Dr. Dobson Has Just Handed Obama Victory

As a rule, Republicans appreciate the value in defining the Democratic presidential nominee, and the GOP is usually pretty good at it. In 2000, Al Gore, they said, was an "exaggerator." This was not only effective, thanks to a quick embrace by the media, it was also part of a narrative -- when Gore takes credit for some of the successes of the '90s, don't believe him because he exaggerates.

In 2004, John Kerry, they said was a "flip-flopper." This, too, was relatively effective, and was once again parroted by the media. The narrative here was equally clear -- in the first post-9/11 election, in a time of war, we don't want someone who's inconsistent. Four years later, the effort to define Barack Obama is proving to be more difficult for Republican attack dogs. The GOP keeps experimenting with new memes, but not only are they not sticking, some even contradict each other.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steve-benen/pick-a-meme-any-meme_b_109586.html

...read those of interest to me. Thanks Gerry L for the great roundup. I hope Addington and/or Yoo travel outside of USA at some point and get arrested for war crimes. Those guys are the personification of evildoers imo. Also, I was thinking - McClatchy - online anyway - seems to be supported by advertising. Maybe DFA could purchase an ad on their site to give them some support -- they are really working to get at the truth.

Don't forget the Obama/Hill thing supposedly at 1 ET on CSPAN.

 http://www.opednews.com/Poll/Worst-of-the-Failed-Conser-by-Edwin-Rutsch-080627-245.html 

What is the worst of the Failed Conservative Values that James Dobson exemplifies?

take the poll here;
 http://www.opednews.com/Poll/Worst-of-the-Failed-Conser-by-Edwin-Rutsch-080627-245.html 

(  ) authoritarianism
(  ) fear
(  ) secrecy
(  ) dogmatism
(  ) corruption
(  ) greed
(  ) selfishness
(  ) indifference
(  ) self-righteousness
(  ) intolerance
(  ) division
(  ) hierarchy
(  ) Patriarchy
(  ) arrogance
(  ) scapegoating
(  ) fundamentalism
(  ) hypocrisy
(  ) Violence and cruelty
(  ) all of the above
(  ) other (please specify)

my vote   ( x ) all of the above

Clear Channel, the radio station and billboard powerhouse, has banned an ad for Harry Shearer's new CD "Songs of Bushmen" because it depicts George Bush with a bone through his nose, the New York Post's Page Six reports:

The outdoor advertising arm of notoriously conservative Clear Channel has banned signs for "Songs of the Bushmen" because the cover depicts the president with a bone through his nose. "Their tone turned from genial salesperson to angry schoolmarm - 'This is unacceptable,' " Shearer, the voice of Mr. Burns and Flanders on "The Simpsons," told Page Six. "And it's not like this is a dangerous time to criticize George Bush."

PS Did everyone see the article on Huffpost about Lara Logan and her 'steamy' side?  Supposedly how she was in a love triangle with some married dude and on the side I guess had an affair with Michael Ware?  Well, then there was a diary on KOS wondering if the 'smear' on Lara was being propagated by those who would just as soon she not report the war so well.  The latter makes a lot more sense than the former.  Actually the former makes a lot of sense too -- she's a cutie and I've heard that danger is a great aphrodesiac.  Problem is it's really none of our d* business.

for making Linda Stender a DFA-List candidate today. She came within 1% of winning the district two years ago against an incumbent, and now with better name recognition (thanks mostly to said incumbent, LOL), she's running for an open seat.

Linda has had continuous contact with New Jersey for Democracy, Hunterdon County DFA and Somerset County DFA. We're having two events for her this weekend. This is a tough district for progressive Democrats, but we can do it.

http://firedoglake.com/2008/06/27/fisa-fun-on-the-fourth-of-july/

Chris Dodd and Russ Feingold succeeded in giving us a gift: no FISA votes in the Senate until July 8th -- after the Fourth of July recess. That means that when all the Senators go home for the holidays, to ride in those parades, you have a chance to be seen and heard. Not by the intern who downloads and counts the emails, not by the staffer who answers the phones and logs the calls, but by the Honorable Senator.

In person, face to face.

In public, where they can't turn away.

In front of the cameras, everywhere they look. 

Let me ask you this: are you ready for those reporters and photo journalists? Are you ready to see your Senator, should your parade be one in which the Senator will appear? 

If you have a place reserved for a float in your town's parade, maybe you need an idea for your decorations. If you have a place reserved for your lawn chair or the curb, maybe you need an idea for the sign you'll hold up when the Senator or Representative comes by.

"Hey Senator, can I have some immunity, too? -- Vote NO on FISA!"

"I like the WHOLE Bill of Rights -- Vote NO on FISA!"

You've come to the right place.

Floats have to be visual, signs have to be succinct, and chats with reporters have to be direct and to the point. I know from the comments around here that a lot of people hang out at the Lake who are good with images and with catchy phrases -- now's your chance.

