The Pink Ribbon Joins the Republican War on Women

The Susan G. Komen foundation has pulled its funding from Planned Parenthood. Planned Parenthood is often the only provider of health care services for low-income and underserved women. Komen’s support for Planned Parenthood has provided nearly 170,000 clinical breast exams and referrals for more than 6,400 mammograms in just the last 5 years. These cancer detection and prevention programs save lives, plain and simple.   Pressure from congressional conservatives and right wing anti-choice extremists is no excuse to stop saving the lives of poor American women.  Unless Komen foundation only supports a cure for "right" thinking individuals.  Is the Komen Foundation fighting breast cancer or advancing an extremist anti-choice viewpoint and enlisting in the republican war on women?  Our family has supported the Komen foundation for as long as I can remember, but no longer unless they change their stance. 

Fuse has a petition, tell the Komen foundation you stand with Planned Parenthood

Susan G. Komen for the cure Contact Page, send them a message

Related articles

• Susan G Komen Foundation Bows to Pro-Life Bullying; Stops Contributing to Planned Parenthood [Planned Parenthood] (jezebel.com)
• Nation's Largest Cancer Charity Caves To Right Wing Pressure, Ends Relationship With Planned Parenthood (thinkprogress.org)
• Susan G. Komen for the Cure caves to anti-choicers, stops funding Planned Parenthood (dailykos.com)
• Komen foundation cuts off cancer screening grants to Planned Parenthood (boston.com)

Credo Super Pac to target Rep. Allen West

Rep. Allen West telling liberals to get the hell out of the United States, really.

“We need to let President Obama, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, (audience boos) and my dear friend the chairman of the Democrat National Committee, we need to let them know that Florida ain’t on the table,  Take your message of equality of achievement, take your message of economic dependency, take your message of enslaving the entrepreneurial will and spirit of the American people somewhere else. You can take it to Europe, you can take it to the bottom of the sea, you can take it to the North Pole, but get the hell out of the United States of America.”

I'm not leaving and neither are my liberal and progressive friends.  Here is a better plan, Liberals working to get Rep. Allen West the hell out of the United States Congress.  Alan West is one of the tea party ten  selected by CredoAction.  They are forming a super pac targeting the most extreme of the tea party candidates.  Click the link below and give a couple of dollars if you can.  You can vote for the remaining four candidates later on. 

Pledge to hold Tea Party extremists accountable

If we do nothing, the 2012 election will be the same as 2010 — waves of unlimited money from groups associated with the likes of Karl Rove and the Koch brothers will keep Tea Party extremists in power. And we'll again be forced to watch as these radicals dismantle our democracy in vote after vote.
We can't stand by silently in 2012. We need your help:

To make sure that shady political spending doesn't drown out the truth about the Tea Party record.

To fight back against this radical takeover of our congress and our democracy.

To show Tea Party radicals the high price for their extremism.

We need your help in this grassroots campaign to Take Down ten of the most odious members of congress: Joe Walsh (IL-08), Chip Cravaack (MN-08), Sean Duffy (WI-07), Allen West (FL-22), Frank Guinta (NH-01), Steve King (IA-5). (Remaining four coming soon.)
Whether or not you live in one of the districts, you can help.

Take down the Tea Party 10, contribute to the Credo Super Pac here

Related articles

• Allen West To Liberals, President Obama: 'Get The Hell Out Of The United States Of America' (thinkprogress.org)
• Rep. Allen West Tells Obama And Democratic Leaders To 'Get The Hell Out Of The United States' (mediaite.com)
• Allen West on Obama, Pelosi and Reid: 'Get the hell out of the United States' (dailykos.com)

Republican Oil Puppets

Big Oil is using all those big tax breaks we give them to push very hard to resart the Keystone Xl Pipeline. Great less than 2 minute video from Sierra Club National.

Big Oil’s Puppets Love Keystone XL from Sierra Club National on Vimeo.

Who wants to build a risky, dirty 1,700 mile oil pipeline across America's heartland? Big Oil and their lobbyists, that's who. Guess who else? Their political puppets!

