On Imperfect Choices, Or, Jesus Ain't Running

Written by: fake consultant on Jul 19, 2008 5:30 PM

Linked to groups: DFA Night School, Democracy for Illinois, Quad Cities Trained Activists, Young Democrats of IL, Blog For America

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

A question has come across my inbox today, and as I am wont to do I began to answer my email friend (who I’ve known, by the way, since we both posted on the John Edwards blog). More or less 100 words into the reply it occurred to me that this was a question best answered in front of a larger audience.

The question? My friend is having trouble committing to Obama.

Why? I’m paraphrasing, but it would be fair to say that the sudden emergence of Obama’s “handlers” was a factor...and although it’s not in the note, I suspect the fact that Obama has “tacked to the center” recently on various issues is part of the problem as well.

It’s a great question...and in an effort to provide a great answer I’m going to offer a few words of my own—and then I thought we might reach back a bit into history and see if there might be something we can learn.

Having come to the metaphorical tee and taken the first shot, let’s head down the fairway and see where that ball might be...and where we can get it to go.

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Dean To Visit Crawford, Texas...Bloggers Close Behind

Written by: fake consultant on Jul 17, 2008 9:02 AM

Linked to groups: DFA Night School, Democracy for Illinois, Quad Cities Trained Activists, Young Democrats of IL, Blog For America

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

In a bit of news that can only be described as poetic, Howard Dean plans to start registering voters this morning at the Crawford, Texas, Community Center, according to a press release that came across my inbox last evening.

According to the press release, he should be out in the parking lot at 8:45 local time...which is just about now.

Dean, we are told, will be joined by Representative Jim Dunnam and McLennan County Democratic Chair John Cullar.

Later today, Dean has a similar event planned for Austin, where he will also be giving a keynote address at the Netroots Nation Convention.

Here's the link, courtesy of PR Newswire:

http://media.prnewswire.com/en/jsp/latest.jsp;jsessionid=CE5AA4FDC4AA3CA8B1C112B0D70290D4.tomcat2?resourceid=3777908&access=EH

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On The Weird Twists Of History, Part Two, Or, Why We Have A Fourth Amendment

Written by: fake consultant on Jul 16, 2008 5:49 AM

Linked to groups: DFA Night School, Democracy for Illinois, Quad Cities Trained Activists, Young Democrats of IL, Blog For America

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

Those who are coming to this story today have jumped into the middle of quite a tale. I put myself in a tough position last time by promising to link a British “garden of lust”, Benjamin Franklin, and 18th Century bloggers into a narrative that concludes with the nascent United States of America and its shiny new Fourth Amendment. 

So far, amazingly enough, I’m pulling it off.
If you need to catch up, here’s what’s been going on:

When last we met...it was in a world of scandal and intrigue; with King George III and the Earl of Bute (and of course, their assorted minions) very upset with John Entick, author, and John Wilkes, author and world-class raconteur (and drinking buddy to Franklin), because they had the temerity to...well, blog.

The Earl of Bute had taken so much abuse from the Johns that he had been forced to resign from his position as Prime Minister...leaving the minions under his control, many said, only now from behind the scenes.

Something needed to be done...and when you have minions, you put them to use.

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On The Weird Twists Of History, Part One, Or, Why We Have A Fourth Amendment

Written by: fake consultant on Jul 14, 2008 8:13 PM

Linked to groups: DFA Night School, Democracy for Illinois, Quad Cities Trained Activists, Young Democrats of IL, Blog For America

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

This may be one of the strangest tales I have ever brought to the table, Gentle Reader, and yet one of the most fundamental in describing the birth of our Bill of Rights...and most especially the Fourth Amendment.

As many of you know, the new FISA compromise may or may not allow warrantless wiretapping of American citizens on a wholesale scale.

