Thursday, January 31, 2008

If it feels really really good, is it a sin?

Or am I breaking a dozen federal laws??

I sure hope not! This is just too dang fun!!

No further explanation is really necessary... just sit back and play!
Thank you, d2, for sharing it! I needed the release!!


{Bush lied about the war... WHACK! Bush protects his oil buddies... WHACK! Bush is a moron... WHACK!....and on and on and on....}

Governor Andrus: Obama's message is the right one for the country

Former Idaho Governor Andrus Endorses Obama for President

BOISE - Former Idaho Governor Cecil Andrus announced today that he is endorsing Barack Obama for President. Andrus said that Barack Obama's message of change, hope and unity for the future is the right one for the country.

"The people of America are thirsting for a change. Barack Obama is the one candidate who can take on the special interests, reach across party lines and unite this entire nation around a common purpose so we can finally start making progress for all Americans," Andrus said.

Andrus served four terms as Idaho's Governor. He also served as the Secretary of the Interior under the Carter Administration. He is a leading advocate for land and wildlife conservation and education.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 31, 2008
Contact: Chani Wiggins, 208-871-4934
Communications Director
Idaho for Obama
208-345-6210
202-236-7750

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

My path toward Obama

I support Obama as President of the United States of America.

There. I said it.

It was easier to say than it was to decide, that’s for sure.

First of all, my personality type is ENFP... there are lots of academic ways of describing an ENFP (here and here!), but in simple terms, I “go with my gut”.

In addition, I am not astute at political issues... I'm more of a KISS type of person. I struggle to overcome the barrier that creates and really do try to make an effort to educate myself about the areas I'm most concerned with.

However, as a responsible voter, I know that I owe it to myself, my children, my country, and my candidates to not leave it at that. I really need to do my research before I make a final decision.

I went to Glassbooth and compared my priorities and positions on the various issues with ALL of the Presidential candidates.

Surprise… the results were all Democratic candidates!!

Another surprise, as addressed in another post: the top two in which I had the most in common were Kucinich and Gravel. Then it went Clinton, Edwards, and finally Obama. There was only a percentage point or two apart in difference, but Obama was ranked #5!

But my gut still kept leaning for Obama…

So I looked into the two areas in which Obama and I held different positions… and I researched his argument for his position and compared it to mine. He made sense… I didn’t necessarily agree with him, but I could respect the basis of his position.

I still was undecided, however…

Hillary Clinton… wow, the first woman President! She does have many years of experience in the political arena. But… is being the first woman President a good reason to elect her as the leader of our country? Just because she has experience, does that necessarily mean that she’s the best choice? (Haven’t we all had EXPERIENCED bosses or teachers… who still sucked at their job?) She’s got a lot of baggage… very little do I feel is actually her fault… but I’d really like the country to focus on OUR issues… and not the Clintons’. Her interaction with others, her ego, her marital situation… can we afford to take our eyes off the ball? I don’t think so…
I have to say that one simple sentence pushed me over the fence…

I received an Obama brochure in the mail last week… In this campaign flyer, he states he will “take on the drug and insurance lobbyists to cut health care costs for the typical family…”

That leapt out to me… this isn’t the time or place to discuss “why” but it was something I was waiting to hear from one of the candidates. (You can read more about Obama’s health care plan here.)

After I acknowledged to myself that Obama WAS the candidate I believed in, I learned which other Idahoans had endorsed him. This list contained individuals who I deeply admired and respected. People who I knew were more politically astute than I am and who understood more clearly the issues.

I realized then that I had made the right decision.

Update on Obama's visit to Idaho

Presidential candidate Barack Obama be at the Taco Bell Arena at Boise State University Saturday, February 2.

Doors will open at 7 a.m. to the public.

People attending the speech are being asked to use Entrance No. 3.

Obama is expected to take the podium about 9 a.m.

The event is free and open to the public, but an RSVP is strongly encouraged.

RSVP by visiting www.idaho.barackobama.com/boise or call 345-6210.

For security reasons, bags are not allowed inside the event. It is suggested you limit personal items. No signs or banners will be permitted.

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Fact, not fiction: Part 4

Chicago Tribune, Factcheck.Org, Washington Post:
Obama Never Represented Tony Rezko
January 23, 2008

FactCheck.org
On Clinton's Claim Obama Represented Rezko: "That's Untrue." Factcheck.org reported, "Obama was associated with a law firm that represented the community groups working with Rezko on several deals. There's no evidence that Obama spent much time on them, and he never represented Rezko directly. So it was wrong for Clinton to say he was 'representing ... Rezko.' That's untrue." [FactCheck.org, 1/21/08]

Chicago Tribune
Review Of "Land And Court Document And Law Firm Files As Well As Correspondence And Other Records...Supports [Obama's] Contention That He Did Not Directly Represent Rezko's Development Firm." The Chicago Tribune reported, "Obama angrily rejected Clinton's accusation at Monday's Democratic debate. And a Tribune review of land and court documents and law firm files as well as correspondence and other records related to Obama's eight years as an Illinois state lawmaker supports his contention that he did not directly represent Rezko's development firm. Instead, the records show, he represented non-profit community groups that partnered with Rezko's firm." [Chicago Tribune, 1/23/08]

Tribune Examined Miner Barnhill's "260 Civil And Criminal Cases," IHDA And DOH Files, Clients From Obama's "Unusually Frank Ethics Disclosure Reports" And Found Obama Represented The Non-Profit Partner.

The Chicago Tribune reported, "At the Tribune's request, Cook County Circuit Court Chief Judge Timothy Evans produced a list of all 260 civil and criminal cases in which the firm filed appearances, and the Tribune separately examined 1990s lawsuits that Rezmar Corp. listed in applications for government grants.

The paper also examined files from the Illinois Housing Development Authority and the city housing department, as well as the hundreds of clients Obama listed in the unusually frank ethics disclosure reports he filed as a state senator from December 1995 through April 2004.

Those and other records disclosed five instances in which Obama did legal work for ventures that included Rezmar Corp. The case of City of Chicago vs. Central Woodlawn Limited Partnership is one example. In 1992, that community group partnered with Rezmar Corp. to rehab the former slum apartment building at 6107-6115 S. Ellis Ave. As work was ongoing, city officials sued the developers, alleging 16 serious code violations at the property, including a dangerously dilapidated porch. Obama and a co-counsel filed appearances in February 1994, but the court records show they appeared on behalf of Central Woodlawn, Rezko's non-profit partner, not Rezko or his company." [Chicago Tribune, 1/23/08]

Washington Post Fact Check:
"Investigations By Chicago Newspapers Have Not Produced Evidence That [Obama] Represented Rezko In A Slum Landlord Business."
The Washington Post reported, "William Miceli, Obama's supervisor at the law firm, said the firm represented the Woodlawn Preservation and Investment Corp., a nonprofit group that redeveloped a run-down property on Chicago's South Side with Rezko. He called Clinton's assertion that Obama represented Rezko in a slum landlord business 'categorically untrue. He was a very junior lawyer at the time, who was given responsibility for basic due diligence, document review,' said Miceli, adding that Obama did what he was told by the firm. According to Miceli, that was the only time Obama worked on a Rezko-related project while at the law firm…But investigations by Chicago newspapers have not produced evidence that he represented Rezko in a slum landlord business. What has been demonstrated so far is that he did some due diligence legal work for a joint venture between Rezko and a Chicago nonprofit. Two Pinocchios for Clinton." [Washington Post, 1/22/08]

MINER: OBAMA DID MINOR WORK REPRESENTING THE NON-PROFIT
Miner
: Obama Filed Incorporation Papers For The Non-Profits. The AP reported, "Attorneys there say Obama never represented Rezko directly. The future senator did represent community organizations that were Rezko partners in rehabilitating buildings to provide apartments for the poor…Judson Miner, a partner in the firm, said that Obama's role was small. He said Obama did perhaps six or seven hours of work on such projects, mainly filing incorporation papers for the nonprofit groups." [AP, 1/22/08]

Obama Said That Miner Barnhill "Was Representing The Non-For-Profit Partner, Where There's No Allegations That They Did Anything Wrong." Obama said, "My law firm was representing the non for profit partner, where there's no allegations that they did anything wrong. They were simply trying to develop non for profit housing in the district." [Fox News, 4/24/07]

Obama Said That Miner Barnhill Was "Brought In Through [The Non-Profits], Not Through Rezko." The Chicago Tribune reported, "Responding to a Chicago Sun-Times report that Obama's former law firm did legal work for Rezko's low-income housing development business, the Illinois senator said he performed five hours of work on behalf of non-profit housing groups that partnered with Rezko. 'We were brought in through them [the non-profits], not through Rezko,' Obama said." [Chicago Tribune, 4/24/07]

Truth in advertising!!


Fact, not fiction: Part 3

It is so sad to see that some Americans still can't think for themselves, but instead rely on rumors, gossip, and innunendo... the truth is there, if you choose to see it.

Friends shouldn't let friends vote stupid...

BARACK OBAMA and PATRIOTISM

Barack was born in Hawaii on August 4th, 1961. His father, Barack Obama Sr., was born and raised in a small village in Kenya. His mother, Ann Dunham, grew up in small-town Kansas. Her father worked on oilrigs during the Depression, and then signed up for World War II after Pearl Harbor, where he marched across Europe in Patton's army.

Barack's grandfather taught him to say the Pledge of Allegiance and love his country.

After graduating from high school in Honolulu and attending Columbia University in New York, Barack became a community organizer working with churches on the South Side of Chicago. He then attended Harvard Law School, where he was the first African American president of the Harvard Law Review.

Barack's patriotism and profound belief in the underlying principles of this country led him to teach Constitutional Law at the University of Chicago. He also worked as a Civil Rights attorney in Chicago, protecting the voting rights of minority communities. Eventually, his commitment to the people in his community led him to run for office as an Illinois State Senator where he served for 8 years representing the 13th district.

In the U.S. Senate, as a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, Senator Obama has fought to help Illinois veterans get the disability pay they were promised, while working to prepare the VA for the return of the thousands of veterans who will need care after Iraq and Afghanistan.

Barack believes that you show your patriotism by how you treat your fellow Americans and veterans.

In November of 2007, General Tony McPeak, Major General J. Scott Gration, and Secretary of the Navy Richard Danzig wrote an open letter praising Barack's commitment to our troops and to US veterans. Here's an excerpt:

"We also admire his strong support for our troops and veterans. As a member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, he has fought to improve care for wounded troops, slash red tape, and reform the disability review process. He also passed legislation to combat homelessness among veterans. As President, he will expand housing vouchers, and launch a new supportive services housing program for at-risk veterans and their families. In addition, he will improve mental health screening and treatment at all levels: from enlistment, to deployment, to reentry into civilian life."
ASSOCIATED PRESS: "Obama said, 'My grandfather taught me how to say the Pledge of Allegiance when I was 2...During the Pledge of Allegiance you put your hand over your heart. During the national anthem you sing.'

WASHINGTON POST: "Anonymous attacks by e-mail are, or at least should be, un-American. This particular one was also wrong on the facts: the ceremony in question had nothing to do with the pledge of the allegiance.”

ST PETERSBURG TIMES: "Danzig, McPeak, Gration: 'Barack Obama Is A Patriot.' 'Senator Obama's attackers are peddling lies and smears because they disagree with his strong opposition to the war in Iraq and the rush to war in Iran,' wrote Richard Danzig, secretary of the Navy under President Bill Clinton, and retired Gens. Merrill "Tony" McPeak and J. Scott Gration. 'We have served this nation for decades, and we know a true patriot when we see one. Barack Obama is a patriot.'"

DES MOINES REGISTER: "Still, when a reporter in Iowa asked presidential candidate Barack Obama why he wasn't wearing a pin, it turned into a national news story. The pin, Obama said, 'became a substitute for I think true patriotism, which is speaking out on issues that are of importance to our national security. I decided I won't wear that pin on my chest.' He rightly noted that some people wearing lapel pins don't act very patriotic. Staff from other campaigns criticized him. One political analyst said the absence of the pin might hurt him politically. Reporters started asking other candidates about the whereabouts of their pins. Perhaps in an image-fixated world, a flag secured to one's lapel speaks louder than words or actions. But Obama is right. It shouldn't."

Fact, not fiction: Part 2

It is so sad to see that some Americans still can't think for themselves, but instead rely on rumors, gossip, and innunendo... the truth is there, if you choose to see it.

Friends shouldn't let friends vote stupid...


BARACK OBAMA and FAITH
Barack grew up in Hawaii with his mother and his grandparents, and he lived in Indonesia with his mother and step-father for four years when he was in elementary school.

After graduating from Columbia University in New York, he became a community organizer working with churches on the South Side of Chicago. After studying at Trinity United Church of Christ, he was baptized and remains a committed and active Christian. He continues to attend regular services with his family at Trinity United Church of Christ.

Barack has never been a Muslim or practiced any other faith besides Christianity, and in January 2005 he was sworn into the U.S. Senate on his family Bible.

LOS ANGELES TIMES: The Rumors About Obama Are "False And Vile." The Los Angeles Times wrote in an editorial, "That the rumors are false and vile is self-evident...Presidential candidates of both parties have a duty to denounce not only the smear against Obama but the bigotry that underlies it."

NEWSWEEK: "Dueling chain e-mails claim he's a radical Muslim or a 'racist' Christian. Both can't be right. We find both are false. If these two nasty e-mail messages are any indication, the 2008 presidential campaign is becoming a very dirty one. One claims that Obama is 'certainly a racist' by virtue of belonging to Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ, which it says 'will accept only black parishioners' and espouses a commitment to Africa. Actually, a white theology professor says he's been 'welcomed enthusiastically' at the church, as have other non-blacks. Another e-mail claims that Obama 'is a Muslim,' attended a 'Wahabi' school in Indonesia, took his Senate oath on the Koran, refuses to recite the Pledge of Allegiance and is part of an Islamic plot to take over the U.S. Each of these statements is false. These false appeals to bigotry and fear remind us of the infamous whispering campaign of eight years ago, when anonymous messages just before the South Carolina primary falsely accused Republican candidate John McCain of fathering an illegitimate child by a black woman."

THE UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST: "'Trinity UCC is rooted in and proud of its Afrocentric heritage,' [Rev. John H. Thomas, the UCC's general minister and president] said. 'This is no different than the hundreds of UCC churches from the German Evangelical and Reformed stream that continue to own and celebrate their German heritage, insisting on annual sausage and sauerkraut dinners and singing Stille Nacht on Christmas Eve. Recognizing and celebrating our distinctive racial-ethnic heritages, cultures, languages and customs are what make us unique as a united and uniting denomination.' While Trinity UCC is predominately African American, it does include and welcome non-Black members. The Rev. Jane Fisler-Hoffman, Illinois Conference Minister, who is white, has been a member of the congregation for years."

