mousemusings

My local newspaper

the Ann Arbor News, endorsed Bush today. That's my 'liberal media'. I just put a permanent vacation stop in. I'll call Monday and cancel it completely.

After the election, regardless of the outcome, I will be devoting some of this blog space toward researching, defining and promoting companies that support the progressive movement. The voice of the consumer is the voice of the people. We have to learn how to speak in a collective voice.

I'm considering the impact and viability of a barter exchange similar to the WNC Barter Exchange that Susan of easy bake coven pointed to last week. Ann Arbor has quite a successful freecycling community, but there is room for a barter exchange too.

Help and suggestions are highly encouraged!

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Never Forget

Internets Vets for Truth
with video clips like:
uncovered-flipflop quicktime mov

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS confirms video shows Al-Qaqaa

5 EYEWITNESS NEWScan say with much more certainty tonight our crew was at Al Qaaqa. We can also report that at least one of the bunkers our crew saw there contained the high explosive HMX. That is the same type of explosive missing in Iraq, and an ingredient used to manufacture nuclear weapons.If the military was at Al Qaqaa on April 13, 2003, like they say they were, it now appears they left at least some HMX behind

"These pictures are pretty dramatic proof that the high explosives were there after Baghdad fell," physicist David Albright.

Wall around Al-Qaqaa compromised

Seals used by the IAEA still intact April 18, 2003

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Caging Democracy

caged, cag·ing, cag·es

To put or confine in or as if in a cage.
1. A structure for confining birds or animals, enclosed on at least one side by a grating of wires or bars that lets in air and light.
2. A barred room or fenced enclosure for confining prisoners.

"It Will Be Worse Than in 2000"
NAACP head Julian Bond says the GOP is going all out to suppress the black vote. Can his "Election Protection" offensive stop them?

NAACP Faces IRS Investigation

As so much in the past three years, how effective could this possibly be? Perhaps the better question is who would it benefit? Bush Seeks Limit to Suits Over Voting Rights

'Caging' lists: God Help us if the Democrats Find Out
More details about "Caging" and what the Republicans have planned to do.
Of course, there is this flyer being passed around Milwaukee black neighborhoods.
Time was when Republicans were at least embarrassed by their efforts to keep African-Americans from the polls

Outrage is entirely justified.
All, an attempt at subtle and not-so-subtle attempts at intimidation, misinformation and suppression. This is America? I ask again, if we can't get it right here, who are we to be imposing freedom on others?

Why the harrassment? Marc Ash has an idea:
African America to the Rescue

The idea of an African American voting still strikes fear in the hearts of many Americans. The notion that such irrational fear only existed in the deep south is another myth. What's happening today in Cleveland, Ohio is not very different from what happened in Birmingham, Alabama in 1960. The violence is muted but intimidation and exclusion are still fair game.

To lighten things up a bit as you're thinking, here is Where Art and Democracy Collide:
The Voting Booth Project artists and designers transform actual Votomatic booths. On display Oct 8 - Dec 5 Gallery at 2 West 13th Street NYC

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Life in the USA

I got one of these in the mail today. I wonder how the families of the 911 victims feel being politicized by this pamphlet, especially when they see OBL still at large in their face today? I can't imagine. I'm disgusted and sad.

I've collected a few exceptional articles in the news today but have little time to comment or focus. Just the headlines ma'am:

The Explosives Depot was Looted a Year Ago
first reported Nov 13, 2003

It's Not Just Al Qa Qaa
by Paul Krugman

a minimum of 250,000 more tons remains unaccounted for.

A Hole in the Heart
by Tom Friedman

A Timeline of Failure
beginning January 2001

List of Bush excuses (LIES) about the missing Iraq explosives
one after another

All The Presidents Excuses
and another and another

Caught on Tape
if you needed any more confirmation

The article that most disturbed me today had nothing to do with the Bush Administration in particular but everything to do with the state of The Land of The Free, a place at one time where 'live and let live' was the creed.

Man found living in cave on Los Alamos lab land

Authorities have evicted a man from a cave on Los Alamos National Laboratory land where they say he apparently lived for years with the comforts of home -- a wood-burning stove, solar panels connected to car batteries for electricity and a satellite radio.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

It is Confirmed

Independent experts said several other factors - the geography; the number of bunkers; the seals on some of the bunker doors; the boxes, crates and barrels similar to those seen by weapon inspectors - confirm that the videotape was taken at Al Qaqaa.

