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WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration pushed back forcefully on Monday afternoon against a Florida judge's ruling that its signature health care law is invalid, calling the judgment a legally "dubious" reading of the law.In an interview with The Huffington Post, outgoing senior adviser David Axelrod accused Judge Roger Vinson of judicial overreach for concluding that the health care law's individual mandate was both unconstitutional and not severable from the rest of the legislation -- meaning the entire law had to be tossed.More...

Source: Axelrod: Judge's Invalidation Of Health Care Law Is 'Very Dubious'

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Diane Kruger -- she who can score a Chanel Haute Couture frock within 48 hours of its trip down the runway -- spoke to Glamour magazine about her passion for fashion.On what she likes:More...

Source: Diane Kruger Reveals Her Biggest Fashion Purchase: 'I Truly Broke A Sweat' (PHOTOS)

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These being the times they are, you may be tapped for a loan by a relative or friend who is unable to come up with the down payment for a home or who wants to start a business or keep it afloat.  And what if the loan goes sour, as so often happens? The tax rules on deductions for bad debts can be more bad news for you. So before staking someone, it's a good idea to know how the Internal Revenue Service looks on worthless loans.The IRS says you can deduct a worthless loan if there is no likelihood of recovery in the future. But you can't take a deduction for an outright gift. That's why the agency looks closely at bad debt deductions where the lender and borrower are related and why it may insist on proof that the "loan" wasn't really a gift.More...

Source: Bad Debt Deductions for Worthless Loans to Spouses

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All this talk about civility is beginning to make me uncomfortable. Civility refers to courteous and polite behavior. But courteous and polite behavior is not, in and of itself, a religious value. At times, it is to be subordinated to other, more important values.When instructing the prophet Isaiah about how he is to confront those who oppress others, God's instructions are as follows: "Cry with full throat, without restraint; raise your voice like a ram's horn!" (Isaiah 58:1). There is no suggestion here that Isaiah should be civil. What is called for is exactly the opposite: casting civility aside and speaking out with passion, power, and "without restraint" against those who cause or ignore suffering.More...

Source: The Religious Case for Less Civility and More Passion

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I am no fan of the mandatory arbitration process imposed on investors by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).  Investors usually lose or get a fraction of their losses.  The arbitrators are under no obligation to explain their decisions, and they rarely do.The arbitrators are typically retired men, who really enjoy sitting on these panels.  They know if they render an award against a major brokerage firm, their chance of getting selected again will be greatly diminished.More...




Source: A FINRA Arbitrator With a Heart!

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Sick of all the nasty things being blogged about her, Jennifer Aniston took matters into her own hands. Nearly literally.The former 'Friends' star, who features in the upcoming comedy 'Just Go With It,' appears on 'The Ellen Degeneres Show' on Thursday, and talks in part about her chance confrontation with the self-proclaimed 'Queen of all Media,' who developed a reputation as one of the nastiest celebrity bloggers around.More...




Source: Jennifer Aniston & Perez Hilton: Face To Face Confrontation

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In a video for Premium Members of his website, Bill O'Reilly doubled down on his statement that the existence of the tides is definitive evidence that God exists.The Fox News host took a lot of heat for claiming that science cannot explain why the tides occur in such a regular fashion when in fact the tides are the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon and the Sun and the rotation of the Earth.More...




Source: Bill O'Reilly Doubles Down On God Controlling The Tides: 'How Did The Moon Get There?' (VIDEO)

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We all know a Fred Upton.He's the coworker who was your friend until he got promoted and "went corporate." He's the athlete who played to bring a championship to his home town before following a larger contract to a bigger city. He's the buddy who was always around until he got into a relationship and didn't have time for you any more.More...




Source: The Curious Case of Fred Upton

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I want to scream it from the rooftops: I have been a raw vegan for 30 days! I wanted to try raw eating for a while now. Raw Vegan is even written on my vision board.  I have always been a health food nut, always eating fruits and veggies, but inevitably I end up eating all the garbage on top of the good stuff. I have spent various years being vegetarian and this past year, I drank tons of green drinks and was close to being vegan.  At that point I knew I was ready to eat raw in 2011!  I did not pressure myself; I literally took it one day at a time. I started out not knowing if I would make it past the first day.  But so far I have done it for an entire 30 days.  Now I feel like I can do this for a lifetime. I have had hardly any cravings and I'm hardly ever hungry, probably because I have been able to eat as much as I want! I started out the first two days just juicing!  The remaining days I have eaten raw food.  It has probably been the best 30 days of my life...What I eat: raw fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds (mostly organic) and a small amount of cold pressed olive oil, Bragg's vinegar and almond milk!More...




Source: 30 Days Raw: A Lifetime To Go

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You may think bed bugs are so 2010, but they still exist, so much so that Animal Planet wants to help New Yorkers by fixing the problem FOR FREE. The catch? The result will be some sort of reality show, of course:READ:More...




Source: Animal Planet Wants New York Bug Stories For New Series