President Obama, tactfully continuing on what seems like a lost battle, went to Maryland, to Republican home turf, to try to work on bipartisanship. While there were a few reasonable and cooperative members, most were making campaign speeches for themselves rather than asking well thought out questions appropriate to the task.
The President, who already has earned my respect and patience for the difficult tasks facing him and his handling to date of them, continues not only to try to help this country but works on making it a less divided one...against overwhelming stonewalls presented to him by the bullying party of 'NO'.
Luke Russert reported on MSNBC: RUSSERT: Tom Cole — former head of the NRCC, congressman from Oklahoma — said, “He scored many points. He did really well.” Barack Obama, for an hour and a half, was able to refute every single Republican talking point used against him on the major issues of the day. In essence, it was almost like a debate where he was front and center for the majority of it. … One Republican said to me, off the record, behind closed doors: “It was a mistake that we allowed the cameras to roll like that. We should not have done that.”
For a party of sneaky tacticians , it is not a surprise they don't want tape to prove their lies like the ones played back to demonstrate what a fool Giuliani made of himself by telling all the things that Obama supposedly left out of the State of the Union speech, which subsequently was shown by clips from the speech, Guilliani had clearly either not listened (or as some suggested, he channel surfed during the talk)and spoke so that his veracity will forever be questioned by those who saw the blatant misleading lies he spoke.
In the face of the obvious obstruction the Republicans showed for the most key plans of Obama's attempts to reach the goals planned by the country's citizens,“I can look you in the eye and tell you we have not been obstructionists,” Representative Jason Chaffetz, a freshman from Utah, told him. This only serves to prove that Republicans can look you in the eye and lie or fail to watch the results of the Legislative body in Washington.
Obama tactfully scolded, offering concrete examples of their obstructing so many of his attempts, especially with Health Care. More impressive was that he obviously has read all their proposals and could specifically comment on the fallacies. At the end, he entertained questions and clearly showed what a patient gentleman he truly is.
Not surprising was that, at the end of the day, nothing was changed. Denial is still denial. Lies are still lies. Divisiveness is still divisiveness. Those in Washington who care more about saving their jobs and getting re-elected than they care about America continue their quest unmoved by a man who sees through them and cares for his country more than his job renewal.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Friday, January 29, 2010
JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES AT MY DOOR
At 10 AM my doorbell rang. As I expected no one, I looked through the peephole and noticed two women holding leaflets. They shoved a leaflet in my hand as I opened the door and began to talk to me in pleasant and polite tones. I stopped them mid-sentence to let them know that I respected their right to their beliefs but that I did not share them. I told them I had met a Congregational minister recently whom I respected for his sharing that the Bible should not be taken literally and other aspects of religion as most people practiced it. I found it refreshing to have spoken with someone who, I felt, understood my questions and didn't try to convince me otherwise.
The conversation went on to my challenging these women about the Bible having been written by men; we have no proof that it was written by God through mortals. I shared that I did not believe in Genesis as described in the Bible, I believed in evolution, and that I do not think man is the highest power but, whatever that power may be, man was not made in its image. We played a bit with their disagreement that the Power might be a something rather than a someone.
Admittedly, I often perversely engage in these discussions because it has always intrigued me that people can so quickly believe that which is unprovable. Not to belabor the description of this contact, when asked I told them that I had more than one copy of the Bible in the house, had read much of it and have not changed my opinion of the words in the book for more than 60 years. I said I live by the Golden Rule, follow the 10 commandments and believe myself to live as a better person than many who sin and go to church for absolution only to go out and commit the same sins over again, taking no personal responsibility for their behavior.
After a several minute chat to a Mexican stand-off, to my surprise, both women thanked me for my courtesy in listening to them, despite my difference in beliefs. They said they thought I was a nice person to have been friendly to them as many people just slammed the door in their face. I mentioned I would never be rude to any human being who had done me no harm. I wanted to tell them I thought they were wasting a potentially good life but figured my opinion was worthless, showing only my own prejudices. I wished them more success in their day than they had with me and they smiled and said they considered their interaction with me a worthwhile stop.
