1. Obama destroyed the Clinton Political Machine, driving a stake through the heart of Hillary’s presidential aspirations - something no Republican was ever able to do.
2. Obama killed off the Kennedy Dynasty - no more Kennedy's trolling Washington looking for booze and women wanting rides home.
3. Obama is destroying the Democratic Party before our eyes! Dennis Moore had never lost a race. Evan Bayh had never lost a race. Byron Dorgan had never lost a race. Harry Reid - soon to be GONE! These are just a handful of the Democrats whose political careers Obama has destroyed. By the end of 2016 dozens more will be gone. Just think, in December of 2008 the Democrats were on the rise. In the previous two election cycles, they picked up 14 Senate seats and 52 House seats. The press was touting the death of the Conservative Movement and the Republican Party. However, in just one year, Obama put a stop to all of this and has given the House and the Senate back to the Republicans.
4. Obama has completely exposed liberals and progressives for what they are. Sadly, every generation seems to need to re-learn the lesson on why they should never actually put liberals in charge. Obama is bringing home the lesson very well: Liberals tax, borrow and spend. Liberals won't bring themselves to protect America. Liberals want to take over the economy. Liberals think they know what is best for everyone. Liberals are not happy until they are running YOUR life.
5. Obama has brought more Americans back to conservatism than anyone since Reagan. In one year, he has rejuvenated the Conservative Movement and brought out to the streets millions of freedom loving Americans. Name one other time when you saw your friends and neighbors this interested in taking back America!
6. Obama, with his "amazing leadership," has sparked the greatest period of sales of firearms and ammunition this country has seen. Law abiding citizens have rallied and have provided a "stimulus" to the sporting goods field while other industries have failed, faded, or moved off-shore.
7. In all honesty, one year ago I was more afraid than I have been in my life. Not afraid of the economy, but afraid of the direction our country was going. I thought, Americans have forgotten what this country is all about. My neighbors and friends, even strangers, have proved to me that my lack of confidence in the greatness and wisdom of the American people has been flat wrong.
8. When the American people wake up, no smooth talking teleprompter reader can fool them! Barack Obama has served to wake up these great Americans! Again, I want to say: "Thank you, Barack Obama!" After all, this is exactly the kind of hope and change we desperately needed!!
9. He made Jimmy Carter happy since Jimmy is no longer the worse president we've ever had.
Government welfare programs created to buy the votes
of those who want someone to take care of them?
Japan does not have a welfare system.
Work for it or do without.
These are possibly the 5 best sentences
you'll ever read and all applicable to this experiment:
1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity
by legislating the wealthy out of prosperity.
2. What one person receives without working for,
another person must work for without receiving.
3. The government cannot give to anybody anything
that the government does not first take from somebody else.
4. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it!
5. When half of the people get the idea that they
do not have to work because the other half
is going to take care of them, and when the other half
gets the idea that it does no good to work
because somebody else is going to get
what they work for, that is the beginning
of the end of any nation.
I hope you're all planning to vote in tomorrow's primary election. We deserve to make the best possible choice for Governor, and for all the other offices as well.
I've met Dr. Don Berwick, and he's exactly who he says he is - a thoughtful, compassionate, progressive, and wise manager and problem-solver. Having looked at his policy positions, his experience as a leader, and his philosophy of public service, I'm certain that Don is our finest choice. Here he is, explaining why he's asking to be our Governor. Please take a few minutes and give him a look:
There are other ways to learn about Don.
Learn where he stands on the issues which matter to you - jobs, managing healthcare costs and quality, the environment, the economy, reproductive rights, casinos, affordable housing, and many more: http://www.berwickforgovernor.com/issues
More videos: https://www.youtube....MM1hgrJRLgzwxGCSshhg
Don's birthday is September 9, primary day, tomorrow: if we vote to make him our choice for Governor, we'll be giving OURSELVES a gift.
Not sure whether Massachusetts should open casinos? Have a look at the disaster of Atlantic City.
Sept. 1, 2014:
"The Atlantic City region is on the brink of a short-term economic disaster. ... casino employment - which for years exceeded the number of city residents - drops precipitously after a decade of steady decline.
The closing of three casinos ... and the rapid-fire loss of 5,700 jobs, draw historic comparisons to longer-term collapses of U.S. industries such as steel. "This is a massive economic body blow to Atlantic City on par with the hit to the national economy during the Great Recession" ...
Don Berwick is the ONLY gubernatorial candidate, Democrat or Republican, who is opposed to casinos in the Commonwealth. http://www.berwickforgovernor.com/casinos
Don just asks that you examine the data, that CASINOS DESTROY COMMUNITIES.
From single payer health care to the environment to the role of government, Dr. Berwick gives you his thoughtful and well-founded responses. http://www.berwickforgovernor.com/issues
This is why Don Berwick, has my support. Please bring friends, and vote in the Primary next Tues. Sept. 9.
THE DOCTOR IS IN.
Yes, it's a hokey video, but Don Berwick is the only gubernatorial candidate with the solution for skyrocketing health care costs - and the experience to lead the change: MEDICARE FOR ALL!
Please share broadly with friends and family in MA.
The first Democratic Primary Gubernatorial Debate was held last week. Didn't have time to watch? Here is a compilation (6 min.) highlighting Don Berwick’s positions on various issues from the debate at Stonehill College on Aug 19, 2014. See why Dr. Berwick is our best choice for Governor!
00:15 - On Universal Pre-K 00:32 - On Market Basket
00:50 - On Ferguson 01:48 - On Single Payer Healthcare
02:09 - On Casinos 03:57 - On Affordable Housing Crisis
04:42 - On Charter Schools 05:41 - On Trust in Government
Correction: Ma. Primary Held September 9th, Not The 6th
Apologies for the error in my previous posting about Don Berwick. The MA. primary will be held Tuesday September 9th. Please register and vote for our next governor (as well as for other state races).
Don Berwick: The Gubernatorial Candidate You Should Know
Are you familiar with Don Berwick? Do you know that he’s our progressive Democratic candidate for Governor, running in the primary against two career politicians?
Don Berwick is running for governor to continue to make Massachusetts “a beacon of light and hope”. We were the first state to recognize healthcare as a human right, and the first state to institute equal marriage. Don is ready to demonstrate that bold, progressive leadership can truly deliver for the people. I’m proud to have met him personally; he is a thoughtful listener whose positions evolve as he learns; he has compassion and is unafraid to speak his values.
Don Berwick is NOT A CAREER POLITICIAN, but a pediatrician and executive who’s been working to improve health care delivery and affordability for 30 years. He was tapped by President Obama to run the Center for Medicare and Medicaid, the largest agency in the federal government (with a budget larger than the Pentagon!). The Republicans in the Senate refused to confirm him, so his recess appointment ended after 18 months. Dr. Berwick describes himself as an “improver”, an optimist and a progressive. As with Elizabeth Warren and the CFPB, a federal agency nomination loss could once again be Massachusetts’ great gain!
Berwick has ambitious goals for creating jobs, eradicating poverty, improving our infrastructure, and protecting the environment, including being the first carbon-neutral state. He recognizes that climate change is the most pressing concern to the health of our planet and to future generations.
Here are some of Don Berwick’s positions:
- Would work to establish single payer healthcare (Medicare for All).
- Opposed to casinos (proven harmful to the communities in which they operate); would vote to repeal the law.
- Opposed to the Kinder-Morgan (fracking) pipeline proposed for Franklin County.
- Supports divestment from fossil fuels.
- Supports universal pre-school education and improving education at all levels.
Don Berwick has been endorsed by Progressive Massachusetts, Mass-Care, Progressive Democrats of Mass., Jamaica Plain Progressives, Senators Jamie Eldridge, Sonia Chang-Diaz, and Pat Jehlen, and numerous other state senators and representatives. His supporters are as passionate about him as Elizabeth Warren’s are about her.
Don Berwick is the best possible Democrat to beat Charlie Baker for Governor in the November election. Massachusetts voters have demonstrated that they often prefer a new leader with fresh ideas over an old-time politico when making a choice at the top of the ticket. A Democrat who is new to statewide office very often wins. The evidence is in 40 years of Massachusetts elections.
The Winners:
* * Ed Markey beats Gabriel Gomez for senator in 2013.
* * Elizabeth Warren beats Scott Brown for senator in 2012.
* * Deval Patrick beats Kerry Healy for governor in 2006.
