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Another huge telling point on the reality of the Obama administration is the Justice Dept. under AG Holder. Unless you prosecute the torturers, you have not ended torture. Indeed, isn't it always the law enforcement community that uses the terms of "closure for the victim," in advocating the death penalty or other harsh punishment? How can there be such closure for the victims of our torture if the torturers remain free?
Please see:
No Comment
By Scott Horton
January 19, 3:14 PM
The Official Response Begins
http://www.harpers.org/subjects/NoComment
@Nels, you know RFK Jr. is taking on Massey Coal CEO in a debate over global warming. - He will especially need our support.You can watch online and we can send strong and supportive thoughts.
The debate is 6pm Jan 21 http://www.ucwv.edu/events/energy_forum.aspx
Scott Brown rode the President and DLC's coattails into his Senate seat. The DLC slunk into the White House, put forth a fairly pro-Corporatist agenda, abandoned Progressive roots THEN blamed the woman for losing . . . A week BEFORE the election. The DNC NEEDS to purge the Democrats Loving Corporations and remember 'demo' refers to flesh and blood PEOPLE.
The present Administration has a closer relationship with Senator Lieberman than it does with the American Citizenry. And finally, where were Harry Reid and the DSCC in this?
The First Anniversary of Hope and Change
By Anthony Gregory
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=541Bush's Ninth Year?
...While many left-liberal partisans continue to cheer on Obama and attempt to hush all dissent, some on the left have become critical of Obama's continuation of Bush's policies. Those who recognize Obama's first year as essentially an extension of the Bush administration still often fall short of recognizing the fundamental issue here: This was practically meant to be. The two parties hand power off to one another, but the essential political realities remain in place. Caroll Quigley, the brilliant historian of the establishment, wrote in Tragedy and Hope:
"The argument that the two parties should represent opposed ideals and policies, one, perhaps, of the Right and the other of the Left, is a foolish idea acceptable only to the doctrinaire and academic thinkers. Instead, the two parties should be almost identical, so that the American people can 'throw the rascals out' at any election without leading to any profound or extreme shifts in policy.... Either party in office becomes in time corrupt, tired, unenterprising, and vigorless. Then it should be possible to replace it, every four years if necessary, by the other party, which will be none of these things but will still pursue, with new vigor, approximately the same basic policies".
I grieve for Haiti and for America's evil ways.
http://ncronline.org/blogs/road-peace/grieving-haiti
Kennedy is responsible for the crash yesterday... he never should have gotten a brain tumor... what was he thinking?
(That's just a little right-wing thinking)
Obama's habit of reaching out to the right wingers is tantamount to fraternizing with the enemy. I don't care one wit for the Washington insider friendships, it's BS, its always been BS. The Democratic leadership rather enjoy the trappings of wealth than to work for the people who put them there.
To me its just plain disgusting. I doubt that all but a few democrats are willing to fight the good fight, the rest will just curl up in their comfortable positions and remain on "autopilot". Voting them out is our only hope, but good luck on getting the DLC to go along with that.
I can only hope Obama finally gets the message, as well as I hope he doesn't interpret it as a need to double his efforts reach out even more to the right to appease them.
RE That leaves us too-Liberal-or-Progressive-to-call-ourselves-Democratic folks to answer “Independent”, and over the past year, more and more of us have been distancing ourselves from the big “D” party.
Hmmm. That sure does sound like me! I classify myself as an independent, because I am mostly a progressive who no longer identifies with the Democratic party.
Here is an example of how the Democrats should message: Republicans dont want Americans to be able to see a doctor.
Then, maybe the average American, that reads at a 6th grade level, will understand.
I think it is interesting that Coakley had a lead that was halved when the public option was removed from the health care bill in December. She lost her lead altogether once the senate took out the Medicare Buy In and health insurance company stock went up!
If democrats think that we're not paying attention, they are sadly mistaken! If they go further right, they will lose and they will lose big! If voters wanted the policies of the right, they never would have voted the republicans out of office.
We want what we voted for! Plain and simple!
I submit that when voter turn out is low, this is due to the fact that voters see the tweedle dee and tweedle dum options as phony. I dream of the politician that can bring out a true landslide victory. Regardless of party, I do think that this person is out there somewhere,,, perhaps in your chat room. Wouldn't it be rare if someone could inspire every American to get out the vote. Or, is it the issues, and not the candidate that people vote for? I hear many comments that seem to indicate that often people check the box based on just 1 issue... ugh!
@Nels you are right. we have some snobby arrogant limousine liberals in our party. They are too arrogant to even educate or to sell. After listening to both candidates myself, I might have been tempted to partake of the deceptive marketing.
I have tried working with our local democrats here, and many of them are really little robots. We do have a Wellstone Club here and they are very cool.
There is a complete misunderstanding about how to read polls that track how people who declare themselves "Republicans", "Democrats" and "Independents" vote, and this misconception strongly favors the GOP. Here's the problem:
If a pollster asks someone what party they affiliate themselves with, generally, there will be three big answers: Republican, Democratic, or Independent. I'm counting Green, Libertarian and the like out here, as most polls don't even report those answers. So, what do these answers mean?
