Posts
The Birmingham Church Bombing
6 hours ago
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Bill and Hillary
Last Christmas, my son Shawn gave me the Hillary Nutcracker. This year, he completed the set with the Bill Clinton Corkscrew. Who could ask for anything more!
Protest at Red Lobster on Sunday
It seems to me that if you're going to discriminate against a whole class of people, like the Mormon church, Rick Warren and the other Prop 8 supporters did in California, you should be required to apply a little intellectual rigor to your argument, especially if you're basing your argument on God's wishes as stated in the Bible.
According to "God," a "man lying with another man" is an abomination. I haven't completed my research yet, but I don't believe he had any objections to women lying together. He also said that eating shellfish is an abomination. If we're going to discriminate against a very large class of people to the extent that we deny them the right to express one of the most basic needs of human nature, their love for another person, based on one or two short lines in the Bible, why aren't we picketing Red Lobster? These people are denying homosexuals the right to marry, then going off to Sunday dinner at Red Lobster! As much as I love shrimp and lobster, I think they should be outlawed. If the religous right is going to deny homosexuals the right to marry based on "God's word" then we should deny them the right to eat shrimp and lobster based on "God's word." It just seems fair and intellectually honest. What do you think?
According to "God," a "man lying with another man" is an abomination. I haven't completed my research yet, but I don't believe he had any objections to women lying together. He also said that eating shellfish is an abomination. If we're going to discriminate against a very large class of people to the extent that we deny them the right to express one of the most basic needs of human nature, their love for another person, based on one or two short lines in the Bible, why aren't we picketing Red Lobster? These people are denying homosexuals the right to marry, then going off to Sunday dinner at Red Lobster! As much as I love shrimp and lobster, I think they should be outlawed. If the religous right is going to deny homosexuals the right to marry based on "God's word" then we should deny them the right to eat shrimp and lobster based on "God's word." It just seems fair and intellectually honest. What do you think?
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Obama's Leadership
It's a joy to watch Obama putting his vision together in a calm, rational way that attempts to bring everyone together. Read the about his latest initiative:
President-elect Barack Obama, in a message being emailed out on Wednesday, is calling on supporters, as well as those who likely didn't back him in the election, to use the day prior to his inauguration to volunteer en masse for local community causes.
The National Day of Service, as it is being called, will fall on Martin Luther King Day -- itself a federally designated day for community volunteerism. But it's easy to imagine how this upcoming January 19th will be historic in the scope of participation.
For starters, Obama is soliciting partnerships from both ideological allies and adversaries -- from MoveOn.org to Focus on the Family -- as well as groups regularly engaged in community service and others that have never done it before.
Moreover, the approach, an aide says, will be very much bottom up: prospective volunteers will be asked to sign up for the project of their choice, regardless of whether or not it directly corresponds to Obama's political agenda. Finally, the president-elect is bringing to the table the type of organizing tools that make these enterprises work; in addition to an email being blasted out to his massive email list on Wednesday, the inaugural committee is launching a website sometime after the New Year that will help visitors network and instruct them about opportunities in their local neighborhoods.
It is the type of social interaction that buoyed Obama's primary and presidential candidacies, only this time applied to service, not politics.
Read his letter here.
President-elect Barack Obama, in a message being emailed out on Wednesday, is calling on supporters, as well as those who likely didn't back him in the election, to use the day prior to his inauguration to volunteer en masse for local community causes.
The National Day of Service, as it is being called, will fall on Martin Luther King Day -- itself a federally designated day for community volunteerism. But it's easy to imagine how this upcoming January 19th will be historic in the scope of participation.
For starters, Obama is soliciting partnerships from both ideological allies and adversaries -- from MoveOn.org to Focus on the Family -- as well as groups regularly engaged in community service and others that have never done it before.
Moreover, the approach, an aide says, will be very much bottom up: prospective volunteers will be asked to sign up for the project of their choice, regardless of whether or not it directly corresponds to Obama's political agenda. Finally, the president-elect is bringing to the table the type of organizing tools that make these enterprises work; in addition to an email being blasted out to his massive email list on Wednesday, the inaugural committee is launching a website sometime after the New Year that will help visitors network and instruct them about opportunities in their local neighborhoods.
It is the type of social interaction that buoyed Obama's primary and presidential candidacies, only this time applied to service, not politics.
Read his letter here.
Don't Flush While Seated on Toilet
Garrison Keillor is always good for a smile, profound insights into life, and even poetry. However, in this article, he offers a bit of practical advice that could help you avoid unnecessary delays if you're flying during this holiday season.
Read it here.
Read it here.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Do You Think This Will Make Her Feel Better?
After Ameneh Bahrami turned down his marriage proposal, Majid Movahedi attempted to change her mind -- by stalking her and threatening to kill himself. When those approaches didn't win over his unrequited love, the spurned stalker approached her in a busy public park in Tehran and poured a bucket of acid on her head. "It felt like my head was stuck in a bowl of boiling water," Bahrami told the Washington Post. "I bent forward to allow the stuff to drip off my face, but the pain was intolerable. I fell on the pavement, screaming for help." Despite a series of surgeries, the 31-year-old was left blind and disfigured.
