terryfaceplace

The terryfaceplace plan for a mo' better holiday season.

2008-11-28T09:51:00.000-08:00

Hey, kids. I hope you all had a happy and filling Thanksgiving. In honor of Black Friday and the fact that I'm not going anywhere near a mall today, here are terryfaceplace suggestions for holiday gifting.

First off, we all have plenty of stuff. I'm on an anti-stuff mission.

Pardon my notable and significant exceptions in the case of music and books. And clothes. Well, and shoes.

And yarn.

Anyway, my intentions are good. I just don't need another tshirt, bath gel, pair of socks or any knick-knacks whatsoever. I bet you don't either. So my first proposal to my family is to do the name-drawing thing, but with a twist. Instead of buying something for the person who's name you drew, you can either do something or make something for your giftee. Voila! Less stuff, more fun, more meaning. It lets the kids in the family participate in the spirit of giving on a different level than usual too.

There it is. The terryfaceplace plan for a mo' better holiday season.

Now, if you must buy stuff, you still don't have to brave the marauding hordes at the mall. I have two options to the right...No Sweat and Powells. Shop there. Support me. Easy. I have a particular soft spot in my heart for No Sweat where you can buy union made, sweat shop free clothing from the comfort of your living room.

I also love etsy.com for unique, handmade gifts. It's like ebay for artsy set. I really like the idea of buying directly from the person who creates the items because it allows people to make a living making things, and they can offer their goods at a fair market price without someone in the middle who takes a share. Plus the stuff they sell is interesting and unique. It's a very cool site to browse.

That's all for now because I need to get moving if I'm going to get to a bargain matinée of Milk this afternoon.

(edit!) How could I forget iGive. If you do any online shopping, check out iGive. They'll donate a percentage of your purchase to the cause of your choice.

San Diego Joins the Impact

2008-11-16T08:20:00.000-08:00

On Saturday Nov 15, in San Diego, and other cities across the state and the country, tens of thousands gathered to march in support of equality and to vow that Proposition 8, which amended the California constitution to strip civil rights from gay couples, will not stand. Approximately 20,000 people walked from Balboa Park to the County Administration Building in yesterday's hot San Diego sun where they rallied for and demanded a return of the equal rights guaranteed to all citizens by our nation's constitution. A huge crowd for a typically laid back and somewhat conservative San Diego!

Despite the pain of having to fight for what is rightfully yours, it was for the most part, a positive, joyous crowd. These rallies are good medicine, because they remind us that no one is alone and that this is a fight that can be won because it's right for all Americans to enjoy equal protection under the laws. The founding fathers knew that was an essential part of a free nation, and so do we.

It was a very long and hot march through the city, but I loved feeling the positive spirit. The speakers at the rally talked about yesterday's march as a beginning, and not as any kind of goal in itself. It was a day to remind people of the strength of their numbers, of the battle ahead, and to get personally involved in overturning Prop 8. That means volunteering, donating and influencing others to accept the idea of equality for ALL.

One of the speakers talked about, and I agree, that one of the best ways to do that is to be open and out. You can't emotionally segregate yourself and expect others to know you...people fear what they don't know. It's much harder for people to be hateful and ignorant about the LGBT community if they know that person they like so much who sits next to them at work is a lesbian, or that guy they shake hands with at church every Sunday is gay. Knowledge is strength.

It's past time to put human faces and loving families at the front and center of this movement. One of my biggest gripes about the No on 8 campaign (I have several) is that it did a simply terrible job of humanizing same sex marriage. It was all very nebulous, philosophical, and intellectual about the issue and about rights. They never successfully made the campaign about people or families. They failed miserably by not putting a face on the issue. They NEVER addressed the obvious emotional high points, or hit people in the gut with the fact that Prop 8 deeply hurt loving families. If we've learned nothing else from the past years of increasing far right influence in our politics, we should have learned that people vote with their emotions much more than they vote from their intellect.

I trust that the passage of Proposition 8 was a Pyrrhic victory for the far right, because it will be the catalyst for a much for successful campaign to ensure equal rights for all. As Martin Luther King, Jr. famously stated, "we shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." That won't happen in a vacuum...it's up to us to bend it.

Pictures to follow...I took my film camera and need to get them developed. Hopefully later today!

A better world

2008-11-02T12:43:00.000-08:00

This No on 8 video really represents my feelings about voting No on Proposition 8. This is why I keep reasonably informed, and volunteer and donate to causes that support and promote peace and social justice. It's why I write about the things I write about. It's about my kids and grandkids. I want them to live in a more just world.

I got involved with peace and justice activists 8 years ago because I didn't like the hostile, aggressive and anti-democratic positions taken by the current resident of the White House, and I didn't want to have to someday in the future tell my grandkids I just sat on the sofa watching reruns of Law and Order in the early part of the century while the world blew up or while Democracy began to disappear in America.

I also don't want to sit idly by while Californians vote on whether we should constitutionally eliminate civil and legal rights for other Americans. My kids and grandkids don't deserve to live in that kind of world, and I'm not going to sit on my tuchas while it happens.

Protect Marriage... by voting No on 8

2008-10-29T21:09:00.000-07:00

In the state of nature...all men are born equal, but they cannot continue in this equality. Society makes them lose it, and they recover it only by the protection of the law. Charles de Montesquieu (1689 - 1755)

It's been difficult for me to write about Proposition 8, because I just can't wrap my head around the idea that some people think America should amend our federal and state constitutions to discriminate against an entire group of people. It shocks and horrifies me to think about those who think it's OK to actually write injustice into the constitution, corrupting the foundational documents of democracy. Will the next step be repealing the 14th Amendment that states "no State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States... nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.?" Isn't that what they'd have to do to make Proposition 8 stand? Deny equal protection under the laws?

Proposition 8 makes a mockery of American democracy. How can it be right or just for a government to tell adult citizens who they can or can not marry?

Not only does it blow my mind that there are actually Americans who don't understand or appreciate the importance of the basic democratic concept of equal protection under the law, but how do these people who think of themselves as Christian rationalize the bigotry and hatefulness inherent in what they're trying to do? I try not to pick on any religion too much because I know that leads to over-generalizations, but that's who's funding this hateful bigotry. The majority of the financial support has come from the Mormon and Catholic churches, but sadly, Proposition 8 is manifestly un-Christian. It worries me that some churches apparently have the money and the soapbox to take away fundamental American rights and values that conflict with their church dogma.

How can anyone try to deny other people the love, commitment and security of marriage, and still think of themselves as messengers of God's love? How can any person who considers themselves Christian deny the sanctity of love? The sacredness of marriage is not found in any church or in any ceremony, nor is it granted by another person. That's an incredibly shallow notion. The love that leads two people to marry is what's sacred, and no person has any right to judge the appropriateness of another person's love. This is not just about the law...it's about protecting the sanctity of ALL marriages. Even the marriages of people you don't personally like or approve of. That's the American way, and that's the Christian way. Proposition 8 is un-American and un-Christian, and I urge everyone to VOTE on November 4 and to vote NO on Proposition 8.

Yes indeed... protect marriage....everyone's. This video was made by a co-worker who was married this past September, and he's asking you to vote to protect his marriage too. It's a more than reasonable demand.

heh

2008-10-23T07:02:00.000-07:00

The Truth About ACORN

2008-10-21T13:24:00.000-07:00

Progressive Voters Guide

2008-10-20T20:32:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note, as I'm on the road again, but wanted to share this great voter's guide with you. Election day is right around the corner! Courage Campaign has published a California Progressive Voter's Guide with recommendations on the 12 ballot initiatives. It's well done and very informative. You can download a pdf that you can take with you to the polls, or you can get the guide on your mobile phone by texting VOTECA to 69866.

Once again, Courage Campaign steps up and does a great job of getting important information out to California voters. Way to go!

Who really supports the troops?

2008-10-12T08:08:00.000-07:00

Last week while Cindy McCain was standing on a stage claiming that her "blood ran cold" over Barack Obama's lack of support for the troops, including her own son, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America were releasing their Report Card on how U.S. representatives and senators voted this year on issues for those who've come home from these conflicts.

Every year the IAVA announces their legislative goals for veterans, and this past year there were many important pieces of legislation for military veterans including a New GI Bill, suicide prevention legislation, funds for the treatment of traumatic brain injury, and help for homeless vets. At the end of the year, they simply grade our representatives on how they voted on these predetermined issues.

Contrary to popular belief, honest and concrete support from representatives come from their votes, not their flapping mouths. Words mean nothing if actions don't back them up, and John McCain's words don't amount to much since he received a D this year. At least in part, this appears to be a result of him missing important votes while he was campaigning. In contrast, Obama earned a B. Personally, I appreciate a president that can multi-task. The thought of having a president that can't manage competing, important tasks makes my blood run a little cold, Cindy.

She's baaaaack...

2008-10-09T18:34:00.000-07:00

My last post was May 15th?!? How did this happen?

Actually, I know how it happened. It's a series of things. Work has been beyond insane, and all my brain power is used up every day by 6 pm. I've had the ever-popular family and financial issues. My hubby got laid off from his job. I'm considering cashing out my IRA before it's completely gone. I could keep it under my mattress. Maybe grandma was right afterall.

In other words, I've been preoccupied, exhausted and busy. Not necessarily in that order.

Then in August my mom had a stroke. She's in a rehab hospital in Idaho, which is much too far away for my liking. I'll be going up to see her again next week. She's improving but it's been extremely rough.

Jeez, that looks really bad all written down like that. No wonder I've been kind of crabby.

Speaking of crabby, I've still been reading the news. Good lordy. The economy is in freefall. We have Wall Street on welfare. McCain and Palin are swing wildly from hilarious to terrifying and back again....and again....and again. The right wing zealots are out in force. How can I NOT write about this stuff?

I'll try to do better. I promise. My husband is sick of listening to me rant anyway.

In the meantime, here's a little something from me to you.

on hiatus

2008-05-15T19:24:00.000-07:00

Ok, it's offical. I admit it. I've not been around much lately. It's a combination of things, not the least of which is extreme fatigue. If I were a famous celebrity, I'd be "suffering from exhaustion" by now.

I've decided I should give myself permission to take a break from this rather than beating myself up for not fitting everything into everyday. Not that I'll never say another word (what a concept!), but it'll be sporadic for a bit. My day job has become much more intense. Longer days, more responsibility, greater work load, and much less brain power remaining at the end of the day. That pretty much sums it up. I'm running on fumes.

My remaining oomph has to go to mi familia in the evening and on weekends. Not to mention the house and the yard and the dog and the cat and the fish and the groceries and kitchen floor and the bills.

I can do it all, but I can't do it all at once.

I think I'll tell them that at work too.

Blackwater for sale?

2008-04-30T21:19:00.000-07:00

On the same day it was revealed that Blackwater ~~USA~~ Worldwide and Cerberus Capital Management were in negotiations, the news came out that the talks were over and there would be no deal. Blackwater's capacity for generating negative attention didn't appeal to either the founder or the investors.

The reclusive founder of Cerberus, Stephen Feinberg, reportedly told his investors in a letter earlier this year that he hated all the attention the company was getting.

"We do our best to avoid the spotlight," wrote Feinberg, "but unfortunately, when you do some large deals, such as Chrysler and GMAC, it is hard to avoid."

Owning control of Blackwater would certainly have attracted even more attention to Cerberus. Blackwater has been accused of tax fraud, improper use of force, arms trafficking and overbilling connected to its work for the U.S. government in Iraq. A grand jury, federal prosecutors and congressional investigators are all currently probing allegations against the company.

Cerberus is kind of an interesting group in it's own right. They're a private investment/private equity group that purchases majority or large minority shares of companies that are teetering on the edge. Cerberus has owned all or part of Mervyns, Albertsons, Air Canada, and most recently, Chrysler. Former Treasury Secretary John Snow is the chairman, and former Vice President Dan Quayle is the chair of the advisory board. Donald Rumsfeld has been an investor.

It makes me wonder if Blackwater is suffering from some financial instability or excessive debt. That would be a typical scenario for Cerberus. They buy companies that are in financial distress, then they restructure, downsize, layoff, cut cut cut and make the place shiny so they can sell at a profit. Sometimes they succeed, and sometimes they don't. They make high risk investments. I guess Blackwater is even too risky for the risktakers.

Considering who's involved, I could get conspiracytheoristitis about that particular gang owning their own private military, but it's late and I'm not gonna go there.

They're baaaack....

2008-04-22T21:06:00.000-07:00

Thankfully, Blackwater won't be building their training camp in Potrero, but they're still working on establishing a presence in San Diego. According to today's UT, they will soon be operating on the grounds of a 61,600-square-foot former "trade school" near Brown Field, and between the San Ysidro and Otay ports of entry.

Kelly Broughton, director of the city of San Diego's development services department, said Blackwater applied for a permit in February to make improvements to the building. The permit was approved March 19.

Broughton said the building was already permitted for use as a vocational trade school, and Blackwater's training activities would fall within that category.

On March 7, Blackwater dropped its plans to build a training facility for law enforcement and the military on an 824-acre site in the East County community of Potrero.

I'm sure we'll soon see what kind of training facility they're planning. It doesn't surprise me that they're still focused on the border region. They won't be in Iraq forever, and they want to diversify. There was some speculation that they'd decided to adjust their plans, and were looking at other locations, but no one knew for certain. They've been setting up business under their E&J Holdings division rather than the more well known Blackwater brand. This place is much smaller than what they were planning in Potrero, it's indoors, and it's in an industrial park, but the proximity of Brown Field and the Tijuana International Airport are probably a plus from their business perspective. Maybe they need a new home for the blimp.

I'll take a pass on any more speculation for moment, but I'll keep my eye on what's going on and I'll keep you in the loop!

Earth Day in San Diego

2008-04-20T10:17:00.000-07:00

It's Earth Day and the usual Earth Day goings on will be ... uh ... going on in Balboa Park today. See you at EarthFair!

Just shut up already

2008-04-18T20:15:00.000-07:00

Good grief. It's that gawdawful Joe Lieberman again. Why won't he just stay home and shut up? Once again he commits felonious stupidity on Faux News.

NAPOLITANO: Hey Sen. Lieberman, you know Barack Obama, is he a Marxist as Bill Kristol says might be the case in today’s New York Times? Is he an elitist like your colleague Hillary Clinton says he is?

LIEBERMAN: Well, you know, I must say that’s a good question. I know him now for a little more than three years since he came into the Senate and he’s obviously very smart and he’s a good guy. I will tell ya that during this campaign, I’ve learned some things about him, about the kind of environment from which he came ideologically. And I wouldn’t…I’d hesitate to say he’s a Marxist, but he’s got some positions that are far to the left of me and I think mainstream America.

Then he babbles a bit about Obama's "bitter" brouhaha. Bleh. I'm sick of it.

Not to mention, bitter.

Speaking of which, why is it that Hillary and McCain get indignant over Obama's remarks, yet McCain's Senior Advisor can say,

People in the country are in a very bad mood, and they want to have change.

and it's ignored...as it should be. That's not what the article is about, but the comment sure jumped out at me when I saw it. It wouldn't have if there hadn't been a fuss over Obama's "bitter" comments.

So let it be said, one and for all, in the terryfaceplace Friday Night Water is Wet and the Sky is Blue News Report, there are a lot of bitter people in very bad mood out here. Can we be done with this silliness now? Thank you.

My stance hasn't softened on Liberman though. He should still stay home and keep his mouth shut if he's got nothing sensible to say.

Lieberman campaign to blame for crashing own Web site

2008-04-12T11:30:00.000-07:00

Back in the Fall of 2006 when Ned Lamont challenged Senator Joe Lieberman in Connecticut, there was a big kurfluffle in the last day of the campaign where Lieberman's staff accussed Lamont's staff of crashing their website.

As it turns out, Liberman's staff crashed their own website. Bwaha. Well, it would be funny if it wasn't so crappy of them to make an unfounded accusation of dirty tricks in the last hours of the race.

According to the FBI memo, the site crashed because Lieberman officials continually exceeded a configured limit of 100 e-mails per hour the night before the primary.

"The system administrator misinterpreted the root cause," the memo stated. "The system administrator finally declared the server was being attacked and the Lieberman campaign accused the Ned Lamont campaign. The news reported this on Aug. 8, 2006, causing additional Web traffic to visit the site.

"The additional Web traffic then overwhelmed the Web server. . . . Web traffic pattern analysis reports and Web logging that was available did not demonstrate traffic that was indicative of a denial of service attack."

It took the media filing a FOIA request to get that information. The statement has been made in the past that there was no connection, but they refused to release the details of why the Lieberman site crashed. Now we know.

..and speaking of more and better

2008-04-10T18:27:00.000-07:00

D-Day writes about an event he co-hosted for Darcy Burner, another Charter member of the More and Better Democrats Club.

Burner wrote The Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq which has been endorsed by fifty congressional candidates. The intent of the plan is comprehensive and well considered, and lays out the following goals:

1. End U.S. Military Action in Iraq
2. Use U.S. diplomatic power
3. Address humanitarian concerns
4. Restore our Constitution
5. Restore our military
6. Restore independence to the media
7. Create a new, U.S.-centered energy policy

It's worth reading the PDF.

What I like about this is the potential power of a block of new congresscritters, all dedicated to ending the war and meeting the above stated goals. It does my heart good.

If you want to support future Congresswoman Burner feel free to visit Act Blue.

Welcome to Washington!

2008-04-10T17:42:00.000-07:00

Speier becomes Congress' newest member, is booed by Republicans

Newly elected Democratic Rep. Jackie Speier of Hillsborough was sworn into Congress this morning and delivered a fiery speech criticizing President Bush's Iraq policy that led some Republicans to boo and walk out of the House chamber.

Those congressional Republicans. Their mama's didn't teach them right. Darrell Issa was one of the jerks that walked out in protest. How rude! She just said what The People sent her there to say.

"The process to bring the troops home must begin immediately," Speier told fellow lawmakers including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco. "The president wants to stay the course and a man who wants to replace him suggests we could be in Iraq for 100 years. But Madam Speaker, history will not judge us kindly if we sacrifice four generations of Americans because of the folly of one."

I sure do like California's new congresswoman. She's who I'm talking about when I say we not only need more Democrats, but BETTER Democrats. Congratulations, Congresswoman Speier.

San Diego City Council candidate pleads no contest

2008-04-07T18:24:00.000-07:00

Curiouser and curiouser. This is just too strange for me to keep my mouth shut any longer. What's up with John Hartley, the candidate for the San Diego City Council in District 4? Really now. I didn't say anything about his arrest last week for urinating in public and alledgedly masturbating in his car because it was so bizarre that I wanted to see what came out in the following days before making any judgement about his guilt or innocence.

For the first four days there was nothing. No spin. No denial. No admission. No statement.

Then today the urinating in public charge is dropped in a plea deal, and he pleads no contest to the charge of committing a lewd act in public.

Finally, he issues a statement this afternoon which reads in part:

I want to apologize to the voters of the 3rd District. I made a mistake. I accept full responsibility for my actions. And I promise not to let it happen again.

I also want to say that I harbor no hard feelings towards the police, who were doing their job, or towards the women who complained, who care about our neighborhoods, or towards the press, who have been working to inform the public.

Having said all of that, I do not intend to answer any questions about this today or in the future.

WTF?

