The Economic Crisis defined by the neocons, isn't the fact that folks are losing their homes/jobs/retirements, etc. No, Economic Crisis for the neocons is the fact that folks are finally waking up to the fact that our country has been robbed blind and these sleepy folks may soon be seeking justice and/or blood.
The Political Crisis defined by the neocons isn't the fact that our politicians and government have been bought by corporations and are corrupt to the core. No, Political crisis for the neocons is the fact that folks are finally waking up to the fact that our politicians and government agencies have been bought by corporations and are corrupt to the core.
Its a pickle for the neocons.....how can they continue with business as usual when so many folks are on to them.
George W. Bush is a liberal. Don't rub your eyes. You read that right. He's a liberal. To learn why he's a liberal (or maybe he isn't) read Walter Brasch's column about free speech and the Bush Administration.
So apparently Lee Stranahan has been banned from this site for publishing one too many "Hey, what the hell is up with John Edwards and his completely odd and totally inept efforts to hide his love child from the media?" posts. Well isn't that just goddamn admirable of you all.
In solidarity with Lee, I ask that you ban me as well. I'd rather not leave the site peacefully and willfully - no, preferably, I would like to be removed from the great orange monster for expressing dissent. That way, I could put one of those moronic "Dissent is Super Patriotic!" bumper stickers on my car and get the full experience.
Good news out of Albuquerque today. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver has ruled in favor of the Constitution and some anti-war protesters.
The court ruled that the City of Albuquerque, Martin Chavez (our Mayor), and several Albuquerque Police Department officers cannot stand behind the qualified immunity shield when it comes to violating a citizens First Amendment rights to freedom of expression and assembly.
The fact that we welcomed Nancy Pelosi to Netroots Nation, purportedly a gathering of leftists and progressives, has to make you wonder. For the most part we sat there with our thumbs up our asses, drooling like idiots and lapping up the ‘respect’ we were shown by the mere presence of this illustrious traitor to everything I thought we stood for.
In the 1960's a group of communications specialists and psychotherapists were looking for an answer to the causes of schizophrenia. They theorized that there might be a pattern in the communication between parents and their schizophrenic children which might contribute to their illness. This group was called the Palo Alto group and included noted communications expert the late Gregory Bateson, the family therapists, Virgina Satir and Jay Haley, Don Weakland, etc... Neuro linguistic programming would grow out of the thinking of this group. Bateson also consulted with the intelligence community on these theories.
They did not find the cause of schizophrenia, which we now know is biologically based. But they did discover something else. Crazy-making communication patterns.
The process by which people became schizophrenic was described in this way. Parents of these children seemed to communicate in "schizophrenegenic" ways...or crazy-making...ways. The crazy making pattern always included the following:
For the past week or so I've seen diaries and other assorted commentary popping up left and right telling me and others like me to STFU with any and all criticism of Obama. "You must continue sending money to Obama, and you must continue volunteering to Obama otherwise you just want the republicans to win."
I'm writing this diary because I've had enough. If you continue to try and tell me and others like me to just STFU and fall in line like a good little boy/girl, you're just a republican.
**UPDATE**
Some of you have taken to believe that this diary means that I'm not voting for Obama in the fall. Oh, I'm definitely voting for him in November, but the fact that some of you even think otherwise is the precise problem that I have.
That dissent and criticism in any way isn't actually our highest calling, but instead something to be stamped out is the problem. It's a disease quite frankly. Haven't we seen enough of that from the Republican party during the Bush years?
I can't claim to understand the rising chorus of diaries and comments here (and elsewhere) demanding that all those progressive voters who take exception with, what is being characterized by the media as a tack to the right by Obama, but from this Democratic voter's perspective looks more like a wild, crazed dash to the right. I suspect for some who became really, personally committed to Obama during the campaign, the conservative metamorphosis on issues like the FISA bill, the rhetorical stabbing of Wes Clark in the back (if I were a high profile supporter, I'd be a lot less ready to stick my neck out there in the media after that display), and now the embrace of governmental support of faith-based programs (possibly including giving them the freedom to discriminate on the taxpayer dollar, we'll have to see...) has created a sort of unpleasant cognitive dissonance. They may prefer to cover their eyes and ears and ask everyone (Obama included, maybe) to shut up for now, so they can sort it out later.
Thus warns Justice Antonin Scalia in his scathing dissent in yesterday's decision, Boumediene v. Bush. Regardless of Scalia's other arguments, and his dissent was an exhaustive display of obeisance, the core flaw in his argument is right here:
[This decision] will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed.
Join me after the jump for a critique explaining why Scalia's argument is fundamentally, inarguably un-American.
In this essay, Dr. Bica considers the National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper entitled "Is There an "Emboldenment" Effect? Evidence from the Insurgency in Iraq," (Iyengar and Monten)and challenges its conclusions that open debate about the war gives hope and encouragement (aid and comfort) to the insurgents thereby prolonging the conflict, threatening America's ability to achieve victory, demoralizing the troops, and, perhaps, most tragic, increasing the number of casualties on both sides.
See original at
Foreign Policy in Focus http://www.fpif.org/...
Father Michael Pfleger, a Catholic priest with an inner city black congregation, invited Reverend Wright to visit, as he had done many times before. This time, he was confronted by Fox News producer Porter Berry.
What follows after the jump is the whole interview. It's about 12 minutes long - longer than most people have patience for these days - but I don't think you'll regret taking the time.
He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it.
He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it. ~ Martin Luther King, Junior
Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. ~ Martin Luther King, Junior.
The blogosphere spends a good deal of time and energy hyperventilating about the mainstream media. Glenn Greenwald is a frequent, bombastic critic. Today heexamines the way the media reports the Iraq War. Of late, he has focused on the MSM's cozy relationship with Senator John McCain. The Daily Howler is always good for a mugging -- today's victim is Maureen Dowd. And for a classic example, read Matt Taibbi's outraged reaction to the press conference George W. Bush threw on March 11, 2003. The piece should be read in its entirety, but it ends like so:
Without debate, without criticism, no administration and no country can succeed -- and no republic can survive. - John F. Kennedy
Much has been said of the divisive nature of making criticisms of Democrats, and how it "hurts the party." In my mind, this sounds remarkably similar to the arguments made against those opposed to the war. We were called "upatriotic" people who didn't support our troops, when nothing could be further from the truth. Why can it not be the case that people who critisize a Democrat are doing so to improve their party and hold a candidate's feet to the fire? Most of us understand that it is not only patriotic, but our duty as citizens, to challenge the government so that we might improve it. It should likewise be understood that intraparty criticisms are a valid and healthy part of democracy.
Kossacks who so desire are encouraged to submit articles in compliance with the Guidelines posted on the site. Send your articles to publicresistance@mac.com
We hope to have a new issue up in May. Try to have your articles submitted to us by march 1 to allow for review.
For you academics out there, we are instituting a peer review process. So publication with us will count as a refereed "pub." Anyone who'd like to volunteer to serve as a reviewer, contact me at publicresistance@mac.com
John Nirenberg, a 60 year old author, veteran and retired professor has begun a long walk today to ask Speaker Pelosi to place impeachment BACK on the table so that we may end our national nightmare and restore our Republic and the Constitution.
I think this guy should be going viral, we need to help him, he makes a lot of sense...
This takes nothing away from the good they have done in the past, though count me amongst those Democrats who view the Clinton Presidency as a wasted opportunity rather than a golden age.
