Category Archives: ~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Price for access to Vogue digital archive: $1,575

By Dylan Stableford | The Cutline – 18 hrs ago

Would you pay $1,575 a year to access Vogue’s archive? That’s what the revenue keepers at Condé Nast are hoping, after they unveiled the iconic fashion magazine’s digital vault on Thursday.

The cover of Vogue, June 1950.

The Vogue Archive includes every American issue published by the magazine since 1892–every page, including covers, advertisements and more than 400,000 full-color images.

The archive–aimed primarily at designers, fashion students, teachers and academic institutions–took nearly two years to complete, Vogue says. In addition to employing standard search functions, users can refine their searches by color, materials and clothing. The magazine plans to update the archive monthly with each new issue, and will make some of it available to current print subscribers in 2012.

“The Vogue Archive is expected to become a definitive resource for students of fashion and the visual arts,” the release says. “Additionally, as a comprehensive primary source of modern social history, the Vogue Archive opens new research avenues in the humanities and gender studies.”

Other consumer magazines have tried to leverage their digital archives before, including Playboy, Rolling Stone and Time. But none have attempted to charge such a hefty fee for access. (Playboy’s “Hard Drive,” for instance, costs $299.)

Annual subscriptions for individuals cost $1,575; schools and libraries can gain access for multiple users at a corporate discount that will vary, depending on the institution’s size.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has significant conflicts of interest -Affordable Health Care Act

12/08/2011 Nativegrl77

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has significant conflicts of interest that make it impossible for him to render a fair, impartial decision in the health care case being reviewed by the Court. Political groups determined to repeal or overturn the Affordable Care Act have been filling Thomas’s family bank account for years. His wife Virginia has been a crusader in the campaign to defeat the law. She has raised money and taken money from organized efforts to kill health reform.

It’s time for Clarence Thomas to recuse himself – join our letter to Associate Justice Thomas TODAY. click on link below http://healthcareforamericanow.org/page/m/3560d829/5131405c/333fe647/786f0c2e/746129166/VEsH/

Justice Thomas personally has aligned himself with political activists and organizations dedicated to thwarting the new health care law. He spoke at a secret conclave run by the billionaire Koch Brothers to raise funds for organizations like Americans for Prosperity. Seventy-four members of the House of Representatives have even taken the highly unusual step of requesting that Justice Thomas remove himself from participation in deliberations on the Affordable Care Act.

If Justice Thomas fails to recuse himself, it will threaten the integrity of the entire Supreme Court.

It’s time to send Clarence Thomas a message: recuse yourself.

In Solidarity,
Melinda Gibson
Health Care for America Now

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

DSCC.ORG – Our Top Senate Races in Play – Stay informed

12/08/2011 Nativegrl77

It’s nearly 2012, and Senate campaigns are really starting to heat up across the country. As the DSCC’s political director, it’s my job to keep a close eye on all of our Senate races, find political opportunities, and do all I can to support our outstanding Democratic candidates. Read below about some of the top races we are working to win – many of which are in battleground states that will help determine the presidential race.

As always, we’ll keep you informed whenever campaign news breaks. Thanks for all you do to help Democrats win.

Crystal King

P.S. Recent polls show great opportunities for Democrats, but seizing the momentum takes money. Can you give $5 or $10 to the DSCC today? Our 500,000 donors are playing a crucial role in preventing a total takeover by radical Republicans. We can’t do our work without your help!

Races Update

ARIZONA: Democrat Richard Carmona’s entry into the race has put this red state in play, according to a new poll. Republican Rep. Jeff Flake – “one of the GOP‘s most outspoken critics of extending the payroll tax cut” – leads Carmona by just 4 points, 40-36. Carmona is receiving especially strong support from Hispanic voters, who favor him 56-19. [Full Story]

FLORIDA: A new poll of Sunshine State voters shows that Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson has a 46-35 lead over Republican Connie Mack, and an even larger lead over the rest of the GOP field. The Republican primary is shaping up to be brutal slog, and whoever emerges will most likely be damaged for the general election. [Full Story]

MASSACHUSETTS: This is a state where we have a really good shot at turning a red Senate seat blue. Elizabeth Warren is building a massive following, and in recent polls, she’s either tied with or leading Wall Street’s favorite senator, Republican Scott Brown. This is definitely a race to keep your eyes on. [Full Story]

MONTANA: A brand new Montana Chamber of Commerce poll has Democratic Sen. Jon Tester leading Republican Rep. Dennis Rehberg by 5 points – and that’s after the national Chamber of Commerce ran a slew of attack ads targeting Tester. Rehberg, if you remember, is the lawmaker who sued his hometown fire department and called Pell grants “the welfare of the 21st century.” [Full Story]

NEVADA: In Nevada, a recent poll showed Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley in a dead heat with appointed Sen. Dean Heller, 45-45. In a previous poll, Heller led by 3 points. Heller has the dubious distinction of being the only lawmaker to vote for Rep. Paul Ryan’s End Medicare Plan twice – once in the House and once after he was appointed to the Senate. [Full Story]