When they left, I wondered what had happened in that meeting. Clearly their age and racial difference suggested we must have had and led very different lives. I shared that I wish I believed in prayer and God but had learned that my life is dependent solely on my own decisions and actions. This elicited a smile of approval from both women. My understanding that 'God helps those who help themselves' brought yet another smile of approval. It was clear that whether we believed the same story book or not, our life values were quite similar. It is unlikely we would become enemies for believing differently since our outward behaviors to fellow man and the world is no differentiated by religion. In all, I found it a very worthwhile 29 minutes near the start of my day.
The conversation went on to my challenging these women about the Bible having been written by men; we have no proof that it was written by God through mortals. I shared that I did not believe in Genesis as described in the Bible, I believed in evolution, and that I do not think man is the highest power but, whatever that power may be, man was not made in its image. We played a bit with their disagreement that the Power might be a something rather than a someone.
Admittedly, I often perversely engage in these discussions because it has always intrigued me that people can so quickly believe that which is unprovable. Not to belabor the description of this contact, when asked I told them that I had more than one copy of the Bible in the house, had read much of it and have not changed my opinion of the words in the book for more than 60 years. I said I live by the Golden Rule, follow the 10 commandments and believe myself to live as a better person than many who sin and go to church for absolution only to go out and commit the same sins over again, taking no personal responsibility for their behavior.
After a several minute chat to a Mexican stand-off, to my surprise, both women thanked me for my courtesy in listening to them, despite my difference in beliefs. They said they thought I was a nice person to have been friendly to them as many people just slammed the door in their face. I mentioned I would never be rude to any human being who had done me no harm. I wanted to tell them I thought they were wasting a potentially good life but figured my opinion was worthless, showing only my own prejudices. I wished them more success in their day than they had with me and they smiled and said they considered their interaction with me a worthwhile stop.
When they left, I wondered what had happened in that meeting. Clearly their age and racial difference suggested we must have had and led very different lives. I shared that I wish I believed in prayer and God but had learned that my life is dependent solely on my own decisions and actions. This elicited a smile of approval from both women. My understanding that 'God helps those who help themselves' brought yet another smile of approval. It was clear that whether we believed the same story book or not, our life values were quite similar. It is unlikely we would become enemies for believing differently since our outward behaviors to fellow man and the world is no differentiated by religion. In all, I found it a very worthwhile 29 minutes near the start of my day.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
THE LANGUAGE OF POLITICAL CAMPAIGNING
Politicians and those who want to control the country for their own personal of gain rather than for the good of all the people, look on this as a game to be won by cheating, lying, slandering the opponents, or many other less attractive methods.
Campaigns defined: series of activities organized to accomplish a goal. This can be appli3d to war, politics, or choosing the prom queen. Republicans seem to have decided that rules of the 'game' shall be 'no holds barred' aka dirty tactics allowed. At present, the party is very scattered and split so that nothing that comes from them connects as a cohesive platform. 'The machine', an interesting term for the unit that runs their campaigns certainly takes the humanity out of the process, doesn't it?
Typically heard in politics, is the term 'works' as in 'whatever works', or, 'how should we play the game'? Strategies are studied as closely as plays are studied after a football game. (Now we are back to 'what works' and 'how the game is played'.) As in war, there are paid soldiers and lots of volunteers.
The media is most influential as to what voters get to hear and from whom. No one has really sat down to clearly define the role of the media today, though lots of people have noticed that they have influenced campaigns. Chris Matthews said nothing truthful or positive about Hillary Clinton until she lost the primary, after which he had only compliments about her. Today we have O'Keefe in Mary Landrieu's office with 'entrapment journalism'....it's all part of the 'game'.
