An Inconvenient Truth About Our Politics

Hello Bloggers! Long time no see! I am sorry for being missing in action, but there is a good reason and I thought I should take a little time to say hello and explain why I've taken a break from blogging. So, hello to all of you! Now for the explanation.

I've grown tired of the lies and insanity of American political debate today. It's true that it's always been a little insane, but still the lies from the right have been too much lately. Great American political debate has traditionally been based on actual facts, but the truth is those facts are now an endangered species.

It's clear that "facts" today are corrupted by deceitful politicians, non-governmental organizations, special interest groups, corporations, and many fake news sources. Even its cousin the statistic is manipulated and distorted these days. Everybody knows the unemployment rate is much higher than reported. The same goes for most other - once trusted - leading indicators.

There is no doubt, WE THE PEOPLE are being lied to more than ever. I like to call it the big con, or simply IT. It refers to many causes, but mostly it refers to information technology, which sadly creates the conditions that lead to most of today's factual distortions. Unfortunately, we are now victims of it, we are controlled by it, and we are now all part of it.

Who is the #1 enemy of it? For me, it's currently Rachel Maddow. She dispels more of "it" than any other journalist alive today. Cheers for Rachel!

Sadly few know about it since the corporate media controls access to the message, and they rely on it for most of their fake news and ratings (yes, the ratings are manipulated). In Rovian terms, it is the muddying of America's political waters, stirred-up using bucket-fulls of lies and propaganda. Unfortunately, unless it can be fixed, it could ruin the faith, trust and respect that millions of Americans like me have in our system.

Unless real reforms begin soon, proving that truth and the good guys can still win, I fear that I may be just the tip of a very angry iceberg.

Don't get me wrong, I'm still fighting the good fight when it comes to helping the good guys. I'm still writing letters and making calls to President Obama and our legislators, but I admit that blogging has lost most of its appeal. Right now I'm focusing on helping create real change through political action.

Sorry, but I never really got the sense that our blogosphere - more often echo-chamber than debate club - helps us very much. Usually it just sets us up as punching bags for the uninformed, angry right. Sadly, no matter how well you research and write it, they just seem to ignore it or trash it. It just doesn't seem worth it.

My recent feelings of disappointment got me thinking. Despite my desire for more facts, sadly, when you really research it, America has never really been a great place for reality-based politics. Historically, most American political debate has been shrouded in myth and patriotic fervor.

Consider the simple idea that we Americans have always seen ourselves as the land of freedom and equality. Is it true? It's great to hear, but for millions it is less about fact, and more marketing. The truth is freedom has never been free in this country, and we have never been about equality. The shining city on a hill has more slums than most people want to believe; the great society has never been as fair as people think.

The fact is we rank low in terms of many freedoms, at least those freedoms most of the industrialized world cares about - individual welfare, and freedom from sickness and extreme poverty. We have never been a nation built on equality.

For a rich nation, we have the highest prison populations in the world, the highest number of hate crimes in the world, and the greatest divide between rich and poor. Only crazy Republicans and die-hard, love-the-fetus-hate-the-child conservatives see us as truly free.

Unless you have great parents, or a great parent like Barack Obama, you're usually on your own. It's true anybody can make it, but helping people make it is a political no-no.

For God's sake, even Mark Twain included murder, inequality and hatred in his American tales over 100 years ago. Actually, most of America's greatest literary works have touched on our internal inequalities. What is truly American is the public's desire to ignore it's problems, and to think the opposite.

Inconvenient Historical Truths

Just think about our incredibly dark history. The slave trade, native American subjugation and genocide, a century plus civil rights struggle of inequality and murder, countless wars financed by greed and corruption (especially in Central and South America), and finally our greatest gift, the global military-industrial complex.

This is not to say we're a bad country. We have done a good job trying to set things right, and probably should be considered better than most. Still, today I'm talking about the bad.

So, whether you want to admit it or not we have been lying to ourselves as a nation for a long time, and are not always the good guys in every situation, despite what Republicans say. The time for American innocence, ignorance and negligent stupidity must end.