The Republican presidential candidates have a lot to say about how much they love the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. But there's a few crucial facts that just don't seem to come out of their mouths. They don't say that the pipeline is hauling highly toxic crude over some of our nation's most critical water sources. They fail to mention how the first Keystone pipeline caused fourteen oil spills since 2010. And they NEVER say how much money Big Oil companies have given their campaigns.

Check out this video to hear what these puppets are saying about Big Oil's pet project and learn the truth about the dirty oil money that's been filling their bank accounts.

Related articles

• GOP Sock Puppet Primary: Keystone XL Edition (thinkprogress.org)
• Edward Flattau: Canadian Keystone XL Oil Pipeline: Why the Deception? (huffingtonpost.com)
• President Obama Denies Permit for Keystone XL Pipeline, Hurray!!! (ablazeofbrightblue.blogspot.com)

I Want You To Stop Being Afraid

Poster by Al Haug

Apple Pie

Recipe and directions here

The Daily Bread

Recipe and directions here

The Daily Bread

Recipe and directions here

Romney's "Blood Money"

The pro Newt super pact, $$Winning Our Future$$ is running this ad is Florida. Not sure how it will do since Floridians elected  governor Rick Scott who was the CEO of a company that paid the largest ever Medicare fraud fine, 1.7 billion. That's not a typo it was a 1.7 billion dollar fine, and that CEO, Rick Scott is now the governor of Florida.

Related articles

• Labor jumps into Fla GOP primary - linking Mitt Romney to Rick Scott (tampabay.com)
• Pro-Gingrich PAC attacks Mitt Romney over 'blood money' in web ad (miamiherald.typepad.com)
• Pro-Gingrich group hits Romney on Medicare fraud (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

The Daily Bread

Recipe and directions here

Happy Friday

Credit: Data - Hubble Legacy Archive, ESA, NASA; Processing - Robert Gendler

NGC 4449 a small irregular galaxy

Elizabeth Warren on the Daily Show

Every time I've heard Elizabeth Warren speak, she has impressed me with her passion and her clear understanding of how the basic structure of our government and economy has been warped by lobbyists disbursing large sums of money. Ms. Warren starts with the 30 large corporations who pay more in lobbying than they pay in US taxes and goes on to our future and our values. Great interview.

The Daily Show
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

The Daily Show
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

The Daily Bread

Recipe and directions here

Alan Grayson on Citizens United

Mr. Grayson simply and clearly explains what the supreme Koch's decision on Citizen's United means to our democracy.

Steps We Can Take to Stop the Republican War on Women

It's been 39 years since the supreme court ruled on Roe vs. Wade which legalized a women's right to choose.  Last year republican legislators across the country passed 92 abortion restricting laws.  Republicans all across the country are also trying to shut down Planned Parenthood.  Not only is abortion under attack, but contraceptives, cancer screening, STD screening and all the other services Planned Parenthood provides to millions of women and men. Republicans are eager to overturn Roe vs Wade and with a current supreme court makeup that can't tell the difference between a corporation and a person, would you feel comfortable with the supreme court making decisions about what women can do with their bodies?  Speaker Boehner (R-OH) has publicly stated his decision to overturn Roe vs Wade. Not only do the republicans want to make abortion illegal, every Republican presidential candidate wants to de-fund Planned Parenthood and enact a personhood amendment that would make most common forms of birth control and in vitro fertilization illegal.
All the Republican Presidential candidate want to repeal the Affordable Care Act, bringing back "pre-existing conditions", higher insurance costs for women and eliminating birth control with no-copay.  

Unlike a bad dream this won't slowly fade away.  It will take a concerted effort by many citizens over months to stop the current attack on women's reproductive choices and health by conservative republican men.  With the current republican majorities in state legislators across the country,  the republican attacks on women's reproductive rights will never cease.  Would any amount of petitions or letters change the anti-choice stance of a republican conservatives like Eric Cantor, Orrin Hatch or Speaker Boehner?

Most of these laws were passed by old white conservative and mostly republican men.  Why would any sane society allow old white men the right to decide what women can or cannot do with their bodies?  Is this a patriarchy or a democracy?