Campaigns defined: series of activities organized to accomplish a goal. This can be appli3d to war, politics, or choosing the prom queen. Republicans seem to have decided that rules of the 'game' shall be 'no holds barred' aka dirty tactics allowed. At present, the party is very scattered and split so that nothing that comes from them connects as a cohesive platform. 'The machine', an interesting term for the unit that runs their campaigns certainly takes the humanity out of the process, doesn't it?
Typically heard in politics, is the term 'works' as in 'whatever works', or, 'how should we play the game'? Strategies are studied as closely as plays are studied after a football game. (Now we are back to 'what works' and 'how the game is played'.) As in war, there are paid soldiers and lots of volunteers.
The media is most influential as to what voters get to hear and from whom. No one has really sat down to clearly define the role of the media today, though lots of people have noticed that they have influenced campaigns. Chris Matthews said nothing truthful or positive about Hillary Clinton until she lost the primary, after which he had only compliments about her. Today we have O'Keefe in Mary Landrieu's office with 'entrapment journalism'....it's all part of the 'game'.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
WHEN THINGS LOOK LIKE THEY CAN'T GET WORSE....THEY DO
Just when Mother Nature pulled the earthquake in Haiti and puts the world to task to help the millions in need, bin Laden makes a speech warning there will be more attacks on the USA. We find that issues that were raised during the election about ACORN being doing bad things, were made up by a new Watergate-type group. Our Fox media outlet allows its talking heads to promote violence when the Revolutionists are just waiting in the wings to take action.
Posted by Joshua Holland at 3:20 pm January 25, 2010
ACORN Smear Journalist Arrested for Alleged Attempt to Bug Sen. Mary Landrieu’s Office
"James O’Keefe, the young right-wing activist who posed as a pimp to “break” the ACORN “scandal,” has been arrested by the FBI, along with three alleged accomplices, for attempting to bug the New Orleans offices of Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA)." Read the whole article here. Modern technology has made violating personal phones and security easy. However, this atrocious act was so stupidly done, the perpetrators got caught. One has to wonder how many smarter criminals do the same and don't get caught.
Posted by allisonkilkenny at 7:14 am January 26, 2010 Schlock Jock Glenn Beck’s Hate Media She writes: "Hysterical demagogue Glenn Beck continued his verbal assault against Progressives this week by calling them “a virus” that feeds “on the host of the Republic, and in this case, the Democratic Party.”
Of course, this isn’t the first time Beck has used this hate speech against Progressives. Media Matters has done an excellent job documenting the venom consistently spewed by Fox’s newest ratings darling." for the whole article, click here.
Our citizens endure poverty, joblessness, hunger, lack of medical care...and the list could go on. We have the presumed news channels fostering hate mongering and violence. What is wrong with our people who enjoy this kind of hate from Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Hannity, Beck...primarily on one network!!!??? This says nothing about radio which isn't commented on too much on TV.
Is this really what the Free Speech Amendment was meant to allow? The First Amendment was adopted on 12/15/1791. Like the Bible, that was a world that could not conceive of the issues of 2010. Even little used books get revised. Isn't it time we tried to bring the world functioning up to date and stop allowing those who resist change to stop movement forward?
Posted by Joshua Holland at 3:20 pm January 25, 2010
ACORN Smear Journalist Arrested for Alleged Attempt to Bug Sen. Mary Landrieu’s Office
"James O’Keefe, the young right-wing activist who posed as a pimp to “break” the ACORN “scandal,” has been arrested by the FBI, along with three alleged accomplices, for attempting to bug the New Orleans offices of Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA)." Read the whole article here. Modern technology has made violating personal phones and security easy. However, this atrocious act was so stupidly done, the perpetrators got caught. One has to wonder how many smarter criminals do the same and don't get caught.
Posted by allisonkilkenny at 7:14 am January 26, 2010 Schlock Jock Glenn Beck’s Hate Media She writes: "Hysterical demagogue Glenn Beck continued his verbal assault against Progressives this week by calling them “a virus” that feeds “on the host of the Republic, and in this case, the Democratic Party.”
