Organizing for America | Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA)

Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA)

This honorable group fosters mutually beneficial service and linkage between grassroots Americans and the exploited peoples of the Western Hemisphere. It takes communication, research, visions and dreams to build a diverse and compassionate America, North, Central and South, out of the divided and volatile nations of this North-to-South Land Bridge. Let's LINK. The accompanying picture is of campesinos during Holy Week in Teote, Nicaragua, where ObamaDoug lives half the year. It was chosen because, currently, most indigenous peoples have no faces at the table for the US to befriend. This is a multicultural, bilingual Group that welcomes new members who want to usher in a light-filled Renaissance of US Domestic and Foreign Policy for ALL the people of the Western Hemisphere, especially those indigenous to their lands. [WE HAVE SOME RULES: you can access them by travelling in the past down our blog, or paying attention, right now: NO ABUSE ALLOWED (that means stepping on someone else's space) of privacy, identity, or nasty feelings. Good Lord! Kick a Soccerball! Save it for your own journals.] We're ENG/SPAN and Proud of it. This Honorable Group is about linkage for common purpose, supporting the extraordinarily HONORABLE ground where indigenous peoples live, where most of us, indigenous or not, live. The world is celebrating the election of Obama, Mr. Tolerance; let's get it moving. "All things live on gratitude from Somewhere: Let's return it." (ObamaDoug 2008)

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Diamonds and Rust

By James - Nov 21st, 2009 at 9:28 pm EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

Closer To GodDiamonds and Rust I carefully removed five more one thousand shilling notes and presented them to Wendy. “That’s about one fifth the average wage in Kenya. It ought to get us dinner served in this cabin, and, unless my judgment about such things is sadly flawed, your natural allure ought to count for something.” Wendy took the money. I saw a glint flash from her eye under raised eyebrow. I wondered how much of the five thousand would end up in the hands of the crew. She and Dingo headed out into the aisle. “Who are you two?” I asked the remaining women. “I’m Helen and this is Anice,” the blondest of the two blonds said, waving one hand toward her companion. “Where you from?” I asked, making conversation while I thought about everything that had happened to us since stepping aboard the train. “Troy,” she said, noting my lack of real attention. “Helen of Troy…neat,” I responded with a smile. “Why don’t you two join your friends at finding us all something to eat?” I said. I held the door open. Anice went by me, her short curly hair so thick and tight it resembled Velcro. When they were out of the room I secured the one-sided deadbolt. I stood before Burt. “Want to tell me about it?” I asked him, pointedly, my arms crossed. He watched the evening countryside go by for at least a full minute before answering. “Ah, about what?” I frowned. I was not accustomed to my team members withholding information pertinent to the mission, nor on acting independently.“The three bad guys you forced to leap from the train. Take a close look at the window next to you. They’re safety latched, but you’d play hell at getting them open far enough to squeeze a full grown American through without using a lot of time and tools. Then there’s the terminal nature of what would have likely happened to guys. I don’t think you’d send three men to their deaths that way. I know something about you now. You didn’t force them from the window, so where are they?”I watched Burt consider. I was determined not to be surprised at whatever he came up with. I didn’t know what had happened to our pursuers, but I knew Burt was lying about whatever had happened.“I’m sorry, “ Burt apologized, But this isn’t a mission you know. Not anymore. I don’t have to report to you or do what you tell me. We’re on our own. I said I threw them off the train to impress the lassies. I haven’t been with a woman for awhile.” His eyes left mine to roam again across the moving Savannah. In spite of myself, I was surprised. Burt was impressing young women while three guys, apparently still on the train somewhere, were trying to kill us for unknown reasons. I couldn’t think of anything intelligent to respond to that part of what he’d said, so I ignored it.“Where are they?” I said instead, getting right to the point.“Back in their cabin. Just like I left ‘em. One has a broken ankle and the other two broken wrists. They don’t have any guns. I threw their cell phones out the window.” Burt offered the last as if it made up for his earlier lie.I glared at him, getting control of myself before speaking.“This is a mission and I’m the mission commander, unless you don’t want to survive it. We’re not going to get through this by trying to impress young women. We won’t survive long doing stupid things like throwing their cell phones away either. Those phones had numbers and identities on them. Now you either accept that or you’re on your own. And, if you accept it, I don’t want any more of this crap. I make the decisions, on everything. That’s what I do. You implement those decisions in the manner I tell you to. That’s what you do. And you don’t keep anything from me. Got it?”My voice had dropped in both tone and volume. Burt and I were in more trouble than I could calculate. I needed him, but I could reasonably survive without him. On his own, he wouldn’t last another day.Helen of Troy’s voice could be heard through the solid wood door. She had one of those irritating nasal voices, but her looks were so great you tended not to notice when in front of her. I waited, my hand on the deadbolt, staring back at Burt.“Alright. It’s a mission. I’ll do my part.”I twisted the small brass knob. Four women filled the cabin, settling onto bunks and floor as if a gaggle of geese looking to forage.“It’s done,” Wendy stated, proudly. “They’re bringing dinner in about an hour, between the early servings. I couldn’t understand their word for the meat.I think its called Punda.” “Punda milia,” I added, instantly sorry I’d spoken up. The words translated into striped ass or Zebra. “Means beef, I think,” I recovered, looking over at Burt, who was staring at Dingo too intently to pay attention to me. “About the sleeping arrangements,” I began, but got no further. Obviously, the Earth Mother’s had discussed more than dinner when they had gone to the dining car. “You’re sleeping in my bunk. I’ll stay on the floor with Helen. Burt can have the padded bench, with Dingo on the floor next to him.” Wendy’s rapid delivery gave away the preparedness of her comments. There was silence in the room. The earlier arrangements discussed had seemed to include a whole lot more than just sleeping, but the amended plan suited me perfectly. The last thing any of us needed was more complexity, although I could not ignore the fact that the small room was going to occupied through the night by four attractive females and two men who had not known many women of late. “The train is likely to stop soon,” I informed them. “While its stopped would be a good time to have dinner served. I’ll try to time it right,” I said, gesturing toward Burt to accompany me. Wendy frowned, but asked no questions. “Wine, you have more wine. Might as well trot it out. We’ll be right back.”I slipped out into the passageway with my last words hanging in the air. We didn’t need company with what we were about, and the Earth Mothers were just a bit too bright and adventurous. Keeping them from participating in anything would not be accomplished with force. Especially not since I’d allowed one of them to become armed. Our current and continuing presence in their lives was a risk to them, however, and I would not overlook it. Burt led our passage through the dining car. I marveled at the old world charm of the décor. Red leather, deep brown wood and polished glass. It resembled some Hollywood director’s idea of what a dining car should look like, rather than what you would expect to find in a third world country. Eating in the cabin would be much less entertaining, but a whole lot more secure. We made our way to the last car. We reached the last door, which Burt plunged right through, his weapon out and raised. I noted that the lock had been shot away, just like the one in our door. Three men were in the room. Two sat on one lower bunk, opposing us, and the remaining man sitting on the floor, propped up against the wall. With the bunks down, there was not much floor space in a Fourth Class cabin. Burt moved deep enough into the space to allow me to sit on the lower bunk, across from the two men. “Who are you gentlemen?” I asked, no threat in my voice. Burt’s gun was out and ready, but mine still in my pocket. They looked at me. The man on the floor had the broken angle. It was evident from off angle of the bones. The other two had wrapped wrists. One right wrist. One left wrist. “Left handed?” I asked Burt, pointing at the appropriate man, but his attention was on the three men. “Who are you people?” I inquired again. None of the three answered, each looking from one to the other. I noted the very bottom of a tattoo sticking out from under the short sleeve of the one with the broken right wrist. I stepped carefully over the broken ankle of the floor positioned one. I pulled the sleeve gently upward. The tattoo was in blue. It was of the head of a water buffalo. Then I noted the age of the man. He was not young. Older than I, all three of them were, and I was old for the business. “Thirty-two Battalion?” I asked. The man nodded once. “Shit,” I mouthed to myself. “What is it?” Burt asked, gauging the regret in my tone. “Thirty-two Battalion is the old Boer Commando outfit, disbanded in 1993, I think. It was pretty hot shit. All three of you?” I pointed at the other two. I received no answer. “Burt here will be glad to take your shirts off, and then break your remaining joints,” I offered. The one who had signaled before did so again. “Who are you with now?” I inquired, not expecting an answer. I waited, but I knew I was wasting my time. The situation could only play out in one of two possible ways. Either the men were actually going to jump from the train, at high speed with their injuries, or they were going to see reason. I could only play the cards I had been dealt. I couldn’t change them. “Okay. Have it your way. I don’t expect much. I know you guys. I was a United States Marine. I have a mission to perform. Either Burt here tosses you off the train or you tell me whom you’re working for. I’ll work something out. It’s not much that I’m asking. No names. Not even what this is all about. “ I waited, while once again they looked at each other. They had to be mercenaries. They worked for the money, so their loyalty was not to a cause. But their habit patterns where from the old school, and it would near impossible to break them down. I was not willing to resort to physical torture, and I didn’t really have the equipment for such an operation anyway. Physical torture always works. On everyone. No single human is immune, or tough enough to ‘gut it out,’ as that is the province of movies and television. But it comes with a high price, for the tortured and the torturers. I’d tortured. I knew the price, and I was no longer willing to pay it. “Aegis,” the man said, his voice low. “Diamonds. It is about diamonds.” I sat back stunned. Aegis didn’t bother me. It was one of the mercenary companies operating out of London. There were bunches of them. But his volunteering of ‘diamonds’ perplexed me. Tea, textiles, coffee and a few other things were exported from Kenya. There were no diamonds. Not that anybody had ever found or reported on. “Where,” I asked, not sure what I expected to hear. And what I got I did not expect. “Freetown.” We cannot tell you more. Our families will never be paid if we tell you.” I liked the fact that the man was thinking about the money Aegis would pay out to their families following death. I had their full attention. There was no Freetown in Kenya. There was a Freetown in a place that had a ton of diamonds, however. Sierra Leone. A shit-hole of a place. The unadvertised, unclaimed, and nearly unknown, poorest country in Africa, which was saying something. “We will talk no more. Do your will.” The man bowed his head. Without sharp instruments and a controlled environment I knew that I wasn’t going to get more. “Lighten up, Francis,” I quoted from the movie Stripes. “You did what you were asked. Here’s the deal. I’m gonna pull the emergency stop.” I stood up and grabbed the single line running corner to corner near the top of the car. “The trains gonna stop. Only you three will be here. They’ll come in hordes once they figure out the cord was pulled in this room. Stopping the train is a First Class Felony in Kenya. You’ll be arrested, guarded, and taken to jail in Mombasa. When you get there one of you needs to confess that he did it. Claim drunkenness. The natives think all White Men are drunks. Or you can claim that you need medical care from the injuries you suffered fighting with one another. Once one of you confesses the others will be set loose. Strange Kenyan Justice. The two released can pay the fine for the felony, and then you can get some splints and treatment for your problems.” I stopped and looked at them carefully. “If you don’t claim you did it, then there is going to be trouble. Burt here is going to take your going back on your word badly. You won’t survive this mission, I promise you. I want your word as an ‘Os Terriveis’” I stopped again. Portugal had contributed a lot of men to 32 Battalion, and had loaned it the name “Terrible Ones,” not without good cause. “We agree,” the man said, this time without looking to the others for approval. I was giving them a rare gift, and the man seemed to understand. It would be safer to leave them for dead, strewn along the harsh landscape of the beautiful Savannah, then have them reaching their superiors to tell of their contact with us. I pulled down hard on the cord. Squealing sounds came from the wheel brakes of our car. It was going to be a slow stop as the emergency cord only worked for the car it was pulled in. The train whistle blew long and loud. The crew had figured out that there was a problem. I took out another ten thousand shillings and placed them firmly in the man’s good hand. “You’ll need this for the fine. They won’t take your cash when you’re in custody. Trust me, I know about custody in Kenya.” I then took my box of cigarettes out and offered one to each man. They sat there, each with a white tube sticking out of his mouth. Burt brought out a lighter and went slowly from man to man, keeping his suppressed automatic trained on each while he lit their smokes. “Dankie,” the man said. Dankie is Afrikaans for thank you. He slipped the bills into his shirt pocket. Burt and I stepped out of the room, then made our way quickly back to the dining car, which was full. The non-stop train was slowing to a stop, which caused a lot of discussion from everyone around us as we made our way through. “What if they try to lay it on us?” Burt asked, just before we reached the room. “They’re screwed. Strange Kenyan Justice. They’re the ones in the room where the cord got pulled. The exact place is registered down by the side of the car, near the tracks. There’s no Crime Scene Investigation over here.” “Will it work the way you told them?” Burt inquired, his voice evidencing skepticism. “I lie when necessary Burt, but I’m not cruel. Those were brothers-in-arms, whatever path they’ve taken since, and, because of your ‘assistance’ they won’t be a problem for us anymore.” I didn’t mention any of the problems that might arise from they’re eventual report to higher ups. Wendy welcomed us into the room, locking the door behind us. I noted another empty bottle of wine primly set against the far wall, where a partially filled one sat next to it. “We’ve been wondering where you were. And the train is almost stopped, just like you said would happen. How did you do that? And, when are we going to get to Mombasa?” I laughed at her tone and obvious gaiety rather than her comments. “When is dinner served?” I asked. I was terribly hungry and so very tired. I looked up at Wendy’s upper bunk with longing. “It’s coming. It’s coming, Wendy giggled, but first we want to sing you a song.Dingo has a ukulele. It’s made from Koa wood carved in Hawaii. I slunk down the wall between the bunks. I prayed that there were no more players aboard the Iron Snake. Our stopping had risk. Anyone paralleling the train on the Mombasa Road could use the opportunity to get aboard. We could only plan for so much, however. The Earth Mother’s started their song, the words brining an immediate rye smile to my face: “Well, I’ll be damned, here comes your ghost again…” The song was a Joan Baez thing from many years in the past. I knew that the final words were: “…and if your offering me diamonds and rust, I’ve already paid.” I hadn’t understood the words to that song any of the times I’d heard it. I could never figure out what diamonds had to do with rust, since diamonds are a crystal and rust is, well, rust. I listened to the words of the song flow over me, being sung from some of the toughest angels I’d ever come across, and I knew that diamonds and rust did indeed go together and that the amalgam was one of hardship and pain, just like the words of the song. http://www.jamesstraussauthor.comhttp://www.themastodons.comhttp://www.from-the-chateau-dif.blogspot.comcopyright 2009

