Happy Samhain - Féile na Marbh

Celtic folklore
The Samhain celebrations have survived in several guises as a festival dedicated to the harvest and the dead. In Ireland and Scotland, the Féile na Marbh, the 'festival of the dead' took place on Samhain.

The night of Samhain, in Irish, Oíche Shamhna and Scots Gaelic, Oidhche Shamhna, is one of the principal festivals of the Celtic calendar, and falls on the 31st of October. It represents the final harvest. In modern Ireland and Scotland, the name by which Halloween is known in the Gaelic language is still Oíche/Oidhche Shamhna. It is still the custom in some areas to set a place for the dead at the Samhain feast, and to tell tales of the ancestors on that night.

Traditionally, Samhain was time to take stock of the herds and grain supplies, and decide which animals would need to be slaughtered in order for the people and livestock to survive the winter. This custom is still observed by many who farm and raise livestock.

Bonfires played a large part in the festivities celebrated down through the last several centuries, and up through the present day in some rural areas of the Celtic nations and the diaspora. Villagers were said to have cast the bones of the slaughtered cattle upon the flames. In the pre-Christian Gaelic world, cattle were the primary unit of currency and the center of agricultural and pastoral life. Samhain was the traditional time for slaughter, for preparing stores of meat and grain to last through the coming winter. The word 'bonfire', or 'bonefire' is a direct translation of the Gaelic tine cnámh. With the bonfire ablaze, the villagers extinguished all other fires. Each family then solemnly lit its hearth from the common flame, thus bonding the families of the village together. Often two bonfires would be built side by side, and the people would walk between the fires as a ritual of purification. Sometimes the cattle and other livestock would be driven between the fires, as well.

Divination is a common folkloric practice that has also survived in rural areas. The most common uses were to determine the identity of one's future spouse, the location of one's future home, and how many children a person might have. Seasonal foods such as apples and nuts were often employed in these rituals. Apples were peeled, the peel tossed over the shoulder, and its shape examined to see if it formed the first letter of the future spouse's name. Nuts were roasted on the hearth and their movements interpreted - if the nuts stayed together, so would the couple. Egg whites were dropped in a glass of water, and the shapes foretold the number of future children. Children would also chase crows and divine some of these things from how many birds appeared or the direction the birds flew.

Samhain is the tradition that gave rise to our current day celebrations of Halloween. Samhain (pronounced: sow-en) is a pagan holiday that is celebrated on October 31. It marks the end of Summer and the beginning of Winter.

In the past, Samhain was a festival for the time between the old year and the new year. It was a time for having bonfires and playing tricks. It was also thought a time when people could make contact with departed loved ones and foretell the future.

Today some people have special ceremonies on this day. Some people have parties and other people have special dinners.

One interesting dinner dish is called Colcannon. This dish is made of potatoes and cabbage. Items are put in the dish that are thought to tell the future. Traditionally these items are a thimble (for a spinster), a button (for a bachelor), a ring (for a marriage), and a coin (for prosperity).

The following recipe for a Samhain dish:

Colcannon:
4 cups mashed potatoes, 2 - 1/2 cups cabbage (cooked and chopped
fine), 1/2 cup butter, 3/4 cup onion (chopped very fine and sautéed), 1/4
teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper
Blend all ingredients (except cabbage) over low heat.
Turn the heat to medium and add cabbage (will be slightly green).
Stir occasionally until warm then add fortune items. Stir well.

Some people use decorations for their ceremonies or dinners. Fun things to use for decorating are autumn leaves or flowers, pumpkins, gourds, and autumn fruits and nuts. Candles also make pretty decorations for Samhain.

Happy Halloween

Have a fun and safe one!

Rocky Mountain High for Obama

DENVER, Colo. - The Barack Obama Campaign reached a new political milestone in the Mile High City Sunday. We'll call it a Rocky Mountain High.

More than 100,000 people gathered in Civics Center Park in downtown Denver. The crowd equaled, if not surpassed, the previous record crowd Obama attracted in St. Louis, Missouri on October 18.

The campaign officials and event organizers considered the rally as a tremendous success despite limited publicity and details. Even the location of the volunteers meeting was unknown just four days prior to the rally. However, about 1,500 committed volunteers showed up for training on a Saturday night at Manual High School. Kevin Puleo, Field Director for the Colorado Campaign for Change, described the level of involvement as "unprecedented" and "inspiring." Volunteers were divided between those who would sign potential voters to help Get Out The Vote (GOTV) or with logistical duties of the rally.

The importance of Obama's positive reception was noted.

Getting Out The Vote

Unable to Vote, Non-Citizens and Immigrants Volunteer


The excitement that has made American voter registration numbers soar has trickled deep into the country's immigrant population. But almost two-thirds of the 37.5 million foreign-born people in the United States have not taken the oath of allegiance, and are shut out from casting a ballot.

Non-citizen immigrants, legal or not, are putting their time and their effort where their vote would be. We owe them a word of great thanks.

There are approximately 12.1 million legal permanent residents and 11.8 illegal immigrants in the country. The concerns that are driving some of them to do election work are largely the same ones energizing Americans — the sagging economy, fear of unemployment, worries about health care and the quality of schools.

This is a vote felt around the world. Because the world is effected indirectly or directly with the policies and decisions made in the United States. Already we can be so very proud of early voter turnout this election. It like the election itself will be historical. New immigrants should be encouraged to participate. It was my ancestors who immigrated from Ireland that went on to be Patriots of the American Revolution.

Signed, A Daughter of the American Revolution

Dear Ms. Palin

Written by Fee Tenkiller, Guest Writer for Colorado Hummingbird

Dear Ms. Palin,
I have always wanted to spend more time in your home state of Alaska. Alaska has the largest unspoiled wilderness in the nation and that is a legacy to take delight in. It is a wonderful idea that every Alaskan shares in the ownership of her vast and varied natural resources and can profit from those resources. That must mean that it is a priority of every Governor’s administration to promote the wise and environmentally friendly use of those resources in a truthful and unbiased educational program for all Alaskan citizens and residents so that your people can make wise choices regarding the care of those resources.

I am originally from northeast Oklahoma where we have managed our resources so that we also redistribute the wealth since the 1930s and 1940s. My home region is dominated by the Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees. The lake, created in 1940 by the Pensacola Dam – the longest multiple arch dam in the world (until China completes theirs around 2010) – has 1,300 miles of shoreline and over 46,000 square miles of surface water. It provides a haven for numerous migrating waterfowl, including white pelicans each autumn. The dam’s generators produce around 120 MW of power.



Though the lake has significantly altered the landscape it produces electricity for the entire region without adding hydrocarbons and green house gasses to the atmosphere. When the spillways are open you get a sense of the enormous power of nature and how the Grand River Canyon was carved.

