Tuesday, May 06, 2008

The 1/4 candidate

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
TWO PRIMARIES TONIGHT AND SENATOR BARACK OBAMA, THE 'CHOICE' OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, AGAIN PROVED HE WAS NOT ABLE TO CLOSE THE DEAL.
 
HE MUSTERED A WIN IN NORTH CAROLINA AND IS TRAILING IN INDIANA. 
 
HE CONTINUES TO BE UNABLE TO REACH OUT TO LATINOS AND WORKING CLASS WHITE VOTERS. 
 
SPEAKING WITH THE CAMPAIGN TONIGHT, DAVID AXELROD SHARED A GENERAL ELECTION STRATEGY SHOULD BARACK GET THE NOMINATION: "WE'LL BUS DETROIT VOTERS OUT ACROSS THE UNITED STATES."
 
WHEN THESE REPORTERS POINTED OUT THAT VOTERS COULD NOT VOTE IN MULTIPLE STATES, AXELROD REPLIED, "BY THE TIME THEY START BUSTING PEOPLE, WE'LL HAVE STOLEN THE ELECTION.  I MEAN WON!"
 
 
 
 
Starting with war resistance.  Claudia Parson (Reuters) reports on Iraq Veterans Against the War's Eli Wright who awaits "a medical discharge for post traumatic stress disorder and a shoulder injury" and has added to his tattoo collection "a black paper clip on his right hand."  From Different Drummer Cafe, Wright explains, "During Vietnam, guys that were against the war would wear a paper clip on their uniform somewhere, it was a little way for them to identify themselves. It stands for People Against People Ever Re-enlisting -- Civilian Life is Preferred.  We decided instead of just ewaring paper clips, we would actually tattoo them, a permanent reminder of our dedication to getting out."
 
March 14th, Wright testified at IVAW's Winter Soldier on the experience of health care and cautioned veterans, "Don't keep it quiet," demand the health care you've been promised.  Vet health care will be a later topic this snapshot but if  you missed Winter Soldier you can stream it online at IVAW's Winter Solider page (audio or video). You can also stream audio at War Comes Home, at KPFK, at the Pacifica Radio homepage and at KPFA, here for Friday, here for Saturday, here for Sunday. Aimee Allison (co-host of the station's The Morning Show and co-author with David Solnit of Army Of None) and Aaron Glantz were the anchors for Pacifica's live coverage. Allison and Glantz also hosted KPFA's live coverage April 22nd on the lawsuit against the Veterans Administration.

 
In Canada, war resisters are hoping the Parliament will take action on a motion waiting to be debated.   Currently, you can utilize the following e-mails to show your support: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration.  In addition Jack Layton, NDP leader, has a contact form and they would like to hear from people as well. A few more addresses can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use.         

There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.

Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).
 
Today the US House Committee on Veterans' Affairs held a hearing entitled "The Truth About Veterans' Suicides."  Among those questioned by the committee were the Sec of the Dept of Veterans Affairs James Peake, Deputy Under Secretary for Health, Veterans Health Administration Gerald Cross, the VA's Dr. Iraq Katz, the University of Georgia's Stephen L Rathbun, Texas Tech's M. David Rudd, University of South Carolina's Ronald Maris and, from the Inspector General's office, Dr. Michael Shepherd.
 
US House Rep Bob Filner chairs the committee and noted in his opening statements, "On December 12, 2007, this Committee held a hearing entitled 'Stopping Suicides: Mental Health Challenges within the Department of Veterans Affairs.'  Nearly five months later, we are again holding a hearing on the tragic issue of suicide among our veterans and what the VA is doing to address what is clearly an epidemic.  In November of last year, CBS News aired a story entitled 'Suicide Epidemic Among Veterans.'  On April 21, 2008, CBS News aired a story 'VA Hid Suicide Risk, Internal E-mails Show.'  The first step in addressing a problem is to understand the scope and extent of the problem.  In the case of the VA and the epidemic of veteran suicides, either the VA has not adequately attempted to determine the scope of the problem, which is an idictment of the VA's basic competence, or the VA knows the extent of the problem, but has attempted to obfuscate and minimize the problem to veterans, Congress, and the American people, which is an indictment of the leadership of the entire Department.  In December, Dr. Katz, in testimony before this Committee, stressed a low-rate veteran suicide, stating that 'from the beginning of the war through the end of 2005 there were 144 known suicides among these new veterans.'  In responding to the figures used by CBS, Dr. Katz stated that 'their number for veteran suicides is not, in fact, an accurate reflection of the rates of suicide'."
 
The reports Filner references were done by CBS Evening News and Armen Keteyian was the reporter and Pia Malbran the producer for both reports.  CBS obtained (for the April report) an e-mail (warning PDF format) that Katz had sent out stating that "our suicide prevention coordinators are identifying about 1,000 suicide attempts per month among that veterans we see in our medical facialities" which was considerably higher than the less than a thousand suicides (790) per year that the VA had insisted to CBS was the accurate number.  In addition, the e-mail opens with "Sh!" and is entitled "Not for the CBS News interview segment." The e-mail was sent to the VA's chief communications director, Ev Chasen, who replied, "I think this is something we should discuss among ourselves, before issuing a release.  Is the fact that we're stopping them good news, or is the sheer number bad news?  And is this more than we've ever seen before?  It might be something we drop into a general release about suicide prevention efforts, which (as you know far better than I) prominently include training employees to recognize the warning signs of suicide."  Kats replies back, "I want to wait until Jan gets back from leave and then plan talking points with her." 
 
