dailyJam

Free speech, freely administered by a free, sovereign individual: JamBoi.

The so-called Progressive, whom I say should rather be called a "Regressive" "kos" from dailyKos.com censored/locked my JamBoi AND JamBoi2 accounts so I started this one.

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Monday, February 02, 2009

Simple Action to Save Planet and Humynity!!!

Dear Ones,

In the final days of their illegitimate maladministration, the never-elected Resident Bush and his Resident of Vice Cheney openly admitted on national TV they had authorized "enhanced interrogation" of prisoners, specifically including waterboarding. But "enhanced interrogation" is simply a euphemism for torture, which was so severe that it caused the deaths of at least 70 prisoners.

Additionally these organized crime masterminds killed over 1.2 million people in Iraq and Afghanistan (not to mention America itself) by committing War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity and the worst in the eyes of international law, Crimes Against Peace (ie. Aggressive, unprovoked 'preemptive' wars of conquest against nations/peoples -- ie. 'The Bush Doctrine'!!! Yes, did you realize that "The Bush Doctrine" is simply a restatement of the very definition of Crime Against Peace as defined in International Law such as the United Nations Charter! For more on this see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime_against_peace ). They are contemporary Stalin/Hitler/Pol Pot/Saddam Husseins!

These alleged crimes MUST be investigated and prosecuted. Short of ...

1) finally impeaching BushCheney and their henchmen/women and thereby

a) NULLIFYING BUSH's unconstitutional ACTIONS including ALL HIS SIGNING STATEMENTS, HIS EXECUTIVE ORDERS, ALL HIS APPOINTMENTS INCLUDING HIS SUPREME COURT AND APPELLATE COURT APPOINTMENTS, AND NUMEROUS EXECUTIVE BRANCH APPOINTMENTS; b) stripping them of any of their claims to 'executive privilege' that they are trying to hide behind to prevent prosecution, c) taking away their government pension d) and preventing them from ever again holding a government position!!! -- and by the way THERE'S NO STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS ON IMPEACHABILITY -- THE PERPS DO NOT EVEN NEED TO BE LIVING ANYMORE TO IMPEACH THEM. Maybe, just maybe the Dems will finally grow a pair and act against their fellow Duopoly criminals. Will miracles never cease??? I'm not holding my breath...

OR

2) ARRESTING THEM AND DELIVERING THEM DIRECTLY TO THE HAGUE FOR PROSECUTION BY THE INTERNATIONAL COURT, (and I'm sure there are a number of citizens out there who are planning a citizen's arrest to effect this action even as you're reading this)...

3) the appointment of a Special Prosecutor is the only way we can bring America to a new place of moral leadership in the community of nations and bring the American Empire, the Imperial Presidency and NeoCon (NeoNazi) run to a halt. The blood of literally millions of innocent humans cries out for you and me -- Americans -- to finally act to bring these at-large criminals to justice.

Please join me in going to http://www.care2.com/go/z/e/AE19B/YR4X/AHjjp and signing this petition sponsored to call on Attorney General Eric Holder to appoint a Special Prosecutor to prosecute those responsible for torture to the fullest extent of the law.

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963"

Peace WITH Justice for Humynity!

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Dems Learning to Impeach! Miracle!

This from Fred Duperrault

Christian Science Monitor Readers Write:

Congratulations to the Illinois State Representatives for impeaching
Governor Rod Blagojevich ("No clear rules for Illinois' Senate's first
impeachment," C.S. Monitor 01/12/09) They lived up to their
constitutional responsibility.

However, as corrupt as the Illinois Governor's alleged violations were,
the harmful results of his crimes and misdemeanors pale when compared
with those of the President of the United States. Yet, House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi and the House of Representatives have allowed George W.
Bush to finish his term with no accountability for his transgressions
that led to the deaths of more than 100,000 Iraqi civilians, thousands
of Americans and caused severe damages to the integrity of America's
constitutional governance. And America is doing nothing about it.

Have we, the proud citizens of our republic, lapsed into adoring the
United States Presidency as a monarchical office with little or no
limitations of power?

