Sunday, April 26, 2009

CALLS FOR FEDERAL JUDGE JAY BYBEE TO STEP DOWN









Back in March I wrote about Spain considering indictments against several Bush administration officials, Jay Bybee being one of them.






Jay Bybee was an assistant attorney general when he signed off on memos justifying the torture of people in the custody of the United States. From the opinion page of the Philidelphia Inquirer online:


Judge Bybee's cruelty: In approving torture, his remoteness from the actual torturers increases his degree of responsibility.




Go ahead and waterboard him. Admittedly, the procedure "causes an increase in carbon-dioxide level in the individual's blood. This increase in the carbon-dioxide level stimulates increased effort to breathe. This effort plus the cloth [placed over the mouth and nose and saturated with water] produces the perception of 'suffocation and incipient panic,' i.e., the perception of drowning." But "although the subject may experience the fear or panic associated with the feeling of drowning, the waterboard does not inflict physical pain. ... The waterboard is simply a controlled acute episode."

If you scroll down and read some of the comments, one misguided individual states the same tired argument about the terrorists not showing quarter to our people, etc. It is a tired, worn argument.

"The point is not whether torture is morally justifiable, the point
is that it is fucking illegal."

Tell me it was okay for the sheriff in Texas to waterboard prisoners for a confession. Go ahead. That motherfucker received 10 years in prison for that and the deputies involved received 4 years a piece.



You see? When an elected official or an appointed one, such as a judge or a police officer violates the public trust by breaking the law the consequences should be so unpleasant that one would be quite reticent in fucking around at all in the first place.


This shit pisses me off. It is the absolute arrogance of these assholes to not only break the law in such a violent fashion, but to write memos talking each other into believing it is justifiable and legal-when it clearly is not. Their behavior is absolutely unconscionable.

Jay Bybee needs to be removed from the bench; impeached, then prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Please do not expect me to obey the rule of law in the United States when we have such pathetic examples in our government officials.

I know people like this personally; you probably do also.

I sure as hell hope Spain hands down those indictments, furthermore, here in the US, the perpetrators of this shit need to be put on trial and we need to find out the truth about what was going on and what the hell these people were thinking.

I believe that although it might be painful for the United States to have a truth commission of sorts, (truthfully I would like to see Cheney/Bush et al behind bars,) it is absolutely essential for our country to move forward. This bullshit about not going after past crimes is absolutely ridiculous, for how can any crime be prosecuted if the prosecutor refuses to look in the past? It makes no sense whatsoever.



Call your members of Congress for your district, tell them you are not going to tolerate this crap. Here is a link to all fifty states...


Peace

image, thank you
Thanks to philly.com

CHINA FORCES NAME CHANGE-CAN SOMEONE TELL ME WHY WE DO BUSINESS WITH CHINA

and not Cuba? Caught this via The New York Times:

BEIJING — “Ma,” a Chinese character for horse, is the 13th most common family name in China, shared by nearly 17 million people. That can cause no end of confusion when Mas get together, especially if those Mas also share the same given name, as many Chinese do.

Ma Cheng’s book-loving grandfather came up with an elegant solution to this common problem. Twenty-six years ago, when his granddaughter was born, he combed through his library of Chinese dictionaries and lighted upon a character pronounced “cheng.” Cheng, which means galloping steeds, looks just like the character for horse, except that it is condensed and written three times in a row.
The character is so rare that once people see it, Miss Ma said, they tend to remember both her and her name. That is one reason she likes it so much.

That is also why the government wants her to change it.

For Ma Cheng and millions of others, Chinese parents’ desire to give their children a spark of individuality is colliding head-on with the Chinese bureaucracy’s desire for order. Seeking to modernize its vast database on China’s 1.3 billion citizens, the government’s Public Security Bureau has been replacing the handwritten identity card that every Chinese must carry with a computer-readable one, complete with color photos and embedded microchips. The new cards are harder to forge and can be scanned at places like airports where security is a priority.

The bureau’s computers, however, are programmed to read only 32,252 of the roughly 55,000 Chinese characters, according to a 2006 government report. The result is that Miss Ma and at least some of the 60 million other Chinese with obscure characters in their names cannot get new cards — unless they change their names to something more common.
Moreover, the situation is about to get worse or, in the government’s view, better.

Since at least 2003, China has been working on a standardized list of characters for people to use in everyday life, including when naming children.

