Selling Out is Not Their Thing Either

The NFL issued a mandate that photo journalists on the sidelines will wear red vests which will bear the logos of Reebok and Canon. Many journalists feel that they are being made into corporate billboards.

One of many dissenting organizations, Society of Professional Journalists issued a statement rebuking the vests. Citing their code of ethics, which encourages journalists to “remain free of associations and activities that may compromise integrity or damage credibility,” their stance is that by agreeing to wear these vests, journalists are - for lack of a better phrase - selling-out to the man.

Joe Strupp, senior editor at Editor & Publisher Magazine makes a good point in his editorial on the issue: this is not the first time photographers have been forced to wear vests like these, and if they really have a problem with wearing them, then boycott the NFL until the restriction is lifted.

I am waiting to see the vests... If we are talking about a LaCoste alligator-sized logo, then who cares? If we are talking Times Square-neon billboards, then I have a problem. But either way, maybe the red vests are a good idea in the end. Football players from lineman to safety's to place-kickers are trained to avoid the guy in red. Perhaps it will aid in protecting the unassuming photogs from injury.

Maintaining the Highest Quality in News Today

The Philadelphia Inquirer may be laying off its entire staff of new-writers and going strictly AP. They may even be sliding down the slippery slope of lax news coverage. But, at least they are still entertaining...

Announced today, with Brian Tierney as MC, they will host the "first U.S. Sudoku Championship" October 19 through 21 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Now that is what I call quality.

Marijuana on One, Reefer on Two...

Police found a $10 million crop of marijuana in the hillside Los Angeles-suburb of Glendale yesterday. I think this goes a bit beyond personal use.

According to the LA Times, the cultivators tapped into an emergency water supply to support the crop. The supply was intended to protect the city in case of brush fire.

Police spent the night preparing the crop to be removed, but have made no arrests and have no leads. They did, however, take some awesome pictures.

In other related news, New Mexico says it won't start growing pot for medical use.

The Reds and the Blues of Marriage by Another Name

Married With Children ran for 10 seasons, but perhaps Mr. Belvedere had more to offer in terms of moral education. Seems that Amehttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifricans, Red, White or Blue have not learned the value of marriage at all, and they are certainly not getting the rule that you should be married when you have children. According to , a publication of the Anglican Church, the state of marriage in the United States is in crisis, even in "Red States" where the whole "Gay thing" is a non-issue.

STATS FROM THE ARTICLE
While this is not exactly groundbreaking news, the stats were cool.

States Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage
Massachusetts

States Legalizing Civil Unions for Same-Sex Couples
Connecticut
Vermont
New Jersey
New Hampshire*

Domestic Partnerships for Same-Sex Couples
California
Oregon
Washington
Hawaii

Twenty-Seven states currently have constitutional bans on Same-Sex Marriage, or have constitutionally defined marriage as being "between one-man and one-woman."

Marriage Rates by State
So-Called "Red States": between 5 and 7 percent, annually
Examples given were Arkansas, Idaho, Wyoming and Utah
So-Called "Blue States": between 2.4 and 2.8 percent
Examples given were Pennsylvania**, New Jersey, Delaware and Connecticut.

Cohabitation Outside of Marriage by State
"Reds"
Alabama - 6%
Mississippi - 8%
Kansas - 8%
Arkansas - 8%
"Blues"
Vermont - 14%
Maine - 13%
Oregon - 12%
Washington - 12%

"However, there are moral chinks in the armor of the Red States, which have the highest divorce rates and the highest percentages of babies born out-of-wedlock. Half of the babies born in Mississippi and Louisiana are to unwed parents - which is double the rate of New Hampshire."

And, "...Massachusetts and Pennsylvania are tied for the lowest divorce rates at 11 divorces per 1,000 married couples per year, while Arkansas and Oklahoma are more than twice as high at 25 divorces each per 1,000, and West Virginia, at 23."


*Note that the article called New Hampshire a "Blue State," but it is historically swing state. In the past 6 elections, New Hampshire has gone Republican three times. The three times it went Blue it was by a margin of less than 2 percent.
**Pennsylvania is also, historically, a swing state.

Items missed by this article are the important distinctions between Marriage, Civil Union and Domestic Partnership - all of which are equally weighted according to VirtueOnline

Rights guaranteed to couples in Civil Unions, Domestic Partnerships or Registered Partnership are defined by the state in which they are granted. In ALL cases, they are only a fraction of those extended to Married couples, and these unions are NOT recognized outside of the granting state.

Examples of rights not yet included the definitions of unions in any state:

Countless Inheritance Laws - i.e. Protection from being disinherited and election or waiver of community property.

Rights to Bereavement Leave

Laws Protecting the Rights of Surviving Spouses - i.e. "Homestead" Protection Against Creditors and Tax Reassessment Upon Death

Laws Protecting Social Security and Workers Compensation Benefits for Surviving Spouses - i.e. benefits for the entire family, increased Social Security Payments, and Social Security Death Benefits

Pension and Tax Laws protecting Surviving Spouses - i.e. IRA and 401K roll-over, and Unlimited Marital Deduction which allows transfer of property to a spouse upon death without the gift or estate taxes applied.

Burial Rights - i.e. protection of plots and family cemeteries

Countless laws protecting the Decision-Making Rights of Surviving Spouses in Burial Arrangements

Law Protecting the Benefits of Surviving Spouses of Veterans, Firefighters and Police Officers

Death is not the only time married couple reap the benefits of getting hitched. There are also laws which govern a spouses responsibility to protect one another in marriage and in divorce, and any children involved in the family. These rights are not protected in any other type of union.

So, perhaps VirtueOnline needs to do some research before stating that Civil Union or Domestic Partnership is marriage by another name. Yes, there is the initial tax breaks, but that does not mean that those participating in these unions are protected by the thousands of laws that make a marriage legally binding.