* * John Kerry beats Ray Shamie for senator in 1984.
* * Paul Tsongas beats Ed Brooke for senator in 1978.
* * Ed King beats Frank Hatch for governor in 1978.
* * Michael Dukakis beats Frank Sargent for governor in 1974.
And The Losers:
* * Martha Coakley (then Attorney General) loses to Scott Brown for senator in 2010.
* * Shannon O’Brien (then State Treasurer) loses to Mitt Romney in 2002.
* * Scott Harshbarger (then Attorney General) loses to Paul Cellucci in 1998.
History suggests that either of the other two Democratic candidates, Martha Coakley or Steve Grossman, will follow in the footsteps of Coakley, O’Brien, and Harshbarger, and lose to the Republican gubernatorial nominee. Massachusetts voters want a new face with new ideas and a track record of success OUTSIDE OF GOVERNMENT. That person is Don Berwick. If Don is the Democratic nominee, he will beat Charlie Baker (another political “retread”) with his bold ideas and proven leadership. Let’s work to add Don Berwick to the list of winners in 2014. Please share this with friends across the state. And please vote for Don Berwick in the SEPTEMBER 6th PRIMARY. Thanks!
TOM WHEELER, President Obama's newly appointed chair of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), RECENTLY PROPOSED ADOPTING RULES THAT WILL END NET NEUTRALITY AND KILL THE INTERNET AS WE KNOW IT.
DEADLINE- TODAY!!!
The FCC needed to feel overwhelming pressure to stop the corporate takeover of the Internet. And they did. Literally.
So many of us submitted public comments before Tuesday’s deadline that the FCC’s website ACTUALLY BROKE because it was so overwhelmed by all the traffic.
"After Servers Crash, FCC Extends Deadline for Public Comments
“By the end of the day on July 15, the FCC had received more than 780,000 public comments on its Net neutrality-killing proposal - a huge number that would have been MUCH HIGHER if the agency’s site hadn’t broken down repeatedly.” "
In response, the FCC has extended its deadline UNTIL TONIGHT, FRIDAY, MIDNIGHT.
Please spread the word to your friends and family as well.
________________________________________
Please submit sign and/or public comments to the FCC on any or all of the following websites before the tonight's deadline. THE FATE OF THE INTERNET IS AT STAKE.
You're invited to come meet progressive MA. Gubernatorial candidate Don Berwick!
PLEASE COME AND MEET DON! There are several local opportunities this weekend and next:
THIS SUNDAY, JULY 13:
5 - 6:30 PM. “MEET & GREET” in Northampton. The Meet and Greet starts at 5:00, and Don is expected to arrive around 5:30 and stay until 6:30. Don will make some remarks and then answer your questions, circulate and talk with you. See why Jonathan Klate (whose Gazette letter to the editor I posted) and others are lining up to support him.
LOCATION: home of Nancy Mihevc, 51 Day Avenue, Northampton (Off Route 9 -directly across from Sheldon Field). Parking is available at the Park & Ride next to Sheldon Field or on street. (If possible please RSVP to: mihevcn@comcast.net )
JULY 13, 6:45 - 8 PM BERWICK W. MASS OFFICE OPENS IN SPRINGFIELD!
Western Ma HQ 361 Boston Rd Springfield, MA. Official Opening: DON WILL BE THERE.
UPCOMING EVENTS WITH DON BERWICK:
Saturday, July 19, 3 - 4:30 PM.
FUNDRAISING EVENT at the home of Heather & John Hornik, 59 Carriage Lane, Amherst
RSVP John Hornik at 256-8854 you are coming, and please feel free to pass these invitations along to others.
Here are some other options:
Saturday, July 19 12-1:30pm 55 Main St, Northfield Steve Martin
Saturday, July 19 5:00-6:30pm 6 Cider Mill Road, Haydenville Mark Novotny
Saturday, July 19 7:00-8:30pm 32A Round Hill Road, Northampton Bryan Bruce
Sunday, July 20 11-12pm 35 Woodbridge St, So. Hadley Chris Pyle
If you plan to come to any of these, RSVP to John Hornik at 256-8854 so he can assure that the host is informed.
And let others know about these events.
DON BERWICK IN GOVERNOR’S RACE FOR RIGHT REASONS: PUBLIC SERVICE
Opinion by Dr. Jonathan Klate:
Sunday, July 6, 2014 Gazette.com The Hampshire Gazette
AMHERST — In the race for the Democratic nomination for governor, Don Berwick is the compelling story now. Martha Coakley and Steve Grossman, established pols aspiring to higher office for years, are being challenged by a smart, mature, experienced, unabashed progressive who has surged into serious contention for all the right reasons.
I had the opportunity to talk with Berwick in a Northampton coffee shop recently. When was the last time you felt a progressive politician running for statewide office was honestly speaking his or her truth, and from a wise heart? I mean other than Sen. Elizabeth Warren?
And I do mean talk with Dr. Berwick, because conversation is supposed to be a two-way street, and this gentleman doesn’t just spout, he listens. He lets you finish and makes it clear by his responses where his thinking has been modified by the information you have provided, if you made sense.
These are the habits of a curious mind and the ethics of a lifelong learner, perhaps shaped by his clinical training as a doctor. He brings a cultivated scientific mentality to his analytic approach to public matters. He is genuinely reflective rather than ideologically reflexive.
Before Berwick was a doctor he was the child of one. His father was a family physician in a small town in Connecticut. Like many small town docs in the 1950s he delivered babies, took his own x-rays and was on call 24/7. What he rarely did was take a vacation.
Berwick’s mom was a leader in the struggle to get a new elementary school built in their hometown. She died when Don was 15. When the school got built they named the library after her. So, while coming to terms with the body blow of his mother’s death, his consciousness was imprinted by her public legacy to the community achieved through political activism.
Don sees his parents’ dedication to both their family and the needs of the community as a way of life. “I don’t think they would have identified it as some kind of nobility,” he says. “It was just the way you lived. It was a habit as much as a value system and that colors the roots of my own values.”
He came of age in the 60s and these core values blossomed into mature progressive political inclinations during the inspiring era of the Kennedy presidency, the civil rights movement, the War on Poverty, the New Frontier, the Great Society, the peace movement and searing incidents like the Kent State massacre.
He learned that government, when animated by concern for human needs, is not necessarily the enemy. Structural poverty is. Underfunded and inequitable education is. Lack of substance abuse treatment is. Exclusion from quality health care due to low income is.
And without government to facilitate solutions like single-payer health care, for example, which he strongly supports, we can’t get the job done to improve the quality of life for all. It is fair to think of his principled mastery of health care policy as comparable to the expertise in the fields of banking and financial services of Sen. Warren.
He was president and CEO of a major not-for-profit organization with a mission to improve health care throughout the world. President Obama appointed him the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services and he ran the agency, overseeing an $800 billion budget, far bigger than the one he’d manage were he to be elected governor here.
It is unusual to find a systems thinker with tons of policy implementation experience who retains compassion for how well or poorly individuals’ needs are met. Through his decades in human and public service he has not succumbed to cynicism or narcissism. This is all too rare in public service.
This is not a person engaged in politics for personal aggrandizement. Can you look at his competitors and honestly say that?
If you think that Martha Coakley is the Democrat who matches up best against Republican Charlie Baker in the general election, you might want to recall what happened when her senatorial ambitions encountered Scott Brown.
Or, if you think just being a woman gives her an edge, maybe it’s time to recall Shannon O’Brien’s defeat by Mitt Romney.
Steve Grossman is a personable, centrist Democrat. But somewhere the Democratic Party has to stop muddling through, find its heart and be willing to have a principled fight. If not in Massachusetts, and now, with such a strong progressive candidate, then where and when?
Berwick can win, provided Democrats who see elections as meaningful agencies of democracy strongly support him.
“I think people are as tired as I am of mincing words and the failure to clarify a value system with a clear and unapologetic commitment to helping each other. I just think it’s wrong.” This guy doesn’t pander. He means it. Stand him next to his competition and it shows.
* * * * *
Jonathan Klate of Amherst writes about spirituality and political perspectives. His column appears the first Monday of the month. He can be reached at opinion@gazettenet.com.
Hi Sam,
I appreciate your thinking about and commenting on what you feel is the left’s reaction to the SCOTUS Hobby Lobby decision. It’s good that, even when folks see things differently, they can still talk about their points of view with respect and openness.
