First Rule of Book Club

Mark Maynard writes:

As I mentioned a week or so ago, a professor friend of mine is thinking of launching a local book club. His vision, as I understand it, is that this group, which would meet once a month or so, would discuss works of non-fiction directly applicable to the current situation that we American progressives now find ourselves in… The first book he’s planning to suggest/assign is George Lakoff’s much talked about, “Don’t Think of an Elephant.”

Though I've already read the book and passed it along to my daughter,(along with it my Moral Politics book) who will probably pass it along elsewhere, I'm excited about the possibilities of this club. Read his post further for many other suggested readings. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Reading I've been missing

I feel like I've purposely been ignoring an awful lot of news. My poor little bwain.
I'm still amazed when he does these link fests. thoughts on the eve of the apocalypse posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Tidbits about Ants

Who really runs the show in ant colonies? --surprisingly, it's the worker ants. (listen)
my note: worker ants are almost all female

Despite the discouraging state of many ecosystems, Wilson has continued to think deeply and constructively about a variety of intellectual problems. In Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge (1998), he delves into the philosophy of knowledge and science, arguing for the unification of the humanities and sciences into a coherent body of knowledge. He suggests a closer examination of possible evolutionary origins and functions of morality, the arts, and religion. He strongly believes that our attaining a unity of knowledge is an essential task in humanity's path towards intelluctual enlightenment and living in a non-destructive relationship with the natural world. The humanities and sciences are interrelated and humanity and the natural world are intertwined — distancing ourselves from our human nature, can only cause future human suffering.

Two Salon interviews with E O Wilson: (no ads)
Living in shimmering disequilibrium

E O Wilson
audio interview:
EO Wilson's Ode to Ants posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Listening to Ourselves

Being a good listener begins with paying attention to yourself.

I wrote the following in response to a flash fiction exercise. A topic is given and you have 5 minutes to write. The topic was Omen:

That stupid little voice, the one telling me what I SHOULD do. "Wear your shoes today, it isn't that much of an imposition to go inside and get your shoes."
Well fuck you! I never wear my shoes! It's a beautiful spring day and I want to feel the ground beneath my feet and let the grass tickle my toes.
It was a nice walk, going nowhere in particular, breathing in the sounds and tasting the smells.
Damn that rock hurt. I reach down to brush it off. Oh shit! It's a piece of glass and it's stuck in there pretty deep...ok, I'll pull it out.
I look behind me at the trail of blood following each step. Once home I apply pressure to stop the bleeding. Oh no, this toe doesn't seem to move. The doctor said it had severed a tendon. A middle toe permanently stuck in the prestigious position of flipping someone off. A plus when I'm secretly angry!
That stupid little voice, again telling me what I SHOULD do. "Lock your bike..."
For some, it takes an immobile toe and a lost bike; which reminds me, my car is on E.

Simple memories from my teenage years, lessons learned about the voice inside. To this day, if I'm inclined to ignore that little voice, I think of my toe. I've developed the skill beyond what I wrote back then, or what could be perceived as common sense, now it's more of a silent voice, a feeling that something is not right or, conversely, that something feels very right.

Hello darkness, my old friend,
I've come to talk with you again,
Because a vision softly creeping,
Left its seeds while I was sleeping,
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence.

“Women’s Intuition”, listening,
again, pointing to Collaboration, baby and How We Can Improve Collaboration it is pointed out that women are inherently better at collaboration than men.

The skill of listening is essential to collaboration. The ants, in the poem below, are trying to be heard. The man,(power), at the top is only concerned with building his empire. His own inner voice is dead, he is disconnected from the foundation and the voices of the world, be it the world of business or the earth itself.

The art of listening (first, to ourselves) has to be (re)developed as a first step toward improving collaboration. The instincts are there, pay attention, drown out the noise, and revisit the sounds of silence. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

The Top Cannot Hold

Ants at Play

embedded in the floor
ants wrestle socially
smothering behind bars
of synthetic thread counts
and enforced competition

strutting above
in false confidence
the sly appendage of power
mighty and uncaring
robed in ignorance and greed
constructs wealth with
heavy bricks of debt

the foundation
creaks and rumbles
scurries for attention
and finally crumbles
~cyndy

After reading Collaboration, baby which was inspired by How we Can Improve Collaboration, I was reminded of the poem I wrote in July 2003. The poem was written about society in general, but the same holds true for business. The top cannot hold if the foundation is crumbling. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Choose The Blue!

Excellent site alert!
This is the best resource I've found for finding which companies donated to which party. Listed by category, very quick and easy to use. It does not, however, address social or environmental practices.

I highly recommend this for a permanent personal bookmark.

Thank you to cs at not watching television for reminding me to get this up. Blogger had been bloggy for me earlier. Also thanks to cs for the very cool promotional image for Homelandabsurdity! A huge help as I'd been meaning to make a smaller jpg but hadn't gotten around to it. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Consumer Resources

Other Boycotts

• Boycott-Now.org: Boycott, NOW!


• BUY NOTHING CHRISTMAS - Adbusters


• The Christmas Resistance Movement!


• Boycott USA


• Boycott the War!


• Buy Nothing Day - Adbusters Culturejammers


• Buy Nothing Day - November 27th 2004


• World Bank Boycott Home


• Sinclair Advertiser Boycott


• Boycott Information from Co-op America


• StopEsso


• Boycott Republicans


• boycott bush


• Reverand Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Saudis, Enron money helped pay for US rigged election

by Wayne Madsen

November 25, 2004—According to informed sources in Washington and Houston, the Bush campaign spent some $29 million to pay polling place operatives around the country to rig the election for Bush. The operatives were posing as Homeland Security and FBI agents but were actually technicians familiar with Diebold, Sequoia, ES&S, Triad, Unilect, and Danaher Controls voting machines. These technicians reportedly hacked the systems to skew the results in favor of Bush.

The leak about the money and the rigged election apparently came from technicians who were promised to be paid a certain amount for their work but the Bush campaign interlocutors reneged and some of the technicians are revealing the nature of the vote rigging program. read more

Also read New Ohio voter transcripts feed floodtide of doubt about Republican election manipulation

A floodtide of evidence of questionable practices in the 2004 election is mounting fast against Ohio Republican Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell and Republican Franklin County Board of Elections (BOE) Director Matt Damschroder. New transcriptions of sworn voter testimony, presented below for the first time, confirm growing suspicions of widespread use of rigged machines. Voters experienced hostility from poll workers, refusal of Republican election officials to follow the law, and discriminatory manipulation of voting machine placement, driving significant numbers of Democrats away from the polls.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

I celebrated Thanksgiving in an old-fashioned way. I invited everyone in my neighborhood to my house, we had an enormous feast, and then I killed them and took their land.
~ Jon Stewart

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Go Away

Mark Maynard made todays blog post possible. Just go there.

Jesus Save Us!

... but as estimated prophet writes in a well researched, well thought, piece about Christian Reconstructionism"/"Dominionism Jesus can't save us from Christian Reconstructed Apocalyptic Fascism. 'Jesus' is bankrolled and organized by Corporations, and articulated through the ideology of neo-conservatism. "We need a language that proclaims 'God with us in our diversity' not God above us threatening wrath and ruin."

