Building a Better Voter?

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Friday December 01, 2006 · 8:12 AM PST

2006/12/01 · 08:12

Historically, any test or requirement for voting that is not based on one's citizenship status has tended to smack of racism. The Jim Crow laws used literacy tests, poll taxes, and numerous other requirements that tended to disenfranchise minority voters.

Contrast this with what we have today, which is a generally uninformed electorate that seems more concerned with "American Idol" than with Congressional oversight and the doctrine of separation of powers. The political equivalent of "American Idol" is our primary system and nominating conventions. Yet primaries are largely ignored outside of the local coverage, and the nominating conventions are more about political grab-assing and ego masturbation than they are about actually engaging the political process in the manner of Thomas Jefferson or James Madison.

Looking at that, the argument of requiring the electorate to demonstrate more than a passing knowledge with our system of government and political issues starts to sound reasonable.

becca00

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Thursday November 02, 2006 · 5:43 PM PST

2006/11/02 · 17:43

Sitting here tonight, watching "Hardball with Chris Matthews." Matthews had on Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council. He asked Tony about the impact of Kerry's gaffe the other day and Perkins didn't miss the chance to level slander against "liberals."

Tony Perkins: "Many of the liberals just don't have an understanding of how there are people that have such commitment to this country that they would volunteer to defend the ways and the ideas of this nation. And I think those two issues—those two issues—bring back into focus for social conservative what's at stake here. . . . [Y]ou can put those in power who really have no appreciation for the core values of America and then of course you get activist judges."

becca00

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Wednesday November 01, 2006 · 7:47 PM PST

2006/11/01 · 19:47

I'm tired of ignoring this unmitigated disaster. I'm tired of watching the Republicans tear down a democracy that took us 230 years to build. I'm tired of Republicans, period.

No, I'm not that partisan. I'm not partisan at all. I'm a registered independent. I used to be a Republican until the religious conservatives took over. I used to be a Republican until the racists took over. I used to be a Republican until the trappings of power were used as a cudgel to silence dissent and a star chamber in which to conduct witch hunts for sexual indiscretions. I was part of the Republican Revolution in '94. I left the GOP shortly after that--hypocrisy tastes an awful lot like bile. The Republican party of today has as much familiarity with the principles of "personal liberty," "legislative restraint," and "fiscal discipline"--and the principles of our Founding Fathers--as the Three Stooges have familiarity with well planned execution. Read More

CTG: Advertising, Free Speech, and Election Reform

becca00

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Wednesday October 25, 2006 · 11:59 AM PDT

2006/10/25 · 11:59

One of the topics in the political realm that has fascinated me since I started getting involved in politics is election reform. The ideal goal of the electoral process is that any person qualified for office should be able to run. If one is a pauper or a millionaire should not make a difference--it should be the currency of ideas upon which we elect our government, not race-baiting, mud slinging, and overarching juvenalia.

The currency of ideas is the idealists dream. It is my dream, and the dream of the Founding Fathers. Then there's the big bucket of cold water that is lobbyists, special interests, paid advertising, political favors, and political fund raisers.

But we're all about "people powered politics" here, right? Here are some ideas to think over:
Read More

Our National Shame

becca00

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Monday September 11, 2006 · 7:17 PM PDT

2006/09/11 · 19:17

Perhaps its just me, but I find it utterly astounding that after five years of the worst bungling ever of U.S. foreign affairs, the American people are still willing to think in terms of black and white, of moral absolutism, and smug self assuredness that we somehow have a monopoly on knowing what the other guy is thinking. And it seems to be the height of self-aggrandizement to believe that those not "with us," those who "are against us" are consumed with wanting to kill Americans. Read More

Of Atheism, Agnosticism, and Belief

becca00

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Sunday August 20, 2006 · 8:12 AM PDT

2006/08/20 · 08:12

The other day, I listened to a discussion about agnosticism, atheism, and belief. That discussion left me with an observation that I felt a need to bring up.