"There's not another place that you would mistake it for," said Dean Staley, the KSTP reporter, who now works in Seattle.

No more excuses. No more lies. No more Bush Administration.
Yes, 'n' how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Eclipse this Moon

Bob has a review of Robert Parry's book Secrecy and Priviledge
I've been a longtime reader of Consortium News where Robert Parry keeps an archive called the Dark Side of Rev. Moon. You can also find an interview with Parry here.
The book promises to have content regarding the Sun Myung Moon and Bush ties, and as John Gorenfeld continues to remind us, it is not a lovely thought.
I'm going to have to put this book on my personal to-read list.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Video linked to missing explosives in Iraq

The news crew was based just south of Al Qaqaa, and drove two or three miles north of there with soldiers on April 18, 2003.

(...) During that trip, members of the 101st Airborne Division showed the 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS news crew bunker after bunker of material labelled "explosives."

(...) In one bunker, there were boxes marked with the name "Al Qaqaa", the munitions plant where tons of explosives allegedly went missing

UPDATE: The news site seems to require using IE as the browser of choice to view the video. onegoodmove has a quicktime version here.
I also mirrored his quicktime version here.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Explosive! and Substantial

The following are all selections from Juan Cole's 'Informed Comment'
When I have a chance I'll add some of his links to the (continually updated) timeline, but for tonight the reading illustrates the message. The message, as leaves no doubt is: Incompetence, poor planning, war without a reason. Yet the U.S. Wants No UN Help Probing Missing Explosives I wonder why.
There are no excuses. It is indeed criminal.

Bush is Making us Safer?

Bush not only failed to have al-Qaqaa guarded against theft of HMX and RDX, not only failed to guard against theft of dual-use equipment from a long-defunct nuclear program site, but also failed to do the elementary work of ensuring that the notorious al-Tuwaitha facility was secured against the theft of radiocative materials!

Since Tuwaitha was the great bugaboo impelling the Iraq war in the first place, you would imagine that Bush would have sent out a unit to secure and search it immediately. But no, he politely let the looters have a look-around first, waiting in line.

Iraqi Officials Deny Early Disappearance of Explosives

Dr. Muhammad Sharaa who leads Iraq's science monitoring department, denies that the 380 tons of high explosives that has gone missing could have been moved in spring of 2003 before or during the war.

Brown: 2004 Bremer Report on al-Qaqaa Looting

The reason we don’t know when the explosives disappeared is that we were not securing or monitoring the site.

Deadly Dual Use Explosives Missing: Part Deux

The Bush administration's attempts to pull the wool over the eyes of the American public fails on several grounds. First, there is every indication that al-Qaqaa was not secured and could not have been secured. That is because Bush did not send enough troops to Iraq to do the job that needed to be done. It was Bush's decision.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Looking for a Sample Michigan Ballot?

If you're registered to vote in Michigan, you can find it here.

UPDATE:
Regardless of where you live you can find your polling place,learn on what type of machine you will cast your vote and get instructions on how to use that machine by typing in your address.

To protect your right to vote, review this list of tips.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Timeline of Looting and Incompetency

Here is a rough timeline of nuclear facilities, notably April 12, 2003, when the discovery of looting first occured. I will continue to update this link as developments unfold. It stands to reason that once the discovery was made, that the IAEA would have been consulted and other places of concern to them would have been secured, or, of course, should have been. That 377 tons of explosives are missing from an unsecured military facility absolutely blows my mind! Incompetence is a nice word for it.

Recall the first presidential debate when John Kerry said, ""When you guard the oil ministry, but you don't guard the nuclear facilities, the message to a lot of people is maybe, "Wow, maybe they're interested in our oil."

I'd personally go a bit further and say, "Wow, maybe they aren't even
looking for nuclear capabilities, or weapons of any type."

UPDATE:
May I just remind anyone who comes to argue here about anything prior to April 12, 2003; no one knows.

The Iraqi interim government says the explosives were missing AFTER April 9.

The IAEA saw the seals in place in March.

A Pentagon "official who monitors developments in Iraq" told the Associated Press today that "US-led coalition troops had searched Al-Qaqaa in the immediate aftermath of the March 2003 invasion and confirmed that the explosives, which had been under IAEA seal since 1991, were intact."

Go read.