I’ve thought about the case a lot, but also thought about how this 5/4 Court has ruled on a number of cases. While you and I may simply be coming from very different places, and yes, I am opinionated, I like to think that I don’t just “shoot from the hip” or that I’m an extremist; even when I feel strongly about issues, I think that facts matter.
The article you referred me to in the National Review had a certain hostile tone that made it difficult to take seriously. It didn’t engender a lot of openness on my part, starting with “The Left is FOAMING AT THE MOUTH over the Supreme Court’s Hobby Lobby decision” and continued with “This is not just garbage. It’s an entire landfill on stilts.” Hyperbole, much? There are more than a few other straw man arguments – putting words and ideas in the mouths of pro-choicers that are ugly, incendiary, and non-representative.
So, I’ll just get to the points. Interestingly, I’ve read that Hobby Lobby paid for coverage of all 20 types of contraception prior to filing this case. One point the article makes is that the 4 out of 20 forms of contraceptive were singled out because they were abortifacients. They are NOT. Hobby Lobby “feels” that they are. However, the NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information) of the National Institute of Health reports that IUDs are contraceptives, not abortifacients. Hobby Lobby does not represent the thinking of science in this matter. Sadly, the right-wing regressives in this Court allowed for a religious definition of medical facts, not a scientific one! Political ideology, anyone?
The owners of Hobby Lobby are not doctors. They are not scientists. They are not ministers. They are employers. Their “mission” is to deal in products, services, and profits.
Additionally, the Greens, owners of Hobby Lobby, have a 401(k) employee retirement plan with over $70 million in mutual funds with investments in companies that produce emergency contraceptive pills, intrauterine devices, AND DRUGS OFTEN USED IN ABORTIONS. Hobby Lobby makes large matching contributions to this company-sponsored 401(k). They had no option to invest elsewhere? Some wonder if the owners have mostly a strong religious belief in earning their profits wherever they can. This egregious hypocrisy should have been a factor in the court case; I don't know why it wasn't. Will authentically religious Christians scream about it, or boycott them because of it? Doubtful.
Even if they WERE correct on the scientific merits (of abortifacients), the decision is still a slippery slope, recklessly decided. Once the Court allows the intrusion of the employer into alleged religious objections, we will see (we are already seeing!) companies which will religiously object to ALL forms of birth control, the hiring of the LGBT community, or Muslims, or any group with which they have an issue. See http://talkingpoints...t-hiring-hobby-lobby
They won’t even have to prove their sincerity! Groups could use a religious dodge as a cover for their monetary interests, to skirt civil rights laws, or to impose other forms of social control, if they can invoke religious imperative. Other businesses may wish to impose other restrictions on coverage based of their religious beliefs: no transfusions for Jehovah’s Witness? No anti-depressants for Scientologist companies? The religion of an individual should be freely practiced; it should not be imposed by the individual on others.
On another point, family planning, whether contraception, vasectomy, tubal ligation, morning after or emergency contraception, or termination of pregnancy, encompasses options which are both MEDICAL and LEGAL. Employees don’t get “free” birth control or medical care handed to them by the employer; employees pay for it, and health insurance coverage is one of several benefits as part of a package workers EARN, like vacation time, pensions, etc. HIPPA laws also should protect the patient’s privacy from anyone who is not their doctor; the employer has no business in the doctor’s office or the record room!
The owners of Hobby Lobby are either a for profit business (which they ARE), and are subject to offering their employees the benefits they’ve earned, or they are a church – a “for PROPHET”, if you will. I would understand a church not wanting to include some of these benefits in their package. But they are not a church. They do not have a place in controlling either the private lives or medical decisions of their employees. In her dissent, Ruth Bader Ginsburg made the point that “"Religious organizations exist to foster the interests of persons subscribing to the same religious faith. Not so of for-profit corporations. Workers who sustain the operations of those corporations commonly are not drawn from one religious community."
Another point: some of us are profoundly concerned that the Court would give religious rights to a corporation which would trump the rights of workers. No matter how devout the Greens might be (and whether they are or not is moot), the rights of their “personhood”, that of religious freedom has been gifted to the corporation, while being taken from the employees. This Court has given supremacy to the corporation over workers. Interestingly, on the same day, they gave no such standing to unions when they allowed family caregivers who get union benefits to opt out of union dues.
It will be a better day for us all when we have single-payer health care, so that doctor-patient relationships will not be intruded upon by outside forces. I still remember with horror how members of Congress and Jeb Bush involved themselves with brain-dead Terry Schiavo’s medical situation, despite her husband’s legal authority. It will also be a better day when Citizens United is overturned, and when corporations find their proper, more humble, place in the life of this nation.
Please Read All The Facts Political Decisions And Keep The Scales Balance...lest Become What Despise...
Hi Dinah, I am always interested in your postings and learn much from them. Thanks for your efforts in being a helping force in creating a more humanistic world for all human-kind; as we are all from the omnipotent source, energy, LOVE, and thus one family, in my humble opinion and learnings to date.
I caution us on this Hobby Lobby debate to not shoot from the hip and - and use for our own extreme political agendas - a twisted less truthful version of what is really factual - lest we become the same as we despise.
...it goes on to reveal (and backed by other sources) that: ..."a woman starts work at Hobby Lobby tomorrow morning — July 1. She joins Hobby Lobby’s health care plan. It includes access, copay-free, to the following categories of FDA-approved birth-control:
Male condoms
Female condoms
Diaphragms with spermicide
Sponges with spermicide
Cervical caps with spermicide
Spermicide alone
Birth-control pills with estrogen and progestin (“Combined Pill)
Birth-control pills with progestin alone (“The Mini Pill)
Birth control pills (extended/continuous use)
Contraceptive patches
Contraceptive rings
Progestin injections
Implantable rods
Vasectomies
Female sterilization surgeries
Female sterilization implants
(This new woman at Hobby Lobby cannot use male condoms or a vasectomy, at least not directly. However, if she chose either contraceptive method, in conjunction with her husband, she would have access to it.)
Further, not only would she have access to these medicines and devices, but Hobby Lobby would fund them. That’s right: while White House press secretary Josh Earnest claims that it “jeopardizes the health of women,” Hobby Lobby’s health plan pays for 16 different kinds of contraceptives for its female employees!
In the Left’s fantasy world, the militant Christians at Hobby Lobby police single female employees to assure that they have not engaged in sinful, pre-marital sex. As for married women, Hobby Lobby deprives them of birth control so that each can deliver a new baby every nine months, for God’s glory, just like in the Old Testament.
Liberals are living in a cartoon of their own making... [I interject: Please be careful not to be promoting this! There are militant Lefts just as their militant Rights...the balanced scale is one the swings to neither extreme...]
Again, Hobby Lobby’s health plan pays for birth-control pills, vaginal rings, contraceptive patches, and other items to help female employees plan their pregnancies."
I hope this helps bring the scales of information exchange a little more in balance.
Another great source of REAL and TRUTHFUL information on the history of Birth control can be found from this awesome resource: A Brief History (and truth) about birth control can be found at OurBodyiesOurselves website: http://www.ourbodies...brief-history-of.../ ... I hope this site is useful to some people. I know the book was very useful for my wife - as we we both born in the 60s and schooling and parenting in that era were generally predominately abstinent in that area. (pun intended)
I have posted before, but there is a July 4th deadline.
Just today and tomorrow are left to begin this great project to reclaim our democracy! The MAYDAY.US PAC earned its first $1 million in pledges in just 13 days. We're in the 2nd phase: MAYDAY PAC now has over $3 million in pledges. Help it get to $5 million by the end of tomorrow, July 4th! Once we reach $5 million, we kick into the next phase, that of supporting 5 House candidates who stand for getting big money out of political campaigns! Share this, pledge even a small amount, and be part of it! Thank you! Dinah
Trouble, I understand your frustration and outrage (which are mine as well), though mine are mainly directed at the current SCOTUS majority, rather than Hobby Lobby. Personally, I think of the Fiendish Five (Roberts, Scalia, Thomas, Alito, Kennedy) as SCROTUM: Supreme Court Regressives of the United Mega-corporations). They have consistently voted against women and unions and individual rights in favor of corporate rights.
