An Unemployed Democrat's Random Musings

Don't you love long periods of inactivity?

2006-07-07T03:32:00.000-04:00

So this blog is going to take on a more personal side of my life for the next few months (who am I kidding, until I feel like stopping again...)

I'm in Hawaii for three months. Awesome, right? Absolutely. I'm here working on yet another campaign, fighting for the good of the country and the world. Or at least to make some money and keep moving up in my field while in one of the most beautiful places in the world. Honestly, it's a mixture of both, because it wasn't even my choice to come out here believe it or not. Just was kinda told. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm happy I'm here over Missouri, which is where I expected to go. Honolulu has a few things that are better than Missouri, although BBQ food is not one. But pretty much everything else...

The climate out here is amazing. It's between 70 and 85 degrees every day, sunny, and hardly any rain...who'da guessed, right? The beaches are beautiful, and I say that having only been to the west end of Waikiki (not the Miracle Mile part) and no other beaches so far. I've been told some of the others are way nicer, and less touristy, so I hope to make it to some of them at some point. If work is not terribly busy, I plan to make some trips around to other beaches, on Oahu at least.

I haven't really explored around much on my own yet. Today I took a trip over to the gym to see about signing up but didn't pull the trigger. I really would like this trip to be an awesome excuse for me to get into shape again (I trained for a marathon in CA while on the campaign last year...) It just seems like I fall into a rut when I'm in DC, and never feel like working out. That is going to change when I get back, because I'm actually planning on being in DC for longer than a few months at a time when I get back come November. But for the meantime, I am going to try to get in a bunch of runs out here, and I still want to sign up for a gym, but when I went in, it just reminded me of why I hate gyms in general: 1) who wants to work out indoors, and 2) all those meathead douche bags I hate populating the place. I'm not a fucking tiny wimp, but honestly, I hate those guys. I don't match up to them physically, and even though it really doesn't bother me that much that my muscles aren't the size of my head, I hate the guys in there that think they are awesome.

Anyway

The only thing I am certainly going to have to fight off out here is a bit of loneliness. There are a few people I'm going to be working with that I'm sure I'll be able to eat some meals and speak to out of the normal work paradigm, but that only goes so far. I plan on meeting people out at bars and restaurants, like I have done in the past, but I am still not sure how effective that'll be...I don't always make a great first impression, and it's tough to shake those...so we will see how that goes. I do know one or two friend of friends out here, so I hope I'll be able to hang out with them..but again, who knows! I guess that's the theme really. But that's also why this whole thing is exciting, as it has been for me in the past. I do know I don't want to do this forever. It's so hard to create any semblance of a normal life in one spot when you are constantly travelling for long periods of time to other areas. I have the luxury of not having anything tying me down at the moment, but I don't want it to always be that way. I want to have a home that I can get used to...but that's in the future. Ha. For now, I'm hoping to enjoy Hawaii.

I still haven't gone out here yet! I've been pretty tired at night, having woken up between 6:30 and 7:30 for workouts or work-related stuff since I got here. I think another thing is that I'm also still getting used to the crazy time difference. I mean, it's 9:30 right now, not 3:30 like I keep feeling like it is. What that means is that when I'm done with work I feel like it's time to go to sleep. It's weird though, when I went to Europe I didn't have a time adjustment period like this; at least I don't think so. I'm definitely going to hit up some Waikiki area bars this weekend on the beach. Should be a good time.

Word

2006-03-13T16:02:00.000-05:00

What made me start this thing up again, you might ask? Here's a great reason - A Bush Alarm.

I love that Bush is suddenly the global maverick of the government. His pushes for globalization in the past year are laughable at best, and easily an utter joke and insult to not only the international community he's snubbed his nose at, but more importantly, Americans.

To his critics, the internationalist approach is too little too late — the price Mr. Bush has paid for a foreign policy that seemed relentlessly focused on building defensive walls and hunting enemies. A search of the White House Web site confirms that Mr. Bush, who in the days before he took office kept the take-no-prisoners speeches of Teddy Roosevelt on a table at his ranch, made little mention of "globalization" for much of his first five years in office, even when European leaders brought it up.

Asked once, several years ago, about his aversion to the topic, one of his senior aides said Mr. Bush associated the word with "mushy Clintonianism."

This is the man who has refused to sign onto the International Criminal Court, refused to accept tighter standards on greenhouse gases, and worked at building ad-hoc coalitions in his self-created war on terror. This president now expects us to believe that we should be insulted for questioning his ports deal, a deal that would allow a country that previously allowed terrorists to roam, to manage US ports? Someone who's illegally spied on Americans? Fuck...!

"The administration has, now, to cope with failure," William F. Buckley Jr. wrote in February. "The kernel here is the acknowledgment of defeat."

Briefing reporters on Friday about Mr. Bush's coming speeches, a senior White House official, speaking anonymously because he was describing speeches still being drafted, said Mr. Bush would answer those criticisms and "explain why we and the Iraqis must finish the job together." A year ago, Mr. Bush's allies took such statements as a given. Today, that is no longer the case.

Can't wait.

Out of the darkness

2006-03-13T15:59:00.000-05:00

Along with the rebirth that is occurring today - this being the day of 80 degree weather in early March, I feel it is my responsibility to rebirth, reinaugurate, reinvent, replenish, restore, my blog. I know you have all missed it dearly, and in response to those requests to start things up again, I acquiesce. Here we are.

Condi

2005-12-06T17:01:00.000-05:00

"Democracies are going to debate these things," she said. "But they need to debate them not just on one side of the issue - that is, how the actual activities are being carried out." They should also consider, "are we doing everything we can to protect innocent lives?"
-Condi Rice (quoted by the New York Times)

She says this at the cost of the rights of the people. Since when do natural inalienable rights stop at the border of the United States? What makes people outside our country less than us to the point we can destroy their god given privileges? We can take away one persons freedom, one that we try to impose our own ideals of freedom upon, to protect an “innocent” other’s free will. The only thing endangering the innocent’s liberty is that of a government willing to take away the rights and due process of one to “protect” another (particularly while obliterating international ally relations).

How many slippery slopes have we claimed to be destroying us? And this is the one we are all ready to fly down into a pile of shit, head first.

These people are locked away without trial, charged with speculative evidence, and kept without inspection for their safety. If these actions were performed by any other country, and that country had a substantial amount of oil, the United States would have invaded before the economy fell down the icy decline of American Business Corruption (ABC).

Journalism and a rare Article

2005-11-12T04:21:00.000-05:00

For the first time in George W. Bush’s presidential history people are not taking his words as dogma. On the front page of a newspaper nouns, verbs, phrases, and the occasional ‘evil’ adjective (we won’t give him credit for using adverbs and other literary devices) which were uttered by the President, were then unusually examined for credibility. Well wouldn't you know, candor was lacking from his speech.

Imagine a thing like investigative journalism, doing research, and not taking things at face value, the possibilities it can uncover are incredible (just ask G. Gordon Libby and his buddies). The article I attached is an example of this kind of reporting, and it demonstrates the necessary utility media provides. However, this needs to be administered in everyday practices; our general new-information and communication providers must use it more than when it is accommodating. The President is now no longer popular, and with this the news feels it can write pieces questioning his credibility. This is true, but they also had the responsibility to query into his credibility before he was unpopular, and put it on the front page when his candor was called into question. While this piece is a work of decent reporting it comes from one of the few rags that occasionally does a good job, therefore it is a halfhearted surprise the Post delivered something with integrity. Nonetheless, as a whole, I am sure Nellie Bly is rolling over in her grave at what has become journalism and its investigative nature.

So now that you have read my monotonous and mind-dumbing rambling, look at the article and see your Presidents.

click here

standstill

2005-10-06T17:58:00.000-04:00

so apparently it pretty much never rains out here. it thunderstormed the day after i got out here, the 20th of september, and hasn't rained since. sometimes it can go many months without rain. i suppose that's what allows for this area to be a breeding ground for these major fires that have been burning of late. the santa ana winds blow through the valley and cause minor fires to spread like wild. just this morning, stepping out of my hotel, i was greeted with the pleasent, pungent aroma of burning.

the weather otherwise has been beautiful, if a bit too hot. today it reached the 90's again, and i believe it's supposed to tomorrow as well. unfortunately, i am told the temp is supposed to go down to the 70s all weekend, which is unfortunate, as i had hoped to maybe visit one of the beaches in nearby orange county. if it is warm enough, i may do so, or just head into la again. i've been into la twice, and been caught in several traffic jams resulting from unexplainable causes. the traffic in southern california is mind-boggling. nowhere else that i've been to does it seem like people almost enjoy the traffic, and expect it as a rite of passage, no matter where or when they are going. people in nyc will honk the time away, but here in cali, people will just idle quietly. maybe it's because they know that the weather in whatever locale they are visiting is more than likely 80 and sunny, whereas in nyc, you have just as good of a chance to be caught in a rain or snowstorm as for there to be a glimpse of the sun. however, i still am curious as to the causes of most of these traffic jams. i understand traffic resulting from road closures or traffic accidents. however, most of the time, the gridlock appears out of nowhere. it's just this over-abundance of cars, clogging up these five lane highways. the beltway springs to mind here, but even on the beltway, you can find times where the traffic volume is unlikely to cause standstill traffic in random locations. on the 10 (the major highway out here) it seems like pockets of traffic spring up without rhyme or reason, and then just as quickly dissolve. on saturday night, travelling from a friend's place in santa monica to the other side of la (near dodgers stadium), a ride that should have taken us 30 minutes took us over an hour. and it was 11PM!!

but the bar that we went to ended up being a good time. the place was decorated in a middle eastern theme, and it was called tangier. shots were 7$ apiece, so it felt just like DC...but there wer some dancing lesbians, so that made it all the better.

California

2005-09-29T12:44:00.000-04:00

After some thought over the posting I briefly had up yesterday, I've decided to not discuss work matters on this site until after the election that I'm working on. While I have no false opinions on the fact that this site gets about 2 views a day, I also know how easy it would be for someone to find it if they searched for things related to what I'm doing. So, as not to have anything blow up in my face, I'm going to be blogging to a non-live site on work matters until after November 8th, when the California special election ballot initiatives have been voted on. At that point, I'll be uploading all of my posts on this election, in diary form. Until then, I will be blogging, but on other matters...some of it may be indirectly related to the election, some not.

One thing that I cannot understate is the fact that I'm in California. For work. On an expense account. And it amazes and shocks me that anyone would allow this responsibility to fall to me, especially at the stage of my 'career' that I'm at. I don't know many other people my age that have been given such an awesome opportunity. Being out here is a great experience, and something that I will definitely look back on fondly, regardless of the turnout of the election. The people in this office, while I may not agree with them on professional matters, are good people. They all believe in some roundabout way on the issues that I feel strongly about. They just have different opinions on methods and effective uses of people's time.

Another interesting thing going on out here is the California wildfires, exacerbated by the Santa Ana winds. The Santa Ana winds gust up to 50 mph or so, and strike in the area I'm living. It's pretty crazy to have that large of a gust during an otherwise beautiful day. The weather's been at or close to 100 degrees for the past week, but the winds the past day or two have been up to 40 mph. The fires are just a few miles away, but there doesn't seem to be a fear that they will spread much. So far they've only destroyed one house and killed one firefighter, which seems to be a pretty good thing.

Other than that, work hasn't been too bad. We've finally opened up our phone banks, and hopefully volunteers will start to flow in. The people we are calling are much more receptive to us, especially when we relate to them by telling them we're union volunteers. Yesterday, we identified 315 favorable voters, and only 8 unfavorables...so it's just going to be a matter of reaching out to these people again during GOTV...hopefully that will be enough to defeat this thing.

NYC Mayor reprised

2005-09-12T14:37:00.000-04:00

So, months ago I posted a few items on the NYC mayoral primary and how I was rooting for Anthony Weiner to become the Dems' choice to face Bloomberg. Looks like he's doing much better:

After weeks pounding the pavement, hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of campaign ads and a couple of strong debate performances, he has marched steadily up in public opinion polls. A Marist survey released yesterday shows him with a 30 percent share of likely Democratic voters, a statistical tie with Fernando Ferrer, who has consistently led most polls, giving Mr. Weiner his highest numbers yet in any poll.

The problem is that no one actually has any idea what will happen tomorrow in the primary. Who will show up? How many of them? From where? How many lower-income folks, minorities, upper-class, etc... Much depends on the GOTV operation, the paid media this past weekend, and other factors...I'll be keeping my eye on it though.

A retrospective...

2005-09-12T10:22:00.000-04:00

Just a quick post on a Time article that I found to be rather interesting:

But when it did, he did not immediately show that he sensed its magnitude. On the Monday that Hurricane Katrina landed and the Crescent City began drowning, Bush was joshing with Senator John McCain on the tarmac of an Air Force base in Arizona, posing with a melting birthday cake. Like a scene out of a Michael Moore mockumentary, he was heading into a long-planned Medicare round table at a local country club, joking that he had "spiced up" his entourage by bringing the First Lady, then noting to the audience that he had phoned Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff from Air Force One. "I said, 'Are you working with the Governor?'" Bush recounted. "He said, 'You bet we are.'" But the President was not talking about the killer storm. He was talking about immigration, and the Governor was Arizona's.

Hm... so the day a hurricane is hitting, the President is eating cake and talking about immigration with people at a country club. And we thought My Pet Goat was bad.

Katrina

2005-09-07T10:58:00.000-04:00

First on today's docket: Hurricane Katrina

Yup, it's the most talked about story of the day, with inumerable angles to take in analyzing it. Being the hack that I am, however, and since I've already written about the nature of the disaster from a human standpoint, I'll discuss the fact that this simply did not have to be as much of a humanitarian disaster as came to pass. From the fact that our president was on an unprecedented 5-week vacation away from DC, to the fact that FEMA didn't even begin to mobilize people to the afflicted area til 2 days after the disaster, to the fact that our president took three days to get back to DC after the disaster, the fronts on which to batter the government for ineptitude is endless.

I am choosing to not link to outside sources for this entry because, while much of these issues have been touched on, I want it to be clear that this is entirely a posting of my own opinions, not something that I feel I need authority to. That said, however, the media has done a pretty good job of attempting to get through the bullshit and find out who's been responsible for the multitude of errors in preparaton, rescue, and cleanup. Russert in particular did a good job grilling Chertoff on MTP Sunday, asking whether he would resign and not accepting Chertoff's bullshit responses.

Back from that tangent.
Breakdowns/Mismanagements:
1) LA state/NO local governments should have been more forceful in enforcing the evacuation once they realized how bad it was going to be.
2) People that had the ability to leave NO should have. By staying they not only harmed themselves, but they also took up time that first responders had to spend on their rescue. First responders could have been saving the poor, the indigent, that unfortunately had no other way out of town which brings me to my next point,
3) The federal government. What the fuck. How about sending in some...cruise ships, airplanes, buses, trains, fucking hot air balloons to help with the evacuation of the city. If we knew that there was going to be a major storm, why not make sure that these people got out. It's ok to invade these people's bedrooms through gay marriage bans but not to save their lives?.. And granted, we didn't know that this was going to be as bad as it was. Or even if we did, after the storm, it seemed like the brunt of the city was spared, BUT once it was quite evident that the levee was breaking, it still took too much mother-fucking time to get FEMA in there. What is the use of FEMA, and for that matter, DHS, if they are not going to be able to protect us from a natural disaster? With so much of the National Guard, troops who would foreseeably be helpful in a disaster like this, sent over to rebuild another country, what do we do about our own?

This is such a mess of biblical proportions, it makes one wonder what the use of the government is if not to protect its own people in times of a natural disaster. And with a President who is both oblivious ("I don't think anyone had an idea that the levee was going to break") and late to work, a FEMA leader who is utterly useless, and a head of the DHS who claims to be interested in saving lives but seems more worried about damage control, and a White House AGAIN looking to pass the buck (oh it was LA's fault), this is another headless horseman. Another instance where our government, FOR THE PEOPLE, is not being led by anyone with the proper capabilities. We are a country without anyone holding the reins, in a time where we need a leader more than ever. "There are problems that we will fix because we are problem solvers." That's useful rhetoric, Mr. President, but what the fuck do you plan on doing to fix the problem? Instead of utilizing first responders for purposes they are needed for, Mr. President, you are using them for PR purposes. You are having firemen come into Louisiana to 1) hand out flyers with FEMA's phone number on it, and 2) pose with you for a MOTHERFUCKING photo. Is this what Karl Rove had you do, sir? Instead of fixing the problem, you have to make sure it looks like youre in the middle of the action? Fuck you, Mr. President. It's a shame you weren't stuck in New Orleans on vacation. Then we would have seen how quickly you would have gotten your work together.

Here's the article about the first responders being sent into 'action.' It's quite interesting.

My Second attempt at a comeback

2005-09-07T10:26:00.000-04:00

Well fuck, it's been another month since I said I'd start back up, but here I am. Major developments in the last month include an increasingly likely chance of me being sent off to California for a while to work on the AFL-CIO's anti-Schwarzenegger ballot initiative campaign, a hurricane, and me signing up to run in a marathon.

