Deans are first!

jjem

I may be offering my ticket as a needs based scholarship so keep an ear open for someone who might really want to attend but to whom even $75 is a hurdle. 

and thanks for all you do

http://www.blogforamerica.com/view/23999...

last one

Thanks Phil, but I'm hoping YOU will use the ticket!

Thanks to all who are working hard to make this DemFest a success -- David, Ellen, Jessica, Laurie and Quintus. Be a while before I know whether I can be there -- sure hope so!

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

With the momentum behind him from 11 straight primary and caucus victories, Obama was confident, gracious and even presidential.

Perhaps more than in any of the other 19 Democratic primary debates that have come before, it was possible to imagine Obama sitting behind the desk in the Oval Office.

He's starting to give off that White House vibe.

http://www.nypost.com/php/pfriendly/print.php?url=http://www.nypost.com/seven/02272008/news/columnists/presidential_obama_the_winner_of_key_deb_99499.htm

William F. Buckley Jr. Dies at 82

By HILLEL ITALIE
The Associated Press
Wednesday, February 27, 2008; 11:50 AM

NEW YORK -- William F. Buckley Jr., the erudite Ivy Leaguer and conservative herald who showered huge and scornful words on liberalism as he observed, abetted and cheered on the right's post-World War II rise from the fringes to the White House, died Wednesday. He was 82.

His assistant Linda Bridges said Buckley was found dead by his cook at his home in Stamford, Conn. The cause of death was unknown, but he had been ill with emphysema, she said

...Born Nov. 24, 1925, in New York City, William Frank Buckley Jr. was the sixth of 10 children of a a multimillionaire with oil holdings in seven countries. The son spent his early childhood in France and England, in exclusive Roman Catholic schools.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/con...

I mean, who knows? An Obama presidency my bring us back to the tranquil ans serene, almost innocent days of our youth and of better times.........vision if you wil, a tranquil and beautiful duck pond.......quiet, nature at its best..................

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jp9BSW38bXg&feature=related

Dilemma: Demfest falls on my wedding anniversary. Damn.

What should I do?

"Start yours today
Learn how to Start your SoapBlox today. Most sites can be up and running within 24-hours.

Questions?
Contact us at soapblox@soapblox.net"

http://tinyurl.com/34h9w6

DUMP the over-priced idiots at Blue State Digital.

It's been over four yrs., HQ.

Time to move your butts.

Not in one month.

Not in two months.

Not four more years.

TODAY.

You have hardly any end users as it is (check Technorati rankings fmi).

Move w/SoapBlox.

It'll be up in one day...two days at most.

Most BlogPac portals use it.

Why?

It WORKS.

What should I do?

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

Buy your wife a ticket to DemocracyFest as an anniversary present! ;-)

Yes, We can....have health insurance paid for by all, shared by all, and benefitted by all.

Some call it single-payer. I call it shared-payer.

Dilemma: Demfest falls on my wedding anniversary. Damn.

What should I do?

I avise asking your wife or significant other. 

DUMP the over-priced idiots at Blue State Digital.

This blog is built with CakePHP not Blue State Digital.

And I have been complaining about this software whenever DFA started using it, about a year or so ago.

I mean, who knows? An Obama presidency my bring us back to the tranquil ans serene, almost innocent days of our youth and of better times.........vision if you wil, a tranquil and beautiful duck pond.......quiet, nature at its best..................

My youth was the Cold War and Vietnam War. It's Bush and those who have enabled him who have already taken me back to those days. 

If those DemFest coffee mugs came in from last year, I could use it, Jessica.

I break 'em at warp speed (esp. handles)!

I think I got lost in the shuffle.

Thanks.

Jessica Falker
Wed, 02/27/08

 Thanks, JJ. LOL. that would be kind of self-serving since she isn't into it as much as I.

Maybe "on our way to Jamaica"!!!

Sitka, good advice.....but I kind of know the answer. She would say "go if you really want to" but would that be the right thing to do????

I posted an article about transformation versus transaction politics.
Hillary is clearly a transaction politician. She has a 10-point top-down plan for everything that is developed in a vacuum. Where things break down for her is when outside stakeholders get involved. I would argue that part of her problem is in her inflexibility once her plans are released. She does not understand without buy in from those who are affected, her plans go nowhere.