The dam provides electricity for the Cherokee Nation, the Seneca-Cayuga Nation, the Wyandottes, the Quapaw, the Peoria, the Modoc, the Shawnee, the Miami, and the Ottawa and for millions of non-Native peoples too. We sell our electricity to large metropolitan areas like Tulsa and to communities in Kansas, Missouri, and Arkansas that need power. Most of our region did not have electricity until the 1940s when the rest of the United States already had electric. The dam brought our region into the twentieth century. A few communities had their own primitive and dirty coal fired plants but the rural areas (which constitute 87% of the region) were still using kerosene and candles for lighting until the coming of the dam. We got rid of our dependency on coal and made electricity available at a cheap rate to a wider number of people in a time when very people were talking about ecology and the environment.

Guess who owns and runs the dam, the electrical production and the lake, Ms. Palin. The people do! The Grand River Dam Authority is owned and run by the people of northeast Oklahoma for the common good. Oh my, that sounds like socialism doesn’t it? There are no big, private-for-profit corporations running the lake or the company. Surely the region must be in a major depression because as you like to point out, big business does it better.

I hope you are sitting down while you are reading this letter, Ms. Palin. It never seriously occurred to us to let a big commercial enterprise like BP (which you have been eager to award a contract to for drilling and managing the ANWR) operate our facility. While operation of the Grand River Dam Authority has not always been smooth or without periodic controversy, it seems that most of our problems come from communication, maintaining consensus regarding priorities, and the fact that people are in charge of the day to day operations of the lake and dam. In fact, not only has the dam generated electricity for a wide region, it has generated tremendous prosperity as well. The overall cost of living in northeast Oklahoma is among the lowest of any region in the lower 48 states, yet property values have remained healthy and stable for several decades, even during periods of general economic downturn in the rest of the country. The lake provides bountiful recreation and tourist opportunities and a steady flow of cash into communities like Grove, which with a population of 5000 has one of the lowest unemployment rates of any community its size in the nation.

What? You never heard of Grove? It is one of the best kept secrets in the country. It is a wonderful place to retire, especially if you are looking for milder winters in your golden years. But then again, you might not be happy there. Most of the folks there describe themselves as “Yellow Dog Democrats” and that might not be exactly your crowd. A lot of us enjoy sharing the wealth a little too much perhaps for your tastes. Most of us think Karl Marx was Groucho’s younger brother.

Oh, and one more thing. Guess who first proposed building a dam for electrification way back before the First World War? The Cherokee Nation. Yep. Us dumb savages who are always getting in the way of progress.

It has been a pleasure writing to you, Ms. Palin.


Sincerely,

Fee Tenkiller

"

McCain's Scapegoat - Palin

According to Politico Republican presidential nominee Senator John McCain's campaign is looking for a scapegoat. They are looking for someone to blame if McCain loses on Tuesday.

And it has decided on Sarah Palin.

In recent days, a McCain “adviser” told Dana Bash of CNN: “She is a diva. She takes no advice from anyone.” I am not one to stand up for Palin, but maybe she doesn't want to be treated like a piece of meat, a standard treatment for women in McCains life. Also, a “top McCain adviser” remarked saying that Palin is “a whack job.” Oh really there are just figuring this out?


Maybe she is. But who chose to put this “whack job” on the ticket? Wasn’t it John McCain? And wasn’t it his first presidential-level decision?

Imagine not taking advice from the geniuses at the McCain campaign. What could Palin be thinking? Imagine for a moment and this is a tough one, McCain taking responsibility for his own loss. This goes to the heart of him personally. A man who would rather discredit someone else before taking personal responsibility for his failures. This is the kind of Washington, American voters are sick to death of.

Think about it, cause you know may of us have, if you are a 72-year-old presidential candidate, wouldn’t you expect that your running mate’s fitness for high office would come under a little extra scrutiny? And, therefore, wouldn’t you make your selection with care? (To say nothing about caring about the future of the nation?)

McCain didn’t seem to care that much. McCain admitted recently on national TV that he “didn’t know her well at all” before he chose Palin.

But why not? Why didn’t he get to know her better before he made his choice?

It’s not like he was rushed. McCain wrapped up the Republican nomination in early March. He didn’t announce his choice for a running mate until late August.

Wasn’t that enough time for McCain to get to know Palin? Wasn’t that enough time for his crackerjack “vetters” to investigate Palin’s strengths and weaknesses, check through records and published accounts, talk to a few people, and learn that she was not only a diva but a whack job diva?

But McCain picked her anyway. He wanted to close the “enthusiasm gap” between himself and Barack Obama. He wanted to inject a little adrenaline into the Republican National Convention. He wanted to goose up the Republican base.

And so he chose Palin. Is she really a diva and a whack job? Could be. There are quite a few in politics. (And a few in journalism, too, though in journalism they are called “bloggers.”)

As proof that she is, McCain aides now say Palin is “going rogue” and straying from their script. Wow. What a condemnation. McCain sticks to the script. How well is he doing?

In truth, Palin’s real problem is not her personality or whether she takes orders well. Her real problem is that neither she nor McCain can make a credible case that Palin is ready to assume the presidency should she need to.

And that undercuts McCain’s entire campaign.

This was the deal McCain made with the devil. In exchange for energizing his base by picking Palin, he surrendered his chief selling point: that he was better prepared to run the nation in time of crisis, whether it be economic, an attack by terrorists or, as he has been talking about in recent days, fending off a nuclear war.

“The next president won’t have time to get used to the office,” McCain told a crowd in Miami on Wednesday. “I’ve been tested, my friends, I’ve been tested.” I have had several readers tell me if they hear that phrase, "My Friends", come out of McCains mouth one more time...well it's not going to be pretty. The question we have all asked ourselves..is Sarah Palin ready to be tested?

So stand up like a man John McCain and take it on the chin! Take responsibility for your pick of Sarah Palin....and might I add the bad decision of making 'Joe the Plumber' the embodiment of your campaign.

Seriously, did you think we would buy into that?

Are voters really expected to warmly embrace an (unlicensed) plumber who owes back taxes and complains about the possibility of making a quarter million dollars a year? What a tick, cold this be the quintessential Republican? Thanks but no thanks, I am not buying into this either.



Besides did McCain’s aides really believe so little in John McCain’s own likability that they thought Joe the Plumber would be more likable?

Apparently so. Which is sad.

In the end John McCain has nobody to blame but himself.

American Stories, American Solutions

Hero - Barack Obama

Very moving tribute to a very special American.

DressLikePalin.com ~ A Must See!

After the Election...There is always shopping Sarah!

This is really cute. Put up for giggles! When you arrive listen for the "Palin Shopping Messages" If your so inclined...play the game.

What Palin throws in the towel before the election?

In Toledo, Ohio today, Sarah Palin looked a little sad, pathetic really facing the unhappy prospect of defeat, Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin indicated Wednesday that she will not disappear from the national political scene if the GOP ticket loses on Tuesday.

She shouldn't tease us so. But more importantly has this Beauty Queen from Wasilla Alaska lost her nerve? Say it ain't so Sarah...at least until after the election? You know that little important nail for yours and John's coffins.

"Absolutely not. I think that, if I were to give up and wave a white flag of surrender against some of the political shots that we've taken, that ... that would ... bring this whole ... I'm not doing this for naught,"

Which is Palin speak for I am a little ferklempted, I guess. . .

