<serious>

Evidently [corp]merica has been hard at work propping up Tom DeLay by funding his legal defense fund.

Here are several articles and one radio broadcast:

http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/28-04072005-472662.html

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/washington/stories/040705dnnatdelay.a45a.html

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0504/06/ip.01.html

http://www.publicradio.org/tools/media/player/marketplace/2005/04/07_mpp

Wanna do something about Tom DeLay? Here are several options:

* Donate to http://www.democracyforamerica.org. They have bought some billboards in Sugar Land (TD's district) and were taking votes for which messages will be displayed (I don't know if they have selected the winners, yet). So, you could pick your favorite.

* Also, there is this think tank called Center for America Progress.

Here's the link to their main site so you can check them out:

http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=8473&sid=42590947

They have bought some national radio spots to help get the word out about these corporate donors. You can vote for your favorite, here:

http://www.kintera.org/TR.asp?ID=M68393734259094713429565

* You can donate at http://www.DropTheHammer.org to fund those radio spots (I’m doing it!)

* There's always writing the corporations that are backing TD (see the article, above).

* You could write your congress person (preferably, a member of the House) and urge them to support an investigation of DeLay by the House Ethics Committee.

* Prayer is good.

* Animal sacrifices are kinda way, way "old school" and should probably reserved for the End Times.

* Sending good karma is nice.

* How about moving to Sugar Land before 2006(?), register to vote, vote for someone else. And while you're at it, see if you can't get something done about the lousy traffic. Good lord its a nightmare driving out that way.

</serious>

<silly>

Dude, I freakin’ LOVE San Antonio.

So, they are just over two weeks away from voting for Mayor. Anyway, it turns out that one of the candidates has an identical twin. During the annual river parade (NIOSA?), when the candidate (Julian Castro) had a conflicting engagement with a “neighborhood leaders meeting,” the twin (Joaquin) was mistaken for the mayoral candidate at the parade. Talk about double timing it!!

Anyway, Julian has a double digit lead over the other guy and he’s crying foul!

You’ve got to read this story (or not. That’s kinda it)

http://famulus.msnbc.com/famulusgen/reuters04-21-110030.asp?t=renew&vts=42120051150

</silly>

The following is a copy of the email I sent to my Senators to urge them to (ha) vote against the Bankruptcy Reform bill. Should you feel so inclinded, feel free to customize and send it. Most Senators have an online form that makes the top two lines unnecessary.

Should you have *any* Democratic Senators, I urge *you* to act. Or, at least read up on it.

March 9, 2005

Dear Senator <insert name>:

The purpose of this letter is to respectfully urge your vote against the upcoming Bankruptcy Reform bill. While I wholeheartedly agree that individuals must be responsible for fulfilling their obligations, it is my belief that this bill does more harm than good.

As I am sure the Senator is aware, over half of all bankruptcies filed were due to a devastating illness suffered by a family member. These are families with health insurance. Most are middle class families that work hard and pay their debts. Without the protection of Chapter 7, these families may never get out of debt due solely to an illness they could not foresee or prevent.

There must be a better way to insure individuals pay their obligations without turning honest families into a permanent debtor class. Please take the time to find that solution by voting against this bill.

Thank you for attention.

Sincerely,

Epilogue: If this bill passes, it will be because the democrats allowed it to happen (thank you Senator Byrd). What them? Time to light a fire under Governor Dean...

Epilogue 2.0: Here's a copy of the email I sent to the DNC. Don't care for the DNC, how about DemocracyforAmerica.com or Moveon.org?

It appears that the Bankruptcy Reform bill is about to pass the Senate.

 

The bill will not pass without Democrats voting for it.

 

Governor Dean, time to lay down the law. I realize your current goal is focused on turning the local organizations around. Great. Don't stop! But, can we muscle our people that are already in office?

 

Good luck, Governor.

 

PS I am contributing to the DNC for the first time.

9/11 Report Cites Many Warnings About Hijackings

Just a taste of what you will find:

"Among other things, the report says that leaders of the F.A.A. received 52 intelligence reports from their security branch that mentioned Mr. bin Laden or Al Qaeda from April to Sept. 10, 2001. That represented half of all the intelligence summaries in that time."

--------------

"Five of the intelligence reports specifically mentioned Al Qaeda's training or capability to conduct hijackings..."

--------------

"The fact that the civil aviation system seems to have been lulled into a false sense of security is striking not only because of what happened on 9/11 but also in light of the intelligence assessments, including those conducted by the F.A.A.'s own security branch, that raised alarms about the growing terrorist threat to civil aviation throughout the 1990's and into the new century..."

Remember this: Bin Laden determined to strike in US

When are people going to be held accountable?

