Dissatisfaction with Democrats Growing

I firmly believe the old axiom that politics is the art of the possible. So in recent years as elections approached and as the Republican Party turned ever further rightward, I saw the importance of voting for Democrats, virtually without exception.

And there are, in fact, two glaring exceptions in my record. These were times when it was obvious the Republican was not going to win but times when the Democrat was odious for various reasons. The first occasion was the Clinton re-election campaign of 1996. After Clinton abandoned the poor and jobless in this country through what I came to call "welfare deform," I could not bring myself to vote for him. Clearly, I would have voted for Clinton if I thought it necessary to stop the Republican nominee (Dole).

The second occasion was in 2008 amidst the thrilling clamor of the Obama crowd. My reasons here were two-fold. By far the biggest reason was the controversy -- still unresolved -- surrounding Obama's Constitutional fitness for office. I had read enough about the doubts about his citizenship to have doubts of my own. (The amount of money spent by Obama to fight the lawsuits, plus his refusal to release key records and documents were tell-tale signs to me.) I also saw him as insufficiently demonstrative of a certain mettle in combating the corporate control of our country. Additionally, I felt his credentials for the Presidency to be thin.

History will tell whether I was right in these decisions.

Now comes an interesting article by a long-time Democrat who says she is bolting. Whatever one may think of the sexual status of the writer, her views deserve a hearing. Her feelings are by no means unique.

What to do about the situation is another matter. I recommend thoughtfulness and caution. Simply abandoning Democratic candidates by itself is only an action of protest and not a strategy for political reform. Some of the characteristics of that reform have been dealt with here in the past. I plan to take up more in the future.


http://socialistworker.org/2009/11/25/leaving-the-democrats

A New Congress

Today begins what has been dubbed Continental Congress '09. This convention, starting today near Chicago, seeks to enlighten and inspire delegates and others to resist what has been seen to be Constitutional violations by the current Congress in Washington.

There is ever so much to say about all this. The convention, itself, shows this by a jam-packed schedule of speakers. Of course, I cannot necessarily endorse everything that will be said here.

At any rate, I invite us all to check out the video of this conference. (I hope to have the direct link soon. For now, refer to the link below.) It could prove to be most interesting and, yes, even inspiring.


www.givemeliberty.org

A Non-Serious Illness in a Serious Time

These last couple of weeks I have dealt with a bad cold to one extent or another. On the mend now, things were serious enough that I had to be down for two and a half days doing essentially nothing.

This at a time of near-hysteria surrounding swine flu. With charges and counter-charges swirling, and with misinformation rather rampant in the media, it is a wonder we all have our sanity.

At any rate, being ill does slow one down. I am grateful to be starting to feel better. I look forward to being at full strength soon.

Vincent Bugliosi Seeks to Prosecute Bush

Yesterday a friend sent me the link to the web site containing this video. The video shows an irrepressible Vincent Bugliosi speaking out about the crimes of George W. Bush. Since these alleged crimes were an important theme of this blog in its earliest days, I was wont to present this video here as the matter is still important today. We do, in fact, need to decide what kind of people we are and what kind of nation we will be. But first we must understand the nature of the crime. This video helps us do that.

Interesting Article Reporting Claims of Mistakes by Philip Berg

With humor I declare that if I cannot do better at investigating and verifying various claims, I quit. Seriously speaking, I have no way of knowing just what the Washington Independent is all about, but certainly they write in a somewhat credible way. Their claim of veracity awaits confirmation.

To read an interesting article detailing the efforts to debunk those claiming Barack Obama was not born in the U.S., click on the title above. There are several things of note here. Of particular interest is the matter of Barack Obama's supposedly having received Indonesian citizenship. I also find the fear that this matter may become an on-going controversy to be important.

So, in the interest of completeness, I am happy to link to this article.

Internet Web Site Wades Into Obama Birth Controversery -- Again

Disclaimer: As with all web logs, this one should be considered as benefiting from the speed of posting made possible by new technology, to wit, the Internet. With this particular posting particularly, I make no claim as to completeness. I have, however, tried to deal with facts. Furthermore, I am not new to this subject and have read quite a bit about the matter, both pro and con. As far as this post goes, I believe it to be both timely and accurate.


Since various lawsuits claiming fraud in the matter of Barack Obama's ascendancy to the Presidency are still alive, I wanted to post a link to the latest < Snopes.com > article on the subject. While there are many serious matters facing our country, moral and fiscal, this one seems to me to continue to merit at least passing attention and probably more.

First, I believe the Snopes article is worth reading. It makes several claims, including a statement by a physician and another health care worker who claims to remember the birth.

Let's examine a few items of this Snopes article one by one. But first, it is apparent to me that Snopes has not actually spent a great deal of time researching this matter. The breezy way they dismiss critics as being "self-proclaimed experts" who "immediately seized the opportunity to pronounce the certificate a forgery", shows disdain for the great amount of time put into examining the alleged forged certificate of live birth by several experts proclaimed to be so by others.

Then there is the matter of a Dr. Chiyome Fukino, director of the Hawaii State Department of Health who says he has seen the original "vital records." Unfortunately, these vital records have not been detailed by Snopes, nor has the press been allowed to examine them or send them to independent experts of their choosing. None of this makes Dr. Fukino out to be a liar, of course. It is simply to say it is the statement of one, albeit credentialed, person. The statement, itself, though, remains uncorroborated (at least in the Snopes article).

It is worth mentioning that Hawaii state law bars release of a certified birth certificate "to anyone who does not have a tangible interest in it." Surely, however, the American people do have a legitimate interest, whether "tangible" or not.

The article details the claim of a certain Barbara Nelson that she spoke with the obstetrician who she says delivered a baby named Barack Hussein Obama. This conversation is said to have occured on August 4, 1961. Now I do not know Ms. Nelson. I have no way of knowing whether or not her memories are accurate. However, in standard journalism practice, statements by one person normally need to be corroborated by other evidence before being declared true. There is no corroborating evidence presented in the Snopes article.

All this is not to pick on Snopes, which I have found to be quite good at evaluating various claims on the Internet. Here, however, I find a woeful lack of due diligence, owing mostly to a lack of time and effort in what is a complex matter.

On another point, that of Mr. Obama not wanting to risk an entire campaign on a matter which could be proven by a simple check of a state health record: This statement can be dealt with easily. First, we already know that Hawaii does not release vault birth certificates to just anyone, and to this day, has not done so in this case. (See above discussion.) Second, Mr. Obama would surely have known this. Still, he might have been hesitant -- unless -- unless some powerful people could promise the funds to create a large enough and credible enough media campaign, complete with public relations and legal operations to rebut any "ridiculous" claims. Then, the pre-candidate might be willing to risk such a course of action. Such things have clearly happened before all over the world, although we are not so used to it in the U.S. In my opinion, it is this credulousness which has aided and abetted the Bush thefts in 2000 and 2004, and -- just possibly -- in 2008 (although "hoax" would be a better term than "theft" in 2008).

To summarize, this Snopes article, which represents statements of those elsewhere claiming that critics of Mr. Obama's proof of citizenship are all washed up, has itself not delivered the goods -- at least not as of yet.




http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/birthcertificate.asp

What Is a Dollar?

Recently, I have been asking friends and even strangers to take a one question quiz. I pull a bill out of my wallet and ask: "What is this?" The reply is always said as a question: "A one dollar bill?" or "A twenty dollar bill?". I then go on to point out the words "Federal Reserve Note." "That's what it is," I tell them -- a federal reserve note." I go on to explain my understanding of what the Federal Reserve is and is not. People are invariably amazed at what I have to say, especially when they realize that the mysterious phrase is right on the bill.

The document "What Is a Dollar?" by Edwin Vieira is the most instructive and readable document on the subject I have yet seen. Here you will find a most interesting history of the dollar. And you will begin to see the rooking of the American people which has occurred. The article is not extremely lengthy. It explains terms as it goes along. I highly recommend it to you.


http://home.hiwaay.net/~becraft/WhatIsDollar.pdf

Article on the Dollar Is Essential

The article linked here is critical for understanding the America of now. While detailed in its exposition, the article proves to be most interesting. I plan to have more to say about all this soon. For now, I highly recommend this document.



http://home.hiwaay.net/~becraft/WhatIsDollar.pdf

Capitalism: A Fright Story

Last evening I had the privilege of watching Capitalism: A Love Story courtesy of my friend, a theater manager. There is more to say about this film than I have time here. But first I can certainly recommend this film to anyone. While there are criticisms which can be made here and there, the main message of the film is so important and so compelling as to counterbalance any flaws.

I was surprised by how serious the film was, although I shouldn't have been given the subject matter. There was the famous Michael Moore humor in evidence, but there were long stretches of non-uplifting depictions of people in trouble.

Yet, is not this exactly what we need to counter propaganda resurgent in this country? There is a message that the crisis is over, the stock market is "rebounding" and so forth. We have heard all this blather before. Remember, it was just at the time we were told the economy was "sound" and "robust" that the most serious crimes of speculation and exploitation were occurring.

To summarize, the new Moore film is engaging, engrossing, and ultimately -- yes! -- inspiring. You will be glad you went.

The Battle for Pittsburgh and the World

I am posting a link to this article, primarily because this important perspective has been essentially lacking from the corporate media. How many Americans know of the militarization of one of our own cities? How many people know that weapons, machines, and tactics prepared for terrorists were used, instead, on protesters?

As one person has commented, breaking the windows of an innocent shop-keeper hardly advances the cause of economic justice. So I cannot condone that kind of violence.

But we must understand it if we are to make sense of our world today. If people feel no hope, if they see their prospects for advancement dimming, if the savior who was promised to bring "change we can believe in" seems to be faltering, if all options for a redress of grievances seem to have been exhausted, it should not be surprising that a few reckless individuals will begin to take matters into their own hands.

In order to provide for a just and safe world, we must safeguard the permanence of the Declaration of Indepedence and the great vision of the rights of man contained within its glorious text. These rights include economic rights, now so seriously under attack. This blog is devoted to maintaining and even extending this vision, justly famous in modern times. That the so-called G-20 fail to inspire anyone is unremarkable except for the hoopla drummed up to support this unofficial body. And the fact that a virtual army must be assembled to protect its meeting, is a sign of the unpopularity of this group.



http://www.truthout.org/092809R?n

U.S. Soldiers Being Held Virtually Incommunicado by Own U.S. Military

In an outrageous usurpation of authority and in violation of the Sixth Amendment, at least two U.S. soldiers are being held in prison with little contact with the outside world. Let me emphasize these are American soldiers being held by our own military for, in one case, refusing to deploy to the battlefield due to reasons of conscience, and in the other, for going AWOL in order to support his family. Read more about these abuses at the link below. (You may also click on the title of this post above.)


http://www.truthout.org/092809A?n

Sorting Through the Hubris

We are living through a concerted effort on the part of the modern-day robber barons to convince everyone that the financial crisis is over, and that even the "recession" has bottomed-out and the economy is "recovering." This is similar to every other so-called recession I can remember. As soon as possible, we begin hearing reports that the worst of the recession is behind us and that before you know it, all will be well. This time, however, the propaganda has been harder to put across, as the average American remains terrified of losing his or her job and then one's home. Not only that, but there continue to be significant discordant voices from nearly every source.

Somewhat surprisingly, the major media continue to report on various problems. A case in point is a major article (not the first) on the housing crisis in Florida which appeared only a few weeks ago. As I write this I am listening to "This American Life" on my local National Public Radio station. This excellent edition, told in breezy tones, is a revisiting of a broadcast originally presented in 2008. Soon (because this is a replay of a program I have already heard in part), various individuals who appeared on the original broadcast in May of 2008 will reappear and tell of their current situation. Some are doing better. Others are in the same position they were in a year and a half ago.

We can see that the narrative which would have us believe all is rosy is not selling very well. This has huge political repercussions. Exactly what it will mean in electoral politics is unknown, although there is some evidence that Democratic office-holders may be improving their position. (I will try to provide my source for this information later.)

In a strange way it is hopeful that Americans are not so easily fooled this time. They know in their hearts that all is not well. Perhaps this time, the truth has more of a chance to cut through the propaganda.

Michael Moore: We Have Now the End of Capitalism

Soon, movie-goers will flock to theaters everywhere to watch a film with an amazing premise: capitalism is evil and is on the way out. To my knowledge there has never been a film like Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story. At the link below you can watch Michael Moore speak about what is really happening in our economy now. While I have not yet seen the film, what Michael Moore is saying off-screen is more riveting than the trailers for the film itself.

Regular readers of this blog know I have been saying repeatedly over the last three years that the profit system was failing. This view was never simply my own, but was based on the work of prominent others. Now, however, we have an impending major film from the country's best-known documentary film maker which says essentially the same thing.

In coming days I intend to spend more time on Michael Moore's web site "fact-checking" his film. Such an allegation most definitely needs to be backed up. Whether from Michael Moore or from other sources, the data backing up the claim of the dying of capitalism should be readily accessible to any honest researcher.

In any event, it is time to say good-bye to the greed-based and ever-so-hurtful profit system!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlMYzLlQ0n4&feature=channel

Michael Moore Prescribes Common Sense for the Automobile Industry

In an interview with Larry King Michael Moore talks about the future of the transportation system in this country and the needed conversion of capacity in today's automobile manufacturing industry. These comments made late in 2008 are still pertinent now. Michael Moore, who has close ties to auto workers, knows whereof he speaks.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0bbOZ-nkJs&feature=channel

Michael Moore: A Love Story

Michael Moore's new film, Capitalism: A Love Story is set to blast its way into the hearts and minds of Americans in theaters everywhere. With typical good-humor and a wealth of facts, Moore launches an assault on the very tenets of capitalism. All this according to a new article by reviewer Mark Weisbrot, himself an economist. As Weisbrot says, to have a film seriously question capitalism itself is almost unheard of in American media. Just today I heard that a New York Times reporter has just written a book with a title something like The Financial Markets and Why They Matter to You. I thought to myself, "They matter all right, but for their essentially negative effect on morals and the underpinnings of our financial and economic systems."

In our daily world financial markets are but one salient example of greed run rampant, of ethics sickened by a pernicious and deep selfishness magnified a million times by souls simple and powerful who seek a measure of gain off the work of others.

The review of Moore's film is itself a work of art. The ringing prose sounds out its own alarm in cogent and passionate text which calls forth both one's inner whimsy and one's conscience out into the light of day. Here the self can look at the evil which is the profit system full on, without disguise or distortion.

Plaudits, then, for Michael Moore for what appears to be a major accomplishment -- calling into question the very appropriateness of capitalism in the America we love.


(Copying of this post either in whole or in part except brief passages for purpose of review, is prohibited. All rights reserved.)

For Mark Weisbrot's excellent review click the title above or cut and past this web address:

http://www.truthout.org/091509F?n