Safina and Djokovic Win Titles

Dinara Safina beat Elena Dementieva 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 to win the Qatar German Open (her first Tier 1 title). She beat three Top 10 players on her way to the title.

Novak Djokovic won his second Masters Series title of the year by coming back to beat Swiss #2 Stanislas Wawrinka 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 at the Rome clay tournament. He won two of his matches when his opponents retired and faced only one Top 10 player. Wawrinka jumped from #24 to #10 in the world on the basis of his play in Rome this week, marking the first time Switzerland has had two Top 10 players simultaneously.

Parvati Wins Survivor 16

Despite my previous prediction that Amanda should win Survivor, unfortunately the jury did not agree. Unlike previous seasons, the final Tribal Council involved a vote of the final 2, instead of the final 3. If the vote had occurred between the final 3 of Amanda, Cirie and Parvati, Amanda would probably have won.

In the final vote Erik, James and Ozzie all voted for Amanda while Eliza, Natalie, Alexis, Cirie amd Jason all inexplicably voted for Parvati. The votes I do not understand are Jason's and Eliza's. All though it is true that Parvati was more out front with manipulating the game, or better yet being known publicly as manipulating the game, really Cirie was the person who was mastermind (or at least co-mastermind) of all the moves to eliminate players from the game. Eliza hated Parvati and still voted for her to win $1 million. I understand Cirie not voting for Amanda, because she was hurt that Amanda chose Parvati over her to go to the Final 2. Natalie and Alexis were in an alliance with Parvati so their votes were never in question. Why Jason voted for Parvati is curious. I don't understand why he wouldn't respect Amanda winning the last two immunity challenges, while the only immunity challenge Parvati won was the one where she manipulated him to give up immunity in exchange for a promise by everyone else not to vote for him at Tribal Council in addition to getting a share of their food.

Amanda now holds the record for spending the most days ever on Survivor (78) but alas she still has not won. Part of that is due to her wretched performances before the jury; she has now had two opportunities and really didn't acquit herself very well either time. Still, Amanda was more deserving of the title of "Sole Survivor" than Parvati Shallow.

VIDEO: SNL on Obama-Clinton Race

(Best and) Dumbest Survivor Ever!

I got around to watching this week's episode of Survivor: Micronesia (Fans versus Favorites) last night and was stunned to see that Erik, the only guy remaining was somehow talked into giving up immunity from elimination by the four girls remaining, who them proceeded to all vote to knock him out of the game! This happened while hottie James (from Survivor: China) looked on and declared "Now, I'm no longer the 'Dumbest Survivor Ever'!"

Mad Professah agrees with Entertainment Weekly who declares that this season of the show has been the best one since the first season (which I didn't watch). Last season there was another openly gay winner (undeserving, I thought) and this season since the Final Four consists of all women, there will be a female winner.

The Final Four are: Parvati, Cirie, Natalie and Amanda. I would be fine with anyone winning the million bucks except for Natalie on Sunday night. I thought Amanda should have won Survivor: China but it's clear that Cirie has been in control of this game from the beginning (despite never even being close to winning a single challenge). Parvati used her (exceedingly over-rated) feminine wiles to attach herself to strong players (Ozzie and James and Amanda) to coast through the game and thinks that she has been in control of the game the entire time.

I predict that Amanda will win the final immunity challenge, and if she is smart she will eliminate Cirie from the game.

Mad Professah's prediction's

SHOULD WIN: Amanda

WILL WIN: Cirie

Red Death: Federer, Henin, Serena Lose On Clay

Yup, it's the red clay season in tennis. Roger Federer lost today to Radek Stepanek 7-6(4) 7-6(7) at the Roma ATP Master Series tournament, a few days after Rafael Nadal suffered a shock loss on clay. It was Federer's sixth loss of the year; in 2007 he lost nine matches.

Dinara Safina defeated World #1 Justine Henin and Serena Williams in consecutive matcheson consecutive days at the German Open. Henin had made the finals of this tournament 6 years in a row (winning 3 times) and Serena was on a sixteen match winning streak. Safina beat Serena 2-6, 6-1, 7-6(5) and Henin 5-7 6-3 6-1.

Eye Candy: Keep Your Eye On The Ball!

This is from a poster by United Kingdom rugby stars where the proceeds go to fight male cancers. (hat/tip TowleRoad)

Study Says Mother-to-Child HIV Transmision Likely Eradicable

Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Reports has a report on a heartening study on Mother-to-Child Transmission (MTCT) of HIV which concludes the problem can be dramatically reduced and probably entirely eradicated. The study, entitled "Low rates of mother-to-child transmission of HIV following effective pregnancy interventions in the United Kingdom and Ireland, 2000-2006" appears in the May 11, 2008 issue of the academic journal AIDS.

For the study, Claire Townsend, research fellow at the University College London Institute of Child Health, and colleagues analyzed 5,151 pregnancies among HIV-positive women in the United Kingdom and Ireland between 2000 and 2006. The study found that the rate of MTCT decreased to 1.2% from 20% in the mid-1990s.