UPDATE 2

April 5, 2003

U.S. troops find signs of chemical readiness

April 6, 2003

Tests indicate Iraq powder not chemical weapon

The site seemed to be part of the al Qaa'qaa state establishment, a large industrial complex in Iraq which makes powder, explosives and propellants for all military industries.
It turns out what they thought might be chemicals were the explosives that later are found to be missing.
The Timeline We DO Know:

Rumsfeld on Looting April 11, 2003 before looting of nuclear materials was reported.
"Freedom's untidy, and free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things,"

April 12, 2003 First reports of Tuwaitha Nuclear Facilities being Looted (most links dead)

April 14, 2003

U.S. says all of Iraq's oil fields secured

April 16, 2003

Nuclear facilities in Iraq left unguarded

Eyewitness to a failure in Iraq

April 18, 2003

Video filmed April 18, 2003 may be linked to missing explosives in Iraq

April 27, 2003

U.S. Has Not Inspected Iraqi Nuclear Facility

May 4, 2003

May 6, 2003

Fate of Al-Tuwaitha nuclear material unclear

May 10, 2003

Seven Nuclear Sites Looted

May 16, 2003

Iraqis complain of illness near nuclear facility

June 6, 2003

U.N. agency returns to Iraq

Then there is a time gap where no news is reported until:
October 12, 2004

Nuclear items missing in Iraq

and of course the most disturbing development
the
377 tons of explosives which TPM is covering indepth.
What the heck, just go to the top of his page and start reading. He's still going strong.
Also see
Progress Report
And you'll also find
The American Street has Deathgate parts 1, 2 and 3

UPDATE 3

October 25,2004
"At the end of Operation Iraqi Freedom there were a number of priorities. It was a priority to make sure that the oil fields were secure, so that there wasn't massive destruction of the oil fields, which we thought would occur." [Scott McClellan]

October 28, 2004

Militant Claim: We Have Explosives

Video may be linked to missing explosives in Iraq

View video here

Initial Reactions from assorted Weblogs:

Hullabaloo who first called my attention to it
Total Information Awareness add him to your blogroll!
seeing the forest
Thudfactor
ISOU
Majikthise
at ease
Gentle Breezes
say anything
et alia
Rook's Rant
ratboy's anvil
LEFT is RIGHT
Loaded Mouth
The Left End of The Dial
Town and Planet another "new to me" weblog that's very good!
Why are We Back in Iraq? appropriately titled "TNT Done Dirt Cheap"
Rooftop Report
By Beauty Damned
Streak's Blog
Peace Garden
Last Day of My Life with indepth comments about the planning, or not planning
halfgeek.net
iddybud
Frogsdong also known as Blanton's and Ashton's but 'Frogsdong' makes me laugh!
SoapBoxBlog
Motor City Bad Kitty's LitterBox another 'new to me' blog grabbing my attention

Whew! Most of the above blogs were from the PBA. There are a lot of good blogs out there. Check em' out. Now I'll go read my regular blogroll, though I doubt I'll be linking much to this issue anymore today. I'm burnt and surely not feeling any safer.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Go Read Digby!

I'll have more later, but this is called 'head on a silver platter'.

click to enlarge image

Here is the weblog safe NY Times Link.

Kerry-Edwards Senior Advisor Joe Lockhart's Statement

UPDATE:
I'm covered up in real life work at the moment but I'll point to two paragraphs in the NY times article and then ask that you read the news headlines and my thoughts on April 12, 2003:

After the invasion, when widespread looting began in Iraq, the international weapons experts grew concerned that the Qaqaa stockpile could fall into unfriendly hands. In May, an internal I.A.E.A. memorandum warned that terrorists might be helping "themselves to the greatest explosives bonanza in history."

Earlier this month, in a letter to the I.A.E.A. in Vienna, a senior official from Iraq's Ministry of Science and Technology wrote that the stockpile disappeared after early April 2003 because of "the theft and looting of the governmental installations due to lack of security."

There is no excuse. Headlines w/possibly defunct links and my comments April 12, 2003

If I knew this, don't tell me the Bush Administration didn't.
I'll get back to this later with a timeline of horror.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Speechless

Quite honestly, I'm speechless, except to say;
my apologies for thinking we could have matured enough as a country to consider having a choice in our vote using IRV.
We have much bigger underlying problems.
For anyone who doubts, and I really don't think anyone does, may I just remind them that suppressing the vote, be it in Detroit, Ohio, or any other state in the US by either party is a poor example of the freedom Americans profess to enjoy.

