My blog readers.

FoxNews.com wrote a piece on Hillary Clinton yesterday and linked to a critical piece I did on Hillary and Bill Clinton.  That link resulted in over 800 people logging on to my site since yesterday.  None of them commented.  Does that make them the silent majority? 

A while back more than 2300 people logged on to my site when LeMonde was covering the election and picked up a critical piece I wrote about Huckabee and McCain.  No comments.  The French loved the piece but, again, no comments.

CNN.com picked up a story I did titled “Dead Men Walking” and that post has the second most hits of my short blog experience.  The heaviest hits are for the McCain Family Photo. 

I am routinely picked up by Google News and get many readers from that source.

I’m pleased that I have lots of readers but wonder why so few ever comment.   

Perhaps they are like me.  I read through about ten political blogs in the early morning, then read the NYTimes, WSJ, LA Times, Miami Herald, the Washington Post, and the Oregonian.  Truth be told,  I skim all of them — a task made much easier by their web pages than actually reading each paper.  I rarely stop to comment on anything I have read unless there is a post that is so outrageous I must jump in and write a response.  And even then I don’t have time to stay around and duke it out online.

I often post diaries on DailyKos and MyDD and those pieces can have up to 200 comments from my readers.

There is so much information out there and so much of it is redundant that I have been able to cut my reading back by half and not miss anything important.  I try to avoid posting on any subject that has been done by every blog out there.  Sometimes that is most difficult and when it is I will move away from politics and try to find something unique to post about.  The Red Letter Diary was a case in point.  It had thousands of hits.

That makes up for the days when I only have 300 readers.

I started this blog in October.  I have applied to the DNC to be a blogger at the convention.  I suspect the DNC will not be as impressed by my small blog world contributions as they will be with DailyKos, MyDD, Talking Points Memo, FireDogLake, RawStory, and so on.   But I will be slogging and blogging until the election is over.

So, welcome to all the readers of FoxNews online, CNN.com, LeMonde, Google News, ABC online, etc.  Stay awhile.  And comment!

A new era begins.

Adam Nagourney in this morning’s New York Times writes: “After 16 years, the Clinton era may be coming to an end, presenting Democrats with a historic but potentially wrenching transition and a challenge to Senator Barack Obama as he seeks to reconcile a deeply divided party.”

I agree with Nagourney’s prediction that the Clinton’s and all they represent are finished but I disagree with his statement that the Democratic Party is deeply divided.  As long as this contest has gone on we have seen thousands upon thousands of new people registering to vote Democratic, we have seen more delegates and so-called super delegates moving to Obama’s side, we have seen Independents and Republicans alike show keen and positive interest in the Obama candidacy, and we will see the Democratic Party nominate an African American to be their Presidential candidate.  That is positive.  That is historic. 

It will soon be up to Barack Obama to keep this momentum going.  This will be the true test of Obama’s ability to unite divergent groups across the country around causes common to all of us.  No one person can do that alone but it will be on his shoulders nonetheless.  The obstacles to his success will be built higher and higher and he will be judged for any real and perceived failures not by the divisive walls his opponents will erect around him.  

Can a young, outside the beltway, African American win the general election?  No such judgment will be made of the old, white, long time pol and Washington insider, John McCain.  Much more will be expected of Barack Obama going forward in this campaign than will be expected of John McCain. 

Hillary Clinton knew that John McCain would be a much more formidable opponent to Barack Obama  than she would be.   McCain is a media darling.  McCain has the vast manipulated audience of the conservative media on his side.  McCain has the RNC and all its dirty trick tentacles which have already launched smear campaigns against Obama.  And McCain knows that most Americans are conservative, self-involved, mostly vote against their own self-interest, and rarely seek change unless it benefits them directly.  Barack Obama doesn’t appeal to any of the majority and they vote. 

The Democratic Party is not deeply divided.  We are going to see that the division, as always, is in the country.  This is Barack Obama’s burden to overcome.  

The vote must go on.

The Oregonian’s Jeff Mapes is reporting a remarkable surge in new voters registering for their upcoming primary, May 20.  Look at these numbers:

“All told, more than 98,000 new voters registered for the May primary. And the Democrats gained more than 115,000 new voters. They’ve gone from a 38.8 percent share of the electorate at the start of the year to 42.6 percent now. Republicans have now dropped from 35.2 percent to 33.1 percent.’

“That may not seem like much, but think what it means. The GOP now has to get about 40 percent of the non-Republican voters to join them to cobble together a winning coalition. Democrats need just 13 percent of non-Democratic voters outside their base. Here’s the basic overall numbers:”

Jan.1 May 5 Change
Total Voters…………1,948,181……………2,046,649…………+98,468
Democrats…………….756,221……………..871,922………..+115,701
Republicans…………..685,677……………..681,762……………-3,915
Nonaffiliated…………..433,710……………..417,937…………..-15,773
Minor Parties…………..72,573………………75,028…………….+2,455

Total New Voters: 73,768
Total Party Switchers: 89,774
Republicans to Democrats: 22,762
Nonaffiliated to Democrats: 40,265

All Oregon voters and especially those who are newly registered Democrats should have an opportunity to vote for Obama or Clinton.  Calls for a Clinton drop out are wrong headed.  The Democratic Party is thriving right now due to the thousands upon thousands of new voters going to the polls.  Wait until all the votes are in.