PROMINENT JEWISH LEADERS: "As leaders of the Jewish community, none of whose organizations will endorse or oppose any candidate for President, we feel compelled to speak out against certain rhetoric and tactics in the current campaign that we find particularly abhorrent. Of particular concern, over the past several weeks, many in our community have received hateful emails that use falsehood and innuendo to mischaracterize Senator Barack Obama's religious beliefs and who he is as a person. These tactics attempt to drive a wedge between our community and a presidential candidate based on despicable and false attacks and innuendo based on religion. We reject these efforts to manipulate members of our community into supporting or opposing candidates."

JEWISH U.S. SENATORS: "Over the past several weeks, many in the Jewish community have received hateful emails that use falsehood and innuendo about Senator Barack Obama's religion and attack him personally. As Jewish United States Senators who have not endorsed a candidate for the Democratic nomination, we condemn these scurrilous attacks. We find it particularly abhorrent that these attacks are apparently being sent specifically to the Jewish Community. Jews, who have historically been the target of such attacks, should be the first to reject these tactics. We won't dignify these falsehoods by repeating them in order to refute them. Instead, we will express our outrage at these tactics, which are being used to demonize a good and decent man and our friend and colleague. Attempting to manipulate voters into supporting or opposing one candidate or another based on despicable and fictitious attacks is disgraceful. These false and malicious attacks should not be part of our political discourse."

Fact, not fiction: Part 1

It is so sad to see that some Americans still can't think for themselves, but instead rely on rumors, gossip, and innunendo... the truth is there, if you choose to see it.

Friends shouldn't let friends vote stupid...


BARACK OBAMA and HIS CHURCH

Barack was born in Hawaii on August 4th, 1961. Barack's father, Barack Obama Sr., was born and raised in a small village in Kenya. His mother, Ann Dunham, grew up in small-town Kansas.

After graduating from Columbia University in New York, he became a community organizer working with churches on the South Side of Chicago. After studying at Trinity United Church of Christ, he was baptized and remains a committed and active Christian.

Trinity United Church of Christ is the largest congregation in the United Church of Christ. It is part of a liberal denomination that was the first to ordain an African American, a woman, and a gay man. Congregants have described it in the New York Times as a "warm and accepting community," and while it is in a predominantly African American congregation, people of all backgrounds attend and are enthusiastically welcomed.

Barack was sworn in as a U.S. Senator on his own personal Bible and continues to attend Trinity United regularly with his family.

THE UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST: "'Trinity UCC is rooted in and proud of its Afrocentric heritage,' [Rev. John H. Thomas, the UCC's general minister and president] said. 'This is no different than the hundreds of UCC churches from the German Evangelical and Reformed stream that continue to own and celebrate their German heritage, insisting on annual sausage and sauerkraut dinners and singing Stille Nacht on Christmas Eve. Recognizing and celebrating our distinctive racial-ethnic heritages, cultures, languages and customs are what make us unique as a united and uniting denomination.' While Trinity UCC is predominately African American, it does include and welcome non-Black members. The Rev. Jane Fisler-Hoffman, Illinois Conference Minister, who is white, has been a member of the congregation for years."

NEWSWEEK: "Dueling chain e-mails claim he's a radical Muslim or a 'racist' Christian. Both can't be right. We find both are false. If these two nasty e-mail messages are any indication, the 2008 presidential campaign is becoming a very dirty one. One claims that Obama is 'certainly a racist' by virtue of belonging to Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ, which it says 'will accept only black parishioners' and espouses a commitment to Africa. Actually, a white theology professor says he's been 'welcomed enthusiastically' at the church, as have other non-blacks. Another e-mail claims that Obama 'is a Muslim,' attended a 'Wahabi' school in Indonesia, took his Senate oath on the Koran, refuses to recite the Pledge of Allegiance and is part of an Islamic plot to take over the U.S. Each of these statements is false. These false appeals to bigotry and fear remind us of the infamous whispering campaign of eight years ago, when anonymous messages just before the South Caroli na primary falsely accused Republican candidate John McCain of fathering an illegitimate child by a black woman."

PROMINENT JEWISH LEADERS: "As leaders of the Jewish community, none of whose organizations will endorse or oppose any candidate for President, we feel compelled to speak out against certain rhetoric and tactics in the current campaign that we find particularly abhorrent. Of particular concern, over the past several weeks, many in our community have received hateful emails that use falsehood and innuendo to mischaracterize Senator Barack Obama's religious beliefs and who he is as a person. These tactics attempt to drive a wedge between our community and a presidential candidate based on despicable and false attacks and innuendo based on religion. We reject these efforts to manipulate members of our community into supporting or opposing candidates."