Should I be sent out to California, I will most likely be in one of three San's: Diego, Bernardino, or Joaquin. Now I don't know too much about the latter two, but I am under the impression that Bernardino is just outside of the LA area, and being that I have a number of friends in LA, my preference lies there. San Diego would be awesome, no doubt, but there is already a sturdy infrastructure there, which would mean less responsibility for me. Should I be sent to one of the other two locations, chances are I would be in charge of an office, or at least something more significant than being a minor foot soldier. Complicating matters is the fact that I have not been given an okay to go yet, but things seem to be heading in the proper direction. Labor unions, as I've learned over the brief period I've worked for one, move slower than the slowest bureaucracies one might imagine. It's like walking in a quicksand pit. Perhaps it's just the setup of my, and some of the other, older unions, but it seems to me that there are more layers of caution tape than is imaginable. Things move so slowly from the top-down, it's a headache to get even the most minor of initiatives approved. I am amenable to power and working with the old boys' club, as it is, but sometimes there has to be a change in the machine, an adjustment to the cogs. Instead of having a legislative/political department without authority to develop their own legislative/political initiatives to further the purpose of the union, sometimes I think we are just here for the slightest possibility that we might be needed to oppose legislation from the White House. While this is understandable in the type of anti-labor government we are facing, at some point, one has to cease being solely re-active, and pro-actively work for their core beliefs while fighting against the anti-labor initiatives: in other words, a fight on multiple fronts. When a union has the type of talent in its legislative/political department that we do, doing anything less is a waste. IE, what we are doing now is essentially a waste. Am I grateful to have this job? Absolutely. Do I feel like I could be doing so much more in this position? Absolutely. I've been given a great responsibility of being in charge of a region of this country, but I could do much more with that responsibility if given the opportunity to enact some of my own initiatives or at least work towards them. I feel bottlenecked by the immovable structure of the union, the fear to fight our own battles and start some campaigns that don't relate to the singular issue that we are wokring on. Ahhhh well. Guess I wouldn't have as much time to work on important things, like blogging.

Next, the hurricane. I'm going to devote a full post to this later today, but at the moment, I have something to get off my chest. The hurricane's aftermath has been beyond the worst handling of a natural disaster by this country's government. If we were unable to protect our own people in a time of crisis, if we could not so much as bring in buses, planes, trains, cruise ships, and mother-fucking cars, to evacuate those people that would willingly leave their homes; those poor people without their own cars, without the means to afford a plane ticket out of town; we should not be sending a dime to another country to support their rebuilding process. Why in the fuck should we be rebuilding Iraq's infrastructures, and Afghanistan's infrastructure, when we cannot even protect our own nation's infrastrcuture; when we cannot protect our own indigent? Our own people are now commonly being referred to as mother-fucking refugees. In this, the supposed most advanced country in the world. I will save the political, partisan view of this for my later post, but initially, it seems prudent to view this as what it was: a disaster. On the natural level and at the governmental level.

Finally: I'm planning on running in a marathon. Yes, I know, shocking. I have never run competitively; in fact, I've shunned it. I never wanted to play soccer because I thought it was too much aimless running around. I guess as one grows, their views change. I am in need of motivation. I need to better myself both physically and mentally. Challenging myself mentally is sometimes difficult, due to a variety of reasons, but challenging myself physically is something I've hardly ever been able to accomplish. Simply because I typically quit if it gets to be too tough. The closest I've been to a properly trained physical specimen was during my freshman year of college, during which I rowed for the crew team. I managed to force myself out of bed at 4:45 in the morning, and run 3 miles down to the Gtown boathouse by 5:30, and then rowed for an hour or two, all before the sun even came up. Since then? I quit after one semester, for a variety of reasons, not all of which were of my own choosing...due to family circumstances and other issues, I was unsure of my ability to afford a club sport. Nevertheless, the very next year, my sophomore, I joined a fraternity. From that point on (and honestly, a bit before then), my social life improved at the cost of my physical one. Instead of working out, I'd lay about, watch tv, drink beers, or who the fuck knows what. Four years later, here I am. Oh sure, I've tried working out on my own; in South Dakota, Jason, Scott and I even joined the Rapid City YMCA; we worked out in the Travis Tritt gym for fuck's sake. And, since I've moved back down to DC, I've been on-again, off-again working out on my own; mainly off-again. I decided that it was time to motivate myself and figure out a way to get myself in shape. When the AIDS marathon came up, it sounded like a good idea. Basically, I've got to raise $2,700 for the Whittman-Walker clinic, all the while, training to run 26.2 miles. The irony? The marathon is supposed to be held on February 5, in New Orleans. As of now, that is still the set location, but I would not be the least bit surprised if it's moved within the next month. We've already been told that there is a possibility of us running in another alredy scheduled, undetermined marathon. However, I love the city of N'awlins, and will be sad if it's not held there. There are a million other things that have to happen in the city before ours comes up, but I certainly hope the city has regained at least some of it's old shape in the next few months, and we're able to go there. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem the least bit likely, but I'll hope, both for the residents of the great city, and for selfish reasons. I'll be getting a marathon packet soon, and probably have to start raising $$'s soon, so I'll certainly be posting information on here soon. If you do know me, I will likely be personally emailing or writing you, soliciting you for $$. Be assured that it's a good cause, because you'll be both helping people with AIDS and motivating me to lose some of this beer gut I've developed over the past 5 years. I'll even show it to you if you want to see before and after pictures.

Flickr

2005-08-05T13:27:00.000-04:00

Fuck...already breaking promises about the timeliness of my posts. I'm still not in the routine. But I did add one cool thing. On the left-hand side of the blog, under my profile/description, you'll see a photo-link to flickr, which I've recently created an account for. Go on in and check out my stuff, and comment on my pictures so I feel special. Do it.

Ok

2005-08-02T10:42:00.000-04:00

Okay, okay, I've heard the calls to action - "Mark, when are you going to start writing again?" "Mark, we miss your pervasive, inspiring, thought-provoking analysis" etc.

After 7 weeks of hard work (if you know me, we don't even have to make a joke of that), I am ready to start blogging again. Refreshed, renewed, re-inspired (highly unlikely), and interested in taking this silly thing in a different direction than before. I'd like to write on a frequent basis, but I'm tired about having no set topic(s) or style or theme to write on. Yes, politics/current events/anything I feel like is decent for the most part, but I'd like to become a bit more structured...and I haven't yet decided how to manage that one. So while I work on a topic sentence for what I want to write about, I'm going to post on random shit that I think about. Next up, at some point today (or tomorrow, if I get super busy....HA), I am going to attempt to identify a campaign theme for a Dem prez nominee (if only the election was 15 months away instead of like 40...)

Well, as a friend said, blogging is kinda in some weird way like working out (something else I've neglected to do for quite some time)...when you're not doing it, you just dont think about it, but once you get back into the swing of things, it's like you never left...hopefully I will worry about the exercise more than the blogging, but I need to exercise my mind a bit at work...for fuck's sake, it's the recess period anyway....August should be highly exciting.

weekend

2005-06-02T22:32:00.000-04:00

first business trip this weekend - taking off for the other washington to make a speech and some other business. should be a good time, and a good trip. back at work tuesday, and i will actually try to post some stuff next week. have a good weekend.

NIN

2005-05-30T12:21:00.000-04:00

A rare weekend update - it's sunny outside, I've been drunk for five straight days, and am going to the Nationals game today to celebrate and memorialize our fallen heroes. But I thought you'd all like to see what has got me so excited at the moment. I never realized just how much I liked Trent Reznor and NIN. I mean, sure, "I want to fuck you like an animal" is a great line, and they've had some other good, fucked up songs. But this is awesome.

Nine Inch Nails dropped out of the MTV Movie Awards after clashing with the network over an image of President Bush the band planned as a performance backdrop.

The Bush image was to accompany the song "The Hand That Feeds," which obliquely criticizes the Iraq war. It includes the lyrics: "What if this whole crusade's a charade / And behind it all there's a price to be paid / For the blood on which we dine / Justified in the name of the holy and the divine."

Good for Reznor to say fuck you to MTV. If they want to keep the show out of the political realm that's fine, but they shouldn't expect everyone to play along with their rules.

The Foo Fighters will perform in place of the Trent Reznor-led band at the awards being taped June 4 in Los Angeles.

What's funny about that is that the Foo's performed during the Vote for Change tour.

And showing just how big his balls are:

Reznor said in a statement posted on the band's Web site Thursday that the image of the president would have been unaltered and "straightforward."

"Apparently, the image of our president is as offensive to MTV as it is to me," he said.

If you're curious, here's the entirety of the offensive lyrics.

you're keeping in step
in the line
got your chin held high and you feel just fine
because you do
what you're told
but inside your heart it is black and it's hollow and it's cold

just how deep do you believe?
will you bite the hand that feeds?
will you chew until it bleeds?
can you get up off your knees?
are you brave enough to see?
do you want to change it?

what if this whole crusade's
a charade
and behind it all there's a price to be paid
for the blood
on which we dine
justified in the name of the holy and the divine

just how deep do you believe?
will you bite the hand that feeds?
will you chew until it bleeds?
can you get up off your knees?
are you brave enough to see?
do you want to change it?

so naive
to keep holding on to what I want to believe
i can see
but i keep holding on and on and on and on

will you bite the hand that feeds you?
will you stay down on your knees?

Good stuff.

Thune working against the Republican party?

2005-05-27T10:14:00.000-04:00

From the Argus Leader

Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said Thursday that he would vote against the nomination of John Bolton to be ambassador to the United Nations, hinting his vote is a protest against the Pentagon's recommendation to close Ellsworth Air Force Base.

But he did support his party on the vote that mattered most Thursday.

...

Thune said Thursday that saving Ellsworth is "inseparable from my work" in the Senate.

"It is part of the fabric of every day of our agenda and the things we are trying to accomplish here," Thune said Thursday. "It's something that has become a great preoccupation of mine now."

Asked whether his opposition to Bolton was because of his qualifications or the base-closing plan, Thune said dryly: "I'm concerned about our diplomatic posture as a nation, and I'm concerned about our defensive posture. These issues are not unrelated."

It's funny that he claims politics aren't involved in the base closure issue, yet he feels the need to get back at Bush politically -- if it had nothing to do with politics, why would he have to get back at Bush at all? Clearly those thousands of jobs that are being lost in SD due to a potential base closing weren't necessary, John. You fucking douchebag.

Harkin is awesome

2005-05-27T10:09:00.000-04:00

From the Globe Gazette

Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said Thursday that President George W. Bush's opposition to expanded federal support for stem cell research merely delays the inevitable — a point he made with an example from the civil-rights struggle.

Bush is "sort of our modern-day George Wallace, standing in the schoolhouse door," Harkin said in a conference call with reporters.

Wallace was the governor of Alabama who famously stood in the door of the University of Alabama in an attempt to stop two black students from registering.

"The fact is, that the walls of segregation were going to come tumbling down, we were going to move ahead with integration, and no matter what George Wallace did, it was going to happen. And I think it's the same way with President Bush," Harkin said.

Cheers to Harkin for calling out Bush on what he really is: a man so interested in stopping progress he will stand in th edoorway to make sure sick people can't get the access to the best possible health care they can receive.

drive by proselythizing (sp?)

2005-05-24T21:56:00.000-04:00

So my friend Erin and I went to 4 P's (an Irish bar) this evening for happy hour/dinner. We had a few beers, got our food, and noticed the place picking up, a nice crowd for a Tuesday night, and not a typical happy hour crowd of young professionals. All these people were wearing nametags, so we assumed that they were coming from one of the many conferences held daily in Washington DC....not quite.

Up to the stage walks a middle aged gentleman, who, it turns out, is a priest from Catholic University. As the priest (reverend, minister?) stood up there, Erin and I exchanged questioning glances, and then looked around again at the patrons in the bar. Upon closer examination, we noticed that the nametags all had, at the top, the words "Theology on Tap."

It sounds like a joke, really: Two Jews walk into a bar, a priest starts to give a sermon, and a crowd of Catholics stare at the Jews...

We listened as we finished our meal as the reverend spoke about Jesus and letting him into your life. He then introduced a newly ordained priest from Catholic, who began to give a sermon...at this point we had finished our meal, realized we were the only ones in the bar who didn't drop our heads down and pray when the reverend began a prayer, and pretty much got out of there.

Now, I am happy that "Theology on Tap" exists for those that want to partake in it. However, for future reference, 4 P's, please put a sign on your door or let me know when I walk in there that Jesus is at work. I will be happy to let those that want to listen to a sermon while drinking a Guinness to do so. I probably won't stay and watch, but I will happily respect the right of the Theologians to stay and listen. So, for not letting me know what was going on in there, 4P's, you get an F for customer service. But for promoting religion and making my world a happy place, you get a C (I don't really like happiness that much).

Nuclear option blown up

2005-05-24T10:57:00.000-04:00

Well, a big FUCK YOU can be seen floating across the desk of James Dobson, Jerry Fallwell, and other religious right leaders last night and this morning. The moderates in the Senate apparently won out, as I had an inkling would happen. I didn't expect fourteen senators to sign on, thought it would be less, as I didn't realize that John Warner, that maverick from Virginia, and Robert Byrd, the crazy old cowboy from West Virginia, would sign on to stop the showdown from happening today on the floor.

Is it a good thing though? I'm not entirely sure. Ask me whether I'm happy that Owen and the other two judges are going to be confirmed, and I'll tell you definitely not. Ask me whether I'm happy Saad and Meyer are likely to be bottled up, and I'll tell you yes. However, the result of this remains to be seen. The majority reserves the right to 'pull the trigger' at any point they think the minority is being too loose with their use of the filibuster, while the minority makes no guarantee of endorsing any nominees. So basically we have an agreement where none of those signatories are exceedingly victorious nor have they lost that much. The Senate work continues (HA), and as Lindsey Graham, a man I have increasingly gained respect for (aside from McCain probably one of the only Republicans I can say that for) said, the Senate can now get back to the work of the American people. As much as I wanted to see Frist go down even harder (he's down, mark my words. The man will now receive no support from the Dobsons of the country, as he couldn't herd his party behind the religious right's agenda.), I am happy that we didn't lose more. Reid is touting this as a victory for us, and I'm not so sure he's wrong. He says the nuclear option is off the table, and that is the most important part. We reserve the right to filibuster a Supreme Court nomination, and as everyone realizes, that's what this is all about. Rehnquist will retire this summer, and I, for one, do not want to see another fucking Scalia on the court.

Once again, going back to another idea I and many people have written on: many of these so-called "activist judges" that Frist, conservative Republicans, and the demagogic Falwells and Dobsons of the world talk about have been appointed by REPUBLICAN presidents and confirmed by REPUBLICAN led Congresses. The conservative majority cannot function in power. They overreach their bounds, continue to grab undue power and influence, and cannot work for the good of the party. If the senators and reps worked half as hard towards the same goals as their party's interest groups did in electing them, I'd be a bit more worried. This is not to say that we Dems are any better. We are the kings of not working together. But when you own DC like the Republicans do right now, and you can't get things done, it's time to take a look at your leadership. Everyone's known Frist is a useless tool of the religious right, and now it's being made abundantly clear. Everyone knew DeLay was a piece of garbage criminal, and his increasing ethics issues and lack of support at home (he only won this past election with 55% support) are going to build up. The Republican party oversteps its bounds time and again, on such basic issues as right to privacy (Schiavo, Patriot Act), taxes (tax cuts in deficit periods...brilliant voodoo economic theory), war (nuff said) and civil rights and liberties (gay marriage).

The emerging democratic majority, the sleeping giant, awaits its turn.

A random thought:

2005-05-19T12:50:00.000-04:00

Isn't it weird how a party that claims to be "conservative" and is typically interested in maintaining the way things have been done wants to tear down senate rules that have been in place for several hundred years, And instead of sweeping changes to our health care, taxes and education systems for the benefit of the less priveleged, they claim they are making governemnt smaller -- small enough to fit only into your bedroom?

Weiner and NYC Mayor

2005-05-18T16:16:00.000-04:00

From the Hotline:

Rep. Anthony Weiner (D) has hired Dem strategist Michael Whouley, "a Boston-based consultant with a reputation as a field general rallying troubled campaigns." He is "credited" with helping John Kerry make his comeback to win the '04 IA caucuses, and with helping Al Gore win the '00 NH primary (Archibold, New York Times, 5/18).

The Crain's Insider reports that Weiner has raised thousands from "a long list of Chinese-Americans in Queens." Weiner has reported adding $500K to his coffers between 3/12 and 5/11 giving him an expected total of $2.1M. (5/18).

Good move by Weiner picking up Whouley. He is highly respected, and helped Kerry when Kerry needed serious help. Bloomberg's still got very low approval ratings, and there is room and time for Weiner to hop into this thing. Ferrer is done for, Sharpton won't endorse him, and there is no front-runner in this primary.

The Value of a Closer

2005-05-18T09:24:00.000-04:00

With all the closers in baseball coming up injured as of late, (Troy Perival, Armando Benitez, Joe Borowski, Chin-hui Tsao, and Octavio Dotel just to name a few) I must now state how I really feel about the position. The closer position is the most grossly overrated position in baseball. A closer is not really as important as one tends to think. If you give up two runs during any part of the game you have given up those runs. The offenses are not competing against one another directly and it doesn’t matter when the runs are scored.

