Meeting of DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee

Oliver Willis has the livestream posted. Howard is speaking right now.

Update: this link is from the DNC web site.

Liveblogging by emptywheel here.

Haloscan comment thread

Open Thread

Thought I should put up a new thread before leaving for the pool.



I originally found "I Will Derive" via BBSpot, but decided to go with the girl math video for this thread. You know, to show my support for women in traditionally "male" areas of study. :)

P.S. Cheryl got her Netroots Nation scholarship page up. Click here.

Haloscan comment thread

Unrealistic expectations

I still have little Alex Barton on my mind--this morning I woke up thinking about something I read in an article entitled Florida kindergarten teacher defends having class vote 5-year-old out.

After students shared their view, Morningside Elementary teacher Wendy Portillo had them vote, but said the vote was only to keep Alex Barton out of class for the day, not for good.

"Portillo said she did this as she felt that if (Alex) heard from his classmates how his behavior affected them that it would make a bigger difference to him, rather than just hearing it from adults," according to a report released Thursday morning by the Port St. Lucie Police Department.

Wow. A five year old is expected to have the emotional maturity and capacity for self-reflection to be able to profit from this exercise? Forget for just a moment that we are talking about a child with Asperger's Syndrome-- (his diagnosis has now been confirmed) she was expecting a level of insight that would be exceedingly rare in any child of Alex's age. This is developmentally inappropriate practice.

It reminded me of something I read years ago, before I ever had kids. The Etiology and Treatment of Childhood

The growing acceptance of childhood as a distinct phenomenon is reflected in the proposed inclusion of the syndrome in the upcoming Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition, or DSM-IV, of the American Psychiatric Association (1990). Clinicians are still in disagreement about the significant clinical features of childhood, but the proposed DSM-IV will almost certainly include the following core features:

1. Congenital onset
2. Dwarfism
3. Emotional lability and immaturity
4. Knowledge deficits
5. Legume anorexia

Having posted that excerpt, I hope that it does not cause the discussion to go into the territory of "Kids are overdiagnosed and overmedicated". While that is true in some cases, people often tend to make sweeping generalizations that may be hurtful (or at least unhelpful) to people who are dealing with these issues.

Obviously the piece is satire. Behavior and characteristics common to childhood would be seen as "abnormal" if observed in an adult. But rather than seeing these things as "disordered", many adults see them as "bad", leading them to select an entirely inappropriate strategy for dealing with problems that arise.

More later--I need to leave for work now.

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Netroots Nation Scholarships

From the comments

Hey everyone, I have a DFA Netroots Nation scholarship contest update:

Jessica is still in 1st place. I've been bumped to 3rd. More votes for both of us would help send us to Austin.

Spread the word!

I've unfortunately lost a bunch of email addresses, so I can't appeal to a whole bunch of folks personally. Thanks for the support so far! (It's deeply humbling to see people say such nice things).

Jessica:
http://democracyforamerica.com/netroots_nation_scholarships/3-jessica-falker

Me:
http://democracyforamerica.com/netroots_nation_scholarships/18-liane-allen

9 people will be sent, there are currently over 50 candidates in the running, with the number growing steadily.

Liane

Sorry for being too lazy/tired to write a real post, but hope the front page attention helps a bit.

Haloscan comment thread

Thursday Open Thread

Nonviolent Communication

Haloscan comment thread

Open Thread

Demetrius did a new design last night

Off to work, and then teaching, and then, hopefully, the gym.

Talk amongst yourselves.

Haloscan commen thread

Card campaign for Alex

Something positive to do in response to the story I posted about yesterday. From Barbara at Mommy Life:

Let's show Alex we care.

To protect Melissa Barton's privacy, and since my address is public - please send all cards to
Alex is Special
c/o Barbara Curtis
15648 Britenbush Ct.
Waterford, VA 20197

I will gather them, notify the media, then put them all in a box and send them to his mom to give to Alex.

Updates
Outraged Mom Of Special Needs Son Talks Exclusively With The Early Show
Alex Barton And The New Wave Of Autism Activism
Update on Alex Barton: Teacher Voted Out
More links here.

Also, via some of the stories I've read in the past couple days, the following resource: The Autistic Self-Advocacy Network


Haloscan comment thread

Open Thread

Image from the LOLCat Bible Translation Project

Oh, and although I would probably appreciate it a lot more had I ever read T.S. Eliot's poem, The Waste Land, I still get a kick out of the words "April is the cruellest month" being translated as "April hates you!"

Anyway, the long weekend is over, and I'm back to work. Talk amongst yourselves.

Haloscan comment thread

Bad barrels

more cat pictures

After reading more articles about the teacher who had classmates vote on whether or not 5-year-old Alex should be allowed to return to class, I've amended my thinking on the teacher's potential "worst person in the world" status. She was, of course, absolutely wrong to subject a special needs child--or any child--to this type of public humiliation. But the system failed Alex and his family in a big way. And it may even have failed his teacher by failing to provide her with the resources and training she needed. I recommend this post for some thoughts on the bigger picture.

And I think we do need to get away from scapegoating. Firing this teacher could be a quick fix that would let people believe that "justice has been served", but it wouldn't give me much confidence that Morningside Elementary School would be any better prepared to address the needs of future students on the autistic spectrum. Maybe Ms. Portillo does need to lose her job over this. I don't know. But what I do know is that exclusive focus on "bad apples" can keep us from examining the root issue of "bad barrels". From psychologist Philip Zimbardo:

When you put that set of horrendous work conditions and external factors together, it creates an evil barrel. You could put virtually anybody in it and you're going to get this kind of evil behavior. The Pentagon and the military say that the Abu Ghraib scandal is the result of a few bad apples in an otherwise good barrel. That's the dispositional analysis. The social psychologist in me, and the consensus among many of my colleagues in experimental social psychology, says that's the wrong analysis. It's not the bad apples, it's the bad barrels that corrupt good people.

