The National Conference for Media Reform
is an event you don't want to miss. Thousands of media reformers from across the country will converge in Memphis, Tennessee on Jan. 12-14, 2007.
There is something going on under our noses and behind our backs, concerning our media access to reliable and truthful news reporting.
The media conglomerates, mega mergers and Concentration of Ownership has greatly diminished (if not crippled altogether) our right to receive honest reporting of US and World happenings. You may wonder why this has been allowed to happen. In a word, PROFITS.
Local news is disappearing and in it's place are large corporate media giants that will give you only one side of the events from around the globe and locally. Corporate media headquarters will be peddling, what they want you to believe and convince you how to behave. Whether it be to hate, love war, scandal mongering of their opponents, or whatever is in their best interests, you will only hear and see what they want you to digest. A one sided bias account of faux bulletins. This is how they control, this is how they retain power and this
is how they sustain enormous profits.
Their goals are to ensure that the 'great beast', as Alexander Hamilton called the people (the masses) does not stray from their proper confines -- paraphrased from Noam Chomsky's book
HEGEMONY OR SURVIVAL--
by Noam Chomsky
Metropolitan Books
2003
Noam Chomsky's latest book, "Hegemony or Survival," presents a view of American foreign policy, which lies in stark contrast to that depicted by corporate media, popular pundits, and US heads of state. With the fall of the Soviet Union, the US has emerged as the preeminent superpower of the world and Chomsky dissects with meticulous research how the United States has chosen to leverage that position to pursue an "imperial grand strategy", which will ensure itself "unilateral world domination through absolute military superiority". More Here
Please click on the theater picture of Amy Goodman above to watch the "Democracy Now" show which touches eloquently on this very subject. And attend THE NATIONAL CONFERENCE FOR MEDIA REFORM in January which should be an eye opening and totally entertaining event... We cannot allow them (THE GLOBALIZATION BULLIES) to keep us from the DIRTY TRUTH. thinkingblue
PS: Watch the below powerful interview with the Dixie Chicks on
Hardball. They tell, how media control tried to destroy them.
MORE INTERESTING READS
The World Financial Condition Is a House of Cards
CAROLYNCONNETION - I've got a mind and I'm going to use it!
YOU CAN BEAM ME UP NOW, SCOTTIE. 
Thinkingblue
habeas corpus n. Law. One of a variety of writs that may be issued to bring a party before a court or judge, having as its function the release of the party from unlawful restraint.
We are all up for grabs now... Bush has finally succeeded in murdering the writ of Habeas Corpus with the help of the majority Republican house/senate and a handful of Democrats who feel no shame. AND THAT'S NOT THE WHOLE OF IT, it doesn't end there!
I swear, this does not feel like America, it doesn't even feel like reality. We are living in a nightmare, with feelings of intense fear, horror and distress, since Bush and his neo-cons got their wish for another Pearl Harbor so they could finally put to practice and satisfy their lust for WORLD DOMINATION... AND IT KEEPS GETTING WORSE.
Make no mistake, we are not breathing the wondrous fragrance of democracy we are choking down the thick odious ooze of belligerent nationalism. What this small group of plutocrats is accomplishing by degrees, is a re-shaping of our idea of what democracy is. Their first objective is to turn the perception of democracy from a liberal one to an illiberal one. Without our consent and doing so RIGHT BEFORE OUR EYES!
But good news! Bit by bit I'm glad to say we are finally brushing the neo-con wool, from our eyeballs... and waking up to their dastardly schemes.Although, we must be very careful, for their ambition, at the moment (especially, since they are sensing they may lose some of their powers)is to housebreak liberals. Yes, I have a feeling that they, with the help of the conservative news media, who are constantly bombarding us with polls showing Democratic contenders WAY OUT AHEAD, are hoping to convince the average liberal (who prefer not to get involved in politics because they are too busy... TRYING TO PUT A ROOF OVER THEIR HEADS AND FOOD ON THE TABLE) that they need not go out and vote CLICK HERE FOR ELECTIONS 2006 UPDATES
because we (DEMS) ARE GONNA WIN ANYWAY!
Beware, we need to spread the message these few weeks before the mid-term elections, TO VOTE, GET OUT AND VOTE, WHATEVER IT TAKES CAST YOUR VOTE, before the neo-con VERMIN complete their plans of first turning our Nation into an ILLIBERAL democracy and then ON TO FASCISM! Sadly, THIS IS NO JOKE! thinkingblue aka Carolyn
PS: NEED TO VOTE EARLY OR BY ABSENTEE BALLOT CLICK HERE and please read the eye-popping information below from the http://en.wikipedia.org
HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT OUR DEMOCRACY USED TO LOOK LIKE:
thinkingblue
Liberal Democracy
Liberal democracy is a representative democracy (with free and fair elections) along with the protection of minorities, the rule of law, a separation of powers, and protection of liberties (thus the name liberal) of speech, assembly, religion, and property.
The term "liberal" in "liberal democracy" does not imply that the government of such a democracy must follow the political ideology of liberalism. It is merely a reference to the fact that the initial framework for modern liberal democracy was created during the Age of
Enlightenment by philosophers advocating liberty. They emphasized the right of the individual to have immunity from the arbitrary exercise of authority.
HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT OUR DEMOCRACY HAS BECOME UNDER THE BUSH NEO-CONS: thinkingblue
Illiberal Democracy
Illiberal democracy is one where the protections that form a liberal democracy are either nonexistent, or not enforced. Illiberal democracy could be any democracy that is not a liberal one. However, the term is almost always used to denote a particularly authoritarian kind of representative democracy, in which the leaders and lawmakers are elected by the people, but do not respect rights and liberties. This has the effect of cutting off the people from real power.
An illiberal democracy is marked by the tension between how a government is selected and how that government behaves. Illiberal democratic governments believe they have a mandate to act in any way they see fit, disregarding laws or the constitution if they desire, as long as they hold regular elections. They often centralize powers both between branches of the national government (having no separation of powers) and between different levels of government and private associations. The former is more noticeable, the latter more common.
Another characteristic is that the lack of rights such as freedom of speech and freedom of assembly make opposition to the rulers extremely difficult. Television and radio is often controlled by the state and strongly support the regime. Non-governmental organizations may face onerous regulations or simply be prohibited. The regime may use red tape, economic pressure, or even violence against critics. (Such as murdering HABEAS CORPUS! thinkingblue) from
I dropped a little note of appreciation to the author of the webpage called NO JOKE. I would like to include it (the note) here: Thanks so much for your site with pictures, and jokes to lighten our burden of this despicable Iraq war... I write a blog here in America, just for amusement and mental exercise. Every so often I include illustrations to augment the meager words and ideas, I am trying to express. I needed an image that would shout NO-JOKE concerning what our selected President Bush is doing to our liberties and freedoms, so I googled the words no joke and voil�?� your site popped up almost immediately. The blood stained American flag with the figure from the Edvard Munch painting "Scream" WAS PERFECT. I linked your page to the picture which I try to do whenever I use someone else's clip-art. Anyway, just thought I would drop you a line of appreciation. The link to my blog is
Blogspot Link or
Democrats partybuilder Link
thinkingblue aka Carolyn
(Click the above NO-JOKE picture to read the author's words [Lewis Peake] about why he put his page on the world wide web. thinkingblue)
The President Gets His Wish: He's The Dictator
The Constitution of the United States, Article 1, Section 9:
"The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it."
