r prezident is dum

WARREN, Mich. (AP) - President Bush headlined a fund-raiser in Warren tonight that raised $700,000 for Republican U-S Senate candidate Mike Bouchard.

He told the crowd that the Democrats are (quote) "dancing in the end zone" when they're only on the 15 yard line.

Before arriving at the fund-raiser, Bush and Bouchard stopped by the Morley Candy Makers factory.

Before coming to Michigan, Bush was in Des Moines, Iowa, at lunchtime. He helped raise $400,000 for the state Republican Party and congressional candidate Jeff Lamberti. The president mistakenly referred to Lamberti as "Dave" throughout his speech.

In his speeches, Bush hammered the same themes he has been using against the Democrats all fall that they want to raise taxes and are soft on terrorism. Democrats say the rhetoric is just an attempt to distract voters from Bush's failures in Iraq.

I'm very busy, but I wanted to post this as an intersting thought for the day:

From Electoral Vote.com:

A Democratic takeover of the House has a couple of consequences I have not seen discussed anywhere. First, Nancy Pelosi will become Speaker, which will make her the highest ranking Democrat in the country--even if the Democrats capture the Senate. The Speaker is second in line for the presidency, after the Veep. The majority leader of the Senate is not even on the list. After the Speaker comes the President pro tem of the Senate, currently Ted Stevens (R-AK) but will shift to Robert Byrd (D-WV) if the Democrats win the Senate. Pelosi is from San Francisco and is far more liberal than Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), a moderate Mormon. Also, Republicans will be hesitant to attack a nice Italian grandmother; people won't like it. Second, after a year of Pelosi running the House, the question of "Can a woman wield great political power well?" will have a more concrete answer. This may have consequences for 2008, when other women may be running for high office.

Oh, and Rush Limbaugh can go to hell.

Independent Voters - Clueless?

I offer the question both seriously and with much opining. People complain about the two party system in this country, and to them I say the two party system is the greatest system in the world. Quel horreur! you say as you clench your green/libertarian/christian democratic fist and inch closer to clicking your mouse away from this page. How can I discount the beliefs of 20% of the population?

I'm not. No, you see, in the good old US of A, we have a system called the primaries, when everyone can run, any ideology, any values/beliefs system - you just need to pick one of two party primaries to run in. If those values/beliefs/ideas are truly the will of the people, the person will be voted to be the candidate in the general election. It's protection from fringe ideologies, a brilliant system. So how does a person of a "third party" persuasion fit into one of the two parties, you ask? This is where you weed out those who claim to be of a "third party" but don't really know what they believe. Change the words "Democrat" and "Republican" to "Community" and "Individual" and there's your answer.

Wait! I know that nothing is black and white. Let me explain what I mean by those two terms.

Community

It takes a village. It really does - humans don't exist in their own personal vacuums. Everything around them affects them in some way, even when butterflies flap their wings in the South Pacific. If one factory pollutes, someone can breathe it in, weakening his immune system. He gets sick, goes to Charmucks to order a hot tea, and gets his germs all over the money, which is passed back in change to someone, who uses it at the local hardware store. You walk into the hardware store to buy some nails to hang a painting you bought and get that germ-infested money back as change. You get sick, so sick you have to cancel a meeting with some important people and end up not getting a contract because of it. The contract ends up going to another company whose executives are corrupt. They take shortcuts on safety, resulting in an accident that causes the death of a man. His two year old daughter grows up without a father, which results in her having difficulties with relationships when she is older. She ends up divorcing her husband before they have a child, and the way the genes were arranged in the sperm and the egg that would have conceived a child is such that a genius was never born, one who would have discovered a cure for a certain type of cancer. A future president dies from that type of cancer during the middle of a war that was going well, and his successor makes poor choices and the war goes south. I could go on and on and on, but you get the point by now.

What it all boils down to is Democrats believe in strengthening the community of Americans to make this the best possible America for everyone. There are various means to achieve this - minimum wage, financial aid to college students, social welfare programs, education, ensuring everyone has health care, etc. The bottomline is that we believe that all humans are created equal with certain inalienable rights - life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Those rights are not reserved for only the elites, but for everyone.

Individual

Basically, this means "who gives a damn about anyone else?" Also known as selfishness, this idea is characterized by all types of mongering in the name of power and profit - fearmongering, warmongering, powermongering, greedmongering...That being said, here's why libertarians fit into the community category rather than the individual, despite their emphasis on individual rights. The basis of libertarianism is that smaller government benefits the common good, that lower taxes generate wealth and create jobs that benefit people, and that, friends and enemies, is why libertarians - CATO libertarians, not those who claim to be libertarians because they want to use their tax money to buy more junk for themselves - should vote Democrat. People make up the planet! Besides, more libertarians in the Democratic Party would serve as a moderating force within the party to control the taxation they don't like.

