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Gore Vidal and Davis Fleetwood on Dennis’ Exclusion – What Can You Do? By Manila Ryce (video)

Dandelion Salad

By Manila Ryce
The Largest Minority
Published Thursday, December 20th, 2007, 6:07 pm

Despite the best efforts of corporate America to rob you of your optimism, if you are one of the few people on earth who still happens to believe that justice and equality are goals we ought to strive towards, then you too are still outraged that Dennis Kucinich was left out of the Democratic debate sponsored by The Des Moines Register. Well you’re not alone because Gore Vidal (who recently came out to endorse Kucinich) is mighty pissed as well. Below is an excerpt from Truthdig written by Vidal on the Democratic Debate Debacle:

This was a decision that was made, I can tell, jointly by the one-time voice of AIPAC, Mr. Wolf Blitzer, and, at the same time, The Des Moines Register—or whatever it is called—a paper of no consequence for the United States of America.

Elements of right-wingism are keeping his voice from being heard, even though there are many millions of us (Kucinich is ahead of both Biden and Dodd in the national polls) out here who like to hear his voice. He is in the great tradition of the original People’s Party of the 1880s; he is in the tradition of George Washington and of Thomas Jefferson, and to silence him with a bunch of political hacks who have made such a mess of our political system, pretending these were the only voices who could talk as presidential candidates … is it because of their campaign budgets?

Now, I know, as all of you know, that people can come in with millions of dollars, like Romney and so on, and can buy time in Iowa and in the North Pole or wherever it is they are running. They can buy it, but to get an honest member of Congress speaking out for the people of the country is a great and rare thing.

read more…

Indeed. Kucinich was blatantly excluded from participating in the political theater with these puppets because he’s the only one without a corporate hand up his ass. What’s equally disgusting is the inaction of the Democratic Party. Howard Dean’s silence is deafening, and Davis Fleetwood rightly suggests we direct some of our anger towards him and the DNC.

The goal of the DNC is to support the campaigns and political activities of all Democratic candidates. Why is it not doing so for Kucinich? As Zinn has said, you can’t be neutral on a moving train. There is obviously an active corporate movement underway to exclude progressives from the vision of the electorate, and if the Democratic Party truly has nothing to do with this conspiracy then they are obligated to speak out against it at the very least. Inaction is consent, and so far Dean has shown that he approves of the fact that the democratic process is completely rigged.

call or leave a message for Howard Dean at 202-863-8000
or contact the DNC electronically here

davisfleetwood

Dec. 18, 2007

Read Davis’ letter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GEGv9bdsS8

see

Let Kucinich Speak! by Freda Moon

Super sleuth Davis Fleetwood looks for answers in Iowa (video)Kucinich-Dennis

The Death Of Democracy – Silence The Opposition! by Michael O’McCarthy

Dennis Kucinich and Thursday’s Iowa Debate By Jean Hay Bright

Sign The Petition To Keep The Debates Open!! (Kucinich; Gravel; Paul)

Wife advocates Kucinich win – Polls, media, fundraising are corrupt, she says By John Aguilar (Elizabeth)

Kucinich, top-rated Democrat, excluded from Des Moines Register debate + Action Alert (updated)

Three Gitmo detainees released to British custody (video)

Dandelion Salad

CSPANJUNKIEdotORG

December 19, 2007 BBC World Added: December 20, 2007

see

Bin Laden’s driver is not POW, U.S. judge says h/t: CLG

Ralph Nader says, “I Do Like Kucinich” (video)

Dandelion Salad

representativepress

http://representativepress.googlepage…
http://tinyurl.com/23yays
PASS THESE LINKS ON TO OTHERS.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoMvjg…
Ralph Nader: I Do Like Kucinich

Dennis Kucinich for President 2008 – Strength through Peace

see

Ralph Nader Talks About His Favorite Presidential Candidates (video)

Dennis 4 President

Descendants of Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse break away from US + Lakota group pushes for new nation

Dandelion Salad

AFP
Dec. 20, 2007

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The Lakota Indians, who gave the world legendary warriors Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, have withdrawn from treaties with the United States, leaders said Wednesday.

“We are no longer citizens of the United States of America and all those who live in the five-state area that encompasses our country are free to join us,” long-time Indian rights activist Russell Means told a handful of reporters and a delegation from the Bolivian embassy, gathered in a church in a run-down neighborhood of Washington for a news conference.

A delegation of Lakota leaders delivered a message to the State Department on Monday, announcing they were unilaterally withdrawing from treaties they signed with the federal government of the United States, some of them more than 150 years old.

continued…

h/t: ICH

***

Lakota group pushes for new nation

By Faith Bremner
Argus Leader Washington Bureau
December 20, 2007

WASHINGTON – A group of “freedom-loving” Lakota activists announced a plan Wednesday for their people to withdraw from treaties their forefathers signed with the U.S. government.

Headed by leaders of the American Indian Movement, including activist, actor and Porcupine resident Russell Means, the group dropped in on the State Department and the embassies of Bolivia, Venezuela, Chile and South Africa this week seeking recognition for their effort to form a free and independent Lakota nation. The group plans to visit more embassies in the coming months.

The new nation is needed because Indians have been “dismissed” by the United States and are tired of living under a colonial apartheid system, Means said during a news conference held at Plymouth Congregational Church in northeast Washington. He was accompanied by a bodyguard and three other Lakota activists – Gary Rowland, Duane Martin and Phyllis Young, all of South Dakota.

continued…

h/t: ICH

FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Police Use Stun Guns on Citizens Opposed to Demolition of Houses in New Orleans By Cain Burdeau

Dandelion Salad

After Downing Street
By Cain Burdeau
Associated Press
Dec. 20, 2007

continued…

FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Rep. Wexler on Ed Schultz Show (audio link) + To Impeach or Not to Impeach? (video link)

Time to impeach: http://www.wexlerwantshearings.com

Note: listen to Wexler tonight 9 Eastern on radio blog: http://quinnell.us/sspb/ h/t: mikeburetta ~ Lo

Dandelion Salad

After Downing Street
Dec. 20, 2007

Think Progress has most of the audio from Rep. Wexler’s appearance today on the Ed Schultz Show.

Wexler says he’s “astonished” by the people who’ve signed onto his call for impeachment hearings for Cheney at his site Wexler Wants Hearings. Be sure to sign if you haven’t already, and encourage everyone you know to sign as well.

***

To Impeach or Not to Impeach? A Discussion with House Judiciary Chair John Conyers and CIA Veteran Ray McGovern

Democracy Now!

Three Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee—Robert Wexler of Florida, Luis Gutierrez of Illinois, and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin—have called on committee chair John Conyers to begin impeachment hearings against Vice President Dick Cheney. We host a discussion on impeachment with Conyers and former CIA analyst Ray McGovern. [includes rush transcript]

Real Video Stream

Real Audio Stream

MP3 Download

More…

Guests:

Rep. John Conyers (D – MI), chair of the House Judiciary Committee

Ray McGovern, Twenty-seven-year career analyst with the CIA. He is co-founder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity.

transcript

FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

see

Rep. Weiner Joins Call for Cheney Impeachment Hearings

 

Constitutional scholar: ‘At least six identifiable crimes’ possible in CIA tape affair by David Edwards & Jason Rhyne (link)

Time to impeach: http://www.wexlerwantshearings.com

Dandelion Salad

David Edwards and Jason Rhyne
Raw Story
Wednesday December 19, 2007

White House involvement in the CIA’s decision to destroy videotapes documenting severe interrogation techniques of suspected terrorists could constitute as many as six crimes, according to constitutional law expert Jonathan Turley.Turley appeared on CNN to discuss a new report from the New York Times, which indicates that four White House attorneys, including then-White House counsels Alberto Gonzales and Harriet Miers, participated in discussions with the CIA about whether or not the tapes should be destroyed. The talks also reportedly included David Addington, Vice President Dick Cheney’s former counsel and current chief of staff; and former senior National Security Council lawyer John Bellinger.

“Just when you think this scandal can’t get worse, it does,” the George Washington University Law School professor told CNN’s John Roberts. “I mean, this is a very significant development because it shows that this was not just some rogue operator at the CIA that destroyed evidence being sought by Congress and the courts. It shows that this was a planned destruction, that there were meetings, and those meetings extended all the way to the White House.”

Turley went on to say that the high-level discussions, particularly those involving Miers and Gonzales, were “a hair’s breath away from the president himself.”

Asked whether “through inference” the talks might have extended to the Oval Office, Turley suggested the possibility existed.

“I think it’s more than an inference at this point, which is one of the reasons there’s a call for a special prosecutor,” he said. “There are at least six identifiable crimes here, from obstruction of justice to obstruction of Congress, perjury, conspiracy, false statements, and what is often forgotten: the crime of torturing suspects.

Added Turley, “If that crime was committed it was a crime that would conceivably be ordered by the president himself, only the president can order those types of special treatments or interrogation techniques.”

The Times reports that a former senior intelligence official told the paper that there was a “‘vigorous sentiment’ among some top White House officials to destroy the tapes.” Other officials said that there was no White House push for their destruction.

US District Judge Henry Kennedy, who in 2005 ordered that the US preserve “all evidence and information” regarding torture and other abuses, has scheduled a Friday hearing to investigate the destruction of the tapes.

“Judge Kennedy is obviously not taking the advice of the Justice Department, that told him not to interfere,” Turley said of the upcoming hearing. “Courts don’t understand when the government destroys evidence — particularly evidence that was sought by Congress and other courts. So it’s not going to be a good day for the Justice Department.”

This video is from CNN’s American Morning, broadcast on December 19, 2007.

more about “The Raw Story | Constitutional schola…“, posted with vodpod

h/t: ICH

FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

see

Michael Ratner on Missing CIA Tapes, Torture and the Supreme Court (video) h/t: After Downing Street

The results are in! Kucinich won in the IndependentPrimary.Com Poll

And one more poll Dennis has taken the lead in. Go, Dennis!  Results  ~ Lo

Dandelion Salad

Dear Lo,

The results are in!