Hillary Clinton should stay in the race.

The calls from those opposed to the Hillary Clinton candidacy share a common theme:  she will do anything to get the nomination because she is devious and power hungry.  I’m paraphrasing.

Hillary Clinton may be devious and power hungry but the point of a democracy is to allow everyone to vote who wants to vote.  The vote continues and will wrap up on June 7th.  It is after all the votes are counted that the Empress Who Has No Clothes will be fully exposed as the loser in this race.  Clinton will be out of money and out of favor.  Also out of favor will be the DLC and the Howard Dean.  I would prefer to see that trio:  the DLC, the Clinton(s) and their entire entourage, and Howard Dean drop from site as we move forward to elect Barack Obama as the next President of the United States.   That will be the beginning of change.

 

Jumping on the gas tax “holiday” bandwagon.

Now that Clinton, McCain and Obama have weighed in on the “gas tax holiday” local politicians throughout the country want in on the action. 

A Republican legislator  in Rockland County, New York — a bedroom community of New York City — has proposed the  elimination of gas taxes in Rockland County between Memorial Day and Labor Day.  If his proposal makes it through the NY State Legislature the County will lose an estimated $1.6 million in revenue.  That is why the Republican County Executive is opposed to the foolish idea.

The gas tax “holiday” proponents are concerned that Rockland County residents are driving three miles down the road to New Jersey where taxes on gas are lower and, therefore, so is the pump price.  Never mind that Rockland County drivers have been going to New Jersey to top up their tanks for years.    No, rather than come up with some lasting initiatives to reduce consumer dependence on cars and gas politicians will cut taxes and make it easy for people to continue to drive gas hogs, pollute the atmosphere, and avoid other forms of transportation. 

Hillary Clinton, the junior Senator from New York, has proposed a gas tax “holiday” that has been condemned by people with calculators but embraced by drivers who feel they are paying too much at the pump.  Unfortunately, those of us who did not put George W. Bush in office are suffering a recession alongside those Americans who did put him in office.  Hillary Clinton and John McCain want to continue that recession by reducing taxes rather than looking for alternative sources of energy.  Now other government officials with their eyes on reelection are jumping on the gas tax “holiday” bandwagon as if it was a winner for consumers.  Citizens consistently vote against their best interests and, therefore,  charlatans are consistently reelected.  The gas tax “holiday” idea is spreading like a virus throughout the country with everyone from dog catcher to Governor taking a look at it.  Don’t buy the hype on the gas tax “holiday.”  And, if you voted for George W. Bush then suck it up and quit whining.

Organized religion and the state.

During his tenure, George W. Bush increased government spending fourfold.  As a typical Republican Mr. Bush relaxed government regulation of health and safety issues which affect our daily lives and tripled government oversight of our daily private lives.  Bush also installed religious fundamentalists throughout the federal government with the goal of having religion permeate every aspect of our lives.  Bush created the  Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives  aimed at increasing government largess to religious and community organizations.  Pat Robertson’s Operation Blessing, for instance, received over $14 million in grants from Bush’s White House.  Mr. Robertson stated that Hurricane Katrina was God’s punishment for feminists, abortion and homosexuality — the Republican domestic version of the Axis of Evil.  We don’t know if Operation Blessing used some of that government funding in New Orleans to help the victims of the global homosexual agenda.

Increasing funding to religious organizations is a centerpiece of Mr. Bush’s domestic agenda along with his educational initiative, No Child Left Behind.  Governors and Mayors throughout the country have established their own versions of Bush’s Office of Faith Based and Community Iniatives thereby increasing state and local government spending to religious constituent groups.   Further, Bush allowed religious organizations to receive money from the government while holding them exempt from civil-rights law in hiring practices. 

A little known provision of the 1996 Welfare Reform Bill is “charitable choice,” a provision written into the Bill by then Sen. John Ashcroft, passed by the Republican Congress, and signed by Bill Clinton.  Charitable Choice allowed religious organizations, with little government oversight, to compete for government funds to provide welfare services.  Bush built on what Clinton put in place and he has intended to make the Office of Faitih Based Initiatives a permanent institution within the federal government.

Would the current candidates for Mr. Bush’s job continue the federal government’s legacy of mixing church and state?  Would they keep, restructure or dissolve the Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives? 

When asked  this question by Christianity Today –

Barack Obama answered:

You know, what I’d like to do is I’d like to see how it’s been operating. One of the things that I think churches have to be mindful of is that if the federal government starts paying the piper, then they get to call the tune. It can, over the long term, be an encroachment on religious freedom. So, I want to see how moneys have been allocated through that office before I make a firm commitment in terms of sustaining practices that may not have worked as well as they should have.