While considering that George W. Bush has not been impeached yet, imagine
how much his much revered successor, President-elect Obama, would be
able to get away with if HE were to ignore the Constitution and betray
the trust of the people.

With the impeachment of Governor Blagojevich, Illinois has wisely set a
critical constitutional precedent. On the national level, America has
betrayed itself by not impeaching President Bush -- yet.

Fred Duperrault

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Obama: Appoint Special Prosecutor for BushCheney!!!

Americans,

I'm not sure if you've heard, but there's a movement of citizens working
on pressuring Obama to do the right thing who are deciding the top 10
ideas for how they think the Obama administration should change America.
It's called "Ideas for Change in America," and it's being run by the Obama
web site Change.org.

One idea is titled: Appoint a Special Prosecutor for the Crimes of the
Bush Administration. I thought you might be interested in getting involved
and recommend you check it out. You can read more and vote for the idea
by clicking the following link:


http://www.change.org/ideas/view/appoint_a_special_prosecutor_for_the_crimes_of_the_bush_administration

The top 10 ideas are going to be presented to the Obama administration at
an event at the National Press Club in Washington, DC next week and will
be supported by a national lobbying campaign run by Change.org in
partnership with leading nonprofits after the Presidential Inauguration.
So each idea has a real chance at becoming policy.

Impeach 4 Peace!

JamBoi

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Wednesday, August 08, 2007

Carol Brouillet: Truth & Courage v America's Fear-based Global Police State

Carol Brouillet, the Green Party's 2006 Congressional candidate from SF Peninsula's 14CD (v Anna Eshoo) is on top the issues of the onrushing train of fascism in America. Brouillet recently blogged:

"I do think that many people are afraid of another False Flag operation to persuade Americans to fall in line with the Bush Agenda. People are also afraid of dividing the country and civil war. Our best hope, I believe, is non-violent, widespread opposition to the threats to the constitution and our civil rights, and the world, and for Congress to begin Impeachment proceedings to halt these guys and reverse the policies of the past several years."


CAROL BROUILLET: A GREEN STANDING FOR TRUTH

"To Tell the Truth in a Time of Universal Deceit is a Revolutionary Act."
- Carol Brouillet's favorite G.Orwell quote.

Brouillet along with Daniel Ellsberg and a number of others were arrested Monday at the Lawrence Livermore Nuclear Weapons Lab memorializing the August 6th 62nd anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

Here's an approximation of the brief speech Brouillet gave before being arrested:

"I speak for truth. Sun Tzu wrote thousands of years ago that "War is based on deception." The largest deception being the self-deception of rulers that they are superior to everyone else and have the right to kill and control others. We entered World War II on the basis of a deception. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were deceptions, too. They didn't drop the bombs to end a war, but to launch a new war of terror against all people- the Cold War.

The war on terror is a fraud. It is a war of terror against all of us, the entire planet. It has never been criminally investigated. The director of the 9/11 Commission was Philip Zelikow who co-authored a book with Condoleeza Rice and wrote the "Pre-Emptive War Doctrine." As Pearl Harbor was used to create the National Security State; 9/11 is being used to create a Global Police State. Now they are promising us a nuclear 9/11, if it happens it will be by the hands of those who did 9/11. We need a real investigation.

Aung Sung Suu Kyi wrote: "It is not power that corrupts, but fear -- fear of losing power and fear of the scourge of those who wield it."

The global elite are afraid of us, the world's people, and afraid of the truth. They use terror and fear to try to control us. The only antidote to fear is courage. I hope that the peace and justice movements will join with the truth movement. War relies on deception. Truth can stop war. We need the truth and courage."



