The Kerry Running Mate question-
Who will it be?


Consider this a resource on the internet news speculation.

Who will be Kerry's running mate? -Independent (UK)
Edwards touted as Kerry running mate - Calgary Herald
Kerry Mulls Running Mate; Edwards Appears Willing - NBC5.com
Edwards makes nice with Kerry as running-mate search is launched - Salt Lake Tribune
Could President Clinton be Kerry's running mate? -Seattle Times
Kerry Opens Search for A Running Mate -Scotsman UK
Kerry to Seek Running Mate -Mirror UK
'Ideal Democrat' to Vet Vice President Hopefuls- LA Times (subsc/reg req)
Dale McFeatters: Run, run, run for vice president- Naples News
Could Kerry Pick McCain for VP? -Slate
Dems checking 'vice squad' for Running Mate -New York Post

John Kerry announces "VeePee Apprentice" as "reality" TV show to select VP running mate in style of Donald Trump's "The Apprentice." - (satire)

DNC Rules for the National Democratic Convention

Exclusive: California Libertarian Judge James P. Gray wins slot to oppose Sen. Barbara Boxer

I participated in an on-line press conference the night before the California primary with Judge James P. Gray, also known as Judge Jim Gray, Orange County Superior Court Justice. He was about to face frequent candidate Gail Lightfoot of Oakland to become the Libertarian Party challenger for incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer's seat, a position he won last night.

The California Senatorial race has been eclipsed in the media by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's pitch for his two ballot initiatives (which also passed last night). I felt it was important to get information out about lesser-publicized candidates who choose to run in alternative parties. We just don't hear enough about them in the mainstream press.

Judge Gray, a colorful public figure, has written a book addressing the most controversial elements of "the drug war". In their review of the book, Publishers Weekly has said :

"Following his career as a federal prosecutor and a trial judge, Gray, now a California Superior Court justice, is struck by the revelation that the so-called war on drugs was "wasting unimaginable amounts of our tax dollars, increasing crime and despair and severely and unnecessarily harming people's lives... the worst of all worlds."

Judge Gray ran as a Republican in the California Primary Election against Bob Dornan in 1998, and he says he has the scars to prove it.

During our interview (facilitated by Kevin Connors of the SSDB blog), Judge Gray asserted that Republicans only talk about reduced government and Libertarians would actually do it, causing everyone to be better off. He gave an example, for those who believe in low cost housing, that a full 30% of the cost of a new house is consumed in attempting to comply with government regulations. Judge Gray said, "Get rid of the bureaucracy, and the costs come down."
Judge Gray was asked if he would eliminate federal housing subsidies. "Subsidies actually hurt even the people who receive them in the long run," Judge Gray said. "They do nothing for anyone else. And, by the way, they are expensive."

Here are questions I asked of Judge Gray:

Jude Nagurney Camwell: Judge Gray, you've been quoted as saying, "If you're going to wait for any real change to come from the Democrats or Republicans in the next 20 years, you're dreaming." Many Americans want change and are tired of dreaming. We witnessed the recent groundswell of citizens desiring change in California with the recall of Governer Davis. My question to you would be--how do you believe you can motivate Californians to come out to the polls on your behalf? How will you convince them you're the best catalyst for change?

Judge Gray: Good question. I have a record as a judge for the past 20 years in not only working for justice, but also designing and implementing programs that work. In addition, having written a book about the failure and hopelessness of the war on drugs that was endorsed by people like Walter Cronkite, George Shultz and Milton Friedman, I believe I bring a credible and viable alternative to professional politicians, with all of their "spin" and ugly partisanship. People are anxious for a positive choice, and I will give it to them. But I need people who understand what we are doing to take it to heart, and get involved actively.

Jude Nagurney Camwell: As in many states, California has lost a number of jobs to the business-practice of outsourcing. New York Times columnist Paul Krugman recently made the comment: "It's bad economics to pretend that free trade is good for everyone, all the time." The momentum of globalization is bound to produce losers as well as winners. If the job gap doesn't start closing soon, protectionist pressures will surely come. What are some of your ideas on how to handle this issue?

Judge Gray: Another good and timely question. Unfortunately, artificialities in the market place simply do not work. I believe that the U.S. can compete favorably on a level playing field with anyone. Put it this way. What if California were concerned (as it should be) with the loss of jobs to Nevada. Should we put a tariff upon goods manufacturing in Nevada? One way or the other, each side would lose. Same with regard NAFTA. In addition, many countries are losing these low-paying jobs. Even Mexico is losing them. So what all of should do is accent the things that work, which are reduced government meddling in the market place, and leave more money in the pockets of the people.

You can listen to more about Judge Gray's views as he approached the time of the California primary at E-The-People.

Fallen Angel
a poem by E. W. Camwell

fallen angel

sitting alone
in a cold dark alley
wings crumpled up
wondering why they don't help me

just a poor fallen angel
a small amount of kindness
that's all it takes to help me



will you be that person
to help me up from my pathetic state
nurse me to health
so i may soar on the air again

just a poor fallen angel
a small amount of kindness
that's all it takes to help me

that person of kindness hasn't come
so will you help me up
this poor fallen angel

Howard Dean speaks about where the 700,000 believers go from here

It's fairly clear that Senator Kerry will be the Democratic presidential nominee. There are some who wonder what happened to those enthusiastic Americans who clearly heard Howard Dean's call for change in Washington, D.C.
Listen to former VT governor Howard Dean speak in this interview with NPR's Bob Kinzel. (Windows Media)
Dean says the Democratic party has had a "bad couple years" and they've "lost their way". He suggests that new people need to get involved to invigorate the party..to "help it find its way again". Dean's new political organization will be announced this March 18th. He stresses that real values are found in grassroots activism. He believes the people are great in this nation, but our "governments are not so great". He found Alan Greenspan's statements about Social Security appalling and cannot believe he was allowed to get away with it.
The new grassroots group Truth and Hope is mentioned by Dean. On their website, they state, in part that they: "have a specific mission within & beyond Governor Dean's campaign. First, to consolidate the many supporters of this message for the purpose of effecting elections & legislation on state & local as well as national levels. Also to take this message to the Democratic national convention so that our voices are heard & our influence is felt in the party platform."

Super Tuesday Results

John Kerry has cemented the Democratic presidential nomination tonight with a string of Super Tuesday wins that leaves him the one standing alone to face President Bush. In all, Kerry has won 24 of 27 primary elections representing every region of the country. Senator John Edwards, the freshman senator from North Carolina, stopped just short of conceding, but two Democratic officials said on condition of anonymity that Edwards would step aside Wednesday in Raleigh, N.C.
[Ref: Yahoo news 9:30 pm]

Here are the latest results:

CA | CT | GA | MD | MA
MN | NY | OH | RI | VT

[Ref: Yahoo news]

Nomination in Kerry's Grasp; Edwards Departure Near
at LA Times (registration req'd) (Mar 2, 2004)

Edwards to quit race
at CNN (Mar 2, 2004)

Big Victories in Key States Assure Kerry the Nomination
at NY Times (registration req'd) (Mar 2, 2004)

Fox: Kerry takes Georgia; CNN says too close to call
at Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Mar 2, 2004)

Kerry scores a knockout on ‘Super Tuesday’
Edwards to quit presidential race after losing badly in most states
MSNBC news 3-2-04

BBC News: Kerry bags 'Super Tuesday' states
March 2, 2004

Kerry Wins Five States; Edwards Plans to Withdraw
Ga. Race Tightly Contested ; Dean Wins Vt.
March 2, 2004


HOWARD DEAN TAKES VERMONT

Governor Dean issued the following statement tonight in response to the results of Vermont's presidential primary:

"I want to thank the great people of Vermont tonight who overwhelmingly endorsed our campaign for change. This win means so much to me. Two years ago, I entered this race to talk about health care, children, and to demand change and leadership in our Party. This Party and this country still needs change, and tonight you have helped further that process.