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I love Barack

By Walt - Nov 21st, 2009 at 10:55 am EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

I love what Barack is doing for the country. It is so nice to be able to respect the President. I love Barack.

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...and this is now, not then...

By Fire Is Born - Nov 21st, 2009 at 3:23 am EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

It's been a while that I watched BMJ. When I began watching tonight in the middle of the program I entered into President Johnson's conversation in 1965 with McNamara on escalation of the war, when the troops there were in the range of 45 thousands. I sat pinned down to my chair till the end of the program.

That "while" wiyhout BMJ was a wasted while. God bless Bill Moyers of the USA! fib

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

A Tale of Two Quagmires

This week on the JOURNAL, Bill Moyers looked back some four decades to his experience as a member of President Lyndon Johnson’s administration. At the time, Johnson made a series of fateful decisions to escalate the war in Vietnam, where eventually over two million American military personnel would serve. Estimates indicate that nearly 60,000 U.S. troops – and more than a million Vietnamese – were killed during the course of the conflict.

With an eye on President Obama’s deliberations on whether to deploy more U.S. troops in addition to the 68,000 already in Afghanistan, Moyers presented a montage of recorded conversations and his personal memories of President Lyndon Johnson’s decisions to escalate the war in Vietnam. He said:

“Our country wonders this weekend what is on President Obama’s mind. He is apparently about to bring months of deliberation to a close and answer General Stanley McChrystal’s request for more troops in Afghanistan. When he finally announces how many, why, and at what cost, he will most likely have defined his presidency, for the consequences will be far-reaching and unpredictable. As I read and listen and wait with all of you for answers, I have been thinking about the mind of another President – Lyndon B. Johnson. I was 30 years old, a White House assistant, working on politics and domestic policy. I watched and listened as LBJ made his fateful decisions about Vietnam... Barack Obama is not Lyndon Johnson, Afghanistan is not Vietnam and this is now, not then. The situation is different. But listen – and you will hear echoes and refrains that resonate today.”

The nation is divided about America’s mission in Afghanistan. In a new WASHINGTON POST – ABC News poll, 55% of respondents expressed confidence that President Obama will pick a strategy that will work, but 52% said that the war in Afghanistan has not been worth fighting given the costs versus the benefits.

What do you think?

How does the history of the Vietnam War compare to the present situation in Afghanistan?

What decisions do you think Obama should make regarding Afghanistan? What do you think he's actually going to do? Explain.

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How to kill the public option

By ☮ CR ❤ - Nov 20th, 2009 at 4:33 pm EST

Also listed in: Obama Supporters for Positive Dialogue | Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA) | Women for Obama

We need a public option in the Health Care Reform bill to keep prices down. Please read this MoveOn.org message:

From MoveOn.org:

The Senate is taking up health care reform tomorrow. But some
conservative Democratic Senators are still trying to kill the public
health insurance option.

Instead of opposing it outright, they're pushing a sneaky proposal
called a "trigger" that could delay it indefinitely—by forcing us to
wait for the health care crisis to get even worse before the public
option becomes available.

And with critical votes starting tomorrow, these senators are ramping up
their efforts to insert a trigger into the bill. We've got to send an
overwhelming message right away that the trigger is unacceptable, and
show the Senate that voters demand a real public option.

Can you sign the petition?

http://pol.moveon.org/notrigger/?id=18023-15146003-8A2oSfx&t=3

The petition reads: "We can't afford to delay health care reform with a
trigger. The Senate must pass legislation with a national public health
insurance option that's available immediately."

Thanks to grassroots pressure from progressives across the country, and
courageous leadership from a few champions in Congress, we're closer
than ever to winning reform with a public option.

Though the Senate legislation has some real problems, it does include a
version of the public option. But a handful of conservative Democrats
are threatening to join a Republican filibuster and block an up-or-down
vote unless it's replaced with a trigger.^1

So today we're launching this petition and airing a new TV ad to
demonstrate that the trigger is an awful idea:

    * Our health care system is in crisis now. A trigger could
      unnecessarily delay a public health insurance option for years—or
      kill it entirely by delaying it indefinitely. Thousands of
      families in California lack insurance coverage2 and they can't
      afford to wait for the increased competition and lower costs a
      public option would deliver.^3
    * Insurance companies are masters at gaming the system—we've all
      seen how they avoid paying out claims and covering people who are
      sick. If they know what criteria would trigger the creation of a
      public option, they'll do just enough to avoid the trigger,
      without changing the way they do business.
    * Congress has tried to implement triggers and other "fallback"
      options in health care legislation before, and they've
      consistently failed. As one study put it, "History teaches us that
      trigger mechanisms are difficult to implement, too narrow in their
      focus, and can too easily be reversed if the political landscape
      changes."^4

We've got to let our senators know that the trigger is unacceptable.
Click here to sign the petition:

http://pol.moveon.org/notrigger/?id=18023-15146003-8A2oSfx&t=4

Thanks for all you do.

