The People of the State of Michigan enact: the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act.With the recent passage of Michigan's LEGISLATION, the relative state department must Promulgate Rules by which to function effectively. While there is now hope where there was none, these rules will either assist or be a hindrance to the patient.While this Law allows the patient or a "primary caregiver" to grow and provide the Marijuana for the patient, this dictates the patient or caregiver have the necessary skills, equipment, space, finances and time to dedicate to this task full time.Under Michigan Law, a designated caregiver can assist up to 5 patients. This would serve to pool the resources together more efficiently, providing one space, shared equipment cost and presumably a designated "primary caregiver" who is a professional grower.Today in California, of which the Michigan legislation was designed has had a set back handed down by their State Supreme Court which may affect the Promulgation of our Rules moving forward.California Supreme Court Ruling Limits Medical Marijuana DistributionNovember 24th, 2008 In an important legal case decided today that cannabis reform advocates have been waiting on for nearly two years, the California Supreme Court ruled that criminal defendants are not entitled to a defense as Proposition 215 (Prop 215) caregivers if their primary role is only to supply marijuana to patients.
"The Mentch decision highlights the inadequacy of California's current medical marijuana supply system," California NORML coordinator Dale Gieringer told the Indy Bay News . "The law needs to allow for professional licensed growers, as with other medicinal herbs."Full text of the People vs. Mentch is found here~@~The problem with this decision as well as the system set up to provide a "primary caregiver" status is that now the California Supreme Court is mandating these caregivers be relatives, personal friends and attendants, nurses. There are two problems with this finding, first those designated are not qualified to grow Marijuana and the second issue is that of the allowance for a "primary caregiver" to assist up to 5 patients. How many of your relatives and personal friends know 5 people who are legally allowed by state law to use marijuana for medical purposes ? Now expand that criteria throughout the entire state and apply it to the individual families of patients.Wanted: Full Time professional licensed growersWhile I am confident that I shall be approved under the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act, as it is currently being developed I am afraid it will be of no use to me.My individual circumstance is such that I live alone, in a one bedroom apartment on a fixed income which is under the level of poverty. Therefore I am unable to afford the cost of the equipment needed to grow marijuana indoors. I am unable to afford the cost of the energy needed to run a lighting system 24/7 for 90 days straight.I have one friend who has served as a primary caregiver for me when I needed assistance yet, he knows absolutely nothing about growing marijuana. Plus, he barely has time due to his working two jobs just to support himself.As this law stands today, passed by the people of Michigan, while I qualify for coverage under the law I am unable to take advantage of this program due to the stringent requirements related to growing the plants.The Michigan Medical Marihuana Act rules have not been written as yet.I wish to ask everyone to assist me by writing The Bureau of Health Professions (BHP) within the Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH) and lend your voice on this issue with my concerns in mind.http://www.michigan.gov/mdchI believe the best way forward, under the conditions spelled out in this legislation is for patients to organize under cooperatives and collectives with Full Time professional licensed growers.My preference would be to grow my marijuana in the soil, under the sun. That option is not allowed under this law because it calls for the marijuana to be grown in a locked, enclosed room.Thank you for your time and consideration on this matter.
Look for intelligence first.
Careful of those associated to groups, look for independents or moderates.
To build a good staff of advisors, pick 3...2 subordinates, one liberal, one conservative and a moderate open mind above the two.
Investigate backgrounds.
Do not surround yourself with too many of any one group. This leads to "group think" and leaves the voice of reason unheard.
Consider UNations opinions, for they represent the world, and as such what is best or the world, is best for everyone.
Careful not to look to liberal. You want a second term in office. If you take decisive action, with good delivery of "why". Then you present your case to the American people clearly and can easily get public support.
Remember that groups that support growth, also support expansionism. Last I checked there was no new places to go, and in the end someone will suffer.
As for special positions like military buiness etc...experience is key. Do not take on people who are appointees, or place holders. Look for people who worked from the ground up and understand the entire process. Education is important but not as important as experience. Education does not replace experience, it is only additional experience.
Take your time. No job done well is done in a rush. You can rush after you have learned to do the job.
