Given how large a mobile market China has become, and its role in gadget manufacturing globally, we sometimes forget the government of this increasingly tech-aware country still dictates what corners of the web its peoples can see. Today, the South China Morning Post reports the state has decided to unblock several foreign internet sites "considered politically sensitive," but only in the free-trade zone of Shanghai's Pudong New Area. According to "government sources," the move to open access to sites including Facebook, Twitter (both of which were cut off in 2009) and The New York Times (blocked last year) is so visitors can "live and work happily in the free-trade zone." The greater goal is to make the area more attractive to foreign companies, beyond the favorable regulatory and tax environment, of course. Furthermore, the Chinese are allegedly beckoning overseas firms to come in and "provide internet services" for the new, 30 square kilometer zone. The Great Firewall may remain firmly up for the rest of the country and its billion-odd population, but one step at a time and all that.
In the summer of 2011, some Democrats urged President Obama to simply raise the debt ceiling himself if Republicans refused to pass legislation.
There was the "trillion dollar coin" idea, wherein the government mints itself out of trouble via an arcane bullion law.
Then there was the 14th Amendment option. Here, the president would have to take a modern interpretation on the Civil War-era amendment about the "validity of the public debt of the United States," and surely face legal action.
Now, as?the two parties gear up for another debt ceiling bout, Greg Valliere at Potomac Research thinks Obama may be coming around to the idea of acting on his own. Valliere writes to clients:
Obama is not shy about using executive authority, and he surely has heard from Constitutional scholars who believe he has the authority to raise the debt ceiling on his own. (Bill Clinton urged Obama to take this approach in the summer of 2011.) Fearless forecast:?if Treasury is out of money in early November and a default looks possible, Obama will simply raise the debt ceiling. He'll face instant litigation, but that wouldn't be resolved for months.
It seems the president is not willing to negotiate at all for a raise in the debt ceiling, as he made clear to Speaker John Boehner in a phone call last week. We'll see what happens.
Shawn Langdon, Erica Enders-Stevens also claim top qualifying positions
Published on September 21, 2013
NHRA/National Dragster - Robert Hight will be going for his third consecutive NHRA Funny Car win on Sunday.
NHRA Funny Car driver Robert Hight put together a track-record run and secured his second No. 1 qualifying position of the season and 45th of his career on Saturday, and he will try for his third straight victory of the season on Sunday at the AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex
Shawn Langdon (Top Fuel) and Erica Enders-Stevens (Pro Stock) and also lead their categories as the No. 1 qualifiers at the second of six races in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship playoffs. Rains in Ennis, Texas, washed out both of Friday's qualifying sessions as competitors made two runs Saturday. Sunday's eliminations start at noon ET.
Hight and his Auto Club Ford Mustang climbed to the top of the class with an impressive second round showing of 4.052 seconds at 311.85 mph. The red-hot Hight, who broke the elapsed time track record with the run, will open eliminations against two-time event winner Del Worsham.
?How is that for showing off for the sponsor? Maybe Governor Perry brought us good luck. If that is the case I don?t want him to leave tomorrow," Hight said. "This Auto Club Ford is flying and my guys have a really good handle on it. We have Worsham first round and that is a tough first round match-up. We have to get past qualifying and do our job tomorrow."
Snap-on Tools Toyota Camry driver Cruz Pedregon, a three-time event champ, holds the second position with run of 4.092 at 304.32 while series points leader Matt Hagan sits in the third spot with a performance of 4.093 at 312.78 in his Magneti Marelli/Rocky Boots Dodge Charger. Hagan's speed also broke the track record.
In Top Fuel, Langdon powered his 8,000-horsepower Al-Anabi Silver Racing dragster to his fifth No. 1 qualifier of 2013 and 11th of his career with a strong pass of 3.819 at 321.04. Langdon, who has a class-best five wins this year and earned three bonus points with the quickest pass of the first session, will meet T.J. Zizzo in the first round of eliminations.
