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Democracy for New York City Makes 'The Daily Show'!
NYC Drinking Liberally made it on The Daily Show and it featured Democracy for New York City members Tracy Denton and Heather Woodfield on air -talking and drinking…
CAUTION: It gets a bit raunchy in some places!
http://atrios.blogspot.com/2007_07_22_archive.html#2649671423312961757
-Sheri Divers
U.S. Representative Paul Hodes 2nd district NH (representing cities Nashua, Concord, etc.) --
-- first he beats incumbent Charlie Bass in Nov 2006;
-- now he's endorsing Obama to be our next President:
http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070726/REPOSITORY/707260382
Hodes to endorse Obama for president
The Associated Press
July 26. 2007 12:28AM
Rep. Paul Hodes will endorse presidential hopeful Barack Obama today, the Associated Press has learned.
Hodes, a first-term congressman, will make the announcement during an 8:30 a.m. event at Eagle Square in Concord, an Obama source said.
The endorsement is a major coup for the campaign,
...
Hodes is the first member of the state's four-member congressional delegation to register an official endorsement.
Hodes is expected to bring with him liberal activists who helped propel him to a victory over Republican Charlie Bass.
...
Independent NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg applauds Obama:
http://www.nypost.com/seven/07262007/news/nationalnews/learn_leon_from_obama__mike_nationalnews_david_seifman_____city_hall_bureau_chief.htm
LEARN LE$$ON FROM OBAMA: MIKE
By DAVID SEIFMAN City Hall Bureau Chief
July 26, 2007 -- ST. LOUIS - Sen. Barack Obama got an unexpected boost yesterday from Mayor Bloomberg, who singled out the Democratic presidential candidate for supporting teacher merit pay.
The mention of Obama's name in the middle of a hard-hitting half-hour address on the nation's education shortcomings came as such a surprise that the crowd of 300 assembled for the Urban League's annual conference didn't have time to react.
...
"It's not Barack Obama. It's all the candidates. He just happens to have spoken out and I think he's right on the subject."
An administration source said Bloomberg's remarks, coming just two days before Obama, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and the other Democratic presidential hopefuls address the influential black leadership group, were intended to inject education issues into the national debate.
Clinton, who is battling to keep Obama from gaining further traction, declined comment on the mayor's comments.
...
http://www.nytimes.com/cq/2007/07/25/cq_3159.html
Craig Crawford’s Trail Mix: Give Obama a Break on Talking to Dictators
By Craig Crawford, CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLYPublished: July 25, 2007You would think that White House contender Barack Obama had proposed giving Fidel Castro the Presidential Medal of Freedom. That is, if you listen to the Illinois senator’s Democratic rival, Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York, try to exploit his casually positive response Monday to a simplistic debate question about whether he would meet with the Cuban dictator and other bad guys in the first year of his presidency.
...
Clinton went much further yesterday, calling it “irresponsible and naïve,” clearly hoping to boost her ongoing message that Obama lacks the proper training for the Oval Office.
But to voters who are growing weary of the Bush administration’s unrelenting belligerence on the international stage, Obama’s willingness to at least talk to others probably sounds more promising than Clinton’s apparent preference for maintaining a war footing against potential enemies.
I'm suggesting seriously consider supporting Ron Paul.
Looks like our lovely "progressive" Demos have too long way to go..., to reach him, imo
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story...
I disagree with Hodes.
Sitting public officials should not be endorsing candidates. If the separation of powers and the principle of checks and balances is to be re-inforced then the potential for conflict of interest inherent in such endorsements needs to be recognized.
But, Hodes is still a novice in public office and may be excused on that account. Carol Shea-Porter has instructed her paid staff not to participate in presidential primary campaigns.
The latest "achievement" of our "advanced democracy"...., lol.
http://www.miamiherald.com/416/story/181...
Breaking News
Inmate found guilty in masturbation trial
By ROBERTO SANTIAGO AND JENNIFER LEBOVICH
20-year-old Terry Lee Alexander was alone in his jail cell in November when a female deputy, watching him from a nearby control room, became offended when she saw him masturbating.
• Terry Lee Alexander was charged with a misdemeanor count of exposure of sexual organs.
• The statute states: ``It is unlawful to expose or exhibit one's sexual organs in public or on the private premises of another, or so near there to as to be seen from such private premises, in a vulgar or indecent manner...''
A Broward prisoner accused of committing a sex act while he was alone in his jail cell was found guilty Tuesday of indecent exposure.
..........
to the tune of the 80's group The Fixx "One Thing Leads To Another":
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,290732,00.html?sPage=fnc.politics/youdecide2008
John McCain Dismisses Gingrich Criticism of Republican Presidential FieldWednesday, July 25, 2007
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — John McCain on Tuesday brushed aside derogatory comments made by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who compared the Republican presidential field to a "pathetic" bunch of "pygmies."
...
+++
Romney, McCain lash out at Democrats
By GLEN JOHNSON, Associated Press Writer
Wed Jul 25, 9:47 PM ET
FRANKLIN, N.H. - Mitt Romney and John McCain sought to enhance their stature in a field of Republican presidential contenders that Newt Gingrich derisively called "pygmies," criticizing their Democratic rivals as too liberal and ill-prepared for the nation's top job.
Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, singled out Democratic front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton, telling senior citizens in central New Hampshire: "I don't think Hillary Clinton could get elected president of France with her platform. France is moving toward us."
Romney did not spare others, though, saying: "I'm convinced that America is going to change course and the question is which way it is going to go: Are we going to take a sharp left turn represented by Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama and John Edwards, or are we going to march forth with the American values that have always helped us be the strongest nation on earth? And I believe we'll do the latter."
...
Romney, meanwhile, was in Bedford, N.H., talking up his support for a ban on assault-style weapons. He said he sees no problem with a Manchester City Republican Party's fundraiser next month where guests will fire Uzis and M-16 rifles.
"No one is suggesting that automatic weapons be made available to the public," Romney said at a town hall meeting in a school gym. "I support the Second Amendment."
Romney said using a weapon is different from owning one.
"I've held the stick on an F-16 fighter jet," he said. "That doesn't mean I think the public ought to be flying F-16 fighter jets. Let the Manchester Republican Party do as it likes."
McCain took exception to remarks in which Obama asserted his foreign policy judgment was superior to any of the candidates in the race, Republican or Democrat, partly because he has lived overseas and had a multicultural upbringing.
"Well, I also think I'm the most qualified to run the decathlon because I watch sports on television all the time," the Arizona senator said with sarcasm between stops in this leadoff primary state.
"I think that Senator Obama showed a degree of naivete when he advocated direct talks with the leader of North Korea and the president to Iran and of all these other people who are sponsoring terror all over the world," McCain told The Associated Press.
...
Responding to the GOP criticism, Kate Bedingfield, a spokeswoman for Edwards, said of Romney, "No candidate is more out of step with the nation than Governor Romney, who supports President Bush's stay-the-course strategy in Iraq while the vast majority of Americans are demanding a new plan that brings our troops home safely and swiftly."
...
Romney also shrugged off Gingrich's remark this week that the GOP field is a "pathetic" bunch of "pygmies." Gingrich is a potential GOP candidate.
"I consider it an exceptionally strong field and think they're good people that folks will be able to choose from. And if Speaker Gingrich wants to get in, he would enhance the field," Romney said.
McCain was less charitable when asked about Gingrich's comment on Tuesday.
"If Mr. Gingrich decides he wants to get into the presidential campaign for the nomination of our party, then I would take some of his comments more seriously," the senator said.
...
Carol Shea-Porter was an excellent representative of the Party last night on the NewsHour Monica.
is there a way to capture video from that show for you-tube?
her answer on withdrawal was tone perfect
6.
The one thing I noticed is that District 2 (besides including south central Concord and Nashua) represents mostly western NH, the same slice of NH that a majority for Howard in the last NH primary, whereas most of southeastern (in District 1) NH went for Kerry.
10.
Yes, the right to privacy is only implied, not guaranteed, and besides that's florida and prisoners have no civil rights in that state.
bloggie still acting up. My comment on the right to privacy was obviously in response to the florida prison story. Juveniles have no civil rights either.
13.
Phil Specht
Thu, 07/26/07
9:14 am
her answer on withdrawal was tone perfect
-----
look at the Ron Paul's principles what country's foreign policy should be.
Yes, Phil, i have begun suggesting to people that they start thinking of a replacement for that seat since it's my sense that she's not destined for a long tenure in Congress. She's a natural for a slot in a Democratic Administration.
Carol Shea-Porter is the face of the new Democratic Party, because she was elected close to the people she serves, and she clearly listens to her body politic when home.
Ron Paul has a few things right and quite a few wrong. But may he be their nominee.
Gary Hart is questioning if Hillary will be the winner of next year's dem nomination:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/07/25/politics/politico/main3095922.shtml
Obama's Strategy: Emulate Reagan
Conservative Icon's 1980 Bid Is A Blueprint For An Insurgent Campaign
July 25, 2007
(Politico) By The Politico's David Paul Kuhn
Awash in money and publicity but behind in the polls, Barack Obama, advisers say, is planning a classic insurgent's campaign to wrest the Democratic nomination from Hillary Rodham Clinton — one that relies on a surge of momentum from early-state victories and faces a make-or-break test in the South Carolina primary.
