I have been glued to my internet watching streaming video from one of Louisiana's tv stations since yesterday afternoon.
Its extended famliy, one of my son's closest friends, his wife and two babies are residents of the NOLA area. His house survived Katrina and was in fact used as a medical unit for months afterward.
They left yesterday, going opposite of the storm to the safety of a hotel the next state over. Fernie is a good man, although I still think of him as a kid. ;)
I talked to him a few minutes ago, and he is still on the road, the youngest baby hollering his fool head off in the background.
I told him what I know, and what the tv station is saying...its still not sure how big or where Gustav will land.
And I know Fernie is worried, he got through the first one, but is it gonna hit his home and office this time?
Fuck I hope not...I am praying it won't.
Meanwhile, bus companies that were contracted to haul po' folks out of the area are NOT living up to their contracts. Sending only a couple hundred bus's when they are liable for 700.
From Karen Zipdrives blog...this gent lays out all the sordid details of The Guv's pregnancy, flying 6-8 hours whilst in labor, and her daughters mysterious five month absence from high school. The dude has media reports too...its not all supposition people..
On Friday, Sarah Palin said the following about the infamous Ted Stevens' Bridge to Nowhere:
"I told Congress, 'Thanks, but no thanks,' on that bridge to nowhere."
The bridge and the earmark were already in the news and unpopular as hell with fellow Alaskans, so realistically, how could our little beauty queen say anything different? Now, the funds for that bridge, well...thats a different story:
When Palin says “I told Congress, ‘Thanks, but no thanks,’ on that bridge to nowhere,” it implies Congress said, “Here’s a check for that bridge” and she responded, “No thanks, that’s wasteful spending; here’s your money back.”
That's not what happened. Fact is, Alaska took the bridge money, and then just spent it on other projects.
So, is she full of shit? Oh yes she is....and she might not be a DC insider but she knows how to twist the facts to suit her own special interests..
Their photostream on Flickr can be seen here. Some great pictures of the code pink folks and other protestors during the Dem Nat Con. Just a couple of them that I liked below. Click for larger.
Three years ago it was the beginning of the horror that still manifests itself today in the gulf region. The Angry Black Bitch has a worthy post up about this topic as well.
Katrina however, was merely the conduit. Katrina showed us that the levees were fallible and the Bush Administration was worthless.
A noble cause still needs donations to help rebuild the NOLA area. Please consider sending them a few bucks if your able, I have done so in the past and will today to commemorate this horror that still affects hundreds of thousands of human beings. The Musicians Village fund still wants to make it right for people affected...help them if you can. Click the graphic to donate.
The female first term governor of Alaska is being reported at McSame's pick for Veep.
Sarah Palin is an interesting choice. She is young and inexperienced. She is 44 years old. Mother of five children, and a staunch conservative. Prolife and anti-gay marriage. A former Ms. Alaska runner-up as well....lol.
This pick comes out of the blue, the media is aghast...and so am I.
If McSame wins in November, but kicks the bucket whilst in office, this woman would be our President. She has no experience on a national level at all, never representing her state as a congress critter.
This is a gutsy pick for McCain and his minions....no doubt about it.
Gore will be a featured speaker tonight at Invesco Field, along with Howie Dean.
As for the Big O's acceptance speech, according to the NYT, he studied the acceptance speeches of Bill Clinton, Ronnie Reagan and of course JFK. The moving of the venue will cost someone or some group roughly Six Million. From the NYT writeup:
When a close circle of his top advisers presented Mr. Obama with $6 million plans to move his acceptance speech to the football stadium in early July, the candidate asked one question, said Anita Dunn, a senior strategist: “Will it rain?” The campaign produced a raft of meteorological data showing it had rained on Aug. 28 only once in 20 years. (Aides were alarmed, however, to arrive in Denver on Sunday to news of a nearby tornado. The weather reporters were predicting clear skies for Thursday night’s address.)
Six million would pay a lot of bills for folks hit hard by the outrageous price of gas in my humble, yet vocal opinion. It would help thousands of homeless veterans get their lives back on track too.
But the pomp and circumstance of the event is important to the Democratic leaders I guess..
On a side note, I am out of town and have had limited access to a computer...that will all change tomorrow thank Buddha. ;)
The Texas Third Court of Appeals has allowed money-laundering indictments to stand against two alleged co-conspirators of former US House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX), rejecting their argument that the state laws used to prosecute them were unconstitutionally vague or overbroad. The Austin-based intermediate appellate court on Friday affirmed (pdf) a trial court's denial of habeas relief sought by John Colyandro and Jim Ellis, who were originally indicted in 2004. The defendants are accused of accepting $190,000 in illegal campaign contributions from corporations and transferring the money to the Republican National Committee, which then allegedly donated the same amount to candidates for the Texas Legislature. The court concluded that restrictions on corporate campaign contributions in the Texas Elections Code need not survive strict scrutiny, and Justice G. Alan Waldrop wrote:
[W]e believe that a person of ordinary intelligence is capable of intending and designating his or her contributions to a political committee to be for lawful purposes unrelated to supporting or opposing a political candidate. Whether misuse of such funds by the political committee or innocent redistribution of such funds for unlawful purposes may have implications for the contributor or raise additional constitutional concerns is not before us in this appeal.
