I am running as a delegate in the 8th Congressional District in PA.  I urge everybody to try to run as a delegate or attend a caucus in your state.  If we are ever to take back our country from the right wingers, we have to take back the Democratic Party from the bottom up.

http://www.cadem.org/site/c.jrLZK2PyHmF/b.2781567/k.2BE2/2008_Delegate.htm

 Become a Delegate to the Democratic National Convention: http://www.democracyforamerica.com/headlines/view/256

First of all...Dean is 1st
Second of all...I echo Paul's statement
Third...I have to run errands

4.

First I second all of Reed's comments except the third one since I just finished my errands.

I hope that everyone considering to be a delegate to the National Convention will realize that it will cost a minimum of $1500.00 for food and lodging, and that's if you get a lot of discounts, perhaps bring peanut butter sandwiches with you.

Our state representative to the DEC here

I hope that everyone considering to be a delegate to the National Convention will realize that it will cost a minimum of $1500.00 for food and lodging, and that's if you get a lot of discounts, perhaps bring peanut butter sandwiches with you.

Our state representative to the DEC here

Wha happened!

To continue: Our state representative to our DEC here has been a delegate. She says it is something you will never forget -- the energy, the hoopla, etc. so it was worth the cost if you can afford it.

In my district, I wouldn't stand a chance because of the big cities it includes in other big counties. But if you don't have that problem, GO FOR IT!

joan, don't underestimate your ability to turn out the vote for yourself. you'd be surprised sometimes at the low turnout for these sorts of events. go for it.

I voted for Kerry becuz of the horrible potential of a radical rightie Supreme Court.  It's gonna start hearing gun banning cases and so begins the possibhle disarming of America.

And so, we're faced with it again.  

Justice Stevens and the Tipping Point
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/112307A.shtml
David G. Savage of The Los Angeles Times writes: "Justice John Paul Stevens, 87, last week became the second-oldest justice in the Supreme Court's history. Only Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, who retired at 90 in 1932, served to an older age. If there is a tipping point in the Supreme Court's future, it is likely to come with his departure. What kind of justice would replace him - and how strong the court's slim conservative majority would be - may well depend on who is elected president."

WUFT FM Friday afternoon classical music trivia question (don't look it up):

Franz Schubert served as a torch bearer at the funeral of this composer. Name the composer.

Maybe Justice Stevens needs body guards!   People who stand in the way of the neo-con agenda aren't faring well these days.  I would imagine cheney is smacking his lips thinking about replacing him.

Time for the gun lobby to do something about bush/cheney if they want to keep their guns.  

Maybe Schumann?

I'm suggesting not that the gun lobby resort to violence, but that it joins Kucinich on impeachment.

lots of good things to do

bbl 

I gotta move to Miami.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071122/ap_o...

Just got done writing this review for SICKO

-------------------------

Michael Moore may not look like your classic genius, but he is.  His ability to combine fact, humor, and good old American common sense, and make it fun and entertaining, is remarkable and gifted.

I'll admit I had reservations myself about the cost/benefit of universal health care, and the critical innuendoes thereof abundant in our culture. Micheal Moore empathizes with such reservation, but shows us how pathetically brainwashed we are, with both his documented facts, and intuitive displays of peoples' satisfaction living with such systems. He shows the  obvious (but not snotty) amusement of Canadians, French and Brits (and Cubans too) with the typical American disbelief and skepticism - at the same time expressing their empathy for our travails and respect for Americans as basically good people. They only want to help.

This is hard for the right wing and the for-profit disease-care industry to counterpoint.  Facts can always be disputed, and statistics can always be scrutinized, but the interviews with these people in other countries tells a better story than all the fact and figures you can find, and in a very entertaining way.

We've gotten so used to living this way, we've forgotten how it used to be, and how it should be.

We ride with the French physician driving around all night making house calls.  A public service started by a doctor that got 24-hour plumbing service and thought humans were at least as important as plumbing.

We visit the "cashier" in a British hospital, whose sole purpose is to reimberse people for travel expenses and other out-of-pocket expenses that are covered by the government health service.

