color codes

Thanks for the new thread.

MSM today filled with the Castro story. He's resigning.

4th longest ruler of a country.

you got that right, as long as it isn't mukasey jones at the throttle.

====

"What we are trying to do is make sure the bad guys know we're out there but don't know where we'll be, or when,"

I love new threads in the morning!

you guys gonna do call ins?

it? not fair!

becoz we have a fucked up legacy this is our chance to rush in to cuba and democratize the dam immigrants!!

government. Why put protection where it is needed!?!

How about the ports? The borders? Oh! The wall they are kinda building on our southern border will keep the terrorists out. yeah, right!

More of the same from the right.

but, a bomb going off in Grand Central while the train is waiting could cause some serious shit. How secure is the cargo on some of these trains - they get loaded up in Montreal and trek right on down the Hudson to NYC

do people still believe this crap...you know about 21/2 years ago if not more when the war was something cute still..Keith Olbermann called these punks out on this game that they play...i was shocked that someone else was thinking like i was....and no i was not here so you guys were probably saying the same thing..dir!

"I would expect nothing less from this screwed up

government. Why put protection where it is needed!?!"

they would welcome an attack.

thinking they want to "protect us" is delusional.

Awwww....

A tribute to our own little bedwetter right on this here blog. Thanks, Sammer. :)

Morning everyone. :)

Protect America Act! ha what a fucking joke!

Submitted by maggiesboy on Mon, 02/18/2008 - 9:11pm.
Meg - My only advice is to avoid any company with a name that end in "R-US" !
------
...unless it's a pirate company.

The point is to make you think they are doing something and have you believe that level of intrusion is required because the risk is so high.

That's why they are bed wetters.

Teh tehrist wen he you scared goofy.

thus we will let you know that we torture but will not let you know how we torture!

is it getting any weirder where you are?

the bush family is in solid with the mob.

torture, extortion, rape.

old gang tactics.

Dingel's office seem to be running this. And the regulatory commission. c-span 1

The 3% has no plan to protect the United States. But the 3% has a plan to bitch, piss, and moan after we get attacked.

The Dems might be weak on Defense. But the 3% cheers for the terrorist to win. Same here in the States as it is in Iraq.

The 97% wants America to be safe! The 3% wants anything bad to happen.

Hating America will never work out for you!

I would expect nothing less from this screwed up
new
Submitted by toniD on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 10:20am.
government. Why put protection where it is needed!?!

How about the ports? The borders? Oh! The wall they are kinda building on our southern border will keep the terrorists out. yeah, right!

More of the same from the right.

...with exception of small labor force and limited media accessibilty, people don't hang out at the ports or borders.

There is no drama without an audience.

thanks toniD--now where is my black cloak?

RR is another one! she acts like she is speaking well of Obama, but let a someone call in say anything negative about Hillary...you could hear a pin drop--she all of a sudden is at a loss of words..weird!

My 17 year old so far has only gotten an 18 on her ACT. And she has had 2 wrecks in the van (er, tank) that we gave her to drive. I LOVE Windstars. Every teenager should drive one...

Damn kid don't know what red means.

But she's a good kid. She spends alot of time at church, and when she's not doing that, she's in FBLA, Key Club, FCA, taking pictures for Yearbook, doing all the school things.

Fox News legal analyst Andrew Napolitano penned an op-ed in yesterday’s Los Angeles Times arguing that the Protect America Act is unconstitutional. “The government should be required, as it was until FISA, to obtain a 4th Amendment warrant to conduct surveillance of anyone, American or not, in the U.S. or not,” he wrote.

http://cernigsnewshog.blogspot.com/2008/02/fox-news-top-law-analyst-says...

huh?

A McClatchy analysis finds that “jobless Americans are spending more time looking for work and that those who can’t find work now make up a greater share of the unemployed.” As of January, “almost one in five unemployed workers” had been jobless for six months or more.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/227/story/28014.html

The high court's action means that Bush will be able to disregard whatever legislative eavesdropping restrictions Congress adopts as there will be no meaningful judicial review, the ACLU attorneys said. - Yahoo

Supreme Court decides to not roon on eavesdropping program. 30 min ago.

Unilateral attack on al-Qaeda commander called a model for operations

In the predawn hours of Jan. 29, a CIA Predator aircraft flew in a slow arc above the Pakistani town of Mir Ali. The drone's operator, relying on information secretly passed to the CIA by local informants, clicked a computer mouse and sent the first of two Hellfire missiles hurtling toward a cluster of mud-brick buildings a few miles from the town center.

The missiles killed Abu Laith al-Libi, a senior al-Qaeda commander and a man who had repeatedly eluded the CIA's dragnet. It was the first successful strike against al-Qaeda's core leadership in two years, and it involved, U.S. officials say, an unusual degree of autonomy by the CIA inside Pakistan.

Having requested the Pakistani government's official permission for such strikes on previous occasions, only to be put off or turned down, this time the U.S. spy agency did not seek approval. The government of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf was notified only as the operation was underway, according to the officials, who insisted on anonymity because of diplomatic sensitivities.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23228197

The Supreme Court sided with the administration and rejected the appeal without any comment.

That is why we need a Dem as President. We cannot afford another conservative on the Supreme Court. They are helping to give the pres more powers and take away our liberties.

The court, right now, has too many fascists.

Roberts
Alito
Scalia
Thomas
and now I think Kennedy

And Scalia should be removed for his stance on torture if not other things. He's mad! By mad, I mean mentally unstable.

A landmark day for bloggers -- and the future of journalism

The George Polk Awards are kind of like the Golden Globes of American journalism . Not as well known as those Oscars of the news business, the Pulitzer Prize, the Polk Awards are nevertheless probably a close second in terms of prestige, and this year I am especially blown away by the quality of the work they honor.

The winners include Leila Fadel, the Baghdad bureau chief for McClatchy Newspapers, a 26-year-old woman who reports from some of the most dangerous regions of Iraq, as well as journalists who peeked under Vice President' Cheneys veil of secrecy, toxic river pollution in China, unsafe cribs, infant mortality in Mississippi, the Blackwater scandal, human rights abuses in Burma, healthcare scams, and the courageous work of Oakland's Chauncey Bailey, who was slain as he investigated drug dealers in his hometown.

http://www.attytood.com/2008/02/a_landmark_day_for_bloggers_an_1.html

Next week, the Senate is planning to vote on a cloture motion on Sen. Russ Feingold’s (D-WI) bill “to set a timeline for withdrawing combat troops.” They are also planning to take up a second Feingold bill, “which would require the Bush administration to develop strategies to limit repeated deployments of troops and defeat al-Qaida.”

http://www.rollcall.com/issues/53_96/news/22168-1.html

Nine of 10 current and former military officers say the war had stretched the military “dangerously thin,” according to a survey conducted by Foreign Policy magazine and the Center for a New American Security. Sixty percent of the 3,400 officers said the military is weaker today than five years ago.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/eb734b9e-de59-11dc-9de3-0000779fd2ac.html

but deal would have been done already...gw would have gotten away with something no living person should!!!

and on his game!!

on the cam

Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr “is expected to announce his decision in the next few days about whether to maintain the ceasefire he ordered six months ago. There has been pressure from the rank-and-file members of his militia to call off the truce.”

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19157773&ft=1&f=3

mornin GBC
Submitted by Sunshine Jim on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 10:31am.
is it getting any weirder where you are?

It's always weird here, Sunny. ;-p

AGAIN!!!

is so hilarious! He's in charge, man!

Ive heard this show! AWESOME :D

BTW, Good MOrning Bloogers :)

what time is it over there?

Meeting with U.S. senators in Pakistan today, President Pervez Musharraf conceded electoral defeat. During yesterday’s parliamentary elections, “[a]lmost all the leading figures in the Pakistan Muslim League-Q, the party that has governed for the last five years under Mr. Musharraf, lost their seats, including” Musharraf.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/world/asia/19pstan.html?ref=world

Oh well....at least I'm still adoreable.

am staring at marc's tush!

GO Maron!

silly HA!

on clothes that are already out of style.

Whatever, Marc. Eclectic dressers love those sales. Like me.

I have no idea how marc's ass came into conversation since i have no powers of audio.. but niice

ass?

"The Clinton's are nasty motherfu***rs"

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

A nice overview of it.

I lost them for awhile.

Just came back.

Trouble Marc has is he watches Cable TV

Just cancel Cable TV

period.

Your brain will thank you

What if Bush and all the scumbag leaders are REALLY reptilians and the reason they kill all those people like in Iraq and Afghan and NO is to keep a fresh supply of Human meat to eat.

Its a disturbing Idea, but entirely plausible

http://youtube.com/watch?v=wrfh1Jp--Tw

off guard...

Sam used to have when he was on the morning daily show a dude that read the news, this guy brushed Obama off without even knowing about him, that pissed me off right there...YES WE CAN!

of the status quo wealthy White Male slave owner type!

Ha! That would mean giving up The Daily Show and the Colbert Report and Weeds and Keith. No thanks. Not today.

The media doesn't like it when they can't control the people.

If we elect Obama, maybe the rest of the World will stop laughing at us.

I NEEDS my sitcoms! :D

Church urges hanky panky among members

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1120ap_odd_sex_challenge.html?sou...

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

YBOR CITY, Fla. -- A southwest Florida church issued a challenge for its married members: Hanky panky every day. Relevant Church head pastor Paul Wirth issued the 30-day sex challenge to take on high divorce rates.

"And that's no different for people who attend church," Wirth said Sunday. "Sometimes life gets in the way. Our jobs get in the way."

The challenge doesn't extend to unwed congregants, however

and that is why i kept saying "Hussein" that makes a great difference right there...its only the US that is afraid of that name...the whole world cannot see why?

when i asked my my sister if she knew that his name is "barack hussein" she looked at me and she said yeah and?

Just cancel Cable TV
new
Submitted by Peter Dragon on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 11:28am.
-

Download them for free

Problem Solved

Scientists find 'Devil Toad' fossil

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1120ap_giant_frog.html?source=myp...

By LAURAN NEERGAARD
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

WASHINGTON -- A frog the size of a bowling ball, with heavy armor and teeth, lived among dinosaurs millions of years ago - intimidating enough that scientists who unearthed its fossils dubbed the beast Beelzebufo, or Devil Toad.

But its size - 10 pounds and 16 inches long - isn't the only curiosity. Researchers discovered the creature's bones in Madagascar. Yet it seems to be a close relative of normal-sized frogs who today live half a world away in South America, challenging assumptions about ancient geography.

The discovery, led by paleontologist David Krause at New York's Stony Brook University, was published Monday by the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"This frog, if it has the same habits as its living relatives in South America, was quite voracious," Krause said. "It's even conceivable that it could have taken down some hatchling dinosaurs."

Krause began finding fragments of abnormally large frog bones in Madagascar, off the coast of Africa, in 1993. They dated back to the late Cretaceous period, roughly 70 million years ago, in an area where Krause also was finding dinosaur and crocodile fossils. But only recently did Krause's team assemble enough frog bones to piece together what the creature would have looked like, and weighed.

The largest living frog, the Goliath frog of West Africa, can reach 7 pounds. But Krause teamed with fossil frog experts from University College London to determine that Beelzebufo isn't related to other African frogs.

It seems to be a relative of South American horned frogs, known scientifically as Ceratophrys. Popular as pets, they're sometimes called pacman frogs for their huge mouths.

Like those modern frogs, Beelzebufo had a wide mouth and powerful jaws, plus teeth. Skull bones were extremely thick, with ridges and grooves characteristic of some type of armor or protective shield.

The name comes from the Greek word for devil, Beelzebub, and Latin for toad, bufo (pronounced boo-foe).

The family link raises a paleontology puzzle: Standard theory for how the continents drifted apart show what is now Madagascar would have been long separated by ocean from South America during Beelzebufo's time. And frogs can't survive long in salt water, Krause noted.

He contends the giant frog provides evidence for competing theories that some bridge still connected the land masses that late in time, perhaps via an Antarctica that was much warmer than today.

Submitted by Bob26003 on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 11:30am.
I NEEDS my sitcoms! :D

--
Just Download them and watch them anytime you want. Save $800 a year.
Plus avoid the Corporate pollution.

