Something You Couldn't Have Gotten From The Bush Whitehouse

Cool, now you can download some higher resolution images direct from the Whitehouse.

I liked this one, and the President met Tiger Woods. Of course, these are just publicity photos. The real meat of the day has revolved around the press for a releasing of further torture memos. I say, bring it on. The American people are hearty, and can't solve the problems without all the information. They do no favors by keeping the information from us.

Q So is that an indication that you don't want to see an independent commission? I'm trying to understand.

MR. GIBBS: By dint, an independent commission would probably not be something that I would weigh in on if Congress were to create one of those. I think that -- from the larger perspective, the President believes, as both of us have said, that the release of the memos are not a time for a retribution but to reflect on what happens and that we're all best suited looking forward.

But even so, the door is left open later in the briefing.

Q Robert, does the President believe someone ought to be punished for allowing waterboarding? He changed the policy, but does he believe somebody ought to be punished?

MR. GIBBS: Well, I think that determination is going to be left up to, as I've said for any number of days looking backward on this now, that that's going to be made by a legal official.

Q And that legal official is the Attorney General?

MR. GIBBS: In our Constitution it is.

Q And what about this idea of the Attorney General appointing a special prosecutor?

MR. GIBBS: Well, I addressed this --

Q Is that his -- is that the Attorney General's decision or is that ultimately the President's decision?

MR. GIBBS: I'd have to look up, honestly, the legal statute to determine that. I don't -- I don't think the -- I don't believe that there's -- I think the Justice Department is fully capable of weighing the law.

Q You don't think a special prosecutor is necessary?

MR. GIBBS: I don't -- I don't think anybody has presented a compelling case why the Justice Department couldn't do this.

Q And then one final thing on this. Did Vice President Cheney make a specific request -- is it an official request that he wants these other memos declassified as far as you guys know?

MR. GIBBS: I would have to double-check with CIA. I think that the -- that request -- as I understand, what the Vice President has said, a request came to -- several weeks ago to the CIA. I don't -- but I have not talked to him.

Q Given that General Jones apparently was involved with helping to expedite with Jay Rockefeller, does that mean you guys will have a role in deciding whether this gets declassified or not?

MR. GIBBS: I believe so. I mean, I believe that --

Q It will come to your desk, it just hasn't happened yet?

MR. GIBBS: I think that's the case. I mean, I think declassification happens here.

Q Okay.

MR. GIBBS: Yes, sir.

Q Do you know if President Obama has read these memos to which Vice President Cheney is referring that showed that the enhanced interrogation techniques saved lives and didn't make America less safe, as you just said?

MR. GIBBS: I don't know if he -- I don't know if he has read the specific memos that Vice President Cheney may be referring to. But, Mark, let me broaden your question a bit. And I think you would get this from virtually every intelligence official who objectively looked at this, and that is that the efficacy of this is in many ways ambiguous, that whatever information -- I think people will tell you that there was information that was procured that was helpful, and information that was procured that was made up. Nobody could ever likely tell you that any information derived couldn't also have been derived from another mean.

But as I've said, and the President have said, what the -- if you look at the totality of the impact of this on our national security, building off of what I told Ed, our team, and many others outside of our team, have weighed in on the notion that the cost and the benefit of this -- that the benefit is greatly outweighed by the cost to our national security.

There are things that this country doesn't do. That's part of the criteria that the President used to -- on the -- in the very beginning of this administration outlaw these techniques from being used. The existence of and the use of these techniques became a recruitment tool and a rallying cry for terrorists all over the globe. And, as I mentioned, it makes it harder to -- the use of these techniques makes it harder to protect our own troops, and that that is the -- those are the reasons in total why this makes our country less safe.

There in lies the fundamental problem with the Bush approach - they authorized torture. Doing so becomes reason for others to join the terrorists. So, as to if the information gained was useful, there is no real way to measure how harmful it was, but it makes perfect sense how harmful it was to us, our way of life, and the very fabric of our Constitutional foundation.

Of course, you can question the whole of it, might the ends justify the means?

Q You also said that -- you also said that the intelligence that was derived that Cheney is talking about could have been derived from another means. You said that to Chuck.

MR. GIBBS: Well, I think it is -- what is unknowable is whether that could be derived. I mean, again, that is -- part of this whole process is when you decide to do something it's -- you can't then go back and decide if the same action could have happened as a result of something else. That's why I think that whatever question is discussed here, it's -- I'd go back to my answer that I gave to Mark, which is that all of this is bigger than one certain amount or one smaller question, because you have to take into account the totality of our security -- whether or not the use of and the existence of certain techniques become a rallying cry and a recruitment tool for those that seek to do us harm each day. And that the -- there are things that this country does do and certain things this country doesn't do, and that this President has determined that we are going to -- we can protect the security of our country and our people and uphold our values and not have those two conflict.

I would have to agree with the President here, at some point, the ends do not justify the means and they may actually do more harm than good.

At the tail end of the press conference, we see the President has hired some very smart guys. Do you buy this close?

MR. GIBBS: The best way to determine -- the best way to determine who's going to -- the rule of law is to have it determined by lawyers who can determine whether or not somebody knowingly broke the law.

Q We've started talking in the last 24 hours more and more about very high-ranking people -

MR. GIBBS: I haven't talked about --

Q -- Condoleezza Rice, Dick Cheney --

MR. GIBBS: -- you guys have.

Q If in fact it reaches that level, would the President weigh in?

MR. GIBBS: Okay, you guys and Jay Rockefeller. (Laughter.)

I'm sorry, what was --

Q Would the President weigh in --

MR. GIBBS: Now, that we've --

Q -- turn to very high-ranking levels of the government? What does he think, for example, of the fact that Gerald Ford pardoned Richard Nixon? Was that a breach of the presidential duty, or should that have been left to the Attorney General?

MR. GIBBS: I think the President has seen Frost/Nixon, but I do not know whether he's determined the efficacy of such a pardon.

Thanks, guys.

Very interesting. I think we see that there is a very good reason certain members of the W, Rove and Co are squawking more than others. They don't want to go to jail for doing what what they believe was right, even if in the end, it was indeed wrong and illegal.

There in lies the difference between leadership by faith versus leadership by fact. And, we see what we get from the current administration is fact based decision making. Thankfully, we have a thinking president in the Whitehouse these days. Will the rule of law win? The jury is still out on that no doubt.

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Whatsamada? You Can't Handle The Truth?

Of course, the republican nut balls that led our nation down the foul, stench filled, unethical and illegal path to the tawdry torture that will eventually led the perpetrators to hell are all aflutter.

A former Bush White House press secretary, Ari Fleischer, said if a probe is opened up, "Barack Obama will regret this as one of the worst moments of his presidency, because it will set off a multi-year, extraordinarily divisive, all-consuming Washington scandal/controversy and everyone will end up looking bad."

I would suggest the American people have a stronger stomach than many of the republicans believe, and we actually can handle the truth, and indeed will prosper for having known the full extent of the damage. I say let the investigations begin. The reason why Rove et. al. protest to much is that they know they have crossed the line for no aparrent gain, but to the detriment of the very Constitutional fabric of our great nation. The only way to fix this is to clean the stench by washing the stains out of our flag with the swift, blind and full application of justice.

Open it up. Put it on youtube. The people have a right to know what their elected officials (and their unelected but appointed chronies) did to bring us the America we have today.

