An excellent article in the New York Times thismorning, in one of those where forensic moments of clarity sought bymedical examiners and librarians alike, points to an obscure regulatoryhearing held in the basement of the Securities and Exchange Commissionover four years ago:The ReckoningAgency‚s ‚04 Rule Let Banks Pile Up New Debt, and Riskhttp://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/03/business/03sec.html?_r=1&hp&oref=sloginTo read the actual SEC decision, check out the Federal Register noticefrom June 2004. I think the future readership of the Federal Register isabout to get a huge boost....http://www.sec.gov/rules/final/34-49830.pdf
(Librarians are America's unsung heroes!)
Dear Colleagues,
I just wrote and sent the following text as my response to the most recent election discourse pollution project financed by the unsound and unfortunately wealthy Mr. Simmons and his ethics-free conceptual siblings.
In the context of objecting to unethical and unlawful advertising we ought to consider the financial and marketplace concerns of corporate advertisers as well as media corporations that publish advertising.
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Dear Brand Officer,Right now, your company is advertising on some of the same TV stations in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Virginia that are airing a false, discredited, and potentially illegal political attack ad against Senator Barack Obama and the American voters who comprise his constituency. Under federal law, the "American Issues Project" should be reporting as and complying with rules for political organizations working to influence voter sentiment on specific public interest issues in our election process. But the Project is violating the law.The primary funder of the "American Issues Project" is Mr.Harold Simmons, one of the wealthy smear mongers that crafted the Swift Boating of Senator John Kerry in our last presidential election Mr. Simmons is also a top financial funding bundler for Senator John McCain. The spokesman for the group, Mr. Christian Pinkston, also has ties to the Kerry Swift Boat attacks. Such wealthy and demonstrably unsound individuals evidently believe they are above our laws and our standards of decency in advertising and our political process. They apparently entertain themselves by insulting the American public and responsible corporate advertisers as a form of "blood sport" demonstrating their superiority and their unlimited power to corrupt our election environment.The "American Issues Project" (a recently constituted smear shop) invents and propagates baseless lies and false assertions, confident that they will be able to do so without being held accountable for the damage they do to our election process, our international reputation, and the corporations who unwittingly allow them to buy media advertising space/time. The world is watching us as we choose our next president, vice president and officers at federal, state and local levels. This group, and others like them, perceive corruption of our election as a form of sport. They clothe their disrespect for our country, our Constitution and the American people in the garments of "free" speech while degrading the brands of honest advertisers and responsible media corporations.There is no room on the public airwaves for unlawful advertising that violate the most basic standards of decency in our political discourse. CNN and Fox News have each refused to run such dishonorable ads, and I hope you will do the same by refusing to inhabit a virtual neighborhood that taints your honest enterprise and the brand you have worked so hard to establish as reliable, responsible and dedicated to honestly serving the public interest and your stockholders.Please, show such stinkers they have underestimated your commitment to honorably doing business in our public square. Let them hear your voice.With sincere thanks and best regards,
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Please see Roger Simon's series on Politico called "relentless" (Yes, that's us!) including an inside view of Hillary Clinton's "dysfunctional" campaign http://www.politico.com/relentless/
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PUMA = COUGAR ????
Um. as an 'older woman' myself, I can't help but wonder if the P. U. M. A. folks realize that the term "cougar" (another name for the same feline) is a derogatory term for older women seeking young male lovers. Is that group a legitimate Democratic organization? It seems sexist and ageist, rather unusual for Democratic organizations. Maybe I am over-vigilant, and inspecting oddities for the scent of dirty tricks but it does seem mighty peculiar for a group allegedly supporting Senator Hillary Clinton to choose that name.My google search failed to find a web site for a P. U. M. A. political organization, just the sportswear company.