Speaking for the VA, Peake attempted to bore the world with a lecture on suicide, its history, its measurements.  Well into his opening remarks he admitted something truly appalling that some may miss: "Until VA committed itself last year to providing full time suicide prevention coordinators at each of its 153 hospitals, it could provide no useful number of attempted suicides among patients."  Suicide is epidemic for Iraq and Afghanistan wars, no question.  But suicide is also a serious isssue for veterans period.  That's Vietnam, that's Korea, that's . . .  The idea that until 2007 the VA was not staffing each VA hospital with a full time suicide prevention coordinator is appalling.  And, as Dr. Ronald Maris would later point out, this is just VA hospitals, it doesn't include the 875 VA Community-Based Outpatient Clinics.  Maris noted [paraphrase on at least two words]:
 
Thus the vast majority of VA facilities in fact do not have suicide coordinators.  Several questions remain.  What do these coordinators do, exactly?  How are they trained to do suicide assement and prevention ?  What are their professional credentials and licensing?  Who supervises these suicide coordinators?  Do suicide coordinators interact directly with suicidal vets in clinical care of the VA?  What exactly are they coordinating?
 
Maris points would come after Peake was done.  During his testimony, Peake cited the e-mail CBS got hold of from Katz and attempted to state that due that the lack of full time coordinators (apparently until October) resulted in the data having only been compiled for "three months" which he maintained was "too short a time period to determine if it was reliable."  For that reason, Peake stated, "The data was not sent to CBS".  He identifes that as one of Katz' "concerns" but that's not in the e-mail.  Peake's inventing a cover story after the fact.  Katz'  e-mails reflect that he does not the want the number getting out.  There is nothing about the time period the figures are being pulled from. He then tries to question the numbers themselves stating that people were still learning -- full time suicide prevention coordinators are still learning?  On the tax payer dime?  Was the VA unable to find qualified people to fill the positions because, if so, that should be the subject of another committee hearing.
 
He claims that "borderline calls" were being included.  Despite his lengthy lecture on sucides at the beginning of his remarks, he didn't define that term.  But presumably a "borderline call" would be included by most studying suicide. 
 
Peake needs to resign.  He needs to resign effective immediately and the VA needs to apologize.  That's for what he then launched into.  Peake announced that the VA, as part of their efforts, "intends to ask suicide prevention coordinators for the names of all those in their facility who have attempted suicide."  The VA has regularly and repeatedly lost computers, accidentally disclosed private information to the public and a host of other issues.  Is Peake such an idiot that he doesn't grasp that his little bit of information will likely result in at least some (possibly many) who need help deciding to forgoe out of fear that they'll be on some list that will follow them around -- follow them around outside of the VA? 
 
Peake then wanted to play with the data (Dr. Stephen L Rathbun's testimony refuted Peake's nonsense so we won't even go into it) and shade the issue before launching into what the VA's doing.  What is the VA doing?  Not a damn thing to be proud of and a hell of a lot to be ashamed of.  Peake spoke of the "two National VA Suicide Prevention Awareness Days" -- one of which piggy-backed on the National Suicide Prevention Awareness Week.  The same way that 'their' hotline piggy backs on the National Suicide Hotline (already set up).  Peake revealed that callers who press "1" (we went over this before) are immediately taken to a separate call center because they are veterans (no, they are not always taken there) and that they then receive help from "mental health professionals . . . trained in both crisis intervention strategies and in issues" such as PTSD and TBI.  He goes on to reveal something else and again this DOES NOT encourage veterans to call.  If the veteran has a VA record and gives out his or her information, the 'operator' is pulling up their information and putting "consults in the patient's medical record," etc.  That's not how the National Suicide Hotline works.  They guarantee confidientiality and since the VA has -- to save money -- piggy-backed on their efforts, they should follow the same system.  That they aren't is misleading and hurts veterans as well as the National Suicide Hotline.  Is it really the place of some 'operator' to, as Peake says they do, "check patient's records to see if consultations were completed; actions are taken; and follow-ups are ongoing"?
 
It's past time for the press to stop treating the VA as its own little island.  Doctors and counselors working in suicide prevention can tell you (loudly) that the hodge-podge system Peake's speaking of does not encourage those in need to reach out and that, again, it will actually harm the National Sucide Hot Line because people will confuse the two and assume they are being put (with their names) on some national list if they call (I'm referring to civilians).  What is the VA doing?  Not a damn thing.  Peake spoke of posters!  Posters!  Wow, what is this third grade?  And MTV's doing a video!  This is a disgrace and the resignations from all in leadership at the VA should be turned in immediately.  They repeatedly refuse to address this problem and any tiny steps they take are done on the cheap (and in such a way that it puts veterans and civilians at risk).  This is shameful.
 
 
 

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Monday, May 05, 2008

Politics as usual from Barack

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
WHEN THESE REPORTERS CONFRONTED SENATOR BARACK OBAMA THIS EVENING ABOUT REPORTS THAT HE MADE A DEAL WITH THE TEAMSTERS WHEREIN THEY WOULD ENDORSE HIM IF HE WOULD CALL OFF THE LEGAL OVERSIGHT OF THE TEAMSTERS BY THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT, SENATOR BAMBI QUICKLY ADMITTED THE REPORTS WERE TRUE.
 
"DID I DO SOMETHING WRONG?  YOU'RE KIDDING ME RIGHT!  DARN IT!  DARN IT!  DON'T GO HOUSE HUNTING WITH SOMEONE UNDER FEDERAL INDCITMENT!  DON'T BECOME FRIENDS WITH DOMESTIC TERRORISTS!  THERE ARE SO MANY RULES.  AND NONE OF THEM ARE WRITTEN DOWN.  HOW'S ANYBODY SUPPOSED TO KNOW THIS STUFF!"
 
WHEN WE SUGGESTED THAT IT WENT TO JUDGEMENT, BARACK OBAMA REJECTED THE IDEA STATING, "I WAS AGAINST THE TEAMSTERS BEFORE I WAS MAKING DEALS WITH THEM."
 
