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Thank you to everyone who has been contributing links to articles & other content in the Comments section of each day's "Conversation." If you're missing the comments, you're missing some vital links.

The New York Times lists Emmy winners. The AP has an overview story here.

New York Times: “Hvaldimir, a beluga whale who had captured the public’s imagination since 2019 after he was spotted wearing a harness seemingly designed for a camera, was found dead on Saturday in Norway, according to a nonprofit that worked to protect the whale.... [Hvaldimir] was wearing a harness that identified it as “equipment” from St. Petersburg. There also appeared to be a camera mount. Some wondered if the whale was on a Russian reconnaissance mission. Russia has never claimed ownership of the whale. If Hvaldimir was a spy, he was an exceptionally friendly one. The whale showed signs of domestication, and was comfortable around people. He remained in busier waters than are typical for belugas....” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oh, Lord, do not let Bobby Kennedy, Jr., near that carcass. ~~~

     ~~~ AP Update: “There’s no evidence that a well-known beluga whale that lived off Norway’s coast and whose harness ignited speculation it was a Russian spy was shot to death last month as claimed by animal rights groups, Norwegian police said Monday.... Police said that the Norwegian Veterinary Institute conducted a preliminary autopsy on the animal, which was become known as 'Hvaldimir,' combining the Norwegian word for whale — hval — and the first name of Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'There are no findings from the autopsy that indicate that Hvaldimir has been shot,' police said in a statement.”

New York Times: Botswana's “President Mokgweetsi Masisi grinned as he lifted the diamond, a 2,492-carat stone that is the biggest diamond unearthed in more than a century and the second-largest ever found, according to the Vancouver-based mining operator Lucara, which owns the mine where it was found. This exceptional discovery could bring back the luster of the natural diamond mining industry, mining companies and experts say. The diamond was discovered in the same relatively small mine in northeastern Botswana that has produced several of the largest such stones in living memory. Such gemstones typically surface as a result of volcanic activity.... The diamond will likely sell in the range of tens of millions of dollars....”

Click on photo to enlarge.

~~~ Guardian: "On a distant reef 16,000km from Paris, surfer Gabriel Medina has given Olympic viewers one of the most memorable images of the Games yet, with an airborne celebration so well poised it looked too good to be true. The Brazilian took off a thundering wave at Teahupo’o in Tahiti on Monday, emerging from a barrelling section before soaring into the air and appearing to settle on a Pacific cloud, pointing to the sky with biblical serenity, his movements mirrored precisely by his surfboard. The shot was taken by Agence France-Presse photographer Jérôme Brouillet, who said “the conditions were perfect, the waves were taller than we expected”. He took the photo while aboard a boat nearby, capturing the surreal image with such accuracy that at first some suspected Photoshop or AI." 

Washington Post: “'Mary Cassatt at Work' is a large and mostly satisfying exhibition devoted to the career of the great American artist beloved for her sensitive and often sentimental views of family life. The 'at work' in the title of the Philadelphia Museum of Art show references the curators’ interest in Cassatt’s pioneering effort to establish herself as a professional artist within a male-dominated field. Throughout the show, which includes some 130 paintings, pastels, prints and drawings, the wall text and the art on view stresses Cassatt’s fixation on art as a career rather than a pastime.... Mary Cassatt at Work is on view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art through Sept. 8. philamuseum.org”

New York Times: “Bob Newhart, who died on Thursday at the age of 94, has been such a beloved giant of popular culture for so long that it’s easy to forget how unlikely it was that he became one of the founding fathers of stand-up comedy. Before basically inventing the hit stand-up special, with the 1960 Grammy-winning album 'The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart' — that doesn’t even count his pay-per-view event broadcast on Canadian television that some cite as the first filmed special — he was a soft-spoken accountant who had never done a set in a nightclub. That he made a classic with so little preparation is one of the great miracles in the history of comedy.... Bob Newhart holds up. In fact, it’s hard to think of a stand-up from that era who is a better argument against the commonplace idea that comedy does not age well.”

Washington Post: “An early Titian masterpiece — once looted by Napolean’s troops and a part of royal collections for centuries — caused a stir when it was stolen from the home of a British marquess in 1995. Seven years later, it was found inside an unassuming white and blue plastic bag at a bus stop in southwest London by an art detective, and returned. This week, the oil painting 'The Rest on the Flight into Egypt' sold for more than $22 million at Christie’s. It was a record for the Renaissance artist, whom museums describe as the greatest painter of 16th-century Venice. Ahead of the sale in April, the auction house billed it as 'the most important work by Titian to come to the auction market in more than a generation.'”

