Из надежных источников поступили сведения, о том что в России на тупит дефолт к середине января.
Советую всем принять соответст ующие меры со своими финансами.
Также цены на недвижимость выр стут уже в январю в 2-3 раза.
 
Источник очень надежный. Но выслушаю ваши мнения тут.

i found a site www.isvoting.com where they say
you can pre-register to vote ..is this leagal
to pre-register at an election and is there
anyone who knows if ther's any other websites
where you can do this including for the
military...thanks

11111
1222222222

Whether you are at peak of your success, whether you finish your mundane desires, or you are in the middle of your life, recollect people whom you have helped within your life. Think of those who will remember you. Put for ever yourself on record in history and memories of people who are grateful to you. Share your piece of happiness. There can be your good will some man will make happy. I do not beg alms; I search for the starting capital and opportunity to help people.
There are real projects, there is no real investor, where you the investors respond?
I send to essential elements of bank:
 USD CITIUS 33, CITIBANK, NEW YORK, USA, /3614-5754/. FBACUAUX
BANK"FINANSE AND KREDIT", LIMITED, UKRAINE, KIEV FOR ODESSA BRENCH
ACC №26209002164902 / 39015010936840 BENEFICIAR: KRYUKOV OLEKSANDR

Почти 35000 абонентов стали победителями и получили подарки. Главными побед телями прошлого месяца (август, 2006) стала Евгения Горная. В торжественной обстановке был вручен гл вный приз - автомобиль Ваз2110.
Потрать 5 минут, выиграй машину, ноутбук, единицы на ваш телефон и много ругих призов.

SMS'achka конкурс спонсируется компанией SIBIUS MOBIL совместно с газетой КОМСОМОЛЬСКАЯ ПРАВДА (ЗАО ИД «Комсомольская правда») и компанией ЗАО «Мобиком Россия».

Розыгрыш призов п оходит каждые 24 часа, выбор победителей делает главный компьютер, под руководст ом жури и представителей SMSachka.ru Побеждает каждый второй номер, вопрос лишь в том, что за выигры вам выпадет.

Сайт проекта: smsachka.ru

Почти 35000 абонентов стали победителями и получили подарки. Главными побед телями прошлого месяца (август, 2006) стала Евгения Горная. В торжественной обстановке был вручен гл вный приз - автомобиль Ваз2110.
Потрать 5 минут, выиграй машину, ноутбук, единицы на ваш телефон и много ругих призов.

SMS'achka конкурс спонсируется компанией SIBIUS MOBIL совместно с газетой КОМСОМОЛЬСКАЯ ПРАВДА (ЗАО ИД «Комсомольская правда») и компанией ЗАО «Мобиком Россия».

Розыгрыш призов п оходит каждые 24 часа, выбор победителей делает главный компьютер, под руководст ом жури и представителей SMSachka.ru Побеждает каждый второй номер, вопрос лишь в том, что за выигры вам выпадет.

Сайт проекта: smsachka.ru

Well, the election is over, and I admit that I am relieved. Compared with 2000, President Bush garnered a larger percentage of votes cast in 44 states this time around. He got a smaller percentage in only one state--Vermont. In the remaining handful, he got the same percentage. While I am not prepared to use words like "landslide", "decisive", or "mandate", I think that President Bush was the clear choice of the electorate.

Not surprisingly, the GOP also picked up four seats in the House and four seats in the Senate. Not enough to stop a filibuster, but still a decent majority in both houses of Congress. It will be interesting to see what the Republicans can do this time around. I expect some Tax Code and Social Security reform, as well as federal tort reform particularly in the area of medical malpractice litigation.

There may be some minor health care and energy reforms as well, but these issues have proven difficult to efectively fix. Carter tried to straighten out our energy policy with near-disastrous results. Clinton promised to fix health care, but in eight years, did nothing truly effective. I doubt that Bush will find the job any easier, but his energy background gives him a sizeable advantage over Carter in that policy area.

I think Bush's election will certainly clarify America's position in the area of foreign policy. I think America was at the peak of its international prestige since WWII during Bush-41's term. I think the World began to question our stature when we voted Bush-41 out and installed King Bill and Queen Hillary. Then, the World had to endure eight years of the Clintons' lack of meaningful international leadership, not to mention Bill's embarassing antics with Monica, et al.

Our invasion of Iraq certainly establishes that America means what it says, even if the UN doesn't. Thirteen years of meaningless sanctions, coupled with abuse of the Oil for Food program by "allies" like France and Russia, has certainly diminished the stature of the UN. It will be interesting to see if America and its closest allies can step into that void.

READ FBI REPORTS ON JOHN KERRY,JUST RELEASED
(TALKTORUSTY.COM)

BUSH WILL BEAT KERRY. PERIOD. AND THERE ARE TOO MANY REASONS WHY. THAT IS THE ONE AND ONLY TRUTH.