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I came across this article while researching something else, and decided to post it here (without permission) in case it gets disappeared from military.com where I found it this morning. The ;ast two paragraphs are a brief history of the person who posted it.
http://www.military.com/opinion/0,15202,164859_1,00.html
Why I Will Not Vote for John McCainPhillip Butler | March 27, 2008As some of you might know, John McCain is a long-time acquaintance of mine that goes way back to our time together at the U.S. Naval Academy and as Prisoners of War in Vietnam. He is a man I respect and admire in some ways. But there are a number of reasons why I will not vote for him for President of the United States.When I was a Plebe (4th classman, or freshman) at the Naval Academy in 1957-58, I was assigned to the 17th Company for my four years there. In those days we had about 3,600 midshipmen spread among 24 companies, thus about 150 midshipmen to a company. As fortune would have it, John, a First Classman (senior) and his room mate lived directly across the hall from me and my two room mates. Believe me when I say that back then I would never in a million or more years have dreamed that the crazy guy across the hall would someday be a Senator and candidate for President!John was a wild man. He was funny, with a quick wit and he was intelligent. But he was intent on breaking every USNA regulation in our 4 inch thick USNA Regulations book. And I believe he must have come as close to his goal as any midshipman who ever attended the Academy. John had me "coming around" to his room frequently during my plebe year. And on one occasion he took me with him to escape "over the wall" in the dead of night. He had a taxi cab waiting for us that took us to a bar some 7 miles away. John had a few beers, but forbid me to drink (watching out for me I guess) and made me drink cokes. I could tell many other midshipman stories about John that year and he unbelievably managed to graduate though he spent the majority of his first class year on restriction for the stuff he did get caught doing. In fact he barely managed to graduate, standing 5th from the bottom of his 800 man graduating class. I and many others have speculated that the main reason he did graduate was because his father was an Admiral, and also his grandfather, both U.S. Naval Academy graduates.People often ask if I was a Prisoner of War with John McCain. My answer is always "No - John McCain was a POW with me." The reason is I was there for 8 years and John got there 2 � years later, so he was a POW for 5 � years. And we have our own seniority system, based on time as a POW.John's treatment as a POW:1) Was he tortured for 5 years? No. He was subjected to torture and maltreatment during his first 2 years, from September of 1967 to September of 1969. After September of 1969 the Vietnamese stopped the torture and gave us increased food and rudimentary health care. Several hundred of us were captured much earlier. I got there April 20, 1965 so my bad treatment period lasted 4 1/2 years. President Ho Chi Minh died on September 9, 1969, and the new regime that replaced him and his policies was more pragmatic. They realized we were worth a lot as bargaining chips if we were alive. And they were right because eventually Americans gave up on the war and agreed to trade our POW's for their country. A damn good trade in my opinion! But my point here is that John allows the media to make him out to be THE hero POW, which he knows is absolutely not true, to further his political goals.2) John was badly injured when he was shot down. Both arms were broken and he had other wounds from his ejection. Unfortunately this was often the case - new POW's arriving with broken bones and serious combat injuries. Many died from their wounds. Medical care was non-existent to rudimentary. Relief from pain was almost never given and often the wounds were used as an available way to torture the POW. Because John's father was the Naval Commander in the Pacific theater, he was exploited with TV interviews while wounded. These film clips have now been widely seen. But it must be known that many POW's suffered similarly, not just John. And many were similarly exploited for political propaganda.3) John was offered, and refused, "early release." Many of us were given this offer. It meant speaking out against your country and lying about your treatment to the press. You had to "admit" that the U.S. was criminal and that our treatment was "lenient and humane." So I, like numerous others, refused the offer. This was obviously something none of us could accept. Besides, we were bound by our service regulations, Geneva Conventions and loyalties to refuse early release until all the POW's were released, with the sick and wounded going first.4) John was awarded a Silver Star and Purple Heart for heroism and wounds in combat. This heroism has been played up in the press and in his various political campaigns. But it should be known