News

A Brief History of Human Sex

Staff / Truthdig Jul 28, 2006 To get an idea of how we humans might act if unfettered by cultural restraints, we could look at bonobo chimpanzees, which engage in frequent sexual acts "a fairly quick, perfunctory and relaxed activity that functions as a social cement," according to an expert . Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Army Dismisses Gay Arabic Linguist

Staff / Truthdig Jul 28, 2006 A decorated sergeant and Arabic language specialist was discharged after an investigation determined that he was gay. He alleges his commanding officer blatantly violated the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, and that investigators asked him if he had close friends who were gay, and if he was involved in community theater. Thank goodness our military is on top of things. We've got too damned many Arabic linguists in the service these days. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Sean Hannity Concert Guest Gets Tossed for Being Liberal

Staff / Truthdig Jul 28, 2006 Check out this video a blogger (and AlterNet) made of being tossed out of Sean Hannity's "Freedom Concert" simply for being liberal. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Low-Fat Ice Cream Uses Cloned Fish Blood Proteins

Staff / Truthdig Jul 27, 2006 Appetizing news from the N Times: "New industrial processes, including one that involves a protein cloned from the blood of an Arctic Ocean fish, have allowed manufacturers to produce very creamy, dense, reduced-fat ice creams with fewer additives" Yum. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Profits up 40% at Shell, 36% at Exxon

Staff / Truthdig Jul 27, 2006 No need for creative accounting at these outfits: It's good to be an oil company these days. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Tour de France Winner Flunks Drug Test

Staff / Truthdig Jul 27, 2006 Floyd Landis tested positive for high levels of testosterone, which Landis claims is either a mistake or the result of natural bodily processes. He was tested after his near-superhuman comeback win on an Alpine stage of the race, which the New York Times called perhaps the greatest single-day push in Tour history. If this accusation proves true, Wheaties may have to find a new cover boy. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Lewis Black Tackles Gay Divorce

Staff / Truthdig Jul 27, 2006 Lewis Black was back on the ?Daily Show? on Wednesday satirizing the debate over gay marriage. After playing a clip of Congressman Phil Gingrey, in which the lawmaker said, ?In my opinion, marriage isn?t just any kind of love. It?s a love that can bear children,? Black quipped, ?Hey Congressman, take my word for it. A one-night stand with no love, a Quaalude and three beers can also bear children.? Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

56% Want Deadline for Leaving Iraq

Staff / Truthdig Jul 27, 2006 According to a new New York Times/CBS poll, 56% of Americans support a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. Of that group, more than half support a withdrawal even if it leads to insurgent control of the country. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Marie Cocco: The Meltdown We’re Not Supposed to Talk About

Marie Cocco / Truthdig Jul 27, 2006 The American middle class is in a free fall. But if Congress and the White House were to acknowledge the problem, then they might have to do something about it. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

NYU Prof Launches Experiment in ‘Open-Source’ Journalism

Staff / Truthdig Jul 27, 2006 It's called NewAssignment.net, and the idea is for everyday citizens to fund specific reporting projects that will be assigned to professional journalists. This could be the birth of an entirely new paradigm in reporting: professionals and amateurs working together in a truly networked way. Check it out. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Washington State Upholds Gay Marriage Ban

Staff / Truthdig Jul 27, 2006 Bigots are delighting at this blow against tolerance. Massachusetts is now the only state still extending full marriage benefits to homosexual couples. On an intellectual level, it's interesting to read the logical flights of fancy that judges have to make in their opinions to codify this kind of hatred into law. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

A Sea Change in Bush’s Thinking on Iraq?

Staff / Truthdig Jul 27, 2006 Don't miss this observation by the Washington Post's Dan Froomkin: "President Bush and national security adviser Stephen Hadley yesterday for the first time publicly acknowledged the momentous shift in the role for U.S. troops in Iraq, from fighting terrorists to trying to suppress religious violence." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )