Last Thursday, Jakarta was rocked by its first major attack by religiously inspired Islamic militants since the Ritz Carlton bombings of 2009. Lasting more than three hours, the grim attacks – in which seven people, including five assailants, died – may not have been as devastating as the previous bombings that hit the capital in the…
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This Florida Democrat Didn’t Vote To Give Gay Veterans Equal Partner Benefits In Congress
Congresswoman Corrine Brown, a long serving Democratic member of the US House didn’t vote to extend federal benefits to the spouses of LGBT couples last Thursday.
In a shocking move first reported by Politico, Brown reversed course on her previous support of an amendment that according to the Human Rights Campaign would “correct outdated language” in statutes that define spouses as a member of the “opposite sex”.
The proposed amendment- the Veteran Spouses Equal Treatment Act was proposed by Dina Titus (D-NV) and was designed to allow same-sex spouses of military veterans to receive benefits entitled to them under federal law.
“This amendment would take a critical step in ensuring in statute that the voices of LGBT veterans are consistently heard and ensure the LGBT community is represented when addressing the issues that affect minority veterans,” a statement from the Human Rights Campaign said.
Brown, the ranking member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee voted present when the amendment came to a vote.
“I never question someone’s motives for how they vote, but what upset us is, one, she changed her vote and second, she didn’t let us know and she is our leader,” Titus was quoted by Politico as saying about Brown. “We’re talking about a number of options….We’re going to do something. We want to hear her explanation and we want her to hear why we are upset. It was really disappointing.”
While Brown’s vote didn’t impact the outcome of the failure of the amendment to pass (12 of the 14 Republicans on the committee voted against it), it has sparked questions about her motivations and whether it is due to her positioning for the 2016 election- when she is expected to compete in a more conservative district.
Twitter was not pleased with the Congresswoman after the vote.
Shame on Corrine Brown. Democrats fume at fellow Democrat over same-sex benefits vote http://t.co/6kLlhLeoKh
— John B. Dorris, Esq. (@SciFi_TriGuy) September 20, 2015
@RepCorrineBrown a disgraceful Democrat who proves her self-interest is bigger than her constituents. Shame on you! Time for a new Dem!
— thebwein (@thebwein) September 20, 2015
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This Twitter Conversation Perfectly Sums Up Why Trump Is The GOP’s Nominee
Sometimes it can be pretty dangerous to look around in the parts of Twitter that don’t like the sunshine.
You know what I’m talking about: the hordes of the mentally undead who troll around and live in an alternative universe where facts don’t matter and the search for truth is futile.
But a few weeks ago, I found a Tweet chain that really does a good job in summing up why Donald Trump has become the presumptive Republican nominee for President.
Here it is in all its nutty glory:
Nothing pisses me off more on Twitter than people saying Snopes do your own research form your own conclusions Snopes is 2 liberal people
— ✯Trump 45th POTUS✯ (@realTrump4POTUS) April 24, 2016
@realTrump4POTUS Snopes is agenda driven. Of course, they are going to run interference for the communists.
— Who is John Galt? (@Dagny_Galt) April 24, 2016
@realTrump4POTUS Its so easy to find knowledge. I just think most people dont want to search.
— A&O (@LancastrianRed) April 24, 2016
Ah yes @LancastrianRed, it is so easy to find knowledge nowadays. And luckily, I do like to search for it, unlike you.
It turns out that many in the right-wing nut-o-sphere have been bashing Snopes for years, claiming that it is little more than a left-wing blog.
But this is not at all the truth. Snopes is run by two of the most non-partisan people you can find.
Founded in 1995 by Barbara and David Mikkelson, Snopes fact checks things that circulate around the Internet to help the general public decipher between fact and fiction. The website preforms a very important duty and has a sterling record according to many outside fact checkers.
One of those outside fact checkers, the properly named FactCheck.org looked into Snopes in 2009 to see whether it all added up. At the time, many conservatives were making claims that Snopes was a liberal tool.
But FactCheck could not find any evidence of liberal bias.
In fact, the Mikkelsons were found to be two of the most politically balanced people out there. David is a former Republican turned independent, while Barbara is a Canadian who can’t vote in US elections.
There is just no truth to the idea that Snopes has a political agenda. The only agenda it truly has is to inform their readers and to fight to discover the truth. That is called journalism and is the only thing that keeps our society from devolving into a PR run puffery state.
Of course, there is little hope that people that deny Snopes will be able to believe this fact check either.
That is why people like Donald Trump are able to rise: large swaths of America live in their own fact bubbles. And that is a serious problem that this election will surely not fix.
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in public affairs. You can write for us.
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Democracy Spring: Hundreds Of Progressive Activists Start Sit In On Capitol Building Steps To Protest Money In Politics
UPDATED: 2:38 PM EST
Hundreds of progressive activists are currently sitting in on the steps of the United States Capitol building to protest the outsized influence of corporate money in American politics.
The movement called Democracy Spring is based on Moral Monday‘s, the religiously driven campaign that increased voter engagement and participation on a number of political issues.
Police have started arresting the peaceful protestors, who include The Young Turks founder Cenk Uygur.
More police moving in, supporting police line as mass arrests start. #DemocracySpring https://t.co/f4T9Ha1dED
— Alejandro Alvarez (@aletweetsnews) April 11, 2016
“It’s time to take mass nonviolent action on a historic scale to save our democracy,” a statement on the Democracy Spring website. “This April, in Washington, D.C., we will demand a Congress that will take immediate action to end the corruption of big money in our politics and ensure free and fair elections in which every American has an equal voice.”
Lot of energy at #DemocracySpring pic.twitter.com/wp5w7Zm4CN
— Jordan (@JordanChariton) April 11, 2016
According to the movement’s website, the campaign started on April 2nd with a “march from the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia” and it culminated today at the Capitol building.
So many people still not budging — awaiting arrest #DemocracySpring https://t.co/Lv9cZzvAQU pic.twitter.com/cskeQF5HFu
— Cassandra Fairbanks (@CassandraRules) April 11, 2016
This is a breaking news story. Stay with RISE NEWS as we update this story.
Are you there? Send us tips, pictures and additional information to [email protected].
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in public affairs. You can write for us
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