The year in review...

From JibJab

After you read the article below, read this one...

Not an article but another great opinion piece by Thomas Friedman.

Happy Christmas Eve!!

350

This is a great article from Mother Jones. Read it and then think about the burst of the housing bubble. How much worse will the burst of the carbon bubble be? One effected our bank accounts, the other may just effect our ability to live.

"Now that we know how far we are past the carbon tipping point, it's time to freak out—and get to work."

"They can build a new coal factory..."

"...but they'll prbably go bankrupt"
-Obama

Merry Christmas tax payers!

As I spend my last dime on Christmas presents, I can't help but lose a little holiday cheer thinking about this.

"Banks that are getting taxpayer bailouts awarded their top executives nearly $1.6 billion in salaries, bonuses, and other benefits in the calendar year 2007, an Associated Press analysis reveals."

Cheers!!

Warren

While I totally get the "unify the electorate" argument, I must say that I think it's a bit of a slap in the face to not only gays but everyone that fought against Prop.8 or even just felt saddened by Prop.8 to choose someone that played an active role in supporting it. I'm no expert on evangical leaders but I'm guessing there are plenty of other choices that may not be quite as close to something so recently controversial. The thing is is that arguing that this guy let Obama speak in his church and that we should be able to "disagree without being disagreable" is great. But the truth is that this man actually worked against the very foundation of that argument by promoting legislation that would not only negate any intelligent discussion but actually outlaw that very discussion. The literal purpose of Prop 8 was to end any discussion or disagreement in legal terms so in supporting it Warren obviously is not one to promote the argument Obama has given for choosing him.

In addition the pure political nature of the pick leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Oh well, at the end of the day it's not that big of a deal but I do feel like "the gays" have been slapped around enough lately.

Quote of the day...

Andrew Sullivan:

"Evil is usually done by people who believe they are doing good."

A reminder that we are all human...

As I scanned the headlines this morning two stuck out.

I am a mother. I am a human. It has made me so sad lately to see such division amoung Americans and people in general. We all share this Earth and we all share in the suffering that plagues this Earth. Mothers (and fathers) are being forced to abandone their children...all around the globe. Please, before you decide to hate your neighbor, remember that we suffer and celebrate together. Remember that in all wars humans lose. In all recessions children suffer.

Pakistan

"The mothers were sobbing as they tried to leave the children and the children were crying clinging to their mothers," Edhi said. "It was heart wrenching to watch."

Nebraska
More on Nebraska

There have been six 17-year-olds, two 16-year-olds, six 15-year-olds, three 14-year-olds, three 13-year-olds, three 12-year-olds, five 11-year-olds, one 9-year-old, one 8-year-old, one 7-year-old, one 6-year-old and one 1-year-old. Five were from out of state.

Libertarian = the new GOP?

Maybe not the new GOP but the new rival party to the Democrats. I think it would be a welcome change for all the moderates that just want, well, the following:

Preamble
As Libertarians, we seek a world of liberty; a world in which all individuals are sovereign over their own lives and no one is forced to sacrifice his or her values for the benefit of others.

We believe that respect for individual rights is the essential precondition for a free and prosperous world, that force and fraud must be banished from human relationships, and that only through freedom can peace and prosperity be realized.

Consequently, we defend each person's right to engage in any activity that is peaceful and honest, and welcome the diversity that freedom brings. The world we seek to build is one where individuals are free to follow their own dreams in their own ways, without interference from government or any authoritarian power.

In the following pages we have set forth our basic principles and enumerated various policy stands derived from those principles.

These specific policies are not our goal, however. Our goal is nothing more nor less than a world set free in our lifetime, and it is to this end that we take these stands.

"Fiscally conservative and socially liberal"...now that sounds like a great America, maybe not a libertarian America but they seem pretty close.

Amen

This is a direct copy from Andrew Sullivan:


I've been a little taken aback by the news that gun sales have rocketed in red states since Obama was elected. Watching O'Reilly and reading Drudge lately has also been a bit of a revelation. A reader sums it up:

I can't tell whether the lack of serious attention given to the continued hysteria about our President-Elect still emerging from various corners of the Right is a good thing or bad thing. By hysteria I mean things like Congressman Jim Broun from Georgia equating Obama with Hitler and then his lame excuse of an apology. I also mean Sarah Palin using her 15 minutes to slime our President-Elect with Bill Ayers one more time, wink wink, and the 24/7 vitriol from demagogues like Hannity and priests who refuse to give Obama voters communion.

It's why as a 27-year-old voter, the Republican party has been off the table for me since I could vote in the 2000 election. No matter how much I like or identify with any of "conservative" ideas, I refuse to stand in any tent, now matter how big, with people like Sarah Palin, Jim Broun, and Sean Hannity.

And for all of those "non-kook" conservatives out there scratching their heads about why the country polls "center-right" but voted so strongly for Obama, there is your answer, especially in my generation.

Whether my generation becomes life-long Democrats because of President-Elect Obama remains to be seen. We have no undying loyalty to the Pelosis, Harry Reid's, and the baby boomers of the left (we know their faults as well). But we will be able to forgive them if they come up short in trying to get us a renewable energy plan, affordable healthcare, and a government that is as technically savvy as its population.

The questions is, how the hell could we ever forgive the Republicans for coming up short on all of that because they were too busy trying to make a boogeyman out of an honest President?

There you go GOP, there is the answer to how to "re-brand" your party. Quit with the hysterics, get back to reality and start being "conservative" again. Extreme is off putting on both sides of the spectrum.

Let em' hang!

I kinf of agree that the auto companies should not be bailed out. There is a point when you have to let failing businesses, you know, fail.

Yes it would be horrible to lose jobs but we are already losing them left and right and if it's the unemployed we want to protect then let's do that with the temporary extension of benefits. The problem is that we are letting institutions become "too big to fail" and that not only defies capitalism, it destroys the general idea of a free market. A free market needs a lot of businesses to function properly, small business with limited power, not gigantic corporations with government lobbyists and now government funding.

