What I'm trying to say is Dean is first.

Here's Chris Dodd speaking to the National Journal.  I suppose he's next in line to be thrown on the trash heap with Keith Olbermann by his former fans among Clinton's supporters:

"I think the race has been determined, anyway, at this point. I think it’s very difficult to imagine how anyone can believe that Barack Obama can’t be the nominee of the party. I think that’s a foregone conclusion, in my view, at this juncture given where things are. But certainly over the next couple of weeks, as we get into April, it seems to me then, that the national leadership of this party has to stand up and reach a conclusion."

" . . . .

"But if you have enough people rallying behind what appears to be the likely choice, and I believe the choice is Barack Obama, and I believe that will be the choice over the next several weeks. Then I think you have to step up to the plate and say, enough is enough. We want this to be over with. We want to get behind this candidate, and we want people to pull together to win that election in November — to build those majorities in the House and the Senate if we can, and then start doing the work on health care and Iraq and all these other issues that demand our attention."

I hope Dodd gets a lucrative cabinet post. 

seashell wrote "I hope Dodd gets a lucrative cabinet post."

Not me.  I hope he and Sen. Clinton stay with the majority in the Senate.

seashell :-)

I concede, you were off by less than five minutes that's double your prediction time but never-the-less your prediction came true

Do you still think Hillary has a non-fairy-tale chance of getting the nomination?

I know it's boring and sort of simple, whatever....

The Montpelier Bridge

Has it occurred to you that bashing HC drives people who would vote for Obama into McC arms?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

why?  

Just talked with Thankful . . . .  she's fixed both 'puters, but is *still* internets deprived.  She sez she loves ya all, and be kind to each other. 

Look at it this way, guys and gals.  This keeps me off the street tonight.  :-)

by Jonathon Morgan
Mar 26th 2008 @ 2:02PM

Filed under: Polit-eco

Gallery: 6 Signs Al Gore is Running for President

Al Gore for president: Yay or Nay?

http://www.greendaily.com/2008/03/26/6-signs-al-gore-is-running-for-president/ 

6 Signs Al Gore is running for president

Another fairy tale or wishful thinking?

sunlight, what prediction?

***************

"Has it occurred to you that bashing HC drives people who would vote for Obama into McC arms?"

puddle, Matthews has been talking about "grudge" voting and it works both ways...in fairly high numbers  -  teens.   Polls were taken; I know, those pesky polls.

It seems that BO  and HC fans are becoming increasingly hostile towards one another and have said that they would "grudge" vote if their man/woman didn't get the nod and they'd vote McC.

Matthews has been talking about this for several days, with data backing it up.  

But who knows?  Altho some people here have said that if BO isn't the nominee, they'd vote green or some such.  That's a vote for McCain. 

I'm not sure I  splained this well.  :-) 

It's wishful HOPING.  LOL  I want hope and change!!

Speaking of batsh!t crazy - Carville is indeed batsh!t crazy. what a vindictive bunch.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/03/27...

Al Gore for president: Yay or Nay?

Nay

His chance has past.

11.

seashell :-)
Thu, 03/27/08

Reply to this
It's wishful HOPING. LOL I want hope and change!!
--------
Barack Obama!

11.

seashell :-)
Thu, 03/27/08

Reply to this
It's wishful HOPING. LOL I want hope and change!!
--------
Barack Obama!

BTW, if you click on the Gore link, you can vote.  You'll be surprised.

sorry for the double post. Seems to happen when I use my husband's laptop.

Nite.

sunlight, what prediction?

Al's very trim these days.....

I talked with s/o today who said we need several more parties and choices.

Al on an Indy ticket (too late I think) would sweep Oregon. 

mary vb

nite mary, I enjoy your pro obama links~

Al's very trim these days.....

This would indicate what? 

Al's very trim these days.....

This would indicate what? 

That he lost weight!  :-) 

Baghdad under curfew amid clashes A three-day curfew is imposed on Baghdad, amid continuing clashes between Shia militias and security forces. Battles threaten fragile Iraq In pictures: Iraqi clashes Watch: Clashes in Basra

Here we go again.

Growing up, we lived near a family who named their son Harry Butz.  Not joking.

It's quiz time!
Why do researchers think your name might determine your fate?