There is no rebellion. There is no invasion and thus habeas corpus can not be suspended. The president and every politician who voted to support this law has thus knowingly and without remorse violated their oath of office, but worse: they've violated the confidence with which we've entrusted them. That trust encompasses the very basic American notion that they work for us to help ensure our liberties and way of life. But that trust has been tossed aside for absolute power and a reasonably large percentage of Americans either don't care or they're not shy about voicing their support for this crap on a stick.
Also Read: Torture, Murder, Bush, Kissinger and The Mothers of the Disappeared in Argentina: America on the Brink of Horror
Olbermann's whole show: �¢??The president has now succeeded where no one has before�¢??
ALSO: Voter warning linked to GOP campaign
BRING THEM HOME NOW
CAROLYNCONNETION - I've got a mind and I'm going to use it!
thinkingBlue blogspot
YOU CAN BEAM ME UP NOW, SCOTTIE. Thinkingblue
Silence and Fascism, one leds to the other.
A good LIBERAL friend of mine sent me this interview with Aaron Russo, it KNOCKED MY SOCKS OFF. I had heard of this man before but had no idea the scope of his character. He is not just a director/producer of great fictional and nonfictional movies, he cares about our America and is doing something about the direction we are all being dragged or pulled towards by the neo-cons now in control and that is the ideology of FASCISM.
(Fascism is a radical political ideology that combines elements of corporatism, authoritarianism, nationalism, militarism, anti-anarchism, anti-communism and anti-liberalism.)
Some of the revelations you will hear in this meeting of the minds may seem "over the top" but that is what we sheepal who take freedom for granted need - a little bounce "over the top" to awaken us before it's too late. His political libertarian opinions may seem a little too exaggerated for most of us who have labeled ourselves LIBERAL and PROGRESSIVE but we, especially myself, can identify with his convictions far more easily than those of the conservative right... as in the statements below:
Libertarians find themselves in an odd position these days, circumstantially alongside many on the Left in our opposition to those on the Right who happen to hold power. On the issues of war, civil liberties, and even fiscal solvency, the Left appears more sane, or at least less recklessly insane, than the militarist Right. LINK HERE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Liberals favor government action to promote equality, whereas conservatives favor government action to promote order. Libertarians favor freedom and oppose government action to promote either equality or order. LINK HERE
I'm not sure exactly what we can do to stop the movement towards stringent socioeconomic controls and oppression but BEING AWARE THAT IT IS HAPPENING is a start. thinkingblue aka Carolyn
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
â??There can be no really pervasive system of oppression . . .without the consent of the oppressedâ?? (Florynce R. Kennedy).
An interview by consciousmedianetwork.com of Aaron Russo about his new film, America: Freedom to Fascism. In this film Russo sets out to find the law that requires American citizens pay a direct income tax. This interview contains info about the fiat currency owned by private, for profit bank that we call "dollars". He explains how the Federal Reserve is neither 'Federal' nor has any reserves. He also gives a spot on critique of Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 911 . America: Freedom to Fascism is opening in USA . the 14 min. trailer to the film.
fromfreedomtofascism.com
PS: Also, please read the essay below, another great eye opener...
Breaking the Silence of the Night
By Ron Kovic Truthdig Wednesday 11 October 2006
A time comes when silence is betrayal.- Martin Luther King Jr., 4/04/67
It all begins somewhere, the questioning, the doubting, the feeling that something's not right; like that day the captain set fire to the Vietnamese woman's hooch, or the night we shot those women and children by mistake. It's all got to start somewhere. For them it might have been the innocent civilians killed that day at the checkpoint just north of Baghdad or the dead children lying in the road in Kirkuk, or that night in Nasiriyah when they kicked in the front door of that house, screaming and cursing at the children as they threw their father to the floor, tying his hands behind his back and putting a hood over his head, but you remain silent, you say nothing. You've been taught to follow orders, to obey and not question, to go along with the program and do exactly what you're told. You learned that in boot camp.
You learned that the very first day at Parris Island when the drill instructors started screaming at you. It is "Yes sir" and "No sir," and nothing in between. There is the physical and verbal abuse, the vicious threats and constant harassment to keep you off balance. It is a powerful conditioning process, a process that began long ago, long before we signed those papers at the recruit stations in our hometowns, a process deeply ingrained in the American culture and psyche, and it has shaped and influenced us from our earliest childhood.
Born on my country's birthday in 1946, I had grown up in the shadow of the Cold War after the great victory of World War Two. Both my mother and father had served in the Navy during that war. It was where they met and were married, and we their children were to be called the "Baby Boom." It was a beautiful time, a time of innocence, a time of patriotism, a time of loyalty, conformity and obedience. The threat of Communism was everywhere. We did not question. We did not doubt. We believed and we trusted our leaders. America was always right. How could we ever be wrong? We were the most powerful nation on earth and we had never lost a war, but all that was to change, all that was to be shattered in Vietnam.
I can still remember marching on Memorial Day, our parents on the sidewalks waving their American flags proudly. There were the war movies and the Sergeant Rock comic books, the toy guns that we got for Christmas, and the little plastic green soldiers that I played with in my backyard, fighting the Japs and the Germans, attacking the imaginary bunkers with our bazookas and flamethrowers, dreaming that someday like our fathers before us we would become men.
I volunteered for my first tour of duty in Vietnam in 1965, only to return to a country deeply divided. I remember tears coming to my eyes when I saw a photograph in the newspaper of the American flag being burned at an antiwar rally in New York City. I was outraged and became determined to set my own example of patriotism and volunteered to go to Vietnam a second time, ready to die for my country if need be. Before leaving I purchased a diary that I promised to keep during my second tour of duty. I still have that diary today, and though it is a bit worn and frayed the words that I wrote nearly four decades ago are still there. On January 18th, 1968, two days before I was shot and paralyzed, I wrote, "Time is going fast in a way, while in other ways it seems I've been here 100 years. I love my great nation and am ready to die for freedom." Just below I had written the quote,
Fear not that ye have died for naught
The torch ye threw to us we caught.
Ten million hands will hold it high,
And Freedom's light shall never die!
We've learned the lesson that ye taught
In Flanders fields. - R.W. Lillard
Like many Americans who served in Vietnam and those now serving in Iraq, and countless other human beings throughout history, I had been willing to give my life for my country with little knowledge or awareness of what that really meant. I trusted and believed and had no reason to doubt the sincerity or motives of my government. It would not be until many months later at the Bronx Veterans Hospital in New York that I would begin to question whether I and the others who had gone to that war had gone for nothing.