JEWISH U.S. SENATORS: "Over the past several weeks, many in the Jewish community have received hateful emails that use falsehood and innuendo about Senator Barack Obama's religion and attack him personally. As Jewish United States Senators who have not endorsed a candidate for the Democratic nomination, we condemn these scurrilous attacks. We find it particularly abhorrent that these attacks are apparently being sent specifically to the Jewish Community. Jews, who have historically been the target of such attacks, should be the first to reject these tactics. We won't dignify these falsehoods by repeating them in order to refute them. Instead, we will express our outrage at these tactics, which are being used to demonize a good and decent man and our friend and colleague. Attempting to manipulate voters into supporting or opposing one candidate or another based on despicable and fictitious attacks is disgraceful. These false and malicious attacks should not be part of our political discourse."

Road Trip, anyone???

Obama will be visiting Boise this upcoming Saturday...

If you are an Obama supporter...
If you are an undecided Democrat...
If you are an American who wants to make an informed choice at the polls...

Consider being a part of this gathering!!

{Currently, there is a group from the Gooding area who is coordinating a "road trip"... contact me for more information if you would like to join us! The song that is going through my head right now is "Convoy" by C.W. McCall! Can you picture it... from Eastern Idaho, picking more in the MiniCassia area, then Twin Falls, then at the Bliss exit, then Glenns Ferry, then Mountain Home... and then BOISE?? Wouldn't that be a sight to see!!)

Nuclear siting initiative will protect Idaho's way of life

Published in Times-News on Tuesday, January 29, 2008

By Diana Obenauer
I was born and raised in Jerome, Idaho, a wonderful, neighborly and special place to live. My roots go deep in my love for our wonderful Magic Valley.Military service and nursing education taught me how to preserve our fighting strength and care for all people in need. I am proud to have served in the Gulf War, and I am proud to serve Jerome County as a county commissioner.

It is important to learn from the past, as we prepare for Idaho's future.When I returned to Jerome from military service, I found changes I had not expected. I do not oppose growth, but it is important to live within our limits. Few people wanted to look at any limits, or at growth that was diversified. Idaho's water has to be used for our agricultural base and our people. It defines our limits.

I discovered neighbors had sold property to Sempra coal company and county permits were already approved. These plants spew mercury, affecting our children and our water. At first, we seemed defenseless, however, miraculously widespread citizen action from all over Magic Valley including the Idaho Dairy Association achieved a legislative moratorium on coal plants, overruling the ill-conceived local decision of county commissioners.

No nuclear power plant is totally "safe." The Department of Energy and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission admit continual threats from disgruntled employees, lax security, and terrorist threats from both physical and computer intruders are today's reality.

Mike Sparks, director of the DOE Office of Technology, admits, "The adversary has full use of the technology in advance to being made. And if we stand still and don't take the initiative to stay a step ahead on the technology, I think we're setting ourselves up for a disaster sometime down in the future."

I believe in "local control." These plants make all Idahoans "local." I am concerned about how decisions to allow nuclear power plants in Idaho will be made and so should every citizen in Idaho.The 2007 Idaho Energy Plan invites merchant nuclear power plants to use Idaho.

Will Payette and Owyhee county commissioners succumb to local pressure, special interest or intimidation to allow these plants in their county? Who stands to profit from them?

Do those who profit live in close proximity to them? If they are built, will Idahoans have to outbid California costs for any electricity generated from our soil and water?

I believe in being proactive instead of reactive and have joined with Dr. Peter Rickards and the good citizens of Idaho all across our state who have started an initiative to help protect Idaho and its citizens. This proactive group, Idaho Families For The Safest Energy (IFFSE) simply endorses the adoption of laws other states use to protect the health, safety and welfare of its citizens. IFFSE also endorses the development and support of a wide diversity of safer, more cost effective, sustainable energy development.

Why should Idaho get stuck with these risks? The IFFSE initiative bans nuclear power until a final waste dump is approved and open. Idaho still houses the melted core of Three Mile Island. Why should our state become a bigger repository for more radioactive waste? If that is ever resolved, county commissioners still make the decision.

However, before the final permit is granted, statewide voter approval is required.This provides a fail-safe opportunity for all citizens within Idaho to have a voice in decisions that ultimately affect all of us. All citizens have the constitutional right to protect their family's life, liberty, health and personal property. This Initiative does just that, and we recommend the Legislature enact this safeguard into law this session.

Diana Obenauer, a Republican, is a Jerome County commissioner.

Pennies from heaven...?

I don't quite understand this... the President will be sending Americans a check to help stimulate the economy? This accomplishes what...? How?

If my household receives any money, we'll be using it to catch up on bills... I guess that's stimulating the economy...?

How will YOU stimulate the economy with your gift from Dubya?

It's your ONLY chance!!

If you are Republican or Independent (or ___!) and either still thinking about it or possibly leaning toward a Democratic candidate, please read the following with an open mind...

For ALL Idahoans, it is VERY important for you to know about our political process...

If you decide that you wish to support one of the Democratic nominees for President, you need to know Tuesday, February 5 is a critical day.