However, what the closer position does offer is the ability for small market teams to rack up Saves, an absolutely meaningless category. Like I said, if a guy holds a team to no runs in the 5th he gets no reward for his efforts; if he holds a team to no runs in the 9th he becomes invaluable. Smart teams in baseball, such as the Oakland A’s and the Minnesota Twins have realized this miss step by many GMs to overvalue saves. What these two teams have done is put a pitcher in the position and dubbed him with the name closer. They then have him pitch primarily in the final innings of games and he racks up saves. At the end of the season teams will trade away these stars with 40 saves at very high prices. The other team overvaluing this statistical category pays a high price for an average middle reliever who has a lot of saves. Examples include Jason Isringhausen, Eddie Guardado, LaTroy Hawkins. Dotel and Nathan are nothing more than the same thing (particularly Dotel).

Back

2005-05-17T11:52:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the lack of recent posts, but I had a busy weekend, and was in Atlantic City for work yesterday (tough, I know) - did get to gamble a bit, and lost at the Hold Em tables...dammit. Coworker was losing too, and as we were leaving I prodded him to play Roulette with his remaining funds. He bet on black three times in a row, ended up being up a fair amount...of course that's my luck. Always the bridesmaid, never the bride.

Anyway, this should be an interesting week. We've got more social security privatization hearings, an impending "showdown" over the nuclear option, and a fair amount of other things going on (Yankees haven't lost a game since I was at the A's-Yankees game Saturday before this one, the Nationals are on a three-game streak, the NBA playoffs are finally getting to some meaningful game 5's, the OC season finale (damn straight I watch the OC...the hot female index is off the charts)).

Back later (maybe) with some news.

John Thune PT 2

2005-05-13T11:47:00.000-04:00

So we've already got reactions and damage control from John Thune, professional penis hat (real headline: THUNE FAILS TO KEEP ELLSWORTH OFF LIST)

South Dakota Sen. John Thune, the Republican who defeated Minority Leader Tom Daschle by campaigning on his close ties to the White House, was dealt a political setback with the Pentagon's decision to close Ellsworth Air Force Base at Rapid City, S.D.

At the end of the heated campaign last fall, Daschle used Ellsworth as an example of his clout in Washington, claiming to have kept the base off the list during the last round of closures when Bill Clinton was president.

Thune's campaign countered that Daschle's role as leader of Bush's opposition would be a liability during the base closure process.

Thune, who was lobbied by Republicans at the highest level to challenge Daschle, said Friday that South Dakota did what it could to keep the base open.

The guy is beyond full of shit. He argues that he will keep the base open in his campaign due to his closeness to Bush, and what happens? Yet the man who had retained the base for the state gets voted out, the man on the other side of the argument, the man in the other party, and what happens?? THE BASE IS CLOSING

"The Ellsworth Task Force has done everything it can to date, and we will continue to do everything we can in the future," he said, referring to the Rapid City group that has lobbied Washington officials for the base. "I will help lead the fight in the Senate to delay this BRAC round."

He said last month that he gave the "full court press to inform and impress" the Pentagon. He said he used his position on the Senate Armed Services Committee to get questions on the record to Pentagon officials, has written numerous letters and talked to several Pentagon leaders in an effort to save the base.

It's nice to have a fall guy like John Thune in your pocket if you're Bush Co. No wonder Thune wants to get to the national stage so quick. He should be impeached as SD's senator. But fuck that, SD deserves him.

BRAC

2005-05-12T23:50:00.000-04:00

I'm getting this post in real quick, just in time to make a prediction:

Rumsfeld says base closures save money!

The nine-member base-closing commission, known as BRAC, is led by former Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi.

It will review the Pentagon's recommendations and send them, along with any changes, to the White House by September 8.

Odds that Ellsworth AFB will be on the BRAC's base closure list: 3:2

I'll take bets. Anyone?

UPDATE!!! 5/13 9:49 AM

Hate to say I told you so, but according to highly reputable sources, Ellworth AFB is on the base closure list. John Thune, the man that said Tom f'n Daschle couldn't keep Ellsworth open as a member of the opposite party (even though he was on the goddamn base closure commission when he was SD's senator) has FAILED YET AGAIN. That's right, SD, you're God-fearing, abortion hating senator, who said being from the president's party would help save Ellsworth has FUCKED UP YET AGAIN. Good luck finding new jobs out there, SD residents. And to those of you that work(ED) on the base and voted for Thune - FUCK YOURSELVES. To those of you that work(ED) on the base and realized you had a good thing...I'm sincerely sorry, and wish you the best of luck finding employment. Try not to have it relate to anything John Thune has a hand in.

UPDATE 10:15 AM
John Thune, Professional Dick-Licker

Among the major closures is Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota, home to 29 B-1B bombers, half the nation's fleet of the aircraft, and the state's second largest employer. That would deal a potential political setback to Republican freshman Sen. John Thune, who had claimed he could protect the base if elected during his campaign to defeat former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle.

Jonathan “Michael” Bolton (the real no talent ass-clown)

2005-05-12T21:07:00.000-04:00

The Bush administration and leaders in the Republican Senate have been outraged in the past month by Jonathan Bolton being held up in committee and not allowed a vote. GW nominated Mr. Bolton as the United States ambassador to the United Nations, the sole body unifying our governments and regulating global peace. After disturbing allegations of Bolton possessing less than superior diplomatic and communication skills, Democrats in the Senate demanded a hold be put on Bolton until further investigation could be performed.

In the past Bolton’s feelings of the UN and US diplomatic relations can be summed up in a couple short, self-amusing, quotes he enjoyed sharing with audiences:

"There is no such thing as the United Nations."

"If the U.N. secretary building in New York lost 10 stories, it wouldn't make a bit of difference."

He has been called by Carl W. Ford Jr., former chief of the State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research, "a serial abuser" and "a quintessential kiss-up, kick-down sort of guy."
Bolton’s former boss former Secretary of State Colin Powell has not spoken out against Bolton, but has refused to indorse him for his position. Something James Baker, Lawrence Eagleburger, Alexander Haig, Henry Kissinger and George Shultz (all former Secretaries of State) have done. Unfortunately none of these men have ever worked with Bolton directly, and have no real knowledge of his skills as a diplomat.
Finally, after much resistance by conservatives, Democrats were allowed to hold an examination in committee pertaining to Bolton’s past and abilities. Now, after a month of debate the committee on foreign relations has decided to send Bolton to the floor for a vote without a positive or a negative endorsement.

Republican Senator from Ohio, George Voinovich, has even spoken out against Bolton’s nomination:

"It is my opinion that John Bolton is the poster child of what someone in the diplomatic corps should not be."

With all this information about Bolton’s abilities becoming apparent we would expect the White House to be following foreign relations committee member Sen. Voinovich’s lead and repeal the support of an unqualified candidate. Here is what Secretary of state Condi Rice had to say:

Yes, he's been critical of the United Nations from time to time, but in some ways that is a great benefit because at a time when the U.N. is undergoing a considerable discussion about reform, looking at what needs to be done, it's a good thing to have somebody who's thought both about the good and the bad at the U.N."

With quotes from Bolton like the ones above, it doesn’t seem to me that he has thought twice about the good of the UN. It definitely appears this man is not setting out with good diplomatic relations in mind. Or maybe I am misinterpreting the line about “losing 10 stories of the UN building.”

And what insightful words does our President have about his nomination to the worlds most important diplomatic body:

Bush said that Bolton was "blunt," but said he "can get the job done."

I am sure Senate Republican leaders at least are taking a rational approach to this mistake of a nomination:

Sen. Richard Lugar, the chairman of the committee, said that while Bolton's actions were "not always exemplary," evidence heard by the panel does not support a disqualification of the nominee.

"The end result is that many of the accusations have proven to be groundless or, at worst, overstated."

The man publicly said he doesn’t believe the UN exists. You can’t overstate that. Plus the fact he has a trail of colleagues that he has failed to get along with. That right there seems enough to disqualify a person from one of the most diplomatically sensitive positions in the world.
It seems republicans are again voting down party lines with their rubber stamp, and not voting for what is in the best interest of the nation. The parallels are too close to ignore when comparing this situation to the White House’s judicial nominations. Senate Democrats found 13 of GW’s judges to be outrageously wrong for a federal bench position, yet Republicans want to go so far as to change Senate rules in order to put these extremists in power. The future of the filibuster is hanging in the balance with Bill Frist demanding totalitarian control of the Senate. In order to protect the rights of the minority and allow Majority party mistakes to be controlled we cannot let the filibuster fall. The republicans of late have become a party gone mad with power, like a cheetah as it’s pace quickens they have become blind to the peripheral vision, and are making drastic mistakes.

Gourmet Beef

2005-05-11T23:17:00.000-04:00

Dating a medical student who is in the mist of studying microbiology one becomes quickly paranoid about what to eat and where to swim. You learn chlorine kills very little of what will actually kill you and all your food is a death trap. For instance, Taenia Saginata, Beef Tapeworm:

“A cow rancher arrives at the EW [emergency ward] terrified after discovering a worm-like structure protruding from his anus. After reassuring the man and taking a proper history and physical, the doctor examines a stool sample. As expected, the doctor finds rectangular proglottid segments with the naked eye and uses a low-power microscope to detect eggs… [doctor prescribes medicine]…The doctor also instructs the patient to avoid poorly cooked beef in the future.”

Now this is just 1 note card of 140. Fortunately for the rancher this disease did not prove fatal. But looking at the effects of even worse pathogens such as mad cow disease, a prion that is virtually undetectable until symptoms arise and basically without a cure, we find a much more frightening ending. Over the last year several outbreaks of mad cow disease surfaced over the Canadian Provinces (America Jr.), and meat from these ranches ended up in the US food circulation. This contamination hurt the beef industry all across America, and the pain continues to this day.

Knowledge that busses made in Hungry explode when they reach 50 miles per hour does not decrease the sale of Mack trucks. This is because buyers have labels telling them who built their automobile and where the vehicle was made.

Former Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle and South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson both lead a fight to put labels on packaged meat describing at minimum their country of origin and with hopes of displaying the specific farms and slaughter houses the beef in package attended. Implementing these types of regulations on what we consume is strategic in keeping a solid agricultural industry as well as a healthy nation. However, with such logical steps toward National Defense (strengthening our agriculture and protecting the common health) these two senators found resistance with republicans calling on only unjust war and exorbitant military spending for national priorities. South Dakota being among the top beef states in the country one would expect that at least their republican senator to back this initiative. Even if the issue doesn’t directly favor big business and big oil it was a campaign promise, and a potentially big program for the state he is supposed to represent. While John Thune continues to take trips across the country at the expense of tax payers, (Alaska, California, Washington State, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, Colorado, and Tennessee (8 states in 6 weeks)) South Dakotans have given up hope on their freshman Senator Thune. They have decided to implement a Ranch of Origin labeling imposed by law enforcement. The program will allow consumers to search online back to where their beef was raised and slaughtered. This could possibly make SD beef into a gourmet commodity. However, full implementation is many years off due to the lack of federal government support from republican leaders’ and initiative by John Thune. It is too bad that Thune had other interests than his Job to worry about; otherwise his “connections” to the people in Washington would have gotten this done a long time ago. With Mad Cow disease becoming more prevalent and borders becoming weaker it is amazing Thune’s prioritizes were with taking vacations and raising money, rather than protecting America and representing South Dakota.

SD Gourmet Beef

And by the way, John has also refused to help keep Ellsworth Air Force Base open in Western South Dakota; thus giving the BRAC no resistance in closing the strategic B-1 Bomber fleet and 5,500 South Dakota jobs. I am glad we elected a guy who has the ear of the president and the hand of the Senate Majority Leader.

One of the longest running conservative platforms...

2005-05-11T14:17:00.000-04:00

has always been to call liberals "tax-and-spend" and argue that they (conservatives) are for little people by always wanting to cut taxes, since individuals know how to spend their money better than the big, bad government. This always comes up, in any republican campaign, and there are often difficult issues countering the argument. People always want their money. I would love to not be taxed, and not worry about giving money to the government, but I understand the necessity of taxes for the purpose of supporting those in society that need a safety net, and for myself long into the future, when I would presumably benefit from the social programs that I contribute to as a worker.

My question is, how do we, as liberals, counter the anti-tax message of conservative republicans? We've already shown that Bush Co. is not fiscally conservative, but the message won't necessarily fit against a conservative that actually is fiscally responsible. Do we, as Democrats, try to reverse course and show how we, too, can be fiscally conservative? Do we propose pay as you go measures, and other sensible budgetary policies? Or do we continue to run as the party that is seen as the taxers, the people that want to increase the size of government for the purpose of helping the weak, the poor, the poverty-stricken, and ignore the claims of the conservatives that we want to tax, tax, tax?

What campaign measures, proposals, issues can we point to to show that we are fiscally responsible, that we want an "ownership society" wherein people save money and invest? I think that candidates that are, and have been, fiscally conservative (one Howard Dean comes to mind...) need to use this in the future. We need to stop running away from claims that we are tax-and-spend liberals, and show that the REPUBLICANS have been worse than we have been over the past 5, 6, 10 years, and that we are responsible with money, using it for the proper things, and not interested in tax cuts that only benefit the wealthy, those that don't need the money back. We are interested in maintaining a safety net, interested in helping out middle- and low-class workers by giving THEM money back, if we do cut taxes, if we can afford it, if we somehow are able to return to a budgetary surplus.

Just another day in the district

2005-05-11T13:30:00.000-04:00

Working a block and a half from the Capitol has its advantages and disadvantages. Luckily enough, my building was not evacuated during today's scare. It seems that a plane was in the no-fly zone around the Capitol/White House area, and fighter jets fired warning shots to scare it off. I got to wondering what the contingency plan is if warning shots do not have their intended effect. how far away from our nation's symbolic center must a plane or any other foreign object be before fighter jets fire them down? A mile? Two? What kind of plan is in place to minimize collateral damage? We are, after all, in a city with many people, with many buildings, and many other important landmarks. A mile outside of the Capitol/White House in any direction does not ensure any type of safety for people on the ground or other buildings that may be unintended targets. ... Just a thought ...

Update: (2:50PM)
I guess others were wondering the same thing (NYT):

One tantalizing question is how close the Cessna might have come to being shot down. Mr. McClellan said there were "protocols in place" to fire at it, if necessary, "but I'm not sure it ever came to that point." Asked who had the authority to order that the plane be shot down, Mr. McClellan declined to be specific, except to say that President Bush was aware of the episode as it unfolded.

Pilots accidentally enter restricted airspace over Washington from time to time, generally without incident. But since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the prospect of an errant plane being shot down is not far-fetched. If, as Mr. McClellan said, the Cessna was within three miles of the White House today, it could easily have been within a minute or so's flying time of the mansion.

George's foreign Affairs

2005-05-10T15:05:00.000-04:00

After George Jr’s recent visit with the Russian President Vladimir Putin, I am reminded of his last stay with Mr. Putin; which at the time put a wonder into my skull, after reading this quote from GW in the New York Times about two months ago.

"Mr. Bush said in the grand setting of Concert Noble, a 19th century hall. 'We must always remind Russia, however, that our alliance stands for a free press, a vital opposition, the sharing of power and the rule of law - and the United States and all European countries should place democratic reform at the heart of their dialogue with Russia.'"

I find this funny for two distinct reasons:

1) The President is asking of Russia to obediently follow the US and Europe while the US deliberately went against the wishes of almost the entire world, which includes Europe and Russia (but as the President would sure like to remind you, "not every country was against us, Poland was with us too"), and attacked a foreign nation without any provocation.

2) This is the fact that originally struck my attention from the quote. The President demands that "our alliance stands for a free press." Once again I believe our President has forgotten about his party's reprimanding of his predecessor. I believe a few years ago a President was under heated scrutiny of sexual taboos. After finding nothing criminal it was agreed upon that that President had committed great atrocities by not leading by example for our children. With this criticism I ask GW why he has failed to do the same. He demands the "free press" but has paid and planted several reporters of high class news organizations to push his agenda. With this criticism I ask GW why he has failed as leader of the free world to bring diplomacy to even our allies, yet demand it of other nations. With this criticism I ask GW why he has, over a two week course in February, threatened seven different nations with his physical force, yet can't respect the ideas of the rest of the United Nations. Now I would ask what is harder to explain to your children, an Oral Sex reference completely unrelated to the duties of work and unqualified to be used as real news and merely reported for sensationalism, or explaining to your children what it means when your President is buying off the press, what it means when the leader of the free world is demanding through violent physical force a particular thought and philosophy on independent cultures and nations, what it means when the highest office in the land uses its physical might to manipulate those with less physical power. The nature of Bill Clinton's dumb mistakes were unknown by the children of our nation, and by involved parenting and media responsibility any relay of this information to innocent ears could have been avoided. George W. Bushes' acts not only have to be explained to small children they must be explained and rationalized to foreign lands, our political leaders, and all people of our country. George W. Bush has reversed our foreign relations progress decades with his mistakes.