No, this isn't Abu Ghraib we're talking about here. But it is another example of a case where pointing fingers without addressing underlying systemic problems would be unwise.

Haloscan comment thread

This makes me freaking furious!

St. Lucie teacher has students vote on whether 5-year-old can stay in class

5-year-old Alex Barton's teacher made him stand in front of his kindergarten class and had his fellow students say what they didn't like about him and then vote whether he should remain in the class.

Alex is in the process of being diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. That's what our son has.

Update: This blog has listed contact information for the school principal, superintendent, etc.

And as Demetrius just remarked, "If this doesn't qualify someone for 'Worst Person in the World', I don't know what does."

countdown@msnbc.com

Another update. Apparently the teacher is trying to pass this off as a "teachable moment" on taking tallies.

The teacher said the boy had been sent to the office earlier that day, and when the office sent him back to class, Portillo asked her students whether they were ready for him to return, Steele said. Portillo said she asked the class to vote because they are learning about taking tallies, police say.

More links


Not Special: Support Alex Barton

“We do things democratically here.”

And a New Goat (really good, insightful post, which I highly recommend)

Alex is "Cool"

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Towel Day

Happy (or do you say "Hoopy"?) Towel Day

Update: Sorry to be maudlin, but this seems to be as good a time as any to share something I learned recently about the day Douglas Adams died...

Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy fans will recall that Douglas attributed to the humble towel a miraculous potential for reassurance and utility. ‘There’s a frood who really knows where his towel is,’* the Narrator observes with admiration. The role of the towel traces its lineage back to the summer of 1978 when Douglas and various pals were on holiday in Corfu. Douglas was supposed to be writing, but a certain amount of hedonism and frolicking on the beach also featured.

Douglas’s towel – he needed one the size of a marquee’s groundsheet – was forever going missing. Perhaps it had some homing instinct for the sea, like a baby turtle. Finding it became synonymous with being a really together, cool kind of guy.

You may be touched to learn that, feeling faint from the rigours of the machine, Douglas picked up his towel from Peter and clutched it to him before lying down on a bench. In these circumstances specialists advise that becoming horizontal may not be expedient, but the piercing clarity of retrospect takes no account of the reality of an enormous, sweaty man, probably feeling a little woozy, poised to topple like an
uprooted tree.

He lay down. Peter glanced away for a second. When he looked back he thought that Douglas was messing about. Still holding on to his towel, he had rolled quietly off the bench. He had fainted. Peter called an ambulance, which efficiently speeded Douglas off to hospital. He never regained consciousness.

Haloscan comment thread

Love me and despair

I know Demetrius just meant this for a comment link, but what the heck....
-Renee

Funny comment on a NYT.com article:

"And now we have Bobby-Gate. Apparently, Hillary’s heart has greatly desired the death of her rival. I’m getting images of a tempted Galadriel from Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings”: “in place of a dark Lord you would have a Queen; beautiful and treacherous as the sea!

Hillary Cheney is unhinged. She wants to take a blood-soaked White House.

And all of this because he beat her and won’t choose her as his running mate.

...couldn't resist an accompanying picture.





Haloscan comment thread

Saturday Open Thread

Here's a front page post from Booman Tribune with contact information for Democratic leaders and uncommitted delegates.

Update: Olbermann's special comment from last night

Clinton, you invoked a political nightmare

Haloscan comment thread

Open Thread

Holman's sister had a litter of puppies. Here's one of the girls at 3 days old.


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News and links

I've added a number of new articles to my Google shared items here. This headline in particular caught my attention.

Is Clinton acting out because Obama told her no to VP?

The words "acting out" evoke a certain image in my mind. Something like this...

And a couple of not-so-new but possibly forgotten quotes...

From October 2007

"It's clear, this election they're having is not going to count for anything," Clinton said Thursday during an interview on New Hampshire Public Radio's call-in program, "The Exchange." "But I just personally did not want to set up a situation where the Republicans are going to be campaigning between now and whenever, and then after the nomination, we have to go in and repair the damage to be ready to win Michigan in 2008."

And from February 2007...

“If the most important thing to any of you is choosing someone who did not cast that vote or has said his vote was a mistake, then there are others to choose from,” Mrs. Clinton told an audience in Dover, N.H., in a veiled reference to two rivals for the nomination, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois and former Senator John Edwards of North Carolina.

Honestly, Hil--it's like you don't think hard working Americans know how to use the internets to look this kind of stuff up.

Haloscan comment thread

Are you missing some matter?

Apparently some has been found.

How can you pass up a headline like this: Half of Universe's Missing Matter Found.

Surprisingly, it wasn't found behind the couch.

Haloscan comment thread

Open Thread

see more dog pictures

Except I really do plan to go in anyway. I have to. I left that box of tissue with the lotion in it on my desk...

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McCain campaign seeking blogger outreach

Submitted without comment...

Wishing you could be a campaign surrogate, but don't have a national platform? Do you find blogging your own opinions tedious? Wish you could have someone tell you what to think during this political season? Well look no further than John McCain's new blog outreach!

