CornSyrupAwareness
Last night I attended President Obama's Kickoff Rally for the 2012 campaign in San Francisco. The ticket said the event would start at 5pm, but not a thing got going until 7:45. And no one there seemed to mind. I've been really sick lately so I was a bit worried about when we'd get out of there. And I couldn't partake in the alcohol that was flowing quite nicely.
First the California chair for Organizing for America took the stage and got everyone chanting the 2012 slogan, "I'm in". Next up was Jerry Rice who warmed up the crowd and emphasized teamwork. Jerry has a big heart, and is not well known as a public speaker. But it was still nice to see him there in support of our President.
Then DJ Hope and Fergie from the Black Eyed Peas took the stage. I believe it was Fergie, no one introduced her, but it was clearly someone with a lot of talent. (My other guess was Alicia Keyes). She performed six or seven songs to a receptive crowd, and spoke about how women's right to choose was under attack.
Thank God for those good people over at Media Matters for finding this nugget of insanity. In the Republican dreamland that these nitwits live in every single thing the government provides should be done by the private sector. Because if someone's not squeezing out a profit it's not being done right.
Some great comments over at Progress For a More Perfect Union on Facebook
Fox & Friends are among the stupidest people on Earth.
Much more below the fold
But look at all the venom now that we're reaping the results of our big loss last fall. Everyone wants to focus on the President, but what did we do last year? Take out two sitting Democratic Senators? Yup. Leader gets kicked off his TV platform for some childishness? Yup. How about 2009, the year the PCCC raised over a million dollars and spent none of it on candidates. While the Koch brothers and Chamber were organizing and supporting their people, we were spending money to pressure our own for a bill that was clearly never going to pass. The public option was always a No for Bayh, Begich, Nelson, Nelson, Lincoln, Landrieu, Tester, Webb, Dorgan, Baucus, Carper, Conrad, Pryor or Warner. Rahm Emanuel had an offensive term for our actions, except for the terminology he was spot on.
Now the master strategists around here; who have told us that Obama failed to twist arms and fight for the public option, now tell us that he shouldn't have taken singlepayer off the table. Oh my!
I'm sorry if this offends you, but you need to hear it.
Hey you, let's talk. You need to stop. It's hurting us. You, that speculates on oil. You're really gonna try and make money off oil futures? I don't know if you're aware of this, but when you do that I pay more. And I don't really want to pay more so that you can make money gambling.
I know you don't have a minimum wage job, but imagine for a second you do. It's payday, your boss has been in your ear all day long and finally it's quitting time. You collect your big stacks of seven dollars and twenty five cents, and now you have to fill up your tank. To get home you not only have to pay tribute to sea turtle slashing mega corps, autocrats without the best intentions but you're also handing the proceeds of your labor to some asshole that does nothing but take a percentage?
What's Happening in Libya Explained
by Ashley Bates and Siddhartha Mahanta in Mother Jones Last week, Libyan dissident Najla Aburrahman begged western media to pay attention to the bloodbath unfolding in her country. "If the Libyan protesters are ignored," she wrote, "the fear is that [Libyan dictator Muammar] Qaddafi— a man who appears to care little what the rest of the world thinks of him—will be able to seal the country off from foreign observers, and ruthlessly crush any uprising before it even has a chance to begin." Since then, Qaddafi’s troops have used machine guns and large-caliber weapons against protesters in Benghazi, the country’s second-biggest city, and more than 200 protesters, including children, have reportedly been killed.
Since then, Qaddafi’s troops have used machine guns and large-caliber weapons against protesters in Benghazi, the country’s second-biggest city, and more than 200 protesters, including children, have reportedly been killed.
This article covers the basics of what's going on and then is absolutely filled with updates of new information.
Sadly one of the updates from Saturday was of the death of a young activist Mohammad Nabbous
This sad story really got me upset today.
Saturday March 19 Costa Mesa City Council members ended a highly charged news conference Friday about the suicide of city maintenance worker Huy Pham by refusing to answer reporters' questions and racing from the City Hall meeting room. "Is there no one that will speak to the people of Costa Mesa?" yelled one television reporter. "This is a sham," added another. It was a dramatic climax to a day in which city workers remembered their dead colleague and city officials tried to repair a damaged public image. The 29-year-old Pham leaped to his death from the roof of City Hall Thursday, the same day he and 213 other city employees were issued layoff notices.
"Is there no one that will speak to the people of Costa Mesa?" yelled one television reporter. "This is a sham," added another.
It was a dramatic climax to a day in which city workers remembered their dead colleague and city officials tried to repair a damaged public image.
The 29-year-old Pham leaped to his death from the roof of City Hall Thursday, the same day he and 213 other city employees were issued layoff notices.
This was an entirely avoidable situation. Our federal government chose to end aid to states, instead giving hefty tax breaks to the top 2%. We made the choice to cut healthcare, pensions, jobs and heating oil assistance for all kinds of people like Huy Pham. Men like him that had nothing to do with creating the economic recession, nothing to do with unbalancing the budget. Yet they are the ones who our representatives chose to pay for the mistakes. And the top 2% who actually did cause the recession, and got richer for it, get richer still.