–Nita, Carrie, Kat, Michael, and the rest of the team at MoveOn.org

Sources:

1. "Trigger Happy," Time, November 18, 2009
http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2009/11/18/trigger-happy/

2. "One-Two Punch: Unemployed and Uninsured," Families USA, October 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=85185&id=18023-15146003-8A2oSfx&t=5

3. "The House Public Plan: Yes, It's Worth It," The New Republic,
November 5, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=85187&id=18023-15146003-8A2oSfx&t=6

4. "Trigger Unhappy: What Experience Can Teach Us About Why We Should
Not Delay the Implementation of Public Plan Choice," Timothy Stoltzfus Jost
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=85188&id=18023-15146003-8A2oSfx&t=7

"Trigger Unhappy," The New Republic, October 22, 2009
http://www.tnr.com/blog/the-treatment/trigger-happy

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Wishes

By Walt - Nov 20th, 2009 at 11:28 am EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

From time to time for fun, I like to pretend that I have a magic power that allows me to grant wishes. I limit each recipient to one wish and state that I will fill the wish if I can, but that I cannot fill all wishes. I listen to my co-workers talking, and if I hear a wish, I try to fill it. One co-worker wished for a pack of gum, and I immediately purchased a pack from a vending machine. She was grateful until she learned that she could have wished for a million dollars instead. She wanted to trade, but no deal. Many people ask for money. I am not rich enough to fill their wished directly, but I do supply a copy of the book, Automatic Millionaire. That book advocates saving by payroll deduction where the employer matches funds going into a 401K. It takes time and effort, but the saver can accumulate a sizable nest egg. Granting wishes takes thought and some resources but it is very satisfying. Try it, you'll enjoy it.

Barack is called upon from all sides to grant all kinds of wishes, some very contradictory. That is why I limit my recipients to only one wish each. It would be hard to grant two wishes that are directly opposite each other. Barack must deal with citizens who want stimulus for jobs at the same time the deficit is reduced. Logically, deficit reduction comes after job stimulus. Barack has the much tougher job of satisfying so many conflicting demands. I wish him luck for his sake and for ours.

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Iraq/Afghanistan/Vietnam

By Walt - Nov 20th, 2009 at 11:27 am EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

There is no significant similarity among these three wars except for the financial impact on the US. Vietnam was partially financed by taxes and the deficits led to increasing inflation that culminated in Jimmy Carter's defeat in 1980 by Ronald Reagan. The current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have been financed entirely by borrowing which will probably lead to inflation in the near future. That deficit spending contributed to the crash of 2008 and led to John McCain's defeat by Barack Obama.

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TELEVANGELIST NEEDS TO TAKE AN 'OPEN DOOR' CLASS LED BY OUR 'INCLUSIVE' PRESIDENT!

By SUE DUVALL SMITH from IndianaV.O.B. - Nov 20th, 2009 at 7:52 am EST

Also listed in: Indiana Obama Supporters | Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA) | South Central Indiana for Obama 08

PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS SPENT EVERY SINGLE DAY OF HIS PRESIDENCY REITERATING THE IMPORTANCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS, EQUALITY AND EXTENDING OUR OUTREACH TO ALL OF OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS, REGARDLESS OF ETHNICITY. IT IS QUITE OBVIOUS THAT TELEVANGELIST PAT ROBERTSON HAS NOT BEEN TUNED INTO THE SUBJECT OF EQUALITY. I RECOMMEND THAT HE OPEN THE BIBLE AND TAKE A SECOND LOOK AT WHAT CHRIST COMMANDS BEFORE OPENING HIS MOUTH. HIS RECENT STATEMENT AGAINST ISLAM IS APPALLING AND OFFENSIVE TO THOSE OF US WHO ARE CHRISTIAN.

UNFORTUNATELY, ROBERTSON HAS AGAIN ATTRACTED THE MEDIA WITH HIS DIVISIVE COMMENTS, THIS TIME LABELING THOSE WHO PRACTICE THE ISLAMIC RELIGION AS NOTHING BUT PEOPLE DEVOTED TO VIOLENCE. ROBERTSON CLAIMS THAT ISLAM IS NOT A RELIGION..."BUT A VIOLENT POLITICAL SYSTEM." THIS TYPE OF COMMENT RUNS AGAINST THE GRAINS OF HUMANITY, SEEDS PLANTED FOR THE SAKE OF UNITY,TOLERANCE AND UNDERSTANDING.

I DON'T HAVE GREAT MEMORIES OF PAT ROBERTSON OTHER THAN THE USAGE OF HIS 'CASH FLOW'. THIS HE USES OFTEN TO GAIN A FOOT IN THE DOOR IN POLITICS. I REMEMBER HIS CASH FLOW PROMISES TO THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION DURING THE BUSH/KERRY RUN AND WE ALL KNOW WHAT HAPPENED THERE. ALL I CAN SAY TO YOU HERE ROBERTSON IS THANKS FOR FINANCING A POOR POLITICAL INHERITANCE WHICH HAS UNFORTUNATELY LANDED IN OUR CURRENT PRESIDENT'S LAP. YOUR JUDGEMENT FACTORS ARE TAINTED AND SINCE WHEN HAS A TRUE MAN OF GOD FINANCED A CUSHION IN THE CHAIR IN THE OVAL OFFICE?????

A TRUE MAN OF GOD ALSO DOES NOT STAND IN PUBLIC AND CONDEMN ANYONE'S RELIGION. YOU MISSED THE BOAT HERE BECAUSE YOU'VE SPENT TOO MUCH TIME AT THE BANK TRYING TO PROP UP YOUR CHOICE OF POLITICAL PARTIES. I DON'T ADMIRE THIS QUALITY IN ANY CHURCH, ALTHOUGH ALL TOO OFTEN IT EXISTS.THIS IS WHERE THE LINE MUST BE DRAWN AND BOUNDARIES EXIST FOR A REASON. WHEN THE COMPASSIONATE LORD PICKS SOMEONE UP OFF THE FLOOR, HE DOESN'T ASK THEM FIRST WHICH CHURCH THEY ATTEND OR WHAT RELIGION THEY PRACTICE. SOMEWHERE YOU HAVE MISSED THIS TRANSLATION IN THE BIBLE OR ADDED YOUR OWN. PERHAPS YOU SHOULD CALL GOD AND ASK FOR HIS PERMISSION BEFORE YOU GO TO PRINT.

INDEED MR. ROBERTSON, A PUBLIC APOLOGY MIGHT BE SUGGESTED HERE BECAUSE YOU DO NOT REPRESENT ALL CHRISTIANS. WE ARE AN AMAZING BUNCH OF PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE IN TOLERANCE AND WE HOLD A STRONG COMMITTMENT TO THE VALUE OF THE HUMAN RACE. THESE ARE NOT TOYS TO BE CARELESSLY CAST-OFF BECAUSE WE DON'T HAPPEN TO APPRECIATE THE BOX THEY CAME IN. THESE ARE ACTUAL HUMAN BEINGS THAT GOD MADE FOR A PURPOSE. HE KNOWS EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THEM AND HE PLACED THEM HERE FOR A REASON. 'RESPECT' WOULD BE A GRAND INCLUSION HERE.

THIS IS THE TYPE OF BROADCAST BEHAVIOR THAT UNFORTUNATELY CONTRIBUTES TO THE CAUSES OF THE GLEN BECKS IN THIS WORLD. IT IS ON THE INCREASE. MR. ROBERTSON, YOU MAY CERTAINLY PAT YOURSELF ON THE BACK BECAUSE YOUR STATEMENT ACTUALLY CONTRIBUTES TO VIOLENCE. DO ME A FAVOR PLEASE...DON'T GO TO FORT HOOD AND TRY TO PREACH A SERMON. WE HAVE SOME GREAT MUSLIMS THERE WHO SERVE IN OUR ARMED FORCES. THEY DON'T WANT TO BE BLAMED FOR THINGS THEY HAVE NOT DONE.

I MIGHT SUGGEST THAT YOU STOP BY WITH YOUR ART KIT AND PAINT STRANGE AND APPALLING THINGS ON OUR PRESIDENT'S PORTRAIT SUCH AS THE TEABAGGERS HAVE DONE. YOU MIGHT FIT IN THERE WITH YOUR SEGREGATED AND ILL COMMENTS. UNFORTUNATELY, YOU HOLD A PLACE OF LEADERSHIP IN CHRISTIAN SOCIETY. JUST LIKE VOTING, WE DESPERATELY NEED TO CHANGE THAT SYSTEM.

PRESIDENT OBAMA SPEAKS FOR ALL OF US WITH RESPECT, INTEGRITY AND CERTAINLY TOLERANCE FOR PEOPLE SUCH AS YOURSELF. THIS IS WHY WE VOTED FOR HIM. HE'S NOT GOD........BUT HE CARRIES GOD'S MESSAGE WELL. I VOTED FOR HIM SO THAT HE COULD CARRY THIS MESSAGE OF HUMAN TOLERANCE TO MY CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN. I TRUST HIM. HIS COMPASSION IS EXACTLY WHAT WE FIND IN THE BIBLE IN OUR SEARCH FOR HUMANITY. PERHAPS YOU SHOULD MEET HIM SOMETIME AND TAKE A CLASS OR STAY AFTER SCHOOL BECAUSE YOU HAVE CERTAINLY BEEN ABSENT.