Obama has the transactions necessary and he is able to transform politics from just a series of plans to series of movements. That is where real, lasting progress is done. The other way is to bully like the Repubs do which eventually lead to failure.

I didn't realize at the time that the world died when Wellstone died.
I kinda see glimmers of Wellstone in Obama and a little bit of Bush II in Hillary.

Sorry to hear of the death of William F. Buckley. I miss the days when you could listen to a conservative and learn something even if you didn't agree with everything the person said -- when politics could actually be a civil and erudite debate and when there were still shades of gray.

Meantime, let's see if any of the comedians read here and appropriate any material. I present a comedy sketch based on last night's debate, written by me:

Hillary Clinton:

"Can I just point out that in the last several debates, I seem to get the first question all the time? I don’t mind, you know, I’ll be happy to knock it out of the park.

"But the great story here for anybody willing to find it, write about it and explain it is this vast alphabetic conspiracy that has been conspiring against me since the day I announced for president.

"Look at the very people who are involved in this. They have popped up in other settings, unwilling to use -- or even recognize that I have -- TWO. LAST. NAMES. And incidentally, I feel I am more ready on Day One because I have TWO last names to my opponent's paltry ONE -- and neither of mine are funny-sounding. But I digress.

"You people always address me as Senator Clinton when in truth I am Senator Rodham Clinton. Shame on you, media persons! Rodham is not my middle name; it is my first last name. My middle name, in case anyone cares, is Diane. My opponent has a middle name too, which I would never mention because I don't believe in anything less than the highest standards of campaign debate (drinks water, fake coughs "Hussein"). Excuse me!

"My point is, if you people addressed me properly you would realize that my last name begins not with C but with R, which rhymes with 'where we are' which is Cleveland where Senator Obama, O being alphabetically before R, should be taking your first question... so let's ask him if he NEEDS ANOTHER PILLOW, SHALL WE???"

-- volney

Blue State Digital are the people who are paid to f^ck up the so-called "IT," sunlight.

DFA 1.0 hacks.

Incompetent. Dump 'em.

http://www.bluestatedigital.com/team.htm...

Well, great, my new and hilarious comedy post surged quickly to slot t h i r t e e n.

Steve, if your wife likes great shopping, there's all kinds of it in Tyson's Corner, not far from Dulles. Also it's quite easy to take a nice, clean, fast train right to the Mall to see all the historic attractions.

Side trip on way to Jamaica sounds wonderful.

-- volney

SoapBlox's features (what a REAL BLOG should have, BTW):

http://tinyurl.com/37z3lx

24 hrs. upload time, on average.

An Obama presidency my bring us back to the tranquil ans serene, almost innocent days of our youth and of better times.....

My early childhood was during WW II -- anything but transquil even as a child. But the 50's were transquil, innocent better days for many, including myself.

I only wish my grandkids could have that kind of life of the 50"s. But they won't no matter who is president.

There's been much too much damage done in America by the Bush Administration and with Clinton's NAFTA.

With the Internet and instant TV video of news around the world, we actually see firsthand the horrible scenes of Darfur, Palestine and other nations at war, hear about the threat of global warming and of the results of over-population and deforestation. On and on.

One can only choose the immediate best of courses for now, which in this country involves Obama as president. The Republican alternative is unthinkable.

dog soldier
Wed, 02/27/08

The night the music died.....that was a terrible, depressing day when we heard that Wellstone was on that plane. What a loss.....

"NOTE: This petition originally started out as NY Feminists for Peace and Barack Obama, but the response has been so overwhelming, that we have made it national. We welcome feminists from all over the country to sign on. You may choose to indicate your state along with your name and affiliation."

http://tinyurl.com/yp2xlm

20.

Indy Steve
Wed, 02/27/08

Reply to this

Yes, We can....have health insurance paid for by all, shared by all, and benefitted by all.

Some call it single-payer. I call it shared-payer
================================================

Keywords and phrases should be avoided. Government should subsidize health care with national insurance. It can be financed by paycheck deductions and/or filing fees.

Refunds could be on a sliding scale according to API at tax time. People who prefer private insurance can get refunds and/or credits.

All corporate health insurance and workers compensation companies will need to convert to being non-profit companies, and will no longer issue stock. Government will assist in buybacks.

