Howie Dean is first here.

Howie?

It appears in the vote talley and the problems with undervotes in Montgomery County PA that well designed paper ballots might be in order.

Hey I was first. Wha happened? I sent DFA tech support for the blog a message about this blog clock but nothing done yet.

Yes, Rick, Howie is first.

FBI Warns of Al Quaeda Attacks on Shopping Malls During the Holidays!   CNN.com

But...but...Bush told me to go shopping!

"Vote by vote, precinct by precinct, door by door, election by election, we will take this country back
for the people who built it." --- DFA Founder and DNC Chair Gov. Howard Dean, M.D.

Primaries Matter: https://contribute.democracyforamerica.c...


"You don't get a free pass. Our object was not to get you into power because we are Democrats - our object was to get you into power so you actually do something. And if you don't, we are not going to stand up and keep you. We want change. It wasn't about the Democratic Party. It was about the country." --- DFA Founder and DNC Chair, Gov. Howard Dean, M.D. (A warning delivered to the newly elected Democratic majority in Washington during a speech given before a Christian evangelical audience at Eastern University in St. Davids, PA on April 7, 2007)

Run, Al, Run! 

written in a message from 2006 DFA-List All-Star Candidate, Congressman Jerry McNerney.

Hello,

Nearly one year ago, I was honored and humbled when the voters of California's 11th District chose me to represent them in Washington.

Looking back on the past year, I am thrilled to be a member of the 110th Congress. What we have accomplished in just the first 10 months, let alone the first 100 hours, is nothing short of inspiring - especially knowing that it never could have happened under the previous Republican Congresses.

As a member of Congress, I am proud that we have accomplished so much.

I stand as a fighter for our environment. We have one world, and we must conserve and protect our resources not only for ourselves, but also for future generations. As someone who spent more than 20 years working with renewable energy, I was proud to introduce legislation that would dramatically expand research and development of 21st century geothermal energy, capitalizing on heat from the Earths' core.

Last week we passed the Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act, which ends public land giveaways and establishes a fair payment system for mining on public land. This Act sets environmental safeguards and mandates land-use payments to be used to clean up eco-toxic abandoned mines.

More recently, you may know that the President vetoed the Water Resources Development Act, which includes many projects designed to both prevent and protect Americans from flood and water shortages and also to restore those areas affected by terrible natural disasters, such as Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Fortunately, just yesterday we overrode the President's absurd veto.

This veto echoes another brutal blow the President dealt to American children when he vetoed the bipartisan State Children's Health Insurance Program. Despite the veto, I will not give up the fight for America's children.

As a Californian, I am proud that our state already has laws on the books to protect our citizens against all types of discrimination, including sexual orientation, gender, race and age. Workers deserve to be protected and for their employment to be evaluated only by their merit, not their physical characteristics.

Yet, while the citizens of California are protected, this is not the case throughout our country. Every citizen of the United States deserves equal protection under the law.

Fortunately, because there is a new Democratic Majority in Congress, this afternoon we passed the Employee Non-Discrimination Act to protect all American employees from discrimination.

I am proud to have the chance to work for you. We have made great strides so far, but so much more remains to be done.

Respectfully,

Jerry
Congressman Jerry McNerney


Email: info@jerrymcnerney.org
Office: (925) 833-0643
Web: http://www.JerryMcNerney.org

the ice at the poles it pretty much stuck there but as water it will move and like a spinning skater putting out their arms will slow (slightly) due to the effect I describe (sea level in the Pacific is not sea level in the Atlantic BTW)

this movement of water caused by the spinning is effected by the air pressure above it interacting with the surface temperature of the ocean most wind is the earth moving under the sky some is circulation and the air trying to find equilibrium between the high and low pressure as the air sinks and lifts (weather)"

Uhhhhhh..... yeah, ok.   Like I said before science and politics don't mix.  Think about it carefully Fred, why do you believe the equater has more "area" than other parts of the earth.  That is only true if you are measuring directly east and west.  I can trace a perfectly round navigation path across the earth through Portland that would be the same circumference as the equater, correct?  It would spend half of its path below the equater and half of its path above, but the surface area of the path would be identical to the equatroial path.  So would a path north to south through the poles.  The entire premise that gravity at the equator is unable to effect water the same as it does at the poles and is "bulging"  is fantasy.  The only "bulges" are tidal and that has nothing to do with ice skaters and their arms, nor 4.5 billion years of spinning.

So, if yer wondering about the numbers in the poll, look how impossible it is for these same people to (1)get a blog clock that works and (2) keep the posting numbers in place.

11. LOL. I'm not taking this poll too seriously (in fact - I don't take any too seriously)...

Al Gore for President!!!

Don't tax the rich, and spend.

that should be the motto of dems.

Cafferty reporting that 25% of homeless in this country, who sleep on the street and try and find shelters, are VETERANS.  And that the number of cases with mental problems will be astronomical from these latest 2 *wars.*

OK, dems, there's your way to stop the war and stop putz cold the next time he claims to be worried about the troops.

