Progressive Action Spot

Thank You Mr. President

2010-01-30T08:42:00.000-08:00

If you have not seen it (or even if you have) please watch the President take on the GOPpers. He is brilliant and in command. He is calm, cool and collected. He has a patience and a professionalism that is unmatched.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Then, if you have a minute and are so inclined, please send him a thank you note. I think that it is important to reward good behavior and to let him know that we support him and have his back when he takes them on.

(I have certainly been letting him know when I disapprove.)

Thank you, in advance, for your support.

Cross posted at L&L Pt 2..

Hey Dumbasses – The Healthcare Bill Will Create Jobs Too!!

2010-01-29T13:33:00.000-08:00

The ‘conventional’ (by ‘conventional’ I mean the Beltway) wisdom seems to be that the healthcare bill is dead. The media seems to think that the election of Scott Brown and the SOTU indicates that healthcare reform is taking a back burner or being restructured or some such shit.

Then there is the NY Times article that has the ominous headline that HC is “stalled” – and an even worse headline on the link to it at HuffPo that reads “Rahm: Health Care on Back Burner.” However, when I read the article there is no quote from Rahm stating that health care reform is dead.

Here is where the article 'quotes' Rahm:

With Mr. Obama’s health care overhaul stalled on Capitol Hill, Rahm Emanuel, the White House chief of staff, said in an interview that Democrats would try to act first on job creation, reducing the deficit and imposing tighter regulation on banks before returning to the health measure, the president’s top priority from last year.

How I read that paraphrase is simply that he will sign a jobs and a financial reform bill before he signs a health care bill.

Obama has repeatedly said that he can do more than one thing at a time. Obama has repeatedly said that “everyday he focuses on the economy and on job creation” – even during the healthcare debate. Imagine that, a President who can multi-task.

Not only is health reform still very much alive, the bill might get a whole hell of a lot better. Especially after Obama took on the GOP at their retreat this morning.

Obama called the GOP out on their crap – even going so far as to remind them that the more that they demonize him and the Democrats, the harder that it will be for the GOP to support policies that the Dems put forth. They cannot even support policies that they might agree with. The stupid Pukes in the Senate even voted “no” on the pay-go rule yesterday. How they can say that they are “fiscally responsible” and vote “no” on pay-go is beyond me.

Health reform is an enormous jobs bill. Look at all of the potential jobs that will be created when 40 million more people have health insurance: doctors, nurses, health care billers, health care transcriptionists, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, office staff, health care IT, construction workers (to build more clinics and hospitals), etc, etc, etc. Millions of fucking jobs.

Health care reform is not dead. It is now time for the Progressives to be louder than we have ever been. We need to “scream bloody murder.” We need to call our Reps and ask them to support the public option. We need to call our Senators. We need to call the Whitehouse. We need to tell them to use reconciliation or do whatever is necessary to get it done.

We need to call and write and send letters to the editor and we need to be loud. It is time to march in the streets and raise holy hell.

Health care reform is a jobs bill. Health care reform is necessary for deficit reduction. Health care reform is a moral issue – the civil rights of our time. Health care reform must be passed now.

Cross posted at L&L Pt Deux.

The Obama Presidency is Officially Over

2010-01-20T11:24:00.000-08:00

At least that is what one would have to believe if they had listened to any of the media reporting over the last 24 hours.

OK, Coakley ran a shitty campaign. Democrats took the seat for granted. The DSCC dropped the ball. And, the votes have not even yet been counted!

There are major problems with the MA election, and I am waiting for it to be certified before I cry defeat. (I get it that certification will probably come without the full investigation of the funny machines or the BS ballots, but I can always dream.) I do not understand why Coakley jumped so quickly to concede…I do not get it, unless she planned to lose. Her concession will make it a lot more difficult to actually count the ballots.

Enough said about Massachusetts. It does not mean shit. With Bayh, Landrieu, Lieberman, Nelson, Nelson and the others, we really never had 60 votes anyway.

I spend a lot of time listening to a lot of media. I have Left Wing radio on and MSNBC almost all the time. I never miss the Sunday shows. I read endlessly. I pay attention to what is being said and how it is being said. They are working overtime right now to spin this MA election as the end of the Obama Presidency and they are wrong.

We need to call and write and make clear why it is that the Dems lost the MA seat. We need to tell our representatives the truth. They will not be hearing the truth inside the beltway because the beltway common fucking wisdom is that the problem with Obama and his presidency is the DFH.

Maybe they are correct, but not in the way that they think.

The beltway press wants to spin this that the liberals were getting too much of their way, that Obama was too far to the left, that the Dirty Fucking Hippies ruined the Obama Presidency.

They’ll say that we have to move to the ‘center.’ That we have to act like the principle-less right wing. They are blaming MA on us; it is the DFH’s fault.

The only way that it is our fault is because we have not insisted loudly enough that the Congress follow the Progressive Principles that got them elected. We worked in 2006 & 2008 to send people to congress to get it done.

We want real healthcare reform (and we want it now.) We want a real jobs package, a New New Deal (and we want it now.) We want the Employee Free Choice Act (and we want it now.) We want the banksters thrown out of the corporate world and we want their seats removed from the table at the Whitehouse (and we want it now.) We want control over our own bodies (and we want it now.) We want the ERA (and we want it now.) We want an end to Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (and we want it now.) We want marriage available to any committed couple who wants it, gay or straight, (and we want it now.) We want the banking industry reformed (and we want it now.) We want the wars to come to an end (and we want it now.) We want Gitmo closed (and we want it now.) We want fairness for our people and accountability in our government (and we want it now.) We want the bankruptcy laws fixed (and we want it now.) We want the Bush Admin held accountable for their crimes (and we want it now.)

These are the messages that we need to impart to our congress critters. This is what we need to tell them. This is why we lost (if we really lost) Massachusetts. This is what we need to say to our friends and colleagues and representatives and President. This is what we need to tell them; the Obama Presidency is not over, we are just getting started. We want a Progressive congress and President (and we want it now.)

Cross posted at L&L Pt Deux.

To Hope or Not to Hope

2009-02-06T10:19:00.000-08:00

The Progressive villagers are getting restless.

I get it. It is incredibly frustrating. I want Progressive Change and I want it now. (Stamps feet, grabs the gum and turns into a purple human blueberry…) Seriously. I am with all of you.

I, however, am not willing to throw in the towel [yet] and say that they are all the same. (All of these politicians. spppltt!)

The thing is, what makes these assholes “all the same,” is also what makes them different.

These bastards, Left, Right and Center, all have one thing in common; they want to keep their jobs. They have also woken up to the fact that we the people are paying attention. And, we the people, can get mobilized and kick the bums out.

The last two elections are still fresh in their minds. The Right has watched their buddies be replaced by Democrats and the Democrats have watched – in awe – as the people got together and went to the polls. The Democrats also know (as do the Republicans) that the more people who vote, the more that Democrats get elected. This is just a simple, unarguable, fact, and it is also why the Pukes do everything that they can to suppress the vote.

Knowing this little tidbit, that the bastards all want to keep their jobs, is what makes them different. It is also what makes this particular period of time so amazing. What is so amazing right now, so fascinating, is that the GOP still thinks that their only problem was that they did not move far enough to the Right! This is excellent. Let them move farther…they are going to move so far to the Right that they will join the death-knell of the Wigs. Dumb asses.

While the Republican dumb asses move farther to the Right and continue to play their games, the Dems are being “cooperative” and “accommodating” and “bi-Partisan” and the public is eating that shit up. Seriously. The majority of the Country are not Partisans like we are…but they are starting to pay attention in ways that they never have before.

What Obama has done, not because he is so great or so cool or whatever, is that he has communicated in such a way that the people want to pay attention. This is not all Obama’s doing, we also have GW Bush to thank for this.

Bush fucked this country so hard and for so long that the people are all watching with keen interest; we have become a Nation of observers just like a rape victim watching the trial of her attacker – every word said, every piece of evidence presented, every witness who speaks – the people are watching and this bodes well for Democrats. The Democratic Ideas work; the Republican ideas are like being raped all over again. The people know this intuitively, even if they do not understand all of the intricacies of the plans.

Obama needs us in a way that no other President since FDR has needed the people. He needs a movement. No matter how many times that I say it, I do not feel that I can say it enough. He needs us to educate our neighbors. He needs us to call our Representatives and Senators. He needs us to write LTEs. Without us he will not be able to do this. He just won’t.

Here is a start:

Hold an economic recovery house party. Educate your friends and neighbors. Obama needs a movement and we need to give it to him. Real change will happen if the people demand it. These Representatives and Senators want to keep their jobs.

Tell your Senators to support the National Parks in the stimulus.

Call your Senators and support the stimulus package.

Demand accountability for the Bush Administration.

Stand with Al Gore and Repower America. Demand that your legislators support climate change legislation. I watched Vice President Gore’s testimony this weekend and it is terrifying. Why every single student in this Country - college and HS and Jr. High and elementary – are not required to watch this is beyond me.

Demand that family planning money be put back in the stimulus. It is so common friggin sense – offer people assistance with their health care costs and they will spend that money elsewhere in the economy. In addition, if you want to help people to be lifted out of poverty, help them to prevent pregnancies. Could people be any more stoopid?!

Remove Republican tax cuts from the stimulus; they do not do shit to help the economy. We need targeted cuts to the lower and middle income people. This petition and letter writing campaign calls for eliminating all of them, and I would honestly rather see all of them gone, than any corporate ones.

Hillary’s online community, No Limits. From what I can tell it is a forum dedicated to fixing this fucking Country.

Find your local District Attorney and ask them to file charges against Bush.

Vote on FDLs priorities.

Demand that Holder appoint a Special Prosecutor.

Hold a repower America house party this weekend.

Dictionary defines the antonym of “hope” as “despair.” I agree, and I agree that one of the greatest contributors to despair is powerlessness. The more involved that I am, the less powerless that I feel. Call it delusional or airy fairy or naïve or whatever. Personally I don’t care, I only know that the alternative leads to days on the couch and inability to function and I can’t do that today. It is difficult enough to move as it is; I will not add the kind of pessimism that I am used to experiencing to it. I may get screwed in the end and highly disappointed, but at least I can say I tried to change it.

PS: I started this post a few days ago so I hope that all of the links still work. Here a couple of add-ons that I also felt were worth the time to share.

Obama’s op-ed selling the plan; well worth the read.

Olbermann’s special comment last night was excellent. He made a couple of verbal flubs so read the thing too. How I wish that I could say the same to Dick – to his face.

Cross-posted at L&L Pt 2.

Petitions and Such

2008-11-22T14:18:00.000-08:00

A long time ago, when I first started this blog, my intent was to use it as a clearing house for petitions and other action items that were found in my inbox.

This was at a time before the 2006 elections when we all felt absolutely powerless and we were watching our entire country go down the tubes. We were angry, frustrated and terrified.

My contention was that even doing a little action – taking that anger and turning it into something productive – would help us to feel as though we were doing something, anything, to save our country.

The situation is different now. We are at the helm and we are driving this ship. Why worry about petitions and crap right now?

For one thing, we still have 58 long days of watching helplessly as this Administration pushes through last minute “fuck you” rules and regulations (or removes rules and regulations.) Right now it is imperative that we are paying attention. It is imperative that we are making noise.

Take, for instance Senator Feingold’s call for all of us to come forward and speak out now against possible Presidential pardons. Possible bullshit blanket Presidential pardons. We have to make noise now.

However, we also have to make noise once Obama and the Democratic Congress take office. Obama needs a movement. It will be impossible for him to implement Progressive change unless he has a movement behind him, unless the people back him, unless our Representatives hear from us – demanding what we want. It is more important now, than ever, to “sing louder.”

Click “read more” for a list of petitions to sign and action items that require our assistance.

Petitions and Active Campaigns

(Note: Many of these orgs have several active petition campaigns; I have linked to their petition pages rather than linking to individual petitions.)

• Support Representative Nadler’s bill, HR 1531, against Bush pardons.

• Democrats dot com list of petitions and active campaigns.

• Sign up to make calls to GOTV for Georgia’s special election.

• Courage Campaign’s active campaigns

• Tell President-Elect Obama to “go for it” and shoot big!

• Vote on how CREDO will spend their money! (This one is too fun.)

• CREDO Campaigns

• True Majority Campaigns

• Save America’s Wolves

• Use this easy form to submit letters to the editor against Bush pardons for himself and his criminal Administration and for Impeachment.

• California residents – please write letters to the editor against your GOP legislature’s severe budget cuts.

• Impeach Bush to stop pardons.

• Choose Obama’s top priorities.

• Support the Apollo Alliance.

Donations Requested:

I know that most people are financially fucked (it is true in my neck of the woods) and I know that we all contributed massively to the recent elections. Unfortunately, because the economy is so bad, the orgs most hurt are those organizations who do good works in our communities. It is a catch 22 – they are needed most right now to feed our hungry and house our homeless and they are normally the first to suffer from the belt tightening that is being done everywhere.

A couple of things to consider:
a) Most of the below requests for donation are tax deductible and it is almost year-end.
b) Why not give donations for Holiday presents or request that donations are given in your name for Holiday gifts that you receive? Or, give gift subscriptions to Progressive publications as presents?

• Truthout has been sending out a desperate call for donations.

• Franken needs donations for the recount. (Remember, Romney is paying Coleman’s fees.)

• Hillary is still trying to pay off her campaign debt. (DNC is offering a DVD of Hillary’s Denver speech for a donation of $50.)

• The Progressive needs donations. (Or, better yet, subscribe!)

• Courage Campaign needs funds to Repeal Prop 8

• Shop the Free Press store (Again, gift time is coming!)

• Join the Progressive Book Club

• Wildlife Adoption and Gift Center

• True Majority gift center (Get your free pie lapel pin, too.)

• Support NARAL; support Martin

Cross posted at Low and Left Part Deux.

Election Protection Information

2008-10-31T09:38:00.000-07:00

With the election around the corner and early voting well under way, it is past time to post information about Election Protection. There are a ton of resources out there and it is up to us to make sure that every voter has the information that will protect them and their vote. Please add any election protection websites or phone numbers that you come across.

The main phone number to remember is 1-866-OUR-VOTE (1-866-687-8683)

Obama has two websites devoted to reporting voting problems:

• Under the Radar Excellent flash map of dirty tricks Nationwide

• Truth: Vote for Change Clearinghouse for voting problems

On the Web:

• American Bar Association Election Protection Site

• National Campaign for Fair Elections

• NCFFE State Pages

• The Democracy Campaign

• Election Protection Wiki Clearinghouse to report problems at the polls.

• 866OURVOTE dot org Another way to get to the National Campaign for Fair Elections

• Election Strike Force In partnership with Brad Blog

• NAACP Vote Hard Bus Tour

• Standing for Voters

• Vote 411 dot org A project of The League of Women Voters, everything that you need to know about voting.

• Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights

• Alternet Online Voting Guide. Excellent resource with every link that you can imagine.

• PFAW know your voting rights page.

• Voters Unite

• Voters Unite Links to State SOS Pages

• Democracy Dispatch Election Resources

• Network of Citizens

• Center for Media and Democracy Election Watch

State Resources:

• Election reform CA

• Fair Elections Georgia

• California Election Protection Network

• North Carolina Democratic Party Election Protection

• Ohio Election Fraud

• NAACP Maryland

• California Election Protection

• Florida Election Protection

Report:

• Excellent report on the 2006 election and disenfranchisement of voters. PDF

A few articles on problems with machines and disenfranchisement, already, in 2008:

• Watching the Polls

• Where Are the Election Protection Attorneys?

• Election Protection in Sante Fe

• Some Small Wins for Voters

• Voters in 31 States Screwed

• Election Protection by Amy Goodman

• The Free Press Election News

• Scoop.Co.Nz “USA Coup” Articles about the theft of the 2008 Election

• Mark Crispin Miller Author of “Fooled Again”

Please note: I cannot vouch for all of these sites; I am only offering information and resources. Cross posted at Low and Left Part Deux

UPDATE: Links that I forgot:

• Verified Voting

• Steal Back Your Vote

• Stealing America

To: Supers From: Dean

2008-04-17T18:16:00.000-07:00

Decide Now.

Context Matters or For Those Who Base Opinions on More than Just Soundbites

2008-03-23T16:15:00.000-07:00

Please take a moment to watch expanded version of Wright's sermon.

If you have more than a few minutes, other sermons are expanded here.

'Cause Someone Reminded Me to Remember Laughter

2008-03-23T16:09:00.000-07:00

Peeps Show II

Petitions and Such

2008-03-22T09:42:00.000-07:00

This blog was originally started as a clearing house for petitions and other information as found in my inbox. Thought I might get down to original business and post some of that.

• Support the Foreclosure Prevention Act

• Reject Anti-Choice Judge Honaker

• Attend the free movie and support separation of Church and State

• Sign the Petition to Protect Separation of Church and State

• Resources for lower income people regarding the economic stimulus refunds.

• NOW Petitions

• Vote on who Progressive Patriots Fund should throw their support to.

• Going to Memphis in April, check out the Green Dream Reborn Conference.

• Tell China not to walk away from Darfur.

• Still trying to save the Internet.

• 5 Years Too Many

• Iraq Moratorium dot org

• Amnesty USA is in need of funds.

• The Nation needs donations

I'm A Typical White Person

2008-03-21T11:42:00.000-07:00

You know it's bad when Chris Wallace defends Obama.

The great irony of this new raging debate is that everyone is focusing on the distraction, just as Obama spoke of in his speech.

We can focus on the distractions in the race debates or we can focus on the real issues.

Guess what?! As a typical white person, I too am afraid when a black man passes me by on the street. I am ashamed of this. I do not like this about myself. But when I am alone and I am walking down the street I am more afraid of a black man approaching than a white man. I will instinctively hold on tighter to my bag when it is a black man than a white man.

This is what the discussion needs to be about, not whether or not the word "typical" was used.

We have in our country an almost inbred, instinctive, fear of the "other". It is rare that we have real opportunities to come together as one people and not be divided by our races, genders, religions or politics...even among the so-called Progressives, we are deeply divided between Obama and Hillary.

So, let's get over it already. Can we please stop perusing every transcript for false evidence of supposed racism or sexism and get down to the business of getting together and taking to task the real problems that face us?

This is just one more typical white person attempting to remind us all to quit being so fucking hyper-sensitive about the distractions and get on with the realities.

What She Said

2008-03-15T14:06:00.000-07:00

This is exactly how I feel.

I remember, like it was yesterday, that cold Wednesday morning in November of 2004. I remember watching Kerry concede and crying uncontrollably. There were no longer specific atrocities that I feared, in losing that election (or having it again stolen from us,) it was just this overwhelming feeling of sadness that our Country might not survive another four years of Republican rule.

I had never been involved in electoral politics and other than some cause specific organizations or fights for specific policies that I believed in, I had never really paid much attention to what elections, or Party, meant to me. I knew that I was a Democrat and had always been one, but my eyes had yet to be opened to what was really at stake.

When Katrina hit New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, all of that changed and it changed in big ways. It was then that the specific atrocities that I could not name that November morning came into full view and played out before me in vivid color on my TV screen.

I began to pay attention and began to read as much as I could. CSPAN played 24/7 in the background of my existence. I found the liberal blogs, the “reality based community,” and felt right at home.

I believe(d) that this new medium was my chance to experience the momentum of the sixties and really fight for the kind of change that I believed in. I thought that this medium and all of the organizations that were at my fingertips could gather together and fight to take back our country from the people and the policies that I found so dangerous.

2006 brought this vision into a reality and I could not wait for 2008. The expectations that I had of some liberal utopia where we actually worked together to take back this country, both houses of congress and the presidency were grand.

I was originally an Edwards supporter. I believe in his populace message and I felt that he would be our best bet to win in November. When he left the race I made my decision to support Obama. Funny that one of the things that I like most about him is that he envisions a country that rises above our old divisions and that the power of the presidency comes from the bottom up, it is a people oriented campaign and a people oriented way to govern.

Now, the division in our Party, the division between the Clinton and Obama supporters, threatens to bring our Party and our country down.

I don’t believe that it is too late – but I am deeply disappointed in the way that this has played out. I never thought that I would see the left in this country so petty, and so whiny, and so devoted to their particular candidate that they are willing to lose the General Election just to get their candidate to win the primary.

We need each other. We need to come together and focus on what is truly important. I hope that we can stop this division and come together. There is too much to fight for, too much that requires our energy and our unity.

A Unified Democratic Party is necessary. I hope that we can all wake up to this truth, before it is too late.

The Prism that Matters

2008-03-10T10:14:00.000-07:00

I have treaded back into the blog world as of late and have posted a few arguments here and there.

Unfortunately, the blogs of the left are very unpleasant right now and the one thing that this has done for me is to introduce me to a feeling of incredible sadness about my Party and the short-sightedness that ensues.

I have started several posts for the Action Spot about how shameful the Dems are acting and that the vitriol between the Obama and Hillary camps will do nothing but hurt our Party come November. Looking at it in this way, however, has done nothing for me but lead to more depression and despair about the state of our Union and the possibility that we are going to fuck it all up and lose come the general election.

I don’t want to do that anymore.

The bottom line is this, I believe that every person in the “Progressive” blogosphere needs to look through this prism before they post anything on the Internets:

Will this drivel that I am about to post help or hurt the Democratic Party come November?

If we each would take one moment to consider this before clicking “post” I believe that we will have a landslide come November. After all, is this not really our goal?

There are a lot of truths out there and we are going to see the truth based on what we want to believe and what we already believe. We are going to see the candidate that we favor as more infallible than the other. Because emotions are so high right now, it is really difficult to be objective and see the true truths through the ones that we feel benefit our guy/gal. Get over it already.

This primary is not going to be settled by primary voters. Period. Neither candidate can make it to 2025 before the convention. The super-delegates are going to decide this. There is no more convincing that need be done to the general populace. From here on out, any “convincing” is just opposition research for the Republican Party. I, for one, do not think that intelligent Democratic bloggers should be wasting our time doing this.

In addition, I seriously doubt that there are many people anguishing over the decision of who to vote for in the primary who are reading the [partisan] blogs in order to help guide their decisions. There are too few primaries left and most of the people who read the blogs are already politically active and have probably signed up to volunteer for one or another Dem candidate.

I am asking everyone on the blogs – front pagers and thread posters alike – to quit fighting each other, singing to the choir, attempting to convince the unmoving and lets get on with winning in November. How about all of you intelligent and committed people on the left spend your research and writing time bringing more people into the Party and taking down the Republicans on the ballot in the fall.

There will be plenty of time to defend our candidates against attacks once the real battle starts. Let's not offer up more charges to defend against. If anyone can argue that McBush would be a better President than either of our Nominees then I doubt that this person is really a Democrat. Some of the posts that I have read are so inflammatory, and so completely outrageous in their charges, that they are, by default, arguing this - one of these candidates will be running against McBush.

...it is time to start acting like Democrats and take down the Republicans, regardless of who we support in the primary.

Powerless

2007-11-01T09:02:00.000-07:00

That is how I have felt for quite some time.

The acknowledgement that winning seats in 2008 was more important to the House of Representatives than Impeachment and protecting the Constitution, has left me in a place of apathy towards it all.

I still have a hard time believing that everything that they do is campaigning. I honestly thought that they had the best interest of the Country at the forefront of their agenda. I believed that they took their oaths to Protect the Constitution seriously...

I find it hard to believe any of this anymore when they have taken Impeachment off of the table.

You cannot take a large part of the Constitution off the table. Yet they have done this.

