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As the nation commemorates the 150th anniversary of its deadliest war this week, some historians say we're still fighting over some of the same issues that fueled the Civil War. "There are all of these weird parallels," says Stephanie McCurry, author of "Confederate Reckoning," a new book that examines why Southerners seceded and its effect on Southern women and slaves. "When you hear charges today that the federal government is overreaching, and the idea that the Constitution recognized us as a league of sovereign states -- these were all part of the secessionist charges in 1860," she says. 1. The...

Mark Levin "Ron Paul Supporters Biggest A-Holes" [Youtube, 32 second audio]

The fallen fortunes of the Democrats as the Republicans take control of the House and start the Senate session in a strengthened position is underlined by Gallup poll numbers that find the percentage of Americans who identify with the party has fallen to its lowest point in the 22 years. Gallup says that in 2010 an average of 31 percent of Americans said they were Democrats, a number the party last hit in 1991. That's a five point drop from 2008 when Democrats notched their 22-year high of 36 percent.

The U.S. Department of Justice is looking for fluent Ebonics speakers to fill nine drug enforcement jobs, giving merit to a dialect that experts say is often mimicked and little understood. The federal Drug Enforcment Administration translators would work out of the Atlanta field office according to a Justice Department request, posted online today by The Smoking Gun.

The Library of Congress announced last week that it has made a huge collection of Civil War portraits available on its Flickr site. The portraits — almost 700 of them — are available at http://www.flickr.com/photos/library_of_congress/sets/72157625520211184. This collection is all from one place — the Liljenquist family — and includes the frames of the pictures as well as the ambrotype and tintype photographs themselves. Many of the pictures are soldiers (including some portraits of African-American soldiers) but there are some civilian pictures here as well. There are also many group pictures, both of civilians and soldiers. Some of the pictures are...

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma voters have approved a measure requiring that all official state actions be conducted in English. The author of the official English bill, Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, has said that English and the "melting pot" process it makes possible, "has made the United States the most successful multiethnic nation in history." The measure drew opposition from several groups, including the League of Women Voters of Oklahoma, which says the question discriminates against new citizens who want to do business with the state. Read more: http://www.newsok.com/oklahoma-votes-to-make-english-official-language/article/3510663#ixzz14BXQIFsO

The most eligible bachelorette in tennis is off the market. Three-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova got engaged to her boyfriend, Los Angeles Lakers guard Sasha Vujacic, after he proposed on Tuesday night at his Manhattan Beach, Calif. home. The two had been dating for nearly a year. TMZ was the first to report the news. Sharapova's agent has since confirmed it to CNBC's Darren Rovell.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Orlando police say an officer, who broke an 84-year-old man's neck, did nothing wrong. Officer Travis Lamont was cleared by the department late Friday morning. Orlando Police Chief Val Demings said Officer Lamont did not violate policy. He broke 84-year-old Daniel Daley's neck in September while arresting him. Since the department has cleared Officer Lamont's use of force, there will be no internal affairs investigation into the officer's actions. WFTV spoke with Daley's lawyer, Mark NeJame, Friday. NeJame told WFTV he is not surprised that the Orlando Police Department cleared the officer, but says it was wrong...

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Former U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez is becoming a banker. Martinez, who resigned from the U.S. Senate last September, was named Monday as chairman of JPMorgan Chase Bank's Florida market and its operations in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. As JPMorgan Chase Bank's senior Florida executive, Martinez will also serve on Chase's corporate executive committee and work with senior level clients ranging from businesses to large corporations and non-profits to governments. The 63-year-old Martinez will be based in Orlando. Chase Bank is the sixth-largest bank in Florida based on deposit market share with nearly $11 billion deposited...

LONDON – British Prime Minister Gordon Brown made a dramatic bid to keep his beleaguered Labour Party in power after it was punished in elections last week, announcing Monday he will resign by September at the latest even if the Liberal Democrats — being wooed by the Conservatives — decide to join his party in government. The political theater, played out in front of the iconic black door of No. 10 Downing Street, comes as David Cameron's Conservatives — which won the most seats in Parliament but fell short of a majority — struggled in their attempts to win over...

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who's suing the federal government about health care and just about everything else, adopted a new campaign logo that uses the Don't Tread on Me slogan commonly seen at tea party rallies. While Abbott campaign spokesman Jason Johnson stresses that the image of the coiled timber rattlesnake goes way back in American political history, and that even some federal agencies have used the motif, it's pretty clear what the target audience of this logo is: Disgruntled Texans who are in an anti-federal government, anti-incumbent mood.

