Democracy In Distress: 10/09/2011

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Some videos from the Occupy Portland Media Coalition

www.occupyportland.org

Friday, October 14, 2011

Huntsman boycotts Nevada debate in protest of date

Just because I've decided to web log everything I see on Huntsman...

AP News | AccessNorthGa.com: Huntsman's decision is not a huge surprise. His rival Mitt Romney has strong political support in Nevada. And Huntsman has staked his political future on New Hampshire
'via Blog this'

Why the Occupy movement is not comparable to the Arab Spring

Yesterday I posted that, while I support the Occupy movement and while I am not a fan of some of the police actions with the Occupy Wall Street protests, I have a hard time comparing these activities in the U.S. to the Arab Spring.

Here is why... Our protesters are not dying for a cause, and our government is not killing them because of their cause.

We need some reform here, but our system is still far better than many, many others around the world.

Enough said.

BBC News - Syria uprising: UN says protest death toll hits 3,000:
The United Nations says 3,000 people have been killed in Syria in the seven months of protests against the rule of President Bashar al-Assad. 'via Blog this'

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Go Republicans! Another case of keeping millions unemployed to put one man out of work

Hint: Much of what we say about you pulling this crap is meant as a joke, not as a suggestion.

This...

Americans, unlike the Senate, approve of Obama’s jobs bill, poll says | The Ticket - Yahoo! News:

Senate Republicans Tuesday may have blocked President Obama's jobs bill, but a new poll suggests that's not what a majority of Americans want.
Nearly two-thirds of the respondents to a survey from NBC/Wall Street Journal voiced their approval when pollsters were told them the details of the president's "American Jobs Act"-- including that it would cut payroll taxes, fund new road construction, and extend unemployment benefits. NBC reports that 63 percent of respondents said they favored the bill, with just 32 percent opposing it. 'via Blog this'

...reminds me of this...

PS: I stole the second one from here: http://www.republicanjobcreation.com It is worth a look.

MissRepresentation Trailer: A great video on media portrayals of women in America

The trailer for this movie touches on so many great issues, but this is one of the more shocking tid-bits: "...Cuba, China, Iraq, and Afghanistan have more women in government than the United States of America..."

Miss Representation 8 min. Trailer 8/23/11 from Miss Representation on Vimeo.

http://www.missrepresentation.org
http://facebook.com/missrepresentationcampaign
http://twitter.com/representpledge

PREMIERING ON OWN: OPRAH WINFREY NETWORK OCTOBER 20TH @ 9/8c!

An Occupy Wall Street / Occupy Together / Occupy Portland Grab-bag

I am not sure if an entirely valid comparison is made in this first video, comparing the Occupy Movement to the Arab Spring, the Civil Rights Movement, and Tienanmen Square, but it does provide some food for thought...

This does not mean that I agree with the actions of the NYPD highlighted in this video. As a first hand witness to N30 in Seattle, I understand the police getting out of hand and turning these things ugly.

Portland police remove Occupy Portland protesters from downtown street | OregonLive.com:

But police and Mayor Sam Adams reassured protesters that the encampments that have taken over a pair of public squares will be allowed to remain indefinitely.

Portland police cleared Occupy Portland protesters from Southwest Third Avenue and Main Street shortly before 6 a.m., making eight, uneventful arrests.

Good Morning, Arrests: Police Clear Main Street, But Leave Camps Alone | Blogtown, PDX:

Mayor Sam Adams wasn't exaggerating yesterday afternoon when he said he was running out of patience with a handful of Occupy Portlanders' occupation of SW Main Street. Before the morning commute, before 6AM, the O reports, officers emerged from the Justice Center, made some arrests and reopened the street.

The arrests came after the mayor's office and police bureau said yesterday they would wait for the Occupy Portland campers to try to settle the issue themselves at last night's general assembly meeting. But the group could only decide to leave one lane open—an offer Adams previously rejected.

Next, a video that discusses something I think could be a real possibility with the Occupy Movement, something that would be very good for democracy in America: bridging the anger from the left and the right to form a sane movement, with the numbers behind it, the true 99%, to really inspire some positive change in the system.

Both sides are upset about many of the same issues, in general. They just have different ideas about who is to blame for the problem and how to fix them. It wouldn't be easy, and it would require the right setting aside the social issues and both sides accepting the will of a true democratic majority when it comes to federal practices and policies, but I think it would be an interesting step in a positive direction.