As a result, I find it hard to continue to participate as I once did. I still study but it is not with the same intention behind it. It is more with a secret desire to prove myself wrong. It is with a desire to find those who still put the Country before politics.

If I believed that we the people were still in charge of our government, I would have much fervor behind actions to make a difference. I find this difficult to believe anymore.

I would love for someone to prove me wrong.

Support Censure

2007-07-25T11:07:00.000-07:00

You can add your support for Censure here.

Senator Feingold understands that this administration must be held accountable for their illegal acts and he needs our support - not to convince him, but to convince his fellow Senators.

I think that Censure is only the first step and once the Congress sees how much support there is for it they will jump on the impeachment train.

Impeachment is necessary. We absoulutely must restore the rule of law to this Country - that is what made our Country different.

"We are a nation of laws, not of men." Unfortunately this quote has not been the truth since the day that the Supremes gifted Bu$hCo the presidency.

If we do not step forward on this our children will not know the America of our fathers.

I Stand With Russ

2007-05-24T19:33:00.000-07:00

Russ calls Bullshit when he sees it - this is why he is the only candidate (even though he says that he is not running,) for 2008 that I can get fully behind...

or in front of.

Whatever it takes.

Help Russ End This Illegal Occupation of Iraq

Taking a minute to get my widget up now. OOps - to get Russ's widget up.

I Know It Has Been Over a Month

2007-04-04T07:39:00.000-07:00

Hey - My intention is to get back to daily blogging and to let you all know what my life has been like the last 6 months.

Unfortunately, I have way too much to catch up on.

This little snippet of a post is to let my three regular readers know that I am still alive and kicking and the SPAN is on whenever I can have it on...

Congress is on break right now, so it does not matter that I currently have no furniture or that all of my stuff is in boxes and needs to be thoroughly cleaned before I can use it or that I have a borrowed microwave and 4 coffee cups and some paper plates for a kitchen or that we have no chairs....

It is a long story.

Bottom line.

I am finally home!!!!

We are in a pickle and a big fight, but when it is all said and done, I do believe that my life will be better than ever.

I miss you all.

Anjha

From Thom Hartmann: Repeal the Military Commissions Act and Restore the Most American Human Right

2007-02-25T19:36:00.000-08:00

Obviously, I have been a little busy as of late. I am posting an email from Thom Hartmann.

I subscribe to Thom Hartmann’s newsletter. I received this on Tuesday, February 13, 2007. My apologies if you have all already read it.

According to Thom: (All articles may be freely reprinted in print, web, email, and blog media so long as credits are attached and Thom Hartmann's copyright is acknowledged.)

This is his work, copyrighted by Thom Hartmann. I have the deepest respect and gratitude towards Thom for all that he does for our Country and our democracy through educating the masses.

Repeal the Military Commissions Act and Restore the Most American Human Right by Thom Hartmann

"The power of the executive to cast a man into prison without formulating any charge known to the law, and particularly to deny him the judgment of his peers, is in the highest degree odious, and the foundation of all totalitarian government whether Nazi or Communist." -- Winston Churchill

The oldest human right defined in the history of English-speaking civilization is the right to challenge governmental power of arrest and detention through the use of habeas corpus laws. Habeas corpus is roughly Latin for "hold the body," and is used in law to mean that a government must either charge a person with a crime and allow them due process, or let them go free.

Last autumn the House and Senate passed, and the President signed into law The United States Military Commissions Act of 2006, which explicitly strips both aliens and Americans of the right of habeas corpus, the right of recourse to the courts (as provided in the Fifth through Eighth Amendments to the Constitution), and denies appeal through mechanisms of the Geneva Conventions to those designated to lose these rights by the President.

As the most conspicuous part of a series of laws which have fundamentally changed the nature of this nation, moving us from a democratic republic to a state under the rule of a "unitary" President, the Military Commissions Act should be immediately reversed. When a demi-tyrant like Vladimir Putin begins lecturing the United States, as he did just a few days ago, on how our various behaviors over the past five years have "nothing in common with democracy," we should pay attention.

This attack on eight centuries of English law is no small thing. While the Republican's (and 13 Democrats in the Senate) purported intent was to deny Guantanamo Bay Concentration Camp detainees the right to see a civilian judge or jury, it could just as easily extend to you and me. (Already two American citizens have been arbitrarily stripped of their habeas corpus rights by the Bush administration - Jose Padilla and Yasser Hamdi - and there may be others.)

Section 9, Clause 2, of Article I of the United States Constitution says: "The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it."

Alberto Gonzales testified on January 18th before Congress that "there is no express grant of habeas in the Constitution. There is [only] a prohibition against taking it away."

While there are many countries in the world where all power and all rights are reserved to the government, and then doled out to the people by constitutional, legislative, or executive decree, the first three words of our Constitution clearly state who in this country holds all the power and all the rights: "We the People."

Our Constitution does not grant us rights, because "We" already hold all rights. Instead, it defines the boundaries of our government, and identifies what privileges "We the People" will grant to that government.

When Gonzales suggested we have no habeas corpus rights because the Constitution doesn't grant them, his testimony betrayed a breathtaking ignorance of the history and meaning of the United States Constitution. And, because his thinking probably reflects that of his superior, George W. Bush, Gonzales' testimony demonstrates the urgency with which Congress must act to repeal the many laws, signing statements, and executive orders that have been issued by this administration.
But particularly, and first, with regard to habeas corpus.

Abraham Lincoln was the first president (on March 3, 1863) to suspend habeas corpus so he could imprison those he considered a threat until the war was over. Congress invoked this power again during Reconstruction when President Grant requested The Ku Klux Klan Act in 1871 to put down a rebellion in South Carolina. Those are the only two fully legal suspensions of habeas corpus in the history of the United States (and Lincoln's is still being debated).

The United States hasn't suffered a "Rebellion" or an "Invasion" since Lincoln's and Grant's administrations.

There are no foreign armies on our soil, seizing our cities. No states or municipalities are seriously talking about secession. Yet the Attorney General says we have no rights to habeas corpus, and the Military Commissions Act now backs him up.

The modern institution of civil and human rights, and particularly the writ of habeas corpus, began in June of 1215 when King John was forced by the feudal lords to sign the Magna Carta at Runnymede. Although that document mostly protected "freemen" - what were then known as feudal lords or barons, and today known as CEOs and millionaires - rather than the average person, it initiated a series of events that echo to this day.

Two of the most critical parts of the Magna Carta were articles 38 and 39, which established the foundation for what is now known as "habeas corpus" laws, as well as the Fourth through Eighth Amendments of our Constitution and hundreds of other federal and state due process provisions.

Articles 38 and 39 of the Magna Carta said:

"38 In future no official shall place a man on trial upon his own unsupported statement, without producing credible witnesses to the truth of it.

"39 No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any other way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land."

This was radical stuff, and over the next four hundred years average people increasingly wanted for themselves these same protections from the abuse of the power of government or great wealth. But from 1215 to 1628, outside of the privileges enjoyed by the feudal lords, the average person could be arrested and imprisoned at the whim of the king with no recourse to the courts.

Then, in 1627, King Charles I overstepped, and the people snapped. Charles I threw into jail five knights in a tax disagreement, and the knights sued the King, asserting their habeas corpus right to be free or on bail unless convicted of a crime.

King Charles I, in response, invoked his right to simply imprison anybody he wanted (other than the rich), anytime he wanted, as he said, "per speciale Mandatum Domini Regis."

This is essentially the same argument that George W. Bush makes today for why he has the right to detain both citizens and non-citizens solely on his own say-so: because he's in charge. And it's an argument now supported by the Military Commissions Act.

But just as George's Act is meeting resistance, Charles' decree wasn't well received. The result of his overt assault on the rights of citizens led to a sort of revolt in the British Parliament, producing the 1628 "Petition of Right" law, an early version of our Fourth through Eighth Amendments, which restated Articles 38 and 39 of the Magna Carta and added that "writs of habeas corpus, [are] there to undergo and receive [only] as the court should order." It was later strengthened with the "Habeas Corpus Act of 1640" and a second "Habeas Corpus Act of 1679."

Thus, the right to suspend habeas corpus no longer was held by the King. It was exercised solely by the people's (elected and hereditary) representatives in the Parliament.

The third George to govern the United Kingdom confronted this in 1815 when he came into possession of Napoleon Bonaparte. British laws were so explicit that everybody was entitled to habeas corpus - even people who were not British citizens - that when Napoleon surrendered on the deck of the British flagship Bellerophon after the battle of Waterloo in 1815, the British Parliament had to pass a law ("An Act For The More Effectually Detaining In Custody Napoleon Bonaparte") to suspend habeas corpus so King George III could legally continue to hold him prisoner (and then legally exile him to a British fortification on a distant island).

Now, the Military Commissions Act and Alberto Gonzales say that George W. Bush may similarly detain people or exile them to concentration camps on distant islands. Except these people are not Napoleon Bonaparte. "They" could even be you or me.

The Founders must be turning in their graves.

As Alexander Hamilton - arguably the most conservative of the Founders - wrote in Federalist 84:

"The establishment of the writ of habeas corpus ... are perhaps greater securities to liberty and republicanism than any it [the Constitution] contains. ...[T]he practice of arbitrary imprisonments have been, in all ages, the favorite and most formidable instruments of tyranny. The observations of the judicious [British 18th century legal scholar] Blackstone, in reference to the latter, are well worthy of recital:

"'To bereave a man of life,' says he, 'or by violence to confiscate his estate, without accusation or trial, would be so gross and notorious an act of despotism, as must at once convey the alarm of tyranny throughout the whole nation; but confinement of the person, by secretly hurrying him to jail, where his sufferings are unknown or forgotten, is a less public, a less striking, and therefore A MORE DANGEROUS ENGINE of arbitrary government.'''
[Capitals all Hamilton's from the original.]

The question, ultimately, is whether our nation will continue to stand for the values upon which it was founded.

Early American conservatives suggested that democracy was so ultimately weak it couldn't withstand the assault of newspaper editors and citizens who spoke out against it, or terrorists from the Islamic Barbary Coast, leading John Adams to pass America's first Military Commissions Act-like laws, the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798.

President Thomas Jefferson rebuked those who wanted America ruled by an iron-handed presidency that could - as Adams had - throw people in jail for "crimes" such as speaking political opinion, or without constitutional due process.

"I know, indeed," Jefferson said in his first inaugural address on March 4, 1801, "that some honest men fear that a republican government cannot be strong; that this government is not strong enough.

But, Jefferson said, our nation was "the world's best hope," and because of our strong commitment to rights like habeas corpus, "the strongest government on earth."

The sum of this, Jefferson said, was found in "freedom of person under the protection of the habeas corpus; and trial by juries impartially selected. These principles form the bright constellation which has gone before us, and guided our steps through an age of revolution and reformation.

"The wisdom of our sages and the blood of our heroes have been devoted to their attainment. They should be the creed of our political faith, the text of civil instruction, the touchstone by which to try the services of those we trust; and should we wander from them in moments of error or alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty, and safety."

When I was working in Russia some years ago, a friend in Kaliningrad told me a perhaps apocryphal story about Nikita Khrushchev, who, following Stalin's death, gave a speech to the Politburo denouncing Stalin's policies of arbitrarily arresting people and throwing them into prisons or mental institutions without the rights of habeas corpus. A few minutes into Khrushchev's diatribe, somebody shouted out, "Why didn't you challenge him then, the way you are now?"

The room fell silent, as Khrushchev angrily swept the audience with his glare. "Who said that?" he asked in a reasoned voice. Silence.

"Who said that?" Khrushchev demanded, leaning forward. Silence.
Pounding his fist on the podium to accent each word, he screamed, "Who - said - that?" Still no answer.

Finally, after a long and strained silence, the elected politicians in the room fearful to even cough, a corner of Khrushchev's mouth lifted into a smile.

"Now you know," he said with a chuckle, "why I did not speak up against Stalin when I sat where you now sit."

The question for our day is who will speak up against Stalinist policies in America? Who will speak against the man who punishes reporters and news organizations by cutting off their access; who punishes politicians by targeting them in their home districts; who punishes truth-tellers in the Executive branch by character assassination that even extends to destroying their spouse's careers? And why is our press doing such a pathetic job that in all probability 95 percent of Americans don't even know that our Attorney General says we have no rights to habeas corpus?

As Alexander Hamilton wrote in Federalist Number 8:

"The violent destruction of life and property incident to war; the continual effort and alarm attendant on a state of continual danger, will compel nations the most attached to liberty, to resort for repose and security to institutions which have a tendency to destroy their civil and political rights. To be more safe, they, at length, become willing to run the risk of being less free."

We must not make the mistake that Jefferson and Hamilton warned us against. We must not remain silent, like Khrushchev's people did. We must speak out.

Contact your U.S. Senators and members of the House of Representatives (the Capitol's phone number is 202 225-3121) and tell them to stop this assault on eight hundred years of legal precedent by repealing the Military Commissions Act and thus restore the most fundamentally American human right of habeas corpus.

Thom Hartmann is a three-time Project Censored Award-winning, New York Times best-selling author of nineteen books and, for the past four years, the host of a nationally syndicated noon-3 PM ET daily progressive talk show which will, starting on February 19th, replace the Al Franken show on Air America Radio radio stations from coast-to-coast and on Sirius Satellite Radio. His website is at www.thomhartmann.com His most recent books are "What Would Jefferson Do? A Return To Democracy" and Screwed: The Undeclared War Against the Middle Class and What We Can Do About It.

Holy Crap! A Month Has Passed!

2007-02-25T18:53:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone.

I am still here. A month has slipped by and I have not posted.

I think that I will share a little something from some other people...people more wise than I who seem to have some great things to say.

I miss you all.

Anjha

Only We Can End the Escalation

2007-01-23T16:11:00.000-08:00

Before the post, this update:

*****Send Senator Webb a note of encouragement and requests for tonight’s SOTU rebuttal.

Write to Webb here.*****

After watching the turn-about of so many members of the Republican Party in the Congress, I can only conclude that they heard an earful when they went home.

Perhaps many of them could no longer shut up their nagging consciences; perhaps that gnawing feeling inside of their guts overrode their allegiance to a failed plan and a failed policy…perhaps.

I suspect, however, that their about face was something different. I suspect that, being professional politicians (whose main objective in each of their actions is to be re-elected) is that they got an earful over the break. I suspect that their constituents let them know that this occupation of Iraq is absolutely unacceptable.

I have heard it said that people do not follow a dynamic politician, rather a dynamic politician pays attention to what direction that the parade is moving and then they go get in front of it. The people are demanding that we end the occupation of Iraq; the politicians are now jumping in front of the parade.

I also believe that the people are demanding that the Bush Administration be held accountable – that parade is being formed, just wait for the politicians to jump on the floats.

I believe that our letters and our calls and our petitions have made a difference. Here are more petitions and event announcements that demand an end to the occupation of Iraq and demand that the Bush Admin be held accountable.

End the Occupation – Stop the Escalation:

It’s not his decision, it’s ours.

Block the Escalation

March on Washington

Pass the word on The Bring Our Troops Home Act

Mandate for Peace March on Washington

Bring them home Now!

Congressional Advocacy Day

March on Washington

Logistics for the March on Washington

Stop the Escalation

No funding for more troops.

End war funding, begin war investigations.

March on Washington

A plan to end the war.

The Peace Alliance Conference in DC, Feb 03-05

Tom Harkin has co-sponsored legislation to end the war.

No escalation! No Way!

Kucinich plan to end the occupation of Iraq.

Tell Congress no funding for the Occupation of Iraq

Linked text

Resist Illegal War and Other Resistance Measures:

Resist illegal war; stand with Lt Watada February 5th

Bush Admin lacks the authority to attack Iran

Do Not attack Iran

Stop the Bush Administration:

Resolutions supporting impeachment

Impeach Alberto Gonzales

Efforts to initiate impeachment

Support impeachment

States introduce impeachment resolutions

Petition to impeach Gonzales

Volunteer for the Impeach Bush movement.

And this just pisses me off and requires Action!

Grrrr

Grrrrr

Time to Re-post This

2007-01-11T08:01:00.000-08:00

I put up this post a few weeks ago. In light of the President’s BS speech and the Dem response and everything that I have heard while flipping through CSPAN – it is time to post this again.

I hope to have time to write a new post later. For now, this needs to be said again.

The Iraqi people did not ask for us to come in and destroy their Country. They did not ask for us to bomb their schools, block routes for food, turn every one of their streets into a shooting gallery.

“It is time for the Iraqi’s to take responsibility for their Country.” is a truly disgusting frame. It might be time for the Iraqi politicians to make some difficult decisions - but we do not listen to what they decide anyway, so why does it matter?!

They did not ask for this. This President did this to them. The Congress allowed it. Now our Government needs to step up and take responsibility for the Country that they have destroyed.

A 20,000 troop surge is not the answer. This is the easy answer for this Administration to continue this conflict long enough for the next Administration to clean it up.

I am disgusted and ashamed.
*************************************************************************

Anything Short of Reparations is Not Enough!

I am sickened, terribly, by the new frame of the US occupation of Iraq.

According to corporate media, some Democratic Leaders, many Republican Leaders and the Bush Administration it is the Iraqi’s fault that things are so devastatingly horrible in Iraq.

Iraq is a proud Nation of 26 million people, none of whom asked that we come in and destroy their country. None of whom asked that we murder, or cause the murder, of 655,000 of their citizens. None of the 1.5 million displaced Iraqis asked to be refugees.

They did not ask for any of this to be done to them and now, because of the clusterfuck that we have caused, the only way for this Administration to attempt to save face is to blame the Iraqis. (Remember, this is the “personal responsibility” president, yet I have never witnessed him taking responsibility for anything.)

Bush claims that the US will leave Iraq if the Iraqi government asks us to. This has been stated before, back in 2004, that we would leave if the Iraqi government asked us to.

The government has asked for a timetable for withdrawal, over a year ago, this was not honored. They asked for a timetable because unfortunately, the Iraqi Parliament cannot yet ask us to leave. I suspect that Bush is aware of this, or he would not have made that statement.

He said that we would leave when the Iraqi “government” asked us to leave, not the Iraqi “people.” He did not say the Iraqi people because he knows that the Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people have wanted us out since Sadaam was overthrown. Bush could not leave then, there was too much money to be made off of the 'rebuilding', too much of an opportunity to create the Neo-Con wet dream. He has never cared what the Iraqi people want. Never.

The only reason to stay in Iraq now is to attempt to save face, put off the inevitable until another Administration can be blamed for the disaster and to continue to war profiteer.

Fraud in Iraq costs us $4 Billion a year. Fraud is rampant and the Bush Administration continues to make it easier to war profiteer.

Georgie knows that he has no way out. There are now reports that the Administration is turning to “solutions” which could be even more devastating than what they have already done. This Administration has absolutely no conception of history and its application to the present.

The media does not get it and will not report the truth. The media will not take responsibility for their part in it. We, the people, cannot turn to the Fourth Estate for anything; certainly not information about the truth in Iraq, or America’s responsibility for the violence in Iraq.

The Bush Administration screwed up. There is ample evidence that their own hubris and incompetence is what has caused the misery in Iraq. Their post-war planning was non-existent. It was non-existent out of choice. The Bush team threw out years of Pentagon planning for a war in Iraq and the rebuilding, in exchange for their own dream plan. BushCo wanted a neo-con utopia, instead he created hell on earth and now he blames the victims of his arrogance for their plight.

The Dems did call them out, many, many times for their lack of post-war planning. The Dems did call them out but now too many of them are joining the mantra of “the Iraqis must take responsibility for their Country.” This has to stop and it has to stop now.

Iraqis want a unity government. They do not want civil war. It is impossible for Iraq to unify their Country while the United States is occupying their land. As long as we are there they cannot do what they need to do. BushCo’s Nation-Building game is a loser… unfortunately, for the rest of the world, it remains a game that Junior must look like he has won.

More Bullshit from the Dumb Asses

2007-01-07T13:49:00.000-08:00

Bullshit: interjection Slang: Vulgar. noun
1. nonsense, lies, or exaggeration.
–verb (used with object)
2. to lie or exaggerate to.
–verb (used without object)
3. to speak lies or nonsense.
–interjection
4. (used esp. to express disagreement.)

Dumb Ass: –noun Slang: Vulgar.
a thoroughly stupid person; blockhead.

I have not been around much, I apologize. Even though my life is hectic and chaotic and extremely stressful, right now, I have managed to pay attention – I have just not had the time to blog. I am not surprised that there is more bullshit from the dumb asses, not surprised at all.

It was fun to hope that the new Democratic majority, as a result of a midterm election that seemed to have surprised the Whitehouse, might lead to some kind of compromise. It was nice to think, if even for a minute, that I could breathe easy for a little while, knowing that this Administration was in check and that they might seek some kind of common ground with the people.

After-all, it was the people who spoke on November 8th. It was the people who said, “we want a change in Iraq, we want the troops home.” It was the people who said this and it was fun to believe, for just a short while, that this Administration might take the message sent by the midterms and remember that they work for us.

I find it impossible to believe that this Administration and their minions really believe that a troop surge is the right thing to do or that it will be helpful. I find it impossible to believe that this Administration’s Republican ass-kickers in the Congress cannot see the truth of what is occurring in Iraq. I find it impossible to believe that the “troop surge supporter’s” connection to reality has been so severed that they cannot see, or hear, how contraindicated that a troop surge is.

This leaves me with the only conclusion that I can come up with: they are lying and they are dumb. Period.

We all understand that the Whitehouse has absolutely no intention of leaving Iraq as long as they are in office. No intention.

“Surge” is simply a way for the Whitehouse to reframe the debate to convince the last 20% of their supporters that this is temporary and to attempt to make the Dems look bad. There is no concern for Iraq or for the Iraqi people. This American occupation of Iraq has never been about ‘liberating’ the Iraqis.

The American occupation of Iraq has been about oil, war profiteering, power grabbing, redefining the presidency and being able to continue war crimes – it has never been about the Iraqis. The Iraqi people are nothing more than cannon fodder at best, just like the 20,000 troops that GW plans to send in as a ‘surge’.

This surge bullshit is too little too late. This Administration has never listened to the generals, as they claim. GW has performed as a petulant, spoiled, little brat – his entire history shows that he only wants to get his way – there are too many reports that he only listens to those who tell him what he wants to hear. How else does one explain the mass exodus of generals, secretaries and staff pouring from the Whitehouse?

Biden thinks the Administration does not know what to do. Biden gives them more credit than I – he is assuming they actually want a solution. Biden assumes that this Administration wants a way to insure “democracy” or “stability” in Iraq. I doubt this – there is more money to be made from constant chaos and endless war.

It seems like there are fewer and fewer people left who support a troop surge, or who support more war in Iraq. Fewer people who think that this is “winnable” or that we cannot leave until the “job is done”. Lieberman, McCain, Bu$hCo and some of the whiny followers like Sessions and Hatch. There are not many left.

The secret letter from the soldier shows what life in Iraq is like. It is not pretty and it is not tolerable. Will Jenna and Barbara be part of the 20,000 surge? How about the war president himself? Will he be off to Iraq to help “secure the peace”?

The soldiers do not want a surge of troops. The veterans do not want a surge of troops. The American people do not want a surge of troops. The Pentagon does not want a surge of troops and neither do Iraqis. The Dems will not support a troop increase.

It is over. No more. No more death and destruction in my name. I am done and the people are done.

I do believe that we are just being fed more bullshit from the dumb asses. Disagree? So sue me.

