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December 29, 2005
Wednesday, January 26, 2005
Wednesday's Links
Activism
If you've been following the debacle known as the "Condi Rice Confirmation," you know that everyone seems convinced that it's going to happen. Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (with the exception of Boxer and Kerry) voiced concerns over Rice, but admitted they would vote to confirm her anyway (and did). This is appalling to us! Are you there to serve the people, or your own interests? Isn't it much more telling if the Senate FRC votes 10-8 to confirm her? Doesn't that send a stronger message to Congress, who will now vote, instead of the 16-2 that was? We urge you to call your Senators and Congresspersons and demand that they vote no on Rice. Be polite, courteous and intelligent, but get your point across. If you're feeling overly active, you should contact Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), and thank her for asking all the right questions to Rice.
News
T-Minus Four Days. It has been twenty months since Saddam Hussein was in power, yet you wouldn't know it from reading this article. Iraqi police, jailers, and intelligence officers, many of whom held the same positions under Hussein, continue to torture Iraqi criminals and civilians. It is a sad, sorry state of affairs when private organizations and the media find this information out and release it to the public before the administration does. Is there any doubt as to why Iraqis are not at all hopeful about the election? Of course, we can't hold the Iraqis completely at fault here. Why, if our own investigations into torture at the hands of our own troops are woefully inadequate, how can we expect the Iraqis to do any better? "Do as I say, not as I do" doesn't quite work. In fact, Colin Powell was recently asked by Bush how he felt the war was going, and Powell replied, "We're losing," reflecting the accurate, if bleak, view of the outgoing Secretary of State. Bush then asked Powell to leave the room. So maybe Bush's message is simply, "Do as I say," which certainly dovetails with his reckless abandon of American values and responsibilities. For example, as you can see, the war is costing us an almost unfathomable amount of money, which doesn't seam to bother the administration one bit, because they'll just cut the budget from areas that won't affect the elite.
It is interesting to note that the 9-11 Commission came up with the idea of an "Intelligence Czar," to oversee all federal intelligence organizations. We applauded this plan then, even though we have no faith in this administration to do it intelligently. Now comes a report by congressional investigators in the GAO showing that the information-sharing process among all levels of government and the private sector is threatening homeland security. We're really at a loss to understand why something so initially embraced by and so vitally important to America is playing the part of the red-headed stepchild of the government.
Raise Your Hand If You're Shocked. Congressional budget estimates now show that the budget deficit will reach an all time high $427 billion this year, which includes another $80 billion Bush is planning to ask for to help with Iraq. To put that number in perspective, if you took the deficit amount, and divided it up equally among every human on the planet, they would each receive $66. White House officials were quick to point out that they were still on track to keep Bush's campaign promise of cutting the deficit in half by 2009; a meaningless promise since Bush alone caused this deficit (anyone else remember our surplus?), and the "half" number is based on a fictitious estimate, and not the real deficit. And if he doesn't cut the deficit in half, why should he care? He's not up for re-election, and it's highly doubtful that Cheney will consider a bid for president. This is just an awful, ugly situation that might be slightly alleviated by Bush raising taxes to help defer the costs of war. We said on Monday, and we'll say it again today: There is a reason that the deficit is rising, and Bush is the only wartime president to not raise taxes.
Editorials
Howard Dean's Weekly Address. This week Dean discusses what worked - really worked - in his campaign. By taking less control at the local level, he let his supporters"run with the ball," so to speak. Obviously, each city is different, and each requires a different way of approaching voters (or prospective voters). He admits he didn't invent grassroots, but he does say the most important innovation of his campaign was ceding power to the folks on the local level. It is precisely for ideas like this that we fully endorse Howard Dean for DNC chair. The status quo is certainly not working for Democrats. Let's turn the kids loose and see what they can do. They rose to the challenge for Dean.
No Comparison. At some level, many of us have a large amount of disdain for politicians. And can you blame us? They're often self-serving and power-hungry, only interested in perpetuating or increasing their power. This often leads to many Americans ignoring little manipulations and the detailed proceedings of the Senate and House, because it becomes so tedious or disheartening. So it's tempting, when you hear about ethics violations or egregious abuses by the Republicans in power, to just blow it off and say that's how it's always been done, and we're just upset because we're not longer the party in power. But Sam Rosenfeld outlines how there's really no comparison, and how the Republicans are taking their corruption to a whole new level. This is an important article to read if you want to understand why we must take back the Senate and the House.
