Thanks Goes Out To President Obama For Signing The Equal Pay Bill!

Isn't it great when the person you voted for actually fulfills some of the promises that they made? It felt good to learn that President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act today.Now if a woman gets screwed by an employer,she has more than 180 days to rectify the discriminatory paycheck! Here's more from the NY Times:

"Mr. Obama was surrounded by a group of beaming lawmakers, most but not all of them Democrats, in the East Room of the White House as he affixed his signature to the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, a law named for an Alabama woman who at the end of a 19-year career as a supervisor in a tire factory complained that she had been paid less than men.

After a Supreme Court ruling against her, Congress approved the legislation that expands workers’ rights to sue in this kind of case, relaxing the statute of limitations.

“It is fitting that with the very first bill I sign — the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act — we are upholding one of this nation’s first principles: that we are all created equal and each deserve a chance to pursue our own version of happiness,” the president said.

He said was signing the bill not only in honor of Ms. Ledbetter — who stood behind him, shaking her head and clasping her hands in seeming disbelief — but in honor of his own grandmother, “who worked in a bank all her life, and even after she hit that glass ceiling, kept getting up again” and for his daughters, “because I want them to grow up in a nation that values their contributions, where there are no limits to their dreams.”

The ceremony, and a reception afterward in the State Dining Room of the White House, had a celebratory feel. The East Room was packed with advocates for civil rights and workers rights; the legislators, who included House and Senate leaders and two moderate Republicans — Senators Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe, both of Maine — shook Mr. Obama’s hand effusively (some, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, received presidential pecks on the cheek) as he took the stage. They looked over his shoulder, practically glowing, as Mr. Obama signed his name to the bill, using one pen for each letter.

“I’ve been practicing signing my name very slowly,” Mr. Obama said wryly, looking at a bank of pens before him. He handed the first pen to the bill’s chief sponsor, Senator Barbara Mikulski, Democrat of Maryland, and the last to Ms. Ledbetter.

The ceremony also marked First Lady Michelle Obama’s policy debut; she spoke afterward in a reception in the State Dining Room, where she called Ms. Ledbetter “one of my favorite people.”(END OF EXCERPT)Read the rest here:http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/30/us/politics/30ledbetter-web.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

At Least A Million Workers Protest In France Over Economic Crisis!

We're not the only ones who are tired of banks getting bailed out instead of the people.Over in France,teachers,transport workers,& other professionals took to the streets to protest their wages & the way that President Nicolas Sarkozy has handled the French economy.Here's more from BBC:

"Many people are furious that Mr Sarkozy said there was no money left to raise wages and consumer spending power, but nonetheless managed to find billions of euros to bail out floundering French banks, says the BBC's Emma-Jane Kirby in Paris.

The walk-out has affected transport, education and postal services throughout the country, our correspondent says, and is the biggest one-day strike since Mr Sarkozy took up office.

With unemployment looking likely to reach 10% next year, she says, the protesters hope he will drop his programme of cost-cutting reforms and focus instead on protecting workers' jobs and wages.

Mr Sarkozy cannot ignore this demonstration of anger, our correspondent adds. Street protests have repeatedly brought down French leaders and Mr Sarkozy does not want his government added to that list of casualties.

"We want to show how the people are dissatisfied with the situation at the moment," Thierry Dedieu of the CFDT general workers' union told the BBC.

People had the feeling they were paying for a crisis they were not responsible for, he added.

But earlier in the week, French Finance Minister Eric Woerth condemned the strike organisers, accusing them of scare-mongering during a time of economic uncertainty."(END OF EXCERPT)Read the rest here:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7857435.stm

"Noah's Arc:Jumping The Broom" Is Coming To DVD On Feb.3!

Straight men,beware!This show is not for the faint of heart or the homophobic."Noah's Arc" was one of my favorite television series that debuted on LOGO.It's been called the gay "Soul Food" because it deals so intimately with the lives of five black,gay men.And let me tell you that they got some fly honeys on this show.I just like looking at the lead character,Noah,& his man because they are so fine.But,the series hasn't been on the air since 2006.Which is why I was so delighted to hear this:

"Hooray!

Logo announced today that one of my favoriate movies from last year, "Noah's Arc: Jumping the Broom," will be out on DVD on Feb. 3. In addition to the movie, which focuses on the wedding of Noah (Darryl Stephens) and Wade (Jensen Atwood) and the DVD will include such brand-new special features as a "Making Of" featurette, deleted scenes, photo shoots and more. It will also be sold as a 2-pack with the film's soundtrack which has a lot of catchy tunes and two songs by Pheobe Snow who has a cameo at the end of the film."(END OF EXCERPT)Read the rest here:http://www.insidesocal.com/outinhollywood/2009/01/-here-are-some-clips.html

Check out this interview with the gorgeous lead actor,Darryl Stephens.The first video has one with Jensen Atwood.Oooh,they are so deliciously good-looking.