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RNC member Jeff Kent wants the Democratic Party to rename itself to conform to his Rightwing wacko delusions.
In January of 2007 when ex-KGMI talkshow host Jeff Kent was made Vice Chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC) from the Western Region he was quoted as saying, "As we build momentum toward the 2008 presidential elections and our state’s gubernatorial race, the upcoming campaign season promises to be historic in many ways.".
And 2008 was a historic campaign season, just not historic in the way Kent hoped.
So now, Kent is all sour grapes and unhinged accusation.
A Wall St Journal blog says: "Washington state RNC member Jeff Kent sponsored the resolution pushing the “socialist” label. But he won’t be satisfied if only Republicans start using the label. Kent suggested Democrats should be “truthful and honest with the American people by renaming themselves the Democrat Socialist Party.”"
Policito also quotes Kent as saying: ""There is nothing more important for our party than bringing the truth to bear on the Democrats' march to socialism,” said Jeff Kent, the Washington state committeeman who proposed the resolution. “Just like Ronald Reagan identifying the U.S.S.R. as the evil empire was the beginning of the end to Soviet domination, we believe the American people will reject socialism when they hear the truth about how the Democrats are bankrupting our country and destroying our freedom and liberties." "
It's not really surprising that Kent would be comparing the Democratic Party to the U.S.S.R. since he has a long history of connections to the Rightwing lunatic fringe. Back in the '90's he was closely associated with Whatcom county's terrorist sympathisers, the people who supported the, domestic terrorist, militia movement with their caches of weapons and explosives and their death list of local officials and journalists.
What is surprising is that Jeff Kent, and other nut cases like him, are in the upper echelon of the Republican Party.
The GOP lost big in the 2008 election. Barack Obama was elected President and the Democratic Party expanded its majorities in the House and Senate. The majority gets to rule; that's not socialism, that's democracy.
I can see why the GOP would be unhappy, but invoking the name of the old Soviet Union in their objection to Obama's proposals to pull the U.S. economy back from the brink of disaster is just ridiculous and unhinged.
After the recent astroturf Tea Party and this silly resolution, I think it's the Republican Party that should change its name to the Ridiculous Party. They can keep the initials GOP, because now we know those letters stand for Grotesque Obnoxious Preposterous.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Earth Day
thanks to Andrea for this....let us behave as if our lives depended on it.....
check it out at Meatless Monday
check it out at Meatless Monday
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Wingnuts Squirrelly About ACORN
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We drove into B'ham last Wednesday to see the Tax day tempest in a teapot. I drove and jpeg shot video of the protesters. I estimated the crowd at between 1000 and 1500. An impressive turnout for Whatcom county.
We had a momentary encounter with some of the protesters when we stopped at a traffic signal there on Meridian. You can see & hear it in the video. When they saw jpeg's camera, they asked "Are you from ACORN".
It seemed like an out of nowhere question at the time. We looked carefully for counter-demonstrators as we drove on, and didn't see a single one. As it turns out, wingnut provocateurs had been warning potential attendees that ACORN was going to disrupt their tea party.
And that imaginary threat turned out to be a convenient excuse for the tea party organizers to not produce the sign-in sheets they had originally claimed proved their inflated attendance numbers. The Rightie rumor mill told people not to sign anything at the demonstration because infiltrators from ACORN would be there, gather information on them, with fake petitions and sign-in sheets.
All that talk about ACORN made me curious, so I made enquiries. I don't know everything that goes on in Whatcom County, but I do know people who know people, who know people... who know people. So given a little time, I usually hear something about any sort of political activity that's gone on locally.
Not a word about ACORN, not a single word, and no word about anyone at all making any effort to disrupt the teabaggers party. I saw some of the local MoveOn.org folks, Thursday, and they were busy with other things. The local Peace & Justice folks weren't stirred up. The local Democratic Party barely noticed that the Conservo-publi-tarians were having a public hissy fit on Tax day. Everybody left of center seemed to think there wasn't anything new about people on the Right complaining about taxes and government. And they certainly weren't interested in preventing anyone from exercising their right to free speech on a public street.