 
 
Starting with war resistance.  David Giuliano and Jane Orion Smith (Canada's The Hill Times) [click here for Google cache if you don't subscribe to The Hill Times] note, "In the comming weeks, the House of Commons will consider a recommendation from the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration that would allow conscientious objectors to be able to stay in Canada with their spouses and immediate families.  U.S. soldiers who are in Canada have been largely responsible for the focus on this issue in this country.  Globally, however, it is important for many who face even more harsh circumstances.  If today's U.S. soldiers are a part of an 'all-volunteer army,' should they have any rights of asylum?  The UNCHR Handbook on Refugees, the standard-bearer for such questions, say 'yes.'  To qualify for asylum, a soldier must 'show that the performance of military service would have required his participation in military action contrary to his genuine political, religious or moral convictions, or to valid reasons of conscience.'  . . . The findings of the Nuremberg Tribunals after World War II remind us that following orders is not an excuse for committing crimes in war.  Once you are in the field, it is ever the more difficult to refuse an order, even if illegal.  Many of the U.S. 'war resisters' in Canada already saw a tour of duty in Iraq and were under pressure to commit acts that violated basic rules of human conduct.  Joshua Key is currently having his day in Federal Court seeking refugee status."
 
With other issues occupying the debate in Canada's Parliament last month, the war resisters motion has not yet been debated.  Currently, you can utilize the following e-mails to show your support: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration.  In addition Jack Layton, NDP leader, has a contact form and they would like to hear from people as well. A few more addresses can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use.         

There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.

Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).
 
[. . .]
 
Turning to the US presidential race.  It wasn't enough for Barack Obama to embarrass himself by thinking the Great Lakes were in Oregon [which PaganPower (No Quarter) demonstrates the Obama campaign is trying to make disappear], now he shows even more geographical stupidity.  Jeralyn (TalkLeft) highlights his new ad attacking Hillary Clinton -- both are running for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination -- and he says "I approved this message" at the end.  So he's responsible for its accuracy.  The New York Times, a national paper, is published in NYC.  The ad calls the Times Hillary's "hometown paper."  Hillary and Bill Clinton live in Chappaqua, NY.  That's over a half-hour (with no traffic -- there's always traffic -- and going at least 60 mph) from the edge of NYC.  The Times really isn't Hillary's "hometown paper" (Gannett's The Journal News would be the local daily) but any idiot who thought the Great Lakes were in Oregon isn't going to be teaching geography anytime soon. Meanwhile Big Tent Democrat (TalkLeft) educates on counting (which, as he points out, is apparently harder than might be thought). Joe Wilson (Raleigh News and Observer via TaylorMarsh.com) explains Barack's inexperience and lack of judgement and points out, "Obama repeats the incorrect and politically irresponsible mantra that Sen. Hillary Clinton voted for the war and that therefore he is more qualified to be president.  Unlike Obama, as the last acting U.S. ambassador to Iraq during the first Gulf War, I was deeply involved in that debate from the beginning. . . .  The betrayal occurred not when the president was given the tools he needed to secure international support for inspections, but rather when Bush refused to allow the inspectors to complete their work and decided preemptively to invade, conquer and occupy Iraq.  That decision and power was his alone -- not the Congress' and certainly not Hillary Clinton's. Obama is wrong to turn Bush's war into Clinton's responsibility. And Obama is dangerously naive in failing to understand the need in international crises to blend tough diplomacy with the other foreign policy tools at our disposal to achieve a strong national security posture."  Meanwhile Susan UnPC (No Quarter) has been covering the realities of Weather Underground victims.  Noting a Fox interview with John M. Murtagh (whose home was bombed when he was an 8-year-old child -- with him in it -- in an attack on his father, NY State Supreme Court Justice John Murtagh ), Susan UnPC wonders today, "Where the hell is the media?"  She's posted the videos of the interviews and also refers you "here and here" for two pieces John M. Murtagh wrote last week.  Why the bombing?  This February 16, 1970 Time magazine piece provides some more details.
 
The candidates took part in the Sunday chat and chews, Hillary appearing for the hour on ABC's This Week and Barack appearing for the hour on NBC's Meet The Press.   Alessandra Stanley (New York Times) offers the following critique:
 
 
Senator Barack Obama sat hunched on Sunday across the desk from Tim Russert on "Meet The Press" on NBC and wearily endured question after question about his relationship with the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr.
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton stood up from her armchair on Sunday to tower over George Stephanopoulos on "This Week" on ABC and merrily took on all critics, even the king of the Clinton-bashers, the talk-radio host Rush Limbaugh.
"He's always had a crush on me," Mrs. Clinton said with a sly smile.
 
 
In other words, while Barack was locked in the gas bag bunker, Hillary was mixing it up with the people and looking very of the people. (George noted that both Barack and John McCain had a standing invitation to appear on This Week in the same format.) Some questions were warm, some were pointed and Hillary showed grace and leadership throughout. It was a winning format, true, but it was also the difference between a candidate who was prepared and one who stumbled throughout.   
Barack mainly talked about . . . well himself.         
When all you have to sell is your increasingly tired personality, you come off like Ann Turkel alternately trying to convince the people that Humanoids From The Deep was a work of art and that your bathing suits really will allow people to darken without tan lines.        
It was really that pathetic.      
 
