Psychiatric nurse Bryan Krumm's opinion of the state's medical marijuana program is not an uncommon one. "Until they can keep the federal government out of the program, they are not going to be able to make our program functional."

Mayor _____? What is the governor proposing to take a swing at with his budget-trimming ax? How many part-timers do state colleges and universities keep on the rosters? A lead in a 10-year-old murder case may come from ...

How Ed Mazria plans to change our homes ... and the world

The new session of Congress is poised to pass another stimulus bill, one that will pump hundreds of billions of dollars into the ailing economy. The trick will be getting legislators to agree on who gets the money. Edward Mazria, a Santa Fe architect, says he’s presented the Obama transition team with a proposal that benefits all Americans instead of giving more cash to financiers.

This year should be different.

That's the motto domestic partnership advocates carry with them as the 60-day legislative session commences on Jan. 20.

For two years, supporters have seen the domestic partnership bill pass the House only to get squashed in the Senate. Many new legislators will head to the capital in 2009, and advocates say several are likely to support the bill. Domestic partnership-friendly lawmakers are replacing senators who were not sympathetic to the cause.

Democratic Rep. Mimi Stewart, who is sponsoring the legislation in the House, says she's optimistic about her bill's odds of survival. "I think we have a better chance of passing it than we did before," Stewart says. "We've increased the number of legislators in both houses who are more open and not tied to outdated, outmoded views."

From wikimedia.org

The Daily Decline

Behind all the photos of Gov. Bill Richardson frowning as his plans turn to dust, there's another story at the Albuquerque Journal: layoffs.

Thomas Friedman, the New York Times columnist and respected author on the globalization-age economy, wrote about one of the worst aspects of the economic crisis. He wrote that our corporations and financial institutions had turned their backs on those attitudes and values that have always been our hallmarks for success: hard work, prudent investment and careful saving.

Dateline: China—Police in the Chinese seaport of Ningbo were called in to settle a lovers’ dispute after a man refused to warm up his girlfriend’s feet. Police officer Xiao Deng said he received two consecutive calls: one from a woman complaining her boyfriend refused to warm her feet, the other from the man saying his girlfriend was too demanding. Xiao went out to the couple’s rental apartment near Ningbo University to try to resolve the conflict but found the couple still engaged in a heated argument, reports Modern Times. “Have you ever seen such a girlfriend? She put her cold legs on my belly, giving me a stomach cramp,” the boyfriend allegedly told the officer. “I asked her to take them away and she said she would only put them there for a short while. I agreed, but after 10 minutes she still had them there, saying it was very comfortable.” Xiao eventually persuaded the boyfriend that it was a man’s job to warm his girlfriend’s feet, but warned the woman not to leave her feet there too long.

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