Jerrrol LeBaron, a resident of Los Angeles, has created Honor In Office for those Americans who want laws passed to make our representatives in Congress read bills before they are allowed to vote on them. This group calls for honesty, integrity, common sense, and a focus that the members of Congress work for the People, and not use their office to further their own interests.
A higher standard for our members of Congress is demanded. Ethics have to be central to all those who aspire to represent the American people.
Passing bills in the dead of night before other members of Congress can object is not the American way. It is amateurish, and does not have the professional stance Americans want from their representatives at the highest levels of government.
..... Contact: http://Alex.Karoub@gmail.com
We have made historic headway by together pointing our nation in the right directions. After decades, we have America focused on the issues of fundamental importance. Now, each of us acting in concert can together move our country to lead the world to the fruitfulness of moral goodness. I have no doubts about my abilities and the abilities of fellow Americans to work smart and hard to achieve these goals.Barack Obama has the visions, leadership, and integrity for us to correct and redirect our country to once again lead the world for the fruitions of good. Let's closely listen, learn, and move forward based on that which we know deep inside is good and which we can validate with our hearts. I hope that those who had but a few reasons to support Obama, look further into the other issues more deeply. I found the more I explored, studied, and listened to Obama the more I found us in agreement. The couple of issues that I did not have depth of knowledge of, quickly became obvious in need. This was unusual for me since I have always refused to be any kind of a follower, and still am not. I find Obama to be a deep thinker who is articulate and inspirational; and, of most fundamental importance, Obama makes excellent moral sense.Hopefully, our country has learned lessons from the past of mistakenly following leadership blindly, as was done with Nixon and Bush. There are leaders who are simply in it for themselves and will cater to individuals or groups in order to grab for their own benefit. Corrupt and bad leaders hide at all levels. This is especially true in city government as well as county and state government. The corrupt deals of politicians need to be exposed, and those responsible need to be weeded out in the coming local elections. Others need to be investigated by law enforcement and be prosecuted for illegal dealings; for deals they often make for their hidden personal agendas. Let’s look at the bad experiences of the past as bitter medicines, let’s eliminate the need for such bad medicine in the future. Let us use what we know is good to go forward.I believe we have chosen wisely, not by greed and not by misguided retaliatory anger. I believe this time our country has chosen with open eyes, with each of us listening and examining our choice of leadership closely, driven and validated by our hearts.I hope we can continue to make our efforts even more inclusive (in many more ways than I touch on here). Far right republicans will be stubborn to change, but we will need to include them to change if we are to succeed. Sure a few more will leave our country, but that is not the American way. No, we really don't need their false fronts of power, money, insider knowledge, or other trappings that they have taught many to 'respect?'. Let's recruit as many as we can, that's the American way, evolving and changing together as one nation. Try to be understanding as we move forward; by better understanding each as individuals and people with various desires and needs we will find ways to reach out with friendship and have them join our causes of good.Be on the lookout, and root out bad leadership in government and business. Do not be intimidated by those who use the false fronts of power and give a false sense of security in order to lead. Be extra leery of those who say or imply ‘Trust me’; those who give a sense that they somehow omnipotently know better. No longer will Americans be dazzled by phony displays of brilliance or baffled by baloney. There are government aristocrats and business leaders who still believe in the old adage of: “If you can’t dazzle them with brilliance, then baffle em with bullshit”. We can embrace complexity by demanding true, fundamental, and understandable explanations. We can root out falsehoods by not accepting double speak. We as Americans know how to grow ourselves by first believing in ourselves. Don’t be a follower. Don’t be a follower of followers.However, when we find leaders who are good; a leader that thinks, speaks, and acts from their heart; one that is honest, has integrity, and leads by sincere examples; then we need to in a big way, join them, support them, and promote their causes of good. From much research, investigation, and scrutiny, I believe Barack Obama is such a person. I hope we search for and find many more who are similar, who we can add to service at all levels of government. We need to add/replace leaders in business with ones that have honesty, integrity, and show quality in leadership. We need more people in leadership roles who are moral, like Barack Obama.Remember, we are not fighting a battle, we are the artisans and sculptors of the future for ourselves and generations to come. Rarely do societies have opportunities to make such dramatic moves forward as we now have in this opportunity of today. Take pride and practice in being inclusive as we stride forward. In moving forward, create opportunity not only for yourself, but also for all. Hope is a wonderful thing to behold; but without opportunity, hope can become but a dream never achievable. We can, will, and must, create opportunity.In the coming year I hope that we do not lose our spiritedness, but instead continue to build and make headway. I hope we all continue our campaign for change in government and business. We will succeed in moving forward once again, it will take much effort and good oversight on the part of each of us. We will make great strides in the months and years ahead in order to achieve the fruitions of good. Let's keep our enthusiasm progressing through these coming toughest of times. Let us use the light of goodness and love to motivate us with historic momentum.I have chosen Barack Obama because he best represents my deepest beliefs in America. Please take time to read the issues that Barack Obama has published on this website. Also, give your attention to see how he leads us to move our nation forward in the time ahead. Most importantly, be part of America's great future, participate in the greatness that together we will make. Participate!We will each and all flourish, if we think, speak, and act, by using the love in our hearts.
