Earl Durnell wrote a letter in today's News-Leader detailing why he is a Democrat. I so heartily agree with every word he said. My reply to him:


Mr. Durnell, What a great letter. I'm a few years younger than you, and we always had electricity, but some of my relatives living further back in the hills were slower to get electricity. If Roosevelt had not taken on the rural electrification project, progress would have been slowed by decades in areas like the Ozarks.

Being a Democrat has always seemed like a no-brainer for me. None of my family has ever made more than $250,000 per year, so they are more concerned with how to pay for college, and how to afford the health care they need, and living through their senior years without being a burden on the rest of the family.

Republicans are funded by corporate fat cats, who care only about the bottom line and how much money they can siphon off the efforts of the working class. That is what "free" trade is all about, their constant mantra of the last few years. It is all about closing our factories, and sending production to countries like China where workers are virtual slaves making a few cents per hour. (But, they are so lucky to have those jobs, we're told!) There are no environmental or safety regulations to worry about either.

The Republican platform of late is to clear cut the forest, neglect the infrastructure, ship the jobs overseas, outsource and privatize everything possible to make a profit for the corportate masters.Wake up, Ozarkers, and smell the economic disaster for the 95% of us who are not in the upper echelon.

Let's get back to the basics of clean air and water, healthy home-grown food, access to education for everyone, decent housing, jobs for everyone and universal access to health care for every US citizen.

Republicans have pulled all politics to the corporate view, its time to pull back to put government once again in the service of the people in both parties.

Bailout Fixes Problems, Sadly NO

Sadly, No has a few words on the financial meltdown. Enough said.


Nov24
We Eated It
Posted at 18:34 by Gavin M.

Fed Pledges Top $7.4 Trillion to Ease Frozen Credit


O hai! Here’s your US Goverment, Mr. Obama. Sorry we spended it all, hehe.

Blitzkrieg On Afghani Brides

From TomDispatch, Nov.12, 2008:

On the day that Americans turned out in near record numbers to vote, a record was set halfway around the world. In Afghanistan, a U.S. Air Force strike wiped out about 40 people in a wedding party. This represented at least the sixth wedding party eradicated by American air power in Afghanistan and Iraq since December 2001.

American planes have, in fact, taken out two brides in the last seven months. And don't try to bury your dead or mark their deaths ceremonially either, because funerals have been hit as well....

Read the entire article here.

Paul Krugman Wins Nobel Prize For Economics

I've been following Paul Krugman's column and blog in the New York Times lately, trying to make sense of the financial meltdown. He has often been the lone sane voice speaking out in a crowd of tinkle-down economists. Congratulations to him on his Nobel Prize for Economics.

From Editor and Publisher:


Krugman Wins Nobel Prize for Economics

By E&P Staff Published: October 13, 2008 7:45 AM ET

STOCKHOLM He's been hailed of late for being basically right in his months and years of warning about a coming financial crisis. Now New York Times columnist -- and Princeton professor -- Paul Krugman has just been awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics.

A favorite whipping boy for conservatives, he's been getting more and more time on TV lately as a political/economic commentator.

Krugman, 55, won the Nobel economics prize on Monday for his analysis of trade patterns and location of economic activity. He formulated a new theory to answer questions about free trade, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said.

The McCain Campaign, Short Version

From the comments at today's Huffington Post:

comment by thegreatgiginthesky:

Why don't I save us all the time and effort it takes to tune into the debate to see what McCain has to say about the issues

McCain's answer on the economy - "I know how to fix the economy"

McCain's answer on the war on terror - "I know how to win a war"

McCain's answer on healthcare - "I know how to fix healthcare"

McCain's answer on taxes - "Obama wants to raise taxes"

McCain's answer on the environment - "I know how to fix the environment"

--and from Gina322

And don't forget "I know how to catch Bin Laden"

The Zombie Of VooDoo Economics Resurrected

From a comment on the blog of Paul Krugman:

Combine:

*the economic skills of Herbert Hoover,
*the foreign policy acumen of Lyndon Johnson
*the compassion of Calvin Coolidge
*the good luck of Jimmy Carter
*the voodoo witch doctor of Ronald Reagan (contributed by bettyb)
*the brainpower of Warren Harding
*the respect for civil liberty of John Adams (Alien and Sedition Act, anyone?)
*the honesty of Richard Nixon
*and the incorruptibility of Ulysses Grant in a suitable mixing bowl and thoroughly whip. Add at least 3 tsp of an economic deflationary death spiral caused by free-market fundamentalists, rational choice theorists, neoclassical economists, and associated right-wingers, bake for 8 years using a greased, Teflon-coated pan in an oven set to 700 billion degrees.

Serve with braised filet of Rand, spleen of Mises, or liver of Gekko, and finish with a savory demi-glace of privatized profits and socialized losses.

Serves 300 million with all the CheneyBushPaulsonMcCainPalin they can eat.

— Posted by katana0182

The Free Market Created A House Of Cards

As we see the continuing implosion on Wall Street, it's apparent now to everyone that this economy of unregulated "free market" wheeling and dealing was just a house of cards inflated by hot, stinky air.

A market with no rules and regulations is what the fat cats have foisted upon us, and by adding that deceptive word "free" they have convinced the rank and file voter that these policies were best for the U.S.

Everyone, including Republicans, Democrats, financial executives and gurus need to come clean about their part in allowing this colosssal market failure to happen. We must have assurances that this will never happen again.

And please, all of the right-wingers who scream constantly about the evils of socialism--take a long period of introspection about what that word means as U.S. taxpayers take responsibility for shoring up these bloated too-large-to-fail financial institutions.

Oh, and in the meantime, we can't put in place a program for taking care of the healthcare needs of all Americans. This is the way it goes, we bail the fat cats out as they bring us to the brink of an economic disaster to rival the great depression, but when we ask for healthcare for all to be administered by an equitable, single-payer system they refuse by calling it "socialized medicine".

Take a long breath of that hot, stinky air and then think about whether you want this current crop of Republicans to continue in power.

I'm voting for Obama/Biden. Time for a sea change in Washington.

Slate's "Hillary Deathwatch"

I just sent a letter to Slate. Their Hillary Deathwatch feature, which now boasts 45 entries beginning 3/27/08, has long pissed me off. If by chance Obama had been on their shit list, they would not have gotten by with this crap. My note to them:

If The Tables Were Turned...

This Hillary Deathwatch thing you have done is so uncool, not to mention tacky and biased.

Every president and many candidates lives are under the threat of physical harm. If the tables were turned and your miserable website supported Hillary over Obama, you would not have gotten away with this for one second.

I hope you at Slate, and the rest of the biased media assholes are happy now.

Thank You, Hillary

Dear Hillary,

Thank you, for the strength and determination you have shown during the course of this campaign. Although, I'm disappointed with the outcome, I know that your candidacy has furthered the cause of all Americans, especially the 50 plus percent of us who are women.

I will now throw my full support behind Senator Obama, and your endorsement of him highlights all the reasons why we must elect a Democrat this fall.

But, please know Hillary, that if you seek any future office, that I will be first in line to support you with my donations and volunteer in any way I can on your behalf.

Sincerely,

Betty

99 Problems, Sweetie

Obama dismisses a question from a woman reporter yesterday, calling her "sweetie." As pointed out by Shakespeare's Sister, it's not the first time.

Elizabeth Edwards is notably absent from her husband's endorsement of Obama, having gone on record recently endorsing Hillary's health plan as superior. John made a point to state that his wife was not a part of his link-up with Obama.

Obama is riding high on a wave of support from Hillary-haters, most of whom do not criticize her platform, but instead resort to misogynist slurs ranging from Chris Matthews' "She-Devil" to Randi Rhodes' "fucking whore" comment. And then there's Olbermann who suggests that a super delegate should take Hillary into a room "and only he comes out," as a part of the ongoing Why Won't The Stupid Bitch Quit saga. Even Charlie Rose has chimed in on that one several times.