An attorney for DeLay predicted on Monday that the charges against the defendants would eventually be dismissed because the defendants are accused of accepting checks, while the appellate court concluded that the term "funds" applied only to cash until the language was amended in 2005. AP has more. The Houston Chronicle has local coverage.
DeLay himself still faces money-laundering and conspiracy charges, although another conspiracy charge was dismissed last year. Following his indictment in 2005, DeLay stepped down as House majority leader, later resigning from Congress and eventually withdrawing his candidacy for re-election. Separately, a former aide to DeLay pleaded guilty in 2006 to conspiring with lobbyist Jack Abramoff and others to bribe public officials. The US Senate Indian Affairs Committee that year issued a report calling the connections between Abramoff and another former DeLay aide "astonishing." US Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH) also pleaded guilty to conspiracy and making false statements after accepting money and gifts in exchange for taking actions on behalf of Abramoff and his clients.
Can't wait for this trial to finally start up. Delay and his buddies have been living on borrowed time. Lets see if Hot Tub Tommy is still smiling when his trial is over..shall we? ;)
It can be found here (scoll down for the text of her speech). Its quite moving. I really like to listen to her, she is one good lady that has my utmost respect for how she has lived her life. She is quite the speaker too as far as I am concerned. I might not support her spouse for President 100%, but I do respect her 100%.
As a woman of color (the color brown), as an American, I am proud as fucking punch of what Michelle Obama has accomplished in her own right. To come from a hard-working family, who's father went to work every single fucking day with MS for thirty years, she was raised right...and continues to do right. I love this woman, and I hope she can convince me to vote for her husband. If anyone can do it...Michelle Obama can.
A possible assassination plot to take Obama out at Invesco Field on Thursday night.From the Hill:
DENVER — Authorities in Denver have scheduled a press conference Tuesday afternoon amid a report by a television station of a plot to assassinate Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) during his Thursday speech at the Democratic convention at Invesco Field.
Police say they will discuss the facts surrounding a traffic stop in Aurora, Colo., where methamphetamine and firearms were found. Several people are being held in state custody and federal charges are anticipated, according to a news release from the U.S. attorney’s office in Denver.
Nothing in the news release suggests the arrests have anything to do with the convention or a plot to attack Obama, although a Secret Service agent is among the law enforcement officials scheduled to appear on Tuesday.
According to a report by KUSA-TV, at least four people are under arrest in connection with a plot to kill Obama during his speech Thursday night at Invesco Field. The television station cited law enforcement sources as saying one of the suspects said the group planned to come to Denver to kill Obama.
One of the suspects told authorities they were “going to shoot Obama from a high vantage point using a … rifle … sighted at 750 yards,” according to the KUSA report.
The station said police found two high-powered, scoped rifles in the car along with camouflage clothing, walkie-talkies, a bulletproof vest, a spotting scope, licenses in the names of other people and methamphetamines.
A public affairs official with the attorney’s office in Denver said they would provide no other information on the news conference.
Jesus H. Christ, it's just beginning..the wingtards are coming out of the woodwork already.
And of all the media outlets to give it coverage..Faux Noise! Hat tip to Nicole over at Crooks and Liars for having this puppy up. The marchers refused to speak to the Faux Noise goon...which might or might not be a good thing...but anywho...check it out..its short enough!
Yet, his daddy Joe calls him a lawyer on his website. From the last paragraph on the page:
Senator Biden lives in Wilmington, Delaware and commutes to Washington, DC when the Senate is in session. He is married to Dr. Jill Biden, the former Jill Jacobs, an educator in Delaware's schools for over twenty years. She currently is a professor teaching at Delaware Technical Community College. Senator Biden is the father of three children: Beau, Hunter and Ashley. Beau serves as Delaware's Attorney General, Ashley is a social worker and Hunter is a lawyer. The Bidens also have five grandchildren: Naomi, Finnegan, Roberta Mabel, Natalie, and Robert Hunter.
Now, isn't that interesting and just a little ironic? Which group is it that Obama has so much disdain for that he refuses to take their campaign donations? Ummm...Lobbyists.
From Bloomberg: The Big O's campaign had 'no comment'. Also from Bloomberg:
Barack Obama's speech announcing his running mate Joe Biden singled out the Delaware senator's son who is headed for Iraq. Obama didn't mention the profession of Biden's other son, who lobbied for two drug companies and five universities.
No comment from the Obama-Biden campaign on what Biden's son Hunter does for a living? You can bet your ass the neocon's will be all over this little tidbit..so the campaign will have to address it sooner or later...And that's not all the lobbying headaches for the Big O that Joe Biden brings to the campaign 'table'. From The National Journal:
Further, a half-dozen or so former Biden staffers are working as Washington lobbyists. They include Jeff Connaughton, vice chairman of Quinn Gillespie & Associates; Mark Gitenstein, partner at Mayer Brown; Neil McBride, vice president for legal affairs at the Business Software Alliance; Jeff Peck, partner at Johnson Madigan Boland Peck & Stewart; Chris Putala, executive vice president of public policy at Earthlink; Jake Seher, senior legislative adviser at Venable; Ryan Spangler, manager of government relations at Monument Policy Group; and James Williams, senior vice president at Ogilvy Government Relations.
