Be the Media...

Bye folks.

"Although Huckabee is the favorite candidate of likely GOP caucus-goers, they admit that other candidates would do a better job on nearly every issue tested. For some, such as terrorism, immigration and Iraq, he finishes in third place," Holland said.

"What's driving the Huckaboom? Abortion. It's the only issue tested on which Huckabee ranks first, indicating that even though he is not a single-issue candidate, he may have single-issue appeal."

It appears the Huckabee vote is the born-again vote, with the poll suggesting his support among Iowans who say they are born-again or evangelical Christians is nearly 30 points higher than among nonevangelicals.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/12/20/iowa.poll/index.html

Reposting

Descendants of Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse break away from US

The Lakota Indians, who gave the world legendary warriors Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, have withdrawn from treaties with the United States, leaders said Wednesday.

"We are no longer citizens of the United States of America and all those who live in the five-state area that encompasses our country are free to join us," long-time Indian rights activist Russell Means told a handful of reporters and a delegation from the Bolivian embassy, gathered in a church in a run-down neighborhood of Washington for a news conference.

A delegation of Lakota leaders delivered a message to the State Department on Monday, announcing they were unilaterally withdrawing from treaties they signed with the federal government of the United States, some of them more than 150 years old.

http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Descendants_of_Sitting_Bull_Crazy_Horse_1220.html

Honestly, the Lakota Indians could consider US to be illegal immigrants.

And how.

Land of the free...BUT HOME BELONGS TO THE BRAVE!

Maybe now our stupid government will listen, but I doubt it.

They will most likely once again resort to force. They always do with the natives.

Not sure what you white people are going to do, but I am seriously considering investing in horseflesh.

"..unilaterally withdrawing from treaties ..."

Man, that is exciting!

I have been waiting all my life to hear those words.

I just received this email from Wexler's office

Dear R. E.,

Tonight I will appear live on Blog Radio to discuss the tremendous momentum generated by your support for Cheney Impeachment Hearings. I will articulate our next moves and how we can translate this enthusiasm into concrete steps toward impeachment hearings.

Hope you can join me.

Robert

Congressman Wexler Live on Blog Radio:

WHEN: Thursday, December 20, 9:00 pm (EST)/6:00 pm (PST)

WHERE: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/fpc (a link will be posted at www.wexlerwantshearings.com and www.wexlerforcongress.com)

WHO: Rep. Wexler will appear live on Florida Progressive Radio with host Kenneth Quinnell of the Florida Netroots Caucus, Bob Fertick of Democrats.com, as well as Dave Lindorf, author of "The Case for Impeachment," and David Swanson with AfterDowningStreet.org.

Congressman Wexler will also be appearing on the Ed Schultz Show today at 12:30 pm (EST) to discuss the tremendous success of WexlerWantsHearings.com and the 110,000 people who have signed up to support impeachment hearings for Vice President Cheney.

WASHINGTON - President Bush said Thursday he will reserve judgment about his administration's destruction of CIA interrogation tapes until several inquiries are finished.

The destruction in 2005 of the tapes, showing harsh interrogation treatment of two terrorism suspects, is being investigated by the Justice Department, the CIA itself and by several congressional panels.

Bush stuck to the White House line that he personally did not know about either the existence of the tapes or their destruction until he was briefed earlier this month by CIA Director Michael Hayden.

"Sounds pretty clear to me when I say I have — the first recollection is when Mike Hayden briefed me. That's pretty clear," Bush said.

He also said that he believed the ongoing investigations by his administration, "coupled with oversight provided by the Congress, will end up enabling us all to find out what has happened."

"Until these inquiries are complete, I will be rendering no opinion from the podium," Bush said.

more...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22340917/

It is almost up to 112,000.

Man that is fun to watch go up.

What did Sparrow mean by 'bye'... Did I miss something?

It'd be fun to watch those numbers go up if something were actually going to come from it, but I have my doubts, to say the least.

Numbers I DO see going up with any real consequences include the numbers of dead Americans and Iraqi's and the debt in dollars this nation is compiling without any fiscal responsibility in sight.

Smells like #2.

New Orleans police, protesters clash
Public housing controversy pits blacks, whites and now political parties

BREAKING NEWS

updated 21 minutes ago

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Police used chemical spray and stun devices as dozens of protesters seeking to halt the demolition of public housing in New Orleans tried to force their way through an iron gate at City Hall.

Some people were arrested as officers tried to establish order and an ambulance arrived on the scene. It was unclear whether there were injuries or the ambulance was a precautionary measure.

The council chambers seat fewer than 300. Once capacity was reached, people who were not permitted into chambers marched and chanted outside and eventually violence broke out.

The clash happened at an iron gate that separates the council chambers from City Hall grounds. On the grounds, more than 50 had been chanting, calling for the council to reject plans by the Department of Housing and Urban development to demolish the housing projects.

Then, protesters tried to storm the gate with a few able to squeeze through a narrow opening before police began using the spray and stun devices.

A woman identified by bystanders as Jamie Bork Laughner, was sprayed and dragged away from the gates.

She was taken away on a stretcher by emergency officials on the scene. Before that, she was seen pouring water from a bottle into her eyes and weeping.

"I was just standing, trying to get into my City Council meeting," said Kim Ellis, a woman who said she was stunned by officers and still had what appeared to be a Taser wire hanging on her shirt.

more...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22344261/

Christy
Thanks for the info on the Lakota Sioux withdrawing their treaties. I am part Lakota and lived for 20 years in South Dakota. Russell Means is from the Rosebud Reservation where my husband grew up & I've met him several times.

