Sometimes I feel a bit frustrated at not being able to participate live in is happening in the USA. But my life is here in the UK, and I have to accept that.
Today I realized that there is something concrete I can do: stay in dialogue with the people in my family who are susceptible to the right-wing media. I always have kept in touch with my large extended family, because I'm a family person. A proud moment in my life was when my Cajun grandmother said to somebody, "Kate always gets along with people". This is one of the things that impressed me about President Obama, too: I was thrilled on election night when he said he was going to listen especially to the people who hadn't voted for him.
Today I got a forwarded message from a cousin saying that President Obama had sponsored and signed a law to allow Palestinian terrorists to enter the USA and get money to establish their homes here. One impulse was just to delete this trash. But I took the time to look it up on Snopes.com, and carefully replied to every single person that was on the multiple forwarding lists, pointing out with humour that the story was false. It won't change many of these people's minds. But if it makes even one of them think twice about this particular story, and about other stories like this, I will have done something.
Keep the faith,
CajunKate
PS Great BBC Radio 4 program on Pete Seeger last night - if you missed it, check out http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/search/?q=pete%20seeger
Dear Obama Friends,
For those of you who can, I'll meet you next Saturday in London (UK), at the Tottenham....
We wiil share our experiences and patos...
See you there,
Simone, your italian friend
We have the final answer to our question Will Obama win? So now 2009 will be the first of 8 (or more) years of real progress in all the fields that have been ignored or missmanaged during The Bush Aberration.
Do enjoy your first Happy New Obama Year, 2009!!!
Regards,
John from http://willobamawin.com/
Good news! We received our inventory from the factory a couple of days earlier than expected. All remaining orders placed by 11/05 are packaged and being picked up by the postal service on Monday. Hurray!!! You'll have them in just a few short days. Later today we'll have a better idea of just how far beyond 11/05 we'll be able to go. The factory is already working on the next batch which we expect will arrive before 11/30. If you're thinking of giving Ojamas as Christmas gifts, or you want them to wear in time for the inauguration, please do not wait to order them. Producing sufficient quantities depends heavily on our ability to estimate demand as far in advance as possible. If you order now, we can virtually guarantee you will have yours by the 2nd week of December.
We fill orders on a first in/first out basis, so if we don't get your order until December 20th, our ability to fill it depends on how many orders came in before yours and how much inventory is left at that time. We're not just encouraging to order early to artificially inflate sales projections for some corporate big wig. We simply want to provide you the best product as quickly as possible.
More good news! We have added a Newsletter capability to our web site. You don't have to be an existing customer to sign up. If you'd like to receive updates, promotional offers, discount coupons and news by email, just sign up in the box below or the one at the bottom page of our web store. ps: there's a special offer going out Tuesday for everyone who signs up by Monday night.
Dear President-Elect Barack Obama,
My sincere condolences and deepest sympathy upon the passing of your beloved grandmother.
As The Original New York City Free Advice Man I would like to congratulate you, your wonderful family, friends and all our fellow supporters, true Democrats, real Republicans, sensible Independents and others, for getting you elected the next President of Our United States of America! I am exceedingly grateful to you and Vice-President-Elect Joe Biden, whom I consider a friend, for putting up with all the senseless garbage and difficulties that our opponents threw at us during this long, testing and tiring campaign. You can count on me to provide you, your administration and our government any and all Quality Free Advice, Objective Criticism, Critical Insight and Foresight needed to help insure that the coming four years or more will be successful, especially in restoring Our American image and reputation abroad and our Constitution at home.
Having been a specific target of those who have unscrupulously, severely damaged our country I hope to have the opportunity to meet you and/or my friend Joe Biden (who was my preference until you’re very promising Iowa Caucus victory) and briefly discuss my very unpleasant experiences these past seven plus years. I also hope my YouTube endorsement video (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Ejts46Ll1Nk ) helped a little bit, and that all my other efforts at home (Maryland/DC) and here in London contributed to our success. Should you ever need the views/ideas/opinions of someone who truly thinks way outside of ‘the box’, then remember that The Free Advice Man is fully at your service. Consider me one of your National Philosophical Advisors!
Respectfully yours, best, J
ean-Pierre Ady Fenyo
Philosopher-at-Large
The Original New York City Free Advice Man ( www.infinitysociety.org/FREEADVICEMAN )
November 3, 2008 Edgware, London, England, UK Europe
Having been a specific target of those who have unscrupulously, severely damaged our country I hope to have the opportunity to meet you and/or my friend Joe Biden (who was my preference until you’re very promising Iowa Caucus victory) and briefly discuss my very unpleasant experiences these past seven plus years.