Is it just me, or is that a bizarro response? Maybe I've just become conditioned to expect accused politicians to issue either a stunned and emphatic denial, or a tearful admission of guilt with the mandatory six weeks in rehab whether they need it or not. Most public figures wouldn't have the chutzpah to come right out and issue a statement saying they aren't going to talk about it. He says he made a "mistake" but that covers a lot of potential territory while still saying nothing. How very odd. His statement only makes me wonder all the more.

Maybe I don't really want to know.

It just doesn't seem politically smart to me to leave it to everyone's imagination. We have such dirty minds.

Why Edwards Hasn't Endorsed

2008-04-05T11:39:00.000-07:00

According to John Heilemann at New York Magazine, the reason Edwards hasn't endorsed is because neither of the candidates won him over as being deserving of his endorsement.

But now two months have passed since Edwards dropped out—tempus fugit!—and still no endorsement. Why? According to a Democratic strategist unaligned with any campaign but with knowledge of the situation gleaned from all three camps, the answer is simple: Obama blew it. Speaking to Edwards on the day he exited the race, Obama came across as glib and aloof. His response to Edwards’s imprecations that he make poverty a central part of his agenda was shallow, perfunctory, pat. Clinton, by contrast, engaged Edwards in a lengthy policy discussion. Her affect was solicitous and respectful. When Clinton met Edwards face-to-face in North Carolina ten days later, her approach continued to impress; she even made headway with Elizabeth. Whereas in his Edwards sit-down, Obama dug himself in deeper, getting into a fight with Elizabeth about health care, insisting that his plan is universal (a position she considers a crock), high-handedly criticizing Clinton’s plan (and by extension Edwards’s) for its insurance mandate.

Well...there you go. Actually that makes a lot of sense to me, because I feel pretty much the same way. Neither of them champion the same message as Edwards, so why would he endorse?

Of course, I want the Dems to win, and I think either of them has a pretty much equal chance of beating McBush.

Obama probably has a slight edge over Clinton in November, but I don't see it as particularly significant. They each have their own set of strengths and weaknesses in that regard.

I'll support which ever of them gets the nomination. I've voted in the primary already. It's out of my hands, and I don't feel like I have a dog in this fight other than wanting the Democrat to ultimately win in November.

That's a good article by Heilemann. It's not a mash note to either of them, and he makes a good point that Clinton isn't going to drop out because some unidentified "party elder" is going to advise her to do so. She'll leave the race when and if the time is right for her to exit in a politically expedient and face saving manner.

More pictures

2008-03-19T20:53:00.001-07:00

San Diego - Out of Iraq March and Rally

2008-03-19T20:47:00.000-07:00

Here are a few photos from last Saturday's march and rally at the five year anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. Click on the title and there's a link to a slide show of all the photos. (editors note: photo quality, bleh. That's the second time my photos came back looking very washed out from that dadblasted drug store photo developing thingie.)

San Diego rallys for peace

2008-03-15T16:31:00.000-07:00

It got a little cool and windy today, but the threatened thunderstorms held off so we had a dry afternoon for our rally and march in memorial of the five year anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.

I'm terrible at headcounts, but according to Frank at The OB Rag, there were about 1000 people at the rally in Teralta Park in City Heights this afternoon. I think that sounds about right. The crowd wasn't enormous, but they were noisy, enthusiastic and strong in their opposition to the official US policy in Iraq. I took my camera but didn't stop to get the film developed on the way home. I'll have some pictures later. My digital camera is sick.

I'm glad I got to see Gore Vidal. He said he's not endorsing either Clinton or Obama because he'll be pleased if either of them win the November election. Me too. I think we'd agree that either one of them would be a damn sight better than John McBush and his 100 year war.

The main theme and focus of the rally was the obscene amount of money that we're spending in Iraq while the economy suffers, people go without basic healthcare, infant mortality rises, and schools are closed due to a lack of money. Our national priorities have been flipped on their heads as we spend $275 million every single day in Iraq. Honest to Pete, if that doesn't boggle your mind, you are completely unboggleable.

More later...with pix.

Your Insignificance Will Be Televised

2008-03-15T08:56:00.000-07:00

Allison Kilkenny at The Smirking Chimp writes in Your Insignificance Will Be Televised:

The national media is quick to remind the American citizenry that their opinions don't matter.

Meanwhile, moments of democratic triumph go largely unreported. Take, for example, residents of California voting out all five members of a local planning group that had backed plans to allow Blackwater Worldwide to open a training camp in their area. Blackwater claims they hightailed it because of noise regulations and not the angry battle cries of the California residents, which is a lie. If the California residents had warmly embraced plans for the mercenary training facility, Blackwater's merry engineers would have rushed in overnight to start building. It was only the will of the people that prevented this from happening.

Not only is she giving a shout out to the anti-Blackwater activists in San Diego, she's making a great point about how corporate media perpetuates a culture of insignificance and victim hood that makes people more inclined to just lay on their sofa and take what ever an "uncaring government and corporate elites" have in store for them.

Americans have been conditioned to believe protest is a silly waste of time, that being a fringe candidate like Ralph Nader is annoying and bothersome, and that they are weak, helpless creatures that will forever be exploited by our big, evil government. They must accept, says the media, that their votes will not be counted, that their children will receive a poor education and poorer health care, and they will either die beneath a mountain of debt or from the retaliation of rebels reacting to our government's retarded foreign policies. Any way you spin it, the message is clear: You are all fucked. Stop trying.

Except, that's not true, and Americans know it.

She's right. We can stand up and said no to the Powers That Be, and in the end, will prevail. The onslaught may be inevitable, but we don't have to just accept whatever corporate interests want to shove down our throats, and we know it. Just take a look at what happened in Potrero.

March and Rally in San Diego Saturday 3/15/08

2008-03-14T21:09:00.000-07:00

For more information

Blackwater cancels plans to build in Potrero

2008-03-07T18:01:00.000-08:00

Blackwater USA has cancelled their plans to build a training camp in Potrero. Woo and hoo! The letter to the County says it's because it doesn't meet their business objectives at this time. And this from the UT,

Bonfiglio said noise tests the company conducted at the site did not meet county standards, and the cost of reducing the noise was too expensive.

In other words, the anti-Blackwater activists were right all along. Potrero was no place for that type of facility, and there was no way in hell they could mitigate the noise and environmental impact in that valley. Amazing.

Do you want my opinion? Well, of course you do! You're here, aren't you? I think one of their prime objectives was to slowly but surely build a border protection division. When that concept became public knowledge, even those who didn't object to Blackwater on principle thought that was a terrible idea. Maybe they weren't inclined to stir up even more public opposition. It wouldn't be good for those aforementioned "business objectives".

PDA Metro San Diego Endorses Vickie Butcher in CA-52

2008-03-04T19:40:00.000-08:00

According to a story today at the Progressive Democrats of America website, the Metro San Diego chapter of PDA has endorsed Vickie Butcher in the 52nd Congressional District. Excellent choice! Vickie is running for the seat that Duncan Hunter has held for forever and a day. His son, Duncan Jr., is running in his stead in the upcoming June primary. There are several Democratic candidates running in this race, but Butcher is the clear progressive choice, and I'm very happy to see an endorsement for Vickie Butcher from San Diego's Metro PDA Chapter.

Vickie generated much excitement among those present as she spoke against the war and for universal health care, election reform, and ending poverty. She plans to join the Congressional Progressive Caucus next January.

Vickie easily won the endorsement and is genuinely pleased to have the Metro chapter's support. A true progressive in every sense, she faces three candidates in the CA 52 Democratic primary on June 3, none of whom sought the endorsement.

Vickie Butcher's public service and leadership resume is impressive, to say the least. She's been an East County resident for 27 years, has taught in the Grossmont School District and at Grossmont Community College. She has chaired the El Cajon Planning Commission, and been a member of the Grossmont Hospital Foundation Board and California Regional Water Quality Control Board. She also has a law degree, and many years of experience with a wide range of public agencies.

Butcher's leadership skills haven't been contained by the boundaries of CA-52! According to her campaign website:

I also bring national and international leadership skills to this race. As past president of the National Medical Association Auxiliary, and a member of an FDA panel on medical issues, I speak with authority in support of universal healthcare for all. As executive director of Water for Children Africa, a nonprofit organization, I have led international humanitarian efforts to bring water and medical supplies to those in need. I also organized 11 international trade and business conferences. As a small business owner myself, I understand the needs of the business community, while also supporting the rights and needs of working people.

That's very modest. Read her campaign website's Bio page for more about Butcher's extensive leadership experience and impressive catalog of achievements. Public service is clearly one significant part of her life's calling, and becoming the Democratic Congressional representative for the 52nd is another step on that path.

San Diego's East County has been strongly Republican for a long time, but that is changing. In the presidential primary just past, 45% of the voters in the district voted for a Democrat. That's an amazing number to this long-time East County resident who's seen Duncan Hunter win election after election by extremely large margins. Another Congressional District is turning blue....and they said it couldn't be done. Oh boy, were they wrong.

Please help Vickie win by going to her website at www.votevickiebutcher.com and make a generous donation! And if you're a member of the La Mesa Foothills Democratic Club you can also support her by attending tomorrow evening's endorsement meeting at 7pm at the La Mesa Recreation Center (4975 Memorial Drive, just off University Ave. in La Mesa).

Then in the upcoming June election, Vote For Vickie!

(crossposted at Calitics)

New Stuff!

2008-03-03T18:54:00.000-08:00

First, a new blog on the ol' blogroll. Welcome to the The PoliticalCat. We found one another by way of Blogroll Amnesty Day. Thanks again, Skippy.

Also, a new banner that links to Women Voice's Women Vote where you can nominate your favorite female blogger. For Women's History Month, WVWV is honoring women who've used the internet to raise their political voices. I don't know about you, but it's kind of hard for me to pick ONE

and finally...the Five Years Too Many banner. March 19, 2008 is the fifth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. There are many actions scheduled between the 13th and the 19th culminating in a massive protest in Washington DC on March 19. For those of us in San Diego who won't be traveling, the members of the San Diego Coaltion for Peace and Justice are calling for a march and rally at Fairmount and University Avenue at 12 noon on Saturday March 15 (flyer/pdf). The featured speaker after the march at Teralta Park will be Gore Vidal. That should be interesting.

See you there!

Edwards isn't going quietly. (yay!)

2008-02-27T19:41:00.000-08:00

I still don't see any sign of an Edwards endorsement, but he's going to make his presence known in other ways this year. This coming Monday, John and Elizabeth Edwards will be launching a campaign to highlight the economic costs of war.

According to The Nation's Campaign 08 blog:

The multi-million-dollar Iraq/Recession Campaign, which launches Monday, seeks to remind voters, in the words of organizers, that, "As economic concerns weigh heavily on the minds of Americans, opposition to President Bush's reckless war in Iraq continues to grow. The massive cost of the war in Iraq – hurtling toward one trillion dollars – has increased demand for a strategy to bring U.S. troops home. The Iraq/Recession Campaign will highlight the majority of Americans who want to see leadership on investing in critical priorities at home and establishing real security throughout the world."

Friday Random 10 Plus!

2008-02-22T18:06:00.000-08:00

Wonder - Natalie Merchant
Remind Me - Royksopp
I'm the Man Who Loves You - Wilco
Alarm Call - Bjork
Fall at your Feet - Crowded House
The Card Cheat - The Clash
Always and Everywhere - Marc Almond
Bizarre Love Triangle - New Order
California - Joni Mitchell
Rock Me in the Cradle of Love - Deborah Allen

A tax loophole so big you can sail a yacht through it

2008-02-20T17:26:00.000-08:00

You may have heard that the state legislature in CA has been grappling with a huge economic downturn. The budget's in the hole, big time, so several weeks ago the Governator declared a fiscal emergency, which required the legislature to act to address the enormous deficit. They've acted, by gum, and have slashed programs across the board.

But some programs are untouchable to the Republicans in the California State Assembly. For example, a sales tax exemption loophole for people who buy yachts, motorhomes and jets.

Yes, really.

But I'm lovin' D-Day's video for the California Yachting Association. Great post at Hullabaloo about the "sloophole" too. Well done. We truly are in the New Guilded Age.

Perfect. I lurves the internets.

Will Edwards endorse?

2008-02-10T14:26:00.000-08:00

TPM Election Central is reporting that Edwards has been talking to both Clinton and Obama about an endorsement.

I wish he'd either stayed in past Super Tuesday to continue to amass delegates who could influence the party platform. If not that, he could have endorsed someone BEFORE Super Tuesday which would have decreased my agony in chosing who should get my vote.

It is all about me, afterall.

The article says he has serious reservations that keep him from enthusiastically and immediately endorsing either one.

Tell me about it.

Help for tornado victims

2008-02-07T06:12:00.000-08:00

Blogger Monkeyfister lives in the midst of the tornado impacted area in the south, and is asking for some help from the lefty blogs in spreading the word about the damage to his community, along with some direction about how you can help. Here's his request....

Whilst we're waiting for George's Promised Prayers to roll in, down here in the Tornado-Stricken Mid-South, I might recommend some DIRECT HUMAN INTERACTION.

This Is My Best First Start To Help My Region.

As Scout Prime is to NOLA, I am, suddenly, to the Mid-South area (I LIVE here, and was Live-Blogging these horrible storms all night), and have started to get the help-ball rolling down here. Some of you know where I work. I started a Food Drive there today for the Mid-South United Way Food Bank.

As the area affected is so broad and detached, and everyone in the Country was distracted by politics last night, as yet, there is no central assistance hub set-up. So, at the link, above, you'll find the two agencies with the broadest radius to help the area right now. Both take DIRECT donations.

A small-blog swarm on that post (or this comment) would be greatly appreciated by more people than just me. I can't describe how wide-spread the damage is down here. It's enormous. The Media, per usual, is only just now waking up to the situation, after their Super-Duper-Let's-All-Wet-Our-Pants-Together- Tuesday Political Hangover. Like NOLA, these are REALLY poor folks down here, and have nothing, and nowhere to go.

A short post about this at YOUR Blog, linking either to my post, above, or directly to the two Orgs mentioned in the post above, would sure be a big help, and would be greatly appreciated by many people who are relying on help. They are all that we have right now.

I just donated a deer's worth of ground venison, along with the 100 pounds of rice and quart-sized ziplock bags that they said that they needed at the United Way Mid-South Food Bank, when I phoned them this morning. Their pantry is BARE, and I'll be loading them up with all the potatoes, rice, veggies, bags, and other staples that I can fit in my truck tomorrow.

This is serious Red State country, and a flood of help from the DFH Left would REALLY make a big difference in a number of good ways.

I thank you all in advance.

Click Here for more about what's going on down here. It's all that I am writing about right now. Help is needed.

Your humble peer,

Monkeyfister

American Red Cross
Mid-South Chapter
1400 Central Avenue
Memphis, TN 38104
901-726-1690

And:
United Way of the Mid-South phone in a donation at (901) 433-4300.

They take DIRECT donations, so you can skip all the National-level waste and delay, AND they serve nearly every community in the effected radius.

Super Tuesday Eve

2008-02-04T20:30:00.000-08:00

Happy Super Tuesday Eve, my friends. Make time to go vote tomorrow. I'm counting on YOU to get us out of this mess!

Today Barack Obama sent out his last pre-Super Tuesday email to supporters, and it included this reminder:

If you declined to select a political party when you registered to vote, you can still vote for Barack Obama if you request a Democratic ballot from the poll worker. Make sure you mark "Democratic" in the appropriate space or the vote might not be counted.

Huh? Not counted?

According to D Day, Obama is referring to the design of the ballot, at least in LA County. It requires the voter to fill in a bubble indicating they're a "Decline to State" voter who's requested a Democratic ballot because they'd like to vote for a Democratic presidential candidate.

Turns out that in Los Angeles County, if a DTS voter requests their Democratic ballot and casts their vote, but does NOT mark "Democratic" in the appropriate space, the vote will indeed not be counted. The ballot will go through the scan-tron machine, not register as a counted vote, AND will not spit back out for the voter to fix.

It's always somthing, isn't it?

Yes, We Can! - Si, Se Puede!

2008-02-02T17:43:00.000-08:00

will i. am of the Black Eyed Peas created this all star cast video inspired by Barack Obama's Yes We Can Speech, and it is excellent. I had to wipe tears off my face after I watched it.

It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation.

Yes we can.

It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail toward freedom.

Yes we can.

It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores and pioneers who pushed westward against an unforgiving wilderness.

Yes we can.

It was the call of workers who organized; women who reached for the ballots; a President who chose the moon as our new frontier; and a King who took us to the mountaintop and pointed the way to the Promised Land.

Yes we can to justice and equality.

Yes we can to opportunity and prosperity.

Yes we can heal this nation.

Yes we can repair this world.

Yes we can.

We know the battle ahead will be long, but always remember that no matter what obstacles stand in our way, nothing can stand in the way of the power of millions of voices calling for change.

We have been told we cannot do this by a chorus of cynics...they will only grow louder and more dissonant ........... We've been asked to pause for a reality check. We've been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope.

But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope.

Now the hopes of the little girl who goes to a crumbling school in Dillon are the same as the dreams of the boy who learns on the streets of LA; we will remember that there is something happening in America; that we are not as divided as our politics suggests; that we are one people; we are one nation; and together, we will begin the next great chapter in the American story with three words that will ring from coast to coast; from sea to shining sea --

Yes. We. Can.

Yes, you can vote for President!

2008-02-02T08:53:00.000-08:00

I just want to share this video released by the Courage Campaign to inform independent, DTS voters in California that they can ask for a Democratic ballot if they want to vote for a Dem presidential candidate. I think it gets the message out in a clever way. Check it out!

Friday afternoon with Hillary in San Diego

2008-02-02T08:47:00.001-08:00

I went to Cox Arena at San Diego State University yesterday afternoon, and heard Hillary Clinton speak to a large and enthusiastic crowd. The arena holds 12,000 and they had it partitioned in half, and that half was full. I really regret forgetting my camera because I would LOVE to have a shot of that line to get into the arena. Now I know what a queue of 6,000 people looks like!

I was amused to walk into the arena and hear a recording of Bon Jovi singing "who says you can't go back..." since that's what Clinton would love to do.

She was introduced (at length since she was about an hour late) by a long line of California politicos who've endorsed her campaign including LA Mayor Antonio Villarigosa, Senator Christine Kehoe, Assembly Member Mary Sala, Senator Denise Ducheny, and Speaker Fabian Nunez. Marti Emerald, former Channel 10 troubleshooting reporter and current candidate in the 7th City Council district also joined in on the Hillary love fest, as did SDSU President Steven Weber.

Finally Clinton arrived and gave what I assume is a version of her stump speech, though she definitely knew her crowd and addressed issues such as the rising cost of attending college, and stopping the Bush "War on Science", in part by increasing funding for science and research. She got big cheers when she talked about increasing funding for Pell Grants, stopping predatory lending for student loans, taking the student loan program back to a direct loan system, and greatly expanding student loan forgiveness for students who seek careers in public service.

Promising to end No Child Left Behind also got a huge ovation, as did her claim that she will start drawing down troops in Iraq within 60 days of her inauguration.

She also spoke of encouraging technological and scientific innovation and creating good paying, green collar jobs to strengthen the middle class.