We must elect pro-choice candidates to stem these attacks on women's reproductive choices.

Steps we can take to ensure Roe vs. Wade will have a 40th anniversary


1. No Republicans.   Almost every republican is anti-choice, do not vote for or contribute to any republican organization or individual.
2.  Donate.  Contribute to pro-choice candidates, in your state.  Even if you only contribute 2.00 dollars or one dollar you are sending a message.
3.  Volunteer.  2012 will see unprecedented sums of money being spent in this election year.  Nothing is more effective than a sincere phone call or knock on a door.
4.  Talk to your friends and neighbors, tell them how you feel about old white conservative republican men telling women what they should do with their bodies.
5.  Sign up for E-mails from one or more of the following organizations.  They will keep you informed on current events regarding women's reproductive rights.  These organizations will ask you to sign petitions, if you don't have time or money to donate, it only takes a couple of seconds to sign a petition.


Planned Parenthood,
Naral Pro-Choice America,
Center for Reproductive Rights, 
National Women's Law Center

Many parents with small children are having a very rough time in this economy.  Millions are unemployed, millions more are working multiple part time jobs often without health insurance, these individuals almost never have any free time for politics.   If you can, step up and fight for women's reproductive choices. 


Join the virtual march and tell your leaders to trust women and support women's access to reproductive health care.

Rep. Keith Ellison: Corporations are Not People

H.J. Res. 92 
YouTube Town Hall: Rep. Keith Ellison on the Occupy Wall Street Movement
Sign the petition to amend the Constitution so Congress and the states can enact common-sense campaign finance reforms.

The Daily Bread

Recipe and directions here

Mae Ploy Curry Paste

I love Mae Ploy curry paste.  Don't ask me for the correct pronunciation, but this is the start of an excellent curry.  Mae Ploy sells Red Curry Paste, Yellow Curry Paste, Panang Curry Paste and my favorite Green Curry Paste all for under 3 dollars a pkg.  Each package will make many curries.  They make a few other flavors however we've only tried the ones listed and they are all great.  To make a thai curry with the Mae Ploy, measure 50 grams of curry paste (one to three tablespoons or less if your sensitive to "spicy") to a pot, fry for a couple minutes then add 1 cup of coconut milk, beef, prawns or chicken, your choice of vegetables some chicken or beef stock and your done.  Peas, Bok Choy, eggplant, Napa cabbage, zucchini, sprouts, chili's, green beans, broccoli all taste wonderful cooked in a delicious Mae Ploy curry sauce.  We serve it with white rice on the side and its one of our favorite meals.   Warning: My wife isn't as big a fan of "spicy" as the rest of us, Red curry seems to be the hottest and if it's prepared with 2 or 3 T of paste, she can't eat it.  Most of the time we eat Mae Ploy curry when she is out of town because my sons and I enjoy very spicy foods.   Thai curry is a quick dish to prepare and easily accommodates loads of nutritious fresh vegetables.

Related articles

• Soup to Warm Your Body; Possibly Soul (portlandfarmersmarket.wordpress.com)
• ~Thai Vegetarian Green Curry with Chanterelle Mushrooms Recipe~ (ilovethaicooking.wordpress.com)

Like Birth Control with No Co-Pay? Say Thank you President Obama

Right to Life groups, Catholic bishops and other church groups pushed very hard against birth control with no co-pay.  Not content with preaching from the pulpit, catholic bishops wanted the government to enforce their religious doctrine which proscribes birth control.  President Obama took a firm stand and refused to allow religious institutions to exclude birth control from their health insurance programs.  Why would any sane society allow old celibate men the right to control women and what women do with their bodies?

You can thank President Obama for making sure that all women's insurance policies provide birth control with No-Copay.  Click here to see the wide range of services covered under the Affordable Care Act
The following piece by Stephanie Cutter clearly shows the extreme difference between President Barack Obama and every one of the Republican Presidential candidates. 