We'll close with Lori Bernardini's "My '88 Years' House Party for Hillary" (HillaryClinton.com):
 
On a typical springtime Saturday morning in Portland (partly cloudy with a chance of rain) several women gathered in an Irvington neighborhood bungalow to rally for Hillary Clinton. Most of the guests arrived in anticipation, donning campaign buttons or carrying banners.
The party was held to commemorate the fact that it had been 88 years since women were given the right to vote -- and we wanted to celebrate the first opportunity for citizens to vote for a woman for president. This house party was one of 88 parties planned for the weekend statewide.    
The bungalow was decorated with official Hillary Clinton campaign signs along with some homemade versions made by the children of the party's hosts. Good smells wafted from the kitchen as one of the hosts produced an assortment of delicious homemade, freshly baked bagels and pastries.   
The discussion about campaign topics was lively. Blogging soon became a topic of interest, including whether this relatively new online communication significantly impacts voter preferences. Finally, the group settled in to focus on the key task of the morning -- making calls to Oregonians to get out the vote in support for Hillary Clinton. The guests had varying amounts of experience making campaign calls -- many had never made calls before and were a little anxious; a few were seasoned callers. One guest said she made calls while grocery shopping!
As the party ended, the guests shuffled out the door with more campaign materials than they arrived with including calling instructions, Clinton campaign information, bumper stickers, and a dose of optimism about Hillary Clinton's chances of winning Oregon -- and the general election.

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Saturday, May 03, 2008

Barack tries to look pretty

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
"I REALLY THINK I'VE PUT THE JEREMIAH WRIGHT ISSUE BEHIND ME," SENATOR BARACK OBAMA TOLD THESE REPORTERS WHILE PUTTING ON HIS LIPSTICK.
 
JEREMIAH WRIGHT, THE FREAKISH HATE MONGER, IS BEHIND HIM?
 
"YES, HE IS," BARACK SAID BLOTTING HIS LIPS ON A TISSUE.  "THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I INTEND TO TELL TIM RUSSERT SUNDAY ON 'MEET THE PRESS'."
 
THE CANDIDATE IN DENIAL.
 
HE'S BEEN SAYING THE WRIGHT ISSUE WAS OVER SINCE MARCH.  BUT IT'S NEVER GONE AWAY.  THIS WEEK ALONE, HE CAN'T SHUT UP ABOUT WRIGHT WHILE REPEATEDLY INSISTING THE ISSUE IS OVER.
 
THESE REPORTERS INTENDED TO ASK HIM ABOUT THAT BUT, HEARING MICHELLE HOLLER, "WHERE IS MY LIPSTICK!", HAD US DECIDING TO CALL AN END TO THE INTERVIEW AND GET THE HELL OUT BEFORE THE FIREWORKS REALLY STARTED.
 
 
 
 
Starting with war resistance.  Courage to Resist notes war resister Ryan Jackson is currently at Fort Sill having turned himself at the start of the month after being "absent without leave since December when a local commander vetoed his pending discharge from the 35th Signal Brigade at Fort Gordon, Georgia."  They note that there is a defense fund here, that he can be e-mailed via ryanjackson@couragetoresist.org and that you can find an audio interview they did with him here.
 
US war resisters in Canada who are hoping to be granted safe harbor status.  What's the status on the motion?
 
Community member Dallas passed on the following.  "Citizenship and immigration" issues have taken the forefront and the war resister motion, "it's kind of taken the wayside."  (All quotes from Canada's NDP's spokesperson.) For now, the best thing to do would be continuing utilizing the following e-mails to show your support: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration.  In addition Jack Layton, NDP leader, has a contact form and they would like to hear from people as well. A few more addresses can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use.         

There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.

Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).
 
[. . .]
 
In US presidential political news. Senator Barack Obama wants to be president . . . of some of the people.  Apparently not of the people hurting economically over rising gas prices.  He's shot down both Senators Hillary Clinton and John McCain's plans for a gas tax holiday.  But Delilah Boyd (A Scriverner's Lament) points out that "Obama voted for it multiple times in Illinois in 2000 ...  The Obama-based moral of this and all other Obama stories: If it doesn't help Obama, it's not a good thing. Period."  Meanwhile Ralph Nader and his running mate Matt Gonzalez are gearing up for a West Coast Tour next week where they will be working on ballot access in California, Oregon and Washington.
 
Returning to the topic of Barack, he received another endorsement from another loser today.  Paul G. Kirk Jr. who has long been Ted Kennedy's biggest suck-up came out for Barack today.  Kirk Jr.'s 'expertise' and 'wisdom' were probably on 'best' display when he was the head on DNC during . . . Michael Dukakis failed presidential campaign.  We're sure Junior will bring all the 'help' to Barack that he did to Dukakis.  Dan Baltz (Washington Post) points out that Junior actually came out for Barack in February.  Well, when your life means so little, you probably have to grab all the headlines you can. Ask the Loud family.  But whatever you do, don't ask Barack basic geographic questions.  Pagan Power (No Quarter) explains that Barack has a 'plan' for Oregon and it includes "the Great Lakes" which, pay attention, are in the MidWest, not the North West.  Hillary's plan is entitled "Oregon Compact."  Barack apparently rushed his last-minute homework.  Which explains both his errors as well as other portions appearing to be lifted from Hillary's plan.  Maybe he can claim she's his best friend just like Deval and that makes it okay?
 
Barack keeps claiming Jeremiah Wright is preventing a discussion of the issues.  Apparently, Wright prevented Barack from discussing issues for 20 years?  Reid J. Epstein (Newsday) reports that academics watching polls in North Carolina see the Wright friendship as hurting Barack at the polls.  People do wonder why it took him 20-years and how stupid he thinks Americans are that we're all supposed to believe that Jeremiah Wright transformed/shape-shifted over the weekend into someone Barack had enver seen before?  In the real world, Eloise Harper (ABC News) reports Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared in Indiani yesterday, ""Part of our family is divided and our Party is divided and the reason we are divided is because we have two extraordinary candidates both running for president both who will make unbelievable presidents of this country. . . . but let me tell you why they're wrong and I'm right, because I know Hillary Clinton better than they know Barack Obama."
Meanwhile, Hillary picked up an important endorsement today.  From The Indianapolis Star's editorial entitled  "Experience makes Clinton better choice in primary:"

As impressive as Obama appears, he is still in his first term in the U.S. Senate, and only four years ago was serving as an Illinois state senator. His inexperience in high office is a liability.       
Clinton, in contrast, is well prepared for the rigors of the White House. She is tough, experienced and realistic about what can and cannot be accomplished on the world stage.           
 