This article is a good one.

"Not so long ago, corporate giants with names like PanAm, ITT and Montgomery Ward roamed the earth. They faded and were replaced by new companies with names like Microsoft, Southwest Airlines and Target. The U.S. became famous for this pattern of decay and new growth. Over time, American government built a bigger safety net so workers could survive the vicissitudes of this creative destruction — with unemployment insurance and soon, one hopes, health care security. But the government has generally not interfered in the dynamic process itself, which is the source of the country’s prosperity."

Please let the new administration understand that we need to protect american people not big business. Big business can take care of, and destroy, themselves.

Is the bailout a contest?

Is it just me or is the bailout becoming some oversized-tax dollar-carrot dangling in front of politicians-lobbyists-CEO's as if they are horses in a big race.

"C'mon Dover!"

The auto industry, health care, California, banks, insurance agencies, Fannie/Freddie, Joe the Plumber, Amex, and more...who next? I hear Mervyn's is going out of business.

Quotes that made me think snarky thoughts...

Quote: "Our aim should not be more government," he told the business executives. "It should be smarter government." -The Decider

Snark: Did he just say something that makes sense? Wait, Smarter? [poof] Wish granted, delivery date - 1/20/09.

-----

Quote: "...And that's the will of the people. I'm not a dictator. I'm not going to yank anything out from under the will of the people." -Gov. Maverick

Snark: Well we know where she would stand on the legislation against Prop. 8 (but we already knew that one without the dictator comment).

-----
Off topic: Speaking of the legislation against Prop. 8, I don't think it's the best way to fight back because I think people just need help understanding what it really means. But I can't say it as well as Margaret and Helen can.

I also agree with Andrew Sullivan that we will win in the end, it's not right and somehow that seems to win eventually here in the good ol' USA.

Shh...they might be listening.

I found this article on Bush's "Terrorist Surveillance Program" to be quite interesting. It's terrifying that this all encompassing "terrorist" umbrella allows them to define "terrorist" and therefore redefine "terrorist" as they please to help push their evil (fighting?) agenda. I'll give you some examples of the new "terrorists":

1. My husband. One drunken night he yelled at a hotel clerk for not parking the car or something. Well, the hotel clerk called the police and they tried to charge Andy with "terrorism" (note he yelled but never touched the guy). Jerk? maybe. Terrorist? no.

2. Barack Obama. Well not a direct terrorist but the "pal" of one. I think based on that alone he probably falls under the category of "legally okay to spy on".

3. Me. I snuck more than 4 oz. of liquid through security and onto an airplane. It didn't blow up because it was shampoo but it is clearly against the rules.

"And one Justice Department attorney had his house raided and his children's computers seized as part of the FBI's probe into who leaked the warrant-less spying to The New York Times. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales even suggested the reporters could be prosecuted under antiquated treason statutes."

"If new whistle-blowers do emerge, Fredrickson hopes the additional information will spur Congress to form a new Church Committee -- the 1970s bipartisan committee that investigated and condemned the government's secret spying on peace activists, Martin Luther King, Jr., and other political figures."

Is it Jan. 20th yet?

President-elect Obama

INSTANT VIEW: World leaders' quotes on Obama election win

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Democrat Barack Obama won an extraordinary two-year struggle for the White House Tuesday, beating Republican John McCain to become the first black president in U.S. history.

Following are quotes from world leaders:

NICOLAS SARKOZY, FRENCH PRESIDENT

"With the world in turmoil and doubt, the American people, faithful to the values that have always defined America's identity, have expressed with force their faith in progress and the future.

"At a time when we must face huge challenges together, your election has raised enormous hope in France, in Europe and beyond. France and Europe ... will find a new energy to work with America to persevere peace and world prosperity."

STEPHEN HARPER, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER

"I look forward to meeting with the President-elect so that we can continue to strengthen the special bond that exists between Canada and the United States.

"In the weeks and months ahead Canadian officials and diplomats will be working closely with members of President-elect Obama's transition team. Ministers in our government look forward to building a strong working relationship with their counterparts in a new Obama cabinet."

HELEN CLARK, NEW ZEALAND PRIME MINISTER

"The New Zealand Government very much looks forward to working with the new Obama administration.

"Senator Obama will be taking office at a critical juncture. There are many pressing challenges facing the international community, including the global financial crisis and global warming. We look forward to working closely with President-elect Obama and his team to address these challenges."

PAKISTANI EMBASSY IN WASHINGTON

"President (Asif Ali) Zardari expressed the hope that Pakistan-U.S. relations will be enhanced under the new American leadership that received a popular mandate in Tuesday's poll."

(For more about the U.S. political campaign, visit Reuters "Tales from the Trail: 2008" online at http:/blogs.reuters.com/trail08/)

(Compiled by Asia Desk)

My final thoughts...

This election has been intense, passionate, horrifying, exciting and above all, promising.

I feel as if I am coming out of one of the most intense college semesters I have ever had. Yes, this election has made me feel like a student again. I hope anyone following the election closely has also felt like a student because there was so much to learn; about the candidates, about history, about policy, about what the vice president actually does, and about the American mood.

The American mood has been pretty somber these last eight years. We've watched our country be the target of a heart breaking attack, we've watched our country drop all notions of division, even if temporary, to unite against fundamental hatred. Then we went shopping. We watched our government lie to us and send our troops into an un-winnable war. We watched our president and vice president blur the lines of checks and balance, take a sharpie to the constitution and close the doors to government dealings shutting out the people. We have watched greed and risk take over our financial markets, exploding the housing market, credit market and stock market only to have the bubble burst. We have watched our national debt grow so large we ran out of zeros. We have seen national disasters wipe out communities with government response proving to be as big, if not a bigger disaster. We have witnessed an honorable man sell out his principals in a race for high office. We have watched divisive politics draw invisible lines and measures of what was "American" and was not.

