Rupa Aitchinson blog

Barbara Bush Speaks Out in Support of Same-Sex Marriage

The political world is all abuzz with news that former President George W. Bush's daughter is speaking out in support of same-sex marriage. In a video created for the Human Right's Campaign, Barbara announced that she is a New Yorker in favor of "fairness and equality. And everyone should have the right to marry the person that they love." This comes as a surprise to many because George W. Bush pushed an amendment to ban same-sex marriage. However, this follows the trend of a younger generation wanting to promote acceptance and, as Barbara Bush says, "equality." This is a revelation that is crossing party lines and is gaining significant coverage between news sources.

So how does this fit into the conservative climate, which has a history of staunchly opposing same-sex marriage? Well Barbara isn't the first to speak out in defense of same-sex marriage. Even the ultra-conservative Fox News admits that republican figures such as Laura Bush and former Vice President Dick Cheney also support gay marriage.

released regarding Barbara Bush, it is stated that "Former Republican presidential candidate John McCain opposes same-sex marriage, but his wife, Cindy, and daughter, Meghan, also have done public service announcements for the 'No H8' campaign and supported repeal of the don't ask, don't tell rule against gays openly serving in the military." It seems that times are changing, and as more Republicans speak out in favor of equality, it gives other members an example that they may be more inclined to follow.

While many people are looking at this message as a giant step forward, some are labeling it "insincere" and "irrelevant." , "Appearing on HLN's Joy Behar Show on Tuesday, [Howard] Bragman, who is married to Chuck O'Donnell in California and runs the Los Angeles-based PR firm Fifteen Minutes, said the Bush family could go to hell." Bragman stated that his problem lied in the fact that Barbara Bush had gay friends and George W. Bush was quoted as saying "It wasn't a big deal" then went on a campaign in opposition of same sex marriage. All the while, kids were being bullied and some even killed themselves because of the lack of acceptance encouraged by people like George Bush. Most of the opposition to her message lies in people being unable to distinguish between campaigns waged by her father and the feelings of Barbara as an individual.

Luckily, opinions such as these are the minority and most people are embracing the publicity in support of gay marriage. Like it or not, this is one message that has gained widespread attention from people whether they are conservative or liberal, Republican or Democrat.

Former Obama budget chief says he fears Washington will wait for crisis to act on deficit and debt

Read more stories from The Daily Caller

Peter Orszag, President Obama’s former White House budget chief, issued a dire warning to the nation Friday about the inability of Democrats and Republicans to overcome political motivations and act to prevent a fiscal crisis.

“I hope it does not ultimately require a crisis to restore fiscal sustainability at the federal level, but I fear it will,” Orszag said inpublished in the Financial Times.

Orszag’s essay comes a few days before Obama’s second annual State of the Union address on Tuesday, and will increase pressure on the president to outline specific measures addressing the budget deficits and national debt.

In the op-ed, Orszag, who is now vice chairman of global banking at Citigroup, said that in the short term, the federal government should refrain from making spending cuts that are too deep, for fear of harming the economic recovery.

He also downplayed the risk of default by state governments in the coming year. He allowed that cities may go bankrupt, but said that the impacts across the country and on Wall Street from such a development “are unlikely to be substantial.”

Without giving any specifics himself, however, Orszag said that lawmakers in Washington needed to act to lay out a plan for bring long term spending and debt down significantly.

“The bottom line is that there may well be US public debt tremors this year, both during federal debate over raising the debt ceiling and with at least a limited number of crises in local and city governments. The bigger problem, though, lies beyond 2011, as the unsustainability of the federal government’s fiscal trajectory becomes increasingly clear,” he said.

Read the whole thing .

and

Doubles drama at Australian Open

MELBOURNE, Australia – "Vamos!" shouted the Indian doubles player. His Spanish-speaking opponents were clearly not amused.

Tennis etiquette was put aside during a heated doubles match between India's Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi and Spain's Feliciano Lopez, who was playing with Juan Monaco of Argentina.

The No. 3-seeded Indian pair won the second-round match 7-6 (2), 6-4. Match officials stepped in to calm the players after the match, when the two teams approached the net, arguing and angrily gesticulating. The losing team then snubbed the Indians by not shaking both their hands.

Lopez later told reporters that Paes was "trying to provoke us all the time."

"At one point, we were a little bit tired of the style he was using on the court, and that's all that happened," Lopez said.

Lopez did not specify which point, but the Indians say he intentionally hit a serve aimed at Paes, who jumped out of the way to avoid being hit.