Congressman Dennis Kucinich is the clear favorite of independent-minded voters in the IndependentPrimary.Com internet poll.

Over 110,000 people voted in IndependentPrimary.Com.

Kucinich won over 75% of the votes cast on the Democratic side. (And Rep. Ron Paul won overwhelmingly on the Republican side.)

As long-time independents we decided to do this poll because we were very concerned that Kucinich, Paul, and Gravel were excluded from some of the televised debates by the corporate media. We believe elections should be competitive and that the voters should decide at the polls! We want to give voters the authority to vote with their hearts.

Independents can swing the 2008 primary elections.

44% of voters in New Hampshire are registered independent. Since New Hampshire is an “open primary” state they can vote in the Democratic presidential primary.

Help us publicize the results of IndependentPrimary.Com in New Hampshire. And inform the state’s independent voters that they can vote in the Democratic Primary.

This is an extraordinary election. All the pundits say independent-minded voters will determine the outcome. So let’s make sure that the election is open and fair and voters are educated about their choices.

Please contribute. Your donation will help us buy radio spots and newspaper ads that publicize the results of this very important poll of independent-minded Americans.

A $100 contribution will pay for one 30-second radio ad. Give $25, $50, $100 or be a sponsor and give $250. Be a friend and give $500 and purchase five radio ads. Click here>

IndependentPrimary.Com is conducting democracy as it should be – with the American people in charge! Isn’t this what the founding fathers had in mind?

Click here to contribute towards a New Hampshire radio ad

Or go to http://donate.independentprimary.com

Thank you for voting with your hearts,

Jim Mangia & Linda Curtis
IndependentPrimary.Com

PS. Even if you can’t give $100 or more, it all adds up. Please give what you can at donate. To help chip in, go to http://donate.independentprimary.com

FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

see

Dennis Kucinich Can Win by Lo

Vote at 10questions.com (Kucinich)

New Poll at TechCrunch – Open until Jan. 18, 2008

Military Intervention against Iran? Implications of the NIE By Stefan Simanowitz

Dandelion Salad

By Stefan Simanowitz
ICH
12/20/07 “ZNet

The findings of the US National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) which state “with high confidence” that Iran halted its nuclear weapons programme in 2003 clearly represent a major set-back to those arguing for military intervention against Iran in the coming months. However, if unchallenged, it is possible that the report might strengthen the case for military action against Iran in the coming years. By recognising that Iran has no current nuclear weapons programme the findings undermine the central argument of those arguing for tougher sanctions and precipitant military strikes. But the claim that Iran had a nuclear weapons programme in the past not only allows that Iran has breached its obligations under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, but also that it could restart its weaponisation programme at any moment. To welcome this intelligence as wholly accurate is to concede the much disputed question of whether Iran has ever had a nuclear weapons programme.

Whilst the culminative findings of 16 intelligence agencies cannot be ignored, it is difficult to treat the findings with full confidence after the failings of these same agencies that preceded the invasion of Iraq. The report is also compromised by the fact that the 2005 NIE found “with high confidence” that Iran was intent on developing nuclear weapons. A more reliable source of intelligence would surely be the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA), the only international authority qualified to study Iran’s nuclear dossier. The IAEA were accurate in their assessment of Iraq’s WDM capacity in 2003 and they are continuing to conduct exhaustive inspections on all of Iran’s nuclear enrichment sites. Despite nearly 3,000 person-hours of inspections, the IAEA have found no evidence, past or present, that Iran has diverted its nuclear programme to military purposes.

Whilst we should be glad that this intelligence on the absence of WMDs in Iran has surfaced now rather than being discovering it in the aftermath of a military attack as was the case with Iraq, we should not think that this alone will stall those intent on military intervention against Iran. Although weakened, the neo-Conservative case for military strikes on Iran is not dependent on the existence of a nuclear weapons programme. The concept that Iran might develop weapons at some point in the future, combined with accusations that Tehran is supporting terrorists in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, and has threatened Israel could yet be used to establish a causis belli.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has recently been put on the US list of “terrorist organisations” and Iran has been accused repeatedly of supplying weapons and intelligence to terrorists in Iran. Despite these accusations, no evidence has been produced to demonstrate a definite link between the Iranian government and insurgent or terrorist groups. Indeed General Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, admitted at a Pentagon news conference this year that he had no evidence of the Iranian government sending any military equipment into Iraq and US commanders in Iraq suggest Iran is now limiting the flow of weapons to Shia militias.

The claim that Iran has threatened “to wipe Israel off the face of the map” has been repeated so often that it has almost become received wisdom. However the much mistranslated Farsi phrase used by President Amadinejad was “Imam ghoft een rezhim-e ishghalgar-e qods bayad az safheh-ye ruzgar mahv shavad.” This translates directly as “The Imam said this regime occupying Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time. This statement is very wise”. Whatever the interpretation of this translation, “a regime vanishing from the page of time” is very different from a threat to wipe a nation off the map.