But we have also watched something else. A movement. A peaceable assembly as diverse as our country. Young, old, black, white, Muslim, Jewish, men, women, conservatives, liberals, elite, rural, christian, atheist, gay, straight and even Collin Powell have all come out and endorsed positive change.

We have watched discussions take place that have been lurking in the shadows just waiting for the daylight to expose them. Most hateful thoughts lose their meaning when put out into the open. Race, religion, sexuality...a new civil rights movement. The days of oppressing one group to protect another are coming to an end. The days of acknowledging all groups as equally human are here.

I hope with all my heart that Barack Obama wins tomorrow but if he does not, it will not change the movement he has started. It will not erase the efforts of the millions of people that have campaigned for hope. No matter the outcome we have changed as a country. There are still battles to fight, division to overcome and friendships to mend. But the mood has changed and people are paying attention.

There has never been anything false about hope and there has never been progress without change.

Please vote tomorrow and no matter how you feel about this election please remember that the "other side" is made up of Americans that love their country too.

Shock!

No press conference and no medical records. The candidate for government transparency and accountability = one big stone wall.

What a Maverick.

Why?

Please make her go away...

First it doesn't appear she has ANY idea that she is a) not the top of the ticket and b) what the positions of the top of her ticket are



Second, she now says that by calling her out on her "negative" campaigning the press is violating her first ammendment rights.

Salon's Glenn Greenwald calls her out

"If [the media] convince enough voters that that is negative campaigning, for me to call Barack Obama out on his associations," Palin told host Chris Plante, "then I don't know what the future of our country would be in terms of First Amendment rights and our ability to ask questions without fear of attacks by the mainstream media."

According to Palin, what the Founders intended with the First Amendment was that political candidates for the most powerful offices in the country and Governors of states would be free to say whatever they want without being criticized in the newspapers. In the Palin worldview, the First Amendment was meant to ensure that powerful political officials such as herself would not be "attacked" in the papers. Is it even possible to imagine more breathaking ignorance from someone holding high office and running for even higher office?

Rashid Khalidi

Back in my college days I was assigned to write a paper after 9/11 investigating the cause. While others focused on American freedoms being hated by the 'evil doers' my paper focused on the history of western influence in the middle east. To me it was much more important to understand why they hate us than just the mere fact that hate exists. Well my conclusion was basically that while some intentions are/were good and just, often the outcomes were not. I traced the real problem back to the British white papers and the start of establishing an Israeli state (and what should have been the start of establishing a Palestinian state as well). The promise to one people that would displace another group of people.

Well, now the latest attack against Obama is his tie to Rashid Khalidi. I do not know much about Khalidi but I did just read this article he wrote regarding the Palestinian plight. From this article I do not see him as radical or anti-semetic. I think America has lost it's way with the divisive demonizing of the "other".

I recognize that it is human to want to identify your enemies, but I think that a focus on understanding our enemies would serve a much greater purpose and lead to much more favorable results.

Poll

Poll: Obama-Biden 13 points up in national poll
By The Associated Press – 42 minutes ago

THE POLL: CBS-NY Times national poll.

THE NUMBERS: Barack Obama-Joe Biden 52 percent, John McCain-Sarah Palin 39 percent.

OF INTEREST: The Democrats have a 13-point lead when Bob Barr and Ralph Nader are included. Obama-Biden lead by 52-41 if the race is narrowed only to the Democrats and Republicans. More than two-thirds of voters feel Barack Obama could work well with members of the opposing party. More than half say he is prepared for the job of president. And almost half are confident he could handle an international crisis. But more than half of McCain's supporters say they are scared of an Obama presidency. Obama leads McCain by 20 points among those who have already voted.

THE DETAILS: The poll of 1,005 likely voters was taken Oct. 25-29 and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Haven't we let fear drive our decisions for the last eight years? How's that worked out for ya?

Wit and Wisdom

This blog is hilarious, I love fiesty old women that have actually learned from their life experiences!!

This is my favorite of all the posts.

My hat’s off to McCain for trying to set the record straight about Obama not being an Arab, but what does it say about his judgment that he handed a live microphone to Ma and Pa Kettle in the first place? I mean what truck and tractor pull was cancelled to make room for that stop on the Straight Talk Express?

I have posted a collection of the crazies at McCain/Palin rallies before but couldn't put the right words together. Thank you, Helen.

Enjoy!

Nice!

Misquote me once, misquote me twice...I'll call you out!

For awhile, critical thinking, was what I felt was one of the main causes of the crazy statements and mis-information being tossed around the "newshole" (my other new favorite word). I have a new word of the day. Comprehend. I now realize that many people do not even understand the concepts, policies and talking points they try to think critically about. Not that I am some genius that really gets it all, but damn if there is some major lack of comprehension of basic (and complicated) ideas going on.

Main Entry: com·pre·hend
Pronunciation: \ˌkäm-pri-ˈhend, -prē-\
Function: transitive verb
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French comprendre, comprehendre, from Latin comprehendere, from com- + prehendere to grasp — more at get
Date: 14th century
1 : to grasp the nature, significance, or meaning of
2 : to contain or hold within a total scope, significance, or amount [philosophy's scope comprehends the truth of everything which man may understand — H. O. Taylor]
3 : to include by construction or implication

Another for the history books.

Denver.

Image found on Huffington Post, courtesy of Getty Images.

A well studied candidate...

Bush endorses Palin/McCain

Well, well, well...

Mr. Greenspan has admitted that the de-regulation (or lack of regulation) on deriritives has largely contributed to this meltdown. He was "shocked" that company heads failed to manage these appropriately on their own.

Full article here

"Greenspan reiterated his ``shocked disbelief'' that financial companies failed to execute sufficient ``surveillance'' on their trading counterparties to prevent surging losses. The ``breakdown'' was clearest in the market where securities firms packaged home mortgages into debt sold on to other investors, he said."

"If a financial institution is too big to fail, it is too big to exist."