I'm so inspired by this show every week! Intelligent arguments given with humor.

Has anyone else been sent the letter reported to be written by Jay Leno in 2007? It's all about how we're spoiled brats who don't appreciate the good in America. His answer is that we should stop reading and listening to the media. We should be LESS educated? Jeesh.

Another Bush Ally Faces The Wrath Of Voters
By: Blue Texan Tuesday February 19, 2008 7:10 am

Aznar, Blair, Miller, Berlusconi, Howard...Musharraf?

Pakistan's opposition parties won national parliamentary elections yesterday as voters sought an end to President Pervez Musharraf's eight years of military rule.

...

``This is a verdict against Musharraf and his policies,'' Pakistan Peoples Party spokesman Farhatullah Babar said in a phone interview. ``Musharraf himself had promised that if parties opposing him came into power he would resign. Now he should honor his promise.''

Proving, yet again, that if you're in bed with Bush, you're toast.

http://firedoglake.com/2008/02/19/another-bush-ally-faces-the-wrath-of-v...

Sorry Red...I have HDTV and really nice surround sound.

Watching TV on my laptop is not an option. Besides that,

I am not an all or nothing at all type of guy any more. I

spent a lot of my life living like that and gave it up. I

find that "a little of this...and a little of that" works

better for me.

Hillary---Elian

What are they supposed to do now?
By: Attaturk Tuesday February 19, 2008 1:59 am

In the last year and a half when rumors of Castro's death came around many of the Cuba emigre population of South Florida had impromptu parades and waived their Cuban Flags with Che's Gloria Estefan's picture on them. I might be a bit off on that last part.But now, Fidel Castro is retiring (as President) and his brother Jeb Raul, at the spritely age of 76 will ostensibly take over,

http://firedoglake.com/2008/02/19/what-are-they-supposed-to-do-now/

“I come to quote Caesar, not to reference him”
By: Attaturk Tuesday February 19, 2008 5:00 am

From Jonathan Alter’s excellent, “The Defining Moment: FDR’s First Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope”, pg. 210-11 (paperback ed.):“The origins of [FDR’s first] Inaugural’s most famous line – “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself” – remain unclear…Eleanor Roosevelt [claimed] one of her friends gave FDR an anthology of Henry David Thoreau’s writings…one of his line’s was “Nothing is so much to be feared as fear”…

http://firedoglake.com/2008/02/19/i-come-to-quote-caesar-not-to-referenc...

I think you have to be all or nothing with Cable TV.

If you have it in your house, it controls your life and you worship it 6 hours a day. every night you have a date with cable TV.
You wont realize how zombified you are until its gone. People actually have Cable TV withdrawl syndrome.

Castro steps down as Cuban leader
Fidel Castro has not been seen in public since his operation in July
Castro's career
Cuba's ailing leader Fidel Castro has announced he will not accept another term as president, ending the communist revolutionary's 49 years in power.
The 81-year-old handed over power temporarily to his brother Raul in July 2006 when he underwent surgery and has not been seen in public since then.

Cuba's new parliament will meet on Sunday to elect a new president.

Washington has called for Cuba to hold free elections, and said its decades-long embargo would remain.

This should be a period of democratic transition for the people of Cuba
US President George W Bush

President George W Bush said the US was ready to help the "people of Cuba realise the blessings of liberty".

A senior US state department official, John Negroponte, added that the 1962 embargo would probably not be lifted "any time soon". (MSM rporting this now)

The European Union said it hoped to relaunch ties with Cuba that were almost completely frozen under Mr Castro, while China described Mr Castro as an old friend and said it would maintain co-operation with Cuba.

Mr Castro has ruled Cuba since leading a revolution in 1959.

The BBC's Michael Voss reports from Havana that most Cubans will be saddened by news of their leader's retirement, but many hope the political transition will bring economic improvements.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7252109.stm

nothing goes to waste at the maron residence. try the shrimp.

Submitted by toniD on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 11:35am.
...Proving, yet again, that if you're in bed with Bush, you're toast.
------
Beds, kicked-out-of's, and crumbs come to mind.

My addiction is not cabel, it's this damn blog that controls my life right now.

Just remember, if you have an addiction and try to stop it, you become addicted to something else.

Red...I think you're engaging in a little hyperbole here.

I don't worship anything. Not part of my scene. I'm not

afraid of a woman or a black prez...not even a black

woman prez. A TV is much like any other valuable utensile.

You use it when you need it then put it away. The zombie

quote is absurd. Are you putting us on or are you serious?

dry toast = pretzels

bush + pretzels = um, choking, passing out & stuff

But you have to be aware of the BS......

Thats true.

to marc!

Maron + cooking show -

the new Nigella, with philosophical ramblings

could not exist without FEAR.
Fear will cause law abiding citizens to forfeit their constitutional rights.

One election at a time...

I am so glad to be back on-line.
Seder withdrawal is a real beeotch.
One election at a time...

:)

Get your butt out in the kitchen and whip us up some cookies

woman!

Submitted by Peter Dragon on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 11:49am.

I think you're engaging in a little hyperbole here
--

Im not trting to be offensive or pis you off.... I just know way too many people who sit infront of their TV all night even if their fav show isnt on. Its a bad habit.

Youre a smart liberal dude who can see through corporate bullshit, but what about half the country who arent that smart. Just my opiniojn, but Cable TV is brainwashing people to be pro Corporate/Facist.

Did you see this Scary Religious video From C&L ?

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/02/18/why-we-do-what-we-do/

is the laundry done yet?

Jesse James Film was really great... amazingly beautiful and thoughtful. great acting.

Diving bell and the butterfly a.k.a.

Le Scaphandre et le papillon

also very good

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0401383/

Amen PD. Just because I have cable doesn't mean I kneel at the TeeVee alter and worship it exactly six hours a day.

I DVR most shows I like and then catch up on the weekends if I so choose. Hell, my TeeVee isn't even on during the week most times.

It's called balance. I read, blog, do Yoga, attend book studies at the library, work, jog, AND (gasp!) watch TeeVee every once in a while. Who knew one could do all that all that even with cable in the house! ;-p

~-~-~

Expect a whole lotta ugly from a never ending parade of stupid. - Motormouth Maybelle (Hairspray)

hour!

marc is talking about? anyone?

hey sweetie, jez so you know i DID miss you being around! how is the afghan coming along?

At the airports and the train stations there are soldiers walking around with Patent leather hats and guns hung on their shoulders.

This has been that way since WWII. The Europeans are used to it. When I first saw this, as a tourist, it bothered me. After having travelled to Europe many times, it no longer bothered me.

i did too truly enjoy today...

what is the name of the movie
new
Submitted by Lucille on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 12:07pm.
marc is talking about? anyone?

--

Diving bell and the butterfly a.k.a.

Le Scaphandre et le papillon

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0401383/

»

plan?! I wanted to hear more!

I finished one afghan, and have enough granny squares for another.
I am on a borrowed computer, but, I'll try to get a picture of the finished one soon.
(need to find my software disks) ;-)
One election at a time...

Red
Submitted by toniD on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 11:49am.
My addiction is not cabel, it's this damn blog that controls my life right now.

Just remember, if you have an addiction and try to stop it, you become addicted to something else.

Thanks everyone!

{{{bear hugs to all}}}

No Rachel last night? Off for President's Day?

Thanks for all the great info. on buying houses & loans.
That was really great of you to do that.
Thanks again - - - :)

tap-tap-tap----im waiting....

you @ work ?
How ya doing???

probably not tonight neither...mark green will be on talking about the todays voting....he loves that!

another best of...

i don't know about everyone else but i find talk radio warmed over just doesn't cut it. whether its a best of or a simple delay, it loses its feeling of spontaneity and interactivity. for example when a show is delayed 3 hours and its talking about breaking news, long after the news has broken.

There ya go Charlie. I spent a lot of life living the other

way. Since I got on the more balanced life style...little of

this...little of that....things have really smoothed out.

Submitted by GBC on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 12:05pm.
...I read, blog, do Yoga...
---------
Yoga? Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded.

hell yeah baby and working very very hard too....sometime soon am gonna holla at you about cats (dont like them, but your love for them has kinda sorta changed my mind---gift for my baby)..later though the questions are going to come rolling out!

I'm hungry.

home....shortage of bra's in that neck of the hood!

you on a roll this am....leave my girl alone there is only so much she can do, jeez!!

Bowen to the Rescue: CA's SoS Calls on L.A. County Registrar to Count Thousands of Still-Uncounted Super Tuesday Ballots
Asks for 'Precinct-by-Precinct Reconciliation' of Poll Rosters to Begin Accurately Accounting for Tens of Thousands of Non-Partisan Voters Who Cast Machine-Unreadable Ballots

California Sec. of State Debra Bowen wants Los Angeles County's acting Registrar of Voters, Dean Logan, to check the poll rosters of thousands of precincts in order to help accurately count tens of thousands of currently uncounted ballots cast in the Super Tuesday Democratic Primary.

As The BRAD BLOG pointed out last week, tens of thousands of currently uncounted ballots cast by Non-Partisan voters who chose to cross over and vote in the Democratic Primary, but who failed to ink in a second bubble meant to instruct voting machines to count the ballots as Democratic votes, can be counted accurately, as per the voters' intent, if Logan bothers to check those poll rosters.

Bowen, who sent a 3-page letter [PDF] to Logan after our article pointed out that he was simply wrong, in his own report [PDF] to the County Supervisors, when he claimed that it was "impossible" to determine the intent of the voters on those ballots.

It's not, and Bowen clearly seems to understand that, as evidenced by both her letter to Logan and comments she made last Friday on Northern California National Public Radio affiliate KQED, where she said she was "shocked" to hear that the debacle had happened in several elections previously...

--- Click here for REST OF STORY!... ---

http://www.bradblog.com/?p=5709#more-5709

Sibel Edmonds' Charges of Nuclear Treason Crack the U.S. Mainstream Media
Dallas Morning News Runs Edited Version of Phil Giraldi's Detailed 'American Conservative Magazine' Report on Former FBI Translator's Corroborated Allegations Against High-Ranking U.S. Officials...

Kudos the Dallas Morning News for becoming the first U.S. corporate mainstream outlet to run coverage of former FBI translator Sibel Edmonds' startling allegations of high-treason and the sale of U.S. nuclear secrets to the foreign black market, with the cooperation of high-ranking U.S. officials, originally published weeks ago by UK's Sunday Times, and papers in virtually every other country --- except for this one.

Today, the Morning News runs a lengthy version of former CIA officer Phil Giraldi's "Found in Translation" essay, originally published at American Conservative Magazine several weeks ago. Though the Morning News version is labeled as "Commentary" and replaces the named identity of former #3 at the State Department, Marc Grossman with "high-ranking official," along with other edits, the piece succeeds in breaking the U.S. media silence on the bulk of the details recently revealed in this remarkable story.

This version of Giraldi's story is sub-headlined, "Why is her story being covered up?" and begins as follows...

Most Americans have never heard of Sibel Edmonds, and if the U.S. government has its way, they never will.
...
And if she is to be believed, a treasonous plot to embed moles in American military and nuclear installations and pass sensitive intelligence to Israeli, Pakistani and Turkish sources was facilitated by figures in the upper echelons of the State and Defense Departments. Her charges could be easily confirmed or dismissed if classified government documents were made available to investigators.
Go read it. Then take five minutes to write a letter to your local papers and/or news stations (Dem-based web tool, Rep-based web tool) to ask them why they are not investigating and/or reporting this story.

The BRAD BLOG's extensive, years-long catalog of too-frequently-exclusive coverage of the Sibel Edmonds story can be read here.

http://www.bradblog.com/?cat=58

No rolls! They are for supper. We want our cookies!

Making a cake with crushed pineapple and "Mousaka". Look it up!