1:20 PM EST

well, my cousin (ok, so he's not related to me, [smile]) just endorsed:

 http://www.startribune.com/politics/16029557.html

Associated Press

Last update: February 27, 2008 - 12:08 PM

...

Refunds could be on a sliding scale according to API at tax time.

========
I meant AGI not API

1:23 PM EST

and another endorse:

http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/stories/2008/02/27/Lewis_0228_web.html?cxntlid=homepage_tab_newstab

Lewis says he's endorsing Obama

By BOB KEMPER
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/27/08

...

Anybody endorsing now is jumping on the bandwagon. They just want to be on the "right" side. Should have endorsed before Obama seemed on the verge of the nomination.

Steve wrote:

Anybody endorsing now is jumping on the bandwagon. They just want to be on the "right" side. Should have endorsed before Obama seemed on the verge of the nomination.

I agree 100%.

1:32 PM EST

Anybody endorsing now is jumping on the bandwagon.

...

+++

Indy Steve -

True enough indeed.

That's why I admire Tim Kaine, Deval Patrick, Oprah Winfrey, Jim Doyle, John Kerry and Caroline Kennedy for going out on a limb in backing Obama when they did.

drive by -

Obama has just been endorsed by Byron Dorgan and John Lewis.

I'm having trouble getting the blog to load now!

Mainefem, It's totally my fault that you havn't gotten it. I'm not sure if we're going to order them this year. If not, I will send you a refund.

You're correct, Indy.

I was shocked to initially see Lewis, Andrew Young, & Maxine Waters (can you say Out of Iraq Caucus, anyone?) hop on the so-called "presumptive" Clinton express.

Congressional Black Caucus & the Congressional Progressive Caucus's members aligning w/DLC corporate triangulators?

http://tinyurl.com/2vrnlv

WTF

Makes 'em look all the more disgusting now--pimping for primetime administration appointments was all that amounted to.

A stimulating discussion's arisen here, much along the lines of how many Edwards supporters favored Clinton, not Obama, as an alternative candidate.  The underlying assumption, dispelled I guess by seashell and Linda to some extent, was that Edwards appealed to liberal more than moderate Democrats, so that Edwards supporters would naturally gravitate towards Obama, a more liberal candidate than Clinton, once Edwards exited the race. 

I've mentioned two Edwards advocates, after a fashion, anyway, who appeared to opt for Clinton.  I am unaware of any others.  Please reveal yourselves if I'm mistaken.  Even with these results, it could logically be theorized that people who supported Dean in 2004 and Edwards in 2008 could be counted on, if nothing else, to vote for a Democrat, rather than a Republican, in the 2008 general election.

So how about with Nader?  Assuming he wasn't in the 2000 contest and you're a Nader voter, how many here would pull the lever for Bush instead of Gore as their second choice?  Please chime in.  We know that there was a range of Democrats, variously estimated between 12 and 20% of all Democrats, voting for Bush in Florida in 2000.  We know that a large group of Palm Beach Democrats selected Buchanan for the presidency because they thought that's how you voted for Gore on a butterfly ballot.  We know that more than a third of Nader voters had no second preference for a candidate in Florida or anywhere else.

With all of these factors, problems that could be encountered in any election, plus the shenanigans going on in the Florida Republican Party before any voting took place, we have clear evidence that Gore would have received, at a bare minimum, 12,000 more votes than Bush in Florida if Nader had not run.  All of the polling data show somewhere from 30 to 50% of all Nader voters who would bother to even look at a second candidate, would have voted for Gore.  Among Nader voters, Bush never polled higher than 25% (against 38% for Gore) and Gore never polled lower than 30% (against 15% for Bush) in the national sample data. 

Without Nader, Gore would have won Florida, may have won New Hampshire, and had a chance to win in a total of nine states.  Without Nader, there would have been no recount and no Supreme Court injustice, given all the other factors that combined to doom Gore's campaign.  That's assuming that in a random sample of Nader voters, say those here for example, just 13% more choose Gore than Bush, and guess what?  In our own small, quaint survey, not one Nader voter here will choose Bush.  Or will they?

So, Indy, shall we call it SHARED CARE?

Don't fret about it, Jessica--if you never ordered them/don't have any left.

I just thought you'dl lost my order in the chaos.

Post a diary blurb over @Turn Maine Blue--the Kennebec Dems (Eddie is Vice-Chair) can indeed sponsor (as can TMB, for that matter). Craig is owner, and he has ad revenue coming in.

http://www.kennebecdems.org/

You still have guest blogger privileges @TMB.