that there were approximately 600 military POW's in Vietnam. Among all of us, decorations awarded have recently been totaled to the following: Medals of Honor - 8, Service Crosses - 42, Silver Stars - 590, Bronze Stars - 958 and Purple Hearts - 1,249. John certainly performed courageously and well. But it must be remembered that he was one hero among many - not uniquely so as his campaigns would have people believe.John McCain served his time as a POW with great courage, loyalty and tenacity. More that 600 of us did the same. After our repatriation a census showed that 95% of us had been tortured at least once. The Vietnamese were quite democratic about it. There were many heroes in North Vietnam. I saw heroism every day there. And we motivated each other to endure and succeed far beyond what any of us thought we had in ourselves. Succeeding as a POW is a group sport, not an individual one. We all supported and encouraged each other to survive and succeed. John knows that. He was not an individual POW hero. He was a POW who surmounted the odds with the help of many comrades, as all of us did.I furthermore believe that having been a POW is no special qualification for being President of the United States. The two jobs are not the same, and POW experience is not, in my opinion, something I would look for in a presidential candidate.Most of us who survived that experience are now in our late 60's and 70's. Sadly, we have died and are dying off at a greater rate than our non-POW contemporaries. We experienced injuries and malnutrition that are coming home to roost. So I believe John's age (73) and survival expectation are not good for being elected to serve as our President for 4 or more years.I can verify that John has an infamous reputation for being a hot head. He has a quick and explosive temper that many have experienced first hand. Folks, quite honestly that is not the finger I want next to that red button.It is also disappointing to see him take on and support Bush's war in Iraq, even stating we might be there for another 100 years. For me John represents the entrenched and bankrupt policies of Washington-as-usual. The past 7 years have proven to be disastrous for our country. And I believe John's views on war, foreign policy, economics, environment, health care, education, national infrastructure and other important areas are much the same as those of the Bush administration.I'm disappointed to see John represent himself politically in ways that are not accurate. He is not a moderate Republican. On some issues he is a maverick. But his voting record is far to the right. I fear for his nominations to our Supreme Court, and the consequent continuing loss of individual freedoms, especially regarding moral and religious issues. John is not a religious person, but he has taken every opportunity to ally himself with some really obnoxious and crazy fundamentalist ministers lately. I was also disappointed to see him cozy up to Bush because I know he hates that man. He disingenuously and famously put his arm around the guy, even after Bush had intensely disrespected him with lies and slander. So on these and many other instances, I don't see that John is the "straight talk express" he markets himself to be.Senator John Sidney McCain, III is a remarkable man who has made enormous personal achievements. And he is a man that I am proud to call a fellow POW who "Returned With Honor." That's our POW motto. But since many of you keep asking what I think of him, I've decided to write it out. In short, I think John Sidney McCain, III is a good man, but not someone I will vote for in the upcoming election to be our President of the United States.About Phillip ButlerDoctor Phillip Butler is a 1961 graduate of the United States Naval Academy and a former light-attack carrier pilot. In 1965 he was shot down over North Vietnam where he spent eight years as a prisoner of war. He is a highly decorated combat veteran who was awarded two Silver Stars, two Legion of Merits, two Bronze Stars and two Purple Heart medals.After his repatriation in 1973 he earned a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California at San Diego and became a Navy Organizational Effectiveness consultant. He completed his Navy career in 1981 as a professor of management at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. He is now a peace and justice activist with Veterans for Peace.
According to a crawl on Faux News, and this URL
http://hotair.com/archives/2008/08/20/puma-alert-massive-e-mail-campaign-to-derail-obama-at-convention/
an email blast by the Filth Brigade is underway.
They pretend to be a draft Hillary Clinton movement. They plan to disrupt our Convention. By poisoning the election environment, they intend an indefinite extension of the current regime by any means they can get away with. We will fight them. We will expose them for the swine they are, and if they break the law - we will make sure they are prosecuted.
Words matter. Words have power because they inspire action and change minds.