It was a good, strong, well-received speech. The only thing that made me cringe a little bit was when she talked about immigration, which of course is a big issue here in SoCal. It wasn't so much that she was wrong in what she said, but I think the crazed tone of the anti-immigration debate has made it really difficult to talk about it in rational terms. She thankfully did mention the ridiculousness of some of the debate, such as the idea that we could actually round up everyone who's here without proper documentation and just ship them home. She also acknowledged that much of the problem with regard to immigrants from Mexico is that they're fleeing due to economic desperation, and the US is in a position to have some influence on the strength of the Mexican economy. Of course, she never mentioned NAFTA or the border fence, but overall, it was obvious she was doing a balancing act, and seemed to be struggling to strike the right tone. I wish the Democrats could find a strong, rational voice on immigration, but for now they all seem to be trying to address the issue AND not rile up the whackos. She, and others, need to find the right frame for the issue and use it, because I've not seen that happen yet.

So all in all, I'm glad I went to see her. Since Edwards bowed out and left me candidate-free, I've been leaning toward voting for Obama next Tuesday, but I really would not object to a Clinton presidency. Even with the problems I have with her stand on the war in Iraq and a few other issues, a Hillary Clinton presidency would be light years better than where we're at right now. Any of the Democratic candidates would provide a huge positive change by improving our standing in the world, and shoring up our struggling economy.

By the way, the eight anti-Clinton demonstrators outside the venue used the world bitch quite freely on their signs. That alone almost makes me want to vote for her. Even if she's not my candidate, I just completely detest the tone of the anti-Hillary contingent. I'm glad I saw her in person because I can now confirm she absolutely does not have horns or a pointy tail. You'd never know that by just listening to the bile of the Hillary haters.

Schwarzenegger to endorse McCain

2008-01-30T18:21:00.000-08:00

The Governator is allegedly going to announce his endorsement of McCain tomorrow in Los Angeles.

Two weeks ago Arnold said he would remain neutral, but now the Guiliani is OUT and backing McCain, there's a bandwagon to jump on.

And I've got to pick a nit with Guiliani's statement from the LA Times article:

John McCain is the most qualified candidate to be the next commander in chief of the United States," Giuliani said as McCain stood silently next to him.

The president is commander in chief of the United States military, not the entire population of the United States. In my version of democracy, no one is MY commander in chief. Egads, those Republicans are so bossy. I'm just sayin'.

and speaking of the CA primary...

2008-01-29T20:27:00.000-08:00

According to the LA Times, McCain and Clinton have big leads in California in advance of next weeks primary. I would feel pretty confident in betting McCain will get the Republican nod. Especially if Giuliani pulls out (ahem) and endorses McCain. I'm less sure about Clinton's lead, especially with all the chatter I'm hearing from Edwards supporters who are wondering if they should switch their vote now that he seems to be trailing so significantly.

::heavy sigh::

I'm kind of sad about Edwards, but am slowly resigning myself to what seems to be inevitable.

I'm kind of horrified about McCain, but that's for another day. Look forward to a post entitled "If McCain is a moderate, then I'm Napolean Bonaparte."

Independent voters and the CA primary

2008-01-29T17:01:00.000-08:00

Did you know that in the state of California, a person who declines to state their political party when they register to vote has to ask for a Democratic ballot to vote for a Democratic presidential candidate in next weeks primary? Who knew? I had no idea.

I know a good number of people who have changed their voter registration to "decline to state" in a sort of quiet protest expressing their disappointment or anger with the actions of the current Congress, but most of them would lean toward Democratic candidates, given the choice. I know a few disgusted Republicans who can say the same. There are others who just see themselves as independent folks, and don't want to affiliate themselves with any party. And really now, who can blame them for that? There's also those who will swing to either party, and their votes have to be won, one way or another. But when all is said and done, DTS voters overall tend to be less engaged in politics, and are less likely to vote .

Today the NY Times weighed in on the difficulty in reaching "Decline to State" voters, and the possibility of those voters pushing one candidate or another over the top. . . or not.

In the 2004 presidential primary, out of 2.5 million independent residents registered to vote — their party affiliation is officially listed as “decline to state” — only 207,000 voted for a Democratic presidential candidate, or 8 percent of all votes cast that year, according to figures from the California Secretary of State.

There are a few hurdles to getting DTS voters engaged AND voting. The fact they have to ask for a Democratic ballot to vote for a Democratic candidate is one more bump on that road.

It is also true that decline-to-state voters must be quite motivated — and knowledgeable — to cast a ballot in the Democratic primary. The voters must ask for a Democratic ballot at their polling station; otherwise, they are provided with a nonpartisan ballot that has statewide measures only.

And if they vote by mail, as a great many Californians do, these voters must request a Democratic ballot in writing.

“If you do nothing, you get a nonpartisan ballot,” Mr. DiCamillo said. “That is a proactive step that is a hurdle.”

County registrars are supposed to inform the independent voters that they have a right to a Democratic ballot, but each does so differently, leaving many voters with no idea they can participate in the primary.

“We do get people after an election saying, ‘I wanted to vote a partisan ballot, and I got this nonpartisan ballot,’ ” said Steve Weir, the vice president of the California Association of Clerks and Election Officials.

According to statistics provided by the California Secretary of State's website, DTS voters make up 19% of registered voters. That's a sizable block of people, and the fastest growing registered group in California, and I think efforts to reach out to them is a great idea. Any candidate would naturally covet that voting bloc, and anything that encourages voting and boosts turnout is a-ok in my book.

State Democratic Party officials said they did the best they could with a limited budget and competing interests. Separately from the party efforts, the Courage Campaign, a so-called 527 group, plans to call or e-mail 300,000 registered decline-to-state voters in California to remind them that they can vote Democratic.

For more information on the subject, check out the Courage Campaign website. They have more than you ever thought you needed to know about DTS voting on their handy dandy and very comprehensive FAQ page.

Please stop helping

2008-01-27T10:38:00.001-08:00

One of the responsibilities of my job is that I'm the buyer for my department. Much of my career has been somehow connected to procurement. I know how to buy things. Just stand back when I go shopping, because I am an expert.

On Friday, I had to go to Home Depot to purchase some power tools. I knew exactly what I needed, down to the manufacturer item number. My husband and I were out, so we went in together. Now, I do love my husband very much, and I know he means well, but sometimes he feels the need to "help" where help is not warranted. Home Depot seems to bring that out in him. He thinks it's part of his domain as a man, I suppose. No offense intended, guys, but ..... ladies, you know what I'm talking about.

When we were in the parking lot, he grabbed one of those big carts you'd use if you were going to buy something very large like gigantic power tools or sheets of plywood. I told him to get a basket, but no...we were going to need the BIG cart.

Ok, fine.

We went inside, I walked to the shelf that had the tools I needed, and he said...no no no....they're over here. I followed. They were not over there. Honey, stop helping. I went back to the first shelf, picked up all the tools, set them on the end of his hunormous cart, we paid and left.

As I've watched Bill Clinton over the past few days leading into the South Carolina primary, I can't help but think of that trip to Home Depot, and according to CNN, his comments have had a negative effect on Hillary's campaign.

Roughly 6 in 10 South Carolina Democratic primary voters said Bill Clinton's campaigning was important in how they ultimately decided to vote, and of those voters, 48 percent went for Barack Obama while only 37 percent went for Hillary Clinton. Fourteen percent of those voters voted for John Edwards.

Meanwhile, the exit polls also indicate Obama easily beat Clinton among those voters who decided in the last three days — when news reports heavily covered the former president's heightened criticisms of Obama. Twenty percent of South Carolina Democrats made their decision in the last three days and 51 percent of them chose Obama, while only 21 percent picked Clinton.

As a presidential candidate, I'd like Hillary to show in no uncertain terms, that this is her campaign. She's the focus here. Even if Bill did no more than anyother candidates spouse, the media will hone in on him more than they do on Elizabeth Edwards or Michelle Obama, just because of who he is. Seems to me that should be considered into the political calculus. His assist is a positive UNTIL it becomes overbearing and intrusive and you start to forget who the real candidate is, then it becomes a negative.

Bill, honey, please stop helping.

Considering second choices

2008-01-21T11:48:00.000-08:00

I'm afraid that unless there is a dramatic change on Super Tuesday, my favored presidential candidate will be out of the running, and I'll be forced to pick between Obama and Clinton. I was afraid Edwards wouldn't be able to compete with the self-fulfilling prophecy of the media that seems to be enamored with the idea of a horse race between the two current front runners. I really thought Edwards would look stronger in South Carolina and Nevada, but it seems that it's not to be.

He's still getting my primary vote, but it appears I may have to pick someone else in November. I am not wildly thrilled with either option, but they're worthy of consideration. I still need to be won over by someone. I do find both of them to be likable, intelligent, and generally on the right side of most issues, and I will most likely vote for whichever one of them makes it to the dance in November.

I know what I'd be getting with Clinton. Her presidency would bring wiser heads to Washington again, after eight very long years of slowly sinking in the sands of ignorance and belligerence. Obama, I don't know as well, but he would also bring a large measure of sanity back to DC too. I've got to give both of them that.

As I've been thinking about the presidential race, I waver back and forth in weighing the Clinton and Obama options. For now, it's a toss-up.

Last week, a short video clip sprang up on the web of Obama in an interview with the editorial board of the Reno Gazette Journal, that had some of the blogosphere is a tizzy, and at first glance, I was a bit tizzified myself.

I don't want to present myself as some sort of singular figure. I think part of what's different are the times. I do think that for example the 1980 was different. I think Ronald Reagan changed the trajectory of America in a way that Richard Nixon did not and in a way that Bill Clinton did not. He put us on a fundamentally different path because the country was ready for it. I think they felt like with all the excesses of the 1960s and 1970s and government had grown and grown but there wasn't much sense of accountability in terms of how it was operating. I think people, he just tapped into what people were already feeling, which was we want clarity we want optimism, we want a return to that sense of dynamism and entrepreneurship that had been missing.

At first glance, I was really bothered by his comments, but I refrained from commenting out of a sense of unease with the video. Something was off about it, and the comments seemed to be taken out of context. After taking some time to look at the original video the clip was taken from, I think I was right. The clip shows one minute out of a forty minute interview, and it is taken out of context....just enough that it sounds like he's praising Reagan and dissing Clinton when he was really talking about the American people's unease with the status quo, and how some times are ripe for change. He was talking about when the American people are in the mood to embrace change, out of a sense or perception of dissatisfaction with the way things are in the nation or in Washington. He was talking about the zeitgeist of the nation, not the policies of Ronald Reagan. The clip leaves out his comment that JFK's election was another of those times in modern American presidential history.

He does say the Republican party has been the party of ideas, but he never says they were good ideas. In fact he infers that they were not.

He's talking about the ability to reach people with a promise of change. No matter what you think of Ronald Reagan, and I am most assuredly not a Reagan worshiper, you have to admit that his persona and his promise of a new day played a large part in him winning the White House. He never says Reagan delivered on his promises; only that he promised "morning in America". He's talking about the campaign, and not about Reagan's presidency. He's saying something more nuanced that isn't captured in the excerpt. Unfortunately, nuance is NOT the word of the day.

I suspect either the Clinton campaign, some one associated with the campaign, or a Clinton supporter made that clip, put it on YouTube and promoted it just enough in the right places to make it go viral.

Not that I'm cynical or anything....

It's just another moment in what will probably be an ongoing process of considering my second choices.

And pardon me for being about four days out of the news cycle on this, but I wanted to look at the original video. Sometimes it just takes a little time to tease out the whole story.

Stop the madness!

2008-01-14T17:26:00.000-08:00

Obama says stop the silliness!

“I don’t want the campaign at this stage to degenerate into so much tit-for-tat, back-and-forth, that we lose sight of why all of us are doing this,” Mr. Obama told reporters at a news conference here. “We’ve got too much at stake at this time in our history to be engaging in this kind of silliness. I expect that other campaigns feel the same way.”

Clinton concurs.

"Our party and our nation is bigger than this. Our party has been on the front line of every civil rights movement, women's rights movement, workers' rights movement, and other movements for justice in America.

"We differ on a lot of things. And it is critical to have the right kind of discussion on where we stand. But when it comes to civil rights and our commitment to diversity, when it comes to our heroes - President John F. Kennedy and Dr. King - Senator Obama and I are on the same side.

Really now, people. It's gotten ridiculous. And is it too much to ask for the media to focus on the issues, and where these particular people stand on those issues, rather than on fanning the flames of sensationalism and destruction?

Yeah, I know.

Can we have an honest national conversation about the issues of racism (and sexism, for that matter) as it relates to policy? I'd love for both Hillary and Obama to BOTH use this opportunity talk about how the policies of the Bush administration over the last seven years have had a disproportionatly negative effect on the poor, on minorities, and on women. We can talk all day long about who slurred whom, but what's really important is what these candidates plan to DO about issues that involve racism and sexism that has real effects on real people, everyday.

Focus, people! Focus!

Strike breaking in Mexico's mining industry

2008-01-13T13:49:00.000-08:00

One of the issues that is always completely neglected in discussions about undocumented immigrants in the United States is how much of it is driven by the rise of multinational corporations, and their success in using foreign governments to crush organized labor.

David Bacon's article Mexican Authorities Move to Crush Copper Strike at Truthout shows us a disturbing example of the trend.

Mexican labor authorities seized on technicalities to order an end to the strike at the country's largest copper mine in Cananea, Sonora, on Friday. The Mexican press reports that over 700 heavily armed agents of the Sonora state police arrived in Cananea just hours before the decision was announced, and agents of the Federal Preventative Police were sent to this tiny mountain town as well. Strikers report that the streets were filled with rocks and teargas, and 20 miners have been injured - some seriously - in the ensuing conflict. The union says that five strikers are missing.

The action by the government seeks to end the longest-running defiance of government labor policy in Mexico in decades. The mine belongs to one of the largest mining corporations in the world, Grupo Mexico, which is owned by the wealthy family of German Larrea.

On June 29 of last year, the union at Cananea, Section 65 of the Mexican Union of Mine, Metal and Allied Workers, went on strike over extreme health and safety dangers. Since the beginning of the strike, both the company and the labor board in the state of Sonora, which is controlled by Mexico's old ruling party, the Institutional Revolutionary Party, as well as the company itself, have tried to declare the strike illegal. The union won an injunction, called an "amparo," from the Mexican Federal Court on December 13, protecting the strike's legal status.

Under Mexican law, if the strike is legal, the company may not make any effort to operate the mine or make reprisals against the strikers. If the strike is declared illegal, however, the company can begin operations, and fire any striker who refuses to return to work. Miners fear the presence of heavily armed police is intended to protect a company effort to reopen the mine with strikebreakers, or to frighten strikers themselves into returning.

Smashing the strike in Cananea would have economic and political repercussions, not just in Mexico, but in the United States as well. In two previous strikes, at Cananea and its sister mine in Nacozari, in 1998 and 2005, respectively, over 2,000 miners lost their jobs. Most of them, unable to find other work in the tiny mining communities of northern Sonora, crossed the border into the US as undocumented workers in order to survive.

More....

Sunday's terryfaceplace economic report

2008-01-13T09:21:00.000-08:00

In today's today DayLateDollarShort News report, we might be slipping into a recession!

Duh.

They should have just asked those of us on the lower rungs of the economic ladder. I could have told you this was coming a year ago. Actually, I might have told you this was coming a year ago. I'm too tired this morning to look. I'm exhausted from doing more with less.

And can someone please tell me why it now costs over $10 for a dozen eggs, a loaf of bread, and a gallon of milk? This is killin' me! I have a tall, active, hungry teenaged son here.

Iron My Shirt, Part Deux

2008-01-08T20:23:00.000-08:00

In case you've not already heard, the "protesters" at the Hillary event yesterday WERE attention grabbing nuts after all. Attention grabbing morning radio show staffers type nuts.

I thought the phrase rang a bell, but I couldn't place it. In my obsessive search for minutia, I ran across a mention of the same phrase being used to taunt protesters at the Masters Tournament a few years ago. Here's what more poking around on the Intertubes has revealed.

From Wikipedia: Rich Shertenlieb. Started as an intern for the Morning X, soon turned into the show's stunt guy. Most famous for his protest of Martha Burk at the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia, where he held up a sign that said "Make Me Dinner/Iron My Shirt". This stunt was covered by ESPN and hundreds of other news organizations....Currently hosting a radio show with Fred Toucher and Crash Clark known as The Toucher and Rich show on WBCN in Boston.

The iron my shirts guys at the Hillary event work for ..... wait for it ..... The Toucher and Rich Show on WBCN in Boston. Rich = Rich Shertenlieb.

It was just the passing of the idiot torch from one generation to the next.

I can not stand morning drive radio shows with their blah blah blah djs, and "humor" that sounds like it was written by a 13 year old boys. Especially before coffee. My husband hates it when I get in his car in the morning and start punching buttons, looking for music, and muttering about blabbering fools 6:30 am.

Iron my shirt?

2008-01-07T20:30:00.000-08:00

Good grief. Is this a Hillary Hater gone wild or just some random attention grabbing nut? Probably a bit of both. Check out the video of Clinton taking a heckler in stride despite his interrupting her speech with the ridiculous chant, "Iron My Shirt!!"

I like her comment at the end the best:

“If there’s anybody in the audience who wants to learn to iron his own shirt, we can talk about that.”

Har.

Gotta love the story description in the url at the NY Daily News too. sexist-jamokes-disrupt-hillary

And as for all the media attention about her getting a little misty up in New Hampshire today, whatever...I don't know why people are so shocked that she's a human being.

But when I heard the comments from Edwards on the news this evening, I was taken aback. Ouch. I didn't like the implication that it means she's not tough enough. He sounded . . . mocking, not to mention sexist. Obama showed substantially more grace in acknowledging the pressures of the campaign trail. I'm surprised and disappointed in Edwards.

(Update) This day is just chockful of Clinton related entertainment! Via D-Day, more fun with Hillary, and this time it's at Chris Matthews expense. She told him he's obsessed. Bwahahaha!!!

From D-Day

To his credit, Tweety actually did show the clip on his show today. After Hillary outed him, the plaintive wail of "I'm not obsessed" sounded to me like a guy who's sewn his own Luke Skywalker in Bespin gear outfit saying he wasn't obsessed with Star Wars.

I'm highly amused.

The Nation's West Coast Youth Journalism Conference

2008-01-06T18:42:00.001-08:00

Ooooh. Check this out. A Youth Journalism conference at UCLA sponsored by The Nation magazine and Campus Progress. Saturday, January 26, 2008 9:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

I wonder how loosely we can define "youth". I'm young for my age.

An interesting list of speakers. Maybe if I wear a hat, and make sure my tattoo is showing...

Naomi Klein, award-winning journalist, syndicated columnist, and author of the international bestseller, The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism
Katrina vanden Heuvel, editor and publisher, The Nation
Robert Scheer, nationally syndicated columnist, founding editor of TruthDig
Patricia Williams, Nation columnist, author, professor of law at Columbia University
Tom Hayden, author, activist, former California state legislator
Marc Cooper, author, Nation contributing editor
Abigail Goldman, Pulitzer Prize winning reporter for the Los Angeles Times
Kristina Rizga, editor and publisher of WireTap magazine
Richard Kim, senior editor, The Nation

Liars, Cowards, Cutthroats and Weasels

2008-01-06T16:37:00.000-08:00

I've been paying some attention to the WGA strike out of a general interest in labor issues in California, and am intrigued with the side story about why well known political consultants Chris Lehane and Mark Fabiani would go to work as "masters of disaster" for the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, when they've played that role in the past for labor interests, and high profile Democrats such as the Clintons, Al Gore and Gray Davis.

