SHOULD WE TALK ABOUT THE WEATHER...

Would That Other Democrats Be So Blunt

2010-07-15T04:24:00.004-04:00

Ya know, tweeting is MUCH easier than this whole blog thing. But I feel remiss in my duties, so... Great piece from Representative Keith Ellison on the class warfare that is the GOP tax policy. On the same subject, sorta, is this great piece on what the real problem is (hint: it's the capitalism, stupid!)... And here's a trenchant piece from Robert Creamer on the absurdity of the current Republican argument for re-electing them because, essentially, the Democrats have not cleaned up the mess that they created fast enough. And you watch. Americans will do it. They believe that Americans should have voted Republicans back into Congress in 1934 and replaced FDR with Hoover in 1936. Because the New Deal "didn't work".

And, just so that none of us gets the idea that any amount of facts might penetrate the fantasy world of the tea partiers/Foxaholics, here's a piece on why that quaint little notion is doomed to failure. There. I've blogged. Happy?

Obama Doesn't Just Defend the (pretty lame) Healthcare Plan...

2009-09-11T23:14:00.001-04:00

But defends liberalism itself and the power of government as a good. Wow. Worth watching.

Finally! The Villagers Hear the Truth.

2009-02-21T14:21:00.005-05:00

This guy is my new hero. I mean, seriously, when did the American worker become such a sheep and fall for this Fox news stuff? ALL of us should be speaking this way! What is WRONG with us?!?!? Note the utter perplexity of the Fox guy. He literally cannot believe what he is hearing. Priceless expression. And you KNOW the conversation after the cameras stopped rolling... "who let THAT guy on the air?!?!?!"

What is There Left to Do But Weep...?

2008-11-03T22:41:00.005-05:00

And pray that Americans can find it in themselves to vote their hopes and not their fears. When have you EVER seen a politician elicit such responses from people? I know I've never felt this way. Americans are dying for leadership. For inspiration. Deep down, we're all afraid to even believe in anything. We're afraid of being played. Of being disappointed. Yet we're letting ourselves fall anyway. For Obama...all I can say is, godspeed. As someone at huffpost said, be well, be well. Thank you 'Toot', rest in peace, your work is done.

On election eve, this gentleman gives me comfort in the face of my election anxiety. After all of the horrible videos of rabid proto-fascists at Palin rallies, all I can say is, THIS is what Obama's campaign has always been about. This man represents the America I grew up to believe in.

Sublime... Truly Sublime...

2008-10-11T15:05:00.001-04:00

Thank you, Chris Schneider, thank you.

Dodgy Debt... or, How is it Possible that British Comediens Really Did Get the Credit Crisis Right???

2008-10-06T23:01:00.002-04:00

Remember my link to this great little piece of "comedy" about the sub-prime crisis? Turns out, it was as accurate as an investigative report at "60 Minutes". God help us all...

Watch CBS Videos Online

Maybe We Should... Talk About the Weather...

2008-09-28T15:11:00.003-04:00

Some truly amazing, beautiful, and inspiring pics from the Obama blog from a campaign event in Virginia. Check out the local news coverage of the event. Good good stuff. I refuse to write that I'm starting to feel a little optimistic. I'm NOT writing that. Not me. Nope.

What They've Done to My Country, or, 'It's the De-Regulation, Stupid!' ...Rant Beginning in 5, 4, 3, 2...

2008-09-22T19:29:00.011-04:00

So, I'm watching this heart wrenching video of the brilliant Leonard Slatkin conducting the BBC Orchestra in Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings", which juxtaposes images of 9-11, and, seeing those buildings coming down... it occurs to me... What's going on right now is financial terrorism. I'm seeing bank buildings crumbling to the ground in my head. I'm seeing what will be the utterly bewildered looks of horror and incomprehension that will be on people's faces when the fall comes. I'm seeing all hope for future plans to make the government work for the people - with healthcare, education... just, evaporate into thin air under a mountain of debt. What better way to stop national healthcare in its tracks? Make it impossible for anyone to even seriously consider it, now that we own the garbage left in the wake of Milton Friedman, Grover Norquist, and their Republican ilk.

CNN has a headline: "GOP takes brunt of blame on economy, poll says"... which should conceivable make me happy, because, despite the Republicans' sudden shedding of their uniforms and attempts to disown this entirely predictable outcome of their de-regulatory ideology, apparently, Americans aren't falling for it. Good. It's the "GOP's" fault!

Really? Who the fuck VOTED for "the GOP"?!? It's not the fault of every voter since Reagan who bought into the lie that government regulation was bad, unnecessary, and possibly even communist?!? The Republicans didn't lie about what they proposed to do. They told the voters what they planned to do and the voters voted for them based on exactly that. And now those same voters want to act like victims. It's "the Republicans' fault"?

No. It's the American people's fault. For not taking their duty to educate themselves in order to participate in our democracy seriously. For letting themselves ignore history and common sense and be bamboozled by criminal swindlers. We were told by Reagan that we could cut taxes and have the biggest, baddest, sexiest military of all time. All at the same time! And we bought it. Cake and eat it too. Yippee! And now we turn around in shock that we're 9-10 trillion dollars in debt. Then we were told that we could get rid of the cops on the regulatory beat. "Get BIG GOVERNMENT off our backs!" Let the "market" rule! And we bought that too. Anyone who tried to convince people otherwise, that this was madness, that all they had to do was read the history of the Great Depression, were called names. "Socialist". "Communist". "Liberal".

And now they complain that we have to bail them out or face ruin? What the FUCK did they think they were voting for all this time?!!?!? They have the AUDACITY to bemoan the "greed" and "corruption" on Wall St. as if they are shocked, SHOCKED that this is its nature. As if this nature was not EXACTLY why we had regulation in the first place! It is literally the equivalent of people being SHOCKED that thugs and criminals mug little old ladies more often after they choose to remove cops from the streets. Whoda thunk people can be mean? Someone once likened regulation to the bars and cages holding in the lions and tigers and bears at the zoo. They do it because they understand the nature of the beast. But we all wanted to pretend that we didn't understand the nature of Wall St. capitalism.

No, I have no sympathy for these Americans pretending to be outraged at this situation. As if they are themselves blameless. As if they didn't send these politicians to Congress and to the Executive branch to do exactly what they did. What victims they are! They were sold a bill of goods, yes. But they were willing participants in their own brainwashing. I don't wanna hear the excuses. Anyone who turned on ten minutes of the Republican mouthpieces on hate radio who couldn't figure out that what they were saying was pure, unadulterated, bullshit doesn't deserve their democracy. Or their money.

Democrats aren't completely blameless. They've been selling out the New Deal for years now in hopes of winning elections, kowtowing to the right, rather than doing the hard work of explaining and defending economic liberalism. I guess all those corporate donations didn't hurt. But make no mistake, the party currently trying desperately to shed its uniforms, like the Iraqi soldiers at the end of the invasion, is the PARTY responsible.

I hope I'm wrong and that everything works itself out. But as I re-watched those buildings coming down on 9-11 I couldn't help but see the metaphorical equivalent in what is currently playing itself out. And the people responsible are just about as evil. I leave you with one of my favorite segments from a book that should be required reading for every American, Thomas Geoghegan's "Which Side Are You On? Trying to Be For Labor When It's Flat on Its Back":

One night in Cambridge a few years ago, I drank scotch with my
college teacher, Samuel Beer, and I asked him what he thought.

He said, "Well, look what people used to say about Reagan and
Thatcher, that history had passed them by, and now they're the
dominant...well, not the dominant, but a major influence."

I said, "Do you think there could be another depression?"

"Could there be? I don't know. Some people think so.... But
one thing we do know, from experience. If there ever is another
depression, people will turn on these business leaders and say,
'You sons of bitches.'"

Well, you sons of bitches. And all of those enabling assholes who voted for the politicians who did your bidding, you can all go to hell. It's just too bad that it's possible you'll take those of us who knew better with you.

And CNN also reports today - as if we didn't know - that Obama could lose as much as 6% of the vote simply because of his race. Hopeless. Our democracy is being destroyed by people too stupid to know their own self interest if it bit them in the ass. Heaven forbid we vote for the black man! Because THAT's what's important! I've always been told I'm supposed to be tolerant of rednecks and racists and idiots. If I'm a true liberal, I'll understand them or accept them or some such shit. But I've always contended that they aren't just ignorant and frustrating. They're dangerous. And now we have proof.

Well...end of rant. And for those who forgot how we got into this mess... here's a re-post of the best and most hilarious - in a terrifying and tragic way, of course - explanation of the sub-prime crisis that started it all...And thanks and h/t to 'OneGoodMove' for posting this since youtube has since removed it.

onegoodmove: Attack Ad

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Score One For Our Side...

2008-09-21T15:43:00.002-04:00

I haven't posted in awhile. I can barely stomach or comprehend what is going on in America. It's the Great Depression, only this time, we're gonna re-elect Hoover. What is there to say? How does one even begin to explain this? I hope I'm wrong, but then again, my motto has always been that "Hope Kills".

So anyway, came across this little story on CNN. It won't get much coverage, but it gave me a warm fuzzy, anyway. Why aren't American leftists doing this kind of thing? Sure, at Klan or neo-nazi rallies there are always "counter-protesters" usually outnumbering the right wing neanderthals, but THIS is something more. I know, some will say, what about free speech, etc.? Well... I don't have an answer for that. I just liked what happened here.

Obama Deconstructs the Republicans in ONE sentence..

2008-08-06T03:00:00.005-04:00

"They take pride in being ignorant." So simple...and yet... it is exactly what has been wrong with that party and its followers since Reagan. Of course, for the "brains" behind the party, it is a willful and agenda-driven ignorance, but still...

Update: Paul Krugman on the same topic, since he's, you know, actually articulate, unlike myself.

"BALDERDASH!!"

2008-07-15T01:21:00.006-04:00

Why can't a discussion like this appear in the U.S. media....??
H/T to Information Clearinghouse. British MP George Galloway completely blowing every argument for "strategic strikes" on Iran out of the water. Plus, he's got a wicked cool accent.

THIS JUST IN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-07-08T02:43:00.007-04:00

What would we do without the mainstream media? Huh? I ask you...

I am not making this up... Actual headline at msnbc:

"Wealthy Still Traveling Despite Economy"

The intrigued and enlightened reader clicks on this in order to find THIS shocking revelation coming from what must have been some absolutely stunning investigative journalism:

"Wealthy people less likely to feel pinch of rising food and energy costs"

And really...this IS good news, indeed. I was a bit worried about the wealthy...

Seriously...do I file this under completely non-news news - the 'duh' file? Or under the I-can't-believe-they-actually-had-the-audacity-to-report-this-while-the rest-of-us-are-wondering-where-our-next-car-payment-is-coming-from file?

Argh.

Collect 'em All!

2008-07-03T22:26:00.003-04:00

Obama just keeps grinding them out. Speeches which, short of declaring that the U.S. should adopt the Scandinavian system, say exactly what I have always wanted to hear a leader say. Uncanny, almost... Seriously, it began with the now famous 2004 Democratic Convention keynote speech and has only gotten better. I have previously posted the 'Race' speech here, and so, like baseball cards, I may as well keep it consistent and collect 'em all. So...enjoy: Obama on "Patriotism".

In Honor of the Supreme Court Standing Up for Habeas Corpus...

2008-06-19T23:25:00.004-04:00

"This American Life" ran a piece on Guantanamo called "Habeas Schmabeas" back in 2006 and won a Peabody for it. It was incredibly well deserved. They updated it in 2007 and you can listen to it Here. In honor of the Supreme Court's ruling a few days ago, I thought I would post it here in case you never got a chance to catch it. I cannot recommend it highly enough, especially considering the wingnuts' completely hysterical reaction to the novel idea of upholding the Constitution and, you know, Magna Carta, and whatnot.

"We HAVE to Win...We Have No Choice..."

2008-06-09T21:13:00.001-04:00

Um...Nothing Political Here... Just Move Along...

2008-06-08T14:35:00.003-04:00

I dunno... Am I giddy about Obama's victory? Well, yeah. Do I have anything to say about it? Not really, surprisingly enough. So, um...well. THIS video is just so cute I just have to post it. Does it reflect the happy dance I wanna do in response to the Obama thing? Yeah, sure. So it's kinda political...? Oh, just enjoy.
Obama/Colbert '08!! H/T to sexymike at youtube.

Despicable...

2008-05-25T23:47:00.003-04:00

As disgusting as Hillary's RFK comment was...one COULD give her the benefit of the doubt that she WAS simply referring to the "fact" that the race was still going on into June back in 1968. Alright... let me stop right there. From just five seconds of internet research, it seems that the New Hampshire Primary wasn't until halfway through MARCH in 1968. So Hillary's reference (and equally if not more repulsive "regret" backpeddling statement - pretending that her comment might have offended the Kennedy's, NOT Americans who are concerned about OBAMA) is not only offensive but just plain historically wrong. There is NO comparison from 1968 to today in terms of the dates involved. "RFK was still campaigning in June!" Who CARES? The Primary season hadn't BEGUN until March! She is being disengenuous and she knows it and I have yet to hear a single news media outlet point this out. It's as if the facts of history just do not matter. Grrrr.

But that wasn't what I was posting about. It is this. THIS is the single most despicable thing I have ever heard in the mainstream news media. I am flabbergasted. What have we come to? Who ARE these people? I expect this sort of talk from the Klan or some neo-Nazis or whatever... but....but....WTF????????????

I'm sorry that this isn't some articulate discourse on the subject. But I have nothing articulate to say. What is there to say? HOW does one "spin" this? And they call us un-American...

She's GOT To GO!!

2008-05-07T23:52:00.001-04:00

H/T to HotPotatoMash... again. = )

What You WON'T see on Fox News...

2008-04-19T22:59:00.002-04:00

Well, at least, not the whole thing. Bradblog has the whole story - and how O'Reilly showed only 5 seconds of it before "discussing" whether now this guy should be sanctioned as well. Sigh...so predictable.

The little twerp interviewer had NO WHERE to go. Just his desperate little talking points. I love how they try to whitewash and sugarcoat MLK. Anyone read this little speech?

Meanwhile, anyone heard that the woman who asked Obama about that all important lapel pin actually proves his (and Rich's) point? I don't want to be cruel, but hope that pin helps her pay her husband's medical bills. Am I an elitist for thinking people like her are too stupid to vote? Obama was being KIND.

Oh....The BITTER Irony...

2008-04-13T16:50:00.002-04:00

It's the Rich thesis. Everyone who is jumping on Obama, from McCain and Clinton to the Pundits, knows it. But let's all pretend we don't.

I'm bitter. In fact, I'm proud that I'm bitter. Otherwise I must be rich or a fool. And I'm certainly not rich. I'm George Carlin bitter. I'm Network bitter. "Bitter" was nice of him. Fucking pissed off and mad as Hell is more like it - but he's got some class. Hell, they're lucky we're not all Marxists at this point. And Matalin's dismissive "it's called a dynamic global economy" explanation as a way of saying they have no right to be bitter was just sublime (fast-forward to 10:40). They should clearly just get over losing their jobs, healthcare, pensions. Don't those fine people get it? It's just globalization. Jeesh! What simpletons! But it's Obama that is "demeaning" them. It's Obama who is an "elitist". But of course... why aren't Europeans losing healthcare, pensions, etc.? Aren't they part of a global economy? Hmmmmmm.

As I said in the last post, if Americans fall for this, they deserve everything they get.

It's the Ideology, Stupid!

2008-04-10T00:40:00.004-04:00

A photo of the Americans being polled. No insult to Penguins intended.

Americans are so fucking stupid it hurts.

No. Really. They are. And I've had it.

And yet, this is what I've feared would happen, all along.

Let me back up a little. I have been saying, for years really, and I do not consider myself to be a genius, by a longshot, that it is dangerous to simply paint the horrors, politically, economically, socially, and in foreign policy, of the Bush Administration as simply being about BUSH's politics. It is NOT "Bush". It is CONSERVATISM (call it "neo" if you want to but who cares...).

My fear was that people who have at least enough brain cells to recognize the disaster that has been 8 years of Republican rule, will simply chalk it up to BUSH being a bad guy, NOT that CONSERVATISM is a bad IDEA for governing a vast, diverse people and economy. Therefore, when given a choice and the opportunity to get rid of the disaster which they themselves recognize, they willingly go right back to it. All we need is another, actually competent, Republican, they say. One who seems more "reasonable", maybe.

And damnit if they don't want to write their own country's epitaph. I just read this article on CNN's ticker, and, long story short, Americans - 81% of whom apparently think this country's going in the wrong direction, but don't seem to have a clue as to why, or who is to blame; almost 70% of whom claim not to approve of Bush's job performance - prove this disconnect. Yep, Americans would go completely apeshit over a McCain/Condoleeza "I-believe-it-said-bin-Laden-determined-to-attack-in-the-United-States" Rice ticket. Seriously. I am not making this up. It says that this ticket would beat either of the two Democrats, AND, either pairing of the two on a single ticket, in an election. In an election in NEW YORK. I am not making this up. They think that the way to get us out of what they themselves recognize is a disaster, is to elect one of the architects of that disaster, along with her trusty sidekick, the guy who agrees with everything she did. To re-elect the very mindset that is causing the problem.

There is now, officially, a complete disconnect in the electorate's mind between ideology, party, policy, and candidates. This is the result of YEARS of the press treating elections as if they were about competing personalities, not competing ideologies. It is the equivalent of a voter being angry at, let's say, a communist president because of his policy of confiscating private property, and then in the next election, because they think he seems like a "stand up' kind of guy, voting for another member of the communist party to replace him.

Truly depressing. Thoroughly demoralizing. I. Give. Up.

A Politician Talks to America About Race (and class) Like We Were Grown Ups...

2008-03-18T23:44:00.009-04:00

Ok... I'm stealing that from Jon Stewart (apologies Jon), but it really did nail it. Sorry, but anyone who is voting based on race or gender instead of class is, with all due respect, an idiot. Working class whites who will refuse to vote for Obama deserve their long slide into increasing financial insecurity. Obama subtly reminds us of this.

I can't even bring myself to listen to any commentary on this speech from the pundit class. I read the speech in its entirety, without the filter of those jaded, agenda driven, soulless nitpickers telling me what I heard, and it was exactly (or almost exactly) what I had hoped he would say. If only Americans would actually listen. These are serious times calling for serious people (ok, now I'm stealing from President Andrew Shepard, sorry Mr. Sorkin), and this speech made the idiots on talk radio and Faux News sound like babbling, inconsequential children.

Edited to add: Winston Churchill once said that the best argument against democracy was five minutes with the average voter. I think it is what we populists secretly fear. We want so badly to believe in "the people", yet we are terrified that, based on the popularity of Fox and talk radio et al, they really aren't worthy of that faith. How can you be a populist and an elitist at the same time? And yet, Obama has now risked his entire candidacy on that faith. It's gut check time. Can we rise above it? A few people better at articulating this than I have commented on this. Check out Michelle Goldberg at informationclearinghouse and Derrick Ashong, who writes, "For days pundits have pondered whether Sen. Obama could weather the controversy over Rev. Jeremiah Wright's racially polarizing comments. The question at this juncture is not whether the candidate will rise to the occasion, but rather, whether America will.". And on the ultimate double standard of the whole issue, anyway, check out Cenk Uygur and Blue Texan at Firedoglake.