Experience is that marvelous thing that enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again. - Franklin P. Jones
Why is "demonstrated accomplishment" NOT considered above "experience"? Barack Obama's accomplishments are just amazing. Sometimes experience doesn't really mean much. Hoover was very experienced, but a really lousy president. Barack Obama's "lack of experience" is used as a key issue in the election. Yet few have really addressed all the things he has accomplished. I am just putting this together off the top of my head. Where are real experts on this?
In a little over 20 months Obama has, at the very least, changed and probably revolutionized the election process. He put together a team that has raised more money, without being totally beholden to "big money", than anyone in history. His contributions actually represent the "people". He did this with the baggage of African genes, a Muslin name (which he didn't change) and little backing. I call that damn good political and economic experience, quite an accomplishment, great courage and honor to his family and country.
He defeated experienced political opponents with major money backing but still managed to keep the "self-destructive" democrates together. That is great leadership experience, probably on the par of herding cats or being a Democrate 'whisperer'. I believe that he has fundamentally changed the Democratic party. It is about time that happened and something no one has been able to accomplish. After dismissing him he came back pulled them up by the scruff of their neck and said "Now you will listen to reason." He may keep them from "snatching defeat from the jaws of victory". Call it experience call it accomplishment, but it is all Barack Obama.
(more in extended post text)
The end of this election season is coming to an abrupt close. There are 12 days left to cast your vote. Will you wait until the last moment and then rush to cast your vote in a furious flurry, or will you cast a vote early and free up a space in line for someone who cannot get enough time off from work to go to the polls? Now’s the time to make your decision and take action. It’s such a simple thing that has been complicated by the need to automate every aspect of society.
Voting machine technology, which was supposed to simplify the whole process has come up short of the hype. What was supposed to streamline the process, improve accuracy and reliability is now causing interminably long lines at the polls and in the end is not necessarily accurate. We now know that our “state of the art” electronic voting equipment is unreliable at best (see EVEREST report), prone to tampering at worst. So, here are a few tips to help you successfully cast your ballot in a timely manner.
Request a paper ballot instead of using a machine, at least that way you’ve begun to leave a paper trail that you can see has the correct boxes checked. The paper ballots are also easier to correct if you make an error.
By voting early you can avoid having to show I.D. and meet the exact match requirements you would be required to meet when voting on election day. Since you’re using an absentee ballot all you’ll need is the last 4 digits on your Social Security card. So, if you’re able to get to your Board of Elections office and cast a ballot before 11/4/08 please do so, it may help you avoid a lot of frustration on voting day, as well as long lines. Make sure to pick up a voting recommendation card for guidance on who to vote for and how to vote on the issues and judges, from your local party branch. You’re allowed to have one of these cards in the voting booth with you as you make your choices. This is especially helpful in selecting judges, since their party affiliations are not listed like the other candidates. If you anticipate you will be unable to make it to the polls for any reason, or you just want to avoid the hassle, you can request an absentee ballot through the mail. Your ballot will be sent to you, so you can fill it out at your leisure and even ask questions or use the internet to research an issue or judge, etc. before casting the ballot. When you’ve completed it you can send it in the mail or deliver it to the polls on or before election day. Another thing to consider is that each county produces the ballots for their county. Therefore, the ballots in each county may have a different appearance. In fact, some voters have been having problems already with their ballots, because of the format used to lay out the ballot. So, having the time to go over it carefully, where you’re not in a hurry to finish it and turn it in is advantageous for this reason also. Here’s an example of a sample ballot used in one of Ohio’s 88 counties that has caused some confusion because of the 2 columns with presidential nominees. This link will give you all the information you need on Early Voting Locations in Ohio, while also acting as a gateway into the Secretary of State’s website, which has all the current information on successfully casting your ballot in Ohio, as well as information on ballot issues, judges, etc. Ohio has one of the most informative and interactive websites for voters, instituted by the Secretary of State’s office, so make sure to put it to good use. After you have cast your ballot you can go to the site and tell your voting day story, be it good or bad. I’m sure they won’t mind hearing some of the good, as well as the bad and the ugly. You can use the link to The Voting Rights Institute
By voting early you can avoid having to show I.D. and meet the exact match requirements you would be required to meet when voting on election day. Since you’re using an absentee ballot all you’ll need is the last 4 digits on your Social Security card. So, if you’re able to get to your Board of Elections office and cast a ballot before 11/4/08 please do so, it may help you avoid a lot of frustration on voting day, as well as long lines.