In fact, Lehane is working in California for Hillary Clinton. That could be a bit awkward given her substantial support from labor organizations.

I think one obvious answer is that they're just doing what they do. They're PR guns for hire, not politicians. The problem is, they're well known as Democratic strategists, but they're also working against the interests of organized labor. That's a bitter pill to swallow if you like your political party to walk the walk of supporting Labor and the working/middle class.

Bill Bradley explores the issues in his column Hardball Beltway Consultants Could Radically Alter WGA Strike at the LA Weekly. It's an interesting story, and sheds more light on the long history behind it all, as well as potential future impacts.

...whatever happens in the writers’ battle for a slice of the pie, the entry of Fabiani and Lehane into the fray is fast becoming an awkward issue in the Democratic presidential campaigns.

All of the top Democratic presidential candidates publicly support the writers. Hillary Clinton, for whom they both worked during the late Clinton administration, has walked the picket line with the writers. Yet Lehane has been working for Clinton locally — recently fighting a plan by Republicans in Sacramento to change California’s presidential vote in the Electoral College.

With Fabiani and Lehane being paid $100,000 a month by the studios, if history is any guide, things are going to get much more negative in Los Angeles — and the strike will increasingly be linked to the approaching presidential primary.

That would be the FAST approaching presidential, and the situation has made a lot of people very unhappy.

Some bigtime Democrats are outraged. Andy Stern, powerful chief of the huge Service Employees International Union, flatly tells L.A. Weekly he is out to “blacklist” them from getting paid to oversee labor-affiliated political campaigns and ballot measures in the future. And the nation’s most influential lefty blogger, Markos Moulitsas, of the California-based Daily Kos, calls Fabiani and Lehane liars.

I don't know if any of this could splash onto Hillary or not. If she strongly objected, he wouldn't be working for one or the other of them. No matter what I think about her politically, I've got to give her credit for maintaining control over her image despite it being attacked far more than any of her political opponents. It's not something she's careless about. There must be a feeling that it either won't hurt her or it won't be an issue. We shall soon see.

On a related note, here's David Letterman on the reasonableness of the AMTPT.

Peace (still) Rocks

2008-01-06T15:04:00.000-08:00

Oh no! According to the local blog, OB Rag, the beautiful stained glass peace sign that the folks from Peace Rocks installed on a rock at Sunset Cliffs has disappeared. Who knows if it was due to storms or vandals? Could be either, but if someone took it, I hope it's returned. Here's a message to the community posted by Peace Rocker on their website:

Sadly, two nights ago, the Peace Sign was removed (stolen?) by persons unknown. We are still processing this very sad development, and have no idea what motivated the interlopers.

Was it an ordinary vandal who simply took delight in destroying something beautiful? Was it some punk who just wanted to hang it in their own living room? Was it some conservative who mistook the sign as a political statement? Was it someone from the military who misunderstood the symbol as disrespectful to our brave troops? Was it maybe some environmentalist who simply believed that NO ONE should appropriate that rock for public art, for any purpose? Or was it maybe some other group of locals who simply wanted to put up their OWN new installation? We may never know the answer.

We who erected this sign intended it to be politically neutral, and simply a reflection of what we hoped was a UNIVERSAL prayer for peace. We also knew, of course, that our effort would not please EVERYONE, and that it might evoke a strong negative reaction from some percentage of the community (for all the possible reasons suggested above). In any event, it is with great sadness that we accept this development as just part of the natural progression of things, regrettable to us, but probably inevitable.

We believe that the Peace Rock had become a place of substantial civic pride for MOST locals, a place for reflection and a source of great inspiration. We are proud of our contribution to the community, and thankful that it touched so many people as positively as it did for the 18-19 months that it graced that spectacular rock.

And a final note to those who stole the sign: this was a very expensive piece of stained-glass art, intended as a gift to the community. We had always thought that someday we would remove it ourselves -- to permit the tradition of random installations on that rock to continue -- but that we would then donate the sign for permanent installation to some business in Ocean Beach (perhaps to Rock, Paper, Scissors, the wonderful Artists' Coop on Newport Avenue). Accordingly, we would ask, respectfully, that you somehow transport the sign -- even if broken in the process of removal -- to the alley behind that store, hide it appropriately, and then phone the store anonymously the next day to alert them to retrieve it for public display inside. You would have the "clean" rock you apparently wanted, and the community would have a lasting symbol of something many thought was uniquely beautiful.

Peace!

Those Darn Voting Machines

2008-01-06T13:25:00.000-08:00

This Sunday's lead in the New York Times Magazine is an article by Clive Thompson on Those Darn Electronic Voting Machines, and despite the fact that the opening paragraphs trivialize those of us who've been critical of electronic voting and tabulation for the past few years, the article goes on, at length, to say many of the very same things the so-called scared senseless fringies have been saying all along. Computerized voting has an unacceptably large number serious problems that rise to the level of being show-stoppers.

Even when we're right, they manage to insult us, don't they?

But now that I've gotten that off my chest, the rest of the article is a fairly substantial overview of the technological problems associated with voting and tabulating on unsecured, unreliable, proprietary computer systems, and is worth reading. It's a stronger indictment of DREs than most anything I've read in the corporate media on this issue. It hits many of the high points of the debate, including the fact that we've essentially privatized our election process in our haste to move to electronic voting.

Diebold is the Blackwater of our elections. To his credit, Thompson mentions this essential point that's often overlooked in all the discussion about hacking, transparency and accuracy. Just as we have done with private "security" contractors, we've done the same with our elections....handed so much of the process over to corporations, that the citizenry no longer controls an essential function of our democracy. The process of both war-making and voting have become so privatized they're no longer transparent, accountable or under any kind of verifiable, public authority. Both are steps in a very un-democratic direction.

The article touches on the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), and how it was a response to the Florida debacle in the 2000 presidential election, but in it's focus on the technology, the article underplays the political machinations that were behind the switch to DREs . The article also understates the problem of secret tabulation. Yes, optical scan with a paper trail is a big improvement over touch screen DREs that directly record the entry without a paper ballot, but it's not an end-all and be-all solution. That's why I still advocate hand counted paper ballots at the precinct, as a cross check on the optical scan totals. No one's yet convinced me that we can't do both. The counting of ballots should be nothing but completely transparent to the public. On that, I can't be swayed.

Overall, Can You Count on Voting Machines? is a worthwhile article from a widely read, mainstream publication, and for that, I'm pleased. Two years ago, election integrity advocates were completely dismissed as conspiracy theorists and the lunatic fringe. They might still be calling us names, but at least they're calling us names in the NY Times now. That's much better than being ignored.

Local progressive talk is back in San Diego

2008-01-05T09:36:00.001-08:00

A little bit anyway...but it's an important bit. Stacy Taylor is now on AM 1700 during the afternoon drive, from 4-7pm.

AM1700 is primarily a conservative oriented talk station, and their other shows include Dennis Miller, Michael Reagan and Neil Boortz, but it's great that they've brought Stacy on board so there's a place on the radio dial once again for LOCAL progressive talk.

I don't see it so much as a victory as an opportunity. Maybe if Stacy gets enough love, they can stop broadcasting that obnoxious Dennis Miller three times a day and bring some other progressive voices back to San Diego. Wouldn't that be nice?

Who's in and who's out

2008-01-03T20:18:00.000-08:00

Huckabee and Obama are on top in Iowa. I think Edwards is going to do well with his economic messages, and Obama is going to bring out young voters. And then there's Hillary, who's by no means out of this. It's still a toss up.

...for some of them anyway: Dodd's out.

According to Truthout it's likely that at least part of that 12-ish point vote difference between Obama and Edwards/Clinton was probably due to him getting Richardson and Kucinich supporters who went to their second choice.

(update) oops. There goes Biden too.

Just say no

2008-01-03T17:23:00.000-08:00

I really love these hidden news story gems that remind me the sands are shifting.

New Mexico is now the lastest state to come to their senses and reject federal funding for "abstinence-only sex education". A few short years ago, only four states (including California) rejected matching funds offered to states who agreed to Just Say NO to meaningful education about sex and sexual health. Since the 1990s, states have taken over one billion dollars to provide an unrealistic, unscientific, medically inaccurate failure of a sex ed program. Could this be why we have the first rise in the US teen pregnancy rate since 1991? And why the rate of teen abortions has risen? Maybe. Maybe not. One thing is for sure though...it sure hasn't worked as advertised.

Excellent. Fifteen states have decided to "just say no" to federal money with dangerous strings attached.

May there be many more.

Infection hits California prison system

2007-12-29T18:04:00.000-08:00

The prisons in California have problems. Overcrowding, violence, and spiraling costs, to name a few. Now the NY Times has published an article about the valley fever epidemic in the Central Valley prisons.

In most cases, the infection starts in the lungs and is usually handled by the body without permanent damage. But serious complications can arise, including meningitis; and, at Pleasant Valley, the scope of the outbreak has left some inmates permanently disabled, confined to wheelchairs and interned in expensive long-term hospital stays.

About 80 prison employees have also contracted the fever, Pleasant Valley officials say, including a corrections officer who died of the disease in 2005.

What makes the disease all the more troubling is that its cause is literally underfoot: the spores that cause the infection reside in the region’s soil. When that soil is disturbed, something that happens regularly where houses are being built, crops are being sown and a steady wind churns, those spores are inhaled. The spores can also be kicked up by Mother Nature including earthquakes and dust storms.

Does that sound like a lawsuit waiting to happen to anyone else?

btw, I just love this professional and helpful advice from Coalinga's mayor:

“We just deal,” said Trish Hill, the city’s mayor. “You don’t do stupid things like go out on windy days or dig in the dirt.”

In other words, if you get sick, it's your own damn fault, stupid.

Git Yer' Free Fishwrap Here!

2007-12-29T11:26:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks ago, a teenage-ish looking young man showed up at my door selling the San Diego Union Tribune, and I considered signing up for the weekend only subscription deal. My husband is a ~~Luddite~~ traditionalist who prefers reading the newspaper over reading it online, however the ~~future used car salesman~~ paperboy told me I had to write him a check right then and there. In the past, they always billed me, so I found that unusual, and changed my mind.

I kid argued with me! He was extremely high pressure for a ~~future used car salesman~~ paperboy, and that alone made me suspicious, and certainly not inclined to hand him a check with my bank account number. We'd started filling out the subscription paperwork, and I told him to tear it up. In retrospect, I probably should have torn it up myself.

About an hour later, my phone rang and it was the ~~future used car salesman's~~ paperboy's ~~accomplice~~ supervisor insisting that I subscribe to the UT. I told him NO in no uncertain terms. It was very weird, and I must say, not typical of UT sales tactics that I've seen before. That's part of what made me suspicious. Their readership is sinking, and that could account for a more aggressive sales pitch, but Jeez Louise, that was a bit much.

So, last Sunday...the paper showed up on my doorstep. My ~~Luddite~~ darling husband thought maybe it was just mis-delivered. I suspected we'd see an invoice.

This morning the fishwrap arrived on the porch, and the invoice arrived in the mailbox.

Curiouser and curiouser. I suspected the ~~future used car salesman~~ paperboy and his ~~accomplice~~ supervisor. I called the UT customer service hotline. Nice Customer Service Man said I could ignore the invoice because it's been PAID, by way of a cash payment, through March 17.

Huh?

The Nice Customer Service Man says he'll refer it to their payment processing people who can check into where the payment came from, and if it's a misapplied payment they'll fix it and the paper will stop...or it'll keep coming until mid-March, gratis.

Hmmmm. I wonder if they'll give me a refund if I tell them I don't want the paper afterall.

I'll get back to you on that.

Good bye and Good Riddance 2007

2007-12-28T13:39:00.000-08:00

I've been feeling a pull to write a year end wrap up of some sort, but frankly this year has ranked right up there in the top three or four all time lousy years of my entire life, and it's adversely affecting my sunny disposition. Between that and an an unusually prolonged episode of politically-oriented melancholy, I found that I just wasn't coming up with much to say. For me, writers block is one the signs of despair, and I couldn't think of a damn thing to write other than a bunch of gloom and doom.

A few days ago, a friend asked me a question related to taking initiative and personal responsibility for the state of one's government, and his question reminded me of a quote by Alice Walker, which I shared with him.

It has become a common feeling, I believe, as we have watched our heroes falling over the years, that our own small stone of activism, which might not seem to measure up to the rugged boulders of heroism we have so admired, is a paltry offering toward the building of an edifice of hope. Many who believe this choose to withhold their offerings out of shame. This is the tragedy of the world.

For we can do nothing substantial toward changing our course on the planet, a destructive one, without rousing ourselves, individual by individual, and bringing our small, imperfect stones to the pile.

I'm glad for the reminder. The quote is from an essay by Walker where she reflects on her activism, and the entire article is excellent and very meaningful to me in so many ways.

I have learned to accept the fact that we risk disappointment, disillusionment, even despair, every time we act. Every time we decide to believe the world can be better. Every time we decide to trust others to be as noble as we think they are. And that there might be years during which our grief is equal to, or even greater than, our hope. The alternative, however, not to act, and therefore to miss experiencing other people at their best, reaching toward their fullness, has never appealed to me.

Thanks, Alice. I needed that.

That first quote is what really sticks with me though. Sometimes it seems we're surrounded by a crashing, swirling tidal waves of bad news, but I try to keep my chin up. I might get a wee bit (ha) cynical, yet overall I'm optimistic. If I'd given up on the world becoming a better place, I wouldn't bother with this blog or much of anything else I do. I'll admit that sometimes, I have to search a bit to find the little crumbs that keep my own hope alive, but I generally do find them, and so you're stuck with me for now. I'm just going to keep on bringing my odd little stones to the pile.

Here's to a better 2008, kids. Cheers.

The candidates speak (finally) on the limits of presidential power

2007-12-23T07:22:00.000-08:00

"The sleeper issue in this campaign involves the proper scope of executive power," said Richard Epstein, a University of Chicago law professor.

Other than Chris Dodd, the current crop of candidates have been distressingly quiet about the Constitution and Bush administration's grab for presidential power in excess of constitutional limits. It's a vital topic, because the current resident has shown a profound lack of respect for US law, and has a dangerously overinflated idea about his power as president. This whole trend has been insufficiently addressed in the current presidential campaign. It's been of concern to me, and is an issue that could tip my vote.

It's also why despite my general inclination toward Edwards, Dodd keeps grabbing my attention. He's on it, like no one else.

I've long believed that if the next president does not clearly repudiate the current trend, the anti-constitutional flavor of this administration will be locked into place for the foreseeable future. It's a worrisome thing.

For that reason, I'm quite pleased to see the Boston Globe article by Charlie Savage that asks all the right questions about presidential power and the authority granted by the Constitution. These are the kinds of questions that should have been asked of Bush and Cheney in 2000. To the best of my recollection, no one asked, and they independently didn't offer up their opinions on the issue. Imagine that.

Savage poses a set of essential questions to all the leading candidates, and their answers cover the spectrum from Dodd to Romney (hint: if you like Dick Cheney, you will love Mitt Romney).

Huckabee and Thompson refused to answer the questions, which in my world, disqualifies them from the presidency. Period. Giuliani refused to answer, but provided a statement about balancing "order and liberty" which was written by former Bush Solicitor General Ted Olson.

Bzzzzzzzt! Disqualified!

Ron Paul had good answers, but he's disqualified anyway because this is one of the very few topics where he doesn't bask in a wingnutty glow.

McCain gave the best answers from the Republican field, but personally I trust him about as far as I can throw him. He talks the "I'm a moderate" talk, but he doesn't vote like one.

The Democrats, for the most part, gave answers that came down on the side of the Constitution rather than increased presidential power. Frankly, I was not thrilled with Edwards' answers because instead of making strong, declarative statements about his own interpretation of the law, he framed it all around what Bush is doing wrong. I want to say to him, "yes I KNOW what Bush has done wrong, but what are you going to do right?"

Sigh....I like Edwards in so many ways, but sometimes he's such a politician.

Go read the article! It's important stuff. And whatever you do, don't vote for that scary Mitt Romney. He'll just be so disappointed if he gets elected, and belatedly discovers the job doesn't come with a crown.

All I want for Christmas is a new transit pass

2007-12-22T06:05:00.000-08:00

I would not want to be a bus driver in San Diego after Jan 1.

Actually, I wouldn't want to be a bus driver anywhere at anytime, but especially in San Diego after Jan 1.

That's when the transit fare structure changes, and not for the better, and I'll betcha there will be a whole lot of unhappy riders starting Jan 2. I buy a pass every month because I ride so frequently, and that price is going up too, but not significantly. It's going from $60 per month to $64. If you're a daily or frequent rider, and you buy a pass, that four dollars isn't a huge deal. It's something, but not huge.

The daily rider...there's another story, and that is where I feel sorry for passengers and the soon to be berated bus drivers. A bus ride is increasing from $1.75 to $2.00 on local routes. Again, not horrible. But here is the horribleness: they're doing away with transfers, and encouraging people to buy $5 daily passes. That means you can pay the full fare for every leg of a trip or you can pay $5 for unlimited rides. No more paying a fare, getting a transfer and continuing to your destination.

SO, for example, right now if I want to take a quick trip to the next city and pick up some veggies at the Farmers Market, I can pay $1.75 jump on a bus that takes me to the trolley, ride to the market, grab my goodies, jump back on the trolley, transfer to the bus, and be home again within about an hour or 90 minutes. It's four very short rides to get me there and back.

After the fare change that same $1.75 trip will cost a minimum of $5, and all incentive to leave the car at home is gone. After Jan 1 it will be $2 for the first bus, another $2 for the trolley, another $2 for the trolley home, and yet another $2 for that five minute bus ride back to the house. You get the choice of paying $8.00....or buying a $5 unlimited day pass. Either way, that's a big jump from $1.75.

This will probably not be a problem at all for all the fabulously wealthy, beautiful people that take public transit, but for everyone else, that is a significant increase. Especially for those who have no other transportation options.

I could almost always scrounge $1.75 out of the sofa cushions to pay for an emergency trip, but $5 is another story.

This is just one more reason it's getting harder and harder to afford to live in San Diego. It's already out of reach for me, but between family and my job, I'm not going anywhere soon.

It's depressing.

And it makes my wallet ache.

And it makes me wonder who the heck they think rides the bus.

And it makes me want to buy earplugs for the nice guy that drives my bus. It's not his fault, but boy oh boy, is he gonna get an earful.

Bad Blogger Update

2007-12-19T18:49:00.000-08:00

I've not had much to say lately.

Well...I actually always have a lot to say, but unfortunately, not the time to get it down in writing. Work, family, holidays, etc.

So here are just a couple of little things I've recently run across, and in the spirit of the holidays I'll share them with you. Lucky you!

First, Glenn Greenwald on the underdogs in the presidential race. Good points, all. As always.

