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Author: Mary Chastain

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Mary Chastain

Mary is the resident libertarian. She covers stories in every vertical, but her favorite thing to do is take on the media. She saw its bias against the right when she was a socialist.

Mary loves the Chicago Cubs, Chicago Blackhawks, tennis, cats, Oxford comma, Diet Coke, and needlework.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 22, 2016 21 Comments
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has struck down Wisconsin's redrawn district lines, stating the moves favored the Republicans and violated the Democrats' constitutional rights. The ruling also provides a new argument to change district lines "by finding Republicans intentionally discriminated against voters of a certain party, rather than voters of a certain race." The Los Angeles Times reported:
The judges said GOP leaders had drawn districts for the Legislature after the last census with the aim of preserving their majority for a decade almost regardless of what voters had to say. Republicans had control of the both houses of the state Legislature, and Gov. Scott Walker signed their election map into law.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 22, 2016 8 Comments
When Wikileaks released Democratic National Committee (DNC) emails in July, people immediately pointed fingers at Russia and cried that the Kremlin wanted to influence the 2016 presidential election to Donald Trump, who won by a large margin over Hillary Clinton. But National Security Agency (NSA) Director Mike Rogers dashed those conspiracy theories this past weekend:
“I don't think in the end it had the effect that [the hackers] had hoped it might,” Rogers said during a panel at the Halifax International Security Forum.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 21, 2016 12 Comments
The New York Times public editor Liz Spayd's op-ed contains a lot of harsh truths and realities for those who write for one of the world's most famous newspapers: drop the bias. Her office has received "five times the normal level" of complaints "and the pace has only just recently tapered off." Spayd does not flat out say that, but she portrays it in her eloquent article:
But I hope any chest thumping about the impressive subscriber bump won’t obscure a hard-eyed look at coverage. Because from my conversations with readers, and from the emails that have come into my office, I can tell you there is a searing level of dissatisfaction out there with many aspects of the coverage.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 21, 2016 42 Comments
President Barack Obama has said that he will not constantly criticize President-elect Donald Trump once they transition, but he will speak up if a certain situation arises:
"As an American citizen who cares deeply about our country, if there are issues that have less to do with the specifics of some legislative proposal or battle or go to core questions about our values and ideals, and if I think that it's necessary or helpful for me to defend those ideals, I'll examine it when it comes," Obama told reporters.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 20, 2016 4 Comments
Aleppo has run out of hospitals due to constant bombardment from the Syrian regime and Russia backed by Hezbollah, which means over 300,000 people have no access to medical care:
Three hospitals in the opposition-held east were destroyed early Friday, forcing doctors and nurses to scramble between medical facilities to treat the wounded, often operating out of basements, which are safer from bombardments. By late in the night, the four remaining hospitals in the area had also been bombed out of service, according to local doctors and the Aleppo Health Directorate.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 20, 2016 25 Comments
Chicago authorities have charged four people for beating David Wilcox and hijacking his car after a car accident. People around him just watched and did nothing to help him. Instead they screamed anti-Trump sentiments:
On a video posted online, Wilcox, 50, was pummeled by several individuals, while onlookers shouted “You Voted Trump!” The altercation started when his car was rear-ended at Kedzie and Roosevelt in the North Lawndale neighborhood on Wednesday.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 19, 2016 29 Comments
Del. Sam Rasoul, the only Muslim in Virginia's General Assembly, has lashed out at his party over its treatment of Republicans and the tone of fear during the presidential election:
“I feel as though the [leadership] right now is not committed to the radical changes we need to connect with the values of working class America,” said Rasoul, 35, the lone Muslim in the General Assembly. “We were sent a mandate on Election Day that we have to completely rethink the way we do business.” --- “Sure, we need to be super-strong in condemning acts of real hatred and bigotry and racism, but when people believe that all of Trump voters are racist, they really are not empathizing with the wants and needs of a lot of folks, and we are missing out,” he said.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 19, 2016 4 Comments
2016 has been a crazy year for governments with the United Kingdom voting to leave the European Union and Donald Trump winning the presidency here in the states. Now Italy is moving towards uncertainty as polls show Italians do not want Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's referendum. Renzi promised to step down if his referendum fails. These referendums will "reduce the role of the Senate and transfer powers to central government from the regions." The Wall Street Journal reports a rejection could tumble bank shares and weaken the euro.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 18, 2016 42 Comments
Designer Sophie Theallet has announced on Twitter she will not design and dress Melania Trump with her brand: Theallet has designed and dressed First Lady Michelle Obama during the past eight years, which she called "a highlight and an honor." Obama's "values, actions, and grace have always resonated deeply within" the designer. She added:
As one who celebrates and strives for diversity, individual freedom, and respect for all lifestyles. I will not participate in dressing or associating in any way with the next First Lady. The rhetoric of racism, sexism, and xenophobia unleashed by her husband's presidential campaign are incompatible with the shared values we live by. I encourage my fellow designers to do the same.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 17, 2016 22 Comments
After a deadly school shooting in October that killed a six-year-old student, South Carolina Rep. Joshua Putnam (R) introduced a new bill that would allow teachers to carry a gun to protect children:
“It would incorporate mostly live shooter scenarios. So then teachers are familiar with how to approach that gunman on campus, how to interact with getting children away from... danger situations and how to confront that until law enforcement arrives,” said Putnam.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 17, 2016 15 Comments
House Republicans have chosen to go with a short-term spending bill to fund the government through March 31 instead of a full year bill:
Appropriations Chairman Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Kentucky, said in a statement that his committee would immediately start working on “a Continuing Resolution (CR) at the current rate of funding to extend the operations of our government through March 31, 2017.”
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