Make sure to pick up a voting recommendation card for guidance on who to vote for and how to vote on the issues and judges, from your local party branch. You’re allowed to have one of these cards in the voting booth with you as you make your choices. This is especially helpful in selecting judges, since their party affiliations are not listed like the other candidates.
If you anticipate you will be unable to make it to the polls for any reason, or you just want to avoid the hassle, you can request an absentee ballot through the mail. Your ballot will be sent to you, so you can fill it out at your leisure and even ask questions or use the internet to research an issue or judge, etc. before casting the ballot. When you’ve completed it you can send it in the mail or deliver it to the polls on or before election day.
Another thing to consider is that each county produces the ballots for their county. Therefore, the ballots in each county may have a different appearance. In fact, some voters have been having problems already with their ballots, because of the format used to lay out the ballot. So, having the time to go over it carefully, where you’re not in a hurry to finish it and turn it in is advantageous for this reason also. Here’s an example of a sample ballot used in one of Ohio’s 88 counties that has caused some confusion because of the 2 columns with presidential nominees.
This link will give you all the information you need on Early Voting Locations in Ohio, while also acting as a gateway into the Secretary of State’s website, which has all the current information on successfully casting your ballot in Ohio, as well as information on ballot issues, judges, etc.
Ohio has one of the most informative and interactive websites for voters, instituted by the Secretary of State’s office, so make sure to put it to good use. After you have cast your ballot you can go to the site and tell your voting day story, be it good or bad. I’m sure they won’t mind hearing some of the good, as well as the bad and the ugly. You can use the link to The Voting Rights Institute
Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner has been working diligently to correct the transgressions of her predecessor, the infamous former Secretary of State Blackwell. I have to give her an “A” grade. So far, so good. The system seems to be working. She’s had to fight off a number of lawsuits initiated by the Republicans that were initiated even before this years’ primaries. Some of them, like the latest attempt to disenfranchise approximately 200,000 new registrants have gone all the way to the US Supreme Court, who decided in favor of the Secretary of State.
Ohio has had more than its share of problems with the voting process. But, this year that big yellow sun on the Seal of the Great State of Ohio is shining brightly over a new day in politics for the citizens of Ohio.
Have you ever considered running for Presidency of the USA. Do you realize how much investigating will be carried out? Your family too will be scrutinized. But the tickler of it all is your associates, no matter how close or distant the bonds are between you and them. The truth of it all is that we all have something in our past that may look questionable under such careful scrutiny. When we look at the two Candidates this closely, test results are very clear to me. Barack Obama’s although he has some bumps along the way had always made decision that showed his integrity. He was never hot off the cuff and running to out fires not yet started.
Tried Tested And True
There is much ado about who can
Really be the peoples’ best man
Intelligent and with diverse prowess
Experienced to facilitate certain success
Deliberately choosing to be fully tested
Tossing privacy aside for your life to be vetted
Encouraging the public to see who you are
Showing them you microscopically and not from afar
There is no Presidential Candidate in history
Equaled to Obama under such scrutiny
Dear friends the darkest sides of his past
Are associations with men whose affiliations didn’t last
None of them influenced Obama to be less than he became
Didn’t cause him to live a life of shame
There has been grilling, mud slinging and the a broken economy
Reactions have remained Presidential and cool with integrity
Unmatched by others, so there is one thing left to do
Elect Barack Obama, the Candidate Tried, Tested and True
So I see the recent McCain propoganda Ad that talks about Barack not having executive experience and how the next President needs to have that experience to deal with the first crisis they will face, the economy.
It occurs to me that our current President was governor of Texas for 8 years and has been President for nearly 8 years. That is 15-16 years of executive experience and he is clearly unable to handle this crisis (and many others). This leads me to assert that perhaps simply having executive experience has no bearing on how well someone can handle a crisis.