Believe it or not but..... until a few years ago I never had any cats in my life.
I grew up with dogs. Its not that I didn't like them - just very, very allergic to them.
About 2 years ago we adopted 2 cats whose mom had died. Lou Gehrigs disease, & for some
crazy reason Im not affected by their dander anymore. Its just plain weird. Thats not to say that
I can be rubbing my eyes and such after I pet a cat. I do have to wash my hands.
My point is that I always thought that I would have more pups in my life and never kitties.
Now I have more cats than dogs. Weird thats all I have to say. Weird.
I would be more than happy to help you out as far as cats or dogs go. Just let me know.
If you would like -send toniD your e-mail address & we can write to each other that way as far as
kitties go.
Gotta go in the garage & take care of those that live in there. trying to trap mom & dad cats so we have no more kitties.
Wish me luck. I'll let you know the outcome. Oh by the way.... cats are a little easier than pups. As far as care. :)

Josh Marshall and Talking Points Memo win a Polk Award for their reporting of the political firings of U S Attorneys. What great news!

http://tinyurl.com/32jgc7

hartmann says minneapolis st. paul police have ordered several hundred of the almost non-lethal* weapons to arrive in time for "crowd" control at the rethuglican convention this summer.

*current taser death rate is one per week, but who's counting.

Hey there lady...old PD ain't no Irish rookie. I've et a

few eggplants and lamb along the way. You really think I

never had a Greek girlfriend? Don't forget to make it nice

and juicy...OK?

Submitted by dan on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 12:36pm.
...current taser death rate is one per week, but who's counting.
---------
dan: [Zzzzzzap] "Yeow! What'd you do that for?"
Bait: "You were counting."

Democracy in Pakistan, Despite Bush Policies
By William Hartung - February 19, 2008, 10:53AM
If it was ever truly sincere about promoting democracy, the Bush administration has clearly abandoned that policy at this point. In Iraq, the administration has backed an incompetent, quasi-democratic regime that was imposed at gunpoint. In the Palestinian elections, it didn't like the results, and has joined Israel in refusing to even speak to Hamas. In Lebanon, the presence of elected members of the Hezbollah party in the government was used by Bush policymakers to justify giving the green light to Israel's use of U.S.-supplied weaponry to dismantle large parts of the country's infrastructure and inflict large-scale civilian casualties. Not exactly "democracy promotion."

And in Pakistan, where opposition parties have overwhelmed the ruling party of Pervez Musharraf in this week's elections, this step forward for democracy came despite Bush policies, not because of them. When Musharraf imposed emergency rule and jailed opposition figures ranging from the head of the Supreme Court to leading players in the parties of Benazir Bhutto to Nawaz Sharif, the Bush administration made critical noises, but took no action. Calls to suspend military aid were ignored, and State Department spokesperson Richard Boucher described Musharraf as "indispensable" to U.S. interests in the region, as reiterated in an article in today's New York Times.

Now that Musharraf is for all practical purposes about to be dispensed with, the Bush administration needs to take a new approach.

A good start would be to adopt Sen. Joseph Biden's proposal to triple U.S. economic aid to Pakistan to $1.5 billion per year. A second step should be to acknowledge that flooding military aid into the country -- to the tune of $10 billion since the beginning of the Bush presidency -- has done more harm than good. In this administration -- if possible -- and certainly in the next, the United States needs to shift from "democracy promotion" to "democracy support." Instead of trying to impose pro-U.S. regimes by force, U.S. policy should involve supporting indigenous democratic forces with non-military assistance, taking its cues from the needs of these movements rather than trying to manipulate the results.

http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/02/19/democracy_in_pakistan_de...

*

http://www.samsedershow.com/node/2002#comment-147444

Bookmark this link, and add to it when you can.

Fernando, CeeCee, MMRules, I hope I got them all.

Good News for Obama and Clinton

Last week, the Economic Policy Institute released an important analysis of Jacob Hacker’s Health Care for America (HCFA) plan by the respected health economics team at the Lewin Group. As you can read in the EPI press release, Lewin found that HCFA would cover everyone in America, while saving the US economy over a trillion dollars over the next decade. And the efficiencies achievable primarily through Hacker's public health insurance plan would save enough money that, after modest premiums from employers and individuals, the new system would cost the US government only $50 billion more than what we are paying now for a system that leaves millions uninsured or badly insured.

Don't forget to make it nice

and juicy...OK?

Always!! and creamy!

The eggplants were on sale at the local grocery, so I couldn't resist. I also like to slice eggplant circles, bread them with seasoned breadcrumbs and fry them. Soooo good!

-todays show has been brought to you by the number 3
Submitted by dan on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 12:45pm.-

you caught that huh---still leave her alone, she is feeding me the news!

http://www.samsedershow.com/blog/395?page=1

birth of the sub-prime fiasco
Submitted by pbtrue1 on Mon, 11/26/2007 - 8:48pm.

President Bush Signs American Dream Downpayment Act of 2003

Remarks by the President at Signing of the American Dream Downpayment Act
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Washington, D.C.
http://www.americandreamdownpaymentassistance.com/whsp12162003.cfm

When George W. Bush first spoke of "the ownership society," he led most Americans to believe, and many did believe, that he was talking about them. Now, four years later, it's easy to conclude that the president, his party and conservatism itself has failed to deliver the ownership society.

But the very crises now being described and decried in both the new media and the old can actually be taken as signs of conservatism's success, depending on one thing: identifying who really belongs to the ownership society. Because conservatism, depending on how you look at it, has successfully built the ownership society — albeit a very small, narrowly defined one — and strengthened it by building or expanding its essential support: the society of the owned.

and that is why i am considering one...i live on the 17th floor (not quite the penthouse but close)and i will be damned if i have to disturb my beauty sleep to walk a damn dog...

i was not raised amongst cats at all...probably coz someone was too busy cooking them who knows? and as kids we used convince each other that was because they cannot be around babies (momz having one every 9months) coz they smell the milk on baby's breathe and end up sucking out the brain thru the nose...oh and that they are evil..

if ever a black one crossed your path, you go straight to bed crying the hell out of you pillow (ofcourse in some cases your pillow was a brick)

dip them in egg first...even better!

...Niel Boortz is on Thom's show now...

My ears just started bleeding.

bitching about how corporations are treated so unfairly having to pay more taxes than the aggregate of the bottom 50% of our society.

just think, if exxon charged less for their product, they would earn a little less, and pay a little less in taxes.

as far as i'm concerned, there should be a windfall tax on the oil profits.

teeheeehee....i must enjoy torture coz i am still listening

bread them
Submitted by Lucille on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 12:59pm.
dip them in egg first...even better!

That's the only way to bread veggies or chicken or veal or carne asada!

Gold surges in broad metals rally; platinum hits new record

By MarketWatch
Last update: 12:00 p.m. EST Feb. 19, 2008
MARKETWATCH FRONT PAGE
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures soared more than 2% in a broad commodities rally Tuesday, as platinum surged 4% after hitting another record high of $2,174 an ounce in electronic trading. See full story.
Market Snapshot: U.S. stocks advance for first session in three
U.S. stocks remain higher after two sessions of losses, with sentiment bolstered by Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s results, which offered hope about consumer spending, and energy stocks, which drew a lift from a broad rally in commodities. See full story.
Microsoft won't raise bid for Yahoo: report
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Microsoft Corp. is getting ready to play hardball in its bid for Yahoo Inc., according to news reports Tuesday. See full story.
Wal-Mart's outlook is on the soft side; quarterly profit's up 4%
Wal-Mart Stores Inc.’s fourth-quarter profit rose 4%, driven by price cuts, the retailing behemoth said Tuesday. See full story.
Credit Suisse writes down $2.85 bln after pricing errors
Shares in Credit Suisse Group tumble after the Swiss bank said, only a week after reporting earnings, that it overvalued asset-backed securities by at least $2.85 billion. See full story.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/gold-surges-broad-metals-rally/sto...

Dow 12,431.90 +83.69 +0.68%
Nasdaq 2,332.52 +10.72 +0.46%
S&P 500 1,357.60 +7.61 +0.56%

Tuesday, February 19, 2008, 1:00PM ET
U.S. Markets close in 3 hrs..

Why? Just Why?

Rasmussen: Al Franken Takes Small Lead Against Norm Coleman
By Eric Kleefeld - February 19, 2008, 9:00AM
Taking a break from our usual focus on the presidential race, a new Rasmussen poll of the Minnesota Senate race puts Al Franken up three points over freshman Republican Norm Coleman. Here are the numbers, compared to Rasmussen's last poll from November:

Franken 49% (+7)
Coleman 46%(-3)

http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/02/rasmussen_al_fra...

kick his ass Al...YES YOU CAN!!

because with his superior intellect he will win the day and defeat the forces of evil.

Ben And Jerry Endorse Obama

Sen. Leahy Records Radio Spot For Obama

Schumer, Rangel Question Clinton Super-Delegate Reliance

Economic Downturn Emboldens Shareholder Activists

By Tomoeh Murakami Tse
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 19, 2008; D01

NEW YORK -- Investor groups angered by plunging stock prices are vowing to hold executives and corporate board members accountable at annual shareholder meetings this spring, turning up the pressure on U.S. companies already reeling from the credit crunch.

Activist investors are targeting a variety of financial services companies, including Citigroup, Merrill Lynch and Washington Mutual. Shareholder proposals demand that major banks better disclose mortgage-related risks, that Wall Street investment firms provide more transparency on their executive succession plans, and that credit-rating agencies address potential conflicts of interest that arise from what critics say is an all-too-cozy relationship with companies that pay them to rate securities.

One activist group, CtW Investment, has asked board members at major financial institutions to spell out exactly what they did to address the subprime mortgage-related losses, which have wiped out hundreds of billions of dollars in shareholder value and threaten to pull the economy into a recession. The group is promising a vigorous campaign urging investors to withhold votes from directors if they fail to explain themselves.

Meanwhile, a network of shareholder groups, furious over multimillion-dollar payouts to financial executives during some of the worst corporate performance ever, has upped its efforts to rein in executive compensation.

"We have a singular focus on the residential homebuilding crisis, the credit crisis," said Jennifer O'Dell, assistant director of corporate affairs at the District-based Laborers' International Union of North America, which has filed shareholder proposals at 28 companies it sees playing a role in the turmoil. "Shareholders are so angry, the public is so angry. . . . The worlds have aligned. The crisis is so severe that we do have more leverage now," she said.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/18/AR200802...

Franken Update
new
Submitted by toniD on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 1:17pm

Why isnt Franken further ahead? People of Minnesota are alot smarter than to vote for Idiot Coleman.

Dems can realy use a big majority in the senate. Hope Al wins.

Clinton reliance on super delegates questioned
N.Y. congressman says action may not reflect will of voters
by Newsday

MILWAUKEE - Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., one of Hillary Clinton's most stalwart black defenders, is apparently questioning her reliance on unelected super delegates to stay competitive with Barack Obama, saying they may not reflect the "will" of Democratic voters.

"It's the people (who are) going to govern who selects our next candidate and not super delegates," Rangel said Sunday night at a dinner for the New York State Association of Black and Puerto Rican Legislators conference in Albany, N.Y.

Shake your body down to the ground

Clinton Used Giustra's Plane, Opened Doors for Mineral Deals

By Elliot Blair Smith

Feb. 19 (Bloomberg) -- On June 21, 2005, Bill Clinton flew to Mexico City aboard a private jet that belonged to a Canadian investment banker he was meeting for the first time.

The introduction paid off for both men. Clinton was borrowing the jetliner to begin a four-day speaking tour of Latin America that would pay him $800,000. Frank Giustra of Vancouver was forming a friendship that would make him part of the former president's inner circle and gain him introductions to presidents of Kazakhstan and Colombia, where he bought mineral rights.

Giustra, 50, has since put his plane at Clinton's disposal at least a dozen times to raise money for charity, his wife's presidential campaign or himself, according to U.S. flight records and spokesmen for Clinton and Giustra. The Canadian businessman has become one of the largest donors to the Clinton Foundation, pledging half his future minerals earnings in a way that ties the foundation's success to his own.

``If former President Clinton is making decisions about where to put the charitable efforts of the Clinton Foundation based even partly on where he's likely to benefit personally, or see his friends benefit, then that clearly is a classic conflict of interest,'' says Aaron Dorfman, executive director of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy in Washington.