It's time to talk turkey about our past, our recent history, and today. We need to discuss who we really are, how we fit in globally, and where we're going. If not, we'll remain ignorant, buy their propaganda and lies, and suffer the ugly consequences.

How many question what would the world be like if only the Germans fought the Nazis? Well, we're the Germans now, and today's liars are the Nazis. Let's act before it's too late.

If we cannot evolve, then we deserve the despots who control us. If we cannot change, then we deserve the lies and the deceit they market to us as so-called freedoms. On the other hand, if we admit that America has a dark side, that we're being lied to, and that fear, greed and the desire for power drive it, then I think it's only reasonable that we find a way to pull the plug on that power.

First, we need to identify who they are. We need to name the people who are trying to control us - the ones who also want us to be afraid. As I've said on this blog in the past, we need to start by ignoring the 24/7 "news" media. TURN THEM OFF! They need to be the first we shut out, and shutdown. Second, we need to focus more energy on reaching political independents (blogging by itself may not be enough), explain the truth, and discredit the liars.

There's no doubt most of today's politicians follow those who wield money and power. Our interests have been replaced by a cabal of greedy influence peddlers, corporations and individuals from all parts of the world. It's now all about the global economy, corporate greed, and how the rich can get richer. That is the sad truth of today. It's time to see them as the corrupting influences they are; it's time for electoral reform.

President Obama must push for real campaign fianance and systemic reform. It's time to get the money out of the system.

Sadly, it's a long shot. It's clear that corporate Republicans and Democratic sell-outs will continue to undermine any progress. I'm even beginning to believe that Barack Obama doesn't have what it takes. The change we voted for (and often prayed for) is beginning to look like a sales job, or worse. Unless real reforms begin to take shape soon, the inertia will threaten to demoralize and undermine support within the rest of the American electorate.

So, what does all this ranting mean? It means that I've become so disenchanted that I can't seem to write like I used to. The lies, Republican manipulation, corporate corruption, and [mostly] Senatorial inaction have degraded the system so much it all seems futile. Unless I can see some light at the end of this dark tunnel, I will have little incentive to write about politics again. I'll probably start blogging about something else.

Let's hope the good guys can win one soon. Let's hope for real health care and financial reform. Those two alone would probably allow me to reconnect, to ignore the lies, and to fight for more CHANGE! They would go a long way to cure what is ailing me. In the meantime I'll continue to write my letters and make my phone calls, and hope for real progress.

My best to all of you. I hope you are are having a great Fall.

Monday's Political Rant - Michael

President Obama is Pissing Me Off!

Hello Bloggers! I would like to write a brief opinion piece about the Obama Administration's recent handling of gay and lesbian (LGBT) civil rights, especially their recent defense of Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) and the Defense of Marraige (DOMA) Acts - two of the worst laws ever passed by a Democratic Congress and President.

I know Barack Obama is no liberal, despite what the Republicans say, but I thought he would do more to avoid offending the left-wing of the party - especially in the area of civil rights. Based on recent events, it appears he is willing and able. His Administration is supporting DADT and DOMA these days - both in the media and in federal court. I must admit, I'm disgusted!

WHAT THE HELL ARE THEY DOING? Not only am I offended by the fact they keep firing gay and lesbian soldiers (when they have the option to slow enforcement prior to legal action), but I am most horrified by their defense of DADT and DOMA in federal court against honorable Americans. I realize he never supported gay marraige during his campaign, but I thought he would - at least - get rid of DADT and DOMA - or get the hell out of the way maybe. I'm beginning to wish I voted for Hillary!

The worst part is how his Administration is using the worst, most specious arguments of the Bush Administration to defend DOMA. They are doing a very good job of trashing every gay and lesbian in this country right now, and nobody in the Administration seems to care one wit! The whole thing STINKS! It makes me extremely angry at President Obama, as well as that IDIOT AG Eric Holder!