IF we want to ignore that and actually make the HUGE assumption that it makes a difference, how much executive experience does McCain have? The only thing I've been able to find online that MIGHT be construed as executive is that he was the leader of his flight wing.
This is a tired argument with no real merit. Let's talk about real issues and not red herrings.
When people deride Obama for having a lack of experience, they conveniently forget three things:
McCain has the wrong experience. His entire Navy career he was coddled by his admiral father. McCain should have flunked out of Annapolis. McCain should have washed out of flight school (after stalling and crashing a training aircraft). McCain should have never received a flying assignment or should have been grounded after crashing two more aircraft. Once McCain returned home from Vietnam, he was given cushy Navy posts. What other experience does McCain have? It's all politics from there. McCain has no executive experience. McCain is so ingrained in the Washington political elite old boys club (he invented the old boys club), that he cannot cause any sort of change.
McCain has not learned from his experience. He should have learned from Gulf War I (Desert Storm) that you go into battle only with overwhelming force, and you don't leave a power vacuum.Yet, McCain was a staunch supporter and cheerleader for invading Iraq a second time. Additionally, during the 2000 Republican primaries, George W. Bush and Karl Rove launched a heavily negative, mean, and anti-family values attack on McCain. They said that McCain had fathered a black child out of wedlock (in actuality, he adopted a girl from Bangladesh). The immediate effect was to allow Bush to beat McCain in South Carolina (why the South Carolinians fell for it and based their decision on it is a topic for another discussion). However, after the election when the dust settled, that very negative, racist, unacceptable bahavior put a stain on the Bush presidency (one of many, many stains). McCain then flip-flopped and became Bush's poster child. McCain is now using robocalls and other negative Rovian tactics to attack Obama. My prediction is that they will backfire on McCain.
Finally, McCain has shown extremely poor judgment. The list is long, but three outstandingly poor decisions he has made are:
Barack Obama surrounds himself with brilliant people. He has run his campaign like a precision machine, but with heart. He says he will have a place in his administration for Colin Powell. Obama has shown superior judgment and intellect -- far superior to McCain. We cannot afford a failed McCain presidency.
Obama will return respect and excellence to the office of the President.
On Sunday, Republican Colin Powell, retired Army 4-star general, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and former Secretary of State endorsed Barack Obama.
"I come to the conclusion that because of his ability to inspire, because of the inclusive nature of his campaign, because he is reaching out all across America, because of who he is and his rhetorical abilities -- and we have to take that into account -- as well as his substance -- he has both style and substance -- he has met the standard of being a successful president, being an exceptional president. I think he is a transformational figure. He is a new generation coming into the world -- onto the world stage, onto the American stage -- and for that reason I'll be voting for Senator Barack Obama."
Powell's experience and intellect
Ken Adelman, a lifelong conservative Republican who worked for Goldwater, Nixon, Ford, and Reagan, just endorsed Barack Obama. "Temperament" and "judgment" were his main reason for favoring Obama:
When the economic crisis broke, I found John McCain bouncing all over the place. In those first few crisis days, he was impetuous, inconsistent, and imprudent; ending up just plain weird. Having worked with Ronald Reagan for seven years, and been with him in his critical three summits with Gorbachev, I've concluded that that's no way a president can act under pressure.
Second is judgment. The most important decision John McCain made in his long campaign was deciding on a running mate.
That decision showed appalling lack of judgment. Not only is Sarah Palin not close to being acceptable in high office -- I would not have hired her for even a mid-level post in the arms-control agency. But that selection contradicted McCain's main two, and best two, themes for his campaign -- Country First, and experience counts. Neither can he credibly claim, post-Palin pick.
These sure are weird times when I find myself agreeing with two prominent Republicans. Maybe that shows that Obama can work across the aisle -- and not just in Congress, but across the nation -- more effectively than McCain.
This is the text of what you can find as PDF and WORD in http://forteplan.com/obama/documents and then click on the folder entitled, what-mccain-palin-supporters-are-saying. Here it is, in-line, based on the first two such pieces.
