jueves, 30 de abril de 2009

DAR CALIFICACION

felicidades sacaste 90.pero apliquese mas en su estudios.haciendo todas
las tareas que sus profesores le ponen.exitos en sus estudios el triunfo
estas en tus manos.bye my friend.cuidate mucho

DAR CALIFICACION

felicidades sacaste 90.pero apliquese mas en su estudios.haciendo todas
las tareas que sus profesores le ponen.exitos en sus estudios el triunfo
estas en tus manos.bye my friend.cuidate mucho

HUELGA EN LA PROVINCIA DUAETE

YA VAMOS POR 3 DIAS EN HUELGA EN ESTA PROVINCIA,CON UN SALDO DE DOS MUERTOS,UN COMERCIANTE EN EL MUNICIPIO DE SAN FCO DE MACORIS.Y UN
JOVENCITO LLAMADO JOSE ALBERTO SANTOS COLON.QUE POR NO OIR A SU MADRE HOY ESTA MUERTO.DICE LA BIBLIA QUE SI OYE A TU PADRE TENDRA LARGA VIDA

lunes, 27 de abril de 2009

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT SWINE FLU

What you need to know about swine flu
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Slideshow:Swine Flu Play Video Video:Swine Flu: Are We Ready? FOX News Play Video Video:Swine Flu Outbreak Has U.S. Airports On Alert CBS 2 New York AP – President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, Monday, April … By LAURAN NEERGAARD, AP Medical Writer Lauran Neergaard, Ap Medical Writer – 2 hrs 44 mins ago
WASHINGTON – A never-before-seen strain of swine flu has turned killer in Mexico and is causing milder illness in the United States and elsewhere. While authorities say it's not time to panic, they are taking steps to stem the spread and also urging people to pay close attention to the latest health warnings and take their own precautions.

"Individuals have a key role to play," Dr. Richard Besser, acting chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Monday.

Here's what you need to know:

Q: How do I protect myself and my family?

A: For now, take commonsense precautions. Cover your coughs and sneezes, with a tissue that you throw away or by sneezing into your elbow rather than your hand. Wash hands frequently; if soap and water aren't available, hand gels can substitute. Stay home if you're sick and keep children home from school if they are.

Q: How easy is it to catch this virus?

A: Scientists don't yet know if it takes fairly close or prolonged contact with someone who's sick, or if it's more easily spread. But in general, flu viruses spread through uncovered coughs and sneezes or — and this is important — by touching your mouth or nose with unwashed hands. Flu viruses can live on surfaces for several hours, like a doorknob just touched by someone who sneezed into his hand.

Q: In Mexico, officials are handing out face masks. Do I need one?

A: The CDC says there's not good evidence that masks really help outside of health care settings. It's safer just to avoid close contact with someone who's sick and avoid crowded gatherings in places where swine flu is known to be spreading. But if you can't do that, CDC guidelines say it's OK to consider a mask — just don't let it substitute for good precautions.

Q: Is swine flu treatable?

A: Yes, with the flu drugs Tamiflu or Relenza, but not with two older flu medications.

Q: Is there enough?

A: Yes. The federal government has stockpiled enough of the drugs to treat 50 million people, and many states have additional stocks. As a precaution, the CDC has shipped a quarter of that supply to the states to keep on hand just in case the virus starts spreading more than it has so far.

Q: Should I take Tamiflu as a precaution if I'm not sick yet?

A: No. "What are you going to do with it, use it when you get a sniffle?" asks Dr. Marc Siegel of New York University Langone Medical Center and author of "Bird Flu: Everything you Need To Know About The Next Pandemic." Overusing antiviral drugs can help germs become resistant to them.

Q: How big is my risk?

A: For most people, very low. Outside of Mexico, so far clusters of illnesses seem related to Mexican travel. New York City's cluster, for instance, consists of students and family members at one school where some students came back ill from spring break in Mexico.

Q: Why are people dying in Mexico and not here?

A: That's a mystery. First, understand that no one really knows just how many people in Mexico are dying of this flu strain, or how many have it. Only a fraction of the suspected deaths have been tested and confirmed as swine flu, and some initially suspected cases were caused by something else.