As for those other "independents" aka swing voters, today's WaPo says they prefer Dems 2-1. It's nice that they've FINALLY seen the light, but it took them long enough. These "swing voters" are the ones who vote for people based on whether or not a guy is likeable rather than capable. This type of whimsical, uninformed voting is a threat to our country, regardless of which way the pendulum swings. It is what gave us George W. Bush in the first place and got us into this mess we're in.

We need to reframe the debate for these people. They need to understand that what they are voting for isn't a "D" or an "R", but community or selfishness. Yeah, it's not black and white, but it is a good frame of reference, much better than the taxation or size of government measurements. The size of the Bush government proves this point.

Just thinking outloud...

When baseball, music, and politics mix

That's my cup o'tea - I have a blog on each of the topics (Church of Baseball and Rox Politix). John Mellencamp's performance of the anti-Bush song "Our Country" before Game 2 of the World Series on Sunday was a pleasant surprise and a welcome change from the corporate censorship that we've seen over the past six years on television.

It's too bad the song is used for Chevy ads (and is played every commercial break!) It's a good song. Verses:

I can stand beside
Things I think are right (Remember, Mellencamp was harshly criticized by middle America for taking a stance against Bush, especially after he put out his protest song To Washington.)
And I can stand beside
The idea to stand and fight (When it is necessary. He is against the Iraq War.)
And I do believe
There’s a dream for everyone (Not just for elites. He's always believed this - just listen to his songs like Little Pink Houses.)
This is our country

There's room enough here
For science to live (Obvious slap at the religious right.)
And there's room enough here
For religion to forgive (Another slap.)
And try to understand
The other people of this world (This one's blatant, too.)
This is our country

That poverty could be
Just another ugly thing
And bigotry could be
Seen only as obscene
And the ones that run this land
Will help the poor and common man (Amen!)
This is our country

The dream will never leave
And some day it will come true
And it’s up to me and you
To do the best that we can do
And let the voice of freedom
Sing out through this land (Free at last, free at last, God Almighty, we are free at last!)
This is our country

Update: Apparently I'm not the only one who thinks this ad is something to talk about. WaPo has an article today (Oct 25) about reactions to the ad.

“I can blow off someone’s head at close range and splatter blood, but I can’t light a good Cuban.”

The producers of the new Bond movie (which comes out November 17) banned new Bond Daniel Craig from smoking in the film "in order not to send a bad message to young fans."

While I personally believe that what we see on television affects us more than we know or understand (why do people have nightmares about things they see on TV if it doesn't?), this is ridiculous. So they acknowledge that kids might be influenced to smoke but not to be violent? Today the first of a group of high school football players who decided to rob a convenience - upper middle class white kids, mind you, so you don't form a stereotypical impression - was tried for his role in the robbery. What made these kids decide that it would be fun to rob the store? Just asking...

I wish they had kept Pierce and hope that Craig is able to hold his own in this film. I'll be in the theater November 17 - can't wait! From what I've seen of the trailer, there is a lot blowing up in Casino Royale, so I hope there's some substance to it.

Hear the new Bond song here, performed by Chris Cornell. It isn't the final mix, and in my opinion, there needs to be less Chris and more strings.

New Bond film, new U2 CD/DVD, new Congress...man, November is going to be a killer month!

Ahh, such beauty

That good old solid blue color, so many states, so much hope...

This is today's Senate projection map, showing the Dems up 50 - 49 with a tie in Tennessee. Goodbye, Rick Santorum. Goodbye, Mike DeWine. Goodbye, Lincoln Chafee. If y'all had some spine, maybe things wouldn't be so bad for you. Especially you, Linc, who'd be a Democrat if it weren't for your daddy.

Go Webb, defeat Allen!

Oh yeah, and look:

Projected New House*: 229 Democrats 202 Republicans 4 Ties

All terrorists are Muslims

From NY Times via International Herald Tribune:

On Monday, 94 people died and 150 were injured when a truck loaded with explosives rammed into a military convoy in Sri Lanka. The government blames the Tamil Tiger guerrillas - the pioneers of suicide bombing - for the attack. The rebels have not said anything.

