A couple of Sundays ago, on the heels of Obama's overseas trip, I caught the trifecta of his "Big 3" interviews overseas, which were rounded up on C-Span. I had it on in the background as I did stuff around the house, half listening, but my ears perked up during the Charlie Gibson one on ABC. I thought Jeremy Paxman of the BBC had taken over his chair!

What made me stop and listen was that, like Paxman, Gibson was tough and persistent in his questioning of Obama on the ME, most notably on the Israeli/Palestinian Conflict, without shortchanging the Palestinians. (This is all too RARE here.) His snide demeanor was also Paxmanesque, although Paxman exudes his trademark high-perched attitude when questioning pols of ALL stripes, across the pond  - very "You may be Mr or Ms BigStuff, but I dont shrink."

What is made clear, from this interview (and other comments), is that Obama, as President, diplomat and broker in chief, does not intend to distinguish himself from the inglorious pack of US politicians in his handling of this disastrously handled conflict.

So, sorry to say, in the instance of this interview, I welcomed Gibson's arrogant demeanor.

Yes, Obama is naked!!! (beneath his nice suit)

And yes, Tucker is an arsehole and McCain=Brittney. Whatever.

Now that Ive got your attention, PLEASE click the #!%$%!!$!#&^$#!! Kucinich impeachment Petition.... or pass it on, comment to show you did, that you cared, that you didnt care but did your duty... just put some attention on it.

I see Newt got a million sigs on a petition for drilling. Yet Dennis has ONLY a few hundred thousand for saving the republic! How pathetic. There is a deadline at the midnight hour - tonight!

or Clark under the bus, or the shunning of Muslims, or the statement on E Jerusalem to AIPAC, or the flipping on DC gun ban, or his broken promise re campaign funding, etc. I am also particularly disturbed by Barack Obama's lack of moral fiber when it comes to his opposition to the Supreme Court's ruling against the death penalty for child rapists.

Today, when Axelrod showed up on Morning Joe and was confronted with a few of Obama's "center" moves, he took on the death penalty first. Or rather, he tried to. I wish I had one of those counter-clicker gizmos to register the # of times he stuttered and stammered (like this: "um ... uh... um... uh...um... uh... ") when trying to apply pretzel logic.

He choked on it.

Israeli Occupation

Occupation of Palestine. Colonization. (The Palestinians call the settlements "colonies," and well they should.) Whatever you call it, it's always been terribly wrong and we may now say it is 40 years wrong, without qualifiers of “almost” or “nearly”… now that we have crossed the 40 year mark of its inception, the 1967 War. 40 years of wrong and counting...

This weekend is historic. The first time we, in the USA, have a major rallying coalition of groups, a great collective of individuals, gathering in DC under a protest banner not of "End the Iraq Occupation (and oh, PS, how about those Palestinians?"). Instead,

in Washington DC, on June 10-11, we have this: a US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation. Sponsored by a the coalition umbrella that goes by that name and co-sponsored by United for Peace and Justice.

Big step there.

Jonathan Tasini is the TRUE PROGRESSIVE, antiwar Democratic challenger to prowar, corporate-friendly, and mega-corporate-financed Hillary Clinton. Actually, on all the issues, he is a progressive's dream come true. Tasini is on the primary ballot in NY. He got almost 3 times the signatures needed to get on the ballot, which is a high hurdle by NY rules. (Primary date - Sept 12).

Tasini for NY/website

But, disturbingly, MoveOn.Org, a self-described "progressive" organization, has declined not only to endorse Tasini, but to even give NY progressives a voice. Unlike in the Lamont v Lieberman primary contest, Move On has not even !!! polled NYers !!! on the two candidates.

Hillary is not.

Did you even know that Hillary has a Dem challenger for her NY Senate seat?

Well, she does. He has strong progressive bona fides, although he lacks cash and name recognition. His name is Jonathan Tasini. He got three times the signatures necessary to get on the ballot for the NY Democratic primary, which is September 12th. You can get to know him better at his website, Tasini for New York, which is very well set up and comprehensive. The blog entries are interesting and informative, which include: activist/protest activities of his, news items relevant to his opponent's stances contrasted with his, opinion, and latest campaign efforts and concerns.

