Wow, I really like this...it shows more of our shared concerns then our differences......However, Of Course, I`m More Concern of Corporations having to much power than the Government. It comes down to this: Get Religion & Money out of Politics!!
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Sometimes it is good to see what our Shared Concerns are, other then our Differences
Wow, I really like this...it shows more of our shared concerns then our differences......However, Of Course, I`m More Concern of Corporations having to much power than the Government. It comes down to this: Get Religion & Money out of Politics!!
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Randi Rhodes; Preachy Politics
Santorum was speaking in eastern Ohio, emphasizing his regional heritage as the grandson of a Pennsylvania coalminer. Rick said “we need someone who understands, who comes from the coal fields.” Rick, you don’t come from the coal fields, your grandfather did, two generations ago. There were no sweater-vests in the coal fields. Rick is a lawyer, an unregistered lobbyist, and a Fox News pundit. I’d say he’s pretty safe from contracting black lung disease.
When Rick Santorum is talking about putting man above the Earth, he’s talking the language of Dominionism. Domionists think that people have a God-given right to do whatever they want to do with the Earth. Combine that with the belief that corporations are people, and suddenly corporations are God’s stewards on Earth. A literal interpretation of Genesis plus Citizens United equals people who believe that God created Exxon-Mobile in his own image.
The Republicans are trying to mount a sexual counterrevolution. Of course, they want to do it without “mounting” it. Republicans want to control what we do in our bedrooms. What are they going to do when they find out we do it in other rooms too?
Today’s Homework | Discuss
Meanwhile, Franklin Graham is making sure that Santorum doesn't hog all crazy for himself...
Thom Hartmann: Why are women in Virginia getting screwed by Republicans?
More than a 1,000 people - most of whom were women - took to the streets outside the Virginia state capital on Monday - locked arm in arm and silently protested against anti-abortion legislation working it's way through the state legislature. The bill that the women are protesting against would define a fertilized egg as a person, thus criminalizing most birth control and IVF for infertile couples - slash state aid to poor women - and require all women to have a state agent insert a probe into them before they can get a legal abortion.
That's right the same Republicans that rail against big government also favor government having the power to probe women. Despite the protests - the law is expected to pass the legislature this week and be signed into law by Republican Governor Bob McDonnell.
Let's hope this blatant Republican war on women comes with consequences at the polls in November.
-Thom
(How would you react if the state tried to screw you? Tell us here.)
Monday, February 20, 2012
Thom Hartmann: All across Spain workers protested in the streets last weekend, when will we see this in the US?
From Greece to the U.K. to now Spain. Hundreds of thousands of workers took to the streets in 57 cities across Spain over the weekend to protest the Conservative government's new austerity package and labor reforms. As many as a half-million people demonstrated in Madrid alone according to reports.
Alongside new spending cuts - the Conservative government is slashing severance pay for workers and making it easier for companies to opt out of union contracts. Before the European debt crisis - Spain's unemployment rate stood at just below 8% - but today it's above 22% - which is the highest in the developed world. And as we've seen elsewhere across Europe - and in the United States - slashing government spending and taking money out of working people's pockets only makes the situation worse.
-Thom
(What do you think it will take to end austerity cuts? Tell us here.)
Friday, February 17, 2012
Thom Hartmann: The foreclosure fraud scandal may be worse than we all think
You need to know this. The foreclosure fraud scandal may be worse than we all think.
An audit of 400 foreclosures in San Francisco found that 99% of them had "legal problems or suspicious documents." This new finding comes after the recent $26 billion mortgage settlement between 48 states and the 5 biggest mortgage lenders on Wall Street.
Many argue that $26 billion is not nearly enough to compensate for the damage these banks did to millions of families through fraudulent foreclose practices - and this recent study out of San Francisco appears to back that claim up.
-Thom
(Do you think there is worse to come? Tell us here.)
Randi Rhodes: Gospel of Darrell
Yesterday House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) held a hearing on contraception without any women witnesses. That’s because, to Darrell Issa, women aren’t the witnesses in this proceeding—they’re the defendants. Republicans claimed there were no women witnesses because the hearings weren’t about women’s reproductive health, they were about religious freedom. So you’re saying women have nothing to do with religion? That’s hardly better—just less starkly ironic. Before leaving the hearing in protest, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), asked “Where are the women?” That’s not a question that ever occurs to conservative men... unless they’re at a function where they expect there are going to be strippers.