Obama is touting a new and unconventional brand of grass-roots politics, but his strategy borrows from precedents set by a previous generation of Democrats such as Jimmy Carter and Gary Hart. His advisers also invoke as inspiration a surprising Republican: Ronald Reagan.
"Now, it is blasphemy for Democrats," Obama pollster Cornell Belcher said of Reagan, "but that hope and optimism that was Ronald Reagan" allowed him to "transcend" ideological divisions within his own party and the general electorate.
The upbeat message, Obama advisers say, won't prevent the candidate from stepping up both veiled and explicit contrasts with Clinton, who he hopes to portray as an old-hat conventional politician whose varied positions on the Iraq war reflect calculation rather than leadership.
Obama's need to transcend conventional politics is evident by looking at the practical hurdles to his nomination.
...
But bundles of cash and good buzz have not eroded what most national polls show as a durable double-digit lead for Clinton, built largely around her nearly two-to-one advantage with Democratic women.
This has Obama relying on a carom-shot candidacy, in which, come January, he will need to exploit Clinton's weakness in the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses, then have nearly all the bounces go his way in other early contests if he hopes to compete credibly once the race goes national with voting in half the states on Feb. 5.
Obama strategists say for now they are not running a national campaign but are depending on what senior adviser David Axelrod calls "a sequential series" of victories.
This is why Obama is already on the air with television ads in Iowa and New Hampshire and so far is out-spending Clinton in every early state.
...
Occasionally it works, as when George McGovern won the Democratic nomination on an anti-war message in 1972 or when Jimmy Carter bounced off an Iowa victory to become unstoppable in 1976.
...
A close parallel to the strategy Obama is trying to execute (with a different conclusion) is the one that took Gary Hart to the brink of a major upset of Walter Mondale in 1984.
Hart stunned the party establishment when his future-oriented "new ideas" message led to a big victory in the New Hampshire primary. Mondale soon rallied by saying Hart's supposed new ideas reminded him of a fast-food hamburger commercial: "Where's the beef?"
Obama's hope is to answer that question most fervently by emphasizing that he opposed the war in Iraq from the outset.
Hart, who in addition to his own insurgent campaign also managed McGovern's in 1972, sees new vitality in the old strategic model, questioning Clinton as he once did Mondale.
"There still is an enormous number of people in the party who are unhappy with [Clinton] for what they perceive to be her vacillation on the war and her reluctance to confess error," he said in an interview. "People who care about these things remember when, remember how, remember who took leadership.
"She's one of the best-known women in the world," Hart added. "She's been in the White House for eight years. She's a senator from one of the largest states. And 60-plus percent of the Democratic Party wants somebody else."
It will be a challenge for Obama to become that "anybody but Clinton" candidate, an urge that is another common reaction to Democratic front-runners.
Obama advisers, speaking privately, acknowledge that the race likely will hinge on whether the debate is on Obama's terms (Who presents the fresher and more compelling face for the future?) or on Clinton's (Who can give voters the most reassurance about ability to do the job?).
"If the debate is about changing politics and moving the country in a different direction and bringing people together, we like our odds in that debate," said a senior official in the campaign, who insisted on not being identified in order to discuss strategy candidly. "If the debate is primarily about who is going to be a strong, tough leader, that debate, quite frankly, is probably going to benefit Hillary Clinton."
...
I don't know what it is about Republicans and the word naive. I don't know why Clinton thought it a put-down of Obama to use it against him, nor why McCain is echoing it. It raised a firestorm among Carol's supporters when I used it in a conditional phrase in a letter about her because, the argument ran, Republicans were now going to use that word against her. They didn't, but even if they did, the significance escaped me then and still does.
Is having naivete sort of like cooties?
Monica wrote "Sitting public officials should not be endorsing candidates."
You’ll have to remind me because I don’t have a recollection of it. Was this your stated position when Gov. Dean was amassing super delegates in 2003?
The "hope and optimism" of Reagan turned out to be a great deception from which middle America has yet to recover. You don't challenge the corporate stranglehold with a hope and a prayer.
Tom, I don't think I addressed it in that context. Although, in retrospect, it obviously didn't do him or them any good in moving the progressive agenda forward. Dean's obviously gone back to the drawing boards and doing things differently this time around.
Many mistakes were made. The trick is not to do better, but to do different.
Well, I'm hoping that Gary Hart is correct and that an insurgency campaign will win next year.
bbl
On reading the July 21 editorial "The Phony Debate," it became clear why The Post's editorial writers have been such eager cheerleaders for the Bush administration's flawed Iraq policies -- the two share the same disregard for the facts en route to drawing dubious conclusions.
The editorial was an inaccurate commentary on the nature of the Senate debate, the reality in Iraq and the president's stubborn adherence to failed policies.
Thu Jul 26, 2007 at 06:37:34 AM PDT
BTW, Tom, "you'll have to remind me" is an infellicitous phrase--one to which I would not normally respond. However, there was a period of time when I, unthinkingly, sent money to the DSCC and the DCCC, until I thought better of it. Just because these anticipatory bribes are legal doesn't make them any more corrupt than specific gifts for specific votes.
In the bull session we had with Terry McAuliffe after the workshop he insisted that this election would be a "change" election.
I agree with that assessment.
that is why Hillary has such a mountain to climb, because her strongest traits (like those she tried to highlight in her little tet e tet with Obama) are those tied to her personal experience and that is backward looking.
A change election is all about the future.
The electorate is way past ready to dump the Republican vision, so with the right candidate we could win with a margin big enough to actually put Democratic Platform ideas into law. (like Universal Health Care)
That is why it is so important that the change be from the Democratic Wing and not some accomodation with some squishy middle.
phil I still don't understand why McAullife is still in the mix. He is "so yesterday".
Sounds like you are the boots on the ground in Iowa. Thanks for the reports.
Monica wrote "'you'll have to remind me' is an infellicitous phrase--one to which I would not normally respond."
Well, you obviously don't have to remind me or respond, but I used the phrase because I had no recollection of this being your stated position during Dean's campaign, which apparently it was not. Thanks for clarifying that.
However, when you say super delegates did Dean no good, I'm going to disagree. They didn't net him the nomination, but they definitely kept his candidacy afloat during the stormy days of the early caucuses and primaries. The significance is easy to dismiss in retrospect but at the time, many of his supporters, including me, could not have been more grateful or considered more important, the early endorsements of people like Zoe Lofgren and Carolyn Cheeks-Kilpatrick. They were a lifeline.
Monica
my son pointed it out to me (he is a faithful kossack)
maybe a Fairness Doctrine would remake all those streaming headlines on CNN and Fox too?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
they officially deemed my storm a "500 year" event
May 20th 2004 left almost identical damage
global warming has a price tag that we haven't even begun to fathom
Phil I have a question and since I don't have a direct email to you , here goes....
Remember I told u we got a dog from the pound , a llasa apso, we named him Maxx.
Well, he is doing pretty well but one problem. He is scared to death of getting near water, like a lake or the river. The first time we took him to the local park, which had a bridge over part of it, he put his head down and was terrified to walk over the bridge. If we go to the beach he will pull back and not get near the water.
Do you think maybe the former owners dropped into water or something and made him afraid of any body of water? I thought u might know since you take care of your farm animals. I have never had a dog that was terrified of water.
former wrote "look at the Ron Paul's principles what country's foreign policy should be."
Then go look at his domestic policy platform. You support him because like him, you reject the social compact in anything other than its most dilute form. I don't know what you do with his position on the right to medically induced abortion.
linda b
McAuliffe is Hillary's national campaign manager and spoke in her behalf at our training. he stuck around to hear Obama's speech, and then as the group of us who put it on were relaxing afterward, he joined us. I don't think he knows what to think about Obama's appeal, and he was trying to get a handle on it. All of us at the table are leaning Edward's way right now but are neutral and working with all of the candidates at this stage. i don't ever get to far from the cows so I enjoyed the personal interaction with a former DNC Chair, I've had similar conversations with others, but none still active with a campaign. Senator Dodd did a stint as Chair, and I am going to get him to blog with us Sat. if I can get an internet connect at the restaurant.
Phil wrote "McAuliffe is Hillary's national campaign manager and spoke in her behalf at our training."
This is so amazing, to say nothing of galling, when viewed in relation with Dean’s pleas to McAuliffe as party chair to keep the Committee’s conduct neutral regarding the candidates during the campaign in 2003 and 2004, and his toast with Clinton during Dean’s speech at the national convention. What a jackass.
Phil, I like the point that you don't get too far from the cows.
Thanks for your insight. It is outstanding as usual.
18.
Phil Specht
Thu, 07/26/07
9:24 am
Carol Shea-Porter is the face of the new Democratic Party...
*************
http://www.carolforcongress.com/index.ph...
