Thursday, June 30, 2011
Republicans wrecking the economy to improve their chances in 2012?
Chuck Schumer:
“Now it is becoming clear that insisting on a slash-and-burn approach may be part of this plan — and it has a double-benefit for Republicans,” “It is ideologically tidy and it undermines the economic recovery, which they think only helps them in 2012. Republicans aren’t just opposing the president any more, they are opposing the economic recovery itself and all that means for America’s working and middle class families.”
“Now it is becoming clear that insisting on a slash-and-burn approach may be part of this plan — and it has a double-benefit for Republicans,” “It is ideologically tidy and it undermines the economic recovery, which they think only helps them in 2012. Republicans aren’t just opposing the president any more, they are opposing the economic recovery itself and all that means for America’s working and middle class families.”
Katrina vanden Heuvel:
"McConnell summarized the Republican message for the election in 2012: Obama inherited a poor economy but made it worse. Given the Republicans’ threat to blow up the economy over the debt limit, their opposition to any sensible measure to boost the economy and put people to work, their efforts to gut even weak financial regulation, it is hard to avoid the conclusion that Republicans have moved from rooting for a bad economy to use in running against Obama to actively committing to making it worse."
Republican's: government for the rich by the rich and to hell with everyone else, especially the poor, the elderly, the middle class and the unemployed.
Did you hear about the 2500 people arrested in W. Virginia protesting the destruction of their environment by coal?
From:Interview with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the director of 'The Last Mountain'
How has civil disobedience changed the discourse — if it has — in these smaller communities when it comes to coal?
It's the last thing we've got left. The press has been subverted. The judiciary has been subverted. The agencies have been captured. The politicians have been corrupted. Transparency has disappeared, and the zoning laws have been taken — local democracy has been taken away from them. When that happens, the only thing you have left is civil disobedience. They're doing it effectively.
There have been 2,500 people now arrested [in West Virginia]. That's four times the number of people who participated in the Selma march.
Massey owns West Virginia, and so West Virginia can't save itself. Massey is an out-of-state company — it's not a West Virginia company, and a large part of its workforce (its very small workforce in the state) is from out of state, too. But the communities that are being destroyed — two-thirds of the people of West Virginia by every poll oppose mountaintop removal, but not a single politician in the state [does]. That's because, one suspects, of the huge donations and just the political power wielded by King Coal.
An excellent graphical description of what mountain top removal entails and its effects from Mountain Justice
Stop Mountain Top Removal petition to U.S. Senate from Change.org
Of Spare Tires and Heroin: 90 Seconds from the War on Women in the States
Louisiana State Rep. John Labruzzo likened abortion to using heroin
Indiana State Rep. Eric Turner says exceptions for rape survivors are a giant loophole
Kansas State Rep Pete DeGraaf said women should plan for rape and unplanned pregnancy
470 anti-choice bills in 2011, three times as many as last year
49 anti-choice measures have been enacted
Louisiana State Rep. John Labruzzo, the same rep that 2 years ago suggested the state pay poor women 1000 dollars if they had their tubes tied. Rep. John Labruzzo, email
Indiana State Rep. Eric Turner who said that women would lie about rape to avoid his restrictive abortion legislation. Ind. State Rep Eric Turner; email
Kansas State Rep Pete DeGraaf who wants you to know he carries a spare tire in his car, and women should plan for rape and pregnancy. He is obviously unaware of his Republican buddies removing abortion coverage from insurance policies. Or he could just be not very smart
Pete Degraaf Email
Monday, June 27, 2011
Is a criminal sitting on the Supreme Court?
When someone breaks the law, we call them criminals. Justice Thomas repeatedly broke the law and should be removed immediately from the Supreme Court. From 2003 to 2009 Clarence Thomas wrote "none" on his financial disclosure form when listing his wife's income. During those years his wife earned over 700,000 dollars from the Heritage foundation.[1.] If your wife brings home over 120,000 dollars a year from a right wing activist foundation, you should be declaring that on your forms. It is illegal not to do so. Clarence claims he wasn't aware of the filing requirement. Is Clarence Thomas so ignorant of the law that he isn't aware of the fact that ignorance cannot be used as a defense in a court of law? If he is not incompetent then he is disdainful of "mundane" acts of lawfulness and that arrogance should not be sitting on the supreme court. Either way, incompetent or arrogant, Clarence Thomas needs to go. 
Image via Wikipedia
[1.] clarence thomas filings and the disclosure law
ACTIONS:
The Petition site: Demand the Justice department investigate Clarence Thomas
Sign the petition urging Clarence Thomas to resign
Send a letter to your Congressional Representative urging him to sign Rep. Murphy's Letter asking for an Investigation by the Justice Committee into Clarence Thomas
Related articles
Image via Wikipedia[1.] clarence thomas filings and the disclosure law
ACTIONS:
The Petition site: Demand the Justice department investigate Clarence Thomas
Sign the petition urging Clarence Thomas to resign
Send a letter to your Congressional Representative urging him to sign Rep. Murphy's Letter asking for an Investigation by the Justice Committee into Clarence Thomas
UPDATE 6/28/11
Alliance for Justice is calling for the Judicial Conference, an independent agency tasked with investigating ethical wrongdoing in the judiciary, to investigate Clarence Thomas.
Related articles
Sign Bernie Sander's letter to the president, calling for shared sacrifice
Dear Mr. President,
This is a pivotal moment in the history of our country. Decisions are being made about the national budget that will impact the lives of virtually every American for decades to come. As we address the issue of deficit reduction we must not ignore the painful economic reality of today - which is that the wealthiest people in our country and the largest corporations are doing phenomenally well while the middle class is collapsing and poverty is increasing. In fact, the United States today has, by far, the most unequal distribution of wealth and income of any major country on earth.
Everyone understands that over the long-term we have got to reduce the deficit - a deficit that was caused mainly by Wall Street greed, tax breaks for the rich, two wars, and a prescription drug program written by the drug and insurance companies. It is absolutely imperative, however, that as we go forward with deficit reduction we completely reject the Republican approach that demands savage cuts in desperately-needed programs for working families, the elderly, the sick, our children and the poor, while not asking the wealthiest among us to contribute one penny.