What of the freedom we are trying to impose on others if we can't even get it right here?

I feel like I'm in a time warp and it's the same time warp I felt I was living in when I lived on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and when I lived in South Carolina. Is it regression or did the policies of this administration just exacerbate issues we've never fully faced?

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) Bill in Congress

Instant Runoff Voting (IRV)
This post is going to sit right here until I start seeing some action and buzz about it, even if it means I quit blogging altogether, though I'll continue to update this post.

This is the first bill ever submitted regarding IRV.

Called the Majority Vote Act of 2004 (Introduced in House)
108th CONGRESS
2d Session
Submitted Oct 8, 2004

To require States to conduct general elections for Federal office using an instant runoff voting system, to direct the Election Assistance Commission to make grants to States to defray the costs of administering
such systems, and for other purposes.

How does Instant Runoff Voting work?

IRV Flash demo

Potential Problems

Contact your Representative, ask him/her to attract visibility to and possibly co-sponsor the bill. Do all you can to educate people about IRV. Instant Runoff Voting.
To make it easy, go to the 'contact congress' box on my right sidebar, type in your zip, find your representative, select 'compose your own letter', write, and send.
The text of the letter I sent to my Rep. John Dingell was something like this:

I just heard about the bill, HR5293, Majority Vote Act of 2004, sponsered by Mr. Jackson of IL.
The intent: To require States to conduct general elections for Federal office using an instant runoff voting system.
I'm urging you to help with the visibility of this bill and co-sponsor it.
This can be considered a bi-partisan issue and, if passed, would go far toward abiding to representation of the will of the people.

To see the full text of the bill you must go to thomas.loc.gov and do a search for bill HR5293 108 Congress

for more info, see what's happening in my locality and extend it to yours.
http://www.firv.org/
http://www.a2irv.org/
Instant runoff voting is the topic of forum

and more:
S.F. takes lead with instant-runoff voting

dkosopedia

Proportional representation would further democracy

A Clean Count?

Progressive Vote

UPDATE:
I'm collecting links to people who are talking about this issue. It may be a long hiatus folks.
So far, only Bob, who has been working his behind off for IRV, has the only mention I see. Please leave a comment or a trackback if you've mentioned this and contacted your representative.

Bob's Links and Rants
American Samizdat because I posted it
PBA ditto

UPDATE2: a little action:

Gentle Breezes
Susannity!
Dyskeptic
Dialogic
Ray Garraud not IRV specific, but good references to the electoral college pros & cons
Jacqueline Mackie Paisley Passey Libertarian candidate Secretary of State Washington with pros and cons in her comments
sunsetchaser links to this WaPo article
sandcruiser
Yet Another Analyst
Thoughts from the Oasis amidst the Corn links to Vote Pair
Ryan McReynolds from Texas, where a vote for Kerry won't matter, good arguments
Fire and Knowledge also links to bill HJR 109 abolishing the electoral college
roguecode who points out that John McCain support IRV
Reinventing Democracy and other thoughts about the voting process
Procrastination with more about voting rights
Red Harvest who actually votes with IRV

UPDATE 3 I know it's boring, those little acronyms, that remind you of SUV or sumpin. Ah well, boring is sometimes important to get past that hump called 'broken'.

Very Recent News Articles:

Third parties make some inroads WI buzz
Worn out shoes for IRV written by Stacie/Tom Trescott
Ferndale, MI who is out beatin' the streets!
New voting method on Ferndale ballot
3rd District challengers: new policies needed MD buzz
Ralph Nader: the case for instant runoff voting FL buzz
More Than Bush and Kerry A look at the alternatives
Green Party Candidate David Cobb Answers Your Questions
'Of Grunge and Government': Smells Like Civic Spirit Krist Novoselic memoir turned civics manual great Book review.

Weblogs:
Colorless Green Ideas
blame the extended gestation
The Cardinal Collective
onegoodmove though he supports approval voting more, as do I. IRV happened to make it to Congress. Bills have a way of changing with input, as we all know.
scratchings who needs new improved congress people to bug

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Sigh...

Karen Hughes must think she still has credibility. It's sad really.
'He looks like a contented Christian with four aces.' Heh!.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

It's Not Over When It's Over

Kevin stops traffic on The American Street to ask "Is it just me, or am I seeing signs of Campaign Fatigue throughout blogtopia? ...what will become of the 5,936,237,541 political blogs AFTER the election?"