As of the Hobby Lobby case, they have now sent cases back to lower courts, where they can re-decide to allow religious objection (or a pretense of religious objection to cover monetary self-interest) to trump the health care coverage of their employees. This is exactly what Ruth Bader Ginsburg warned in her dissent! The door has been kicked further open to more corporate despotism (in the name of religious principle). http://www.motherjon...-forms-contraception
There are many ways to be active - local protest at Hobby Lobby, boycotting the company, activism in Senate and House races, Move to Amend (overturning Citizens United), voter registration, etc. I just hope that the employees (who are victims of these repressive policies) will not have political anger directed at them, or get caught in the cross-fire. Anyone who goes, please give shoppers alternative options, not just angry polemics.
The war against women by the fright-wing is REAL. So: is every woman and male supporter of women's freedoms registered to vote this fall? Same for workers and unions. We can't keep leaving power in the hands of those who love repression.
HOBBY LOBBY (Wahabi Lobby) will not receive my business, as it is against my religion to support HYPOCRITES. Their company is FOR PROFIT; they only PRETEND to be FOR PROPHET. Because IUDs are so expensive, women who are employed by Hobby Lobby and don't have the insurance coverage may be forced to fashion their own personal ones with craft supplies, my hope is that they will instead purchase those supplies at another craft store such as Michael's.
Citizen-funded Superpac Restore Democracy And End All Superpacs.
https://mayday.us/ is a SuperPAC, powered by CITIZENS - you and I.
First goal met: we raised $1,000,000 in 13 days.
Our democracy has been corrupted by the influence of money in politics. But let’s not let cynicism become a self-fulfilling prophecy! Please watch this and other Mayday PAC videos. Then become a part of the movement to restore the democratic promise.
Have you heard of the MA Gubernatorial candidate with the most executive experience, a superlative professional resume of leadership, visionary progressive ideas, the passion and compassion to fight for social and economic justice, and the commitment to boldly guide our Commonwealth? You should!
In 2013, DR. DON BERWICK - a non-politician - declared his candidacy for governor of Massachusetts. Here is some biographical information, along with Dr. Berwick’s moving and powerful speech at the MA. Democratic Convention last week.
Donald M. Berwick is a Harvard-educated pediatrician, founder, President /CEO of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (a not-for-profit organization improving health care systems & policies worldwide), and has a Masters in Public Policy from John F. Kennedy School of Government. In 2010, Pres. Obama appointed Dr. Berwick to serve as the Administrator of Medicare/Medicaid (which has a budget larger than the Pentagon!) Dr. Berwick is Clinical Professor of Pediatrics and Health Care Policy in the Department of Pediatrics at the Harvard Medical School, and Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard School of Public Health. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress. Dr. Berwick has published multiple articles on health care policy, decision analysis, technology assessment, and health care quality management. He is the co-author of several books.
Dr. Berwick has spent his life in service to the community. He quotes Vice Pres. Hubert Humphrey: " 'The moral test of government is how it treats people in the dawn of life – the children, people in the twilight of life – the elderly, and people in the shadows of life – the sick, the needy, and the handicapped.' These values will inform every decision I make as Governor." This is his call to (and a promise of) moral governance, where justice for “ALL MEANS ALL”.
Please take a few minutes to see and hear Don Berwick’s vision of leadership, and learn where he stands on the issues - jobs and the economy, education, health care, the environment, energy, reproductive rights, LGBT rights, casinos, and more.
I sent the following only to Dinah, who encouraged me to share it on the list. I have to admit, I am not usually comfortable with public expressions of my political opinions. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that one facet of our broken democracy is the lack of political discourse, or the tenor of what passes for debate these days. So, to honor Dinah's many thoughtful contributions on our list, here's my take:
Dinah, I wish I shared your optimism. Two things come to mind that discourage me.
1) $5 million is a teeny, tiny drop in the bucket of the multi-millions of dollars that are being spent by the big bad boys (any girls?). And, while this approach is unique, many other organizations have been raising money for years to get progressives in office. I've given before. I've pledged not to do so again. I don't know what can possibly turn this democracy around, but I do not believe that a monetary arms race is the answer.
2) I also gave to my now President Barack Obama. I know it is often argued that he is fighting upstream against an obstructionist congress, and that is why he has not been able to make as much progress as we'd hoped. But, what about climate change? He can't even commit to renewable energy and no keystone pipeline, even with such clear evidence. And, as bad as that is, I'm especially disheartened that he has not stood up to Monsanto and the other corporations hell bent on stealing not just our government, but our very lifeblood, the food upon which all humanity depends. How can he not come out strongly against GMO's, or at least allow states to institute their own laws governing GMO's and GMO labeling? I am baffled by his lack of leadership on this issue.
I wish I could envision a government that works. But, the more I learn about how the system operates, even on a micro scale, the more I feel that no government is immune to excessive influence by those who seem to want to rule the world, or destroy it. I admit, I've lost hope, except perhaps in the transition resilience movement with a focus on community and local food production. Unfortunately, I do believe we are in for a very rough ride.
Like me, do you dream of a government of the people, by the people, and for the people? Learn about the great experiment in reviving our democracy: a people's PAC, whose mission is to restore representation to the people. https://mayday.us/
We can make the dream real. I pledged. Will you? We have to be IN it to WIN it!
BIG NEWS: Today, after immense public pressure, the FCC voted to invite public feedback on two proposals -- the bad one and an awesome one.
FCC Chair Tom Wheeler's preferred plan would create a fast lane for big corporations and a slow lane for everyone else (BOOOO!). The alternative proposal would reclassify the Internet as a public utility like water -- equally accessible to all (YAY!!!)
Which plan wins is up to you. Are you willing to fight this battle for the future of the Internet?
Help us pressure the FCC, Congress, and the White House to enshrine Net Neutrality into law.
We have 120 days to act.
During this time, telecom industry lobbyists will swarm Washington, DC. What do we have? The power of Internet.
We have millions of everyday Americans who use the Internet for fun, for work, for innovation -- and who don't want some websites working better than others based on who bribes Comcast or AT&T the most.
Our PCCC activism already got a direct response from the White House, distancing itself from the FCC's bad proposal. Al Franken, Elizabeth Warren, and others have joined our fight.
Will you help us mobilize the public to rise up and defend the Internet?"
Please watch Sen. Al Franken's message, and please sign.
Once again, “0i812”, who calls himself L. Blakes or Blakeslee, has posted on our mostly wonderful Five College Community space. Once again, I’m speaking out, because there are three outrages in his post tonight:
- The first is that it he's posted another's writing, without attribution.
- The second is the writing is falsely attributed to Saul Alinsky.
- The third is that this screed (falsely attributed to Alinsky) is found on not only radical right-wing sites but a White Nationalist site, which comments with the usual virulent racism and anti-Semitism.
ONE: As usual, 0i812/L. Blakes couldn’t be bothered to write his own piece, but instead lifted it whole from other sources on the internet. Once again, he cut-and-pasted / copied without attribution / plagiarized, as he is wont to do. This evening's posting, titled “You Decide”, contains the usual paranoia, hate, untruths, and a false guilt-by-false-association screed. Only his first sentence appears to be his own. While mental laziness isn’t a crime, a consistent lack of intellectual integrity is certainly icky.
TWO: Saul Alinsky NEVER WROTE this list, “How To Create A Social State”, nor are the ideas congruent with Alinsky’s. Snopes.com labels it FALSE, and says: “The above-quoted list of steps for "How to create a social state"… IT'S NOT SOMETHING TAKEN FROM THE ACTUAL WRITINGS OF SAUL ALINSKY, and … the idea of "increasing the poverty level as high as possible" is the very antithesis of what Alinsky worked to achieve ... This piece is simply a modern variant of the Communist Rules for Revolution piece http://www.snopes.co...t/communistrules.asp (published in 1946) which was originally passed along without attribution until Alinsky's name became attached to it…”
Check for yourself: http://www.snopes.com/politics/quotes/alinsky.asp
THREE: I found 0i812’s above post floating around on many internet sites from 2014, but the earliest posting I found (December 2010) is on STORMFRONT. This is their logo.
This is a White Nationist forum, for self-described White Separatists (who feel exploited by alleged anti-white government policies and hatred by non-whites). Huffington Post reports that “A white supremacist site has blood on its hands, according to a new report. Stormfront.org is linked to close to 100 killings in the last five years, the Southern Poverty Law Center found.” http://www.huffingto...site_n_5173944.htmlv You’ll see that the comments following this post are rife with hatred for Jews and blacks (e.g., “Get with the Pogrom.”, “Jews are Liars”, and “Obama is “an uppity black boy”). Have a look. http://www.stormfront.org/forum/t1022812/
Is 0i812 / L. Blakes / Blakeslee a White Separatist? I don’t know - and maybe making that inference would be guilt by association, which is something he plays at on a regular basis in his deceitful posts. But he IS abusing his free speech rights by posting falsehoods, and fomenting division and hatred with those smears and slurs.