Something you may not know is that a similar debate raged in England (centered around the right of Government to seize the papers of whomever they chose, and use the papers as evidence against those persons) during the reign of King George III—or that it involved scandalous sexual behavior, Benjamin Franklin, the 18th Century version of blogging, and two men who decided to take on the corruption of the Crown...and won.

And because of all that, we have a Fourth Amendment today.

Ready for a tale of liberty and ribaldry? 
Then let’s plunge right in, shall we?

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Progressive Values Stories: Zeus Yiamouyiannis on Innovation and Caring

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Jul 14, 2008 11:10 AM

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

“Innovation is the ability to see change as an opportunity - not a threat”

In this interview  Zeus Yiamouyiannis talks about how innovation is a progressive value. He also sees caring and nurture as progressive values and talks about having learned these values growing up on an organic farm and tending to the animals. On one hand,  conservatives talk about their traditional values of self interest and selfishness, on the other hand, innovation, caring and nurture are some of the traditional progressive values.

Progressive Values Stories: Zeus Yiamouyiannis on Innovation and Caring

My name is Zeus Yiamouyiannis.  I'm a progressive person.  I'm actually a progressive at heart, who worked on the Dean campaign.  Part of being a progressive is not just innovation and new ideas, and this pragmatism, fiscal responsibility, along with idealism, this ability to be creative, to believe in the goodness of the human spirit, innovate with regard to being able to collaborate.  These kinds of skills tend to go beyond the typical traditions.  But I think part of being a progressive is really collecting and honoring the best of both of those traditions as we go forward.

I like to tell people I'm an old-school conservative, with personal responsibility in the sense of honoring traditions, the wisdom that's gone before you -- particularly during the depression era generation -- incredible wisdom around sticking together, in terms of getting by on very little.

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Progressive Values Stories: Jeremy Rothe-Kushel on Caring

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Jul 13, 2008 2:49 PM

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20

Linked to campaigns: Obama for America

"Without a sense of caring, there can be no sense of community." Anthony J. D'Angelo

In this interview, Jeremy Rothe-Kushel  talks about the progressive value of caring. He recounts learning to care more deeply by being with his family at  his great-grandmother's death bed.  It's a learning process to expand your sense of care beyond just thinking of yourself -  to caring for your family, community, nation and the world.

Progressive Values Stories: Jeremy Rothe-Kushel on Caring

My name is Jeremy Rothe-Kushel, and I was born and raised in L.A., and I’ve been a Peace and Social Justice activist for about a decade of my life.  I’m a teacher of young people.  I do hip-hop, word props, after school programs, and I’m a hip-hop artist myself.

To me progressive values would be – first, I would start that in order to make progress as a human species, we have always had to remember from the past.  Meaning that the only way that we are here is because our ancestors made it through, through all kinds of trials and tribulations.

And, so I would say, progress would be taking on the best, the highest values that have come through our thousands of years of human history, and  parsing through them, because some things have to be left and composted, and other things need to be taken up.

And also allowing for the fact that the human condition and human beings in general are just like the universe, that we are unfinished beings.

Edwin:  So what are those values from the past that you want to bring forward?

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A Fake Consultant Exclusive: “All Suspicious Persons Will Be Monitored."

Written by: fake consultant on Jul 11, 2008 4:39 AM

Linked to groups: Blog For America, Young Democrats of IL, Quad Cities Trained Activists, DFA Night School, Democracy for Illinois

Many words have been proffered regarding the FISA bill this week, and I was actually preparing an analysis of the events when, to my surprise, I received an email that made me alter my schedule completely.

I want to apologize in advance to Danny Medress, over at Democracy for America, for whom I was preparing the analysis; and all I can tell you, Danny, is that this was of such import that the schedule had to be slipped.

That said, presented here in its entirety is the memo I received …and having read it through, I have to say I feel much safer.

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On The Air Force Bomber Problem, Part 2, Or, Let's Talk Options

Written by: fake consultant on Jul 9, 2008 9:33 AM

Linked to groups: DFA Night School, Democracy for Illinois, Quad Cities Trained Activists, Young Democrats of IL

When last we met we had a conversation about the challenges the Air Force faces in providing a capable bomber force. We discussed the age of the existing bomber fleet’s backbone, the B-52, the limitations of the B-1, and the fact that the B-2s is limited by the age of the aircraft’s electronics from participating in the “network-centric warfare” model most appropriate for the 21st Century military.

We also examined the probability that future air-defense systems will likely soon raise the threat level to a point where existing US aircraft will no longer be able to operate safely in the highest threat environments.

So what are we to do?

Today we’ll consider several options, including some that change the nature of the heavy bomber fleet in very fundamental ways.

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On The Air Force Bomber Problem, Or, It May Be Time For That Bake Sale

Written by: fake consultant on Jul 8, 2008 5:08 AM

Linked to groups: DFA Night School, Quad Cities Trained Activists, Democracy for Illinois, Young Democrats of IL

I come today with a message many of you will not want to hear, particularly in a time when we are looking forward to ending a war...and in a time where we are already struggling to provide enough money for military funding, the last thing you want to hear from me is that we need to send a couple hundred billion more to the Air Force—and that we need to do it soon.

Nonetheless, we have a problem we need to fix.

Of course, I hate to present a problem without a solution...and today I have two ideas that can help with the problem—and maybe save the taxpayer a mess of money in the process.

Y’all ready?
Then let’s go...

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The Fatally Flawed Conservative Value of Hypocrisy

Written by: Edwin Rutsch on Jul 6, 2008 3:45 PM

Linked to groups: East Bay for Democracy, Oakland DFA Meetup, Lake Park, San Francisco for Democracy, Alameda for Democracy, California for Democracy, Courage Campaign, Take Back Red California, Capitol Area Progressives (CAP) , What are Progressive Values? Study Group, DFA-Link Organizers, Walnut Creek DFA, Blog For America, Blogs United, DFA Film Club, DFA-Marin, DFA Night School, Silicon Valley DFA, brought to you by Dean Democratic Club of Silicon Valley, Framing Committee, Florida DFA, NJ for Democracy, Democracy for Florida, Democracy for New York, Democracy for Texas, Democracy for NYC, PA for Democracy, Democracy for Washington, Sacramento For Democracy, Democracy for Illinois, Democracy for Maryland, Philly for Change, Democracy for Ohio (DFO), Democracy for America Miami-Dade (DFAM), Washington Fair Elections, Michigan Democracy for America, DFALA, DFA at Netroots Nation (formerly YearlyKos) July 17-20

 The only vice that can not be forgiven is hypocrisy. The repentance of a hypocrite is itself hypocrisy.  William Hazlitt
 

Several people I asked about the failure of conservative values mentioned hypocrisy.   Michelle, Owen and Steve  brought up areas of conservative hypocrisy in;  family values, education,  finance, the economy,  the occupation of Iraq and in human rights.  While we all may exhibit varying degrees of hypocrisy in our lives, it seems that the conservative movement has embraced and institutionalized this value.

 Failed Conservative Values: Michelle on Hypocrisy

I’m Michelle Gabriel from Oakland, California.  I think that they fail because they say one thing and they do another.  Talk about family values – look at all the Republican candidates.  They have all these divorces and scandals.

You say family values, yet there is no issue about killing a million Iraqis.  I mean, 4,000 of our citizens, you keep hearing about them.  You don’t hear about all the Iraqis that got killed also.  You hear about the strength of our country and the fact that we have such a great population from immigration.  Yet, they have all this immigration reform to stop immigrants from coming in.

They say one thing and they do another.  And that’s the real failure.  And unfortunately, people listen to the rhetoric, and they don’t follow the reality.  

A metaphor for Failed Conservative Values?:  I can’t think of an animal or machine.  I just think it’s kind of like selling your soul

Hypocrite: the man who murdered both his parents... pleaded for mercy on the grounds that he was an orphan.  Abraham Lincoln
 

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