Two articles caught my attention today

From Alternet, on Why the Mad Rush to the '08 Elections?
It's a long article, but worth reading. Posted below, is a portion of the article:
link
"Perhaps the better question, then, is: Will the presidential election of 2008 turn out to be a turning-point election of historic proportions. The greatest unknown is whether or not the status quo is headed for a breakdown crisis severe enough to clear the ground for such a transformative moment.

Signs certainly point in that direction. The convergence of imperial defeat, economic insecurity, and rampant corporate malfeasance might be enough all by themselves. But the sudden change in the political status of global warming -- once the dim, background hum of some far distant disturbance, now more like the heart-stopping premonitory theme music from the soundtrack of Jaws -- magnifies the crisis of the whole global order, at home and abroad. Anatole Lieven has called it global capitalism's "existential challenge." Life as we've known it may be beginning to end. Congress is already holding hearings about the natural apocalypse to come, and all but the most ostrich-like politicians acknowledge global warming as an urgent reality; a fact-on-the-ground, so to speak, no longer a debatable theory.

The Bush administration -- and so the old order -- has staked a lot on Iraq, not just its geopolitical and global economic ambitions. Its already severely diminished status as a moral exemplar of democracy and civil liberties won't survive this latest plunge into military mayhem.

Moreover, the President's "surge" plan is a mortal threat to the secret source of the regime's strength at home. The politics of fear and imperial bravado, which once won it legions of followers, may, in the aftermath of the surge, reach its own turning point as those voters abandon ship as fast as they once climbed aboard. Can the administration or the old order survive a fiasco of such proportions?

Iraq is also the equivalent of a budgetary bunker-busting nuclear device. It exacerbates an already aggravated economic dilemma. Despite a Noah's flood of statistics that seem to support a Pollyana-ish view that we live today in the best of economic good times, millions of Americans experience the opposite -- a yawning gulf of insecurity affecting their health, retirement, and employment prospects. They share a gloomy sense of moving backwards, of decline.

Once upon a time, poverty was associated with the super-exploitation of those who toiled for meager reward. Then, in mid-twentieth century America, poverty came to be associated with the lack of work, with those so marginalized they were shut-out of the main avenues of modern commerce and industry. Nowadays, we are rushing back to the nineteenth century. Today, 30 million people in the United States work long and hard and still live in poverty.

Insecurity even more pervasive than this once supplied the energy responsible for supplanting laissez-faire capitalism with the New Deal. Might we be approaching something of that scale and scope today? Though there can be no definitive answer to this, there also can be no question that a general crisis of economic insecurity confronts the old order. All of its self-serving and adventitious rhetoric about the heroics of risk fall on increasingly deaf ears.

Not incidentally, since we live in the age of the global sweatshop, that older order is now global in scope; and the international financial mechanisms that so far have kept the global system humming for the U.S. are themselves under great and increasing strain. The system is, at present, being kept aloft by the needs of China, Japan, and other major economic powers. One day soon they may find the burden of swallowing gargantuan amounts of U.S. debt insupportable.

Are we heading toward a breakdown like the one which, in the early 1970s, forced the Nixon administration to scrap the Bretton Woods financial system, the defining economic institution of the post-war Pax Americana? Together with defeat in Vietnam, the devaluation of the dollar, and the end of fixed exchange rates for international currencies exacerbated the general impasse in which the New Deal order then found itself.

When it comes to the social reputation of our corporate elite, is it necessary to say anything more than Enron? The litany of shameless profiteering, felonious behavior, cronyism, and corruption at the apex of the private economy has arguably called into question the "right to rule" of those presiding over the country's key economic institutions. Even at the regime's hubristic height following Bush's presidential victory in 2004, he discovered he'd crossed a bridge too far in his attempt to turn over the Social Security System to Wall Street. Trust in the corporate elite has only grown frailer since then. Cynicism mixed with rage is a potentially explosive brew that fuels the economic populism even someone as "establishment" as James Webb articulated in his alternate State of the Union Address.

What may make these converging dilemmas over-ripe for change is the response of the old order itself. One sign that some decisive crisis has arrived is the growing incapacity of those in charge to adapt -- as if the dire nature of what's happening dries up the springs of their political imaginations, forcing them to fall back on brittle orthodoxies. Andrew Mellon's notion of liquidating everything in sight as a way out of the Great Depression was one case of mental paralysis, a retreat to what had once "worked"; after all, the periodic busts endemic to the laissez-faire capitalist life-cycle had, in the past, always cured themselves, even if the "cure" included a great deal of what we would today call "collateral damage." The Bush administration is similarly falling back on its own orthodoxies, each move only betraying just how out of touch its top officials are with the new political and social realities forming around them.

Take its reaction to the stunning electoral defeat it suffered last November. The President's new "surge" plan, the self-destructive decision to forge ahead in Iraq without a scintilla of reasonable hope of success, even from the standpoint of the most cynical imperialist, is such a reaction: instinctive, unreflective, inflexible, and probably deeply believed in. In other words, there is a resort to the ideological fixations which have long-driven this regime -- and the larger political order from which it rose - but which only become ever more rigidified as reality bites back.

So, for another example, the administration's response to the crisis of economic insecurity has amounted to an ideological provocation shoved right in the teeth of its own electoral repudiation. Bush proposed a massive cut in Medicare and Medicaid and, even more in-your-face than that, a tax on the health insurance of those dwindling remnants of the New Deal order who still enjoy some decent level of employer-funded health care.

Everything the old regime can imagine to defend itself ends up making things worse. With some poetic license, one is reminded of an inversion of that old Marxist axiom in which the capitalists, not the proletariat, become the gravediggers of capitalism.

The open door

Of course, that is a gross exaggeration. The question of the moment is not: Will 2008 be a turning-point election, but rather can it be one? Here, everything depends not on what the old order does on its own behalf, no matter how bone-headed, but on how the gathering forces of opposition respond to the system's crisis. Is there a willingness to build a clear, programmatic alternative inside the Democratic Party? It is, after all, an institution deeply infected with free market/free trade ideology and most of the imperial presumptions of the conservative counter-revolution.

Is there a readiness to mobilize around non-market solutions to the general crisis: To fight openly for the re-regulation of the economy and its planned re-industrialization; for its re-unionization; for redistributive policies to supplant the idée fixe of economic growth; for the dismantling of the petro-industrial complex and its replacement by a new, non-fossil-fuel system of energy production; for a global assault on the global sweatshop?

Will there be a new era of polarization rather than centrism, partisanship rather than bi-partisanship, a head-on confrontation with the Democratic Leadership Council, like the guerilla wars once waged against the John Jacob Raskob and Al Smith elite of the pre-New Deal Democratic Party or the one waged by the Goldwater legions against the silk-stocking Rockefeller Republicans? Once upon a time, someone as mild-mannered as Franklin Delano Roosevelt found it within himself to "welcome the hatred" of those he labeled "economic royalists." Might there be someone equally unafraid waiting in the wings today?

Is there a new order being born, ready to challenge the old one where it is both weakest and also strongest: namely, in the imperial arena? Not only has global aggression proved deadly to all, depraved in its moral consequences, and life-threatening to basic democratic principles and institutions at home, but it has also been the most fruitful, life-giving incubator of the conservative cultural populism which the old order has relied on for a generation. Anti-World War I intellectual Randolph Bourne's prophetic aperçu -- "War is the health of the State" -- needs to be made even more embracing: War has become the health of a whole political culture, not to mention the vast, hard-wired military-industrial apparatus with which it lives in symbiotic bliss. Is there a will to take on that system of cherished phobias, delusional consolations, and implacable interests?

Finally, there is the X factor, most unknowable of all, but also most critical in converting a mere election into something more transformative. Might a social movement or movements emerge from outside the boundaries of conventional politics, catalytic enough to fundamentally alter the prevailing metabolism of political life? Might the mass demonstrations of immigrants portend something of that kind? Might the anti-war movement soon enter a period of more sustained and varied opposition in the face of this administration's barbaric obtuseness? Straws in the wind as we race toward 2008."

Second, is an article in GQ magazine,The People V. Richard Cheney. This article is very thorough, and well written. IMHO, this should also apply to the President.

THE PEOPLE V. RICHARD CHENEY Link

"ARTICLE I
In his conduct of the office of the vice president of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, contrary to his oath to faithfully execute the office of vice president of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws of this nation be upheld, has deliberately obstructed the nation’s intelligence-gathering capacity...
ARTICLE II
Using the powers of the office of the vice president of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, contrary to his oath to faithfully execute the office of vice president of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws of this nation be upheld, has personally deceived the American people...
ARTICLE III
In his conduct of the office of the vice president of the United States, Richard B. Cheney, contrary to his oath to faithfully execute the office of vice president of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws of this nation be upheld, has deliberately embraced and sheltered a known criminal, to the great detriment of American policy.."