On the Issues
National Security
by Carol Shea-Porter
on Monday, January 23rd 2006 7:03 pm
Terrorists will only be defeated if there is goodwill and cooperation among various governments, so that all nations will aid in hunting them down. There are certainly a few rogue nations...
..........
We need to concentrate now on protecting our own country from terrorists... America should heed the wise words of Teddy Roosevelt, who said, "Walk softly and carry a big stick."
---------
...lol, and what's "new" in that "face"?
There are no "rogue nations" TODAY except THE ONE that "hunting...down" others as a such (just watch how cooperation in that "hunting" has diminished for the last couple of years, even in Afghanistan).
"carry a big stick" ESPECIALLY dangerous!
It is from yesterday's, from Bush&Co's mentality! Democratic Party should be ashamed to have such a face still.
She should learn from Ron Paul (at least regarding security and international policy), imo.
linda b
sounds like maybe your dog was abused (or conditioned) as I have a dog loving trainer that uses a hose of water on barking dogs to teach them to be quiet and I never thought it abuse (if they kept barking after he told them to stop he sprayed them)
some dogs love water so he would use something different
just thinking out loud here and there is differences between breeds, try and keep a lab out of water, but it will be hard to change once it is ingrained
your breed is a guard dog, bred to be hard to intimidate, punishment (not dominance) is likely counter-productive
if you can get him to heel everytime and go to the edge of the water first that might over come the fear
dogs are pack animals and cows are herd animals and dominance/ submission which plays such a big canine role has little to do with bovine psychology
where this fits on a political blog is the sublimal tricks Republicans use such as the "alarm cry" that leads me to believe that they are back on the African savannah a million evolutionary years ago
Last nite we had our first campaign event for John Miller, who is running for the 1st district Senate seat in the Virginia State Leg. Over 150 people were there.
Here is a pix from vivian page's website. The staff with Governor Kaine. I am the one peeking around Bea's head.
John Miller , the candidate is in back with the gray hair.
We are going to win this one and the state party is giving us a lot of help too.
linda b
We got a mixed (terrier/shepherd) dog who had been a stray and picked up by a vet on the mainland, but near the island. When we took her to to beach, I had to carry her over the rivulets formed by the resceding tide and we were able to let her run free on the sand-bar since she wouldn't go in the water. After six years, she now puts her feet in the water and tries to play with frogs. She doesn't like getting wet in the rain and needs to dried with a towel. She balks at even walking over the bridge of the river down the road. She like digging holes in the dirt.
phil , thanks for the help here.
Maxx is not easly intimidated. He hardly ever barks except when the UPS truck drives up. He guards our house quite well and doesn't bark unless he knows something is wrong.
The family next door has two dogs they leave outside each day and they bark non stop. Maxx just sits on the porch and looks at them. No barking at them or their cat.
He is a good dog but you have to watch that you don't get that snear he gets when he gets pissed off at you. He does not like you to get in his face. At all.
He loves to ride in the car tho.
I like to have a good gin and tonic every now and then. But does any one of they young folks have real job to go to in the morning or have a mortgage to pay? I wonder how many of them have the responsibilty of feeding another mouth?
Immigration in focus - KQED's collection of programs, special reports and events about California's complex immigration issues. http://www.kqed.org/topics/history/immig...
I just got an email from Jim asking for support to Jamie Eldridge for the upcoming special election for the MA 5th Congresional district to fill the spot vacated by Marty Meehan (who retired to operate the Univ of MA Lowell campus).
Well, I'm in the 4th as represented by Barney Frank.
My own preference, though, would be to see Niki Tsongas win the seat (the wife of the late Paul Tsongas, the congressman almost soley responsible for psuhing forward the enactment of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and doubling the size of the nation's parks via the 1980 Alaska Lands Act)
LOL, January 23, 2006 was a full year before she got to Washington. Much has changed since then. OK, she was naive!!!!!!
In the meantime, back at the ranch...
Hot news items from Central California.
Ivanka Trump Gets to Business in Fresno 07/25/2007 - Ivanka Trump began her day early Wednesday morning touring the Running Horse development, a project until Wednesday she had not seen in person. video - section=local&id=5511593http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?sectio...
real job to go to in the morning or have a mortgage to pay
~~~~~~~~~`
the trap that we all fall into, somebody get a ladder
thanks for the reminder lol
bbl
better link
Ivanka Trump Gets to Business in Fresno 07/25/2007 - Ivanka Trump began her day early Wednesday morning touring the Running Horse development, a project until Wednesday she had not seen in person.
video - http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?sectio...
the Mohs mother daughter relationship reminded me a bit of what you've communicated somewhat here Phil about you and your son:
http://www.madison.com/tct/news//index.php?ntid=202738
Obama leads donations race hereJudith Davidoff and David Callender — 7/25/2007 11:33 am
Alta Charo is one of hundreds of local residents who recently contributed to U.S. Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign.
But that doesn't mean the University of Wisconsin professor of law and bioethics, who donated $1,000 to Obama, necessarily favors the freshman senator from Illinois over the other Democrats running for president.
"I wanted to make sure he stayed competitive in the race," said Charo, noting she hasn't ruled out giving money to other Democratic front-runners.
Charo sees strengths in all the major candidates, but said she feels Obama inspires trust as a leader.
"He has an almost Bill Clinton capacity for connecting with people at an emotional level," she said.
...
Both Thompson and Obama lead the pack of presidential hopefuls when it comes to campaign cash from Wisconsin. Nearly half of the money in Thompson's campaign war chest, roughly $429,000 out of more than $980,000, comes from home-state donors. Obama is second, raising slightly less than $300,000 in the Badger State, according to the center's Web site, opensecrets.org.
Former Republican Massachussetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Democratic U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton placed a distant third and fourth, raising about $99,000 and $76,000 respectively from Wisconsin donors.
...
Obama, for example, caught the eye of an unlikely donor: longtime Republican Party political operative Mary Mohs, who paid $500 to attend a luncheon for Obama in Chicago.
Mohs said she signed the check at the request of her daughter Nicole, who lives in Chicago and is best friends with an Obama fundraiser. She said she was thrilled her normally apolitical daughter was taking any interest in an election.
"The fact that she showed any interest at all, I didn't care who was running," said Mohs, who also contributed $1,000 to former Gov. Tommy Thompson. "I was happy she was paying attention and listening to the debates."
...
Story from McNerney country
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn...
Tracy suffers heavy losses in Iraq war
Oakland Tribune, Feb 1, 2006 by Mike Martinez, STAFF WRITER
TRACY -- The list of names at the Tracy War Memorial has become a lot more crowded than anyone had ever imagined.
Five soldiers who called Tracy home have died since the war began in 2001, giving the city the unwanted distinction of having one of the highest death rates per-capita in California.
Tracy has suffered more total deaths than neighboring Alameda and Contra Costa counties.
A sixth Tracy resident, 40-year-old Shaun Fyfe, a civilian contractor working for the Department of Defense, died in an Iraq hotel room of natural causes last June.
With a population of about 80,000, the city registers 6.25 deaths per 100,000 residents, a number far higher than that of any other in the county.
----
The LANDIS List a daily report
U.S. Military killed in action in
Iraq: 7/25/07: 2
Current Total: 3,657
Wounded 7/12/07 to 7/17/07: 111
Wounded Total (to 7/17/07):26,806
Killed in Action, June 2007: 101
Wounded, June 2007 Total: 520 730
KILLED IN ACTION:
Hospitalman Daniel S. Noble, 21, U.S.N. ,Whittier, California (hostile fire)
Cpl.Mathew Zindars, 21, U.S. Marine Corps, Watertown, Illinois (Hostile fire-IED attack)
Lance Corporal Jason Tetrault, 20, U.S. Marine Corps, Moreno Valley, CA (Vehicle Accident)
Sgt. Roger Dale Rowe, 54, U.S. Army, Bon Aqua, Tennessee (hostile--sniper fire)
Pvt. Robert L. McKinley, 23, U.S. Army, Kokomo, Indiana (illness-heatstroke)
Sgt.1st.Class Craig A. Bolling, 38, U.S.Army, Elkhart, Indiana (illness-heart attack?)
S/Sgt. Barry Sanford Sr., 46, U.S. Amy, Aurora, Colorado ( non-hostile-weapon discharge)
Spec. Chad L.Keith, 21, U.S. Army, Batesville, Indiana (hostile fire-bomb)
Sgt. David B. Parson, 30, U.S. Army, Kannopolis, North Carolina (hostile fire-ambush)
Spec. Jeffrey M. Wershow, 22, U.S. Army, Gainesville, Florida (hostile-small arms fire)
M/Sgt. James Curtis Coons, 35, U.S. Army, Conroe, Texas (non-hostile-suicide)
___________________________________________________
The most shocking fact about war is that its victims and its instruments are individual human beings, and that these individual beings are condemned by the monstrous conventions of politics to murder or be murdered in quarrels not their own: Aldous Huxley - English novelist and critic, 1894-1963
Please send these casualty reports (by FAX or e-mail) to your Senators and Congress members every day.