More here.

Haloscan comment thread

1627

I remember reading a couple months ago that 1627 is the real magic number, with respect to delegates...

1,627 is fifty percent plus one of the 3,253 democratically selected delegates to the Democratic nominating convention.

Barack Obama is poised to reach that milestone today.

Haloscan comment thread

Open Thread

Anything good on the telly these days?

Talk amongst yourselves.

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Credit where due

Thank you for this, Hillary.

Largely absent from her swing through South Dakota and Oregon, two of the four states (plus Puerto Rico) that have yet to hold primaries, was any mention of her opponent. On Thursday, she mentioned Mr. Obama only when she defended him from Mr. Bush’s remarks that implicitly compared him to appeasers of Nazis.

The Clinton campaign began running three more television advertisements on Friday in Oregon and Kentucky, none of which criticized Mr. Obama directly. An aide said that in the coming days, Mrs. Clinton planned to focus on the economy and avoid directly criticizing Mr. Obama.

Also, this post at The Field is worth checking out.

Haloscan comment thread

Open Thread (with cake and ponies)

First of all, a very Happy Birthday to my Mom!

And next, a funny pony.

more cat pictures

Haloscan comment thread

Frickin' Laser Beams!

I may or may not have mentioned that I have Google set as my home page. This is handy because I can log in to both Blogger and my e-mail from there. Also, it's a relatively innocuous page to have as the first thing I see when I get on the computer--I don't run a risk of being faced with a sad, horrifying, or maddening news headline the moment I venture onto the tubes. The upshot is that, if Google has a special treatment on their logo for a holiday or whatever, I see that right away. This morning I was greeted with this.

Ooh. Pretty. But what does it mean? I clicked, and it turns out the first laser was operated on May 16, 1960. So, Happy Birthday to frickin' laser beams.



Incidentally, I am not a huge fan of the Austin Powers movies. I kind of liked the first one, and didn't like the second. I think there was a third, but never saw it. But I did get a kick out of that scene, and think of it every time someone mentions laser beams.

By the way, I am interested in hearing suggestions people have of good movies to watch and fun board games to play with the kids, who are now 12 and 14.

Update: I've added a few new links to my shared items. Greetings from "The State of Perfect Balance".

Haloscan comment thread

Another open thread

We recently watched The Empire Strikes Back with the kids, so I've had this song in my head for the past couple days.



Update: I just watched Howard Dean's appearance on last night's episode of The Tonight Show. It is available online here.


Haloscan comment thread

Open Thread

By the way, I heard Olbermann mention something about a “Vote Both” web site last night, and that it was put up by Clinton supporters. Heard something about it again today, so I did a web search, and the first thing that came up was Vote Both dot org, which is apparently a protest site.

As for the site that is being protested, I'm linking it using the words Nightmare Ticket. (Just in case Googlebombing still works.)

Haloscan comment thread

A Year

From Thankful over at BFA...

In Remembrance
~* ♥*~ ♥ ~* ♥ *~~* ♥ *~ ♥ ~* ♥ *~~* ♥ *~ ♥ ~* ♥ *~
Judy Lynne Cadoret
20 March 1957 - 13 May 2007
Much love, admiration, and damn it we miss you
~* ♥ *~ ♥ ~* ♥ *~~* ♥ *~ ♥ ~* ♥ *~~* ♥ *~ ♥ ~* ♥ *~

Thanks to Karen for posting this in the last thread.

HaloScan comment thread

Open Thread

This is my officially crabby-ass bad mood song. Posting it makes me feel a tiny bit better. Thank you for indulging me.

Haloscan comment thread

Happy Mother's Day

In honor of the occasion, here's a picture of the first two dogs my mother raised for Canine Companions.



Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Haloscan comment thread

FIVE WEEK OLD FOX KIT ~ OPEN THREAD

This little fox kit is no Faux!
With three siblings as well, Mama Fox is very busy!
Remember busy moms on Mother's Day!


Haloscan comment thread

Friday Open Thread

more cat pictures

Click here for some new shared items.

Haloscan comment link

In gratitude

I've been having another dry spell with regard to blogging. Part of the reason is my busy schedule. Another part is just some garden-variety suckiness--some of it related to life with teenagers. But the news of Mildred Loving's death reminded me to be thankful that I have the luxury of facing such ordinary challenges in my family life. Thanks to Richard and Mildred Loving, at least I don't have to worry about being arrested for being married to my husband.

Last year was the 40th anniversary of the Loving v. Virginia ruling, which declared laws against interracial marriage unconstitutional. I was aware of that anniversary, but somehow missed the statement Mildred Loving made at that time. It's definitely worth a read.

Anyway, here's to the trailblazers.

Haloscan comment thread

Open Thread

(One of the songs on my water aerobics playlist)

Talk amongst yourselves.

Haloscan comment thread

The Vermont Legislature Formally Supports our National Nurse!

Over the last few years I have been mentioning the National Nurse legislation making its way through Congress to my Representatives. Bernie Sanders was a co-sponsor of the original legislation, H.R. 4903, when he was in the House. VT Rep. Peter Welch's health aide assures me that he is willing to pick up that role when the bill is reintroduced in its new form, which incorporates ideas offered by various nursing groups around the country. Bernie Sanders, now a Vermont Senator, would likely sign on as a co-sponsor in the Senate as well.

