HOUSE VOTES TO PREVENT GOV'T SHUTDOWN, OBAMA DINES WITH GOP
SENATORS: The Republican-led House pushed through legislation Wednesday (March 6th) on a bipartisan vote to prevent a government shutdown on March 27th, while easing the short-term impact of the $85 billion in sequester spending cuts. The bill would ensure funding through the end of the fiscal year on September 30th, while giving the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs greater flexibility in implementing their sequester cuts. The legislation now heads to the Senate, where negotiations are taking place to give the same type of flexibility to domestic agencies. Meanwhile, President Obama hosted a dinner with a dozen Republican senators in an effort to get bipartisan support for a deficit-cutting agreement that includes the higher taxes he seeks as well as cuts to Medicare and other benefit programs that the GOP wants.

PAUL CARRIES OUT 13-HOUR FILIBUSTER OVER DRONE POLICY: Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky carried out a nearly 13-hour, traditional talking filibuster yesterday (March 6th) in an effort to block Senate confirmation of John Brennan's nomination to be the new head of the CIA. But Paul, a Tea Party favorite, was really using the Brennan nomination to express his unhappiness with the administration's drone policy. He began just before noon by demanding that President Obama or Attorney General Eric Holder issue a statement assuring that drones wouldn't be used in the U.S. to kill terrorism suspects who are U.S. citizens. In a show of support, more than a dozen of Paul's Republican colleagues took turns speaking for him.  During some of their turns, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas read from Shakespeare's Henry V and recited lines from the movie Patton, while Senator Marco
Rubio referenced rappers Jay-Z and Wiz Khalifa.

Earlier in the day, Holder came close to giving the statement Paul wanted, saying when
asked by Cruz at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing if the Constitution allowed the federal government to kill a U.S. citizen on U.S. soil who doesn't pose an imminent threat, that the situation was hypothetical, but he didn't think that the use of a drone or lethal force would be appropriate. Paul was driven to carry out the filibuster by Holder telling him in a letter Monday
that he supposed it was possible under an extraordinary circumstance that the president would have no choice but to authorize the military to use lethal force, such as a drone, inside U.S. borders, citing the attacks on 9/11 and at Pearl Harbor as examples.

 

BIG ATMOSPHERIC INCREASE IN HEAT-TRAPPING CARBON DIOXIDE: The amount of heat-trapping carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increased dramatically last year, according to
federal figures, making it very unlikely that global warming can be limited to another two degrees as many global leaders have hoped. Scientists say the CO2 jump reflects the world's economy speeding up and burning more fossil fuels, especially in China. Carbon dioxide levels jumped by 2.67 parts per million since 2011, the highest increase since record-keeping began
in 1959, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's greenhouse gas measurement team. More coal-burning power plants, especially in the developing world, are the main reason emissions keep going up, even as they've declined in the U.S. and other places. Scientists track carbon pollution both by monitoring what is produced by factories and what winds up in the atmosphere, and both are rising at faster rates than worst-case
scenarios used in the most recent international projections.

ARKANSAS BANS ABORTION AFTER 12 WEEKS OF PREGNANCY: Arkansas lawmakers on Wednesday (March 6th) voted to ban abortion after 12 weeks of pregnancy, the most restrictive law in the country, as both houses of the state legislature overrode a veto by Democratic Governor Mike Beebe. The law, which will go into effect in August if it survives
expected legal challenges, includes exemptions for rape, incest, danger to the life of a pregnant woman, and major fetal conditions.

INTERN KILLED BY LION AT CALIFORNIA ANIMAL PARK: A 24-year-old intern who'd only been on the job for a few weeks was mauled to death by a lion Wednesday (March 6th) at an exotic animal park called Cat Haven in central California. Authorities say the intern, identified by her father as Dianna Hanson, was attacked and killed when she entered the lion's enclosure. Fresno County sheriff's Lieutenant Bob Miller said responding deputies had to shoot the animal to reach the woman, who died at the scene.