I was living in South Dakota at the time of the 2nd Wounded Knee. That's when the American Indian Movement occupied the Pine Ridge Reservation in protest against the federal government in 1973, for 71 days, in a standoff with the feds.

Lakota Freedom: "We are the freedom loving Lakota from the Sioux Indian reservations of Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Montana who have suffered from cultural and physical genocide in the colonial apartheid system we have been forced to live under. We are in Washington DC to withdraw from the constitutionally mandated treaties to become a free and independent country. We are alerting the Family of Nations we have now reassumed our freedom and independence with the backing of Natural, International, and United States law."

Caution:

Russell Means has turned into a bit of a publicity seeker and in some cases supported the Republican Party. It is a strange ball of wax having to do with his opinions about the states of affairs via leaders and indiginous people in Mexico and Central America.

I also think this is largely symbolic but that they have a good speechwriter (could be Russell himself) that a few others could take a few lessons from.

I need to let family know about this. RM is one of those "polarizing" figures.

Another co-signer to the iMpeach Cheney bill

special to ImpeachforPeace.org
IFP cofounder Mikael Rudolph

Just yesterday Wisconsin Representative Gwen Moore (D-WI) added her name to the steadily growing list of supporters of H. Res. 333 (now H. Res. 799 in the current Congressional session) which calls for impeachment hearings against Vice President Richard B. Cheney.

Rep. Moore has been lobbied in favor of impeachment steadily by The Milwaukee Impeachment Committee members but fellow Wisconsin Representative Tammy Baldwin and House Judiciary Committee member recently joining in with Rep. Robert Wexler (D-FL) in publicly calling for impeachment may have also factored in her decision.

(List of H. Res. Co-signers)

monkey said:

It'd be fun to watch those numbers go up if something were actually going to come from it, but I have my doubts, to say the least.

Numbers I DO see going up with any real consequences include the numbers of dead Americans and Iraqi's and the debt in dollars this nation is compiling without any fiscal responsibility in sight.

@@@@@@

At least they are "talking" about impeachment now - that is an improvement. Before they had pretty much ignored the issue after Pelosi took it off the table..

The second step is getting them TO DO something about impeachment..

Trouble

Police, Protesters Clash in New Orleans
Published: 12/20/07, 1:47 PM EDT
By CAIN BURDEAU
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Police used chemical spray and stun guns Thursday as dozens of protesters seeking to halt the demolition of 4,500 public housing units tried to force their way through an iron gate at City Hall.

One woman was sprayed with chemicals and dragged from the gates. She was taken away on a stretcher by emergency officials. Before that, the woman was seen pouring water from a bottle into her eyes and weeping.

Another woman said she was stunned by officers, and still had what appeared to be a Taser wire hanging from her shirt.

"I was just standing, trying to get into my City Council meeting," said the woman, Kim Ellis.

Arrests were made as officers tried to establish order.

http://www.att.net/s/editorial.dll?pnum=1&bfromind=7401&eeid=5593101&_sitecat=1522&dcatid=0&eetype=article&render=y&ac=-2&ck=&ch=ne&rg=blsadstrgt

They have started dirtying the waters, I hope it blows up in their faces.

National Enquirer Does Story On "Edwards Love-Child"

The National Enquirer has gone political in their most recent issue, alleging that John Edwards has fathered a love-child with a filmmaker who once worked on a series of webisodes for his One America Committee. Rumors of the affair between Edwards and the filmmaker, a 43-year-old divorcee named Rielle Hunter, have been denied by both parties.

Now, as the Enquirer has published photos of a clearly pregnant Hunter, she has gone on the record confirming that she is pregnant but denying that Edwards is the father. She claims that the biological father is Edwards operative Andrew Young, a married man who confirms both his extramarital affair with Hunter and that the baby is his. Hunter, who lived in New York, has recently relocated to a gated community in North Carolina near Young and his family. But, the Enquirer claims that Hunter is privately telling friends that Edwards fathered the baby.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/12/19/national-enquirerem_n_77603.html

We have already reached 100,000 supporters. Thank You.

Now We Need Each of You To Send an Email to Ten More People to Get 250,000 Signed Up at WexlerWantsHearings.com by the End of the Year.

I can guarantee that your 100,000 voices calling for impeachment hearings will now be heard in Congress. Together, through our new Quarter Million Person Challenge, let's now set a new goal of 250,000 Americans signing up to demand action.

It has been just 5 days since I called for impeachment hearings for Vice-President Dick Cheney and already over 100,000 people - including you - have answered that call by adding your name as an impeachment supporter at www.WexlerWantsHearings.com. This is a truly remarkable response that demonstrates the power that average, everyday Americans can have when we come together to pursue justice and accountability.

Never mind that the national media ignored my call and rejected an op-ed that I wrote along with my Judiciary Colleagues Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI). The Netroots and citizen activists like yourself are spreading our message and demanding action.

Quarter Million Person Challenge

Our movement continues to grow by the hour and the day. But, with the media blackout, I need your help to grow our effort. With 100,000 supporters already signed-up, if each of you e-mail ten of your friends (a "Chain-ey letter") about www.WexlerWantsHearings.com and the need for Cheney impeachment hearings we will reach over a million Americans and perhaps we can reach a new goal of 250,000 signers by the end of the year!!