The GQ piece explains their reasoning and gives evidence for each article of impeachment. There are a total of 6 articles of impeachment. Again, I suggest you take the time to read this.

Initiative to require married couples to have kids

This is either the stupidist initiative ever seen, or you can consider it anti-woman and anti-gay. Ever read Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale? Right wing religion rears its ugly head......


Wash. initiative would require married couples to have kids
NWCN.com ^ | 12:59 PM PST on Tuesday, February 6, 2007 | KING5.com Staff and Associated Press

Posted on 02/06/2007 2:25:42 PM PST by RoadTest

OLYMPIA, Wash. - An initiative filed by proponents of same-sex marriage would require heterosexual couples to have kids within three years or else have their marriage annulled.

Initiative 957 was filed by the Washington Defense of Marriage Alliance. That group was formed last summer after the state Supreme Court upheld Washington's ban on same-sex marriage.

Under the initiative, marriage would be limited to men and women who are able to have children. Couples would be required to prove they can have children in order to get a marriage license, and if they did not have children within three years, their marriage would be subject to annulment.

Was it volcanic ash, was it a meteor? No it was T Rex farts

Climate looniness
Category: Planet Earth
Posted on: February 9, 2007 11:17 AM, by Josh Rosenau

The House Science Committee held a historic hearing on the IPCC report and the status of climate change (link to RealPlayer video of the hearing). It was especially historic because Speaker Pelosi made it the first committee she testified before as Speaker. She expressed her concerns about climate change, and the concerns she's heard from many others.

The hearing continued for over three hours, with a panel of experts occupying most of the time. The panel consisted of climate scientists who had contributed and edited portions of the IPCC report and the Summary for Policy Makers recently released. Chris Mooney covered the hearing for Seed magazine.

But what I want to talk about is not the excellent testimony offered, but the concluding remarks by Rep. Dana Rohrabacher. He had aggressively questioned on witness, pushing a fairly irrelevant question about what fraction of carbon dioxide in the air comes from natural sources, then ignoring the answers he got. In his concluding remarks, he observed that carbon dioxide levels have fluctuated throughout the Earth's history.

"We don't know what those other cycles were caused by in the past," Representative Rohrabacher speculated, "it could be dinosaur flatulence."

No one laughed. Rohrabacher was unable to bring any witnesses who could defend that claim, or indeed any climate change deniers at all.

http://scienceblogs.com/tfk/2007/02/climate_looniness.php

From BBC World News

Israeli missile test 'successful'

The Arrow missile was first developed to counter Iraqi scuds
Israel has carried out a successful test of its Arrow missile, the defence ministry has said.
One of the missiles was fired at night and destroyed what Israeli media said was a target similar to Iran's long-range Shahab-3 missile.

Ok, this bit of news tells me everything I need to know. The Bush admin is trooping out their "proof" that Iran is giving arms and exposives to Iraq, including serial numbers, just like prior to the invasion of Iraq. Bogus proof. I mean, where do they get the information from the serial numbers? You think it might be because they are from weapons we SOLD Iran during the Iran Contra affair? Could be, but if we can't track weapons in this country what makes you think we can track them in Iran?

Yep, my crimethought...believe nothing the Bush administration says. I just don't buy it all all. And, again, I ask, why did we ship Patriot missle batteries over there...location not actually determined. 2 aircraft carrier groups in the gulf...remember folks that GROUPS..that is all the ships that support an aircraft carrier and that's alot. Add to that the support personnel, etc, etc.

And the Israelis are just "conveniently" testing a long range missle? B.S. We are going to be taken for a ride of more lies, and sadly, more of our military will be maimed and killed for oil. It just makes me ill.

Texans for Peace Chocolate Party

The speaker was Charlie Jones. The theme was chocolate, for Valentines day...everything chocolate, and very divine chocolate at that.
Charlie spoke of Iraq and some of the Iraq projects, as well as a planned trip to meet with Iraqi women, who are currently living in Jordan. All in all there were so many folks there that have been and continue to be active in the community, including John and Zada Courage, Judy Hall, Jamie Lewis, Sarwat Hussein, and the list goes on. I could not do it justice without a sign in sheet.
Suffice it say, it was well worth attending for the conversation and the chocolate of course!
horrible photo, sorry

Bushspeak machine
Something fun from the Last Chance Democracy Cafe.

This is very scary news

I hope this does not come to pass. Is Bush totally out of his mind?

Norquist: Bush’s Advisers Telling Him ‘Invade Iran. Then Everyone Will See How Smart We Are’
In this month’s issue of Vanity Fair, Craig Unger writes that the same neoconservative advisers who advocated for the Iraq war are now recycling the same tactics to push for the bombing of Iran. Unger reports that not all of Bush’s key conservative allies are pleased with the administration’s course on Iran:

“Everything the advocates of war said would happen hasn’t happened,” says the president of Americans for Tax Reform, Grover Norquist, an influential conservative who backed the Iraq invasion. “And all the things the critics said would happen have happened. [The president’s neoconservative advisers] are effectively saying, ‘Invade Iran. Then everyone will see how smart we are.’ But after you’ve lost x number of times at the roulette wheel, do you double-down?”

For example, Richard Perle, a former Bush administration official, has said, “I have very little doubt” that Bush would order “necessary military action” against Iran. “Make no mistake, President Bush will need to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities before leaving office,” wrote American Enterprise Institute analyst Joshua Muravchik.

Two other important points from the Unger article:

1) Retired Defense Intelligence official Patrick Lang told Unger that Bush has ordered StratCom — the military command responsible for “nuclear weapons, missile defense and protection against weapons of mass destruction” — to draw up plans for a “massive strike against Iran.” Lang noted that the shift away from Central Command “to StratCom indicates they are talking about a really punishing air-force and naval air attack [on Iran].”

2) Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi said, “I’ve heard from sources at the Pentagon that their impression is that the White House has made a decision that war is going to happen.”
link

Molly Ivins Memorial Service Sunday, Feb. 4th.

Molly's friend Linda Lewis : "The next time I tell you someone from Texas should not be president of the United States, please, pay attention." The audience responded with great laughter, hooting, hollering, thunderous applause, and a standing ovation. There were many wonderful stories told by family and friends. It was a wonderful, joyful service, celebrating the life of a marvelous woman.

Music included several beautiful gospel songs, including one of my favorites, Amazing Grace, performed by a local Gospel group. Eliza Gilkyson sang, and Austin blues musician Marcia Ball performed several songs, including the final song, "Great Balls of Fire."

Following the service many attended the reception at Scholz's Garden, to hoist a brew in Molly's memory.



Honky Tonk Angel

Punch my card for Gitmo

"A citizen, no less than an alien, can be an enemy combatant,” administration lawyer David B. Salmons told a federal appeals court in Richmond, Virginia, on Feb. 1, adding that on such issues, the courts cannot interfere with the President’s wartime judgments.

Salmons did pledge that the Executive Branch will use care in deciding who is designated an “enemy combatant.” In response to one judge’s question about the President applying the tag to an activist from the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, Salmons joked, “the representative of PETA can sleep well at night.”

Nevertheless, Salmons argued that the judgment on who is deemed an “enemy combatant” is solely the discretion of President Bush. [NYT, Feb. 2, 2007

_________________________________________
Yep, punch my card for Gitmo. Our "fearless leader" can deem anyone that disagrees with him as an eneny combatant. And, we live in a free country? What about the constitution? Oh, I guess the "fearless leader" and his cronies believe the constitution is just a quaint old document. Never mind the fact that they pledged to protect and defend the constitution. Dissidents will be disappeared? Wait and see, comrades.

Virtual March on Washington

Look how many people called
It was easy to do, and I am glad I participated.

Is it treason?

These documents are written by VP Cheney (aka the Sith Lord or Darth Vader), and are exhibits in the Scooter Libby trial.




But Cheney's notes, which were introduced into evidence Tuesday during Libby's perjury and obstruction-of-justice trial, call into question the truthfulness of President Bush's vehement denials about his prior knowledge of the attacks against Wilson. The revelation that Bush may have known all along that there was an effort by members of his office to discredit the former ambassador begs the question: Was the president also aware that senior members of his administration compromised Valerie Plame's undercover role with the CIA?

Further, the highly explicit nature of Cheney's comments not only hints at a rift between Cheney and Bush over what Cheney felt was the scapegoating of Libby, but also raises serious questions about potentially criminal actions by Bush. If Bush did indeed play an active role in encouraging Libby to take the fall to protect Karl Rove, as Libby's lawyers articulated in their opening statements, then that could be viewed as criminal involvement by Bush...

However, when Cheney wrote the notes, he had originally written "this Pres." instead of "that was."