Three months after Clinton and Giustra met, they traveled around the world together on a trip that included a stop in Kazakhstan where Clinton introduced Giustra, who was closing in on a $425 million mining investment there, to the Central Asian country's leader. Giustra made millions on that deal.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=washingtonstory&sid=aKD3K5Dmu3sY

Tuesday, February 19, 2008
More than 100 wild buffalo were captured Monday by Yellowstone officials, who continue to spill the blood of America's last wild buffalo. This brings the total capture to 269, and all will be shipped to slaughter. On Friday Yellowstone sent another 17 buffalo to slaughter.

Today, on our third day of National Call-ins during the Week of Action, we target Montana's State Vet, Marty Zaluski. While Yellowstone National Park is doing the killing now, it is Zaluski who is influencing these decisions and ultimately makes the call against wild buffalo that migrate into Montana. Soon their sights will turn to the Park's western boundary, where they are preparing the Duck Creek bison trap and plan to erect the Horse Butte trap. Montana's zero-tolerance policy against the bison must end. Talking points are provided below.

HELP STOP THE SLAUGHTER NOW! Don't let Montana's cattle industry dictate the future of native wild buffalo. The last wild buffalo are our national treasures, a keystone species important to all of North America.

Montana State Vet, Marty Zaluski - 406-444-0782
The goal is to make the phones ring off the hook, but for those out of the country, you can send an email to mzaluski@montana.gov.

* TALKING POINTS FOR CALLING Montana State Vet, Marty Zaluski

1. There has never been a documented case of wild bison transmitting the livestock disease brucellosis to cattle
2. The risk of such a transmission is extremely remote. There are no cattle on public or private lands adjacent to the west boundary of Yellowstone National Park at the times of year when bison are outside the park and the bacteria can't persist in the environment for more than a few days in the spring. Thus, there is absolutely no reason for Montana's violent intolerance for wild bison.

3. If the Church Universal and Triumphant insists on keeping cattle within the bison migration corridor on the north side of the Park, they should be required to employ double fencing to ensure that their cattle don't come in contact with wild bison.

4. Horse Butte is 100% cattle-free at all times of the year, and the buffalo should be allowed year-round access to this critical habitat.

5. These are the NATION'S last wild bison, not Montana's to slaughter at will.
6. Cattle are the manageable element and any effort to reduce the already low risk of brucellosis transmission should be focused upon them.

YELLOWSTONE CONTINUES TO CAPTURE AND KILL BUFFALO, so please don't stop calling Yellowstone Superintendent Suzanne Lewis. Regardless of what they tell you, her agency is not beholden to the plan that is killing buffalo. They can refuse to participate and instead defend wild buffalo. They have a choice, and right now they are choosing to ignore their mandate, as well as the will of the American people, and instead insist on killing the wild buffalo the nation has entrusted them with. If the people who answer the phones tell you they are just doing their jobs, please remind them that they have a choice and that their jobs do not oblige them to support illegal and immoral actions.
Suzanne Lewis: 307-344-2002

THANK YOU FOR TAKING ACTION FOR THE BUFFALO!
For more information about the Week of Action, including the schedule for national call-in days and information about writing letters to the editor of your local, regional and national media, please visit http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/actnow/weekofaction08.html

I doubt that, Thom is OK, but he is no Mike Malloy!

Kafka Court
The Supreme Court has essentially ratified the Bush Administration position that no one has standing to sue for having their electronic communications monitored illegally, i,e., without a warrant, unless they can show that their communications were in fact monitored -- which is classified information that the Bush Administration refuses to divulge.

You can't sue us unless we tell you that we were breaking the law, and we can't tell you that.

--David Kurtz

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/02/supreme_court_refuses_...

Another Bush Ally Faces The Wrath Of Voters
By: Blue Texan Tuesday February 19, 2008 7:10 am

Aznar, Blair, Miller, Berlusconi, Howard...Musharraf?

Pakistan's opposition parties won national parliamentary elections yesterday as voters sought an end to President Pervez Musharraf's eight years of military rule.

...

``This is a verdict against Musharraf and his policies,'' Pakistan Peoples Party spokesman Farhatullah Babar said in a phone interview. ``Musharraf himself had promised that if parties opposing him came into power he would resign. Now he should honor his promise.''

Proving, yet again, that if you're in bed with Bush, you're toast.

Thom smacks this filthy slimeball around I will totally be onboard!

you got that right. whereas iron mike would charge the gates of hell, thom would sit back and think about how to make a key to open it.

and I missed it!

US banks gobble up government free money
by Chris in Paris · 2/19/2008 03:59:00 AM ET · Link
Discuss this post here: Comments (63) · reddit · FARK ·· Digg It!

But please do not call this a government bailout. Just because banks are "borrowing" tens of billions from US taxpayers below inflation rates under new conditions (which are troubling) doesn't mean it's a handout. Hundreds of billions down the drain, but all is forgiven. Take one guess who is getting stuck with the bill? Surprise! It's you!
“The TAF ... allows the banks to borrow money against all sort of dodgy collateral,” says Christopher Wood, analyst at CLSA. “The banks are increasingly giving the Fed the garbage collateral nobody else wants to take ... [this] suggests a perilous condition for America’s banking system.”

The Fed announced the TAF tool on December 12 as part of a co-ordinated package of measures unveiled by leading western central banks to calm money markets.

The measure marks a distinct break from past US policy. Before its introduction, banks either had to raise money in the open market or use the so-called “discount window” for emergencies. However, last year many banks refused to use the discount window, even though they found it hard to raise funds in the market, because it was associated with the stigma of bank failure.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/66db756a-de5d-11dc-9de3-0000779fd2ac.html

Dick Cheney is smiling today
by Chris in Paris · 2/19/2008 02:44:00 AM ET · Link
Discuss this post here: Comments (3) · reddit · FARK ·· Digg It!

UPDATE: Oil now at $97.48 but rally "lacks conviction" according to CNBC.

Oil back over $96. The GOP Congress of not so long ago were all tripping over themselves to give even more corporate welfare to Big Oil and don't think they won't try it again. They love helping the least needy, whether in the corporate boardrooms or the oil fields.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080219/ap_on_bi_ge/oil_prices;_ylt=AshJ6LdE...

Bush-FDA evaluates wrong pharmaceutical factory
by Chris in Paris · 2/19/2008 12:35:00 AM ET · Link
Discuss this post here: Comments (34) · reddit · FARK ·· Digg It!

Why am I not surprised?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23225309/

Are Dems voting? I understand this is a "beauty contest." I hope it isn't like our Michigan "beauty contest." Where all the candidates aren't on the ballot but Hillary tries to pick up the chips.

:)

Peru roads blocked in trade protest
At least one person has died as farmers blocked roads and railways across Peru in protest over a free trade deal with the United States, the government says.

Railways and roads, including the Pan-American highway, the major route on the Peruvian coast, were blocked with tree trunks, rocks and sand.

Rail services to the country's Machu Picchu site were also blocked on Monday, with about 400 travellers left stranded near the ancient Inca ruins, Peru's biggest tourist attraction.

Antolin Huascar, head of a national farmers group, said: "The government only listens to us when we strike."
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/017F7060-D2E4-460C-B674-708F05D1B...

"Work till you die."

RIO, the world's biggest iron ore producer, won a 65% price increase from the largest Asian steelmakers...

Protectorates in the Post-Yugoslav Balkans (interview)
http://www.zcommunications.org/znet/viewArticle/16560
*Les-Chic*

This is a classic case of abuse of powers.

It is illegal for the Army to police citizens.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPaiXpVBthM&e

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpOwLVWSC_A&e

Homeland Security Won't Explain Why the Mexican Border Wall Bypasses the Rich and Connected

By Melissa del Bosque , Texas Observer. Posted February 19, 2008.

Texas resident Eloisa Tamez wants to know why her land is getting a border wall, while a nearby golf course and resort remain untouched.

http://alternet.org/story/77320/

Ama Sumani, a 39-year-old Ghanaian woman terminally ill with a malignant myeloma, was deported from Britain to Ghana on January 9. She was taken from the University Hospital, Cardiff, in Wales, where she was receiving dialysis treatment, as her kidneys were damaged by the myeloma. Five immigration officers put her on a flight from Heathrow to Ghana that day.

Ms. Sumani had first come to Britain in 2003; she enrolled as a student but was unable to finish the course and took a job. Taking employment contravened her student visa status. She flew to Ghana in 2005 to attend a memorial service for her late husband. On her return to Britain, her visa was revoked.
...

I am emailing that to Senator Byrd!

Foreign Secretary David Miliband has published an early draft of the UK’s infamous dossier on Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction.

The document, by Foreign Office press chief John Williams, was an unpublished draft of the September 2002 dossier.

The Foreign Office lost its appeal against a ruling the document be published under the Freedom of Information Act.

It had argued that publishing it could inhibit the “effective conduct of government”.
...

Trinidad to extradite US 'plotterws'
Lawyers for the three men, including Abdul Kadir, deny their involvement in the plot [EPA]

Three men accused of plotting to bomb fuel pipelines leading to a New York airport will be extradited from Trinidad and Tobago to the United States to face trial, a judge has said.

Judge Nolan Bereaux said nothing in the Caribbean nation's legal code prevented the extradition of the men on charges that could end in life sentences.

US officials say the men - two Guyanese and one Trinidadian - plotted with a US citizen to blow up New York's John F Kennedy airport.

Lawyers for the three men, who deny involvement in the alleged plot, say they will appeal the decision.

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/A60540F6-5FD9-4FE1-9339-DE38BE43B...

Why does Thom have this Nazi on
new
Submitted by Bob26003 on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 1:15pm.
Why? Just Why?

...to go and broadcast from CPAC.

Scientists believe they are close to a significant breakthrough in the treatment of spinal injuries.

The University of Cambridge team is developing a treatment which could potentially allow damaged nerve fibres to regenerate within the spinal cord.

It may also encourage the remaining undamaged nerve fibres to work more effectively.
...

kind of a urine-stain yellah.

he had Bolton on twice in six months.

my doctor sez I shouldn't listen to him anymore

is this current or did it happen a while back? i skimmed the article and didn't see any dates.

the more i listen to hartmann, the more i think he feels that all this country has is an intellectual disagreement and that by crafting clever arguments the better side will win.

i think this totally discounts the evil, the lying, the abuse of power, the bullying that the neocons bring to the table.

funny. the last time i asked my doctor for advice, he said i should go read the bible. it would relax me more.

(that was about all i needed to get a new doctor)

Aug 13 1926: Fidel Castro Ruz born in Biran, Eastern Cuba.

July 26 1953: Castro launches armed struggle against Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista. But attack on Moncada barracks fails.

Sept 1953: Castro is sentenced to fifteen years, making famous 'history will absolve me' speech from the dock.

May 1955: Batista grants amnesty to Castro, who goes to Mexico to plot invasion of Cuba.

Dec 2 1956: Castro and 82 other rebels land at Playa Las Coloradas in Granma yacht. Cuban army easily outnumbers and rout rebels, but survivors take refuge in Sierra Maestra mountains and launch guerrilla war.

Dec 28 1958: Fall of Santa Clara, after rebel attack led by Che Guevara. Batista troops end military resistance.

Jan 1 1959: Batista flees to Dominican Republic as the rebels take power.

Jan 8 1959: Castro enters Havana following triumphant procession through island from east of Cuba.

Oct 19 1960: UNITED STATES BEGINS PARTIAL ECONOMIC EMBARGO.

Jan 3 1961: Washington breaks off diplomatic relations with Cuba.

April 16 1961: Castro declares Cuba a socialist state.

April 19 1961: Bay of Pigs invasion. CIA-backed Cuban exiles are defeated.

Feb 7 1962: United States imposes full trade embargo on Cuba.

Oct 1962: Cuban Missile Crisis. After thirteen day standoff, Russians withdraw missiles from Cuba.

Oct 9 1967: Che Guevara killed by Bolivian troops seeking to emulate Cuban-style revolution in South America.

Sept 1 1977: Resumption of limited economic ties between Cuba and United States.

Apr-Sept 1980: Mariel Boatlift. Cuba allows mass exodus of about 125,000 citizens to the United States, many leaving from the Mariel port west of Havana.