Much of the debate is now centring on how long it might take for Iran to produce a nuclear weapon should she be intent to do so. The NIE suggests if she were to ‘restart’ her weaponisation programme, Iran might be able to produce warheads by 2010 or 2015. There is little dispute that Iran’s current low-level uranium enrichment is barely adequate for reactor fuel, let alone the highly enriched uranium necessary for a nuclear weapon. It is also agreed that Iran’s 3,000 centrifuges are running far below capacity and there are problems with contaminated feedstock. But arguments about the possible timeline for Iran to acquire a nuclear weapons capacity become academic if we ensure the continued Iranian cooperation with the IAEA and their inspections regime. Novembers’ report by the IAEA states that all of the enriched uranium produced to date “remains under Agency containment and surveillance” and there is no suggestion of a covert weaponisation programme.

Whilst the NIE report does not fit neatly into the Bush/Cheney plan for building a case for military intervention against Iran, it might still be used to their advantage. A consensus of opinion that Iran had a secret nuclear weaponisation programme in the past which could be restarted at any time, combined with predictions that Iran could manufacture a nuclear warhead within the space of 2 years could be used to justify attacks. The NIE reports suggestions that Iran had a nuclear weapons programme should be treated with a degree of scepticism and debates around hypothetical timelines should not be allowed to distract us from the important task of diffusing this dangerous standoff between those intent on military intervention and an Iranian government determined not to back down from its legitimate enrichment activities.

Founded in London in 2006 the Westminster Committee on Iran is an independent cross-party committee which aims to increase dialogue and understanding between Tehran and British parliamentarians and with a view to preventing military intervention against Iran.

Stefan Simanowitz – Chair, Westminster Committee on Iran – London


FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Bones to Pick on Ron Paul by Guinea: The 1930′s Smut Peddler

Guinea: The 1930′s Smut Peddler

by Guinea: The 1930′s Smut Peddler
featured writer
Dandelion Salad

Guinea: The 1930′s Smut Peddler’s Blog
Blog post
Dec. 20, 2007

I’m going to first start off by saying this is not an attack, just my thoughts and opinions. I’m not sure if Ron Paul is a racist like many people claim he is, maybe I’m not seeing it, if he has supporters being racist doesn’t automatically make him a racist, and the things I’ve seen on him being racist, well some just aren’t reliable websites and/or the videos are edited very cleverly and maybe we aren’t getting the full view of his ideas. Or maybe I’m just being naive. None the less, if anyone wants to drop me comments or videos, debunking that he is a racist and or showing concrete proof of him being a racist, feel free to hit me with them so I can be the judge for myself, I think I’ve seen quite enough but I’m sure there is a million things I haven’t seen or read.

So anyway, back to my issues with him. Call it nit picking or not, but well he is the “Constitutional” presidential hopeful by many of you. His campaign is basically restoring the constitution, which you couldn’t ask for more. It is the gift of life. But my first thorn in my spine about that is… Voting against impeaching Dick Cheney. That just blows my mind coming from a constitutionalist. And I also believe that the constitution is just about everything, but sometimes there are some things missing in the constitution that should be a given right, but thats a whole other topic.

Second, the 9/11 issue, If his campaign is that strong, than we should not be worried about him having the balls to say he is for independent investigations. Kucinich said he would, and although he isn’t all that great in the polls like Ron Paul is, they also don’t ever mention that Kucinich is a 9/11 conspiracy nut. I don’t think it would be his main focus throughout his campaign if he stick to what he has been preaching. That all being if he is lying that he doesn’t think that 9/11 was a cover up and that it is “preposterous”. But if he is lying, then what else may he be lying about just to gain support. Not saying he is, but you always have to keep your eyes peeled, even on your own guy. And I hope that if he isn’t lying that his supporters would be right there protesting him about it or bombarding him with facts just like we do with everyone else that calls people that don’t believe the “official” 9/11 story a lie, kooks. Regardless if he is doing a good job everything else, 9/11 comes before anyone, in my mind. You have to keep your own guy in check sometimes too.

A few other issues I have with him are his views on net neutrality. He voted NO to a nationwide Amber Alert which is a real big deal to me, I couldn’t imagine why he would do that. He supports a Constitutional Amendment for school prayer. Voted YES on banning gay adoptions in DC.

I don’t believe we need to eliminate the Department of Education, I think reform is much more of a necessity. I believe all students should have vouchers attached to them to secure (1) to make sure they are happy with the education they are receiving (2) make teachers actually care to do a good job, because I know most teachers only care about getting that check at the end of the week (most, not all) and (3) competition.

This is where I’m going to get shit from…. maybe its nice in your neck of the woods, but not all that peachy in my area. I am all for the second amendment and oppose any ban on hand guns, but I do believe it shouldn’t be that easy to get a gun. Maybe the majority out there are responsible people but you have to admit, there are some sick bastards out there that we need to keep guns out their hands.