READ MORE HERE---
Sometimes we discover unpleasant truths. Whenever we do so, we are in difficulties: suppressing them is scientifically dishonest, so we must tell them, but telling them, however, will fire back on us. If the truths are sufficiently impalatable, our audience is psychically incapable of accepting them and we will be written off as totally unrealistic, hopelessly idealistic, dangerously revolutionary, foolishly gullible or what have you. (Besides that, telling such truths is a sure way of making oneself unpopular in many circles, and, as such, it is an act that, in general, is not without personal risks. Galileo Galilei
More quotes from Galilei: All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them.
I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use.
I have never met a man so ignorant that I couldn't learn something from him.
BRING THEM HOME NOW
SEE MY BLOG ON BLOGSPOT
CAROLYNCONNETION - I've got a mind and I'm going to use it!
YOU CAN BEAM ME UP NOW, SCOTTIE. Thinkingblue
Reply, By Barry Yesterday at 2:53 am EDT
I hope I got this right the bold type belongs to Carolyn and the regular type belongs to "snakelips". I know it is not quite right for a middle age white man to say this but Carolyn you go girl. I've got your back. The first thing that got me started about "snakelips" is the teach a man to fish comment. Go back to the history books that idea comes right out of the Kennedy Democrats. It is the basic foundation of "The Great Society" and goes back to basic christian teaching as well. The problem that social programs had and still have (I have said this before here) is that conservatives be they neo-cons or Dixiecrats alway fight on funding. Pres. Bush spouts off about no child left behind while not fully funding it. They blame the poor for not learning enough to get ahead while attending the crumbling schools that they created. Neo-cons talk about redistributing the wealth when what people want is a fair chance. Even though our poor are the richest in the world our middle class does not include people living in McMansions. I live in one of the wealthiest states in America. I pay half as much in rent as my neighbor because my landlord rented me a home not a house. I have lived here 16 years because they have told us a number of times that we can live here as long as we want. We live here without fearing they will cash out as the housing bubble bursts. That has really helped since I was crippled by the lasting effects of polio. "snakelips" take away one of your family's incomes and see how long it takes for you to hit the streets. I also live in a state that boasts a large percentage of registered Democrats. I'm sorry but I can pick a Republican in any public place in this state. They're the one making snide remarks because the black girl at the counter is working fast enough to suit them. They're the ones using terms like towelheads. They ride around in pick-up trucks with a "God is my co-pilot" bumper sticker. Just recently I watched one going down the road at 70 mph playing pinball with the lines on the highway at 11:00am. Beware if I see you doing it I'll call 911 on your ass. Lastly neo-cons are the most self-righteous lot who believe Dems are whats wrong with America all the while commiting all sorts of sins i.e Foley, Abramoff, Cunningham, Delay, Nixon, Agnew...
Thanks for the reply, Barry. It is so refreshing to talk to a fellow liberal, someone who uses their brain for research and inquiry, instead of for memorizing trite phrases or terms of newspeak (rovespeak). Like this question from Blogbox:
Who has the best research skills and demonstrates a genuine thirst for the truth?
A. The Washington Times
B. Any lefty blogger
Also want to thank you for the reminder of where snakelips' expression "teach a man to fish..." (one of the idioms in the conservative dictionary of Orwellian language) came from.
Yes, I believe it was, Kennedy who used this catch-phrase when he started the Peace-Corps but did you know it is actually an old Chinese proverb:
â??Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will eat for the rest of his life.â??
But like most of the politically charged phrases the con people use IT IS TAKEN OUT OF CON-TEXT! In my limited estimation, it is meant as a guide for helping third world countries to become autonomous and sovereign, and not to rely on foreign entities for their daily bread (hence, cannot become victims of embargos and sanctions from the rich states, that enjoy playing with the poor ones).
NOT, and I mean IN NO WAY as reference to a welfare mother with many little kids or the working poor on food stamps. But, that is how they use it.
The snakelips of our nation do more harm to us as a people than all the WMD cache in No. Korea could ever do. They make us look like, (another old saying) UGLY AMERICANS, heartless and cruel. They voted in the most inhuman bunch of compassionless ideologues to come down the pike. They believe the malicious logos from the likes of the Limbaughs, Savages, Falwells, Robertsons, Coulters, and other nasty, venomous people from the rightwing, who they revere, without question. They suffer from this blindness of mind, by making misinformed choices but worse, WE SUFFER TOO!
Like I wrote in my post to snakelips, we all are plagued with a certain amount of bigotry, that most of us who use our noggins can fight off but since the red states won...it is getting almost impossible for me to beat back the feeling of nausea when I reflect on what the neo-cons have thrust us into. (with the help of the non-thinking citizens with red faces) They have played us for a chump in a variety of ways but mainly THE BUSH IRAQ WAR.
So much heartache, sacrifice and cost to so many people, even if they (the neo-conservatives) gave up their fortunes or their spineless existence they could not repay the damage they did so nonchalantly, with little concern for those, the mothers and children, the elderly and sick, the TROOPS and their families, who they put in harms way to satisfy their controversial dreams of USA Superpower supremacy. It all stinks to high heaven, and we are stuck with the mess! Even if we take back our country, the cleanup will be lengthy and costly, we all will be anguished for years to come but let us hope that at least the screw-ups will have ceased and recovery will be on its way.
Thanks again, and write often, Carolyn
PNAC:Philosophy of Deception
A short, interesting article about Leo Strauss, the 'father' of the neo-conservative (PNAC) ideology. Deception, religion, nationalism, all for the benefit of the elites and to control the masses. REPOST of UK IMC
BRING THEM HOME NOW
SEE MY BLOG ON BLOGSPOT
YOU CAN BEAM ME UP NOW, SCOTTIE. Thinkingblue
LIBERAL AND A CONSERVATIVE are we so different... YOU BET!
I will continue my post of "A thoughtful request from a liberal to a conservative..." of October 5, 2006... with a response from snakelips. I hope no one will find this offensive, it is really just two people trying to explain the difference between two opposing ideologies that have materialized in today's America. My comments are in BOLD... I also, have found some political cartoons called
The Boiling Point, to help make this posting a little more interesting, please click on them to see the original size, easier to read... thanks Carolyn
By snakelips Yesterday at 1:34 am EDT
Wow, I go out of town for a couple of days, I jump in to check out dems.org and this is what I find! I wish I had more time to write, but I would like to comment a little.
It seems to me Carolyn that you are trying to pick a fight with me. I am not mean-spirited. I don't want to fight with you and one of the reasons I responded to Adam's original post was that he sounded calm and reasonable. I think we had an enjoyable worthwhile discussion. You seem to enjoy the nonproductive name calling angle and it doesn't really interest me. I didn't bother to read your cut and paste writings from other people. I'm sure they are very well thought out and interesting, but I more want to know what YOU think in your own words.
