JFK Hates Democracy...

i was watching the two-part series on the Discovery Channel, JFK: 3 Shots That Changed America, earlier this evening, and at the beginning i struck by something that i saw in vintage film that was being shown.

the footage was of JFK & Jackie getting ready to board Air Force One in Fort Worth for the short flight to Dallas. The date was November 22, 1963.

in the crowd of mostly well wishers and people that were excited to see the President and First Lady was a man in a fedora and trench coat. he was holding a large sign that said:

JFK Hates Democracy

this film was shot approximately 2-3 hours before Mr. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas.

this was 1963. a time when the country was portrayed as having a mission to repel the evils of communism and socialism, and here, standing in the crowd, was a man spewing the same type of hate we are seeing in this country now with President Obama.

it was eerie. it was unbelievable to me when i first saw it on the television. i was 17 at the time and i never saw this kind of thing back then.

the one thing different between 1963 and today is that the monsters who are spreading this hate today are more virulent and actually calling for the impeach and assassination of a President of the United States out loud ans supported and egged on by people who claim to be patriots and members of the media.

as they did to the Clinton's...,

there is absolutely nothing that the christianist, right-wingnut, ultra-conservative, faux-News crowd will do to stop attacking Obama.

there is nothing that he can do right for them. they have made it very clear that they are against him in every way. they've done this from continuing to spread the lie of his birth to denying that they are being racist - no matter how much truth is thrown into their faces. they continue to lie and call any one sane who decries their mistruths to be unpatriotic and traitors, while they are the worst kind of christians they purport to be.

there is something Obama can do right for the rest of us though:

stop the wishful thinking bi-partisan BS and go on the attack to get the frakking job done.

hit them where it hurts the most - their pocketbooks!

oh, and as far as the conservative Democrats, the correct threats were finally made yesterday telling them if they don't start toeing the line that 1) they could lose their committee chairperson standings and 2) the reconciliation voting will be invoked to cut off the Republican filibuster threats - just like the Repubs did for Bush with his tax rebates for the rich!

it's time the gloves came off.

what's that famous movie line?

oh, yeah...

I'm as mad as hell
and I'm not going to take this any more!

Howard Beale, Anchor from the movie Network

monday morning mayhem... for real -

Kent Jones, who appears regularly on the Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC has discovered exactly what has become of this country; how it has become the raucous, undemocratic mess it is.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

the leap is easy to this conclusion...

NOW i will say, "i told you so"...

if you missed Bill Maher Friday night, you missed someone in the media finally calling Obama out. the key quote:

And just like Lindsay (Lohan) we see your name in the paper a lot, but we're kind of wondering when you're actually going to do something.

the full clip is below.



this is exactly what he did here in Illinois. he played politics.

so, since Bill Maher has brought this up, i will now say

i told you so...

Bush and Obama and Cheeeeney...

i really have been wondering for the last several days if there has been communication between George Bush and Barack Obama over everything going on. seems like the question has been answered by Mr. Obama himself:

In an interview with C-SPAN that will air in entirety at 10.a.m. Saturday, President Barack Obama acknowledged having had conversations with Bush since leaving office, though he insisted on abiding by "a general policy of keeping confidence with your predecessor."

Obama Has Talked With Bush Since Inauguration
Sam Stein, Huffington Post
May 23, 2009

personally, i thought that it was a certainty that they have been talking. i also believe that Obama probably has been talking to George H.W., Bill Clinton, and Jimmy Carter. i also speculate that George W. has been counseled by his father, George H.W. on how to respond or, rather, how not to respond to Cheeney's mutterings.

there is much talk that Mr. Bush and Cheeeeney were at odds towards the end of Bush's term in office. Bush himself said it was time to close Gitmo; Mr. Cheeeney has been continuing his talk to keep it open. something is obviously not right here.

now comes word that Mr. Cheeeney is hawking a book deal - Cheney Seeks Book Deal on Bush Years and More, New York Times, 5/22/09 - and the last few weeks of Cheeeeney's actions and behaviour seem to be even more self-aggrandizing as some have come to explain one reason for his whirlwind jaunt. it's almost a book tour being done BEFORE the book is published.

actually, no publisher has even bought the book yet.

not to worry there. someone is just waiting on the chance to jump on that. that person wants to make a lot of money. Mr. Cheeeeney seems to be investing on his reputation more than anything else.

well, he doesn't need the money. does he?

SCOTUS 5-4 ruling on detainee abuse...

Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, writing for the majority in the 5-to-4 decision, said a lawsuit filed by the man, Javaid Iqbal, must be dismissed at a preliminary stage because he failed to allege a plausible link between the officials’ conduct and the abuses he said he had suffered.

