WHY DO YOU THINK THEY'RE CALLED "DEADHEADS"?
The latest danger in going to a Phil Lesh and Friends concert is the prospect of having some jerk fall on you from the balcony, something that has happened at two San Francisco shows. Ever nonconventional, deadheads have found two sides to the issue.Some people think the jumper should be arrested and jailed to learn his lesson. Others say life is but a dream and he should be forgiven for not realizing he was in another level of consciousness.
(TRIBE, unearthed by A&E INTERACTIVE)

DIXIE CHICKS NOW "NUMERO UNO"
For the "crime" of expressing disapproval of the President, the Dixie Chicks were hit with a full-frontal right-wing attack. Three years and a lot of hullabaloo later, their new release - Taking the Long Way - has shot to Number 1 on Billboard's country music chart and the overall Billboard 200 chart. In its first full week of availability, the latest release from the Dixie Chicks sold 526, 000 units.
(THE NATION, unearthed by Common Dreams)

I IN 136 CITIZENS NOW BEHIND BARS
"Prisons and jails added more than 1,000 inmates each week for a year, putting almost 2.2 million people, or one in every 136 U.S. residents, behind bars by last summer."
(AP, unearthed by Common Dreams)

RELIGION'S SLIPPERY SLOPE
"Not unlike families who choose the Jewish Star of David, the Christian cross and the Islamic crescent and star to honor their loved ones on headstones and markers, Sgt. Patrick Stewart's family's symbol of choice for his memorial plaque also was from his religion: the Wiccan pentacle. But of all the symbols and faiths recognized by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Wicca and its emblem -- a circle around a five-pointed star -- are not among them."
(WASHINGTON POST)

FEDERAL MARRIAGE AMENDMENT?
Next week the Senate is expected to vote on the proposed Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA), which would prohibit federal recognition of gay marriages even when approved by a state government. According to a study by the Cato Institute, the FMA is "Unnecessary, Anti-federalist, and Anti-democratic," and an unprecedented intrusion on our nation's historic commitment to federalism. It is unlike any other constitutional amendment in that it limits the ability of the democratic process to expand individual rights.
(CATO)

FAMILY ASKS FOR RETURN OF GERONIMO'S REMAINS
"The great grandson of the Apache leader Geronimo has appealed to the big chief in the White House to help recover the remains of his famous relative - purportedly stolen more than 90 years ago by a group of students - including the President's grandfather."
(COMMON DREAMS)