For more than 20 years, the Tamil rebels have waged a brutal war of independence against the Sri Lankan government, which is dominated by ethnic Sinhalese. Their opponents in Colombo are no innocents, and have made little effort to protect Tamil civilians as they wage a brutal counterinsurgency. In April, government security forces stood by for two hours as mobs burned Tamil homes and shops, killing 14 people.

A Buddhist-led government battling a Hindu separatist group in a land with no oil draws little international interest - and no pressure on either side to end such horrors. Hoping to change that, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, called last month for international human rights monitors to be sent to Sri Lanka. All countries with influence, starting with the United States and Japan, should push the Sri Lankan government to agree.

Colombo is eager for international aid and support in its fight against the Tamil Tigers. With UN rights monitors bearing witness, the government may feel pressure to rein in army and police abuses. Monitors could also bolster Sri Lanka's weak judicial system, which barely investigates crimes against Tamil civilians.

The guerrillas, who count the forced recruitment of child soldiers among their crimes, are less vulnerable to international shame. But shining a spotlight might help persuade overseas Tamils to choke off funding.

Before I was rescued by my current job (from which I now need rescued), I cleaned swimming pools around the DC Metro area. It was a job I took because I had turned down jobs at the NSA and at defense contractors due to having a conscience and not being able to work for this administration, and I was having trouble finding a job at a non-profit. The job was great for several reasons - I was outside all summer, I got to know the roads of DC to which I had just moved, and I visited the houses of wealthy, famous, and/or important people. One of these was the Sri Lankan Ambassador from whom I learned about Sri Lanka's political situation. Had I not met him, I would probably know nothing of the conflict there like the rest of America.

It's a shame when such atrocities that the United States proclaims to be against are ignored. Why have we done nothing about Dafur? Why have we not offered to help broker peace in Sri Lanka? Why did we go into Iraq while ignoring these other countries? Three letters: O, I, and L.

Rumor is

Bushie said "it ain't gonna happen" when someone asked him about what he thought about Nancy Pelosi as Speaker. Given that even the gops have acknowledged that the Dems are going to take back the House, I'm wondering what makes him so certain. Is his ignorance a result of his bubble, or does he have some Diebold up his sleeve?

I'm soooooooo busy!

Just remember: He who laughs last obviously didn't get the joke.

Senkaku sounds like an Allen word

Baseball is my religion. Night after summer night I watch my Cincinnati Reds, donning my cap just to watch them play on my computer screen while drinking a beer in my Reds jersey coolie. I have a big Reds pillow and a Reds fleece blanket on my bed, a Reds wall hanging, and several baseballs lying around the room.

Last night it was not baseball I watched with this kind of enthusiasm, but the debate between Jim Webb and George “Macaca” Allen. I put on my Jim Webb shirt under my Webb yard sign hanging on the wall and geared up for the event like it was game two or three of the World Series. Ah, yes, it was a sporting event to watch the two candidates spar, to see Mr. Macaca utter the names Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and Ted Kennedy as if they were tantamount to Hitler, not once, but a couple of times. This obvious attempt to label Webb with the L word (the other L word) looked pretty ridiculous, especially considering the fact that Webb is a former Republican who was part of the Reagan administration, hardly the characteristics of that naughty, naughty word Liberal.

GMA looked oddly nervous at the start of the debate, rocking back and forth as uhs and pauses spilled from his mouth during the opening remarks. I thought it strange that a United States senator would be nervous in front of a crowd, but then again after all this one’s said and done in the past few weeks to blow a double digit lead, it is understandable that he would fear another blunder.

The best part of the night came when Webb blindsided GMA with a question about the Senkaku Islands. GA sure looked like what he calls macaca in his stuttering response “I’ll have to study the issue.” Paybacks for that port question to Webb the last time around.

I wish I could vote for Jim Webb, but I live in the undemocratic territory of DC, which Steven Colbert insists is not part of the United States since it is not a state. (Hilarious interview with Elanor Norton Holmes.) What Virginia does sometimes affects DC, however, given that Northern Virginia is a part of the DC Metro area, so I do feel at least marginally interested in this race as a neighbor, but my hyper enthusiasm stems from the fact that it will give the Dems the Senate if it goes to Webb.

Go Webb, beat Allen! Rah, rah, rah...

Happy Mistaken Explorers Weekend!

Make all the mistakes y'all want - I'm just happy to have a three-day weekend (and they're also letting us go at 3pm today!)

Remember the new term for colonialism: foreign direct investment. They even abbreviate it to FDI to make it easier for the non-English speaking subjects to pronounce.