We're like a team now

2005-05-10T14:11:00.000-04:00

Welcome to Scott, my new Blogging contributor to UnemployedDemocrat. He is actually an unemployed democrat, although he is going to be joining the Peace Corps in Moldova next month. He will be an added member to the UD team, with his insightful commentary on many of the issues facing us today. Scott worked with me on the Daschle campaign, is from South Dakota (tell him you're sorry...), and has a hot girlfriend (hi Jamie).

Scott will be keeping his other blog Ballad of the Rising Sun open as well, so anything regarding his time in Moldova or the Peace Corps can be found there.

Thune v. Daschle

2005-05-10T13:44:00.000-04:00

In a Roll Call retrospective of the top ten races in Senate history, here is their explanation of last year's race:

2004 South Dakota Senate race: Tom Daschle (D) vs. John Thune (R)

In the year following his 524-vote defeat at the hands of Sen. Tim Johnson (D), Thune was hounded about whether he would challenge Daschle.

By the time he finally entered the race in January 2004, Daschle had been on statewide television for six months touting his accomplishments for the state during his 18 years in the Senate.

Thune held his fire for several more months before beginning his own advertising effort. He believed that the primary reason for his loss in 2002 was the non-stop, 18-month campaign he and Johnson waged.

As expected, the race shattered all previous fundraising records in the state. Daschle brought in $20 million; Thune raised $16 million in just 10 months. Those totals don’t include the millions spent by independent groups seeking to influence the outcome.

Daschle struggled to differentiate himself from a national party decidedly more liberal than the average South Dakota voter. He was also hurt by the fact that he had not been seriously challenged since 1986.

Thune ran an ad late in the race that featured footage of Daschle saying he was a “D.C. resident” and defending the right of women to have abortions. This seemed to crystallize the choice for many voters.

Thune won by 2,000 votes — the first candidate to oust a Senate leader since 1952.

I've said it all before, so I don't need to go into how/why we lost. It makes me happy to see that something I worked on is one of the best senate races ever, even if I believe it appears there undeservedly so, as our opponent (and current Senator) Thune proves time and again to be an ineffective senator without any of South Dakota's values in hand. SD voters have reaped what they sowed in this one, folks.

Fantasy and reality

2005-05-10T10:20:00.000-04:00

In reference to my posting about the ridiculous Texas cheerleading law passed last week (which made it into the Daily Show as one of their feature segments last night), someone wrote this. It makes me happy that someone would post a comment like this on my blog:

SteveBP said...

Are these Texas Nazis up to it again? These cheerleaders are just being progressive. Fifty years ago women were oppressed, and they led cheers wearing skirts that barely showed their calves. Now they're allowed (finally) to show breasts and have to get a bikini wax before each game. I feel especially bad for the transgendered persons who have to do a bit more waxing. I sure hope I'm around in the year 2050. The tickets to the high school football games may get to be $500, but I bet by then I'll be able to see a wide receiver take one up the middle - and I'm not talking about the football players. That's what I call progress. I just hope one of my great grand daughters will make the team (wink wink, nod nod.)
12:37 AM

Haha. He says they show their breasts and have to get bikini waxes before each game, and talks about transgendered persons having to get more waxing. I enjoy people like this, who make such absurd points that you can do nothing but laugh at them. They couldn't care less about the state of their child's school, fuck that, but instead are concerned with how much leg the cheerleaders show. Steve, why don't you tell me what about these cheerleaders acts is so 'sexually explicit' that we should legislate the vague concept of cheerleading? Steve, why don't you tell me how many transgendered cheerleaders have to shave? Steve, why don't you tell me what business our government has doing in this, and ignoring other, legitimate problems, such as the state of the school, funding the unfunded mandates of NCLB, and paying attention to health care? Why are you so concerned with the cheers of high school girls, but unconcerned with the education they receive? Holy Crusaders like yourself fail to see your own hipocrysy. You believe in limited government, but only if it's small enough to fit into your bedroom. You want judges that are not activists, but you fail to see that you conservatives have appointed most of the current federal judges (and the majority of SCOTUS judges) to the bench. You want up-or-down votes and a removal of the filibuster, but fail to remember the hundreds of times you've held up approvals during the past hundred years through filibuster or committee moves.

And to end it, you makes sure I realize your sarcasm, with a "(wink wink, nod nod.)" You are holier than I, SteveBP. Your holiness blinds me.

Ahhhh, SteveBP. The world really is passing you by, my friend. I bet you remember what it was like to get into a movie theater, buy a hot dog, and get on the bus back home, all for a quarter, and have money left over to buy a stick of gum. Those sure were the days, when women didn't have suffrage, blacks were segregated. The world was right.

Who's the boss star nearly dies in freak go-karting accident

2005-05-10T10:15:00.000-04:00

Tony Danza is hurting (and not just financially)

Tony Danza got quite a scare when he and NASCAR star Rusty Wallace were racing go-karts during the taping of a segment for the nationally syndicated "The Tony Danza Show."

Danza was leading as they entered the final lap on West 66th Street Monday morning, the show said. After Wallace gave Danza's vehicle a little "bump and run," the 54-year-old talk-show host lost control of his go-kart, which flipped over.

The man with a sex move named after him (ask if you have never heard of it before), flipped over by some NASCAR punk?

Now, here is a fact you may not have known about Alyssa Milano's tv dad: Tony only accepts roles in television or movies wherein his characters name is Tony. Why? Because, the guy doesn't remember to respond to any other names. I kid you not.

Wallace, who rushed to Danza's side after the crash, said, "I thought I killed ya," to which Danza responded, "Yeah ... just before you retire, 'I killed Tony Danza.' "

More anti-Jesus people

2005-05-10T10:10:00.000-04:00

It's unfortunate really. Hasn't the man faced enough oppression? I mean, if you believe that sort of thing.

Even Jesus Christ can't circumvent the rules for getting a driver's license in West Virginia.

Attempts to prove his name really is Christ have led the man born as Peter Robert Phillips Jr. through a lengthy legal battle and a recent victory in the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

As a Jew, I take no side in this argument, but I do believe that even Jesus should have to provide a proper birth certificate, one that states who his father really is.

But, apparently Jesus isn't too media-friendly. That's no way for a religious leader to act.

Any comment from the man in the middle of this legal tussle?

"Christ is not speaking to the press at this time," Pishevar said.

NY

2005-05-09T11:04:00.000-04:00

Went home over the weekend for mother's day and to hang out with friends. Took a Greyhound bus for the very first time ever. It was pretty interesting. There is a pretty distinct class difference with the people that end up taking a bus vs. atrain or plane. Not that it bothers me, because the bus cost about 1/7 of what a plane ticket would have cost, and about 1/5 of what a train would have been. The ride was decent, aside from hitting almost an hour of traffic right outside NYC on the way up. But, back in NY, had a good, relaxing time. Caught a Yankees-A's game, with Mussina finally pitching a good one (complete game shutout no less) after somehow managing to get lost going to the baseball stadium I've been to about 25 times and ending up having to traverse the Bronx, yet still making it into the stadium in time for the first pitch.

Had a nice mother's day, too, and even took my mother and grandmother to see a corny mother's day movie before catching a bus back down late last night.

All in all a good weekend - nice to get back home to NY every now and again, even though DC feels a lot more like home sometimes.

"Bring It On" banned from Texas state.

2005-05-04T11:31:00.000-04:00

Ok, not really...but this is silly.

The House, to the surprise of some representatives who heckled with pompoms and recorded fight songs, passed a bill Tuesday night calling on districts to act against any group performing "in an overtly sexually suggestive manner" at a school event.

Not only is this absurd, the Texas House could not even define "sexually suggestive" cheerleading behavior. They proposed to leave it up to the individual school districts. Don't these fucking lawmakers have important things to do...health care, education, crime...?

More NYC Mayor stuff...sue me, I'm a New Yorker

2005-05-04T11:24:00.000-04:00

This is troubling.

Mayor Bloomberg got a big boost yesterday from across party lines: Sen. Chuck Schumer.

New York's senior senator, a Democrat, defended Bloomberg's record fighting for the city's fair share of federal dollars - undercutting a central campaign theme among the Democrats seeking to boot Bloomberg, a Republican, from City Hall.

I understand that Schumer and Bloomy have to work together, and that Schumer has some pretty strong ties to the Mayor:

Schumer's wife, Iris Weinshall, is Bloomberg's transportation commissioner, and Schumer's former spokesman, Stu Loeser, is now Bloomberg's campaign spokesman.

But this isn't helping. Bloomberg continues to campaign for national Republicans, and unless the man denounces his party and becomes a Democrat, we can't have national Democrats, even if they are friendly with the man, supporting Republican campaigns. Schumer, of everyone should know this, as he is the DSCC cahir, the main man responsible for raising money for Democratic candidates. And with Schumer's protege, Anthony Weiner, in the race, I simply can't understand the support he's giving to Bloomberg. To be sure, this falls well short of an endorsement, but not far enough for my liking.

GPS tracking

2005-05-03T10:52:00.000-04:00

Well, once again on the Florida front:

Spurred by the killing of a 9-year-old girl, Gov. Jeb Bush on Monday signed a law imposing tougher penalties on child molesters and requiring many of those released from prison to wear satellite tracking devices for the rest of their lives.

GPS devices worn around the ankles, so that the government can track them, even after they've completed their prison sentence. I'm all about being tough on crime, and I have no doubt that the Fla state legislature had the state's best intentions in mind. The law passed unanimously in both the House and Senate, and apparently there is some precedence for this type of punishment:

Lots of other states have minimum mandatory sentences for sex crimes against children. A number of states already require some form of lifetime supervision of sex offenders, including GPS tracking, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

However, Florida's new law may be the first requirement of lifetime GPS monitoring for an entire group of people who commit a certain crime, the NCSL said.

Florida's new law could also open the door to the death penalty for more killers, because it allows a defendant's status as a sexual predator to be considered as an aggravating factor during sentencing for a murder.

Registering sex offenders seems like a fair thing to do. I know that I would want to know if there was a registered offender living in my neighborhood, especially if I was a parent. Forcing GPS tracking on individuals, however, seems like a step that is going to open up some dangerous doors.

I have to come up with some more coherent thoughts on the larger issues around this, but 1984 immediately springs to mind...citizens have the right to privacy, and as far as I know, rehabilitated criminals are, in most states, returned their citizenship (not really sure how it is in Texas...Scott?) GPS tracking devices on these (rehabilitated) citizens, in my opinion, amounts to a violation of their privacy.

This type of law scares me, not really for what it is, but for what it could become.

Whoo hoo I am pure

2005-05-03T09:40:00.000-04:00

I found out about this on Clean Cut Kid.

I am 1% Republican - what abou you?

2005-05-02T20:20:00.000-04:00

This is from the Daschle reunion party two Fridays ago. It's part of the Rapid City office (from l. Stephanie, me, part of Ben, Senator Daschle, Jessica, Scott, Jason and Ace). I particularly like that I'm holding a beer, and that the Senator is clearly only concerned with me being in the picture with him, as he's blocked Ben, my co-worker, from even being seen.

What's the Matter With Liberals?

2005-05-02T16:33:00.000-04:00

A very interesting article by Frank Rich, entitled What's the Matter with Liberals?

Rich basically makes the point that the election of 2004 was won on the basis of culture wars. That the Republican party has feigned interest in the little guy, not through economic means, but through cultural. Whereas the working class person used to vote in droves for the liberal economic democrat, Republicans have shifted the focus nearly entirely off of those issues and onto the cultural ones: guns, God, and gays.

Rich doesn't let the Republicans have all the glory, however, he places more than enough blame on the Democrats, and especially the K Street lobbyists, whom he blames for allowing Kerry to lose his focus (not necessarily unintentionally) from bread and butter Democrat issues. Rich thinks that Kerry wanted to appeal to the business class, and accept their funds in order to be more competitive with Bush. However, he thinks that doing so was an unmitigable mistake, since liberal economic policy has been the major tenet of every Democrat's election over the past so-many years.

Rich also suggests that Bush's pandering to the working class on culture war issues has clearly been a ploy, as in the immediate days after the election, the focus shifted away from gay marriage and abortion, and onto Social Security and other issues that would not, in any way, help lower- and middle-income workers, but would instead help the Wall Street elite.

Perhaps Bush Co.'s greatest stunt has been the fleecing of the cultural war voters. By focusing so heavily on these issues in the 2004 election, Bush promised them something he knew that he would in no way fulfill. However, with a sinking economy and Mess-o-potamia in Iraq, this focus proved inevitable. A poorly run campaign and a shitty nominee for the Democrats only aided and abetted Bush Co.'s victory, but the voters now have had 100 days to see what they re-elected: a man only interested in lining the pockets of the rich, uninterested in the lower classes, uninterested in protecting the morality of our God-forsaken country, being arrested by the activist judges and gays.

Here are some excerpts from Rich's article, but I recommend reading it:

A newcomer to American politics, after observing this strategy in action in 2004, would have been justified in believing that the Democrats were the party in power, so complacent did they seem and so unwilling were they to criticize the actual occupant of the White House. Republicans, meanwhile, were playing another game entirely. The hallmark of a "backlash conservative" is that he or she approaches politics not as a defender of the existing order or as a genteel aristocrat but as an average working person offended by the arrogance of the (liberal) upper class. The sensibility was perfectly caught during the campaign by onetime Republican presidential candidate Gary Bauer, who explained it to The New York Times like this: "Joe Six-Pack doesn't understand why the world and his culture are changing and why he doesn't have a say in it."[3] These are powerful words, the sort of phrase that could once have been a slogan of the fighting, egalitarian left. Today, though, it was conservatives who claimed to be fighting for the little guy, assailing the powerful, and shrieking in outrage at the direction in which the world is irresistibly sliding.

The only centrism to be seen on the Republican side was the parade of GOP moderates across the stage of Madison Square Garden, an exercise clearly intended more to pacify and reassure the press than to win over actual voters. When the cameras were off, it was a completely different affair: what Karl Rove called a "mobilization election" in which victory would go to the party that best rallied its faithful.What this meant in practice was backlash all the way: an appeal to class resentment and cultural dread that was unprecedented in its breadth; ingenious state-level ballot initiatives on "values" questions that would energize voters; massive church-based get-out-the-vote efforts; and paranoid suggestions from all sides inviting voters to believe the worst about those tyrannical liberal snobs.

...

For the conservative rank and file, this election was to be the culture-war Armageddon, and they were battling for the Lord.

...

The backlash narrative is more powerful than mere facts, and according to this central mythology conservatives are always hardworking patriots who love their country and are persecuted for it, while liberals, who are either high-born weaklings or eggheads hypnotized by some fancy idea, are always ready to sell their nation out at a moment's notice.[7]

What makes national security such a winner for Republicans is that is dramatizes the same negative qualities of liberalism that we see in the so-called "values" issues, only much more forcefully. War casts in sharp relief the inauthenticity of the liberals, the insincerity of their patriotism, and their intellectual distance (always trying to "understand" the terrorists' motives) from the raw emotions felt by ordinary Americans—each quality an expression of the deracinated upper-classness that is thought to be the defining characteristic of liberalism.

Every hamlet seemed to have a son or daughter on duty in Iraq, and wartime loyalty to the commander in chief was in the air. Running through each of these issues was the sense that Bush was somehow more authentic than his challenger. In the city of Charleston, West Virginia, I was told by a conservative activist that

when you see those photos of [Bush] on his ranch down in Texas, with jeans and a cowboy hat, that's genuine. I was in Beckley when he was there a couple weeks ago, and that crowd, four thousand people, they loved the man. They loved the man. Personally... You can't manufacture that; you can't fake it. They love him. They connect with him, they think he understands them, and I think he does, too.

West Virginia had been carried by Bill Clinton, Michael Dukakis, and almost every other Democratic candidate going back to Franklin Roosevelt, but this time it went Republican by a convincing thirteen percentage points.

...

The illusion that George W. Bush "understands" the struggles of working-class people was only made possible by the unintentional assistance of the Democratic campaign. Once again, the "party of the people" chose to sacrifice the liberal economic policies that used to connect them to such voters on the altar of centrism. Advised by a legion of tired consultants, many of whom work as corporate lobbyists in off years, Kerry chose not to make much noise about corruption on Wall Street, or to expose the business practices of Wal-Mart, or to spend a lot of time talking about raising the minimum wage.[12]

...

Then, on the morning after the election, the country's liberals were astonished to hear that, according to exit polls, at least, "moral values" outranked all other issues in determining voters' choices.[16] Later on that same day, the reelected President Bush set out his legislative objectives for his second term. Making America a more moral country was not one of them. Instead, his goals were mainly economic, and they had precious little to do with helping out the working-class people who had stood by them: he would privatize Social Security once and for all and "reform" the federal tax code. "Another Winner Is Big Business," declared a headline in The Wall Street Journal on November 4, as businessmen everywhere celebrated the election results as a thumbs-up on outsourcing and continued deregulation.

OMG! LOL! I H8 U!

2005-05-02T13:44:00.000-04:00

And then there's this.

With a silly name, OMG! How Generation Y Is Redefining Faith In The iPod Era argues that there is an increasing non-Christian majority emerging in the Generation Y (currently 18-25 year old) era. With Tivo's, iPods and other devices allowing us to program our own lives, we apparently also have the abiliy to program our own beliefs, more of which are seemingly secular (imagine that...religion and government...separate???)

