And now for something completely different

I was reading some of my recent blog posts, and I realized that I've been overly serious lately.

Apparently I've been ignoring the lighter side of political blogging. I really need to just kick back and have some fun for a change.

So, I'm going to go sailing for a week.

Actually, I was planning this for months. But it sounds better if I pretend that I've made a spur-of-the-moment decision to take a vacation.

See? I'm acting sillier already!

I'm leaving the blog in the capable hands of Kirby, who has agreed to come out of semi-blogging-retirement to post some stuff here, and at the same time she'll raise the collective IQ of the blog several fold. I'm very much looking forward to reading her posts when I get back.

And here's some more fun; a bit of silliness from our favorite pseudo-conservative, before he became a late-night fixture on Comedy Central. "The King of Glory":



See y'all in about a week or so!

Too bad for Darfur

Unlike Iraq, the war-torn provinces of Darfur lack huge reserves of oil.

Apparently, that's the criteria for the Bush administration to offer military intervention as a solution to their problems.

Otherwise...why bother?

UPDATE: ConnecticutMan1 pointed out in the comments that Darfur indeed has oil. Just not as much as Iraq or as easy to get to, what with Iraq's pre-drilled wells (courtesy of Saddam). Thanks CM for the info!

From the Raw Story:

Democratic presidential candidates vowed more intervention in the humanitarian crisis in Darfur if the White House changes hands in 2008 and criticized President Bush's different approaches toward Africa and the Middle East.

"If Darfur had a large supply of oil, this administration would be occupying it right now," said Dennis Kucinich, the liberal Ohio congressman and long-shot candidate.

Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., took the most aggressive stance toward Darfur intervention, saying the US does not need to wait until it pulls out of Iraq to intervene with sanctions and the enforcement of a no-fly-zone over Sudan.

If need be, the US "should put American troops on the ground to stop the carnage," Biden said.

John Edwards, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton all endorsed placing US troops in the region, although Clinton specified she would like to see NATO lead the way in organizing any military intervention.

Obama called for a dramatic shift in US trade and investment policy toward Africa, and he said America needs to pay attention to the continent when it is not in crisis. The Illinois Senator said America's long-term security is going to depend on whether children in Sudan and Zimbabwe have educational and other opportunities to keep them from turning into violent extremists.

Clinton called for a more aggressive stance toward warlords in Sudan, saying the US needed to send a message to hostile forces in Darfur with the establishment of a no-fly-zone.

"If they fly into it," she said, "we will shoot down their planes."

I dunno, but there's something really creepy about that last quote from Hillary.

She's starting to scare me.

Kerri Rowland 1/2 Birthday Fundraiser

Join Mayoral Candidate Kerri Rowland (Milford) for a special, fun-filled evening to celebrate her "Half-Birthday" on Monday, July 2nd (Kerri's birthday is on Jan. 2nd, so this is her HALF birthday).

Jeffrey's Restaurant, 501 New Haven Ave., Milford, 5:30-7:30PM.

Fabulous appetizers along with a HALF of a birthday cake will be served!

$300 Only $150 per person (HALF price, get it?)
Seniors and Students, call for special price

RSVP to Marlana at 203-380-0693

Please make checks payable to:
"Kerri Rowland for Mayor"
Send to:
Kerri Rowland
465 Pond Point Ave.
Milford, CT 06460

And here's Kerri's announcement speech so you can see that she deserves YOUR support!

SiCKO Screening and Edwards House Party

Here's a couple of DFA events coming up that are interesting; these are open to the public, please click on the links to RSVP:

This message was sent by your DFA New Haven organizer, Justin Paglino.

Dear DFA New Haven,

This week there are a couple of DFA-New Haven member-sponsored events
you may enjoy:

1. John Edwards House Party hosted by Rachel Jackson in Branford
-Wednesday (June 27): 7PM
For info and to RSVP go to: http://dfalink.com/event.php?id=21175
-For the devoted and the undecided alike.

