plus 4, Once Again, Joe Lieberman Reminds Us He's An Independent - NPR News |
- Once Again, Joe Lieberman Reminds Us He's An Independent - NPR News
- SABCS: Higher Dose of Fulvestrant Slows Breast Cancer - MedPage Today
- Go Green, Get Some Green and Help Your Neighbors - PR Inside
- Rainbows possess heart of a champion - Honolulu Advertiser
- Want to make a real difference in the fight against breast cancer? - Democratic Underground.com
| Once Again, Joe Lieberman Reminds Us He's An Independent - NPR News Posted: 14 Dec 2009 12:07 PM PST The progressive/left blogosphere is up in arms, once again, over Sen. Joe Lieberman, the Connecticut Independent who has been driving his fellow Democrats nuts for years. The latest: Yesterday, on CBS' "Face the Nation," Lieberman said he could not vote for the health-care overhaul legislation, in its current form, that is making its way through the Senate. Lieberman's main objection was to the Medicare buy-in program -- a plan that would let people as young as 55 buy into Medicare. He said it would drastically increase the plan's price tag: It has some of the same infirmities that the public option did. It will add taxpayer costs. It will add to the deficit. It's unnecessary. Assuming, for the moment, that all 40 Republicans vote against the bill -- Maine's Olympia Snowe, who has been wooed by the Dems, also signaled she would oppose a bill that included the Medicare buy-in -- then the defection by Lieberman (as well as by Ben Nelson of Nebraska, who has his own issues) -- could spell the death knell to the overall package. UPDATE: Politico's Carrie Budoff Brown is reporting that the White House is "encouraging" Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to "cut a deal" with Lieberman, "which would mean eliminating the proposed Medicare expansion in the health reform bill": But Reid is described as so frustrated with Lieberman that he is not ready to sacrifice a key element of the health care bill, and first wants to see the Congressional Budget Office cost analysis of the Medicare buy-in. The analysis is expected early this week. Budoff Brown quotes one official "close to the negotiations" as saying, "There is a weariness and a lot of frustration that one person is holding up the will of 59 others. There is still too much anger and confusion at one particular senator's reversal." Democrats, she writes, "have only limited options": Reach an agreement with Lieberman, which would mean stripping out the provisions that have kept progressives on board. This will likely cause problems on the left -- maybe even defections -- unless the White House steps in to persuade senators such as Russ Feingold of Wisconsin and Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Win over Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), but she has also voiced serious reservations about the Medicare expansion, and has resisted pressure from the White House and Senate Democrats to finish the bill by Christmas. Reid has called for a special Democratic caucus meeting today at 5:30 p.m. Of course, this is hardly the first time Lieberman has perplexed his fellow Democrats. Mark Murray, writing in the NBC News tipsheet First Read, reminds us: First, he loses his Senate primary in '06 (due in large part to his support for the war in Iraq). Then he wins the general election (thanks largely to a Republican nominee who was only able to draw 10% of the vote). He returns to the Senate as an "Independent-Democrat" who will caucus with the Democrats. But then he not only backs his friend John McCain in the presidential election, but also nearly pulls a Zell Miller. "When others wanted to retreat in defeat from the field of battle, when Barack Obama was voting to cut off funding for our troops on the ground, John McCain had the courage to stand against the tide of public opinion and support the surge," Lieberman said at the GOP convention. Finally, after the election, Democrats welcome him back and allow him to keep his committee chairmanship. Now this... A CBS News blog sugggests that while Senate Democrats have "few options," they do have "some political leverage," including the possibility of stripping him of his chairmanship of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, "a post he holds at the pleasure of the Democratic-controlled Senate." Would the leadership strip Lieberman of his committee chairmanship? It's hard to envision, but if Lieberman is responsible for the bill's defeat, then who knows? The Wall Street Journal's Susan Davis notes in the Washington Wire blog that a recent poll commissioned by two liberal groups, Progressive Change Campaign Committee and Democracy for America, showed more than 80 percent of Democrats want Lieberman stripped of the chairmanship if he sides with Republicans on health care; just 10 percent of Dems said there should be no punishment. Davis adds, "Most liberals fell out of love with Joe Lieberman a long time ago, or at least when he backed" McCain in 2008. (If Lieberman is driving Democrats back home in Connecticut batty, the party is also going through some trepidations over the re-election prospects of Sen. Chris Dodd (D) next year. A good piece today from the New York Times' Peter Applebome about Dodd's woes here.) And Joe isn't the only Lieberman targeted. Firedoglake, the liberal blog penned by Jane Hamsher, has called on Susan G. Komen for the Cure to "dump Hadassah [Mrs. Joe] Lieberman as its 'Global Ambassador' due to her ties to the same healthcare industry that is actively fighting Congressional healthcare reform": Hadassah, a former senior counselor for Hill and Knowlton, who specialized in "healthcare and pharmaceutical practices", also worked as a consultant for Pfizer and ALCO. Her husband, Senator Joe Lieberman, has been one of the chief opponents in the US Senate of health reforms that would help prevent millions of women from combating cancer and other serious illnesses, a cause inconsistent with Komen. "We are asking Ellen DeGeneres, Christie Brinkley and other high-profile celebrities who are associated with Komen to demand that no more money raised for cancer treatment be given to Hadassah Lieberman or any other ex-Pharma/Insurance strategists," said Firedoglake's Jane Hamsher. "People who are racing for the cure wouldn't be racing to pay Hadassah Lieberman money, especially if they knew her ties to the same corporations that are blocking women's health reforms currently being debated in Congress." But, as the Hartford Courant's Daniela Altimari writes, Komen spokeswoman Pam Stevens says the group is standing by Mrs. Lieberman: "Hadassah Lieberman is an important and valued Global Ambassador for Susan G. Komen for the Cure,'' the group said in an email this morning from spokeswoman Pam Stevens. "As a Global Ambassador, Ms. Lieberman is focused on helping us reach out and educate women outside our borders about breast cancer, sharing our knowledge and experience in a culturally sensitive way that is making a real impact on the lives of women across the globe. We have every intention of continuing our relationship with Ms. Lieberman in our mutual pursuit of a world without breast cancer." fivefilters.org featured article: Normalising the crime of the century by John Pilger |
| SABCS: Higher Dose of Fulvestrant Slows Breast Cancer - MedPage Today Posted: 14 Dec 2009 11:31 AM PST SAN ANTONIO -- Women with metastatic breast cancer had a modest but statistically significant improvement in time to progression when treated with 500 mg of fulvestrant (Faslodex) -- double the usual dose -- data from a multinational phase III trial showed.
The one-month delay in progression came with no increase in adverse effects, Angelo Di Leo, MD, of the Hospital of Prato in Prato, Italy, said at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium. The higher dose was also associated with a trend toward a reduced mortality risk. Other outcomes were similar between the two dose groups. The benefits were consistent across all prespecified subgroups. "Fulvestrant will continue to be used after tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitors, but I believe the 500-mg dose will become the standard," said Di Leo. A second study reported at the San Antonio meeting showed that adding the estrogen-receptor antagonist to an aromatase inhibitor did not improve time to progression compared with the aromatase inhibitor alone. Available for more than a decade, fulvestrant has been overshadowed by other endocrine therapies for breast cancer, C. Kent Osborne, MD, of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, said at a press briefing. The lack of recognition can be traced, in part, to suboptimal use of the estrogen-receptor inhibitor, including an inadequate dose, he said. Di Leo reported findings from a randomized clinical trial designed to examine the fulvestrant dosing issue. The study involved 736 patients with estrogen receptor-positive advanced breast cancer. All patients had disease progression or recurrence after prior treatment with an antiestrogen agent or an aromatase inhibitor. Patients were randomized to 250 or 500 mg of fulvestrant monthly and assessed for tumor response every 12 weeks. The primary endpoint was time to progression, and secondary endpoints included overall response, clinical benefit (response plus stable disease ≥24 weeks), duration of clinical benefit, overall survival, and safety and tolerability. The 500-mg dose led to a median time to progression of 6.5 months compared with 5.5 months for patients treated with the standard 250-mg dose (P=0.006). Overall survival improved by 16% with the higher dose, but the difference was not significant from the improvement seen with the 250-mg group (HR 0.84, P=0.091). Overall response rate was 14% to 15% in each group. Total clinical benefit was 45.6% with 500 mg of fulvestrant and 39.6% with 250 mg. The median duration of clinical benefit was 16.6 months with the higher dose and 13.9 months with the standard dose, neither of which differed significantly. Adverse-event rates and quality-of-life