Post money bomb "reporting" on cnn.com's front page:
I shouldn't be too hard on CNN. They are probably searching for some photogenic white woman and haven't been able to cover anything else yet.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Kaboom!
The second Ron Paul money bomb went off even bigger than the first! On December 16th, the campaign raised over $6M making it the most amount of money a candidate has raised online on a single day ever. And this is still before the primaries. The previous record was John Kerry in 2004 after he clinched the Democratic nomination. Between the two money bombs alone, Ron Paul raised over $10M. That is quite a bit more than "mainstream" candidates John "Iraq is going well" McCain and Mike "Jesus wants me to win" Huckabee can hope to raise in the whole fourth quarter.Maybe this will cause Dr. Paul to finally get a respectful amount of press coverage. Maybe he's no longer a "fringe" candidate. Or maybe that won't happen until he upsets the whole apple cart with a win in the New Hampshire primary. Either way, it's a lot of fun to watch and be a part of. We're boldly going where no campaign has gone before, and we're doing it in style!
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Reasonable people
Reasonable people may disagree on our government's foreign policy. Some may even feel that indefinite detention without trial of people accused of terrorism (though probably not for American citizens). Fewer still may think that the stakes are so high that it is permissible to detain them without abiding by the terms of the Geneva Convention and treating them as POWs. I have my doubts about the the net effectiveness (let alone morality) of such policies given how it undermine our moral authority and plays into the hands of radicals. Despite my doubts I can accept that reasonable people may disagree.
But our government feels the need to be underhanded about even the rules it makes up on the fly. Instead of declaring who is being held in what facility (or, heaven forbid, what they've been charged with) they've maintained a network of undocumented facilities in foreign countries with Guantanamo being the public face. "But they are needed for the War on Terror!" Fine, for today only I will grant that reasonable people could disagree on this matter.
But why do these detainees have to be shuttled between these facilities in planes marked only by their tail numbers whose tail markings point back to CIA front companies? If these guys are a military threat why not transport them on military planes? Or since outsourcing is all the rage these days why doesn't an actual contractor like Haliburton or Blackwater do it and take their cut? Instead these "companies" are nothing little more than a PO Box. How is it appropriate that such a plane gets clearance to land in Guantanamo no less than three times? (We know this because people have been recording the tail markings of flights in and out. And plane registrations are public.) How can a reasonable person say that there is nothing wrong with that picture?
I suppose some die hard Bush Administration supporters may still see nothing wrong. But when this same plane later crash lands in Mexico carrying over three tons of cocaine while chased by (Mexican) military helicopters I hope that people of all stripes can agree this is unacceptable. How can the government justify that the same plane that ferries detainees to Guantanamo also ferries cocaine to Florida? Is this another Iran-contra type scheme where we are doing naughty things to finance other naughty things that we'd rather not show up as a line item in the federal budget? Has Bush decided that something is too sensitive for our democratically elected Congress to know about? In the current poisonous political climate we'll never know. I must be soft on terror and hate America for even asking.
Here's an article (with video) about the CIA drug plane that crashed. And another.
But our government feels the need to be underhanded about even the rules it makes up on the fly. Instead of declaring who is being held in what facility (or, heaven forbid, what they've been charged with) they've maintained a network of undocumented facilities in foreign countries with Guantanamo being the public face. "But they are needed for the War on Terror!" Fine, for today only I will grant that reasonable people could disagree on this matter.
But why do these detainees have to be shuttled between these facilities in planes marked only by their tail numbers whose tail markings point back to CIA front companies? If these guys are a military threat why not transport them on military planes? Or since outsourcing is all the rage these days why doesn't an actual contractor like Haliburton or Blackwater do it and take their cut? Instead these "companies" are nothing little more than a PO Box. How is it appropriate that such a plane gets clearance to land in Guantanamo no less than three times? (We know this because people have been recording the tail markings of flights in and out. And plane registrations are public.) How can a reasonable person say that there is nothing wrong with that picture?
I suppose some die hard Bush Administration supporters may still see nothing wrong. But when this same plane later crash lands in Mexico carrying over three tons of cocaine while chased by (Mexican) military helicopters I hope that people of all stripes can agree this is unacceptable. How can the government justify that the same plane that ferries detainees to Guantanamo also ferries cocaine to Florida? Is this another Iran-contra type scheme where we are doing naughty things to finance other naughty things that we'd rather not show up as a line item in the federal budget? Has Bush decided that something is too sensitive for our democratically elected Congress to know about? In the current poisonous political climate we'll never know. I must be soft on terror and hate America for even asking.
Here's an article (with video) about the CIA drug plane that crashed. And another.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Ron Paul Tea Party in Durham this Sunday
This Sunday, for the 234th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, the Triangle Ron Paul Meetup group is throwing a tea party at the Durham Armory. Everyone is invited to come out and honor the patriots, past and present, who stood up and said "Enough!" Enough militarization, enough taxation, and enough government meddling in the lives of the people.
If anyone in the Raleigh area wants to carpool to the event or just discuss what the fuss is about, please send me a mail or leave a comment.
If anyone in the Raleigh area wants to carpool to the event or just discuss what the fuss is about, please send me a mail or leave a comment.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Heartwarming
This is the most heartwarming story and video I have ever seen. Just try to watch the video at the bottom and not cry. Can't be done.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Revolution
Lately I've been trying to find some inspiration. Something to sink my teeth into. Tonight I think I've found it. Revolution!
I've just gotten back from a meeting with the Triangle Ron Paul 2008 Meetup group and it was the most excited I've been in a while. The people were all smart, informed, eloquent, energetic, and completely fed up with the status quo. It is a breath of fresh air to be around such people even apart from the shared political agenda.
I've known for months I'd be voting for Ron Paul. I've sent in money and plan to do so again on December 16 for Tea Party 2007 which will be the biggest single fund raising day in history (234th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party). I even figured I'd putz around with some light campaigning. After tonight, though, it is going to a whole new level.
The two party system sucks, but it is what we have. There are serious (and I believe immoral) legal, procedural and structural obstacles for the Libertarian or other third parties from competing on a level playing field with the big two. The Republican and Democrats are completely co-opted by big business, big media, special interests and the political caste. Ron Paul has become the nucleus that many disillusioned people such as myself have coalesced around.
Sure, It's a lot of fun to rage against the machine - bemoaning how the media won't cover him as a viable candidate - dismissiveness and outright hostility from the party establishment - massive corporate backing of the 'mainstream' candidates - but what does it accomplish? But Paul won't stand a chance, right? You can't win without the media and party, right? Not so fast.
Seven years of absolutely dreadful governance and mismanagement from the Bush administration and the neo-conservatives have left the Republican party demoralized. Sure Bush, Cheney, some in Congress, Rush Limbaugh, etc. still talk tough and flex their muscles, but who among the citizenry really yearns for more of the same? Who wakes up in the morning and says, "I care deeply for Giuliani and his positions" or "I really think the world would be safer if we bombed one more Muslim country."? People seem to have a vague idea that the want to be protected and they want someone else to take care of them. The media outlets and politicians themselves portray Hillary or Giuliani as people who can provide this; so people shrug and go along with it. It is easier than thinking, right? But I digress...
I believe that the grassroots of the Republican party is dead. Apathy is always a huge issue in American politics and in the wake of endless war, economic mismanagement, scandals and incompetence, the Republican grassroots has been wiped out. In straw poll after straw poll, Ron Paul supporters show up in force to trounce the 'mainstream' Republican candidates. "I like Romney, I guess, but I'd rather watch the game than go out and vote." But who cares about some stupid straw polls? The real vote isn't for months.
Here's why it matters. The various constitutionalists, libertarians, (true) conservatives and other assorted kooks that make up the Ron Paul Revolution are going to take over the Republican Party. Literally. If a precinct or district has a handful of demoralized 'establishment' Republicans, it will be nothing for the various active Meetup groups to vote as a block and get Ron Paul people elected to party offices and send them as delegates to the national convention. A bloodless coup.
Precinct captain Ed?
I've just gotten back from a meeting with the Triangle Ron Paul 2008 Meetup group and it was the most excited I've been in a while. The people were all smart, informed, eloquent, energetic, and completely fed up with the status quo. It is a breath of fresh air to be around such people even apart from the shared political agenda.
I've known for months I'd be voting for Ron Paul. I've sent in money and plan to do so again on December 16 for Tea Party 2007 which will be the biggest single fund raising day in history (234th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party). I even figured I'd putz around with some light campaigning. After tonight, though, it is going to a whole new level.
The two party system sucks, but it is what we have. There are serious (and I believe immoral) legal, procedural and structural obstacles for the Libertarian or other third parties from competing on a level playing field with the big two. The Republican and Democrats are completely co-opted by big business, big media, special interests and the political caste. Ron Paul has become the nucleus that many disillusioned people such as myself have coalesced around.
Sure, It's a lot of fun to rage against the machine - bemoaning how the media won't cover him as a viable candidate - dismissiveness and outright hostility from the party establishment - massive corporate backing of the 'mainstream' candidates - but what does it accomplish? But Paul won't stand a chance, right? You can't win without the media and party, right? Not so fast.
Seven years of absolutely dreadful governance and mismanagement from the Bush administration and the neo-conservatives have left the Republican party demoralized. Sure Bush, Cheney, some in Congress, Rush Limbaugh, etc. still talk tough and flex their muscles, but who among the citizenry really yearns for more of the same? Who wakes up in the morning and says, "I care deeply for Giuliani and his positions" or "I really think the world would be safer if we bombed one more Muslim country."? People seem to have a vague idea that the want to be protected and they want someone else to take care of them. The media outlets and politicians themselves portray Hillary or Giuliani as people who can provide this; so people shrug and go along with it. It is easier than thinking, right? But I digress...
I believe that the grassroots of the Republican party is dead. Apathy is always a huge issue in American politics and in the wake of endless war, economic mismanagement, scandals and incompetence, the Republican grassroots has been wiped out. In straw poll after straw poll, Ron Paul supporters show up in force to trounce the 'mainstream' Republican candidates. "I like Romney, I guess, but I'd rather watch the game than go out and vote." But who cares about some stupid straw polls? The real vote isn't for months.
Here's why it matters. The various constitutionalists, libertarians, (true) conservatives and other assorted kooks that make up the Ron Paul Revolution are going to take over the Republican Party. Literally. If a precinct or district has a handful of demoralized 'establishment' Republicans, it will be nothing for the various active Meetup groups to vote as a block and get Ron Paul people elected to party offices and send them as delegates to the national convention. A bloodless coup.
Precinct captain Ed?
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Found Vs. PostSecret
A few weeks ago I had to choose between Found Vs. PostSecret, a live show by the people from the Found and PostSecret websites, and an annual poker tournament with the Jaycees. By chance, both were to raise money for charity. Procrastinator that I am, I waited until last week to decide PostSecret may never come to town again and I really wanted to go. Others had the same idea and both the 7 and 9:30 show were sold out by the time I decided. All that was left was a $65 VIP ticket for the 9:30 show. Oh well, its for a good cause - I bought the ticket.
So the VIP ticket included a goody bag, a front row seat, and a 6 o'clock reception with Frank Warren of PostSecret, the Found guys and Brett Loudermilk, an 18 year old sideshow performer they picked up on the road. After grabbing some pizza I poured myself a glass of white wine. Just as I slammed the cork back home, someone else grabbed a glass. I started to push the bottle over and then thought the cork thing might be perceived as rudeness so I pulled it back out. The woman was holding her cup close by so I went ahead and poured her glass. Hmm...shes pretty cute.
The Found guys emcee'd. They were a riot. Man, that girl is cute. They introduced Brett who did some stand-up and a homoerotic audience participation trick. His bit was deliciously awkward due to the fact that there were just over a dozen quiet VIPs in a fairly big room. I really should talk to that girl. Then Frank came out and talked about PostSecret, did some Q&A, and showed us some unpublished secrets. One VIP told how a roommate's PostSecret was returned for lack of postage. She secretly added the postage and mailed it back but the secret she learned about her roommate was pretty outrageous. Stuffed full of wine and pizza, I went out to the lobby to wait my turn for the 9:30 show. I wonder if she's going to the later show as well.
At first I was a bit of a bummed at the prospect of downtime between the reception and the second show, but the goody bag had a Found magazine that kept me busy. Found is a magazine/website/project/community where people send in random notes they find. They might be love/hate letters, diary entries, receipts, posted signs...whatever. Some are funny, some are sad but they provide a window into something that was at one time important to someone you will never know, but can somehow relate to. I haven't followed Found too much (I don't relate to all of the stuff on the website) but I enjoyed the magazine.
After an hour or so Frank and Brett wandered into the lobby and had a conversation nearby. It was just the three of us there and, since both PostSecret and Found are both ultimately voyeuristic endeavors, I didn't particularly hide or feel bad about listening in. Brett grew up in "the business"...his parents were entertainers. He had lots of good stories involving David Copperfield, cleft pallets, Penn and Teller, sword swallowing, freak shows, billiard balls and more. He'd been a performer since he was 8. Good guy. I wouldn't be surprised to see him on TV one day.
Later that girl and her friend took a seat in the lobby with us and paged through their own Found magazines. They were going to the 9:30 show after all.! I noticed their magazines were a different issue than mine. Perhaps I could ask if they wanted to trade after they'd read theirs. Perfect! Soon the lobby became noisy with the incoming 9:30 folks and people started lining at the door. Since I had a reserved front row seat I stayed in my lobby chair for a bit and let the riff-raff fight over scraps. They filed in and I went to take a leak only to find out they started the show immediately. I had to grab a seat on the far edge of the auditorium. Then I noticed that my empty reserved seat was right next to her!
Brett was up first. He performed such feats as eating a light bulb, hammering a five inch spike all the way into his nostril (gross!), swallowing a twenty inch sword, snapping his tongue in a mousetrap and swallowing a two foot long inflated balloon. He also told some good jokes...his show was a lot of fun. As the Found guys were introducing Frank, I used the lull to claim my rightful seat next to her. Frank said that he gets a thousand secrets a week and posts just twenty. That's a tougher screen than the Ivy Leagues! He talked about the project and how much his readers have helped support a suicide hotline. He related some anecdotes that people have told him about how PostSecret gave them the courage to make changes in their lives. His own life was changed when, upon seeing how deeply people cared about PS, his father told him one of his own secrets. Of course he showed us plenty of postcards, too.
The Found guys went last. Davy, the main one, talked about the project and read some of his favorite found notes. He was clearly very passionate about conveying something universal in these discarded scraps of paper. He also seemed to be pretty much drunk which made the added jokes and commentary that much better. One of the early finds was a cassette tape with some low budget homemade rap songs. Davy's brother came out and played some songs inspired by the tape on his guitar. His soulful rendition of "The Booty Don't Stop" was a big crowd pleaser.
At the end of the show Davy reminded us that both Found and PostSecret couldn't exist without community participation and that we really should think of ourselves as a community. He told us to take a moment and introduce ourselves to the people sitting beside us.
Gulp!
As the nanoseconds raced by I scrambled to think of something, anything, interesting to say to her.
(Video report on Found. Found on Letterman.)
So the VIP ticket included a goody bag, a front row seat, and a 6 o'clock reception with Frank Warren of PostSecret, the Found guys and Brett Loudermilk, an 18 year old sideshow performer they picked up on the road. After grabbing some pizza I poured myself a glass of white wine. Just as I slammed the cork back home, someone else grabbed a glass. I started to push the bottle over and then thought the cork thing might be perceived as rudeness so I pulled it back out. The woman was holding her cup close by so I went ahead and poured her glass. Hmm...shes pretty cute.
The Found guys emcee'd. They were a riot. Man, that girl is cute. They introduced Brett who did some stand-up and a homoerotic audience participation trick. His bit was deliciously awkward due to the fact that there were just over a dozen quiet VIPs in a fairly big room. I really should talk to that girl. Then Frank came out and talked about PostSecret, did some Q&A, and showed us some unpublished secrets. One VIP told how a roommate's PostSecret was returned for lack of postage. She secretly added the postage and mailed it back but the secret she learned about her roommate was pretty outrageous. Stuffed full of wine and pizza, I went out to the lobby to wait my turn for the 9:30 show. I wonder if she's going to the later show as well.
At first I was a bit of a bummed at the prospect of downtime between the reception and the second show, but the goody bag had a Found magazine that kept me busy. Found is a magazine/website/project/community where people send in random notes they find. They might be love/hate letters, diary entries, receipts, posted signs...whatever. Some are funny, some are sad but they provide a window into something that was at one time important to someone you will never know, but can somehow relate to. I haven't followed Found too much (I don't relate to all of the stuff on the website) but I enjoyed the magazine.
After an hour or so Frank and Brett wandered into the lobby and had a conversation nearby. It was just the three of us there and, since both PostSecret and Found are both ultimately voyeuristic endeavors, I didn't particularly hide or feel bad about listening in. Brett grew up in "the business"...his parents were entertainers. He had lots of good stories involving David Copperfield, cleft pallets, Penn and Teller, sword swallowing, freak shows, billiard balls and more. He'd been a performer since he was 8. Good guy. I wouldn't be surprised to see him on TV one day.
Later that girl and her friend took a seat in the lobby with us and paged through their own Found magazines. They were going to the 9:30 show after all.! I noticed their magazines were a different issue than mine. Perhaps I could ask if they wanted to trade after they'd read theirs. Perfect! Soon the lobby became noisy with the incoming 9:30 folks and people started lining at the door. Since I had a reserved front row seat I stayed in my lobby chair for a bit and let the riff-raff fight over scraps. They filed in and I went to take a leak only to find out they started the show immediately. I had to grab a seat on the far edge of the auditorium. Then I noticed that my empty reserved seat was right next to her!
Brett was up first. He performed such feats as eating a light bulb, hammering a five inch spike all the way into his nostril (gross!), swallowing a twenty inch sword, snapping his tongue in a mousetrap and swallowing a two foot long inflated balloon. He also told some good jokes...his show was a lot of fun. As the Found guys were introducing Frank, I used the lull to claim my rightful seat next to her. Frank said that he gets a thousand secrets a week and posts just twenty. That's a tougher screen than the Ivy Leagues! He talked about the project and how much his readers have helped support a suicide hotline. He related some anecdotes that people have told him about how PostSecret gave them the courage to make changes in their lives. His own life was changed when, upon seeing how deeply people cared about PS, his father told him one of his own secrets. Of course he showed us plenty of postcards, too.
The Found guys went last. Davy, the main one, talked about the project and read some of his favorite found notes. He was clearly very passionate about conveying something universal in these discarded scraps of paper. He also seemed to be pretty much drunk which made the added jokes and commentary that much better. One of the early finds was a cassette tape with some low budget homemade rap songs. Davy's brother came out and played some songs inspired by the tape on his guitar. His soulful rendition of "The Booty Don't Stop" was a big crowd pleaser.
At the end of the show Davy reminded us that both Found and PostSecret couldn't exist without community participation and that we really should think of ourselves as a community. He told us to take a moment and introduce ourselves to the people sitting beside us.
Gulp!
As the nanoseconds raced by I scrambled to think of something, anything, interesting to say to her.
Me: "Hi."That's it. That's my game. I couldn't even manage "Hi, I'm Ed!", let alone "So, did you come here tonight for Found or PostSecret?" when the opportunity was delivered on a silver platter. In my defense she seemed mostly interested in talking to her friend on the other side, but I was mad at myself. I don't particularly care about being rejected but I get paralyzed by the thought of coming across as a creep. Sigh.
Her: "Hi."
(Video report on Found. Found on Letterman.)
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