Coalition For Economic Equality

Hmmm... Funny written in 2001, but pretty accurate.

Matt Blankenship — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 16:25:06 EST

Here is something I found on the Onion. It is political humor, but notice the accuracy and the date.

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/28784

Why The Big 3 Should Get Your Tax Money

BobVADemHawk — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 12:45:16 EST

Well, the argument for it is millions of jobs will go under. You will lose the largest manufacturing unit in the United States, the heart and soul of American manufacturing. R&D goes with it. Technology goes with it. Engineering goes with it.

And more important, the auto industry has an enormous future in this world. Americans, we buy, in a good year, 17 million cars. China, India, all these countries are opening up. People are moving into the middle class. They're going to want cars. You will carve the United States out of much of the future. But in terms of viability, what's killed General Motors, and the others, is they have dropped the greatest, highest-paid guys who give the most in taxes, the cleanest, safest factories, and dropped them into global competition against factories in places like China, whose managers would be in a penitentiary if they were doing in the United States what they're allowed to do over there.

We are Americans. Why would you buy a car from a foreign country that hires Americans at a third of what American auto makers pay and all the profits go overseas? That, in and of itself, is un-American.

The Big 3 were instrumental in our winning of WW2. Were it not for GM and Ford converting to make military trucks, jeeps, and other components of the American war machine, we may be all speaking German or Japanese right now. And quite frankly, if we keep "whoring" ourselves out with the trade deficit the way we have been; we may end up speaking Japanese or Mandarin yet.

The time has come to stand up and say no more to our manufacturing jobs being shipped overseas. No more to foreign countries driving down the American standard of living. No more to foreign companies having influence over our elected officials. No damn more! Did Congress ask the AIG executives how they got to Washington? Did they ask Lehman Bros., Bank of America, or anybody else?

Stop selling out your fellow Americans. Look for the Union Label. Look for the Made in America labels. When you walk into a store, ask where the American made products are. Stay the hell out of Wal-Mart. We are Americans and it's high time we remember that. Buy American. At least 3 million of your fellow citizens, and quite possibly the economic future of this country, are depending on you.

Confessions of an economic hit man

Matt Blankenship — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 09:44:31 EST

There is a book that I have been reading that I thought those of us on the DNC website would find interesting. It is titled "Confessions of an economic hit man" by John Perkins. I thought it was very interesting given the current economic situation as well as Bush's focus on Iraq instead of Osama Bin Laden. Although the book was published in 2004, I find it very eye opening and, quite honestly, disturbing.

From an abstract:

The Hit Brigade
An invisible army of highly-paid Economic Hit Men (EHMs) marches with every single economic delegation and every bilateral state visit. Its members are disguised as analysts and statisticians, but they use sophisticated methods to cheat companies around the globe out of vast sums of money. They provide the arguments and calculations for expensive, complex projects that developing nations cannot afford. Then, their optimistic economic forecasts encourage the World Bank and other institutions to grant the credit needed. The economic hit men will do anything to accomplish their ends, but when they fail, more nefarious, shadowy "CIA-sanctioned jackals" step in, wielding violent coups and "accidents." For example, two national leaders "Jaime Roldos of Ecuador and Omar Torrijos of Panama" died in fiery crashes, which were mostly likely jackal assassinations. Sometimes the jackals fail, too. Then young Americans become the marchers, in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.

Regarding the Alaska election...

Matt Blankenship — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 10:11:09 EST

I found these online:

1) http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shannyn-moore/alaska-on-ebay-election-n_b_142021.html.

2) http://www.topix.com/us/politics/2008/11/stolen-election-in-alaska.

Thought these were interesting. I smell a rat!

A sign of the times.

BobVADemHawk — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 13:03:33 EST

Marriage has traditionally been between a man and a woman since the founding of the United States. To change something that embedded in the history of America should be put to a fair vote of the electorate as was civil rights. The results of CA Proposition 8 should send a clear message to the GLBT community that even in the most liberal of states; more than half of the electorate do not share your view in this matter. That is a democracy. That is the very foundation our great nation is built upon.

The GLBT community should reconsider their strategy at this time and come to the realization that, for at least another generation, Civil Unions will have to be an alternative. Polling indicates that state electorates, such as in CA, will have a lot easier time supporting Civil Unions than they will gay marriage.