As Shakespeare would say, Rove "doth protest too much:"

Don't Lay Off The Teachers, Lay Off The Superintendents

Why don't these headlines every read, "Cuts Made to Education, Starting At the Top?" Instead, we get:

Los Angeles school district officials moved forward Tuesday with plans to lay off more than 5,000 teachers, counselors, custodians, clerks and other employees, but the battle over funding will rage on for weeks -- affecting who goes, who stays and what schools and classrooms will look like for students next year.

Bottom line, kids will be injured by this move.

As a modest proposal, I suggest we cut the from the top down rather than the bottom up. This way, less people need to lose their jobs to realize savings. If we cut all the Superintendents first, the savings would be enormous. What harm would it cause the children? Not much, is my bet.

Next move would be to dissolve the Superintendents offices and push out the people who work there to serve the kids directly, if they can. If they can't, give them pink slips. Sell off or rent the office complexes that house the superintendents, and bingo, more savings that could be put toward smaller class sizes and perhaps even music, physical education, drama, and language arts, among other things.

Lastly, allow every one who is inclined to volunteer time at their local schools. This would afford everyone an opportunity who believe in high quality education to personally put their money where their mouth is. The trouble with all these cuts and threats is that the kids are being used as political pawns, and that's just reprehensible.

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Way To Go Husky Dogs! Undefeated Is Hard To Deny

Nice Sentiment For Monday

“We wanted more ‘Dumbo’ and less ‘Star Wars,’”

Shan't we all make this our slogan for Monday?

The article in the times is skeptical of Pixar's ability to make another hit film. Of course, you could judge for yourself by watching the trailer here. I challenge you not to laugh, if you dare watch it.

Hey, Could You Live Working One Day A Week?

Larry Summers can.

$5.2 million in just the last of his two years at one of the world’s largest funds, according to financial records released Friday by the White House.

Impressive as that might sound, it is all the more considering that Mr. Summers worked there just one day a week.

Oh, my. Should a man who has made a bundle in a hedge fund gambit be the top Econ adviser to Obama?

Unlike most hedge funds, which lost money as the markets plunged in 2008, Shaw posted returns of about 7 percent in its so-called macroeconomic fund.

Seems a little spurious. But then again, Summers, who knows how the system works, may be the best one to craft regulations to secure the system as he knows how they can cheat the system to win.

How's your one day a week job working out for you?

Is Barak Obama The Anti-Bush?

I don't know about you, but I didn't have time at work to listen to more than ten minutes of the live Q & A. But I like the format. I can't imagine a more different president than Obama. He's like the anti-Bush, like Bush was the Bizzaro President to Obama's Superman version.

Take A Look At The Canopy

A Monday Kind Of Day

Found this at the end of a short article on kids taking a "field" trip to the boys restroom. No doubt, the quote should lighten your Monday:

"I'm OK with urinals," said Chessy. "It's just another kind of toilet. It makes things easier for boys, and boys need all the help they can get."

Something You Wouldn't Have Heard From GWB

The folks of the Bush Administration were experts at deflecting and playing the blame game, despite their insistence that we not play it. Shoot, it was not for us to play, but when it came time to deflect responsibility, the W, Rove and Co were straight up experts.

In a clearly decisive position, Obama, plays quite differently. By stepping up, you see, there is power to be had by assuming the responsibility:

“Washington is all in a tizzy over who’s at fault,” Mr. Obama said. “Some say it’s the Democrats’ fault, the Republicans’ fault. Listen, I’ll take responsibility. I’m the president.”

Even if GWB uttered these words, he and his crack team of propagandists were so good at deflecting responsibility and blame that W's words were not trustworthy. Moreover, we knew W's words were empty based on his follow through and lack of action.

Obama and his team, in direct contrast, are brilliant. Now let's hope he has a chance to make good on his word. The proof, indeed, will be in the pudding.

The republicans, who voted against the stimulus and are now praying for failure so they can re-win their seats to Congress, have to be squirming in their boots at this point.

AIG Top Dogs Set To Get Giant Buckets Of Bonus Money

Welcome to George Bush's America, where the people who lead borrowers down the primrose path to foreclosure are set to reward themselves for one of the biggest failures in corporate America amounting to the biggest governmental bailout in history. Shall these folks be allowed to get their bonuses, or not?

Discuss.

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Avoiding the Mahem of the Irish Bars on Tuesday, Here's a Dose of Traditional Irish

Micho Russell died a few years back, and we are all worse off for it. He's the whistle player here:


The Bothy Band Kicked Ass when they were together, their music still fills the set lists of many a trad session:



Altan has been on the circuit for a great long while, and I've seen them live twice. Kick ass smoothness:



And Mary Bergin, perhaps one of the best whistle players of all time. Any time I need an ego check, she humbles me:



A second dose of perfection:



The attraction of traditional Irish is that many people can do it, with a bit of practice, can become quite good:



Lastly, these guys are taking it to a new rockibily level and are playing the Great American Music Hall on Tuesday - get your tix now, they are bound to sell out.



Not only is the band super hot, their box player, Rene, makes playing the accordian look super hot!


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And, Erin go Bragh

Colbert Is Insightful As Well As Incisive

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

The Word - Rand Illusion

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Political Humor

Rap Battle
NASA Name Contest

A Three Pronged Solution For Education in America

Given that Obama and his team have finally seriously broached the subject today, let's take a look at my three ideas for changing education in America. It's a three pronged approach, but there are additional facets to explore later.

First - the cost of education is too expensive. Why? Because the administrative overhead is extremely out of balance, particularly at the executive, top-end level. Thus, idea one: Cut the top first - eliminating the super-level of bureaucratic administration starting at the System or Superintendent's office.

Saving many millions of dollars by cutting those offices and redistributing it to the schools will generate a great investment in the front lines; where the education takes place and with the students. In the mid 1800s, where our modern systemic structure emerged, the most educated person in a school district, indeed, was the Superintendent of Schools. Kids were taught by young, unmarried women who received all their direction from this Superintendent. Today, the teachers could suffice as the superintendents of most school districts in the 1800s. Principals often have Ed.Ds or some long litany of educational credentials. What was the last good thing your Superintendent did that affected the daily education of a student? If your answer is, like many, you have no clue, then why are we spending the enormous overhead to support this bloated infrastructure? If there are administrative staff who will be displaced, send them out to the schools to help with the day-to-day operations, where the kids are.

Cutting the top first works at the collegiate level as well. Cutting the State System Offices - for example the CSU Chancellor's office - will save the system a great sum of money. Redistribute the funds to the colleges and universities in the system. Each college and university has their own governing boards, independent of the CSU dignitaries. The CSU maintains it's own expensive board. These systems are redundant. Again, if there are administrative staff that will be displaced by closing down the Long Beach operation of the CSU, redistribute them to the various campus and have them help in teaching or administrating locally, where the students are. If you don't add value to the student experience, then you are in jeopardy of losing your job.

Second - we need to expand the academic curriculum so that it harmonizes with the culture and needs of today's students and families. Thus idea 2 - introduce a year round calendar that engages students and teaching staff for a full year, with some time for a good break to rejuvenate for a family holiday (hopefully harmonizing with a corresponding work vacation).