Justices Turn Back Ex-Detainee’s Suit Over Prison Abuses
New York Times, May 18, 2009

not a surprise. i think we should continue to see this over the next several years, at least.

Mr. Bush and the wingers made sure of that by nominating and pushing through the likes of Roberts, Scalia, etc who are much younger than previous courts. The only promise of change would come if one of these people dies or resigns. we can't count on any one of them resigning, but death certainly is a viable option.

Mr. Obama has indicated that he wants to nominate a woman to replace Justice Souter. I think that a great idea. however, the nutters have already mobilized and put together their battle plan against anyone he nominates:

WASHINGTON — If President Obama nominates Judge Diane P. Wood to the Supreme Court, conservatives plan to attack her as an “outspoken” supporter of “abortion, including partial-birth abortion.”

If he nominates Judge Sonia Sotomayor, they plan to accuse her of being “willing to expand constitutional rights beyond the text of the Constitution.”

And if he nominates Kathleen M. Sullivan, a law professor at Stanford, they plan to denounce her as a “prominent supporter of homosexual marriage.”

Preparing to oppose the confirmation of Mr. Obama’s eventual choice to succeed Justice David H. Souter, who is retiring, conservative groups are working together to stockpile ammunition. Ten memorandums summarizing their research, obtained by The New York Times, provide a window onto how they hope to frame the coming debate.

Conservatives Map Strategies on Court Fight
New York Times, May 16, 2009

at this point, i would bet that they would oppose Jesus if he were the nominee, especially with Republican Leader Steele saying they don't want anyone who shows empathy. [see today's Washington Times: GOP Gearing Up to Assail Nominee]

i'm not sure they could find anyone more empathetic than Jesus. JC even forgave lepers and prostitutes. [maybe that's why the David Vitter's and other repubs are okay about using their services? i've not thought of that before.]

so, i think it is going to be a long time before the makeup of SCOTUS really makes a turn. the only outside change would be if Justice Kennedy retires. HE is the usual swing vote on all of the 5-4 decisions for the last several years. only if he leaves early will the swing be towards the center or left.

the score seems to be adding up...

the more i've been reading about Obama's release of the torture memos and his decision not to pursue any legal maneuvers the more it seems that most people do not like his stand.

i don't either.

with all the talk during the campaign with emphasis on the Rule of Law, as a lawyer he is shirking his legal and ethical standards as an officer of the courts.

the best argument i've heard was Keith Olbermann's Special Comment last night. Olbermann lays out the argument succinctly bringing in historical reference that is quire indisputable, going all the way back to the Civil War.

you can watch and read Olbermann's Special Comment over at Crooks and Liars. it's really to the point.

Countdown Special Comment: Future of US Depends on Torture Accountability

one of the better round-ups of the flurry of pundits, newspeople and other media is over at Andrew Sullivan's Daily Dish.

he has links to Greenwald, Coles, and others in a lot of posts he's done. one of the more telling post's title is We Are Now Indonesia.

IMO, Obama has surpassed all of the obfuscations over the last eight years in one fell swoop...

Limbaugh and his wish for Obama's failure...

i'd like to hear how

...big ole Rush would react if someone made a statement like: "We want Rush to die!"

it really is not a very nice thing to say but it's one solution to dealing with a problem; it's on the same wave length as his liking Obama to fail; and it would have the same effect on the American people.

no, wait! it wouldn't.

the American people would be much better off by not being subjected to constant belittling because they are not in the right class or have the correct beliefs. the beliefs that Rush and his minions want to foist against all of the hopes and works of the men and women who created this nation, who fought to protect this country, and who sought to increase the freedoms promised by the "Declaration of Independence" and the Constitution.

i've often found it amazing that there is always a group in this country who has had to fight for the rights and freedoms that they already have because of the two documents.

African-Americans weren't fighting for new rights as history of bigotry has portrayed their struggle; they already have it.

Women weren't fighting for new rights to vote or equality in the workplace; they already had it according to the documents.

LGBTQ are not fighting for a new right to form unions equal to other groups; they already have it according to the documents.

talk about obfuscation...

at the basis of all Limbaugh's statements [and not verbally spoken] is always one thought: if they get what we already have, we won't have as much power and wealth.

sad.