UPDATE: I have come to the tenative conclusion that the Jesus Save Us link above is real. I really need to get off this planet. I must be an alien. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Boycott MEMRI Blogads

from Juan Cole Informed Comment

Intimidation by Israeli-Linked Organization Aimed at US Academic
MEMRI tries a SLAPP

I just checked my campus mail and found a letter in it from Colonel Yigal Carmon, late of Israeli military intelligence, now an official at the Middle East Media Research Organization, or MEMRI. He threatened me with a lawsuit over blog comments I made here at Informed Comment, reprinted at anti-war.com. This technique of the SLAPP or Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation had already been pioneered by polluting industries against environmental activists, and now the pro-Likud lobby in the US has apparently decided to try it out against people like me.

I urge all readers to send messages of protest to memri@memri.org. Please be polite, and simply urge MEMRI, which has a major Web presence, to withdraw the lawsuit threat and to respect the spirit of the free sharing of ideas that makes the internet possible.

Here is the letter:

' November 8, 2004

Professor Juan Cole
University of Michigan History Department
1029 Tisch Hall
435 S. State Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1003

Dear Professor Cole,
continue reading

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Scary Times

from NY Times:
New York Port Hums Again, With Asian Trade

And so far, the mounting Asian trade has been largely a one-way affair. After unloading 1,120 containers from the Glory, the longshoremen reloaded the ship for the return trip. Of 667 containers to be sent back, 419 were empty, being returned to Asia to carry more goods back to the United States. Of the rest, most were stuffed with two of New York's biggest exports: wastepaper and scrap metal. This is just one manifestation of the enormous trade imbalance between China and the United States. Howland Hook itself, where the Glory landed, used to be home to a sprawling Ivory Soap manufacturing plant. What remained of the factory has been leveled to create what in effect is a giant import depot.

Thanks to Rajiv for the link. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

The Orifice is Open!

This is the new project I've been working on, and I do mean work!
The Orifice of Homelandabsurdity

for simplicity you can go directly to the Topics page,
or directly to the
Web Links which doubles as a Consumer Resource page.

Based on Dave Pollard's Eight Fronts of Resistance, I'm hoping it can turn into an orifice of action. I have a good start to a collection of Consumer Resources but I need your help! If you sign up as a member you will be able to submit articles and links related to the topics, otherwise you will still be able to access the resources and comment.
Adding related links of interest in the comments is welcome for the time being until the site grows too much for me to keep up.

Whenever a member writes an especially good blog post relating to any of the topics and believes it has educational value or is a desired plan of action, I urge you to also submit it as news here. or from the 'submit news' link in the main menu. It will then be categorized under the desired topic for easy access.

I hope this can become an easy way to streamline information, provide some collaborative direction and be of service to those who want to walk the walk of Marketing Coolness, something the left has been losing that we need to get back. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

BBC Documentary: The Power of Nightmares

from Dialogic, via Wealth Bondage we hear of this very important 3 part documentary.
Watch it! posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Wealth

through the eyes of sages
from anonyMoses posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

An American empire? Who are we kidding?

The Baby Boomers, celebrated by liberals in the 1960s as the “finest young generation we have ever produced,” will likely go down in U.S. history as the most self-indulgent and selfish.

In fact, consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product."

The total national debt of $8.18 trillion is equal to 70 percent of the size of the entire U.S. economy.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Opt Out Online

Get off Mailing and Telemarketing Lists posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Ohio Presidential Results to be Challenged!

Ohio’s 2004 presidential vote will be challenged as soon as next week in the state Supreme Court, a coalition of public-interest lawyers announced Friday.

The lawyers have taken sworn testimony from hundreds of people in hearings in Columbus and Cincinnati, and will use excerpts as well as documents obtained from county election officials and Election Day exit polls to make a case that thousands of votes were incorrectly counted or not counted on Election Day.

“The objective is to get to the truth,” said Columbus Ohio lawyer Cliff Arnebeck, coordinator of the Ohio Honest Elections Campaign. “What’s critically important, whether it’s President Bush or Sen. Kerry, whoever’s been elected actually elected, is to know you won by an honest election. So it’s in the interest of both sides as American citizens to know the truth and have this answered.”

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Marketing Coolness

Consumption is cool. Isn't that what Bush told us? Go shopping! When your world gets you down just go buy something. Keeping Up With the Jones, that's cool! Give me another tax break so I can go buy. Give me! Gimmee!

Sure I read the alarmist articles:
Economic Crash Imminent?
The Coming Currency Shock
The Dangerous Dollar
Why the Dollar's Fall is Bad for Everyone

Yeah, right. This is America man. We can always borrow more to keep the economy afloat. We have allies!! Those lefty elitist liberals who rag on my SUV and tax cuts, the ones who advocate equity and conservation just don't get it. I work hard and I'm going to be rich one day.

Heh! Those damn liberals, they think they can buy themselves a better agenda supporting companies like Working Assets The laugh is on them. Working Assets issues affinity credit cards through MBNA, one of Bush's biggest donors. Marketing, a little greenwashing, a few bucks thrown to their petty causes. No big deal. They are stuck on the same carousel. Of course, just don't tell them that dropping out of the banking industry in favor of credit unions, (those member-owned, non-profit slime) might make an impact. We want them saving in places where we can get our hands on their money. Who takes the time to investigate major business? Virtually no one. It's all in the marketing. If it seems cool they'll buy it. Hell, even Adbusters is tapping their pockets.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. So 80's. Alternative energy? Why? I say squeeze the last dollar out of the oil industry before we look at alternatives. We get a chance to show our military might and our world dominance while we're squeezing. Yeah, so this war is costing a bit more than research into alternatives might have. But hey man, this is a religious war too. Peak Oil??? yeah, ok, I've heard about it. I even check out the Energy Bulletin on occasion just to see what kind of dribble is leaking out. We really can't have people aware of this. It might hurt profits. What you say? read Deep Blade Journal and his collection about peak oil? NO. I really don't want to think too hard. God will provide. Yes, yes, he handed stewardship of the earth to humans. They are our resources to profit from now.

You know what I find most troubling? My kids. They are buying into this anti-corporate thing.
They tell me they can't make ends meet and find it gratifying to buy used stuff. They talk of things like sustainability and that hippie concept of organic food. It even bothers them that the EPA proposes a study involving low income kids and toxins. For taking part in these studies, each family will receive $970, a free video camera, a T-shirt, and a framed certificate of appreciation. They even call the program CHEERS! I don't see a problem bribing those poor families to be guinea pigs. I raised my kids to think they were better than everyone else. Someone needs to be a guinea pig to protect ME! Why not the poor folk? They owe me for all the years I paid my taxes. My kids somehow got this notion that health care should be a right. Yeah, so they can't find a job with health care benefits but they're young and healthy.