APPENDIX: THE FOUNDATION OF BUSH-IMPOSED MARTIAL LAW IN THE US
The latest two outrageous Bush actions are just a cap on an extensive groundwork he's established since 9/11 and building on previous presidents. Here's a link an extensive breakdown of these EOs:

SUMMARY OF BUSH E.O.s

The latest two:

EXECUTIVE ORDER 13441
essentially makes protest against the Iraq war a criminal offense and provides the President with the authority to confiscate the assets of whoever opposes the US led war. July 17

As Prof. Michel Chossudovsky writes in "Bush Executive Order: Criminalizing the Antiwar Movement"

"The executive order violates the First, Fourth and Fifth Amendments of the US Constitution. It repeals one of the fundamental tenets of US democracy, which is the right to free expression and dissent. The order has not been the object of discussion in the US Congress. So far, it has not been addressed by the US antiwar movement, in terms of a formal statement."


NATIONAL SECURITY DIRECTIVE NSPD 51 /
HOMELAND SECURITY DIRECTIVE HSPD 20
allows the government to establish martial law in America after a "Catastrophic Emergency" ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD June 2007 Prof. Michel Chossudovsky's article on NSPD 51/HSPD 20

At the very bottom of Brouillet's blog page she also provides a summary of the long series of Executive Orders and National Security Directives Bush has been laying in place to be able to declare martial law in America.
__________________

* HOW IT BEGAN: Buah's Declaration of Emergency September 14, 2001

EXECUTIVE ORDER 10990 allows the government to take over all modes of transportation and control of highways and seaports.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 10995 allows the government to seize and control the communication media.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 10997 allows the government to take over all electrical power, gas, petroleum, fuels and minerals.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 10998 allows the government to take over all food resources and farms.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11000 allows the government to mobilize civilians into work brigades under government supervision.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11001 allows the government to take over all health, education and welfare functions.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11002 designates the Postmaster General to operate a national registration of all persons.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11003 allows the government to take over all airports and aircraft, including commercial aircraft.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11004 allows the Housing and Finance Authority to relocate communities, build new housing with public funds, designate areas to be abandoned, and establish new locations for populations.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11005 allows the government to take over railroads, inland waterways and public storage facilities.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11051 specifies the responsibility of the Office of Emergency Planning and gives authorization to put all Executive Orders in to effect in times of increased international tensions and economic or financial crisis.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11310 grants authority to the Department of Justice to enforce the plans set out in Executive Orders, to institute industrial support, to establish judicial and legislative liaison, to control all aliens, to operate penal and correctional institutions, and to advise and assist the President.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11049 assigns emergency preparedness function to federal departments and agencies, consolidating 21 operative Executive Orders issued over a fifteen year period.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11921 allows the Federal Emergency Preparedness Agency to develop plans to establish control over the mechanisms of production and distribution, of energy sources, wages, salaries, credit and the flow of money in U.S. financial institution inany undefined national emergency. It also provides that when a state of emergency is declared by the President, Congress cannot review the
action for six months.

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Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Iacocca: Where Have All the Leaders Gone?

Submitted to AfterDowningStreet.org by davidswanson on Fri, 2007-04-13 15:48. Media

Excerpt:from the book: Where Have All the Leaders Gone?
By Lee Iacocca with Catherine Whitney

Had Enough? Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder. We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, "Stay the course." Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America, not the damned Titanic. I'll give you a sound bite: Throw the bums out! You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country anymore. The President of the United States is given a free pass to ignore the Constitution, tap our phones, and lead us to war on a pack of lies.Congress responds to record deficits by passing a huge tax cut for the wealthy (thanks, but I don't need it). The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in handcuffs. While we're fiddling in Iraq, the Middle East is burning and nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving pom-poms instead of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of America my parents and yours traveled across the ocean for.

I've had enough. How about you? I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have. My friends tell me to calm down. They say, "Lee, you're eighty-two years old. Leave the rage to the young people." I'd love to, as soon as I can pry them away from their iPods for five seconds and get them to pay attention. I'm going to speak up because it's my patriotic duty. I think people will listen to me. They say I have a reputation as a straight shooter. So I'll tell you how I see it, and it's not pretty, but at least it's real. I'm hoping to strike a nerve in those young folks who say they don't vote because they don't trust politicians to represent their interests. Hey, America, wake up. These guys work for us. Who Are These Guys, Anyway? Why are we in this mess? How did we end up with this crowd in Washington? Well, we voted for them, or at least some of us did. But I'll tell you what we didn't do. We didn't agree to suspend the Constitution. We didn't agree to stop asking questions or demanding answers. Some of us are sick and tired of people who call free speech treason. Where I come from that's a dictatorship, not a democracy. And don't tell me it's all the fault of right-wing Republicans or liberal Democrats. That's an intellectually lazy argument, and it's part of the reason we're in this stew. We're not just a nation of factions. We're a people. We share common principles and ideals. And we rise and fall together.

