How about offering free birth control (Norplant, IUD's, tubal ligation for women, vasectomy for men)? Any of those are surely cheaper than children (or forced D and E's for that matter).

How about imposing a tax of some sort (free day care for 1 kid, 2nd kid has to pay), or cutting some benefit (better housing, tv or internet service: something that's nice to have, that's a status symbol of some kind, but not something that seriously impacts quality of life for parent of children) on couples who choose to have more than 1 child?

How about better/more/more ponted sex ed clases in school, combined with information on the environmental impact of overpopulation vs sustainble child bearing?

Seems to me there are many, many, many more humane options than kidnapping "offending" women and forcing them to terminate wanted pregnancies.

"Bloom County" was a must-read for me in high school (now that I'm, well, older, it's even funnier). I think my 4 year-old has inherited Binkley's anxiety closet: did Binkley sell it on ebay?

Looking forward to seeing you and Opus here regularly!

Thank goodness we live in a country where no one is frogmarched to the cineplex and forced to watch a movie they aren't interestd in seeing. Don't like it? Don't go.

But just because it's not your cup of tea doesn't mean it's stupid, cliched or irrelevent.

At any rate, your analogy simply doesn't work, since there are many many many omore sports teams available to men then there are to women today (and there were virtually no athletic teams outside of gymnastics, horseback riding and figure skating) available to girls in the 70s. (I remember, because I was there: this film isn't a history piece to me). But stupid as your idea is (as you yourself say), it's already been done: "Billy Eliot" was no tonly a wonderful film that laid out just your scenario (ballet dancing, not basketball), but was also based on a true story (which happened in the 80's, so it's even less "historical").

Haven't true journalists told us looooooong before the federal government was really interested that Al Quaeda was a group with no respect for human dignity and human life? So fiunding one more example of bad guys being bad is ... not very newsworthy.

But America (the "good guys" I've been told) engaging in torture tactics (even ess extreme than blowtorching, etc) is "man bites dog" type of news. It's Jourtnalism 101, folks: timing, significance, proximity and impact.

was Cutter John et al racing to the words of Magee's "High Flight," closely seconded by the strips when Steve Dallas appeared in a heavy metal video ... but then there's Oliver Wendell Jones sending subliminal messages to his dad "What about 'I feel like putting salami on my head ...?'" and Portnoy and Milo holding caucuses in the dandelion patch ...

But now I'm starting to sound like Chris Farley. I'll stop now.

Ok, I'm half-joking.

But I've heard some speculation that the Republican party strategists ar banking on Hillary Clinton being the Democratic nominee, since they've had over a decade to prepare attacks, counter-attacks, smear-campaigns and push-polls against her. She's a known quantity, and they think they can recycle enough dirt on her to prevent her from winning an election.

Which is why candidates like Obama have them scared. They're not sure how to smear him. But they're hoping he'll lose his cool at some point (a la the Dean Scream).

And this is why mainstream media is focusing on these 2 candiates to the detriment of others in the field.

I'm not saying I buy the theory, but I agree with Dodd and his supporters: the blatant favoritism in the debate does a disservice to candidates, voters and the electorate.

When I vacation, I take a pile of books with me.

From a villa in St John to my husband's family no-plumbing, no-electricity, but-plenty-of-mosquitos cabin in northern Maine, I park myself near water and read until I fall asleep.

Granted, with kids, I can only do the reading when they are asleep, but that's still more reading time than I get at home.

I second the historical fiction: "Slammerkin" by Emily Donnaghue and " A Whistling Woman" by A.S. Byatt (the 1960's which is hard to call "historical") were both beach books. Also, funny apocalyptic "Good Omens" by Neil Gaimon came home water-stained. (As was "The Historian" but I really was disappointed. Each character spoke in exactly the same voice, and I didn't find the denouement, or the villian's objectives, satisfying or sensical. But the descriptions of exotic cities and historically tangental villages was wonderful).