The abortion thing, ehhh, its really a matter of opinion and which way you look at it, I mean, neither side can be wrong on that issue. My personal beliefs is that if someone was raped, they should be allowed to have an abortion. I believe it is a woman’s right to choose. But that is just a matter of opinion to me. So I won’t argue on that one. To each their own.

Another thing, I have to look at it a little more but, I know he voted NO on banning physician-assisted suicide. (Huh?) Anyone want to explain that one to me? And as for his health care plan, I don’t think anyone can compete with Dennis Kucinich’s not for profit universal health care system. Find me where it has been flawed anywhere other than Canada and where else was it… the U.K. I believe? But a Health care for all should just be a right. Everyone deserves that treatment. No one left behind. No one turned away.

As for immigration… well, I do believe we need more secure borders, I don’t believe we need to be building a fence around our country, that is just ridiculous. No amnesty perhaps would be a good idea but I do believe that people immigrants without citizenship live in fear being that we have a horrible process for immigrants to gain their citizenship. If he is willing to fix that process then I believe we wouldn’t be in fear of people “taking our jobs” which I think is a ridiculous thought, as well being that the jobs they are taking are the worse of the worse, low paying jobs, I’m in construction and have no fear of someone taking my job, when you know Mexicans are waiting out there in the bitter cold everytime I go to Home Depot, begging for work for low prices, those are troopers if you ask me, and I have respect for their hard working ethics for low wages. They are just happy to work. You want to know where the jobs are being lost? It is when we are outsourcing all our work to every other country in the world.

I saw in his interview, with Glen Beck, that he said the American people have to take on the responsibility to help homeless people and it should not be the problem of the Federal Government, but I honestly can say, although I know there are many people in this country that are willing to help out less fortunate people, but sometimes people forget about them too, or some people just don’t give a fuck and can’t fathom the idea that these people had a streak of bad luck. If anyone knows about that streak of bad luck its me, I was never lazy nor was not willing to work, I think I’ve been working since who knows… I’ve had a paper route at 7 years old and worked from age 12 and up and shit was never working out regardless. Some people just don’t have that kind of luck and I don’t believe that all people would be willing to take on the responsibility to help each other. Government should play a role into helping people get back on their feet. Their should be no reason someone sleeps in a cardboard box. So the process of gaining citizenship needs to be fixed and all should be welcomed here, because the Statue of Liberty says so.

And as much as I agree that the Federal Reserve must be done away with, I worry sometimes about that thought too. But I won’t get into that too much because his plans for the Fed, IRS and Income Tax are my cup of tea. I’d much rather take the gamble and eliminate them and see if it works out like I believe it will. I just know that eventually if Ron Paul does because president and all this turns out, eventually he won’t be president anymore in 4 or 8 years. Then what?

Well… thats all I can really come up with at the time being but if there is more I’ll post a part 2. I’d like to hear any rebuttals. Other than that I like Ron Paul and most of his views as well, but those views I listed above are very important to me. My guy is still Kucinich, although he isn’t doing as well as I hoped, would have been great if Kucinich and Paul supporters backed each other up through the whole campaign this way we’d have a better shot at victory when the time comes, but some people, ehh, well you know.

I have a list of things that I don’t like about him but not as big of a list, plus I just thought I’d do one on Ron Paul being that the majority of my friends list are Ron Paul supporters. So hit me back with your thoughts. Thanks for reading. Please try to keep the fighting to a minimum in your comments. We are all human and entitled to our own beliefs, Respectful debate comes along way, especially to bring us all together. Lets not resort to Fox News/Bill O’Reilly tactics.

P.S. Any information you want to drop on your candidate is more than welcome, try to make it reliable sources. I have to do a little more research on why he voted on certain things as well, because the context does matter as well as just saying why someone voted for this or that. But in the end, we better not have a Hillary, Obama, Edwards, Giuliani, Romney or Huckabee coming out victorious. Lets do our best with Dennis Kucinich and Ron Paul. Even if you don’t like everything about their ideas, no one is perfect and at least they are blunt and sincere and listen to the people. That should count for something. This year the people, you and I are the “deciders”. And when it all comes down to it, best of luck to both candidates, and to you. And if the time comes that either Kucinich or Ron Paul do become president, I hope you won’t cut them slack if they fail to do their jobs right, we’ve failed for the past 8 years, we better not let it happen again and be all over their asses just as we would do against anyone else. We have it in us. This is about the people. So we must work together as “We the People”
see

9/11 Truth Manifesto By Joel S. Hirschhorn

Dennis Kucinich Can Win by Lo

The case for Kucinich By Tom Gallagher

On The Issues: Dennis Kucinich and Ron Paul by Lo

Kucinich-Dennis

Paul-Ron

Immigration

Impeach

9/11 Truth Manifesto By Joel S. Hirschhorn

Dandelion Salad

By Joel S. Hirschhorn

12/20/07 “ICH

For evidence that America’s political system is a criminal conspiracy, open your mind to piles of new analyses that prove beyond doubt that the official 9/11 story is a lie. Years of a bipartisan cover-up of 9/11 lies make it much more than one horrendous past event. It endures in infamy as a symptom of a corrupt and dishonest government.

