Do You Really Know Michele Bachmann?

Ryan Lizza published a great article on the making of Michele Bachmann, who is starting to appear more right-winged than Sarah Palin.  Check out "Leap of Faith": http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/08/15/110815fa_fact_lizza

China's Reaction to S & P's Downgrade of the U.S.'s Credit Rating - More than a Little Troubling

In reaction to Standard & Poor's downgrade of the U.S.'s credit rating on August 5, 2011, China’s official Xinhua news agency recently criticized the U.S. government for its "gigantic military expenditure and bloated social welfare costs," and opined that the U. S. must "reestablish the common sense principle that one should live within its means."  As much as I would love to criticize any statement from a news organization controlled by the People's Republic of China, a country rife with human rights abuses, China's reaction to Standard & Poor's downgrading of our credit rating is absolutely warranted.  China owns more of the U.S. debt than any other country in the world.  Hopefully, its criticism will serve as a wake-up call to Washington.

Check-out the above-referenced article from China Daily, which is known to reflect the official policy of the People's Republic of China: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/xinhua/2011-08-06/content_3422301.html.  Delightful reading?

The Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2011 - Prohibiting Employment Discrimination Based on a Candidate's Unemployed Status

H.R. 2501 ("The Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2011"), if passed through the House and Senate and signed into law by the President, would prohibit all employment agencies and employers with 15 or more employees from discriminating against unemployed candidates on the basis of their unemployed status.  In particular, under the existing terms of the bill, employers and employment agencies would be barred from publishing job postings that indicate that unemployed individuals will be automatically disqualified from consideration.  In addition, employers would be prohibited  from requesting that recruiting agencies exclude unemployed candidates during the hiring process.  The author of The New York Times' June 26, 2011 editorial on this topic believes that this bill should be passed as a measure to help the jobless re-enter the workforce.  See http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/26/opinion/26tue3.html.

While the objective behind this proposed legislation is admirable, it is likely that the long-term unemployed would still be discriminated against if H.R. 2501 is eventually signed into law.  Employers would still have the right to eliminate a candidate based on his or her poor credit score or the fact that the candidate's skill-set had atrophied during the period of unemployment. 

Raj Rajaratnam and the Galleon Group - An Illumination of the Dark Side of Human Nature

I recently read an entertaining article in The New Yorker on the conviction of billionaire Raj Rajaratnam for insider trading.  According to George Packer's article entitled "A Dirty Business," "Rajaratnam’s view of human nature was not so different from that of Willie Stark, in 'All the King’s Men': 'Man is conceived in sin and born in corruption and he passeth from the stink of the didie to the stench of the shroud.' If there are examples of people whom Rajaratnam unsuccessfully tried to corrupt, they have not surfaced in the voluminous public record on Galleon."  Danielle Chiesi, Anil Kumar, and Rajat Gupta were a few of the many individuals who ultimately fell prey to the temptation of insider trading because of Raj Rajaratnam's powers of persuasion.

Read more http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/06/27/110627fa_fact_packer#ixzz1T2Os7aJ4

A "Womanizer" is Not Tantamount to a "Rapist" - Lessons Learned from the Prosecution of former IMF Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn and Wikileaks founder Julian Assange

There is no question that former International Monetary Fund Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn ("DSK") is a womanizer.  And we know that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange falls into that classification as well.  However, for prosecutors to pursue rape charges against either of these individuals based on their unsavory past, before thoroughly researching the backgrounds and the credibility of their alleged "victims," is just wrong -- plain and simple. 

While the Wikileaks founder has been prosecuted by Swedish authorities under Sweden's liberal rape laws, the Manhattan District Attorney's office is responsible for the prosecution of DSK and it now knows that the Sofitel maid who accused DSK of rape may very well have ties to drug trafficking and money laundering (and possibly have set-up DSK in some sort of extortion plot).  Under these circumstances, I absolutely agree with Bob Barr's article in the Huffington Post entitled, "Pulling DSK Case Back from Wonderland." http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bob-barr/pulling-dsk-case-back-fro_b_896336.html#
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. should drop the case against DSK immediately.  

Republican Presidential Candidate U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) Signs Controversial "Marriage Vow" Pledge Drafted by Extremely Right-Winged Christian Group

If you don't know much about Republican Presidential Candidate Michele Bachmann, here's some food for thought:  U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann just signed a pledge, drafted by a right-winged Christian group (of course), whereby she promised to vigorously oppose same-sex marriage and abortion rights, support legislation aimed at increasing hurdles for those individuals looking to obtain divorces, and support "robust childbearing and reproduction."

Read the document itself:

http://thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/The-Family-Leader-Presidential-Pledge.pdf

Botox Injections Have Pitfalls, Too..

If you're freaked out by the idea of lines on your forehead or crow's feet around your eyes, and believe that a few injections will give you more self-confidence, then by all means do it.  But don't believe that miracle injection is without a cost... 

The inability to make certain facial expressions can make one appear cold, calculating, and simply disinterested in whatever activity the Botox user is partaking in.  In addition, according to a recent New York Times article by Pamela Paul, Botox users have a decreased ability to empathize with others.
See http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/19/fashion/botox-reduces-the-ability-to-empathize-study-says.html?hpw.  Based on the aforementioned article, politicians and theater actors, at the very least, may find that the non-monetary cost of undergoing the needle outweighs the superficial benefits of this anti-aging treatment.