Her attacker confessed to the acid attack, explaining that he did it "so that she would be mine forever," and was jailed -- but Bahrami refused to accept the usual monetary remuneration for the crime. Instead, she asked for eye-for-an-eye retribution. "[The head of Iran's judiciary] really pressed me to demand blood money instead of retribution. He explained that such a sentence would cause lots of bad publicity for Iran. But I refused," she said. Last month, an Iranian judge sentenced Movahedi to five drops of acid in each of his eyes.
The Post, which does a nice job of profiling Bahrami, reports that "the implementation of corporal punishments allowed under Islamic law, including lashing, amputation and stoning, has often provoked controversy in Iran, where many people have decried such sentences as barbaric." But this case has received an unusual outpouring of sympathy, and "protest has been muted because people have been moved by Bahrami's story."
Some, including Bahrami, believe that this punishment will prevent future acid attacks. She says: "At an age at which I should be putting on a wedding dress, I am asking for someone's eyes to be dripped with acid. I am doing that because I don't want this to happen to any other women." Somehow, I seriously doubt that Movahedi's punishment will accomplish that.
It's also worth taking note of Movahedi's response to his sentencing: He "said that he still loved Bahrami but that if she asked for his eyes to be taken out, he would seek the same punishment for her." As they say about eye-for-an-eye...
Tracy Clark-Flory
Salon.com
Her attacker confessed to the acid attack, explaining that he did it "so that she would be mine forever," and was jailed -- but Bahrami refused to accept the usual monetary remuneration for the crime. Instead, she asked for eye-for-an-eye retribution. "[The head of Iran's judiciary] really pressed me to demand blood money instead of retribution. He explained that such a sentence would cause lots of bad publicity for Iran. But I refused," she said. Last month, an Iranian judge sentenced Movahedi to five drops of acid in each of his eyes.
The Post, which does a nice job of profiling Bahrami, reports that "the implementation of corporal punishments allowed under Islamic law, including lashing, amputation and stoning, has often provoked controversy in Iran, where many people have decried such sentences as barbaric." But this case has received an unusual outpouring of sympathy, and "protest has been muted because people have been moved by Bahrami's story."
Some, including Bahrami, believe that this punishment will prevent future acid attacks. She says: "At an age at which I should be putting on a wedding dress, I am asking for someone's eyes to be dripped with acid. I am doing that because I don't want this to happen to any other women." Somehow, I seriously doubt that Movahedi's punishment will accomplish that.
It's also worth taking note of Movahedi's response to his sentencing: He "said that he still loved Bahrami but that if she asked for his eyes to be taken out, he would seek the same punishment for her." As they say about eye-for-an-eye...
Tracy Clark-Flory
Salon.com
Hooray for Newt Gingrich
Never thought I'd have anything nice to say about Newt Gingrich, but he went way up in my estimation with this letter to the Republican National Committee. Maybe acting like a grown-up will catch on!
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich sent a rather scathing letter to Mike Duncan on Tuesday, accusing the RNC chairman of engaging in "a destructive distraction" by attempting to tie Barack Obama to Rod Blagojevich. In particular, Gingrich hit the RNC for putting out a web ad that made it seem as if the President-elect was hiding a nefarious chapter of his personal history with the embattled Illinois Governor.
"The RNC should pull the ad down immediately," Gingrich writes.
I was saddened to learn that at a time of national trial, when a president-elect is preparing to take office in the midst of the worst financial crisis in over seventy years, that the Republican National Committee is engaged in the sort of negative, attack politics that the voters rejected in the 2006 and 2008 election cycles.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich sent a rather scathing letter to Mike Duncan on Tuesday, accusing the RNC chairman of engaging in "a destructive distraction" by attempting to tie Barack Obama to Rod Blagojevich. In particular, Gingrich hit the RNC for putting out a web ad that made it seem as if the President-elect was hiding a nefarious chapter of his personal history with the embattled Illinois Governor.
"The RNC should pull the ad down immediately," Gingrich writes.
I was saddened to learn that at a time of national trial, when a president-elect is preparing to take office in the midst of the worst financial crisis in over seventy years, that the Republican National Committee is engaged in the sort of negative, attack politics that the voters rejected in the 2006 and 2008 election cycles.
He Speaks for Many of Us
This is the guy who threw his shoes at Bush in Iraq. He has become a legend, and he's now known as the Shoe Thrower. While we should never condone any form of violence, don't you secretly admire this guy!
Monday, December 15, 2008
Here's What They Do When You're Not Looking
Congress wanted to guarantee that the $700 billion financial bailout would limit the eye-popping pay of Wall Street executives, so lawmakers included a mechanism for reviewing executive compensation and penalizing firms that break the rules.