I see more energy here today in Eclectablog's diary than I did during election season 2010. For months the quietest places on this blog were in election posts. The ones that did catch interest weren't in Wisconsin, Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania or Illinois they were in Arkansas to unseat a Democrat and replace her with a (mildly?) better one.
We had a late and slow fundraising drive and GOTV efforts, by the time this site got in the game we were playing defense. We had little to no impact in the media and didn't come close to defining a message for why people should vote for Democrats. On this site many couldn't even determine the difference between the parties, let alone find a reason to put shoes on and talk to their neighbors about it. In 2008, I was able to convince a lot of you to support a pro-choice Dem for Congress in Alabama, and we almost won. And your help meant a lot and made a difference down there. This was election central in 2008, you can't say the same about 2010.
The President deserves blame for this too. I actually think motivating this group wouldn't have been difficult.
Poll 29 votes Show Results What would get you to support Dems in 2012 like you did in 2008? Constitutional Amendment banning corporate donations to candidates Constitutional amendment banning handouts from candidates to corporations ;) A strong move to end both wars A populist campaign that strongly calls out plutocratic efforts to pay for the Wall Street recession on the backs of the poor nothing I'm disillusioned nothing needed I was always going to organize for Democrats Wall Street Tax If Republicans end up gutting workers, womens rights and consumer and environmental protections Other will comment 29 votes Vote Now! What would get you to support Dems in 2012 like you did in 2008? Constitutional Amendment banning corporate donations to candidates 4 votes Constitutional amendment banning handouts from candidates to corporations ;) 3% 1 vote A strong move to end both wars 3% 1 vote A populist campaign that strongly calls out plutocratic efforts to pay for the Wall Street recession on the backs of the poor 8 votes nothing I'm disillusioned 4 votes nothing needed I was always going to organize for Democrats 6 votes Wall Street Tax 0% 0 votes If Republicans end up gutting workers, womens rights and consumer and environmental protections 3 votes Other will comment 7% 2 votes
The truth is Republicans aren't interested in changing the current blood sucking health insurance system. They worship at the holy grail of the free market, and will never step in to stop any big fish from profiting.
Poll 0 votes Show Results 0 votes Vote Now!
I give the speech an A. I thought it was a center-left speech that had some slaps across the aisle and I wasn't really expecting that. In a couple instances he used their rhetoric against them. They complain so much about what the debt is doing to our kids and grandkids, well having a second class infrastructure and losing out on emerging industries isn't gonna do the kids and g-kids much good either. Same goes for burning foreign and fossil fuels.
Poll 54 votes Show Results Grade the SOTU address A+ A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- D+ D D- F+ F F- 54 votes Vote Now! Grade the SOTU address A+ 11 votes A 16 votes A- 6 votes B+ 6% 3 votes B 2% 1 vote B- 6% 3 votes C+ 6% 3 votes C 6% 3 votes C- 6% 3 votes D+ 4% 2 votes D 0% 0 votes D- 0% 0 votes F+ 0% 0 votes F 2% 1 vote F- 4% 2 votes
Senator Barbara Boxer was kind enough to visit our Dem headquarters in San Mateo where we've been getting out the vote with enthusiasm. I wrote an article about it the other day.
You do not want to miss the Boxer video, we laughed, we cried, she's amazing. Senator Boxer really stressed the importance of our get out the vote efforts. And she didn't have to ask us twice, within a minute phones were off their hooks and activists were all smiles.
You do not want to miss the Boxer video, we laughed, we cried, she's amazing.
Senator Boxer really stressed the importance of our get out the vote efforts. And she didn't have to ask us twice, within a minute phones were off their hooks and activists were all smiles.
Here's the video, please share!
Poll 43 votes Show Results Who's winning tomorrow night? A lot of Republicans Barbara Boxer and a lot of Republicans Boxer, Brown and a lot of Republicans Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, McAdams, Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, McAdams, Conway, Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, McAdams, Conway, Sink but lose control of House Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, McAdams, Conway, Sink and retain control of House 43 votes Vote Now! Who's winning tomorrow night? A lot of Republicans 7% 3 votes Barbara Boxer and a lot of Republicans 0% 0 votes Boxer, Brown and a lot of Republicans 5% 2 votes Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray 2% 1 vote Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal 2% 1 vote Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, 2% 1 vote Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet 2% 1 vote Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, 5% 2 votes Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid 7% 3 votes Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, 2% 1 vote Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, 0% 0 votes Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, McAdams, 9% 4 votes Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, McAdams, Conway, 0% 0 votes Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, McAdams, Conway, Sink but lose control of House 5% 2 votes Boxer, Brown, Manchin, Murray, Blumenthal, Sestak, Bennet, Giannoulias, Reid, Feingold, McAdams, Conway, Sink and retain control of House 22 votes
Happy Halloween Everyone! I made a political animation with a bit of a Halloween theme. I tried to get it done by the election and it shows a bit, we didn't get all the audio right and still have to add sound effects and music. But that won't matter much on November 5th. So please check it out below the fold.
Best. Day. Ever!
I woke up this morning at 6 to get over to Jerry Brown headquarters in Oakland for a speech as part of his Let's Get California Working Again tour. I brought with me a copy of a biography about the former governor that was written during his first term. I've been reading it lately and I had it signed by Senator Dick Durbin earlier this week. When I got to Oakland the place was packed... especially for 7:30 am on a Saturday
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