Astroworld

Very nice, Miz Morgana. As always, but I am particularly buoyed by the notion that We the People might just shake up the Senate and House enough to get something done about the severe damage done to our Constitution, Bill of Rights and Dept of Justice. Yes!

THIS IS NOT THE 'DON'T BUY' GAS FOR ONE DAY, BUT IT WILL SHOW YOU HOW WE CAN GET GAS BACK DOWN TO $1.30 PER GALLON.

>
>This was sent by a retired Coca Cola executive. It came from one of his engineer buddies who retired from Halliburton. If you are tired of the gas prices going up AND they will continue to rise this summer, take time to
> read this please.
>
> The executive offered this good idea.
> This makes MUCH MORE SENSE than the 'don't buy gas on a certain day campaign that was going around last April or May!
> It's worth your consideration. Join the resistance!!!!
>
> I hear we are going to hit close to $ 4.00 a gallon by next summer, and it might go higher!! Want gasoline prices to come down?
>
> We need to take some intelligent, united action. The oil companies just laughed at that because they knew we wouldn't continue to 'hurt'ourselves by refusing to buy gas.
>
> It was more of an inconvenience to us than it was a problem for them.
BUT, whoever thought of this idea has come up with a plan that can really work. Please read on and join with us!
>
> By now you're probably thinking gasoline priced at about $2.00 is super cheap. Me too! It is currently $3.59 for regular unleaded in my town.
>
> Now that the oil companies and the OPEC nations have conditioned us to think that the cost of a gallon of gas is CHEAP at $1.50 - $1.75, we need to take aggressive action to teach them that BUYERS control the marketplace, not sellers.
>
> With the price of gasoline going up more each day, we consumers need to take action.
>
> The only way we are going to see the price of gas come down is if we hit someone in the pocketbook by not purchasing their gas! And, we can do that WITHOUT hurting ourselves.
>
> How? Since we all rely on our cars, we can't just stop buying gas.
>
> But we CAN have an impact on gas prices if we all act together to force a price war.
>
> Here's the idea: For the rest of this year, DON'T purchase ANY gasoline from the two biggest companies (which now are one), EXXON and MOBIL.
>
> If they are not selling any gas, they will be inclined to reduce their prices.
> If they reduce their prices, the other companies will have to follow suit.
>
> But to have an impact, we need to reach literally millions of Exxon and Mobil gas buyers. It's really simple to do! Now, don't wimp out on me at this point...keep reading and I'll explain how simple it is to reach
> millions of people!!
>
> I am sending this note to 30 people. If each of us send it to at least ten more (30 x 10 = 300) ... and those 300 send it to at least ten
> more (300 x10 = 3,000)...and so on, by the time the message reaches the sixth group of people, we will have reached over THREE MILLION consumers.
> If those three million get excited and pass this on to ten friends each, then 30 million people will have been contacted!
>
> If it goes one level further, you guessed it..... THREE HUNDRED
> MILLION PEOPLE!!!
>
Again, all you have to do is send this to 10 people. That's all!
>
> (If you don't understand how we can reach 300 million and all you have to do is send this to 10 people.... Well, let's face it, you just
> aren't a mathematician. But I am . so trust me on this one.
>
> How long would all that take? If each of us sends this e-mail out to ten more people within one day of receipt, all 300 MILLION people could conceivably be contacted within the next 8 days !!!
>
> I'll bet you didn't think you and I had that much potential, did you!
> Acting together we can make a difference.
>
> If this makes sense to you, please pass this message on. I
> suggest that we not buy from EXXON/MOBIL UNTIL THEY LOWER THEIR PRICES TO THE $2.00 RANGE AND KEEP THEM DOWN. THIS CAN REALLY WORK.
>
> Keep it going!!!

Charles CJ where I live we are already paying over $4.00 a gallon for the cheap stuff, $4.80 something for the good stuff. Those guys are out of date, already.

We are driving less and only when necessary. No more romantic drives up the coast for a date on the cheap with my husband. Too expensive!

There are two realities in America, the uber rich and the rest of us. Actually, that's pretty much the problem worldwide with all peoples.

Great lunar energy, very empowering for the people.

Hey Shy, all this energy is great for visualization. Several years ago we wrote and talked about the seeds of the grass roots movements being planted. They want us to shut up, and give them our money, our homes, our lives while they poison us, and steal our futures blind. So I see the sound of constituents contacting their Congress critter, state critters, county critters, local critters to staunch the bleeding of our nation and national treasure. Yesterday I watched the logging trucks come barreling down our road loaded with healthy redwoods, that deep realization that the Bushita's won another round.

They are probably headed to China. Visualize China peaceful and giving back what it has taken.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jgS9FSyV3gSjErN5vP5V0ca_wYkgD905PO6G1

Dalai Lama speaks on environmental responsibility in Mich.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — The Dalai Lama said Sunday the need for environmental responsibility dovetails with Buddhist teachings on valuing human life, whether that is one person or the world's entire population.

The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader addressed crowds of more than 7,000 during a weekend of lectures at the University of Michigan.

"Taking care of our planet, environment, is something like taking care of our own home," he told a Sunday afternoon audience at Crisler Arena. "This blue planet is our only home."

During Sunday's lecture, "Earth Day Reflections," the Dalai Lama said he has learned about the need for environmental responsibility from meetings with scientists and other experts.

Outside the arena, hundreds of pro-China demonstrators held signs and waved Chinese flags. Many wore T-shirts that read "Support Beijing 2008," a reference to the upcoming summer Olympics, and a small airplane flew overhead pulling a banner that read "Dalai Lama Please Stop Attacking Olympic Flame."

That protest led to heated verbal exchanges between pro-Chinese and pro-Tibetan demonstrators, who traded shouts of "One China" with "Open the door! Let's see what's happening inside Tibet."

Pro-Tibet demonstrators have disrupted Olympic torch runs in protest of China's treatment of the Dalai Lama's follows. He has denied Chinese claims that he and his followers have used the Olympics to foment unrest.

Very very nice article Morgana. Those are SOME charts!

Wow! Luga won in Paraguay. Just wow!

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hL-uFf-4fkRqLVv2lRQCSaMpJXuA

Now, what'll it take to secure this?

Yea Morgana! Thank you for that article, and the chart. Today on the CBS Sunday morning show, there was a piece on the full moon, and there were those who argued that it does have an effect on humans, vs. those who disagreed. One of the arguments put forth was that because our bodies are composed mostly of water, we are subject to the same gravitational pull that the moon has on the tides, which as we already know, is strongest at the new and full moons. They didn't have to convince me. I'm a believer. Been observing lunations and eclipses for years, and sometimes you only realize the connection to events after the fact This full moon was conjunct my sun, trine Uranus, and I already experienced its influence today. An astrologer once said that if we had no knowledge of the other planets, and had to use just the lunations for predictions, we could still do a pretty good job of it.
Glad to have you back in your element Morgana.

Morgana, I love the imagery in your writing!

If anyone is interested in a one stop information spot for Paraguay, it's harsh history, the connection with Reverend Moon and Neil Bush, as well as Jenna Bush's recent visit there here's a good Democratic Underground compilation by one of the smart DUers who make that site so great.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x3183814

Good news! We the People now have solid scientific data to support getting rid of frankenfood:

http://tinyurl.com/3tfy79

I saw that earlier Shy and was doing a dance. I hope this gets wide spread coverage and get that junk out of our food supply

Ecuador's Correa moves against US presence and influence

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/21/world/americas/21ecuador.html?_r=2&ref=americas&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

Ecuador’s Leader Purges Military and Moves to Expel American Base

By SIMON ROMERO
Published: April 21, 2008

MANTA, Ecuador — Chafing at ties between American intelligence agencies and Ecuadorean military officials, President Rafael Correa is purging the armed forces of top commanders and pressing ahead with plans to cast out more than 100 members of the American military from an air base here in this coastal city.
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Tomas Munita for The New York Times

Ecuador's president plans to close an American base in the city of Manta that conducts drug-trafficking surveillence. It is the United States' most prominent military outpost in South America.
Related
Times Topics: Ecuador

Mr. Correa — who this month dismissed his defense minister, army chief of intelligence and commanders of the army, air force and joint chiefs — said that Ecuador’s intelligence systems were “totally infiltrated and subjugated to the C.I.A.” He accused senior military officials of sharing intelligence with Colombia, the Bush administration’s top ally in Latin America.

The dismissals point to a willingness by Mr. Correa, an ally of President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela, to aggressively confront Ecuador’s military, a bastion of political and economic power in this coup-prone country of 14 million people. Mr. Correa’s moves mark a clear break with his predecessors, illustrating his wager that Ecuador’s institutions may finally be resilient enough to carry out such changes after more than a decade of political upheaval.

The gambit also poses a clear challenge to the United States. For nearly a decade, the base here in Manta has been the most prominent American military outpost in South America and an important facet of the United States’ drug-fighting efforts. Some 100 antinarcotics flights leave here each month to survey the Pacific in an elaborate cat-and-mouse game with drug traffickers bound for the United States.

more...

1968

http://www.aarpmagazine.org/people/1968_feature_article.html

http://www.ourfuture.org/blog-entry/jos-can-you-see-bush-s-trojan-taco

José Can You See? Bush’s Trojan Taco

Psst! George Bush has a secret.

While you Democrats are pounding each other to a pulp in Pennsylvania, the President has snuck back down to New Orleans for a meeting of the NAFTA Three: the Prime Minister of Canada and the President of Mexico.

You’re not supposed to know that – for two reasons:

First, the summit planned for the N.O. two years back was meant to showcase the rebuilt Big Easy, a monument to can-do Bush-o-nomics. Well, it is a monument to Bush’s leadership: The city still looks like Dresden 1946, with over half the original residents living in toxic trailers or wandering lost and broke in America.

The second reason Bush has kept this major summit a virtual secret is its real agenda. More important, the agenda-makers, the guys who called the meeting, must remain as far out of camera range as possible: The North American Competitiveness Council.

Never heard of The Council? Well, maybe you’ve heard of the counselors: the chief executives of Wal-Mart, Chevron Oil, Lockheed-Martin and 27 other multinational masters of the corporate universe. And why did the landlords of our continent order our presidents to a three-nation pajama party? Their term is “harmonization.”

Harmonization has nothing to do with singing in fifths like Simon and Garfunkel. Harmonization means making rules and regulations the same in all three countries. Or, more specifically, watering down rules – on health, safety, labor rights, oil drilling, polluting and so on - in other words, any regulations that get between The Council members and their profits.

Take for example, pesticides. Wal-Mart and agri-business don’t want to reduce the legal amount of poison allowed in what you eat. Solution: “harmonize” US and Canadian pesticide standards to Mexico’s.

Can they do that? Can Bush just say, “Eat your peas – even if they’re radioactive?” Under NAFTA, at least the way George Bush reads it (or has it read to him), he can. At any rate, he does.

The three chiefs of state will meet privately with the thirty corporate chiefs where they are also expected to legally erase more of our borders, to expand the “NAFTA highway.” Technically, the NAFTA highway is a set of legal rules governing transcontinental shipment. Some fear NAFTA highway expansion will allow a new flood of cheap Mexican products into the US and Canada. Not so. Their hunger to expand the NAFTA highway is to bring in even cheaper Chinese goods.

Say what?

As trade expert Maud Barlow explained to me, the new “NAFTA highway” will allow Chinese stuff dumped into Mexico to be hauled northward as duty-free “Mexican” products. That’s one of the quiet agendas of this “Summit for Security and Prosperity,” the official Orwellian name for this meet. Think of the SSP “harmonization” as the Trojan Taco of trade.

Barlow is Chairwoman of the Council of Canadians. She is known as the “Ralph Nader of Canada” (not Nader version 2.0, The Spoiler Candidate, but Nader version 1.0, the consumer advocate). Because Americans are too distracted by the Punch-and-Judy primaries to complain about this lobby-fest on the bayou, Canadian Barlow is leading street protests against this greed-grab.

More...

One cheap way to extend the growing season.

http://www.littlegreenhouse.com/portable.shtml

Canning what you grow. Get rich slowly.

http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2006/09/06/frugality-in-practice-canning-season/

and

http://hubpages.com/hub/Does_Canning_Your_Own_Food_Save_you_Money

http://gardencenter.southernstates.com/backyardinterests/homecanning1.shtml

Grow your own sprouts

http://www.2020site.org/n/do-it-yourself-grow-your-own-sprouts.html

Had this posted on the last article...

News results for Paraguay

Sydney Morning Herald Leftist ex-bishop ends 61-year conservative rule in Paraguay - 7 hours ago

ASUNCION (AFP) — A leftist ex-bishop Monday celebrated his historic electoral triumph in Paraguay's presidential election after defeating the ruling party ...

AFP - 944 related articles »
Key facts on Paraguay's presidential vote - The Associated Press - 17 related articles »
Poll ends in Paraguay - Xinhua - 9 related articles »

http://www.google.com/search?q=Paraguay&sourceid=ie7&rls=com.microsoft:en-US&ie=utf8&oe=utf8

Here's a video

http://therealnews.com/web/index.php?wc_mid=1664:886189&wc_rid=107480470

From one of my favorite blogs. Looks like the full moon was in effect in Philly a few hours before it actually occurred. Scroll down a bit.

http://raginguniverse.blogspot.com/

Wow Crystal thanks for that link. The full moon energies are in effect two days before and two days after, so those vibes should still be echoing on Tuesday.

http://www.motherjones.com/washington_dispatch/2008/04/FEC-out-of-commission.html

Out of Commission

An ongoing Senate deadlock over FEC nominees could mean the federal government's electoral referee is sidelined during the 2008 elections.

It's one of Washington's open secrets: Neither political party has much love for the Federal Election Commission. The commission currently lacks the quorum that allows it to decide even the most mundane electoral issues, and Congress doesn't seem in a hurry to end its seven-month long deadlock over the appointment of four FEC nominees. If Congress doesn't act soon to end the stalemate, the 2008 elections, which are bound to get ugly in their final months, could go virtually unregulated for the first time since the FEC was founded more than 30 years ago.

When operating at capacity, the FEC has six commissioners, three from each party, who serve six-year terms. For the commission to take action on most matters, four commissioners must agree. Currently, the FEC has only two commissioners, Republican chairman David Mason and Democratic vice chairman Ellen Weintraub, so no significant action can be taken. Democrats and Republicans have not been able to agree on how to fill the four open slots. At the heart of the Senate impasse is one of the two Republican nominees, a former Justice Department lawyer named Hans von Spakovsky. The Democrats consider him a deal breaker and view him as one of the leading forces in the Republican Party's efforts to use the seemingly nonexistent specter of voter fraud as a means to disenfranchise minority—and largely Democratic—voters. The Democrats have been unwilling to vote for a group of nominees that includes von Spakovsky—and the Republicans have refused to withdraw his nomination.

More at the link...

Yikes!!

http://www2.nysun.com/article/74994?page_no=2

Food Rationing Confronts Breadbasket of the World

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Many parts of America, long considered the breadbasket of the world, are now confronting a once unthinkable phenomenon: food rationing. Major retailers in New York, in areas of New England, and on the West Coast are limiting purchases of flour, rice, and cooking oil as demand outstrips supply. There are also anecdotal reports that some consumers are hoarding grain stocks.

At a Costco Warehouse in Mountain View, Calif., yesterday, shoppers grew frustrated and occasionally uttered expletives as they searched in vain for the large sacks of rice they usually buy.

"Where's the rice?" an engineer from Palo Alto, Calif., Yajun Liu, said. "You should be able to buy something like rice. This is ridiculous."

The bustling store in the heart of Silicon Valley usually sells four or five varieties of rice to a clientele largely of Asian immigrants, but only about half a pallet of Indian-grown Basmati rice was left in stock. A 20-pound bag was selling for $15.99.

more...

Lunaoscura that is leaving the restaurants in a lurch. They buy just about everything from Costco. They are already hurting from the loss of business, no one is eating out and these folks live off their tips. We're working hard to keep afloat everywhere.
The last thread had a discussion running about how to do things the old fashioned way. Made me think we need a Women at the Well blog where we could keep track of survival issues and how to do things like making flour to make bread. Or even making a homemade broom. AW posters over the years have provided a treasure trove of information on how to plant, grow, weed safely, and survive the times we live in. I have got to schedule vacation so I can work on personal projects!!! Taking a lunch break. Mountain View is on the other side of the hill from me, we're on the Santa Cruz side of the mountains. One of the reasons I chose to live here after bailing the big OC was natural pretty much unpolluted water, and land to grow food on. I lived off victory gardens in the 80's .. to this day my son hates tomatoes.

Morgana, not too long ago, maybe in he last thread, I posted a thing on potatoes. Evidently they grow in any climate, don't need much water and they're more nutritious than rice. Another thing is they produce more food per acre too. There are about 5,000 species of potato. They're still cheap to buy and the versatility in cooking unmatched. Baked, boiled, french fried, made into chips, mashed and hashed.

Oh! And that thing about potatoes being fattening is a lie too.

LOL!

How to identify a Persian cat photo.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x7673656

http://www.star4cast.com/index2f.asp?page=forum_article.asp?id=1

Next US Administration From: Marjorie Orr. (21 Apr 2008 18:27)

Paris shows some real class:

http://tinyurl.com/4dsvz2

There is still sanity shy.

Except, Luna, for those people who are allergic to deadly nightshade family...potatoes, tomatoes and eggplant. very bad for those of us with arthritic tendencies.

Never liked any of them much, and corn and tomatoes showed up as a positive on my allergy test years ago.

I know wheat is lousy for me. That leaves rice. or buckwheat, quinoa, etc...millet. None of which are grown in the back yard.