Q: Should I cancel my planned trip to Mexico?

A: The U.S. did issue a travel advisory Monday discouraging nonessential travel there.

Q: What else is the U.S., or anyone else, doing to try to stop this virus?

A: The U.S. is beginning limited screening of travelers from Mexico, so that the obviously sick can be sent for treatment. Other governments have issued their own travel warnings and restrictions. Mexico is taking the biggest steps, closings that limit most crowded gatherings. In the U.S., communities with clusters of illness also may limit contact — New York closed the affected school for a few days, for example — so stay tuned to hear if your area eventually is affected.

Q: What are the symptoms?

A: They're similar to regular human flu — a fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people also have diarrhea and vomiting.

Q: How do I know if I should see a doctor? Maybe my symptoms are from something else — like pollen?

A: Health authorities say if you live in places where swine flu cases have been confirmed, or you recently traveled to Mexico, and you have flulike symptoms, ask your doctor if you need treatment or to be tested. Allergies won't cause a fever. And run-of-the-mill stomach bugs won't be accompanied by respiratory symptoms, notes Dr. Wayne Reynolds of Newport News, Va., spokesman for the American Academy of Family Physicians.

Q: Is there a vaccine to prevent this new infection?

A: No. And CDC's initial testing suggests that last winter's flu shot didn't offer any cross-protection.

Q: How long would it take to produce a vaccine?

A: A few months. The CDC has created what's called "seed stock" of the new virus that manufacturers would need to start production. But the government hasn't yet decided if the outbreak is bad enough to order that.

Q: What is swine flu?

A: Pigs spread their own strains of influenza and every so often people catch one, usually after contact with the animals. This new strain is a mix of pig viruses with some human and bird viruses. Unlike more typical swine flu, it is spreading person-to-person. A 1976 outbreak of another unusual swine flu at Fort Dix, N.J., prompted a problematic mass vaccination campaign, but that time the flu fizzled out.

Q: So is it safe to eat pork?

A: Yes. Swine influenza viruses don't spread through food.

Q: And whatever happened to bird flu? Wasn't that supposed to be the next pandemic?

A: Specialists have long warned that the issue is a never-before-seen strain that people have little if any natural immunity to, regardless of whether it seems to originate from a bird or a pig. Bird flu hasn't gone away; scientists are tracking it, too.

___

sábado, 18 de abril de 2009

CHINA INDIGNADA POR REPRESENTACION DE MAO EN ESPERMATOZOIDE EN PUBLICIDAD

AFP
17/04/2009 19:45:32

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
China indignada por representación de Mao en espermatozoide en publicidad
Los medios de comunicación y los internautas chinos se han indignado por un anuncio publicitario alemán de preservativos que caricaturiza a Mao en espermatozoide, junto a Hitler y Bin Laden.

PEKÍN (AFP) -
Los medios de comunicación y los internautas chinos se han indignado por un anuncio publicitario alemán de preservativos que caricaturiza a Mao en espermatozoide, junto a Hitler y Bin Laden.
Según el diario Global Times, la publicidad fue realizada por la agencia Grey Worldwide para la sociedad farmacéutica Doc Morris. Se trata de la promoción una nueva línea de preservativos.
La campaña, sin texto, presenta a un grupo de espermatozoides, uno de los cuales tiene forma humana. Mao es reconocible por su corte de pelo, Hilter por su bigote y Bin Laden por su barba. La asociación del fundador de la República popular de China con Hitler y Bin Laden ha provocado las críticas de los medios de comunicación y los internautas.
En su página de internet, el Periódico del Pueblo, órgano del Partido Comunista Chino, dedica un espacio especial al caso, con reacciones de los lectores. "Deben disculparse ante China", valora un internauta.
Según el Global Times, Grey Worlwide envió una carta de disculpas al consulado chino de Fráncfort. El pasado año, el fabricante de automóviles francés Citroën tuvo que disculparse por una publicidad de la marca en España en la que aparecía un Mao bizco y con la boca torcida. La remplazó por Napoleón.