But at the last minute, the Bush administration insisted on a one-sentence change to the provision, congressional aides said. The change stipulated that the penalty would apply only to firms that received bailout funds by selling troubled assets to the government in an auction, which was the way the Treasury Department had said it planned to use the money.
Now, however, the small change looks more like a giant loophole, according to lawmakers and legal experts. In a reversal, the Bush administration has not used auctions for any of the $335 billion committed so far from the rescue package, nor does it plan to use them in the future. Lawmakers and legal experts say the change has effectively repealed the only enforcement mechanism in the law dealing with lavish pay for top executives.
The rest of the story.
But at the last minute, the Bush administration insisted on a one-sentence change to the provision, congressional aides said. The change stipulated that the penalty would apply only to firms that received bailout funds by selling troubled assets to the government in an auction, which was the way the Treasury Department had said it planned to use the money.
Now, however, the small change looks more like a giant loophole, according to lawmakers and legal experts. In a reversal, the Bush administration has not used auctions for any of the $335 billion committed so far from the rescue package, nor does it plan to use them in the future. Lawmakers and legal experts say the change has effectively repealed the only enforcement mechanism in the law dealing with lavish pay for top executives.
The rest of the story.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Bill Moyers and Glenn Greenwald
Glenn Greenwald talked with Bill Moyers Friday night about the rule of law and how it was perverted by the Bush administration. Here is an excerpt from that interview. The full interview can be seen here, and like all of Bill Moyers' interviews, it's worth a 30-minute investment. Greenwald is an articulate and intelligent person who can help you see past the sound bytes that form our opinions about what's going on.
You'll also find a link to an excellent three-minute clip by Naom Chomsky explaining how mainstream television's demand for "concision" -- which shapes how the overwhelming majority of Americans receive their "news" -- precludes any meaningful examination or challenging of prevailing political orthodoxies.
BILL MOYERS: To be fair, you make a strong case in here that we have to stand up to extremism but that we have to protect our own constitutional principles while we do. And as I read both of these books, it is the sense that out of this Manichean view there came this whole notion that you say is alien to America, this unitary executive powers of the presidency. Have I stated that right?
GLENN GREENWALD: You have. Let’s just quickly describe in the most dispassionate terms, as few of euphemisms, as possible, where we are and what has happened over the last eight years. We have a law in place that says it is a felony offense punishable by five years in prison or a $10,000 fine to eavesdrop on American citizens without warrants. We have laws in place that say that it is a felony punishable by decades in prison to subject detainees in our custody to treatment that violates the Geneva Conventions or that is inhumane or coercive.
We know that the president and his top aides have violated these laws. The facts are indisputable that they’ve done so. And yet as a country, as a political class, we’re deciding basically in unison that the president and our highest political officials are free to break the most serious laws that we have, that our citizens have enacted, with complete impunity, without consequences, without being held accountable under the law.
And when you juxtapose that with the fact that we are a country that has probably the most merciless criminal justice system on the planet when it comes to ordinary Americans. We imprison more of our population than any country in the world. We have less than five percent of the world’s population. And yet 25 percent almost of prisoners worldwide are inside the United States.
What you have is a two-tiered system of justice where ordinary Americans are subjected to the most merciless criminal justice system in the world. They break the law. The full weight of the criminal justice system comes crashing down upon them. But our political class, the same elites who have imposed that incredibly harsh framework on ordinary Americans, have essentially exempted themselves and the leaders of that political class from the law.
They have license to break the law. That’s what we’re deciding now as we say George Bush and his top advisors shouldn’t be investigated let alone prosecuted for the laws that we know that they’ve broken. And I can’t think of anything more damaging to our country because the rule of law is the lynchpin of everything we have.
You'll also find a link to an excellent three-minute clip by Naom Chomsky explaining how mainstream television's demand for "concision" -- which shapes how the overwhelming majority of Americans receive their "news" -- precludes any meaningful examination or challenging of prevailing political orthodoxies.
BILL MOYERS: To be fair, you make a strong case in here that we have to stand up to extremism but that we have to protect our own constitutional principles while we do. And as I read both of these books, it is the sense that out of this Manichean view there came this whole notion that you say is alien to America, this unitary executive powers of the presidency. Have I stated that right?
GLENN GREENWALD: You have. Let’s just quickly describe in the most dispassionate terms, as few of euphemisms, as possible, where we are and what has happened over the last eight years. We have a law in place that says it is a felony offense punishable by five years in prison or a $10,000 fine to eavesdrop on American citizens without warrants. We have laws in place that say that it is a felony punishable by decades in prison to subject detainees in our custody to treatment that violates the Geneva Conventions or that is inhumane or coercive.
We know that the president and his top aides have violated these laws. The facts are indisputable that they’ve done so. And yet as a country, as a political class, we’re deciding basically in unison that the president and our highest political officials are free to break the most serious laws that we have, that our citizens have enacted, with complete impunity, without consequences, without being held accountable under the law.
