Trump ordered that the term Homo sapiens be changed to Hetero sapiens. In history books and on websites, the airplane from which the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima will no longer be identified as the Enola Gay, but rather the Enola Straight. Trump also ordered billionaire Mark Cuban, who supported Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, to change his name to Mark American. If he does not do so, he will be charged with terrorism.   read more

Privacy advocates have expressed concerns over the deployment of the technology on buses, saying the moves raise questions about the limits of legally protected privacy in public spaces. This mass government eavesdropping on the public will occur without any kind of court order or warrant.   read more

The Republican-led legislature in 2011 approved “Choose Life” specialty plates for automobiles, but not plates with a pro-choice message. The American Civil Liberties Union sued to have the legislation thrown out, which U.S. District Court Judge James Fox agreed to do last week.   read more

Support for full legalization of marijuana continues to grow among Americans. In 1969 when Gallup first asked about legalizing pot, only 12% supported the idea. That percentage expanded to about a third of the population by 2005, and now it’s up to 48%, with 60% of those aged 18 to 29 favoring legalization.   read more

In seven states, atheists cannot run for public office, and in Arkansas, they can’t even testify as witnesses at trials, according to the report. Outside the United States, religious skeptics suffer persecution or discrimination—or even death. At least seven nations that operate under Islamic law have provisions for executing atheists. The seven are Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Afghanistan, Sudan, Mauritania, and the Maldives.   read more

If a single man and a single woman each earn $200,000, Wimer explained, neither would owe any additional Medicare payroll tax. But if they are married, they would owe $1,350, thanks to the 0.9% extra tax on earnings over $250,000. Among the wealthiest 20% of households, the tax increases will average about $6,000 next year. Altogether, the new taxes are expected to raise $318 billion over 10 years.   read more

Led by Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), 12 other senators want the administration to accept restrictions on spying on Americans who communicate with foreigners that have nothing to do with terrorism. Those siding with Wyden include conservative Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah). “You have this potentially large pile of communications and nobody knows how many Americans are in that pile,” Wyden told The Washington Post.   read more

An investigation by the Boston Globe found that ICE freed more than 8,500 detainees convicted of murder, rape, and other crimes over the past four years, usually because their home countries refused to take them back. More than 20 nations have turned down U.S. requests to receive deported criminals.   read more

A Humanist and president of West Point’s Secular Student Alliance, Page said he witnessed routine prayers at mandatory events for cadets and rewards to students who participated in religious retreats and chapel choirs. Page served two years in the Army as an enlisted soldier before entering West Point, where he majored first in chemical engineering and then in management.   read more

Many documents produced by the U.S. government are confidential and not released to the public for legitimate reasons of national security. Others, however, are kept secret for more questionable reasons. The fact that presidents and other government officials have the power to deem materials classified provides them with an opportunity to use national security as an excuse to suppress documents and reports that would reveal embarrassing or illegal activities.   read more

The 6,000 page report is said to conclude that “enhanced interrogation” techniques—including waterboarding, sleep deprivation, forced nudity and physical abuse—contributed little or no intelligence that could not have been obtained legally. Waterboarding used to be called “water torture,” and the U.S. hanged Japanese interrogators who used it on American POWs during World War II.   read more

The committee is offering several inaugural packages, each with a different mix of goodies and named for a president: Washington ($1 million from institutions and $250,000 from individuals); Adams ($500,000 from institutions and $150,000 from individuals); Jefferson ($250,000 from institutions and $75,000 from individuals); and Madison ($100,000 from institutions and $10,000 from individuals).   read more

Under the new rules, the State Department would get 48 hours to review Twitter posts and five days to approve a blog entry, speech, or remarks prepared for a live event. The agency also would require 30 days to examine manuscripts before books go to print.   read more

Beginning last week, officers and supervisors initiated inspections of all Air Force locales to remove any calendar, poster, briefing slide or other photo that displays women in a sexual manner. The decision impacts all levels of the Air Force, including reserves and Air National Guard units. The goal is to completely remove the photos by December 17.   read more

Despite the President’s focus on $250,000, the dividing line appears to be at $300,000. The expiration of other Bush tax cut provisions, including limits on deductions and higher taxes on investment income, will raise taxes for only 32% of families with income between $250,000 and $300,000, according to Citizens for Tax Justice, while 77% percent with income between $300,000 and $350,000 would see an increase.   read more

Dempsey suggested that the Joint Chiefs review the staffing, travel privileges and other perquisites provided to senior officers, who often travel in corporate-style jets and have their own cooks, drivers and dozens of aides who perform personal errands. Such cushy treatment can be addictive, leading to a sense of personal superiority and entitlement. General Ward, for example, is accused of assigning staff to run errands for him and his wife.   read more

Republican lawmakers shifted $73 million from family planning services to other programs so that Planned Parenthood clinics, which offer abortions, had less money to work with. But the move could result in nearly 24,000 more babies being born to low-income women during 2014-2015 due to reduced access to state-subsidized birth control. In FY2011, the state family planning services helped 202,968 people. In FY2012 that figure dropped to 75,160.   read more