During cross-examination Tuesday morning, David Addington was asked specific questions about Cheney's notes and the reference to President Bush. Addington, former counsel to the vice president, was named Cheney's chief of staff - a position Libby had held before resigning.

"Can you make out what's crossed out, Mr. Addington?" Wells asked, according to a copy of the transcript of Tuesday's court proceedings.

"It says 'the guy' and then it says, 'this Pres.' and then that is scratched through," Addington said.

"OK," Wells said. "Let's start again. 'Not going to protect one staffer and sacrifice the guy ...' and then what's scratched through?" Wells asked Addington again, attempting to establish that Cheney had originally written that President Bush personally asked Libby to beat back Wilson's criticisms.

"T-h-i-s space P-r-e-s," Addington said, spelling out the words. "And then it's got a scratch-through."

"So it looks like 'this Pres.?'" Wells asked again.

"Yes sir," Addington said.

Thus, Cheney's notes would have read "not going to protect one staffer and sacrifice the guy this Pres. asked to stick his head in the meat grinder because of the incompetence of others." The words "this Pres." were crossed out and replaced with "that was," but are still clearly legible in the document.

The reference to "the meat grinder" was understood to be the Washington press corps, Wells said. The "protect one staffer" reference, Wells said, was White House Political Adviser Karl Rove, whose own role in the leak and the attacks on Wilson are well documented.

Furthermore, Cheney, in his directive to McClellan that day in September 2003, wrote that the White House spokesman needed to immediately "call out to key press saying the same thing about Scooter as Karl."

Source for above

*******************************************
Wikipedia: In law, treason is the crime of disloyalty to one's nation or state. A person who betrays the nation of their citizenship and/or reneges on an oath of loyalty and in some way willfully cooperates with an enemy, is considered to be a traitor.

So, is it treason to out a CIA officer, particularly one in charge of a covert weapons of mass destruction unit, and their entire operation, thus jeopardizing the lives of all involved? Is it treason to break the oath you took to protect and defend the constitution of the US? I think so.

Why isn't this on the so-called news? Oh, wait the news has been cancelled. We only get propaganda of the pro-Bush variety.

Molly Ivins, 1944-2007

Texas Observer

Wednesday 31 January 2007

Syndicated political columnist Molly Ivins died of breast cancer Wednesday evening at her home in Austin. Molly's enduring message is "Raise more hell."

Although short, Molly's life was writ large. She was as eloquent a speaker and teacher as she was a writer, and her quips will last at least as long as Will Rogers'. She dubbed George W. Bush "Shrub" and Texas Governor Rick Perry "Good Hair."

What a loss to our nation. Molly was so witty and funny, and so approachable. She fought a hard battle, and a long one. I lost my younger sister to breast cancer, so I have first hand experience with the kind of battle that Molly fought. It takes extraordinary courage and grace. She had those in abundance.

My memories of Molly include The March for Women's Lives in Washington, D.C. where I heard her speak, and Democracy Fest in Austin, where I got her autograph which included the statement: raise more hell! ... So I have raised more hell.
Thanks Molly.

Treasonous acts by the Prez and Vice Prez

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/013107Z.shtml

Cheney's Handwritten Notes Implicate Bush in Plame Affair
By Jason Leopold and Marc Ash
t r u t h o u t | Report

Wednesday 31 January 2007

Copies of handwritten notes by Vice President Dick Cheney, introduced at trial by defense attorneys for former White House staffer I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, would appear to implicate George W. Bush in the Plame CIA Leak case.

Bush has long maintained that he was unaware of attacks by any member of his administration against [former ambassador Joseph] Wilson. The ex-envoy's stinging rebukes of the administration's use of pre-war Iraq intelligence led Libby and other White House officials to leak Wilson's wife's covert CIA status to reporters in July 2003 in an act of retaliation.

But Cheney's notes, which were introduced into evidence Tuesday during Libby's perjury and obstruction-of-justice trial, call into question the truthfulness of President Bush's vehement denials about his prior knowledge of the attacks against Wilson. The revelation that Bush may have known all along that there was an effort by members of his office to discredit the former ambassador begs the question: Was the president also aware that senior members of his administration compromised Valerie Plame's undercover role with the CIA?

What is Habeas Corpus and what does it mean to you?

In simple English, what does Habeas Corpus mean to you?

What is Habeas Corpus? Is it some obscure Latin legalism? One of the tricky clauses the ACLU uses to get evildoers out of jail? Does it mean the prosecution has to show a body in a murder case? Or is it the basis of your protection from tyranny?

It is the right to be brought into court.


It is fundamental to - and a sort of shorthand for - the right to be in a legal system, with laws and judges, evidence and a defense.
"Hi, there John Doe," says the policeman at the door. "We've come to take you away."

"But I'm Jane Roe, not John Doe," you say, which is true, and you have the body parts that support such a distinction, as well as some paperwork. "And why are you taking me away?"


"Don't really care who you claim to be, and the charge is none of your business," says the more talkative of the two officers, or soldiers, or whoever is grabbing you.


"Wait, let me tell my family and call my lawyer," you say.


"Not a chance," says the friendly police person, cuffing you and throwing a bag over your head.


"Blouff, blouff, blouff," you cry through the hood.


"That'll teach you to sneer at the president," says the talkative officer, kicking you to make you move. "And undermine his War on Terror!"


"It's not against the law to sneer," you try to say, but they can't hear you. And neither will anyone else, because you have no right of Habeas Corpus.


Under Habeas Corpus, you have the right to say, I want to be brought into the court to determine if I am the right person charged, if there's an actual law prohibiting what I'm charged with, if the people who are holding me have the jurisdiction to do so, and I want that publicly known and I want the right to dispute all of that and the right to be tried too.


Without Habeas Corpus you can be swept up off the street and never heard from again. Period. Nobody has to know. Nobody - including yourself - has to know why. Nobody gets to determine if there is a law against what you're charged with. You have no rights at all.


In America, the Constitution forbids taking habeas corpus away from you (except "in case of rebellion or invasion the public safety shall require it.") It was written that way because the right of habeas corpus was a basic right even under the King of England. It was the most basic check on a king's tyranny. It was assumed.


Attorney General Alberto Gonzales now asserts something he thinks is very tricky and clever. What if you never had such a right? Then not giving you the right of Habeas Corpus would not be taking it away. That would allow his president to order someone snatched up off the street, or from their homes, and then anything could be done to them. Prison for life. Tortured. Killed. Sent to another country. And nobody would even have the right to ask if our government imprisoned that person. Or why. Or if it was the right person.


Gonzales' assertion is intended to do two things.


First, it is to allow the government to remove rights that are so fundamental that they are pre-constitutional, that they enable all our other rights.


The second, is a defense in advance for the president and his minions. They can claim that they thought what they were doing was legal. After all, the Attorney General of the United States wrote them a memo that said it was. And if, he was wrong, well then, if it goes to court and the court says so, then they'll stop. See, they acted in good faith.


Habeas Corpus means you are in a society of laws. Without it, you are in the land of Saddam Hussein, August Pinochet, Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin, Ivan the Terrible ... and ...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/larry-beinhart/what-habeas-corpus-means-_b_40014.html

Currently reading :
1066 & All That: 75th Anniversary Edition (Methuen Humour)
By W. C. Sellar
Release date: By 01 September, 2006

Just when you think it can't get worse....

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29 — President Bush has signed a directive that gives the White House much greater control over the rules and policy statements that the government develops to protect public health, safety, the environment, civil rights and privacy.
In an executive order published last week in the Federal Register, Mr. Bush said that each agency must have a regulatory policy office run by a political appointee, to supervise the development of rules and documents providing guidance to regulated industries. The White House will thus have a gatekeeper in each agency to analyze the costs and the benefits of new rules and to make sure the agencies carry out the president’s priorities.

This strengthens the hand of the White House in shaping rules that have, in the past, often been generated by civil servants and scientific experts. It suggests that the administration still has ways to exert its power after the takeover of Congress by the Democrats.

full article

Peace March in Austin Jan. 27, 2007

It was a beautiful day for a drive to Austin. We drove the back roads for the scenery, and the fact that with less traffic it's also faster. However, we got to downtown Austin late due to an accident in Austin. Fortunately we had enough time to park 2 blocks from the capitol (on Congress Street no less) and walk up to the capitol to watch the protesters come up Congress Street.


Once they reached the street directly in front of the capitol, several protesters held a "die-in".


The news media estimated the crowd at a mere 1,000, but I am certain that 2 blocks of people is more than 1,000. Of course the media has been underestimating crowds since the March For Womens' Lives in DC, so I believe my own eyes, not media hacks.
Here are some more photos of the march:










I was impressed with the quality of speeches given by the college students, and amazed that they had spent time studying how the anti-Vietnam protests were done, how students organized, and gave our generation great respect. The news media, even in Austin, never noted that fact, of course. I am telling you, there is hope for the liberals in the younger generation, if they just get out there and vote, and run for office. These young adults exhibited qualities of fairness, concern for others well being, and concern about the direction of our nation, and were quite eloquent.