Amongst their major findings:

1. Religious Identity: Religion plays a central role at a critical time in young people’s development, as they try to figure out who they are, religion helps not only to carve out the images they have of themselves, but also provides the social and political networks in which they make friends, find lovers, think about civic and political issues, and develop a political worldview. However, the relative priority of religion in young people’s lives varies and less religious youth are somewhat more directionless as they try to figure out who they are and what they should be doing with their lives.

Sounds about right...who isn't concerned with their spirituality in some way as a relatively young adult? However, it is not a 'primary' concern in a lot of ways, but is more something that is very personal, typically private, and something that is more of a journey, a search for fulfillment, much like many other aspects of life.

2. Religious Practice: It is difficult to catalog religious practice among young people, in part, because they are at the stage of their lives where they drop off from traditional religious involvement and, in part, because informal and non-traditional forms also play an important role in young people’s lives. Here we categorize Generation Y into three groups:

• The Godly (27%) for whom religion and God are a central part of their lives and are comfortable with traditional forms of religious practice;

• The God-less (27%) for whom religion plays little role, but who may have spiritual or ideological aspects to their religious identity;

• The Undecided, in the middle, (46%) who are uncertain, yet positive, about their religious identities and lean towards informal and expressive practices over the formal and institutional involvement.

This is something that makes me pretty happy. We always see polls and research suggesting that the US is one of the most 'religious' countries in the world, with Christianity leading the way. Here we see that the "God-less" equal to the "Godly." Now God-less in this instance does not refer to heathens, but instead those that have some form of 'relationship' with personal religion, but for whom religion is not something they're sure of. Additionally, the nearly 50% group of Undecideds, for whom formal/institutional involvement does not exist, yet they are involved informally. Why am I comforted by this? Because with the 'rise' of the Christian majority and the religious right, I fear for my civil liberties, civil rights, and for the current form of government we have, one where religion is supposed to be expressed in a government official's personal, private life, not in policy, politics and public. These statistics show a religious group of people that allow religion into their private lives. Does this mean they won't change as they get older? Clearly not, and that's one aspect of research this study doesn't take into account. What is the likelihood of these 18-25 year olds retaining their ability to maintain a religious identity outside of their political and policy beliefs?

3. Civic Participation: There is a strong and intimate relationship between religious faith and commitment and civic life. This study confirms that even among younger people, more religious youth are more likely to volunteer in both religious and non-religious venues than the less religious. As we see a decline in traditional denominational life, young people are finding other routes to participation in civic life as well. A near majority of the God-less, for example, participate in some form of civic activity, but only 5 percent do so through religious institutions.

Particular points of note in the report:

• Most diverse generation in history. Generation Y is the most diverse generation in the nation – only 61 percent call themselves white compared to 84 percent among Americans older than 65 years. Fueled by waves of new immigration and birthrates in immigrant communities, this generation is on the vanguard of transforming the nation, which will be majority non-white by mid-century. (page 8)

• Denominationalism on the decline and pluralism on the rise. The country remains majority Christian with a plurality belonging to Protestant denominations such as the Baptists or Methodists. There are important changes afoot, traditional denominationalism is on the decline and there is a concurrent rise in the number of people unwilling to align with a denomination. In fact, many young people cannot identify what faith tradition or denomination they belong to and fully 23 percent do not identify with any denomination at all. (page 9)

Pluralism! Whoo hoo!

• Faith expressed in highly personal, informal ways. While many young people continue
to attend worship services on a regular basis, just as many – if not more - practice their faith informally. Young people simply believe it is possible to be “religious” or “spiritual” without belonging to a church, synagogue or mosque. On a monthly basis, 68 percent talk about religion informally with friends; 64 percent of pray before meals and 55 percent read religious books, newspapers or magazines. (page 10)

• Social circles diverse. Regardless of religious tradition or intensity of religious commitment, youth are fully integrated into diverse social networks. While previous generations often lived in homogeneous religious communities, among Generation Y, only 7 percent of youth report that all of their friends are the same religion as themselves. Even the most religious youth maintain diverse networks of peers with only 9 percent of the Godly saying that all of their friends are the same religion. Among the God-less, at least half of their friends are not of the same religion. (page 12)

• Religious teens are more self-aware. Despite assumptions we might make about youth’s disengagement from faith and community life, religion remains a core component of young people’s identity. Moreover, religious youth have a distinctive worldview and approach to life; they are more connected to family and community, have higher self-esteem and a sense of self and hold more traditional views about family, sex, and marriage. (page 15)

• But STDs, jobs, grades come before God. Generation Y faces a distinct set of challenges as they negotiate their entry into adult life. Figuring out how to deal with sex and relationships, the changing economy and finding a good job and the desire to get a decent education, all compete with more intangible concerns. One’s relationship with God is lower on the list of things to worry about and plays a subtler role except for very religious youth. (page 16)

• Religious young people more active in politics, community. In this study, we find a strong relationship between religiosity and a broad range of volunteer activities with 79 percent of the most religious participating in volunteer activity in the last 12 months compared to 43 percent among the least religious. Religion is less closely tied to political and cultural involvement. (page 25)

• Generation Y is disengaged from politics. Politics falls on the bottom of the list of issues that young people worry or think about, though certain groups such as Jewish youth and African Americans take politics more seriously. There is clearly great potential political energy to be harnessed, as we saw in the 2004 Presidential election, but politics is not seen as particularly relevant to daily life. (page 26)

Jew power!!

• Progressive social views dominate. Generation Y is more liberal and progressive than older generations on social issues such as gay marriage and immigration. In fact, a majority favor gay marriage (53 percent) and women’s legal right to abortion (63 percent). For a group characterized by diversity and pluralism, the political divisiveness of cultural politics seems fairly irrelevant. (page 28)

This makes me happy. Again, while we still have no idea how these young adults will ultimately change their views as they age, progressive social views are awesome. More than half favoring gay marriage and over 60% supporting abortion rights? Wow. If only these people were to vote as much as the religious right... Hmmm....

Drop Dead Freddy

2005-05-02T13:42:00.000-04:00

Freddy Ferrer is floundering

From the New York Daily News -

Mayor Bloomberg is a "patsy for the Republican Party," embattled Democratic mayoral candidate Fernando Ferrer charged in a TV interview that aired yesterday.

With his poll numbers falling 20 points in a hypothetical general election matchup with Bloomberg, Ferrer went on the attack, accusing the mayor of failing to get the city's fair share of federal dollars.

"Mike Bloomberg has given personally generously to Republican candidates and to the Republican national party and state party - so far, it has produced that much for New York City," said Ferrer, indicating zero with his fingers, during an interview on WABC-TV.

Now I don't particularly disagree with this assessment, but Ferrer is clearly in some shit. After his fallout from claiming that the Louima case wasn't a crime, Ferrer is falling. This is going to increase the vis and viability of the other Dem primary challengers, especially Anthony Weiner, whom I've previously posted on.

Oppositional party or just opposition?

2005-05-02T13:05:00.000-04:00

Democrats Can’t Win When ‘No!’ Is Party’s Dominant Message:
From Roll Call -

Democrats can bask, if they wish, in President Bush’s gloomy poll ratings. But it’s hard to see how they will win the next election without a positive program. So far, from Social Security to energy to judicial nominations to House ethics, the Democratic position on the leading issues of the day is: “No!”

Agreed. To a certain extent, we are the party of opposition. We have oppositional views on many of the issues of the day, of the current agenda. However, in addition to opposing whatever the agenda item of the day may be from the White House, we also need to, at least at times, present options of our own. The problem with this in the past four years is that anything we've presented or worked on with the Republicans has either been turned down out of hand by the majority, or has been co-opted and maladjusted (NCLB) towards a total net result of failure for society. Why present our own options as the party in minority when it's going to result in harming us?

To answer that last question, one must look at the overall attitude of Democrats, or progressives. We as a people are working towards progress, and of getting things down. The status quo is a Republican, or conservative tenet. While Republicans are happy with where we are at, and what we've done, progressives are interested in moving forward, realizing that while what we've done may be good, there is always room for improvement. So while we may not get what we want out of the proposals, it is by our nature to suggest ideas and try to move public policy and not retain the status quo. I find it humorous anytime President Bush or the Republican members of Congress suggest that Democrats need to come to the table because they don't see a crisis (or problem) with Social Security - and that President Bush wants to make Social Security an issue of the Republican Party, taking it away from FDR and the Democrats (co-opting one of the Democratic Party's best governmental programs in our history). We, the Democratic Party, have a responsibility, and a desire to fix Social Security just as much, if not much moreso, than the Republican Party. We seek to deliver as comfortable a safety net for the poor, hope to increase the middle class, and help those trying to move up in society. Bush's suggested plan this past Thursday is both laughable and insulting. He wants to have it both ways, and his transparency is increasingly evident. Now he suggests that we should cut middle class benefits by up to 40% and retain benefits for the lowest class. While admirable that he suddenly is as compassionate towards those living in poverty, our middle class making an average salary depends on Social Security benefits and should not be cut. He will never accede to a reduction in his tax cuts, because that would be framed as a tax increase, and increasing the payroll wage limit (if eligible Social Security levels were increased by 40k$ to 130k$ from 90k$, Social Security would remain solvent with many billions of increased operating funds) would harm the Billionaires for Bush constituency our President has worked so hard to keep happy.

Weekend

2005-05-02T12:57:00.000-04:00

Good weekend -

- saw 1 former roommate that's moved away

- apologized to 1 girl on behalf of my friend who, while drunk, threatened to 'fuck her up' if she bumped into him again

- started 1 fight with some douchebag in Mad Hatter's, but only because I had lots of friends around me

- went to 2 Nationals - Mets games, with the Nats winning one of them

- caught up on about 8 hours of tv (damn I love my Tivo), mostly episodes of Seinfeld and the Simpsons, along with the last few episodes of Contender, some Law and Order and some classic Saved by the Bell the College Years (gotta love Kelly Kapowski - someone buy me this)

- continued to dominate my roommate at FIFA - yeah that's right Matt.

The working party

2005-04-27T11:06:00.000-04:00

In response to a comment on a previous post by co-worker Scott -

I understand what you're saying, buddy, even though you were drunk, but here's what I'm saying: People are stupid. Unfortunately, in politics, as well as in many other forums of public debate, simplicity amounts to complicity. If someone says something in a simple way, boils it down to its most simple point, and you agree with it, you are more likely to support it. This is the lowest common denominator in some ways, and is clearly a problem. A major issue with Democrats, and for a more vague category, liberals, is that we believe things exist in the gray. Conservatives are all black and white...good and bad, evil and heroic...etc.

Unfortunately, this doesn't work for electoral politics. Catch-phrases and platforms that summarize turn public opinion more quickly and more convincingly than position papers. Is this ideal? Clearly not. But it is reality, and one that we must work in until the country returns to a collective attention span of longer than a music video. Who's to blame? The media...the public...politicians...who knows, who cares? It's reality, and operating in a real world necessitates our compliance with that reality, or we will be working in, as George Bush often does, an imaginary world.

Kos on DailyKos just posted on this, and I like what he says: Democrats are the party for people who work for a living.

If labor could undergo some sort of resurgence (...follow the lead of SEIU and gain some new members...there's an idea...) and we could remove the religious extremists from the debate (...) and instead return the public to pocketbook issues that working people actually care about (health care, education, jobs), we'd be well on our way.

Corruption and corporate accountability, along with a side of anti-religious extremism as campaign themes, along with substantive policy proposals on fixing NCLB and getting rid of the anti-labor administration currently in power. I can see '06 and '08 now.

Bloomberg grrr

2005-04-27T10:32:00.000-04:00

Get on your horse, NY Dem mayoral candidates

A Marist College poll shows Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) is leading all Dem rivals in the NYC Mayoral race, outpacing ex-Bronx BP/'01 mayoral candidate Fernando Ferrer (51%-38%), Manhattan BP Virginia Fields (47%-41%), Rep. Anthony Weiner (48%-36%) and NYC Council Speaker Gifford Miller (50%-36%) among regis. voters (release)

Splish splash

2005-04-27T10:07:00.000-04:00

BUSH ASKS ABOUT 'SPLASH DAY'

President Bush raised eyebrows on Tuesday when he asked locals in
Galveston, Texas: "Do you still have Splash Day?"

"Splash Day" is the annual "adult oriented enormous beach party"
celebration on the Gulf Coast.

BUSH: Do you still have Splash Day?

(LAUGHTER)

BUSH: You have to be a baby boomer to know what I'm talking about.

(LAUGHTER)

BUSH: I'm not saying whether I came or not on Splash Day. I'm just
saying, Do you have Splash Day?

(LAUGHTER)

Bush was unaware "Splash Day" is now a fully gay and lesbian event on
the beaches.
----------------

Oh you crazy gays, going after your "equal rights" and "equal protections." He hates you! But he likes your splash day.

UPDATE

2005-04-27T09:53:00.000-04:00

REPUBLICANS ADMIT THEY'VE BEEN UNETHICAL - REVERSE ETHICS COMMITTEE RULES CHANGES - ADMIT THAT THEY'RE PAYING POLITICAL PRICE - WOULD PAY MORE PRICE IF THEY LEFT IT THE SAME WAY

And, the sky is falling

BANG BANG

2005-04-26T17:07:00.000-04:00

Anybody else concerned about visiting Florida?

I mean, I understand the need for people to shoot each other in the middle of the street, harkening back to the Wild West days. I was in Deadwood for several months, and I've seen Unforgiven. But, really what the fuck?? The NRA pushes Jeb Bush and the Fla state government, and what do we get? People no longer have to attempt to flee an escalating situation in public, and can "meet deadly force with deadly force." Now, I am not a person that wants to see villainous individuals shooting innocents on the streets. However, I forsee fistfights, gang wars and barfights wherein someone pulls a motherfucking gun from their pocket and, in their defense, claims they were acting legally under this law, even though there was no deadly force from the other person. We live in a society wherein there are some bad people, but we should not be reacting in a way that seems like we're moving back to the days of the wild west. The NRA has too much damn power. The second amendment was enacted during the days of militias and in the shadow of the revolutionary war, not in today's society. This is why we need an interpretation of the Constitution as a living, breathing document, not Scalia's reasoning. People having the right to conceal weapons is a problem on its own, but with the NRA taking this as it's number one issue, I'm going to be (even more) fearful of entering any red states, where this legislation is likely to be enacted.

SS Rally (no not Hitler...we're not the new Pope, I'm talking about social security)

2005-04-26T16:38:00.000-04:00

Social security rally today - pretty good turnout - id say over 2,000, mostly AFSCME members wearing green "Don't Privatize Soc. Security" shirts. I'm a fan of the Privatize This shirt with an arrow pointing downwards, but haven't seen them printed yet...would be a good idea. But I think my concern in all of this is twofold. First, the lack of young people. There really weren't that many, save for the congressional staffers and the activists already working for the different progressive organizations. This is one of the only times I'll ever say this, but I agree (somewhat) with George Will, who says that the Soc Sec debate is one old folks should sit out. Why? Because this is not an issue that is going to affect them. Even if privatization passes, their benefits are safe, as far as I understand the issue. It's going to affect people of my generation, and perhaps some early 30 year olds. However, the reality is that old people vote in much higher numbers, so pandering is done to the elderly. If more younger people, those that actually will be affected by this issue, were to stand up, we would have more of a say...but that's a different issue. The second concern over this whole thing is the disconnect between issues like this, like DeLay's corruption, and so forth, and the ballot box. Clearly we've learned that pandering to your base can an election make (see past November), and that swing voters do not always make the difference. Is the increasing public disapproval of this administration on any number of issues at this stage or at a later stage prior to the 2006 mid-terms, actually going to have people voting for the opposite party? Before last year's elections, Bush was at incredibly low approval ratings on Iraq and the economy, yet he was re-elected. This can be attributed to the guns, abortion, and gays on the one hand, but also on a hurting Dem party unable to clearly delineate its own views, and a presidential candidate who screamed blue-blooded liberal even if he wasn't one (...).

Solutions? They've been discussed everywhere, on both the liberal-leaning and more moderate sides. But basically, a major issue is framing the debate on our terms, which I think we've been doing much better since the commencement of the new Congress, a more defined, simpler platform (...still needs work), and a strong leadership. That last factor is one I've discussed in previous posts, and is one that I think we've been doing an excellent job at, and significantly better than our opposition has done.

DC Baseball is awesome

2005-04-25T13:45:00.000-04:00

In other news, I'll be attending my third regular season game tonight (only series I haven't seen a game in was the Braves series, which was only 2 games) and fourth nationals game overall with my former roommate and current movie star (he's a dead ringer for Martin Freeman, a British actor who has been in The Office and will be appearing worldwide in The Hitchiker's Guide to the ~~Universe~~ Galaxy (thanks Stephanie)) Hic this evening. And thanks to my ingenuity, we will be dangling over the backstop in Sect 423 row one. Whoo. Zach Day vs. Corey Lidle. F the Phillies!!

James Dobson, my hero.

