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Peeping Tom Laws Can't Keep Up With Technology

LibertySugar — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 10:00:14 -0800

If you're hitting the mall today to score some Black Friday deals, you might want to look out for suspicious men ready to assault you with their flashes. Camera phone-armed perverts have found it easy to snap pictures of women's private parts, and get away with it.

In Tulsa, OK recently, a man caught sticking his camera phone up a fellow shopper's skirt to take a picture of her underwear, walked away with no conviction, since the state's law held that the woman had no right to such privacy in public.

In response, Salon reports, Oklahoma lawmakers passed legislation making it explicitly illegal to take a photo of someone's private parts in public. Believe it or not, almost half of US states have similar loopholes in need of closing. Hopefully lawmakers react quickly, since these Peeping Toms can instantly post these cell phone pictures online.

Have you ever been assaulted with a camera phone . . . that you know of?

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Law to Require Woman to Look at Baby Right Before Abortion

LibertySugar — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 10:00:51 -0700

Starting November 1, doctors in Oklahoma will have to perform ultrasounds and describe what they see to women about to get abortions, within an hour before the procedures. Oklahoma's ultrasound law, which also exists in some form in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi, does not make an exception for victims of rape or incest. One abortion clinic has now filed a lawsuit asking Oklahoma state court to throw the law out.

Multiple concerns add to the complexity of this law. First, many argue that making a woman meet her would-be baby before she terminates the pregnancy is cruel and a violation of her privacy. Also, the high expense of ultrasound machines means clinics unable to afford them will not be able to provide low-income women access to abortions. Finally, some see the law as the legislature replacing doctors because it prohibits a doctor from deciding what is best for the patient.

Do you think it's necessary to legislate extra considerations for a woman about to have an abortion, or should the performance of an ultrasound be left up to the doctor and the woman? Should the state try to get women to change their minds?

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Buzz In: What Should Be Your State's Rock Song?

BuzzSugar — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:30:52 -0700

In charming civic-type news, The Flaming Lips' "Do You Realize??" has been nominated for official Oklahoma rock song, apparently the token indie rock entry in a list that includes the likes of Elvis Presley and, well, Oklahoma. As Pitchfork writes:

"Oklahoma already has an official state song ("Oklahoma," from the musical, natch), a state folk song, and a state country-and-western tune. What they don't have just yet is an official state rock'n'roll song. And that is where you come in."

The state legislature has ordered Oklahomans to vote here before Nov. 15 — though as far as I can tell, anyone can vote, 'cause the computer has no way of knowing whether or not you're an Oklahoman — for whichever rock song you like.

This is a pretty fun idea, so I think we should start thinking of the official rock songs for the rest of the 49 states! For example, it seems to me Washington should probably at least nominate "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana as one of theirs (it seems the Evergreen State only has a state folk song). Maybe something from my 50 Songs for 50 States challenge could get you started.

What do you think? What other songs would you nominate for which states?

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Front Page: Tornadoes Rip Midwest & South, First US Aid Lands in Myanmar, Fighting in Beirut

CitizenSugar — Mon, 12 May 2008 06:57:24 -0700

Tornadoes Rip Midwest and South: Emergency crews are searching through the aftermath of violent storms that tore from the Midwest to the South and killed at least 23 people this weekend in Missouri, Oklahoma, and Georgia. In Oklahoma at least seven people were killed and officials said 150 people in the town were injured. In Missouri emergency crews are “ensuring that we have found any potential survivors or anyone unaccounted for.” The governor says at least 85 people had been injured in the storm. In Georgia, Gov. Sonny Perdue has issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency in six counties. The weekend’s tornadoes are the latest in several outbreaks of violent weather this year. Twenty-two people were killed by tornadoes in four states in February, two were killed in Georgia in March, and seven were killed in Arkansas in May.

