiming her victorious primary opponent Joe Miller had “extremist views.” Continuing with the theme of a GOP at war with itself, O’Donnell did manage to note the Democrats had another problem altogether as she observed: “While some Republicans are fighting each other the President, appearing at a dinner for the Congressional Black Caucus, tried to inspire those disinterested Democrats to join the fight for November.” The following is the full O’Donnell story as it was aired on the September 20 Today show: MATT LAUER: Now to politics, with the midterm elections only six weeks away, both parties are having to deal with the sudden impact of the Tea Party. NBC’s Kelly O’Donnell is in Washington with more on that. Kelly, good morning to you. [On screen headline: “Tempest In The Tea Party? O’Donnell Admits She ‘Dabbled Into Witchcraft'”] KELLY O’DONNELL: Good morning, Matt. Well the President is trying to help Democrats hold on to a vulnerable Senate seat in Pennsylvania today campaigning and raising money there, while Republicans have more turmoil to deal with. One GOP incumbent won’t accept her defeat in a primary and there are more surprises about that newcomer who is certainly becoming a tempest in the Tea Party. Delaware’s Republican Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell is stirring the pot. CHRISTINE O’DONNELL: They call us wacky, they call us wing nuts, we call us, “We the People.” KELLY O’DONNELL: Hours after she was cheered at a gathering for social conservatives in Washington D.C. an old clip of O’Donnell hit TV Friday, this strange comment from 1999. (Begin clip from Politically Incorrect) CHRISTINE O’DONNELL: I dabbled in witchcraft. I never joined a coven, but I did, I did. (End clip) KELLY O’DONNELL: Comedian Bill Maher teased that unless she comes on his TV show again, he will release more. (Begin clip from Politically Incorrect) CHRISTINE O’DONNELL: One of my first dates with a witch was on a Satanic altar and I didn’t know it. And I mean there’s a little blood there, and stuff like that. BILL MAHER: That was a date? CHRISTINE O’DONNELL: Yeah we went to a movie and then like had a little midnight picnic on a Satanic altar. MAHER: Let’s have a movie and a sacrifice? (End clip) KELLY O’DONNELL: Citing schedule conflicts, O’Donnell backed out on two Sunday morning shows, prime media real estate for a candidate. CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS: Late Friday night, her campaign cancelled. BOB SCHIEFFER, CBS NEWS: She cancelled on us yesterday. KELLY O’DONNELL: Instead O’Donnell campaigned at a picnic in Delaware where she made light of the witchcraft talk. CHRISTINE O’DONNELL: How many of you didn’t hang out with questionable folks in high school. But, no, there’s been no witchcraft since. If there was, Karl Rove would be a supporter now. KELLY O’DONNELL: Democrats worked their own magic with a new TV ad hitting O’Donnell for past tax problems and old debt from her 2008 campaign. (Begin ad clip) ANNOUNCER: She’ll fit right in, in Washington, O’Donnell spends money she doesn’t have. (End clip) KELLY O’DONNELL: And there’s more Tea Party tension brewing for Republicans. Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, who lost her primary, jumped back in the race. She was narrowly defeated by Tea Party conservative Joe Miller, who was endorsed by Sarah Palin. LISA MURKOWSKI: We cannot accept the extremist views of Joe Miller. KELLY O’DONNELL: Murkowski is defying the GOP leadership to run a write-in campaign that even she says will be tough to win. MURKOWSKI: You don’t think we can’t fill in an oval and learn to spell Lisa Murkowski, we can figure this out. KELLY O’DONNELL: While some Republicans are fighting each other the President, appearing at a dinner for the Congressional Black Caucus, tried to inspire those disinterested Democrats to join the fight for November. BARACK OBAMA: Tell them we can’t wait to organize. Tell them that the time for action is now. KELLY O’DONNELL: And when asked about the influence of the Tea Party, former President Bill Clinton said that the voters responding to those candidates are showing good impulses because of the feelings that are out there this year, but he’s not sure what their agenda would be. And Christine O’Donnell’s advisers, when I asked them again about this witchcraft thing, reminded me of the kind of fun lines she tried to use there, saying, that if she were still practicing witchcraft, then Karl Rove would be one of her supporters, not her detractors. So they’re trying to make light of it. Matt?

See the original post:
Today Show Hypes Christine O’Donnell’s Witchcraft Past

Newsweek’s Howard Fineman Moving to Huffington Post

He currently works for one of the most liberal magazines in America while contributing to without a doubt the most liberal news network on television. As such, it only seems fitting that as many of Newsweek’s employees flee the transitioning ship, Howard Fineman would go to the unashamedly far-left leaning Huffington Post.   Makes you wonder if he’ll still feign any air of objectivity in his new position reported by the New York Times Sunday:  Howard Fineman, one of the more recognizable pundits on cable television and a correspondent for Newsweek for 30 years, is leaving the magazine to become a senior editor at The Huffington Post. Mr. Fineman said that he relished the opportunity that moving to an online platform afforded him. “It really wasn’t a difficult decision at all once I really began to think about it because this is where the action is,” he said. “The chance to dive head long into the future is one that I don’t think anyone could pass up.” Mr. Fineman, who will begin his new job this week, will become senior politics editor, overseeing and steering The Huffington Post’s political coverage from its Washington bureau. He will remain a paid analyst for MSNBC, but will have to discontinue his column for MSNBC.com. So, he’s now going to be a senior editor “overseeing and steering The Huffington Post’s political coverage from its Washington bureau” while remaining “a paid analyst for MSNBC.” But his reporting will be totally impartial.  Nudge nudge, wink wink, say no more!  

Continue reading here:
Newsweek’s Howard Fineman Moving to Huffington Post