I'll have a little post up on Monday about our fearless Italian/Spanish/French hero. And when the heck are we going to get Leif Erikson day?

This Morning's Java Tastes Good!

If you aren't checking Electoral Vote.com every day, you should be. It's interesting to see the trends in the country. I check it first thing every morning, and, well, today's results are a beautiful sight to see. For the first time, we have the right side ahead:

Projected New House*: 218 Democrats 216 Republicans 1 Tie.

The Senate has been flipping back and forth for the last several weeks, so it's too close to tell on that, though Republicans have maintained a slight edge. Missouri, Tennessee, and New Jersey are the flipping states. Webb is also gaining ground on George Macaca Allen.

A new approach to Democratic foreign policy?

Democracy has become a dirty word in the Middle East thanks to the debacle the Bush administration has made of it. However, the idea of democracy - opportunity for all - is still an idea cherished by everyone but the dictators who control the destinies of citizens of most Middle Eastern countries.

Part of the reason for the distaste is the administration's reaction to the election of Hamas, which I wrote about here. How can someone actively promote democracy and then condemn it when the results are not to their liking? It's called dictating, folks, as in dictatorship. Sure, y'all can vote, but your vote is only valid if we like who you voted for!

Of course, Iraq's accomplished mission has done the most damage to democracy's image in the Muslim world. This administration needs to take Political Theory 101 to learn why taking down the country that was maintaining the balance of power in a region is a bad idea. It's a shame, a tragedy really, that a whole generation across the globe will spend its life on Earth trying to clean up the mess and make up the time we lost in moving backwards from a more harmonious planet where human rights reign supreme. Ooh, that sounds so hippy, doesn't it? Well, that was the admini$tration'$ line of rea$oning behind democracy promotion.

Putting the mistakes of this administration aside (I know it's hard, but do it for a second), there are still critics of democracy promotion, including those who say we are imposing our values on other societies, those who claim Islam is incompatible with democracy, and those to whom democracy is a threat to their absolutism. To these people I say how dare you! How can you oppose the basic human right to have control over your own destiny?

WE ARE IMPOSING OUR VALUES

In some respects, this camp has a point. The way democracy promotion has been executed by this administration lends some truth to the statement. However, democracy is not synonymous with Western liberalism. This is the fundamental flaw in Bush's strategy (and I use the term "strategy" loosely.) These people refuse to listen to anyone who fogs their green, I mean rose colored glasses, and the absolute view of democracy these people take has soured the true meaning of the word.

ISLAM IS INCOMPATIBLE WITH DEMOCRACY

People who say this understand neither Islam nor democracy. Much has been written on this topic, so I won't say any more here.

THREAT TO ABSOLUTISM

Anyone who advocates absolutism should be sent to live in one of these countries with no way out. People say, “the people want a king!” Yeah, well, some people wanted Bush, too, but a lot of us didn’t, and fortunately we don’t have to put up with him for a lifetime. Those who love their kings may truly love them and want them to rule over them, but what about those who don’t? When you aren’t allowed to say anything against your king, how do you know how many people don’t want the king? And if he is so loved, let him be elected to power!

I went to a roundtable today entitled "Democracy That Delivers: Practical Approaches to Building Political Institutions and Addressing Social Needs" at the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI). A lot of it was the same development rhetoric I am used to hearing on account of my three-year employment in the democracy field. However, there were a few things that I found interesting or irritating.

The idea that Islamist groups are becoming popular because of the social services they provide was discussed in detail. Until now, democracy promoters have failed to grasp the idea that social aspects of democracy need to be included in any democratic development. A state revolves around three spheres – political, economic, and social – all of which are interrelated and inseparable from one another. The reason so many theories and ideologies are flawed is that one of these is often missing. Take libertarianism, for example. There is no social aspect to it; indeed, it is the opposite, as the individual reigns supreme. It relies on the goodness of private citizens to keep a society together, and well, one needs only to open his eyes to see what human nature is really like.

Democracy promotion has long been dominated by the political sphere, which focuses on elections. Elections do not a democracy make, people. If the rule of law has not been established, there is no rhyme or reason giving those elections any meaning. There was a period of time when a group of people, I do believe they were called modernists, believed that by establishing a market economy first would subsequently lead to the democratization of governments. That, too, has been proved wrong. Rather recently, groups like NDI have realized that all three realms need to improve simultaneously. You can’t have democracy without a market economy, and you can’t have a true market economy without democracy, but you also can’t have either without the participation of all of society. (Some will argue socialism, but all true socialist governments have failed. Scandinavia, as much as socialists don’t want to admit, is a market economy. The socialism comes in the social realm of it all.)