Washington Post: The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., which houses the world's largest collection of Shakespeare material, has undergone a major renovation. "The change to the building is pervasive, both subtle and transformational."

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Saturday
Dec162017

The Commentariat -- December 16, 2017

Late Morning Update:

Marvin S. has released the abstract of his research proposal to the CDC:

Considering that transgender people are vulnerable to many aspects of life, we believe they have an entitlement for science-based research. We are using tissue from a fetus to provide evidence-based results that will help to determine the scientific basis for this type of life. After all, transgender is just an example of human diversity.

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: You'll have to read today's "Word Nazis" story, linked below, to assess Marvin's chances of getting a grant.

*****

Jim Tankersley & Thomas Kaplan of the New York Times: "Republican lawmakers appeared to secure enough votes on Friday to pass the most sweeping tax overhaul in decades, putting them on the cusp of their first significant legislative victory as leaders geared up to pass a $1.5 trillion tax cut along party lines and send it to President Trump by Christmas. A day after the bill’s prospects wavered somewhat, Republican leaders notched two victories on Friday, when Senator Marco Rubio of Florida said he would vote yes after gaining a more generous child tax credit in the final bill and Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, who voted against the initial Senate bill over deficit concerns, said he would support the legislation. The bill also won praise from Senator Susan Collins of Maine, leaving it likely to pass with all 52 Senate Republicans in support." ...

There are no Republican heroes. They're all craven phonies, but Today's Biggest Phony is Corker. -- Mrs. Bea McCrabbie   

If it looks to me like we're adding one penny to the deficit, I am not going to be for it. -- Bob Corker, October 1, 2017

Bob Corker has made a career out of protesting very loudly, and then falling in line with his party's leadership when it counts. -- Brian Fallon, former spokesman for Chuck Schumer, ca. November 19, 2017

The congressional Joint Committee on Taxation analysis showed the Senate plan would add $1 trillion to the federal budget deficit. -- New York Times, December 15

After many conversations over the past several days with individuals from both sides of the aisle across Tennessee and around the country -- including business owners, farmers, chambers of commerce and economic development leaders -- I have decided to support the tax reform package we will vote on next week. -- Bob Corker, December 15, 2017

... Heather Long of the Washington Post: "Last-minute changes to the GOP's big plan give a larger tax break to the wealthy and preserves certain tax savings for the middle class, including the student-loan interest deduction, the deduction for excessive medical expenses and the tax break for graduate students. A change made Friday morning to win over [Marco] Rubio would expand the benefits of a child tax credit to give more money to working-class families. Here's a rundown of what's in the final bill. (If you want to read all 505 pages, click here.)" ...

     ... Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: Though the final bill has not been scored (since Republicans released it only as a late Friday afternoon dump), it appears that the (rather conservative) Joint Tax Committee analysis of how much the Senate bill would add to the deficit will increase by a significant amount. So thanks again, Bob. You're a real Corker. ...

... GOP Tax Bill Makes Puerto Rico a Foreign Country. Rebecca Spalding of Bloomberg: "The final version of the Republican tax plan would end some of the tax advantages companies with operations in Puerto Rico have long enjoyed, potentially delivering an economic blow to the territory still reeling from Hurricane Maria and a record setting bankruptcy, according to an expert who reviewed the plan Friday. Gabriel Hernandez, the head of the tax division at BDO Puerto Rico, said that under the new rules subsidiaries of U.S. companies based on the island would be treated as foreign, subject to a tax from income derived from intangible assets held offshore. Although the final plan did not include the House's proposed 20 percent excise tax, as many local officials feared, it still likely signaled sweeping changes for the commonwealth's economy, he said." ...

Mike Lucovich, AJC.     ... Mrs. McC: In the Spirit of the Season, the Party of Trump is giving tax breaks to the super-wealthy at the expense of people who would be lucky to find a stable to house themselves. Donnie, Mitch & Paulie the Three Kings of Orient Aren't.

We three kinds of 'Merica are

Bearing gifts for our donor stars,

Corporate tax cuts, pass-throughs & more,

Loaded in our clown car.