According to the researchers, the primary reason for the decline was the increase in prenatal HIV testing following the implementation of routine screening policies in the countries, BBC News reports. Routine screening increased diagnosis rates before delivery from about 70% in 2000 to about 95% in 2005, data showed (BBC News, 5/6). Routine screening policies were introduced in Ireland in 1999 and between 2000 and 2003 in the United Kingdom, the PA/Google.com reports.

Expanded access to antiretroviral treatment for HIV-positive pregnant women also was a factor, researchers said. The HIV transmission rate for women taking antiretroviral therapy for a minimum of two weeks prior to delivery was 0.8%, according to the study (PA/Google.com, 5/6). The rate was found regardless of the type of antiretrovirals the women received or whether they had vaginal births or cesarean sections, the study found.

Finally, some good news onthe HIV/AIDS research arena.

Mariah's Marriage To Nick Cannon Confirmed

People magazine has exclusive photos of Mariah Carey's rumored marriage to Nick Cannon.

Nadal Loses To Ferrero in Rome

3-time French Open champion and one of the greatest clay court players of all time Rafael Nadal had a rare loss on clay to 2003 French Open champion Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-5 6-1 at the ATP Masters Tournament in Rome. World #2 Nadal has lost only twice in 105 matches on clay (his previous loss in clay before today was to World #1 Roger Federer at the 2007 Hamburg ATP Masters final). The 2008 Hamburg ATP Masters tournament starts on Monday and the 2008 French open starts on Sunday May 25th. Craig Hickman's blog has pictures of Nadal's blistered feet which could have contributed to his loss; however Ferrero was also playing hurt--last week he withdrew from the Barcelona Open (that Nadal won for the 4th consecutive year) with a groin injury.

Clinton Out Of "Math, Money and Momentum"

Today the news came out that Hillary Clinton loaned her struggling campaign another $6.4 million in April (despite the fact she has not been paid back for the $5 million she loaned the campaign back in February!) Still, with an average annual income of over $15 million per year, the Clintons can afford to continue their quixotic quest probably until August's Democratic Convention in August.


As the Political Editor of the Huffington Post puts, it, Clinton is now out of "math, money and momentum."

Clinton Barely Wins IN; Obama Wins NC Big

As expected, Hillary Clinton won the Indiana primary 50.7%- 49.3% (by a mere 18,000 votes out of more than a million cast) and Barack Obama won the North Carolina primary 56.2%-41.5% (by over 232,000 votes, which is a larger margin than Clinton won the larger state of Pennsylvania two weeks ago).

Clinton vowed to campaign on despite most political pundits declaring the race over.

It will be Obama versus McCain in November. Veepstakes, anyone?

The Next LGBT Legislative Caucus of California

Although there have been reports that the California LGBT Legislative Caucus is in danger of extinction the truth is that in January 2009 it is very likely that it will be as large as ever.
The only current member who is not termed out are State Senators Christine Kehoe and Carole Migden. However, Migden is facing a primary fight which she is very likely to lose.

January 2007                       January 2009
Assembly                          
Mark Leno (AD-13)                  Tom Ammiano (AD-13)
John Laird (AD-27)                 John Perez (AD-46)
                                   Chris Cabaldon (AD-8)
State Senate
Christine Kehoe (SD-39)            Christine Kehoe (SD-39)
Carole Migden (SD-3)               Mark Leno (SD-3)
Sheila Kuehl (SD-23)

In addition, there's the possibility that Laurette Healey may win her primary to replace
Assemblymember Lloyd Levine in the 40th Assembly District and it's possible that Greg Pettis will win his primary in the 80th district (but it's unlikely he will win the general election in this Republican-leaning district).

First Openly Gay Speaker of California Assembly?

Mad Professah attended an event supporting the bid of John Perez to become the first openly-gay man elected to the State Legislature from Southern California on Sunday. Perez is Mayor Antonio Viallaraigosa's cousin and the prohibitive favorite to win the Democratic primary for the 46th Assembly District on Tuesday June 3rd. The winner of the primary will be leected in November, thanks to legislative partisan gerrymandering.

At the event much was made that Perez has the background and connections to be in the leadership if the Assembly as a freshman, and some were touting him as a future Speaker of the Assembly (after current Speaker Karen Bass, is termed out in 2010 of course).

Obama up in NC, Clinton up in IN

Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton continue their fight for the Democratic nomination to Indiana and North Carolina tomorrow. The latest polls have Obama up by an average of 6.5 points in North Carolina and Clinton up by an average of 4.6 points in Indiana.

Over the weekend the big news was that Obama won the Guam caucuses by a mere 7 (count 'em, folks!) votes out of nearly 4500 cast, and will thus pick up 2 superdelegates (they split Guam's 4 eleected delegates evenly).

Today, Obama picked up 3 more super-delegates.

Obama Ad on Clinton "gas tax gimmick"

Mariah Carey Rumored To Have Married Nick Cannon

There are rumors all over the Internet that Mariah Carey has apparently married Nick Cannon (a guy she has been seeing for approximately one month) in a private ceremony in the Bahamas over the weekend. The 39-year-old pop princess has a new video called "Bye Bye" from her latest album E=MC² which stars the 27-year-old singer/rapper.