Random Strange Old Propaganda Film... Ghengis Kahn meets the Nuclear Age...

2008-03-08T22:13:00.001-05:00

Hope Is Not the Same as Blind Optimism...

2008-02-14T22:31:00.003-05:00

h/t to the always awesome HotPotatoMash for this. If you are feeling a little inspired, go here.

Painfully Earnest... and Yet...

2008-02-10T03:31:00.000-05:00

I've had an Obama '08 sticker on my car since 2006. I said he would run. And everybody told me he wouldn't. I said he had a chance. And everyone told me he didn't. He's not a saint or a savior and he's not perfect. But I haven't seen a politician like this in my lifetime.
I'm a person whose typical attitude regarding hope is that it kills. Really. That's my motto. "Hope Kills". It's why I'm so afraid to even entertain the thought that this guy could win. I don't want to deal with the letdown. Yet, I'm like Mulder with the poster in his office..."I want to believe..."
Hillary Clinton would make a fine President. But right now our country needs something more than that. I think we've found it, if only we'll embrace it.

Updated to add: Check out the HILARIOUS and SPOT ON parody of this featuring John McCain's inspiring words...Here.

Get UP.

2008-02-08T21:53:00.000-05:00

Go to the Movies to See What We've Done...

2008-01-10T00:40:00.000-05:00

Serving your country in a democracy is supposed to be a noble thing. They aren't supposed to be mercenaries and this isn't supposed to be imperialist Britain and this isn't the French Foreign Legion. Body of War. Phil Donahue has made a film that might be required viewing for the likes of Kristol, Hannity, ad nauseum. Great post about this by Russell Mokhiber over at Commondreams.

Watch the trailer here. And visit the website for the film here.

Finally! Someone to Explain Sub-Prime Lending!

2008-01-04T11:30:00.000-05:00

Just. WATCH. Freaking hilarious. I thought I was the only one who wanted to pull my hair out every time I listened to "respectable" economists discuss this crap.
Found from the great blog Largest Minority by way of C&L.

Hope and Despair...

2007-11-08T22:03:00.000-05:00

This video, from sellaseat at YouTube, just about matches the mood right now. We've been hearing the warnings our whole lives... the environment... debt.... war.... consumerism...it'll do us in they always said. But that would be a long time from now, right? But I read this over at ICH and... this...and....this and....I dunno. I'm a huge critic of American empire, yet... I've never known what it was like to have to listen to another country. Being "#1" was like longitude and latitude... you just knew where you were. There's a great documentary on PBS about the Spanish-American-Cuban-Philippine War, and the message in it is stark. Ironically it chronicles the fall of the Spanish empire just as it explains the rise of the American one. My favorite story comes at the end when, after U.S. troops began falling from tropical diseases, necessitating American acceptance of a conditional rather than an unconditional surrender in order to just get the thing over with, Spain's only 'condition' was that they needed a ride home. They couldn't even afford to bring their troops back and we had sunk their navy. I always thought, how ignoble an end. I remember back in the early 90's in grad school taking a course on Chinese history and another in Chinese geography. Both of those professors had this to say, even back then: learn Mandarin.

Do You Have a FLAG?????

2007-10-25T19:25:00.000-04:00

My all time favorite segment from Eddie Izzard's routine. I'd love to use this in the classroom...except for, you know...the make up...and um, heels, and the F-bomb a couple million times...and....

Masters Of War...

2007-10-18T23:00:00.000-04:00

Thanks to ottawa2006 for putting this song to a good video compilation. The ultimate "pissed off" song. With Turkey on the verge of invading Iraq... Bush giggling about 'WWIII'... probably a bit timely...

Life Out of Balance...

2007-10-05T23:22:00.000-04:00

I could never quite explain why this film hit me like it did. My brother seems to think that it has something to do with utter hopelessness. Possible...

"Tony Blaire Can't Be a War Criminal! He Listens to Oasis!"

2007-09-29T10:16:00.000-04:00

My favorite line from Robert Newman's "A History of Oil". This should be required viewing for every American. Stand Up Comedy meets Political Lecture. Yeah, I'm in heaven...

I Don't Care If Bono is an Obnoxious Megalomaniac...This is Still a Great Speech.

2007-09-11T23:57:00.000-04:00

Fire Our Shit!!!!!!!

2007-09-10T23:48:00.000-04:00

Pretty Much Says it All...

2007-09-10T20:51:00.001-04:00

From the always essential Harper's.

Maddening Orwellian Circular Logic...

2007-09-02T10:47:00.000-04:00

How rude of this guy. To ask a question that actually matters. To have the nerve to pull back the curtain on our little wizard, here. Notice the subtle derision and condescension he is treated with - and not just by rummy and the crowd, but by CNN. Notice how it is considered so honorable that Rumsfeld stops people from apparently pulling this guy off the mike, when why should they pull him off anyway? He wasn't "protesting". He wasn't yelling or grandstanding. He asked a question. Notice this wasn't some GOP fundraiser but some sort of historical forum...but I guess it was unwritten that it was to be a lovefest only (one need only listen to the beginning of the question immediately after our rude individual, to get what the tone was supposed to be).

As to the 'substance'... "I didn't lie", met with applause for such a bold defense! Well, gee golly, how can ya argue with that? Then the old standards... Zarqawi, Powell (the trotting out of his name making more and more clear the usefulness of the strategy of having used Powell as the trustworthy messenger in the first place).

Please.

Even better though, was the ridiculous argument that because the troops ("our men and women" - another sentimental dig) were wearing protective gear, that proves...something? So...let me get this straight... the Administration wasn't lying about WMD because the troops ALSO must have thought there was WMD because they were wearing protective gear that they were ordered to wear by the people who said there was WMD.

#!@#%$!

And of course...Rumsfeld pulls out the old standby of "he used them before", failing to note that when he did, Reagan and Rummy were perfectly fine with it. Why does everybody forget this? Why doesn't anyone call them on this? Wait...don't answer that...

Ari Fleischer is a Propagandist...?!?!?!?!

2007-08-25T02:39:00.001-04:00

We all sacrifice every time we lose a soldier? Really? You mean the soldiers whose flag draped coffins we are not even allowed to see? The soldiers whose funerals Bush has not even bothered to attend? You mean the soldiers who are dead because rather than risk the political fallout of a draft, we just keep asking the same men and women to go back over and over again until eventually their luck runs out? I always knew Ari was a slimy propagandist, but this is disgusting on so many levels that I can't even begin to count the ways. Feel free to help me out.