 

Eric Boehlert of Shareblue: "In a craven display of collective indifference [to victims of the Sandy Hook gun mass murder], [Donald] Trump hosted Wayne LaPierre, the controversial head of the NRA, at the White House on Thursday night, as families and friends of the elementary school gun massacre were remembering the victims of the horrific killing spree." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: I'm familiar with Hanlon's razor. "Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity." Still, I'm going with malice here.


Padraig Collins of the Guardian: "The senior Democrat in a congressional Trump-Russia investigation has said he fears Republicans are manoeuvring to kill off inquiries into Moscow's interference in the 2016 US presidential election. 'I'm increasingly worried Republicans will shut down the House intelligence committee investigation at the end of the month,' said Adam Schiff, who is the leading Democrat on the House intelligence committee. Schiff suggested Republicans also had their sights on the FBI's Trump-Russia investigation overseen by special counsel Robert Mueller. The president's personal lawyers are reportedly set to meet Mueller and his team within days to ask about the next steps in his investigation. 'Beyond our investigation, here's what has me really concerned: the attacks on [Robert] Mueller, the DoJ [the Department of Justice] and FBI this week make it clear they plan to go after Mueller's investigation,' Schiff said." ...

... Pamela Brown, et al., of CNN: The Trump legal team's "goal is to help Trump begin to emerge from the cloud of the ongoing investigation, several of the sources explained. The sources acknowledge that Mueller is under no obligation to provide any information and concede they may walk away with no greater clarity.... The Trump team's hopes for an investigation nearing its end contrast with a widely held view by other lawyers representing clients who have been interviewed."

Adam Raymond of New York: "A judge on Friday said former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort will soon be released from house arrest in Virginia and allowed to relocate to his home in Florida. But Manafort, who was indicted in October on several charges including 'conspiracy against the United States,' will not be allowed to leave the Sunshine State without permission and be required to abide by a 11 p.m. curfew." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: There are hundreds of places in Broward & Palm Beach Counties (the area to which the court restricted Manafort) where Manafort could hop a yacht & escape the country. The land is crisscrossed with canals that lead to the Atlantic (and to the Gulf, for that matter).

AND. Mrs. McCrabbie: Looks as if Carter Page would rather have Dianne Feinstein grab his ass or give him a big sloppy kiss than keep up with her mean investigating harassment stuff.


Word Nazis. Lena Sun & Juliet Eilperin of the Washington Post: "The Trump administration is prohibiting officials at the nation’s top public health agency from using a list of seven words or phrases ... in any official documents being prepared for next year's budget. Policy analysts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta were told of the list of forbidden words at a meeting Thursday with senior CDC officials who oversee the budget, according to an analyst who took part in the 90-minute briefing. The forbidden words are 'vulnerable,' 'entitlement,' 'diversity,' 'transgender,' 'fetus,' 'evidence-based' and 'science-based.'"

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: This is an extraordinary effort to both politicize the CDC & retard its mission. Language control is a tool totalitarian governments use to repress & redirect society. Trump can't order you not to use the word "diversity," but he can ban federal agencies from using it; as "diversity" becomes a dirty word, the goal is to remove the ideal of diversity from public discourse. This of course was exactly how the government's introduction of Newspeak (as opposed to English, a/k/a Oldspeak) worked in 1984. As Gloria wrote in yesterday's thread, "This is really serious, and unless we want to live in 1984, the fictional one that the Regressives live in, we had better fight this." Meanwhile, how the fuck is the CDC to control disease if it can't target "vulnerable" populations or use "science-based" methods? Are the scientists (already a dirty word in Right Wing World) supposed to do this in secret or just not do it? Will CDC staff be allowed to work on the opioid crisis because Trump voters are more vulnerable than Democratic voters to opioid addiction, but not on antidotes for sickle-cell diseases because more Democrats suffer from these diseases than do Republican voters? WTF is the CDC's Division of Reproductive Health supposed to do if it can't concern itself with the health of the fetus? ...