Edwards, Paul and Huckabee are obviously disparate in significant ways -- ideologically, temperamentally, and otherwise. But there is a vital attribute common to those three campaigns that explains the media's scorn: they are all, in their own ways, anti-establishment candidates, meaning they are outside and critical of the system of which national journalists are a critical part, the system which employs and rewards our journalists and forms the base of their identity and outlook. Any candidate who criticizes and opposes that system -- not in piecemeal ways but fundamentally -- will be, first, ignored and, then, treated as losers by the press.

I've long thought that part of this w/r/t Edwards is because the Republicans would rather face Hillary than Edwards in the general election. They minimize and marginalize and don't treat him seriously because that would increase his visibility and popularity. If Clinton is the frontrunner, that gives them the opportunity to draw out both your basic, crazed Clinton-hater voter, AND the crazed misogynist Clinton-hater vote. It's a two-fer.

#####

Lucas posts at San Diego Politico about the San Diego County Board of Supervisors suing Secretary of State Debra Bowen, who in her recent Top-to-Bottom review of California voting systems, had the NERVE to insist we should not vote on insecure and unsecured electronic voting machines. Wow. Just wow. Brad Blog is on the case too.

#####

And last but not least and without further comment...

Woo and Hoo!

2007-12-12T19:12:00.000-08:00

Today's big terryfaceplace news is that the election to recall most of the members of the Potrero Planning Group was yesterday, and the entire "pro-Blackwater" slate has been replaced by an overwhelming margin. Excellent news. Not only is this a statement against Blackwater, but a stand against elected officials who've been nothing but arrogant at every turn.

I'm not going to go over all the details because much has been written on the subject already today, but this makes me very happy.

For more words, check out:

Juls at Kos and Calitics

and

Todd at MyDD

I just love this for three reasons. First, it's in large part a public NO vote against Blackwater establishing a base of operations in Potrero. It doesn't belong there. Where does it belong? I dunno. But I know it does not belong in Potrero. It's wrong for the area, and the people don't want it. Just go away, Blackwater.

Second, it's a vote against elected officials who had complete disregard for the wishes of a large part of their community. They were dismissive, arrogant and condescending to the people they were supposed to be representing. If anyone ever deserved to be recalled, it was those five members of the Potrero Planning Board. I do hope the San Diego Board of Supervisors is more attentive to the wishes of the locals when it comes their turn to cast their votes on the Blackwater project.

Third, this is a great victory for grassroots political activists. :-) That always makes me happy. The community put a lot of hard work into this through petitioning, GOTV efforts, and good old fashioned door knocking. It does my heart good. I'm a sucker for that democracy stuff.

On a related note, Courage Campaign has a brand spankin' new Block Blackwater site, where they've posted the following video of Potrero resident and new PPG member Carl Meyer, who's talking about his reasons for wanting to Block Blackwater. They will be providing updates and information about what you can do to be a part of the "Block Blackwater" movement.

.

Oh! And while I'm on the subject, remember waaaaay back last week when I posted about Blackwater's participation in the halftime show at the SDSU/BYU game? Well. If you want to see it for yourself, watch the Armed Forces Bowl Game between Cal State Berkeley and the Air Force Academy on New Years Eve. The parachute team is scheduled to participate in the "salute to the armed forces" themed entertainment. It'll be on ESPN. I'm just sayin'.

(edit)- More on the recall election in Potrero

Holiday phone cards for veterans

2007-12-09T10:07:00.000-08:00

This holiday season the Veterans for Peace are repeating their great Phone Cards for Veterans campaign that provides two hour, long distance phone cards to vets recuperating at the nation's VA hospitals.

We've worked with Sprint and gotten a great long-distance rate on these cards -- 2.9 cents per minute. This means that your tax-deductible contribution of $10.50 will get two-hour phone cards into the hands of three deserving veterans this December. A contribution of $52.50 will get phone cards into the hands of fifteen veterans.

Let me just repeat that...

...your tax-deductible contribution of $10.50 will get two-hour phone cards into the hands of three deserving veterans this December

$10.50 is next to nothing to many of us, but just imagine for a moment, the worth of a two hour phone card to someone stuck in a VA hospital, far from home during the holidays.

Now go click on the link and make a donation, willya? That can be your gift to me. ;-)

Blackwater drops in to San Diego

2007-12-05T17:58:00.000-08:00

On Sunday I mentioned there were rumors that Blackwater had participated in the halftime show at the SDSU/BYU game over this past weekend? Here's the deal:

For the past three years, San Diego State University has participated in Fleet Week to honor the military. This year, it fell during the week of the Southern California fires, so the annual SDSU Fleet Week football game was postponed until this past weekend. That was the reason for the military angle of the halftime show, and the promotion was done in conjunction with the Fleet Week Foundation. This is nothing new. It's been done in years past.

However it appears that for the past three years, Blackwater USA has participated in the Fleet Week/SDSU game halftime show as a part of the production to honor the military in San Diego.

...here is where I part company with anyone who think this might be just peachy.

I'm not opposed to the halftime show as a whole, nor do I don't have any problem with ceremonies honoring our veterans, as many of the Fleet Week events do throughout the year. My objection is this:

Blackwater is not part of the United States Armed Forces. They're a private company. Not to mention, a private company undergoing a series of federal investigations related from everything to arms smuggling, to steroid abuse, to the murder of civilians. In any case, they are not part of the US military force.

That line between the private and public sector needs sharpening, but Blackwater's participation in this event does nothing but blur the distinction. There are some functions that belong only under the control of the people, and not in the hands of for-profit corporations. War is one of them. When the people have a high stake in the international conflict, it's less likely to occur. When corporations have a stake in war, it's just the opposite. Businesses that make obscene profits during wartime, have no incentive to keep the peace. It's Eisenhower's military industrial complex writ large.

This video is a promo associated with last year's SDSU/Fleet Week game. If you forward ahead to the 2:43 mark, you can watch a parachutist with a huge Blackwater canopy above his head, and a giant American flag tied to his ankle, descend into Qualcomm Stadium.
Is it just me, or does that image make anyone else feel a little queasy?

Lucas from Calitics speaks wise:

Fleet Week events, which go on year round, are to honor veterans. I've attended several of them and in my experience they've been good opportunities to pay tribute to veterans. So I have a hard time understanding howBlackwater fits into the puzzle. They consistently undermine the work being done by our armed forces around the world and especially in Iraq. It seems a particularly unfortunate inclusion in the festivities; made all the more uncomfortable given that theBlackwater recall election culminates on Tuesday (12/11).

I spoke with Steve Becvar of the SDSU Athletic Foundation, which was involved in planning the event. He explained that this is the third year that Blackwater-affiliated parachutists had played a role in the Fleet Week game. He emphasized that the school was not seeking to make any sort of political point, simply to partner with the Fleet Week Foundation to honor veterans.

But despite what may well have been the best intentions of event organizers, Blackwater has NO business honoring veterans. Blackwater profits from war and has a vested interest in prolonging any military struggle as long as it increases revenue. They are, in fact, naturally at odds with everything that our veterans should be honored for. They dishonor the flag and all the people who have bled for it whenever they or their representatives try to wrap themselves or theBlackwater logo in the American flag.

This is the icing on my cake regarding Blackwater building a base of operations in San Diego. Not only is their proposed training camp wildly inappropriate for the location where they want to build in regard to land use and environmental issues, but I am deeply opposed to this blurring of the public and private sector in the military whether it be Blackwater or any other private corporation. The show at Qualcomm stadium this past Saturday puts a very fine point on it, but no matter how much they wish it to be so, Blackwater is not a part of the United States military force and I strongly object to their use of our military and our flag as a marketing opportunity and a PR device.

This and that Sunday

2007-12-02T20:53:00.000-08:00

Hi there. Here's a little bit of this and a little bit of that for your Sunday evening.

First off, I've been working with Permanent Progress on their Roll Call for Democracy website, and it's online now at Rollcall4democracy.com. It's a bit of a work in progress still, but it's coming together nicely, if I do say so myself. In addition to the campaign to take a "Roll Call" of those who support election integrity reforms, it features artwork by Kathy Peterson, aka kpete from Democratic Underground. More of her fascinating art will be online within the next few weeks too. I'll be sure to link to that when it's live because, imo it's great stuff, and deserves the attention.

Check out the site for both the campaign as well as kpete's art, and while you're there you can listen to a clip of Suzanne Erb singing the Declaration of Independence.

In weekend rumor news, I'm hearing a buzz that Blackwater performed in the SDSU/BYU football game half time show at Qualcomm Stadium last night by parachuting into the stadium and distributing Blackwater promotional items. If so, I find that pretty damn outrageous. Blackwater has been very clear that they'll be conducting a big PR campaign in San Diego in the hope of swaying public sentiment that's currently running hot against their building of a para-military training camp in Potrero. That's not a big surprise. But at the college football game? If true, SDSU really dropped the ball, judgement-wise. They're an awfully controversial organization these days in light of unjustified killings they've been accused of in Iraq, and investigations into steroid abuse and weapons smuggling, State Department investigations, and being called in front of congress for a little bit of good, old fashioned over-sight. I imagine there will be more on this story, doncha think?

The Dirty Tricksters are still collecting signatures to try and get their so-called Presidential Election Reform Act on the CA ballot in time to rig the November 2008 elections. Sheesh. If this got on the ballot and passed, we might as well just let our congresscritters do our voting for us. But it seems to me that they're having a bit of trouble collecting enough sigs since the recommended date for getting them to the Secretary of State's office was November 29. That doesn't break my heart.

Let's see....what else? ....I have a job interview this week, so send me some good jobma please. Kind of like karma, but job related.

That's about all I have to report for now. Happy Monday!

Blackwater in Potrero

2007-12-01T08:15:00.000-08:00

Alternate Focus, a San Diego based, independent media group that focuses on issues in the Middle East, has released their documentary Blackwater in Potrero. It includes interviews with people on all sides of the issue of building a military-style training camp in the small town of Potrero, and I think they did a good job.

The program will be shown on the Dish Network, Free Speech TV, Channel 9415 and through other cable providers, and here are the air times for the show on Free Speech TV (all times EST):

Mon Dec 03 @ 05:30, 09:30, 15:30
Wed Dec 05 @ 11:30, 17:30
Thu Dec 06 @ 05:30
Fri Dec 07 @ 23:30
Sat Dec 08 @ 10:30
Sun Dec 09 @ 02:30

Or just watch it here!

Alive and Kicking Friday Random Ten

2007-11-30T20:51:00.000-08:00

Here's a Fridy Random 10 just to let you know I'm still alive.

I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor - Arctic Monkeys
On the Street Where You Live - Rickie Lee Jones
Ode to Boy II - Allison Moyet
You Can't Lose a Broken Heart - kd lang and Tony Bennett
Shotgun - Southern Culture on the Skids
Red Staggerwing - Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris
Lemon N' Ice - Latin Playboys
Wings - Josh Ritter
How We Operate - Gomez
Sugarcube - Yo La Tengo

John Hanna melts down in the happiest place on earth

2007-11-17T20:04:00.000-08:00

I'm completely shocked at the turn of events at the California Democratic Party Executive Committee meeting in Anaheim today. The following is from Julia Rosen of the Courage Campaign, explaining what happened when she and Eden James carried a sign into the room that indicated the number of people (over 30K) who are demanding the censure of Dianne Feinstein over her recent voting record.

I entered the California Democratic Party Resolutions Committee meeting room with Eden James, Courage Campaign's Managing Director, bearing our sign and easel. We found a free space at the front of the room and set up the sign.

Almost immediately, Resolutions Chair John Hanna approached us, demanding that we remove the sign. Eden politely asked if there "was a rule" against signs in the meeting rooms. Hanna replied "yes."

Kathy Bowler, CDP Executive Director, then calmly approached me, stating that the sign should be removed because the room was getting full and she had staff she needed to get into the room.

John then grabbed ahold of one side of the sign, attempting to remove it from Eden's hands. Eden, maintaining his hold on to the other side, repeated the question to John about whether a rule existed against signs inside the meeting room. John said "yes"again and Eden asked to see the rule, saying that if there was an actual rule against signs inside the room -- he would respect it.

Increasingly angry, John threatened to call security. Eden, surprised, calmly responded that John "should go ahead if that's what you want to do."

Suddenly, Hanna then shoved his side of the sign and Eden at the same time, forcibly pushing Eden backwards. Eden held on. John shoved again, then pushed Eden's shoulder back with the palm of his hand.

Stunned, Eden let go of the sign as John ripped it from his hands and threw it to the floor. An unknown person then picked up the sign and sprinted it out of the room, taking it to the staff room (according to Kathy Bowler).

What the hell? There's just no excuse for that kind of behavior. In my experience, there are some people in positions of political power, no matter the party, who are very angered and threatened by the recent increase in citizen participation in our democracy. They love their activists, just as long as they toe the line and keep their opinions to themselves. When you step out of your proscribed boundaries, they flip out. They're control freaks, imo. This isn't the first excessively angry and inappropriate response to respectful and peaceful disagreement that I've seen. And despite what the punditocracy might think, it's not a battle between the "moderates" and the "far left". It's more of a conflict between the insiders and the outsiders who are knocking on the door, demanding to be allowed entry.

Chairman Art Torres gave a speech last night where he mentioned his opposition to the censure Feinstein resolution, but he was respectful and mentioned that dissent, discussion and differences play an important role in the Democratic Party. We're not Republicans, afterall. Maybe Hanna was in the men's room during that part, so here's the clip:

The attitude that would allow someone like John Hanna to behave the way he did gives me a sense of deja vu. You may or may not know that much of my activism since 2000 has been peace activism. Hanna's ugly, angry behavior is emblematic of the way anti-war activists have been treated for years now.

In the early years of George Bush's administration, nearly all of the peace activists I knew and worked with were average, middle class, mostly professional women. Navy wives. Brownie troop leaders. School teachers. Nurses. Lawyers. Government workers. Mostly well-educated moms and grandmas. Many of them were women who were Democrats, but not particularly politically active until they were roused to action by their fear of the consequences of Bush's actions and disgust with what was being done in our name around the world. Those years of being treated with disrespect and disdain, even by their nervous Democratic representatives, is a part of what radicalized some of them, and totally disengaged others from the Democrats. The Dem Party has pretty much lost many of the peace activists I know.

It's simply amazing to see the netroots being treated much the same way. Despite an enormous diversity of age, income, occupation and opinion, bloggers and online activists are marginalized as single-minded troublemakers with a megaphone, just like peace activists were marginalized as "dirty hippies" that shouldn't be taken seriously. That makes it oh-so-easy to disregard what they have to say. The reality is, just like those peace moms, the netroots represents a wide and diverse voice. If you're paying any attention you will find online, an amazing cross-section of engaged, concerned citizens who want to be a part of the political process. I've long been under the impression that when you're unhappy with the way things are going in a democracy, it's our duty and responsibility to speak up. (They used to teach that in America's public schools, ya know.) These are your constituents you're ignoring, Ms. Feinstein. These are advocates for your party that you're pushing around, Mr. Hanna. You may not agree with some of what they say, but it's your JOB to listen and to behave like a responsible, professional adult. Not hide in the back of the office from the peace activists as I've seen DiFi do, nor physically intimidate party activists that you find annoying, as John Hanna did today.

Personally, I'm extremely thankful we have this nifty new technology called the Internet that allows us to have a public sphere again! It gives us "outsiders" a fighting chance against the "insiders" who want to maintain the status quo, and just use their activists as the envelope-stuffing, fundraising arm of the party.

Good luck with that.

(edit) Eden has posted a diary at Calitics to let it be known that he and Hanna had a coversation after the resolutions committee meeting, and both private and public apologies were made. I'm glad to hear it.

and

Rick Jacobs has posted his comments on the impact of the resolution to censure at Courage Campaign. Censure Killed; Point Made.

Join the Iraq Moratorium

2007-11-14T18:50:00.000-08:00

I hereby make a commitment that on the Third Friday of each and every month, I will break my daily routine and take some action, by myself or with others, to end the War in Iraq.

That's all. It's easy! You can sign the pledge too, but the most important part is that you do something. ANYTHING. Write a letter to the editor. Call your congresscritter. Put a sign on your lawn. Get artsy with your sidewalk chalk. Wear an anti-war pin. Protest.

Protesting, you say? Good choice! In San Diego you can join the Ocean Beach Grassroots Organization and San Diego Coalition for Peace and Justice at the entrance to Ocean Beach at Nimitz and Sunset Cliffs from 4 - 5:30 pm on Friday November 16, 2007.

The Iraq Moratorium website has information about local protests and other actions you can join in your community.

Take your pick. The point is to get as many people as possible to take a minute or an hour out of their day and do something to demonstrate their opposition to the occupation of Iraq.

More Power! Maybe.

2007-11-13T22:16:00.000-08:00

An article in today's San Diego Union Tribune asks if the San Diego power grid was in peril during the October wildfires, and the answer seems to be a resounding yes. What a potential nightmare. Can you imagine the possibility for chaos if people were trying to evacuate, and there was no power?

Because it is a geographic cul-de-sac, and because SDG&E has chosen to rely heavily on imported electricity, San Diego County typically imports about half the power it uses along two major lines.

With one of those lines disabled within hours of the fires' start, and with the other threatened by blazes, utility officials were forced to consider the possibility that San Diego could become an electrical “island” – and would need local management of the newly isolated grid.

But key players in the local power grid say they had never simulated or practiced managing SDG&E's territory as an “island.”

The local utility has previously characterized San Diego's vulnerability to transmission disruptions as so severe that it proposes to build another major power line, the controversial $1.5 billion Sunrise Powerlink, which would cross many of the areas that burned in the wildfires.

It's also been reported that many of the fires probably began as a spark from high power lines that were whipped by unusually strong winds. I can't help but think of this as another strike against the Sunrise Powerlink project which Sempra is proposing to bring additional power to the San Diego region. More high power lines in fire zones? That not only creates additional fire risk, but the fire risk exacerbates the risk to the power supply that Sempra claims to be concerned about.

The article sure doesn't make it sound like bringing more power from outside the county is the answer to our long term energy needs. It's not economical. It's not environmentally smart. It's not a good choice in a fire zone. It's yet another reason to appreciate the proposal by the San Diego Smart Energy Solutions Campaign which provides a plan for developing alternative and traditional energy sources within the county.

Why should Democrats censure Dianne Feinstein?

2007-11-13T17:14:00.000-08:00

This coming weekend, the California Democratic Party executive board will be meeting in Anaheim, and among the many items they'll be considering is a resolution to censure Senator Dianne Feinstein that was authored by California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus co-chair Mal Burnstein. I've copied the resolution below.

This resolution is currently supported by a coalition of grassroots and netroots organizations including Courage Campaign, Executive Board of the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus, Progressive Democrats of America, East Bay for Democracy Democratic Club, Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club, San Diego Democracy for America, Sacramento for Democracy, and DFA-Orange County.

Some (my dad, for example. Hi dad!) ask why these groups would be initiating and supporting such an effort when there are so many Republicans that deserve a reprimand or worse. I have to say that from one perspective, that's an understandable question. However these are unusual times, and many Democratic activists are extremely and justifiably angry with her for a series of terrible moves in the Senate including, but not limited to, her assists to Mukasey and Southwick, as well as her claim that the telecoms should be granted immunity for violating the law and cooperating in surveillance without a warrant upon American citizens. As Glenn Greenwald recently said:

Feinstein is not merely voting reliably for the most extremist Bush policies, though she is doing that. Far more than that, she has become, time and again, the linchpin of Bush's ability to have his most radical policies approved by the Senate.