Really Sarah? Just a few days ago you were all fire and brimstone. Why the sad face?
We haven't even had the election yet. Could this be a sign that the McCain Camp is preparing for the inevitable Tuesday next? Perhaps a new strategy coming from a reckless campaign full of holes and rifled with dissension. Perhaps the best thing you can do Sarah Palin is disappear off the National Stage. We have seen you pull out your best stuff and well most of us think that it is time for Attila to go back to Wasilla, or whatever iceberg you can find to hide under. Maybe raise your children.

Cause frankly my dear, we don't give a damn!

There is no one as Irish as Barack O'Bama

I have to admit, it's a new take...but one I will sing to for fun!
Slainte! Mo Chara's!

Labeling - al la Jon Stewart

McCain-Palin for a trip back to the 13th Century!
Jon Stewart helps us through his insight and levity.
You probably need a good laugh about right now, or a cry.

Jesus was a Socialist

That was the headline in this morning's Boston Globe. I had to laugh. I wonder who told John McCain to say that and how he can say that with a straight face. It's right out of Orwell's '1984.'

McCain admitted not very long ago that he does not understand the economy. He just proved it. McCain said, "Now this election comes down to how you want your hard-earned money spent."

Yes it does and that's why I would sooner cut my nose off than vote for another 8 years of political retardation. Let's see. Did I want my hard earned money spent on a quagmire in Iraq? Nope. Am I happy that most of the money went to war profiteers? I think not. Did I enjoy seeing my hard earned money spent on fueling my car? Nope. Was I thrilled that most people didn't get raises in the past 8 years? Not really, no. Did I enjoy watching it evaporate in the stock market? Nope. Why on earth would I want more of the same?

Lip service is cheap John. . .

"Do you want to keep it and invest it in your future, or have it taken by the most liberal person to ever run for the presidency and the Democratic leaders - the most liberal, who have been running Congress for the past two years, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid?" McCain went on, to boos.

"You know, my friends, this is a dangerous threesome."

Obama a liberal? I really ought to purchase hundreds of copies of "1984" and pass them out to undecided voters and see if they make the connection. But alas I don't have that kind of money to piss away anymore. The bankers do. Gee, how did they get all that cash infusion? Socialism? Hmmm.

What does McCain think that Obama is going to do with all our "hard earned" money? He doesn't say. He doesn't say what he would do with it either. Are you surprised?

I think what disappoints me most about my fellow Americans is their willingness to pick up on this new "Marxist" and "socialist" meme put forth by the McCainiacs. Does anyone bother to take statements into context anymore? I wonder if any of the maroons who cheer when McCain or Palin utter the words, "socialist" even know what that means. I doubt it.

Furthermore, many of these knuckleheads who are repeating the "socialist" meme consider themselves "Christian." A Christian implies that they are followers of Jesus. Jesus was such a socialist that it would make their heads explode if they ever bothered to read what he had to say. "Sell all that you have, give it to the poor and follow me," Jesus once said to his disciples. Talk about spreading the wealth. I don't think there's a true Jesus follower among the McCain supporters.

Can I have a amen?

Broken Securities Industry Still Has $20 Billion to Pay Bonuses

The worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, a $700 billion taxpayer bailout, public outcry over excessive pay and the demise of three of the biggest securities firms won't deter Wall Street from offering year-end rewards to employees on top of their salaries, compensation experts say. So as the Government has cleared the way to ship out the first of 125 billion this week to the country's largest banks, beginning the biggest government bailout in history.

We as Americans have to ask why a few questions...
starting with why the industry still has $20 Billion to pay bonuses?

Five straight quarters of losses and a 70 percent slide in its stock this year haven't stopped Merrill Lynch & Co. from allocating about $6.7 billion to pay their bonuses.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley, both still on track for profitable years, have set aside about $13 billion for bonuses after three quarters, down 28 percent from a year ago. Even some employees at Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., which declared the biggest bankruptcy in U.S. history last month, will get the same bonus they received a year ago. What?

The money will go out the door for those institutions early this week," predicts Assistant Treasury Secretary David Nason, one of the chief architects of the rescue plan.

Not only is the money ready to be sent to nine major financial institutions, including Bank of America, Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase, but the government is reaching preliminary agreements with a group of more than a dozen major regional banks, who will share a part of an additional $125 billion the government hopes to pump into the banking system.

However, a long line of other industries are hoping the government will decide to help them as well. Insurance companies, automakers, hedge funds and foreign-owned banks are all making appeals to be included in the rescue package, contending that they need assistance as well. Which is great, now let the feast on the American taxpayer begin.

Where do we draw the line? Some say it should have never started to begin with. Are investment firms willing to meet an angry mob with torches demanding that they forgo their bonuses? Probably not, without Congressional oversight and If you remember when your congresscritters signed at the dotted line they waived much of the oversight so desperately needed in this industry.

So Burn Baby Burn...you have earned it. I suspect they will get what's coming to them one way or another.

Boy 8, Shoots Self With an Uzi at Gun Club

With an instructor watching, an 8-year-old boy at a gun fair aimed an Uzi at a pumpkin and pulled the trigger as his dad reached for a camera in Westfield, Mass.

It was his first time shooting a fully automatic machine gun, and the recoil of the weapon was too much for him. He lost control and fatally shot himself in the head.

Now gun safety experts — and some gun enthusiasts at the club where the shooting happened — are wondering why such a young child was allowed to fire a weapon used in war. Local, state and federal authorities are also investigating whether everyone involved had proper licenses or if anyone committed a criminal act.

Bizilj told the Boston Globe he was about 10 feet behind his son and reaching for his camera when the weapon fired. He said his family avoided the larger weapons, but he let his son try the Uzi because it's a small weapon with little recoil.


The Website for the Gun Club at http://www.wesfieldsportsman.com has been taken down. But reports stated it advertized that, "You will be accompanied to the firing line with a Certified Instructor to guide you. But You Are In Control — "FULL AUTO ROCK & ROLL," the ad said.

The ad also said children under 16 would be admitted free, and both adults and children were offered free .22-caliber pistol and rifle shooting.

Now I ask....what is wrong with this picture? A baby, not weighing enough to handle the recoil off of most guns was allowed to pick up and shoot a uzi! I hope someone holds the father at least responsible for reckless endangerment, if not the gun club instructor himself. This is a tragedy that could have been and should have been avoided.

Palin The Wealth Spreader: Socialism Sarah?

Palin The Wealth Spreader: Gov. Imposed Oil Windfall Profits Tax To Allow Alaskans To ‘Share In The Wealth’

Sarah shouldn't thow rocks when she lives in a glass house.

In recent days, Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK), has begun referring to Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) as “Barack the Wealth Spreader,” referring to his proposed tax plan that would provide greater tax relief for lower income individuals than those with higher incomes. Obama recently explained his support for progressive taxation, saying, “I think when you spread the wealth around, it’s good for everybody.”

Palin contends that Obama’s characterization of his tax plan revealed him to be a “socialist” who wants to “redistribute” American wealth. Palin argues that the Obama tax plan “discourages productivity,” will “punish hardwork,” and will “stifle the entrepreneurial spirit.”

