links for 2010-11-30

Walking may put the brakes on cognitive decline in healthy older people as well as those with cognitive impairment, a new study finds.

The ongoing study, which spans 20 years, also quantified how much walking is necessary to keep brain volume up. Researchers followed 426 older adults for a number of years to see if there were changes in brain volume. Among the participants 299 were healthy, and 127 had cognitive impairments, including 83 with mild cognitive impairment, and 44 with Alzheimer's disease.

The more people moved, the higher their brain volume, a marker for brain health. That link held after adjusting for factors such as age, gender, body mass index and education. People who met the requirements for activity also scored better on a mental exam.

For healthy adults, walking at least 72 blocks a week (about six miles) to preserve brain volume and slow the risk of cognitive decline. Cognitively impaired adults needed to walk at least 58 city blocks a week (about five miles)

Hillary Clinton, Julian Assange said, "should resign." Speaking over Skype from an undisclosed location on Tuesday, the WikiLeaks founder was replying to a question by TIME managing editor Richard Stengel over the diplomatic-cable dump that Assange's organization loosed on the world this past weekend. Stengel had said the U.S. Secretary of State was looking like "the fall guy" in the ensuing controversy, and had asked whether her firing or resignation was an outcome that Assange wanted. "I don't think it would make much of a difference either way," Assange said. "But she should resign if it can be shown that she was responsible for ordering U.S. diplomatic figures to engage in espionage in the United Nations, in violation of the international covenants to which the U.S. has signed up. Yes, she should resign over that."

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Well, she won't but she and Obama look weak and have been damaged politically

In May 2009, rumors surfaced that President Obama was planning to leave several European countries exposed to Russian ambition if Russia would agree to help keep nukes out of Iran.

Rumors confirmed: according to the Wikileaks cables, Obama proposed a trade — he would cancel the Polish missile shield if Russia would support sanctions for Iran.

The whistle blowing web site, publishing diplomatic cables and other documents via The New York Times, the Guardian (UK) and other media outlets, show that George Bush’s anti-missile shield plan to station 10 interceptor rockets in Poland not far from the Kaliningrad (Russia) border and a radar system in the Czech Republic was seen as an obstacle by Washington in getting tougher sanctions against Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

The diplomatic cables show that the US believes that Iran has already received missiles from North Korea which could threaten western Europe.
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Read it all

But while at least three justices seemingly endorsed a lower court's order to cut California's prison population, three others raised alarms. State officials have said the lower court's order would require reducing the overall prison population by between 38,000 and 46,000. "If I were a citizen of California, I would be concerned about the release of 40,000 prisoners," Justice Samuel Alito stated. Alito further pressed attorney Donald Specter, of the Berkeley-based Prison Law Office, to acknowledge that the overall recidivism rate for California prisoners currently released on parole is 70 percent. "Seven, zero," Justice Antonin Scalia reiterated, driving the point home.

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Well, you cannot let them out but how about deporting the illegal aliens or make the feds pay for them?

In less than two months, members of the Republican National Committee will convene at National Harbor, just outside Washington, and select a chairman to lead the organization over the next two years.

With the midterm elections over, the race is already generating a phenomenal amount of chatter. That includes a former staffer and potential rival's criticism of the incumbent, Michael Steele.

But often lost in all this discussion is a focus on what really matters — the personal and professional qualifications a prospective chairman must have to do the job effectively. Speculation abounds as to whether Steele will run for re-election; to date, however, he has not announced his intention to do so.
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Read it all

Public Policy Polling (D)
11/19-21/10; 400 "typical" Republican primary voters, 4.9% margin of error
Mode: Automated phone
PPP release

National

2012 President: Republican Primary
21% Palin
19% Gingrich
18% Romney
16% Huckabee
5% Paul
5% Pawlenty
3% Thune
2% Daniels
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Still early but Sarah Palin is the front runner

The DREAM Act can best be described as giving conditional lawful permanent resident status to those illegal aliens who entered the U.S. before the age of 16, have been in the country for at least five years and agree to attend college/serve in the military. An additional provision, often overlooked, would grant illegal aliens in-state tuition rates at public universities.

There is a big reason why the DREAM Act was a campaign promise for Reid, the same reason the White House recently hosted high-level meetings with members of the Hispanic caucus regarding the bill and has expressed so much interest in passing it: The act would be an amnesty for millions of illegal aliens inside the United States. This is something the White House and Reid have been desperately seeking through a comprehensive immigration bill, but has yet to gain traction in Congress.
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Just Say NO to the DREAM Act

Education Secretary Arne Duncan said Monday that Congress can’t afford to wait to pass the DREAM Act, even as immigration allies acknowledge there’s little hope of getting the bill done in the lame-duck session.

In his second conference call with reporters in 12 days, Duncan reiterated that the legislation is not an issue of politics or ideology but rather fairness and economic necessity. The DREAM Act would provide a path to citizenship for tens of thousands of young, undocumented immigrants who attend college or serve in the military for at least two years. Critics still dismiss the proposal as “amnesty” for illegal immigrants.
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Just say NO to illegal alien amnesty

The Senate just rejected a two year ban on earmarks by a 39-56 vote. While the vote largely went down party lines, eightseven Republicans voted against the ban and seven Democrats voted for it.

Here are the Republicans voting no:

Bob Bennett (R-UT) – defeated for reelection, Appropriations Committee
Thad Cochran (R-MS) – Ranking Member, Appropriations Committee
Susan Collins (R-ME) – Appropriations Committee
James Inhofe (R-OK)
Richard Lugar (R-IN)
Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) – Appropriations Committee
Richard Shelby (R-AL) – Appropriations Committee
George Voinovich (R-OH) – retiring, Appropriations Committee

Here are the Democrats voting yes:

Evan Bayh (D-IN) – retiring
Michael Bennet (D-CO) – freshman
Russ Feingold (D-WI) – defeated for reelection
Claire McCaskill (D-MO) – freshman, up for reelection in 2012
Bill Nelson (D-FL) – up for reelection in 2012
Mark Udall (D-CO) – freshman
Mark Warner (D-VA) – freshman
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Primary

The U.S. believes Russia has moved short-range tactical nuclear warheads to facilities near North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies as recently as this spring, U.S. officials say, adding to questions in Congress about Russian compliance with long-standing pledges ahead of a possible vote on a new arms-control treaty.

U.S. officials say the movement of warheads to facilities bordering NATO allies appeared to run counter to pledges made by Moscow starting in 1991 to pull tactical nuclear weapons back from frontier posts and to reduce their numbers. The U.S. has long voiced concerns about Russia's lack of transparency when it comes to its arsenal of tactical nuclear weapons, believed to be many times the number possessed by the U.S.
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The START Treaty needs to be debated starting in the next Congress.