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December 29, 2005
Sunday, May 15, 2005
Sunday's Links
Activism
How do you feel about Kraft? Not the foods, necessarily, like Jello, Gevalia and Oreos. The company itself? We ask because Kraft is sponsoring next year's Gay Games, being held in Chicago. We're pretty impressed that, in this day and age, Kraft would attach themselves to something so politically controversial. Apparently, so is the American Family Association (AFA), who is asking people to write to Kraft and object to their sponsorship. Well, to that, we say Nay Nay! BlogACTIVE has the link here for you to send a quick note to Kraft and thank them for their support. If we're loud enough, well, we don't expect AFA to go away, but we can make their ridiculous protest moot.
News
Operation Matador. A week-long strike in Iraq ended on Saturday, designed to flush out the insurgency. Along with 9 dead and 40 wounded Marines, over 125 insurgents were killed and 39 captured. Was there ever even a thought to diplomacy? Had there been any sort of negotiations attempted with the insurgents? No, there hadn't. Bush's hard-line stance won't allow for it, and that's just sad. When the families of a Marine squad that was completely decimated wonder why their sons and daughters had to die, they have no further to look than Bush.
Here Comes the Confrontation. The bad news is that Democrats made an offer to confirm only four of the judges currently being disputed. The good news is that Republicans rejected the offer. We're still incensed that Frist thinks that the filibuster should be ruled null and void for judicial nominees, when Republicans were so insistent on using both the filibuster and "holds" during Clinton's presidency. It appears that Republicans have a very short term memory, though. We'd love to see the vote to ban the filibuster happen, if only so that Reid's nine bills will get the attention that they deserve. At this point, though, there are seven Republican Senators "on the fence" regarding a vote against the filibuster.
When In Doubt, Push Harder. Loyalty is usually inspired. You want to follow someone because you respect their decisions, or because you believe in them. The Bush administration doesn't really inspire such loyalty, and as a result, moderate Republicans like George Voinovich receive calls from Bush, Rove, Andrew Card and others when big issues are at stake (like last week's Bolton nomination). Moderate Republicans are feeling the "squeeze" to be held to the party line, when not all feel that way. For example, three moderates have indicated that they will not vote to remove the filibuster. Gosh, Republicans voting their conscience - who would have thought it?
Editorials
Fraying Free-Trade Coalition. We haven't written a lot about CAFTA (the Central American Free Trade Agreement), because we're not sure where it's headed. As EJ Dionne, Jr., writes, NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement) worked so well because it showed bipartisanship at it's finest - Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich doing something for the betterment of America. But although CAFTA appears to be cut from the same cloth, don't let the name deceive you. Democratic Moderates have pledged to not vote for CAFTA, because of weak protection of American workers. It also does little to change labor conditions in an area beset by low wages, child labor and suppression of unions. In fact, CAFTA is so badly written that Harry Reid has said "I don't like Cafta; I am not going to vote for it; and I will do whatever I can to kill it." Unless Bush does something to ensure American interests will be met, he has no hope of passing CAFTA.
Hillaryphobia. Bull Moose reminds us that we are still quite a ways away from looking at a 2008 presidential nominee, even though many are bemoaning a possible Hillary Clinton run. Although we are still leery of Hillary on the Democratic ticket, Moose makes some good points. Conservatives are scared of Hillary. Bill wouldn't be a liability. And really, anyone who runs on the Democratic ticket will be so scrutinized and broken apart that if "Jesus of Nazareth himself returned and dared to run on the Democratic line the righteous right would tar him as a bleeding heart vagabond who couldn't hold a job and that he needed a shave." Moose isn't really in favor of Hillary running; he just wants to make it clear that it is, in fact, entirely too soon to throw out candidates, and we find that we agree with him.
A Deficit of Seriousness. Why is no one trying to balance the budget? Robert J. Samuelson writes that it's now become "simply too much trouble" to try. And although we'd like to plant the blame squarely on the shoulders of Bush's free-spending reign, we can't assign all of it to him. Democrats, although in the minority, have voted for Bush's tax cuts. They haven't offered any sort of balanced budget. Since no one wants to upset their constituents, programs like farm subsidies and Amtrak continue to be funded, even though the country would get along just fine without them. When legislators put the needs of their constituents over the needs of the country, everyone suffers. The only way we're going to reduce the deficit is to cut funding from programs and raise taxes, and no legislator who wants to get re-elected will propose that.