Hillary Clinton’s ”faith based” advisor (or, paid evangelical outreach consultant), Burns Strider, answered:

” … if she were elected, Clinton would continue funding faith-based organisations, but would seek to maintain an appropriate boundary between church and state.’

 Brett O’Donnell, a spokesperson for McCain, answered that  his  candidate

” … wants faith-based groups to have at least the same standing as they have now.”

Obama would evaluate the results of the faith based funding initiatives and make a decision regarding future funding based on measurable outcomes. 

McCain wouldn’t change a thing. 

Clinton would continue the practice of using tax payers money to fund religious organizations but would “maintain an appropriate boundary between church and state” even though there isn’t one when taxpayer’s money is being used by government to fund religious organizations.  Clinton would, though, rename the Office of Faith Based Initiatives to the Office of Faith and Triangulation.

 

 

 

Obama and the stock market.

Intrade is a weekly market prediction newsletter that has favored Obama over his rivals John McCain and Hillary Clinton.  The chart indicates some ups and downs for Obama that could be linked to the Rev. Jeremiah Wright (no such blips on the screen for John McCain and the Rev. John Hagee) but Obama continues to be favored by those who work on Wall Street.  It’s the economy, stupid!

 

 

 

When is bigotry bigotry?

Except for the national New York Times and the WSJ the local papers here in New York are much more interested in the Annie Liebovitz kiddie porn picture she took of 15 year old  Miley Cyrus (aka Hannah Montanna) for the latest Vanity Fair than they are in  Jeremiah Wright and his recent musings.

Pastor Wright is having 15 minutes of fame that could undue a year’s long run for the White House by one of his former congregants, Barack Obama.  You can already sense what Wikipedia will have to say about this:  “The Rev. Jeremiah Wright is acknowledged as the one and only factor which brought down the candidacy of Barack Obama.”

Wikipedia will not have a similar notation next to John McCain and his pal, the Rev. John Hagee.

Why is that?

Is it because it is easier to dismiss John Hagee’s theory that God flooded and killed countless people in New Orleans because of homosexuality as the ravings of a right wing whacko than it is for us to accept that the Rev. Wright might have had something to say about racism in this country?

Let’s look at the two and compare notes. 

John Hagee told his congregants that God caused death and destruction for the immoral behavior of  homosexuals.  Hagee’s God is vindictive and destructive and so full of rage he will kill people to teach the living a lesson.  We know that many African Americans died in that flood.  We don’t know how many were homosexual.

Wright told his congregants that the U.S. government has purposely infected African Americans with AIDS.  Wright’s government is vindictive and destructive and so full of rage it will kill people to teach the living a lesson. 

God. Government. 

Mr. Hagee would like to see the two fused together.  Mr. Wright wants them kept separate.  Mr. Hagee would like his fearsome God to run the land.  Mr. Wright wants God where he belongs — in the hearts an souls of men and women,  not running a government. 

John McCain sought and welcomed the endorsement of John Hagee and continues to do that today with mild caveats.  Barack Obama has to totally distance himself from a preacher he formerly called his spiritual mentor and guide.

Why is that?  Because Hagee is just blathering about  homosexuals and Wright is talking about institutional racism.  That is why.  And that is why Obama is not going to make it over this hurdle and will not be nominated.

 

 

 

The undiscovered 27th letter of the alphabet

The mission:  Imagine and create communication tools, events or artifacts that spark ideas, that engage and activate resources, people, and networks, all in the spirit of lettera27— through creative inspiration, wiki-attitude, and activism.

On April 3, 2008, the Art Directors Club hosted an exhibition of finalist work for The Undiscovered Letter.  The event featured twenty-seven interpretations of the 27th letter of the alphabet created by former winners of ADC Young Guns.

 Tiziana  Haug’s 27th letter presented itself as “everything that the 26 letters fail to communicate” and took shape as a tangram-like construction made of the counterforms of each letter in the Latin alphabet. These counterforms, essentially cutouts of the negative space found in each letter (e.g., the triangle in “A”), comprised the building blocks of a new unit of communication. “If the 27th letter can be discovered, it has to be hiding somewhere,” according to Haug, and she explored both the idea of discovery and the meaning of communication with her emphasis that the 27th letter, though the result of random combinations, is personal at its core.

Wright needs to go on vacation.

Lynn Sweet is the Washington correspondent for the Chicago Sun Times.  She has been covering Barack Obama since his days running for and then winning a seat in the Illinois State Legislature.  She knows Obama well.

Lynn Sweet writes here that the continued public appearances of Jeremiah Wright are keeping those opposed to Barack Obama — Republicans and their minions, including the right wing media – hopping.  Anything Wright now says is open to interpretation and parsing and spin by those out to undo an Obama nomination.

Why isn’t he on a long extended vacation?