... Thought Nazis. Eric Lipton & Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: "One of the top executives of a consulting firm that the Environmental Protection Agency has recently hired to help it with media affairs has spent the past year investigating agency employees who have been critical of the Trump administration, federal records show.... A vice president for the firm [Definers Public Affairs], Allan Blutstein, federal records show, has submitted at least 40 Freedom of Information Act requests to the E.P.A. since President Trump was sworn in. Many of those requests target employees known to be questioning management at the E.P.A. since Scott Pruitt, the agency's administrator, was confirmed. Mr. Blutstein, in an interview, said he was taking aim at 'resistance' figures in the federal government.... The founders of Definers, Joe Pounder and Matt Rhoades, are longtime Republican political operatives.... Mr. Blutstein..., [who works for a Pounder & Rhoades GOP-oriented PAC] said that he filed the [FOIA] requests on his own, in an effort to try to undermine people who have been critical of policy changes taking place at the agency.... Legal experts also raised questions on Friday about the nature of the agency's contract with Definers. Charles Tiefer, a professor of contract law at the University of Baltimore, said he could see no legal justification for finding that only one company had the qualifications to gather news articles." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: I'm quite good at gathering news articles. I'm surprised Pruitt didn't offer me the no-bid contract. BTW, the Environmental Pollution Agency is paying Definers only $120K per year whereas it previously contracted with another firm in an open-bid process for $207K/year. You might conclude, "Wow, Scott got us taxpayers a good deal!" But whaddaya bet Definers only clips positive reports about the EPA whereas the previous firm provided a range of clippings? In other words, Definers has to do little more than have a clerk check in with Breitbart & Coal Industry Weekly.

Noam Scheiber of the New York Times: "The National Labor Relations Board on Thursday overturned a key Obama-era precedent that had given workers significant leverage in challenging companies like fast-food and hotel chains over labor practices. The ruling changes the standard for holding a company responsible for labor law violations that occur at another company, like a contractor or franchisee, with which it has a relationship. The doctrine also governs whether such a corporation would have to bargain with workers at a franchise if they unionized, or whether only the owners of the franchise would have to do so." ...

     ... Workers' Party. Eric Levitz of New York: "'Five, ten years from now — different party,' Donald Trump told Bloomberg Businessweek in 2016, explaining how he would change the GOP. 'You're going to have a worker's party.' One year from then, the Republicans remain a party for bosses."

The Best People, Ctd. John Wagner, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Trump's aggressive push to fill scores of federal court vacancies with conservative judges hit severe turbulence this week, as he was forced to withdraw two nominees and an embarrassing video went viral showing a third struggling to answer rudimentary questions about the law. The White House said Friday that it is standing by the nomination of Matthew Petersen, a nominee for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, despite a clip from his confirmation hearing posted on Twitter in which Petersen was unable to answer questions about legal and courtroom terms posed by a Republican senator. The episode offered more ammunition to Democrats, who have accused Trump of tapping inexperienced nominees in a rush to reshape the federal judiciary. Even some Republicans have suggested they've felt pressured by the White House to move forward with his picks." (See also Akhilleus' commentary on this in yesterday's thread.) ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: I really don't know what everybody's complaining about. Neither Petersen nor any of the other nominees in this mass consent hearing has ever blogged in support of the KKK (or so they claim). Um, which is unlike Trump's nominee (& ghostbuster) Brett Talley, who "was reported to have posted a defense of 'the first KKK' in an online comment in 2011.... Talley also did not tell the committee that he is married to the chief of staff for White House counsel Donald McGahn." Talley was one of two nominees Grassley asked Trump to "reconsider." The ABA rated him "not qualified."

Katie Rogers & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "Omarosa Manigault Newman ... is urging viewers to stay tuned to find out why she really left [the White House].... On Thursday, Ms. Newman pushed back against reports that she had caused a scene over credentials at a White House Christmas party, and that she had tried to gain access to the president's residence.... 'As the only African-American woman in this White House,' Ms. Newman said in the 'Good Morning America' interview, 'I have seen things that have made me uncomfortable, that have upset me, that have affected me deeply and emotionally, that has affected my community and my people. It is a profound story that I know the world will want to hear.'... Other than the hints she has left on national television, it is still unclear what, exactly, led to Ms. Newman's abrupt departure after a nearly yearlong tenure punctuated by conflicts with other White House aides, a lavish wedding at Trump International Hotel in Washington and a public meltdown at a conference for black journalists. Whatever the catalyst, her departure was handled by [John] Kelly; the White House counsel, Donald F. McGahn II; and Joseph Hagin, a deputy chief of staff.... Ms. Newman said that [she & Kelly] 'had a very candid conversation,' and that Mr. Trump learned that she had departed while watching television news."