Usually I avoid looking at Bush (I find some things offensive), but in last night's debate his face caught my attention. It seems that the left side of bush's mouth sags. Is that lieing out the side of his mouth? Did Bush have a stroke from hearing Kerry disagrees with him?

I saw another comment about the "weird spittle" frothing from his mouth so I don't think it was just my tv set. Is the sagging asymetrical face new or is it old? Maybe he just has two faces. Anybody know???

Edited by author 10-10-2004 06:32 AM
Mock vote for U.S. presidential election
More than 5,000 people from around the world have participated in an international mock vote for the upcoming presidential election in the United States over the Internet since its launch on Aug. 16.
The mock trial project, called the Global Democracy Campaign for an Alternative World, is organized by Japanese and South Korean nongovernmental organizations, and aims to give people from countries outside the United States a chance to express their views on U.S. policies.
The two NGOs will accept votes until Oct. 17 and announce the results on Oct. 19 ahead of the U.S. election on Nov. 2.
The website -- which provides the information in English, Korean and Japanese -- can be accessed at http://www.choice21.org

At the risk of making people angry I will speak my mind about Friday's debate. I would much rather make people think. I do not know a great deal about politics but I feel I have a good handle on common sense. While I tend to lean in Bush's direction, I feel that there is altogether too much name calling between the parties and it seems to just get worse with each election. I don't know about the rest of you out there with critically thinking minds, but I tend to not listen to the message from either side when the mudslinging gets too intense; it sounds to me more like childish bickering. The party candidates would do well to take their demeanor into consideration and not depart from acting like civilized gentlemen.
I do support John Kerry on the issue of allowing Americans to get healthcare from Canada, and he did raise a valuable point about the use and abuse of the Patriot Act. I believe the Patriot Act is valuable but the civil rights of American citizens must not be infringed upon for any reason whatever. We have only to look at history's mistakes as a caveat: when law enforcement agencies begin to be able to search private property without justifiable suspicion of illegal activity, then we begin to take on the nature of Hitler's Gestapo which this country fought so hard during WWII to make sure would never become a reality in the free world again. So we should be very careful with this act, or the next thing you know, people will begin to be arrested on simple suspicion of terrorism, without concrete proof.
We could also learn from history on another level, as concerns our involvement in Iraq. Kerry was quick to lambaste Bush for what he feels was a precipitous rush into war but consider this: If you know anything about history you know that we did not enter WWI until 1917 even though the war began in 1914. Woodrow Wilson felt it was in our best interests to remain neutral as long as possible, since he and many Americans felt it was a European conflict. We pursued an isolationist position until the sinking of the Lusitania in 1917 drew us into the war. 24 years later we were again drawn into a war that F.D.R. had tried for two years to keep us out of, although we did supply munitions to Britain long before December 7, 1941. My point is that in both conflicts, we eventually became involved, not only because we were attacked, but because there was an international threat of evil that needed to be stopped. Whether you vote democrat or republican, I think you must admit that Saddam Hussein is an evil man. He brutally massacred defenseless Kurds in his own country. We may have been able to stay out of the war longer, and yes, possibly spared more American lives, but he would have continued on his killing spree.
Allowing him to pursue his acts of genocide would be no different than having allowed Hitler to continue killing Jews, whether or not Pearl Harbor had ever drawn us into the war. The issue is about doing what's morally right. Just think about it, Senator Kerry.

NO MORE BUSH!

i wear this shirt with pride!
http://ebiz.netopia.com/deezteez/bush/

I just happened to show up.

First, of course, there was the excitement about Howard Dean. The last time that sort of interest happened to me was John Anderson. He turned up one day in Vermont where I lived and word spread he would be at a particular restaurant at 4 that afternoon. I'd never been to any political event but I wanted to see John Anderson so I went. The place was jammed. I happened to be on the edge of a path they cleared for him when he came in and got to shake his hand. He's a little guy, bristling with energy. Then they stood him up on a chair and he spoke for half an hour or so. I don't remember much except he said he was still in the race. It was a struggle, he said, but the kid in Doonsbury hadn't yet sold is car for more cash.

The room had the usual political hangers-on but the bulk of the crowd was people like myself who had never been to a political event but they put all that aside came to see John Anderson. The people who were attracted to him were all the people who never get involved in politics, probably refuse to tell anyone how they vote, resent the people doing exit polls, and so by extension they had no organization either. I think Howard Dean played well to that same crowd. Dean had the advantage of the internet, of course, which may not have even existed when John Anderson ran. It certainly wasn't the tool it is today.

Someone told me about this Air America network which is supposed to somehow counter Rush Limbaugh and his ilk. I've listened a couple times via the internet (there are no local stations yet) and unfortunately it seems just as vitriolic but on the other side. Not only that, they're preaching to the choir. Who else would listen to them?

I like to think I'm independent but I'm not sure I'm AN independent. Don't care too much for labels. It makes it too easy to categorize people and avoid finding out who they really are.

On the other hand, I check this page every day to see what's going on. Maybe I just have too much time on my hands.

I agree with you there David. Roger said he's a political junkie, but he keeps himself rather aloof, even on the Journo website. I've been spewing my angst at the Oak Leaf, and the bits I submit here are just to see if anyone is interested. I could post my Oak Leaf articles here I guess. there's only so much time at this point of the semester, and I guess if things were hoppin' a little more here, maybe I'd participate. Hope we're not disappointing you. Are you in one of Roger's classes, or are you an independant?

Not exactly a spirited forum here, is it?

Wanna know what's really going on in Iraq? Check this out:

http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewarticl...horID=2591&id=13362

Frankn Rich has really become edgy since the Times movedd him from the editorial page to the arts. I like it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/04/arts/04RICH.html?th

I'm really trying to like Kerry. The lesser of two evils or the only choice? We've gone from Janet Jackson's breast to gay marriage and now the "big thing" in the embryonic presidential race is the price of gasoline. He promises to lower prices at the pump and then get us off of the gasoline habit. I don't quite get the logic there, but there seems to be precious little logic in American leadership these days.

With OPEC finally following through with their threat to cut back production, and with the very real concept of dwindling supplies, how can these people not see the importance of taking our country in a new direction, into the 21st century and not backwards into the 19th century?

Military superiority and arrogance can only keep us on top for so long. There is a very real price that we will eventually have to pay for our insane policies both foreign and domestic.

I could go on and on and on and on, as Roger can tell you from watching me on the journo website. I'm glad to see someone out here, even though it's the same two people from the same choir.

Edited by author 04-01-2004 03:29 PM
Some years ago my wife and I were on a tour to Australia. We were only there a short while. We had a couple days in Sidney and then they took us down to Canberra (which, by the way, is pronounced so it rhymes with "camera") their capitol city. The bus took us up through Embassy Row - grand mansions, one after another, with open gates and flowers blooming in lavish gardens. Then we turned a corner and came to a huge compound with brick walls, spiked fences, guard towers, surveilance cameras, and heavy closed gates.

"What is this?" Someone asked. This, we were told, was the United States embassy.


Oh.


Several minutes passed as we drove clear around the damned thing. It went on and on. Finally and someone asked about the security.

Well, our driver said, he always brings Americans by the our embassy because most Americans have no idea how much our government is hated around the world. (This was in 1993.) Not that we had anything to fear from the Aussies, even though we had all but decimated their sheep/lamb/wool industry through something we'd done, but embassies were targets for anyone who didn't like us. And the reason for this hatred, at least from his perspective, was that when something didn't suit us, our solution was to send in the jets and the napalm to straighten things out.

Now, he said, having said all that, given a choice he would have Yanks on his bus 7 days a week because of all the people in the world we are the only people he can speak to this frankly about our own government.

So I agree. People are our level almost always get along famously. It's only when we let someone represent our "interests" that we get in trouble.

Our trip to Australia and New Zealand was very pleasant. People DO like us. The same was true a few years later when I went to Turkey. Very open, friendly people - at least the ones I met.

I remember reading one time that someone had asked Albert Einstein who he would send to represent us if we should be invaded by someone from outer space. His answer: a little girl between 7 and 10 years old.

In my travels I've found that people around the world really, really want to love the United States. And during the Clinton Administration they did, because Clinton treated others with respect. Some foreigners have suggested that they too should be allowed to vote for the U.S. president because the presidency affects them greatly. Well, that's certainly NOT going to happen. But if there were an elected "president of the world," Bill Clinton would have won it handily -- and probably still would.

So, David, I don't despair at all about the U.S.'s ability to regain world respect under a Kerry presidency. And the lack of money won't be important, imo, because what is at issue isn't money, it's mutual respect.

On the other hand, I believe another four years of Bush will be so ruinous to the country, politically and economically, that I am filled with despair at the thought of it. And I resent like hell that little states with a population approximating that of Sonoma County will get three crucial electoral votes.

Edited by author 03-29-2004 09:32 AM
Well, I don't know...

I keep hoping Bush & Co. will self destruct. It all seems so clear to me I can't imagine that people still believe in them and what they do and stand for. And the fact that there are a lot of people who see this as some sort of crusade to make the world RIGHT completely baffles me and doesn't give me a lot of hope.

Having grown up in a small New England town I got a full dose of "foreigners are strange and unpredictable and should be watched at all times" but there was never any notion that they should be taken over and set right. I don't know where that comes from but it must have some connection to wealth, power, connections, and influence none of which have ever been available to me.