Is this fair? No. Is it the old axiom of "separate but equal"? Yes, it is. But the civil rights contingent had to go through this period and it would appear that a majority of the electorate would want the same for the GLBT community if for no other reason than to give society, as a whole, time to adjust.

I'm confident that in one generation, or less, homosexuality will be considered as little as someone who is left-handed as many do now. I, like the GLBT community, look forward to that day. Every tax paying American citizen should be allowed to enjoy the benefits of a legally recognized marriage.

But while 52%+ of the electorate are prepared to accept an African-American as POTUS, the CA results clearly indicate that gay marriage is not that widely accepted. That is a true shame but, as in the POTUS election of two nights ago, the people have spoken. And the Democratic Party should not squander and of its mandate to force this through the Congress. To do so would violate the trust of a majority of the electorate. At best, this is a late second term item for the agenda and we need to see one state, any state, have a majority of its electorate approve gay marriage as opposed to judicial ruling(s). Pursue Civil Unions. That is your best chance, IMHO, for the foreseeable future.

We did it!

Matt Blankenship — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 00:29:01 EST

Thanks all!!

And more states are to come.

Voting machine tampering is treason in my opinion

Matt Blankenship — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:22:49 EST

There should be transparency regarding voting machines. The machines should be created and tested by a bi-partisan team. Any tampering should be prosecuted and punished severely. Tampering with an election is treason in my eyes.

Am I being too harsh?

Palm Beach county FL ballot again confusing

Matt Blankenship — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 13:48:30 EST

I just saw on MSNBC that the newest ballot in Palm Beach county is now a confusing block shaped arrow that needs to be connected in order for the vote to count. Sorry I don't have an image.

This seems deliberate to me when almost all the other counties have a simple checkbox.

Obama supporters' children denied candy on Halloween

Matt Blankenship — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 21:18:39 EST

Shirley Nagel of Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, denied candy to trick-or-treaters who said they, or their parents, supported Obama.

You can find the article here: Link

Voter intimidation

Matt Blankenship — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 20:46:12 EST

According to Benjamin Jealous, the President & CEO of the NAACP, in a small county in North Carolina placed a casket outside a polling station to influence voters. The story here: Link

This story was also aired on hardball.

YES - VOTE!

Matt Blankenship — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 22:30:43 EDT

Also spread the word and make sure others vote. It is not too late to make phone calls for the campaign either. Just go to my.barackobama.com and sign up. I am still making calls.

I just spent 2 weeks in Colorado working to get out the vote (GOTV). It's not over and it's not too late!

Matthews seems to think it's over...

Matt Blankenship — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 19:12:07 EDT

Watching Chris Matthews one would get the sense the election is over. I hope he counters some of the republican rhetoric I've heard on his show today. This thing isn't over yet.

We need to play hardball up until the end.

House minority leader John Boehner calls Obama a "Chicken Sh**"

Matt Blankenship — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 18:56:11 EDT

Has anyone seen this: Link or Link

Some of the extreme right really has some characters. They act like children.

Night of the Living Republicans

Matt Blankenship — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 15:23:26 EDT

This was posted before by LIZ, but I thought it was worth a re-post for those that may not have seen it.

Link - Night of the Living Republicans

Still hearing the trickle-down argument while Democrats focus on strong consumer base.

Matt Blankenship — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 12:13:48 EDT

It seems like I'm beating a dead horse here, but I'm still hearing that argument regarding trickle down, but in a new fashion. Now the republicans are calling the bottom up approach "spreading the wealth". The reality is the democratic approach is really the idea of creating a strong consumer base.

Why doesn't trickle down work? Because more companies making billions of dollars do not always create jobs locally. Oil companies, telecoms, and many companies in the service sector are not creating jobs locally because of tax relief. Oil companies could create jobs now with current profits while telecoms are focusing on emerging overseas markets. Service sectors (such as software), which also make up more than half of the GDP, are hiring people overseas as well.

But when the tax savings are spread to lower and middle income people, that money gets put back into the economy through consumer spending.

Republicans still don't see that for businesses to do well they need a strong consumer base. The global economy will just make the effects from trickle down even worse by sending value created locally overseas.