Good for Blitzie and CNN for reporting on this.

Sometimes I think that this BH is falling down.  We can hope. 

25% - Our Vets.  The ones that fight Putz's little wars for oil and power and Israel. 

IMPEACH THE BAST####!  Now. 

Oh, and

Gore for President! 

Is Al surfacing anywhere tonight?  What is 30 Rock?

Holy Samolies!  WHAT is going on ?

10. Fox Mulder

That is only true if you are measuring directly east and west. I can trace a perfectly round navigation path across the earth through Portland that would be the same circumference as the equater, correct?

==============

I am not arguing for or against Phil's hypotheses, but what you say here is off the mark. Any great circle on the globe is not going to compare to the equator's area that is affected by the centrifigal force of the spin, because that area is most parallel to the axis of the spin.

I don't believe we have to be one-dimensional individuals here. We can have opinions on both politics and science.

I will not address the issue of whether political and science mix, it depends on the context, but it is rediculous to separate them in the abstract. What about military science, the atom bomb, and space travel? What about regulation of chloro-flourocarbons to stop the thinning of the ozone, and the increase in cancers from UV radiation? We've already done that.

That's like saying business and government don't mix, but the neocons sure did there best to make it mix, if it was to their advantage over the rest of us.

If we start subsidizing alternative energy components, we can be the world leader, but Europe and Japan are currently in the lead.

And we better start mixing governing with science. We definitely need regulation of the countless harmful chemicals in our products and the environment, as a matter of public policy. That is where politics (governing) and science better start mixing, or health care will not only be unaffordable for all, it will be unfeasible for all. Again, Europe, Japan, and Canada are ahead of us, and are banning chemicals for household, electronic and body care/cosmetic use.

The DFA grassroots and netroots are first!


"It is my greatest hope that those who read this book will choose to become a part of a new movement to rekindle the true spirit of America." ---exerpt from "The Assault on Reason" by Al Gore

http://www.blogforamerica.com/view/22888...

http://www.blogforamerica.com/view/22861...

THE STENCH OF DEMOCRATIC COWARDICE

http://www.reformer.com/editorials/ci_7401778

Tuesday's attempt by Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, to introduce a motion calling for the impeachment of Vice President Dick Cheney was a perfect illustration of why Congress has a lower approval rating than President Bush.

Under House rules, Kucinich offered a privileged resolution calling for impeachment. That meant the full House had two days to consider Kucinich's motion.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., didn't want to wait that long. He moved to table (i.e., kill) Kucinich's motion. That was not a surprise. Hoyer, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and the rest of the Democratic leadership remain steadfastly opposed to impeachment.

Hoyer counted on a quick vote to kill it. But Republican House members decided they wanted to cause a little mischief. During an unusually long vote, enough Republican members switched their votes to pass the measure by a 251-162 margin.

The Republicans thought they had an opportunity to force Democrats to debate impeaching Cheney on the House floor in front of the C-SPAN cameras. So Hoyer pulled another ace from the bottom of the deck and moved to have the resolution referred to the House Judiciary Committee.

Kucinich's motion could end up being buried in that committee, which is led by Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich. Previous impeachment efforts have gone nowhere in Conyer's committee, and this effort will likely meet the same fate.

And caught in the middle of this was Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt.

On one side are Pelosi and Hoyer, who gave the freshman congressman a plum assignment on the House Rules Committee. Welch's loyalty to the Democratic leadership is reflected by his support of the leadership's stand against impeachment.

On the other side are his constituents, who support impeachment. A recent WCAX poll found 61 percent of Vermonters support impeachment of President Bush and 64 percent support impeachment of Vice President Cheney.

So what did Welch do? He split the difference. Welch voted to debate Kucinich's motion on the floor, then voted to sent it to the Judiciary Committee.

While Welch and other Democrats continue to talk about impeachment being a distraction to more important priorities, such as ending the war in Iraq, the reality is that the Democrats haven't figured out yet that none of the issues they hold dear will be accomplished until Bush and Cheney are removed from office.

More unpopular than Nixon. That's where President Bush is right now. And Vice President Cheney is even more unpopular. Yet the Democrats are still frightened of these men and afraid to confront them. That's why, as disliked as Bush and Cheney are, voters give the Democratic-led Congress even lower marks.

A Democratic majority was elected to Congress last year to end the war in Iraq and rein in the Bush administration. Neither thing has happened. On issue after issue, the Democrats have caved in to Bush. And impeachment remains off the table.

Congress will not carry out its constitutional duties.

Bush and Cheney must not be allowed to leave office without being held accountable for their behavior. History will not look at the current members of Congress kindly if they fail to do what is right and necessary to preserve our democracy

DEMOCRATIC TREACHERY

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/110707J.shtml

In addition to personally making the decision that Michael Mukasey would be confirmed, Schumer now leads Congress by proxy to ratify torture as legal under US law, by virtue of its inaction. Game, set, match: Bush, Mukasey and Schumer.