Of course, this isn’t the first time Beck has used this hate speech against Progressives. Media Matters has done an excellent job documenting the venom consistently spewed by Fox’s newest ratings darling." for the whole article, click here.
Our citizens endure poverty, joblessness, hunger, lack of medical care...and the list could go on. We have the presumed news channels fostering hate mongering and violence. What is wrong with our people who enjoy this kind of hate from Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Hannity, Beck...primarily on one network!!!??? This says nothing about radio which isn't commented on too much on TV.
Is this really what the Free Speech Amendment was meant to allow? The First Amendment was adopted on 12/15/1791. Like the Bible, that was a world that could not conceive of the issues of 2010. Even little used books get revised. Isn't it time we tried to bring the world functioning up to date and stop allowing those who resist change to stop movement forward?
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
GENIUS VERSUS FOOLS
When it takes a genius to hack something called foolproof, why is the name applied so condescending. Or, does that mean that fools can't get it but no one thought of the genius that is out there that can, though it has been the only game not hacked in the three years it has been out. The hacker is the teen who hacked the iPhone. The Play Station 3 only took five weeks to do. The hacker says that the hack will be up on the Internet soon so that gamers can play pirated software or games they have written themselves. For this complete article, click here.
There must be something innate about humans that raises a challenge when others make too many things that are proprietary. The Black Hat Hackers - Criminals
1. Kevin Mitnick. posted by 'marvin': The Department of Justice still refers to him as "the most wanted computer criminal in United States history." His accomplishments were memorialized into two Hollywood movies: Takedown and Freedom Downtime.
2. Adrian Lamo: "Lamo hit major organizations hard, hacking into Microsoft and The New York Times. Lamo's hit list includes Yahoo!, Citigroup, Bank of America and Cingular. Of course White Hat Hackers do this legally because they are hired by the company to such, Lamo however was breaking the law. Lamo became a notable public speaker and award winning journalist.
3. Jonathan James "At 16 years old, James gained enormous notoriety when he was the first minor to be sent to prison for hacking. James hit high profile organizations including the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, which is an agency of the Department of the Defense. With this hack he was able to capture usernames and passwords and view highly confidential emails. High on James list, James also hacked in NASA computers and stole software valued at over $1.7 million."
4. Robert Tappan Morris: "Morris is the son of a former National Security Agency scientist named Robert Morris. Robert is the creator of the Morris worm. This worm was credited as the first computer worm spread through the Internet. Because of his actions, he was the first person to be prosecuted under the 1986 Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Morris is now a tenured professor at the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. His focus is computer network architecture.
5. Kevin Poulsen: "Frequently referred to as Dark Dante, Poulsen gained national recognition for his hack into Los Angeles radio's KIIS-FM phone lines. These actions earned him a Porsche among many other item. Since his time in prison, Poulsen has worked as a journalist and was promoted to senior editor for Wired News. His most popular article details his work on identifying 744 sex offenders with Myspace profiles."
Most hackers start young before they are too tied done with schedules and jobs and sense of the wrong and the damage they are capable of doing with their hacking. It can be incredibly costly when entire corporate networks are shut down or the credit cards of millions are compromised. The damage to people's lives when their identity is stolen is vast.
A yearly, world hacker's conference is held. Unless my memory is defeating me, the last great hack into many companies' data and credit cards was done by someone who had been hired by the government to prevent just what he accomplished while on government salary!
There must be something innate about humans that raises a challenge when others make too many things that are proprietary. The Black Hat Hackers - Criminals
1. Kevin Mitnick. posted by 'marvin': The Department of Justice still refers to him as "the most wanted computer criminal in United States history." His accomplishments were memorialized into two Hollywood movies: Takedown and Freedom Downtime.
2. Adrian Lamo: "Lamo hit major organizations hard, hacking into Microsoft and The New York Times. Lamo's hit list includes Yahoo!, Citigroup, Bank of America and Cingular. Of course White Hat Hackers do this legally because they are hired by the company to such, Lamo however was breaking the law. Lamo became a notable public speaker and award winning journalist.