MAY GOD DEEPLY BLESS THE KINDEST OF HEARTS THAT WE FIND IN OUR PRESIDENT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA. WHILE YOU'RE AT IT GOD...PLEASE HAVE A WORD WITH PAT ROBERTSON. BEING THE CHRISTIAN THAT I AM...NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE. MAY GOD BLESS THESE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA! THE WORD 'UNITED' DOES STAND FOR SOMETHING!

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David Plouffe's book "The Audacity to win"

By ☮ CR ❤ - Nov 19th, 2009 at 1:37 pm EST

Also listed in: Obama Supporters for Positive Dialogue | Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA) | Women for Obama

I am on the third chapter of David Plouffe's book "The Audacity to Win" and I am enjoying it. It reads very well.

I feel compelled to compare it to Richard Wolffe's book "Renegade"; in Renegade you get a closer look as to being on the trail of the Obama campaign but in Plouffe's book you actually hear all the raw language spoken and feel the tense situations. The Obama team was not a bunch of dreamers who felt that Obama's success was inevitable they were prepared to give it their all and fail. Plouffes says that the prima dona mentality was common among candidates but that Obama is the exception and that the team never woke up dreading their candidate.

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Sarah Palin and other conservative heroes

By The Bard of Wilmette - Nov 19th, 2009 at 12:02 pm EST

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The general impression I get from watching news programs these days is that Barack Obama’s popularity is slipping away, and that conversely, Sarah Palin is more popular than the Beatles and Elvis Presley combined at their respective primes. For those of us who admire Mr. Obama and hold little regard for Ms. Palin, it would seem that we are headed for some politically bleak times. This picture may not be completely false, but it is probably much less true than it might seem at the moment.

President Obama’s halo is a bit tarnished, which is inevitable for almost any new president, especially one who entered office accompanied by such high expectations. He has made a few missteps (which will be the subject of a later essay by yours truly) during his first year in office, but nothing he cannot recover from. As long as unemployment remains high – and realistically there is no quick fix for that – President Obama will get the blame. It appears that the economy is already in recovery, and when unemployment goes back down to more tolerable levels, it will likely get Obama’s public approval ratings back to the solidly favorable range. It may not happen soon enough for his party to avoid getting clobbered in the mid term elections next year, but it will happen.

As for Sarah Palin, she is going to make millions of dollars selling her book, but I cannot see her as a credible candidate for President in 2012, or any other year. There is an old cliché about how we underestimate her at our peril. I believe I used that line myself, in reference to Palin, during the campaign last year. Some of Palin’s conservative admirers like to compare her to Ronald Reagan, who also showed great skill with a right wing populist appeal, and was also underestimated by his political opponents. One of my favorite conservative pundits, Steve Chapman of the Chicago Tribune, has a great column comparing Sarah Palin with conservative patron saints Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan. Here is a link to that column:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-oped1119chapmannov19,0,4222240.column

To me, Sarah Palin more closely resembles Richard Nixon and George W. Bush, and in my opinion, Ms. Palin combines the worst qualities of each of them. Mr. Nixon had what I believe psychiatrists would call a paranoid personality. He was obsessed with the idea that anybody who criticized or disagreed with him was a personal enemy, and therefore, because he was the president, a traitor to the U.S. The fact that Nixon was also very bright, well read, and hard working was not enough to compensate for the serious deficiencies in his character. Mr. Bush was (is) almost the opposite of Mr. Nixon. He is more at ease with himself as a person, but was one of the most intellectually lazy presidents we have ever had. He acted out of a gut feeling of what he thought was right, and (being the “decider” as he famously put it) pursued his policies without much serious analysis. When he did receive advice that did not fit into his preconceived notions, he ignored it, often with tragic consequences. Sarah Palin has managed to combine Nixon’s persecution complex with Bush’s incredible ignorance and lack of curiosity .

Ms. Palin has a devoted following – enough to make her a rich author, and if she wants it, she could probably get a very lucrative job at Fox News. However, while perhaps 20% of the country absolutely loves Sarah Palin, I cannot see her ever making serious inroads on the other 80%.

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9-11 Trial

By Walt - Nov 19th, 2009 at 10:57 am EST

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If I lived in New York City, I too would be nervous about the upcoming 9-11 terrorists trial. But then I have been nervous about another al-Qaeda attack since 9-12-01. I live in a small town in Utah and I don't fear an al-Qaeda attack here. I think that they will attack again when they are ready with WMD's. Al-Qaeda has vowed revenge for the Muslims whose death we have caused, at least in their opinion. They blame us for more than 10 million Muslim deaths in Iraq and around the world. Thus I expect that they will attack large population centers to cause the maximum number of deaths. New York would be a target whether the 9-11 trial is held there or not.

Some opponents of the trial say that we will provide the terrorists with a propaganda platform. However, we will be affirming our commitment to justice for all, not justice for all except Muslims. The advantage that the terrorists receive will be more than offset, in my opinion, by our demonstration to the world that we practice what we preach. Hopefully our example will make recruiting for al-Qaeda more difficult.

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The First Lady Honors Military Women

By ☮ CR ❤ - Nov 19th, 2009 at 10:25 am EST

Also listed in: Obama Supporters for Positive Dialogue | Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA) | Women for Obama

11/18/09 Posted by Molly Fedick - WhiteHouse.gov

Veterans Day serves as a reminder to not only honor America's men in uniform, but also the women—the mothers, sisters, daughters, and grandmothers who, throughout history, broke barriers and endured hardships to serve our country. Today at the White House, First Lady Michelle Obama, along with Blue Star Mom Dr. Jill Biden, welcomed some of those women in celebration of their bravery and commitment to protecting our freedoms:

In this room alone, we have the first female four star general. We have the first woman in the Navy to be promoted to Master Chief. The first woman in the Army Reserve to be promoted to the general officer rank. We have the first woman in the Army to receive the Expert Field Medical Badge. We have the first African American woman to serve as Chief Nurse at Walter Reed Hospital. And so many more "firsts" and "onlys" -- and that's the result of your hard work and your courage and your persistence.

But we know these achievements aren’t yours alone. That's something that Jill and I have talked about, we've learned more about over the course of this year, because we know that service doesn’t just end with the person wearing the uniform. You all know that. We know that our servicemen and women’s sacrifices are their families' sacrifices as well. And many of you have spouses, partners, children, parents who stood by you and encouraged you and prayed for you every step of the way. And this day is their day too, as far as we're concerned. So let’s take a moment to recognize those members of our families who supported you in your service as well. (Applause.)
The First Lady continued, praising them not only for the good they've done, but for the good they have inspired in others:
But I hope you all know that your service -- that your legacy is more than just your own service. I hope that you know that your legacy will be measured in the service of every woman who follows in the trails that you've blazed -- every woman who benefits from your daring and determination. It will be measured in the inspiration that you provide to our daughters and our granddaughters -- and to our sons and our grandsons as well.
Because of you, when young women wonder how high they can rise in our military, they can look at General Ann Dunwoody and her four hard earned stars. That can see that, it's real. When they ask what kind of jobs they can do, they can look to women like all of you who’ve played just about every kind of role imaginable. And when they ask whether they can cut it -- whether they have what it takes to succeed -- all they have to do is to look at your lives, to look into your lives and to look at the careers that you've developed that inspire us all.

First Lady Michelle Obama attends a Women in the Military Tea in the East Room of the White House Nov. 18, 2009. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)

To view the video: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2009/11/18/so-many-firsts-and-onlys-first-lady-honors-military-women

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"THE DOOR IS OPEN" HE SAYS....'MR. PERSEVERANCE' HEADS HOME!

By SUE DUVALL SMITH from IndianaV.O.B. - Nov 19th, 2009 at 8:28 am EST

Also listed in: Indiana Obama Supporters | Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA) | South Central Indiana for Obama 08

THE PRESIDENT IS ON HIS WAY HOME TODAY AFTER WRAPPING UP AN EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL GOODWILL TREK TO ASIA. THE AFOREMENTIONED 'OPEN DOOR' STATEMENT FOLLOWED HIS FINAL LIASON WITH SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT LEE MYUNG-BAK. THE PRESIDENT HAS ANNOUNCED THAT HE WILL BE SENDING AMERICAN ENVOY STEPHEN BOSWORTH TO NORTH KOREA ON DECEMBER 8TH. INDEED, HOPEFULL PROSPECTS WILL ACCOMPANY BOSWORTH ON THIS JOURNEY. "THE DOOR IS OPEN TO RESOLVING THESE ISSUES PEACEFULLY," THE PRESIDENT SAID. OBVIOUSLY, 'HOPE' ALREADY RESIDES WITH ABUNDANCE ON THIS PARTICULAR AGENDA.

OF COURSE THE PRESIDENT COULDN'T LEAVE KOREAN AIR-SPACE WITHOUT FIRST SPEAKING TO THE MILITARY CALL FOR HIS COMPASSION....OUR SOLDIERS AT OSAN AIR BASE. THIS PRESIDENT NEVER FORGETS WHO THEY ARE AND IT DOESN'T MATTER WHERE THEY ARE LOCATED...HE'LL BE THERE BRINGING THAT EVER-CONSTANT MESSAGE OF HOPE,ENCOURAGEMENT AND SINCERE GRATITUDE FOR THEIR SACRIFICE AND COMMITTMENT TO SERVICE.