No matter what your party affiliation, if you support a Democratic president, Feb. 5 is your ONLY opportunity to participate in the selection of the Democratic candidate for the November election.

Yes, I said "ONLY" opportunity.

The Democratic Party nomination for President is based upon Caucus results... NOT THE MAY PRIMARY. This is new information to me... maybe not to others, but I'm still in the "learning process" of politics!

IF YOU ARE NOT A DEMOCRAT...
The Democratic caucus does not require participants to be members of the Democratic Party!!! We only ask you NOT to vote for a Republican Presidential candidate in the May primary. You can still vote on the Republican side of the ticket in the Primary—just not for President. And however you choose to vote in November is still your choice (obviously!).

IF YOU ARE NOT REGISTERED TO VOTE...
You can vote in the caucus as long as you are a county resident, whether you are registered to vote at that time or not. (You can register at the caucus if you choose.)

IF YOU ARE 17 YEARS OLD...
If you will be 18 by November 4, you can also participate in the caucus.

IF YOU WANT MORE INFORMATION...
For further information about your local Democratic caucus, please go to the Idaho Democratic Party website. If you are in Gooding County, you can contact me if you want.

What's next? "Yo quiero Taco Bell" to Hispanics?

Okay, watch this and tell me if you don't think "OUCH!"
Talk about a pathetic attempt to "connect with people"!!!


Of course, it's especially awkward if one remembers the anecdote about his family pet!!

"God's Politics: Why the right gets it wrong, and the left doesn't get it."

It's been over two years since I clipped this review from BushFlash.com ... has anything really changed??? Just a thought...
The republicans have been able to lay claim to being the "party of God, faith, and family values", while at the same time, they wage illegal wars, punish the poor, exalt the rich, ignore the true value of human life, despoil our environment, and promote lining the pockets of massive corporations, while the least of us suffer the results of their hubris.

Wallis asks us important questions:

"When did Jesus become pro-war?"
Indeed- the right wing claims to be "pro-life"- it rails against abortion, stem cell research, and works itself into a froth over a brain-dead woman in Florida, yet it aggressively persues the death penalty, promotes wars against nations that never attacked, nor threatened us, and condemns universal health care as "socialist." How did this come to be?

"When did Jesus become pro-rich?"
Indeed- the right wing loves tax breaks for the rich, cutting of social programs for the poor, and social infrastructure, in favor of the aforementioned. How did this come to be?

"When did Jesus become a selective moralist?"
Indeed- the right wing loves to condemn those on welfare, those who happen to have been born gay or lesbian, and those who suffer from the great racial divide that still exists in this country. How did this come to be?

It came to be, because we on the left are quick to condemn, and slow to understand. Wallis breaks it down, for anyone who is willing to read, and learn.

Would the Jesus that opened up a can of whoop-ass on the money changers in the temple condone Bush's coddling of Ken Lay, and Enron, who robbed thousands of their pensions and life savings?

Would the Jesus who said "blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God" condone the Bush Bowl's war in Iraq?

Would the Jesus who said "That which you have done to the least of these, you have done to me", condone the Bush administration's cuts to programs aimed at aiding the poor, the starving, and the homeless?

I think you know the answer...Wallis sounds a clarion call in his book, reminding us that the principles that he, and the millions of other progressive people of faith across this nation are fighting for, are not unique to christianity- they are universal. The only reason that Bush, Frist, and DeLay have been able to co-opt christianity, and bend it to their corrupt will in the poilitical sphere, is that we on the left have been silent, for far too long.

Wallis constantly reminds us that the greatest christian prophetic voice that ever appeared in our nation, Martin Luther King, spent his life fighting poverty, racism, and war. When we turn our backs on the foundations that he built, we let Bush, and his ilk, define the moral paradigm of our country.
The one qualm I have about Wallis' work is that he boasts about the meetings he's had with the Bush Bowl, and the letters that he's sent to the white house. He doesn't seem to realize that in the few times that he's had face time with Bush, his pleas have fallen on deaf ears, and that whatever letters he's sent to Bush were most likely shipped off to the local landfill, after being put through the nearest paper shredder, without even being read.

Wallis doesn't seem to understand the true nature of the beast that we're all fighting against.

Winning the war? At what cost?

In a casual conversation the other day, a very sweet but very conservative gentleman commented that America needed to "win the war".

First of all, can someone tell me what we "win"? Is there a prize, a trophy, a ribbon that I don't know about?

Or is this about ego? Is this like the man who refuses to ask directions-- because he refuses to admit he's lost?

Are we banging our heads against the wall... in order to demolish the building... in order to say we cleared the lot for a new structure? What good is it to have a new structure after we've bashed our brains in for twenty years trying to remove the wall?