 
Independent journalist, photo-journalist and artist David Bacon examines and explores the issues of immigrant rights frequently.  Last week, Bacon  (Political Affairs Magazine) sounded the alarms over Hayley Barbour, governor of Mississippi, having "signed into law the fartherest-reaching employer sanctions law of any on the books in the U.S.  Employer sanctions is a shorthand name for laws that prohibit employers from hiring immigrants who don't have legal immigration status in the U.S. That provision was part of the Immigration Reform and Control Act, passed by Congress in 1986, which for the first time in U.S. history required employers to verify the immigration status of employees.  The Mississippi bill, SB 2988, requires employers to use an electronic system to verify immigration status, called E-Verify.  That system has only recently been developed by the Department of Homeland Security, and by the department's own admission, is not a complete record."  This week, he writes (Political Affairs Magazine):
 
In the big immigrant marches that swept the country on May Day in 2006 and 2007, one sign said it all: "We are Workers, not Criminals!"  Often it was held in the calloused hands of men and women who looked as though they'd just come from work in a factory, cleaning an office building, or picking grapes.       
The sign stated an obvious truth.  Millions of people have come to this country to work, not to break its laws.  Some have come with visas, and others without them.  But they are all contributors to the society they've found here, not people who mean it harm.  Again this May Day, immigrant workers are filling the streets, making the same point.      
Yet today the Federal government is taking actions that make holding a job a criminal act.  Some states and local communities, seeing a green light from the Department of Homeland Security, are passing measures that go even further.  These actions need a reality check.
 
Tonight (in most markets) NOW on PBS explores the Democratic and Republican presidential campaigns with guests Willie Brown and Dan Schnur.  The campaign will also be part of the topics addressed on PBS' Washington Week (check local listings) and Gwen's guests will include AP's Charles Babington, Wall St. Journal's David Wessel, NBC's Pete Williams and the New York Times' John Harwood.  From TV to radio, Sunday on WBAI (11:00 a.m. EST), The Next Hour is hosted by Reno and, on Monday, Cat Radio Cafe (2:00 p.m. EST):
 
A celebration of the life and art of Michael Goldberg, American painter (1924-2007) who gained first acclaim as a Second Generation Abstract Expressionist of the New York School.  With art critici Jeremy Gilbert-Rolf, curator Klaus Kertess, painter Ellen Phelan, Bomb Magazine editor Betsy Sussler, Goldberg's stepson Luke Matheissen, and his wife sculptor Lynn Umlauf.  Hosted by Janet Coleman and David Dozier.
 
And we'll close with Chelsea Clinton:
One of the most fun things about meeting people who support my mom's campaign is seeing all the creative ways they show their support. I've seen a lot of homemade signs, buttons, and shirts on the campaign trail, and I think we need to harness that great creative energy for our campaign.      
I know you agree with me that my mom is the strongest, most progressive, and most prepared candidate, and that she would be the best president! This is a great way for you to show exactly what her historic campaign means to you.      
Maybe you've got a slogan that you've been dying to share. Or maybe you want to share your design talents. Whatever your ideas are, I can't wait to see them -- and we'll offer the best shirt for sale in the official campaign store, raising money to help my mom win! I'll also make sure to get a picture of me AND my mom wearing the shirt, which we will post on the website.    
So please put on your thinking caps, get those creative juices flowing, and visit our Project T-Shirt website to learn more and submit your design.    
I'm so excited to see all the great ideas you have. Thank you so much for all you're doing to help my mom win!     
Go Hillary!
 
 

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Thursday, May 01, 2008

THIS JUST IN! BAMBI SAYS WRIGHT IS A "DEAD ISSUE"!

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
SENATOR BAMBI OBAMA MERRILY DECLARED TO THESE REPORTERS TONIGHT, "JEREMIAH WRIGHT IS A DEAD ISSUE."
 
AFTER CAUTIONING HIM AGAINST USING "DEAD ISSUE" BEING THAT HE IS A POLITICIAN FROM CHICAGO, THESE REPORTERS ASKED HIM HOW HE COULD BE SO SURE?
 
"I SPENT ALL DAY ANSWERING QUESTIONS WITH 'HE IS A DEAD ISSUE' SO THAT MAKES HIM A DEAD ISSUE."
 
AS RACHEL ONCE SAID TO JOEY, "YOU'RE SO PRETTY."
 
BEFORE THESE REPORTERS COULD CORRECT BAMBI, HE SPOTTED TWO MEN NOT WEARING SPORTS COATS.
 
"OH LOOK!" HE CRIED.  "GUN CLINGERS! OR MAYBE GOD CLINGERS!  I MUST MINGLE AND INTERFACE WITH THE COMMON FOLK!"
 
 
Starting with war resistance.  Kyle Snyder is an Iraq War resister living in Canada.  He is one of many.  A variation in Snyder's story is that he self-checked out twice, going to Canada both times.  At YouTube, a video is posted of him explaining that (March 17, 2007):
 
