(no subject)

Vote For Tomorrow

[Error: unknown template 'video']

Your Silence Will Be Heard for Generations

Best Kos Diary of the Day

'Just make sure you vote for that colored boy'

by St Louis Woman

Thu Oct 09, 2008 at 09:05:48 AM PDT

Go on read it... we all need something to smile about these days.

(no subject)

Hattip to paladincub21:

Best Headline Ever!

McCain’s poll numbers have fallen and he can’t get up!

From The Christian Science Monitor.

(no subject)

From envirobear (late because it seemed appropriate to wait until after Yom Kippur):

[Error: unknown template 'video']

L'shana tovah everyone. May this year be a good year for us all.

Huge Surprise... NOT!!! FISA, Revisited

http://feeds.dailykos.com/~r/dailykos/index/~3/2ZnviNVh6Es/625288

I know mcjoan already covered this, but it's just such a surprise, such a shocker that I really want to bring it up again:

Despite pledges by President George W. Bush and American intelligence officials to the contrary, hundreds of US citizens overseas have been eavesdropped on as they called friends and family back home, according to two former military intercept operators who worked at the giant National Security Agency (NSA) center in Fort Gordon, Georgia. [...]

"These were just really everyday, average, ordinary Americans who happened to be in the Middle East, in our area of intercept and happened to be making these phone calls on satellite phones," said Adrienne Kinne, a 31-year old US Army Reserves Arab linguist assigned to a special military program at the NSA's Back Hall at Fort Gordon from November 2001 to 2003.

Kinne described the contents of the calls as "personal, private things with Americans who are not in any way, shape or form associated with anything to do with terrorism."

She said US military officers, American journalists and American aid workers were routinely intercepted and "collected on" as they called their offices or homes in the United States.

Yes, what a surprise. I especially like the part of the story where Jay Rockefeller, chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, finds this "disturbing". Um... hello? Senator? This was pretty much what we were all telling you was happening, when you last rammed through new lax surveillance laws in opposition to other members of your own party.

Jackass.

Here's the thing. The story says "despite pledges by President George W. Bush and American intelligence officials to the contrary": that's a wasted sentence. It's a waste of damn ink and/or electrons. George W. Bush lies about everything, all the time, and without compunction. Big things, little things, provable things and unprovable things. He has spent his entire administration lying about everything from war to the economy to his own advisors' activities to surveillance to the plain meaning of laws to everything else, and he's staffed his government and his Justice Department with unapologetic liars as well. Anyone who hasn't realized this at this point is beyond the help of reason or medical science.

Big surprise. The government is routinely spying on innocent Americans, whether businessmen, soldiers, students or whatever, because getting "probable cause" was too much a bother for President Halfass Bumblethud.

This is what we get for having an administration staffed by carnival barkers. Maybe someday we'll learn.

This One Is Ours To Lose, Folks

Hattip and big Hug to gordreece for this:

Listen folks. The bid to stop the hate sponsored Proposition 8 here in California is losing steam. The Bigots on the Right have been pulling money in from all over the country in order to run horrible lie filled TV ads. And the polls show that they are working.

If you don't think this affects you. Think again. California's marriage law is without stipulations or hinderances. Unlike Mass. There is nothing saying that you can't get married if your marriage isn't recognized in your home state. Our law will be the one that breaks the federal DOMA.

PLEASE! Even if you don't live in California, donate to www.NoOnProp8.com

This is one of the last chances we are going to have in this country for a long time to bring equal rights to gay couples. State after state is passing these bans. We have never seen this kind of organized hatred towards a group. If they get this, they will keep going.

Remember the line from Leviticus that they love quoting? Remember how it ends? They never put that ending in their signs.

"for they shall surely be put to death."

If they believe in the first part.... where will it end?

Also from Kos himself:

Bigoted Prop 8 supporters make gains

by kos

Thu Oct 09, 2008 at 03:34:58 PM PDT

After months of stellar polling, it appeared the effort by the Mormon Church and allies to deny same-sex couples their right to marriage in California was destined to fail easily.

A Public Policy Institute poll 9/9-16 gave the good guys, the "No" side, a 55-41 advantage. A 9/5-14 Field Poll (the gold standard of California polling), pegged the "No" side with a 52-38 advantage. Given that Californians are likely to vote "no" by default to ballot initiatives in this "citizen democracy" system run amok, it seemed like there was little to worry.

However, this past week has given us two new polls and new cause for worry.

This week, a Lake Research poll paid for by the campaign of 1,051 likely voters showed the proposition winning, with 47 percent saying they supported the measure and 43 percent saying no. The polling period was Sept. 29-Oct. 2. That finding is reinforced by a SurveyUSA poll of 670 likely voters showing the proposition winning 47 percent to 42 percent. That poll was taken Saturday and Sunday.

I don't think this can be stated strongly enough -- if this amendment passes, the cause of marriage equality will be set back decades. There's a reason the Mormon Church and wingnut "family values" groups are investing everything they can into this thing -- if they stop gay marriage in California, they halt all momentum earned the past few years. And right now, they've outraised the good guys by about $10 million.

Let me also say this -- while small donations are important and help, that's a large deficit to close in a few weeks (people will start voting soon, I got my absentee ballot a few minutes ago). The "no" side has to have a major infusion of cash in the next week or two, and by "major", I mean four-, five-,six- and seven-figure donations, all allowed under state law.

Yes, this is a battle for universal human rights, but ultimately, it directly affects just the LGBT community. Since it has the most to gain, and the most to lose, the burden of this battle falls on their backs. And while lots of people -- straight and gay -- have stepped up to fight for what's right, many of the wealthiest gays and lesbians in this country have sat on the sidelines, complacent and aloof.

The LGBT community has lots of individuals who can write those big checks. They are well represented in the ranks of the millionaires. We need to urge them to get off the sidelines and engage in this fight. This is the line in the sand. We win this one, and progress toward equality will continue. We lose it, and it'll be a real blow to the cause. We can't allow the forces of bigotry that victory.

I wrote earlier that we can't leave anything on the road. We have to give our all to win at all levels. Hopefully, the LGBT community adopts that sentiment for themselves, knowing that as the votes are being counted, they did everything in their power to win this critical battle. Because right now, according to the "Vote No on Prop 8" campaign, only 30,000 individuals have contributed to the effort, despite there being tens of millions of LGBT in the country. And if the LGBT community won't stand up for its own rights, why should anyone else?

You can give here, but if you know anyone that can write the big checks, please make some calls.