Please redistribute these casualty reports to your friends, family, and e-mail list. Additional e-mail recipients welcome.
TOLL FREE TO ANY MEMBER OF CONGRESS:
1-800-828-0498
1-800-459-1887
1-800-614-2803
1-866-340-9281
1-866-338-1015
1-877-851-6437
33.
Tom Bearse
Thu, 07/26/07
10:16 am
You support him because like him,
-----------
...lol, well, I like not exactly "him" but, probably, the most of "his positions" that I'm familiar with.
you reject the social compact in anything other than its most dilute form.
-----------
ideally, in some prospective and using your terms, I do support this compact in no less than in absolutely dilute form only.
I don't know what you do with his position on the right to medically induced abortion.
------------
About that I know nothing and could not find anything on his site.
If you don't mind please refer it to me.
Thanks.
42.
Phil Specht
Thu, 07/26/07
10:41 am
...if you heard her last night.
---------
link, please
Phil Specht
Thu, 07/26/07
9:24 am
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
More foreign policy nonsense from the Democrats............you wanna beat terorism? Dont give people a reason to hate you in the first place............THATS the key, and it has NOTHING to do with our freedoms..................
Since 1945 and especially since 2000 we have really screwed things up royally.....one might suspect this keeps feeding the big mouth of the military industrial complex............
Americans can learn alot about combating terrorists ala Britain, Spain, France etc...........
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Obama's Strategy: Emulate Reagan
What would make any Obamanoid think that will impress Democrats?
Democrats shift approach on abortion
As lawmakers and candidates appeal to religious voters, their language and policy goals on the issue have a ring of conservatism.
By Stephanie Simon, Times Staff Writer
July 26, 2007
....From a political perspective, Democratic strategists warn that emphasizing birth control gives voters a bad impression — "that Democrats are just about free love, not morality," said Rachel Laser, an analyst for the progressive think tank Third Way.
She has been urging Democrats to embrace programs aimed at helping women in crisis keep their pregnancies, in an effort to show voters that "pro-choice" does not mean "pro-abortion."
The leading Democratic presidential candidates are increasingly making that more nuanced case.
At a recent presidential forum, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York decried the failure of activists on both sides to work together to....
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-abortion26jul26,1,3579414.story?ctrack=4&cset=true
I'm a bit baffled by seeing so much praise for right winger Ron Paul on this blog. He gets more ink than liberal Mike Gravel for goodness sake!
Democrats shift approach on abortion
Should read: DLCers shift approach on abortion
They've become Republicans on everything else. Why not abortion too?
REP. CAROL SHEA-PORTER: No, absolutely not.
As a matter of fact, I saw a country in chaos. I saw Shia and Sunni women that could not even look at one another or respond to each other's issues about children not being fed. I spoke to two generals who, within an hour, contradicted one another about the number of Iraqi police and soldiers we had to stand up.
I saw chaos. I saw wonderful American soldiers trying so hard to solve this. But I think I have to completely disagree with the assessment of my colleague, because none of the benchmarks have been met that the president set. None of the goals have been met. And they keep moving the goal posts.
I was told by General Petraeus in March that he would know in early summer if this surge, this escalation had worked. And now we're hearing another plan. They moved the goal posts continuously.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/politics/july-dec07/freshmen_07-25.html
REP. CAROL SHEA-PORTER: Well, the problem that I'm having is that, every time we have a vote, we don't see anybody across the aisle to meet us halfway. We don't see a plan put out there. There's never been a plan for us to vote on.
All of the ideas are coming from the Democrats. And I would like to say, Speaker Pelosi has spoken to the generals and to the others very often. We're not getting anywhere. And the nation understands this. And that's why the Democrats have chosen to lead the way.
And we would appreciate it if we could get some more people on the other side of the aisle to listen to the American people. We're not doing well. We have these reports, and I don't see people flocking to read those intelligence reports. And they're critical. I sit on the Armed Services Committee. They get the same evidence. We all can look at the evidence.
And all the evidence states that we're in dire circumstances, that our Army is broken, at the straining point. And, yet, we see votes that do not reflect the reality. It's frustrating for us, too.
former wrote "About [a woman's right to medically induced abortions] I know nothing and could not find anything on his site. If you don't mind please refer it to me."
Well, this is from his site and let's just say Ron Paul's experience as a physician has brought him to a position that contrasts directly with Howard Dean's position based on his experience:
"The right of an innocent, unborn child to life is at the heart of the American ideals of liberty. My professional and legislative record demonstrates my strong commitment to this pro-life principle.
"In 40 years of medical practice, I never once considered performing an abortion, nor did I ever find abortion necessary to save the life of a pregnant woman.
"In Congress, I have authored legislation that seeks to define life as beginning at conception, HR 1094.
"I am also the prime sponsor of HR 300, which would negate the effect of Roe v Wade by removing the ability of federal courts to interfere with state legislation to protect life. This is a practical, direct approach to ending federal court tyranny which threatens our constitutional republic and has caused the deaths of 45 million of the unborn.
"I have also authored HR 1095, which prevents federal funds to be used for so-called 'population control.'
"Many talk about being pro-life. I have taken direct action to restore protection for the unborn.
"As an OB/GYN doctor, I’ve delivered over 4,000 babies. That experience has made me an unshakable foe of abortion. Many of you may have read my book, Challenge To Liberty, which champions the idea that there cannot be liberty in a society unless the rights of all innocents are protected. Much can be understood about the civility of a society in observing its regard for the dignity of human life."
A word to the wise: Libertarians support personal rights and freedom from tyranny when they're in the mood.
California's Central Valley
NPR Series Profiles the State's 'Backstage' Rural Breadbasket
Learn more about the series, and listen to each of the reports. HERE: http://www.npr.org/programs/atc/features...
Nov. 11-14, 2002 -- Most Americans, and the rest of the world, would describe California by its popular tourist destinations and economic touchstones: Hollywood, Disneyland, the Golden Gate Bridge, Big Sur, Venice Beach, Silicon Valley.
But there is another California, and it's home to the greatest garden in the world. The 400-mile-long Central Valley supplies fully one-quarter of the food America eats. It's a long, mostly flat and incredibly fertile pocket of land nestled between the coastal mountains and the Sierra Nevada range.
There are no marquee destinations, only sober, business-first cities and vast stretches of farmland and cattle range. But the Central Valley is beginning to change rapidly.
Families looking for lower-cost housing in California's inflated housing market are trading a three-hour commute to work for a little country space and serenity -- and once-fertile fields are being paved over to make way for subdivisions. Farmers are under increasing pressure to reduce their dependence on chemicals for higher crop yields. And amid all this change, there is a huge Latino population -- many of them illegal immigrants -- whose lack of economic mobility impedes their assimilation into the American melting pot.
In a series of four reports, NPR's Richard Gonzales and John McChesney profile the promise and pitfalls waiting for the Central Valley as more and more people and businesses discover the "other California:"
Part One: The Central Valley's Identity Crisis
California's Central Valley is growing fast and its biggest industry, agriculture, racked up $27 billion in revenues last year. Yet the Central Valley is often referred to as the "other California" or California's "backyard," and the valley's inhabitants are acutely aware that they do not share in the glamour of Hollywood or Silicon Valley. As the population of the valley's cities grows and agriculture's power shrinks, the region's identity crisis has become more acute. Many in the agricultural community have a defensive posture toward the coastal cities -- even while the valley's new urban centers are pushing for a share in the cultural and economic success of the coast. NPR's Richard Gonzales reports.
View a photo gallery for Part One.
Part Two: The Problem with Pesticides
California's Central Valley is the most dynamic agricultural region in the world, yet farmers there are under tremendous pressure from new valley residents relocated from the coast and environmentalists to clean up their act. For decades, farmers have been exempted from clean air and clean water standards that apply to other industries. But now, the state says it is going to bring them into compliance. It's the water standards that have the farmers most worried -- farmers spray on the valley floor a third of all the pesticides sold in the nation. If they have to cut back, farmers warn that prices of tomatoes, pistachios and the 300 other crops grown in the valley will be more expensive. NPR's John McChesney reports.
View a photo gallery for Part Two.
Part Three: Central Valley, Going Organic?
Some farmers in California's Central Valley say they have seen the writing on the wall, and have started efforts to grow without a huge dependence on chemicals. State officials are demanding that farms, exempted for decades, begin to comply with clean air and clean water standards. The birthplace of modern agribusiness, the Central Valley supplies a quarter of the nations' foodstuffs and sets trends for farming nationwide. So when big farms like Muir Glenn tomatoes "go organic," it not only cuts down California water pollution, but it also provides a testbed for the viability of large-scale organic farming. But as NPR's John McChesney reports, going organic is not that easy.
View a photo gallery for Part Three.
