I Am Voting Now
Mon Nov 06, 2006 at 08:58:12 PM PDT
I am voting now. Right after I whittle down my Dixon(r) No.2 school boy pencil, I'll be reading the last pass of comments FOR and comments AGAINST and I will be voting for candidates and ballot measures.
Issues aside, this is about the mechanics, the technology, the participation and the Democracy of Oregon. While we may not be a behemoth in technology like our neighbor to the North, nor the agricultural powerhouse like our neighbor to the South, I believe that Oregon is the nation's leader in participatory Democracy
I explain under the fold...
It's Time To Elect A Government
Sun Sep 17, 2006 at 10:03:09 PM PDT
I am dreadfully tired of the various phases of government and elections I've seen in my 24 years as a voter. Pick this party or that. Pick this talking head or that. Suspense and dread as the policy makers, henchmen, cronies and donators all line up for high powered positions of influence.
I'm sick of Republicans and Democrats alike keeping the cards close to the table until they have manipulated minds into the appropriate checkbox on the ballot.
I'm ready for a real election. I'm ready to Elect A Government.
read my 2008 dream ticket after the hop
9/11 Death Toll Continues To Rise
Sun Sep 10, 2006 at 11:00:37 PM PDT
Mount Sinai Medical Center released a large study on Thursday 9/8/06 covering WTC responders health. The study, titled "The World Trade Center Disaster and the Health of Workers: Five-Year Assessment of a Unique Medical Screening Program", covers 9,442 workers (out of a total of over 40,000) from the period of July 2002 and April 2004. At the time of the examination 59% had persistent symptoms.
The study coincided with a public meeting Thursday night with federal 9/11 Health Coordinator, Dr. John Howard. Public statements from lower Manhattan residents provide anecdotal evidence of long term and chronic health affects among the children and others.
Former EPA chief Christine Whitman will appear on 60 Minutes Sunday night to continue her defense of the EPA during the cleanup.
more below the fold
What must be done
Sat Sep 09, 2006 at 11:50:56 AM PDT
Brothers and sisters. Kossacks and candidates. What must be done?
While Democrats are hard at work on the campaign trail, raising funds and challenging the status quo of neo-Republicanism and this do-nothing Congress, while many of us are working hard, commenting and councilling, donating and volunteering, there is more to do.
It is highly likely that Democracy will return to the House and (at the risk of being overly optimistic) the Senate. The momentum and energy in the Democratic camp exceeds the efforts of the Republicans in 1994, exceeds the efforts of the neo-Republicans in 2000 and exceeds the efforts of the do-nothing Republicans in 2004. Our party will wash a blue tide of Democracy across our nation this November!
continued under the fold...
Avi Rubin and the "Brave New Ballot"
Tue Sep 05, 2006 at 08:37:22 AM PDT
Tomorrow morning Diane Rehm will spend an hour with
Aviel Rubin discussing his new book
Brave New Ballot and the problems with electronic voting. Avi Rubin is a highly regarded computer scientist (or "ubernerd" in compsci talk) and has turned his attentions on electronic voting machines. His expertise is in computer security and as well as being professor at Johns Hopkins University, he is Technical Director of the Hopkins Information Security Institute.
more below...
YearlyKos Mainstream Media Coverage
Sun Jun 11, 2006 at 05:12:47 PM PDT
As yK winds down, the traditional news apparatus kicks into gear.
Right now, as I write this at 4:30pm PST, the top US story on news.google.com is YearlyKos from The times of London Chocolate, Elvis and foil hats as politicians woo the bloggers.
[Markos] sounded more like the leader of a fledgling political party than the cyberhost of a cacophony of voices.
more on the flop
One little smoking gun
Fri Jun 09, 2006 at 08:41:11 AM PDT
Is the difference between a theory and fact the establishment of evidence proving the theory?
So, I'll offer this up to the anti-election fraud crowd a meager little tidbit of evidence that individuals took action to defraud the American Public in the 2004 national election.
This just in from the Government Accountability Office:
more under the fold....
Slow down, Save the Earth
Fri Apr 28, 2006 at 09:32:04 PM PDT
Here is what true national leadership would be saying today to help assuage the national problem of oil addiction, over consumption of energy, air pollution and global warming.
If we had true national leadership in Congress, in the White House or even in a respectable Agency (any of which can grab a national podium and make it on the national news and reach millions of people rather quickly), they would step forward and talk about conservation. Today. Now. Immediately.
And since they won't because they are not true leaders in any sense of the word, WE the People must act on our own.
Here's how after the fold...
Greg Palast on Bush and Little Rico
Sun Apr 09, 2006 at 07:42:08 PM PDT
from
GregPalast.com
GANGSTER GOVERNMENT
A LEAKY PRESIDENT RUNS AFOUL OF 'LITTLE RICO'
Buzzflash
by Greg Palast
Sunday, April 9, 2006
It's a crime. No kidding. But the media has it all wrong. As usual.