    One reason that Republicans can get away with whatever they like is that, in the end, they always stick together. Some call it lockstep, others call it goose step, but whatever you call it, they don't break ranks. Democrats do - regardless of the consequences. In this case, Mr. Schumer played the role of the powerbroker fatale. It was Schumer who assured the White House that, if nominated, Mukasey would be confirmed. So Schumer promised, and so he delivered.

History Book's New D-Day: 11/07/07 By Michael Fox  (4 comments) The first day of the Depression

Suddenly, Impeachment Hearings Are Looking Like a Strong Possibility By Dave Lindorff  (8 comments) Kucinich, by bringing his Cheney impeachment resolution to a floor vote in the House, has shaken up the politics of impeachment, and looks like it may...

A.G. St. Matthew: *The Peru FTA's Expanded Giant Sucking Sound Just Got Louder The Peru Free Trade Agreement, an expansion of the NAFTA trade model, has been passed by the House and will soon go to the Senate. Please write your Senators and tell them to oppose it today!

The very first satellite that NASA launched after a rush to get it up following sputnik was one that measured the shape of the earth.

It isn't round.

deal with real facts from real science everyonce in a while or join the luddites,

 fox

the speed at which the earth rotates depends on location of the center of it's mass and as plates slip that moves

deal with that fact

the moon is slipping further way every pass too (now that we have precise measuring tools)

another fact for the scientifically challenged, not that that will matter in one human lifetime

Retired Air Force Col. David Antoon: "This evangelical Christian supremacist fascism within our military and government is a cancer. Officers, especially commanders, who violate the original code of ethics, must be rooted out of the military. The undermining of the Constitution, especially by senior military officers, must end."

OMG, this is priceless,along with Cheney calling Chavez the prez of Peru.  Actually, I think putz IS stupid.

Bush to Musharraf: "You can't be the president and the head of the military at the same time." We don't think Bush is stupid, but does he know what he is saying? 11/9

Edwards people will like this!

In my last column, I established that the new Depression has begun. No surprise that the media is presenting wall-to-wall coverage of a terrorism a-go-go and the antics of OJ. Don’t let them distract you. The most important story is the economy, and it must be the buzz at every water-cooler in the nation.

This, then, begins my series on What you must do:

VOTE
No news here, of course you must vote in a Democratic Senate and House but right now there are primaries to get through in an earlier column, I explain why John Edwards must be the Democratic nominee. You don’t emerge from the Hoover administration by electing Mrs. Coolidge! You go for FDR. And John Edwards can be our FDR (with Elizabeth a promising Eleanor!)

MS SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON

http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/smith/231

We Americans can't get an illegal, treasonous Bush GOP administration impeached and prosecuted for failing this country before 911, lying this country into invading Iraq, an invasion that is responsible for over a million deaths, and millions displaced, an administration that has weakened this government through appointments based on Bush GOP loyalty ... witnessed by all during the killing of New Orleans ... debt, death, and destruction, but, an off-duty cop can get a woman arrested for swearing in her own home at a stopped up toilet?

A mother of four, she was cited for disorderly conduct after a neighbor, who is a Scranton police officer, overheard her swearing at her backed-up toilet near the open window.

Scranton Patrolman Patrick Gilman, who was off-duty at the time, asked her to stop using profanity, setting off a brief verbal altercation between the neighbors, police said.

IMO the economy and Pakistan should be tops in the news.

So our neighbors are now our policemen, on or off duty.  Disgusting.

sorry but I taught Sunday School to 3-4 graders for awhile and Fox reminds me of that age pupil so I dumb it down for him

good response at 16 Fred

now I have to go hit a bat somewhere for responding

Wasn't there an 84 year old woman tasered recently?  She had a rolling pin and 4 police tasered her.

(**&&^%^$ 

Hidden agendas unfold and a sinister veep whips fear into a froth one more time: "Our country, and the entire international community, cannot stand by as a terror-supporting state fulfills its grandest ambitions. We will not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon."

The words he never adds, though many Americans, I imagine, silently do it for him, are: "It takes one to know one."

This is the thing. We're gaga over nukes ourselves. It takes one recklessly driven government with a God-complex to spot another one. "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."

Carol Shea Porter says she supports investigating Cheney. Looks like we picked a winner with Carol!!!!!

I wonder how Conyer's pulse poll turned out. I never was able to get through on the phone, but I'll try tomorrow.

"Uhhhhhh..... yeah, ok.   Like I said before science and politics don't mix. "

Tell that to your pals on the religious right, fox. 

So our neighbors are now our policemen, on or off duty.  Disgusting.  

Reminds me of the East German "DDR" state.

Everybody was a spy...................................................huhu..................................what a way to live~

what a way to live~

gee, this blog software still sucks.
Sorry, you know that.

