Dennis Kucinich is a remarkable human being. He was born to Cleveland, Ohio’s working class poor. He was a sickly, undersized child who suffered from asthma, stuttering and agonizing stomach pains. His extended family was plagued with poverty, cruelty, insanity and alcoholism.
“Mind over matter” was his childhood mantra.
As he says in his new autobiography, The Courage to Survive , his passage from pain to joy has come through love, hope, friendship and a spiritual awakening.
By age 13, Dennis had become a 97 lb. third string high school varsity quarterback. By age 30, he was the mayor of Cleveland, disparagingly referred to as “Dennis the Menace” due to his refusal to sell Cleveland’s publicly owned electric utility. In 1996, he became Congressman Kucinich. In 2004 he would first run for President of the United States. In the 2008 Democratic primaries, this American working class hero is again the most progressive candidate running
Made in China on the Sly
Bastardos!
In fact, many luxury-brand items today are made on assembly lines in developing nations, where labor is vastly cheaper. I saw this firsthand when I visited a leather-goods factory in China, where women 18 to 26 years old earn $120 a month sewing and gluing together luxury-brand leather handbags, knapsacks, wallets and toiletry cases. One bag I watched them put together — for a brand whose owners insist is manufactured only in Italy — cost $120 apiece to produce. That evening, I saw the same bag at a Hong Kong department store with a price tag of $1,200 — a typical markup.
In fact, many luxury-brand items today are made on assembly lines in developing nations, where labor is vastly cheaper. I saw this firsthand when I visited a leather-goods factory in China, where women 18 to 26 years old earn $120 a month sewing and gluing together luxury-brand leather handbags, knapsacks, wallets and toiletry cases. One bag I watched them put together — for a brand whose owners insist is manufactured only in Italy — cost $120 apiece to produce. That evening, I saw the same bag at a Hong Kong department store with a price tag of $1,200 — a typical markup.
Treason is Not Old News
"I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the name of our sources. They are, in my view, the most insidious, of traitors." George Herbert Walker Bush, CIA dedication ceremony, April 26, 1999.
Group claiming 2004 election fraud asks Dann to investigate
Columbus- A group that still believes widespread voter fraud aided George W. Bush's 2004 victory in Ohio, triggering his successful presidential re-election, is asking the state for a criminal investigation.
The group, led by Columbus attorney Cliff Arnebeck, has tried almost since the polls closed three years ago to get a judge or prosecutor anywhere to validate their claims of voter suppression in Cuyahoga County and elsewhere but have little to show for their efforts.
Now they are turning to state Attorney General Marc Dann, whose office has authority under a nearly two-year-old election reform law to conduct criminal probes into allegations of voter fraud.
Hispanic names make top 10 list in America
Forget about keeping up with the Joneses. It's the Garcia, Rodriguez and Martinez families that are the ones to watch.
Data from the US census bureau suggests that some surnames of Hispanic origin have supplanted Anglo ones - such as Wilson - traditionally thought of as quintessential American names.
In the 2000 census, Garcia was the eighth most common surname in the US, and Rodriguez came in at number nine, both ahead of Wilson, which at 10th was only just ahead of Martinez.
Data from the US census bureau suggests that some surnames of Hispanic origin have supplanted Anglo ones - such as Wilson - traditionally thought of as quintessential American names.
In the 2000 census, Garcia was the eighth most common surname in the US, and Rodriguez came in at number nine, both ahead of Wilson, which at 10th was only just ahead of Martinez.
Gas-station owner dies after fast against oil giants
poor guy. i guess he was pretty serious about the fasting, but at some point, you have to eat, eh?
Mehdi Shahbazi was a man who championed the consumer and listened to his own counsel as he waged a years-long battle against Exxon Oil and then Shell Oil.
The conflicts cost him his eight service stations - from Salinas to San Jose - his home, his health and his life.
Shahbazi, 65, died Wednesday at Stanford Hospital due to a fast of more than four months to protest the power of oil companies - and as gas prices approach record highs in California.
Mehdi Shahbazi was a man who championed the consumer and listened to his own counsel as he waged a years-long battle against Exxon Oil and then Shell Oil.
The conflicts cost him his eight service stations - from Salinas to San Jose - his home, his health and his life.