I Am Still Alive

2006-12-27T10:29:00.000-08:00

We have had some tremendous weather around here (I feel like I live in bizarro world....we awoke to snow this morning!) We lost our power for a week after the biggest storm that our area has ever seen. There are still some people who do not have power. It is truly tragic.

I lost a week of my life and it was the important before Christmas week when I act like super-mom and accomplish everything. I tried to catch up in the two days that I had; it did not work very well.

Things are hectic. I apologize for being so absent. I have not checked my political email for a few weeks….

There are 4400 emails waiting for me to open. Holy crap!

OK, here are a few petitions and such to let you know that I am still alive.

• Send a message of support to Nancy Pelosi.

• See the Love Your Body posters. Yesterday, in the mail, I received the 2007 NOW calendar, “Love Your Body.” It is truly a fabulous campaign, check out the posters.

• Take Wall Street out of politics.

• Stop funding the war – start investigations.

• John Edwards wants to hear from us before making the decision to run for President. Write to him at: JohnEdwards@ReadyToChangeAmerica.com

• Citizen’s Hearing on the Iraq War Tribunal

• Upcoming forums on Washington Clean Elections.

• Vote on who Working Assets should donate to.

• Iraq Veterans Against the War response to the ISG report.

• Fight global poverty.

• The Death of the Bill of Rights

• Great audio file on the impending Police State.

• Write to Congress and tell them what you think about the illegal Iraq Occupation.

• Follow the Money…

• Thank Gov Gregoire for supporting clean elections.

• The Fantasies of the Baker Report and The Dems Go Silent on Iraq

For those wondering about last minute write-offs, here are several organizations who are seeking year end tax-deductible donations.

• Human Rights First

• Save Darfur

• Amnesty International

• NOW Foundation

• American Jewish World Service

• Verified Voting

• The Progressive

• War Kids Relief

• Just 6 Dollars

• Carbon Fund

• Working Assets

• Environmental Defense Action Fund

• The Clinton Foundation

Anything Short of Reparations is Not Enough

2006-12-02T12:49:00.000-08:00

I am sickened, terribly, by the new frame of the US occupation of Iraq.

According to corporate media, some Democratic Leaders, many Republican Leaders and the Bush Administration it is the Iraqi’s fault that things are so devastatingly horrible in Iraq.

Iraq is a proud Nation of 26 million people, none of whom asked that we come in and destroy their country. None of whom asked that we murder, or cause the murder, of 655,000 of their citizens. None of the 1.5 million displaced Iraqis asked to be refugees.

They did not ask for any of this to be done to them and now, because of the clusterfuck that we have caused, the only way for this Administration to attempt to save face is to blame the Iraqis. (Remember, this is the “personal responsibility” president, yet I have never witnessed him taking responsibility for anything.)

Bush claims that the US will leave Iraq if the Iraqi government asks us to. This has been stated before, back in 2004, that we would leave if the Iraqi government asked us to.

The government has asked for a timetable for withdrawal, over a year ago, this was not honored. They asked for a timetable because unfortunately, the Iraqi Parliament cannot yet ask us to leave. I suspect that Bush is aware of this, or he would not have made that statement.

He said that we would leave when the Iraqi “government” asked us to leave, not the Iraqi “people.” He did not say the Iraqi people because he knows that the Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people have wanted us out since Sadaam was overthrown. Bush could not leave then, there was too much money to be made off of the 'rebuilding', too much of an opportunity to create the Neo-Con wet dream. He has never cared what the Iraqi people want. Never.

The only reason to stay in Iraq now is to attempt to save face, put off the inevitable until another Administration can be blamed for the disaster and to continue to war profiteer.

Fraud in Iraq costs us $4 Billion a year. Fraud is rampant and the Bush Administration continues to make it easier to war profiteer.

Georgie knows that he has no way out. There are now reports that the Administration is turning to “solutions” which could be even more devastating than what they have already done. This Administration has absolutely no conception of history and its application to the present.

The media does not get it and will not report the truth. The media will not take responsibility for their part in it. We, the people, cannot turn to the Fourth Estate for anything; certainly not information about the truth in Iraq, or America’s responsibility for the violence in Iraq.

The Bush Administration screwed up. There is ample evidence that their own hubris and incompetence is what has caused the misery in Iraq. Their post-war planning was non-existent. It was non-existent out of choice. The Bush team threw out years of Pentagon planning for a war in Iraq and the rebuilding, in exchange for their own dream plan. BushCo wanted a neo-con utopia, instead he created hell on earth and now he blames the victims of his arrogance for their plight.

The Dems did call them out, many, many times for their lack of post-war planning. The Dems did call them out but now too many of them are joining the mantra of “the Iraqis must take responsibility for their Country.” This has to stop and it has to stop now.

Iraqis want a unity government. They do not want civil war. It is impossible for Iraq to unify their Country while the United States is occupying their land. As long as we are there they cannot do what they need to do. BushCo’s Nation-Building game is a loser… unfortunately, for the rest of the world, it remains a game that Junior must look like he has won.

For the Iraqi people it is their lives. We have destroyed their lives, their families, their homes, their Country. We have destroyed it – it is our responsibility to fix it.

As the truth pours out of Iraq – pours out with the blood of the Iraqi people – Junior becomes more and more desperate. Bush is afraid. It is a horrible, desperate fear. A fear that should make us all afraid. It is the kind of fear that leads to extreme irrationality. He is coming unhinged and his desperation will lead to responses that leave the entire world in danger.

What now?

Nothing short of reparations is enough. The United States has caused this carnage. We are responsible. This is not the Iraqi’s fault and this continued meme cannot be allowed to stand. We must leave their Country, prosecute the war profiteers, imprison, for Treason, the people who lied us into this war, and apologize, apologize, apologize.

Bring our troops home and give the Iraqis their Country back.

UPDATE:

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

The Iraqi people want us out of Iraq.

What, about this demand, is so difficult for everyone to understand?

Trying to Stay in Touch

2006-11-28T12:32:00.000-08:00

I apologize for being so absent as of late. I have had a lot of personal difficulties and staying on line is not very easy.

Here are some quick hits for today. I will attempt to be a little more regular. I apologize to my three readers for nothing new for so long.

Petitions and Events:

• End genocide in Darfur.

• Demand justice for Smithfield workers.

• Hope for the Holidays – Wake Up WalMart events.

• December 10th is Human Rights and Impeachment Day. Find an event here.

• Tell AG Suthers to stop misusing his office

• Stop spying on US citizens.

• Support clean elections.

• Support verified voting.

• Feminist Majority action page

• Tell Congress to make clean energy a priority.

• January 27th protest in DC

• Progressive Portal petitons.

• Tell lawmakers to protect us from the credit card companies.

Items of Interest:

• Read the reports on fake news from PR Watch. We must overcome the propaganda if we are to help to educate this Country.

• Watch the video on “The Best War Ever.”

• Check out CongressPedia. Fabulous website on every bit of Congressional news out there.

• Check out Source Watch. Another project (as are the previous three items of interest) of the Center for Media and Democracy. A site of citizen journalists attempting to get at the truth behind the news; replacing propaganda with facts, one word at a time.

• Stories ignored or not covered by corporate media. From 1976 to present.

• Institute for a Democratic Future taking applications. Building a stronger Washington State.

• You can send messages of condolence and support to Anna Politkovskaya's family and friends via her newspaper, Novaya Gazeta.

• Give the gift of wildlife adoption.

• This site could become useful (if I had more time and energy….)

• Another good publication.

One Big Win. Now: The Fight Continues

2006-11-14T12:11:00.000-08:00

We have a lot of work ahead of us to insure that a Progressive agenda rolls across America. The people want a Progressive agenda; we cannot allow this Country to be defined by the right wing hacks anymore. Traditional media does not represent the people of America; the bloggers do. Let’s roll up our sleeves and get busy.

• Read the newest report on fake news then sign the petition.
• Stop fake news.

• A Liberal’s Pledge to Disheartened Conservatives. From Michael Moore, you can sign on too. It is well worth the read.

• Service Academy Graduates Against the War New organization that has sprung out of West Point Graduates Against the War. Both organizations have a tremendous amount of info on this illegal war and both are very inspirational.

• Americans United has filed a suit against the VA.

• Tell Congress to Bring them Home Now.

• Foreign Policy in Focus has an analysis on what the Dem Congress means for Iraq and what they need to do.

• FPIF also has a great article on Youth Activism

• Stop global human trafficking of children.

• Tell pharmacies to stock Plan B.

• RSVP for Wake Up WalMart conference call with Senator Edwards and Senator Obama.

• Defenders of Wildlife magazine, special global warming section.

• Defenders of Wildlife Action Center

• Take the True Majority survey, what to do next.

• Sign the mandate for peace.

• Should the Dems really “work from the middle”?

• Senator John Edwards on Letterman this Friday. Read an excerpt from his new book “Home”.

• Conservatism fails. This election is a win for the Dems and a win for Progressives. Progressive ideas and values are where Americans are…do not believe the lies about the “new centrist Democrats.” Hogwash. Phoey. BS.

• Save Tasmanian forests.

• Save the North Atlantic whales.

• Free Shi Tao, Chinese journalist.

• Media Matters compares Time covers.

• Then read Sargent’s take on it.

• Demand paper ballots.

A New Direction for America

2006-11-10T07:55:00.000-08:00

The Democratic Party won. Not: The Republicans lost.

It is extremely important to remember that people voted for the Dems. The Democratic Party is the Party of the people. The Dems won; the people won.

Democrats, for instance, won women by 55 percent to 43 percent, their highest margin since 1988. They won independents, the key swing vote, by 18 percentage points, the biggest margin in House races in the past 25 years.

The people have spoken and they are deserving of the respect and honor of what their votes have stated.

Eriposte sums up some election highlights and reminds us that the people are Progressive. The people of America are Center Left. We are well defined and must never again allow the sound machine to define us.

We stand for real American values. We want success for all people and a way forward.

The WAPo is finally commenting on some of the Dem agenda. (Remember: “The Dems have no plans” meme? Perhaps they have to actually cover some of the agenda now?)

The WAPo is now finally giving some of the Dem leaders the respect and coverage that they deserve. Had just a little coverage of the Dem agenda been printed before the elections, it would have been a far larger blowout.

A new direction for America. The Dem agenda has been clear for a very long time. There is nothing ambiguous about what they have proposed. Now it is our job to insure that the Dems follow through with this agenda and more. It is up to us to make sure that the people understand what the Democratically controlled Congress will do for us.

I commented some time ago about the make-up of the House of Representatives. The People’s House. Any diversity in the House of Representatives includes a D. next to their name. The demographics are clear. The Dems are the Party of the people. We are far more representative of the diversity of this Nation and that representation will be felt through every community in this Country.

The Founders of our Country intended the House to be made up of a citizen government, elected every two years, and remain connected to the People. We are a Representative Democracy, the people have the say, and we have spoken.

The Republicans are clueless as to what happened on Tuesday. Let them remain clueless. As long as they are trying to figure out why they lost, they will not be focusing on why we won.

We won because we are Progressives and America is a Progressive Nation. Our Constitution is a Progressive document and the people who founded this Country were Liberals. This election and its results had absolutely nothing to do with anyone “moving to the Right.”

Kos weighs in, Progressive is the pulse of the American people. Conservatism – Neo-Conservatism – is dead. It was based on bullshit and has never been successful in governing or policy. There are no examples of it working, anywhere, anytime.

The new frame that every single Dem and the Dem ‘strategists’ on all of the media need to repeat is “the Republicans need to move towards the Center.” The Republicans are so far to the extreme right that they only represent a handful of the Nation. The Republicans need to abandon their far right agenda and move towards the center. This is the only way that they can benefit the Nation.

Pelosi will kick ass. Her talents and her intelligence have been marginalized by the right. It is time for us to stop allowing the right to define us. We must define ourselves and we must quit this Republican-lite-centrist bullshit. We are Progressive and Proud.

Dismiss the denial of the right and their crap that this election was not a rebuke of the far right extremism. We, the people, took this Country back and it belongs to us…the people, left, right and center who all – excepting a handful on the far right – agree with a Progressive agenda.

My favorite quote on Wednesday from BushCo was:

“I understand when campaigns end and governing begins.”

Sure, I remember all of that wonderful governing that he has done over the last 6 years. While Jr continues living in denial, another surprising twist has occurred in the media. There is a new question arising; ‘will Bu$hCo’s denial be a problem in facing the demands of governing?’ Ya think?

This Country has spoken. We are awake and paying attention. We do not want any more of the right’s extremism.

The Dems won. Not because we moved to the ‘center’ but because we were true to the values that this Nation was founded on. It is time for the Republicans to move to the center, denounce their extremism and join the American people.

GOTFV

2006-11-02T18:13:00.000-08:00

Get Out the Fucking Vote!!

There are already too many reports of voter intimidation and e-voting machines swapping Dem votes to the Pukes.

This is the most important election of our lives. There are a ton of GOTV events. Find one below…there are no shortages of opportunities to make a difference.

America Votes

Move On Call for Change

ONE Campaign - LTTE

Patriot Pledge

Video the Vote

Women’s Voices Women’s Vote

People for the American Way

DNC

DCCC

DSCC

Do More Than Vote

Democratic Governor’s Association

Progress Now Action

Miscellany Voting Info:

No on Prop 85 – commercial to share

Excellent talking points on why women must vote – what to say to remind them.

Common Cause’s Vote Center

Vote 411

Post-Election Round-Up

2006-10-31T12:26:00.000-08:00

There are already reports of election fraud in Texas and Florida.

Many people are wondering what we should do if it is determined, or suspected, that our votes are not counted or they are flipped or if our elections are stolen in any way.

Due to lack of time and energy I did a quick search and took a look at some sites that I frequent and I found a ton of information on groups dedicated to verifying our votes and some articles proving election fraud as well as a lot of organizations who are on the offense to ensure that our votes are counted. There are a lot of organizations set up to monitor election site intimidation or purging from the voter rolls and there are several reporting phone numbers to call in any problems incurred at the polls.

There are also several planned events on Election Day and post election day to rally and protest any stealing of our votes. Peruse the links and get armed with information. This may be a long month.

Democrats dot com is having candlelight vigils outside election offices to ensure that every vote is counted.

Common Cause is having several election day activities and meetings.

Election Protection 365

Blue Revolution

51 Capital March

Oregon Voter Rights

Velvet Revolution

Vote 411

Protect My Vote

Move On paper ballot petition

Move On Phone Parties We have to make sure that we Get Out The Vote so that the election is less easy to steal.

Campaign for Verifiable Voting in Maryland

AFLCIO My Vote, My Right

Vote Protect dot Org

My Vote is My Voice A cool site interested in joining Progressive orgs together.

Articles on e-voting fraud.

EFF

NAACP Voting Page

Black Voter Network

Election Science dot org

Voters Unite

Voter Gate

Vote Scam

Vote Fraud

Verified Voting

Solar Bus

Citizen’s Alliance for Secure Elections

E Voting Experts

Blackbox Voting dot org

This article will just make you cry.

Vote Trust USA

They have known of the risks for a long time.

Working Assets Protect the election

Quick Hits

2006-10-27T12:54:00.000-07:00

I have too much going on in my life right now, so I am using this post to take my mind off of things. Some quick hits, news, petitions, activities and miscellany.

We are down to the wire for the midterms…there are a ton of activities that we can do to ensure a Democratic win; A Democratic win is a win for the people!

This is a lot of fun – in a really sick reality way – turn up the volume.

A win for Americans United. Keeping the wall solid between church and state.

H/T to Media Matters for a great link to historical make-up of the House of Representatives.

Center for American Progress has some terrific talking points and excellent data on what the public wants (and what the Dems will give us.)

Care2 is having a chat with Eleanor Smeal; they also have a tremendous petition site with a ton of current campaigns.

Send Halloween e-cards through Environmental Defense.

An article that makes it very easy to understand why open software is needed for voting. This is sharable – for those friends, family and coworkers who just don’t get it.

Democratic Governors Association has some excellent simple steps that you can do to help.

CodePink has some great action items.

Blue Revolution – how you can help.

Video from the Santa Barbara Impeachment Coalition.

Pukes are swiftboating Kucinich – contribute here to help him combat their attacks.

Jim Hightower’s commentary on corruption.

Go to the ONE voter center, see what you can do to help.

Progressive Patriot Pledge Get Out the Vote

Protect the oceans.

Vote Democratic for the elderly.

Make sure every vote counts.

Watch the new Pombo ad.

Is the Congress protecting you?

Wake Up WalMart recruit a worker.

Vote 411 – election protection site.

Ask your candidates where they stand on global warming; questions for candidates questionnaire.

See pro-environment candidates then take the voter pledge to vote for the environment.

Change to win.

Protect the election before it is too late.

Refuse Illegal War

2006-10-25T10:24:00.000-07:00

John Kerry was forceful as he took on the Administration on Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.” He said:

"I think it is immoral to have the lives of young Americans on the line while you are waiting for an election strategy. If you've got a better strategy, Mr. President, we deserve to have it now."

It is more than immoral though, to allow the troops to stay in Iraq – with how many more Iraqi deaths and how many more American deaths? – until after our elections. This is criminal. Disgusting. Traitorous. This is our leadership?

Meanwhile, as the US cuts benefits to veterans and pays six times the salary of an enlisted person for one of the many ‘privatized’ troops in our occupation of Iraq, military families stand in food lines, starving and struggling. “About Those Troops You’re Supporting: They can’t eat the ribbons” states the title of the article.

I wonder, if Americans had half a clue about the struggles of the military families, or if they understood that it is only the very smallest percentage of our Country that is really in this war, would it make a difference? If Americans knew about the courageous stand that so many service members and their families are taking against this atrocity, would that make a difference? If the American people understood that Iraqis do not want us there, that they believe that we are occupiers and they see the death and destruction that we have caused every single day, would this change American’s minds?

I understand that it is now almost 70% of Americans who are against the occupation of Iraq. However, it is only a very small percentage of Americans who are doing something about it. These people are activists because they have taken the time to find out the truth.

Most Americans do not know because they do not care to know, they do not make the effort to do the research and really see the truth, it is far too painful to have eyes open to what is really going on. The truth sucks, eventually, however, the awful reality will come up and bite us in the ass.

I will make an effort, albeit a very small one, compared to the efforts and sacrifices that so many of these organizations and people involved with them are doing, to outline what some of the truth is.

Military families speak out are working hard to end the occupation of Iraq and bring the troops home. A retired soldier of the US Army who fought in Vietnam, who has a son in Iraq, wrote an open letter to the GIs, reminding them not to lose their humanity. Military Families Speak Out understands the devastation of a human soul once they are taught to murder other people. This father and soldier writes:

“So we finish our tour, and go back to our families, who can see that even though we function, we are empty and incapable of truly connecting to people any more, and maybe we can go for months or even years before we fill that void where we surrendered our humanity, with chemical anesthetics--drugs, alcohol, until we realize that the void can never be filled and we shoot ourselves, or head off into the street where we can disappear with the flotsam of society, or we hurt others, especially those who try to love us, and end up as another incarceration statistic or a mental patient.”

This is what happens to people in war. It is ugly and it is unforgivable that our civilian leadership knowingly does this to our soldiers and then cuts benefits to treat PTSD.

Iraq Veterans against the war are calling for an immediate pullout of the occupation of Iraq. They are demanding that reparations be paid to the Iraqi people for our destruction of their lives and their Country and that full benefits for our veterans are funded. IVAW are very clear on why they are calling for withdrawal and documenting the evidence. I would think that these soldiers know what they are talking about. Isn’t it ironic that the media does not offer representation of these speakers and their positions and the many documented reasons why they are correct?

Bring them home now is also working with military families to end the occupation of Iraq. Their mission statement elaborates on their campaign:

“BRING THEM HOME NOW! is a campaign of military families, veterans, active duty personnel, reservists and others opposed to the ongoing war in Iraq and galvanized to action by George W. Bush's inane and reckless challenge to armed Iraqis resisting occupation to "Bring 'em on."Our mission is to mobilize military families, veterans, and GIs themselves to demand: an end to the occupation of Iraq and other misguided military adventures; and an immediate return of all US troops to their home duty stations.”

An appeal for redress is a simple campaign in which active duty military can ask their congress members to bring the troops home now. Service members have limitations on what they can do, the law denies them the ability to protest except in special circumstances, only in the US, off base and out of uniform. An appeal for redress is a legal way for them to demand an end to the war in, and occupation of, Iraq.

Anti War is a tremendous resource which includes numerous articles about the futility of war. They include an excellent list of other peace campaigns and ideas about what we can do to help to end the occupation of Iraq and stop other wars before they start.

United for Peace and Justice is one of the most active organizations when it comes to combating and protesting this war. They have ongoing campaigns and protests and usually have local chapters that are easy to get in touch with and participate in. They have an excellent links page which leads to many other orgs that are fighting against war, and for peace. Their statement of purpose is focused and shows how active their organization is:

“United for Peace and Justice is a coalition of more than 1300 local and national groups throughout the United States who have joined together to protest the immoral and disastrous Iraq War and oppose our government's policy of permanent warfare and empire-building.”

Code Pink is a wonderful women initiated organization that is fighting the immoral occupation of Iraq.

“CODEPINK is a women-initiated grassroots peace and social justice movement working to end the war in Iraq, stop new wars, and redirect our resources into healthcare, education and other life-affirming activities. CODEPINK rejects the Bush administration's fear-based politics that justify violence, and instead calls for policies based on compassion, kindness and a commitment to international law. With an emphasis on joy and humor, CODEPINK women and men seek to activate, amplify and inspire a community of peacemakers through creative campaigns and a commitment to non-violence.”

In addition to the many groups fighting against the Iraq war, all future wars, and for peace, there are many individual people who are refusing illegal war.
War resisters dot org offers a tremendous amount of information for service members who want to refuse illegal war. Tomjoad is also dedicated to supporting individual war resisters. Courage to Resist also supports individual resisters and offers information on how service members can refuse illegal war. Mission Rejected is a new book that details the thousands of soldiers who have resisted the illegal war in Iraq. There is also a movement to make conscientious objector rights a law rather than just a policy that can be revoked at anytime.

There are two soldiers who I have been watching because of their brave stances against this illegal war; Suzanne Swift and Lt Ehren Watada.

Suzanne Swift is currently AWOL because she refused to redeploy after being sexually assaulted and harassed by her superior officers. The culture of acceptance of violence against women in the military is so prevalent and so obscene that many women are told that it is “part of basic training” and it has led to deaths of women. According to this article

“The Defense Department says that reports of sexual assaults involving members of the armed forces rose 40 percent in 2005, and 65 percent in the last two years.”

Because sexual assault is so prevalent, many women have died of dehydration because they were not drinking fluids due to fear of going to the latrines at night and being raped. Suzanne Swift needs our support and letters of encouragement. No one should ever be punished for being a victim of sexual assault.

Lt Watada has become a hero and a wonderful representation of sanity. He is the first Commissioned Officer to publicly refuse deployment based on an illegal war. His eloquence is unmatched. His website has a multimedia section where his speeches can be viewed. Lt Watada said:

“The oath we take swears allegiance not to one man but to a document of principles and laws designed to protect the people. Enlisting in the military does not relinquish one's right to seek the truth - neither does it excuse one from rational thought nor the ability to distinguish between right and wrong. "I was only following orders" is never an excuse.”

