TODAY'S TOPICS: Anthrax Conspiracy, Ohio Theft Revealed, Moyers, Conservatism, Open Letter to Obama, Walmart, No Immunity
THE MODERN CONSERVATIVE PHILOSOPHY AND STRATEGY REVEALED
"Fantastic misgovernment is not an accident, nor is it the work of a few bad individuals. It is the consequence of triumph by a particular philosophy of government, by a movement that understands the liberal state as a perversion and considers the market the ideal nexus of human society. This movement is friendly to industry not just by force of campaign contributions but by conviction; it believes in entrepreneurship not merely in commerce but in politics; and the inevitable results of its ascendance are, first, the capture of the state by business and, second, what follows from that: incompetence, graft, and all the other wretched flotsam that we've come to expect from Washington.
"... The conservatism that speaks to us through its actions in Washington is institutionally opposed to those baseline good intentions we learned about in elementary school. Its leaders laugh off the idea of the public interest as airy-fairy nonsense; they caution against bringing top-notch talent into government service; they declare war on public workers. They have made a cult of outsourcing and privatizing, they have wrecked established federal operations because they disagree with them, and they have deliberately piled up an Everest of debt in order to force the government into crisis. The ruination they have wrought has been thorough; it has been a professional job. Repairing it will require years of political action."
-- Thomas Frank, author of a new book called "The Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule,"
VIDEO SECTION
The following clip (appx 6:45 mins) from the new documentary film, FREE FOR ALL! (downloadable in full, free for all at www.freeforall.tv) by filmmaker John Ennis, breaks down all the emerging evidence that indicates just how thorough and easy the theft of Ohio's vote in 2004 really was...from the storing of the votes on a Republican server (which is where the numbers flipped from Kerry to Bush in an instant...6 points from the exit polls too) to the Secretary of State that ensured this that happened to be Bush's is campaign chair to the Diebold machines that the CEO promised would give his man Bush the election...
PLEASE WATCH, because nothing has changed in Ohio since, the same server is ready again...
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6220
This is incredible, frightening, criminal, and not a surprise. This BETTER BECOME a front page story seen on every news broadcast! Cheney planning an another illegal war based on lies…even if that means sacrificing American troops to pull the “fake incident” off. Wow…he needs to be jailed now.
WATCH the great Sy Hersh break the story:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/01/cheney-wanted-to-dress-up-navy-seals-as-iranians-and-shoot-at-them-to-get-his-war-with-iran/
Daily Show exposes McCain’s recent ads with Paris Hilton and Britney Spears (can you believe a Presidential candidate would run ads like this? At a time when our country is in crisis??)…as in, the Hilton family donates to his campaign!! Nice that he attacks their daughter, huh?
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/01/the-daily-show-mccain-touted-his-accomplishments-missed-by-media-oh-and-the-hiltons-might-want-their-money-back/
Rachelle Maddow exposes Buchanan and the GOP for what the “Obama is arrogant” attacks really signify…you know, those damn “uppity blacks”:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/31/race-to-the-white-house-rachel-maddow-calls-out-pat-buchanan/
An outstanding video by Brave New Films that ties EVERYTHING back to our world’s addiction to fossil fuels, from the food crisis to climate change and so on…every American should watch this:
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/93598/if_this_animated_video_doesn%27t_get_us_off_oil%2C_nothing_will/
Neocon Wattenberg gets schooled by Jon Stewart!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/31/the-daily-show-ben-wattenberg-thinks-more-people-would-consider-themselves-neocons-if-you-labeled-it-chocolate/
ARTICLE SECTION: Moyers, Anthrax Conspiracy,
Bill Moyers puts the recent flood of revelations regarding GOP corruption and abuse of power in recent weeks into the proper context, as in, what do all these incidence actually say about the philosophy of the right, why it has been allowed to take power, and what we need to do to take our democracy back:
A few clips:
A report earlier this summer from the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform builds on an earlier committee investigation that detailed some 485 contacts between Abramoff and the Bush administration. According to the new report, "Senior White House officials told the Committee that White House officials held Mr. Abramoff and members of his lobbying team in high regard and solicited recommendations from Mr. Abramoff and his colleagues on policy matters."… Over the last couple of years, he has been singing to the authorities, which is why he has been kept in a detention facility close to DC and the reason his sentencing for tax evasion, the defrauding of Indians and the bribing of Washington officials has been delayed. The FBI is thought to be using Abramoff's testimony to build an ever-expanding case that may continue to shake those who live within the Beltway bubble for months and years to come.
SNIP
Monday saw the publication of a 140-page report from the Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General and Office of Professional Responsibility, confirming that, as The Washington Post recounted, "For nearly two years, a young political aide sought to cultivate a 'farm system' for Republicans at the Justice Department, hiring scores of prosecutors and immigration judges who espoused conservative priorities and Christian lifestyle choices.
SNIP
Abramoff may be cooling his heels in minimum security, but his pals DeLay, Norquist and Reed appear on television and radio shows whose hosts treat them as political savants with nary a nod to their past nefarious association with Abramoff. Few in the audience seem to notice or care. Former House Majority Leader DeLay is awaiting trial on money laundering charges. The incorrigible Ralph Reed, who played Christian pastors in Texas for suckers in enlisting their unwitting help for Abramoff's gambling clients…
http://www.truthout.org/article/the-wave-capitol-crimes-continues
ANTHRAX CONSPIRACY AND ABC - WHO WERE THEIR SOURCES?
Now that the person responsible for the Anthrax scare years ago just killed himself, Glenn Greenwald delves into some of the deeply disturbing unresolved questions, including why ABC has covered up possible co-conspirators in the crime. The article will also remind you of the rather extraordinary and largely forgotten truth that the anthrax was created and sent by our own government…yet for weeks and months was deceptively attributed to Iraq (before we invaded!!). The story could be key in understanding who was really a part of the anthrax con job and how it was used to push the war in Iraq.
Read this, a few clips:
Much more important than the general attempt to link the anthrax to Islamic terrorists, there was a specific intent — indispensably aided by ABC News — to link the anthrax attacks to Iraq and Saddam Hussein. In my view, and I’ve written about this several times and in great detail to no avail, the role played by ABC News in this episode is the single greatest, unresolved media scandal of this decade. News of Ivins’ suicide, which means (presumably) that the anthrax attacks originated from Ft. Detrick, adds critical new facts and heightens how scandalous ABC News’ conduct continues to be in this matter.
SNIP
It’s extremely possible — one could say highly likely — that the same people responsible for perpetrating the attacks were the ones who fed the false reports to the public, through ABC News, that Saddam was behind them. What we know for certain — as a result of the letters accompanying the anthrax — is that whoever perpetrated the attacks wanted the public to believe they were sent by foreign Muslims. Feeding claims to ABC designed to link Saddam to those attacks would, for obvious reasons, promote the goal of the anthrax attacker(s).
Seven years later, it’s difficult for many people to recall, but, as I’ve amply documented, those ABC News reports linking Saddam and anthrax penetrated very deeply — by design — into our public discourse and into the public consciousness. Those reports were absolutely vital in creating the impression during that very volatile time that Islamic terrorists generally, and Iraq and Saddam Hussein specifically, were grave, existential threats to this country.
SNIP
Surely the question of who generated those false Iraq-anthrax reports is one of the most significant and explosive stories of the last decade. The motive to fabricate reports of bentonite and a link to Saddam is glaring. Those fabrications played some significant role — I’d argue a very major role — in propagandizing the American public to perceive of Saddam as a threat, and further, propagandized the public to believe that our country was sufficiently threatened by foreign elements that a whole series of radical policies that the neoconservatives both within and outside of the Bush administration wanted to pursue — including an attack an Iraq and a whole array of assaults on our basic constitutional framework — were justified and even necessary in order to survive.
ABC News already knows the answers to these questions. They know who concocted the false bentonite story and who passed it on to them with the specific intent of having them broadcast those false claims to the world, in order to link Saddam to the anthrax attacks and — as importantly — to conceal the real culprit(s) (apparently within the U.S. government) who were behind the attacks. And yet, unbelievably, they are keeping the story to themselves, refusing to disclose who did all of this. They’re allegedly a news organization, in possession of one of the most significant news stories of the last decade, and they are concealing it from the public, even years later.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/08/01/10738/
A PROGRESSIVE OPEN LETTER TO OBAMA
Finally, prominent voices in the progressive movement write an open letter to Obama…much of it will sound familiar to those who read my blog, as it parrots most all of what have been saying and hoping he does. Signers include some of my favorites like Scheer, Solomon, Sirota, Vanden Hueval, Vidal, Zinn, Terkel, and Hayden.
A few clips (policy rec’s inside):
Your candidacy has inspired a wave of political enthusiasm like nothing seen in this country for decades. In your speeches, you have sketched out a vision of a better future–in which the United States sheds its warlike stance around the globe and focuses on diplomacy abroad and greater equality and freedom for its citizens at home–that has thrilled voters across the political spectrum. Hundreds of thousands of young people have entered the political process for the first time, African-American voters have rallied behind you, and many of those alienated from politics-as-usual have been re-engaged.
You stand today at the head of a movement that believes deeply in the change you have claimed as the mantle of your campaign. The millions who attend your rallies, donate to your campaign and visit your website are a powerful testament to this new movement’s energy and passion.
SNIP
Since your historic victory in the primary, there have been troubling signs that you are moving away from the core commitments shared by many who have supported your campaign, toward a more cautious and centrist stance–including, most notably, your vote for the FISA legislation granting telecom companies immunity from prosecution for illegal wiretapping, which angered and dismayed so many of your supporters.
We recognize that compromise is necessary in any democracy. We understand that the pressures brought to bear on those seeking the highest office are intense. But retreating from the stands that have been the signature of your campaign will weaken the movement whose vigorous backing you need in order to win and then deliver the change you have promised.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/07/31/10734/
WAL-MART WARNS MANAGERS AGAINST PRO-UNION PROGRESSIVE POLICIES: Wal-Mart "is mobilizing its store managers and department supervisors around the country to warn that if Democrats win power in November, they'll likely change federal law to make it easier for workers to unionize companies -- including Wal-Mart." The Wall Street Journal reports that thousands of managers and department leaders "have been summoned to mandatory meetings" that warn against unionization and suggest that voting for a Democrat "would be tantamount to inviting unions in, according to Wal-Mart employees who attended" such meetings. Wal-Mart is primarily threatened by the Employee Free Choice Act, which would allow a majority of workers to agree to form a union, without needing the approval of the company, as is current law. The law would help even the playing field between the worker and the employer, who currently controls almost the entire unionization process. Employers frequently delay union elections by "months and even years," and management has "almost unlimited and mandatory access to employees, while union supporters have almost none." Wal-Mart has never been a friend to unions. In 2005, the Journal reported that Wal-Mart founder Thomas Coughlin may have been involved in antiunion activity, "including paying union staffers to tell him of pro-union workers in stores."
COURT RULES WHITE HOUSE NOT IMMUNE TO CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS (time to start arresting these mother f******)
White House attorneys are quite capable of coming up with creative legal arguments. The problem, though, is that judges aren’t willing to reward their creativity.
President Bush’s top advisers are not immune from congressional subpoenas, a federal judge ruled Thursday in an unprecedented dispute between the two political branches.
House Democrats called the ruling a ringing endorsement of the principle that nobody is above the law.
In his ruling, U.S. District Judge John Bates said there’s no legal basis for Bush’s argument and that his former legal counsel, Harriet Miers, must appear before Congress. If she wants to refuse to testify, he said, she must do so in person. The committee also has sought to force testimony from White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten.
“Harriet Miers is not immune from compelled congressional process; she is legally required to testify pursuant to a duly issued congressional subpoena,” Bates wrote. He said that both Bolten and Miers must give Congress all non-privileged documents related to the firings.
Because I know this is the first question on the minds of many political observers, I should note that Bates was appointed to the federal bench by none other than George W. Bush. Indeed, Bates has, in general, been a Bush administration ally (he threw out Valerie Plame’s suit against Karl Rove, for example).
But not today. Bates wrote that “the Executive’s current claim of absolute immunity from compelled congressional process for senior presidential aides is without any support in the case law.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called it “very good news for anyone who believes in the Constitution of the United States and the separation of powers, and checks and balances.”
So, what happens now?
Saturday, August 02, 2008
Thursday, July 31, 2008
TODAY'S TOPICS: Kaine, Kucinich, Phony Economy, Surge Truths, Fighting "Terror", Daily Show, Colbert, Election Theft
For those that didn't see yesterdays short addition to Tuesday's post regarding Tim Keane, I'd like to repeat myself:
The talk of Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine as Obama's VERY possible VP selection lead me to one undeniable reaction: HELL NO!!! Briefly, and I'll address this more if it looks like Kaine might be the pick: He's Anti-Choice, he's anti-stem cell research, he has NO military or foreign policy experience (something Obama could use on the ticket), he's as boring as watching paint dry, and he isn't a good attack dog (which Obama also clearly needs, as he doesn't seem to have anything bad to say about anyone, even as they attack his patriotism and character!).
From what I can tell, there are no really "great" possibilities left on his short list (but the media could be wrong about this). Many are saying its either Keane, Biden, or Bayh. Obviously Biden is the FAR SUPERIOR choice out of those three as he IS TOUGH as nails and will take McCain to task, and he does have foreign policy and military credentials (and is more progressive than Kaine).
END
MY MCCAIN CAMPAIGN COMMENT: Wow are they desperate, dirty, and deceptive! Clearly McCain has completely given up on even the remote possibility he can win this race on his own merits, so he's going with his only route to the Presidency (and it is); make the entire election about Obama...and McCain simply is "Other Guy" on the ballot. So get ready for one of the dirtiest and scurrilous campaigns of all time...a tactic that also has a real likelihood of backfiring, especially if Obama is strong in pointing McCain's weaknesses out. That, and pick someone like Biden to have your back...
END
"When we had Katrina and Rita....there was not one case where we had a situation with oil or gas being spilled in the environment."
-- Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, 7/30/08
VERSUS
"A Houston Chronicle review of data from the National Response Center shows that the two storms caused at least 595 spills, incidents that released untold amounts of oil, natural gas and other chemicals into the air, onto land and into the water."
-- Houston Chronicle, 11/13/05
VIDEO SECTION
Dennis Kucinich continues his heroic efforts in defense of the constitution and this country. Watch him talk impeachment!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/31/democracy-now-kucinich-keeps-rolling-that-impeach-boulder-over-mt-pelosi/
Stephen Colbert’s The Word…classic:
http://www.politicstv.com/blog/?p=4075
Colbert covers the Ted Stevens indictment…and how Murdock’s "The Post" did in contrast…awesome:
http://www.politicstv.com/blog/?p=4082
Daily Show makes fun of what is becoming one of the most pathetic campaigns I’ve ever seen in my life: Grumpy Gramps McBush:
http://www.politicstv.com/blog/?p=4070
Here’s some good info on the media bias study that proved that yes, the press likes McCain a lot more (which could simply point to rough waters ahead, as there is SO MUCH negative stuff to report about him still that the media will have to at some point…then he's REALLY F******) than Obama...
http://www.politicstv.com/blog/?p=4068
From C&L: The earth spun slightly off from its axis on Monday, because Mrs. Alan Greenspan actually defended Barack Obama’s European trip from John McCain’s spurious attack ads.
Goodness, will wonders never cease? It begs the question, though, if these journalists, who accompanied Obama on his trip will similarly speak up for the truth of his trip and not just parrot McCain’s fact-free slurs:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/30/andrea-mitchell-debunks-mccains-attack-ads-on-obamas-european-trip/
ARTICLE SECTION: Surge Truths, Phony Economy
Since we're all going to be hammered with the "success of the surge" for the next three months, I think this is a must read for everyone. The truth about what has happened in Iraq and why is so frighteningly different than the accepted Matrix myth parroted by the media and McCain it shocks the senses. Good ole' fashion ethnic cleansing was probably the most important factor in reduced violence...wonderful.
A few clips:
For the first six months of the troop escalation, high rates of violence continued unabated. That is suspicious. What exactly were U.S. troops doing differently from September than they were doing in May, such that there was such a big change? The answer to that question is simply not clear. Note that the troop escalation only brought U.S. force strength up to what it had been in late 2005. In a country of 27 million, 30,000 extra U.S. troops are highly unlikely to have had a really major impact, when they had not before.
As best I can piece it together, what actually seems to have happened was that the escalation troops began by disarming the Sunni Arabs in Baghdad. Once these Sunnis were left helpless, the Shiite militias came in at night and ethnically cleansed them. Shaab district near Adhamiya had been a mixed neighborhood. It ended up with almost no Sunnis. Baghdad in the course of 2007 went from 65 percent Shiite to at least 75 percent Shiite and maybe more. My thesis would be that the United States inadvertently allowed the chasing of hundreds of thousands of Sunni Arabs out of Baghdad (and many of them had to go all the way to Syria for refuge). Rates of violence declined once the ethnic cleansing was far advanced, just because there were fewer mixed neighborhoods.
SNIP
In al-Anbar Province, among the more violent in Iraq in earlier years, the bribing of former Sunni guerrillas to join U.S.-sponsored Awakening Councils had a big calming effect. This technique could have been used much earlier than 2006; indeed, it could have been deployed from 2003 and might have forestalled large numbers of deaths. Condi Rice forbade U.S. military officers from dealing in this way with the Sunnis for fear of alienating U.S. Shiite allies such as Ahmad Chalabi. The technique was independent of the troop escalation. Indeed, it depended on there not being much of a troop escalation in that province. Had large numbers of U.S. soldiers been committed to simply fight the Sunnis or engage in search-and-destroy missions, they would have stirred up and reinforced the guerrilla movement. There were typically only 10,000 U.S. troops in al-Anbar before 2007, as I recollect. (It has a population of a million and a half or so.) If the number of U.S. troops went up to 14,000, that cannot possibly have made the difference.
The Mahdi Army militia of Sayyid Muqtada al-Sadr concluded a cease-fire with U.S. and Iraqi troops in September 2007. Since the United States had inadvertently enabled the transformation of Baghdad into a largely Shiite city, a prime aim of the Mahdi Army, they could afford to stand down. Moreover, they were being beaten militarily by the Badr Corps militia of the pro-Iranian Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq and by Iraqi security forces, in Karbala, Diwaniya and elsewhere. It was prudent for them to stand down. Their doing so much reduced civilian deaths.
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/93081/forget_the_surge_--_violence_is_down_in_iraq_because_ethnic_cleansing_was_brutally_effective/
I've been making this case on this blog for quite sometime: that our economic health is judged by a host of wall street and corporate tilted and patently ludicrous measurement models, most notably the GDP. Meanwhile, little attention is actually paid to, or taken into account when rating the economy, to factors that actually directly effect the quality of life of the vast majority of Americans. In fact, the current economic measurements we - as in our politicians, Wall Street, and the media - use actually reward "harms", such as pollution, while ignoring the benefits like improved health from cleaner air. In other words, we've set up an economic system that encourages bad behavior and punishes good.
A few clips:
That term “the economy”: what it means, in practice, is the Gross Domestic Product–a big statistical pot that includes all the money spent in a given period of time. If the pot is bigger than it was the previous quarter, or year, then you cheer. If it isn’t bigger, or bigger enough, then you call Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke up here and ask him to do some explaining. The what of the economy makes no difference in these councils. It never seems to come up. The money in the big pot could be going to cancer treatments or casinos, violent video games or usurious credit-card rates. It could go toward the $9 billion or so that Americans spend on gas they burn while they sit in traffic, or the billion plus that goes to such drugs as Ritalin and Prozac that schools are stuffing into kids to keep them quiet in class. The money could be the $20 billion or so that Americans spend on divorce lawyers each year, or the $41 billion on pets, or the $5 billion on identity theft, or the billions more spent to repair property damage caused by environmental pollution. The money in the pot could betoken social and environmental breakdown–misery and distress of all kinds. It makes no difference. You don’t ask. All you want to know is the total amount, which is the GDP. So long as it is growing then everything is fine.
SNIP
It is an insanity that is embedded in the political debate and in media reportage, and it leads to fallacy in many directions. We hear, for example, that efforts to address climate change will hurt “the economy.” Does that mean that if we clean up the air we will spend less money treating asthma in young kids? The atmosphere is part of the economy, too–the real economy, that is, though not the artificial construct portrayed in the GDP. It does real work, as we would discover quickly if it were to collapse. Yet the GDP does not include this work. If we burn more gas, the expenditure gets added to the GDP. But there is no corresponding subtraction for the toll this burning takes on the thermostatic and buffering functions that the atmosphere provides. (Nor is there a subtraction for the oil we take out of the ground.) Yet if we burn less gas, and thus maintain the crucial functions of the atmosphere, we say “the economy” has suffered, even though the real economy has been enhanced.
SNIP
The purpose of an economy is to meet human needs in such a way that life becomes in some respect richer and better in the process. It is not simply to produce a lot of stuff. Stuff is a means, not an end. Yet current modes of economic measurement focus almost entirely on means. For example, an automobile is productive if it produces transportation. But today we look only at the cars produced per hour worked. More cars can mean more traffic and therefore a transportation system that is less productive. The medical system is the same. The aim should be healthy people, not the sale of more medical services and drugs. Now, however, we assess the economic contribution of the medical system on the basis of treatments rather than results. Economists see nothing wrong with this. They see no problem that the medical system is expected to produce 30 to 40 percent of new jobs over the next thirty years. “We have to spend our money on something,” shrugged a Stanford economist to the New York Times. This is more insanity. Next we will be hearing about “disease-led recovery.” To stimulate the economy we will have to encourage people to be sick so that the economy can be well.
http://harpers.org/archive/2008/06/0082042
ELECTION THEFT REVELATIONS CONTINUE
So Who Is Mike Connell? A Clip from 'Free For All' Gives You an Idea...
We learned two weeks ago that new information concerning Republican high-tech guru Mike Connell's alleged participation in computer-aided fraud from Florida to Ohio to the Swiftboaters to RNC headquarters to Congress has helped lead Ohio attorney Cliff Arnebeck to reignite a long-standing federal lawsuit concerning Ohio's 2004 Presidential Election.
We learned last week that Connell may have been threatened by Karl Rove should the GOP's "high IQ Forrest Gump" --- so described for his uncanny ability to be found "at the scene of every [GOP] crime" --- fail to "take the fall" for election fraud in Ohio, according to a letter sent by Arnebeck to AG Michael Mukasey asking for Connell's protection.
But who exactly is this exceptionally successful, yet largely-below-the-radar-until-now Republican operative?
A video clip (linked below) from the new documentary film, FREE FOR ALL! by filmmaker John Ennis, gives us a small taste of who Connell is, and how he fits into the big picture. BRAD BLOG readers will likely recognize a few faces here. Please enjoy...
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6220
And look at this, John Kerry, who was pilloried in the media for saying it, was right all along: To fight terrorism effectively the military is not the answer, its law enforcement, intelligence, and coalitions with local governments.
BUSH ADMINISTRATION EMPLOYING FLAWED STRATEGY AGAINST AL-QAEDA: According to a new study by the Rand Corporation, entitled "How Terrorist Groups End: Lessons for Countering al Qaeda,' the Bush administration has failed to "significantly undermin[e] al Qaeda's capabilities." The report found that "a strategy based on military force has not been effective" and in fact "has the opposite effect from what is intended: It is often overused, alienates the local population by its heavy-handed nature, and provides a window of opportunity for terrorist-group recruitment." The study finds that the use of the phrase "war on terror" is counterproductive and should be abandoned because it "raises expectations...that there is a battlefield solution to the problem of terrorism" and "encourages others abroad to respond by conducting a jihad...against the United States." Instead, "the authors call for a strategy that includes a greater reliance on law enforcement and intelligence agencies in disrupting the group's networks and in arresting its leaders." "Terrorists should be perceived and described as criminals, not holy warriors," they added. The findings run counter to President Bush's repeated claims that pursuing terrorists and their supporters as criminals is "not enough." If force is necessary, the authors argue, "the emphasis should be on local troops, which understand the terrain and culture and tend to have greater legitimacy." The report also noteds that al Qaeda's "probability of success in actually overthrowing any government is close to zero."
Bush administration officials "reassured Israel's defense minister this week that the United States has not abandoned all possibility of a military attack on Iran." At the same time, the Israelis are "emphasizing the possibility of a military response out of concern that Tehran may soon have the know-how for building a nuclear bomb."
According to icasualties.org, "nearly twice as many U.S. troops have been killed in Afghanistan than in Iraq so far this month." If the July statistics hold, "they'll mark the lowest American military death toll in Iraq, and the second highest toll in Afghanistan, after June, when 27 U.S. troops were killed there" and 29 were killed in Iraq.
Exxon Mobil broke its own record for "the highest-ever profit by a U.S. company," as second-quarter profits rose 14 percent. "Net income in the quarter rose to $11.68 billion, or $2.22 a share, from $10.26 billion, or $1.83 a share, last year."
The Department of Health and Human Services is "reviewing a draft regulation that would deny federal funding to any hospital, clinic, health plan or other entity" that does not allow employees to opt out of providing birth-control pills, IUDs, and the Plan B contraceptive. The draft considers certain contraceptives as destroying "the life of a human being."
More than 3.7 million Americans have had their full-time jobs cut to part time because of weak business, which is "the largest figure since the government began tracking such data more than half a century ago." The loss of pay has reinforced "the downturn gripping the economy" for millions of American families because "paychecks are shrinking just as home prices plunge and gas prices soar."
For those that didn't see yesterdays short addition to Tuesday's post regarding Tim Keane, I'd like to repeat myself:
The talk of Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine as Obama's VERY possible VP selection lead me to one undeniable reaction: HELL NO!!! Briefly, and I'll address this more if it looks like Kaine might be the pick: He's Anti-Choice, he's anti-stem cell research, he has NO military or foreign policy experience (something Obama could use on the ticket), he's as boring as watching paint dry, and he isn't a good attack dog (which Obama also clearly needs, as he doesn't seem to have anything bad to say about anyone, even as they attack his patriotism and character!).
From what I can tell, there are no really "great" possibilities left on his short list (but the media could be wrong about this). Many are saying its either Keane, Biden, or Bayh. Obviously Biden is the FAR SUPERIOR choice out of those three as he IS TOUGH as nails and will take McCain to task, and he does have foreign policy and military credentials (and is more progressive than Kaine).
END
MY MCCAIN CAMPAIGN COMMENT: Wow are they desperate, dirty, and deceptive! Clearly McCain has completely given up on even the remote possibility he can win this race on his own merits, so he's going with his only route to the Presidency (and it is); make the entire election about Obama...and McCain simply is "Other Guy" on the ballot. So get ready for one of the dirtiest and scurrilous campaigns of all time...a tactic that also has a real likelihood of backfiring, especially if Obama is strong in pointing McCain's weaknesses out. That, and pick someone like Biden to have your back...
END
"When we had Katrina and Rita....there was not one case where we had a situation with oil or gas being spilled in the environment."
-- Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, 7/30/08
VERSUS
"A Houston Chronicle review of data from the National Response Center shows that the two storms caused at least 595 spills, incidents that released untold amounts of oil, natural gas and other chemicals into the air, onto land and into the water."
-- Houston Chronicle, 11/13/05
VIDEO SECTION
Dennis Kucinich continues his heroic efforts in defense of the constitution and this country. Watch him talk impeachment!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/31/democracy-now-kucinich-keeps-rolling-that-impeach-boulder-over-mt-pelosi/
Stephen Colbert’s The Word…classic:
http://www.politicstv.com/blog/?p=4075
Colbert covers the Ted Stevens indictment…and how Murdock’s "The Post" did in contrast…awesome:
http://www.politicstv.com/blog/?p=4082
Daily Show makes fun of what is becoming one of the most pathetic campaigns I’ve ever seen in my life: Grumpy Gramps McBush:
http://www.politicstv.com/blog/?p=4070
Here’s some good info on the media bias study that proved that yes, the press likes McCain a lot more (which could simply point to rough waters ahead, as there is SO MUCH negative stuff to report about him still that the media will have to at some point…then he's REALLY F******) than Obama...
http://www.politicstv.com/blog/?p=4068
From C&L: The earth spun slightly off from its axis on Monday, because Mrs. Alan Greenspan actually defended Barack Obama’s European trip from John McCain’s spurious attack ads.
Goodness, will wonders never cease? It begs the question, though, if these journalists, who accompanied Obama on his trip will similarly speak up for the truth of his trip and not just parrot McCain’s fact-free slurs:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/30/andrea-mitchell-debunks-mccains-attack-ads-on-obamas-european-trip/
ARTICLE SECTION: Surge Truths, Phony Economy
Since we're all going to be hammered with the "success of the surge" for the next three months, I think this is a must read for everyone. The truth about what has happened in Iraq and why is so frighteningly different than the accepted Matrix myth parroted by the media and McCain it shocks the senses. Good ole' fashion ethnic cleansing was probably the most important factor in reduced violence...wonderful.
A few clips:
For the first six months of the troop escalation, high rates of violence continued unabated. That is suspicious. What exactly were U.S. troops doing differently from September than they were doing in May, such that there was such a big change? The answer to that question is simply not clear. Note that the troop escalation only brought U.S. force strength up to what it had been in late 2005. In a country of 27 million, 30,000 extra U.S. troops are highly unlikely to have had a really major impact, when they had not before.
As best I can piece it together, what actually seems to have happened was that the escalation troops began by disarming the Sunni Arabs in Baghdad. Once these Sunnis were left helpless, the Shiite militias came in at night and ethnically cleansed them. Shaab district near Adhamiya had been a mixed neighborhood. It ended up with almost no Sunnis. Baghdad in the course of 2007 went from 65 percent Shiite to at least 75 percent Shiite and maybe more. My thesis would be that the United States inadvertently allowed the chasing of hundreds of thousands of Sunni Arabs out of Baghdad (and many of them had to go all the way to Syria for refuge). Rates of violence declined once the ethnic cleansing was far advanced, just because there were fewer mixed neighborhoods.
SNIP
In al-Anbar Province, among the more violent in Iraq in earlier years, the bribing of former Sunni guerrillas to join U.S.-sponsored Awakening Councils had a big calming effect. This technique could have been used much earlier than 2006; indeed, it could have been deployed from 2003 and might have forestalled large numbers of deaths. Condi Rice forbade U.S. military officers from dealing in this way with the Sunnis for fear of alienating U.S. Shiite allies such as Ahmad Chalabi. The technique was independent of the troop escalation. Indeed, it depended on there not being much of a troop escalation in that province. Had large numbers of U.S. soldiers been committed to simply fight the Sunnis or engage in search-and-destroy missions, they would have stirred up and reinforced the guerrilla movement. There were typically only 10,000 U.S. troops in al-Anbar before 2007, as I recollect. (It has a population of a million and a half or so.) If the number of U.S. troops went up to 14,000, that cannot possibly have made the difference.
The Mahdi Army militia of Sayyid Muqtada al-Sadr concluded a cease-fire with U.S. and Iraqi troops in September 2007. Since the United States had inadvertently enabled the transformation of Baghdad into a largely Shiite city, a prime aim of the Mahdi Army, they could afford to stand down. Moreover, they were being beaten militarily by the Badr Corps militia of the pro-Iranian Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq and by Iraqi security forces, in Karbala, Diwaniya and elsewhere. It was prudent for them to stand down. Their doing so much reduced civilian deaths.
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/93081/forget_the_surge_--_violence_is_down_in_iraq_because_ethnic_cleansing_was_brutally_effective/
I've been making this case on this blog for quite sometime: that our economic health is judged by a host of wall street and corporate tilted and patently ludicrous measurement models, most notably the GDP. Meanwhile, little attention is actually paid to, or taken into account when rating the economy, to factors that actually directly effect the quality of life of the vast majority of Americans. In fact, the current economic measurements we - as in our politicians, Wall Street, and the media - use actually reward "harms", such as pollution, while ignoring the benefits like improved health from cleaner air. In other words, we've set up an economic system that encourages bad behavior and punishes good.
A few clips:
That term “the economy”: what it means, in practice, is the Gross Domestic Product–a big statistical pot that includes all the money spent in a given period of time. If the pot is bigger than it was the previous quarter, or year, then you cheer. If it isn’t bigger, or bigger enough, then you call Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke up here and ask him to do some explaining. The what of the economy makes no difference in these councils. It never seems to come up. The money in the big pot could be going to cancer treatments or casinos, violent video games or usurious credit-card rates. It could go toward the $9 billion or so that Americans spend on gas they burn while they sit in traffic, or the billion plus that goes to such drugs as Ritalin and Prozac that schools are stuffing into kids to keep them quiet in class. The money could be the $20 billion or so that Americans spend on divorce lawyers each year, or the $41 billion on pets, or the $5 billion on identity theft, or the billions more spent to repair property damage caused by environmental pollution. The money in the pot could betoken social and environmental breakdown–misery and distress of all kinds. It makes no difference. You don’t ask. All you want to know is the total amount, which is the GDP. So long as it is growing then everything is fine.