What else had to happen before *SOMEONE* gave a damn about the security of the people in this country.

Right. Slam three planes into three buildings.

Good job!

These are just the people I want in charge and making decisions.

Read: A New Pearl Harbor

The other day I was surfing the AM dial when I came across this call-in show. The caller said she just wanted to voice her support for the use of torture. She said, and the host concurred, that any information they get to save American lives was worth trashing any treaties we had regarding torture. However, a couple of things quickly became clear (to me, anyway).

First, people don't seem to get that torture is not the most reliable means of getting real, usable intelligence. It is best suited (when used broadly) to determine if the person you are "questioning" is lying to you. In this case, you must already know the truth. Clearly, this does not apply to the prisoners our jails in Iraq or Gitmo. If not, why are they being tortured?

Second, who has real, actionable intelligence? I mean, sure, the Coalition forces can spend a few hours working on a seventeen year old kid they captured (and let's assume he was seen firing on the troops and captured with the weapon). But what does that individual know that the Coalition forces can go after with their conventional forces: Command&Control, weapons caches, and future targets.

So, is there a C&C to go after and would this individual know it? Is it reasonable to think that any weapons caches that this prisoner would know about have either been moved or simply abandoned (the Coalition forces have already destroyed many such stores of weapons). Would the prisoner know about any specific future attacks?

If not, why are they being tortured?

Now, for the "insurgents," a grunt does have valuable information. Just knowing the minimal information from a soldier is very helpful to a guerilla fighter. They are best able to hit/destroy/interrupt the larger target with their tactics. They don't have to hit our C&C to inflict damage. They don't have to kill.

Which leads to number three: A) if we don't torture our prisoners, then our soldiers WHO HAVE INFORMATION THEY CAN USE stand a better chance of not being tortured for information and B) if we don't torture/humiliate our prisoners FOR NO APPEARENT REASON, then our soldiers *survivability* while in captivity increases.

Finally, let me be clear. There are people that have "operational knowledge" about plans to kill our people, our allies, and ordinary civilians. For those few, I can't say I am against torture. But, there has to be "relevance." Gathering up a bunch of people in the hope that someone will know something is not what I am talking about. The existence of a specific plan has to be known. You have to be all but certain that the person you have has the information you need. Then, maybe, torture can get you the data you need to avert a catastrophe.

Is there anyone that believes that the prisoners in Gitmo or Iraq have this kind of information? If not, why are they being tortured?

I do not believe its all about inflicting pain on those prisoners. I only know that it isn't about gathering intelligence. I know that makes it wrong. I know It makes the actions taken in our name wrong. And, I know, it makes a mockery out of our so-called democratic institutions.

-------------------------

33% of High Schoolers

One out of every third teenager in high school believes the press has too much freedom.

Right.

Obviously, this is because the press today has leaked information vital to "the enemy." Or, maybe, it is because the press is relentless in it attacks on the administration. Could it be because the press caused the events of 9/11?

You know, after reading the article, I am just about ready to start a career as a high school teacher. I mean, just out of a sense of self preservation.

In case you were wondering, this is your wake-up call. 

Dear Senator Barbara Boxer,

The purpose of the Email is to respectfully request your support for,
and signature on, the Honorable John Conyer's letter requesting the
November Presidential election results not to be certified by the
Congress. Let me be clear, I do not believe this will change the
results of that election. However, I believe current circumstances
demand bold action.

First, it is becoming quite clear that there was election
fraud/intimidation in Ohio. Again, the point of this effort is not to
change who was elected. Rather, it is an effort to communicate to all
of those that were disenfranchised that the Democratic Party is their
voice. That we, as a Party, will stand in the path of those that
attempt to keep the citizens of this great country from exercising
their right to vote. Further, we will not allow this to happen again,
without a fight.

Second, and equally clear, the President and the other leaders of the
Republican Party are not interested in creating a by-partisan
relationship. The only thing they appear to be interested in is
ramming their Neo-conservative agenda through the Congress. That they
would attempt to remove the filibuster so Democrats could not use it
to the same end that they themselves used it during President Clinton's
terms is the most obvious example of their naked grab for
power. This must not stand and the Democrats must be the ones to stand
in their way. It is a fight worth losing.

Which begs the question: is this action worth the political capital it
will cost? I think the answer is the Democratic leadership cannot
afford not to fight. The Party is on the verge of becoming irrelevant
and needs to take a stand. An action that will demonstrate its value
to the people. If action is not taken soon, then who will be around to
vote for our candidates? Who will spend over four hours standing in
the rain to cast a vote that will not be counted?

Thank you, very much, for your consideration.

Respectfully,