…

“The Constitution is no mere document - neither is it old, out-dated, or irrelevant. It is the embodiment of all that Americans hold dear: truth, justice, and equality for all. It is the formula for a government of the people and by the people. It is a government that is transparent and accountable to whom they serve. It dictates a system of checks and balances and separation of powers to prevent the evil that is tyranny.”

….

“I have broken no law but the code of silence and unquestioning loyalty. If I am guilty of any crime, it is that I learned too much and cared too deeply for the meaningless loss of my fellow soldiers and my fellow human beings. If I am to be punished it should be for following the rule of law over the immoral orders of one man. If I am to be punished it should be for not acting sooner. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period … was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people."

Lt Watada has become a hero. He is an officer second and a responsible human being first. He, like all soldiers who refuse illegal war, deserve our support and our gratitude.

We can end this insanity. We can stop this war. We must band together and stand in a united front; we will work for peace and for justice. I believe that peace is a much more powerful position than war and fighting. I believe that the innate nature of humans is to work together, to be democratic, to hold Peace and Justice and Love above the insanity of hatred.

This is quite possibly the core difference between the left and the right. The right believes that humans are, at the core, bad, and must not be allowed to participate in governing. The left believes that human beings are, at the core, good, and that peace and justice are our Natural State. The left believes that humans should participate in, and be, the government.

This is why the left must succeed. The right’s vision of endless war cannot be allowed to prevail.

UPDATE: Upon a return home and a quick review of the news, there has been a lot released about Iraq today and the news from Iraq is grim.

Bush plays a semantics game and hopes that no one will notice.

The WAPo is actually covering the appeal for redress!

Reality is a bitch.

I noticed that the preznit once again denied permanent bases in Iraq. Bullshit.

Who Does a Loss Really Hurt?

2006-10-21T13:05:00.000-07:00

The Dems do not want to fight stolen elections because they are afraid of being painted as “sore losers”.

We do not care what they are labeled as; we want our votes to count and we want fair elections. The entire future of the world is at stake and riding on the results of this midterm election; this is the most important election of our lives. The Dems absolutely must take back the Congress. The polls show that the people want the Dems to control the Congress.

I, along with most people, cannot believe the amount of damage that has occurred over these last six years. America has been turned upside down. Our National Debt has nearly doubled. We have lost all of our moral authority in the world. Hundreds of thousands of people have died as a result of this Administration’s policies. Our Constitution has been shredded.

All of this has occurred as a result of three stolen elections.

Gore gave up fighting. Kerry didn’t fight. Numerous people lost in 2002 (Max Cleland) as a result of swapped votes; they didn’t fight either.

Did all of these people avoid fighting because they did not want to be painted as sore losers? Look at the loss that has occurred for all of us as a result of these stolen elections. Who are the real losers?

I was amazed, while listening to CSPAN hearings onHR 4844, when I heard the Republicans cite their own election fraud as proof for the need of a National voter ID which will disenfranchise thousands of people, mostly lower income and the elderly who are typically Democratic voters. It is the goal of the Republicans to disenfranchise as many people as possible.

The Republicans claim that voter fraud at the polls is a problem. They are not afraid of being labeled sore losers when they scream and yell about perceived:

• ‘dead people’ voting
• Illegal aliens voting
• Felon voters
• Voter impersonation

Unfortunately, for these Republican’s who cited ‘over-votes’ as proof of these problems, the facts do not support these claims. An under-reported Elections Assistance Commission report (PDF) found that there was very little evidence of this type of voter fraud while the evidence of the kind of election fraud that affects Democratic voters is widespread.

We understand clearly what the Dems must fight against and what they must try to combat before the elections. This type of election fraud has been proven.

• Intimidation letters

• Challenging registrations and making it difficult to register.

• Confusing ballots

• Voting machines that malfunction, record incorrectly, are difficult to use, contain software bugs and switch votes.

• Voting machines that are easily hacked.

• Exceptionally long lines to vote. (PDF)

• Department of Justice not investigating voter intimidation and disenfranchisement.

• Chaos at the polls.

• Long lines and discouragement.

It really is amazing the Democratic Party has done very little to get out in front of this and combat these problems. Also, they absolutely must prepare the electorate for this kind of fraud and make certain that there are enough voices in the corporate media, warning of these claims, before the elections. They also need to get over the fear of being painted as a “sore loser” and remember who the real losers are.

As I noted in an earlier post, there are several organizations who are fighting this election fraud. Bev Harris’ group has an amazing citizen’s tool kit (pdf) which contains all of the instructions on how to play an active role in your elections and confirm that the rules are followed and that the people who are eligible to vote, are allowed to vote.

I believe that her organization is the one asking people to videotape any disenfranchisement at the polls and send the evidence in, although I cannot find that info on her site. If anyone can clarify this, please let me know.

In addition, most of the groups listed also have numbers or emails to report violations or disenfranchisement issues. We need to be eyes and ears and help these groups fighting to preserve our votes and our right to vote.

Lou Dobbs has been one of the only people in the corporate media to bring to the public’s attention the danger of electronic voting. I believe that this is really a good thing, getting the message out to the public, but a frightening thought occurred as a result. (I am very suspicious of the corporate media doing their job.)

Yesterday Steve at TLC put up a post stating that polls show that 2/3 of the public do not trust the voting machines. One of the posters brought up an interesting point that led to a thought of impending disaster.

What if the media is preparing us for a Republican challenge to the results of the elections?

They are not afraid of being painted as “sore losers”. So, what if the Dems do win a landslide of seats and the Republicans bring up the unreliability of electronic voting? Then the Preznit with his Unitary Executive Authority, nullifies the elections and keeps the Pukes in charge? Then we all take to the streets and Marshall Law is declared and we all get thrown in the detention centers that KBR is building?

Just sayin’.

UPDATE: The DNC is seeking attorneys to volunteer in every district to ensure the elections are fair and that every vote is counted. Seems they are lining up for a fight. Let's hope they have enough volunteers and are prepared to be declared "sore losers."

UPDATE 2: Common Cause who is working tirelessly for election reform, needs help funding their voter hotline.

1-866-MY-VOTE-1

They were able to use this hotline in 2004 to track disenfranchisement efforts and other difficulties that voters had at the polls.

Friday Petitions and Activities and Tidbits

2006-10-20T13:34:00.000-07:00

• Put your candidate on the record on where they stand on global warming.

• Pledge to Vote No on 933

• Free Press has several active campaigns.

• Confirm your registration to vote. In most places it is too late to register to vote online. You must take your registration form into the Country Registrars office. Make sure to remind your friends and family to register to vote.

• DefCon’s action page.

• Why are these people allowed to stay on the air?

• UFPJ action page

• Tonight’s NOW is about public funding of elections. JustSixDollars will be featured in it.

• YouTube video on Lt. Watada.

• Support the Patriot Project, stop swiftboating.

• Read Aaron Dixon’s statements about being locked out of the WA Senate debate.

• John Dean’s article on Kuo’s book Tempting Faith.

• Women’s Voices, Women’s Vote ads

• Keep oil and gas wells off public lands.

• American’s United action page. They also are introducing three new websites:

o Project Fair Play
o Piety and Politics
o United on Campus

• WalMart’s Right Wing Agenda video

• Take the ACLU survey.

You Only Think You Have the Right to Vote

2006-10-18T14:11:00.000-07:00

If your voter registration has you listed as a Democrat, or you are in any way considered part of a demographic that leans Democratic, you will quite possibly be denied the right to vote in November.

According to this diary at DKos, this purge occurred after this year’s primary, so do not allow successful primary voting to be a determinate in your consideration about your eligibility to vote.

The Republicans know that they cannot win on their own merits. They know that the polls show that the Country is done with Republican rule. They know that their policies go against American wishes and values. They know that they cannot win so they will steal the elections again.

The Whitehouse has been eerily upbeat about the midterms. One sentence in this article has received little attention:

The question is whether this is a case of justified confidence -- based on Bush's and Rove's electoral record and knowledge of the money, technology and other assets at their command -- or of self-delusion.

I am certain that the author of this article intended “technology and other assets” to mean the Republican get out the vote software and their last 72-hour voter drive activities…but we can take it to mean what it truly does; electronic voting machines that flip the votes and the new Diebold voter registry system software that purges [Democratic] voters from the rolls.

Thom Hartmann did a piece this morning on the danger of the voter rolls being purged. White Rose Society replays Thom’s program daily. You can listen to the archives of his show here.

They stole the 2004 election. The proof is overwhelming and there has been nothing done about it. We cannot count on the Republican Congress to do anything about it. We cannot count on the Republican Justice Department to do anything about it.

We must take this into our own hands and confirm for ourselves that our registration is active and then confirm that our votes our counted. You can register to vote here and get access to your Secretary of State to confirm that your registration is active. You can also confirm your registration here.

If our votes are denied us, or our exit polls do not match the ‘official count,’ what will we do to demand that our votes are counted?

When the July election in Mexico was thought to be fraudulent (and later, proven to be,)(PDF) the Mexican people took to the streets and demanded that their votes be counted. Unfortunately, despite the proven fraud, the election was called for Calderon. The ballots are to be burned. This is our story too - but no one in the corporate media seems willing to report on it here. Corporate media seems unwilling to speak the truth about our broken elections.

Mark Crispin Miller, author of “Fooled Again” an amazing book on how the Right stole the 2004 election, warns us about their continued ability, and desire, to steal elections.

The following sites are dedicated to insuring that all of our votes are counted and provide substantial proof about the stolen elections:

• Verified Voting

• Voting Integrity

• Voters Unite

• Brad Blog

• Black Box Voting

• Truth Out articles on voters rights and questionable elections.

• Coalition for Voting Integrity

• Crisis Papers, selected articles and links about stolen elections.

In addition to all of the information about the 2004 elections, there is also a tremendous amount of information about the 2000 election and the disenfranchisement of thousands of people. A short flash movie about the 2000 election, and a report by Greg Palast, shows how they did it.

We know what they will do, because they have done it before. We are well aware of their dirty tricks.

This time we need to get out in front of it. We need to take some steps to get this story out into the media. This is action that we need to take now, before the elections, before the wrong people are sworn into office, before oaths are taken when the elections have not yet even been certified.

If you know anyone in Ohio; call them. Ask them to go to the county office and see if they have been purged.

Get this story out. Contact everyone you know. Contact the media – ask them if they are covering the story of Democratic voters being purged from the rolls in at least four states.

Blog this story. We need to get out in front of the deception before the deception is allowed to take over.

It truly seems like most Americans have no concept anymore of what democracy is. The seeming willingness of so many people to roll over and take it - loss of our Bill of Rights, loss of our privacy, loss of our right to vote - our seeming willingness to allow them to take America from us, must stop and must stop now. What more will it take for the outrage to turn to action? What more will it take for the people to stand up and tell them, "no more!"?

This is our America. Either it is an America where we all have the right to have a say in our Country, in our laws, in who represents us - or it is despotism. Without a say, without our vote, we have a tyranny. Will it be self-imposed tyranny, by our unwillingness to fight them while we still could.

A Few Petitions

2006-10-17T16:33:00.000-07:00

Had a post coming, just cannot get to it today.

For now, a few petitions and activities.

Tell Congress to say no to big oil.

Campaign for America’s Future wants to feature you in a tough political ad about how you have been affected by Republican corruption.

Public Campaign Action Fund needs your help to support clean elections in California.

Live DefCon chat on Friday with Rev. Mel White author of “Religion Gone Bad.”

Stop the Abuse of Power

Big oil doesn’t care about polar bears, show that you do.

Protect the separation between church and state.

Demand a receipt for your vote.

Stop war with Iran.

Progressive bumper stickers

and

Some cool tools for fighting back.

Protect the rainforests.

Progressive Majority wants you to tell a friend about them.

Get your free campaign kit from Just 6 Dollars and look for them

to be featured this Friday night 10.20.06 on NOW.

Been Sick

2006-10-17T11:00:00.000-07:00

Sorry guys.

I have been really sick the last several days.

My ass is still dragging but I plan to get something together soon.

Thanks to all of my three readers for their patience.

Get to Work Thursday

2006-10-12T10:08:00.000-07:00

There is a tremendous amount of work to do and so much to cover. Time is short. Mid-terms are right around the corner and we are just a stone’s throw away from taking back our government. This is the most important election of our lifetimes.

Petitions:

• Working Assets has a few active campaigns.

• Don’t let Ma Bell monopolize the Internet.

• Save Wildlife refuges.

• Give Peace a Vote

• Stop Genocide in Darfur and end HIV/AIDS.

• Save Darfur

• Pledge to vote Pro-Choice.

• Several active campaigns at NARAL.

• End the mutilation of women.

• Americans are fed up with weak privacy laws.

Activities:

• DNC is asking that we take election day off of work to help get people to the polls.

• Remove Bush’s Cabinet and win some ice cream!

• Attend a screening of “Iraq for Sale.” Holy Crap – I saw this last night. You must see it, it will make you furious enough to get active.

• Write a letter to the editor re: verified voting.

• Department of Peace Conference in DC in February.

• Pick a Progressive Party.

• Get your candidate to sign the Voters First Pledge

• Host or attend a ONE house party.

• Say thank you to courageous people who have stood up against government abuse.

Miscellany:

• John Kerry has a great rundown on the mid-term make-or-break elections and the clusterfuck that is Iraq.

• Straight Talk Live talking points on the economy. Not so rosy as the WH claims.

• Read Waxman’s new response to a report on the disaster that is Part D.

• Ramsey Clark needs help placing the next Impeachment ad in the NY Times.

• Get your free JustSixDollars Campaign Kit.

• Help MoveOn get Progressives elected.

• United for Peace has some great t-shirts and other ways to make Peace visible in your community, help them to continue their great work.

• Frightening new global warming reports.

• Remembering Paul Wellstone (and asking some tough questions.)

• National Environmental Scorecard from LCV.

• EFF sues for information on electronic surveillance.

• PFAW looking for funds to stop disenfranchisement.

• DFA Get out the Vote slogan contest.

"Do-It-yourself" Impeachment

2006-10-10T13:02:00.000-07:00

Impeach for Peace is asking that everyone who believes that the President has committed impeachable offenses and wants to see public hearings download, and mail, petitions to ask the Congress to hold impeachment hearings.

The “Do-It-Yourself Impeachment” is based on the Jefferson rules and has been used before (1830).

October 12th is the National mail in day for all of the Impeachment petitions. 2-3 copies need to be mailed. One copy to Sensenbrenner, Chair of House Judiciary Committee, one copy to Conyers, Ranking Member and Minority Chair of the House Judiciary Committee and one copy to your own Representative (optional).

I do not know what kind of an impact that it will make, but it is worth a try. We must do anything and everything possible. They want to mail them all in one day so that the offices will be flooded. If they receive enough it will hopefully garner media attention.

There are many resolutions that have been passed all over the Country and several jurisdictions have an Impeachment Initiative on their ballots. There are instructions here on how to have your local city/board/organization pass one.

There are many sites on the Internet dedicated to Impeachment and documenting all of the crimes of the Bush Administration. Here are just a few:

After Downing Street dot org Documentation of impeachable offenses and a tremendous amount of activism.

Impeach Bush dot tv Features arguments and talking points for impeachment.

Impeach Pac dot org Representatives who are running on an impeachment platform.

Impeach Bush Coalition This is a coalition of websites advocating for impeachment, also where you can get the impeachment ribbon for your site.

Impeach Bush dot org This organization is involved with Ramsey Clark and has full articles of impeachment on the site as well as downloadable petitions.

No Way Bush dot info Featuring another book on the Impeachment of Bush and advocating for a class action lawsuit on behalf on any military families who have lost a member as the result of this illegal war.

Impeach Central dot com Another group advocating impeachment, complete with petitions and meet-up information.

Democrats dot com Impeachment investigation petition.

This Can’t Be Happening dot net Site of Dave Lindorff author of “The Case for Impeachment.”

The Four Reasons dot org Tremendous resource with links to a massive amount of documentation.

World Tribunal findings on the illegality of the Iraq War

West Point Graduates Against the War Tremendous documentation of crimes committed.

Petition to Impeach dot com Another on-line impeachment petition.

Velvet Revolution dot us A tremendous amount of data on why impeachment is necessary.

Michael Moore dot com “You can impeach the president.”

Articles of Impeachment dot net The Center for Constitutional Rights, who have also published the book of the same title "Articles of Impeachment," offer a short documentary on why.

Read Conyer’s statement. (PDF)

A previous post where I outlined the Case for Impeachment.

There are so many reasons for impeachment and I am increasingly concerned that we will never get our Country back or regain any credibility in the world until impeachment occurs. The crimes are immense and the world has suffered greatly at the hands of this regime. This is necessary and it is the right thing to do. It is our responsibility to end the tyranny.

(Hat-tip to causal for posting "Do-It-Yourself" Impeachment here.)

Happy Birthday John

2006-10-09T10:16:00.000-07:00

Many of us regard December 8th as a day of mourning and a day of remembrance. Yoko always asked that we remember today and celebrate his life, rather than the day that he was murdered.

A couple of weeks ago we had the opportunity to see the US versus John Lennon.

It was truly a beautiful movie about a beautiful man who had a vision.

He Imagined a world where people truly lived in peace. A world absent of materialism and greed, labeling and dogma – a world that was safe for every human. A world that we have grown farther from today than perhaps any time in our history.

John believed in and practiced “Bagism”: An ideal where there were no labels and no prejudice. An ideal where people could be exactly who they are and not suffer from judgment and deception.

Yoko stated that the theory of Bagism was inspired by the theme in the book "the Little Prince":

"One sees rightly only with the heart, the essential is invisible to the eyes." She hoped that the bag, by hiding her and John's physical appearance, would make their essence or the essence of their message visible.

Bagism dot com is a site dedicated to John. Part of their mission statement continues John & Yoko’s philosophy of a state of being devoid of prejudice and judgment.

"The underlying concept of John and Yoko's "bagism" idea is interactivity among people without prejudice."

Absence of prejudice is such a simple concept, yet its beauty is completely lost in today’s society.

Today we live in an America where an entire political group is demonized and placed in a category of “unpatriotic” because we have decided that we believe in Peace and Justice. We believe that war does not serve a purpose and we do not want to be a part of a system that thrives on greed and murder.

Because we want Peace, because we believe in truth and goodness and an America that holds people up and cares for the least among us – we are labeled as whacko and fringe and ‘haters of America.’ The extreme labels us as ‘godless’ and traitors and un-American.

There is nothing un-American about standing up for freedom and equality and peace. These are American traits and I no longer will allow the right to take these traits from us and re-brand them as bad.

John was demonized for fighting for peace. He was attacked by Nixon with bogus immigration suits. He was followed and spied on. His phones were tapped and his mail was read. Why? Because he fought for peace.

His message was simple: War is Over, if you want it.

John was instrumental in exposing Nixon’s paranoia and enemies list. If it weren’t for his continued fight many of Nixon’s crimes might not have been exposed.

We were able to see this movie through a free screening offered by the ACLU. The ACLU today is fighting many of the same battles that John fought almost 40 years ago.

Today’s battles are greater, however, because more of our Constitution has been shredded, we do not have the same rights that we once did to help us in our fight. In the Nixon era, the Congress still had a majority of members in it who knew why they served. The Nixon era Congress contained members who understood their oaths to uphold and defend the Constitution.

Today’s Congress is devoid of a majority who understand this role. Today’s Congress is filled with rubber-stamp Republicans who believe that their role is to do the President’s bidding and will not hold him accountable for the most egregious offenses.

My gratitude to John is unending. He was revolutionary, not only for music but for a movement towards a society where everyone had the same opportunity and each human was valued because they existed. Existence was the only requirement, not class or color or creed.

We have gone far in the other direction, John, and I am sorry. I am sorry that more people do not understand the value in the simple messages that you preached. Materialism and shallowness are the principal descriptors of today’s America. We are now a Country that you might not fight to stay in. We are now a bigoted and intolerant society hell-bent on the destruction of this world.

Perhaps our own self-destruction will come first. This bottom will arrive not because of those of us who practice tolerance, but because of those who worship a man who preached it but know nothing of what it means.

Rummy to English Translation

2006-10-08T20:27:00.000-07:00

Another call for him to resign or be fired, which of course will go unheeded. The Deciderer in Chief knows what's best. One cannot make a change when there is never a willingness to see what is wrong in the first place.

In psychiatric terms this is called “delusion”. In the blind-following, sheeple, neo-conservative, Christian Right Fundamentalist Cult, it is called “determined.”

I hear these people call into CSPAN; George Bush is a “good Christian” dontcha know? “He is the only one who knows the danger to us and he is leading the fight.” (Protector/Daddy as some would define it, or more appropriately the “authoritarian” personality that Dean so beautifully researches in “Conservatives Without Conscience.”)

These people will all follow him blindly and unquestioningly into the desert for 40 years. Blindly and unquestioningly (if you have someone to tell you what the truth is then there is no need to think for yourself. This is a lazy way of living and the antithesis to the Age of Enlightenment which our Country was founded on.) If there is a god, they would have already left seeking their homeland.

This truly terrifying article from the WAPo today is just a snipet of a Rummy memo from May 1st.

"Illustrative New 21st Century Institutions and Approaches."

Unfortunately it requires translation, without which the danger might go unrecognized. I will do my best to help to open some eyes as to what is being said here.

"Today the world requires new international organizations tailored to new circumstances."

Translation: The world is not bowing to us as they should. We are the great and powerful USA. If the rest of the world will not tolerate our imperialism and will not allow us exemption from International laws then we must create our own International Organizations which accept our actions and our preemptions and will not get in our way.

"Current institutions such as the UN, NATO, OAS, the African Union, ECOWAS, ASEAN and the European Union, to mention a few, were designed at a time when the world's challenges were notably different. Some were formed over half a century ago to further U.S. foreign and security policy purposes."

Translation: We are the great and powerful USA. We made these organizations. We can break these organizations. The only reasons that these organizations exist is for the USA. The rest of the world does not matter. The interests of the other Countries in the world do not matter. We are the US of A. Our race and our interests are superior to everyone else’s. If these organizations stand in the way of the USA in any way, shape or form, they must be abolished.

"Today, as U.S. goals in the world at large have changed, existing international institutions have failed to adapt sufficiently."

Translation: We determine which laws and policies are working for us at any given time; the rest of the world must adapt to our determinations. If any International Organization attempts to hold us accountable we will brush them away and crush them into non-existence. No one can tell us what to do. No one can police us. We are the great and powerful USA.

"The threat Iran is posing and will likely continue to pose argues that it may well be time to form a new collective security arrangement for the Middle East and/or the Arabian Sea."

Translation: If it were not for the oil under these A-rabs feet, we would have already turned their whole desert to glass. As a result, we need to have organizations and Nations ready to do our bidding and keep Iran in check. We need that oil, we cannot bomb them back to the stone-age so we must convince the region that it is in their interest to keep them in check.

"The broader [U.S. government] structure is still in the industrial age and it is not serving us well. It is time to consider a new Hoover Commission to recommend ways to reorganize both the executive and legislative branches, to put us on a more appropriate path for the 21st century. Only a broad, fundamental reorganization is likely to enable federal departments and agencies to function with the speed and agility the times demand. The charge of incompetence against the U.S. government should be easy to rebut if the American people understand the extent to which the current system of government makes competence next to impossible."

Translation: A government of, by and for the people is not conducive to the Unilateral Dictatorship that is needed for the military industrial complex to fully reach its potential. With the people of the Country having so much say in the processes of the government we cannot fully do what we want.