And when you juxtapose that with the fact that we are a country that has probably the most merciless criminal justice system on the planet when it comes to ordinary Americans. We imprison more of our population than any country in the world. We have less than five percent of the world’s population. And yet 25 percent almost of prisoners worldwide are inside the United States.
What you have is a two-tiered system of justice where ordinary Americans are subjected to the most merciless criminal justice system in the world. They break the law. The full weight of the criminal justice system comes crashing down upon them. But our political class, the same elites who have imposed that incredibly harsh framework on ordinary Americans, have essentially exempted themselves and the leaders of that political class from the law.
They have license to break the law. That’s what we’re deciding now as we say George Bush and his top advisors shouldn’t be investigated let alone prosecuted for the laws that we know that they’ve broken. And I can’t think of anything more damaging to our country because the rule of law is the lynchpin of everything we have.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Sick Meryl Streep
Every once in a while, we see genuine, spontaneous humor on TV. This clip from David Letterman's show is hilarious if you followed his response to McCain's cancellation during the campaign.
Blogoyevich's Seat
Conan O'Brien had a great line last line. He said that Illinois Governor, Rod Blogoyevich was arrested for trying to sell Obama's seat to the highest bidder. Now he's going to prison where his seat will be sold to the highest bidder!
Friday, December 12, 2008
Remember These Names
Corker, Shelby, and DeMint are three far-right lawmakers from the Deep South who are responsible for blocking the auto bailout. Remember the Deep South? That's where the only slash of red remained after the election.
They continued their opposition in spite of White House support for the bail-out and Cheney's admonition that failure to support the bill would label them the "Herbert Hoover Party."
They continued their opposition in spite of White House support for the bail-out and Cheney's admonition that failure to support the bill would label them the "Herbert Hoover Party."
More Thoughts
Isn't it interesting that we will spend almost a trillion dollars to destroy another country, and we won't spend $14 billion to save our most important industry.
Auto Bailout the Death of the Republican Party?
If people are paying attention, they will see the true colors of the Republican party today. In spite of the efforts to broaden the base and appeal to all Americans, the veneer has been stripped away leaving the true nature of the party for all to see . . . if they're paying attention. They have blocked the auto industry bailout over one sticking point - the refusal of the unions to cut their pay immediately. The unions agreed to a cut in 2012, but the Republicans said no. They have always wanted to bust the unions. Now they're going to get their way with a scorched earth policy that will bust the unions and the auto industry. As the toilet makes its last gurgling sound while sucking down the industry and thousands of employees, let's hope we see these despicable, fat, rich ideologues go down with them. Good riddance!
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Colin Powell is a Reality Based Republican
Colin Powell provides an intelligent and realistic assessment of the Republican party today. Smart man.
Bush is Back!
From Salon.com this morning comes this lovely little article about bush!
Dec. 11, 2008 | Recently someone forwarded me an invitation to a cheeky Inauguration Day event called "Shave the Date." As organizer Kristen Chase explains on her Web site, "Show your love for your country, and as you watch our new president take his oath and feel your satin undies against your smooth nether region, you can take pride in knowing you've rid your world of bush once and for all."
Read the rest of the story. It's worth it.
Dec. 11, 2008 | Recently someone forwarded me an invitation to a cheeky Inauguration Day event called "Shave the Date." As organizer Kristen Chase explains on her Web site, "Show your love for your country, and as you watch our new president take his oath and feel your satin undies against your smooth nether region, you can take pride in knowing you've rid your world of bush once and for all."
Read the rest of the story. It's worth it.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Jon Stewart and Mike Huckabee on Gay Marriage
Jon Stewart is as smart as he is funny. This is a great debate with Mike Huckabee about Gay marriage.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
We Really Do Create Our Own Reality
More from the folks with the most difficult job in the world - the Bush Legacy Project. History? What the Hell! Just rewrite it.
From Salon.com today:
The White House has put out talking points for top administration officials, telling them how to describe President Bush's time in office, the Los Angeles Times reports. Notably, the talking points make no mention of the federal response to Hurricane Katrina, the Iraq intelligence failures, the abuses of Abu Ghraib or the recent housing market collapse.
According to the Times, the "Speech Topper on the Bush Record" presents the administration as an "unalloyed success." During the current financial crisis, Bush "responded with bold measures to prevent an economic meltdown." The memo also claims Bush bolstered the economy with his 2001 tax cuts, kept the country safe after Sept. 11 and curbed AIDS in Africa. No mention of saving puppies from burning apartment buildings, however.
The real kicker comes at the end.
"Above all, George W. Bush promised to uphold the honor and the dignity of his office. And through all the challenges and trials of his time in office, that is a charge that our president has kept."
In Republican Speak, this means he didn't get a blow job in the Oval Office - or didn't get caught at it.
From Salon.com today:
The White House has put out talking points for top administration officials, telling them how to describe President Bush's time in office, the Los Angeles Times reports. Notably, the talking points make no mention of the federal response to Hurricane Katrina, the Iraq intelligence failures, the abuses of Abu Ghraib or the recent housing market collapse.