Now, I must confess that because of the distance of the drive, we figured we might as well kill two birds with one stone, and stopped at the new Ikea to check it out. Besides, I needed a fix of lingonberry jam and Austin is a heck of a lot closer than Houston's Ikea!

This was our first time to leave the house without worrying about my mother (God rest her soul), and hurrying to get home before dark and to make sure she had dinner.
It was strange, but a bit liberating all the same. Bittersweet, I guess.

Let us all work for peace every day. We must stop allowing corporate America to wasted our blood and treasure so they can stuff their pockets with money.

One more photo from the Austin American Statesman:

American Fascists: The Christian Right

I have been saying this for a long time and folks just thought I was crazy. I have repeatedly said that one of the most prophetic books that anyone should read is Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale. I did not use the word fascism, but as time goes by it seems more and more appropriate. Smarter people than me have figured this out......read on...

BuzzFlash.com's Review (excerpt)
In a 2004 article that served as the basis for his new book pulling the fire alarm on thuggish Christian fascism, Chris Hedges recalled:

"Dr. James Luther Adams, my ethics professor at Harvard Divinity School, told us that when we were his age, he was then close to 80, we would all be fighting the 'Christian fascists.'

The warning, given to me 25 years ago, came at the moment Pat Robertson and other radio and televangelists began speaking about a new political religion that would direct its efforts at taking control of all institutions, including mainstream denominations and the government. Its stated goal was to use the United States to create a global, Christian empire. It was hard, at the time, to take such fantastic rhetoric seriously, especially given the buffoonish quality of those who expounded it. But Adams warned us against the blindness caused by intellectual snobbery. The Nazis, he said, were not going to return with swastikas and brown shirts. Their ideological inheritors had found a mask for fascism in the pages of the Bible.

...All debates with the Christian Right are useless. We cannot reach this movement. It does not want a dialogue. It cares nothing for rational thought and discussion. It is not mollified because John Kerry prays or Jimmy Carter teaches Sunday School. These naive attempts to reach out to a movement bent on our destruction, to prove to them that we too have "values," would be humorous if the stakes were not so deadly. They hate us. They hate the liberal, enlightened world formed by the Constitution. Our opinions do not count.

This movement will not stop until we are ruled by Biblical Law, an authoritarian church intrudes in every aspect of our life, women stay at home and rear children, gays agree to be cured, abortion is considered murder, the press and the schools promote "positive" Christian values, the federal government is gutted, war becomes our primary form of communication with the rest of the world and recalcitrant non-believers see their flesh eviscerated at the sound of the Messiah's voice.

The spark that could set it ablaze may be lying in the hands of an Islamic terrorist cell, in the hands of the ideological twins of the Christian Right. Another catastrophic terrorist attack could be our Reichstag fire, the excuse used to begin the accelerated dismantling of our open society. The ideology of the Christian Right is not one of love and compassion, the central theme of Christ's message, but of violence and hatred. It has a strong appeal to many in our society, but it is also aided by our complacency. Let us not stand at the open city gates waiting passively and meekly for the barbarians. They are coming. They are slouching rudely towards Bethlehem. Let us, if nothing else, begin to call them by their name."

Hedges's book is a wake-up call to how the Christian-male "warrior" zealots are waiting for the chance to turn America into an Apocalyptic Unmerciful Christian theocracy.

If you believe this is sensationalistic fear mongering, read the book. Hedges is a former award-winning New York Times reporter and mainstream journalist. He is writing based on his research and analysis.

This is not fiction. link

The book is: American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America

hey frogs is the water boiling yet?

I read the frogs comment on Huffpo and loved it. Why? It's true we are like frogs in hot water, and don't know that it has come to a boil. We, as a nation, are still simmering, and trying to be civil, even though our President's speech was total B.S.! It was rehashed crap from earlier, and part of it was taken from earlier Nancy Pelosi speeches, and the remainder was pure D fear mongering. Total baloney.

Most of what Bush proposed it total B.S. Ok my word for the night is B.S. It's all B.S.

Sen. Webb, rocks! That was one of the best speeches I have heard in ages. Clear, precise and to the point. Bush...take that! Whack!

Gonzales questions habeas corpus!

Gonzales Questions Habeas Corpus
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2007/011807.html#When:09:50PM

By Robert Parry
January 19, 2007

In one of the most chilling public statements ever made by a U.S. Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales questioned whether the U.S. Constitution grants habeas corpus rights of a fair trial to every American.

Responding to questions from Sen. Arlen Specter at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Jan. 18, Gonzales argued that the Constitution doesn’t explicitly bestow habeas corpus rights; it merely says when the so-called Great Writ can be suspended.

“There is no expressed grant of habeas in the Constitution; there’s a prohibition against taking it away,” Gonzales said.

Gonzales’s remark left Specter, the committee’s ranking Republican, stammering.

“Wait a minute,” Specter interjected. “The Constitution says you can’t take it away except in case of rebellion or invasion. Doesn’t that mean you have the right of habeas corpus unless there’s a rebellion or invasion?”

Gonzales continued, “The Constitution doesn’t say every individual in the United States or citizen is hereby granted or assured the right of habeas corpus. It doesn’t say that. It simply says the right shall not be suspended” except in cases of rebellion or invasion.

“You may be treading on your interdiction of violating common sense,” Specter said.

____________________
Torquemada speaks.....what an ass! Did he ever actually READ the constitution?

Hillary for President?

I signed up to watch her webcast tonight and submitted the following message:

Sen. Clinton, I would like to support you, but right now I am not sure that I can. You voted for the war in Iraq and you have yet to really prove to me, and others like me that are vehemently against the war, that you would remove our troops from Iraq. You see, I am not sure I can support anyone that is a member of the DNC, and is afraid to speak out and be unpopular. A lot of us are looking for a candidate with some guts.
When (and if) you apologize to the American people about your vote for the Iraq war, some of us might consider giving you a chance. As it stands now, you can tell me about universal healthcare, and think I'll believe you can do it. I don't see how you can, when you have not shown the fortitude to stand up to any corporations and take an unpopular stance. It will take an extreme amount of fortitude to get the insurance industry and their lobbyists to stand down, if we, the people, are to get universal healthcare.
You must prove to progressives like me that you understand that our country must change its direction from a corporate based country to one that puts its citizens first.
Thank you for the opportunity to have my say.

Iraq is Not Delightful

From Huffpo (Huffington Post)
Bob Cesca: Iraq Is Not Delightful, Mr. President
After last weekend's 60 Minutes interview, I thought perhaps someone somewhere in Washington would inform our chief executive that grinning like a mental patient might not be the best way to express concern over the violence in Iraq. And if someone did in fact mention it to him, he didn't listen. Or he forgot. On PBS's NewsHour, he was doing it again. A lot. But unlike the sly, giggly grinning before, the NewsHour expressions more closely resemble a man who just finished watching a litter of puppies being fed ice cream by floating babies dressed in sunflower costumes.

Bob Cesca's article may be very biting, but it's true. To me it is apparent that our Fearless Leader is a bit psychotic or at the very least delusional. Totally clueless about anything serious and only concerned with his big plans to continue to be the world's biggest bully.

I will not supporr Hillary Clinton for President

This article by Molly Ivins is right on target. The venerable writer Ms. Iviins, verbalized the reasons why I won't support Hillary Clinton, and why I have been upset that she has even decided to run for President. I have blustered about it at home to my husband, kids and grandkids, but have been unable to state my reasons concisely. Thank you Ms. Ivins!

Here is an article
from Common Dreams (http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0120-30.htm)
Published on Friday, January 20, 2006 by the Columbus Free Press (Ohio)

I Will Not Support Hillary Clinton for President
by Molly Ivins

I'd like to make it clear to the people who run the Democratic Party that I will not support Hillary Clinton for president.

Enough. Enough triangulation, calculation and equivocation. Enough clever straddling, enough not offending anyone This is not a Dick Morris election. Sen. Clinton is apparently incapable of taking a clear stand on the war in Iraq, and that alone is enough to disqualify her. Her failure to speak out on Terri Schiavo, not to mention that gross pandering on flag-burning, are just contemptible little dodges.

The recent death of Gene McCarthy reminded me of a lesson I spent a long, long time unlearning, so now I have to re-learn it. It's about political courage and heroes, and when a country is desperate for leadership. There are times when regular politics will not do, and this is one of those times. There are times a country is so tired of bull that only the truth can provide relief.