But as the '60 song says; "paranoia runs deep" and the Right seems to just loves wallowing in delusions of being plotted against.
Saturday, I attended Congressman Rick Larsen's townhall meeting in Blaine. In the foray of the city hall, as I signed in, someone in the line behind me said, "Ah, ACORN is here". I looked around the room and couldn't figure out what elicited the comment. There were no protest signs, no one was wearing political buttons or an ACORN name tag. There were no young hippie/anarchist types.
ACORN wasn't there but the teabagger's were. As the meeting proceeded, it became clear that about a quarter of the people there were Rightwingers. There were lots of Republican talking points posed as questions.
Congressman Larsen spent much of the Question & Answer time patiently explained what Congress had actually done and not done, as opposed to what the Righties thought was happening. Clearly FoxNews, Michele Malkin, Glen Beck, etc. haven't been giving those folks accurate information.
We drove into B'ham last Wednesday to see the Tax day tempest in a teapot. I drove and jpeg shot video of the protesters. I estimated the crowd at between 1000 and 1500. An impressive turnout for Whatcom county.
We had a momentary encounter with some of the protesters when we stopped at a traffic signal there on Meridian. You can see & hear it in the video. When they saw jpeg's camera, they asked "Are you from ACORN".
It seemed like an out of nowhere question at the time. We looked carefully for counter-demonstrators as we drove on, and didn't see a single one. As it turns out, wingnut provocateurs had been warning potential attendees that ACORN was going to disrupt their tea party.
And that imaginary threat turned out to be a convenient excuse for the tea party organizers to not produce the sign-in sheets they had originally claimed proved their inflated attendance numbers. The Rightie rumor mill told people not to sign anything at the demonstration because infiltrators from ACORN would be there, gather information on them, with fake petitions and sign-in sheets.
All that talk about ACORN made me curious, so I made enquiries. I don't know everything that goes on in Whatcom County, but I do know people who know people, who know people... who know people. So given a little time, I usually hear something about any sort of political activity that's gone on locally.
Not a word about ACORN, not a single word, and no word about anyone at all making any effort to disrupt the teabaggers party. I saw some of the local MoveOn.org folks, Thursday, and they were busy with other things. The local Peace & Justice folks weren't stirred up. The local Democratic Party barely noticed that the Conservo-publi-tarians were having a public hissy fit on Tax day. Everybody left of center seemed to think there wasn't anything new about people on the Right complaining about taxes and government. And they certainly weren't interested in preventing anyone from exercising their right to free speech on a public street.
But as the '60 song says; "paranoia runs deep" and the Right seems to just loves wallowing in delusions of being plotted against.
Saturday, I attended Congressman Rick Larsen's townhall meeting in Blaine. In the foray of the city hall, as I signed in, someone in the line behind me said, "Ah, ACORN is here". I looked around the room and couldn't figure out what elicited the comment. There were no protest signs, no one was wearing political buttons or an ACORN name tag. There were no young hippie/anarchist types.
ACORN wasn't there but the teabagger's were. As the meeting proceeded, it became clear that about a quarter of the people there were Rightwingers. There were lots of Republican talking points posed as questions.
Congressman Larsen spent much of the Question & Answer time patiently explained what Congress had actually done and not done, as opposed to what the Righties thought was happening. Clearly FoxNews, Michele Malkin, Glen Beck, etc. haven't been giving those folks accurate information.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Corporate Astroturf Spectacle
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Schuster: If You're Planning Tea Bagging Across The Country, 'You're Going To Need A Dick Armey'
Schuster: If You're Planning Tea Bagging Across The Country, 'You're Going To Need A Dick Armey'
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Tea-ed Off
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I've always associated the term non-partisan with political neutrality rather than simply not being officially sponsored by a political party.
