Video: Raw Video: New York Senate Rejects Gay Marriage

Oneida County’s two state senators split their votes Wednesday on a rejected bill to legalize gay marriage in the Empire State.

Joseph A. Griffo, R-47, Rome, was among the 38 senators to vote against the measure while David J. Valesky, D-49, Oneida, was one of the 24 supporters. Every one of the Senate’s 30 Republican members voted against the bill, as well as eight Democrats.

Griffo today said that he believes New York should continue to define marriage as the union of a man and a woman.

"Marriage is one of the most valued and sacred aspects of our society," he said. "It is more than just one of the basic civil rights to which all people are entitled. Marriage between a man and a woman is one of the cornerstone institutions in our culture."

He said he did not believe that changing its definition under state law was appropriate.

"Traditional beliefs that define a family structure as based on marriage between a man and a woman are part of the bedrock values in the region I serve as senator," he said. "Although I believe in the traditional definition of marriage, I also believe that there should be no discrimination based on sexual orientation. All people have value in our society, and no one should be treated unfairly because of their sexual orientation, race, gender or any other category."

But, he said he has not been "persuaded that preservation of marriage in its current form is a denial of basic rights."

Valesky said he has met with and spoken to hundreds of constituents on both sides of the marriage equality issue in recent months. "While considering both sides of the debate and discussing this matter thoroughly, I have come to believe that the civil rights afforded by this legislation do not breach the basic religious freedoms that I so strongly support," he said. "In fact, this legislation specifically states that no member of the clergy can be required to solemnize any marriage, thus affording a church the right to define marriage on its terms and according to its tenets. The state, however, should not, and cannot, determine its definition of marriage based on the definitions of any church. This, too, is one of the core foundations of our democracy, the separation of church and state."

Vaslesky said, in the end, he voted for the bill because "it expands civil rights while providing a safeguard for religious freedom."

Yesterday’s Senate action was the final hurdle for the measure to become law. The state Assembly has passed the measure three times and Gov. David A. Paterson, a longtime supporter of gay rights, had championed for passage.

The Senate vote followed more than a year of lobbying by gay rights organizations. The state’s Roman Catholic bishops had consistently lobbied for its defeat,

Previously, the legislation had stalled in the Senate since it was first passed by the Assembly in 2007. Under Republican control, Senate leaders never brought the issue to the floor for a vote. But Democrats won control of the chamber in 2008. Since then, advocates have been pushing for a vote.

A poll released Wednesday by the Marist Institute for Public Opinion in Poughkeepsie showed that 51 percent of registered voters supported same-sex marriage while 42 percent opposed it.

No. 2 Justice Dept. official leaving for law firm

The No. 2 official at the Justice Department announced Thursday he is leaving the job after less than a year.

David Ogden, a prominent Washington lawyer, is headed back to his former firm, WilmerHale.

As the deputy to Attorney General Eric Holder, Ogden oversaw a crackdown on Mexican drug cartels and coordinated various law enforcement agencies that work under the Justice Department.

Ogden plans to continue in the position until Feb. 5, and no successor has been named for the position, which is a presidential appointment that must be confirmed by Congress.

Holder has gathered a number of strong personalities with impressive legal resumes for senior positions at the department, and in Ogden's case, it seems not to be a good fit.

Jamie Gorelick, a former deputy attorney general during the Clinton administration who works at WilmerHale and knows many of the lawyers now running the Justice Department, said Ogden made important contributions, beginning with his work on the Obama transition team.

"I think the decision reflects differences between Eric and David on what the deputy should do, and that happens," said Gorelick. "It's clear they had different views on what the deputy's office should do, and Eric should have a deputy who does it the way he wants it."

In a statement, Ogden said he was leaving because he had helped put the Justice Department on the right path for the Obama administration, starting with his work on Obama's transition team.

It is unusual but not unprecedented for such a high-level position to empty within the first year of a new administration.

At the beginning of the Clinton administration, then-deputy attorney general Phil Heymann left after less than a year. Heymann and then-attorney general Janet Reno differed over how their offices should interact in managing the department.

Chris Brown Reacts to Rihanna's Emotional 'Good Morning America' Interview

Chris Brown appeared on Thursday's "Good Morning America" with anchor Robin Roberts, seeming to be remorseful as he reacted to clips of his ex-girlfriend Rihanna talking about the night of their domestic dispute.


"I've never, ever had problems with anger, no domestic violence with any of my past girlfriends," he told Roberts. "I never was that kind of person. ... How could I be that person?"

"GMA" showed Brown a clip of Rihanna's early November interview with Diane Sawyer where the pop star describes her ex-boyfriend at the time of the domestic dispute, saying, "He had no soul in his eyes, just blank. So, at that point I didn't know what could happen."

Brown reacted after seeing the clip, saying, "I was wrong for what I did, and I would say it's not something I look past or look over."

The singer said he is "devastated" by what happened and revealed he still has love for Rihanna. "I'm really sorry for what went down and what happened."

