Politics

Sarah Palin says that the country is on the road to ruin. Yet today liberal New York Times columnist Bob Herbert says that democracy in the US is weakening. Could it be that there is some agreement between the two? Well, the question of course assumes that Palin has actually studied the issue, which I doubt. Herbert says in today's column: "While millions of ordinary Americans are struggling with unemployment and declining standards of living, the levers of real power have been all but completely commandeered by the financial and corporate elite. It doesn’t really matter what ordinary people want. The wealthy call the tune, and the politicians dance. So what we get in t…

The Government's Case Against Julian Assange Is Falling Apart Jason Linkins HuffPost Reporting jason@huffingtonpost.com With popular uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt spinning along, each with a certain amount of world-reshaping potential, there's been a lot of new attention focused on the role that WikiLeaks has played in these events. Ian Black, the Middle East editor of The Guardian, one of the key newspapers disseminating diplomatic cables from WikiLeaks' trove, told NPR last night that he didn't feel the leaked cables were the primary driver of these uprisings. Nevertheless, WikiLeaks seems to have helped to remove the people now demonstrating on the streets fr…

The numerous incidents recently where police officers have been killed or injured in the line of duty are exceptionally high, but it does remind us that each radio call or traffic stop could be a dangerous situation for the officers. We can be quick to criticize the police, but we shouldn't forget the nature of their job is stressful and often dangerous. Decisions have to be made quickly or it becomes a matter of life or death. So, here's to the police. (toast) May you always be safe.

Just couldn't resist...

TMZ is reporting that he was fired. I think that since the official take over doesn't happen until next week, that they did a pre-emptive strike regarding the probable desire of the Comcast CEO to get rid of Olbermann. Just like most CEO's he is probably very conservative and doesn't like the way Keith plays in the sandbox. The rumor is that Keith was paid off his $7 million a year salary for 2 years with a six month non-compete agreement. Then he will pop up somewhere else. I've said before that the Comcast /NBC Universal merger is a disaster in the making and clearly the DOJ and the FCC will just do whatever corporate america wants them to do now instead of what's …

"Starting this year, no American will be forbidden from serving the country they love because of who they love." -President Obama, State of the Union.

"He shall from time to time give to the Congress information of the state of the union and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient."-- U.S. Constitution, Article II, Section III "Mr. Speaker, the President of the United States..." The general rules of this game are no different from any other drinking game. A drink is either a shot or a good gulp from a beer (or cider). Different events call for different numbers of drinks and all you do is watch the speech and play along. If all goes well, you'll be unconscious by the time they show the other party's response. GAME TIME This year, President Obama's State of the Union a…

When you leave your hometown to serve your government in Washington, you should not be stripped of your status as a resident of your hometown without some declaration that your move is permanent. You can get elected to Congress, move to Washington, and still be considered a resident of your district, why should it be any different if you leave to serve the president? The idea that you have to pay to maintain two residences is elitist and can only deter poorer guys from being able to serve.

I really don't give a shit where you sit during the State of the Union. Just reduce the damn deficit. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/23/us/politics/23seats.html?_r=1&hp

Terrorism directed at 'liberal' and 'government' targets since July 2008: An interactive map By David Neiwert January 21, 2011 11:29 AM Since all those isolated incidents involving terroristic violence directed at "liberals" and the "government" keep adding up into a serious trend, we've decided it's time to start keeping systematic track of the problem -- especially because mainstream media seem intent on refusing to recognize the trend. Here's the text for the 20 events we've enumerated so far: -- July 2008: A gunman named Jim David Adkisson, agitated at how "liberals" are "destroying America," walks into a Unitarian Church and opens fire, killing two churchgoe…

Somewhat extraordinary audio I just came across... http://www.kennedylibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/Archives/JFKPOF-TPH-30.aspx

Dreams, One Dead Posted by Joe Klein Saturday, December 18, 2010 at 8:13 pm The Senate today passed the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," which is a good thing. It did not pass the "Dream Act," which is a cold, cold abomination. There is a relationship between the two. Repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" will allow homosexuals--who have fought honorably in every one of America's wars--to serve openly. Blocking the "Dream Act" means that young immigrants, who were brought here illegally by their parents, will not be able to gain citizenship by completing college or by serving in the military. The repeal of "don't ask" will get most of the attention in the media--as it …

After reading this article and watching the video with it, my reaction is that the USS Enterprise is a big floating frathouse. I can appreciate humor but what kind of leadership does this show. I am not sure of what I think about the whole situation except that Capt Honors definitely should not be allowed to remain the Commander of the Aircraft Carrier. It should be noted theses videos where created on board while the ship was deployed during war and it's planes were dropping bombs. A modern day McHale's Navy (for those who can remember that old TV series) but this one is real life. http://hamptonroads.com/2010/12/raunchy-videos-starring-enterprise-skipper-come-light Ev…

