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The Obama administration’s decision not to defend the Defense of Marriage Act may seem politically risky—after all, “a majority of Americans have never polled in favor of same sex marriage,” writes Linda Hirshman for Salon . But, in fact, Obama has put Republicans in a bind: The GOP-led Congress may…

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Help Michael Pollan Write the Food Rules Expanded Edition – Submit Your Rules Via Slow Food

Now Michael Pollan’s Food Rules wasn’t my favorite book of his, but it was a best-seller and a new edition is being written–and Pollan is in general a fine writer. To help craft it Pollan is partnering with Slow Food USA for a user-generated portion and taking submissions. So, tell Slow Food your food rule (by February 27th). Here’s how Pollan describes it: La… Read the full story on TreeHugger

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Five years ago, fired HarperCollins boss Judith Regan claimed an executive at Harper’s parent, News Corp, had pushed her to lie to federal investigators—but until now, that executive’s identity remained hidden. Now court affidavits show that it was Roger Ailes, the head of Fox News, the New York Times…

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How Low Can The Anti-Abortionists Go?  Pretty Damn Low.

A new bus-stop billboard put up by anti-choice activists near a NYC Planned Parenthood hits an all new low in taste: enlarge Credit: BestWeekEver It takes a lot to do this, but I’m speechless . Found on 6th Ave. and Watts Street, merely 3 blocks away from a Soho Planned Parenthood Clinic, the ad portrays an adorable African-American toddler with the text “The Most Dangerous Place For An African-American Child Is In The Womb.” Their website, which I visited for the purposes of this post, claims that our generation is being wiped out due to abortions. Um, newsflash? Our Earth isn’t even going to have the resources to feed our population by the year 2050 , and that’s assuming the aliens from Independence Day don’t get here first. If these people really cared about stopping abortions and lowering our population crisis, they should stop worrying about women’s bodies and start a campaign encouraging castration. There is so much wrong with the thinking behind this ad campaign that even trying to formulate a tempered response is giving me a migraine. I really wish that these anti-choice people gave even the littlest bit of energy to caring about the conditions in which most African Americans live and trying to fix that than they do to such horrifically racist and ugly ads.

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Engadget’s next reader meetup is tomorrow, February 25th in San Francisco!

That’s right human beings — it’s happening again! The Engadget crew is getting together their best party outfits and shipping out west for another installment of our fabulous reader meetups. Our last event in NYC drew loads of people and was an all around blast, and the San Francisco installment is sure to be just as explosive (or maybe more? c’mon… show us what you’ve got). This time around we’re partnering with Sprint , as well as Sony PlayStation , Motorola , HP , Roku , Samsung , VUDU , RIM , Sling , Sonos , HTC , Corning , Sphero , OnLive , Plantronics , Snapstick, and more to bring you a night of gadget geeking , giveaways , delicious foodstuffs , and some awesome music (provided by none other than our podcast producer, Trent Wolbe). Also, a whole mess of the Engadget editors will be on hand to entertain and inform, so if you have any pressing questions — jot them down! The all ages shindig will take place tomorrow, February 25 at City View at The Metreon , which is located conveniently in downtown SF. If you’re a nerd in the city, you most likely already know what we’re talking about. The doors will open at 6:30PM , and capacity is limited to 1200 people — so if you want to get inside, get there early! Continue reading Engadget’s next reader meetup is tomorrow, February 25th in San Francisco! Engadget’s next reader meetup is tomorrow, February 25th in San Francisco! originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 15:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

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TV Networks Give Scant Coverage to Democrat David Wu’s Strange Antics

A sitting congressman admitted earlier this week to seeking psychiatric treatment after news broke that he had sent bizarre photos of himself in a tiger costume to staff members and taken prescription pain killers given to him by an unnamed campaign donor. Seven of Oregon Democrat David Wu's staff members reportedly quit after the 2010 campaign due to his bizarre behavior. The second largest newspaper in Wu's state has called for him to resign . But apparently some of the largest news outlets in the country, including two of the three news networks and two of the three cable news channels, don't think a mentally unstable congressman and all of his bizarre activities merit even an on-air mention. Nearly a week after the story broke, ABC is the only network to give the story on-air coverage, and Fox is the only cable channel to mention it on-air. The Oregonian newspaper reported on Friday, February 18: Three days before the Nov. 2 election, U.S. Rep. David Wu’s most loyal and senior staffers were so alarmed by his erratic behavior that they demanded he enter a hospital for psychiatric treatment. Their concern had been spiking for weeks in tandem with the Oregon Democrat's increasingly unpredictable performance on the campaign trail and in private. He was loud and sometimes angry, some of them told The Oregonian. He said kooky things to staff and — more worrisome with a tough election fast approaching — around potential voters and donors… For some staffers, the beginning of the end was Wednesday, Oct. 27, when Wu delivered a belligerent and rambling 19-minute monologue to Washington County Democrats that some in the audience said was inappropriate for the friendly crowd. His behavior left staff members aghast… Wu also forwarded a cheery photo of himself dressed as a tiger for Halloween. He had both hands — paws — held up to either side of his face. He was grinning broadly. At that point, staff knew something was terribly wrong with their candidate. That Saturday, Oct. 30, they checked for available hospital beds and consulted with his psychiatrist. Veteran pollster Grove sent staffers the e-mail that signaled the end. She declined to comment for this story but earlier told The Oregonian that she would not work for Wu again. In an interview with George Stephanopoulos on ABC's “Good Morning America” Tuesday, Wu admitted that he had sought psychiatric help after the election. “I did some things, I said some things which I sincerely regret now,” Wu said, “And as a result of those things I saw fit to consult professional help.” Wu insisted that he is fit to serve. But given this bizarre behavior and revelations that a sitting U.S. congressman needed psychiatric treatment, why hasn't the story been picked up by numerous major national news outlets? As mentioned, CBS and NBC have yet to even mention the story, according to a Nexis search. And though Wu's behavior earned stories from USA Today and the Washington Post, neither the New York Times nor the Los Angeles Times has written a word on the scandal. On cable news, where more seedy and sensational stories usually earn significant coverage, the Wu scandal has been almost entirely ignored. Fox News briefly mentioned the story on Monday, according to Nexis, but neither MSNBC nor CNN has even acknowledged the scandal on air. Depending on the fallout – whether or not Wu resigns – it may get more coverage, but so far one can't help but think that if Wu were a Republican, news outlets that have remained silent would be on the story like, er, stripes on a tiger.

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Weekday Vegetarian: Bean and Vegetable Stew

Photo: Kelly Rossiter I’m still managing to cook my meals without heading out to the grocery store . It’s a bit of an exercise in frugality by not spending any money, but also using up the vegetables I have before buying any more. I’m starting to have some space in both my refrigerator and my kitchen cupboards. Now all I have to do is use up my pickles and condiments, as I still have plenty in my cold storage room from my mad preserving

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Marchesa’s Miss Havisham Makeover

The best revenge of a jilted lover is looking good, and the designers of Marchesa have given an exquisite makeover to Miss Havisham at New York Fashion Week. (Feb. 18)

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Douglas Supports Kors at 30th Anniversary Show

Michael Kors’ 30th anniversary collection was a bona fide hit parade, revisiting his favorite themes on the runway. The star-studded audience included Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas. (Feb. 17)

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Wainwright Needs Season-ending Surgery

St. Louis Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright will have Tommy John surgery on his right elbow and will miss the entire season. (Feb. 24)

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