One day we'll no longer have the resources to buy friends around the world. Then what? Will it be too late to simply be nice guys?

If Kerry wins, will anyone be able to trust him and believe we're not the Same Old United States? Will he have any money to continue our "friendhships" or will Bush have spent it all? People who are good at holding grudges really don't care who's in charge when they finally get a chance to take a shot at us. In an age of CNN live coverage of just about everything, who can even concieve of waiting for 15 - 20 years for an opportunity to extract revenge?

So lets assume we rid the White House of its current evil. Will that be enough or have they so damaged our image and reputation around the world that no one can restore it?

Excellent article. Thanks David. Nice to have some company here, as I wander through the corridors in my fathers pajamas and slippers. (Don't ask, it's too complicated to explain here)

Another link - an interview with a couple retired folks. He used to work for Kennedy. Always intersting to here from people with perspective.

http://www.keenesentinel.com/localnews/story2.htm

I don't know whether the contents of this like remain or if they change, but on Saturday it was an interesting interview.

Heya David,
Have you ever read the New Hampshire Gazzette? Great leftist rag and purported to be the Nation's Oldest Newspaper. Well worth the twenty-two or so dollars to subscribe.

As long as we're sharing links.

http://www.keenesentinel.com/localnews/editorial.htm

The content of this page changes every day but I know the guy who writes most of these editorials. Keene and southwest New Hampshire are in the most liberal corner of the state, quite a feat considering the hard core conservative nature of the Union Leader in Manchester.

The pieces are well thought out and often included some amusing twists and connections. Try it out.

Krugman tells it like it is:

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/19/opinion/19KRUG.html?th

The original article can be found on SFGate.com here:


http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?.../07/28/IN244190.DTL

Sunday, July 28, 2002 (SF Chronicle)

Learning to love Big Brother/George W. Bush channels George Orwell

A classic from David Corn:

http://www.thenation.com/capitalgames/index.mhtml?bid=3&pid=1321

I'm getting more upbeat about Kerry as time goes by. I will donate and work for him too. When one finds oneself in a hole, the first thing to do is to stop digging. Getting rid of W. will represent putting down the shovel. I just wonder if the people of the US have the integrity or the courage of the Spanish people who ousted the fuckers who took them into war alongside Bush and his gang of idealogues. W. has probably unleashed the very things he told us he was saving us from, all in the name of good numbers on the NASDAQ for Halliburton.

Okay, so Bush is beaten and sent home to Texas.

Now what will be in his place?

I'm less downbeat than you re Kerry, David. The reality is that the American people aren't nearly as far left as I (and you) would wish. Kucinich, for example, would be as unrepresentative of Americans' positions as is Bush in the obvious direction.

I'm fully prepared to be disappointed in Kerry -- or anyone -- once he's in office. I was sorry that Clinton wasn't more left. But Clinton stands as a bright shining beacon compared to every other president back to JFK.

So, because the alternative is four more years of Bush, I'm wildly enthusiastic about Kerry. I'll work for him, I'll contribute money. This election is crucial and we all have to come together to beat Bush.

I'm in agreement. Bush needs to be sent home to Crawford - or better yet, clear over the border.

I just worry that Kerry is such a waffler that he's going to make too big a target for the Republican machine. Tell me, for instance, just what it is he believes in - not just in the moment, but forever.

He's clearly an opportunist and the rush to him over the others in the race still baffles me. We wanted Anybody But Bush and I'm afraid that's just what we've got. Anybody.

I'm actually paying attention to Kerry now. He has his flaws, but he isn't W. He'll be accused of flip-flopping, but he's been involved in politics for over three decades, and his opinions have changed as he's grown older. He went to Viet Nam and came back to fight against the war. He's not George W. Bush. I'm a Deaniac at heart, but we do have to get the idealogues out of office. Positive spin for the Dems is imperative. Anybody But Bush.

Edited by author 03-07-2004 12:13 PM
So why is it I can't feel any better about Kerry? The Republicans are going to grind him up. I just hope Bush and his cronies self-destruct. The trouble is, they know how the media and opinion works.

I remember a story once that one of the news organizations did a piece about Ronald Reagan - all the things he said he was going to do (and they showed the clips of campaign speeches) and then showed what actually happened which was often the total opposite. This, of course, is not news. The interesting thing was that the White House called the news people up and thanked them for the story. They knew (and no doubt still know) that people will remember the clips and not the facts.

Except for taking every opportunity to stand in front of a camera and comment on any subject, what has Kerry actually done?

I'm open to suggestions.

Be frightened. Be very, very frightened.

http://www.prospect.org/print/V15/2/kuttner-r.html

...As "Nero" Bush and the boys fiddle...

http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=17964

PS
It's nice to have some company here on the perimeter. Sometimes I feel like I'm out here raging to myself.