Robert Pear of the New York Times: "A federal court on Friday blocked Trump administration rules that made it easier for employers to deny insurance coverage of contraceptives for women. Judge Wendy Beetlestone of the Federal District Court in Philadelphia issued a preliminary injunction, saying the rules contradicted the text of the Affordable Care Act by allowing many employers to opt out of providing contraceptive coverage if they had religious or moral objections. In the lawsuit, filed by the State of Pennsylvania, the judge said the rules would cause irreparable harm because tens of thousands of women would lose contraceptive coverage. The Affordable Care Act contains no statutory language allowing federal agencies to create such 'sweeping exemptions' to the law's requirements to cover preventive services, Judge Beetlestone declared." Mrs. McC: Beetlestone is an Obama appointee.

Comments Off

Reader Comments (11)

Why would Corker flip on a dime when nothing has improved with their tax cut monstrosity? Easy.

Bob Corker flipped because he's gettin' paid and laughing all the way to the bank. The ultimate swampman, careless for the public good as soon as his pockets start to fill up with Benjamins. What a fraud.

"The new provision was not in the bill passed by the House or the Senate. Instead, it was inserted into the final bill during reconciliation negotiations between Republicans from both chambers"

"Sen. Bob Corker, who was considered a potential “no” vote on the bill, abruptly switched his position upon the release of the final legislation. Federal records reviewed by IBT show that Corker has millions of dollars of ownership stakes in real-estate related LLCs that could also benefit."

13 GOPers apparently have conflicts of interest with the new, mysterious, last minute provision. But in Trump world (who will save bundles too, along with the Kushners) there is no interest like self-interest. These creatures have no shame.

http://www.ibtimes.com/political-capital/donald-trump-gop-leaders-could-be-enriched-last-minute-tax-break-inserted-final

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered Commentersafari

Trump Bans Thought!

Everyone please go back to yesterday’s comments and click on the link Gloria has suggested.

Never say never where Trump is concerned. If he can’t win he just changes the rules. Now he’s banning words. Not just words, he’s outlawing ideas. An ignoramus is making thinking illegal.

Anyone now writing at the CDC, and probably anyone else in the federal government who tries to write or do research in science-based or evidence-based areas (and what good is any research if not evidence-based?) is now forbidden from using the expressions “science-based” and “evidence-based”. I truly wish that this were an Andy Borowitz joke, but it’s not. The joke is on us. A moron is declaring war on what concepts and thoughts can be employed by anyone paid by taxpayers to keep us safe and healthy.

This is monstrous. It must not stand! Trump is trying to remove “science-based” from a science-based organization.

There are other banned words as well. I’m sure the North Koreans and Putin can offer some additional suggestions for dangerous words to be banned. How about democracy? How about collusion, Justice, equality, rights? How about truth?

Maybe, like the medieval Church, Trump and his Nazis can imprison scientists for daring to investigate or write about topics not approved by Confederates, not approved personally by the Glorious Leader himself. They’ve already banned the use of ecpressions like climate change. Oh, there are other words on the forbidden list as well, like transgender, vulnerable, and for the pleasure of the imminent mikey pence theocracy, fetus. Doctors and researchers can no longer use the word fetus. You know where that’s going.

The tax scam is bad, yes. Terrible, in fact. Voter suppression is another step on the road to killing democracy. Trump’s gleeful support of sexual molestation of children is appalling and his collusion with Russia to steal an election is criminal. But when he starts ordering, by fiat, how scientists, researchers, doctors, administrators, and technicians working for a federal agency can think and write about issues of national health and safety, we are way beyond appalling.

Banning thought is a major requirement in the authoritarian’s rule book for controlling and suppressing Enemies of the State.

They took away health care. Pretty soon, you won’t even be allowed to say the words. That right will be reserved for the rich, the powerful, the religiously approved and the politically connected who understand the proper use of dangerous concepts like TRUTH.

Time to rise up. If I were running the CDC, I’d suggest that every paper, every memo, every heading on every legal pad collection of notes include every one of those banned words. Let him fire everyone then explain to the public why we no longer have a center for disease control. We can’t rely on congress to act. They’re recommending religious lunatics and imbeciles to the federal bench. We cannot allow a dangerous authoritarian to try to tell us how to think.