All I know is that I trust Senator Obama, his campaign and the good sense of the American people. Together we can clean house and turn this mess around.
We can do this. Yes, we can!
While writing my letter to editors about the unfortunate Mr. Corsi, I realized that, like any form of violence, the effect of unscrupulous smears is that they affect all the people involved; those who create them, those who are targeted by them, and all who come in contact with them.
Immersion in the practice of violent misrepresentation of reality tends to impair rational thinking, and disable one's capacity to define the difference between truth and lies, and in losing our capacity for honesty, eventually makes honesty irrelevant.
In any systematic and institutionalized infliction of violence, all are inevitably tainted and alienated. Robert Heinlein, a science fiction writer who was himself a Naval Academy graduate observed that, "Violence is the last resort of the incompetent." a thought that has stayed with me for many years.
Perhaps that accounts, in part, for the failure of administrations that achieve elected office by smearing all opponents while fooling themselves into accepting that a good end justifies getting there by bad methods.
We don't eat rotten food because we know it makes us sick, so why choose to think rotten thoughts and use rotten words?
Must we accept the premise that campaigning for office must be a "blood sport" with voters analogously filling the stadium to sort lions from gladiators? Does the tragedy of Hamilton and Burr require incessant smears merely because some superannuated adolescents justify bad conduct as if it were a patriotic tradition given to us by our Founders?
The August 1, 2008 online issue of Bill Moyers' Journal is required reading for those of us who aren't familiar with C-SPAN.org and their online video library or missed all the hearings on the (ongoing) Abramoff - Norquist - Reed - DeLay - Rove corruption project. I recall being amazed at the passivity of the public when the Republicans shamelessly declared their intent to acquire and keep (as it turns out, by any means possible) permanent control of our government.
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/08012008/watch.html
"Moral Hazard" is a recently fashionable term in financial circles meaning "exploitable loophole in regulatory laws that might put you at risk of prosecution if someone can track using it to you."
Sixteen years after the Moral Majority and the K Street Project:
"...President George W. Bush, 192 Representatives and 41 Senators has made a pledge to Grover G. Norquist and “Americans for Tax Reform” to “oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates for individuals and/or businesses.” Since reducing the marginal tax rates only affect the wealthy; this is, in effect, a pledge to support big business and the super wealthy. Since the National Taxpayer Protection Pledge was started in 1986, the marginal income tax rate has declined from 50 to 35 percent for individuals and from 51 to 39 percent for corporations. This has exacerbated the growing inequality of income and wealth to the point that the wealthiest 1 percent has more wealth than the bottom 95 %. Only the wealthy have benefited from these tax breaks and in the process we also take from the many to enrich the few.According to the “Budget of the United States Government, Historical Tables, FY 2006.” In 1953 the Corporate Income Tax as a Share of GDP was 6 % and in 2004 it was down to 1.3 % of GDP. Now Senator John McCain’s tax plan will reduce the maximum corporate tax rate to 25 percent. ..."
"...
President George W. Bush, 192 Representatives and 41 Senators has made a pledge to Grover G. Norquist and “Americans for Tax Reform” to “oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates for individuals and/or businesses.” Since reducing the marginal tax rates only affect the wealthy; this is, in effect, a pledge to support big business and the super wealthy.
Since the National Taxpayer Protection Pledge was started in 1986, the marginal income tax rate has declined from 50 to 35 percent for individuals and from 51 to 39 percent for corporations. This has exacerbated the growing inequality of income and wealth to the point that the wealthiest 1 percent has more wealth than the bottom 95 %. Only the wealthy have benefited from these tax breaks and in the process we also take from the many to enrich the few.
According to the “Budget of the United States Government, Historical Tables, FY 2006.” In 1953 the Corporate Income Tax as a Share of GDP was 6 % and in 2004 it was down to 1.3 % of GDP.
Now Senator John McCain’s tax plan will reduce the maximum corporate tax rate to 25 percent.
..."