I'm very afraid that the liberals will decide to market 'less consumption' as the new cool thing. We need people to be in debt. It spurs production, not that the US produces much anymore but, that's beside the point. We are, by definition, a nation of consumers! The world loves us for it! posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

My mother is a black evangelical Christian - and a staunch Democrat. The party failed her and millions of other religious folk, and that has to change

(Salon.com subscription or click-thru the ad)

What we Democrats need is our own political brand of evangelism. The conservatives have a well-wrought message, but no works. We have the substantive works, but no message, and certainly no overarching vision. We are the ones with the easier task before us, but we can't rely on the elite activists in the party to do the job of conversion; these people simply don't speak the language. Religious Democrats do. But we shouldn't use them in a Democratic-Republican game of keeping up with the Joneses; we should embrace them for a much better reason -- because they, ironically enough, are the only ones in the Democratic universe who won't simply preach to the choir. But they need a vision to preach, and they need support from the party they believe in, despite mounting evidence that their party doesn't believe in them. We can't leave them out there, alone and alienated in the red states we're now so fond of bashing, or else we'll lose them as well

posted by Andy | link |    | |

Progressive Voices

When Dennis Kucinich was pretty much forced to put his support behind John Kerry, like many, I was disappointed but realized that reality dictated. I've been observing with interest the evolution of the Progressive Democrats of America.
Today their press release and policy statement on Fallujah clinched it for me. I joined.
Michigan does not yet have a caucus, though some of the supporting partners and organizations are from Michigan and they are definitely people I support and admire. I'd really like to see this get moving in Michigan, so if there is any indication of a move toward these goals that I'm missing, let me know!

In January there will be a 3 day Progressive Summit just after the inauguration. I would really like to be there. Big Problem... Because it is the inaugural weekend there is no lodging. Suggestions??? I don't think sleeping in my car in this police state is a very good idea.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

"Prepare to Fire"! A space-age Rapture song (mp3 link)

Listen in on Captain Shout and his robot buddy, Loosenut, as they blast off into the Heavens!

posted by Andy | link |    | |

Observation (true story)

She came home from work and immediately headed for the bathroom. A habit left over from her school days, holding it in, waiting for her own private sanctuary.

Today her sanctuary had a guest. A piece of minty green dental floss was inching its way very slowly across the floor.

Her attention piqued, she inspected it further. One lonely, very determined ant, had staked claim to her discard. She watched his labor for a while, took note of his progress, and headed to bed.

After an hour or two she awakened and remembered her guest. Checking on his progress she found he had moved only an inch and had most surely tired himself greatly because he was only a tiny sleeping speck. She tickled him with the floss and he latched back on in his highly determined manner and immediately made a good half-inch of progress. She wondered where his friends were. Ants usually work in groups, she thought to herself. She would help if she could but he wasn't telling her where he was headed.

She busied herself around the house and decided to check on him a few hours later. Again he was curled into a tiny sleeping speck. When she tickled him with the floss he no longer responded

If only his friends had known.
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Listening


Robyn Hitchcock Spooked
wow!

UPDATE: If you've been following the comments and haven't had a chance to hear what we're talking about, Norm has it.
The entire show is damn good radio, the album is my personal fav of the year but the ditty is sweet icing.
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Life is Short

some older stuff that's often worth revisiting when trying to remember who you are

Hot desert sun, feeling my skin tighten and redden and glow.
Clear blue sky, some days littered with fluffy white clouds in the shape of rabbits, cats, or a banquet of musicians.

Watching long spikes of grass rustle in the breeze, an ant holding onto his structure swaying with the force of the unseen wind.

Many times I'd follow the ants to their home, becoming a part of the community. Each had a purpose; each had a personal grain of sand or food to share.

What will I share? With whom? Where?

Riding to California in the back of an old yellow pickup truck, wind burning and chapping my skin, my hair became a complete knot of tangles like my mind. I saw the ocean for the first time in my life. Not one to wade gingerly, I ran into the waves and tried to swim. The waves, a strength I cannot fight, pulled me under slamming my body against the rocky floor. My skin broken, my respect for this force strengthened.

Waves like small ants, working with other waves, all with small grains of sand or food to share.

I am that tiny ant, the forceful wave, and the fluffy cloud. My grain is with me to share, at times too tiny to see, at times too forceful to keep, at times to fluffy to grasp. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Random Rant: Resignation, Remorse and Religious Renegades

This we already knew:
"On August 4, 2003 Secretary of State Colin L. Powell and his deputy, Richard L. Armitage, have signaled to the White House that they intend to step down even if President Bush is reelected."
I'm left wondering just how many voters kept that in mind. I'm also wondering why so many people are shocked. It was pretty clear.

I took part in this poll. Yes, I was one of the people who answered 'values' for more than one question. Read the article if you want to know who really voted their values. Hint: It wasn't people opposing gay marriage.

Today the Progress Report says: "After the election, gloating Republicans continued to attack the religious beliefs of many Americans. Right-wing radio host Rush Limbaugh charged Democrats "don't like God." Evangelical leader Bob Jones charged the reelection of George Bush was a "reprieve from the agenda of paganism," stating, "You owe liberals nothing. They despise you because they despise your Christ." And conservative television host Joe Scarborough accused Democrats of "taking solace" in "bigoted anti-Christian screeds."
They continue to gloat and disparage as Kathy has found. Tis ugly.

Like Kathy, I'm tired. I feel isolated and I'm too damned introverted to 'get out there'. It was so much easier to do everything when Craig was still alive. When he died I didn't let myself stop. Maybe I was doing the 'bargaining' thing, I'm not sure. My driving force was to get Bush out of office so I could "Imagine" again. After listening to "Imagine" again, all I can feel is profound loss. I'm going to step away from this page for a few days and maybe work on the homelandabsurdity page, which is a part of Craig's old site, listen to his music and dreams, and see if I can make some sense of things.

Please don't stop. I see the Dominionists as the biggest threat we face to our personal freedom and our sense of 'Imagine'. They paint a pretty face with the new term the "New Traditionalists". I'd love to read what people uncover about them when I come back to this page. For now I'll leave you with a few links I've found the past couple days in the blogosphere regarding the Dominionists. If you happen to write about them. please leave a link in the comments or trackback.

American Samizdat has the essentials.

I expect estimated prophet will be adding more soon. He's also looking for links and information.

et alia has several posts. Does anyone recall Christian Identity?

Streak's Blog is overflowing with thought.

Majikthise has two posts, here and here and links to Neogaidaros who also has some thoughts.
The TNPG link to kos is still on my to-read list but looks helpful in understanding how the phenomena spreads.

Dialogic and Spontaneous Arising discuss related ideas.

Kathy shares her experience after reading a thought provoking post at Total Information Awareness.

Science & Politics as always, has very good links and insight.

Here is an oldie, but much overlooked article by Jeffrey Sharlet. Jesus Plus Nothing.
"The Family is, in its own words, an “invisible” association, though its membership has always consisted mostly of public men. Senators Don Nickles (R., Okla.), Charles Grassley (R., Iowa), Pete Domenici (R., N.Mex.), John Ensign (R., Nev.), James Inhofe (R., Okla.), Bill Nelson (D., Fla.), and Conrad Burns (R., Mont.) are referred to as “members,” as are Representatives Jim DeMint (R., S.C.), Frank Wolf (R., Va.), Joseph Pitts (R., Pa.), Zach Wamp (R., Tenn.), and Bart Stupak (D., Mich.)."

Sounds pretty 'cultish' to me, which reminds me that there is a very good post out there that I cannot find at the moment, about the cult traits the Dominionists are clothed in. Anyone have that link?
UPDATE: seeing the forest has the cult parallels.

Please don't stop. I'll be back when I get back.
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

The Reality of the Psyche

thanks to New World Disorder I've been complaining quietly to myself for feeling forced to live in my head. Perhaps I shouldn't consider it as a restriction but as a chance to develop.

...) My increasing suspicion is that traditional forms of protest, at this point, are only playing into the hands of the security apparatus. The police and military get the opportunity to test out their latest tactics and shiniest gadgets, while the corporate media finds the most incendiary images to broadcast across the US, amping up the anxiety.