We see an American stocking up with 50 cent inhalers in Cuba that cost her $200 in New York, the identical product.

We see Canadians who are afraid to leave Canada without travelers health insurance, because they had a Canadian friend who got a $500,000 bill for a concussion while in Hawaii, which would not have cost him a cent in Canada.

We see "Health Care Refugees" from the USA who go to other countries (illegally) to get care free because it is prohibitively expensive in the USA.  And American expatriots who have guilt complexes about the lack of care (and prohibitive/bankrupting expense of care) back in the States, which they get free.

But the most remarkable thing is to see the content and satisfaction of foreigners in their respective countries, how complacent and confident they are with their health care systems (both health care professionals and patients,) and how that compares with the countless incidents of patient apathy and professional disparagement our system has created, not to mention the unending increases in costs.

franz liszt.

11. Beethoven.

13. Good guess Seashell.

15. Fred, I thought Sicko was great. You would have thrown stuff at the TV if you had heard this jerk from CATO institute on CSPAN yesterday morning talking about how the Canadians wait forever, etc, etc, ad nauseam.

bbl

57. on previous thread.

It's been my contention for many months, if not years, that the primary goal of the Axis of Evil agenda was to persuade Americans that they need to build new nuclear weapons and build new nuclear power plants (whos plutonium waste is useful for building bombs.
It's likely that Cheney's energy task force was focused on generating electricity, but not from oil (where the potential for a monopoly or American controlled cartel is lost) but from nuclear power where the U.S./Russo cartel or consortium already controls all the enriched fuel.

As Bush Two laid it out in the ABC interview on Tuesday:

PRESIDENT GEORGE BUSH: My, my objective is to solve this issue diplomatically, and I fully intend to, and I believe we can. But diplomacy is effective when all options are available to a president, and all options are available. No one wants to use military force to achieve any objective. But, but it’s important for all parties to understand that, you know, while I’m optimistic we can solve it diplomatically, options are available to the president.

CHARLES GIBSON: There’s been a lot of bellicose rhetoric that has been aimed at Iran, and you yourself, at a news conference recently, raised the specter of, of World War III if there was a nuclear armed Iran. Just my curiosity, why not turn the rhetoric around and smother them with kindness, call their bluff and say, look, if you’re seriously interested in nuclear power, we’ll build the nuclear power plants for you?

PRESIDENT GEORGE BUSH: I’ve done that. You must have not heard it, but we actually did it with Russia. Russia and, has offered to, you know, construct Bushehr, which is fine. I supported Russia and said that not only should you build it, but uh, the major suppliers group will provide the fuel and collect the fuel. And, so Russia and the United States are in concert on that issue. Matter of fact, I said this in a press conference, that it’s the sovereign right of Iran to have civilian nuclear power, and I agree, and I believe that.

But the problem is, is that it’s, what’s dangerous is there desire to learn how to enrich uranium, and, because the enrichment process could lead to a weapon. "

no, liszt is wrong. could be beethoven?

15. If you've seen the additional stuff on the DVD, or maybe Mochael made the point in the conference call in response to the "having to wait" issue. Fact is that for a non-life-threatening therapeutic procedure like a knee replacement, Canadians have to wait a month or two, but then it's GUARANTEED that they'll get it and it won't cost them a cent out of pocket. In the U.S. the surgery is only available to those whose insurance plan covers it or they can affort to pay out of pocket. And then, and this is the kicker, there's a good chance it will have to be repeated because, no doubt subconsciously, the prospect of further treatment is making the provider increasingly sloppy. Do-overs are becoming rather routine and each do-over, requiring a hospital stay, exposes the patient to a hospital-acquired infection.

So you'd prefer the blog clock to be ahead rather than behind? +++++++++++++++++++++++++++

sitka,

 I dont pay any attemtion to it really............

 I dont pay any attemtion to it really............

Me neither.

a blog clock's correctness should be the least of the blogs problems. And while I agree there are problem on the blog that need correcting, I don't think the clock has that importance, even though it would be nice.

____________________


Just another pop in to say HI and

...music lovers...there are many here. But enjoying life, expression, diversity, creating of course goes hand in hand with liberal and progressive politics and music.