Where are the voices of leaders who can inspire us to action and make us stand taller? What happened to the strong and resolute party of Lincoln? What happened to the courageous, populist party of FDR and Truman? There was a time in this country when the voices of great leaders lifted us up and made us want to do better. Where have all the leaders gone?

The Test of a Leader
I've never been Commander in Chief, but I've been a CEO. I understand a few things about leadership at the top. I've figured out nine points, not ten (I don't want people accusing me of thinking I'm Moses). I call them the "Nine Cs of Leadership." They're not fancy or complicated. Just clear, obvious qualities that every true leader should have. We should look at how the current administration stacks up. Like it or not, this crew is going to be around until January 2009. Maybe we can learn something before we go to the polls in 2008. Then let's be sure we use the leadership test to screen the candidates who say they want to run the country. It's up to us to choose wisely.

So, here's my C list:

A leader has to show CURIOSITY. He has to listen to people outside of the "Yes, sir" crowd in his inner circle. He has to read voraciously, because the world is a big, complicated place. George W. Bush brags about never reading a newspaper. "I just scan the headlines," he says. Am I hearing this right? He's the President of the United States and he never reads a newspaper? Thomas Jefferson once said, "Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate for a moment to prefer the latter." Bush disagrees. As long as he gets his daily hour in the gym, with Fox News piped through the sound system, he's ready to go.

If a leader never steps outside his comfort zone to hear different ideas, he grows stale. If he doesn't put his beliefs to the test, how does he know he's right? The inability to listen is a form of arrogance. It means either you think you already know it all, or you just don't care. Before the 2006 election, George Bush made a big point of saying he didn't listen to the polls. Yeah, that's what they all say when the polls stink. But maybe he should have listened, because 70 percent of the people were saying he was on the wrong track. It took a "thumping" on election day to wake him up, but even then you got the feeling he wasn't listening so much as he was calculating how to do a better job of convincing everyone he was right.

A leader has to be CREATIVE, go out on a limb, be willing to try something different. You know, think outside the box. George Bush prides himself on never changing, even as the world around him is spinning out of control. God forbid someone should accuse him of flip-flopping. There's a disturbingly messianic fervor to his certainty. Senator Joe Biden recalled a conversation he had with Bush a few months after our troops marched into Baghdad. Joe was in the Oval Office outlining his concerns to the President, the explosive mix of Shiite and Sunni, the disbanded Iraqi army, the problems securing the oil fields. "The President was serene," Joe recalled. "He told me he was sure that we were on the right course and that all would be well. 'Mr. President,' I finally said, 'how can you be so sure when you don't yet know all the facts?'" Bush then reached over and put a steadying hand on Joe's shoulder. "My instincts," he said. "My instincts." Joe was flabbergasted. He told Bush,"Mr. President, your instincts aren't good enough." Joe Biden sure didn't think the matter was settled. And, as we all know now, it wasn't. Leadership is all about managing change, whether you're leading a company or leading a country. Things change, and you get creative. You adapt. Maybe Bush was absent the day they covered that at Harvard Business School.

A leader has to COMMUNICATE. I'm not talking about running off at the mouth or spouting sound bites. I'm talking about facing reality and telling the truth. Nobody in the current administration seems to know how to talk straight anymore. Instead, they spend most of their time trying to convince us that things are not really as bad as they seem. I don't know if it's denial or dishonesty, but it can start to drive you crazy after a while. Communication has to start with telling the truth, even when it's painful. The war in Iraq has been, among other things, a grand failure of communication. Bush is like the boy who didn't cry wolf when the wolf was at the door. After years of being told that all is well, even as the casualties and chaos mount, we've stopped listening to him.

A leader has to be a person of CHARACTER. That means knowing the difference between right and wrong and having the guts to do the right thing. Abraham Lincoln once said, "If you want to test a man's character, give him power." George Bush has a lot of power. What does it say about his character? Bush has shown a willingness to take bold action on the world stage because he has the power, but he shows little regard for the grievous consequences. He has sent our troops (not to mention hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi citizens) to their deaths. For what? To build our oil reserves? To avenge his daddy because Saddam Hussein once tried to have him killed? To show his daddy he's tougher? The motivations behind the war in Iraq are questionable, and the execution of the war has been a disaster. A man of character does not ask a single soldier to die for a failed policy.

A leader must have COURAGE. I'm talking about balls. (That even goes for female leaders.) Swagger isn't courage. Tough talk isn't courage. George Bush comes from a blue-blooded Connecticut family, but he likes to talk like a cowboy. You know, My gun is bigger than your gun. Courage in the twenty-first century doesn't mean posturing and bravado. Courage is a commitment to sit down at the negotiating table and talk.

If you're a politician, courage means taking a position even when you know it will cost you votes. Bush can't even make a public appearance unless the audience has been handpicked and sanitized. He did a series of so-called town hall meetings last year, in auditoriums packed with his most devoted fans. The questions were all softballs.

To be a leader you've got to have CONVICTION, a fire in your belly. You've got to have passion. You've got to really want to get something done. How do you measure fire in the belly? Bush has set the all-time record for number of vacation days taken by a U.S. President, four hundred and counting. He'd rather clear brush on his ranch than immerse himself in the business of governing. He even told an interviewer that the high point of his presidency so far was catching a seven-and-a-half-pound perch in his hand-stocked lake. It's no better on Capitol Hill. Congress was in session only ninety-seven days in 2006. That's eleven days less than the record set in 1948, when President Harry Truman coined the term do-nothing Congress. Most people would expect to be fired if they worked so little and had nothing to show for it. But Congress managed to find the time to vote itself a raise. Now, that's not leadership.

A leader should have CHARISMA. I'm not talking about being flashy. Charisma is the quality that makes people want to follow you. It's the ability to inspire. People follow a leader because they trust him. That's my definition of charisma. Maybe George Bush is a great guy to hang out with at a barbecue or a ball game. But put him at a global summit where the future of our planet is at stake, and he doesn't look very presidential. Those frat-boy pranks and the kidding around he enjoys so much don't go over that well with world leaders. Just ask German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who received an unwelcome shoulder massage from our President at a G-8 Summit. When he came up behind her and started squeezing, I thought she was going to go right through the roof.

A leader has to be COMPETENT. That seems obvious, doesn't it? You've got to know what you're doing. More important than that, you've got to surround yourself with people who know what they're doing. Bush brags about being our first MBA President. Does that make him competent? Well, let's see. Thanks to our first MBA President, we've got the largest deficit in history, Social Security is on life support, and we've run up a half-a-trillion-dollar price tag (so far) in Iraq. And that's just for starters. A leader has to be a problem solver, and the biggest problems we face as a nation seem to be on the back burner.

You can't be a leader if you don't have COMMON SENSE. I call this Charlie Beacham's rule. When I was a young guy just starting out in the car business, one of my first jobs was as Ford's zone manager in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. My boss was a guy named Charlie Beacham, who was the East Coast regional manager. Charlie was a big Southerner, with a warm drawl, a huge smile, and a core of steel. Charlie used to tell me, "Remember, Lee, the only thing you've got going for you as a human being is your ability to reason and your common sense. If you don't know a dip of horseshit from a dip of vanilla ice cream, you'll never make it." George Bush doesn't have common sense. He just has a lot of sound bites. You know, Mr.they'll-welcome-us-as-liberators-no-child-left-behind-heck-of-a-job-Brownie-mission-accomplished Bush. Former President Bill Clinton once said, "I grew up in an alcoholic home. I spent half my childhood trying to get into the reality-based world, and I like it here." I think our current President should visit the real world once in a while.