I think Senetor Bernie Sanders is one of my new favorite politicians. I first saw him on Bill Maher and now he has written this editorial for the Huffington Post. Fantastic read.

From the comments to the article one, SparkyJP, posted the following which I found very interesting:

Marriner S. Eccles, was the Chairman of the Federal Reserve from 1934 1948

In his 1951 memoir Beckoning Frontiers, Eccles detailed what he believed caused the Great Depression.
Our current situation is eerily similar.

Eccles wrote:

"As mass production has to be accompanied by mass consumption, mass consumption, in turn, implies a distribution of wealth " not of existing wealth, but of wealth as it is currently produced " to provide men with buying power equal to the amount of goods and services offered by the nations economic machinery.

Instead of achieving that kind of distribution, a giant suction pump had by 1929-30 drawn into a few hands an increasing portion of currently produced wealth. This served them as capital accumulations. But by taking purchasing power out of the hands of mass consumers, the savers denied to themselves the kind of effective demand for their products that would justify a reinvestment of their capital accumulations in new plants. In consequence, as in a poker game where the chips were concentrated in fewer and fewer hands, the other fellows could stay in the game only by borrowing. When their credit ran out, the game stopped.

A thought on empathy...

So it has been discussed that some are resistant to Obama's tax plan because they see it as a "slippery slope" (as Joe the plumber says). I'm guessing this means that they may benefit now but what happens when they win the lottery? What happens when they get that quarter of a million dollar job they are planning on getting one day? Well, then they sure would regret voting for Obama because their taxes would be 3% higher. So, they are putting themselves in the shoes of the poor millionaires that will be unfairly taxed at a higher rate under Obama.

It makes sense. It's great to feel empathy towards the rich by thinking about your dream of one day becoming rich. But can I ask a favor?

Can you try to direct that empathy towards those with no access to health care? Or to the Iraqi and American troops and families that are dying due to a senseless war? Or to your children's future energy needs? Or to your retirement savings? Or to the unemployed worker that can't afford groceries? Can you try to direct that empathy towards the other 95% of American society (you know, the group you are a part of) instead of the bank account you one day hope to have?

I'm not saying you should give up the hope of one day being in that top 5%, in fact I hope you get there. But the conversation right now should not be about those that are not hurting or the future version of what you hope to someday be. The conversation should be about you, today, right now. And everyone else, today, right now that needs a little help because whatever your hopes are for the future, they are nothing if we don't fix the problems of today. Whatever your political leanings, we have to come together to get ourselves on the right track in regards to energy, finance, security and health care. Then, once we get on track again we can split up if necessary...or maybe we can move forward in conversation instead of wars (class wars, culture wars, political wars, religious wars). Doubtful but heck! I'm still young, I can hope.

Collin Powell

Got thirty minutes?

I highly recommend watching/reading this speech.

A more perfect union

A new picture for the history books...

Image found here

If the election was decided based on music videos...

The GOP agenda

This is a fantastic essay on the current Republican party. To the author, I concur.

Why I Hate Today's Republican Party


The craziness of the current talking points of the McCain campaign make me roll my eyes and shake my head. Hearing responses from their supporters, including the recent one by an actual Congresswoman stating that the media should conduct an investigate to weed out "anti-American" members of the senate and congress, make me want to bury my head in the sand and possibly leave the country. These cannot be the beliefs of a majority of Americans, they just can't be.

Examples (disclaimer: I do not believe ALL McCain supporters are nut jobs but the shear volume of the "fringe" caught on tape lately is enough to at least make understand why so many conservatives are distancing themselves from this campaign):

Congresswoman Michelle Bachman (anyone remember, what was it...oh! McCarthyism)


Crazy McCain/Palin fans:












Then there are the robo calls, the mailers, the racist depiction of Obama on a food stamp surrounded by fried chicken, ribs and watermelon, Obama waffles...and this gem from the National Review. That doesn't include the crazy talk radio guy that claimed Obama was a dictator that had his own flag created because he saw a picture of Obama standing in front of the Ohio flag (which happens to have an "O" on it).

McCain wants corporate tax breaks

According to this article, it's hard to pay less than zero.

"The Government Accountability Office said 72 percent of all foreign corporations and about 57 percent of U.S. companies doing business in the United States paid no federal income taxes for at least one year between 1998 and 2005."

What's in a name?

This makes a good point about the name game.



But, like every argument from the McCain campaign, the needle goes both ways. Anyone remember King Hussein of Jordan?

King Hussein I

Against which America?

The idea of someone being "against America" seems to be a hot topic in all campaigns. I have to ask though, which America? During these last few weeks (and really, these last eight years) it has been painfully clear how partisan America has become. This concept of us versus them isn't new but it sure has gained momentum lately. So, the question is a fair one. When you say someone is against "America" which one are you talking about?

For me, the easiest way to answer that is to define what America I am for. I am for an America that believes in equality and opportunity for all. I am for an America that takes care of it's poor, it's elderly, it's sick and it's children. I believe in an America where everyone pays their fair share of taxes. I believe in an America that puts education first. I believe in an America that supports individual entrepreneurs more than corporate entities. I believe in an America that strives to push the limits of science and technology. I believe in an America that promotes free markets but understands that civilization is based upon basic laws and regulations. I believe in an America that honors it's laws, treaties and international alliances. I believe in an America that supports community organizers and others that work for the benefit of others. I believe in an America that holds itself accountable for it's actions. I believe in an America free of racial and social divides. I believe in an America that promotes hope and possibilities.

I am against an America that pushes the poor aside. I am against an America that protects corporate interests before individual rights. I am against an America that supports one belief but not another. I am against an America that fights political wars. I am against an America that would deny a child health care. I am against an America that violates an individuals right to privacy. I am against an America that protects one person against torture but not another. I am against an America that promotes fear and hopelessness. I am against an America that belittles education. I am against an America that does not tolerate those that are different. I am against an America that does not see all people as created equal. I am against an America that believes every man for themselves. I am against an America that does caters to the lowest common denominator without pushing itself to be better.