They have $$$$.

I've been "banned," so I can't post.

I would have more respect for Nader if he would have thrown his hat in the ring a year ago. IMO, all his 'atta boys' are negated for his hubris save-the-world-at-the-last minute attitude.

1:54 PM EST

from the land down under (to MA at least):

http://www.projo.com/extra/election/content/q_cran_endorse27_02-27-08_DF95TP7_v2.14c86b2.html

CRANSTON — Several of the city’s most prominent Democrats are rallying around New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in advance of Tuesday’s high-stakes presidential primary.

Mayor Michael T. Napolitano, City Council President Aram G. Garabedian and Sen. Beatrice Lanzi, among others, say they will push to get Clinton supporters to the polls.

“She has experience,” said Napolitano, “and she’s served our country well.”

But in a reflection of the growing momentum nationwide enjoyed by Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, at least two who have endorsed Clinton say they are having second thoughts.

“The Clinton campaign may be too much about the past — something that Rhode Islanders are not looking for right now,” said City Council Vice President Paula B. McFarland.

Council member Richard D. Santamaria, Jr., who endorsed Clinton early in the contest, added that he was a “little troubled” by her recent attacks on Obama and by the general direction of an increasingly divisive Democratic contest.

...

Clinton campaign officials are predicting that Clinton’s experience and long ties to Rhode Island, dating to her days as first lady, will spell victory statewide.

“We’re very confident that Rhode Island is a state that knows Hillary well,” said campaign spokeswoman Christine Heenan.

Polls suggest that confidence is well placed.

A Brown University poll released Feb. 11 found 36 percent of likely Democratic primary voters backing Clinton, compared with 28 percent for Obama.

And a Rasmussen Reports poll released Monday found Clinton with a 15-point edge.

Clinton’s lead has held up in Rhode Island, even as her support has waned in the other three states holding primaries and caucuses on Tuesday.

Obama has a wide lead in Vermont and is running neck-and-neck with Clinton in Ohio and Texas.

...

Indy Steve~ wedding anniversaries come first, be with your spouse on that special day, IMO. :o)

40.

Karen
Wed, 02/27/08

Reply to this
I would have more respect for Nader if he would have thrown his hat in the ring a year ago. IMO, all his 'atta boys' are negated for his hubris save-the-world-at-the-last minute attitude.
-------------

That’s just one of many other attitudes toward Nader’s actions.
For example, (that’s how he explains it, although not literally, have no quotes):

If he would see progressive ENOUGH (in his view) Obama/Clinton (or Gore 7 years ago) agenda, he would not enter the race either “a year ago� or “at-the-last minute�.
Unfortunately the degree of agenda's "progressiveness" can't be evaluated at the campaign's beginning. That's why he has to wait to evaluate it.

I do have respect for him.

Cooling Trend Puts Global Warming Theory in Doubt

Michael Asher
Daily Tech
February 26, 2008

caveman weather report its globle warming. no its globe cooling!!!!!!!!


Above: Snowstorm in south Lebanon January 30, 2008. Record levels of Antarctic sea ice, record cold in Minnesota, Texas, Florida, Mexico, Australia, Iran, Greece, South Africa, Greenland, Argentina, Chile — the list goes on and on.

Over the past year, anecdotal evidence for a cooling planet has exploded. China has its coldest winter in 100 years. Baghdad sees its first snow in all recorded history. North America has the most snowcover in 50 years, with places like Wisconsin the highest since record-keeping began. Record levels of Antarctic sea ice, record cold in Minnesota, Texas, Florida, Mexico, Australia, Iran, Greece, South Africa, Greenland, Argentina, Chile — the list goes on and on.

No more than anecdotal evidence, to be sure. But now, that evidence has been supplanted by hard scientific fact. All four major global temperature tracking outlets (Hadley, NASA’s GISS, UAH, RSS) have released updated data. All show that over the past year, global temperatures have dropped precipitously.

A compiled list of all the sources can be seen here. The total amount of cooling ranges from 0.65C up to 0.75C — a value large enough to wipe out nearly all the warming recorded over the past 100 years. All in one year’s time. For all four sources, it’s the single fastest temperature change ever recorded, either up or down.