When the League of Woman Voters has a voter registration table at the community college because that's where lots of potential new voters are, that's non-partisan. Their goal; to register voters, with no political agenda about who those newly registered voters might vote for.
Isn't promoting a conservative political agenda just as partisan as promoting a Republican agenda? I think the politics of the organizers is what determines whether an event is or isn't non-partisan. Were 'out of Iraq' or 'impeach Bush' rallies non-partisan because everyone displeased with Bush was invited? I don't remember them being reported as 'non-partisan rallies to End the War/Impeach Bush'.
The April 15 TEA Party is an anti-stimulus package propaganda campaign. A thinly disguised attack on President Obama and the Democratic majority in Congress.
We had an election in 2008 and as a result, we have a Democrat in the Whitehouse and a Democratic majority in both Houses of Congress. Republicans/conservatives aren't, as they would have us believe, being subjected to tyranny. They just lost the election... the majority rules... democracy works like that.
Nationally, the TEA Parties are being promoted by FoxNews Corp, FreedomWorks which is run by former Republican majority leader Dick Armey and a bevy of Rightwing talkingheads. Locally, the, so called non-partisan, organizing committee for the Bellingham Tea Party have purchased ads in the Lynden Tribune, The Bellingham Herald, KGMI and KAFE radio. Paid appearance fee to KGMI for coverage of the event. Rented Fox Hall for signmaking and solicited business sponsorships from Boston Pizza, Birch Equipment, Print & Copy Factory, Cascade Radio Northwest, Business Club, Day Wireless Systems, Baker Septic.
KGMI will be doing coverage of the "Tea Party" morning "sign making party" and the afternoon sign waving event, but they won't be taking phone calls.
The poster for the "Bellingham Tea Party" is headed "Silent Majority No More!".
This Tea Party political stunt does not represent a majority of Americans. "A new Gallup Poll finds 48% of Americans saying the amount of federal income taxes they pay is "about right," with 46% saying "too high" -- one of the most positive assessments Gallup has measured since 1956. Typically, a majority of Americans say their taxes are too high, and relatively few say their taxes are too low." ... "The poll also finds 61% of Americans saying they regard the income taxes they have to pay this year as fair. There has been very little change on this measure in the last six years."
A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll finds that 58% say Barack Obama does have a clear plan for solving the country's economic problems while 74% say Republicans in Congress do not have a clear plan for solving the country's economic problems and 61% think the Republicans in Congress are not doing enough to cooperate with the Barack Obama.
Please take a few minutes to write a letter to the editor, telling how you support President Obama's economic stimulus program. The stimulus package means spending on infrastructure, roads & schools. That infrastructure work will mean contracts going to American companies and that will mean jobs & paychecks for American workers.
You can send your letter to:
The Northern Light
225 Marine Drive, Blaine, WA 98230
fax 360/332-2777
E-mail:editor@thenorthernlight.com
Ferndale Record-Journal
P.O. Box 38, Ferndale, WA 98248
E-mail: news@ferndalerecordjournal.com
Fax: (360) 384-1417
Lynden Tribune
PO Box 153, Lynden, WA 98264
E-mail:editor@lyndentribune.com
Fax: 360-354-4445
Bellingham Herald
The NewsroomAttn: Editorial Page Editor
P.O. Box 1277, Bellingham, WA 98225
E-Mail:letters@bellinghamherald.com
Fax: 756-2826.
I've always associated the term non-partisan with political neutrality rather than simply not being officially sponsored by a political party.
When the League of Woman Voters has a voter registration table at the community college because that's where lots of potential new voters are, that's non-partisan. Their goal; to register voters, with no political agenda about who those newly registered voters might vote for.
