C.M. Rubin's Blog, page 86

Gay Conversion Therapy Law Temporarily Blocked By Federal Judge

SAN FRANCISCO -- A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked California from enforcing a first-of-its-kind law that bars licensed psychotherapists from working to change the sexual orientations of gay minors, but he limited the scope of his order to just the three providers who have appealed to him to overturn the measure.

U.S. District Court Judge William Shubb made a decision just hours after a hearing on the issue, ruling that the First Amendment rights of psychiatrists, psychologists and other mental health professionals who engage in "reparative" or "conversion" therapy outweigh concern that the practice poses a danger to young people.

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Larry Magid: Security Tips for Holiday Online Shopping

One of the biggest obstacles to online shopping is the fear of fraud or a security scam. Although longtime Internet users may already know how to protect themselves, we're seeing a lot of new people shopping online this year as Internet use become ubiquitous. And most of us are new to shopping from mobile devices. They too have security risks.

While security is an issue, it's important not to overblow the fear. If you shop in physical stores you run the risk of getting into an accident on the way, having your car dinged in the parking lot or having your pocket or purse picked. There is even a risk of in-store credit card fraud, where a clerk copies down all your information. These risks are low, but so are the risks of online shopping. Most of us don't encounter fraud, identity theft or merchandise that never shows up.

The most important thing you can do is to be sure you're dealing with a reputable site. Even if it looks like a merchant you know, take a careful look at the site's web address (URL). If it's Sears, for example, make sure it's really Sears.com and not something like Sears.somethingelse.com.

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Sheryl Paul: The Fear of Loss

At the very core of it is the fear of loss, the fear that just when you open your heart to loving this person completely, something tragic will occur that will take him away.
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More on Engagements & Proposals

Nuclear Power Whistleblowers Charge Federal Regulators With Favoring Secrecy Over Safety

Richard H. Perkins and Larry Criscione are precise and formal men with more than 20 years of combined government and military service. Perkins held posts at the Department of Energy and the National Nuclear Security Administration before joining the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Division of Risk Analysis in 2008. Criscione landed at the agency a year later, after five years aboard the USS Georgia as a submarine warfare officer.

Now both men are also reluctant whistleblowers, stepping out publicly to accuse the NRC of being both disconcertingly sluggish and inappropriately secretive about severe -- and in one case, potentially catastrophic -- flood risks at nuclear plants that sit downstream from large dams.

A number of nuclear safety advocates who have looked into the matter in recent weeks have echoed their complaints, and a collection of documents obtained by The Huffington Post -- including a 4-year old internal communication plan for NRC officials seeking to head-off criticism of its handling of the dam threat, as well as detailed correspondence between Criscione and NRC leadership on the issue -- appears to lend credence to the engineers' concerns.

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Sydney Levin: 'Teen Mom 2' Recap: The Only Thing Worse Than Jail Is Country Music

I feel very proud of Kailyn and Jo. I may make terrible fun of them and constantly point out how Kailyn is greasier than a combo meal at McDonald's, but they are caring, competent parents.
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Tara Brach: Opening the Gateway of Love

The more we pay attention to the sense of another's love, to a place that provides beauty and ease, to our own strengths and aspiration, the more we connect with the heart space that will offer a healing refuge.
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Ed and Deb Shapiro: 4 Ways to Surf the Waves of Change

Without change in ourselves we become stifled and stagnant; without change in the world we will not survive. Such impermanence means that every difficulty, challenge, joy, or success will, at some point, be different: This too shall pass.
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Jonathan Alpert: How to Fearlessly Kick the Internet Addiction

Although there's no official diagnosis for Internet or social media addiction, in my view, if it negatively impacts other areas of a person's life and use becomes more and more frequent, then at minimum it's a dependence, and at worst it's an addiction. Don't fear, though -- it is treatable.
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Treat Yourself This Holiday Season: 8 Things You Should Do For Yourself

By Angelica Catalano for YouBeauty.com

With all of those gifts to give and food to prep, you are the last thing you’re thinking about. But the secret to the holiday mindset? Clear your mind! Before you even think about your gluten-free guests or dodging your family’s inevitable life trajectory questions, here are 10 to-dos that will save your sanity all season long.

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DIA Sending Hundreds More Spies Overseas

The Pentagon will send hundreds of additional spies overseas as part of an ambitious plan to assemble an espionage network that rivals the CIA in size, U.S. officials said.

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