Biden also has family ties to K Street. His, son, R. Hunter Biden, is a founding partner at law and lobbying firm Oldaker, Biden & Belair. William Oldaker, one of the firm's other founders, has been a campaign adviser and fundraiser for Biden for 25 years, according to Delaware news reports. Biden is so close to former Rep. Marty Russo, D-Ill., CEO and senior vice chairman at lobbying firm Cassidy & Associates, that he is godfather to Russo's granddaughter.
Goodness, this could really get played by the Rethugs in a big way..
Joe Biden is a good man, I don’t doubt that. He doesn’t live in DC, instead taking the train every night to his Delaware home…which by the way is quite modest by anyone’s standards. He isn’t worth much more than the average Joe and Jill that live down the street in middle-class America, having taken out a second on his house to put one of his son’s through college.
Biden is a good debater, he can hold his ground with anyone, and yesterdays bitch-slap of McCain was a welcome sight to me.
His positions on some of the important issues might cause a lefty to gulp however. This Alternet article tells us some of Joe’s pro’s and cons. He’s, according to Alternet, taken the lead on environmental issues, is strong on labor, with a number of years with 100 percent “pro-labor” voting scores by the AFL-CIO (his 2007 score of 85% was not among the top scores for Senate Democrats).
He has a mixed record on a woman’s right to choose, having voted for the ban on “partial birth abortion” - a nonexistent procedure invented by the religious right - and opposing federal funding for abortions for low-income women, but he has also been a consistent defender of the basic tenets of Roe V Wade.
He’s received a 78 rating from the Human Rights Campaign, and is a strong advocate for domestic partnership benefits for same-sex couples. He voted against the proposed Constitutional ban on gay marriage but supported the Defense of Marriage Act. In 2003, when asked if gay marriage was an inevitability, Biden responded, “I’m not sure. I think probably it is.”
Biden’s most problematic domestic issue, as far as progressive voters are concerned, is probably his record of fealty to the finance industry. Not only did he vote in favor of the 2005 bankruptcy “reform” bill, he also voted against most of the proposed amendments that would have strengthened consumer rights under the legislation. Biden, whose top contributor over his career has been the credit card giant MBNA Corp., was one of only 18 Democrats to vote for the bill. He’s often referred to by progressive critics as Joe Biden (D-Mastercard). (emphasis mine)
I am not thrilled at all with his stance on Abortion and poor women first off. It bugs the living shit out of me to be honest. I do not consider Biden to be a friend to the consumer either. His vote for the Bankruptcy Bill and his allegiance to the Financial Industry down right piss me the fuck off.
My knee jerk reaction is nope. The 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago was a watershed moment in our history and it appears the various law enforcement groups have taken steps to insure nothing even close to the melee in Chicago will occur in Denver. The Denver Police have issued a bulletin, according to RawStory, that alerts all officers what to be on the look-out for. It is a real hoot, check it out. Meanwhile the ACLU has been busting their asses trying to get the courts to support our rights to free speech and assembly, but they haven't made much headway.
Forty years ago Chicago itself was a battleground, a warzone as the police never issued the permits requested by the various anti-war groups. The police in Denver, the federal government and the DNC have already laid down the ground rules for protests and the courts have backed them up for the most part. The ACLU has tried on several occasions to get the rules changed to allow protestors to gain closer access to the Pepsi Center where most of the 'festivities' will be held..but to no avail. From the NYT article linked in this paragraph:
A federal judge in Denver ruled against the American Civil Liberties Union in a lawsuit challenging the government’s security rules for the Democratic National Convention here later this month. The judge, Marcia S. Krieger of Federal District Court, agreed with the group that the security plans — including a fenced perimeter and a parade route away from the Pepsi Center where the convention will take place — did affect the ability of protest groups to engage in “expressive activities.” But Judge Krieger disagreed that the affect rose to the level of an infringement of free speech because other means of expression were available and because the Secret Service and Denver Police had shown that the restrictions were “content neutral,” and thus not intended to quash a particular opinion.
Its a damn shame the feds, the Dems and the Denver police are afraid of allowing people the right to express their personal grievances with the election process in general and their elected representatives regarding the war in Iraq in particular. The Denver Police have issued a 'flyer' that you can check out here (pdf) which tells people what will be tolerated and what will not. Not to be outdone, the Secret Service has declared both conventions to be...cough..National Special Security Events..and given both cities $50 million in federal funds for 'security'. Protesters will be in a huge pen in the Pepsi Center parking lot..like animals. For pictures of the area protesters will be confined to..clickhere.