As much as I'd like to go right back to a more 'art and culture' focused blog, and am decidely weary of the campaign, there will be much left undone regardless of who takes control of the ship. The election is not an end-all. With the best outcome, it will be only a tiny step. In addition to continued vigilance, here are some suggestions:

Bob writes, Corporations Are Criminals. Read it and follow his links. The 'corporation as a person' does far more damage than any one person can fathom. A good focus after the election will be responsible consumerism. As we can see with Sinclair, consumer demand does have a voice. Bob also points to How to Save the World. A daily must-read for collecting, exploring and solidifying ideas.

On your local level there is still going to be much to do and it would be great to have ideas spread through blogtopia so we can all see what's working and what isn't working.
On my local level, helping to get the word out due to email communication problems, I want to pass on the latest happenings at the Green House. I copied, in its entirety, stacie/tom trescott's letter/agenda for November. These will be the last meetings at the current Green House with new, exciting things to come. They are also asking for help getting the word out in Ferndale about the upcoming vote on IRV. If anyone has time during the next two weeks to go to Ferndale and help knock on doors, contact me and I'll pass on the info. Next up -IRV for Ann Arbor.

Indeed, there will be much to do.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Demand an Accounting!

The 9/11 Secret in the CIA's Back Pocket
via | Another Liberal Blog

The Bush administration is suppressing a CIA report on 9/11 until after the election, and this one names names.
"What all the other reports on 9/11 did not do is point the finger at individuals, and give the how and what of their responsibility. This report does that," said the intelligence official. "The report found very senior-level officials responsible."

The stonewalling by the Bush administration and the failure of Congress to gain release of the report have, said the intelligence source, "led the management of the CIA to believe it can engage in a cover-up with impunity. Unless the public demands an accounting, the administration and CIA's leadership will have won and the nation will have lost."

UPDATE: You can send a message via secure online form here.
By phone:
(703) 482-0623
7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., US Eastern time
By fax:
(703) 482-1739
7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., US Eastern time

More:
Lawmakers Prod CIA for Pre-9/11 Accountability Report

Other Blogs calling attention to this:
Gentle Breezes
Bob's Links and Rants
thoughts on the eve of the apocalypse he's finally back from hiatus!
Comments From Left Field
The Rogue Angel
ISOU
The PBA
The Talent Show
Red Harvest
Talk Left
ratboy's anvil
FrogsDong
John P Hoke's Asylum
For Real Things I Know
Martini Republic
Total Information Awareness good commentary!
WTF? is it Now?? and she hardly finds it funny
Any Which Way
Arran's Alley
The Road to Surfdom
AMERICAblog
You Will Anyway
This is one to echo. If I haven't found you, let me know.
Have we had enough yet? I'm really Bushed, I want to keep Milliken's statement near the top of this page for awhile, but I am storing some good links in my del.icio.us on the left sidebar lest you think I'm slacking. I do know what it will take for me to feel un-Bushed!

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Michigan's Milliken Endorses Kerry

Former Republican Gov. William Milliken: "This president has pursued policies pandering to the extreme right wing across a wide variety of issues and has exacerbated the polarization and the strident, uncivil tone of much of what passes for political discourse in this country today,"

John Truscott, a spokesman for the Bush campaign: "We didn't have the threat from terrorists who want to kill us, We didn't have the same kind of war going on."

UPDATE: His Full Statement

UPDATE 2: On second thought I included his entire statement below.

Statement by William G. Milliken
October 17, 2004

As a lifelong Republican, I have had mounting concern watching this year's presidential campaign.

I have always been proud to be a Republican. My Republican Party is a broad-based party, that seeks to bring a wide spectrum of people under its umbrella and that seeks to protect and provide opportunity for the most vulnerable among us.

Sadly, that is not the Republican Party that I see at the national level today.

My Republican Party has always been a party that stood for fiscal responsibility. Today, under George W. Bush, we have the largest deficit in the history of our country - a deficit that jeopardizes economic growth that is so desperately needed in a nation that has lost 2.6 million jobs since he took office.

To make matters even worse, this president inherited a surplus, but squandered it with huge tax cuts structured primarily to benefit the wealthy and powerful.