Miss Ma said that while her given name was unusual, bank employees, passport control clerks and ticket agents had always managed to deal with it, usually by writing it by hand.

But when she tried to renew her identity card last August, she said, Beijing public security officials turned her down flat.

"Your name is so troublesome and problematic,” she recalled an official telling her. “Just change it.”

Miss Ma argues that the government’s technology should adapt, not her.
“There were no such regulations when I was born, so I should be entitled to keep my name for my whole life,” she said. If she changes her name to get an identity card, she noted, it will be wrong on all of her other documents, like her passport and university diploma.

I have no extensive comments regarding this article at this time...I think it is ludicrous that we still after 50 years have an embargo against Cuba. I have actively read the paper for almost 40 years and I have never heard of an instance where the Cuban government demanded name changes en masse from its citizens, (perhaps they have and I just don't know,) yet we give most favored nation status to China.

The article continues:

Using the time-honored Chinese method of backdoor connections, Miss Ma was able to get a temporary card in January. She must renew it every three months but considers that a small sacrifice for keeping her name

Zhao C., a 23-year-old college student, gave up the fight for his. His father, a lawyer, chose the letter C from the English alphabet, saying it was simple, memorable and stood for China.
When he could not get a new identity card in 2006, Zhao C. sued. But security officials convinced him that it would cost millions of dollars to alter the database, his father said, so
he dropped the suit in February.

China is a totalitarian state just like Cuba, but we kiss China's ass, and now we are massively in debt to them. It will be nice when the politicians in D.C. wake up and stop this useless policy toward Cuba.

Peace-

Thanks to NYT and Wikipedia...

BTW jonesboro sun-did your paper run the story that serves as the basis for my April 24 post? Can't find it on the website...

Friday, April 24, 2009

LIFE IN THE BIBLE BELT: WOULD JESUS ABUSE IMMIGRANTS?

By Arthur BriceCNN

(CNN) -- Low-income Latinos are routinely discriminated against in the South, a new report says, but the study's author and others say the problem exists nationwide, with millions of Spanish-speaking immigrants living "beyond the protection of the law."

The report, released Wednesday by the Southern Poverty Law Center, documents the experiences of 500 immigrants in the South, finding that Latinos routinely are cheated out of wages, are denied basic health protection and fall victim to racial profiling.

"Under Siege: Life for Low-Income Latinos in the South" details stories such as that of a Tennessee woman who says she was jailed at a cheese factory for asking for pay, a bean picker in Alabama who says his life savings were taken by police at a traffic stop, and a rapist in Georgia who was not arrested because the suspect's victim was an undocumented immigrant.

Forty-one percent of the people surveyed said they had experienced theft of their wages by employers. Forty-seven percent said they know someone who was treated unfairly by police. Seventy-seven percent of women surveyed said they have been sexually harassed by bosses, many saying that bosses used their immigration status as leverage.

"This report documents the human toll of failed policies that relegate millions of people to an underground economy, where they are beyond the protection of the law," said Mary Bauer, author of the report. "Workplace abuses and racial profiling are rampant in the South."

Does it really surprise you?
Until people stand against the abuse of the poor, the minority, the "non-conformist," things will never get better. An era of enlightenment needs to sweep the South and bring people into the 21st century. Clearly, the fault lies at the feet of the leadership in the South, people like Mark Sanford of South Carolina, Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, Mark Pryor of Arkansas, J.R. Rogers of Walnut Ridge, Roy Ockert of Jonesboro...the list goes on. Haley Barbour of Mississippi, Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, as I said, the list goes on. Schools are falling down, poverty is out of control, jobs are gone, but their churches sure look good!

When did Jesus say it was okay to hate and abuse people?
It is not surprising that more and more people are rejecting American Christianity, and Southern-style Evangelical churchiness. After all, that's the style of religion Sarah Palin subscribes to: Bible in one hand and gun in the other.

Precisely the reason I have utterly rejected right wing, evangelical, pentecostal, bapticostal religion. It is all full of crap.

What would Jesus do? Ensure people were treated fairly, paid properly, taken care of medically, had a place to live, made to feel as though they were human and worth something, cause they are. Sounds like Jesus was a socialist *gasp.*
Well he certainly was not a capitalist. He told the capitalists to give it all away, and he cleared the temple of profiteers. Much like what needs to transpire in the American Church today.

Doesn't the bible discuss the poor coming to claim what is rightfully theirs eventually? Yes. The right wing likes to pick and choose verses that enable their hate, but conveniently disregard others such as the above reference.