DVD REVIEW: The Kingdom

The movie The Kingdom was my second requested Netflix DVD, after Eastern Promises (see Mad Professah's review). The film stars Oscar winners Jamie Lee Foxx (Best Actor, "Ray"), Chris Cooper (Best Supporting Actor, "Adaptation") and Jennifer Garner and was directed by Peter Berg (the creator of the television show Friday Night Lights).


Although widely considered a box-office failure with a mere $47 million in domestic receipts, the did grab a fair amount of attention due to its subject matter: a terrorist attack on an American compound in the kingdom of Saudia Arabia leads to an American team of FBI forensic investigators being sent in to try to solve the crime.


The film takes a hard, close look at life in Saudi Arabia and tries to catch some of the nuances and contradictions of the Muslim-Western kulturkampf (culture war).


The acting is quite good, with Jennifer Garner easily holding her own among her two celebrated co-stars. The action is really well-directed and pulse-poundingly suspenseful. The main defect of the movie is its baldfaced descent into schmaltz (repeatedly). Also, some viewers may find its neutral political posture annoying.


As a piece of filmed entertainment, The Kingdom is effective and should definitely be rented, especially if you (like me) missed it in the theater the first time.


GRADE: B+.

John McCain Was Not Born In The United States

I am surprised that the media has not highlighted this fact: Republican Presidential candidate John McCain was not born in the United States. (No, he wasn't born before the United States was created!) He was born August 29, 1936 on the Coco Solo Naval Air Station in the Panama Canal Zone.

Yesterday the U.S. Senate unanimously passed a resolution declaring that McCain is eligible to be President of the United States, despite the fact the United States Constitution (Article II, Section 1) says "No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen years a resident within the United States."

Hmmmm. Well at least Barack Obama was born in this country (Hawaii, on August 4, 1961) as was Hillary Clinton (in Illinois October 26, 1947).

Head of CDC's HIV/AIDS Prevention Resigns

Dr. Robert Janssen, the head of the CDC's Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention has resigned.

The following excerpts of his resdignatuion message to his division ave become public:

" The division lies at the intersection of sex and drugs in a country
that doesn't have a clue how to deal with them. So you have become
comfortable walking around with a target on your back. You all should be
very proud of the work you do under the conditions you do it."

"I am sorry to report that over the last 5 years, we have had less and
less money available for new projects each year. We have had to cut some
ongoing projects. We can't do everything even if everything is a high
priority. At this point, we only do high priority work and when we cut,
we cut the lowest of the high priorities."

"Challenge assumptions. New opportunities are likely to be coming with a
new administration. Be ready! I want you to think carefully about needle
exchange. While it might seem right to overturn the ban on the use of
federal dollars, the ban has forced local jurisdictions to put their
dollars into HIV prevention. If the ban is lifted, I am concerned that
the local dollars will dry up. Then, which federal dollars will be
shifted to replace the loss of those local dollars?"

"One of the things I have learned over my many years at CDC is that
Leadership matters. And CDC has not always been blessed with great
leadership. Great leadership is imperceptible. You don't even know that
it is there. But bad leadership is always evident. You trip all over it.
Things don't work, nothing gets done or what gets done is ineffective.
Expect excellent leadership; demand it."

"I want to finish up by saying that I am concerned that the scale of
what you are doing is inadequate to make the impact on the epidemic that
you must make. It is a huge challenge to guide programs to hit an 80%
target when they are only funded at 20%. While the testing
recommendations and the community mobilization among African Americans
can help reduce stigma, HIV prevention programs and addressing issues
such as housing, poverty, substance abuse, racism, homophobia, and child
abuse will take much, much more. In 2002, in my CPLS address, I pointed
out that AIDS advocates had shifted their focus from the United States
to Africa and they succeeded in garnering real money for Africa. With
the new PEPFAR reauthorization being considered this month at $30 to $50
billion, I am concerned that America has forgotten her own. Here at
home, resources do not meet the need."

Obama Maintains Lead in Poll

The latest NBC/WSJ poll has Barack Obama ahead of Democratic rival Hillary Clinton 46% to 43% and indicates that President Bush is more of a negative drag on John McCain's popularity than Reverend Jeremiah Wright is on Obama's.

In the survey, 43 percent of registered voters say they have major concerns that McCain is too closely aligned with the current administration.

[...]

36 percent have major concerns that Clinton seems to change her position on some issues (like driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants and the North American Free Trade Agreement, which her husband signed but which she now opposes)
34 percent say they’re bothered by Obama’s “bitter” remarks
32 percent have a major problem with the Illinois senator’s past associations with Wright and the 1960s radical William Ayers
27 percent have serious concerns that Bill Clinton would have too much influence on U.S. policy decisions if his wife is elected

[...]

Indeed, even though Democrats have an 18-point advantage over Republicans in a generic presidential ballot test (51-33 percent), this latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey shows Obama besting McCain by only three points (46-43 percent) and Clinton topping the Arizona senator by only one (45-44 percent).