Welcome to The Breakfast Club! We’re a disorganized group of rebel lefties who hang out and chat if and when we’re not too hungover we’ve been bailed out we’re not too exhausted from last night’s (CENSORED) the caffeine kicks in. Join us every weekday morning at 9am (ET) and weekend morning at 10:30am (ET) to talk about current news and our boring lives and to make fun of LaEscapee! If we are ever running late, it’s PhilJD’s fault.
This Day in History
Peace talks conclude in Northern Ireland with Good Friday agreement; the Titanic sets sail; F. Scott Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’ published; Comedian Sam Kinison killed.
Breakfast Tunes
Something to Think about over Coffee Prozac
I have learned silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet, strange, I am ungrateful to those teachers.
Breakfast News
Liberal group accuses Schumer of trying to start a war with Iran
A liberal group is suggesting Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is trying to start a war with Iran by supporting a bill connected to nuclear negotiations with Tehran.
“Starting a war with Iran is apparently the top legislative priority for the next leader of the Senate Democratic caucus,” CREDO Action says in its petition, which has garnered more than 50,000 signatures.
The petition is the latest step in a push by the left to try to convince Democrats to vote against legislation sponsored by Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.). That proposal would allow Congress to weigh in on any final deal on Iran’s nuclear program.
CREDO’s petition, similar to a letter sent Wednesday, compares the upcoming votes on Iran to a 2002 vote on the Iraq War, saying Schumer was “wrong on Iraq, and now you’re wrong on Iran.”
“Tell Sen. Chuck Schumer: You were wrong on Iraq, and now you’re wrong on Iran,” the group says in its petition. “This is not the Democratic leadership we need in the Senate.”
Obama hints at Cuba breakthrough as he flies south for Raúl Castro meeting
Barack Obama is poised to remove Cuba from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, marking another important step toward rapprochement between the former cold war enemies.
The president said on Thursday that the State Department had finished the review of Cuba’s status that he ordered in December when he announced moves to normalise diplomatic relations. [..]US officials have hinted that a breakthrough may be possible at the Summit of the Americas in Panama. If Cuba is removed from the list, it would ease the government’s ability to operate in Washington, where the Cuban “Interest Section” is currently blocked from having a bank account. The symbolic importance would be even greater.
US officials have hinted that a breakthrough may be possible at the Summit of the Americas in Panama. If Cuba is removed from the list, it would ease the government’s ability to operate in Washington, where the Cuban “Interest Section” is currently blocked from having a bank account. The symbolic importance would be even greater.
Oklahoma nitrogen gas execution bill gets unanimous yes vote in state senate
With US death penalty states scrambling for alternatives to lethal injection amid a shortage of deadly drugs, Oklahoma legislators believe they’ve found a foolproof and humane method: nitrogen gas hypoxia.
Without a single dissenting vote, the Oklahoma senate gave final legislative approval Thursday and sent the governor a bill that would allow the new method to be used if lethal injection is ruled unconstitutional or if the deadly drugs become unavailable. Republican governor Mary Fallin supports the death penalty, but her spokesman declined to comment on the measure Thursday.
Critics of using nitrogen gas say that one concern is that the method is untested, and some states even ban its use to put animals to sleep.
Godzilla recruited as tourism ambassador for Tokyo
Fire-breathing, building-stomping Godzilla was welcomed to Tokyo on Thursday, but as a sign of prosperity rather than destruction. The violent radioactive monster was appointed special resident and tourism ambassador for Shinjuku ward, known for its bars and noodle restaurants.
A Godzilla-size head towering 52metres (171ft) above ground level was unveiled at an office of Toho, the Japanese film company which produced the original monster, in 1954. Toho is shooting a comeback film this year after a decade-long hiatus.
Godzilla’s standing as an icon has had its ups and downs, but its stature was reinstated with the Hollywood science fiction film directed by Gareth Edwards that became a global hit in 2014.
Pygmy marmosets caught up in dispute between Sweden and Saudi Arabia
Officially at least, Sweden and Saudi Arabia have resolved their recent dispute over Stockholm’s criticism of Riyadh’s human rights record. The fallout, however, is apparently still being felt in unusual places.
A private zoo in Stockholm said on Wednesday that it had been forced to cancel plans to send two pairs of pygmy marmosets to Riyadh after a Saudi official vetoed the arrangement. [..]
Sweden’s foreign ministry said last week it expected Saudi Arabia to reopen for Swedish business again as relations returned to normal after the row, which saw the temporary withdrawal of Saudi Arabia’s ambassador. Monkey permits, it appears, are still off limits.
Don’t want to get motion sickness in a self-driving car? Take a nap
Turns out that being driven around is not all that fun. Riding in a self-driving car can increase the likelihood and frequency of motion sickness, a new study from the University of Michigan has found. Unless, that is, you’re asleep.
This is mostly due to the fact that passengers are more likely to be involved in activities other than driving.
As part of their study, Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle, who work at the university’s Transportation Research Institute, interviewed 3,255 adults in the US, China, India, Japan, UK and Australia, asking them what they would do in a car if they did not have to drive.
More than a fifth of the respondents in the US, UK and Australia said that they would not ride in a self-driving car at all.
NFL hires its first woman to officiate games full-time
The National Football League on Wednesday said it would hire a woman for the first time to officiate games full-time for the most popular US sport.
Sarah Thomas, 41, will join the NFL as a line judge after officiating in Conference USA, a college league, since 2007, the league said. [..]
Shannon Eastin was the NFL’s first female official, serving as a line judge for the first three games of the 2012 season. She was hired as a replacement official during the lockout of full-time referees in a labor dispute.
Must Read Blog Posts
The Tsarnaev Verdict: What We Still Don’t Know About Terrorism Charles P. Pierce, Esquire Politics
Government’s Assassination of Anwar al-Awlaki Used “Significantly Different” EO 12333 Analysis Marcy Wheeler, emptywheel
When Will the Senate Budget Committee Majority Ever Learn About Sector Financial Balances? Joe Firestone (aka letsgetitdone), New Economic Perspectives
Response to a Distressed Libertarian Reader about Discrimination William K. Black, New Economic Perspectives
Why Online Abuse Is Not Our Destiny Shawn DuBravac, Techdirt
Supreme Court Says Lifetime GPS Monitoring Of Sex Offenders May Be Unconstitutional Tim Cushing, Techdirt
Why Don’t Surveillance State Defenders Seem To Care That The Programs They Love Don’t Work? Mike Masnick, Techdirt
Unworthy Victims: Western Wars Have Killed Four Million Muslims Since 1990 CTuttle, FDL
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