SNIP
It is an insanity that is embedded in the political debate and in media reportage, and it leads to fallacy in many directions. We hear, for example, that efforts to address climate change will hurt “the economy.” Does that mean that if we clean up the air we will spend less money treating asthma in young kids? The atmosphere is part of the economy, too–the real economy, that is, though not the artificial construct portrayed in the GDP. It does real work, as we would discover quickly if it were to collapse. Yet the GDP does not include this work. If we burn more gas, the expenditure gets added to the GDP. But there is no corresponding subtraction for the toll this burning takes on the thermostatic and buffering functions that the atmosphere provides. (Nor is there a subtraction for the oil we take out of the ground.) Yet if we burn less gas, and thus maintain the crucial functions of the atmosphere, we say “the economy” has suffered, even though the real economy has been enhanced.
SNIP
The purpose of an economy is to meet human needs in such a way that life becomes in some respect richer and better in the process. It is not simply to produce a lot of stuff. Stuff is a means, not an end. Yet current modes of economic measurement focus almost entirely on means. For example, an automobile is productive if it produces transportation. But today we look only at the cars produced per hour worked. More cars can mean more traffic and therefore a transportation system that is less productive. The medical system is the same. The aim should be healthy people, not the sale of more medical services and drugs. Now, however, we assess the economic contribution of the medical system on the basis of treatments rather than results. Economists see nothing wrong with this. They see no problem that the medical system is expected to produce 30 to 40 percent of new jobs over the next thirty years. “We have to spend our money on something,” shrugged a Stanford economist to the New York Times. This is more insanity. Next we will be hearing about “disease-led recovery.” To stimulate the economy we will have to encourage people to be sick so that the economy can be well.
http://harpers.org/archive/2008/06/0082042
ELECTION THEFT REVELATIONS CONTINUE
So Who Is Mike Connell? A Clip from 'Free For All' Gives You an Idea...
We learned two weeks ago that new information concerning Republican high-tech guru Mike Connell's alleged participation in computer-aided fraud from Florida to Ohio to the Swiftboaters to RNC headquarters to Congress has helped lead Ohio attorney Cliff Arnebeck to reignite a long-standing federal lawsuit concerning Ohio's 2004 Presidential Election.
We learned last week that Connell may have been threatened by Karl Rove should the GOP's "high IQ Forrest Gump" --- so described for his uncanny ability to be found "at the scene of every [GOP] crime" --- fail to "take the fall" for election fraud in Ohio, according to a letter sent by Arnebeck to AG Michael Mukasey asking for Connell's protection.
But who exactly is this exceptionally successful, yet largely-below-the-radar-until-now Republican operative?
A video clip (linked below) from the new documentary film, FREE FOR ALL! by filmmaker John Ennis, gives us a small taste of who Connell is, and how he fits into the big picture. BRAD BLOG readers will likely recognize a few faces here. Please enjoy...
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6220
And look at this, John Kerry, who was pilloried in the media for saying it, was right all along: To fight terrorism effectively the military is not the answer, its law enforcement, intelligence, and coalitions with local governments.
BUSH ADMINISTRATION EMPLOYING FLAWED STRATEGY AGAINST AL-QAEDA: According to a new study by the Rand Corporation, entitled "How Terrorist Groups End: Lessons for Countering al Qaeda,' the Bush administration has failed to "significantly undermin[e] al Qaeda's capabilities." The report found that "a strategy based on military force has not been effective" and in fact "has the opposite effect from what is intended: It is often overused, alienates the local population by its heavy-handed nature, and provides a window of opportunity for terrorist-group recruitment." The study finds that the use of the phrase "war on terror" is counterproductive and should be abandoned because it "raises expectations...that there is a battlefield solution to the problem of terrorism" and "encourages others abroad to respond by conducting a jihad...against the United States." Instead, "the authors call for a strategy that includes a greater reliance on law enforcement and intelligence agencies in disrupting the group's networks and in arresting its leaders." "Terrorists should be perceived and described as criminals, not holy warriors," they added. The findings run counter to President Bush's repeated claims that pursuing terrorists and their supporters as criminals is "not enough." If force is necessary, the authors argue, "the emphasis should be on local troops, which understand the terrain and culture and tend to have greater legitimacy." The report also noteds that al Qaeda's "probability of success in actually overthrowing any government is close to zero."
Bush administration officials "reassured Israel's defense minister this week that the United States has not abandoned all possibility of a military attack on Iran." At the same time, the Israelis are "emphasizing the possibility of a military response out of concern that Tehran may soon have the know-how for building a nuclear bomb."
According to icasualties.org, "nearly twice as many U.S. troops have been killed in Afghanistan than in Iraq so far this month." If the July statistics hold, "they'll mark the lowest American military death toll in Iraq, and the second highest toll in Afghanistan, after June, when 27 U.S. troops were killed there" and 29 were killed in Iraq.
Exxon Mobil broke its own record for "the highest-ever profit by a U.S. company," as second-quarter profits rose 14 percent. "Net income in the quarter rose to $11.68 billion, or $2.22 a share, from $10.26 billion, or $1.83 a share, last year."
The Department of Health and Human Services is "reviewing a draft regulation that would deny federal funding to any hospital, clinic, health plan or other entity" that does not allow employees to opt out of providing birth-control pills, IUDs, and the Plan B contraceptive. The draft considers certain contraceptives as destroying "the life of a human being."
More than 3.7 million Americans have had their full-time jobs cut to part time because of weak business, which is "the largest figure since the government began tracking such data more than half a century ago." The loss of pay has reinforced "the downturn gripping the economy" for millions of American families because "paychecks are shrinking just as home prices plunge and gas prices soar."
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
TODAY'S TOPICS: Impeachment Hearings, Kucinich Rocks, Media Bias Study, F*** Schwarzenegger, Election Theft 08'/Palast
QUICK NOTE ON VP SPECULATION FOR OBAMA: The talk of Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine as Obama's VERY possible VP selection lead me to one undeniable reaction: HELL NO!!!
Briefly, and I'll address this more if it looks like Kaine might be the pick: He's Anti-Choice, he's anti-stem cell research, he has NO military or foreign policy experience (something Obama could use on the ticket), he's as boring as watching paint dry, and he isn't a good attack dog (which Obama also clearly needs, as he doesn't seem to have anything bad to say about anyone, even as they attack his patriotism and character!).
Sadly, Kaine fits perfectly into the Obama I am coming to know...a largely centrist candidate, that is absolutely willing to "triangulate", as did Bill Clinton, in order to appease the DC punditocracy, the corporate media, and the ruling elites (because as I have said, there is no "center" that is energized by candidates that constantly water down the truth). He's also incredibly articulate, intelligent, and in his heart, compassionate...remember, I hold him to a higher standard than others, because I know what's needed in this country, and I know that if we keep on him he will accomplish a lot more good than if we just accept everything he does.
From what I can tell, there are no really "great" possibilities left on his short list (but the media could be wrong about this). Many are saying its either Keane, Biden, or Bayh. Obviously Biden is the FAR SUPERIOR choice out of those three as he IS TOUGH as nails and will take McCain to task, and he does have foreign policy and military credentials (and is more progressive than Kaine). After him I suppose its Kaine...and that's only because Bayh is so bad!! Perhaps Kaine would move Virginia from being "possible" for Obama to win, to "likely"...which is good and all, but I don't think it comes close to makin gup for his downsides.
"As a result of private research, more than 60 genetically diverse stem cell lines already exist."
- President Bush, 8/9/01
VERSUS
"[N]early one quarter of the colonies of human embryonic stem cells that the Bush administration has approved as ethically derived and eligible for study with federal funds 'do not meet ethical thresholds that would allow them to be approved for use...and will no longer be available to researchers.'"
-- Center for American Progress Senior Fellow Rick Weiss, 7/25/08
IMPEACHMENT SECTION
Dennis Kucinich testifies at “impeachment” hearings (but not really according to Pelosi). Got to see this...now here's a REAL hero...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=DRAcenaTVkQ
I have found some of the most effective impeachment supporters to be some of the legal experts coming from the conservative perspective. One of those being Bruce Fein…watch him testify here! And of course, the media continues to cover Brett Farve and the Packers spat as they ignore the crimes of a sociopath president that is responsible for the murder of hundreds of thousands of human beings...among the many crimes against the Constitution:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=80IphtHrFzg&feature=related
Here’s some more good give and take at the hearings…this time led by questioning from Rep. Keith Ellison, the one and only Muslim in Congress:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=9nOXOVFbq70&feature=related
Tell your Representatives to co-sponsor Rep. Kucinich's 35 Articles of Impeachment:
http://democrats.com/35-articles-of-impeachment
TAKE ACTION ON IMPEACHMENT
After more than three years of grassroots pressure from true patriots like you, Congress finally took step 1 towards impeaching George W. Bush for his High Crimes by holding a "non-impeachment hearing" last Friday.
Witnesses led by Dennis Kucinich, Elliot Adams, Rocky Anderson, Bob Barr, Vincent Bugliosi, Bruce Fein, Maurice Hinchey, and Elizabeth Holtzman presented an overwhelming case for impeachment. Watch the individual videos and the wrap-up by American News Project.
Most of the Democrats who attended the hearings were excellent . If one of these is your Representative, or if you contributed to their campaigns, please call 202-224-3121 to thank them for supporting impeachment: Dennis Kucinich, Robert Wexler, Tammy Baldwin, Keith Ellison, Maurice Hinchey, Sheila Jackson-Lee, and Hank Johnson.
Chairman John Conyers insisted it was not an "impeachment hearing." But he also said, "I believe the evidence on these matters is both credible and substantial and warrant the response of the executive branch, under oath if at all possible... Let me add, we are not done yet, and we do not intend to go away until we achieve the accountability that Congress is entitled to and the American people deserve ."
And by the end of the hearing, even the see-no-evil Republican witnesses admitted Congress should consider impeachment. So what stands in the way of real impeachment hearings?
1. 228 Democrats (and 199 Republicans) who have not co-sponsored Articles of Impeachment against George Bush. Tell your Representatives to co-sponsor Rep. Kucinich's 35 Articles of Impeachment:
http://democrats.com/35-articles-of-impeachment
And not unrelated, Jane Mayer, author of The Dark Side, sat down with Bill Moyers on Friday to talk about the "atmosphere of intimidation" in the White House regarding the authorization of torture at Guantanamo.
ALTERNET: According to Mayer, some Justice Department lawyers were so scared of being wiretapped by their own government they actually developed a system of talking in codes.
Here you had the top lawyers in our country—some of whom were conservative—sitting in on White House meetings and claiming that "lunatics had taken over the country." And yet they were too afraid of Vice President Cheney to do anything about it.
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/93043/mayer%3A_justice_department_lawyer_says_lunatics_running_the_country/
OTHER VIDEOS
PBS’s NOW does a special on poverty featuring John Edwards. Great interview:
http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/429/index.html
This is some of the greatest news ever! Ted Stephens is indicted on criminal charges!!
Sen. Ted Stevens, the longest-serving Republican in the U.S. Senate and one of the chamber’s most powerful members, was indicted Tuesday in Washington for failing to disclose more than $250,000 worth of gifts that he received from businessmen who were seeking his help on federal issues and projects.