I won't see the flick either. I'll go to movies I wouldn't normally go to because I love his reviews. Ninety percent of the time I'll find myself thinking,"what friggin' movie was he watching?" He is a great writer though, and so is Roeper. I love Roeper's social critiques.

Frank Rich has really gone nuts since the Times put him in the Arts section. It's been good for him to get away from pure politics, although he's one of those people (like me) who can't keep from seeing the political aspect of EVERYTHING.

I love the editorial pages, and get most of my first layer of news from them, then follow up the stories on the regular news pages. The Nation website is great for that because the editorials have direct links to the source material. I suppose that's one way of reaffirming my biases, but we're biased creatures who tend to stick to our core beliefs regardless of evidence to the contrary. Just look at the Bush administration's policies on taxes and the environment.

I really agree about Ebert's piece on "The Passion." Ebert is my favorite reviewer, 'though not because I necessarily agree with him. (For example, I won't go see "The Passion," for a variety of reasons). I like Ebert because he's a very good writer. The review of "The Passion" is a first-class piece of criticism.

Another damn fine article by Frank Rich of the NY Times. Back on message. Peace out.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/08/arts/08R...efdd4abd955&ei=5070

Okay, this isn't about the presidential election, and maybe no one's even paying attention, but this is a damn fine piece of writing by Roger Ebert:

http://www.suntimes.com/output/ebert1/cst-ftr-passion24.html

I pick up the lead of the discussion by default. Har, har.

Edited by author 02-18-2004 06:43 PM
Many Dean people mourn. I like the PAC idea and hope that the Democratic establishment doesn't freeze him out. He brought hope to a lot of people who are fed up with the political process in this country. The only candidate besides Arianna Huffington that I've truly been able to back in my lifetime.

http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/special...election/speech.htm

Edited by author 02-18-2004 02:27 PM
I suppose it comes from marrying rich and being able to do nothing else. The blurb for part six on that link you provided mentions that Kerry discovers his thirst for media attention. I think that pretty much nails it.

Can anyone explain how Kerry morphed from the heroic anti-war Viet Nam vet into the boring and pompous senator from Massachusetts?

http://www.boston.com/globe/nation/packages/kerry/

Something completely unrelated, but well worth a read:

http://www.gladwell.com/2004/2004_01_12_a_suv.html

One of the most amazing things in my mind is that they're getting away with a stunning transformation of our government, and they very well may be the architects of a fundamental change the in the US that will leave us all scratching our heads wondering what happened.

Maybe I read too much Krugman, but it seems that the only reason we are solvent is because the IMF keeps loaning us the capitol to run the country. It's inconceivable that the juggernaut of the US economy could be on the rocks, but if we continue this uncontrolled debt spending, that's exactly where we'll be. Realistically, we could wake up one of these days in the very near future and find that we’ve been lowered to junk-bond status. The “Great Depression” could look like a walk in the park.

That’s only on the economic front. They’re also pushing a theocratic vision of American society that makes me cringe. The constitution is supposed to outline basic freedoms, not thwart them or push a fundamentalist agenda. A constitutional amendment banning gay marriage is an abomination to anyone who truly has respect for one of the basic documents of our nation.

Tom DeLay and John Ashcroft are as piously crazed as the box-cutter wielding, Saudi nutballs who flew the planes into the WTC. They are in the process of flying our country into the side of a building. The crash and subsequent ripple will be an amazing, scary, violent and completely unnerving thing. We could be witnessing the very fall of western civilization. Then again, maybe I read too much of the “liberal press.”

The other thing on the “it’s amazing” front; it’s amazing that so many people are either buying into the lie, don’t think politics affects them, or simply don’t care. We’re at a crossroads of civilization here. I know people have said that all throughout history, but this just might be the big one.

Vote Anybody But Bush in 2004!

All my life I've read about countries being taken over by a "coup." I always wondered how you could have a coup without the military being in the streets. Now I know.

We had a Supreme Court coup in 2000 and everything since then has come about as a result of this. And what's happened since then has been a looting of the country. "Looting" isn't my word, it's the word of George Akerlof, who shared the Nobel Prize for Economics in 2001.

(Here's a link to articles about Akerlof's charge of looting.)

So those are the two words I most associate with Bush: coup and looting.

What I'm praying for is that Bush is toast. I never knew our country could become victim to a dictator team who place no value on human rights and equality.

Judging by the website, if the rumor's true Kerry's toast.

There's a rumor here in Baton Rouge that John Kerry has hired Doug Wahl as a speech writer. For those of you who don't know....that's the guy who came up with goingtowrite.com

If a Tree Falls in a Forest.... .does it make
a sound when the American media is not there to cover it?

http://www.getodd.com/stuf/treefall.html

http://www.ethnodata.com/polls/?poll=8

We're having some spirited debate now, you betcha!