Your reply is welcome. Contact: Alex.Karoub@gmail.com
I have written and received so much correspondence over the past year. There is also my participation in online media resources using the internet. There is Twitter, Facebook, Friendfeed and blogging. There is email. I remain aware and learning, while I flow back and forth across this strange surging ethereal sea of communication. I reflect on what I read, process the reflections, and then write works of analysis and consideration. One of the most common strains of conversational tone I run across is the one of integrity declared. This is my phrase (integrity declared) for the people who constantly tell me that they tell the truth, no matter how much it hurts. They tell me, and write around me, of the necessity required by both business and relationship to always be honest and truthful. That no great success in either area can be had without it. They tell me that they only tell the truth and would never be dishonest. I have to admit I am frequently vexed but more often entertained by this kind of delivery. And it is a constant, never changing, litany that seem to cross all cultural borders and barriers. Only this evening I was reminded of this by a woman who works out in Hawaii. She had written a short missive on Twitter about how it appeared that the market in Hawaii was on the way to recovery, with much activity over the last few days. When I commented that I had never heard a realtor every say, at any time, that right now was not the best time to buy, I got the integrity presentation delivered hot and fast over the net. I backed off. I am not out here to confront, or make miserable, the people who correspond with me. Sometimes my blog here might indicate otherwise, but in reality I do not seek to attack individuals for what they think or believe. I do like to disagree with them, however.
In light of the subject I have chosen to discuss herein, I would like to tell you a story. It is a true story, and it happened several years ago on the shore of a place called Bainbridge Island. That Island lies seven miles across the Sound from the city of Seattle in Washington State.
The Lagoon
It was early morning when I looked out from the deck of my second story office, which was located in my home on the shore of Puget Sound. It was already a fine day, with the sun rising behind the spit of land my house was located on, and Mount Ranier half lit on the Southern horizon across the gently moving waters. I looked down to the Lagoon below. It was a rather large lagoon, spanning about forty yards across the narrowest of it's oval shape. Earlier in the year I had built a wooden pier that reached out about ten yards straight from the house on my side of the shore. I had built the pier so that the triplets, living at the other end of the lagoon could come visit on a paddle boat I had purchased for that purpose the summer before. The triplets were three children six years of age. Two boys and a girl. They had named the paddle boat 'Bubbles' so I had dutifully painted the name on both sides of the pontoons which kept it afloat. Some days they would vigorously paddle over to my pier, be greeted by Harvey, my dog-like cat, and Tank, the large seagull who always sat on one of the high poles at the end of the pier. I kept a supply of those popsicles, the ones with the funny idiotic sayings printed onto the sticks, in my freezer, as the trips' parents would not let them have such sweet things.
This morning I noted that the Lagoon was faintly aromatic. I looked over toward the far shore and confirmed my suspicions. The far shore abutted the Sound itself. Normally, there was a narrow inlet of water that ran between the Lagoon and the waters of the Sound. The constantly working tides usually kept the small stream open and running. That movement of water allowed the lagoon to be refreshed and healthy. I noted, with a frown, that the stream was no more. A bad tide had moved the small, golf ball sized stones, just enough to close the gap. I sighed. Something would have to be done.
I threw on my jeans, boots and logging shirt, went to the back door, selected a pointed shovel, then made my way down to the shore along the bracken, following a well worn path Harvey and I took at least twice a day. I found the course of the old outlet and began to dig. Harvey found a large flat rock nearby to recline on, and provide moral support from.
The work was hard. The stones did not take to shoveling at all well. It took a full hour to dig half way to the Sound. I sat against one wall of my four foot deep trench to rest and reflect. I saw a line of miniature people approaching from the South. It was the triplets. They were walking in a single file, each with a small shovel over their shoulder. I waited until they arrived. "Hey you guys," I said, and waved with a big smile. One of the boys, Mark, was very expressive and yelled back, as they approached "Hi, Mr. Strauss, we've come to help you." I laughed aloud at that. The other boy, Tom, just smiled his usual little smile, while Anna, the triplet leader held up an arm. They stopped mid-way down the finished part of the trench. "We'll begin work here, Mr. Strauss," she stated imperiously, with no smile or wave. I nodded at this industriousness and set back to work. I threw rocks for another fifteen minutes before I had to rest. I leaned on the shovel and looked back.
Anna was sitting on one edge of the trench watching her two brothers. Mark and Tom had worked to drag a pile of driftwood to the edge of the divide and were carefully assembling some sort of edifice right in the center of the trench. I shook my head and walked back to where they worked. "What are you two doing?" I asked, with a moody serious expression. The boys looked up at me, then bent down and continued their efforts. "They're building a fish trap, Mr. Strauss," Anna said from her position nearby. The boys continued to work. I looked down at them in exasperation. "You can't build a fish trap out of wood. The wood will just float away when the water comes through," I argued, to no avail. "You can't catch a fish in such a contraption." I tried again. Anna appeared at my side and grabbed my hand. She nodded to me when I looked down, then applied some pressure to move me back in the direction I'd come. When we got back to where I had been working she let go of my hand. I looked back at her laboring brothers and was about to speak. She shook her head at me, so I said nothing. She reached up carefully and grasped my shirt near the collar. I bent down to her pull. Very seriously she looked into my eyes. "Mr. Strauss, the fish does not have to be real," she said.
What Anna said to me resounded out of that Lagoon, across the Sound and echoed straight into the marrow of my life. And the lives of almost everyone who has come into contact with me. At my company the expression "the fish does not have to be real" is stated over and over again. It is applied to situations wherein people are just being too damn serious. To situations wherein people are claiming that they have the highest integrity. That they never lie. That truth is this precious commodity that is just of too much value to do anything other than be admitted to and recognized.