If no one in conventional-wisdom politics has the courage to speak up and say what needs to be said, then you go out and find some obscure junior senator from Minnesota with the guts to do it. In 1968, Gene McCarthy was the little boy who said out loud, "Look, the emperor isn't wearing any clothes." Bobby Kennedy -- rough, tough Bobby Kennedy -- didn't do it. Just this quiet man trained by Benedictines who liked to quote poetry.

What kind of courage does it take, for mercy's sake? The majority of the American people (55 percent) think the war in Iraq is a mistake and that we should get out. The majority (65 percent) of the American people want single-payer health care and are willing to pay more taxes to get it. The majority (86 percent) of the American people favor raising the minimum wage. The majority of the American people (60 percent) favor repealing Bush's tax cuts, or at least those that go only to the rich. The majority (66 percent) wants to reduce the deficit not by cutting domestic spending, but by reducing Pentagon spending or raising taxes.

The majority (77 percent) thinks we should do "whatever it takes" to protect the environment. The majority (87 percent) thinks big oil companies are gouging consumers and would support a windfall profits tax. That is the center, you fools. WHO ARE YOU AFRAID OF?

I listen to people like Rahm Emanuel superciliously explaining elementary politics to us clueless naifs outside the Beltway ("First, you have to win elections"). Can't you even read the damn polls?

Here's a prize example by someone named Barry Casselman, who writes, "There is an invisible civil war in the Democratic Party, and it is between those who are attempting to satisfy the defeatist and pacifist left base of the party and those who are attempting to prepare the party for successful elections in 2006 and 2008."

This supposedly pits Howard Dean, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi, emboldened by "a string of bad news from the Middle East ... into calling for premature retreat from Iraq," versus those pragmatic folk like Steny Hoyer, Rahm Emmanuel, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden and Joe Lieberman.

Oh come on, people -- get a grip on the concept of leadership. Look at this war -- from the lies that led us into it, to the lies they continue to dump on us daily.

You sit there in Washington so frightened of the big, bad Republican machine you have no idea what people are thinking. I'm telling you right now, Tom DeLay is going to lose in his district. If Democrats in Washington haven't got enough sense to OWN the issue of political reform, I give up on them entirely.

Do it all, go long, go for public campaign financing for Congress. I'm serious as a stroke about this -- that is the only reform that will work, and you know it, as well as everyone else who's ever studied this. Do all the goo-goo stuff everybody has made fun of all these years: embrace redistricting reform, electoral reform, House rules changes, the whole package. Put up, or shut up. Own this issue, or let Jack Abramoff politics continue to run your town.

Bush, Cheney and Co. will continue to play the patriotic bully card just as long as you let them. I've said it before: War brings out the patriotic bullies. In World War I, they went around kicking dachshunds on the grounds that dachshunds were "German dogs." They did not, however, go around kicking German shepherds. The MINUTE someone impugns your patriotism for opposing this war, turn on them like a snarling dog and explain what loving your country really means. That, or you could just piss on them elegantly, as Rep. John Murtha did. Or eviscerate them with wit (look up Mark Twain on the war in the Philippines). Or point out the latest in the endless "string of bad news."

Do not sit there cowering and pretending the only way to win is as Republican-lite. If the Washington-based party can't get up and fight, we'll find someone who can.

Cure For Yellow Ribbon Patriotism

by Robert Weitzel http://www.commondreams.org/views07/0108-31.htm

But like the word hero, the vitality of the sentiment expressed by “support our troops” has been sapped by mindless iteration and the Machiavellian genius of warmongers. It has become little more than a patriotic platitude on par with, “God Bless America,” and a euphemism for “support our war.” As a balm to the national conscience for once again consigning our troops to the killing field, it is the battle cry that leads and sustains our country in an unjust war.

In a recent Military Times Poll, only 35 percent of our troops approved of the Bush administration’s handling of the Iraq war, while only 23 percent believed Congress was looking out for them. The troops are telling us they do not feel supported by the politicians who sent them to the killing field for a dose of the “cure.”

Against the advise of both retired and active duty military leaders, President Bush’s new strategy for winning the war in Iraq is expected to include a “surge” of 20,000 to 40,000 additional troops to help quell the sectarian violence unleashed by the illegal invasion and botched occupation of that country.

A November 2006 survey by WorldPublicOpinion.org revealed that 72 percent of Iraqi Shias believe the presence of U.S. occupation forces only exacerbates an already lethal situation and wants them out of their country within the year, while 91percent of Sunnis approve of attacks on U.S troops.

Our troops, our top military leaders, and the Iraqi people are sending a clear message. It is time to for the U.S. to “cut and run.”

Yellow ribbon patriots finally have an opportunity to support our troops in a meaningful way. They can begin by removing their magnetic yellow ribbon bumper stickers, by listening to the troops and helping to get them home, and by demanding that those who took the country to war with lies and deception be held to account.

All Americans will continue to abdicate their responsibility to the living and the dead and the wounded troops if they are unwilling to inoculate themselves with the “cure” brought home from the killing field.

I will not support Hillary clinton for President

The article by Molly Ivins was right on target. The venerable writer Ms. Iviins, verbalized the reasons why I won't support Hillary Clinton, and why I have been upset that she has even decided to run for President. I have blustered about it at home to my husband, kids and grandkids, but have been unable to state my reasons concisely. Thank you Ms. Ivins!

Here is here articlm from Common Dreams (http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0120-30.htm)
Published on Friday, January 20, 2006 by the Columbus Free Press (Ohio)
I Will Not Support Hillary Clinton for President
by Molly Ivins

I'd like to make it clear to the people who run the Democratic Party that I will not support Hillary Clinton for president.

Enough. Enough triangulation, calculation and equivocation. Enough clever straddling, enough not offending anyone This is not a Dick Morris election. Sen. Clinton is apparently incapable of taking a clear stand on the war in Iraq, and that alone is enough to disqualify her. Her failure to speak out on Terri Schiavo, not to mention that gross pandering on flag-burning, are just contemptible little dodges.

The recent death of Gene McCarthy reminded me of a lesson I spent a long, long time unlearning, so now I have to re-learn it. It's about political courage and heroes, and when a country is desperate for leadership. There are times when regular politics will not do, and this is one of those times. There are times a country is so tired of bull that only the truth can provide relief.

If no one in conventional-wisdom politics has the courage to speak up and say what needs to be said, then you go out and find some obscure junior senator from Minnesota with the guts to do it. In 1968, Gene McCarthy was the little boy who said out loud, "Look, the emperor isn't wearing any clothes." Bobby Kennedy -- rough, tough Bobby Kennedy -- didn't do it. Just this quiet man trained by Benedictines who liked to quote poetry.

What kind of courage does it take, for mercy's sake? The majority of the American people (55 percent) think the war in Iraq is a mistake and that we should get out. The majority (65 percent) of the American people want single-payer health care and are willing to pay more taxes to get it. The majority (86 percent) of the American people favor raising the minimum wage. The majority of the American people (60 percent) favor repealing Bush's tax cuts, or at least those that go only to the rich. The majority (66 percent) wants to reduce the deficit not by cutting domestic spending, but by reducing Pentagon spending or raising taxes.

The majority (77 percent) thinks we should do "whatever it takes" to protect the environment. The majority (87 percent) thinks big oil companies are gouging consumers and would support a windfall profits tax. That is the center, you fools. WHO ARE YOU AFRAID OF?

I listen to people like Rahm Emanuel superciliously explaining elementary politics to us clueless naifs outside the Beltway ("First, you have to win elections"). Can't you even read the damn polls?

Here's a prize example by someone named Barry Casselman, who writes, "There is an invisible civil war in the Democratic Party, and it is between those who are attempting to satisfy the defeatist and pacifist left base of the party and those who are attempting to prepare the party for successful elections in 2006 and 2008."

This supposedly pits Howard Dean, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi, emboldened by "a string of bad news from the Middle East ... into calling for premature retreat from Iraq," versus those pragmatic folk like Steny Hoyer, Rahm Emmanuel, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden and Joe Lieberman.

Oh come on, people -- get a grip on the concept of leadership. Look at this war -- from the lies that led us into it, to the lies they continue to dump on us daily.

You sit there in Washington so frightened of the big, bad Republican machine you have no idea what people are thinking. I'm telling you right now, Tom DeLay is going to lose in his district. If Democrats in Washington haven't got enough sense to OWN the issue of political reform, I give up on them entirely.

Do it all, go long, go for public campaign financing for Congress. I'm serious as a stroke about this -- that is the only reform that will work, and you know it, as well as everyone else who's ever studied this. Do all the goo-goo stuff everybody has made fun of all these years: embrace redistricting reform, electoral reform, House rules changes, the whole package. Put up, or shut up. Own this issue, or let Jack Abramoff politics continue to run your town.