With that said, when someone goes 'against America' perhaps they are just going against one failing portion of America. Perhaps they are speaking out the same way a parent reprimands their child. Not because they do not believe in them, but because they know they can be better. In my opinion it is far more un-patriotic to never question or go against America than to blindly follow and believe America is not without it's flaws.

The new dirty words, courtesy of the McCain campaign

The McCain campaign has successfully created a new list of supposedly 'dirty' words among it's followers. From reading comments and essays from the right I have noticed the following are now negative.

"Community Organizer"
"voter registration"
"minority votes"
"youth vote"
"Muslim"
"Arab"
"pals"
"sex ed"
"elitist"
"ivy league"
"Pro-life"

Of course, these have always been negative but are also really popular right now:

"Socialist"
"Communist"
"Terrorist"
"Un-American"

And then there are those pesky liberals and their hot words:

"lies"
"deregulation"
"corruption"
"abuse of power"
"ethics violations"
"hope"

Both are now promoting change but personally if for one side, 'change' means that voting, education, diversity and community outreach will now become negative terms; I'll take that other kind that promotes hope, tolerance and unity thank you very much.

The problem with the Ayers connection

The Bill Ayers-Obama connection has been a favorite of the McCain campaign as of late. It has led to hateful, dangerous comments from the crowds ("kill him" , "treason", "terrorist", "off with his head"). It has even led to McCain having to get boo'ed in defending Obama from the crazy assumptions this connection is causing his supporters to make (he's dangerous, he's "Arab"-as if that in itself is some kind of evil). It didn't work for Hillary, yet it's all the McCain campaign seems to have left.

So, here's what I think is the biggest problem (aside from the fact that there is no proof his run-ins with Ayers has made him sympathetic to the Weathermen's cause).
Bill Ayers was an anti-war terrorist.

The problem here is that the McCain campaign is trying to help people link Obama to the terrorists of today. The fundamental, anti-American, Jihad waging suicide bombers that are killing innocent people in the name of God (Allah). The weathermen, on the other hand, were against the political nature of the Vietnam war. There are few today who would argue that the Vietnam war was a good one and that alone is NO EXCUSE for property destruction but the Weathermen's protests were just that, property destruction. They didn't strap bombs to their chest in an attempt to kill anyone sympathetic to the cause they fought against, they destroyed property to make a statement. Is this okay? Absolutely not. Bombs are bad, period. There are better ways to make a statement. Ayers and his Weathermen were stupid using destruction to make a point against the destructive force of political agenda wars. However, they were not trying to execute a race of people, they were not killing women and children, they were not waging war in the name of God.

Helping un-informed people draw a link between the terrorists of today and Obama via a passing association with an anti-war 'terrorist' is dangerous and misleading. It also insults all the other republicans, teachers and community organizers that also worked with Bill Ayers.

I'll end with this analogy. Say I served on a yearbook committee with someone that ended up coming to school and shooting a teacher. If I ran for president would that association be enough to prove that I was somehow closely linked to this crazy gunman? Would it somehow link every other person on the yearbook committee to this guy? No. No, it wouldn't. There is no evidence that Obama and Ayers were anything more than acquaintances, leave it alone. There are already enough reasons for the crazies to assassinate Obama. Can we please try to avoid adding to the list??

Random thought of the day...

Just a random observation in terms of speaking for Americans (which both parties love to attempt) I have noticed the following.

Democrats - Americans need help

Republicans - Americans are scared, angry and fired up

Just a difference in how they see us I guess. Joe six-pack versus [insert name].

Six-degrees to Keith Olbermann

I admit that lately I have been angry. I have been angry that both campaigns have had to get ugly. I have been angry that McCain has decided that close to 100% of his budget would now go towards attack ads that held little credibility (Bill Ayers, Tony Rezko, Jeremiah Wright = all been done. We've heard, we've looked into it, we've concluded minimal damage). Of course, being an Obama supporter I have wanted to shout out how crazy it was to play six-degrees-of-barack-obama when you only have to play two-degrees-of-sarah-palin or one-degree-of-john-mccain. But I was mostly just extremely frustrated that McCain-Palin supporters could care less about how ridiculous it was because they were so desperate for something, anything to attack Obama with. You see, I hadn't realized how attacked they had personally been feeling. I hadn't realized that when the 'biased liberal news media' reported all the dirt on McCain and Palin, many people that support her felt the media was attacking them, questioning their intelligence, and otherwise 'shit talking' about someone they admired. I guess I didn't get it because less than five weeks ago most people had never heard of Sarah Palin so I'm not sure how they've become so attached (knowing nothing but the fact she was a woman, mom, had high approval ratings and could tell a joke about lipstick).

When Sarah Palin winks at the TV, she is NOT winking at you. She doesn't know you, she doesn't even know you exist, she is just banking on the likelihood that you're out there and you have become so attached to this six-degrees type theory that you will actually feel like she is winking at you. She is hoping you'll feel that way because as long as you feel that connection, you will feel attacked when you hear all the negative facts about her, because when someone calls your friend a liar you error on the side of your friend. She is hoping that you will feel that connected to her so when she tells you that Obama is a terrorist (in such an informal way she could have followed with, "hey didja know that people love my glasses?!) you'll just believe her because, hey! she winked right at you and only a friend would do that so she must be telling the truth...why would she lie?

Anyway, back to my original point. I was feeling angry but didn't know how to release that anger so I could get back to not feeling angry. Well thanks to my new friend Keith Olbermann (he said "Sarah" so we're friends right?) I feel better and I didn't have to yell at anybody.

The real reason we watched the debate...

Was so that we would get the joke on SNL...

About Dick.

Watch CBS Videos Online

I heart Rachel Maddow

No wonder she is soaring in ratings!