Watch a compilation of Palin’s recent comments about the Obama tax plan:


Conservatives in the media have echoed Palin’s sentiments, insinuating that Obama is a “Marxist” and referring to his tax plan as “welfare.” It is all over Youtube.

But Palin’s criticisms of Obama’s “spread the wealth” remarks are ironic, as she recently characterized Alaska’s tax code in a very similar way. Just last month, in an interview with Philip Gourevitch of the New Yorker, Palin explained the windfall profits tax that she imposed on the oil industry in Alaska as a mechanism for ensuring that Alaskans “share in the wealth” generated by oil companies:

And Alaska—we’re set up, unlike other states in the union, where it’s collectively Alaskans own the resources. So we share in the wealth when the development of these resources occurs. … It’s to maximize benefits for Alaskans, not an individual company, not some multinational somewhere, but for Alaskans.

In fact, Alaska’s Clear and Equitable Share (ACES) program, which manages the redistribution of oil wealth in Alaska, brings in so much money that the state needs no income or sales tax. In addition, this year ACES will provide every Alaskan with a check for an estimated $3,200.

As Hendrick Hertzberg notes, “Perhaps there is some meaningful distinction between spreading the wealth and sharing it…but finding it would require the analytic skills of Karl the Marxist.”

Why is Palin talking about her wardrobe?

The McCain people are not happy that Sarah brought this up. It keeps their misdeeds in the media just that much longer. What does this women think? No one tapes her rallies? Her own people do. All the news organizations. She just wants to feel better about herself. Thus the confession.

Well Sarah, you should have said,'Thanks but no thanks,' to begin with my dear when you were approached and taken shopping. You compromised your 'values' the ones you say you have. You became a whore for the GOP. They had to clean you up to make you presentable. But as we see it didn't quite have the effect they hoped.

So if you would like help packing your clothes for you trip back to Wasilla. I know a great many women who are over-qualified, unlike you, but would generously and happily help you pack.

Oh by the way Sarah...Your husband Todd's Mother is Yup'ik? How can you look her in the face after what you have done to the Yup'ik in Alaska? Shame on you. They do not support you. In fact a Native American friend today commented to me that all Native peoples feel they owe you some gratitude....as a result of your record in Alaska, Indian voter turn-out AGAINST you will be at a record high.

A McCain-Palin Presidency - Two 500 lbs. Gorillas

Alaska enters its 50th-anniversary year in the glow of an improbable and highly memorable event: the nomination of Gov. Sarah Palin as the Republican vice presidential candidate. For the first time ever, an Alaskan is making a serious bid for national office, and in doing so she brings broad attention and recognition not only to herself, but also to the state she leads.

Alaska's founders were optimistic people, but even the most farsighted might have been stretched to imagine this scenario. No matter the outcome in November, this election will mark a signal moment in the history of the 49th state. Many Alaskans are proud to see their governor, and their state, so prominent on the national stage.

Gov. Palin's nomination clearly alters the landscape for Alaskans as we survey this race for the presidency -- but it does not overwhelm all other judgment. The election, after all is said and done, is not about Sarah Palin, and my sober view is that her running mate, Sen. John McCain, is the wrong choice for president at this critical time for our nation.

Sen. Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee, brings far more promise to the office. In a time of grave economic crisis, he displays thoughtful analysis, enlists wise counsel and operates with a cool, steady hand. The same cannot be said of Sen. McCain.

Since his early acknowledgement that economic policy is not his strong suit, Sen. McCain has stumbled and fumbled badly in dealing with the accelerating crisis as it emerged. He declared that "the fundamentals of our economy are strong" at 9 a.m. one day and by 11 a.m. was describing an economy in crisis. He is both a longtime advocate of less market regulation and a supporter of the huge taxpayer-funded Wall Street bailout. His behavior in this crisis -- erratic is a kind description -- shows him to be ill-equipped to lead the essential effort of reining in a runaway financial system and setting an anxious nation on course to economic recovery.

Sen. Obama warned regulators and the nation 19 months ago that the subprime lending crisis was a disaster in the making. Sen. McCain backed tighter rules for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but didn't do much to advance that legislation. Of the two candidates, Sen. Obama better understands the mortgage meltdown's root causes and has the judgment and intelligence to shape a solution, as well as the leadership to rally the country behind it. It is easy to look at Sen. Obama and see a return to the smart, bipartisan economic policies of the last Democratic administration in Washington, which left the country with the momentum of growth and a budget surplus that President George Bush has squandered.

On the most important issue of the day, Sen. Obama is a clear choice.

Sen. McCain describes himself as a maverick, by which he seems to mean that he spent 25 years trying unsuccessfully to persuade his own party to follow his bipartisan, centrist lead. Sadly, maverick John McCain didn't show up for the campaign. Instead we have candidate McCain, who embraces the extreme Republican orthodoxy he once resisted and cynically asks Americans to buy for another four years.

It is Sen. Obama who truly promises fundamental change in Washington. You need look no further than the guilt-by-association lies and sound-bite distortions of the degenerating McCain campaign to see how readily he embraces the divisive, fear-mongering tactics of Karl Rove. And while Sen. McCain points to the fragile success of the troop surge in stabilizing conditions in Iraq, it is also plain that he was fundamentally wrong about the more crucial early decisions. Contrary to his assurances, we were not greeted as liberators; it was not a short, easy war; and Americans -- not Iraqi oil -- have had to pay for it. It was Sen. Obama who more clearly saw the danger ahead.

The unqualified endorsement of Sen. Obama by a seasoned, respected soldier and diplomat like Gen. Colin Powell, a Republican icon, should reassure all Americans that the Democratic candidate will pass muster as commander in chief.

Gov. Palin has shown the country why she has been so successful in her young political career. Passionate, charismatic and indefatigable, she draws huge crowds and sows excitement in her wake. She has made it clear she's a force to be reckoned with, and you can be sure politicians and political professionals across the country have taken note. Her future, in Alaska and on the national stage, seems certain to be played out in the limelight.

Yet despite her few formidable gifts, very few who have worked closely with the governor would argue she is truly ready to assume command of the most important, powerful nation on earth. To step in and juggle the demands of an economic meltdown, two deadly wars and a deteriorating climate crisis would stretch the governor beyond her range. Like picking Sen. McCain for president, putting her one 72-year-old heartbeat from the leadership of the free world is just too risky at this time

Putting someone in charge of the Department of Agriculture just because they like cows speaks volumes about Sarah's judgement or lack thereof. Should she become president, I'm sure that we'll have a boat lover as Secretary of the Navy. I can't help but wonder if she ever considers something called qualifications.



Let's just hope this rookie politician and clothes horse hockey mom doesn't end up as VP. That would mean that McCain, who was second from the bottom is his graduating class at the Naval Academy, would be President. With those two in office, it would be like having two 500 lb. gorillas on training wheels for Commander in Chief and Vice President.

Senator Stevens of Alaska Guity on All 7 Charges

A US court on Monday found Ted Stevens of Alaska, a Republican senator of 40 years, guilty of corruption one week before he is up for reelection in the narrowly-divided US Senate. Stevens, 84, was convicted on all seven counts of making false statements on mandatory financial disclosure forms he filed between 1999 and 2006.