...) "As counterintuitive as it may seem at first, I propose that our current environment, saturated with noise and chaos and fear-mongering, is the necessary background for attaining this supramental condition, for accepting and mastering the reality of the psyche. The new mindset stems from a fearless curiosity and hunger for truth, and a rejection of the cynicism and negative programming foisted upon it by the corporate-controlled media and current power structure.

...) The run-up to the 2012 transition appears, necessarily, as universal capitulation and collapse - just as birth is a messy process that would appear horrific to the uninformed observer. According to Calleman's study of the Mayan Calendar, the global economy - and with it, the materialist paradigm currently holding the collective psyche at a certain level of development - will collapse around 2007 - 2008."

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Imagine



Turning their back on Bush
while
singing "Imagine"

it isn't hard to do
thanks marblex! posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Not Intended to Distract

from the discussion in the comments below, but to add some more thoughts to them,
The Market's Will be Done

"The spread of global capitalism creates the political and cultural volatility that calls forth neo-fundamentalism. I say "neo-" because this fundamentalism is symptomatic of the disappearance of the very certainties it asserts. Outside this country, neo-fundamentalists often resist globalization, which is partly why the World Trade Center was targeted. But in America, for some odd reason, evangelical Christians from Reagan to George W. Bush have also been market fundamentalists who've argued that globalization will make the world less volatile. ... According to market fundamentalist dogma, investors are rational and markets operate efficiently in a world where every risk can be hedged. This is a religious vision -- but a misguided one."

Puritanism of the Rich

...The pursuit of adulterers and sodomites provided an ideal distraction for the increasingly impoverished lower classes.

Ronan Bennett's excellent new novel, Havoc in its Third Year, about a Puritan revolution in the 1630s, has the force of a parable. An obsession with terrorists (in this case Irish and Jesuit), homosexuality and sexual licence, the vicious chastisement of moral deviance, the disparagement of public support for the poor: swap the black suits for grey ones, and the characters could have walked out of Bush's America.

So why has this ideology resurfaced in 2004? Because it has to. The enrichment of the elite and impoverishment of the lower classes requires a justifying ideology if it is to be sustained. In the US this ideology has to be a religious one. Bush's government is forced back to the doctrines of Puritanism as an historical necessity. If we are to understand what it's up to, we must look not to the 1930s, but to the 1630s.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Dis-ease

a plague
invading the structure
of flesh through
corrupted synapses

electricity misfired
instigated by power surges
distributed unevenly
through tolerence overload
greed closes the paths of acceptance

anti-christ is
contagious neuroinflammation
carried by
not one man
but everyman
the cure
unavailable for purchase
cannot be obtained by force
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Discussion in the Comments

I'd like to see some discussion here about who you perceive the 'right-wing' to be. What is the difference that you see between Evangelicals, Fundamentalists, New Traditionalists, Christian Reconstructionists and Theocratic Dominionists?

Which groups threaten your personal values most and why?
Who most threatens the American Way of life, as we know it?
What do you know about the reaches of these groups into our law of the land?
Are you aware of the Constitution Restoration Act,(which includes the acknowledgment of God as the sovereign source of law) and if so, what are your feelings?

Answer any or all of the questions, or simply vent. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

just wondering

I'm just wondering how proud his mother is and how pissed his mother is and why he even had a mother. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Rapture theory starts apocalyptic feud

What if the Rapture has already happened?
What if Revelation's prophecies have been fulfilled? posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Great Compromise

"But sometimes I get awful lonesome
And I wish she was my girl instead
But she won't let me live with her
And she makes me live in my head"
~John Prine posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

America's Doom Industry

must read,
also read End Times as Growth Industry posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Eight Fronts of Resistance

from Dave Pollard's How to Save the World


Dave has outlined the following 8 points. Rolling over for 4 more years is not an option unless you believe in the rapture. I like seeing his list as a direct focal point. He has added thoughts to each front on his page. Read his ideas and come back with some of your own. The comments are open and I'll refrain from posting anything else to this blog for a couple days to enable easy discussion.
I have a webpage waiting in the lurks to organize thoughts and actions on Dave points above. You can see the rough layout of the page at Homelandabsurdity. We can turn it into a planning center if there is enough interest.
If the interest goes over like a 'thud' I'll try something else. Rolling over is not an option for me.
UPDATE: It doesn't appear the interest is there at this point in time. Perhaps I'll add links to the categories myself and whomever wishes to use the page as a resouce, or add to it themselves, is most welcome.

1. Political Organization Starting Now: MoveOn, MeetUp and ReachOut

2. Street Demonstrations & Street Theatre: Wearing Opposition on Our Sleeves

3. International Sanctions and Ostracism

4. Unapologetic Alternative Media

5. Court Challenges, Filibusters & Obstructionism

6. Consumer Power

7. Campaign Finance and Electoral Reform

8. Public Discourse

Bob and I have already outlined a few ways to use Consumer Power (front #6) wisely.
I'll recap:

Here is a list of the top 25 Republican donors who produce consumer products.
In a few days I will begin to highlight each of them individually so it will be easy to see what they produce and what brands to avoid buying.

I've suggested breaking the strings to your long distance company and instead, use Working Assets who will donate a percentage of your charges to progressive groups. I've used them for years and it is always very simple for me to tell any other company trying to solicit new service that I am very happy with my current service. It appears they also have a competitive wireless plan though I haven't gone cellular myself.

I've also pointed to the need to get out from under the banking industry and open an account in a local member owned, not-for-profit Credit Union.

Bob has a great list today of 9 simple actions which scores as triple duty; losing debt, reducing emissions, and exercising control over purchases. As a personal note, replacing light bulbs with compact fluorescents has saved me many headaches, from having to replace bulbs so often to seeing quite a large return in savings on my electric bill.

I think Harry has a line on some alternative media and entertainment. He's compiling some links oh! yes, lest I forget the new fashion! I love the purple!

I want to Turn My Back on Bush Anyone else?


posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Dr. W. David Hager Revisited

I see the emails are making another round. While the substance of the email about his characteristics are entirely true, understand that Dr. W. David Hager was appointed to the FDA in December of 2002 and reappointed again this year. You can find the Urban legends page confirming the validity of the email here.
I wrote extensively about him 2 years ago, if you're looking for more info and yet more is scattered throughout my October archives.

I understand that he may have just been appointed head of the commission recently but I haven't been able to confirm it anywhere. Quite a few of the links in my older references to him are dead now, but if you're looking for info I'm sure you'll find something there. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

93,000 more votes than voters

Thank him for not reading the memo! ( his email is at the link)

Keith's note to to bloggers:

Having said all that -- for crying out loud, all the data we used tonight on Countdown was on official government websites in Cleveland and Florida. We confirmed all of it -- moved it right out of the Reynolds Wrap Hat zone in about ten minutes.

Which offers one way bloggers can help guide the mainstream at times like this: source your stuff like crazy, and the stuffier the source the better.