Isn't promoting a conservative political agenda just as partisan as promoting a Republican agenda? I think the politics of the organizers is what determines whether an event is or isn't non-partisan. Were 'out of Iraq' or 'impeach Bush' rallies non-partisan because everyone displeased with Bush was invited? I don't remember them being reported as 'non-partisan rallies to End the War/Impeach Bush'.
The April 15 TEA Party is an anti-stimulus package propaganda campaign. A thinly disguised attack on President Obama and the Democratic majority in Congress.
We had an election in 2008 and as a result, we have a Democrat in the Whitehouse and a Democratic majority in both Houses of Congress. Republicans/conservatives aren't, as they would have us believe, being subjected to tyranny. They just lost the election... the majority rules... democracy works like that.
Nationally, the TEA Parties are being promoted by FoxNews Corp, FreedomWorks which is run by former Republican majority leader Dick Armey and a bevy of Rightwing talkingheads. Locally, the, so called non-partisan, organizing committee for the Bellingham Tea Party have purchased ads in the Lynden Tribune, The Bellingham Herald, KGMI and KAFE radio. Paid appearance fee to KGMI for coverage of the event. Rented Fox Hall for signmaking and solicited business sponsorships from Boston Pizza, Birch Equipment, Print & Copy Factory, Cascade Radio Northwest, Business Club, Day Wireless Systems, Baker Septic.
KGMI will be doing coverage of the "Tea Party" morning "sign making party" and the afternoon sign waving event, but they won't be taking phone calls.
The poster for the "Bellingham Tea Party" is headed "Silent Majority No More!".
This Tea Party political stunt does not represent a majority of Americans. "A new Gallup Poll finds 48% of Americans saying the amount of federal income taxes they pay is "about right," with 46% saying "too high" -- one of the most positive assessments Gallup has measured since 1956. Typically, a majority of Americans say their taxes are too high, and relatively few say their taxes are too low." ... "The poll also finds 61% of Americans saying they regard the income taxes they have to pay this year as fair. There has been very little change on this measure in the last six years."
A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll finds that 58% say Barack Obama does have a clear plan for solving the country's economic problems while 74% say Republicans in Congress do not have a clear plan for solving the country's economic problems and 61% think the Republicans in Congress are not doing enough to cooperate with the Barack Obama.
Please take a few minutes to write a letter to the editor, telling how you support President Obama's economic stimulus program. The stimulus package means spending on infrastructure, roads & schools. That infrastructure work will mean contracts going to American companies and that will mean jobs & paychecks for American workers.
You can send your letter to:
The Northern Light
225 Marine Drive, Blaine, WA 98230
fax 360/332-2777
E-mail:editor@thenorthernlight.com
Ferndale Record-Journal
P.O. Box 38, Ferndale, WA 98248
E-mail: news@ferndalerecordjournal.com
Fax: (360) 384-1417
Lynden Tribune
PO Box 153, Lynden, WA 98264
E-mail:editor@lyndentribune.com
Fax: 360-354-4445
Bellingham Herald
The NewsroomAttn: Editorial Page Editor
P.O. Box 1277, Bellingham, WA 98225
E-Mail:letters@bellinghamherald.com
Fax: 756-2826.
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
an evening with David Suzuki
i had the pleasure last evening of attending the evening with David Suzuki and a very large, enthusiastic crowd at the Mount Baker Theatre. He read from the chapters of his new book co-authored with David Robert Taylor and then delighted, informed and rallied us all to work as if our lives depended on it to save our beautiful home, planet earth.
a couple of my favorite moments from the Q & A.....
and a call to action on October 24th (happy birthday mom ..i wish you could appreciate and participate)
24 October 2009
INTERNATIONAL DAY OF CLIMATE ACTION
check it out
and this very funny moment..
full Q & A
Village Books Presents AN EVENING WITH DAVID SUZUKI
David Suzuki points the direction we must take as a society if we hope to meet the
environmental challenges we face in our still-young century. The Big Picture not only identifies the problems we face but proposes solid, science-based solutions, and examines the forces that are preventing real change. These essays tell the story of a species struggling to come to grips with its own biological nature, a nature we must ultimately embrace to live in balance with the systems that sustain us. David Suzuki is an award-winning scientist, environmentalist, and broadcaster, who has written 42 books, and received countless degrees and honors. He is renowned for his radio and television programs that explain the complexities of the natural sciences in a compelling, easily understood way.