Incredibly, Holder claims to lack the time to push any issues we Democrats care about- Don Siegelman, Karl Rove Subpoenas, Gay and Lesbian Civil Rights, and Bush law-breaking - while having time to defend DADT, DOMA, as well as killing the case against former Alaskan Senator Ted Stevens for prosecutorial misconduct and other minor crap. Once again, WHAT THE HELL ARE THEY THINKING?

I don't give a damn if the Obama administration sees itself as responsible for enforcing the law, and that it doesn't support gay marraige, but why are they trying to piss off every civil rights-loving Democrat in the nation?!

There are ways to enforce laws that DO NOT OFFEND entire groups of law-abiding, often persecuted, decent Americans. It's outrageous that Obama promised to help gays and lesbians find equal rights, but once elected (with their money and help) turns his back on their anguish and pain, while dishonorably trashing those serving their country or those seeking marraige equality. It's despicable to watch.

He even promised them swift action once elected. I don't know, but instead of helping gays and lesbians, it seems he's giving them the finger.

I for one join Rachel Maddow questioning whether he's even serious about fulfilling those promises. Like Chairman/Governor/Doctor Dean said on The Rachel Maddow Show, Obama better do something soon, or else! It's beginning to stink! Obama can do a great deal without squandering any significant political capital, so it's now time for him to get creative.

Tuesday's Political Rant - Michael

Btw, the symbol shown is the logo for the Human Right's Campaign, where you can read their Open Letter to the President responding to recent Administration actions. I encourage everyone to please Take Action to support this issue! We all need to let the Administration know that we're angry about their recent actions!

Corporate/Republican Lies Target Labor Law

Good Morning Readers! As usual, I have to try and correct the record created by Republican lies. The latest, and most important in my opinion, involves the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) circulating around Congress these days. If you listen to the corporate media and most Republicans, you would think it calls for the destruction of America. Trust me, I've read it, it doesn't.

Most of today's corporate/Republican liars, along with the usual smattering of souls-sold-for-the-right-price, media-hungry talking heads, are out there trying to claim the EFCA would eliminate the "secret ballot" in union authorization elections, which has been a centerpiece in a U.S. Chamber of Commerce-funded anti-union PR campaign against the legislation. As usual with that bunch, it's a LIE!

There are other versions just as disgusting, yet funnier. I especially love the one being mentioned regularly on FOX "News" on how it's unAmerican (what else), and another indication how President Obama and the Democrats are turning the US into the next Soviet Union. Wow! It's obvious just how much homework FOX "News" professionals do. It's either laziness, or they really want the legislation to fail. I wonder, which is it? My guess is they're really not journalists and are full of BS!

Ignoring today's media scum, the truth is the legislation is brief and EASY TO READ and UNDERSTAND. It simply streamlines the union certification process. The text of the act (H.R. 800, 3/2/07) reveals it contains no language about eliminating the "secret ballot" enshrined in the National Labor Relations Act under Section 9 e.

This method of union sign-up, known as "majority sign-up" or "card check," is already recognized under current labor law, but only when the employer approves it. The CHANGE THAT PISSES OFF THE REPUBLICANS is that the EFCA would allow the employees to choose their own process, not the employer. I can't imagine that ordinary Americans, whether union supporters or not, would object to such a change.

The opposition to the bill, comprised mostly of unfair-minded business interests and deceitful, bought-and-paid-for Republicans, seem unconcerned about the plight of everyday, working Americans today. The way I see it, they view most Americans as pawns, useful only as a means to their own selfish ends.

Unions should not be allowed to destroy companies, but at the same time companies should not be allowed to turn American workers into third-world slaves. Unfair, unfettered global competition should not sacrifice the American middle-class at the alter of the free market. Americans have a right to organize if they so choose.

As I always say, the Democrats in Congress need to develop a backbone. They need to grow a pair. They should not allow the Blue-Dogs and the Republicans to derail or delay this critical legislation designed to aid the American worker. Unfortunately, there still aren't enough votes in the Senate to end debate. The Republicans - and their annoyingly obstinate 60-vote strategy - could derail this critical issue, and Americans may suffer even more for the result.