The seven-count indictment charges Stevens with making false statements by failing to disclose things of value he received from the Veco Corp., an Alaska-based oil services company, and from its CEO, Bill Allen, over an eight-year period.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/29/sen-ted-stevens-r-ak-indicted-on-seven-felony-counts/
A heartbreaking interview with a former Halliburton employee that just couldn’t take their crimes against the troops any longer…a must see:
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/92814/benjamin_carter_v._halliburton_company_and_kbr/
Chuck hagel sets McCain straight regarding his latest scurrilous attacks on Obama as a traitor and unpatriotic…Obama needs to take the gloves off now and start going after grumpy gramps now!
As Digby says:
The McCain campaign is coming hard after Obama right now, being very aggressive and nearly hostile, adopting a tone of righteous indignation that this interloper is trying, basically, to steal the country from its rightful owners. It’s pretty standard right wing populism and it’s always been an effective approach for Republicans during hard times. We’ll see if he can make it work, but I would hope that the Democrats start fighting this back right now. It’s not going to get any better and there’s no margin in letting it lie…
read on
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/07/27/ftn/main4297769.shtml
ELECTION THEFT SECTION
Stealing America the movie…yet another film about that undeniable truth that our election system has been corrupted, and our current occupants in the White House are actually perpetrators of a coup (two actually), and have never been “elected”. Also, what to watch for in 08’. It sure feels good to know I was involved in the very birth of this movement, and the effort to expose the truth about the 2004 election.
http://www.stealingamericathemovie.org/#
STEALING THE ELECTION IN 08’ - HELP NEEDED! - Watch VIDEO
Greg Palast on his investigations into how the GOP will try to steal their THIRD PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN A ROW! The theft has already begun:
In swing-state Colorado, the Republican Secretary of State conducted the biggest purge of voters in history, dumping a fifth of all registrations. Guess their color.
In swing-state Florida, the state is refusing to accept about 85,000 new registrations from voter drives – overwhelming Black voters.
In swing state New Mexico, HALF of the Democrats of Mora, a dirt poor and overwhelmingly Hispanic county, found their registrations disappeared this year, courtesy of a Republican voting contractor.
In swing states Ohio and Nevada, new federal law is knocking out tens of thousands of voters who lost their homes to foreclosure.
My investigations partner spoke directly to Barack Obama about it. (When your partner is Robert F. Kennedy Jr., candidates take your phone call.) The cool, cool Senator Obama told Kennedy he was “concerned” about the integrity of the vote in the Southwest in particular. He’s concerned. I’m sweating.
It’s time SOMEBODY raised the alarm about these missing voters; not to save Obama’s candidacy – journalists should stay the heck away from partisan endorsements - but raise the alarm to save our sick democracy.
And that somebody is YOU. Joining with US, the Palast investigative team. Here’s how:
We have been offered an astonishing opportunity to place the Kennedy-Palast investigative findings on a national, prime-time, major-network television broadcast. Plus, separately, we have an extraordinary offer to create a series of reports for national network radio.
But guess what? The networks will NOT PAY for our public service reports. We have to raise the start-up funds in the next two weeks to film it, record it and get it on the airwaves.
DONATE TO GET THIS INFO AIRED HERE - WATCH THE VIDEO TOO...PLEASE!!!
http://www.gregpalast.com/
NEW STUDY: MEDIA COVERAGE FAVORS MCCAIN DESPITE HIS WHINING
As you all know, I’ve been making this case for months, and now a study has been done proving I’m correct:
CYL: It was obvious when it first dropped that John McCain’s “the press loves Obama” hail mary was an act of desperation designed to distract from the Illinois Senator’s incredibly successful overseas tour. That aside, a study by The Center for Media and Public Affairs at George Mason University has found that for the first six weeks of the general election campaign, the press has actually been tougher on Obama. Surprise, surprise.
LATimes:
The Center for Media and Public Affairs at George Mason University, where researchers have tracked network news content for two decades, found that ABC, NBC and CBS were tougher on Obama than on Republican John McCain during the first six weeks of the general-election campaign.
You read it right: tougher on the Democrat.
During the evening news, the majority of statements from reporters and anchors on all three networks are neutral, the center found. And when network news people ventured opinions in recent weeks, 28% of the statements were positive for Obama and 72% negative.
Network reporting also tilted against McCain, but far less dramatically, with 43% of the statements positive and 57% negative, according to the Washington-based media center.
Again, it was obvious that this latest talking point was complete B.S. from the start. It’s just nice to have an independent group confirm it. I wonder what the next laughable act of desperation to come out the McCain camp will look like… Whatever it is, you can be sure that the right-wing dittoheads will run with it.
SCHWARZENEGGER SHOWS TRUE COLORS - TAKE ACTION
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger just announced that he will sign an Executive Order on Monday slashing the wages of over 200,000 state employees to the bare minimum.Not California's minimum wage of $8 per hour. The federal minimum wage of $6.55. Six dollars and fifty-five cents an hour.Imagine trying to pay your bills on $6.55 an hour.
Now imagine what will happen to thousands of vital service workers forced to live on poverty-level wages. A nauseating irony: many state employees may need to seek aid from the very state services that employ them.This is absolutely outrageous. And the only way we can stop Arnold is by raising our voices as loud as possible in protest.
Please sign our petition to Governor Schwarzenegger and we'll deliver thousands of your signatures to the Governor's office.
http://www.couragecampaign.org/page/s/stoparnold
REPORT SAYS MILLIONS WASTED BY CONTRACTORS ON FAILING PROJECTS: The U.S. government paid $142 million for prison and other infrastructure in Iraq to a contractor who only completed a third of the work, according to a new report by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR). The Pasadena-based Parsons received $142 million as part of a contract valued up to $900 million to build prisons, fire and police facilities, courthouses, and border stations in Iraq, but only completed a fraction of projects. The SIGIR report revealed that "millions of dollars in waste are likely associated with incomplete, terminated and abandoned projects" and nearly 43 percent of disbursed funds "were spent on projects that were either terminated or canceled." Parsons' record in Iraq has been marked by extensive waste and mismanagement. A January SIGIR report showed that Parsons' failures "touched on nearly every aspect of the company's operation in the country" and were enabled by a "confluence of shortfalls," including "weak oversight, unrealistic schedules, a failure to report problems in a timely fashion and poor supervision." Parsons was also responsible for repairing the Baghdad Police College, but the building was left crumbling and with "ceilings still stained with excrement" more than a year after Parsons promised Congress it would fix the building.
VETERANS -- SUICIDE HOTLINE RECEIVES 250 CALLS PER DAY: One year after the Veterans Affairs Department (VA) set up its first suicide hotline for veterans, the AP reports that "more than 22,000 veterans have sought help" and "1,221 suicides have been averted, the government says." The VA "estimates that every year 6,500 veterans take their own lives" and "four to five of them are under VA care." The VA's hotline comes after "years of criticism that the VA wasn't doing enough to help wounded soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan." Last April, a group of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans brought a class action lawsuit against the VA, arguing "that failure to provide care is manifesting itself in an epidemic of suicides" among veterans. Around the same time, CBS News reported that the VA "apparently concealed veteran suicide statistics, and fed the news organization faulty data for a story on the issue." In May, VoteVets.org and the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington revealed that the VA encouraged "staff to refrain from diagnosing soldiers and veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."
QUICK NOTE ON VP SPECULATION FOR OBAMA: The talk of Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine as Obama's VERY possible VP selection lead me to one undeniable reaction: HELL NO!!!
Briefly, and I'll address this more if it looks like Kaine might be the pick: He's Anti-Choice, he's anti-stem cell research, he has NO military or foreign policy experience (something Obama could use on the ticket), he's as boring as watching paint dry, and he isn't a good attack dog (which Obama also clearly needs, as he doesn't seem to have anything bad to say about anyone, even as they attack his patriotism and character!).
Sadly, Kaine fits perfectly into the Obama I am coming to know...a largely centrist candidate, that is absolutely willing to "triangulate", as did Bill Clinton, in order to appease the DC punditocracy, the corporate media, and the ruling elites (because as I have said, there is no "center" that is energized by candidates that constantly water down the truth). He's also incredibly articulate, intelligent, and in his heart, compassionate...remember, I hold him to a higher standard than others, because I know what's needed in this country, and I know that if we keep on him he will accomplish a lot more good than if we just accept everything he does.
From what I can tell, there are no really "great" possibilities left on his short list (but the media could be wrong about this). Many are saying its either Keane, Biden, or Bayh. Obviously Biden is the FAR SUPERIOR choice out of those three as he IS TOUGH as nails and will take McCain to task, and he does have foreign policy and military credentials (and is more progressive than Kaine). After him I suppose its Kaine...and that's only because Bayh is so bad!! Perhaps Kaine would move Virginia from being "possible" for Obama to win, to "likely"...which is good and all, but I don't think it comes close to makin gup for his downsides.
"As a result of private research, more than 60 genetically diverse stem cell lines already exist."
- President Bush, 8/9/01
VERSUS
"[N]early one quarter of the colonies of human embryonic stem cells that the Bush administration has approved as ethically derived and eligible for study with federal funds 'do not meet ethical thresholds that would allow them to be approved for use...and will no longer be available to researchers.'"
-- Center for American Progress Senior Fellow Rick Weiss, 7/25/08
IMPEACHMENT SECTION
Dennis Kucinich testifies at “impeachment” hearings (but not really according to Pelosi). Got to see this...now here's a REAL hero...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=DRAcenaTVkQ
I have found some of the most effective impeachment supporters to be some of the legal experts coming from the conservative perspective. One of those being Bruce Fein…watch him testify here! And of course, the media continues to cover Brett Farve and the Packers spat as they ignore the crimes of a sociopath president that is responsible for the murder of hundreds of thousands of human beings...among the many crimes against the Constitution:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=80IphtHrFzg&feature=related
Here’s some more good give and take at the hearings…this time led by questioning from Rep. Keith Ellison, the one and only Muslim in Congress:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=9nOXOVFbq70&feature=related
Tell your Representatives to co-sponsor Rep. Kucinich's 35 Articles of Impeachment:
http://democrats.com/35-articles-of-impeachment
TAKE ACTION ON IMPEACHMENT
After more than three years of grassroots pressure from true patriots like you, Congress finally took step 1 towards impeaching George W. Bush for his High Crimes by holding a "non-impeachment hearing" last Friday.
Witnesses led by Dennis Kucinich, Elliot Adams, Rocky Anderson, Bob Barr, Vincent Bugliosi, Bruce Fein, Maurice Hinchey, and Elizabeth Holtzman presented an overwhelming case for impeachment. Watch the individual videos and the wrap-up by American News Project.
Most of the Democrats who attended the hearings were excellent . If one of these is your Representative, or if you contributed to their campaigns, please call 202-224-3121 to thank them for supporting impeachment: Dennis Kucinich, Robert Wexler, Tammy Baldwin, Keith Ellison, Maurice Hinchey, Sheila Jackson-Lee, and Hank Johnson.
Chairman John Conyers insisted it was not an "impeachment hearing." But he also said, "I believe the evidence on these matters is both credible and substantial and warrant the response of the executive branch, under oath if at all possible... Let me add, we are not done yet, and we do not intend to go away until we achieve the accountability that Congress is entitled to and the American people deserve ."