ALTHOUGH THIS PRESIDENT IS EXTREMELY HUMBLE ABOUT HIS OVERSEAS ACCOMPLISHMENTS, JUST LIKE A SUCCESSFUL ROLL OF THE DOMINOES....WE ARE SEEING A CULMINATION OF INTERNATIONAL COMMITTMENTS TOWARD PEACE AND PROSPERITY. WE ARE SEEING THE BIRTHING OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS THAT WILL 'BEAR FRUIT' AS WE CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD TOWARD CHANGE IN THIS COUNTRY. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS THE 'CUP BEING HALF FULL HERE.'

THESE CONVERSATIONS AND EFFORTS TO EXTEND AN UNCLENCHED FIST HAVE BEEN NEEDED FOR SOME TIME. THERE IS NO FAILURE IN THE PRACTICE OF BROTHERHOOD. THE PRESIDENT HAS LEFT BEHIND A TRUE MARK OF COMPASSIONATE CONCERN FOR THE INTERNATIONAL CONGLOMERATE. THIS IS SEEN BY THESE LEADERS AS A SINCERE MOVE TOWARD OPEN ENGAGEMENT. UNFORTUNATELY, CRITICS HERE LOOK AT THIS AS A SIGN OF AMERICAN WEAKNESS. THE WEAKNESS IS INDEED THEIR OWN IN 'CHARACTER.' NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH. THESE PRESIDENTIAL EFFORTS TO CARRY THE OLIVE BRANCH DO MATTER. IN PRESIDENT OBAMA'S CASE....THE SEEDS HAVE BEEN PLANTED WELL.

KUDOS TO SECRETARY OF STATE HILLARY CLINTON WHO HAS WITNESSED THE INAUGURATION OF AFGHAN PRESIDENT HAMID KARZAI. SOS CLINTON MUST BE CREDITED FOR HER OWN PERSEVERANCE AS SHE DELIVERS HER STERN MESSAGE TO KARZAI AND CALLS FOR AN END TO CORRUPTION IN THAT GOVERNMENT. THIS IS A 'STAY TUNED' MOMENT.

WE WILL HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE IF KARZAI WILL CHALLENGE HIS SUPPORTIVE WARLORDS AND PLACE THE PEOPLE IN AFGHANISTAN ON A 'HIGH PRIORITY' LIST WHERE THEY BELONG. SOS CLINTON HAS DEMONSTRATED HER OWN 'GOOD THINGS COME IN SMALL PACKAGES' COURAGEOUS BEHAVIOR. I COMPARE THIS SITUATION TO HAVING DINNER WITH RUSH LIMBAUGH WHILE LISTENING TO A GLEN BECK MONOLOGUE. MOVE OVER BILL BECAUSE THERE IS A VERY TOUGH WOMAN IN YOUR HOUSE!

RECENTLY THE INVESTIGATION INTO THE TRAGIC FORT HOOD INCIDENT HAS PRODUCED SOME RATHER QUESTIONABLE INFORMATION REGARDING ALLEGED SUSPECT MAJOR HASSAN. THE PRESIDENT AND SECRETARY OF DEFENSE ROBERT GATES HAVE BOTH ORDERED EXTENSIVE INVESTIGATIONS INTO THIS HORRIFIC EVENT. THIS BRINGS ME TO THE QUESTION OF THE 'ACCOUNTABILITY FACTOR,' SOMETHING WE HEAR OFTEN FROM PRESIDENT OBAMA.

INDEED I AM CONCERNED ABOUT OUR AMERICAN VALUES AND HAVE WE LOWERED OUR EXPECTATIONS FOR THOSE WHO COMMAND LEADERSHIP IN THIS COUNTRY???? DO WE JUST LET THE BALL RIDE WHEN THERE ARE PROBLEMS? CONSIDERING ALL DIVULGED INFORMATION IN THIS CASE, THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR 'RED FLAG' IGNORANCE HERE.

IT IS ALSO UNFORTUNATE THAT SO MUCH INFORMATION HAS BEEN LEAKED TO THE PRESS. CLEARLY THE PRESS WOULD RATHER SACRIFICE THE BENEFITS OF A GOOD COURT CASE...FOR RATINGS. WHEN I WAS A NEWS EDITOR...IF I HAD DONE THIS...OUT OF CLEAR DISRESPECT FOR THE NEEDS OF THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM, I WOULD HAVE QUIT MY JOB MERELY OUT OF SHAME FOR DISCLOSING THIS INFORMATION. JOURNALISM HAS CERTAINLY CHANGED THESE DAYS. SOD BOB GATES IS NOT TOO HAPPY ABOUT THIS SITUATION. SOMEONE NEEDS TO CALL A PLUMBER AND TRIM THIS GRAPEVINE. THERE ARE UNFORTUNATE LEAKS IN THE PIPES.TRANSPARENCY IS A GREAT MANEUVER UNLESS IT'S GOING TO COURT.

NO DOUBT, THE FOLLOWING IN DEPTH INVESTIGATIONS WILL PIN DOWN THE 'ACCOUNTABILITY FACTOR' INVOLVED HERE. GATES IS GOING TO ANNOUNCE A FORMER DEFENSE OFFICIAL WHO WILL COMMAND THE SHOVEL ON THIS DIG. OF MORE CONCERN IS...HOW MANY MORE ARE OUT THERE? INDEED MILITARY OFFICIALS ARE TIGHTENING UP SECURITY MEASURES, BUT, WE HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO HERE. 'COMPLACENCY' WAS CERTAINLY A DANCING PARTNER. WHEN YOU INVITE COMPLACENCY IN....YOU INVITE THE UNWANTED. THIS ONE OVERSTAYED HIS WELCOME.

MY THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS GO OUT TO ALL THOSE WHO SUFFERED LOSS FROM THE FORT HOOD INCIDENT. I HAVE SAVED SOME OF THOSE FOR THE 'UNFORTUNATE 5' PROTESTORS IN IRAN WHO HAVE BEEN SENTENCED TO DEATH. I BELIEVE THIS UNJUST AND INHUMANE SENTENCING FOR MERELY PROTESTING READS AS FOLLOWS...FOR.."CORRUPTION ON EARTH AND ACTS AGAINST GOD." WE KNOW WHERE GOD SITS HERE AND IT'S NOT ON THEIR SIDE OF THE GAVEL.

HOW DIFFICULT IT MUST BE FOR OUR COMPASSIONATE PRESIDENT TO WITNESS THIS TYPE OF INHUMANITY TO MAN. THESE ARE THE DAYS WHEN YOU WANT TO KICK YOURSELF BECAUSE YOU CAN'T END ALL OF THIS WORLD CONFLICT AND SAVE ALL OF THESE LIVES FROM EITHER MONSTERS OR STARVATION. THIS IS WHERE INDEED...YOU MUST PRAY!

MAY GOD DEEPLY BLESS PRESIDENT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA. WELCOME HOME MR.PRESIDENT AND YOUR EQUALLY COMMITTED ENTOURAGE. THE WORLD WATCHED YOU...THOSE WHO DIDN'T WALK IN YOUR SHOES IN ASIA NEED TO SAVE THEIR CRITICISMS FOR THEIR OWN MIRROR DURING ONE OF THEIR NUMEROUS SELFISH MORNINGS. THANK YOU FOR OPENING MORE DOORS TO 'CHANGE.' WE CERTAINLY NEED THIS...DON'T WE? MAY GOD BLESS THESE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA...THIS PLACE WHERE WE NEED TO LEARN TO COUNT THE BLESSINGS THAT WE HAVE. YOU, MR. PRESIDENT AND YOUR ADMINISTRATION ARE AMONG THE MANY!

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U.S. residents fight for the right to hang laundry

By Fire Is Born - Nov 18th, 2009 at 9:53 pm EST

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I say hang'em!

It is human, silent and unobtrusive. I say, ban the mow-blow-and-go "gardeners"- they are not. One of the special pleasures of travel in Central America are the old fashioned loundry rituals. There, it is not question of choice. Laundry is done by women's hands and is hang outside, watched carefuly, hastily carried inside when rain comes. For many women it is the only source of income. These women, I once thought, should also be awarded all those big green prizes that go to somebody else.

I think more hanging laundry would make our USA neighborhoods safer. Perhaps the sight of children playing ouside would return with it. fib

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November 18, 2009 | 1 comments

U.S. residents fight for the right to hang laundry

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U.S. residents fight for the right to hang laundry

Carin Froehlich has help from her granddaughter Ava as they hang some laundry in the front yard of her residence in Perkasie, Pennsylvania, November 12, 2009. REUTERS/Tim Shaffer

By Jon Hurdle

PERKASIE, Pennsylvania (Reuters) - Carin Froehlich pegs her laundry to three clotheslines strung between trees outside her 18th-century farmhouse, knowing that her actions annoy local officials who have asked her to stop.

Froehlich is among the growing number of people across America fighting for the right to dry their laundry outside against a rising tide of housing associations who oppose the practice despite its energy-saving green appeal.

Although there are no formal laws in this southeast Pennsylvania town against drying laundry outside, a town official called Froehlich to ask her to stop drying clothes in the sun. And she received two anonymous notes from neighbors saying they did not want to see her underwear flapping about.

"They said it made the place look like trailer trash," she said, in her yard across the street from a row of neat, suburban houses. "They said they didn't want to look at my 'unmentionables.'"