"There was one serve fired at Leander," Bhupathi said. "We're all professionals, I don't think he would have missed (the service box) by that much."

The Indian team was openly amused by the antics in their post-match news conference. Bhupathi blamed the tension on their opponents' "not being in a happy place" because they were losing. And because it was a hot summer day.

"It's hot out there, we're trying to beat each other. A few unnecessary things were said," Bhupathi added, smiling. "The crowd loved it. We got into it."

"They probably were not happy that we used the word 'Vamos,'" Bhupathi conceded. "Small things like that added up. Kept adding to their frustration that we were playing good tennis."

"Vamos!" — Spanish for "let's go!" — is commonly used by Spanish-speaking players and their fans.

"It's just one of the words I like to use," Paes said, adding that Spanish speaking players have taken offense to it in the past. "Nobody has a patent on it."

Paes added that they do not intend to censor themselves in the next round, where they face Spaniards Tommy Robredo and Marcel Granollers, the No. 13-seeded team.

Tournament officials did not immediately comment.

___

RING, RING — IT'S BJORN AGAIN: Sometimes Robin Soderling's phone rings and the voice on the other end is none other than Swedish tennis great Bjorn Borg.

"We meet sometimes, and sometimes he calls me, sends me texts. It's nice," the No. 4-seeded Swede said of the support he gets. Borg won 11 Grand Slam singles trophies in the 1970s and early 80s.

Soderling has come close a few times to winning his first major but obstacles keep getting in the way, namely No. 1 Rafael Nadal and No. 2 Roger Federer.

The Swede has lost the last two French Open finals — once to Nadal and once to Federer. He reached the quarterfinals at 2010 Wimbledon, losing to Nadal, and at the 2009 and 2010 U.S. Open, losing to Federer both times.

But he has beaten both players on other occasions and doesn't feel intimidated by their domination at Grand Slams.

"They're No. 1 and No. 2 in the world. I think in every tournament they play, they will be the favorites," Soderling said. "I think there's many guys who can actually compete against them and have a chance to win."

The 26-year-old Soderling advanced Saturday to the Australian Open fourth round for the first time in his career, beating Jan Hernych 6-3, 6-1, 6-4. He served 10 aces and hit 33 winners, dominating his 241st-ranked Czech opponent who managed eight winners.

Soderling hasn't dropped a set and is on an eight-match winning streak with his three at Melbourne Park after winning the tuneup tournament at Brisbane.

He faces Alexandr Dolgopolov, who won a five-set, third-round match against 2008 runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France, and could meet Nadal in the semifinals.

___

MIND GAMES: Before her match, Peng Shuai told herself to pretend this wasn't a Grand Slam.

The 25-year-old Chinese player didn't want her nerves to prevent her from reaching a fourth round at a Grand Slam for the first time.

It was one of several inner conversations that helped her defeat Japan's Ayumi Morita 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 to become the third Chinese player to ever get that far at the Australian Open.

Cramps nearly hobbled her in the third set.

"I just told myself, 'Don't think about the cramping," she said. "I just told myself to fight."

"Before the match, I just told myself, 'Don't think this is Grand Slam, because I really want to win."

Li Na and Zheng Jie reached the Australian Open women's semifinals last year, the first time two Chinese players had gone so far in the same Grand Slam.

Li Na advanced to the fourth round Friday. Zheng Jie is injured and is not competing here.

Global Traveler Hosts Gala Reception for Reader Survey Award Winners

Vince Papale, guest of honor, awards top in travel

Yardley, PA (PRWEB) January 22, 2011

Global Traveler, the only monthly magazine for business and luxury travelers, hosted its seventh annual GT Tested Reader Survey awards reception on Tuesday, Jan. 18, at the Andaz 5th Avenue in New York City.

More than 200 guests gathered to congratulate the respected winners on their achievements. Guest speaker Vince Papale, former NFL player and the inspiration for the blockbuster movie Invincible starring Mark Wahlberg, appeared on behalf of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Papale inspired the crowd to action with a speech on his personal journey to overcome cancer and the importance of finding a cure.

Papale urged attendees to donate travel-related prizes to Global Traveler's charity auction, benefitting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The auction kicks off March 1. Founded in 1949 and headquartered in White Plains, N.Y., The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) is the world's largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding blood cancer research, education and patient services. To learn more, visit .

"Vince Papale's story of overcoming the odds resonates with everyone and we were honored to welcome him to our event," said Francis X. Gallagher, publisher and CEO, Global Traveler. "A big thank-you to Andaz 5th Avenue for helping us host such a successful event. The turnout was superb, with executives worldwide attending. Congratulations once again to the winners: What an honor to have you join us."