Physics is real. Gravity is real. Water boiling at a certain temperature and pressure is real. But this phenomenal world we have created to survive in is not. Even the physics of that phenomenal world do not necessarily have to be real. It all depends upon perspective, belief, needs, wants and desires. And therefore, once this is realized, the world becomes a different place altogether. To survive in the real world we need to lighten up in the phenomenal. We need to become more flexible about understanding this place we inhabit and the fellow travelers we run with. The next time that somebody around you tells you that they have never told a lie, then tell this story and say these words: "The fish does not have to be real."
from-the-chateau-dif.blogspot.com
http://www.themastodons.com
Within our Medical Whistleblower Organization trust is one of the most important assets we have. It is also the easiest asset to lose and very hard to rebuild. Trust is the key ingredient which leads to relationship building, which in turn leads to cooperative, collaborative opportunities to advance our goals and objectives.
How many of you have developed strategic plans for a non-profit organization? What is the first question one needs to ask in regards to strategic planning? Is it to define what goals and objectives they want to achieve? Where do they want to be in three years or five years from now? And how do you plan to get there?
Some will state that grant writing is the answer. Others have ideas for more direct grass roots ways to raise funds. Often I will hear that money is the answer. Other times I hear that political power is the answer. Many will say that creating strategic alliances or relationships with other organizations is the way to reach our goals, or by increasing our media coverage. Certainly we can improve our direct mail campaigns or other fund raising activities. We can certainly conference with others and discuss how important it is to work cooperatively to reach our common goals. But ultimately we must recognize that the motivating force behind deep social change is a shared emotional bond or trust between people.
In communication it is important to not get lost on focusing on achieving your goals and objectives and thereby failing to recognize that trust is the foundation of all our efforts. When someone goes as far as to ignore the trust factor and move forward with their own agenda, they undermine their own forward progress and will fall short of their ultimate goal.
If increased funding is one of your organization's key strategic goals but you engage in unethical fundraising behavior - such as false advertising or deceptive practices then you might gain in the short run but in the long term you will erode the trust of the public and lose your good name. These unethical practices do not bode well for a non-profit organization’s long term survivability.
We need to look long and hard at ourselves and ask “What are we going to do to earn the trust – both inside and outside of our organization –that will help us form the kind of emotional bond with others that will enable us to achieve our goals and objectives?”
We need to ask who our partners in this fight are. Who are the stakeholders who care about Medical Whistleblower issues? There are of course, the Medical Whistleblowers themselves. But there are also patient advocates. Of these two groups, who do you believe have the greatest number of people, financial resources, or grassroots political power? I assert that it is the Patient Advocates that win that comparison without a doubt.
So we, as Medical Whistleblowers, need to build trust with those who advocate for patient rights. Medical Whistleblowers must be found to be the ultimate safeguard for patient care, safety and human rights. This means we must listen to the patient advocate concerns if they express a lack of confidence in our ability to determine who should have advocacy as a Medical Whistleblower. We also must ask for them to understand the need for restraint with public allegations especially when there may have been Bad Faith Peer Review against a Medical Professional. There will be cases where our advocacy for the medical professional will seem initially to be in conflict with the advocacy for the patient, but on more careful reflection will reveal a commonality of purpose to safeguard the public’s health and safety. Medical Whistleblowers will be found to be the ultimate safeguard for patient care, safety and human rights. Individual cases present many problems which we must face with humility and honesty. It is a sad fact that there are medical professionals who do need to be disciplined, some who even need their medical licenses revoked.
True Medical Whistleblowers are for the integrity of the medical system and the protection of patients.
The Rationale for allowing the US Auto Industry to fail ~ Can it be applied the US Federal Government?
Republicans Kill $14B Rescue Plan in effort to dismantle UAW Union
Within the above article is a discussion and a point of view I find interesting and wish to explore how people feel about it and it's implications.
Stu P., "The only way the Big 3 can compete with Toyota, etc. would be to get out from under the massive pension and related obligations to retired and soon-to-be-retired UAW workers."
Richard, Given the plight of the economy and the Debt incurred by the American Taxpayer, should the US Government rescind the benefits of US Service men and women? Revoke the health benefits and retirement of the millions of individuals in order to make the Federal Government a more financially viable entity ?
Let's start with those costly Survivor benefitshttp://www.militarytimes.com/benefits/family_resources/online_hbml06_payandbenefits_otherbenefits1/
Then we can move on to money for housing and Education benefits.http://www.militarytimes.com/benefits/
Imagine a leaner Federal Government without Military Veteran OBLIGATIONS to burden them.http://www.militarytimes.com/benefits/health/
~@~
Given the tremendous debt out government is carrying and which the American citizen is libel to repay w/interest, I'm wondering if these Senate Republicans would be prepared to rescind the benefits to each and every Military veteran in an effort to trim the wasteful spending by our Government?
If it works for GM, Ford and Chrysler, wouldn't it also translate into a cost-savings effort by the Federal Government?
I really think these Senate Republicans are on to something, throw out any promises of care for services rendered and allow the former employees to fend for themselves.
After all those 300,000+ Auto Retirees are most likely service members from WWII, Korea, Veitnam who are drawing these Federal Benefits as well as Pensions from working their entire lives in the factories. If America is willing to toss them under the bus, why not go the whole way and assist the Federal Government in relieving itself of this burden?