And by the end of the hearing, even the see-no-evil Republican witnesses admitted Congress should consider impeachment. So what stands in the way of real impeachment hearings?
1. 228 Democrats (and 199 Republicans) who have not co-sponsored Articles of Impeachment against George Bush. Tell your Representatives to co-sponsor Rep. Kucinich's 35 Articles of Impeachment:
http://democrats.com/35-articles-of-impeachment
And not unrelated, Jane Mayer, author of The Dark Side, sat down with Bill Moyers on Friday to talk about the "atmosphere of intimidation" in the White House regarding the authorization of torture at Guantanamo.
ALTERNET: According to Mayer, some Justice Department lawyers were so scared of being wiretapped by their own government they actually developed a system of talking in codes.
Here you had the top lawyers in our country—some of whom were conservative—sitting in on White House meetings and claiming that "lunatics had taken over the country." And yet they were too afraid of Vice President Cheney to do anything about it.
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/93043/mayer%3A_justice_department_lawyer_says_lunatics_running_the_country/
OTHER VIDEOS
PBS’s NOW does a special on poverty featuring John Edwards. Great interview:
http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/429/index.html
This is some of the greatest news ever! Ted Stephens is indicted on criminal charges!!
Sen. Ted Stevens, the longest-serving Republican in the U.S. Senate and one of the chamber’s most powerful members, was indicted Tuesday in Washington for failing to disclose more than $250,000 worth of gifts that he received from businessmen who were seeking his help on federal issues and projects.
The seven-count indictment charges Stevens with making false statements by failing to disclose things of value he received from the Veco Corp., an Alaska-based oil services company, and from its CEO, Bill Allen, over an eight-year period.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/29/sen-ted-stevens-r-ak-indicted-on-seven-felony-counts/
A heartbreaking interview with a former Halliburton employee that just couldn’t take their crimes against the troops any longer…a must see:
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/92814/benjamin_carter_v._halliburton_company_and_kbr/
Chuck hagel sets McCain straight regarding his latest scurrilous attacks on Obama as a traitor and unpatriotic…Obama needs to take the gloves off now and start going after grumpy gramps now!
As Digby says:
The McCain campaign is coming hard after Obama right now, being very aggressive and nearly hostile, adopting a tone of righteous indignation that this interloper is trying, basically, to steal the country from its rightful owners. It’s pretty standard right wing populism and it’s always been an effective approach for Republicans during hard times. We’ll see if he can make it work, but I would hope that the Democrats start fighting this back right now. It’s not going to get any better and there’s no margin in letting it lie…
read on
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/07/27/ftn/main4297769.shtml
ELECTION THEFT SECTION
Stealing America the movie…yet another film about that undeniable truth that our election system has been corrupted, and our current occupants in the White House are actually perpetrators of a coup (two actually), and have never been “elected”. Also, what to watch for in 08’. It sure feels good to know I was involved in the very birth of this movement, and the effort to expose the truth about the 2004 election.
http://www.stealingamericathemovie.org/#
STEALING THE ELECTION IN 08’ - HELP NEEDED! - Watch VIDEO
Greg Palast on his investigations into how the GOP will try to steal their THIRD PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN A ROW! The theft has already begun:
In swing-state Colorado, the Republican Secretary of State conducted the biggest purge of voters in history, dumping a fifth of all registrations. Guess their color.
In swing-state Florida, the state is refusing to accept about 85,000 new registrations from voter drives – overwhelming Black voters.
In swing state New Mexico, HALF of the Democrats of Mora, a dirt poor and overwhelmingly Hispanic county, found their registrations disappeared this year, courtesy of a Republican voting contractor.
In swing states Ohio and Nevada, new federal law is knocking out tens of thousands of voters who lost their homes to foreclosure.
My investigations partner spoke directly to Barack Obama about it. (When your partner is Robert F. Kennedy Jr., candidates take your phone call.) The cool, cool Senator Obama told Kennedy he was “concerned” about the integrity of the vote in the Southwest in particular. He’s concerned. I’m sweating.
It’s time SOMEBODY raised the alarm about these missing voters; not to save Obama’s candidacy – journalists should stay the heck away from partisan endorsements - but raise the alarm to save our sick democracy.
And that somebody is YOU. Joining with US, the Palast investigative team. Here’s how:
We have been offered an astonishing opportunity to place the Kennedy-Palast investigative findings on a national, prime-time, major-network television broadcast. Plus, separately, we have an extraordinary offer to create a series of reports for national network radio.
But guess what? The networks will NOT PAY for our public service reports. We have to raise the start-up funds in the next two weeks to film it, record it and get it on the airwaves.
DONATE TO GET THIS INFO AIRED HERE - WATCH THE VIDEO TOO...PLEASE!!!
http://www.gregpalast.com/
NEW STUDY: MEDIA COVERAGE FAVORS MCCAIN DESPITE HIS WHINING
As you all know, I’ve been making this case for months, and now a study has been done proving I’m correct:
CYL: It was obvious when it first dropped that John McCain’s “the press loves Obama” hail mary was an act of desperation designed to distract from the Illinois Senator’s incredibly successful overseas tour. That aside, a study by The Center for Media and Public Affairs at George Mason University has found that for the first six weeks of the general election campaign, the press has actually been tougher on Obama. Surprise, surprise.
LATimes:
The Center for Media and Public Affairs at George Mason University, where researchers have tracked network news content for two decades, found that ABC, NBC and CBS were tougher on Obama than on Republican John McCain during the first six weeks of the general-election campaign.
You read it right: tougher on the Democrat.
During the evening news, the majority of statements from reporters and anchors on all three networks are neutral, the center found. And when network news people ventured opinions in recent weeks, 28% of the statements were positive for Obama and 72% negative.
Network reporting also tilted against McCain, but far less dramatically, with 43% of the statements positive and 57% negative, according to the Washington-based media center.
Again, it was obvious that this latest talking point was complete B.S. from the start. It’s just nice to have an independent group confirm it. I wonder what the next laughable act of desperation to come out the McCain camp will look like… Whatever it is, you can be sure that the right-wing dittoheads will run with it.
SCHWARZENEGGER SHOWS TRUE COLORS - TAKE ACTION
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger just announced that he will sign an Executive Order on Monday slashing the wages of over 200,000 state employees to the bare minimum.Not California's minimum wage of $8 per hour. The federal minimum wage of $6.55. Six dollars and fifty-five cents an hour.Imagine trying to pay your bills on $6.55 an hour.
Now imagine what will happen to thousands of vital service workers forced to live on poverty-level wages. A nauseating irony: many state employees may need to seek aid from the very state services that employ them.This is absolutely outrageous. And the only way we can stop Arnold is by raising our voices as loud as possible in protest.
Please sign our petition to Governor Schwarzenegger and we'll deliver thousands of your signatures to the Governor's office.
http://www.couragecampaign.org/page/s/stoparnold
REPORT SAYS MILLIONS WASTED BY CONTRACTORS ON FAILING PROJECTS: The U.S. government paid $142 million for prison and other infrastructure in Iraq to a contractor who only completed a third of the work, according to a new report by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR). The Pasadena-based Parsons received $142 million as part of a contract valued up to $900 million to build prisons, fire and police facilities, courthouses, and border stations in Iraq, but only completed a fraction of projects. The SIGIR report revealed that "millions of dollars in waste are likely associated with incomplete, terminated and abandoned projects" and nearly 43 percent of disbursed funds "were spent on projects that were either terminated or canceled." Parsons' record in Iraq has been marked by extensive waste and mismanagement. A January SIGIR report showed that Parsons' failures "touched on nearly every aspect of the company's operation in the country" and were enabled by a "confluence of shortfalls," including "weak oversight, unrealistic schedules, a failure to report problems in a timely fashion and poor supervision." Parsons was also responsible for repairing the Baghdad Police College, but the building was left crumbling and with "ceilings still stained with excrement" more than a year after Parsons promised Congress it would fix the building.
VETERANS -- SUICIDE HOTLINE RECEIVES 250 CALLS PER DAY: One year after the Veterans Affairs Department (VA) set up its first suicide hotline for veterans, the AP reports that "more than 22,000 veterans have sought help" and "1,221 suicides have been averted, the government says." The VA "estimates that every year 6,500 veterans take their own lives" and "four to five of them are under VA care." The VA's hotline comes after "years of criticism that the VA wasn't doing enough to help wounded soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan." Last April, a group of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans brought a class action lawsuit against the VA, arguing "that failure to provide care is manifesting itself in an epidemic of suicides" among veterans. Around the same time, CBS News reported that the VA "apparently concealed veteran suicide statistics, and fed the news organization faulty data for a story on the issue." In May, VoteVets.org and the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington revealed that the VA encouraged "staff to refrain from diagnosing soldiers and veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."
Monday, July 28, 2008
TODAY'S TOPICS: Impeachment Hearings, Media Bias, Obama Trip, Mccain, Bugliosi, Wexler, Afghanistan, Moving Left
IMPEACHMENT SECTION
Regardless whether Pelosi is allowing a vote on impeachment, it was still a beautiful thing to watch expert after expert give impassioned and air tight arguments regarding Bush's crimes against this country and the Constitution. It is no surprise of course, that the media barely covered these historic hearings at all. Sad, and sick. Nonetheless, I hope this is a lesson to all Democrats that fighting for the law, and holding a murderer and war criminal like Bush accountable is both the right thing to do, AND the strategic thing to do.
A precedent must be set, one that makes clear that in this country we hold our Presidents accountable for their crimes, and that the separation of powers is a notion that must at all costs be preserved. These hearings were also important in demonstrating which Democrats are really with us, and which are still afraid to take on the Matrix. Sadly, Obama, clearly demonstrated by his FISA vote, is not one of those we can count on when it comes to the courage to take these criminals on and defend the Constitution. But, there are many who are ready to fight...Kucinich, Wexler, Hinchey, Feingold, Saunders, to name a few...
Here's some key quotes before some selected video clips:
“I think this is the most impeachable administration in the history of our country,” said Rep. Maurice “Mo” Hinchey (D-N.Y.). Hinchey has introduced legislation to censure Bush administration officials for making statements justifying the invasion of Iraq, as well as the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping program. and setting up a detention center in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
“Our constitutional system of checks and balances assumes a certain jostling between the President and Congress, but the Bush Administration’s refusal to provide information to Congress or the American people is more dangerous and more sinister than just an extravagantly ambitious claim to executive branch powers,” added Rep. Brad Miller (D-N.C.) in his own opening statement. “Control of information stifles dissent and insulates an administration from challenge, either by Congress or its critics. Control of information is incompatible with democracy.”
More Miller: “Democracy dies behind closed doors. It is Congress’ duty to throw the doors open and keep them open in future administrations, Democratic and Republican alike.”
Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.), a GOP critic of the president, slammed the president for issuing “signing statements” when approving legislation that lays out what provisions the White House will enforce or agree to abide by.
