And I’m thinking of flying across the Grand Canyon by flapping my arms really, really fast. The Dems are really, really clueless, and they deserve their leader.

The only organization that fights this stuff is the ACLU. Put them on your list for monthly stipend of $10 to $50 (or more, of course). We cannot expect either branch of Congress to resist the gradual erosion of civil liberties and loss of privacy through insidious, invisible, clandestine surveillance buy our own government — all privatized, of course; and we can trust them to safeguard our data. Oh, right.

Reid is weak, smarmy, wussy, milky, cakey, flakey pudding. Most of the dems are not much more solid or sturdy. I take my hat off to Bernie ONLY in the senate. Liberals need STEEL; instead we have string. Will Reid do as he has pledged in the past to reform the filibuster? I do not want to watch the predictable melting again.

According to Glenn Greenwald, every prisoner who has been cleared of criminal charges has been accepted for release by their home country. In Aamer’s case, that appears to be Saudi Arabia even though his family and his home is in Great Britain. Seems odd. Since the U.S. Congress has prohibited using federal funds to transport any prisoner out of Guantanamo, could some charitable organizations pay for their transport? What is to prevent that? No federal funds, no problem, since the only apparent barrier to their release is federal money. What if some charity put up the dough and said why not? What would the Obama administration or the Defense Dept. say to that? It’s worth a try. I’ll chip in $100 to whatever group pursues such a remedy. Anyone else? ACLU? CCR? Amnesty International? IRC? Go for it.

then there are those “white guy” stats that attach to exploitation, exceptionalism, colonialism, imperialism, wars of conquest, wars for economic gain, and the new one, preventive wars. Want to compare stats for misery, suffering, mutilation, sacrifice, and death? Didn’t think so.

Cost overruns are the main mechanism that funds CEO compensation. It shows that he understands his obligations. Screw the taxpayer. It’s a military contractor’s membership card in that exclusive club.

Corporations are persons — persons that cannot marry, divorce, have children, suffer, take medication, or BE IMPRISONED! REAL persons go to jail for breaking the law. If the law is going to designate corporations as persons, then there should be some provision analogous to JAIL. If a parent goes to jail, does the justice system provide any relief for his dependents? A corporation, for an identified level of crime, should lose its charter. If such a penalty inflicts pain on dependents (like employees) that it too great by some reasonable determination, then IT IS TOO BIG! On the other hand, if that kind of punishment harms innocent dependents, then the law should provide for a way to identify and JAIL the corporate individuals responsible for the criminal behavior. I don’t understand why that should be too difficult to do.

I keep thinking it can’t get worse. Oh.
What did Mark Twain say: “Suppose you were a member of Congress, and suppose you were an idiot. But I repeat myself.”
Reid is so totally inept that it defies description, and he’s their chosen leader. Really! It is mind boggling that his colleagues think so much of him — or that there are so many with less character and judgment. Hard to believe that there is any body of people anywhere so empty of substance. Can approval ratings actually become negative? If it’s possible, then U.S. politicians will find a way.

If you want to be REALLY pissed off, read “Bailout” by the original SIGTARP prosecutor, Neil Barofsky. He details all of the obstruction by Treasury from the beginning. This, about the department headed by the person Obama described as ” a historic Sec. of Treasury”. He got that right. For the Bankers and Wall Street, Geithner deserves the administration’s highest award.

The millions of civilians murdered by tyrannical government all had this in common: They were disarmed.

Really? We hear this all the time from gun rights advocates. Didn’t the French have rifles and other firearms when they were overrun by the Nazis? How about Poland, Yugoslavia, Ukraine, Spain, etc.? Those people all hunted with the firearms available at the time. I know little about the Asian populations, but gunpowder was not a new thing when the Japanese invaded China and Korea prior to the outbreak of WWII. Did they hunt with a bow or a knife? It seems like folly to me to consider facing government tanks, helicopters, or other heavy artillery by even the best armed civilian. It’s WAY too late to consider revolt if it comes to that against today’s military machine.

Did anyone really expect Reid to keep his word to reform the filibuster on the first day of Congress — or ever? He kicked the can down the road so that he can continue to kick the can down the road. It’s what Dems do. How many recess appointment opportunities has Obama missed? and yet he complains about a “do nothing” Congress or the obstruction by Rethugs. He continues to compromise and want “balance”, but the last 40 years has not been balanced, yet we have to give the Rethugs balance now. There has been 40 years of imbalance. Why can no Dem make that case?

The ONLY journalists on TV are Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzales. Nearly all of LINK TV is good stuff that challenges the status quo and the PTB. We have also found that RT TV (Ch. 280 on Dish) is pretty good some of the time. As I understand it, RT stands for Russian TV, not sure, but it has some merit so far. We need a little more history to make a good decision, but it has promise. Al Jazeera is so much better than MSNBC or the other MSMs that it defies words. I hope they don’t water things down now that they have purchased Current. Current has some good analysis, but it is also very “safe” stuff. It’s better than MSNBC from what I have seen

Obama, Pelosi, Reid, and most of the other so-called Democrats like to think of this and previous compromises as “balanced”. One side gives a little and the other side gives a little. They all fail to consider that the left has been “giving a little” for 40 years with no “give” on the right. What did the left get as the states enacted “right to work” (for less) laws? What did the left get for lowering the inheritance tax for the rich? What did the left get for bankruptcy “re-structuring” that did not include student loans? What did the left get for permitting payday lenders, credit card companies, and mortgage lenders to charge obscene interest rates? What did the left get for reduced funding for public education? What did the left get for “carried interest” for hedge fund managers? What did the left get for lowering the tax rate for capital gains? for repealing Glass Steagal, for patent extension? for cable TV and telecom mergers? for repeal of the fairness doctrine? for media mergers and co-ownership? The right has gotten all of these gifts while the left has suffered. Productivity has increased but wages have stagnated. CEO salaries have skyrocketed while worker housing, health care, insurance, education, and smothering debt have crippled the lower and middle classes. And what about the recent bailout and mergers of big banks while ignoring the public victims of this massive fraud? Why are Kucinich and Sanders the only “lefties” to persistently stand up to this historic imbalance? We need a third party or a rebellion — or both.

David, you have been heroic, and we will miss your intelligence, energy, wit, and insights greatly. You have made us more aware and vigilant. Thank you for your passion and devotion to the progressive community. Good luck on your future work. Visit from time to time, please.

TIME should depict Obama in a cave waving a white flag

Obama’s “character” is to compromise. He does not have the balls to make demands or a core set of moral values which demand his allegiance. His capitulation is not a surprise, it has been his pattern. Progressives want to believe, so many supported him out of desperate hope. He will claim that the compromise is a victory, as he did with every other compromise. He believes it. He will not make the Rethugs stand up and be shamed for anything. It would spoil his future compromises. The Rethugs will ask for more than they want, and they will get more than they expected. They play Obama like a fiddle, and he dances to their tune. Sad. I voted for Jill Stein. We will see this same kind of capitulation when the debt ceiling arrives and on Supreme Court nominees and on the Palestinian issue and on and on and on…..

Oops! I meant Dear Leader. Bad typo. Sorry.

So now, Obama, or “dead leader”, is protecting himself, his predecessors, his political allies, his sycophants, and his legacy by hiding the truth. This is democracy? This is justice? It is another step towards the fascism we have feared and criticized for decades. It would have been worse under Romney? Really?