Froehlich says she hangs her underwear inside. The effervescent 54-year-old is one of a growing number of Americans demanding the right to dry laundry on clotheslines despite local rules and a culture that frowns on it.

Their interests are represented by Project Laundry List, a group that argues people can save money and reduce carbon emissions by not using their electric or gas dryers, according to the group's executive director, Alexander Lee.

Widespread adoption of clotheslines could significantly reduce U.S. energy consumption, argued Lee, who said dryer use accounts for about 6 percent of U.S. residential electricity use.

Florida, Utah, Maine, Vermont, Colorado, and Hawaii have passed laws restricting the rights of local authorities to stop residents using clotheslines. Another five states are considering similar measures, said Lee, 35, a former lawyer who quit to run the non-profit group.

'RIGHT TO HANG'

His principal opponents are the housing associations such as condominiums and townhouse communities that are home to an estimated 60 million Americans, or about 20 percent of the population. About half of those organizations have 'no hanging' rules, Lee said, and enforce them with fines.

Carl Weiner, a lawyer for about 50 homeowners associations in suburban Philadelphia, said the no-hanging rules are usually included by the communities' developers along with regulations such as a ban on sheds or commercial vehicles.

The no-hanging rules are an aesthetic issue, Weiner said.

"The consensus in most communities is that people don't want to see everybody else's laundry."

He said opposition to clotheslines may ease as more people understand it can save energy and reduce greenhouse gases.

"There is more awareness of impact on the environment," he said. "I would not be surprised to see people questioning these restrictions."

For Froehlich, the "right to hang" is the embodiment of the American tradition of freedom.

"If my husband has a right to have guns in the house, I have a right to hang laundry," said Froehlich, who is writing a book on the subject.

Besides, it saves money. Line-drying laundry for a family of five saves $83 a month in electric bills, she said.

Kevin Firth, who owns a two-bedroom condominium in a Dublin, Pennsylvania housing association, said he was fined $100 by the association for putting up a clothesline in a common area.

"It made me angry and upset," said Firth, a 27-year-old carpenter. "I like having the laundry drying in the sun. It's something I have always done since I was a little kid."

(Editing by Mark Egan and Paul Simao)

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Sez Me at 05:41 PM on 11/18/09
Has it occurred to anyone that when your neighbours can tell you that you can't hang your laundry out to dry, you might be getting a little short on that "freedom" we are all supposed to enjoy in our "free countries" here in North America?Reply | Report Abuse

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A letter from a friend in Kabul

By Fire Is Born - Nov 18th, 2009 at 9:24 pm EST

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Some time ago we said good bye to Duston who told us he would be going back to Kabul. So he went. Usually when incidents like the most recent Kabul bombing happen, one thinks of one's friends that could be there, in danger. And so I did as well, thinking he must be well anyway, most likely. Kabul is big (I thought). Not so. It is a small world after all. This is what came yesterday. fib

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Hibiscus Tea and Honey in Berlin

"Dear Friends,

At first, I should offer a quick explanation of this letter: I have not yet read any email replies you may have sent me since my last correspondence back around mid October or so. I am currently drinking Hibiscus Tea sweetened with a little honey in an Army Hospital in Berlin Germany. My Laptop Computer has not had internet for two weeks:

October 28th, 2009 began with a loud bang at exactly 6 AM Kabul time. Actually an explosion at the front gate to the Guesthouse where I was living. I don’t know if it was an RPG or Suicide Bomber, and will truly never know for a fact which one it was. The first explosion was followed by machine gun firing and then an RPG hit the front of the building. The Taleban killed the exterior gate residence guards, entered the front house and proceeded to kill as many UN Election Employees as possible before the Police arrived. A long and intense gun-battle ensued over the next hour and a half and the attackers were eventually killed around 7:30 AM. Some of my friends, and some employees, of the Guesthouse were also killed and many wounded during this incident.

I escaped physically unharmed within 90 seconds of the first sound of the attack.

The media incorrectly portrayed the building as the “UN Guesthouse” whereas technically it was a privately run guesthouse, and I referred to it in earlier email to you as the “Zoo”, because it had lots of animals and birds on the property. I do not know who survived other than I have a “story” of the massacre as I experienced it. I ended up with a large group of UN Election Employees who also survived as we hid together in the neighboring courtyard while the Taleban shot it out with the surviving guards, burned down the place and then shot it out again with the Police.

Around 7:40 AM , I was transferred by the Police to a temporary safe location, and then the Bank security man found me and I was taken to the big famous Hotel ( The Serena ) which is heavily guarded in downtown Kabul. Immediately after I arrived, I was standing in the Hotel Lobby , on the cell phone, calling the Germans who I work for, when a mortar round or RPG hit the Lobby. The glass exploded , and once again, I was not injured and everyone ran to the Hotel bunker to wait for the All Clear sign. The Hotel suffered nothing but broken glass and some jittered nerves, but for me, it was the second attack in less than two hours and I withdrew into my own little brain…..telling myself that no place was safe as it seemed like the terror was following me around that morning in Kabul.

Since then, I have stayed in German Army Hospitals except for the plane rides to Germany where I am now. I am receiving treatment for Psychological Trauma and am getting better quickly. I hope to be released to Outpatient within about 4 days. And then about a month more of Outpatient therapy and then final release back into the employment world when I will be able to totally navigate on my own. The goal is to prevent and reduce the long term possibility or impact of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ( “PTSB”) which we all heard of with the Korean and Vietnam War Veterans and other traumatic incident survivors.

I shall not assign my survival that day to my training, skills, experience and quick thinking ( although I am told by many that it was a critical part of my actions and movement within the first minute of the attack ). I have been given yet another chance on the Planet by my Higher Power. I am no more “religious” today than I was a minute before 6 AM on October 28th; however I have grown substantially. My spirituality is stronger now than ever; and I am convinced that God has a Plan for me, I just need to follow the Steps and listen for His guidance on a daily basis.

Only once since then have I wanted or seriously thought of taking a drink, and I asked to be relieved of that notion, and it was granted. I take some light weight sleeping medication and hope to reduce the strength soon, then be totally free of it within two more weeks or so depending on what the Doctors say. I am receiving excellent medical care here in Germany, with three Doctors and a bevy of Nurses. I see a Trauma Specialist MD every other day and I am recuperating well.

My employment contracts ends in February so money is temporarily not a problem, and I have good insurance for the hospital expenses. So, for today, all I ask for is another chance to be free of my Weaknesses and Character Defects and look for the next path I am to take.

I totally and unconditionally TRUST.

Work the Steps. Turn it over to God. Clean House. Help Others.

With ALL my Love,

Duston"

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Trash

By Walt - Nov 18th, 2009 at 12:07 pm EST

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As a service project, I collect trash from nearby BLM land and I have been doing that since January 19 when Barack asked all Americans for a day of service. I have found all of the following: a large tree stump, palm fronds, construction material, aluminum awnings, a dead dog wrapped in a hospital blanket, paper and plastic cups, auto parts, broken glass galore, empty cartridges, both printer and gun, cans and today currency. I now know that the favorite beverage of the litterer is Bud Lite. Like dogs, some litterers try to bury their trash but most don't bother.

How to prevent this mess? I have two suggestions. Prohibit the sale of beer in bottles. Cans are much easier to pick up and less glass means fewer flat tires and cuts. Secondly, make trash pickup free. I believe that some dumping is an effort to save money. Make trash pickup at home more convenient by responding to phone calls for special pickups.

Utahns want to have more of Utah under state control, rather than Federal control that now exists over much of the state. Will Utah control of our undeveloped lands lead to better care of those lands?

Like dogs, empty beer bottles travel in groups called packs, usually six in number, sometimes more. When I find an empty bottle, I usually can expect to find five more. Does someone drink six bottles at one place in the road? I think not. They just unload by throwing the empties from the window of a moving vehicle. If I am lucky, the bottle has had a soft landing. Otherwise, there are dozens of pieces that can cause potential harm. If the penalty for throwing bottles from a car were greater than for having them in the car, people would think twice before dumping their trash.

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Living wage

By Walt - Nov 18th, 2009 at 12:04 pm EST

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I support a living wage, which varies depending on where you live, and is approximately double the minimum wage. The living wage is defined as the amount needed to bring a family of four up to the federal poverty line. Why do I support it? If the minimum wage were increased to a living wage, all other wages would be increased and all of us would enjoy a higher standard of living. Detractors point out that some entry level jobs would disappear. That is true. I would train those lacking jobs to fill higher paying skilled jobs.

The question that needs to be asked and no one is asking is: who is willing, are you or are we, to be associated with an economy that forces millions to work for near starvation wages? I am NOT. This nation has the resources to provide a dignified life for all who work. If a job is worth doing, it is worth paying a living wage for its performance.

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THE PRESS...'AS USUAL' NEEDS...A WAKE-UP CALL!

By SUE DUVALL SMITH from IndianaV.O.B. - Nov 18th, 2009 at 7:36 am EST

Also listed in: Indiana Obama Supporters | Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA) | South Central Indiana for Obama 08

PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS JUST ARRIVED IN SOUTH KOREA THIS MORNING. AT 6:00A.M. ET CNN JUST AIRED AN INTERVIEW WITH THE PRESIDENT CONDUCTED BY ED HENRY BEFORE HE LEFT BEIJING. OF COURSE ONE OF THE FIRST QUESTIONS OUT OF HENRY'S MOUTH JUST HAD TO BE...'DO YOU FEEL SOME PRESSURE TO GET SOME OF THESE THINGS DONE?" HENRY WAS REFERENCING EVERYTHING FROM THE STRATEGY IN AFGHANISTAN TO HEALTHCARE REFORM DURING THIS PRESIDENTIAL INQUISITION. MY QUESTION TO ED HENRY IS "WHEN DO YOU START LISTENING TO THE PRESIDENT'S ANSWERS AND STOP REITERATING THE SAME QUESTIONS?"