"While I ran for president I often said that America would be a better place if it was more like Vermont. I still firmly believe that to be true: We still need health care for all children, affordable prescription drugs for seniors, and equal rights for all Americans.

"Throughout this campaign, I have appreciated the strong support from the people of Vermont. Our campaign owes a huge debt to the hundreds of Vermonters who worked at our headquarters--answering phones, stuffing mailings, and responding to emails--as well as to all of those who canvassed on our behalf in New Hampshire and elsewhere. I will never forget the work and the heart that you put into our campaign. Thank you.

"I look forward to continuing the energy and the campaign for change that our movement began. We will be announcing more details of that effort on March 18th."

U.N.: Iraq had no WMD after 1994

The common findings:

Iraq's nuclear weapons program was dormant.

No evidence was found to suggest Iraq possessed chemical or biological weapons. U.N. officials believe the weapons were destroyed by U.N. inspectors or Iraqi officials in the years after the 1991 Gulf War.

Iraq was attempting to develop missiles capable of exceeding a U.N.-mandated limit of 93 miles.

Demetrius Perricos, the acting executive chairman of the U.N. inspection teams, said in an interview that the failure to find banned weapons in Iraq since the war undercuts administration criticism of the U.N.'s search before the war.

"You cannot say that only the Americans or the British or the Australians currently inspecting in Iraq are the clever inspectors — and the Americans and the British and the Australians that we had were not," he said.

[USA Today 03-02-04]

Independent.co.uk
The Terry Nichols/Oklahoma City bombing Trial
"...what is intended to be an exercise in judicial "closure" for bereaved Oklahomans could end up demolishing the FBI's theory of how the worst peacetime atrocity on American soil before 11 September 2001 happened..."

World Net Daily headline attacks John Kerry for refusing to employ zealot's rhetoric!

On their front page today, it reads:

Kerry unsure God on America's side?
'I don't believe, the way President Bush does, in invoking it all the time in that way'
--Drudge Report

NY Times Op-ed page- The Candidates Speak
A Trust Worth Winning
By JOHN EDWARDS

This Soldier’s Story
By JOHN KERRY

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


NY Times Thomas Crampton
New Paltz, N.Y. at the center of controversy
Same-Sex Weddings Bring Division to an Upstate Village

CONGRATULATIONS TO ERROL MORRIS ON HIS ACADEMY AWARD!

American Amnesia interviews documentary filmmaker Errol Morris

Following his recent blog-interview success with Noam Chomsky, Kirk has interviewed Errol Morris about his latest documentary, Fog of War. The documentary covers the life and lessons of Robert S. McNamara. The interview also discusses the nature of history.

HEADLINES

The Junk Science of George W. Bush
By Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.


Open Secret - Dick Cheney's dubious history and unprecedented role are hidden in plain view. Luckily, it's becoming an issue in the election.
By Robert Kuttner

"...Dick Cheney is the most powerful Vice President in US history. Indeed, there is fair amount of circumstantial evidence that Cheney, and not Bush, is the real power at the White House, and Bush the figurehead.
The true role of the shadowy Cheney is finally becoming an issue in the election, and it deserves to be.."

Who's A Terrorist? - Politics, not actions, determine who gets labeled a terrorist by the U.S. government
By John Feffer

"...People in the business of conflict resolution routinely intervene in bloody, horrific wars and, by talking to all sides involved, try to guide the actors toward a more peaceful conclusion. Sounds like noble work, right? Not always, according to the USA PATRIOT Act. It all depends on whether the peace professionals are talking with terrorists, and "terrorism" is very much in the eye of the (U.S.) beholder."

Depleted uranium: the war crime that has no end
By Paul Rockwell

"..Of all the violations of the laws of war by the highest officials of our country, none is more alarming or portentous than the widespread, premeditated use of depleted uranium in Iraq..."

The Trade Tightrope
By Paul Krugman

"...it's bad economics to pretend that free trade is good for everyone, all the time.."

The good doctor - Thank you, Howard Dean
by George Ochenski

Divide and Bicker?
Howard Kurtz writes an expose on the conflicts experienced within 'the other Howard's' campaign.

Howard Dean's e-mail response to supporters:

A Message from Howard Dean

The quotes attributed to me by others in Howard Kurtz's gossipy rendition of the divisions in the Dean for America campaign are entirely false, as is the description of my reaction after losing the Iowa caucuses, before the famous speech.

The danger of using unattributed sources as Kurtz and so many others do, is that the veracity of the informants can not be evaluated. In this case Kurtz included a significant amount of material which was not true, and produced a story which was greatly exaggerated.

There have been many inquiries about the relationship between Dean For America and the Change for America website. The answer to the question is that there is no relationship. We intend to form a progressive grassroots organization based on the Dean for America campaign, and we will work with other organizations after we get set up. We will announce the set up on March 18.

In the meantime, my deepest thanks to all of you who worked so hard to change America. We are not giving up, and we have an outline about what we intend to do on the DFA website.

Many thanks,

Howard Dean

Friedman never fails to amuse--I laughed, I cried...his latest column became a part of me, already.

Outsourcing is good for us because, like, now Indians won't blow us up on buses, man....


Miracle at Bangalore
"Put de gun down, angry Bhim...de Americans are gibbing us deir jobs..."

Your non-college-educated 20-year-old kid may not have a snowball's chance in hell of competing with the kids from Bangalore, but at least they'll be safe from those pesky Indian suicide-bombers. Which pesky Indian suicide bombers, you ask? Oh----uh-------never mind.

Hypocrisy in diplomacy

And so it goes----

"The return of the U.S. oil executives was facilitated by the lifting of the U.S. travel ban on Libya..."

As if we hadn't seen that one coming.

While most Democrats would rather not have us talk about this in a public forum at present, I think it's good to get the truth out there so we may decide for America's future

Imagine November 3, 2004 with a
newly-elected Democratic President-

I came across this article at Counterpunch.com, and it gives me cause to investigate further:

Proponents of "progressive internationalism" are a lock to control leadership positions at the State Department and key civilian posts at the Pentagon in a John Kerry administration. How do we know this? Because these New Democrats obviously ghostwrote Kerry's campaign book, A Call to Service: My Vision for A Better America. Place the Progressive Internationalism manifesto and Kerry's chapter on foreign policy side by side and you'll immediately notice the similarities.

Some people will tell me to keep quiet because progressive pundits are simply "helping Bush". They will tell me the only nominee capable of defeating Bush is the Democratic nominee. My consolation prize for silence will be that Kerry/Edwards/whoever will have less repugnant domestic and foreign policies than Bush.
I do want a far better plan and vision than Bush's. I do think Democrats are capable of leading a better way. However, I will never squelch the questions that will lead us to the answers to a clearer truth, a straighter path, a better America. I think we should all give the Counterpunch article and the New Democrats' PPI foreign policy manifesto a thorough reading and start a dialogue about its content.