What is this document?It is a running list, blog-like, of responses received by me personally, generally via email, in regard to my public written statements and essays in support of the Obama+Biden ticket and presidency. I have taken it upon myself as part of my active support of the candidacy, and my solid support for across-the-board Change in American socio-economic thinking, politics and action, to communicate my views and other supportive evidence to people who include likely or known supporters of McCain+Palin. In some cases I have been surprised by the vehemence, anger, and hatred expressed in response. In other cases the tone is more civil, but the message is clear. Extreme views, unchangeable views, undercurrents of racism and xenophobia, and a bit more.
So here we go. My comments are always in red italics (unless I made a mistake, which is always possible!)
We The People must be More active than ever and not count (rely) upon anything, including especially pre-election polls, and we must be more vigilant than ever about election fraud and cheating, including especially accuracy in electronic vote reporting!It is far too easy for the current (Bush) administration to effect a change than turns an Obama real electoral victory into a loss by direct hacking of the electronic votes, and Virginia is one that is particularly vulnerable. There is plenty being said about this danger by others including people with greater expertise than myself in fraud generation and prevention.You may share and distribute this document and portions thereof, but please make very certain that you don’t misquote me or, for that matter, others who are mentioned here. For the most part the sources from the McCain-Palin writers are anonymous because none of them in advance said that I could divulge their memos and authorship – to do so would be unethical.===== Things written by McCain-Palin supporters, and my comments in brackets and italics (originally in red font also) ====== (1) Sunday, 19.Oct.2008[White Male from West Coast, financial field]Why would I want to support a candidate like Barack Obama who sanctions the killing of innocent babies? That's analogous to voting for Hitler in the 1930's. Just as pro-death (aka "pro-choice") advocates callously consider fetuses to be sub-humans, Hitler and the Nazis considered Jews, gypsies, and the handicapped to be sub-humans and thus worthy of extermination. Obama's support for abortion is particularly ironic given that African-American babies are being aborted proportionally much higher in the U.S. than white babies. It's doubly ironic given that blacks in the U.S. were once deemed not human by the U.S. Supreme Court (Dred Scott, 1857). What's next -- mandatory euthanasia for the elderly or other defenseless members of society who are deemed to be unproductive?[Comment by MD – Besides the obvious gross errors here, I want you to pay attention to the helter-skelter “mismash” of comparisons and analogies made by the writer. Everything that could sound terrible is being thrown together into a goulash of emotion. Then what comes out? A conclusion is building in his mind that Obama will probably mandate and enforce euthanasia for the elderly, for instance. A powerful and awful image. A strong image. And thus, all the more reason to fight against letting such a person into the Presidency. But where did that stuff about euthanasia originate? Certainly not from any topic, any debate, any discussion by or with Obama, and not even from McCain who is too intelligent to come up with such nonsense.]
(2) Sunday, 19.Oct.2008[White Male from East Coast, software field][MD This is long, and it has my comments embedded throughout. I decided that it is time to address the "pretend to be not a racist" psychology that I see in so many people in America (and replace "racist" with "ethnic" and "national-origin" and "religion" terms because it comes down to the same phenomenon)].
I am going to say what will follow with the preface that there is no incivility or racism in my heart. Most I will not engage with on this topic, but there is a lot going around that nobody will ask because they fear being taken out of context. But I am going to state my case. [MD - What I read through this is: "I am going to express something that makes judgment on the basis of skin color and ethnic/genetic origins, but I don't want to be classed in the same category as Yerkes-Goddard-Terman or Arthur Jensen or William Schockley." By the way, if the reader is not familiar with the last set of names, you should get familiar. Their eugenics thinking is popular among the far-right-wingers, the fascists and neo-cons. Be forewarned of what can be coming to a society around you.]
My reaction to your points about Colin Powell. I don't understand his decision. Yes he is well educated and yes he has a perspective that I must respect. I can only rationalize his perspective from my life experiences.
I have learned that I must filter this type of input. Because individuals have bias. Let me tell you a story about a good friend of mine that I worked with in 1999. He and I were in France on a business trip and the Managing Director of the division took us out to Dinner. And during dinner conversation he inquired why we Americans were racking Mr. Clinton over the coals for an extra marital affair, because in France the trappings of power are seen as acceptable of this activity, Their former President fathered a child with his mistress and they did not do to him what we were then doing to Mr. Clinton.
