Why I am NOT always right

I am often accused of believing that that I am always right and never changing my mind.  That I am so vehemently opposed to any challenge to my formulated opinions, that I don’t listen to challenges.  But I have always been sensitive to that claim because it is so untrue.  

Almost all of the positions and ideas I have at one time or another held the opposite and almost all have been changed through verbal encounters with others.  Most things I do not have an opinion on, so then I will say nothing.  I am not a verbal pontificator, rather listening, deciding later what I feel.  The things I do, I got from reading or people I trust.

So changing that view must be reasoned.  To change my mind I will vigorously argue all points of yours until I grasp all the contours of it to decide for myself.  

In truth my trouble is tact.  I should be less harsh, but its always out of a sincere interest, sincere desire to see the point or maybe even change it to mine if you see all the contours of my argument.  

But maybe not all subjects deserve that vigorous discussion.  Maybe less moralizing of my values.  I know and fail to try to never speak on a subject I do not know.

The problem often is, when people just make statements, with equal lack of knowledge or validity, I want to challenge them.  Even if they end up being exactly right.  

I am a contrarian.  Always have been.  I HATE CONFORMITY.  I have fought against it since I was 4.  The way I write, my favorite number, colors, etc, etc.  All chosen to be a little different; so when people say things I want to challenge it even if I agree.  

Only through challenge can we really appreciate a point.  In that way I am so Jewish.  It makes for a good revolutionary, but not always good for discussion.

The Boondocks What White People Really Think About Us

The Boondocks What White People Really think of Interracial Children

V For Vendetta

V For Vendetta was an excellent film. I suggest everyone go see it.

While I DO NOT CONDONE THE VIOLENCE. And in fact I think the violence and sort of lame love story detract from what is otherwise a moving film.

Not to give away anything of importance, the movie envisions a time not to far off in the distance when in retaliation for perceived terrorist attack by Islamic militants in response to the US attack on Iraq, the British government takes over everything.

It of course is an answer to what can happen in America and here in London. What the end result of people giving up their liberties for protection and freedom. And the lengths a government will do to gain control.

There is quotation of a famous line. “People should not be scared of their governments; governments should be scared of their people.”

I think that is so important. Not scared in a violent way, but in a way of saying the people are in control of the government NOT the other way around.

The founding fathers of America are sometimes given too much credit and responsibility over our everyday lives. But they also were much smarter and more visionary then I think we ever can imagine.

So when they warn, and when Benjamin Franklin specifically stated, that “Those Who Sacrifice Liberty For Security Deserve Neither", he was stating a universal truth that rings true today. A warning not just about freedom, but the price of that liberty he fought for and we all hold SO dear.

Where is your Energy From?

It’s so much easier to not know where our comfortable western lives come from or at what cost. But life is like the matrix, and taking the red pill will open your eyes.

Our pocketbooks are the main source of our political decisions. What we buy is the boldest political statement we make. And we can choose to not live off others suffering, by choosing humane companies and human products.

According to The Dominion, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia’s ability to warm itself in the winter is coming at the human rights of many in Colombia.

Coal mining is usually a dirty business, but for Jose Julio Perez and the 700 other former residents of Tabaco, a small town in northern Colombia, it's downright bloody. The village was illegally destroyed to make way for the expansion of Cerrejon, the world's largest open-pit mine. Cerrejon supplies coal to NB Power, a Crown corporation that supplies electricity for New Brunswick.
Perez gave talks across New Brunswick and Nova Scotia in March, calling for International solidarity. "I appreciate what you are doing tonight, trying to understand and feel our pain," Perez said to the 50 people gathered at one of his speaking engagements. "We feel international pressure will help us receive justice" he added. Approximately 16 per cent of the NB Power's coal comes from Colombia's often-violent mining sector, most of which comes from Cerrejon. During the mine's rapid expansion, entire Afro-Colombian communities like Perez's were displaced; 350,000 Colombians were violently ousted in the first nine months of 2002 alone.

But Julio Perez is proving that globalization may still work to unite us all for our universal rights.

Perez's presentation began with a short video from the eviction and eventual destruction of his town; heavily armed riot police bullied unarmed villagers while bulldozers smashed the town's church and school. Members of the media who were filming the event had their cameras broken by the army and were threatened. The camera panned to an interview with Perez, who stood in front of a destroyed home: concrete and corrugated iron lay in shambles as his son cried.

When the mine was expanding, owners offered some villagers trite compensation on the condition that they wouldn't try to negotiate collectively for relocation. Perez and many others refused the deal and demanded that they be moved collectively to a new town with all the amenities that Tabaco once had; Tabaco had boasted a school, telephone exchange, medical clinic and church before Cerrejon’s bulldozers destroyed them. The demand for relocation has meant Perez and others have not received a peny in compensation. Perez and his family are now living with relatives in a nearby settlement.

In 2002, Perez and his fellow villagers challenged their eviction in Colombia's Supreme Court. They won. The court issued a judicial decree ordering the relocation of the village. Four years later, the order hasn't been enforced and the townspeople are still living as refugees; their children are not in school. "The mine company has more power than the president," said Perez, citing corruption in the police and military as the primary reason the high court's order hasn't been enforced.

WE CAN ALL DO SOMETHING. What we buy, where we choose to spend our money is a political decision. And in this case New Bruinswick people have a choice to.

Jim Brittain, a professor of political science at the University of New Brunswick, hopes that Perez’s story will make New Brunswickers think about where they get their electricity. "People throughout the world are more socially, politically and economically connected than ever before," he said. Brittain is a member of the Atlantic Regional Solidarity Network (ARSN), the organization that is co-ordinating the ‘blood-coal’ campaign that brought Perez to the Maritimes.

Moral Consumption

Being in London it has be more apparent, but in general I am often amazed that development studies, gender and development people and people working to protect children wear the clothing that is part of their subjugation.

My old roommate explained this point perfectly here:

How can you work towards protecting women and children and wear the shoes or clothing that is oppressing them?

These women need jobs that are at least are at subsistence level. And they need to work hours that enable them to take part in the upbringing of their children.

Further children should never be used to make our shoes.

Poverty and the increasing levels of poverty do not happen by accident. They happen because we in the west support companies that make their money off the backs of these people we are studying to supposedly help.

As I have stated before in this blog, the money we spend is a political statement. Do we as a society and individuals stand for fair labor and family rights, or do we only give these causes lip service?

You can find some just clothing among these companies and always on the sidebar. There are so many also not on my site that can be found simply by searching over the Internet.

The People Are Victorius

Once again we are taught the lesson that peaceful opposition will wear down illegitimate regimes.

As the BBC is reporting here,

Nepal's embattled King Gyanendra has agreed to reinstate Parliament, in an effort to end weeks of unrest by opponents to his absolute rule.