Adam Clymer vs. John Kerry-
When pollsters go to war

One man's recommendation for GOP war on John Kerry

One pollster's recommendation war against the front-running Democratic candidate reaches the pages of the NY Times:
From the get-go, Adam Clymer saw great
Kerry-damaging potential with this Kerry-circa-1971 story.

From the Harvard Crimson 2-11-04:

Adam Clymer '58, political director of the National Annenberg Election Survey at the University of Pennsylvania, said Kerry's comments would likely find their way into Bush campaign materials.
"If I were them, I'd use this," said Clymer, a former Crimson president. "I'd use it in direct mail."

In a way, Mr. Clymer respresents "them"--leads "them" with his poll-ideology. I guess Mr. Clymer really meant business when he (basically) said 'Use it, GOP-- use it'! Not only did he mean business, he drummed up some good business for his Election Survey. He made it into today's NY Times article:

A recent poll by the University of Pennsylvania's National Annenberg Election Survey found that Mr. Kerry's antiwar activity was mostly a concern to people who had already made up their minds against him, just as Mr. Bush's wartime service in the Texas Air National Guard was mostly a concern of those who already opposed him.

What's my point here? It's to show you how smear campaigns get professionally rolling and set the stage for the mainstream media mouthpieces. You will note I have not offered my opinion on the topic here--at it shall remain as such. I opt to reserve judgement on the issue until I've had more time to delve into the issue and not simply make a "surface-judgement". The Adam Clymers of the political world understand that most people won't "delve" and will make those "surface-judgements". Opinion based on headlines and polls are not the opinions I treasure or respect. Polls, to me, are like having to deal with a used car salesman. They aren't going away anytime soon, they're in your face, they don't give you the real truth, and you know you have to deal with them-- so you plug your nose and move on.

CHANGE FOR AMERICA


photo credit: changeforamerica.com


Joe Trippi's "Cummings Creek Compact" featured in Boston Globe

Last weekend, Trippi gathered about 40 of his supporters at his farm, where they ate breakfast, worked together to clear brush downed by Hurricane Isabel last fall, and debated the outlines of what would become the Cummings Creek Compact.

Quote of the day:

"Bibles, like history, are written by the winners."

-Nicholas Kristof

The Economist / Iran
Iran Elections: Ordinary Iranians are the real losers
"They are sick of having their personal freedom curtailed by the clerics, and frustrated at the economic stagnation that the Islamic revolution has brought..."

Points from the article:

- Voter apathy might have handed the religious conservatives victory again in the parliamentary elections.

- ..the dodgy parliamentary elections will not help Iran’s case—already, Jack Straw, Britain’s foreign secretary, has hinted it may hamper efforts by the European Union and Iran to reach a trade agreement

- ...the most interesting struggle to watch may be that between the two main groups of conservative clerics—the hardline, isolationist ones and the more pragmatic ones who want Iran to continue improving its relations with the rest of the world.

- Victorious hardliners must hope that most Iranians channel their disillusionment into passive resignation rather than angry demonstrations.

- With the reformists marginalised in the next parliament, the most interesting struggle to watch may be that between the two main groups of conservative clerics—the hardline, isolationist ones and the more pragmatic ones who want Iran to continue improving its relations with the rest of the world.

Hey! No fair! How come I'm staggerin' and you're not?

A Literary TOOL Chest.

Can a Dubya clone be far behind?

Can you spell h-e-l-l ? He's into Nazis, porn, stealing--hey, guess what? He's a p----

Once wasn't enough

Restful vacation or one eye open all night?

Kookie wasn't alone-
Blix: I was a target too


bugged?