The Alaska senate seat, long considered safely Republican, now seems vulnerable: Democrats are banking on big gains in the Senate in the November 4 election, where five or six seats in the 100 strong-chamber are likely to change hands.

The Democrats are hoping to hit the magic 60 seats barrier needed to pass major legislation and the power to break Republican filibuster legislation delaying tactics. They currently enjoy a 51-49 edge in the 100-seat Senate, with the help of two independents.

In recent opinion polls Stevens, the longest-serving Republican in the US Senate, trailed his Democratic challenger, Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich, by less than one percentage point. Stevens was found guilty of accepting gifts from a company known as VECO, an Alaska-based firm which provides oil field support, between 1999 and
2006. He was convicted of receiving more than 250,000 dollars worth of gifts, mainly in material and labor that doubled the size of one of his homes. Two VECO executives pleaded guilty last year to bribing government officials, including an unnamed state senator.

Stevens, who has served in the US Senate since December 1968, is one of the body's most powerful Republicans, with seats on the Appropriations, Defense, and other committees. He has temporarily relinquished his committee vice chairmanships.

The charges normally carry a sentence of several years in prison, but Stevens is likely to get less due to his age.

The next question any intelligent person might have is will he continue to run for Senate. The answer is of course he will, he and his lawyers will have this tied up in appeals long after he is dead. Only Alaskan voters can put him out of office.

Average Hockey Mom?

$150,000 -- Amount the Republican National Committee spent on clothes for Sarah Palin at stores like Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue

$21,012 -- Amount Palin charged the state for travel by her daughters on "official" state business

2 -- Nights that Palin's daughters spent at state expense in a Fairbanks hotel so they could be present when dad finished the Iron Dog snowmachine race

$707 -- Cost the state paid, per night, for the New York City hotel where Palin and her daughter stayed

0 -- Times Tony Knowles says he billed the state for "official" travel by his school-age children during his eight years in office

$17,000 -- Per diem Palin collected from the state when working from her home in Wasilla instead of Juneau

$0 -- Federal taxes the Palins have paid on that per diem or state reimbursements for their daughters' travel

55% -- Respondents who said Palin was not qualified to serve as president if necessary, according to an Oct. 22 poll

Sources: Daily News wire services.

The Christian Right and Barack Obama

P.S. No Christians were harmed in the writing of this article

From an imagined look into the future to an imagined look into the past, where Christians where actually not killed in the coliseum in Rome. Many Christians today are pretty good voicing their concerns about feeling persecuted or martyred for their faith. But seriously, this look into the future is part of an escalation in rhetoric from Christian right activists who are trying to paint Obama in the worst possible terms as the campaign heads into the final stretch and polls show the Democrat ahead.

They are so concerned in fact they have predicted Terrorist strikes on Four American cities. Russia rolling into Eastern Europe. Israel hit by a nuclear bomb. Gay marriage in every state. The end of the Boy Scouts. All are plausible scenarios if Democrat Barack Obama is elected president, according to a new addition to the campaign conversation called "Letter from 2012 in Obama's America," produced by the conservative Christian group Focus on the Family.

The only thing they aren't predicting is dogs and cats having sex with each other in churches and mass hysteria all over the country. Seriously.

I think Christians Evangelicals are tired — like most of people at this point in the election — and rhetoric which is fear-based, strong-arms the listener, and states opinion as fact will only polarize rather than further the informed, balanced discussion that voters are hungry for. After awhile we are all asking just what is true anymore. We have been lied to so much these past 8 years, Americans know that their vote is important, but the message as to why gets distorted by those with different agendas. Like the Far Christian Right.

I can hardly wait until the election is over so some sense of normalcy can be restored to society who has been on a roller coaster ride with the economy, high prices that effect our families, and the political campaigning.


This scene actually never took place.

Sometimes I think we all feel a bit persecuted when it comes to politicians wanting our pocket books and our vote.

Photograph Your Polling Place

The Polling Place Photo Project is a nationwide experiment in citizen journalism that encourages voters to capture, post and share photographs of this year’s primaries, caucuses and general election. By documenting local voting experiences, participants can contribute to an archive of photographs that captures the richness and complexity of voting in America.

Check It Out Here

This could be a fun way to capture this historical election. I will be there with my camera. Vote...bring your camera and participate in life!

McCain Supporter Attack Story False

A McCain campaign volunteer made up a story of being robbed, pinned to the ground and having the letter "B" scratched on her face in a politically inspired attack, police said Friday ASHLEY TODD a 20-year-old college student from College Station, Texas, admitted Friday that the story was false and was being charged with making a false report to police, said Maurita Bryant, the assistant chief of the police department's investigations division. Police doubted her story from the start, Bryant said.

Todd, who is white, told police she was attacked by a 6-foot-4 black man Wednesday night. She now can't explain why she invented the story, Bryant said.Todd initially told investigators she was attempting to use a bank branch ATM when the man approached her from behind, put a knife with a 4- to 5-inch blade to her throat and demanded money. She told police she handed the assailant $60 and walked away.

Todd told investigators that she suspected the man then noticed a John McCain sticker on her car, became angry and punched her in the back of the head, knocking her to the ground and telling her "you are going to be a Barack supporter," police said.

She said he continued to punch and kick her while threatening "to teach her a lesson for being a McCain supporter," police said. She said he then sat on her chest, pinned her hands down with his knees and scratched a backward letter "B" into her face with a dull knife.

Bryant said somebody charged with making a false report would typically be cited and sent a summons. But because police have concerns about Todd's mental health, they are consulting with the Allegheny County District Attorney. She remained in custody and was awaiting arraignment.

Todd worked in New York for the College Republican National Committee before moving two weeks ago to Pennsylvania, where her duties included recruiting college students, the committee's executive director, Ethan Eilon, has said.

Miss Todd, by doing this buys into the century's old racist attitudes of black men always attacking white women. We could just dismiss this as just another crazy McCain-Palin supporter, but we can't because it is a play from the racists handbook. This is a sign that Miss Todd personally needs counseling and follow-up. It is further dangerous because it is this kind of crime and the hatefrul hysteria it creates, puts other innocent people in harms way. The mentality of the mob has ruled in to many of these kinds of cases.

Let us work for peace and understanding.

Douche Bag of The Week Award

This weeks Honorary Douche Bag Award goes to John McCain's Brother, Joe McCain. Joe appears to like his brother John have a potty mouth and anger issues as was recorded in a 9-11 call to a police depatch officer.
Snipet:
He called the police emergency line because he was angry he was stuck in traffic.

The 911 call came into the City of Alexandria on Oct. 21st That's creating some buzz because it appears to come from Joe McCain, John McCain's brother.

Operator: 911 state your emergency.

Caller: It's not an emergency but do you know why on one side at the damn drawbridge of 95traffic is stopped for 15 minutes and yet traffic's coming the other way?

Operator: Sir, are you calling 911 to complain about traffic? (pause)

Caller: "(Expletive) you." (caller hangs up)

The complaint call about traffic on the Wilson Bridge, outrageous enough that the 911operator called back. The voicemail on the other end, appears to belong to Joe McCain, brother of presidential candidate, John McCain.