I gave my opinion. I had no specific issue with the Monica Lewinsky acts. He demonstrated some principles that under that type of pressure he could draw a line. But what I had a problem with was that both Clintons boldly lied on many issue's from travel gate to white water to name just 2 cases and the only lie we could actually catch them on was his feeling of superiority that he was above the law and could lie because nobody had a right to ask those questions. This is so anti American, but that is history. You see what I want in my leader is someone that will tell the truth and instill faith in me that he has values and cares about the same things I do.
Well, my friend and business associate had a different perspective. You see he is African American. And he is a die hard Democrat, As he stated he could never vote for a Republican regardless of the person, because the Democratic party always fought for the rights of the Black People. And Bill Clinton gets a pass because he fights for the rights of the Black People. [MD - Above and beyond the other mistakes in logic expressed here by this writer, now here is where there is a real "turn" and "shift" of significance. Look, he is claiming that Clinton's poor performance in personal ethics (which in my opinion cannot be denied) was "OK" on the basis of "he was a cool guy for African-Americans". Well, this just does not hold, does not follow. So what about the Frenchman, or myself, holding pretty much the same view as that French fellow - but I am not black, nor French, nor a Clinton-liker.]So the individual and his character traits are filtered by this bias? This did not make sense to me, especially since Mr. Lincoln was a republican, but he was a friend and I felt I must accept him for his perspective, so I decided to be quiet and resigned myself to disagree with him but not in public and let the conversation change to other topics.
[MD - OK, let's be accurate, too about history. Lincoln was originally NOT in favor of freeing the slaves, at all, until sufficiently pressured and shown that it was necessary for political and military reasons. Yes, he was not a blatant racist, and he had grave and serious personal and philosophical differences and misgivings about slavery, but he was not about to the "rock the boat" and did not take a strong stand against slavery early in his presidency, nor during the first years of the Civil War, for fear (mainly) of alienating too many people and states from the Union Cause. (So, this is a gnarly historical-dynamics problem, and I do not mean to be critical of Lincoln so much as simple Accurate about parties and politics.) Robert E. Lee was clearly, and always, more Against Slavery than many of the Union (North) politicians and people! This is a well-documented fact. And furthermore, the "Republicans" of 1860 were NOT the Republican Party of the 20th century and especially not that of 2000-2008 !]
And I am given occasion to think about this as you make the points below. I would love to inquire as to Mr. Powell's reasoning, but I can not, so I can only filter it with my perspective from my life experiences. The general population is split in the middle in opinions. Yet the African American community is not? I am just a little bit suspicious of Mr. Powell's perspective when in some states Mr. Obama has taken 90+% of the African American vote? This can only be rationalized as a cultural bias, yet I can only conjecture that Mr. Powell like my friend might have such a bias.
[MD - Well, there you have it. I don't think I need to comment further in this. It is here for those of us with eyes to see, to understand the challenges ahead.]
Race is a very delicate subject, I have learned in dealing internationally that we all have cultural bias. In Britain we use the same words, but their priorities always seem to be second to a spot of tea.
[MD – Tea? Talk of tea? Are we trying to cover up the previous paragraph? Britain, by the way, got rid of slavery long before the USA. In fact, Russia, for all its inequalities and severities under the hands of despots, got rid of slavery before the USA]
But let me state, I have no Problem voting for a women for President. I would vote for Sara Palin in a heartbeat.
- "Knock, knock."
- "Who's there?"
- "Sarah Palin"
(horrifyingly, that's the punchline)
I joined msnbc's Newsvine in the first week of July of 2007 and immediately got embroiled in heated debates about whether Barack Obama stood any kind of chance to be President of the USA. My belief in his eventual success was unshakeable, and stood confidently firm, even in the face of all the arguments. In fact it was a rather lonely time then, trying to defend my corner as a seemingly 'naive' newcomer in the face of so much scepticism and so many learned Americans telling me otherwise, especially when a few repeatedly pointed out that it was their country and they knew far more about the form than I did. But that cemented my belief even further. Often outsiders can see what we cannot because, being outside of the situation and untainted by its partisan nature, they can see the bigger picture.