Big News on Birth Control

By Stephanie Cutter, Deputy Campaign Manager on January 22, 2012

Here’s some big news that’s going to affect millions of women.
On Friday, the Obama administration announced that soon women won’t have to pay out of pocket for birth control: starting August 1st, many insurance plans nationwide will be required to fully cover contraception without co-pays or deductibles. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, more women can make health care decisions based on what's best for them—not their insurance company—all while saving hundreds of dollars every year.
Think about how different that is from what the candidates on the other side would do. They’ve all vowed to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and Mitt Romney even said he would have signed a constitutional amendment in Massachusetts to define life as beginning at conception, similar to the notorious state-level “personhood” amendment that could ban many forms of contraception, and even IVF.

Click here for the rest of the article, and select "Add your name" to to show your support for women’s access to health care

 Who else wants to allow Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney or Rick Santorum to decide what women can and cannot do with their bodies?  Speaker Boehner (R-OH) wants to overturn Roe vs. Wade.  Do you feel comfortable letting this man decide what women can do with their bodies?

Supreme Koch member Scalia: Image from here

If not comfortable with image click here: Obama-Biden 2012

The Daily Bread

Recipe and directions here

Join The Trust Women Online March

From MoveOn.org

On Friday, the president took a huge step forward for women's health, finally requiring insurance companies to treat women equally by covering contraception costs.

But believe it or not, Republican presidential candidates and legislators are fighting against that basic healthcare need, as well as supporting extreme restrictions on reproductive care.² And because this is an election year, women's health and reproductive justice are in the spotlight.

That's why we're joining over 50 organizations in the Trust Women online march. Millions of women and men across the country support comprehensive healthcare for women and reproductive freedom.³ This online march is a way for us to stand in solidarity, show our numbers, and send a strong message to elected officials that we're watching and we vote.

Click here to join the march and send your message.

Every single republican presidential candidate wants to shut down Planned Parenthood.  All of them support the personhood amendment.  The personhood amendment would classify a fertilized egg as a human being.  Passing this amendment would mean that most popular methods of birth control would be outlawed.  Women who have miscarriages could be investigated and prosecuted.  This personhood amendment gives a few cells more rights than the mother who carries them.  It's way past time to stop republicans from interfering in women's private medical care.   The latest intrusive republican government regulations concerning women's reproductive care stipulate exactly what medical practitioners say and exactly what women should hear in the doctors office.  It's time to get republicans out of women's reproductive healthcare.   The republican war on women will not succeed if we all stand up, support, and VOTE for candidates that trust women. Women should be allowed to make their own medical decisions without interference from old white conservative men. 

Click here to join the march and send your message.

Related articles

• Tell Speaker Boehner: Keep your hands off women's reproductive rights (ablazeofbrightblue.blogspot.com)
• Stop the Repubican War on Women, by Electing Women to the Senate (ablazeofbrightblue.blogspot.com)
• The Reproductive Parity Act (ablazeofbrightblue.blogspot.com)

Flan de Queso

recipe here

This recipe became a quick family favorite after my friend Jay sent me the recipe.  It's simple to make, with a rich creamy taste that somehow still manages to be delicate even with 8 eggs inside.  Shown here on a beautiful platter that my mother-in-law gave us just for this Flan recipe.  Thanks Bev and Jay!   What's for breakfast? Flan.

Related articles

• Flan de Queso (ablazeofbrightblue.blogspot.com)

Apple Pie

Recipe and directions here

The Daily Bread

Recipe and directions here

Dude, Where's My Speech

The republican party has chosen Governor Mitch "pothead" Daniels to deliver the republican response to President Obama's State of the Union Speech this Tuesday.  Daniels was arrested in 1971 for possessing enough marijuana to be charged with distribution, a felony.  Individuals in Daniels state of Indiana are routinely charged with felonies and given a 6 month to 3 year sentence for the same quantities of marijuana that Governor Daniels had in his possession. 