2005-04-25T10:45:00.000-04:00

I don't know if it's just a big news day or that I have nothing better to do at the moment, but here goes another one:

The "activist judge" and "obstructionist" arguments were two that I heard on the trail numerous times, too many to count. It's such a bs argument, one that we had numerous talking points for, but one that people were nevertheless unconvinced by. Now Senator Frist is appearing on religious tv and drawing a line between judicial nominees and religion? WTF?

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist delivered a taped speech Sunday to a nationwide broadcast in which Christian conservatives, during other segments, attacked Democratic senators for blocking judicial nominees described in the program as "people of faith."

Frist (R-Tenn.) avoided religious references in his six-minute video for "Justice Sunday," which sponsors said reached 61 million households. The hour-long telecast drew criticism from Democrats and some religious groups who said its theme inappropriately injected religion into a heated debate over the filibustering of some of President Bush's most conservative court nominees.

You want your court nominees to make it through, that's fine. You want them to be extremely ideological, and on your side, that's fine too. It happens. But you cannot fucking convince me that the Senate, which has the ride to avise and consent, cannot filibuster these extremist judges, so ideologically out of anywhere resembling a mainstream. You also cannot tell me that the Senate's leader is going to go onto a religious television show run by one of the demagogueist of the demagogues, James Dobson, and proselytize. You're going to say that Christians want these judges and no one else does? That Christians believe these judges are right, and that no other religion wants them, or that anyone who does not agree with them are not Christian? Fuck, man. What happened to separation of church and state? Manipulation and demagoguery were supposed to go out of style in the All the King's Men, George Wallace days...not supposed to continue into Reagan and Bush II.

James Dobson, chairman of Focus on the Family, spoke from the church's pulpit and criticized the Supreme Court, seven of whose nine members were named by Republican presidents. The court's majority, Dobson said, "are unelected and unaccountable and arrogant and imperious and determined to redesign the culture according to their own biases and values, and they're out of control."

The court's majority does not care "about the sanctity of life," he said. Pornography is a growing problem, he said, "plus this matter of judicial tyranny to people of faith, and that has to stop."

You hear that Dobson??? 7 of 9 were selected by REPUBLICANS. AND I'm fairly certain several were chosen by a man that you probably wouldn't consider conservative enough, one Ron Reagan.

Frist's role in the broadcast drew criticism.

"I think Senator Frist may have made as big a strategic political blunder in embracing Justice Sunday as he did in the Terri Schiavo case," said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. He was referring to Congress's effort to intercede in a brain-damaged Florida woman's case, which polls showed to be unpopular.

"The people he's dealing with are not going to rest until there's a constitutional Armageddon in which the religious right controls all three branches of government," Lynn said.

Now there's a Reverend I could hug. There is a religious left, people, and it's good men such as Reverend Lynn, Reverend Jim Wallis, the creator of Sojourners and everyday Christians, Catholics, Muslims and Jews. Not every God-fearing or God-loving religious American falls prey to the endearingly blasphemous, insulting, proselytizing, corrupting, hatred-filled words of Mr. Dobson and his brethren.

But wait, there's more...? Compromise? Why?

Meanwhile Sunday, there were hints of a possible compromise. Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.), a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, told ABC News's "This Week": "I think we should compromise and say to them that we're willing to -- of the seven judges -- we'll let a number of them go through, the two most extreme not go through, and put off this [rule-change] vote."

Now, I understand the motives behind such a compromise. Save some face. Allow this 'nuclear option' to be pulled off the table...but wtf...these are all extremist judges. All seven. Not just one or two. The republicans are losing this battle. Public opinion from their own polls has been leaked and shows under-40% support. Why give them this one? If I were Reid, I would not be interested in compromising on this issue. Republicans want to attempt to enact the nuclear option? Fine, fuck you. It's hardball, and giving in on this issue should not be an option.

The Wave of the (not so distant) Future

2005-04-25T10:09:00.000-04:00

A great analysis piece by that liberal bastion, the Washington Post

The article details Congressional Democrats and the unity they've shown in the 109th Congress under the leadership of Reid and Pelosi. Now, while I'm clearly a fan of Senator Daschle, Reid is doing an excellent job with such a clear minority in the Senate. Down six members, he's managed to win or prolong battles on a number of issues, which has deeply hurt the Republican Party's platform, agenda, and personnel. On Reid and Pelosi's leadership:

Democrats credit House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (Nev.) with promoting solidarity through pep talks, lectures on loyalty and constant reassurances that Republicans are overplaying their hand. But the GOP has inadvertently helped, they say, by unwisely diving into the Terri Schiavo case and by starting the year with a drive to rewrite Social Security, considered sacrosanct to the Democratic Party.

With the politicization of the Schiavo case by the Republicans, public opinion and the CW (conventional wisdom) that the Republican Party was the 'culture of life' party was turned upside down. In my opinion, the Schiavo case, while motivating the base, will deeply harm the moderate support. Yes, we've clearly learned that moderate support can be overrated (see Election 2004), but the politicization of this issue is a thorn in the side of the "mightier than thou" Republicans. Mel Martinez's memo, in which a senior aide spoke of the support the Repubs would gain from their work in the Schiavo case was a clear instance of over-playing their hand, and a dumbass move, regardless of your political take on it.

More impressive than the Republicans fuck-ups, however, is the resourcefulness of the Dems.

"I think after an extended period of reconsideration and soul-searching [following the 2004 elections], the Democrats have decided they're going to fight back," Baker said. "The sense that they were cowed was very widespread" in January, he said, "but I think they just realized what they suffered was a defeat, not a humiliation."

And from everyone's favorite piece of shit evangelical douche-bag who announces accomplishments in his first 100 days in congress,

"They've sounded to me what is a very surprisingly defiant tone, considering the outcome of the [2004] elections," said freshman Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.).

You mean, you respect us, John? Didn't seem that way on the trail. Although, I do have to get my hands on the video that we have of John Thune dancing at a Nativce American powwow, and then seeing us taping him, smiling for the camera, waving, and continuing to dance...if that footage got out...well...who knows.

Oh...he doesn't really respect us...:

"I think they're getting kind of heady about where they are at this point," Thune said, "but I don't think they can sustain it. . . . Eventually I think that strategy is very dangerous and a miscalculation on their part."

Here's my question: Couldn't the Post get anyone better to comment on this story than a shitty SD senator? Frist wasn't available for the conventional, "we'll beat them down with the nuclear option" quote? I guess they wanted to talk to the guy who beat Tom Daschle...too bad he's more of a puppet than the administration's head...Wadhams should be cackling to himself right now, if I know him at all...and I think I do.

But Thune acknowledged that Republicans at first wrongly assumed a few Democrats would compromise on stalled judicial nominations and that gave Democrats a head start in the public relations battle over federal courts. "I think it probably caught our guys a little off guard," he said.

Don't these quotes from Thune show exactly what the Republicans despise the most: respect for the other party? In the "mightier-than-thou," "our way or no way," "your with us or against us," "your evil" Republican party of today, is John Thune showing respect and admiration for the Democrats that are so evil and secular and not God-fearing as John Thune, his wife, his mistress, and his two 15-year-old annoying daughters who will no doubt be coke whores now that they are out of Rapid City and in DC at least part-time?

Senate Democratic leader Reid, who opposes legalized abortion and has a slightly more conservative reputation than Daschle, has especially intrigued Capitol insiders. Some predicted he would be more willing to deal with Republicans after last year's setbacks, but he has proven them wrong.

Damn straight he has. Reid is perfect for the Democrats' big umbrella. He is from a conservative state, he is relatively conservative, but HE IS A DEMOCRAT. He may not be on the same side of the abortion issue as more liberal Dems, but he is still a fighting Dem, and he can clearly lead, something that is sorely lacking on the other side of the aisle:

In the House, several Republicans privately worry they are losing the public relations battle over ethics, which centers on Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.). The GOP opened the year by changing ethics committee rules, making it harder to investigate complaints lodged against lawmakers. But Republicans have shown hints of retreat in recent days -- first by offering to waive the new standard in order to investigate DeLay, and later by Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) saying he would consider restoring the original rule altogether.

DeLay is going down. Hastert is a hack. Frist is a minion to the religious, extremist right, Santorum is going to lose by 10 points.

The Republicans kicked our ass in 2004, there is no question about it. However, the movement that got off the ground with Dean and the anti-war stance, flustered by abortion an gay marriage, is going to continue. With our strong leadership, at all levels (Dean is doing good work, Emmanuel at the D-Trip is off to a good start, recruiting some nice candidates, and Schumer, well, more on him in a moment...), and the future isn't nearly as bleak as it seemed. I am confident that our current and impending leaders are much more prepared to lead Congress and the nation than the other sides' status quo will be. We have reason for hope in the '05 election cycle, and while '06 is going to be tough, we're laying the foundation for a strong anti-corruption, corporate accountability, anti-religious extremism campaign.

Oh yea, and to sum it up, from that media whore from my home state for whom I interned:

"When we undertook this, we didn't think public opinion would be on our side," said Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.). "But it is."

NFL Draft

2005-04-25T09:43:00.000-04:00

A little off topic (but really what the hell is on topic, this is my blog...), but in reference to the NFL draft this past weekend - Giants handled themselves quite nicely for a team without a first-, fifth- or seventh- round pick. Picked up a former top-10 prospect (Webster) at the corner position out of LSU who'd fallen into the second round due to injury concerns, which makes him a huge potential value pick, but just as easily could result in a bust. If he plays as well as hoped for, Will Allen should be on the short list (read: the entire list) to be leaving after this season, and Webster should faithfully fulfill his starting role. Third round we picked up a DE from Notre Dame, last name Tuck. He's apparently pretty fast off the line, and is a potential starter in a year or two, whenever Strahan vacates the premises. With Osi Umenyiora and Mr. Tuck manning the two DE positions, I'd be fairly confident in us getting our fair share of sack opportunities. Fourth round we picked up a big (read: huge) back out of Division I-AA Southern Illinois. As the Star-Ledger says,

It's no secret Giants coach Tom Coughlin prefers big running backs, but this seems a bit drastic.

With their first selection on the second day of the draft yesterday (No. 9 in the fourth round and 110th overall) the Giants took Brandon Jacobs from Division I-AA Southern Illinois -- all 6-4 and 267 pounds of him.

Jacobs is the heir-apparent to Ron Dayne. Aside from their similarly large sizes, I hope the similarities end there, and Jacobs can actually establish himself as an RB capable of gaining the tough yards. He's played alongside Ronnie Brown and Cadillac Williams at Auburn before transferring to SIU and getting his own PT, so he seems capable of picking up the 3rd and 1's.

7th round we picked up another DE (can't have too many, ever - look what happened this past season...) I'm very happy with the moves we've made this past offseason. Picked up potentially the highest-rated wide receiver free agent in Plax, an MLB coming off a sick season in Antonio Pearce, a nice addition to the OL in Kareem McKenzie (which will allow Pettigout to move back to his natural position), a new kicker, and these players in the draft, all of whom have huge potential upsides. Now, we're clearly still nowhere near the level of the NFC elite, but with a big year out of Eli and Plax making some sick plays and a return to form by Strahan, we may be able to surprise some people and make our way into the playoffs. Regardless, I'm much more optimistic than I was at this point last season, and certainly moreso than the year before.

What about the other teams in the draft? Vikes did a nice job, as did the Cards. And holy shit, what's going to happen if Carlos Rogers stays healthy, Joey Harrington learns to throw, and the Lions receiving corps runs over the NFC. With the addition of Mike Williams, who will complement Roy and Carlos, the Lions have the potential to be the sickest wide receiving corps...ever? Before the draft, my inclination was that Mike Williams was the top WR in the draft. Sure, he's had a year off, but his 2003 season was amongst the better in NCAA history. Braylon Edwards may be faster, and Troy Williamson may be faster than anyone else in the draft, but my money is on Mike Williams as the #1 rookie WR this year.

Any thoughts on other teams?

Ethics? Who needs ethics?

2005-04-24T10:37:00.000-04:00

Shit's really falling in on Mr. DeLay. I'm not sure how this is going to play out, but you can't imagine this lasting much longer without him taking some sort of fall...although, with this administration, who the fuck knows?? They'll force Lott to give up his spot over comments about black people, yet they'll support Rumsfeld in the face of incredibly high pressure. However, with the lack of support over Schiavo and the nuclear option, I can't see them supporting DeLay that much longer, especially if anything else comes out. This guy's been admonished three times by the ethics committee and now there is documented proof that a trip he took was paid for illegally by a lobbyist...It's too bad this didn't happen last October or next October. It's gonna be gone from voters' minds, so the campaigns are going to have to work extra hard at maintaining corruption as a leading theme.

It's Called a Finger, but why doesn't it fing?

2005-04-22T10:07:00.000-04:00

The finger-gate plot thickens:

Anna Ayala was taken into custody at her home, San Jose police spokesman Enrique Garcia said. He said police would not give any details until a news conference Friday afternoon. Las Vegas police also refused to comment.

The arrest is the latest twist in the bizarre case about how the 11/2-inch fingertip ended up in a bowl of fast-food chili.

She was going to sue Wendy's but found the process too "emotionally taxing." Ha hahaha.

There's actually a relatively sad part to this story:

All the employees at the San Jose store were found to have all their fingers, and no suppliers reported any hand or finger injuries, the company said.

Sales have dropped at franchises in Northern California, forcing layoffs and reduced hours, the company said. Wendy's also has hired private investigators, set up a hot line for tips and offered a $100,000 reward for anyone who provides information leading to the finger's original owner.

Now, I'm all for litigation and trial lawyers. I don't think a few corrupt people in the system means that the entire system is corrupt. And when the right wing talks about tort reform this and activist judges that, I think it's bullshit. However, when a clearly BS case, like this one, comes up, it does show you that there are problems inherent in a litigious society as ours is. This woman has:

a litigious history. She has filed claims against several corporations, including a former employer and General Motors, though it is unclear from court records whether she received any money. She said she got $30,000 from El Pollo Loco after her 13-year-old daughter got sick at one of the chain's Las Vegas-area restaurants. El Pollo Loco officials say she did not get a dime.

So she's clearly a fucking kook. But what does it say about our system?

Sexy Beasts

2005-04-19T10:14:00.000-04:00

All right - this is too funny not to post on. Remember the girl from the first American Pie that is Jason Bigg's friend? And I think she tells people that Finch (or Shitbrick as I recall) has a big dick. Her name is Natasha Lyonne. Anyway, apparently her movie career hasn't been too hot lately or something, because she's take on a new role of being a crazy bitch (which is actually kinda more interesting, anyway:

Lyonne, 26, is charged with criminal mischief, harassment and trespass after an unexplained fit of rage last December when authorities said she banged on the door of her neighbor, stormed into the apartment and ripped a mirror from the wall.

Police called to the scene said Lyonne told the neighbor, "I'm going to sexually molest your dog."

Now come on. Who hasn't threatened to sexually molest a dog? Those poodles have it coming, wearing their skimpy sweaters and stuff.

It's GGGGG-reat!

2005-04-18T14:37:00.000-04:00

Seems like the NYC Mayor's race is heating up. First Bob Kerrey, a former Senator from the wonderful state of Nebraska (and a former potential VP and Prez candidate...) and current president of the New School talks smack on Bloomberg, then this, from Gifford Miller (speaker on the city council, and otherwise amusing guy) (from Hotline):

Gee, That's The Stupidest Idea Ever
Council Speaker Gifford Miller (D) spoke with New York Metro's Sargent on his campaign designed to appeal to what it has dubbed "Generation G." Miller, on Generation G: "It's not Generation X or Y. It's a broader group of young people, some of whom got into politics during the last presidential election and are looking to stay involved. ... Many young professionals aren't sending their kids to public schools. They get stuck on the subway because nobody's supporting the transit system. They're paying huge amounts for housing. A mayor can make a big difference on those, but Bloomberg says you can't solve problems. He'll say, It'll take a long time to reform schools. More Miller, on whether he is trying to turn his biggest liability into a strength: "Many cities have elected people in their thirties as mayor. ... But this is not just about my campaign. ... We need young people to value public service again" (4/18).

Now I don't know about you fellow campaign workers and activists, but Generation G sounds G-reat!!!!!!!!! Talk about a savvy media-man. He's got us young kids going. Generation G UNITE!!

Shockingly, 'nuclear option' political

2005-04-15T09:40:00.000-04:00

Frist wants to rid the Democrats of the ability to filibuster so he can get what the Senate and the country truly deserves, a straight up-and-down vote on judicial confirmations.

But what about the other side of what the Senate and the country deserves, the right to be free from a tyrannical majority? The filibuster has been in place for so many years in the Senate's rules for that express purpose - when one party or coalition of Senators is pushing hard for something, but an individual or a few individuals disagrees, they have a way to slow down, or stop the majority from doign so. You want straight power of the majority? Go to the House. The Senate is a different story Mr. Frist you tool of the right wing wackos. You insult the Senate and your own party. John McCain, a man who *used* to think on his own (before he blew that up with his own nuclear option of campaigning for the same president who had smeared his background four years ago) even says, "I will vote against the nuclear option . . . because we won't always be in the majority."

Goddamn right you won't always be in the majority. And with people like Bill Frist heading up your party in the Senate for a few more years, that end will be sooner than later. Fuck you, Bill Frist. Enjoy trying to blow up the Senate. Harold Ford here we come.