Bush, Cheney and Co. will continue to play the patriotic bully card just as long as you let them. I've said it before: War brings out the patriotic bullies. In World War I, they went around kicking dachshunds on the grounds that dachshunds were "German dogs." They did not, however, go around kicking German shepherds. The MINUTE someone impugns your patriotism for opposing this war, turn on them like a snarling dog and explain what loving your country really means. That, or you could just piss on them elegantly, as Rep. John Murtha did. Or eviscerate them with wit (look up Mark Twain on the war in the Philippines). Or point out the latest in the endless "string of bad news."

Do not sit there cowering and pretending the only way to win is as Republican-lite. If the Washington-based party can't get up and fight, we'll find someone who can.

January Ice and snow in South Texas

We have had all the fun of throwing snowballs, "sledding" on the mini hill on sheets of plastic


...and playing Pictionary in the semi darkness.

We have kept warm by the fireplace when the power went out, and wished for marshmallows, chocolate and graham crackers only to find that the pantry only held graham crackers. In addition, the 9 of us in our multi-generational household, including 5 kids ages 4, 5, 6, 8, 12, have survived being cooped up without electricity for part of one day. Imagine young kids without video games and TV..what do you do? Board games. They are what God invented to keep parents sane!

The dog was also mystified by the cold and white stuff, but sooned learned he could eat "ice cookies" (what we call ice cubes) and better yet, snuffle the snow with his nose, and run like hell around the back yard, slipping and sliding and having a great time.


The kids were awestruck by the giant icicles that formed, loved sliding around on the ice, and decided that any piece of grass or tree that was encased in ice was to be called a fossil, even if it really wasn't. Why? Because it was like flies in amber, and totally cool.

Chipping one inch of ice off the cars took a long time, but a good time was had by all.

The saddest thing was listening to branches of trees break all day today. It was so quiet, with no traffic on IH10 and no planes going over that you could hear the sounds of the melt water dripping off the roof, the cracking of tree limbs and best of all, the cracking of the ice as you walked on it. That was a sound I had not heard in years!

So, the wild Indians (kids) are now snuggled in their beds with dreams on another day off school tomorrow. They will remember these days for the rest of their lives. I can only hope that we had enough fun....but I think we did. I know I had a great time.

We have now chipped our way out of the ice and will be making our ways to work tomorrow. Sad to leave the family group, bur ready to get out of the house!

Official Attacks Top Law Firms Over Detainees

By NEIL A. LEWIS
Published: January 13, 2007

WASHINGTON, Jan. 12 — The senior Pentagon official in charge of military detainees suspected of terrorism said in an interview this week that he was dismayed that lawyers at many of the nation’s top firms were representing prisoners at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, and that the firms’ corporate clients should consider ending their business ties.

Ok, doesn't this sound like a generalissimo speaking in a police state? Where are we going as a nation? A majority of voters want something entirely different from El Presidente, and the dictator does not feel he needs to listen to the American people. link to story

A generational-defining moment

An article in Truthdig noted......I"n an interview with Truthdig research editor Joshua Scheer, Ron Kovic, author of “Born on the Fourth of July,” argues that Americans this week have a patriotic and generation-defining duty to speak out against Bush’s proposal to escalate the war in Iraq with more U.S. troops."

It is true, those under the age of 42 (the new max age to serve in the military) need to do some serious thinking about this war, and where it looks like it will be going. The megalomaniac, Bush, will likely soon invade Iran and who knows, maybe even Syria. We must stop this NOW.

Plan? No Plan? Or Secret Plan?

Harry Shearer Huffington Post

01.12.2007

In the "I thought I dreamed it" department, I was listening to Condi Rice's testimony before Senate Foreign Relations Thursday (Hearings! Blessed hearings!), when I heard her say, in reply to a Senator--I forget who--grilling her on what happens if this plan doesn't work, that she didn't do Plan Bs, the administration preferred to concentrate on making Plan A work.


It sounded, as the Brits say, daft. But I didn't tape it, so I couldn't be sure, until I saw this item, quoting Condi to much the same effect.
What stunned me was not that she, a college grad and all, would say such a bizarre thing. It was that the Senator, obviously unaccustomed to asking followup questions not fashioned by his staff, didn't pursue her with a protocol-correct version of "Madame Secretary, are you shittin' me?"
The question remains: Are we watching an administration so cocksure and dumb they really don't have a Plan B for almost any contingency, or are we watching an administration whose Plan B for Iraq is an attack on Iran and, as Andy Card once memorably said of unveiling the original war plan in August, it was just too early for a new-product intro.

Satire by Andy Borowitz: God Denies Talking to Pat

By Andy Borowitz

Just days after the Rev. Pat Robertson claimed on his “700 Club” program that God had warned him of “mass killings” that would occur in the United States late in 2007, God held a rare press conference today to deny having spoken to the controversial televangelist.

For the usually publicity-shy King of the Universe, the press conference at the Chicago Airport Marriott signaled a sharp break with tradition.

Appearing before the press in his trademark flowing robes and white beard, and carrying what appeared to be a lightning bolt, God said he had decided to convene the extraordinary press briefing because “I had to set the record straight about this.”

"I want to make it clear that at no time at the end of the year did I have any conversation with the Rev. Pat Robertson,” the Supreme Being said. “Personally, I think the guy is delusional.”

God then distributed his personal phone logs for the month of December to prove that he had in fact no contact with the Rev. Robertson.

"I don’t make a habit of talking to TV personalities,” God emphasized. “Although on New Year’s Eve I did have a brief chat with Ryan Seacrest to wish him good luck.”

Answering a reporter’s question, God acknowledged that with war raging around the globe, 2006 had been a “difficult year” for the forces of goodness, but he remained upbeat, pointing to some of his accomplishments in the year just past.

"At least I got Judith Regan fired,” he said.

Elsewhere, Britney Spears checked into a rehab center after being driven there by her 1-year-old son, Sean Preston.


source: Truthdig

Bush says he will balance the budget

Laughable initially until you really look under the surface of his comments, found on cnn.com:

"In February, Bush will submit a proposal to balance the federal budget by 2012, he said Wednesday.

The plan will make defense against terrorism a budget priority while preserving tax cuts that Bush said have led to an improving economy.

Lawmakers must then tackle entitlement programs, Bush said.

"We need to reform Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid so future generations of Americans can benefit from these vital programs without bankrupting our country," he said.

Line-item veto power would be a key tool in entitlement reform, Bush said, because money that could be used there is now wasted in a "secretive process" that often doesn't ever face a vote in Congress."

So hold on to your hats, and hope the Dems will save medicare, medicaid and social security. Get ready to march in the streets -- gray power of the boomers!

As my mother's life ebbs

As my mother's life ebbs
As my mother slowly passes away, I have some thoughts I would like to write. I spent the day today, sitting in the nursing home (where she has been for the past 9 weeks) and contemplating her life. My Mom, has lived with us since 1987. My daughters hardly remember a day without grandma with us. She wasn't terribly kid-friendly in the current way, but she was always there. Today, my youngest daughter, asked me to leave the room while she said goodbye to her grandma, perhaps for the last time. I cried and cried as I stood in the hallway outside the door. My daughter came out of the room with red eyes, but had nothing to say. Her sister went in and said her peace. That was around 2 pm on Dec. 31st. I left at 10 pm, and my Mom, was still with us, but her labored breathing echoed in my ears. The nurses encouraged me to go home (2 miles away) and be with my family, and my young grandchildren, who had expected to have a party and fireworks. So, I went home, with a heavy heart. Before leaving, I told my mother that it was ok if she went to join my Dad and my sister Mary, and that it was ok to leave this plain of existence and be with God.

I got home to see 3 of my grandkids who where anxious to see me, and were worried about Great Grandma. Leo worried that Great Grandma was going to die. Ever the sensitive child, he worried and wondered. How do you discuss death with an 8 year old? The loss, but the hope that there is a life beyond death? After all, matter is never lost, it is merely transformed...a law of physics, of the universe and the heart of all religions.

It has been a very wierd day. I knitted, I read Barack Obama's book , the Audacity of Hope, and listened to selections my husband read from Senator Dorgan's book, Take this Job and Ship It. I stopped by my church (where I attend on a irregular basis) and although church had just let out, the priest had already left and the assistant rector told me he could not help me because he was immediately leaving on a mission. So, I was thwarted from any religious comforting, and had to leave a message at the parish office. 10 hours later, no return call from my parish. I resorted to calling the Catholic priest, where my grandchildren attend. Again, an answering machine. How interesting. When I grew up, as the daugther of an Episcopal priest, we took messages if needed and relayed them immediately to my Dad or whoever was covering for him. There were no answering machines. There was immediate assistance. Not today. There may be no sacrament of the sick for my mother, as she lays dying. No comfort for me, beyond my family and the kind (if fundamentalist) nursing staff. Who, I must say, are extremely caring, and gracious.