[note: i posted this as a comment over on Pam's House Blend in an article Pam wrote - Rush: The 'Hell We Don't' Want Obama To Fail!' i decided i wanted to post it here also. Limbaugh is a great obfuscation from head to toe.
thanks, Pam!]

inaugaration day...

where is the "change" we can believe in?

so far, almost every appointment Obama has made is a Clintonite!

he was elected with the help and power of youth, African-Americans and LGBTQ.

so far, there are very few of them...

looks like more same old, same old to me.

soooo, where is the change?

just asking...

Rick Warren controversy...

my first comment on this entire thing:

I think that Obama made a mistake and it wasn't calculated. I would bet that he, the transition team and inauguration committee are in surprise. They have been making logical statements about the reaction from the base and Obama has been stammering, if you listen closely, more than usual when he talks about it.

One of the more accurate commentaries I've heard about the controversy is this:

To understand how angry and disappointed many Democrats are that Barack Obama has invited evangelical preacher Rick Warren to give the invocation at his inaugural, imagine if a President-elect John McCain had offered this unique honor to the Rev. Al Sharpton -- or the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. I know, it's hard to picture: John McCain would never do that in a million years. Republicans respect their base even when, as in McCain's case, it doesn't really return the favor.

Only Democrats, it seems, reward their most loyal supporters -- feminists, gays, liberals, opponents of the war, members of the reality-based community -- by elbowing them aside to embrace their opponents instead.

So... try to guess who, among the punditry, news shows, politicians made this comment.


Mike Huckabee, former Republican presidential candidate, former Governor of Arkansas, & fundamentalist minister speaking with Greta Vas Susteren on Fox![ Greta Von Susteren Asks Huckabee About Rick Warren's Role At Obama Inauguration]

what's is wrong with this picture?

just asking...


a thank you to Crooks and Liars for the heads-up.

presidential press conferences...

is it my imagination or does it seem like we've had more press conferences from President-elect Barack Obama since November 4th than we have in the entire eight years of the Tsar's regime?

just asking...

seems like nothing going on...

the last couple of weeks it seems i've been doing more humor that anything else on the site.

post-election blahs? not really. i'm glad it's over.

too much Obama? no. it is to be expected. Tsar George has basically bowed out of everything, and people are looking forward to a change from the last eight years. i'm sure even the Busheviks are included in this. they probably are happy that the lead weight is going to be gone from around their necks.

holiday blues? not really. holidays have been great for me the last several years. i look forward to them and have a good time.

cabin fever? too early. the weather has just begun to change in Chicago and the sun is coming out every couple of days. besides, fall has always been my favorite season of the year.

idleness? no way. the Thanksgiving holiday. the HEDAC holiday donation mailer. a new startup charity i'm getting involved with called H.A.N.K. - Helping All Needy Kids based in the community my school was located. opera season. [i've already seen Les Pecheur des perles, Manon, and Lulu. Porgy & Bess is next.] the gym. doctors.

oh, there's a big part of it. i've been to see the neurosurgeon again, had a new MRI and also underwent a series of tests to determine nerve damage with my back. it's been a year since the original injury; i've had multiple interventions and one major surgery. looks like it may be another, even more complicated. i'll find out more on the 18th.

the economy? definitely. my portfolio is waaayyyyyyy down, but who's isn't. it's sad to see everyone struggling. being on a fixed income with retirement, i watch the prices of things going up and realize that it effects me also. i go by the local churches and see more people in line at the food pantries, and i don't live in a poor neighborhood. it's very middle class and established. it's kind of sad. no, it's very sad.

Propositon 8 in California? yes, that's a large part of it also. i've been watching so much of what has been happening as it's result. the LGBT community is at odds not only with the wingnutters but with itself also. the latest was an op-ed in the New York Times - Gay Marriage and a Moral Minority - by Charles M. Blow. there is a lot to the article but the effect it is having has at its heart that Civil Rights and rights for LGBT are not the same thing.

you see, i've always believed that a civil right is a civil right no matter what you gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality, etc. that civil rights are the promises made by the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, the Rights of Man, Déclaration des droits de l'Homme et du citoyen, etc. had no barrier to anyone who is a human being, in spite of the decades it took to complete it for women, African-Americans and others.

with the latter, i thought that when Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed, though it was meant to specifically address the standing of the Black Community, it would be understood that no one should be left out of basic civil rights.

i suppose i could mention other things, but probably the ones above are the biggest and, add in my back problems, it sometimes seems overwhelming. i also understand that others are worse off, but i am only a speck. there is only so much any one of us can do.

we just have to make sure we do it...

make up a sin...

any sin. Or so it seems.

A Roman Catholic Priest in South Carolina is urging parishioners: Priest advises penance for Obama vote - Parishioners shouldn't take Communion until they do because of president-elect's abortion view, he says

The priest at St. Mary's Catholic Church in downtown Greenville has told parishioners that those who voted for Barack Obama placed themselves under divine judgment because of his stance on abortion and shouldn't receive Holy Communion until they've done penance....

