26-Year-Old Women Discover They're Identical Twins
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on November 14th, 2014 12:08 am by HL
Anais Bordier and Samantha Futerman have the same laugh and the same freckled cheeks. They wear their hair the same way and have since they were babies. They share a hatred of cooked carrots, a love of the same color nail polish and the need to sleep 10 hours a day. The pair tease, poke and prod each other like they've grown up together, but they didn't. Neither woman knew she had an identical twin sister until less than two years ago.
Robin Williams Suffered Dementia, Autopsy Reveals
Robin Williams had a difficult to diagnose condition known as Lewy Body Dementia which may have contributed to his decision to commit suicide last August, according to autopsy report documents. People with the condition have dementia and sometimes appear confused and exhibit unusual behavior, said Angela Taylor of the Lewy Body Dementia Association. According to the coroner's report, the 63-year-old actor and comedian had been acting strangely before his death, reportedly keeping several watches in a sock that he was concerned about keeping safe.
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Kuwaiti Cartoonist Battles ISIS Death Threats, U.S. Bigots
Naif al-Mutawa, creator of comic book series "The 99," spoke with Al-Monitor about the recent death threat by the Islamic State.
USAID urges emergency funds for Ebola hot spots
WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. official estimates there are 3,000 active cases of Ebola in West Africa, many of them in small clusters dotted throughout the countryside that require a more rapid and flexible response.
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WH hints Obama immigration action will be broad
Top administration official also says timing could be linked to concern about prompting gov't shutdown next month
Russian bomber missions over Gulf of Mexico would be "significant"
A brief history of Russia's long-range bomber missions
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Fox's Krauthammer On Obama's Immigration Plan: "I Believe It Is An Impeachable Offense"
From the November 13 edition of Fox News' The Kelly File:
Fox's Megyn Kelly Asks Republican Senator If He Will Impeach Obama Over Executive Action On Immigration
Citing Baseless Claim Of "Blanket Amnesty," Fox's Megyn Kelly Suggests Obama May "Offend" Republicans Into Impeaching Him
Right-Wing Media Wrong About The Legality Of The Upcoming Executive Orders On Immigration
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Our Gathering Storm
Michael Gerson, RealClearPolitics
WASHINGTON — When Abraham Lincoln first presented a version of the Emancipation Proclamation to his Cabinet, Secretary of State William Seward warned that issuing it after a defeat would look desperate. Better to wait "until the eagle of victory takes his flight" and then "hang your proclamation about his neck." Lincoln postponed action until after the Union victory (such as it was) at Antietam. Our president today apparently regards an executive order on immigration — which might grant legal status to millions of undocumented adults — in the same historical category. But he seems intent…
Obama Always Puts U.S. on the Wrong Side
Mona Charen, RealClearPolitics
Americans of most political persuasions tend to view the United Nations as corrupt and morally inverted. An organization supposedly dedicated to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights regularly overlooks abuses by the world's worst actors (Cuba, North Korea, China, just to name three) while expending vast quantities of outrage at the efforts of one tiny democracy, Israel, to defend itself. When the United States stands with Israel against the UN lynch mob, it restores ballast to the moral universe. What should be up is up, and what should be down is down. I kept a photograph of Democrat…
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Sturgeon to be appointed SNP leader
Nicola Sturgeon will formally take over the leadership of the SNP from Alex Salmond as the party's annual conference gets under way in Perth.
Cameron in Australia for G20 summit
World leaders, including David Cameron, are meeting at the G20 in Australia to discuss plans to revive the world economy.
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Comet Landing Bumpier Than Initially Thought
The European Space Agency lander is sitting in a skewed position on the comet's surface, compromising some aspects of the $1.75 billion Rosetta mission.
Obama Prods Myanmar Back Toward Democracy
President Obama warned leaders in Myanmar that they needed to improve the political system and stop systematic persecution of the Muslim minority.
New Recall by Honda After Death in Malaysia Is Tied to Takata Airbag
The fatality is the first outside the United States to be linked to defective airbags made by Takata.
Letter From Europe: Seeing Past the Poppies and Balloons
Remembrances of World War I in Britain and the Berlin Wall in Germany have led to what some argue is the rose-tinting of complex histories.
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Daughter Petitions Kmart Not To Make Her Mom Work On Thanksgiving
Her daughter has started an online petition asking Kmart not to stay open for 42 hours beginning Thanksgiving morning.
The post Daughter Petitions Kmart Not To Make Her Mom Work On Thanksgiving appeared first on ThinkProgress.
CREDIT: John Konstantaras/AP
Jillian Fisher's mother has worked at Kmart for 21 years. But her mother still doesn't know if she's going to be told to work on Thanksgiving this year, even with the holiday two weeks away. If she does, it would ruin her one annual chance to spend time with her siblings and family.
So on Wednesday night, Fisher began a petition on Coworker.org asking Kmart not to stay open for 42 hours beginning at 6 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day, or to at least give those employees who want to stay home with friends and family the flexibility to do so. It's already passed the original goal of 200 signatures and was nearing 300 by Thursday afternoon.
"Last night I looked and was happy there were 30 signatures at 8 p.m.," she told ThinkProgress. "It feels like there is momentum."