What does a “war” on terror mean? It means incessant warmongering against those in the “axis of evil” and against many other nations. It means building a militaristic society and giving up many of our precious freedoms. All of this is wrong because the “war” on terror is metaphorical. Committing a terrorist act is not, or should not be, a war but a crime - an international crime against which all nations can be enlisted to fight against, thus building international cooperation.
I said all this way back in January of 2004. I was called a fool. I'm bringing the issue up again because I think the climate has changed enough so that maybe people will listen. If I'm not mistaken, Bush and his administration seem to be coming to a similar conclusion. Administration officials no longer talk about the "war on terror"; they speak of the "struggle against violent extremism."
Declaring ourselves as being at war with terrorism is detrimental to our goal of conquering terrorism. Terrorism is an international crime and should be treated that way. By calling it a crime, I do not condone it or minimize it. I am merely suggesting another, and I think more effective, way of fighting the terrorism scourge.
TERRORISM AS ENDLESS WAR
Our current approach to terrorism is militarizing our life. Some time ago, the Department of Homeland Security asked 3 companies - Northrop Grumman Corp, BAE Systems Inc. and UAL Corp's United Airlines - to develop plans for a missile defense system for passenger jets. A contract worth $1 billion will be awarded. It is expected that the cost per airplane would be $1 million each.
Get this. We plan to arm PASSENGER planes so that they would be protected from portable surface-to-air missiles. Do you think this will help? Could the "defense system" be used by some erratic pilot for "offense"? Could it interfere with navigation? Whom do you think this system would help more? The passenger? Or the defense company that gets the contract?
After the planes, do we arm ships, subways, busses and trains? Do we arm private office buildings, hotels and factories? And supposing we do, will we be more safe? Or more afraid?
Fear stalks the land, is growing and will grow more as militarization proceeds.
Militarization is accompanied by destruction of our civil liberties. Start with the 3-hour or 4-hour wait at airports to get on a plane for a 1-hour flight. Now the government is talking of checking a huge data base to see if you are a "security risk." But these inconveniences pale in comparison with what two words from the president can do. All he needs to do is call you an "enemy combatant" and suddenly you have no recourse to the judicial system. You are toast!
The war, of course, is between U.S. and those who "harbor terrorists," possess "weapons of mass destruction" or are part of the "axis of evil." We started by declaring war against Afghanistan. Soon after, we were and still are at war with Iraq. Some are advocating war with North Korea, Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan. Where does it end?
Unfortunately, bin Laden is getting his way. He wanted to start a war between Muslims on one side and Jews and Christians on the other. If you look at the countries we are targeting, he appears to be winning.
Unfortunately too, the war is isolating the U.S. from the world community. We have trashed the UN and drove allies away from us. People all over the world who previously loved the U.S., now hate us. Our universities used to attract students from all over the world. Now we have erected barriers to prevent them from coming. The gloss on the land of liberty is tarnished.
All because we are fighting a war!
TERRORISM AS A CRIME
A war takes place between two or more nations. Al Qaeda is not a nation. A war is executed over a period of time after which there is settlement of some kind. Terrorism will be with us for an indefinite period of time.
Terrorism should not be considered an act of war but a crime. A heinous crime, but a crime nonetheless. People or groups attacking other people or groups of people constitutes a crime. Terrorism is as much a crime as drug trafficking or arms smuggling. Mafia gangsters kill people. The "war" on the Mafia is metaphorical, however, like the "war" on poverty or the "war" on drugs.
Crime will always be with us. All we can do is diminish it. The same is true of terrorism. By the way, terrorism is not solely a Muslim activity. An American named Timothy McVeigh was a terrorist. We did not declare war against McVeigh. We arrested him, tried him in the courts and punished him. We should do the same with other terrorists.
A DIFFERENT APPROACH
We all know what happened after September 11. We were so shocked that we were eager for revenge. We declared war against Afghanistan. This is understandable. Then we got further worked up and declared war against Iraq - where we are currently stuck. And our society is gearing up to face an endless succession of wars.
Here is an alternate path we can still follow to achieve a happier America and a more peaceful world. The approach is based on calling terrorism an international crime:
Calling terrorism an international crime and working hand-in-hand with the UN to conquer it will have many positive effects. Here are a few:
Posted by Paul Siegel at July 28, 2005 06:02 PM
http://www.watchblog.com/democrats/archives/002514.html
[I concur. If the US government treated terrorism as a crime instead of just focusing on collecting "intelligence about the attack..", maybe then we would be able to combat against it. Until the US government starts investigating, arresting and prosecuting these criminals, in no way shape or form will we be able to prevent terrorism from escalating.
Integrity driven investigations, with the use of the court system to prosecute these terroristic criminals, is the ONLY way the war on terrorism can be deemed as legit.
Terrorism is currently about blaming innocent people for wrongs they did not commit, after the fact. in order to prove the US governments world leadership. Iron fist, Stalin style.
America is no Russia]
Kade and Josh
I agree with this Bloomberg article, so far Obama is bringing on board many of the exact same people who either created the financial crisis or have been involved some kind of corporate fraud or another. This is NOT the change we want. There are plenty of good, innovative candidates for Treasury and other financial posts - Luis Zingales at Chicago GSB, Nassim Taleb, Nouriel Roubini, Janet Tavakoli, for example. Why are the people who foresaw and understand the financial crisis being ignored in favor of those who either created it, or failed to foresee it and still don't understand it??? C'mon Obama, we didn't work so hard the past 2yrs to get you elected for this, we expect better.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&sid=aNCFKvAMUQ6w&refer=home
Commentary by Jonathan Weil
Nov. 11 (Bloomberg) -- It's hard to believe Barack Obama would even think of calling this change.