In a letter posted on St. Mary's Web site, Newman wrote that "voting for a pro-abortion politician when a plausible pro-life alternative exists constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil."

This is one of the reasons that the Catholic church is loosing members. It has never gotten the idea that U.S. citizen's have a different outlook than other parts of the world. The idea of "free choice" is embedded in not just our rule of law but in our psyches.

Unlike the LDS that can put out an edict demanding that its members unquestioningly support specific causes with money or action [yes, i mean Prop 8] or face excommunication, most U.S. religions don't do fatwas. There has been a continuous battle between religion and law all over the world. The church has never recovered from its loss of power after the Middle Ages.

Makes you want to go back to times like, oh, say Henry II - Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?

I'm not suggesting Henry II's solution. I just wish that they would get their noses out of politics and focus on the all important message they spout as the ultimate commandment - Love they neighbor as thyself.

in spite of my cynicism...

if the election goes as i hope it will, i will be one of the first in tears. i've already been feeling moments here and there of emotion.

my godson just texted me to say IT'S HERE! VOTE! VOTE! he is so unbelievably excited about this whole election and has been for a long time. it has been great seeing him involved in something like this in his 26 years. the only other thing he's ever been enamored of is sports.

he sees the potential for something big in an Obama elected. i do also. he sees the start of a promise that has been long in coming. i do also.

i have waited for 40 years to be able to say that the concept of hope with which i sustain my existence may move closer to reality.

yet, It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings.

she's warming up right now...

i'm upsetting friends...

i have posted my cynicism about this election in a number of different ways. i live in the Chicago area and i believe that it is a foregone conclusion that Illinois will go to Obama, but i'm not sure of the rest of the country. i think that the numbers, the polls, the predictions, etc. are most confusing for a lot of people.

while the media is working on the presumption that Senator Obama will be the President-Elect on Wednesday, i have seen too many unusual things happen with the U.S. electorate. basically, they are fickle and influenced by fear and innuendo most of all.

though many pundits and newspeople are saying that John McCain has run not just a loose campaign but one with a scattergun effect, especially over the last week or so. i have found, working in both the public and private sectors and also in the service industry that peoples memories are short and tend to remember the last thing they hear.

as an example in this election, the word socialism has been bandied about by Palin and the Republicans. unfortunately, to most U.S. voters it is a dirty word, in spite of the fact that we have had socialized medicine for the elderly with Medicare and the Tsar and his minions just socialized the credit, banking and other industries with their baleouts.

when these people use the word socialism they are implying the word communism. at the same time, Palin used the word Marxism in reference to Senator Obama last week. in the belief that the U.S. electorate is actually a stupid body of people, the Mcpains are counting on the confusion of the three to instill or at least implant fear in the minds of people - especially the elderly who remember the witchhunt of Joe McCarthy, the Cold War with the USSR, the battle for Southeast Asia in Vietnam, and many other things that brought fear into the minds of U.S. citizens.

it's a vicious circle that has been perfected by the Republicans, especially, and been used as a master-plan to retain control and prevent the inclusion of new and, possibly, more modern and useful ideas and actions. it's been done for centuries, as i've written in previous posts.

now, back to how i'm upsetting my friends.

i have this very distinct sense that this historical error may actually occur. on Wednesday, November 3, 1948, the Chicago Tribune actually printed this banner headlined front page -

my personal fear and why i'm upsetting my friends? that not just the Tribune but other papers, websites and media will have this headline on Wednesday, November 5, 2008

McCain Defeats Obama

and i can't seem to shake it.

more than this, i can only imagine what the immediate repercussions could be around the country and, of course the long term effects of a Mcpain administration and the possibility of the second dumbest person to hold high office in the U.S. - Tsar George being the first. and, no, i am not talking about John McCain.

i wish for, what to me, would be reigniting of the hopes, dreams and goals of the movements in the 1960's. the Age of Aquarius is not just a short period of history; it is a period of about 2,150 years. by accounts it began around 1844. it's an age of promise for growth and progress, in spite of, or rather because of, the upheavals of the revolutions, world wars, depressions, nuclear discoveries, etc. that put a new sense of humanity into play.

i am not a true believer in astrology but i am a student of history and its cyclical nature. in most cases the cycles begin and end because humankind comes to the realization that the lot they are now part of is no longer working.

