Skylanda  Read more 

I am not worthy. Why can’t I write pure Zen like this?

Martin Luther King Jr. walked down the middle of hostile streets, through crowds spewing hatred at him, howling for his blood; he faced down police bayonets and the power of the state. Now our modern-day heroes can’t bear to allow a few critical words within 700 feet of their pampered selves.

He’s talking about this, of course:

Protesters at the Democratic National Convention in Denver can be restricted to fenced-in areas, federal judge ruled on Wednesday, saying that security needs outweighed curbs on their rights…  Read more 

Campaign case report: What Obama and McCain pledge to do about the health system

McCain would end the employee tax exclusion for soundness security against loss spending, instead offering refundable tax credits to help people buy health insurance.

I can’t say it enough, the fate of health care will be determined by the down ballot races.

I’ve heard this Obama’s “fake birth certificate” thing all over the wingnut radio, but was surprised to see an actual real lawsuit has been filed as a civil action in Federal Court. What is surprising is that no one has yet sued Panamanian-born McCain over potentially legitimate reasons regarding his “natural born” status.  Read more 

In the Warren forum, Obama reveals the viewpoint that I find perhaps the most dangerous of all among religionists. It provides a thin veil for conservative politics.

“And one of the things that I strongly believe is that we are not going to, as individuals, be able to erase evil from the world. That is God’s task, but we can be soldiers in that process, and we can confront it when we see it.”

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0…

I don’t want our government employees to view themselves as “soldiers” of God against evil.

I don’t want my president defining evil within the framework of his Christian religion.  Read more 

The spirit of Lolita rises to challenge of the politics of the Ring, as O-life imitates art and Tolkein and Nabokov are revisited.

One hears it everywhere. The warnings, the insults, the charges of racism and anti-Americanism and all because a few, who turned into a rapidly increasing flood, stood up and said, “NOBama”.

“You have no choice. Don’t you stupid women realize that McCain will take away all of your rights, the rights given you and protected by Democrats? OK, we know you are pissed because Hillary lost. Tough titties. Get over it. Come home to the Party and drink the kool-aid, safe and happy under the giant wings of the newest self-proclaimed Archangel – the leader of the whole world. You have nowhere else to go.”  Read more 

None.

Similarly, if Clinton had won by a narrow margin, she would have had no excuse to bypass a historic candidate like Obama.

Obama should ask Hillary Rodham Clinton as his top pick for VP. The reasons are so legion, so obvious, there’s no need to enumerate them further. They can be summarized as uniting, winning, and governing, with the justice of recognizing the first major woman Presidential candidate in U.S. history, highly qualified and supported by half of Democrats.

From Politico this evening:  Read more 

I’m posting a long quote from a New York Times book review here, because the quote says something important about the future of our nation.

There is no happy ending to this sordid and shameful story. Despite growing political pressure, despite Supreme Court decisions challenging the detainment policy, despite increasing revelations of the once-hidden program that have shocked the conscience of the world, there is little evidence that the secret camps and the torture programs have been abandoned or even much diminished. New heads of the Defense and Justice Departments have resisted addressing the torture issue, aware that dozens of their colleagues would face legal jeopardy should they do so. And the presidential candidates of both parties have so far shown little interest in confronting the use of torture or recommitting the country to the Geneva Conventions and to America’s own laws and traditions.

Now I wonder — is that lack of interest in confronting the use of torture or recommitting the nation to abiding by international law really something we could have expected from a different Democratic nominee?

And is that why the Village destroyed them all?  Read more 

Ludacris ’Should Be Ashamed’ Of Lyrics Bashing Bush And McCain, Says Barack Obama Rep

But those aren’t the lyrics that have displeased the Obama team. On the song, ’Cris expresses other thoughts on the political climate, calling Hillary Clinton “irrelevant” and insinuating that Jesse Jackson’s apology to Obama for some recent crude statements wasn’t genuine. Like many of his peers, he also complains about President George W. Bush’s “poor” job while in office. “McCain don’t belong in any chair unless he’s paralyzed/ Yeah I said it, ’cause Bush is mentally handicapped,” Luda raps.  Read more 

Three cheers for the Philadelphia Democrats who took up Obama’s invitation to help write the platform:

The Democratic Party should support HR 676 (Conyers Bill), which advocates a single-payer healthcare system that would provide coverage for all Americans. HR 676 has already been endorsed by the US Conference of Mayors, several thousand Union Locals, and is supported by 84% of the physicians in the United States. It is our belief that no one should be left at the mercy of the insurance industry and pharmaceutical companies where profit is more important than the welfare of the patient.

Well done!

I’m not so sure Obama has seized the remote, but in the sofa ruckus he may have luckily hit one of the buttons. There are indications he may be creating broader acceptance of his proposals for Iraq and Afghanistan:

Sen. Barack Obama, on his first and likely only overseas trip as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, has remade the campaign’s foreign policy playing field, neatly sidestepping Republican charges that he has been naive and wrong on Iraq and moving to a broader, post-Iraq focus on Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In essence, Obama has declared the war in Iraq all but over…  Read more 

Cass Sunstein cautions against prosecuting criminal conduct from the current Administration. He thinks that Alito and Roberts are “minimalists.”

Robert Bauer advocated pardoning Scooter Libby.

I have a very bad feeling about this.

Calling all Obama supporters, because health insurance isn’t health care, a group of health care advocates are organizing on Obama’s site.

SiCKO (Universal Health Care - HR 676)

Check it out if you are registered on the site.

We were told that most people are not against a woman becoming president - just not “that” woman, Hillary Clinton, and this is seen as OK - a choice.

Yet when many people express the opinion that they are not against a black becoming president - just not “that” black, Brack Obama, this is pounced on - as racist.