Aug 14 1993: Havana ends ban on use of dollars.

Aug 1994: Raft Crisis. More than 30,000 Cubans flee island on flimsy boats, many perishing in shark-infested waters between Cuba and Florida. Washington and Havana sign migration agreement to stem exodus and allow minimum of 20,000 legal entry visas per year for Cubans.

March 12 1996: The Helms- Burton law - allowing the United States to penalise foreign companies investing in Cuba - is signed into law by President Clinton.

Jan. 21-25 1998: Visit of Pope John Paul II, who condemns the US embargo and calls for greater freedom on the island.

Jan 1 1999: Castro celebrates 40 years in power.

Nov 1999 - April 2000: Elián González affair dominates Cuba-US relations. Elián is eventually returned to his father in Havana.

June 25 2001: Castro has to be helped off stage after near collapse at open-air rally outside Havana

July 27 2001: Castro leads crowd, estimated at 1.2 million, in parade to celebrate the Cuban revolution and demonstrate against the US blockade. Castro prepares to celebrate 75th birthday in August.

December 16 2001: Shipments of corn and chicken arrive in Havana harbour, the first direct US food sales to Cuba in nearly 40 years.

March 6 2003: Castro is elected by parliament to sixth five-year term as president of Council of State – Cuba's governing body.

March 18 2003: A crackdown by Cuba on dissidents alleged to be working with the US sees 75 sentenced to prison terms ranging from six to 28 years.

October 20 2004: Following a speech, Castro trips and falls, shattering his left kneecap and breaking his right arm highlighting his old age.

November 2004: Cuba releases half-dozen political prisoners including dissident writer Raúl Rivero, in a move widely seen as intended to court favour with the European Union.

February 2 2005: Castro calls President Bush "deranged" for referring to Cuba as an outpost of tyranny.

July 27 2006: A four-hour Revolution Day speech urging Cubans to have patience as electrical problems are solved marks Castro's final personal appearance as president.

July 31 2006: Younger brother, Raúl Castro, is temporarily handed power after Fidel recovers from an operation for gastrointestinal bleeding.

August 13 2006: Birthday celebrations for Castro's 80th are postponed until December to give him more time for recovery.

December 2 2006: Castro fails to appear at military parade marking the 50th anniversary of Cuba's Revolutionary Armed Forces and does not attend any of his birthday celebrations.

March 28 2007: The first of a series of essays called Reflections of the Commander-in-Chief are written by Castro voicing his opinion on international affairs while he remains off the public stage.

June 18 2007: Castro's sister-in-law, Vilma Espín – Raúl's longtime wife and former fellow rebel fighter dies aged 77.

August 13 2007: Castro turns 81 and fails to appear in public again.

October 14 2007: Live broadcast of telephone from Castro to ally Hugo Chavez who tells him: "You will never die."

December 18 2007: Castro publishes essay saying he doesn't intend to hold onto power forever and will not obstruct the path of a younger people coming to power. Repeats this idea in a letter to parliament 10 days later.

Jan 20 2008: Castro re-elected to parliament opening possibility that he could remain as president.

February 19 2008: Castro resigns as president but says he will remain in parliament.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/feb/19/cuba.usa4

Bush Judicial Appointee Caught in DUI, Fishnet Stockings
More Bush Admin miscreants, this time a Bush nominee to the bench. Robert Somma remembered his purse, cocktail dress and fishnet stockings, but he forgot about a designated driver. He was a Bush appointee, but has now resigned.

Pensito Review is all over this one, so I’m just going to refer you over there. This guy is a bankruptcy judge over on the first circuit in Boston. Yes, it was a male judge, Robert Somma, who was arrested on the DUI charge, wearing a black cocktail dress and fishnet stockings. Evidently he had stopped off at a local gay bar (not that there’s anything wrong with that) and had one or two too many.

Mmmm! I can’t stop laughing. The Bush Administration is usually proud to tout the judges they have nominated, and especially proud of those who have been confirmed. A quick search of the whitehouse.gov web site, though, shows no such pride in the Honorable Robert Somma. Justice Somma is not talking to the press, according to a phone call to his wife. Another article, though, mentions that he has resigned his position. This is from the Newburyport Daily News, a testimony to Judge Somma’s legal skills:

Gary Wente, the circuit executive, or chief administrator, of the U.S. First Circuit Courts, said Somma faced no disciplinary action for the incident. He said he voluntarily resigned.

“We are greatly disappointed at losing him as a judge,” Wente said. “He was a first-class lawyer, a first-class judge and a quality human being.”

The First Circuit courts comprise Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, Rhode Island and Puerto Rico.

Wente, who has known Somma since 2004, said he considers Somma “one of the very top judges, not only in the First Circuit, but in the country.”

“He has exemplary legal skills and a brilliant mind, but overall the best quality he has is that he is outstanding with all people — the staff, the bar, everyone.”

Somma has no judicial misconduct complaints filed against him and immediately called the court after the arrest and accepted responsibility.

Susan Goldberg, deputy circuit executive of the U.S. First Circuit Courts, also spoke highly of Somma.

“He was a very intelligent judge,” she said. “One quality that is really important in a good judge is the ability to listen and consider very carefully each argument. It didn’t matter who was in front of him … he treated everyone equally and fairly.”

No word on whether Judge Somma looks good with blue eye shadow, or in pumps. We’ll try to get that news for you later.

http://allspinzone.com/wp/2008/02/18/bush-judicial-appointee-caught-in-d...

Let this President's Day serve as a reminder that there is a criminal holding the office of the Presidency who must be held accountable and impeached as required by the Constitution of the United States.

With the fifth anniversary of the Iraq invasion approaching, impeachment activists are in high gear across the country. The war is an ongoing crime against the people of Iraq and the people of this country, but the perpetrators and torturers in chief go unpunished. The violations of civil rights and civil liberties in the United States by the administration are unbounded. At antiwar activities large and small this March, ImpeachBush will be there with our black and yellow signs, calling for the criminals to be brought to justice through impeachment. ImpeachBush.org members have been working successfully to increase the support for impeachment in Congress and raise awareness around the country.

It is now increasingly common to hear people including some in the mass media and in Congress say as Mr. Olbermann does on this video, "As recently ago as 2006, we spoke words like these with trepidation. The idea that even the most cynical and untrustworthy of politicians in our history, George W. Bush, would use the literal form of terrorism against his own people was dangerous territory. It seemed to tempt fate, to heighten fear. We will not fear any longer. We will not fear the international terrorists, and we will thwart them. We will not fear the recognition of the manipulation of our yearning for safety, and we will call it what it is: terrorism. We will not fear identifying the vulgar hypocrites in our government, and we will name them. And we will not fear George W. Bush."

www.VoteToImpeach.org

nåive, much?

inbetween talking largely about himself.

these people already have their fully financed pulpit.

eff 'em wid a cattle prod!

Post-Castro Cuba
(Oct 2006)
http://www.counterpunch.org/landau10092006.html
"Les-Chic*

cats can't be police?

that's rich.

WE NEED TO EMAIL THIS STORY TO ALL THE MAJOR MEDIA OUTLETS AND ALL THE AAR HOSTS!

cheap whore!!

Bush’s IRS Wants to Make Your Tax Returns Public
A new article from the Philadelphia Inquirer has blown open the startling plans of the IRS to allow tax preparers for the first time to sell the tax returns of their customers.

The proposal came in a painfully technical tax regulation, which until now had attracted only a dozen public comments since it was announced in December. The proposal calls itself “not a significant regulatory action.” But the proposal is indeed significant, both for tax privacy and more broadly.

Until now, tax preparers could not sell tax returns to outside parties. Period. If they got taxpayer consent, they could use it for marketing, but only within their own corporate family.

The new proposal allows the tax preparers –- from your local accountant to giants such as H&R Block –- to get your signature and then give or sell the full tax return to data brokers, to your boss, to anyone. And there are absolutely no restrictions about what recipients do with the returns. The rule lets recipients post the full return to the Internet if they want.

Here are three reasons (you can think of others) why this proposal is wrong:

– First, taxpayer “consent” here is fake. Sometimes my wife and I have used tax prep services. Once the final papers are ready, they come to us with little sticky tabs next to each signature line. It’s usually about April 14th and late at night, and we sign where they tell us. Under the new proposal, they just add one sticky tab, and taxpayers have now “consented” to having their tax returns sold to anyone.

– Second, the proposal is all risk and no reward for consumers. The risk is of identity theft and more – unknown people can get your full tax return. The reward to consumers is zero.

– Third, this proposal shows once again that the administration doesn’t “get” privacy. Warrantless wiretaps, “total information awareness,” and now sale of your tax returns. There is still no White House official whose job is to screen proposals and protect privacy (a role I played in the Clinton Administration). There should be.

– Peter Swire

http://thinkprogress.org/2006/03/23/bushs-irs-wants-to-make-your-tax-ret...

The moment has come
http://www.counterpunch.org/castro02192008.html

*Les-Chic*

that was an Army recruitment outreach program.

put down the glowstick, pick up a gun.

[the video seems to be from summer of 2007, you know, the summer of sludge]

was starving...now who was saying what bout Pee?

urine-stain yellah.

aka Jones Beach at low tide.

i personally don't care...the hot-n-sour is the King of Soups

Monkey Business?
Over the weekend, longtime Clinton adviser Harold Ickes raised the specter of Hillary being able to get the Michigan and Florida delegates seated by controlling a majority of the credentials committee at the convention, even if she trailed in pledged delegates.

Could that really happen?

--David Kurtz

http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/02/could_loser_of_p...

letting go

how do you know when you've had enuf dictatin'?

*Les-Chic*

Pat Robertson 'sort of outed' own producer as cocaine user

MSNBC's Willie Geist noted with astonishment on Morning Joe that Pat Robertson, a leader of the religious right, "sort of outed his producer on his show the other day."

"Our producer showed me something several years ago," Robertson stated on a broadcast of the 700 Club. "He was bragging that he doesn't drink any alcoholic beverages ... but he does ingest a paste of cocoa -- not cocoa like chocolate, but coca like cocaine -- and he said that's what keeps him strong. He gets it from Evo Morales down in Bolivia."

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Pat_Robertson_explains_producers_cocaine_u...

Willie Nelson: Impeach Bush, "Throw The Bastards Out"
"If you break the law, you have to pay for it," American icon tells Alex Jones Show

American icon Willie Nelson says he supports efforts to impeach President Bush and "throw the bastards out," adding that the administration will do anything to stay in power, including staging an event to cancel the election.

In his second appearance this month, Nelson told The Alex Jones Show today that he supported Dennis Kucinich's attempt to impeach Bush, adding, "If you break the law you have to pay for it one way or another and if these guys haven't broke the law nobody has."

"The deck's been stacked and we need to figure out a way to get a new fresh deck in there in the deal and I don't know how else to do it except throw the bastards out," said Nelson.

OK, I have emailed the story and videos to Senator Byrd and to CNN.

I suggest you all do the same.

That is totally fucked up!

Hundreds rally in Okinawa over U.S. rape suspect

TOKYO (Reuters) - About 300 women gathered on Japan's southern island of Okinawa on Tuesday to protest the suspected rape of a 14-year-old girl there by a U.S. Marine, calling for U.S. troops to leave, media reported.

A 38-year-old Marine, Tyrone Hadnott, was arrested last Monday on suspicion of raping the girl in a car. He denied rape but admitted forcing her to kiss him, police have said.

"Why do Okinawa's treasures, our children, have to be harmed like this," Yoko Higa of a women's group in Okinawa, was quoted by Kyodo news agency as saying at the rally.

"I am so mad, fire is burning from my head. I demand that the bases leave now."

Keiko Itokazu, an upper house lawmaker, also spoke out against the U.S. military presence in Okinawa.

http://www.rawstory.com/news/mochila/Hundreds_rally_in_Okinawa_over_U_S_...

Canadian Prime Minister learning from George W. Bush: 'Environment Canada has "muzzled" its scientists, ordering them to refer all media queries to Ottawa where communications officers will help them respond with "approved lines."

http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001dbV-WFjG_GelgnPcSGKnwFNolFPhJpiSrXQ665OIf8J8J...