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December 29, 2005
Sunday, May 15, 2005
Sunday's Links
Activism
How do you feel about Kraft? Not the foods, necessarily, like Jello, Gevalia and Oreos. The company itself? We ask because Kraft is sponsoring next year's Gay Games, being held in Chicago. We're pretty impressed that, in this day and age, Kraft would attach themselves to something so politically controversial. Apparently, so is the American Family Association (AFA), who is asking people to write to Kraft and object to their sponsorship. Well, to that, we say Nay Nay! BlogACTIVE has the link here for you to send a quick note to Kraft and thank them for their support. If we're loud enough, well, we don't expect AFA to go away, but we can make their ridiculous protest moot.
News
Operation Matador. A week-long strike in Iraq ended on Saturday, designed to flush out the insurgency. Along with 9 dead and 40 wounded Marines, over 125 insurgents were killed and 39 captured. Was there ever even a thought to diplomacy? Had there been any sort of negotiations attempted with the insurgents? No, there hadn't. Bush's hard-line stance won't allow for it, and that's just sad. When the families of a Marine squad that was completely decimated wonder why their sons and daughters had to die, they have no further to look than Bush.
Here Comes the Confrontation. The bad news is that Democrats made an offer to confirm only four of the judges currently being disputed. The good news is that Republicans rejected the offer. We're still incensed that Frist thinks that the filibuster should be ruled null and void for judicial nominees, when Republicans were so insistent on using both the filibuster and "holds" during Clinton's presidency. It appears that Republicans have a very short term memory, though. We'd love to see the vote to ban the filibuster happen, if only so that Reid's nine bills will get the attention that they deserve. At this point, though, there are seven Republican Senators "on the fence" regarding a vote against the filibuster.
When In Doubt, Push Harder. Loyalty is usually inspired. You want to follow someone because you respect their decisions, or because you believe in them. The Bush administration doesn't really inspire such loyalty, and as a result, moderate Republicans like George Voinovich receive calls from Bush, Rove, Andrew Card and others when big issues are at stake (like last week's Bolton nomination). Moderate Republicans are feeling the "squeeze" to be held to the party line, when not all feel that way. For example, three moderates have indicated that they will not vote to remove the filibuster. Gosh, Republicans voting their conscience - who would have thought it?
Editorials
Fraying Free-Trade Coalition. We haven't written a lot about CAFTA (the Central American Free Trade Agreement), because we're not sure where it's headed. As EJ Dionne, Jr., writes, NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement) worked so well because it showed bipartisanship at it's finest - Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich doing something for the betterment of America. But although CAFTA appears to be cut from the same cloth, don't let the name deceive you. Democratic Moderates have pledged to not vote for CAFTA, because of weak protection of American workers. It also does little to change labor conditions in an area beset by low wages, child labor and suppression of unions. In fact, CAFTA is so badly written that Harry Reid has said "I don't like Cafta; I am not going to vote for it; and I will do whatever I can to kill it." Unless Bush does something to ensure American interests will be met, he has no hope of passing CAFTA.
Hillaryphobia. Bull Moose reminds us that we are still quite a ways away from looking at a 2008 presidential nominee, even though many are bemoaning a possible Hillary Clinton run. Although we are still leery of Hillary on the Democratic ticket, Moose makes some good points. Conservatives are scared of Hillary. Bill wouldn't be a liability. And really, anyone who runs on the Democratic ticket will be so scrutinized and broken apart that if "Jesus of Nazareth himself returned and dared to run on the Democratic line the righteous right would tar him as a bleeding heart vagabond who couldn't hold a job and that he needed a shave." Moose isn't really in favor of Hillary running; he just wants to make it clear that it is, in fact, entirely too soon to throw out candidates, and we find that we agree with him.