3. Jonathan James "At 16 years old, James gained enormous notoriety when he was the first minor to be sent to prison for hacking. James hit high profile organizations including the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, which is an agency of the Department of the Defense. With this hack he was able to capture usernames and passwords and view highly confidential emails. High on James list, James also hacked in NASA computers and stole software valued at over $1.7 million."
4. Robert Tappan Morris: "Morris is the son of a former National Security Agency scientist named Robert Morris. Robert is the creator of the Morris worm. This worm was credited as the first computer worm spread through the Internet. Because of his actions, he was the first person to be prosecuted under the 1986 Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Morris is now a tenured professor at the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. His focus is computer network architecture.
5. Kevin Poulsen: "Frequently referred to as Dark Dante, Poulsen gained national recognition for his hack into Los Angeles radio's KIIS-FM phone lines. These actions earned him a Porsche among many other item. Since his time in prison, Poulsen has worked as a journalist and was promoted to senior editor for Wired News. His most popular article details his work on identifying 744 sex offenders with Myspace profiles."
Most hackers start young before they are too tied done with schedules and jobs and sense of the wrong and the damage they are capable of doing with their hacking. It can be incredibly costly when entire corporate networks are shut down or the credit cards of millions are compromised. The damage to people's lives when their identity is stolen is vast.
A yearly, world hacker's conference is held. Unless my memory is defeating me, the last great hack into many companies' data and credit cards was done by someone who had been hired by the government to prevent just what he accomplished while on government salary!
Monday, January 25, 2010
THE SUPREME COURT FINALLY SHOWS ITS POLITIZATION
By re-interpreting something that protected us for so many years, the Supreme Court has opened out selection of political candidates for our highest offices to the rest of the world. Corporations that exist in the USA are no longer only American-owned and influenced.
Immediately after the verdict was announced, many who love America have already begun to put their minds to protecting the integrity (already almost critically damaged) by putting their minds to ways to legislate change that will revert to better evenness in choosing candidates. One idea is posted as: A Constitutional Amendment to Wrench Control Away from the Corporations Posted by Jan Frel, AlterNet at 8:34 AM on January 23, 2010. To read it, click here.
Another article: 10 Ways to Screw Over the Corporate Jackals Who've Been Screwing You By Scott Thill, AlterNet. Posted December 19, 2009. Tired of getting pushed around by faceless big business? Here are 10 ways to push back! For the whole article, click here
Congressman Alan Grayson the following appears on his website: Latest News
"SAVE OUR DEMOCRACY" GAINS MOMENTUM
(WASHINGTON) – Congressman Alan Grayson (FL-8) announced today that House Judiciary Chairman John J. Conyers (D-Mich.) became the first co-sponsor...…
GRAYSON CONDEMNS COURT RULING
(Washington, DC) – In a 5-to-4 decision today, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that corporations have the "right" to spend...…
(Washington, DC) – Congressman Alan Grayson (FL-8) has introduced legislation to prevent a corporate takeover of government in America. for Grayson's website, click here.
We shall now see grassroots movements springing up, some dedicated, some capitalizing on the momentum for more personal gains. There is a great deal to do to keep our country from being further taken over by evil forces, from the terrorists within. Sadly, five Supreme Court Justices have put themselves as greatly suspect to be in that category.
Immediately after the verdict was announced, many who love America have already begun to put their minds to protecting the integrity (already almost critically damaged) by putting their minds to ways to legislate change that will revert to better evenness in choosing candidates. One idea is posted as: A Constitutional Amendment to Wrench Control Away from the Corporations Posted by Jan Frel, AlterNet at 8:34 AM on January 23, 2010. To read it, click here.