Join Me Thursday Night on Blog Radio to Discuss Our Next Steps

On this Thursday at 9:00 p.m. (EST) and 6:00 (PST), please join me as I appear on live on the Internet to discuss my efforts to convince Congress to hold impeachment hearing.

Congressman Wexler Live on Blog Radio:

WHEN: Thursday, December 18, 9:00 pm (EST)/6:00 pm (PST)

WHERE: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/fpc (a link will be posted at www.wexlerwantshearings.com and www.wexlerforcongress.com )

WHO: Rep. Wexler will appear live on Florida Progressive Radio with host Kenneth Quinnell of the Florida Netroots Caucus, Bob Fertick of Democrats.com, as well as Dave Lindorf, author of "The Case for Impeachment," and David Swanson with AfterDowningStreet.org.

More on the Media Blackout

The New York Times, Washington Post, LA Times, USA Today, and Boston Globe have all rejected our op ed (though the Miami Herald just put an edited version in its "Letters to the Editor" section). We have heard from the editors of some of these publications and they are telling us that they are getting overwhelmed with phone calls and letters of complaint. (Well done everybody!)

In short - we need to keep the pressure on if this news will spread far beyond the Netroots community.

With warm regards,

Congressman Robert Wexler

www.WexlerWantsHearings.com

Pepper spray and tasers should be illegal in a free society.

Christy - sparrow is travelling west on her hubby's behalf - rather than travelling south as small birds should at this time of year. She will be back - I'm sure.

Hi folks. Just got home.

I'm going to spare you the details of the trip, but I will say one thing...

I got to listen to the Stephanie Miller show until just past Albion-Marshall--although with some static. Actually, since it use to barely reach my area and my hubby's work area, this was an improvement. (For those wanting to know for analysis purposes...The time was around 11 am.)

The sad thing is that I lost it after Battle Creek and couldn't find any progressive radio once I got past Kalamazoo. So driving on a country road towards Niles (these are all Western Michigan for you Aussies...), I could get 50 Republican and Christian networks. I counted more than 5 networks with Rush Limbaugh before I lost count. There was Rush, Beck, O'Rielly, and even a few I'd never heard of, but not one 'progressive' or truthful network! Not one in the whole western half of the state!

Then at 4-6 rush hour home, I couldn't get any progressive radio at all. Not even in the area where I was able to pick it up at 11 am. But I could still get the rest of them loud and clear.
And that's not even including all the Christian Network--Focus on the Family--Jame's Dobson that I was able to hear all the way across the state.

So...no wonder why they want to keep pushing media consolidation.

BTW..confession time...

I had no time to post the sign on my car because my hubby was busy pushing me out the door. Next time I leave home, I will be prepared.

And here's the count ...

117500

In my email... (and a good idea too.)

Today’s my birthday! I doubt I’ll get what I really want which is for those in power to stop their killing, torturing, lying and other fear-hate-greed driven activities which tend to dampen the holiday spirit. The malls seem to have all run out of that gift item! I’d settle for those in power just reducing their killing, torturing and lying but I can’t find that in the stores either. So I guess something home-made will have to suffice this year.

The GIFT, the opportunity of communicating peace with our fellow motorists for an hour or so on Christmas (and maybe also on New Years) does exist!

...snipped...

Sounds like something we can all do from wherever we live.

Christy,

I think you'll appreciate the questions asked (and discussed) in this kos diary.

Why videotape the torture?

Liveblog of Wexler's blogradio. Excellent! They debunk the excuses one by one...

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/12/20/204637/88/100/425008

During the one hour on the blogradio, the numbers passed 119,000

Until a transcipt is posted, I suggest that you wade through the Kos diary to read the live-blogging transcription--a little redundant but overall, most of the key points were hit by someone!

I can't remember my log in to Kos.

If I could I would tell him he said it himself.

The tapes were ORDERED.

They EXIST...because someone... WANTED TO SEE IT.

No other reason holds up.

Even he seems baffled by them. That is so not comforting.

Um Christy maybe you can hit "forgot username or password" over there. Also, if you haven't logged on in a while, it may have been deleted.

There is one thing we never really talk about, because it seems off limits and completely GROSS but, the sexual or sensual part of these people should be examined.

Jeff Gannon. Ambassador to Poland. Mr 'Lips'. None of it has ever been excused, or even debunked.

We know all the rumors and rape accusations and all of it, alllll of it we do not want to touch with anybodys hands, but to them, thier dark desires are completely relevent.

We don't want to think about it, but it is undeniable they spend a large amount of time focused on it. Daily.

Certainly the...ickick...sexual part of these people are just as twisted as their politics. I mean, we see more and more republicans caught up in twisted stuff, and it seems to surround bush in every era of his life.

What if someone in that Whore House, I mean White House, LITERALLY ordered themselves up a torture tape to get off on?

I mean, at this point, it is hardly far fetched.

They were not trophies to anyone related to them except the one who ORDERED them. Everyone else is DAMNED by them.

God, I hope I am wrong.

Testimony of Jamie Lee Jones about her rape in Iraq by KBR employees before the House Judiciary Committee:

Just got off the blog radio with Wexler:

Wexler sounds very determined and serious the impeachment drive - actually I think he maybe a little surprised it the success of the petition drive. Wexler admitted that he only became a supporter of impeachment within the last year, due to large extent by discussions with his constituents who wanted impeachment. David Swanson, Bob Fertik and Lindorf were on the blog as well. A question was asked about getting rid of Pelosi, and Wexler did mention that the Democrats routinely ignore their base (liberals) while the Republican never ignore their base (rightwingers and Christian fundalmentalists).