Stopping in to report on No End in Sight which I just watched having rented it from Netflix. A lot of the 'highlights' were shown on the Q&A of Brian Lamb and Charles Ferguson -- eg, that the single stupidest thing we did was to disband their army - letting go a whole bunch of unemployed and armed men. It is painful to watch but told in a very matter of fact way, not unlike the tone of The War we all watched on PBS. One thought I had on watching tonight was that perhaps deMello, the UN guy who died in the bombing of the UN compound was perhaps 'neutralized' by us b/c he was trying to live among the Iraqis and listen to them rather than living in the Green Zone and handing out orders from above. If I had to sum the movie and the war up in a sentence, however, I'd say Iraq was just Katrina multiplied by some exponential amount. Same rewarding contributors, same ignoring the experts, same total incompetence.

Now I'm going to watch the first 4 episodes of Season One of Buffy, just to clear my head.

Btw, how does one buy gold anyway?

bbl

"You don't get a free pass. Our object was not to get you into power because we are Democrats - our object was to get you into power so you actually do something. And if you don't, we are not going to stand up and keep you. We want change. It wasn't about the Democratic Party. It was about the country." --- DFA Founder and DNC Chair, Gov. Howard Dean, M.D.....April 7, 2007

WOW! How could I have not heard about this until now? It's no wonder those dirty DLCers are still trying to kill him politically.

That's our Howard !!!!!!

http://www.time.com/time/

Vote for Person of the Year - vote for Al Gore

just popped back in and saw the gold question...

Gold bullion-sold by the oz., ETF's (exchange traded funds), mutual funds--like buying shares of stocks but it's gold, essentially, precious metals funds.

Trouble with buying the actual bullion is you'd have to store it, insure it, etc. 

Then there are the mining companies.

45.

Suzanne Harris
Thu, 11/08/07

******another link******


Vote for Person of the Year - vote for Al Gore

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/a...

How do you know which fund to by, cC?

On  C-SPAN right now, the confirmation process of Judge Mukasey.  Outstanding speeches by ken Salazar, Tom Harkin, Edward Kennedy, and Barbara Boxer.  Schumer's logic dead wrong; Lindsey Graham, a disgrace.  This is history.

If only we had the moral fiber to defeat this nomination, I might have some hope.  Try to watch it if you can.  It's live now. 

Vote for Person of the Year - vote for Al Gore

Average rating 7??? 

There are some hard hearted people out there. 

I've never bought gold funds, sea.  Tell you what though--I know a feller who will know--I'll ask him and report back here on the blog.

Bernie Sanders gave a great speech on standing up to Bush. How insignificant Schumer appears in comparison.

51.

Sitka

Yes there are. All for the sake of politics and their person.

When this was first annouced on Air America this morning, Al Gore was TOP with an average 8 rating.

I think it is awesome to see life long friends still celebrate each others life experiences.


Tommy Lee Jones to Co-Host Peace Concert

22 hours ago

OSLO, Norway (AP) — Tommy Lee Jones will co-host the Nobel Peace Prize concert for former Vice President Al Gore — his roommate at Harvard University — and representatives from the United Nations' climate change panel.

The lineup for this year's Dec. 11 concert honoring Nobel Peace Prize laureates includes Annie Lennox, Alicia Keys, KT Tunstall, Earth Wind & Fire, Nick Davies, Juanes, Junoon and Melissa Etheridge, who won an Oscar for the song "I Need to Wake Up," which was featured in Gore's environmental documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth."

The Draft Gore Petition Signatures are now at

Signatures | Total: 230,029


www.draftgore.com

For anyone who missed Al Gore on 30Rock, here is his appearance.

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/11/08...



Superman wears Al Gore pajamas!

Mukaswy confirmed 53 to 40.  Schumer, Lieberman, Feinstein voted aye.  Obama, Clinton, Dodd didn't vote.  IMHO, a vote that tells the world who we are.  We torture.

Wonder what historians will say about this..  Meanwhile on the blog  we talk about buying gold. 

22.

Huron John
Thu, 11/08/07
6:32 pm

Reply to this

THE STENCH OF DEMOCRATIC COWARDICE

http://www.reformer.com/editorials/ci_74...

Tuesday's attempt by Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, to introduce a motion calling for the impeachment of Vice President Dick Cheney was a perfect illustration of why Congress has a lower approval rating than President Bush.

===================

More like the stench of a Dem-hater. Last I heard the disapproval rate for Democrats in Congress was only 40%. It was the Schiavo issue that started Congress ratings downhill, not the war issues.

Woke up with an eerie feeling - checked in on the NYTimes and read that Bhutto was placed under house arrest a short time ago.

My two Pakistani friends in town will not be happy about this - and neither am I.

Canceled Vaccine May Have Boosted HIV Risk

By SARAH RUBENSTEIN and MARK SCHOOFS
November 8, 2007; Page B1

SEATTLE -- New evidence suggests that Merck & Co.'s experimental HIV vaccine may have made its recipients more vulnerable to the deadly AIDS virus -- and has prompted researchers to warn participants in other trials that similarly made vaccines for a range of other diseases might also increase their susceptibility to HIV.