Finally, I also hear the argument that the republican theory creates more income than the democratic theory. That maybe so, but it's not about "how much", but rather "how it is spent". If getting more is better, why have all republican presidents in the last 30 years created huge deficits and national debt?

Exxon Fat Cats Make a Lil Profit

Patriotic08 — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 04:29:40 EDT

Today, ExxonMobil posted the highest quarterly profits report in American history.

Our economy today told a different story. The American GDP -- a measure of how much we're producing and selling -- fell for the first time this year.

So why does John McCain's economic plan give Big Oil another $4 billion in tax breaks? After eight years of backwards policies like these, we can't risk four more years of the same.

You can help turn the page on these failed economics. Sign up to get out the vote in these last crucial days of the race.

As our stalled economy continues to shrink, American companies are selling and producing less -- and families across the country are feeling it.

This winter, ExxonMobil fat cats will have money to burn. But millions of Americans will struggle to pay for basic needs like home heating costs.

That may be fine by John McCain, but Barack Obama has a different vision for middle-class families. And now is the time to make sure we get the change we need.

Sign up to get out the vote, and help change this country from the bottom up:

http://my.barackobama.com/november

Keep up the good work,

DNC Rapid Response Team

Some NASA news

BobVADemHawk — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 18:54:17 EDT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - NASA officials said Wednesday it might be possible to try out its new moon rocketship a year earlier than its current target date of 2015.
That would mean just a four-year gap between the last space shuttle flight and the next-generation spacecraft, instead of five years. Many in Congress, including the two presidential candidates, are troubled by the prospect of the United States having to rely on Russia for trips to the international space station during that time.

NASA is midway through a study looking at ways to move up its March 2015 test launch of the new Ares rocketship with a crew, in case the next president wants that. The new rocket would ultimately return the United States to the moon, but the initial flights would be to the space station.

It will be difficult to accelerate the mission by much more than a year, however, said Jeff Hanley, manager of NASA's back-to-the-moon program, called Constellation.

"We're shooting for a more aggressive date of September 2014," and looking at even faster options, he said. "The real stretch is what can we do to accelerate as much as 18 months. That will be particularly hard."

The two-month study, which includes outside experts, should be completed in early December.

McCain's guilt by association

Matt Blankenship — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 10:49:03 EDT

Here is a consolidated list of McCain's associations if anyone is interested: http://www.openleft.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=8992

McCain and his terrorist tie with Gordon Liddy

Matt Blankenship — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 13:39:46 EDT

I think the media should exploit the association of McCain and Gordon Liddy. Maybe it would help put him on the defensive and mute some of this nasty rhetoric they're spouting against Obama.

Article here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/carl-bernstein/ayers-and-the-mccain-g-go_b_134256.html

On Letterman:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpGdL1K46Hc

I'M BACK!!! HITTIN THE STREETS

Micheal DeCoria — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 21:18:30 EDT

It has been awhile since my last post I have been hittin the streets hard and makin a difference.I know that I have hammered the fact that volunteering is the most important thing you can do this political season. Let me say this I am not telling you to vote for who I believe in. What I am saying is to choose the candidates that you like. And get to work for them. There are too many people sittin around doing nothing. If you want things to change, you have to get off your duff and make things happen. for more than a month I have talked about my experiences and the volunteer work I have been doing. And you know what It feels great to be making a difference in my state. YOUR CANDIDATE'S NEED YOUR HELP. Local level candidates have little to no money. So any time that you can give them would be helpful. Here are some ways you can pitch in.

1. Donate your time doing simple things.(Ect)
a. Data Entry.
b. phone banks.
c. filing and book keeping.
d. canvasing (public outreach)
e. event setup (local forums)
f. envelope stuffing
g. packet prep
h. driving people to the voting center.

* All it takes is 5 hours a week and you can help your candidates immensely.

2. Places to find your local candidates, and how you can help.

a. State Democrat website.
b. County Democrat website.
c. Go down to your City Hall and find out who the
candidates are and where they are located.
d. Very few have their own website unless they are
going for the Senate or House, but you can check.

*Your precinct might need a captain get with your county democrats office to find out.

We have 18 days left its time to get a move on.

GET OUT THERE GET INVOLVED HIT THE STREETS!!!!!.....