SHAME ON YOU, Blakeslee!
If you want to know about Saul Alinsky, have a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_Alinsky . He created the principles of modern community organizing to improve the lives of the have-nots, with organizational strategies to accrue community power. Though considered a radical, he was never a Communist, nor was he a member of any other organization. Alinsky said: “This becomes a contest of power: those that have money, and those who have people. We have nothing but people.”
P.S. I suspect that Jesus was a radical community organizer, but maybe that’s just me.
Let this sink in and you'll figure where the hell this country's heading if we do nothing on Nov. 4, 2014....Vote Damn It !!!
Recall that Hillary did her college thesis on his writings and Obama writes about
him in his books.
Saul Alinsky died about 43 years ago, but his writings influenced those in political control of our nation today.
Saul David Alinsky, a writer, was an American community organizer and writer. He is generally considered to be the founder of the modern community organizing movement. He is most noted for his book Rules for Radicals.
Died: June 12, 1972, Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
Education: University of Chicago
Spouse: Irene Alinsky
Books: Rules for Radicals, Reveille for Radicals
Anyone out there think that this stuff isn't happening today in the U.S.?
All eight rules are currently in play.
How to create a social state by Saul Alinsky:
There are eight levels of control that must be obtained before you are able to
create a social state. The first is the most important.
1) Healthcare– Control healthcare and you control the people.
2) Poverty – Increase the Poverty level as high as possible, poor people are easier to control and will not fight back if you are providing everything for them to live.
3) Debt – Increase the debt to an unsustainable level. That way you are able to increase taxes, and this will produce more poverty.
4) Gun Control– Remove the ability to defend themselves from the Government. That way you are able to create a police state.
5) Welfare – Take control of every aspect of their lives. (Food, Housing, and Income)
6) Education – Take control of what people read and listen to – take control of
what children learn in school.
7) Religion – Remove the belief in the God from the Government and schools.
8) Class Warfare – Divide the people into the wealthy and the poor. This will
cause more discontent and it will be easier to take (Tax) the wealthy with the support of the poor.
Does any of this sound like what is happening to the United States?
Alinsky merely simplified
Vladimir Lenin's original scheme for world conquest by communism, under
Russian rule. Stalin described his converts as "Useful Idiots." The
Useful Idiots have destroyed every nation in which they have seized power
and control. It is presently happening at an alarming rate in the U.S.
"It is difficult to free fools from the chains they revere."
"citizens United" $teroid$; Bribery More Legal Than Ever
Today, in a predictable 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court gave wealthy campaign donors the green light to spend unlimited sums of money on elections. If you're the 1%, $COTU$ made buying your own politician a piece of cake. The Supreme Court's right-wing five just legalized money laundering in the political process.
From http://www.politicususa.com:
"The McCutcheon v Federal Election Commission ruling which eliminates overall campaign contribution limits, merely confirms what Americans already know. The five Republican appointed Supreme Court justices (Roberts, Alito, Kennedy, Thomas and Scalia) are little more than party operatives for the GOP, intent on putting the country under the control of the uber-wealthy. ... After the landmark Citizens United ruling, ... the court once again struck... by lifting the cap on contributions. In the eyes of the five ... the person who can buy the most political influence is entitled to the best representation...The five ... showed that their loyalties are firmly aligned with America’s super rich... The four dissenting justices, all appointed by Democratic presidents, aligned themselves with the American people, and not with the corporate elite.... America is still paying the price for having electing two George Bushes. The Bush legacy is an ideologically reactionary Supreme Court that favors an aristocracy of the wealthy over a representative democracy where a voter’s worth is not measured by the depth of his or her pockets."
There are things we can and should do to fight to restore our democracy. Here are five:
1. Sign CREDO's petition (at around 100,000 signatures now) to the five pro-corporate Justices against this and the 2010 Citizens United judgement. They will be delivered along with ROBES EMBLAZONED WITH THE LOGOS OF THEIR CORPORATE SPONSORS, i.e. Exxon, Walmart, Monsanto, G.E., et al.
2. Attend a rally to protest the SCOTUS decision. Locally, come to Northampton this Saturday 11- 2. Old Court House 99 Main Street Northampton
They are also being held nation-wide (140 in 38 states just today), so tell friends and relatives. http://www.moneyout-votersin.org/
3. Sign on to Represent-Us, a grassroots anti-corruption movement to reclaim the political process. Watch the video and share it. We are almost half-way to a million signers; at 1 million, we will act in every voting precinct. https://represent.us/
4. Sign on to Move To Amend's proposed 28th Amendment to the Constitution, "We The People, Not We the Corporations".
MTA: "We reject the Supreme Court's ruling in McCutcheon and call on the American people to build a movement to force Congress to overrule the Court through an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to make clear that corporations do not have Constitutional rights and money is not speech and campaign spending at all levels can be regulated." https://movetoamend.org/ https://movetoamend.org/wethepeopleamendment
5. Whatever you decide to do, multiply your efforts by sharing with others. Never before has our political system been as corrupted by unlimited corporate spending. It is destroying our democracy. But throughout the country, people are fighting back and demanding change. 16 states have called for a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United; the movement is growing. Everyone is needed. Be a part of it. Thanks.
Represent.Us is building a people's national movement to end corruption and restore Democracy.
With our help, Represent.Us will take America back from the robber barons, the plutocrats, the 1-percenters.
Money is controlling politics and standing in our way. Together we win.
Please sign and share now, and find out more at https://represent.us/
Right now, the US government is mulling over THE DEFINING CLIMATE DECISION OF OBAMA'S PRESIDENCY -- whether to approve a monstrous pipeline that will transport up to 830,000 barrels a day of THE WORLD'S DIRTIEST OIL from Canada across the US.
If approved, the Keystone XL pipeline will help pump billions of dollars into the pockets of a few companies... but also millions of tons of carbon into the atmosphere. It's been called "a fuse to the biggest carbon bomb on the planet". Bold public action has delayed it once, and a court ruling last week has dealt a serious blow to the project. Now, if we act fast and in massive numbers, we can help kill it for good.
John Kerry, US Secretary of State, responsible for the US's relationship with the world, has opened a final round of comments from the public. Let's flood the consultation with a million signatures and messages from every country calling on Kerry to kill Keystone and save the planet. We only have days until it closes - sign now!
Please take 30 seconds, and SIGN THE PETITION!
To US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry:
"We, citizens from around the world, were encouraged when Secretary Kerry said that climate change is perhaps the world's most fearsome Weapon of Mass Destruction, and committed to provide US leadership to stop it. We call on you now to reject the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline to uphold that leadership. The world is calling on you to act -- this decision is a referendum on your leadership to protect our planet."
Re: 0i812’s Post Alleged "welfare Program Rewards"
Poster "0i812" has once again forwarded to this site unattributed, spurious, and unsubstantiated junk-data on welfare benefits. 0i812 never backs up the crap he/she posts here.
The website Truthorfiction.com has commented. Check it out: http://www.truthorfi...ies.htm#.UxTZj4WGeBE
According to TruthorFiction, the alleged obscene salaries of welfare recipients is under investigation.
"Summary of the eRumor: This is a forwarded email that contains an alleged report of the average annual welfare payments to recipients in various states.
The Truth: The source for the eRumor is an August 21, 2013 article by senior fellow Michael D. Tanner of the Cato Institute. The article has to do with how much each state gives in the amount of welfare payments to single mothers with two children.
TruthOrFiction.Com is still investigating this."
The article contained a link presumed to be the source of the statistics in the eRumor. That link is dysfunctional (PAGE NOT FOUND); TruthOrFiction has contacted the Cato Institute to get the facts.
(The Cato Institute has not yet responded).
As to the claim that 0i812 forwarded that Nancy Pelosi will make $803,700/year for life plus free medical, POLITIFACT calls this a PANTS-ON-FIRE lie. Check it out for yourself: http://www.politifac...-salaries-life-whic/
As to a work ethic, the GOP have voted around 50 times to stop the A.C.A. but have instead put forth ZERO jobs bills; they get the same generous pensions in Congress as other members, no matter how little THEY work, or how much THEY obstruct!