The move is aimed at "protecting multi-party democracy and restoring peace," he said in a televised address.

The pressure of the people’s will won out and this is a lesson I think for us all

Here is an article about the celebrations.

Thousands of Nepalis have held a victory rally in the capital Kathmandu after the king gave in to their demands to reinstate parliament.

The seven-party opposition alliance said it had called off its weeks of demonstrations and a nationwide strike.

It has chosen former Prime Minister GP Koirala to head a new government.

But Maoist rebels behind a 10-year insurgency rejected King Gyanendra's deal with the opposition, and vowed to continue blockading the capital.

People gathered for the victory rally, waving party and national flags, and shouting slogans against the king from the roofs of vehicles.

"Gyanendra, thief, leave the country," shouted some protesters who had gathered near the royal palace, saying they would not stop demonstrating until the king was stripped of his powers.

During the recent protests, the demonstrators had repeatedly defied shoot-on-sight curfews despite the deaths of 14 people.

Katrina, The Cost to Families

The tragedy of Katrina was so huge, we could never touch all the heartbreak.
But this video from Crooks and Liars and via Oprah Show about the loss of dogs was heartbreaking. I don't know how you wouldn't cry.

Intelligent Design vs. evolution

This Video from Crooks and Liars of former child star Kirk Cameron talking about intelligent design really made me laugh. I just don't understand the debate about evolution?

ISN'T EVOLUTION INTELLIGENT DESIGN?

its not one or the other, its not that you believe in the big bang or G-d. How else could the big bang or evolution happen? For me, Science if you will is just a study of G-d's incomprehensible beauty through G-d's creations, but it is without the values associated with each person's beliefs. Science just analyzes these things without the values attached to that. That is for theological and philosophical discussions.

I believe it is an insult to G-d to believe it just happened this way, but rather in G-d's infinite wisdom and beauty created a system whereby the world adapts and grows to itself.

Watch past the first few minutes of this video... it is so worth it.

The Queens Birthday

Being in London you would figure that I would know that it was the Queen's birthday, but final papers and such I almost missed it. I unfortunately missed the fireworks.

But if you are interested in the Queen you can go to the BBC's website HERE which has everything you could possibly know about the Queen.

Over Christmas I saw a special about the annual painting of the queen. One artist talked about what it is like to paint the Queen, meet her, etc. What was striking is that while he was constantly in awe of the experience and kept impersonalizing the experience, the Queen just wanted to be a normal person. In fact she was pretty funny.

Apparently she is known for that warmth and ability to connect with the people.

I also learned that during her tenure as Queen she has gracefully overseen the independence of most of England's African colonies. An interesting fact.

What I think of most, is that during Football [soccer to us yanks] matches and dring celebrations when the Queen passes we will no longer sing G-d Save the Queen, it will be G-d Save the King, and some how it just sounds better with the Queen.

Anyway enjoy the celebrations.

More Protests in Nepal

I am amazed at the resolution of a populace that seemed politically dormant for so long. And yet, when given the opportunity, people will rise up and demand their rights. The Nepalese are facing violent opposition by the police force, and yet the refuse to obey the curfew. According to the BBC Article:

Tens of thousands of people are back on the streets in Nepal's capital for a second day of mass protests, despite a shoot-on-sight curfew.

King Gyanendra will address the nation at 1900 (1315 GMT) on the 16th day of protests against his direct rule.

The news came after protests turned violent in one area of Kathmandu where police killed three people on Thursday.

Power to the People, and the People it appears are winning. Yahoo News is reporting that according to our Envoy on the ground, the King is running out of time.

Nepal's king could be forced from power within days unless he brings a speedy end to the political crisis that is engulfing this Himalayan nation, the U.S. ambassador warned Friday. "His time is running out," Ambassador James Moriarty said in an interview with a handful of reporters.

"Ultimately the king will have to leave if he doesn't compromise. And by 'ultimately' I mean sooner rather than later."

State radio reported that King Gyanendra would address the nation about the unrest that has left more than a dozen demonstrators dead and revealed the king's increasingly weak control over much of the country.

Pink: An Amazing new song

Pink's new Album I'm Not Dead. Which is maybe one of the best names for an album I have heard, HAS A GREAT NEW SONG called:

Dear Mr. President.

It is worth buying hte album to support this song written with the Indigo Girls.

You can buy it here:

Some fans on the Stephanie Miller Show, made this video to the song which gave me chills... Just klick on the video and it will play.

The Boondocks: More on Interracial

I just love this series over at Boondocks about what it means to be an interracial child...

This one maybe my favorite answer when asked what I am.

Ann Coulter: Transgendered Self-Hater?

I have never written abouut our dear friend Ann because I never thought her worth opposing. Her books are ridiculous, and not worth acknowledging. But our dear friend Ann is in trouble for possibly committing a felony. Brad Blog has been covering the whole thing. Not a big deal, Republicans facing the judicial system always get a slap on the wrist (lets hope this changes with all their indictments)

What is interesting is that Ann doesn't seem to resoundly fit into any sort of gender catagory. Many have speculated as to her true Gender. Maybe the reason like so many Republicans for her venomous hatred is the fear of a self loathing transgendered homosexual.

I wasn't sure if I believed it, until this. via Brad Blog:

In her voter registration card that is at the heart of the contraversy,

ANN COULTER DID NOT MARK DOWN A SEX

Go to Brad Blog and Page One Q to see the voter registration card in question.

The Boondocks on Being Interracial

People often ask me why I do not consider myself "half white," I always respond "well which half of me is white?"

Race is a social construct whereby people react to me in a certain way because of the shading of my skin pigmintation. You do not inherit your race, it is given to you by society. Because of that shared experience of how people interact, I am connected to Black Americans of the past and present.

The Boondocks has been running a series of comics explaining this well, I love it.

Happy Jewish Appreciation Day

I like to post this every Easter,

HAPPY EASTER

On This Easter Mel and I would like to remind you, DON'T forget to thank your local Jew for their part in creating the holiday.

So to all my gentile friends, Happy Easter or as Mel and I like to call it...

JEWISH APPRECIATION DAY

But seriously with the relevation of the Lost Gospel of Judas by National Geographic more serious questions and implications should be discussed.

Recently The Lost Gospels Judas

The Gospel of Judas gives a different view of the relationship between Jesus and Judas, offering new insights into the disciple who betrayed Jesus. Unlike the accounts in the canonical Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, in which Judas is portrayed as a reviled traitor, this newly discovered Gospel portrays Judas as acting at Jesus' request when he hands Jesus over to the authorities.

This seems to make perfect sense. For Jesus, the "Son of G-d," (I put in quotations because as a Jew, I don't believe this myself, but understand it as the foundations of Christianity) to become the Christ, to fufil his mission to die on the cross for the sins of humanity, he has to be given to the Romans, "betrayed" if you will.