Helms-Burton Act
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (Libertad) Act of 1996 (Helms-Burton Act, Pub.L. 104-114, 110 Stat. 785, 22 U.S.C. § 6021–6091) is a United States federal law which strengthens and continues the United States embargo against Cuba. The act extended the territorial application of the initial embargo to apply to foreign companies trading with Cuba, and penalized foreign companies allegedly "trafficking" in property formerly owned by U.S. citizens but expropriated by Cuba after the Cuban revolution. The act also covers property formerly owned by Cubans who have since become U.S. citizens.[1]

The Act is named for its original sponsors, Senator Jesse Helms, Republican of North Carolina, and Representative Dan Burton, Republican of Indiana.

The law was passed on March 12, 1996 by the 104th United States Congress

The Helms-Burton Act was condemned by the Council of Europe, the European Union, Canada, Mexico, Argentina and other U.S. allies that enjoy normal trade relations with Cuba. The governments argued that the law ran counter to the spirit of international law and sovereignty.

When President Bill Clinton signed the Helms-Burton Act into law, Sen. Jesse Helms--the bill's co-author along with fellow right winger Rep. Dan Burton--smiled before a camera and waved, "Bye, bye Fidel."

Well, it seems that most of the world is not too politely waving back to the U.S. government: "Bye, bye Helms-Burton." There are almost daily manifestations of hostility to the vicious new anti-Cuba law.
www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/40/010.html - 7k -

Gary Leupp
http://www.counterpunch.org/leupp02192008.html
*Les-Chic*

i did some news googling and while it doesn't make it right, it looks like its pretty old news. all i found was an article about a rave party being busted up in 2005. the original articles require registration to get to.

Catherine Fenton: When Hillary Lost Me and Why I'm So Angry About It
Submitted by BuzzFlash on Mon, 02/18/2008 - 5:47am. Reader Contribution
A BUZZFLASH READER CONTRIBUTION
by Catherine Fenton

She voted for the Iraqi Resolution, and I could have gotten over it. After all, so did John Edwards, and I got over that.

She voted to continue funding this war, and I could have gotten over it. After all, Obama makes those same votes, and where are you going to go for your protest vote: John "One Hundred Years War" McCain?

She voted for the Lieberman-Kyl amendment, and I.... well, I couldn't have gotten over that, but I think I could have closed my eyes and pretended it didn't happen. Pretended I was like the majority of Americans and had no clue what a Lieberman-Kyl amendment even was. Sometimes I think of how peaceful ignorance must be. Why shouldn't I get some peace too?

No, it was in late 2006 when Hillary really, unredeemably lost me. She voted against Senate Amendment 4882, which would have banned the use of cluster bombs in civilian areas. They said she had to "look tough." Killing children makes you a tough guy now! How does it feel to live in a country that demands that you be "tough" enough to kill children in order to make it to the Presidency? To me, it doesn't feel so good, but regardless of the national psychosis creating this atmosphere... Hillary is responsible for this vote.

And oh, Hillary, would I like to have a word with you. It's thanks to this vote, Hillary, that I am forced to sit back and watch men chase you out of this race. It's thanks to this vote, Hillary, that I have to tolerate Chris Matthews and his drooling, hateful idiocy. And Patrick Buchanan, who taught me that men are traumatized by any voice that reminds them of their wife. David Shuster, who slid under everybody's radar the night he imitated the women from The View, in an alarmingly sexist manner, and thus lived to not slide under the radar when he started pimp-talking. Rush Limbaugh, who let me know that he's not down with watching a 60-year old woman age in front of his eyes. (How come we don't just shoot 60-year-old women anyway? Or maybe that would get PETA or NOW, or whomever all up in arms. Is there a pasture we can farm the useless eyesores out to?) And hello to Mike Barnicle who informed me that "when she reacts the way she reacts to Obama with just the look, the look toward him, looking like everyone's first wife standing outside a probate court, OK?" Yeah OK, Mike, thanks. Up until you said that I didn't know that "everyone" had a first wife, who "everyone" had divorced and who "everyone" hated. What happened Mike, did the b*tch want alimony? How nice for you that you can get on a national news show to work out the trauma of your divorce, Mike. "Everyone" sure appreciates your contribution.

More here:

http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/contributors/1538

Africa

*Les-Chic*

Gallup: Obama takes lead among Hispanics
by Crisitunity
Tue Feb 19, 2008 at 10:28:38 AM PST
Today's Gallup tracking poll shows, for the third straight day, that Obama has a statistically significant lead over Clinton at the national level (today it's 49-42). That in itself: nice, but nothing new, right? But I looked at some of the breakouts of the subgroups, and I saw something buried down there that set off 'red alert' for me:

Obama has taken a 50-46 lead among Hispanic voters nationwide,

with an almost 20-point turnaround from the previous round of polling.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/2/19/13121/6649/976/459719

im bugging out, but i thought i heard amy goodman this morning say no country in africa wants to house africom, and that they will be based in germany..??

Iraq Orders Police to Round Up Beggars

BAGHDAD — The Iraqi Interior Ministry has ordered police to round up beggars, vagabonds and mentally disabled people from the streets of Baghdad to prevent them from being used by insurgents as suicide bombers, a spokesman said Tuesday.

The decision came after a series of suicide attacks, including two female bombers who struck pet markets in Baghdad on Feb. 1, killing nearly 100 people. Iraqi and U.S. officials have said the women were mentally disabled and apparently unwitting bombers.

The people detained in the Baghdad sweep will be handed over to governmental institutions that can provide shelter and care for them, Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf said.

"This will be implemented nationwide starting today," Khalaf told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.

"Militant groups, like al-Qaida in Iraq, have started exploiting these people in a very bad manner to kill innocents because they do not raise suspicions," Khalaf said. "These groups are either luring those who are desperate for money to help them in their attacks or making use of their poor mental condition to use them as suicide bombers."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/02/19/iraq-orders-police-to-rou_n_873...

no help around here!

I think I read that Liberia would also take africom.

i heard something like that too but the surrounding countries are dead set against it! nigeria feels the US wants to come in for its oil, i wonder what gave them that idea?

Border Fence To Bypass Property Of Wealthy Oilman Who Donated $35 Million To Bush Library

rayhunt4.gif In October 2006, President Bush authorized the construction of a 700-mile border fence between the United States and Mexico. Now, however, the Department of Homeland Security’s construction plans are facing opposition from Texans who object to the fence cutting through their property. The Washington Post reports on the hard line the Bush administration is taking with these protesting landowners:

Cindy McCain, Michelle Obama in patriotism flap

(CNN) — Tuesday morning seemed to bring the debut of yet another McCain-Obama flap – this time, Cindy McCain and Michelle Obama.

As she introduced her husband John McCain, the likely Republican nominee, at a campaign event, Cindy McCain told the crowd I “am proud of my country. I don’t know about you, if you heard those words earlier — I am very proud of my country.”

The comment seemed to be a response to a remark from Michelle Obama the day before. On Monday, the wife of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama told a Wisconsin audience that “For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country, because it feels like hope is making a comeback… not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change."

After Tuesday’s event, the McCains were asked if the Arizona senator’s wife had been responding to that comment. Cindy McCain did not directly answer the question, responding: “I just wanted to make the statement that I have and always will be proud of my country.”

On Monday, Obama spokesman Bill Burton released a statement in response to the controversy: “Of course Michelle is proud of her country, which is why she and Barack talk constantly about how their story wouldn't be possible in any other nation on Earth.

“What she meant is that she's really proud at this moment because for the first time in a long time, thousands of Americans who've never participated in politics before are coming out in record numbers to build a grassroots movement for change.”

Supply worries spur crude back above $100 a barrel
Some see rally short-lived as concerns about global demand lingers

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Recent worries about crude-oil supplies pushed crude-oil futures up more than $10 in seven sessions, returning the benchmark contract to above the key $100 a barrel level Tuesday.

Spurring the advance, OPEC member comments about a possible production cut and a U.S. refinery blast over the holiday long weekend added to a list of recent events seen squeezing supplies. These include production disruptions in Nigeria and the North Sea and Venezuela's recent decision to halt oil exports to Exxon Mobil Corp.
"Since the market is becoming a bit more concerned with supply side issues and a bit less burdened by the demand outlook, it is now in a position to retest the January highs," said Michael Fitzpatrick, an analyst at MF Global, a futures brokerage.
Traders, returning to U.S. futures pits after the President's Day long weekend, drove crude for March delivery up $4.64 to $100.10 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Tuesday. See Futures Movers.
It was the front-month contract's third run at $100 since the start of the year. Crude touched $100 a barrel in the first session of January and topped the historic mark in the second session. It then reversed, falling below $90, on concerns that the economy of the U.S., the world's largest oil consumer, may fall into recession.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/crude-makes-swift-climb-back/story.aspx?guid={463E952B-0B60-48BA-901C-0874DDC7CE70}&siteid=yahoomy

im being stretched again toniD??

did i miss anything or is there an audio post somewhere?

did i miss anything or is there an audio post somewhere?

and there has been mention of this throughout the day and on CNN also.

The first time that McCain's wife spoke for McCain's campaign. She is known to be a shrew though. She's fired several people from the campaign already. They quietly try to keep her name out of things. But rumors do get out. Especially from those that have been fired.

Last week, DFA-List candidate Donna Edwards defeated Bush-Democrat Al Wynn in Maryland and you put Congress on notice. Then we endorsed Ed Fallon for the IA-3 and now his opponent Bush-Democrat Leonard Boswell is running scared.

On Friday, Boswell's campaign attacked DFA for raising over $20,000 in small contributions from more than 780 individual DFA members.

"In light of your criticism of Leonard Boswell for accepting support from Political Action Committees (PACs), I was rather dismayed to see you accepting support and soliciting money for your candidacy from a PAC," wrote JoDee Winterhof, a senior adviser for the Boswell campaign.

Rep. Boswell is so out of touch with Democratic values that he thinks there is no difference between the $5,000 contribution he accepted from AT&T and a $20.00 contribution to Ed Fallon from DFA member Eric F., an engineer in North Liberty, Iowa. But, you and I know better.

Let's double our impact today and make sure Rep. Boswell learns the difference. Contribute $20.08 right now to turn up the heat on this Bush-Democrat.

www.actblue.com/page/supported

You and I know the difference. On the one hand, Rep Boswell, has received over $534,000 in contributions from PACs representing telecommunication companies, defense industry contractors and others. That's 74% of the money raised by Rep. Boswell just last year.

And, on the other hand, Ed Fallon has never taken PAC money and his progressive people-powered campaign relies on small donors like you.

Contribute $20.08 right now to take Ed Fallon over the top.

www.actblue.com/page/supported

Thanks for fighting for the heart and soul of the Democratic Party,

-Charles

Charles Chamberlain
Political Director

WASHINGTON — What's likely to happen if the world does nothing to combat global warming? The answer from the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was jaw-dropping: more than 40 percent of known plant and animal species could become extinct by the end of this century.

Many scientists who've been studying climate change say extinctions aren't inevitable if the world greatly reduces its dependence on oil, coal and natural gas. As daunting as the warning signs and projections are, there's still time to fend off the worst, they say. But they also warn that "business as usual" would bring devastating changes in the decades ahead.
The World Conservation Union says that the rapid loss of species today is 1,000 to 10,000 times higher than the natural rate of species loss over the past millions of years. The causes of the current threat go back through human history: habitat destruction for development and agriculture, overexploitation, diseases and invasions of alien species. Climate change adds to the pressure on vulnerable species.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/28095.html

again? can anybody see this?

German Arms Firm Says Nein To Blackwater After TV Report

Weapons manufacturer Heckler & Koch said it would end its relationship with Blackwater after German media reported that the controversial US-run military firm was using its guns in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Blackwater, a private security company which has been contracted to protect high-profile US officials and foreign dignitaries in Iraq, had been using Heckler & Koch machine guns in both Iraq and Afghanistan, German broadcaster ARD's "Report Mainz" program reported Monday, Feb. 19.

The German arms manufacturer contacted the program shortly before the report was aired on Monday night and said it would cut all its ties to the US firm, according to "Report Mainz."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/02/19/german-arms-firm-says-nei_n_873...