My Republican Party is the party of Michigan Sen. Arthur H. Vandenberg who helped forge a bipartisan foreign policy that served this nation well and produced strong alliances across the globe. This president has, in a highly partisan, unilateral way rushed us into a tragic and unnecessary war that has cost the lives of more than 1,000 of our young men and women. In this arrogant rush to war, he has alienated this nation from much of the world.

What's worse, the basic premises upon which we were taken to war proved to be false. Now, we find ourselves in the midst of an occupation that was largely unplanned and has become a disaster from which we cannot easily extricate ourselves.

My Republican Party is the party of Theodore Roosevelt, who fought to preserve our natural resources and environment. This president has pursued policies that will cause irreparable damage to our environmental laws that protect the air we breathe, the water we drink and the public lands we share with future generations.

My Republican Party is the party of Lincoln, who freed an enslaved people. This president fought in the courts to strike down policies designed to provide opportunity and access to our own University of Michigan for minority students.

My Republican Party is the party of Eisenhower, who warned us to beware of the dangers of a military-industrial complex. This president has pursued policies skewed to favor large corporations in the defense and oil industry and has gone so far as to let those industries help write government policies.

My Republican Party is a party that respects and works with the men and women of the law enforcement community who put their lives on the line for us every day. This president ignored the pleas of law enforcement agencies across America and failed to lift a finger to renew the assault weapons ban that they strongly supported as an essential safeguard for public safety.

My Republican Party is a party that values the pursuit of knowledge. But this president stands in the way of meaningful embryonic stem-cell research that holds so much promise for those who suffer from diabetes, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, spinal cord injuries and other conditions.

My Republican Party is the party of Gerald R. Ford, Michigan's only president, who reached across partisan lines to become a unifying force during a time of great turmoil in our nation's history. This president has pursued policies pandering to the extreme right wing across a wide variety of issues and has exacerbated the polarization and the strident, uncivil tone of much of what passes for political discourse in this country today.

Women's rights, civil liberties, the separation of church and state, the funding of family planning efforts world-wide - all have suffered grievously under this president and his administration.

The truth is that President George W. Bush does not speak for me or for many other moderate Republicans on a very broad cross section of issues.

Sen. John Kerry, on the other hand, has put forth a coherent, responsible platform of progressive initiatives that I believe would serve this country well. He wants to balance the budget, step up environmental protection efforts, rebuild our international relationships, support stem-cell research, protect choice and pursue a number of other progressive initiatives that moderates from both parties can support.

As a result, despite my long record of active involvement in the Republican Party, and my intention still to stay in the Republican Party, when I cast my ballot November 2, I will be voting for John Kerry for President.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Free Speech, Freedom From Job

The Washington bureau chief of Sinclair Broadcast Group, Jon Lieberman spoke out, (and got fired) because he said, "I feel so strongly that our credibility is at issue here. . . . I feel our company is trying to sway this election. ...Call it commentary, call it an editorial . . . but don't call it news," Lieberman said. He added: "Viewers aren't going to trust us if we call it news. . . . I couldn't be part of this special and call it news when what it is is political propaganda."
This should really help Sinclair's stock.
I like what Majikthise has to say:
"As legal persons, corporations have a right to free expression. However, Sinclair is also a publicly traded company. Therefore, the company's directors have a legal responsibility to the shareholders to put profits first. The directors simply have no right to knowingly sacrifice profit for any principle. As Matt points out, Sinclair's management is either unwilling or unable to follow their prime directive.

The corporate profit imperative may ultimately doom the human race, but it gives me a certain grim satisfaction to see it cut both ways."

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Jon Stewart on Crossfire

Here is a mirror of Jon Stewart being serious.

CROSSFIRE quicktime video 15.7MB 13'24 310x210

CROSSFIRE quicktime video 8.1MB 13'24 155x105

Thanks to Norm, who also has the transcript and audio-only file here.

Amazing isn't it, that we flock toward honesty when we finally get a chance to see it?

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

and then there was a flicker of light

While surfung around with BlogExplosion where it sometimes feels overrun with right-wing blogs, (join and balance it out) I ran across at ease a liberal blogger currently deployed to Northern Iraq as an Air Force Liaison to the Army. He pointed to Republican Switchers.
twinkling stars!

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Obscenity Redefined

I could imagine if these women had shown up wearing wet t-shirts with no bra, but to consider this obscenity IS the obscenity.