domingo, 12 de abril de 2009

LOS MUERTOS DE LA SEMANA SANTA 09 EN REP. DOMINICANA

Los muertos en lo que va del asueto de Semana Santa
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Las personas que han fallecido desde el medio día del pasado Jueves Santo hasta este Sábado Santo, a las diez de la mañana, según el reporte del Centro de Operaciones de Emergencia (COE).Muertos por accidentes de motocicletas 1-Yaki Pale, en Sosua, Puerto Plata2-Blas Antonio Hernández, de 54 años, en las Hermanas Mirabal, en Villa Mella3-Felix Antonio Hernandez, de 50 años, Hermanas Mirabal, Villa Mella4-Hermín Hernández R., de 21 años, en La Curva La Molina, La Victoria, Sto Dgo Norte5-Juan Bautista Rudecindo, de 23 años, La Curva La Molina, La Victoria, Sto Dgo Norte6-Francisco Fajardo, de 21 años, en Villa Francisca, Distrito Nacional7-Alexander Rosario, de 20 años, Villa Francisca, Distrito Nacional8-Wilkin Felipe Calcaño, de 22 años, en Sánchez, Samaná9- Domingo Pinales Brito, de 39 años, San Cristóbal10-Eligio Batista, de 18 años, en Sabana de la Mar-Hato Mayor11-Pérez Vázquez, 21 años, en la Av. Ramón Cáceres, Moca12- Eligia de Paula, 93 años, Barrio Bueno, El Seybo13-Carlos Clases Bonilla, de 30 años, Las Terrena, en Samaná14-Primavera Rosario, Arroyo Vuelta, Bonao15-Domingo Brito, de 38 años, en el Kilómetro 9, carretera San Cristóbal Palenque16-Sandy de Jesús Marmol Bidó, de 21 años, en la Herradura, Santiago17-Carlos Claret Bonilla, de 30 años, en Las Terrenas, Samaná18-Wilson Calcaño, de 20 años, Higüero, Sánchez, SamanáMuertos por accidentes de vehículos 19-Manuel Melo, Frente al Cementerio La Victoria, en Sto Dgo Norte20- Antonio Rodriguez Flores, de 61 años, en San José de Puerto, Villa Altagracia, San Cristóbal21-De Generales Desconocidos, 60 años, Carretera Mella con Autopista Samaná 22-De Generales Desconocidos, 58 años, en el Puente Juan Bosch Sto. Dgo. Este23-Francis mercedes Monegro, de 34 años, en Hato Mayor24-Antonia Ayla, de 60 años, en la calle García Godoy, en La Vega25-Francis Méndez, de 13 años, en Monte Rio, Azua.Ahogados26-Ambiorix Pujols, de 12 años, Villa Rivas, San Francisco de Macorís27--Ali Montilla, de 14 años, en el río La Jina, en Monte Plata28-Miguel Arturo Olivero, de 14 años, en río Guananico, en Villa Altagracia, San Cristóbal29-Charlis José Fransua, de 17 años, en el río Sacoa, de Monte Plata30-Alejandro Ortiz, de 16 años, ahogado en Los Tubos, Manoguayabo, Sto. Dgo Oeste31-Joel Chala, de 17 años, en el Salto de Parra Ocoa32-Abrahan Foy, de 21 años, por asfixia por inmersión, en aparta Hotel Plaza Real, Juan Dolio33-Miguelito Elena Morel, de 18 años, en el río Dique de Juan Gómez, Montecristi34-Carlito Lora Arias, de 30 años, en La Precesita de la Tabla, en PeraviaMuertos por intoxicación alcohólica35-Belkis Castillo, de 20 años, en Monte Plata36-Edwin de Jesús, de 16 años, en Cambita de Villa, en Cotui
De Diario Libre