Would it not make sense that Judas be acting at the behest of Jesus, to help Jesus fufill his role as the Christ? How could the Son of G-d be "betrayed?" Is it betrrayal if it is apart of the plan? And does it even matter if Judas was acting at the behest of Jesus, as without this "betrayal," there would be no crucfixition.

As Jew I am perplexed by this because of the criticsim of Judas and the Jews. Even if we discount the existence of these other Gospels that hve been coming to light, why would Jews be ciriticized for their role in the process of Jesus dying for humanities' sins, if the purpose of Jesus life was to die on the cross for humanities sins?

And yet today I heard the Pope and the Archbishop of Cantebury (Leader of the Church of England) discredit this new gospel and say Judas was the bad guy he has been portrayed up until now.

It just makes no sense to me. Maybe someone can explain it to me.

Until then, Enjoy Easter and remember to thank you local Jew.

Nepalese Protests: Power to the People

People often ask me how I can be certain that the world is moving toward a better future. Pain and suffering seem to be the only news. Thousands die, and barely a whimper is made, people are oppressed, trafficked as commodities, and allowed to starve to death.

I always quote Martin Luther King Jr.’s

“Let us realize the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice.”

From his Speech, Where Do We Go From Here?

Today we see despite Police violent opposition, and threats from the monarch, people are demanding their freedom.

In Nepal today thousands protest the taking of their freedom by the monarch. As Reported by the BBC

Thousands of people have taken part in pro-democracy marches in towns and cities across Nepal.

In the capital Kathmandu, where public gatherings are banned, police forcefully broke up a demonstration of 200 journalists.

The protest came as political parties opposed to King Gyanendra started to enforce a nationwide shutdown.

The king sacked the government and took absolute power 14 months ago, saying corruption was rampant.

The strike is in its 10th day and the capital's streets were largely free of vehicles, as young opposition activists set out to enforce a ban.

Nearly 20 journalists were arrested as they took part in a protest demanding the restoration of press freedom and the release of journalists.

According to the BBC News analysis, they may get what they are demanding, as the King has few options not to conceded power, or fear of losing control of the country.

Despite violence, they have committed themselves to nonviolent opposition. And once again the moral power of nonviolent protests seem to be working.

Protest organisers told the Associated Press news agency at least seven people had been injured when police baton-charged the journalists.

"We condemn the crackdown on peaceful protests. We will continue to take out protests until all restrictions on the media are fully lifted," a spokesman for the Federation of Nepalese Journalists said.

I hope these protests are successful in restoring their rights. I hope I am not being to idealistic. But it is a reminder on the power of hope.

What I learned is that if the Nepalese can oppose the power of a King, for their rights, then certainly, I as a comfortable westerner cannot get down about the future of the world. If they in the face of so much can hope and strive for a better tomorrow, how could I possibly believe it is not plausible? How can I get down on the future.

No, Thank you for keeping the faith. I will try to encourage us to do the same.

Sudan: Stop The Genocide

Passover is a time when Jews celebrate our redemption as slaves from Egypt. We are told to remember the holiday as if we were there, slaves in Egypt and saved ourselves. This is not because of some sort of masochistic need to remember our pain, but rather to remember our obligation as Jews to work toward justice, just as G-d took us out of bondage, we should work to take others out of bondage.

I must admit my failure to really do this, but in a small way, I want to highlight The Genocide in Sudan, who despite the lack of press coverage is still raging. People are still being systematically killed, and yet our government and governments around the world do nothing.

As Center For American Progress Reported:

'The Single Largest Moral Challenge Of Our Time'
An average 320 people die every single day in Sudan. That's about 10,000 people every month. The recent State Department memo on Human Rights found "genocide had been committed in Darfur, and the Government and the Janjaweed bore responsibility." There are daily reports of rapes, mutilations, torture, beatings and murder. U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan described the situation last week as "little short of hell on earth."

A United Nations panel created last fall to investigate the crisis in Sudan has found the government is responsible for "widespread and systematic" abuses against human rights. The five-member commission found the Sudanese government and its militia – the Janjaweed – has systematically engaged in violence including "murder, torture, kidnapping, rape, forced displacement and the destruction of villages."

The UN has estimated that if it ended today some 350,000 people have been killed, almost 2 million have been displaced to starve in foreign countries. THESE ARE PEOPLE, each person’s value is equal to mine, or anyone else’s. The worlds attention should be focused on the daily homicides taking place Darfur, and we should not rest until it is stopped.

And Yet,

Little is being done to pressure the Sudanese government to stop the violence. As the Washington Post writes, "The United States and its allies have sounded gruff and impatient about Darfur for months, and they have provided generous relief supplies. But they haven't done what's needed to alter the basic calculation of Sudan's regime: that it can get away with genocide." Just this past month, new attacks killed more than 200 civilians, many of whom were women and children. Most observers believe that a referral to the ICC would get Khartoum's attention, and might constitute the kind of pressure that would cause the Sudanese government to rethink its actions.

The government of Sudan has claimed it has no link to the ongoing and systematic murder, rapes and torture. The LA Times reports, however, that one of the top leaders of the murderous militia groups is now acknowledging the government not only knew about the genocide but has been directing it. Militia leader Musa Hilal told Human Rights Watch that his group of killers was following orders from Sudan's government and military. "All of the people in the field are led by top army commanders…These people get their orders from the western command center and from Khartoum."

There Are Supposed to be sanctions

Sudan is on the official State Department list of state sponsors of terrorism, and the U.S. has imposed unilateral sanctions. As a result, "financial dealings with Sudan are prohibited." Financial sanctions are an important tool in the arsenal to force the Sudanese government to end its human rights abuses.

But once again Big Business wins out over the protection of human life. Simply amazing and frighteningly callous.

One powerful oil company may have maneuvered around the restrictions. In December, after five months of negotiations, the Texas-based Marathon Oil Corp. renewed a contract with the government of Sudan. The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control gave the thumbs up, and Marathon "recently resumed payments" to the Sudanese government. (Previous payments were suspended in 1985 due to the civil war.)

And lining more profits of corporations, this time the military complex.

One reason that some of the funds for the African Union have been held up: a big chunk of the money has remained in the United States to pay private military contractors. Detouring work through outside private contracting groups (which, after all, are in it to make a profit) drains precious resources, is overly expensive, notoriously slow and an inefficient use of money. Nevertheless, the State Department has allocated over $20 million to Pacific Architects and Engineers (PAE), which has a "record of allegedly overcharging the United Nations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo," and DynCorp, a company officially sanctioned in Afghanistan for overly aggressive behavior, investigated for sex trafficking in the Balkans, and suspected of drug running in South America.