It’s not just that Darrell Issa would be willing to hold a hearing about contraception that included no women. It’s also that it wouldn’t even occur to him that that might not look so good. Hello! It’s a hearing by the Committee on Oversight! At least try to avoid any major oversights in putting it together! Darrell Issa was right about one thing—this wasn’t a hearing about women’s reproductive health... it was a hearing about undermining women’s reproductive health.
No matter how hard the Republicans in Washington are working at undermining women’s reproductive health, they’re still miles behind the Republicans in statehouses across the country. A law passed by the Virginia legislature requires any woman seeking an abortion to submit to a trans-vaginal ultrasound. If that sounds frightening, that’s exactly the point. Not surprisingly, a “trans-vaginal ultrasound” requires penetration of a woman’s vagina... with an implement that looks like it’s a prop from one of the Star Wars movies. Critics call the law “state-sanctioned rape.” That’s not strictly accurate—it’s actually “state-mandated rape.” At the same time that Virginia is proposing the state-mandated rape bill, another bill defines a fertilized egg as a “person.” Put the two bills together, and in Virginia, a fertilized egg is more of a person than a woman. If Virginia succeeds in essentially stripping all of its female residents of personhood, I suggest that Virginia shouldn’t be allowed to count women residents for purposes of determining the number of Representatives the state gets.
Today’s Homework | Discuss
Meet Sandra Fluke - a third year law student at Georgetown University, a Jesuit school - the woman Rep. Issa refused to hear testimony from yesterday...
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Randi Rhodes: Man's World
Rush Limbaugh has announced “The vast majority of people having abortions are Democrat voters.” I highly doubt that. Republicans have been making it so difficult to get an abortion in recent years that the only people who can pull it off are rich Republicans. It just seems like more Democratic voters are having abortions because they have to go to the clinics with the screaming Republicans outside. When Republicans want abortions, they go to high-priced, discreet private doctors.
Rush also says that under healthcare reform “If they decide that you can only have two babies, they can do that.” Rush, the only limit we would want would be a zero-child mandate for you personally, and you seem to be doing that voluntarily. This whole birth control debate has really brought out the worst in Rush Limbaugh. But on the other hand, for decades now, birth control has also prevented the worst of Rush Limbaugh from being passed on genetically. Rush has had four marriages, but he has no children. He’s 0-for-4! He’s the Buffalo Bills of egg fertilizing!
I shouldn’t tease Rush for not reproducing. The fact that he hasn’t passed on his flawed genes is the one great gift that he has given to mankind. We should build a statue of him in a heroic pose... pushing an empty baby carriage.
Today’s Homework | Discuss
Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) walked out of a GOP-led hearing on birth control today after they were denied a female wittness on the all-male panel...
Thom Hartmann; Is the stage set for Citizens United Round Two?
Last December - the Montana State Supreme Court ignored the Citizens United ruling - and continued its ban on corporate election spending - upholding a 1912 law known as the Montana Corrupt Practices Act. According to the Act - "a corporation may not make ... an expenditure in connection with a candidate or a political party that supports or opposes a candidate or a political party." But those corporate interests - in this case known as the American Tradition Partnership - that were upset by this law are now petitioning the Supreme Court to have it reversed.
The lead attorney for the American Tradition Partnership - James Bopp, Jr. - who assisted with the Citizens United legal argument - filed a stay with Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy on Wednesday calling for the Montana's law to be overturned. As Bopp said, "[i]mmediate relief is needed to prevent irreparable harm to the Corporations' First Amendment free-speech right." It's likely the court will strike down the Montana ruling - thus for a second time ruling that corporations are people and money is speech, without looking at the real world consequences of such a ruling.
As Montana Supreme Court Justice James Nelson - who even dissented in the case in January - wrote, "In the real world of politics, the 'quid pro quo' of both direct contributions to candidates and independent expenditures on their behalf is loyalty...And, in practical effect, experience teaches that money corrupts, and enough of it corrupts absolutely." He's right - and as long as Citizens United stands - then our democracy is corrupted. Time to go to MoveToAmend.org to fight for a constitutional amendment to kick corporations out of our democracy.
-Thom
(What do you think the Supreme Court will do? Tell us here.)