Uploaded by UpTakeVideo on Oct 6, 2011Harvard Professor Lawrence Lessig offers his thoughts on the Occupy Wall Street movement. He compares it to the citizen uprising in Wisconsin and says that the occupy Wall Street movement might unify left and right against the corrupt influence of corporate money on politics.

Finally, this one, nominally, because it fits with the theme touched on above, but really because I like the hell out of it and it is spending more time stuck in my head than any other song right now... Plus, some levity is a good thing after the first video.

A good chart on income inequality: The top 1% versus the Median Income since 1947

Notes on income inequality - The Washington Post:

How Many Overpaid CEOs Does It Take To Piss Everybody Off? | MoveOn.Org:

We don’t know, but here’s how much they make compared to the 99% . . .

'via Blog this'

Related Post: Exploring income inequality in America

Scraping the viral sludge off my shoe... This week's viral picture collection

A collection of recent viral images that made me laugh, think, or scream... Because sometimes it is hard to type with fists.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Photo of the Day by the King of Spamalot & "Mountain Cats" by Talkdemonic

From 000-FB Photo of the Day

Photo of the Day, October 12, 2011. Taken October 17, 2009. Butte Creek Scout Ranch. Near Scotts Mill, Oregon. October 17, 2009.

View this photo and buy prints on deviantART.

I am the King of Spamalot. I just had an email go out through ReverbNation to about 56 people I know about being a part of a mailing list I am putting together (though will probably never use). I didn't think much of it, since it is to people I know.

A few minutes later, though, I realized that my name might not be on it anywhere, just Retrovirus Lab. So yeah, that was me. Let's see if I just got myself kicked off that service!

On top of it, as I am connecting with some other groups through these sites, my social networks are getting pretty jammed up with notices. I am trying to keep them on the Retrovirus Lab page, not on my regular Facebook page, but they tend to go their first before I can get them off. Only leaving the really good ones up there.

Good ones like these folks below. Here is a song, just for the hell of it... Discovered them on my travels through the interwebs today...

Probably won't get to a picture today, either. So I threw one up at the top of this post and am calling it the Photo of the Day.

Meanwhile, everyone was home sick today. Everyone, but me, is feeling better now. Blah. Maybe that can be my excuse...

Cross posting this everywhere...

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Email from the Obama Campaign: Republicans' Kamikaze Political Strategy

But Senate Republicans want to block it. Not because they have a plan that creates jobs right now -- not one Republican, in Congress or in the presidential race, does. They only have a political plan.

Their strategy is to suffocate the economy for the sake of what they think will be a political victory. They think that the more folks see Washington taking no action to create jobs, the better their chances in the next election. So they're doing everything in their power to make sure nothing gets done.

The full email:

Friend --

The U.S. Senate is supposed to vote on the American Jobs Act as early as tonight.

It's a bill that will put people to work immediately, and it contains proposals that members of both parties have said in the past that they'd support.

But Senate Republicans want to block it. Not because they have a plan that creates jobs right now -- not one Republican, in Congress or in the presidential race, does. They only have a political plan.

Their strategy is to suffocate the economy for the sake of what they think will be a political victory. They think that the more folks see Washington taking no action to create jobs, the better their chances in the next election. So they're doing everything in their power to make sure nothing gets done.

There's still time for principled Republican senators to declare their independence from this kamikaze political strategy.

Senator Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader in the Senate, needs to hear what Americans like you think.

You can reach his office at (202) 224-2541. Tell him not to let politics get in the way of creating jobs.

Will you take three minutes and call now? Then click here to let us know how it went.

If Sen. McConnell's office says he won't support the American Jobs Act, ask which parts he doesn't support:

     -- Making sure that those who served our country can get good jobs at home by providing incentives for businesses to hire unemployed veterans?
     -- Preventing layoffs of teachers, cops, and firefighters, while supporting the hiring of tens of thousands more?
     -- Rebuilding our crumbling roads, bridges, railways, and airports with a bipartisan, public-private infrastructure bank?
     -- Modernizing at least 35,000 public schools in rural and urban areas?
     -- Providing job training for the unemployed, especially young people who have been hit especially hard?

The President has been forceful and clear: Action on jobs is desperately needed, and Congress should pass this bill right away.

And he has specifically asked those of us who agree to make sure Republican lawmakers know it.