"The adjacent office of the vice president's political director, Amy Whitelaw, was heavily damaged by fire, said Cheney spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride. "

Does anyone here actually believe in the 'coincidence theories' anymore?

So when is Wexler going to ACT?

120,000

To Sparrow

sparrow said

I think you'll appreciate the questions asked (and discussed) in this kos diary.

Why videotape the torture?

That is really disturbing. But it makes me understand why it's perfectly acceptable for men to pack rape a young American woman working in Iraq and after her complaints locking her up under guard. AND lo and behold all the rape kit evidence and photos and whatnot, given to the corporation charged with the investigation, goes missing. And no one even blinks any more. We have become so desensitised to inhuman, brutal despicable faux humans that we barely notice any more.

How can America criticise what's happening in the Sudan, in Zimbabwe, in Somalia and anywhere else in the world, if Americans are not only allowed to carry on as though they are the offspring of the gestapo of WW2, but they are encouraged and protected from criticism for it.

The world is in far worse trouble than just having Bush and Cheney pulling the strings. It has decayed beyond repair.

sparrow - happy birthday to you - I sang it right through - truly. Hope it was a happy day driving back and forth with only right-wing radio to listen to.

Huckabee brings Christmas message to Iowa
Candidate received by supporters like the second coming of Santa Claus

By Paul Vitello
The New York times

DIKE, Iowa - He came to town this week dressed in a dark pinstriped suit and cowboy boots, advocating lower taxes, death to the Internal Revenue Service and restoration of the words “Merry Christmas” and “Jesus Christ” to the American lexicon.

And Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor and Baptist minister who rose to the first tier of Republican presidential candidates on the strength of his Christian bona fides, was received by supporters as he returned to Iowa this week like the second coming of Santa Claus.

At rallies, they posed their red-sweatered children on his knee for photographs, as if he were the man in the red suit at the mall. They gave him standing ovations when he said the words they wanted to hear.

“I know this is probably a very controversial thing, but may I say to you, Merry Christmas!” Mr. Huckabee told an audience of 200 in Marshalltown on Thursday morning, as the crowd rose to its feet.

Clearly delighted over a controversy set off by a recent campaign advertisement in which he says “what really matters” this time of year is not the presidential campaign but “the celebration of the birth of Christ,” Mr. Huckabee has missed no opportunity in his speeches to his core supporters of evangelical voters to utter those words, underlining the Christ part.

“What’s wrong with our country, what is wrong with our culture, is that you can’t say the name Jesus Christ without people going completely berserk,” Mr. Huckabee told a crowd in Dike, a tiny farm town about 80 miles northeast of Des Moines, where people also stood to applaud.

more on...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22354475/

Ok, I am going to go berserk and try and explain, once and for all, why the hell this damn argument is so completely effin lame, and why it's the CHRISTIANS who are at fault for this so-called "war on christmas" and "political correctness".

THEY believe this season beongs to THEM.

THEY are the one's who will not let Jews have Menorah's in schools... they are the one's who RIDICULE cultural holidays like Kwaanza... THEY are the one's who believe that THEIR beliefs are the only one's that are REAL, and that the other's are somehow made up, or second rate.

And so, it's this disregard for OTHERS and their FREEDOM to worship whoever or whatever, as GUARANTEED by the CONSTITUTION and the freedom of and from religion, it's this very disregard and disrespect that has brought about the compromise to allow ALL forms of worship to be recognized (which is clearly offensive to Christians), or none at all (which is clearly covered with the totally non-offensive "Happy Holidays" or "Seasons Greetings", which still somehow offends Christians).

THEY claim they are being persecuted by the way "Merry Christmas" has been treated, but I swear to God, it is the other way around, and as usual, THEY just either don't get it or refuse to see it for what it is, which is, when you treat others as if they are lower than you, it's goes against the very teachings of THEIR savior!

I am SOOOOO sick of this ass-backwards argument over "Merry Christmas", and Americans complete inability to see where it actually stems from.

BTW, in case yer wondering, I was raised in a traditional Jewish household, but I became a Messianic Jew back in my mid-30's.

Back in the late 60's-early 70's, we lived in rural Maryland, and had a black live-in housekeeper named Mamie, who was just an awesomely spiritual woman. She was very involved in the civil rights movement, and actually turned my on to R&B, gospel and soul music... she bought me my first James Brown record!

She took me and my little brother a few times to church with her, and I can still remember those experiences to this day... an old rickety white church with an all black congregation waaaaay out in the country, with a phenominal gospel choir, and then having a picnic after services out under the tree's on a vast piece of property with nothing in sight but cows and land.

The intense faith those wonderful people demonstrated, people who came from nothing, who had virtually nothing, some of them children and grandchildren of slaves, has never escaped my memory.

It's the same thing I see in New Orleans when I talk to the poorest of the poor there, the veyr people the right-wingers love to ridicule as lazy or sinners or whatever... they have virtually nothing but their land and their culture, and I defy ANY of todays so-called "born agains" to match their faith with these folks... cuz they flat out can't.

So, to somehow rap up this rant, I say to everyone out there who gives a damn, especially the right-wing BELIEVERS, do NOT buy into this War on Christmas thing, for it is rooted in everything you claim to be against, as COMMANDED by your Lord and Savior.

