Effort To Defund Family Planning Clinics Backfires

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Thibodeau told ThinkProgress that, since Tipping’s and Savage’s blog posts were published, the organization has received a lot of positive notes from religious people expressing their support for the work of Maine Family Planning. “Thank you for the work you do and please pay no attention to the ‘Maine Christian Civic League.’ They know very little about God,” one message read.
“The sentiment that people aren’t interested in anti-women rhetoric and discrimination in the name of religion — that definitely came across here,” Thibodeau said.

Republicans Prepare Attack On Labor

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“What you really lose, when you get rid of the prevailing wage, is a skilled, productive worker,” he said. “Our roads, bridges, and buildings should be built by the safest, best trained, qualified people, and those people need to be paid fairly for their skills.

California Groundwater Crisis Grows

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Beneath California Crops, Groundwater Crisis Grows – NYTimes.com.
Farmers are drilling wells at a feverish pace and pumping billions of gallons of water from the ground, depleting a resource that was critically endangered even before the drought, now in its fourth year

College Tuition Costs So Much

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The Real Reason College Tuition Costs So Much – NYTimes.com.
Salaries of full-time faculty members are, on average, barely higher than they were in 1970. Moreover, while 45 years ago 78 percent of college and university professors were full time, today half of postsecondary faculty members are lower-paid part-time employees, meaning that the average salaries of the people who do the teaching in American higher education are actually quite a bit lower than they were in 1970.
By contrast, a major factor driving increasing costs is the constant expansion of university administration.

Ted Cruz Isn’t an Idiot

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Extracts from  Ted Cruz Isn’t an Idiot — He’s Delusional and That’s Far More Dangerous By Sophia A. McClennen / AlterNet April 1, 2015
for those who think like Cruz, there is virtually no amount of data, reality checks or facts that can persuade the deluded citizen to give up their false ideas. This is the mindset of the Tea Party, the Koch brothers, and many on the far right. Nyhan and Reifler refer to this as “motivated reasoning.” What they find is that people who are attached to falsehoods perceive any correcting information as partisan and flawed. So conservatives don’t perceive science as information.

You Cannot Be A Republican And A Christian

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Republicans used to be moderate, business-minded civic boosters and unapologetic patriots who were the linchpins and bulwarks of small towns across the Midwest, the enthusiastic backers of projects for the civic good, usually in partnership with the town liberals (the librarian, the bar owner, a lawyer or two, the Methodist minister, the banker’s wife). These Republicans were uniters and diehard optimists and persons of compassionate conscience, inveterate doers of good deeds.Even today, there are probably some Republicans who still fit that description.

A little quiz about religious liberty

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“How to Determine if Your Religious Liberty Is Being Threatened in Just 10 Quick Questions.” Just pick “A” or “B” for each question.
Written by the Rev. Emily C. Heath at the United Church of Christ, and posted on Daily Kos   by MeteorBlades WED APR 01, 2015 AT 09:28 PM PDT
“Religious liberty is never secured by a campaign of religious superiority. The only way to ensure your own religious liberty remains strong is by advocating for the religious liberty of all, including those with whom you may passionately disagree. Because they deserve the same rights as you. Nothing more.

Nevada Lawmaker Says Racism Is Over

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Nevada Assemblywoman Michele Fiore (R) In comments defending a proposed voter ID law, Nevada Assemblywoman Michele Fiore (R) suggested that racism is over, so opponents should no longer be “using the race card.” She then used an offensive racial term common in the 1960s to describe an African American colleague.

People who call themselves atheists or agnostics

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the reason most people who call themselves atheists or agnostics or spiritual seekers do so today is because they have seen the hypocrisy of traditional religions as actually practiced, and their moral values include respect for truth which does not allow them to settle for stories which pretend reality does not exist.  Any Christian who really respects truth can understand and applaud that, and find a way to practice his or her faith without denying the reality of the observed universe.