Back over 150 years ago, we were a largely agrarian nation. This when the school systems and district systems were created. The calendar, reflected the nation at the time, and the needs to sustain the population. Indeed, children were needed to work the family farm over the summer. Aside from a large chunk of the mid-west and some other agricultural geographies (e.g. Central Valley of California), the nature of childhood doesn't involve plowing the fields, picking rock, or being involved in animal husbandry.

Contrarily, there is no substitute today for both parents working in the urban environments in many States. Most families are comprised of parents who don't work on the farm, but are otherwise gainfully employed year round. Moreover with the farms becoming more and more absorbed by major business conglomerates, and modernized, farm life these days is a year round affair. To think that students should be let loose for an extended summer break, to help on the family farm, or for whatever reason is a quaint, and antiquated notion. Why not move the school calendar - with some well placed extended breaks not more than a month at a time - to a year round format? This will decrease the length of time it takes for people to graduate provided schools don't take the opportunity to fill up the curricula with more, rather than focusing on creating efficiencies in an effective curriculum.

Third - the idea of life-time employment in any industry is suffering a swift demise in this economy, but why should it be protected in academic settings? Thus prong 2 - invert the tenure rules and decouple it from any form of supervisor/evaluative measures for teaching staff.

Tenure evolved over time, mainly during the mid 1900s as a direct reaction to the threat to faculty of being fired for speaking heresy on a campus if the President didn't like the findings of your last study. There was also a threat of prosecution by the government and in particular the communist witch hunts, mainly familiar to us as McCarthyism. It has evolved from a pure protection of academic freedom to a de facto personnel policy, a decision point typically five to seven years after initial employment where the person receives an up or out vote.

Today, a person's freedom of speech, and more importantly, the protection of Academic Freedom (separate from tenure as a vehicle for this protection) is well grounded in the legal system. Tenure has become obsolete. Moreover, tenure offers no equal protection for the people who need it the most - the junior faculty who are trying to obtain tenure. In fact, the policy effectively grants tenure to the people who need it the least - senior faculty with a well established publication and teaching record - and does not provide it for the people who need it the most - the junior faculty member who may otherwise be plowing into new and innovative ends of the knowledge development. And as a result, we get isomorphic tendencies in both the development of new knowledge and the propagation of old antiquated teaching practice. There is no protection for innovations in both research and pedagogy for all the new folks entering the field are afraid that if they don't fall into line, they will not be granted the holy grail of tenure.

What we really should do is, instead of the current practice, give tenure to new faculty for a duration not to amount to more than 5 or 7 years. Once you reach that point, you get a decision as to if you should remain as a qualified teacher, and you should stand on your own record. Once you reach that point, the meritocracy should kick in. If you have been doing well, publishing and developing new veins of research, and teaching in effective ways, you should be retained, but not promised lifetime employment.

Any high quality faculty member should have, by then, cultivated a means by which you would not need tenure and you stand on the quality of your past and continued work instead of on the promise of what you might do - which is what we see in tenured ranks around the globe. There is a great deal of deadwood in the tenured faculty ranks. People cling to the status as if it was their only justification for employment - as in, "I'm tenured, you cannot touch me. I'll do whatever I want." Which many times over means, hell, no, I'm not going to teach differently or offer a new course, or take on any responsibility that might require more work on my part.

This practice leaves our schools, colleges, and universities stagnant and tenure serves not as a facilitator of but roadblock to innovation and creativity, particularly in some of the oldest disciplines. America does not run in a siloed environment. Students and parents should insist that their education is not offered in a siloed environment as well.

Well, there you have it. Let me summarize. We could greatly improve our system if we attacked the system as we know it using three prongs (all three tend to be sacred cows, but shoot, this is a blog and what fun is if if we can't slay a few of those every so often).

Prong 1 - Cut the bloated administrative overhead, starting with the top levels first, and flatten the organizational structures by funneling the saved funds direct to the schools where the real action of teaching and learning occurs.

Prong 2 - Expand the school calendar to extend it across the year so that it no longer reflects an old-world, agrarian mentality. Yes, students (and teachers and administrators for that matter) need substantial breaks, but not three months over the summer. In fact, we could finish up educating our students in a much more compressed time frame if we were both efficient and effective with our curricula.

Prong 3 - Invert the tenure model to give it to the new folks who more need the protection and those who need it the least are given the liberty to stand on their own records and work to continually improve and advance. Tenure as a de facto personnel policy and surrogate for accountability and supervision in America should be abolished. Instead, we should be actively promoting the improvement of our teaching faculty, and it should not stop after the first seven years of employment once, as is customary, tenure is granted. Indeed, there is proven research that suggests that faculty productivity post tenure declines, very rarely rising to the same levels of productivity demonstrated before hand. The days of deadwood faculty leaning on tenure as the only reason and rationale for their continued employment are over.

Tenure should, in no way and in no uncertain terms, be the only means of supervision of professional teaching staff. However, as it sits Tenure as a principle and a policy currently stands as the only means of holding teachers accountable, unless your school or college has post-tenure review; a discussion of which could constitute a whole other post. Never mind figuring out what actually qualifies as "high quality" teaching, and how to wrangle a system that rewards for merit.

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No Matter The Outcome, No Harm Done To Straight Marriage

Look, here's the fundamental burden of proof not offered by Ken Starr or any of the other Prop H8 supporters - where's the harm if two men or two women marry each other? Regardless of the outcome of the California Supreme Court case we already have positive proof that same sex marriage neither diminishes the institution of marriage nor harm existing heterosexual marriages. The very fact that 18,000 or so couples have been married in the window of opportunity offered by justice and the heterosexual community has, as of yet, not offered one shred off proof that their marriages have been harmed by it aught to be proof positive that their argument is false.


Really, we are in a surreal time where the bigotry of the slim "majority," is forcing it's values on the liberties of a minority. This is why the constitution exists - to protect minorities from the tyranny of the majority.

It's the moment when the anti-marriage-equality forces might want to coast downhill, to revel in their courtroom comeback, to finally savor their 52.47% victory at the polls last November. To the most smug among them, I will be able to say this:

I'm still married.

A $50-million election battle, two high-court showdowns, and what do the pro-Proposition 8 folks have to show for it? California still has what is likely the largest population of married same-sex couples -- an estimated 18,000 -- anywhere in the world. That's 18,000 raspberry seeds stuck in their teeth for years to come. California won't be a gay-marriage-free zone again unless we all die or move. If they believe Proposition 8 hollows out my marriage, well, my marriage hollows out their political victory.

Really, shouldn't the rhetorical mashing and mincing of definitions be irrelevant when it comes down to it? What's the harm if two old ladies want to get hitched? How does it hurt heterosexual marriage if Phylis Lyon can actually claim she was able to marry her life long love, now deceased?

It's time to stop standing on bigotry to foist a relic of puritanical values upon a people who should be allowed to marry if they wish. Really, if you don't believe in gay marriage, don't marry some one of your same gender. But, simply because you believe something so strongly doesn't make your position correct, or right (we learned that the hard way in Iraq).

I ask one more time - where's the harm & what is it about heterosexual marriage that needs protection? A very legitimate argument to be made is the exact opposite position - that when you open up the legal system to allow gays, lesbians and transgendered people to be married, heterosexual marriage is strengthened, not harmed. Ultimately, the irony of the yes on H8 crowd is that they suggest that they are "protecting" marriage by preventing marriage. Is that really a tenable position no matter how strongly a person believes that gays should not be married?

