In Memoriam - Teena Marie

How sad that she has left us so soon. Loved her in the late 1970s, and she was about to make a comeback. Rest in peace Teena Marie.

Sunday Funnies

Happy Holidays!

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas!

UConn Women's Basketball Team Sets Record

Congratulations to the University of Conneticut's women's basketball team! For what, you might ask? Well, it's hard for the media to ignore a 89-game winning streak!

UConn women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma, never at a loss for words, was close Tuesday night.

"It's pretty amazing. It really is," he said.

No exaggeration there.

His No. 1-ranked Huskies topped the 88-game winning streak set by John Wooden's UCLA men's team from 1971-74, beating No. 22 Florida State 93-62. Playing with the relentlessness that has become its trademark - and would have made Wooden proud - UConn blew past the Seminoles as it has so many other teams in the last 2 1/2 years. [...]

It is one more chapter of history for UConn, and perhaps the grandest.

Asked what he would recall from the incredible run, Auriemma mentioned a pair of experienced stars on this team: ``I'll probably remember Maya Moore and Tiffany Hayes. And how incredibly difficult it is to play that many games in a row and win 'em all.''

Connecticut long ago established itself as the marquee program in the women's game, the benchmark by which all others are measured. The Huskies already own seven national titles and four perfect seasons under Auriemma, and they've produced a galaxy of stars that includes Rebecca Lobo, Diana Taurasi, Jennifer Rizzotti, Sue Bird and Tina Charles.

The streak, though, takes it to another level, certainly raising the profile of women's basketball and maybe all of women's athletics.

Two days after beating No. 11 Ohio State to tie UCLA, UConn toppled the mark in front of a sellout crowd of 16,294 at the XL Center that included Wooden's grandson, Greg, attending his first women's game.

"My grandfather would have been thrilled. He would have been absolutely thrilled to see his streak broken by a women's basketball team," the 47-year-old Wooden said.  "He thought, especially in the last 10 years, that the best basketball was played at the collegiate level - and it wasn't by the men."

John Wooden was 99 when he died on June 4. [...]

During his postgame news conference, Auriemma took a congratulatory phone call from President Barack Obama.

"Mr. President I really appreciate that. It's an incredible thing that these kids have done and we owe you a little bit of gratitude. That lesson you gave on the White House basketball court really paid off. I appreciate you doing that for them," Auriemma said. "We have not lost since you have been inaugurated and how 'bout we keep that streak going for a couple of more years, huh?"

This incredible team has now set the standard.

The excellence and confidence that defines great teams defines this one because Auriemma won't have it any other way. Perfection is expected, not simply a goal, and Auriemma goes to extraordinary lengths to get it.

He goads his players with criticisms of their games - sarcastic remarks that may strike outsiders as harsh but somehow trigger just the right response with gusto. He makes them play games of seven-on-five in practice. He rounds up bigger, stronger male students around campus to serve as practice players. He runs endless drills to hone skills the players thought they had mastered in junior high.

It hardly seems to matter who is on the floor because UConn players don't wear names on the back of their uniforms. The only one that counts is the one on the front.

When UConn - led by Taurasi - won 70 straight games from 2001-03, a record in the women's game, it seemed unfathomable that it would be toppled, like UCLA's 88. But what fans have learned over the years is that nothing this team does should be surprising.

Congratulations, and here's to 89 more!

Don't Ask Don't Tell Repealed

Finally, the egregious ban on lesbians and gays serving openly in the military is gone. Instituted during the Clinton years, Congress recently passed -- and on Wednesday President Obama will sign -- a bill repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell!

In 1993, while working for NOW, I helped organize a protest of the ban on lesbians and gays in the military, in front of the White House. A few of the protesters took part in an act of non-violent civil disobedience, which resulted in their arrest. Among those arrested were NOW Action Vice President Rosemary Dempsey, and lesbian Army Captain Tanya Domi.

Domi, who will be present as President Obama signs the new law, recounts her years of advocacy against DADT here.

Since late last night I have been posting thank yous on Facebook, friends and colleagues who have worked days, weeks, months and years in our effort to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. This is a moment we have worked toward for decades–the toil, the frustration, the agony, the sadness and great sacrifice, suffering in silence from the closet, removed from traditional sources of emotional support, as we served in defense of our country.

My tears began welling up this morning as I received and exchanged so many heart felt expressions of support and gratitude from around the country during the Senate discussion led by Senator Joe Lieberman, who reminds me of the time honored assertion that inside the beltway there are no permanent enemies. His leadership also symbolizes the internalized social justice values of the Jewish community, who have always been there for us–stood with us– since the beginning of this fight so many decades ago.

We stand on the shoulders of many who have not lived to see this day: Leonard Matlovich, Karl Cropsey, Copy Berg, Thomas Paniccia, Randy Shilts, Alan Stephens, Tom Stoddard, Gerry Studds, Perry Watkins and so many others. But I am so happy that Frank Kameny was alive to see this repeal come to pass, as Frank began his courageous advocacy on the military’s gay ban in the 1950s–during the age of the Philistines.

Wednesday marks the beginning of a new day for lesbian and gay Americans as we celebrate the an end to the ban on lesbians and gays in the military.

Sunday Funnies

Sunday Funnies

Helen Mirren Stands Up for Women

Aretha Franklin - Say a Little Prayer

If you believe in the power of prayer you might want to say one for Aretha Franklin tonight. The Queen of Soul is reportedly battling pancreatic cancer.

The ailing Aretha Franklin -- who had major surgery just last week-- has pancreatic cancer, according to the Detroit News.

Citing a "source familiar with the situation," the News report says the disease is what prompted Franklin to take six months off; the Queen of Soul's publicist, however, has not yet confirmed that information.

After her surgery last week, Franklin released a statement that characterized the procedure as "highly successful." A specific prognosis for the legendary singer, who is 68, has not yet been given. Here's hoping she rebounds and start singing about R-E-S-P-E-C-T very soon.

I couldn't agree more.

In Memoriam - Elizabeth Edwards

I had the good fortune not only to meet Elizabeth Edwards during the last presidential campaign, but to speak with her for a few minutes as well. I found her to be a warm, yet fierce, woman. She was determined about what she wanted for this country, and absolute in her desire to keep working toward that goal. I said to her at the time: "I wish you were the Edwards running for president" -- and I meant it!

Elizabeth Edwards has lost her battle with cancer, but she will not be forgotten.

An avid fan of new media, Elizabeth posted this to her Facebook page on Monday: “I have been sustained throughout my life by three saving graces — my family, my friends, and a faith in the power of resilience and hope.” She added: “The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered. We know that.”

Condolences to her family and close friends. And may you rest in peace, Elizabeth.

Sunday Funnies