scores also were similar for the two groups. Results of another multinational study demonstrated no advantage for adding fulvestrant to anastrozole (Arimidex). Time to progression and overall survival were virtually identical in patients treated with anastrozole alone or with the combination. "The fulvestrant and anastrozole combination offers no clinical efficacy advantage over anastrozole alone and should not be used," concluded Joseph Bergh, MD, of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. Bergh reported data from a trial involving 514 patients in first relapse after adjuvant cytotoxic or hormonal therapy for locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer. All patients received anastrozole 1 mg/d and were randomized to a 500-mg loading dose of fulvestrant followed by 250 mg/month or no additional therapy. About two thirds of the patients had received adjuvant endocrine therapy. Analysis of the primary endpoint showed no difference in time to progression, 10.8 months with the combination and 10.2 months with anastrozole alone. The two groups also did not differ with respect to key secondary endpoints, including overall survival (37.8% with the combination and 38.2% with anastrozole alone), response rate (31.8% versus 33.6%), and clinical benefit rate (55.0% versus 55.1%). Both studies were supported by AstraZeneca. Di Leo disclosed relationships with Bristol-Myers Squibb and sanofi-aventis. Bergh disclosed relationships with Merck, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, sanofi-aventis, and Roche. fivefilters.org featured article: Normalising the crime of the century by John Pilger |
| Go Green, Get Some Green and Help Your Neighbors - PR Inside Posted: 14 Dec 2009 12:28 PM PST 2009-12-14 21:26:55 - The Holiday season is a time when people give thanks and look for ways to help their community and neighbors in need. The car you no longer need will help the environment, the community and your wallet when you donate it to charity.
Cars4Charities will gladly handle the entire car donation process for you, have your car picked up fast and free and send the proceeds to the charity you select from their extensive list. Their list of charities not only includes National ones such as the American Foundation for the Blind, Prevent Cancer Foundation, American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association, Autism Speaks, Diabetes Research Institute Foundation, Breast Cancer Research Foundation, National Association for Down Syndrome, Colon Cancer Prevention Foundation, Asthma & Allergy Foundation, Teach for America, Cancer Research Institute, but also local charities like food banks and homeless shelters, etc.Besides helping a very needy charity, you'll get a tax deduction of at least $500 on your itemized federal return. Cars4Charities even allows you the ability to complete the entire car donation process online at your convenience. The online option is better for the environment because it reduces the use of paper and other consumables. If your car is in poor condition, Cars4Charities will make sure it is properly recycled. Complete details are available at 1-866-448-3487 (GIVE-4-US). fivefilters.org featured article: Normalising the crime of the century by John Pilger |
| Rainbows possess heart of a champion - Honolulu Advertiser Posted: 14 Dec 2009 11:52 AM PST STANFORD, Calif. — If you are looking for a reason this team with the less-than-imposing appearance has brought Hawai'i to its first volleyball final four in six years this is it: Credit everyone. Every part of this third-ranked Rainbow Wahine team, which won the Stanford Regional Saturday, is integral to the whole. Every small and tall body play a crucial part. When one is down, or even out, another has her back. "It's definitely heart," said menehune-sized senior Jayme Lee after the win over Michigan moved the Rainbows into a national semifinal Thursday against top-ranked Penn State. "This team has a heart bigger than anything I can imagine. Bigger than me, bigger than anything else. "We knew this team (Michigan) was just as good as us. It's exactly the same as us. Not big, but fast. It went five with Penn State. It serves good, passes good, plays in the Big Ten all year so they don't see teams like the WAC's. It was crazy, but we wanted it more and we deserved it." Count the ways. The Rainbow Wahine are the lowest-seeded team to reach the final four since unseeded Santa Clara broke through in 2005. Their 28-match winning streak, which included victories over the Pac-10's two top teams, convinced the coaches to rank them third every week since Oct. 12. That was all but ignored by the NCAA Committee. UH was seeded 12th and the bracket was based almost solely on the NCAA's power rating — and last year's bracket by the looks of it. The 'Bows were mad, for about two minutes, then prepared to get even. Aside from a one-sided loss to second-ranked Texas and a five-set fall against 10th-ranked Cal, nothing has kept them down this season. "We wondered why does everyone