This bill -- and the simple idea that every American who works hard and plays by the rules has a fundamental right to economic security -- is a big part of what we stand for as a campaign and as a movement.

There's no good reason for Congress to delay any more -- and if they do, you deserve to know why.

Call Sen. McConnell's office. Tell him you're watching, and you expect Republicans in the Senate to do the right thing and move forward on this bill today.

Then let us know how it went:

http://my.barackobama.com/Call-For-Jobs

Thanks,

Messina

Jim Messina
Campaign Manager
Obama for America

Does 'Occupy Wall Street' have leaders? Does it need any? - CSMonitor.com

Does 'Occupy Wall Street' have leaders? Does it need any? - CSMonitor.com:

But, say media and political pundits, efforts to locate the leader or leaders of this movement begs the ever more pressing questions: Does it have any? If it doesn’t will it fizzle? Who speaks for these vocal masses and do they have a unified voice? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the leaderless approach? What does “leadership” even mean in the social media era?

'via Blog this'

Monday, October 10, 2011

Jesse LaGreca, Occupy Wall Street Protester, On 'This Week': Media Has Failed Working Class People (VIDEO)

Jesse LaGreca, Occupy Wall Street Protester, On 'This Week': Media Has Failed Working Class People (VIDEO):

"I mean, the reality is that I’m the only working class person you’re going to see on Sunday new -- political news -- maybe ever," he said. "And I think that is very indicative of the failures of our media to report on the news that matter most importantly."

Amanpour let out a shocked laugh at LaGreca's assertion that he would be the only working class person to ever appear on a Sunday news show. She smiled and said, "We are trying our best, Jesse" before quickly steering the conversation back to the specific demands of the movement.

'via Blog this'

Occupy Together - Panic of the Plutocrats - NYTimes.com

Excerpts below, definitely worth a full read...

Panic of the Plutocrats - NYTimes.com:
Consider first how Republican politicians have portrayed the modest-sized if growing demonstrations, which have involved some confrontations with the police — confrontations that seem to have involved a lot of police overreaction — but nothing one could call a riot. And there has in fact been nothing so far to match the behavior of Tea Party crowds in the summer of 2009.

...

The way to understand all of this is to realize that it’s part of a broader syndrome, in which wealthy Americans who benefit hugely from a system rigged in their favor react with hysteria to anyone who points out just how rigged the system is.

...

They denounced Mr. Obama as being almost a socialist for endorsing the so-called Volcker rule, which would simply prohibit banks backed by federal guarantees from engaging in risky speculation. And as for their reaction to proposals to close a loophole that lets some of them pay remarkably low taxes — well, Stephen Schwarzman, chairman of the Blackstone Group, compared it to Hitler’s invasion of Poland.

...

...Ms. Warren making an eloquent, down-to-earth case for taxes on the rich went viral. Nothing about what she said was radical — it was no more than a modern riff on Oliver Wendell Holmes’s famous dictum that “Taxes are what we pay for civilized society.”

But listening to the reliable defenders of the wealthy, you’d think that Ms. Warren was the second coming of Leon Trotsky....

...

The answer, surely, is that Wall Street’s Masters of the Universe realize, deep down, how morally indefensible their position is. They’re not John Galt; they’re not even Steve Jobs. They’re people who got rich by peddling complex financial schemes that, far from delivering clear benefits to the American people, helped push us into a crisis whose aftereffects continue to blight the lives of tens of millions of their fellow citizens.

Yet they have paid no price.

'via Blog this'

Huntsman outlines foreign policy views - AP

Just because I've decided to web log everything I see on Huntsman...

Associated Press - The Washington Times, America's Newspaper:

Republican presidential contender Jon Huntsman says the United States cannot show its strength on the international stage when it is weak domestically.

The former diplomat and Utah governor on Monday told a New Hampshire audience that the United States needs to scale back its role in Afghanistan and to focus on rebuilding the U.S. economy. He is highlighting his foreign policy experience that, so far, hasn't been a deciding factor in the race.

The campaign has been dominated by domestic issues, especially jobs and the economy. Huntsman says a shifted U.S. foreign policy could help put Americans back to work.

...

In a speech planned for Monday in this early nominating state, he called for a scaled-back U.S. role in international engagements, such as Afghanistan, and called for spending cuts at the Pentagon.

"Simply put, we are risking American blood and treasure in parts of the world where our strategy needs to be rethought," Huntsman said in remarks prepared for delivery.