Shakespeare's Sister has an ongoing Hillary Sexism Watch which is now up to post #90.

Marie Cocco weighs in at the Washinton Post today:

Misogyny I Won't Miss

I will not miss seeing advertisements for T-shirts that bear the slogan “Bros before Hos.” The shirts depict Barack Obama (the Bro) and Hillary Clinton (the Ho) and are widely sold on the Internet.

I will not miss walking past airport concessions selling the Hillary Nutcracker

I won’t miss episodes like the one in which liberal radio personality Randi Rhodes called Clinton a “big [expletive] whore”…

I won’t miss [nice use of anaphora!] Citizens United Not Timid (no acronym, please), an anti-Clinton group founded by Republican guru Roger Stone.

I won’t miss political commentators (including National Public Radio political editor Ken Rudin and Andrew Sullivan, the columnist and blogger) who compare Clinton to the Glenn Close character in the movie “Fatal Attraction.”

The airwaves will at last be free of comments that liken Clinton to a “she-devil” (Chris Matthews on MSNBC, who helpfully supplied an on-screen mock-up of Clinton sprouting horns). Or those who offer that she’s “looking like everyone’s first wife standing outside a probate court” (Mike Barnicle, also on MSNBC).

But perhaps it is not wives who are so very problematic. Maybe it’s mothers. Because, after all, Clinton is more like “a scolding mother, talking down to a child” (Jack Cafferty on CNN).

When all other images fail, there is one other I will not miss. That is, the down-to-the-basics, simplest one: “White women are a problem, that’s — you know, we all live with that” (William Kristol of Fox News).

Most of all, I will not miss the silence.

I will not miss the deafening, depressing silence of Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean or other leading Democrats, who to my knowledge (with the exception of Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland) haven’t publicly uttered a word of outrage at the unrelenting, sex-based hate that has been hurled at a former first lady and two-term senator from New York. Among those holding their tongues are hundreds of Democrats for whom Clinton has campaigned and raised millions of dollars. Don Imus endured more public ire from the political class when he insulted the Rutgers University women’s basketball team.

Would the silence prevail if Obama's likeness were put on a tap-dancing doll that was sold at airports? Would the media figures who dole out precious face time to these politicians be such pals if they'd compared Obama with a character in a blaxploitation film? And how would crude references to Obama's sex organs play?

There are many reasons Clinton is losing the nomination contest, some having to do with her strategic mistakes, others with the groundswell for "change." But for all Clinton's political blemishes, the darker stain that has been exposed is the hatred of women that is accepted as a part of our culture.

Obama has played into this theme with his mime of the rapper Jay-Z's 99 Problems(but a bitch ain't one) during one of his campaign speeches, to the delight of his supporters.

I guess there are at least 99 reasons why my vote for Obama will be half-hearted in the fall, if it comes down to that.

Idiot Warmongers

I have noticed for the last couple of days, all of the Republicans and their Neo-con henchmen are interjecting Iran into comments on the most recent Iraq status report by General Petraeus.


From Think Progress:

Lieberman, Bennett, And Kristol See Petraeus Hearing As ‘An Argument’ For ‘Going Into Iran'

During their appearance before the Senate on Tuesday, Gen. David Petraeus and Amb. Ryan Crocker accused Iran of “funding, training, arming and directing extremist ’special groups’ in Iraq.” “I think one might look for a reconsideration in Tehran as to just where they want to go in Iraq,” said Crocker. “This would be an excellent time for them to reassess.”

Liveblogging the hearings for the Washington Post, Fiasco author Thomas Ricks pondered what Crocker could have intended with his “reassess” comment, considering that “there will be a new American president in place in less than a year“:

But he also said, “This would be an excellent time for them to reassess.” What does he mean by that? Why would Iran want to adjust their relationship now, when there will be a new American president in place in less than a year? Or is there some sort of implied threat there: You guys better get smart, or this president still has time to pound you?

It is unclear whether such a veiled threat was Crocker’s intention, but some on the right are certainly seeing his and Petraeus’s testimony as cause to begin talking about striking Iran again.