“To me, what we’re really talking about today is trust: for our Nation to free and strong, the people must trust their president to enforce the law,” Jones said. “When the president bypasses the will of the people, expressed through Congress, and decides what provisions of law will and will not be enforced, the president goes beyond the Constitutional authority given to him by our Founding Fathers.”
Now watch Rep. Robert Wexler!!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/congressional-hearing-on-bush-abuse-of-power-rep-wexler-brings-the-heat/
Watch Vincent Bugliosi’s opening statements during the House Judiciary Committee hearing on the constitutional limits of executive power! This is the prosecutor that nailed Charles Manson, and who recently wrote a book the “Trial of George W. Bush for Murder”.
The key here is the fact that he has uncovered PROOF that Bush and co. did indeed LIE to congress about the threat Hussein posed to America (as in none). It turns out that in the NIE report it specifically said Saddam posed no imminent threat, yet this statement was deleted from the version Congress and the American people got This coverup took place at the SAME TIME that Bush was claiming Hussein DID pose an imminent threat to our security. This should be headline news, on every channel and on the cover of every newspaper!
WATCH!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/vincent-bugliosi-hearing-on-limits-of-executive-power-abd-his-take-on-weapons-of-mass-destruction/
This is really extraordinary! Watch Dave Letterman interview investigative journalist Jane Mayer Wednesday about her new book, The Dark Side, which chronicles the Bush administration’s use (and denial of use) of torture, and asks her a simple question that we all want to know the answer to.
During the Nuremberg trials Robert H. Jackson said:
“To initiate a war of aggression, therefore, is not only an international crime, it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.”
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/david-letterman-can-a-case-be-made-that-george-bushs-administration-is-clearly-guilty-of-war-crimes/
THE PRESS VERSUS OBAMA...AND THE "LIBERAL MEDIA MYTH"
FROM C&L: Now that Senator Obama's Berlin address is in the can, get ready for the backlash from the very serious corporate media. Get ready for profuse around-the-clock praise of Senator McCain and/or unfair, invented criticism of Obama. Because reporting news, however accurate, about his successful trip to the Middle East and Europe isn't news. It's obviously biased reporting against the McCain campaign
The gop's ability to turn white into black and black into white remains unparalleled. It is frightening to think that after rev. wright, flag lapels, the hand on the heart during the anthem, and all the rest, while Mccain is fawned over by the press and his gaffe's ignored, that yet we are actually having a debate as to whether the media is biased towards Obama!! This truly pushes the boundaries of sanity itself, and is a perfect example of the Matrix at work.
Of course Obama gets MORE coverage, for christ's sake, have you seen McCain's events??? How could McCain at a grocery store deserve the same amount of coverage as Obama touring the world as the first potential black president and the most charismatic leader of the last 50 years (though I have issues with some of his "moderation")??? McCain is running a pathetic campaign, then he whines he's not getting more coverage....he should just be happy the media isn't exposing him for the senile, lying, blubbering old warmonger he is...
So why does the media kowtow to McCain? Why do they seem so intent on proving they don't have an Obama bias? Here's a couple reasons:
1. The media is afraid of McCain/GOP calling them liberal (remember, this has been a coordinated GOP intimidation effort against the press for over 30 years now, and its really paying off)
2. They are actively working to make this a "horse race" to boost ratings.
3. Today's corporatized, infotainment news has been gutted of investigative news staff and departments, which are now shells of what they once were. Advertisers have more and more power and influence over what is covered and what is not, and politics has been dumbed down to a racehorse, soap opera dog and pony show, further playing into the hands of the right wing, racist and sensationalistic propaganda machine. They know how to generate phony stories and wedge issues like no other...
Unfortunately this Matrix/Media structure is not just destructive to candidates like Obama, but to our entire political discourse, and most assuredly the left and progressivism.
from CYL: So the reality is that positive coverage of any Democrat is limited and temporary for fear of networks and newspapers either being accused of liberal bias or being tossed out of the very serious barbeque loop. Regardless of whether the Democrat, in this case Senator Obama, is having a good day, it's somehow unethical to report on such good news for too long without deliberately concocting an antidote to appease the far-right. So rather than standing up as the only industry explicitly named in the Constitution and defending the very basic idea of journalistic integrity, the corporate media is all too quick to capitulate to these specious
Republican attacks -- that is, when they're not tossing their ethics aside and taking bribes in the form of barbeque and McBusch beer from a candidate whom they're supposed to be covering objectively.
END
For instance, watch McCain try to explain his earlier lie on the surge and its relationship to the Anbar Awakening, and instead of calling him on it, the media just moves on. They sure like attacking Obama for, let’s see, what’s the latest, oh yeah, for being liked too much and seeming too Presidential ….
Olbermann covers the latest on McCain’s Anbar Awakening fantasy. I dare you to try and understand what the hell grumpy gramps is talking about…he’s incoherent and nonsensical…and all kinds of other things I won’t repeat here today:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/mccain-denies-botching-anbar-timeline/
Daily Show on McCain’s events in comparison to Obama’s trip to Europe…classic...nothing like watching an old geezer speak in front of two people in front of the cheese section of a grocery store as the other speaks in front of 200,000 in Germany.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/daily-show-obama-in-berlin-vs-mccain-in-the-supermarket/
This is why Edwards was my first choice…fighting the good fight...
Edwards is touring the United States as chairman of the Half in Ten campaign, with the goal of reducing poverty by half within a decade. Half in Ten is an initiative of ACORN, the Center for American Progress Action Fund (CAPAF), the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN), and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR).
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/5904473.html
It’s official, Fox news anchors get talking points from White House...McClellan comes clean:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/mcclellan-white-house-gave-fox-commentators-talking-points/
VoteVets.org just put out a great ad on McCain and the continued occupation. Check it out:
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/92681/veterans_against_mccain/
After FOX thwarted Nas' attempt to deliver our 620,000-signature petition in Manhattan yesterday, Nas outfoxed FOX. Nas took the petition over to The Colbert Report, where he and Colbert lit into FOX for its racist slander against the Obamas as they literally sat on our boxes of petition signatures.
Watch the interview Colbert did with Nas...and here's some more of the sick lyrics from his track:
They monopolizing news
Your views
And the channel you choose
Propaganda, visual cancer
The eye in the sky, number 5 on the dial Secret agenda, frequency antenna
Dr. Mindbender
Remote control soul
Controller Your brain holder
Slave culture, game’s over
What’s a fox characteristic?
Slick shit, sensin’, misinformation
Pimp the station, over-stimulation
Reception, deception
Comcast digital Satan
The Fox has a bushy tail And Bush tells lies and foxtrots So, I don’t know what’s real (what’s real)
I watch CBS, and I see BS
Trying to track us down with GPS
Make a nigga want to invest in PBS
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/92700/nas_on_the_colbert_report%3A_%22o%27reilly_is_afraid_of_me%22/
ARTICLE SECTION
Now that our nation's focus is shifting to Afghanistan, so must the peace movement's. Here is the beginning of the dialogue on how to get us out of that country too.
A few clips from Katrina vanden heuval's article in the Nation:
So it is troubling that as he shows sound thinking on Iraq, Obama also continues to talk about escalating the US military presence in Afghanistan. (This holds true not just for Senator Obama, but for most Democrats in Washington, who argue mantra-like that we need to leave Iraq in order to free additional troops to serve in Afghanistan.) Shouldn’t serious thought be given to how Senator Obama’s necessary agenda for healthcare and progressive economic reform might be sacrificed to yet another trillion-dollar war without end?
That’s why I would urge Senator Obama to read three documents and think long and hard about the dangers to his agenda — both domestically and internationally — of extricating the US from one disastrous war and heading into another. I believe there are alternatives which need to be explored at this critical juncture before such a commitment is made, and some of those ideas are found in these documents.
A statement from the international relief and development organization Oxfam America urges both Senators Obama and McCain to expand the debate regarding Afghanistan beyond a discussion of troop levels, examining the importance of targeted development, sustainable aid, and the danger of increasing civilian casualties: “Alleviating poverty and protecting civilians from violence are essential components of a strategy to bring peace and stability to the country. Unless the next American president… builds on the existing commitments to help lift the Afghan people out of extreme poverty and protect civilians, it will be impossible for the country to achieve lasting peace….”
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/07/25/10594/
And more evidence that the country, despite the way the media talks, is moving left...as I have been saying for years now. Remember this data anytime some talking head starts blathering about Obama's need to "move to the center" (which is code for moving AWAY FROM THE CENTER).
A few clips from Jeff Cohen:
It’s a cherished myth of many in establishment punditry that most Americans perpetually and happily find their way to the safe center of American politics. This pleasant status quo consensus is marred, in Blow’s text, by “party extremists sharpening their wedge issues” to rally their bases and caricature their opponents.
SNIP
Asked if the following were “morally acceptable,” trend lines were leftward. “Gay relationships”: 40% in May 2001 to 48% in May 2008. “Divorce”: 59% to 70% in same time period. “Medical research using stem cells from human embryos”: from 52% in May 2002 to 62% in May 2008.
Some might argue that there is one Times graph that trends rightward: “The state of moral values in the country as a whole is getting worse.” It went from 67% in May 2002 to 81% in May 2008. Yet I’m no conservative and I’m absolutely part of the 81% — given the declining morals that descend from corporate, government and religious elites.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/07/28/10644/
Rove Threatened GOP IT Guru If He Does Not 'Take the Fall' for Election Fraud in Ohio, Says Attorney
Letter Sent to Attorney General Mukasey Requesting 'Protection for Mr. Connell and His Family From This Reported Attempt to Intimidate a Witness' After Tip from 'Credible Source'
UPDATED: OH AG Reportedly Asked to Provide Immunity Protection...
OH attorney Cliff Arnebeck sent an email to AG Mukasey asking for protection of the GOP's "high IQ Forrest Gump", following reports of threats sent to Mike Connell and his wife if he was unwilling to "take the fall" for fraud in the Buckeye State's '04 election. The reports of a threat from Rove, said to have come from 'credible sources,' comes on the heels of Arnebeck's announcement last week that he's filed a motion to lift the stay on a long-standing 2004 federal election lawsuit based on the discovery of new information. Details and the complete email from Arnebeck to Mukasey are posted at the link below...
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6214
IMPEACHMENT SECTION
Regardless whether Pelosi is allowing a vote on impeachment, it was still a beautiful thing to watch expert after expert give impassioned and air tight arguments regarding Bush's crimes against this country and the Constitution. It is no surprise of course, that the media barely covered these historic hearings at all. Sad, and sick. Nonetheless, I hope this is a lesson to all Democrats that fighting for the law, and holding a murderer and war criminal like Bush accountable is both the right thing to do, AND the strategic thing to do.
A precedent must be set, one that makes clear that in this country we hold our Presidents accountable for their crimes, and that the separation of powers is a notion that must at all costs be preserved. These hearings were also important in demonstrating which Democrats are really with us, and which are still afraid to take on the Matrix. Sadly, Obama, clearly demonstrated by his FISA vote, is not one of those we can count on when it comes to the courage to take these criminals on and defend the Constitution. But, there are many who are ready to fight...Kucinich, Wexler, Hinchey, Feingold, Saunders, to name a few...
