Friday Open Thread

Filed in National by on April 1, 2011

Welcome to your Friday open thread. It’s not just Friday, it’s April 1st, AKA, April Fools’ Day. Did you pull any pranks for April Fools’ Day? Share them below.

The Chemistry Blog has a great post called “Better Pranking Through Chemistry.” The one below (“Gallium Spoon”) is my favorite, but go to the blog to see other videos like “Explosive Ketchup,” “Burning Money, “Liquid Nitrogen Flower.”

Standard warning: folks, don’t try this at home.

Despite the DADT repeal law, DADT remains in effect in the military (it’s in an implementation period). In fact, some commanders are enforcing DADT and there was a hearing just this week for Petty Officer 2nd Class Derek Morales.

As the fresnobee.com detailed on March 30, Morado’s case began when “he posted a photo of himself on his MySpace page [in 2009] kissing another man. … A senior enlisted man in his ordnance and weapons unit turned him in, he said, and an admiral signed off on discharge proceedings.”

As to Morado’s efforts in advance of the hearing to reach out to Get Equal, director Robin McGehee said, “He was unsure what the process was going to be like and, just like us, very perplexed that he was hearing all these celebratory reports about repeal and why his hearing was continuing.

“For him, he was baffled …. He thought for sure his hearing was going to be put on hold,” she added. “He was fearful that they were trying to make this happen before implementation.”

Following today’s hearing, the panel recommended Morado’s retention in a 3-0 decision, according to an email sent by Get Equal this evening, which a lawyer familiar with the DADT discharge process said ends the case and allows Morado to continue serving.

I guess there is still some confusion about the law but this hearing just sounds vindictive. Why would you try to discharge someone when within months they wouldn’t be discharged? I’m glad Morales won his case but it is puzzling.

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Opinionated chemist, troublemaker, blogger on national and Delaware politics.

Comments (15)

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  1. socialistic ben says:

    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42373968 wooooooooooohoooooooo. Anyone wanna traumatize me?

  2. anon says:

    wooooooooooohoooooooo. Anyone wanna traumatize me?

    “The bill states that, with a doctor’s written recommendation, patients with certain serious or debilitating conditions that could be alleviated by marijuana would be allowed to possess up to six ounces of the drug. “

    Don’t forget this is supposed to be for sick people. Which serious or debilitating condition would you like?

  3. socialistic ben says:

    well, PTSD is an option, but given the actual national trend of the law, i give it 2 years before you can get Marlboro Greens in at Walmart….. with lots of nicotine added because thats what they do.

    let’s also not forget all the “sick” people in california who sometimes suffer from anxiety and have scripts.
    This is just an acceptable way to easy weed back into legality that wont scare all the old white people who think that legalized drugs will lead to “drug crazed mexicans” (William Randolph Hearst’s words) having their daughters. Dunder Mifflin might take a hit (get it) when they industrialize cannabis and can get bio-fuel AND paper from the same crop.

  4. cassandra m says:

    An awesome new Gmail feature!

  5. donviti says:

    Apparently there is a lot in common with a few states that have a bunch of GOP Governors. AZ, Wi and also OH all are part This ALEC thing.

    I’m tooting my own blog on this one proudly, but there is a lot more to the eye than a couple of crazy governors. This ALEC thing is pretty big and pretty pervasive.

    But the other reason I post this over here is that I wouldn’t be surprised to find a few Delaware GOP folks tied up in this too.

    The minute we start hearing the words “privatize” ears should perk up

  6. Dana says:

    Every serviceman was told, early on, that the effective date of DA/DT repeal hadn’t passed yet, and they needed to continue under the old policy until everything was officially done. Some unit commanders are getting initial regulation messages on how to deal with the new policy, but they haven’t been implemented yet. PO2 Morales might not have been discharged for being homosexual, but he should have been discharged for being an idiot.

  7. Avagadro says:

    Rasmussen: 57% prefer gov’t shutdown to current levels of spending
    Hot Air.com April 01, 2011 ED MORRISSEY

    Earlier in the week, Howard Dean told an audience that Democrats should be rooting for a government shutdown rather than agree to budget cuts, because voter anger would punish Republicans. That may have been true in 1995, but as Rasmussen discovered it its latest polling, the political and fiscal environment in 2011 is far different. A strong majority of respondents prefer a shutdown if Congress refuses to cut spending deeply enough:

    A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 57% of Likely U.S. Voters think making deeper spending cuts in the federal budget for 2011 is more important than avoiding a partial government shutdown. Thirty-one percent (31%) disagree and say avoiding a shutdown is more important. Twelve percent (12%) are not sure.

  8. anon says:

    Tax increases weren’t on the poll.

    This is what happens when you take tax increases off the table. Thanks, President Obama and Senate Democrats! By now we should be counting our new revenue and watching the deficit roll backward, while slipping on puddles of Republican tears over their failure to stop the expiration of tax cuts for the rich.

    Instead voters now are focused on whether Democrats will give in to Republican demands on spending. The revenue side is forgotten.

  9. cassandra m says:

    And both PPP and ABC News have March polls out saying that Congressional Republicans take the hit for a shutdown. And why would a Republican pollster ask about tax increases? There are other polls out there that pretty decisively show that Americans want upper income Americans to be taxed more.

  10. Geezer says:

    If you’ll believe Rasmussen, you’ll believe anything. Don’t you have anything better to do than troll liberal sites, turdhound?

  11. Anon says:

    Moronic Koran burning Pastor gets UN workers killed in Afghanistan. The Pastor, of course, still thinks the Koran burning was a good idea.

    At least seven United Nations staff were murdered – two by beheading – after extremists stormed their compound in northern Afghanistan today.

    According to reports, protesters in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif beheaded two U.N. guards, seized their weapons and began shooting those inside the compound after a demonstration against Koran burnings in the U.S. turned violent.

    Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1372442/Two-UN-staff-beheaded-murdered-protest-U-S-pastor-burnt-Koran.html#ixzz1ILQQsiM6

  12. skippertee says:

    Don’t you think the extremists’ response to that shit-head pastor was a little over the top, Anon?
    Why didn’t they burn a Bible?

  13. Jim Westhoff says:

    I did something dumb last night. I got into it on Facebook with Angel Clark, moments before she went on air.

    I didn’t hear the show, but it’s never a good idea to call out someone who has a radio transmitter.

    Did anyone hear her show?

  14. phil says:

    Ameena’s show was all about pot. is that what you argued with her about?