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Case Closed - Who Wins?

If you have been watching the case for equal rights being made this morning, you know that it's now in the hands of the CA Supreme Court. Let's hope the good guys win this one. Perhaps this will sway your thinking on the matter.



Of course, you can plow through the mountain of material on this case on your own, but here's a slice from the NCLR blogger on site:

a decision upholding prop 8 will have on same-sex couples and families, answering that “having their families singled out on basis of characteristic bearing no relationship to their ability to contribute to society marks [same-sex couples] as second-class citizens.” This gets us back to the core of this case, and the core of what is wrong with Proposition 8: no minority group should be singled out in the Constitution, on the basis of a characteristic like sexual orientation, race, sex, or religion, without at least receiving the procedural protections that the Constitution provides through the revision process.

If Prop 8 is allowed to stand, it's clear who the losers will be. What's not clear is will the people of America have lost or won? I know where I sit on this question. What say you?

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P.S. Here's a fun clip - Enjoy:

Is Forest Regeneration Possible?

Found this on the TED location.



Thoughts?

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Tweaking The Model for "Higher" Education: Faculty Free Agency - the way it used to be

I posted the following initially as a comment over at Brad Delong's location. I do think that we need a serious retooling of education across the board. There is an enormous amount of wasted funds expended in administrative overhead, and the model used today, built in the late 19th century and early 20th century doesn't really work in the New Millennium. Here's my thinking on what I call "Faculty Free Agency."

It's really a throw back to how it was done back in the dawn of civilization. As you read this, imagine Euclid or Socrates walking along the shores of Alexandria or Greece with students trailing behind as they etched ideas into the sands, while the waves followed behind washing the board for a new idea.

We are about a decade away from faculty free agency. The Universities will be the granters of diplomas and may have a raft of faculty certified to offer courses that qualify the credits to be cobbled together for a fee to build whatever diploma you like.

If you are a good faculty member, you would be accredited by a dozen universities, not one. You could teach from your cyber studio in Kauai with a small local studio classroom, and a world wide reach. You would charge 99 cents per student for the class session. You would get a retainer based on the number of students who filed for diplomas at your dozen affiliated institutions. And, most importantly, if you were good, you could have 1000 - 10K students or more if the bandwidth let it at each class session. Thus, you stand to make serious bucks if you are any good.

Yes, this is the old Greek Model. Near as I can tell, it's just me thinking this way - and perhaps one or two others...but the idea will gel as the traditional university model collapses under it's own administrative burden (not to mention extremely expensive overhead).

Would you rather have some Grad Student TA teaching your philosophy course, or Socrates? Now, of course Socrates is dead, but there are some smart folks, like the philosophers doing the radio show on NPR who may capture that market.

Again, we find, that content is king. If your content is no good, you won't have any students. The free market does work if it is indeed a free market. Adam Smith would like this idea, but he's dead too.

Indeed, if you are a smart student, you would cobble together a set of courses taught by the best and brightest from around the globe and then obtain your "diploma" from the best school you can persuade would be appropriate. But the degree then becomes somewhat meaningless - indeed, knowledge and wisdom offer their proof only in the wake of our actions. The proof is in what you do, not in what you retain, based on your accrued acumen in whatever subject you pursue.

Of course, I'm a heretic for even suggesting that there is some tweaking to be done in the existing models for delivery of education, but no one got famous for being safe.

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Andrew Sullivan Gives Us The "Un-Rove"

Sully's been blogging a great long while, and well, frankly must be good at it because he's getting paid to do it (unlike the rest of us saps who keep "yelling into the wind"). I like his paragraph here:

Karl Rove mastered the art of petty and nasty political tactics in the South of the post-Reagan era. And he never had a solid grip on conservatism as a political philosophy or of political strategy. And so Rove today endures as the architect of the biggest and deepest political implosion since the Democrats in the 1970s. It was all tactics, no strategy; all politics, no governance. He remains the worst single political strategist of modern times.

Click on over to read the article for the point. As to why the GOP unanimously voted simultaneously against Obama's stimulus package and thus America is beyond me.

Think about it. If you voted no on the stimulus package, your whole future as a politician rests in its failure. What are the GOP going to do now, work to make it a success? Doubtful. Effectively, they have bet on political and economic Armageddon. Which would you hope for?

See How The Taxpayer Got Screwed In The Front End, and Will be Screwed in the Back End Of The Credit Crunch

The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.

No doubt, this is a fun and entertaining visualization of the credit madness. There's no element about government bail outs, but it seems like a whole host of people who have been making goo-gobs of money for many years off the backs of the homeowner, and now going to be making goo-bobs of money off the taxpayers, and it inherently and patently seems unfair.

When Will the Celebrities Get Fiscally Spanked Like The Rest of Us?

The economic downturn is forcing America's households to learn a tough lesson: how to fend for themselves.

Sales of starter sewing kits have shot up by 30 percent at Wal-Mart as families forgo the tailor. Landscaping companies have suffered a 7 percent drop in revenue over the past year. Procter & Gamble said that it has noticed more questions from customers about how to dye their hair at home to match salon coloring.

The recession has had a powerful effect on the American state of mind. A Washington Post-ABC News poll released yesterday shows Americans have grown increasingly insecure about their finances since mid-September, as fears about making mortgage payments have spread and more believe the economy is in a long-term, serious decline.

These feelings have helped set off a change in behavior so pronounced marketers and businesses have coined a name for it. They call it "insourcing": doing yourself what you once gladly paid others to do.

We don't need a new term for what Americans knew how to do and have been doing since the dawn of the Nation. We've all be pulling ourselves up by our own boot straps for a great long while. Trouble is when you don't have any bootstraps or your boots are stolen by the greedy sonsofbitches who are treating themselves to fancy reward holidays in the over abundant and opulent swank hotels of Vegas or elsewhere.

I don't know about you, but I'm Sure Happy It's Thursday (acronym is self explanatory). Just some quick questions for today. Sure, we know the average schmo is getting spanked economically. When does the economic crisis hit our celebrities? I would love to see Brad or Angelina up to their elbows in excrement dredging the plumbing in their own home. Or is that a sight unfit for those who gawk at celebrities in fancy gowns strolling nonchalantly down red carpets.

I just heard a report about Tiger Woods coming back to the golf gambit after reconstructive surgery on his knee. Do you think this down turn will hurt his bottom line? What about the A-Roids of baseball? Will they get less per ball caught, bat swung, ball pitched, or base stolen? Certainly, the celebrities might do well to take it down a peg when commanding multimillion dollar salaries so that perhaps we could turn back the price nuttiness on theater tickets or stadium seats. I remember when movies cost 99c - and if you saved enough pennies you found in the street, you could splurge for the premier of Star Wars or Jaws. These days it costs 20 bucks just to get a whiff of the popcorn.

Blog on friends.

Blog on all.

Without Equivocation: This is the vision we need, not the fear we loath

AM Update:

When George Bush dove off the deep end of the pool to shovel the fear that the terrorists were feeding us to bend the Constitution to his advantage, we knew it was going to take a while to bend away from that policy of using fear mongering propaganda to put forward an agenda that is positve and visionary. I think Obama used his speech wisely to unfold the vision we need, rather than repackage the fear we loathe. In a very real sense, Obama and his team are snatching victory that Bush handed to the terrorists by stopping the use of fear to bend the will of the people.