of course, on the opposite side are the groups of humankind who fear change and allow themselves to be played by the old guard. this play has been going on for 60 years now. i want it to stop, but i fear that i will not get to see it myself, but i know that...

when hope is gone, life is over...

taxes, taxes, taxes...

i'm really tired of hearing the Mcpains harping on the alleged tax increase interpretation they believe Senator Obama's economic plan will bring.

if you go to Obama's website (Obama-Biden Tax Calculator), there is a calculator that you can enter your income and find out what his plan means to you. my taxes would decrease by about $575. i haven't found the same at the Mcpain website, and, please, correct me if i'm wrong.

so, there is a question that comes to my mind about the Republican nominee's real plan. i don't completely understand it and i think that they are hiding that their plan will continue to support corporate welfare.

there is a very simple solution - a flat tax. [by the way, this link is to the Heritage Foundation. no fly-by-night organization.]

charge individuals the exact same rate - say 17% - with no deductions or loopholes. i might rethink capitol gains or losses, because they may have a long term effect on investment and people could get hit with a large amount all at once that would exceed a true 17% picture.

then, have a separate tax program for corporations that would be similar to a flat tax system but with benefits for growth.

there are a few plans out there and you can find them for yourself by going to a Google search. (just click on the word Google to a search i've begun already)

somehow, though, i don't think that either Mr. Obama or Mr. McCain would go along with this right now. the powers that be are in such dire straits that there would be too much pressure from them with very little logic and fear that they may lose somthing.

however, most of the countries that have gone with a flat tax have shown an economic growth overall.

we need to completely rethink government at this point. it has become so complicated that i don't think the Founding Fathers would recognize it. it's become like the English language: there are rules of grammar and usage to follow but there are so many exceptions it makes it more confusing and difficult.


think about it...

boo...

and i'm not talking about Halloween, since it is now over.

why is it that when there is booing at an Obama rally he says something like, "Now, we'll have none of that."

but at the Palin (especially) and McCain rallies when people boo, they say absolutely nothing?

i'm just asking...

and now the New York Times...

Barack Obama for President

Hyperbole is the currency of presidential campaigns, but this year the nation’s future truly hangs in the balance.

The United States is battered and drifting after eight years of President Bush’s failed leadership. He is saddling his successor with two wars, a scarred global image and a government systematically stripped of its ability to protect and help its citizens — whether they are fleeing a hurricane’s floodwaters, searching for affordable health care or struggling to hold on to their homes, jobs, savings and pensions in the midst of a financial crisis that was foretold and preventable.

As tough as the times are, the selection of a new president is easy. After nearly two years of a grueling and ugly campaign, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois has proved that he is the right choice to be the 44th president of the United States.

The Times lays out a very logical and step-by-step explanation of the endorsement. It is worth reading the entire editorial. (just click on the link above)

The last three paragraphs sum it up succinctly:

Mr. Obama has withstood some of the toughest campaign attacks ever mounted against a candidate. He’s been called un-American and accused of hiding a secret Islamic faith. The Republicans have linked him to domestic terrorists and questioned his wife’s love of her country. Ms. Palin has also questioned millions of Americans’ patriotism, calling Republican-leaning states “pro-America.”

This politics of fear, division and character assassination helped Mr. Bush drive Mr. McCain from the 2000 Republican primaries and defeat Senator John Kerry in 2004. It has been the dominant theme of his failed presidency.

The nation’s problems are simply too grave to be reduced to slashing “robo-calls” and negative ads. This country needs sensible leadership, compassionate leadership, honest leadership and strong leadership. Barack Obama has shown that he has all of those qualities.

of course, now remember, this paper is in one of the two elitist cities that Mr. McCain talked about - McCain: Washington D.C. and NYC = Fake America - in an interview he and Palin just did with Brian Williams of NBC.

oh, yeah. The Washington Post endorsed Mr. Obama.

those damn elitists...

it IS about race - part 10...

In New McCain Robocall, Rudy Giuliani Suggests Obama Opposes Jailing Murderers And Rapist

Shades of Willie Horton again.

Giuliani has recorded a new McCain robocall in which he suggests, in effect, that Barack Obama doesn't think sex offenders, drug dealers and murders should have to go to jail, according to Jennifer Henderson, a stay-at-home mom in Maine who tells us she received the call.

Oct. 23, 2008, TPM Election Central

The problem with the call is one of omission. What Obama is opposed to is specific mandatory minimum sentences and that's left out of the robocall.

Here we are hitting the fear factor again - rape, murder, drugs - add to the welfare comparisons the last couple of days and it is the old tactics updated with new target words that leave out the explicitness and transparency by couching terms in PC phrasing.