Part Four: Farm Labor and Illegal Immigration
In 1949, historian and journalist Carey McWilliams wrote, "The farm labor problem is the cancer which lies beneath the beauty, richness, and fertility" of the Central Valley. More than 50 years later, McWilliams would probably come to the same conclusion. By the most conservative estimates, 50 percent of the valley's farm laborers are illegal immigrants -- other estimates run as high as 90 percent. Despite farm labor laws, workers are still subject to sub-minimum wages and dangerous working conditions. Whole towns are virtual labor camps aptly described as "California's Appalachia." The region is home to a multi-generational underclass of low-skilled, poorly educated workers and their families. But unlike immigrants of the past, these workers show no sign of being absorbed into an economic track that will improve their lives.
If Out. Now. Republican Paul could get 6 more Senators to support his position, the war would be over soon, and we should encourage him in that direction.
59. Sitka
Democrats shift approach on abortion
Should read: DLCers shift approach on abortion
They've become Republicans on everything else
=============
Take time to read the article, Sitka, and make an intelligent comment instead making brainless knee-jerk one-liners.
REP. CAROL SHEA-PORTER: New Hampshire knows that you can't even walk around the Green Zone anymore without wearing your flak jacket and your helmet. A few months ago, you could. That's supposed to be the most secure area in Iraq. And our soldiers have to wear their flak jackets. They understand that.
New Hampshire is a primary state. They are bright. They're tuned into everything. They want us out. There is a small minority that disagrees. And, of course, you know, they have a right to disagree. But the majority of New Hampshirites, and the majority of Americans, I would point out, want us out of Iraq.
If Out. Now. Republican Paul could get 6 more Senators to support his position, the war would be over soon, and we should encourage him in that direction.
You aren't encouraging him. He's doing what he does to get Republican votes, not yours.
Phil wrote "If Out. Now. Republican Paul could get 6 more Senators to support his position, the war would be over soon, and we should encourage him in that direction.'
Ron Paul is a nut. My encouragement to him is to leave the House.
Take time to read the article, Sitka, and make an intelligent comment instead making brainless knee-jerk one-liners.
I did. Pure NeoDem BS. A one liner was all it merited.
62.
Phil Specht
11:23 am
If Out. Now. Republican Paul
====================
All well and good, Phil, but I cannot for the life of me, understand how a cold fish on social programs and core Democratic values can be more popular and get less criticism on this blog, than a lifelong Democrat like Biden, who has spent 30 supporting our foundation values of the Party.
There are some Republicans that support Biden too
Tom Bearse
Thu, 07/26/07
11:29 am
Phil was praising Condi Rice yesterday. Trust and praise should be doled out to politicians -- and especially Republicans -- cautiously and sparingly.
This a weird thread.
- rdorgan praises Obama for being like a Republican
- FRED praises Hillary for being like a Republican
- Phil praises Paul for being like a Democrat.
68.
did. Pure NeoDem BS. A one liner was all it merited
==========
brainless skim - bullcrap. You're just trying to be Howard Stern
72. More brainless bullcrap and false innuendoes - that Sitka makes up and calls facts
I don't think Ron Paul is going to be advocating health care for all.
More then likely health care for those who can afford it.
Environmental policy? How about don't breathe the air and don't drink the water.
The Libertarian Party is unappealing to me. We need more connections to others and not less.
Paul is an honest person and doesn't try to slice and dice his answers.
In that aspect, he is preferable to any Dem. But on the issues, he is foreign to us.
I am trying hard to put myself in a frame of mind that makes Hillary acceptable. But I cannot support her because she is not an honest person.
74. There are some Republicans that support Biden too
With more than one good reason
=========
I was talking about ending the occupation, asshole
Condi set up a seven hour diplomatic exchange with Iran. I'm always happy to exploit a difference within the Bush White House. Cheney couldn't have been pleased.
dog wrote "Paul is an honest person and doesn't try to slice and dice his answers. In that aspect, he is preferable to any Dem."
No thanks. If you're a soulless Republican and social Darwinist, I'd prefer if you lie to me about it.
I was talking about ending the occupation, asshole
Someone got up on the wrong side of the potty today.
77. dog soldier
==========
Hi, dog - morning and a breathe of fresh air on this polluted blog. Some interesting posts by Phil
81. Right, and your pukey little posties, don't help
Condi set up a seven hour diplomatic exchange with Iran. I'm always happy to exploit a difference within the Bush White House. Cheney couldn't have been pleased.
The American ambassador came out of that meeting and attacked Iran. Why would you believe that it wasn't just another setup on Cheney's part to dupe people into thinking his regime wants anything but to bomb Iran?
There is a large grassroots movement for Ron Paul in Central California. It's mostly the Christian right and the Libertarians but some of the conservative Democrats and the Decline to States (the no party) like the guy. Ron Paul is a true Republican. He voted against the war on that platform.
80. Good point. Honorable Brutus was honest about stabbing Julius Caesar
72.
You read a lot into two paragraphs (:"His advisers also invoke as inspiration a surprising Republican: Ronald Reagan.
"Now, it is blasphemy for Democrats," Obama pollster Cornell Belcher said of Reagan, "but that hope and optimism that was Ronald Reagan" allowed him to "transcend" ideological divisions within his own party and the general electorate.) but I knew it would touch a third-rail here when I saw the CBS News piece and I posted it anyways.
Your grandiose, generalization statement "praises Obama for being like a Republican" was frankly unexpected, especially from you.
But, hey, what do I know, I'm just an Obamanoid.
Well, off to talk to my dem and repub and indy neighbors.
Looks like I've been barking up the wrong tree all along. I've been trying to convince people on this blog not to trust Democrats. But I'm going to have go back to square one and convince them not to trust Republicans first.
It would be my guess that Ron Paul is against abortion in the same way all those Republicans who voted yesterday are against permanent bases. When they're for it or against it, they call it something else. No doubt, if he had a legitimate medical practice, Ron Paul terminated many a pregnancy prematurely, either surgically or by inducing delivery with chemical aids. And some of those terminations no doubt turned out badly but they're not going to be called abortions because he didn't want them to turn out badly.
There's a certain arrogance involved in making human intent the standard of moral behavior. If I don't intend to kill you with the bombs I make, then your death is not a murder and I'm not in any way responsible.
The anti-choice people can deny that they want to terminate any life until they're blue in the face, but, at the end of the day, there will still be those mountains of dead people.
86.
Susan Rowe
Ron Paul is a true Republican. He voted against the war on that platform.
==============
Sometimes libertarian isolationism can be good, but one might also say it kept us from helping the Brits and Jews during WWII, and gave Hilter the slack to start the holocaust.
Well, off to talk to my dem and repub and indy neighbors.
If you spam them as you do this blog, they're probaly thinking, "Oh jeez! Here comes Dorgan! Don't answer the door!"
Yes, Ronald Reagan suckered a lot of people.
I don't think Obama wants to play people for suckers; I just think he doesn't understand what he's into.
Monica wrote "I don't think Obama wants to play people for suckers; I just think he doesn't understand what he's into."
Okay, but Gary Hart thinks he does, so I'm going along with him.
I haven't read Paul's views on immigration but it appears they are what is appealing to his movement around here. He's about ANTI-everything.
The Antiwar, Anti-Abortion, Anti-Drug-Enforcement-
Administration, Anti-Medicare Candidacy of Dr. Ron Paul
Whipping westward across Manhattan in a limousine sent by Comedy Central’s “Daily Show,” Ron Paul, the 10-term Texas congressman and long-shot Republican presidential candidate, is being briefed. Paul has only the most tenuous familiarity with Comedy Central. He has never heard of “The Daily Show.” His press secretary, Jesse Benton, is trying to explain who its host, Jon Stewart, is. “He’s an affable gentleman,” Benton says, “and he’s very smart. What I’m getting from the pre-interview is, he’s sympathetic.”
Paul nods.
“GQ wants to profile you on Thursday,” Benton continues. “I think it’s worth doing.”
“GTU?” the candidate replies.
“GQ. It’s a men’s magazine.”
“Don’t know much about that,” Paul says.
Thin to the point of gauntness, polite to the point of daintiness, Ron Paul is a 71-year-old great-grandfather, a small-town doctor, a self-educated policy intellectual and a formidable stander on constitutional principle. In normal times, Paul might be — indeed, has been — the kind of person who is summoned onto cable television around April 15 to ventilate about whether the federal income tax violates the Constitution. But Paul has in recent weeks become a sensation in magazines he doesn’t read, on Web sites he has never visited and on television shows he has never watched. full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/22/magazi...
Okay, but Gary Hart thinks he does, so I'm going along with him.
Well, now that's refreshing, going along to get along. That's what's important, isn't it. Go along with someone just so you're not alone.
Gary Hart thinks Obama plays people for suckers, too? WOW!
There's a certain arrogance involved in making human intent the standard of moral behavior. If I don't intend to kill you with the bombs I make, then your death is not a murder and I'm not in any way responsible.
If only more people understood it.
Ron Paul destroys the credibility of any other candidate on the Republican stage when he talks about Iraq and talks straight.
He is a very useful addition to the race, from a democratic party loyalist's perspective.
Go Ron.
61.
Tom Bearse
Thu, 07/26/07
11:19 am
----------
Well, it is a lot about his experiences as a doctor as well as about his beliefs.
Does all that means he'll try to make all abortions illegal country wide by federal law? I don't see it this way, he'll, probably, leave to states.