It is important for us to convince the people that government does not work because it is a Constitutional Republic. We must continue to show the people that the perceived incompetence is not really incompetence but it is inability to perform because of our system of government. Katrina, the inability to account for trillions of dollars in the defense department and the [mis]management of the Iraq war is just the beginning of what we will intentionally fuck up…

After we are done proving to the people how much that a Representative Democracy does not work, they will be begging us for the dictatorship that is needed.

Interesting, according to this Frontline Special many these re-orgs have already occurred:

“and reveals troubling flaws in what has been the largest reorganization of the government in half a century.”

Hmmm, what more reorganization is needed? Abolition of the Congress? Privatization of all governmental agencies? Dissolution of elections? Unilateral rewriting of the Constitution? One has to ask, how much more can they fuck up this Country? How much more? Especially if this is their intent. Fuck it up to prove to us that it does not work.

"The only choice is to trash the current laws and to undertake a total overhaul of the current systems."

Translation: The only laws that this Country needs are laws that limit the rights of the people. Any laws that limit the government must be abolished.

"Today the centers of gravity of the conflict in Iraq and the global war on terror are not on battlefields overseas. Rather, the center of gravity of this war are on the centers of public opinion in the U.S. and in the capitals of free nations."

Translation: The only reason that the US was defeated in Vietnam was because we lost the public. If the public opinion had not changed then we would have been able to keep fighting. The only reason that public opinion changes, is if the public has access to information. Free Nations allow people access to information. Information is dangerous to us being able to do what we want.

"When the U.S. government tries to compete in the communications arena it runs up against lack of national consensus and understanding about what means are acceptable to the media and to the Congress and disagreements as to what is legal. . . ."

Translation: We must abolish any laws that limit our ability to propagandize and we must limit any laws that allow people access to information. We also must abolish any laws that allow people to speak and write what they want. The dissemination of information and free-speech is dangerous to our totalitarian rule.

Summary: If these people are allowed to remain in power and unchecked the whole world is in danger. The greatest danger to the United States and her people is this Administration and their theory of Unitary Executive.

This Administration

• has no respect for the Rule of Law

• has no respect for the International Community

• has no respect for the American People

• has no respect for our System of Government

• has no respect for our Constitution

• has no respect for our History

• has no respect for the Congress

• has no respect for Freedom of Information

• has no respect for Freedom of Speech

• has no respect for our Humanity

It does little to point out their incompetence, especially when the incompetence is intentional.

As I often do for comfort, when overwhelmed with the stark and ugly truth, I turn to Thomas Jefferson, my hero, for wisdom.

What he said here, of Europe in 1786, can be said about the sheeple in America today (italics are my substitutions):

"~~In these countries [of Europe]~~,... [for the neo-Conservatives in America] ignorance, superstition, poverty, and oppression of body and mind, in every form, are so firmly settled on the mass of the people, that their redemption from them can never be hoped. If the Almighty had begotten a thousand sons, instead of one, they would not have sufficed for this task. If all the ~~sovereigns of Europe~~ [neo-cons] were to set themselves to work, to emancipate the minds of their subjects from their present ignorance and prejudices, and that, as zealously as they now endeavor the contrary, a thousand years would not place them on that high ground, on which ~~our common people~~ [the Progressives] are now setting out." --Thomas Jefferson to George Wythe, 1786. ME 5:396

I do not know what it will take for them to wake-up, but Jefferson guides us on what must be done next:

"The oppressed should rebel, and they will continue to rebel and raise disturbance until their civil rights are fully restored to them and all partial distinctions, exclusions and incapacitations are removed." --Thomas Jefferson: Notes on Religion, 1776. Papers 1:548

And why:

"Freedom of religion, freedom of the press, trial by jury, habeas corpus, and a representative legislature... I consider as the essentials constituting free government, and... the organization of the executive is interesting as it may insure wisdom and integrity in the first place, but next as it may favor or endanger the preservation of these fundamentals." --Thomas Jefferson to Pierre Samuel Dupont de Nemours, 1815. ME 14:255

"Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God." --Thomas Jefferson: his motto.

We Must Be the Voice of Reason

2006-10-07T11:00:00.000-07:00

Today kicks of another DNC get out the vote drive. They are in need of as many people as possible to show up at an event and canvass for the Dems.

It is no secret that the Pukes have many more years experience at getting out the vote. They have massive databases and the Christian Right just cannot wait to get busy for them; organizing, making phone calls, manipulating each other and their family and friends (doin’ the work of god, dontcha know.)

The Pukes own the media and it is pointless to think that the Dems will get any representation from the talking heads. The media has their own agenda (what with all of the money to be made from illegal wars and stuff.) We cannot count on the media to report accurately or to offer a platform for our Party. We must be their voice.

America is ripe for alternatives. We need to get busy and give them some.

We must be the voice for the Dems. We must get out and be active. For every person who bitches ‘where are the Dems?’ and ‘why don’t the Dems speak out?’ realize that we are the Dems, we must speak out, we are here – stand up and be counted.

How many times does the media repeat ‘the Dems have no plans on Iraq’ and are ‘weak on National Security’?

How about these plans:

• the Biden plan

• the Boxer plan

• Center for American Progress Plan endorsed by many Dems

• Real Security Act

• Feingold on Iraq

• Kennedy on Real Security

• Harkin on waste, fraud and abuse

• Levin on Iraq

• Leahy on Iraq

• the Kerry plan

• Kerry’s plan in more detail

• Real Security

• Feingold talking points

• The Murtha plan

• House Out of Iraq Caucus

• House Dems on Iraq

Well, there is a hell of a lot more here than ‘stay the course’.

For good measure I held my nose and visited the RNC and several Puke Senator’s websites…there is no plan for Iraq except stay the course. Oh, and Iraq has been all lumped in with the ‘war on terra’ and I did not find on any of the Senators sites that I visited a button for “Iraq”. Interesting.

In fairness, Frist released a statement on the Senate Republican site about his recent visit to Iraq. According to Frist, ‘we must continue to win the hearts and minds’ (heh, through torture, indefinite detention, displacement and murdering family members?) and he is convinced that Al Qaeda released a letter stating that they are losing. (I might add, he also supports Hastert, the enabler of child predators.)

I wonder how come the talking heads never ask “what is the Republican plan for getting out of the clusterfuck that is Iraq?” Not a mention of ‘they broke it, they must fix it…’ Silence. I would really like to see a ‘Dem Strategist’ say this next time that they are on one of the talking heads shows…but I digress.

The point is, the media will not report on the Dems plans so we must do it for them. There is plenty of opportunity to get out there today with other Dems and take back our Country. We must do this. This is the most important election of our lives.

What to say when you knock on doors?

Here are some great sites for talking points:

• Straight Talk

• Frameshop

• Center for American Progress

• One America Committee

• DNC

• DCCC

• DSCC

• The Democrats

UPDATE: Look at these numbers. New Newsweek Poll shows the GOP at record lows.

Shows the Preznit at 33%.

Holy crap.

Thank You, Keith Olbermann, Once Again

2006-10-06T11:53:00.000-07:00

Holy Crap.

His brilliance is unmatched and he is the only voice of sanity on the teevees. I really am grateful – and a little frightened about his future. We must make certain that MSNBC knows how much we appreciate Keith. It is time to flood them with emails and letters, we have to let Keith know that we have got his back.

Crooks and Liars is all over it. If just a third of all of the hundreds of commenters there would send a thank you, we could make an impact. Encourage people to do so.

In addition, I ran across this site. I will probably be adding the “atta boy” button to my site. Direct thank you’s to Keith. I am not sure where they go, but the site editor seems legit.

I will repeat what I said after his last special comment:

Keith’s special comments have become the highlight of any my television viewing. He always encapsulates my emotion and he says what he says with the passion and eloquence that I could only hope to achieve in my lifetime.

He is brilliant. The poetry of what he writes and the delivery of his speech is absolutely unmatched. I cannot thank him enough.

And so must we all.

Please write to Keith, MSNBC, the Countdown Producers, Microsoft and NBC Corporate. We must let the media know that this is what we want. We want the truth. We want people to report on the dangers to America; our civil liberties, our moral authority, our treasury, our blackened Soul.

Email addresses are:

• Countdown@MSNBC.com

• KOlbermann@MSNBC.com

• ViewerServices@MSNBC.com

• DAbrams@MSNBC.com

For good measure, send a hard copy thank you letter as well:

• MSNBC on the Internet
One Microsoft Way
Redmond, WA 98052

• NBC News
30 Rockefeller Plaza
New York, N.Y. 10112

• MSNBC TV
One MSNBC Plaza
Secaucus, N.J. 07094

UPDATE: Froomkin calls Olbermann "shrill". Hit the WAPo blog and let Froomkin know that Olbermann deserves respect and gratitude.

World Can't Wait

2006-10-05T17:38:00.000-07:00

Currently – this very minute - there are protests taking place all over the world.

Protests against the Bush Regime.

Protests against the terrible truth that is the USA and what is occurring in this Country; the disregard for the rule of law and human rights, the corruption and greed, the incompetence and cronyism, the fraud and terror imposed by our own government. People are standing up and saying no more.

No more:

Loss of Habeas Corpus Rights

Ignoring and breaking laws

Illegal Spying

Torture

Labeling anyone, anywhere, anytime, an enemy combatant - with no proof or even reasonable suspicion

Illegal wars of aggression

Corruption

Incompetence

We could go on and on and on…

The list of the disaster that has occurred in and been caused by this Country over the last six years is beyond believable.

There are 1.5 million hits on "Impeach George W Bush."

The media is silent about all of this. There is little coverage of the protests and little coverage of all of the impeachable offenses committed by this regime.

I do not know what it will take for this Country to wake the fuck up.

I am not there, so I have no right, really, to ask why more people are not outraged and marching in the streets.

I am not well enough to go and I have a kiddo that needs me to be here, but there are other reasons too…

I am afraid.

I am not there. I am not at the protests. I have read about some arrests already – will these people be sent to Gitmo? They are winning, the totalitarian regime is winning – I was afraid to show up and I have to wonder how many other people did not show up because they were afraid of being labeled an enemy combatant and locked up with no rights to question why or have an attorney or see a judge.

Something has to save us. I have great hope for the mid-terms, but I am weary. Bu$hCo is extremely confident that they will maintain power. What does he know?

Do they already have Diebold lined up to steal another election?

Or, will Bush postpone the elections?

His uber-confidence is greatly disturbing.

One thing is certain about these protests, the world cannot wait. Everyone is in danger with the Republicans running the show.

Thursday Action Items

2006-10-05T10:39:00.000-07:00

Petitions:

• Keep religion free from the radical right.

• Tell Congress to protect your identity.

• Ensure that all breast cancer patients get the care that they deserve.

• Demand that Congress work for their pay.

• Protect the Roan Plateau

• Tell the House don’t cover-up for a predator.

• Demand an investigation in the House about the Foley cover-up.

• Working families petitions.

• Sign the Declaration of Peace

• Put your candidate on the record.

• Pleadge to vote Pro-Choice.

Activities and Such:

• Attend or host a screening of Iraq for Sale

• Host a ONE House Party Oct 15

• Make sure that you are registered to vote.

• Live chat tonight with Chris Mooney, author of “The Republican War on Science.”

• Jeff Gannon will be on the Randi Rhodes Show today.

• Give the gift of Wildlife Adoption this Holiday Season.

• Attend a 50 State Event

• Vote in the Ms. poll

• Today is the world wide day of resistance. The World Can’t Wait.

• Host or attend a call for change house party.

Miscellany:

• Join the Louise Slaughter Campaign. I just love her.

• New book “A Country That Works”

• Support the ACLU, we need them now more than ever.

• Support World Orphan Week and support an orphan.

• Listen to the Dann for Ohio radio ads.

• Meet the Science Idol.

• Free Yes on 87 bumper sticker.

• Help support clean elections.

• A must read editorial from Wake-Up Wal-Mart.

• Absolutely terrifying article.

• 2006 key races.

• Amazing Lie by Lie timeline.

• This really was a fabulous program by Moyers last night. See if you can find a replay.

It's NOT About Sexual Orientation

2006-10-04T18:24:00.000-07:00

I am furious about the spin put on the Foleygate.

Representative Frank is a lot more positive than I am about the media coverage:

“Newt Gingrich said the Republicans couldn't have publicly reprimanded Foley or they would be accused of gay-bashing. That's just gibberish. There would probably be just as much uproar if it was an underage female, because of Foley's work with children. In fact, I think the media has been fairly good about not gay-bashing this scandal.”

He may consider the coverage to be ‘fairly good’ when it comes to restraint about gay bashing but I counted Chris Matthews saying “Do you think that it is acceptable for someone to be gay and be a member of Congress?” at least five times between yesterday and today. I cannot believe the ignorance of people in this Country and people’s ignorance only became more highlighted as I researched for this piece.

The misinformation on the internet is extreme, most of it from fundie sites and supposed ‘family values’ advocates. No one will ever convince me that intolerance is a family value.

First of all sexual abuse and rape are crimes of power, not sex. Sexual abuse is about controlling a person. The ultimate control that one can have is over another person’s body.

"It is estimated that in about 80% of rapes that occur, the victim knows the rapist. Acquaintance rape, or date rape, as it is sometimes called, is still rape. It is a crime. Although survivors commonly feel some responsibility or guilt about their rape, it is important to remember that the responsibility for rape always lies with the attacker. What happened to you is not your fault."

These are crimes of violence, not of sex.

Second of all, the crime against a child who has passed puberty, a teenager, is known as hebephilia. These crimes are committed by persons who have the preference of victimizing people who are young adults, not pre-pubescent children.

Third of all, this alleged crime was in using one’s position of power to manipulate and use a teenager who, because of their age, did not have the defense against this manipulation. This is an adult misusing power. In addition, the GOP leadership covered-up this crime to avoid embarrassment and election problems. The cover-up is also a crime because it further endangered children by leaving a potential predator with access to them and it denied the investigation into the original crime.

The spin on the teevees are about Foley being gay and therefore a pedophile. I am not a psychologist, but as I have already covered, there is no evidence of Foley molesting any pre-teen children, so the terminology is incorrect. The crime is not being gay – the crime is using a position of power to gain access to and manipulate and have control over young people.

The spin is also to connect those two identifiers: gay = pedophile. This is incorrect and the evidence to counter it is substantial once you weed through the misinformation put out by the fundie sites.

The empirical research does not show that gay or bisexual men are any more likely than heterosexual men to molest children. This is not to argue that homosexual and bisexual men never molest children. But there is no scientific basis for asserting that they are more likely than heterosexual men to do so. And, as explained above, many child molesters cannot be characterized as having an adult sexual orientation at all; they are fixated on children.

"The vast majority of offenders are heterosexual men. Male offenders who abuse young boys maintain adult heterosexual relationships. The habitual molester of boys is rarely attracted to adult males." Roland Summit, M.D.

The American Psychological Association, the National Association of Social Workers, the American Academy of Child Psychiatrists and the Child Welfare League of America all have policy statements stating there is no correlation between homosexuality and child abuse.

PDF “The problem is sexual abuse, not homosexuality."

More studies citing that it is not about sexual orientation and that gay people are no more likely to molest children than heterosexuals.

God Hates Homophobes. No additional stats or studies; I just like the premise here.

Now that we have established that this is not about sexual orientation, it is about using a position of power to manipulate and control someone sexually. I will now rant about the bigotry of the right and how their bigotry increased the chances of this closeted gay man seeking out vulnerable people to prey upon.

Because the GOP has such immense open hatred for gays, there is little choice for someone who is gay but to stay in the closet. Staying in the closet and hiding who he really is increases the chances that he will act out in some way. Unfortunately, Foley allegedly had a proclivity towards abusive behavior and his impulses came out in abhorrent ways, if he is in fact found guilty of these crimes.

Most abuse of children occurs by people who close to them. Crimes against children are the worst of all crimes; these are adults who use their power against helpless people. The majority of crimes against children are not committed by the scary person jumping out of the bushes – it is the neighbor or family friend or step-parent or parent. Perhaps this whole controversy will bring light to some of the thousand of crimes that we need to combat and lead us to helping some of the many thousands of children who need our help.

This will only be the result if we move beyond the bullshit that is ‘the problem is homosexuality’. This is not about sexual orientation – this is an abuse of power manifesting in the most reprehensible way: sexually victimizing young people.

There is an enormous amount of data about what needs our attention. There is a lot of work to do.

Of the parents who maltreated children, less than 3 percent (2.6%) committed sexual abuse, while 62.9 percent committed neglect. Of the perpetrators who were friends or neighbors, nearly three-quarters committed sexual abuse while 9.9 percent committed neglect

Nearly three-quarters (73.8%) of perpetrators who were friends or neighbors committed sexual abuse.

According to the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System’s most current report, Child Maltreatment 2004, of the approximately 872,000 child abuse and neglect victims in 2004, the largest percentage of perpetrators (78.5 percent) were parents, including birth parents, adoptive parents, and stepparents.

All States include sexual abuse in their definitions. Some States refer in general terms to sexual abuse, while others specify various acts as sexual abuse. Sexual exploitation is an element of the definition of sexual abuse in most jurisdictions. Sexual exploitation includes allowing the child to engage in prostitution or in the production of child pornography.

Characteristics of Crimes Against Juveniles

About seven in ten female rape or sexual assault victims stated the offender was an intimate, other relative, a friend or an acquaintance.

Child Stats dot gov

National Crime Victimization Survey

Center for Missing and Exploited Children

FedStats

Gloves Off

2006-10-03T11:58:00.000-07:00

An Open Letter to the Democratic Party

Where are the spokespeople for the Democratic Party? Better yet, where is the one person – the Democratic version of Newt – who can articulate things clearly and who will travel around the Nation, appearing at all of the events and appear on all of the talk shows?

The Newt plan was simple and the script was sent out to every candidate, in every District and they read from it. Simple phrases that were easy to remember and that ordinary, every day people, could understand and repeat.

One script. Holding nothing back. Resonating with the people.

For cryin’ out loud. Everyone knows that if Bush himself were filmed shooting babies in cribs there would still be 30% of the people who supported him. There are a group of followers who believe that this monster can do nothing wrong despite endless evidence proving it.

What I wonder, is if Bush were shooting babies in cribs, would the Dems be able to formulate a unified message condemning it?!

Where is the single voice that will tell the truth about the corruption and malfeasance in this Administration and Republican controlled Congress?

There has been scandal after scandal and the Dems cannot seem to get it together to articulate the danger that is this Republican Congress and WH. What is so difficult about pointing to Abramoff, Cunningham, Ney, Foley, Pre-War Intel, PDB and other 9/11 warnings, Katrina, Propaganda disguised as news, Illegal spying, torture, mismanaged war, war profiteering, waste, fraud and abuse, Medicare Part D, rules of the House being ignored, closed rules on legislation, adding crap to conference reports, thousand page bills introduced with only an hour to read before voting, stolen elections, outing CIA agents, abusing children, cover-ups, contracts to friends and only those who are Republican Campaign contributors, $9 Trillion dollar National Debt, trade deficits as far as the eye can see, only screening 5% of cargo, no minimum wage increase, 9/11 Commission recommendations ignored, ad infitim…?

This list is immense and is still not complete.

I understand that Dems believe in the system and want to play by the rules. I understand that Dems will not stoop the low level of Rove and use his same tactics. You do not need to.

What you need to do is tell the truth and tell it loudly. You need to speak clearly. You need to get one voice on every single news show. You need one script that every one of your candidates can speak from.

Do you remember when you first ran for public office? Do you remember your idealistic motives and how you spoke to the public before you could afford to pay the advisors who will be the death of this Country? Whoever these campaign advisors are, they are ignorant and have no idea what the people want. The people want common sense and they want someone who can speak emotionally, from the heart and the gut, instead of this flat affect crap that your advisors tell you emit. Fire the advisors and start being who you are.

Goddammit! Do you people not understand that the future of America and perhaps the world is contingent on taking back this Congress? Do you not really get how important this is? This is not a normal mid-term – this is the future of the fucking world. The evil people who are running this Country have successfully turned us into a police state. They have tarnished the image of America for years to come. They have created a debt that our grandchildren will be struggling to pay off.

The poster that the Dems have – the one that shows Bush having borrowed more money from foreign Countries than all forty-two previous Presidents combined – needs to be a billboard in every city of this Country. That visual is powerful and must be shown. Pictures of people standing on their roofs in New Orleans begging to be saved need to be shown. Flag-draped caskets need to be shown. Polls of Iraqis who overwhelmingly want us to leave and want to kill Americans need to be shown. How many visuals are available to you that you do not use?

You need passionate spokespeople. You need someone who can speak clearly and come back at the pundits with force and clarity. I cannot believe that you are unable to get someone on the air who can speak.

Look at the headlines this morning:

Bush Expresses Confidence in Hastert

Tenet Recalled Warning Rice

Lawyers for Detainees Challenge Bush Plan

FBI Knew in July About Foley E-Mails to Teen

North Korea Vows First Nuclear Test

Across Nation, Housing Costs Rise as Burden

The entire world is going to hell in a hand-basket and this Country is in enormous trouble. We have a leadership vacuum that is being filled by arrogant, corrupt and ill-intentioned people. There are numerous disasters just waiting for you to highlight and articulate them. There are numerous solutions that the people are dying to be told.

Please, Democrats, my Party, the Party of the People – I beg you, get your shit together. The world is desperate and you are our last hope. What will it take for you to finally get it together and take this Country back?! We do not have much time left. In six short years our Country has doubled its debt, started endless wars, killed hundred of thousands of people and has changed our laws such that our Constitution is in danger, if not already obliterated.

Get it together. The world cannot wait.

Republicans Are Victimizing Our Children

2006-10-01T12:28:00.000-07:00

No, this is not another post about Congressman Foley R. FL stalking a 16 year-old page or the GOP cover-up of it. Of course, any victimization and sexual exploitation of a child is an atrocity. The cover-up of this crime for a year, in an attempt to maintain a political majority, is a crime of the most extreme nature.

I am, however, referring to a systematic and coordinated effort to place profits and ideology above the well-being of our children, their education and the future of our Country. This is about the disaster that is our public education system.

Our Founders stressed the importance of education endlessly. It was the Enlightenment Period. It was a time of human evolution where the people believed that reason and knowledge could lead to a new way of living and of approaching government.

“Wisdom and knowledge, as well as virtue, diffused generally among the body of the people, being necessary for the preservation of their rights and liberties, and as these depend on spreading the opportunities and advantages of education in the various parts of the country, and among the different orders of people, it shall be the duty of legislators and magistrates... to cherish the interest of literature and the sciences, and all seminaries of them.” – John Adams 1776

Our Founders were perhaps the most educated group of leaders that our Country has ever had. Ironically, most were self-taught. They became Enlightened via endless reading and study and discussion. They held real debates through meetings and writing and publishing pamphlets which they discussed in truly Enlightened circles.

Now we learn that our children’s reading curriculum, the very ability that our children have to become more Enlightened themselves, the core of all education and knowledge, has been reduced to another crony profiteering scam.

“Five years later, an accumulating mound of evidence from reports, interviews and program documents suggests that Reading First has had little to do with science or rigor. Instead, the billions have gone to what is effectively a pilot project for untested programs with friends in high places.”

The NCLB Act has been a tremendous disaster for our children. It has been under-funded and is filled with caveats that insure failure and a hidden agenda that mandates schools to release our children’s personal information to military recruiters.

The NCLB Act is nothing more than another example of incompetence and cronyism and profiteering at the expense of our children. What a disgusting, predatory and immoral action. I can think of nothing more telling of the character of this Administration than the preying on our children, their future and the future of our Country to scam more money from the taxpayers.