The group Recreate 68, their logo graces this post, has plenty of plans for events during the convention. These include music and protests, street theater and major anti-war figures will be speaking at rallies. The following is from their website:
The Re-create 68 Alliance also announced that anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan and Green Party Presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney and Green Party Vice Presidential candidate Rosa Clemente will be joining their historic line-up of speakers who include Ida Audeh, Kathleen Cleaver, Ward Churchill, Mark Cohen, Chairman Fred Hampton Jr., Larry Hales, Larry Holmes, Ron Kovic, Glenn Spagnuolo, Pamela Africa, King Downing, Jenny Esquiveo, Mumia Abu Jamal - Current Political Prisoner (Recorded from Death Row for the DNC), Gloria Estela La Riva, Ricardo Romero, Natsu Saito, Ann Erika White Bird, and others.
What a grand example of American's exercising their civil liberties, to be displayed to the world next week in Denver and to be repeated during the Republican convention in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, the first week in September.
Bullshit..its all bullshit designed to keep us from exercising our civil rights. Assholes..
Both Politico and MSNBC are reporting its Joe Biden.
I like Joe, but I think the Sec of State would of been the best spot for him. From MSNBC:
Delaware Senator Joe Biden is Barack Obama's choice to be his vice presidential running mate, NBC News has confirmed.
Biden, who has served in the Senate since being elected at the age of 29, is the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and will add his foreign policy expertise to the Democratic ticket.
In recent years, he has traveled to Afghanistan and Pakistan two times and to Iraq eight times. He returned Monday from a fact-finding trip to Georgia.
In the first decision of its kind, a federal judge has ruled that California's medical marijuana advocates may go forward with a claim that the federal government has a pattern of drug law enforcement intended to subvert California law in violation of the U.S. Constitution.
U.S. District Judge Jeremy Fogel, in San Jose, Calif., said he will allow Santa Cruz County to go forward with its claim that federal authorities deliberately are seeking to frustrate the state's ability to determine whether an individual's use of marijuana is permitted medical use, or illegal recreational use.
Medical marijuana advocates contend the federal government has engaged in a calculated campaign to force states to repeal medical marijuana use laws, in violation of the 10th Amendment, which reserves states' powers.
What? States rights? They trump the DEA bullshit? Seriously Judge Fogel? Are you daft man? The Supreme's ruled that the Feds have the right to enforce their fuckwittery on all states.
Santa Cruz passed an ordinance that creates a government office responsible for providing medical marijuana directly to patients, in part to test the reach of the Raich decision.
The lawsuit, County of Santa Cruz v. Gonzales, C03-1802JF, by Santa Cruz County against the U.S. attorney general alleges the federal government has targeted enforcement to make it impossible for California to implement and enforce its law and force the state to recriminalize medical marijuana use.
We ain't taking this shit lightly..no we are not gents. Our state voted on this you bastards...and the voters said medicinal use of cannabis is a-ok. Alcohol, which will kill you if taken to extremes, is fine with the feds...but cannabis...nope. Those bastards have held nature's medicinal hostage for 50 years.
“Whenever there’s a corrupt system, then you’re going to have these birds of prey descend on it to get their share of the spoils,”
“Lobbyists don’t come to my office. Because they know they’re not going to be an earmark. They know they’re not going to get a pork-barrel project. Senator Obama’s gotten lots of ’em.:”
“I would not allow anyone who worked for my administration to go back to lobbying,” McCain said. “They would have to make that pledge.”
They won't go back to lobbying? Well, perhaps that's because they are lobbyists NOW, and they are just on a 'leave of absence' from those lucrative positions.
The DNC has released a short ad condemning McCain for his fuckwittery regarding lobbyists.
The website McCainsLobbyists.com is a great interactive site to actually get the lowdown on many of the 159 lobbyists that work for him in some capacity; fundraising, running his campaign or advising him on major policy issues. ProgressiveAccountability.org has an excellent listing. It lists who they worked for, their clients and the issues they lobbied on as well as their current position inside McCain's campaign. PA's list seems endless when you first happen on the site.
This batshit-crazy old coot really must think we are all idiots. What else explains it? Its not like his lobbying brigade is a classified state secret.
Another thing to remember...even if they have left the "official" capacity of working on/in/for the campaign, many of them are still fundraising for him. Something lobbyists are very good at. And we thought it couldn't get any worse than George Bush...jesus, were we wrong. McCain i a lying sack of sheep shit that transcends The Shrub m'dear reader.
Specifically SteveO. I heart him big time as he is recovering from a horrible motorcycle accident...with an automobile. But he is spending his time making some choice graphics! ;)
She will be replacing Dan Abrams. Good news!!! A liberal gets a timeslot!!!! Praise Buddha!! From the NYT writeup:
Just in time for the closing rush of the presidential election, MSNBC is shaking up its prime-time programming lineup, removing the long-time host –- and one-time general manager of the network — Dan Abrams from his 9 p.m. program and replacing him with Rachel Maddow, who has emerged as a favored political commentator for the all-news cable channel.
The moves, which were confirmed by MSNBC executives Tuesday, are expected to be finalized by Wednesday, with Mr. Abrams’s last program on Thursday. After MSNBC’s extensive coverage of the two political conventions during the next two weeks, Ms. Maddow will begin her program on Sept. 8.