In Honor of the Start of the New School Year...

2007-08-10T20:30:00.001-04:00

I don't know how many of you know how terrifyingly close to reality this is...
Classic.

Looking In The Mirror

2007-08-09T02:59:00.000-04:00

"Why did you come to Iraq to kill?" Great question...

Another soldier describing Abu Ghraib conditions here.

2007-08-02T17:55:00.000-04:00

Carlin once said that if you dig beneath the surface of a cynic, you will find a broken hearted idealist. There's a reason for the cynicism. But, has it ever been any different? I think the peasants would have understood this all too well. The 50's, 60's, even part of the 70's economy was a fluke. An aberration. Anyway...how can a comedian be more astute than all the pundits?

Enjoy...

George Carlin - Who Really Controls America

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A Man of Integrity Would Not Have Done This...

2007-07-23T13:00:00.001-04:00

...it's just that simple and I don't care what side of the spectrum you're on or your political affiliation.

Thanks to AlterNet for this little find. They are calling it Romney's "macaca moment", as well they should. Seriously, they just can't help themselves, can they? It is so latent that unless they have their handlers right there telling them what to say and do...it just 'slips' out!

All of this type of treatment of Obama, usually by the very people who claim America is so special, and almost completely ignored or made light of by the mainstream media, totally debases what this country is supposed to stand for. It gives away the ghost on what many Americans really believe. If it were coming from guys in white hoods, the media would be all over it, but because it's not, even if it's the same sentiment, they just brush if off. If it had been Obama holding a sign (jokingly!) equating Bush with Hitler or something, well, we don't even need to guess what the reaction to that would be.

If this Ken Doll doesn't have sense (and let's face it, morality) enough to know this is wrong at his age...then we shouldn't elect him to any office in any land. But just watch - if it gets any attention at all - and I doubt it will - it'll be played off as the political equivalent to a "youthful indiscretion". A lapse in "judgement". But we know better. Lapses in judgement are usually when your 'true self' gets out from behind the posturing. Like Dr. Strangelove's arm...

Update: Oh yes...he has 'responded' to it. It was just a cute little alliteration. Get it? It's a PLAY ON WORDS! It didn't MEAN anything! We should all just "lighten up". Sillies!

Sigh.... so...Vote Mittler!!!!!!!! But remember I am only joking...it's just an alliteration, and means absolutely NOTHING! They are just "words", after all. Everyone knows words don't have any MEANING! Lighten UP!

Maybe I Just Like British Accents... Tony Benn on DEMOCRACY

2007-07-23T00:43:00.001-04:00

I've always felt that "democracy" never gets its due for the radical idea it really is. While the far left denigrates it as not radical enough, the right has begun to completely change its definition - a much more serious crime (democracy = loyalty to elites...WTF?!?!?). Worse, the current administration talks of "bringing democracy" the same way the Spanish talked of "bringing Christianity" and the British et al talked of bringing "civilization". "Democracy" as a useful term is becoming almost completely debased. Anyway, my hero in the movie 'Sicko' (other than Michael Moore himself) was Tony Benn, a former British MP. In this documentary, he is essentially saying, just in more detail, exactly what he was touching on in Moore's film. Below is the first segment, and parts 2-5 can be found, in order, here, here, here, and here.

Enjoy.

Why Are We Expected to "Respect" 'Faith', Again?

2007-07-21T04:38:00.000-04:00

Found this little gem at LiveLeak (a place usually of soul crushing jingoism and disregard for humanity - seriously, read the comments section and you will lose your "faith", ironically enough, in mankind in two minutes or less. I do not jest). Don't know much about this guy (and he has many more that you should check out), his name is Pat Condell, but basically...just...as far as I'm concerned? What he said:

I mean, seriously...if someone told you they had faith that Santa Clause existed, would you "respect" that? Even feel like you should admire it? I may believe in the right of people to HAVE whatever opinions or beliefs they want, but I DO NOT have to "respect" those beliefs if I think they are batshit crazy.
The ultimate paradox of "tolerance" ideology - should you have to tolerate intolerance? I say no.

Educate the Little Bastards!!! aka...I'm Coming Out of the Closet (not like that!). aka...Dengre Asks a Good Question. aka...What Motivates Me.

2007-07-20T01:30:00.000-04:00

Dengre at Daily Kos, that website equivalent to the Klan or the Nazis according to Orally, recently asked a good question. As the bumper sticker says, "If You're Not Outraged, You're Not Paying Attention". Dengre asked, what do you do with your anger?

Well, I posted a response to that, some or most of it re-posted here and edited, which I decided to turn into my coming out party for this blog. No...not that kind of coming out party...(not that there's anything wrong with it...)

In explaining what made me angry and what I 'did' with it, I realized I was starting to get to my raison d'etre - both in terms of what motivates me and what I do. My reason for existence, it seems anymore, is to fight 'conservative' talk radio and the neo-conservative ideology which I believe is literally destroying America. And I have a special bullseye set on (economic) libertarianism....more on that later. So, yeah, that's 'who' I am.... And what I 'do' with this obsession, beyond reading all night, 'blogging', posting messages on random websites' comments sections, etc. is teach. Ironically, they now seem to have become intertwined with each other. So here's a quick introduction to how this obsession became the bane of my existence and what I do about it (now are you getting the first title?).

And yes, I know...the neo-cons, con-radio/Fox bloviators, and Libertarians are, as we speak, quaking in their boots. Yeah...

Let me start with what will be a common thread on this site about what I think has gone 'wrong' in this country (not that I'm the first or only one to think of this stuff...but it's my obsession, so...what the hell?). I recently read this quote and it reminded me of how far we've come and who I hold responsible for it. I'll come back to this quote in subsequent posts, but here it is:

"Should any political party attempt to abolish social security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes you can do these things. Among them are [a] few other Texas oil millionaires, and an occasional politician or business man from other areas.Their number is negligible and they are stupid."
- President Dwight D. Eisenhower, 11/8/54

And here's how I remember us getting so far away from this...

I remember being angry at Reagan/Bush I. But I was still young. And debate in the country still seemed to make sense. Liberals and conservatives seemed to argue that the other was wrong for their positions on the issues, their philosophy, not for simply being liberals or conservatives. At least that's how I remembered it. Yeah, Jerry Falwell was lurking about, but no one of any substance seemed to take him seriously...