I would like to say "Shame on you, Mike Huckabee", but who am I to judge?

Wow! I have to follow that truthful rant? It almost makes me feel ashamed to just post a different person to rant about. (Watch it, then you'll know which two people or more to email and phone.)

Monkey

I heard that Huckabee ran a subliminal ad in Iowa, in which he appears in front of what looks like a cross, while wearing red and talking about Christmas. He said "What really matters is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ." The bookcase forms a "floating cross" in the background. Huckabee's campaign insisted it was actually a windowframe, although Huckabee referred to it as a bookshelf. Huckabee said the bookshelf is just a bookshelf, joking: "I will confess this: If you play the spot backwards it says 'Paul is dead. Paul is dead.'"

Catholic League president Bill Donahue said on Fox:

"What he's trying to say to the evangelicals in western Iowa (is): I'm the real thing...You know what, sell yourself on your issues, not on what your religion is."

Ron Paul said on Fox:

"It reminds me of what Sinclair Lewis once said. He says, 'when fascism comes to this country, it will be wrapped in the flag, carrying a cross.' Now I don't know whether that's a fair assessment or not, but you wonder about using a cross, like he is the only Christian or implying that subtly. So, I don't think I would ever use anything like that."

American politics is so bizarrely embarrassing - it's hard to know whether to laugh or cry.

(information gleaned from NPR, Huffington Post and The Dallas Morning News)

see also http://www.silencedmajority.blogs.com

Hucklebee recently claimed that his father marched with Martin Luther King.

It never happened.

It's the Global Whitebread American Fundamentalist Christian War on anything or anyone that doesn't believe in everything Fundamentalist Whitebread American Christian.

Jose, can you see?

MSNBC: 'Surreal' Giuliani holiday ad has to be spoof

Rudy Giuliani's new campaign ad features the candidate attempting to soften his tough-guy image by wearing a fuzzy red sweater vest while sitting in front of a Christmas tree. Speaking in jovial tones, he confides to the viewer, "I'll be working to get everyone the same gift: a safer America, lower taxes, secure borders, job growth, fiscal discipline, strict constructionist judges -- and probably a fruitcake or something."

Joe Scarborough and his co-hosts reacted to the ad with incredulity. "Ohhh. He did not do that," moaned Mika Brzezinski, as Scarborough held his head in his hand.

"That was actually an SNL sketch," Willie Geist chimed in hopefully. "Do we have the real ad?"

"I want names and I want them now, Mr. Mayor," demanded Scarborough. "Who put you in that red vest? Who told you this was a commercial that would help you in Iowa? My god, who put the Klieg lights on your forehead while Mike Huckabee had the soft Barbara Walters vaseline-smeared-on-the-lens glow?"

"You know, it's almost like he's spoofing," suggested Geist again. "Maybe that was a spoof?"

"They need a statement and they need to put it out right now that says this is a parody," agreed Scarborough.

They then watched the entire ad a second time, mocking it with cries of "That's exactly what my children ask for for Christmas! Strict constructionist judges!"

"This is surreal," Scarborough marveled. "What a long, strange trip it's been," he added, quoting the Grateful Dead in attempt to do justice to the situation.

Scarborough's final comment was,"Mike Huckabee needs to critique that ad. ... We'll see how much Christmas spirit he has. We'll see if Jesus can get him to say something nice about Rudy Giuliani's ad."

more on...
http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Scarborough_slams_Rudys_new_Xmas_political_1219.html

I think it was Romney who claimed his dad walked with MLK in Michigan... not the Huckster.

Hey, maybe he had a dream.

http://bostonist.com/2007/12/20/mittwatch_phoen.php

Ft DODGE, IA -- Romney says that it depends on what the definition of "saw" is.

A defensive Romney was peppered with questions today on exactly what he meant when he said -- most recently on Meet the Press -- that he "saw" his father march with Martin Luther King Jr. Recent articles have indicated that his father, the late Michigan Gov. George Romney, didn't march with the civil-rights leader.

Admitting that he didn't see the march with his own eyes, he said, "I 'saw' him in the figurative sense."

"The reference of seeing my father lead in civil rights," he said, "and seeing my father march with Martin Luther King is in the sense of this figurative awareness of and recognition of his leadership."

"I've tried to be as accurate as I can be," he continued, smiling firmly. "If you look at the literature or look at the dictionary, the term 'saw' includes being aware of -- in the sense I've described."

The questioning did not relent. "I'm an English literature major," he insisted at one point. "When we say I saw the Patriots win the World Series, it doesn't necessarily mean you were there." (He meant the Super Bowl, of course.)

The back-and-forth continued to go south for Romney, who had intended for the story of the day to be about his slams on Mike Huckabee for easing penalties for meth users. Romney had to correct an earlier statement that he had himself "gotten tough on methamphetamine" (His proposed legislation as governor never made it through the Massachusetts House.)

"I'm making sure that that's correct as quickly as I possibly can," he said. "If there's any confusion there I'm sorry for any confusion."

Romney was increasingly exasperated with the questioning, especially when a reporter tied in these instances of word-parsing with the governor's past missteps on the trail -- such as his suggestion that he was endorsed by the NRA.

"Again, you can decide to hyper-analyze a word and try and create an impression that would not be accurate," he responded. "Frankly, I didn't realize that the NRA had an official endorsement program that was different than them phone-banking for me."