VA Gov

2005-04-14T09:51:00.000-04:00

Gonna be a good one. New reports already show that Kaine and Kilgore have collectively raised over 15 million dollars already, and it's not even summertime. Kaine, the Dem. nominee, and current Lieutenant governor, has outraised Kilgore, the current Attorney General, by an 8 million to 7 million dollar margin, keeping it very close.

A former Daschle staffer friend of mine is on the race - HI Jessica - so I have at least one personal tie to it. She's in the mountains of Roanoake, however, so she's about as far as my DC locale as one gets.

In other news - Friday is going to be a fun Daschle staff reunion party somewhere in Alexandria - should get to see lots of people from the campaign I haven't seen in months, and hopefully the Senator and his family will make it by.

Then Saturday, I will be attending the second ever home Nationals game - couldn't get a damn ticket to tonight's home opener. But look at those Nats go - 5-4 and tied for 1st place with the Braves and the Marlins - good shit.

yea

2005-04-13T16:39:00.000-04:00

been a while but i've been busy getting settled into my place. good times over here so far, got to go to a markup session - shockingly interesting. other then that, i'm just getting stuff going over here. learning about the west coast, my branches, and potential competitive campaigns out there in 06. more later.

The government wants to change when you sleep

2005-04-07T11:37:00.000-04:00

Falling under the strange and weird category of "what the government is working on" (although recently I guess that's not particularly a category unto itself...) If Reps. Markey (D) and Upton (R) have their way, Daylight Savings Time will be extended from early March to early November. This is actually kind of cool, becuase I rather enjoy sunlight and being outside.

Extending daylight-saving time makes sense, especially with skyrocketing energy costs," said Rep. Fred Upton, R-Michigan, who along with Rep. Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, co-sponsored the measure.

I guess that makes sense...

The government wants to change when you sleep

holy geez

2005-04-06T12:36:00.000-04:00

It's gonna hit 80 degrees today. Wow am I happy it's spring and summer.

UPDATE...apparently its 85 degrees out

What the fuck that's insane.

Going to my first baseball game of the season tonight - O's A's - good old Baltimore.

In with the new

2005-04-06T09:52:00.000-04:00

Well, it's over. My four plus month journey of unemployed-ness and searching for a fit has come to an end. I've accepted the first job I've been offered, because I don't know what other job could top this one. I am going to be in charge of the West region of the country for a 300k union (personally responsible for somewhere around 60k members). What's the West region? Glad you asked. It includes such highlights as Hawaii, California, Alaska, Nevada, Utah, and I assume Oregon and Washington (I'm unclear on the entirety of the region, but I'll find out soon enough).

Oh, and now that I'm not an unemployed democrat, I don't know what to do about the name of this site. I think I'll probably keep it as is, just because it's what I named it when I started it, but am open to new ideas...

huge news

2005-04-04T14:48:00.000-04:00

big news - i got a job offer this morning to work for a union. if i accept the job i'll be a regional coordinator, travelling up to 50% of the time over the next year in my region (either northeast or midwest), teaching members of the union labor issues, gaining more union support, and other stuff. then, come next june or so, i'd join a campaign (with a good deal of my input on the choice of a campaign) through election day.

the former DNC political director held this position, as have some other high ups in the democratic party, so it seems to be a really good starting point.

regardless im pumped.

RIP Schiavo...and RIP states' rights

2005-03-31T12:47:00.000-05:00

RIP to Terry Schiavo and condolences to her family. This is the day that should have come a long time ago. Not to be crass, but her husband, her legal guardian, has stated time and again that her request was to not live in the vegetative state she's been in for the past however so many years. While it's easily understandable that the Schindlers did not want to let go of their daughter, it's turned into a political ploy from, if not the Schindlers themselves, people in the immediate inner-circle of the Schindlers. In recent days, stories have emerged regarding the sale of contributor information to the Schindlers' cause. The lists are being sold to right-wing groups (anti-abortion, etc.) without the contributors acknowledgement. Aside from privacy violations, it's simply a sad state of affairs that something like this would occur. Granted, this issue has clearly become something larger than just Teri Schiavo, but the transparently political-ness of the situation is both sad and sickening. Memos from Republicans saying that this would rally their base and make the re-election campaign of Florida Senator Bill Nelson swing their way show the right wing's lack of integrity.

As a sidenote, what happened to the states' rights tenets of republicans and conservatives? Suddenly we have the federal government involving itself in these traditional states' rights issues, from NCLB to something like this. Instead of focusing on Teri Schiavo and passing legislation in the middle of the night that affects one person, why not work on fixing the health care system at large? Encourage living wills. Strengthen the qualifications of the doctors that work on people such as Teri Schiavo, so accidents like the one that occurred to her don't transpire as often.

Crazy baby lady gives birth to baby with umbilical cord before faking throwing him out of her car with her pants down.

2005-03-31T09:33:00.000-05:00

So a woman gives birth to her child on her own at a gas station. Then, naked from the waste down and with the umbilical cord still attached, she drives off to the hospital. Cops are alerted to a mistaken report of a woman trying to throw a baby out of her car, pull the woman over, she goes, 'no i cant throw the baby out if it's umbilical cord is still attached, and besides, i have no pants on' (i'm paraphrasing of course), the cops let her go, and the baby is in ICU. Wow. I hope my wife knows how to deliver her baby at a gas station too.

Crazy baby lady gives birth to baby with umbilical cord before faking throwing him out of her car with her pants down.

2005-03-30T23:57:00.000-05:00

And to finish off my trio of pictures, here's another one from SD. This is on the ranch where they filmed Dances with Wolves. In July, before the 90 hour work weeks (we were probably mid-60s at that point) we had a staff retreat. At the ranch we ate buffalo (incredible) and wandered around acres of open land in search of their buffalo. Luckily, we didn't run into them.

2005-03-30T23:55:00.000-05:00

Oh and here's me in South Dakota standing in front of the Corn Palace. If you've ever been there, you'll understand the confused look on my face.

2005-03-30T23:52:00.000-05:00

Anyone find this offensive? It's from my recent trip to Vegas...damn was that shit fun.

Chaos Theory

2005-03-28T20:05:00.000-05:00

Well, at least I now know what Justice at Stake is. Seems decent. Position pretty good - basically a researcher/media person...could be interesting. Not entirely sure I'm interested in the subject matter, but then again don't really know what I'm interested in anyway.

Sidenote - just watched Butterfly Effect. Now aside from the homosexual factor of watching a movie with Ashton Kutcher (Amy Smart makes up for it...she's good), this movie is a mind fuck. Who would have thought a teen movie with the Punk'd star would be as philosophical as anything I've seen since Matrix.

Basically, revolves around the Chaos theory, where the movie gets its name - a butterfly flapping its wings here can cause an earthquake somewhere else in the world. They added a fucked up story that involved pedophilia, killing dogs and children, fraternities and prison blow jobs, but the basic idea is really interesting...every action we take can have monumental effects on the future. For example, had I been more charismatic, friendlier, and more attractive during my interview today...or with the AFT...or with CAP...I could have a job and be on my way to my first million...fine some things are impossible regardless of choices, but seriously, that kinda shit fucks with my mind...is every decision the most important of your life? If so...don't fuck it up.

Job interview

2005-03-28T15:40:00.000-05:00

And so begins my spate of four job interviews in 24 hours. First up - Justice At Stake

Sounds like a decent research position...tomorrow, I'll be at MSHC Direct, a Dem direct mail firm looking for a database analyst (which I apparently am at least marginally qualified for, shockingly), a field mobilization organizer for the SEIU which pays really well and would be a good chance to get in with a growing union, and Street Law, which I don't really know much about, but must have sounded good when I applied for it so I'll interview anyway...

Off to Justice at Stake.

Indonesia

2005-03-28T12:36:00.000-05:00

Apparently another tsunami may be hitting...
8.2 earthquake hit off the southwest coast of Indonesia - experts fear "[t]here is a potential for some wave activity," said Julie Martinez, a geophysicist at the U.S. Geological Survey's National Earthquake Information Center, in Golden, Colorado.

Update 3:35 PM

Fifty people died on the island of Nias, near the epicenter of a massive earthquake off the coast of Indonesia, a government official there told CNN. The U.S. Geological Survey has raised the magnitude of Monday's earthquake that shook Southeast Asia today to 8.7.

8.7 is an incredibly strong earthquake. Luckily it looks like the threat of another tsunami has passed.

Update 8:45 PM
1,000-2,000 people dead in the same country devastated by the tsunami 3 months ago. No tsunami coming, but shit man...you gotta wonder.

(an)employed democrat?

2005-03-22T16:45:00.000-05:00

Well...only kinda. Temping at the Assoc of Trial Lawyers of America - may as well be working for the Dem party the way they're looked at. Pays pretty well, get to work with two friends, sit in an office of my own...and copy edit. Great times...

Some progress on the real job front though. Had an interview with the Council on Foreign Relations yesterday, one with the National Association of Letter Carriers (not to be a letter carrier, but to represent them) tomorrow, and one with the SEIU on Tuesday. However, still no offers...I'm getting antsy.

It's kinda cool working in Georgetown, basically on M Street right by Mr. Smith's, but it's one hell of a bitch to get to from Woodley Park. Not complaining though, as I said, pays well.

Wolfie

2005-03-16T11:29:00.000-05:00

I was just thinking how I don't blog enough, and then I run into this.

Wolfowitz tapped for World Bank.

Who the fuck is kidding who???

President Bush outlined the reasons he chose Wolfowitz in a news conference Wednesday, calling him "a man of good experience."

A man of good experience getting us into unjustified wars should be the President of the World Bank, an organization that's supposed to give money to poor countries. Of course, this was prior to reading, and remembering, this:

Radelet said McNamara was accused of channeling aid to nations based not on need but on their support of U.S. policy.

So the former Pres of the World Bank was accused of cahnneling money based on support of US policy, then we put in a neo-conservative who was one of the integral architects of the Iraq war, a war in which, those that "weren't with us, were against us," and where we wouldn't give rebuilding contracts to those countries that didn't support the war militarily.

This is all a little bit troubling...Good thing the World Bank is at least relatively useless already. We wouldn't want to ruin an important institution with a bad choice for US representation...oh....wait...the UN. Right.

In Other News

2005-03-14T16:28:00.000-05:00

Anybody else have trouble untying those twistie tie things on bread loaf bags and other assorted grocery products? Or is it just a lack of manual dexterity on my part?

More DeLay ethics issues

2005-03-10T15:00:00.000-05:00

From the Post:

A delegation of Republican House members including Majority Leader Tom DeLay accepted an expense-paid trip to South Korea in 2001 from a registered foreign agent despite House rules that bar the acceptance of travel expenses from foreign agents, according to government documents and travel reports filed by the House members.

They just can't seem to keep out of the ethics committee.

What's with DeLay? The guy has the rules changed on his behalf, and still can't manage to keep himself nor his staff out of the limelight.

It continues to boggle the mind as to how the 'family values,' 'moral values,' holier than though coalition manages to evade more negative press for their ethics issues.

Terps

2005-03-10T14:42:00.000-05:00

Terps sweep Duke yet lose three to Clemson, including today, when they get knocked out in the first round of the ACC. Go figure. Stupid Turtles.

I eagerly await the day that American University is a basketball powerhouse. So in 40 years or so, watch out.

NY Gov race

2005-03-09T18:30:00.000-05:00

Sure, it's not for another 19 or so months, but I'm looking forward to my douchebag governor Pataki going down. Acording to The New York Newsday a Siena poll shows:

The Siena College Research Institute poll had Spitzer leading Pataki, 53 percent to 30 percent, up from a 51 percent-to-35 percent lead for the attorney general in a Siena poll last month.
...
In the new Siena poll, just a quarter of voters said the state was on the right track, down from 32 percent in Siena's February poll.

While I'm clearly unhappy that for the next 19 months, we have to continue to be on the wrong track, I'm pumped for Spitzer to take over. I volunteered at an event of his in January, heard him speak, and met his deputy campaign director - good guy. Unfortunately they aren't hiring in the immediate future, or else I might still be in NY working for him. Nonetheless, this is good news. It'll hopefully start with the defeat of Bloomberg by Ferrer (the likely candidate) or someone else sneaking in (Weiner? But who could really vote for a Mayor named Weiner...)

I'm back baby - DC

2005-03-07T18:11:00.000-05:00

To all of my dedicated readers (note sarcasm), sorry for the extended break. While I still am an unemployed democrat, I've actually been getting some interviews, taking up some of my waking hours. This does not explain my complete absence, as I know many of you depend on me as a source for hard-hitting news, but what can I say. It's DC - there are things to do around here, even if you're unemployed. Ever visit a back-alley in SE? Yea, me neither, but I bet it'd be fun...

So far, I've received calls from the
American Federation of Teachers,
The National Association of Letter Carriers,
Factcheck.org
and American Progress

Not a bad combination.

It's way different being down here and actually being able to make it to an interview the next day or in two days, than having to traverse several states from my former HQ up in New York. It's nice to be back - definitely happy to not be stranded in my home with nothing to do and no one to hang out with. Still would make me happy to have a job/income/sense of purpose at some point soon at the least. I'm headed in the right direction. Stay tuned for some actual news-related postings.

Things I'm excited for

2005-02-17T22:48:00.000-05:00

In honor of my impending return to the District (I move down towards the end of next week, still jobless, mind you), a list of the things I am looking forward to:

1. A high-speed internet connection, and not having to use my mom's Juno dialup

2. Adam's Morgan/Woodley Park area - this is my new home. I am pumped to be able to walk 10 minutes to the best bars in DC and be able to stumble home a few hours later.

3. Living in an apartment. Living in a house was fun, with a backyard and all, but we actually had to take care of shit. This way, we don't have to worry about shoveling, don't have to put the garbage out every other day.

4. The Nationals - this is huge. I love baseball and not having to sit through shitty Orioles games (although with Sosa they may become a bit more fun) after 45 minute drives is clutch. Also, I don't have to worry about whether or not to root for the Nationals. With the O's there was the whole NY thing and I couldn't root for them, even if they were as sad as they've been the past few years. Nats, good or bad, will be my team.

5. Getting out of this house - I have been stuck in reverse life for the past 2 months. I wake up at 2 or 3pm and stay up til 5 or 6 am. While this is fun on a Saturday or Sunday after drinking the night away, it's fucking disconcerting 7 days a week. I barely see sunlight, and hardly know what day it is. I'm a vampire. And while a return to DC doesn't mean immediate changes to my schedule, I'm heading in the right direction.

6. Friends...well people I hang out with at least. Hard to say wehther many of them are actually 'friends.' But people here in my hometown are few and far between, and people I care for are even more so. I'll be sad to leave my friends, but very excited to get back to the ones I have in the district.

7. A...........JOB?? Well no guarantees, as that would make the unemployed democrat an employed democrat (unless I have to join the Greens or something for a job). While I have no solid opportunities right now, I am just one interview away from getting something good. Optimism is difficult in this market, but I somehow believe in my strengths. And with the knowledge I have of some of the people I know having jobs that can't spell on a fourth grade level - I should be a lock...to at least be a shitty assistant... ha.

White House Press Passes, aka free passes given out to porn proprietors

2005-02-16T16:05:00.000-05:00

The whole Gannon/Glickert thing is really quite amusing. A man solicits gay military porn sites (which as a liberal I couldn't care less about stopping), receives a White House press pass after being unable to receive one for Congress, has the president call on him for questions, gets to look at classified information and actually plays a role in the Plame affair, resigns after the '"left-wing blogosphere" threatens him and his family', and there's not much uproar about it.

What would have happened had this occurred during the Clinton years? Somehow I sense Ken Starr would have already issued a few subpoenas.

Now, I realize some, like Slaughter, have sent FOIA requests to get to the bottom of the press pass issue. The Plame side of the story, however, is just as important. Look what's happening to Judith Miller and Matthew Cooper. They're being threatened with jail time for not revealing their sources, while Novak, the guy who wrote the initial story, has had no spotlight shone upon his head.

DAMN LIBERAL MEDIA!!

Academic Freedom

2005-02-16T15:50:00.000-05:00

I've been checked out the past week, but here's some fun news from the Center for American Progress' Daily Grill:

"If you have your rights abused in a college course (e.g. unfair grading, one-sided lectures, stacked reading lists), please report this abuse." – David Horowitz's Academic Freedom Abuse Center

VERSUS

Description of complaint: "I know the paper was pretty much great because I spell checked it and proofred [sic] it twice. I got an [sic] D- just because the professor hates families and thinks its [sic] okay to be gay." – Database Entry, Anonymous Ohio State Student, 2/9/05

Horowitz is the muse behind a recent Ohio initiative to remove free speech from the classrooms by placing the academic oversight of Ohio universities into the courts and state governemnt because of the 'liberal bias' on college campuses. This comes from a man who, according to CAP,

has a distinguished history of intellectual defamation, historical inaccuracy and political bullying. He has freely compared American liberals to Islamic terrorists, slandered the Democratic Party and John Kerry for criticizing the war in Iraq and made a habit out of accusing his detractors of racism. Most recently, when African-American historian John Hope Franklin questioned Horowitz's 2001 claim that black people benefited from slavery and owed a "debt" to white America, Horowitz responded by calling the eminent historian "a racial ideologue rather than a historian" and "almost pathological." Horowitz has no academic credentials and routinely distorts facts – exactly the crime he accuses "liberal" professors of committing – to fit his political bias. (Share your thoughts on David Horowitz at ThinkProgress.org)

I feel all warm inside. David Horowitz, this lynching is for you!