Another article: 10 Ways to Screw Over the Corporate Jackals Who've Been Screwing You By Scott Thill, AlterNet. Posted December 19, 2009. Tired of getting pushed around by faceless big business? Here are 10 ways to push back! For the whole article, click here
Congressman Alan Grayson the following appears on his website: Latest News
"SAVE OUR DEMOCRACY" GAINS MOMENTUM
(WASHINGTON) – Congressman Alan Grayson (FL-8) announced today that House Judiciary Chairman John J. Conyers (D-Mich.) became the first co-sponsor...…
GRAYSON CONDEMNS COURT RULING
(Washington, DC) – In a 5-to-4 decision today, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that corporations have the "right" to spend...…
(Washington, DC) – Congressman Alan Grayson (FL-8) has introduced legislation to prevent a corporate takeover of government in America. for Grayson's website, click here.
We shall now see grassroots movements springing up, some dedicated, some capitalizing on the momentum for more personal gains. There is a great deal to do to keep our country from being further taken over by evil forces, from the terrorists within. Sadly, five Supreme Court Justices have put themselves as greatly suspect to be in that category.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
HAPPINESS SEEPS INTO THE EYES OF THE BEHOLDERS
Most of us know that we laugh more when others laugh with us, feel sadder around those who are grieving and blue, and more optimistic when optimists are around. Today, the Republicans on the Legislature make promises that spark optimism only in those who cannot accept progressive change and are willing to allow people to take control of their lives. They shout that government should stay out of their business yet they persist in getting into everyone else's personal business, professing they know better about the way others should conduct their lives.
Today I was witness to true happiness at a very small wedding attended by only twelve people on special and limited invitation. It was not a first marriage for either bride or groom but, without question, the happiest for each. The bride said it all when she said, "I married my best friend." Theirs was the happiness that rains down touching all around them. Rather than focusing on the many sadnesses in each of their lives, they radiated the joy of looking towards a happy future together, with nothing but love and kindness reflected towards others.
The bride in her 50's and the groom in his 60's found each other, first in friendship, and only later as potential mates. Their ability to adapt to major changes in their life was inspiring. They are having to make many important compromises to be able to live together and share their lives. Their decision demands starting life with no shared connects. Each parent has found a new life, encouraged by their adult offspring who viewed them with approving eyes before,during, and after the ceremony.
There is analogy between this couple and the sad state of our federal legislature; though in stark contrast. Our politicians are not concerned about adapting for the good of happiness for their constituents; once in office, too many are only concerned about re-election and holding on to the perks which their supporters will never equal. We need to create a global sense of consciousness towards controlling ability to feel happy even when life seems overbalanced in a negative direction. Little kindnesses go a very long way, especially towards the most dire need humans can experience such as is currently happening in Haiti. Reach out to your fellow man...it can be very rewarding to give and share happiness in whatever form.
Today I was witness to true happiness at a very small wedding attended by only twelve people on special and limited invitation. It was not a first marriage for either bride or groom but, without question, the happiest for each. The bride said it all when she said, "I married my best friend." Theirs was the happiness that rains down touching all around them. Rather than focusing on the many sadnesses in each of their lives, they radiated the joy of looking towards a happy future together, with nothing but love and kindness reflected towards others.
The bride in her 50's and the groom in his 60's found each other, first in friendship, and only later as potential mates. Their ability to adapt to major changes in their life was inspiring. They are having to make many important compromises to be able to live together and share their lives. Their decision demands starting life with no shared connects. Each parent has found a new life, encouraged by their adult offspring who viewed them with approving eyes before,during, and after the ceremony.
There is analogy between this couple and the sad state of our federal legislature; though in stark contrast. Our politicians are not concerned about adapting for the good of happiness for their constituents; once in office, too many are only concerned about re-election and holding on to the perks which their supporters will never equal. We need to create a global sense of consciousness towards controlling ability to feel happy even when life seems overbalanced in a negative direction. Little kindnesses go a very long way, especially towards the most dire need humans can experience such as is currently happening in Haiti. Reach out to your fellow man...it can be very rewarding to give and share happiness in whatever form.
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