The American economy would only benefit from increased domestic wages, since it provides what's needed most - DOMESTIC BUYING POWER. Please write to your representatives in Washington and encourage them to support the EFCA. Feel free to read the legislation yourself here and make up your own mind.

Tuesday's "Republican Lies" Rant - Michael

The Seeds of American Injustice

Hello Bloggers - It's only the first week, and I don't wish to be negative, but so far President Obama seems lukewarm on Bush crimes. It's early, but I'm still nervous. He signed impressive executive orders restoring transparency and ethics, and ordering Guantanamo Bay closed and ending torture, but going after Bush crimes and Justice Department priorities are still a mystery.

Republicans are still trying to cover their tracks. Many believe Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) is delaying the confirmation of Attorney General nominee Eric Holder by one week to delay him from going after Bush, Cheney et al on wiretapping. Many believe they're going to "beat up" on Holder, or may be trying to forge backroom deals to protect Bush and company. Some Republicans are threatening to withdraw their support on the stimulus bill and other legislation if the Administration moves against Bush. So far there's a lot of smoke. Let's hope for a fire.

The biggest crime is time sensitive, and Obama should know it. George Bush reauthorized the illegal wiretapping himself because Colmey stopped the hospitalized John Ashcroft from signing the paperwork. Remember, Colmey criticized Gonzales for trying to force him in front of that congressional committee. Well, some legal experts feel that bit of lawbreaking is about to expire, in so far as the statute of limitations may be running out in March. We need Obama and his Justice Department to act soon .

Whistleblowing on the day Obama took office has revealed the extent of the wiretapping. The NSA spied on all Americans, including journalists and politicians. George Bush probably benefited from knowledge learned through wiretaps. It's probably one reason why he always seemed to have inside information. His Administration, especially Rove and Cheney, were a little too good at exploiting weakness; it's obvious now they had an edge. If they did it, it represents a string of felonies and it should NOT BE IGNORED! Obama must act!

I find the whole justice debate mind-blowing. Evidence of Bush lawbreaking is extensive, yet the majority of Republicans still defend him. They impeached Bill Clinton over perjury, yet fail to criticize Bush over anything. They act as if he's above the law. They call anyone who questions him an "extremist." They always describe him as a "good guy" who "did his best" during very "difficult times." They describe him as a "decent man" who "tried to do the right thing" but fell short. It's extraordinary listening to them.

My Republican friends and family won't even question his past actions. They're almost "sheep-like" in their reverence for the man. They say "he kept us safe" as though nothing else matters. It's obvious to me now that objectivity, self-awareness and reflection are not strong Republican personality traits.

It's obvious there's a double-standard in the country today, but I can't figure out why. Is it party loyalty? It's very strange. We threw Nixon out of office, and he was a Republican, so why not question Bush? Do we need White House tapes? What do they need? Ordinary Americans appear almost brainwashed. They scream about Blago, and call for investigations and justice against Democrats on a regular basis, yet rarely question their own actions. It's amazing to watch.

Even journalists seem to ignore the severity of the Bush crimes. Dismissing FOX "News," correspondents on corporate news networks like CNN and MSNBC these days talk about how "difficult it would be to prosecute" and how "most in Washington are looking ahead." Except for a few like Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow, they talk as if enforcing the law [for politicians] is optional. I often walk away from the news dumbfounded that our nation has become so selective in the way it views justice.

So, ask yourself what will happen if nothing happens? I'll tell you! Average Americans will begin to question the fairness of justice, and start to see unequal justice. "Why care if they don't" will be asked everywhere? It will mean a slow and steady erosion of respect for the legal system. Is that wise? It may not be obvious right away, but it will begin to surface in courtrooms across America over time. Do you really want to take that risk Mr. President?