Maybe I'll add the scripture verse later, I remember Kenneth Copeland et al harping on the poor reclaiming their stolen wealth, never realizing that he is one of the ones they're are coming for...
Peace, we need systemic change in the South...

Friday, April 17, 2009

SHELL OIL TO BE IN NEW YORK COURT OVER ALLEGED ROLE IN NIGER EXECUTIONS

This is so important that I want to repost it...we cannot allow corporations to act like nation-states.
Thanks to The Guardian and Ridwan for this story:
Ken Saro-Wiwa swore that one day Shell, the oil giant, would answer for his death in a court of law. Next month, 14 years after his execution, the Nigerian environmental activist's dying wish is to be fulfilled.
In a New York federal court, Shell and one of its senior executives are to face charges that in the early 1990s in Nigeria they were complicit in human rights abuses, including summary execution and torture.
The Anglo-Dutch company, if found liable, could be forced to pay hundreds of millions of pounds in damages. No multinational has ever been found guilty of human rights abuses, although two previous cases saw major claims settled outside court.
Saro-Wiwa became famous as a campaigner on behalf of the Ogoni people, leading peaceful protests against the environmental damage caused by oil companies in the Niger Delta. There was worldwide condemnation when, along with eight other activists, he was hanged by the Nigerian military government in 1995 after being charged with incitement to murder after the death of four Ogoni elders. Many of the prosecution witnesses later admitted that they had been bribed to give evidence against Saro-Wiwa, who was a respected television writer and businessman.
As shocking as this sounds, and it is shocking that a corporation like Shell could be involved in murder and mayhem, it is hardly new.
Ford Motor Company was involved in Argentina's time of terror in the 70's. From The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein:
It was in Argentina, however, that the involvement of Ford's local subsidiary with the terror apparatus was most overt. The company supplied cars to the military, and the green Ford Falcon sedan was the vehicle used for thousands of kidnappings and disappearances. The Argentine psychologist and playwright Eduardo Pavlovsky described the car as "the symbolic expression of terror. A death-mobile."'
After the coup in Argentina,
"The Ford factory in suburban Buenos Aires was turned into an armed camp; in the weeks that followed, it was swarming with military vehicles, including tanks and helicopters buzzing overhead. Workers have testified to the presence of a battalion of one hundred soldiers permanently stationed at the factory. "It looked like we were at war with Ford. And it was all directed at us, the workers," recalled Pedro Troiani one of the union delegates.
She continues:
"Soldiers prowled the facility grabbing and hooding the most active union members, helpfully pointed out by the factory foreman. Troiani was among pulled of the assembly line. He recalled that "before detaining me, they walked me around the factory, they did it right out in the open so that the people would see: Ford did this to eliminate unionism in the factory." Most startling was what happened next: rather than being rushed off to a nearby prison, Troiani and others say soldiers took them to a detention facility that had been set up inside the factory gates. (Bold from me)
In their place of work, where they had been negotiating contracts just days before, workers were beaten, kicked and in two cases electroshocked. They were taken to outside prisons where the torture continued for weeks and, in some cases, months. According to the workers' lawyers, at least twenty-five Ford union reps were kidnapped in the period, half of them detained on the company grounds in a facility that human rights groups in Argentina are lobbying to have placed on an official list of former clandestine detention facilities."
According to Klein,
"In 2002 federal prosecutors filed a criminal complaint against Ford Argentina on behalf of Troiani and fourteen other workers, alleging that the company is legally responsible for the repression that took place on its property. "Ford [Argentina] and its executives colluded in the kidnapping of its own workers, and I think they should be held responsible for that," says Troiani. Mercedes-Benz (a subsidiary of Daimler-Chrysler) is facing a similar investigation stemming from allegations that the company collaborated with the military during the 1970s to purge one of its plants of union leaders, allegedly giving names and addresses of sixteen workers who were later disappeared, fourteen of the permanently.
According to the Latin American historian Karen Robert, by the end of the dictatorship, "virtually all the shop-floor delegates had been disappeared from the country's biggest firms...such as Mercedes-Benz, Chrysler, and Fiat Concord." Both Ford and Mercedes-Benz deny that their executives played any role in the repression. The cases are ongoing.
Think it can't happen here in the United States?
A link to the BBC regarding a suit against Ford.
I'm going to follow this case and post over time.
Thanks to Naomi Klein, The Shock Doctrine, pp 108, 109
Peace

I HAVE TO GO GET MY CAR, HERE'S SOMETHING TO NIBBLE ON...