If he, or you, want documentation, go read the past few days at estimated prophet. Very extensive and potentially useful once Congress jumps aboard. (It's our job to see that they do)

I don't even know what to say to Mike, who is in Iraq, when he asks, "Someone please tell me that the following don't mean anything". "I want to believe that I am not over here risking my fucking life for an administration that was elected by fraudulent means. Convince me that we live in a Democracy, because right now I'm starting to believe otherwise."
We just want you to come home too. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

micromike

Some people who visit my page may remember how disturbing I thought the treatment of Roy Michael Moore was. Hermit Found Living in Cave on LANL Property I'm even more disturbed after reading his webpage. He was living as I've often dreamed of living, disturbing no one, completely self reliant, pursuing his dream. Live and let live. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

The Writing on The Great Wall

seeing the forest I'm glad I've been getting ready for this but I'm still not prepared. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Phew!

This programing funded in part by Pew Charitable Trusts.

I hear that daily on my NPR station.
Bruce has found that they aren't exactly as they present themselves to be, "independent, non-profit and to serve the public interest".
I am the public and what they are funding is not in my interest. The scope is quite big in actuality. Go read what he dug up.
This is one more reason to be very careful where you invest your bucks! Research! If you aren't sure, use your mattress. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Belief

My social issues page hasn't been updated in over two years. I was thinking about revisiting it last night. After reading abuddhas memes today, I see thoughts synchronize without communication.

This is, I think, much of the problem of the modern delemma: direct experience had been discounted, and in its place all kinds of belief systems have been erected. I would prefer a kind of intellectual anarchy where whatever was pragmatically applicable was brought to bear on any situation; where belief was understood as a self-limiting function. Because, you see, if you believe something, you are automatically precluded from believing its opposite; which means that a degree of your human freedom has been forfeited in the act of committing yourself to this belief.
~Terrence McKenna

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

It's your money. Don't make it their money

For many it is difficult to simply close out all accounts at banks and move them to Credit Unions, mainly because you're buried in debt. There is no better time than now to get those debts paid off. Everytime you refuse to make an impulsive purchase you are refusing to feed the Bush economy. Cut way back on purchases, buy used, freecycle, shop at your local Farmers Market and thrift stores or consignment shops. I do. I have for years and I don't smell bad or look particularly destitute. I even cut my own hair. Don't look just yet, it's still growing out.

Take the rest of this month and vow that you won't buy anything new, not even a new pan for that Thanksgiving pie. Yes, you can get a real haircut if you must!

Leave a comment and let me know you're on board. Bob would like to know too. The more who participate, the deeper the impact! I'm considering setting up a separate, more interactive web page if interest indicates. This IS within our power. Our money is one of the only voices we have readily available for awhile.

For some more practical steps look at the Co-Op America website. I'll point to more of these ideas in the future.

With Bush still on my mind, I want to point to Deb's page outlining his Civil Rights record. The man is pitiful. His accomplishments are as skimpy as his smirk. Don't feed his machine.
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Power Outage Temporarily Cripples U-M Servers

yes, that means I haven't been able to do much of anything, so forgive me if it appears I have ignored my email. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Progressive Consumer Action

Snap Out of It!

Every vote may not be counted. But every dollar always is.

Perhaps now disillusioned Kerry supporters will take a second look at what FTW has been teaching for years.

• Get out of debt.

• Spend your money and time on things that give you energy and provide you with useful information.

• Stop spending a penny with major banks, news media and corporations that feed you lies and leave you exhausted.

• Learn how money works and use it like a weapon.

It is already becoming clear that as Peak Oil becomes a stark reality, survival will become a place-based, local phenomenon. Local economies, to the degree that they exist and are flourishing will provide strength to resist what is coming. Everyone who sees this essay should compare the return on investment they got with the election against something that offers more payoffs, an opportunity to become real, independent actors on the fields of their own lives.

To Do: Join a local Credit Union this week. Close and move your other accounts to the credit union. Why? (pdf file) Credit Unions are member owned, not for profit and support the local community.
To Read: The Two Income Trap: Why Lenders Want you to Live Beyond Your Means by Dave Pollard

UPDATE: Here is another Credit Union Locator Thanks Harry! and I agree the entry he points to is something we have to stick with if we are to be effective. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

By Any Other Name

Tell me, which sounds more tolerant, The New Traditionalists or the Theocratic Dominionists or the Christian Reconstructionists?

Lakoff Alert! New Traditionalists sounds fairly benign. Check again.

Listen to this Mind Over Matters radio show featuring Rev Rich Lang of Trinity United Methodist Church in Ballard, WA discussing his article, the Rise of Christian Fascism.

In the interview he recommends reading
Conquering by Stealth and Deception
How the Dominionists Are Succeeding in Their Quest for National Control and World Power
in fact, he recommends the Yurica Report as a rule. Gen. Boykin’s “Kingdom Warriors” On the Road to Abu Ghraib and Beyond

Do non Christians need to understand what seems on the surface to be a rightwing/leftwing church battle? Did Bush mobilize his armies of compassion?

"Americans and the main-stream media have been very slow in catching on to the fact that we are in a war—a war that is cultural, religious and political--a war that uses stealth and deception and the rules of engagement written by the enemies to representative democracy. Unless Americans wake up--we could lose that war. "

I think I slept a little late. I have to run to the bus now!

Thank you estimated prophet, for passing this info along!
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Joining The Rest of the World

"The American public can register their opinions at the ballot box, but for the rest of the world, all we can do is register our opinions via the marketplace."
Gerd Leipold, Greenpeace International Executive Director, April 2001

Since it appears our opinions don't seem to register on Diebold machines, our new improved ballot box, I think it's time we instead join the rest of the world.

Bob has a great lead-in post reflecting ideas I'd like to begin working with. I'll quote a snippet but please go read it and bookmark the links he offers. They are very helpful resources.

If you don't have time to explore these books and web sites, just remember this: Money is power (more or less), and when you buy Nikes at Wal-Mart or a new Chevrolet or a Big Mac or a tankful of gas, you are taking some of your power and giving it to one or more evil corporations who helped get Bush re-elected. You are also helping to destroy the environment, and are undercutting decent wages for people everywhere. In our current society, some of these purchases are unavoidable. But we should strive to avoid all unnecessary purchases that we can.

I'll begin with basic ideas, ideas many of us just may not think about, and offer web resources that have already done some research.

With the help of cs of not watching television, we will try to identify and highlight companies who manufacture or sell only items produced by folks with worker protections and by companies that are actively working to promote the progressive movement. Please feel free to join us!

Today I'll leave you with 3 links for you to consider:

Community Gardens by State, Province, and Country: Local produce

Conscious Consumer Marketplace: A searchable guide of environmentally and socially responsible versions of everyday items directing you to the nearest local or online source

Working Assets: Long distance and wireless phone service by the folks that give us all the great Act for Change actions, offer a selection of Shop for Change online stores, but best of all, donate a portion of your charges to progressive causes. If you, like me, are still using a land line for long distance, it's very simple to cut those strings to AT&T, SBC, or whatever big corporation handles your charges and give painlessly.