Well, conservatives changed all that with the rise of talk radio and Fox 'News'. I first noticed it in early 1993. Not two months into Clinton's first term I saw a bumper sticker that turned the 'C' in 'Clinton' into a soviet style hammer and sickle. I was so perplexed, then. I thought, what has he done to already piss people off? I didn't think these types of things appeared until a President had done something wrong. What I didn't realize then was that I was witnessing the beginning of the 'machine'. The Republican noise machine. Propaganda that would make Goebbels proud. Clinton hadn't done anything "wrong" (yet...). He just was. He was "liberal". He was a Democrat. THAT was what was "wrong"...

I knew something suspicious was going on - like a shadow on an x-ray...but I had no idea.

Then came Rush and the "Revolution". But I was largely out of the loop for awhile, happily listening to NPR and surrounding myself with intellectuals and fellow travelers. And ignoring all of this. Then came impeachment...and I became concerned that reason seemed to be taking a vacation.

A couple of years ago, NPR was doing their pledge drive and I was annoyed with it (and feeling pretty guilty...) so I thought, let me take a listen to this "right wing talk radio" that I hear so much about. So I tuned to AM. And almost drove off the road. They couldn't be serious? This was a parody of idiotic conservatives, right? NOBODY takes this seriously, right???!?!? Right...?

And that was when the anger really began. What happened to real debate in this country? Your policy versus mine, mano e mano?? Nope. Gone. Name calling and the most willfully ignorant "talking points" known to man, instead. I became hooked, in a weird, masochistic way.

Everyone tells me it's not good for me. That all that hate and anger will just fill up space in my brain and who has room for it? Besides, what about heartburn and high blood pressure? But I can't help it. I listen to it. And it's like listening to the slow destruction of the country, one breathless syllable at a time.

But I'll tell ya this much. Having listened to it, I always know EXACTLY what their next move is. What direction the debate will go. Why decent people and ideas will lose. People say nobody takes them seriously, that they're "fringe"... Not so. They were the first to harp on the "flip flopping" and the swiftboats and isn't that what it all came down to in the end in 2004?

The biggest mistake liberals can make is to surround themselves in a little progressive bubble where everyone is decent and kind and rational. It's like they sometimes forget how venal and crass and just plain evil people can be. And did I mention, ignorant? Yeah, that too.

And THAT brings me to the answer to the question. I don't end up just having to sit around seething. I have an outlet. I teach. (cue evil laughter here)

Having listened to the 'enemy' (and remember, as far as I'm concerned they are the 'enemy' - these are not Ike's "conservatives" and they are not participating in a debate - they are destroying the ability to debate) for a few years now, I can pick out the underlying ignorance which might make their arguments make sense to the unintelligent, uneducated, or simply not well taught. I find the lynchpin of their argument - which usually comes down to a profound lack of historical knowledge, or worse, historical misinformation - and here's how I get my 'revenge'.

I teach high school history. No power, you say?

I can pre-emptively unteach this stuff every day! I don't even have to be biased in my instruction, I've got history on my side. I can constantly undermine their position by making sure that I emphasize what it is that people don't know that makes them vulnerable to falling for right wing lies. Every day, I get to 'inoculate' 150 kids against arguments that can only survive in a historically illiterate environment.

Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!!!

Ok, ok...I know what you're saying - it's only 150 kids versus quite a few million watching Fox and listening to con-radio. Shut up! It FEELS good! At the end of the day, I can at least say, you don't get THESE kids! Not these ones! Not on MY watch!

They say the truth will set you free, but I like what Aldous Huxley said better, and it came to my mind after a class discussion of the Philippine Insurrection of 1899-1903-1913 when a student blurted out, "we gotta stop liberating people!!!!" Yes, the truth will make you mad....

So, that's what I do. AND I get paid for it! Ok, not much, but still... Yes, most of this post was somewhat tongue in cheek... I KNOW I'm not all-powerful... But impotent rage is really just not all it's cracked up to be. So...ya know...don't burst my bubble here. Yeah, I'm attempting to continue to believe that truth and education can defeat propaganda. Silly, I know.

Hopeless, maybe.

To What Depths Will They Sink...? Wait! Don't Answer That!!

2007-07-06T16:47:00.000-04:00

Does this even require any commentary from people with an IQ above, say, 65? Really, after those last two long-winded posts, I'll just let you off easy this time.
I mean, what is there to even say?

IF you have the stomach for it, you can watch the actual clip at Crooks and Liars. Seriously though, if you have high blood pressure, you may need to check with your doctor or get a pre-approval from your HMO before you read. Truly contemptable.

The Post that Claims We're Probably Gonna Invade Iran So that When We Do, I Can Say "Told Ya So"...

2007-07-05T02:53:00.000-04:00

Or at least bomb them. And If we don't, well, I could always delete it, now couldn't I? We bloggers have ALL the power.

So. Here's the danger: in the run-up to the Iraq war, many of us - rational, intelligent, moral - just could not believe that our government would go through with invading a country that obviously posed no threat to us. Surely it just could not happen. A lot of people marched. We didn't realize we all needed to, because most of us just thought, nah. He's not that crazy.

I distinctly remember when the Administration first began banging the drums. A lot of people seem to have forgotten that at the time, Bush claimed that he didn't even need to get the approval of Congress, let alone the U.N. Something to do with the "Tonkin Gulf Resolution II: the Sequel", or whatever the Bill was called, signed after 9-11, that gave Bush the blank check, I mean *cough*authorization*cough* to pursue the terrorists with military force anywhere in the world. Technically, the same law that had given him the right to invade Afghanistan, would give him the right to invade Iraq. All he had to do, was link it to 9-11...

Luckily for us, some people sorta had a problem with that, and so we got to have even more fun and experience the dog and pony show that was the transparent attempts to get this thing legalized by UN Security Council Resolutions, Weapons Inspections (did anybody else notice that Bush et al never seemed to be relieved whenever they heard the latest report of 'no weapons'...maybe it's just me, but you'd think if war were your last resort, you'd be relieved to find you didn't have to go to war, according to the inspectors...hmmm...), and, the most fun of all, Congressional Authorization debates right on the eve of Mid-Term elections! Boy, those were the days.

And I remember... part of me, the smart, confident, politically savvy and cynical part, was absolutely sure that this was all a facade...that the decision had already been made. I just knew. Last resort, my ass. But there was this one small doubt in the back of my mind - SURELY Bush wouldn't take such a chance with such a slim chance at vindication? What would he DO when the weapons weren't found? How could he survive that? It would be like some horrible replay of "One Tin Soldier"! Nah, maybe he's just bluffing. Maybe we won't invade. Oh, I was so naive then....