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Randi Rhodes: Strange Crusade
Rush Limbaugh says the Constitution clearly prohibits having birth control covered by insurance companies. I knew the Founding Fathers were forward thinkers. I had no idea just how forward thinking they were. I wonder what they had to say about digital media, genetic engineering, and satellite technology. Rush goes on to say “If you don’t like the Catholic Church’s view on abortion, if you don’t like their view on contraception, don’t be Catholic.” Of course, you still have to follow their rules on those subjects! Rush says if people don’t agree with the Catholic Church on contraception, “They don’t have to sign up.” Not at all! They’re evidently automatically enrolled! If you want to obey the Catholic Church, you don’t have to sign up with them—all you have to do is live in the United States of America.
Where does all this stupidity come from? It turns out that there’s a scientific explanation. A recent study published in the journal Psychological Science concluded that people with less intelligence tend to be conservative. I’m sure it didn’t offend any of them. None of them would be reading the journal Psychological Science. Next time you have an argument with a conservative, you can tell them that conservatives are less intelligent, and that is just an empirical fact. Well, don’t use the word “empirical.” And talk really slowly. The study that concluded that conservatives are dumb was conducted using rigorous scientific testing methods. But they could have come to the same conclusion by just turning on Fox News.
There are some intelligent Republicans, but if they want to get anywhere in their own party, they have to keep their intelligence hidden. It’s kind of like how Republicans keep gay conservatives confined to the closet. I guess they keep intelligent conservatives confined to the library. And why would a reasonably intelligent person want to be with the Republicans? Well, it guarantees that whenever they’re at a conservative gathering, they’re always the smartest person in the room.
Today’s Homework | Discuss
Thom Hartmann: Are the Oil Barons Brainwashing your Children?
The environment is screwed. Big oil and coal want to brainwash your children. The Center for American Progress obtained a secret document produced by the Heartland Institute - a right wing, global warming-denying think tank funded by the Koch brothers - to teach children in K through 12th grade that global warming is a "major scientific controversy."
The document includes secret plans to re-write environmental curricula to downplay the effects of global warming. The man in charge of writing the new curricula is named Dr. David Wojick - who also works as a coal industry consultant. The Heartland Institute defended its reeducation effort by saying, "We hope that our efforts will restore sound science to climate change education and discourage the political propaganda that too often passes as 'education.'" In other words - they think big oil should be teaching kids - and not the scientific community.
This is exactly the sort of stuff that former Supreme Court justice Lewis Powell called for in his infamous 1971 memo to the Chamber of Commerce when he suggested rewriting school textbooks to advance more business-friendly attitudes. The billionaires are continuing their campaign of good old-fashioned brainwashing.
-Thom
(Will they get away with it? Tell us here.)
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Randi Rhodes: Painful Courtship
At least he’s not that awful Mitt Romney! Mitt is the guy their parents want them to marry. He comes from a good family, he’s got oodles of money, and he’s so handsome. So what it is it about this guy that just turns them off so much? Mitt just tries too hard. He actually scares them away when he comes on so strong. Back off a little, Mitt. They want some space. Mitt says all the right things, but somehow he never seems to mean it. I suspect that he doesn’t love the Republican Party for their policies. He just loves the idea of being the one they picked.
Then there’s Ron Paul, the older guy who likes to come off as an outsider. Ron is SOOOO intellectual! He’s always talking philosophy. He doesn’t give a damn what people think! Of course, they know that Ron Paul would be an absolute disaster in an actual relationship. But they flirt with him just because it pisses their parents off.
Of course, Newt Gingrich is the creepy ex who keeps hanging around. They had a thing in the 90’s, and it turned into a nightmare. Then, for some crazy reason, when Newt showed back up last year, they had another little dalliance with him in South Carolina. It didn’t take long to be reminded of just how crazy Newt can be, so they broke it off right away. But Newt doesn’t want to accept that. At this point, Newt doesn’t even want a relationship. He just hates the handsome rich boy Mitt so much that he wants to sabotage his chances.
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, the state of Washington has legalized gay marriage. Now on a visit to Washington, Rick Santorum called for a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. For Rick, it was like visiting a disaster area. He was there to promise local homophobes that help was on the way.
Today’s Homework | Discuss
Newt is asked about his Valentine's Day plans - we'll just assume the reporter meant with Callista...
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