So, Ohio lawmakers have their panties in a twist because President Obama is restoring the original name of a mountain. They are upset that their hero McKinley is being deposed. Too bad.
A gold prospector named the mountain Native Alaskans called Denali, Mt. McKinley, again proving the arrogance of white settlers regarding anything native. Maybe McKinley was a president and hero to Ohioans. Let them name streets, parks, buildings, etc. after him. But, for now at least the mountain's name is restored to Denali.
Of course, a Republican president can erase that and any other executive actions taken by President Obama. That is why Democrats and Independents need to work together to elect a Democrat for president in 2016 and thereafter.
Let's stop the in-fighting over which Democratic candidate is best for the primary. Vote your choice in the primary and refuse to denigrate the opposition. Then, get behind the candidate chosen by the Democratic convention. With unity, we can keep our country moving forward>>>>>>>>.
Monday, August 31, 2015
Saturday, August 29, 2015
In Her Own Words
There are many reasons why I support Hillary Clinton for President 2016. Here are some in her own words:
"I want to let you know that as your president, I will first and foremost be a champion for our children. I don’t care who you are, where you’re from, what your circumstances might be. The first obligation of any nation is to take care of those in the years of their early lives and their later lives." –Hillary
"If calling for equal pay and paid leave and women's health is playing the gender card, well, then, deal me in."—Hillary
"We've got to come to terms with hard truths about guns in America."
"Heartbroken and angry. We must act to stop gun violence, and we cannot wait any longer. Praying for the victims' families in Virginia." -H
“I stand strongly in favor of comprehensive immigration reform. It’s what I have always supported and will continue to support and do whatever I can as president to try to finally get it accomplished. And certainly from my perspective, what is being said by those running on the Republican side is incredibly offensive, it is unrealistic, it is mean-spirited—I’ve run out of adjectives. The idea that the United States of America would round up 11 or 12 million people and deport them is absolute fantasy, and we need to end that kind of talk because it is very hurtful to hardworking people who are here and their families, generations of them. The idea that we would amend our Constitution to do away with citizenship by birth is absolutely the wrong direction to go. So I will be speaking out on this over and over again because I want to make sure everyone—not just every Hispanic person, but every American—understands what the import of this rhetoric on the other side actually is, because it is inflammatory and something that every sensible American should reject.”—Hillary
For many more and for factual information regarding Hillary Clinton, please see http://correctrecord.org/the-points/
"I want to let you know that as your president, I will first and foremost be a champion for our children. I don’t care who you are, where you’re from, what your circumstances might be. The first obligation of any nation is to take care of those in the years of their early lives and their later lives." –Hillary
"If calling for equal pay and paid leave and women's health is playing the gender card, well, then, deal me in."—Hillary
"We've got to come to terms with hard truths about guns in America."
"Heartbroken and angry. We must act to stop gun violence, and we cannot wait any longer. Praying for the victims' families in Virginia." -H
“I stand strongly in favor of comprehensive immigration reform. It’s what I have always supported and will continue to support and do whatever I can as president to try to finally get it accomplished. And certainly from my perspective, what is being said by those running on the Republican side is incredibly offensive, it is unrealistic, it is mean-spirited—I’ve run out of adjectives. The idea that the United States of America would round up 11 or 12 million people and deport them is absolute fantasy, and we need to end that kind of talk because it is very hurtful to hardworking people who are here and their families, generations of them. The idea that we would amend our Constitution to do away with citizenship by birth is absolutely the wrong direction to go. So I will be speaking out on this over and over again because I want to make sure everyone—not just every Hispanic person, but every American—understands what the import of this rhetoric on the other side actually is, because it is inflammatory and something that every sensible American should reject.”—Hillary
For many more and for factual information regarding Hillary Clinton, please see http://correctrecord.org/the-points/
Thursday, August 27, 2015
Sanity and Gun Control
Let's get this straight right now! Mentally ill does NOT equal violent and violent does NOT equal mentally ill. I'm afraid we are being led down a distracting path when we are asked to focus on keeping mentally ill people away from guns. You see, guns are the real issue and they don't want us to focus on that. They want to muddy the waters and throw up all types of excuses so that we miss what they are really doing. They are selling guns! They are racking in huge profits and exploiting peoples' fears to do it.
Don't fall into their trap of hopelessness! There are many things we can do and must do to curtail the power of the gun lobby in America. First, we can identify which legislators that are owned by the gun lobby. See: https://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/clientsum.php?id=D000000082 Then, we can do our best to work to see they are defeated for re-election. Next, we can support legislators who have the courage to stand up to the gun lobby and vote for sane gun control measures.
After Sandy Hook, our president laid out a detailed plan to address gun violence in America. He wasn't trying to destroy the 2nd amendment as some have said. Please look at the details of his proposal. Go here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/preventing-gun-violence Then make a promise to yourself that you will take one action everyday until Congress acts.
Don't fall into their trap of hopelessness! There are many things we can do and must do to curtail the power of the gun lobby in America. First, we can identify which legislators that are owned by the gun lobby. See: https://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/clientsum.php?id=D000000082 Then, we can do our best to work to see they are defeated for re-election. Next, we can support legislators who have the courage to stand up to the gun lobby and vote for sane gun control measures.
After Sandy Hook, our president laid out a detailed plan to address gun violence in America. He wasn't trying to destroy the 2nd amendment as some have said. Please look at the details of his proposal. Go here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/preventing-gun-violence Then make a promise to yourself that you will take one action everyday until Congress acts.
Thursday, August 20, 2015
Have You Changed Since High School?