Last fall, I asked my town representatives to introduce a Resolution in the Vermont House in support of the National Nurse legislation in Congress. One of my Reps is also the House Speaker, so was unable to be the initiating sponsor. She nonetheless signed on as a co-sponsor. My other town Rep said he would introduce the Resolution, but thought it would be stronger if introduced by a nurse. So he inspired a fellow Representative who is also a nurse to be the introducing sponsor. He also signed on. In fact, in all, 26 House members signed on as co-sponsors of J.R.H. (Joint Resolution of the House) 52. It was called a "joint" Resolution so it would not need to be started separately in the Vermont Senate.

To my surprise, the Resolution was sent to the House Health Care Committee. Most resolutions are generally passed as a courtesy. So now testimony was in order, and four of us were willing. The day the Committee scheduled it was a Tuesday, when I had to work, but two of the four were able to attend and did a great job. We other two sent a written testimony. I also wrote a letter of thanks to all 26 co-sponsors and sent them each an "I support the National Nurse" button, designed by our own ♥jc♥. Wonderfully, of the 11 Committee members, 8 of them had already signed on as co-sponsors. The Resolution passed out of Committee with a positive vote and passed on voice vote on the House floor.

Then it went over to the Senate side for a vote. I sent a letter of testimony to the Chair of the Senate Health & Welfare Committee. The Resolution was not sent to Committee in the Senate, but simply passed easily on voice vote. A Resolution is not signed by the Governor, by custom, Though I did hear that the Governor was not opposed.

The Vermont legislative session ended on Saturday, May 3rd. On Sunday, May 4th, my town Rep., Bill Frank, came by with two official copies of J.R.H. 52, one for me and one for Teri Mills, our beloved founder of the legislation! Hurrah! (Statehouse to door delivery!)

Hubby snapped this photo:




Haloscan comment thread

Sunday Open Thread

Some of these gave me a chuckle.




Haloscan comment thread

Kitten Thread

Donno about you, but I need a dose of kittenness!



Visit The Daily Kitten for more.

Comment thread

Open Thread

see more cute dogs and puppies

Haloscan comment thread

News Roundup

Longshore Union Strikes Against War
By Peter Cole
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Tuesday 29 April 2008
On Thursday, May Day, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union will declare an eight-hour strike to protest the war in Iraq. Since the ILWU controls every port along the U.S. Pacific Coast, including Seattle and Tacoma, this strike demonstrates the collective power of workers willing to use it.

The ILWU is demanding "an immediate end to the war and occupation in Iraq and Afghanistan and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the Middle East." Although the majority of Americans repeatedly have expressed their desire to end the war, President Bush has not obliged us, so it drags on. Because our leaders refuse to listen, ILWU members are taking the next logical step for workers: Strike.

Burma: US Oil Major Complicit in Abuses - Rights Lobby
By Marwaan Macan-Markar
Inter Press Service News
Wednesday 30 April 2008
Bangkok - An environmental group is warning U.S. energy giant Chevron to clean up its act in Burma or face legal proceedings where the multinational's links to gross human rights violations in the military-ruled country could be exposed.

There has been little relief for villagers living in the Yadana pipeline region in southern Burma since the Chevron Corporation became a partner to this natural gas venture in 2005, states the Washington D.C.-based EarthRights International (EI) in a report released here Tuesday.

"Chevron and its consortium partners continue to rely on the Burmese army for pipeline security and those forces continue to conscript thousands of villagers for forced labour, and to commit torture, rape, murder and other serious abuses in the course of their operations," revealed the 76-page report, 'The Human Cost of Energy'.

Chevron should act on "its moral and legal obligations to human rights rather than profit from human rights abuses," the report added of this project that earned the Burma's junta about 1.1 billion US dollars in 2006, over half of its total earnings from the sale of gas to neighbouring Thailand, which was 2.16 billion dollars that year.

White House Admits Fault on "Mission Accomplished" Banner
By Terence Hunt
The Associated Press
Thursday 01 May 2008
The White House said Wednesday that President Bush has paid a price for the "Mission Accomplished" banner that was flown in triumph five years ago but later became a symbol of U.S. misjudgments and mistakes in the long and costly war in Iraq.

Thursday is the fifth anniversary of Bush's dramatic landing in a Navy jet on an aircraft carrier homebound from the war. The USS Abraham Lincoln had launched thousands of airstrikes on Iraq.

"Major combat operations in Iraq have ended," Bush said at the time. "The battle of Iraq is one victory in a war on terror that began on Sept. 11, 2001, and still goes on." The "Mission Accomplished" banner was prominently displayed above him - a move the White House came to regret as the display was mocked and became a source of controversy.

ACLU: Pentagon Documents Highlight Interrogation Methods
By Adam Goldman
The Associated Press
Wednesday 30 April 2008
New York - The military continued to use abusive interrogation methods on detainees after a 2003 directive meant to end such practices, the American Civil Liberties Union said Wednesday after reviewing newly released documents.

The Department of Defense documents shed light on the use of psychologists in military interrogations and the failure of medical workers to report abuse of detainees, the ACLU said.

Former Guantanamo Prosecutor Says Trials Tainted
Reuters
Monday 28 April 2008
Guantanamo Bay US Naval Base - The former chief prosecutor for the Guantanamo war crimes tribunals testified on Monday that the tribunals were tainted by political influence and evidence obtained through prisoner abuse.

Air Force Col. Moe Davis, who quit the war court last year, said political appointees and higher-ranking officers pushed prosecutors to file charges before trial rules were even written.