 
Kyle Snyder: I just recently traveled back to the United States, on October 31st.  I had to drop my refugee claim.  If any of you have been following my story, I was a refugee claimant in 2005 after deserting the Iraq War.  I believe the Iraq War to be illegal and immoral on many fronts and I'm currently writing a report on that and why I think that is illegal and immoral.  I witnessed what I believe to be war crimes and I witnessed what I believed to be a true occupation for oil resources and not a liberation or a bringing of democracy to the people of Iraq.  And I refused to take part in that war.  So I basically want to tell you my story about that trip to the United States.  Like I said, I dropped my refugee claim meaning I had to go to the Canadian government, CBSA -- Canada Border Services Agency, and sign pieces of paper saying that I was returning to my home country to receive a discharge from the United States military. I worked for two months just west of here in Wetaskiwn, Alberta trying to receive a discharge from a major at Fort Knox, Major Bryan Patterson -- who somehow doesn't exist to the media now.  When I turned myself in, I was very, very scared.  I was very scared because I had dropped my life here in Canada, I had left my job, I had left my family.  I left my friends.  All on the chance that I would be discharged when I turned myself in.  The lieutenant walked in and said "Don't worry, we'll discharge you within three to five days."  That never happened.  They put me in a room with a mirror and a phone that was not connected to any wall.  There was no phone connection.  They denied me access to my lawyer and said they wanted me to -- they ordered me after two years of not serving in their military to return to my unit.  Which is now based in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.  My unit wanted to re-integrate me into the military and send me back to Iraq a second time.  The 94th engineers are deploying for a third time to Iraq.  They're one of five units that are deploying to Iraq a third time -- since the surge that Bush ordered while I was in the country.  I did the only thing that made sense to me at that point: I refused to sign the orders.  I have documents saying the soldier refused to sign. And I went AWOL a second time. I did not catch the Greyhound Bus, instead I went out to eat and enjoy Halloween.  And I did the only thing that made sense, again, and I pointed out the atrocities of the Bush administration in New Orleans, where we rebuilt a veterans' home, a Vietnam veteran's home.  And I was almost arrested in New Orleans shortly after rebuilding this home with Iraq Veterans Against the War.  Anyway, I spoke at 20 different high schools in Chicago, primarily African-American and Latino community schools that were going to be shut down by the American government because there was no funding to them.  Recruiters feed off of schools in America like this.  And I did anti-recruitment work in these schools.  Basically pointing out to the government again that if a recruiter can walk onto a campus legally, why is there not a steel worker standing next to him, why is there not a carpenter standing next to them, why is there not any of these? My plan was to receive a discharge, come back to Canada in time to spend Christmas with my family.  I couldn't do that.  Instead, I bought my fiancee a ticket back to Wetaskiwin, Alberta so she could spend Christmas with her family and I stayed in the United States and I didn't know what was going to happen.  I decided to come back to Canada just this January and I can no longer apply for refugee status even though I was only gone for five weeks.  I know people that go on vacation for longer than five weeks and come back to the life that they had.  So now I don't know what I'm going to do other than apply for permanent residence status and I don't know how I'm going to be able to stay in Canada.  And I really, really need you guys' help to support me in my staying in Canada.  And I really want to thank all of you for being here today and calling for the Canadian troops out of Afghanistan especially and calling for the United States out of Iraq.  It means so much to me that you guys are doing that.  I have one more announcement to make.  I'm really pleased to announce that there are enough war resisters in Canada that we can start a chapter of Iraq Veterans Against the War in Canada.  So we'll be doing that very shortly and we'll putting up a website for donations and for anything, just events that Iraq Veterans Against the War will be doing here in Canada in the near future.  So I just wanted to announce that.  Thanks.
 
US war resisters in Canada who are hoping to be granted safe harbor status and the Canadian Parliament will debate a measure this month on that issue. You can make your voice heard. Three e-mails addresses to focus on are: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration. A few more can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use.         

There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.

Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).
 
As Paul Reynolds (BBC) observes, today's a fifth anniversary, "President Bush did not say "Mission Accomplished" on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln off San Diego on 1 May five years ago. But the banner above him did."  CBS and AP remind, "Five years after that speech, after the meaning of the phrase "mission accomplished" and when is a job truly 'done' has been endlessly parsed, and after responsibility for creating and hanging the sign was first denied and later accepted, the White House said Wednesday that President Bush has paid a price for the banner, with its affirmative message becoming a target of mockery and a symbol of U.S. misjudgments and mistakes in the long and costly war -- a war in which major combat operations are still being waged.  While the White House distanced itself from the message soon after the event, Mr. Bush was not averse to repeating it. Speaking to troops in Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar the following month, Mr. Bush said, 'America sent you on a mission to remove a grave threat and to liberate an oppressed people, and that mission has been accomplished'."  Dan Froomkin (Washington Post) breaks it down -- when Bully Boy gave his speech, the US troops death toll was 139 and the number wounded was 542 while today 4,064 are dead and 29,395 are wounded. US Senator and presumed GOP presidential nominee John McCain made the news today with John Whitesides (Reuters) reports that "McCain said the administration mishandled the war's early stages and raised public hopes by calling the remaining insurgents in Iraq 'dead-enders' in their 'last throes'."  Helen Thomas noted the anniversary yesterday in Dana Perino's White House press briefing.
 
Helen Thomas: How does the President intend to commemorate "Mission accomplished" after five years of death and destruction?
 
Dana Pernio: What you're referring to is the banner that ran -- that was aborad the ship five years ago.  President Bush --
 
Helen Thomas: I'm talking about the anniversary tomorrow.
 
Dana Perino: Yes, I get -- no, I understand.  That's the anniversary of when that banner flew on that ship.  President Bush is well aware that the banner should have been much more specific and said "mission accomplished for these sailors who are on this ship on their mission."  And we have certainly paid a price for not being more specific on that banner.  And I recognize that the media is going to play this up again tomorrow, as they do every single year.  I think what's important is what the President would -- how the President would describe the fight today.  It's been a very tough month in Iraq, but we are taking the fight to the enemy.  The President, you heard him say yesterday, believes that fighting terrorists, jihadists, al Qaeda, and the Iranian-backed militias --
 
Helen Thomas: Is every Iraqi a terrorist?
 
Dana Perino: -- and the Iranian-backed militias --
 
Helen Thomas: We're fighting the Iraqis, we're bombing their homes.  What do mean?
 
Dana Perino: Helen, we are going after terrorists and al Qaeda and Iranian-backed Shia militia who are killing not only innocent Iraqis but our soldiers as well, and we're doing so in --
 
Helen Thomas: We're bombing homes with children.
 