I also hope my YouTube endorsement video (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Ejts46Ll1Nk ) helped a little bit, and that all my other efforts at home (Maryland/DC) and here in London contributed to our success. Should you ever need the views/ideas/opinions of someone who truly thinks way outside of ‘the box’, then remember that The Free Advice Man is fully at your service. Consider me one of your National Philosophical Advisors!
Respectfully yours, best,
Jean-Pierre Ady Fenyo
November 3, 2008
Edgware, London, England, UK Europe
If you're familiar with The Graham Norton show which airs on BBC Two, tune in to Wednesday's episode for a peek at the latest in political fashion chic, Obama pajamas - Ojamas. You can order yours at Ojamas Sleepwear. Shipping to the UK is approximately $25 USD. The show airs at 22:00 on BBC Two, November 5th.
Full disclosure: I am a socialist. I have been a socialist ever since I could learn about and understand political ideas, and I'll be bold enough to say that I know better than most people in this country what that idea truly means. Even my Democratic friends who are sympathetic to the idea, don't quite understand that socialism is really not about rigid, centralized government control of the entire economy, or the absence of all enterprise. The politically astute Democrats I know look to the Nordic nations for their concept of socialism, as do I, but are often stunned when I inform them that over 70% of the Swedish economy is in private hands, and that successive socialist governments in that country actually allowed it to be that way while running the country for a mostly uninterrupted clip of eighty years. I'm shocked that the "S" word has been introduced into this increasingly nasty campaign in the way it has, especially after the partial nationalization of banks by what purports to be one of the most conservative capitalist administrations in American history. But as we have entered a political Alice-in-Wonderland scenario in the past few weeks, I feel compelled to attempt some kind of brief explanation as to why I, as a real-live, bona fide socialist, am not willing to claim Barack Obama with the word I use to describe my own politics.Let's look at a few things I would want as a socialist, and compare that to what Barack Obama is willing to give me as President. First and foremost, I want a health care system that is understood to be, and is structured as, an essential right of any self-respecting society. A system based upon the idea that in order to have a chance in an increasingly competitive global economy, a society must commit to maintaining a healthy workforce, one that does not have to worry about their being and staying healthy. In the same way that most of us agree that providing basic education to children is a good idea, I do indeed want the government to create, and guarantee to me and all others, rich and poor, a national health insurance system on either the Canadian or British model, which takes the profit motive out of the matter of people's health entirely. Barack Obama has no intention of giving that to me, and in fact, I was reluctant to support him when he first declared his candidacy because I thought his health care proposal leaned too far to the right. Unlike John McCain, he wants to provide Americans with some kind of health care, a plan that is better than what we currently have, but nothing that could even be remotely described as socialist. And let's consider education. As a socialist, a publicly funded grade school education is not enough for me. I want publicly funded universities, so that those with the merit and aptitude can attend college without regard to their ability to afford tuition. I want the concept of scholarships extended well beyond charities to the public sector, so that communities and states can fully fund the best students in their area and send them to the best colleges in the same way we send our young children to school each day.
This is a simple matter of reinvesting in ourselves and our future, in the same way that any successful and enterprising businessperson understands that "it takes money to make money," and that the next generation must be properly trained to take over if that business is going to grow. Obama has not promised that kind of public higher education to me, and until he does, he will not be a socialist in my eyes. Next I'm concerned about energy. For this socialist, the continued use of oil is way too detrimental to our environment, as well as to the necessary goal of energy independence from all oil cartels, and the foreign policy decisions that are derived from them. I do not want any more drilling anywhere for this substance that has caused so much harm to both humanity and nature for the past hundred years. I think the potential of humanity to go beyond purely profit-based fuel is enormous, and I want to invest in those individuals and institutions who will remove energy from the profit table, once again because energy is a basic need of modern society.