The Biggest C is CRISIS. Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis. It's easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk theory. Or send someone else's kids off to war when you've never seen a battlefield yourself. It's another thing to lead when your world comes tumbling down. On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. Where was George Bush? He was reading a story about a pet goat to kids in Florida when he heard about the attacks. He kept sitting there for twenty minutes with a baffled look on his face. It's all on tape. You can see it for yourself. Then, instead of taking the quickest route back to Washington and immediately going on the air to reassure the panicked people of this country, he decided it wasn't safe to return to the White House. He basically went into hiding for the day, and he told Vice President Dick Cheney to stay put in his bunker. We were all frozen in front of our TVs, scared out of our wits, waiting for our leaders to tell us that we were going to be okay, and there was nobody home. It took Bush a couple of days to get his bearings and devise the right photo op at Ground Zero. That was George Bush's moment of truth, and he was paralyzed. And what did he do when he'd regained his composure? He led us down the road to Iraq, a road his own father had considered disastrous when he was President. But Bush didn't listen to Daddy. He listened to a higher father. He prides himself on being faith based, not reality based. If that doesn't scare the crap out of you,I don't know what will.

A Hell of a Mess.
So here's where we stand. We're immersed in a bloody war with no plan for winning and no plan for leaving. We're running the biggest deficit in the history of the country. We're losing the manufacturing edge to Asia, while our once-great companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs. Gas prices are skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent energy policy. Our schools are in trouble. Our borders are like sieves. The middle class is being squeezed every which way. These are times that cry out for leadership.

But when you look around, you've got to ask: "Where have all the leaders gone?" Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people of character, courage, conviction, competence, and common sense? I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the point.

Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo? We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we know how to do is react to things that have already happened. Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane Katrina. Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response to the hurricane, or demanding accountability for the decisions that were made in the crucial hours after the storm. Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't happen again. Now, that's just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a plan. Figure out what you're going to do the next time.

Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have believed that there could ever be a time when "the Big Three" referred to Japanese car companies? How did this happen, and more important, what are we going to do about it? Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the debt, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem. The silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at our country and milking the middle class dry.

I have news for the gang in Congress. We didn't elect you to sit on your asses and do nothing and remain silent while our democracy is being hijacked and our greatness is being replaced with mediocrity. What is everybody so afraid of? That some bobblehead on Fox News will call them a name? Give me a break. Why don't you guys show some spine for a change? Had Enough? Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm trying to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope. I believe in America. In my lifetime I've had the privilege of living through some of America's greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our worst crises, the Great Depression, World War II, the Korean War, the Kennedy assassination, the Vietnam War, the 1970s oil crisis, and the struggles of recent years culminating with 9/11. If I've learned one thing, it's this: You don't get anywhere by standing on the sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action. Whether it's building a better car or building a better future for our children, we all have a role to play. That's the challenge I'm raising in this book. It's a call to action for people who, like me, believe in America. It's not too late, but it's getting pretty close. So let's shake off the horseshit and go to work. Let's tell 'em all we've had enough

Excerpted from Where Have All the Leaders Gone?
(C) 2007 by Lee Iacocca. All rights reserved.

Wednesday, November 08, 2006

There are "Greens" and then there are "greens" - but it's all good

This from Steve Kramer, one of the seven Co-Chairs of the Green Party of the US (ha! that's right, the RepubliDems only have one chair and we have seven! Bet they get green with envy when they discover that. :-) .

JamBoi


Friends,

Most of us have been following the election results from yesterday. I wish to thank all of the voters out there who bravely and unashamedly made their choice for true, positive change in our country by voting for Green candidates.

One race of note from yesterday is the election for U.S. Senator from the Commonwealth of Virginia. In that race, with over 99% of the precincts reporting, Democrat Jim Webb currently holds a lead of about 7,000 votes over Republican incumbent George Allen. A candidate from the "Independent Greens of Virginia", Gail Parker, gained a bit over 26,000 votes out of over 2.3 million cast - about 1.1% of the total. Since that time, the Green Party of the United States has gotten emails and phone calls asking about, or expressing an opinion about, Ms. Parker. The media has added to this association; for example, James Carville last night on CNN, said, "If the Green hadn't been running, the Democrat would have won easily."