Mr. President, please listen to the overwhelming majority of the American people who believe that deficit reduction must be about shared sacrifice. The wealthiest Americans and the most profitable corporations in this country must pay their fair share. At least 50 percent of any deficit reduction package must come from revenue raised by ending tax breaks for the wealthy and eliminating tax loopholes that benefit large, profitable corporations and Wall Street financial institutions. A sensible deficit reduction package must also include significant cuts to unnecessary and wasteful Pentagon spending.
Please do not yield to outrageous Republican demands that would greatly increase suffering for the weakest and most vulnerable members of our society. Now is the time to stand with the tens of millions of Americans who are struggling to survive economically, not with the millionaires and billionaires who have never had it so good.
Respectfully,
Sen. Bernie Sanders;
and Co-signers
Sign Senator Sander's letter to the President of the U.S. here
This is a pivotal moment in the history of our country. Decisions are being made about the national budget that will impact the lives of virtually every American for decades to come. As we address the issue of deficit reduction we must not ignore the painful economic reality of today - which is that the wealthiest people in our country and the largest corporations are doing phenomenally well while the middle class is collapsing and poverty is increasing. In fact, the United States today has, by far, the most unequal distribution of wealth and income of any major country on earth.
Everyone understands that over the long-term we have got to reduce the deficit - a deficit that was caused mainly by Wall Street greed, tax breaks for the rich, two wars, and a prescription drug program written by the drug and insurance companies. It is absolutely imperative, however, that as we go forward with deficit reduction we completely reject the Republican approach that demands savage cuts in desperately-needed programs for working families, the elderly, the sick, our children and the poor, while not asking the wealthiest among us to contribute one penny.
Mr. President, please listen to the overwhelming majority of the American people who believe that deficit reduction must be about shared sacrifice. The wealthiest Americans and the most profitable corporations in this country must pay their fair share. At least 50 percent of any deficit reduction package must come from revenue raised by ending tax breaks for the wealthy and eliminating tax loopholes that benefit large, profitable corporations and Wall Street financial institutions. A sensible deficit reduction package must also include significant cuts to unnecessary and wasteful Pentagon spending.
Please do not yield to outrageous Republican demands that would greatly increase suffering for the weakest and most vulnerable members of our society. Now is the time to stand with the tens of millions of Americans who are struggling to survive economically, not with the millionaires and billionaires who have never had it so good.
Respectfully,
Sen. Bernie Sanders;
and Co-signers
Sign Senator Sander's letter to the President of the U.S. here
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Tell Congress: stop the overuse of antibiotics
Basically, do we want our invaluable antibiotics to be used on farm animals to increase farmer's profits or do we want them to save human lives. The continued use of antibiotics on farm animals will make them ineffective for human use. Sign the petition if you agree. From Credo:
"An outbreak in Germany this month of an antibiotic resistant E. coli strain killed 35 people and infected thousands — serving as a tragic reminder of the necessity of effective antibiotics.1
Yet antibiotics continue to decline in effectiveness — and overuse of antibiotics in the livestock industry is a major reason. Alarmingly, up to 70% of all antibiotics sold in the U.S. are used on industrial farms in healthy food animals.2
This massive overprescription is breeding new strains of antibiotic-resistant bacteria like E. coli and MRSA, a type of staph infection that now kills more people in the U.S. every year than AIDS.3
The trend is frightening. But last week, Senator Dianne Feinstein introduced the Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act to phase out the rampant overuse by the livestock industry of medically important antibiotics in healthy animals. An identical measure was introduced in the House earlier this year, by Rep. Louise Slaughter, Congress' only microbiologist. Congress should pass this bill without delay.
Livestock producers use antibiotics in food and water to promote faster animal growth, what industry calls "nutritional efficiency," but the practice is also used as a way to compensate for the effects of extreme overcrowding and unsanitary conditions in factory farms."
Despite the mounting examples of the dangers of the overuse of antibiotic in the mass-production of poultry, hogs, and livestock, industry groups like the National Pork Producers Council have successfully fought regulation for years.
The FDA has largely failed to stand up to industry. Last year the FDA issued a "draft guidance," a non-binding set of guidelines, for the feeding of antibiotics to food animals. Despite hearing from tens of thousands of CREDO members and other food safety groups, FDA has failed to finalize the guidance to date, let alone issue actual regulations to stop this dangerous practice.
It's up to congress to take action, and halt the overuse of antibiotics in food that is both endangering human life, and allowing industry to maintain cruel conditions for animals."
Thank you for fighting for safe and healthy food.
Elijah Zarlin, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action from Working Assets
CREDO Action from Working Assets
1. "Scientists fear the over-use of antibiotics in medicine and farming may have led to the deadly E.coli outbreak," The Daily Mail, June 7, 2011.
2. "Most U.S. Antibiotics Fed to Healthy Livestock," Scientific American, January 10, 2001
3. "When Food Kills," New York Times, June 11, 2011
2. "Most U.S. Antibiotics Fed to Healthy Livestock," Scientific American, January 10, 2001
3. "When Food Kills," New York Times, June 11, 2011
Everything you need to know about the budget debates in 1.5 paragraphs
From Think Progress
"We thought we’d keep it real simple and break down who gets to sacrifice and who gets off easy if the GOP gets its way.
ON the GOP’s chopping block:
- Medicare
- Medicaid
- Social Security
- Tax cuts for people making less than $500,000
- Government programs and services that tens of millions of Americans depend on each day
NOT on the GOP’s chopping block:
- Tax giveaways to Big Oil
- Tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas
- Tax loopholes for hedge fund billionaires
- Wasteful tax loopholes used by huge corporations to avoid paying their fair share
- Tax breaks for yachts and vacation homes
- Tax breaks for people making more than $500,000
In one sentence: The GOP is willing to risk another economic calamity when we can least afford it if that’s what it takes to protect tax breaks for the wealthy, Big Oil, and huge corporations — tax breaks paid for by ending Medicare, slashing Medicaid and Social Security, and cutting the government programs and services we depend on each and every day."