"Hi this is Joe McCain I can't take this message now because I'm involved in a very (inaudible) important political project... I hope on Nov. 4th we have elected John."



But that wasn't all. McCain apparently called 911 again, to complain about the message the operator just left him, warning him such use of 911 is criminal.

Appears to be Joe McCain: Somebody gave me this riot act about the violation of police.

Operator: Did you just call 911 in reference to this?

Appears to be Joe McCain: Yeah.

Operator: 911 is to be used for emergencies only not just because you're sitting in traffic.

Walking the Walk - Priceless

Check out her scarf. Apparently nobody told her thhe icon of a donkey = democrats before she spent $2,000 on this lovely fashion accessory.





Just how dumb does this woman have to be here?






Barack Obama proves he is the man for the job, again.

Jon Stewart and 'Political Consultants'

Jon Stewart - The only man I ever really loved
(besides my current boyfriend)





and for everything else, there is Master Card!

HBO's Movie 'RECOUNT'

This looks like another good one from HBO. Although, for some of us a bit painful to relive. Somehow I can't help but think we may be reliving the nightmare again, this November. I hope this gets your blood moving and you remember the fight isn't over sometimes until the Supreme Court sings.

Oil Found in Montana's Bakken Formation

The U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey has estimated 3.0 to 4.3 billion barrels of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil in the area know as the Bakken Formation.

A U.S. Geological Survey assessment, released April 10, of this years shows a 25-fold increase in the amount of oil that can be recovered compared to the agency's 1995 estimate of 151 million barrels of oil. It was a revised report which had not been updated since '95 on how much oil was in this area of the western 2/3 of
North Dakota ; Western South Dakota ; and extreme Eastern Montana.



Which is good news for you and me. If they get it out of the ground. At the time of the assessment, a limited number of wells have produced oil from three of the assessments units in Central Basin-Poplar Dome, Eastern Expulsion Threshold, and Northwest Expulsion Threshold. The Elm Coulee oil field in Montana, discovered in 2000, has produced about 65 million barrels of the 105 million barrels of oil recovered from the Bakken Formation.

The Bakken is the largest domestic oil discovery since Alaska 's Prudhoe Bay , and has the potential to eliminate all American dependence on foreign oil. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates it at 503 billion barrels. Even if just 10% of the oil is recoverable... we're looking at a resource base of trillions of dollars.

This sizable find is now the highest-producing onshore oil field found in the past 56 years,' reports The Pittsburgh Post Gazette. It's a formation known as the Williston Basin , but is more commonly referred to as the 'Bakken.' And it stretches from Northern Montana, through North Dakota and into Canada For years, U.S.oil exploration has been considered a dead end. Even the 'Big Oil' companies gave up searching for major oil wells decades ago. However, a recent technological breakthrough ha s opened up the Bakken's massive reserves... and we now have access of up to 500 billion barrels. And because this is light, sweet oil, those billions of barrels will cost Americans just $16 PER BARREL!

That's enough crude to fully fuel the American economy for 41 years
straight.

Palin Claims VP is "In Charge of The U.S. Senate"

Yesterday, Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) sat for an interview with KUSA, an NBC affiliate in Denver Colorado. In response to a question sent to the network by a third grader at a local elementary school about what the Vice President does. . .

Q: Brandon Garcia wants to know, “What does the Vice President do?”

What Palin says here should concern everyone. When is she going to get this question right is my concern. Maybe we should start asking her what she thinks a President does just in case she ends up with the job.

For the Record:

Article I of the Constitution establishes an exceptionally limited role for the Vice President — giving the office holder a vote only when the Senate is “equally divided”:

The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no vote, unless they be equally divided.

In modern practice the Vice President doesn’t really control the Senate. … If anyone has a responsibility to try to govern the Senate, it’s the responsibility of the two leaders in each house. Someone please hand this woman a constitutional law book. It seems to be too late for her to take an American government class.

I mean really.

What Do These Guys Have in Common?

Is it just me, or does anyone else notice a scary similarity between two Senators from Arizona?

Thoughts?

Palin Brought Kids at Alaska's Expense

WHOSE MINDING THE PALIN KIDS?


AP Investigation probe finds that Governor Sarah Palin was sticking it to the State of Alaska for the travel, hotel and other related costs, which she later amended to show on expense reports to specify as "official business."

The charges included costs for hotel and commercial flights for three daughters to join Palin to watch their father in a snowmobile race, and a trip to New York, where the governor attended a five-hour conference and stayed with 17-year-old Bristol for five days and four nights in a luxury hotel.

In all, Palin has charged the state $21,012 for her three daughters' 64 one-way and 12 round-trip commercial flights since she took office in December 2006. In some other cases, she has charged the state for hotel rooms for the girls.

Alaska law does not specifically address expenses for a governor's children. The law allows for payment of expenses for anyone conducting official state business.

As governor, Palin justified having the state pay for the travel of her daughters — Bristol, 17; Willow, 14; and Piper, 7 — by noting on travel forms that the girls had been invited to attend or participate in events on the governor's schedule.

But some organizers of these events said they were surprised when the Palin children showed up uninvited, or said they agreed to a request by the governor to allow the children to attend.

Several other organizers said the children merely accompanied their mother and did not participate. The trips enabled Palin, whose main state office is in the capital of Juneau, to spend more time with her children. Here Palin should have paid her children's expenses. But I guess when your Queen Sarah and in Alaska, anything goes.

It looks as if Mama Bear Palin is going to get caught in her own trap as her family's tax records had to be released as part of her vice presidential campaign. Here some tax experts questioned why she did not report the children's state travel reimbursements as income? We wonder the same thing Ms Alaska.



Snap...did you hear that trap going down.

The Palins released a review by a Washington attorney who said state law allows the children's travel expenses to be reimbursed and not taxed when they conduct official state business. But here is the fishy catch. Her children were not invited.

In October 2007, Palin brought daughter Bristol along on a trip to New York for a women's leadership conference. Plane tickets from Anchorage to La Guardia Airport for $1,385.11 were billed to the state, records show, and mother and daughter shared a room for four nights at the $707.29-per-night Essex House hotel, which overlooks Central Park.

In January, the governor, Willow and Piper showed up at the Alaska Symphony of Seafood Buffet, an Anchorage gala to announce winners of an earlier seafood competition.

"She was just there," said James Browning, executive director of Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation, which runs the event. Griffin said the governor's office received an invitation that was not specifically addressed to anyone.
When Palin amended her children's expense reports, she listed a role for the two girls at the function — "to draw two separate raffle tickets."

Boy Alaska got it's money's worth there people.

The organizer of an American Heart Association luncheon on Feb. 15 in Fairbanks said Palin asked to bring daughter Piper to the event, and the organizer said she was surprised when Palin showed up with daughters Willow and Bristol as well.

How precious. Hey Sarah, it's called DAYCARE. You wanted the both the Mommy-Track and the Big Career Track. I think it is time you start paying for the care of your five children.



God Forbid the Secret Service has become Nanny's to the Palin Brood.