Perino would continue spinning and Helen Thomas' final comment would be, "We're going after Iraqis who are fighting for their own country."
 
[. . .]
 
Turning to the US presidential race.  This morning on  NBC's Today Show, Meredith Vieira interviewed Barack and Michelle Obama.  (Click here for audio and video available today and for podcasting available throughout.) Meredith's interview will also air (in extended form) on MSNBC Saturday.  Michelle Obama tried to steer the interview and schill for her husband stating that her husband was "trying to move us as a nation beyond these conversations" -- these conversations?  About the crackpot mentor, pastor, inspiration, friend, et al Jeremiah Wright.  Michelle's part of the co-interview because, clearly, Barack can't handle it alone.  She really took control during the interview (in most instances that was a good thing or the campaign's talking point would never have gotten out -- as defocused and meandering as he is, she's like a laser beam).  However, Michelle Obama is not running to become president and the question is about the nominee's judgement skills.  Equally true, if the country wanted to 'move on,' Michelle and Barack would not be guests on Today's first hour to talk about the subject.  She refused to answer Meredith's question about Wright ("Do you feel that Rev. Wright has betrayed your husband?") even when Meredith repeated it.  Barack lied about his own and Michelle's life and should have just kept his mouth shut because the question was to Michelle and she was the smarter of the two.  "I should have said angry and frustrated instead of bitter . . . I should have said people rely on their religion instead of cling to . . ."  Can he please stop lying?  (No, he can't.  Listen to his I-Can-Big-State lies.  It's embarrassing.  He's either lying or completely stupid.)
 
Transcript is available at Time.  Word substitution does not change what he said.  Key passage: "And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."  Point, anti-immigrant sentiment and anti-trade sentiment are not seen by Barack as 'good' things so let's all stop pretending that anything changes with a word substitution.  He was spitting on Small Town Americans.  He stated that they cling to God, guns and racism.  That's the reality of the insult. 
 
 
 
 

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Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Want an answer? Give him 20 years

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
"I'VE BEEN TO THE MANSION," BARACK OBAMA WAS SAYING INTO THE CAMERA, "AND FROM WHERE I SEE IT, THE LAST THING AMERICANS NEED IS A GAS TAX HOLIDAY.  JUST STOP DRIVING.  SHOW SOME DISCIPLINE."
 
 
THESE REPORTERS WERE INVITED TO WATCH THE TAPING OF BARACK OBAMA'S NEXT SERIES OF ADS.  AFTER HE WAS FINISHED, HE SPOKE BRIEFLY.
 
"I PROVED MY SUPERIOR JUDGEMENT YESTERDAY," HE SAID SIPPING BOTTLED WATER OUT OF ONE SIDE OF HIS MOUTH. 
 
WELL, HE PROVED IT TAKES HIM 20-YEARS TO MAKE A DECISION.  THAT IS HOW LONG HE HAS KNOWN JEREMIAH WRIGHT.
 
"TIME DOESN'T MATTER," HE INSISTED.  "I SHOWED I HAVE THE SUPERIOR JUDGEMENT.  I WILL NOT ALLOW PEOPLE LIKE THAT AROUND ME."
 
 
SUDDENLY BARACK HAD TO GO.  HE INSISTED HE NEEDED TO MAKE "WEE WEE" AND WASN'T TRYING TO AVOID US OUR QUESTIONS.
 
 
Starting with war resistance.  Iraq War resister Ehren Watada will be the topic Friday at Carleton College (1 North College Street, Northfield, MN).  Esther Pak (Carleton News) reports:
 
Dr. Vijay Prashad will present a convocation entitled "Watada's Election: Asian Americans and These Asian Wars" on Friday, May 2 at 10:50 a.m. in the Skinner Memorial Chapel. Prashad's presentation will examine Asian Americans, the Iraq War, and the upcoming election, with reference to Hawaii-born First Lieutenant Ehren Watada, who was the first commissioned officer to publicly refuse deployment to the Iraq War and occupation. Following the convocation, Prashad will sign copies of his books, which will also be available for purchase at the event at a 15% discount. Prashad's appearance is free and open to the public.
 
The presentation is scheduled to last one hour.  In February 2007, Watada was court-martialed and Judge Toilet (aka John Head) ruled a mistrial over defense objection as the defense was about to present their side (Watada was taking the stand and suddenly Head felt a stipulation both the defense and the prosecution had agreed to, one Head has not only signed off on but explained to the jury, was 'prolbematic,' Watada was prepared to testify, Head stopped the trial).  Due to Judge Toilet's ruling, the Constitution's provision against double-jeopardy should have kicked in.  Judge Toilet immediately announced a new court-martial would take place in March (2007) but, of course, it didn't.  A civilian court found (in November) the double-jeopardy argument compelling and Watada's legal status is currently in limbo.  He continues to report for duty on base despite the fact that his service contract expired in December 2006.  It's long past time for the military to stop their persecution of Watada and discharge him.
 
While he waits, so do US war resisters in Canada who are hoping to be granted safe harbor status and the Canadian Parliament will debate a measure this month on that issue. You can make your voice heard. Three e-mails addresses to focus on are: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration. A few more can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use.         

There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.

Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).
 
[. . .]
 
