Action Point with Cynthia Black 03-23-2008: The Reference Shelf

Just a little note from me to you;

With our third hour and the Campaign 2008 gloves coming off (and I'm referring to the right-wing media, not the Democratic Primary which is I think, the least of this country's problems) Action Point and our Reference Shelf content will be covering more of the “horse track” (as Brad Friedman puts it) and less of the Presidential horse race. Brad in his case means election fraud tactics. I mean the blatant use of propaganda language techniques and fraudulent media manipulation intended to confound “democracy-loving” Americans of all parties.

And you can continue to count on us to keep delivering the policy and issues through our great Action Point interviews and guests!

-- Best, Cynthia Black



Today's article and item links:

• POLITICS: NATIONAL: CAMPAIGN 2008: Following up on last week and Jeffrey Feldman's advice to focus on the violent framing of right-wing religious endorsements for McCain (which violent innuendo they have, by the way, begun sliming onto Barack Obama's supporters) we bring you this: Hagee, in 'NYT' This Sunday, Says McCain Sought His Endorsement:

  In an interview that will appear in this Sunday's New York Times Magazine, controversial televangelist Rev. John Hagee declares, "It's true that [John] McCain's campaign sought my endorsement." McCain has attempted to distance himself from some of Hagee's views, much as Barack Obama is doing in relation to Rev. Jeremiah Wright. But unlike McCain, Obama has not stood on stage with Wright and accepted his accolades this year.

AND taking on the right-wing wing smear machine requires some ammo. For those fighting for Obama, here are just a few articles containing excellent arguments: An Attack on Our Senior Pastor and the History of the African American Church and on the same site look for A Word of Respect for Jeremiah Wright.

• NEW SITE: RELIGION DISPATCHES: This week the article that causes me to declare this our latest new site also addresses the racist attacks on Obama with this article: Obama's Pastor and the Politics of Patriotic Treason:

  This past week, the controversy surrounding Senator Barack Obama’s pastor, Dr. Jeremiah Wright, reached a head. Investigative reporters at ABC released excerpts from Dr. Wright’s sermons where he appears to be making inflammatory and unpatriotic pronouncements against the United States. Excerpts include Dr. Wright attributing the 9/11 attacks to a matter of “the chickens coming home to roost,” and suggesting African Americans sing “God Damn America” in place of “God Bless America.”

• ELECTION FRAUD: Will Rush Limbaugh Be Indicted for Voter Fraud? This could get very interesting. Not because Rush will be indicted, but because pressure on free-speech rights for broadcasters could open up that fat greasy can of worms labeled: Media Lies Are Legal.

  In case you missed it, Rush Limbaugh, the nation's top-rated talk radio host, was urging Republicans in Texas and Ohio to skip their party's primary on March 4 and instead cast a vote for Hillary Clinton in order to prolong the fight between her and Barack Obama. And that Tuesday, as media in both states reported, thousands of Republicans did just what Limbaugh and others had suggested -- they changed parties to vote for Clinton.
  

• NATIONAL SECURITY: Dick Cheney tour sparks Iran war rumours:

  Dick Cheney, the US vice-president, has triggered speculation that he has been using a tour of the Middle East to prepare Iran's neighbours for a possible war with Tehran.

  That as well as Bush's Bum John McCain and his stuttering insistence It's "Common Knowledge" That Iran Is Training Al-Qaida... (psst...guys...never trust a newbie with unpracticed propaganda technique) should put you on Iran Alert. More from Action Point on Iran and Iraq next week.

AND from the small but mighty McClatchy Newspapers: Bush erroneously says Iran announced desire for nuclear weapons:

President Bush contended that Iran has "declared they want a nuclear weapon to destroy people" and that the Islamic Republic could be hiding a secret program. Iran, however, has never publicly proclaimed a desire for nuclear weapons and has repeatedly insisted that the uranium enrichment program it's operating in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions is for civilian power plants, not warheads.

• PERSONAL SECURITY: Fallout from The Energy Policy Act of 2005: Before you think I haven't noticed, the source of this article and the journalist who today will be discussing the topic on Action Point, has a “right wing” bent. I have found that in some cases, especially on First Amendment and National Security issues, all Americans regardless of party agree on important issues. This is one of those issues, so join me in checking your bias for this stunning coverage!

  And in 2007, barely after the ink dried from EPAct 2005, the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 was passed by federal lawmakers and signed into law. EISA conveniently serves to obfuscate critical issues that continue to stress the US electrical power grid, its energy generation and transmission capacity. Yet, EPAct 2005 has continually escaped public scrutiny and a lack of accountability in both houses of the US Congress.

  AND I don't see this story in election terms because really, if they are snooping in the files of the high and mighty, what can get away with when it comes to you? Passport files of candidates breached:

  State Department employees snooped through the passport files of three presidential candidates — Sens. Barack Obama, Hillary Rodham Clinton and John McCain — and the department's inspector general is investigating. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the violations of McCain and Clinton's passport files were not discovered until Friday, after officials were made aware of the unauthorized access of Obama's records and a separate search was conducted.
  

• MUST READ: New Crisis, Old Isms: Weighing in “...routinely package corruption as sound public policy,” re: the mortgage crises, David Sirota nails it again as this weeks Must Read:

  Some background: During the housing boom, banks doled out home loans to financially strapped borrowers, often on predatory terms. On the creditor side, these same banks packaged many of the loans as complex securities and sold them off to unwitting investors, generating a handsome profit on the paper transactions. At the same time, Wall Street used campaign contributions to coerce Congress into blocking anti-predatory-lending bills and repealing a landmark law regulating how banks could buy and sell securities.

  By the way, join us for this week's Palast Report in which Greg expands more on the “campaign contribution” side of the story.