Award winners traveled from around the world to accept accolades on behalf of their companies. In attendance:

Rohan Alce, vice president, Etihad AirwaysBest Airline in the Middle East

Jose Alvarado, general manager, Iberia AirlinesBest Red Wine

Trip Barrett, senior vice president, Starwood Hotels & ResortsBest Hotel Chain in Latin America

Don Berg, vice president loyalty programs, InterContinental Hotels GroupBest Hotel Rewards Program

Michael Blunt, vice president, corporate affairs, oneworldBest Airline Alliance, Best Alliance Wines on the Wing

Jim Carter, vice president, American AirlinesBest Airline for Domestic First Class

Rolando Damas, general manager, North America and Asia, AviancaBest Airline in Central/South America

Sinead El Sibai, manager of events, advertising and media coordination, Dubai Duty FreeBest Duty Free

David Erich, commercial and marketing director, OpenSkiesBest All-Business-Class Airline

Jeff Foland, president, United Mileage PlusBest Frequent-Flyer Program

Satoru Fujiki, senior vice president, All Nippon AirwaysBest Airline to Japan

Offer Gat, general manager, EL AL Israel AirlinesBest Airline for Security

Young Geun Lee, vice president, Incheon International AirportBest Airport in the World

Jorge Goytortua, vice president sales, North America, AeromexicoBest Airline in Mexico

Andy Grodecki, vice president, Virgin Atlantic AirwaysBest Airline for Premium-Economy Class

Dorota Haller, marketing director, LOT Polish AirlinesBest Airline in Eastern Europe

T.K. Han, executive vice president, airport and cabin services, Asiana Airlines Best Airline in North Asia, Best Trans-Pacific Airline, Best Flight Attendants & Onboard Service

Tony Hughes, senior vice president, the Americas, Qatar AirwaysBest White Wine

Adrian Ingles, country manager, Philippine AirlinesBest Airline in Southeast Asia

Sara Kearney, senior vice president brands, Hyatt Best International Hotel Chain, Best Hotel Club Floor, Best Lifestyle Hotel

Shannon Knapp, vice president, American Express Membership RewardsBest Credit Card Rewards Program

Richard Krulik, chief executive officer, Briggs & RileyBest Luggage Brand

Craig Landry, vice president, marketing, Air CanadaBest Airline in North America

Nicola Lange, director of marketing and customer relations, LufthansaBest Trans-Atlantic Airline

Alan Lim, vice president, Singapore AirlinesBest Airline in the World

Alice Liu, managing director, onboard services, American AirlinesBest North American Wines on the Wing, Best North American Red Wine, Best North American Sparkling Wine

Won Ma, vice president, Korean AirBest Business-Class Seat Design, Best Airport Staff/Gate Agents

Chandra Mahtani, head of airside planning and leasing, Singapore Changi AirportBest Airport Dining

Lisa Markovic, vice president, Jet AirwaysBest Airline in Central/South Asia and India, Best Sparkling Wine

Todd Neumann, vice president, South African AirwaysBest Airline in Africa

Dave Pflieger, chief executive officer, Air PacificBest Airline in the South Pacific

Ranga Rajan, director, India TourismBest International Tourism Destination

Annette Reantragoon, director of passenger sales, Swiss International Air LinesBest First-Class Seat Design

Kathleen Shea, vice president, sales and marketing, the Americas, Taj Hotels & ResortsBest Hotel in the United States -- Taj Campton Place, San Francisco, Calif.

Simon Talling-Smith, executive vice president Americas, British AirwaysBest Airline for Business Class

Cathie Sych, vice president, QantasBest Airline in Australia and New Zealand

Antonio Temporini, senior vice president, AlitaliaBest Airline Cuisine

Skip Thompson, director of airline marketing, Boeing Best Aircraft Type

Srisuda Wanapinyosak, director, Tourism Authority of ThailandBest International Business City

Brian Windle, vice president, sales and marketing, Shangri-La Hotels & ResortsBest Hotel Chain in Asia

For more information on Global Traveler, visit . Read more about the awards reception in the March 2011 issue, available March 1.

About Global Traveler Global Traveler is a business travel and lifestyle publication and the publication of choice among seasoned business travelers. Global Traveler is the only ABC-audited U.S.-based magazine for the international business traveler, with an ABC paid circulation of 107,140+. No other monthly magazine in its category boasts a higher audited circulation or page count. Ninety percent of its readership has average household income in excess of $100,000; 96 percent attended or graduated from college; and 98 percent of its readers are either top management or professionals.