Could you imagine George Bush saying the word "equivocation" without getting all tangled up? Really, when Obama pointed to a schoolgirl in the audience and held her up as an example of what America is really suffering from and where it's hopes should be pinned, he outclassed and eclipsed George Bush and his administrations' whole 8 years in about 3 minutes. Indeed, his is the vision we need, not the fear we loathe.

Weekend Wondering

I got to wondering earlier today: Would there be a economic crisis if the newspapers and other Main Stream Media outlets were not selling us the gloom and doom by the bushel?

I'll leave y'all with that question for the weekend.

Blog on friends.

Blog on all.

Who Is The Bigger Bigot, the Senator or Folks Who Voted For Him?

The Senator from Utah's bigotry is obvious. Just listen:


But really, what's worse. The Senator from Utah or the people who voted and still support him?



Clearly, Utah is not devoid of people who are not 100% heterosexual. Obviously, the Senator and his people don't have their blinders off or they would realize they actually know some wonderful gay people. It's that their bigotry blinds them to the fact that they are wrong. Don't let your religion get in the way of loving people because it teaches you to hate people who are different from you.

Simply because some one says that heterosexual marriage is the "foundation" of society doesn't make it so. What is it about heterosexual marriage that needs protection, really?

You can take a stand against such bigotry by calling it out, and not letting it slide.

Or, alternatively, you could have some fun with the good Senator from Utah:



Blog on friends.

Blog on all.

Spending Is A Trap

Clearly, we are not going to spend our way out of this economic collapse. Saving, what people did to lived through the last depressions learned, was the way to wealth and prosperity, albeit very, very slowly.

Of course the government can print all the money it wants, but unless it gets people gainfully employed, and working so they can improve their savings, then the won’t be any improvement on the spending. You see, spending with out means, is a loan - bad or otherwise - which involves sharks (let’s call them Bankers for reference purposes). Spending only after you have earned the capital to do so, is responsible consumerism. You, the consumer, are in control.

To turn the topsy-turvy back in the proper order, I suggest it’s savings first, then spending, not the other way around.

The Stimulus For You And Me?

Well, I suppose the jury is going to be out for a great long while before we know if the "stimulus" will actually do what it's supposed to do. It's hard to believe that pouring money into failing businesses is really a good idea. Can we believe the propaganda? There is a big difference between hoping the plan will work and it actually working, no?

What I am signing is a balanced plan with a mix of tax cuts and investments.It is a plan that’s been put together without earmarks or the usual pork barrel spending. And it is a plan that will be implemented with an unprecedented level of transparency and accountability," President Obama said before signing the bill into law. "And we expect you, the American people, to hold us accountable for the results. That is why we have created Recovery.gov – so every American can go online and see how their money is being spent."

I'm in favor of packages that actually put people to work, rather than hand them money. Gifting us more money to spend is not what this country needs. That's what got us into this mess.

People need more possibilities for earning money in productive and positive occupations. Some times earning a paycheck is much better for the ego than the size of that pay check. Of course, you couldn't tell a bank CEO that, but it's true for most of Americans, provided that check earned covers the necessities. As to if the realized number of jobs created is up to the estimate, time will tell.

Here's a list of your State Senators and Congressional Representatives so that you know at least who to complain to or praise when you see it's working, or not.

Love Beyond Your Bigotry: A Valentines Day Wish

In honor of V-Day, and five years since SF Mayor Gavin Newsom opened up the floodgates of love, I thought y'all would enjoy this video. Know that Ken Starr isn't persecuting gays, lesbians and transgendered people everywhere simply because he's a bigot, but also because he's getting paid a lot of money to do so.

When same sex couples demonstrate stable, monogamous relationships that are genuinely loving, why H8 it? Where's the harm? What is it about heterosexual marriage that is damaged by some one else's same sex marriage? Deep down, you know that Prop 8 must be dismantled. Simply because your religion teaches the bigotry that may force your beliefs against it, doesn't make it wrong.

Thus, my wish for this Valentines day is that, indeed, we turn the faucet back on and turn off Prop H8. It's good to remember what I heard Sharon Stone once say at a public event, "I've been married a few times. Marry (pregnant pause), if you must" (the tone of the delivery is lost in text, but it brought down the house with laughter).

Enjoy:



Drop the H8 - And if you need a hug for changing your position to No on Prop 8, go here, or here.

Blog on Friends.

Blog on all.

Would You Have A Beer With Hannity?

In another twist that George Bush would never had done, Obama regularly takes questions from unfriendly people in his different junkets, like this one in Elkhart Indiana:

Q Thank you. My question is, you have -- my name is Tara. You have come to our county and asked us to trust you, but those that you have appointed to your Cabinet are not trustworthy and can't handle their own budget and taxes.

THE PRESIDENT: No, no, no, this is a legitimate -- this is a legitimate question.

Q So I'm one of those that thinks you need to have a beer with Sean Hannity. So tell me why, from my side, we can understand --

AUDIENCE: Boo!

THE PRESIDENT: No, that's okay. That's okay. No, no, look, I think it was a perfectly legitimate question.

First of all, I appoint -- I've appointed hundreds of people, all of whom are outstanding Americans who are doing a great job. There are a couple who had problems before they came into my administration in terms of -- in terms of their taxes. Look -- and I think this is a legitimate criticism that people have made, because you can't expect one set of folks to not pay their taxes when everybody else is paying theirs. So I think that's a legitimate concern. (Applause.)

I will tell you that the individuals at issue here, I know them personally, and I think these were honest mistakes. And I made sure they were honest mistakes beforehand. And one of the things I discovered is if you're not going to appoint anybody whose ever made a mistake in your [sic] life, then you're not going to have anybody taking your job. So -- (applause) --

But having said that, what I did acknowledge -- and I said it publicly on just about every TV station -- is something that you probably sometimes don't hear from politicians, which is: I made a mistake. (Applause.) And that, because I don't want to send the signal that they're two sets of rules.

Now, understand, though, I think something that should also be mentioned is that we've set up an unprecedented set of ethics rules in my White House where we are not -- we are not -- everybody will acknowledge that we have set up the highest standard ever for lobbyists not working in the administration; people who work in my administration aren't going to be able to go out the revolving door and start working for some lobbying firm and lobbying the White House. Republicans and Democrats have acknowledged that there's a very high bar that we've set for ourselves. We have not been perfect, but we are changing the culture in Washington and it's going to take some time.

Now, with respect to Sean Hannity, I didn't know that he had invited me for a beer. (Laughter.) But I will take that under advisement. (Laughter.) Generally, his opinion of me does not seem to be very high -- (laughter) -- but I'm always good for a beer, so -- (laughter and applause.)

All right. Well, let me -- let me get this side of the room and then I'll come back. I want to make sure I'm not looking too biased on one side here. That gentlemen right up there in the corner there -- you, yes.

Would you want to have a beer with Sean Hannity? We shall see if Hannity gets his drink with Obama, and don't be surprised if it happens.

Above all, the fact that Obama admitted the mistake sets him large strides ahead of the moral character and timbre of George W. in my book.

The final question of the afternoon is a good one from a nine year old named James:

Q What are you going to do to help our schools?

THE PRESIDENT: And this is a good place to end, with our future here. What's your name?

Q My name is James.

THE PRESIDENT: James, how old are you?

Q I'm nine years old.