Scientists quoted in a past DailyTech article link the cooling to reduced solar activity which they claim is a much larger driver of climate change than man-made greenhouse gases. The dramatic cooling seen in just 12 months time seems to bear that out. While the data doesn’t itself disprove that carbon dioxide is acting to warm the planet, it does demonstrate clearly that more powerful factors are now cooling it.

Let’s hope those factors stop fast. Cold is more damaging than heat. The mean temperature of the planet is about 54 degrees. Humans — and most of the crops and animals we depend on — prefer a temperature closer to 70.


Historically, the warm periods such as the Medieval Climate Optimum were beneficial for civilization. Corresponding cooling events such as the Little Ice Age, though, were uniformly bad news.




All four major global temperature tracking outlets (Hadley, NASA’s GISS, UAH, RSS) have released updated data. All show that over the past year, global temperatures have dropped precipitously.

These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.

I'd keep an endorsement or two in the back pocket for getting the super delegates to line up, on the outside chance Hillary wins Ohio.

Thought I explained that to you Rooney.

try 55 millions years ago since the last time the earth had these carbon levels in the atmosphere

Gas May Reach $4 a Gallon by Spring

Jad Mouawad
International Herald Tribune
February 27, 2008


callin doctor phil we need the spin doctor in ER the country going to hell, save us phil! farmer my ass he a paid blogger people. wake up!!!!!

High energy prices that were once easily absorbed by consumers are now more likely to act as a drag on household budgets, leaving people with less money to spend elsewhere.

Gasoline prices, which for months lagged the big run-up in the price of oil, are suddenly rising quickly, with some experts fearing they could hit $4 a gallon by spring. Diesel is hitting new records daily and oil closed at an all-time high on Tuesday of $100.88 a barrel.

The increases could not come at a worse time for the economy. With growth slowing, high energy prices that were once easily absorbed by consumers are now more likely to act as a drag on household budgets, leaving people with less money to spend elsewhere. These costs could exacerbate the nation’s economic woes, piling a fresh energy shock on top of the turmoil in credit and housing.

“The effect of high oil prices today could be the difference between having a recession and not having a recession,” said Kenneth Rogoff, a Harvard University economist.

The depth of the nation’s economic problems became clearer Tuesday with the release of figures showing that prices at the producer level rose 1 percent in January, driven in large measure by energy costs. Compared with a year ago, prices were up 7.4 percent, the worst producer price inflation in the United States since 1981.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/26/us/pol...

Transcript
The Democratic Debate in Cleveland

31.

Tom Bearse
Wed, 02/27/08

Is there a Cliff Notes version of this post Tom?

I've had a secretarial day - bill paying, copy making, fax sending, Ipod charging, camera uploading, gift ordering, errand running. I'll be glad all I have to do tomorrow is teach school! And I've discovered some lush, schmaltzy music - a guy named Morricone - I love movie music -- Korngold too. Morricone reportedly wrote Clint's spaghetti westerns including The Good, the Bad, the Ugly. I discovered him on my Yo Yo Ma album Appasionato and apparently there's another YoYo with nothing but Morricone music that I'm saving up for.

That was my break - thanks!!

bbl

former, re: If he would see progressive ENOUGH (in his view) Obama/Clinton (or Gore 7 years ago) agenda, he would not enter the race either “a year ago” or “at-the-last minute”.

yeah, right!  last time around he held an online poll to determine support - said he wouldn't get into the race if the 'people' felt the dem and repub nominees represented their interests.  the result was a large majority of respondees asked him NOT to enter the race, yet he ignored his own poll results and initial promise and threw his hat into the ring anyway. 

next he said there is NO difference between democrats and republicans - well, excuse me, but as much as I think Kerry would have been a poor leader, he sure as he!! wouldn't have done the damage GWB has! 

next he justified the huge donations he was receiving from republican bundlers who wanted to keep his campaign going to siphon off votes from Kerry - it didn't do too much damage in 2004, but it certainly wasn't for his lack of trying!

next he said he would vote for Bush over Kerry - that it would be good for the country because it would bring about change.  yeah we got change all right - how do you feel about it now, Ralph.  oh, that's right - you still feel that way.

any respect I had for this man is long gone - he betrayed the best interest of his country in the interest of his ego.

New thread:

http://www.blogforamerica.com/view/24015 

Thanks.

Danny

Communications Director