Powerful Obama Speech

It was in the news the other day that a group of men from a Christian college had admitted that they hung a cardboard cutout of Obama in a tree outside the school. It is appalling that racism still exists but it is not something we can remain silent about. It's so hard to discuss the election and hear people say they "just can't" vote for Obama without being able to present a valid reason why. I can list a dozen reasons why I will not vote for McCain and not a single one has to do with the fact that he's an old white guy.

This video is a great response to those that "just can't" vote for Obama.

[sigh]

So, I would imagine that most of Palin's supporters are pro-life. Not that some may not be pro-choice but I'm just going to go out on a limb and guess that most if not all are probably pro-life (since she would council a teenager raped by her father to choose life).

Well, by now most people following the election have read or at least heard of the article conservatist, Kathleen Parker, wrote saying that after the Couric interview Palin should step down.

Since that article came out Parker has apparently been getting hate mail from Palin supporters (no big surprise). In this article she says that one of the things said is that "her mother should have aborted her and left her in a dumpster".

I'm just not sure what the right response is to that statement.

Who's runing the Republican party?

The cause of the economic chaos – what I’ve learned

It is clear that everyone wants to blame “the other guy” for what’s happening but I see two main causes from what I’ve read and two different sides to blame.

1. Credit Default Swaps (CDS) and the bill that allowed them to bypass regulation
CDS represent a $55 trillion market (down last week from $62 trillion). To be worth that much money you’d hope that they are tangible assets right? Wrong. Credit default swaps are basically ‘insurance’ on bad debt (except that without regulation there was no one to oversee whether the purchaser actually had the capital to cover losses so no real ‘insurance’ existed, hence our problem today). They were a way that banks could get liability off their books to free up capital and now that ‘risk’ has been pushed around and re-packaged so many times that virtually all banks are in the hole for some of that $55 trillion.

Just for a little perspective, these swaps represent about four times the worth of the entire stock market and about six or seven times the failing housing market. So, to blame either Wall Street or the Housing market alone would be undercutting the real monster.

Article #1 – Newsweek
Article #2 – Mother Jones
Article #3 – Time
Article #4 - Bloomberg

2. The poor regulation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
This is a secondary issue but since Fannie and Freddie are government backed it’s important because their actions put taxpayers at risk. Obviously the accounting fraud uncovered in 2002/2003 is a big deal, just like how Enron was a big deal (by the way, Enron can be traced back to #1 because in the same bill that ensured CDS would not be regulated, it also called out that energy trading would be free of government oversight). Anyway, I would argue that the accounting fraud is worth pointing out not because of the fraud itself (which is horrible but not the cause of the meltdown) but because of the emphasis on ‘affordable housing’ that it led to. The two firms went under close scrutiny and needed to justify their existence. Well, the best way to do that would be to become a champion of ‘affordable housing’. Enter a slue of sub-prime loans, artificially low interest rates and misrepresented housing values. Because of the size of Fannie and Freddie the loans they supported were the loans others wanted in on and thus a sub-prime disaster. Of course the sub-prime disaster could not have gotten nearly as out of control if banks weren’t able to package the risk of those loans in credit default swaps and sell them all over the world…

Article #1 – Center for Economic and Policy Research
Article #2 – WSJ
Article #3 - Ron Paul in 2003

So, that’s what I have learned.

Yes, vote Elite!!!!

I liked this commentary:

Reclaim the media; bring back the elites

Would you vote for someone you didn't like?

I've heard from a couple of people now that they don't really like McCain but he's "the lesser of two evils" so they are voting for him. I HATE THAT ARGUMENT. First off there are like five other candidates to chose from, do you like any of them or are you too lazy (against education) to read about them??? I mean seriously people read up on the issues. I have been trying to find valid arguments against Obama because everyone is so convinced that the liberal media is in it for Obama and omitting things on purpose. It would be horrible to use our critical thinking skills and think that perhaps there just isn't as much to report on Obama. Bill Ayers? I'm not even sure I 100% disagree with what Ayers did and knowing a 'terrorist' does not a terrorist make. I know a few lesbians but believe it or not that association has not turned me on to women. Muslim? Please, that's just an excuse for racism as it is clearly not true and "fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself". Reverend Wright? He's a little kooky but no kookier than Palin's witch hunter (in fact far less kooky). Tony Rezko? Okay this may have a little "rub my back and I'll rub yours" truth to it but I don't see much corruption and when compared to McCains corruption record (Keaton Five, Phil Gramm, Lobbyist, Lobbyist, Lobbyist, Bush) I think the point goes to Obama.

The point? None other than what the hell is wrong with education? Just because someting goes against what you previously believed does not mean it is part of a smear campaign designed to make you look stupid.

Everyone should ask themselves this; when was the last time you agreed with something you did not already think, believe or know to be true? We cannot progress without change and sometimes that mean accepting new information and changing your mind.

If you don't like someone DON'T VOTE FOR THEM!!!!!

Geesh.

[shakes head]

I will take the perfect headline from the Mudflats blog I first saw this on:

"Just for fun, see if you can watch this without putting your palms on your face. Other than that, I am rendered speechless."

It's almost like talking to your hockey mom neighbor about politics.

Mean girl - Salon.com article

Good read:

Mean Girl

Interesting contrast to the response to the economy...

Wow, a candidate talking about issues and not the other candidate!

Let's talk health care!

Okay, obviously these are just the proposed plans and if elected they would still have to make it through all the channels to actually be voted in and executed so either plan will not likely be implemented as is. So, to me it’s the ideas presented that are important.

First off, both plans are too expensive (Over ten years, Obama = $1.6 trillion, McCain = $1.3 trillion). Since they are both equally outrageous in cost we’ll go ahead and give them negative marks there and that’s about all I can say about the cost.

I think McCain has more flaws in his thinking than Obama. While he is protecting the [b]business[/b] of insurance, he is not protecting the requirement of accessible insurance to all Americans. The real issue, however, is that all Americans deserve quality health care – insurance, as it stands is just a means to an end. I think a better focus for either party would be to focus on accessible health care, not the payment plans.