SUSPECT ARRESTED IN HIT-AND-RUN DEATH OF PREGNANT WOMAN, HUSBAND: The 44-year-old suspect in the hit-and-run crash that killed a pregnant woman and her husband in Brooklyn early Sunday (March 3rd) was arrested at a Pennsylvania convenience store esterday (March 6th) after a friend arranged his surrender. Julio Acevedo is accused of speeding down a Brooklyn street at 60 miles per hour when he slammed into the cab that was carrying Nachman and Raizy Glauber to the hospital, since she wasn't feeling well. Their premature baby, who was delivered by cesarean section, died a day later. Acevedo told the New York
Daily News that he was fleeing a gunman who was trying to shoot at him when he slammed into the car carrying the couple. He told the newspaper he drove away because he was worried he'd be killed. However, police said there were no reports of shots fired in the area at the time of the crash.

GIFFORDS CALLS FOR UNIVERSAL GUN BACKGROUND CHECKS AT SITE OF HER SHOOTING: Former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords returned Wednesday (March 6th) to the Tucson, Arizona, supermarket outside of which she was shot two years ago, making the appearance to call for universal background checks for gun purchases. This was the first public event at the site for Giffords, who had returned there before with her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly, to visit a memorial that's been set up for the six people who died
in the attack. Giffords, who can speak only haltingly as she continues to recover from being shot in the head, said only a few words, stating, "Be bold. Be courageous. Please support background checks." A gun control group started by Giffords and Kelly began airing a new TV ad in Arizona and Iowa Tuesday urging Congress to take action on the issue.

NEW GUIDELINES: GIVE BABIES PEANUTS, EGGS, OTHER ALLERGENIC FOODS EARLY: New guidelines that are out amid rising rates of children's food allergies reverses what had been the previous recommendation, now advising that the most allergenic foods, such as peanuts, eggs, milk, soy and shellfish, should be introduced to babies at ages four to
six months as a way to prevent food allergies. The guidelines from the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology comes as new scientific data suggests that early introduction of highly allergenic foods may reduce children's risk for developing food allergies. Back in 2000, the American Academy of Pediatrics advised delaying milk until high-risk kids
were one year old; eggs until they were two, and peanuts, shellfish, tree nuts, and fish until they were three. But in 2008, the AAP said there was little evidence delaying allergenic foods prevents food allergies, however it didn't offer any guidelines on when to introduce those foods.

  • Up to six million children in the U.S. have food allergies, and the rate has increased
         by nearly 20 percent since 1997 for unknown reasons.
  • About 90 percent of food allergies are triggered by just eight foods: milk; soy; wheat; peanuts; tree nuts; shellfish; eggs; and fish.

WE'RE TRYING TO BUY AMERICAN AGAIN: More of us are making an effort to seek out and buy products that were made in the U.S., CNBC reports, as the Great Recession and slow economic recovery have helped many Americans realize that the trade-off for cheap goods made overseas in places like China is the loss of manufacturing jobs here at home. Partly due
to this shift in the zeitgeist, companies are focusing more on U.S manufacturing again. Walmart announced earlier this year that it will increase sourcing of U.S. products by $50 billion during the next 10 years, and General Electric is investing $1 billion through 2014 to
revitalize its U.S. appliances business and create more than 1,500 American jobs. CNBC says that even small independent retailers are catering to the desire for American-made products. It's not just patriotism driving this for companies, however. A combination of factors including rising labor costs are reducing the price advantage of overseas manufacturing for U.S. companies.

CHECK IT OUT:

BULLYING DAMAGES THE BULLIES TOO: A new study has found that bullies not only damage those they torment, but hurt themselves as well. Researcher Richard Ryan, a University of Rochester professor of clinical and social psychology, said that bullying causes the bullies to feel shame and guilt and makes them feel less connected to others. Ryan explained, "Their distress is different from the person excluded, but no less intense." Study leader Nicole Legate said in a statement, "We are social animals at heart."