Iran Complains to UN About Clinton Comment
By Claudia Parsons
Reuters
Wednesday 30 April 2008
United Nations - Iran complained to the United Nations on Wednesday about US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's comment the United States could "totally obliterate" Iran in retaliation for a nuclear strike against Israel.

Iran's deputy ambassador to the United Nations sent a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the president of the Security Council expressing Iran's condemnation of "such a provocative, unwarranted and irresponsible statement."

Four Michigan Dems Propose Compromise on Seating Delegation
By Marie Horrigan
Congressional Quarterly
Tuesday 29 April 2008
A negotiating team of top Michigan Democrats has come forward with a compromise plan to seat the state's delegation to the national convention that would give New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton a slight advantage in the delegate count over Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

The proposal comes about four months after the Democratic National Committee stripped Michigan of all its delegates because the state party advanced the date of its primary in violation of Democratic National Committee rules.

The authors of the plan, sent to Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer on Tuesday, said it essentially "splits the difference between the 73/55 position of the Clinton campaign and the 64/64 position of the Obama campaign."

Cheney Lawyer Claims Congress Has No Authority Over Vice President
By Elana Schor
The Guardian UK
Tuesday 29 April 2008
The lawyer for US vice-president Dick Cheney claimed today that the Congress lacks any authority to examine his behaviour on the job.

The exception claimed by Cheney's counsel came in response to requests from congressional Democrats that David Addington, the vice-president's chief of staff, testify about his involvement in the approval of interrogation tactics used at Guantanamo Bay.

Ruling out voluntary cooperation by Addington, Cheney lawyer Kathryn Wheelbarger said Cheney's conduct is "not within the [congressional] committee's power of inquiry".

Comment thread

Grammar, anyone?

While looking for something else I came across the below, which I have no recollection whatsoever of writing. Since we need a new thread, I hope you will all humor me and bear with my kvetching.

In recent years, I have noticed an increasing tendency among people of all ages, geographical regions, and socio-economic levels to speak (and write) ungrammatically. Moreover, when I have ventured to make this observation and to address some of the more common errors, I have been call judgmental and an elitist,, and asked with hostility who I thought I was, and where I got off dictating how other people should speak and write.

And this, on a listserv for writers!

It is therefore with some trepidation that I broach the subject of grammar. However, grammar is the life's blood of communication. Whether writing to our Congresscritter or to the media, phone banking, canvassing, or engaging friends, family and coworkers, good grammar and diction (word choice) are essential for effective communication.

One particularly widespread error affects me like the proverbial fingernails on a blackboard. This error substitutes the Conditional for the subjunctive, to whit:

I wish he would have run.
If she would have come…

The correct formulation is:

I wish he had run.
If she had come…

It is not necessary to understand the arcana of verb mood to use it correctly. Just remember that hypothetical statements and statements of wish or desire, such as those using "if" and "I wish," use the subjunctive. Except for the verb "to be," the forms of the past and present subjunctive are indistinguishable from those of the past and present Indicative. So, in most situations, if you simply use the past or present form, you'll have it.

The verb "can" is a bit tricky. It's simple past tense, "could," looks identical to the form used in many conditional constructions. But, don't be fooled or confused.

I wish you could come.

Is equivalent to

I wish you were able to come.

And is thus subjunctive.

As activists, we are communicators. To communicate effectively, to exploit the versatility and flexibility of the English language, we must understand and follow its rules.

Comment thread

Cocktails with a Liberal Congresswoman (and Introducing a Democratic Leader)

First of all I must confess. I am a political junkie. While others trail movie stars, I track down good liberal politicians. It all started when I attend a rally for Howard Dean 5 years ago. When he stood in front of a 20x40 foot American flag and stated he was going to take our country back—I became hooked. While some watch American idol, I watch congress debate bills about healthcare on c-span. If I could have a wish, it would be to tap the minds of respected liberal politicians.

Last Friday my wish was granted following an IL Dem. Women’s Convention. I was able to spend time gleaning the mind of liberal Congresswoman, Jan Schakowsky http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Schakowsky. Relaxing in a lounge chair, she comfortably talked with fellow democratic novices for over 2 hours.

The first comment was about the expensive $7.50 drink. I bet she knows the price of gas Pres. Bush. An insider perspective was what I was after. After talking about her bumpy private plane ride down she told about her constant traveling between DC and Chicago. I asked about whether Rahm Emmanuel would come out in support of Hillary or Obama (he won't because he is friends to both). She talked about the reunion of her 2 puppies after they were separated from birth to how people are surprised to see her when grocery shopping.

She discussed the down and dirty about being interviewed on Sunday morning talk shows. She said elected females rarely get on these shows because they feel they need to understand every aspect of the topic of the day and men just jump right in. Being an Obama supporter, she frequently has been across the table from Carville, her favorite to debate. “He hates debating women, it must be all those years living with Mary Matalin”.

What I appreciated the most about the interaction was
her genuineness in wanting to share with us newbies to politics. She truly wants to see more empowered women in office. In dark times like this, People like Rep. Schakowsky restore my faith in politics.

The following day my personal highlight was getting to introduce my favorite Senator-- Sen. Durbin. He made an unscheduled speech at the event so I was recruited at the last minute. My friend in attendance told me that he smiled broadly during the entire time I was speaking. That alone was a supreme compliment.

5 years ago I could never have imagined having an experience like this.--that is the power of Howard Dean’s inspiration.

Comment thread

Open Thread

Via GraphJam: Pop Culture for People in Cubicles


see more song memes

Haloscan comment thread

Barack Obama on "talking tough"

Worth a watch...