Officers found enough marijuana in his room to fill two size 12 shoe boxes, reports of the incident say. He and the other inhabitants of the room were also charged with possession of LSD and prescription drugs without a prescription. Daniels and his two roommates in 111 Cuyler Hall, Marc Stuart '71 and Richard Stockton '71, were arrested and, after plea bargaining, Daniels eventually escaped with a $350 fine for "maintaining a common nuisance." The charges against Stockton were eventually dropped

Instead of a felony, Mitch was charged with "maintaining a common nuisance" and paid a $350 fine?  How many Black or Hispanic Americans found with 2 shoeboxes full of pot received a fine and no jail time? 
Republicans called on Mitch Daniels to deliver the speech because he had a "solid record for effective government and fiscal responsibility".  Seriously?  Mitch Daniels was President Bush's budget director from 2001 to 2003.  Daniels was point man on selling Bush's education and infrastructure killing tax cuts for the wealthy. 

During Daniels' 29-month tenure in the position, the projected federal budget surplus of $236 billion declined to a $400 billion deficit, due to an economic downturn, and failure to enact spending cuts to offset the tax reductions.

 Mitch Daniels was also responsible for selling and predicting the cost of the Iraq war.  We spent almost a trillion dollars chasing Bush's imaginary WMD's.  What did Mitch predict the war would cost?  50-60 billion dollars. This is the best example of a "solid record for effective government and fiscal responsibility" the republicans could find?  

In a few weeks the world's most famous union players are coming to Indiana.  Guess what state is trying to ram through "right to work" legislation before the next superbowl?  The National Football League Player's Association is opposed to Mitch Daniels "right to work" sham legislation.
The NFLPA released this statement:

“Right-to-work” is a political ploy designed to destroy basic workers’ rights. It’s not about jobs or rights, and it’s the wrong priority for Indiana.
The facts are clear—according to a January 2012 Economic Policy Institute briefing report (“Working Hard to Make Indiana Look Bad”), “right-to-work” will lower wages for a worker in Indiana by $1,500 a year because it weakens the ability of working families to work together, and it will make it less likely that working people will get health care and pensions.
So-called “right-to-work” bills divide working families at a time when communities need to stand united. We need unity—not division. We urge legislators in Indiana to oppose “right-to-work” efforts, and focus instead on job creation.

Not only are the republicans waging a war on women, unions, climate change, Iran and science, but now they have added a war against our constitution.   Do today's republicans ever want to build anything other than their bank accounts? 

Related articles

• Lunchpail Republicans (ablazeofbrightblue.blogspot.com)
• Mitch Daniels: The Man from Bush? (markamerica.com)
• Indiana's Gov. Daniels Assailed by IBM (usnews.com)
• Secret donors put Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels on the air to make dubious anti-union claims (dailykos.com)

Happy Chinese New Year 2012

Year of the Dragon

 

U.S. Supreme Koch

From the other 98%

SOPA, PIPA-DOA

The Senate and the House have withdrawn both bills.  The Senate was to debate and vote on the bill this Tuesday, it has been indefinately postponed.  There was a thunderous internet outcry over the bills.  Google, Wikipedia and over 100,000 other websites supported the internet strike on the 18th.  Over 10,000,000 individuals signed petitions against the bills and over 3,000,000 e-mails were sent.  8 AM January 18th five senators were opposed to this bill.  12 hours later 34 senators publicly withdrew support or denounced the bill in its current form.    It was fun to see some large corporations like Google stand with the little guys and watching a "series of tubes" coil like a rattlesnake, shaking Congress to attention was most outstanding. 

Happy Friday

Full size image here

The Republican War on Women

View full size image here

President Obama Denies Permit for Keystone XL Pipeline, Hurray!!!

Image by Sterling College via Flickr

From Bill McKibben 

We wanted to share with you the news: this afternoon the Obama Administration announced that they are denying the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline. You did good work, against some of the longest possible odds.

For years, the knock on the President Obama was that he backed down too easily in the face of opposition. Not here. When Republicans in Congress forced the issue again by passing a 60-day time limit on the President's final decision, he stood strong and denied the permit. And that was despite the most explicit threats from Big Oil: that they would exact ‘huge political consequences’ if he did the right thing on Keystone. Make no mistake—this is a brave decision.

And make no mistake about this either—Big Oil will do everything it can to overturn that decision, because they are not used to losing. They have one weapon—money. They’ve used it to buy the allegiance of many Representatives and Senators and now they’ll use Congress to try and get their dirty work done. That’s what happened when the President delayed the permit last November, and we should expect them to try again now.
 Blocking one pipeline was never going to stop global warming—but it is a real start, one of the first times in the two-decade fight over climate change when the fossil fuel lobby has actually lost.