Comentarios
Antares Otro año mas con la misma noticias, esto es increible por mas campaña que se realice la inmadurez se impone siempre, pero como es posible que aun existan muertos por intoxicación alcohólicas , pues resulta bochornoso que la gente abuse de un producto que en su precripcion dice literalmente que el abuso del alchol es perjudicial para la salud.
Boschinchador Que lamentable, que la semana Santa, que debiera ser una semana de paz, se ha convertido, como todo en eeste, pais, en una chercha. El Estado, yla iglesia debieran eliminar la celebracin de la forma que se viene haciendo, y pienso que la mejor forma de honrar a Dios, a Cristo, seria trabajando y celebrando actividades de crecimiento cristiano, que podria hacerse desde las mismas empresas, y estas les ofrecen como compensacion a sus empleados, fines de semanas largo por grupos, para que se visiten los familiares.
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domingo, 5 de abril de 2009

LOS COMUNISTAS GANAN EN EL PAÌS MAS POBRE DE EUROPA

Los comunistas vuelven a ganar en el país más pobre de Europa Moldavia es el pais más pobre de Europa

Un anciano sale de la casilla de viotación-EFE-
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MOSCU.- El gobernante Partido de los Comunistas volvió a revalidar hoy su mandato en Moldavia, el país más pobre de Europa, según las encuestas a pie de urna efectuadas en las elecciones legislativas.De acuerdo con la encuesta efectuada por el Instituto de Políticas Públicas, el Partido de los Comunistas ha conseguido el 45,5 por ciento de los votos, lo cual les garantizaría la mayoría necesaria para elegir al presidente y formar Gobierno.Le siguen el Partido Democrático Liberal, con un 13,9 por ciento; el Partido Liberal, también con un 13,9 por ciento, y la alianza "Nuestra Moldavia", con un 10 por ciento.El resto de los partidos no superarían la barrera del 6 por ciento establecida por la ley para acceder al parlamento, por lo cual sus votos se repartirían proporcionalmente entre las cuatro formaciones más votadas.La encuesta, efectuada en 200 de los casi 2.000 colegios electorales y a unos 18.000 de los más de 2,5 millones de electores, tendría un margen de error de aproximadamente el 1 por ciento, según sus autores, por lo que la victoria comunista parece suficientemente contrastada.En los comicios pasados los comunistas consiguieron el 46 por ciento de votos, y 56 de los 101 escaños del Parlamento.Además de la correlación de fuerzas en el Legislativo, los resultados de estas elecciones determinarán quién gobernará el país, pues será el nuevo Parlamento quien elija al presidente y forme el Gobierno.Al acudir hoy a votar, el presidente saliente de Moldavia, Vladímir Voronin, que lleva en el poder desde hace ocho años, expresó la seguridad de la victoria de su partido y reiteró su propósito de no abandonar la política activa después de transmitir a su sucesor la jefatura del Estado, que la Constitución no le permite seguir ocupando.Entre los posibles candidatos a sustituir a Voronin figuran el jefe de la comisión parlamentaria para Asuntos Jurídicos, Vladímir Tsurkan, ex embajador en Rusia y antiguo ministro del Interior; la primera ministra, Zinaída Grecheani, y el titular de Asuntos Exteriores e Integración Europea, Andréi Stratan.En vísperas de la votación los partidos opositores manifestaron a sus electores que jamás pactarían con los comunistas en caso de que estos no alcanzaran la absoluta y tuvieran que buscar alianzas para elegir al presidente y formar Gobierno.Al mismo tiempo, el triunfo comunista podría verse aguado por la oposición.

PLATOS TIPICOS DE REPUBLICA DOMINICANA

La gastronomía dominicana es un reflejo de las influencias españolas y africanas que han incidido en la formación social y cultural del país.
Hay mucha variedad y platos en la cocina dominicana. A continuación te mostramos un listado de los platos más típicos de la República Dominicana. En cualquier restaurante podrás degustar estos deliciosos platos criollos aunque si tienes la oportunidad de hacerlo en la casa de alguna familia dominicana será mucho mejor.