Merck canceled development of its HIV vaccine in September after it became clear in a clinical trial that it didn't prevent infection or reduce the amount of HIV in subjects who became infected. Since then, Merck and its partners have analyzed data from the 3,000-participant trial and found...(much more)...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB11944591...

***********************************************************

Sad to say that one day those who hoard gold will realize that a square meal is really more valuable than a pound of gold.

1 Euro (EUR) = 1.46556 US Dollar (USD

http://www.oanda.com/convert/classic

Time for Americans to knock out Christmas tree decorations for Europeans LOL :-)

62.David A. Stevenson

Sad to say that one day those who hoard gold will realize that a square meal is really more valuable than a pound of gold.

============
Yea, like king Midas of old... personally I think Platinum is better. At least with that you can make pollution control equipment.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonny_Perdu...

Property in Florida

In 2004, Perdue sold 318 acres of Houston County property that he and his sister had inherited. With money from the sale, Perdue bought 19.5 acres of Florida land near Disney World in late 2004, paying $2 million. He told the Associated Press, the day after a newspaper reported on the purchase, that he had purchased out-of-state land because "If I bought land within 100 miles of a new road construction [in Georgia], I'd be accused by the other side of influencing that."

The governor bought the Florida land from Newnan developer Stanley Thomas. Perdue had appointed Thomas to the state's economic development board in 2003. A month after Perdue bought the Florida property, O'Neal sponsored a bill to allow Georgians who sell property in the state and buy out-of-state property to defer capital gains taxes. The new tax break allowed Perdue to defer paying $100,000 to the state of Georgia.

++++++++++++++

Governor seeks divine intervention to get some rain
Invitations going out for prayer service at Capitol on Tuesday

By JAMES SALZER
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 11/07/07

....The governor recognizes that the request has got to be made to a higher power."

-----

LOL...

Wonder what historians will say about this..  Meanwhile on the blog  we talk about buying gold

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

that makes way more sense than it might appear on the surface for it means the rule of law has broken down

if gold does have any value you should have the real thing in your possession  not pieces of paper that say you don't trust the value of pieces of paper lol

Gold bullion-sold by the oz., ETF's (exchange traded funds), mutual funds--like buying shares of stocks but it's gold, essentially, precious metals funds.

The only gold I have any use for is the edible kind. You haven't had a hot dog until it's been wrapped in gold foil and smothered in chili.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/70...

Bhutto house surrounded by police

Benazir Bhutto wants elections to be held on schedule
The house of Pakistani opposition leader, Benazir Bhutto, has been surrounded by police, hours before her party is due to hold a mass rally.

--------

Not looking good in Occupied Territories-East. A rather nasty picture is being painted of a military dictatorship acting to limit peaceful protest with the implied approval of the Bush administration. Now, the Bush administration has said that we went to war in Iraq to bring freedom and democracy to the Iraqi people. However, its events like this in Pakistan that tend to draw in to question our credibility.....was it really Iraq's natural resources we were concerned about or was it democracy?

the lesson

the world is a big place and we can't "control" events

Long time no blog. Life is lustfully busy here. A dear friend , just retired from a passionate career as a polisci prof, threw a nice barbecue this evening to announce his run for the Senate. My wife and I spent a couple hours with our favorite people, the activist Democrats of Lancaster County, planning specifics of next November's elections. Then we took early leave to catch a sneak preview of Redford's new movie "Lions for Lambs" about a poli sci professor and a neocon Senator. Don't miss it. It's sweet and scary and makes reallly good points about America and activism. Art imitated life in a strange way this evening,but it left Cindy and me energized and ready to push to turn this goddammed red state blue.
Definitely agree with the statement that it makes no sense to replace Hoover with Mrs. Coolidge.

I do feel that our good Doctor Howard Dean should get person of the year award for his no BS, face to face neighbor to neighbor, one precinct at a time restoration of sanity to our government and our country. we Still have the power.

When is the Iraq government going to meet any benchmarks? I don't believe we should fund the war if we aren't seeing concrete steps being met by the Iraqi government.

How can we, as a nation, continue to fund this debacle when we have urgent needs in this country that aren't being addressed? Last time I checked, MILLIONS of American children still lack needed healthcare coverage.

68. Phil Specht

if gold does have any value you should have the real thing in your possession not pieces of paper that say you don't trust the value of pieces of paper lol

================
gold, like paper, only has a value we assign to it. The only advantage gold has is that it maintains its value better than paper currency does when paper is losing value.

Arab oil sheiks are trading dollars for Euros or buying gold with dollars. When our currency starts nose-diving you want to buy something that keeps its value.

Gold is a universal currency. Investing in Gold mining stocks is betting on more people will be using it. They have been taking off since the invasion of Iraq.

Most gold mutual funds also include other precious and strategic metals as well. I heard Platinum's been taking off because Europe is putting catalytic converters on trucks.