Last year, Fisher's mother called her daughter nearly in tears because she was told she would have to work what is called a "split shift" on Thanksgiving Day, meaning she had to spend two chunks of time at work. "She was not going to be able to spend any real time with our family," Fisher said. "To hear her on the verge of tears really infuriated me, to think why are they doing this to people, they need time to be with their families." This is the one holiday where the whole family gets together: her mother's brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces. "Thanksgiving is pretty much the one time of year we all get together," she said.
It's that frustration that sparked the petition. "I wanted to bring attention to it because I know it can't just be her," she said. And if the signers are any guide, it seems she's not alone. "I used to work at KMart, and missed MANY holidays with my family. It is NOT volunteer work, it is required," reads one. "I used to work at K-mart, actually, I worked there for FIVE years, working all of their ridiculous holiday hours. There are no volunteers, and some Boston Market dinner did not make up for the time I missed with my family," reads another. Workers told the Huffington Post last year that their requests to take the holiday off were denied.
Fisher stresses that it isn't that her mother doesn't want to work holidays or difficult shifts. "She knows she works in retail and has to work the crappy hours," she said. But she says that at least at her mother's store in the Pennsylvania/Delaware area, workers haven't even been officially told of the store's 6 a.m. opening — they've only found out through the news — let alone what the schedule might be for the holiday. "She has no idea whether they're going to be required to work, no idea if they're going to be hiring more people for seasonal work," she said.
There have been times when the schedule wasn't posted until Friday at midnight for a week that starts on Sunday, so it could come down to the wire. "She could be hearing about it as soon as tomorrow or she could be hearing about it in a week," Fisher explained. "She doesn't know and nobody knows."
The store has also claimed that shifts will be staffed by volunteers, but Fisher says that's not the case at her mother's store. There hasn't been any sign-up sheet or calls for people to opt in. And last year when she told her manager to plan not to have her at the store for her second shift, her mother was told she would get written up as a no show. "It seems people are afraid of losing their jobs or getting in trouble if they say they're not going to do it," Fisher said.
When asked about whether Kmart has told employees of its early Thanksgiving hours, allowed some to volunteer, given workers their schedules for that week, or will allow them to opt out of working that day without being disciplined, a company spokesperson responded, "Our stores do their very best to staff with seasonal associates and those who volunteer to work holidays. All associates are compensated time and a half pay for the hours they work on Thanksgiving Day. We want to express deep appreciation in advance to all associates who will be working Thanksgiving evening and the day after Thanksgiving."
Plans haven't been made yet for how the petition will be delivered to the company. But Tim Newman, campaigns director at Coworker.org, said, "As more Kmart employees begin to sign the petition, I imagine they will work together with their family members (like Jillian) and other supporters to ensure that their message is heard by Kmart executives," adding, "with Thanksgiving approaching quickly, I'm sure there will be additional activities organized soon."
Some similar petitions have also cropped up on Change.org, while a Facebook group called Boycott Black Thursday has more than 80,000 likes. They're all protesting the growing trend of retailers opening on Thanksgiving, rather than waiting for Black Friday: this year 12 brands have said they'll be open.
In the meantime, Fisher's mother keeps waiting to hear whether her holiday will be ruined. "My mom's worked for Kmart for 21 years," Fisher said. "She's like, be honest with me, tell me what it is so we can plan."
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From: Word Salad
Pro-Sanctions Group Targets Legal Humanitarian Trade With Iran
From: Eli Clifton
United Against Nuclear Iran targets legal trade with Iran as part of its divestment campaign.
The Bad News About Burma
From: Foreign Policy In Focus
During his second visit, Obama must confront troubling reports of backsliding reforms, attacks on civilians and evidence of war crimes.
Senate Democrats Are About to Do Something Truly Stupid
From: Zoë Carpenter
The Louisiana senator could build the Keystone XL pipeline with her bare hands, and it probably still wouldn't give her the boost she needs to win the runoff.
Frantic to Help Mary Landrieu, Democrats Betray Their Base on Keystone
From: Leslie Savan
Dem's Keystone crap-shoot won't save Landrieu, but it will help Republicans realize their pipeline pipedream.
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Rethinking U.S. Foreign Policy
George Will, National Review
Barack Obama's coming request for Congress to "right-size and update" the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against terrorism will be constitutionally fastidious and will catalyze a debate that will illuminate Republican fissures. They, however, are signs of a healthy development — the reappearance of foreign-policy heterodoxy in Republican ranks.
Gruber and the Stupidity of the American Voter
Gruber's Confession Impolitic, But Not Newsworthy
Brian Beutler, TNR
Earlier this year, the opponents of the Affordable Care Act spun a complete revision of the law's legislative history from a video in which MIT professor, and Obamacare architect, Jonathan Gruber mistakenly said citizens in states that don't set up their own exchanges won't be eligible for health insurance subsidies.
All Eyes on Jeb Bush
A.B. Stoddard, The Hill
The 2016 GOP presidential nominating contest, which began after last week's midterm elections wrapped up, already includes 17 potential candidates and their families, hundreds of would-be staff and several dozen top Republican donors. Though they aren't saying it out loud, all of them are waiting for the decision of one person: former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.
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