"Three Medford school teachers were threatened with arrest and thrown out of the President Bush rally at the Jackson County Fairgrounds Thursday night, after they showed up wearing T-shirts with the slogan "Protect our civil liberties. The women got past the first and second checkpoints and were allowed into the Jackson County fairgrounds, but were asked to leave and then escorted out of the event by campaign officials who allegedly told them their T-shirts were "obscene."

via Doug's Dynamic Drivel and yes Doug, I am very afraid!

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

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posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Some Helpful Questions for Democrats Speaking With Republicans

1) For eight years Republicans savaged Bill Clinton for "gutting" the military. When George W. Bush took over he did not raise the force levels of the military by a single soldier. Even after 9-11, he still did not increase the size of the US Military and now claims that the current force levels are adequate for fighting in Afghanistan, Iraq and, should it prove necesssary, Korea. Were Republicans lying for eight years, or have they been lying for the last four?

2) FDR went into World War II with an alliance. By the end of the war the alliance had grown. George H.W. Bush entered Gulf War I with an alliance. By the end of that war the alliance had grown. Even Lincoln managed to end the Civil War with more support at home, and stronger alliances abroad. George W. Bush went into his war with an alliance. Within months that alliance had begun to shrink. Please explain how losing support and alienating allies is a sign of strong leadership?

3) George W. Bush inherited the greatest surplus in the history of the United States, and within months turned it into one of the greatest deficits. He accomplished this with a GOP House and a GOP Senate. Explain how this represents good fiscal stewardship?

4) Newt Gingrich and the GOP revolution called for abolishing the Department of Education, and denounced federal control of education. George W. Bush brags about expanding the Department of Education, and of extending federal control of education. Please explain which of these positions is "conservative?"

5) The Roman Catholic church denounces the death penalty, birth control and abortion. Explain why conservative Catholics have a right to flout the church on the first two, but must obey the church's dictates on the third?

6) Lie about fellatio: impeachable offense. Lie about medicare costs, war costs and links between Saddam and Osama: leadership. Explain?

7) Eight years of relentless, vitriolic, hysterical, occasionally obscene attacks on a president's wife: moral. Mention of the well-known sexual orientation of a vice president's daughter: immoral. Explain?

8) The President's men projected that by now we would have fewer than 30,000 troops in Iraq, a nation the size of Texas and surrounded by terrorist states. This is only slightly larger than the number of NYPD, Transit Police and FBI deployed to defend the Republican National Convention. Explain this in one or more of the following terms: lies, fantasies or delusions.

9) President Bush was elected with roughly 49% of the vote. He now has the support of roughly 49% of the American people. Explain how this demonstrates the president's likeability.

10) In every previous war in US history taxes were raised and unemployment fell. Under President Bush taxes were cut and unemployment rose. Meanwhile, US troops lack body armor. Tell me how this represents leadership?

via | counterpunchblog

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Conditions

I've seen very little in the news about the abuses at Guantanamo. Instead all I see is Mary Cheney's name. Personally, I care as much about Mary Cheney and the conditions surrounding the media flap as I cared about Monica and the conditions surrounding that flap.

Conditions I do care about however, are barely being addressed in the media.
Corpus Callosum has pulled together quite a bit, including word docs of profiles of some of the detainees (published with their permission).

Did it fly right by you, for instance, that
Up to 28 U.S. soldiers face possible criminal charges in connection with the deaths of two prisoners at an American-run prison in Afghanistan two years ago or that Uncooperative Guantanamo Bay detainees were regularly subjected to highly abusive treatment over a long period of time?

What is it that led to these conditions? Who are the parents and lovers of this child?

posted by Cyndy | link | | |

Final Stretch

from Science and Politics:

Many born-and-raised American still do not understand that this election is not your regular, run-of-the-mill contest between Republicans and Democrats. As someone born and raised elsewhere, I can probably see it much more clearly.

This is a life-and-death battle between the Democratic party and the Un-Democratic party, between Enlightement and Inquisition, between modernism and medievalism, between 21st century and 16th century worldviews, between democracy and theocracy, between a democratic party and a crypto-fascist party.
This is not one of those once-in-four-years fun events. This is an armageddon struggle for the survival of civilization, not just in the USA, but in the world.

The GOP today is not the GOP you remember from the 1970s. The GOP today has been hijacked by a dozen traitors of humanity, and you still don't see it!? Act now, before it is too late.

and he has another post I want to get back to -- For those interested in cognitive linguistics etc., an interesting superposition of articles

posted by Cyndy | link | | |