The following are companies to avoid doing business with:

Top 25 Republican Party donors (1999-2003) with global consumer brands

1 Altria (formerly Philip Morris) $6.5m
2 AT&T $5.36m
3 Microsoft Corp. $5.12m
4 United Parcel Services $4.48m
5 MBNA $4.38m
6 Citigroup $3.93m
7 Pfizer $3.9m
8 FedEx Corp. $3.4m
9 Bristol-Myers Squibb $3.4m
10 GlaxoSmithKline $3m
11 Wal-Mart $2.85m
12 General Electric $2.58m
13 ExxonMobil $2.35m
14 AOL Time Warner $2.31m
15 Anheuser Busch $2.23m
16 ChevronTexaco $2.2m
17 PepsiCo $1.9m
18 Schering Plough $1.8m
19 Archer Daniels Midland $1.8m
20 Wyeth (formerly American Home Products)$1.74m
21 Alticor Inc. $1.7m
22 American Airlines $1.62m
23 Ford $1.52m
24 BP Amoco $1.25m
25 Disney $1.25m

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

A Discussion We Need to Have

In comments in another post, I was discussing some of the Bible Belt attitudes with the Rogue Angel. She made a few very good points I want to highlight here and perhaps continue on with the dicussion. First off, reminding me of the term 'Bible Belt' was helpful. Somewhere in my thinking that term was lost.

Rogue Angel: "one of the primary issues I see with the Democratic Party right now is that it does not speak well to the Moderate Christians. We allowed "liberal" to become a dirty word ... we didn't even bother to define it or argue the rhetoric of the Right's views of what being a liberal means. We have let the Right define conservatism as Christian.

We have let the Right define conservatism as Christian!
just as we have let the right define 'liberal' as dirty!
Indeed we have.

Rogue Angel: The majority (in Kentucky) is your average Moderate Christian who is not going to risk their soul for a platform that goes against their Christian ideals. see her post on pro choice and how she frames the argument.

I can understand that. What I have a very difficult time understanding is how they can sell their soul to a political regime that has wrongfully attacked and killed possibly as many as 100,000 innocent people. How did they make the decision to support one ideal over another?

Rogue Angel then explains some of the dynamics in the church that are beginning to bother her and other Christians: The Bible Belt is getting quite politically correct though. So much so that a lot of Christians, like myself, are not happy with them. There are churches preaching against being "social services" for the masses. There are churches preaching politics at the pulpit.

The thing for me is, they are not preaching Jesus ... they are preaching God. Old Testament God.
For Moderate Christians Jesus is loving, kind, forgiving, He has taken our sins upon Himself. He said not to judge lest we be judged ...The Christian Right is very "Wrath of God" ... not "Love of Jesus."

This is where the Christian Reconstructionist (CR) agenda begins creeping in. A part of the CR agenda is a return to Old Testament values and Dominion. Dominion over blacks is but a part of it. I had asked about the attitudes toward blacks, knowing that KY was borderline in the slave trade, yet still had southern traits.

Her answer is much as I suspected: The attitude towards blacks here is in many ways much the same as it has been for more than 50 years. There is a lot of outright racism ... and under the counter racism going on. Being black and poor is as bad as being a heathen at a Pentecostal Holy Ghost prayer council. It is not good at all. LOL

Though, on the surface, things would appear kind of different. Interracial relationships, biracial births, and such are common. But, for every person who is not racist ... there are about three ready to kick their ass over it.

Black people in a lot of ways, in my opinion, feel defeated. They know that it looks good enough that most can play off any dissent or accusation from their side of the fence. But, underneath it all ... there is a lot of harassment, intimidation, and a lack of strong leaders to fight against it and to rally the cause.

From her answer I can only further draw connections between the Confederacy, Reconstruction and Christian Reconstructionism. We have made very little progress, yet here in the northern states, people think this is all in the past.

It's very hard to explain to people that the reconstruction, the civil war, black oppression, the re-establishment of the Confederacy, and Christian Reconstructionism is all intertwined and is being convoluted in a message of 'morality'. To have CR hands in our voting process via the machines only stacks the already stacked deck.

When I lived in South Carolina, my son, who was maybe 12 at the time had a friend about the same age who explained this all to me. He told me of the plans, the arms, racism, the war in motion, that the old confederacy was alive and would rise again. I was horrified but a part of me kept thinking, 'ok, this is a 12 year old reflecting his parents ideals and things will change'. Now a bigger part of me says, 'this was a 12 year old who is now in his 20's realizing the ideals he was taught.' It was all done through 'people of faith'.

The blacks in the south do feel defeated and their faith is the only thing that gives them hope so when anything is framed in faith they will have to respect it even if it doesn't serve them personally, voting is hardly an option. This will ultimately throw them back to the hands of the confederacy and further oppression.

Education is key, but what is education when people like this heavily influence it and when the same person invests in our voting machines?

We have serious problems. If we can't recognize them we can't fight them. I don't know what to do.

Thank you Rogue Angel. More of your thoughts are invaluable, especially for people in northern states who don't experience this daily.
posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Diebold, Electronic Voting and the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy

by Bob Fitrakis

The electronic voting industry is dominated by only a few corporations – Diebold, Election Systems & Software (ES&S) and Sequoia. Diebold and ES&S combined count an estimated 80% of U.S. black box electronic votes.

In the early 1980s, brothers Bob and Todd Urosevich founded ES&S’s originator, Data Mark. The brothers Urosevich obtained financing from the far-Right Ahmanson family in 1984, which purchased a 68% ownership stake, according to the Omaha World Herald. After brothers William and Robert Ahmanson infused Data Mark with new capital, the name was changed to American Information Systems (AIS). California newspapers have long documented the Ahmanson family’s ties to right-wing evangelical Christian and Republican circles.

In 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported, “. . . primarily funded by evangelical Christians – particularly the wealthy Ahmanson family of Irvine – the [Discovery] institute’s $1-million annual program has produced 25 books, a stream of conferences and more than 100 fellowships for doctoral and postdoctoral research.” The chief philanthropists of the Discovery Institute, that pushes creationist science and education in California, are Howard and Roberta Ahmanson.

According to Group Watch, in the 1980s Howard F. Ahmanson, Jr. was a member of the highly secretive far-Right Council for National Policy, an organization that included Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North, Major General John K. Singlaub and other Iran-Contra scandal notables, as well as former Klan members like Richard Shoff. Ahmanson, heir to a savings and loan fortune, is little reported on in the mainstream U.S. press. But, English papers like The Independent are a bit more forthcoming on Ahmanson’s politics.

“On the right, figures such as Richard Mellon Scaife and Howard Ahmanson have given hundreds of millions of dollars over several decades to political projects both high (setting up the Heritage Foundation think-tank, the driving engine of the Reagan presidency) and low (bankrolling investigations into President Clinton’s sexual indiscretions and the suicide of the White House insider Vincent Foster),” wrote The Independent last November.

The Sunday Mail described an individual as, “. . . a fundamentalist Christian more in the mould of U.S. multi-millionaire Howard Ahmanson, Jr., who uses his fortune to promote so-called traditional family values . . . by waving fortunes under their noses, Ahmanson has the ability to cajole candidates into backing his right-wing Christian agenda.

Ahmanson is also a chief contributor to the Chalcedon Institute that supports the Christian reconstruction movement. The movement’s philosophy advocates, among other things, “mandating the death penalty for homosexuals and drunkards.”

Thom Hartmann: "Why are we allowing corporations to exclusively handle our vote, in a secret and totally invisible way? ... Particularly a private corporation founded, in one case, by a family that believes the Bible should replace the Constitution; in another case run by one of Ohio's top Republicans; and in another case partly owned by Saudi investors? posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Deconstructing Reconstructionists

Because I know people often don't click on links, I blatantly stole this entire post from Gentle Breezes. I wrote a little about it two posts down but its importance was lost in the entire scope of the post I'm afraid. Hopefully the links below you will click on, attempt to understand, and help investigate further. Money, motivation power and the wish to impose moral values drive the machine.