Bush, Boehner, Cantor and their republican friends went on an 8 year credit card spending spree, and now they want the middle class, public employees, teachers, unions, and the elderly to pay the bill. No way.
We're rebuilding the American Dream
Progressive groups like Move-on.org and even the AFL-CIO have banded together to fight the republican lies and the republican threats to our social safety net, educational future and national infrastructure. Watch Van Jones list the three main Republican lies. Join Rebuilding the dream.
New York passes Marriage Equality Bill
Tonight in a 33-29 vote New York State passed the Marriage Equality Act which allows same sex marriage. Governor Mario Cuomo will enthusiastically sign the bill, most likely this evening. The law takes effect in 30 days and New York has no residency requirements for a marriage license. I'm guessing in 30 days New York will experience a spike in tourists. New York joins Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Iowa. Yes, Iowa, in allowing same sex marriages. The now successful campaign to legalize same sex marriage in NY was heavily promoted by LGBT groups and many business and religeous groups also. The above video was part of their campaign. The Mormon and Catholic Church both aggressively opposed the bill.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Clarence Thomas, letter to House Judiciary committee and Resignation update
Image via WikipediaOver 200,000 people have signed Credo's call to ethically challenged supreme court judge Clarence Thomas to resign. Now Rep. Chris Murphy has written a letter to the house judiciary committee urging an investigation. here is the letter:Dear Chairman Smith and Ranking Member Conyers: We write to you today to ask that you hold a hearing on HR 862, the Supreme Court Transparency and Disclosure Act. This commonsense bill would go a long way towards restoring the public's confidence in the Supreme Court after several recent questionable actions by some of its members.
The Supreme Court must be a neutral arbiter that acts without bias or prejudice. We the people created our Constitution to "establish justice," and the promise that Supreme Court justices abide by the rule of law and not political influence or ideology is at the foundation of who we are as a country.
This bedrock principle is important with the prospect that the Supreme Court will eventually rule on the constitutionality of legislation debated by this Congress, like the Affordable Care Act. Whatever the justices decide, the legitimacy of their decisions depend on whether the American people believe them to be impartial and above any particular political or financial interests.
Yet, there have been alarming reports of justices -- most notably Justices Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito -- attending political events and using their position to fundraise for organizations. These activities would be prohibited if the justices were required to abide by the Judicial Conference Code of Conduct, which currently applies to all other federal judges. On these issues the code is quite clear. Canon 4C states that "a judge should not personally participate in fund-raising activities, solicit funds for any organization, or use or permit the use of the prestige of the judicial office for that purpose." Additionally, in Canon 5 the code states, "[a] judge must refrain from all political activity." While we understand that the Supreme Court is unique by its very nature, we do not believe there should be one set of guidelines for Supreme Court justices and stricter standards for all others judges.
The Supreme Court possesses the incredible power to interpret or even strike down laws they deem inconsistent with the Constitution. America trusts them with this power because justices must come to each case without a personal or financial stake in the outcome. Recent revelations about Justice Thomas accepting tens of thousands of dollars' worth of gifts from individuals and organizations who often have an interest in matters before the courts calls into question the Court's impartiality. Canon 4D of the Code of Conduct incorporates regulations providing that "[a] judicial officer or employee shall not accept a gift from anyone who is seeking official action from or doing business with the court." Yet Justice Thomas received a gift valued at $15,000 from an organization that had a brief pending before his Court at the very moment they gave him the gift. Incidents such as these undermine the integrity of the entire judiciary, and they should not be allowed to continue.
The Supreme Court Transparency and Disclosure Act was introduced to shine a light on these issues. First, it would apply the Judicial Conference Code of Conduct, which applies to all other federaljudges, to Supreme Court Justices. Currently, the justices only look to this standard as "guidance". Second, the bill would require Supreme Court justices to publicly disclose their reasoning behind a recusal when they withdraw from a case and when they refuse to recuse themselves after a motion is made for them to do so. Lastly, it would require the Judicial Conference to develop a process to review decisions by justices who have refused to step aside from a case.
As Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis once said, "sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants". It is time that we apply that same ideal to the Supreme Court. Again, we urge you to schedule a hearing on HR 862, to help restore the public's faith in our judicial system and to guarantee the integrity of our country's highest court.
Sincerely,
Rep. Christopher Murphy (D-CT)
Sign the petition calling on Clarence Thomas to resign
Send a letter to your Representative urging him to sign Rep. Murphy's letter
Campaign for better care: sign the letter to your representatives
BETTER CARE...NOT LESS CARE!
Urge Congress NOT to cut Medicare and Medicaid — and to instead advance measures that will lower health care costs and improve care!On Capitol Hill, talk of cutting Medicare and Medicaid has created a political firestorm. And some say cutting these programs is the only way to balance the federal budget.
At the Campaign for Better Care, we say “no” to arbitrarily gutting the programs the most vulnerable people in our communities rely on for basic health care.
Cutting Medicare and Medicaid would put health care coverage at risk for millions and would devastate older adults with multiple health problems. It would mean many doctors would turn away Medicare and Medicaid patients. It would mean uncertain futures for patients living in nursing homes. And it would mean many seniors would not be able to afford their medications or the medical equipment that helps them continue living in their own homes.
There is a better way. At the Campaign for Better Care, we know there are better ways to provide quality care at lower cost.
Take action today!
Better care means taking common sense steps that protect patients and save money.
It means improving communication and coordination so that patients aren’t sent home from the hospital without the information and follow-up care they need — increasing their risk for ending up back in the hospital.
It means better teamwork — and it means putting systems in place, like electronic health records, to avoid mistakes and complications like medication errors and hospital infections.
And it most definitely does NOT mean slashing Medicare and Medicaid, and putting health care at risk for millions of Americans, including older adults with multiple health problems!
That’s why we’re urging Congress to explore ways to lower health care costs and improve care at the same time.
Join us in contacting Congress, and together we’ll continue our work to ensure that all Americans have access to better coordinated, higher quality, more affordable health care.