This is one of the funniest things I've read in awhile. Click on the link to the entire press conference text. It's 12 pages, but well worth the effort.


http://www.thenation.com/outrage/index.mhtml?bid=6

A must read from a gay "Independent" Bush supporter. I don't understand how that works, but for your perusal:

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/...0209-586254,00.html

So David, what part of Vermont are you from? I met a guy from Putney when I was on a long-distance bicycle trip in '98 and spent a few weeks cruising the state. Spent time in Putney and Rutland. Those Rutlanders were some hard-core partying snow-board types. I could only handle a few days there. Overall I loved the place though.

I'm going to hang in with Dean 'til the last minute. Yes, I do remember John Anderson, and not just the John Anderson from Yes. I hope we're not doomed to a 1 1/2 party system that looks more and more like a one party of wealth and all the rest of we saps who weren't smart enough to be born rich. They can eradicate the educated class with in a few generations simply by defunding education and rewriting history every day, just like in the novel. Even Kerry is in on the revision. Our one, true "electable" alternative. Check this out:

http://www.jrwhipple.com/war/wmd.html

One of my "Libertarian" friends (code word for extreme Republican) sent it to me. It's from some right-wingnut, but try clicking on the Kerry quotes and you'll find that his ideas about Saddam and the war have mysteriously vanished. So 1984 took an extra generation to come about. Fact is definately becoming stranger than fiction, my friends. Break out the Orwell and study up.

Edited by author 02-06-2004 10:08 PM
I lived in Vermont most of my life - I've only been here in Forestville for a little over 4 years. Howard Dean was Governor while I was in Vermont. He's a good man and that should be worth something. He was re-elected even after the Civil Union law was passed, although it was close. He does what he thinks is right which is more than I can say for a lot of politicians. Vermont, you may remember, also has Bernie Sanders in Congress, our Democratic Socialist. People laugh but Bernie's one of the hardest workers in Washington.

A lot of people don't realize that in Vermont the Governor and the vice-Governor (or whatever it's called) are elected separately. Howard Dean was vice-Governor under Richard Snelling and Richard Snelling was a die-hard Republican - some called him a tyrant. Howard Dean, a democrat, was elected as the second in command (twice, I believe) and he took over when Snelling collapsed and died one day while he was home cleaning his own swimming pool.

Vermont doesn't have a Governor's Mansion.

I have friends who have served in the Vermont legislature and I have friends who work in organizations that occasionally need some assistance from the state government. They've all told me that Howard Dean is a man who listens, is accessible, and works to do the right thing.

The only disagreement I ever had with him was around the proposal that a few people in Vermont be allowed to grow industrial hemp as a study towards its use as a cash crop. Most of us know that industrial hemp and the stuff people smoke are not the same thing. Unfortunately, he wouldn't even discuss it. In an essentially agricultural state populated by small farms by most national standards, it's a shame he wouldn't allow the possibility of providing another cash crop to make up for the reduced milk check or the fickleness of the apple crop.

If he has a failing it's in not being hardened to the feeding frenzy nature of the national press or ready for the viciousness of the republican party at the national level.

It would be a shame to give up on him simply because someone without substance is suddenly getting all the attention.

I was a big John Anderson fan, too. Remember him? Let's not have the same thing happen to Dean.

His Hermen Munster-like appeal to the masses. But seriously, I think it has more to do with the fact that the Democratic heirarchy is allowing him to be electable. One of the hopes of the Dean camp is that now that Kerry is the front-runner, he'll start to take the heat. He is taking some heat. Go to the RNC website, and you'll see that they're warming up for him. Nothing too overt yet, but they're ready. The difference is the way the Democrats are dealing with him. The Democrats are pulling the "band of brothers" crap now that one of the elite insiders has a good chance of taking the nominatioin. Kerry is there through ascendancy. He's not some scruffy govorner from a marginal hippy state. He's paid his debt to the party, has a proper wife, and by God it's his to lose.

One of the beauties of the Dean thing was that it gave hope to his core constituants who don't normally bother with the political process in this country. It was a refreshing moment of something truly hopeful and different. I generally hold my nose and vote for the lesser of two evils, as it appears I'll be doing again in 2004. Such is politics in a nation of one and one half parties.

A lot of the pundits of foreign policy are worried about civil war in Iraq. I worry about it here on our own shores if Bush gets re-elected. Problem is, if we have a civil war, I'm on the side that doesn't own any guns.

Perhaps someone can explain to me just what it is about Kerry that's electable?