'via Blog this'

Poll: Half the country has heard about the Occupy Wall Street protests – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs

Poll: Half the country has heard about the Occupy Wall Street protests – CNN Political Ticker - CNN.com Blogs: "Roughly half of all Americans say they have heard of the Occupy Wall Street movement, and although most of the public doesn't have an opinion about the movement, positive views of it outweigh negative views among those who do, according to a new national survey."

'via Blog this'

SPIN METER: Obama disconnects rhetoric, reality - AP

The Edwardsville Intelligencer : AP General News:

Oct 10, 6:24 AM EDT

SPIN METER: Obama disconnects rhetoric, reality

By ERICA WERNER
Associated Press

The disconnect between what Obama says about his jobs bill and what stands as the political reality flow from his broader aim: to rally the public behind his cause and get Congress to act, or, if not, to pin blame on Republicans.

He is waging a campaign, one in which nuance and context and competing responses don't always fit in if they don't help make the case.

For example, when Obama says his jobs plan is made up of ideas that have historically had bipartisan support, he stops the point there. Not mentioned is that Republicans have never embraced the tax increases that he is proposing to cover the cost of his plan.

Likewise, from city to city, Obama is demanding that Congress act (he means Republicans) while it has been clear for weeks that the GOP will not support all of his bill, to say the least. Individual elements of it may well pass, such as Obama's proposal to extend and expand a payroll tax cut. But Republicans strongly oppose the president's proposed new spending and his plan to raise taxes on millionaires to pay for the package.

The fight over the legislative proposal has become something much bigger: a critical test of the president's powers of persuading the public heading into the 2012 presidential campaign, and of Republicans' ability to deny him a win and reap victory for themselves.

"He knows it's not going to pass. He's betting that voters won't pick up on it, or even if they do they will blame Congress and he can run against the `do-nothing Congress,'" said Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, a senior fellow at the University of Southern California's School of Policy, Planning and Development.

'via Blog this'

Freaks and, uh, more freaks... Republicans in 2012

A few excerpts below, but this one is really worth a read. Don't know if it makes me laugh or cry or both. One of the worst pitfalls of modern American politics is the pervading feeling among the majority of voters that we are left choosing between the lesser of two evils. Unless a miracle happens, 2012 will be no different for most voters.

While I have yet, in my voting life, to actually pull the elephant lever for President, I always root for them to have a serious, competent candidate for the job. I would argue this happened in 1992 (in hind sight), 1996, and (questionably) in 2008. While this current freak show of a Republican field might be "good" for the Democrats a year from now, it is BAD for our country.

And, make no mistake, my money says that Herman Cain will get the nomination before Romney. The primary voters will vote black before Mormon. That is the dirty little not-so-secret secret of the 2012 election so far. And if he does get the nomination, expect many on the wacko right to stay home in November.

Who knows, maybe Huntsman can pull it together? I do not know too much about him yet, but he seems the least vile of the bunch. Romney wasn't too bad until his swerve to the far right, past the nicely trimmed lawns of Conservative Lane into the tall razor wire fences surrounding the armed compounds in Crazy Town. Unfortunately, Huntsman also suffers from Romney's small L.D.S. problem.

Blah...

The GOP's sad, intolerant 2012 field - Yahoo! News: "At the weekend's Values Voters Summit, Republican presidential candidates and conservative kingmakers proved that bigotry is among their chief values

There's a good reason for the otherwise inexplicable reality that in most surveys President Obama, despite his currently desiccated job approval ratings, leads all but one of his Republican rivals — and even against him, the president nonetheless runs neck and neck.

And there's a deeper reason, beyond the inchoate, predictable, and perennial yearning to find an alternative, why so many of the GOP's smartest strategists and most prodigious fundraisers fought so hard to broaden their field of candidates. They sought someone else, anyone both serious and authentic — from Indiana's diminutive but economically literate Gov. Mitch Daniels, who once committed the conservative capital offense of contemplating a tax increase, to New Jersey's blunt, at times bullying, and comprehensively heavyweight Gov. Chris Christie, who believes in the heresy of global warming.

What's unfolding in the Republican arena is not a campaign but a spectacle that repels mainstream voters and rejects or infects mainstream conservative candidates.

...