This Administration also illegally used taxpayer dollars to fund fake news reports about the NCLB Act. In order to gain support for a program that is under-funded, and in some instances un-funded, this Administration needs to resort to propaganda. There is little more proof needed, of the NCLB failure, than this. If this Act was working and truly a benefit to our kids, then the educators themselves would be applauding it. Instead, States have been forced to sue the Federal Government over this Act.

Only three States, thus far, have not yet sued the Federal Government. What an abysmal failure the NCLB Act has been. What a failure that our public education system is as a result.

In addition to NCLB failures, there is also the danger of denying access to real science. The war on science will have significant long-term effects that endanger the US in a global economy and our ability to compete with other Countries.

From a President with little ability to comprehend the contradictions of his own reasoning, and schools that are pushing to teach mythology in our science classrooms, it is more important than ever to learn why our children must be taught truth.

We are raising a generation of children who are stupid. Our public schools are under-funded, class sizes are too large, NCLB Act is doing the exact opposite of what it was sold to us to do, and schools cannot retain good educators.

In addition to the bastardization of science the health of our children is at risk. Abstinence only education gives misleading and inaccurate information to our children.

When politics trump science and loyalties to campaign contributors trump choices over proven curriculum, our entire society is in danger.

The Republicans are victimizing our children. Without education – true education based on facts – we are raising a generation of people who do not know how to think. We have an education system that is struggling to teach our children critical thinking skills when the policy makers have skipped critical thinking and go straight to ideology and financial loyalty. We cannot have an Enlightened generation if they do not understand how to think and how to learn and do not have access to the facts so that they can arm themselves against the myths and ideologies that are directing Federal policies.

We are in dire need of a second coming. Not the mythical second coming that the right believes in (at an alarmingly high 44 percentage) but a new Thomas Jefferson. We need a leader who understands the value of real education. A real statesperson who can speak to us as he did:

“Educate and inform the whole mass of the people... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.” - Jefferson

And to honor and cherish the value of education:

“To give to every citizen the information he needs for the transaction of his own business; To enable him to calculate for himself, and to express and preserve his ideas, his contracts and accounts, in writing; To improve, by reading, his morals and faculties; To understand his duties to his neighbors and country, and to discharge with competence the functions confided to him by either; To know his rights; to exercise with order and justice those he retains; to choose with discretion the fiduciary of those he delegates; and to notice their conduct with diligence, with candor, and judgment; And, in general, to observe with intelligence and faithfulness all the social relations under which he shall be placed.” - Thomas Jefferson, 1818

I am guilty of not participating in my local school board and lack of involvement in my PTA, but I now see these as necessities. There is so much to do to save our Country, protect it from the disastrous policies of this Administration and Republican controlled Congress – but the children really are our future. How can we expect the future of our Country to thrive if our children are intellectually damaged with false information and no critical thinking skills?

I have a tremendous respect for our educators who continue to do their best in a politically charged environment where ideology trumps reason. I am truly grateful for the fantastic teachers and administrators who I have had the opportunity to work with and who have been involved in my child’s education – they deserve the action of my gratitude through involvement in my local education processes; so do our children deserve the same from all of us.

Friday Pep-Talk

2006-09-29T19:49:00.000-07:00

(Note: Let this serve as a Saturday Pep-Talk. It has taken me all day to complete this and to get it up. I do not feel very peppy and I have been absorbed in reading all day, trying to come to terms with what happened yesterday and how we move forward. I am tired, but I will not give up.)

I am emotionally hung over this morning. Watching America’s Soul die yesterday was just about too much for me.

I fought with my husband. I yelled at my neighbor. I really fell into deep despair, anger, outrage, disbelief, sadness and desperation. I was on the verge of tears all day long and I cannot find the right words to express how absolutely devastated that I am.

Not much of a pep-talk so far, eh?

We cannot stop fighting. It is now more important than ever that we regain control of the Congress. We have to get some accountability in Washington DC. We have to make certain that there is some oversight of the out-of-control practices of this overreaching and morally bankrupt Administration.

It physically hurts to consider what is being done in my name.

However, it does not hurt me as much as it hurts those who are in custody at this moment by an Administration that spits in the face of human rights and dignity. For that reason we need to keep fighting. They do not have a voice; we must be the voice for them.

Remember, these people running our Country have a philosophy based on the belief that the reason that we lost in Vietnam was due to the dissent voiced here at home. They believe that it was the war protesters fault – not poor planning, incompetence, lack of realistic strategy or an illegal and immoral war. This Administration has a pathological aversion to taking responsibility for anything and they will go to any lengths to squash dissent.

This is why the current protests are not showed on the television news – they absolutely do not want to allow the truth to be told or let anyone know about how many people are saying no to their policies.

We must continue to call the Congress. We must continue to write to the Congress. We must canvass and doorbell and send in money to campaigns. We must protest and march and stand up for what is right. We must sign the petitions and educate ourselves and continue to stand up for freedom, humanity and the rule of law.

Goddammit. Let it never be said that we did not do everything in our power to stop the atrocities that are occurring now.

We – the Progressives of America are the true Patriots. We love our Country and we love the ideals that our Country was founded on. We love and will protect, with everything that we have, the ability to speak out and to tell the truth. We love our Constitution and will defend it as though we took the oath of office that our elected representatives did. We will protect our Constitution from enemies foreign and domestic. We will fight for freedom.

Freedom.

Remember the ideal that our Country was founded on when you consider who the true destroyers of America are. The people who have taken our Bill of Rights and shredded them into non-existence; the 65 Senators who voted yes on the Military Commissions Bill aka the Torture, Indefinite Detention, Restoration of Tyrannical Rule in America Bill.

Fighting for freedom is not being “soft on terror.”

Fighting for America and what we were founded on is true Patriotism.

The Dems have all of the issues and all of the solutions. We absolutely cannot allow these people and their propaganda to paint us as unpatriotic. These Republican Neo-Cons are the people who are destroying what it means to be American. To say that we cannot dissent is unpatriotic and to say that dissent equals surrender is the most absurd contradiction that they can throw at us.

We will fight and we will win because truth and justice is on our side. They cannot, no matter how hard they try, rewrite what is written across the sky with the blood of all of those who have died due to their incompetence and malfeasance, to benefit their campaigns. They know this, which is why they believe that they have to steal the elections and disenfranchise as many people as possible.

Dammit people, get to work. There is no time to hand-wring or cry or give up on our Party. We cannot turn our backs on the very last bastion of hope to bring our Country back to a civilized Nation; the Dems. Quit yelling that they are not doing enough and get involved. This Neo-Con take over has been long in the making. We can trace it back to the Civil War and those red-staters who wish that we still had slaves. We can trace it back to FDR and the New Deal and the Pukes who have been trying to overturn the Enlightened approach of believing that all people, not just the elite, deserve a chance.

We have only ourselves to blame for allowing it to get this far. We were not taking to the streets in 2000 when our election was stolen from us. It was then that we should have been camping out on the doorsteps of every courthouse in the Country until all votes were counted.

Let it never be said that, this time, we did not stand up and do everything possible to save this Country from complete ruin.

Now is the time to fight, here are some places to start:

• Demand emergency paper ballots.

• Protect worker rights at Hugo Boss.

• LCV asks that you demand clean energy now.

• Make sure that you are registered to vote.

• Demand paper ballots.

• Protect teens from Republican attack.

• Vote on the science idol.

• Stop the disinformation campaign.

• Save Darfur

• Human Rights First has several active campaigns. They also have a great statement on the atrocity that is S3930.

• Visit verified voting to see how you can help to save our elections.

• Fight global warming.

• Thank Leader Pelosi for going on the offense and attempting to move the House into closed session and address with the NIE.

• Attend a 50 State Event.

• Help to secure real sex-ed.

• Support the peace movement by purchasing peace holiday cards.

• Support Prop 87

• Spread the word about the NIE.

• Protect food safety.

• Increase fuel efficiency.

Must Reads:

• Abramoff who?

• Scary – under-reported news – especially #14 (thanks SOS).

• BBC reports on our meltdown of democracy.

• A couple of great quotes here:

o “After all, by way of our passivity, we’re at least partially responsible for letting a million Rovian Turd Blossoms bloom.”

o “Bush’s manufactured image is a hack's construct of mythic American manhood: He was sold as an uncomplicated man of action -- a Christian cowboy redeemer -- a man who could kill evil-doers at fifty paces. Just from a single whiff of his manly phenomenal musk, our enemies would flee back to their caves and cower in abject terror. Although events have shown, to appropriate an overheated metaphor from the Christian fundie End Time lexicon, Bush is in fact closer to an Angel of Idiocy come with a Sword of Stupidity to reveal the rot of our corporate dystopia.”

• Read updates on Progressive Patriots.

There Was No Cloture Vote

2006-09-29T15:03:00.000-07:00

It took some time wading through Roll Call Votes, Thomas, and calling Senators, but I finally received a response from Senator Feingold’s staffer explaining what happened with the atrocity that is S3930, the Military Commissions Bill.

I had heard it reported on Olbermann last night that the Senate had made a deal to not filibuster in exchange for the opportunity to introduce the four amendments (all of which were voted down on Party line) to this dangerous bill which is the end to America as we know it.

“In exchange for” is not really the proper terminology. It was explained to me that the Dems did not have the 41 votes necessary to filibuster this legislation. Their only option – since Frist had threatened to hold the vote on the bill immediately – was to attempt to be able to strengthen it a little, including adding the Habeas amendment (failed 48-51) to try to protect us.

The bottom line is that they knew that they could not stop it so they did attempt to protect us. They did. Yes, there were ultimately 12 Dem Senators who betrayed their oaths to the protect and defend the Constitution, I can never pretend to explain why this happened – but it did.

I am angry and yes, we should be afraid. Pay attention to number fourteen. Blah, blah, blah – we are just conspiracy theorists… no, we are not. There is a record here of incorrectly detaining people and illegally and immorally torturing them.

The DoD can decide who is an enemy combatant. I repeat, any one of us can be determined to be an enemy combatant. This is true because the term is not defined, it is left up to the President. One person, who has already proved to us that his judgment is less than clear or sane when it comes to the treatment of human beings.

Do not forget that this legislation is designed as an attempt to keep Bush out of jail.

The only saving grace is that the bill itself may be a violation of the Geneva Conventions and Unconstitutional. Senator Smith of Oregon even stated that he hoped that the courts would straighten out the illegality of the revocation of habeas.

It may just come down to International Law saving us from our own government. One can only hope that something will.

I Am Speechless

2006-09-25T18:30:00.000-07:00

Keith Olbermann did it again.

Keith’s special comments have become the highlight of any my television viewing. He always encapsulates my emotion and he says what he says with the passion and eloquence that I could only hope to achieve in my lifetime.

He is brilliant. The poetry of what he writes and the delivery of his speech is absolutely unmatched. I cannot thank him enough.

And so must we all.

Please write to Keith, MSNBC, the Countdown Producers, Microsoft and NBC Corporate. We must let the media know that this is what we want. We want the truth. We want people to report on the dangers to America; our civil liberties, our moral authority, our treasury, our blackened Soul.

Email addresses are:

• Countdown@MSNBC.com

• KOlbermann@MSNBC.com

• ViewerServices@MSNBC.com

• DAbrams@MSNBC.com

For good measure, send a hard copy thank you letter as well:

• MSNBC on the Internet
One Microsoft Way
Redmond, WA 98052

• NBC News
30 Rockefeller Plaza
New York, N.Y. 10112

• MSNBC TV
One MSNBC Plaza
Secaucus, N.J. 07094

No Room for Despair

2006-09-25T10:59:00.000-07:00

Time to get busy. There are too many things that need our attention; we cannot succumb to the depression that comes with realizing what they are. When we are awake to the gravity of what faces us it can seem overwhelming. We must take this Country back.

That is exactly what the Reich wants. They are hoping that we become apathetic due to the sheer exhaustion of the insurmountable battles that we face.

We cannot. And we cannot afford to eat our own. Now is the time to stick together. We absolutely must take this Country back from those who truly hate America and what she stands for.

Petitions:

• Pledge to vote pro-choice.

• Stop an attack on Iran.

• Support Prop 87

• Stop genocide in Darfur.

• Join the virtual protest to support worker rights at Smithfield Foods.

• Sign the ONE voter pledge.

• Save the Internet

• Stop the disenfranchisement legislation.

• Stop extraordinary rendition.

• Protect Habeas rights.

• Defend real American values.

• Tell Congress to invest in America.

• Eliminate the Donut Hole.

• Several alerts at USAction.

• MoveOn has several campaigns.

• Protect food safety laws.

• Support the Peace Alliance

People seeking donations:

• DCCC

• DSCC

• DNC

• Open Voting Consortium.

• Wildnerness Society

• Public Campaign Action Fund

• UFPJ

Phone calls to make:

• First things first. We absolutely must contact our Senators and stop the torture and spying legislation. The Capitol switchboard is 1-202-225-3121.

• URGENT: Stop the surveillance bills.

• We do not support torture.

Events:

• Taking it to the streets. Help to elect a pro-choice Congress.

• Today, 1:30 PM ET Dem Caucus meeting with Retired Generals re: Pre-War planning, stream on CSPAN3.

• Attend a free screening of “Iraq for Sale”

• Five former Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs standing up against Bu$hCo. Not an event, just interesting news.

• Attend a Voter Engagement School

• Walk with Code Pink

Civics 101

2006-09-23T15:34:00.000-07:00

Besides being extremely physically ill today I am emotionally tortured by what has become of America. I am sickened by how quickly a Country can turn from a place admired by the rest of the world to a Country feared, despised and ridiculed. We were admired – not because we were so superior, as the Nationalistic blind followers want to proclaim – but because we were a Nation of laws, not of men. We were a Country that was governed by the people. We were a shining example of a Representative Democracy, where the government derived their powers from the consent of the people.

The rest of the world had faith that we the people would never stand for a brutal and out of control Executive. How disappointed the rest of the world is…we have let them down, we have not stood up against this Administration, we have not stormed the streets and demanded accountability, we have proven them all wrong – we are no longer a Representative Democracy. We are a tyranny, and by default, we have consented.

It is the rule of law that made our Country great and now that rule of law has been squandered, slandered, beheaded and neutered. What are we teaching our children if we say to them that it is OK to break the law, just change it and make the changes retroactive?

Even more disturbing is that this Congress is changing the law to allow for the torture and the illegal imprisonment of people. To the blind followers: these are not “dangerous terrists”, these are people. They have not yet been convicted of anything and most have not yet even been charged.

There are a couple of great posts at Digby and at Balkanization about this. Unfortunately, there is not very much information at our Democratic leadership’s sites or at any of the campaign committee sites. They seem to have nothing to say about the sellout of America’s humanity.

America was founded on the ideal that we would no longer put up with tyranny.

"But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security."

The men who signed their names to this document, our Declaration of Independence, knew that they were committing an act of treason with the stroke of their pen. They knew that they had put their own lives in danger and their families. They knew that they could be hanged and they understood that their personal futures were bleak. Most of them died penniless and in hiding. It did not matter to them because the ideal of the future that they were creating, for their posterity, far exceeded the personal danger that they faced.

The power and hope in the few words of this declaration are unmatched. They are unmatched because this was the beginning of a thinking society. A period of enlightenment, an age of reason, where we would throw off the shackles of superstition and irrationality and move forward with reason and study and bold new frameworks for existence.

We hold these truths to be self-evident:

"That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness;"

This passage declares that we all have rights. It does not exclude terrorists – or those proclaimed terrorists by this villain sitting in the Whitehouse. America threw off the noose of a king when those men signed this document. We remained free until the 2000 election. America was hijacked then, a coup took place and we did nothing.

Eleven years after this Declaration was signed we held a Constitutional Convention, a very well studied and discussed deliberation where we decided what we would accept as the governing framework of our land. In response to a growing concern that the Constitution, as it stood, allowed for too strong a central government, and without further restraints would lead to tyranny, The Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments were adopted.

I am quoting all of them, in full. It has become clear that Americans need a reminder of what these are and what they mean to us as a society.

I - Freedom of Speech, Press, Religion and Petition

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

II - Right to keep and bear arms

A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

III - Conditions for quarters of soldiers
No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

IV - Right of search and seizure regulated

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

V - Provisons concerning prosecution

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation.

VI - Right to a speedy trial, witnesses, etc.

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.

VII - Right to a trial by jury

In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

VIII - Excessive bail, cruel punishment

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

IX - Rule of construction of Constitution

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

X - Rights of the States under Constitution

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Amendments IV, V, VI, VII and VIII are violated with this proposed legislation. There is no discussion of the seriousness of this by our elected Representatives and we are not taking to the streets and demanding that this be stopped.

I wonder what it will take for Americans to stand up. I just hope that it is not too late.

We’re Not Gonna Take It

2006-09-22T12:03:00.000-07:00

Enough!

OK people, we absolutely must turn our anger into action. The despair that I feel over this compromise that McCain and the Whitehouse came up with must be put into proper terms.

Thom Hartmann puts it in proper terms.

This law is designed to keep the President and his Administration out of prison.

Michael Ratner, the President of the Center for Constitutional Rights is currently speaking on the Thom Hartmann show and has stated, in no uncertain terms, that this legislation turns America into a police state.

It removes Habeas Rights – 800 years after the Magna Carta – and it immunizes this Administration from being prosecuted for War Crimes. The simple act of passing this legislation is itself illegal – you cannot retroactively immunize someone from War Crimes prosecution.

“Law. Not War.” This is a powerful statement by Ben Ferencz, prosecutor at Nuremburg. He knows a little about War Crimes.

Remember the Holocaust, when you consider that we hold people (these are people, not 'terrists', no one has yet been convicted of anything) without any rights to even defend themselves or to ask what crime they are being held for. Americans seem awfully ignorant to the fact that any one of us can be shipped off to Gitmo. If someone wanted revenge on a person - just accuse them of being a terrorist - we are all eligible for this treatment. Remember, even the Nazis were given fair trials.

This legislation also immunizes the President from prosecution for crimes that he has already been found guilty of committing.

All over the Internets, people are talking about how the Dems should do this and the Dems should do that and why didn’t they do this…ad nauseum. There is only one thing that they can do;

I have only found one reasonable response to this legislation, they must all walk out.

Every single Dem Representative, the entire Democratic Caucus, must walk out and protest this legislation.

We need them to march in front of the Whitehouse. Leave their offices, leave the floor of the House and the Senate, leave their homes, and protest this atrocity.

The Dems need to stand up loud and clear and let it be known to the whole world that we will not stand for torture. We will not stand for illegal imprisonment. We will not stand for law breaking – especially by our elected officials.

Blog this message anywhere that you can.

We must make certain that these people who we have elected to do our business, our employees, stand up and protest this disaster before we have no democracy left. We must make sure that these people know what we expect from them.

Give your Reps a call as well, the Capitol switchboard is 1-202-225-3121. Tell them that you want them to walk out.

Hat tip to Coyote for pointing out Bob Johnson's idea. And hat tip to Bob Johnson for calling on the Dems to do the right thing.

Keep Fighting

2006-09-20T11:14:00.000-07:00

We are not barbarians - we are civilized!

The simple fact that we are debating whether or not this Country will condone torture, throw out habeas rights, wiretap without warrants – proves that we have stepped over the line into tyranny.

This is the fight of our lives.

First, call your Senators and demand that they stand up and speak out against the torture and pardon legislation! Call now 1-888-355-3588.

UPDATE - the toll-free number to Congress has just been disconnected [I used it about an hour ago]. The switchboard operator says that they only purchase the toll-free numbers for a short period of time and that the Capitol operators do not even know the number. It is very important that we demand that it be re-established. People have the Constitutional right to petition their government. The right to do this should not be contingent on the ability to afford a call. When you are on the line to your Senators and Rep, ask that the toll-free number be reinstated.

The Capitol switchboard is 1-202-225-3121.

Do not pardon illegal spying.

$1000 Bounty What are they doing?

Put on your marketing hat.

Support clean elections.

Fight against condoning torture.

Destroying studies and “reporters” on the government payroll. Wonder why the Dems get no press?

Stop it - Tell the FCC to release the truth.

We do not condone torture!

Another case for impeachment book. They are selling them at a WS price for non-profit orgs that want to resell them.

Host a call for change party.

Still trying to save the Internet.

Tell Congress we are a Nation of Laws.

Today is Women for Peace Day. Why not contact the media and ask them to cover this and Camp Democracy?

Protect religious freedom.

Talking points on the failed Iraq policy.

Contribute to the DCCC now, to help stop Swift-Boat attacks, and triple match your contribution.

Read the newest update on Suzanne Swift and send a note of encouragement.

Vote on a Progressive Patriot.

Have you switched to Working Assets Long Distance yet? Do it – fabulous service, fabulous cause. Easy way to contribute to Progressive causes. Also, you get 2 free calls, per day, to Congress - which you now need due to the toll-free number being disconnected.

National Conference for Media Reform

Demand that Chevron support Prop 87.

Save our Oceans.

Stop illegal spying.

OK - Time to get to work. We have a lot to do if we are to save our democracy.

Quick - Call Now - Stop Disenfranchisement

2006-09-20T08:50:00.000-07:00

These bastards on the Reich know that the only way that they can win elections is to disenfranchise as many voters as possible. They have been doing this the last six years and now they want to make it Federal Law.

The House of Representatives is currently debating HR 4844. It is a closed rule - meaning Dems cannot offer any amendments.

You can sign a petition against this here, but you also need to call your Rep right now.

1-888-355-3588

HR 4844 requires everyone to show photo ID and prove they are a citizen in order to vote in Federal Elections. Nothing to insure a paper trail. Nothing to have voting machines that are tamper proof. Nothing to allow voting machines that are auditable. Nothing to demand that our vote is not privatized.

These people will stop at nothing.

Take Action Monday

2006-09-18T11:26:00.000-07:00

The Bush Administration is desperate.

As it becomes clearer that the American public will no longer put up with the disaster that is Republican control, their attacks become more cruel and frequent. As we get closer to the mid-terms and closer to electing a Congress that is accountable to the people, and holds this Administration accountable, the necessity to hurry and pass laws that will retroactively immunize Bu$hCo and his minions from criminal prosecution becomes frantic.

The more that all of this occurs, the more that we must roll up our sleeves and get to work. This is the greatest fight of our lives.

My inbox is full – let’s send these people a message.

Petitions:

• Support DC Representation

• We do not condone inhumane treatment.

• Support public financing of elections.

• We do not condone torture.

• Tell the GOP Do-Nothing Congress to get to work.

• Support HR 4232 – Get Out of Iraq Now

• Save our forests.

• Tallitsch petition to stop illegal wiretap legislation.

• Improve the way films are rated.

• Demand UN Peacekeepers in Darfur.

• Hold war criminals accountable.

• Support impeachment inquiry.

• Stop Darfur atrocities.

• WA – Support I937

• End the donut hole.

Events:

• DFA Night School – learn how to get involved

• Volunteer to be a pollworker. In addition, Dems are calling for everyone to vote absentee. Let’s ban electronic voting.

• Open Vote Consortium needs volunteers.

• Volunteers needed for WA State Dems.

• See “The US Vs. John Lennon" in Seattle – for free!

• Attend a Move-On Call for Change house party.

• Find a 50 State Event

• Advance screening of “The Wire” in DC

Items of Interest:

• Thank Wyden & call your Senators and ask that they support this.