Perhaps, if you would have read the "cut and paste" articles you may have learned a little... I use that method because there are a hellava lot of people out there in this big world of ours who have educated themselves in certain subject matters and can say what I feel so much better than I. But NO you don't wish to enlighten yourself by reading "cut and paste" words of wisdom from other people... But don't feel too bad... your leader George W Bush doesn't wish to bother himself with other people's words either.
Speaking of your own words, I don't appreciate being called a bigot. As Yosemite Sam says, "Them's fightin' words!" But, like I said, I don't want to fight, I want to talk and learn, and maybe teach...to a few open-minded types (thanks, Adam).
Maybe, you in particular, may not be the full fledged bigot but many upstanding conservatives are. But honestly now, if you see a person that may not look like you or share your world view... tell me that you don't think less of them... We are all bigots to a point... black, white, yellow, red, religious, non-religious, irrational or rational. Unfortunately it's par for the course, part of our evolutionary trip through existence. It just is a matter of how severely we are damaged by this human phenomenon and how hard we fight not to allow it to take over our being.
To clarify my thoughts on the "America Dream", of course even if you work your fingers to the bone you may not succeed, but you absolutely will not and SHOULD not if you don't even lift a finger.
I really had to laugh at your "YOU MAY NOT SUCCEED"... look at the statistics man, the percentage of successes are miniscule... When I was a kid it took ONE PAYCHECK to raise a family... now two wages are not enough... e-nof said!
I am not conditioned in my thinking. I think and struggle about this and as I wrote in my reply to Adam's post I sometimes have to make a desision that is difficult and may not make everyone involved happy. I talk to a lot of different people and find that I constantly have to re-evaluate my position. I am still coming up a conservative though.
Well that is sad for you to constantly come up conservative. I am so glad my "conditioning" tilted towards liberal... I don't know why that is, oh here's an idea, maybe it's because I walked a mile in a liberals shoes... I was raised in a family with limited funds... so you see I've been there and done that. I know what it feels like to not have enough food to eat or enough fuel to heat your home. I know what it feels like to be shunned because your clothes are wrinkled and worn-out. I know what it feels 
like to pretend you are not hungry and only eat half of your ten cent sandwich at school so maybe, just maybe no one will suspect that you are poorer than a church mouse, because in a conservative world, this is something to be ashamed of...
click here if you want to know one of the meanings of
"poorer than a church mouse"... And I know what it's like to come home from school and see a big SHERIFF'S notice hanging on the door of your rented house because your mother ran out of money before the rent was paid. We lived on a fixed social security income (that my mother was getting THANKS TO A LIBERAL PRESIDENT) and received a check once a month due to my father's death, he left Mom with six kids to raise. I guess you might have labeled her lazy, since she could not work outside the home and was part of a government entitlement program.
There are many Liberals who did not walk in my shoes, it doesn't take experience to make someone empathetic. A liberal doesn't exclude, like conservatives, liberals believe we are ALL in the same boat, with similar problems. Not so for a conservative, REMEMBER KATRINA... and Mama Bush's statement. Forgive me for this "cut and paste" but...HERE'S THE ACTUAL QUOTE:
"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this - this [she chuckles slightly] is working very well for them." Now, I'm sure she didn't mean anything vicious by it, but that is kind of the point. Anybody who says that the flood is actually working out well for the poor in New Orleans because it allowed them to come to Houston does not have any appreciation for what the working poor goes through in our country. From this site:
donklephant.com
ALSO SEE MY PAGE I MADE ABOUT THIS THOUGHTLESS STATEMENT:
CLICK HERE
Please don't label me as thinking that all the poor are lazy and all dems are commies. That's a broad statement that of course isn't true. I want to show the poor where the lake is and teach them to fish, not give them one of my fish every time they are hungry. I'll help them on the way, but if they continue to refuse to fish, well.... I think the level of help in that journey is the real issue when talking about the poor. It's a matter of finding the balancing point. In my view I see libs as wanting total wealth redistribution - take it all from those who have it and give it to those who don't. I imagine your view of conservatives is that we don't want to give a single penny. Well, of course, neither is true. Both sides want to help their fellow man. We just have to figure out how much.
That is the difference between you and me, you always assume, there is a lake nearby stocked with fish. There are generational poor and poverty is not their fault, it's kind of a miserable way of life for them... Oh, we have come a long way thanks to the help of liberals who took the chance of losing their power by supporting the civil rights movements... But we have a long way to go, and the way I see it... the conservatives fight tooth and nail to stop those advancements and turn back the clock... They refuse to see the big picture and just pour money into building more prisons.
Every child should be important in our school system but they are not. The cracks these children fall through are big and wide. If they don't make the grade the system just looks the other way and they grow up to live their lives with almost no resources... In a country as rich as ours, we should treat each and every child like he is a winner no matter how laborious this task may be. In the long run, we would have a society with hardly no crime and a productive one to boot and maybe you would see more happy faces with smiles of kindness instead of grimaces of unfulfilled emptiness.
I don't know what your second ammendment rant meant. You didn't really say anything other than it was a myth. If you are interested in more of my opinions, I have talked about that in other posts.
There again, if you would have read the "cut and paste" portions you would not need to ask me about my so called RANT. I cried a million tears watching the killing spree unfold on that Amish farm in Pennsylvania. All those little children murdered with LEGAL WEAPONS. They (the Amish) may forgive BUT I DON'T. If the rifle and gun lobbies weren't so "successful" in their quest to allow weapons to be bought and sold like so many pieces of candy... Those little ones might still be alive. I don't blame the crazy crackpot who pulled the trigger, I blame the NRA!!!
I thought your reference to the "liberal media" was kind of funny. If you believe in the capitalist idea of supply and demand, it would seem to suggest that there is a lot of demand out there for the more conservative viewpoint. I've listened to Air America to try to learn more, but after a while, the non-productive name calling seems to grab my attention more than any logical
discussions, so I turn it off. But, I'm glad it's there. (Is it still?) Maybe there's not much demand...
WHAT A JOKE... there is not a demand for the liberal point of view...huh?? There is only one side being offered and presented... The capitalist idea has been confiscated by BIG CORPORATIONS who want to narrow down our newspapers, TV shows and media as a whole into one BIG CONGLOMERATE controlled by their one sided ideas... IDEAS really isn't the right word PROPAGANDA is more like it. They want control of the masses so they can manipulate them for the sake of greedy profits... If that isn't fascism, I don't know what is.
I LOVE the reading of snakelips as a psuedonym! It's just a nickname my parents gave me in high school cause I was always "snaking" around with my girlfriend after school. It's just a good screen name, nothing more. LOL I hope, Carolyn, that we can discuss this more. If we really want to make America a better place we have to start talking substance.