A Deficit of Seriousness. Why is no one trying to balance the budget? Robert J. Samuelson writes that it's now become "simply too much trouble" to try. And although we'd like to plant the blame squarely on the shoulders of Bush's free-spending reign, we can't assign all of it to him. Democrats, although in the minority, have voted for Bush's tax cuts. They haven't offered any sort of balanced budget. Since no one wants to upset their constituents, programs like farm subsidies and Amtrak continue to be funded, even though the country would get along just fine without them. When legislators put the needs of their constituents over the needs of the country, everyone suffers. The only way we're going to reduce the deficit is to cut funding from programs and raise taxes, and no legislator who wants to get re-elected will propose that.
|
December 29, 2005
How do you feel about Kraft? Not the foods, necessarily, like Jello, Gevalia and Oreos. The company itself? We ask because Kraft is sponsoring next year's Gay Games, being held in Chicago. We're pretty impressed that, in this day and age, Kraft would attach themselves to something so politically controversial. Apparently, so is the American Family Association (AFA), who is asking people to write to Kraft and object to their sponsorship. Well, to that, we say Nay Nay! BlogACTIVE has the link here for you to send a quick note to Kraft and thank them for their support. If we're loud enough, well, we don't expect AFA to go away, but we can make their ridiculous protest moot.
News
Operation Matador. A week-long strike in Iraq ended on Saturday, designed to flush out the insurgency. Along with 9 dead and 40 wounded Marines, over 125 insurgents were killed and 39 captured. Was there ever even a thought to diplomacy? Had there been any sort of negotiations attempted with the insurgents? No, there hadn't. Bush's hard-line stance won't allow for it, and that's just sad. When the families of a Marine squad that was completely decimated wonder why their sons and daughters had to die, they have no further to look than Bush.
Here Comes the Confrontation. The bad news is that Democrats made an offer to confirm only four of the judges currently being disputed. The good news is that Republicans rejected the offer. We're still incensed that Frist thinks that the filibuster should be ruled null and void for judicial nominees, when Republicans were so insistent on using both the filibuster and "holds" during Clinton's presidency. It appears that Republicans have a very short term memory, though. We'd love to see the vote to ban the filibuster happen, if only so that Reid's nine bills will get the attention that they deserve. At this point, though, there are seven Republican Senators "on the fence" regarding a vote against the filibuster.
When In Doubt, Push Harder. Loyalty is usually inspired. You want to follow someone because you respect their decisions, or because you believe in them. The Bush administration doesn't really inspire such loyalty, and as a result, moderate Republicans like George Voinovich receive calls from Bush, Rove, Andrew Card and others when big issues are at stake (like last week's Bolton nomination). Moderate Republicans are feeling the "squeeze" to be held to the party line, when not all feel that way. For example, three moderates have indicated that they will not vote to remove the filibuster. Gosh, Republicans voting their conscience - who would have thought it?
Editorials
Fraying Free-Trade Coalition. We haven't written a lot about CAFTA (the Central American Free Trade Agreement), because we're not sure where it's headed. As EJ Dionne, Jr., writes, NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement) worked so well because it showed bipartisanship at it's finest - Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich doing something for the betterment of America. But although CAFTA appears to be cut from the same cloth, don't let the name deceive you. Democratic Moderates have pledged to not vote for CAFTA, because of weak protection of American workers. It also does little to change labor conditions in an area beset by low wages, child labor and suppression of unions. In fact, CAFTA is so badly written that Harry Reid has said "I don't like Cafta; I am not going to vote for it; and I will do whatever I can to kill it." Unless Bush does something to ensure American interests will be met, he has no hope of passing CAFTA.
Hillaryphobia. Bull Moose reminds us that we are still quite a ways away from looking at a 2008 presidential nominee, even though many are bemoaning a possible Hillary Clinton run. Although we are still leery of Hillary on the Democratic ticket, Moose makes some good points. Conservatives are scared of Hillary. Bill wouldn't be a liability. And really, anyone who runs on the Democratic ticket will be so scrutinized and broken apart that if "Jesus of Nazareth himself returned and dared to run on the Democratic line the righteous right would tar him as a bleeding heart vagabond who couldn't hold a job and that he needed a shave." Moose isn't really in favor of Hillary running; he just wants to make it clear that it is, in fact, entirely too soon to throw out candidates, and we find that we agree with him.
A Deficit of Seriousness. Why is no one trying to balance the budget? Robert J. Samuelson writes that it's now become "simply too much trouble" to try. And although we'd like to plant the blame squarely on the shoulders of Bush's free-spending reign, we can't assign all of it to him. Democrats, although in the minority, have voted for Bush's tax cuts. They haven't offered any sort of balanced budget. Since no one wants to upset their constituents, programs like farm subsidies and Amtrak continue to be funded, even though the country would get along just fine without them. When legislators put the needs of their constituents over the needs of the country, everyone suffers. The only way we're going to reduce the deficit is to cut funding from programs and raise taxes, and no legislator who wants to get re-elected will propose that.