Looking back, my mother had a very interesting life and a very challenging life. She was very pretty, but very shy. Not very adventerous, but circumstances forced her to be so. She learned to camp, fish, drive, and raised 5 children, mostly by herself, as my Dad was TDY much of the time. So she had an inner strength that I am sure I will never know. She was tested by WWII, at which time she raised my 2 older sisters alone. Mom braved horrible living conditions, rats, snakes, blizzards and earthquakes, with a calm demeanor. She was petrified of lightning, and used to stand us girls in the door in Omaha, and have us watch the terrible beauty of lightning so we would not be afraid.

My mother also gave us another gift, her mother. Grandma Ida was the go-to person, the person who greeted us with warm home-made cookies every day after school and listened to our laments. She was the one who adored my husband made him pies, with the most tender pie crust on the planet. I will be forever grateful that my Mom and Dad saw fit to bring Grandma Ida to live with us when I was 6 . My parents may not have been perfect, but they worked darn hard to make sure that we had everything a kid could want, from the 1940's to 1970's when the last kid left home. That is a huge generational span, and they met the challenges for each one.

My mother is a typical northeasterner, she did not share her feelings, was not demonstrative, but fiercly loved her family. It is with great sadness that I see her reach the end of her 92 years. I just surely hope she does not linger too long, and will be soon reunited with my Grandma, Dad and sisters. They are calling her, and she just needs to let go.

May peace be upon her soul.

Creationists get preference now, what a croc!

This email was sent by a friend. The author was so eloquent I will just post it in its entirety:

HOW OLD IS THE GRAND CANYON? PARK SERVICE WON’T SAY — Orders to Cater to Creationists Makes National Park Agnostic on Geology

Washington, DC — Grand Canyon National Park is not permitted to give an official estimate of the geologic age of its principal feature, due to pressure from Bush administration appointees. Despite promising a prompt review of its approval for a book claiming the Grand Canyon was created by Noah's flood rather than by geologic forces, more than three years later no review has ever been done and the book remains on sale at the park, according to documents released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).

"In order to avoid offending religious fundamentalists, our National Park Service is under orders to suspend its belief in geology," stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch. "It is disconcerting that the official position of a 'national park as to the geologic age of the Grand Canyon is ‘no comment.’"

Is it true what Mrs. Hoover taught me in 8th grade Earth science about the formation of canyons?

National Park Service: No Comment.

Wow.

Ironically, in 2005, two years after the Grand Canyon creationist controversy erupted, NPS approved a new directive on "Interpretation and Education (Director’s Order #6) which reinforces the posture that materials on the "history of the Earth must be based on the best scientific evidence available, as found in scholarly sources that have stood the test of scientific peer review and criticism [and] Interpretive and educational programs must refrain from appearing to endorse religious beliefs explaining natural processes."

"As one park geologist said, this is equivalent of Yellowstone National Park selling a book entitled Geysers of Old Faithful: Nostrils of Satan," Ruch added, pointing to the fact that previous NPS leadership ignored strong protests from both its own scientists and leading geological societies against the agency approval of the creationist book. "We sincerely hope that the new Director of the Park Service now has the autonomy to do her job."

Oh let's hope so, let's hope the new Director is allowed to follow basic facts, or let's all agree the Flying Spaghetti Monster created the geysers of Old Faithful by farting in the cosmic bathtub.

Seriously, I am a devout Lutheran, but even I know where to draw the line between science and pure fantasy. And trust me, Noah will not take it a slight that his flood did not create the Grand Canyon, and that he did not forget to pack the Unicorns on the ark.

Stop the madness now.

For those of you who don't know about the flying spaghetti monster go here. Pastafarians rule!

Kucinich runs again, and more thoughts

From The Nation: Dennis Kucinich is running for President again, and yes, the passionately antiwar Congressman from Cleveland would love to cure what ails the United States. But first, he wants to cure what ails his own Democratic Party.

The Democratic disease, as diagnosed by Kucinich, is caution at the party's leadership level about moving to end US involvement in Iraq. "Democrats were swept into power on November 7 because of widespread voter discontent with the war in Iraq," says Kucinich. "Instead of heeding those concerns and responding with a strong and immediate change in policies and direction, the Democratic Congressional leadership seems inclined to continue funding the perpetuation of the war."

That is not the typical opening salvo for a presidential bid. But Kucinich is not a typical candidate. When he ran for the nomination in 2004, he said a lot of things that grassroots Democrats were thinking. But he didn't say them in a way that won him many delegate votes--only around 70 of the 2,162 needed to secure the nod. link

I happen to like Dennis Kucinich. I like what he stands for. Like Howard Dean, who I campaigned for, Dennis speaks his mind. Sadly, both candidates were jettisoned by the "inside the beltway" Democratic leadership that is sadly out of touch with the rest of us. We don't want their same old same old crap. Period. I was amazed when I returned from Iowa after the last Presidential primaries when I found out that the media (and our DLC leaders and the unions) jettisoned Dean in favor of Kerry, and the media used the so-called Dean scream (that wasn't) to discredit him. It was the first time I was actually at an event and saw that my experience was manipulated by the press. That is when I knew that our country was in trouble. That is when I knew that we, the people, were being manipulated by the "powers that be" so they could promote their agenda.

Hopefully, in this next election cycle, we the voters will wake up and see beyond the crap fed to us by the media and vote using critical thinking skills. Of course, critical thinking skills are in short supply in this country. I hope and pray that the American people will wake up and do what is good for the country and tell the Republicans and the Democratic leadership that we have had ENOUGH! Maybe?

Martin Luther King Day March

The MLK March is Jan. 15th. For more information click on the link

It's the largest march in the nation, and there are always a lot of activities that make it just wonderful. Consider spending the morning (or longer) at the MLK march. You can get there using park and ride, which is very easy to do. Typically, we park at Crossroads and take the bus at around 8 a.m. That gives us plenty of time to hear some good old gospel music and get ready to march.

Rest in peace, Gerald Ford

Ford was President when our oldest daughter was born. The one thing you can say about Ford was he was an ethical and honorable man, mostly. Our condolences to the Ford family.

Woozing....

link

Handing out phone cards at Audie Murphy VA in San Antonio

Today, I met these wonderful women, who had signed up at Volunteer for Change, sponsored by Working Assets, to deliver 120-125 minute phone cards to veterans at Audie Murphy VA Hospital. We came from all over San Antonio and outlying counties to thank our veterans for their service, and help them out with phone cards. We delivered 135 cards.
Many veterans were astounded at the generousity of our donors, 120 minutes was like gold to them. Many a tear were shed, by veterans and volunteers alike. These men and women gave service to their country that can never be fully repaid. So, this is just a little drop in the bucket of the thanks they deserve.
What I noted (as a former VA nurse) is that the veterans are younger, and younger. They will need our help for a lifetime. We, as a nation, need to be prepared to offer them that reward for their service.
Check out Act for Change. Part of their mission statement: Founded on the belief that building a business and a better world aren't mutually exclusive, Working Assets has been helping busy people make a difference since 1985. It's a belief that's generated over $50 million in donations to nonprofits working for peace, equality, human rights, education and a cleaner environment. And the process is simple. You just sign up for our long distance, credit card or wireless services and we donate a portion of your monthly charges to the causes you help select - at no extra cost to you. So why not change to Working Assets? You can rest assured it will be a change for the better. Sign up and volunteer, it will do your heart good.

Faithful America, living wage campaign

Let Justice Roll Sign the petition. Here is some information about the petition:
Leaders from Let Justice Roll will be meeting with Congressional leaders early in January where they plan to deliver thousands of letters signed by Clergy and lay leaders all calling for a raise in the federal minimum wage. We hope you will sign the letter below and add your voice to this important statement. Our goal is to get thousands of signatures from religious leaders, clergy and lay, across the country. You can help by signing AND by forwarding this to your friends and colleagues.

Today we deliver phone cards to Veterans

Supported by Working Assets, Veterans for Peace, Codepink, Iraq Veterans Against the War and Gold Star Famlies for Peace. Approximately 135 phone cards were delivered to me last week, and today I'll be heading to San Antonio to hand them out. Volunteers will be meeting me at the VA this afternoon. More later.

family values my ass! We slave for corporate profits,

In the United States there is no legal minimum number of vacation days for workers. I guess we're all supposed to be thankful to the rich for "giving us jobs."

The rest of the world? Different. (As you read this, remember that 20 days means minimum four weeks vacation by law, not three.)