Obama and most Democrats/Liberals used to be very critical of Bush’s throwing out any part of the Constitution he wanted to that did not serve his political purposes.

Yet BO had no problem with throwing the FOURTH AMENDMENT under the bus, and except for a few strong, intelligent supporters, most swallowed hard and found excuse after excuse for his treating the Constitution just like Bush - especially the MSM.  Read more 

So I saw The Dark Knight, and I liked it. I admired its seriousness among the bombast, but did not love it. I had bones to pick about its plot —

A DA is the salvation of his city?
And he uses RICO, a Federal instrument? Without Federal intervention?
And offers himself up as bait, endangering the prosecution of hundreds of criminals to catch one psycho?
And houses his star witness with the psycho in a corrupt precinct house? And orders no metal wanding of the psycho’s henchmen with cellphones visibly sewn into their flesh?
Really?  Read more 

WSJ: Hagel To Join Obama On Iraq Trip

Republican Senator Chuck Hagel of Nebraska will join Barack Obama on his upcoming trip to Iraq, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Hagel voted for the war crimes commission act in addition to all of his pro-war votes. The moral distinction between Hagel and Lyndie England is that she had her picture taken.

Judgment at Nuremberg  Read more 

Todd Beeton alerts us to Obama’s offer to make us part of the platform writing process.

I hope local single payer groups will take him up on his offer. If he starts to hear pro-HR 676 activity on his own website, as part of his own process, it will have an effect even if it does not make it on to the platform.

Edit -
Platform Committee, Democratic National Convention, 2008  Read more 

First Obama started moving part of the Democratic National Committee to Chicago. Then he began pushing to prevent Clinton’s name be put in nomination, contrary to all precedent.

Then he arranged to replace Iowa Democratic workers with his own staff and now he is taking control of the DNC voter files for North Carolina.

All this is keeping with the shock doctrine of hitting people with so many radical changes all at once that they don’t have time to take stock of what is happening and respond.

Why did he vote for the FISA bill, because he caved? Or because he wants police state powers when he is president?

So I can’t tell you why, but let me pose it as a hypothetical, because someone I know is going to try it in real life soon. What, if anything, do you believe Little People like us, can do to pressure Obama to remain true to progressives Democratic values, right now? When I say “Little People,” I mean all of us who ’only’ have several dozen to thousands of readers, or dollars, or connections- in contrast with those of the big Playahs, who have millions of those things.

I know a lot of you have chosen not to vote for Obama in the fall. That’s your right, for all that I don’t agree such a choice is constructive. But pretend with me: if you could march up to him right now and say, “Stand up and fight, publically and proudly, for [fundamental progressive value/issue X] right now, or else!” what would the “else” part be? Beyond, “or you won’t get my vote in the fall or contribution during the campaign.”

We don’t really have what I’d call “power” here in the blogosphere, not yet at least. But and still: it’s fascinating to read Open Left of late. If anyone can be said to be ’connected’ and ’in touch’ with the Village establishment, it’s these folks. And Dayum! Can you say, “not happy with Mr. Hope?”

It’s funny. Since I took my Pledge not to say anything negative about him until after November, it seems I can’t find anything but that in the progressive blogosphere. The feeling I have isn’t quite schadenfreude, nor bitterness, or even ’I told you so-ism,’ but the hope (heh) that it’s finally beginning, and we’re coming together to see that ’third way’ centrist DLC crap is just that. Crap. When ’mainstream’ blogs are getting it, I can’t help but smile.  Read more 

Dang! And I’d just become a centralist!

Don’t we get to say we told you so?

Although we should say that, unlike many media outlets, Huffington did publish a tiny percentage of columns with which she did not agree.

Now Mr. Obama and his campaign advisors are floating the idea of keeping Sec’y of Defense GATES on as Sec’y in the “anti-war,” Democratic Obama Administration?

Admittedly Mr. Gates’s no Rumsfeld.

But gee, this makes Obama’s idea of nominating Sen. Lugar for Sec’y of State (R., Chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, one of 8 congressional members briefed by Bush during this war, and famed Obama mentor) look merely conservative.

Our new war policies: same as our old war policies?

Spouse and I were sitting around last night wonking (note: not wanking) about our “dream VPs.” And truthfully, we were also arguing about whether Hillary has indeed been written out of the picture. I say yes. Spouse says “where’s the evidence?” Pish posh.

Then the “a-ha!’ moment. To plagiarize Seuss: I got an idea. An awful idea. Auntie Meme got a wonderful, awful idea.

Amb. Joseph Wilson or Valerie Plame.

Who’s your deliciously fun long-shot?

Well, no one could say Mr. Nader is a shy, retiring type:

Nader was asked if Obama is any different than Democrats he has criticized in the past, considering Obama’s pledge to reject campaign contributions from registered lobbyists.  Read more 

Riverdaughter’s post today is a hilarious must-read.

Don’t know about you guys, but I’m fine with feminist women using stereotype-based humor like this; some of you may disagree. Similarly, I give far more latitude to men, GLBTs, ethnic, racial and religious groups to satirize their own groups. I freely state I’d be pissed to read something similar on Olbermann’s blog. Riverdaughter’s earned the right to speak so; KO hasn’t. Simple. The whines I often hear about this “double standard” seem either disingenuous or humanity-bereft; I’m never sure which it is.

The US Senate’s Ladies Auxilliary met on Tuesday to discuss women’s issues… [and] finished with a demonstration on scrapbooking campaign memorabilia.

In attendance were Senators Diane Feinstein (CA), Barbara Mikulski (MD), Amy Klobuchar (MN) and Barbara Boxer (CA).  Read more