think that?" Lee recalled. "But it's been rewarding showing the whole nation that this is where we belong and we earned this respect." They compensated for what they could not earn in the WAC by improving, somehow, through two months of conference blowouts. They haven't played at home in more than a month and hit the wall midway through their NCAA second-round match against USC at USC. They fought through it by suffocating the Trojans' two best players. They did the same against fifth-seeded Illinois in the regional semifinal, then stuffed Michigan's most potent offensive threat Saturday. In the last three matches, Hawai'i has held opponents' left-side attack to negative .005 hitting — 35 kills and 36 errors in nearly 200 swings. "Somehow we took away everybody's strength," said UH coach Dave Shoji. "Somehow we are just doing a great job taking away their best players, just slowing them down with the block and digging the ball behind it and running transition." Somehow someone has always come up big. When senior Amber Kaufman aggravated an abdominal injury in the regional semifinal, she took herself out because "I just figured Lex (Forsythe) would do more and a better job than me." When Kaufman made a heroic return Saturday, she was superb. Freshman Brittany Hewitt and sophomore Stephanie Ferrell had a breakout weekend, Hewitt giving the 'Bows a huge blocking threat and Ferrell going for a career-high 19 kills Friday. "With Amber not being 100 percent I took it on myself, I took it personal, felt it's up to me to put the team on my shoulders," Ferrell said. "Everybody will work hard for us to get past the other team and get through the adversity." Everybody has, from passers to servers, defenders, blockers, hitters, setters and backups. The Rainbows have played to their strengths and overcome pretty much everything and everyone. They broke the Big Ten's spirit, twice, at Stanford. Illinois coach Kevin Hambly called them the smartest team he's seen all year. Michigan's Mark Rosen characterized Hawai'i as the best serving and passing team. Penn State, with its 100-match winning streak and quest to become the first to three-peat, will test every bit of the 'Bows' will and skill. But how could anyone count them out now? Shoji won't, though he is still not quite sure how they have done it. "I just enjoy watching our under-sized kids fight so hard and overcome a lot of physical deficiencies," he said. "They equalize the game just with their heart and their volleyball skills." NOTESGov. Linda Lingle issued a statement congratulating the Rainbow Wahine yesterday, saying they "made a decisive statement in the national volleyball arena that Hawai'i remains a force to contend with." The statement called 35-year head coach Dave Shoji "legendary." It went on to say "the Wahine played with heart, enthusiasm and determination, as they have throughout the season" and that the team and staff "continue to bring tremendous pride to the University of Hawai'i and our entire state." UH has launched a new online auction on HawaiiAthletics.com and it currently features the Rainbow Wahine's pink jerseys and autographed match balls used during the "Dig Pink" match for breast cancer awareness. Proceeds from this auction will support UH Athletics and the American Cancer Society. Starting bid for jerseys and match balls is $25. Closing date is Sunday at 6 p.m. Throughout the year, the auction will offer items from the department including authentic jerseys, event tickets and special event packages. Proceeds will support the athletic department. Volleyball's annual banquet will again be a brunch, Jan. 31, at Hale Koa Hotel at 10:30 a.m. Seating is limited and deadline for payment is Jan. 24. Cost is $50, or $45 for Wahine Volleyball Booster Club members. For more information, call 257-8863 (Maggie) or 521-1456 (Stanley). Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com. fivefilters.org featured article: Normalising the crime of the century by John Pilger |
| Want to make a real difference in the fight against breast cancer? - Democratic Underground.com Posted: 14 Dec 2009 11:09 AM PST People must be getting sick of me posting about the Army of Women, but here I go again! What is the HOW Study? The HOW Study will be the largest online study of its kind. ONE MILLION women are needed for this study. We need ALL WOMEN, of every age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and health status so that the answers will be relevant to all women! he study is a true collaboration between the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation, and epidemiologists Katherine Henderson and Leslie Bernstein from the Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope, with help from our friends at the National Cancer Institute's CaBIG division. But actually it is YOUR study! It will take ALL of us together working to find the cause of this disease! fivefilters.org featured article: Normalising the crime of the century by John Pilger |
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