About FXExpress Publications FXExpress Publications, Inc., based in Yardley, Pa., is a privately held companypublishing Global Traveler magazine; eFlyer, a weekly electronic travel newsletter sent to subscribers and accessible online at ; and eFlyer Asia, . The company also operates ,and blog.globaltravelerusa.com. The company produces several annuals, including the Class Act Book, Global City Guidebook, Luxury Book, Globility book series and custom publishing for various entities.

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Kimberly KrolGlobal Traveler267 364 5811 ext. 202Email Information

News of the Weird:

David Winkelman, 48, was arrested in Davenport, Iowa, in September on a misdemeanor warrant, still sporting "The Tattoo." In late 2000, Winkelman, reacting to a radio "contest," had his forehead inked with the logo of radio station KORB, "93 Rock," because he had heard on-air personalities "offer" $100,000 to anyone who would do it. Winkelman had the tattoo done before checking, however, and the disk jockeys later informed him that the "contest" was a joke. (Winkelman filed a lawsuit against the station, but it was dismissed. Ten years later, the "93 Rock" format has expired, but Winkelman's forehead remains busily tattooed.) [The Smoking Gun, 9-27-10]

Government in Action!

For most of 2010, California's dysfunctional legislature could find no acceptable tax increases or spending cuts to keep the state from going broke, and only in October did it manage to cobble together enough pie-in-the-sky bookkeeping tricks to create the illusion of a balanced budget. Nonetheless, the legislature has been busy. It created a "Motorcycle Awareness Month" and a "Cuss Free Week," considered changing the official state rock, and made it illegal to use non-California cows in the state's marketing materials (a decision that entailed five committee votes and exhausted eight legislative analyses, according to a September Wall Street Journal report). [Wall Street Journal, 9-28-10]

At a U.S. Senate committee grilling in September, the head of enforcement of the Securities and Exchange Commission admitted that not a single agency staff member has been fired or demoted over the multiple missed signals handed to them in some cases 11 years before the Ponzi schemes of Bernard Madoff and R. Allen Stanford were uncovered. Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut said it appeared that "one side of the agency was screaming that there was a fire," but the other side of the agency demurred because putting it out would have been hard work. [St. Petersburg Times-AP, 9-23-10]

The Prudential Financial corporation, holder of life insurance contracts on U.S. troops, modified the standard payout method in 1999 -- by encouraging beneficiaries to take not lump sums but "checking accounts" on which survivors could draw down proceeds "as needed." Though this arrangement obviously benefited Prudential, it was unclear to Bloomberg News (which broke the story in September 2010) why the Department of Veterans Affairs had endorsed it -- implicitly in 1999 and then in writing in September 2009. [New York Times-Bloomberg News, 9-14-10]

Among the Medicare billings only recently discovered as fraudulent (after being paid):

Brooklyn, N.Y., proctologist Boris Sachakov was paid for performing 6,593 hemorrhoidectomies and other procedures over a 13-month period -- an average of 18 every day, 365 days a year (and 6,212 more than the doctor who billed the second-highest number). [New York Daily News, 9-23-10]

Two Hialeah, Fla., companies, "Charlie RX" and "Happy Trips," between them billed Medicare $63,000 for penis pumps -- including a total of four to the same patient (by the way, a woman). [United Press International, 8-17-10]

Great Art!

In October, the award-winning London theater company Duckie announced plans for a June 2011 production, "Lullaby," at the Barbican Pit, that would feature music and performances so soothing that patrons will be encouraged to attend in pajamas and lounge overnight in bed-seats, with an early morning shower included in the ticket price of 42 pounds ($66). Producer Simon Casson noted that, irrespective of the play, it is almost impossible to find overnight facilities in central London for that price. [Reuters, 10-6-10]

A September one-woman "dance" recital of performer-writer Ann Liv Young as a naked "Cinderella" at a theater in Brooklyn, N.Y., ran overtime because Young could not answer a scripted call of nature, which was to have been performed live on stage. According to an incredulous New York Times reviewer, Young sought tips from the audience to get her bowels moving but finally gave up and ended the performance. The reviewer cited the show's "many layers of failure." [New York Times, 9-5-10]