Injured War Zone Contractors Fight to Get Care From AIG and Other Insurers

Searchers, you know I'm no fan of contractors in Iraq...however, I'm less of a fan of huge corps like AIG...if people are paying premiums for insurance, there should be no problem collecting, ever.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

INSPIRATION CONTINUED-DAVE CHAPPELLE, WEED

Okay, Searchers, you know I love some herbage. I also love Dave Chappelle. Good bit from Chappelle, from YouTube...much love...

INSPIRATION CONTINUED-TRAFFIC

Slammin jam from back in the day...Traffic, Steve Winwood fronting. I've always loved this song, most don't remember Traffic, but one of my earliest music memories was listening to this song on my clock radio on WLS in Chicago...peace

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

SHELL OIL TO BE IN NEW YORK COURT OVER ALLEGED ROLE IN NIGER EXECUTIONS




Thanks to
The Guardian and Ridwan for this story:



Ken Saro-Wiwa swore that one day Shell, the oil giant, would answer for his death in a court of law. Next month, 14 years after his execution, the Nigerian environmental activist's dying wish is to be fulfilled.

In a New York federal court, Shell and one of its senior executives are to face charges that in the early 1990s in Nigeria they were complicit in human rights abuses, including summary execution and torture.

The Anglo-Dutch company, if found liable, could be forced to pay hundreds of millions of pounds in damages. No multinational has ever been found guilty of human rights abuses, although two previous cases saw major claims settled outside court.

Saro-Wiwa became famous as a campaigner on behalf of the Ogoni people, leading peaceful protests against the environmental damage caused by oil companies in the Niger Delta. There was worldwide condemnation when, along with eight other activists, he was hanged by the Nigerian military government in 1995 after being charged with incitement to murder after the death of four Ogoni elders. Many of the prosecution witnesses later admitted that they had been bribed to give evidence against Saro-Wiwa, who was a respected television writer and businessman.


As shocking as this sounds, and it is shocking that a corporation like Shell could be involved in murder and mayhem, it is hardly new.


Ford Motor Company was involved in Argentina's time of terror in the 70's. From The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein:

It was in Argentina, however, that the involvement of Ford's local subsidiary with the terror apparatus was most overt. The company supplied cars to the military, and the green Ford Falcon sedan was the vehicle used for thousands of kidnappings and disappearances. The Argentine psychologist and playwright Eduardo Pavlovsky described the car as "the symbolic expression of terror. A death-mobile."'


After the coup in Argentina,

"The Ford factory in suburban Buenos Aires was turned into an armed camp; in the weeks that followed, it was swarming with military vehicles, including tanks and helicopters buzzing overhead. Workers have testified to the presence of a battalion of one hundred soldiers permanently stationed at the factory. "It looked like we were at war with Ford. And it was all directed at us, the workers," recalled Pedro Troiani one of the union delegates.


She continues:

"Soldiers prowled the facility grabbing and hooding the most active union members, helpfully pointed out by the factory foreman. Troiani was among pulled of the assembly line. He recalled that "before detaining me, they walked me around the factory, they did it right out in the open so that the people would see: Ford did this to eliminate unionism in the factory." Most startling was what happened next: rather than being rushed off to a nearby prison, Troiani and others say soldiers took them to a detention facility that had been set up inside the factory gates. (Bold from me)


In their place of work, where they had been negotiating contracts just days before, workers were beaten, kicked and in two cases electroshocked. They were taken to outside prisons where the torture continued for weeks and, in some cases, months. According to the workers' lawyers, at least twenty-five Ford union reps were kidnapped in the period, half of them detained on the company grounds in a facility that human rights groups in Argentina are lobbying to have placed on an official list of former clandestine detention facilities."


According to Klein,

"In 2002 federal prosecutors filed a criminal complaint against Ford Argentina on behalf of Troiani and fourteen other workers, alleging that the company is legally responsible for the repression that took place on its property. "Ford [Argentina] and its executives colluded in the kidnapping of its own workers, and I think they should be held responsible for that," says Troiani. Mercedes-Benz (a subsidiary of Daimler-Chrysler) is facing a similar investigation stemming from allegations that the company collaborated with the military during the 1970s to purge one of its plants of union leaders, allegedly giving names and addresses of sixteen workers who were later disappeared, fourteen of the permanently.


According to the Latin American historian Karen Robert, by the end of the dictatorship, "virtually all the shop-floor delegates had been disappeared from the country's biggest firms...such as Mercedes-Benz, Chrysler, and Fiat Concord." Both Ford and Mercedes-Benz deny that their executives played any role in the repression. The cases are ongoing.


Think it can't happen here in the United States?


I'm going to follow this case and post over time.
Thanks to Naomi Klein, The Shock Doctrine, pp 108, 109

Peace

Sunday, April 5, 2009

WASILLA HILLBILLIES AT IT AGAIN; THIS COULD HAVE BEEN THE SECOND FAMILY?

While downing a protein shake this morning and working on my abs, I came across the article below. I'm glad this made the news. It is nice to see that some news gathering organizations cannot be strong armed into burying stories about prominent politicians family members that violate the law and people's civil rights...learn from this, Jonesboro Sun.


Palin sister-in-law accused of breaking into home
By RACHEL D'ORO – 1 day ago
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Police say Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's sister-in-law is accused of breaking into the same home twice to steal money.
Deputy Wasilla Police Chief Greg Wood says 35-year-old Diana Palin was arrested Thursday after she was confronted by the homeowner in the governor's hometown of Wasilla. She faces two counts of felony burglary and misdemeanor counts of criminal trespass and theft.
Wood says tire tracks and shoe prints tied Palin to another break-in Tuesday in which $400 was taken. Police have not tied Palin to another burglary at the home last week.
Governor spokeswoman Meghan Stapleton says Palin is the half sister of the governor's husband and the family has no comment.
Diana Palin's husband says his wife has a court-appointed attorney.

Sarah Palin and her extended family could have been the Second Family of the United States, if the Right Wing would have prevailed in the past election. This again shows the complete lack of intelligence and integrity of the right, especially the Christian Right.
Tying an individual like Diana Palin to the Governor and linking the two would seem unfair to some as Diana Palin is 35 (and should know better) and responsible for her own behavior. Sarah Palin can't control what her husband's sister does.

I agree with part of that, Palin can't control what her sister in law does any more than she can control what her daughters do (apparently.)

But let me put this idea out there to chew on: After watching Sarah Palin in the campaign season, and seeing the lack of intellectual curiosity, learning her brand of Christianity (and recognizing it for what it is) and the bumbling way she, as well as her staff and family conducted themselves during the campaign, the lies from Palin, with the bible in her hand and scripture in her mouth (next to the bullshit) I believe, after thoughtful consideration, that this is how they conduct themselves as a family.

Allow me to elaborate: This is just how they do things. It is not abnormal behavior for any of them. This is just how they, and others like them, conduct themselves in their day to day walk of life. They lie, they cheat, they rob, they steal, they harm, and on Sunday they go to Church. They blame almost everyone else for their misfortunes and use religion to justify bad behavior, invoking God and vowing to pray for you while they are calling you a nigger, or trying to break into your home to kill you, or wishing harm on your child, good stuff like, "I hope your kid gets hit by a bus."

Heard that last little gem before, actually that was in an email from my son's Uncle, Mrs. Searcher's brother. (Actually, I have experienced all of the above.) Real classy relatives Mrs. Searcher has. Mrs. Searcher embodies class, intelligence, beauty and smarts. There is no way in hell she is the product of her mother and the person that gave her her maiden name. That is not meant to disrespect her mother, may she rest in peace. It does, however, reflect her good judgement. I will forever maintain that as truth.

Back to Plain and her Alaska (arkansas) family:

These aren't your run of the mill trailer park rednecks; these are rednecks with money and real power in the state in which they live.
This combination is especially dangerous because with money and influence real damage can be done to people's lives, often with little or no consequence. There are some common threads running through these types people and their families:

1. Parent or sibling is in an elected position, or one of influence in business.

2. Family has established ties, generational in the area.
-Family attends prominent church in town, one or more teaches Sunday school or is a deacon, etc. Highly likely that one or more are involved in extra-marital affairs.

3. History of legal issues, not necessarily prosecutions or charges, but a history of lawlessness, and an inherent belief of being above the law. I have noticed this especially with children of elected officials, especially ones that have been in office for an extended period of time. Oh, say 22 years or so...I also think that this is mostly learned by watching the parent/sibling fuck around and manipulate the law and people.

4. History of legal issues covered up, not reported, paid off, etc.

5. As a result of little or no consequence, lawlessness escalates until behavior is
so out of control it cannot be ignored any longer, unfortunately, this is often
after a violent crime such as assault that is severe enough to be reported, burglary, rape, murder, etc. I

It will be good for this epitome-of-dysfunction of a family that some of these "events" that they get involved in are published across the country. That it may help out future generations of Palins is my hope, but as for the over 18 branch of the Palin's, at least the majority of them, there is no hope.

Work to ensure Palin stays in Alaska, and continue to shine light on the right, especially the christians.

Onward!

Saturday, April 4, 2009

SHOT RINGS OUT IN THE MEMPHIS SKY


Today Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis. Rest in peace, Dr. King.






Friday, April 3, 2009

COLBERT RIPS GLEN BECK: BUILDING CAREER ON 9/11

The video is priceless. Take 7 minutes and watch:
The 10.31 Projectcomedycentral.com
Peace

OBAMA IN EUROPE, EUROPEANS SWOON



I've been watching the news lately, big surprise, and I've been paying attention to the G20 summit it London. The G20 is the group of the 20 most powerful economies in the world coming together to yap at each other, form policy, etc.


And, the protesters are out in force, in London protesters have been smashing windows in banks, trying to set fire to banks, etc. In France, and I love this, pissed off workers are taking their supervisors and managers hostage in factories because they are sick of getting screwed as workers while management makes the big bucks. Enough is enough! Ya basta!

I watched video of some of the hostage takers, and they are average normal people. When one of the managers was released to freedom after 24 hours as a hostage, he was released to boos and catcalls.


Can you imagine the overreaction of the American police if workers did that here? They would kill people.


Another thing I noticed about the protesters in England. For all of the thousands and thousands of people that hit the streets, I did not see a single effigy of the United States President burned.

Not one. The anger was rightly directed at bankers, insurance execs, and the wretched idea of failed American capitalism.


Not one time was Obama hanged in effigy (that just happens here in the U.S.) or burned in effigy. As a child of the 70's and 80's this is almost unheard of. When Reagan went to Europe it was on. Same with the Bushes. (somebody really should have shaved that Bush a long time ago...)


So today the Obamas are in France and Germany. Obama's crazy ass even had a town hall meeting in Strasbourg, France. They absolutely love him over there.

From a personal standpoint, as a citizen of the United States, it is very refreshing to not see the rest of the world want to kill everyone in the US because of our hateful policies.

Face it, Americans, we have a shitty reputation in the rest of the world because of our arrogance and policies, period. Latin America and South America still have not gotten over the Reagan years, rightly so.

I'm glad we elected Obama, at least he has the good sense to keep his fucking hands off of the Chancellor of Germany:



Scary image, huh? The United States elected this doofus. Twice...CRINGE!


BTW, I am beginning to like Sarkozy of France, that's him in the top pic with Obama, largely because he favors tough regulations for the banking and insurance companies, to ensure this doesn't happen again. He is for an international body to oversee regulations in every country, even (especially) the United States. I am down with that.

I am no longer under the illusion of the "God-Given Greatness Of The United States."

A nation that rapes continents and performs forced hysterectomies on poor and Native Women is not deserving of my respect, and my children are being raised in the full knowledge of what their government has done in the past. Rectify and heal the past United States, then maybe you can be allowed a shred of respect...we'll see.
Onward!

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

HOUSE REPUBLICANS UNVEIL NEW BUDGET, NO IT'S NOT AN APRIL FOOL'S JOKE

Unfortunately it's real. Some of the points:

Cutting taxes for the rich.
Cutting corporate taxes.
Manipulating medicare with a program that sounds suspiciously like Reagan's "block grants."

More of the same from the party that has failed utterly. More of the rehash from the Reagan era, policies that have given the United States the current economic, social, health, and welfare crisis we are currently in.

More of the same from the party that has brought the United States to the brink of being a Failed State, one that is neither capable nor willing to provide for its citizens.

More of the same from the party that starts wars that cannot possibly be won.

More of the same from the party that wants to round up brown people and keep blacks and the poor in economic shackles, while ensuring CEO's and the already-wealthy remain that way.

More of the same from the party that wants to take away food for children, healthcare for children, food and medical benefits and education for the needy in the United States.

More of the same.

Isn't it time to shut the right wing down for good?
Vote against the past and look toward the future.

Onward!

GINGRICH'S RE-RISE, PALIN'S SLIDE

Palin won't be at the Senate-House dinner in July. The dinner is sponsored by the Republicans, and I've read it is the biggest GOP fundraiser of the year. It is a big deal. Gingrich will be speaking instead. Sounds petty, gossipy, and shallow. Delving deeper, however, certain things come to mind.



Remembering the 1990's and the "Republican Revolution" headed by Gingrich; his "Contract with America" and the gutting of social programs, again, the gutting of education, again, and the democrats in Arkansas, (Arkansas continues to be a reference point for me, as I spent very formative years there, and the politicians were making stupid remarks like, "these (black) women having 4 or 5 kids and sponging off of everyone is gonna stop!" As if cutting education, jobs, food for children is somehow going to force all poor and needy into the middle class, not to mention the obvious and accepted scapegoating of one gender of an entire race of people by politicians. How delightfully New Southish) jumping on the Republican bandwagon (huh?) further strengthening the foundation that had first been laid during the Reagan years for the financial, education, healthcare and social crises we are facing now.


The big boys on the right are sick of fucking around with Obama and his supporters, as well as Democrats in Congress and state Governors, both Democrat and moderate Republican. Furthermore, they are not going to allow Palin to head the party, because she so abysmal when she is called to task in public. Remember the interviews during the campaign. They know as well as most others that she is way out of her league.

But here is the real issue: Gingrich, Limbaugh,Hannity, John Boehner,Eric Cantor, etc. are becoming more virulent because they see their style of democracy, Krony Kapitalism, slipping away.


They will form a coalition that is going to shove weak individuals like Palin (it does not help her situation that she is a woman and not a part of the old 80's and '90 Republican nightmare that helped to bring us the current economic situation) out of the way, and they are going to run a vicious mid-term election campaign to unseat Democrats and pave a way to the White House in 2012. It will further display the hypocrisy of the "Party of Family Values." There will be a direct correlation between Obama's approval numbers and the Republican success.


I am not surprised Newt Gingrich is becoming a force again in Republican politics; however, if Americans allow him to be involved to any extreme, Americans will again have to take adose of penicillin to cure the infection. He made a statement in the 90's after he resigned from his position as Speaker of the House as well as his Representative seat, saying something to the effect of, "I didn't realize how out of touch I was with the people." He is still out of touch.


A bit of information regarding Newt Gingrich: He is involved with the American Enterprise Institute (AIE) as a senior fellow.

AIE is a conservative think tank that seeks "to defend the principles and improve the institutions of American freedom and democratic capitalism — limited government, private enterprise, individual liberty and responsibility, vigilant and effective defense and foreign policies, political accountability, and open debate".

Sounds great, and as American as apple pie. Execept the Republicans do not support political accountability and open debate, nor do they support individual liberty or democratic capitalism. Some of the people involved with the American Enterprise Institute:


Paul Wolfowitz-Major architect of the Iraq war, fired from the World Bank for fixing a promotion for his girlfriend, former Ambassador to Indonesia, supporting that regime that resulted in the deaths, political persecutions, and massive human rights abuses under Suharto, the Indonesian leader.

John Yoo-I blogged about Yoo recently,some of the finer points of the man-he disagrees with the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, which safeguards against unreasonable search and seizure, he believes in spying on U.S. citizens without warrants and at will, there is evidence of his involvement in war crimes, and he is to be indicted by a Spanish court for crimes against humanity.


Antonin Scalia-Right wing Supreme Court justice, enjoys keeping the media out of his speaking events, targets gays.


Dick Cheney, for Christ's sake. Do I really need a commentary on this individual?


These are the people that Newt Gingrich rubs shoulders with. With the exception of Yoo, rich white men that have open disdain for the poor and the middle class, and do not want to educate the aforementioned classes.


If Palin does succeed in obtaining high federal ofice, she will be run by these people and be little more than a figurehead but I cannot imagine, with the egos in play, they would allow her to be in the spotlight.


We must move the United States away from the right-wing christian party; the Republicans and moderate Democrats, and start thinking as a nation of people rather than individual profit machines.


Onward.


By the way, I use Wikipedia as a reference throughout this article, thanks Wiki! Although I never use Wiki or any encyclopedia as a reference for papers, I do believe that encyclopedias both online and in print are an extremely valuable resource and a great place to start research...peace searchers
Image credit-UPDATE: I took the image down because it didn't fit the post correctly. If you would like, click on the link.