Gabrielle Giffords' doctors, husband share details on her progress

 The Arizona Republic   "Many other things are different since Giffords' brain was pierced by a bullet during the shootings near Tucson on Jan. 8. Her hair is short, maybe 2 inches long, says Pia Carusone, her chief of staff, so there are scars on her scalp that show through. Eventually, her hair will cover them. A thin scar across the top of her forehead is healing well and fading, and her face, though sometimes swollen, is otherwise the same as before..."

Fox News



Giffords Able to Stand on Own, Working to Improve Movement in Rehab

Taco Bell: Taco Loco Lawsuit, A lawsuit that makes the case for "loser pays" tort reform..

WSJ.com  "...frivolous lawsuits like this tie up the courts and cost companies millions of dollars, money that would be better spent hiring new workers or making beef tacos beefier. To discourage such lawsuits, Texas is considering "loser pays" legislation modelled on the British system, which requires losing parties to pay their opponents' legal fees. If it passes, Taco Bell and many other companies may soon be seeking to incorporate in the Lone Star State."
Taco Bell's statement
Taco Bell asks: would it kill you to say "I'm sorry"?  Good to see the business world fighting back. Enough is enough. 

The Trump factor

toonpool

A.B. Stoddard, columnist, The Hill "The Donald show is becoming so outlandish — this week's developments include Trump claiming he is tight with "the blacks" — that even nonpartisan observers of the GOP 2012 primary race are beginning to feel sorry for legitimate contenders like former Govs. Mitt Romney (Mass.) and Tim Pawlenty (Minn.) and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour."

As long as Trump attacks Obama and Democrats, things are good. If he turns his efforts and great fortune to attacking conservatives he becomes a liability. 

Obama, Donald Trump, and the Collective Unconscious  "Of course, the left controls the flow of ideas by maintaining a stranglehold on the mainstream media. But there's another reason: the left subscribes to Alinsky-type smear tactics.
"Progressives will call their opponents a "tea bagger" even though the phrase is sexually explicit and lewd. They'll allow Bill Maher and other amoral types to verbally rape conservative women. Conservatives don't follow suit because these below-the-belt tactics are anathema." By Robin of Berkeley

The meaning of Maundy Thursday and the Tenebrae Service

Worshipandchurchmusic.com   "The name Tenebrae is the Latin word for "darkness" or "shadows." Tonight we will experience only a small portion of Christ’s pain and suffering the day of His crucifixion. One of the most conspicuous features of the service is the gradual extinguishing of candles until only a single candle, considered a symbol of our Lord, remains. As it gets darker and darker we can reflect on the great emotional and physical pain that was very real for Jesus that evening. Toward the end of the service, the Christ candle is hidden, typifying the apparent victory of the forces of evil over good....

The mood created sets up the Resurrection Service on Easter Sunday and this hymn is an excellent bridge from Tenebrae to Easter.

You have to be moved at this song by Dolly Parton ;  And this version by Don Francisco
We looked for restrictions on the use of these videos and found none. If there are, we regret the error and will gladly remove them. Until then, we hope you will be blessed by the songs and these two artists.

A subtle Easter thought

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/stevebreen

Arab "Democracy" : The Silent Extermination of Iraq's 'Christian Dogs'

christiansofiraq

Raymond Ibrahim  "Conversely, by empowering "the people," the US has unwittingly undone Iraq's Christian minority. Naively projecting Western values on Muslims, US leadership continues to think that "people-power" will naturally culminate into a liberal, egalitarian society — despite all the evidence otherwise. The fact is, in the Arab/Muslim world, "majority rule" traditionally means domination by the largest tribe or sect; increasingly, it means Islamist domination.

"Either which way, the minorities — notably the indigenous Christians — are the first to suffer once the genie of "people-power" is uncorked."

California Abandons History for Melodrama

Bruce S. Thornton  "Just when you think California can’t get any wackier, the state legislature steps up and proves you wrong. ... Assembly is set to vote on SB 48, a bill already passed by the Senate, which will “require instruction in social sciences to also include a study of the role and contributions of Native Americans, African Americans, Mexican Americans, Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, European Americans, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans, persons with disabilities, and other ethnic and cultural groups, to the development of California and the United States.” Even more troubling, the bill says that “The state board or and any governing board shall not adopt any textbooks or other instructional materials for use in the public schools that contain any matter reflecting adversely upon persons on the basis of race or ethnicity, gender, religion, disability, nationality, sexual orientation.”  Emphasis added.

(Updated) MCDONALD'S BEATING VICTIM IS TRANSGENDER SO NOW IT'S A HATE CRIME! (Update-victim's name.)