'I didn't apply for that, wasn't aware of it," he added.

Romney added with a weary smile that he knows that his words will be scrutinized, and that he's "up for it."

"If now and then I miss a word or I get something slightly wrong, I'll correct it, acknowledge what's wrong. But the overall thrust, the overall meaning of the story is very accurate."

http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/12/20/528873.aspx

Happy Birthday Sparrow, right wing radio, I don't think so.

LATEST COUNT ON THE WEXLER PETITION:

124,204
signed up
and counting...

My latest video on the Wexler petition:

I 'saw' my daddy punch Ronald Reagan once.

I mean, if you consider 'saw' was something I just made up in head.

I 'saw' it in my mind, so, that means I SAW it!

It is therefore obviously true. Cause I SAW it!

It is not hard to think like a republican. Just think 'What would Satan do..?' then add a lack of respect, responsibility, maturity, and accountability. And SHAZAM!

My daddy marched with Ghandi! I know cause I 'saw' it.

HAHAHA!

I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus
Underneath the mistletoe last night.
She didn't see me creep
Down the stairs to have a peep;
She thought that I was tucked up
in my bedroom fast asleep.

Then, I saw Mommy tickle Santa Claus
Underneath his beard so snowy white;
Oh, what a laugh it would have been
If Daddy had only seen
Mommy kissing Santa Claus last night.

I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus
Underneath the mistletoe last night.
She didn't see me creep
Down the stairs to have a peep;
She thought that I was tucked up
in my bedroom fast asleep.

Then, I saw Mommy tickle Santa Claus
Underneath his beard so snowy white;
Oh, what a laugh it would have been
If Daddy had only seen
Mommy kissing Santa Claus last night.

THIS IS MEAN, BADDASS SANTA WITH A SINISTER CHRISTMAS MESSAGE:

RON PAUL GOING NOWHERE AT LEAST IN THE POLLS -

IOWA, NEW HAMPSHIRE, SOUTH CAROLINA:

Speaking of little lies we get tangled up in, did anyone see Tony Snows latest drivel when he went to Oklahoma and gave that speech saying the avererage Iranian was more PRO AMERICAN than the average US UNIVERSITY STAFF!!??

Anyways, he said something else, offhand, that I just can not get out of my brain. About the War on Christmas.

Yes, I know, Monkeys head just exploded. I will address that in a sec...

Tony Snow was talkin about the War on 'Christians'. Oh yes, he took it up a notch. And then he goes into this little side story. Something to the effect of... And I am paraphrasing..

"I went into a store the other day and their Christmas Display had NOTHING about Christ. And I turned around and walked out."

Now, why would this stick in my head? Lies always do.

It sounds soooo much like one of those 'urban myths' that gets passed around by people who adopt it as a 'real' experience THEY HAD, just because, you know...they could 'see it', in their heads.

If I had been in that room, I would have immediately blurted...'Which store? '

'What City? What time were you there and saw the ghastly Christless Christmas display? What isle was that on...?"

It would have been so freaking tempting to make him PROVE IT.

And Monkey, if your head needs something to do to keep from exploding, contact Tony Snows people and ask them 'What store was he reffering too?'.

We must see this Christless Christmas Display, it could end the war on Baby Jesus.

Better yet, maybe Tony Snow and all the rightwingers who are so concerned with getting THEIR holiday back should take it up with the corporate storeowners who back THEIR unholy agenda based on greed and ask them where the f*** their Christmas went...

Peace My Head Back Together

You missed my point Monkey.

Think about it. When have you EVER seen a Christless Christmas display at a retail store?

I think he may have even said it was a 'Christmas' store, but I can't be sure.

There MUST BE a 'War On Christmas' cause we 'see one'...right?

There MUST actually be stores out there with Christless Christmas displays..Right? I mean, it only makes sense there would be, cause there is a WAR ON CHRISTMAS.

It has to be REAL...cause you can SEE IT. But what did he actually SEE in that store?

BTW...Kawaanza does not seem to effect the mail or bank services.

He said it to try to make a point.

But, like with Mitt Romney the Great Lover of All Things Black...

Did he actually, literally SEE a christless christmas display.... Or did he 'see it' in his mind, because he is a great warrior on the front lines of a 'war on Christians'...?

I think he was literally lying, I don't think there ever was a store.

Again, when is the last time you can remember a retail store without Christ on their Christmas isle?

I can not ever remember actually seeing one myself. Even the Dollar Store sells baby Jesus prominantly.

Hell, retail panders more to christians than anyone, since they make up 95% of our population.

I think Tony Snow lied, so that you too, could SEE how there was a war on CHRISTIANS.

The two lies remind me of each other..They were told for the same reason.

Mitt and Tony both said it offhand, to try to back up a point without actually providing any proof.

The only differences are that Mitt got caught, and Tony didn't. Which is too bad since his lie was actually the more dangerous.

The War On Christians. Strange cause it is usually the Christians declaring wars on everyone else.

I got your point, Christy.

My point is, Tony Snow is a friggin neocon hack, who makes shit up as he goes along, no doubt honed by his years of experience at FOX News, where asking the tough questions like "when, where, who and how" just get in the way of delivering the mind altering message that is being spoonfed to true believers 24/7.

He turned around and walked out of the store... yeah, right.

What group was he addressing, Sheep State University?

Oklahoma Christian University.

What other campus would have tolerated it?

Like I said, Sheep State University.

Building followers, one soul at a time.