According to the Times, the "Speech Topper on the Bush Record" presents the administration as an "unalloyed success." During the current financial crisis, Bush "responded with bold measures to prevent an economic meltdown." The memo also claims Bush bolstered the economy with his 2001 tax cuts, kept the country safe after Sept. 11 and curbed AIDS in Africa. No mention of saving puppies from burning apartment buildings, however.
The real kicker comes at the end.
"Above all, George W. Bush promised to uphold the honor and the dignity of his office. And through all the challenges and trials of his time in office, that is a charge that our president has kept."
In Republican Speak, this means he didn't get a blow job in the Oval Office - or didn't get caught at it.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Can You Imagine Bush Ever Saying Something Like This?
An excerpt from Obama's appearance on Meet the Press this morning.
"Part of what I’m hoping to introduce as the next president is a new ethic of responsibility, where we say that, if you’re laying off workers, the least you can do when you’re making $25 million a year is give up some of your compensation and some of your bonuses, figure out ways in which workers maybe have to take a pay cut, but they can still keep their jobs, they can still keep their health care, and they can still stay in their homes."
"Part of what I’m hoping to introduce as the next president is a new ethic of responsibility, where we say that, if you’re laying off workers, the least you can do when you’re making $25 million a year is give up some of your compensation and some of your bonuses, figure out ways in which workers maybe have to take a pay cut, but they can still keep their jobs, they can still keep their health care, and they can still stay in their homes."
What is Wrong With These People?
Why are these people so obsessed with carrying firearms? There's a move in Texas to change the law to allow people to pack their heat out in the open - just like the wild west. I don't know if they're paranoid, insecure or both. Now, the Bush administration has overturned the ban on firearms in National Parks. What is wrong with these people? The existing law required the gun to be unloaded and not easily accessible. These people want to carry a loaded pistol while they're enjoying these beautiful parks. We're going to hear reports of park rangers finding dead animals in the park. Why else is it so important to carry a loaded gun around in a park?
Read the rest of the story here.
Read the rest of the story here.
It's Cool to be Smart Once Again
Here's an excerpt from Obama's appearance on Meet the Press this morning. The days of celebrating and tolerating ignorance are over!
"Part of what we want to do is to open up the White House and remind people this is the people's house," Obama told NBC's Tom Brokaw during a "Meet the Press" interview taped Saturday in Chicago.
"There is an incredible bully pulpit to be used when it comes to, for example, education: Yes, we're going to have an education policy; yes, we're going to be putting more money into school construction. But ultimately we want to talk about parents reading to their kids. We want to invite kids from local schools into the White House."
The president-elect said his administration is interested in "elevating science once again, and having lectures in the White House where people are talking about traveling to the stars or breaking down atoms, inspiring our youth to get a sense of what discovery is all about."
"Thinking about the diversity of our culture and inviting jazz musicians and classical musicians and poetry readings in the White House so that once again we appreciate this incredible tapestry that's America," he said.
"Historically, what has always brought us through hard times is that national character, that sense of optimism, that willingness to look forward, that sense that better days are ahead," Obama said. "I think that our art and our culture, our science--you know, that's the essence of what makes America special, and we want to project that as much as possible in the White House."
"Part of what we want to do is to open up the White House and remind people this is the people's house," Obama told NBC's Tom Brokaw during a "Meet the Press" interview taped Saturday in Chicago.
"There is an incredible bully pulpit to be used when it comes to, for example, education: Yes, we're going to have an education policy; yes, we're going to be putting more money into school construction. But ultimately we want to talk about parents reading to their kids. We want to invite kids from local schools into the White House."
The president-elect said his administration is interested in "elevating science once again, and having lectures in the White House where people are talking about traveling to the stars or breaking down atoms, inspiring our youth to get a sense of what discovery is all about."
"Thinking about the diversity of our culture and inviting jazz musicians and classical musicians and poetry readings in the White House so that once again we appreciate this incredible tapestry that's America," he said.
"Historically, what has always brought us through hard times is that national character, that sense of optimism, that willingness to look forward, that sense that better days are ahead," Obama said. "I think that our art and our culture, our science--you know, that's the essence of what makes America special, and we want to project that as much as possible in the White House."
Bush Moving to a Progressive Neighborhood
George Bush has bought a home in the wealthy part of Dallas known as Preston Hollow. Until 2000, the neighborhood association's covenant said only white people were allowed to live there, though an exception was made for servants. The document, enacted in 1956, reads:
"Said property shall be used and occupied by white persons only except these covenants shall not prevent occupancy by domestic servants of different race or nationality in the employ of a tenant."
I don't know the full history of this, but can you just imagine the mindset of a group of people who would allow a covenant like that to remain in place until 2000 after all the pain and turmoil of the civil rights movement, not to mention the laws that were enacted as a result of it. It would be interesting to know what caused the covenant to be removed in 2000, but I doubt that it was a sudden awakening of social conscience and sense of justice. More likely it was forced on them. These will be Bush's new neighbors. I suppose it's a good place for him to live.
