BREVITAS

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BEHIND THE BUSHES

WASH POST - For years, the Bush administration has relied on an
inadequate archiving system for storing the millions of e-mails sent
through White House servers, despite court orders and statutes requiring
the preservation of such records, according to documents and technical
experts. President Bush's White House early on scrapped a custom
archiving system that the Clinton administration had adopted under a
federal court order. From 2001 to 2003, the Bush White House also
recorded over computer backup tapes that provided a last line of defense
for preserving e-mails, even though a similar practice landed the
Clinton administration in legal trouble. As a result, several years'
worth of electronic communication may have been lost, potentially
including e-mails documenting administration actions in the run-up to
the Iraq war.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/
2008/01/21/AR2008012102070.html


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LABOR

UNION CITY - Amtrak and workers may have struck a deal that could give
workers their first new contract in eight years and end a possible
January 30 strike. The deal is reportedly based on a Presidential
Emergency Board recommendation that sides with workers demands for a
32.5% pay increase retroactive from January 1, 2000 to December 31,
2009. The Board also ruled against Amtrak's "attempts to impose new work
rules and combine jobs," Occupational Health & Safety reports.

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WAR DEPARTMENT

DC EXAMINER - The percent of Army recruits with a high school diploma
dropped last year, continuing a trend that has worsened since the start
of the Iraq war. . . National Priorities Project, a research group that
analyzes federal data, found that nearly 71 percent of Army recruits
graduated from high school in the 2007 budget year. . . The Army's goal
is 90 percent high school graduates, which it hasn't met since 2004.
Each year since, the number of recruits with at least a high school
diploma has steadily declined.

http://www.examiner.com/a-1172015~Army_Gets_
Fewer_High_School_Grads_in__07.html


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THE MIX

SCIENTIFIC BLOGGING - The stereotype that couples in same-sex
relationships are not as committed as their heterosexual counterparts
and are therefore not as psychologically healthy is disputed by two
studies featured in the January issue of Developmental Psychology.
Results showed that same-sex relationships were similar to those of
opposite-sex couples in many ways. All had positive views of their
relationships but those in the more committed relationships (gay and
straight) resolved conflict better than the heterosexual dating couples.
And lesbian couples worked together especially harmoniously during the
laboratory tasks. . . Furthermore, said Roisman, "Gay males and lesbians
in this study were generally not different from their committed
heterosexual counterparts on how well they interacted with one another,
although some evidence emerged the lesbian couples were especially
effective at resolving conflict."

http://www.scientificblogging.com/news_releases/study_same
_sex_and_heterosexual_couples_have_same_levels_of_relationship
_satisfaction_and_commitment


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HEALTH AND SCIENCE

USA TODAY - FitPregnancy Magazine has listed Portland as the top city in
the nation for having a baby. The magazine cites Oregon's low infant and
maternal mortality rates and says babies in Portland are 34% less likely
than the national average to be born below normal birth weight and 21%
less likely to be born premature. Portland gets high marks for breast
feeding, with the magazine concluding that 88% of the city's mothers try
it against a national average of 75%. The magazine praised Oregon laws
allowing breast feeding in public. It said 19.9% of Portland's mothers
breast feed exclusively for six months or longer, as recommended by the
American Academy of Pediatrics. The average for the cities surveyed was
12%.

http://rssfeeds.usatoday.com/~r/UsatodaycomNation-TopStories/
~3/220759168/2008-01-21-baby-friendly_N.htm


BEHIND THE STATIN HYPE
http://www.businessweek.com/print/magazine/content/
08_04/b4068052092994.htm


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OUTLYING PRECINCTS

LONGTIME VOTING REFORM advocate Caleb Kleppner writes: "Hillary probably
wouldn't win too many Democratic primaries if there were a majority
requirement. This might be a year where instant runoff voting in
Democratic primaries would give the country a different nominee, and it
might be a nominee with a greater chance of winning. And it's really
within the Democratic Party's power to implement IRV in primaries if it
wanted to."

BUSINESS WIRE - The Kucinich for President campaign filed a complaint
with the Federal Communications Commission against CNN and its parent
company, Time Warner, Inc., for arbitrarily establishing criteria for
its scheduled Monday Presidential debate that will exclude the
Democratic candidate from participation. On Wednesday, the campaign was
notified by CNN that its criteria included a showing of 5% or better in
a national poll. In two polls completed earlier last week by CBS
News/New York Times and by the Pew Research Center, Ohio Congressman
Dennis Kucinich scored 4%. "The CNN criteria specifically exclude the
diverse and anti-war voice of Mr. Kucinich and his grass-roots
supporters," according to the complaint.

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=comment/reply/30251

MAPS OF SLAVE STATES AND CURRENT GOP STATES
http://sensoryoverload.typepad.com/sensory_overload/2004/11/free_states_vs_.html


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FURTHERMORE. . .

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN KIDS STOP PLAYING OUTSIDE
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2008/01/20/sheltered_lives?mode=PF


LET A BATTERY OPERATED JESUS WARN YOU OF CHANGES IN THE THREAT ALERT
http://threatalertjesus.com/


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