The African Union, countries surely with their own problems, and need for resources, stepped up saying, this is not right, not on our continent, not again. They needed the support of the US and European Union, they need more money, and more troops, but the West’s answer is just to not care.

The mass murder in Sudan is being monitored by African Union peacekeepers. As Nicholas Kristoff points out, however, "The African Union doesn't have the troops, firepower or mandate to actually stop the slaughter, just to monitor it." Today, there are barely over 1,000 troops deployed to cover a region roughly the size of France. Last September, Sen. Corzine joined forces with Sen. Mike DeWine (R-OH) to pass an amendment that would provide $75 million to help the African Union peacekeepers. That money has been set aside, but it has yet to be distributed. No money means no new troops and, according to Adrian McIntyre, of the international relief agency Oxfam, "Every day they're not deployed means another day that hundreds of thousands of civilians in Darfur remain vulnerable to violent attacks." The Darfur Accountability Act calls for accelerating the assistance and getting the money distributed immediately.

People in DC can go to this, PLEASE DO:

Save Darfur Rally to Stop Genocide

Washington, D.C. • National MallApril 30, 2006 • 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Sponsored by the Save Darfur Coalition.

"Our Immigrants Shame Us"

This Post on Daily Kos by Devilstower was a brilliant post explaining how the protests across the country did more then just highlight the need for real immigration reform, but was a lesson in the beauty of America. These protestors, all immigrants legal or otherwise (unless they were Native American) gave us all a civics lesson.

This weekend, not thousands, but hundreds of thousands of immigrants and their supporters walked through the streets of American cities. In Dallas alone, an
estimated half a million marched peacefully and waved flags. American flags.

We should be ashamed.

We shouldn't be ashamed because some of these people are here in violation of US immigration law. Nor should we be ashamed because some have waved the flags of their countries of origin.

We should be ashamed because these immigrants are willing to do what we are not -- risk their jobs, their homes, their freedom, and even their lives in pursuit of justice. These immigrants are demonstrating to us all what it means to be a forceful, fully active part of a democracy. They're showing us that brave people can still try to take their fate into their own hands and wrest it away from those in power.

So many of us have sat by, grumbling our way through one illegal act after another. We've watched our rights being eroded, seen our congress plunged into an unprecedented level of corporate-sponsored corruption, and witnessed our president lie and hide the truth in order to push the nation into war. How many of us have been willing to act? Yes, there were marches before the war, and dwindling numbers have appeared at intervals since.

But given the circumstances, we should not be talking about a few hundred people gathered in the streets, we should be talking about millions besieging Washington, demanding a change. We should be talking no less than a revolution through civil disobedience.

Equally embarrassing, these immigrants and their organizers are doing our jobs for us. Energizing African-Americans to join them in marching for civil rights.

In Birmingham, Ala., demonstrators
marched along the same streets where civil rights activists clashed with police
during the 1960s and rallied at a park where a statue of Martin Luther King Jr.
stands as a reminder of the fight for equal rights and the violence that once
plagued the city.

"We've got to get back in touch with the Statue of
Liberty," said The Rev. Lawton Higgs, a United Methodist pastor and activist.
"We've got to get back in touch with the civil rights movement, because that's
what this is about."

What's missing from this story? Any hint that Democratic Party leaders were involved. That's not to say that local Democrats haven't been out front. Many democrats on a state and local level have been deeply involved with the rallies, and union organizers have played a key role. However, national democratic leaders and organizations are missing a tremendous opportunity.

We can't wait until the country has made up its mind on this issue. We have to support these immigrants now, while polls and opinions are still in flux. Support them now, while there is still a risk that such support could damage our party's chances in the fall. Support them now, while it still counts.

Around the country, organizers of these rallies aren't just talking about immigration reform. They're talking about health care. They're talking about job conditions. They're talking about helping out working class families.

Hey, isn't there a political party that claims to be concerned about these things?

The Democratic Party has been so focused on the Republican miscues in Washington that we've missed the most important social movement of the last quarter century. Certainly, it's enormously satisfying to see all the chicken hawk's follies coming home to roost, and to watch the daily unfolding of scandal. Only while we've been waiting for the next blunder from Bush, our base has been marching without us.

Senator Kerry, want to show some real bravery? Don't write another plan for Iraq. Don't even write another compromise version of the immigration bill. Get in front of the next rally and tell them that you're behind them 100%. Governor Dean? You, too. And you, Congresswoman Pelosi, and you, Senator Reid. And all you candidates already thinking about Iowa, you should be thinking about Texas and California first. Here's your "Two Americas," John Edwards. Come get it.

You want to lead the Democrats in 2008? Then show leadership in 2006 by defying polls and conventional wisdom. Embrace these people and their movement. Don't wait for it to be "safe" or "good politics." Do it now, because you know what? Justice and
bravery are always good politics.

Read the rest of the post, its a great post

The Illegal Immigration Debate and Protest

Yesterday we saw an amazing display of American Civics with massive protests across the US in defense of immigrants coming to this country.

In thinking about illegal immigration there are a lot of misconceptions. The protests made me think about some of the claims being made.

Illegal Immigration does drive down the wages of American workers. People coming here to work for under the minimum wage which is way below a livable wage to begin with. That is why Business wants a guest worker program; it creates an indentured servitude where people would be dependent on the businesses to stay in America.

Its not that Americans do not want to do the jobs, its that they do not want to do them at those wages. Americans want silly things like living wages and health care.

Illegal Immigration unfortunately hurts Black Americans for this reason. Black Americans would do many of these jobs, given they paid a livable wage. Raising the wages of jobs now done below the legal wage will help poor White and Black Americans to compete for these jobs and raise them out of poverty.

Further many of these jobs cannot be outsourced, so making them livable jobs with healthcare will increase the standard of living for millions of Americans providing them and their families’ opportunities to prosper and raising their consumption and thus growth of the American economy.

This is why we need real legislation to tackle the issue. Sheila Jackson Lee discussed her plan which I think is great on Democracy Now. (Its not on her website because if you know her, you know she has no one working for her who has the time to do it.)

First and foremost we need a path citizenship. And not just for those here, but a larger number of green cards to deter the illegal crossing which is stressing the resources of South West states and dangerous to the immigrants themselves.

The Democratic Bill doesn’t seem to bad, except that it takes forever, but if you pay taxes, learn English, work, and are generally a good contributor to the fabric of the America, what more can we ask? What more was asked of most of our ancestors?

Lee ads this part which is good:

We eliminated or provided penalties for the utilization of fraudulent documents, for the abuse of women, for the abuse of workplace, which would take advantage of those who are undocumented. We insisted that employees provided a safe workplace and a workplace with dignity and equal rights. We also provided for the anti-smuggling provisions that would stop the coyotes from bringing individuals across the border and causing danger to their lives.