Turning to the US presidential race, this morning on NBC's Today Show, Andrea Mitchell reported  on Barack Obama's speech and remarks yesterday on his mentor, friend, and pastor of 20 years Jeremiah Wright.  Mitchell noted the changes in tone throughout Obama's remarks on Wright since Barack declared his intent to run for the Democratic presidential nomination and noted, "Critis say he should known better" regarding Wright.  On CBS' The Early Show, Bob Schieffer explained, "The question now is will people him?" Him is Barack. Schieffer listed the questions people would be asking such as, "Why didn't he know about all this before? Why didn't he stop going to the church?"; and wondered, "Will this be enough?" Meanwhile Carol Marin (Chicago Sun-Times) noted of Barack, "And he still had nothing new to say, just what he'd said before, that some of Wright's comments 'offended me, and I understand why they have offended the American people'."  Marin observed:

This isn't the first time the campaign has waited out a problem, declining to take a controversy by the horns.  
It took a relentless chorus of Chicago media almost a year to finally get Obama and his people to deliver long-asked-for documents and answer what were, at best, incompletely answered questions about his former friend and now-indicted fund-raiser, Tony Rezko. He finally did so in March.  
There are judgment questions, fair ones, to be asked about Obama's past dealings with controversial people.  

Barack spoke out against Wright only because he was tanking in the polls over Wright and because he was offended by what Wright said of him:
 
What I had heard was that he had given a performance. And I thought at the time that it would be sufficient simply to reiterate what I had said in Philadelphia. Upon watching it, what became clear to me was that it was more than just a -- it was more than just him defending himself. What became clear to me was that he was presenting a world view that -- that -- that contradicts who I am and what I stand for. And what I think particularly angered me was his suggestion somehow that my previous denunciation of his remarks were somehow political posturing. Anybody who knows me and anybody who knows what I'm about knows that -- that I am about trying to bridge gaps and that I see the -- the commonality in all people.
 
Desperado (Houston Chronicle) notes that unanswered questions and the "many different versions of answer" that Barack has provided, before declaring: "A focal point is Wright being "uninvited" to the announcement of Obama's presidential candidacy. In an interview with the New York Times, Wright had this recollection of the disinvitation, from RealClearPolitics:
'Mr. Wright said that in the phone conversation in which Mr. Obama disinvited him from a role in the announcement, Mr. Obama cited an article in Rolling Stone, "The Radical Roots of Barack Obama."  According to the pastor, Mr. Obama then told him, 'You can get kind of rough in the sermons, so what we've decided is that it's best for you not to be out there in public'." The Rolling Stone article was from the February 22. 2007 issue and was entitled 'The Radical Roots of Barack Obama', a title later changed to 'Destiny's Child'".  Dan Balz (Washington Post, link has text and video) notes that US Senator Evan Bayh (Hillary supporter) has warned that the Republicans would try to make an issue of Wright in the general election.  Of course they will.  Last week North Carolina's GOP began running ads on Wright.  John McCain, the presumed GOP nominee, may or may not call for the ads to cease but North Carolina ignored him (as is their right) and others will as well.  The damage isn't just to the top of the ticket if Obama is the Democratic nominee.  The North Carolina GOP targeted Obama supporters.  That will take place across the country in a general election should Obama be the nominee.  The people he has brought in from outside the Democratic Party have proven repeatedly that at least 30% of them are unwilling to vote in other Democratic races -- they show up, vote for him and leave the rest of the ballot blank. That's bad news for every Democratic race in November 2008.  That's before others are smeared for Barack's lack of proper judgement.  (To put it mildly.)  He is a drag on the entire ticket, he runs off the base and his nomination risks the Democratic control of Congress and Democratic state and local offices across the country.  A new CBS News - New York Times poll finds Obama's negatives on the rise and Hillary faring better in a match-up against John McCain.  In 2004, Dems just knew they'd reclaim the White House.  They didn't.  Having reclaimed control of both houses of Congress in 2006, they party needs to smarten up and realize what a drag on the ticket Barack will be.  Wright is not going away, not during the Democratic primary and not, were Barack the nominee, during the primary.  The only way to put the matter to rest is to back the candidate Democrats are overwhelming backing, Hillary Clinton.  CBS and AP report (text and video):
 
Clinton also reiterated her previous remarks about Wright that she would not have stayed in the church after hearing the comments. She said it was up to voters to decide how the controversy over Wright impacts the campaign.  
O'Reilly asked Clinton to describe how she felt "when you hear a fellow American citizen say that kind of stuff about America."  
"Well, I take offense," Clinton said. "I think it's offensive and outrageous. I'm going to express my opinion, others can express theirs. It is part of just, you know, an atmosphere we're in today."  
Meanwhile, Obama was scrambling on Wednesday to put his presidential bid back on track a day after a public denouncing of Wright and both Democratic candidates pushed onward in a nomination struggle that appears to be dividing the party.
 

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Tuesday, April 29, 2008

THIS JUST IN! WRIGHT RESPONDS!

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
 
JEREMIAH WRIGHT SUMMONED THESE REPORTERS TO A FACE TO FACE MEETING.
 
HE WAIVED AWAY QUESTIONS, CLEARED HIS THROAT AND DECLARED, "I AM OUTRAGED BY THE COMMENTS THAT WERE MADE AND SADDENED OVER THE SPECTACLE THAT WE SAW TODAY.  I HAVE SPENT MY ENTIRE LIFE -- MY ENTIRE LIFE -- TRYING TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN DIFFERENT KINDS OF PEOPLE.  IT'S WHY I BECAME A PASTOR."
 
"WHAT WE SAW TODAY OUT OF BARACK OBAMA," WRIGHT SAID, "WAS AN EXPLOITATION OF DIVISIONS. WHATEVER HIS INTENTIONS, THAT WAS THE RESULT. AND THAT HAS BEEN THE METHOD OF HIS ENTIRE CAMPAIGN.  IT IS NOT WHAT I THINK AMERICA STANDS FOR."
 
WRIGHT THEN THREW A MAGAZINE AT US, THE NEW REPUBLIC. 
 
"READ SEAN WILENTZ'S 'RACE MAN' AND THEN TELL ME WHO HAS BEEN DIVISIVE! TELL ME WHO HAS BUILT HIS ENTIRE CAMPAIGN ON RACE BAITING!  HE DOES NOT SPEAK FOR ME!"
 
WITH THAT WRIGHT STORMED OUT OF THE ROOM.
 
 

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