I also urge you to check out Tasini today, on Democracy Now! (Democracy Now). He will also speak with local political radio show host Brian Lehrer today on The Brian Lehrer Show. (Archives/Lehrer).

red herring stew ... while they are robbing us blind!) (((Roll over))) Teddy Roosevelt! (I believe he started the Estate Tax and know he argued eloquently for its worth.) Ask Bill Gates Sr., who has fought FOR the estate tax, of its value to us, both for practical and ethical reasons.

Today there is an important call for action against repeal and further weakening of the estate tax by those who have been fighting the good fight to stop the gluttonous megawealthy minority amongst us from their eternal quest to have it ALL ... at our expense. And to get informed and help bust the myths that were concocted around the estate tax, like family farmers losing their farms. (Only one has been identified.)  

Did you call your senator today? If not you should. If so, good. And spread the word. Write a letter to the editor. ACT.

CALL CONGRESS TOLL-FREE, 1-800-830-5738

I'm not one for letter-writing in that "objective citizen" manner. Cards on the table, I am biased to the Left and if I'm going to bother to write, Im going to write the way I like. Given that I am a Liberal/Progressive, I demand that our airwaves become less heavily skewed toward the Right, whether in domestic or foreign policy matters. Let's be a democracy, dammit, present the gamut of views and let the people decide. Speaking of which, as many here are probably aware, there is some excellent chartwork regarding Chris Matthews' rightwing bias via Media Matters and Dave Johnson of Seeing the Forest (as reported in Raw Story), which motivated me with outrage anew to write to Matthews last week.

I used to write letters to media, pols and sundry organizations fairly often, but not so much lately as I became overwhelmed and uninspired, or perhaps deadened is more accurate, after so many negatives and so little change for the better under Bush. But things are getting better for the Left, the momentum is growing, and the NUMBERS DONT LIE.

Well, well, well. Here it comes again. Wouldnt you just know it. The "paper of record" is creating quite a record. Im sorry but the gray lady (NYT) is such an elitist pig. She sells us out on issues of war, civil liberties, rent gauging and labor. Today's NY TIMES Editorial proclaims:"An Unnecessary Transit Strike"

Now note who gets what: The New York Times slaps down Toussaint and the TWU's action, while stroking pet-favs, Pataki and Bloomberg. Recall, the NYTimes endorsed both of these BushLicking Republicans. Note how, in this editorial, they kindly "understand that Mr. Pataki has higher aspirations" which have taken his time away ... (as the clock ticked toward negotiation expiration). But the cooing gets even better for "hatless" (!!!) hero Bloomberg regarding, in their words, "[ ...] the kind of moral support he displayed when he took a page from Ed Koch and walked - hatless - across the windswept Brooklyn Bridge."

Do tell! (Takes moment to position self over feather bed in order to swoon and faint safely.)

Not me. I just write a lot of anti-Hillary posts  ... because of her horrendous behavior in the lead-up to and since the invasion of Iraq. And not the sax player. (Although I would vote for the sax player, sight unseen, over her.) I'm talking about Jonathan Tasini, who is challenging her senate seat.

Folks seem to be burning up over Hillary's latest poke in the progressive eye -- the flag burning criminalization. Tasini chose this very day (well, now yesterday) when Hillary chose to unfurl her uber love of flag (but not so much those who die for it in creepy "preventive" wars she supports) to introduce himself via Huffington Post in a piece called Why I'm Running Against Hillary.

He says he is the REAL real deal regarding progressive bona fides and integrity. He says we need to stop holding our noses as we vote for the lesser of ... you know the drill. Now's our chance to walk the talk.  Cindy Sheehan does, and she supports him.

Tim was referring to Hillary Clinton's recent (rare) offering of her thoughts regarding the Iraqi Fiasco via email to her constituency, of which he is one. Me too. And like me, and I hope many of us, his disgust also included her position from the get-go and over the course of the war/occupation, which was basically one of unfettered support for Bush's war: virtually nonexistant criticism and worst of all, her steadfast refusal to engage with her increasingly frustrated anti-Iraq-war constituency in the lead-up. IE, those who were trying to prevent prevention. The bloody awful precedent of preventive war.

Robbins' quote came from a conversation with Mark Marin on Morning Sedition. I heard it on Countdown last night, (Countdown transcript) and was quite happy to hear it, as it is yet another manifestation of progressive mettle (a la Cindy Sheehan), of challenge to the hawkish/blinkered/self-serving wing of the Democratic party. It works nicely with The Nation's recent editorial, Democrats and the War.