Hans Blix, retired chief UN weapons inspector, believes he was bugged in his office and home in New York. He says he "expected to be bugged by the Iraqis, but to be spied upon by the US was a different matter".
~~~~~~~~

Juan Cole at Informed Comment raises an interesting question:

The Blix wiretaps raise an interesting question. Did the US and UK know even more about the lack of evidence for weapons of mass destruction than we thought, from what Blix was saying privately in spring of 2003 before the war?

HPR Online on the Help America Vote Act
Nightmare Redux?
Fast forward to the morning of Nov. 3, 2004....

"Fast forward to the morning of Nov. 3, 2004, the day after the next presidential election. You wake up, flip on the television, and are greeted by a pugnacious newscaster yelling that once again, we do not yet know who won...

In 2002, Congress passed and President Bush signed into law the Help America Vote Act. The legislation authorized over $3.8 billion in grants to states to replace outdated voting equipment with new electronic devices, train poll workers to use the new equipment, increase voter education efforts, and involve America's youth in the voting process by encouraging high school volunteerism at the polls. The legislation generated widespread praise and bipartisan support. Since then, however, supporters of election reform have faced an uphill battle....'

Here are some major points brought out in this article:

--Confronted with a half-trillion dollar budget deficit, a shaky domestic economy, and a costly war in Iraq, Congress and the White House are proving reluctant to appropriate the funds authorized by the Help America Vote Act (HAVA).

--Leading computer scientists have voiced concerns that the electronic voting devices to which many states are switching may be vulnerable to tampering.

--Progress has stalled. As of September 2003, 27 states still used controversial punch-card ballots, which were the focal point of a legal challenge prior to California's October recall election.

--Some civil rights groups are also raising concerns that the Help America Vote Act's (HAVA's) anti-fraud provisions will unintentionally prevent legitimate voters from casting their ballots.

This is what democracy-in-politics is all about. Reminds me of last night's debate in L.A...
I wanted to share this article with you because it is full of truth about the fact that, like him or love him, Kerry is being molded carefully by the media as the "annointed one". (In last night's Democratic debate in L.A., it seemed to me that all the moderators were doing was edging John Edwards out of the realm of nominee-possibilities by constantly telling him there were no differences between him and Kerry.)

The article discusses a media photo-shoot where Dennis Kucinich's entire being was obstructed (This reminded me of last night's Democratic debate in L.A. when Dennis finally got a token question thrown his way. When the cameras finally showed his face, it was totally obstructed by one of the moderators -Janet Clayton- who was rudely talking to Larry King as Dennis tried to give his reply!)

The article talks about the importance of voting in your state primary in order to get the delegates representing the ideas of candidates such as Dean and Kucinich to the Democratic convention. (Reminds me of Al Sharpton at the Democratic debate in L.A. last night. At every (rare) opportunity to speak, he stressed the same importance of delegational representation in the nominating process.)

Read the article..please. It makes a lot of realistic sense in this crazy all-too media-tinted world.

Harvard Political Review on Alan Dershowitz' book "The Case For Israel"

"It is unfortunate that the question "Is Israel the prime human rights violator in the world?", which should simply be dismissed out of hand, requires a serious answer in today's political climate. But however intuitively outrageous the question, it must be answered, and Dershowitz has done us a service with his calm and reasoned reply."

I think HPR's done a good job reviewing Mr. Dershowitz' latest book. I've read parts of this book already and highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in the Israeli-Palestinian troubles. It's a well-reasoned explanation for the necessity of what many believe will be an eventual two-state solution.

Thomas Friedman imagines he's "getting real" on outsourcing....

"Yes, I want to be able to huff and puff about complex issues — like outsourcing of jobs to India — without any reference to reality. Unfortunately, in this life, I'm stuck in the body of a reporter/columnist..."
-Thomas Friedman

This is what I'd say to Mr. Friedman:

I'm stuck in my body, too, Mr. Friedman. Here's my problem with your column. You said

"...total exports from U.S. companies to India have grown from $2.5 billion in 1990 to $4.1 billion in 2002. What goes around comes around, and also benefits Americans..."

Unfortunately, you completely neglected to mention the fact that, despite the nice news about the exports, the U.S. trade deficit with India has still managed to soar to the tune of $8 billion or so. This being the real world and all, and being stuck in this writer's body (just like you), I felt compelled to mention that you either conveniently neglected to mention the monstrous deficit... or perhaps you overlooked the fact. Comparative advantage is fine if all reasonable attempts toward trade balance are ensured. In a dynamic economy there are supposedly plenty of ways that new jobs are created and old jobs are made obsolete. So I ask you, Mr. Friedman, where are the new American jobs? I agree we should trust individual initiative more than government programs to deal with those circumstances, but let's not assume that government intervention is not a realistic necessity here. Our American middle class is put into near-direct competition with second and third-world workers. If you have your ideological differences, Mr. Friedman, please discuss them within a reasonable economic framework and do not tell us we are not looking at the matter 'realistically." I see what could be a rush of American businesses to outsource jobs with too much arrogance about the eventual effects of a lack of reasonable trade equilibrium between nations. Billionaire investor Warren E. Buffett warned last November that allowing the trade deficit to grow amounted to transferring America's net worth abroad "at an alarming rate." I guess you don't recall that. At the going (growing) trade deficit rate, China's economy will surpass our American economy by 2041. I guess you don't know or don't care how cocky we're getting here in America about this issue. I guess you don't think too hard about that.
Jadoo Works sounds really cool and all, but you've missed some very important points in your nice slice of business-life tale.
Maybe you'll do better next column.
I really hope so.

"If a traveler tripped over a rock in their path 700 years ago, and from this event altered the course of their life, we might conclude the rock was only incidental. But if that same rock trips thousands, through the centuries, each walking away with a different message and a different lesson, then can we call this incidental?



When foolish people trip, they get up and walk away as if nothing happened. They learn nothing. A wise person will find a greater meaning for their fall. But a rock that trips travelers in every age, each time imparting a different meaning, that is not just a rock. That is God."

--Fihi Ma Fihi (Discourses of Rumi) translated by A.J. Arberry

For lo, the multitudes did gather in multiplexes across the land, as the prophets had foretold. And at last they beheld The Passion of the Christ, and did render unto Mel Gibson millions upon millions of dollars in ticket and merchandising sales.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today in history...


photo credit: angelfire.com

"Sunday a soldier of Company A died and was buried. Everything went on as if nothing had happened, for death is so common that little sentiment is wasted. It is not like a death at home."

-Elisha Hunt Rhodes, 2nd Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry
photo credit: angelfire.com


1862- Civil War, In camp with Elisha Hunt Rhodes

1935- Hitler organizes Luftwaffe

1993- A bomb built by a group of Islamic extremists exploded in the parking garage of New York's World Trade Center, killing six people and injuring more than 1,000 others


Today's Headlines and Opinions

GUILTY NEOCON FLIES THE COOP! The Prince of Darkness has left the building, leaving the lives of over 500 American troops and countless lives of Iraqi citizens (and no WMDs) in his idealistic wake. Here's his resignation letter.

U.S. lifts Libya travel restrictions after 23 years-Removal follows Tripoli affirming it was behind airliner bombing
Hello? Would that mean we'd open relations with Osama Bin Laden and/or the Taliban as long as he/they admitted to being the masterminds of 9-11? How would that sit with you as a parent of someone killed on 9-11?
Ask Susan Cohen what she thinks. Susan's the mother of Thea, a Syracuse University student who was killed at the age of 20 when
Pan Am 103 was blown from the skies over Lockerbie, Scotland in December, 1988. Susan has not forgotten that tragic day. Susan is aware that all Moammar Gadhafi has done is to "buy peace" from our nation. She's disgusted, and you know what? I cannot blame her. Libya's Prime Minister has admitted they needed to buy peace from the U.S.::
"After the sanctions and after the problems we have [been] facing because of the sanctions, the loss of money, we thought that it was easier for us to buy peace and this is why we agreed to compensation."
--Shokri Ganem, Prime Minister of Libya
In a recent Reuters article, Susan Cohen is quoted as saying: "For the Bush administration, Lockerbie is just an issue to get around. It is typical of the Libyans to say one thing one day and another the next," said Susan Cohen, whose daughter died in the bombing. She accused the administration of trying to "whitewash" Lockerbie and of making Gaddafi into a hero..."

Can the father be far behind? A son of Osama bin Laden's top lieutenant, Ayman al-Zawahiri , has been captured by Pakistani forces , one of Pakistan 's leading newspapers reported on Wednesday.