I do want to make America better but I have no power, except for my vote and THE LIBERAL 
DEMOCRATS will get that little itty bitty power... The money people can do more but with attitudes like yours "THE WHY SHOULD WE "THE HAVES" SHARE WITH THOSE "HAVENOTS" In other words, MY WORDS, I believe this is how the wealthy would look at the redistribution of their wealth..."I am not worried about America because my part of town is beautiful with green grass that is taken care of by a havenot... I have clear blue clean lakes stocked with fish and have hired many havenots to keep it that way...and I have a big mansion of a house with lot's of servents(havenots) to clean and care for if. Therefore, I live in a beautiful place, so why worry about America, I keep many havenots employed...?"
Just be careful that the HAVES don't need to cross the street for some reason (maybe to find some havenots to work in their factories for as little money as possible... more profits that way...) They may then, get a whiff of the impoverished ghettos on the unbeautiful side of town.
I know I am generalizing but since the Republicans have been in office the ranks of the poor have grown. More and more middle class people have fallen into poverty because of piddling wages. And if the conservative corporations continue to control all the power in our government, we will fast become a two class America with only a handful at the top and many slaves at the bottom for the "top ones" to take advantage of.
No I don't want to fight with you, but I know there is NO WAY that I can change your mind. You are conditioned, mi amigo, just like the rest of us. For you and your conservative friends to see this world without rose colored glasses it would take a catastrophic event... like perhaps, a global warming that dries up your lake leaving it now, stocked with dead fish.
Happy to live in America where one can express dissent and not have a contract put out on one's head... that is for now, anyway. Carolyn
PS: A friend of mine, read my post of the other day and asked me WHAT'S THE POINT, ENLIGHTEN ME. I will tell her there is no need to enlighten her, she has got it right, there really is no point, just a so called "rant" from me to vent some of the anger and sadness I feel living in this NEO-CONSERVATIVE America of today, with all its distress.
One last conservative action in pictures...
UPDATE: I haven't checked my Democrat.org blog for awhile so I missed the snakelips reply to my post of LIBERAL AND CONSERVATIVE...
It's the same ole, same ole... I think I will tell this conservative that there is no way he will ever take off his rose colored glasses and look at the world as it really is... He might just SCREAM at such a site, so he should keep em on and just go on his merry delusional way... Carolyn
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by snakelips Oct 15th 2006 at 9:46 pm EDT
Hi Carolyn,Sorry I've not written in a while. Let's continue our discussion.You're right. I should have read some more of your cut and pastes, so I did. There are some valid points that I could would like to dig into more deeply, but as a whole, I mostly disagreed with a lot of it. Please remember, just because I don't agree doesn't mean I'm ignorant of your message. I think that probably holds true for Geo. Bush as well. I assume you are not an angry teenager and understand the difference between "not listening" and "not agreeing". Try to pursuade me that your ideas are better than mine. I'm listening.
Regarding bigots, I had to look up a dictionary definition of the word to make sure that we are talking about the same thing. According to Wikipedia: A bigot is a prejudiced person who is intolerant of any opinions differing from their own. I am certainly not a bigot in any way. I take people as they come. Just like everyone though, the more I come in contact with them, the more I form an opinion about them. I am very tolerant of other opinions. I welcome them! It's much more interesting talking to those with differing opinions than robots who just repeat back what they think I want to hear.
I am concerned about your prejudices and bigotry though. You assume later in your post that I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth and wanted for nothing. You don't seem to want to accept and understand my opinion on things. NEVER MIND ALL THAT! I don't want to get into name calling. Let's get back to a discussion on issues.
Ok, so what are you saying when you say that now two wages are not enough to raise a family and the chances of "success" are miniscule. Should we just give up? Should government raise the minimum wage? If so, how much should it be? How about $10...well, why not $30? Hell, why not $300 an hour. That would be great! But who pays for that? Do you think money just magically appears in corporations' coffers? If they had to pay $300 an hour minimum wage, don't you think they'd pass that on to the consumers? And who are those consumers? Why, gee, it's the people they are paying $300 an hour. Now that money doesn't seem like as much. Like I said before, it's all a balancing act. If we could start with as much fairness as possible and rely on people's natural ablilities to succeed or fail, then that's as close as we can hope to be to utopia.
I'm sorry your father died. I have a lot of empathy for your predicament growing up and your family was certainly a worthy recipient for social aid. I don't want to take that away. I want to stop cheats of the system who put a bad taste in the mouths of those funding it. My only question about your family and mother would be: did you grow up on farm? I ask that because I'm curious why you had 5 siblings. If on a farm I could see you would need the labor. Otherwise, it seems a bit irresponsible to have so many kids with no life insurance to provide for them if something catastrophic happened like it did. This may shock you, but I shouldn't have to pay for your family's lack of planning. It's not about bigotry, it's about responsiblilty. Before your head explodes, think calmly about what I've said. I don't want to NOT help people, I just don't want to be taken advantage of. I want people to be responsible for themselves first. If they can't I want to help. If they refuse to, than that's a different story.
Regarding the second ammendment, I read what you pasted, and although that link quoted a lot of case law supporting armed citizens only in relation to a militia, I would bet that there are other cases to the contrary. Regardless of the case law, I am arguing the idea. I believe the second ammendment gives us our last and final guarantee of the remainder of our rights. Without the threat of an armed citizenry, the government would have no fears in abolishing all of our rights as they saw fit. As far as the Amish tragedy, the gun was not the important part of the story. He could have just as easily slashed their throats with a knife. It's horrible and tragic and I'm a little shocked you are blaming the NRA. You might as well blame the Chinese for inventing gun powder.
Well, that's all the time I have to write right now...I'll continue later. Hopefully you're still interested in talking.Thanks, snakelips
CAROLYNCONNETION - I've got a mind and I'm going to use it!
thinkingBlue blogspot
YOU CAN BEAM ME UP NOW, SCOTTIE. Thinkingblue
Are people really starting to wake up? According to Paul Krugman, THEY ARE! It's been a long time, since we Democrats have had a resemblance of sanity in our life and in our government.
It seemed as though, the Republicans had no limits, no boundaries in their game of dirty pool. They lied, smeared, concocted and conspired to maintain their power. 40 years of their power climb, finally being questioned by more than Democrats.
Many have speculated the Democratic Party is foundering, claims were made that they are spinless. But I don't see it that way, because in frailness one gives in, in decrepitude one gives up the ghost. The Democrats have been hanging in there through all the Republican illegal coup d'états... for instance,the Delay illegal redistricting:
Republican lawmakers and state officials who helped craft the proposal were aware it posed a high risk of being ruled discriminatory compared with other options. But the Texas legislature proceeded with the new map anyway because it would maximize the number of Republican federal lawmakers in the state. The redistricting was approved in 2003, and Texas Republicans gained five seats in the U.S. House in the 2004 elections, solidifying GOP control of Congress. From this site: Washington Post Justice Staff Saw Texas Districting As Illegal.
The Dems were in the minority, they couldn't do anything under our constitution to stop this thievery but they didn't just idly stand-by they took off to another state to stall this dishonest action by the Repubs...
