Of course, because facts, which science seeks to discover, don't support the right wing ideology of the GOP, Limbaugh and Fox News.

Conservatives' trust of science has gradually decreased over the past 40 years, beginning perhaps when empirical research was increasingly used to justify government regulations, according to a new academic analysis.

The study, appearing this week in the April edition of the journal American Sociological Review, identifies a 25 percent drop among conservatives who express trust in the scientific community since 1974.

TRINIDAD, Texas – Gary Thomas will never forget the letter he received in early 2000. It was from John Joe Gray, a suspect in a felony assault case, offering a not-so-subtle warning to the area's chief criminal investigator: He had no intention of answering charges that he had attacked a state trooper.

"What he said was this: 'If y'all come to get me, bring body bags,' " said Thomas, now a local justice of the peace.

The new Olympic Legends Map names 361 London Underground stations to celebrate multi-medal-winning or otherwise notable Olympians. Stratford, the main Olympic stop becomes Michael Phelps and nearby Stratford International becomes Cassius Clay. Other stations are named after Rafael Nadal, Nadia Comaneci, Miguel Indurain, Michael Jordan and Larry Bird.

Track stars make up a good part of the map, running from west to east and all around the centre of the city. Cathy Freeman, Herb Elliott, Ron Clarke and Betty Cuthbert are among the all-time greats represented.

[and of course, Zola Budd is right next to Mary Decker.]

On the other hand, it helps us understand the different political economy of the New Deal era versus our own. [.....]

ABC News has police surveillance video of George Zimmerman, taken after Zimmerman shot and killed Trayvon Martin on the night of February 26. Zimmerman, who claims that Trayvon broke his nose and repeatedly slammed the back of his head into the sidewalk, shows no bruises, no abrasions, and no injuries on his head or face.

My latest from The Daily examines some of the reasons, beyond the most often discussed ones, why Timothy Geithner and Barack Obama protected the big banks.  While I still believe that this was a mistake, I argue that there's a reasonable case for Obama's logic beyond the usual "slave to Wall Street" line.  Big Banks do provide the U.S. with some advantages.

By Jonathan Mirsky, New York Review of Books Blog, March 27, 2012

Until it was taken off the air last December, one of the most popular television programs in China’s Henan province, which has a population of 100 million, was “Interviews Before Execution.” The presenter was Ding Yu, a pretty young woman, always carefully dressed with colorful scarves and blouses; in each episode, she would interview on camera a condemned murderer who was about to face a firing squad or a lethal injection.

While Beijing has long been known for its use of capital punishment, the practice has usually been kept out of official media apart from exceptional cases [....]

With Ding Yu’s five years of interviews, however, capital punishment was brought directly into Chinese homes—and with government endorsement. As the BBC explained in its airing of a recent Chinese-made talk show about the program that will soon air on PBS, the channel on which it appeared is supervised by the state; the State Propaganda Department and the judges who handed down the sentences also had to approve each program. The interviews were launched in 2006, and there were over 200 in the program’s five-year run [....]

By Karen Wiese, Bloomberg Businessweek, March 27, 2012

Consumer credit is on a tear. In January (the latest data available), consumers borrowed $17.8 billion, bringing outstanding consumer debt to $2.51 trillion. That’s the biggest three-month gain in more than a decade. Greater borrowing could be a good sign, showing that consumers are more confident—the magical emotion that can spur spending and help the economy rebound. But Dan Alpert, managing partner at Westwood Capital, a boutique investment bank, says not to start welcoming the “confidence fairy” yet. As he reads the numbers, something more troubling is going on [....]

$50 million a unit, mobile anti-missile system creates jobs in Israel, and is there to protect Israel from the pesky locals in the neighborhood:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Defense Department on Tuesday said it would ask Congress to fund additional "Iron Dome" short-range missile shields for Israel, given their success in intercepting 80 percent of rockets launched by Palestinian militants from Gaza earlier this month.  The request comes against the backdrop of growing concern in Washington about a possible Israeli strike against Iran aimed at halting or slowing work on its nuclear program, as well as the worst flare-up of violence along Israel's southern border in months....

Thinkprogress: With the economy continuing to improve and unemployment figures in decline, some Republicans are beginning to worry that hitting President Obama on bad fiscal policy is not a winning strategy. Instead, they argue, Republicans should take all the credit for any economic improvement that is underway.......

Just another GOP case of Orwellian Doublethink in action:

The power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them....To tell deliberate lies while genuinely believing in them, to forget any fact that has become inconvenient...

Juan Williams delivers one of the most concise and on point 'short essays' I've read about 'ObamaCare' complete with what hasn't worked well.......

Just in time for the two-year anniversary of the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on the law’s constitutionality this week.......

In my world of people and politics there are two relevant issues. First, does the law provide better medical care for Americans? And is it reducing the cost of healthcare?

There are other valid criticisms out there, but all of it amounts to nothing compared to the law’s success.

Already, the Obama healthcare reform has succeeded in preventing insurance companies from discriminating against people with preexisting conditions and allowing young adults to stay on their parent’s health insurance until they turn 26. And many other parts of the law have begun to improve the lives of millions of Americans.

For example, it already requires insurance companies to provide coverage for preventive services such as immunization, screenings and counseling services. In 2011, almost 33 million Medicare beneficiaries and 54 million Americans with private insurance used these services for free. Starting this summer, millions of women will be able to have free mammograms and health counseling.

The Act also closed the costly prescription drug coverage gap in Medicare Part D, more commonly known as the “doughnut hole.” Four million seniors and disabled citizens have saved an estimated $3.2 billion on prescription drugs. More savings are ahead as the law becomes fully implemented.

Americans enrolled in Medicare Advantage — or “Medicare Part C” — have had their premiums lowered by 16 percent since 2010, giving seniors access to inexpensive, quality healthcare.

Also, due to new enforcement powers given to the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services, $4.1 billion in fraudulent Medicare claims were stopped in 2011. This constitutes the single largest sum ever recovered in a single year from individuals and companies attempting to defraud the American taxpayer.

The bottom line is the reforms are leading to higher-quality care and increasing consumer protection while bending the cost curve of healthcare.

Back in 2009, then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Congress must pass healthcare reform so the American people can find out what is in it. This was an unfortunate statement. It led GOP critics to say Democrats want the public to buy the metaphorical “Pig in Poke.”

But based on what the nation has now seen of the law, the pig is looking like a blue-ribbon winner, a good deal for seniors and the middle class. The only question is whether a good idea can survive bad-mouthing from GOP politicians and hard-right politics on the Supreme Court.