"Said property shall be used and occupied by white persons only except these covenants shall not prevent occupancy by domestic servants of different race or nationality in the employ of a tenant."
I don't know the full history of this, but can you just imagine the mindset of a group of people who would allow a covenant like that to remain in place until 2000 after all the pain and turmoil of the civil rights movement, not to mention the laws that were enacted as a result of it. It would be interesting to know what caused the covenant to be removed in 2000, but I doubt that it was a sudden awakening of social conscience and sense of justice. More likely it was forced on them. These will be Bush's new neighbors. I suppose it's a good place for him to live.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
if You're Interested . . .
If, like Sarah Palin, you're still interested in Bill Ayers, read this New York Times article written by him about his past and his association with Obama. He explains why he remained silent during the election, the "palling around" accusations, and the extent of his relationship with Obama.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/06/opinion/06ayers.html?ref=opinion
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/06/opinion/06ayers.html?ref=opinion
Two Different Ideologies at Workl
We're beginning to see some dramatic differences between Conservative and Progressive ideology. Although Obama is more pragmatic than ideological, he still has a definite world view of government's role in society, and we're beginning to see it in action now.
Conservatives generally have a contempt for government. That's one of the reasons they govern so badly. Would you put a CEO in charge of your company who believed the company was incapable of performing effectively, and in addition believed that the company shouldn't perform effectively? Of course not. But we elect presidents who believe that about our government. When Reagan made his famous statement that government is not the solution to the problem, it is the problem, he activated a conservative archetype that caused millions of people to rise up like zombies and worship him as if he had suddenly discovered some profound truth. That belief still exists among too many people. We see it in the inaction of the Bush administration in so many cases. And, we're seeing the opposite of that ideology in Obama's purposeful planning and decision making that will make the government an important instrument of change in all of our lives.
Government is not some evil entity that is separate from us. Government is us! Good government is not the problem. It is the solution.
Conservatives generally have a contempt for government. That's one of the reasons they govern so badly. Would you put a CEO in charge of your company who believed the company was incapable of performing effectively, and in addition believed that the company shouldn't perform effectively? Of course not. But we elect presidents who believe that about our government. When Reagan made his famous statement that government is not the solution to the problem, it is the problem, he activated a conservative archetype that caused millions of people to rise up like zombies and worship him as if he had suddenly discovered some profound truth. That belief still exists among too many people. We see it in the inaction of the Bush administration in so many cases. And, we're seeing the opposite of that ideology in Obama's purposeful planning and decision making that will make the government an important instrument of change in all of our lives.
Government is not some evil entity that is separate from us. Government is us! Good government is not the problem. It is the solution.
Friday, December 5, 2008
What's Up With Hillary's Lips?
What's going on with Hillary's lips? She looks different in all of her photos since the election. Botox?
Remember John Edward's Haircut?
Remember the stink from the Republicans about John Edward's $400 haircut? Palin puts him to shame. She's still in the news. She won't go away. We're going to have to put up with her for a long, long time.
Following yesterday's report on an additional $30,000 in "accessories" spending by Governor Sarah Palin during the Presidential campaign, the New York Times has information on the money made by her makeup artist and hair stylist:
Gov. Sarah Palin's traveling makeup artist was paid $68,400 for roughly two months of work, according to a new campaign finance report filed with the Federal Election Commission.
Ms. Palin's makeup artist, Amy Strozzi -- who was nominated for an Emmy award for her cosmetics work on the television show "So You Think You Can Dance?" -- was paid $32,400 by Senator John McCain's presidential campaign between Oct. 16 and Nov. 24, the period covered by the most recent reports filed with the commission.
This amount came on top of the $36,000 she had already been paid in previous reports, dating back to September.
In addition, Ms. Palin's traveling hair stylist, Angela Lew, was paid a total of $42,225, with $23,400 coming during the period covered by the latest reports to the commission, which were due at midnight on Thursday.
Following yesterday's report on an additional $30,000 in "accessories" spending by Governor Sarah Palin during the Presidential campaign, the New York Times has information on the money made by her makeup artist and hair stylist:
Gov. Sarah Palin's traveling makeup artist was paid $68,400 for roughly two months of work, according to a new campaign finance report filed with the Federal Election Commission.
Ms. Palin's makeup artist, Amy Strozzi -- who was nominated for an Emmy award for her cosmetics work on the television show "So You Think You Can Dance?" -- was paid $32,400 by Senator John McCain's presidential campaign between Oct. 16 and Nov. 24, the period covered by the most recent reports filed with the commission.
This amount came on top of the $36,000 she had already been paid in previous reports, dating back to September.