- Sancocho : Es quizás el plato más popular y representativo de la cocina dominicana. Este delicioso guiso se prepara para las grandes ocasiones. El sancocho tradicional normalmente se hace con carne de res. A simple vista parece un "cocido español" pero sus ingredientes - yuca, patata, ñame, yautía, platano, cilantro, etc - lo hacen muy exquisito y especial.
- La Bandera : Este plato no falta en ninguna mesa dominicana. La bandera dominicana simplemente se compone de arroz blanco, habichuelas ( de color rojizo ) y carne, todo mezclado en un mismo plato. Seguro que repites !
- El Moro : Es una mezcla de de habichuelas, arroz y carne guisada. También el Moro en muchos casos y sitios de la República Dominicana se acompaña con bacalao.
- El Moro de Guandules con Coco : Este moro lleva el inconfundible sabor de la leche de coco y guandules : legumbres similares al guisante.
- El Locrio : Es un clásico de la cocina criolla dominicana. Es lo más parecido a la paella española. Este delicioso arroz se puede combinar con camarones, gambas, arenque, sardinas y bacalao.
- El Asopao : El Asopao es una exquisita sopa de arroz, pollo, tomate y con un toque de cilantro. Hay muchas variedades e incluso algunos asopaos "DeLuxe" como el asopao de mariscos. Es uno de los mejores reconstituyentes después de una larga noche de fiesta y baile...
- El Pica Pollo : Se trata simplemente de trozos de pollo fritos, pero está delicioso. Superan con creces y mucho más a los que puedes encontrar en los restaurantes de comida rapida KFC. El truco de tan delicioso sabor se basa en su preparación : Una buena harina, su punto de fritura para dejarlo crujiente y el punto del exquisito sabor del orégano dominicano. "No dejes de probar el Pica Pollo con una buena cerveza y acompañado de tostones". Podrás degustarlo en cualquier lugar aunque hay grandes cadenas de establecimientos como "Pica Pollo Victorina" o "Pollo Rico" que encontrarás en todas las ciudades de República Dominicana.
- Los Tostones : Son un complemento y guarnición fundamentales en la cocina dominicana. Los tostones, también llamados fritos, son trozos de platano "verde", fritos con un toque de sal, en algunos casos vinagre, y ajo. Crujientes y deliciosos acompañan siempre al Pica Pollo y a todos los grandes platos típicos. No dejes de comer unos buenos "tostones" en cualquier lugar. Están de 10 !!
- Yaniqueques : Es la picadera más típica del país. Es como una torta de harina de trigo, cocinada con bicarbonato de soda, agua y sal. Podrás comprar Yaniqueques en cualquier puesto ambulante y sobre todo en cualquier playa. La palabra Yaniqueques procede de la anglosajona "Johnny Cakes", pastel de origen estadounidense y cuya receta arribo junto con los esclavos negros traídos de los Estados Unidos y las antillas a la región de Samaná.
- Bollitos de Yuca : Es otra deliciosa picadera de la República Dominicana. Son bolitas hechas de yuca y fritas en la sartén. Normalmente se rellenan de queso cheddar aunque en algunos puestos y playas las podrás encontrar rellenas de cangrejo....exquisitas !!
- Empanaditas de Yuca : Similar a los bollitos de Yuca pero en forma de empanada y rellenas de carne. Algunas tienen un toque de orégano, otras de comino y otras de yerbabuena.
- Ensaladas : La tradicional es de lechuga y tomate aunque hay una gran variedad y son muy comunes en la dieta dominicana. Puedes pedirlas con cuantas verduras desees. Si la quieres con aceite de oliva tendrás que recordarselo al chef puesto que normalmente no se aderezan con éste.
- Postres : En la cocina dominicana hay una gran variedad de postres, sobre todo muchos de ellos dulces. La repostería es una gran tradición en este país. Los que más nos han gustado han sido los Dulces de Leche y el Dulce de Coco. El postre más famoso dentro y fuera de las frontera de República Dominicana es el Majarete, un postre ligero hecho de mazorcas de maiz rayadas, leche de coco, azúcar, vainilla y canela en polvo....para chuparse los dedos !
NO regreses a tu país sin haber probado esta comida ! Repetiras muchas veces e incluso la seguirás preparando en tu propia casa a tu regreso. Buen Provecho !
>> Aquí te indicamos cuales son las recetas más típicas para que las prepares tu mismo en casa ! :
- Sancocho, La Bandera, Asopao de Mariscos, Moro de Guandules, Mangú, Locrio de Arenque, Chivo Picante, Habichuelas con Dulce, Tostones, Yaniqueques, Pescado Frito, Bollitos de Yuca, Niños Envueltos, Spagetthi a la Criolla, Pica Pollo, Puerco Asado, Mondongo, Mofongo, Rabo Encendido, Majarete, Dulce de Coco, Dulce de Leche, Arroz con Leche, Morir Soñando, Batido de Lechosa, Jugo de Avena, Piña Colada, Ponche...