Take a good look at some of the 17 people our nation's president-elect chose last week for his Transition Economic Advisory Board. And then try saying with a straight face that these are the leaders who should be advising him on how to navigate through the worst financial crisis in modern history.
First, there's former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin. Not only was he chairman of Citigroup Inc.'s executive committee when the bank pushedbogus analyst research, helped Enron Corp. cook its books, and got caught baking its own. He was a director from 2000 to 2006 at Ford Motor Co., which also committed accounting fouls and now is begging Uncle Sam for Citigroup- style bailout cash.
Two other Citigroup directors received spots on the Obama board: Xerox Corp. Chief Executive Officer Anne Mulcahy and Time Warner Inc. ChairmanRichard Parsons. Xerox and Time Warner got pinched years ago by the Securities and Exchange Commission for accounting frauds that occurred while Mulcahy and Parsons held lesser executive posts at their respective companies.
Mulcahy and Parsons also once were directors at Fannie Mae when that company was breaking accounting rules. So was another member of Obama's new economic board, former Commerce Secretary William Daley. He's now a member of the executive committee at JPMorgan Chase & Co., which, like Citigroup, is among the nine large banks that just got $125 billion of Treasury's bailout budget.
There's More
Obama's economic crew might as well be called the Bailout Bunch. Another slot went to former White House economic adviser Laura Tyson. She's been a director for about a decade at Morgan Stanley, which in 2004 got slapped for accounting violations by the SEC and a month ago got $10 billion from Treasury.
That's not all. There's Penny Pritzker, the Obama campaign's national finance chairwoman. She was on the board of the holding company for subprime lender Superior Bank FSB. The Chicago-area thrift, in which her family held a 50 percent stake, was seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. in 2001. The thrift's owners agreed to pay the government $460 million over 15 years to help cover the FDIC's losses.
Even some of the brighter lights on Obama's board, like Warren Buffettand former SEC Chairman William Donaldson, come with asterisks. Buffett was on the audit committee of Coca-Cola Co.'s board when the SEC found the soft-drink maker had misled investors about its earnings. Donaldson was on the audit committee from 1998 to 2001 at a provider of free e-mail services called Mail.com Inc. Just before he left the SEC, in 2005, the agency disciplined the company over accounting violations that had occurred on his watch.
Telling Stories
So, by my tally, almost half the people on Obama's economic advisory board have held fiduciary positions at companies that, to one degree or another, either fried their financial statements, helped send the world into an economic tailspin, or both. Do you think any of that came up in the vetting?
Let's say we give Buffett a pass -- smart move he made, skipping the group photo-op last week in Chicago. What about the rest of them? Donaldson, for one, was chairman when the SEC voted in 2004 to let the big Wall Street banks, including Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Bear Stearns Cos., lever up their balance sheets like drunks. Talk about blowing it.
And whom did Obama tap for White House chief of staff? Rahm Emanuel, the Illinois congressman who was a director at Freddie Mac in 2000 and 2001 while it was committing accounting fraud.
Ideally, this job would go to someone who can't be easily fooled. Think about it: Of all the people Obama could have chosen as his chief of staff, couldn't he have found someone who wasn't once on the board of Freddie Mac?
Renewed Confidence
The president-elect needs some new advisers -- fast. We are in a crisis of confidence in American capitalism. These aren't the right people to re-instill its sense of honor.
Many of them should be getting subpoenas as material witnesses right about now, not places in Obama's inner circle. Did Obama learn nothing from the ill-fated choice of James Johnson, the former Fannie Mae boss, to lead his vice- presidential search committee?
Does he think people like Robert Rubin or Richard Parsons will offer any helpful advice on how to stop crooked bankers or sleep-walking directors from sinking our economy? Or that they won't mistake the nation's needs for their own corporate interests? Or that the people who helped get us into our long financial nightmare have any clue how to get us out?
Obama has created hope that our nation can stand for all that is good in the world again. It's not too late to change course.
Start by scrapping this board.
Why Obama will win this election:
America is thirsting and starving for integrity and truth and justice and to restore theoretical American values.
Every time the Republicans do something dumb his numbers go through the roof because people are getting sick of the BS. As an attorney working in the United States of America, Barack Obama knows that if someone accuses him of something, the burden of proof is on them to prove it out. He doesn't have to do anything or say a word. So, he sat back and watched those Republican piranha eat themselves alive. It's classic textbook legal courtroom know-how and savvy, true American-style.
I wish I had enough money to pay him to represent me in my own court case. I'd pay him a million-dollar retainer just from having watched him work in real life. Classic. Helluva lawyer.
He's even got trained volunteers all over the country (including Florida) positioned to watch the polls on Tuesday, along with the sheriff's, cops and lawyers in each polling precinct that were already assigned there. He was Ready on Day One. If that's not a man who would have been prepared to go into Afghanistan and kick bin Laden's asz and get the hell out without very much loss of life, I don't know who is.
Preparedness always matters -- and so does an exit plan.