First US Aid Lands in Myanmar: The first US aid flight to Myanmar following last week's cyclone has finally landed in Rangoon. The US had to spend days negotiating with Myanmar's military government to gain permission to enter the country. The official death toll is now almost 30,000, though aid agencies fear 1.5 million could die without aid. Already more than two-thirds of the cyclone victims are yet to be reached, and agencies estimate that 100,000 have already died. Here's a list of ways to help the cyclone victims.
Fighting in Beirut: Violent fighting that has plagued Beirut, Lebanon, since Wednesday, broke out yesterday in the mountains east of Beirut. The fighting continues between supporters of the Western-backed government and followers of Hezbollah, the militant group backed by Iran. Hezbollah began withdrawing gunmen from the city Saturday evening, leading some to hope for peace after four days of street battles there. With the underlying political crisis still unresolved, the violence seems to have shifted to the eastern villages. Security officials put the toll of five days of fighting at 44 dead and 128 wounded.

Front Page: Tornadoes, American Airlines, Petraeus Day Two, Nepal

CitizenSugar — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 06:57:46 -0700

Several tornadoes ripped through West Texas and Oklahoma last night. Winds of up to 70 mph and heavy rains left one dead, at least five houses destroyed, and 3,500 without power. Flooding caused the Oklahoma Department of Transportation to close five highways in the state, while Arkansas also saw flash flooding.
American Airlines has canceled 900 additional flights today as it continues to perform safety inspections on certain jets. It's the third consecutive day of cancellations for American Airlines, who also canceled 1,094 flights on Wednesday and 460 flights the day before.

General Petraeus, the top American commander in Iraq, remained consistent in his second day of testimony before Congress with his recommendation to suspend troop reductions in Iraq. The recommendation shows that Iraqi forces remain unprepared to take over the mission of securing their own nation. Some questioning Petraeus became frustrated as he steadfastly declined to specify what conditions would need to be present on the ground before he would endorse withdrawals to take the number of American troops far below the 140,000 set to remain there after July. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid expressed his frustration saying, “based on everything we have heard, we can reach only one conclusion: With 160,000 courageous American troops serving in Iraq, President Bush has an exit strategy for just one man — himself — on Jan. 20, 2009.”
Voters in Nepal have cast ballots in historic elections, the first since 1999. At question is an assembly that is expected to rewrite Nepal's constitution and abolish its monarchy. Polling was mostly peaceful, although one person was killed in election-related violence. Results are expected over the next 10 days.

Food Stamp Stats Show US Hungry for Help

CitizenSugar — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 09:00:04 -0700

Yesterday morning's talk about Haiti's food riots turned my attention to tummies close to home. Specifically, food stamps. Perhaps once considered the currency of that spurious caricature the "welfare queen," government food assistance is a harbinger of tight times — and tightening belts. Take a look at these stats out this week:

This year, 28 million Americans are predicted to receive food stamps. That's the highest number since 1960.
1 in 8 Michigan residents receive food stamps.
1.17 million Pennsylvanians were receiving food stamps in a February count, up 4.4 percent from last year and close to a record high.
1 in 3 Oklahoma kids have been on food stamps at some point in the last year.

To receive government food aid, applicants have to pass a very strict asset test and a very strict income test. Some say the threshold to qualify is too high. Once a person qualifies, benefits average about $100 a month per person in the family. In New Hampshire, a state that's seen a 7 percent increase in food stamp beneficiaries, the maximum daily allotment for someone in a three-person, incomeless household is $4.53 a day. It would take some pretty creative cooking to eat on less than $5 a day.

Are those benefits too small? Should we still be relying on the almost 50-year-old program, or should we be taking care of local food needs with private or faith-based programs?

Serious news notwithstanding — never fear! Our fancier international friends recognize that the US is on a budget. To see how they're offering assistance,

This Oklahoma City Is Going on a Diet

FitSugar — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 02:00:00 -0800

Did you know that Oklahoma has an official state meal? Yup, an official state meal and it consists of cornbread, sausage and gravy, chicken fried steak and pecan pie.

With an official meal like that it's no surprise that Oklahoma City ranked 15th in a 2007 survey of America's fattest cities. Wanting to lose the title as one of the fattest cities in American, mayor Mick Cornett has decided to put the city on a diet and challenged residents to lose one million pounds. Residents can visit This City is Going On a Diet to sign up and track their weight loss. If you live in Oklahoma City, it's also a great resource so be sure to check it out.

Seems like a great way to get people to band together for their health, though I'll be curious to see how successful it is in the end. This is not the first time we've seen a mayor get involved in his city's health, but would you go on a diet proposed by your city's mayor?