Biographical sketch of Michelle Obama

This is a very likeable article about Michelle Obama's journey through her own marriage, learning flexibility, negotiation and letting go. This is the first time where I've actually been interested in learning more about her life after hearing from her. (I know she's a remarkably strong individual, and I admire her passion for social change. I happen to strongly disagree with her social views/lobbying, and this has turned me off to her before now.)

Catholics supporting Mormons in Prop 8

I think some of the blog posts on this video link are well-reasoned. The video's not bad either (one prominent Catholic's support for the Mormon cause and contribution to defending the family).

Perry Mason, Utah Supreme Court style

OK, it's true. It was Perry Mason that first made me interested in the law. I felt so clever when I was right there with Perry. Giving him tips that he should be seeing.

So this link to the Utah Supreme Court Audio Archives is just what I need to get my legal fix, especially now that I don't work in the law building anymore. I was listening to a Cafe Rio case the other night. Not the drama, mystery and intruige that Perry always created, but at least I get multitask (iron, sweep, cook and surf) while having my brain stimulated. Loving this!

Blast from the past

Remember this grade school classic chant?

Feel Like a Fraud? Maybe you should

New York Times post about a psychological phenomenon that happens to most of us at one time or another. Mine came with my first big "career job." Interesting theories on imposterism.

Proud Voter

This is one proud voter. He's proud that he voted for Barack Obama. He's so of Barack that he voted for him a couple of times. Wait, what?

"Heavenly Couture" aka Cheap Couture

Heavenly Couture claims home in Bev Hills, CA, and their appeal is simple: all pieces of clothing sell for $17.95 or less. This site really has a wide range of options for under that price. Think velour sweatsuits, dresses, tops, skirts, even denim (including more micros than you care to see).

They have some good layering pieces: below are samples of what you can get 3/$15. Shipping is free for orders over $75.

Be warned that the tags on their site handler include the following labels (used to direct traffic in search engines): junior clothing, cheap clothing, women's clothing, dresses, discount clothing, teen fashion, and trendy junior clothing.

Going with that in mind, you may find a few things that are worth a few bucks. Don't forget to check out their their "Midnight Daily Specials" for $9.99.

GET CHECKED!

I ran across an article that reminded me that I've been wanting to look into Utah's sex registry online database. I put in my home address from when I lived in Utah County. There were 32 offenders within a two mile radius of my address!
Now, I know that this does not mean these are bad people or necessarily dangerous people. I have known (professionally) a few good people who were registered. But it is important to be informed. There are many facts about the offenders, including picture, address on a map (in relation to the address you've inputted), type of offense, victims of the offense, type of car, and more.

This is a resource that every woman or parent should be aware of, just to know about, at minimum.

How did Bush fail in the Middle East?

This journalist/scholar argues one main reason: he didn't listen to his gut.

Here's a bit of modern-day heresy: President Bush actually has some rather sound instincts about the Muslim world. He has visited mosques more often than any of his predecessors, and he frequently talks of winning Muslim hearts and minds. So why are those hearts and minds so estranged today? What went wrong?...The problem is that Bush has relied on ill-informed advisers and out-of-touch experts. By substituting their false expertise for his own sensible intuitions, he has failed to understand the Muslim world -- which means he has failed to understand the arena in which the first post-9/11 presidency will be judged. Instead of seriously explaining Muslim societies that are profoundly split in complex ways, Bush's aides have offered a fatally flawed stereotype of Islam as monolithic and violent.

This article elucidates three main categories within Islam, and not appreciating these differences had a critical, and dangerous impact on the "solutions" and policy the U.S. has formed under Bush's presidency:

But you're more likely to see media images of bearded young men wearing skullcaps and yelling "God is great" and "Death to the Great Satan" than you are to see scholars at work. The angry activists are now on the ascendancy, according to our study. The reasons for their rise are complex: the incompetence and corruption of modernist Muslim leaders from Egypt to Pakistan to Southeast Asia; the widening gap between a crooked elite and the rest of the population; the absence of decent schools, economic opportunities and social welfare programs; and the failure of modernist leaders to douse burning regional conflicts such as Chechnya, Kashmir and Palestine.

What did these researchers (who toured the Middle east and Asia to perform these studies) find that may be so surprising to the American population, then?

Americans who think that all Muslims hate the United States may be surprised to hear that many Muslims believe they have it precisely backward. Our questionnaires showed that Muslims worldwide viewed Islamophobia in the West as the No. 1 threat they faced. Many Muslims told us that the Western media depict them as terrorists or likens them to Nazis. Such widespread perceptions let literalist clerics argue that Islam must defend itself against a rapacious West -- something the mystics and modernists were incapable of doing.

I appreciate how this author still sees solutions in this mess. For this reason I am SO HAPPY the elections are over, and the gameplans are beginning to be formed where SOMETHING will actually happen after two years of stump speeches. And I like Bush! I'm praying for you, Obama!