PRESIDENT OBAMA IS RECOGNIZED FOR HIS PATIENCE WHICH IS CERTAINLY NEEDED WHEN THE PRESS CONTINUES TO 'PETE AND REPEAT',PENCIL POINTING AT THE SAME ISSUES. HIS ANSWERS TO CONTINUED STRATEGY IN AFGHANISTAN WILL WAIT UNTIL HE'S READY. DARE I REPEAT MYSELF...THE PRESIDENT REITERATED AN ANSWER FORTHCOMING IN 'A FEW WEEKS!'

AGAIN...THE PRESIDENT REITERATED THE ISSUES HE IS FACING...PRIORITY #1...PROTECTING AMERICA AGAINST TERRORISM. COMPLICATING THE CHALLENGES ARE THE STABILITY ISSUES PERTAINING TO THE CURRENT KARZAI GOVERNMENT AND A DEEP CONCERN FOR THE PEOPLE OF AFGHANISTAN AND THEIR ABILITY TO STAND ON THEIR OWN. THIS IS CALLED 'HUMANITARIAN' CONCERN IN CASE ANYONE HAS FORGOTTEN ABOUT THAT PARTICULAR FORM OF COMPASSION. I SINCERELY HOPE ED HENRY WROTE HIS ANSWER DOWN THIS TIME.PERHAPS A 'POST-IT NOTE' PLASTERED TO HIS FOREHEAD WOULD BE HELPFULLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!

ONE WOULD THINK THE PRESIDENT & COMPANY HAD GONE BOWLING OVERSEAS FOR A WEEK. HENRY NEEDED TO KNOW WHAT THE PRESIDENT THOUGHT HE ACCOMPLISHED IN HIS TREK TO ASIA. OF COURSE THE PRESS MAKES IT SOUND LIKE HE DETOURED TO MICKEY D'S FOR A BURGER AND FRIES. DON'T FORGET THE PICKLES!!!!

IT DIDN'T TAKE THE PRESIDENT LONG TO QUOTE SOME SUCCESSFUL POLL RESULTS THAT SPEAK WELL FOR OUR IMPROVED STANDING IN THE WORLD TODAY. ACCORDING TO THE PRESIDENT, 75% OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE BELIEVE WE HAVE UPGRADED OURSELVES IN OUR INTERNATIONAL REPUTATION. THIS FACT IS QUITE OBVIOUS AND DEAR MR. PRESIDENT....I DO HOPE YOU ARE PROUD OF YOURSELF AS WELL AS YOUR AWESOME TEAM ADVOCATES WHO KNOW HOW TO KNOCK ON DOORS AND INVITE 'PEACE' INTO THE ROOM.

DARE I MENTION THE 'NOBEL PEACE PRIZE' YOU ARE SO HUMBLE ABOUT RECEIVING. IF IT WEREN'T FOR YOUR COMPASSION FOR INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMACY, WE WOULD STILL BE SITTING IN AN UNPOPULAR DUNK TANK WITH 'PECOS PETE!' WHEN YOU RECEIVE THIS HONOR NEXT MONTH, I INTEND TO VARNISH IT AND PRESS IT TO YOUR BEST SUIT!...THAT'S IF WE CAN CATCH YOU!!!!!!

THE PRESIDENT ALSO MENTIONED IMPROVED INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS WITH REGARD TO NUCLEAR ISSUES. NO DOUBT THIS PRESIDENT HAS APPROACHED AND ADDRESSED SOME VERY DIFFICULT ARENAS OVERSEAS. BEHIND THAT OBAMA SMILE IS A GIFT OF DIPLOMACY THAT HAS WON ROUNDTABLE PARTICIPATION FROM THE UNEXPECTED. THIS IS A UNIQUE GIFT EQUALLY PRESENTED WITH SINCERITY. WHEN YOU POSSESS THIS KIND OF CARE AND INTERNATIONAL CONCERN FOR WORLD AFFAIRS...YOUR ELEVATOR HAS ONLY ONE WAY TO GO....UP!!!! ALL OF THESE CONVERSATIONS HAVE ADDED SEVERAL,ONCE DOUBTFUL...CHAIRS TO THE TABLE. CONSIDERING THE SHARED INPUT, THE IRANIAN GOVERNMENT HAD BETTER TAKE A GOOD LOOK AT ITS CURRENT APPROVAL RATING.

TO THE CRITICS OUT THERE WHO ARE LOOKING FOR A PLETHORA OF NEW INFORMATION FROM THE PRESIDENT....DON'T BLAME HIM FOR REPETITIVE ANSWERS. THE PRESS NEEDS TO ASK SOME NEW QUESTIONS. THE PRESIDENT SHOULD NOT HAVE TO CONTINUALLY ANSWER TO AFGHANISTAN. 'PRESSURE' ROLLS OFF HIS BACK...BECAUSE HE VALUES HIS RESPONSIBILITIES.

AS WE ARE ENTERING THE THANKSGIVING HOLIDAYS, PLEASE VOLUNTEER YOURSELVES TO A SHELTER KITCHEN OR TO A GROCERY STORE WHERE YOU CAN PURCHASE SOME FOOD ITEMS TO FEED A NEEDY FAMILY. THE LATEST STATS ON HUNGRY KIDS IN AMERICA ARE EMBARRASSING. ONE MILLION CHILDREN GO HUNGRY IN THIS COUNTRY AND THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR IT.

IF YOU CAN STAND IN A CROWD AT AN AUCTION AND PAY $14,500 FOR BERNIE MADOFF'S METS JACKET, THINK ABOUT HOW MANY KIDS YOUR SPENDING SPREE COULD HAVE FED. WHILE YOU ARE TUCKING THAT JACKET IN A CLOSET, SOME KIDS ARE LIVING IN THEIRS...NO CLOTHES...NO FOOD...THIS CAN'T HAPPEN IN AMERICA! PLEASE TRAVEL WITH YOUR SELF-CONSUMED WALLETS TO THE NEAREST VENDOR AND AID IN FEEDING THE POOR IN THIS COUNTRY.

I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY ANYONE WOULD WANT TO OWN ANYTHING THAT BELONGED TO THIS SCAMMER WHO ABSCONDED WITH EVEN CHARITABLE FUNDS. PURCHASE SOME WARM WINTER COATS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED THEM. YOUR CLOSET WILL BE FILLED WITH JOY INSTEAD OF SCRAPS FROM A SCAMMER. WE KNOW WHERE HE'S SPENDING HIS THANKSGIVING! I WONDER IF THEY HAVE POWDERED TURKEY BEHIND BARS. IF NOT, PERHAPS THEY SAVED THAT ONE PALIN GROUND LAST YEAR ON PUBLIC TELEVISION! YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!

MAY GOD DEEPLY BLESS PRESIDENT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA AS HE MEETS IN SOUTH KOREA TODAY. THIS IS THE FINAL TREK IN HIS ASIAN ADVENTURE. IS HE HOME YET????????

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A SIGHT TO BEHOLD....AMERICAN STRENGTH IN BEIJING!

By SUE DUVALL SMITH from IndianaV.O.B. - Nov 17th, 2009 at 8:42 am EST

Also listed in: Indiana Obama Supporters | Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA) | South Central Indiana for Obama 08

IF ANYONE WATCHED THE BEIJING CEREMONY YESTERDAY WELCOMING PRESIDENT OBAMA....AND HIS AWESOME BACK-UP TEAM...LET'S HOPE YOU CONSIDERED THIS....IT TAKES AN UNBELIEVABLE AMOUNT OF COURAGE AND FORTITUDE TO WALK BRAVELY INTO THE UNKNOWN.

AS I GAZED AT THE TREMENDOUS GATHERING OF CHINESE MILITARY PRESENCE, I THOUGHT ...HERE IS A PRESIDENT AND HIS SUPPORTIVE ADMINISTRATION WILLING TO SHAKE HANDS WITH THOSE WHO VALUE COMMUNISM. WE FORGET THAT THIS MANEUVER CALLS FOR THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF TOLERANCE THAT ANY HUMAN BEING SEEKING EQUALITY AND HUMAN RIGHTS CAN OFFER. THIS IS ALSO REACHING FOR THE PRIORITY THAT GOD CALLS UPON....EXTENDING THE UNCLENCHED FIST REGARDLESS OF THE SITUATION.

SEEKING 'PEACE' DEMANDS THESE THINGS. FOR SO LONG, WE HAVE REMAINED IGNORANT OF OUR DUTIES TO INVITE STRANGERS TO OUR TABLE. FOR SO LONG, WE HAVE BEEN AFRAID TO STEP ON THEIR WELCOME MAT. INDEED, THIS IS SEEKING 'CHANGE' AT ITS HIGHEST LEVEL AND THOSE WHO DO SO ARE TO BE RESPECTED AND ADMIRED. IT HAS BEEN EASIER AND LESS COMPLICATED FOR MANY JUST TO REACH INTO THE 'WAR TOY TOOLBOX' TO EXPRESS OUR DISCONTENT. THIS UNFORTUNATELY, HAS COME AT THE COST OF ALL SO MANY LIVES IN OUR HISTORY...THOSE TOO NUMEROUS TO MENTION.

