Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Expose the Lies - Part II

Beth, I appreciate your comment to part 1 of this short series. You are correct in pointing out that Clinton's camp is at least partly responsible for the blanket of lies surrounding Obama that is beginning to spread through the media. I agree that Obama's camp is very unlikely to be defeated by Clinton at this point. And finally, I agree that the right wing, kool-aid drinking Republicans' minds won't be changed no matter how we respond.

The group I am most concerned with is those in the middle or somewhat left of center who aren't plugged in enough to be aware of all the nuances.

For instance, and it's a big one: This clip, going around, of Michele Obama, supposedly saying that this is the first time in her adult life in which she is proud of her country, has been deliberately doctored, and is being replayed in it's doctored form without comment by the main stream press. The word "really" has been stricken before the word "proud." When taken in its unedited form, "... first time in my adult life that I have been really proud of my country," the meaning changes completely.

I caught this today as Thom Hartmann unknowingly played the edited clip, and I immediately tried to inform him. Unfortunately that was by email, as I cannot call talk shows from work. To my relief, a caller pointed it out to him shortly thereafter. Another caller played the uncut C-SPAN clip of this in which she clearly said "really." Thom, to his credit continued to bring this up for the rest of his show and called the editing of the clip "mind-boggling."

In the meantime, Obama has thought it necessary to clarify his wife's comments - totally un-necessarily if the rightwing evildoers weren't out trying to manipulate reality. And I have heard several people on "our side" saying Michele Obama should apologize. This is exactly the problem I am concerned with. We need to shout out the truth and expose the liars and impugn the Republican Party for their complicity. If we don't, Obama is going to start receiving friendly fire, and that would disenfranchise all of us who hope for change.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Let's Expose the Lies

I just read on the Washington Post that Clinton is relenting on her intent not to debate Obama on MSNBC. Good.

Then I read some of the comments left by readers. Some were thoughtful, some provocative; the usual mix.

Except that some were liberally sprinkled throughout by bots. At least two versions of the same "story" were repeated several times among the comments. They were stories regarding some thoughtless words spoken by Obama's preacher friend regarding a missing teenage girl. I have no idea if the story is true or not. I do know that this is a deliberate smear and it's only the beginning what promises to be a gigantic smear campaign - probably unparalleled in our history.

I think we who are informed, and who hate the right wing lies, owe it to America to prepare ourselves to fight fight fight. We cannot allow this sewage to be dumped raw into the American conscience. I think we need something concerted. I'm not sure how this can be done. I'm not talking about a reverse smear campaign. I'm talking about an offensive defense. Not only point out the lies (which will require research to verify), but even more importantly, point out and condemn the liars and the Republican Party and their candidate by extension. When they shout their lies, we need to scream the truth.

Any ideas on how we can make this broadband?

Hope for Liberality

John McCain is accusing Barak Obama of having the most liberal voting record in the Senate. First of all, John, you should get your facts straight. Bernie Sanders has the most liberal voting record. In fact, during the 2004 Presidential race, John Kerry was accused of having the most liberal voting record. Also not true back then.

Speaking for myself, I would be delighted if Obama did in fact hold the liberal voting record. John McCain accusing Barak of having the most liberal voting record is kind of like a slave trader accusing an abolitionist of freeing the most slaves. The accusation would most certainly put off slave owners, but it would delight freedom loving people. In the same manner, the only people who will be deterred by McCain's accusation are one of the following three:

1) The Republican Party elite who’s' agenda it is to disenfranchise the public to the advantage of a greedy minority,
2) Cruel and heartless people who relish seeing the poor, the handicapped, and the "different" suffer (some of these people are in category 1, and vise versa), or
3) An unfortunately large populace which has been hoodwinked into believing conservatism is about morality and righteous strength (it's not; it's about categories 1 and 2, but especially category 1).

One percent of the world's population owns 80% of the world's wealth. The concentrations are skewed here in the United States, but this is truly a global phenomenon. And the Republican party of the United States’ mission is to ensure that "balance" remains. They are not alone in this. Despotic regimes, global corporations, old world gentry, military contractors, and others of their ilk are all in this together.

In fact one of their favorite lies is that of a dreaded one-world government. It's a smokescreen used to hide their very real one-world cabal. And naturally they don't want competition or for that matter any planet-spanning law enforcing entity that might expose them or get in their way. So they demonize the United Nations as the leader of this mythical one-world government.

Many people complain (with justification) about the ineffectualness of the United Nations. In fact, those who deliberately demonize this organization use this trait as one of their criticisms. In fact, of course, this ineffectualness is due primarily to the deliberate obstructions of those in the obscene wealth cabal.

We can use more liberalism. In fact we are long overdue for it. But what we need to do as (hopefully) enlightened people is to help, in this season, to educate those in category 3 of the truth. This isn’t a small task. And it doesn’t happen by pointing out that they are stupid or have been tricked or that their morals are wrong or misguided. It happens by opening their eyes up to what can be theirs. It happens when they are offered hope. It happens when they realize that the limitations they have taken for granted are false, and can be dispensed with.

After all, this is what Barak has started to make happen for those who have already started to grasp what is happening in this “movement” of hope. And no, it’s not about Mr. Obama himself. And I think he would be the first to decry any attempt to idolize him (at least as the goal of the movement). It’s about us all (except the greedy – they lose) understanding our right and liberties as citizens of this country and the world.

Thursday, February 7, 2008

And you thought illegal kidney harvesting was an urban myth.

Police arrest kidney scam fugitive: official
Friday Feb 8 05:23 AEDT

Police in Nepal are holding a man who is believed to have masterminded India's biggest illegal kidney transplant racket, officials said.

Indian national Amit Kumar was arrested at a hotel at Sauraha town in Chitwan province Thursday evening, said Kiran Gautam, police deputy inspector general, told AFP by phone.
The 40-year-old was staying at the Hotel Wildlife Resort in Sauraha, when police made the search, Gautam said from Chitwan, 80 kilometres southwest of Kathmandu.


Indian media reported that Kumar fled to Nepal after the multi-million-dollar scandal was uncovered last month.

Last week international police organisation Interpol issued arrest notices for Kumar and his brother Jeevan Rawat, 36 "for illegal transplanting of kidneys, cheating and criminal conspiracy."

Gautam said: "Police searched the hotel after they received information that the Indian national was staying in the hotel."

He added that Kumar had confessed about his illegal kidney business to police during preliminary investigation.

"He (Amit Kumar) will be sent to Kathmandu early Friday morning for further investigation," Gautam said.

He also said police recovered some euros, dollars and Indian currency from in the raid Kumar.
"It is believed that during the past eight years around 500 people were forcibly operated on and their kidneys transplanted to foreign patients in a secret operating theatre," the global police body said.


The rest of the story...

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

One for Democracy

"The court confirms that we don't have an imperial presidency in this country."

Joel Reynolds, a senior attorney
with the Natural Resources Defense Council discussing the decision of U.S.
District Judge Florence-Marie Cooper, disallowing the Bush Administration's
attempt to exempt the Navy from rules governing the use of sonar near whale
pooulations.

"It properly rejected the president's attempted end run around the will of Congress and an order of the federal court," he said.

Read more Here.