Sincerely,
Debra Ness
Leader, Campaign for Better Care
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Mike Pence, wanted for crimes against women
 | |
Naral Pro Choice America, No copay for birth control campaign
Naral sent me an e-mail encouraging me to post this message on facebook, I don't do facebook but I'm happy to post this here: If you haven't already signed the petition please click on it. Message from Naral Pro Choice America:
"I just found out that the new health-care law has a possible great change for women – it could make birth control available at no cost.
It’s pretty amazing! The NARAL Pro-Choice America Foundation has a neat Facebook application that calculates how much you'll save starting now through the rest of your reproductive life if no-cost birth control becomes a reality. There also is a petition you can sign. It’s really important to show public support for no-cost birth control – especially because some anti-choice groups are working hard to block it."
Here’s the link to find out more: http://on.fb.me/iRHdii
more on the new health care bill
"I just found out that the new health-care law has a possible great change for women – it could make birth control available at no cost.
It’s pretty amazing! The NARAL Pro-Choice America Foundation has a neat Facebook application that calculates how much you'll save starting now through the rest of your reproductive life if no-cost birth control becomes a reality. There also is a petition you can sign. It’s really important to show public support for no-cost birth control – especially because some anti-choice groups are working hard to block it."
Here’s the link to find out more: http://on.fb.me/iRHdii
more on the new health care bill
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Senator Bernie Sanders explains the Koch brothers plan to gut Social Security
The Koch brothers funded think tanks to write over 300 position papers on Social Security: the Heritage Foundation, the Cato Institute, Mercatus Center and the Reason Foundation.
"Documents and interviews illustrate a vast cottage industry, comprised of Koch brothers’ spokespeople, front groups, think tanks and elected officials, which have built a self-sustaining echo chamber to transform fringe ideas into popular mainstream public policy arguments."
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Say bye bye Clarence
It's time for Clarence Thomas to resign.
"A New York Times expose published Sunday details the improper ties between Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and influential rightwing funder and activist Harlan Crow.1Crow is a major contributor to conservative causes and a stalwart supporter of Clarence Thomas. In past years he gave Thomas' wife, Ginni Thomas, $500,000 to exploit the Citizens United decision and start a shadowy, Tea Party-related group called Liberty Central.2 He gave Thomas a Bible (estimated value $15,000) that once belonged to Frederick Douglass, and reportedly provided the Supreme Court Justice with access to his yacht and private jet."
Sign the Petition urging Clarence Thomas to resign
Clarence and his right wing activist judge buddies appointed George Bush as president and is unable to tell the difference between people and corporations. Time for Clarence to leave.
Think Progress: Clarence Thomas Decided Three Cases Where AEI Filed A Brief After AEI Gave Him A $15,000 Gift
Bring the troops home from Afghanistan
President Obama is scheduled to make an announcement Wednesday evening about troop withdrawals from Afghanistan. The majority of Americans no longer believe, if they ever did, that the war is worth fighting. polls on afghanistan war. Barbara Boxer has a petition urging the President to bring 30,000 troops home before the end of the year.
Bring our troops home
Bring our troops home
The party of small government legislates, the speech of doctors and the hearing and vision of patients
In the last election did anyone hear the republicans saying that if elected they would legislate physicians ability to speak to their patients. If they were talking about restricting and mandating physicians dialogues with their patients, I missed it. In Florida the republican legislature passed a law forbidding pediatricians from speaking about gun safety in the home to new parents. Whereas in Texas doctors must read a government written text to patients who wish to have an abortion, force them to listen to sounds and also perform an unnecessary medical procedure.
Texas, Florida, North Carolina and Oklahoma have passed laws mandating what the doctor must say to a patient. This is a description of the Texas law from the Center for Reproductive Rights:
"The law prohibits a woman from getting an abortion unless the doctor providing the abortion performs an ultrasound on the woman, takes steps to show and describe the ultrasound images to her, and plays the sound of the fetal heart. The doctor must personally place the images where the woman can see them, and describe the images in detail, regardless of her wishes. The woman must then wait at least 24-hours before she can obtain an abortion (the waiting period is two-hours for women who live more than 100 miles from an abortion provider). With the enactment of this law, Texas joins Oklahoma in having the most extreme ultrasound requirements in the country.
from the Florida Independent:
"Last week, North Carolina’s state Senate passed its “Woman’s Right to Know Act” — a bill that will require women to wait 24 hours before receiving abortion services, require them to view and hear a description of an ultrasound and require providers to give women printed information about risks associated with the procedure. The measure is similar to a Florida bill approved by the Legislature this year."
In defense of the Florida muzzle pediatricians bill the NRA's Tallahassee lobbyist Marion Hammer said that "we take our children to pediatricians for medical care--not moral judgement, not privacy intrusions."
Republicans claim that pediatrician's speaking about gun safety is a moral judgement and a privacy intrusion. However, when it's abortion, moral judgements and privacy intrusions are not only allowed, its the law? It's clear that republicans want to turn their "morals" and personal beliefs into law and legally ban anything that they find offensive whether it's good common sense or not. Their small government just applies to business, no regulations on business, anytime, anywhere for anything. But for individuals, it's a huge big brother government they are advocating, watching women, writing laws about what doctors MUST say to patients and what they MUST NOT say to patients in addition to legislating completely unnecessary medical procedures. What kind of idiot writes the judgmental, invasive, patronizing and insulting "Women's Right to Know Act"? Republican Idiots.
Can you believe that some D.C. pundits gave the DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Shultz a hard time for saying that the Republicans had declared war on women? The Republicans not only declared war, they are waging war on women in every state where they can.