Weren't there also rumors that Cindy was going to divorce McCain? They were right in the beginning of the campaign I think.

obsession with the delegates...

Not that complicated.

Clinton's struggle vexes feminists
To some, her skills losing out to style
By Susan Milligan, Globe Staff | February 19, 2008

WASHINGTON - As Hillary Clinton struggles to regain her momentum in the presidential race, frustrated feminists are looking at what they see as the ultimate glass ceiling: A female candidate with a hyper-substantive career is now threatened with losing the nomination to a man whose charismatic style and powerful rhetoric are trumping her decades of experience.

The style-vs.-substance clash is common to presidential contests, and has hurt wonky male candidates as well, women's leaders say. But they argue that Clinton has a peculiar burden in this year's contest because she never would have been able to reach the final stages of the nomination process unless she had spent her life emphasizing her professional record over stylistic abilities.

"I do think at some level there is a Catch-22 for women" running for president, said Kim Gandy, president of the National Organization for Women and a Clinton supporter. "Showing your heart has never been a plus for high-achieving women."

Martha Burk, chairwoman of the National Council of Women's Organizations, said the senator from New York is being hurt because she is not the "glamour" candidate.

"She characterizes herself as being a workhorse and not a show horse," said Burk, who has endorsed Clinton. "She is being punished in a certain way for being competent and not jazzy. If he were female, with his credentials, age, and track record, I don't think he'd be anywhere near the presidency of the United States," Burk said.

Many feminist leaders were careful to say that they do not think Clinton lacks the ability to connect with voters or that Senator Barack Obama is without substance. And despite Obama's recent spate of victories, they insist Clinton will prevail as the nominee. But having backed the best-prepared female candidate in recent history for president, women's activists are maddened and baffled that Clinton's policy-heavy message - "solutions for America" - has not eclipsed a candidate whose central themes are hope and change.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/02/19/clintons_struggle_...

hey there....is your blog stretched? mine is...im surprised
it can even talk (Cindy over there)

What's with the W-I-D-E blog?

Republicans are God's Only Party. Democrats don't care about faith.

You know that's an absurd way to divide up America -- but that's exactly what our television networks are doing. It may sound unbelievable, but in their presidential primary exit polls they have been asking Republican voters more religion questions than Democrats, and in some cases ignoring Democrats' religion entirely.

Can you sign the petition asking the networks to stop stereotyping people of faith? We will deliver the petition with your name and comments to the networks' pollsters in the next two weeks -- before the March 4 primaries in Texas and Ohio. Click here to add your name:

Sign the petition.

The petition says: "The presidential primary exit polls, sponsored by ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox and the AP, must stop stereotyping people of faith. We call on the media pollsters to ask all voters -- Republicans and Democrats -- the same religion questions on the exit poll surveys."

The exit polls have asked Republican voters more religion questions than Democratic voters in every single primary state. In Michigan and Iowa they didn't ask Democratic voters any religion questions at all. In every state, they have exhaustively analyzed Republican evangelicals and completely ignored evangelical Democrats, even though our own research says one-third of evangelical voters are voting in Democratic primaries.

So far, the networks have dismissed polite inquiries from faith leaders1, and a growing drumbeat of media attention2. The only response the pollsters have given is that there is "limited real estate" on their questionnaires, and that they "do not talk publicly about what questions are on our surveys."

That's ridiculous. They've made plenty of room on their Republican surveys for religion questions. They can do the same for their Democratic surveys. All people of faith should have the same chance to be represented.

It's time for thousands of us to call for balanced questioning in presidential exit polls. Click here to sign your name:

Sign the petition.

If we are silent, the media pollsters will continue to reinforce false stereotypes about religious voters. The wedge-issue "values voter" will be the face of faith in politics AGAIN. We must refuse to be pigeonholed.

The exit polls are especially egregious when it comes to polling about evangelicals. The broadening of the evangelical issue agenda to include issues like poverty and the environment has been a major news story all year. But the exit polls have asked not asked Democratic voters in a single state -- while asking Republicans in every state -- if they are evangelical.

Faith in Public Life and the Center for American Progress Action Fund commissioned a poll in two Super Tuesday states, Missouri and Tennessee, to demonstrate what the pollsters are missing. Their poll, released last week, showed:
One-third of all white evangelical voters in both states participated in the Democratic primaries.
There were 160,000 evangelical Democratic voters in Missouri and 180,000 evangelical Democratic voters in Tennessee. In both states, that's as many or more than all African-American voters, all voters over 65, or all voters who said the Iraq war is the most important issue facing the country.
Majorities of evangelical voters in both states support a broader issue agenda that goes beyond abortion and same-sex marriage to include ending poverty, protecting the environment, and tackling HIV/AIDS.

If enough of us sign, we can make it plain to the networks' pollsters: no party can own any faith. Click here to sign your name:

Sign the petition.

Thanks and blessings,

Katie, Dan, Jen, Ron and Beth
FaithfulAmerica.org

PS: As you may have noticed, Faithful America has been redesigned and re-launched! Faithful America is now operated by Faith in Public Life -- a resource center for faith leaders dedicated to reclaiming the values debate in America. We could not be more thrilled to take action together in the weeks and months ahead. Questions? Ideas for campaigns? Contact us. We are all in this together.

(1) Letter from faith leaders to pollsters, 1/10/08

(2) Peter Steinfels column, New York Times, "Evangelical Democrats, Exit Polls and a Matter of Balance," 2/2/08; Washington Post, "The Invisible Primary Voter: Evangelical Democrats," 1/9/08

The Bush administration is supposedly committed to a freeze on Israeli settlement, as part of the bid to reach an Israeli-Palestinian agreement this year. So what are all those hardhats doing at building sites?

GERSHOM GORENBERG | February 18, 2008 |

http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=who_will_stop_the_bulldozers

I hadn't heard that but wouldn't doubt it. She has that cold look to her. The ice queen. Can you imagine her as a first lady? Shivers!!

Young, speaks well, but substance is lacking, and can we try to remember some of the problems with JFK's policies?!

Also, they both overcame "stereotypes", for example, JFK was a [omigod!] Catholic in a Protestant world where there were no Catholics had ever before been President.

I thought Etheopia was taking Africom on. I guess that's not true?

Can you turn that url into a smaller link? That might reformat the blog.

It might be the one at 3:23 though?

UPDATE: Nevermind, the big links start at 2:50 with Lucille I think.

defective blog functions suck

arent they just pure desperate to spread democracy?
damn they are making me mad!

Did you see the Cheney connect I added to your last Open Mic?
One election at a time...

did they really? how could i have done that?
and here i am looking at toniD...anything for
me to do Fernando to fix it??

for the longest speech ever delivered at the United Nations: 4 hours and 29 minutes, on Sept. 29, 1960. His longest speech on record in Cuba was 7 hours and 10 minutes in 1986 at the III Communist Party Congress in Havana.

Offered w/o comment. (I've already made them on this subject.)

My title for Booman's piece: The Mo' Better Dems Blues

--------------------------

Senate Outlook: An Analysis of Coattails by BooMan

When we talk about the electability of the presidential candidates, we should also think about their effect on the electability of other Democrats that will be sharing a ticket with them in November. In this analysis, I look at the 23 senate races for seats currently held by Republicans.

I list the 23 races in order (from the likeliest to go Democratic, to the least). I list who won the Democratic primary or caucus, and by what margin. And I list the margin that the Republican won their election in 2002 (in two cases, the most recent election was in 2006).

Then I offer analysis for whether an Obama or Clinton ticket would be more helpful to the candidate.

Gallup: Dem Race A Dead Heat
By Eric Kleefeld - February 19, 2008, 1:51PM

Today's Gallup tracking poll shows the national Democratic race to be a virtual tie between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, a shift from yesterday's numbers that showed Obama's lead to be outside the margin of error:

Obama 46% (-3)
Clinton 45% (+3)

Late Update: Some analysis from Gallup shows that the plagiarism accusations might have had something to do with it, though it's too early to know for sure. Key quote:

*

Commission for a Transition to a Free Cuba - August 1, 2006

"We are actively working for change in Cuba, not simply waiting for change." -FuckTard

New bid to break Kenya deadlock
Raila Odinga (L) and Mwai Kibaki (R) after their first post-poll meeting on 24 January
Kofi Annan has said the two rivals are very close to a deal
Talks aimed at breaking Kenya's political deadlock have resumed a day after US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged a power-sharing deal.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga has called for powers to be vested in the new post of prime minister.

He says he was cheated of victory in December's elections - a charge denied by President Mwai Kibaki, who wants to keep his powers.

Violence over the dispute has left at least 1,000 people across the country.

However, most parts of Kenya are now calm.

"I frankly believe that the time for a political settlement was yesterday," Ms Rice said after holding separate meetings with President Kibaki and Mr Odinga on Monday.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7252183.stm

Yes I did. Thank you. That's interesting stuff. Not even close to a conspiracy....

Lucille. The blog stretches whenever there are continuous text of characters. Anytime a link is larger than the allowed center column, it stretches the blog.

You can fix it by turning it into an href link.

Will the Olympics athletes mouth off?
Should Olympic athletes be gagged from commenting on politics during the Beijing Summer Games?

The issue has erupted hard. It started Sunday when the Daily Mail reported that British Olympic chiefs were planning to force athletes to sign a contract promising not to speak out about China's politics or human rights record. The deal was: Sign, or face a ban on traveling to Beijing.

Well, this naturally sparked a row. Gag the athletes

http://washingtonbureau.typepad.com/china/2008/02/will-the-olympi.html

(For the young):

www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/16/1065917551992.html?from=storyrhs - 37k -

too late i took it down, now what?

they replaced the word 'Revolution' with the word 'process'..

(oops)

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/crude-makes-swift-climb-back/story...
{463E952B-0B60-48BA-901C-0874DDC7CE70}&siteid=yahoomy

Supply worries spur crude
new
Submitted by toniD on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 3:13pm

Hard to believe. Thanks.

Im not really sure as to how you look a specific issue up... but if you all
think that I would be interested in an open mic of yours - I would love to bookmark in
the appropriate file on my sexy IMac.
Thanks in advance :)

is there anything else that i could
do to make things right? or is it
fucked up already and too late?

First African-American LGBT state legislator.

Today, Connecticut State Rep. Jason Bartlett (D)
publicly announced that he is gay, becoming the
“first and only openly LGBT African American state legislator.”

Now, toniD needs to fix this one from
new
Submitted by pbtrue1 on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 3:58pm.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/crude-makes-swift-climb-back/story...
{463E952B-0B60-48BA-901C-0874DDC7CE70}&siteid=yahoomy

Supply worries spur crude
new
Submitted by toniD on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 3:13pm

for some reason that post didn't give me an edit. All I see is a reply.

Wilkes Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison for Bribing Cunningham
By Paul Kiel - February 19, 2008, 3:57PM

So it appears that Brent Wilkes will get only a slightly more severe sentence
than Duke Cunningham. Wilkes, convicted last year on all counts, was reportedly
sentenced to 12 years in prison today -- prosecutors had asked for as much as
25 years and no fewer than 15. The probation officials had recommended as much as 60.

But Judge Larry Burns, for whatever reason, decided on 12. Cunningham himself
was sentenced to a little more than 8 years after pleading guilty.
We'll have more information when it's available.

Virginia. 2/15-17. 554 registered voters. MoE 4.2%

McCain 45%
Obama 51%

McCain 48%
Clinton 45%

Iowa. 2/15-17. 563 registered voters. MoE 4.2%

McCain 41%
Obama 51%

McCain 52%
Clinton 41%

is NOT in retrograde anymore.
For all who care.

Oil closes above $100

Dick Cheney isn't just smiling, he's probably bouncing off the ceiling he's so happy.
Tough luck if you have to work and pay for gas. Oil closes above $100 for the first
time ever. Meanwhile the dollar tanked, helping to drive up prices and the Fed
is giving away money as though it was free. This is getting ugly

I posted it and ther is no edit. I thought maybe it floated to someone else. Otherwise we'll have to email Sam to take it out.

on Palestinian / Israeli Conflict
http://www.weroy.org/video_middle_east.shtml#

Arundhati Roy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFOuSoy5H-k&eurl

Quote: "To love, to be loved....."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbZMUInKDGI&feature=related

Under The Nuclear Shadow
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ug12Eqpu6zM&feature=related

no toniD, but quite a few of them dont have
edits

God of Small things!

