Self Care – Very Long Video of Husky Puppies Playing (YouTube)

I was hoping to find a currently-running 24-hour live stream of husky puppies for you, but couldn’t, so here’s the next best thing…

It’s an 11 hour, 50 minute, and 27 second recording of a live stream that did happen of husky puppies playing around and generally just living their lives…

If you know of any currently-running live streams featuring huskies, please let me know. I’ll feature it in a future Self Care post…

Planned Parenthood Can Keep Their Funding… if They Stop Providing Abortions

From the New York Times

The White House, concerned about the possible political repercussions of the Republican effort to defund Planned Parenthood, has proposed preserving federal payments to the group if it discontinues providing abortions.

The proposal, which was never made formally, has been rejected as an impossibility by officials at Planned Parenthood, which receives about $500 million annually in federal funding. That money helps pay for women’s health services the organization provides, not for abortion services.

[Read more…]

Agent Orange Signs a New Islamophobic Travel Ban

From Reuters

President Donald Trump signed a revised executive order on Monday banning citizens from six Muslim-majority nations from traveling to the United States but removing Iraq from the list, after his controversial first attempt was blocked in the courts.

The new order, which takes effect on March 16, keeps a 90-day ban on travel to the United States by citizens of Iran, Libya, Syria, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. It applies only to new visa applicants, meaning some 60,000 people whose visas were revoked under the previous order will now be permitted to enter.

Immigration advocates said the new ban still discriminated against Muslims and failed to address some of their concerns with the previous order. Legal experts said it would, however, be harder to challenge because it affects fewer people living in the United States and allows more exemptions to protect them.

[Read more…]

Supreme Court Takes Coward’s Way Out on Trans People’s Rights

From the New York Times

Prompted by the Trump administration’s reversal of the federal government’s position on transgender rights, the Supreme Court announced on Monday that it would not decide whether a transgender boy in Virginia could use the boys’ bathroom at his high school.

The decision not to take his case, which came as the court is awaiting the appointment of a ninth member, means there will be no ruling on the highly charged issue of transgender rights this term. The issue will almost certainly return to the Supreme Court, probably in a year or two.

Until then, lawsuits in the lower courts will proceed, the political climate and public opinion may shift, and the court’s composition will almost certainly change.

Monday’s development was a setback for transgender rights advocates, who had hoped the Supreme Court, which established a constitutional right to same-sex marriage two years ago, would aid their cause.

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Great Guitar Solos – Steven Wilson and Guthrie Govan Play Porcupine Tree’s “Radioactive Toy”

(You probably noticed how this is not part of the Self Care series. There’s a reason for that…)

Remember back on February 24th, when I posted about how Agent Orange wants to expand the US’s nuclear arsenal? Well, now you know where the “radioactive toys” in the title comes from…

It reminded me of this song. Written by Steven Wilson, and originally recorded and performed by his band Porcupine Tree, this is a song that is, basically, about a nuclear holocaust. Here, it’s Steven Wilson’s solo band that performs it. It’s dark, but very much apropos…

Perhaps it needs to serve as a warning…

And, as it happens, it also has an incredible guitar solo…

There’s a short solo played by Steven Wilson himself that starts at 2:45 and ends at 3:10. But the solo that I really want to highlight is played by Guthrie Govan. It starts at 10:08 and ends with the end of the song.

Enjoy, and don’t let it get you too down or scared…

Updates on Agent Orange’s Wiretapping Claims

Y’all already know the story… Agent Orange claimed on Twitter that President Obama wiretapped his cell phone.

Here’s some more info…

First, from the Hill

White House press secretary Sean Spicer early Sunday said investigations into Russian attempts to influence the election should include President Trump’s claims that the Obama administration “abused” its investigative powers in 2016.

“Reports concerning potentially politically motivated investigations immediately ahead of the 2016 election are very troubling,” Spicer tweeted.

Second, from the NY Times

The F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, asked the Justice Department this weekend to publicly reject President Trump’s assertion that President Barack Obama ordered the tapping of Mr. Trump’s phones, senior American officials said on Sunday. Mr. Comey has argued that the highly charged claim is false and must be corrected, they said, but the department has not released any such statement.

Mr. Comey, who made the request on Saturday after Mr. Trump leveled his allegation on Twitter, has been working to get the Justice Department to knock down the claim because it falsely insinuates that the F.B.I. broke the law, the officials said.

A spokesman for the F.B.I. declined to comment. Sarah Isgur Flores, the spokeswoman for the Justice Department, also declined to comment.

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Agent Orange Wants to Slash NOAA Funding by 17%

From the Washington Post

The Trump administration is seeking to slash the budget of one of the government’s premier climate science agencies by 17 percent, delivering steep cuts to research funding and satellite programs, according to a four-page budget memo obtained by The Washington Post.

The proposed cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would also eliminate funding for a variety of smaller programs, including external research, coastal management, estuary reserves and “coastal resilience,” which seeks to bolster the ability of coastal areas to withstand major storms and rising seas.

NOAA is part of the Commerce Department, which would be hit by an overall 18 percent budget reduction from its current funding level.

The Office of Management and Budget also asked the Commerce Department to provide information about how much it would cost to lay off employees, while saying those employees who do remain with the department should get a 1.9 percent pay increase in January 2018. It requested estimates for terminating leases and government “property disposal.”

[Read more…]