THE PRESIDENT: Okay, fantastic. What's your question?

Q What are you going to do to help our schools?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, you know, I just started talking about that. (Laughter.) So, James, as I said, I think that we've got to rebuild our schools to make sure that they're state of the art. We also have to make sure that we are training new teachers and retraining some of the existing teachers so that they've got the best possible skills.

We also are going to have to reform how we do business in some of the schools. I think it's very important for us to have high standards. I think we've got to do a better job, though, of assessing performance in schools. No Child Left Behind needs to be reworked in a more effective way. (Applause.)

But the last thing that we need in schools -- do in schools has nothing to do with money. It has everything to do with parents. (Applause.) Because we can put as much money as we want into schools -- if parents don't have an attitude that says, I'm going to make sure my child does my homework; that I'm meeting with the teacher to find out what's going on; if all of us aren't instilling a sense of excellence in our kids -- then they're not going to be able to compete. And that means young people like you, you're going to have to -- you're going to have to work a little harder. (Laughter and applause.)

Yes. Thank you, James.

All right, everybody. God bless you. God bless America. (Applause.)

END 1:07 P.M. EST

Now, I wish that he suggested that NCLB would be abandoned, but nonetheless, if you read through the transcript, you will see how sharp this new president is - and it's refreshing to not have a president who trips over his own tongue.

Blog on friends. Blog on all.

Bad Times A Comin' - Welcome to George Bush's America Re Dux

Some Arizona State University employees who are being laid off will face a double whammy under the university's new furlough policy.

In response to the state's ongoing budget crisis, the university was forced to eliminate up to 550 positions through attrition and layoffs, a number that could grow by an additional 1,000 jobs. The process of issuing 90-day layoff notifications began several months ago.

Last week, ASU President Michael Crow announced plans to require each of the university's 12,000 employees to take up to 15 unpaid days off by June 30, which would save $24 million.

That's like getting slapped with an F-you after being given the finger. Thanks for the collapsing economy George!

It's bound to get worse. When they start cutting back on education in times when the very thing people need is more training, you will see that there is nothing but a great sucking sound about to drown everyone in the cesspool of a global economy triggered by eight years of the W, Rove and Co. high quality government.

Some interesting slices From A Critique of "The World Is Flat?"

A friend forwarded this link. Thought you all might like to have a gander at the following excerpts from the following chapters:

Debt and The Financialization of America
America’s Former Middle Class
A Paradigm Shift for America

Oh, and here's an interesting idea: A "maximum wage - " sounds like a solid idea to me. Corporate fat cats shouldn't get fatter, but leaner if they go on the dole:

The executive-pay move comes amid a national outcry over huge bonuses to executives heading companies seeking taxpayer dollars to remain afloat. The demand for limits was reinforced by revelations that Wall Street firms paid more than $18 billion in bonuses in 2008 even amid the economic downturn and the massive infusion of taxpayer dollars.

"This is America. We don't disparage wealth. We don't begrudge anybody for achieving success," Obama said. "But what gets people upset — and rightfully so — are executives being rewarded for failure. Especially when those rewards are subsidized by U.S. taxpayers."

The pay cap would apply to all institutions that have negotiated agreements with the Treasury Department for "exceptional assistance." Those would include American International Group Inc., Bank of America Corp., and Citigroup Inc.

Firms that want to pay executives above the $500,000 threshold would have to use stock that could not be sold or liquidated until they pay back the government funds.

Generally healthy institutions would have more leeway. They also face the $500,000 limit if they're getting government help, but the cap can be waived with full public disclosure and a nonbinding shareholder vote.

Obama said that massive severance packages for executives who leave failing firms are also going to be eliminated. "We're taking the air out of golden parachutes," he said.

Remembering Those Who Were There "The Day The Music Died"

Buddy Holly, was there:



Ritchie Valens was there:



The Big Bopper was there:



Don McLean pays tribute:



This is some actual footage from the crash scene. Don't view if you are prone to greif over grim scenes.



No one knows how the world would have been different if this tragedy had not happened, but at least the music lives on. RIP.

Perhaps Now Is The Nexus Between Creativity And Opportunity

It seems to me that there may be another way to look at this dire economic melt down. In light of yet another monstrous corporation laying off nearly 7K people, perhaps there is a positive way to spin this.

We need to break the frame of business as usual, and the only way to do it is to free up the talent to concentrate our efforts. If we really do need new green and sustainable businesses, perhaps now we see the nexus between the opportunity and creativity to invent. That is, instead of looking at all these lay offs as negative, we may want to view it as freeing up the talent to move toward inventing better and smarter new businesses. These people who were shackled by their old jobs, now have both the time, the motivation, and perhaps, the energy to do so.

If the many tens of thousands of people that are now freed from their old employment now move to creating green and sustainable operations, we may have to thank George Bush and his cronies for causing this madness. After all, out of adversity, opportunity emerges.

For one example, let's just say, the big three auto companies are left to hang by their own petard. Those laid off have now have the smarts and the training to ply their energies to inventing the cars of the future. Perhaps we may see bands of ex GM employees working together to make automobiles that help rather than hurt our planet. I don't want to be Pollyanna, but it's only through the dust that the phoenix can rise.

Still Digging Helen

Looks like the Obama Administration is not immune from the wily inquisitiveness of Helen Thomas. I love her & I'm glad she's got a seat in the new press briefing room. Learned something new today - looks like she takes one day off a week:

Yes, Helen.

Q You were you saying that the President intends to attach strings to any new money in the stimulus package, aren't you?

MR. GIBBS: I'm sorry, say that again?

Q That you intend to attach a string -- attached to any giving of any more money in the stimulus.

MR. GIBBS: In the bailout money, right?

Q Right.

MR. GIBBS: Yes, I think that it is, again, very safe to assume that the way that the money will be used and what it can be used for will be different than what we've seen come before. And I think that the President is anxious to have that -- those decisions made and outlined. And I think you'll see those relatively soon.

Q When is he going to hold his first news conference?

MR. GIBBS: He is anxious and eager to do so, and we're trying to find him a time to do that. Will you have a question, if he does?

Q Twenty-four hours a day, six days a week?

MR. GIBBS: Are you busy around 2:00 a.m. this morning? (Laughter.) No, we'll -- I promise you, you'll get -- you'll get your chance.

From The Grave: Updike Write's His Own Epitaph

It came to me the other day:
Were I to die, no one would say,
“Oh, what a shame! So young, so full
Of promise — depths unplumbable!”

Instead, a shrug and tearless eyes
Will greet my overdue demise;
The wide response will be, I know,
“I thought he died a while ago.”

For life’s a shabby subterfuge,
And death is real, and dark, and huge.
The shock of it will register
Nowhere but where it will occur.

— JOHN UPDIKE

Attention Republicans: Does This Man Represent You Or Disparage Your Ilk

Holy Crap. If this is what passes muster for upstanding political debate and quality argument on the behalf of republicans everywhere, the GOP is doomed to the dustbin of history. With the regime change, I thought we kicked to the curb all these nut balls who believe that if they don't like some one's opinion that it is okay to disparage them as a means of defeating their position.

If I call you names does that make my position correct? Hell no. Republicans need to give this Rovian gambit a rest. It's doing the GOP no good, destroying their credibility, and been sullying the reputation of America abroad for lo about 8 years.