Even if I'm wrong and he will try to, then:
a) President alone does not make law, Congress does.
b) Such important but single issue can't overweight many others I agree with.
You're just trying to be Howard Stern
Never heard his show.
================
Neither have I, but everybody knows his style, and you are trying to emulate it, whether you realize it or not.
The Democrats may win on the healthcare issue and the war but they're going the lose on the diverse issues of immigration and American jobs if they don't start addressing them more in their campaigns.
Thu, 07/26/07
12:12 pm
Reply to this
Gary Hart thinks Obama plays people for suckers, too? WOW!
LOL.Ron Paul destroys the credibility of any other candidate on the Republican stage when he talks about Iraq and talks straight.
That's what Mike Gravel is doing on the other side. I'll dole out my praise to him since changing the Democratic Party is what will really change America for the better.
Monica wrote: "Well, now that's refreshing, going along to get along. That's what's important, isn't it. Go along with someone just so you're not alone."
That's an interesting perspective regarding something I wrote, but it's wrong. It's not at all important that I agreed with something Gary Hart wrote, only that I agreed with something someone wrote in contrast to what you wrote, with which I did not agree.
98. Phil Specht
12:12 pm
Ron Paul destroys the credibility of any other candidate on the Republican stage when he talks about Iraq and talks straight.
He is a very useful addition to the race, from a democratic party loyalist's perspective.
Go Ron.
===============
You bet - they deserve Ralph Nader at least as much as we do.
87.
Sitka
Thu, 07/26/07
11:54 am
Looks like I've been barking up the wrong tree all along. I've been trying to convince people on this blog not to trust Democrats. But I'm going to have go back to square one and convince them not to trust Republicans first.
----------
...,lol Sitka, I always thought that your "barking" directed at the candidate's positions, thoughts, ideas not his/her Party label. Was I wrong?
I'll dole out my praise to him since changing the Democratic Party is what will really change America for the better.
~~~~~~~~~~~
the demise of the Republican party into it's splinter groups would also be helpful
107.
former
...,lol Sitka, I always thought that your "barking" directed at the candidate's positions, thoughts, ideas not his/her Party label. Was I wrong?
=================
"Barking?" good description of what Sitka does on this blog, most of the time. How about some "bark" poetry, Sitka? LOL
they deserve Ralph Nader at least as much as we do.
Should read: they need Ralph Nader at least as much as we do.
I always thought that your "barking" directed at the candidate's positions, thoughts, ideas not his/her Party label. Was I wrong?
I always thought it was a given that the positions of Republicans are worse than those of Democrats. It's obviuosly a sad commentary on Democrats if I'm wrong.
98.
Phil Specht
Thu, 07/26/07
12:12 pm
Ron Paul destroys the credibility of any other candidate on the Republican stage when he talks about Iraq and talks straight.
He is a very useful addition to the race, from a democratic party loyalist's perspective.
Go Ron.
--------
...lol, be careful what you wish for..., he "destroys the credibility of any other candidate" on the Demos stage as well (except Gravel's).
99.
Sounds like you're taking things out of context..
Ok, here's Grammatically Context 101 -- the "he does" of Tom's relates to the "he doesn't" of Monica's, relating to the "understand" section of the phrase not the "wants", got it ? But hey if you want to spread falsehoods about what Gary Hart had said in a CBS piece about Obama (my posted comment 19 upthread) well, that's your business:
(Monica wrote "I don't think Obama wants to play people for suckers; I just think he doesn't understand what he's into."
Okay, but Gary Hart thinks he does, so I'm going along with him. )
they deserve Ralph Nader at least as much as we do.
Should read: they need Ralph Nader at least as much as we do.
=======
I meant to say they need a Ralph Nader.....
Gary Hart, yes, the Democrats do want someone else!
"Superman wears Al Gore pajamas"
111.
Sitka
Thu, 07/26/07
12:28 pm
I always thought it was a given that the positions of Republicans are worse than those of Democrats.
---------
Basically me too...., until Paul..., when I've understood that having Demos label alone is not a "given" advantage.
the demise of the Republican party into it's splinter groups would also be helpful
If the Democratic Party isn't changed first, it won't make much difference when the wash comes out.
113.
Sitka
How about some "bark" poetry, Sitka? LOL
That takes me back to the good ole Oler days
==============
Yea, right, he was a Rotteiller and what kind of dog are you?
Hey everyone!!
I'm too busy to stay but i'd like to add my support to Phil and Sitka's thoughtful comments - especially the brevity that comes from deducing for one's self the issues.
Just a reminder to the sore losers here that resort to BAD FORM and NO CIVILITY - you are ignored as much as possible and your credibliity is ZERO.
ATTENTION HQ!! CLEANUP ON ISLE 78... guess someone's animal had an accident there,
Basically me too...., until Paul...
I would have thought Powell and McCain would have taught Dems not to follow Repub prophets.
What's that definition of stupidity -- doing the same thing again and again and expecting a different result?
108.
FRED from OR
Thu, 07/26/07
12:25 pm
"Barking?" good description of what Sitka does on this blog, most of the time. How about some "bark" poetry, Sitka? LOL
---------
Fred, you should be a little more careful reading blog posts and their authors.
I'm trying not to use words which are offensive an/or insulting until provoked ...harshly...and wish you do the same.
Senate Dems Call for Gonzo Perjury Probe, Subpoena Rove
117.
Tom Bearse
Sitka wrote "That takes me back to the good ole Oler days."
You're summoning Rich to the blog
================
That reminds me of when Ramsey Clark defended Saddam Hussein - it's a crappy job, but somebody's got to do it -lol
http://blogs.usatoday.com/onpolitics/
Democrat John Edwards today unveiled a plan he said would "rewrite our tax code to make sure it is fair and that hard-working families can succeed."
In a speech prepared for delivery in Des Moines, Edwards says:
I still believe passionately in the American Dream because I’ve lived it myself. I came from a family with very little - my father had to borrow $50 to bring me home from the hospital. Now I want for no material thing. I know that we can fix the mess we are in. I know that we can replace Two Americas with One America.
Among his proposals:
Read more... Posted by Jill Lawrence at 11:32 AM/ET, July 26, 2007 in In their own words | Permalink | Comments (0)120.
Sitka
Thu, 07/26/07
12:35 pm
Reply to this
Basically me too...., until Paul...
I would have thought Powell and McCain would have taught Dems not to follow Repub prophets.
What's that definition of stupidity -- doing the same thing again and again and expecting a different result?
-------------
...lol, that's the whole point...not to folow prophets at all neither Demos nor Reps.
I can see the RNC's TV Ads now...
"Hard to find a real job these days? Is it getting harder to pay for your kids education, your mortgage, your electric, your gas and your grocery bills? Don't see a college education in your future? In the least you have the promise of FREE Healthcare and the war is still going on. It's call the welfare state...vote Republican they know how to create jobs and will help you learn how to make investments in America's future. "
126. former
Fred, you should be a little more careful reading blog posts and their authors.
I'm trying not to use words which are offensive an/or insulting until provoked ...harshly...and wish you do the same
=================
while I respect civility - one who makes a distinction between offensive choice words and highly offensive content, using acceptable word, I would have to call that person disengenuous - oops, I mean "phoney" - I hope that doesn't upset you.
[snip]
Hart, who in addition to his own insurgent campaign also managed McGovern's in 1972, sees new vitality in the old strategic model, questioning Clinton as he once did Mondale.
"There still is an enormous number of people in the party who are unhappy with [Clinton] for what they perceive to be her vacillation on the war and her reluctance to confess error," he said in an interview. "People who care about these things remember when, remember how, remember who took leadership.
"She's one of the best-known women in the world," Hart added. "She's been in the White House for eight years. She's a senator from one of the largest states. And 60-plus percent of the Democratic Party wants somebody else."
--->>> WHy are folks trying to twist Gary Harts words? They are pretty clear here to me.
And I would say, when he talks about people remembering who led in the effort against what they care about most-being the war, that that leaves really only one in the current field of candidates, Dennis Kucinich. The others didn't do squat. They enabled-the same as Hillary...and when it came time for their Presidential campaigns-they all switched to END THE WAR. Heck, some (wink, wink) came out publicly they didn't believe in using funds to stop the war even, but turned around and voted that way, because they new they would be toast if they didn't.
Then of course, there is that dark horse, who has been correct on all the issues and out there saying so for years, that hopefully will enter the race and finally start moving our country FORWARD!
...lol, that's the whole point...not to folow prophets at all neither Demos nor Reps.
Agreed. But I'll make an exception of Dean since he has yet to let me down in any serious way.
"It's time for us to put our economy back in line with our values," said Edwards. "It's time to end the president's war on work. And it's time to restore fairness to a tax code that has been driven badly out of whack by the wrongheaded rules of the Washington establishment – more wealth for the wealthy and more power for the powerful. In America, when the middle-class makes money from hard work they shouldn't pay higher taxes than when the rich make money from money."
Then of course, there is that dark horse, who has been correct on all the issues and out there saying so for years, that hopefully will enter the race and finally start moving our country FORWARD!