McCain’s entire premise is basically to privatize health insurance. He would get rid of tax benefits to employers that provided health insurance plans [i]and[/i] tax employees on the value of their health coverage (basically the value of your health coverage would be treated as additional income and would therefore be taxed). This would be countered with a tax credit intended to help people pay for private sector health insurance (up to you whether you get insurance or a big screen). Great for the young and healthy but no so great for the sick and elderly who would have trouble finding a good policy. You see, the problem with thinking that competition will create better health insurance is that the focus is on the wrong area. Competition in health [i]care[/i] would help to create better medical care. Obviously someone would prefer to go to a hospital known for excellent care, experienced doctors, etc. Hospitals and other care providers make bigger profits the better their coverage is because more people choose them. Health [i]insurance[/i] companies make more money the [i]less[/i] they end up covering. Think about it, it makes perfect sense. If insurance companies paid for all the procedures requested they would lose money because the money made from premiums wouldn’t outweigh the money required for care. So, based on capitalistic principals it makes perfect sense that insurance companies would make it easier for the young and healthy [read as: less likely to need costly care] to be covered than the sick or elderly [read as: expensive to insure]. So, with this type of plan that basically says employers do not need to cover you and the government will stay as out of it, there is only one conclusion, stay healthy. In addition, McCain does not support regulations on health insurance agencies, you know the type off things that would require them to cover the sick and the elderly, the kind of things that would require them to cover replacing both fingers instead of just one, the kind of things that would outline baseline, ethical, coverage that all agencies must offer if they want to sell health insurance. This is where the economic tangent comes in. If you have been paying attention, you may know that we are in a bit of an economic crisis. Well credit default swaps* have been identified as a major cause of the finance, mortgage and insurance agencies troubles. Why? How did these irresponsible crazy debt investments get so out of control??? Phil Gramm, McCain’s good friend and economic advisor (until he called us a “nation of whiners” due to our “mental recession”). Gramm, with the help of lobbyists, slipped legislation into a must-pass spending bill eight years ago. This legislation protected credit default swaps from government regulation. Eight years later these un-regulated bundles of high-risk debt have created one of the biggest economic failures in our history. [end tangent] Yes, government should stay out of the private sector for the most part, but certain things that affect close to all Americans (like finance, health insurance, education) need a minimum level of regulation to ensure all Americans at least have a chance. McCain’s plan would basically put health insurance in the same situation as the current financial giants (and some insurance companies). It is estimated that McCain’s plan would insure an additional 1-5 million Americans.

Obama’s plan addresses the issue that those that need insurance the most are the most likely to be denied by a strictly private insurance sector. So his idea of expanding government insurance options will help to address these people that can’t get it in the private sector. His first “universal” coverage would be for children (and since he is proposing to get rid of taxes altogether for the elderly making less than $50K I think he’s now covered at least addressing two of the most vulnerable Americans…). Obama would create regulations to ensure insurance companies cover everyone and at least a minimum of conditions. It is estimated Obama’s plan would insure an additional 34 million Americans.

So, as far as intent I think it is clear (at least to me) that Obama’s head is in the right place and he wants to help Americans. McCain is stuck in his party’s firm anti-regulation stance and is only looking out for insurance companies and big business. McCain’s stance would be fine if this was an economic issue but this is not. This is an issue of everyone’s right to see a doctor.


*Credit default swaps are basically insurance policies that cover the losses on investments, and they have been at the heart of the subprime meltdown because they have enabled large financial institutions to turn risky loans into risky securities that could be packaged and sold to other institutions

Gov. Palin's Earmarks...

McCain's health plan - same as current financial structure

In the name of all that is good, please do not let this man win the election.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/16/opinion/16herbert.html?hp

Ah, hahahahahahaha.....

Another great commentary...

This one by Andrew Sullivan...

http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/09/mccains-integri.html

Deepak on Palin/Obama

http://www.chopra.com/wordsfromdeepak

I admit I do not follow Deepak Chopra regularly and have really one been exposed to him via the media and Iconoclasts but the few times I have heard him speak, and particularly with the article above, I like him.

New Obama ad...

A fun comparison...

John Stewart delights me

John McCain terrifies me

Why don't people care?

I admit I never cared about politics when I was younger. But then I saw this guy on TV and he seemed like a bit of an idiot but he just won an election, albeit a fishy win. So, I started to read. Wow, the power of a little research. After reading about George W. Bush and being absolutely baffled as to how he became our president with his record of failure (which he has gone on to continue with consistency and pride), I was blown away at how it seemed Americans just didn't pay attention.

I'm still blown away but I'm not as surprised anymore. I am sad.

I have had so many conversations lately with people saying things like; "I am so sick of it all I stopped paying attention" or "I can't read any of it because it's all biased" or "I don't need to know anything other than I like him/her".

Yes, we are all a little sick of it all but sometimes I get sick of making meals for my kids too, should I just stop? It matters, get over it and pay attention.

Yes, there is a lot of bias out there. What's worse; developing a bias based on information learned or closing your mind completely? Let's define "bias" - an unfair preference for or dislike of something. So, I think the real issue is the difference between bias and opinion and the difference is in the word "unfair". Is it unfair to not like Sarah Palin because she has a pregnant teenage daughter? Yes. Is it unfair to dislike Sarah Palin because she is shouting about how she "said no thanks to a bridge to nowhere" when in fact she campaigned for the bridge, received federal funds, then changed her mind and kept the money. No. There is a difference and to hide behind the "bias" argument when you don't know what the difference is is ignorant.

Yes, we should like our candidates. We should like the person we want to run our country but why we like them matters. There is a difference between liking someone you want to be friends with and liking someone you want to lead your country. I can't even fathom voting for someone simply because they "look nice" without having any idea what they stand for, what experience they've had and what kind of character they may have.

I hate these responses because they are clear excuses for not being informed and personally if you are not going to inform yourself please don't vote.

Headlines not being discussed...