We talk of many things on this blog.  Gold  took up about .0000009% today.

I had a feeling Bhutto was going to be arrested or hurt in some way and it's dismaying.

When and if Musharraf falls, al queda will have control of the nukes.  Nice going, putz. 

the world is a big place and we can't "control" events.

True, Phil, nor can we control people, places and things.  Control and displaced anger seem to go together.  Putzie is very angry and very displaced and totally oblivious to both. 

CAN MERKEL STOP BUSH? A lot is at stake for Merkel during this trip. American saber rattling against Tehran is becoming increasingly threatening. In mid-October, Bush warned that the dispute over Iran's nuclear weapons program could escalate into a "World War III." Vice President Dick Cheney, a consummate hardliner, has threatened Tehran with "serious consequences," which, as everyone knows, means military attacks.

More saber rattling by our *special friend.*  If the US is afraid that Israel will bomb someone, stop selling it weapons.  Duh!  Cheery guy, this Barak.

US fears Israeli strike against Iran over latest nuclear claim A claim by President Ahmadinejad that Iran has 3,000 working uranium-enriching centrifuges sent a tremor across the world yesterday amid fears that Israel would respond by bombing the country’s nuclear facilities. Israel responded by serving notice that it would not tolerate a nuclear Iran. “Talks never did, and never will, stop rockets,” said Ehud Barak, the Defence Minister, after talks with the security cabinet.

Hi Fred.  Where's paine lately.  Paine, call home please.

Sidney Blumenthal: Bush's old world disorder Every aspect of Bush's foreign policy has now collapsed.Every dream of neoconservatism has become a nightmare.Every doctrine has turned to dust.The influence of the US has reached a nadir, its lowest point since before WWII,when the country was encased in isolationism.Bush still clings to his high-flown rhetoric as if he's warming up for his second inaugural address. But this is not rock-bottom; there is further to fall.

More bullying and strutting about.  It annoys me that the bullies have the biggest guns and that our tax dollars are flying outta the country.

Deputy PM Shaul Mofaz said the Egyptian head of the International Atomic Energy Agency had endangered world peace by neglecting Iran's nuclear programme.

His comments come days before the IAEA is to publish its latest Iran report.

Mr ElBaradei has said Iran's nuclear programme is not an immediate threat and if it wanted to build a nuclear bomb it would need years to do so.

The IAEA report will help determine whether the United Nations imposes a third set of sanctions on Tehran.

"The policies followed by ElBaradei endanger world peace. His irresponsible attitude of sticking his head in the sand over Iran's nuclear programme should lead to his impeachment," Mr Mofaz said during a visit to Washington.

'Covert programme'

Israel is a member of the IAEA, but it is not itself a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty which attempts to limit the spread of nuclear weapons.

It is widely believed to currently be the only nuclear-armed state in the conflict riven Middle East region.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7085213.stm 

Perhaps the dems could call the repugs the *borrow and spend* party.

WASHINGTON, Nov 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department said on Wednesday publicly held U.S. debt breached $9 trillion this week for the first time ever, just five weeks after Congress had raised the statutory borrowing limit.

At the end of September, U.S. President George W. Bush signed a measure to increase the debt limit ceiling to $9.815 trillion from $8.965 trillion, allowing the government to keep issuing debt.

The increase in the debt limit is the fifth since Bush took office in January 2001. The U.S. debt stood at about $5.6 trillion at the start of his presidency.

In approving the debt limit increase, Congressional lawmakers said the $850 billion increase should be large enough to allow the government to continue borrowing into 2009, well beyond next year's presidential and congressional elections.

The Bush administration estimated the U.S. federal budget deficit for fiscal 2007 would total $163 billion. The deficit for the year ended Sept. 30 narrowed by 34.3 percent from the $248 billion gap in fiscal 2006. (Reporting by Nancy Waitz; editing by Gary Crosse)

http://www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSN0754579020071107 

Good night, everyone.

Forgiveness is the key. 

By David Sirota
Campaign for America's Future, 11/8/07

Under intense pressure from Sen. John Edwards (D) and a building national fair trade movement, Sen. Hillary Clinton tonight finally disclosed her position on a bill to expand the NAFTA trade model that passed the U.S. House today and is moving to the Senate. Reuters is reporting that Clinton says she will vote for the Peru Free Trade Agreement - the first agreement in a package of agreements to vastly expand the NAFTA trade model. Clinton is citing the Peru deal's labor standards as justification for her support, despite the fact that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has told reporters it has recieved "assurances" that those labor standards are "unenforceable."

The announcement comes on the same day the New York Times reports that Clinton is being endorsed by NAFTA architect Robert Rubin, the CEO of Citigroup - a company that stands to benefit from the NAFTA model. Rubin's announcement came with a promise to raise Clinton more money from Wall Street.