Shahbazi, 65, died Wednesday at Stanford Hospital due to a fast of more than four months to protest the power of oil companies - and as gas prices approach record highs in California.
British General: Our Presence ‘Instigated’ Violence In Iraq, ‘90 Percent’ Reduction After Withdrawal
The presence of British forces in downtown Basra, Iraq’s second-largest city, was the single largest instigator of violence, Maj. Gen. Graham Binns told reporters Thursday on a visit to Baghdad’s Green Zone.
“We thought, ‘If 90 percent of the violence is directed at us, what would happen if we stepped back?,’” Binns said.
“We thought, ‘If 90 percent of the violence is directed at us, what would happen if we stepped back?,’” Binns said.
DUDE--Surfer stuns physicists with theory of everything
An impoverished surfer has drawn up a new theory of the universe, seen by some as the Holy Grail of physics, which has received rave reviews from scientists.
Garrett Lisi, 39, has a doctorate but no university affiliation and spends most of the year surfing in Hawaii, where he has also been a hiking guide and bridge builder (when he slept in a jungle yurt).
The E8 pattern (click to enlarge), Garrett Lisi surfing (middle) and out of the water (right)
In winter, he heads to the mountains near Lake Tahoe, Nevada, where he snowboards. "Being poor sucks," Lisi says. "It's hard to figure out the secrets of the universe when you're trying to figure out where you and your girlfriend are going to sleep next month."
Mom of teen shot by NYPD told police son didn't have a gun
Unbelievable! What the f*** is wrong with these cops?
Gaining an Empire, Losing Democracy? (2003)
my little tribute to norman mailer. i loved the naked and the dead as well as his book about the ali frazier fight. those are the only two i read. and i love this article. eg from 2003
The dire prospect that opens, therefore, is that America is going to become a mega-banana republic where the army will have more and more importance in Americans' lives. It will be an ever greater and greater overlay on the American system. And before it is all over, democracy, noble and delicate as it is, may give way. My long experience with human nature - I'm 80 years old now - suggests that it is possible that fascism, not democracy, is the natural state.
Indeed, democracy is the special condition - a condition we will be called upon to defend in the coming years. That will be enormously difficult because the combination of the corporation, the military and the complete investiture of the flag with mass spectator sports has set up a pre-fascistic atmosphere in America already.
Bush vetoes health and education bill
"This is a bipartisan bill supported by over 50 Republicans," Obey said. "There has been virtually no criticism of its contents. It is clear the only reason the president vetoed this bill is pure politics."
Since winning re-election, Bush has sought to cut the labor, health and education measure below the prior year level. But lawmakers have rejected the cuts. The budget that Bush presented in February sought almost $4 billion in cuts to this year's bill.
and this:
Much of the increase in the defense bill is devoted to procuring new and expensive weapons systems, including $6.3 billion for the next-generation F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, $2.8 billion for the Navy's DD(X) destroyer and $3.1 billion for the new Virginia-class attack submarine.
Huge procurement costs are driving the Pentagon budget ever upward. Once war costs are added in, the total defense budget will be significantly higher than during the typical Cold War year, even after adjusting for inflation.
Isn't it Time for Mark Penn to Leave Burson-Marsteller?
Who is Spin Master? It turns out that Spin Master distributes Aqua Dots
The uninvited guest: Chinese sub pops up in middle of U.S. Navy exercise, leaving military chiefs red-faced
Hmmm...
American military chiefs have been left dumbstruck by an undetected Chinese submarine popping up at the heart of a recent Pacific exercise and close to the vast U.S.S. Kitty Hawk - a 1,000ft supercarrier with 4,500 personnel on board.
By the time it surfaced the 160ft Song Class diesel-electric attack submarine is understood to have sailed within viable range for launching torpedoes or missiles at the carrier.
Action at Feinstein’s office to protest Mukasey vote
CALIFORNIA PDA REPORT from Mimi Kennedy 11.6.07 Action at Feinstein’s office to protest Mukasey vote (EXCERPTS)
Monday afternoon LA activists from PDA, Code Pink, Veterans for Peace, LA Impeachment Center and Iraq Vets Against the War, demonstrated in front of Dianne Feinstein’s office on Santa Monica Blvd. to protest her vote for Mukasey in the Judiciary Committee. Dianne’s office is a glass-and-steel high-rise on the corner of Sepulveda and Santa Monica Blvd., one of the busiest intersections in California.
