Lots Going On...

There are those news days when there is a lot happening, but not much to say about any one thing.  So let's take a quick scan of the headlines, shall we?

Violence and unrest in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan and other cities, as opposition leaders overthrow the government, leaving "dozens dead".

Although Tea Partiers have been particularly vocal since Congress provided all of their children with health care, at least it hasn't come to blows.  It's good to know that protests in this country are still legal, and still peaceful, apart from the bricks that went through some windows and the threats of violence against members of congress who voted for the bill.  I defend the Tea Partier's right to speak their mind, but they need to dial it back and keep it to dialogue and intelligent discourse, and not take Kyrgyzstan as an example of how to do things.

GOP Governor of Virginia declares April Confederate History Month for the first time since the last time a Republican was in office.

Apparently Gov. McDonnell thinks this move will promote tourism in the state, as it's been 150 years since the Civil War started.  Having lived in Virginia, I can say that much of the state is a Civil War historian's dream land.  Appomattox, Tredegar Iron Works, and Belle Isle only scratch the surface of what Virginia offers to those who want to learn about the War Between the States.

The governor makes some good points about why Virginians, and others, should learn about the Confederacy, what it stood for, how slavery tore the nation apart, and how, in the end, "the surviving, imprisoned and injured Confederate soldiers gave their word and allegiance to the United States of America".  History is something everyone should appreciate so that we don't keep making the same stupid mistakes.  But the Virginia Governor should focus on the bigger picture provided by Civil War history, rather than the narrower, considerably more racist Confederate History.  Maybe he should just change the name?

UPDATE:  I read about this a bit after the original flap; after McDonnell had done some damage control.  Yeah, McDonnell was an idiot to leave out slavery in his original proclamation.  He was a really big idiot.  For his own sake, he'd better not do it again!

Jackson, Miss. area school board ruins lesbian student's prom night.

The story is a little complicated, but it comes down to this:  a high school girl, Constance McMillen, wanted to take her girlfriend to the prom dressed in a tux, and had to get help from the ACLU to do so because school officials banned that sort of thing.  Everything went sour, and the school district managed to make a young girl, who undoubtedly already feels like an outcast, feel even more so.

What's truly sad about this is that McMillen's peers probably care far less about her sexual orientation than the school district officials do.  McMillen deserved to have a prom night just like everyone else.  The adults, with their dated views on dating, should have stayed out of it and let all the kids have their dressed up fun.

UConn Women's Huskies take the NCAA title.

Nice job ladies.


And the world keeps turning 'round...