Let me be clear: I'm not at all against profit, or enterprise, or individuals becoming wealthy as a result of their ideas. But as with health care, I do want the profit motive removed as the primary incentive for innovation in human needs, and here again, Barack Obama is nowhere near addressing this concept. He has gone on record in support of more drilling on our coasts, and that can only benefit the very same petroleum companies that I would like to see made obsolete. Nothing whatsoever of appeal to socialists there.So what is the basis of this accusation that Obama is a socialist? Apparently it's based on three key ideas that Republicans have identified as being socialist: taxes, government intervention in the economy, and the notion of spreading the wealth around to those who have fallen on hard times. Of course the McCain-Palin campaign apparently now considers any form of taxation for the public good to be socialistic, so by their standards, even the Constitution is now a socialist document. [See the 16th Amendment, openly advocated by such rabid socialists as President William Howard Taft.]On the face of it, they've got him (and me). I do believe in all of those things, and Obama has in the past few days used those words —spreading the wealth around— and come out in favour of a government intervention in the economy. But let's look at that a bit closer. You see, I'm actually not in favour of the bailout. You know, that massive "nationalization" that we socialists are supposed to like so much, if the Right is to be believed.
Why?
Because there is absolutely nothing socialist about it. True, it is the largest government intervention in the economy in the history of this nation, which I can't resist emphasizing again was carried out by an administration that talks like the John Birch Society while putting the former Soviet Union to shame in terms of spending. But the idea of a state taking money from its citizens, or here I want to say subjects, to prop up the failed decisions of the rich, is as old as Egypt.
While it's clever to use the phrase "socialism for the rich", there is nothing even remotely socialistic in robbing the poor and disadvantaged to fund the stupid irresponsibility and libertine habits of the unusually wealthy. In fact, this kind of behaviour on the part of any nation-state is exactly what gave birth to the socialist movement itself: the notion that the rich so badly misused the funds they stole from their subjects, that perhaps it was a good idea for the flow of funds to be reversed in the other direction. That brings us to the "spreading the wealth" part of the argument. Well, we socialists surely did not invent the idea, and I'm surprised that the Right would become so incensed over it in the first place. After all, for at least the past 1700 years, the Western world has been teaching itself the Judeo-Christian worldview as revealed in the Bible. Now, in addition to being the foundation of the moral code for the Western world, the Bible offers up a wealth of insights into this question of sharing the wealth, and not just in some idealistic notion of spiritual wealth or hope for wealth in the world to come. Of particular interest would be the Second Letter to the Corinthians, where Paul is talking to the Corinthian congregation about the poor Macedonians. The Macedonians have come upon hard times, but they're a hearty people, and they keep on giving it all they've got, even though they are truly suffering and don't really have much to spare. You might say their economy has take a turn for the worse. Paul asks the Corinthians, who have been doing very well, and are successful in everything they do, to share their wealth with the Macedonians. "It is not that that you ought to relieve other people's needs and leave yourself in hardship," the verse reads, "but there should be a fair balance—your surplus at present may fill their deficit, and another time their surplus may fill your deficit." Very interesting. That sounds a lot like "spreading the wealth around." But looking at the historical timeline, that's obviously not something we socialists can claim as our own; it's the teaching of the New Testament, which in this instance is also derived from a much older teaching in the Jewish Torah about that same idea. Viewed in that way, Barack Obama would appear to be more of a Christian or a Jew than a socialist. I wonder if the McCain campaign will now accuse my friend Barack of being a Christian. At least that accusation would, at long last, be true.
Andrew Hammer is a writer, speaker and activist with over fifteen years of experience as a consultant on faith and politics. He is Secretary General of the International League of Religious Socialists, an associated organization of the Socialist International, which works with people of faith in social democratic parties throughout the world.
Who hasnt seen change when Obama took centre stage. The unity like never before, love to vote. discussion groups. the hope to realise the american dreem. every one is out on streets, everyone fees concerned with what goes on around them. everyone is eager to say what they have never said. Yes there is more to come during Obama reign. Yes Vote for more to come.
Vote Senator Obama to unravel more and better strategies. The strategies you and me have a stake, "a complete house is made of several bricks". Vote Barack the answer to you stories. Vote barack the guy to work with, in times of frustration, in desperation dont you need a good listner, cool and calm 247. Thats why i like Obama - women they like men who listen - not those who shut your idea down. in the offices staff and workers they all crave for a good listner - not a do that one. In difficulty times someone you can rely on -someone you can share your problems with.
To prove what has been achieved during the 22 months of campaign, Visit www.Barackobama.com groups - what problem hasnt been shared in these groups? What mouth has not been accessed a platform? Go youtube as young as zero months to undisclosable years lived on earth. People inside America and people outside America all eyes on Obama> Nothing special other than his love, his likes to deal with issues - clearly seen on kitchen tables he has had.
what havent we seen the past 22 months - no smoke without fire - the past 22 months - where havent we seen fire raising up, in every place Obama reached out. Who doesnt want something the smell of refreshment of new & fresh flowers. He is fresh, his ideas too - what hasnt he said what he is gona do during his reign. One many billion stories to resolve.