After watching the first half hour or so of John (McHawk) McCain, on Meet the Press, I was compelled to write this diary, but not because he disappointed me, as Dem and Indy McCainFans tend to say of him. (Au contraire, he acted predictably in my book.) It is because, during the primaries, so many Kossacks were willing to support this dangerous man as the Dem's Veep. I am wondering if appearances like McCain's last one on MTP will finally snuff out any vestiges of the ridiculous adulation that went on 'round these parts.

THAT was where my extreme disappointment  lay regarding McCain -- in seeing far too many 'Democrats' positive, even worshipful, view of him. (Granted, some of it was considered political expediency, but that is the worst sort of so-called pragmatism.)

I cannot say UGH loud enough when it comes to the idea of supporting McCain, when every effort should be made to keep him OUT of the fold and IN a very tiny box as far as any sort of leadership goes.

This diary is inspired by the recently vanished diary about Andrea Mitchell's callous dismissal of the news that wasnt, that "everyone knew" in 2002 but few dared utter, ie, Bush was gonna make war on Iraq, PERIOD. She said anyone who didnt know had to be "brain dead."

First post attached described contempt for Andrea's statement, and I agreed. But there is more contempt to go around and, if we are to be honest, it doesnt just belong to the media or the GOP re the drum beat and the cover up for Bush's bogus case and longstanding plan for war.There is a missing PARTY to this ugly misadventure, and it must be said.

So here is what I said in response to the contempt expressed, about where my own contempt lies and why ...

I speak of then Governor GW Bush's belief that a president MUST have a war, preferrably a BIG war, in order to push thru his agenda. That, and other positively creepy things, is what he told his ghost writer, Mickey Herskowitz, when he was lining up to be prez in 1999. Coincidentally, the war he appeared to be dreamin' was Iraq. Read it HERE

This is Deja Vu all over again, I fear, and we are slated for another loss.

It's on the front page and the diaries are pouring forth re the BashDeanFest we are revisiting. Lords, in his diary, rightly noted it is about us, the progressive Dems, and not just Dean, in this battle with the party. He envisioned Dean, with our help, rising and standing tall, against the recent onslaught of barbs that are snowballing.

Will Dean be able to stand tall and rise again? Can we really help him and ourselves, using the same tactics that failed last time? Again, here in Deja Vu Land, we will spend a gazillion tons of energy fighting the forces within our own fucking party to keep Dean standing at all, never mind rising, and there is a good chance we will lose ... again.

This diary contains a 5-alarm warning bell and a radical idea. It is most definitely inspired by recent events, ie, I am watching "Kill the Populist Dem Base (Via Dem Party Dean Bashing)," aided and abetted by the MEDIA, as Repubs sit back smiling and munching popcorn. It is calling me to the town square because I'll be damned if I will sit through this tawdry refried version of the first stinking version of this Craptastic show.

Someone said to "ignore Biden" ("Im not with Dean" comments) in the recommended diary:"Dean is Crazy Like a Fox," and to that I say, no, dont ignore Biden ... give him shit! (Damn straight he is not with Dean because Dean didnt support the Iraq war nor the bankruptcy bill.) But there is more to do than that, I fear, or the Good Ship Progressive Dem will sink under the weight of lead barnacles like Biden et al: its own hawk-infested, corporate-burdened weight, with assistance from the media. Again. It is bound to CONTINUE sinking ... for us, not for the corporatist-militarist enablers. For US.

(Or: So Barbara Gets the Carrot. Now Who Gets the Stick?)

Seething over the bankruptcy bill, this diary was spurred by the very good and passionate recommended diary "Open, Despairing Letter to Senator Reid" which is also now at Common Dreams. (Sorry to see Reid's useless reply, especially after the letter was asking him to get the party unified against something HE voted FOR.) This was also inspired by a couple of posts therein, particulary this ONE which got a lot of mojo and for good reason, and even this little one saying cant count on Landrieu (Yeah, cant say I did), but mostly, it is fed by the BASTA feeling I feel re so many perpetually Traitorous Democrats.

Who to focus on? Who to smackdown? Why, no one, right? Because even though Mr/Ms XYZ Dem elected official flings a middle finger in our faces, we are all in this together, no?

NO.

Straight from the Banking/Credit Industry whore - Ben Nelson's -- website

Yes, he voted NO. Ben Nelson voted NO. Ben Nelson voted with the Republicans. He voted for GREED and Corporations, the Mega-wealthy, against Democrats and the majority of Americans (ie, the shit-upon).