After revealing the U.S.’ frequent attacks on Pakistan, Obama addressed citizens in an hour-long video chat on Google+ on Monday.

While this is not surprising to all, it has outraged some including Amnesty International.

Pakistan has claimed that these attacks are illegal and Obama defends them stating that they are aimed to protect U.S. citizens and projects abroad.

The number of civilians killed is being debated. The President reassured in his speech that the number is few.

The Commander in Chief is facing a stiff compromise between military safety and transparency at home. Can he strike a good balance between the two?

Image from NPR

2 Questions.

#1: Who thinks it’s a good idea for a 13 year old to have a child?

Okay… we can probably all agree on that one.

#2: How do we prevent 13 year old’s from having children.

Okay… that complicated.

It has also gotten a little more complicated by a decision made in Washington by President Obama last week.

Here’s the background… An emergency contraceptive tablet called “Plan B” was being reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its safety and effectiveness. The FDA declared Plan B was safe for girls to use and should be available to all ages without prescription (it had previously been available only to those over 17).

But then the Obama administration jump into the fray.

Last Wednesday, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius overruled the FDA’s decision, restricting access to this emergency contraception for all minors under 17. She wasn’t convinced Plan B was safe enough for younger children.

President Obama announced that he supported the Secretary’s decision.

This got lots of folks frustrated with the President. Many think his decision was based less on child safety and more on election politics.

Here’s what some are arguing:

1. Plan B is Safe -   Check out this list of 5 commons drugs more dangerous than Plan B.  Should we be stashing Advil behind the counter too?

2. Increases Barriers for Everyone - Fact: Emergency contraception is more effective the sooner you take it.  Putting Plan B behind the counter and requiring ID verification increases the barriers to everyone –   here are some stories about women’s adverse experiences trying to get Plan B

3. Disproportionately Hurts Young Women of Color – The age requirement hurts young African-American and Latina women, who have much higher rates of accidental pregnancy that young white women.  Requiring an ID also prevents undocumented immigrants who lack ID from accessing emergency contraception.  Check out ColorLines coverage of the issue for more.

4. The Daughter Test is Dumb - When Obama came out supporting Sebelius’s, he prefaced his support by saying “as the father of two daughters.”  The writers at Feministing explored the idea of making restrictive public policy decisions based on what we would want our daughters to do over the summer.

5. Increases abortions - Limiting access to contraception decreases use of said contraception.  Decreased use of contraception increases unintended pregnancies.  An increase in unintended pregnancies is pretty likely to cause an increase in abortions.

6. Decisions should be based on science not politics - FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg

reviewed and thoughtfully considered the data, clinical information, and analysis [and found that] Plan B One-Step is safe and effective and should be approved for nonprescription use for all females of child-bearing potential.

So naturally, a political decision was made to overrule this decision.

7. The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine all agree with the FDA – and disagree with Sebelius and Obama.  Decisions about the well-being of women’s reproductive health should be made by medical experts – not by politicians attempting to placate conservatives.

What’s your take on the Plan B brouhaha?

Thanks to Politico!

How about a little geography? First, some history.

It seems as though ever since the passage of the unpopular No Child Left Behind Act in 2002, American children have been begging their politicians to leave the law behind.

In September, the Obama administration announced that states would be allowed to waive the applicability of certain aspects of NCLB if satisfactory conditions could be met.

So, a quiz: Which of the following 15 states have NOT taken advantage of the change and filed for a “No More” Waiver.

Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Arkansas,Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Arizona, Rhode Island , Oklahoma, Tennessee

Hint: 11 States have filed for waivers.

The answer: Arkansas, Arizona, Maryland, Rhode Island

The real long term answer: change the law!

Have you ever wished you could learn about healthcare reform from cartoons?  Well, lucky for you, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has put together 5 video vocabs about the Affordable Care Act!

Learn about healthcare exchanges!  Learn about Medicare Part D Donut Holes!  Learn about market reforms!  And do all of this learning while enjoying a cheerful soundtrack and some very brightly colored stick figures (all in less than a minute!).

Photo courtesy of the New York Times.

President Obama can’t seem to get folks in Washington to listen to him. So he has decided to try his luck elsewhere…

For weeks he has been striving to get Congress to support  his plan to create jobs in the US… with lukewarm reception.

Now he is exploring alternatives to the American Jobs Act, tacitly admitting the bill is unlikely to pass through Congress.

The President will be touring in Las Vegas and Denver, hoping to pressure Republicans in Congress into passing the bill, rallying citizens under the mantra “We can’t wait,” for lawmakers to act.

Polls have shown that the main goals of the bill are widely supported- 63% approve according to a recent Wall Street Journal poll.

The bill, which can be read in its entirety here, focuses on cutting payroll taxes, extending unemployment benefits, funding new road construction, and providing a tax credit to returning veterans.

Opponents of the bill have cited concerns ranging from the proposed level of spending ($447 billion) to the targeted industries losing tax benefits, which include the oil industry.

Opposition has not been limited to the Republican party. Some Democrats are queasy.

“I have been very unequivocal…No more tax cuts,”

said a Democratic Representative from Oregon, Peter A. DeFazio.

Clearly the President has a long road to travel before his Jobs Bill will be passed.

The Fed takes Twist and Shout! to a WHOLE new level.

Losing my R.E.M.

Do you want Puppy custody for these precious pups!

In this political witch-hunt, no Republican is safe.

Obama for America recently started the website AttackWatch.com. The site gives the average person the opportunity to report criticisms of the president and his initiatives. This is supposed to help the American public “Get the facts. Fight the smears”, the website’s slogan.

Allegations and responses are stored in the “Attack Files”.

This article in the Wall Street Journal calls the website a “Twitter Disaster”, noting that the site’s twitter feed is is full of “zingers”. Not exactly going as planned, we suppose.

So how do you feel? Is this a good idea, or is it screaming 1984 to you?

Image from the Portland Herald Times

Accident at Airshow: three killed, many injured in Reno, Nevada.

An Inconvenient Book: Confidence Men puts the White House in a panic.

Watch out Texans – if you live in the state, you’re more likely to be executed on death row than killed in a plane crash.

Solar Bottle Bulbs – not just a cool science experiment.

Ever wonder why it took so long to even the wheel?  This writer did.

Images thanks to Politico!

You can stand under Obama’s umbrella-ella-ella-ay-ay-ay.  Because apparently he won’t.

Mark your calendar!  Michele Bachmann stops by Late Night next week.

Senator Barbara Mikulski sponsors repeal on DOMA, and the WashPost writes about the new Democratic support for same-sex marriage.

Tension in Turkey.

And just in case you haven’t heard about Schweddy Balls yet…

Image from the Washington Post

On Thursday night, President Obama gave a much anticipated speech to Congress about his plan to reduce unemployment – The American Jobs Act.  Your trusty USDemocrazy bloggers have rounded up some of the coverage for you.  Watch, read, listen, enjoy!

Don’t have a half hour to watch the President’s Thursday night speech?  How about 2 minutes?  CNN gives you the highlights.

How the American Jobs Act will (or won’t) impact people of color.

The markets were certainly listening – the Dow Jones takes a dip.

Perspectives on Obama’s plan and the “woman-cession.”

Let the rallies begin!  As he promised, Obama presents the plan to the people.

And just in case you have some extra time, check out the full video from Thursday’s speech, enhanced with some super cool graphics from whitehouse.gov.