• good Truvada, an anti-AIDS drug already on the market as a antiretroviral, has proven to be effective in preventing the spread of HIV infections among gay men who take the prescription.
• better A test of the drug showed a 44 percent higher prevention rate in a group randomly given the drug – and better, a 90 percent higher prevention rate among those who took the drug daily. source

• I don’t take lightly the fact that I know friends who’ve been looking for jobs for two years. Could it take me two years to find a job? Wow, that’s a scary proposition for me and my family.
• Unemployed worker Velma Hart • On losing her job. Hart’s situation is painfully ironic, as she gained notoriety a few months ago after Hart, an Obama supporter, grilled the president a few months ago for his record on the economy. In that town hall, Hart said this: “I’m one of your middle-class Americans. And, quite frankly, I’m exhausted. I’m exhausted of defending you, defending your administration, defending the mantle of change that I voted for, and deeply disappointed with where we are right now. I have been told that I voted for a man who said he was going to change things in a meaningful way for the middle class. I’m one of those people. And I’m waiting, sir. I’m waiting.” And now she’ll be waiting while unemployed, sadly. source

• $11,000 the fine passengers could face by walking away from the enhanced security checkpoints
• $0 the amount people have been fined so far for refusing the controversial procedures source

• 50:1 odds of a Donald Trump presidency source

• » Pundits, shmundits. If you want to know how people really think elections will turn out, best turn to the betting markets, where people actually pay a price for bad predictions. Chris Good at The Atlantic scoured three betting sites, and tallied the odds they gave various politicians of becoming the next POTUS. Obama is at the top at all three sites; bettors are split on whether Romney or Palin is the second most likely. Frankly, we’re skeptical of the inclusion of some names (is anybody really expecting Joe the Plumber to run for president?), but hey, it’s fun to see where people put their money.

• plea Gay rights groups asked the Pentagon to expedite its release of its study on the effects of repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
• response Defense Secretary Bob Gates agreed, and bumped up the release of the report…by one day. One whole day! source

• The number one odor that enhanced penile blood flow was a combination of lavender and pumpkin pie.
• Dr. Alan Hirsch • Highlighting a key finding in a new study at Chicago’s Smell and Taste Treatment Research Center. The study tested the aphrodisic properties of various foods; along with pumpkin, the scents of vanilla and strawberry rhubarb pie were also found to increase males’ sex drives. Interestingly, none of the scents had a negative effect; “Nothing turns a man off,” Hirsch says. Happy Thanksgiving!  source

• 43% think same-sex parents are “bad for society” source

• 32 GOP Senators signed a legal brief challenging the constitutionality of the health care reform law
• nine GOP Senators refused to join in; Lisa Murkowski, Scott Brown and Judd Gregg are amongst the group source

Why didn’t they sign?

• We are not going to be able to talk about it. We just aren’t going to talk about that.
• Otto Heck, Judd Gregg’s spokesman • “Explaining” why Gregg didn’t sign the legal brief, prepared by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, that most of his Republican colleagues supported. Almost a third of McConnell’s caucus broke ranks here, a surprisingly high number given the general solidarity of GOP opposition to HCR.

• 2 guilty counts against the main suspect, Ingmar Guandique source

• Ah boy … Here comes the backtrack. Just hours after their leader, John Pistole, embarrassed himself on CNN’s “State of the Union” by suggesting that feeling people up was OK (thanks to some very tough questioning by host Candy Crowley), the TSA released a statement suggesting that they may in fact bend their policies. “This has always been viewed as an evolving program that will be adapted as conditions warrant,” the statement said, “and we greatly appreciate the cooperation and understanding of the American people.” How far will they bend? How much will they adapt? We’ll find out in the next episode of “TSA Chief Goes on Television and Comes off Looking Like a Jackass.” source