Huntsman, as Tish Durkin argued, has qualities that ought to recommend him — among them, that: "He's not Romney... He's not crazy... He's not swearing on a stack of Bibles." Yet these very qualities are disqualifying in today's Republican Party. Huntsman doesn't want, or can't get, a séance with Donald Trump, who's become the grinning Joker of today's GOP. And Huntsman won't get a second look or a second chance — not this time around.

Instead the party marches to the tin drums of ideological extremism and angry fantasy, while its stiff and fragile frontrunner compliantly frog-marches to the right. Mitt Romney isn't setting the pace; he's trying to do just enough to placate a party where crazy now flourishes in many forms."

...

There's persistent resistance to Romney — on the shameful ground of religious bigotry and on the defensible ground of doubts about his sincerity, his personality, and his principles. The result: The extremism and pratfalls of his opponents, which should benefit the Mitt-man by making him seem relatively sensible and reasonable, have generated a miasma that's enveloping the Romney campaign. Not only has he toed a bright right line on social issues; he's adopted the GOP habit of fact-free argument — almost certainly the easy reaction of someone who's already treated his public life as record-free.

...

Even in an economy where the congressional GOP has intentionally and successfully stalled jobs and growth, the party's nominee may prove to be as vulnerable as the Christie-imploring Republicans calculated. It's clear that the president won't let 2012 be cast as a referendum; he's now setting out the basic choice: Who's on your side? Romney will call this class warfare, but people are coming to understand that we've already had a decade of class warfare — against the middle-class. That's what Occupy Wall Street is all about. And that's why Barack Obama should and will go the next step — and week after week, month after month, challenge Wall Street and vested interests across the board.

Mitt Romney will be ill-prepared for this contest. He will enter the general election burdened by the craziness to which he's had to kowtow. The primaries are also stripping away the strands of his already threadbare character. And they're leaving him on the wrong side of the great dividing line of 2012 — for the privileged, not ordinary people."

'via Blog this'

Updated because Pelosi made a good point... Nancy Pelosi & Democrats Seek to Own 'Occupy Wall Street' Movement

Not quite sure that "help" from Congressional Democrats is really what anyone needs...

Democrats Seek to Own 'Occupy Wall Street' Movement - Yahoo! News: "Occupation can lead to ownership, whether or not you want it.

The spread of the "Occupy Wall Street" movement was met with initial hesitation in both the Democratic and Republican parties. That might be an appropriate response to any protests that aim themselves squarely at the establishment, particularly those with goals that are diverse and diffuse as the current protesters' are.

But a consensus is emerging among Democrats that the "Occupy" movement is worth tapping into, even helping along and joining with in some instances.

"I support the message to the establishment," House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said on ABC's "This Week.""

'via Blog this'

UPDATE:

This is cool...

Daily Kos: Nancy Pelosi smacks Eric Cantor over Occupy Wall Street: "House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is concerned about what he calls the "growing mobs" of Occupy Wall Street protesters. In response, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi quips that Cantor didn't seem to mind when tea party protesters were literally spitting on members of Congress:" 'via Blog this'

Sunday, October 09, 2011

Occupy Portland: October 6, 2011 - Rally

Amen! "I bet we could go explore the galaxy if..."

Rick Santorum Fantasizes About Gay Soldiers Who 'Shower With People'

Normally I don't like cheap shots, but with Rick... Man, this guy is a piece of work. To take a slightly higher road, I will allow that the young, hot, fit, wet, naked, and soapy soldiers that Rick Santorum is picturing in the showers may be female soldiers rather than male soldiers, but, really, whatever...

Considering the second excerpt from this piece, I felt it necessary to post the Google search of his name from this morning. Yep. I did it. I went there. So much for the high road.

Rick Santorum Bemoans Gay Soldiers Who 'Shower With People':
"Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum doubled down on his recent comments opposing allowing gay soldiers to serve in the U.S. military, invoking the image of soldiers showering together to explain his support for reinstating the discriminatory "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

...

Wallace then presented a quote from a former military official to Santorum and asked whether he agreed with its basic idea: "The army is not a sociological laboratory. ... Experiments ... are a danger to efficiency, discipline and morale and would result in ultimate defeat."

Santorum, looking uncomfortable, said that he did agree with the general idea of the statement. Wallace then revealed that the quote was from Colonel E.R. Householder, a World War II-era official whose comments were made in opposition to the racial integration of the military."

'via Blog this'

Just checking the old Google Search...