He had this campaign mapped out when he threw his hat in the ring. I can tell it by the way he's run it and kept people inspired through two whole LONG years of one hellacious battle after another. He already knew what was coming, he prepared himself, his family, and his supporters, and argued his case before the people like a true American lawyer, betting on the fact that there are more people out here with a little money than the few who have a ton of money. He was right. Even that Andy Martin nutcase backwoods lawyer who challenged him on his Hawaiian birth certificate has GOT to know my now that Obama would knock him cold out in a courtroom, if he ever had the privilege. I mean McCain wasn't even born on US soil and not once has Obama asked for his LONG FORM birth certificate with a raised seal on it.
They've thrown everything at Obama's character and integrity BUT the kitchen sink and he's not even feeling it, at least not in public. He doesn't even have smoke billowing from the coals they tried to burn him with. Looks like America has finally gotten the message that racism doesn't work for ANY OF US, but our thanks go out to McCain, Palin, and especially to Hillary Clinton, for trying it out this election year, and to Obama for addressing it before it went too far with the only people who count. Those who are voting for him.
While the Rethuglicans were busy acting the asz over petty personal crap just because they could find no fault with him politically, he stayed fresh, low-key, focused and on-target...and he didn't let anyone or anything slip out of his razor-sharp aim while he was at it.
He's got the same staff he started off with--nearly zero fallouts, if any. He told people to vote early and vote absentee (basically, because they can choose where they want to vote AND because sheriff's, lawyers, law students, and policeman watch the count on the absentee ballots and "vote counters" are sequestered like jurors on an OJ Simpson trial during the entire process -- LOL!!! Theoretically, I could guess any number of reasons Obama told us to vote early and vote absentee, but that's another book for another time.)
In the meantime, McCain has had to start over with a new staff every 2-3 months. Nobody trusts him and his own people don't like him -OR- Sarah Palin. The people on McCain's OWN campaign call him a nutcase and called her a moose-killing "diva."
The man Obama did not go to law school for nothing and he's been as cool as a cucumber in spite of all the attacks. Whoever paid for his law degree, it was obviously worth every dime.
He just smiles and keeps rolling because he knows he's above reproach and has nothing to hide. What he is "hiding" someone made up just like those people who threw tainted evidence in OJ's trial in California and ended up killing their own case just for trying to be sneaky about it.
If Obama was hiding something, like Sarah Palin did with those governmental Yahoo emails, no one would be able to find it so easily. Yet, his record is right out there for anyone who has internet access and a newspaper or even an old dialer radio to see. That's why he doesn't respond to the attacks unless he has no choice: His whole attitude is 'check the record for your damn self, I've got a campaign to run'.
Funny how people use christianity to manipulate people, then don't act like christians after they get what they want form the idiots who are being played. That's proof positive that America wasn't a christian nation from Day One. However, getting back to my point here:
Not once did Mr. Obama ask to see John-boy's birth certificate, though McCain wasn't even born on American soil, period. Obama has worked in America all of his adult life, and has always paid his taxes here as a citizen, as well. He had to have his birth certificate and social security card to get a driver's license and do anything and everything else he has done as a US citizen, but that wasn't enough for them. He passed their OWN system of checks and balances; then just because he did, they had the audacity to challenge the crap THEY invented. His integrity in attacking McCain on issues ONLY speaks volumes.
The fact that he never once attacked McCain's personal character or his integrity as a man and a citizen of the USA has sent a long and wide viable and visible message to the people who support him, as well as those who weren't supporting him before who have now bailed on McCain.
It says a lot about a man's character when he can stay focused and on point and on message, with a few minor adjustments here or there--because Obama is 'finally' starting to sound like a broken record--which means he is at the closing stages of his argument that not only can America get back on track and fix this Republican-made mess; but yes, we can get past our racial and ethnic and religious differences and be the One America that we should always have been from the start. It's a good thing he sounds like a broken record these days: It means he never lost sight and never lost track of his original goals and intentions. In two years, he never once allowed himself to be side-tracked by the BS. True textbook application of legal theory. Argue your case directly to the jury and to hell with the judges--in the end, the people, the jury of peers, are the ones who get to decide. If OJ WAS guilty, Obama is the man who could have put him behind bars for life.
McCain on the other hand, changes his message depending on who he is talking to and what mood they are in at the moment. Obama stays on message and on point no matter who's yelling "terrorist" and McCain shifts his message depending ON who's yelling "terrorist."
Now, let's see McCain and Palin keep themselves above reproach like that at least until Tuesday: (my guess is, they can't. They started a hailstorm of racist activity by not addressing it from Day One and they have to stay with it or risk some more troublesome news in the next two days).
From what I, Ye Olde American Citizen, have seen so far and for the past two years, the only way they were GOING to take Obama down was if they had managed to rattle enough skeleton bones, dunk enough Klan-type boogey men, slam enough Netherworld coffin lids, and roll out enough short-sheeted ghosts to scare the hell out of everybody. Apparently, they didn't have enough money to buy all of their costumes, props and equipment for the season because they were too busy spending it on Sarah Palin's clothes.
Halloween's over.It's been real.
Time to move on and get down to the REAL business of electing a president.
Obama 08
Well - tacky tactics by someone - my yard sign was stolen a week after it was put up! Another example of lack of integrity. Seems appropriate to put up your own sign to show support rather than remove someone else's. Talk about old energy...suppressing my point of view isn't going to work as a tactic to change my vote. What do you think they were afraid of? OMG, someone might have driven by and seen that I was taking a stand for what I think. Can't have that, can we?
How do I obtain a new sign - or several?
