Yes We Can

This may be the most significant day in my life. I am 36; I have been married (and divorced); my mother has passed away. I have passed the bar in two states. All my grandparents have passed.

But tonight is actually more moving than any of those times. I am as white as they come - a european-american mix breed with roots a century or more deep in this country. My parents are / were Republicans; but for different reasons they let me and my brothers be ourselves, and we have became independant. I have lived on the east coast all my life; for ten years in Washington, D.C., then back north. I fit the profile of countless people.

But tonight is a watershead for me (and I believe the country). I decided several years ago the status quo was hallow, and I gave up a solid paycheck for my soul.

Tonight I feel that despite the hard times, despite the uncertain future (and even my own losses on wall street), we as a nation are so much better off.

And the world, which has for so long has looked to us (but has recently been as dissapointed as me) will see our nation once again as the bright light it is destined to be.

I do want to thank John McCain, for his service, his heroism, his dedication all these years, and for his great words tonight.

We begin again tonight. The mountain is still large; the challenge still great. But tonight we as a nation reveal what we were truley always destined for: a united and unbeatable strength.

Let us go forward, together.

McCain cheats, lies .... at Church

McCain claims he was in "cone of silence," then lies about POW story. If Obama did anything like this, his campaign would be doomed.

FISA: Obama's Newport Folk Festival?

Dylan opened his set at the controversial 1965 Newport Folk Festival with the song, formally notifying the people of the folk world of his departure. As Obama gears up for the big election, does his love of the song mean he too will be abandoning the movement with which he is associated? And if so, where will he be heading?

- the217.com

In the breathless weeks before the Oregon presidential primary in May, Martha Shade did what thousands of other people here did: she registered as a Democrat so she could vote for Senator Barack Obama.

Now, however, after critics have accused Mr. Obama of shifting positions on issues like the war in Iraq, the Bush administration’s program of wiretapping without warrants, gun control and the death penalty — all in what some view as a shameless play to a general election audience — Ms. Shade said she planned to switch back to the Green Party

- NYTimes.com

Terrorists 1; Freedom 0

"Some observers, including ultra-conservative Fox News commentator Michelle Malkin, were so incensed by the ad that there was even talk of a Dunkin’ Donuts boycott.

‘‘The keffiyeh, for the clueless, is the traditional scarf of Arab men that has come to symbolize murderous Palestinian jihad,’’ Malkin yowls in her syndicated column.

‘‘Popularized by Yasser Arafat and a regular adornment of Muslim terrorists appearing in beheading and hostage-taking videos, the apparel has been mainstreamed by both ignorant and not-so-ignorant fashion designers, celebrities, and left-wing icons.’’

The company at first pooh-poohed the complaints, claiming the black-and-white wrap was not a keffiyeh. But the right-wing drumbeat on the blogosphere continued and by yesterday, Dunkin’ Donuts decided it’d be easier just to yank the ad."

- The Boston Globe

hillary

Disgraceful Silence

Why Won't The Media Pursue the Pentagon Propaganda Scandal?:

"The last ten days have been among the most shameful in the history of American journalism.

On April 20th, the New York Times published its expose of the Bush administration's use of Pentagon-approved, prepped, and financially-enriched 'military analysts' to appear on TV to help sell the invasion of Iraq, and then put a positive spin on the occupation -- even as conditions on the ground deteriorated.

It was a powerful illustration of the Bush administration's commitment to propaganda and disinformation. But it was also a damning indictment of the mainstream media's complicity in the wholesale deception of the American public on the single most important decision a country can make -- the decision to go to war.

How big a story was it? John Stauber of the Center for Media and Democracy called it the Pentagon Papers of the Iraq war.

So it only stands to reason that a story this explosive would quickly become the subject of extensive follow-ups by TV and print journalists, and endless debate on the political talk shows, right?

Wrong."

Beating a dead horse

Going by the playbook where if you repeat something over and over, some people wee it as true. Showing your true stripes Hilary, just a dirtbag politician.

New York Times: "In response to the first question at the forum, Mrs. Clinton repeated her charge that Mr. Obama’s remarks were “elitist, out of touch and, frankly, patronizing.” She said his words helped perpetuate the idea that Democrats looked down their noses at church-going Americans and hunters, an attitude that many Democrats believe contributed to their last two presidential losses."

She is a Vulture

Clinton is so desperate, she will blow any little thing out of proportion to an an advantage. Seriously, Obama's comments were not that bad. And really, who is telling people what they should think?

New York Times:

"But the Clinton campaign fueled the controversy in every place and every way it could, hoping charges that Obama is elitist and arrogant will resonate with the swing voters the candidates are vying for not only in Pennsylvania, but in upcoming primaries in Indiana and North Carolina as well.

Political insiders differed on whether Obama's comments, which came to light Friday, would become a full-blown political disaster that could prompt party leaders to try to steer the nomination to Clinton even though Obama has more pledged delegates. Clinton supporters were eagerly hoping so.

They handed out ''I'm not bitter'' stickers in North Carolina, and held a conference call of Pennsylvania mayors to denounce the Illinois senator. In Indiana, Clinton did the work herself, telling plant workers in Indianapolis that Obama's comments were ''elitist and out of touch.''"
...
At a campaign rally in Wilson, N.C., former state Democratic Party chairman and current Clinton adviser Tom Hendrickson said rural voters don't need ''liberal elites'' telling them what to believe."

sink

Big Money Threats

Daily Kos picks up on a not so subtle threat by some people who don't like the idea of power to the people - Clinton big dollar donors threaten Pelosi and the DCCC