YAY!!! Although I did watch Abrams show a few times a week, I will dvr Ms. Maddow's. ;)
The GOP, and by proxy, John McCain are pointing to the wealthiest county in all of the U.S. as a means to prove our economy is just fucking ducky and NAFTA works. David Sirota's "Trade Report" for OurFuture.org has some simply friggin amazing stuff in it. From the linkage above:
The New York Times Magazine this week publishes an article by David Leonhardt attempting to explain Barack Obama’s fundamental economic ideology. To echo Philip Seymour Hoffman in Almost Famous, “it’s a think-piece about a mid-level band struggling with their own limitations in the harsh face of stardom.” And, indeed, many of its passages should make Wall Streeters wet themselves. Within the first nine paragraphs, for instance, Leonhardt bills Citigroup Chairman Bob Rubin the “center,” despite his deregulatory and pro-NAFTA policies lying far outside the center of American public opinion. That said, the article provides some interesting insights into what Obama will – and will not – do as president.
Another gem, The Roanoke Times has an article up that explores how Obama is stumping in one of the worst hit cities with regard to NAFTA in VA, and how the Rethugs are taunting him to come talk about the horrors of NAFTA in, of all places, Fairfax County.
I lived in Fairfax county. It IS the top rated city for rich folks, believe me. With it's close proximity to DC, just over the river, Fairfax residents, for the most part, LOVE the shit out of NAFTA. Rethug Tommy Davis is retiring but lobbed out this tidbit with regard to Fairfax county and NAFTA:
"What would be courageous is to come to Fairfax County, where you have 362 foreign-owned companies and tens of thousands of employees with foreign-owned firms ... and take the same stand up here," said Davis, who is retiring from Congress. (emphasis mine)
The operative word there is 'foreign-owned'. Not American-owned..fucking foreign. Evidently that irony escapes the Republicans..as Sirota notes:
Besides the tone deafness of holding up foreign-owned firms as proof of a solid domestic economy, Davis forgot to mention that according to Forbes magazine, Fairfax County has long been the wealthiest county in the United States - a place where the median (the median!) household income is over $100,000 a year. The county is home to many of the millionaire corporate lobbyists that have been instrumental in the passage of rigged trade deals. Davis citing Fairfax County today as proof that trade policies are working for the vast majority of the country would be like FDR citing the Rockefeller family during the Great Depression as proof that the economy was working for most Americans.
Love it, especially the last line. ;) The next part is sure to jack some jaws. Obama is ass-kissing some of the worst of the worst on Wall Street, namely the same captains of industry that oppose changing NAFTA one iota. From Sirota again:
As reported last week, Obama's campaign is quietly courting the same CEOs that oppose trade policy reform. While there are certainly huge differences on trade between Obama and McCain's stated positions, the two campaigns are both being advised by top executives from UBS, one of the largest investment banks in the world. Indeed, the McCain campaign continues to solicit advice from UBS vice-chairman Phil Gramm, while the Obama campaign has long been shaped by Gramm's UBS boss, Robert Wolf. That kind of Wall Street influence will likely make a fair trade agenda much more difficult in 2009.
Make it difficult? Hell, it will make change impossible dude. The final subject tackled by Sirota in his piece is the much-hated (by me anyway) DLC and their bullshit express:
Ripping a page straight out of George W. Bush's playbook, the Democratic Leadership Council this week attempted to justify its corporate sponsors' trade agenda by writing a Wall Street Journal op-ed insisting that NAFTA-style trade deals fight Islamic terrorism. Yes - you read that right, and the DLC wasn't joking. They really want America to believe that passing trade deals that are unpopular both here and abroad is the way to stop Al Qaeda.
In fact, the BBC's landmark 2008 poll undercuts the DLC's fact-free rhetoric with hard data. The survey of international opinion shows widespread unease with the United States' trade and globalization policies - and that unease is particularly acute in the Middle East, where the DLC claims that NAFTA-style policies will stop terrorism.
As I have said before and I will scream it again...the DLC is not our friend. Never has been and never will be people. To say NAFTA will stop terrorism is fucking outrageous and yes, George Bush-league material. One only needs to look at the economy in Mexico to see that NAFTA hasn't done squat for the common man and woman there. Oh, but the drug cartels are flourishing.
This was recorded in NM today at one of his 'townhall meetings'. Johnny Weathervane McCain agrees with a woman that the federal government needs to institute the draft in order to start all his wars...you know, with Iran, Russia and who knows who else.
Doctors said Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones is in "critical condition," despite reports from a Cleveland newspaper that the Democrat died after suffering a brain aneurysm.
Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones is being treated in a Cleveland hospital after suffering a brain aneurysm, according to The Cleveland Plain Dealer.
The newspaper reported earlier Wednesday that Tubbs Jones had died.
Ms. Tubbs-Jones was the first black woman to represent Ohio, first elected in 1998. She was also the first black woman to serve on the powerful Ways and Means Committee.
UPDATE: Ms. Tubbs-Jones passed away this evening at 6pm. :(
If watching Stewart is the only way most young people under the age of 30 get their news, then yes he should be trusted and viewed as a journalist and his show as a news source. With that said...