The predominant claim by political entities that campaign against the character of the opposition candidates is that they are protecting the character or integrity of the office. In fact, they degrade the character of the office as much as they degrade the character of the voter. Political culture of character assassination does not improve character of the office or of the country, but lowers it to the level of pettiness, nastiness, maliciousness, vileness and ugliness. And that does not improve the character of the office or of the nation; it degrades both. To create a political culture of character assassination, is to create a political culture of abuse. Abuse then becomes the way of the political process, putting into office the people who are most skilled at abuse - and frequently at nothing else. That leads to wrong people being in the office and implementing wrong policies - in many cases, given the way they got into the office, policies that are completely destructive and injurious to the people. So that, when a Rick Santorum claims that "sometimes it's good that people struggle" as he votes for a bill to make it harder for single mothers to have their children in babysitting while they are working, we see the product of the abusive character in politics and what it stands to do to the people. It is not only the ones in office that end up being encouraged toward wrongful action. The politicians' abusive behavior also trickles down to the voter. It influences people to behave in abusive ways to their families and to the people over whom they have influence. And that by itself is a source of needless suffering for millions. The constituencies that are abusive, or that want to be abusive, thrive on such politics. The more abusive the constituency, the more drawn it is to the politics of character smear. The level to which an individual or a constituency supports character smear campaigns is a good measure of the individual's or constituency's embrace of abusive practices in their own lives. And the more political life is based on abuse, the more people take the example, the more abuse becomes the reality of people's lives. The abusive character of the political culture trickles up to the office-holders and down to the regular people. And then not only is the character of the political discourse diminished, but people's own character gets worse and worse, as does the lot of people at the receiving end of their behavior. That, is the true degradation in character that has taken place in politics of America. And the way to restore both statesmanship and American character, is to see through abusive smear tactics and demand dignity in the political process. The people who practice character smear campaigns, are themselves the worst character in the country and commit by their actions a far greater wrong than anything that the people whom they attack could be conceivably accused of having committed. Not only do they bring abuse into politics, but they also influence people to become abusers themselves. And that not only injures the credibility of America; it also injures countless millions of people who stand to be at the receiving end of abusive behavior by people influenced in such a way. So whenever one sees character smear campaign, it can be said with accuracy that the person doing such campaigning is an abuser, just as it can be said that someone who supports such campaign is likewise possessive of an abusive frame of mind. And bringing dignity and respect back to America requires growing beyond such despicable tactics and creating a culture of dignity in the political process. A person who truly is interested in character will concern himself with character which he encourages in the people. And if he campaigns abusively and influences people to be abusive, then it is him that exhibits the truly unworthy character and does true violence to the character of the political office and of the country itself.-- Founder of United In Spirit"Uniting like minded people in oneness, providing a higher level of spiritual education"http://unitedinspirit.wetpaint.com/http://unitedinspirit.ning.comSister Site of Xray Your Soul:"The Site For Business and Spirit~An Award Winning Site"http://xrayyoursoul1.wetpaint.com/
-----This is my Friend from Austrialia who is deeply concerned for all of her Friends here in the States. Please make sure we all make a dedicated effort to do what we can to inform our neighbor and Friends. An informed choice is the BEST choice.-----
Nice work, Senator McCain. You can't give the American people a straight answer about what you'll do to improve this country, yet you'll do whatever you can to smear your opponents as a way to try to win the election.
We were all expecting it, I suppose. But the saddest part is that in the next four weeks until Election Day the American people are going to get dragged along with you through the mud, millions of dollars will be spent, and the Obama/Biden ticket will win anyway.
America is tired of the same old politics. We desperately want to see a brighter future where our leaders are truly interested in making the country a better place for all its citizens, not just an elite few. Enough of the pandering, enough of the deceit, enough of the negative campaigning.
I am continually reminded that you are an American hero and you served our nation with great honor and distinction during the Viet Nam war. That does NOT make you qualified to become our next president. I am truly disturbed by the campaign you have run. I will not vote for you.
It would take a perfect world for any politician to be able to deliver on all their promises. But where you must start is with HONESTY, INTEGRITY, and VISION. A vision that includes an economy that works and isn't broken. Job opportunity. Affordable housing. Affordable college education. Better cost of living. Affordable and dignified retirement. Promise for the next generation.
Barack Obama and Joe Biden have this vision, which is why they have my vote. I don't have a clue what you would do to improve this country, despite months of watching your campaign. You've been all about showing us your glossy tactics to win, but unfortunately I have seen little substance beneath the showmanship.
Please do America a favor and don't take the remaining four weeks of this campaign into the gutter. We need hope and security from our leaders, not more of the same tired politics.
No Shirt, No Shoes, No Vote? ~ Will Dress Code Affect Your Right To Vote?
(CBS/AP) In Pennsylvania, two Pittsburgh-area elections officials are suing to permit a dress code at polling places, after a Pennsylvania Department of State memo advised counties last month that voters' attire doesn't matter.In Virginia, where backers of both Barack Obama and John McCain are pushing for registration of college students in this battleground state, many students were wrongly advised by officials that registering could adversely affect their parents' taxes.In Michigan, campaign officials are suing to prevent lists of foreclosed homes being used to prevent voters from voting at their local precinct.And in Ohio, a legal skirmish over same-day registration and voting has not prevented hundreds from casting absentee ballots a month before Election Day, even though they do not plan on bring out of state come November 4.Across the country, voter registration leading up to a highly-anticipated presidential election has been up, but so are concerns that bureaucracy, misreadings of election law, or just plain stupid mistakes may cost many Americans their right to exercise their vote.
continued . . .