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/blog/2008/08/bill_moyers_michael_winship_th.html#c145278
John Lennon was right, "Life is what happens to you while you're making other plans." Whenever we, the people, forget to pay attention - we lose.
I have been writing to campaign commentators for quite a while, asking why they haven't noticed that Barack Obama is already leading national policy. Our diplomats are now to visit Iran, withdrawal from Iraq has begun and today negotiatons for a "time horizon" for withdrawing our combat troops was announced, The list of changes in policy to those advocated by Obama grows longer every day.
The McCain campaign has begun running an ad that claims Obama has refused to fund our troops, but every person who has read a newspaper, watched tv, or listened to radio news knows very well that Obama has successfully fought to give veterans, military personnel and their families proper medical care and benefits! But then, their economics guru believes we are "a nation of whiners" suffering from "mental recession."
And now the Republicans have blocked legislation that would have made oil lease holders drill on their 68 million acres of old land, or give up the leases. Maybe the Department of the Interior actually has royalty payment requirements on those acres, unlike many leases granted in the Bush-Cheney years.
Deployment in Iraq is important because we must bring our troops home as soon as humanly possible. Talking about Iraq as if deployment there is like an adventure tour insults every soldier's family who suffers the pain of separation and daily worry that a loved one may never return.
Deployment to Iraq is not a CoDel junket for campaign photo opportunities, with take-home pictures to sign and send to donors as a souvenier. Staying in Iraq costs US taxpayers two billion dollars a week, much of it disappeared into mystery pockets and bank accounts.
But you know that, Senator McCain. You have promised that we will never again start a war for oil.
Are our troops in Afghanistan for the flowers?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/10/AR2008061003415_pf.html
http://gocomics.typepad.com/the_sandbox/
http://icasualties.org/oif/
http://www.factcheck.org/
We do have a chance to begin making real change, now we are on the second part of the journey.
As Barack Obama often says, we need to become involved and organize to be heard in our town halls and local precincts, our state legislatures, and hold our representatives in Washington accountable. Our Founders knew that bad things happen when we are not paying attention.
Structural issues are the most difficult because they are persistent and easily used for unintended purposes when we alllow ourselves to be distracted. More transparency in government will allow us to keep an eye on what is being done in our name. The culture of fear sent us shopping while corporate special interests worked to benefit themselves, busily misdirecting our assets and redirecting our national wealth to a small group of insiders. We feel it, we see it, our familie' dreams have been dimmed by it.
We are setting a precedent. Together, with our small donation and our organizing efforts, we have been making a difference in how people think about empowerment. We have begun to feel the strength we have when we work together. We have begun to realize that we don't have to wait for change but can create it - when we take action together.
We are currently being pressured to trade our environment and our natural wilderness, coastlines, and forests to lower the price of gasoline, or to trade food production for fuel. We are yet again being told that deregulation is the answer, and that markets cannot be manipulated. But we have recently discovered that in December of 2000, in the dead of night, regulations that had been in place since the harsh lessons of the Great Depression were erased, paving the way for the Enron scandal, the sub-prime mess, and currently ongoing manipulation of our oil market by corporate speculators.
When we are distracted by fear, we forget that our government belongs to us, and that we are in charge of it. We are supposed to change it when it fails to serve us. Our Constitution is our maintenance manual.
C-SPAN hearing June 4, 2008 on troop deployment agreement & Iraq sovreignty:http://www.c-spanarchives.org/library/index.php?main_page=product_video_info&products_id=205824-1
Nine minutes to go.
Senator Clinton says she will make no decision tonight about "where we will go from here."
Her supporters shout "Denver! Denver! Denver!"
54 minutes ago, Senator Barack Obama became the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party.
Apparently, Senator Clinton wants the Vice Presidency. I hope it is not offered to her, because she is likely to do her best to give an impression of being the "real" President.
What an astonishing day we are living.
Very shortly, Senator Obama will be our nominee for President of the United States of America.