"One of the things I learned in the schoolyard was, the folks who are talking tough all the time, they're not always that tough."

Read more here.

Haloscan comment thread

Watch/Read Rev. Wright on PBS

Video here, transcript here.

Haloscan comment thread

Hillary and Barbie

I hate when this happens. I manage to write a long-ish comment (to this post at Plunderbund, which was referencing the image I posted last night), only to have the comment eaten by internet gremlins. Good thing I saved it to clipboard. Anyway, the following is in response to this discussion.

Haven't looked at the TNR thing close up, so can't really comment on it. Work has been mentally exhausting enough lately that I rarely feel like writing much at the end of the day. Occasionally there is some little nugget that will come together almost without effort--usually a response to something I've read. And sometimes what occurs to me will be an image.

I was thinking yesterday about how much I don't identify with Hillary or consider her to be a good role model or someone worthy of my "gender loyalty". Or whatever it's called. Anyway, it occurred to me that I wanted to Photoshop that image. Partly, I guess, because I never liked Barbie as a "role model", and the "Teen Talk" version that briefly uttered the words "math is hard" was kind of the epitome of that.

I thought I was going to write something about that, but by the time I got home, I realized that just wasn't going to happen.

Maybe I'll think of more to write about this later. But now, since I'm wiped out but need to go in to work tomorrow, I'm going to call it a night.

Update: Apparently the phrase was "math class is hard".

Haloscan comment thread

Happy Birthday, Jessica!

Hope it's a good one!

Haloscan comment thread

The Daily Show takes on Hillary's "I'm winning" spin

The Daily Show did a segment on The Long, Flat, Seemingly Endless Bataan Death March To The White House last night. In addition to mocking the corporate media's penchant for overly dramatic life-and-death analogies, Jon Stewart took on the absurd metrics put forth by Hillary and her supporters. Culminating in:

So what it comes down to is that you would win the nomination if Democrats were Republicans? That sounds like one tremendous "if you" to the process.

The Colbert Report also had some fun with this subject.

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Open Thread

I know some people consider the pun to be the lowest form of humor, but this one cracks me up.



see more crazy cat pics

BTW, here's the link to the Pennsylvania Department of State's unofficial returns page.

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Hillary fails to capture much needed high-margin victory in PA

With 22% of the vote counted, Clinton only leads Obama 53 to 47%, falling far short of the decisive win her campaign desperately needed. Results here.


Updated at 10 p.m. Eastern Time, with 47% of the vote in, the margin is now Clinton 54% to Obama 46%. Still nothing like the 20 point margin she enjoyed in Pennsylvania just a few weeks ago.

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You say it's your Earth Day...

It's my Earth Day too, yeah!

No Planet B
by

myleftwing

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Bitter much?

Sorry to continue the front page griping about Clinton, but, dang, she's getting on my nerves....

After stressing the financial burdens Americans are suffering, problems with education, and more, Clinton stressed the critical decision these voters have to make. She jabbed her opponent, Sen. Barack Obama, who Saturday held his largest rally ever miles from the site where Clinton spoke.

“I don’t want to show up and give one of these whoop-de-do speeches and, you know, and just kind of get everybody whipped up," she said, "and those [of you who are for me] feel great and, you know, try to convince some of you to be for me.”

Clinton again made her argument that the White House is not a place for wimps, saying, “When you get into the general election and when you get into the White House, the stresses and pressures of the general election and the job are overwhelming. And we know we have to have a president ready on day one to take charge.”

Clinton refrained from criticizing the Republican frontrunner John McCain, and instead shared a story about their accommodations when they traveled oversees together.

Presumably, if Hillary Clinton received a visit from the Delegate Fairy, and somehow ended up securing the nomination, she would actually shift gears and turn her attacks on John McCain. At this point that's kind of hard to imagine, since the Clinton snark and condescension has thus far been reserved for Barack Obama and grassroots activists. And friends who end up endorsing Obama rather than Clinton.

Pennsylvania Democrats, please end thing for us.

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Open Thread

Just watched some of a video called An Engineer's Guide to Cats. Kinda long, but I laughed out loud a couple times around the 3 minute mark when they were talking about "cat hobbies".



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Edwards and Obama on The Colbert Report

Here are the videos, for anyone who missed seeing John Edwards and Barack Obama on The Colbert Report last night...

Update: Apparently the Edwards video was pulled from YouTube. I've removed both videos from this post so that people won't be clicking them in vain--I imagine the Obama one won't stay up for long. Here's a link to the Colbert Report web site, where you can watch segments from last night's program.

There was another candidate on last night's show, I seem to recall.

Oh yeah, this one:
Secretly recorded tape reveals Hillary blasting MoveOn & Democratic activists

Nice one, Hill. Do we need to remind people why MoveOn was founded in the first place?

And click here for audio of both MoveOn Hatin' Hillary and MoveOn Lovin' Hillary.

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Hillary seeking the "Colbert bump"

She's scheduled to appear on The Colbert Report tonight.

It's been taped already, as reported here.

“Are you telling me there is no one in this theater who can fix the mess we’re in?” Mr. Colbert said.

Enter Mrs. Clinton, who strode out on stage, smiling.

“I can,” she said. “I can, Stephen!”

After pausing for applause, Mrs. Clinton said, “Let me handle this,” and squinted up into some imaginary rafters to talk a technician through the problem.

Then she moved onto the issue of Mr. Colbert’s appearance.

“You know what, Stephen?” she said. “Your forehead is a little shiny. Makeup! Makeup! Can we get some translucent powder, please?”