Let the others tear each other down while we're waiting for Goredot.
Edwards
Linda wrote "WHy are folks trying to twist Gary Harts words? They are pretty clear here to me."
It's simpler than you think. Monica wrote that she thought Obama doesn't understand what he's into, and I wrote that Gary Hart thinks he does. Do you think Obama doesn't know what he's getting into?
106.
Susan Rowe
Thu, 07/26/07
12:22 pm
The Democrats may win on the healthcare issue and the war but they're going the lose on the diverse issues of immigration and American jobs if they don't start addressing them more in their campaigns.
--------
This traditional fight on "issue by issue basis" is a weakest link of Demos "platform" (if it can be called such).
The closest think about "platform" as a whole was, I think, Dean's (about 2 years old) document called "Policy of common sense" (or similar name?).
That's what Demos should stand behind to win, imo.
132.
Well, free healthcare is a start. The other problems which the Republicans can own will be harder to solve.
I think Edwards is making a valid point with his Two Americas theme. When we invest, who's America will thrive?
Certainly the central tenet of capitalism that current assets should be set aside is valid. The question is whose assets are going to be set aside. The predator and vulture capitalists claim and set aside for themselves someone else's wealth.
Capitalism has been corrupted.
119. Deaniac in GA
Just a reminder to the sore losers here that resort to BAD FORM and NO CIVILITY
===============
Drop Dead, Deniac. Does civility involve name-calling innuendo?
Does "incivility" include misrepresenting another's post, and spinning it falsely, everytime they post something?
Does it include endlessly pouncing on another blogger's post, with an ideological apprehension, regardless of the content?
Or are we just talking about FCC regulations? FREEDOM OF SPEECH TAKES MANY FORMS.
Linda wrote "where do you see Gary Hart does?"
Oh, I've thought Gary Hart understood what he's into since he managed George McGovern's presidential campaign.
Having free healthcare is a political promise just like the ending war. The Democrats have done neither.
In the past six years, President Bush has cut taxes on capital gains and dividends and started to eliminate taxes on inheritances completely. As a result of his regressive tax policies, the federal tax burden has been pushed onto the backs of working Americans. As president, Edwards will reverse President Bush's "War on Work" by:
- Raising the top tax rate on long-term capital gains to 28 percent, the same rate signed into law by President Reagan. The 28 percent rate will ensure that high-income investors will pay taxes on their investment income at a similar rate to what regular families pay on their earned income.
- Repealing the Bush tax cuts for the most fortunate families, who make more than $200,000 a year.
- Ending the abuse of foreign tax havens.
- Closing the hedge fund and private equity loopholes.
- Capping executive pensions.
The Edwardses have thirteen events scheduled in New Hampshire in the next two days.
Clinton had an energy forum the other day that hasn't yet been covered. I'm waiting for one of my friends to provide his take on it. It's obviously not bubbling out of him.
FRED always overplays the same three cards in the same order....
- Anger
- Victim
- Sympathy
Whether or not Gary Hart understands what he's into is not really relevant to whether or not Barack Obama understands what he's getting into.
I am going to write up my thoughts on that for Hannah.
Come on over to the kindness thread!!
Monica wrote "Whether or not Gary Hart understands what he's into is not really relevant to whether or not Barack Obama understands what he's getting into."
Isn't that the truth. I just wanted to answer Linda's question.
Off for a bike ride with hubby in enjoying his vacation. later.
Susan, Edwards health care plan is Universal but will cost 4% of income to pay for, near $90 billion if I remember correctly
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
here are more of today's proposals:
Edwards will help regular families save and get ahead by:
- Creating a Get Ahead Credit, which will expand the Savers Credit to match savings up to $500 a year, providing as much as an additional dollar for every dollar of savings.
- Boosting low-income families' savings with work bonds, which will supplement the Earned Income Tax Credit to match the savings of low-income workers up to $500 per year.
- Exempting from taxes each family's first $250 in interest, capital gains, and dividends.
- Allowing families to deposit part or all of their child tax credit into a tax-free savings account.
- Expanding the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit to pay up to 50 percent of child care expenses up to $5,000 and make it partially refundable to benefit low-income working families.
- Tripling the EITC for 4 million adults without children and cutting the marriage penalty for 3 million families.
If Edwards hadn't provided so many ample reasons to mistrust him as a senator and previous candidate, what he says now might matter.
Having free healthcare is a political promise just like the ending war. The Democrats have done neither.
<>4 Dem presidents with Dem Congresses have failed to deliver on the promise that's been in their party's platform since 1948.
<>Don't trust. Keep flogging.
129.
FRED from OR
Thu, 07/26/07
12:44 pm
while I respect civility - one who makes a distinction between offensive choice words and highly offensive content, using acceptable word, I would have to call that person disengenuous - oops, I mean "phoney" - I hope that doesn't upset you.
---------
True content is always about issue not about personality.
If someone able to see "highly offensive content" directed at himself/herself that's someone's problem..., can't help, sorry.
Have you clicked on his picture on KOS? I finally did because it just looked so depressed. LOL
About Dal LaMagna
Dal and Politics
Dal is running as a Democrat in the 2008 Presidential Primaries.
Dal and Iraq
For the past several years, Dal has been a progressive activist concentrating on stopping the violence against U.S. troops and Iraqis in Iraq. He is an executive producer of three feature length Iraq War movies: The Ground Truth, The War Tapes, and Iraq For Sale.
Dal has participated in two meetings with members of the Iraq Parliament and others in Amman, Jordan. The first meeting, in August 2006, was comprised of a peace delegation where he and 15 other peace activists –on a mission to listen the Iraqi voices -- met with Iraqi members of Parliament, sheiks, and torture survivors. The second meeting occurred when he accompanied Congressman Jim McDermott of Washington State. Dal produced video presentations from both of these meetings and is using them to help educate members of the U.S. Congress and other Americans as to the Iraqi perspective on the war. In March of this year, Dal produced a live video conference between members of the U.S. Congress and Members of the Iraq Parliament.
Government and Education
He the founder of the Progressive Government Institute (PGI), a non-partisan, educational organization dedicated to ensuring transparency and accountability in the executive branch of the United States federal government. In 2005, he merged this organization with the Backbone Campaign.
Dal ran for U.S. Congress twice in the 3rd Congressional District in New York as the Democratic and Green candidate in 1996 and 2000, respectively and is currently running for President in the 2008 Democratic Primary. During the 2006 federal elections, Dal served as an active chair of Washington State Senator Maria Cantwell’s re-election campaign.
Dal received his MBA from Harvard Business School in 1971 and his master’s in public administration in 2002 from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government where he was named a Littauer Fellow. He graduated from Providence College in 1968 and played on their basketball team as a freshman. He spent his junior year abroad at the University of Fribourg Switzerland. His earlier educational days were spent at Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School in Brooklyn, the Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, and Saint Clare’s in the Rosedale section of Queens.
Business Acumen
Dal LaMagna is also known as Tweezerman. He founded the company in 1980 and built it into a multi-national, premier personal care tool brand that practices responsible capitalism. Part of the company’s mission is to benefit all stakeholders -- including financial partners, employees, customers, vendors, the community and the natural environment. While at Tweezerman, Dal traveled throughout the world extensively. He also co-founded a Tweezerman India a factory located in Pondicherry, India.
Dal sold Tweezerman, U.S.A. in December of 2004 and also sold his share of Tweezerman, India in 2005 to Zwilling J.A. Henckels Company, a privately held German company that continues the practice of responsible capitalism. Dal’s U.S.A. employees kept their jobs and shared $10 million dollars in capital gains because each one was a shareholder in the company. Dal’s India employees kept their jobs and received a half year’s salary as a gift from Dal and his two partners when the transaction completed.
Dal is a long standing member of the Social Venture Network (SVN), a group of responsible capitalists promoting social and economic justice through their businesses. He served on its Advisory Board of Directors for two years.
He is on the board of directors of the Bainbridge Graduate Institute, an MBA program that is “Changing Business for Good.” Part of the BGI program includes the Dal LaMagna Responsible Capitalism series. Dal also serves on the board for The Center For Congress, Yes Magazine, Tweezerman Corporation, and Icestone. He is a founding partner of and a blogger at The Huffington Post and serves on the Dean’s Council for the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard.
Dal is a supporter of numerous progressive activist organizations including: Responsible Wealth, CodePink, The League of Young Voters, UFPA United for Peace and Justice, , Business Leaders For Sensible Priorities (BLSP), the Drug Policy Alliance, the Center for Economic Policy and Research, The Nation Institute, Momma’s House, The Rockridge Institute, the Center For Partnership Studies, Gold Star Families For Peace, the Campaign For America’s Future, the Center for Independent Media, Mount Desert Island Laboratory, the Rainforest Action Network, and the Washington State Progress Alliance.
Dal currently lives in Poulsbo, Washington and maintains a second home in Washington, D.C. He has two children: a daughter, 26, and a son, 18.
147.
Sitka
FRED always overplays the same three cards in the same order....
