World

Conservative right-wing political talk show host Glenn Beck is hosting the Restoring Honor rally (renamed by Wonkette the "Lard-Baby Rally & Hate Festival") this Saturday. The rally takes place near the Lincoln Memorial -- one of the most important monuments built to honor an American president -- and is described on its web site as a "non-political event that pays tribute to America's service personnel and other upstanding citizens who embody our nation's founding principles of integrity, truth and honor."  Read more

Recently, I was on a flight headed to the east coast to visit my family when I saw a woman board the plane with a little girl who I pegged to be less than 2 years old. The child was a hysterical wreck from the moment she set foot on the plane until we landed four hours later. The mother and daughter were seated one row behind me. There was a storm developing close by, so the pilot made an announcement that we'd remain grounded for about 30 minutes. He'd keep us posted.  Read more

In seven months, the news of the January 12th earthquake in Haiti has slowed to a trickle. Fundraising has taken a back seat to more current news. Talk of orphans and amputees are buried well behind the headlines. The mass of adoption requests has returned to a normal level. Yet, there is still a Haiti. There are still orphans. There are now court dates and adoption finalizations occurring. Unfortunately, there are also around a dozen Haitian children in the United States who do not have a home, and their future continues to be uncertain.  Read more

I don't know about you, but I had pretty difficult labors with both my children, the second one especially. But no matter how finely I parse the challenges that I faced in delivering my babies, my experiences are nothing when held up against, oh, say, being shackled in arm and leg irons during labor.  Read more

I never suggested it is easy to be a Gulf Coast resident. And I never said that we forget after we forgive. This is an incredibly complicated time for all of us, emotionally and financially. This oil spill is dredging up emotional memories that many of us were unprepared to address.  BP has effectively changed our futures, the way we will parent our children, the lives we expected to live.  Read more