On his radio show this morning, Bill Bennett told the Weekly Standard’s Bill Kristol — who had a personal meeting with President Bush yesterday — that a “conclusion” he drew was that the hearing was “less an argument for getting out of Iraq than going into Iran.” After suggesting that Iran may “have to pay some price at some point on their own soil,” Kristol said that President Bush authorizing an attack of some kind before he leaves office is not “out of the question”:

BENNETT: Do you think there’s any chance that, and we won’t ask you to reveal anything confidential, do you think there’s any chance that we might take some action against some aspect of the Ira…against Iran, let’s put it that way, before the president leaves office?

KRISTOL: We didn’t really talk about that, in all honesty, directly. I don’t think it’s out of the question. I think people are overdoing how much of a lame duck the president is.

Appearing on Hugh Hewitt’s radio show last night, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) said that he wished the Bush administration would tell the Iranians that “unless they stop it, we’re going to take action.” “I’m not talking about all out war,” added Lieberman before saying, “they ought to believe that we’re going to hit those training camps.”

Bush and the Romance of Soldiering

This quote is from a Reuter's article (3/13/08) detailing President Bush's videoconference on the current situation in Afghanistan:

"I must say, I'm a little envious," Bush said. "If I were slightly younger and not employed here, I think it would be a fantastic experience to be on the front lines of helping this young democracy succeed."

"It must be exciting for you ... in some ways romantic, in some ways, you
know, confronting danger. You're really making history, and thanks," Bush said.

I seem to remember vividly, his evasion of service in Viet Nam, and this account from his professor at Harvard Business School. From a 2004 CNN interview:

Yoshi Tsurumi, in his first on-camera interview on the subject, told CNN
that Bush confided in him during an after-class hallway conversation during the 1973-74 school year.

"He admitted to me that to avoid the Vietnam draft, he had his dad -- he said 'Dad's friends' -- skip him through the long waiting list to get him
into the Texas National Guard," Tsurumi said. "He thought that was a smart thing to do."

Hillary Wins Over Those Who Listen

Jo Mannies, political blogger for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch was on C-Span this morning. I just caught the last part, but wanted to paraphrase a caller from New York talking about Hillary Clinton.

A caller from New York called to refute the fact that Hillary is too "polarizing". That is just a myth perpetrated by Fox News and the we-hate-liberals talk radio hosts.

The caller said Hillary won her seat in the senate by winning over the Republicans in upstate New York. At first, mostly women came to her campaign events. She won them over, because she's smart, she knows the issues, she makes sense, and she is convincing. The women would go home and tell their husbands they had become Hillary supporters, and then the sh*t would hit the fan. A lot of the husbands wound up sleeping on the couch.

Then the husbands started talking to each other at the coffee shops, and a few of them started showing up to hear Hillary. She won them over, too.

Hillary won re-election to her seat by working hard and communicating with her constituents. She isn't perfect, but, well....who is?

Hillary has been smeared a thousand times, and 99.9 percent of it is pure right-wing B.S. They have not yet begun to smear Obama, but, trust me, they will do a major hatchet job on him and his lovely wife Michelle, too, if he is on the top of the ticket.

A Clinton-Obama ticket would unite the Democratic party, and have the best chance of winning and getting this country back on track. Let's make history and give the Democrats 16 years in the White House.

I'm Supporting Hillary Clinton

I'm now an official Hillary supporter. She is so knowledgeable and well-versed on the issues. I've been favorably impressed with her in all the debates and town hall q&a sessions.

It's my "hope" for this campaign to see Obama as the Vice-Presidential candidate, and for him to run for President eight years from now. He has so much promise, but he isn't quite ready to take the helm. We will need sixteen years time to undo the damage the Bush-Cheney gang has done to the country. Obama has the lofty rhetoric down pat, but he started running for president immediately upon getting elected to the Senate. I have to land on the side of experience with Hillary.

I'm also hopeful that John Edwards will find a role in a future Democratic administration, and I can see Bill Richardson as a great Secretary of State.