...We chanted “No more torture, no more Feinstein!” It was gratifying that the drivers of most public vehicles – sanitation trucks and metro busses – honked for us. Some of us had letters to deliver. The rule is that only six can be admitted to her office at a time without appointment.
Six of us walked into the glass-walled lobby. The security guard stopped us ... we could not just go up; he had to phone the Senator’s office and ask first. Reasonable; he phoned, and was told a staffer would be down to escort us up in ten minutes. Ten minutes went by, no-one came. I called the office upstairs on my cell phone. The number was busy, as it has been since last Friday, when Feinstein’s vote, to pass Mukasey’s nomination to the Senate floor, was announced. Almost everyone I know who has tried to call reports that they either get a busy signal or Dianne’s cheerful taped voice advising us to call back later – at all state offices and in D.C.
That’s why we were physically at her office on Monday. It was the only way we could let her know, for sure, that her constituents were riled. We waited. The rest of the demonstrators, about twenty – including Col. Ann Wright– came to the glass doors. The security guards began locking the doors. We objected – why were they being locked out of seeing their Senator? ”This is private property,” a guard told me angrily. “Yes, but it’s private property in America,” I noted. “And she’s our Senator and we have redress of grievances.”
And it’s been impossible to get through to her by phone. So basically, Dianne Feinstein votes the way she wants and is in lockdown from her constituents.
Trevor Daley finally came downstairs and heard our complaints, one by one, with an admirable show of patience. He said, among other things, “She asked us how many calls we’ve gotten on this. And it’s only been 600 a day. For Alito and Roberts, it was 2000 a day. So she doesn't feel this is as important to her constituents.”
Her vote on Mukasey was a big surprise, and constituents had four days to react, two of them a weekend. And, we told Trevor, most people are reporting that they cannot get through on the phone, and there is no message-recording capacity on Dianne’s cheery outgoing “call back later” message. So the 600 phone calls that miraculously got through are only part of the real number. That was it for redress of grievances and being in touch with our U.S. Senator. Her phone service should be updated. It is clearly insufficient to take constituent calls in times of crisis. And maybe she likes it that way.
There are very few rank-and-file Democrats left who feel happy that Dianne Feinstein is their Senator.
Monday afternoon LA activists from PDA, Code Pink, Veterans for Peace, LA Impeachment Center and Iraq Vets Against the War, demonstrated in front of Dianne Feinstein’s office on Santa Monica Blvd. to protest her vote for Mukasey in the Judiciary Committee. Dianne’s office is a glass-and-steel high-rise on the corner of Sepulveda and Santa Monica Blvd., one of the busiest intersections in California.
...We chanted “No more torture, no more Feinstein!” It was gratifying that the drivers of most public vehicles – sanitation trucks and metro busses – honked for us. Some of us had letters to deliver. The rule is that only six can be admitted to her office at a time without appointment.
Six of us walked into the glass-walled lobby. The security guard stopped us ... we could not just go up; he had to phone the Senator’s office and ask first. Reasonable; he phoned, and was told a staffer would be down to escort us up in ten minutes. Ten minutes went by, no-one came. I called the office upstairs on my cell phone. The number was busy, as it has been since last Friday, when Feinstein’s vote, to pass Mukasey’s nomination to the Senate floor, was announced. Almost everyone I know who has tried to call reports that they either get a busy signal or Dianne’s cheerful taped voice advising us to call back later – at all state offices and in D.C.
That’s why we were physically at her office on Monday. It was the only way we could let her know, for sure, that her constituents were riled. We waited. The rest of the demonstrators, about twenty – including Col. Ann Wright– came to the glass doors. The security guards began locking the doors. We objected – why were they being locked out of seeing their Senator? ”This is private property,” a guard told me angrily. “Yes, but it’s private property in America,” I noted. “And she’s our Senator and we have redress of grievances.”
And it’s been impossible to get through to her by phone. So basically, Dianne Feinstein votes the way she wants and is in lockdown from her constituents.
Trevor Daley finally came downstairs and heard our complaints, one by one, with an admirable show of patience. He said, among other things, “She asked us how many calls we’ve gotten on this. And it’s only been 600 a day. For Alito and Roberts, it was 2000 a day. So she doesn't feel this is as important to her constituents.”
Her vote on Mukasey was a big surprise, and constituents had four days to react, two of them a weekend. And, we told Trevor, most people are reporting that they cannot get through on the phone, and there is no message-recording capacity on Dianne’s cheery outgoing “call back later” message. So the 600 phone calls that miraculously got through are only part of the real number. That was it for redress of grievances and being in touch with our U.S. Senator. Her phone service should be updated. It is clearly insufficient to take constituent calls in times of crisis. And maybe she likes it that way.
There are very few rank-and-file Democrats left who feel happy that Dianne Feinstein is their Senator.
The Impeachment Of Dick Cheney
Public perception can beat the shit out of political nuance. The Bush Republicans know this and they have abused it for their own nefarious ends. The Democrats, on the other hand, have somehow overlooked this very basic rule of 21st Century American politics, which is a shame since they would more often than not use it for the betterment of the nation.
After all, one year ago yesterday, we elected the Democrats in overwhelming numbers to amplify our screaming voices to a decibel loud enough to penetrate the unchecked corridors of power in Washington -- we hired this party to speak for us and to use this expressed authority to end the war and to hold this historically unpopular executive regime accountable.
To date and with the exception of some admirable investigations by a few standout lawmakers, the Democrats have done nothing to make good on their mandate from you and me.
After all, one year ago yesterday, we elected the Democrats in overwhelming numbers to amplify our screaming voices to a decibel loud enough to penetrate the unchecked corridors of power in Washington -- we hired this party to speak for us and to use this expressed authority to end the war and to hold this historically unpopular executive regime accountable.
To date and with the exception of some admirable investigations by a few standout lawmakers, the Democrats have done nothing to make good on their mandate from you and me.
Cheney impeachment measure advances
Midway through the vote, with instructions from the GOP leadership, Republicans one by one changed their votes from yes — to kill the resolution — to no, trying to force the chamber into a debate and an up-or-down vote on the proposal.
At one point there were 290 votes to table. After the turnaround, the final vote was 251-162 against tabling, with 165 Republicans voting against it.
“We’re going to help them out, to explain themselves,” said Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas. “We’re going to give them their day in court.”
At one point there were 290 votes to table. After the turnaround, the final vote was 251-162 against tabling, with 165 Republicans voting against it.
“We’re going to help them out, to explain themselves,” said Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas. “We’re going to give them their day in court.”
Kucinich not stopping with Cheney, plans Bush impeachment resolution too
"If he pulls it off, it could make for an uncomfortable situation for Democratic leaders and centrist Democrats," The Hill's Mike Soraghan writes of Kucinich's plan. "Liberal activists are pushing for impeachment, while leaders worry such a move could turn off independent voters. They have made it clear that impeachment of Cheney or President Bush is off the table."
and now Raw reports that: House Republicans vote against Democratic-led motion to end debate on impeachment measure)
are they doing that to embarass the centrist Dems or because some of them want to impeach. Probably the former...
and now Raw reports that: House Republicans vote against Democratic-led motion to end debate on impeachment measure)
are they doing that to embarass the centrist Dems or because some of them want to impeach. Probably the former...
Top 25 Censored Stories of 2008
# 1 No Habeas Corpus for "Any Person"
# 2 Bush Moves Toward Martial Law
# 3 AFRICOM: US Military Control of Africa's Resources
# 4 Frenzy of Increasingly Destructive Trade Agreements
# 5 Human Traffic Builds US Embassy in Iraq
# 6 Operation FALCON Raids
# 7 Behind Blackwater Inc.
# 8 KIA: The US Neoliberal Invasion of India
# 9 Privatization of America's Infrastructure
# 10 Vulture Funds Threaten Poor Nations' Debt Relief
# 11 The Scam of "Reconstruction" in Afghanistan
# 12 Another Massacre in Haiti by UN Troops
# 13 Immigrant Roundups to Gain Cheap Labor for US Corporate Giants
# 14 Impunity for US War Criminals
# 15 Toxic Exposure Can Be Transmitted to Future Generations on a "Second Genetic Code"
# 16 No Hard Evidence Connecting Bin Laden to 9/11
# 17 Drinking Water Contaminated by Military and Corporations
# 18 Mexico's Stolen Election
# 19 People's Movement Challenges Neoliberal Agenda (Free Trade through Central and South America)
# 20 Terror Act Against Animal Activists
# 21 US Seeks WTO Immunity for Illegal Farm Payments
# 22 North Invades Mexico
# 23 Feinstein's Conflict of Interest in Iraq
# 24 Media Misquotes Threat From Iran's President
# 25 Who Will Profit from Native Energy?
# 2 Bush Moves Toward Martial Law
# 3 AFRICOM: US Military Control of Africa's Resources
# 4 Frenzy of Increasingly Destructive Trade Agreements
# 5 Human Traffic Builds US Embassy in Iraq
# 6 Operation FALCON Raids
# 7 Behind Blackwater Inc.
# 8 KIA: The US Neoliberal Invasion of India
# 9 Privatization of America's Infrastructure
# 10 Vulture Funds Threaten Poor Nations' Debt Relief
# 11 The Scam of "Reconstruction" in Afghanistan
# 12 Another Massacre in Haiti by UN Troops
# 13 Immigrant Roundups to Gain Cheap Labor for US Corporate Giants
# 14 Impunity for US War Criminals
# 15 Toxic Exposure Can Be Transmitted to Future Generations on a "Second Genetic Code"
# 16 No Hard Evidence Connecting Bin Laden to 9/11
# 17 Drinking Water Contaminated by Military and Corporations
# 18 Mexico's Stolen Election
# 19 People's Movement Challenges Neoliberal Agenda (Free Trade through Central and South America)
# 20 Terror Act Against Animal Activists
# 21 US Seeks WTO Immunity for Illegal Farm Payments
# 22 North Invades Mexico
# 23 Feinstein's Conflict of Interest in Iraq
# 24 Media Misquotes Threat From Iran's President
# 25 Who Will Profit from Native Energy?
US v Russia
Twice recently, I have heard people comparing the USA and the Russians or perhaps more accurately the Soviet Union. The first occasion was on 60 Minutes when the interviewer, Scott Pelley as I recall, talked to some Afghans (or is it Afghanis?) about a civilian massacre. The upshot of the conversation was that the Russians treated them better than we, the US of A, have been doing. Pelley reminded us that the Ruskies killed a million Afghanis so it obviously couldn't be true despite the recent sentiment of the poor Afghans whose friends and relatives had been slaughtered by some massive US bomb.
The second occasion where we were not so favorably compared to our Cold War rivals was by a Finnish folk band that arrived in Minnesota for a tour. As I recall, their tour was sponsored by the University of Minnesota. And so when they arrived at customs in Minneapolis on a flight from Amsterdam, HOMELAND SECURITY decided they were ne'er do well hippies. One of the dudes was strip-searched and subsequently recalled how it went down:
Perhaps the most damning comment on the incident was delivered by [J. Karjalainen] who was strip-searched. On a couple of occasions prior to 1991, he was detained by the KGB and interrogated. Compared to the ICE agents here in the Twin Cities, the KGB operatives, he says, "at least acted like human beings. Not a bunch of animals."
Details here: http://www.boingboing.net/2007/10/29/finnish-folk-band-fi.html
And to continue the theme, just listen to what Putin says versus what Bush says. Whatever you think of Putin, he is articulate and can clearly participate in world affairs while Dubya never ceases to embarrass.
Thoughts?
The second occasion where we were not so favorably compared to our Cold War rivals was by a Finnish folk band that arrived in Minnesota for a tour. As I recall, their tour was sponsored by the University of Minnesota. And so when they arrived at customs in Minneapolis on a flight from Amsterdam, HOMELAND SECURITY decided they were ne'er do well hippies. One of the dudes was strip-searched and subsequently recalled how it went down:
Perhaps the most damning comment on the incident was delivered by [J. Karjalainen] who was strip-searched. On a couple of occasions prior to 1991, he was detained by the KGB and interrogated. Compared to the ICE agents here in the Twin Cities, the KGB operatives, he says, "at least acted like human beings. Not a bunch of animals."
Details here: http://www.boingboing.net/2007/10/29/finnish-folk-band-fi.html
And to continue the theme, just listen to what Putin says versus what Bush says. Whatever you think of Putin, he is articulate and can clearly participate in world affairs while Dubya never ceases to embarrass.
Thoughts?
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