KOREANS LAUNCH ROCKETS

at 11:30 a.m. local time, or 10:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, said the office of the South Korean president, Lee Myung-bak. Early reports from the Japanese prime minister’s office indicated that the three-stage rocket appeared to launch successfully, with the first stage falling into the Sea of Japan and the second stage into the Pacific. South Korea vowed a “stern and resolute” response to the North’s “reckless act.”
South Korean officials, after studying the rocket’s trajectory, said it appeared to have been configured to thrust a satellite into orbit, as the North had claimed.
No debris was reported to have fallen on Japanese land. There has been no confirmation of whether the third and final stage of the launching took place.
But what may have mattered most to North Korea was simply demonstrating that it had the ability to launch a multistage rocket that could travel thousands of miles.
The motivation for the test appeared as much political as technological: After acquiring the fuel for six or more nuclear weapons during the Bush administration, and negotiating a halt of its main nuclear reactor in return for aid, North Korea’s recent statements appear to be a bid for attention from the Obama administration.
The Japanese government strongly protested the launching over its territory and asked for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council.
Lee Dong-kwan, a spokesman for the South Korean president, said, “North Korea’s launch of its long-range rocket poses a serious threat to the stability of the Korean Peninsula and the rest of the world at a time when the entire world is pulling its wisdom together to overcome the global economic crisis.”
Over the years the North has sometimes conducted tests as a gambit to extract concessions for more aid and fuel and to demonstrate its nuclear capabilities.
Manufacturing a nuclear warhead that is small enough, light enough and heat-resistant enough to be mounted atop a missile is far more complex than building a basic nuclear device — and intelligence officials and outside experts believe North Korea is still years from that accomplishment. Typically, it takes many years of experimentation for a nation to learn how to shrink an ungainly test device into a slim warhead.
Nonetheless, the series of tests in recent years — in 2006 and 1998 — is prompting fears of North Korean proliferation among Japanese, Chinese and Western leaders. North Korea’s missiles have ranked among its few profitable exports — Iran, Syria and Pakistan have all been among its major customers. If this long-range test ends up a success, it would presumably make the design far more attractive on the international black market.
The launching provides one of the first tests of Mr. Obama’s reaction to a provocation, on the weekend that he is scheduled to lay out for the first time, in a speech in Prague, his strategy to counter proliferation threats.
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has ruled out any effort to shoot down the missile if the mission appeared to be a serious effort to launch a satellite. Rather, Mr. Obama’s top aides said during last week’s Group of 20 summit meeting in London that if the missile were launched, they would seek additional sanctions against the country in the United Nations Security Council, perhaps as early as this weekend.
President Bush pressed for similar sanctions after the North’s nuclear test in October 2006, but those sanctions had little long-term effect.
“We have made very clear to the North Koreans that their missile launch is provocative,” Mr. Obama said Friday after meeting with President Nicolas Sarkozy of France in Strasbourg, France. Mr. Obama took the issue up on Wednesday in London with President Hu Jintao of China.
While Washington has signaled calm, the Japanese response has been unusually strong. Japan deployed ships into the Sea of Japan and suggested it would try to shoot down any “debris” from the launching that threatened to hit the country. However, there is no evidence they tried to do so, and on Saturday, to the embarassment of the Japanese military, the country falsely reported twice that the missile had been launched.
With the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il, reportedly recovering from a stroke last summer, the missile test may also be an effort by him — or some in the military — to demonstrate that someone is firmly in control and that the country’s missile and nuclear programs are forging ahead. In recent times top American intelligence officials have told Congress they believe Mr. Kim is back in charge of the country, but they admit considerable mystery surrounds the question of whether he has regained all of his faculties.

