Irish Catholic Church covered up child abuse, report says – CNN.com
CNN) — The Archdiocese of Dublin and other Catholic Church authorities in Ireland covered up clerical child abuse until the mid-1990s, according to a government-commissioned report released Thursday.
The Dublin Archdiocese Commission of Investigation’s 720-page report said that it has “no doubt that clerical child sexual abuse was covered up” from January 1975 to May 2004, the time covered by the report.
“The Dublin Archdiocese’s pre-occupations in dealing with cases of child sexual abuse, at least until the mid 1990s, were the maintenance of secrecy, the avoidance of scandal, the protection of the reputation of the Church, and the preservation of its assets,” the report said.
via Irish Catholic Church covered up child abuse, report says – CNN.com.
Historic health care bill clears Senate hurdle – Yahoo! News
WASHINGTON – Invoking the memory of Edward M. Kennedy, Democrats united Saturday night to push historic health care legislation past a key Senate hurdle over the opposition of Republicans eager to inflict a punishing defeat on President Barack Obama. There was not a vote to spare.The 60-39 vote cleared the way for a bruising, full-scale debate beginning after Thanksgiving on the legislation, which is designed to extend coverage to roughly 31 million who lack it, crack down on insurance company practices that deny or dilute benefits and curtail the growth of spending on medical care nationally.The spectator galleries were full for the unusual Saturday night showdown, and applause broke out briefly when the vote was announced. In a measure of the significance of the moment, senators sat quietly in their seats, standing only when they were called upon to vote.
via Historic health care bill clears Senate hurdle – Yahoo! News.
Fox News’ year in apologies: fake videos, false info, cutting and pasting from GOP
Fox News’ year in apologies: fake videos, false info, cutting and pasting from GOP
AP Poll: Public favors gov’t health plan – Yahoo! News
By ERICA WERNER, Associated Press Writer Erica Werner, Associated Press Writer – Wed Nov 18, 12:24 pm ET
WASHINGTON – More Americans support creation of a new government-run health insurance plan to compete with the private insurance market, a new Associated Press poll finds, but the level of enthusiasm depends on how the question is asked.
Tell people that letting the government sell insurance would be cheaper for them, and a majority is in favor.
Tell them the government would be making decisions about what medical care they could get, and support sinks.
The findings from an Associated Press poll come as lawmakers struggle to advance President Barack Obamas signature health care overhaul, with the final shape of any government insurance plan very much in doubt. The issue has been the biggest flash point in the health care debate, and the poll results underscore that how it is defined can make a big difference in the public's response.
Politicians know that. It’s why when Republicans talk about letting the government sell health coverage in competition with private carriers, they cast it as a government takeover that would destroy private industry. Democrats talk about choice, competition and “keeping health insurance companies honest.”
The TV Watch – On ‘Oprah,’ Sarah Palin Moves Off Her Message – NYTimes.com
There were no questions about the Bush doctrine, but Sarah Palin’s appearance Monday on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” to promote her memoir looked less like a celebratory comeback than a redo of the presidential campaign.Skip to next paragraphABCSarah Palin appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” to promote her book.BlogArtsBeatArtsBeatThe latest on the arts, coverage of live events, critical reviews, multimedia extravaganzas and much more. Join the discussion. More Arts NewsABCMs. Palin on the show.For all her aplomb and telegenic charm, Ms. Palin still had the hunted look and defensive crouch she wore in television interviews with Katie Couric and Charles Gibson last year. And it would seem that the pain of those tongue-tied encounters was not exorcised by writing “Going Rogue: An American Life,” a tell-all book that blamed the McCain staff for the way it “handled” her on the trail.When Ms. Winfrey pressed Ms. Palin about why she would not mention the names of newspapers or magazines she read when Ms. Couric asked her to, Ms. Palin said she found the CBS anchor’s persistence “annoying.” Still looking annoyed, she recalled how she left a rally “pumped up” and aglow, only to pull back the curtain and discover Ms. Couric waiting with camera and crew, or as she put it sourly, “There’s the perky one again.”Ms. Winfrey, who didn’t hide her surprise at Ms. Palin’s impolitic wording, came to Ms. Couric’s defense, noting, “You’re pretty perky too.”
via The TV Watch – On ‘Oprah,’ Sarah Palin Moves Off Her Message – NYTimes.com.
David Brooks: Palin’s A ‘Joke,’ A ‘Potential Talk Show Host’ VIDEO
New York Times columnist David Brooks — never a huge fan of Sarah Palin — laced into the former vice presidential candidate on Sunday, calling her a “joke” and a “potential talk show host.”Speaking the day before Palins new book, “Going Rogue,” is slated to be officially released, Brooks scoffed at the notion that the ex-governor was somehow ready to be the face of the GOP.”She’s a joke,” he told ABC “This Week.” “I mean, I just can’t take her seriously. We have got serious problems in the country. Barack Obama is trying to handle war. We just had a guy elected Virginia governor who is probably the model for future of the Republican Party, Bob McDonnell: Pretty serious guy, pragmatic, calm, kind of boring. The idea that this potential talk show host is considered seriously for the Republican nomination, believe me, it will never happen. Republican primary voters are just not going to elect a talk show host.”Brooks has never been a big Palin believer. Back in October of 2008, he said that Palin “represents a fatal cancer to the Republican Party” and insisted that she was “absolutely not” ready to be president.
via David Brooks: Palin’s A ‘Joke,’ A ‘Potential Talk Show Host’ VIDEO.