When Will The New DoJ Issue Some Subpoenas?

When do we get to see some high profile perp walks?

In an interview with National Public Radio this week, Mr. Gonzales attacked President Obama’s choice for attorney general, Eric Holder, for saying that waterboarding is torture. To hear Mr. Gonzales tell it, Mr. Holder was in the wrong — not the lawyers like Mr. Gonzales who tortured the law to justify torture, or the former defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, who approved its use, or the interrogators who actually subjected detainees to waterboarding and other inhumane and illegal interrogation techniques.

Making a “blanket pronouncement like that,” Mr. Gonzales warned, might affect “the morale and dedication” of intelligence officials. He said agents at the Central Intelligence Agency “no longer have any interest in doing anything controversial.”

We’re certainly glad to hear that.

No one in the Bush administration — certainly not Mr. Gonzales — has offered evidence that torturing prisoners produced reliable information. It did undermine the law, further endanger American soldiers who might be captured in the field and destroy the nation’s image.

Sticking to the talking points of a decrepit and archaic, not to mention barbaric, system seems to be also those things. More importantly, it (meaning the prior administration's actions) could involve a clear violation of the law.

I'm voting for Obama to prove that no one is above the law - including former presidents who skirted and bent the law to their own ends. Some one has to hold Gonzales' feet to the fire. We need some high profile perp walks to restore the faith the American people should have in both the Department of Justice and the very Constitutional foundation of our country.

Are we a land that abides by the rule of law, or not?

Is There Anything More Ironic (or Perhaps Moronic) Than Blogging About Blogging?

One of my pet peeves is bloggers who blog about blogging. Even so, a friend of mine sent me a link to a blogger who long about 2003 posted his "final" post. Of course, that resolution was broken and he's still at it. I myself have contemplated shutting down or shifting the focus of this blog in particular, but always reconsider it after taking some time away from the keyboard.

Perhaps the key to longevity in blogging is having lowered expectations. As I look down the right hand column of mine own familiar (well, at least to me) location and see how many years I've been quietly tapping away at the keyboard,it's astonishing. Nearly 2.5K posts later, what's it gotten me? Not much but personal satisfaction for having spoken out.

As to if my small twig that falls in this wood is heard by any one else isn't of consequence. It's that I have said something. There in rests the difference that propels me forward onto the next post for the new day.

Of course, the famous Warhol quote is that every one will have her/his fifteen minutes. The blogosphere, being less kind than the mainstream media, suggests that you will be famous to fifteen people (which, in reality is a smaller number). As to if there is any one out there? Does that matter? Not so much.

Blog on friends, blog on all,

Enjoy



Oh, and this one too:

Looks Like We Now Have A President Who Knows San Francisco Exists

If you pay attention to the new Whitehouse blog, you will see that the President is working to lead the word as well as the nation. Kong Hey Fat Choy!

Finally, we have a President who knows San Francisco exists. George Bush did not visit San Francisco once in eight years - yeah, sure he danced around the area to squeeze money out of the elites, but he didn't bother with the people of SF at all. This is different than Bill Clinton (and Al Gore for that matter, who actually owns a condo in San Francisco). Perhaps we will see Obama visiting the city by the Bay.

"I send my warmest wishes to people across Asia, in America, and indeed around the world who are celebrating the Lunar New Year and welcoming the Year of the Ox. As they gather with their families and celebrate over meals, they welcome new beginnings and honor the enduring wisdom of their ancestors.

"From the lion dances in San Francisco to festivals in Atlanta and parades in New York City and Washington, D.C., Americans of Asian descent carry on the vibrant traditions of their forefathers and enrich America's cultural diversity. I wish all those celebrating the New Year to be blessed with peace, prosperity, and good health."

On other thing you will see that is different than the Bush Administration is that they are actually working on the weekend. Just ask Lilly Ledbetter if she appreciates this.

The Kind Of Leadership We Need

Not only has Obama eclipsed George W. Bush in about twenty minutes into his tenure as President, but he demonstrates the kind of leadership we need at this time in our history.

To accelerate the creation of a clean energy economy, we will double our capacity to generate alternative sources of energy like wind, solar, and biofuels over the next three years. We’ll begin to build a new electricity grid that lay down more than 3,000 miles of transmission lines to convey this new energy from coast to coast. We’ll save taxpayers $2 billion a year by making 75% of federal buildings more energy efficient, and save the average working family $350 on their energy bills by weatherizing 2.5 million homes.

To lower health care cost, cut medical errors, and improve care, we’ll computerize the nation’s health record in five years, saving billions of dollars in health care costs and countless lives. And we’ll protect health insurance for more than 8 million Americans who are in danger of losing their coverage during this economic downturn.

To ensure our children can compete and succeed in this new economy, we’ll renovate and modernize 10,000 schools, building state-of-the-art classrooms, libraries, and labs to improve learning for over five million students. We’ll invest more in Pell Grants to make college affordable for seven million more students, provide a $2,500 college tax credit to four million students, and triple the number of fellowships in science to help spur the next generation of innovation.

Finally, we will rebuild and retrofit America to meet the demands of the 21st century. That means repairing and modernizing thousands of miles of America’s roadways and providing new mass transit options for millions of Americans. It means protecting America by securing 90 major ports and creating a better communications network for local law enforcement and public safety officials in the event of an emergency. And it means expanding broadband access to millions of Americans, so business can compete on a level-playing field, wherever they’re located.

I know that some are skeptical about the size and scale of this recovery plan. I understand that skepticism, which is why this recovery plan must and will include unprecedented measures that will allow the American people to hold my Administration accountable for these results. We won’t just throw money at our problems - we’ll invest in what works. Instead of politicians doling out money behind a veil of secrecy, decisions about where we invest will be made public, and informed by independent experts whenever possible. We’ll launch an unprecedented effort to root out waste, inefficiency, and unnecessary spending in our government, and every American will be able to see how and where we spend taxpayer dollars by going to a new website called recovery.gov.

Let's hope these are more than just words.

Of course, you can skip over the antiquated "radio address" and now access the youtube video of the weekly address right here:



Late add to this post: Not only do we see Obama as a different kind of leader, we also notice that his style is markedly different than Bush:

The high-tech Obama chose to keep his cherished BlackBerry, becoming the first sitting president to use e-mail. He made an impromptu visit to the White House's cramped media quarters just "to say hello." He also was spotted at one point ducking into the White House press office to consult with an aide. Bush avoided both areas at all costs.

In one Oval Office ceremony, Obama went through each executive order as he signed them, reading parts of each and methodically explaining them. He even halted a few times to ask for clarification from his White House counsel. That sort of deferral to someone else in a public setting and admission of a less-than-perfect command of the facts was never Bush's style.

Moreover, we see Obama committed to unite rather than divide, which seems to have been Bush's actual rather than espoused aim:

For too long, international family planning assistance has been used as a political wedge issue, the subject of a back and forth debate that has served only to divide us. I have no desire to continue this stale and fruitless debate.

Forced to Depend on the Mainstream Media

As a long time blogger (some may call me a dinosaur given the length of my tenure on line), I'm not used to depending on the mainstream media for my information. I typically like to go to places as close to the original source as possible for my "news." Unfortunately, it's the 23rd of January, and the last entry on the new Whitehouse web location (blogs and otherwise) are from one to two days ago. This does not constitute keeping up with the times in my book.