Texas law required that two-thirds of the hundred-and-fifty-member body be present in order to conduct legislative business; the Democrats, who numbered sixty-two, could stop the legislation simply by not showing up. So most of them took off for Oklahoma. From this site: DRAWING THE LINE
And, as the recent Foley scandal unfolds, Democrats are hitting back hard, it's payback time. What the Republicans did to Bill Clinton was nothing more than slander to the highest degree. Foley, himself took part in the brutal defamation of a standing president... Read below:
Perverts Who Live in Glass Houses Shouldn't Throw Stones. But that Didn't Stop Foley from Blasting Bill Clinton 8 Years Ago They say that hindsight is a luxury, and if the events of the past few days are any indication, Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) very well may be an authority on sexual addiction, which would explain his comments back in September 1998 about former president Bill Clinton's randy transgressions:
"It's vile," said Foley to a reporter from the St. Petersburg Times after reviewing special prosecutor Kenneth Starr's report . "It's more sad than anything else, to see someone with such potential throw it all down the drain because of a sexual addiction."
Foley had joined a chorus of Republicans who excoriated Clinton over his sexual affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. He was especially disturbed at the time over Starr's account of Monica Lewinsky performing oral sex on Clinton as he chatted with members of Congress on the telephone. That was "just sad," he said. "It's unbelievable that he could behave so carelessly in that setting." Perhaps we'll learn in the near future just how many Congressmen and women Foley might have been chatting with while typing away his perverted emails and instant messages to underage boys.
Please read the revelations below (revelations for republican voters, most Democrats knew this all along) from Paul Krugman. The comments are mine. It's been a long, tough road of Republican authority with the conservative plutocrats striving to maintain their wealth and muscle at the expense of our constitution and our very lives. But a new beginning is on the horizon, a better tomorrow is on its way! thinkingblue
PS: Also, view another outstanding commentary by Keith Olbermann.
Things Fall ApartMonday, October 2nd, 2006 by bill
From NY Times
By Paul Krugman
Right after the 2004 election, it seemed as if Thomas Frank had been completely vindicated. In his book â??Whatâ??s the Matter With Kansas? How Conservatives Won the Heart of America,â?? Mr. Frank argued that Americaâ??s right wing had developed a permanent winning strategy based on the use of â??valuesâ?? issues to mobilize white working-class voters against a largely mythical cultural elite, while actually pursuing policies designed to benefit a small economic elite.
(Good Grief what is wrong with this white working-class voter? thinkingblue)
It was and is a brilliant analysis. But the political strategy Mr. Frank described may have less staying power than he feared. In fact, the right-wing coalition that has spent 40 years climbing to its current position of political dominance may be cracking up.
(I hope so! thinkingblue)
At its core, the political axis that currently controls Congress and the White House is an alliance between the preachers and the plutocrats â?¦quot; between the religious right, which hates gays, abortion and the theory of evolution, and the economic right, which hates Social Security, Medicare and taxes on rich people. Surrounding this core is a large periphery of politicians and lobbyists who joined the movement not out of conviction, but to share in the spoils.
(Guess which type of people are in the economic right... If you see dollar signs... BINGO! thinkingblue)
Together, these groups formed a seemingly invincible political coalition, in which the religious right supplied the passion and the economic right supplied the money.
The coalition has, however, always been more vulnerable than it seemed, because it was an alliance based not on shared goals, but on each groupâ??s belief that it could use the other to get what it wants. Bring that belief into question, and the whole thing falls apart.
Future historians may date the beginning of the right-wing crackup to the days immediately following the 2004 election, when President Bush tried to convert a victory won by portraying John Kerry as weak on defense into a mandate for Social Security privatization. The attempted bait-and-switch failed in the face of overwhelming public opposition. If anything, the Bush plan was even less popular in deep-red states like Montana than in states that voted for Mr. Kerry.
(Bush&Co. forgot the rice bowl concept of DON'T YOU DARE GO NEAR MY RICE BOWL! thinkingblue)
And the religious and cultural right, which boasted of having supplied the Bush campaign with its â??shock troopsâ?? and expected a right-wing cultural agenda in return â?¦quot; starting with a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage â?¦quot; was dismayed when the administration put its energy into attacking the welfare state instead. James Dobson, the founder and chairman of Focus on the Family, accused Republicans of â??just ignoring those that put them in office.â??
(Oh how sad for the Dobsons, their bigoty didn't take precedence over greed. thinkingblue)
It will be interesting, by the way, to see how Dr. Dobson, who declared of Bill Clinton that â??no man has ever done more to debase the presidency,â?? responds to the Foley scandal. Does the failure of Republican leaders to do anything about a sexual predator in their midst outrage him as much as a Democratic presidentâ??s consensual affair?
(Now we know, it was not about Bill Clinton's sex-Capades IT WAS ABOUT GREED AND POWER!!! thinkingblue)
In any case, just as the religious right was feeling betrayed by Mr. Bushâ??s focus on the goals of the economic right, the economic right suddenly seemed to become aware of the nature of its political allies. â??Where in the hell did this Terri Schiavo thing come from?â?? asked Dick Armey, the former House majority leader, in an interview with Ryan Sager, the author of â??The Elephant in the Room: Evangelicals, Libertarians and the Battle to Control the Republican Party.â?? The answer, he said, was â??blatant pandering to James Dobson.â?? He went on, â??Dobson and his gang of thugs are real nasty bullies.â??
(Enlightenment! thinkingblue)
Some Republicans are switching parties. James Webb, who may pull off a macaca-fueled upset against Senator George Allen of Virginia, was secretary of the Navy under Ronald Reagan. Charles Barkley, a former N.B.A. star who used to be mentioned as a possible future Republican candidate, recently declared, â??I was a Republican until they lost their minds.â??
(Why must discernment take so long. thinkingblue)
So the right-wing coalition is showing signs of coming apart. It seems that weâ??re not in Kansas anymore. In fact, Kansas itself doesnâ??t seem to be in Kansas anymore. Kathleen Sebelius, the stateâ??s Democratic governor, has achieved a sky-high favorability rating by focusing on good governance rather than culture wars, and her party believes it will win big this year.
(At last, caring about peole instead, FOMENTING HATRED... isn't it funny when you split hatred by syllables it reads HAT RED... Let us hope the republican reign of hatred is finally over. thinkingblue)
And nine former Kansas Republicans, including Mark Parkinson, the former state G.O.P. chairman, are now running for state office as Democrats. Why did Mr. Parkinson change parties? Because he â??got tired of the theological debate over whether Charles Darwin was right.â??