?It was huge to come out here and make as strong a run as we did in the first session,? said Langdon, who claimed the No. 1 qualifying spot in Dallas for the second straight year. ?It was our goal to try to bring the deficit behind (points leader) Spencer Massey to less than one round. Now our focus is to win the race.?
Doug Kalitta claimed the No. 2 spot with a run of 3.825 at 318.39 in his Mac Tools dragster. Protect the Harvest/MAV TV dragster driver Brandon Bernstein, who holds the track record in Dallas, secured the third spot after going 3.827 at 316.38. Fellow Texans Steve Torrence and points leader Massey, who has been the runner-up at his home track the past two years, took the No. 4 and No. 8 qualifying positions, respectively.
In Pro Stock, Texas native and fan favorite Enders-Stevens earned her first No. 1 qualifier position of the season and sixth of her career with a stellar performance of 6.557 at 210.93 in her newly-funded Husky Liners Chevy Cobalt.
"This is a great feeling for sure, especially doing it in front of my hometown fans in Texas," Enders-Stevens said of her first No. 1 qualifier in her home state of Texas. "It was kind of nerve-wracking with only two qualifying sessions, so I hope to have more peace of mind during Sunday's eliminations."
Rickie Jones in his Elite Motorsports Chevy Camaro took the No. 2 position with a run of 6.574 at 211.33 while his teammate, Gray Motorsports Chevy Camaro driver Shane Gray, finished as the No. 3 qualifier with his pass of 6.591 at 210.77.
Enders-Stevens, who currently sits in the No. 7 spot in the series points standings, will take on fellow Texan Chris McGaha in the first round. Points leader Mike Edwards qualified No. 6 and will race Larry Morgan in the opening round.
NHRA
Saturday
At Texas Motorplex
Ennis, Texas
Sunday pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs listed below pairings.
Top Fuel
1. Shawn Langdon, 3.819 seconds, 321.04 mph vs. 16. T.J. Zizzo, 3.949, 290.44. 2. Doug Kalitta, 3.825, 320.58 vs. 15. Larry Dixon, 3.939, 292.71. 3. Brandon Bernstein, 3.827, 316.38 vs. 14. Antron Brown, 3.895, 311.05. 4. Steve Torrence, 3.832, 320.89 vs. 13. Tony Schumacher, 3.878, 320.20. 5. Clay Millican, 3.835, 320.74 vs. 12. Morgan Lucas, 3.872, 317.87. 6. Spencer Massey, 3.839, 318.02 vs. 11. J.R. Todd, 3.871, 311.27. 7. David Grubnic, 3.848, 320.43 vs. 10. Brittany Force, 3.871, 312.06. 8. Billy Torrence, 3.853, 316.52 vs. 9. Bob Vandergriff, 3.870, 316.75. Did Not Qualify: 17. Scott Palmer, 3.975, 302.48. 18. Troy Buff, 4.041, 284.45. 19. Khalid alBalooshi, 4.179, 260.31. 20. Terry McMillen, 4.302, 124.13.
Funny Car
1. Robert Hight, Ford Mustang, 4.052, 311.85 vs. 16. Del Worsham, Toyota Camry, 4.262, 291.95. 2. Cruz Pedregon, Camry, 4.092, 304.32 vs. 15. Blake Alexander, Dodge Charger, 4.210, 294.56. 3. Matt Hagan, Charger, 4.093, 312.78 vs. 14. Jeff Arend, Charger, 4.187, 301.27. 4. Ron Capps, Charger, 4.096, 306.88 vs. 13. Tony Pedregon, Camry, 4.178, 288.39. 5. Courtney Force, Mustang, 4.115, 309.13 vs. 12. John Force, Mustang, 4.174, 297.94. 6. Jack Beckman, Charger, 4.122, 306.12 vs. 11. Alexis DeJoria, Camry, 4.166, 303.50. 7. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.137, 301.87 vs. 10. Chad Head, Camry, 4.161, 304.12. 8. Johnny Gray, Charger, 4.154, 304.39 vs. 9. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 4.154, 302.41. Did Not Qualify: 17. John Hale, 4.430, 277.94. 18. Todd Simpson, 4.706, 192.06. 19. Terry Haddock, 5.701, 126.29.