It isn't just that you can't buy anything anymore that isn't made in China, it isn't that we owe them a trillion dollars, it's also that we are dependent on them for at least the next 15 years for valuable minerals that we need!! "The United States is too reliant on China for minerals crucial to new clean energy technologies, making the American economy vulnerable to shortages of materials needed for a range of green products — from compact fluorescent light bulbs to electric cars to giant wind turbines." Read the whole story: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/15/business/global/15rare.html?_r=1&hp

Well after unemployment being at 9.6% for 2 months and 9.5% for 3 months before that, it is now back up to 9.8%. When is this President going to do something? Regardless of who wants to blame who or what for getting us into this mess, he was elected to solve the problem. What does he do? It is like he got the stimulas bill passed over 18 months ago, stood back wiped his hands and said well I've done my job. When is he going to start actually doing something? So today he knows the unemployment numbers will not be good, so he heads to Afganistan to take the headlines off of the bad economy today. President Photo-op in action again. He could have gone to Afganistan any day…

For those who haven't seen the story and Fox's lame 'shoot the messenger' response to it, here is the link. I won't waste space here with the details. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/17/fox-news-viewers-are-the-_n_798146.html This is hardly news for anyone with a nonvanishing IQ who follows the media spectrum of venues and viewpoints. What I am curious about is how much of the mainstream mediat covered this story? I haven't seen it elsewhere, not that I have searched. But I am curious because of the failure of the mainstream media to embrace previous charges of slanted Fox News coverage. Now that a mainstream American university study has found the same result, …

December 14, 2010 12:55 PM PST Appeals court: Feds need warrants for e-mail by Declan McCullagh. Police must obtain search warrants before perusing Internet users' e-mail records, a federal appeals court ruled today in a landmark decision that struck down part of a 1986 law allowing warrantless access. In case involving a penile-enhancement entrepreneur convicted of fraud and other crimes, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals said that the practice of warrantless access to e-mail messages violates the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits "unreasonable" searches and seizures. "Given the fundamental similarities between e-mail and traditional forms of communication, it w…

I'll put this here as it involves church politics, well, sort of.How does the Catholic Church sort out the various sightings of the Virgin Mary reported each year? Well, very slowly, it seems. 151 years after a Wisconsin woman reported seeing the Virgin, the Church has now declared her sighting "worthy of belief." This is the first sighting in the US to receive this level of approval. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-virgin-mary-20101215,0,3640315,full.story The woman was so taken with this apparition that she became a nun and devoted her life to following the instructions given to her at the time by the Virgin. The Church acknowledges that many, if …

Millionaires are rejoicing at the Obama tax cuts, and workers who pay Social Security are also probably happy about that rate cut. Another temporary cut, right? Read this, and you'll see how the Republicans win again! Will the Democrats ever learn? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/08/tax-cut-deal-a-hidden-thr_n_793983.html

"We've got to support our North Korean allies." http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/11/palin-weve-stand-north-korean-allies/

Tom DeLay GUILTY: Jury Convicts Republican In Money Laundering Trial JUAN A. LOZANO | 11/24/10 09:47 PM | AP AUSTIN, Texas — The heavy-handed style that made Tom DeLay one of the nation's most powerful and feared members of Congress also proved to be his downfall Wednesday when a jury determined he went too far in trying to influence elections, convicting the former House majority leader on two felonies that could send him to prison for decades. Jurors deliberated for 19 hours before returning guilty verdicts on charges of money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering in a scheme to illegally funnel corporate money to Texas candidates in 2002. He faces u…

Wikileaks has released thousands of diplomatic cables that may severely embarrass those who wrote them. The damage to international relations is as yet unknown, but what I want to know is why a mere private had access to all of this secret government stuff. The damage caused by this one man may be immense.

http://gawker.com/5702830/tea-party-leader-restricting-voting-to-property-owners-makes-a-lot-of-sense

Californians went through the election being told that the state faced a $19 billion deficit. Now that the election is over, we are told it is really $25 billion...not exactly small change in a state that is broke. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/11/11/MNJA1GA39R.DTL&tsp=1

Backlash Feared As Some In GOP Push Social Issues JOHN HANNA | 11/26/10 03:06 PM AP| TOPEKA, Kan. Although fixing the economy is the top priority, Republicans who won greater control of state governments in this month's election are considering how to pursue action on a range of social issues, including abortion, gun rights and even divorce laws. Incoming GOP governors and legislative leaders across the nation insist they intend to focus initially on fiscal measures to spur the economy, cut spending and address state budget problems. "At this point, the economy dominates everything, and until the economy is turned around and our fiscal house put in order, there's…