I have my story straight now. It was the Medicare bill that Kerry supported. Anyways, Julie. Dean isn't out of the race just yet. He has almost as many delegates as Kerry, and if he can win Michigan and California he still has a chance. I'm sticking with him to the bitter end. Now that Kerry is the frontrunner, he can spend his time and resources fending off the republicans, the media and Dennis Kucinich. It's still a horserace. If Dean doesn't win, I will drag myself to the polls and do what I must. For now I will content myself with the idea that this election may be different from all the others I've witnessed in my lifetime. I'm still not convinced that Kerry is more electable than Dean. If he can get the delegates I think he has a much better chance against Bush. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

I liked Dean too, but if the race is between a loser (George W.) and losing, then why not support the candidate who has the most likelihood of getting Bush out of the White House.

Kerry voted against the Bush tax cuts. I stand corrected.

http://www.rnc.org/News/Read.aspx?Id=3412

Okay, let’s talk about the presidential race and the media. I watched the primaries last night and see the writing on the wall for the Dean campaign. It’s funny hearing the candidates who helped to tear him down using the same terminology that Dean has been using for over a year. When I hear “grassroots” and “two Americas,” I can’s help but cringe and grit my teeth for another “anybody but Bush” election.

I put so much faith in Dean, because he seemed like a good man to “take back our country.” The majority of his finances came from people like us giving a few dollars here and there. Yes I know that sounds Pollyannaish, and some real dollars had to be coming in from somewhere else, but I honestly believe that the “establishment” didn’t want him to win because he may have really changed the status quo.

Anyone who followed the campaign closely would have seem the concerted effort by the Democratic establishment who felt their sense of entitlement threatened, and a media machine which has a ridiculous amount of control over the culture and political process of this great land of ours.

“Howard Dean is too angry,” was one of the early things the mainstream press hammered at him with. To me that was one of the main appeals. I’m pissed at the things the Bush administration is doing to our country both at home at abroad, and anyone who’s not mad is either not paying attention, or has a direct financial interest in Bush policies. I assume that anyone who reads this doesn’t get all their news from Fox, so I’ll spare you the Fox-bashing that I so enjoy when I comment on the state of the union.

Another thing that was repeated over and over again about Dean was that he wasn’t electable. Talk about your self-fulfilling prophesies. The phrase was repeated often enough that people who were looking out from the fringes thought that he was going to explode if he somehow won the nomination.

Now it appears that we’ll be stuck with John Kerry, or as I like to call him, “Al Gore II,” or “another chance to vote for the lesser of two evils.” Where’s Ralph Nader when he’s so sorely needed?

Let’s talk about the “electability” of Kerry. Viet Nam war vet who saved that guy’s life; good. Voted for the war in Iraq, not so good. Voted for “No Child Left Behind,” not so good either. Voted in favor of the Bush tax cuts; hey, wait a minute. Aren’t we looking for someone besides Bush to put in the Whitehouse? How can Kerry even debate Bush if he agreed so much with the Bush agenda?

The debating thing is another issue. Dean has shown over and over his ability to rebound from attacks, both from his opponents and the punditry. I’ve seen the man speak, and he’s the only candidate besides Al Sharpton or Dennis Kucinich who could really give Bush a good debate. In the end, when almost every pundit, media outlet, and even the people reputed to be in the same party are on the attack even the strongest can eventually wither, we’ll never really know save a miracle in the remaining primaries. Ah, what might have been.

Kerry, on the other hand, appears to be Al Gore without the personality. Oh sure, he rode that motorcycle on stage when he was on the Tonight Show. He was able to trot out his “band of brothers,” just to prove he wasn’t a sissy when it came to war. The Botox thing isn’t really an issue, and neither is the fact that he had to loan his campaign $6.5m the week before the Iowa caucuses.

The real issue in my mind, is the fact that the George Bush who shows up at the next presidential debate will not be the same George Bush who was at the last debate. Gone are the days of “Bushisms” every week in the Maureen Dowd editorials. We have a president who has spent four years reading speeches and staying on message. He doesn’t stumble over the big words anymore. He’s going to look like Ali compared to Kerry, and Kerry will still just look like Al Gore. A boring, not-quite-so-intelligent Al Gore.

I know we’re here to study the media, and it’s not wise to bite the hand that feeds you, but the media effect on our political process is undeniable. The whole thing is following a path that seems to have a logical conclusion, which is not pretty. When we have a choice between two corporate sluts with seemingly the same agenda, do the people in this country really have a chance to take the country back? It may seem unimportant to many people, but the war is being financed by our tax dollars, the social programs that are largely unseen and basically work to keep our society together are eroding away so that the funding can be funneled into the coffers of Lockheed-Martin. We’re looking at deficits as far as the eye can see, as our reputation as good members of the human race crumbles around our heads, and the credit rating that is the only thing keeping our government solvent goes down the toilet.