The unity, the love, the neighnourhood like never before. "nation building is not one person - every one has a stake - from helping to improve your children education, respect for each other, working hard, being responsible citizen, offering best attitude to whichever the work, love and respect one another no matter the colour, age, religion above all behave honestly.
VOTE OBAMA. VOTE OBAMA. VOTE OBAMA FOR PRESIDENCY 2008. THANK YOU VOTERS.
Joe in the SpotlightBy Larry Rohter AND Liz Robbins
One week ago, Joe Wurzelbacher was just another working man living in a modest ranch house in Toledo, Ohio, thinking about how to expand his plumbing business. But when he stopped Senator Barack Obama during a visit to his block this weekend to ask about his taxes, he set himself on a path to being the newest media celebrity â€" and, like other celebrities, found himself under scrutiny.
Turns out that “Joe the Plumber,� as he became nationally known when Senator John McCain made him a theme at Wednesday night’s third and final presidential debate, may run a plumbing business but he is not a licensed plumber. His full name is Samuel J. Wurzelbacher. And he owes a bit in back taxes.
The premise of his question to Mr. Obama about taxes may also be flawed, according to tax analysts.
An official at Local 50 of the plumber’s union, based in Toledo, said Mr. Wurzelbacher does not hold a license. He also has never served an apprenticeship and does not belong to the union. (The national plumber’s union, the United Association of Plumbers, Steamfitters, and Service Mechanics, endorsed Mr. Obama, it should be noted.)
“He’s basically playing games with the world,� Thomas Joseph, the local’s business manager, said in a telephone interview Thursday morning.
...
Unlike some other states, Ohio does not have a formal statewide licensing system for plumbers. But the city of Toledo and other municipalities do, Mr. Joseph said, and Mr. Wurzelbacher has not met those requirements.
“All contractors are licensed, and he does not have a license, either as a contractor or a plumber,� the union official said, citing a search of government records. “I can’t find that he’s ever even applied for any kind of apprenticeship, and he has never belonged to local 189 in Columbus, which is what he claims on his Facebook page.�
According to public records, Mr. Wurzelbacher has been subject to two liens, each over $1,000, one of which â€" a personal tax lien â€" is still outstanding.
He went on, "You know, I’ve always wanted to ask one of these guys a question and really corner them and get them to answer a question,� he said, “for once instead of tap dancing around it. And unfortunately I asked the question, but I still got a tap dance.�
He added, “Almost as good as Sammy Davis Jr.â
FOREIGN POLICY AND CHILDREN & WOMEN-RAPE IN THE WORLD. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH
THIS HAS TO COME ON THE AGENDA THIS TIME AROUND!! THE STIGMA OF RAPE DOESNT GO AWAY. IW ANT TO HEAR THE CONTENDERS SAYING SOMETHING ABOUT THIS GRAVEST SIN, WHEN SOLDIDERS COMMITT RAPE TO CHILDREN, YOUTH AND WOMEN!!! HEAR THE CRIES BUT WITH NO HELP - ONCE THE HUSBANDS THEY ARE THE DEAD. PUNSIHED MORE ONE ONCE.
The screaming, the tears the pain, i hear women being raped but without help! From all nations where war takes place - i hear women crying from pain - they are raped by soldiers of honour, country men, gangs. Sadly there is very little done the foriegn policy concerns itself with food not with sex inhumanity that goes on in refugee campls, in places of war where many women give birth to unwanted children. where do you get love for such a kid however human you may. the fury, the disgust that my womb carries - a certain baby from a man unknown ,whom i cannot trace. the disgust to imagine the unimaginable - the rapist is the father of my foetus. Cry children from rape, cry women raped everyday - without anyhelp - the stigma felt in Rwanda, Darfur, Irqe, Afaghn, India, Korea, Georgia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Kenya. East Congo, Sudan, Somalia, America, Europe just to mention but a few. Who is responsible for the unwanted children from rape - sometimes from western soldider, the peace keepers. When we talk about foreign policy this is what we mean. Women escaping persecution, women escaping hostile war only to end up in the horror of rape - the act similar to ter. Women escaing hotile wars to end up in the horror of rape, carrying wombs fromt he unknown. Foreign policy need put this on top fo the Agenda.
Foreign policy and women-rape world wide - this has to be on the agenda.