• Amazing Lie By Lie Timeline

• What SS Privatization will cost you. (PDF)

• See how the Bush Admin has broken our military.

• Talking Points – Dems demand accountability.

• OpEd News offering to help support the candidates that you believe in.

Apathy is Deadly

2006-09-15T10:44:00.000-07:00

So says the bumper sticker that I purchased yesterday.

I normally do not boutique shop, but I also spent way too much money on this t-shirt.

“Stop Bitching – Start a Revolution”

I do not blame anyone, after traveling this frightening political landscape, for becoming pessimistic about our future. However, look at what is at stake, the entire existence of our Country, and perhaps this planet, are contingent upon us taking our Country back.

The future wrests in our hands.

This is the most important fight of our lives and we cannot afford to fall into the discouragement and hand wringing and sense of doom that the Right wants us to. They want us to give up. They count on us staying home and not voting. Their goal is to encourage apathy in us. The fewer people involved, the lower the turnout at the polls, the greater their chances at stealing another election.

Goddammit – I know that it is frustrating and I know that we are not hearing from the Dems the words that we wish that they would say. One of the difficulties is that the Dems are denied a platform to speak. They are asking for equal time and some networks secretly acknowledge that the bully-pulpit has been unfair.

So, I ask – who will speak for the Democratic Party? I do not mean which spokesperson will they put forward. What I am asking is that we speak out for the Dems. They need our voice and they need us to be loud.

It is a shame when the supposed “freest” Country on earth needs to cheer, and start a letter campaign of thanks, when one media personality speaks the truth.

Look at the monsters who we are up against. How can anyone support this kind of behavior and these kind of people? I doubt that if Americans knew the truth and had it presented to them in the correct manner, that they would continue to support the Right.

In fact, Americans support impeachment, they do not support a get out of jail free card as Specter proposes. We absolutely must contact our Senators and Harry Reid and demand a filibuster on this tragic legislation. 1-888-355-3588

The facts are simple: if the President was within the law (a Federal Judge found that he was/is not) then there would be no legislation necessary to allow him to wiretap without a warrant.

Here are some fabulous talking points on the lawlessness of this administration. Feel free to offer other sites that have talking points; every little bit helps.

Here is an excellent site for talking points about issues that the middle class cares about. We need the Suburban vote. Use it. Talk to people. We absolutely must educate the public. We cannot afford to count on the media or the Democratic Leadership – who is denied a platform to speak. It is up to each of us. We must be the voice for the Democratic Party.

It is our Government. We are the Government. Remember this – a Representative Democracy is only a Representative Democracy when we participate.

If you cannot find anyone to talk to,attend one of these events.

Apathy is Deadly.

Quick - Call Now

2006-09-13T09:13:00.000-07:00

Senator Reid has introduced an amendment to the Port Security Bill.

This is terribly important and the Pukes are claiming that it is partisan and not in order.

Call your Senators and demand that the Senate vote on this amendment and not throw it out due to an 'out of order' claim.

1-888-355-3588

Wednesday Petition Round-Up

2006-09-13T08:36:00.000-07:00

A lot of petitions today, get out your auto fill form.

Protect Tasmania’s forests.

Give Peace a vote.

How should UFPJ respond to squashing of the 1st Amendment?

Protect real American values.

Demand the Senate not approve American gulags.

Support AmeriCorps

Tell Congress to say no to DOPA

LCV needs your vote on who they should defeat at the polls.

Suzanne Swift needs us to sign her petition and to call Congress.

Give That Man a Raise

2006-09-12T10:37:00.000-07:00

Once again Keith Olbermann spoke the truth that so many of us feel.

It is difficult to comment on his speech; he said it better than I could ever say it.

He was amazing last night. Brilliant, eloquent, poetic, honest, gut-wrenching, bold and loud.

Loud.

We desperately need, in America, more of this truth speaking. He did not hold back and spoke directly to this Administration.

"And anyone who claims that I and others like me are "soft," or have "forgotten" the lessons of what happened here is at best a grasping, opportunistic, dilettante and at worst, an idiot whether he is a commentator, or a Vice President, or a President."

Wow.

"Five years later this is still just a background for a photo-op."

"It is beyond shameful."

Shameful indeed.

Keith Olbermann left nothing out of his “special comment.” He took everyone to task.

"They spend the money on irrelevant wars, and elaborate self-congratulations, and buying off columnists to write how good a job they're doing instead of doing any job at all."

Again, he speaks directly to this President and his failures.

"Five years later, Mr. Bush, we are still fighting the terrorists on these streets. And look carefully, sir, on these 16 empty acres. The terrorists are clearly, still winning."

I felt like he was speaking directly to me, and my sadness, when he reminded America of what the President pissed away with his arrogance and bravado.

"History teaches us that nearly unanimous support of a government cannot be taken away from that government by its critics. It can only be squandered by those who use it not to heal a nation's wounds, but to take political advantage."

Then he did it. Then Keith Olbermann uttered the words that we have been begging our political leaders to say. The words that we say in hushed crowds of people who agree with us – stating them in mixed company brings about scolding, at best, and being added to the ‘terrorist watch list,’ at worst.

"The impolite phrase is "impeachable offense.""

I cannot read these words without crying. I cannot. Mr. Olbermann has brought home to me the desperate desire that I have for our elected leaders to fix this.

Please, fix this disaster that America has become.

"How dare you, Mr. President, after taking cynical advantage of the unanimity and love, and transmuting it into fraudulent war and needless death, after monstrously transforming it into fear and suspicion and turning that fear into the campaign slogan of three elections? How dare you -- or those around you -- ever "spin" 9/11?"

I ask our politicians, those who we have employed and who are still – even if they forget – our employees. People who we send to Washington DC to perform our will, not theirs, to remember their duty to the Constitution, and to us, and to hold to account these monsters.

"When those who dissent are told time and time again -- as we will be, if not tonight by the President, then tomorrow by his portable public chorus -- that he is preserving our freedom, but that if we use any of it, we are somehow un-American...When we are scolded, that if we merely question, we have "forgotten the lessons of 9/11"... look into this empty space behind me and the bi-partisanship upon which this administration also did not build, and tell me:"

"Who has left this hole in the ground?"

"We have not forgotten, Mr. President."

"You have."

"May this country forgive you."

Mr. Olbermann is far more generous than I. Forgiveness for the monstrous and traitorous activities of this Administration will have to be begged for, and granted, by a being far greater than I will ever be. I do not forgive them.

I am afraid that Keith Olbermann treads on thin ice. I am afraid that his days are numbered and unless MSNBC hears from us, he will not be allowed to stay on the air.

Please write Keith:

KOlbermann@MSNBC.com

His Producers:

Countdown@MSNBC.com

The Network:

viewerservices@MSNBC.com

If you have more than one email address, write from all of them. We absolutely must show our support for Keith Olbermann.

In addition, call your Democratic Representatives, 1-888-355-3588 and tell them to speak these truths. Tell them to come out swinging.

Steve at TLC reminds us what they are not doing and what they need to do.

I ask the Universe to keep Keith Olbermann safe. He is our last hope for an independent media and an educated society.

Criminally Negligent

2006-09-11T11:15:00.000-07:00

I crawled out of bed about 6:00 am PT this day five years ago. I turned on NBC local news as I always did, every morning, nothing was different - yet. The first plane had just hit and local news was interrupted by the Today Show which was already playing on the East Coast. Katie and Matt were attempting to figure out what was going on, the camera was on the towers – I watched the second plane hit in real time.

I was awe struck, as was everyone, on this day five years ago. I could not believe my eyes and I was mesmerized by what was occurring on my TV screen.

How I feel this morning, as MSNBC replayed that Today Show in real-time, and I was transported back in time to a different room on a different day watching events unfold that would change this Country in ways that I never could have imagined, is angry.

I am furious.

I wonder if the propaganda will backfire on this Administration. Everyone knows about the ABC crapumentary that is being shown blaming the Clinton Administration for the events on that day. Well – of course they needed to put out something to blame someone else.

No one has been held accountable for the incompetence and negligence that occurred on 09.11.2001.

Tom Brokaw was on that replay in real-time this morning. He said it then, and I will say it now. ‘Someone will be held responsible for these intelligence failures.’

No one has been.

The investigations were unwelcome and most attempts at accessing information were blocked. The 9/11 Commission attempted to get the data to fully investigate and there was meager cooperation. The Bush Administration did not want anyone looking at their failures.

I have studied many alternative theories to the official ‘conspiracy theory’ that has been told to the public for the last five years. I do not know what the truth is. I believe that there is more that we do not know than we do know.

We may never know what really happened.

What everyone can agree on, I am certain, is that the Bush Administration is Criminally Negligent for what occurred on that day and no one has been held to account.

When I watched the Ted Koppell special last night on the danger to our civil liberties and our Constitution as a result of the exploitation of 9/11, I thought to myself, this Congress would never have allowed Clinton this power grab. That thought was instantly supplanted with the realization that Clinton never would have had a chance to power grab: this Congress would have impeached him for the failure to prevent 9/11.

Bu$hCo is walking free and plays the photo-op part so well. Walking from mass-grave to mass-grave, placing wreaths and feigning grief.

He has absolutely no right to copy the grief of those who have really paid the price, when he has never apologized or been held to account for his failures or explained ignoring the PDB of August 6th. What part of "Bin Laden determined to strike” was so difficult to understand?

I am angry. I am far away from the tragedies both physically and personally. I do not know anyone directly involved. What I do know is that the family members are asking for a new investigation and for people to be held to account. In honor of them and for our Country to heal, I agree.

Sunday Link Fest

2006-09-10T10:11:00.000-07:00

Things to Read and Ponder

• The truth about Iraq war deaths; a father’s story.

• BYU Puts “9/11 Truth” Professor on Administrative Leave

• Interesting Time poll

• Amazing site on Iraq

• What every soldier needs to know.

• Citizens for Legitimate Government has some interesting reading.

• Union of Concerned Scientists has some great articles.

• Straight Talk offers excellent talking points. Great reading on how to combat the right’s deceptions.

• (PDF) NWLC has a startling fact sheet on Women and Poverty and how women are losing ground.

• Fiction: also known as ‘president’s speech’.

Petitions and Such

• Tell the FEC to come down on ABC for their right-wing election propaganda. The 9/11 movie is nothing more than a six-hour republican campaign ad.

• Act for Change has several great campaigns.

• Citizens for Legitimate Government has several great campaigns.

• Leave My Child Alone Support efforts to reverse the NCLB Act provision which gives military recruiters complete access to our children and all of their information.

• Tell Congress to reject Bush’s military tribunals.

• Dump Sheldon We need Progressives, not DINOs.

• Tell the GOP Do Nothing Congress to Get to Work

• Defenders of Wildlife ongoing campaigns

• No Confidence on Rumsfeld

• Give Peace a Vote

Upcoming Events

• 9/11 Kean Commission Report Exposed as 'Fraud of Historic Proportions' on 9/11 Fifth Anniversary by Former 'Star Wars' Program Director and Top 9/11 Authors and Researchers at National Press Club Press Conference Just Before Kean-Hamilton Luncheon Address, Edward R. Murrow Room, 9:30 a.m.

• Washington State Courts in danger of being taken over by right-wing judges…tell WA voters.

• United for Peace and Justice has several events including Sept 19th in New York, Stand Up to Bush at the UN

• Young Global Leaders Summit

Activities and the Like

• Bob Hagan asks: Marc Dann is a progressive Democrat that needs our vote in Newspaper Poll being taken as we speak...cant contribute money...send this out to your friends and tell them to scroll down to the right side and vote for Marc Dann for Attorney General.

• MSNBC 9/11 poll

• Koppel Discovery Channel special on 9/11 and civil liberties

• Mainstreet Moms has several great activities.

• You can get a copy of Kerry’s speech from yesterday. It is good – but his performance on Late Edition this morning was excellent.

• Do you know Hong Tran? Neither did I, the Democratic Party in WA State wants to avoid a Leiberman. She is looking for activist support.

• ACLU Conference in DC

• CCR will be on Koppel’s Discovery Channel Docu. Watching this is a better choice than the ABC propaganda.

• The Secretary of State Project Protecting our vote by electing Secretaries of State with integrity.

• Stand Up Against Poverty

It's My Blog, Just Posting it Because I Can

2006-09-09T13:43:00.000-07:00

The Trade

We are broken,
America,
all of us.

The State of imbalance,
ready to tip and fall
into the black abyss of crumbled empires
and ruptured spleens
of the body politic.

It is not enough, anymore,
to learn the truth of
blood stained streets and mass murder.

Our shores are covered with crimson lies.
They wash over fields,
drowning amber waves of grain
in their search for justice.

Prisons are built
with the mortar
of my name,
to hold people
who once believed
in the democracy here.
There is nothing to believe in anymore.
Lady Liberty’s light has gone out
(threats of terrorism have closed it down,
the stairs are off limits
and liberty is out of reach.)

A soldier,
who traded his arms
for the shackles of resistance
told me why:
“we have traded our humanity for patriotism.”

-Anjha
September 09. 2006

Stopping Right Wing Propaganda - Part 2

2006-09-09T10:29:00.000-07:00

One petition at a time.

Steve at TLC has an excellent update on this propaganda and a truly terrifying look at who is behind this film.

Media Matters has done a tremendous job of documenting all of the media misinformation.

Think Progress has also rounded up a massive amount of data, including numerous calls to pull the film.

So far, I have received *seven petitions demanding that ABC not air this rubbish:

• Democratic Party

• Act for Change

• Congresswoman Slaughter

• Think Progress

Feel free to add more.

UPDATE (Friday 09.08) Two More Petitions

• Move On

• Stop Big Media Stop Big Media is an ongoing campaign to end big media consolidation. This 9/11 fiction piece is a prime example of what happens when all of the power is in a few hands.

UPDATE (Saturday 09.09.06)

• Media Matters

• Call Bob Iger & report your call here.

• People for the American Way are also asking that you report your call here.

Camp What?!

2006-09-08T13:15:00.000-07:00

Did y’all know that there are three weeks of protest currently taking place in Washington DC? Probably not.

“The revolution will not be televised.”

The schedule of events can be found here. These events are coordinated through Camp Democracy.

I have been stating for a very long time that this mode of protest – blogging – although it is extremely cathartic and it is very educational, it diminishes the need of people like us to get together and share our outrage and actually do something about it.

Because we have this outlet for our rage, frustration and disgust we do not meet in kitchens or student unions or church basements. We do not get together and formulate plans on how to take our Country back.

Of special interest at Camp Democracy is the Bush Crimes Commission. I recommend reading through this site. I recommend seeing what we are up against and what is at stake.

The trial of Don Rumsfeld, This Can’t Be Happening dot net, and After Downing Street dot org all have more evidence of what we need to protest against.

This Administration is the most enormous threat facing America and the world. People need to fully understand what our future holds if we do not stand up and take our Country back from the criminals.

Get outraged. Show up. There is no more important event in our lives. Many protests are happening around this Country.

United for Peace and Justice is a tremendous resource for events and local chapters.

If you are able to travel to DC, may the road rise up to meet you and may the wind be at your back.

UPDATE: Saturday 09.09.06

You can listen to some people reporting from Camp Democracy as well as some PSAs here.

Videos from Camp Democracy can be seen here.

Forward Into Light

2006-09-07T11:31:00.000-07:00

“Mr. President, how long must women wait for liberty?” These were the last words of Inez Milholland, a leader in the women’s suffrage movement.

Unfortunately, little is taught about the history of this movement. Many people do not know about the 72 years that women fought in order to gain the right to vote.

Last night we watched Iron Jawed Angels. A tremendous movie that documented how these women were also labeled “appeasers” and “treasonous”. Isn’t that always the way it goes; those who speak truth to power are marginalized and labeled enemies of the state? As documented in this movie, they are also treated extremely badly by the very government that is supposed to support and protect them.

These women, led by Alice Paul and members of the National Women’s Party, were thrown in prison for petitioning their government. They refused to pay the fines for the trumped up charges of “blocking traffic” and were subjected to torturous force-feeding when they went on a hunger strike as political prisoners.

Alice Paul fought her entire life for women’s rights. She gave up so much and suffered so deeply for me. I must honor her sacrifice.

The fight is not over. The Equal Rights Amendment has still not been ratified. Although there are many organizations who have picked up the torch, few people in America understand what is at stake or pay attention to the backwards spiral that the women’s movement has been in.

That is not really the purpose of this post though. This morning I received an email from Emily’s List stating that this November many women will not be coming to the polls.

Let me repeat that, this November women will not vote.

After everything that these women went through – as well as the women before and after them – in fighting so that we could have the right to have a say in the laws that we must abide by…

They deserve the honor and recognition of our votes. At the very least, out of respect for all of them, women must turn out at the polls.

Stopping Right-Wing Propaganda

2006-09-06T22:04:00.000-07:00

One petition at a time.

As so aptly pointed out by Steve at TLC and Paradox at TLC and Steve, yesterday, at TLC as well as many, many other Progressive Blogs, ABC will be showing Right-Wing propaganda billed as a "docu-drama".

So far, I have received four petitions demanding that ABC not air this rubbish:

• Democratic Party

• Act for Change

• Congresswoman Slaughter

• Think Progress

Feel free to add more.

UPDATE (Friday 09.08) Two More Petitions

• Move On

• Stop Big Media Stop Big Media is an ongoing campaign to end big media consolidation. This 9/11 fiction piece is a prime example of what happens when all of the power is in a few hands.

My Hero, Senator Russ Feingold

2006-09-06T11:29:00.000-07:00

Many of you might already know that I believe that the greatest hope for America’s future is Russ Feingold for President - 2008.

Senator Feingold is the only person who speaks the truth, speaks it loudly and is beholden to no one except his constituents, his Country and our Constitution.

In July Senator Feingold, through his PAC the Progressive Patriots Fund, created the Patriot Corps. He took applications from all over the Country and through our donations was able to hire these field organizers.

The Patriot Corps are a group of on the ground organizers who will fight in specific races to take our Country back. It is only through grass-roots organizing that we will be able to do this. Once again, Senator Feingold leads the way.

You can meet the Patriot Corps here.

Senator Feingold describes where these initial organizers will be sent.

And look, Anjha has a page at the Progressive Patriots where you can sign Feingold’s petitions and donate to support this excellent PAC.

Senator Feingold offers us hope. He offers us a future where the American Dream is still alive and well. A future where America is once again the shining light of the world as a place where the rule of law is king and people - all people - are valued. A future much different from the one of fear and danger and horror that the other side preaches.

I much prefer Feingold’s America.

Back to Normal

2006-09-05T10:22:00.000-07:00

School started today and Congress is back in session; time to get to work.

Let’s remind the Congress, on their first day back, that we are paying attention. As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, we need to ask our Senators to sign on to Feingold’s Censure Resolution and demand that they denounce Specter’s ‘it’s OK to break the law’ Surveillance Bills S2453 & S2455.

EFF is asking that we remind everyone we know to call in and attempt to stop this nightmare legislation.

I have a few other petitions and such and then I need to get moving.

Demand that ABC to tell the truth about 9/11.

Here’s a special offer from the publishers of Thom Hartmann’s new book – Screwed: The Undeclared War on the Middle Class

Union of Concerned Scientists asks you to vote for the new science idol.

Support Unions.

Check out Charles Sanders campaign ad.

Wilderness Society asks that we attempt to stop oil and gas leasing in Alaska’s Teshekpuk Lake Region.

CodePink reminds us of the September 21st Nationwide Declaration of Peace. There are events all over the Country.

The Nation has a great resource for College and High School educators.

Stop the War on Iran.

For those in Iowa, Tom Harkin invites you to a steak fry.

OK everyone – have a great day. Time to get busy.

Love is but a Song We Sing

2006-09-04T12:49:00.000-07:00

And fear's the way we die.

You can make the mountains ring

Or make the angels cry.

Though the bird is on the wing

And you may not know why.

C'mon people now

Smile on your brother

Ev'rybody get together

Try to love one another right now

Some will come and some will go

And we shall surely pass.

When the one that left us here

Returns for us at last.

We are but a moment's sunlight

Fading in the grass.

C'mon people now

Smile on your brother

Ev'rybody get together

Try to love one another right now

If you hear the song we sing

You will understand.

You hold the key to love and fear

In your trembling hand.

Just one key unlocks them both

It's there at your command

C'mon people now

Smile on your brother

Ev'rybody get together

Try to love one another right now

Right now Right now

Get Together

1969
The Youngbloods

Someone’s Knockin’ at the Door, Somebody’s Ringin’ the Bell

2006-09-03T11:49:00.000-07:00

Do me a favor…

Actually, do the United States and the World a favor: canvass, doorbell, pound the pavement, get out the vote.

We are facing the most important election in America’s history and it is up to us to make sure that the Dems take control of the Congress. We have to be the voice for the people, we cannot count on the traditional media – they are in bed with the Whitehouse and their affair continues to spread disease all over this Country and the world.

Thom Hartmann succinctly lays out the threat that we face, and it is not external terror. We are facing a new Fascism, an American Fascism, a Fascism that we were warned about in the last century.

If you have not yet watched Olbermann’s most eloquent speech from Wednesday it is a must see. I am grateful that there is a single media person who remembers that because they use the public airways, they have a duty to be of service to the public.

We know the threat – the solution is to make certain that we have a Democratic Congress elected in November so that we can have some accountability in Washington DC. This will not be easy. We have to get enough votes to counter the number of votes that the Repukes will steal.

This is important; they have stolen the last three elections. We absolutely must make sure that there is a large enough turnout that any inconsistencies will be easily fought. (Side note: in CA 50th CA no longer has jurisdiction to fight the outcome of the election. Because Dennie Hastert swore in Bilbray, before the official vote count and before the election was verified jurisdiction in this matter is now in the US House of Reps. This is an outrage. It was a premature swearing in of Bilbray. What this means is that the House of Reps can avoid any count of any election by just swearing in the candidate prematurely. Do we really want Dennie Hastert to decide who our Reps will be?!)

Back to the topic…we must make certain that we get people to the polls. We can only do this by going door to door and talking to people. The Dems have all of the issues. We are on the side of the people. We just need to make certain that they will show up on November 8th.

You can locate canvassing events here. If you cannot find one, you can volunteer to host one.

In addition, I recommend finding your local Democratic Party (Google your County Democratic Party or your State Legislative District Dems.)

Take for example the 47th Legislative District. It has the links to every candidate’s site that the 47th District Dems need to be supporting. Each of their websites have an Events page, or a volunteer page - the events include meeting for canvassing. I know that there are events every Saturday, from now until Election Day. There are also, in some instances, daily canvassing events.

Get out and walk, get out and talk. It is up to us to take our Country back and to save the world from the disaster that is the neo-con agenda.

Friday, I Have Work to Do, You Tell Me, Open Thread Edition

2006-09-01T08:43:00.000-07:00

I really have to get some work done today so I will not be around much.

I am hoping, that in edition to Open Thread ramble, perhaps you can tell me some Progressive Action that you have taken this week that actually made you feel like you were participating. This is important, the feeling that we get when we are making a difference, being a part of and impacting the political process, will help to take us through, and lift us out of, the despair that we feel when we watch the disintegration of our Country.

Being a citizen is not something that is granted to us as a birthright or comes with a piece of paper during Naturalization. Being a citizen is what we earn when we become involved in the administrative process of running our Country. Being a citizen is what we earn when we police the media and demand accountability. Being a citizen is what we earn when we pay attention, become informed and do something with the information that we uncover. Being a citizen is what we earn when we tell our employees what we expect from them.