2. SiCKO Movie Night hosted by Robert Smith in Derby.
-Friday (June 29): 7PM
For info and to RSVP go to: http://dfalink.com/event.php?id=20920
-From what I have heard a very powerful indictment of health care in
the U.S.

Thanks to Rachel and Robert for hosting these events!

If you go, invite some friends!

-Justin Paglino

Sending the wrong message

Presidential candidate Sen. Chris Dodd spoke last weekend about his lack of interest in pursuing impeachment hearings against Vice President Dick Cheney.

From Foster's Online:

ROCHESTER — Appearing before at least 60 voters at the Governor's Inn on Sunday, presidential candidate Chris Dodd said he "understands the appetite" of people wanting to impeach Vice President Dick Cheney, but he doesn't think the long process would help the country.

"There are too many other issues out there the American public were hoping Democrats would decide to address and focus on. That's the choice you make. Others may make a different focus. My choice would be to focus on other agenda items," he said.

This seems, to me, to be a huge error of judgement. Here's my reasons why I feel this way:

1) The Democratic Majority was elected to end the war in Iraq. They couldn't get that single issue resolved. So I don't think we'll see much more gridlock in the already gridlocked Congress should they impeach Cheney.

2) George Bush can drop dead at any moment, probably from something stupid like cutting off his own leg with a chainsaw at his ranch. Cheney would then be President. Imagine the hell that he'd unleash with THAT power!

3) You're saying it's OK to break the laws and piss all over the Constitution and not have to worry about consequences. That's a big precident you're setting there, Senator. How will he be brought to account for his crimes?

4) The current Congress has earned a record low approval rating primarily because of the lack of action to end the war. There's still time to try to do SOMETHING right.

5) By beginning impeachment hearings, you'll uncover lots more evidence than you'll get now by doing nothing. I'm sure there are plenty of witnesses who would love to tell their stories, but are afraid to because they think nothing will be done with it.

6) Impeachment hearings make great summer TV viewing. I need something to entertain me while I'm sitting on my yacht.

7) By tying Cheney's hands with impeachment proceedings, maybe he'll be too busy to further wreck our country.

So reconsider your stand, Senator.

Remember, Lowell Weicker acted properly when the moment was right. Don't miss your moment.

Another reason to like Dennis

If I took the time to draw up a list of things that a presidential candidate could do to entice me to admire him, the statement below would certainly make the list. The more I see of Dennis Kucinich, the more he impresses me with his intellect and awakeness.

Yeah, I said "awakeness". It's a word I use that means being awake and aware and knowledgable enough to correctly interpret what he becomes aware of. This guy is brimming with awakeness!

Contrast that with our current leader's somnambulistic lack of awareness (except when it comes to father figures telling him what to do).

Sure, the naysayers parrot, but Kucinich is a longshot...

...and you have to ask yourself, did anyone outside of Arkansas know their governor's name back in late 1991?

(h/t to ConnecticutMan1 at Drinking Liberally in New Milford for the heads-up on the video)

Lieberman raises big money for Moveon.org

This story makes me very happy.

Finally, Joe Lieberman is responsible for something positive happening!

Jane over at FDL reports:


Nobody Raises Money Like Joe
By Jane Hamsher on Thu Jun 21, 2007 at 09:36 am

He’s a friggin’ cash cow:

When the MoveOn.org Political Action Project found out that Lieberman was one of the hosts of a $3,000-a-person Washington fundraiser tonight for Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, the grass-roots, anti-war group pounced.

MoveOn has long been at odds with Lieberman, a strong backer of the war who won re-election last year as an independent. He has worked together with Collins for years as leaders of the Senate Homeland Security Committee.
The word went out from MoveOn Tuesday: Donate money to defeat Collins, who could face a tough re-election battle next year, it told members in an e-mail.

Within 24 hours, more than 5,600 members donated an average of $63 each, for a total of $355,000.

MoveOn, knowing a good thing, decided to keep it going, and Wednesday sent out another e-mail.