People wonder what is so special about this election. They think of the big things, yet they are not that special, the bewildering economy, iraq, education, women and men, disabled and abled, health cae and insurance, unemployment, greed and corruption in washington you name it, endless wars in the world caused by General Bush. Hasnt all these been there before peoples eyes? Didnt the People see days and months but didnt have the story teller. Not a mere story teller, but of special dyanmism who would corageously lead the change. a person not only my story teller but of great action to get my story onto the shelf,and from there to the table for action.
What is so spcial what they dont say is one man telling a billion stories, everyone of the billion listens attentively as their story unravel near and far, they wait wht next. What follows it comes on the shelf where slowly is bought, then into the table and is discussed. The same man [pushing that far those billion stories. then comes the question who would take action, again comes back the same person Barack, full of determination, wisdom and above all the strategies to unravel in action the billions story he represents. That they dont say. and to take to the next step.
What they dont say - Senator Obama is Peoples President, peoples mandate by the fact he carries billion stories other people. Senator Obama listens, buys, sells and lays strategy way forward.
What they dont say, is the word thank you for no matter the end of the road the stories have unraveled and some peace of mind instilled in some hearts to the billions who had never had the hope of ever thir stories being heard.
What they dont say, he has offered pyschological healing, for the fact that at least my story, my door for once has been knocked. my vote seem it will count. what we dont say is thank you senataor Obama the first phase is done, done honourably, done successfully.
Look at this website -how many stories have been written, how much thoughts have been shared via this interaction "mybarackobama", like never before, what they dont say is thank you for what has been achieved. not all accomplished what they dont say is what so far accomplished.
The rest to accomplish waits tomorrow - For what we say today we need more, but before we get more, Barack we say thank you for telling our stories, for years ruled out, the never wanted to hear stories - today every website carries my stories, the happines you have created, relief of mind. Billion stories are being bought from the internet shelf.
Senator you started the job, we need you to fisinh it, and finsih it successfullly. You sowed the seed, we pray you nurture that seed till it bear the fruits that all Americans and the world will enjoy. the fruits that will be sweet and soothing where we shall all feel the "change".
What they dont say is that change the story teller so far achieved - the exchange of views in billions via internet, the media involvment, the earnings in different promotion activities. what they dont say the visual changes already taken place!! Yet is all crystal clear. What they dont say the billion stories already heard, the grievances shared through you ideologies of community organisation. what they dont say is the great achievement and change your leadership principles, your love for the people and concern has so brough about. How Degree of achievement are awarded, if by this kind of achievements i dont know how many you should be wearing now. the internet providers with all honest should have awarded you how many - what they dont say!!!
what they dont say the increase use of internet, the traffic flow on internet. the primary changes you have achieved where you stimulated all kinds of stories to be told in you.
Yes we can. Thank you Senator, Michelle, the democratic team, well wishers etc.
What
Wow, a sit com length commercial from Obama, to be aired almost right before election. I have to say I am pretty excited about this one, almost like waiting for the fist epiosde of a new show (hopefully this metaphor is a sign of things to come, keep your fingers crossed guys)
Check for more details here: http://kronomy.com/event/2bLnWX5swt/
Ruth
I wanted to let everyone know about a range of t-shirts I have designed in support of Barack Obama in the UK... As a UK citizen I unfortunately cannot vote on November 4. However, after having lived in the States for a couple of years, I was keen to somehow get involved in the movement and this is my way of contributing to the campaign and spreading Obama's message. The t-shirts are available at www.barackobamatshirts.co.uk and are priced at £16.99 (I will hopefully generate enough sales in order to cover my costs - I do not anticipate making any money from this venture). I am encouraging customers to make an optional donation in the region of £5 / $10 through the official campaign website (Please note that as I understand it, only US citizens are allowed to donate). I hope that you like the designs and that this is of real interest to all you Obama supporters in the UK! Go Barack! Steve UK Barack Obama T-Shirts
When I thanked a young student for giving 3 semesters of his time to the Obama campaign, the young man beamed as he said, "He is my JFK!" This young man was clearly proud to be serving his country in this way, to help get elected this progressive and visionary leader.
Thank you, Brian, K!
Just looking at the debate, I really can't say who I feel performed better. It's all pretty standard from both sides, no earth shattering new policies revealed and no major bloopers besides both sides stretching the facts a little, but that's to be expected in all political debates. What do you guys think?
http://kronomy.com/event/7GKhrYmWFt/
usbattle.com