Hope, Progress, Can DO!

Hillary!!!

Al looks fanTAStic and VERY presidential!

 He still has the best numbers, too.

What kind of desperate tactics is the Obama campaign doing?

Back to main page





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

The enemy within
Posted March 27, 2008 6 :40 PM

Things got a little eerie in Erie today.



At Hillary Clinton's campaign office in West Erie Plaza, a young man who told workers that he came to volunteer for the New York senator turned out to be a Barack Obama volunteer.


According to the Clinton staff in Erie, the young man in question was leery of signing the mandatory sign-in sheet that all volunteers fill out when they come into the office.

But after some time, he agreed, but his sketchy behavior, asking the volunteers if they were "cutting turf" (campaign lingo for literature drops), led them to first search for his name on Google, then Facebook and finally the Federal Election Commission Web site. It turns out, thanks to Google and Facebook, he is an Obama supporter. And the FEC lists him as receiving disbursements from the Obama for America campaign, as standard student campaign cash.


After one quick call to the Obama campaign office in Erie, guess who answered the phone?

"I was just there to check things out," said Sam Glenzer, who oddly used his real name when signing in at the Clinton campaign office.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/blogs/primarycolors/show_comments.php?entry_id=2286

 

from the previous thread

13.

seashell :-)
Thu, 03/27/08

The intentional betrayal of trust is very bruising to the spirit. It is not wise to betray youth.

You have the power has nothing to do with the controlling of others. The exercise of freedom is all about personal responsible. Tyrants turn people into victims for control but in truth a person's free will is not controlled without their permission. That is why torture and dirty-tricks are immoral and don't work. In the end the tyrants will always become their victims.

Forgiveness is a virtue.

Politics is a local thingie. I support Barack for President 110%. My money, phone time and door-to-door aerobics have gone Obama's way since December. A dear friend is chair of the state Clinton people. If all goes totally askew and Hillary gets the nomination, I will be a my friends victory deal, wearing my walking shoes, cell phone and check in hand. The reverse, I have been assured, goes for an Obama Nomination. On a local level, lack of unity throws our delicate leads in the legislative and county commission races to the worst sort of hardline neocons.

Sure would be a cool deal all around if Mrs. Clinton would face the mathematical realities and Fall In Line. (Good line, Bill. We never forget.)

Granted, I'm slow in the uptake, but I think I've figured out Linda's crazy angle.

She knows Hillary is toast (after all, she ain't stupid), but is helping to trash Obama to the point where Gore can step in as the only undamaged alternative to save a fatally fractured party.

As for me, I've always believed in democracy. No one will find a post where I've fudged on it. Whomever gets the most popular votes should be the nominee -- even if it's just 51%. 

"I was just there to check things out," said Sam Glenzer, who oddly used his real name when signing in at the Clinton campaign office.

Obviously something dark and sinister. Where's my foil hat? 

Susan, where is this coming from?  I already said I agree with you and then asked how we can motivate, without controlling, the youth.  I think you misunderstood me.  Is BO controlling the youth with his impassioned rhetoric?  How about Wright?  Is he controlling?  Of course he is.  Or trying to.  Bill?  Yes.  HC?  Yes

Even some people on the blog are trying to control, using flaming, snide remarks, put-downs.  This whole society is about trying to control becuz people feel they have no self-reference. 

I fully understand what you have the power means.  It has nothing to do with controlling others.  I'm surprised you don't know that about me. But I can see why you questioned me earlier when I mentioned the draft.  However, even then, each person has the right to flee the country, be a CO, feign illness or whatever.   Under BO, the draft may come regardless, since he wants a bigger military. 

And yes, there is always an agreement and any two people agree to be *persecutor* and *victim.*  And for that matter, either we're all victims, or none of us is.

So yes, we're on the same page. 

The soul info is good.  I'm sending it to a friend.

Are you aware of "What's Up On Planet Earth?" 

When one comes from heart-love, forgiveness isn't even an issue. To say to s/o, "I forgive you," IMO, is the height of spiritual pride and arrogance.

I'm not interested in playing god.

I think it was Ken Keyes  who wrote the 3 rules for happiness.