It is not like Illegal Immigrants get some sort of joy of being our indentured slaves cleaning all we don’t want to clean. They have come to give the best life for their children as possible.

If we don’t do something humane to bring these 11 million immigrants into the American fold, we should just take the sign down from the Statue of Liberty.

David Sirota an inspired post on Free Trade

David Sirota started at the Center for American Progress and then went on to work for progressive Governer of Montana Brian Schweitzer. Inspired by the win of a progressive in a supposed red state, he started Progressive Legislative Action Network (PLAN). He wrote a book, Hostile Takeover about how corporations took over government.

He has been blogging about free trade and modern capitalism. I find his posts to be the BEST progressive, common sense answer to free trade and capitalism. He calls for a restoration of capitalistic protections and so forth.

He writes ispiringly this post from his blog

Hillary Clinton Profile Degenerates Into Free Trade Worship Session

Never underestimate the penchant of the media/political elite to ramrod critical economic issues into the most distorted terms - terms that denigrate any efforts to make public policy actually work for ordinary citizens. We see this everywhere - but New York Magazine this month really takes the cake. In a piece on Sen. Hillary Clinton (D), all of the elitist biases are flaunted out in the open - with not even as much as a sentence permitting the opposition to speak. It is as if the author of the piece, Chris Smith, would rather be caught dead than actually allow what he likely views as "the great unwashed" to have its say (Note: Stay tuned for my upcoming piece in In These Times which explores exactly how all the elitism on trade policy is going to play out in the 2008 Democratic primaries).

Smith's piece purports to be one profiling Sen. Clinton's moves on immigration, but about two thirds of the way through, it degenerates into a screed against those who are courageously questioning America's corporate-written "free" trade policy that is wreaking havoc on citizens both in the United States and abroad. The screed starts off with a quote from - not surprisingly - former Christian Coalition official and John McCain political operative Marshall Wittman, who is now employed by the corporate-backed Democratic Leadership Council. Wittman immediately tars and feathers those who want our trade pacts reformed to include labor, human rights and environmental protections as "declinists." Then, like the smarmy Washington political operative he is, he desperately tries to get in good graces with Clinton by calling the corporate trade agenda "the optimistic-future wing" of the Democratic Party.

Right after this, Smith moves into yet another "free"-trade-glorifying quote from an unnamed "Washington economic policy expert" - a typical euphemism for someone out of the Bob Rubin/Wall Street/Business Roundtable Establishment. This "expert" says Clinton "Talks to sensible Democrats on trade policy—people like Martin Baily at the Institute for International Economics—but then she has people like Jeff Faux of the Economic Policy Institute. They’re quite protectionist, quite nationalist. They think free trade not only hurts America, it hurts the countries we’re trading with, that the only winners are corporations."

Notice the language - being for more and more corporate "free" trade agreements that drive down wages, workplace standards, environmental standards and human rights protections is "sensible." Meanwhile, people like Faux are breathlessly billed as - gasp! - "nationalists," even though even a cursory glance at the cover of Faux's new book shows he is exactly the opposite - he effectively proves that the class war going on is one that reaches beyond national borders - it's global. Thus the title of his book, "The Global Class War."

Then there is perhaps the most depressing part of the article - the part where Clinton's aides get defensive about even listening to what well-respected reformers like Faux have to say. "A Clinton spokeswoman says that the senator seeks a wide range of opinions on many issues," the article says. "but dismisses the notion that there’s any group of outside advisers on globalization." Wow, getting asked about trade must have been a real emergency in the Clinton office - and they reacted in kind, immediately reassuring the elite that they will have nothing to do with seriously challenging the trade policies that may be destroying our economy, but are racking up huge profits for the Big Money interests that run Washington.

As if all these corporate talking points weren't enough, the article ends not with a voice of reform that has been vilified throughout the article, but instead with yet another diatribe about just how wonderful "free" trade has been to the world. "The trade issue is crippling the Democrats," says Jagdish Bhagwati, the Columbia economist who wrote In Defense of Globalization. "The unions are terrified by trade, and they’re still a major Democratic constituency. Hillary Clinton will be caught in this dilemma unless the party faces up to it and says, ‘Look, we really can’t be against trade with poor countries.’"

Finally, Smith smugly closes the article saying that Clinton "needs to decide whether she cares more about economic security or economic freedom" - because, we are to believe, the two simply cannot go hand in hand. Either we must permit a bunch of fat-cat Wall Street types to continue manipulating trade policy as a weapon of class war, or there is no "freedom." What a joke that anyone could even offhandedly say something, much less write it and then have a series of editors at a major magazine approve it.

Again, there's no mention that no one is proposing being "against trade with poor countries." There's no mention that the reformers are really simply asking for trade deals to include labor, human rights, and environmental protections for workers along with the patent, copyright and profit protection measures that these pacts already include for corporations. All there is is another corporate apologist euphorically hosing down the reporter in dishonesty - and the reporter sits by happily slurping it all in.

But then, that's the political Establishment's indoctrination system at work. It is a system that veers out of its way to ignore the flood of data about declining wages, nonexistent workplace standards, plummeting living standards, exploding trade deficits, increasing global poverty, rising inequality, and growing worldwide opposition to "free" trade - all while feeding the public a steady diet of corporate-written talking points telling us that oh, yes, "free" trade is just absolutely glorious. Journalists feed the system with their fabricated storylines and thinly veiled attacks on ordinary citizens who dare desire different economic policies. Similarly, politicians give us their platitudes about supposedly caring about the average Joe - while doing the bidding of the Big Money interests that are driving our country - and the rest of the world - into the ground. And the system continues on, as if unbothered by the destruction left in its wake.

But make no mistake about it - there is a breaking point, and it is coming. The furor over immigration is a loud alarm signal that the "free" trade orthodoxy peddled like religion in Washington is creating a level of stress on the system that even the elitists can't hide. Sooner or later (maybe the 2008 election?), something is going to snap - and there will be a backlash. And when that happens, all of the snobbish journalists, the fat cat donors, and the insulated politicians in both parties will be faced with their worst nightmare: a new political playing field owned by the ordinary citizens they so disdain.

Watching Sex Leads to Promiscuity?

Reuters reported on the a study by the Jane Brown of the University of North Carolina in which she claims:

"This is the first time we've shown that the more kids are exposed to sex in media the earlier they have sex,"

The causality linkages are completely bogus and stupid.

Kids who think about sex and enjoy sex will be more likely to watch media that is sexually charged.

This is just a ridiculously stupid survey. Was the Renaissance age when the average age of lost virginity for women was 11 to 14, wrought with male pornography? Was there a complete lack of sexually explicit things in the 1950's when the average age of lost virginity rose to an astonishing 16 years old?

Of course not.