ROMNEY JOINING SON'S INVESTMENT FIRM: An adviser to Mitt Romney said yesterday (March 6th) that the 2012 Republican presidential nominee is joining his son Tagg's investment firm, called Solamere Capital. Romney will serve as chairman of the executive committee, a development first reported by NBC News. Tagg Romney co-founded Solamere in 2008 with Eric Scheuermann and Spencer Zwick, Mitt Romney's finance chairman in his 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns.

SCOTT WEILAND: STONE TEMPLE PILOTS ‘LIKE FAMILY’ TO ME. Former
Stone Temple Pilots singer Scott Weiland continues to maintain that "no one in the band can be fired" in the wake of the rest of the group doing just that to him last week. But while Weiland said last week that his dismissal was a publicity stunt concocted to "boost ticket sales" -- for some mysterious, unannounced tour -- he now has told Spin that the whole affair is "something that has taken on its own life. Behind the scenes, it's really not anything different than what was going on before."

  • Weiland sounded a bit more subdued when he added, "(STP) really have been together a long time and I'm proud of that. I really do like those guys and it hurts my feelings when we aren't getting along, because I view them as family."
  • But Weiland also maintained that he had not officially lost his job with the group, saying, "There are some issues that have to be worked out with STP, but they're the same issues that have been going on since the end of the last tour. Nobody in the band can be fired . . . and no one's ever quit the band."
  • The other members of STP have not commented on the matter since issuing a statement on February 27th revealing that Weiland had been "terminated."
  • He previously parted with the group in 2002, reuniting with them six years later after he was kicked out of Velvet Revolver.
  • Rumors of Weiland being fired again from STP first surfaced in December after Slash
         revealed the news in a radio station interview. Weiland called the rumors
         "hearsay" just one day before he was let go.
  • The singer and his solo band The Wildabouts are currently on a tour -- playing the first two STP albums -- that stops in Boston on Thursday night (March 7th).

LAYNE STALEY REMEMBERED BY MAD SEASON DRUMMER IN NEW VIDEO: A video has been posted online in which former Mad Season drummer Barrett Martin reminisces about late Alice In Chains and Mad Season singer Layne Staley, who died in 2002 of a drug overdose. Staley, Martin, Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready and bassist John Baker Saunders recorded Mad Season's sole album, Above, in 1995, but any chance of a second one was shelved after the deaths of both Staley and Saunders.

McCready, who got clean just before recording Above, told Pulse of Radio he often thinks about what his two bandmates would have done if they had lived: "It's an interesting, sad feeling at times, because I wonder what those guys would be like now. You know, I wonder if Layne would be a dad or Baker would be a dad or, you know, those kind of things that are important to me now, as opposed to when I was in my 20s, are so different and I wish they could experience that."

  • In his video, Martin recalls one early '90s tour featuring Alice In Chains and Martin's band Screaming Trees on which Staley would always use his nightly allotment of VIP passes to get fans without tickets into the show.
  • Martin said, "He always was looking out for people that wanted to see the show but couldn't afford to. That's why he represents those people. He doesn't represent the elite."
  • A three-disc deluxe edition of Above will be released on April 2nd, containing the original album, an unreleased track called "Locomotive," three songs written and sung by Mark Lanegan that were originally intended for the band's sophomore album and a DVD capturing the band's final show ever.

DID YOU KNOW? Mad Season was started in 1994 when Mike
McCready met John Baker Saunders at a Minneapolis rehab facility.

CHECK IT OUT: Watch Barrett Martin talking about Layne Staley
at http://diffuser.fm/mad-season-exclusive-video-layne-staley/

TRENT REZNOR TELLS REDDIT TROLL TO ‘GO F--- YOURSELF’: Trent Reznor and his bandmates in How To Destroy Angels went on Reddit on Wednesday (March 6th) for an "Ask Me Anything" q-and-a session, but one reader's rather nasty attack prompted an equally sharp response from Reznor. Apparently incensed at Reznor's decision to sign How To Destroy Angels to a major label after vowing years ago never to work with one again, one participant wrote, "As millionaires, why did you sign up with a record label to promote your new album? . . . I don't buy the 'get it to as many people as possible' excuse, especially when Trent conveniently places a spotlight on his former cash cow a few days before your band releases this new album . . . When can I get my (Nine Inch Nails) toothpaste?"