Gulp. I can't believe it. I agree with George Will on something:

http://tinyurl.com/4ruygz

Why is there no outrage among Dems about this?

I can't find the time, but the Monroe Doctrine came into being on Dec 2, 1823. It sure has been through lots of changes since then as the need for citing precedent or authority changed given the circumstance and objective.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monroe_Doctrine

Gulp and double gulp Shy, I am outraged but what to do and why aren't there any Dems or GOP outraged. Is George Will the only Republican who is angry about this? There seems to be a real loud quiet on the subject from Congress or any leader, only the journalists and in this case the only Republican journalist who is screaming about it all. You could really see this manufactured food crisis coming with the spinich scare last year. And now the report comes out on Genetically Modified Monsanto seeds, they don't yield as much product and are expensive to grow. Turns out they aren't what the farmers were promised. Imagine that.

I heard PatC's favorite journalist, Mark Crispin Miller, on an interview on the radio tonight and he said people must psychologically prepare themselves for this election to be stolen in favor of McCain. The excuse as to why everyone voted for McCain will be that as a people we could not bring ourselves to vote for a black man or a woman, we just weren't ready for that in this country. He said we absolutely must not let that stand.

I agree with Luna, take a lesson from the Irish, grow potatoes.

QOP is in Florida and cannot log on from her brother's computer. Her mother is quite ill and she is down there with family. She is stunned at the difference between the North and the South and has some observations she would like to pass along. I am copying and pasting them below.

"after making a beautiful speedy 1,300 mile run down the east coast! The good news, I chose out of the phone book the German car repair service that kept my Sister-inlaw's VW bus running for many years. The motor mount is shot, what else???? Trying to reach the mechanic in Bar Harbor....
With the earth trine in effect, I may be able to sell it to the biodiesel guy at the U Fla.,. I talked to the other day, & get to NJ , if Karl, ( who sold me my present VW) there would finance his 98 dsl. jetta he is holding for me! )

My take on America..................( its crude & vulagar pardon me but this is as I see it.!) The toilets of the Northeast are stopped up overflowing & negelected with transfats & HFCS! Mc D's has highjacked the Mass tpk "rest?" stops, and there is no rest for the weary there. ( I remember fondly, stopping, gettiong a meal buying a magazine {with a novella to read}, and enjoying one of 28 flavors of ice cream, & a smoke after dinner. NOT NOW. You are asaulted by loud music before you even enter, no good food, NO READING MATERIAL OF ANY KIND! The boys all have saggy pants & tatoos, and the girls, also tatooed, are hitching up their low rise, ill cut jeans, trying to cover the bulge at their waist that used to be covered successfully by well cut Levis ( off shored) Filthy restrooms, and stagger back out on to the highway more tired than before!
The trees from CT to VA are festooned with plasic bags draped in the branches, like the day after mischief night, there are walls either side of the highway in many places so you can't see any thing but highway & the tops of trees! In MD on RT 95, my favorite rest stop, Maryland house a pink brick colonial bldg. with a wonderful mural of John Smith and the Indians, ( my Mother took a painting workshop with him in New Hope PA.) is going to be torn down and replaced with a replica of Chesapeake House, ( I stopped there by accident and the Sr.s monitoring the info center told me all about it.)
CH House is a ticky tack, fake wood bldghe broken up into cubbys for CInnabon, Big Mac, Wendy's etc. SAME SAME SAME! ( I couldn't cut the cinnabon with the plastic knife, surely not my teeth!,wound up throwing it away here in Fla yesterday!)
A hot turkey sandwich is just a distant memory! & I have done this trip SO MANY TIMES! Philly to Fla. to see the in laws or do a mural. DC to Phila, every 2 weeks doing murals in both places...Philly to the upstate NY mountains to see my parents................
& Pakistanis own our bedrooms! If people are so "afraid of terrists" doesn't that bother them?? The one in CT was pro Butto, he promised I could use his desk computer to go online, not having INTERNET like Holiday or Comfort Inns........But disappeared when I came down from my room, to do so.
The one in WIllington VA was Really sleezy............ coffee maker, TV, didn't work, curtain was 1/2 off & fell down as I was leaving, Glad I didn't take a shower because the floor was sticky in front of the toilet, and I slept in my clothes not being comfortable taking them off. 2 of my hubcaps were stolen in the night there! It was a Days Inn . I stayed at a lot of them going to OR in '92. They were all very nice!
The young people I talked to were all pretty resigned. ( Nothing we can do to change it.) All those retirees working at the gas stations & convenience stores were a little more firey about it.
The most bizarre encounter happened in NJ, at the diesel station truck stop off tpk exit 7 where I have been buying fuel since 1981. ( In fact the guy that bought my VW truck 6 years ago worked there as a mechanic, until he went to college in Maine.) I had the WORST WENDY"S meal ever, then buying fuel I was talking to my daughter on the cell phone when the attendant started shouting and banging on the car windows. He had pumped in $31.00
of diesel fuel and wanted my OK before going further. Apparently people are driving off with out paying over that number? He said they are all charging it on their credit cards............ He is Republican because his Grandfparents are. and has swallowed the koolade about "keeping us safe".! Hopeless about his future........I told him to read Howard Zinn, and he said hs Grandfather had that book! I said "READ IT"
You get to NC, SC, GA., FLa., and never know ANYTHING WAS WRONG!
They use prisoners to clear the trash off the highways......it's slow & green and serene! ( That's porkbarrel projects at work!)
'Plenty of them all along NY DC, MD, GA, FLA had major highway construction ( entrance ramps up on stilts.)
Tragic!! My heart bleeds!........
If you want to copy & post any of this go ahead. I know youre busy & this is a lot.
WIll keep in touch!"

I think she will be happy to return home.

Sally, tell QOP that if she wants to get a decent "home cooked" meal or sandwich to stop at any of the Cuban places in Florida. A "medianoche" cuban sandwich is delicious and made with fresh bread, cheese, ham and turkey. It's long and I always buy it at the airport when I travel as it's very tasty and goes a long way. All the cuban places serve a mean breakfast, lunch or dinner for almost no bucks. Picadillo with rice (a tasty ground beef with onions and peas) is a great meal and the portions are so big that I usually "box" up what I don't eat and reheat.

The last time I had a McDonalds (after not sampling any of the FF (fast food) stuff for over 10 years (I know, it was an emergency ... hadn't eaten all day, presented standing up for 3 hours and had an hour long drive home) I was ill the whole drive home. ILL. I can't imagine how people can eat that stuff. Dog food for humans.

Anyway, I hope she has a safe trip.

I will tell her Marta, thanks. I agree with you on the fast food. I had a similar experience and ate some McDonald's I thought I was going to throw up

Sally also tell Pat qop to avoid those restaurants on the highway. If you get off the highway, and there are signs directing you, there are better places to eat and sleep.

Saw this on Saon.

Darcy Burner is taking on Blackwater http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2008/04/its-time-to-defund-torture-by-digby.html

Here's Darcy's initial post http://openleft.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=5270

Burner provides a list of House and Senate sponsors for a bill which would defund the security contractors and requests that we begin calling our reps and asking them to join. (And guys, if the Blackwater style contractors are defunded, so is the war. They can't run it without them.)

Let them know we're still paying attention.

http://www.alternet.org/democracy/82566/

Pennsylvania's Primary: Paperless and Unverifiable

Verified Voting Foundation. Posted April 16, 2008.

Most of Pennsylvania's voters live in counties that use electronic voting. There is no way to ensure that their votes will be counted.

The Presidential primary on April 22 will be essentially unrecountable, unverifiable, and unauditable -- an irony, because state law requires manual audits of a statistical sample of ballots cast in elections.

Over 85% of Pennsylvania's voters live in counties in which paperless electronic voting is the only method of voting at the polling place. Absentee voting requires an excuse in Pennsylvania, and there is no early voting period, so the polling-place equipment will tabulate the vast majority of the votes in the primary. Pennsylvania's Secretary of State has judged that reel-to-reel paper trail printers compromise voter privacy, and none of Pennsylvania's direct-recording electronic (DRE) systems offer voter-verifiable paper records.

More at the link....

I just heard there are machine breakdowns in the Pittsburg and Philly area and guess where. In the heavily African/American districts. Why are there always problems in the minority districts but never in the white districts. I just cannot imagine why that would be. I would just love to once again have an honest fair election and feel like there was an honest winner, even if it wasn't the candidate we might want, it would be honest and reflective of the people's will. I am so tired of all this bs.

Yep Sally, no surprise there. It's heart breaking. I know there is a solution if we fight for it.

http://www.buzzflash.com/store/reviews/1069

"Loser Take All"

"Heading into another presidential race, We the People have to face the fact that our election system is a shambles, run by private corporations with a partisan agenda, and largely based on a technology that anyone can rig. This great book will tell you all about it—and, even more important, help us overcome it.”—Thom Hartmann

"Before Americans get too excited about the next election, they'd do well to remember the stolen elections of 2000 and thereafter. For all the talk of “change,” the corrupt system by which we vote remains broken. Thank heavens for Mark Crispin Miller and his contributors who call not just for awareness, but action”—Laura Flanders

“The essays in this great collection make it clear that our democracy is in trouble. We can begin to repair our nation by restoring electoral integrity. This book points to the challenges and the possibilities of regaining our full power as voters and citizens in a democratic society.”—Dennis Kucinich

Loser Taker All: Election Fraud and The Subversion of Democracy, 2000-2008 is an indispensable anthology of writings covering the vast election fraud that has been perpetrated by the GOP—with the Democratic Party’s acquiescence—since 2000. Among the subjects treated here are: the myth of George Bush’s victory in Florida in 2000, and FOX News’s key role in propagating it; Senator Max Cleland’s dubious defeat in Georgia in 2002; Bush’s “re-election” in 2004, including evidence of systematic fraud outside of Ohio; startling evidence of fraud committed in the 2006 midterm elections, which the Democrats appear to have won by a far larger margin than officially reported; and, crucially, evidence that the Republicans will attempt to steal the presidential election in 2008.

More at the link....

PA primary day has a VOC moon until 3:07pmET.
The throbbing sore thumb, wearing-your-brain-backwards status quo of it all being electronically unverifiable casually daylight stealable. I ask why are humans so unable to use their god-given cortex? There is a major non-functioning aspect to human nature that makes us as manipulateable as kittens in a cardboard box.

QOP's roadtrip sounds like a movie in the making, doesn't it. Pat's wonderful awareness magnetizing the human parade of 'things as they are', what happens when a country is abandoned and untended like dessicated soil where nothing meaningful can grow anymore.

Every head is attached to some electronic nipple, including us bloggers. I think of how many things I could have done by this hour were there not the seduction of this medium.
So this uranus/neptune mutual reception has a big role in dissolving our integrity to action.
Our lives has gone to living in our heads (of course this is a strong self-admission) seduced into abandoning our seats. The MSM, the vapid entertainments (coupla tough weeds unable to offer any nutrition) the Blackberries would give you cancer if you ate one, the cellphones make the cells in our respective heads mutate in confusion, criss-crossing DNA at every level so that lifeforms can no longer make sense of it and go on living.

Today is Earth Day. Individually we can come to our senses right now and quit participating. I admit my own part of it. Every day is life day.

Spying for Israel

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080422/ts_nm/usa_israel_spy_secret_dc

This is how Israel plans to promote peace in the ME.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24202344/

http://www.newsweek.com/id/132852

Murdoch, Ink.

With a redesigned Wall Street Journal, mogul Rupert Murdoch is launching an old-fashioned newspaper war against The New York Times. Not since William Randolph Hearst took on Joseph Pulitzer have we seen such a fight.

PatC, even Scrooge McMurdoch can't escape old Mister Death's scythe. Guess he forgot. Wwwhhhooooooossshhhhhh.

http://www.tomdispatch.com/post/174922/steve_fraser_the_two_gilded_ages

The Great Silence
Our Gilded Age and Theirs

Google "second Gilded Age" and you will get ferried to 7,000 possible sites where you can learn more about what you already instinctively know. That we are living through a gilded age has become a journalistic commonplace. The unmistakable drift of all the talk about it is a Yogi Berra-ism: it's a matter of déjà vu all over again. But is it? Is turn-of-the-century America a replica of the world Mark Twain first christened "gilded" in his debut bestseller back in the 1870s?

I think the aliens are very interested in our elections. Increased UFO activity has occurred since the electoral process began. The red lights were sighted in St. Augustine, FL over the weekend, and last night in Phoenix, AZ. Sorry I don't have a link. Heard it on NBC World News tonight.

http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=Florida+residents+say+a+UFO+flew+over+their+homes&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

and

http://search.9news.com/sp?aff=1100&keywords=ufo&submit=Search

Whaaaat? They're calling Clinton the winner with only 3% of the votes in??????? 53%-47% or something.

Couldn't care less who the 'winner' is but this, like everything else makes no rational sense.

The problem with election fraud is you can't get the sides together. If someone's guy seems to have won, they don't want to investigate it so it's easy to cover it all up, and if the one whose candidate might be the victim cry foul, it's sour grapes or poor loser and so on we go through the looking glass.

I wonder if you're right Crystal about "aliens" being interested in the election or maybe it concerned them that Hillary's polls went up when she started talking about "nuking" the Middle East. Maybe they have plans on using Earth as a vacation spot after we wipe ourselves off the face of the map and they don't want it spoiled with nuclear pollution.

I am really concerned about Hillary making these kinds of statements and the amount of people still behind the idea of "blowing up" the Middle East. What in the world is going on.

Is this a manifestation of Pluto in Capricorn?

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/18/EDJO105JMC.DTL

Tough times for American workers

Some people ask me why I called my new book, "The Big Squeeze." The answer is simple: The nation's corporations have been squeezing workers every which way in their drive to push down labor costs. This, unfortunately, has left the nation's workers (and consumers) weakened and weary even before we feel the full brunt of a recession that will inevitably mean unemployment and lower paychecks for many Americans.

This squeeze has taken one especially disturbing form: many corporations have cut costs by violating wage-and-hour laws. Managers at Wal-Mart, Pep Boys and Family Dollar, told me that they secretly erased hours from employees' time records because of fierce pressures to minimize costs. At many companies, managers strong-arm employees into working off the clock; hourly employees who clock out at, say, 5 p.m., are ordered to work an hour or two extra unpaid. Swift & Company, Smithfield Foods and Wal-Mart each employed, directly or through contractors, more than 1,000 illegal immigrants, who often accept lower wages than native-born workers.

In my research, I found that many companies also squeeze workers by treating them with a shocking lack of dignity. A Wal-Mart cashier in Kansas City told me that managers were so stingy about bathroom breaks that some cashiers ended up soiling themselves. RadioShack had the gall to fire 400 workers at its Fort Worth headquarters by e-mail, the message saying, "Unfortunately your position is one that has been eliminated." Corporate executives told Myra Bronstein, a software engineer in Seattle, that as long as the company did well and she worked hard - she put in many 14-hour days - she would have a job. But one day the company suddenly fired Bronstein and 17 other engineers, telling them that if they wanted any severance pay, they had to spend the next four weeks training the workers from India who would be replacing them.

more..

From lunaoscura's post:

"The biggest squeeze has been on wages and benefits. During the economic expansion that began in November 2001, corporate profits soared, while productivity per worker rose more than 15 percent. Nonetheless, hourly wages for the typical worker have inched up by just 1 percent since then, after inflation, while median income for working-age households has fallen nearly $2,400 to $54,726 since 2000, according to the most recent Census Bureau report on poverty and income.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, employee premiums for family-health insurance coverage have doubled in seven years, rising by $1,650 on average. And the number of Americans without health insurance has jumped by 8.6 million since 1999, to 47 million. Many young people just starting work are finding it surprisingly tough, because entry-level wages have slid since 2001, after inflation, while the percentage of entry-level jobs offering health or pension coverage has fallen as well.

For millions of Americans, the up escalator toward the American dream has stalled, although those at the very top have thrived. Income for the middle-fifth of Americans has risen a modest 21 percent since 1979 (largely because both spouses, taken together, are working far more hours than before). Meanwhile, income for the top 1 percent has more than tripled. One study found that the top 1 percent has 22 percent of all reported income, up from 9 percent in 1980. The top 1 percent earns more after tax than the bottom 40 percent of Americans. Lawrence Summers, the former Treasury secretary and Harvard president, has calculated that if income inequality had remained unchanged since 1979, the bottom 80 percent of Americans would be earning $670 billion more per year - or $8,000 more per household."

Rumor has it that Elizabeth Edwards will appear with Hillary Clinton in North Carolina. I think Lunaoscura's post explains why. Hillary Clinoton addressed those issues more adequately that Barack Obama.

regarding the understocked shelves at Costco etc - could that be the result of the truckers slowdown protesting the slim margins they now have with skyrocking fuel prices?

Shipping food all over the place rather than selling locally is part of the reason for the huge food cost increases we are seeing all over the place. NZ media is having big discussions on dairy products at the moment - big corps buy up all the supply and ship it all over the world resulting in prices doubling in just one year. NZ produces about 45% of the world's cheese but its now cheaper to buy NZ cheese in Aust and Asia than it is here! So they're talking about importing cheese so it will be cheaper - figure that one out!
And milk and butter prices have doubled because of the aust drought. Part of the problem is there is only one main processor and they are an aust corp.

Big hugs to all of you, your excellent posts and links. Having been deep in farmin' i have only had a chance to read.

Morgana, i'm just going to echo what everyone notes -- that your use of imagery is potent. I see and feel some collective movement being seeded during the grand earth trine. The maturity of that movement will continue to gain strength and girth. We cannot survive long the viral corporate infections that breed war and indifference.

Woot! Woot! Here's an American Patriot & Hero for the day:

http://tinyurl.com/5gl78n

She took on Johnny and almost made him cry.

Just imagine what we could do with out tax dollars that are currently spent on warehousing these people:

http://tinyurl.com/5svtd6

http://tinyurl.com/4rzvp7 NYT

G.O.P. Set to Block Bill Easing Limits on Pay Discrimination Suits

kiwijeanie, as a child growing up in a British colony in the 50s, we traded only with the British Commonwealth countries, and I remember the dairy products that we got from NZ - powdered milk, butter, and the most delicious cheddar cheese that I've ever had. We also got meat from there - veal and lamb, and the quality was so good, and healthy. I believe most of their livestock are still raised on pesticide-free pasture, but I'm not sure.

This post couldn't get past the filter, so here is a short link. It's from Tom Paine.

http://tinyurl.com/3jvgdu

The following is transcribed from Sen. McGovern’s speech Saturday night at the McGovern Day dinner in Sioux Falls.

Some years ago, I was on one of the networks with former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, one of the chief architects of the war in Vietnam. But the reason I was on television that night is he had just come out with a new book saying that the war was not only it was a mistake, in his words it was a tragic mistake. Well, in the course of that three-way discussion, which included in addition to Secretary McNamara and myself, Sen. John McCain. And in McCain’s first opening remarks, he said, well we all know that George McGovern knows little about national defense.
Let me tell you what I would say to John McCain: neither of us is an expert on national defense. It’s true that you went to one of the service academies but you were in the bottom of the class. It’s true that you were a pilot in Vietnam, that you were shot down and spent most of the war in prison and we all sympathize with that and honor you for your courage. But you and I both had these battle experiences, you as a Navy fighter plane, I as an army bomber. I am not going to criticize your war record and your knowledge of national security but I don’t want you criticizing mine either.
If I’d be allowed just one little dig at Senator McCain, since he gave me. I would say, ‘John, you were shot down early in the war and spent most of the time in prison. I flew 35 combat missions with a 10-man crew and brought them home safely every time."

http://libertystreet.wordpress.com/2008/04/22/mccain-shore-duty/

Pat QOP has asked me to please post this, in response to kiwijeanie, and I am delighted to do so:

Could you kindly post this reply to kiwijean for me!
I didn't see ONE truck doing less than 65 mi per hr. in 1,300 miles from ME to FLA! I asked a trucker and he said it was just the independants doing the slowdown.
Dept of Ag is taking a back seat here in FLA. my Brother tells me. And I can see for myself the farmland is beiung built into housing developpments!( As well as NJ.) WHERE do these people think their food is coming from????
WHEN Hillary ( or somebody), nukes Iran, oil will go thru the roof ( further)! ONLY RICH poeople will be able to afford the food shipped from afar!
LP

Thanks, shy. Pat QOP's comments are right on. When I was (fairly recently) living in NE Florida, I saw potato fields and truck-farm fields turned into stucco condo communities with transplanted palm trees, etc.

"Nature on a leash" as a developer in John Sayles great indi movie, "Sunshine State" says.

And, as a tragic/comedy footnote, elderly folks walking their small dogs and unaware of Florida's fauna are routinely attacked/killed by alligators who are pushed out of their habitat.

Yup, as civilization as edged into wilderness areas here in California we've mountain lions, coyotes, cougars displaced. Especially in the really hot summers they come down out of the hills for water. We live in the redwoods the bears are long gone, so are the wolves. We do have coyote, fox, deer, wild turkeys, wild pigs, cougar, mountain lions, and racoons they're the most troublesome. There are even predatory hawks and other big birds. Those gators though, scary buggers.

According to the legend under the photo Flagstaff actually has an ordinance forbidding it's residents from lights that 'pollute' the night sky, so the result is they can actually see the cosmos. Look at this breathtaking picture!

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap080416.html

Here's one titled A Dark Sky Over Death Valley

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070508.html

Good lord. Very scary looking guy.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/

Forget David Petraeus -- Meet Ray Odierno

Pat C, he looks like what I think of when I think of Blackwater. I sure wouldn't mess with him!

He sure does! My first impression was that he looked like he should be have a supporting roll in Robocop. Just stunning!

Thank you for the beautiful picture of the night sky. It makes me want to move to Flagstaff right now. I'd spend some quality time out there at night under those skies.

PatC, the following is dedicated to Ray Odierno: (first thought, best thought)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=FzEadbTCKDA

'troves more if you're so inspired.

For those of you who like deep, deep weirdness:

http://tinyurl.com/6q7tyb

Would those of you who understand this, please clue me in?

Thnx.

shy, wouldn't take that seriously at all. One year doesn't mean squat, nor does a small variation in sunspot activity mean much of anything to indicate any relationship whatsoever to a cycle as monumental as an 'ice age'.
Sounds like one of bush's hired slutskies, you know, like the ones he's been sending around to debunk global warming. (who also don't believe in carbon dating or evolution or letting people be).

Shy, years ago -- i believe in the 80's -- i read an article in The Atlantic Monthly by a scientist very concerned with global warming. The twist in the article was that planet warming would result in an ice age. Through a series of calculations including reduced salinity, cold water from ice melt, swelling oceans and shifting currents, he predicted a "chilling" future. Sunspots were not part of the calculation. ;0

The melting of the Arctic is because it's getting cooler?

Here's a site where you can enter the number of people in your family (and which are over 7 years old and under 7) and it will automatically calculate the amount of food and which foods you should stock up on for a six months supply.

http://lds.about.com/library/bl/faq/blcalculator.htm

That's what i thought too, Luna and patb. If sunspots were a predictor of an ice age then seems the Arctic would be building quite an ice cap.

Since the article in The Atlantic oh so many years ago, seems i've heard of or read of other scientists who believe global warming will eventually create an ice age because of ocean cooling, a significant rise in water volume which will create another host of problems like the innundation of land mass.

Those same ice-age predictions, however, are always accompanied by the dire warnings of our current global warming trend.

Jeez luna, where's the cheetos on that list? Only 28 gals of water for 6 months for two? Shortening, 8 lbs (kakk) 30 lbs of LIMA BEANS (punishment). Talk about assured heartbreak & despair foods...

Thanks all for trying to explain the weirdness. Most confusing, and amusing, too.

Here's a neat article on Mars, indicating what might have been before they too had global climate change of major proportions:

http://tinyurl.com/64pxa3

patb,

LOL! I figgerred we could swap the gaggy stuff for what we like. You know cheat, just like we do now.

You suppose Bush is getting nervous with all that lefty stuff in South America?

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking_news/story/508144.html

Fourth Fleet to sail again in Latin America

It's official: The Pentagon formally announced Thursday that it is reestablishing an administrative entity called the Fourth Fleet -- to oversee Navy vessels that sail the Caribbean, Central and South America.

Rear Adm. Joseph D. Kernan, who now runs the Naval Special Warfare Command, will be its new commander.

He becomes the first Navy SEAL, or officer who served in the Navy's elite commando unit, to serve as a numbered fleet commander.

No new headquarters are being created because it will operate out of the U.S. Navy's Southern Command satellite in Mayport.

''Reestablishing the Fourth Fleet recognizes the immense importance of maritime security in the southern part of the Western Hemisphere and signals our support and interest in the civil and military maritime services in Central and South America,'' Adm. Gary Roughead, the Pentagon's most senior naval officer, said in a statement released Thursday.

The organization becomes effective on July 1.

more...

Did any of you know that Limbaugh is calling for riots at the Dem Convention in Denver in order to destroy the Dem Party?

http://tinyurl.com/65aqej

Can anyone verify this? Why is he still on the air?

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/15980105/detail.html

Rush Limbaugh Calling For Riots In Denver
Talk Show Host Wants America To See Actions Of 'Far Left'

DENVER -- Talk show host Rush Limbaugh is sparking controversy again after he made comments calling for riots in Denver during the Democratic National Convention this summer.

He said the riots would ensure a Democrat is not elected as president, and his listeners have a responsibility to make sure it happens.

more...

Inciting a riot is what it's called. Which would put the infinitely unpleasant buffoon in the Big House.

Can't believe (yes I can) how he twisted that one Luna. He turned that into how the left is prone to riots (Sharpton saying there would be trouble if the election is stolen from Obama) although maybe he's thinking of l968 and superimposing that event onto this one. There!
Say it and it's real!

Then he said he WASN'T inciting a riot, but that he was DREAMING of one.

My father likes Limbaugh and thinks he's "right". In fact, I really didn't know who he was until that day in the kitchen in '68 when I began talking about how great McGovern is and he said, "No! Nixon". First sweeping understanding (shocked recognition) which explained MANY questions about our relationship.

If Rush Limbaugh had an Arab name, or was a Muslim, I'm sure he would have been behind bars a long time ago for his incendiary speech.

By the way, Rev. Wright will be on Bill Moyers tomorrow night on PBS. I guess he feels that he has hurt Obama, and wants to make amends.

Pat C.....the link to the article....Jack Welch to GWB's mouth ....is so dynamic....we need more of these exposures. And this was posted at Nancy's Blog:

4/24/2008

An Open Letter from Dr. Maya Angelou

Dear Friend:

I am writing to tell you about my friend, Hillary Clinton, and why I am standing with her in her campaign for the presidency. I know the kind of president Hillary Clinton will be because I know the person she is.

I am inspired by her courage and her honesty. She is a reliable and trustworthy person. She is someone I not only admire but one for whom I have profound affection.

Hillary does not waver in standing up for those who need a champion. She has always been a passionate protector of families. As a child, she was taught that all God’s children are equal, and as a mother, she understood that her child wasn’t safe unless all children were safe. As I wrote about Hillary recently in a praise song: “She is the prayer of every woman, and every man who longs for fair play, healthy families, good schools and a balanced economy.”

It may be easy to view Hillary Clinton through the narrow lens of those who would write her off or grind her down. Hillary sees us as we are, black and brown and white and yellow and pink and relishes our differences knowing that fundamentally we are all more alike than we are unalike. She is able to look through complexion and see community.

She has endured great scrutiny, and still she dares greatly. Hillary Clinton will not give up on you, and all she asks is that you do not give up on her. She is a long-distance runner. I am honored to say I am with her for the long run.

I am supporting Hillary Clinton because I know that she will make the most positive difference in people’s lives and she will help our country become what it can be. Whether you are her supporter, leaning towards her, undecided, or supporting someone else, I believe Hillary Clinton will represent you – she will be a president for all Americans. It is no small thing that along the way we will make history together.

Vote for Hillary Clinton and show your support at www.hillaryclinton.com. I know she will make us proud.

New leak re frankenfoods:

http://tinyurl.com/6q7o7a

Did MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann really say that? He and “Countdown” stalwart Howard Fineman were reprising their regular conversation about the perfidy of the Clinton campaign Wednesday night when Fineman bemoaned the lack of Democratic leaders (he called that an oxymoron) who could tell Clinton the race was over. Olbermann did him one better, insisting that ending Clinton’s campaign requires finding a strong Democratic leader “who can take her into a room, and only he comes out.” I know and like and have worked with Keith Olbermann, but that just sounded … wrong.

—Joan Walsh

Shy, may the sun set quickly on Monsanto. What comes to mind are a few lines from a poem my teacher wrote about those who bring darkness to the world, "you carry sacks of poison".

Judi, I'm inclined towards Clinton's competence and toughness and that she will bring us health care and won't turn her back on domestic issues. She's better than Bill in that regard for sure.
It is hard to ignore the numbers, however. It appears Obama has the delegates (but not enough) which is tough for her (or either of them) to overcome.
I said I wouldn't vote this time but will if it's Hillary.

It would be great to avoid degrading talk to a sandbox fistfight like we're seeing on other sites which are drowning out other topics and driving people away.

A brokered situation is back in the conversation. Gore is too. It all seems too nuts to have a sane solution like Gore at this point. The low-lying stench of the rethugs with their filthy thumbs in this pie for the last 2+ years are queering everything we're witnessing now. No question about it.
We need to stop fooling ourselves.

I have no great faith in any of the Democratic candidates, but I have absolute and complete faith in the disaster of a McCain Presidency. And I also think the important elections are for the Senate and the House.

I believe in the Law of Karma and the way I understand it is that to do nothing is as important and carries as much weight of accountability as it does to do something. It's about acts (or non acts) of omission being as full of energy as acts of commission. Karma holds one accountable anyway and comes back to one in in any cases. I will vote for whoever is nominated because the way I see it to not vote is to become accountable for my part of a McCain win and the ensuing misery towards humanity. If there even a bit of hope for a better future I think that's the way to set my energy out there.

Sure, Luna. When the day arrives I'll do the right thing regardless. Thugs would like nothing more than dems staying home (as a lot of thugs will, but we're not going to hear about that).

More Pluto in Capricorn stuff?

http://wcbstv.com/local/machine.guns.subway.2.707398.html

Machine Gun-Toting Officers To Patrol NYC Subway
M4 Carbine Rifles, MP5 Submachine Guns & Bomb Sniffing Dogs Part Of New "Torch Team" Anti-Terror Efforts
Reporting

NEW YORK (CBS) ― The NYPD is pulling out all the stops to beef up safety of the subways. On Thursday it launched a new anti-terror effort called "Operation Torch," but the cost of the program is raising some eyebrows.

The NYPD's new firepower consists of cops with Mp5 submachine guns, rifles, body armor and bomb-sniffing dogs.

Starting Thursday, five or six teams a day will patrol the major transit hubs in the city in the new program, all thanks to a 50 percent increase in a Homeland Security grant.

"Times Square, Grand Central, Penn Station … the locations you would expect, but not only those locations. The assignments will vary and will be following no discernible pattern," NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly said.

more...

Could it be "operation adaptation"? New YOrkers won't tolerate that for long...especially when bush reaches the end of the line. All kinds of federal money was given to major cities about 4 months ago. Lets hope the money runs out as well.

Oh, look: they've found another way to make money (off us, of course).

http://tinyurl.com/67gzs5

I hope that we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations, which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country. - Thomas Jefferson

My sentiments exactly:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080425/ap_on_el_pr/pelosi_campaign

Per MSNBC, US cargo ship fires on Iranian boat in the Persian Gulf.

.........

U.S. LAWMAKERS THREATEN OPEC

http://rawstory.com/news/afp/US_lawmakers_threaten_OPEC_as_gasol_04242008.htm

That post on "Fourth Fleet to sail again in Latin America" sounds like the 21st century version of the old "Britannia Rules The Waves".

Pat C, the link didn't work on the OPEC threat. I did find this one, though. Hope it's a reasonable enough substitute.

http://tinyurl.com/6cwd2f

Anything Pelosi has to say has been hit by every thinking progressive's "disregard" button. Interesting word placements she's chosen in her constructed opinion. Latest news has it (not surprisingly) that botox effects the brain. Maybe that's it.

I heard Joan Walsh comments and Olbermann's. I also heard Rush Limbaugh calling for riots in Denver, there is already a group reported to be run by the CIA called "Revive 68" If it is run by the CIA then the Republicans are coming to create riots and massive disruption to the convention in an effort to clear the way for a McCain win. This is called pulling out all the stops. What I don't understand is why Hillary Clinton is using the GOP to help her in these contests, I don't understand.

I saw the Sinclair Lewis book "It Can't Happen Here" promoted on DU, it was written in the early part of the 20 Century good reading for all. Here's a link for an on-line version. I've not read it for years and think I will re-read it myself. http://reactor-core.org/cant-happen.html

The thing is, it is happening here now and this came from the 1920/30's

As far as Olbermann, Limbaugh, Bill Clinton, Rev. Wright etc, etc, etc and all of us, with Mercury retrograde in the US chart in Aquarius we can all expect foot in the mouth moments that become public. It is definately a time for Americans to think how they want to say something before they say it. Right now, transiting Neptune is conjunct the US progressed retrograde Mercury, one can expect verbal assults from everwhere and a ton of mis-understandings or mis-statements, things you wish you hadn't said. From a political point of view, all the candidates are loaded with things they wish they hadn't said.

The very one shy. Different site, same article. My link was Raw Story.

Judi, patb, and all, I haven't had much time to post, so please forgive me for not responding. Same situation today. Life may or may not calm down, but either way, it's one foot in front of the other, and onward I guess.

Sally, they don't care how they win. They don't value this country or it's laws, or it's people.

My mantra is nothing to extreme is good. Equal and opposite force is always healthy though. Achieving it through non-violence is best.

Just heard from QOP and she asked me to post this:

http://omg.yahoo.com/harrison-ford-gets-waxed-for-the-environment/news/8483

My nephew Stoney Sharp is one of the producers on this shoot! His Ma, ( my Brother's first wife & Mother of his 2 children.) just sent it to me & I'm going to the Hippodrome with her Sun.! Will be nice to play for an afternoon!
LP

patb....you are talking about my San Francisco congresswoman! and as such, I am also tired of the tired potshots at her. Progressives seem to be no better than the goppers, I swear. They should form their OWN party and stop dividing the democratic party. I think she is doing a good job, she is a master politician and since I am NOT apparently of the progressive party persuasion, really don't have a disregard button.....I think the snottiness of America is a real shame. I am also tired of being ashamed of being a dem, of being a woman who supports...gasp...other women...as long as they are trying to do a good job. As a friend of mine here said, Nancy took impeachment off the table most likely not only for her avowed statement that they would be tied up in congress and not get any other work done...but for fear of her own family's safety. If you get my drift. I am not happy about that, but I get the logic.

Pelosi, Hillary, all tried and true politicians who know how the game is played....just because we THINK they are doing things not in alignment with our (unelected) opinions doesn't make them wrong for the job. No one gets everything they want....I am just glad she isn't an embarrassment of idiocy as the rethug versions of her position have been. And as far as I am concerned, Obama has 15 less years of experience than Hillary does....he should be smart and get some more of it.

PS...patb, you mentioned her 'constructed statements'...well that is how she has always talked. She is a very smart and very loyal person, but like Hillary, sounds artificial. That doesn't mean ANYTHING. It is who she is. Getting upset about those things is simply beyond my comprehension when you have people like bush who can't even construct a sentence and has been in the WH for 8 years, or like Reagan who fabricated nonsense about welfare queens and stuff about his service in WWII, all of which was a lie....yet he is worshipped by rethugs. So who cares????? I am more impressed by what people do. And Pelosi delivered on most of her promises in the first 100 days. I wish people would get OVER having to have every single friggin thing exactly as they wish it to be....it just doesn't happen and it weakens our system.

That convention chart for 8-26 compared to it's solar return has so much resonance with '68s uranus/pluto conjunction (now at square) with a yod between saturn of the 68 chart, transiting neptune & uranus pointing at quite a covetous venus/pluto conjunction in virgo.

Our hearts were freshly broken by the assassinations of Martin Luther King 4-4 then Robert Kennedy 6-3 and the hopes we placed in them for ending the war and bringing kindness and relief to our society. That was a riot of grief.
This time it is about jealousy/power/control on the part of the repugs since the focus appears to be on that venus/mercury/pluto square transiting pluto square transiting uranus. With saturn coming up from behind at 10virgo. The idea is of course to dash our hopes.
My question is how far are they going to take this? Another assassination? quite possibly each month surrounding the convention.

Don't want to get carried away with such ideas, but boy, this is really karmic.

I made no comparison between bush & Pelosi. I was referring to something quite different that I feel is valid.

http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2008/2008-04-24-02.asp

Canada, U.S., Mexico Accused of Interference with NAFTA Watchdog

TORONTO, Ontario, Canada, April 24, 2008 (ENS) - An international coalition of academics, environmental, and conservation groups today called on the governments of the United States, Mexico, and Canada to "stop interfering" with the tri-national Commission for Environmental Cooperation, CEC, particularly its core citizen complaint procedure.

The 20 groups and individuals say in their letter to the top environmental officials of the three countries that the citizen submission process "has reached a critical point with its future threatened by ongoing political interference."

snip

The 20 groups and individuals say in their letter to the top environmental officials of the three countries that the citizen submission process "has reached a critical point with its future threatened by ongoing political interference."

"We are deeply concerned by increasingly blatant government interference in the operations of this important environmental watchdog," said Albert Koehl, lawyer with Ecojustice, Canada’s largest environmental law organization.

Based in Montreal, the Commission for Environmental Cooperation was established in 1994 in a side agreement to the North American Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA, to address fears that NAFTA would prompt businesses to leave the United States because of lax environmental enforcement elsewhere.

The Commission was the first of its kind in the world in linking environmental cooperation with trade relations.

More at the link...

More on corporate hegemony.

U S Chamber of Commerce pursuing amnesty agenda in the US.

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=U.S._Chamber_of_Commerce

U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a powerful business lobbying group in the United States, "used to be a trade association that advocated in a bipartisan manner for narrowly tailored policies to benefit its members. Since 1997 or so, it has become a fully functional part of the partisan Republican machine," with CEO and president Thomas J. Donohue "raising its budget to $150M a year from corporate chiefs satisfied with his ability to move policy through a Republican Congress," Matt Stoller wrote December 13, 2006, at MyDD.[1]

The Chamber claims on its website that its mission is to "advance human progress through an economic, political and social system based on individual freedom, incentive, initiative, opportunity, and responsibility."[2] It describes itself as "the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region."[3]

However, the Chamber is "dominated by oil companies, pharmaceutical giants, automakers and other polluting industries," according to James Carter, executive director of the Green Chamber of Commerce.[4]

More at the link...links within text

Sweeping Changes Debated for Family and Medical Leave Act

http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/042508LA.shtml

Nancy Trejos, The Washington Post, writes: "This year marks the 15th anniversary of the landmark Family and Medical Leave Act, which made it possible for many workers to take unpaid job-protected time off to care for their newborn children or sick relatives. But instead of celebrating, workers' rights advocates and the Bush administration are battling over what would be the most sweeping revisions ever to the law."

and of course this....

Debt Collection Done From India Appeals to US Agencies

http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/042508LB.shtml

Heather Timmons for The New York Times reports, "Americans are used to receiving calls from India for insurance claims and credit card sales. But debt collection represents a growing business for outsourcing companies, especially as the American economy slows and its consumers struggle to pay for their purchases."

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8OKGR480&show_article=1

Three Million Manufacturing Jobs Lost Since 2000

Three weeks ago, Dawn Zimmer became a statistic. Laid off from her job assembling trucks at Freightliner's plant in Portland, Ore., she and 800 of her colleagues joined a long line of U.S. manufacturing workers who have lost jobs in recent years. A total of 3.2 million—one in six factory jobs—have disappeared since the start of 2000. Many people believe those jobs will never come back.

"They are building a multimillion-dollar plant in Mexico and they are going to build the Freightliners down there. They came in and videotaped us at work so they could train the Mexican workers," said Zimmer, 55, who had worked at Freightliner since 1994.

That's the issue for American workers. Many of their jobs are moving overseas, to Mexico and China and elsewhere.

Just ask Tom Riegel.

He worked for 27 years making Pennsylvania House furniture at a factory in Lewisburg, Pa., until the plant shut down in December 2004. The production was moved to a plant in China, which kept making the furniture under the Pennsylvania House label for shipment back to the United States.

Rigel, 48, who has had health problems, hasn't worked since he lost his job running a molding machine. He says his prospects aren't good given the number of other furniture plants in the area that have suffered layoffs.

More at the link....

An opinion on the USA elections from a West Indian journalist.

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl/article_opinion?id=161314718

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0408/9841.html

GOP objects to bill allowing recounts

http://firedoglake.com/2008/04/22/the-importance-of-a-voter-verified-paper-trail/

The Importance Of A Voter Verified Paper Trail

Sorry, my previous post is more of a commentary on American politics, than an opinion of the current election.

This one is about the Democratic race, and for me, it's journalism at its best, almost as good as commentating on a horse race.

http://www.stabroeknews.com/?p=275

Hillary Clinton said that she would "obliterate" the Iranians if they launched a nuclear attack on Iran Iran is years away from developing its own nuclear program. Thus, Clinton's comment is based on an absurdity. Iran can't develop nuclear weapons until 7-8 years after it starts and the National Intelligence Estimate says that they have not re-started.

"Obliterating" Iraq means killing all the people there, which is just what it sounds like.

Prediction:

She's cracked. But nobody stopped her.

She will continue to deteriorate and crack finally when the pressure gets too great for her to bear. The meltdown will involve statements flowing forth that will be even more offensive than the "obligterate" statement.

In the mean time, either just before or just after her meltdown, her husband will be caught on tape uttering the "n" word.

So be it. If it doesn't happen here, it will in one of our many parallel universes.

In case you missed it, this is one in-depth interview that should be (but won't) emulated to get to the truth:

http://tinyurl.com/4cpfdb

Handy synopsis of were we are (regardless of what the spin is):

http://tinyurl.com/5fmh7e

Oh, my goodness, you do not want to miss Mr. Merriman's "Longer-Term Thoughts".

http://www.stariq.com/MarketWeek.HTM

Ooooh, I do love this stuff:

http://tinyurl.com/6s27u7

Have a good laugh on "The Laboring World" post. I did.

http://raginguniverse.blogspot.com/

Shy, that's exactly what is meant by macrocsm & microcosm, or the saying "as above, so below". Every living organism carries a map of the universe within it/him/her. Wish mine was working like it's supposed to. I think a few of my neurons are misfiring these days.

I guess if this flies well with the ultra conservatives McCain's got his VP.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24314795

McCain teams up with former rival Huckabee
Candidate wants ex-Ark. governor to play a prominent role in campaign

more..

You are so right Crystal and if the human race could just wrap their mind around the fact that all, all, all are interconnected, it would change the world overnight.

Well Luna in line with your McCain article and his Veep, Frank Rich of the NY Times has an excellent article on McCain and just how secure is he

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/opinion/27rich.html?ref=opinion

Sally,

The Frank Rich article you posted above is right. Everyone is paying so much attention to the Democrats duking it out that they're missing the McCain stories.

On another note, if you click on any word in that article a new window opens up giving information about that word. Just under the article is a 'tip' that tells you to click on any word, so I did.

check it out everyone.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/opinion/27rich.html?ref=opinion

Not good. Not good at all:

http://tinyurl.com/56nrro

"Slip-sliding away."

Elizabeth Edward's take on the press and she is so right about it all. We have to stop them from feeding us pap and Idon't know if it's too late to do so.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/4/27/6401/55204/182/504252

Daily Kos also has a very good article up regarding the amount of corruption in Washington and how it's the media who choses our President we just go along. We have to demand a more open government, the press is horribly inept.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/4/27/33526/9800/199/504235

Oooooh. A nest full of eagles with Parent on watch.

http://tinyurl.com/66mujt

Scroll down just a bit to see the nest activity.

Sally, thanks for all those links. All very interesting. I'm going to spread some of them around.

I am not overly fond of Tim Russert, as he irritates me most of the time, but he had a pretty good show on Meet The Press this morning - good roundtable discussion. I saw that temper for which Howard Dean is famous - he was getting hot under the collar, after some questions about the handling of the Primaries, and the Superdelegates, but fortunately he didn't let it fly.

Oh, Luna. Loved that Frank Rich commentary. Best ever, especially with all the links.

That's a WOW shot Shy, how beautiful. Thanks for the MTP Crystal, I didn't get to see it this morning and wondered how it went.

What used to be far out futuristic science fiction is now fact and in the present. Cloned labradors - I find myself wondering whether to use the singular 'labrador' or the plural - I feel very ambivalent about this. Human cloning isn't far off, if it hasn't been done already. I notice that we only hear about these cases after the fact.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/080424-AP-clones.html

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/up/player/popup/index.php?cl=7545931

Video link: Scalia blames Al Gore for Bush v. Gore

(You'll have to watch a 30 second commercial first. The video excerpt is from Scalia's appearance on 60 Minutes.)

Manufactured and exported while importing food crisis. Making money off of starvation

http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/grain260408.html#_edn12

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/28/opinion/28krugman.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin

McCain = Bush made permanent

Cap'n Sally, you'll like this. Ron Paul supporters shut down the Repug's shin-dig thingie in Nevada:

http://tinyurl.com/5koo34

As an ex-Alabama governor said, "All roads lead to Karl Rove." Here's another, actually more like an interstate than a road:

http://tinyurl.com/62ctxv

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/27/elizabeth-edwards-media-are-giving-americans-only-cliffs-notes-of-campaign-news/

Elizabeth Edwards: Media are giving Americans only ‘Cliffs Notes’ of campaign news.

In an op-ed titled “Bowling 1, Health Care 0” in The New York Times today, Center for American Progress senior fellow Elizabeth Edwards laments that for the last month, the news media’s coverage of the Democratic presidential primary has focused on the “rancor” and “money spent” as opposed to “information about the candidates’ priorities, policies and principles“:

I am saying that every analysis that is shortened, every corner that is cut, moves us further away from the truth until what is left is the Cliffs Notes of the news, or what I call strobe-light journalism, in which the outlines are accurate enough but we cannot really see the whole picture. […]

Did you, for example, ever know a single fact about Joe Biden’s health care plan? Anything at all? But let me guess, you know Barack Obama’s bowling score. We are choosing a president, the next leader of the free world. We are not buying soap, and we are not choosing a court clerk with primarily administrative duties.

“Watching the campaign unfold,” Edwards said, “I saw how the press gravitated toward a narrative template for the campaign, searching out characters as if for a novel.”

More at the link...

http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2008/04/28/ken_wilber/print.html

You are the river: An interview with Ken Wilber

The integral philosopher explains the difference between religion, New Age fads and the ultimate reality that traditional science can't touch. - By Steve Paulson

"Free Tibet" flags were made in China.

Who knew?

http://tinyurl.com/5ugqel

Hmmmmm. I got this one from Buzzflash. I wonder where it was made. When it arrives, I'll post.

http://www.buzzflash.com/store/items/1060

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1209114346968&rss=newswire

Jack Abramoff's Ties Ran Deep at the DOJ

Kevin Ring was exuberant. It was Feb. 4, 2002, and Ring, a young member of Jack Abramoff's lobbying team at Greenberg Traurig, was laying plans to attend a Dave Matthews Band concert at the MCI Center. It was to be a celebration.

"I have the suite filling up with DOJ staffers that just got our clients $16 million," he gushed in an e-mail to his colleague, Padgett Wilson. "Come to the show, baby."

"Are there any tickets left?" asked Wilson, now director of governmental affairs for Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue (R). He then submitted: "And as for those DOJ staffers, those guys should get anything they want for the rest of the time they are in office - opening day tickets, Skins v. Giants, oriental massages, hookers, whatever."

Last week, one of those staffers, Robert Coughlin II, 36, pleaded guilty to criminal conflict of interest, becoming the first Justice Department official charged in the 4-year-old influence-peddling investigation.

But court documents filed in Coughlin's case and e-mails released through congressional investigations are explicit about Team Abramoff's line into the Justice Department: Coughlin was but one of many "friendlies," as they are identified in Coughlin's statement of offense.

A source familiar with the Abramoff probe says the Justice Department is continuing to investigate other former Justice officials. Coughlin and at least two other unnamed Justice officials helped secure a $16.3 million grant for Ring's client, the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, court documents say. A deputy assistant attorney general had previously approved $9 million for the tribe. One unanswered question is which official at the department overruled that decision, giving the tribe the full amount.

More at the link...

Wanna know how corrupt your Dept of Justice is? Just read this:

http://tinyurl.com/5hx96b

and cry.

Ooops! So sorry, Pat C. You beat me to it and I didn't even notice I was in such a hurry to get this posted. Apologies to all.

Not necessary shy! It's a must read.

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/04/get_fitzgerald_round_two.php

Rezko Trial: Get Fitzgerald! (Round Two)

Last week, prosecutors in the trial of Tony Rezko revealed that a government witness would testify that Rezko had said he was plotting to get U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald canned. His buddy and Republican bigwig Robert Kjellander was in talks with Karl Rove, the story goes.

snip

Today the Rezko trial brought another aspect of the somewhat hapless plot:
Tony Rezko associate Elie Maloof just testified that when he received a grand jury subpoena, Rezko told him not to talk to the feds. Why?

"The federal prosecutor will no longer be the same federal prosecutor," Maloof just testified that Rezko told him. What did Rezko mean, prosecutor Chris Niewoehner asked.

"That Patrick Fitzgerald would be terminated and Dennis Hastert will name his replacement. The investigation will be over."

Maloof said Rezko told him of Fitzgerald's replacement: "That they will order the prosecutor to stop the investigation."

More at the link...

I've been watching the storm swirl around the Rev Wright thing and Obama. I think the Democrats have created a horrible dilemma. I think Obama cannot win against McCain, and if he doesn't get the nomination his supporters will stay home. The party is tearing iself apart when they should easily be able to trounce McCain.

The link above also touches on the continuing saga with Tony Reska. I am not an Obama basher, just someone who is familiar with Chicago politics and the grooming of Obama. When some DNC people suggested that he hadn't been properly vetted no one wanted to listen to anything bad about their new Golden Boy. Now the Rev wright thing AND Tony Reska

Sorry but I still think Obama is an amiable, attractive lightweight. This is going to be John Kerry all over again. Now the party pundits who kept pushing for Hillary to quit are besides themselves in a terrible dilemma. Thank god she has stuck it out because I am beginning to beleive Obama may go down w/o the nomination. Anyone have any astro-sights on this one.

Swamp

Shy, I loved the article about Ron Paul, if he were president we would be in deep s... in this country, but I do like him and think he is funny and honest as to the way he sees things. I hope his group keeps disrupting their little conventions. Who knows, maybe the riots Rush so badly wants in Denver, might happen at the GOP convention.

PatC, I noticed that you posted an article about Ken Wilber, he is very well known personally by several of us, he is open and use to teach classes. I haven't seen him for a couple of years but he is definately interesting and he is friendly and very down to earth.If not a great thinker, certainly a fun thinker and one who will make the people around him think.

Ken Wilber lives in Denver now, and knew him peripherally at Naropa and studying under Chogyam Trungpa, and later when his wife was ill. He's a good antidote for disassembling dogma and understanding the nature of karma (which often is used in a crude, competitive and materialistic way students judge themselves and others which is in itself an obstacle).
I think Ken is a beautiful, albeit mentally hyperactive spirit sussing out as many reference points and dogmas as he can (ie., doesn't identify himself as buddhist) yet does immerse himself in systems of discipline.
The irony seems to be arriving at immense realization with a mind like a popcorn popper!
I think he's great, and trust his instincts.

In a totally different vein, his horrific grand mal siezures of 12-05-06 and diagnosis of (not surprisingly complex, knowing Ken) of CFIDS/REDD/ME is, I believe, a strong possible diagnosis for one supreme court justice JOHN ROBERTS born 1-27-55. Ken claims this immune disorder is more prevalent than AIDS in the u.s. (Ken was born 1-31-49 Ok City OK).

Ken also had an 'out of the blue' strike to his brain a number of years ago, was alone, and broke his collarbone, which is the same thing that happened to Roberts at his vacation retreat last year. Roberts also expressed surprise at that event which occurred after many years.
Good 'ol uranians.

P.S.: Another one with notable health fragilities is "justice" Alito b 4-01-50 in Trenton, NJ under a moldering cabbage leaf....
so much for best laid plans and what god does while we make them.

I just couldn't pass this one up. I am curious as to what current astrological aspects brought this to light, and I can understand why some women are men haters, even though there are men I know who would be utterly incapable of this despicable act - worse than murder in my opinion. Wouldn't be at all surprised if at 73 he wasn't now doing it to his grand-daughters. Thought I'd heard it all, but this is unimaginable.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/cellarincestcaseshocksaustria

Diabolical as it is, low abberrant beings such as that swiss fellow have always been around. Men who isolate a collection of females goes back to the cave days. Now it usually comes with some sort of religious label, but not always. There were the Freethinkers in 1850's vermont who did the same thing. Self-serving excuses to immobilize and hold captive objects of one's base desires at the cost of someone else's freedom and sanity (male OR female).

I think you meant Austrian fellow, patb.

oh, right. yeah, austrian. Shows a story made a goofy association with Swiss Miss hot cocoa. Does it matter????

Marjorie Orr has an interesting, short analysis about the recent hideous Austrian rape/incest case, and more. For example:

"All countries have their hideous underbelly but these grotesque outer events which shake the national consciousness usually hint at something major shifting at a profound inner level in the nation's psyche - which then follow on to have political ramifications. Almost as if these events are signs of the sewers overflowing, unsavoury psychological symbols of a stagnant society which is being forced to grow and change, or to implode."

This particular article was posted 28 Apr at 17:37. Just scroll down a bit:

http://tinyurl.com/2eqeh2

If you can handle one more thing on this (contrived?) Wright matter, let it be this (scroll to video):

http://tinyurl.com/66x9l6

Contrived? Yes indeed Shy and I wonder if the Rev. weekend comments and Obama's indignation was also contrived between the two of them to get this stupid media diversion off the front page. If it was I would take my hat off to both of them, if it wasn't it should have been. We will see if the good Rev. makes more comments. I love Jimmy Carter, he said "no he wouldn't have left the church, that and worse have been said inside of church" I do love that man.

I completely agree with Marjorie Orr. As we discussed a few years ago, this boil on the butt of the US is seeping out pus, we aren't quite to the core yet but it's coming. The last 4 years particularly have shown us quite a bit of the underbelly of the US psyche and it isn't pretty, but it's the only way to get better and start to heal.

Think it's time to take a break from all this.
Seems whenever I take time and attention and thought (several times in a row) to put it down it just sits wasted. Message for me. T/O.

Another news clip from down under ...
surprise, surprise. Rape and abuse from a different angle...
---------------------
Oil company profits "almost obscene"
The Automobile Association says the profits made by oil companies BP and Shell are almost obscene.

BP has posted a 48 percent increase in first quarter profit of $8.5 billion, while Shell's profit has risen 12 percent to $10.1 billion dollars.

AA spokesman Mike Noon says it does not sit well with motorists to see profits that are bigger than telephone numbers. He says the profits seem to be almost obscene, particularly when motorists in New Zealand are hurting so much.

Kiwi, it is obscene and it is speculated to go up way over where it is now. Somehow someway the oil cartel has to be broken, starting with Saudia Arabia. We are frantic in trying to control the middle east through war, to control the oil. The information we have been given regarding ethenal, corn, oil, peak oil, oil research and all the other stories oil companies, governments and OPEC gives us is all wrong and all lies. I would hope that some leader, somewhere can begin the process of untangling this mess the world is in right now. People are seemingly working on it but boy has it been an uphill climb. Now they tell us that they have to dig for more resources in this country.

History shows that countries based on natural resources such as Middle East and oil, Africa and minerals, even the US in the 17 and 18 hundreds and agriculture tend toward being tyrannical, while countries based on goods (manufacturing) and services are a more open and free society because they need educated people for creativity and problem solving that comes with manufacturing and services. While we are dumbing down this country and Europe, (except Ireland and Scotland) India and the Chinese are building up their educational programs. Interesting to watch

Oh, kiwijeanie, when Junya was in the race to be the prez, he pointed out how, being an ol' oilman himself, he would be ever so much better at "jawboning" with the ME oilmen in keeping our prices down here.

And we know how well that worked out.

April is being the cruelest month in terms of casualties our troops are sustaining in Eye-Rack. But, we've got to keep focused over here and be ever vigilant because who knows what some African-American preacher might be saying from the pulpit even as I type.

And nightmare-of-nightmares to computer systems folks, and an excellent way to hide corruption has just come to light:

http://tinyurl.com/5deltu

I was just thinking about this, Kiwi. . .and then your post up. Profits HAD to be obscene given the rate of increase. Yet, i keep coming back to the whole crux of why, and can't help but think they're going to be introducing some new energy source that every single one of us MUST have. I'm not sure why, but something is behind this besides profit for profit sake. It's certainly not solar, at least in the conventional sense. Does anyone else have that feeling?

Sally, the scope of historical context overviews represent a formidable knowledge. Thanks for sharing this perspective.

Now that's an eye-opener, Shy! I started operating a computer in a print shop. I think someone else on this board did too. The type machine produced a thin paper tape studded with holes and was then fed into a behemoth processor which spit out the typed text in format. So apparently those giants are still in operation. And yes, your comment on hiding corruption was right on target.

Just took a little tour of news sites on the internets (thanks, Al!). Iran just dropped the dollar from their oil bourse. Hang on!

Ooops! Sorry, I forgot the source (Iran bourse):
http://tinyurl.com/5mvggm

patb, hang in there. Sometimes I feel like my words are falling into a black hole too, but I think it's only because we all have so much to post that we read all the great stuff posted by others but over time responding doesn't seem to be important. Or, in other words, sometimes there's too much to catch up on to take the time to respond. I read everyone's posts every day. And I try to go to all the links that are posted too. That takes up a LOT OF TIME! It's hard to keep up, but if we don't then we'll never know what hit us!

Conyers is running for re-election. I received this email from him. Speaking for myself I would hate to lose all the documentation Conyers has accumulated regarding Bush's crimes. Maybe it can be used to convict him sometime in the future.

[snip]
Today I have announced that I am seeking re-election to Congress in Michigan's
fourteenth district.

I am running for re-election because I can't wait
to work with a Democratic president to undo all the damage that the
Bush administration has done to our country. Without an obstructionist
administration in place we can finally restore integrity and pride in
our government.

Of all of the elections I have participated in, I believe this is the most
important. Not only do Democrats need to retain control of the Congress and expand
our majorities, but it is vital that we take back the White House as well. If we
are going to do that, I will need your help.

Help me move this country forward and undo the damage of the Bush Administration.

We are poised to elect a government that will finally be responsive the needs of the
American people. I have worked tirelessly on the presidential race and have
traveled the country to help progressive Democrats get elected to Congress.

I have worked hard as Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee to, I hope, earn
your trust and your support. We have stood up to the Bush Administration on
warrantless surveillance, on holding Administration officials in contempt for
ignoring subpoenas, on the politicization of the Department of Justice, on the
selective prosecution of Don Siegelman, on protecting voting rights, on illegal
torture, and many other matters.

The opportunity is before us to change the way politics is conducted in Washington.
We can bring government back to the people but we must seize the opportunity now.

Lunaoscura, I'll bet Conyers can't wait to work with more Dems who actually have spines, too!

Well, this may be why the neo's aren't worried about attacking Iran. If it's true that there are massive oil fields in the U.S. all that's been done for the past 40 years is exploit other peoples resources and now start wars to interrupt other sources of oil. At the same time, boy have our guys been raking in the bucks!

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8668319287834598272&q=energy%20non&hl=en

Shylurker,

I'm sure Conyers remembers well those sunny fun filled days when he had to hold meeting in the basement closet during Bush's first term! Remember that crappy behavior? Or when some Republican would turn off the mikes during meetings? We need to remember things like them laughing and telling us to 'get over it', or how they create reality while we play catch-up trying to reason with them.

In today's speech Bush is 'telling' us that we need to foot the bill for more refineries if we want the price of gasoline to go down. Not that the oil hogs should pay for it themselves, mind you, but that we should give him tax dollars to do it. I guess now we know why we're being screwed at the pumps. So they can force us to open up Alaska for oil drilling. Talk about the gouging mentality! They must stay awake at night figuring out how to get one more drop of blood out of that turnip!

Luna, very pertinent post of yours, it ties in with the video I posted above. It's 75 minutes, but does connect a lot of dots!

Shy, interesting that Marjorie should bring up Sigmund Freud, the well known Austrian psycho-analyst. Many moons ago, when I read about Freud and his work, he seemed to me to be obssessed with sex, and reduced all his patients' problems to sexual issues, so unlike the way Carl Jung approached his patients' problems. I think it made Carl Jung very uneasy, and may have been the reason why he eventually severed ties with Freud.
I also wondered about Freud's daughter Anna, who later became a psycho-analyst working with children. I checked Freud's horoscope, and sure enough he had the dreaded Mars Rx opposite Venus. I just searched the web for info concerning his daughter, and this is what I found.

http://mickhartley.typepad.com/blog/2007/09/father-and-daug.html

I have a feeling that if the current Austrian paedophile's astro chart were to be checked, he would also have Mars Rx, perhaps opp. Venus.
It was reported that he also took trips to Thailand with other men, so I'm sure there were many other victims outside his immediate family circle.

Two things come to mind regarding the oil boyz profits and their bought and paid for politicians - pressure now dramatically increases to allow the green light on more refineries being built and drilling in untouched areas (including antarctica I'd bet - that's the up side to ice melt on that front, but thats another story); and also that wonderful political slush fund, percentage taxes on gallons purchased. Think they're going to give that advantage up readily? Naaaahhhhhh

Karen, I too think in the bigger picture we are possibly being primed to accept an alternate energy source without a whimper, possibly some sort of nuclear, because oil will be 'just too expensive with limited supply.' Quite a selling point. NZ has been firmly anti-nuclear for decades, however, more recently there have been elements here that are beginning to push the 'viable nuclear energy' mindset through the media.

Top Psychic Predicts....Clinton/Edwards '08 with a WIN.

http://www.mydd.com/story/2008/4/29/183339/055

http://www.enn.com/agriculture/article/35191

The Food Crisis: Global Markets and Deregulation Strike Again

You wouldn't know it by watching Congressional debate on C-SPAN, but if you turn on the news, it's clear that the global food system is in crisis. Food prices globally have skyrocketed, in some cases 80%. Food protests and riots from Italy to Yemen have begun capturing worldwide attention, and policymakers are scrambling to point fingers at a litany of culprits-everything from climate change, high oil prices, a weak dollar and the biofuels boom, to meat eaters in China. All of these factors have played a part in the current crisis, but the blame game is also allowing one culprit-the principle protagonist in this story-to get away with not even a mention. It's a character you might have heard of recently for its role in that little unfortunate sub-prime mortgage mess. That's right, deregulation.

More at the link...

Speculation on oil prices in the futures market is the biggest culprit in driving up oil prices, and the markets are not regulated by the government, so they just run amok.

http://www.soothesayer.com/

May 2008

The “interesting times” have arrived:

The last figure published by the Bank for International Settlements for derivatives contracts estimated the “notional” value to be around $700 Trillion, over ten times the gross domestic product of all nations on earth. The sub-prime and adjustable rate mortgage collapse is still in an avalanche, taking defaults on credit cards, car loans, and other accumulated debt instruments down the mountain with it. Thousands of lost jobs are being announced, especially in banking, construction, housing, etc. According to a study by researchers at the State Health Access Data Assistance Center at the University of Minnesota, between 2001 and 2005, employee earnings rose 2% while health insurance premiums rose 30%. Airlines are falling into bankruptcy as they cannot afford the cost of fuel and neither can people commuting to work, truck drivers hauling their cargoes, or bus drivers taking the kids to school.

Vulture capitalists are cleaning up on commodities as grain prices go through the stratosphere with the fall of the dollar, increased energy costs, farmers using their land to grow crops for ethanol and, last but not least, policies of neoconservative global trade freaks whose policies implemented the exporting of food from rich countries to poor countries without trade barriers and destroyed just about all local farmers in these nations so they can no longer feed themselves, nor can they pay for the high cost grain imports. Starvation is bringing with it the ensuing riots and social disintegration. Interestingly, the government of Thailand has been an exception to all of this as they have not contributed to the food crisis abroad and are effectively feeding themselves.

The notion of “the greater good” has been shelved for about the past thirty years, so gradually, most of us were barely aware of what was happening. The rule of law and sensible regulations governing the financial arenas were ditched in both Democrat and Republican administrations. Those that remained, were deliberately ignored and as the banking and investment systems were taken over by gamblers reminiscent of the old “numbers racket” people, the Mafia-style “cabal” consisting of the Federal Reserve, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan Chase, et al have rushed to save their friends, leaving hundreds of thousands of people bankrupt, homeless and “in the street”. Instead, they have been “decoupling” the world of finance from the “real economy”. You know – the one you and I need to survive – the one that is currently melting down like the polar ice caps and the global climate. Incidentally, I don’t see any of these hedge fund managers or mortgage salesmen or underwriters in orange jump suits. Do you? Very interesting!

The new moon on May 5th in Taurus and the full moon on May 20th are both square Neptune showing the “decoupling” illusion is over and reality must be faced.

More at the link....

don't know if this has already been posted ...

http://www.matthewbooks.com/mm/anmviewer.asp?a=87&z=2

Gaze and be amazed:

http://www.techdo.com/images/largest-know-star.htm

Wow Shylurker! It struck me that our itty bitty little marble is the only body in that graphic that actually includes all the colors of the other planets and stars. Maybe that's one of those 'mysteries' that sages speak about. It's an interesting thought anyway.

I can't find a picture for you, lunaoscura, but the earliest stones at Stonehenge were bluestones. They were somehow transported from the Presceli Hills in Wales to Stonehenge. Presceli Bluestone is dolerite, and here is a wonderful description of it:

" I discovered a memorial stone in the Preseli Hills which had been polished and then, during a geological survey, the Bluestones were cut open and then the proverbial penny dropped. Inside the stones we found feldspar crystal formations and mica. When polished, the stone looks like the night sky studded with stars . . ."

http://www.britannia.com/history/preseli_blue.html

Karen, kiwijeanie, crystal, others interested. T. Boone Pickens, one of those characters from Texass, is jumping right on the Greenergy bandwagon in pursuit of more millions, I rekkin:

http://tinyurl.com/6etxq5

Don't know if this man will get what he wants, but he's putting it out there.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080501/ap_on_el_pr/superdelegates

That was a lovely sky show shy, and good observation luna.
I think we all came here to do some form of penance for previous trangressions, and hopefully in so doing, we'll evolve into something better, but I strongly believe that service in whatever form, is the fastest route to finding our better selves.

From time to time, I see predictions on the internet about who will be the winners in the Presidential election. Most of the ones I have seen say that Hillary will be the anointed one. Very few say who will be the VP. I don't endorse any of them, because I think most of them are a shot in the dark, but here's an unusual one that I found recently. Maybe after the race is run, we can compare, and see who came closest.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/03/prweb736374.htm

Israel is suppressing a secret it must face

How did a Jewish state founded 60 years ago end up throwing filth at cowering Palestinians?

By Johann Hari

30/04/08 "The Independent" -- 28/04/08 -- -When you hit your 60th birthday, most of you will guzzle down your hormone replacement therapy with a glass of champagne and wonder if you have become everything you dreamed of in your youth. In a few weeks, the state of Israel is going to have that hangover.

She will look in the mirror and think – I have a sore back, rickety knees and a gun at my waist, but I'm still standing. Yet somewhere, she will know she is suppressing an old secret she has to face. I would love to be able to crash the birthday party with words of reassurance. Israel has given us great novelists like Amos Oz and A.B. Yehoshua, great film-makers like Joseph Cedar, great scientific research into Alzheimer's, and great dissident journalists like Amira Hass, Tom Segev and Gideon Levy to expose her own crimes.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article19845.htm

My Congressman Nick Rahall called last
night asking me to support Obama...first
time I have had that happen, and in West
Virginia yet...never in the 40 years I lived in San Francisco.

Took my Congressman's advice - Obama got
two votes in WV today...

From Pat QOP

http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2008/05/reports-dc-mada.html

DC Madam commits suicide in Tarpon Springs

Hmmmmmm.

http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?no_d2=1&sid=08/04/30/1359209

Slashdot thread on the "missing" White House emails

"We now know how the Whitehouse managed to lose about five million emails. It seems that they 'upgraded' their Lotus Notes system, which had an automatic retention and backup system, for Microsoft Exchange, which did not support the automatic system. So they changed it to a manual process, where aides would manually sort emails one by one into individual PST files, which they call a 'journaling' archive system. They're still building a replacement for the retention system. Right when they had one finished, the White House CIO complained that it made Microsoft Exchange too slow, so they hired yet another contractor to build another one, causing a senior IT official to quit in protest. So they still haven't completed the project after almost eight years, and rely on humans to sort millions of emails."

Malice, or incompetance? Both.

..........

http://www.newsweek.com/id/134930

Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball in Newsweek:

Just Between Us -- Telecoms and the Bush administration talked about how to keep their surveillance program under wraps.
The Bush administration is refusing to disclose internal e-mails, letters and notes showing contacts with major telecommunications companies over how to persuade Congress to back a controversial surveillance bill, according to recently disclosed court documents.

The existence of these documents surfaced only in recent days as a result of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by a privacy group called the Electronic Frontier Foundation. The foundation (alerted to the issue in part by a NEWSWEEK story last fall) is seeking information about communications among administration officials, Congress and a battery of politically well-connected lawyers and lobbyists hired by such big telecom carriers as AT&T and Verizon. Court papers recently filed by government lawyers in the case confirm for the first time that since last fall unnamed representatives of the telecoms phoned and e-mailed administration officials to talk about ways to block more than 40 civil suits accusing the companies of privacy violations because of their participation in a secret post-9/11 surveillance program ordered by the White House.

At the time, the White House was proposing a surveillance bill—strongly backed by the telecoms—that included a sweeping provision that would grant them retroactive immunity from any lawsuits accusing the companies of wrongdoing related to the surveillance program.

More at the link....

..........

Commentary on the Newsweek article from mcjoan on Daily Kos:

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/5/1/9451/79728/822/506663

FISA Fight: The Real Force Behind Jello Jay

So how does the telcos' panic over these potential cases square with the adminstration talking point that the companies did nothing wrong and therefore shouldn't even be threatened with suits? (A specious argument anyway--if they did nothing wrong, they should be happy to have that cleared up in a court of law.) Obviously it doesn't. The telcos that participated knew at the time that they were breaking the law--that's why Qwest didn't participate, and why AT&T and Verizon and the others shouldn't have either. They knew it then and they particularly know it now. Thus their effort to pull all the levers possible to continuing covering up their actions--and the administrations'.

If one thing in the whole amnesty debate wasn't already clear, this information absolutely crystallizes it. This fight has nothing to do with national security. It has everything to do with megacorporations breaking the law and doing everything in their power to get away with it--including getting advice from the Department of Justice about how to do so!

So, Jello Jay, how does it feel to not only be a puppet of the worst administration in the history of the nation, but also of one of the worst industries in the country? How does it feel to be AT&T's stenographer? Because it's now abundantly apparent that they were the ones writing your bill.

More at the link....

PatC, another tightly related article was just posted by emptywheel, who raises the possibility that the supposed "upsurge" in wiretaps was simply the rest of their having to count the number of wiretaps they'd had in place for a while. I.e., they may not have even been keeping up with what they were doing. I know you're shocked and surprised at that possibility, too.

http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2008/05/01/the-uncounted-wiretaps/

Hahahahahahaha. By a vote of 844 to 20, the Methodists have rejected having Junya's lie-berry at SMU.

http://tinyurl.com/4cypu8

Pat QOP,

I just read that Palfrey's (the DC Madam) body was found in a shed on her mother's property in Tarpon Springs, FL. Has anyone here ever heard of a woman committing suicide in a shed?

The autopsy report is not written yet, but the Tarpon Springs Chief of Police is quoted as saying, "There is absolutely no doubt this was suicide."

I think Palfrey's mistake was thinking the threat of naming names would protect her. She should have put all her records out on the net immediately (whether there was a court order about it or not) and let the chips fall wherever they would.

Maybe astrology can cast light on this event.

ROFLMAO! Oh shy, you make my day!

Old Mayfly, she hung herself they say.

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Breakins_plague_Justice_Department_whistleblowers_0430.html

Break-ins plague targets of US AttorneysThe Permanent Republican Majority Part VI

MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA - In two states where US attorneys are already under fire for serious allegations of political prosecutions, seven people associated with three federal cases have experienced 10 suspicious incidents including break-ins and arson.

These crimes raise serious questions about possible use of deliberate intimidation tactics not only because of who the victims are and the already wide criticism of the prosecutions to begin with, but also because of the suspicious nature of each incident individually as well as the pattern collectively.

Typically burglars do not break-into an office or private residence only to rummage through documents, for example, as is the case with most of the burglaries in these two federal cases.

In Alabama, for instance, the home of former Democratic Governor Don Siegelman was burglarized twice during the period of his first indictment. Nothing of value was taken, however, and according to the Siegelman family, the only items of interest to the burglars were the files in Siegelman's home office.
Siegelman's attorney experienced the same type of break-in at her office.

More at the link....

Shylurker,

Here's pictures of bluestone jewelry

http://www.preselibluestone.com/shop.htm

This makes me feel all warm and fuzzy and happy inside! Along with Bush getting his lieberry rejected this is turning out to be a good day.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2008/05/this-just-in-th.html

Thousands of dock workers stay home, West Coast ports shut down
May 1, 2008

All 29 ports on the West Coast, including the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, have been effectively shut down this morning as thousands of dockworkers stayed home to protest the Iraq war. The walkout comes two months before the contract between dockworkers and and port operators expires. Louis Sahagun has the story:

"We are supporting the troops and telling politicians in Washington that it's time to end the war in Iraq," union president Bob McEllrath said.

more..

Here are some photos of the ports and a graph

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=3231624&mesg_id=3232416

I remember judigem posting about this a while back.

Thanks for the pix, lunaoscura.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/04/30/20080430renoquakes0430-ON.html

Swarm of earthquakes shakes Reno area

MOGUL, Nev. - An unusually intense swarm of earthquakes -- more than 1,000 over the past two months -- has struck directly beneath a small suburb of Reno, leaving residents shaken and scientists puzzling over the cause.

More than 20 quakes of magnitude 2 or higher have hit on some days, and the intensity and frequency of the quakes has been increasing over time rather than following the normal pattern of tailing off.

Although Nevada is the second most seismically active state in the continental United States, researchers say they have never seen anything quite like the "Mogul earthquake sequence," as they have named it.

"We don't know what is going to happen next," said geologist James Dolan of University of Southern California, who has been watching the unfolding seismic activity. But a swarm like this "makes you perk up your ears and start considering the possibility that you might be in a heightened period of hazard."

The swarm of quakes has unnerved the roughly 3,000 residents who live around Mogul, a sparse community of ranch homes located about two miles west of Reno.

I always thought Sid Blumenthal had some integrity. I'm sitting here hoping this article is just not true. If it is, well, Sheeeesh!

http://tinyurl.com/4j2puw

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Layoffs_Rise_68_Percent_in_April_0501.html

Layoffs Rise 68 Percent in April

Morgana,

I understand that hanging is the least-likely way women commit suicide. #1 is poison/overdose. Even gunshot is more likely than hanging.

Does anyone know--is it true that Palfrey sold her client lists to Larry Flynt? (Oh, I hope so.)

Another of the Bush admin. travesty of justice:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080502/ap_on_re_mi_ea/guantanamo_journalist_freed_5;_ylt=AqE417cSu7jcrxdvuvsFvDVn.3QA

Morgana, Old Mayfly and others interested in gender differences in choice of suicide techniques:

I wish I could send you directly to this one particular table at this site, but I cannot. I'll summarize what is there and trust you'll scroll down to find the table. Data are for suicides in the United States in 2004. Method: Firearms--57% of male suicides were by firearms, compared to 32% of female suicides; Poisons--12% of men used poison, compared to 38% of females; Hanging/strangulation/suffocation--23% of men used this method to suicide, compared to almost 20% of females.

http://tinyurl.com/5r6jpu

I heard two radio talk show hosts say today that they had some real questions about the death of the DC Madam and doubted the suicide story, with or without a note. It seems pretty odd, they say she was facing 55 years in prison if convicted, still she had that list and I wonder if she was blackmailing someone that was on the A list.

I have contacted four of the best psychic's I know, two in England, one in Scotland and one here in the states. Two say Obama will win, the one in Scotland (psychic to the royal family) who is in her 70's says she doesn't think it will be either of them and had some scary words regarding Hillary, but that the Dems will destroy themselves and either get McCain elected and/or the high potential of the election being called off and she sees a few more dirty tricks toward the people from this present administration before they leave office. That GWB is enraged with America because they have rejected his every attempt to be king of the world, but he's still trying. The psychic here in the States says it's a toss up for the nomination but she thinks Obama squeeks through. All four of them said Obama would be the best choice for the US. and McCain a disaster also that he is extremely ill. That assessment fits with his Astro Chart that's for sure. I did talk to another psychic here in the States but he said it was so very cloudy, too many dirty tricks coming from surprising sources. He said what sources but I don't think I will repeat who.

Oh Sally! Unfair!!

Yep. Those dirty tricks are in the air.

Here is an interesting astro article from Elsa Elasa on the Madam.

http://www.elsaelsa.com/archives/2008/05/01/claire-france-perez-astrologer-to-the-dc-madam-comments-regarding-her-case-and-suicide/

From Starlight News comments:

Transition to New President in Wartime Concerns the Military

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/04/30/ST2008043003416.html?hpid=topnews

Since when was the military suppose to comment on elections and Presidents?

EPA Official Ousted While Fighting Dow

Michael Hawthorne, of The Chicago Tribune: "The battle over dioxin contamination in this economically stressed region had been raging for years when a top Bush administration official turned up the pressure on Dow Chemical to clean it up.

On Thursday, following months of internal bickering over Mary Gade's interactions with Dow, the administration forced her to quit as head of the US Environmental Protection Agency's Midwest office, based in Chicago.

Gade told the Tribune she resigned after two aides to national EPA administrator Stephen Johnson took away her powers as regional administrator and told her to quit or be fired by June 1."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050208O.shtml

While I still prefer the slogan, "Cheney Care for All," getting our congresscritters to share their health plan with those of us who pay for it would sure be nice, now wouldn't it?

http://tinyurl.com/59ytpb

Well Shy regarding the Madame, my first reaction was she was silenced. My second thought was I hope she gave Larry Flint the goods. My last impression is may be she was self destructive enough to call it over.

Sally may have some interesting insights.

There is soooooo much going on. Beware of smear videos, me I'm tuning out the day to day primary crapola despite my obsession with politics and the state of our nation.

Happy Beltane !! The traditional Beltane is when the Sun is 15 degrees Taurus, coming up May 5th on the new moon and Cinco De Mayo here in California. Great time to plant and grow, Taurus the sign of fertility, earth. I love the Maypoles going up and the streams of ribbons. Currently May Day/Beltane is celebrated May 1st following Walpurgis Night.

Ok back to work for me.

http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2008/05/02/hoyer/

What backroom conniving are Steny Hoyer and the Chris Carney Blue Dogs up to on FISA?

..........

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/05/02/rove-luskin-abrams/

Rove’s Lawyer On Subpoena In Siegelman Case: It’s All Dan Abrams’s Fault

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/linkset/2005/04/11/LI2005041100879.html

What Karl Rove Fears Most
By Dan Froomkin

........

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/04/28/080428fa_fact_keefe?currentPage=all

STATE SECRETS
A government misstep in a wiretapping case.
by Patrick Radden Keefe

See Ralphie Run
March 31, 2008 12:11 PM

Why is Ralph Nader running for president again? Critics of his bid for the ballot in 2000 complain that all he did was steal votes from Al Gore, and in such a close election, that could have made the decisive difference. Ironically enough, Democrats are more likely to be supporters of the consumer activist than Republicans are, although they are the ones who arguably benefited from his quixotic decision to run. Or was it? Quixotic, that is.

http://www.tvweek.com/blogs/tom-shales/

Sally, Bush really has no one to blame but himself, and he is his own worst enemy. His greatest misjudgement was buying into his own fabricated hype, choosing a blind, pompous arrogance over a state of humility, which might have empowered him to make much better decisions regarding the fate of this nation.

Even most of the Americans who once blindly bought into all of the Rovian lies and falsity have come to see Bush for what he is, and is not. Whatever his actions turn out to be for the remainder of his term, I believe in the next decade, he will be made to answer for his crimes, if not by Americans, than by the World body of nations when the US finally becomes too weak to keep up the tired "superpower" act. The NeoCons, those who don't commit suicide like the Nazis when Hitler's gig was up, will also receive their due, and there won't be an Argentina or Paraguay for them to escape to this time.

I believe the Clintons are in on the present "gig" as well, along with their "friends" the Bushes, Big Oil, Auto, the Media, the Banks, Wall Street and pretty much everyone else of power and influence who values the status quo. Chances are, if you aren't in their rolodex, or on their speed dial, they are not your friends and couldn't give a damn about your existence beyond your consumerist-driven servitude.

Having the least ties to interests vested in maintaining "business as usual" Obama is the best of the worst. That's not saying much. He cannot single-handedly undo eight years of Dubya Bush/NeoCon rule and eight years of Clinton complicity in sweeping the elder Bush's crimes against this nation under the rug. IF he tries to, he will be slimed and viciously attacked every step of the way by a thoroughly corrupt and terminally ill system fighting to stay in power as if its' life dependent upon it. (And Pluto in Capricorn says it does.) Only if he has the public's support, and LISTENS TO THE PUBLIC will he be able to get much done, and that's if the Clintons and the rest of the status quo don't succeed in trashing him out of office, before or during.

If anyone thinks Hillary Clinton being the first female President would mean some giant, sweeping change in politics, they only need look at Nancy Pelosi to see that this is by no means guaranteed or true. Pelosi has thoroughly squandered her historical moment as the first female Speaker of the House, and with it a golden opportunity to recast the role as the captainship of the opposition. Instead, she (along with Harry Reid) has been serving as little more than a complicit enabler in Bush's ongoing war crimes and corruption, and so is equally as worthy to stand trial at The Hague. We know Clinton intends to turn a blind eye to Bush's wrongdoings since she has stated she would dispatch her criminal husband and his criminal father as "goodwill" ambassadors to the world.

McCain = Bush. Enough said.

I don't see at this point how either party is going to survive another ten years in its present form, and quite frankly, I hope we abolish them both in favor of something truly grass-roots and democratic. But whatever that may be will have to emerge at the local and regional governmental levels, because I think this present United States government is a dinosaur. When change could have saved it, a collective conservative mentality emerged and balked at anything even remotely suggestive of the sort. Now we are at the edge, staring into the chasm of myriad crises, over which innovation and change, had they been welcomed when they first emerged decades ago, could have fairly easily constructed a bridge. I do believe we will still make it to the other side, but we will pay a toll, and there are no short cuts this time that will get us around doing so.

Man I hope this woman is wrong.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLtp8Mct-Bs&eurl=http://www.elsaelsa.com/

Probably not, Pat C....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAF-l8SQvZE

Neo, I couldn't add one thing to that assessment and you are so right; there is no way through this but through this.

And I'd like to suggest everyone read this, too, and send it on to others. This article helps us (well, me anyway) see how we might get "through this" without too much damage.

http://tinyurl.com/5cxbd7

Thank you all for your incredible posts. The comparative size pics of celestial bodies was astounding, Shy. Neo, are your thoughts always cleaer and unambiguous? I look forward to your posts.

Now this. . .perhaps what is meant by "the meek shall inherit the Earth," and those who love Her --

http://www.zcommunications.org:80/znet/viewArticle/17251

At it’s kindest, and that’s even doubtful, I think this is what we are dealing with in our world today. In the end, they don’t care what we think.

http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2008/05/03/ameya_preserve/

Good site.

http://therealnews.com/web/index.php

Helen Thomas keeps it real and focused

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/361447_thomas02.html

Bush admits he approved torture

[snip]
We expected the usual cast of characters including Vice President Dick Cheney to be in on the sinister torture-planning sessions.

But it came as a shock that Gen. Colin Powell, then secretary of state, sat in on the meetings and went along with the planning. Powell had been on record warning against U.S. torture policies on the basis that if we mistreat our prisoners, foreign countries will feel no qualms about abusing American captives in wartime.

Once revered for his integrity, Powell has lost his halo.

Now we have this week's testimony of Air Force Col. Morris Davis, a former chief prosecutor, who took the witness stand at Guantanamo Bay on behalf of a prisoner. Davis told how top Pentagon officials had pressured him on sensitive prosecutorial decisions for political reasons. He said he was told that the charges against well-known detainees "could have real strategic value" and that there could be no acquittals.

Davis also testified Brig. Gen. Thomas Hartmann reversed a decision he made and insisted prosecutors proceed with evidence they obtained through waterboarding and other methods of torture.

Davis also testified he was told to speed up the cases to give the system legitimacy before a new president takes over in January.

Is Congress so cowed that it accepts the statements of a president who has little regard for the truth?

Is there no lawmaker who is appalled about the tarnishing of our image in world opinion? And where are the voices of the other presidential candidates who will inherit the Bush legacy of torture? Why the silence?

I count on the American people to refuse to be shamed any more.

I love love love Helen Thomas!!

.....

http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/05/01/8655/

One of History’s Great Atrocities: The Corporate Theft of the Public’s Natural Right to Water

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/2008-05-01-usda-food-supply_N.htm

Surplus U.S. food supplies dry up

More fireworks. This volcano in Chile dormant for 1000 years, came back to life with a roar on Friday, causing minor earthquakes etc. I'm sure it's part of that Ring of Fire - the circle of volcanoes that ring the Pacific basin.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080503/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/chile_volcano_eruption_4

Lots of activity

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/quakes_all.php

The more I read about the world's problems, the more they seem insurmountable. I think it may be time for a cataclysmic end to the earth as we know it, and its inhabitants. I'm sure Mother Nature will know when the time is right. Could be the Mayans were right about 2012 after all.

I see 2012 as a major turning point in human history. A great awakening of sorts, though it will probably seem moreso when looking back upon it than during the actual time. Consider the aspects in play at that time. The fading of the Neptune-Pluto Septile, Neptune moving out of Aquarius into Pisces and Uranus entering Aries, not to mention the dramatic Uranus-Pluto Square. The world won't end. It is all but guaranteed to change dramatically, but it won't end.

i agree completely, Neo. In fact, i'm curious about what all of you have been experiencing on a personal level regarding the coming shift in consciousness.

Personally, i am "feeling" more and seeing brief warps of what i think of as reality. I'll try to explain that. Outside, i'll stare at a particular point and just listen. Unlike a blurring of objects when you stare, the world that i'm viewing folds and bends. They're brief visions. Every animate -- the trees, birds, animals -- are working in greater connection with one another, and if we were to allow them. . .they seem to be relaying a message.

I'll post other examples when i experience them.

Anyone else experiencing this shift?

I think that although there may be personal moments of heightened awareness of awareness (that isn't a typo) that the overall shift is a relatively slow process of a growing expansion of awareness.

The example I think of is that of how our bodies and personalities grow and change as we grow up. In our minds we are the same person and there's an unbroken continuity of consciousness but our bodies and psyches grew up around that consciousness and somehow we changed from being a child to being a grownup along the way. We're the same 'I' but we're totally different. It just all kind of happened. 2012 might be a reference point that we can point to as the turning point. If anyone expects some big light to go on in their head they're very likely going to be disappointed.

But I could be totally wrong, which I'm open to.

Obama is on NBC Meet the Press with Russert. He's such a great communicator, and has such an intelligent, reasoning mind. So natural too. My BS meter doesn't detect any phoniness. I think he's best in one on one interviews, when he's not being distracted by the MSM. Just looks tired. I really do believe that he's the best man for the job. Any of you who live in earlier time zones can still catch him. He inspires me to hope and trust.

Has anyone seen any psychic or astro predictions that Mc Cain will win the election? I don't recall seeing any, but if anyone does, please post it.

Wow! This is the second time Helen Thomas has been showered with flowers from internet groups! I love it!

http://www.chycho.com/?q=node/1696

Thomas’s question on torture needs to be answered, and thanks to a Neutral Internet, this story did not end at the White House press briefing.

C-SPAN aired it, Think Progress and Crooks and Liars reported it, and Reddit spread it to millions of people around the world.

Once word got out that a real a question was asked at the White House Press briefing the Internet community became ecstatic. Digg, Newsvine, and countless other Social bookmarking sites shared the news. Helen, who last year almost lost her front row seat at the White House Press Room for her candidness and persistence was again the talk of the town.

But this time her hard work and relentless pursuit of truth was going to be recognized, if not by the mainstream media, than by the Internet.

A proposal was made on Reddit to “send Helen Thomas flowers for being the only reporter with the guts to ask tough questions at the White House.” A Wiki page was set up, a ChipIn! account was created, and within days $4,327.50 accumulated. The community made the decision to send her flowers as a thank you gift, and starting Monday April 28 the flowers started arriving.

more...

Is anyone else here a lolcat fan? This will make you laugh out loud!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x7707044

Too cute lunaoscura!

.....

http://www.buzzflash.com/store/reviews/1083

Vincent Bugliosi's new book, just out on May 1st.

Karen....not without LSD to help....

OMG, Judi. . .thank you for the gut laughter this morning. By the way, are you happily busy with art? I'm always sending you and QOP prosperity thoughts. My art days with papier mache have waned only because of where we live. More, my internet site drew lots of attention but generated no sales, only queries, and comments from other artists.

Luna, you're correct. Awareness is a growth process. Yet, i have been seeing a new awareness, a "softening" of many who are rethinking their strident views of just a few years ago. Most of those changes are because of the huge whacks up side the head -- primarily what's going on in the economy. I would like to think that those changes in thinking and way of being will generate greater awareness energy not just for the entity experiencing them, but for the world at large.

Lookie here at what our government agencies are doing. Official triage guidelines in case of pandemic. You hafta admit, between this and the detention centers they thing big, and they seem to be conditioning us to think about scarcity, as if there just isn't enough for everyone. Man! Things have sure changed in this country!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080505/ap_on_he_me/pandemic_rationing_care

Who should MDs let die in a pandemic? Report offers answers

CHICAGO - Doctors know some patients needing lifesaving care won't get it in a flu pandemic or other disaster. The gut-wrenching dilemma will be deciding who to let die.

Now, an influential group of physicians has drafted a grimly specific list of recommendations for which patients wouldn't be treated. They include the very elderly, seriously hurt trauma victims, severely burned patients and those with severe dementia.

The suggested list was compiled by a task force whose members come from prestigious universities, medical groups, the military and government agencies. They include the Department of Homeland Security, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Health and Human Services.

The proposed guidelines are designed to be a blueprint for hospitals "so that everybody will be thinking in the same way" when pandemic flu or another widespread health care disaster hits, said Dr. Asha Devereaux. She is a critical care specialist in San Diego and lead writer of the task force report.

more...

Economist Robert Reich, old friend of Hillary Clinton, and served in the Clinton administration has endorsed Barack Obama this morning. He said the gas tax relief if hocum. He said he loves Hillary Clinton, but Barack Obama would make a superior President.

That's a big one.

http://www.blackboxvoting.org/

THE INCREDIBLE DISAPPEARING INDIANA VOTER ROLLS

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/04/phantom-obama-v.html

Phantom Obama Vote Appears on NJ Voting Machine

The mysteries keep piling up around the Sequoia voting machines used in New Jersey. This time Princeton University computer scientist Ed Felten has uncovered a phantom vote for Obama in summary tapes from three voting machines used in the state's February 5th primary in Pennsauken District 6.

The county clerk reports that 279 votes were cast in the Democratic primary in Pennsauken District 6. The figure apparently comes from memory cards taken from the machines. This number coincides with the turnout number that appears on the summary tapes from the three voting machines in District 6, which show turnout on the machines as 133, 126 and 20.

The problem, however, is that the summary tapes show that the total number of votes the candidates received doesn't match this number. The tapes indicate that the candidates together received 280 votes instead of 279. .., Obama is shown as receiving 95 votes on the machine tapes, whereas the county clerk's numbers (.pdf) show him receiving 94 votes (again, from numbers taken from the memory cards inside the machines). The question is, why doesn't information taken digitally from the memory cards inside the machines match the summary tapes that are printed from the machines? And why doesn't the number on the tapes that indicates the total number of votes cast for candidates match the number on the tapes that indicates the voter turnout?

More at the link....

Crystal, I've not seen an astro prediction but I have seen psychic predictions. If you google Psychic predictions for 2008 US Presidential Elections, you will be surprised what comes up.

It's a little early to astro predict with any level of accuracy, we don't have a nominee for the Dems. McCain is not in good health and this summer the aspects are going to be negative around him, lots of physical pressure.

The Dems are between a rock and hard place no matter who gets the nomination and that will benefit McCain, it already has.

http://therealnews.com/web/index.php?thisdataswitch=0&thisid=1441&thisview=item

There is no real public discussion either in the media or by presidential candidates to make the changes necessary to democratize the economy. We have seen a general move to an increasingly regressive tax system in the past 30 or 40 years in the US and Europe. Public boards should make corporations and banks more accountable.

It seems as if the corrupt voting issues are not going to be resolved. It's all very frustrating. Hope the younger generation takes it up

Election fraud in Indiana?

http://tinyurl.com/6d7u6z

Grrrrrrrr.

I know little to nothing about Bible Code, but this one is interesting.

http://tinyurl.com/47t4qa

http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/Christopherwalls/gGCVyR

Here, in Pennsylvainia

http://rense.com/general81/pota.htm

Wonderful article on growing potatoes!

http://photos.gardenweb.com/garden/galleries/2008/04/floating_vegetable_garden_1.html?cat=great_vegetables

pic of a floating garden in BC, love it! Gardenweb is a great gardening site for those interested ...:)

CHINA MAY LEASE OVERSEAS LAND TO BEAT FOOD PRICES

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7373213.stm

"Chinese enterprises would lease or even buy farmland in Latin America, Australia and the former Soviet Union.

The land in production could replace Chinese farmland lost to rapidly growing cities and industrial zones."

Well, now let's see. We lost over 3,000 people in the WTC, we've now lost over 4,000 people in Eye-Rack, and they are estimating that another 4,000 ex-Eye-Rack troops have suicided. Meanwhile, the numbers of Iraqis killed is huge, but unknown, the price of oil has doubled/tripled/still-going-up since Junya went to Eye-Rack, and Osama bin Forgotten is presumably in a cave somewhere planning more.

http://tinyurl.com/3rcj4f

I'm still having flashbacks to "Mission Accomplished," and freakin' out.

And what is it now in Myanmar? Raw Story says 13,000....all in a few hours. Mother Nature.....winner and still champion.

Up to 10,000 Feared Dead in Burma Cyclone
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050508A.shtml
Richard Lloyd Parry reports for The Times UK: "As many as ten thousand people could have died in the catastrophic storm which ripped across Burma on Saturday, and the number is likely to rise as aid workers pick their way through rubble, floods and broken roads to the stricken areas of the Irrawaddy Delta."

Top US Officer Warns Against Conflict With Iran
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050508B.shtml
Reuters writes: "U.S. military involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq would make it difficult to mount any attack on Iran, the Pentagon's top officer said in remarks broadcast on Monday, adding that he would prefer to avoid a new regional war. 'I actually am very hopeful that we don't get into a position where we have to get into a conflict,' Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Israel's Channel Ten television..."

Dean Baker | More Attacks on Social Security and Medicare
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050508C.shtml
Dean Baker writes for Truthout, "Last month, a bipartisan group of prominent budget experts had a press event at the Brookings Institution where they argued that ... major cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid ... were necessary in order to prevent the explosion in the budget deficit that is projected if these programs stay on their current course. While these experts are right to point to the long-term fiscal problems facing the country, the real problem is not the budget and these key programs on which tens of millions of people depend. The real problem is the United States has a broken health care system, which is projected to get progressively more inefficient through time."

Tom Engelhardt | The Last War and the Next One
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050508D.shtml
Tom Engelhardt, of TomDispatch.com, states: "The last war won't end, but in the Pentagon they're already arguing about the next one. Let's start with that 'last war' and see if we can get things straight."

Pentagon Backs Plan to Build US "Zone of Influence" in Baghdad
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050508E.shtml
Satyam Khanna, of ThinkProgress.org, reports: "The White House has repeatedly insisted that the United States has 'no desire for permanent bases' in Iraq. Nevertheless, the Bush administration is seeking to leave its footprint on Iraq through other means. The AP reports that the Pentagon is backing a $5 billion dollar plan to 'transform the US-protected Green Zone' into a 'centerpiece for Baghdad's future,' resulting in 'big paydays for early investors.'"

Junie, the Heyoka king is still at it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heyoka

Good links, Pat C.

Chris Floyd has an excellent article about how the NYT is working for the neoCons pushing war against Iran.

>http://www.chris-floyd.com/

Chris Floyd is so awesome Old Mayfly. He's had a hard time keeping his site up. He's been hacked on some very sophisticated levels.

Myanmar..Myanmar. I wish they would stop changing the names of places, as they have been doing in recent times in certain parts of the world; as in Bombay to Mumbai, Ceylon to Sri Lanka, and Burma to Myanmar. I couldn't figure out for a while what country they were talking about, until I did an internet search.

This is the force of Mother Nature I was speaking of in an earlier post. I don't recall exactly how many died in the tsunami in Indonesia years ago, but it just boggles the mind how much destruction Mother Nature could inflict in a few hours - 22,000 dead and still counting, 1 million homeless, and this is not counting structural damage. By the way, this occurred around the new moon, so the tides must have been higher than normal, which caused additional damage with flooding.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080506/ap_on_re_as/myanmar_cyclone

Never heard of Chris Floyd before, but the articles on his website sure are thought provoking. Makes the NY Times seem tame by comparison. Still, nothing changes. The masses will have to be enlightened, but do they care enough? I think not.

Something major going on here. The trick is to figure out what it is:

http://tinyurl.com/4f9hob

That is, is this FBI raid related to obstruction of justice, etc., concerns or to do some housekeeping, or . . .

http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2008/5/5/195726/2267

The republican War on Voting Rights

It’s long past time to talk about this whole “election integrity/voter fraud/voter ID/election fraud/ballot fraud” matter in a very different way. Consider the following hurdles that have not been overcome when talking about the need for wholesale election reform:

Talking about the hackability of voting machines doesn’t work because you can’t prove that they were, in fact, hacked in a manner that would show not just beyond-a-reasonable doubt but beyond-any-doubt-whatsoever (not fair, but true);

Talking about “voter ID”, actually, more like anti-voter laws isn’t working because, well, for starters, the SCOTUS just affirmed this, despite there being no documented case of this type of fraud occurring;

Talking about stolen elections hasn’t worked because either “it always happens anyway”, or the same “you can’t prove it” rebuttal;

Talking about the US Attorney firings or the redistricting or the stacking of the DOJ with partisan hacks is too complicated to put on a bumper sticker; Talking about the thousands of anecdotes of vote machine flipping went nowhere either; and

Talking about exit poll discrepancies has led to the amazing argument that exit polls are not reliable, even though they are used pretty much everywhere else in the entire world as a measure of whether elections were fixed and they have never been as far off as they have so consistently been the past 8 years.
More at the link...

Crystal,

Here is a chart I ran for Cyclone Nagris.

http://morganaseawalker.com/Nagris.jpg

I need to get Myanar's chart haven't done it yet,or an earlier chart of Burma.

Some of the indigenous folks have replaced British named cities and countries with their native names. Confusing yes.

San Francisco proves time and again that it's a progressive city.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/06/MN7J10H3VB.DTL

S.F. grows ever more hostile to chain stores

[snip]
The Planning Commission stopped the move, even though the company wanted to occupy a vacant spot abandoned by bankrupt Hollywood Video, another chain.

The fight illustrates how San Francisco - a city that values homegrown companies and neighborhood character - is increasingly hostile to chain stores and restaurants, even if the businesses want to move into empty stores.

And although the San Francisco Board of Supervisors is expected to reconsider the paint store's request at its meeting today, the push to stop chain stores from opening in the city is unlikely to ease soon.

Supervisor Tom Ammiano is working on legislation to ban all chain stores from some stretches of Mission, Valencia and 24th streets in the Mission District and Cortland Avenue in Bernal Heights. Two smaller areas - in Hayes Valley and North Beach - already have outright bans on chain stores.

more...

Morgana, thanks for being so kind as to post those charts. I'm listening to PBS news at the moment, and they are saying that there were 12 foot tidal surges which occurred at night while the villagers were asleep, so they were just swept out to sea in their sleep. And yes Morgana, that is what has happened. The British names have been replaced by indigenous names, and rightly so. It's just that I learned those original British names in school many many moons ago, and something as simple as having to relearn them stresses me out in my old age. No fun. Hahaha.

David Lereah, the former chief forecaster for the National Association of Realtors, published a book in 2006 with the unfortunate title "Why the Real Estate Boom Will Not Bust". Of course he had to quit the NAR, but he's now set up a new firm called Reecon Advisors, which is advising Wall Street firms and institutional investors about the real estate market. Go figure.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/135724

Obama's offices in Indiana receive bomb threats. Must be the KKK.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24491531/

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Laura_Bush_Myanmar_junta_failed_to_0506.html

Laura Bush: Myanmar junta failed to warn people on cyclone
Agence France-Presse

WASHINGTON - US First Lady Laura Bush accused Myanmar's military rulers Monday of failing to warn their citizens in time about a killer cyclone and pressed the junta to accept US aid in the disaster's wake.

"Although they were aware of the threat, Burma's state-run media failed to issue a timely warning to citizens in the storm's path," Bush said in an unusual appearance at the White House briefing room podium.

"It's troubling that many of the Burmese people learned of this impending disaster only when foreign outlets, such as Radio Free Asia and Voice of America, sounded the alarm," she said. Washington calls the country Burma.

JudiGem - It's hard to believe that Laura may actually be more clueless than George. Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dum, the perfect marriage. It makes you wonder what they're thinking when they bring her out and prop her up and pull that talking string on her back. Was George too tired to make a statement? Nah! He was probably too busy being the Decider and all. Besides, they don't have oil in Myanmar do they?

How can these people be so clueless? The Burmese regime didn't warn the people about the on-coming typhoon. That is unspeakable, but didn't some other gubmint in recent history dilly-dally around while an entire city was destroyed by a hurricane and the horrible plight of its people ignored while The Leader flew around in AF1, played guitar with a C&W band in TX and ate cake with McCain in AZ?

Arrrrrrgh!

May 8, 2008

Pundits Declare the Race Over

By JIM RUTENBERG
Very early this morning, after many voters had already gone to sleep, something important happened in the electronic world inhabited by the name-brand political commentators: The conventional wisdom of the pundit class shifted hard, and possibly irretrievably, against Senator Hillary Clinton’s continued viability as a presidential candidate.

The moment came shortly after midnight Eastern time, captured in a devastatingly declarative statement from Tim Russert of NBC News: “We now know who the Democratic nominee’s going to be, and no one’s going to dispute it,” he said on MSNBC. “Those closest to her will give her a hard-headed analysis, and if they lay it all out, they’ll say, ‘What is the rationale? What do we say to the undeclared super delegates tomorrow? Why do we tell them you’re staying in the race?’ And tonight, there’s no good answer for that.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/08/us/politics/07cnd-pundits.html?_r=1%26oref=slogin%26pagewanted=print

May 7, 2008
Op-Ed Columnist

Butterflies Aren’t Free

By MAUREEN DOWD
INDIANAPOLIS

In his memoir, the legendary Elia Kazan wrote about directing Vivien Leigh in “A Streetcar Named Desire.” While he did not think that Leigh was a great natural actress, he was impressed that she would crawl through glass to get the role right.

Hillary Clinton may not be a great natural politician, but traveling across the country on her own Bus Named Desire, she has crawled through glass to get the role right.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/07/opinion/07dowd.html?hp=%26pagewanted=print

Hey WV, you beat me to it. I was gonna post Maureen Dowd's column, because I think it's so telling. I can't hide it. This morning I have a happy heart for my Obama, but he can't rest on his laurels yet; there's still more states ahead to fight for in the next round of Primaries. Wish he could rest though. He looks so tired.

http://moneynews.newsmax.com/money/archives/st/2008/4/25/175710.cfm

Lehman Bros. Report: Oil Bust in the Cards

Is $120 oil even real? Not if you ask the Saudis, or even Lehman Bros.

The investment bank’s oil expert said this week that the oil boom is due to bust. Economic growth across the globe will slow just as new refineries kick in, raising supply.

Recession or not, a U.S. slowdown will slacken demand sharply, right as new oil hits the market.

'Supply is outpacing demand growth,” said Michael Waldron, Lehman’s oil strategist.

'Inventories have been building since the beginning of the year. We have pretty significant projects starting soon in Saudi Arabia, and large off-shore fields in Nigeria,” he said.

Well they’ve done it. It’s a flat corporate world now.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fi-chinainvest5-2008may05,0,2206623.story?page=1

Chinese firms bargain hunting in U.S.

States are aggressively trying to lure companies looking to grow. Incentives and a weak dollar are spurring investment.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x128580

Howard Dean speaks of voter suppression on CNN today..anchor squirms.

Temporarily. But the oil growth curve is going steadily upward,and the supply going downward-inexorably. Places that once relied on bicycles and mass transit-India, China, have a growing number of drivers. England has more of a car culture now, and so does Europe. Add places like Eastern Europe, and the demand has increased. In the United States, Americans commute far more miles to exurban houses than they did in the 1970's when many working class neighborhoods, and many businesses were close enough to central cities to be reached by mass transit.

A must read.

http://www.mindfully.org/Reform/2008/Pollyanna-Creep-Economy1may08.htm

Numbers Racket

Why the economy is worse than we know

KEVIN PHILLIPS
Harper's Magazine v.316, n.1896 1may2008

Op-Ed Columnist

The Too-Long Goodbye

By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF
Published: May 8, 2008
After the Tuesday primaries, Hillary Rodham Clinton now has maybe a 2 percent chance of winning the Democratic nomination. But if she pursues her losing battle, she has perhaps a 20 percent chance of costing the Democrats the presidency in the fall.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/08/opinion/08kristof.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&oref=slogin

May 8, 2008
Political Memo

For the Democrats, Signs of a Possible Changing of the Guard

By ADAM NAGOURNEY

After 16 years, the Clinton era may be coming to an end, presenting Democrats with a historic but potentially wrenching transition and a challenge to Senator Barack Obama as he seeks to reconcile a deeply divided party.

Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton have been at the heart of the Democratic Party since Mr. Clinton steered it back to the White House in 1992, with a campaign that combined a moderate appeal with the hard-edged political tactics that had once been the province of Republicans. Mrs. Clinton seemed poised last year to lead Democrats into the general election campaign if not beyond.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/08/us/politics/08dems.html?adxnnl=1&pagewanted=print&adxnnlx=1210255281-4uN7h0RJH+dOoQ74ryRdKw

May 8, 2008, 10:08 am

Clinton Touts White Support

By Kate Phillips

As if the divisions between race and gender in the Democratic Party hadn’t been further exposed through Tuesday night’s exit polls — and by a very heated exchange on CNN between Donna Brazile and Paul Begala, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s interview with USA Today on Wednesday is further mining those tense depths.
“I have a much broader base to build a winning coalition on,” she said in the interview, citing an article by The Associated Press.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/08/clinton-touts-white-support/

This is a brilliant little video. Something many of you will surely want to share:

http://tinyurl.com/3bkhtf

Yep, that's how to do it effectively shy.

Another video...very funny, but...

http://www.theonion.com/content/video/diebold_accidentally_leaks

This kid is great!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZyW2-vSqV8

OMG! :-D))

http://www.alternet.org/story/84871/

VA Retreats on Voter Registration Efforts for Wounded Veterans

The Department of Veterans Affairs has retreated on a recently announced policy to allow voter registration drives at its facilities where veterans' groups and others would assist wounded former soldiers to participate in the 2008 presidential election.

"It is VHA (Veterans Health Administration) policy to assist patients who seek to exercise their right to register and vote; however, due to Hatch Act (Title 5 United States Code (U.S.C.) 7321-7326) requirements and to avoid disruptions to facility operations, voter registration drives are not permitted," the new policy directive by Michael J. Kussman, Under Secretary for Health said.

The Hatch Act restricts political activities by federal employees.

The VA directive rolls back a new policy announced in late April where the agency agreed, after mounting public and political pressure, to assist wounded veterans with registering to vote and voting for federal elections. While the VA still says it will help former soldiers on an as-requested basis with registration and voting, curtailing voter registration drives brought swift condemnation from Capitol Hill and advocacy groups.

"We believe that the earlier directive better addressed the need for a consistent voter registration policy for our veterans," Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and John Kerry (D-MA) said in a May 6 letter to VA Secretary James B. Peake. "While the changes made in the new directive seem small, the impact is large. It appears to us that the Department took one step forward for our veterans and the right to vote by directing that assistance be provided with voter registration and with securing absentee ballots, but then took a large step back by prohibiting voter registration drives."

The Senators questioned the Hatch Act claims, saying the "Office of Special Counsel has made it clear that federal employees, even those who are considered to be in sensitive positions, may "assist in voter registration drives."" And they questioned how voter registration drives would disrupt VA activities.

More at the link....

This is very strange. Look at this graphic that shows earthquake activity in the Reno area which makes a perfect grid, then click on the earthquake symbols where the grid corners meet to see what they're calling earthquake 'explosions'.

http://standeyo.com/NEWS/08_Earth_Changes/080502.NV.EQ.grid.html

I dunno Luna pretty out there. That whole area is old volcanic (supposedly dormant peaks just ask folks in Chile about dormancy). There's that huge sink hole in Texas that keeps growing, and it makes me wonder if they've turned the earth to mush after all that oil and gas drilling. California looks like it has the jitters from one end to the other, the Cascadia and Juan De Fuca plates are dancing. The whole Western US looks disturbed for that matter. Japan's had a good sized quake, plus some pretty hefty 5.+ aftershocks. I'm more inclined to the Reno thing being geothermal.

Interesting find though isn't it? Thanks Luna.

well, shy and luna, you are both right....yes, kinda makes you think of earlier times in hurricane seasons of the past with bushwhackers at the helm....(not just this present one, remember FLA under emperor 1?)

Actually from the high res picture they look like moon craters, or those flat little caldera's

JudiGem, right, they blamed the hurricane in-action for his November loss. The Hurricane guys are predicating an active hurricane season due to our lovely La Nina. We didn't get enough rain in my neck of the woods so we're still in phase 2 drought restrictions. The river, San Lorenzo, and our creek look like August, not spring.

Touche! If some entities get immunity from the law, We the People should get something in return. This hits the spot!

http://tinyurl.com/6j465x

(This FISA outlawry continues on down the track. Arrrrgh!)

This from our main auckland newspaper today - anything to persuade george's unthinking followers (sorry I'm having a hard time posting the links)- google "heartland institute"

-----------
An American organisation is refusing to remove the names of New Zealand scientists from its website despite concerns that their research relating to climate change has been hijacked by climate sceptics.

The Heartland Institute in Chicago has infuriated scientists from around the world by naming them in articles that "confirm key facts and theories that undermine the notion that the modern warming is entirely man-made or will be catastrophic".

Many of the scientists felt their work had been distorted and mis-reported, as they did not share the conclusion that global warming was mainly caused by natural cycles.

Photos of the Chaiten volcano eruption, including photos from space.

http://megagalerias.terra.cl/galerias/index.cfm?id_galeria=30880

Last night I watched 'Who Killed the Electric Car". The amount of greed driven stupidity done only for profit is breathtaking. The car companies have actually already created the SOLUTION and Bush and Cheney know it yet for a few more dollars they barely start to talk about 'more research'. One very important fact came out in the end. There has never been an innovation or a better safety measure or better mileage development until they are forced onto the car industry by laws. I wish Ralph Nader would devote his time to the issue.

Sigh...

http://www.salon.com/books/review/2008/05/09/horwitz/

Is everything we know about American history wrong?

Forget the Pilgrims. America's roots are older and more twisted, what Tony Horwitz calls a "primordial slime of false starts and mutations."

Just ask the Spanish conquistadors of the 16th century. Before attacking Indian settlements, they were required to read a summons called the Requerimiento, which spelled out the consequences of resistance: "I assure you that, with the help of God, I will attack you mightily. I will make war against you everywhere and in every way ... I will take your wives and children, and I will make them slaves ... I will take their property. I will do all the harm and damage to you that I can ... I declare that the deaths and injuries that occur as a result of this would be your fault and not His Majesty's, nor ours."

The Indians, of course, had no idea what was being shouted at them, and for the sake of expediency, Hernando De Soto never bothered with the Requerimiento. He preferred to loot the local maize supply, then impress available natives into service as porters and guides. Any natives who tried to escape were attacked by dogs or burned at the stake. In conquering the settlement of Mavila, De Soto's army succeeded in massacring between 2,500 and 3,000 Indians -- a single-day death toll that rivals Antietam.

The Indians at least had weapons. Spanish fleet commander Pedro Menéndez, after capturing two parties of unarmed French Huguenot settlers on the Florida coast, condemned hundreds of them to immediate death by stabbing. Among the few spared: those who converted on the spot to Catholicism and a few musicians "to play for dancing." The river where French blood ran still bears the name Matanzas, Spanish for "slaughters."

More at the link....

Awesome, tragic photo (Burma).

http://tinyurl.com/64m233

PatC no kidding the history I learned in public schools is not the history of America that I have learned after leaving public school. I am constantly learning new facts and going wow I didn't know that! We have to have cable (mtns valleys) and subscribe to all the Discovery History channels. Course in the long run it ends up making us an interesting society today.

So, if Mandela is on a US terrorist watch list then who on earth isn't on that list??!!

U.S. has Mandela on terrorist list

By Mimi Hall, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — Nobel Peace Prize winner and international symbol of freedom Nelson Mandela is flagged on U.S. terrorist watch lists and needs special permission to visit the USA. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice calls the situation "embarrassing," and some members of Congress vow to fix it.

more...

Condi, this country is embarrassed BY YOU!

Just in case you forgot - I don't know if anyone else feels the way that I do about this woman, but I always find her words so soothing; they always calm me and make me feel that everything will come right in the end - I don't know exactly why. She has such a way with words, that she can tell the truth without ever being offensive, so here she is again - the one and only JM at raging universe.

http://raginguniverse.blogspot.com/

OMG!

http://www.correntewire.com/tom_daschle_on_iraq

Tom Daschle’s name has been floated as Obama’s chief of staff.

.........

Morgana, I just hope that all the turth will come out and that it will be all of us growing up peacefully....finally.

The article says 'intruding,' but I think they meant 'intriguing,' and boy is it ever that!

http://tinyurl.com/3dzx98

What a concept! You know, an intriguing one.

Sure you may already be reading this, Shy. But, Merriman's post this week couldn't be more seredipitous. Green energy, green technology and green living is more than a catch phrase. It has become a vital movement. And, as far as i'm concerned, not a moment too soon.

http://www.stariq.com/marketweek.htm

Right on, Karen! While the bloated oil/money/resources gluttons conduct wars to enrich themselves, the People are establishing sustainable, fair, humane ways of living.

I'm just hoping we can find a way to put a spoke in this war-machine wheel before it poisons more of humanity and the earth.

Every time these Bush people open their yaps thing just get worse! If the world doesn't have total disgust towards us now it's a miracle! Every time they talk people die and every time they do anything people die! They are Death itself. The Grim Reapers on a planetary scale. It makes me feel ashamed and angry that my country does this.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-usmyanmar10-2008may10,0,3747240.story

U.S. scolding of Myanmar leaders comes under fire

WASHINGTON -- As Myanmar's aid crisis deepens, the Bush administration is facing criticism that its denunciations of the military regime may have contributed to its resistance to allowing foreign aid workers to enter the storm-ravaged country.

After Tropical Cyclone Nargis pounded Myanmar, First Lady Laura Bush and administration officials condemned the government Monday as illegitimate, blasted its human rights record, and charged that it had failed to give its residents adequate warning of the storm's approach.

The next day, in a move that was certain to sharpen tensions between Myanmar, also known as Burma, and the U.S., President Bush presided at a ceremony awarding the Congressional Gold Medal to the regime's archenemy, detained democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi.

Critics said the administration's harsh comments were poorly timed and risked reinforcing the government's suspicions of the outside world and undermining the humanitarian effort.

"For the humanitarian purpose, you have to put politics aside and say unequivocally that we want to help," said Joel Charny, vice president for policy at Refugees International, a Washington-based advocacy group. "We know the Burmese generals are going to be suspicious. We shouldn't be taking an approach that's going to make it more likely that backs get up and doors remain closed."

more...

Thanks for the heads-up, Karen. I'm just beginning my early morning rounds, so haven't been over to Mr. Merriman's place yet. How wonderful to learn he's climbed aboard the Green Train.

Oh, and Good Morning all!

The State Department sure knows the world has grown to hate and loath us since they think they need murdering thugs to protect American diplomats when they go out there. This protection will be far more widespread than just in Iraq. I'm sure of that.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/iraq/2004404800_iraqdig10.html

State Dept. renews Blackwater contract

WASHINGTON — The State Department has just renewed its contract with Blackwater Worldwide to provide security for American diplomats in Iraq for at least another year.

[snip]
The chief reason for the company's survival? State Department officials said Friday they did not believe they had any alternative to Blackwater, which supplies about 800 guards to the department to guard diplomats in Baghdad.

more...

Nice tribute to Obama FWIW.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080510/ap_on_el_pr/obama_odyssey

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Senior_McCain_adviser_helped_arrange_to_0509.html

McCAIN ADVISOR HELPED ARRANGE MOON CORONATION

Farm Radio Broadcaster Gets the Boot After Exposing Monsanto's 'Goon Squads'

http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/84477

The truth has been spoken, and this man doesn't mince words, so if you're a Clinton fan, please don't read it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/10/opinion/10herbert.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

http://www.bradblog.com/?p=5974#more-5974

If you can't beat them, push-poll them.

re Herbert's column...

He,like the rest of us, realizes what a
nasty bitch Hillary really is. She is
not qualified to be dogcatcher. I am so
tired of the Clintons, I hope this is the
last of them.

Happy Mother's Day to everyone! Please, please no more divisiveness and baiting.

More important than any election or personality cults are the conditions of the desperate, suffering people of Myanmar whose gov't won't interrupt their weekend to allow them aid.

More important than any election or personality cults are the conditions of our precious little bats who are experiencing an 80% wipeout of their populations in the northeast:
http://www.newsvine.com/_video/2008/05/09/1478432-whats-killing-all-the-bats

The NY Times tracks the delegates choices in a graph. It's a relief to see something that doesn't call anyone names. It's a timeline showing only the acquisition of the superdelegates since March. Obama has come from behind in getting his share of these delegates, but the primaries aren't over yet. The trend certainly shows Obama as being more meteoritic in his rise, but it also shows Hillary as steadily gaining her share of superdelegates.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/05/09/us/politics/20080509_SUPERS_GRAPHIC.html?ex=1211083200&en=2f960bca3ea263cd&ei=5070&emc=eta3

Naughty Bit (snorts):

http://youtube.com/watch?v=QEQOvyGbBtY

You have to scroll down a bit to get to this article, but the top part is relevant to it.

http://www.tomdispatch.com/post/174930/bill_mckibbon_the_defining_moment_for_climate_change

The World at 350
A Last Chance for Civilization
By Bill McKibben

[snip]
A few weeks ago, our foremost climatologist, NASA's Jim Hansen, submitted a paper to Science magazine with several co-authors. The abstract attached to it argued -- and I have never read stronger language in a scientific paper -- "if humanity wishes to preserve a planet similar to that on which civilization developed and to which life on earth is adapted, paleoclimate evidence and ongoing climate change suggest that CO2 will need to be reduced from its current 385 ppm to at most 350 ppm." Hansen cites six irreversible tipping points -- massive sea level rise and huge changes in rainfall patterns, among them -- that we'll pass if we don't get back down to 350 soon; and the first of them, judging by last summer's insane melt of Arctic ice, may already be behind us.

So it's a tough diagnosis. It's like the doctor telling you that your cholesterol is way too high and, if you don't bring it down right away, you're going to have a stroke. So you take the pill, you swear off the cheese, and, if you're lucky, you get back into the safety zone before the coronary. It's like watching the tachometer edge into the red zone and knowing that you need to take your foot off the gas before you hear that clunk up front.

In this case, though, it's worse than that because we're not taking the pill and we are stomping on the gas -- hard. Instead of slowing down, we're pouring on the coal, quite literally. Two weeks ago came the news that atmospheric carbon dioxide had jumped 2.4 parts per million last year -- two decades ago, it was going up barely half that fast.

And suddenly, the news arrives that the amount of methane, another potent greenhouse gas, accumulating in the atmosphere, has unexpectedly begun to soar as well. Apparently, we've managed to warm the far north enough to start melting huge patches of permafrost and massive quantities of methane trapped beneath it have begun to bubble forth.

more...

We are all good. We are all precious. We all have a role in the in the all. We must all heal and take our part.

http://thelaundress.blogspot.com/2008/04/theyre-just-like-us-only-better.html

News you can use.

http://therealnews.com/web/index.php

Hillary Clinton is not some evil spawn as described by some. She is more liberal than her husband, and would probably make a better President. My choice was John Edwards, but that isn't to be. I also like Wes Clark, and he along with the other good Generals speak well of her. Hillary would preserve women's rights and one would hope put a stop to NAFTA. I'm not sure Barack Obama will. Whoever is elected must change NAFTA. It is key to any kind of recovery. The middle class must be restored. Science must be restored. Education must be restored, and RICO must be enforced. Anything short of that is a continuing road to hegemony.

Blessings be upon both Democratic candidates. May they see the light and follow it with all the strength and purpose needed to free us all. May we do our part to support them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQrZOIkcr50&NR=1

some higher perspective.....