Shame on you, 0i812, for consistently serving up baloney, as if it were true!
WHY DID WE WORK HARD FOR SO MANY YEARS...........SHOULD JUST MOVE TO HAWAII
If you're not angry after reading this, you must be on welfare!
This is disgusting, especially about the politicians!!!
WORK ETHIC WE INHERITED GROWING UP HAS FALLEN PREY TO THE 'WELFARE' SYSTEM
The Cato Institute released an updated 2013 study (original study in 1955) showing that welfare benefits pay more than a minimum wage job in 33 states and the District of Columbia. Even worse, welfare pays more than $15 per hour in 13 states. According to the study, welfare benefits have increased faster than minimum wage. It’s now more profitable to sit at home than it is to earn an honest day’s pay.
Hawaii is the biggest offender, where welfare recipients earn $29.13 per hour, or a $60,590 yearly salary, all for doing nothing.
Here is the list of the states where the pre-tax equivalent “salary” that welfare recipients receive is higher than having a job:
As a point of reference the average Middle Class annual income today is $50,000, down from $54,000 at the beginning of the Great Recession. Hawaii, DC, and Massachusetts pay more in welfare than the average working folks earn there. Is it any wonder that they stay home rather than look for a job. Time for a drastic change. America is virtually bankrupt. Are we Nuts or what? How do we un-do this type of stupidity on the part of Americans? This is crazy!
Salary of retired US Presidents … .$180,000 FOR LIFE
Salary of House/Senate....$174,000 FOR LIFE
This is stupid
Salary of Speaker of the House ....$223,500 FOR LIFE!
This is really stupid
Salary of Majority/Minority Leader $193,400 FOR LIFE
Ditto last line
Average Salary of a teacher .. $40,065
Average Salary of Soldier DEPLOYED IN AFGHANISTAN .. $38,000
Think about this:
Nancy Pelosi will retire as a Congress Person at $174,000 Dollars a year for LIFE.
She as retired as SPEAKER at $223,500 a year. PLUS she will receive an additional $193,400 a year as Minority Leader. That's $803,700 Dollars a year for LIFE including FREE medical which is not available to us ... the taxpayers
She is just one of the hundreds of Senators and Congress that float in and out every year!
Once again, unable to demonstrate independent self-expression or critical thinking, 0i812 (L. Blakes), who posts lamentable rants against Obama, Democrats, and progressives, has used another’s writings to advance this screed of xenophobic indignation. This time, L. Blakes is the mouthpiece for Jack Wheeler, a Reagan, Bush1, Bush2, and Pentagon operative, extreme right-wing “Christian” conservative capitalist, anti-gay, anti-choice, anti-Semite, who published his original piece in 2008 here: http://www.tothepoin...ontent/view/3227/44/
It seemed at first, L. Blakes, that you made a few changes and additions, altering the writer’s original title, which was “OBAMA = ZERO”, and changing his term “OBAMBI” to "Obama" in two places. I also noticed that you left out Wheeler’s words: “OBAMA IS A ZERO. THERE IS NOTHING REALLY THERE. O=ZERO.” I wondered, if by omitting a few of Wheeler’s more egregious statements, that people would find you slightly less hate-filled? But then I discovered that you copied an entire post from another person, including copying the poster’s own intro notes, without attribution, of course, with HIS alterations. Jack Wheeler is not in semi-retirement, as you copied and pasted earlier today. Jack Wheeler, your nationalist xenophobic race-baiting lunatic hero was murdered and dumped in a landfill in 2010. You never check your sources, do you?
L. Blakes, in posting this piece of trash, you show that you too are absolutely obsessed with race. You hide behind Wheeler’s writing to pontificate that Obama isn’t a real African-American. He’s not really black. He’s not really white. He rejects his white half. He’s not really African. He’s not really American. He’s not really Christian. Oh, but he is an Arab, that Barack Hussein Obama is! And yup, he’s the descendant of slave OWNERS. He’s an empty suit. He’s a ZERO. And yet, he’s the Liberals’ Christ!, because Liberals are all in a cult, worshiping the Savior that is Barack Hussein Obama! Wheeler wrote that Liberals have no philosophy except to avoid the envy of others. You share Wheeler’s hypothesis that whites need the forgiveness of blacks for “the sin of being white”. How novel, how absurd, how bizarre: as though there could never be a rational reason to support a black leader over another.
I don’t have an interest in defending Obama against your or Jack Wheeler’s words. I’m not even a strong supporter of Obama. I don’t know anyone on the left who is all that satisfied with his performance, or who considers the president to be a liberal champion. But your noxious use of hate speech, and your willingness to hide behind the words of others whom you parrot and plagiarize, is reason enough to respond.
You’re a one-man yellow journalist, vomiting bias, innuendo, gossip, poison, and bull, disguised as fact. Oh dear Lord, how I wish you’d feel the shame of that, and stop.
Jack Wheeler is a brilliant man who was the author of Reagan’s strategy to break the back of the Soviet Union with the star wars race and expose their inner weakness. For years he wrote a weekly intelligence update that was extremely interesting and well structured and informative. He consults(ed) with several mega corporations on global trends and the future, etc. He is in semi-retirement now. He is a true patriot with a no-nonsense approach to everything. He is also a somewhat well-known mountain climber and adventurer.
Written by Dr. Jack Wheeler
The O-man, Barack Hussein Obama, is an eloquently tailored empty suit. No resume, no accomplishments, no experience, no original ideas, no understanding of how the economy works, no understanding of how the world works, no balls, nothing but abstract, empty rhetoric devoid of real substance.
He has no real identity. He is half-white, which he rejects. The rest of him is mostly Arab, which he hides but is disclosed by his non-African Arabic surname and his Arabic first and middle names as a way to triply proclaim his Arabic parentage to people in Kenya. Only a small part of him is African Black from his Luo grandmother, which he pretends he is exclusively.
What he isn’t, not a genetic drop of, is “African-American,” the descendant of enslaved Africans brought to America chained in slave ships. He hasn’t a single ancestor who was a slave. Instead, his Arab ancestors were slave owners. Slave-trading was the main Arab business in East Africa for centuries until the British ended it.
Let that sink in: Obama is not the descendant of slaves; he is the descendant of slave owners. Thus he makes the perfect Liberal Messiah.
It's something Hillary doesn't understand - how some complete neophyte came out of the blue and stole the Dem nomination from her. Obamamania is beyond politics and reason. It is a true religious cult, whose adherents reject Christianity yet still believe in Original Sin, transferring it from the evil of being human to the evil of being white.
Thus Obama has become the white liberals' Christ, offering absolution from the Sin of Being White. There is no reason or logic behind it, no faults or flaws of his can diminish it, no arguments Hillary could make of any kind can be effective against it. The absurdity of Hypocrisy Clothed In Human Flesh being their Savior is all the more cause for liberals to worship him: Credo quia absurdum, I believe it because it is absurd.
Thank heavens that the voting majority of Americans remain Christian and are in no desperate need of a phony savior. He is ridiculous and should not be taken seriously by any thinking American.
And yet he got elected, not once but twice. Thanks to those that did not think it was important to vote for freedom and those that were willing to give up their freedoms for entitlements.
Remember you don't have to be on a southern plantation to be a slave, if you are dependent on government entitlements you just have a different slave owner.
FOSSIL FUELS ARE FOR FOSSIL FOOLS!!!!!
Come join us on the Amherst Common Monday evening - Vigil For the Future: No Keystone XL
- Event: Pioneer Valley No KXL Vigil
- When: Monday, February 3, 2014 at 7pm
- Where: Amherst Common across from Grace Church, 16 Boltwood Ave, Amherst
As you may know, the State Department released its final impactstatement on the Keystone XL pipeline.
State Department, with its corrupt environmental review process, hedged its bets by not recommending or rejecting the pipeline, but it admitted that "the total direct and indirect emissions associated with the proposed Project would contribute to cumulative global GHG emissions." It is now completely up to Obama.
We know the pipeline fails Obama's own climate test of "significantly exacerbat[ing] the problem of carbon pollution", but whether or not he stands up to the oil industry and rejects it will depend on what we do in the next few months.
Obama will decide within 90 days a National Interest Determination, and starting February 5, there will be a 30-day comment period to tell him Keystone is NOT in our national interest. More to come about sending in comments.
