Environmental groups and the Navy reached an agreement over whales and sonar. Separate from a case in which the Supreme Court ruled the Navy could not be unduly required to protect whales, this case contends that sonar is dangerous to whales and other marine animals around the globe and brings a partial victory to both sides.
As Israeli forces step up their assaults on Hamas, Obama remains relatively quiet. The New York Times reports that the President-elect is deferring to President Bush, but notes that Obama’s public comments on the recent escalation in the on-going Israeli-Palestinian conflict represent a near-endorsement of Israel’s air strikes.
Blago’s attorney plans to use an Obama report to vindicate the scandal-ridden Illinois governor. Barack Obama released an internal report last week showing he and Governor Rod Blagojevich had not schemed to fill the President-elect’s vacant Senate seat. Now the attorney will submit it as evidence to the courts. Of course, even if it clears Obama of any suspicion, Blago’s still in hot water.
First Lady Laura Bush defends her husband’s presidency and talks about women’s rights in Afghanistan and Iraq. She appeared on Fox News Sunday this week.
Republicans quarrel over a song distributed by one of their own: “Barack the Magic Negro.” Chip Saltsman, a candidate for chair of the Republican National Committee, mailed a holiday CD including the above-named song, prompting a mixed reaction from his rivals for the position, and sparking a public discussion over media sensitivity to race as the nation prepares to inaugurate its first black president. One of the writers of “Puff the Magic Dragon,” the tune to which the song is played, responded via the Huffington Post.
The overall murder rate is dropping, but black teens are killing more, according to a report released today by a criminal justice professor at Northwestern University. The numbers diverge along racial lines for juveniles aged 14-17, with hardly an increase in the murder rate for whites but a 34 percent increase for blacks—not good news for anyone.
Wireless carriers are bracing for a storm on Inauguration Day. It will be the first presidential inauguration in which mobile phones are so ubiquitous, the Los Angeles Times reports. With people expected to call friends, send text messages, and snap and send photos by the thousands, carriers are worried so much digital traffic could jam the networks. They’re encouraging people to moderate their usage and offer a few tips for communicating that day.
Mr. Craig’s restroom has lost much of its novelty. Someone apparently offered $5,000 for the restroom stall at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport where Senator Larry E. Craig was arrested in 2007 in a sex sting. Now fewer tourists are taking interest in the place and complaints of lewd conduct there have stopped or at least dropped in number. The airport, by the way, refused to sell the bathroom fixture.