I hear the investigation's really heating up on this Rep. Nick Smith-Medicare-House of Representatives bribery case. The House Ethics Committee may not be the only investigators...I hear there may also be an ongoing criminal investigation.


Macedonia's president killed in plane crash


When I read this, my first thought was that Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan isn't telling us anything we don't already know. While a lot of people would like to jump all over the messenger, conservative leaders Grover Norquist, Paul Weyrich, and Karl Rove have been talking about shrinking U.S. social programs for years. If we keep voting the GOP ticket, I don't see how we will be able to complain if and when markets sag and security nets disappear (and the Ken Lays are still thriving). Perhaps we will then know we've been officially bilked. The Boston Globe editorial on Greenspan's announcement says, in part:"No raid on retirees...Congress needs to find the money to keep Social Security solvent."

According to The Hill, Republicans plan to stage a lengthy Senate debate on Iraq today to respond to intensifying Democratic attacks on President Bush over his conduct of the war and its turbulent aftermath. The debate, is meant to catch the Democrats off-guard.

Also from The Hill, Senator Ted Kennedy has asked his staff to put together a case that he hopes will prove that President Bush’s recess appointment of Alabama Attorney General William Pryor to the U.S. Court of Appeals was unconstitutional.

Political strategist Dick Morris says the only way President Bush will be re-elected in November is, basically, to continue to frighten us into electoral submisson.
Quote:

"He [Pres. Bush] must underscore the limits of his own success and focus upon the huge tasks and enormous dangers that lie before us. It is only by summoning the sense of national urgency — that we should, in fact, be feeling — that he can win.
Americans want Bush for one thing and one thing only: to lead us out of danger from terror. We don’t really think he is much good at anything else..."

What does it say about the Democrats that they appear to feel their best hope of winning is to ask the competition to politely bow out?

SAFIRE: Manipulating Bloviator Extraordinaire-
Seeing a prominent opiner such as Mr. Safire manipulating news of the actual developments on the war on terror will not help Americans make educated decisions. His own newspaper directly refutes him (almost daily) with a bothersome thing called "FACT", yet they continue to let him blather on. What does that say about the integrity of the Times? With recent journalistic failures such as Jayson Blair and Judith Miller, one would think they would try to be as ethical as possible.

Front-running presidential candidate John Kerry says he backs Massachusetts state ban on same-sex marriage
Quote: "If the Massachusetts Legislature crafts an appropriate amendment that provides for partnership and civil unions, then I would support it, and it would advance the goal of equal protection," the senator said yesterday, stressing that he was referring only to the [Massachsetts] state, and not the federal, Constitution. He has said he would oppose any amendment that did not include a provision for civil unions. "I think that you need to have civil union. That's my position," he said Tuesday.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Anti-Gay Proposals:
"The debate over this issue, the latest battleground in the culture wars that have so divided the nation, is more about politics than principle..Misusing the very constitutional documents that bind us together as a people doesn't protect marriage, it defiles and cheapens them."


Kucinich: "I do not view the media as a monolith. I know there are people . . . who want to do the right thing [and] others want to use their influence to achieve a certain outcome. I understand where that's coming from. I also know if I had a fraction of the coverage these other candidates have had, I'd be running away with the nomination."



credit: Get your War On

FYI: The Week magazine provides some basic information about
Iraq’s Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani

9-11 Shame...

"I can't understand why these elected officials, particularly the president and vice president, aren't willing to come before the American public and testify...That raises a concern they're hiding something."

--Kristen Breitweiser of New Jersey, whose husband, Ronald, died in the World Trade Center



The [9-11] commission has requested a 60-day extension, which would place the report date uncomfortably close to the 9/11-anniversary-timed Republican convention in September 2004. Obviously, the administration will do everything it can to avoid that, and House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) has already announced that he "can't imagine a situation where they get an extension."

--Eric Alterman, January, 2004

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



9-11 families beg for proper investigation

Condi turns her back

Hastert turns blind eye on American victims for politics' sake

Stanford Daily Online: Osama in the house?

There is a valid complaint, in my opinion, that the American press on the whole doesn’t push hard enough than accepting the Defense Department’s press releases while, in most cases, the truth lies somewhere between the official military report and the story carried in the foreign press. As I've discussed here recently, two British papers, The Sunday Telegraph and The Sunday Express, have reported that Osama Bin Laden is surrounded by U.S. Special Forces in an area of land bordering northwest Pakistan and Afghanistan. (Attributed to “a well-placed intelligence source” in Washington.) The writer of this article, Kathryn Wallace, explores the question:

"...you haven’t seen this reported in the U.S. press — not even the story that other press organizations are reporting an Osama capture. But does that mean the story is pure fiction?"

Ms. Wallace reminds us that embedded journalists in Iraq failed to check power while they were a little drunk on the idea of "playing soldier in the desert".

Today in history..


Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath
photo credit: chicklit.com

"I am solitary as grass. What is it I miss?
Shall I ever find it, whatever it is?"

From: Three Women by Sylvia Plath

1956- Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes meet.

David Yount: 'The Passion' Preaches to the Choir

I ask myself: Why would I want to see this movie?

I haven't made up my mind about seeing this movie. I certainly can say, from all I've heard, I would not look forward to its content. Perhaps it stems from my Puritan ancestry, of which NY Times op-ed contributor Kenneth L. Woodward says: "To the Puritans, displays of the body of Jesus represented what they considered the idol worship of the Papists." Yet, I was raised a Catholic, and therefore I am in a bit of a theological conflict with myself over this film. I suppose, in the end, the inner conflict is brought about by my innate and unique Christian sensibility.

I ask myself:

Would I be going to entertain myself? Surely not. I've heard this movie, because of its graphic (possibly gratuitous) violence, might actually be agonizing for some people. I don't "do" violent movies as a rule. Why would I subject myself to a film I've heard, had it not been about Christ, would probably have gotten an NC17 rating?

Would I be going to learn something? Surely not...I've read the Gospels many times over. I know them as surely as I know my heart. The mysteries of Christ are my heart.

Would I be going in order to see Christ in a new light? Why? I have spent the better part of my life studying Jesus Christ. To see Christ looking like bloodied meat is a visual I know is not a scene to which I would subject my teenage child (who has taken part in Passion plays himself and has a wonderful understanding of the story). Why would I subject myself (knowing how a child would be tortured and haunted?) We are all innocent children at heart. I have made a shining and welcoming place for Christ in my heart which could not be made more perfect by seeing Him die all over again. The dying itself is allegedly shown so bloodily at the hands of mankind, which, in my opinion, may only raise feelings of distrust and disgust for our fellow man. Do we really need that in these treacherous and uncertain times in which we live? Will the core message be lost in the swirl of blood and sweat and human meat?

I ask Chist in meditation:

God has made man to die. By man came death, but God is all. No Roman, no Jew killed the Christ. Christopher Hitchens, in Vanity Fair, has said that God himself is to blame for Jesus' suffering and death. Scripture prophesied that Jesus would die. Since it was inevitable, it was no human fault.
We all will face our own personal death and will have to carry our own cross someday. It isn't my unavoidable death I wish to concentrate upon. It is the perfection of my soul that Christ wanted me to focus on every moment of my waking life. When I speak to Him in meditation about such matters as whether or not to go and see Mel Gibson's version of His bloody death, He tells me resoundingly: "Jude, stay home".

The only thing that would lure me to the theater is based upon sociological curiosity. (a motive, which, to my own way of thinking about theological philosophy, might be a personally sinful motive). Knowing that my fellow man (and woman) is seeing the film, I suppose I desire to understand how they may have been affected by it...and I could not be an effective commentator if I hadn't witnessed the thing with my own eyes.
We'll see.......
It's comments like this one that arouses the curious side of me:
"The movie just . . . made me feel like I was part of that crowd [at the crucifixion], like I was there . . . So much so that my chest is just caved in. It's awesome." [NY Post Feb 25, 2004]

Then again, when I see political-economic motives in moviemaking enter the picture, I once again shrink back into my innate Christian sensibility. When you think about how the film industry will realize the profits that have been forfeited over the years by creating films that were out of sync with the interests of the citizens of the red states....