In addition, Ms. Palin's traveling hair stylist, Angela Lew, was paid a total of $42,225, with $23,400 coming during the period covered by the latest reports to the commission, which were due at midnight on Thursday.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
This is Putting Lipstick on a Pig
There's a legacy team at work in the White House rewriting history to make Bush look better than he is. That's a big job, but Karl Rove is part of the project. Fortunately, we have people like Jon Stewart who will keep slapping him in the face with the truth while making us laugh. There's no way to make this guy look good. That would really be putting lipstick on a pig.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Karma
SEDALIA, Mo. — A hunter bagged a big buck on the second day of firearms season, but the kill caused him a lot of pain. Randy Goodman, 49, said he thought two well-placed shots with his .270-caliber rifle had killed the buck on Nov. 19. Goodman said the deer looked dead to him, but seconds later the nine-point, 240-pound animal came to life.
The buck rose up, knocked Goodman down and attacked him with his antlers in what the veteran hunter called "15 seconds of hell." The deer ran a short distance and went down, and died after Goodman fired two more shots.
Soon Goodman started feeling dizzy and noticed his vest was soaked in blood.
So he reached his truck and drove to a hospital, where he received seven staples in his scalp and was treated for a slight concussion and bruises.
The buck rose up, knocked Goodman down and attacked him with his antlers in what the veteran hunter called "15 seconds of hell." The deer ran a short distance and went down, and died after Goodman fired two more shots.
Soon Goodman started feeling dizzy and noticed his vest was soaked in blood.
So he reached his truck and drove to a hospital, where he received seven staples in his scalp and was treated for a slight concussion and bruises.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Democrats Always Needed John Wayne
I've always had a theory that one of the reasons that Democrats are perceived as being soft on national defense is because a lot of them look soft. You could line up the entire House of Representatives and Senate and pick out the Republicans and Democrats on appearance alone with about 90% accuracy. When people are scared, they don't care about intellectuals. They want John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson. Never underestimate the superficiality of the American public. It's all about appearances and packaging.
Bush has that fake, macho swagger. Rumsfeld had that leathery look and toughness about him. Cheney looks like Dr. Evil. You may disagree with them, but they project an attitude of toughness. I love Obama, but frankly, he looks like somebody you would probably wouldn't be afraid to fight in a bar. Now, the Dems are getting it. Look at Obama's new national security advisor, Marine General James Jones. Is that a Republican, "Don't F*** with me" look or what? Welcome back, John Wayne!
Bush has that fake, macho swagger. Rumsfeld had that leathery look and toughness about him. Cheney looks like Dr. Evil. You may disagree with them, but they project an attitude of toughness. I love Obama, but frankly, he looks like somebody you would probably wouldn't be afraid to fight in a bar. Now, the Dems are getting it. Look at Obama's new national security advisor, Marine General James Jones. Is that a Republican, "Don't F*** with me" look or what? Welcome back, John Wayne!
We've Come a Long Way in 53 Years
On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, a 42-year-old African American woman who worked as a seamstress, boarded this Montgomery City bus to go home from work. On this bus on that day, Rosa Parks initiated a new era in the American quest for freedom and equality.
She sat near the middle of the bus, just behind the 10 seats reserved for whites. Soon all of the seats in the bus were filled. When a white man entered the bus, the driver (following the standard practice of segregation) insisted that all four blacks sitting just behind the white section give up their seats so that the man could sit there. Mrs. Parks, who was an active member of the local NAACP, quietly refused to give up her seat.
Her action was spontaneous and not pre-meditated, although her previous civil rights involvement and strong sense of justice were obvious influences. "When I made that decision," she said later, “I knew that I had the strength of my ancestors with me.”
She was arrested and convicted of violating the laws of segregation, known as “Jim Crow laws.” Mrs. Parks appealed her conviction and thus formally challenged the legality of segregation.
At the same time, local civil rights activists initiated a boycott of the Montgomery bus system. In cities across the South, segregated bus companies were daily reminders of the inequities of American society. Since African Americans made up about 75 percent of the riders in Montgomery, the boycott posed a serious economic threat to the company and a social threat to white rule in the city.
A group named the Montgomery Improvement Association, composed of local activists and ministers, organized the boycott. As their leader, they chose a young Baptist minister who was new to Montgomery: Martin Luther King, Jr. Sparked by Mrs. Parks’ action, the boycott lasted 381 days, into December 1956 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the segregation law was unconstitutional and the Montgomery buses were integrated. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was the beginning of a revolutionary era of non-violent mass protests in support of civil rights in the United States.
It was not just an accident that the civil rights movement began on a city bus. In a famous 1896 case involving a black man on a train, Plessy v. Ferguson, the U.S. Supreme Court enunciated the “separate but equal” rationale for Jim Crow. Of course, facilities and treatment were never equal.
Under Jim Crow customs and laws, it was relatively easy to separate the races in every area of life except transportation. Bus and train companies couldn’t afford separate cars and so blacks and whites had to occupy the same space.
Thus, transportation was one the most volatile arenas for race relations in the South. Mrs. Parks remembers going to elementary school in Pine Level, Alabama, where buses took white kids to the new school but black kids had to walk to their school.