Baa-aa-aa, humbug.

Brothers In Arms
by Dire Straits

These mist covered mountains
Are a home now for me
But my home is the lowlands
And always will be
Some day you'll return to
Your valleys and your farms
And you'll no longer burn
To be brothers in arms

Through these fields of destruction
Baptisms of fire
I've watched all your suffering
As the battles raged higher
And though they did hurt me so bad
In the fear and alarm
You did not desert me
My brothers in arms

There's so many different worlds
So many different suns
And we have just one world
But we live in different ones

Now the suns gone to hell
And the moons riding high
Let me bid you farewell
Every man has to die
But it's written in the starlight
And every line on your palm
We're fools to make war
On our brothers in arms

I went back and found it for you Monkey

"The winsome and articulate Snow charmed his audience with wit:

“The average Iranian is more Pro-American than virtually any college faculty in this country.” And with serious talk about the war on terror and “the second war in this country, the war on God.” […]

Snow also said he loved being on a stage where he could say the word “God.”

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/12/17/tony-snow-war-on-god/

In reffrence to my posts

'I don’t think they’re going to beat Jesus. … You’ve mentioned the fact that you’re not allowed to have Christ at Christmas. I mean, I went to a Christmas store this week. It didn’t have anything about Jesus. It had all sorts of funny little ornaments in it, but nothing about the holiday. People are tired of that.'

Putz.

Umm, 'scuse me, but goddam that Tony Snow. That faculty comment was a shot at those filthy liberals, and quite frankly, he can go fuque himself for it.

Questioning peoples patriotism for actually thinking and questioning authority... that's real brave, and unbelievably stupid.

Who's ideology has put this country in the shitter this past 7 years, college facultys?

Hey Pat Robertson, how come Tony Snow got cancer, more than once? Hmmmmm?

It must be the Christmas season; I've got three (God-less) college students who were up all night and just awake from sleeping all day.

It's 5:19 pm.

Now they will commence eating.

Partying to follow.

I'd like to blame it on those God-less institutions of liberal education they attend. But frankly, I think it is clearly OUR fault. We have allowed them to conflate this time of year, the season of PEACE, with the season of FUNDAMENTALISM.

Because you know, learning and all that book stuff is going to take them straight to the devil, whereas seeing the baby Jesus in a manger is going to make them god-fearin' and obedient.....

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH....

wiping away tears....

thank god for my funny thoughtful aware kids. Even if they are eating us out of house and home...

Now be honest, folks. Which one of these is you?

9. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder —Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells…

Senate stays in session to thwart Bush

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The last political scuffle of the year between the White House and the Democratic-led Congress played out on the floor of the Senate Friday morning -- even though nearly all the senators had left the Capitol for the Christmas holiday earlier in the week.

In a session that lasted under a minute, Sen. Jim Webb, D-Virginia, opened and then immediately gaveled closed the Senate.

His sole reason for doing so was to block President Bush from naming controversial "recess appointments" -- a constitutional mechanism that allows the president, during congressional recesses, to fill top government posts for up to one year and avoid Senate confirmation.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced late Wednesday he would keep the Senate open with a series of "pro forma" sessions through mid-January.

Tense talks had just broken down with the White House on a deal that would have allowed the president to make dozens of those appointments if he agreed not to appoint one controversial official, Steven Bradbury, to be the permanent head of the influential Office of Legal Counsel at the Justice Department.

Bush declined to accept the Democrats' offer, and Reid refused to approve Bradbury because of Democratic concerns about Bradbury's involvement in crafting legal opinions for the administration on interrogation techniques of terrorism suspects.

Similar sessions were conducted for the same reason over the Thanksgiving recess.

Webb won't be the only senator tasked with presiding over the shortened sessions. Other Democrats -- including Sens. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Ben Cardin of Maryland and Chuck Schumer of New York -- will share the duty.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/12/21/senate.pro.forma/index.html

In God We Trust, In Shrub We Don't

Hey, a good friend of mine has produced a really cool music CD for kids (and adults!), and some of my musician friends in New Orleans are featured on it, including my beloved Radiators!

You can hear clips of the tunes on the site as well...
http://www.funkykidzmusic.com/

Check it out, makes a great Hannukah or Kwaanza gift! No tunes with Jesus in it, so it may offend 'others' as a Christmas gift.

Speaking of Christmas without Baby Jesus being pimped out at your nearest retailer.

Something you may not know about old St. Nick.

Nicholas attended what was called Council of Nicaea. It was a big to-do in the church, one of the first real debates about Christian theology.

A priest from Alexandria in Egypt named Arius was excommunicated for maintaining that Christ, the Son, was not equal to God, Himself.

That Christ was a lesser diety.

This basically undermined the founding principles of Christianity, and it sparked a huge debate among those who supported Arius, but at the Council of Nicaea most of the priests were just not diggin him.

Nicholas, was poised to become a bishop, replacing his uncle the bishop. He went to the Council and sat with the other priests as Arius took the floor.

According to the story the entire room was just stunned into silence as Arius went on and on. Nicholas was squirming in his chair.

In many ways it really was quite a sacriliage.

Finally, good old St. Nick got up and walked across the room and slapped Arius so hard it knocked the man to his knees.

Nicholas was immediately siezed, jailed, and defrocked himself.

But then, by the legend, all the bishops that were to decide Nicholas punishment all had the same dream in one night of Nicholas being given a bishops robe by Jesus and the Virgin Mary.

