Action Point with Cynthia Black 03-16-2008: The Reference Shelf

Today's article and item links:

• POLITICS: NATIONAL: CAMPAIGN 2008: The Violent Vision of Mccain's Newest Mentor: from Jeffrey Feldman:

  Parsley's views on Islam are just one aspect of his much larger violent vision--which focuses on the violent conflict between Christianity and what he calls 'secularism.' To read Parsley's violent language as he encourages his readers to join the so-called 'war' is to come face-to-face with the violent rhetoric John McCain will tolerate--even encourage--to win votes in November.

• PERSONAL SECURITY: NSA Domestic Spying Grows:

  The central role the NSA has come to occupy in domestic intelligence gathering has never been publicly disclosed. But an inquiry reveals that its efforts have evolved to reach more broadly into data about people's communications, travel and finances in the U.S. than the domestic surveillance programs brought to light since the 2001 terrorist attacks.

• INTERNATIONAL: Petraeus: Iraqi Leaders Not Making 'Sufficient Progress':

  Many Iraqi parliament members and other officials acknowledge that the country's political system is often paralyzed by sectarian divisions, but they also say that American expectations are driven by considerations in Washington and do not reflect the complexity of Iraq's problems.

• ECONOMY:Forget Spitzer, fire Bernanke:

  In essence, this is a US$200 billion facility that is being misapplied to rescue a specific part of the financial system at a preferential rate, and without any disclosure required on usage. Given all this, it is impossible for anyone to expect that the ultimate cost of this facility will not be borne by US taxpayers;

  AND: from Greg Palast Eliot’s Mess:

  While New York Governor Eliot Spitzer was paying an ‘escort’ $4,300 in a hotel room in Washington, just down the road, George Bush’s new Federal Reserve Board Chairman, Ben Bernanke, was secretly handing over $200 billion in a tryst with mortgage bank industry speculators;

  AND:Economy Hammered by Toxic Blend of Ailments:

  “We have to be careful about what medicines we throw at this, whether it’s stimulus packages or a bailout,” said Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab & Company. “A lot of what we are dealing with is a solvency problem. We need to let the system wash it out.”

• NO COMMENT: Bush says if younger, he would work in Afghanistan:

  "I must say, I'm a little envious," Bush said. "If I were slightly younger and not employed here, I think it would be a fantastic experience to be on the front lines of helping this young democracy succeed."

  "It must be exciting for you ... in some ways romantic, in some ways, you know, confronting danger. You're really making history, and thanks," Bush said.

• FUN, WEIRD & COOL: Lawrence Welk vs. The Hippies My favorite of this collection is the send-up of Lou Reed's 1960's “Sister Ray”!

  Thirty years before American Idol, parts of America were still uncomfortable with the very idea of rock songs even appearing on television, especially during Welk's squeaky-clean song and dance show. And since The Lawrence Welk Show ran for three decades, these videos suggest the ultimate long, strange trip. They're a window in time, capturing a bizarre never-world where the hour-long show actually surrendered happily to the coming onslaught of rock:

  Hat-tip to Freedom's Phoenix.

• NEW!! JOIN THE SHOW ON SUNDAY'S with NEW LIVE CHAT!! Voice of Arizona now hosts Action Point on it's 50 state online network, Voice of North America! Log on, join in!! Thank you VOA!!
  

Action Point with Cynthia Black 11-18-2007: The Reference Shelf

Today's article and item links:

• From the Mukasey Fle: Bush Ushers in Mukasey, Defends Gonzales: Now watch this guy — very carefully.

• The Guliani File: News Corp And Fox News Have A Long, Chummy Relationship With Rudy Giuliani and Pat Roberston Conquers the Martians: "Robertson's proclamation of support for Rudy Giuliani was another classic moment of nonsensical silliness by another of America's holy blowhards.”
  

• The "President John Edwards" File: John Edwards: 'We Need Paper Ballots' and speaking of Election Integrity: Ballot Petition Fraud Occuring in Support of California's Republican Electoral College Initiative?

• Big Baby on Board: Bush to take aim at judicial confirmation process: Bush whines: '...too many Beltway insiders “interpret ‘advise and consent’ to mean ‘search and destroy.’ While you read just remember these phrases: “Activist judges” and “Litmus test”.

• I Think I'm Going to Scream Now: The Hollywood Prayer Network: From their “About Us” page: THPN is a non-denominational Christian prayer ministry for the purpose of praying for the people, the projects and the powerful influence of the Entertainment Industry. HPN believes that by mobilizing global prayer we can be a part of God's miraculous work of changing the spiritual climate of Hollywood, from the inside out. Will you join us in praying for Hollywood?

• MUST READ: Election '08 Meets The Great Education Myth: another excellent piece from David Sirota:

“Regular readers know my frustration with what I previously deemed The Great Education Myth in an op-ed for the San Francisco Chronicle. This myth, omniscient in our media and political debate, states that America's problem with stagnating wages, job loss and benefits cuts is a problem of education. If only workers were better educated, the myth goes, their economic problems would be over.”

• ENVIRONMENT: Governors Join in Creating Regional Pacts on Climate Change: “Frustrated with the slow progress of legislation in Washington on energy and global warming, the nation’s governors have created regional agreements to cap greenhouse gases and are engaged in a concerted lobbying effort to prod Congress to act.”

• Update to The Andrew Meyers File (aka police over-reactions in a post 911 World): No comment.
  

“A Victoria man who filmed Robert Dziekanski's dying moments at Vancouver International Airport last month says the Polish immigrant was surrendering himself to police when officers shocked him with a Taser.

On Tuesday, Paul Pritchard said police piled on to the 40-year-old after he fell to the ground, and one officer dug his knee into the back of Dziekanski's neck until he went limp.

"On the video you will see some things that I didn't talk about before because I didn't see them until I reviewed the tape," Mr. Pritchard said in an interview Tuesday. "It's really brutal."

• Speaking of Torture: U.S. Army reiterates waterboarding ban: “With Congress' approval of a new attorney general who refused to describe waterboarding as torture, the U.S. Army has sent out a message to its leaders repeating that the interrogation technique is prohibited in the military.” Which is why of course, we have Blackwater!

• This is Bad (No, Really Bad) File: Saudi Arabia to Punish Survivor of Gang Rape with 200 Lashes and Prison Term: (From Alternet) “Yes, you read that right. A woman who was raped by six armed men is being punished by our BFF Wahhabists in Saudi Arabia. Huzzah for our awesome ally!”

“The 19-year-old Shiite woman was originally sentenced to receive 90 lashes for "being in the car of an unrelated male at the time of the rape," but after the woman had the unmitigated temerity of not unquestioningly submitting to being tortured as punishment for "getting herself raped," judges on Saudi Arabia's Higher Judicial Council more than doubled her punishment for "her attempt to aggravate and influence the judiciary through the media."

• INCOMING: Secrecy provision buried in appropriations bill: Read it and weep.

• Weird: Lasers, Helmet Cams Ordered for U.S. Convoy Guards “The State Department plans to equip its motorcade security details in Iraq with lasers to "dazzle" suspect motorists and helmet cameras to record it all.”

• The Good News File: American students seek true view of Middle East "It's funny how it's different. It's just not a scary place at all," said University of Illinois student Anne Shivers, whose worried older brother offered her $400 not to come to Cairo. "I've explained it to my parents but they still don't believe me," she added.

• Arts and Leisure: A HuffPost Project: Posterizing the Modern GOP: These are so good my computer now sports one as background...
  

"Silverstein, who as co-chairman of Goodby, Silverstein, and Partners was behind the famous "Got Milk?" ad campaign and the Budweiser frogs, had such a grasp of what makes for effective communication in radio, movies, TV, and online, that I thought he might have some ideas on how to help the Democrats, who continue to struggle with framing an election where they are holding all the cards. He did... The result is three powerful posters that simply but graphically capture the lunacy of the modern GOP.”

Action Point with Cynthia Black 11-11-2007: The Reference Shelf

Today's article and item links:

• From the Mukasey File: The religious right hated him but he was Giuliani's BFF. Senators clashed with him on torture, but still he was confirmed. I tried to spread the truth. Oh well.

• MUST READ: In Iowa Speech, Edwards Demands Answers From Clinton On NAFTA Expansion and Taking On the Right's Local Machine & Fighting Against the Class War: another excellent piece from David Sirota:

This week, I participated in a televised debate against the ColoradoHouse Republican Whip, moderated by the president of the Independence Institute (Colorado's local version of the ultraconservative Heritage Foundation). The debate was aired statewide on PBS here, and it shows how our states and local communities - not just Washington, D.C. - are often the most important frontlines in both the Great American Class War and the battle against the extreme right.

• Framing the Debate: Media Derelict On Damning Giuliani Scoop: from Jeffrey Feldman, considers how to get past Giuliani's 'Strong on Terrorism' frame.

• Update to The Andrew Meyers File: Police over-reactions supported in a post 911 World: ACCIDENTAL HANGING: Medical Examiner Ann Bucholtz's autopsy of Carol Anne Gotbaum finally released.

• Speaking of Torture: This NY Times piece was forwarded to me via email (note the date): Liberties; President Frat Boy? By MAUREEN DOWD

We've all been exhausted by the faux culture wars of the Clinton era.

--SNIP

The leader of the frat pack is Mr. Bush, who made his debut in The New York Times in 1967 in a story about ''frat-branding'' at Delta Kappa Epsilon, the Yale fraternity of which he was once president.

SNIP--

Frat prankster George told Mr. Weisman that he was amazed that anyone was making a fuss about the branding, that at colleges in Texas they used cattle prods on pledges. There's something that doesn't compute about branding irons and Yale. If there did have to be branding, shouldn't it have been less Animal House and something more discreetly WASPy, like the logos for J. Press or Topsiders?

Later, in a newspaper interview, W. explained away the incident, saying, ''There's no scarring mark physically or mentally.''

SNIP--

At the 30th reunion of the Yale class of '68 last year, there was disappointment that Mr. Bush did not show up and excitement about his plans to run for President. But his buddies were quick to assure everyone, ''George has really changed a lot since Yale.''

Presumably, if frat-branding becomes an issue in his campaign, Mr. Bush will be able to spin the incident by saying that it proves, even better than pork rinds, that he is a true Texan.

Oh, had we known then what we know now...

October 31, 2007 IRAN Links

• Before his press conference today, President Bush met exclusively with a group of GOP congressional leaders. According to Fox News, which spoke with some of the members at that discussion, Bush unequivocally promised that he would attack Iran if Iran “were ever to attack Israel.” Bush told the lawmakers, “I know I would respond. … In order for diplomacy to be effective, all options have to be on the table.”

Hat tip: Think Progress



UPDATE:

• Website: Council for a Livable World: CLW Mission (in part);

Council for a Livable World was founded in 1962 by eminent nuclear physicist Leo Szilard and other scientists who worked in the pioneer days of atomic weapons.

The goal of these men and women, who knew firsthand the nature of nuclear weapons, was to warn the public and Congress of the threat of nuclear war and lead the way to rational arms control and nuclear disarmament.

The mission of the Council has remained simple and pragmatic.

The Council provides Senators and Members of Congress with sophisticated technical and scientific information that helps them make intelligent decisions about weapons of mass destruction.

Email subscription available.

Bush To Pass Laws By Presidential Decree

Are you paying attention to this? To Implement Policy, Bush to Turn to Administrative Orders:

"The White House plans to try implementing as much new policy as it can by administrative order while stepping up its confrontational rhetoric with Congress after concluding that President Bush cannot do much business with the Democratic leadership, administration officials said. According to those officials, Bush and his advisers blame Democrats for the holdup of Judge Michael B. Mukasey's nomination to be attorney general, the failure to pass any of the 12 annual spending bills, and what they see as their refusal to involve the White House in any meaningful negotiations over the stalemated children's health-care legislation."

Let me just rephrase it in American TV speak: Bush will be writing laws you will have to obey.

Let me try again: Bush will eradicate the Congress by ignoring it.

I still don't have it exactly. Let me try one more time: AAAAAAAARRGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

Yeah. That's it.

Something There Is That Doesn't Love a Wall

Good one:

There was a time in American education when young students were forced to memorize these lines, although that time is unfortunately behind us. Certainly, President Bush was never forced to spend a snowy evening frantically preparing to recite "Mending Wall" from memory in front of his high school class. As a result, he never earned the benefit of such an exercise: America doesn't love a wall. We see them as the symbols of a loss of freedom, great monuments to the death of liberty. Walls confine. Walls divide. In our collective imagination, Americans do not build walls, we tear them down.

One wonders why President Bush did not, as Frost would have him do, ask that simple question before he built his walls in Baghdad: What was I walling in or walling out? If he had asked that simple question, he surely would have seen that the walls in Baghdad will "wall in" far more human spirit in a giant urban prison, than "wall out" potential suicide bombers.

Paul Craig Roberts: How the World Can Stop Bush

Bush will not come stop tempting fate with Iran, especially since Saudi princes are supporting him. So, how can Bush be stopped? Here's one idea...

How the World Can Stop Bush: "The US is totally dependent upon foreigners to finance its budget and trade deficits. By financing these deficits, foreign governments are complicit in the Bush Regime's military aggressions and war crimes. The Bush Regime's two largest lenders are China and Japan. It is ironic that Japan, the only nation to experience nuclear attack by the US, is banker to the Bush Regime as it prepares a possible nuclear attack on Iran.

If the rest of the world would simply stop purchasing US Treasuries, and instead dump their surplus dollars into the foreign exchange market, the Bush Regime would be overwhelmed with economic crisis and unable to wage war. The arrogant hubris associated with the 'sole superpower' myth would burst like the bubble it is.

The collapse of the dollar would also end the US government's ability to subvert other countries by purchasing their leaders to do America's will.

The demise of the US dollar is only a question of time. It would save the world from war and devastation if the dollar is brought to its demise before the Bush Regime launches its planned attack on Iran."

Okay, not a new idea, or something home-grown activists can do alone...but it's a start.
Got a better idea?

Let's hear it (really). Something has to be done so we might as well air all the ideas and see what we can make of them...