Every day we pay for what 9/11 and its cover-up have burdened us with, including the costly Iraq war and the erosion of the rule of law and constitutional rights. Power elites have suppressed the truth because they fear what will happen when the public understands that 9/11 was not accomplished solely by foreign terrorists.

Technically sound analyses of what happened at the World Trade Center have unequivocally shown that the official 9/11 story is not credible (www.ae911truth.org). Truth seekers have met their burden of proof; the government has not met theirs. Simply put, controlled demolition brought down three buildings, not fires from the impact of planes on two of them. Not only was the US government involved, it has also conspired to hide the truth from the public. Why? Republican and Democratic politicians and power elites fear that 9/11 truth will remove what little public trust remains in government. The truth will produce political instability, perhaps breaking the two-party stranglehold on our political system. And it should. And it must, if we are to finally obtain the deep political reforms our nation desperately needs.

The decline started before George W. Bush and his criminal co-conspirators accelerated it with their blatant disregard for the rule of law and our Constitution. It will continue, even with a Democratic administration, unless we reform our political system. We must remind Americans that our nation was born in an insurrectionist, populist rebellion against political tyranny – and that 9/11 teaches us that we need a Second American Revolution. We must destroy the domestic Axis of Arrogance of our plutocracy more than fear a foreign Axis of Evil. How?

A vast nationwide grassroots 9/11 truth movement is ignored by the mainstream news media. Its success will be the catalyst for renewing American democracy. It will produce a shock wave that rattles the brains of all Americans: Shock therapy from a truth so powerful and unsettling that Americans finally see the decline of American democracy that allowed 9/11 and its cover-up.

Make no mistake, the 9/11 truth movement holds the future of the United States. We are not subversive “conspiracy theorists” or enablers of foreign terrorism. We are patriotic warriors working to nullify group delusion produced by government propaganda. Dozens of books and websites reveal countless technical contradictions and inconsistencies with the official government 9/11 story and the laws of physics. The weight of the evidence supports one painful verdict: Our federal government played a role, probably through a large “black op.” The “why” is obvious: To justify an unjust war to serve corporate interests and greed.

Here is our opportunity: To make 9/11 the tipping point for American democracy renewal. Our enemies fear that if this movement succeeds, their plutocratic, elitist cabal – the Axis of Arrogance – run by the two-party duopoly will collapse. Corruption keeps our political system stable – truth must clean it up. Instability is the necessary price for restoring democracy.

A Paradigm Shift

9/11 lies have sustained the ruling terrorism-threat paradigm. 9/11 truth must energize a new political-reform paradigm. Patriotism framed as defending the nation against terrorism must be replaced by patriotism focused on repairing American democracy.

Already, status quo protectionists lie about us to defeat our movement. Things will get worse as our movement draws closer to bringing down the corrupt political system. And we are getting closer. Only 16 percent of Americans believe that members of the Bush administration are telling the truth about what they knew about terrorist attacks on the US prior to 9/11, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll. But what people say in polls is not the same as coming out publicly and vociferously for 9/11 truth, or seeing the roots of 9/11 in the decay of American democracy, not merely the actions of a few evil people.

The deceived public must be re-educated to see the arrogant power elites running our national plutocracy as worse than radical Islamic terrorists. Paul Craig Roberts captured the essence of the problem: “Americans think their danger is terrorists. They don’t understand the terrorists cannot take away habeas corpus, the Bill of Rights, the Constitution. … The terrorists are not anything like the threat that we face to the Bill of Rights and the Constitution from our own government in the name of fighting terrorism. Americans just aren’t able to perceive that.”

9/11 is a history lesson to inform the nation about democracy decline. As John McMurtry asked, “So which goes – the faith in America’s greatness and goodness in the world, or the facts which disclose the opposite at the very top?” We must always remember that Americans are better than their government. They do not get the government they deserve. They get the government that the rich and powerful impose. That must end.

We confront more than power elites. There is psychological resistance of millions of Americans to painful 9/11 truth – a shameful, “unthinkable” truth about their elected government. Even if they have doubts about the official story, they instinctively recoil and erect mental barriers to block out the full truth. They want to keep believing that they live in a great democracy. They want to believe that when the Bush administration is replaced our democracy will be in good shape again. Hard to accept that 9/11 truth could not have been suppressed this long without the tacit or explicit approval of Democratic politicians and power brokers.

It is as if we are telling children that their parents are mass murderers. Distracted, time-poor, depressed, political disengaged, cynical and insecure Americans do not want to hear that their government had a hand in 9/11. That for years their two-party-controlled government has blatantly lied to them. That thousands of good Americans have died and been terribly injured in a war propped up by the false-flag 9/11 fiction. In sum, that despite elections a vast criminal conspiracy has been so successful for so long. Such thoughts hurt.

Also, political instability is scary to ordinary Americans. But stability based on corruption and lies is destructive. Only when Americans see 9/11 as a political attack (by Americans on Americans) – not solely a terrorist attack (by foreigners on Americans) – will they understand that revealing 9/11 truth must lead to major political reforms. Instability is the cost of democracy renewal.