Did you all know that besides the videos Current TV shares and the new website it created, they also have a music blog? Current's Daily Fix.

http://current.com/items/87709521_daily_...

Enjoy.

19. You got it mprov.

bbl -- will tear myself away for a few hours and hit the excellent Friday night TV - better than Sunday morning - IMO -- at 8 there's Gwinn Ifll OR CSPAN Presidential libraries LIVE, at 9 there's NOW and we get McLauglin at 9:30. At 10 there's Moyers which is excellent but I have trouble staying awake. Anyway--bye.

Annilow ... in re your question from the last thread, for ID purposes, Swiss nationals have an ID card. For foreigners living in-country, a valid residence permit serves that purpose or, if one is betwixt and between, as I was for a couple months, one's national passport in addition to a copy of the previous residence permit, together with an official document from the Swiss authorities providing for a grace period during which the individual has the right of residence while the change in residence permit is being processed, will do. Lots of paperwork ... .

For me, the grace period officially expired on 31 October and so I would technically have been considered *illegal* after that period, had I been challenged. I received the residence permit itself only last week, but I noticed that the effective date thereon was stated as 30 October. During the first couple weeks of November, the local authorities were much more sanguine than I was because they were much more used to the process than I.

To obtain the residence permit as a retiree, one must fulfill certain obligations. Among them, one must have a pension or financial arrangement that demonstrates a reliable source of income, proof of health insurance coverage (in Switzerland, unlike France, there is no national health insurance scheme; health insurance is, however, employer-mandated and health care is excellent ... and less expensive than in the US), and pay into Swiss social security (known as *AVS*) until Swiss retirement ages (64 for women and 65 for men). My employer had a lower mandatory retirement age (62), but they entered into an exceptional arrangement to keep me past that age, so I was 63+ when I officially retired. My AVS contributions will thus be minimal and, unless we make some arrangement where I pay into AVS for at least one year, those contributions will be *lost.* Given than once one has made the one year of contributions and is vested in AVS, one is also automatically covered for long-term health care so long as one resides here, it is generally worthwhile to enter into such an arrangement.

Of course, one must also pay all Swiss federal, cantonal, and communal taxes ... in addition to taxes of one's native country if such are required ... as is the case with the US. There are conventions that ensure that one will not be taxed twice for the same monies, so payments to one taxing authority will offset payments owing to the other although the higher tax rate will always apply if there is a differential. Switzerland, like the US, considers income earned anywhere in the world as fair game. Unlike the US, however, Switzerland also has a concept of "wealth" that is broader than simply income. Thus, the value of holdings in real estate, for example, must be stated and, if no rent is received (for example, on one's dwelling), a putative rental value is assigned based on a formula that varies from canton to canton

Finally, one must reside in-country for a minimum of six months and one day per year. For me, this will be the most pleasurable part.

The residence permit that I received is one that also allows me to work as an independent, or even for a Swiss employer, should I so desire. It is a real privilege.

Making sure that we will be legally established has required a lot of time and advice. The advice has also come at a significant cost. Once we get everything established (I figure that it will take through the 2008 tax return for us to really have a good idea what should routinely be the expectations), things should run smoothly. But until then, I expect that there will be a few hiccups.

**************
I didn't mean to go on at such length. But many here have from time to time raised the possibility of emigrating from the country that the US has or will become, as distinguished from what we all would like to believe that it is or should be. Moving from one country to another brings a whole new set of problems and it is naive to believe that things will simply fall into place. One of the most difficult things to adjust to is the simple difference in routine daily actions, let alone major linguistic or cultural expectations. I chose this opportunity because this area is beautiful; the quality of life is exceptional; I have access to meaningful professional opportunities; I have many friends and support groups here due to my long-term presence, etc. Mostly, I want to be able to offer family and friends the opportunity to share some of what I have so that they will not develop the kind of fortress mentality that the neocons would love for you all to have.

If we could simply fix the problems that we have in the US, we still could be the country that we believe that we should be. I haven't completely given up hope yet, nor has the world. But time is running out. And if any individual other than a Democrat wins the Presidency next year (yes, some Dems are much, much better options than the others, but no one is perfect, and any one of those now running is head and shoulders above ANYONE the Rethugs have produced), then I believe that time truly will run out.