It was this one idea that kept me at first doubting that he would do it, and then, as it became apparent that it was a 'go', my belief that the weapons weren't there. I mean, maybe I was wrong about the weapons, maybe they really were there. I'm nobody, what do I know? Because, I thought, over and over, how could he survive it politically? What if a couple of hundred soldiers die? We would never forgive him!

Still... those were just doubts. Of course I did know he was gonna go. And I knew the weapons wouldn't be found. And I knew we wouldn't be greeted as liberators. And I knew there would likely be an insurgency. Unfortunately, none of this made me a sage. A halfway bright middle school geography student could have figured it out. And so I remember thinking, that as horrible as all this would be, at least it would expose him to the people once and for all as the fraud that he is, and great change would result. There would at least be a political awakening. Americans would rise up upon learning they were lied to by a stupid puppet. Sigh. Oh to be young again.

So...back to the danger. You remember the danger? Mentioned at the top of this post? Good.

The danger is that the idea of invading Iran is so absolutely ludicrous, that we rational, intelligent, moral people just can't believe he'd do it. I mean surely not! Everyone's just being paranoid! Where will they find troops? Besides, what if you're wrong and then you can't go back and edit your blog so the whole world knows you were wrong?! Sound familiar?

But you know as well as I do what all these recent Iran stories are doing in the Press. How Iran seems to have become a danger to the entire world overnight. Or at least to Israel. We need a missile shield! They're building NUKES! They want to "wipe Israel off the map"! They question the Holocaust! They are (and I have to stop to catch my breath from laughing at this one) violating the sovereignty of Iraq! And the most interesting one: they are behind attacks on American soldiers in Iraq. I'll come back to that momentarily...

And on top of it all, you've got the same media mindlessly repeating "Administration-Officials-report-stories" without any critical analysis, let alone fact checking. You even have one of the most notorious reporters who helped build the case for Iraq in the NYT being allowed to DO IT AGAIN! I do not jest! This is a must-read: Greg Mitchell at Editor and Publisher has this story on NYT reporter Michael Gordon, once again spoon feeding America the Administration's case for war, verbatim. You heard me right. The same Michael Gordon of Judith Miller and Michael Gordon fame. Does our entire country suffer from ADD? I mean, I know we aren't very good at history, but this is...five years ago! It's not really even history yet.

So, we sit here...we rational, intelligent, moral people...and we think...nah, he wouldn't dare.

And you just KNOW this is all BS again because, supposedly, our government is telling us, the Iranians are attacking our troops. If it wasn't BS then why the hell aren't we bombing them?!? I don't mean that jingoistically. I mean, if another country attacks our troops we are supposed to respond. Period. So why aren't we? Because the answer of course is that this is all propaganda meant to manufacture consent for a later war, to borrow Chomsky's phrase, rather than an immediate casus belli. But this particular charge is a casus belli. They accidently created a casus belli when all they were supposed to do was create the desire for war. Like HotPotatoMash so articulately pointed out recently about creating monsters that you cannot contain, this may be a story that the Administration will come to regret. If I were a right winger, I would be demanding a response to verified attacks on our troops. What SHOULD they think? In other words, creating the Iranian boogeyman with tales of possible nukes, threats to our buddies, etc. does not necessarily a case for war make. But it does "soften them up" in anticipation of war on their new enemy. But now they have claimed that Iran has actually attacked us (let's not forget that an attack on American soldiers is an attack on US). What kind of pansy ass President does not respond to attacks on his troops?!?!?! Now he HAS to attack Iran. Oops.

So we sit here, we rational, intelligent, moral people... And we think, nah. He wouldn't. Would he?

And THAT's the danger...

Oh...and the 'One Tin Soldier' link? Complain to me all you want, but it's 'One Tin Soldier'! You didn't expect cheeziness? In fact, I think it is the single cheeziest thing I have EVER seen. Sorry!

The Obligatory 'Sicko' Post...

2007-07-03T01:53:00.000-04:00

Well...

Maybe I'm not sufficiently cynical. I honestly believe Americans need to see movies like this and I think all the "intellectuals" out there who like to dismiss Moore's style, passion, emotional manipulation, whatever, don't get it. Yes, we 'smart people' already agree with him because we are so enlightened. Yes, some book can probably explain it with more economic, social, or political rigor. But c'mon, Moore is funny. Can we stop taking ourselves so seriously for just a couple of hours? Can we not be so cool that we forget that it's not necessarily "emotional manipulation" when the damn subject IS emotional? You wouldn't be so detached and academic if any of this stuff ever happened to you. I'm not saying that there is no place for dispassionate, objective articulation of the issue. I'm just saying that sometimes I am more annoyed at those who ostensibly agree with Moore's position, but like to appear too sophisticated for such populist mediums, than those who just outright disagree and think he's a commie. Oops, there I go again. Earnestness. Terrible, I know.

Anyway - to look at the film and the ongoing "debate" about it will be the subject of this post. And yes, I've made the mistake of reading some right wing commentary... so I'm a bit unbalanced right now...

Back to the ones who agree with Moore but want to appear to be oh-so-above it all. I think they forget that not everyone understands the issues like they do. You know, normal people. They might just need someone to give them a reason to give a damn. What is Moore supposed to do? A dissertation? I mean, yeah, Al Gore pulled it off...but he's a former VP, so we let him slide.

The ones who disagree with Moore - both those who just claim they don't like his documentary film "style" and those who openly disagree with his politics - bug me for a number of reasons.

First of all, they often claim that Moore doesn't take the other side of the arguments into account, when, at least in this film, even if they disagree with Moore's conclusions, they have to agree that he does. He did address the concerns over higher taxes, rationing and waits, doctor compensation, and all the horror stories that supposedly come out of countries with national healthcare systems. Ironically, they practice exactly what they accuse Moore of practicing to make their case for his supposedly "sloppy" or "biased" documentary journalism: the sin of ommission.

They also seem stuck on the idea that a "documentary" can be only one thing: that monotoned science film about photosynthesis that they saw in the 7th grade. How DARE a political documentary have a point of view! If I hear one more accusation of "bias" I will need a doctor myself. Repeat after me: you can make a documentary that holds a particular interpretation or viewpoint. Good. I knew ya could. Let's move on.