'Scooter' Libby finally outed 'Mr. Big,' the perpetrator of the heinous disclosure of the name of secret agent Valerie Plame. It was the President of United States himself -- in conspiracy with his Vice-President. Now the pundits are arguing over whether our war-a-holic President had the legal right to leak this national security information. But, that's a fake debate meant to distract you.
more across the aisle...
Imagine Clinton/Feingold 2008
Fri Mar 17, 2006 at 08:21:45 PM PDT
Just for a moment.
Imagine Clinton/Feingold 2008.
Could this be the fusion between the DLC and the progressive wing? What would Dean say?
As much as I don't like Hillary Clinton as president I do think that she has the winnability and excitement to run a good campaign. Chances are she'll raise a half billion dollars for her campaign.
Pair Hillary up with Russ and we have the fusion between center and left that will not only win an election but also inspire this country to restore our democratic values, eliminate the waste and corruption infilitrating the House and Senate and drive home a Democrat sweep in 08 that will make the Conservative Revolution look like a flat tire out near Paris, Texas. So, bring em in.
Largest civil engineering disaster in the history of the United States
Sun Dec 04, 2005 at 06:35:40 AM PDT
Thanks to
Harry Shearer for the heads up on this.
A December 2nd CNN transcript includes an interview and discussion about what really failed in New Orleans. To summarize - the levee system failed due to civil engineer errors.
A Nov 30 article at the The Times-Picayune reports "17th Street Canal levee was doomed Report blames corps: Soil could never hold".
This is an important story and those individuals involved should be held accountable. Let's get this story into the prime light and get our congresscritters and media into investigation mode. (Maybe ePluribusMedia would even carry this flame.)
More on the flip with the news from CNN and nola.com --->
FactCheck.org on Plame Leak
Fri Jul 22, 2005 at 05:22:36 PM PDT
FactCheck.org has an annotated (sourced) timeline of all events in the Plame Leak scandal.
FactCheck is a project of Annenberg Public Policy Institute. It was founded by former CNN reporter Brooks Jackson. It came to prominence during the 2004 Presidential campaign as it blew the crap off either candidates false claims. Dick Cheney referred to it during the VP debate as FactCheck.com prompting the owner of that site to redirect people to a George Soros page ripping Bush and Cheney apart.
More after the fold.
Zero Pollution Car
Tue Jul 19, 2005 at 08:56:22 AM PDT
It's entirely off topic but I have to spread the word on this car I'm reading about. Now if only this was available in America
today I'd be driving to work today without gasoline,
biodiesel, methane, ethanol, corn oil or hydrogen.
Interested? More on after the fold.
Rove and Novak go way back
Mon Jul 18, 2005 at 10:28:51 PM PDT
I just read this over at Wikipedia in the
Karl Rove article and I don't recall it being mentioned in any of the Rove diaries.
In 1992, Rove was fired from George H. W. Bush's 1992 presidential re-election campaign for allegedly leaking information to journalist Robert Novak.
More on Rove and Novak after the fold.
It doesn't stop with Rove. Libby is the target.
Sat Jul 16, 2005 at 12:08:47 AM PDT
I love that Bush and Rove are under tremendous pressure right now regarding leaked classified information. And I hope (expect) that Rove will have to resign.
Frankly, going back over some of the investigative journalism from the -start- of this controversy reveals that there isn't that much new information about the scandal right now - just collaborative evidence. Still important but memos and emails just confirm what was known almost two years ago.
Below the fold I'll summarize some of the old reports I found tonight.
Judges Battle Transcends Numbers
Mon Apr 18, 2005 at 09:08:09 PM PDT
By David G. Savage, Times Staff Writer
Judges Battle Transcends Numbers
WASHINGTON — The looming battle over President Bush's nominees to the U.S. appeals courts might derail the Senate, but it probably won't make much difference in the federal courts. That's because Republican appointees already dominate them.
The punch line :
Of the 162 active judges on the U.S. court of appeals, 94 of them, or 58%, are Republican appointees.
From
the LA Dog Trainer here.
The rest of the story under the fold.
Miss Ann Coulter, self-parody.
Mon Apr 18, 2005 at 08:28:59 PM PDT
From
here.
.
Miss Coulter's 15 minutes of fame should be ending any moment now. I've always thought of her as a comedian. Her deadpan is so solid, even she doesn't know she's a joke. I mean joking. Hey, cue the laugh track!
Analysis of Spitzer
Mon Mar 14, 2005 at 08:58:29 AM PDT
It's not hard for a progressive to be excited by the prospect of Eliot Spitzer becoming President of the United States. As a bit of a maverick in
New York politics, Spitzer has come on the scene with a well oiled machine, a progressive stance with regards to corporate behavior, as well as enough charisma and articulation to be electable (whatever that means).
Yet, as any good reaalist, it's important to examine our heart throbs and not glaze over obvious contradictions to assure that the candidate is worthy of our support and not just fooling us.
In today's ZNet Commentary, Russell Mokhiber, editor of
Corporate Crime Reporter and Robert Weissman, editor of the
Multinational Monitor, dissect Spitzer's actions in
Eliot Spitzer and the 92nd Street Y.
more below the fold