In advancing the idea of atheism, the argument is usually advanced that there is no proof of the existence of God, so therefore, God does not exist. It can be a very compelling argument in light of what secular science has produced.

The response to the argument for atheism, specifically from the position of a believer, is that basic applied logic dictates that one cannot prove a negative proposition, e.g., I cannot prove that something does not exist. To prove that, I would have to have knowledge of the entire realm of all this is knowable, which is an impossibility. Read More

Is James Dobson A Nazi?

becca00

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Friday August 11, 2006 · 7:54 AM PDT

2006/08/11 · 07:54

Under normal circumstances, such a question might be little more than hyperbole, akin to nothing more than the juvenile hackery of Ann Coulter. However, James Dobson's recent statements regarding Mel Gibson's anti-Semitic tirade raise the question in a legitimate fashion.

In a Denver Post article on Dobson's response to Gibson's rant, Dobson has this to say:

"We certainly do not condone that racially insensitive outburst," Dobson said.

becca00

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday July 11, 2006 · 7:38 AM PDT

2006/07/11 · 07:38

Syd Barrett, original leader of Pink Floyd, has passed away.

Syd Barrett, founder of Pink Floyd, dies

LONDON - Syd Barrett, the troubled genius who co-founded Pink Floyd but spent his last years in reclusive anonymity, has died, a spokeswoman for the band said Tuesday. He was 60.

Modern music owes a whole helluva lot to Syd.

You reached for the secret too soon/ You tried for the moon/ Shine on you crazy diamond ...

Sorry, Sen. Obama, you don't get my support on this

becca00

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Wednesday June 28, 2006 · 3:46 PM PDT

2006/06/28 · 15:46

One of the reasons I left the Republican party years ago was because of their embrace of the evangelicals, the religious right, and the fundamentalists. Being a student of political philosophy, and well-versed in the doctrine of John Locke, Robert Nozick, and many other philosophers, the idea of the comingling of religion and politics is disgusting.

If the Dems are trying to drive people out of the party, or drive people away from progressive ideas and the American dream, then Barack Obama should just keep on this path:
Read More

Welcome to the Center

becca00

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Monday January 30, 2006 · 4:58 PM PST

2006/01/30 · 16:58

At the end of the day today, there will have been much gnashing of teeth and pounding of breasts, all in futile frustration that the whack-a-nut ScAlito will apparently make it through the Senate and sit on the U.S. Supreme Court. The thought of this simply makes me want to wretch.

MSOC has posted a wonderful diary about her disgust with both parties, and I would like to take an opportunity to echo that.

More . . . Read More

The Reasonable Racist

becca00

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Thursday January 05, 2006 · 2:50 PM PST

2006/01/05 · 14:50

[Cross-posted at God is Dead]

Last year I had the opportunity to sit down with a client of mine one day after we had completed an especially arduous task. I don't particularly recall what got us onto the subject, but I do remember his comments. Somewhere along the line, the client made mention of "not being a racist." My ears pricked up because this is usually the first sign of a racist.

Before I get too far into this story, let me tell you a little bit about the town in which I grew up: Peoria, IL. Read More

A Tale of Three Parties

becca00

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday January 02, 2006 · 8:12 AM PST

2006/01/02 · 08:12

Hardly an earth shattering observation, but I have come to have clearer views on the Republican party. No, I'm not turning on the reality-based community. But in fairness and honesty, I can state that I am not entirely opposed to the Republican party. Within the GOP, one can find three wings of the party: I see three parties, three schools of thought, and three entirely different reactions.
Read More

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Building a Better Voter?

Tony Perkins Slanders the Troops

I'm Tired ...

CTG: Advertising, Free Speech, and Election Reform

Our National Shame

Of Atheism, Agnosticism, and Belief

Is James Dobson A Nazi?

Shine on you crazy diamond

Sorry, Sen. Obama, you don't get my support on this

Welcome to the Center

The Reasonable Racist

A Tale of Three Parties