Proceeds will benefit Sustainable Connections.
MBT
a couple of my favorite moments from the Q & A.....
and a call to action on October 24th (happy birthday mom ..i wish you could appreciate and participate)
24 October 2009
INTERNATIONAL DAY OF CLIMATE ACTION
check it out
and this very funny moment..
full Q & A
Monday, April 06, 2009
Senator Cantwell Visits Whatcom County
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Saturday afternoon Senator Maria Cantwell stopped by to say hello to Whatcom County Democrats. The gathering was held in Bellingham at the Blue Horse Gallery.
Sen. Cantwell was back in Washington State after a week of Senate budget action, and anxious to talk about her work on alternative energy and climate change, Indian affairs, northwest energy supply issues, and more.
The gathering was well attended with a sprinkling of local elected officials in the crowd. County Councilman Carl Weimer was there as well as B'ham's Mayor Dan Pike and assorted city council persons.
Saturday afternoon Senator Maria Cantwell stopped by to say hello to Whatcom County Democrats. The gathering was held in Bellingham at the Blue Horse Gallery.Sen. Cantwell was back in Washington State after a week of Senate budget action, and anxious to talk about her work on alternative energy and climate change, Indian affairs, northwest energy supply issues, and more.
The gathering was well attended with a sprinkling of local elected officials in the crowd. County Councilman Carl Weimer was there as well as B'ham's Mayor Dan Pike and assorted city council persons.
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Republican Approval Numbers Plummet
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It's no wonder the Whatcom County Republican Party Chairwoman is advertising her next political stunt as a non-partisan event. This tax-day stunt is part of an astro-turf PR campaign Planned Months Ago by GOP Billionaires that's supposed to convince people that President Obama's economic stimulus plan isn't popular.
Republicans have been glad to give handouts to Wall Street but hysterically opposed to helping Main Street. Now that Americans understand that, Republicans approval numbers are plummeting.
Even Republicans aren't very happy with Republicans
Pew Research Center - The Databank:
It's no wonder the Whatcom County Republican Party Chairwoman is advertising her next political stunt as a non-partisan event. This tax-day stunt is part of an astro-turf PR campaign Planned Months Ago by GOP Billionaires that's supposed to convince people that President Obama's economic stimulus plan isn't popular.
Republicans have been glad to give handouts to Wall Street but hysterically opposed to helping Main Street. Now that Americans understand that, Republicans approval numbers are plummeting.
April 1, 2009 - Quinnipiac University National Poll
Who do you trust to do a better job handling the economy - President Obama or the Republicans in Congress?
President Obama ______ 55%
Republicans in Con ____ 27%
DK/NA _____________ 18%
Even Republicans aren't very happy with Republicans
Pew Research Center - The Databank:
Public approval of the job Republican leaders in Congress are doing has fallen to just 28%, down from 34% a month ago and the lowest level in Pew Research surveys going back 15 years. Slightly more than half (51%) say they disapprove. With the drop in GOP approval, the gap between public evaluations of Democratic and Republican congressional leaders is the largest Pew Research has recorded over the past eight years in which both party's leaders have been evaluated. Currently, 47% of Americans approve of the job Democratic leaders in Congress are doing -- virtually unchanged from a month ago and 19 points higher than the approval rating for Republicans. For most of the past decade, approval of Republicans and Democrats in Congress have tracked very closely together. Since February, the drop in GOP approval has been the steepest among Republicans themselves. Just 43% of Republicans say they approve of the job their party's leaders in Congress are doing -- nearly as many (37%) say they disapprove. ...
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