Mr. Colbert said in mock amazement, “Wow, Senator Clinton! You’re so prepared for any situation!”

Mrs. Clinton replied, “That’s O.K., Stephen. I just love solving problems.”

I just threw up a little bit in my mouth.

John Edwards will also be making an appearance on stage, and Barack Obama will be on via satellite.

(I still think a "Colbert bump" sounds like what you get when you're expecting a little Colbert.)

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To What End?

Ten million people watched this debate. Somewhat of an indication that they're interested in the outcome. They were NOT assisted in that aim. . . .

. . . many of the millions who did watch, didn't like what they saw. Including TV critic Tom Shales of the Washington Post and Will Bunch of the Philadelphia Daily News. First Shales:

"It was another step downward for network news — usually dependable anchors, Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos, turned in shoddy, despicable performances.

The fact is, cable networks CNN and MSNBC both did better jobs with earlier candidate debates. Cable news is indeed taking over from network news, and merely by being competent."

And from Bunch, an open letter to Gibson and Stephanopoulos calling their performance "a televised train wreck that my friend and colleague Greg Mitchell has already called, quite accurately, 'a shameful night for the U.S. media.'"

Alessandra Stanley of the NYTimes focused on "the veiled ties and tensions between news media stars and political figures" which "sometimes make voters bitter, leading them to cling to political satire by the likes of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert as a way to explain their frustration."

http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/politics/abc_debate_reviews_shoddy_televised_train_wreck_excellent_82656.asp

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ICE OUT! (Shout it all together!)

Mid-April snow squalls left fresh snow on Mount Mansfield.



It won't last long.
For on Monday in Vermont the ice in Mallett's Bay
{ where listener and family sail }
broke up and was pushed by the wind to one side!



Now if that would just happen in the political campaign, eh?


This is a Speak Freely Thread. Let the winds of Change blow free!

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People who should know better

Hat tip to Jed Report for reminding us of Hillary's "tea and cookies" remark.

"Those of us who have tried to have a career, tried to have an independent life, certainly somebody like myself...you know, I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies and had teas but what I decided to do was fulfill my profession which I entered before my husband was in public life."

I remember when she said that. I sympathized. I was in grad school, and had no plans (at that time) to do the "stay at home" thing. And I hadn't yet developed a real respect for how challenging and rewarding such a choice could be.

But I liked her back then. I recognized that she was treated unfairly. She's the one who talked about a "vast right wing conspiracy", remember? Knowing from personal experience what it's like to be hammered with your own ill-chosen words, she should be the first person to denounce such attacks on her fellow Democrats. Instead, she seeks to profit from them. That's just sad...and wrong.

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Bitter Voters for Obama

New web site just went up...Bitter Voters for Obama.

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"Look how American I am!", continued

Hillary Clinton: "Who do Americans want to have a beer with? Look--I've got photographic evidence right here!"



"What's that? Do shots with you?"

I can totally imagine her TerminatorVision activating at this point, rapidly displaying the probabilities of various outcomes depending on whether she says yes or no. After all of her efforts to convince the regular folks that Barack Obama is the one who is elitist while she "gets" small-town America (having been raised on "pinochle and the American dream"), can she afford to say no?

"Well...(shrug). Down the hatch!"

From ABC's Political Radar:

Clinton stood by the bar and took a shot of Crown Royal whiskey. She took one sip of the shot, then another small sip, then a few seconds later threw her head back and finished off the whole thing.

(Pictures via Huffington Post)

When I saw these pictures of Hillary Clinton last night, my first response was to be disgusted at the pandering. But then I was intrigued. Maybe this situation offers us some lemons with which we can make lemonade.

Fact: Hillary is determined to stay in this thing.
Fact: We can't get her to stop doing John McCain's work for him

Those are some rather disheartening facts. But we should at least be able to get some entertainment out of this. There could be any number of, shall we say, "less than dignified" things Hillary could be persuaded to do on camera to bolster her "real American" cred.

Developing...

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Hillary Clinton, just reeking "small town America"

Hillary Clinton joining the presumptive Republican nominee in an opportunistic tag teaming of Obama was to be expected. But I'm a little disappointed in myself that I didn't see this coming

“You know, my dad took me out behind the cottage that my grandfather built on a little lake called Lake Winola outside of Scranton and taught be how to shoot when I was a little girl,” she said.

“You know, some people now continue to teach their children and their grandchildren. It’s part of culture. It’s part of a way of life. People enjoy hunting and shooting because it’s an important part of who they are. Not because they are bitter.”

The article notes that Hillary and her daddy hunted ducks.


Why yes, I did post this story just to have an excuse to use that picture. Some days, that's just the kind of gal I am. ;)

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Saturday Open Thread

Son in Ohio just pointed out this YouTube video about Pirates and Emperors. (In the tradition of Schoolhouse Rock.)



Update
This is worth a read: Pushing Clinton: CNN's Push Poll on Obama's Remarks

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Seeing the Clintons in a new light. Growing up politically, so to speak.

If you have been following the saga of that very clever blogger from Kansas calling himself John Brown and going after Taylor Marsh....then you will enjoy his post about Bill Clinton. I have found his blog to be humorous and insightful in many areas.

It describes just about I feel as I keep seeing new facets of the former first family emerging. There is something rather sad and wistful about what we are witnessing. There is no joy in it. Just a kind of numbness and fatigue.

I liked Bill Clinton. Then I grew up.