Let's just stick to the basic principles of the Democratic Party....no....of the Constitution, for starters. I grumbled when she voted to give Bush enhanced surveillance powers under FISA, I gritted my teeth when she voted for Southwick to take a seat on the Court of Appeals, and I growled (and uttered a few other choice words) when she played a significant role in elevating Mukasey to the position of US Attorney General. But her statement last week on the telecom bill was the last straw. The communications corporations know the law, and knew they were violating it. Even if they truly didn't know, wouldn't that signify criminal negligence? They SHOULD know better. What is Feinstein thinking? How can anyone who claims to be a Democrat chose blatant law breaking over the protections afforded by the US Constitution? Immunity would not only prevent lawsuits against the telecoms, but would allow the true extent of the administration's surveillance activities to remain below the radar and out of the public eye. Protecting lawbreakers, justifying illegal actions, and subverting our system of justice is inexcusable. What hypocracy it would be to condem this behavior by Republicans, while excusing it in a Democrat.

In my experience, progressive Democrats overwhelmingly agree that a huge part of the weakness and ineffectiveness of the Democratic Party in recent years has been because so many in the party have been so willing to "go along to get along" with Republican partisans that are just going to turn around and stab them in the back at the next convenient opportunity. Of course politics takes compromise, but it's no longer a true compromise when one side constantly defines the choices as my way or the highway. Feinstein has provided perfect example after perfect example of this destructive behavior, and continues it even now when the Democrats are the majority party. She has repeatedly taken stands in opposition to party principles, and has refused to listen to her constituents. Well, now it's time to hold her accountable.

Progressives in the netroots and the grassroots have long said we don't simply want Democrats in office. We want Democrats, with spine and integrity, that will walk the Democratic walk, and stand up for our values. Why should anything less be acceptable, and why would anyone be surprised when we demand our political representatives take a principled stand based on our system of laws and our commonly-held ethical standards? If we truly want a stronger Democratic Party and a return to strong democratic values, we must make these demands. How else can the people express displeasure with a sitting Senator that doesn't seem to have much regard for the opinions of the citizens of California, and who quite possibly won't face re-election? The most obvious option is to raise our collective voice, and use the tools of our democracy.

So here we are....

Resolution

Whereas Senator Dianne Feinstein voted to support the nomination of Judge Michael Mukasey as United States Attorney General, thereby elevating to the highest position in law enforcement a man who refused to renounce the right of the President to resort to torture and who refused to recognize waterboarding as a form of torture, and by this action Senator Feinstein failed to oppose President Bush and failed to stand for the ideals of the Democratic Party, which abhors torture and stands firmly against its use by the United States at all times and places; and

Whereas Senator Feinstein voted to confirm Judge Leslie Southwick for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit despite his clear record of racism and gender discrimination, thus failing to stand firmly with the Democratic Party, which supports gender equality and opposes racism in any of its manifestations; and

Whereas these examples are far from the only instances where Senator Feinstein, after seeking and securing the support and endorsement of the California Democratic Party, has failed to support the policies and principles of our party;

Therefore be it resolved that the California Democratic Party expresses its disappointment at, and censure of, Senator Feinstein for ignoring Democratic principles and falling so far below the standard of what we expect of our elected officials.

Endorsed by the Courage Campaign, Executive Board of the California Democratic Party Progressive Caucus, Progressive Democrats of America, East Bay for Democracy Democratic Club, Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club, San Diego Democracy for America, Sacramento for Democracy, and DFA-Orange County (to add your organization to this endorsement list, please click here).

Visit the Courage Campaign to sign up to support the resolution to censure Senator Dianne Feinstein.

Secure Accurate Elections November Newsletter

2007-11-12T20:28:00.000-08:00

The following is the November newsletter of Secure Accurate Elections, a Southern California based, election integrity advocacy group that I think does great work to ensure ethics and transparency in our election process. If you like what you see, you can sign up for their once a month newsletter right here.

NOVEMBER NEWSLETTER

1. RECENT ACTIVITIES OF SECURE ACCURATE ELECTIONS

A. Meetings With San Diego Registrar of Voters Deborah Seiler

On November 8,. 2007 SAE representatives met with Ms. Seiler to discuss how votes are purged from the active voter lists and how absentee ballots are handled by the Registrar of Voters Office. The notes from this meeting will be posted soon on our website and we will be sending out a separate email regarding this meeting.

Secure Accurate Elections has been part of a group of concerned citizens meeting with Deborah Seiler since June of this year. SAE has also meet with Ms. Seiler twice to discuss topics of concern to election integrity. Notes from SAE’s meeting with Deborah Seiler on June 29, 2007 are already posted at SAE.

B. BlackWater Coming to San Diego County? SAE Will Be Observing the Potrero /Blackwater Election

This December 11, there will be an all mail in recall election in Potrero, a tiny rural town east of San Diego. The recall calls for the removal of five members of the Potrero Planning Group who voted to approve a paramilitary training center operated by the private security firm Blackwater USA. There are about 450 votes in Potrero and the election will be all mail in and hand counted at the Registrar of Voters offices. Secure Accurate Elections will have representatives at the hand count which will take place on election night beginning at 8:00 pm. A second hand count will take place the next morning which will also be observed by members of SAE and other election integrity groups

C. Will Federal Legislation to Protect Voters Be In Place for 2008?

Secure Accurate Elections has a list of election integrity bills that are currently in various committees and have not been brought to the floor for a vote. Time is running out on any legislation that will affect the November 2008 election.

We urge everyone to look at the legislation listed at http://www.secureelections.org/congressionalbills2007.pdf

Please sign the petition that says the House of Representative should Vote to Amend Holt's HR 811, or Vote No.

Sign a petition in support of Senator Obama’s bill S. 453 to prohibit deceptive practices in Federal elections.

For other petitions to sign see our website.

2. Controversial California Ballot Initiative Is Back (Like A Bad Meal, the Electoral College Initiative Signature Gathering is Back and What's Being Done About It!)

Remember the electoral college ballot initiative in California? The one that would change the state's method of allocating electoral votes from winner-take-all to a congressional district-based approach? It’s back!

There are paid signature gatherers out there thanks to the infusion of money by big donors such as Representative Darrell Issa. There are reports that some of these signature gatherers are misrepresenting the initiative using unscrupulous methods to get people to sign.

California Democrats have set up a hot line to call if you see anyone collecting signatures. They will send volunteers to the site to explain how this initiative will really affect California. The number to call is 916-442-5707.

Although SAE is a non-partisan group, we do believe in fairness and telling both sides of an argument. Therefore, we would encourage you to call and report the paid collecting of signatures for this initiative which we feel would put California at a disadvantage during presidential elections. Although some Republicans may think this will help get their candidate elected this November, they should remember that unfair practices may come back to haunt them should they ever be in the reverse position.

To quote the North County Times Editorial of November 6, 2007, “ California’s gerrymandered congressional districts are hardly the place one should start on a high road to electoral reform. Districts drawn by incumbent politicians to protect their constituencies are an affront to good governance, much less democracy, and the evidence is entrenched in Sacramento.

Even the North County Times Editorial staff think this is a bad idea. Deep pockets, shallow thinking

Read More:
Controversial California ballot initiative may still live

The dirty trick initiative appears to have some new life.

California Recall Financier Issa Backs Electoral Plan (Update1)

Issa boosts electoral measure

Legal Challenge On Electoral Change: Democrats Say Initiative Violates U.S. Constitution and Vow A Suit To Fight It.

The Story Behind the Revival of the California Electoral College Scheme and the Dots That Connect to the Giuliani Campaign.

A quiet but important initiative

3. New Senate Bill ( S. 2295) Strives to Protect American Voters)

Senator Bill Nelson of Florida introduced a bill on November 1, 2007. Nelson’s bill would require all voting machines to produce a voter-verified paper trail by next year’s presidential election and provides up to $1 billion for states to use for new voting equipment. The bill would phase out the use of touch-screen voting machines in federal elections by 2012.

Nelson’s bill would be the first to seek a ban on electronic touch screen voting machines in federal benedictions nationwide. More specifically, the bill says:

A voter-verified paper ballot must be produced for every vote cast, beginning with the November 2008 elections.
Direct recording electronic voting machines may not be used in federal elections, beginning in 2012.
Routine random audits must be conducted by hand count in 3 percent of the precincts in all federal elections.
An arms-length relationship is established between test labs and voting-machine vendors.

Read More:

Congress Gets New Election Bill To Ban Controversial Machines:

Bill To Ban DRE (Touch Screen) Voting Machines (BradBlog.com)

Nelson Bill

4. Fair Elections Action Week - Nov. 12-16

The Fair Elections Action Week is coming up! People who care about clean and fair elections are taking action now so that we can show Congress that Americans want an end to pay-to-play politics.

We are closer than ever to cleaning up Washington. The Fair Elections Now Act is gaining support in the Senate and we anticipate the introduction of the companion bill in the House to happen very soon! A voluntary system of public funding for congressional elections would allow members of Congress to serve without taking huge sums of special interest money. Elections should be about voters, not campaign cash.
Visit this website to see what you can do to help.

5. An Interesting Website To Check Out:

The National Campaign for Fair Elections is an Initiative of the Voting Rights Project of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

The goal of the National Campaign is to foster a national movement committed to ensuring that all voters have an equal opportunity to cast a meaningful ballot. To that end, NCFFE leads Election Protection - the nation's largest non-partisan voter protection coalition including the Lawyers' Committee, the National Bar Association, the NAACP, and the People for the American Way Foundation. Through our hotline and a dedicated army of volunteers we help tens of thousands of voters access the polls and overcome the obstacles to the ballot box.
National Campaign Website

6. What! Diebold Admits to a Mistake? Diebold/Premier Admits Memory Card Failure On Popular Optical-Scan Voting.

BradBlog’s guest writer John Gideon of http://www.votersunite.org/ wrote that “Saturday's Daytona Beach News-Journal reports that Diebold Election Systems, now having renamed itself Premier Election Solutions, has admitted that some of its 25,000 optical scan voting machines used in Florida and elsewhere across the nation may have a problem that causes memory card failures during elections.”

Read More Here:
Diebold/Premier Admits Memory Card Failure On Popular Optical-Scan Voting Machines

Survey contradicts vote machine firm's failure rate claim

7. Support S. 453 - A Bill To Prohibit Deceptive Practices In Federal Elections By Senator Barack Obama.

This piece of legislation would prescribe criminal penalties for deceptive practices in federal elections. It makes a person who deliberately prevents another person from exercising the right to vote an essential element of the offence. The last action taken on this bill was on October 4, 2007 when it was placed on the Senate Legislative Calendar. Sign the National Campaign for Fair Elections petition to support the Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act.

8. Measure That Would Prohibit 'Voter Supression' Tactics Introduced in Senate

A press release from Sen. John Kerry's (D-MA) office announcing the new bill is posted in full below. "The practice of 'caging' is reprehensible and has absolutely no place in our democracy," Kerry says in the statement. "Here in America, every citizen, regardless of race, gender, religion or sexual orientation has the right to cast his or her vote. These are the very foundations of our democracy and this bill will ensure that we protect fundamental freedoms for millions of voters across our country."

In addition to Kerry, the original co-sponsors of the legislation include Senators Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Barack Obama (D-Ill.), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Chris Dodd (D-Conn.)
Vote Caging Bill

9. Concern Over Elections Makes The Main Media

Here are some articles that appeared recently in main media magazines. The public is becoming more aware of the problems with electronic voting and the big money that has taken over our election system.

Dialing For Dollars (Newsweek)

Voting Out E-Voting Machines (Time)

10. Tyranny Of A Tiny Minority!

Using Census figures, Geoghegan discovers that the 11 percent of Americans living in the least populated states have enough Senate votes — 41 — to sustain a filibuster. Yes, 89 percent of the population may support a policy, but 11 percent of the population has the senators to block that policy's enactment. When you go further than Geoghegan and consider the election-focused mindset of politicians, you see the situation is even more absurd.

Read the article here.

Shame on you!

2007-11-12T20:03:00.000-08:00

Beginning this year the California State Franchise Tax Board is publicly calling out the creme de la creme of the state's tax scofflaws.

I see a couple famous names there. I unsuccessfully scrutinized the list in hopes of a juicy political scoop, but it wasn't much of a shock to find OJ there. Maybe you'll have better luck finding a local scandal than I did.

It just makes sense for them to publish this info. We're living in the golden age of public shame. They'll be setting up the stocks in the public square any day now.

Dahr Jamail in San Diego this Thursday

2007-11-11T11:04:00.000-08:00

On Thursday November 15, 2007, at 7:00 pm, journalist and author Dahr Jamail will be speaking at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Diego 4190 Front Street, Hillcrest, San Diego (opposite UCSD Medical Center. Parking is limited but there is street parking within two blocks.) Donations are requested, but not required. Dahr's book "Beyond the Green Zone: Dispatches from an Unembedded Journalist in Occupied Iraq" will be available for sale. This book signing and speaking engagement is a part of the UUC of San Diego's monthly series, Matters of Controversy. For more information call: 858-459-4650.

Presented by: The Peace and Democracy Action Group of the First UU Church, Activist San Diego, National Lawyers Guild, SD Veterans for Peace, SD Coalition for Peace & Justice, Progressive San Diego.

Digby vs The He-Man Women Haters Club

2007-11-10T16:47:00.000-08:00

~~Darla~~ Digby has recently been kicking down the clubhouse door over the sniggering, sophomoric sexism of the cable news talking heads when they're talking about Senator Clinton.

When women say they support Hillary it's because they are irrationally supporting someone because of their gender. When men say they won't support Hillary it's because "she gives off the feeling that she despises them." If you even bring up the fact that there are men out there who will refuse to vote for any woman, you attacked for allegedly saying that men aren't decent people. Heads I win, tails you lose.

Carlson believes that women shouldn't be allowed to vote if they like the idea that a woman may become president and vote for her partially on that basis, but it's not irrational for (white) men vote against a woman because they irrationally feel she "despises them.

Binga.

Hillary is hovering around number four on my list of Democratic favorites, which breaks my heart because the idea of a women smashing that particular glass ceiling is something I truly hope to see in my lifetime. I believe she just might do it, and I'll vote for her if she is the nominee, but I realllllly wanted to love the first viable female candidate. Despite the fact that I don't feel the Hilary love, I absolutely hate listening to what passes for informed discourse whenever she's the subject of conversation. Why yes, it does make the hair stand up on the back of my neck.

It's like having everyone assume that the "normal" state of being in this world is male and this strange idea of appealing to women is some sort of illegitimate pander to an extreme, fringe interest group.

Between the inherent sexism, the trivialization of her as a serious candidate, the constant media pandering to the lowest denominator, and Tucker Carlson's irrational castration anxiety, this is going to be a very long presidential campaign season.

In unrelated Hillary news, The Left Coaster has a very interesting report on her actual voting record. Eriposte compares her corporate contributions to her Progressive Punch scores which show she may not be as much of a "corporatist" as some might want you to believe. You can see for yourself if she walks the walk or not. I do still note her unfortunately low scores on war and peace, civil liberties, and human rights. Those issues are high on my scale of importance, which explains why she's low on my list of favs.

Friday Random Ten

2007-11-09T19:12:00.001-08:00

I'm sharing my random ten in celebration of the fact that I brought my iPod back from the dead.

Sunday Shining - Finley Quaye
Viva Tirado - El Chicano
Monster Hospital - Metric
Everyday I Write the Book - Elvis Costello
Brass in Pocket - The Pretenders
Wonderful Remark- Van Morrison
When You Come - Crowded House
Don't Talk (Lay Your Head on My Shoulder) - The Beach Boys
Crazy Mary - Pearl Jam
Shine On You Crazy Diamond - Pink Floyd

That's kind of cool that it started and ended with something shiny. Not that I'm easily amused or anything.

Everybody Loves Dennis

2007-11-04T19:43:00.000-08:00

Well, yeah. I know. Not everybody. But Rebecca Traister at Salon has a good point, and she is pretty damn funny too.

Dennis Kucinich is our man! If he can't do it, well, that's because we're all chickenshit and condemned to a future of our own making. Yay, Dennis!

It's true, and I suspect many of you think it to yourselves, perhaps even confess it sotto voce to your loved ones during each Democratic debate (especially the ones where he doesn't mention the UFO): If the Democratic base pulled levers for the candidate whose policies best reflected its own beliefs, Dennis Kucinich should win his party's nomination in a landslide.

OK, sure, his reign as mayor of Cleveland was a mess. He has never passed a piece of legislation. He loves to flash peace signs that provoke flashbacks of your crazy Aunt Martha's annual Woodstock slide show. The fact that when you try to picture him at any sort of summit, you quickly envision Nicolas Sarkozy stealing his lunch money leads you to suspect that he might be an ineffective player on the world stage. He is a vegan. He has been compelled by his sense of honesty, and his close personal friendship with Shirley MacLaine, to disclose his encounters with extraterrestrial life. Also, he really does bear an unfortunate resemblance to a leprechaun. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

In today's We're So Screwed News...

2007-11-03T09:31:00.000-07:00

Spies for Hire

First it became a brand name in security for its work in Iraq and Afghanistan. Now it's taking on intelligence.

The Prince Group, the holding company that owns Blackwater Worldwide, has been building an operation that will sniff out intelligence about natural disasters, business-friendly governments, overseas regulations and global political developments for clients in industry and government.

The operation, Total Intelligence Solutions, has assembled a roster of former spooks - high-ranking figures from agencies such as the CIA and defense intelligence - that mirrors the slate of former military officials who run Blackwater. Its chairman is Cofer Black, the former head of counterterrorism at CIA known for his leading role in many of the agency's more controversial programs, including the rendition and interrogation of al-Qaeda suspects and the detention of some of them in secret prisons overseas.

Everything's privatized now, isn't it?

During the worst days of the recent Southern California fires...

2007-11-02T19:42:00.000-07:00

...the Calitics community did a great job of providing news and constantly updated information, often from the front lines of the wildfires. As the immediate emergency has settled into recovery, there have been diaries about the need to properly fund public fire safety infrastructure to the ugly politics of disaster. All very well done. Thankfully, we can sit in our homes and have the luxury of thinking about the fires, and talking about the fires, and seeing the fires in the abstract, without having it immediately and directly impact our own lives. It becomes harder to think of it in the abstract once you hear the stories of people who were personally affected. Just like anything else in the news or the political arena, there are people behind the stories.

On Sunday October 21, soon after the Harris Ranch fire started in eastern San Diego County near Potrero, long-time east county residents Thomas and Dianne Varshock, and their 15 year old son Richard, prepared to evacuate their Tecate ranch. They loaded one vehicle with their belongings and their dogs, and Dianne drove west, away from the approaching firestorm. Tom and Richard stayed behind loading the other car, and hosing down their property in an effort to control the burn, but when Tom called for Richard to come to the car, there was no reply. As he was looking for his son, four firefighters arrived and the five of them began looking for Richard. He was soon found by one of the firefighters, but he was unconscious. Immediately, as they used their radio to call for help, a wall of superheated gases and flames blew over the ridge and onto the Varshock ranch, where it overtook them all. Amazingly, they were all rescued by helicopter, except for Tom who had become separated from the rest and perished in the flames. The firefighters and Richard were all critically injured, with severe burns to large percentages of their bodies and injury from smoke inhalation.