The state is already reviewing nearly $17,000 in per diem payments to Palin for more than 300 nights she slept at her own home, 40 miles from her satellite office in Anchorage. I guess she had to go home so she could watch the Russians.

Joe Biden & The Violence Against Women Act

It is person like Senator Joe Biden, who is a true public servant and an advocate for women, that we need in the White House.



John McCain voted against this legislation. McCain does not understand the needs of women in our country. Joe Biden worked hard and finally got this legislation passed under the Clinton Administration in 1992. Many women owe a debt of gratitude that cannot be adequately expressed because of the caring work of Joe Biden.

To this I add the following sentiment so beautifuly stated by a feminist in 1772


"The divine rights of husbands, like the devine right of Kings, may, it is hoped, in this enlighteneded age, be contested without danger" Mary Wollstonecraft, 1792, Chapter 3, Vindication of the Rights of Women.

Joe Biden has my respect, my deepest thanks, and my vote. John McCain and Sarah Palin my comtempt for their lack of respect for the rights of women.

Palin - "A Little Wasilla" for America a la Jon Stewart

Sarah Palin is the most pathetic woman in America right now. Why you ask? Because she isn't qualified to be Vice President of The United States of America. She moreover is more unqualified to be President. My God, what were the idiots who came up with her as a candidate thinking? Maybe they were on meth?

The point is we are not on drugs or in some religious cult like she comes from... and we are going to the polls.

Wasilla Alaska is a joke as is Ms. Secessionist, Sarah Palin.

A Muslim American Hero

The New York Times has more on Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, a Muslim U.S. soldier who died in Iraq. Khan was referenced by Powell this morning to illustrate the point that being labeled a “Muslim” should not be deemed a smear. The photo Powell referenced:



General Colin Powell gave a moving tribute to this fallen American hero, who just happened to be Muslim. We must begin a dialogue to explore and someday solve the issues of race and religion division that tear at the very fabric of our country.

"WE MUST PULL TOGETHER BEFORE WE ARE TORN APART."

Hockey Moms Turn on Palin

Well it seems these Hockey Moms feel Sarah Palin's has let them down. Lipstick and all. If elected they won't be the only ones let down by the "Pitbull in Lipstick!"

Racism Alive After Powells Endorsement of Barack Obama

This weekend as many of you already know General Colin Powell endorsed Senator Barack Obama for President. Now you knew this was likely to generate some response. The level of response has reached new levels of racist diatribe like I haven't heard in years...at least on television. We examine the fecal remarks of Rush Limbaugh and Pat Buchanan where no one is surprised although disgusted that such racist reference would be made.
This really takes the cake here on George Wills Weekly Show:




My response to this comment is simply this: I will feel good to vote the man I want to be President of my country, you obtuse racist!

I had no idea we still had such neanderthals running around on the planet. Nor that they were given a moment on televison show from which to spread so much stupidity!

Beware of Robo-Calls from the GOP

The McCain-Palin campaign and the Republican National Committee launched a massive robocall campaign last Thursday designed to alarm voters about Barack Obama's past association with former radical Bill Ayers.

The call begins: "Hello. I'm calling for John McCain and the RNC," before telling recipients that they "need to know that Barack Obama has worked closely with domestic terrorist, Bill Ayers, whose organization bombed the U.S. Capitol, the Pentagon, a judge's home, and killed Americans."

More remarkable than the message (coming after a presidential debate in which John McCain said he didn't care about a "washed up terrorist") is the reach of the campaign itself. People around the country received dozens of emails from voters who had either received the call or gotten a voice mail with a recording. Reports came from Ohio, Colorado, New Mexico, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Missouri, North Carolina, Florida, Texas, West Virginia, Maine and even Georgia. Now that's what I call desperate.

Several readers in Minnesota also reported receiving the call, which could be a violation of that state's laws. Explains Shaun Dakin, CEO & Founder of the National Political Do Not Contact Registry.

"Most robocalls are supposed to have two things, "paid for by X" and a phone number of the group making the call. Most do that. Now, that being said, there are some states that have their own robocall laws and they are much stricter. Minnesota pretty much bans robocalls entirely unless they are introduced by a human voice. And that pretty much never happens because it defeats the point."

The RNC did not immediately return request for comment. Here's audio of the call:



Vic from New Mexico wrote: "I just received [a robocall] from McCain and the RNC, calling Obama a 'terrorist' after McCain's claim at the debates that he's not running a negative campaign."

Ali in Missouri wrote: "I have already received two McCain calls. The one yesterday was relatively benign but the one today linked Obama directly to the 'terrorist Bill Ayers,' describing Ayers' violent activities."

Kimberly in Virginia writes: "I would like to feel shocked by the offensive nature of the message, but can't say that I am that surprised, given the Republican tactics of the last month, and the last eight years."

Kirk in Wisconsin emailed: "My guess is it will cost McCain 2 votes for each one he gets." Let's only hope.

Multiple readers wrote that they had been receiving robocalls from Republican sources well before the recent wave, and that those calls were mild in comparison. A reader in Colorado said he recently received a call about Obama's association with ACORN. A self-described independent in Colorado said she has been receiving "an average of about 10 calls a week, almost exclusively from Republicans." Others recalled getting calls about Obama and his Hollywood friends.

They are playing dirty. Remember that when you step into the voting booth. You may need a some germ killing jel for your hands or be so disgusted you may want to bathe when you get home.

A Country Divided by Politics

Sarah Palin was campaigning in North Carolina where she implied that "small towns are the real America and the most pro-American." I took exception to that.

“We believe, we believe that the best of America is in these small towns that we get to visit, and in these wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America, being here with all of you hard-working, very patriotic, pro-America areas of this great nation. This is where we find the kindness and the goodness and the courage of everyday Americans: those who are running our factories and teaching our kids and growing our food and are fighting our wars for us, those who are protecting us in uniform, those who are protecting the virtues of freedom”, said Palin.

As a resident of the largest city in Colorado with a population in the Denver Metro area of 2.3 million (yes, you read that right. It's more than Alaska), I'd have to say that we are just as pro-America as any other place. We have so many immigrants that sometimes you wonder what country you're in, but I have to say that that the immigrants are so darn happy to be here and remind me on a daily basis of what a great country this is. We are blessed.

I wonder why so many immigrants would come HERE to my town of all places, but they tell me that there is no work or no fairness where they came from or how violent things are where they lived and how great things are here even though our taxes are among the highest in the country.

There are 16 families on my block. 5 of them (that I know of) are originally from other countries: India, England, Italy, Palestine, and Spain. My daughters got to attend school with kids from all over the world. How lucky we are to be surrounded by hardworking decent people who are participating in a the great experiment called the United States. There are plenty of us brunnetes who were born here too and we are not chopped liver, Mrs. Secessionist.

We fight wars too. My city has sent more kids off to war than the state of Alaska has. We probably funded more of the Iraq war than the whole state of Alaska. So what's her point?

Every place in this country is real America. Every place in the country has hardworking people and families and kids and teachers and factory workers who make sacrifices and work towards the betterment of their communities and the country as a whole.