350.org

350.org is building a global grassroots movement to solve the climate crisis. Our online campaigns, grassroots organizing, and mass public actions are led from the bottom up by thousands of volunteer organizers in over 188 countries.
350 means climate safety. To preserve our planet, scientists tell us we must reduce the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere from its current level of 392 parts per million to below 350 ppm. But 350 is more than a number—it's a symbol of where we need to head as a planet.

350.org

Vote for the Net

from Vote for the Net

"In 2012, I will only support candidates who stand for Internet freedom and who oppose the PROTECT IP Act and SOPA. I will work against any candidate, of any party, who votes to censor and stifle the Internet."

Sign the Pledge here

Three stalwart defenders of the internet, who fought against these bills from the very beginning:
Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA)
Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR)
Senator Rand Paul (R-KY)

Related articles

• Vote for the Net (voteforthenet.com)

Speaker Boehner: Pipeline will "create 100,000 new jobs", NOT

When President Obama rejected the Keystone XL Pipeline today, Speaker Boehner said that the pipeline would have created "100,000 jobs"  Republicans seem to have a problem with numbers.  Most reliable estimates for the jobs that would be created with the keystone pipeline range around 1800 to 6,500 jobs.  These few jobs are not adequate compensation for having a toxic oil river run through our entire country.   Tapping the oil sands will also have a huge impact on our global CO2 footprint.  John Boehner and Eric Cantor blasted President Obama today for cancelling the Keystone XL Pipeline, saying:

 From ABC news

“President Obama is destroying tens of thousands of American jobs and shipping American energy security to the Chinese.  There’s really just no other way to put it.The president was given the authority to block this project only and only if he believes it’s not in the national interest of the United States.  Is it not in the national interest to create tens of thousands of jobs here in America with private investment?  Is it not in the national interest to get energy resources from an ally like Canada, as opposed to some countries in the Middle East?”

This toxic sludge they wanted to send to the Gulf of Mexico was to be exported! The refined oil would have then been sent off to the world market, most likely China.
This Washington Post article notes Speaker Boehner's personal financial stake in the pipelines completion.

Environmentalists note that in December 2010, according to Boehner’s financial disclosure forms, he invested $10,000 to $50,000 each in seven firms that had a stake in Canada’s oil sands, the region that produces the oil the pipeline would transport. The firms include six oil companies — BP, Canadian Natural Resources, Chevron, Conoco Phillips, Devon Energy and Exxon — along with Emerson Electric, which has a contract to provide the digital automation for the first phase of a $9.4 billion Horizon Oil Sands Project in Canada.

Eric Cantor said that President Obama cost the nation "20,000 jobs".  There are no "ten's of thousands", or "100,000" of jobs with the Keystone XL Pipeline unless you count the clean up workers for the anticipated toxic oil spills from the pipeline.  The republicans cost the nation 68,000 jobs when they rejected President Obama's "Green Jobs Energy Bill".  The republicans don't want you to have solar panels on your roof, but they are eager for a toxic river to run from the Canadian border to the Gulf of Mexico.  Eric Cantor and John Boehner must use Fox news as their sole source of information.  Check out Stephen Colbert's rundown on the pipeline and the"fanciful" job numbers Fox has been spouting for the XL Pipeline.

The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive

Related articles

• Boehner Nonsensically Calls a Legal Environmental Review on the Keystone Pipeline "Nonsense" (thinkprogress.org)

Corporations are NOT People: Constitutional Amendment

From Common Cause:

Thanks to the Supreme Court and Citizens United, the same big corporations and billionaires that destroyed our economy and caused millions of us to lose our jobs and homes, are spending obscene amounts to drown out our voices in elections and take over our government.

But together, "We the People" can set things right.

Stand with Robert Reich and join the movement for a constitutional amendment today. 