~~~~~~~~~~~

Cragg Hines of the Houston Chronicle seems to be in agreement with the view of Christopher Hitchens that "whoever sought, carried out or acquiesced in the death of Jesus was an unwitting tool of divine intent." Hines believes that on Ash Wednesday (which marks the beginning of the Lenten season), "Christians are called to reflect upon their own lives and shortcomings and to repent the wrongs they have caused by word, deed or inaction. No controversy or distraction -- certainly not a movie that purports to be based on the Gospels -- should deflect Christians from the path of reflection to that of resentment." I can't help but to agree.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Speaking of resentment, here we go already....see "Jews Killed Jesus' Billboard Causing Controversy--Pastor Refuses To Remove Or Change Saying On Outdoor Marquee."

~~~~~~~~~~~

A 50-year-old Michigan man said, after seeing the movie:

"It's the most authentic version of the death of Jesus that I have ever seen."

My question: How on earth would he (or anyone) know?

Movies have a strange (and frightening) way of dictating their own reality to us en masse. I think this is my problem with this film. Do we really need a new Gospel "according to Mel"?

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

In the same article, A Roman Catholic named Bade said: "I never knew the passion to be so cruel as it was portrayed in the movie...You better go see it with a strong stomach."

I'm sorry. This picture is not the one I personally would want to remember when I read the Gospels in the future.
It would be like seeing a photo of a loved one dead in their casket when trying to recall the light they brought to your life. Not healthy, people. Not healthy....

Did you know former Vermont governor Howard Dean is still on the ballot for all of the states that have yet to hold primaries?

For those Democrats who have been part of the Howard Dean movement and have yet to vote in your state's primary, you still have the ability to vote for him in your primary in order to send Dean delegates to the Democratic National Convention and to ensure his message will be heard.
I have been part of this passionate and exciting grassroots movement from the beginning and I plan to write more about it in the future. I think the impact Howard Dean has had on Democratic politics is going to someday be seen as historically important. Opinion columnist David Broder has written about it recently in an op-ed titled "Dean campaign will prove a milestone". I've noticed that, even though Dean's campaign is suspended, the pundits still love to talk about him. I'll tell you why I think that's true. There was an exciting story to be told..and that story has not simply withered and died because Howard Dean is not on the campaign trail. I would invite anyone reading this to take just a moment and view this video titled "Thank You, Howard."

I also bring to your attention an interesting opinion I read today about the fate of the Dean campaign titled "The Assasination of Howard Dean". The writer says the Democratic party is still waiting for a candidate who will help rediscover its soul.
I'm afraid Howard Dean was just that person...but he was "done in" by powers far greater than "the People". It makes you think...
Quote:

In the end, Dean threatened a troika of powerful institutions. He was a threat to the political parties (because he attacked Democrats' centrist drift), to media (because he criticised their cowardly reporting) and to big business (because he would roll back chummy tax-benefits for corporations). All three institutions responded with venom and destroyed Dean's candidacy. In 1968, a bullet ended Robert Kennedy's anti-establishment candidacy. In 2004, the methods used were more subtle, but just as effective.
[Daily Star Feb 25, 2004]

Walter Shapiro on the Bush promotion for a Constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage:

"The president declared Tuesday that "the preservation of marriage rises to the level of national importance." But it can also be argued that a vitriolic political debate over such a constitutional amendment rises to the level of a national distraction. After Sept. 11, two wars and a radical restructuring of the tax rates, America does not face a shortage of campaign issues. Instead the nation confronts the challenge of remembering our responsibilities in countries such as Afghanistan in the midst of an election that seems headed straight into Jerry Springer territory."
[USA Today Feb 24, 2004]

In the Houston Chronicle, Cragg Hines says:

It will be interesting to see when President Bush voluntarily next mentions his support for a constitutional amendment outlawing gay marriage, the hunk of blood-red meat he threw to his mewling right-wing base on Tuesday. It will be a good gauge of how desperate he senses his chances of re-election have become...

....What if Bush had been talking about any other form of legalized discrimination and oppression, say, slavery, instead of a prohibition on gay marriage, how bizarre this paragraph would sound in the 21st century: "After more than two centuries of American jurisprudence and millennia of human experience, a few judges and local authorities are presuming to change the most fundamental institution of civilization. Their actions have created confusion on an issue that requires clarity."
[Houston Chronicle Feb 24, 2004]

A quote from President Bush in 2000 and a comment from author Peter Singer:

Q: So if a state were voting on gay marriage, you would suggest to that state not to approve it?

A: The state can do what they want to do. Don't try to trap me in this state's [rights] issue like you're trying to get me into. … In my state of Texas, if we tried to have gay marriage, I would campaign against it.

--Candidate George W. Bush, in a presidential debate moderated by Larry King in Columbia, S.C., Feb. 15, 2000


"No genuine advocate of small government would seek to take from the states the right to decide whether people of the same sex can marry."

--Peter Singer, author of the new book titled "The President of Good and Evil: The Ethics of George W. Bush".

[Slate, Timothy Noah Feb 24, 2004]

What were you doing this past January 13th?



Did you know the planet Earth was minutes from an 'asteroid alert'?
Scientists now reveal they nearly warned Presidentent Bush of potential devastation.

FrontPage:
Karl Rove and Grover Norquist have not been very careful or apologetic about the financial contributions pouring in from those with questionable ties to radical Islam

"When asked by Wall Street Journal reporter Glenn Simpson if he thought radical Muslim groups such as the friends and associates of Khaled Saffuri were exercising "undue influence" at the White House, Karl Rove simply shrugged and replied, "No."

As evidence of Saffuri's ties to three prominent terrorist suspects deepens, say alarmed conservatives, those blanket denials may look to be increasingly hollow."

--Kenneth R. Timmerman, Insight magazine

~~~~~~
Here's another case where Grover Norquist has shown that he rejects the rule of law in favor of playing politics. Many Republican senators (including Orrin Hatch and Bill Frist) are currently condemning two former aides who are being investigated for prying into Democrats' computer files. Some conservative leaders, including Norquist, are in disagreement. South Carolina Senator Lindsay Graham has said to Hatch and Frist:

"The conservatives [such as Norquist and Paul Weyrich] who offer a justification for this based on politics have missed the boat. You have rejected a political defense to an unethical or legal wrong and the day that a political defense is accepted, then we are off track, because the rule of law goes."

Senator Graham sounds like a gentleman.
Then we have boorish Grover Norquist ( a poor excuse for a decent human being if I've ever seen one), of whom it is said:

".... Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, says the rule of law doesn't apply here since the Democrats' files allegedly could be accessed on the committee computer network without any "hacking" or purloined passwords.
"If someone had really broken in and stolen their stuff, we would have no truck, but that is simply not the case," said Norquist. "They left these memos on an open server. If you wander around naked all the time, someone is going to see you naked."

Ugh.
What a creep.

Homeland Suck-urity:
Duh-ooo we really have brains?

Washington Post/ Steve Coll
Ghost Wars: The CIA and Osama bin Laden, 1999-2001
Flawed Ally Was Hunt's Best Hope
Afghan Guerrilla, U.S. Shared Enemy

This is Part Two of the series I mentioned earlier this week.

See Part One: Pre-9-11: Who tried to stop bin Laden? Why did they fail?

Washington Post/Dana Milbank
White House Forecasts Often Miss The Mark

Jesus the Palimpsest


"...while public furor in the United States "has always been over the `authenticity' of the Hollywood Jesus, the overlooked issue is really what this Jesus says about America, where we are and where we are going."

--Professor Steve Humphries-Brooks, who teaches a course called "Celluloid Savior" at Hamilton College in Upstate NY


*see: palimpsest

Jews call on EU to halt anti-Semitism
"We bring a message today - and that message is a warning to Europe... anti-Semitism and prejudice have returned. The monster is here with us once again"

Suggestions have ranged from setting up a permanent body to discuss inter-faith issues, to the EU backing a UN security council resolution condemning anti-Semitism. In light of everything that is happening today, I think it's time for the EU and the UN to consider this proposal.

"Someone needs to tell the White House they're not running against Howard Dean anymore."
--Bruce Reed of the DLC on FOX news w/David Asman (today, 12:45 EST), when asked about the Democrats' criticism of the Iraq war.

What's wrong with Bruce Reed? Is this a proper-sounding defense when faced with hard questions about the Democrats' stand on the Iraq war? Did Howard Dean not teach these people ANYTHING? Does the DLC NOT realize that Howard Dean is still hanging (unified) with the Democratic party (when he, like Nader, could easily have gone for an Independent run?) How is it possible that Bruce Reed and his DLC is so ready and willing to forget how many Democrats in this nation still believe in Howard Dean's message? How is it possible that he's so willing and able to forget that Howard Dean still has a substantial number of delegates (and superdelegates) and although his campaign is suspended, he is still on the primary ballots of most states and is still standing to send as many progressive delegates as possible to the Democratic convention in Boston? My displeasure with the powers-that-be in the Democratic party grows stronger with every weakened lily-livered retort (like the one I've quoted).