Anger
Victim
Sympathy
=========================================
Yea and you love to instigate it
REMEMBER THIS EXCHANGE?
==========================================
74.
FRED from OR
Thu, 05/31/07
10:42 pm
Dont understand your point here, Sitka but here is my disability - I
have a progressive severe form of MCS
--------
72.
Sitka
Thu, 05/31/07
10:29 pm
Feel free not to answer, but is that disability memory related?
----------
87.
Sitka
Thu, 05/31/07
11:06 pm
Who'da'thunk the government gave out checks for that? But it does
perhaps explain your behavior on this blog
=================
YEA, AND WHO'D THUNK YOU WOULD PRETEND TO BE CURIOUS ABOUT MY DISABILITY AND THEN WHEN I SERIOUSLY EXPLAINED IT TO YOU, YOU WOULD USE IT TO RIDICULE ME.
YOU'RE A CREEP - SITKA - PLAIN AND SIMPLE
I have a high school friend who is horrifed at the thought of "socialized medicine."
Blog too toxic right now for me.
I will add the while I may like what Paul says about Iraq, his domestic policies of drowining all social programs in the bathtub is unappealing, to put it nicely. I can't take him seriously and don't particularly care for Libertarians. The New Deal would become the Raw Deal.
Congress better find something more effective than issuing subpoenas and using the rule of law in such a left-brained way. If putz ignores the rule of law, why should congress uphold it? And please don't give me the "we have to be more upstanding then they." We're in crisis and desperate times call for desperate measures. You don't go into battle with an enemy bent on destroying you with hard boiled eggs as weapons. No more nicey nicey dems, trying to get along with sociopaths.
Flog your repug senators! Hard!
Impeach! Flog your congresscritters! Hard
**************************************
This from Audrey: (imp. signers)
Linda in SFNM.
No mention of Udall so far. Here's the list:
Jan Schakowsky, Maxine Waters, Hank Johnson, Keith Ellison, Lynn Woolsey, Barbara Lee, Albert Wynn, Wm. Lacey Clay, Dennis Kucinich, Yvette Clark, Jim McDermott, Jim Moran, Bob Filner, sam Farr, Robert Bradey.
Jim Brady's phone no. 215-389-4627
bbl
http://www.solidarity-us.org/node/49
Labor Studies Under Siege — Stephanie Luce
MORE THAN A decade since the collapse of the Soviet Union, leftists are now more likely to be targeted by the right wing as "terrorists" than as "communists"—yet redbaiting is alive and well in the field of Labor Studies. In recent years, university labor programs have been attacked in the press for their teaching and research, and been targeted by university administrators for drastic budget reductions or elimination.
For example, I work at the Labor Center at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. In 2002, the University system faced severe budget cuts when the state went into recession. But the Labor Center was the only academic department that the Chancellor proposed to cut, commenting that if the program was so important to the labor movement, the unions should fund it altogether.
After waging a campaign, the Center managed to survive -—just barely. It has been told it can remain only by dramatically increasing its workload with fewer resources and staff. The Center must increase the number of classes it offers, the number of students it teaches and amount of grants it brings in, with 25% fewer faculty and 75% fewer staff. Class sizes are up and student funding is down.
The situation at UMass can be seen elsewhere. The Labor Center at Florida International University underwent significant cuts in recent years, and the Industrial Relations program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison was eliminated entirely.
This May, six employees at the Indiana University Division of Labor Studies were laid off, including three faculty members. According to Professor Ruth Needleman, the department was told that university budget cuts necessitated the layoffs and the closing of the South Bend office.
Downsizing and Privatizing
The attacks on Labor Centers are partly a result of a larger trend to privatize public universities. Abandoning the land-grant mission of many universities, administrators are looking to cut back any departments that can't serve as a "profit center" by bringing in lucrative research grants.
At the same time, universities are looking to cut tenure-track faculty and fulltime staff, replacing them with non-union, low-wage adjunct professors and part-time and seasonal staff. This was exactly the case at Indiana University. As Professor Ruth Needleman writes, "not only were tenure-track faculty terminated, but part-time, temporary and less credentialed employees were kept. The decision on whom the ax would fall did not follow IU policy; it ignored seniority, credentials and faculty governance. Welcome to Wal-Mart University!"
Beyond the general attacks on public university budgets, many faculty believe there are political motivations specifically aimed at labor studies programs. Although labor studies has never been a popular field with university administrators, and has always been grossly ignored in terms of resources, the last few years have brought an increase in attacks on the discipline.
In 2003, the Wall Street Journal published an article called "Picketing 101," meant to "expose" the diverting of public dollars going toward union training programs "aimed at organizing efforts instead of educating students." According to David Bacon, the article's author Steve Malanga was supported by right-wing foundations to write about how labor studies programs were revising their curriculum alongside the AFL-CIO's attempts at renewal.
In another widely-circulated article from the New York Sun titled "'Living Wage' is Socialism," Malanga attacked the living wage research conducted by labor center faculty at a number of campuses.
What the Fight's About
It is true that some labor studies programs grew in size and scope during the Sweeney era. They still offered courses on arbitration and costing contracts, but added more on organizing models, globalization and labor-community coalitions.
According to a study on the state of labor education programs released in 2004, Barbara Byrd and Bruce Nissen found that labor education programs are more extensive today than they were 40 years ago, and that the content of the programs has shifted in recent years "from what could be called "union maintenance" topics (negotiations, contract administration, etc.) to "union building" or "union growth" topics (rank-and-file involvement and mobilization, organizing, contract campaigns, etc.)."
In addition, labor studies faculty have provided research that unions and their allies have relied on to pass pro-worker legislation. Labor studies students have interned with unions and groups like United Students Against Sweatshops and Jobs with Justice.
These labor studies programs are no more "partisan" than your average business school, and are far outnumbered and out-resourced. Yet their growing prominence was enough to worry anti-union administrators and legislators.
In 2004, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger tried to eliminate the Institute for Labor and Employment (ILE) at the University of California. It wasn't just general budget problems that provoked the Governor's attacks: the ILE was singled out specifically. ILE supporters waged a campaign and saved the center, but this spring, Schwarzenegger is once again proposing a drastic cut.
Although he has proposed increasing system-wide funding by $97.5 million, Schwarzenegger proposed $3.8 million in cuts from the ILE budget—- the only item the governor vetoed from the UC budget!
Kent Wong of the UCLA Labor Center says the cuts are "a politically motivated attack." Katie Quan of UC Berkeley adds that the Governor's attempt to eliminate the ILE without academic review "violates fundamental principles of academic freedom and university governance."
ILE faculty believe they are a target in part because they are vocal in attacking the pro-business agenda promoted by many state legislators. For example, the UC Labor Center released a study last spring called "Hidden Costs of Wal-mart Jobs." The Wal-mart Corporation immediately issued a press release, challenging the validity of the study because the Labor Center has ties to unions.
According to a company spokesperson, "It's disingenuous of the Labor Center's researchers to tout their study as a fair, balanced assessment of Wal-Mart's impact on California taxpayers."
Steve Malanga agrees that labor studies programs stand out for political attacks. He writes in the Wall Street Journal:
It's easy to view what has happened at labor studies programs as one more manifestation of trends within the academy. But something sets labor studies apart. Unlike gender or race studies, labor studies undeviatingly promote the interests of a tiny constituency: the union. It's a coup for organized labor to have tapped into the campus culture wars for their own narrow purposes.
As the labor movement struggled to rebuild its power and class consciousness grew on college campuses, a backlash ensued. That backlash has now hit many labor studies programs across the country.
In some cases, labor allies are able to save the programs, but not without a battle that takes a toll. In other cases, university administrators choose not to engage in all-out warfare on the programs, but implement a slow, "death by a thousand cuts" approach.
Yet it seems clear that the budgetary and political attacks have much in common with similar struggles by women's studies, ethnic studies, Black studies and Chicano studies departments. Faculty and students need to build a broad-based campaign to defend these programs, connecting to related fights to cut tuition, retain or re-institute affirmative action, and decrease the corporate influence in the university.
don't forget...
there's a New Thread :-)
Kudos to "Big Ed". He's been talking for impeachment, but is criticized lately for not following up with his guests. Today, Tom Daschle was a guest. "Big" asked him why the Dems were backing away from impeachment. Tom gave the Dem response of we have better things to do like get blah, blah for the people.
Ed came back by telling him how many e-mails etc. he gets from people who want the Dems to Impeach, and "I'll tell you, this crowd is NOT going to go away. Tom expanded on his original sound bite. His next caller said that he wasn't going to get any of that stuff done because the Repubs wouldn't let him.
when the Repubs were ramrodding their SC nominees through and threatening to abolish the filibuster if the Dems tried to use it, maybe we should have let them. How come now they get to use it to get their way?
Impeach and flog blog, or the other way around.
WTG D4NYC & NYCDL! It was hilarious! I thought I recognized a few people there, great job!
DFA, DL & DS go hand in hand! :0)
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By * rdorgan on Jul 26, 2007 8:57 AM EDTHoward has made all this possible.