Tag: 2008 elections

As the cars roar into Pennsylvania, the cradle of liberty, it seems apparent that our citizens are staying off the streets, which may make scoring particularly difficult, even with this year’s rule changes.

To recap those revisions:

Women are still worth 10 points more than men in all age brackets, but teenagers now rack up 40 points, and toddlers under 12 now rate a big 70 points.

The big score: anyone, any sex, over 75 years old has been upped to 100 points.

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                                                  Who will come out alive?

         Current Democratic Capitulation for Future Votes

                                                 vs.

                           Republicanism Gone Wild  

The earth is close to if not past a tipping point on climate change, and what do the negotiators eco-saboteurs of the Bush administration do, why undermine any real commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, of course! And while The Guardian reports the World is poised to sign climate deal, it’s a watered down climate deal, Bush made sure of that. “Europe was reported tonight to have dropped its demands for a 25%-40% cut on 1990 levels by 2020, a proposal that was bitterly opposed by the US.” The Bush administration advocates “voluntary” haha cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.

Oh the Fear of the Corporate Controllers and Managers of our world!

I wish I had a photo of a gnarling tiger to put here.  But I can only say,

DO SOMETHING!  DO SOMETHING NOW!

The “Des Moines Register” has banned Dennis Kucinich and Mike Gravel from tomorrow’s Democratic debates.  Here’s the reason, as reported in 12/13/07 USA today:

Kucinich protests exclusion from Des Moines debate; should he get an invitation?

Six-term Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich is crying foul over tomorrow’s Des Moines Register debate for Democratic presidential candidates. The campaign today issued a lengthy protest against his exclusion from the debate, the last before the Jan. 3 caucuses.

The newspaper’s standards for participation include at least 1% in its statewide poll and an office and paid staff in Iowa. Republican Alan Keyes, who has not been in any debates this year and has done little if any campaigning, has made the cut for today’s GOP debate, which we’ll be live-blogging here at 2 p.m. ET.

Kucinich’s campaign said today he has been excluded because “his Iowa field director operates from a home office rather than a rented storefront.” The campaign quoted newspaper editor Carolyn Washburn as saying, “It was our determination that a person working out of his home did not meet our criteria for a campaign office and full-time paid staff in Iowa.”

Kucinich’s campaign says Marcos Rubinstein, its field director and state coordinator, runs the campaign from his home office in Dubuque, “bolstered by a dozen-or-so other senior campaign staff who have traveled the state over the past several months.”

The campaign also notes that Kucinich is the top-ranked candidate in online polls conducted by Democracy For America and Progressive Democrats of America and both groups plan to advertise for him.

What do you think? Should Kucinich get an invitation? Should Mike Gravel get an invitation? Was it right to include Keyes in today’s debate? We welcome your (polite, civil and thoughtful) comments.

(above from:  USA Today, “On Politics” by Mark Memmott & Jill Lawrence, 12/13/07)

I’ve got to go to a doctor’s appointment, so I can’t write any more than this.  But you know how to find it.  Go there and leave your comments.  I did.  I’ll also mail the DMR later.

Feel free to add a Gnarling Tiger if you wish.

The EC: prudent system established by the founding fathers to prevent tyranny of the majority, or obsolete system that waters down the influence of voters in more populace states? Recent history, of course, would incline liberals to disfavor the EC, but what about the big picture? What’s your opinion, and what evidence is it based upon?

We’re hosting an experimental debate to investigate the Electoral College. The debate includes essays (which anyone is encouraged to write; we’ll add the links to the list) and a structured platform created at the neutral third-party site cruxlux that permits point-counterpoint debate. If you’re interested in hammering out the strengths and weaknesses of the EC, or arguing your case to an audience with diverse political viewpoints, check it out. (I have nothing to do with cruxlux and can’t moderate or otherwise control the debate there, it’s all user-driven.) Below the fold, I’ve reproduced the explanatory post from SC.  

So, Joe Biden says he’d be for impeachment of W if we attack Iran.  Chris Dodd says he  might be for impeachment if Iran is attacked.

Bully boys, at least you are in the lead of the other candidates.

Well…not really.

You see, there’s Dennis Kucinich!

Via Salon by Amanda Griscom Little.

Let’s see what Dennis has to say about his environmental philosphoy!

Health Care, not health insurance.  It’s not too hard a concept.  Universal Health Care, not universal health insurance.  Did the concept get any more difficult?  Universal Single-Payer Not-for-Profit Health Care, not universal mandated health insurance.  It’s still not too hard to differentiate between them.

It’s already been a good week for Dennis!

Via the Bryant Park Project.

Here’s the thing.  We all know Dennis has been right the first time from the start on so many of the issues.  Forget Markos, forget the naysayers, forget the ones who want him gone.  The Dems are moving toward Kucinich, the progressive’s progressive.

In a previous Kos post as well as on my Dreaming Up Daily, I speculated on the emerging Republican plan for the Climate Crisis. Basically it is to mix denial with assertions of doing something, in order to essentially do nothing (or not enough) to stop greenhouse gas pollution, while waiting to use the opportunity of a climate-related disaster in the U.S. to shift attention to their version of crisis management, which is disaster capitalism.

The Democrats are much different, yet there are also two sets of problems I foresee for them–one of which has pretty much the same result for the future as the Republican plan, and the other involves a lack of preparation for near-term crisis, and how the Republicans are likely to try to take advantage of that.

Crucial to this analysis is my insistence that the Climate Crisis has two very different parts: the threat of truly catastrophic changes in the future if we don’t stop greenhouse pollution now (the “Stop It” component) and the need to address serious problems and disasters that are going to happen in the relatively near future because of climate change–problems it is too late to stop (the “Fix It” component.) Follow for the analysis.

While others have bought into the Bush administration Meme on Iran, including not taking anything off the table for their supposed going going after nuclear weapons, Dennis Kucinich has been proven to be right the first time again!