Interestingly, the four states mentioned are states that Senator Obama is leading in the Polls.
Pennsylvania, Virginia, Michigan and Ohio
Pennsylvanian Sue Nace thought election volunteers were joking last spring when they told her she would have to remove her T-shirt to vote in the U.S. presidential primary.But it was no laughing matter to the poll workers-turned-fashion police, who said Nace's Barack Obama shirt was inappropriate electioneering - and made her cover the writing before casting a ballot.At least four states - Maine, Montana, Vermont and Kansas- explicitly prohibit wearing campaign buttons, stickers and badges inside polling places, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures and state officials.In Kentucky, elections officials last month told poll workers they should admit voters decked out in campaign apparel, after e-mails circulated warning that Obama supporters would be turned away if they wore shirts and pins.
Pennsylvanian Sue Nace thought election volunteers were joking last spring when they told her she would have to remove her T-shirt to vote in the U.S. presidential primary.But it was no laughing matter to the poll workers-turned-fashion police, who said Nace's Barack Obama shirt was inappropriate electioneering - and made her cover the writing before casting a ballot.
At least four states - Maine, Montana, Vermont and Kansas- explicitly prohibit wearing campaign buttons, stickers and badges inside polling places, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures and state officials.In Kentucky, elections officials last month told poll workers they should admit voters decked out in campaign apparel, after e-mails circulated warning that Obama supporters would be turned away if they wore shirts and pins.
Sorry, You've Been De-Registered
To obtain an absentee ballot, an absentee application form may be submitted. Because of a printing error on an application form sent out by the McCain campaign in several states, thousands of voters who requested absentees were rejected if the voter failed to check a box that needn't have been on the form in the first place.http://www.canivote.org/http://www.votersunite.org/info/RegInfo.asp
To obtain an absentee ballot, an absentee application form may be submitted. Because of a printing error on an application form sent out by the McCain campaign in several states, thousands of voters who requested absentees were rejected if the voter failed to check a box that needn't have been on the form in the first place.
http://www.canivote.org/
http://www.votersunite.org/info/RegInfo.asp
Lost Your House, Lost Your Vote?
Michigan election officials say they will remind local clerks that home foreclosure lists are not sufficient to challenge voting status.State elections director Chris Thomas said foreclosure lists alone aren't enough to contest a voter's residence. A person whose home is in the foreclosure process still could be living at the address on the foreclosure list.The notice could ease an ongoing flap about disputed allegations of possible challenges to Michigan voters in Macomb County, considered a possible key area in the presidential contest between Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain.The Obama campaign filed a lawsuit to prevent the Michigan GOP from using foreclosure lists as a residency challenge.Marion County GOP Chairman Tom John told the Indianapolis Star that while his party has no plans to pursue such challenges, he wouldn't rule it out."I think it would be a solid basis for asking someone to vote provisionally," John said.
Old Enough To Vote, But Not Here?
In late August, a notice by a Montgomery County election official aimed at clarifying the voter registration process for Virginia Tech students actually mislead potential voters, creating a firestorm. It read in part,
"The Code of Virginia states that a student must declare a legal residence in order to register. A legal residence can be either a student's permanent address from home or their current college residence. By making Montgomery County your permanent residence, you have declared your independence from your parents and can no longer be claimed as a dependent on their income tax filings."
The statement also warned that students could lose their scholarships as the result of an address change.After the IRS disputed the tax claims, the official released another notice which clarified some aspects but still caused concern that students would not be allowed to vote, in part because of the vagaries of declaring an "abode" and a "domicile."
Who in their right mind, anywhere in the United States could vote for a candidate who will resort to such tactics as trying to keep citizens from voting through deception? I hope you will pass along these tips to inform people who might be affected as well as letting voters know the lengths the Republican Party and John McCain are willing to go in preventing them from their Constitutional Right to Vote.
http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/electionlaw/news.phphttp://moritzlaw.osu.edu/electionlaw/states.phphttp://moritzlaw.osu.edu/electionlaw/topics.php
Thank you for your honesty and professionalism in tonight's debate. What I saw was one extremely smart man debating a character actress who's not all that great at memorizing her lines.
It's stunning our political process has come to this.
You and Barack are running your campaign for the White House with the utmost integrity, while we see nothing of the sort from the other side, who mirror George W. Bush in every way, from mimicking his failed policies to his penchant for lying to the American people.
Thank you for caring so much about the American people, and working so hard on our behalf.
We look forward to seeing you and Barack on Inauguration Day!
..
McCain better watch out - Palin stated yesterday that Biden was too old...."I've been hearing about him since I was in second grade." Crowd laughs
Palin is now in dangerous territory. The AARP and Boomers do not appreciate negative speech about older Americans. McCain is older than Biden - so it comes back to haunt the McCain/Palin ticket. Biden as the Vice Presidential candidate has a wealth of knowledge and can help and advise President Obama on successful implementation of his platform.
OBAMA HAS ALWAYS TREATED McCAIN WITH RESPECT AND HAS NEVER MADE JOKES ABOUT McCAIN'S AGE. OBAMA IS A GENTLEMAN WITH INTEGRITY AND RESPECT FOR ALL AMERICANS, YOUNG, OLD, AND IN-BETWEEN.
PLEASE VOTE FOR OBAMA