Certainly there are some major things happening with the Obama administration, but it's difficult for us ordinary citizens to get the news unfiltered, and now we are needing to lean on the MSM a bit more heavily that we are used to. And, for me, there is a certain layer of mistrust that pours a dose of cynicism on my belief that the "news" is really news.

Hopefully, the folks working for Obama can be a bit more swift in posting executive orders and proclamations as well as the verbatim text of any news conferences. Otherwise, "we the people" will have to wait for regurgitated news, filtered, watered down, and cut to twenty second sound bites. And in this trying time, I prefer my truths unvarnished and delivered in their entirety.

One example of this is that I heard on NPR this morning that Obama signed an executive order to close Gitmo - but there's no mention of it where you think it aught be linked as of my writing this post.

For some one who proclaims to want to run a transparent and tightly connected operation, one or two days late on the "news" is a day late and many dollars short.

The United States of "Isratine"

I love this country. We get exposed to all points of view.

Today, Qaddaffi, yes, the Muammar Qaddaffi has a op ed article in the NY Times. He has an interesting point, that the pathway to peace for the Israel situation is not a split set of Nation States (Israel v. Palestine) but a unifying one-state solution. Seems to work for the USA, why not form the United States of "Isratine?"

In absolute terms, the two movements must remain in perpetual war or a compromise must be reached. The compromise is one state for all, an “Isratine” that would allow the people in each party to feel that they live in all of the disputed land and they are not deprived of any one part of it.

Certainly we know that inclusion tends to work better for fostering peace than exclusion. He may, indeed, have a point.

In Case You Missed It

The new Whitehouse web development team may be a bit behind the curve, but at least they are up to date with the technology.



The text is now on the Whitehouse location, here.

Blog on friends. Blog on all. And let's pray that hope delivers in a way that is exponentially greater than the fear dished over the last eight years.

The Eclipse of George W. Bush

It took a sum total of about twenty minutes for Barak Obama to eclipse George Bush in toto. Already we have gone from the simplistic, dualism of "you're either with us or against us," to a place where you are with us until you are against us. One is substantially more inclusive than the other. Certainly,

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas that for far too long have strangled our politics....

...from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more.

Indeed change has come. I have become accustom to the old Whitehouse dot gov location. It's all shifted about. The Whitehouse staffer in charge of their web presence has started a blog. And, some things have not caught up to the rate of change we are familiar with in the blogosphere.

We have one proclamation, but it's not listed on the proclamations page but the blog itself. Of course, it's dramatically different than Bush's last proclamation (and his first).

I went looking for the text of the Inaugural Address, which I liked a lot, but only loved in some places. Obama has already proven himself a much better speechifier with gifted skills in delivery and a team of great writers. Alas, I usually like to go direct to the primary source for such things, but the UPI has the text up well ahead of his web team. For the time being, I think we will have to give them a break as they didn't technically have full access for low about and hour or so.

My favorite lines follow:

And because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

Could you imagine George Bush delivering such a paragraph? Nope, not me either.

To close, I think we are wise to remember the words of Washington, that Obama reiterated today; that things indeed could be much worse. The enemy could be bleeding us daily here at home; staring down our throats, deep into our hearts with an aim to kill on our soil.

"Let it be told to the future world that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive, that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet it."

The situation is not nearly as bleak as the one Washington faced, nor as dangerous, but it's grim nonetheless.

To undo what has been done will take some serious unraveling, like the Gordian knot, we may find solutions not in the usual places. But in our hearts and minds, at least the creativity of a Nation is bound, unified, and harnessed toward the positive rather than the negative end, and in that respect we have, in one day, made the effective transition from darkness to the light.

Blog on friends. Blog on all.

Adios Bush - Don't Let The Door Hit You In The Ass

Thanks a bunch for the lurch you left us in. A friend of mine found this image on the daily commute. I stole it off her facebook page. Sums it up, no?

Will he remain committed to his "democracy spreading" experiment by moving to Baghdad and finishing what he started? Doubtful.

The Rich Stay Rich & Well Protected: The Poor Stay Poor & Neglected

Would you work for one year without a contract if the economy wasn't in the crapper?

UC service workers, represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Workers, Local 3299, have been working without a contract for a year and have been fighting for a raise. The union held a five-day strike in July over the stalled contract negotiations.

"The UC executives get bonuses and raises while we're trying to move beyond poverty wages," said Kathryn Lybarger, a gardener at Cal who serves on the union's bargaining committee. She was one of those arrested, and then released, for allegedly trespassing.

Exploitation of the poor has a long history about the globe.

Your 1.2 Trillion Dollars At Work - Was The Money Lent Or Spent And How Do You Win?

If the Fed is printing cash at a rate of 4K per taxpayer, don't you want to know how it was spent or lent, no matter the semantics? In contrast, education is being held tooth and nail to No Child Left Behind, which has been described as "all stick and no carrot." Why is that?

Another Foolish Proclamation From The Folks That Brought You The Iraq War

Thus just in today:

All human life is a gift from our Creator that is sacred, unique, and worthy of protection*

* except when you are bombing the crap out of your enemies and collaterally killing civilians in foreign lands.

Bush: Fear Monger To The Bitter End

Among other things, we find that Bush is going to stick to the "terrorist threat" approach as he continues to peddle fear to the very end:

Q In your 2002 State of the Union address, you identified U.S. threats as an axis of evil -- Iran, Iraq and North Korea. Iraq is relatively calm; North Korea is no longer on the terrorist threat list. How would you define, if, in fact, there is an axis of evil? And what is the greatest and most urgent threat when it comes to security that Barack Obama has to deal with?

THE PRESIDENT: The most urgent threat that he'll have to deal with, and other Presidents after him will have to deal with, is an attack on our homeland. You know, I wish I could report that's not the case, but there's still an enemy out there that would like to inflict damage on America -- Americans. And that will be the major threat.

Perhaps it's because Bush wasn't able to actually kill the real devil (bin Laden), but some may disagree. It could be that it's the "economy, stupid," which was broken on Bush's watch that is our biggest threat. The wolf in sheep's clothing, it seems, comes wrapped in the Stars and Stripes, disguised as a capital P "Patriot."

Unscripted, answering questions off the cuff, I think we see the President Bush for who he really is. These are his most honest moments. What do you make of this next paragraph, which I'm almost certain won't be highlighted in any of the AP wire clips we see today or the next:

Q It was never the "loneliest office in the world" for you?

THE PRESIDENT: No, not for me. We had a -- people -- we -- I had a fabulous team around me of highly dedicated, smart, capable people, and we had fun. I tell people that, you know, some days happy, some days not so happy, every day has been joyous. And people, they say, I just don't believe it to be the case. Well, it is the case. Even in the darkest moments of Iraq, you know, there was -- and every day when I was reading the reports about soldiers losing their lives, no question there was a lot of emotion, but also there was times where we could be light-hearted and support each other.

And I built a team of really capable people who were there not to serve me, or there to serve the Republicans, they were there to serve the country. And President-Elect Obama will find, as he makes these tough calls and tough decisions, that he'll be supported by a lot of really good people that care -- care about the country, as well.

I get no remorse, no regret, and a tone that doesn't convey any sincerity or understanding about the amount of damage and collateral damage this man and his administration caused. "...every day has been joyous?" Holy crap!

What say you blogosphere?

Blog on friends, blog on all.