Our state party chair just published the following:

Several people have asked about how to run for delegate in December 15th caucuses.

This is essentially the same process the NHDP has used since the 1980 election. I know it seems complicated but it really is about one thing: GOTV. Getting your supporters to the caucus and getting them to vote for you.

1. File. You can't run if you don't file.The deadline is COB December 5th - NO EXCEPTIONS!
2. Find the location of your candidate's caucus in your district.
3. Get every person you know who lives in your congressional district and is not a Republican to attend and vote for you. Any person eligible to vote in the Democratic Primary can vote (Democrats, undeclareds and not-yet registered voters). Don't count on winning over another candidate's family so bring your own!
4. Make sure you tell your supporters to plan on being there for an hour or so. If they leave before they vote...
5. Make sure you tell your supporters they will have to sign a form that they intend on voting for your presidential candidate in the primary.
6.Create a flyer - nothing fancy - that states your name, reasons why you want to be a delegate, what you have done for your candidate and explain who you are as well. Note: people tend to vote for the more interesting/new candidates.
7. Keep in mind that male and female candidates are not running against each other (each person may cast x votes in the female column and x votes in the male column). Note: it helps to team up with someone from the opposite gender (If you have 30 supporters and he or she has 30 supporters and you team up you each get 60 votes!)
8. Have a great 60 second speech ready.
9. If you don't make the list, be nice to those who do win because they get to select more delegates in the spring and you may want their support!
10. Keep in mind you only get to be a delegate if your candidate does well in the primary, so don't go home after the caucus to celebrate. Encourage your group of supporters to volunteer at your candidate's headquarters!

Protest song by Tom Paxton, folk singer.  Video.  Links to the song he wrote during Vietnam...

Lyndon Johnson Told the Nation.

George W. Told the Nation...this is not an escation, this is just a surge toward victory.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/1660

IMO, there was not enough mention made in the US media about yesterday's anniversary of JFK's assassination.

Here is the text of the speech that he was scheduled to deliver in Dallas on that fateful day, which marked my coming of age. I was a senior in college then and, like all who remember this event, remember exactly where I was, what I was doing, and the stunned disbelief that I existed in for a long period afterwards ... and that shakes me even today.

It was just the beginning of the neocons' long progression.

================
JFK: The Undelivered Speech

I am honored to have this invitation to address the annual meeting of the Dallas Citizens Council joined by the members of the Dallas Assembly --- and pleased to have this opportunity to salute the Graduate Research Center of the Southwest.

It is fitting that these two symbols of Dallas progress are united in the sponsorship of this meeting. For they represent the best qualities, I am told, of leadership and learning in this city --- and leadership and learning are indispensable to each other. The advancement of learning depends on community leadership for financial and political support, and the products of that learning, in turn, are essential to the leadership's hopes for continued progress and prosperity. It is not a coincidence that those communities possessing the best in research and graduate facilities --- from MIT to Cal Tech --- tend to attract the new and growing industries. I congratulate those of you here in Dallas who have recognized these basic facts through the creation of the unique and forward-looking Graduate Research Center.

This link between leadership and learning is not only essential at the community level. It is even more indispensable in world affairs. Ignorance and misinformation can handicap the progress of a city or a company, but they can, if allowed to prevail in foreign policy, handicap this country's security. In a world of complex and continuing problems, in a world full of frustrations and irritations, America's leadership must be guided by the lights of learning and reason --- or else those who confuse rhetoric with reality and the plausible with the possible will gain the popular ascendancy with their seemingly swift and simple solutions to every world problem.

[...]
We in this country, in this generation, are --- by destiny rather than choice --- the watchmen on the walls of world freedom. We ask, therefore, that we may be worthy of our power and responsibility, that we may exercise our strength with wisdom and restraint, and that we may achieve in our time and for all time the ancient vision of "peace on earth, good will toward men." That must always be our goal, and the righteousness of our cause must always underlie our strength. For as was written long ago, "except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."

http://spot.acorn.net/jfkplace/09/fp.bac...