However, the "Independent Greens of Virginia" are a separate entity from the Green Party as it is known to the majority of voters. They are a conservative group which does not share the values of the Green Party of the United States, and their platform seems to be focused almost entirely on railroad expansion in northern Virginia, at the expense of other issues of equal or greater importance to Greens and other Virginians. Our affiliate in Virginia is the Green Party of Virginia VAGreenParty.org, not the "Independent Greens" or "IGVA" VoteJoinRun.US.

Unlike the major parties, particularly the Democratic Party, we respect the right of any party or citizen to run for any office for which they are qualified, and to have votes for that campaign tallied fairly. And as Greens, we prefer to run on the merits of our ideas, and leave it to our affiliated state and local parties to determine the best specific ways in which to do so. Sadly, however, major media outlets and the major parties themselves perpetuate a content-free, "horse race" mentality between candidates who often have few distinguishing differences save the color used for them in television news graphics. (This Senate contest, between a conservative Republican and a former Republican, is an illustrative example.)

Rather than blaming people or parties for exercising their democratic rights in challenging this duopoly, Democrats and others should give serious consideration to a long overdue reform of the electoral system. Alternatives such as ranked choice voting (where voters rank their choices in order, 1-2-3 style) and proportional representation (where legislatures are populated based on the proportion of the vote received) empower voters, ensure broadly supported candidates, make governments look more like the people they represent, and do away with the so-called "spoiler factor". FairVote, the Center for Voting and Democracy, illustrates many of these choices at FairVote.org.

The Green Party will continue to stand for peace, justice, democracy, and our precious environment in future elections. We invite all voters to visit us at GP.org, and read about, support, contribute to, and vote for our candidates. A Greener world is possible - and we can do it with your help!

Sincerely,

Steve Kramer
Co-Chair
Green Party of the United States

--

Steve Kramer || scooter (at) guisarme dot net ||
===================================================

"I never had an inner child. I had a filling of nougat and crisped rice."
Amanda Berman

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Meet the 2006 CA Green Party Candidates in Mtn View, Oct 3rd

A Million Votes for Peace! Meet the 2006 CA Green Party Candidates in Mountain View!

The Green Party of Santa Clara County is sponsoring a free public event to stimulate public interest, support and donations for our "Million Votes for Peace!" statewide, regional and local Green Party candidates running for election on Nov. 7.

Speakers include Todd Chretien for U.S. Senator, Peter Miguel Camejo for Governor, Donna Warren for Lt. Governor, Forrest Hill for Secretary of State, Methul Thakker for Treasurer, Michael (Mike) Wyman for Attorney General, Laura Wells for Controller, Larry Cafiero for Insurance Commissioner, Carol Brouillet for Cong. (14th Dist. v Anna Eshoo) and Tian Harter a "Green" nonpartison candidate for Mountain View city council. Carol Brouillet and Tian Harter will Co-Host.

When: Oct. 3rd, 2006. 6:45PM
Where: (Disabled Accessible) Mtn View Historic Adobe Building

Location & Directions: 157 Moffett Boulevard, on the northeast corner of Moffett Blvd. and the Central Expressway - directly across from the Mountain View CalTrain and VTA Light Rail Station.
Parking: Parking lots across Moffett, and along the east side of Moffett Blvd. Also a small parking lot behind the Adobe Bldg.

Program Schedule:
6:45PM Reception. Light refreshments and non alcohol beverages served, and music provided.
7:30PM the candidates will begin speaking.
9:00-9:30PM Questions & Answers and Discussion.

Note: Some "Green Friendly" organizations will be invited to place their
literature on tables placed outside on the Plaza.

Contacts: Fred Duperrault at (650)691-1215, fredd@freeshell.org
Dana St. George at (650)424-0842, danasg@greens.org