And the baliff suppossedly found Nicholas the defrocked priest in a bishops robe, standing in his cell the next morning.

They then voted unnanimiously to elect him the new Bishop.

It was possibly the only act of violence he ever committed. It reminds me of Jesus, in the temple whipping the money lenders.

Each committed just that one act of violence.

With style, I must say.

I think the moral to the story is that some times you should just slap people. Or whip them. I think.

Nothing more Christian than that I guess.

Ummm The End, and Amen.

Tell us another story, I'm not tired yet!

Gates doesn’t rule out Afghanistan troop buildup
He acknowledges unfinished business: closing Gitmo, finding bin Laden

WASHINGTON (AP) - In a year marked by progress in Iraq, Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Friday acknowledged two bits of unfinished business in his first 12 months on the job: He has yet to close the Guantanamo Bay prison or find Osama bin Laden.

Gates held out hope that if security gains hold, U.S. troop levels in Iraq can drop through next year. But with a nod to the increased attacks in parts of Afghanistan, he did not rule out a small uptick in U.S. troops there.

While Gates would not put a specific number on Iraq troop levels, he agreed a consistent reduction over the next 12 months would leave 10 brigades there — or roughly 100,000 troops — soon after American voters go to the polls for the 2008 presidential elections.

"My hope has been that the circumstances on the ground will continue to improve in a way that would — when General (David) Petraeus and the chiefs and Central Command do their analysis in March — allow a continuation of the drawdowns at roughly the same pace as the first half of the year," he said.

more...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22364002/

Evangelical video shows cadets pressured to be missionaries

by Katie Baker
Friday December 21, 2007

A video made by Campus Crusade for Christ, a Christian ministry group, shows Air Force Academy cadets being pressured to participate in religious activities and become "government paid missionaries when they leave."

Mikey Weinstein, president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), which released the video this week, says the video is "absolutely out of control."

"You cannot engage the U.S. government to propel your religion," said Weinstein.

The video, filmed in the summer of 2002, opens with tranquil shots of "Colorado's most frequently visited man-made attraction." The unnamed narrator describes the chapel in detail, which "resembles a formation of fighter jets shooting into the sky."

While the narrator says that students receive a "well-rounded education" at the Academy, the video focuses mainly on how stressful the environment is and not so subtly suggests that cadets can find solace in religion.

"I do a lot of counseling ... like any other college campus, there are a variety of needs that arise... spiritually and emotionally," says Major John Dider, who "considers himself a chaplain first."

"Our purpose for Campus Crusade for Christ at the Air Force Academy is to make Jesus Christ the issue at the Air Force Academy and around the world," says Scott Blum, the former Academy Campus Crusade for Christ director, who had no previous military experience but -- according to the video -- always "knew that God called him to invest in the lives of military men and women."

As a Church choir sings in the background, the video's narrator asserts that "each year, cadets are recognizing God's call which will make an impact in the present ... and for eternity."

more...
http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Evangelical_video_Cadets_pressured_to_be_1221.html

http://www.bushisantichrist.com/

Monkey said

Hey, a good friend of mine has produced a really cool music CD for kids (and adults!), and some of my musician friends in New Orleans are featured on it, including my beloved Radiators! You can hear clips of the tunes on the site as well...
http://www.funkykidzmusic.com/

cool monkey - since I don't do Christmas of any kind you'll have to direct me there again some day so my grandkids can have fun with music their parents will love. Neat.

I would tell you another story Monkey, but it is 33 chapters long.

BTW..Cool tunes!

monkey

I used to deal with the Campus Crusade for Christ, back when I was in college.

Very creepy people, to say the least.

It used to be called KCCC, the K for Korean, but the K dropped when enough non-Koreans showed up.

Fatwa Against The Dollar?
Saturday, December 22, 2007
By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard12/19/07
"The Telegraph" -- --

To all intents and purposes, the Wahabi religious establishment of Saudi Arabia has just issued a fatwa against the US dollar. This bears watching.
A message issued by 26 leading clerics warns that inflation has reached intolerable levels in the Gulf kingdom.
While it does not vilify the dollar explicitly, the apparent political aim is to undermine the country’s dollar peg.
“The rulers should seek to try to remedy this crisis in a way that would ease people’s suffering.”
“We direct this message to the rulers and officials: we remind you of Prophet Mohammad’s words that you are shepherds who are responsible for your flock,” it said.
The statement was posted across the Islamic world. The background to this has been a raging debate in Gulf religious and economic circles about the destructive effects of the sliding dollar.
Among the lead-authors is Sheikh Nasser al-Omar, known for his fatwa against US-led forces in Iraq.
He has long preached the collapse of American-led capitalism, and now sees a perfect moment to plunge the knife. We can guess that al-Qaeda Inc is thinking along the same lines.
My own hunch is that the next al-Qaeda strike will not be a symbolic blow to a great building or city, but rather a carefully-timed economic blow: either by cutting – or trying to cut - the oil jugular, or by trying to precipitate a run on the dollar.
The Gulf pegs are preventing the region from taking action to stop the oil boom spiralling out of control.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article18923.htm

Your Future As A Sharecropper
Death Of The US Dollar
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article18934.htm

Paul Craig Roberts and others talks about the ill health and possible demise of the dollar.
People & Power - Death of the dollar 2 - 19 Dec 07 - Part 1

People & Power - Death of the dollar 2 - 19 Dec 07 - Part 2

New thread.