If I say I'm a Republican, it means that I am willing to tell a complete stranger that I am mostly or completely comfortable with what the GOP stands for and is pushing for (or against). The same applies if I answer Democratic. But how many Liberal and Progressive people are willing to verbally ally themselves with Democrats right now?
That leaves us too-Liberal-or-Progressive-to-call-ourselves-Democratic folks to answer "Independent", and over the past year, more and more of us have been distancing ourselves from the big "D" party.
But that's not how pollsters and the mainstream, common media interpret things, and it is why they are wrong. To the average media person, an Independent voter is someone in the middle, who could vote Republican or Democratic with equal ease, depending on other factors. Now, don't get me wrong, there are a good percentage of Independents out there who fit that description, but I posit that over the past decade, they've been on the wane, and more of us who feel ill-at-ease with how capitulatory the Democratic Party as a whole has become has risen.
So, what does that mean? For one thing, it means that when a pollster or media person presents a poll saying 50% of Massachusetts voters are Independent, they think it means they could vote either way, and the message that carries to the candidates is: be more centrist. However, what is actually happening is that as the candidates and elected officials play more to the right, they lose us "Liberal Independents", causing us not to vote for the Republican (which we'd virtually never do), but also not to vote for them in the numbers we otherwise would.
The other effect is that when a Democratic candidate loses, the assumption is that, because Independents overall were very unhappy, that everyone in office needs to play even more to the right. This loses them even more of this Liberal Independent support, and is yet another boon for the GOP.
And all because our polls are based on the fallacy that most everyone who is Liberal will want to call themselves a Democrat.
What we must do is convey the truth to our candidates and elected officials: the further center you play, the less of us you have in your ballot box. This isn't your father's Independent grouping anymore. It's time to wake up and smell the Liberal.
Brothers and sisters - see The Whitehouse on Facebook. I just discovered that page after following it from the official contact page. Be sure you put in The Whitehouse. We need to balance out the rivalry over there.
@doctorlatte: I wonder what the media was like in 1952???
The Mighty Wurlitzer
How the CIA Played America
Hugh Wilford
http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog/WILMIG.html?show=reviews
Well...this Brown guy IS a chameleon. He IS pro-choice. Maybe we can bring him around?! At least on environmental issues -- join Shane Brooks Tea party 90% solution Operation Pitchfork http://operationpitchfork.com/2.html
BTW, I don't think I've seen anyone post a comment about Coakley. I must say, her sorry campaign really does share in this loss. I mean give me a break, she lost Kennedys' senate seat. She lost it because it was hers' to lose.
Here is another great article from Paul Craig Roberts.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/The-Rule-of-Law-Has-Been-L-by-Paul-Crai...
The only lessons to take from yesterday's election in Massachusetts is first, all politics are local; and secondly that the predominant reason for Brown's victory was the electorate's anger. He won 69% of the independent vote. Independents are the largest block of voters in Mass. Martha stepped on her tongue too many times and pissed off the madding crowd. Compounding Martha's problems was the fact that the progressive are pissed off too. Many of them stayed home. So the independents were angry, the Republicans were suddenly energized, and the left was disgusted. It was a perfect storm. Mass hysteria.
The true face of the Obama administration is evident in the Haiti "relief" effort. Instead of food, water and medical supplies being priorities, we see a massive military occupation, prioritizing security - when observers on the ground are not seeing a security problem.
Doctors without borders had an aid flight diverted, as was a plane carrying Caricom heads of state. George W. Bush being named as a face of humanitarian aid, after he orchestrated the 2nd ouster of the popularly elected Aristide. Clinton made sure that the reinstated Aristide's hands were tied to the neoliberal agenda, after the first coup d'etat ochestrated by Poppy Bush.
Clinton has been called the W's fourth Bush brother, but I had thought that had been Bandar Bush.
The US owns the Port au Prince airport, according to an agreement with the Haitian government, conveniently installed by the US...
Return Aristide and democracy to Haiti.
Why is no one talking about the Kennedy-Sanders Clinics in the current Health Care Bill? It's better than the Public Option!
-- 14,000 nationwide Community Health Clinics
-- Expand CHC capabilities to match VHA technology
-- 45,000,000 people served (vs. only 3,000,000 with Public Option)
-- $$$$$ to attract 20,000 primary care physicians, nurses, etc.
-- Drugs at VHA prices !!!
-- Dental care
-- Patient billing scaled to income
Source: vets74 diary at DailyKos
As Abraham Lincoln said of McClellan when this general kept refusing to engage the enemy: "If General McClellan does not want to use the army, I would like to borrow it for a time."
Such a quote really applies to Obama and the progressive side of the party.
So now what?
http://www.opednews.com/articles/1/SO-NOW-WHAT-by-Arthur-Lukas-100115-46...
Stephen Lendman writes great articles that are usually seven pages. His work is well woth the read.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Outsourcing-War-The-Rise-by-Stephen-Len...
I don't want to hear any B.S. about "The Blame Game" or "Circular Firing Squad" or "Finger Pointing".
If you don't analyze failure, you can't succeed.
If you don't take a hard look at why you did not succeed, you are not really interested in succeeding.
In the software industry, debugging is king!