links for 2009-06-26

INTERESTING: New research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found substantial reductions in binge drinking since the national drinking age was set at 21 two decades ago, with one exception: college students. The rates of binge drinking in male collegians remain unchanged, but the rates in female collegians have increased dramatically.

Harvard University announced this morning that it plans to lay off 275 staff members as the college grapples with budget pressures caused by a precipitous endowment decline.

what might be the most shocking thing of all about this Mark Sanford scandal...is that it actually fits the standard adultery narrative, where the cheater falls in love. And what’s fascinating is how much people are embarrassed for him because of it, which doesn’t make much sense to me, since I thought the emails that were published weren’t anything unusual, though definitely private.

Mark Sanford, this anti-gay Republican politician from South Carolina has helped make the argument for gay marriage in a way that few of us have been able to. Take this passage, from Maria, about their feelings for one another: "Sometimes you don't choose things, they just happen ..." Could there be a more universal, recognizable definition of how feelings of love have no identifiable provenance? Even though it was written by a woman who seems quite heterosexual, can anyone who is homosexual avoid hearing echoes of "I didn't choose to be gay" in this expression of futility in the face of love? Maria goes on, in words that any lesbian or gay man who has finally stopped resisting their truest, inner self could recognize: "I can't redirect my feelings and I am very happy with mine towards you."

The headline is especially interesting since the text tells a different story. I'm with Pollis: "In a phone interview with the Bay Area Reporter Tuesday, June 23 Polis once again defended his attendance at both events. While the Democratic Party has its faults, it is far better in terms of LGBT issues than the Republican Party, he said."

"I am a Democrat and a proud Democrat. Our party is not perfect but we need to make it better," said Polis. "There is an enormous difference between the Republican and Democratic Party on equality issues."

It's as if the whole Baby Boom is dying. It has to be a cultural moment of some kind. McMahon, Fawcett, Jackson & Cronkite. Unparalleled. It gives Mark Sanford ca break.

For future reference: Example of the freak-out Google Street View causes