---

This is the enemy. Do some Google searches. Dig for info on them and their connection with Diebold.

The Christian Reconstructionists are Evil. They believe in Theocratic Dominionism.
They are the ones who put the machines out there and programmed them. They do not believe in Democracy at all but Theocratic Dominionism. Christian Reconstructionists. Check it out. But, do not stop there. Dig deep. They are out to destroy this country and they are now well along the path..

Excerpt:
"... Generally, Reconstructionism seeks to replace democracy with a theocratic elite that would govern by imposing their interpretation of "Biblical Law." Reconstructionism would eliminate not only democracy but many of its manifestations, such as labor unions, civil rights laws, and public schools. Women would be generally relegated to hearth and home. Insufficiently Christian men would be denied citizenship, perhaps executed. So severe is this theocracy that it would extend capital punishment beyond such crimes as kidnapping, rape, and murder to include, among other things, blasphemy, heresy, adultery, and homosexuality."

"...women who have abortions should be publicly executed, along with those who advised them to abort their children."

Nice group, eh?

Another link here.

A really HOT link which brings Dubya and Diebold into the mix: here

Excerpt:
"But the most frightening bit of recent policy that Miller pointed to was the Help America Vote Act, which mandates touchscreen voting. Much has been written in the blogosphere about the scandal surrounding Diebold’s knowledge of the unreliability of such systems. What hasn’t gotten much press is that the main venture capitalist backing both Diebold and ES&S, the two primary manufacturers of computerized voting machines, is Howard Ahmanson, a Christian Reconstructionist who has said openly that he has the goal of imposing Biblical law on the US."

Starting to get the picture yet?
This election was stolen from us by madmen who seek the destruction of this country. Sound wild? Keep digging. You will see.

Check out this link here.

Excerpt:
"Not only are the party political affiliations of the ES&S and Diebold senior staff and owners obviously all Republican BUT there is another common link: The Republicans who are supported by the owners and staff of these companies are not just standard issue conservative Republicans
... they are Christian Reconstructionists."

And this:
"Summary -
* - The machines used to cast and count votes in American elections can be caused to give false results without leaving any paper trail as proof.

* - The two companies that produce most of the machines and write the software to drive them are both staffed by partisan Republicans and many are openly Christian Reconstructionists.

* - These companies refuse to allow any inspection of the code in the voting machines on the grounds that it is a "trade secret."

* - Ballot results from their machines do not tally with tracking or exit polls.

* - Vote tampering is illegal and unethical in a democratic society but the people behind these companies are opposed to democracy and believe their actions are the work of God.

(From Bartcop)

We must get rid of those machines!!!

More information/links about Christian Reconstructionists and an older post of mine with links explaining why they support the Iraq war so overwhelmingly. posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Thinking through Linking

Soldiers Describe Looting of Explosives

White House: Debt Ceiling Must Be Raised

Sour grapes or voter fraud?

Reclaiming Morality Progress Report

International election monitors find faults in Florida voting

Read aPost Election Fable from the Motor City Bad Kitty It made me smile.

ratboy's anvil has a map I can appreciate, though I'm still trying to figure out how to integrate NM in the picture.

Keep heart, we are everywhere!

Dialogic speaks of learning from the election and outlines some ideas. Some good comments in this post too.

Liberal Oasis analyizes What Happened? What Now?

And another What Happened? & What is Next? from the Progressive Democrats of America

How world sees Bush victory posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Dynamics of Deception

This post delayed because Blogger was buggier than I was!
This is absurd. I know we are all in shock, and for good reason. Intuitively we know what some of what happened. Admitting and proving it are the next steps if we at all value the system.
I honestly don't give a flying fu** if Kerry is elected at this point, after his concession. Admittedly, had I seen his speech I might feel more forgiving.
I do however care deeply that our elections are honest and I feel strongly that the fix was in.
I do find it very difficult to believe even if fraud was involved how the popular vote could be so skewed, therefore, I'm inclined to think Kerry indeed lost the popular vote. We get what we vote for.

Gentle Breezes has dug up some spine chilling connections between Bush, Diebold and the Christian Reconstructionists. Serious stuff with dangers beyond comprehension that we must come to grip with! She also points to Planned Obsolescence. Read. Understand. Motivation, power and money mixed with 'moral values'. It's all there. This is the root of it and unless we understand and expose it we will never have our America back. They are very skilled at getting a message out, but the message of morality is cleverly disguised manipulation.
I'm not at all suggesting that Christians defeated Kerry. It's important to understand the dynamics. There is a difference. It's difficult for anyone who hasn't lived in the South to understand, including Christians. The Rogue Angel has a slightly Southern perspective as a Christian, and is not a Reconstructionist. (I say 'slightly Southern' because I don't consider KY to be truly in the thick of reconstructionism although there are certainly elements there, please remember that along with Christian Reconstructionism there is a huge element of racism and still existing 'political reconstrutionism'. KY only borders on the racism element from what I've experienced)

Was there fraud?

My old friend Estimate Prophet is back online with a few words about this. Stop by and tell him we need him to keep posting!

Exit polls and ‘actual’ results don’t match; Evoting states show greater discrepancy

Not convinced? http://blackboxvoting.org/ We'll see what the FOI requests dig up.

Another indication: If you look at the CO numbers, Denver and Boulder are going 70% to Kerry Boulder hadn't been counted yet -- only absentee and early ballots have been counted. Pueblo, Adams and Arapaho split. These are the major population centers. Yet Bush leads 53% to 47%. This means that the smaller less populated counties had to have been going 80% to 90% Bush. Would it not be fairly simple to manipulate the vote in more rural areas where exit polls don't exist?

Kerry-Bush Election Determined By The "Margin of Systemic Vote Fraud"

This photo, an indication of stolen ballots?
Fixed - The Stealing Of Another Election
Pledge of Action to Stop A Stolen Election


Yes the Dems have had problems getting a message to resonate above the drumbeat of the complicit media and a shakeup inside the Democratic party has been long indicated. However, as much as the US says it wants to heal rifts, I don't see it, unless election fraud is fully investigated, HAVA revisited and the Reconstructionists deflowered, defrocked and debilitated! Once the trust is lost, regaining it isn't a matter of wishing it so, or demanding it, as Bush seems to believe. (and we all know where his beliefs have taken us)

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Jeff Alworth from The American Street

says it well, think about it. I reposted his thoughts here:

Fundamentalist State

We’re done. Ohio will play out for some time. It may not matter–New Mexico and Iowa look dicey at best. In any case, the writing is on the wall: George W. Bush will be the president for the next four years.

Turns out the youngsters didn’t show up – the draft, the gaping Social Security deficit that will fall in their laps, the bills they will owe for funding wealthy corporations to avoid taxes–about these things they apparently could not muster much of a shit.

The oldsters did show up, and despite a war on terror, failing jobs, a flagging economy, a desparate “reconstruction” in Iraq, vast income disparities, and a medical crisis on the horizon they were concerned with … “moral issues.” Apparently Karl Rove, that prophet of the dark side of the soul, knew well enough to play the homophobe card: in Puritan America, when the question is which peg goes in which hole, we are ALWAYS ready to commence the stonings.