Transgender victim of brutal attack at McDonald’s restaurant speaks out  (Video) "Chrissy Lee Polis, 22, said she had a sex-change operation to become a woman, and that this isn’t the first time she’s been picked on physically because of her gender identity, reported the Baltimore Sun."


McDonald’s Beating Victim Identified as Christopher (Chrissy) Lee Polis – Cross Dressing Male
"The police report identifies the victim as 22-year-old Chrissy Lee Polis, who appears identical to Christopher Lee Polis, whose rap sheet includes convictions for disorderly conduct, property destruction, and prostitution, according to court records. Polis told police that she was walking to the restaurant’s bathroom when she “got into a verbal argument with two black females” who “began punching her in the face with their fists and pulling her hair.”

MediaTakeOut.com  "New developments tonight in the case of a person brutally attacked at a McDonalds in Baltimore County. Equality Maryland says the victim is a transgender woman. The organization’s board president, Chuck Butler released the following statement:"...

Transgender Woman Severely Beaten at Baltimore McDonalds While Employees Watch

"This is absolutely disgusting. After an unidentified transwoman tried to use the bathroom at a Baltimore McDonald's, two patrons started attacking her in full view of other customers and employees. What did the employees do? They filmed it on their phones." McDonald's has much to answer for, but so does the community this restaurant serves.

Donald Trump: The president we deserve

Salon  "He's got Reagan's blarney, Clinton's libido and plenty of experience with massive debt and bankruptcy. Perfect!" 

Oh my: Trump phones Krauthammer — and convinces him that he’s running  "Liberals hate him for his Birtherism and want to believe he’s some sort of Biblical plague visited upon Republicans to punish them for the sins of their fringe. Prominent conservatives hate him because his record is, shall we say, spotty and because he’s sucking up media oxygen from more viable candidates."

Bush V. Obama: Who’s The Better Commander-in-Chief? I Think We All Know The Answer…

Big Peace   "As everyone who was paying attention remembers, in 2007-2008 a young upstart and would-be presidential candidate named Barack Obama spoke disparagingly (if not disrespectfully) of President George W. Bush’s willingness to go to war in Iraq. And then-Senator Obama also did everything in his power to insure Bush lacked the approval to go to war anywhere else. (For instance, to keep Bush from attacking Iran Obama introduced S.J.Res.23, requiring that “any offensive military action taken by the United States against Iran must be explicitly authorized by Congress.” And just to be doubly sure Bush’s hands were tied, Obama bravely declared: “[the] president does not have power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation.”)"
"Of course that’s all just so much water under the bridge now."

We Call It ‘Rationing,’ Obama Calls It ‘Medicare Independent Payment Advisory Board’ ( IPAB )

Pajamas Media  "We’ve already seen a foretaste of this when a federal government medical panel attempted to save money by restricting screening mammography to women over age 50, even though decades of medical research has shown clear benefits to starting annual mammograms at age 40. Although the Obama administration stated that the IPAB would not ration medical care, its power to set payments to doctors and hospitals would give it de facto rationing power."

'Death Panels' Come Back to Life  "The FDA's restrictions on the drug Avastin are the beginning of a long slide toward health-care rationing."

Esquire Magazine disagrees saying private insurance has it's own "death panels"

Racial beat-down in a McDonalds (Updated)

Update: MCDONALD'S BEATING VICTIM IS TRANSGENDER

LiveLeak  "Violence in another McDonalds almost kills customer
"Here is another fine example of the trend of violence in fast food restaurants. Two black females beating the hell out of a white patron, while several black employees stand by and watch. One black male manages to provide the facade of assistance to the white victim in this brutal attack."

Baltimore Sun  "County police confirmed that the attack occurred April 18 in the 6300 block of Kenwood Ave. Police said the 14-year-old girl has been charged as a juvenile, while charges were pending against an 18-year-old woman.
"The victim suffered cuts to her mouth and face, and a police report said she was in "fair" condition.
"The report classifies the attack as a "second degree assault" -- one of the suspects said that the fight was "with a woman over using a bathroom.""

Police Report  Three pages, but good luck identifying anyone. Much is blacked out, but the victim is identified as a woman, contrary to the following article. We await more information.

McDonald's Employee Took Credit For Filming Brutal Beating In Baltimore Fast Food Joint
Vernon Hackett's Facebook post:

"As seen above, in a Facebook posting, Hackett has contended that the woman seen getting beaten in the video was actually a male cross-dresser who got into a confrontation with female patrons when he refused to leave the women’s bathroom at the Baltimore eatery. Hackett claimed that the victim faked a seizure and, when cops arrived at the restaurant, “he got right up.”
"Hackett did not reply to TSG messages sent to his Twitter and Facebook pages, which he subsequently deleted late this morning."