We need to provide swift and strong action to demonstrate that Keystone is a disaster for the US and the planet, to remind Obama of his climate test and to demand he deny the permit.
Co-sponsored by Greening of Grace, Climate Action Now MA, 350MA and others.
There will be vigils held across the country as well.
The Tides are Rising and it isn't lifting our boats, it's only lifting yachts!
Hi gang,
I've been collecting signatures for a ballot initiative called the PASS MASS AMENDMENT the last few weeks. It's to get on the ballot to have the MA Legislature REGULATE CORPORATIONS and their moneyed influence. I've collected 300-400, and I can feel good about that, right?
But I've just heard about Saul Heller, this 80-something year old dude in Salem, MA who's putting me to shame. He's writing to every newspaper in his region about it! And I hear he's out at the post office and canvassing his neighborhood. He wants everyone on board, and that means all of us. Oh, these older folks...always setting the bar higher!
Here's the gist of his letter, with some added info:
Ever since Gen. Washington commanded the Continental Army @ Cambridge Common, Massachusetts has been at the forefront of MAJOR historic and national events.
Now there is a grass roots effort to RIGHT an ENORMOUS WRONG perpetrated by the Supreme Court ... In "Citizens United", it ruled that Corporations are the SAME as PEOPLE, and ... political donations are a form of SPEECH, allowing UNLIMITED SECRET CORPORATE money to flow to their chosen candidates.
The Citizens United ruling has CORRUPTED the process of GOVERNMENT FOR THE PEOPLE, giving money the loudest voice. The PEOPLE of MORALLY, FORWARD-LOOKING MA. are working to amend the ruling.
There is now a statewide campaign going on, to download, sign, and get certified, your own petition... with, apparently, many hits on the PassMassAmendment website. Please join us to help reverse the DISASTER created by a politically motivated Supreme Court. And please spread to word to everyone in your address book in Massachusetts. You can sign your own petition form, or even better, collect some signatures from your registered voter neighbors. Go to the Pass Mass Amendment website for information and instructions: http://passmassamendment.org/
"PassMassAmendment is a statewide ballot initiative to amend the Massachusetts Constitution via petition. Yes, it's a good idea to amend the US Constiution based on "Corporations Are Not People, Money Is Not Speech". But to help get things moving, HELP GET SIGNATURES IN MASSACHUSETTS!" www.PassMassAmendment.org
Contact Terra Friedricks @ 978-808-7173.
I'm collecting signatures in the Amherst area. How about you? It's easy! It's fun! And it's urgent!
Yes, "Boston Strong" and winning the Series is WAY cool. But let's be the first in the nation - again! - this time, to regulate corporations and corporate money right here at home. We only have until Nov. 20 to get over 70,000 signatures.
Pass this along to your politically dedicated friends in MA., and together, let's make it happen!
Google found many sources for the Illinois...Republicans comment going back several months. Which site was quoted here? Since 0 republicans is unlikely, does that make the other comments equally unlikely?
Note that their is a difference between letting the government take care of a person and having a backup if one has a serious illness or other catastrophe.
I learned the value of government when the small private street I lived on needed repaving. The neighborhood had to tax itself to pay for the work and several other obstacles had to be overcome. The town public works people could have done it so easily.
(NOT A SOUL TO BLAME BUT THEMSELVES FOR ALL THEIR WONDERFULNESS...)
> TRULY A DEMOCRATS PARADISE!
Now, Consider This:
There are more people on Welfare in Illinois than there are people working.
> Chicago pays the highest wages to teachers than anywhere else in the U.S. averaging $110,000/year.
> Their pensions average 80-90% of their income. You can't blame that on republicans because there aren't any.
> Wow, are Illinois and Chicago great or what?
> Be sure to read till the end. I've never heard it explained better.
> Perhaps the U.S. should pull out of Chicago ?
> Body count: In the last six months 292 killed (murdered) in Chicago .
> 221 killed in Iraq AND Chicago has one of the strictest gun laws in the entire US.
. Here's the Chicago chain of command:
> . President: Barack Hussein Obama
> . Senator: Dick Durbin
> . House Representative: Jesse Jackson Jr.
> . Governor: Pat Quinn
> . House leader: Mike Madigan
> . Atty. Gen.: Lisa Madigan (daughter of Mike)
> . Mayor: Rohm Emanuel
> . The leadership in Illinois - all Democrats.
> . Thank you for the combat zone in Chicago .
>
> . Of course, they're all blaming each other.
> . Can't blame Republicans; there aren't any!
> . Chicago school system rated one of the worst in the country. Can't blame Republicans; there aren't any!
. State pension fund $78 Billion in debt, worst in country. Can't blame Republicans; there aren't any!
. Cook County ( Chicago ) sales tax 10.25% highest in country. Can't blame Republicans; there aren't any!
. This is the political culture that Obama comes from in Illinois . And he is going to 'fix' Washington politics for us???
> . George Ryan is no longer Governor, he is in the big house.
> . Of course he was replaced by Rob Blajegovitch who is...that's right, also in the big house.
> . And Representative Jesse Jackson Jr. resigned a couple of weeks ago. That is because he is fighting being sent to...that's right, the big house.
> . The Land of Lincoln , where our governors make our license plates.
>
> But you know what? As long as they keep providing entitlements to the population of Chicago , nothing is going to change, except the state will go broke before the country does.
> "Any man who thinks he can be happy and prosperous by letting the Government take care of him; better take a closer look at the American Indian."
Petition: Call for the resignation of Speaker John Boehner
Response from Mike:
"You may as well start a petition to remove Harry Reid while you’re at it. He is as much to blame as anyone else. Matter of fact why don’t we throw the whole bunch out since most of them are only interested in themselves and not the good of the country or the people in it. If this plan is so wonderful why are the politicians exempted from it? We should ALL be on it. They do NOT want it as most of America also does NOT want it. Look at it in its simplest light. If we are here talking about a government shutdown then it is not working in Washington! To add insult to injury we are “closing down” US monuments and statues at added costs that we don’t have. We are putting up fences around monuments to keep people out! You normally can just walk up to these sites for free. This was done purely for political reasons and photo opportunities….and it backfired. Shame on you these so called leaders of ours!! Shame on us as a nation for being complacent and letting it get to this point!! This didn’t happen overnight. This has happened over many years right under our noses….this nation of sheep. Wait until we are put into our corrals. Pay attention to what is going on around the world and most important pay attention to world history…. Real history, not the crap that is being fed to our children in today’s society. What happened to Rome will befall this nation also. Think before you send out more of this one-sided crap as both sides are to blame and in it together. Then pray your ass off for the good of mankind on this planet for we are traveling down a dark path and surely will be doomed."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Mike, you are misinformed:
"That Congressional Exemption From Obamacare? ANOTHER MYTH" http://finance.yahoo...-myth-153149342.html
" “Why are Congress and their families exempt from the new plan?” a questioner named Paul asked in a recent Yahoo Finance Q&A on the Affordable Care Act. “If the coverage is inferior, why don’t they stand behind it?”
Of all the misconceptions surrounding the new health reform law known as Obamacare—and there are many—one of the newest and most infuriating is the idea that Congress made itself “exempt” from a law that puts onerous new burdens on many other Americans. That contention is TOTALLY FALSE. In fact, members of Congress, along with their personal staffers, are required to participate in Obamacare, which is a more stringent requirement than employees of many big companies face.
The confusion is understandable. Earlier this year, Congress did, in fact, consider passing legislation that would amount to an exemption, though that never happened. Then, in August, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in a speech that “President Obama just granted all of Congress an exception. And he did it because Harry Reid and the Senate Democrats who passed this thing came begging and said, ‘Please, please, please let us out of Obamacare.’” Nobody actually saw Harry Reid begging, but the claim gained traction nonetheless, and a chain email containing BOGUS information about Congress being exempt from Obamacare started to circulate...
You can read the full article at the link above.
I also disagree with you that "WE" have closed the government down. With pressure from the Tea Party, the GOP has shut it down, by refusing to bring to a vote a clean resolution to fund the government as a whole. They are instead holding the entire government hostage in a futile and reckless 11th hour effort to undermine the Affordable Care Act. They want to fund the government "piecemeal", only covering the expenditures of which THEY approve. The ACA became law 3 years ago. This shutdown is a Republican gimmick. I've never seen so many happy right-wingers. Their only plan is destruction. Government cannot function in this fashion, being taken from one manufactured crisis to the next. EXTORTION IS NOT NEGOTIATION! THIS KIND OF EXTORTION HAS NOT BEEN TRIED BEFORE - UNTIL THE TEA PARTY TOOK CONTROL OF THE HOUSE.