Names Recently in the News

(1) People with tough times ahead: Donald N. Duck, 51 (arrested for DUI, Massillon, Ohio, June). Lord Jesus Christ, 50 (pedestrian injury, Northampton, Mass., May). Tara Wang (marrying Austin DeCock in Moorhead, Minn., in October). (2) Police saw them coming: Jerry Dick, 46 (pleaded guilty to indecent exposure, Greensboro, N.C., August). Kermit Butts, 26 (arrested in the slaying of Samuel Boob, Madisonburg, Pa., August). Cum Starkweather, 56 (arrested for prostitution, Springfield, Ohio, August). (3) Keeping the name but making all municipal signs theft-proof: Shitterton village in Dorset County, England. Duck: [Canton Repository, 6-28-10] Christ: [The Republican (Springfield), 5-6-10] Wang: [Fargo Forum, 9-19-10] Dick: [Greensboro News-Record, 8-4-10] Butts: [Centre Daily (State College, Pa.), 8-30-10] Starkweather: [Dayton Daily News, 8-26-10] Shitterton: [Daily Telegraph (London), 7-22-10]

Chutzpah!

The ski-mask-wearing armed robber who knocked off a Wendy's in Atlanta on July 31 has not been apprehended, but police said he later called the store to ridicule the staff for having so little cash: "(N)ext time, there better be more than $586." [Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 8-1-10]

Ronald White, 35, was arrested in Cinnaminson, N.J., in July, and charged with shoplifting, and was released after posting $400 bail. Only afterward did police realize that some of the money was counterfeit, but five days later, White was re-arrested when he returned to the station to demand a partial refund for "overpaying" the bail. [Philadelphia Inquirer, 7-14-10]

Least Competent Dictator

In September, when Ms. Nomatter Tagarira was sentenced to 39 months in jail for fraud, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe and several officials were hoping to close the book on an embarrassing episode. Tagarira had convinced them in 2007 that she had the ability, by chanting into a rock, to find diesel fuel in the ground and make it shoot to the surface. Of course, this could only be accomplished by Tagarira's having henchmen behind bushes using a pump, but apparently it worked, as she was rewarded with a $2.7 million fee and given use of a 50-vehicle convoy for her dowsing missions. Her ruse was not discovered until a year later. [The Australian, 10-2-10]

Least Competent Criminals

No Time for Disguises: Larry Shawn Taylor, 18, was arrested in Seattle in September, having been rather easily identifiable when police stopped him. Two victims had reported being robbed by a man with "GET MONEY" shaved into his haircut on one side and "GET" tattooed on his right hand and "MONEY" tattooed on the left. (At least Taylor did not claim that someone else must have had the same configuration.) [KOMO-TV (Seattle), 9-8-10]

Undignified Deaths

A 49-year-old Bakersfield, Calif., doctor, whose relationship with her boyfriend was described as "on-again, off-again," was killed in August when, after he had locked her out of his house, she tried to enter by sliding down the chimney, where she got stuck and asphyxiated. [MSNBC-AP, 8-31-10]

A 29-year-old man, in a group of 12 "ghost hunters" on a field trip in Iredell County, N.C., in August, was killed by a speeding train. The 12 were investigating a rumored "ghost train" that killed 30 people in an 1891 crash and supposedly returns every year on the anniversary date. [WSOC-TV (Charlotte), 8-27-10]

A News of the Weird Classic (October 2003)

News of the Weird reported in December 2002 that Inga Kosak had won the first World Extreme Ironing Championship in Munich by pressing a designated garment over a course of several ironing stations (e.g., ironing in trees, in the middle of streams). An October 2003 Wall Street Journal story shows the "sport" growing in prominence. South African Anton Van De Venter, 27, broke the high-altitude record in August by ironing his national flag at the 20,000-foot summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, while nude, in freezing temperatures (quote: "I came, I saw, I pressed a crease"), and British diver Ian Mitchell sawed through ice in Wisconsin in March and submitted photos of himself in a wet suit "ironing" (with a Black & Decker Quick 'n' Easy) a shirt that was braced against the underside of the ice. [Wall Street Journal, 10-1-03]

Thanks This Week to Nancy Korenchan, Adriel Reed, Joe Weckbacher, Roger Leduc, Jeff Carrick, Bruce Leiserowitz, Steve Dunn, Jonathan Bearce, Gil Nelson, Elaine Weiss, Brent Hunter, Peter Hine, and Mike Mendenhall, and to many finders of Lord Jesus Christ, and to the News of the Weird Board of Editorial Advisors.

(Are you ready for News of the Weird Pro Edition? Every Monday atand . Other handy addresses: WeirdNews at earthlink dot net, , and P.O. Box 18737, Tampa FL 33679.)