I have friends who are very religious evangelical Christians who did not want to watch MTV or programs that had sexual content because they have FREE WILL and CHOSE to not watch it.

Not always religious but I have friends who had other priorities. And just didn't care for media that involved

"Sexually charged music, magazines, TV and movies push youngsters into intercourse at an earlier age, perhaps by acting as kind of virtual peer that tells them everyone else is doing it, a study said Monday."

They chose not to view these things

Where as friends who were comfortable and wanted to explore their sexuality at an early age were more comfortable with programming that highlighted those ideas.

For example I have one lesbian friend who liked to watch Britney Spears videos because she thought she was hot. She would watch them anytime she saw them on TV, often searching them out. She like other programs that had different forms of sexuality. At what some might consider a young age she started having sex. She enjoys it, likes sex often.

I have another lesbian friend who was into sports (I know cliche, but serious) she loved softball and soccer. She enjoyed some TV with hot women, but mostly stuck to books and sports. That was her purgative, her CHOICE.

Thank You Harry Taylor

Harry Taylor took the rare opportunity of getting to question this President and said what we were all thinking. You can find the video here:

I wish I could take credit for noticing this. But I had to share the comparisons.

Thanx to Sautering and clone12 at Daily Kos for this Diary.

Normaln Rockwell's aptly titled Freedom of Speech

And send Harry Taylor our Thanx

http://thankyouharrytaylor.org/

Doonsbury And Iraq

Doonsbury always does a great job explaining the administrations hypocrisacy.




Editor's Note

With papers and finals being due, and the lack of competent staff. Where is my staff? It will be a little slow here... but I promise to keep blogging and hopefully keep making you laugh.

Cindy Sheehan In Her Own Words

I think its best to just post what she said. via Truthout.org

Casey Austin Sheehan
May 29, 1979 - April 4, 2004
By Cindy Sheehan
t r u t h o u t | Perspective

Friday 31 March 2006

As far as we can piece things together, March 31st, two years ago, is the day that the First Cavalry arrived in Sadr City, a slum in Baghdad formerly named "Saddam City," Iraq. I say "as far as we can piece together" because we have heard many different stories, but this date seems to be the one that we have heard most often.

Casey began a letter to us, his family, on April 1, 2004, telling us that he finally had an address where we could send letters and packages, and most of all, calling cards. The one and only time he called home from Kuwait, it had cost him 400 minutes just to connect the call and he didn't have much time to talk. That was the last we heard from him. He called about 12:30 one morning and said it was "hot," he was on his way to mass, and they should be convoying to Iraq at the end of that week. In his letter, he mentioned that he had talked to me that morning, but I probably wouldn't remember it, because he had awakened me. Little did he know, I will never forget that call, and I pray fervently that I never forget the sound of his voice.

In his letter, he also expressed regret that he wouldn't be home for his baby sister Janey's high school graduation that June. Little did he know that he would be home. He also told us that the First Cav was expecting a pretty "smooth year" because the unit that they were replacing had only two casualties for the entire year before. Maybe he knew, maybe he didn't know that the day he arrived in Baghdad, four mercenary soldiers from Blackwater Security Company were hanging off of a bridge in Fallujah and the proverbial doo-doo was about to hit the fan in Iraq, and less than 5 days later he would draw his last breath in an alley thousands of miles away from home, shot dead by a rebel who didn't welcome him with "flowers and chocolates." I wonder what his last thought was as he lay dying for George and the other Chickenhawks.

I would beg Casey not to go to Iraq before he left because we both knew it was wrong. He would say: "I wish I didn't have to, Mom, but the sooner I get there the sooner I will be home." Little did Casey know that not even four weeks after the First Cavalry left Ft. Hood, he would be coming home in a cardboard box in the freight area of a United Airlines 747.

I am often accused by the right-wing smear propaganda machine of making this struggle about me, and not about Casey. How Casey's story has been lost in the hulla-balloo that almost always is surrounding me. This is so ironic, because I started working for peace shortly after Casey was killed, to be sure that Casey would not be forgotten by America, that he would not be just a number. I started this so Casey's sacrifice would count for love and peace - not hatred, killing, and lies. I started on my journey for peace to make sure it didn't happen to other Caseys and their families.

As the two-year mark of Casey's death is careening helplessly towards me, I reflect that even if I tried with all my might, I could never forget, nor want to forget Casey or his story. I can never forget the joyous day that he came into our lives, on JFK's birthday, which was also Memorial Day that year. I will never forget the 21 Memorial Day birthdays before Casey donned the uniform of the Military Industrial Complex that we had where we invited family and friends over for a bar-be-que to celebrate his life. The two Memorial Day birthdays we have had so far without him are pain-filled beyond measure and we will have to endure many, many more. What about the holidays: the happy ones before Casey was killed, and the devastating ones since he died? Looking at pictures of the Sheehan family before Casey was killed is heart-rending to say the least. What about our birthdays? The ones since 4/4/4 where we won't even get a call from him, wishing us a happy day?

How many families has BushCo sent on this spiral of never-ending grief and pain? Tens of thousands of people here in America have been debilitated by their policies and another country and its people lie in ruins for lies and deceit. How many families around the world have black holes in their lives that can't be filled by any light, but suck the light and life from the marrow of the fabric of those families?

No, I won't ever forget about Casey, or Mike Mitchell, KIA with Casey; or Evan Ashcraft, KIA 7/24/2003; or John Torres, KIA 7/12/2004; or Chase Comely, KIA on 8/6/2005; Daniel Torres, KIA 2/4/2005; nor will I forget why I am trying to get our troops out of the predicament of colossal proportions that George Bush has gotten us into. I won't forget the thousands of other wonderful Americans who have been needlessly killed here in the Gulf States and in Iraq for the crimes of BushCo. Nor will I ever forget the images of dead Iraqis burned by toxin of this war: white phosphorous; or the seven-month-old baby with half of her head shot off by American troops; or the images of the Iraqi babies born with horrendous birth defects from leftover depleted uranium from the first Gulf War travesty. The images of the Bush destruction in the desert are horrifying in their brutality and we should all know that nothing good ever comes from killing innocent people.

I am convinced that the years of the Bush Regime will go down as the years that America lost its collective mind. We allowed the Bush crime family to scare us into two invasions of countries that had nothing to do with 9/11, and despite all evidence to the contrary, let them assure us that we are safer because of the uncalled-for wars. We have no problem with the administration authorizing, encouraging, and condoning torture, which only puts our troops and our children and their children more at risk for terrorist attacks. We allow our administration to use weapons of mass destruction on the innocent people of Iraq and think the invasion of Iraq was warranted because Saddam "used chemical weapons" on his own people. We allowed George Bush to play golf and Condi to shop for shoes in NYC while citizens of our country were hanging off of their roofs and drowning in New Orleans. We allow BushCo to spread the rubbish that we are spreading "freedom and democracy" in the Middle East, while we allow our faux-leaders to take away our freedoms here in America and destroy our democracy with a Republican coup that was bloody but virtually unopposed by the faux-opposition party and its followers.