Just think, if the taxpayers in my congressional district (2-Rep. Mike Simpson) didn't spend our $206.6 million that we are instead spending on the Iraq War in FY2008, our district would be able to provide...
  • 56,247 Idahoans with Health Care OR
  • 171,088 Homes with Renewable Electricity OR
  • 5,088 Public Safety Officers OR
  • 3,920 Music and Arts Teachers OR
  • 52,071 Scholarships for University Students OR
  • 22 New Elementary Schools OR
  • 1,903 Affordable Housing Units OR
  • 131,142 Children with Health Care OR
  • 23,974 Head Start Places for Children OR
  • 3,920 Elementary School Teachers

This is our money... used for the war in Iraq. I guess Idaho doesn't have residents needing health care, children needing teachers or schools, young people needing help with tuition, or families needing affordable housing.

So... tell me... who's winning what here? And who is really paying for it?

Honor those who sacrificed so much...

The women were innocent and defenseless. And by the end of the night they were barely alive. Forty prison guards wielding clubs and their warden's blessing went on a rampage against the 33 women wrongly convicted of "obstructing sidewalk traffic."

They beat Lucy Burn, chained her hands to the cell bars above her head and left her hanging for the night, bleeding and gasping for air. They hurled Dora Lewis into a dark cell, smashed her head against an iron bed and knocked her out cold. Her cellmate, Alice Cosu, thought Lewis was dead and suffered a heart attack.

Additional affidavits describe the guards grabbing, dragging, beating, choking, slamming, pinching, twisting and kicking the women. Thus unfolded the "Night of Terror" on November 15, 1917, when the warden at the Occoquan Workhouse in Virginia ordered his guards to teach a lesson to the suffragists imprisoned there because they dared to picket Woodrow Wilson's White House for the right to vote.

For weeks, the women's only water came from an open pail. Their food - all of it colorless slop - was infested with worms. When one of the leaders, Alice Paul, embarked on a hunger strike, they tied her to a chair, forced a tube down her throat and poured liquid into her until she vomited. She was tortured like this for weeks until word was smuggled out to the press.

So, refresh my memory. Some women won't vote this year because - why exactly?? They have carpool duties? They have to get to work? Their vote doesn't matter? It's raining?

The HBO movie "Iron Jawed Angels" is a graphic depiction of the battle these women waged so that we could pull the curtain at the polling booth and have a say - our say.

One woman, who had studied women's history saw the HBO movie too. She looked angry and she was - with herself. "One thought kept coming back to me as I watched that movie," she said. "What would those women think of the way I use - or don't use - my right to vote? All of us take it for granted now, not just younger women, but those of us who did seek to learn."

The right to vote, she said, had become valuable to her "all over again."

All history, social studies and government teachers should include this movie in their curriculum. It should be shown on Bunco night and at tea parties, and anywhere else women gather. Because women are not voting in the numbers that they should be and perhaps this film might be a little reminder to how far we've come, but how far we still have to go. It is jarring to watch Woodrow Wilson and his cronies in the film try to persuade a psychiatrist to declare Alice Paul insane so that she could be permanently institutionalized. And it is inspiring to watch the doctor refuse. "Alice Paul was strong," he said, "and brave. That didn't make her crazy." The doctor admonished the men, "Courage in women is often mistaken for insanity."

Let's keep building courage, and if they think that women are insane because of it, then let's spread the insanity.

This is a personal issue for me... my great-great-grandmother moved from Indiana to California when she was in her late 80s. She left her home and family and all she had known to make the trek across the United States because she wanted to exercise the right to vote before she died. Women in California had won the right to vote (in 1911) and she didn't know if she'd live long enough to see Indiana do the same (it finally happened in 1917).

For my great-great-grandmother and all of the others who sacrificed so much so that I may have the right to vote, I must not dishonor them by not exercising that right. I don't have to move 3000 miles or go to jail -- all I have to do drive a few blocks (and some research, of course!). Thanks to them, I have a voice in my government.

Honor YOUR ancestors... VOTE!!



Christian Principles in an Election Year

I try to post this every year... as a liberal who also somehow manages to be a Christian at the same time (YES, IT CAN BE DONE!), I sure wish other "C"hristians would remember the following...

Christian Principles in an Election Year

July 14, 2004, NEW YORK CITY - The National Council of Churches USA has released 10 principles for evaluating candidates that it hopes all Christians - from liberals to conservatives - will study and apply in this election year.

Our Christian faith compels us to address the world through the lens of our relationship to God and to one another. Public discourse is enhanced as we engage civic leaders on the values and ethics affirmed by our faith. At the same time, religious liberty and the integrity of our democracy will be protected as candidates refrain from using faith-based organizations and institutions for partisan gain. We offer these ten principles to those seeking to accept the responsibility that comes with holding public office.

1. War is contrary to the will of God. While the use of violent force may, at times, be a necessity of last resort, Christ pronounces his blessing on the peacemakers. We look for political leaders who will make peace with justice a top priority and who will actively seek nonviolent solutions to conflict.

2. God calls us to live in communities shaped by peace and cooperation. We reject policies that abandon large segments of our inner city and rural populations to hopelessness. We look for political leaders who will re-build our communities and bring an end to the cycles of violence and killing.

