In the News

Here is some stuff in the news today!

[Content Note: Transmisogyny] CNN's Piers Morgan was a total transmisogynistic dirtbag during an interview with trans activist and author Janet Mock. She called him out, he's getting criticism, and now he's framing himself as the victim. Rinse and repeat forever.

The New York Times editorial board does a good job (I know!) of pushing back on the idea that the Congressional Budget Office report on the Affordable Care Act said that the ACA is a job killer. "The report estimated that—thanks to an increase in insurance coverage under the act and the availability of subsidies to help pay the premiums—many workers who felt obliged to stay in a job that provided health benefits would now be able to leave those jobs or choose to work fewer hours than they otherwise would have. In other words, the report is about the choices workers can make when they are no longer tethered to an employer because of health benefits. ...The new law will free people, young and old, to pursue careers or retirement without having to worry about health coverage. Workers can seek positions they are most qualified for and will no longer need to feel locked into a job they don't like because they need insurance for themselves or their families. It is hard to view this as any kind of disaster."

Former American Idol contestant Clay Aiken is running for Congress! I'd vote for him! If I lived in his district in North Carolina! Which I don't!

[CN: War on agency] A planned protest at Louisiana state capitol became a celebratory rally instead when the state Department of Health and Hospitals "decided to entirely rescind new regulations that it had intended to pass on Tuesday," the passage of which would have resulted in all five abortion providers in the state being shut down. This fight isn't over, but that was a good victory for now.

[CN: Clergy abuse] The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has said in a new report that "the Vatican should 'immediately remove' all clergy who are known or suspected child abusers [and make them available to be held accountable by the authorities]. The UN watchdog for children's rights denounced the Holy See for adopting policies which allowed priests to sexually abuse thousands of children. ...It also lambasted the 'practice of offenders' mobility,' referring to the transfer of child abusers from parish to parish within countries, and sometimes abroad." Damn they went there. Good. The report "also criticised Vatican attitudes towards homosexuality, contraception and abortion. The Vatican responded by saying it would examine the report—but also accused its authors of interference." Protip on avoiding outsider interference: Handle your own shit in a responsible way.

[CN: Guns; injury] Wow: "How a Simple New Invention Seals a Gunshot Wound in 15 Seconds."

The Center for Media and Public Affairs counted the targets of all of Jay Leno's jokes during his 22-year tenure as host of The Tonight Show, and guess who his number one target was? Did you guess Bill Clinton? Unless you watch The Tonight Show, I bet you didn't! Because you are probably a reasonable person who does not think "Meh meh Bill Clinton is fat and horny meh!" constitutes comedy in the year of our lord Jesus Jones two thousand and fourteen!

Leno's top five targets were: 1. Bill Clinton (4,607 jokes) 2. George W. Bush (3,239) 3. Al Gore (1,026) 4. Barack Obama (1,011) 5. Hillary Clinton (939). Hmm. I seem to detect a pattern, but I JUST CAN'T PUT MY FINGER ON IT.