To Vote or Not to Vote?

By MISSY COMLEY BEATTIE

To vote or not to vote; that is the question. But how can I not? After all, women who fought for suffrage were jailed during the long struggle for this right, which finally arrived when the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified in 1920.

It's just that the corporate-crafted and owned candidates, Clinton, Obama, and McCain, don't represent my values. Maybe, I should resort to the measure that many American voters used to select a president in 2000 and 2004--with whom, among the three, would I want to have a beer?

I am imaging the scene ....

...
And, now, I'm contemplating an evening with Cynthia and Ralph.
...

featuring the words of arundhati roy
http://www.weroy.org/

FULL VIDEO ON GOOGLE...
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4100322562082185221

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFOuSoy5H-k&eurl

this pains me to say...but thanks for this!

strickly dickly
Submitted by Lucille on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 4:20pm.
---------
I would have gone with "Oily Dick", but that's just me.

This is a good Fresh Air interview (airing now in my market but accessible on the innernets) for anyone who is interested in biblical religions and the fallacies in their basic-most claims:

Interviews
Bart Ehrman, Questioning Religion on Why We Suffer
Religious studies professor Bart D. Ehrman joins Fresh Air to discuss human suffering as it is addressed in the Bible. If there is an all-powerful and loving God, he asks, why do human beings suffer?

Like a good 3%er Castro showed us that Communism just doesn't work. Well, it worked fine for Castro, but just think of what Cuba could be today if not for thier worthless economic system.

That's the best thing about the 3%, they show the world what doesn't work. That can be a valuable lesson so that the 97% stays on course.

All Castro has left to do is to die so he can be forgotten. I can't wait for Cuba to join the modern Capitalist Countries so that their long suffering can end. What a wonderful land that will be to visit once the resorts start to go up and the beaches made available to Real Americans!

haha

The Big Question
Whoever wins the Democratic nomination, it seems clear that that victory won't be celebrated any time soon. The writing could be on the wall on March 5th. But even if that's the case, the race seems unlikely to be settled for some time after that. And there's of course the possibility, though I think it's not likely, that the fight could go all the way to the convention.

And during that time, who takes on John McCain? McCain is already making a number of position changes that are getting little or no media attention. He's caught up in some very questionable campaign finance gambits. And he's launching daily and fairly harsh attacks on Barack Obama, as he's wise to do as long as the Democrats are distracted by their own primary fight.

Someone at the DNC, or other party organization should be putting together a campaign apparatus in waiting that will take on the Republican nominee until a clear Democratic winner can take over. But at the moment I'm not seeing any sign of it.

--Josh Marshall

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/179162.php

sorry about the work out! and stretch!!

Mine is playing something about "green" being the thing to do nowadays...not sure what show this is but I'll look out for Fresh Air now...

Damage to several undersea telecom cables that caused outages across the Middle East and Asia could have been an act of sabotage, the International Telecommunication Union said on Monday.

"We do not want to preempt the results of ongoing investigations, but we do not rule out that a deliberate act of sabotage caused the damage to the undersea cables over two weeks ago," the UN agency's head of development, Sami al-Murshed, told AFP.
...

Submitted by Part of the 97 ... on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 4:45pm.
...just think of what Cuba could be today if not for thier worthless economic system.
--------
Convenient to your propagandist, disingenuous, craptastical, horse shit-filled purpose, you neglect to mention that the U.S. embargo has contributed tremendously to the island's misfortunes.

You also neglect (and will ALWAYS neglect) to mention the U.S.-supported reign of Baptista, who was no choir boy, and who was directly the cause of the revolution.

You also don't know shit from Shinola about other Caribbean islands, including the U.S. possessions, and how poorly they have fared in the most recent sixty years.

bread them
new
Submitted by Lucille on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 12:59pm.

dip them in egg first...even better!

.=.=.=.=.=
Jamesbennett

The next lunar eclipse won't take place until December 21 2010. That's exactly two years before God only knows what will take place on December 21, 2012. And then there's February 14, 2013 or about 45 days after the most talked about date of the future. Planet X (NIBIRU?) is projected to be 2.85AU from the sun with the earth directly between the brown dwarf and our sun. And talk about coronal mass ejections (CME) and sun spots? You've not seen anything like this fireworks display. - Article Base

Thanks Fernando...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8UqyDsiS58

I can't see these youtubes first since I'm at home today...no idea how old this one is either..

Most Communist countries do find a way to move to Capitalism if the door to trade with the U.S. is left open. And some would claim the free and open trade with Cuba could have brought change in Cuba just as it has in so many other Communist countries.

But in his day, Castro was a threat and troublemaker here in the western hemisphere and that was his big mistake. In the end all Castro had was control, but sucess was always outside of his grasp!

So we will get to see it eh?

Great! The last eclipse was a beehive of UFO activity.

Mexico's UFO Eclipse of 91'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MB6pMry5M3I

I feel so special
One election at a time...

Last full lunar eclipse for almost 3 years.
I hope everyone has clear skies to see it.
One election at a time...

No nevermind..I see your Nic..
I don't know..
That's weird,Toni..

"Hello to our friends and fans in domestic surveillance."

Thanks :)

"Hello to our friends and fans in domestic surveillance."

So this is success? Bullshit!

By Paul Craig Roberts

19/02/08 "ICH" -- -- It is impossible to keep up with all the Bush regime’s lies. There are simply too many. Among the recent crop, one of the biggest is that the “surge” is working.

Launched last year, the "surge" was the extra 20,000-30,000 U.S. troops sent to Iraq. These few extra troops, Americans were told, would finally supply the necessary forces to pacify Iraq.

This claim never made any sense. The extra troops didn't raise the total number of U.S. soldiers to more than one-third the number every expert has said is necessary in order to successfully occupy Iraq.

The real purpose of the "surge" was to hide another deception. The Bush regime is paying Sunni insurgents $800,000 a day not to attack U.S. forces. That's right, 80,000 members of an "Awakening group," the "Sons of Iraq," a newly formed "U.S.-allied security force" consisting of Sunni insurgents, are being paid $10 a day each not to attack U.S. troops. Allegedly, the Sons of Iraq are now at work fighting al-Qaeda.

This is a much cheaper way to fight a war. We can only wonder why Bush didn't figure it out sooner.

The "surge" was also timed to take account of the near completion of neighborhood cleansing. Most of the violence in Iraq during the past five years has resulted from Sunnis and Shi'ites driving each other out of mixed neighborhoods. Had the two groups been capable of uniting against the U.S. troops, the U.S. would have been driven out of Iraq long ago. Instead, the Iraqis slaughtered each other and fought the Americans in their spare time.

In other words, the "surge" has had nothing to do with any decline in violence.

Continues...... http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article19384.htm

The economy of the Cayman Islands was once centred around turtling. However, this industry began to disappear in the twentieth century and tourism and financial services began to become the economic mainstays during the 1970s. The United States is the Cayman Islands' largest trading partner.

With an average income of around $42,000, Caymanians enjoy the highest standard of living in the Caribbean. According to the CIA World Factbook, the Cayman Islands GDP per capita is the 8th highest in the world. [7] The islands print their own currency, the Cayman Islands Dollar (KYD), which is pegged to the U.S. dollar at a fixed rate of 1 KYD = 1.2 USD.

The government's primary source of income is indirect taxation. An import duty of 5% to 20% is levied against goods imported into the islands. Few goods are exempt; notable examples include books, cameras and infant formula. The government charges licensing fees to financial institutions that operate in the islands as well as work permit fees for expatriate employees ranging from around US$500 for a clerk to around US$20,000 for a CEO.

is the one where the earth is between the sun and the moon?

and a solar eclipse is when the moon is between the earth and the sun?

what's the name of the one when the sun is between the earth and the moon?

Candidates call for democracy in Cuba

Tue Feb 19, 2008 5:05pm ESTPost Your Comments | All

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama suggested on Tuesday they might lift a trade embargo on Cuba if retiring leader Fidel Castro's successor moves toward democracy.

Republican front-runner John McCain, meanwhile, said the United States must keep the sanctions on Cuba's communist government in place until it allows free elections and releases political prisoners.

"I fear that anything short of that, that any assistance that came in earlier than that, might serve to prop up a new regime," the Arizona senator said at a rally in Milwaukee.

;)

"Hello to our friends and fans in domestic surveillance."

I may have seen a movie about this on sci-fi channel, hard to say...

Cuba is the perfect example of what can happen if you allow the 3% to run wild!

That could never happen in the U.S. because the folks love their Capitalism so much here.

howzabout u?

Submitted by Part of the 97 ... on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 5:21pm.
...In the end all Castro had was control, but sucess was always outside of his grasp!
--------
The same is said of George W. Bush for whom you voted, twice.

The important difference is that Castro kept a tiny nation afloat for many decades while Bush sank a respected superpower into Evil Empire waters in less than seven years.

To get that immoral slimeball POT silenced.

He is destroying the blog......

We should stage a walkout until Sam bans him.

This is just getting ridiculous

:)

"Hello to our friends and fans in domestic surveillance."

:)

U.S. lawmaker targets offshore tax evaders
By Kevin Drawbaugh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Wealthy Americans dodge more than $100 billion a year in taxes by hiding assets in the Cayman Islands and other offshore tax havens, said a senior lawmaker on Friday who is trying to put a stop to it.

Under legislation he is offering with Sen. Barack Obama, Sen. Carl Levin said it would become easier for federal authorities to pursue possible tax evaders by putting more onus on them to show that offshore shelters are legitimate.

"It's got to end, and it's going to take a change in the law," Levin said at the Reuters Regulation Summit.
[...]
"It's been described in the media that there's a tax avoidance scheme involving dividend tax shelters. I don't want to deny that," he said, declining to provide details.

"Apparently some of the folks that were subpoenaed by us decided to share that information with the media," he said.

Citigroup (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research), Lehman Brothers (LEH.N: Quote, Profile, Research), Morgan Stanley (MS.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and UBS AG (UBSN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research) have received subpoenas relating to the probe, The Wall Street Journal reported last month. Continued...
http://www.reuters.com/article/governmentFilingsNews/idUSN08591515200802...

February 17, 2008
Taxman allowed to bug phones
UK
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/money/tax/article3381268....
[...]
One area where the new regulations could have an impact is against those who failed to come forward during HMRC’s partial amnesty for offshore account holders.

Last year, HMRC offered a limited window of opportunity for taxpayers to disclose savings held in offshore accounts on which they had not paid tax.

About 45,000 people with bank accounts in tax havens such as the Cayman Islands and Isle of Man coughed up £400m by the November 26 deadline, but this may be only a fraction of the total held offshore.

Warburton fears the new powers could be used against taxpayers who have persistently failed to come forward.

Google petiton.com

"Hello to our friends and fans in domestic surveillance."

It's up to me.

It's up to you.

A petition won't work.

You need only bite your lip and scroll on by.

Every time you reply to his message, you invite him to come back.

You can't beat him with words.

You can only win with silence.

Yes you can.

___
bluerootsradio

I stared at the moon in your pic for the longest time thinking it was an off axis view of earth

and I couldn't figure what view of the continents I was seeing.

: )
.=.=.=.=.=
Jamesbennett

where one can still find somethine to Google

that returns no search results.

.=.=.=.=.=
Jamesbennett

SPITTING is not just your right, it's your moral duty.
I agree with Maggiesboy.

One election at a time...

Submitted by Bob26003 on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 5:51pm.
...We should stage a walkout until Sam bans him...
-----
The problem is that it is impossible to convince All Of The People to do anything all at one time.

If a cohesive response were possible, the air-ono method could be adopted: Everyone would spam the blog with repeats of the obnoxious crap until the Great And Powerful Sam would be unable to justify angering the many in support of the voice of one obnoxious SOB.

Get used to it, Bob. Count your blessings that another pants-pissing screwball hasn't joined the POTDog obsession.