He also has a great comic sense and makes you laugh through the tears. We all need that. When I can't take the news 'straight' anymore, I watch The Daily Show. I dvr it nightly. Some choice bits from the writeup:
Jon Stewart, on the set of “The Daily Show,” tied Tom Brokaw, Brian Williams, Dan Rather and Anderson Cooper among admired journalists. And that was last year.
*snip*
Most important, at a time when Fox, MSNBC and CNN routinely mix news and entertainment, larding their 24-hour schedules with bloviation fests and marathon coverage of sexual predators and dead celebrities, it’s been “The Daily Show” that has tenaciously tracked big, “super depressing” issues like the cherry-picking of prewar intelligence, the politicization of the Department of Justice and the efforts of the Bush White House to augment its executive power.
He does get serious on certain guests. His sarcastic, flippant style is one of my favorite things. His idiotic laugh will get me laughing as well. Watch him for the comedy or watch him for the news...I don't care which...but we all need a little Daily Show in our lives at this point in time. Its three pages long, so bring your lunch if your going to read Michiko Kakutani's article about Stewart and The Daily Show.
I just loved the hell out of this bit of news today. Don't ya know that when I wrote recently about how Nicole Parra said she would support the Republican running for her seat over the Democrat I was so furious I could spit nails. I wanted someone to do something about this creepy-assed DINO. Her recent bullshit move against the Democrat-supported State Budget vote was the last straw apparently. From the Bakersfield rag known as the Bakersfield Californian:
Parra booted from Capitol office
The broom closet wasn’t small enough for Nicole Parra.
Apparently upset about Parra’s decision to withhold her vote on the budget Sunday night, Assembly Speaker Karen Bass Monday exiled Parra from the Capitol entirely.
Capitol observers say punishing wayward members by moving them to smaller offices — including one so small it’s dubbed “the broom closet” — is customary.
But Parra’s transgression was apparently worse in the eyes of Bass.
Parra, D-Hanford, and her staff were given new quarters in the Legislative Office Building, Room 175, across the street from the Capitol — a space about a third the size of the office she was evicted from, said her chief of staff, Derek Chernow, in between packing boxes.
I am giddy with the prospect of Ms. Parra being highly peeved and very put out. She has termed out here in California meaning she can not run for the same state office again. I hope she pulls a Holy-Joe and runs ,for whatever office this assinine career politician will seek, as an Independant because she ain't no Democrat. She wanted perks for her district in return for her vote on our state budget. A budget btw which is long overdue...but that's another story.
Enjoy that closet Nicole...you earned it lady...and, btw... I use the term "lady" very loosely here. ;)
Robert Greenwald's Brave New Films/Foundation has a new project entitled "Meet the Bloggers". It's an online program wherein they interview interesting and important figures within the Blogosphere. This Friday, August 22nd is a show featuring Michael Moore. Also on the show will be David Sirota whom I adore, Cheryl Contee who is the Jill from Jack and Jill Politics and associate editor Liliana Segura of AlterNet.org fame.
To check out their past shows, click here. I think this show will be a good one and Moore is scheduled to be on their next two shows as his plate is always quite full of important issues. From their website, in case your not familiar with this program:
Greenwald and the folks at Brave New Foundation always educate and inform, we the people. They do this based only on donations. Their goals: Championing social justice issues by using media to inspire, empower, motivate and teach civic participation that makes a difference.~And I believe they do make a difference. Check out the Foundation and the show ok?
We can never stop learning or participating, and the BNF gives us the information and tools to speak truth to power.
In true Nixsonian style Musharraf resigns. Per the NYT:
Facing the threat of impeachment, President Pervez Musharraf announced that he would resign, saying the charges against him were false but that he would step down for the sake of his nation.
Why in the blue hell won't our congress critters do this? Jesus Christ it isn't rocket science folks. This bag o shit has been in office for nine friggin years. Here is Musharraf's money quote:
“Unfortunately, there are some people who have self-interest, and they are putting their interests above those of the country,” he said. “Some people are trying to blame, me and they are making false accusations against me.”
Isn't that rich? If there isn't any evidence, why in the blue hell is this fuckwit resigning? Ah, but wait.....it gets better:
At the core of the talks has been Mr. Musharraf’s demand that he be immune from prosecution if he resigns before the impeachment proceedings begin.
The negotiations were bogged down over the legal technicalities of when immunity would be granted, according to a senior coalition official. The coalition was reluctant to grant immunity before Mr. Musharraf left office, because of fears that once he had won immunity he would not depart, said the official, who declined to be identified because of the delicacy of the talks.
Technical difficulties? Like when a tv channel goes out? Sigh...if only it was happening right here, right now m'dear reader....if only.
Of course Howie didn't use that word...but hey..if the shoe fits. From the Carpetbagger:
The DNC has been sending around the full context of the exchange:
NPR: Another bit of news that caught our eyes this week, the U.S. Census Department released a report projecting that whites will become a minority in the US by the year 2042, that’s about 8 years earlier than expected. How do you think it would affect your approach to building the Democratic Party? You famously declared that Democrats should pursue voters who had confederate flags in their cars, meaning that Democrats should continue to court culturally conservative southern whites. Do these new numbers suggest that perhaps that strategy doesn’t really make sense?