My family has had people fighting and needlessly dying in every mistake of a war that the war machine has tricked our country into since the Civil War. I will never forget the brave men and women who have been killed for profit that have gone before us. I won't forget because I don't ever want it to happen again.

If we didn't learn the lessons of Vietnam until it was too late, let's learn one while we still can: America will eventually pull out of Iraq, let's pull our fighting troops out now, and I am convinced that lives on both sides will be saved if we do. If we don't pull out soon, who knows where else the sickly cancer of American empire will spread and how many more innocent people like Casey will die.

Also, one lesson that we should have learned from Vietnam is that there is always a war and an enemy in the offing. The neo-con war machine is planning the new "ist" and "ism" for us to fear next, when the "ism" du jour fails to sufficiently frighten us. We must stay on our guards against this.

Buddhists say that a person dies twice. Once when his/her physical body dies and once when the last person to remember him/her dies. We should never forget the lesson of Casey and his untimely death on the altar of the war machine. We should never have forgotten the lessons of the millions dead in Vietnam who were sacrificed on that same altar.

Casey and the millions of others who have been tragically killed by our leaders in worship of greed for money and power will never die as long as there are people working for peace and justice.

This is their gift to us. Let's never forget them. Their deaths can't be in vain.

Cindy Sheehan's 2nd Anniversary of Her Son's Death

Today is a sad anniversary in the war in Iraq. It is exceptionally sad because it is no longer very exceptional. Today is the 2nd anniversary of Cindy Sheehan’s son Casey’s death in Iraq. Unfortunately 2,342 (as of April 2, 2006) fellow American families have similar anniversaries through out the year.

Ms. Sheehan is a lesson on the power of a dedicated individual with a powerful message.

“does it bother anyone else that this man can take a 5 week vacation when our soldiers are suffering, dying and being maimed in Iraq?”

This was her announcement on the beginning of Camp Casey on Daily Kos. She had decided enough mothers have had to feel what she has, so she went to Crawford. It seems so simple now, but at the time it really was revolutionary.

When she sat in the gutter in the hot August sun outside of President Bush’s vacation mansion in Texas; Bush’s approval rating was according to Gallup was 49% and approval of the war was 41% according to an Newsweek Poll in March of that year.

I believe the site of this grief stricken woman sitting in a gutter while the president was on vacation asking for a simple request to meet with the President to discuss her sons death. The arrogance and contempt for the people’s office, was the beginning of the end for this President.

Ms. Sheehan stand seemed to highlight all that is wrong with this President. Her simple message that enough is enough, that her son will not have perished just to “line the pockets of the war machine,” but to call for an end to this war.

Since that time, Bush’s approval rating has fall as his incompetence has risen. According to the last polls, that same Gallup poll has Bush’s approval rating at 37% with 59% disapproving of the job he is doing as President.

Even more shocking and proof of the power of this woman’s heart. Newsweek Poll found that only 29% approved of Bush’s handling of the war 65% disapproving.

Margaret Meede was right, a small group of dedicated individuals has turned the tide on this powerful President and in the face of a corporate media and lack of opposition from the minority party.

Support Goldstar Families for Peace Thank them for their tireless support and that their sacrifice were not just to feed the war machine

Cyndy Sheehan in an interview on March 28th on The Stephanie Miller Show, had this anecdote about the peace symbol she wears. It was given to her by a Vietnam War protester. He said had put it away after that war ended. She told him she was sad he had, maybe this war might not have happened.

“We can never ever let up… We have to keep our peace struggle up so our kids can never be misused like this again.”

A Mother calling in made this so clear:

“You have to do this for my son,[crying on phone] for our sons and daughters…”

Thank you Ms. Sheehan. Nothing can comfort on such a loss. But a nations' thanks, and knowledge that your son did NOT indeed die in vane, I hope will ease the pain on such a sad day.

Reservations about Bob Casey, Jr. for Senate.

In a post by judith stein stevens's diary on Daily Kos, Ms. Stevens put up some quotes by Bob Casey, Jr. running for Senate in my state of Pennsylvania. While I found many of the quotes disturbing, this is not my objection to Casey Jr.

And while I will probably be voting for Casey in November, this the primary season I want to raise some of the concerns I expressed in the comments about his candidacy.

Last year at this time, the DSCC was looking to clear the field of candidates to back one against Santorum.

I understand the desire to defeat Santorum. I worked for his defeat in 2000 with Klink. I have written letters, protested outside his offices, written letters to the editor. I hate Santorum’s politics; he is bad for my state, and bad for our country.

But clearing the field for a Casey may prove to be a mistake. I was worried about some of the candidates like Barbara Hafer, a former Republican who turned Democrat for the election, but had the support of Emily’s list. I may have ended up voting for Casey, but I wanted that decision. As rightly pointed out on the Front Page of Kos, primaries are opportunities for candidates to refine their message and build an effective campaign.

I would have liked that CHOICE. Instead Casey said he would not run without a clear field, and complete backing. He used his leverage of familiarity with the Democratic Consultant establishment to push Rendell to clear the field and get the full backing of the parties Washington establishment.

I fear our state and Dems will grow to regret that decision.

It is pretty much common knowledge among PA party activists (not party progressive ideologues, but people who are responsible for the running of the party day to day) that Casey, Sr. was a disaster for the Democratic Party. (This among party officials on both sides of the choice issue. PS. Some asked in previous post to name names, I will refrain from such divisiveness)

Because of Casey Sr’s admit support for anti-choice position he was able to fundraise outside the Democratic base; never needing to build the party for financial or ground support.

He put in place anti-choice ideologues into positions of power in the party who let the infrastructure atrophy. It may have been the trend for state parties around the country, but I can only speak for PA.

It is only recently under Gov. Ed Rendell that this trend has started to reverse. (Also the support of Dean I am sure has been a big help in rebuilding the party in PA).

But Rendell if he wins in November will be his last term as Governor, leaving Casey, if he wins, as the highest elected Democratic official in the state. A Casey will once again be in control of the party apparatus, setting its agenda and picking many of its leaders.

If it were as simple as this so called progressive vs. mainstream candidate it would be a simple choice. I am a moderate, my objection to Casey Jr is not purely ideological, I agree with a great deal of his positions.

As a DEMOCRAT I am worried that he will lead to the destruction of the PA Democratic infrastructure that has taken years to rebuild after Casey Sr. allies destroyed it on THEIR ideological basis.