With Obama also supporting the lobbyist-written Peru agreement, Clinton's announcement is a huge opening for Edwards, who has made opposition to NAFTA-style trade agreements a centerpiece of his campaign. As my nationally syndicated newspaper column out tomorrow details, trade and globalization is taking center stage in the 2008 presidential campaign. Clinton's announcement will now specifically make job-killing, wage-destroying NAFTA-style trade policy a flashpoint in the race for the White House.

58

Biden didn't vote either.  The reason they didn't vote is because they were not there.  They knew the vote was not even close or they would have been.  I know Obama, Dodd, and Clinton made statements against Mukasey.  I'm not sure about Biden.  Democrats that voted yes were Bayh, Carper, Feinstein, Landrieu, Nelson from Nebraska, Schumer, and Ind Lieberman.

I would like to know why Harry Reid said this vote was not going to take place until next week, and then suddenly they voted tonight.  He has done this before.  I used to admire him, but I think he is ineffective, he kow tows too much to the other side.  He is too soft.    

72. steve, who's this senate candidate???

83. martha (from a prior thread), don't link me to the dlc or the support of any dlc candidate or incumbent, and most especially, don't imply that i support such politics. get it??? do your dennis thing, and leave me out of it. got it???

I'm concerned about Benazir Bhutto.

same here, but, she's not a fool. she has an infrastructure. musharrif and his would be foolish to harm her. the more radical elements, well, who knows???

If the voters are paying attention,  Obama and Clinton hung themselves on the Peru vote.

Edwards has a huge opening.  

Phil, how does this info go down in IA?  Do Clinton and Obama just not care cuz 1) the fix is in...or 2) they think the voters are dumb...or 3) the voters don't pay attention to this? 

Didn't I say goodnight awhile ago?  LOL 

Bhutto could have an *accident.*  Look how many *accidents* progressive dems have had.  I saw the BBC interview with Musharraf before she returned.  He was not happy with her but rather than say it, you should have seen his face and body language.

I, too, am concerned for her and for the whole situation there.   

seashell,

I'm not trying to pick a fight, but I've heard John Edwards state that home ownership is the foundation of the American dream.  Why then did he vote for bankruptcy reform that certainly could result in people losing their homes? Why did he vote for the credit card companies?  Why was he involved with Fortress who foreclosed the homes of Katrina victims?  He claimed he never knew, and broke ties with them, I wonder if he gave back the nearly half a million dollars they paid him for consulting advise.

IMHO he is pandering.

I am supporting Obama, (unless Al Gore steps in)  I certainly am disappointed with Obamas support of the Peru Trade Agreement.  But didn't Al Gore support NAFTA, didn't it come about during Clinton/Gore presidency?  I wish there was one candidate I agreed 100% with.

As far as Clinton goes I cannot abide her at all.

After the last election farce I promised myself that I would never support anyone who voted for the Iraq war. 

Gore/Obama

 It is no wonder the American people are so misinformed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Who owns the media?

Cheney is probably watching Pakistan and seeing the ratio of police to crowd necessary to control the streets.

Pakistan has a huge military well equiped by our tax dollars. Too bad like Turkey they will be fighting us if Bush/Cheney start WW III 

seashell

Obama and Edwards have to play as teammates in Iowa. If they go the route of attacking each other, Hillary wins.

they need to be the best of buds

they can have the shootout when they are the last two standing in March

I am trying to get away from the farm to go to the Jefferson Jackson dinner, and have tickets where you would get to see the back of my head again on C-Span, which I hate to see go to waste.

two HOWARDLYS this morning the gang in Montco featured in the main post, and Steve and his friends in Nebraska, fighting the good fight 

Good morning, everybody

Got side-tracked by diaries on KOS.

Howardlys can be viewed on http://hannah.smith-family.com

Phil, we are having too much fun for awards. The fine folks of Iowa have been our inspiration in setting up effective precinct organizations. Organizing our first caucuses is just a whole lot of fun and more work.
Improv, Bill doesn't want tomake a formal announcement til next week.
Crummyol truck says it's time for work now.

THE REAL COWARDS

Not voting were Democratic presidential candidates Joe Biden of Delaware, Hillary Clinton of New York, Chris Dodd of Connecticut and Barack Obama of Illinois. All four had said they opposed Mukasey's nomination.

If they had joined with the other 40 in a filibuster, the nomination would have been defeated.

59.

I see that Fred is still defending his precious Democrats by way of personal attacks.

old dogs, new tricks, NOT................................

FASCISM LIVES

http://www.stepfour.com/xdem/

Senate Democrats Charles Schumer, Diane Feinstein, and four others teamed up with the entire Republican caucus to subvert the rule of law yesterday by appointing an openly fascist lawyer to serve as attorney general. Michael Mukasey, former federal judge and confidant of mobster-mayor Rudolph Giuliani, had testified that he would not be enforcing laws meant to restrain the executive branch of government from holding people without legal process and torturing them during their imprisonment.