Here are powerful messages: The collapse of the rule of law is more important than the collapse of buildings. Countless more have died because of 9/11 than on 9/11. The events of 9/11 ultimately are less important than the reasons for and consequences of 9/11.

As John McMurtry said, “[9/11] allowed an illegitimate administration to transmute into America’s patriotic champion at war – above accountability and the rule of law. ‘Defending America from another terrorist attack’ became a political blank check for corporate corruption of government expenditures with impunity, war criminal acts and threats across the Islamic and alternative third world, and attacks on civil rights and commons at home.” All this persists as 9/11 lies persist.

Despite record-low levels of public trust in Congress and the president, too many Americans still believe that elections are the path to major political reforms. Despite a solid history of campaign lies from politicians, and overwhelming belief that the nation is on the wrong track, Americans keep hoping that they can vote their way into a better future. Most Americans do not have a Boston Tea Party mentality. They are unready to revolt despite revolting conditions. Our truth movement must help Americans accept painful truth and its political fallout. We must put all the technical truth discovered by reputable scientists and engineers to work for systemic reforms.

We must do more than oust the official story and obtain a new 9/11 investigation that now has wide support by hundreds of respected Americans (www.patriotsquestion911.com). We must guide Americans into a more patriotic and courageous mental state. We must help Americans become outraged and rebellious, yet also optimistic about major political reforms.

Political Strategy

Success against the power elites running and ruining our nation requires building an army of Americans openly revolting against the two-party corporatist state now in control. The 9/11 truth movement must use political strategies to defeat the status quo political establishment. Here are three actions.

First, with detailed technical analyses unequivocally proving that the official story is false, the movement can draft a bill that might be titled The 9/11 Truth Act of 2008. This proposed federal legislation should be delivered to every member of the House and Senate early next year. It would clarify the investigation: What its scope and objectives must be. What reliable entity, public or private or a combination, must be used. How the public must be given opportunities to present information. What resources must be provided and what time frame must be adhered to.

We must take the initiative and specify exactly what kind of new official 9/11 investigation is necessary, recognizing that professionals in the truth movement have limited resources and cannot address all questions. The 9/11 truth movement itself must define exactly what the first real credible and comprehensive government sponsored investigation must consist of. We can have no confidence in anything that the political establishment might devise to silence our movement. We must tell the public, the media and the political world what is required to reveal the total truth as to what caused, for example, the collapse of three World Trade Center buildings, especially building 7 not even hit by a plane.

Developing and submitting this legislation must then be followed up by all 9/11 groups urging their supporters to bombard Congress with demands for hearings and passage of the bill. This is the way to engage more Americans politically to obtain full 9/11 truth.

However, few politicians’ comments support the truth movement. A rare statement came from presidential candidate Ron Paul. In a radio interview in January, 2007 he said that the 9/11 investigations to date are “more or less cover-up and no real explanation of what went on.” However, later in the year when he became more visible he was asked about the possibility of the official story being orchestrated by the government. He said emphatically “absolutely not.” In another interview, when asked whether he thought 9/11 was an inside job that our government made happen, he responded forcefully “No.” So apparently Paul sees a cover-up but not about the involvement of our government. Would he support legislation for a new investigation?

Thus the second critical political action is this: Proclaim that only politicians that actively support passage of our legislation will earn support in the 2008 elections from the millions of Americans doubting the official 9/11 story. This threat is an absolute necessity. If the legislation is not passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bush, then we must aggressively support a boycott on voting for all Democrats and Republicans in the 2008 federal elections.

Third, all those committed to 9/11 truth should honor what the Founders gave us in our Constitution in case some day Americans lost confidence in the federal government, especially in Congress. That day has arrived. 9/11 was that day. They gave us the option in Article V for a convention of state delegates to propose constitutional amendments. We must see SYSTEM reforms as only achievable through constitutional amendments that Congress will never propose nor achieve through normal legislation.

Congress and the entire elitist political establishment have intentionally denied us a convention for over 200 years. The one and only requirement in Article V has more than been satisfied by over 500 state applications from all 50 states. Enough is enough. Our truth movement should join the effort of Friends of the Article V Convention at www.foavc.org by urging truth group members to join FOAVC. The political establishment fears both 9/11 truth and an Article V convention. We must grasp that 9/11 truth can bring us to the brink of political reforms and the convention is the process to obtain them.

Conclusion

The 9/11 truth movement must also be a political movement – but not in any partisan sense. 9/11 truth can help Americans take back their country. 9/11 truth can end the criminal, corrupt and conniving plutocracy that stole our government and mutilated our democracy.

We must transform 9/11 from a catalyzing event for imperialistic war-mongering to one for democracy renewal. We must convert terrorist-transfixed fear into political reform enthusiasm.

The pursuit of truth is not always the pursuit of happiness – not when the truth hurts. The 9/11 truth movement is not about finding immediate happiness. It is about rebooting American democracy and, after accomplishing that, earning happiness.