The Varshocks have suffered a tragic loss, and have a long and difficult road ahead. Richard has already had seven hours of surgery, and will have many years of difficult medical treatment in his future. Their health insurance is not expected to cover the costs of his care. They've lost their home, their business which was on the ranch, and most of their belongings, and there was no fire insurance since the 2003 Cedar Fires. Dianne will be unable to work for the foreseeable future while she cares for her son and her self. They had recently invested a significant amount of their savings into the ranch, and are now in an financially difficult position as that money will not be recouped through insurance. The family is in dire straits.

Tom was a high school wrestling coach and respected community member, and the Varshocks have many friends in Potrero and Tecate. I have heard nothing but heartfelt words for Tom, Dianne and Richard.

Gordon Hammers, chairman of the Potrero Community Planning Group and a close friend of Thomas Varshock, said father and son “were defending their home and trying to save it. The fire was moving so fast, they just got overwhelmed.”

“He was a sterling character,” Hammers said of Varshock.

Jan Hedlun, a former business partner of Varshock's, described him as an extremely intelligent geologist and expert in evaluating construction defects. “He was an entirely generous person with a family spirit” who donated his time to build a local library, she said.

Richard is a high school wrestler, and Tom was a coach, so the local wrestling community has chipped in and rented an apartment near the hospital for Dianne. Others in the community are pitching in to help. There are several ways you can help too.

Tax deductible donations for Richard's healthcare expenses can be made to:
Varshock Family Foundation
Post Office Box 3484
San Diego, CA 92163
Tax ID: 26-1307576

Non-Tax deductible gifts that may be used for living and personal expenses can be sent to:
Dianne Varshock
San Diego County Credit Union
312 West Main Street
El Cajon, CA 92020-3320

Burn Institute Fund
(credit cards accepted)
The Varshock Fund is designed to help Richard's family cover basic needs and assist with rehabilitation and specialized care. Call Diane Sparacino at the Burn Institute at 858-541-2277 or donate online at the Burn Institute or by mail to:

The Varshock Fund
A UCSD Burn Institute
8825 Aero Drive #200
San Diego, CA 92123-2269

My personal beliefs and my political beliefs come from the same place. I believe one of our primary duties on this earth to care for one another, cooperatively and as a community. Corny? Maybe, but I truly mean it. When a disaster of this magnitude occurs it's just so BIG that personal stories and struggles get lost or forgotten, and I don't like to see that happen. Just so it's clear, I don't know the family, but they're friends of friends and this is a devastating tragedy for many people in the Varshock's community, and in their circle of family and friends. From one community to another, I want to help.

Cross posted at Calitics

Blackwater's bad neighbor policy

2007-10-30T19:14:00.000-07:00

If you want to know if it's a good idea for Blackwater to move into your neighborhood, you can look to Moyok, NC to get a sense of how they are once they've gotten settled in.

According to MoJo Blog, a WTKR reporter was not allowed inside Blackwater's bi-annual "community forum". Other community members were kept out because their properties weren't adjacent to Blackwater. According to interviews with some of the 50 people who were allowed into the meeting room that seated 300, the primary concerns of the neighbors were related to the noise and the traffic generated by Blackwater.

He (Blackwater President Gary Jackson) also talked about a possible solution to all the traffic that drives down the narrow Puddin Ridge road to their gate. He hinted that if the Navy builds an outlying landing field on the site near Blackwater it could open the door to a new access road for the compound.

I can't help but think it odd that they think the answer to the traffic and noise is a Navy landing field. Yes, it might grant another access point, but is a noisy, traffic generating NAVY BASE the solution?

According to the video Blackwater Holds Community Forum, found on WTKR's video page, they weren't just trying to keep out "troublemakers"...there's an interview with a man who seems kind of bewildered that he'd be kept out because he supports them. Sounds like once they're in the door, they may not need those friendly residents anymore.

That's not very neighborly, if you ask me.

Sunday random thoughts on the fires

2007-10-28T11:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the last day that Border Angels and MAPA were collecting donations at Chicano Park. Today they'll be having a noon press conference in front of the Federal building in downtown San Diego.

You can still donate supplies for underserved communities at Western Service Workers Association,3014 Imperial Ave., SD 92102—PLEASE CALL FIRST to schedule a drop-off time (619-238-9763), as their staff/volunteer capacity is limited.

Items most needed in the coming weeks include: food, water, toiletries, feminine hygiene products, diapers, men's clothing, clean socks, new underwear (for men, women, & children), and tents/canopies/tarps.

It's a mistake to assume everyone in SoCal can hop into their car, and drive away to safety when a disaster strikes. People that live in dry riverbeds don't get reverse 911 calls. Even if they manage to get to an official shelter, without appropriate ID, they can't get help from the Red Cross. There are both migrants and homeless people in the areas burned, and they often have no ID. We do have poor people in San Diego, believe it or not, and they do get left behind in a disaster. We just hide our poor very well in SoCal. I'm not suggesting this is a catastrophe to the degree of what happened in New Orleans, but it still happens and thankfully there are people like Mr. Morones who recognize the problem, and care enough to do something to help.

That is one of the reasons I've been so completely repulsed by the Good-Ol'-Boy-we're-sure-not-New-Orleans! backslapping here the past few days. The fires have been terrible, but it's not a disaster of the same magnitude that Katrina brought to the gulf coast. We didn't have dozens of bodies floating down Main Street. We have millions of unaffected people left in town who can pitch in and help. It's not a comparable situation, and I don't know why they act like they deserve brownie points for not failing completely and miserably. The self-congratulatory behavior by state and local public officials was just . . . icky.

They should quite patting themselves on the back, and look at providing adequate fire protection in San Diego and throughout SoCal for a change.

(edit) Exhibit A.

Lamentably, New Orleans has long been its own worst enemy. That city, perhaps fittingly known as the Big Easy, is plagued by historically corrupt politics, chronically high crime rates, inept policing, bad schools and far too little of the civic glue that holds communities together in adversity.

The nightmarish breakdown of order, public safety and civility at New Orleans' Superdome in the days after Katrina is the enduring image of civic dysfunction. San Diego's counterpoint was Qualcomm Stadium where 10,000-plus evacuees were sheltered amid an outpouring of volunteers and mountains of donated supplies – everything from bottled water, food, diapers and sanitary items to clothing and sunscreen – in perfect safety and relative comfort.

When Log Cabin Republicans Attack!

2007-10-27T20:46:00.000-07:00

Romney has the reputation of being a flip flopper, and with good reason. He's currently having a "reap what you sow" moment with the Log Cabin Republicans.

A 30-second TV spot that recently aired in Iowa opens with a still frame of Mitt Romney and a calm female voice intoning, "For years, he's fought conservatives and religious extremists." It goes on to show the former Massachusetts governor stating a variety of socially moderate views, at one point reprising a video clip from a 1994 debate in which he says, "I believe abortion should be safe and legal in this country." The ad closes with the lines, "A record fighting the religious right. A pro-choice record. Massachusetts values. Mitt Romney."

As Romney strives to remake himself as a social conservative—the candidate who represents "the Republican wing of the Republican party," as he recently put it—his previously moderate views on gay rights, abortion, and gun control are precisely the issues he's trying to distance himself from. So who's behind the devious ad? Not a liberal 527 or one of his GOP rivals—it's the Log Cabin Republicans, the national organization of gay conservatives, who have made Romney the target of a full-fledged attack campaign.

Mitt Romney has done a complete reverse on LGBT issues. When he ran for governor of Massachusetts, he had the Log Cabin Republican's endorsement, based on his stated support of domestic partnership rights, federal non-discrimination legislation, and his statements of support for "gays and lesbians . . . to serve openly and honestly in our nation's military."

Now Romney is the only Republican candidate to support a constitutional amendment to prohibit same-sex marriage. He now also opposes federal non-discrimination legislation (ENDA), and supports Don't Ask, Don't Tell. That's a dizzying spin in a few short years.

Romney is one who will tell you what you want to hear to get your endorsement....and your vote. I don't know about you, but I'm really hoping to elect a president this time that places some value on personal honesty. The cheap, cynical pandering to the far right is getting tiresome. I'm sort of burned out on the deception thing now.

In addition to the commercial below, LCR has provided a helpful list of Romney's ever changing statements, in all their flip-floppy goodness.

Donations needed!

2007-10-27T10:31:00.000-07:00

I just received word that says the Chicano Park drop off location is facing an increasing demand for food and clothing, but the donations have dropped off significantly. They've been receiving calls from places like Potrero, Pala and Valley Center as the immediate danger is lifting, and people are beginning to ask for help in the rural areas.

The following items can be dropped off at Chicano Park on Logan Avenue under the Coronado Bridge (5 Freeway, Cesar Chavez exit) from 8 am-7 pm on Friday and Saturday:

Non-perishable food (preferably items which don’t need to be cooked)
Water / Juice
Blankets / Sleeping bags
Tents / Canopies / Tarps (for shade)
Eye drops / Face masks
Toiletries / Feminine hygiene products / First aid supplies
Sunscreen / Hats / Sunglasses
Baby products (diapers, formula, food, etc.)
Activities for children (books, games, toys, etc.)
Small- to medium-sized boxes for sorting & transporting supplies

Much-needed monetary contributions can be mailed to: Border Angels, P.O. Box 86598, San Diego, CA 92138 (please write “Fire Victims’ Relief” on the memo line).

FEMA's Fake Forum

2007-10-26T21:40:00.000-07:00

The Al Kamen at WaPo makes note of yesterday's press conference where the FEMA PR team posed as reporters and threw softballs to deputy administrator, Harvey Johnson.

FEMA's got some serious spin control going on there, don't they? I see that Fox broadcast it as a legit press conference. No biggie for them. It's just another day at the office. I don't know if it was on other channels, but I suspect so.

Heck of a job.

Video at Think Progress.

Chris Dodd's speech on FISA and the rule of law

2007-10-26T17:06:00.000-07:00

The full text of his remarks

Mr. President, for 6 years the President has demonstrated time and again that he doesn't respect the role of Congress, nor does he respect the rule of law. It is the latter point that I want to address this morning because it is the rule of law which draws us all together, regardless of politics, ideology, or party. It is the rule of law, not of men, which we swear to uphold when we take the oath of office in this Chamber, as Members do in the other Chamber, and certainly as the President does on January 20 every 4 years.

For 6 years this President has used scare tactics to prevent the Congress from reining in his abuse of authority. A case in point is the current direction this body appears to be headed in as we prepare to reform and extend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

Many of the unprecedented rollbacks to the rule of law by this administration have been made in the name of national security. The Bush administration has relentlessly focused our Nation's resources and manpower on a war of choice in Iraq. That ill-conceived war has broken our military, squandered our resources, and emboldened our enemies.

The President's wholesale disregard of the rule of law has compounded the damage done in Iraq, made our Nation less secure, and as a direct consequence of these acts, we are far less secure, far more vulnerable, and certainly far more isolated in the world today.

Consider the scandal at Abu Ghraib, where Iraqi prisoners were subjected to inhumane, humiliating acts by U.S. personnel charged with guarding them.

Consider Guantanamo Bay. Rather than helping to protect the Nation by aggressively prosecuting prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, these individuals have instead become the symbol of our weakened moral standing in the world. Who would have ever imagined it?

Consider the secret prisons run by the Central Intelligence Agency and the practice of extraordinary rendition that allows them to evade U.S. law regarding torture.

Consider the shameful actions of our outgoing Attorney General who politicized prosecutions in the U.S. Attorney's Office, who was more committed to serving the President who appointed him than laws he was sworn to uphold as Attorney General.

Consider the Military Commissions Act, a law that allows evidence obtained through torture to be admitted into evidence.

It denies individuals the right to counsel.

It denies them the right to invoke the Geneva Conventions.

And it denies them the single most important and effective safeguard of liberty man has ever known, the right of habeas corpus, permitting prisoners to be brought before a court to determine whether their detainment is lawful.

Warrantless wiretapping, torture, the list goes on.

Each of these policies share two things in common.

First, they have severely weakened our ability to prosecute the global war on terrorism, if for no other reason than they have made it harder, if not impossible, to build the kind of international support and cooperation we absolutely need to succeed in our efforts against stateless terrorism.

And second, each has only been possible because the U.S. Congress has not been able to stop the President in his unprecedented expansion of executive power; although I might add, some in this body have certainly tried.

Whether these policies were explicitly authorized is beside the point. In every instance, Congress has been unable to hold this administration to account for violating the rule of law and our Constitution. In each instance, Republicans in the Congress have prevented this body from telling this administration that a state of war is not a blank check.

And those are not my words. Those are the words of Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, nominated by President Ronald Reagan.

Today, it appears that we are prepared to consider the proposed renewal of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, a law that whatever form it eventually takes will almost certainly permit the Bush administration to broadly eavesdrop on American citizens.

Legislation, as currently drafted, that would grant retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that helped this administration violate the civil liberties of Americans and the law of this Nation.

While it may be true that the proposed legislation is an improvement over existing law, it remains fundamentally flawed because it fails to protect the privacy rights of Americans or hold the Executive or the private sector accountable if they choose to ignore the law.

That is why I will not stand on the floor of the Senate and be silent about the direction we are about to take.

It is time to say: No more.

No more trampling on our Constitution.

No more excusing those who violate the rule of law.

These are fundamental, basic, eternal principles. They have been around, some of them, for as long as the Magna Carta.

They are enduring.

What they are not is temporary.

And what we do not do in a time where our country is at risk is abandon them.

My father served as executive trial counsel at the Nuremberg trials of Nazi war criminals in 1945 and 1946. What America accomplished at those historic trials was not a foregone conclusion. It took courage.

When Joseph Stalin and even a leader as great and noble as Winston Churchill wanted to simply execute the Nazi leaders, we didn't back down in this country from our belief that these men, as terrible as they were -- some of the worst violators in the court of history of mankind -- ought to have a trial. We did not give in to vengeance.

As then, the issue before us today is the same.

Does America stand for all that is still right with our world. Or do we retreat in fear?

Do we stand for justice that secures America, or do we act out of vengeance that weakens us?

I am well aware this issue is seen as political. I believe Democrats were elected to help strengthen our Nation, elected to help restore our standing in the world. I believe we were elected to ensure that this Nation adheres to the rule of law and to stop the administration's assault on our Constitution.

But the rule of law is not the province of any one political party. It is the province of each and every one of us as American citizens, on our watch and our generation, to make sure we are safer because of its inviolable provisions.

Mr. President, I know this bill has not been reported out of the Judiciary Committee yet.

But I am here today because if I have learned anything in my 26 years in this body, particularly over the last 7 years, it is that if you wait until the end to voice your concerns, you will have waited too long. That is why I have written the majority leader informing him that I will object to any effort to bring the legislation to the Senate floor for consideration.

I hope my colleague, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Senator Leahy is able to remove this language from the FISA bill. Pat Leahy is as strong a defender of the Constitution as any Member of this body.

But if he is unable to do so, I am prepared to filibuster this bill.

President Bush is right about one thing: The debate is about security but not in the way he imagines it.

He believes we have to give up certain rights to be safe.

I believe the choice between moral authority and security is a false choice. I believe it is precisely when you stand up and protect your rights that you become stronger, not weaker, as a nation.

The damage that was done to our country on 9/11 was stunning. It changed the world forever.

But when you start diminishing our rights as a people, you compound that tragedy. You cannot protect America in the long run if you fail to protect our Constitution. It is that simple.

History will likely judge this President harshly for his war of choice and for fighting it with a disregard for our most cherished principles.

But history is about tomorrow. We must act today and stand up for the Constitution and the rule of law.

Mr. President, this is the moment. At long last, let us rise up to it.

I urge my colleagues to join me in this effort.

Oct 27: Fall out against the war

2007-10-26T14:40:00.001-07:00

Despite the fact that the solidarity march and rally against the occupation in Iraq has been postponed in San Diego due to the fires, everything else is still a GO for tomorrow's National Mobilization to End the Iraq War, called by United for Peace and Justice. The closest action to San Diego will be in Los Angeles and there will be a number of solidarity actions throughout the county.

As Molly Ivins said in her final column earlier this year, "We need people in the streets, banging pots and pans and demanding, "Stop it, now!"

Border Angels

2007-10-25T15:34:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned earlier, in the wake of the fires, several groups are collecting emergency supplies in San Diego county. The Border Angels and several other local grassroots and humanitarian organizations are accepting food, water and other emergency relief supplies at Chicano Park that will be delivered, both to shelters and to assist those who fall outside the usual social safety nets. They collected over 100 truckloads of supplies, and several of their trips were to fields and migrant camps in the north county where workers continued their work in the fields, breathing in the smoke filled air, while residents evacuated the area. According to Enrique Morones of Border Angels, they were able to persuade some to seek safe shelter during the fires.

The park is located in Barrio Logan beneath the SD-Coronado Bay Bridge, and please feel free to join them if you'd like to help in this relief effort. According to Enrique, they'll be there this coming Saturday if you'd like to help or make a donation this weekend.

They will continue to collect supplies in Chicano Park over the next few days, despite harrassment by the bullying Minutemen who appear to have nothing better to do than attempt to disrupt relief efforts for people in need. I can't even begin to understand the mindset of those people.

My mama raised me to believe in helping people without judging their skin color, religion, politics or by asking for thier immigration status. Since it's being reported that ICE has been at Qualcomm checking papers, that's not exactly a safe place for migrants to go seek help. I'm very glad there are people in this world like Enrique Moreno, the Border Angels and their associates that will lend a hand without judgement.

Buh-bye to Order 17

2007-10-25T09:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday the Iraqi government revoked the Coalition Provisional Authority's decree that US contractors be granted immunity from prosecution in Iraq. This decree, also known as Order 17, had been one of Paul Bremer's last acts as he left Baghdad in 2004, and has protected firms, such as Blackwater, from prosecution for criminal actions.

Article 1 of Section 2 of CPA order 17 issued by then US administrator for Iraq, Paul Bremer, stipulates that the "multinational force, foreign liaison missions, their personnel, property, funds and assets and all international consultants shall be immune from Iraqi legal process."

As a side note, I can't help but think of the irony of US contractors demanding they shouldn't be subjected to Iraqi law while in Iraq, while at the same time, people in the US are screeching about how terrible migrants are for not respecting our sovereign borders.

If our goal is for Iraq to be a sovereign nation, then we MUST follow their laws. Period. Why is there any question? Remember the phrase, "when Iraqi's step up, we'll step down". Well? Maybe it's time to start stepping down. In fact, they probably will once they realize they will be subject to a law other than their own.

One of the problems with depending as heavily on contractors as we have in Iraq is that they're not the military, and can not be controlled in the same way. Contractors can just up and leave whenever they decide it's no longer in their best financial interest to be there. They are different people, with different missions and different priorities, but the US government has put us in a position of dependency upon for-profit private military contractor. That was incredibly stupid, if you ask me, but they think the free market provides the answers for everything. Guess what. It doesn't.

In other Blackwater related news, the NY Times has an article today about Blackwater's bunker mentality after the September shootings in Nisour Square. Coincidentally, or not, I noticed the leader of the convoy at that Baghdad square was someone named Hoss. I'm wishing I had my copy of Jeremy Scahill's book Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army, but I loaned it to someone. That nickname sounds very familiar.