Picture of the week, from the BUSH'S IRAQ WAR, one of the saddest picture ever to be seen:
The IRAQ BODY COUNT Database
CAROLYNCONNETION - I've got a mind and I'm going to use it!
thinkingBlue blogspotYOU CAN BEAM ME UP NOW, SCOTTIE. Thinkingblue
I spotted an interesting post on the democrats.org party builder today. It was titled "TO MY FRIENDS, THE REPUBLICANS" I thought WOW, this sounds interesting, someone is reaching out to the ones responsible for the neo-con take over of our government. The ones who are partners in crime (albeit, indirectly) with the neo-cons to bring about America's nemesis. Someone, is trying to make nice, nice with the red stater's, the group that holds a Virtual Monopoly on non-thinking.
As I read this well, thought out piece by Mr. Bezark, I kept thinking, "maybe I am wrong about these people who maintain a delusional Horatio Alger myth of pulling oneself up by one's own bootstrap, in which ONE SIZE FITS ALL.
Maybe, they are just like us liberals who only wish the best for America's people and all the people of the world." BUT UPON READING SNAKELIPS REPLY... I AM,WITHOUT A DOUBT, CATEGORICALLY NOT WRONG ABOUT 'THEM'(at least the radical ones...) ONCE SO EVER!
The republicans are marinated in myths, they repeat these myths over and over to themselves and to others, to legitimize their bigotry. The one myth they spout out above all others is called THE AMERICAN DREAM, where they firmly believe that if one works their fingers to the bone... they will become a 'SUCCESS"! How naive they are in this myth, they believe all the poor folk in America are poor because they don't want to work and are lazy bums.
I wish all those who believe in the AMERICAN DREAM, BOOTSTRAP MYTH would read this enlightening essay: Myth of American dream is misleading
(but I know they won't because it may allow a ray of knowledge to shine through into their dark, narrow, closed minds...) Here are some examples from the writer Duncan Moench
When a person comes from a poor, working-class background and manages to "rise" through hard work and determination to a wealthy, upper-class position in society, this person is said to have accomplished the American dream.
It has been said that people must "pull themselves up by their own bootstraps" in order to fulfill this dream. Ironically, if one were to pull oneself somewhere by one's bootstraps, that person would only end up planting his or her face in the dirt.
Do Americans idealize those who work tirelessly with little reward? How many admire a man or woman who spends 20 years without complaint cleaning hotel rooms for minimum wage? Do Americans admire the "entrepreneur" who works persistently on his or her project, only to end up in debt? If hard work is valuable to the American public in and of itself, then admiring hard workers, whether they are financially successful or otherwise, is the logical consequence.
Obviously, this is not the case.
Not only does the American dream foster a poor value system, but the whole concept is built on the myth of easily accessible social mobility.
Many Americans enjoy repeating the clich�© that "this is the land of opportunity."Whose opportunity?
America offers no more social mobility than most other industrialized nations. Certainly, Western European nations can argue they offer greater opportunity for an individual to improve their wealth considering that almost every nation has free education, even at the highest level.
The American dream, however, was always a useful and manipulative myth used to enforce the status quo. Unfortunately, the ability to "rise above" one's economic background is becoming even more difficult, making the American dream myth even more destructive.
If the American dream is such a realistic and viable option, why do so few actually fulfill the dream? The media loves to cover the one-in-a-million individual who came from a poor family and, through hard work, built a multimillion-dollar company.
Why doesn't the media cover the not-so-inspiring stories of millions of individuals who come from poor backgrounds and never escape poverty?
Certainly, one can understand why not. Can you imagine the reaction if they did?"Ten years ago, John Anderson was living in a run-down apartment on the south side of Chicago. Through hard work and creativity, Mr. Anderson managed to keep his run-down apartment and boost his wage 50 cents an hour;now to a similar story in Los Angeles." READ MORE HERE
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But, this isn't the only misconception the republican diehards adhere so desperately to, another myth or catch phrase of theirs is... "Gun ownership is a constitutional right guaranteed by the Second Amendment..."
The Second Amendment to the United States ConstitutionThis myth is so dangerous and so debilitating to The American Way Of Life, it defies logic. Yet, you will hear some 'COMPASSIONATE CONSERVATIVE' get up on his soapbox and DEMAND that this so called 'RIGHT' is part of the American Dream Mythology... Read a small portion from: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." How often have you heard someone argue against gun control laws by claiming: "Gun ownership is a constitutional right guaranteed by the Second Amendment"? The assertion that the Second Amendment to our Constitution guarantees a broad, individual right to "keep and bear arms" and that it precludes any reasonable restrictions on guns is the philosophical foundation of the National Rifle Association's opposition to even the most modest gun control measures. The NRA's constitutional theory is, however, divorced from legal and historical reality. It is based on carefully worded disinformation about the text and history of the Second Amendment and a systematic distortion of judicial rulings interpreting the Amendment. The result is a Our nation suffers from an epidemic ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The next REALLY BIGGIE MYTH the right-winged ones believe...ARE YOU READY FOR THIS...THE LIBERAL MEDIA... don't laugh too hard! thinkingblue
What does the Second Amendment Mean?
Second Amendment "mythology" which has been difficult to counter.
of gun violence.
Guns take the lives of 105 Americans every day, 15 of them are children and teenagers.
In the four years between 1988 and 1991,
more Americans were murdered with firearms
than were killed in battle during the eight years of the Vietnam War.
Sensible national gun control laws are urgently needed to stem this violence. READ MORE HERE
READ MORE HERE AT MY THINKINBLUE BLOG CLICK HERE
LISTEN TO THIS BLUE AMERICA SONG AND DOWNLOAD IT FREE HERE:
C&L Premiere: Rickie Lee Jones sings â??Have You Had Enough?â??
YOU CAN BEAM ME UP NOW, SCOTTIE. Thinkingblue
Bill Moyers Returns to Investigative Reporting With Moyers on America Airing in October on PBS
Another must see documentary!
This time you can view it right from the comfort of your home. Bill Moyers is back on PBS, with an eye opening documentary, illustrating the depths of corruption that was occurring between Tom Delay and Jack Abramoff... These two were characters right out of a Dick Tracy movie: Dick Tracy vs.the Phantom Empire They thought their conniving deeds were going unnoticed, just like the Phantom in the 1941 movie who thought he was invincible because he could become invisible.
INVISIBLE, CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? So many people knew exactly what they were doing but with a majority of republicans in both houses and the pack of neo-cons running around in the Whitehouse NO ONE COULD or WOULD DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT... Until the mighty forces of the dynamic duo Patrick J. Fitzgerald and Ronnie Earle came on the scene and to the rescue of good over evil.
WE'VE BEEN THROUGH A HELLAVA LOT FOLKS... Let's hope it will be over soon and the corrupt, absolute power gang will finally pay the price for their misdeeds! thinkingblue
PS: Click the theater above and watch the Oct. 2, 2006, episode on Democracy Now - "A Swashbuckling Spectacle of Corruption" - Bill Moyers Investigates Abramoff Lobbying Scandal, documentary airing on your PBS stations October 4, 11 and 18th at 9pm ...