The Greenspan Succession. We've been worrying a lot about the Supreme Court appointments Bush might make, but what about the Chairman of the Fed? Greenspan, while having becoming increasingly irresponsible, still has some credibility. He's due to retire next year, and then what? Will Bush appoint someone who will actually inspire confidence, or will he just find another yes-man to push the Administrations partisan and fiscally irresponsible agenda? Only time will tell...
|
December 29, 2005
Wednesday, January 26, 2005
Wednesday's Links
Activism
If you've been following the debacle known as the "Condi Rice Confirmation," you know that everyone seems convinced that it's going to happen. Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (with the exception of Boxer and Kerry) voiced concerns over Rice, but admitted they would vote to confirm her anyway (and did). This is appalling to us! Are you there to serve the people, or your own interests? Isn't it much more telling if the Senate FRC votes 10-8 to confirm her? Doesn't that send a stronger message to Congress, who will now vote, instead of the 16-2 that was? We urge you to call your Senators and Congresspersons and demand that they vote no on Rice. Be polite, courteous and intelligent, but get your point across. If you're feeling overly active, you should contact Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), and thank her for asking all the right questions to Rice.
News
T-Minus Four Days. It has been twenty months since Saddam Hussein was in power, yet you wouldn't know it from reading this article. Iraqi police, jailers, and intelligence officers, many of whom held the same positions under Hussein, continue to torture Iraqi criminals and civilians. It is a sad, sorry state of affairs when private organizations and the media find this information out and release it to the public before the administration does. Is there any doubt as to why Iraqis are not at all hopeful about the election? Of course, we can't hold the Iraqis completely at fault here. Why, if our own investigations into torture at the hands of our own troops are woefully inadequate, how can we expect the Iraqis to do any better? "Do as I say, not as I do" doesn't quite work. In fact, Colin Powell was recently asked by Bush how he felt the war was going, and Powell replied, "We're losing," reflecting the accurate, if bleak, view of the outgoing Secretary of State. Bush then asked Powell to leave the room. So maybe Bush's message is simply, "Do as I say," which certainly dovetails with his reckless abandon of American values and responsibilities. For example, as you can see, the war is costing us an almost unfathomable amount of money, which doesn't seam to bother the administration one bit, because they'll just cut the budget from areas that won't affect the elite.
It is interesting to note that the 9-11 Commission came up with the idea of an "Intelligence Czar," to oversee all federal intelligence organizations. We applauded this plan then, even though we have no faith in this administration to do it intelligently. Now comes a report by congressional investigators in the GAO showing that the information-sharing process among all levels of government and the private sector is threatening homeland security. We're really at a loss to understand why something so initially embraced by and so vitally important to America is playing the part of the red-headed stepchild of the government.
Raise Your Hand If You're Shocked. Congressional budget estimates now show that the budget deficit will reach an all time high $427 billion this year, which includes another $80 billion Bush is planning to ask for to help with Iraq. To put that number in perspective, if you took the deficit amount, and divided it up equally among every human on the planet, they would each receive $66. White House officials were quick to point out that they were still on track to keep Bush's campaign promise of cutting the deficit in half by 2009; a meaningless promise since Bush alone caused this deficit (anyone else remember our surplus?), and the "half" number is based on a fictitious estimate, and not the real deficit. And if he doesn't cut the deficit in half, why should he care? He's not up for re-election, and it's highly doubtful that Cheney will consider a bid for president. This is just an awful, ugly situation that might be slightly alleviated by Bush raising taxes to help defer the costs of war. We said on Monday, and we'll say it again today: There is a reason that the deficit is rising, and Bush is the only wartime president to not raise taxes.
Editorials
Howard Dean's Weekly Address. This week Dean discusses what worked - really worked - in his campaign. By taking less control at the local level, he let his supporters"run with the ball," so to speak. Obviously, each city is different, and each requires a different way of approaching voters (or prospective voters). He admits he didn't invent grassroots, but he does say the most important innovation of his campaign was ceding power to the folks on the local level. It is precisely for ideas like this that we fully endorse Howard Dean for DNC chair. The status quo is certainly not working for Democrats. Let's turn the kids loose and see what they can do. They rose to the challenge for Dean.
No Comparison. At some level, many of us have a large amount of disdain for politicians. And can you blame us? They're often self-serving and power-hungry, only interested in perpetuating or increasing their power. This often leads to many Americans ignoring little manipulations and the detailed proceedings of the Senate and House, because it becomes so tedious or disheartening. So it's tempting, when you hear about ethics violations or egregious abuses by the Republicans in power, to just blow it off and say that's how it's always been done, and we're just upset because we're not longer the party in power. But Sam Rosenfeld outlines how there's really no comparison, and how the Republicans are taking their corruption to a whole new level. This is an important article to read if you want to understand why we must take back the Senate and the House.