The Economist magazine (Oct. 2, 2008) " e-mailed a questionnaire to 683 research associates... of the National Bureau of Economic Research, America’s premier association of applied academic economists, though the NBER itself played no role in the survey. A total of 142 responded, of whom 46% identified themselves as Democrats, 10% as Republicans and 44% as neither."
"Eighty per cent of respondents and no fewer than 71% of those who do not cleave to either main party say Mr Obama has a better grasp of economics. Even among Republicans Mr Obama has the edge: 46% versus 23% say Mr Obama has the better grasp of the subject."
It is no longer about getting Barack Obama into the White House. Baring the outbreak of WW III or some other kind of unforeseen disaster, he is already there. During one of his recent rallies, Senator Obama invoked these words: “CHANGE the country” and “CHANGE the world.”
Getting Senator Obama into the White House is not the end of a process; it’s the beginning of a process. Keeping him in the White House will be the hard part. Prudence dictates that we should never underestimate the will of the forces which are arrayed against him/us.
In the beginning, Senator Obama talked a lot about “Old Politics” or “Old Thought” – which is essentially the same thing. Our messages have been about “New Thought” and saving the Planet. Obama has often said that he can’t do it alone and neither can we. We need your help.
This is a sampling of what some of you had to say about our messages:
Why do we impart/promulgate our “New Thought” messages? Actually, I like Michelle Obama’s answer. She said, “It’s my job.” Some people are genuine truth seekers, not a lot but some. Mohandas K. Gandhi said, “If you are a minority of one, the truth is the truth.”
And here we have our quandary, what to do now? It is time to evolve to the next level. We are dedicated to keeping the “Obama Movement” alive for 100 years, if necessary, and we need your input. If you would like to know the rest of the story, sign up at. http://www.global-symbolic-votes.org/first.html
New thought is our only chance, The GSV Team-------------------------------------------------------"We can either fear that human culture is falling apart or we can hold the vision that we are awakening. Either way, each of us must consciously choose between these two futures.” (James Redfield) -------------------------------------------------------http://my.barackobama.com/page/group/GLOBALSYMBOLICVOTESFOROBAMAhttp://www.global-symbolic-votes.org
John McCain does not wear a flag pin, but there are no outcries as there were about Obama, who wears one now. It doesn't matter to me -- flag pin wearing is a silly issue. But this shows the hypocrisy of the right wing. Flag pins mattered when it was Obama, not when it's McCain. Having a rich heiress wife who hasn't released tax returns mattered when it was Kerry, not when it is McCain. Questionable military history is okay to attack when it's Kerry, not when it's McCain. Bill Clinton's marital indiscretions mattered, but McCain's affair does not. Being a strong Christian mattered for Bush over Kerry, but Obama's stronger Christianity than McCain's doesn't matter now. Experience matters when it's Obama, but not when it's Palin. See the pattern? This is why America does not trust the Republican Party anymore.
The McCain campaign continually promotes the idea that Sen. Obama lacks the experience and judgment to be president. On tonight’s Real Time With Bill Maher, Wall Street Journal writer Steve Moore negatively compared Obama’s experience with that of Sarah Palin.Hmm, let’s see. Sen. Obama manages a campaign that has raised the most amount of money in any presidential election such that he has not had to take public money. Not taking public money for the first time in a presidential election is by itself an accomplishment that has not received the notice it's due. But Sen. McCain took public money - couldn't that be called an earmark that he is so fond of speaking about? It certainly is taxpayer's money taken without regard to how taxpayer's regard Sen. McCain.
In any event, Sen. Obama has competed successfully on a national level for almost two years to win the Democratic Party nomination. And he has built a countrywide political organization that is the most impressive in history. Seems to me he has proven himself way beyond anything that the governor of a state with a total population of 670,000 and that gets a huge windfall from oil and gas. Oh and let’s not forget that Alaska gets more money from the federal government than any other state. Can’t be that difficult a place to run as proven by the fact that Gov. Palin couldn’t name anything she reads for information, or a Supreme Court ruling beyond Roe v. Wade.