Here are a few examples:

Austria: 5 weeks, for elderly employees 6 weeks
Belgium: 20 days, premium pay
Brazil: 30 consecutive days, of which 10 can be sold back to the employer
Bulgaria: 20 business days
Croatia: 18 working days
European Union: 4 weeks, more in some countries
France: 7 weeks
Tunisia: 30 work days
Saudi Arabia: 15 days
Who else gets none? China...

So a question: Who is our economy FOR, anyway? From Huffington Post,

Military Appeal for Redress, protesting the war

For this first time since the Vietnam era, a robust movement of organized active-duty U.S. military has surfaced to oppose a war while still in course.

Hundreds of U.S. soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen -- many of them currently serving on the front lines in Iraq-- are formally petitioning Congress to end the war in Iraq and bring the troops home.

After the so-called Appeal For Redress materialized just a handful of weeks ago, almost 1,000 active-duty personnel have signed on, including dozens of officers. The voice of hundreds of active-duty soldiers joining the anti-war movement brings enormous moral clout to the effort to get the troops home.Link

Operation Wagonwheel, immigration raids

From a new blog, authored in part by Christy Harvey,a project of a project of the Center for American Progress Action Fund. I find it very interesting that in these raids what they have done is indiscriminate arrests, looking for "brown" people without regard to their citizenship. Driving while black is often enough to get a black person arrested, now evidently working while brown is also enough to get you imprisoned. These are police state tactics, not good police work or investigative work. Even the name of the operation, "wagonwheel" is strange. The last time we circled wagons, we committed genocide against Native Americans. Where are we going with this?

Here's the rundown from MikeCheckradio:

Massive Immigration Raids
Crackdown! The Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration division has arrested 1,282 people, most of them undocumented workers, as part of a massive raid on meatpacking plants in six states. The raid is the largest federal immigration raid in U.S. history. [TPM Muckraker]
The DHS insists that the plants, owned by the Swift meatpacking company, are the sites of widespread immigration violations and identity theft schemes.
But the raids have shocked the small communities where these plants were, with hundreds of citizens disappearing overnight. Federal raids on the plants are not an uncommon occurance, but in Worthington, Minnesota, “Never before had so many workers — 230 — been detained or arrested. Never before had the fallout of the raid created so much fear and distrust among so many.” [Minneapolis Star Tribune]
According to Jill Cashen of the United Food and Commercian Union,"Stormtroopers came in with machine guns, rounded [the workers] into the cafeterias, separated identified citizens from non-citizens, and then they took away all green cards and put non-citizens onto buses.”
The arrested workers have been barred from seeing lawyers or members of their family. Many of them had kids who were at school or daycare, and the children were left without any way to get home. At CanyonElementary School in Utah, 100 kids had parents or family members taken by the raids (about a quarter of the students). [KSL] via [TPM Muckraker]
The raids also allegedly used crass racial profiling: One worker described the agents separating non-latinos and people with light skin, while forcing everyone with dark skin to submit to careful scrutiny. “I was in line because of the color of my skin,” one employee said. “They’re discriminating against me. I’m from the United States…” [Salt Lake City Tribune]
Officials in Washington are bewildered by the timing of the raid, saying there is neither a relevant political motive, nor any real need for the sudden and harsh crackdown.Link

President Clinton came to San Antonio today

President Clinton spoke at Palo Alto College today, in support of Ciro Rodriguez. It was a rousing 20 minute speech, well received by the crowd. In fact, the crowd was loudly appreciative before and after the speech, stomping on the bleachers, hooting and hollering. The band that entertained before the speeches was just incredible!

Speakers included: Henry Cisneros, Charlie Gonzalez, Carlos Uresti, Boyd Ritchie, and of course, Ciro Rodriquez. The crowd included grandmas, grandpas, kids of all ages, many veterans. Veterans issues were extremely important to most in the crowd. Bonilla was booed many times when his anti veteran voting record was brought up.

All in all, a great time was had by all.

I apologize for the quality of the picture. I realized that people were getting better quality pictures with their cell phones than I got with my ancient camera, so it was frustrating that I could not improve this picture any more than this.

And here, the folkloric dancers:

Bush Asked Whether He’s ‘Still In Denial,’ Responds ‘It’s Bad In Iraq. That Help?’

Think Progress � Bush Asked Whether He’s ‘Still In Denial,’ Responds ‘It’s Bad In Iraq. That Help?’:

"Bush Asked Whether He’s ‘Still In Denial,’ Responds ‘It’s Bad In Iraq. That Help?’

At a press conference this morning with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, a reporter asked President Bush whether his use of the word “unsettling” to describe the violence in Iraq would “convince many people that you’re still in denial about how bad things are in Iraq.”

Bush responded curtly, “It’s bad in Iraq. That help?” and then chuckled."

Watch the video via the link provided. I can't believe this man is so crass, and uncaring. 11 military personnel have died this month so far in Iraq, and he chuckles???? What an ass.

Conservative Nanny State

The Conservative Nanny State: "The Government vs. the Market
A Useful Political Parable for Conservatives

Political debates in the United States are routinely framed as a battle between conservatives who favor market outcomes, whatever they may be, against liberals who prefer government intervention to ensure that families have decent standards-of-living. This description of the two poles is inaccurate; both conservatives and liberals want government intervention. The difference between them is the goal of government intervention, and the fact that conservatives are smart enough to conceal their dependence on the government."
The book is available free online for reading link

The dollar melts as Iraq burns

Comment is free: The dollar melts as Iraq burns [James Galbraith] : "So here's the big question: is the age of the dollar economy lurching toward an end? Are China, Japan, Saudi Arabia and other big holders of T-bonds about to start a rush, or even a stately promenade, toward the exits? Let's hope not, because the world is unprepared to replace the dollar with anything else. The euro is not suited for the job, and a joint dollar-euro system would need better central bankers than either America or Europe has got. An end to the dollar system would therefore be chaotic, inflationary, and very tough on world trade. The best argument for the dollar has always been: it's not in anyone's interest to bring it down.

Could it happen, though? Yes, it could. And it could be connected to that other unfolding disaster. As the 'Pax Americana' goes to hell in Iraq - producing a nervous breakdown among the pro-war elites - let's remember that security and finance are linked. Typically, the country that provides global economic security enjoys the use of its financial assets in world trade. And when the security situation changes, that privilege can be revoked. The consequences are unpleasant. Ask the British: after the sterling area folded, it took a generation for the UK to come all the way back.

That is partly why Economists for Peace and Security - a group I chair - opposed the Iraq war from the beginning. As far back as 2002, we understood - as the economically illiterate neo-imperialists did not - that a world system very favourable to America was on the line. And it was not, as they seemed to think, just a matter of military might. We knew that if the war undermined confidence in the power, good faith and common sense of the United States, that could lead toward disastrous changes on the financial front.

Four years in and with no end in sight, that risk may finally be catching up to the almighty dollar."

Something we have been talking about for a long time here at home. Wonder why our "fearless leader" can't wrap his head around this one?

PEACE

Yusuf Islam - Peace Train (New Version)

The message is in the music.

Olbermann's special comment - Newts twisted free speech idea


Olbermann, always eloquent and always right on target.

Airport x-ray screening test to be started in Phoenix

link to story: "Phoenix airport to test X-ray screening

Fri Dec 1, 7:02 AM ET

Sky Harbor International Airport here will test a new federal screening system that takes X-rays of passenger's bodies to detect concealed explosives and other weapons.

The technology, called backscatter, has been around for several years but has not been widely used in the U.S. as an anti-terrorism tool because of privacy concerns.

The Transportation Security Administration said it has found a way to refine the machine's images so that the normally graphic pictures can be blurred in certain areas while still being effective in detecting bombs and other threats.

The agency is expected to provide more information about the technology later this month but said one machine will be up and running at Sky Harbor's Terminal 4 by Christmas.

The security agency's Web site indicates that the technology will be used initially as a secondary screening measure, meaning that only those passengers who first fail the standard screening process will be directed to the X-ray area.

Even then, passengers will have the option of choosing the backscatter or a traditional pat-down search.

A handful of other U.S. airports will have the X-rays machines in place by early 2007 as part of a nationwide pilot program, TSA officials said."

Why don't we just go to the airport nude? This is a really big invasion of privacy! What if you have a colostomy, or a penile implant, do you want some smarmy TSA screener to know, and worse, do you want your naked photo in a federal data base? When will Americans rise up and say ENOUGH ALREADY! How many liberties do we think we should give up?

As I see it, I'll just volunteer to strip at the TSA counter like I did at the Senate office building in DC when they told me I had to remove all my protest buttons in order to go through the x-ray machine. The guards were alarmed. Scared of a 55 year old women stripping to her bra? Oh sad too bad.

Let's all strip in protest! Particularly all of you who have said you having nothing to hide where wire tapping is concerned. Are you ready to get naked at the airport?

Let's let our legislators to go first, and see just how brave they are.