Texas, Florida, North Carolina and Oklahoma have passed laws mandating what the doctor must say to a patient. This is a description of the Texas law from the Center for Reproductive Rights:
"The law prohibits a woman from getting an abortion unless the doctor providing the abortion performs an ultrasound on the woman, takes steps to show and describe the ultrasound images to her, and plays the sound of the fetal heart. The doctor must personally place the images where the woman can see them, and describe the images in detail, regardless of her wishes. The woman must then wait at least 24-hours before she can obtain an abortion (the waiting period is two-hours for women who live more than 100 miles from an abortion provider). With the enactment of this law, Texas joins Oklahoma in having the most extreme ultrasound requirements in the country.
from the Florida Independent:
"Last week, North Carolina’s state Senate passed its “Woman’s Right to Know Act” — a bill that will require women to wait 24 hours before receiving abortion services, require them to view and hear a description of an ultrasound and require providers to give women printed information about risks associated with the procedure. The measure is similar to a Florida bill approved by the Legislature this year."
In defense of the Florida muzzle pediatricians bill the NRA's Tallahassee lobbyist Marion Hammer said that "we take our children to pediatricians for medical care--not moral judgement, not privacy intrusions."
Republicans claim that pediatrician's speaking about gun safety is a moral judgement and a privacy intrusion. However, when it's abortion, moral judgements and privacy intrusions are not only allowed, its the law? It's clear that republicans want to turn their "morals" and personal beliefs into law and legally ban anything that they find offensive whether it's good common sense or not. Their small government just applies to business, no regulations on business, anytime, anywhere for anything. But for individuals, it's a huge big brother government they are advocating, watching women, writing laws about what doctors MUST say to patients and what they MUST NOT say to patients in addition to legislating completely unnecessary medical procedures. What kind of idiot writes the judgmental, invasive, patronizing and insulting "Women's Right to Know Act"? Republican Idiots.
Can you believe that some D.C. pundits gave the DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Shultz a hard time for saying that the Republicans had declared war on women? The Republicans not only declared war, they are waging war on women in every state where they can.
Monday, June 20, 2011
The U.S. maternal health care crisis
 | |||
| from Amnesty International |
"Please make a difference in the lives of millions of pregnant women by prioritizing passage of legislation to combat maternal mortality both at home and abroad."
Sign the letter here
Rachel Maddow on the republican war against women through the justice department
When Barak Obama was sworn in as president 60% of all federal judges were elected by republican presidents. This explains why last year 0 of Obama's nominees to the courts were approved by the legislature. Watch the clip starting 8 minutes in to see how the republicans are using the courts to wage their war on women, unions and the middle class.
Alliance for Justice website
Welcome back Keith Olbermann and goodbye Lawrence O'Donnel
 |
| Keith Olbermann, Welcome Back |
The only criticism I have of the new show, is the difference in sound levels between the newscast and the commercials. Seems like the volume more than doubled whenever it was time to sell something. Easy to fix, I just muted them all. They also need to tone the organ music way down during the "worst person's" segment.
Congratulations and welcome back Keith Olbermann you were greatly missed.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Mitt Romney refuses to sign anti-abortion pledge
The Susan B. Anthony List is a political action committee for pro-life candidates, as long as you define pro-life as pro-fetus and anti-mother. The SBAL is another organization like the Discovery Institute that ignores science and attempts to legislate their personal beliefs onto every American. They want to outlaw all abortions, no exceptions, eliminate planned parenthood, and appoint more cro-magnon supreme court judges like Scalea and Kennedy. They have a pledge similar to Grover Norquist's no tax pledge, applying to abortion. All the republican presidential candidates signed it, except for Mick Romney. And I thought he was spineless. Gail Gitcho a spokeswoman for the former governor said the pledge could have: “some potentially unforeseen consequences and he does not feel he could in good conscience sign it.” She added: “The pledge calls for legislation to strip taxpayer funding from thousands of health care facilities, including VA hospitals around the country, and strictly limits the choices a President would have to appoint federal officials,” The following republican candidates have all signed the pledge: Rick "do not let your children google him" Santorum, Michelle Bachmann, Tim Pawlenty and Ron Paul. Newt signed it, but nobody cares. Herman Cain, has so far declined to sign their pledge.
Famous Republican Lies: part 3 Mitch McConnel (R-KY)
Republican minority leader senator Mitch McConnel(R-KY) last July said:
Yes, Mitch there is lots of evidence that the Bush tax cuts
Image via Wikipedia
diminished revenue. The Congressional Budget office just finished a thorough analysis of the Bush tax cuts and concluded they reduced federal revenues about 2.8 trillion dollars.[1.] Mitch, you can't see the missing 2.8 trillion dollars?
George W. Bush's CEA chair, Greg Mankiw, called "charlatans and cranks" people that believed: "broad-based income tax cuts would have such large supply-side effects that the tax cuts would raise tax revenue." He continued: "I did not find such a claim credible, based on the available evidence. I never have, and I still don't. By Greg Mankiw definition Mitch McConnel is a crank and charlatan, I completely, wholeheartedly concur.
Alan Viard, senior economist on bush's council of economic advisers during his first term said in 2006:"
"That there's no evidence whatsoever that the Bush tax cuts actually diminished revenue. They increased revenue, because of the vibrancy of these tax cuts in the economy."
Yes, Mitch there is lots of evidence that the Bush tax cuts
Image via Wikipediadiminished revenue. The Congressional Budget office just finished a thorough analysis of the Bush tax cuts and concluded they reduced federal revenues about 2.8 trillion dollars.[1.] Mitch, you can't see the missing 2.8 trillion dollars?
George W. Bush's CEA chair, Greg Mankiw, called "charlatans and cranks" people that believed: "broad-based income tax cuts would have such large supply-side effects that the tax cuts would raise tax revenue." He continued: "I did not find such a claim credible, based on the available evidence. I never have, and I still don't. By Greg Mankiw definition Mitch McConnel is a crank and charlatan, I completely, wholeheartedly concur.
Alan Viard, senior economist on bush's council of economic advisers during his first term said in 2006:"
“Federal revenue is lower today than it would have been without the tax cuts. There’s really no dispute among economists about that.
In 2006 Stanford Economist Edward Lazear, Chairman of the CEA during Bush's second term testified before the senate budget committee saying:
“Will the tax cuts pay for themselves? As a general rule, we do not think tax cuts pay for themselves. Certainly, the data…do not support this claim. Tax revenues in 2006 appear to have recovered to the level seen at this point in previous business cycles, but this does not make up for the lost revenue during 2003, 2004, and 2005.
"Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Economy.com said: "It's sad to say, but we really went nowhere for almost ten years, after you extract the boost provided by the housing and mortgage boom, It's almost a lost economic decade."
"Vibrancy of these tax cuts"? That's a joke. George Bush had the worst record on jobs of any president since WW2.
“Will the tax cuts pay for themselves? As a general rule, we do not think tax cuts pay for themselves. Certainly, the data…do not support this claim. Tax revenues in 2006 appear to have recovered to the level seen at this point in previous business cycles, but this does not make up for the lost revenue during 2003, 2004, and 2005.
"Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Economy.com said: "It's sad to say, but we really went nowhere for almost ten years, after you extract the boost provided by the housing and mortgage boom, It's almost a lost economic decade."
"Vibrancy of these tax cuts"? That's a joke. George Bush had the worst record on jobs of any president since WW2.
Chart from Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Table 1: Tax and Spending as a Share of the Economy: Change From 2000 to 2005 | ||||
As a Share of GDP | Share of Total Change | |||
2000 | 2005** | Change | ||
| Revenues | 20.86% | 16.82% | -4.04% | 71% |
| Programs | 16.13% | 18.62% | 2.49% | 44% |
| Interest* | 2.30% | 1.45% | -0.84% | -15% |
| Net Effect on the Deficit | 2.44% | -3.26% | -5.69% | 100% |
| * Interest payments declined as a share of GDP, despite the increase in deficits, because of the drop in interest rates. ** Figures include the cost of continuing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan as estimated by CBO. What is mostly hidden in this data is an 8 year trend in declining infrastructure spending | ||||
In summary, Mitch McConnel is lying. There is no evidence the bush tax cuts created jobs. There is a plethora of evidence that they diminished revenues and doubled our national debt. Mitch is trying to whitewash his 8 years as George Bush's yes man and chief lackey by completely lying and ignoring facts. We remember your lies, Mitch.
[1.]Changes in CBO's baseline projections since January 2001
Congratulations Son, we're all proud of you
Our son just graduated from Lake Washington Institute of Technology. He got a degree as an automotive repair technician and was hired by Lexus 9 months before he graduated. Congratulations, son.
Nancy Pelosi's press conference that the media quit following after she said she wouldn't be talking about Weiner's wiener
It's insulting and revolting that all the media quit following this press conference, right after Leader Pelosi said she wouldn't be talking about Congressmn Weiner. No jobs bill from the republicans is certainly more important than the media's preoccupation with congressional gonads.
Image via WikipediaToday, Leader Pelosi was joined by Rep. Sandy Levin, Ranking Member on the Ways and Means Committee, and Rep. Mark Critz at her weekly press conference:
Transcript:
Leader Pelosi. Good morning. Thank you for joining us once again for our regularly-scheduled Thursday morning press conference.
As usual, we are here to talk about jobs, about protecting Medicare, and protecting the middle class.
If you’re here to ask a question about Congressman Weiner, I won’t be answering any. I have made the statements I am going to make. It is my understanding that later in the day he will be having a press conference, and after that I will have a statement available. I just tell you that up front.
It is day 163, 163 days since the Republicans have taken over the majority of the House of Representatives—almost 6 months, and still no jobs bill on the floor. Instead, the Republicans have put forth a budget that ends Medicare, while making seniors pay more to get less or give tax subsidies to Big Oil. They are harming seniors by changing Medicaid, while they give tax breaks to businesses that send jobs overseas. They are reducing our investment in education and making it worse for our children and making it more expensive for nearly 10 million young people to go to college, making it prohibitively expensive for them, while they give tax cuts to the wealthiest people in our country.
We want to put people back to work. We want to do so as we put our fiscal house in order. We will not do it on the backs of our children, our seniors, or the great middle class. Democrats are focused on creating jobs, strengthening the middle class, preserving Social Security, and responsibly reducing the debt.
We have introduced—you have been here with our Whip, Steny Hoyer with a Make It in America agenda. It is an agenda about stopping the erosion of our industrial manufacturing and technological base. It is an agenda about, again, making it in America by building the infrastructure of our country with Build America Bonds and the rest.
We have had this presentation over and over again. We have not been able to get one of these bills brought to the floor under the leadership of the Republican majority, and so we are going another route.
We are taking one element of the Make It in America agenda that is a component that addresses the manipulation of currency by the Chinese government. This is unfair to American workers. It is costing us over 1 million jobs.
And I’m very proud of the leadership of our Members who are here with me. I’m very honored to be joined by the former chair and current ranking and hopefully soon again chair of the Ways and Means Committee, Sandy Levin, who knows this issue well and has worked on it for a long time, and with one of our newer Members of Congress, Congressman Mark Critz, who knows firsthand with his interaction with his district the impact of the manipulation of the currency by China on exports to our country.
It is a subsidy for their exports. It is a disservice to our workers. And we are going to have—and Mr. Critz will talk about a discharge petition. They won’t bring to the floor. We are moving to discharge this legislation.
rest of the transcript here
Image via WikipediaToday, Leader Pelosi was joined by Rep. Sandy Levin, Ranking Member on the Ways and Means Committee, and Rep. Mark Critz at her weekly press conference:Transcript:
Leader Pelosi. Good morning. Thank you for joining us once again for our regularly-scheduled Thursday morning press conference.
As usual, we are here to talk about jobs, about protecting Medicare, and protecting the middle class.
If you’re here to ask a question about Congressman Weiner, I won’t be answering any. I have made the statements I am going to make. It is my understanding that later in the day he will be having a press conference, and after that I will have a statement available. I just tell you that up front.
It is day 163, 163 days since the Republicans have taken over the majority of the House of Representatives—almost 6 months, and still no jobs bill on the floor. Instead, the Republicans have put forth a budget that ends Medicare, while making seniors pay more to get less or give tax subsidies to Big Oil. They are harming seniors by changing Medicaid, while they give tax breaks to businesses that send jobs overseas. They are reducing our investment in education and making it worse for our children and making it more expensive for nearly 10 million young people to go to college, making it prohibitively expensive for them, while they give tax cuts to the wealthiest people in our country.