We are a Representative Democracy. We are the employers, the politicians work for us.

OK, talk amongst yourselves.

Thursday Petition and Such Catch-Up

2006-08-31T11:06:00.000-07:00

I am very far behind in reading email. My inbox is full of petitions and such. I will list a few of them now.

Petitions:

• DefCon has several active campaigns.

• Charles Sanders has a petition to bring the troops home now. (mute first if you don’t want to hear his message)

• Demand that Ted Stevens release the hold on S2590. See, “I’m on the Hunt”

• One Campaign to Make Poverty History is asking you to add your name.

• EFF has several active petitions.

• Stop fake news.

• Demand that Women have access to their birth control.

• Tell Cheney you are proud to be a Dean Democrat.

• Protect forests and free spaces.

• Free Suzanne Swift

• League of Conservation Voters Global Warming petition

• Still trying to save the wolves.

• Tell Bush to keep his promises to the Gulf Coast.

Activities and Stuff:

• Great video on what really happens to those unused embryos.

• Campaign for America’s Future has a great new website, filled with talking points and videos.

• DefCon is asking for people to take their Real American Values survey. It is short, only a couple of questions.

• Attend a screening of “The Ground Truth”

• Make sure that you, friends and family are registered to vote.

• Democratic Governors Association needs volunteers.

• NWLC has a great blog “Nomination Watch”

• Share your concerns about Medicare Part D.

• NOW Spotlights Violence Against Women in the Military. Many suggestions on how to get involved.

• NOW has a good piece on blogging.

• DNC & Katrina related activities

• OMG _ Mother Jones article about a Gitmo detainee. This should be read by everyone.

• MoveOn asks that you attend or host a screening of “When the Levees Broke”

• Become a member of Wellstone Action and get out the vote.

Those who need financial support:

• Feingold looking for people to pre-renew their Progressive Patriot membership.

• Center for Media and Democracy – donate and receive a gift

• Today is reporting day for Dem donations, everyone needs money. The amount of money that people file today will indicate to the National orgs who they will throw their support to.

• Red Cross Katrina Fund

• DemStore There are a whole lot of items for sale here and a lot of tools for increasing awareness.

• DCCC supporting women candidates.

Upcoming Events:

• September 16th Nationwide Walk for Peace

• Department of Peace conference Feb 03-05, Washington DC

• The Trial of Don Rumsfeld Maybe it can be taken Nationwide.

• Oct -17 ACLU Stop the Abuse of Power event in DC

• Camp Democracy partnering with many other groups for National march on DC Sept 05.

UPDATE: Steve at TLC has a must read on "Dems Should Not Shy Away from this Debate"

This is Important

2006-08-31T09:16:00.000-07:00

I am certain that all of you have had an opportunity to view Keith Olbermann’s bravery and heroism by now.

I posted last night that we need to write him thank you notes. I now hear that the wingnuts are having a “hate Olbermann” drive. We need to come out in front of this.

Please send Keith a thank you: KOlbermann@msnbc.com

And please let his producers know: Countdown@msnbc.com

We need to slam them with thank you notes. We need to make certain that there are far more thank yous than f. yous.

The Rapture is Not an Exit Strategy

2006-08-30T16:19:00.000-07:00

This is husband’s bumper sticker caption to reframe the debate.

As much as I hate to say it, the Pukes are really good at sloganeering. However, running the Country is not a slogan and leading America to a “more perfect Union” is not contingent on constant campaigning. In fact, the campaigning must end and governing must begin.

Working Assets has a slogan contest. They are looking for something to combat the Pukes constant campaigning and take the debate back. Remind America what a disaster that this Administration has created and how they have done nothing but drag America into the ground. More specifically, pound us into the ground.

Now, at a time when those of us who are demanding accountability are accused of being “Nazi sympathizers,” we need to come out strong, hitting with both fists.

My favorite site to visit on reframing is Frame Shop.

Let’s put together some slogans. We need sound-bites that resonate with the people of this Country. As I write this, Melman is on Spit Matthews spewing his lies; telling everyone to be afraid…they will die if the Dems are elected.

This needs to stop. Let’s get creative. Let’s enter the contest. Let’s send the final list to the DNC.

I’m Just like You, Baby, I’m on the Hunt

2006-08-30T09:05:00.000-07:00

SOS pointed out the other day that a mystery Senator has put a hold on a bill that would allow complete transparency for government contracts. Specifically, a searchable database. Yesterday this hunt for the Senator was spotlighted on CNN.

SOS led me to Porkbusters who have been actively asking their readers to find the Senator by calling the Senator’s offices to see if they have in fact placed the hold on the bill (S2590). As of 8:52 am PT the list of suspects has been reduced to 5.

TPM Muckraker is also following this story and has been asking their readers to join in the hunt.

An amazing aspect of this story is that the left and right blogosphere have come together to fight this anonymous hold. Both sides of the blogosphere have been calling Senators and reporting back responses.

Join in.

In addition, I know that there is legislation that would change the rules so that these ‘secret holds’ can no longer be put on bills. I do not remember who introduced this legislation (I remember a floor speech regarding it, that is all.)

If you can help me find this bill number, and who introduced it, that would be fantastic.

UPDATE: I was out for a while. CNN has confirmed that it was Senator Stevens. Stevens denies that the hold was "secret"...if it was not secret then why not come clean days ago when the hunt started? Just Sayin'.

What I Should've Said

2006-08-29T10:08:00.000-07:00

I had considered doing a weekly piece on Progressive candidates that I like. Hopefully encouraging people to throw a few bucks their way and bringing attention to what the future of our Country will be when we elect Progressive people to the Congress. Excuse me, while I attempt to get my shit together and stay focused on this daily blogging thing…this is what I should’ve said, before the rest of the blogosphere beat me to it.

Mainsailset reminded me this morning that I should’ve written about this guy a while ago; now he is all the buzz on WA State blogs.

Peter Goldmark (Dem WA 5th), first came to my attention last week when eriposte at TLC linked to the AFL-CIO political portal.

I thought that I would check out Washington State races. I had pretty much written off everyplace east of the mountains as red. It really did not occur to me that we had a chance of turning them blue. Peter Goldmark offers me hope that we can turn the whole state blue. Just look at his face – it oozes sincerity.

His race is gaining traction and I think that we can help to give it a kick.

Horses ass reminds us that he has been upgraded by CQ.

Evergreen Politics has a great rundown on Goldmark.

Peace Tree Farm says it all, with great links.

I also ran across this site, which is a great portal for Lefty Blogs, sorted by state.

Today’s action item is to support Peter Goldmark in whatever way possible. If you cannot throw a few bucks his direction, consider writing a letter to the editor of some of the papers in his district. This is an excellent site for sending letters to the editor. You can send as many as five at a time all through this website.

So much Progressive Action to take. So little time.

Sitting on Your Ass Can Also Be Action

2006-08-28T09:58:00.000-07:00

Now that I have your attention, let’s explore.

One of the biggest difficulties with public perception is that the people are subject to never-ending propaganda via the traditional media. It is extremely unfortunate but it is the truth of the American society today.

We can no longer count on the media to be the fourth estate. The media conglomerates have too many conflicts of interest to report the truth. We have [Saint] Reagan to thank for the abolition of the Fairness Doctrine. Although it started with Reagan and Bush I,we have Clinton to thank for the deregulation of media consolidation.

Representative Slaughter has introduced legislation to restore the Fairness Doctrine. HR 501. Please contact your Rep and ask them to cosponsor this legislation. 1-888-355-3588.

Anyway – back to sitting on your ass and doing Progressive Action at the same time. How about we take it upon ourselves to educate people? Why not invite your friends, family, neighbors and coworkers over for a Progressive movie night? Make it a potluck; then you only need to provide a DVD player and a TV and a couple of places to sit. Brilliant, huh?!

What movies to show?

There are a few movies out there who are asking for people to host a screening:

• The Big Guy – Tom Delay’s Stolen Congress

• Sir No Sir!

• Iraq For Sale

• Why We Fight

There are several examples of coordinated Progressive movie showings. These sites can offer ideas for what to show:

• Progressive Movie Screenings in Vancouver

• Portland Alliance Movie Night

• Friday Night at the Meaningful Movies

Here are a few Progressive Movie makers:

• Michael Moore dot com

• Iron Weed Films

• Stone Soup Studios

Here are a couple of sites that offer some downloads and some trailers:

• Brasscheck TV

• Information Clearing House dot info

Here is a cool subscription movie org where you keep the movies (these movies are labeled “Spiritual” vs “Progressive” but it is pretty cool that you own the movies.) I am partial to Netflix dot com, but there are several ways to get great movies.

• Spiritual Cinema Circle

Sit on your ass, host a movie night, educate the populace. This will provide a tremendous service to the American people.

Educate and inform the whole mass of the people... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.
Thomas Jefferson

The Case for Impeachment

2006-08-27T11:30:00.000-07:00

Last night on the SPAN Book TV they finally covered “The Case for Impeachment” by Dave Lindorff and Barbara Olshansky.

This was an enormous step towards educating the American public.

When one compares the incessant media coverage of the Clinton consensual affair, and the numerous investigations that led to absolutely no charges, with the lack of coverage of the many crimes of the Bush Administration we have to conclude that the traditional media is complicit in the destruction of this Country, our democracy and the abolition of the Constitution of the United States of America.

We are in the greatest Constitutional crisis of our history and the majority of the people have no idea of the numerous crimes committed against us.

The majority of the Country does not read alternative media. Typing “The Case for Impeachment” into a search engine leads to over 4.2 million results. From Counterpunch to John Dean in Alternet to Common Dreams, cases have been made for Impeachment for a number of years.

Representative John Conyers has done extensive research and has created a report

Which turned out to be the purpose of his House Resolution 635—not a high-minded tilting at windmills but the production of a report, 182 pages, 1,022 footnotes, assembled by Conyers's staff during the six months prior to its presentation to Congress,

According to the two authors last night the investigations themselves are the most important aspect of the Conyers Resolution. They stated that at the beginning of the Nixon hearings only about 26% of the American people supported Impeachment. It was the sunshine on the many activities of his administration, the giving light to all that he had done, that led to his eventual resignation. Currently over 50% of Americans and over 80% of Democrats support Impeachment of George W. Bush if it is shown that he misled us into war, according to Lindorff.

Critics of Impeachment usually cite political obstacles. An argument can be made that Americans still sting from the absurd abuse of power during the Clinton years, when the Republican congress continued ridiculous investigations one after another. They made such a mockery of our system of government that a lot of Americans might be turned off by considering going through that again.

What we must continue to remind our elected officials of is that this is not a bogus investigation. This is the very foundation of our democracy and that the precedents set by this Administration place us all at risk for an America that resembles nothing of what we had before.

The Center for Constitutional Rights offers a brilliant opportunity to send your Congressperson a copy of Articles of Impeachment against George W. Bush while asking them to sign on to Conyers Resolution, HR 635.

VFP offer a lot of Impeachment related material as well. In an earlier post "Tuesday Petitions and Such” I linked to several other Impeachment petitions.

It is important to understand that High Crimes and Misdemeanors means ‘violating the public trust.’

From This Can’t Be Happening dot net here a just 10 of the Bush Administration crimes.

We absolutely must do everything possible to ensure a Democratic majority this November. It is only through a Dem majority that we will be able to have the necessary hearings to investigate the Bush crimes thereby ensuring that the American public are made aware of them. We are only a democracy because we follow the rule of law we must fight for the laws of our Country to be fully reinstated.

So, They Gave Us a Day

2006-08-26T11:49:00.000-07:00

I mentioned yesterday that Saturday, August 26, 2006, is National ”Women’s Equality Day”.

Yes, it is only a day, but I’ll take it.

It seems that I never create a post that represents the original post that I was going to create, today is no exception. Being that today is a day dedicated to women; I will share some Action Items having to do with women.

Note: These items are not restricted to women only…everyone is invited to participate.

I wandered into the DNC website, looking for something else, and found an entire page dedicated to getting women out to vote.

As I read through it I found several great suggestions and several good organizations.

The League of Women Voters has been around as long as the women’s right to vote has been guaranteed.

The Action Items listed by the LWV are substantial.

For those who are able and willing to hold a community forum the LWV has a fabulous guide for organizing events. (PDF) This particular guide is titled “Local Voices: Citizen Conversations on Civil Liberties and Secure Communities.” I cannot coordinate such an event; there is a cardinal rule for facilitators that instantly disqualifies me: keep your own opinions out of the discussion.

A huge block of voters, who will primarily vote Democratic, are unmarried women. The difficulty is getting these women to the polls. There is a link on this page to register to vote.

I have been reminding my friends and family to make sure that they are registered. This is important. Especially this year. I have the feeling that there will be many, many people disenfranchised. It is important to confirm with your Secretary of State that you are registered to vote. The more people who get to the polls the larger the Dem vote will be. We have to get enough people out to insure that the elections cannot be stolen.

Here is a great article reminding us what we are up against. We have always played by the rules, but we have not fully understood who we are up against.

In honor of Nation Women’s Equality Day NOW has a petition to remind our Representatives that Women’s Equality must be remembered every day.

Here are some other organizations dedicated to Women:

• NARAL

• Equal Rights Advocates

• National Women’s Law Center

• Feminist Majority Foundation

• Feminist dot com

• Planned Parenthood

Feel free to list more in the comments section.

Proud Aunt Post

2006-08-25T14:35:00.000-07:00

Special extra Friday edition of Proud Aunt Post.

There is hope for the future of our Country.

THIS was created by my 16 year old nephew.

They are paying attention!

Plan B Still Not Completely Set Free (or Just Another Feminist Post)

2006-08-25T10:33:00.000-07:00

I am certain that most of you know by now that the FDA has finally made a decision to release Plan B for over the counter sales, to women age 18 and over. The fight has not ended.

The sub-title of this post is meant to remind all women that our fight for an Equal Standing in this Nation is seen by many as just more ranting and bitching from the feminists. There are people who still wish that we would just shut up already and be grateful for the little morsels of leftover equality that are thrown to us by the majority of our decision makers.

We still do not have equal representation in the Congress.

It seems fitting that some movement towards allowing women control over their own body, and therefore their own destiny, would fall so close to the anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment.

What has really changed for women over the last 158 years since the Seneca Falls Convention? A bold statement was made then and many of the whereas clauses still ring true today.

From the Resolution:

The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman, having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over her. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world...

I recommend that you read the entire Resolution.

…Resolved, That such laws as conflict, in any way, with the true and substantial happiness of woman, are contrary to the great precept of nature and of no validity, for this is "superior in obligation to any other."

Resolved, that all laws which prevent woman from occupying such a station in society as her conscience shall dictate, or which place her in a position inferior to that of man, are contrary to the great precept of nature and therefore of no force or authority.

What must be repeated, today as well as 158 years ago, is the truth about laws that force women to incubate an unplanned and unwanted pregnancy. Anti-choice laws are “such laws as conflict, in any way, with the true and substantial happiness of woman,” and are “laws which prevent woman from occupying such a station in society as her conscience shall dictate, or which place her in a position inferior to that of man,…”

August 26, 2006 has been named “Women’s Equality Day,” by proclamation, from President Bush. (I won’t link to the WH press release; it just bothers me too much.) Isn’t it nice that he can name a day as “Women’s Equality” when his actions at blocking birth control – equal control over her body – are still his primary focus? We don’t want a day, we want control over our entire lives.

What I also found, in researching the 19th Amendment, is a very active petition to repeal the 19th Amendment. I won’t link to that either, it is even more bothersome than the WH. This petition spews such hatred as “women are to blame for government spending and male incarceration…” It really is too disgusting to repeat – but the feelings are out there and they like to use their god to perpetuate this hatred.

So, the fight is not over. I do agree that we should thank the FDA for the little morsel of leftover equality that they threw at us, but I believe that we should remind them in our comments that we will still be fighting for complete release of Plan B.

We will still be fighting retailers to demand that Plan B is made available.

We will still be fighting for the right of young women to have access to Emergency Contraception.

We will still be fighting to make certain the EC is available at military facilities.

We will still fight pharmacies that refuse women access to their prescriptions.

To give up now and surrender to those who prefer that our choices are limited, to celebrate something that science dictated should have been done three years ago, is limiting us to a morsel when we are guaranteed, via existence, the entire 12 course meal.

Thursday Progressive Org Spotlight

2006-08-24T09:46:00.000-07:00

I might make it a weekly feature to spotlight some Progressive Organizations. Or not. Let's just see which way the wind blows.

Today there are two Organizations that deserve a mention.

I believe that the only way that we will be able to take our Congress back from the moneyed interests (calling them "Special" Interests gives them respect they do not deserve) is to have Public Financing of Elections.

Just 6 Dollars dot Org is a movement fighting for this.

There is a concern that limiting the amount of money in campaigns, or limiting where the money comes from, might be unconstitutional. There is an equal concern that the amount of time that Representatives must spend campaigning might also be unconstitutional. Constant campaigning removes their attention from serving their constituents - serving their constituents is their job.

Just6Dollars has several action items to support their movement.

The second Organization that deserves mention is Read the Bill dot org.

The fabulous thing about Read the Bill is that it not only requires that the legislators have 72 hours to read the bill, it also requires that the bill is put online, so that the public has 72 hours to read the legislation.

Read the Bill legislation is H Res 688. You can call your Representative (1-888-355-3588) and ask them to co-sponsor, if they are not already. You can also sign the petition here.

Both of these orgs have email updates that you can sign up for and are accepting donations.

What's Your Sign?

2006-08-23T10:10:00.000-07:00

As we near closer to the midterms, election signs are filling the sides of the roads. What I have noticed, while out and about, is that the number of signs for Republican candidates far outweigh the number of signs for Democratic candidates.

This is no surprise, the Republicans, due to their policies that benefit the wealthy and the large corporations, have a lot more money to spend on yard signs.

What I have also noticed is that the majority of signs that are in people’s yards are for Democratic candidates. This also makes sense; the majority of the people, where I travel day to day, support the Dems. Signs in a person’s yard make a greater impact than signs placed willy nilly on public lands.

The disparity: it is very easy for one guy with a hammer and a pick-up truck full of Republican signs to drive around and place them in free spaces whereas the majority of people who individually support Dem candidates may not yet have yard signs.

Today’s action item is to stop by your Dem candidate’s offices and pick-up some yard signs and display them proudly. While there, check out some literature and see if there is anything else that you might do to help the campaign. For good measure, try paying for the sign (they are at least $3.00 a piece) and offer enough funds to pay for a few more.

It might be fun to actually find out who all of your Dem candidates are. Not only for National races but local and State races as well.

What I have found, while living on a busy street, is that my signs are viewed hundreds of times a day, but they are also subject to being stolen (yes, they do that.) They do not, however, take signs that are on windows. Putting signs on windows is also a good solution for apartment dwellers.

Let me know what your experience with yard signs has been and let me know if you pick them up. This should be a fun activity.

Tuesday Petitions and Such

2006-08-22T10:08:00.000-07:00

There are several orgs today who are asking that their petitions be signed and money be donated.

Recently a blogger commented that reading the news of the day and watching our Country move closer and closer to a dictatorship was so depressing and debilitating that he was losing the desire to participate at all.

My theory is that even a small action, like signing a petition, will move us out of the despair and into a place where we feel like we are contributing and making a difference. Action is the cure for depression.

Petitions:

Support Prop 87 that requires oil companies in CA to fund clean energy technologies.

US Action has several active petitions.

Act for Change is working to stop the Specter (Cheney) "its OK to break the law" wiretap bill.

Defenders of Wildlife has several active petitions.

NARAL has several petitions to demand a decision on Plan B and to tell pharmacists to provide equal access to women's healthcare.

Sanders for Congress has an Impeachment petition.

ImpeachPac also has a petition.

ACLU has a petition to stop Specter's bill.

Vote to Impeach has a petition.

National Women's Law Center has some action items.

Acivities and Funds Request:

Progressive Patriots Fund asks you to vote on a candidate.

DCCC seeking donations for their get out the vote campaign. (I have been picking a few Progressive Candidates and supporting them directly vs. sending money to the DCCC; their websites are available through the DCCC on the "races" tab.)

Code Pink seeking donations for their Troops Home Fast campaign.

Progressive Majority is looking for volunteers to help build a new future. A More Perfect Union.

Wellstone Action has a PDF download for training on how to organize how to get out the vote.

MoveOn looking for funds for their get out the vote call bank.

Can You Say "Civil War"?

2006-08-21T10:25:00.000-07:00

Admitting the obvious might not seem like a very big accomplishment. In most quarters of Washington DC, however, where delusion seems the preferable mental state, admitting the obvious is contingent upon constant reminders that the public is paying attention. As long as we stay asleep – the Congress Critters see no need to wake up.

The most simple definition of Civil War is “A war between factions or regions of the same country.”

Do not look behind the curtain, nothing to see here, move right along.

As public opinion shifts, many of the former Iraq war supporters, the pundits, are willing to utter the words “Civil War”.

The New Yorker offers a little rundown on those who are changing their tune.

“It is now obvious that we are not midwifing democracy in Iraq,” Thomas L. Friedman wrote, in the August 4th edition of the Times. “We are baby-sitting a civil war.” Friedman may not be another Walter Lippmann (just as any number of Stewarts, Olbermanns, O’Reillys, and Coopers don’t quite add up to a Cronkite), but he is the most influential foreign-affairs columnist in the country, and from the beginning he has been a critical supporter of the war. His defection is a bellwether. “The Administration now has to admit what anyone—including myself—who believed in the importance of getting Iraq right has to admit,” he wrote. “Whether for Bush reasons or Arab reasons, it is not happening, and we can’t throw more good lives after good lives.” In a Washington Post column a day earlier, the relentlessly centrist David S. Broder, citing his colleague Thomas E. Ricks’s new book, “Fiasco: The American Military Adventure in Iraq,” admitted that “the hope for victory is gone” and deplored “the answer from Bush,” which he characterized this way: “Carry on. Do not waver. And do not question the logic of prolonging the agony.”

The Washington Post agrees,

“The debate is over: By any definition, Iraq is in a state of civil war.”

Also admitting the truth, is the New York Times, which states that American soldiers in Iraq are basically just target practice for all of those people that the grand ol’ US of A has pissed off. The US foreign policy (or lack thereof) has done nothing but spread hatred towards the US all over the globe.

Enough of the obvious (I wonder who is going to tell the President?) this site is supposed to be an alternative from simply reporting the facts. This site is intended to offer some solutions to the despair that fact reading brings about.

What do we do to fight a foreign policy so devoid of reality that our starting point is forcing the politicians to admit the truth?

United for Peace and Justice has several upcoming events.

In addition, you can sign Senator Kerry’s petition here.

The Kerry-Feingold plan is a good one and can be easily reconciled with Murtha's

Murtha is quite adept at spreading reality around. A thank you note to Murtha for waking up and speaking out is also a good activity for today.

Speaking of Criminal Heads of State

2006-08-21T10:08:00.000-07:00

While on the topic of High Crimes and Misdemeanors, Feingold’s Censure Resolution deserves another mention.

You can sign on as a citizen co-sponsor of the Censure Resolution here.

Also, while on the telephone with your Senator’s office (1-888-355-3588) telling them to denounce Specter’s “get away with breaking the law” legislation (S2453 & S2455) ask them to please sign on to co-sponsor Feingold’s Censure Resolution.

The only way that we can ensure the slide into dictatorship slows a bit is to demand that there is some accountability for the law breaking at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.