Judy...here's a JFK speech that could have been written about the Bush administration.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dxnpujfan...

29.

Reed in VT
Fri, 11/23/07
5:42 pm



...here's a JFK speech that could have been written about the Bush administration.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dxnpujfan...

-------------

Interesting, the very end of the speech, about porpoises of the First amendment: to cause "...sometimes even anger."

Thanks, Reed ... it is as if the neocones took all his words about what America is supposed to be and twisted American into exactly the opposite.

He also described our present-day media to a T.

**********
And I have tears in my eyes.

*neocones* was a misspelling that I tried to catch ... but in some ways, it is apt.

Sorry about that.

I was busy making Democratic Committee calls and then my daughter called about me fixing a plumbing problem at her house tomorrow. She likes having a dad that is a jack of all trades...dad may not agree...lol
Yes Judy, my brother in Pennsylvania had just sent that to me minutes before I read your post...I was hit with the double whammy in reserve. We need a JFK-like candidate now more than ever, strange how the good ones keep dying.
Back to work on the list...

Help please.  I wanted to start designing my website on Homestead.com today and found out that the site is incompatible with Macs.  Ugh!  Does anyone know a site that is compatible?  I don't want to learn HTML and all that complicated stuff.  Homestead is soooo easy....and so unworkable.  Dang!

I've been looking around but the monthly charges are 5 and 6 times higher than Homestead. 

In a world of complex and continuing problems, in a world full of frustrations and irritations, America's leadership must be guided by the lights of learning and reason --- or else those who confuse rhetoric with reality and the plausible with the possible will gain the popular ascendancy with their seemingly swift and simple solutions to every world problem.  JFK

Yes, putzco has done just the opposite.   He doesn't understand no advocate for learning or for reason. 

And where are Pelosi and Reid? Shouldn't they be planning an impeachment party or at least talking about subpoening McClellan?

Reading this speech makes me long for Gore.

no s/b nor

BTW, Cafferty is getting more face time lately which is so great since we need more long-time sobriety speaking out.

...the excellent Friday night TV - better than Sunday morning - IMO -- at 8 there's Gwinn Ifll OR CSPAN Presidential libraries LIVE, at 9 there's NOW and we get McLauglin at 9:30. At 10 there's Moyers which is excellent but I have trouble staying awake.

I used to watch those shows, but now find Friday's corporate GOP propaganda no different from Sunday's.

Moyers is good, though. It's too bad you have miss the only part worth watching. 

.

Sea...yahoo has inexpensive web hosting, I don't know about their web builder as I do the xhtml thingy with our website...worth a look though me thinks.
http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/webhostin...

Try Wordpress, seashell.

You can use their host & server (it won't be on your domain name, but the interface is open sourced-blog & fairly intuitive).  Ex.:  www.wordpress.com/seashell would be your URL.

If you want your own domain name & hosting service, you'd use the "other" souped up version of Wordpress (although, I wouldn't recommend it for a newbie--do it later).

Depends upon why & how you're using it, re: which version you want, etc. 

Wordpress is a helluva lot better, re: interface--beats the crap out of this kiddie BFA thang....

YMMV 

17.

Annilow
Fri, 11/23/07
3:16 pm

Reply to this

11. Beethoven.

13. Good guess Seashell.

15. Fred, I thought Sicko was great. You would have thrown stuff at the TV if you had heard this jerk from CATO institute on CSPAN yesterday morning talking about how the Canadians wait forever, etc, etc, ad nauseam
============================

I know. It is a brainwash and 1984 conditioning. I am going to give a copy to my "fiscal conservative" republican brother. He's got lots of money but not too bright, street-wise. Hates politics. (I would too if I was a republican who cared about poor people.) Wants to cut taxes for the rich but thinks the poor should not suffer. Naive guy.

new thread

http://blogforamerica.com/view/23068

seashell, why not just get a blog. They're free.

Bush says Restructure?                               I agree.                            Impeach  !                                   Bring Them Home Now !!!!                 Wage Peace.   .............................                                                    We may  need tto get in the streets . Be Involved,  and  thank you Patriots !