We want to put people back to work. We want to do so as we put our fiscal house in order. We will not do it on the backs of our children, our seniors, or the great middle class. Democrats are focused on creating jobs, strengthening the middle class, preserving Social Security, and responsibly reducing the debt.
We have introduced—you have been here with our Whip, Steny Hoyer with a Make It in America agenda. It is an agenda about stopping the erosion of our industrial manufacturing and technological base. It is an agenda about, again, making it in America by building the infrastructure of our country with Build America Bonds and the rest.
We have had this presentation over and over again. We have not been able to get one of these bills brought to the floor under the leadership of the Republican majority, and so we are going another route.
We are taking one element of the Make It in America agenda that is a component that addresses the manipulation of currency by the Chinese government. This is unfair to American workers. It is costing us over 1 million jobs.
And I’m very proud of the leadership of our Members who are here with me. I’m very honored to be joined by the former chair and current ranking and hopefully soon again chair of the Ways and Means Committee, Sandy Levin, who knows this issue well and has worked on it for a long time, and with one of our newer Members of Congress, Congressman Mark Critz, who knows firsthand with his interaction with his district the impact of the manipulation of the currency by China on exports to our country.
It is a subsidy for their exports. It is a disservice to our workers. And we are going to have—and Mr. Critz will talk about a discharge petition. They won’t bring to the floor. We are moving to discharge this legislation.
rest of the transcript here
Oregon drains reservoir after man urinates in it, at least they didn't blow it up
from CNN
Oregon's Portland Water Bureau is draining an 8 million-gallon reservoir after surveillance cameras caught a man urinating into it this week. This apparently is costing the city 40,000 dollars. But at least they didn't call the state highway department to fix the problem. Here's how the state highway department in Oregon "fixes" problems:
Oregon's Portland Water Bureau is draining an 8 million-gallon reservoir after surveillance cameras caught a man urinating into it this week. This apparently is costing the city 40,000 dollars. But at least they didn't call the state highway department to fix the problem. Here's how the state highway department in Oregon "fixes" problems:
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Give China the hotfoot, sign the petition to rename the South China Sea
Here is your chance for your name to live forever in South East Asia history by signing the petition. The sponsors are also looking for individuals or groups to translate the petition into, CHINESE.
CIA World Factbook: the Spratly Islands
Sign the petition to rename the south china sea the Southeast Asia Sea
Debbie Wasserman Schultz speaks at Netroots Nation
"Still, Republicans continue to tout the same failed policies. They’re saying cutting taxes for the wealthy and allowing business to self-regulate again is a silver bullet for the economy, that we should just trust them. But we know better than that. We saw what happened under President Bush.
Republicans’ policies were bad for America then and they’re bad for America now.
Republicans want to repeal financial reform – setting Americans up for another financial crisis in the future.
Image via Wikipedia And Republicans want to do away with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – taking us back to the days when Americans could be buried by the fine print on their mortgage or credit card agreement.
But Republicans aren’t just bad on the economy – they’re trying to take away some of our most fundamental rights.
We’ve seen Republican Governors strip away the rights of public employees to collectively bargain in Wisconsin and Ohio.
We’ve seen Republicans in Congress take steps to try and drastically curtail women’s reproductive rights.
We’ve seen Republican Governors in states like Florida and Wisconsin enacting voting laws that restrict voters’ rights to cast their ballots. In more than 35 states across America, Republicans have pushed for photo ID laws that cost states millions and hurt minorities, the elderly, and young voters.
The Democratic Party will fight these laws and we are continuing to work to expand the electorate. But we’re going to need your help!"
Full text of the chairs' speech at netroots nation conference
Republicans’ policies were bad for America then and they’re bad for America now.
Republicans want to repeal financial reform – setting Americans up for another financial crisis in the future.
Image via Wikipedia And Republicans want to do away with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – taking us back to the days when Americans could be buried by the fine print on their mortgage or credit card agreement.But Republicans aren’t just bad on the economy – they’re trying to take away some of our most fundamental rights.
We’ve seen Republican Governors strip away the rights of public employees to collectively bargain in Wisconsin and Ohio.
We’ve seen Republicans in Congress take steps to try and drastically curtail women’s reproductive rights.
We’ve seen Republican Governors in states like Florida and Wisconsin enacting voting laws that restrict voters’ rights to cast their ballots. In more than 35 states across America, Republicans have pushed for photo ID laws that cost states millions and hurt minorities, the elderly, and young voters.
The Democratic Party will fight these laws and we are continuing to work to expand the electorate. But we’re going to need your help!"
Full text of the chairs' speech at netroots nation conference
Amy Kobuchar goes to the dark side; introduces sb 978
full text of the bill
Image via Wikipedia
This is a BAD bill. It severely limits free speech in this country. It is so poorly and loosley written that any blogger that say upsets a republican state attorney general could find themselves prosecuted and jailed for 5 years; simply for posting a u-tube video!! It could be a video the district attorneys post themselves! They claim it's not directed towards individuals, there is nothing in the bill that specifies that. The word "performance" is not defined, they could easily come up with a price of 250 dollars for each playing of the video, then 10 people that clicked on that video, 2500 dollars total, and you have just committed a felony.
from Ethan Siegal@ Startswithabang.com:
And now, thanks to new legislation in the U.S. Senate -- introduced by Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar -- I am likely to soon become a criminal for it. Not a misdemeanor offender, either, but a full-blown felon. The kind where I can go to prison for a long time, lose my right to vote, etc.
My great offense? Embedding a copyrighted work. For a youtube video, do it ten times in six months, and you can be a felon under U.S. Law, too.
What does it take to make me a felon? Well, did you click on the video above? If you -- and ten others like you -- click on it, and that video gets taken down later, at some point, due to a copyright infringement, I am responsible, and that's going to be a felony offense under U.S. Law.