The US has become a fundamentalist state. The questions of polity have become the questions of religious doctrine. It is more important to the practitioners of fundamentalist Christianity to concern themselves with the behavior of their fellow citizens than it is to craft careful economic and foreign policy. Where the rest of the post-industrial world races toward equality, our citizens dispense with it.

When we awake tomorrow, we will live in a one-party state. The Congress, the Presidency, and the judiciary will all be solidly in the hands of theocratic leaders. Lets call it straight: their fealty is first and last to a fundamentalist interpretation of the Bible. The Constitution is a secondary document.

Now the fight really begins. We’re seriously behind the eight ball now.

Majikthise: Why hasn't anyone mentioned the huge discrepancy between the exit polls in Florida and Ohio and the returns in those states? Why has the word "Diebold" remained unspoken?
At least I'm not the only one thinking the very same questions.
So...Where do we go from here? posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

FERNDALE, MI VOTERS OVERWHELMINGLY PASS PROPOSAL B TO AUTHORIZE INSTANT RUNOFF VOTING (IRV)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact by phone: Howard Ditkoff at 248-968-9995
Or
Stacie Trescott at 248-336-9241

Contact by email: contact@firv.org
Website: http://www.firv.org

Ferndale, MI - November 2, 2004 - Proposal B on Ferndale, Michigan's ballot appears headed for passage overwhelmingly. With just one of the city's sixteen precincts and absentee ballots remaining to be counted the measure currently has been approved by 5301 voters versus 2212 against, a 71-29% margin, as of midnight. The proposal amends Ferndale's city charter to provide for election of the mayor and City Council through the use of an Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) system pending the availability and purchase of compatible software and approval of the equipment by the Ferndale Election Commission.

The Ferndale proposal was widely endorsed with supporters including Mayor Robert Porter, Council-members Helen Marie Weber, Scott Galloway and Craig Covey, the Ferndale Democratic Club, Green Party of Michigan, Michigan Libertarian Party, The Detroit Free Press, The Oakland Press, Alliance for Democracy of Metro Detroit, Triangle Foundation, Michigan Election Reform Coalition and Public Interest Research Group in Michigan (PIRGIM). Instant Runoff Voting has also been widely endorsed nationally by leading figures such as Democrats Howard Dean and Dennis Kucinich, Republican John McCain, organizations such as the California, Washington and Vermont League of Women Voters, and media outlets such as USA Today.

Instant Runoff Voting is a simple to use, full-choice voting system whereby, when three or more candidates run for a single seat, voters are allowed to rank the candidates 1-2-3, etc. rather than simply choose their one favorite candidate. If no candidate wins a majority of votes on the first count, the last place candidate is eliminated, and then all ballots are counted again with each counting for the highest ranked candidate still in contention. This process continues until one candidate has a majority of the votes and is declared the winner. In Ferndale's two seat Council races, the process would be similar. Runoffs would be held until one candidate wins over 50% of the votes, earning the first seat. This candidate would then be removed from the counting and a similar process would take place until a second person won over 50%, earning the second seat.

IRV eliminates the "spoiler" problem, whereby a candidate who cannot win him or herself gets enough votes to throw the election to some other candidate who is favored by a minority. This problem gained national attention in the 2000 presidential election when Ralph Nader received more votes in some states than the difference between George W. Bush and Al Gore's totals, potentially swinging the election to Bush. However, "spoiler" incidents have also occurred in many other races including the 1992 presidential election (where Ross Perot "spoiled the election for George Bush, Sr.) and Michigan's 2002 attorney general's race (where Green candidate Jerry Kaufman "spoiled" Democrat Gary Peters).

In addition, IRV has been shown to increase voter turnout, since voters are allowed to express their complete set of preferences and thus feel empowered. It encourages more candidates to run for office and promotes positive issue-based campaigns, discouraging mudslinging among candidates who must compete for second and third place votes from each others' supporters. It also more accurately gauges the true level of support that exists for each candidate since voters are no longer afraid that a vote for their favorite candidate may help his or her political opposite.


Ferndale follows in the footsteps of other cities that have recently passed related measures including San Francisco and Berkeley, California. San Francisco's residents passed Proposition A by a 55%-45% margin in March 2002, adopting Instant Runoff Voting to elect the mayor, Board of Supervisors, district attorney, sheriff, treasurer, city attorney, public defender, and tax assessor. The system was used today for the first time there to fill several Supervisor seats. Berkeley, CA residents passed Measure I on March 2, 2004 by a margin of 72%-28%, enabling the use of IRV to elect the mayor, City Council and auditor, as soon as the system is deemed cost-effective to implement.

The system is also used to elect the president of Ireland, the mayor of London, the Australian House of Representatives and in other countries throughout the world. It is used by many professional organizations including the American Political Science Association. In addition to being considered in cities and states across the country, H.R. 5293, recently introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives by Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., would require states to conduct general elections for Federal office using an instant runoff voting system.

Ferndale for Instant Runoff Voting coordinator Howard Ditkoff said, "We are so proud of the good citizens of Ferndale. Today they expressed clearly their desire for an improved democracy where no candidate is a 'spoiler', where no vote is wasted, where all elected officials enjoy majority support, and where voters can vote their hopes rather than their fears. In doing so, they have set a hopeful example to Michigan and the nation. We thank all of our supporters and wonderful volunteers for their hard work and effort to bring attention to this crucial and fundamental reform in our election system, which we hope will be implemented even more widely in the near future."

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Question MSNBC

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Michigan IMC Special Elections News Coverage

webstream in conjunction with WCBN, breaking news, hotline; 1 877 825 9395, sign up for cellphone text messaging posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Meet The Votemaster

Andrew Tanenbaum who plans to stay up all night to update the Electoral Vote Predictor

Why Did You Do This?

In a nutshell, because living abroad I know first hand what the world thinks of America and it is not a pretty picture at the moment. I want people to think of America as the land of freedom and democracy, not the land of arrogance and blind revenge. I want to be proud of America again. The U.S. media do a spectacularly bad job of informing Americans about what is going on in rest of the world. After Sept. 11, the U.S. could do no wrong. The entire world was on America's side. The invasion of Afghanistan was seen as completely justified. After all, the Al-Qaida leadership had to be decapitated. No one questioned that."

But Iraq was a completely different matter. Bush, Cheney, and Powell said they had conclusive proof that Saddam had WMD and could attack at any instant. The rest of the world wanted to see the proof. No proof was forthcoming. The answer was "trust us." We now know there were no WMD. There weren't even factories or labs to produce them. Saddam was an evil dictator with evil fantasies but he was no threat to America.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

We have much, much to be ashamed of

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |

Charley Reese | Vote for a Man, Not a Puppet

"People who think of themselves as conservatives will really display their stupidity, as I did in the last election, by voting for Bush. Bush is as far from being a conservative as you can get. Well, he fooled me once, but he won't fool me twice.

It is not at all conservative to balloon government spending, to vastly increase the power of government, to show contempt for the Constitution and the rule of law, or to tell people that foreign outsourcing of American jobs is good for them, that giant fiscal and trade deficits don't matter, and that people should not know what their government is doing. Bush is the most prone-to-classify, the most secretive president in the 20th century. His administration leans dangerously toward the authoritarian."

[..] It would be good to have a man in the White House who has killed people face to face. Killing people has a sobering effect on a man and dispels all illusions about war.

posted by Cyndy | link |    | |