A bipartisan group of legislators has introduced a bill that would require the Agriculture Department to set new nutritional standards for all food sold in schools, with the goal of restricting junk food sales. Current regulations apply to cafeteria breakfasts and lunches, but not vending-machine or school-store snacks. I’m all for this—but wonder if restrictions
The New York Times today reports on schools that are cutting funding for gifted programs in order to meet the requirements for the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law. Schools are shifting funds to ensure that struggling students attain the law’s basic math and reading levels. This highlights one of the biggest dilemmas facing
This week’s big story was that the Massachusetts’ Supreme Judicial Court upheld the 1913 law forbidding non-residents to marry in Massachusetts if their home states do not permit them to marry. The law was originally intended to prohibit interracial marriages. Governor Mitt Romney applauded the ruling, saying “We don’t want Massachusetts to become the Las
In New Hampshire, the House voted 207-125 against amending the state constitution to prohibit same-sex marriage. In Ohio, the Cincinnati City Council voted to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity and expression in employment, housing and public accommodations. The governor of Utah, Jon Huntsman Jr., has vetoed an anti-gay bill that would
Amélie Mauresmo took over the number one spot on the WTA tour Monday, the second time she’s held that position. This time, she says she feels more confident she’ll hold the ranking at least till the end of the year. (Note to U. S. media: The HTML code for an “e” with an acute accent
Mamazine points out a great column by San Francisco Chronicle columnist Jon Carroll, on the American Family Association’s [sic] boycott of Ford for “[supporting] a social agenda aimed at the destruction of the family.” Carroll says, in part: The gay and lesbian parents I know are too busy to have an agenda, unless the agenda
The big news this week was the decision by Catholic Charities of Boston to shut down its adoption services instead of adhering to state laws requiring them to consider same-sex couples as prospective parents. The Massachusetts Department of Social Services gave Catholic Charities approximately $1 million in reimbursements for its adoption-related work in fiscal year
The big LGBT political story this week was the Supreme Court decision that said a college cannot refuse access to military recruiters by claiming the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy conflicts with the school’s antidiscrimination rules. Enough’s been said about the inherent unfairness of DADT that I won’t belabor the point here, except to
A five-year study on children in a Romanian orphanage, and the changes they experience when transferred to foster care, concludes that lack of a loving family can lead to stunted growth, substantially lower IQs and more behavioural and psychological problems than children who experienced better care. (Thanks to Blogging Baby for the sighting.) Studies from
It’s International Women’s Day, and the theme is “Women in Decision-Making.” The UN Web site has more information on the holiday, including a short history (it was first observed in 1909), a message from the secretary-general, and links to other sites and resources on the status of women around the world. As this article points