Besides Feinstein and Schumer, who shepherded their kinsman’s nomination through the Senate Judiciary Committee, Democrats Evan Bayh, Mary Landrieu, Tom Carper, and Ben Nelson cast votes for Mukasey. All remain in good standing with their party, though they differed, ostensibly, with leader Harry Reid, who voted with the minority against the nomination. It’s a big tent, the Democratic party, with the people crowded at the edges and the leaders gathered around the trough at the center.

The Senate’s mission–to preserve the illusion of a government of laws and not of thugs–was accomplished. Mukasey will bring no wrongdoers to account. He will now be able to give his full attention to the prosecution of donors to Muslim charities and critics of our various military adventures. We should probably assume that Kucinich will be carted off to jail at some point. Maybe that will convince him to put some distance between himself and the corrupt party he seeks to lead.

LISTEN UP DEMOCRATIC SHEEPLE!

http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Russert_Independent_men_flee_from_Hillary_1108.html

According to the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal presidential poll, respondents prefer a generic Democrat over a generic Republican by some fifteen percentage points. However, when asked specifically about Hillary Clinton vs. Rudy Giuliani, poll respondents put them in a dead heat.

Democratic pollster Peter D. Hart, who conducted the survey along with a Republican partner, told NBC News that widespread disapproval of the Republican Party gives Clinton "a magnificent tailwind" but that her polarizing image and high negatives suggest she would have a real struggle in the general election.

I don't subscribe to the "electability" meme, but this should still give the sheeple pause for thought.

The Brazilian government says huge new oil reserves discovered off its coast could turn the country into one of the biggest oil producers in the world.

~~~~~~~~~~~

about time for a correction in the oil market

the expanded NAFTA related to energy supplies from our neighbors?

we need the rest of the world more than they need us

whatever made the neocons think that being a bully was the right course?

Brazil already ships it's soybeans to China and they outproduce us in soybeans, what do you bet the Chinese get that oil

How horrible that our Presidential candidates keep missing important votes. And with one of them missing some of the most important votes.

Yeah, of course they were out of town. The question is WHY? I seem to remember a response to a question of why the Senator didn't get involved on the Jena 6 issue and they said they were busy working in DC. REALLY? No eveidence, the only evidence is not doing what they are being paid to do.

A trick some mastered even in their State positions. We remember when getting caught not voting on so many womens rights votes and them saying that was an agreed position to take so they can't be tied to their vote.

A shame.

And, the Mukasey vote, so close, tipped to the confirm by 2 votes. Just 2 votes.

Quick hello, Huron John #98, right you are.  I am sickened by this vote, by the reasoning.

It recalls to my mind in the McCarthy hearings when the question was asked to Joe McCarthy, "Have you no shame?"  I am devastated, I have to admit.  We don't even profess our values anymore.

While visiting Canyon de Chelly recently in Arizona on the Navajo (Dine) Reservation, I could feel a sense of distance while looking at 1000 year old ruins, recognize that as humans we (I agree Phil) really can't control events.  I had some sense that we would either work out our morality, recognize that we are denizens of earth and whatever we think, say, feel, and do has consequences, but last night's vote left me as I've said sickened.

Clinton, Obama, Dodd, and Biden, Schumer, and Feinstein, not to mention Warner, Lindsey Graham, (and where was McCain?) and anyone who has worked with the military should have opposed this sybarite of the Bush Administration. 

Well, we keep on doing our best. 

new thread which I nabbed for Howard, Linda, but it is about recruiting candidates apropo for a Draft Gore link

bbl

I could only think of the build up to the Third Reich as I watched the voting, as representatives in the Weimar Republic equivocated, made excuses for, and eventually gave over Germany to Hitler and his thugs.  While I wasn't alive then, that's how I imagine it must have happened.  Small excuses, big excuses, and then since humans seem programmed to follow leaders, morality is abandoned and we become savages, less moral than the animal kingdom that doesn't kill in the quantities we do.

And then, on a somewhat lighter note, this from a friend. 

Wisdom of an elderly woman ...  
 
"THE BOTTLE OF WINE"
 
For all of us who are married, were married, wish you were married, or wish you weren't married... this is something to smile about the next time you see a bottle of wine:
 
Sally was driving home from one of her business trips in Northern Arizona, when she saw an elderly Navajo woman walking on the side of the road.
 
 As the trip was a long and quiet one, she stopped the car and asked the Navajo woman if she would like a ride.
 
 With a silent nod of thanks, the woman got into the car.
 
 Resuming the journey, Sally tried in vain to make a bit of small talk with the Navajo woman. The old woman just sat silently,  looking intently at everything she saw, studying every little  detail, until she noticed a brown bag on the seat next to Sally.
 
 '"What in bag?" asked the old woman.
 
 Sally looked down at the brown bag and said, 'It's a bottle of wine. I got it for my husband."
 
 The Navajo woman was silent for another moment or two.
 
 Then speaking with the quiet wisdom of an elder, she said...
 
 "Good trade."