Sound insane? Stupid? Evil? That doesn't mean this bipartisan bill isn't well on its way to becoming a law. But don't take my word for it. Read the awful piece of legislation, U.S. Senate Bill 978, yourself. You'll see very clearly that the punishment for this offense is a hefty fine and up to five years in prison. For embedding a youtube video, among other things.
What's really awful about this is that it could happen even if Rebecca Loebe is very happy to have her video appear on this site. It could happen even if NBC is very happy to have the advertising for their show, "The Voice," on this site. It could happen because a company like Comcast doesn't like it, or because the RIAA doesn't like it, or because any one of a number of music or media companies doesn't like it. As long as it can be legally construed as a "public performance of a copyrighted work," you could go to prison for it.
Senator Amy Klobuchar contact information:
D.C. office phone: 202-224-3244
D.C. office fax: 202-228-2186
Email senator Klobuchar
Please write your own senators
Image via WikipediaThis is a BAD bill. It severely limits free speech in this country. It is so poorly and loosley written that any blogger that say upsets a republican state attorney general could find themselves prosecuted and jailed for 5 years; simply for posting a u-tube video!! It could be a video the district attorneys post themselves! They claim it's not directed towards individuals, there is nothing in the bill that specifies that. The word "performance" is not defined, they could easily come up with a price of 250 dollars for each playing of the video, then 10 people that clicked on that video, 2500 dollars total, and you have just committed a felony.
from Ethan Siegal@ Startswithabang.com:
And now, thanks to new legislation in the U.S. Senate -- introduced by Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar -- I am likely to soon become a criminal for it. Not a misdemeanor offender, either, but a full-blown felon. The kind where I can go to prison for a long time, lose my right to vote, etc.
My great offense? Embedding a copyrighted work. For a youtube video, do it ten times in six months, and you can be a felon under U.S. Law, too.
What does it take to make me a felon? Well, did you click on the video above? If you -- and ten others like you -- click on it, and that video gets taken down later, at some point, due to a copyright infringement, I am responsible, and that's going to be a felony offense under U.S. Law.
Sound insane? Stupid? Evil? That doesn't mean this bipartisan bill isn't well on its way to becoming a law. But don't take my word for it. Read the awful piece of legislation, U.S. Senate Bill 978, yourself. You'll see very clearly that the punishment for this offense is a hefty fine and up to five years in prison. For embedding a youtube video, among other things.
What's really awful about this is that it could happen even if Rebecca Loebe is very happy to have her video appear on this site. It could happen even if NBC is very happy to have the advertising for their show, "The Voice," on this site. It could happen because a company like Comcast doesn't like it, or because the RIAA doesn't like it, or because any one of a number of music or media companies doesn't like it. As long as it can be legally construed as a "public performance of a copyrighted work," you could go to prison for it.
Senator Amy Klobuchar contact information:
D.C. office phone: 202-224-3244
D.C. office fax: 202-228-2186
Email senator Klobuchar
Please write your own senators
Stop the AT&T and T-Mobile merger
from the petition site:
AT&T recently announced a deal to purchase T-Mobile for $39 billion. The acquisition will eliminate a large competitor in the wireless provider market, limiting consumer's choice in provider and service plans. Worst of all, AT&T, the worst rated of the wireless providers, will take over and eliminate T-Mobile, the highest rated in customer satisfaction and service.
We as consumers want to be able to choose a provider with high satisfaction ratings, low rates, and high quality wireless service. This acquisition will allow AT&T to move towards monopolizing the wireless service industry at the expense of consumers. The only way to prevent this is for the FCC to not approve this deal. Please act now to keep an option of excellent quality and service in the wireless provider industry
Change.org petition to stop the merger
Color of Change's petition to stop the merger
the petition site
AT&T recently announced a deal to purchase T-Mobile for $39 billion. The acquisition will eliminate a large competitor in the wireless provider market, limiting consumer's choice in provider and service plans. Worst of all, AT&T, the worst rated of the wireless providers, will take over and eliminate T-Mobile, the highest rated in customer satisfaction and service.
We as consumers want to be able to choose a provider with high satisfaction ratings, low rates, and high quality wireless service. This acquisition will allow AT&T to move towards monopolizing the wireless service industry at the expense of consumers. The only way to prevent this is for the FCC to not approve this deal. Please act now to keep an option of excellent quality and service in the wireless provider industry
Change.org petition to stop the merger
Color of Change's petition to stop the merger
the petition site
Friday, June 17, 2011
Texas drought affected by Governor Rick Perry's prayer proclamation?
Neil was putting it mildly when he phrased his question: not quite as popular in his own home state. According to the latest poll only 4% of Texans claimed they would vote for Perry as president of the U.S.
PERRY:"I say that a prophet is generally not loved in their hometown. That’s both Biblical and practical."
Rick Perry current governor of Texas considers himself a prophet? Since governor Perry considers himself a prophet its not too surprising to see that his response to the drought in Texas was to issue 3 days of state sponsored prayer. You can see the severity of the drought 2 weeks before he issued his prophet of prayer
proclamation in the below graphic.
 |
| drought conditions in Texas as of April 12, 2011 |
WHEREAS, throughout our history, both as a state and as individuals, Texans have been strengthened, assured and lifted up through prayer; it seems right and fitting that the people of Texas should join together in prayer to humbly seek an end to this devastating drought and these dangerous wildfires;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, RICK PERRY, Governor of Texas, under the authority vested in me by the Constitution and Statutes of the State of Texas, do hereby proclaim the three-day period from Friday, April 22, 2011, to Sunday, April 24, 2011, as Days of Prayer for Rain in the State of Texas. I urge Texans of all faiths and traditions to offer prayers on that day for the healing of our land, the rebuilding of our communities and the restoration of our normal and robust way of life.This is what the drought conditions in Texas look like now. Obviously, his prayer proclamation was completely ineffective. Either prayer's don't work or the gods don't listen to Perry. Either way Texas is in a heap of trouble with the lack of rain and the lack of effective leadership.
 | ||||
| Current drought conditions in Texas: 6/14/2011 |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)