3. God created us for each other, and thus our security depends on the well-being of our global neighbors. We look for political leaders for whom a foreign policy based on cooperation and global justice is an urgent concern.

4. God calls us to be advocates for those who are most vulnerable in our society. We look for political leaders who yearn for economic justice and who will seek to reduce the growing disparity between rich and poor.

5. Each human being is created in the image of God and is of infinite worth. We look for political leaders who actively promote racial justice and equal opportunity for everyone.

6. The earth belongs to God and is intrinsically good. We look for political leaders who recognize the earth's goodness, champion environmental justice, and uphold our responsibility to be stewards of God’s creation.

7. Christians have a biblical mandate to welcome strangers. We look for political leaders who will pursue fair immigration policies and speak out against xenophobia.

8. Those who follow Christ are called to heal the sick. We look for political leaders who will support adequate, affordable and accessible health care for all.

9. Because of the transforming power of God’s grace, all humans are called to be in right relationship with each other. We look for political leaders who seek a restorative, not retributive, approach to the criminal justice system and the individuals within it.

10. Providing enriched learning environments for all of God’s children is a moral imperative. We look for political leaders who will advocate for equal educational opportunity and abundant funding for children’s services.

Finally, our religious tradition admonishes us not to bear false witness against our neighbor and to love our enemies. We ask that the campaigns of political candidates and the coverage of the media in this election season be conducted according to principles of fairness, honesty and integrity.

A study guide to the principles is available on this Web site at: www.ncccusa.org/electionyearprinciplesguide.html.

Just in time for Groundhog's Day...

I'll poke my head out... maybe I'll stay a while this time!

I've been out of the loop obviously, and am trying to catch up on my reading/researching/reviewing... so not to post about old news (even if it's new to me!) or about something that has already been posted about a dozen times...

So... bear with me if I mess up... as always, gentle corrections are appreciated!

Saturday, January 19, 2008

It must be a secret...

... because nobody seems to be talking about the twenty-three Americans where were killed so far in Iraq this year... at this rate, we'll hit 4,000 dead before Easter.

Please take a moment to pay your respects to Danny, David, John, Keith, Curtis, Todd, Sean, Christopher, Matthew, Jonathan, Zachary, David, Ivan, Phillip, Timothy, James, Jason, Menelek, Andrew, Thomas, Ryan, and Joshua. Send a special prayer to the family who is being notified today...

My deepest sympathy and heartfelt prayers go out the their families at home and their military families who are still serving our country...

Since they were willing to sacrifice their lives for our country, I hope the rest of us are willing to take a little time to become informed about our current candidates... and for God's sake, VOTE...

Thursday, January 10, 2008

If you can handle a challenge...

Here's a challenge for you...

I double-dog dare Americans to check to see how close their positions REALLY are with the candidates by going to Glassbooth Election 2008.

Let me know about your results! (You don't have to share who your chosen candidate is/was, but how accurate the results were to your original choice...)

I'm SO tired of people basing their votes upon 3-second sound bites and multi-million dollar campaigns ... take the time to read the small print... believe it or not, the side effects of your vote can kill you...

MY RESULTS:
I admit it... I was surprised!!
I have 86% similarity with Mike Gravel and Dennis Kucinich...??!!! 79% similarity with Hillary Clinton, 76% with Edwards, and 71% with Obama...

Now, my challenge for myself is to research the three main candidates (because I'm not going to waste my vote on Mike and Dennis, sorry!) and identify what differences I have with their positions... is it because I misunderstood the issue or is it a difference I can accept...?

How about you... what are YOU going to do...?

And more silly rumors...

Same disclaimer as earlier...
This is NOT about a particular party or candidate, it's about educating ourselves... if you decide not to vote for Clinton or Barack, at least make that decision based upon the truth... and not lies!!

I'd share misinformation about Republican candidates but haven't seen anything which attacks any of them. If you have one and want to share it, please do and I'll send out clarifications about them as well...KNOWLEDGE isn't red or blue... it's red, WHITE, and blue!!

Regarding "Poor Hillary" or something about the "Clinton's Mortgage Being Covered By Secret Service Payments" or their pensions, go to: http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/c/clintonNYmortgage.htm
http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/h/hillary.htm
http://www.snopes.com/politics/clintons/landlord.asp

The truth? Here is a snip:
  • All presidents and former presidents are eligible for Secret Service protection and, according to a Secret Service spokesman, the presidents are reimbursed for any area of the home that is used by Secret Service agents. The amount is based on a formula, however, not defined by the homeowner. Based on that formula, Mr. Clinton would be eligible for more than $1,000, but he has declined the money for his New York home.
  • Although the compensation and retirement benefits of members of Congress are controversial, it is not true that Senator Clinton would leave office with her full congressional salary. According to the National Taxpayers Union, the pension for members of Congress varies depending on tenure in office, age of retirement, and the average salary when they left. It can also take other federal service into account. No one, however, leaves office with a pension that equals full congressional salary and especially not after just one term.

    As former president, Bill Clinton does receive a pension, but it is reduced upon his death.