I also worry that CT Sen. Lieberman (Support Ned Lamont) provides cover for Republicans in CT, so to will Casey be for Repubs in PA.

What is the cost of this so called "electability?" the future of the Democratic party in a key swing state?

As a Pennsylvanian I am not willing to make that sacrifice?

Truth is discontent with Santorum is so deep in our state, that a true progressive can and should win.

This post from a pro-Casey post (not a bad post actually its quite persuasive if not exactly factually correct) explains the conventional thinking.

“John Brabender, a consultant to Rick Santorum's reelection campaign, allows that "in the western part of the state there's a large group of Reagan Democrats who often swing their votes to Republicans, based on two issues: guns and abortion."

But a pro-life, western democrat already lost to Santorum in 2000. The last statewide democrat to win, was Rendell, a Pro-choice, Philadelphia Mayoral Liberal.

She later in the post explains why this is, “But neutralizing those issues may also work in Santorum's favor, Brabender suggests, in allowing Casey to be depicted on other issues as a "traditional tax-and-spend Democrat."

And she is right.

According to The Scranton Times-Tribune finds:

“An early December Quinnipiac University poll of more than 1,400 Pennsylvania voters that gave Mr. Casey an overall 12 percentage-point edge over Mr. Santorum also showed 22 percent of pro-choice Democratic voters would skip voting in the race. The poll had a margin of error of 2.6 percentage points.”

Matt Stoller of My DD has it right when he explains about the possibility of Kate Michelman running as an Independent:

“Interesting move here. If she does this, it could help lower ticket Democrats because it will allow them to distance themselves from Casey and attract pro-choice votes. And since Casey isn't planning to really do any campaigning or take any stands on issues aside from rubber stamping social wingnuttia and mewling about Bush is bad without explaining why, this could be a jolt in the arm for him. Competition can be a very good motivator.

I doubt she'll jump in, so this is really a moot point. Whatever she does, it's nice to see people like her standing up to a dishonest party leadership. They sold Casey as a wink-wink pro-choice vote. When he endorsed Alito, it showed that their judgment is suspect, and that they are contemptuous of women's rights. People who care about women's rights can't allow that insult to stand.” [emphasis mine]

PA is a swing state. Although it has many socially conservative feelings. (ie where I went to HS the first day of hunting season was a day off from school) it has more Registered Dems then Repubs and is trending more solidly blue.

But will his winning destroy the good work being done in such an important state?

Can We Have a Conversation?

What is With Our Media?

As a blogger I find this very offensive. Sort of a theme of the media out of control.

Basically the AP admitted to wripping off Raw Story.com and said that because it is a blog, it does not count and does not need to be attributed. Larisa Alexandrovna managing editor of Raw Story.com but worte about her experience on The Huffington Post Here.

This is what bloggers and other alternative media people have been complaining about. The problem with corporate media are these gatekeepers of information that decide what is news and who is allowed to make it. In this case anyone who offers information via a blog is not worth quoting. Even though in this case Ms. Alexandrovna did ALL the leg work for the article.

Also Talking Points Memo Josh Marshal Discuss his similar experience with the corporate media.

Dispicable:

There are many things that bother me about plagiarism, but nothing irks me more than when a mainstream reporter (or organization) with all of the resources of a small nation at their disposal lifts from the small press, freelance journalists, and bloggers.

AP vs. Raw Story

Case in Point is my article on the new guidelines for security clearances. The process of how I put this story together is important as it provides a brief glimpse into the amount of work and time I put into this research.

I got a tip in the form of a 2005 document that was issued "quietly" out of National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley's office, in which guidelines for issuing security clearances as well as access to government information had been updated from the Clinton administration's version.

I had to contact officials at the State Department, experts at think tanks, and several intelligence agencies to find out if a). the document was authentic, and b). if there was anything glaringly wrong with it (aside from the obvious bizarre sexual behavior parameters). I did authenticate it, but most people I spoke with thought it was largely unchanged from the previous set of guidelines. I wondered what the two documents side by side might show and what, if any, differences there were.

The 2005 Hadley document, as it turns out, is a revision of the 1997 "Adjudicative Guidelines for Determining Eligibility for Access to Classified Information," and the differences, while subtle, are fascinating. But what is important about the differences in terms of my issue with the mainstream press is how long it took me to catalogue those differences.

In order to identify changes, I had to put the 1997 and 2005 documents side by side and go line by line, noting in a spreadsheet the text of one and the other, and then noting what the change was, if any. This was a long, tedious, and frankly boring task.

Once I had concluded my initial comparison, I sent my work to another writer and asked them to compare as well, in case I missed anything. My findings were supported by the other writer's own comparison. I then sent everything to my editor, who had one of our researchers do a quick overview, also supporting what I found. My editor and I then co-authored an article, after nearly two weeks of work, about the Hadley changes. The piece covered and overview of the most questionable changes, as there were many subtle changes in general. One key area we focused on was what appeared to be the relaxing of sexual discrimination guidelines.

The article can be found HERE.

In response, several GLBT groups contacted us and issued a statement. We gave the advocacy groups our notes and article, which they then took to the AP and demanded that the story be covered. The AP was given our article and maybe our notes.

On March 14, 2006, the AP did their own article, left out any attribution to me or my publication and lifted not only my research but also whole sections of my article for their own (making cosmetic changes of course).

We contacted an AP senior editor and ombudsman both and both admitted to having had the article passed on to them, and both stated that they viewed us as a blog and because we were a blog, they did not need to credit us. What we are or are not is frankly irrelevant. What is relevant is that by using a term like blog to somehow excuse plagiarism, the mainstream press continues to lower the bar for acceptable behavior. It need not matter where the AP got the information, research, and actual wording from. What matters is that if they use it in part or in whole, they must attribute properly. A blog or a small press publication or grads students working in the corner of a library all equally deserve credit for their work, period.

Unfortunately this is far too common and has happened to me and to other writers and bloggers far too frequently. This time, however, we made a point of tape recording the AP apparatchiks admitting to taking our work and using it without attribution, stating "we do not credit blogs".

More examples via Ms. Alexandrovna
Some examples of the not credited or not nearly credited enough:

-ePlurbis Media, which uncovered the whole Jeff Gannon story
-Democratic Underground, which has one of the best organized research forums online
-The Left Coaster's erieposte, which has put together perhaps the best Niger forgery research there is
- Next Hurrah's emptywheel who has done some fantastic research into the Plame leak
-Brad Blog's Brad Friedman, who has exposed Diebold's election tampering more than anyone else
- Luke at Wot is it Good 4, who has researched the Sibel Edmond's case so closely and tracked things so accurately (using nothing more than open source), that in my opinion and in terms of what I understand regarding the case, he is closer than anyone to the truth of it (minus some things and reorganizing other things).

Talking Points Memo Article Here