“Wow,” the organization said. “In less than 24 hours, thousands of us around the country chipped in more than $280,000 to help anti-war candidates beat Joe Lieberman’s pro-war fundraiser. It’s amazing.

Collins’ opponent Tom Allen seems to be well aware of this, per his Blue America appearance here on FDL. You can kick Joe by giving to Allen here.

And here's CNN's coverage of the situation via My Left Nutmeg:

Lieberman applauds Bloomberg's defection

In a statement that surprised absolutely no one on the planet, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-LIE) has given his approval to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's desertion of the Republican party.

From the Associated Press:

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman says he supports New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's decision to leave the Republican party and become an independent.

[..]

Lieberman knows a thing or two about leaving a major political party and going it alone. He ran for re-election last year as an independent after losing the Democratic primary, although he still caucuses with Senate Democrats.

Sure he does...on everything except the War in Iraq and a bunch of other stuff the Democrats would actually like to see him support.

[...]

Bloomberg campaigned and raised money for Lieberman's re-election bid last year. But the relationship soured in February when Bloomberg expressed his frustration with homeland security legislation approved by a Senate committee headed by Lieberman.

No shit, Mayor Sherlock! It finally dawned on you that Lieberman might be something other than he professes? Gee, you're probably the dumbest billionaire on the planet.

I can't wait until Bloomberg runs for president. It'll make supporting anyone else that much sweeter!

Bloomberg/Lieberman in 2008?

(The resemblence is uncanny!)
Do the math...

Michael Bloomberg has left the Republican party.

Joe Lieberman has left the Democratic party.

Will they become the Unity 2008 dream ticket? Maybe. Here's the story of the Mayor's defection, from the Associated Press:

NEW YORK - New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Tuesday switched his party status from Republican to unaffiliated, a stunning move certain to be seen as a prelude to an independent presidential bid that would upend the 2008 race.

[...]

"Although my plans for the future haven't changed, I believe this brings my affiliation into alignment with how I have led and will continue to lead our city," he said in a statement.

Despite his coyness about his aspirations, the mayor's decision to switch stokes speculation that he will pursue the White House, challenging the Democratic and Republican nominees with a legitimate and well-financed third-party bid.

[...]

The 65-year-old mayor has fueled the presidential buzz with increasing out-of-state travel, including New Hampshire last weekend; a greater focus on national issues and repeated criticism of the partisan politics that dominate Washington.

All I can say is...do it.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEEEEEEASE DO IT!!!

Read the entire article HERE.

Michael Moore takes on healthcare

Even though this movie isn't yet in general release, it is more or less available through clips on Youtube and other video services. You probably have to search to find all the nessecary clips in their proper order, but they are out there.

"Sicko" (IMDB listing) is going to help ensure that universal health care is a major issue in the next election cycle.

The state of health care in the US is bad and getting worse. The trend is moving towards increasing the number of illnesses that aren't covered, and adding co-pays and deductables to the point that if a middle-class family member suffers a serious illness, it can bankrupt them. Even WITH insurance.

Sadly, our lawmakers are easily bought off by the huge insurance companies. And to be honest, it's only a tiny drop in the bucket for these billion-dollar corporations. Apparently, politicians are as easily pleased as elephants...it only takes peanuts.

It doesn't have to be this way. It's a wonderful thing to see how doctors in other industrialized countries are free of the crushing burden of insurance approvals, and how they can simply treat their patients and be concerned solely with their well-being.

It'll be interesting to see how the paid-for politicians, neocon pundits and corporate shills try to spin this (let's be honest) American healthcare failure into something other than it is. I'm sure they'll accuse Michael Moore of anti-American tendencies, and insist that early death from lack of adaquate medical care is a unique American right that he's trying to take from us.

I only wish this movie had been available earlier this year, because if everyone who works in that building in Hartford with the big gold dome was asked to watch it, we'd have a universal health care program in place by now. You can't NOT be swayed by the evidence in this movie. Go see it for yourself and decide.