Pro Stock
1. Erica Enders-Stevens, Chevy Camaro, 6.557, 210.93 vs. 16. Chris McGaha, Dodge Avenger, 6.654, 208.68. 2. Rickie Jones, Camaro, 6.559, 211.33 vs. 15. Matt Hartford, Avenger, 6.622, 209.14. 3. Shane Gray, Camaro, 6.563, 210.77 vs. 14. Steve Kent, Camaro, 6.612, 209.92. 4. Allen Johnson, Avenger, 6.564, 211.23 vs. 13. Greg Stanfield, Camaro, 6.609, 209.17. 5. Jason Line, Camaro, 6.566, 211.16 vs. 12. Rodger Brogdon, Camaro, 6.607, 210.31. 6. Mike Edwards, Camaro, 6.567, 211.56 vs. 11. Larry Morgan, Ford Mustang, 6.601, 209.46. 7. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.567, 210.90 vs. 10. Jeg Coughlin, Avenger, 6.583, 210.31. 8. Vincent Nobile, Avenger, 6.582, 210.47 vs. 9. V. Gaines, Avenger, 6.582, 210.31. Did Not Qualify: 17. Paul Pittman, 6.734, 206.07.
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Vanderbilt 24- UMass 7. James Franklin?s postgame comments
1. Leading 10-7 after three quarters, Vanderbilt pulls away late against UMass. ?Quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels:??I?m sick of being overly critical after a win. You know? We won.?
2. Coach James Franklin:??Prettiest win I?ve seen because we got the W.?
Georgia 45 ? North Texas 21. Video Highlights
3. Tied at 21, Georgia pulls away in the second half.
4.?Special teams concerns for Georgia? North Texas scores touchdowns on a blocked punt and a kickoff return.
5.?Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo on Aaron Murray: ?Personally I think he?s taken for granted.?
6.?Aaron Murray?s 98-yard touchdown throw to freshman Reggie Davis; Murray?s 100th career touchdown, longest touchdown in Georgia history, first catch and touchdown in Davis? career.
WASHINGTON ? Today, on the two-year anniversary of the repeal of ?Don?t Ask, Don?t Tell? (DADT), the discriminatory policy that prevented LGBT service members from serving openly, the Center for American Progress released a report offering recommendations for the military to achieve full equality for its LGBT service members.
Even though sexual orientation is no longer grounds for dismal from the military, and the federal government ? including the Department of Defense ?now recognizes same-gender spouses for the purpose of federal benefits, the repeal of ?Don?t Ask, Don?t Tell? and the Supreme Court?s decision striking down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act do not mean the end of discrimination for the LGBT Americans who serve in our nation?s military.
?Two years ago today marked the first time in American history when gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender, or LGBT, members of our military could serve openly and with integrity,? said Laura E. Durso, director of the LGBT Research and Communications Project at the Center for American Progress.
?We should take today not only to remind ourselves how far we have come in the march toward full equality in the military, but also to rededicate ourselves to supporting and providing for every brave man and woman who wears the uniform, LGBT or not. There?s still more work to do, and we owe all our service members the resolve to see it through.?
The report offers the following recommendations to end discrimination for LGBT service members:
* Congress should pass the Charlie Morgan Military Spouses Equal Treatment Act to expand federal benefits to all legally married same-sex spouses of service members and veterans regardless of the state in which they live.
* Congress should pass the Restore Honor to Service Members Act to streamline and expedite the process of upgrading Less than Honorable and Other than Honorable discharges based on sexual orientation.
* Congress should remove consensual sodomy as an offense.
President Barack Obama should sign an executive order banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in the U.S. armed forces.
The Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs should revisit medical regulations pertaining to veterans? health, HIV criminalization, and transgender service.
Read the full analysis, Military Service and LGBT Equality by Katie Miller and Andrew Cray, HERE.
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Vanderbilt 24- UMass 7. James Franklin?s postgame comments