NORTH DAKOTA: The entry of former Attorney General Heidi Heitkamp into the North Dakota Senate race caused leading analysts to shift their prediction from Likely Republican to Tossup. And recent polling shows Heitkamp leading freshman GOP Rep. Rick Berg by 5 points, 47-42. In fact, only 28% of poll respondents gave Berg favorable marks, while 56% were thumbs down. [Full Story]

WISCONSIN: The most recent polling in Wisconsin shows a tossup, with Democratic Rep. Tammy Baldwin within the margin of error of three Republican candidates. The Republican primary in Wisconsin is hotly contested and has already become nasty, giving Baldwin the opportunity to concentrate on sharing her plan to create jobs, protect Medicare and Social Security and put middle class families first. [Full Story]

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

What You Did This Year …Nancy Duff Campbell & Marcia Greenberger, National Women’s Law Center

12/08/2011 Nativegrl77

…Was nothing short of amazing.

Your Gift Matched



	Through December 31, every gift to the National Women’s Law Center (up to a total of $90,000) will be matched dollar for dollar.

Because of you:

Women will have access to contraception in new health insurance plans — without co-pays — and attempts to defund family planning were stopped.

Because of you:

Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and other key social safety net programs were spared automatic cuts under the federal debt ceiling deal.

Because of you:

We helped secure nationwide protections against retaliation in the workplace, rights for pregnant and parenting students in Michigan, and educational equity for female student athletes in Oldham County, Kentucky.

Throughout the year, we’ve been honored to work with you to expand the possibilities for women and their families so that, as President Obama said at the Center’s Annual Awards Dinner just weeks ago, our children can “go out into a world where there is no limit to how big they can dream and how high they can reach.”

But we have little time to rest on our laurels — 2012 won’t be easy. Will you help?

Through December 31, every gift to the National Women’s Law Center (up to a total of $90,000) will be matched dollar for dollar.

The coming year will see the Affordable Care Act go before the Supreme Court, where we’ll be fighting to protect the law and ensure that being a woman cannot be a preexisting condition again. With millions of Americans living in poverty and facing long-term unemployment, powerful forces in Congress will STILL lobby for tax cuts to the wealthy at the expense of jobs and programs vital to women and their families. And of course, women STILL earn on average only 77 cents for every dollar earned by their male counterparts, showing the clear need for the Paycheck Fairness Act.

Will you help us? Please consider a very generous contribution to the Center — your gift will be doubled by a match from the Center’s Board of Directors and Leadership 35 Committee.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be bringing you more about what we’ve done together this year and what 2012 is likely to bring. In the meantime, please help us start our 40th year stronger than ever before. Thank you again for all the help you give and all the work you do on behalf of women and families.

Sincerely,

Nancy Duff Campbell
Co-President
National Women’s Law Center

Marcia Greenberger
Co-President
National Women’s Law Center

P.S. Remember, your gift will be matched thanks to the generosity of our Board and Leadership 35 Committee. Please help today!

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

AFL – CIO

12/07/2011 Nativegrl77

AMAZING

You’ve got to see this—these stories from jobless workers blew us away.See the stories, share them and add your voice.

You need to check out this website, right now.

It’s a powerful reminder of the real faces behind America’s sobering unemployment statistics. It has real pictures and stories from job-hunters and impacted people from all walks of life—from your state and from every state.

I hope you’ll take a minute to look at these powerful stories, share them and add your own.

If Congress fails to act by Dec. 31, extended unemployment insurance will expire for millions.

We never forget these are real people who face the prospect of going hungry and getting thrown out of their homes soon after the holidays if Congress fails to act. Many of us have been there before—or have friends and family who have.

Even though obstructionists in Congress are willing to ignore our joblessness crisis, we refuse to let these stories get brushed under the rug.

Click here to see and share the stories and faces behind America’s joblessness crisis.

Then, share our website on Facebook and Twitter and forward this message to all your friends.

These stories and pictures won’t just live on a website. We’ll share them with the media, hand-deliver them to Congress during our massive day of action on Dec. 8 and promote them widely on the Internet.

If callous members of Congress think they can sit back and allow unemployment aid to expire while they play political games, they’re wrong. With your help we’re going to force them to see this crisis head-on—with real faces of real people who are jobless and struggling in this brutal economy.

See these stories, share them and add your voice.

In Solidarity,

Manny Herrmann
Online Mobilization Coordinator, AFL-CIO

P.S. It’s not just people who are unemployed right now who have stories to tell. Millions of others do, too.

Maybe you’ve been jobless in the past and relied on unemployment benefits to get through. Or you’ve seen firsthand how much unemployment hurts your community and America—and how much unemployment aid helps. Or maybe you can write a brief statement of support for the jobless or urge Congress to act—even in just one to two sentences.

Together, we’re creating a visual display of the impact of unemployment that will be too powerful to ignore. See and share stories and statements in your state and across America. Then, add your own.

To find out more about the AFL-CIO, please visit our website at www.aflcio.org.