Mid-Cycle Meltdown!: Jobless Claims December 03 2009

Today, the Department of Labor released their latest read of Joblessness showing seasonally adjusted “initial” unemployment claims declined by 5,000 to 457,000 claims from last week’s revised 462,000 claims while “continued” claims increased 28,000 resulting in an “insured” unemployment rate of 4.1%.

Today’s results, though still significantly elevated, continues to indicate that the descent to both initial and continued claims is continuing in earnest resulting in an almost textbook peak.

At this point, we are either in the "post-crisis" recovery or the "eye before the storm" of a double-dip.

Could the worst of the job-shedding be behind us? Is a major disappointment shaping up for 2010?

We will have to wait to find out.

Clearly, careful attention needs to be paid to these indices to see how they reflect the state of the job market as we move further into the end of the year and start of 2010.

So Ron Artest Used To Drink At Halftime During His Bulls Tenure?

Yes, according to the latest edition of the Sporting News, he drank at halftime of some games during his 1999-2002 stint with the Bulls:

“I used to drink Hennessy … at halftime,” Artest says in the interview, which hits newsstands this week. “I (kept it) in my locker. I’d just walk to the liquor store (near the stadium) and get it.”

Two things here:

1) Does this surprise anybody? This is Ron Artest here. His entire NBA persona has been built around wild, outlandish stuff. He’s always been a wild child, a bit crazy.That’s what makes Ron Ron. If anything, this anecdote is just another piece that fits perfectly into the Ron Artest puzzle.

2) Shoals brings up a valid point in all of this. We clown Ron all the time, but when guys admit to serious mental health issues like Delonte West and Michael Beasley did this summer, we treated them with kid gloves.


Sorry, people, but you can’t rock the double standard here. If West’s a perpetual patient, and Beasley close enough to one that we’ve changed our tone about him, then now Ron Ron is, too.

But here’s what I’m wondering: All those years we informally called Artest “crazy,” what exactly did we mean? It would be one thing if all he’d done was shave stuff into his head and give the best interviews this side of KG. But fans and media alike blasted Artest for unpredictability, violence, and a certain disconnect from reality. I guess that made him an easy target, and probably not someone you wanted on your team. Still, I fail to see why an athlete deserves sympathy if he admits he has a problem, but if he refuses to, we can clown him for having one.

Or who knows, maybe Artest will never get that free pass. It’s too late for him. Good thing he feels he’s finally gotten himself together, since at this point, his only recourse might be to prove to the public that he’s not “insane” anymore. He owes us that for being such an unstable athlete, doesn’t he?

It probably is too late for Artest. When this public perception has been running for a decade now, and he’s showing up pants-less on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” last week, and he doesn’t appear to be checking into a mental health facility anytime soon, people are going to think of Ron how they’ve always thought of Ron.

Whether that’s right or not, though, is certainly up for debate.

Ron Wood Arrested For Assaulting Ekaterina Ivanova

Ron Wood, a.k.a. Ronnie Wood, a.k.a. the guitarist from the Rolling Stones not named Keith Richards, and whose accent is so thick it requires subtitles even though he allegedly speaks English, was arrested yesterday for assaulting his girlfriend.

Her name? Ekaterina Ivanova.

Wood was arrested in southern England for possible assault on Wednesday evening, and was released on bail Thursday, according to various reports.

Police in Surrey say a man, by all accounts Ron Wood even if they won't name him, was taken into custody in connection with a domestic incident.



The 61-year-old Ron Wood has not commented on the bust.

“I can confirm that there was an incident last night and that Ronnie Wood was arrested,” said David Rigg, his spokesman. “He has since been released.”

"We have no further comment at this time."

Ron recently began dating Ekaterina Ivanova, 21, after divorcing his wife of 24 years, Jo Wood, just last month, on the grounds of adultery.

Who committed it? That we don't know.

Update: details of Climatic Research Unit investigation unveiled - December 03, 2009

The University of East Anglia, UK, today released details about the investigation into the alleged hacking of e-mails from its Climatic Research Unit (CRU), which has sparked worldwide fury, lamentation, gnashing of teeth - and a robust editorial in this week's Nature.

According to a statement, the university has commissioned an independent review to:

Determine whether there is any evidence of the manipulation or suppression of data which is at odds with acceptable scientific practice and may therefore call into question any of the research outcomes.

Review CRU’s policies and practices for acquiring, assembling, subjecting to peer review and disseminating data and research findings, and their compliance or otherwise with best scientific practice.

Review CRU’s compliance or otherwise with the University’s policies and practices regarding requests under the Freedom of Information Act (‘the FOIA’) and the Environmental Information Regulations (‘the EIR’) for the release of data.

Review and make recommendations as to the appropriate management, governance and security structures for CRU and the security, integrity and release of the data it holds.

The review will be led by Sir Muir Russell, a former civil servant and former Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Glasgow. He's also Chairman of the Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland.