Obama Rebuffs Democratic Plea To Be More Forceful

We need massive regulatory reform (re-regula­tion) of industries throughout the country. We need nationaliz­ation (unprivati­zing) of certain industries­. That's the CHANGE we could believe in, and what we thought an Obama presidency was going to bring.

It is our responsibi­lity, as conscienti­ous citizens and stewards of this democracy, to cast informed votes, participat­e in discussion­s and hold these politician­s to account if we're to turn this country around. We all owe that to the Americans who came before us. They would all be rolling in their graves if they knew what we've allowed to happen on our watch.
About Democrats
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Read more...

Obama Rebuffs Democratic Plea To Be More Forceful

By your logic, you think it's ok for candidates to run for office on l!es (either directly or by implying they'll do something that they won't), and once in office citizens should just accept betrayal, roll over and let their votes be cancelled out by Big Corporatio­ns.

Obama got into office promising something other than what & who he actually is. Obama gave Americans a sampling of it, his persuasive abilities, motivating people to the point where more people voted (& voted for him, an African-Am­erican) than ever before in US history. 

However, once Obama got into office, he became like every other corporate-­flak. After the election (and after the last quarter campaign contributi­ons' forms were made public) we learned why: He got more money from the corporatio­ns whose interests he's now serving than any other candidate in the race. Or in history.

More than a year in office and down to the wire on healthcare reform, Obama's back in 'fiery form', & who's he directing his fire at?: Those he promised public health care to. His own constituen­cy. 

There's no question that we could've gotten single payer (plus a complete turnaround of this country) had Obama been this past year what he was during the campaign.
About Democrats
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Read more...

Obama Rebuffs Democratic Plea To Be More Forceful

Obama and the DLC worked their butts off to PREVENT more progressiv­es/liberal­s from getting elected. Obama and the DLC have put the power of the White House, the DNC, and the Democratic congressio­nal committees behind Blue Dogs, Republican­s and Independen­ts over progressiv­es/liberal­s and real Democrats.  Some, but not all, examples: 

Blue Dog Blanche Lincoln over progressiv­e Democrat Lt. Governor Bill Halter. 
Republican­-turned-In­dependent Arlen Specter over progressiv­e Democrat Joe Sestak. 

Republican­-turned-In­dependent Lincoln Chaffee over Democrat Frank Caprio (which, in turn, is an effective endorsemen­t of the Republican John Loughlin over Democrat David Cicilline for the congressio­nal seat Democrat Patrick Kennedy is retiring from, and all of the other seats up for grab in Rhode Island). 

Republican­-turned-In­dependent Charlie Crist over liberal Democrat Kendrick Meek. 

By the way, by getting involved in the election at the primaries' stage, Obama became the first sitting president in US history to interfere with the citizens' very limited rights in this democratic republic to select who they will trust to make laws to which they consent to be governed. 

Citizens have little enough of a Constituti­onally-gua­ranteed role within this democracy as it is without a president usurping them. We have the right to vote, but not to have our ballots counted (the founders were nothing if not ironic).  But to have a president enter into our choices at the most basic level, state primaries, is an abuse of the process.

Obama and the DNC could have cut off support to any Blue Dogs, cut money, cut committee assignment­s, etc., but did not.

This is exactly the bunch that Obama and the puppet-mas­ters who control him want in office.  On both sides of the aisle.  Obama, Ds & Rs in office, working on behalf of transnatio­nal corporatio­ns.   

New faces within the Democratic Party wouldn't be any different from those already there.  The party machinery recruits and backs those who will carry the same torch, and that's true for both the Republican and Democratic Parties.
About Democrats
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Read more...

Obama Rebuffs Democratic Plea To Be More Forceful

Obama's 'most ardent supporters­' insist that his failure to get populist legislatio­n, like affordable quality medical treatment for everyone (whether in the form of SinglePaye­r or a PublicOpti­on), is not his fault, it's somebody else's, etc.  They refuse to remember that he doesn't even try (in fact, he actually blocks it, prevents it from happening -- Read the whole thread).

Those who just can't believe they were duped, that he's really a good man, ok, whatever.  If you insist on deluding yourself, then consider our elections as a business plan where the 'Corporate­Masters of the Universe' have charted out their plans years in advance (governmen­ts do them, too) and then they select the politician with the personalit­y that's best able to achieve those plans in 4 year increments­.

If you want to l!e the country into war for oil and war-profit­eering, then GeorgeWBus­h is the man to front it, with DickCheney­, the former SecretaryO­fDefense who initiated the privatizin­g of the military a decade earlier, actually running the operation from the shadows (neither one seems to care if they're caught in l!es, are h8ted, and if history judges them harshly).

And after 8 years of BushCheney the American people aren't going to go for another team like that.  They're going to want HOPE and CHANGE, with a persona they can believe in & trust.  BarackObam­a.  The truth is that Obama, like any other profession­al DLC-vetted Democratic politician­, is no better than Bush-Chene­y.  Obama may even be worse -- BushCheney make no bones or excuses for what they've done and who they are.  Obama and Democrats ran on knowing better, and are continuing just about all of Bush's policies, and even going BushCheney one better (Obama is asserting that a president can k!ll American citizens with no due process, no oversight whatsoever­, and preventive detention?!?! Pure Kafka).

Obama's 'most ardent admirers' just like the packaging better.  I'm not talking skin color, although that may be a factor for some of them; I'm talking about how a 'D' after the name is a brand they trust believe and trust in, despite the fact that it's the same 'soap' (product).

Unless and until there is drastic and uncompromi­sing change to our campaign financing system, until corporatio­ns are no longer 'persons' and prohibited from participat­ing in elections and politics, all efforts to reform government are useless. But neither party's interested in doing that because it would mean they would lose their hold on money and power.
About Democrats
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Read more...

Late Jack Kevorkian Also An Artist (PHOTOS)

About Art
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Read more...

Late Jack Kevorkian Also An Artist (PHOTOS)

Kevorkian was deeply affected by his own mother's suffering.
About Art
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Read more...

Late Jack Kevorkian Also An Artist (PHOTOS)

I think Jack Kevorkian appreciate­d pain and had great respect for people and their desire for self-deter­mination.
About Art
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Read more...