Oct 27 Peace Rally Postponed

2007-10-25T07:21:00.000-07:00

Due to the fires, the scheduled "Fund Healthcare, Not Warfare" rally and march in Downtown San Diego have been cancelled. You can find the entire announcement on the San Diego Coalition for Peace and Justice website.

We decided, finally, that now was not the time for such a public discussion but rather a time for coming together in support of those most impacted by the fire's destruction.

With this in mind, we would like to urge each and every person who planned to come to the demonstration this Saturday to volunteer and/or contribute to relief efforts - especially for those who find themselves outside of the traditional safety net. Suggestions include helping the Border Angels and the Displaced Farm Worker Drive.

Last I heard, donations were being taken at Chicano Park for these organizations. I'm checking to see if that drive is on-going, and will update you with any more information about these efforts to assist as soon as I receive it.

Also, there is still a rally for this Saturday that is scheduled to go on as planned in the Los Angeles ares. For more details: United for Peace and Justice.

(update) I've been told they're still collecting donations at Chicano Park that will be used to assist migrant farmworkers. I'll keep working on getting more details.

Reverse 911 on your cell?

2007-10-24T20:06:00.001-07:00

Many people have given up their land lines, and are depending completely on cell phones these days, but the reverse 911 system doesn't call cell phones. I heard that bit of information somewhere yesterday, and it seemed a compelling reason to keep a pretty pink princess phone on your nightstand (other than the obvious reason that it will make you feel like a princess. duh.) Today the UT has posted on their fireblog that you can register your cell phone to receive emergency alerts on the City of San Diego emergency website, however the county just installed their system over the last few months, and that functionality isn't set up yet.

Funding fire fighting in CA

2007-10-24T14:18:00.000-07:00

Miriam Raftery blogs at Brad Blog about the inadequate resources dedicated to fire fighting in California, including the Governor's veto of increased budget funding for equipment and staff.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and local officials have made media appearances claiming credit for swiftly responding to the disaster. “There is much more equipment available, more manpower is available, quicker action,” Schwarzenegger said, according to the Associated Press.

What the Governor failed to mention is that he vetoed four bills that would have increased staffing and fire resources after the Cedar Fire, at a cost of tens of millions of dollars. A fifth bill, signed by Schwarzenegger, requires local governments to first submit safety plans to the California Department of Forestry and will not take effect until 2010, the Los Angeles Times reported in a May 20, 2007 article titled “Fire danger acute as 2003 lessons fade.” That article has since disappeared off the newspaper’s website, but a copy is here.

We can't continue to inadequately fund infrastructure and basic support services. Our funding priorities are out of whack, and in the long run it costs more to constantly rebuild and replace than it would be properly fund these functions in the first place.

Wednesday in San Diego

2007-10-24T09:22:00.000-07:00

Hey all. Things seem to be slightly calmer overall today. The winds are not as fierce, though it's still blowing. In fact, some of the winds have switched direction and smoke that's been blowing out over the Pacific Ocean the last few days, has started to head back into town. The air quality is very bad this morning.

As I mentioned last time, KPBS is still providing regular updates (including Twitter text updates), and are be back at their regular location on the dial at 89.5. When they were knocked off the air, 94.9 gave them their signal so they could continue to broadcast. Kudos to 94.9!

KPBS also has a great Google map showing fire locations, evacuation centers, etc.

Calitics also continues to provide updates from people throughout SoCal.

Recent updates have reported the Harris fire has consumed 73,000 acres, the Witch fire has consumed 196,000 acres and the Rice fire has consumed 7500 acres, and around 1300 homes have been destroyed. Many more are damaged. There have been six deaths, and numerous injuries, and nearly a million people have been evacuated or displaced.

Evacuations today have included Fallbrook, Julian, Birch Hill near Palomar, and Valley Center.

Photos of the Harris Fire at Mt San Miguel

2007-10-23T14:10:00.000-07:00

Helicopter preparing to lift water from the Sweetwater reservoir.

Another shot of the helicopter. This was taken from Dictionary Hill, facing Mt San Miguel.

Taken from Dictionary Hill, facing Mt San Miguel.

This one was taken from the east end of Palm Avenue in Lemon Grove. The hill is Dictionary Hill, and Mt San Miguel is beyond that.

My husband took these photos this morning.

San Diego Fire Information

2007-10-23T10:14:00.000-07:00

Here are several sites where you can access San Diego County fire information and updates.

KPBS news

KPBS Twitter page with fire updates

San Diego County Emergency Fire Information

SD City Emergency Fire Information

CA State emergency info

Calitics So Cal fire updates

Phone numbers:
Irvine: 714-628-7085
Santa Clarita Evacuations: 661-295-6366
US Forest Line: 626-574-5208
Animal Evacuations: 818-991-0071
Malibu: 310-456-2489
Riverside: 909.988.3650
Buckweek, Canyon Fire: 323-881-2411
Coronado Hills Fire: 619-590-3160
Grass Valley Fire: 909-383-5688
Harris, Rice, McCoy Fire: 619-590-3160
Ranch Fire: 626-574-5208
Roca Fire: 951-940-6985
Santiago Fire: 714-573-6200
Sedgewick Fire: 805-681-5546
Slide and Witch: Fire 619-590-3160

Fire in the east county

2007-10-21T12:57:00.000-07:00

There's currently a fire burning in the east county between Potrero and Julian, it's exceedingly dry, and the winds are blowing like crazy. Stay tuned.

Update:

A major wildfire is burning in Potrero (Harris Fire). Evacuations are have been ordered west of Harris Ranch Road and east of Potrero Valley Road. Highway 94 is closed at Forest Gate. The fire has jumped 94 at the Potrero Cafe.

Structures are burning in the area. There are 300 firefighters on the scene, 3 helicopters, 2 helitankers and 5 air tankers, but thick smoke is obscuring the view for aerial support. There are also 45 engines, 2 dozers, and 5 hand crews trying to save Potrero. The fire is currently burning towards Potrero Peaks (the mobilehome park).

Update:

I just got home from an event up in La Jolla, and at some point another fire has started up near Ramona. (Witch Creek) It's smokey as hell here, and ashes were falling on us from the sky. Here's an update from the UT.

They've had trouble attacking the fires from the air because of high winds. Also, it's being reported that a firetruck was engulfed by flames in the Potrero area. I've heard conflicting reports. I heard one report that a firefighter was killed, but another report is saying the death was of a migrant hiking through the back country. There are also reports of injuries.

With 30-60 mph Santa Ana winds blowing from the east, the fire is quickly moving toward Dulzura.

The UT newsblog is publishing regular updates of the situation.

Blackwater in the news

2007-10-21T08:35:00.001-07:00

Did you watch Bill Moyers Journal on PBS this past Friday to see Jeremy Scahill on Blackwater? If not, you can view the video at the link. Scahill is a human fountain of information and data on Blackwater USA. Since the September 16 killings at Nisour Square in Baghdad, Blackwater has been under intense congressional and media scrutiny. In response this past week, the private owner of the private army, Erik Prince, has embarked on his own media PR blitz. He's been on 60 Minutes, Charlie Rose, and Late Edition pushing the line that Blackwater is a responsible, all-American part of the coalition force.

The government of Iraq does not agree. They have attempted to exert their sovereignty and expel Blackwater from their country, but so far have been less than successful. Blackwater's contract in Iraq expires in May 2008, and there has been talk that they will be eased out of their role between now and then. I will believe it when I see it, but I'd be willing to bet that if it does happen, they'll simply be replaced with another private "peace and security" contractor asap. Unfortunately the whole system of using large numbers of armed private contractors in a war zone is thoroughly rotten to the core, and the shut out of one company doesn't fix the larger problem. Part of that problem is that the US is completely over-extended in Iraq and the mission is substantially larger than our capability to handle it. The only way to manage it at all is with enormous numbers of private contractors. In other words, Bush bit off way more than WE can chew. The answer? Leave. Now. We shouldn't have invaded in the first place, and our continued occupation is only making things worse as every day goes by.

You might think that I'd be reveling in the idea of Blackwater suffering the slings and arrows of negative media attention, and their potential ouster from Iraq, but paradoxically, it gives me some additional concerns. One of them being that if they are forced out of Iraq, this will create a situation where they seek to quickly and aggressively increase their role in providing both security forces both here at home, and as private mercenaries in other countries. I see both their actions in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and their push to establish additional training facilities in the US as a window into their future, and I don't like what I see. They want to be both military, and a private equivalent of our National Guard. This is privatization run amok.

A private army is antithetical to democracy. They're not accountable to the people, or the constitution, nor are they constrained by traditional codes of military conduct. We see this playing out in Iraq, and we saw it in New Orleans. Blackwater is simply a business serving their own best interests. No matter how all-American they may claim to be, the balance sheet is the true master of any company. Not the constitution. Not the people. Not the government. Blackwater now says they want only "the market" to decide their actions. It's awfully convenient for them to get to pick and chose when they're warriors and when they're suits. They straddle that fence, and under the current model they can jump off to either side, at will.

For example, Blackwater is attempting to frame the establishment of a training facility in Potrero, CA as a simple free market issue. Ignorant and ridiculous. If they want to be government contractors, which is the foundation of their business model, there are rules that will have to guide them other than the vastly over-rated invisible hand of the free market. Erik Prince and Blackwater made this choice, and they can't repudiate it whenever it's politically convenient for them to do so. The ideals of the free market neither guide the actions of our military, nor ensure the security of this nation. They may like to claim their role is not political, but Blackwater has made the choice to be overseen by the American people. They chose politics, and that's what they're getting. Oversight by the government, and oversight by the people. They'd better get used to it.

In fact, we will have our next opportunity to do just that this coming Tuesday (10/23/07) when Brian Bonfiglio of Blackwater USA will be the guest host at Cafe San Diego. If you have questions about Blackwater's plans in San Diego county, here's your opportunity to ask them.

The Call

2007-10-19T20:35:00.000-07:00

In a column this week, Laura Flanders reprints "Resist: A Call to Resist Illegitimate Authority", which was written during the Vietnam war but is troublingly relevant today.

The Call

Forty years ago, a handful of smart Americans had an idea how to end a war. They published a call for moral, political and financial support for those refusing to serve. Initially signed by Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Grace Paley, Dr. Benjamin Spock, Marcus Raskin, and the Reverend William Sloane Coffin among others, eventually, 20,000 signed on and the indispensable RESIST foundation was formed.

Forty years later, the first few paragraphs are again meaningful.

An ever growing number of young American men are finding that the American war in Vietnam so outrages their deepest moral and religious sense that they cannot contribute to it in any way. We share their moral outrage.

We further believe that the war is unconstitutional and illegal. Congress has not declared a war as required by the Constitution. Moreover, under the Constitution, treaties signed by the President and ratified by the Senate have the same force as the Constitution itself. The Charter of the United Nations is such a treaty. The Charter specifically obligates the United States to refrain from force or threat of force in international relations. It requires member states to exhaust every peaceful means of settling disputes and to submit disputes which cannot be settled peacefully to the Security Council. The United States has systematically violated all of these Charter provisions for thirteen years.

Moreover, this war violates international agreements, treaties and principles of law which the United States Government has solemnly endorsed. The combat role of the United States troops in Vietnam violates the Geneva Accords of 1954 which our government pledged to support but has since subverted.

The shape of resistance, may be different now than it was during Vietnam, but again we will resist. Resist the unprincipled priorities of the Bush administration. Resist attempts to silence, and cripple the work of peaceful anti-war activists. Resist the urge to be rocked to sleep, so we can stand up and raise our voices against the immoral actions of those who are supposed to represent the American people.

If you're in San Diego on Saturday Oct 27, you will have an opportunity to show that you resist the current occupation of Iraq by joining the San Diego Coalition for Peace and Justice in a rally and march at Horton Plaza at noon.

We will highlight the cost of the invasion and occupation of Iraq, by identifying the corrupted priorities of a president who can spend billions on an illegal, immoral, counter-productive war, but says we can't afford health insurance for children, not to mention healthcare coverage for all.

After the protest, we will march to Pantoja Park for a rally to demand a change in our national priorities.

At the current pace, I'm certain our foreign policy will financially bankrupt our country. The actions of our government are already morally bankrupt. Join us on October 27. Stand up and resist.

Senator Dodd to put hold on FISA

2007-10-18T18:37:00.000-07:00

I was feeling pretty crummy about the Democratic ~~surrender~~ ~~compromise~~ ~~deal~~ whateverthatwas on FISA, giving immunity to the telecoms for violating the law, and allowing unlawful access to phone records without a warrant. I'm afraid it's not that they're afraid of being called Soft on Terror ^TM, but because they actually agree this is the right thing to do. Depressing, eh?

Then this afternoon I got a one line email from a friend that said, "Chris Dodd is putting a Senate hold on FISA."

I have to admit I got a little shiver. Wow. What a shock. I was expecting complete capitulation. My second thought was to wonder how we got to the point where when a Senator insists we uphold the rule of law I get a joyous little thrill.

I think this is now at least the third time I've asked myself why I'm not paying more attention to Dodd's campaign. We get more than enough Clinton and Obama factoids, and I'm not completely thrilled with either of them. As I've mentioned before, I do like Edwards a lot more than either of them, but even he holds several positions that make it hard for me to be 100% enthusiastic.

I wonder how much change we can really expect from any of the front runners. Who among them have seriously addressed the expanded executive powers of this administration. They've been weak, in that regard. Maybe they're hoping to hold those expanded powers themselves someday soon. I keep waiting for them to seriously address the erosion of the Constitution and civil rights, and they just don't. I find that massively disappointing, to say the least.

But then there's Dodd. Glenn Greenwald at Salon reprints a blast from the recent past. He was right in this August interview, and he was right today. Nothing else really matters if the Constitution is in shreds.

When I heard Dodd speak in San Diego at the State Democratic Convention, I thought he was great, his speech was vastly under-rated, and and he was tragically ignored by the media who were panting along behind Hillary and Obama all day long. As I listened to Dodd, I wondered, what's wrong with Dodd? Why not him?

I did a little online quiz a couple weeks ago that a friend sent in an email, where you answer a few questions and it tells you who is most aligned with your views. Dodd came in second for me, and again I thought, well, why not Dodd?

Now this, and again I'm wondering if Dodd isn't the one who's the real deal, and the candidate to support in the primary. At any rate, he's moved up several more notches in my estimation, and I truly believe he is sincere and right on this issue.

It saddens me that it even has to be an issue -- the fact that "defending the Constitution" even has to be an issue in the presidential race. - Senator Chris Dodd

Me too, Senator. Me too.

You can indicate your support for Senator Dodd right here.

Eat spaghetti. Support peace and social justice.

2007-10-14T08:26:00.000-07:00

You can do both of those things at once this week!

On Wednesday, October 17 at 6-8 pm, you can support both the Peace Resource Center and San Diego Street Light by coming to the famous Big Kitchen at 3003 Grape Street, San Diego, 92101 for a spaghetti dinner. The menu includes spaghetti with meat or veggie sauce, garlic bread, salad, tea, coffee lemonade and a brownie. If you have an instrument, bring it. You can be part of the evening's entertainment.

The suggested minimum donation is $10, but feel free to donate more!

Please buy tickets in advance or RSVP so they know how much food to prepare by calling Allen 619-282-4358 or Sue 858-274-8447.

Another nail in the coffin

2007-10-13T07:07:00.000-07:00

According to today's San Diego UT, there will be an official announcement next week that KLSD, San Diego's only progressive talk radio station, will switch to an all sports format in the coming weeks. Rumor was that there had been delays in the flip because they were having trouble hiring talent for a fourth sports station in the area, but apparantly that became a moot point when Chris Ello decided to leave XX Sports and signed a multi year contract with Clear Channel yesterday.

I've heard some say that it doesn't matter that San Diego will have multiple sports radio stations and multiple conservative talk radio stations, and no progressive format, because radio is the format for conservatives, and we have a huge advantage in our use of the internet. There's a kernal of truth there, but I'm a strong advocate of having diversity of opinion on our public airwaves. Yes, we do a great job of communicating on the net, but that doesn't mean we should just give up on access to our airwaves.

With the likely assumption that KLSD is flipping to sports, what's next? It's a wee bit pricey to buy a station. There's been some recent talk (and action) about a low power alternative. Not the ideal solution, but it's a positive development. Locally oriented Internet radio and podcasts? It could happen.

As of now, we can't count on being able to hear LA's Radio Pacifica because the FCC assigned the same spot on the dial to powerful signals from both LA (KPFK 90.7) and Tijuana/San Diego (90.7 XLNC1) so they walk all over one another. XLNC1 has formally requested they be given a new frequency. If that happens, we should be able to get Radio Pacifica in San Diego, which would include Amy Goodman's Democracy Now. In the meantime, we can listen to Radio Pacifica online, and maybe we can find a way to join the Pacifica affiliate network and bring progressive/liberal radio back to the San Diego region.

Obviously, I don't know the answer, but I do know there are possibilities. None of the suggestions above are ideal solutions, but I think it's time to think outside the box. No matter how many protests are held, no matter how many calls made and emails sent, it sounds to me that KLSD is dead. Clear Channel has said they hear us, but that doesn't mean they're listening. It's time to figure out viable alternatives, as our voices are being increasingly shut out from traditional media channels.

(edit)- KLSD has an update on their website that says:

All of your feedback has had a positive impact and you can expect a formal announcement in the next few days about the future of our Progressive Talk format in San Diego!

Curiouser and curiouser. I think the sports talk is a done deal, so what are they getting at w/r/t the positive impact and the future of the format? Hmmmmmm......

Rally at KLSD radio

2007-10-10T18:59:00.000-07:00

As of today, KLSD San Diego is still progressive talk, but that's still subject to change at any time. The station is rumored to be scheduled to flip to sports talk within the next few weeks, and fans of KLSD are going to rally to save progressive talk radio in San Diego again this coming Friday.

WHAT: Save KLSD / Progressive Talk Radio Rally

WHEN: Friday, October 12, 6:00 to 9:00 a.m.

WHERE: Intersection of Aero Drive & Ruffin Road, near Clear Channel offices at 9660 Granite Ridge Dr., San Diego (92123) (see update below)

More info: Save KLSD or jon@saveklsd.com

We don't need a fourth sports talk station in San Diego. We need KLSD. I don't think I can overstate the importance of this radio station to grassroots activists in San Diego. KLSD has been vital in connecting local activists in a city where for a very long time there were very few places to connect with other liberals, Democrats, social justice advocates, and other politically oriented activists. KLSD provides that space in a very unique way.

Updated 10/11: Here's some updated "where" information about tomorrow's rally.

WHERE: Intersection of Aero Drive and Ruffin Road, (the main cross
streets near Clear Channel Offices, 9660 Granite Ridge Drive, Suite
100, San Diego, CA 92123) At 8:15, we will make the short walk up
to Clear Channel's offices to finish our rally in the Clear Channel
parking lot.

CAR PROCESSION: Some of your fellow activists plan to meet in the
southwest corner of the Walmart parking lot located at 3382 Murphy
Canyon Road at 6:30 to form a car caravan up to the rally site. We
will put signs on our car and do one or two passes by Clear
Channel's offices honking our horns before dropping passengers off
at Aero Drive and Ruffin Road. If you would like to be a part of
the car procession, please rsvp to saveklsd@gmail.com.