Here's some key quotes before some selected video clips:
“I think this is the most impeachable administration in the history of our country,” said Rep. Maurice “Mo” Hinchey (D-N.Y.). Hinchey has introduced legislation to censure Bush administration officials for making statements justifying the invasion of Iraq, as well as the NSA’s warrantless wiretapping program. and setting up a detention center in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
“Our constitutional system of checks and balances assumes a certain jostling between the President and Congress, but the Bush Administration’s refusal to provide information to Congress or the American people is more dangerous and more sinister than just an extravagantly ambitious claim to executive branch powers,” added Rep. Brad Miller (D-N.C.) in his own opening statement. “Control of information stifles dissent and insulates an administration from challenge, either by Congress or its critics. Control of information is incompatible with democracy.”
More Miller: “Democracy dies behind closed doors. It is Congress’ duty to throw the doors open and keep them open in future administrations, Democratic and Republican alike.”
Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.), a GOP critic of the president, slammed the president for issuing “signing statements” when approving legislation that lays out what provisions the White House will enforce or agree to abide by.
“To me, what we’re really talking about today is trust: for our Nation to free and strong, the people must trust their president to enforce the law,” Jones said. “When the president bypasses the will of the people, expressed through Congress, and decides what provisions of law will and will not be enforced, the president goes beyond the Constitutional authority given to him by our Founding Fathers.”
Now watch Rep. Robert Wexler!!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/congressional-hearing-on-bush-abuse-of-power-rep-wexler-brings-the-heat/
Watch Vincent Bugliosi’s opening statements during the House Judiciary Committee hearing on the constitutional limits of executive power! This is the prosecutor that nailed Charles Manson, and who recently wrote a book the “Trial of George W. Bush for Murder”.
The key here is the fact that he has uncovered PROOF that Bush and co. did indeed LIE to congress about the threat Hussein posed to America (as in none). It turns out that in the NIE report it specifically said Saddam posed no imminent threat, yet this statement was deleted from the version Congress and the American people got This coverup took place at the SAME TIME that Bush was claiming Hussein DID pose an imminent threat to our security. This should be headline news, on every channel and on the cover of every newspaper!
WATCH!
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/vincent-bugliosi-hearing-on-limits-of-executive-power-abd-his-take-on-weapons-of-mass-destruction/
This is really extraordinary! Watch Dave Letterman interview investigative journalist Jane Mayer Wednesday about her new book, The Dark Side, which chronicles the Bush administration’s use (and denial of use) of torture, and asks her a simple question that we all want to know the answer to.
During the Nuremberg trials Robert H. Jackson said:
“To initiate a war of aggression, therefore, is not only an international crime, it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.”
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/david-letterman-can-a-case-be-made-that-george-bushs-administration-is-clearly-guilty-of-war-crimes/
THE PRESS VERSUS OBAMA...AND THE "LIBERAL MEDIA MYTH"
FROM C&L: Now that Senator Obama's Berlin address is in the can, get ready for the backlash from the very serious corporate media. Get ready for profuse around-the-clock praise of Senator McCain and/or unfair, invented criticism of Obama. Because reporting news, however accurate, about his successful trip to the Middle East and Europe isn't news. It's obviously biased reporting against the McCain campaign
The gop's ability to turn white into black and black into white remains unparalleled. It is frightening to think that after rev. wright, flag lapels, the hand on the heart during the anthem, and all the rest, while Mccain is fawned over by the press and his gaffe's ignored, that yet we are actually having a debate as to whether the media is biased towards Obama!! This truly pushes the boundaries of sanity itself, and is a perfect example of the Matrix at work.
Of course Obama gets MORE coverage, for christ's sake, have you seen McCain's events??? How could McCain at a grocery store deserve the same amount of coverage as Obama touring the world as the first potential black president and the most charismatic leader of the last 50 years (though I have issues with some of his "moderation")??? McCain is running a pathetic campaign, then he whines he's not getting more coverage....he should just be happy the media isn't exposing him for the senile, lying, blubbering old warmonger he is...
So why does the media kowtow to McCain? Why do they seem so intent on proving they don't have an Obama bias? Here's a couple reasons:
1. The media is afraid of McCain/GOP calling them liberal (remember, this has been a coordinated GOP intimidation effort against the press for over 30 years now, and its really paying off)
2. They are actively working to make this a "horse race" to boost ratings.
3. Today's corporatized, infotainment news has been gutted of investigative news staff and departments, which are now shells of what they once were. Advertisers have more and more power and influence over what is covered and what is not, and politics has been dumbed down to a racehorse, soap opera dog and pony show, further playing into the hands of the right wing, racist and sensationalistic propaganda machine. They know how to generate phony stories and wedge issues like no other...
Unfortunately this Matrix/Media structure is not just destructive to candidates like Obama, but to our entire political discourse, and most assuredly the left and progressivism.
from CYL: So the reality is that positive coverage of any Democrat is limited and temporary for fear of networks and newspapers either being accused of liberal bias or being tossed out of the very serious barbeque loop. Regardless of whether the Democrat, in this case Senator Obama, is having a good day, it's somehow unethical to report on such good news for too long without deliberately concocting an antidote to appease the far-right. So rather than standing up as the only industry explicitly named in the Constitution and defending the very basic idea of journalistic integrity, the corporate media is all too quick to capitulate to these specious
Republican attacks -- that is, when they're not tossing their ethics aside and taking bribes in the form of barbeque and McBusch beer from a candidate whom they're supposed to be covering objectively.
END
For instance, watch McCain try to explain his earlier lie on the surge and its relationship to the Anbar Awakening, and instead of calling him on it, the media just moves on. They sure like attacking Obama for, let’s see, what’s the latest, oh yeah, for being liked too much and seeming too Presidential ….
Olbermann covers the latest on McCain’s Anbar Awakening fantasy. I dare you to try and understand what the hell grumpy gramps is talking about…he’s incoherent and nonsensical…and all kinds of other things I won’t repeat here today:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/mccain-denies-botching-anbar-timeline/
Daily Show on McCain’s events in comparison to Obama’s trip to Europe…classic...nothing like watching an old geezer speak in front of two people in front of the cheese section of a grocery store as the other speaks in front of 200,000 in Germany.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/daily-show-obama-in-berlin-vs-mccain-in-the-supermarket/
This is why Edwards was my first choice…fighting the good fight...
Edwards is touring the United States as chairman of the Half in Ten campaign, with the goal of reducing poverty by half within a decade. Half in Ten is an initiative of ACORN, the Center for American Progress Action Fund (CAPAF), the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN), and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR).
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/5904473.html
It’s official, Fox news anchors get talking points from White House...McClellan comes clean:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/07/25/mcclellan-white-house-gave-fox-commentators-talking-points/
VoteVets.org just put out a great ad on McCain and the continued occupation. Check it out:
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/92681/veterans_against_mccain/
After FOX thwarted Nas' attempt to deliver our 620,000-signature petition in Manhattan yesterday, Nas outfoxed FOX. Nas took the petition over to The Colbert Report, where he and Colbert lit into FOX for its racist slander against the Obamas as they literally sat on our boxes of petition signatures.
Watch the interview Colbert did with Nas...and here's some more of the sick lyrics from his track:
They monopolizing news
Your views
And the channel you choose
Propaganda, visual cancer
The eye in the sky, number 5 on the dial Secret agenda, frequency antenna
Dr. Mindbender
Remote control soul
Controller Your brain holder
Slave culture, game’s over
What’s a fox characteristic?
Slick shit, sensin’, misinformation
Pimp the station, over-stimulation
Reception, deception
Comcast digital Satan
The Fox has a bushy tail And Bush tells lies and foxtrots So, I don’t know what’s real (what’s real)
I watch CBS, and I see BS
Trying to track us down with GPS
Make a nigga want to invest in PBS
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/92700/nas_on_the_colbert_report%3A_%22o%27reilly_is_afraid_of_me%22/
ARTICLE SECTION
Now that our nation's focus is shifting to Afghanistan, so must the peace movement's. Here is the beginning of the dialogue on how to get us out of that country too.
A few clips from Katrina vanden heuval's article in the Nation:
So it is troubling that as he shows sound thinking on Iraq, Obama also continues to talk about escalating the US military presence in Afghanistan. (This holds true not just for Senator Obama, but for most Democrats in Washington, who argue mantra-like that we need to leave Iraq in order to free additional troops to serve in Afghanistan.) Shouldn’t serious thought be given to how Senator Obama’s necessary agenda for healthcare and progressive economic reform might be sacrificed to yet another trillion-dollar war without end?
That’s why I would urge Senator Obama to read three documents and think long and hard about the dangers to his agenda — both domestically and internationally — of extricating the US from one disastrous war and heading into another. I believe there are alternatives which need to be explored at this critical juncture before such a commitment is made, and some of those ideas are found in these documents.
A statement from the international relief and development organization Oxfam America urges both Senators Obama and McCain to expand the debate regarding Afghanistan beyond a discussion of troop levels, examining the importance of targeted development, sustainable aid, and the danger of increasing civilian casualties: “Alleviating poverty and protecting civilians from violence are essential components of a strategy to bring peace and stability to the country. Unless the next American president… builds on the existing commitments to help lift the Afghan people out of extreme poverty and protect civilians, it will be impossible for the country to achieve lasting peace….”
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/07/25/10594/
And more evidence that the country, despite the way the media talks, is moving left...as I have been saying for years now. Remember this data anytime some talking head starts blathering about Obama's need to "move to the center" (which is code for moving AWAY FROM THE CENTER).
A few clips from Jeff Cohen:
It’s a cherished myth of many in establishment punditry that most Americans perpetually and happily find their way to the safe center of American politics. This pleasant status quo consensus is marred, in Blow’s text, by “party extremists sharpening their wedge issues” to rally their bases and caricature their opponents.
SNIP
Asked if the following were “morally acceptable,” trend lines were leftward. “Gay relationships”: 40% in May 2001 to 48% in May 2008. “Divorce”: 59% to 70% in same time period. “Medical research using stem cells from human embryos”: from 52% in May 2002 to 62% in May 2008.
Some might argue that there is one Times graph that trends rightward: “The state of moral values in the country as a whole is getting worse.” It went from 67% in May 2002 to 81% in May 2008. Yet I’m no conservative and I’m absolutely part of the 81% — given the declining morals that descend from corporate, government and religious elites.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/07/28/10644/
Rove Threatened GOP IT Guru If He Does Not 'Take the Fall' for Election Fraud in Ohio, Says Attorney
Letter Sent to Attorney General Mukasey Requesting 'Protection for Mr. Connell and His Family From This Reported Attempt to Intimidate a Witness' After Tip from 'Credible Source'
UPDATED: OH AG Reportedly Asked to Provide Immunity Protection...
OH attorney Cliff Arnebeck sent an email to AG Mukasey asking for protection of the GOP's "high IQ Forrest Gump", following reports of threats sent to Mike Connell and his wife if he was unwilling to "take the fall" for fraud in the Buckeye State's '04 election. The reports of a threat from Rove, said to have come from 'credible sources,' comes on the heels of Arnebeck's announcement last week that he's filed a motion to lift the stay on a long-standing 2004 federal election lawsuit based on the discovery of new information. Details and the complete email from Arnebeck to Mukasey are posted at the link below...
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6214
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