Mapping America

I remember linking a few map links and figured now was the time to lay down a post about them.

First off, from Wired, American Vice: Mapping the 7 Deadly Sins. What is most interesting to me in this is how the “Bible Belt” is chock full of Envy, Wrath, Lust, and Pride.

Wrath: Number of violent crimes (murder, assault, and rape) per capita.

Here is a writeup in the Catholic Globe, plus more maps reprinted in the Las Vegas Sun, including Nevada state breakdowns.

Worried about climate change? If you are a citizen of the Plains/MidWest you’d better be. Not only are Kansas, Nebraska, and Iowa in the crosshairs of major change, they are also represented by Republican global warming deniers that won’t be doing a damn thing to help out the Americans that will be hardest hit.

At the same time, resistance to climate change legislation by Republicans is costing their supporters jobs. Don’t believe me? Check out the following map:

Meanwhile, politically, a map that gives hope that we may eventually silence the Talibangelicals and Rethugs and at least get the GOP back to “just” racists and trickle-down theory idiots again. I mean, if THIS is what the Angry White Right for Jebus has to offer, the Republicans will find another way. Won’t they?

Tributes | Edward M. Kennedy

Here is a collection of some of the many tributes being given by various persons and organizations. One of them, by the AFL-CIO’s John Sweeney, have been both touching and respectful of the man we have lost.

“Ted Kennedy was not just a senator for Massachusetts; he was our senator–a senator for working people, for poor people, for the old and the vulnerable. For all those who needed a champion, he was our champion. He personified a sense of aspiration that has become America’s aspiration–to make things better, to make them more fair, to make our nation more compassionate and hopeful, to make life work for working men and women.”

Kennedy Lauded For His Service, Idealism : NPR

A nice piece on Teddy Kennedy and on his service to this nation.

Also, a very cool diary concerning Kennedy’s work on immigration reform. In short, the modern face of America is partly to the credit of his work.

Plus, a story on his civil rights legacy.

Also, his overall work for “the little guy”:

The Boston Globe has a touching story on Teddy’s last days.

Another touching tribute of the man’s life by Ted Sorensen.

CIA Documents Provide Little Cover for Cheney Claims

Surprise. Surprise. Turns out that – once again – Dick Cheney is a liar. After months of claiming the CIA has documents “proving” torture works, the release of said documents say the exact opposite. From the article:

Strikingly, they provide little evidence for Cheney’s claims that the ‘enhanced interrogation’ program run by the CIA provided valuable information. In fact, throughout both documents, many passages — though several are incomplete and circumstantial, actually suggest the opposite of Cheney’s contention: that non-abusive techniques actually helped elicit some of the most important information the documents cite in defending the value of the CIA’s interrogations.