I suggest you look at more than one news source, and skip Fox News altogether.
Petition: Call for the resignation of Speaker John Boehner
I just signed a petition to The United States Congress: We, the undersigned, have lost confidence in the ability of Speaker of the House John Boehner to carry out his duties to the citizens of the United States .... http://petitions.mov...rce=s.fb&r_by=167477
Please sign and share.
No one who has such disrespect for the importance of maintaining a functional government should hold public office, let alone such a position of power. Speaker Boehner appears to care more about keeping his own position than he does about the 800,000 federal employees whose jobs have been furloughed by his actions. His arrogance is hurtful to dedicated public servants and to the whole nation. Because of John Boehner's intransigence, women and children will not receive their W.I.C. nutritional assistance, clinical trials to help children with cancer are tabled, polluters will go unfettered by a stalled EPA, and we've lost a billion dollars in just these few days. How hypocritical for Boehner and his cohorts to claim they care about the debt! John Boehner and his masters in the Tea Party need to step aside, and allow those who believe in governing well and with compassion and wisdom to restore good governance. Step aside, John Boehner: you have nothing of value to offer this country any longer, except for your resignation.
We have started the process of a ballot initiative to amend the Massachusetts Constitution to declare that "Corporations are not People, Money is not Speech."
We need your help. Get involved and join the effort. Like this page. Share this page. Help us get the signatures this fall. Combat the corrupting power of the Corporation.
We will have a very limited amount of time to obtain almost 70,000 valid signatures in 2 months starting September 18th going till November 20th.
Massachusetts, having led the way in the first Revolution against the tyranny of a monarchy, is now being called upon to lead the second Revolution against the tyranny of Corporatism. Join us as Massachusetts will once again lead the nation by passing this Amendment to our Constitution!
If you can get arrested for hunting or fishing without a license, but not for entering and ...remaining in the country illegally — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If you have to get your parents’ permission to go on a field trip or to take an aspirin in school, but not to get an abortion — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If you MUST show your identification to board an airplane, cash a check, buy liquor, or check out a library book and rent a video, but not to vote for who runs the government — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If the government wants to prevent stable, law-abiding citizens from owning gun magazines that hold more than ten rounds, but gives twenty F-16 fighter jets to the crazy new leaders in Egypt — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If, in the nation’s largest city, you can buy two 16-ounce sodas, but not one 24-ounce soda, because 24-ounces of a sugary drink might make you fat — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If an 80-year-old woman or a three-year-old girl who is confined to a wheelchair can be strip-searched by the TSA at the airport, but a woman in a burka or a hijab is only subject to having her neck and head searched — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If your government believes that the best way to eradicate trillions of dollars of debt is to spend trillions more — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If a seven-year-old boy can be thrown out of school for saying his teacher is “cute,” but hosting a sexual exploration or diversity class in grade school is perfectly acceptable — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If hard work and success are met with higher taxes and more government regulation and intrusion, while not working is rewarded with Food Stamps, WIC checks, Medicaid benefits, subsidized housing, and free cell phones — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If the government’s plan for getting people back to work is to provide incentives for not working, by granting 99 weeks of unemployment checks, without any requirement to prove that gainful employment was diligently sought, but couldn’t be found — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If you pay your mortgage faithfully, denying yourself the newest big-screen TV, while your neighbor buys iPhones, time shares, a wall-sized do-it-all plasma screen TV and new cars, and the government forgives his debt when he defaults on his mortgage — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If being stripped of your Constitutional right to defend yourself makes you more “safe” according to the government — you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
What a country!
How about we give God a reason to continue blessing America!
Congratulations to all the same-sex married couples who can now enjoy full and equal rights, equal federal tax status, etc. and can be just like everyone else who's married in the Commonwealth - hopeful, forward-looking, and part of the family of our culture.
And in other great news, our new American heroine is Wendy Davis, Texas Senator, who stood up (literally, for 13 hours) to the misogynistic TX legislature, which tried but FAILED to push through monstrously restrictive anti-choice legislation. We will see her on the national stage!
Tomorrow’s Senate election: for women, & their allies
If you've read my previous postings, you'll know that I’m a progressive. I've never missed an election since my first vote back in the Pleistocene, not even the local ones. Though my vote for Ed Markey seems a foregone conclusion, it’s no knee-jerk party line reflex. If I want to persuade others to come out for tomorrow's election, I should be able to justify my own decisions.
There are, of course, many issues of importance to us, the people of Massachusetts. But as a woman, I’m particularly concerned about Congressional decisions affecting all women. I marched for the ERA & choice in the 1970’s. I want the young women of today to enjoy the advances my peers fought so long to achieve. Ed Markey is a steadfast champion of women’s reproductive freedoms, equal pay & health care. Polls show that he is enjoying large majorities of support from women, and women’s advocacy groups endorse him wholeheartedly. Women (and their allies) will make the difference on Tuesday.
But have you noticed? Mr. Gomez has straddled EVERY position concerning women. No surprise: he’s personally pro-life, has no "litmus test" for SCOTUS nominees, and finds a mandatory abortion delay reasonable. But he coyly says he won’t change any laws, and calls Roe v. Wade “settled law”. Intentionally, Mr. Gomez has ideologically blurred the right's hard-edged agenda with his "electionese".
However, Rowe v. Wade is settled law - only UNTIL IT ISN'T. It could be toppled if more regressive Justices are confirmed to the bench. Mr. Gomez could confirm a nominee who would seriously degrade women's freedoms, or even overturn Rowe. Meanwhile, the right has eroded women’s choice piece by piece. The vast majority of Republicans regularly shout out for the abstract concept of "freedom", yet would deprive women the freedom to control their own bodies.
Mr. Gomez has run a Scott Brown-like camouflage campaign, posing as independent, and a bipartisan. Realize that Scott Brown failed to be re-elected in 2012; the same ploy by Mr. Gomez shouldn’t sway voters in this election either.
On a side note, Mr. Gomez has constantly referred to the business of governing as being "Down There". Well - that's where the job is - down there in D.C. He's made it seem such a negative, to be involved in governing, it's amazing that he even wants the job. We've seen this before from the right wing: Republicans tend to demean government itself (and governing); they prove this in HOW they govern. Still, they do love to achieve power in office, typically to serve their special interest constituency, the 1%. Mr. Gomez, though, makes the constant accusatory refrain of "You've been Down There for 37 years!" cringe-worthy, even vaguely dirty.
I don't plan to send Gabriel Gomez "Down There".
Congressman Markey has defended the environment, advocated for effective gun control, fought to protect the social safety net, supported health care reform, helped legislate on the Violence Against Women Act, and championed tax fairness. His positions are clear. Our own Elizabeth Warren has asked us to make Ed Markey her partner in the Senate.Over and over, his constituents have renewed his mandate in Congress for these past 37 years, because we know confidently where he stands; we value his leadership. I’m proud to give him my vote.
If you value Ed Markey's leadership protecting women's reproductive freedoms, his fight for women's equal pay, equal access to health care, and other protections for women, it matters that you vote! Bring your friends. Bring your sweeties. Bring your daughters - and sons too. It's hot this week - but voting on Tuesday will be the coolest thing we do!
Hi everyone - the debate is tonight from 7-8 pm. The election is only two weeks away! I hope everyone's voting (for Markey) on the 25th. At stake: the environment, gun control, health care, reproductive freedom, the possible next SCOTUS Justice, etc., that's all.
Please tell all your friends to watch, and to support Ed Markey's candidacy. Then go out and make new friends, and tell THEM to vote for Ed too.
Only hope we find GOD again before it is too late ! !
The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.
My confession:
I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat...
Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.
In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.
In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc.. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school... The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.
Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about.. And we said okay..
Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.
Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'
Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.
Are you laughing yet?
Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.
Sen. Lautenberg derided the "chickenhawks" in Congress
RIP, Senator Lautenberg, the last Senator who served in WWII. In 2004, he defended the reputations of Senators John Kerry and Max Cleland as heroic warriors, against the chickenhawks who never served.
Mar 23, 2023
- Fri, Jul 4, 2014, 8:12 P