1.  Ask for what you want, but don't expect to get it.

2.  Accept what is, for now.

3.  Turn up your love. 

Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.”

 Paul Boese quotes

*************************

Forgiveness means giving up all hope for a better past.”

 Lily Tomlin quotes

*****************************

True forgiveness is not an action after the fact, it is an attitude with which you enter each moment.”

 David Ridge quotes

**********************************

“Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it.”

 Mark Twain quotes

Nite, peeps.  Judy may be along any minute.

As usual, one last thing.  :-) This is my definition of forgiveness.

Forgiveness is letting go of judgment....

(when one doesn't judge, right and wrong become moot points.)

And this is separate from discernment, which we all use.

Off to continue reading "World Without End"  by Follett.  It's magnificent and spell-binding. 

sea - then perhaps you can forgive Michelle Obama for whatever it is you have against her by letting go of your judgements of her.

leave aside that Hillary's memories of Tuzla do not match the video history, it was just plain poor JUDGEMENT to bring her 16 year old daughter along if it was so dangerous!  once again, Hillary's honesty and judgement are in question, thanks to HER OWN WORDS.  she is her own worst enemy.

Speaking of batsh!t crazy - Carville is indeed batsh!t crazy. what a vindictive bunch.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope a good reporter figures out what Carville just said because here is how that Judas remark came about the way I read it. Carville was in on a Clinton deal to buy Bill Richardson's super delegate vote by sending big donors who had maxxed out for Hillary over to "help" him with some old bills, and the story names names, and he just might have taken the checks. (From the named big donors who would try to buy votes for Hillary)

Carville might have let the cat out of the bag.

That wouldn't even show up on a  Clinton FEC report either. Loose lips sink ships James. lol if true that would show a high level of desperation by the Clintons

Good morning, everybody

So, now we've settled on a description that serves global--'extremists' are the new enemy.  How long will it take to recall Goldwater?

I read Carville's remarks to mean that Richardson accepted funds for his
campaign debts from Obama, not Clinton. He sold out his high priestess
for a few pieces of silver... etc. etc in Carville's eyes. In reality, I dont
actually care if either of these scenarios is factual-but I do take amusement
as Carville slips further (and further..and further) away from meaning
ANYthing is this country.

Carville's moving back to Nola.  You may be right, Phil.

People might not have been familiar with the names of donors, if they hadn't sent that letter to Pelosi.

The game of politics won't be nearly as much fun for some people, if it has to be played in the court of public opinion.

For what it's worth, somebody "stole" our 4x6 Dobb sign from off the roof of the duckhouse in the middle of our field.  They even took out the roofing nails.  And then, all of a sudden, Dodd's making statements about what the party leadership needs to do.  Who stole the Dodd sign?  Why? 

Obama is stingy.  Besides, if the Clintons are acting true to form, they're trying to divert attention from something they did themselves.

Dodd's been sending out requests for donations to retire his campaign debts.  Since they couldn't have been very large, I suspect that's more an effort to keep the email list up to date. 

Good morning, BFA! I'm late getting on this am since I had to go to the lab for some routine medical tests before having breakfast, so I just stayed out and got various chores done. Now I can move on to better things.

***********
I'm with Phil in that I think that it's great that some of the little states, including my birth state, that are generally ignored because the primaries are all sewn up will actually have some meaningful primary votes this year. I just wish that both campaigns would be less rancorous and that supporters of both remaining candidates would not be so bitter towards each other.

If we really do believe in the 50-state strategy, then that is what we are seeing for the first time in my lifetime. The enthusiasm is also something that I truly admire. I do not admire name-calling or the focusing on the negative attributes of either candidate.

I am also a realist. I believe that Obama will get the Dem nomination and so do most other realists I know. So can't we stop all the negativity against Hillary? What we need to focus on is how to beat 'Cain. How does having a few more primaries ... without rancor ... hurt that?

Interestingly enough, I have seen some here advocate for Gary Hart as Presidential material. Yet I remember how, when his particular scandal with Donna Rice broke, many were scathing in their contempt for Lee Hart, who stood by her husband in much the same fashion that people here have been against Hillary, for standing by Bill.

Lee is still with Gary, btw. So it can't all have been for *political gain,* as was alleged by her detractors at the time.

So, let's please leave the Bill stories out of things altogether. Hill has literally made her bed and she must lie in it. But without having walked a mile in her moccasins, we are not qualified to judge any aspect of her personal relationship with Bill.

We can say what we might have done in somewhat similar situations, or we can say what we believe that we might do should similar situations ever arise in our own relationships, but we should not judge.

If we really want to focus on the negative, let's look towards 'Cain. Now THAT'S something that I can really get behind. 'Cain = putz III

************
Thanks, Danny, for the DFA news and for your own straight talk.

Congratulations!

Florida has a law which prohibits political candidates from incurring debts.  Everything has to be paid for when ordered.  That suggests that perhaps being ordered not to advertise in the state wasn't much of a penalty.

h/t to Jane Hamsher at Firedoglake who drew my attention to this particular website. It tells about the situation in Iraq from the Iraq POV and I had not seen it before.

I encourage you all to take a look.

http://gorillasguides.com/

Judy, it's my sense that it's Hill's current behavior that is making some people question her veracity in the past.  One doesn't become a habitual liar over night.  Her latest explanation that she says millions of words a day and can't be held to account isn't any more reassuring.  If she doesn't attend to what she's saying, she'll have no credibility.  If she doesn't know when to shut her mouth, she's a liability.  I can't imagine they didn't think through the effect of the story she told on the military who provided the cover.  They feel like they've been slandered.

I see a lot posted here by my fellow US citizens, many of whom have never been to Israel or Palestine, on the I/P situation.

I also do some posting myself. But I have also been both to Israel and to the West Bank, never to Gaza, in the context of my work. In all instances, I have been well-received and well-treated by both Israelis and Palestinians. There are more good people on both sides than there are of the radical bad, which is why it is such a shame that so many in the US get frantic or nasty when *balance* is urged.

Although I have never worked with the World YWCA, I am honored to know many here who do. It is a grassroots NGO (non-Governmental organization) that has several projects in Palestine. Many Americans either ignore, forget, or refuse to acknowledge the fact that there are Christians in Palestine, many dating from the earliest Christian sects. The World YWCA, to its credit, practices its creed in the way that it was meant to be practiced, IMO, i.e., with a small *c.* The commitment of the organization is primarily to the empowerment of women. As a result, it does help to make a difference in women's lives around the world at the grassroots level.

Although the World YWCA has generally consisted of mainstream Protestant churches, the current Executive Secretary is Catholic. Both Jewish and Muslim women also work both at HQ and at the grassroots levels. Women of all creeds are welcomed at the centers and in local projects and all work together harmoniously.

Why is it that we in the US are among those who make religious divides worse than they really are for the largest number of people? Look at what we have done in Iraq, for example. Why is it that so many of us take the most radical POV, consider it mainstream, and refuse to listen to anything else?

Think about it.

The link is to a report on how the I/P situation continues to exacerbate life for the most vulnerable.

=====================
Israeli Occupation in Palestine and its Impact on Women and Children

The World YWCA organised a roundtable discussion on ‘Ending Occupation, Ending Violence against women and Children in Palestine’ at the recent United Nations Human Rights Council held from March 3 – 28 2008 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Tal Dor a member of the panel is an Israeli peace activist with ‘Zochrot’ whose activism was influenced by South Africa’s struggle to overcome apartheid. The second panellist Mira Rizek, General Secretary YWCA of Palestine was unable to attend the event. Edith Ballentyne­, former President of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) presented on her behalf. The presentation reflected on the daily experiences of life under occupation, which is characterised by unemployment, poverty, limited access to health care and restrictions on movement.

Dor, a Jewish Israeli and a dedicated worker in developing a critical consciousness in Israel on the holistic history of the region, expressed her belief in the possibility of Israelis and Palestinians living in peace. But to achieve that, political awareness and activism has to spread with an equal civic partnership between both parties. “I don’t think we can speak about peace in a situation of occupation. I believe we have to speak about justice, equality and ending occupation,” she said.

[...]
http://www.worldywca.info/index.php/ywca...

Hi Monica,

There is indeed a lot to what you say. But haven't we already said it ... over and over and over again? Talk about beating a dead horse.

Her campaign is well and truly over. I believe that these last primaries will only confirm that.

The more that we keep obsessing about it makes me wonder what our particular goal is.

well with soldiers in the field we can't settle on "those who would use violence to further political ends" as the enemy could we Monica? so extremists it is

extremists are those to whom the political ends the violence is for, holding views anathema to our POV

Mao "power comes from the barrel of a gun"/ either way

I want someone to challenge Mao, Obama nibbles around the edges of doing it.

we needed yesterdays snow to set the all time record here so I guess it was worth it in some twisted way

bbl

putz *the Decider* is trying to spin current events in Iraq. The chaos in Basra is actually a sign of the surge's *success.* Here's Dan Froomkin's round-up from yesterday.

putz is taking Newspeak to new depths. But there will indeed be some who will fall for it.

If any of those who fall for it are Dems currently in Congress, then they need to be replaced. Absolutely.

=====================
Spinning the Bloodshed in Basra
By Dan Froomkin
Special to washingtonpost.com
Thursday, March 27, 2008; 1:43 PM

As fighting rages in Basra, the White House is unleashing a forceful spin campaign to frame the Iraqi government's offensive there as a positive outcome of the U.S. troop surge and a symbol of better days to come.

Speaking to an invitation-only audience at an Air Force base in Dayton, Ohio, this morning, President Bush argued that the Basra incursion "shows the progress the Iraqi security forces have made during the surge" and "demonstrates to the Iraqi people that their government is committed to protecting them. . . .

"The enemy, you know, will try to fill the TV screens with violence," he scoffed. "But the ultimate result will be this: Terrorists and extremists in Iraq will know they have no place in a free and democratic society."

[...]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/con...

7:41 AM EDT

I'm a Catholic (lapsed but still a Catholic), so I can understand the Catholic vote a bit:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080328/ap_on_el_pr/obama_endorsement_2

Pennsylvania senator to endorse Obama

By DEVLIN BARRETT, Associated Press Writer

16 minutes ago

NEW YORK - Barack Obama will be endorsed by Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey.

...

Casey is a first-term senator and the son of a popular former governor of the state. His support could help Obama make inroads among Catholic voters. Catholics constitute more than 30 percent of the state. Casey is scheduled to join Obama in Pittsburgh Friday and campaign with him as Obama travels by across Pennsylvania by bus.

Here are lots more examples of the *success* of the *surge* from Juan Cole.

==================
Friday, March 28, 2008
Mahdi Army Stands Firm in its Basra Neighborhoods;
Demonstrations in Baghdad against al-Maliki

People are asking me the significance of the fighting going on in Basra and elsewhere. My reading is that the US faced a dilemma in Iraq. It needed to have new provincial elections in an attempt to mollify the Sunni Arabs, especially in Sunni-majority provinces like Diyala, which has nevertheless been ruled by the Shiite Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq. But if they have provincial elections, their chief ally, the Islamic Supreme Council, might well lose southern provinces to the Sadr Movement. In turn, the Sadrists are demanding a timetable for US withdrawal, whereas ISCI wants US troops to remain. So the setting of October, 2008, as the date for provincial elections provoked this crisis.

[...]
http://www.juancole.com/2008/03/al-hayat...

7:45 AM EDT

former Edwards supporters have indicated their preference:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/cq/20080328/pl_cq_politics/politics2693385_1

Edwards Donors Prefer Obama to Clinton

By Jonathan Allen and Alex Knott, CQ Staff

Fri Mar 28, 12:10 AM ET

John Edwards' former donors broke toward Barack Obama by a 2-to-1 margin over Hillary Rodham Clinton in February, the first full month after Edwards dropped out of the Democratic presidential nomination fight.

...

"I looked at both the candidates and basically the reason I chose to shift allegiance over to Obama was how I perceived his message of hope," said San Diego lawyer Blake Muir Harper.

"One of the things I think is wrong with our country is that the people have been left behind by big business, big corporations, big government, big everything. We need a return to 'We the people,' no exceptions. From my perspective, Obama seems to be more aligned with the people's interest rather than big corporate interests and government interests," he said. "Whereas Hillary is, to me, a vote more for the same old, same old, politics as usual."

...

I saw that some (Phil? sea?) posted about this discovery earlier. Here's more about it.

But there must be so