We do allow guns here, but that doesn't make us bad people. With all the hunters here it is not wonder with all that heat people pack in my state someone isn't shot everyday. We have lots of room here which is why people keep moving to Colorado. Does that make us un-American in Palin's eyes? We also have the lowest crime rate in the country. So put that in your pipe, Barbie, and smoke it.

It's no wonder that my area has gone from one of the reddest states in the nation to one that sees the beauty of being one of the bluest in recent years, what with the diatribe that the GOP feeds us about "real" America, who needs that kind of disrespect? I mean, really.

Color me blue and pissed at Palin, AGAIN.

A Moving Performance

The Declaration of Independence was first published in full, outside North America by the Belfast Newsletter on the 23rd of August,1776. A copy of the document was being transported to London via ship when bad weather forced the vessel to port at Derry. The document was then carried on horseback to Belfast for the continuation of its voyage to England, whereupon a copy was made for the Belfast newspaper.


As a decendant of several Irish Patriots of the Revolution, I can't help but reflect in the meaning to me of the stop over in Ireland. We have much to write about, endless problems which must be confronted in our country today. But so did our founding Fathers and Mothers, and they had less to do it with than you or I. As an American, I am proud to convey the history and tradition of my country to the next generation.

Joe the Plumber Found Leaking

If you ever find that you are referenced in a national political debate, my advice to you is to run and hide. Newsman and photographers found "Joe the Plumber", who Senator McCain referenced in the Final Presidential Debate last night. He indeed does exist and is not happy to be the hardworking American from Holland Ohio. In fact, Joe the Plumber's story sprang a few leaks Thursday.

Turns out that the man mentioned 24 times, who was held up by John McCain as the typical, hard-working American taxpayer isn't really a licensed plumber. And court documents show he owes nearly $1,200 in back taxes.

"Joe," whose name is Samuel J. Wurzelbacher, was cited repeatedly in Wednesday night's final presidential debate by McCain for questioning Barack Obama's tax policy. Turns out Joe doesn't even make the $250,000 that McCain said he did.

The burly, bald man acknowledged he doesn't have a plumber's license, but said he didn't need one because he works for someone else at a company that does residential work. But Wurzelbacher still would need to be a licensed apprentice or journeyman to work in Toledo, and he's not, said David Golis, manager and residential building official for the Toledo Division of Building Inspection.

Ooops!

And then there is the matter of his taxes.

Wurzelbacher owes the state of Ohio $1,182.98 in personal income tax, according to Lucas County Court of Common Pleas records. In January 2007, Ohio's Department of Taxation filed a claim on his property until he pays the debt, according to the records. The lien remains active.

So poor Joe, is probably really sorry he visited with anyone. McCain, remember is the man who brought up "Joe the plumber," "He's trying to suggest that a plumber is the guy he's fighting for," Obama said. "How many plumbers you know that are making a quarter-million dollars a year?"

Bad move on McCain's part. I think Joe the Plumber would agree.

McCain and Prairie Dogs - My PSA

Above is the one of the most widely viewed clip on the Internet today.

Below a recreation for those who need to laugh.


We all need a good laugh once in awhile for just plain mental health.

Obama-Ayers Connection: In defense of Barack Obama

(Pictured: Bill Ayers and wife, Bernardine Dohrn)

In Defense of Barack Obama over Bill Ayers:

The right-wing and the McCain campaign continue to push the Barack Obama-Bill Ayers association because, truly, it is the last desperate, craven move they can make to slow the Obama train before it smashes them like a herd of deer on the tracks at the wrong time. It's an idiotic move because, unlike every other specious attempt to take down a Democrat with lies and insinuation, it doesn't involve an actual action by the candidate. Think about it: Willie Horton? Well, Michael Dukakis did support the furlough program as governor. Bill Clinton? Well, he did have sex with that woman. Max Cleland? Well, he did want union protection for Homeland Security employees. It was all spin and b.s, yes, but it was at least based on things the actual candidates actually did.

Not so with Ayers. As Keith Olbermann and Obama flack Robert Gibbs have shown, once you start to go down the road of "people what you know," that way lies madness.

But these Republican bastards are not letting it go. The McCain campaign released an online ad that flatly asserts that Obama is unfit to be president because he knows William Ayers, even quoting such unbiased sources as the National Review to impugn Obama's work on a charitable organization. Dick "Hooker Toe Sucker" Morris and Eileen McGann say that "Barack Obama should have run screaming at the sight of William Ayers" in the mid-1990s. Morris and McGann also say that the only reason Ayers and his wife didn't go to jail for the bombings they were involved in as part of the Weather Underground was that the charges were thrown out for illegal FBI evidence gathering. Did anyone consider that Obama was only eight years old when Bill Ayers was involved in his violence against society.

They leave out the fact that Ayers turned himself in.


In fact, by the mid-1990s, when Obama encountered him, Ayers was a major figure in the field of education, a professor at the University of Illinois, Chicago, who was routinely praised by Chicago Mayor Richard Daley for his work on elementary and early childhood education. In other words, in the dark ages before the Google began working its stalker-like miracles, who the fuck cared who Ayers was? He was the dude who wrote books on empowering students in the classroom and on problems with the juvenile justice system.

Oh, yeah. Big bad radical bomber William Ayers just got elected to the faculty senate at UIC. No doubt when he votes on changes to the prerequisites for computer science courses, it'll be with an itchy trigger finger. Ayers' story is a powerful one - from activist revolting against the system to activist learning to use the system so he can cause change. What pisses off conservatives is that he's unrepentant. He hasn't begged forgiveness from the public. He hasn't admitted regret for his actions. He has simply decided that bombs weren't the way to create revolution. That it can happen by teaching teachers to show their students, especially kids in poverty, how to be active, engaged citizens, which in these days of sheep-like complacency is revolutionary indeed. And terrifying to those currently holding power. I would say Bill Ayers is walking talking proof of reform and how one institutes change in society.

Choice?

This spot aired after the debate last night.

Play Nice Boyz?

Who is he kidding? McCain has spent every angry breath slandering Obama. In fact I hear Obama talk about his plans and ideas and McCain telling us constantly what he wants us to think Obama said. McCain is an angry, whining sorry excuse for a candidate.


People, please...

don't buy into McCain's story here.. The pathetic story he tells here is all show. He isn't wounded. But Palin not repudiating the people who call for violence against Obama at her rallies are now being watched by the Secret Service. Palin just smiles through it and it makes me want to vomit. She is a wing nut and she attracts wing nuts to her rallies.


Remember the WORLD is watching.
Let's change the laundry at the White House and throw the Republicans out with the bath water!

Dumbstruck John McCain

John McCain has always spent most of the last three debates telling you and me what Senator Obama is going to cost us, do to us, tax us, hurt us. Well, John...you just got owned.

P.S. We don't believe you have a friend who is a plumber...

Senator McCain and George W. Bush

Take a listen...I think they are twins! At the very least clones!



What part of... We do not want more of the last 8 years McCain, do you not understand? You sounded like a broken record.

NO BUSH...
NO MCCAIN...

McCain's New-New-New-New Direction

A la Jon Stewart...of course!

..

Only Jon Stewart can look such failure in the face and make us laugh.

Support Obama/Biden 08