Reznor responded, "Sorry, the WiFi on our yacht is having issues. We can't get your full question to load. Try sending me an email at gof***yourself@youc***.com."

  • When some other readers did question whether the announcement last week of Nine
         Inch Nails' return was timed to help promote the release of How To Destroy Angels' first full-length album, HTDA member Rob Sheridan later replied, "The answer is we DIDN'T WANT TO ANNOUNCE NIN yet. We put it off as long as possible to give HTDA time to breathe before getting steamrolled by NIN news, but when you book festival gigs, they have their own marketing rollout that is beyond our control and have specific times they need to announce their lineups."
  • Sheridan also addressed the "millionaires" remark, saying, "No one's getting rich off HTDA . . . We're doing it because we think it's cool and we like making art and that's really it. We want as many people as possible to hear about that art, so that led to the
         record label idea."
  • How To Destroy Angels' debut album, Welcome Oblivion, was released on Tuesday (March 5th).
  • Reznor revealed last week that he was officially resurrecting Nine Inch Nails after a four-year break for an extended tour that will kick off this summer.

CHECK IT OUT: Read the entire Reddit chat at http://tinyurl.com/bcjby5c

CARRIE FISHER CONFIRMS HER RETURN TO 'STAR WARS': Carrie Fisher has confirmed that she will be returning to her role as Princess Leia in a new interview with Palm Beach
Illustrated. When asked what Princess Leia is like today, Carrie joked, "Elderly. She's in an intergalactic old folks' home. I just think she would be just like she was before, only slower and less inclined to be up for the big battle."

LEONARDO DICAPRIO IMPERSONATES JACK NICHOLSON: Leo DiCaprio made an appearance on a Japanese TV show and revealed his hidden talent of imitating Jack Nicholson's facial expression. Leo didn't attempt to impersonate Jack's voice but he definitely
has the eyebrows down. Take a look: http://tmz.me/XRqEtn

THE SCIENCE BEHIND BEER GOGGLES: U.K. researchers say that men and women don't
actually see each other differently after a few drinks, but that they do have more desire. Dr. Amanda Ellison, a researcher at Durham University in the U.K. says that the part of brain responsible for making us want to mate continues to work even when we are very intoxicated.
However, drinking alcohol shuts down the part of the brain responsible for impulse control, including sexual impulses. Ellison says that these two things together can mean people are less selective about who to mate with. In a related study, scientists found that people who were made to believe they were drunk and then asked to deliver a speech gave themselves better marks than those who believed they were sober-- regardless of how drunk they actually
were. The study concluded that the more alcohol one consumes the more attractive they find themselves. (TIME)

NOT SLEEPING WELL? IT MAY AFFECT YOUR HEART HEALTH: New research finds a link between people who suffer from insomnia and heart failure. For their study, researchers followed over 54-thousand people of various ages over the course of 11-years and noted
whether they suffered from the three main symptoms of insomnia: trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, or not feeling refreshed in the morning. They found that for people who had all three insomnia symptoms there was a 453-percent increased risk of heart failure, compared with those with no insomnia symptoms.  Researcher Dr. Lars Laugsand from the Norweigan University of Science and Technology says that sleeping problems could trigger stress responses that negatively affect heart function. The study was published the European Heart
Journal. (Daily Mail)

WORK LIFE BALANCE EQUALS CAREER SUCCESS, STUDY FINDS: A study by Accenture finds that wok-life balance is the number one indicator-- ahead of money-- for men and
woman as to whether or not they have a successful career. The study found that over half of participants cited work-life balance as the most important indicator, and that more than two-thirds of employees surveyed believe they can have both a successful career and a full life outside of work. More than half of those surveyed even said they've turned down a job offer because of the potential impact it would have on their work-life balance. The study was based
on surveys from over four-thousand business executives from medium to large organizations in 33-countries. (Huffington Post)