First thing in the morning I’m writing to my entire congressional delegation and typing in all those banned words. They’re all Confederate creeps, but I don’t care. And I’m gonna do this every day until this order is rescinded.

FUCK HIM!!! And fuck them too if they sit by and allow this to happen.

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Thank-you for this site .

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered Commenterridingwithc

I am hoping for a lawsuit against the CDC word issue. Besides freedom of speech, 'transgender' and 'fetus' are discriminatory.

And could some reporter ask the WH why they have a problem with the Russia investigation if they are not guilty.

And Bea, think that Hanlon's razor applies to 85% of everything Trump does. The other 15% are done by staff. In other words, Trump is perfect.

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterMarvin Schwalb

Can’t wait for members of the WH press corps to ask Liarby Sanders about Trump Thought Control at the CDC. Just imagine the insulting, condescending, intellectually dishonest bullshit she’ll be slinging about scientists are uppity and think they know more than Jesus, and this is not thought control, this is merely a loving father redirecting his children to more productive forms of investigation.

Yeah. Ones bereft of science and fact.

The perfect Confederate concoction: superstition, ideologically based fabrication, religiously tainted lies.

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Truth of any sort is an increasingly rare commodity in Trumpland and from what Gloria linked late yesterday definitely on the road to extinction. Glad I missed that one until this AM, so it didn't disturb my sleep.

That said, sometimes the truth does leak out. Corker certainly told it, not when he said he wouldn't vote for the tax bill if it increased the deficit, no not then, but when explained why he changed his mind:

"After many conversations over the past several days with individuals from both sides of the aisle across Tennessee and around the country — including business owners, farmers, chambers of commerce and economic development leaders — I have decided to support the tax reform package we will vote on next week."

Apparently those folks "from both side of the aisle across Tennessee and around the country" didn't include one wage earner. And I'm guessing the farmers he talked to farmed more than a few acres.

Whether they've tumbled to it yet or not, the working people who voted for these clowns are so screwed, and while my mean streak might find some satisfaction in that, that very small satisfaction does not nearly compensate for my daily force-feeding of dismay.

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

Oh, Bob, and we thought you would be true blue: Gosh, such a disappointment and do I smell a run for that big brass ring? You say you aren't going to retire after all? Hmmmm.

Here is another story to make you bay at the moon which by the way is full––a harsh mistress indeed:
Private schools, mostly religious, (read Christian) are getting millions of tax dollars to discriminate. Our favorite mistress of school vouchers, Betsy Devos, she who can turn the world on with a smile and take a nothing day and suddenly make it seem full of craziness and discriminatory" appears to be in her element here.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/12/14/opinion/sunday/trump-lies-obama-who-is-worse.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region&region=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&_r=1">https://https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/12/14/opinion/sunday/trump-lies-obama-who-is-worse.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region&region=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region&_r=1

This story makes my blood boil along with the word suppression piece above. I am now going out and shovel snow and shout all of Carlin's dirty words along with all the scientific words I can muster––those words and my boiling blood might just melt that snow straightaway––very scientific and reinvigorating!

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterPD Pepe

My CDC research proposal:
Considering that transgender people are vulnerable to many aspects of life, we believe they have an entitlement for science-based research.
We are using tissue from a fetus to provide evidence-based results that will help to determine the scientific basis for this type of life. After all, transgender is just an example of human diversity.

P.S. I have no idea how fetal tissue would be used in such a 'study'.

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterMarvin Schwalb

Interesting that the chief of staff position at the CDC is vacant
https://www.cdc.gov/about/organization/cio.htm

I would love to see this tested in court (assuming it isn't overseen by one of Trump's new incompetent judges). I'm anxiously waiting for Director Brenda Fitzgerald's response.

There are already restrictions on reporter interviews with CDC scientists on any research, which is understandable, but this means that there will be publically communicated research objectives that are focused on "the public's wishes", and secretly communicated proposals among CDC staff to understand how disease processes work (in strong straight humans of northern European decent after they are born) using evidence-based research. So, look out! If there are infractions, Ms. Fitzgerald, you may get fired by the firer in chief.

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterPeriscope

"There are no Republican heroes. They're all craven phonies, but Today's Biggest Phony is Corker. -- Mrs. Bea McCrabbie "
Well said.

December 16, 2017 | Unregistered CommenterJustAGuy
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