A former full professor of engineering at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and then senior official with the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment and the National Governors Association, Joel S. Hirschhorn is now an activist writer and can be reached through www.delusionaldemocracy.com. This article is based on presentations given at a recent conference sponsored by Boston 9/11 Truth.


FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Clash of the Worlds: Mutiny + Sudan + Palestine (videos)

Dandelion Salad

ICH

Clash of the Worlds: Mutiny

BBC 2
58 min 14 sec – Nov 25, 2007

Aired: October 28, 2007 on BBC 2

Exploring how past conflicts between a Christian West and Islam can help explain more recent violence.  In the next three weeks this series looks at three great clashes between a Christian British Empire and Islam: the Indian Mutiny of 1857, the Mahdi uprising in 1880s Sudan and the creation of the state of Israel in the first half of the twentieth century. The first programme tells the story of the Indian uprising in which both sides committed atrocities in the name of their faiths.
http://AtheistMedia.blogspot.com

Clash of the Worlds: Sudan

BBC 2
58 min 39 sec – Nov 26, 2007

Aired: November 4, 2007 on BBC 2

Clash of Worlds continues to explore how past conflicts between the West and Islam can help explain the violence of recent events. This week’s programme tells the story of The Mahdi, a self-proclaimed Muslim redeemer in the Sudan, takes on and trounces the might of the British empire and its Christian hero, General Charles Gordon. The British go to great lengths to destroy the Islamists. Yet this story of religious revival continues to inspire modern day militants.

Clash of the Worlds: Palestine 

BBC 2
59 min 15 sec – Nov 26, 2007

Aired: November 18, 2007 on BBC 2

Exploring how past conflicts between a Christian West and Islam can help explain more recent violence.  This programme tells the story of Decisions made by the British rulers of Palestine ninety years ago have wreaked damage that continues to this day.

Did the Neocons pick their horse? (video; McCain)

Dandelion Salad

TheRealNews

More at http://therealnews.com/c.php?c=070925YT
Jonathan Schell: McCain picks up Leiberman’s endorsement

Thursday December 20th, 2007

Based in New York City, USA, Jonathan Schell is a renowned anti-nuclear activist, prolific journalist, lecturer and best-selling author. He is a frequent contributor to The Nation, The New Yorker, Harper’s Magazine and Atlantic Monthly. He is also the author of The Fate of the Earth, nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. Schell is a board member of IWT – The Real News.
Added: December 20, 2007

12.19.07 Uncensored News Reports From Across The Middle East (video; over 18 only)

Dandelion Salad

Warning
.
This video may contain images depicting the reality and horror of war and should only be viewed by a mature audience.

Selected Episode

Dec. 19, 2007

linktv

For more: http://linktv.org/originalseries
“Rice to Mobilize Political Efforts in Lebanon,” Dubai TV, UAE
“Israel plans to Expand Settlement in Jerusalem,” Al Jazeera TV, Qatar
“Bush Will Visit Israel & West Bank in 2008,” IBA TV, Israel
“The Boycott is Killing Palestinians,” Al Aqsa, Gaza
“Train Crash in Pakistan Kills 40,” Al Jazeera English, Qatar
“Iraqi Schools in Miserable Condition,” Baghdad TV, Iraq
“US Soldiers Sell Uniforms for Drugs,” Al Arabiya TV, UAE
“Largest Christmas Tree in Arab World,” Syria TV, Syria
Produced for Link TV by Jamal Dajani.

DHS finalizing plans for domestic spy satellite program by Nick Juliano

Dandelion Salad

by Nick Juliano
Raw Story
Thursday December 20, 2007

Congress has not been updated since civil liberties concerns delayed satellite spying

A plan to dramatically widen US law enforcement agencies’ access to data from powerful spy satellites is moving toward implementation, as Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff expects to finalize a charter for the program this week, according to a new report.

Chertoff insists the scheme to turn spy satellites — that were originally designed for foreign surveillance — on Americans is legal, although a House committee that would approve the program has not been updated on the program for three months.

“We still haven’t seen the legal framework we requested or the standard operation procedures on how the NAO will actually be run,” House Homeland Security Chairman Bennie G. Thompson tells the Wall Street Journal. Thompson was referring to the National Applications Office — a new DHS subset that would coordinate access to spy-satellite data for non-military domestic agencies, including law enforcement.

Civil liberties concerns delayed the program after lawmakers and outside activists wondered how the program would be structured to protect Americans from unconstitutional surveillance from the powerful satellites, which can see through cloud cover, trees and even concrete buildings.

The program’s charter remains unfinalized, but Chertoff said it will use clear language to explain legal restrictions on the data’s use. Warrants will be obtained when required before collecting satellite intelligence, and the program won’t use technology to intercept verbal communications, according to the Journal.

“One lesson I’ve learned is it’s not enough to say we know what we’re doing is going to be OK,” Chertoff told the paper in an interview. “We’ve got to really make it clear to the public that we’re doing this, but we’re not doing that.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.