"No warrant = no search -- Vote NO on FISA!"

"Accountability NOW -- No telecom immunity!"

"Dodd and Feingold are right -- Vote NO on FISA!"

The floor is open for additional sign suggestions, conversation-starters with the folks sitting next to you, and float ideas as well. What will you tell your Senator, if you should see them next week? (You can, of course, continue to let your views be heard in their offices . . . )

After all, what could be a more patriotic way to celebrate the Fourth of July than to stand up for the Constitution?

http://www.truthout.org/article/the-real-mccain

 Welcome to the John McCain show 2008. It's powerful stuff, portraying McCain as the decent patriot of the middle ground and a steady hand for difficult times. For a lot of Americans - including many Democrats - it is a beguiling vision. They see a war hero whose courage was forged in a North Vietnamese POW camp. They see a maverick who spoke against the tortures of Abu Ghraib. They see a reformer who acts against lobbyists and political favours. They see a politician who has spent a lifetime serving his country and won a place in the hearts of the nation.

But there is another, very different side to John McCain. Away from the headlines and the stirring speeches, a less familiar figure lurks. It is a McCain who plans to fight on in Iraq for years to come and who might launch military action against Iran. This is the McCain whose campaign and career has been riddled with lobbyists and special interests. It is a McCain who has sided with religious and political extremists who believe Islam is evil and gays are immoral. It is a McCain who wants to appoint extreme conservatives to the Supreme Court and see abortion banned. This McCain has a notoriously volatile temper that has scared some senior members of his own party. If McCain becomes the most powerful man in the world it would be wise to know what lies behind his public mask, to look at the dark side of John McCain.

But the true McCain is far different. His dark side is real and Democrats will need to expose it if America is to avoid a third successive term of extreme conservative government. Now Democrat activists are pushing out their argument that McCain is a conservative wolf in a moderate sheep's clothing. They are highlighting the temper, the pro-war ideology and the links to lobbyists. 'We think he just means four more years of Bush,' says Karen Finney, a director at the Democratic National Committee. Finney's job is to convince Americans they have got McCain wrong, that they have been fooled. She and her fellow activists have less than four months to succeed. But for now, as America gears up to one of the most important elections in its history, McCain's dark side remains largely hidden behind closed doors.

http://www.truthdig.com/images/eartothegrounduploads/lk0626d5.jpg

http://www.counterpunch.org/cohn06272008.html

It may be June, but Christmas came early this year for Big Brother and the telecommunications giants. Unfortunately, it is average Americans who will pay--dearly--on three separate counts.

First, precious constitutional and other legal protections against warrantless domestic surveillance have been shattered.

The second price that Americans will pay is by those who have been illegally monitored since 9/11. They will lose billions of dollars from dozens of anti-spying lawsuits pending against the likes of Sprint, AT&T and Verizon. These suits, covering the last seven years, will now be dismissed in a huge giveaway of immunity to the telecommunications lobby and big campaign donors.

Third, Americans will be unable to discover the extent and details of the government's post-9/11 domestic spying operation, which barely came to light three years ago. That domestic eavesdropping campaign will now continue and expand further--with legal sanction--in the dark recesses of total secrecy. The new bill is a huge and blatant cover-up.

DEMOCRATS HAD claimed to be against the bill for months, but--as they did with the earlier USA PATRIOT Act--easily and completely capitulated. The new legislation received overwhelming bipartisan support in the U.S. House of Representatives on June 19; its imminent approval by the Senate is a foregone conclusion.

Reversing himself along with so many of his colleagues, Barack Obama gave fresh evidence of what can be expected of him if he wins the presidency.

At a time when Democrats are most ascendant--when Republicans, the war and bogus post-9/11 "national security" scams for gutting constitutional rights have been most discredited--Obama and "bipartisan" Democrats are giving the completely weakened Bush administration exactly what it wants. Why? There can be only one reason. It is what they want, too.

I see it's trash Huron day. Only a few of us are standing up to the ga-ga- worship of some on this blog. For pete's sake, what's more important than our rights? And why can't we start impeachment at the same time that we kill FISA? And why in the world would anyone think that BO, after his terrible performance lately, even bother to go after bushco if he were prez? What reality are some of you living in? A few of you keep pushing the goalposts,giving him passes...this is a big mistake. I've written and called and leaned on him...all I get from him are letters asking for money.

He has no intention of filibustering, does he?

IMO he's selling out the country in exchange for the ILLUSION of power...another puppet.

And Keith apparently is listening to his masters. Somebody wants BO to be prez very very badly. It's not the little donors who are handling Keith.

So who's really backing BO?

Very troubling indeed.

BROKERED CONVENTION.