Deficit reduction?

2005-02-08T23:09:00.000-05:00

Speaking of ridiculous, from the Washington Post:

Bush's budget, which is only a blueprint for Congress to follow or ignore, proposes reducing health care programs, farm subsides and scores of other programs but produces only minimal, if any, deficit reduction next year.

However, the Post apparently has a soul on this issue

In a broad economic speech touching on issues including tax cuts and trade, Bush said Congress has a responsibility to confront long-term financial problems facing America, such as the solvency of Social Security. But his budget does not account for the huge costs of creating personal Social Security accounts, making permanent the tax cuts enacted over the past four years and continuing the war in Iraq.

(emphasis added)

It's funny how Bush enjoys following the starve the beast model of conservative rule, yet somehow still manages to come up way over budget fiscal year after fiscal year. It's even funnier how the rest of the conservatives fawn over him, apparently suddenly unconcerned about the 'fiscal responsibility' they and their party have continued to lose a hold upon over the past few decades.

Can I really fault them, though? They unite behind their president much as we (progressives, liberals, democrats...smart people) were behind a very flawed, pro-Iraq war Kerry.

Dean may have been a lot of things, but pro-war and fiscally irresponsible he was not. I did not throw my support behind Dean in the primaries, mainly because I didn't know enough about him, but retrospectively, I'm disappointed by his loss. I truly feel as though he may very well have stood a better chance against the Republican Noise Machine than Kerry. Aside from his early anti-war stance, he's a better, more passionate speaker, can much more easily articulate his points, and would have been harder to tag as a rich northeastern liberal. Now, yes, he is a rich northeastern liberal, but his background as a doctor may have been more appropriate than Kerry's 'career politician, silver spoon' label.

Dean's run as chairman should be a step in the right direction. His status as a reform Democrat, and his belief in the decentralization of the party to the state and local level should prove prosperous. There is without a doubt a continued movement from Dean's candidacy, and having him as the new chairman represents an overturn in the party from within. While some of the big donors used to the old ways of the party may be turned off, I am confident that the new machine will run as smoothly, if not more smoothly, than the McAuliffe years. I read a study showing that over 20% of the Democratic party donated to the committee this year, representing something like a three-fold increase from the previous presidential cycle. And, most of these were from donors giving less than $100. These people are new to the political game, new to donating, and new to the progressive cause, at least an organized one. If we can utilize our power, from the 'netroots' to the streets, and actually figure out a proper use for blogs, internet technology, and the traditional campaign styles, we'll be on our way...big if I guess...I'll be working on it, whether employed by the party or someone else.

Pea - Tear Griffin

2005-02-07T01:54:00.000-05:00

Well, looks like I wasn't too far off on my SB prediction. Had the winner right, but they didn't beat the spread. Overall, pretty boring game, and the lack of entertaining commercials really stunk...I mean honestly, what happened to the days of the Bud Bowl, the frogs, anything even mildly entertaining. Instead we're left with Dennis Rodman in a hot tub and monkeys and children galore.

I had been watching those old highlight reel shows on ESPN2 and realized that the mid-90's games up until 2000 with Dyson almost making it into the end zone but being stuffed on the one really were some great games. I'm not sure what it is, maybe since the Giants blew up their chance at winning a championship in '01, or my lack of a rooting interest in tonight's game - really hating the Eagles but not particularly wanting the Pats to win either - made for a bad game tonight.

And American Dad - what a disgrace. First of all, for the guy to be a hardcore conservative is upsetting in its own right. Secondly, the jokes were so far off the mark, it wasn't even funny in a bad way. It was the worst kind of Family Guy ripoff from the show's own creator - who woulda expected that. It's not like he doesn't have access to the same material for both shows.

At least it's a new week, right!!! Whoo. Three more weeks til my birthday (and the mid-20s - sounds like shit) and my return to DC. Should be fun when I am essentially broke and have to pay rent. However, I'm excited to get back down there, where I will have an opportunity to lead a normal life.

Ah well, three more weeks of movies, video games, books and maybe some temp work, interspersed with more job searching.

Super Bowl, or how i learned to stop worrying and hate the super bowl

2005-02-05T01:03:00.000-05:00

I'm sick and tired of hearing about the Super Bowl. How many stories are we hearing about the following topics?

-Return of TO
-Vinatieri's specialness
-Incredible coaches
-Last year's halftime show and this year's censorship

I find it perhaps most ironic that a network that has previously aired "Who's Your Daddy," a television show about a woman trying to find her biological father, "World's Scariest fill in the blank," and every other piece of disgusting garbage is censoring Mickey Rourke's ass, a Bud commercial about Janet Jackson and who knows what else from the Superbowl. What kind of shit ass hypocritical society do we live in? I couldn't care less what kind of crap is on the Superbowl's halftime or commercials. More power to the commercial advertisers who think an 85-year old man's ass is going to sell more cold medicine. I understand, I don't have children, but can't our society handle censoring our own fucking children? For God's sake, the fcc really can go to hell.

Oh and as to the game - I'm going back and forth on how it's going to go. Pats can really kill them, but then again, it could be a real close game. I gave the Colts and Steelers the benefit of the doubt, so I don't know if I should do the same for the Eagles...the Pats are from such a superior conference, it's an embarassment. Then again, Superbowls often don't go as scheduled (see Pats upsetting Rams)...with that said, I also don't know who to root for. Eagles are in my team's (Giants) division, so it hurts to root for them, but Pats could end up being far too dynastic for my liking. Yankees should be the only recent dynasty, but I'll be rooting for the Nats to begin a new late 2000 decade string of championships. All this leads me to go with the following prediction:

Pats 34 - Eagles 24

Gonzales

2005-02-03T19:02:00.000-05:00

From the Post:

The six Democrats who voted for [Gonzales] were Mary Landrieu (La.), Joseph I. Lieberman (Conn.), Ben Nelson (Neb.), Bill Nelson (Fla.), Mark Pryor (Ark.) and Kenneth Salazar (Colo.). All but Lieberman are from states that Bush carried in November.

Only six - good news, I guess. But these six, especially Lieberman...come on now. Lieberman is extremely far to the right on cultural issues, we know this. But to vote in favor of torture is pretty inexcusable. This guy is from a safe state, and has no excuse to be kissing the president's ass this much. Did you see him at the SOTU last night? He was pretty much the first guy to jump up and hug Bush after the speech. I thought he had turned down a spot in the Cabinet? Still auditioning?? Lieberman is going to be targeted in primaries, and unless the guys a certifiable wacko, I'll be supporting him.

An...interview?

2005-02-03T18:55:00.000-05:00

Had a phone interview today. For a small consulting firm, lady that is in charge of Democratic GAIN, which I've previously been offered a position within. Only problem? Solely administrative work. Just not interested in that kind of paper-pushing stuff unless it's on the hill - even then I'm going to be looking for substantive work attached to a staff assistant position. Maybe it's asking a lot - but a guy that has gone through four years of schooling, has a decent internship and work history should be capable of handling something better than a secretary position...here's hoping.

SOTU

2005-02-02T23:00:00.000-05:00

Flowery language + simple ideas + appeals to emotion + manipulation = Bush

This equation appears to be the much repeated, often successful strategy for our current administration. Now, this has been done before, no doubt. I appreciate flowery language. I appreciate simple ideas. I even appreciate the occasional tug at the heartstrings. However, manipulation angers me. Using 9/11, coupled with the improper war, to justify the desecration of our domestic policy is immoral. This president has succeeded at starving the beast. Conservative policy welcomes war, because, with a focus and extensive funding on war, it's that much simpler to cut programs and entitlements to the people that actually need it back home. $300 million for Palestine, $80 billion for Iraq, billions for Afghanistan - all well and good, but what the fuck is going on back home? Oh yea, sorry we can't fund those programs. You have to do it on your own. So while the rich enhance their wealth and close ranks the middle and poor class continue to have their testicles cut off.

Additionally, is it me, or is Pelosi just not really the right person for our message. I understand she's been there before but tonight really seemed exceedingly mechanical, robotic...she looks like a bad mannequin. I'm willing to give Reid some time - he's off to a good start, and has certainly reined in the party.

On a sidenote- Salazar, CO's new senator, is a piece of garbage. I knew it since I saw his MTP debate with Coors. He's a moderate Republican, not a conservative Democrat. I'm happy to have his vote on organizing matters and such, but a guy that votes for Gonzales, a guy that speaks in favor of Gonzales, is not a Democrat. You just got in, Salazar. Show some balls and vote against a guy that has endangered our troops and the future of our nation by endorsing torture by the US, or admit that you're a damn Republican.

Anyway, I'm moving down in T-minus 20 some odd days, and still no good job prospects. I'm still optimistic...I am a democrat after all.

Yeesh.

2005-02-02T22:45:00.000-05:00

This past week has been something out of a tax code...long and uneventful. Being unemployed is boring. It's insomnia, constipation, and vomiting mixed into one long expulsion of energy and wasted mental capacity. I mean for godssakes, I know that I would do a better job than 33% of the current population of DC's entry-level employed population without more than a 50% effort 35 hours a week. Yet I'm on the other side looking in, after four years of going to school in DC, about 7 internships, and a campaign job. Tight job market? Apparently. I've applied to a shit-load of jobs, some not even government relations-related. Problem is - few things even seem that appealing. The excitement and unbridled enthusiasm (forgive the cliche) of the past five months of my employed life seem to tower over any job opportunities I've thus far been presented with. Picky? I suppose...but I haven't even had the chance to be picky with job offers, because I haven't been offered a job. Here's to hoping that some of these hill jobs and other random craps that I've applied for hits big, or that I come upon some sort of inner-epiphany matched with an outer-explosion of that 'perfect job' or at least one that I'll apply to because it pays well. Because if not, I can see it now...waitering/serving/temping for a few months, here I come.

2005-01-23T17:59:00.000-05:00

Fucking Eagles

Vegas Baby

2005-01-20T02:50:00.000-05:00

It was a good weekend. Vegas was most definitely entertaining. I would've liked some more What happens there stays there moments, but whatever.

Highlights include:
-One guy, trashed off his ass, inadvertently (we think) hanging out with a pair of hookers. He was stripped naked and told he would owe 1K. He ran away.
-Me suggesting Alex and I get some "Ugly Sticks" from Coyote Ugly at NY, NY (our hotel) after getting pretty drunk at the Hard Rock (a highlight of its own). Even better was my suggestiong of the 'single shot' (really 4) added for $1 to the yardstick worth of frozen margarita type shit.
-Post-2 yard sticks, passing out on the caino floor, vomiting in the casino bar
-Having a boxer-clad wrestling match with Alex in the hotel room after he dropped elbows on me to get me to wake up
-Alex then vomiting for 3 hours in the bathroom
-Losing 75$ on the Colts (really a lowlight)

All in all a good trip...Did pick outright winners (betting-wise) in three of the four games, but lost due to the spread in the Steelers.

Poker also enjoyable - doubled up a few times before eventually losing.

Real fun time.

In other news - I got an apartment in DC, so the Unemployed Dem will be no longer Unemployed in NY, but instead in DC. Here's to hoping I end up bartending for the next four years (note sarcasm...to some extent).

As to this weekend's football games (outright winners only - fuck the spreads!)
Eagles 24, Falcons 20
Pats 17, Steelers 13

Think I'd rather see the Falcons just because of Vick, but I don't think they've got enough...then again we know what's happened to the hated Eagles. I don't know how many other teams I hate more than the Eagles or the Pats...I guess I'd be rooting for the Pats in the Superbowl if it came to it...but here's to hoping the Falcons can somehow find something in them and then somehow beat the Pats....ha.

2005-01-09T20:29:00.000-05:00

What a ridiculous spate of games this weekend. If I'd bet, I would have won a single one of the four. Damn Packers...they stink. What a great shame the NFC will prove to be if it's Vikings-Rams in two weeks. Two 8-8 teams making it to the finals. It's not that unlikely, considering the Falcons' dependence on one player and the Eagles lack of a big-play man.

Before the spreads come out, these are my early picks for next week's outright victors:

Falcons 35, Rams 31
Eagles 30, Vikings 27
Colts 20, Pats 17
Steelers 17, Jets 14

Mark my words - I'll be wrong on at least two of these.

My second reference to California girls

2005-01-09T04:16:00.000-05:00

I tell you what. Football. It's something. It's on what, three days max per week, yet it manages to captivate me, nearly every other 12-59 year old man, and a good number of women every week. Maybe it's the parity, maybe it's the hard hitting, who the fuck knows, who cares. It's without a doubt the most entertaining professional sport today. And today I had a reason to be awake, with the start of the new season, where as the always entertaining Herm Edwards said "all teams are 0-0." Now I take this man with a grain of salt, as he also said that "You play to win the game, not to lose" and "You got to be on the bus. Some people sit in the back, some in the front, but to win in the playoffs, you have to be on the bus."

Anyway - those fucking Jets won. I have no reason to hate them other than that I'm a Giants fan and it's the same as if I cheered for the Mets at any point- it just doesn't feel right. And Ladanian is quite possibly the best back in the league, so why root for the Jets? Oh, and San Diego. Aside from being conservative, I'd love to live there. Those fucking hot women and sunny days.....

Right, football...I didn't pick either team that won today, which bodes well for Bellagio and the Stardust next weekend. Well, at least I get the free top-shelf liquor. So I'll be drunk when I lose money. That'll make for a pleasant time.

A Day in the Life...

2005-01-08T15:18:00.000-05:00

Well, here I am again. Back in the same spot I was last week at this time. Oh, it's about 2 PM on a Saturday, and I've been awake for what, a half an hour now? This could signify a big Friday night that I'm recovering from...or just my regular schedule. These days I don't have any reason to wake up before 1 or so, so it's all good.

I'm an unemployed Democrat. That's right people, a Democrat. It's okay to admit it. I'm a LIBERAL. It's not a bad word. It's just the crazy right-wing that's taught you to think that it is.

But this blog isn't really going to be focused on politics so much as the life of an unemployed hopeful politician.

I'd like to use this site as a forum for all of us unemployed Democrats. But also, for the employed Democrats, here's an idea of what your missing by actually having to go to work.

My Thursday schedule:

10:30 AM: Wake up. Damn, this is the earliest I've been up since I've stopped temping a week or two ago.
10:35 AM: Turn on the TV, remember that the AG hearings are today, and begin to watch Alberto Gonzales impugn and perjure himself repeatedly.
11:30 AM: Wish that I was working for Kennedy, Byrd, or my home-state Senator, Schumer.
12 PM: Doze off.
12:30 PM: Remember that I haven't eaten in 20 hours, prepare a bowl of Cocoa Pebbles.
1 PM: Catch some debate on the objection by Tubbs and Boxer of the Ohio certification.
(Just a thought here: Shouldn't California have some more attractive female politicians? Yea, maybe a bit sexist, but Boxer and Pelosi aren't California girls.)
3PM: Head to my local library. This is where my day really gets going, as I'm actually leaving my house.
3:15 PM: Use the high-speed connection in the library. When dial-up at home just won't do.
4:30 PM: Catch the end of the Gonzales hearing and all the excited talking heads on the news channels. (Another thought - while I'm happy to bid adieu to Tucker Carlson on crossfire, who are they replacing him with?)
8PM: Eat lunch.
10PM: "Go out"

As a primer for those not from Yorktown Heights, New York (or anyone else not from a suburb more than a half hour or forty-five minutes, ie a relatively long drive, from a major city), going out around here consists of going to another friend's house and sitting around complaining of a lack of things to do, going to a shitty bar and seeing the people from high school who are here working in town year-round (God, do I hate them), or in our case, videotaping ourselves looking like asses. We've developed a good system for this through the years. It began with us just pulling out a videotape and acting childish. Now, however, with a bit more experience under our belt, we videotape events, music videos, scenes from movies, scavenger hunts (more on these later, as they probably are a highlight for all of Yorktown) or any other dumb Jackass-like shit that comes into our minds.
I don't really recall what the fuck we did this particular night, and it really doesn't matter - they all run into each other.

Anyway, this just gives a good example of the shit going on around here.

My days since mid December when I got back from the campaign and the subsequent road trip with campaign friends and week-long trip to DC to see school friends have consisted of temping, watching football on the weekend, and now preparing to go to Las Vegas. Yup that's right, I decided what way to better spend the few remaining dollars I have then a trip to Vegas with my friends from home to celebrate one of our birthdays by blowing every last dollar on booze, strippers, NFL playoff gambling and Texas Hold 'Em. In an attempt to retain some of my dollars, I've even taken up PartyPoker.com, with the few minutes of spare time I have. I'll tell you what, playing with play money on PartyPoker, I really feel like I can compete out there. But somehow I think that's a bad idea.

2005-01-08T14:54:00.000-05:00

I like this donkey. He's got a nice bowtie on.