The DLC is very disappointing to me. They seem to totally forget that anger is a wonderful and necessary catalyst for positive change. Instead, they defend and define themselves as the "not-all-that-angry" faction. They titled their latest manifesto "The Right Fight", citing their belief that anger alone won't beat Bush. That may be true, but when I read their 10-step plan, I nearly completely failed to see how they are actually going to balance the severe bleeding away of jobs in this country with a timely plan to help American middle-classers compete with third-worlders. Not only do they look afraid to boldly stand up to what so many of us know is wrong with the Bush administration's economic and foreign policy, they give us pie-in-the-sky generalities about how they will be different. I want to take America back from the Bush administration, but we will only do it the right way with a real plan for change..with genuinely incorruptible people... from the grassroots up.

Bush to America:
Let's abuse our Constitution & increase the cultural 'Great Divide'

There are two ways spelled out in the Constitution for amendments....The second method is for a Constitutional Convention to be called by two-thirds of the legislatures of the states, and for that convention to propose one or more amendments. These amendments are then sent to the states. This route has never been taken.

I'll bet this will be the first time.

"Marriage cannot be severed from its cultural, religious and natural roots without weakening the good influence of society."
--GW Bush

Natural roots is really what it all boils down to. The Constitution was not meant to limit inalienable rights endowed by the Creator. Culture and religion are manmade structures and we were born free by our Creator to choose to join or not to join.
Then there is our nature. Is it not within any (consenting) adult's nature to want a partner with whom to share life?
(Regardless of how they decide, between the privacy of the consenting two, to express that love?)
This is going to be some debate....

If it's so important to "protect and defend" marriage, will President Bush start a national debate about a Constitutional amendment to ban divorce next? (Before those activist courts continue to grant all those heinous divorce decrees?)

I'm not surprised, but always disappointed by President Bush. His choice of politics over American democracy and freedom makes him a significantly anti-American character to me. His quick reliance upon marring our precious Constitution and creating a wedge amongst his own people will only make it easier to abuse that precious blueprint for freedom in the future. I'm very concerned about the direction in which our nation is headed.

~~~~~~~~~

According to the Washington Post, "thousands of gay rights supporters are posting open letters on the Internet urging Mary Cheney, the vice president's daughter, to speak out against amending the Constitution to ban same-sex marriage."

~~~~~~~~~~

Here are blogger Andrew Sullivan's words:
"The president launched a war today against the civil rights of gay citizens and their families. And just as importantly, he launched a war to defile the most sacred document in the land. Rather than allow the contentious and difficult issue of equal marriage rights to be fought over in the states, rather than let politics and the law take their course, rather than keep the Constitution out of the culture wars, this president wants to drag the very founding document into his re-election campaign. He is proposing to remove civil rights from one group of American citizens - and do so in the Constitution itself. The message could not be plainer: these citizens do not fully belong in America. Their relationships must be stigmatized in the very Constitution itself. The document that should be uniting the country will now be used to divide it, to single out a group of people for discrimination itself, and to do so for narrow electoral purposes. Not since the horrifying legacy of Constitutional racial discrimination in this country has such a goal been even thought of, let alone pursued. Those of us who supported this president in 2000, who have backed him whole-heartedly during the war, who have endured scorn from our peers as a result, who trusted that this president was indeed a uniter rather than a divider, now know the truth."

She Bangs!

William Hung is the latest cult-rage.

..................
Who needs ^^ him when you can have him^^???
Hung photo credit: Fox broadcasting


The link above will take you to William's American Idol audition.
This link will take you to a Video-On-Demand: William Hung's halftime concert at Cal-Berkeley this past Wednesday night.

LA Times/Marc Cooper
Soldier for the Truth: Exposing Bush’s talking-points war

My heroine Lieutenant Colonel Karen Kwiatkowski speaks to the LA Times.

Jesus Movies

With the frenzy over Mel Gibson's 'The Passion of the Christ', Sgt Stryker's Daily Briefing gives us an amusing rundown of on Jesus movies that came before....

YOU'RE DEAD, YOU BIG FAT LAZY PIG!!!

I installed Trackback today. Yay.
See Haloscan for details.

The Vietnam Syndrome, Again
The mistake Democrats make when they compare Iraq to Vietnam.
By Christopher Hitchens

"More than a quarter of a century after the collapse of the doomed American intervention in Indochina, we can't get over it. This is, in my opinion, as it should be."
--Christopher Hitchens 2-16-04

I do not like what's happening in Iraq, yet I agree that if we're going to criticize the Iraq war, we have to criticize the war based upon its own failings and not that of Viet Nam.
Whether or not President Bush showed up for guard duty, in the end, won't matter. We have already seen four years of his administration and know what we may expect from another four.

I think Christopher Hitchen's line here is 'right on target' regarding the issue of the President's limited service to the U.S. during the Viet Nam war:

"Bush evidently did the gentlemanly minimum."

Indeed. Current Democratic front-runner John Kerry went to battle not only for one tour of duty, but two. As the Pope said about the Mel Gibson movie "The Passion", "it is as it was".
How would I answer Mr. Hitchen's question:

"...some Democrats really seem to want to act hawkier than thou. Are they so sure that this is a bright idea?"

Answer: Why not? "It is as it was." The Viet Nam war (and the anti-war movement it sparked) is settled history now (though still unsettling) and I think we're mature enough here in America to talk about it and sort through the shades of gray.
I do not agree with Mr. Hitchens' oversimplification of matters by calling the Democrats' hailing (as heroes) of our Viet Nam soldiers as "creepy", nor do I come anywhere close to agreeing with Mr. Hitchens that the Democrats have, in any way, shape, or form "denigrated" the troops for their fine efforts in Iraq. The denigration, (if we wish to call it that), would stem from the policy of the Bush administration (from whom many believe there was no honest forthcoming about the reasons for war). Democrats urged the President, before the preventive Iraq war was launched, to carefully consider the available intelligence and the fullness of the rule of law in the international community. Apparently, their trust in the President to do so was shattered.
It's a 'no-brainer' that terrorists are the common enemies of humanity. I think Mr. Hitchens is a wonderful writer, but he either makes a mistake or he's being intellectually dishonest in lumping a discussion about our loyal and brave troops in Iraq with the foreign policy of the Bush administration itself.

Daniel Ellsberg urges individuals inside government to produce Pentagon papers

"....just as Senators Byrd and Kennedy, the only two remaining in the Senate who voted for the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, learned from an error they have regretted for almost 40 years and tried to warn their current colleagues against repeating it last fall, so can insiders such as I once was do better than I did then. Individuals inside government, from low-level clerks to Cabinet members, have the power -- to be sure, at the risk of their careers -- to tell the truth. There are surely drawers full of documents in Washington right now -- the Pentagon Papers of Iraq -- that, if leaked in bulk, would drastically alter the public discourse on whether we should have sent our children to kill and to die in Iraq, and more urgently, whether we should continue to do so.

I urge patriotic and conscientious Americans who have access to these documents, and who know it is wrong for their bosses to lie to the public about why we are in this war, to consider doing what I wish I had done in 1964 or early 1965, years earlier than I did: Go to Congress and the press; tell the truth, with documents. The personal risks are real, but a war's worth of lives are at stake..."
[Boston Globe 2-22-04]

Politics: The Internet Revolution

I find it fascinating how the internet is considered an "alternate world". On this blog, for instance, you may see things that would possibly seem "out of place" on the mainstream media. Ask yourselves why. I'm not a gossip-mongerer. I write about reality...often taken directly off the mainstream...injecting my opinion, of course. The Internet is confounding the "real" world with all these voices who have been silent for so long. What to do?

He's baaaaaack
What will Progressives do? (WWPD?)