Islamist groups have also realized that you can’t ignore the social needs of the people and are doing well in the political and economic realms these days because of it. What is interesting to note is that Christian parties had a great hand in the rise of Western democracy in Europe. We’d call them fundies now just like we call the Islamic parties fundy parties, but the truth of the matter is that Christian parties like the CDU in Germany got their starts in providing social services to the people. Strange how things evolve, huh? Reconsider your thoughts on involving Islamist parties in governments – just because they have an Islamic agenda doesn’t mean they are going to blow things up. (However, Senator Frist, there is no way in hell we should be including the Taliban in the Afghan government. Republican Frist, these people are Al-Qaeda and are at war against us, you idiot.)

Another thing that was discussed – or rather dictated – was a five minute speech given by a member of the State Department after the presenters were done and were answering questions. He started off with “First of all, as a member of the Bush administration…” Now, I’ve had to work with this guy in the past, but his speech made sense of all the difficulties I’ve had in dealing with him, whether directly or indirectly. He proceeded to distort truths, saying this administration thinks about more than just elections (then explain to me why y’all don’t think building economic institutions or civil society institutions are important enough to fund?) and finally ended with something to the effect of “this is really hard.” Actually, those were his exact words.

The Democrats should grab hold of democracy promotion as a foreign policy and make it right again, make it a word that brings joy and gratefulness to the hearts of the world. This should NOT be done with bombs, but with encouragement through funding civil society organizations of political, economic, and social natures in the Middle East to help them build the institutions necessary to a stable, healthy democracy. We believe that all people are created equal with certain inalienable rights – life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Democracy permits these rights to exist, and whatever form a democracy may take, it is a basic human right that we should help everyone obtain.

I have no morals

Light slinks through my windows each morning, reminding me that it is time to leave the comfort of my bed and face another day in the real world. I go through the daily routine of getting ready for work and head to the bus stop still groggy from my noctural state of peace. I say good morning to the bus driver, sit down, and try to give as much space to anyone who sits next to me, for I am considerate. When I arrive at work, I look behind me to see if anyone is coming towards the elevators so I can hold the door for them, even if they are across the lobby. In my office, I work on projects to bring democratic, economic reform to the Middle East North Africa region in an attempt to make the world a better place. I live by the golden rule "Do unto others as you would have done unto you." I smile at strangers as I pass them on the sidewalks, and I walk on the right side to let others pass. I don't cheat people, I tell the truth, and I tip well. I generally don't break laws unless it's a speed limit or a parking issue, but hey, nobody's perfect.

I believe that all humans are created equal, that they are endowed by whatever created them with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I don't try to deny them these rights. I believe torturing a human being is immoral. I believe that fighting poverty, disease, and addiction are imperative to a healthy society and that helping the poor get on their feet is a humane thing to do. I believe the death and destruction caused by war is a human tragedy and that nations working together to end war is the right thing to do. I don't believe that revenge in the form of capital punishment is justice. All of these beliefs make me an immoral person.

Over the past few days I have seen rightwingers trying to defend that scum ex-Congressman Foley for his sexual exploits with the 16 year old page. I've seen them say "what's the big deal?" I've seen them try to trivialize the whole escapade (nevermind that they spent 2-3 years and $90 million impeaching a man who engaged in sexual relations with a consenting adult woman.) That they refuse to acknowledge the hypocrisy in this is disgusting. Let's run through why this is so wrong:

1. The boy was a minor.

2. Foley was chairman of the Congressional Missing and Exploited Children's Caucus and pushed for legislation to protect children from exploitation by adults over the internet and further restrictions of online child pornography.

3. The Republican Party is always spouting off about how the Democrats have no morals, yet this is just another of the many gops who are in trouble with the law.

4. Perhaps the most disturbing part of all of it was the fact that Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert knew about it ten months ago and did absolutely nothing.

If having morals is being a 50 year old Congressman and an online sexual predator while serving as chair of the committee that is supposed to protect children from online sexual predators, then no, I have no morals. If swindling taxpayers out of their money and lying about where campaign finance funding comes from is having morals, then no, I have no morals. If cheating through insider trading is having morals, then no, I have no morals. If bombing the hell out of a country and inciting civil war is having morals, then no, I have no morals. The only thing moral about today's Republican Party is the "moral" in the word "immoral." When is America going to wake up and realize this? The polls indicate they are still sleeping.