Dean/Feingold   ..... one can hope

Ron Paul

By Shirlee Murphy on Jun 27, 2008 12:44 PM

Sorry, FormerT--Ron Paul--my rep--holds NO common ground with Democrats in the area of concern for the population her purports to represent.  He is very up-front about this--he will NEVER work for, support or vote for things like social security, medicare, head start etc--and he has NOT done a good job of keeping on top of problems in his district. 

----------------------------

Thanks, Shirlee.

By Tom Bearse on Jun 27, 2008 12:55 PM

I don't think T is buying it, but I'm glad you come here to emphasize it.

******************

No doubts I’m not buying it, Tom.    I can’t buy confusions.

Yes, Ron Paul has NEVER worked for, supported or voted for things brought by Government, by State.   And always supported things brought by People themselves.

Apparently it is still a long way ahead to come up with the realization that current institution of [professional] political leaderships IS an idolization of humans OVER other humans who have written themselves off as incapable to self-governance and self-control. 

Do we, the People, need LAWS written for us by [lifetime professionals] because otherwise we WON’T BE ABLE TO BEHAVE?

Do we, the People need ORDER setup for us by police and army because otherwise we WILL FALL INTO CHAOS?

Do we, the People need TO IDOLIZE someone else first and then TO FOLLOW that idol until our own and our life full and complete destruction?

Do we, the People really not capable to live as humans but still as slaves?

Every single one of us and all we, the People together ARE how we see ourselves.    Ron Paul respects us and sees us as humans.    Is he ahead of time?

We all know that both candidates have to be seen by the Corps that they are willing to play ball. That's the way it still is. The Corps will give to both parties. So, we know that Obama is acceptable to them if not their choice.
The only choice we have, is to keep a list of any disagreements, and haul it out after a period of observation. If he's going too much in the wrong direction, we can start complaining.
We have no choice but to get him elected, but in order to do that, it is counter productive to be pointing out reasons voters shouldn't vote for him.
In spite of the polls, if there is an incident at home, or an escallation of the war into Iran, this won't be a cakewalk. Voters are slow to complain, scare quickly.and easily. We shouldn't be lulled into thinking that they won't be fooled again. Fear works.

http://www.counterpunch.org/lind06272008.html

A person my age has watched many things decline in America, and few get better. As one of my neighbors says, everything good is gone or going. In that category we must now include good reporting. When I started work in Washington in 1973, it was axiomatic that a newspaper reporter talked to many sources for any story. The story, in turn, reflected a number of viewpoints and perspectives. No reporter worth his bourbon would have dreamed of just printing some press release put out by the government.

But that is now what they all seem to do, especially in covering the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Forgetting that the phrase "to lie like a bulletin" is military in origin the reference is to bulletins issued by Napoleon's grande armeé -- they print verbatim the happy talk the U.S. military is obliged by the Bush administration to spew.

What lies behind the decline in the quality of American reporting? Cutbacks in the size of newsrooms are part of the answer. As the electronic image replaces the printed word, newspapers are dying. To those who know that perceiving reality requires more than shadows on the cave wall, that is bad news.

Lazy reporters are another part of the answer. It is easy to print the bulletins. Reporters have always been lazy, but now their editors let them get away with it. Not too many decades ago, any reporter who single-sourced a story would have been sent back on the street to get more sources, with a richness of invective editors seldom lacked.

But the biggest reason, I suspect, is intellectual cowardice. After the defeat in Vietnam, many supporters of the war blamed the press for our failure. By printing the bad news, the press supposedly undermined popular support for the war and thereby caused our defeat. It's poppycock, of course. The Vietnam War was lost early in the game when MACV, at the demand of General William Depuy, ordered an end to efforts to control the populated coastal lowlands in favor of fighting formal battles against enemy main force units in the highlands. Those units were sent there as bait, which MACV took.

But the American press was scarred by the accusations. Now, it is afraid to be accused of "not supporting the troops" if it does anything but print the bulletins. So the American public gets the mushroom treatment, and two failed wars continue ad infinitum. When the roof falls in both in Iraq and in Afghanistan, the shock will be considerable. America's yellow press will deserve no small share of the blame.

...at Mahler's death, his work was largely ignored. But in the late 50s early 60s two conductors were instrumental in restoring it to its rightful place. Name the two conductors. I think Bernstein was one but don't know the other. Anyone? I'll go with von Karajan.

I didn't see your reply till now. I agree with the vetting right up until the GE starts. What to do now? There's no info comparable to Bush history. An upset at the convention would bring about a loss in Nov. Compared to Bush, he's great. We're not going to get everything in one election, so let's take this one step at a ime and use this election to rid ourselves of the Repubs in the WH, and maybe a break down of the Clinton hold on the Party, and elect a candidate who will probably accomplish some good things, Mccain can't be allowed in the WH. Many share your concerns, I do, but we need to get what we can, when we can, and keep at it.