“I'd see the bus pass every day,” she said. “But to me, that was a way of life; we had no choice but to accept what was the custom. The bus was among the first ways I realized there was a black world and a white world” (emphasis added).
Montgomery’s Jim Crow customs were particularly harsh and gave bus drivers great latitude in making decisions on where people could sit. The law even gave bus drivers the authority to carry guns to enforce their edicts. Mrs. Parks’ attorney Fred Gray remembered, “Virtually every African-American person in Montgomery had some negative experience with the buses. But we had no choice. We had to use the buses for transportation.”
Civil rights advocates had outlawed Jim Crow in interstate train travel, and blacks in several Southern cities attacked the practice of segregated bus systems. There had been a bus boycott in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 1953, but black leaders compromised before making real gains. Joann Robinson, a black university professor and activist in Montgomery, had suggested the idea of a bus boycott months before the Parks arrest.
Two other women had been arrested on buses in Montgomery before Parks and were considered by black leaders as potential clients for challenging the law. However, both were rejected because black leaders felt they would not gain white support. When she heard that the well-respected Rosa Parks had been arrested, one Montgomery African American woman exclaimed, “They’ve messed with the wrong one now.”
In the South, city buses were lightning rods for civil rights activists. It took someone with the courage and character of Rosa Parks to strike with lightning. And it required the commitment of the entire African American community to fan the flames ignited by that lightning into the fires of the civil rights revolution.
Source: http://www.thehenryford.org/exhibits/rosaparks/story.asp
She sat near the middle of the bus, just behind the 10 seats reserved for whites. Soon all of the seats in the bus were filled. When a white man entered the bus, the driver (following the standard practice of segregation) insisted that all four blacks sitting just behind the white section give up their seats so that the man could sit there. Mrs. Parks, who was an active member of the local NAACP, quietly refused to give up her seat.
Her action was spontaneous and not pre-meditated, although her previous civil rights involvement and strong sense of justice were obvious influences. "When I made that decision," she said later, “I knew that I had the strength of my ancestors with me.”
She was arrested and convicted of violating the laws of segregation, known as “Jim Crow laws.” Mrs. Parks appealed her conviction and thus formally challenged the legality of segregation.
At the same time, local civil rights activists initiated a boycott of the Montgomery bus system. In cities across the South, segregated bus companies were daily reminders of the inequities of American society. Since African Americans made up about 75 percent of the riders in Montgomery, the boycott posed a serious economic threat to the company and a social threat to white rule in the city.
A group named the Montgomery Improvement Association, composed of local activists and ministers, organized the boycott. As their leader, they chose a young Baptist minister who was new to Montgomery: Martin Luther King, Jr. Sparked by Mrs. Parks’ action, the boycott lasted 381 days, into December 1956 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the segregation law was unconstitutional and the Montgomery buses were integrated. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was the beginning of a revolutionary era of non-violent mass protests in support of civil rights in the United States.
It was not just an accident that the civil rights movement began on a city bus. In a famous 1896 case involving a black man on a train, Plessy v. Ferguson, the U.S. Supreme Court enunciated the “separate but equal” rationale for Jim Crow. Of course, facilities and treatment were never equal.
Under Jim Crow customs and laws, it was relatively easy to separate the races in every area of life except transportation. Bus and train companies couldn’t afford separate cars and so blacks and whites had to occupy the same space.
Thus, transportation was one the most volatile arenas for race relations in the South. Mrs. Parks remembers going to elementary school in Pine Level, Alabama, where buses took white kids to the new school but black kids had to walk to their school.
“I'd see the bus pass every day,” she said. “But to me, that was a way of life; we had no choice but to accept what was the custom. The bus was among the first ways I realized there was a black world and a white world” (emphasis added).
Montgomery’s Jim Crow customs were particularly harsh and gave bus drivers great latitude in making decisions on where people could sit. The law even gave bus drivers the authority to carry guns to enforce their edicts. Mrs. Parks’ attorney Fred Gray remembered, “Virtually every African-American person in Montgomery had some negative experience with the buses. But we had no choice. We had to use the buses for transportation.”
Civil rights advocates had outlawed Jim Crow in interstate train travel, and blacks in several Southern cities attacked the practice of segregated bus systems. There had been a bus boycott in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 1953, but black leaders compromised before making real gains. Joann Robinson, a black university professor and activist in Montgomery, had suggested the idea of a bus boycott months before the Parks arrest.
Two other women had been arrested on buses in Montgomery before Parks and were considered by black leaders as potential clients for challenging the law. However, both were rejected because black leaders felt they would not gain white support. When she heard that the well-respected Rosa Parks had been arrested, one Montgomery African American woman exclaimed, “They’ve messed with the wrong one now.”
In the South, city buses were lightning rods for civil rights activists. It took someone with the courage and character of Rosa Parks to strike with lightning. And it required the commitment of the entire African American community to fan the flames ignited by that lightning into the fires of the civil rights revolution.
Source: http://www.thehenryford.org/exhibits/rosaparks/story.asp
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