WHILE CRITICS HERE,MOST WITH ALTERIOR MOTIVES...ARE BUSY SCRUTINIZING THE PRESIDENT'S EVERY MOVE OVERSEAS.....IT IS TIME TO BE THANKFUL FOR A PRESIDENT WHO IS TEACHING US OUR 'NEEDED INTERNATIONAL VALUES'. WHILE HE STROLLS THROUGH THESE CHALLENGES WITH UNQUESTIONABLE 'FIRE IN HIS SHOES,' THIS IS A COMBINATION OF SINCERELY FELT GOODWILL AND CONFIDENCE THAT NO DOUBT OPENED SEVERAL DOORS IN CHINA. 'GOODWILL' IS A FORTUNATE DISEASE THAT SPREADS AND IN BETWEEN SMILES AND HANDSHAKES AND ALL OF THE EFFORTS TO MEET WITH PROTOCAL, THE LESSONS WE ALL NEED ARE LEFT BEHIND AND THEY ARE NOT FORGOTTEN.

IT'S EASY TO CRITICIZE IF WE ARE SO POLITICALLY INCLINED, AS WE STAND HERE SHELTERED IN AMERICA'S COMFORT ZONE. TRY WALKING 'OUT OF THE BOX' INTO THE HANDS OF THOSE WHO QUESTION OUR DEMOCRATIC PROCESS. I DARESAY, THE 'BUSY AS USUAL' PUNDITS WOULD PREFER TO STAY IN THEIR OWN CLOSET WITH THE REST OF THEIR MOST FAMILIAR AND ILL-SEEKING LOBBYISTS.

MOST OF THESE CRITICS WOULD NEVER BOW TO ANOTHER COUNTRY'S CULTURAL CUSTOMS. THEY BELIEVE THIS TO BE AN INSULT TO THE AMERICAN PROFILE. THE PRESIDENT OF COURSE IS BEING CRITICIZED FOR HIS BOW TO THE JAPANESE EMPEROR. THESE CRITICS IGNORE THE 'DO UNTO OTHERS' SCENARIO. THESE CUSTOMS ARE A SIGN OF RESPECT FOR THEIR COUNTRY...WHICH YOU HAPPEN TO BE STANDING IN. IF THERE IS ONE WORD IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE HERE THAT NEEDS SINCERE STUDY...IT'S 'ETIQUETTE.' WHEN INTERNATIONAL VISITORS COME TO THE WHITEHOUSE...THEY ENDEAVOR TO RETURN THE RESPECT FOR THIS COUNTRY. WE NEED TO PAY ATTENTION IN CLASS AND ELEVATE OUR HUMAN BEHAVIOR...WITH CLASS.

DON'T FORGET THAT WHEN THE PRESIDENT RETURNS WITH THE 'GOOD NEWS' FROM THIS ADVENTURE IN ASIA..............DON'T FORGET WHAT IT TOOK IN 'CHARACTER' TO GET THERE. THESE ARE NOT SIMPLE TREKS DESIGNED JUST TO SPOT CHECK THE COUNTRYSIDE. THIS IS SERIOUS BUSINESS.

OUR WORLD IS SO CLOSELY INTERWOVEN. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS 'DISTANCE' ANYMORE. WE ARE ABLE TO COMMUNICATE AND SHARE AND LEARN FROM EACH OTHER. WE SHOULD BE DOING ALL THAT IS NECESSARY IN ORDER TO PROMOTE WORLD UNITY. GOD DID NOT PLACE US ON THIS PLANET TO MERELY PLAY HOST TO OUR OWN BACKYARD.

THIS KIND OF THINKING ONLY CREATES INDIVIDUALISM AND STAGNATE PROTECTIONISM. WE WERE EACH BORN WITH GIFTS TO SHARE. IT IS OUR DUTY AS AMERICANS TO SPREAD GOODWILL TO ALL PARTS OF THIS WORLD WHENEVER WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO SO. SEGREGATION AND SECRET SOCIETIES BREED NOTHING BUT CONTEMPT. OUR SINCERE SEARCH FOR EQUALITY AND HUMAN RIGHTS CANNOT SUCCEED WITHOUT VENTURING INTO THESE UNKNOWNS. AS WE VENTURE, WE RESPECT THE CUSTOMS PRESENTED IN THEIR INVITATION. THIS IS OUR AWESOME OPPORTUNITY TO GAIN A 'FOOT IN THE DOOR' AND PROGRESS TOWARD 'PEACE.'

YOU WILL NEVER FIND A TRUE 'SOCIALIST' INTERESTED IN DIPLOMACY AND WORLD PEACE ENDEAVORS. A 'SOCIALIST' IS FRANKLY QUITE HAPPY WITH CONTROLLING THEIR OWN TURF. THE WORD 'INCLUSION' IS NOT IN THEIR DICTIONARY. THEY ARE SELFISHLY MOTIVATED AND CLING TO THE BIG FISH IN THE SMALL POND THEORY. THEY HAVE NO INTEREST IN EQUALITY AND HUMAN RIGHTS,MAKE THEIR OWN LAWS AND CERTAINLY DO NOT INVITE TRANSPARENCY INTO THEIR GOVERNMENT. FOR THOSE WHO HAVE ACCUSED THIS PRESIDENT OF BEING A 'SOCIALIST'...YOU ARE LOOKING AT A COMPLETELY SELF-SACRIFICING OPPOSITE TO THE AFOREMENTIONED DESCRIPTION. NO FURTHER COMMENT NEEDED HERE.....

MAY GOD DEEPLY BLESS PRESIDENT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA AND HIS UNITED ADMINISTRATION. REMEMBER THAT 'TEAM OF RIVALS' HE INVITED IN??????? FUNNY WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU EXTEND AN UNCLENCHED FIST TO THE UNKNOWN FACTORS IN LIFE. ALTHOUGH AT OPPOSITE ENDS ON THE CAMPAIGN FENCE....WE NOW HAVE A SHOW OF UNITY THAT WILL BRING MUCH NEEDED CHANGE TO THIS COUNTRY....LESSONS WE MUST LEARN FOR THE SAKE OF FUTURE GENERATIONS. THEY ARE DEPENDING ON OUR SOLIDARITY. THEY ARE DEPENDING ON US. THIS IS THEIR INVITATION TO 'HOPE,CHANGE AND A PROSPERITY' THAT DOES NOT COME FROM THE POCKET...IT COMES FROM OUR SOUL AND OUR VALUES. THIS IS WHERE 'DEEP POCKETS' COUNT! MAY GOD BLESS THESE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!

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10 yr old wants liberty and justice for ALL

By ☮ CR ❤ - Nov 16th, 2009 at 9:32 pm EST

Also listed in: 4 groups

Will Phillips, 10-Year-Old, Won't Pledge Allegiance To A Country That Discriminates Against Gays

11/12/09 Huffington Post

UPDATE: Will Phillips appeared on CNN Monday morning with his father, Jay, to discuss his refusal to say the pledge of allegiance.

"I've grown up with a lot of people and I'm good friends with a lot of people who are gay and I think they should have the rights all people should, and I'm not going to swear that they do," the ten-year-old Phillips said.

Jay Phillips, asked if his son was prepared for the media attention, said his son saw it as an opportunity to raise awareness. "He felt that just because he's ten years old doesn't mean he doesn't have opinions, doesn't mean he doesn't have rights, and doesn't mean he can't make a difference."

Watch: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/12/10-year-old-wont-pledge-a_n_355709.html

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

Will says that he wants to be a lawyer. He analyzed the meaning of the "Pledge of Allegiance" and decided that there was not liberty and justice for all. It is people like Will Phillips that take the stand and then change the world for the better.

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Japan's Obama town ecstatic over presidential mention

By ☮ CR ❤ - Nov 16th, 2009 at 12:52 pm EST

Also listed in: Obama Supporters for Positive Dialogue | Obamans for Change in the Americas (CITA) | Women for Obama

Japan's Obama town ecstatic over presidential mention

11/14/09 AFP

TOKYO (AFP) – US President Barack Obama charmed his Tokyo audience on Saturday with references to green tea ice cream, Japanese traditional hospitality and, of course, the small town that bears his name.

"I could not come here without sending my greetings and my gratitude to the citizens of Obama, Japan," said the president to the delight of the western Japan town that has turned its accidental fame into a cottage industry.

The ancient fishing town of 30,000, about 400 kilometres (250 miles) from Tokyo, has long supported its White House namesake, and some of its residents were in Tokyo to steal a glimpse of the president.

Wearing "I Love Obama" T-shirts, a small delegation braved rainy weather on a Tokyo sidewalk and waved as the presidential motorcade passed by.

"The president clearly looked at us and recognised us," said an excited Seiji Fujihara, who leads a dance troupe that on Friday performed a hula dance in honour of the president, who was born in Hawaii.

"I was so touched when President Obama mentioned our town," Fujihara gushed. "I felt goose bumps."

Obama in his speech Saturday recalled a childhood visit to Kamakura, a temple-studded town near Tokyo, where he "looked up at that centuries-old symbol of peace and tranquility, the great bronze Amida Buddha."

Then he quipped: "As a child, I was more focused on the matcha (green tea) ice cream. But I have never forgotten the warmth and hospitality that the Japanese people showed a young American far from home."

Obamania was alive and well among the audience -- where many hailed his personal charm and wide knowledge about the region.

"His voice was good. He spoke naturally. He has something that attracts people," said Yasuko Maki, a 60-year-old housewife.

Her husband, Akihiro, 66, agreed: "He covered every subject and explained how America will handle it. He intends to work as our partner. He is different from former US presidents."

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