Sign the petition: Corporations are not People

 

Related articles

• Happy Anniversary, Citizens United! Citizens Celebrate By Uniting to Push For A Constitutional Amendment (crooksandliars.com)
• Montana bucks U.S. ruling on corporate contributions (sfgate.com)

Stop Sopa Now

From Google:

Millions of Americans oppose SOPA and PIPA because these bills would censor the Internet and slow economic growth in the U.S.

Two bills before Congress, known as the Protect IP Act (PIPA) in the Senate and the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the House, would censor the Web and impose harmful regulations on American business. Millions of Internet users and entrepreneurs already oppose SOPA and PIPA.
The Senate will begin voting on January 24th. Please let them know how you feel. Sign this petition urging Congress to vote NO on PIPA and SOPA before it is too late.

Sign Google's Petition

Only 4 senators oppose this bill.  We need 24 senators to oppose in order to stop this bill.  Please sign the petition and contact your representatives and senators.

Going Dark In Protest Against SOPA

Found a code on the net to protest SOPA, it darkened my homepage very nicely.  Unfortunately, couldn't figure out how to keep the banner without continuing to darken my site.  after the protest was over.  Thank you, unnamed codewriter for giving me the tools to join the protest against SOPA. 

1 Million Signatures to Recall Walker!!

After the Koch brothers puppet, Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin took office.   Scott Walker eliminated collective bargaining rights for unions, cut public education and enacted one of the most restrictive voter ID laws in the nation.
Scott Walker was elected with only 1.2 million votes.
Over 1 million citizens signed the recall petition.
Start packing Scott.
Congratulations Wisconsinites!!
 Time to celebrate with my favorite song.
"where working class kicks corporate ass
from sea to shining sea"

Lunchpail Republicans

Governor Mitch Daniels and his republican legislature have enlisted in the republican war on Labor unions. The Indiana legislature is trying to rush "right to work" legislation before the world's most famous union members come to town February 5, 2012 for Superbowl XLVI.  This ad was produced and paid for by Lunchpail Republicans who are dismayed  with Governor Mitch Daniels and his republican legislature interfering in the private sector.  Lunchpail republicans believe that government has no right to interfere with business owners in their financial dealings with labor.  It's evident even to ordinary republicans that Republicans in office today are little more than tools for ALEC, the corporations and the 1%.  David Fagan, chairman of the lunchpail republicans is determined to fight in order to return his party to the control of the citizens.

David Fagan, Chairman of the Lunchpail Republicans on the Rachel Maddow Show,

Lunchpail Republicans Website

Related articles

• Secret donors put Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels on the air to make dubious anti-union claims (dailykos.com)
• Gathering Storm Over 'Right to Work' in Indiana (nytimes.com)
• Indiana anti-union bill to get vote next week as Republicans and Democrats make a deal (dailykos.com)
• Indiana to Push Right to Work Bill; Unions Plan to Fight (news.firedoglake.com)
• Indiana State Sen. Jim Tomes (R) Comes Out Against Mitch Daniels' Right-to-Work Agenda (crooksandliars.com)
• Indiana Republicans Pick Union Fight Where Others Don't Dare (businessweek.com)
• Joe Lapointe: Will Republican Union-bashing Draw Backlash in Indiana? (huffingtonpost.com)