This is just a quick browse through CNN headlines:

Jobless rate soars to 6.1% - http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/05/news/economy/jobs_august/index.htm?cnn=yes

Record 1.2 million homes being hit by foreclosure - http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/05/real_estate/foreclosures_rise_again/index.htm?postversion=2008090510

Stocks down on recession fears - http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/05/markets/markets_newyork/index.htm

And BBC...

Rice in Libya for historic visit - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7599199.stm

Gaddafi to 'hand out oil money' - http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=9030886628014332342

Now, the Libya articles are the most interesting to me. Gaddafi is planning on dismantling government (except for justice, defence, interior and foreign affairs) and giving the money to the people to teach their children as they wish (and whatever else). So it appears they are going towards a capitalistic sytem. Interestingly enough the US is now talking to them again. I'm really interested to see what happens here I mean from what I just read they are moving in the same directions conservatives want to see the US - smaller government with more individual choice.

This all stems after the US cut ties with Libya back in the 80's for their involvement in international terrorism. Is this a success story in our war on terrorism? We are talking to them again and they seem to be working toward a democratic dream...only time will tell.

We are a species that works best when we work together.

I have been reading countless blogs, articles and comments on the current election and I can't help but notice that both sides are fighting for the essentially the same thing; protecting our personal lives.

We are all protective of our way of life, especially the positive things we have worked hard for. The thing I find the most interesting is that this fierce protection of our personal lives is a direct result of the policies that are under scrutiny to change. We have been beaten to a point that any move by the government is now seen as a threat. Why are we so protective of our current healthcare? Because we all know how horrible it would be to lose it. Most of us have had one or two experiences with either no or insufficient healthcare and if we are lucky enough to currently be at a place with a good health plan we DO NOT want to lose it. Healthcare is just one example. Money. There’s another one. It’s my money and no one is going to tell me how to spend it. Why are we so protective of our hard earned money? Because the current state of the nation does not provide us any guarantees or security. Social security? Don’t count on it. Pensions? Don’t count on em. Savings? Don’t count on it! So we go one of two ways – we scream for change or we scream for the government to leave us alone to figure out our own lives. Both are valid. I would love to be able to check off the things I want my taxes to go to when I file. Would that work? Maybe for some of us but doubtful for most. The problem is that I am a realist. I read a lot. I am a student of human nature and I know that there are some philosophies and ideals of each man for himself that in theory would be a great solution but in reality will not work. We are a species that works best when we work together. We do not have to give up our individuality but we should all work towards a common goal and that goal should be a healthy society that protects all people. Forgiveness is a virtue, selfishness is a sin. So many people have turned their back on each other and it is just wrong. No, you shouldn’t have to bail out Joe Schmoe that thought a five year interest only adjustable rate mortgage on a house they couldn’t afford in the first place was a good idea. And when you’re not standing in front of that person it’s easy to say they dug their own grave. But then when you walk through that empty REO and see the pin holes from the posters that were once on the wall of the kids bedroom. You realize that that stupid decision just put a child out of a home. And maybe your mind wanders a little further. Maybe you start to think about why that decision was made in the first place. Here in Orange County where a 2 bedroom house in poor condition in a bad neighborhood used to cost over a half of a million dollars and rent was just as high, simply having a home was out of reach for a large portion of the population. So maybe these people weren’t stupid, maybe they were just desperate and hopeful that somehow, if they could just get their foot in the door, somehow it would work out. Yes, there are a lot of sob stories we could use to make you feel sorry enough to want to help these people while in the back of your mind you still think they should lay in the bed they made. But what happens when the downtrodden move in to your neighborhood? What happens when your schools get flooded with the displaced and resources have to be rearranged and moved away from your child so they can address the needs of another? What happens when the kid next door that stays home alone most of the time because both of his parents have to work so they don’t lose the house starts playing with your kid and teaching them all the things you learn as a minor with internet access, no parental supervision and a failing public school system? Will we care then? Will we think, oh well now that it directly effects me I have changed my mind and we should do something about this? What is so wrong about feeling a little empathy towards our peers?

This is who I am and where I am coming from. I work full time, sometimes more. I am lucky because I have been given the opportunity to do this work from home so I may care for my children. I have conference calls, emails, reports, deadlines and a water cooler. I just don’t have a commute. Or a nanny. It’s hard. I have health care, I have a 401K, my husband works close to home so gas isn’t killing us. We are in escrow to buy our first home. We are doing pretty well. So why am I voting for change? Because I am just part of the whole. I am an American and there are so many Americans that are suffering. I have children that I plan to send to private school but I am still happy to have my taxes go towards public schools. Why? Because from what I’ve seen the places in which public schools are failing are directly related to a lot of other failures. I too am selfish. I want my children to grow up with educated peers wherever they may end up. I am pro marijuana. I am pro privacy. I am pro national healthcare options. I am pro gay rights. I am pro big business. I am pro small business. I am all for taxes – as long as they are fair for everyone and without ridiculous loop holes. And yet I am an elitist. Not because I think I am better than anyone else but because I strive to always be a better version of my former self. I find nothing wrong with searching for the best – be it material, philosophical, spiritual or edible. I am not comfortable with a stagnant mind that was made up long ago and still holds on to stale arguments simply because it stopped paying attention.

Inaugural Post

Welcome! I guess the first post should give some explanation as to why this blog exists so here it goes.

I'm a thinker. I often think myself in circles. Sometimes, however, I have ideas I can't argue myself out of. The problem I have is that I don't often find myself in a situation in which I can just blurt out my opinions, well situations in which I am comfortable just blurting out my thoughts. The reason comes back to the whole 'thinker' thing. Every time I blurt out thoughts I usually re-think them and wish I could re-word things. In the end it comes down to a disconnect between my ability to understand what I'm thinking and my ability to make others understand what I'm thinking.

Communication skills. If you haven't noticed I am getting redundant in the paragraph above trying to figure out the right way to describe the objective of this blog. Basically, I need a place to blurt out my thoughts so I can work on improving how I communicate the way I see the world.

This is an exercise.