The Obama Administration may be playing political gamesmanship, knowing something we don't know. We can only hope they're doing the right thing, because inaction would be a disaster for the future of the nation. A majority of the country knows that Bush lawbreaking was extensive, and ignoring it would set a dangerous precedent for future presidents - both Republican and Democrat. American justice should be more important than political expediency. Please do not sew the seeds of American injustice. Please act soon Mr. President.

Friday's Political Rant #1 - Michael

Political News: Listen to Rachel Maddow

Good Morning Bloggers - As many of you who read this blog know I'm a HUGE fan of Rachel Maddow.

I think she has a fantastic grip on politics, but unlike Chris Matthews, she approaches it from a more humane perspective. She thinks about how it affects people, or even individuals. Therefore, I guess you could say that I am also from the Rachel Maddow School of political thought.

She, like me, is worried that Democrats will let the Bush Administration off the hook for many of their worst crimes - or any of them for that matter. "Moving on" involving Bush felonies is unacceptable.

Only cold political types would agree with that approach in my opinion. The Bush Adminstration ruined lives and destroyed families. They need to be brought to justice. It should not be a debate.

Rachel is right, and I hope she continues to remind the nation. She mentions it in whole or part often on both Air America's and MSNBC's versions of her Rachel Maddow Show. Both are brilliant.

Here are her latest comments. I recommend listening. She is right. We need to care. We need to stay vigilant. We need to keep writing our representatives to make sure they don't get away with their crimes. Trust me, I write often. I suggest you do the same.

Wednesday's Political News #1 - Michael

Political Praise: Rachel Maddow is Awesome!

Hello Bloggers - I hope that some of you caught David Frum, former Bush speechwriter who is now with that glorified Republican retirement home known as the American Enterprise Institute, on MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Show this evening. It was fantastic!

Frum was trying to say that both campaigns are showing the "ugliness of tone" that has "prevailed over the past years," and that her show was a good example. Of course, he forgot to mention that the 'tone" was mostly caused by his fellow Republicans - a very ugly crowd indeed.

Rachel offered a wonderful response suggesting that there is a difference in tone, and that comparing her show to the McCain campaign's tolerance for verbal assaults was "a sort of false equivalence." God, I love you Rachel. I agree completely. You are so damn intelligent, and funny. I guess that's another way to describe that old Rovian tactic of "muddying the waters."

Frum's attacks on Rachel's show continued describing it in almost juvenile ways. He said that her show was part of the problem with its use of "heavy sacrasm," "sneering," and its "disregard for the more substantive issues." Rachel, of course, defended her show's use of humor perfectly. We progressives love our humor, she said, or something like it.

She went issue-by-issue peeling apart his calls for more substantive debate, pointing out that people enjoy getting their issues presented in different ways (she put it better). Overall, it was a wonderful exchange that Rachel handled like the progressive hero she is, and she deserves our praise. Thank you Dr. Maddow! I love your humor!

Like so many of those "Bush-Cheney-Rumsfeld-Wolfowitz" types, Frum annoyed the hell out of me. I lost count of the number of times he dropped the word "intelligent" into the debate; he used it like a clumsy, rocket-propelled grenade launcher. He was so obvious in his attempt at intellectual snobbery and his overuse of "Yale-speak" to be obscene.

I've often wound up debating that type at dinner parties. You know them, the ones who try to make things more complicated than they need to be. They love to try and make you feel less capable, less articulate. It's just a tactic, albeit, a very annoying tactic. They're also the ones who leave early if you start throwing it right back at them. They frighten easily.

Republicans like Frum have lost a lot of their potency over the past eight years. Decades of corruption, eight years of Bush and "Rumsfeldian double-talk" have left us bruised and burned and them cowering in their corners - at least the smart ones, the dumb ones are still talking. We don't trust them anymore. It will take a whole new generation before they recover.

If the past eight years have taught us anything it's that they're mostly full of hot air. They're also less competent by and large. We need to remember that the more obnoxious a person seems, and the more they throw around the word intelligent, the less we should consider them so. They flew too close to the sun, and now we have only to see them fall.

Monday's Political Rant #2 - Michael