How to Get Money Out of Politics

Be a Part of HISTORY in the Making
JOIN the 99% Declaration TODAY!
Six-Point Plan to Take Back Our Government
THERE IS A SOLUTION
1. Elect one man and one woman from each of the 435 congressional districts plus one delegate from Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Territories, during the weekend of March 30-April 1, 2012. Voting is through a secure online system and, if possible, by telephone and at local polling places.
2. March - July 2012, delegates draft a list of grievances and solutions with input from their constituents.
3. The week of July 4, 2012, delegates meet in Philadelphia for a National General Assembly (NGA) to ratify and sign a final petition on July 4th for a redress of grievances.
4. The ratified petition is served upon all three branches of the government and all candidates running for federal political office in 2012. Candidates will be asked to respond to the petition, and their responses will be shared with the voting public.
5. The National General Assembly gives the 113th Congress, President and the Supreme Court time to act upon and redress the grievances listed in the petition.
6. If the grievances are not redressed to the satisfaction of the NGA, delegates reconvene to organize a new grassroots campaign for political candidates who publicly PLEDGE to redress the grievances. These candidates will seek election for all open Congressional seats in the mid-term election of 2014 and in the elections of 2016 and 2018.
YOUR CALL TO ACTION www.the99declaration.org:
• Get Involved Now!
• Help Eliminate the Corporate State!
• Volunteer ~ JOIN one of our working committees & share your talents!
• Register for Delegate!
• Register to Vote for NGA Delegates!
CONTRIBUTE:
Over $23,000 has been raised through small donations, as of January 1, 2012. Additional funding for the NGA election and venue is still needed. Donations may be made on the website by credit card, WePay, PayPal or by check to: The 99% Declaration, P.O. Box 190, Red Hook, NY 12571. Please note: Donations are not deductible for federal income tax purposes.
JOIN US ON FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/www.the99declaration.org
NOTE: The 99% Declaration is a not-for-profit organization formed under the laws of the State of New York for the sole purpose of funding and facilitating a National General Assembly (NGA) in Philadelphia the week of July 4, 2012. This effort is run solely by the energy of volunteers who care about our great country and want to bring it back to its GLORY.

Celebrate Martin Luther King Day

Dr. King fought for peace and justice

Martin Luther King Wikipage
The King Center
Martin Luther King's Nobel Peace Prize page
Martin Luther King National Park Service
"I Have A Dream Speech", text and audio
Martin Luther King's Memorial

Mitt Romney Serial Killer: Colbert SuperPac Ad

Get the popcorn!!

I-502 update

354,608 signatures were gathered in Washington State to send I-502 to the State Legislature.   The next step is verification – 241,153 of those signatures, or 68%, must be valid for I-502 to qualify. The verification process should go very quickly, and then Washington State Initiative Measure No. 502 is before the legislature!
Three good editorials on I-502.

Editorial: I-502 offers smart path to marijuana legalization - The Spokesman-Review Editorial Board


A practical approach to marijuana control - John McKay, Rick Steves & Roger Roffman in the Everett Herald.



We can't wait for feds to reform marijuana laws - Former U.S. Rep. Jolene Unsoeld in The Olympian.

Related articles

• Pot legalization initiative moves forward in Washington state (bizjournals.com)
• The Unraveling of Dominic Holden (horsesass.org)
• Colorado and Washington Marijuana Legalization Initiatives Likely to Qualify for the Ballot (justsaynow.firedoglake.com)
• The Campaign to Lock Up 13,000 Pot Smokers a Year (slog.thestranger.com)

Promise to Donate to Wikipedia: Blackout

From Demand Progress:
Wikipedia is considering going dark to protest SOPA and PIPA, the Internet censorship bills.  

It'd be huge news, jar rank-and-file Internet users out of complacency, and serve as a turning point in the effort to beat these bills.

 

 Will you encourage Wikipedia, to protest censorship by going dark?  Just click here and promise to donate if they go dark.

Related articles

• Internet users are urging Wikipedia to 'go black' in protest of SOPA / PIPA (thenextweb.com)
• Boing Boing added to list of sites that will go dark on January 18th to protest SOPA / PIPA (100gf.wordpress.com)

Mitt Romney; Wrong Again

On Sunday's Meet the Press Debate Romney said:

"You have massive overhead, with government bureaucrats in Washington administering all these programs, [with] very little of the money that’s actually needed by those that really need help, those that can’t care for themselves, actually reaches them,"

There is no truth in Mitt Romney's statement.  Between 90 and 99% of federal aid administrated by "Washington government bureaucrats" reaches its  intended target.  Its impossible to have a government program that delivers 100% efficiently, but 90-99% is very good and I'm proud of those government workers doing a good job supporting our social safety net while getting lambasted by silver spoon fed republicans. 

Related articles

• Obama Campaign Locks In On Romney As Opponent (huffingtonpost.com)
• Jon Stewart: GOP Against 'Class Warfare' Unless It's With Romney (huffingtonpost.com)
•  Romney's Welfare Plan: Cut the Waste (Mother Jones)