Dean: I think we should court all voters and we haven’t courted Southern conservative working class folks and we need to do that. But you know our Party has been a no majority party for a long time. The fact is that the Democratic Party is made up of lots of different people and we’re all minorities in our party. That’s the way it’s been for a long, long time. We’re the party of opportunity. The demographic trends favor the Democrats because we are an inclusive, accepting party. And if you look at folks of color, even women, they’re more successful in the Democratic Party than they are in the white, excuse me, than in the Republican Party because we just give more opportunity to folks who are hardworking people who are immigrants and come from members of minority groups.
I doubt Dean deliberately was calling the GOP the “White Party.” If that was his goal, this was a rather clumsy way of doing it.
Frankly, I could give a shit people. Come on, its not a secret and the more the Dems hammer them on that point, the better off they will be.
Do I want our own 527's banging the bejesus out of the neocons? You betcha! You don't level the playing field with the neo's unless you get down with the truth as bluntly as possible. No lies...just some statistics about the actual percentage of minorities, including women that are doing well (and not in jail) on the Republican side of the aisle.
I played just like the big boys when I was still in the workforce. You have to or you don't make it. I smiled when they called me a bitch, and don't you know...it pissed them the fuck off even more.
If your not pissing off the other side, you aren't hitting them hard enough. Get them to go off point and spend their time and money on blustery bullshit arguments they really can't win but they can whine about.
From ABC via TO. The suit was filed by six individuals that were denied employment. The lawsuit states they were denied employment due to the politicization of the DOJ.
No...really? Who would of thunk it? From the article:
Six attorneys rejected from civil service positions at the Justice Department filed a lawsuit on Friday against former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and three other top officials for allegedly violating their rights by taking politics into consideration in the hiring process.
The suit is an attempt to hold top officials accountable for the hiring scandal that ultimately led to Gonzales' resignation last year, said Daniel Metcalfe, the attorney for the plaintiffs who is also executive director of its Collaboration on Government Secrecy at American University's Washington College of Law.
I hope they clean the DOJ's clock so to speak...receiving a huge amount of money for the wrongs done to them. I know its our tax money they will be getting..but hell, BushCo spends it on the war, tax breaks for the top one percent and all the other horseshit..might as well see some decent folk get some of it.
Besides Alberto Gonzales, the suit includes: Monica Goodling, former White House Liaison; Michael Elston, former chief of staff to then-Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty; and Esther McDonald, former counsel to Gonzales.
What a fine group of fucktards there eh? Since Mukasey's dumbass said recently he will not be going after any of these idiots..this will be the only comeuppance they will get if the verdict goes against the DOJ.
Six US sailors have been charged for allegedly abusing Iraqi detainees held at Camp Bucca. The six are said to have physically assaulted at least two detainees whom they were guarding, and locked eight others in a cell that had been covered with pepper spray. Seven other sailors reportedly faced non-judicial punishment for their involvement in the incidents. Al Jazeera has more. CNN has additional coverage.
Camp Bucca was at the center of controversy in 2003 when the so-called Taguba report (pdf) detailed instances of detainee abuse and found that the detention camp was well over its carrying capacity. Many former Abu Ghraib detainees were transferred to Camp Bucca after reports of detainee abuse in the Baghdad prison surfaced. In July, four former Abu Ghraib detainees filed lawsuits against two private US military contractors and three of their employees, alleging torture, war crimes and civil conspiracy. The former detainees said that employees of CACI International and L-3 Communications, which performed interrogation and interpretation work for the US military, violated the Geneva Convention, the Army Field Manual and US law by torturing and conspiring to torture the detainees. They also alleged that CACI and L-3 were negligent in failing to prevent the torture.
Torture a United States military tradition....across all branches apparently.
You have said you regret the “blot” on your record caused by your parroting spurious intelligence at the U.N. to justify war on Iraq. On the chance you may not have noticed, I write to point out that you now have a unique opportunity to do some rehab on your reputation.
Ray then goes on to point out the obvious to Powell:
Your U.N. speech of Feb. 5, 2003 left me speechless, so to speak — largely because of the measure of respect I had had for you before then.
Outrage is too tame a word for what quickly became my reaction and that of my colleagues in Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS), as we watched you perform before the Security Council less than six weeks before the unnecessary, illegal attack on Iraq.
The purpose — as well as the speciousness — of your address were all too transparent and, in a same-day commentary, we VIPS warned President George W. Bush that, if he attacked Iraq, “the unintended consequences are likely to be catastrophic.”
Catastrophic is an understatement. What happened is beyond catastrosphic to me. McGovern then goes on to list each lie perpetrated by either Powell or the smarmy idiots in the Bush Administration. He doesn't mince words and he backs up what he says. Its worth a read, so check out the entire article. Here is what McGovern suggests Colin Powell do:
Let me suggest that you offer yourself as a witness to help clear the air on these very important issues. This would seem the responsible, patriotic thing to do in the circumstances and could also have the salutary effect of beginning the atonement process for that day of infamy at the Security Council.
