Earlier this week, a bill that would fully legalize marijuana in Texas surprised many politicos in the state when it cleared the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee in a 5-2 vote. The author, state Rep. David Simpson (R-Longview), a tea party conservative, is pushing the proposal on religious grounds, arguing that marijuana comes from God and therefore should not be banned.

A peer-reviewed study published Thursday examines the potentially polarizing effects social media can have on users. Eytan Bakshy, Solomon Messing, and Lada Adamic authored the study titled, Exposure to ideologically diverse news and opinion on Facebook.

In the paper, the authors suggest that ideological 'self-sorting' does happen on Facebook.

The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that the NSA bulk data collection program is illegal. The decision is a major legal victory for opponents of the program and will likely make the current debate in Congress over extending provisions in the PATRIOT Act even more intense.

The Hill reports:

Each year, the first Thursday of May stirs up feelings of national patriotism, piety, and controversy as the president dedicates yet another National Day of Prayer.

American presidents have had a long history of calling on national days of fasting and prayer, beginning with the Continental Congress and continuing until the present day. All presidents, except Jefferson and Jackson, called for national days of prayer.

Have you ever felt like your opinion doesn’t matter? That your elected official does not represent you or your district? That your ideas have no impact on public policy?

If you're among the bottom 90% of income earners in America, you may be justified in feeling this way, a new study led by Professors Martin Gilens (Princeton University) and Benjamin I. Page (Northwestern University) finds.

The study analyzed over 20 years worth of data to answer the following question: Does the government represent the people?

While media attention has surrounded the events in Baltimore, the Obama administration has taken part in the negotiations of a Trans-Pacific Partnership involving 12 countries: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States, and Vietnam. The countries involved comprise around $27.7 trillion in gross domestic product (around 40% of the global GDP).

Being gay is a choice. But in today’s world, it can be difficult.

Over 60% of us scroll through Facebook, Instagram, and Tumblr everyday. And in doing so, it is easy to spend considerable time comparing ourselves and our lives to the happy outtakes of others.

Then, when we look in the mirror, we don’t think our selfie looks as good as Shana’s pic on potato chip rock doing a hand-stand and the splits at the same time -- all while eating the vegetarian curry she whipped up in the morning.

I can’t even keep myself from eating a hotdog at the baseball game!

Pew Research Center survey of 34 countries revealed bad news for the state of democracy in the United States. When compared with countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the U.S. placed 31st in voter turnout, behind Slovenia. Turnout was calculated based on the estimated voting-age population from the 2012 general election.

Pew found:

CALIFORNIA -- InsideBayArea.com's blog, Political Blotter, reported Tuesday that a Koch-backed group has entered the already PAC-filled special election for California Senate District 7 between Assemblymember Susan Bonilla (D-Concord) and Orinda Mayor Steve Glazer (D), a race that pits same-party candidates against

Republican presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson came out swinging at the Obama administration during his May 4 candidacy announcement in Detroit. Speaking to a crowd of supporters, Carson attacked the Obama administration's economic and unemployment numbers as made up and inconsistent with reality: