I met Mr. Mays at a trade show about 5 years ago. He gave a breakfast speech to about 300 of us. He was coked to the gills. I got close enough to see his eyes. Coked. Hard.
I can't say I bought into the argument, but the merger of corporation and government is food for thought. And, between influence peddling and lobbying corporate bribery, the merger has been in place for quite a while, although, in this piece, they're talking about the merger of government and the "too big to fail" corporation.
Runs the work comp system here in the states also so you better not get hurt on the job if you know what's good for ya.
They have the Doctors either lie to you or not tell you at all what the diagnosis is.
They used to send these weird gadgets to my door anonymously, like Santa Claus, complete with video on how to use the contraptions, expecting you to play with it. If something went wrong while you were using it, it would be your fault for using it incorrectly, not theirs.
This is what Government run health care could look like if we're not paying attention.
". . . On both climate change and healthcare, in other words, the US wills the end but not the means. This is where a president trusted by the electorate and unafraid to explain hard choices would be so valuable. Barack Obama, where are you?
The president has cast himself not as a leader of reform, but as a cheerleader for “reform” – meaning anything, really, that can plausibly be called reform, however flawed. He has defined success down so far that many kinds of failure now qualify. Without hesitating, he has cast aside principles he emphasised during the campaign. On healthcare, for instance, he opposed an individual insurance mandate. On climate change, he was firm on the need to auction all emissions permits. Congress proposes to do the opposite in both cases and Mr Obama’s instant response is: “That will do nicely.”
The White House calls this pragmatism. Never let the best be the enemy of the good. Better to take one step forward than blah, blah, blah. The argument sounds appealing and makes some sense, but is worth probing. . . .
The greatest waste of talent in all this, however, is that of Mr Obama himself. Congress offers change without change – a green economy built on cheap coal and petrol; a healthcare transformation that asks nobody to pay more taxes or behave any differently – because that is what voters want. Is it too much to ask that Mr Obama should tell voters the truth? I think he could do it. He has everything it takes to be a strong president. He is choosing to be a weak one. "
"A major (if not perfect) healthcare reform bill has passed, handing Obama a historical policy achievement in his first year."
(if not perfect)???? By Congress? Prior to any kind of election reform. I can't see it. We'll be lucky if it doesn't hand insurers twice the pie they have now and provide even one person with health coverage.
The idea of instant runoff is that a persons 2nd consideration is taken into account if their first choice isn't viable.
Take the 2000 elections. I would have voted for Nader, if my fallback vote had been for Gore. But, since I don't have a fallback vote, I voted for Gore, recognizing that Bush represented an overwhelming greater of the two evils.
In the 1992 elections, a lot more people would have voted for Perot, the anti-free trader, if their fall-back vote had been for either of the two others.
But, the current system has made it abundantly clear that voting for a 3rd party candidate is throwing your vote away.
We do need reform to make 3rd party candidates more viable. But, how does that get done, when the two entrenched parties write the rules?
Since we can't rely on our corporate media, regulated by the FCC run by our two party system, yet another clip from the Ruskies.
“so voting for the right candidate, the one you believe in is throwing your vote away?”
Sure it is. Take Florida, 2000 election. Those people voting Nader wound up getting Bush. It is highly likely that 2nd choice for these people was Gore. With instant runoff, Gore would have won. And, with instant runoff, Nader would have gotten a lot more votes, because voting for the candidate you believe in doesn't allow the greater evil to prevail.
Some people that supported Nader recognized this and formed "Nader Trader" web sites, which facilitated vote swapping. The government shut these sites down during the 2000 election. The whole idea was to prevent the greater evil from winning by voting for Nader. Eventually, the court of appeals, too late to make a difference, ruled that the approach of "Nader Trader" was legal.
"We the people" would pay attention they would realize that it's the lobbyists representing corporations that are bribing the party of "NO" and many bluedog democrats to block the bills that Obama is trying to get passed, including healthcare reform.
How did Bush with his 50-50 Senate "majority," 222-213 House majority, and -500,000 vote popular vote loss cram through the most radical, anit-american, pro-fascist agenda in history?
When I look at it in this light, my only conclusion is we have a ONE party system - the Bribery party; or Obama isn't using his bully pulpit nearly as effectively as he could.
I watched Pitchmen and I liked Billy. He was a big goofy guy who was clearly the star in the infomercial market.I for one will miss him screaming at me from my TV. He reminded me of the loud relative who you avoid but turns out to be the guy who helps you out when no one else will.
If true, all the more reason to have yourself checked out when you bump your head. I will miss hearing his western Pennsylvania accent, which you don't often hear on national television and which he tried (often unsuccessfully) to disguise: "It gets the tough stains aht." RIP, Billy Mays, McKees Rocks, Pa. native.
Selling the ultra bright white cleaning stuff with the rubber brush-mop thingy. you could believe him when he spoke. It's the repetition that always makes these guys appear hucksterish. yeah, I bought a box/can for 21 dollars.
My son (15) shrugged when he heard about Michael Jackson. He was shocked to hear about Billy Mays though. He's seen a few too many YouTube parodies of that salesman.
Very sad though. It will be interesting to see if the airline gets blamed.
Do The Right Thing turns 20. Arizona legislators want to make it easier for gunfights in bars. Deja Vu? Gulf War Syndrome-like ailments affecting our troops.
RI almost gets rid of its slave name. An Iranian cleric learns how to deal w/ protesters from FOX News. At least GM will still deal with any future crappy vehicles they sell to unsuspecting customers. Thirty-one years after giving Howard Jarvis a photo-op, TIME finally questions Prop. 13. The U.S. indirectly admits the Drug War is not working, by opting to avoid burning Afghan opiate crops.
The President asks you to submit your questions on health care reform and take part in an ongoing online discussion. He will answer some of the most popular in a town hall on Wednesday.
* Post your video questions (please keep them at 20-30 seconds) as responses to this video. *
Worth a try .. let him know .. single payer is the way to go .. and he should tell the insurance companies to take a hike cuz the gravy train is over ..
I want to know how Obama--or anyone else--can rebut the idea that there is a more affordable way to make sure that all Americans are able to access health care than single payer. If we have the most expensive health care in the industrialized world--and it is, by his own admission, breaking American business--and yet it ranks in the low 30s in terms of effectiveness--how can we justify keeping what we have? How can we even consider it?
And yet, I haven't yet heard Obama--or anyone else in government--suggest that members of Congress give up their government-sponsored health care if having the government "come between a patient and his/her doctor" is such a bad and/or expensive thing.
Tell you what, Big O, you tell Congress it has to live by the same rules that the people it purports to represent does, and I'll back you on that. Meanwhile, find me proof that single payer won't cover all of us while lowering costs. Truth is, you can't.
Our government gives a general nothing response, doesn't strongly condemn the coup and doesn't rule out recognizing a the military dictatorship that will take the place of Honduras' democratically elected government. Ho hum, more business as usual.
The president, by just ASKING the people if they wanted to re-write the constitution, got him removed from office (those who lead this coup were trained at the School of America's and I'm sure we'll learn were probably funded by the US) by force.
"Such an initiative has never taken place in the Central American nation, which has a very limited constitution that allows minimal participation by the people of Honduras in their political processes. The current constitution, written in 1982 during the height of the Reagan Administration's dirty war in Central America, was designed to ensure those in power, both economic and political, would retain it with little interference from the people. Zelaya, elected in November 2005 on the platform of Honduras' Liberal Party, had proposed the opinion poll be conducted to determine if a majority of citizens agreed that constitutional reform was necessary. He was backed by a majority of labor unions and social movements in the country. If the poll had occurred, depending on the results, a referendum would have been conducted during the upcoming elections in November to vote on convening a constitutional assembly. Nevertheless, today's scheduled poll was not binding by law."
"...Foreign Minister Rodas has stated that she has repeatedly tried to make contact with the U.S. Ambassador in Honduras, Hugo Llorens, who has not responded to any of her calls thus far. The modus operandi of the coup makes clear that Washington is involved. Neither the Honduran military, which is majority trained by U.S. forces, nor the political and economic elite, would act to oust a democratically elected president without the backing and support of the U.S. government. President Zelaya has increasingly come under attack by the conservative forces in Honduras for his growing relationship with the ALBA countries, and particularly Venezuela and President Chávez. Many believe the coup has been executed as a method of ensuring Honduras does not continue to unify with the more leftist and socialist countries in Latin America."
Mr. President, go and see for yourself - http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/6/23/7...
President Obama, You don't have to travel to the far side of the world to see protesters being arrested as they attempt to save their families, communities, and future. You don't have to travel to the far side of the world to find a place where the powerful oppress the poor, and where corruption breeds poverty. You don't have to travel to the far side of the world to find tragedy being written in people's lives and in the land.
You can get in your car and drive there in less than six hours. .....However there are those in your own administration who are telling you that you should not insert yourself more powerfully into the issue of mountaintop removal. That you should step back, wait for Congress, and use the power of your office to constrain, rather than end, this practice. Mr. President, those people are wrong.
You cannot bargain with mountaintop removal, any more than you can make a deal with a disease. Mountaintop removal mining is unsupportable -- and unconscionable. It's not needed to meet America's energy needs. It's not needed to provide jobs in Appalachia. It's simply not needed.
Obama uses his weekly address to ask the Senate to show courage and follow suit in passing the energy bill - http://thepage.time.com/2009/06/27/potus-puts...
****WE MUST INUNDATE the Senate's inboxes, VM boxes, and do every petition**** Hammer the con-servative dems who are putting profit before life...
Obama using a full court press to pass climate change bill. Putting pressure on the Senate, using his address to say "This is a jobs bill." Let's hope he uses political capital for health care, too.
- http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/6/27/7....
Why Dennis Kucinich Voted No on the Clean Energy Act: He Felt It Was Too Compromised - http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/10478
“Worse, the bill locks us into a framework that will fail. Science tells us that immediately is not soon enough to begin repairing the planet. Waiting another decade or more will virtually guarantee catastrophic levels of warming. But the bill does not require any greenhouse gas reductions beyond current levels until 2030."
I love Kucinich and agree with him 99.9% of the time I agree with him, but in this instance, he must understand that this is political chess, we must pass a bill now, and then we will be able to strengthen it when we sign the Copenhagen Treaty in December, its all about politics in passing the blame, but its also about saving us from the stupidity of right wingnut/con-servative machinations & pseudo science onslaughts in corporate media....
Green Jobs Hold Hope for Rural America - http://www.hillbillyreport.org/diary/225/gree...
With the passage of the climate bill in the House today it is time for us to focus on creating jobs by saving our planet. I have long believed that their are millions of jobs to be created in researching, developing, growing and refining the fuels of the future. It is not only the smart thing to do, in generational perspective it might just be the healthy thing for all.
Pastor welcomes guns in church - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31586660/ns/us_ne...
"A gun-toting Kentucky pastor says it's OK to bring weapons to church — at least for one day. Ken Pagano asked his flock to bring their unloaded handguns — in holsters — to New Bethel Church in Louisville for a celebration of the Second Amendment of the U.S. Consitution that guarantees the right to bear arms. More than 200 people answered his call."
I wonder what Jesus would have done? Bring a Smith & Wesson, H&K, Glock, or some Palm leaves???? I guess it depends on the 'reverend' err....translator...
Members of U.S. House Financial Services Committee snapped up or dumped bank stocks as bottom fell out of market
- http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/06/membe...
For example, Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, a Florida Republican, bought Citigroup stock valued between $1,001 and $15,000 on Oct. 2, the day before the House passed the financial rescue bill and President George W. Bush signed it into law, records show. She opposed the bill.
Eleven days later, she bought $1,001 to $15,000 worth of Bank of America stock. It was on the same day that then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told leading banks that he expected them to accept billions in bailout money to prevent a financial meltdown.
Country First????
Bob Herbert: No Recovery in Sight "How do you put together a consumer economy that works when the consumers are out of work?"
- http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/27/opinion/27h...
There are now more than five unemployed workers for every job opening in the United States. The ranks of the poor are growing, welfare rolls are rising and young American men on a broad front are falling into an abyss of joblessness.
Time to take off the kid gloves with the banks (FDR style) & kick 'bi-partisanship' where it belongs...
I guess I will be sounding cynical and heartless...but who fucking cares about the death of THE most annoying pitchman, EVER?
I'm glad he's not goin to be on my teevee anymore...and that stupid show "pitchmen" on history channel will go away too.
.........I am far more saddened by his untimely passing than MJ's. The man seemed like a genuinely nice guy, whose career was just starting to take off. 'Pitchmen' was actually an interesting show.
But I sure as hell don't.
Most so called celebrities I wouldn't give a shit if they died either.
I guess I'm just in a shitty mood today...but I just don't feel anything remotely approaching sadness for this last spate of celebrity deaths except for Farrah's death. She was cool.
As for the show...it was a show about commercials...and useless inventions.
But that's how I feel...right at this moment anyway.
All the deaths in Iraq, and Afghanistan have me a little desensitized I guess...I just really find it hard to care about a guy on my teevee who yelled at me to try and sell me crappy products.
I guess I am a cold hearted bastard. But I'm more concerned with what's goin on in Iran and Honduras, and in DC right now to give a crap.
Just went and checked huffpo...I guess I AM a cold hearted SOB, because almost everyone is saying similar things as I've seen on here this morning.
I went out to a club last night to blow off a little steam after a long hard weekend of trying to earn a buck or two. I was there for about three hours and during that time the DJ played "Billie Jean", and I kid you not, five times. Thanks to generous amounts of Jagermeister, Red Bull and Budwieser, I was able to endure.
Sorry, I just don't get it. IMO Jackson was a pedophile, who had the money to beat the rap.
gone to one that didn't have a dj with MJ in his collection.
I find the multitudes of blubbering fans very strange...he molested kids, and they still love him.
That's what I don't get either. Its the blind adoration. I tried to express my feelings in a previous thread about how mixed I feel. I'm a huge John Lennon fan, but I only really discovered him and the Beatles just after he was murdered. I've read a ton of books on him and know how flawed a character he is, yet I'm still a big fan. But I'm willing to admit his flaws and not be in denial that someone I look up to is not infallable. I like a lot of MJ's songs, the guy had talent and I believed he truly loved children. But he was also a very screwed up guy, mostly stemming from his childhood. He was sexually attracted to pre-pubescant boys and, lets face it, hadn't created any good music in over 15 years. People can be fans but also have to be realistic.
Only saw the show a couple of times, but, obviously, his infomercials more often. I could be totally wrong, but he struck me as a decent guy using his talents, to make the best of things with the assets he had without seeming TOO arrogant.
Snip - Oh, look, they made another Dan Brown movie at some point. Angels & Demons deals with the deep dark secret organization, The Illuminati, and their attempts to control the world, which means you're probably going to be hearing a lot about that in the next few months on certain, paranoid websites. (R)
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...it pays to not own a television set. Otherwise, RIP, Billy.
I met Mr. Mays at a trade show about 5 years ago. He gave a breakfast speech to about 300 of us. He was coked to the gills. I got close enough to see his eyes. Coked. Hard.
http://www.rttv.com/Top_News/2009-06-24/Insur...
Turn the volume down on your computer's speakers prior to playing, as the volume is maxed out on the video.
http://www.rttv.com/Top_News/2009-04-19/_Amer...
Turn down the volume initially.
I can't say I bought into the argument, but the merger of corporation and government is food for thought. And, between influence peddling and
lobbyingcorporate bribery, the merger has been in place for quite a while, although, in this piece, they're talking about the merger of government and the "too big to fail" corporation.Runs the work comp system here in the states also so you better not get hurt on the job if you know what's good for ya.
They have the Doctors either lie to you or not tell you at all what the diagnosis is.
They used to send these weird gadgets to my door anonymously, like Santa Claus, complete with video on how to use the contraptions, expecting you to play with it. If something went wrong while you were using it, it would be your fault for using it incorrectly, not theirs.
This is what Government run health care could look like if we're not paying attention.
Devastating, but it has the ring of truth.
Financial Times (London)
Clive Crook
Obama is choosing to be weak
". . . On both climate change and healthcare, in other words, the US wills the end but not the means. This is where a president trusted by the electorate and unafraid to explain hard choices would be so valuable. Barack Obama, where are you?
The president has cast himself not as a leader of reform, but as a cheerleader for “reform” – meaning anything, really, that can plausibly be called reform, however flawed. He has defined success down so far that many kinds of failure now qualify. Without hesitating, he has cast aside principles he emphasised during the campaign. On healthcare, for instance, he opposed an individual insurance mandate. On climate change, he was firm on the need to auction all emissions permits. Congress proposes to do the opposite in both cases and Mr Obama’s instant response is: “That will do nicely.”
The White House calls this pragmatism. Never let the best be the enemy of the good. Better to take one step forward than blah, blah, blah. The argument sounds appealing and makes some sense, but is worth probing. . . .
The greatest waste of talent in all this, however, is that of Mr Obama himself. Congress offers change without change – a green economy built on cheap coal and petrol; a healthcare transformation that asks nobody to pay more taxes or behave any differently – because that is what voters want. Is it too much to ask that Mr Obama should tell voters the truth? I think he could do it. He has everything it takes to be a strong president. He is choosing to be a weak one. "
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/706bbcde-640d-11de-...
Here's one that makes the opposite point, that his strengths are yet to come.
They say Obama is starting to stumble. The hell he is
One of their wishful predictions:
"A major (if not perfect) healthcare reform bill has passed, handing Obama a historical policy achievement in his first year."
(if not perfect)???? By Congress? Prior to any kind of election reform. I can't see it. We'll be lucky if it doesn't hand insurers twice the pie they have now and provide even one person with health coverage.
Why yes, I'm cynical, old and grumpy.
election reform should have been first on the list.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instant-runoff_v...
The idea of instant runoff is that a persons 2nd consideration is taken into account if their first choice isn't viable.
Take the 2000 elections. I would have voted for Nader, if my fallback vote had been for Gore. But, since I don't have a fallback vote, I voted for Gore, recognizing that Bush represented an overwhelming greater of the two evils.
In the 1992 elections, a lot more people would have voted for Perot, the anti-free trader, if their fall-back vote had been for either of the two others.
But, the current system has made it abundantly clear that voting for a 3rd party candidate is throwing your vote away.
We do need reform to make 3rd party candidates more viable. But, how does that get done, when the two entrenched parties write the rules?
Since we can't rely on our corporate media, regulated by the FCC run by our two party system, yet another clip from the Ruskies.
http://www.rttv.com/Politics/2009-06-26/_Amer...
Lower the volume initially on your speakers, the audio is overmodulated.
so voting for the right candidate, the one you believe in is throwing your vote away?
If I wanted a center right pro corporate candidate I would vote for one. I don't.
“so voting for the right candidate, the one you believe in is throwing your vote away?”
Sure it is. Take Florida, 2000 election. Those people voting Nader wound up getting Bush. It is highly likely that 2nd choice for these people was Gore. With instant runoff, Gore would have won. And, with instant runoff, Nader would have gotten a lot more votes, because voting for the candidate you believe in doesn't allow the greater evil to prevail.
Some people that supported Nader recognized this and formed "Nader Trader" web sites, which facilitated vote swapping. The government shut these sites down during the 2000 election. The whole idea was to prevent the greater evil from winning by voting for Nader. Eventually, the court of appeals, too late to make a difference, ruled that the approach of "Nader Trader" was legal.
...otherwise, you won't be re-elected.
Maybe at the end of his administration, if he gets two terms. That's looking like a fairly realistic "if" at this point.
"We the people" would pay attention they would realize that it's the lobbyists representing corporations that are bribing the party of "NO" and many bluedog democrats to block the bills that Obama is trying to get passed, including healthcare reform.
Please, "Wake up America."
I wish you were right.
How did Bush with his 50-50 Senate "majority," 222-213 House majority, and -500,000 vote popular vote loss cram through the most radical, anit-american, pro-fascist agenda in history?
When I look at it in this light, my only conclusion is we have a ONE party system - the Bribery party; or Obama isn't using his bully pulpit nearly as effectively as he could.
n/c
Sad, but so very true.
I knew we were screwed one week after the election, when Obama hired all of the Clinton flunkie republican-lites as top advisors.
So glad I voted against the Clinton's because I wanted the corporate influence OUT of the democratic party.
I watched Pitchmen and I liked Billy. He was a big goofy guy who was clearly the star in the infomercial market.I for one will miss him screaming at me from my TV. He reminded me of the loud relative who you avoid but turns out to be the guy who helps you out when no one else will.
I enjoy Pitchman and am sorry he died. I can't say I will miss the yelling; I always had to scramble for the remote to quell the decibles.
It will be interesting to see if the flight he was on caused some sort of concussion and caused this. That would be an even more tragic loss.
He was about the only non-annoying pitchman out there. Unlike Vince from Sham-wow.
Channel surfing at 3:00 a.m. will never be the same.
I like the Sham Wow guy. (Sex scandal aside. :-) )
insurance. Feel bad about it 'cause I kind of implied he was a charlatan. Sorry Billy! :(
he yelled lines from Shakespeare on the Tonight Show. At least he was able to laugh at himself. RIP Billy!
RIP Billy Mays, yes, his commercials were really annoying but nowthat I read more about him, he seems really cool and a nice rags to riches story.
And perhaps the cause of death is similar to Natasha Richardson's???
If true, all the more reason to have yourself checked out when you bump your head. I will miss hearing his western Pennsylvania accent, which you don't often hear on national television and which he tried (often unsuccessfully) to disguise: "It gets the tough stains aht." RIP, Billy Mays, McKees Rocks, Pa. native.
Selling the ultra bright white cleaning stuff with the rubber brush-mop thingy. you could believe him when he spoke. It's the repetition that always makes these guys appear hucksterish. yeah, I bought a box/can for 21 dollars.
My son (15) shrugged when he heard about Michael Jackson. He was shocked to hear about Billy Mays though. He's seen a few too many YouTube parodies of that salesman.
Very sad though. It will be interesting to see if the airline gets blamed.
Do The Right Thing turns 20. Arizona legislators want to make it easier for gunfights in bars. Deja Vu? Gulf War Syndrome-like ailments affecting our troops.
RI almost gets rid of its slave name. An Iranian cleric learns how to deal w/ protesters from FOX News. At least GM will still deal with any future crappy vehicles they sell to unsuspecting customers. Thirty-one years after giving Howard Jarvis a photo-op, TIME finally questions Prop. 13. The U.S. indirectly admits the Drug War is not working, by opting to avoid burning Afghan opiate crops.
From the WhiteHouse Channel on YouTube:
President Obama - Your Turn: Join the National Online Discussion on Health Care Reform
Worth a try .. let him know .. single payer is the way to go .. and he should tell the insurance companies to take a hike cuz the gravy train is over ..
(No, not you, MountainMan)
I want to know how Obama--or anyone else--can rebut the idea that there is a more affordable way to make sure that all Americans are able to access health care than single payer. If we have the most expensive health care in the industrialized world--and it is, by his own admission, breaking American business--and yet it ranks in the low 30s in terms of effectiveness--how can we justify keeping what we have? How can we even consider it?
And yet, I haven't yet heard Obama--or anyone else in government--suggest that members of Congress give up their government-sponsored health care if having the government "come between a patient and his/her doctor" is such a bad and/or expensive thing.
Tell you what, Big O, you tell Congress it has to live by the same rules that the people it purports to represent does, and I'll back you on that. Meanwhile, find me proof that single payer won't cover all of us while lowering costs. Truth is, you can't.
Obama needs to hear the nation calling out to him to lead this battle .. not sit on the sidelines while everyone else fights it out.
The President MUST be the People's Advocate.
The Health Care Insurance Industry is UNHEALTHY for our nation - unhealthy for the American People, AND unhealthy for American Businesses.
The Health Care Insurance Industry should be under investigation for fraud, not sitting at the head of the bargaining table.
Snip - MINNEAPOLIS ― The Pride Festival kicked off in Loring Park Saturday.
There were live bands, food and thousands of people. It's now the third-largest gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender celebration in the country.
→ → →[ http://wcco.com/local/pride.festival.bibles.2... ]
Our government gives a general nothing response, doesn't strongly condemn the coup and doesn't rule out recognizing a the military dictatorship that will take the place of Honduras' democratically elected government. Ho hum, more business as usual.
The president, by just ASKING the people if they wanted to re-write the constitution, got him removed from office (those who lead this coup were trained at the School of America's and I'm sure we'll learn were probably funded by the US) by force.
http://www.zmag.org/znet/viewArticle/21817
"Such an initiative has never taken place in the Central American nation, which has a very limited constitution that allows minimal participation by the people of Honduras in their political processes. The current constitution, written in 1982 during the height of the Reagan Administration's dirty war in Central America, was designed to ensure those in power, both economic and political, would retain it with little interference from the people. Zelaya, elected in November 2005 on the platform of Honduras' Liberal Party, had proposed the opinion poll be conducted to determine if a majority of citizens agreed that constitutional reform was necessary. He was backed by a majority of labor unions and social movements in the country. If the poll had occurred, depending on the results, a referendum would have been conducted during the upcoming elections in November to vote on convening a constitutional assembly. Nevertheless, today's scheduled poll was not binding by law."
"...Foreign Minister Rodas has stated that she has repeatedly tried to make contact with the U.S. Ambassador in Honduras, Hugo Llorens, who has not responded to any of her calls thus far. The modus operandi of the coup makes clear that Washington is involved. Neither the Honduran military, which is majority trained by U.S. forces, nor the political and economic elite, would act to oust a democratically elected president without the backing and support of the U.S. government. President Zelaya has increasingly come under attack by the conservative forces in Honduras for his growing relationship with the ALBA countries, and particularly Venezuela and President Chávez. Many believe the coup has been executed as a method of ensuring Honduras does not continue to unify with the more leftist and socialist countries in Latin America."
for some chicken payback.
Deniers/Extinctionists/'skeptics' public enemy #1: Krugman: The Climate Change Deniers in Congress are Killing Us
- http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/29/opinion/29k...
Mr. President, go and see for yourself - http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/6/23/7...
President Obama, You don't have to travel to the far side of the world to see protesters being arrested as they attempt to save their families, communities, and future. You don't have to travel to the far side of the world to find a place where the powerful oppress the poor, and where corruption breeds poverty. You don't have to travel to the far side of the world to find tragedy being written in people's lives and in the land.
You can get in your car and drive there in less than six hours. .....However there are those in your own administration who are telling you that you should not insert yourself more powerfully into the issue of mountaintop removal. That you should step back, wait for Congress, and use the power of your office to constrain, rather than end, this practice. Mr. President, those people are wrong.
You cannot bargain with mountaintop removal, any more than you can make a deal with a disease. Mountaintop removal mining is unsupportable -- and unconscionable. It's not needed to meet America's energy needs. It's not needed to provide jobs in Appalachia. It's simply not needed.
One hurdle down for climate bill, 60 more to go - http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-26-clima...
Obama uses his weekly address to ask the Senate to show courage and follow suit in passing the energy bill - http://thepage.time.com/2009/06/27/potus-puts...
****WE MUST INUNDATE the Senate's inboxes, VM boxes, and do every petition**** Hammer the con-servative dems who are putting profit before life...
Obama using a full court press to pass climate change bill. Putting pressure on the Senate, using his address to say "This is a jobs bill." Let's hope he uses political capital for health care, too.
- http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/6/27/7....
US Healthcare System Is Sick. The Cure? Public Option - http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/6/28/7...
Why Dennis Kucinich Voted No on the Clean Energy Act: He Felt It Was Too Compromised - http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/10478
“Worse, the bill locks us into a framework that will fail. Science tells us that immediately is not soon enough to begin repairing the planet. Waiting another decade or more will virtually guarantee catastrophic levels of warming. But the bill does not require any greenhouse gas reductions beyond current levels until 2030."
I love Kucinich and agree with him 99.9% of the time I agree with him, but in this instance, he must understand that this is political chess, we must pass a bill now, and then we will be able to strengthen it when we sign the Copenhagen Treaty in December, its all about politics in passing the blame, but its also about saving us from the stupidity of right wingnut/con-servative machinations & pseudo science onslaughts in corporate media....
Green Jobs Hold Hope for Rural America - http://www.hillbillyreport.org/diary/225/gree...
With the passage of the climate bill in the House today it is time for us to focus on creating jobs by saving our planet. I have long believed that their are millions of jobs to be created in researching, developing, growing and refining the fuels of the future. It is not only the smart thing to do, in generational perspective it might just be the healthy thing for all.
Pastor welcomes guns in church - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31586660/ns/us_ne...
"A gun-toting Kentucky pastor says it's OK to bring weapons to church — at least for one day. Ken Pagano asked his flock to bring their unloaded handguns — in holsters — to New Bethel Church in Louisville for a celebration of the Second Amendment of the U.S. Consitution that guarantees the right to bear arms. More than 200 people answered his call."
I wonder what Jesus would have done? Bring a Smith & Wesson, H&K, Glock, or some Palm leaves???? I guess it depends on the 'reverend' err....translator...
Members of U.S. House Financial Services Committee snapped up or dumped bank stocks as bottom fell out of market
- http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/06/membe...
For example, Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, a Florida Republican, bought Citigroup stock valued between $1,001 and $15,000 on Oct. 2, the day before the House passed the financial rescue bill and President George W. Bush signed it into law, records show. She opposed the bill.
Eleven days later, she bought $1,001 to $15,000 worth of Bank of America stock. It was on the same day that then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told leading banks that he expected them to accept billions in bailout money to prevent a financial meltdown.
Country First????
Is Dana Milbank a Pri*k or Does He Just Act Like One? - http://thinkprogress.org/2009/06/28/milbank-p...
Bob Herbert: No Recovery in Sight "How do you put together a consumer economy that works when the consumers are out of work?"
- http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/27/opinion/27h...
There are now more than five unemployed workers for every job opening in the United States. The ranks of the poor are growing, welfare rolls are rising and young American men on a broad front are falling into an abyss of joblessness.
Time to take off the kid gloves with the banks (FDR style) & kick 'bi-partisanship' where it belongs...
Brad Reed: Rating the Greatest GOP Sex Scandals of the Past 20 Years; This will take awhile - http://www.alternet.org/sex/140933/rating_the...
This even sounds dirty: Sanford and Ensign Scandals Open a Door On Previously Secretive 'C Street' Spiritual Haven
- http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/...
Merkel Greeted On U.S. Trip by Dancing Green Hard Hats Demanding Strong Climate Action - http://www.desmogblog.com/merkel-greeted-us-t...
Gordon Brown Pitches $100 Billion Climate Finance Plan - http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/06/gordo...
Ask Umbra on moving cross-country - http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-29-ask-u...
Political Irony: (check out the pic) Like a jealous lover, the insurance industry doesn’t want you to be able to get health insurance from anyone, even if they turned you down
- http://politicalirony.com/2009/06/27/insuranc...
THE DEFINITIVE STFU to con-servatives/republicans: The Party of Family Values? - http://politicalirony.com/2009/06/28/the-part...
For somebody I found incredibly annoying at first, he turned out to be somebody I actually liked. Condolences to his family.
Is there any such thing as a Prince of Infomercials?
I wonder if I'm a prince of anything...
Prince of Darkness is already taken.
.
I thought Snarky was the name of the King of the Dolphins who led the invasion and occupation of Springfield.
Prince of Youtube links?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moM1s3cltTc&fe...
Prince Spaghetti Monster?
[ http://missivesfrommarx.files.wordpress.com/2... ]
and in your distant past...
This [ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tJUNlZF7Sw ]
Though hailing from Boston... it interestingly enough, oversees, a Springfield and Holyoke ;)
from democratic underground on how the DLC was meant to de-claw, and neuter the democratic party and we all know in O-bought-ma it is so true!!!
the DLC, DSCC and DCCC
"Can you spare a dime?"
I spent a few nights watching Billy. He did the job.
Hopefully, this is the beginning of the end of the era of people yelling at us to get our attention. Are you listening, O'Reilly?
Is it time for the US troops withdrawal in Iraq?
I guess I will be sounding cynical and heartless...but who fucking cares about the death of THE most annoying pitchman, EVER?
I'm glad he's not goin to be on my teevee anymore...and that stupid show "pitchmen" on history channel will go away too.
.........I am far more saddened by his untimely passing than MJ's. The man seemed like a genuinely nice guy, whose career was just starting to take off. 'Pitchmen' was actually an interesting show.
He and his family are in my prayers...........
But I sure as hell don't.
Most so called celebrities I wouldn't give a shit if they died either.
I guess I'm just in a shitty mood today...but I just don't feel anything remotely approaching sadness for this last spate of celebrity deaths except for Farrah's death. She was cool.
As for the show...it was a show about commercials...and useless inventions.
That's a little cold. :-(
But that's how I feel...right at this moment anyway.
All the deaths in Iraq, and Afghanistan have me a little desensitized I guess...I just really find it hard to care about a guy on my teevee who yelled at me to try and sell me crappy products.
I guess I am a cold hearted bastard. But I'm more concerned with what's goin on in Iran and Honduras, and in DC right now to give a crap.
Just went and checked huffpo...I guess I AM a cold hearted SOB, because almost everyone is saying similar things as I've seen on here this morning.
I went out to a club last night to blow off a little steam after a long hard weekend of trying to earn a buck or two. I was there for about three hours and during that time the DJ played "Billie Jean", and I kid you not, five times. Thanks to generous amounts of Jagermeister, Red Bull and Budwieser, I was able to endure.
Sorry, I just don't get it. IMO Jackson was a pedophile, who had the money to beat the rap.
gone to one that didn't have a dj with MJ in his collection.
I find the multitudes of blubbering fans very strange...he molested kids, and they still love him.
That's what I don't get either. Its the blind adoration. I tried to express my feelings in a previous thread about how mixed I feel. I'm a huge John Lennon fan, but I only really discovered him and the Beatles just after he was murdered. I've read a ton of books on him and know how flawed a character he is, yet I'm still a big fan. But I'm willing to admit his flaws and not be in denial that someone I look up to is not infallable. I like a lot of MJ's songs, the guy had talent and I believed he truly loved children. But he was also a very screwed up guy, mostly stemming from his childhood. He was sexually attracted to pre-pubescant boys and, lets face it, hadn't created any good music in over 15 years. People can be fans but also have to be realistic.
Only saw the show a couple of times, but, obviously, his infomercials more often. I could be totally wrong, but he struck me as a decent guy using his talents, to make the best of things with the assets he had without seeming TOO arrogant.
.
Snip - Oh, look, they made another Dan Brown movie at some point. Angels & Demons deals with the deep dark secret organization, The Illuminati, and their attempts to control the world, which means you're probably going to be hearing a lot about that in the next few months on certain, paranoid websites. (R)
[ http://www.cracked.com/article_17469_5-pathet... ]
see http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/K... and if you'd like to read about a very smart man (maybe he's a computer), http://www.atimes.com/atimes/others/Henry.html
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