What's hilarious, is that they'll claim that Moore should not be trusted with this information (when even mainstream CNN found it pretty fact-check proof), because of his alleged socialist/big government/liberal 'bias', and then turn right around, sometimes in the same paragraph (I'm looking at you Kurt Loder!), and use the argument of an avowed Libertarian (free market bias much?) or industry group to make their "case" refuting Moore, as if their sources are unasailable! Fair? Logical? Who cares!

It's obvious that these attacks on his 'style' are attempts to distract from the fact that they usually have very little to attack him on his substance. Certainly not his overall arguments. And they know that the substance does resonate with the very people they claim to represent - so the con-radio types (always attempting to portray themselves as 'populists') can't risk appearing as if they are against "the people". Instead, they pretend to be upset simply over his "dishonesty", as they're only concerned with "truth", don't ya know.

But what really gets me is the attack on the messenger. Not the obvious attacks, e.g. Al Gore's a hypocrite, Michael Moore is...fat...or something...ad nauseum. No, it is the implication that they are the only ones making the argument! As if Al Gore isn't reporting the work of scientists around the world. Global Warming will just go away if Al Gore does. As if Michael Moore is the only loon talking about the problems in the U.S. system and the case for national healthcare. Their strategy seems to be that if they can only destroy that stupid (America-hating, liberal, traitorous, etc.) Michael Moore, then they win the whole healthcare debate. Well, is former British MP Tony Benn just "stupid"? Was Tommy Douglas "stupid"? Are almost all Europeans and Canadians just "stupid"? That's why, in my opinion, what I felt Moore did a particularly good job at, WAS to let other people make the case for him.

The single most important scenes in the whole film, in my mind, were the ones with Tony Benn explaining what true democracy is - turning how libertarians and free market ideologues view "freedom" completely on its head, and the one with the gentlemen from Canada in the golf cart - who himself was a "conservative", yet who didn't question for an instant why all members of a society should be willing to help their fellow citizens - turning American style conservative dogma (which has simply degenerated into a Darwinian 'every man for himself' excuse for selfishness) on its head.

Which brings me to the end (and you thought I'd never stop). This is an important film, not just for the obvious message that at this point only a true fool would be opposed to (the mental gymnastics one has to perform to be opposed to nationalized healthcare - unless you are among the top 5% economically - are truly mind boggling, at this point), but because Moore is making a much larger statement about what society and democracy and quality of life is really all about. What human dignity is. The detractors think they can just compete with the case for nationalized healthcare by telling stories about people in Canada or Belgium or wherever having to wait 16 months for a hip replacement, all while paying the dreaded higher taxes for what they liken to charity, welfare, "entitlement". The "competing horror stories" model, and the "it's too expensive" model. In the end, though, that's not what the argument is about. All systems have flaws. They are just details. Flaws can be fixed. A system like this is expensive, yes. The real issue is: what is the underlying value that the system is based on?

It reminds me of how slave owners used to argue in defense of slavery in the 1850's that their slaves were treated better than the "wage slaves" in the factories up north, thus their system was better. Probably in a few rare cases that may have even been true. Both sides could have argued this using anecdotal stories and competing economic points til the cows came home. But no amount of arguing over details could make slavery a better system. And not just because the northerners could eventually provide more horror stories coming out of slavery than the southerners could find in the factories. No. It was the value that underlay the system of free labor (even with all of its pre-New Deal flaws ), which was just simply morally superior to that which underlay the system of slavery. A moral no-brainer.

In the healthcare debate, we have two competing systems, which reflect two competing values. Both ration healthcare. One rations based on what a person can individually afford and what markets and corporate profit margins will allow, the other rations based on what the entire society, pooling its resouces and deciding through the democratic process, can afford. One literally lets profit motive and social class determine the value of human life, the other maintains that when it comes to healthcare, as with justice and education, and even though it is expensive, all should have equal human value. In the end, one says every man for himself, the other says one for all and all for one. It should also be a moral no-brainer. And that's "too bad", as Bono would say, "because it's not about charity, it's about justice." Because you can't have justice without equality. And what the detractors are really against in this debate, is equality.

Oh, and one other thing: move.
To FRANCE!
Just trust me on this one.

A Little Allegory About Why the U.S. Should Have a REAL Labor Party

2007-06-28T20:12:00.001-04:00

Mouseland.
I've always loved this. I post it in honor of my brother who at this very moment is on strike to try to maintain the American Dream for himself, his fellow workers, and their kids. This goes along with the theme of my favorite bumper sticker (I always thought I would quote Plato and shit after getting educated....instead it's TV shows, movies, songs, and bumper stickers...What can ya do?):

"The Working Class voting for Republicans is like the Chickens voting for Colonel Sanders...

Enjoy.

A Message to My Senator...

2007-06-28T15:38:00.001-04:00

Just thought I'd share what I wrote to my esteemed Republican Senator on the defeat of the Employee Free Choice Act:

Senator

I just wanted to congratulate you and your party for your BRILLIANT defeat of the EFCA. Framing the issue as one of democracy, rather than of the supposed "right" of workers to join unions more easily, was pure genius.

How you continue to protect the few (owners, corporatations) without letting the many know what is really going on is just...I'm speechless.

Bravo!

Respectfully submitted....

I really AM impressed with these guys. Can you only imagine the meeting that took place when they had to figure out how to spin their opposition to a law that would make it easier for workers to join unions? Without losing the votes of those same workers come election time? Brilliant indeed. Check out my link to the AFL-CIO for more info on the law. As someone who lived through the "campaign period" of a union organizing attempt, I can tell you first hand how this law would have been a godsend.

ah well....

Here Goes...

2007-06-28T05:11:00.000-04:00

Just what the tubes need...another blog.

Should this be an introduction? Should I just start ranting and raving?

Hmmm... the title might be a place to start. Yeah...little R.E.M. reference there - hope they don't sue me or anything.

I'm sure I have nothing original to say. I love and hate all the things a lot of people love and hate. And I'm indifferent to some things, too.

Bottom line... believe the truth will set people free, etc. Link between education, enlightenment, and democracy and all that crap. You would think it was so simple. But I'm beginning to lose faith in truth... If you understand what I mean, then you understand what I mean.

Topic...topic... Well... Isn't it ironic that on my first day to start sharing my thoughts with the world, I watch the Daily Show and there's Michael Moore talking about getting bumped from Larry King for Paris Hilton. Do I need to even comment on that? I'm pretty sure I don't. I think it pretty much speaks for itself. Alright, that problem solved. Man...blogging just completely changes the world! Thank me later.
So.... That's it. For now.

I hope I'm not clogging the tubes up too much.