The Democrats have themselves to blame thank

On 'Face the Nation', I saw DNC chairman Terry McAuliffe blaming Ralph Nader for former VP Al Gore's loss in 2000.
I wondered: "When will he start taking responsibility for his own party's decisions and policies?"
As much as I was displeased (and appalled) at the barely-democratic process which handed us George W. Bush as our President in 2000, I do not begrudge Ralph Nader a run as an Independent candidate in 2004. I will not sit here and ignore him...nor will I mock his candidacy.

I used to think differently

I've been guilty in the recent past of cynicism and frustration about Nader, but I am realizing, after giving him a fair listen this morning, that vanity is likely not his reason for running. I will no longer attack his motives as "vanity-seeking-power". I hear the vanity-spin beginning already this morning in the mainstream media. I recall the media's "crazy-Howard" and "weirdo-Dennis" spin, too. I refuse to let my displeasure with Bush cause a "DISCONNECT" with my views on democracy in this nation. I love American democracy more than I politically disagree with the Bush administration. My view on this matter is evolving before you. If there's one thing you can say about politics, it's that it is NOT enhanced by adynamic thought. If that were so, I'd be holding fast to ideas long-obsolete. Why, then I'd be like a far-right Republican, for Pete's sake. Let me explain myself.

I'm sure Nader has watched the Democratic race closely. Why do you suppose he waited until now to enter as a Presidential candidate?

In many ways, the Democratic party has handed Mr. Nader the invitation to run in the way I've observed Democratic leadership running their primary contest. I'm tired of the carpenter blaming his tools for a shoddy end-product. Had American voters been given equally serious, educated, and clear media-disseminated choices (which we all know could have occurred with Democratic party leadership influence), there might not be such disgust with those whom many voters consider to be establishment-Democrats (aka "Republican-lite"). Serious DNC promotion of lesser-known candidates like Carol Moseley-Braun and Dennis Kucinich would have meant more than giving them token spots and occasional questions in the debates while sitting back silently as the mainstream media (for all intents and purposes) ignored and often MOCKED them. They have NOT taken the views of their left-leaning base seriously..and the 'left-base' knows this all too well. If anyone has to pay the piper for the Ralph Nader run, it would have to be the DNC chairperson....where the buck stops. Of course, Mr. McAuliffe will have the ever-influential DLC leaders Bruce Reed and Al From with whom to share the credit for Ralph accepting their cordial invitation to run.
They "brought him on".

Let's think about this carefully as we move forward

I'll end this with my own quote from last September. I hope you can sort through my words and understand that I am looking at my own gut-feelings through the shady glass of realism (based upon the jaded two-party political system in America today...and the media who loves them).

"..I think we should be realistic for the health of our democracy.
A second Bush term may decay democracy to a point of no return.
This may be the most important American election in history.
We really do need to find a way to unite as Democrats, Greens, Progessives, Independents...the strength of the party of Karl Rove is the way he's unifying their base.

This next election will be war...let's be prepared for battle.

The American dream of our forefathers will never continue until we awaken from our current nightmare.

..I happen to think Dennis Kucinich is one of the most truly decent souls in the entire field of democratic candidates.
I have the utmost respect for his ideas.

But I'll tell you this..and I believe it's true.
Americans will not elect Dennis Kucinich...
...I know America too, too well.
How I wish it could be different.

I saw what happened in the last election...I felt that Ralph Nader had fantastic ideas. So did many others.

Unfortunately, we saw what happened in Florida..which may well have been avoided had some of our idealistic voters chosen to consider the sheer pragmatism of the situation and the danger of the fast-encroaching radical right-wing...and voted for Gore rather than Nader.
I wonder, knowing what they know now, if many of the Nader voters would have changed their vote.

Idealism, Kate Harris, and five crooks on the US Supreme Court got us one "George W Bush" in 2000.

What a prize.

What's my point, you ask? Only that you consider all the factors and decide with your heart and mind toward a better day--whatever that means to you.

It's fairly clear that, had Mr. Nader never run for President as a Green in 2000, the voting results in Florida between Bush and Gore would possibly not have been so close. Then again..if Nader had not run in 2000, perhaps the small percentage of Greens that did vote for him would have stayed home on election day. Bottom line, we'll never know.
What we do know is that what happened in Florida, 2000 was and is still a shaded mystery...resulting in shaded history.
While I applaud Mr. Nader's right and respect his decision to run, I do hope we all have learned something from the shaded history that was "Florida 2000". I have not decided upon any other candidate for President since Howard Dean has suspended his run. I will still vote for Howard Dean in my NY State primary. Personally, I will probably use my November vote for pragmatic reasons. I want, in the end, what is best for this world. Sometimes we have to choke back our idealistic pride in order to move to the next level.
Ask yourselves...do you want four more years of the Bush administraton? Would it be easier for you to work as a Progressive in a more welcoming (albeit barely more comforting) political atmosphere with a Democratic president who failed to espouse your every ideal? I'm not telling you what to do...only to consider.

NZ Bear at The Truth Laid Bear blog has a very interesting analysis at his website.

We've ALWAYS had him



A Timeline

President Bush family dog Spot has died

" President Bush's dog Spot, the 15-year-old English springer spaniel, died Saturday after a recent series of strokes, the White House said..."



Condolences from the Iddybud blog to the Bush family.
It's never easy to lose a beloved pet.

FACE IT!


What do faces have to do with winning?
More than you'd expect......



"Dean consistently showed anger by pressing his lips together or tensely holding his mouth slightly open," Mr. Hill said. "Last fall, Kerry was showing definite signs of contempt and disgust by raising his upper lip, but that's gone now. He's trying to be more likable by smiling more, but rarely can he get past the social smile to the genuine smile. Edwards gets there much more often. He conveys the most optimism, and lately he's been adding gravitas by knitting his eyebrows to show that he feels the pain of the other America."

Pssst- Dennis Kucinich is still
running for President
(I'm telling you this because you'll
seldom hear it on cable news)

I'm sending out thanks to the Duchess, who has posted regular updates and current news about the Kucnich campaign:
From Hanging Out with the Duchess blog:

SAN FRANCISCO BAY GUARDIAN ENDORSES KUCINICH
Kucinich picked up an important endorsement on February 18th from the San Francisco Bay Guardian. The Bay Area's influential and widely read alternative weekly, which put a photo of Congressman Kucinich on its front page, had this to say:

"Kucinich is a genuine progressive. . . We're glad he's out there, and he deserves encouragement and support. The Kucinich campaign -- which shows no signs of giving up -- can be an organizing force for the left and help keep the activist spirit alive in the party as we head to a convention where the focus has to be on defeating Bush. "

THE NATION MAGAZINE: "PROGRESSIVES SHOULD VOTE KUCINICH"
"Dennis Kucinich is the one candidate for President whose vision, eloquence and commitments on the issues can lead us to rise to and surmount the worldwide crises precipitated by the Bush Administration. " Read more of this article
at the link above.

The Harvard Business Review List:
Breakthrough Ideas for 2004 [pdf]

From the fields of biology, neuroscience, economics, positive psychology, network science, marketing, management theory, and more...these are some of the emergent ideas that are changing the way business is done. Includes 20 new ideas by various authors, such as Prof. Rakesh Khurana, big-thinker Chris Meyer, Prof. Robert Sutton, Joel Kurtzman, Daniel H. Pink, Thomas A. Stewart, and Gardiner Morse.