When Maggie Haberman tweeted about her latest piece on Hillary Clinton, several of us on Twitter called her on the lead in to her article in her tweet. See the tweet below:
Clinton, a former Goldwater Girl-turned-liberal in the '60s, is running for office at a moment of deep anger http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/08/20/us/politics/hillary-clinton-takes-on-civil-rights-generation-gap.html?referrer=&_r=0 …
Perhaps, Haberman was looking for Retweets or for someone to read the article. But, is it really fair to use a stance that someone took in HIGH SCHOOL to get clicks on your writing? Who among us is the same person politically or philosophically that we were in high school. To tag an article about Hillary Clinton in that way seems to imply that changing ones views is a bad thing.
Haberman took exception to the critique by asking if we'd actually read her piece. Well, yes, indeed we did. It was basically a good article. So why bring up Clinton's high school learning experience to boost readership of her article? A good piece of journalism can stand on its own merits, I believe.
The truth of the matter is that most folks only see the lead in to a tweet or the headline on an article. They don't stop and read what follows. That's why it is VITAL in journalism to accurately tag your work.
After reading the article, it was clear the Goldwater girl remark had NOTHING to do with her article. Her article was about Hillary Clinton's exchange with the #BlackLivesMatter people who attended her speech in New Hampshire.
I think journalists can do better and I believe we, the readers/consumers, need to hold their feet to the fire when we see them falter.
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
Don't be Fooled
There's a sucker born every minute. Charlatans and other con men rely on this truth. I have been seeing many reports that say folks are flocking to Donald J. Trump because he speaks so openly on so many issues. What they fail to see is that this is his con game. He's not a professional politician; so, that's his appeal they say. A politician is not inherently a bad thing. The term merely refers to one who is professionally involved in politics or holds elected office. To say they are all bad because some are bad is ridiculous! It defies logic or critical thinking. If you've had a bad experience with a dishonest orthodontist, do you want to turn your teeth over to someone who proudly states he's not a professional orthodontist?
Personally, I prefer that professionals are in charge. Politicians don't always do things the way I think they should. Yet, I fear we'd be heading for disaster if we elect someone to the highest office in the land who is NOT a professional politician.
Just take a few minutes and read some of the things he's said over the years. Why would anyone put this man in charge of our future? http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/08/the-absolute-trumpest-121328.html#.VdNyWPlViko
Personally, I prefer that professionals are in charge. Politicians don't always do things the way I think they should. Yet, I fear we'd be heading for disaster if we elect someone to the highest office in the land who is NOT a professional politician.
Just take a few minutes and read some of the things he's said over the years. Why would anyone put this man in charge of our future? http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/08/the-absolute-trumpest-121328.html#.VdNyWPlViko
Thursday, August 6, 2015
White Supremacy and #VRA50
White supremacy is a pervasive virus that has affected American Democracy since before our country became the United States of America. And, it continues to infect segments of our society today.
When white people first came across the ocean, they came with a blessing from the Pope. It was called "The Doctrine of Discovery". http://www.religionnews.com/2014/09/09/nuns-pope-revoke-15th-century-doctrine-allows-christians-seize-native-land/ This document legalized explorers to capture native lands and enslave/kill natives in the name of Christianity.
Since that time, white supremacy has been encoded in our laws and implemented by our courts.
I was not taught about this and I'm guessing you weren't either. I learned about the Doctrine of Discovery at a church conference earlier this year. Today, I learned about the Black Codes. Have you heard about this ugly part of our history?
If you know about them, then someone did their job in teaching you American History. If you don't know about them, start here: http://padresteve.com/2015/08/05/corporate-slavery-the-black-codes/
These codes were used against newly freed slaves, but, they ultimately also hurt poor whites and greatly enriched greedy corporations. So, the battle needs to be focused on ways to empower all of us against the greed of corporations, whose prime objective is PROFIT AT ALL COST.
What does this have to do with the Voting Rights Amendment? Everything! You see, if some of us can be kept from voting, then, none of us have security that they won't come after our rights next!
Today, at 2:00 PM ET, President Obama is hosting a special video conference to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the voting rights act: Livestreamed at WhiteHouse.gov/VotingRightsAct I hope you will sign up to attend: https://www.whitehouse.gov/webform/join-conversation-president-50th-anniversary-voting-rights-act?thanks=1&sid=79949961
When white people first came across the ocean, they came with a blessing from the Pope. It was called "The Doctrine of Discovery". http://www.religionnews.com/2014/09/09/nuns-pope-revoke-15th-century-doctrine-allows-christians-seize-native-land/ This document legalized explorers to capture native lands and enslave/kill natives in the name of Christianity.
Since that time, white supremacy has been encoded in our laws and implemented by our courts.
I was not taught about this and I'm guessing you weren't either. I learned about the Doctrine of Discovery at a church conference earlier this year. Today, I learned about the Black Codes. Have you heard about this ugly part of our history?
If you know about them, then someone did their job in teaching you American History. If you don't know about them, start here: http://padresteve.com/2015/08/05/corporate-slavery-the-black-codes/
These codes were used against newly freed slaves, but, they ultimately also hurt poor whites and greatly enriched greedy corporations. So, the battle needs to be focused on ways to empower all of us against the greed of corporations, whose prime objective is PROFIT AT ALL COST.
What does this have to do with the Voting Rights Amendment? Everything! You see, if some of us can be kept from voting, then, none of us have security that they won't come after our rights next!
Today, at 2:00 PM ET, President Obama is hosting a special video conference to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the voting rights act: Livestreamed at WhiteHouse.gov/VotingRightsAct I hope you will sign up to attend: https://www.whitehouse.gov/webform/join-conversation-president-50th-anniversary-voting-rights-act?thanks=1&sid=79949961
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