Hi everyone, this is pioneer substituting for your regular Thursday night anchor, edgery. It has been another beautiful summer day on the west coast with clouds, sunshine, mountains, and coastlines to entice us away from the keyboards. However there is change hovering over the political landscape across the country. John Edwards is helping to shape the change in the political dialog. Today we will touch on these stories:
- The conclusion of the One America Tour
- Interview on Youtube on a variety of topics
- Edwards issues challenge to Bush on poverty
- Congratulations, Columbus, Kentucky!
- The Most Repugnant Argument...Ever
1.
From Monday, July 16th, 2007 to Wednesday, July 18th, 2007, John Edwards took a break from his normal campaign schedule to travel to 8 states to shine a bright spotlight on the issue of poverty in America. You can go to his website page and check out various postings about the tour at your leisure. For those of you who missed it here is a link to NCDem Amy's Vlog about day 3 in VA and KY on the tour. It is wonderful! Here is a video of some excerpts from the Prestonburg speech.
2. Interview on Youtube on a variety of topics.
Before Edwards started out on the tour he was interviewed on youtube about his views on poverty and some thoughts on the Youtube debate. Delightful interview using the new media.
3. Edwards issues challenge to Bush on poverty
John Edwards following his One America poverty tour wrote quite the challenging letter to President Bush asking him to address this issue. You can read the full letter here, but these are a couple of the key paragraphs:
Mr. President, that is what true leaders do, they lead with big, bold ideas that actually solve problems. They do not wait to be told about problems that stare them in the face, they never follow, and they should never have to wait for a convenient time to address the incredible challenges that face so many hard-working families in this nation.
As you approach your final days in office, you have a chance to finally stand up and lead on this important issue. However, unless you choose to lead and start helping solve poverty in America, the next 550 days of your presidency will all but ensure that the 37 million Americans who wake up in poverty today will only grow. If you choose to do nothing on poverty, the next 550 days of your presidency will only ensure that the more than 5 million Americans who have fallen into poverty during your presidency will only grow.
4. Congratulations, Columbus, Kentucky!
Congratulationshave been posted at JRE's blog where Amy Rubin writes
At 3pm EDT on Wednesday, July 18th, this town of only 229 people won the "Demand and Be Heard" contest, beating out larger cities like Los Angeles, Dallas, and Seattle with a total of 1,814 votes.
Columbus native Shawn Dixon spoke out for his hometown, leading the online movement to success by seeking support on different political Web sites and blogs, and on social networks like Facebook and Myspace.
This commitment to visit Columbus comes on the heels of the "Road to One America" tour during which John Edwards visited towns like Marks, Mississippi and West Helena, Arkansas. With his visit to this small town in the heart of rural America, John Edwards will continue to draw attention to those places too often ignored by the media and politicians in Washington.
During his visit to Columbus, John will address the questions that "demanders" submitted during the competition and he will speak with residents about the issues that matter most to them.
5. The Most Repugnant Argument...Ever
Jeffrey Feldman of Frameshop really deconstructs the arguments of phoniness being used by the media against John and Elizabeth Edwards for their commitment to public service and their passion to eradicate poverty. Here is part of his perceptive analysis
Second exercise: imagine your child just died in a car accident--was taken from you by a horrific turn of events that sometimes happens. You wrestle with your own guilt for years, struggle to move on--to keep a cherished place for your lost child in your heart and in your mind without descending into self-absorbed grief.
Now, same as before, imagine someone walks up to you and says, "Whatever you say and do from this day forward will always be an attempt to exploit your child's death for money and personal gain."
Hard to imagine any human being (e.g. Anne Coulter doesn't count) would be so repugnant as to say or write arguments about another person along those lines, right?
Meet John Dickerson, the latest author of the most repugnant argument ever: that the Edwards family, who have suffered great personal tragedy with the loss of their son and contracted chronic illness, must by default always be exploiting those tragedies for personal gain.
Feldman's concluding paragraph says it all
Whether or not you support John Edward's campaign for president is irrelevant, here. Simply put, when someone gets cancer or loses a child, that does not put them on a list of society's moral degenerates to be suspected of lies and deceit at every turn. To suggest or even insinuate otherwise--whether in the context of a political election or in a smoky tent at a roadside circus--is a thought not worthy of his century, let alone this country.
This for me is one of my favorite pictures of John. I think it shows his caring as he listens to seniors.