I know I’ve gone on far too long, but hey, this is the political forum, and nobody else seems to be saying much. The ball’s back out on the court. Let’s play.

Edited by author 01-24-2004 08:10 PM
Poynter has a great article ("http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=53&aid=59795") on changes the AP is making about gays and lesbians and the effect it's having on newspapers in general. Reminded me of another good article ("http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file.../11/07/DD116742.DTL") in the San Francisco Chronicle after the murder of a transgender teen.

If you feel like doing some homework check out the link Eden Compost top right of the screen as to how to develop a new political base> Http://www.geocities.com/wildvine9
 
Happy Hunting, May your fires be wide and Welcoming

QT - Greg Bouchillon <qtopic+25-z82xUJcL8Tm@quicktopic.com> wrote: < replied-to message removed by QT >

I am absolutely about rendering the idea of undiscovered currency that nothing else makes sense I beleieve in back to the future,, new age guilds proliferating abunfance, the main criteria is this, Where there is abundance men can be brothers, when scarcity then survival sets in...in America there is resounding rebutals to scarcity and that is the battle call, where people eat the best they "must" think the best and so Karma sets in ~~~! Science Fiction Literature sets into play the Idea, What is missing just needs to be Engineered...America is the hope of the World, right Now it is being sorely misrepresented....
QT - Greg Bouchillon <qtopic+25-z82xUJcL8Tm@quicktopic.com> wrote: < replied-to message removed by QT >

Edited by author 01-22-2004 06:59 PM
Marc, I totally agree with you. If you don't vote, don't bitch. I've been so angry with the current administration lately with my mother's right to decide what's best for her body, my own gay rights being threatened, a war that was bought with lies, and the economy that so many of my friends and family can't find work to pay the bills.

As long as someone doesn't trample on another's rights, I have no issue with them. When they begin to affect another's ability to be free and safe, I have problems.

partisan politics on the micro scale...what is it to me if gay people want to mary each other, if I want to marry more than one person, what is it to me the right of woman to do as they wish with their bodies if that doesn't include my right to do with my own what I wish, what of equal treatment under the law in consideration of whether one has money or not...What of you people out there who make no strident noises against the blatant pre-emption of the constitution until your own interests are crossed ?

I think it's unfortunate that anyone is so hung up on who gets married to whom. A marriage (or a Civil Union in Vermont) is an acknowledgement and a celebration of a relationship. I can't see why the gender should enter into it. I've thought sometimes that when I go back to Vermont for a visit that Susan and I should have a Civil Union ceremony. Our marriage is so unlike either of our first marriages that it's hard to call it the same thing. On the other hand, we had a couple friends from Sonoma County take a trip to Vermont for the Civil Union Ceremony. We even connected them to Anne Ryder, the JP who married us. These guys have been together over 20 years. A relationship like that deserves to be officially recognized and it shouldn't take 20 years to do it.

Being a gay male, I find myself feeling like a second class citizen now. Here we are using the Constitution to discriminate against some of our citizens.

So, what have we learned? Only straight people should get the benefits of marriage. Churches - who often preach discrimination - should get Federal money. The same money gays and lesbians pay in taxes.

I'm tired of being persecuted by my government in the name of family values. With the divorce rate in our country, I'm surprised this right-wing fascist can even claim "protection of marriage" with a straight face.

I probably should have waited until I calmed down to write this.

I want my president, whether Republican or Democrat, to be fiscally conservative and aware of the preciousness of life. I don't want a mad cowboy and his dudes giving this country such a nasty reputation in global politics. I am going to vote for whoever has the best chance of getting rid of George W. Bush.

I mostly pay attention to politics around election time and I have noticed how the media can really get things going and put different prospectives on things. It would be much different if the media was not involved in Politics. The candidates would have to do much more work to get votes from people.

I am also a political junkie. This Kos site is really nice. This Iowa race also goes to show you that the media can hype someone for such a long time, and when it goes to the voters, sometimes, that doesn't mean a damn thing.

I'm an ex-Republican, now a Democrat. If I were to add "and fiercely proud of it" and you were to laugh at that I'd know that you'd seen Monty Python's "The Meaning of Life" too many times. That's a joke.

Actually, I'm only nominally Democratic, but definitely of the left. I say all this to confess my biases and associations up front.

We're starting this discussion on Jan.19, the night of the Iowa caucuses. I'm getting most of my news about the event from an obscure but essential website, DailyKos.

http://www.dailykos.com

Dailykos is a site for all Democrats and progressives. Today it's been more like a one-subject wire service, with new stories and reports from Iowa every hour. This is like heroin for a political junkie like me. It's the third online news source I check every day -- after the New York Times and Google News but well ahead of the Press-Democrat.

So, if you want to talk politics, this is the place. Go to it, keeping in mind the caveats above.