Once upon a time, I thought highly of Bill Clinton. Sure, I had a few reservations about him. Overall, though, I liked the guy. Then I grew up.

It was easy to look past Bill's more highly-publicized shortcomings. He screwed around. He lied about it. I never felt his carnal urges had much of a bearing on his ability to lead the country. I could put myself in his shoes and imagine myself fibbing under oath and parsing definitions of "sexual relations" to stay out of bigger trouble. The guy bullshitted everyone about Monica and is other assignations but, even as a non-cheater, I could let it slide.

I even developed a kind of respect for Bill Clinton. I was impressed with the way he could weather controversy. I was astonished by his ability to charm his way out of situations that would doom most politicians. I think I also liked Bill because the people who were "out to get him" were usually people with whom I disagreed on issues. I, like others, sort of rallied behind Clinton because I despised his foes. Those asshats were more evil and conniving than Bill, but they weren't as good at the game. And, in my estimation, they were on the wrong side.

I liked Bill Clinton. Then I grew up.

Somewhere along the line, I realized that the means were just as important--if not more important--than the ends. I lost my appetite for the fruits of the diseased tree. Winning is important, but the way one wins is just as significant.

The blogger ends with this paragraph which in a way describes the battles our party is fighting right now.

They say that idealism is just for kids. I don't think so. I think it's valuable. I also believe, that in the long run, it's the only thing that makes sense.

There was a statement made by his wife who is running for president now. It was her statement about giving Iraqis the gift of freedom

"And I believe that at the same time that we have to make clear to the Iraqis that they have been given the greatest gift that a human being can give another human being – the gift of freedom. And it is up to them to decide how they will use that precious gift that has been paid for with the blood and sacrifice and treasure of the United States of America."

That statement defined her candidacy for me. It's hard seeing people in new ways, and there is no pleasure in it at all.

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Moar new thread

The "moar" is lolcat-speak, for anyone unfamiliar. I'm tired and feeling a little silly. But thought I'd share this rather well done "Elton John sings for Hillary" parody first. Just discovered it in this thread at Booman.



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Open Thread

Talk amongst yourselves...

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If wishes were ponies...

Also posted at Booman

Via Oliver Willis, I found this post on Salon.com. I recommend going to Oliver's site for the commentary, but you don't want to miss the title of the pro-Hillary piece in Salon. It's classic Hillary-think:

Why Hillary Clinton should be winning

You see, while Hillary is not actually winning, she really should be. But reality is well-known for having a pro-Obama bias.

And the subhead reads: Under a winner-take-all primary system, Hillary Clinton would have a wide lead over Barack Obama -- and enough delegates to clinch the nomination by June.

As Oliver points out, "If Senator Clinton wished to run for the nomination of a party with a winner-take-all nomination process, she would be well within her legal rights to do so - she simply needed to have changed her party affiliation to Republican."

Well, yeah. And actually, Demetrius told me a while back that he saw Paul Begala on some cable news show saying the Democrats should have a winner-take-all system like the Republicans, because it has "built-in momentum" or some such.

Wouldn't that be rather, well, "undemocratic"? Especially coming from someone associated with Hillary, who is currently presenting herself as would-be champion of the downtodden, disenfranchised voters in Florida and Michigan.

I also saw this earlier today, via Pho's Akron Pages. Part of the plea Hillary is currently sending out to her mailing list

With 14 days to go until the people of Pennsylvania vote, the Obama campaign has decided to go all-out. They're trying to end the race for the White House with an unyielding media blitz. Right now, we're being outspent 4-1 on Pennsylvania television.

So now, here's what we have to ask ourselves: Have we come this far in our history-making contest for the Democratic nomination only to see the race decided not by the quality of our ideas but by the size of our opponent's media budget?

Maybe I'm misremembering this, but isn't that how Hillary was planning to win the nomination? By crushing any and all challengers under the weight of her mighty campaign war chest?

But, I do understand. What it comes down to is that Hillary Clinton really really wants to be president. She wants it so much that she seems unable to even consider the possibility that it won't happen.

I am reminded of a moms' group I attended when Son and Daughter in Ohio were much younger. One of the other mothers was asking how to respond to her little one's meltdown over being denied something s/he desperately wanted. Like maybe the child wanted a pony, but couldn't have one. The group leader suggested saying something like, "You wish you could have a pony." When I first heard that suggestion, I couldn't help laughing, because it sounded like sarcasm to me. "You wish!" But I learned to say it in a way that didn't feel that way to me. "You really wish you could have..." It was kind of Rogerian, actually. A way of acknowledging kids' feelings and making sure they know they've been heard...even if the answer is still "no".

I'm glad I had some good role models to teach me the importance of showing empathy toward toddlers and preschoolers. The "you can't always get what you want" lesson is a tough one for little kids, and they deserve our compassion as they are learning it.

But when we're talking about 60 year old senators, my patience and compassion wear a bit thin...

Here's your pony, Hillary.

Now get out of the damn race!

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Help Howard

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Open Thread

I is too tired to blog. But here is an open thread.

see more crazy cat pics

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McCain Girls: not a parody. Apparently.

When I saw the "It's raining McCain" video, I initially thought it was a joke. So, it seems, did a lot of other people in the blogoverse. Lead McCain Girl was not amused, and issued a curt, profanity laced 30 second statement to that effect on YouTube. In it, she promised to be back with more McCainy goodness set to music.

And she was true to her word, because here they are again.



I'm beginning to think maybe I judged "Hillary for you and me" too harshly.

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