The Greenspan Succession. We've been worrying a lot about the Supreme Court appointments Bush might make, but what about the Chairman of the Fed? Greenspan, while having becoming increasingly irresponsible, still has some credibility. He's due to retire next year, and then what? Will Bush appoint someone who will actually inspire confidence, or will he just find another yes-man to push the Administrations partisan and fiscally irresponsible agenda? Only time will tell...
|
December 29, 2005
If you've been following the debacle known as the "Condi Rice Confirmation," you know that everyone seems convinced that it's going to happen. Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (with the exception of Boxer and Kerry) voiced concerns over Rice, but admitted they would vote to confirm her anyway (and did). This is appalling to us! Are you there to serve the people, or your own interests? Isn't it much more telling if the Senate FRC votes 10-8 to confirm her? Doesn't that send a stronger message to Congress, who will now vote, instead of the 16-2 that was? We urge you to call your Senators and Congresspersons and demand that they vote no on Rice. Be polite, courteous and intelligent, but get your point across. If you're feeling overly active, you should contact Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), and thank her for asking all the right questions to Rice.
News
T-Minus Four Days. It has been twenty months since Saddam Hussein was in power, yet you wouldn't know it from reading this article. Iraqi police, jailers, and intelligence officers, many of whom held the same positions under Hussein, continue to torture Iraqi criminals and civilians. It is a sad, sorry state of affairs when private organizations and the media find this information out and release it to the public before the administration does. Is there any doubt as to why Iraqis are not at all hopeful about the election? Of course, we can't hold the Iraqis completely at fault here. Why, if our own investigations into torture at the hands of our own troops are woefully inadequate, how can we expect the Iraqis to do any better? "Do as I say, not as I do" doesn't quite work. In fact, Colin Powell was recently asked by Bush how he felt the war was going, and Powell replied, "We're losing," reflecting the accurate, if bleak, view of the outgoing Secretary of State. Bush then asked Powell to leave the room. So maybe Bush's message is simply, "Do as I say," which certainly dovetails with his reckless abandon of American values and responsibilities. For example, as you can see, the war is costing us an almost unfathomable amount of money, which doesn't seam to bother the administration one bit, because they'll just cut the budget from areas that won't affect the elite.
It is interesting to note that the 9-11 Commission came up with the idea of an "Intelligence Czar," to oversee all federal intelligence organizations. We applauded this plan then, even though we have no faith in this administration to do it intelligently. Now comes a report by congressional investigators in the GAO showing that the information-sharing process among all levels of government and the private sector is threatening homeland security. We're really at a loss to understand why something so initially embraced by and so vitally important to America is playing the part of the red-headed stepchild of the government.
Raise Your Hand If You're Shocked. Congressional budget estimates now show that the budget deficit will reach an all time high $427 billion this year, which includes another $80 billion Bush is planning to ask for to help with Iraq. To put that number in perspective, if you took the deficit amount, and divided it up equally among every human on the planet, they would each receive $66. White House officials were quick to point out that they were still on track to keep Bush's campaign promise of cutting the deficit in half by 2009; a meaningless promise since Bush alone caused this deficit (anyone else remember our surplus?), and the "half" number is based on a fictitious estimate, and not the real deficit. And if he doesn't cut the deficit in half, why should he care? He's not up for re-election, and it's highly doubtful that Cheney will consider a bid for president. This is just an awful, ugly situation that might be slightly alleviated by Bush raising taxes to help defer the costs of war. We said on Monday, and we'll say it again today: There is a reason that the deficit is rising, and Bush is the only wartime president to not raise taxes.
Editorials
Howard Dean's Weekly Address. This week Dean discusses what worked - really worked - in his campaign. By taking less control at the local level, he let his supporters"run with the ball," so to speak. Obviously, each city is different, and each requires a different way of approaching voters (or prospective voters). He admits he didn't invent grassroots, but he does say the most important innovation of his campaign was ceding power to the folks on the local level. It is precisely for ideas like this that we fully endorse Howard Dean for DNC chair. The status quo is certainly not working for Democrats. Let's turn the kids loose and see what they can do. They rose to the challenge for Dean.
No Comparison. At some level, many of us have a large amount of disdain for politicians. And can you blame us? They're often self-serving and power-hungry, only interested in perpetuating or increasing their power. This often leads to many Americans ignoring little manipulations and the detailed proceedings of the Senate and House, because it becomes so tedious or disheartening. So it's tempting, when you hear about ethics violations or egregious abuses by the Republicans in power, to just blow it off and say that's how it's always been done, and we're just upset because we're not longer the party in power. But Sam Rosenfeld outlines how there's really no comparison, and how the Republicans are taking their corruption to a whole new level. This is an important article to read if you want to understand why we must take back the Senate and the House.
The Greenspan Succession. We've been worrying a lot about the Supreme Court appointments Bush might make, but what about the Chairman of the Fed? Greenspan, while having becoming increasingly irresponsible, still has some credibility. He's due to retire next year, and then what? Will Bush appoint someone who will actually inspire confidence, or will he just find another yes-man to push the Administrations partisan and fiscally irresponsible agenda? Only time will tell...