We the People are currently looking for an honest leader to keep our Country afloat. They must be willing to clean up the mess that exists and then put the people first. In November we the people will also have several hundred openings in Congress as well. You need to be selfless, always on the job, transparent and never vote on any bill that you haven't read. Please send resumes.

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- An Osceola County man thought he’d paid off a parking ticket, so he was surprised to find out Monday that the Orange County Clerk’s office had issued a warrant for his arrest. Luis Gomez owed exactly one cent on a speeding ticket he received one year ago. Gomez tried to call the court to resolve the problem, and then tried to pay online, but had no luck. “They won’t take a payment of a penny online,” said Gomez. Gomez works at a school in Orange County, and feared he would get arrested on campus in front...

WASHINGTON – The Republican National Committee has fired a staffer who helped organize a $1,946 visit last month to a sex-themed Hollywood club, and the GOP says it will recoup the money from a donor who also participated. < snip > Some Republicans also have questioned whether the RNC is overpaying the finance director Steele hired, Republican consultant Robert Bickhart. Bickhart and his firm have taken in at least $411,568 from the RNC since Steele hired him last summer. That is far more than the roughly $136,000 the RNC has paid Steele during the 2009-10 cycle and rivals President Barack...

The number of hate groups in the United States continues to rise, says Mark Potok of the Southern Poverty Law Center. Potok discusses how the rhetoric of hate groups has increasingly entered the mainstream in the wake of the nation's changing demographics and the election of President Obama.< snip > http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124906766&ft=1&f=100

Civil War History Meets Twitter @Discovercivwar Follow the National Archives’ Upcoming Civil War Exhibit on Twitter Washington, DC…You can now follow the National Archives’ exhibition marking the sesquicentennial of the Civil War, Discovering the Civil War on Twitter [http://twitter.com/discovercivwar]. Followers can discover the Civil War for themselves through tweets highlighting the people and stories of the Civil War linking to images of items that will be featured in the exhibition such as letters, diaries, photos, maps, petitions, receipts, patents, amendments, and proclamations. @discovercivwar will also alert the public to exciting, free programs related to the exhibition that will be held...

A planned play at Tarleton State University that portrays a gay Jesus has raised emotions in Stephenville to the point where a Christian radio show was jammed with protest calls and some student actors have been pressured to quit. < snip >Responding to the outcry, Tarleton President F. Dominic Dottavio released a letter March 11 to the campus community, stating that he would allow the play to be performed because Tarleton "is committed to protecting and preserving the freedoms of thought, speech and expression." Read more: http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/03/22/2059143/in-stephenville-college-play-featuring.html#storylink=omni_popular#ixzz0j20WVeiB

ORLANDO, Fla. -- An instructor teaching a concealed weapons safety class accidentally shot one of his participants in Orlando. The class was being held at the Summit Church on Herndon Avenue, but the church was not sponsoring the class. The class was a NRA Concealed Weapons Safety Course. Orlando police say Michael Phillips was teaching the class, when his gun accidentally went off, and shot Robert Frauman, Junior. Frauman was shot in the foot. He was taken to the hospital, and is expected to recover.

10. Philadelphia Eagles - inability to win the big game 9. Virginia Tech Football - won five of their last ten bowl games 8. Carolina Panthers - 3 winning seasons in last 10 years 7. Kentucky Men's Basketball - start strong, but don't finish strong 6. Cleveland Cavaliers - can't play together like a team 5. New York Mets - 2007: 17 games left to go and you can’t hold a seven game lead 4. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. - 363 career races, No. 88 has only won 18 3. Gonzaga Men's Basketball - mid conference, no major NBA players 2....

STUART - Young great white sharks might be responsible for Wednesday's deadly attack on a kiteboard surfer, a research scientist who investigated a previous shark fatality says. However, Grant Gilmore said it's too early to say which kind of shark killed Stephen Howard Schafer, who was found with bite wounds about 4 p.m. a quarter-mile off an unguarded beach, just south of Stuart Beach, officials said. Schafer, 38, of Stuart, was rushed to Martin Memorial North Medical Center, where he later died. It was Martin County's first fatal shark attack, according to records going back to 1882.