If we hear no peep out of you in the coming weeks, we shall not be able to escape concluding one of two things:
(1) That, as was the case with the White House Situation Room sessions on torture, you were a willing participant in suppressing/falsifying key intelligence on Iraq; or
(2) That you lack the courage to expose the scoundrels who betrayed not only you, but also that segment of our country and our world that still puts a premium on truth telling and the law.
Think about it.
With all due respect,
Ray McGovern
Its simple and straightforward isn't it? McGovern suggests Powell appear before Conyer's committee and tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
Any bets on whether Powell will do it? My guess is no..how about yours?
I read Dean Bakers columns over at CEPR. He helps me to understand how all the ups and downs of prices for goods and services that are fucking us all in the ass six ways from Sunday. From Mr. Bakers newest column this morning via my email:
"The annual rate of inflation in the CPI has been 10.6 percent over the last quarter." The overall CPI rose 0.3 percent in July, as a 1.2 percent jump in apparel prices, coupled with unusually large increases in communication and recreation prices led to a larger than expected increase. The core index has now increased at a 3.5 percent annual rate over the last quarter, up from a 2.5 percent rate over the last year.
To have a hike of 10% over a lousy quarter, well folks, this is unheard of. When the LAT gives us a headline like this: High energy costs hike consumer prices in July; inflation up, then goes on to give us this tag line at the top of their article:
The inflation rate, at 5.6%, is the highest in 17 years, a Labor Department report says.
You know the shit is hitting the fan m'dear readers. Since wages have been stagnant for over a decade...This ain't good news any way you slice and dice it.
Yet we get fuckwits like the WSJs Phil Izzo telling us that it's no big deal really...all his financial pundits weigh in with...don't worry, be happy we can explain it all away crappola...it makes me wanna go postal.
We do not live in their world..and they sure as shit don't live in ours. That's why we need folks like Dean Baker to wade through all the bullshit and give it to us straight.
Kate Whitley flap continues, as well it should..Via TPMmuckraker:
Yesteday, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) wrote a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates urging the department to comply with the Congressional subpoena issued for Whitley.
"We believe the Department's actions are completely without justification. The Department has provided no valid legal basis for its decision to prevent a witness from complying with a duly authorized congressional subpoena. The President has not asserted executive privilege over the testimony of Dr. Whitley. During the hearing, Subcommittee Chairman Tierney asked Mr. Dominguez whether there had been any assertion of executive privilege, and he testified that there had not been.
In addition, the committee also wants to know precisely why officials didn't want Whitley to testify. The letter to Gates also asked for all emails and other internal communications relating to the request for Whitley's testimony.
If the Pentagon does not comply, the committee threated to subpoena three high-ranking Pentagon officials to a hearing on Sept. 12 to testify about the Defense Department's legal rational for not allowing Whitley to testify.
Late Update: Gates has agreed to let Whitley testify
About two thirds of U.S. corporations paid no federal taxes between 1998 and 2005, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office. Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), who was among the Democratic lawmakers who requested the study, said it proves that many corporations are using "tax trickery" to send profits overseas and avoid paying U.S. taxes. (New York Times)
If that shit doesn't piss you the hell off, your not paying attention.
From The Real News Network, part one of the four part series of an interview with Naomi Klein.
Naomi Klein:
"I think this is an incredibly efficient, actually, a scarily efficient way of organizing society that's actually being celebrated here, which is a hybrid of some of the worst elements of authoritarian communism—mass surveillance of the population, total lack of civil liberties, lack of a free press, lack of democratic rights, authoritarian central planning, all harnessed not to advance the goals of social justice, even in name, although there may be some lip service still paid to that, but to advance the goals of global capitalism. So it is Stalinism meets global capitalism.... There are 100,000 security officers just on Olympic duty. And to put that into perspective, the stadium itself, the Bird's Nest Stadium holds 90,000. So there's 90,000 spectators and 100,000 secret police keeping control of things in Beijing. So this is an incredible operation. But when you hear people like Lou Dobbs and other commentators talking about the problems in China, it's always red China, communist China, or the Chi-coms. And it's really this blast from the past of—you know, it's almost as if the Cold War never ended."
Pakistan's Punjab Provincial Assembly on Monday voted to ask President Pervez Musharraf to resign or face possible impeachment by the country's parliament. Of the body's 371 members, 321 voted for the motion, including the majority of Musharraf's own Pakistan Muslim League-Q party. In response to the vote and impeachment plans led by the country's coalition government, Musharraf stated he will fight the allegations of wrongdoing and asserted that the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) simply wants to impose their rule over his own. For the potential impeachment to succeed, it would require the endorsement of two-thirds of legislators in a joint session of parliament. The lower house of parliament was scheduled to meet later on Monday to consider the move. BBC News has more.
Why can't our Congress do this? It is a rhetorical question...
I have purchased a domain name. I have been meticulously working on a new site,Leftwing Nutjob. Please change your bookmarks people..this puppy will no longer be updated as of July 1st 2011.