Consult your local listings HERE
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Bill O'Reilly labels Rep. Foley a Democrat
By: John Amato on Wednesday, October 4th, 2006 at 12:04 AM - PDT
See anything wrong with this graphic? The O'Reilly Factor ran it in not one, but two segments and posted it three times. I can understand if FOX and The Factor made an error the first time, but to post it repeatedly should be a firing offense, The most watched show on FOX News has now labeled the former Republican Congressman Mark Foley, who is in the middle of a sexual predator scandal (that has Hastert's career on the ropes) A DEMOCRAT??? Was it an error or done by choice? I report you decide. (JOHN AMATO)
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YOU CAN BEAM ME UP NOW, SCOTTIE. Thinkingblue
MOVIE REVIEW -
American Blackout (2006)Genre:Documentary
(more)
Tagline: Your outrage is waiting.
Plot Outline: A look at the career of U.S. Representative Cynthia McKinney from Georgia and the historical suppression of black voters in the United States. (more)
User Comments: Excellent
User Rating:
Credited cast: Cynthia McKinney Herself
Runtime: USA:92 min
Country: USA
Language: English
Color: Color / Black and White
Awards: 3 wins & 1 nomination (more)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
A must see documentary! I sent for the DVD today. We need to be aware of the goings on behind closed doors before and during election day. We must not EVER allow another ELECTION TO BE STOLEN. America will not survive if the republicans can, by elaborate methods of deceit, hoodwink our elections... As in:
United States presidential election, 2000 or United States presidential election, 2004
These two elections did undermine our basic civil rights and liberties and shook our democracy to the core... I truly believe, IT CAN HAPPEN AGAIN! Please watch the above video trailer... and buy the whole film 
Also, watch the Diebold tampering demonstration below... thinkingblue
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AMERICAN BLACKOUT Featuring Cynthia McKinney, Greg Palast, Bernie Sanders, Bob Fitrakis and many others...
September 28, 2006By Zach RobertsI'm going to start this with a sales pitch: you need to buy this film. No, really. Not because Greg Palast receives second billing but because you must see this film.
American Blackout is the kind of documentary that only comes along every few years. It's the sort of film that changes things -- changes how you think. If there was any justice in this world this film would receive the same buzz and box office that anything that Michael Moore releases gets. Greg Palast told me the film "blew him away" -- this from a man who is almost always underwhelmed by documentaries, especially ones about his field of expertise.
Watch the Trailer
When delving into the voter issue, the media distracts you with all the things it loves to talk about. But you need to forget the hanging chads and forget the malfunctioning machines. They're just a sideshow to the real story. The real story is a lot less sexy, dealing with road blocks, purged voters, 'misplaced' voting machines, uncounted ballots and long lines. This is the Civil Rights Movement all over again but this time there are no great monsters like Bull Connor. The lynchings today are electronic and political... and the freedom riders nowhere to be found.American Blackout, directed by Guerrilla News Network's Ian Inaba uses a stunning mix of never before seen archive and firsthand interviews. Inaba knows how to make otherwise dull C-Span clips look like something completely new and interesting. He does this by split-screen and zooming so you know who you're supposed to be looking at -- Katherine Harris, Jeb Bush, ChoicePoint representatives. You see them lying to a Civil Rights panel, you see them sweat when questioned by Congresswoman McKinney.
All I can say is that I am stunned that I've never seen this technique used before -- it keeps you interested, on your toes and wanting for more. Yes, you will be wanting to see more of this documentary, these 90 minutes fly past quickly. So do take notes -- there will be a test afterwards -- the 2006 election.
Among the great footage in this documentary is a pan shot of lines of people waiting to vote -- I saw this once before, when I was 13 and apartheid came to an end. South Africa held its first free election and Black voters could be seen in lines that went on for miles. But this is America, we are not a developing democracy and should long have emerged from the dark ages of electoral segregation.
The story of Cynthia McKinney that sews the running thread through the film, is uglier than even I knew. Many only familiar with the Congresswoman's press coverage will be aghast at just how distorted a picture the media has fed us.It literally defies belief.
Here we see her cross-examining Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld with such surgical precision and grasp of her brief that Rumsfeld is left stammering and ashen-faced. It makes us wonder what kind of country we might have right now if more had put this administration under such factual scrutiny. American Blackout lays out exactly why she has been so relentlessly hounded. Every one of her speeches brings to mind the hoarse pleas of Jimmy Stewart in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, a force to be reckoned with. (In the DVD extras you can watch "Capitol Policeman Speaks Out" and see why she "lost it" back in March 2006.)
Inaba's film is intense yet easy to grasp for even the most non-political among us.
And for those who can't sit in one place for too long, the DVD comes with a shortened version which still gets the point across in under 20 minutes.Since I started with a sales pitch it only seems right to end with one: Remember when in the days after 9/11 our president told us to go out and shop? Do the patriotic thing and buy this DVD. In fact I would buy several: you are going to want to pass this one around your friends and chances are you're not going to get it back.
Buy it directly at the American Blackout website. We get nothing from these sales except the knowledge that we are supporting one kick-ass filmmaker with a gotta-see-it call to arms against the racial poisoning of our democracy.
Or donate a tax-deductible $50 or more to our educational foundation and Palast will send you a signed copy of American Blackout. All proceeds support the investigative work of the Palast team.
"A muckraking indictment" (LA TIMES) and "engrossing, fast-paced, stylish... a powerful examination of voting rights in America." (HOLLYWOOD REPORTER)
*****
Leni von Eckardt contributed to this article.
*****
Greg Palast is a reporter for BBC Television and the author of the just-released New York Times Bestseller, Armed Madhouse: Who's Afraid of Osama Wolf?, China Floats Bush Sinks, the Scheme to Steal '08, No Child's Behind Left and other Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Class War.
CAROLYNCONNETION - I've got a mind and I'm going to use it! thinkingBlue blogspot
YOU CAN BEAM ME UP NOW, SCOTTIE. Thinkingblue
Register at:
Link To MYDEM.ORG and you can check your status to see if you are registered to vote in the November 2006 election... Hurry registration ends on10/10/06: CO, DC, FL, GA, IL, IN, KY, MI, MT, NM, OH, PA, TX, UT, VA, MO
... so if you find out you are NOT REGISTERED or have been dropped from registration lists, you have little time to correct this... So Hurry.
thinkingblue Blog Link aka Carolyn
PS: It's October - only weeks to Election Day!
We must elect Democratic majorities in November - so we must make sure every vote is cast and every vote is counted.
Step 1: Don't miss the voter registration deadline for your state!!
10/7: MS, NV, RI, SC10/8: AK, TN, WA
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10/17: MD, ME, MN, NJ, OR, WV
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Election Day Registration: ID, ME, MN, ND, NH, WI, WY
If you are not registered to vote, register here Click For GO VOTE Link
Even if you think you're registered - you might not be! Your recent application may have been lost or rejected - or your past registration may have been purged.
Google your registration to make sure:
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thinkingblue - I've got a mind and I'm going to use it!
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