SAME-SEX MARRIAGE AROUND USA


By ABBY GOODNOUGH
Published: April 4, 2009
BOSTON — The Iowa Supreme Court’s approval of same-sex marriage on Friday gave advocates an important first victory in the nation’s heartland, thwarting the notion that only the Northeast will accept it.
Related
Iowa Court Voids Gay Marriage Ban (April 4, 2009)
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Toby Talbot/Associated Press
Representative Steven Howard, right, celebrating Thursday after the Vermont House approved a same-sex marriage bill. The governor has said he will veto it.
But for now, New England remains the nucleus of the same-sex marriage movement, with a campaign under way to extend marriage rights to gay men and lesbians in all six of the region’s states by 2012.
Massachusetts has allowed same-sex marriage since 2004, and Connecticut began allowing it last fall. The Vermont Legislature just voted to let same-sex couples marry, and supporters hope to gather enough votes to override a veto promised by Gov. Jim Douglas, a Republican.
New Hampshire is not far behind; its House of Representatives approved a same-sex marriage bill last month. The legislatures in Maine and Rhode Island are considering their own versions, though they are not as far along in the process.
Across New England, advocacy groups have been raising money, training volunteers and lobbying voters and lawmakers as part of a campaign they call “Six by Twelve,” led by the legal advocacy group that persuaded the Supreme Courts in Massachusetts and Connecticut to allow same-sex marriage in 2003 and 2008.
Equal rights advocates said Friday that while the Midwest in general was culturally and politically different from the Northeast, Iowa shared New England’s independent streak and so was a logical place to file another court challenge.
“We picked Iowa because many of us who don’t live in the Midwest might think of it as being a conservative monolith,” said Jennifer C. Pizer, marriage project director for Lambda Legal, which argued the Iowa case. “But people who know Iowa have been saying for some time that it is different from its neighbors. There’s a tradition of independence and willingness to stand up on issues of fairness.”
As in most New England states, voters in Iowa cannot initiate constitutional amendments, a common strategy for blocking same-sex marriage elsewhere. In California, voters last fall amended the State Constitution to ban such marriages after a court decision made it legal. The California Supreme Court is considering a petition to overturn the ban, but many legal scholars have predicted that it will be upheld.
Proponents of same-sex marriage in California are building support among voters in hopes of making it legal there, probably through another ballot measure in the next few years. And at least six states outside New England (Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York and Washington) have same-sex marriage bills before their legislatures this year, but none are expected to pass.
Critics say the success of the movement in New England is largely because courts and legislatures, not voters, are making the decisions. Voters have approved constitutional bans on same-sex marriage in 26 states since the Massachusetts law, a landmark, took effect; the constitutions of four other states also limit marriage to heterosexuals.
“Activists have targeted these states because they think it’s going to be easier to convince legislators than the populace,” said Brian Brown, executive director of the National Organization for Marriage, a group established to fight same-sex marriage. “They’re doing everything they can to keep the public from having a part in this process.”
But Prof. David H. Watters, director of the Center for New England Culture at the University of New Hampshire, said there were also deep-rooted cultural reasons for the momentum here.
Same-sex couples have found acceptance in New England for over a century, he said, especially among its large intellectual class. In the late 1800s, marriage-like relationships between upper-class women in and around Boston were so common that a phrase — “Boston marriage” — emerged to describe them.
The region’s strong libertarian bent also helps explain why same-sex marriage has found support here, Professor Watters said. “The New England states really emphasize individual liberties,” he said, pointing out that the abolition and women’s suffrage movements also started here. “There’s a strong regional tradition that if somebody has rights, everybody ought to have them.”
New England is also the least religious region of the country, according to a recent survey by Trinity College in Hartford. Evangelistic churches, often among the most adamant opponents of same-sex marriage, are especially rare, and Catholicism is waning.
Moreover, the Northeast is home to two of the three states — New Hampshire, New Jersey and Vermont — that allow civil unions for same-sex couples, an intermediate step that supporters say has made same-sex marriage seem less threatening.
“People can see that the sky hasn’t fallen,” said Betsy Smith, executive director of EqualityMaine, a group pushing for passage of the marriage bill.