tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85557152024-03-13T09:00:25.111-07:00Geoff's Two BitsRandom rants from one of those irritating know-it-alls! Read the rants, then put in your two cents!Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.comBlogger159125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-27377780600098600722019-07-16T22:17:00.000-07:002019-07-16T22:17:33.799-07:00Socialism vs. Freedom<br />
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<a href="https://video-images.vice.com/articles/5d2dd1843727dc000845f3aa/lede/1563283991973-AP_19196792387037.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="213" src="https://video-images.vice.com/articles/5d2dd1843727dc000845f3aa/lede/1563283991973-AP_19196792387037.jpeg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">8th Grade Civics</span></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">In case you've been under a rock for a couple of days, there's been a big brouhaha over Trump digging into his bag of evergreen racist tropes, and telling the 4 young freshmen congresswomen (all women of color) to "Go Back" to the countries they came from. No matter that 3 of them are native-born citizens, and the other a naturalized citizen since 2000. If you don't know Trump is a racist by now, go talk to someone else. I'm not here to break the news on that story.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">In one of those tortured explanations for why Trump is not a racist, House Minority Leader <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/republicans-defend-trump-racist-tweets-blame-socialism-1449520" target="_blank">Kevin McCarthy, a Republican, told reporters today</a>: "I believe this is about ideology. This is about socialism vs. freedom." Fortunately, there was someone not asleep at the wheel to call him out on this worse-than-sophomoric statement. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/453322-hoyer-slams-mccarthys-defense-of-trump-tweets-baloney" target="_blank">quickly shot back
"That's baloney. It has nothing to do with socialism,"</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">At first, I just thought this was just another case of someone who didn't pay attention during 8th grade civics class. We're all supposed to know that a term like Socialism belongs in the group of descriptions of economic systems, which are separate from governing systems which is where we talk about "freedom." Most of right-wing logic is usually that flawed and simplistic, but as I thought about it, it seemed like something more. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">In this age of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizens_United_v._FEC" target="_blank">Citizens United</a>, where corporations have the same rights as people, I think the "freedom" McCarthy may be thinking of is the freedom of capital, the freedom for money (or people with money) to do whatever it damn well pleases. In that way, the "Socialism vs. Freedom" thing actually makes a certain perverse sense. Trump and his class see democracy as a problem. It allows ordinary people to get in the way of capital. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">If I had to bet a dollar, I'd say it's a pretty safe bet that Trump is indeed a racist, for real. But, you could make a case that he's not, he's just so greedy and selfish, that he doesn't mind appealing to people's fears, and uses racism to achieve his goals. I'll leave that to others to figure out! </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Oh, and one more thing, I think it's kind of ironic that the one congresswoman (Omar) who wasn't born in the US is from Somalia, often referred to as a "Libertarian Paradise!" </span></span> Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-53825424404484467752018-09-27T19:12:00.000-07:002018-09-27T19:12:26.983-07:00Three Points for a No Vote on Kavanaugh<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Send Lawyers, Guns, and Money!</b></span><br />
There are plenty of sound policy reasons to oppose Brent Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court. He could easily end up being the nail in the coffin of Roe v. Wade. His view of Presidential power also is something to be wary of; he could be the swing vote on allowing a subpoena of Trump in a standoff. There are tons of ordinary reasons someone on the liberal spectrum like myself would oppose him. But, as they say, elections have consequences, and starting in 2010, we didn't get out the vote. So, there's a certain amount of 'we get what we deserve' in this if we can't get off the couch to vote.<br />
<b>But that's not what this song is about. <i>Think about these points:</i></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Judicial Temperament</b></span><br />
Right off the bat, Kavanaugh came out swinging, shouting, and abusing the Senators that dared to impugn his integrity. Just in a purely emotional sense, his unhinged behavior should disqualify him. <br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Partisanship</b></span><br />
Most judges have a pretty easily discernible political persuasion. But there is always at least the idea that a SCOTUS judge will be fair, and above the fray. Right out of the gate, in his opening statement (where you'd think one would place their most well-crafted ideas) he exposed his politics clearly:<br />
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"This whole two-week effort has been a calculated and orchestrated
political hit, fueled with apparent pent-up anger about President Trump
and the 2016 election, fear that has been unfairly stoked about my
judicial record. Revenge on behalf of the Clintons and millions of
dollars in money from outside left-wing opposition groups."</blockquote>
So, you'd have to assume a Judge Kavanaugh would be less likely to give a Democratic plaintiff a fair hearing. Big problem. And this is, not to mention, what basically sounds like one of those conspiracy theory aficionados!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>This is what White Privilege looks like</b></span><br />
You and I don't really know what the truth is, but here's what this smells like: Kavanaugh is from a privileged circle of humanity. People like that go through life, without having to pay for the consequences of their actions. After his performance today, it's easy to imagine him being the belligerent drunk that's been widely reported. There was plenty of room in his calendar to find himself and his cohort in a party house. He probably knows what he did, but thinks of it in a sort of dream-like way. It's the kind of thing he can just get away with. His whole attitude reeked of entitlement. How dare anyone try and take away the job he felt born into?<br />
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<br />Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-83069961599988716812017-08-05T12:53:00.000-07:002017-08-05T21:11:03.618-07:00Racist Robots on the Loose!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdSgOngpNGgjZZkhrbh-XMtm3mTnQgQvIozGClalxRA7uhKTXmnqAr2nr2vjyNPckkijXTPbnSXqHxoPhsMrOBhF9QPW7xm-_aooEAFjjmQDTydnvGOovPxzrIoy4UeC7AqyT2Lw/s1600/Terminator_robot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="483" data-original-width="576" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdSgOngpNGgjZZkhrbh-XMtm3mTnQgQvIozGClalxRA7uhKTXmnqAr2nr2vjyNPckkijXTPbnSXqHxoPhsMrOBhF9QPW7xm-_aooEAFjjmQDTydnvGOovPxzrIoy4UeC7AqyT2Lw/s200/Terminator_robot.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<b>The Face of the GOP</b><br />
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The GOP is acting quite logically, and is reacting to their fundamental disadvantage in the national electorate.<br />
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In order to maximize their chances in future national elections, here are some logical actions they are pursuing.<br />
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<b>Voter Suppression</b><br />
This has been going on for a while now. Already many states have been making voters jump through hoops to be able to vote. These regulations have clearly been aimed at the poor, elderly, and people of color.<br />
Now, Trump has created his <span georgia="" new="" quot="" roman="" serif="" times=""><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/03/opinion/trumps-voter-suppression-efforts.html" target="_blank">Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity</a>. Led by the notorious Kris Koback, this is a further push to slash voter rolls, and humor Trump about his fantasy that he would have won the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_election,_2016" target="_blank">Popular Vote </a>over Hillary Clinton, were it not for all the illegal immigrants who voted for her. It's worth 8 minutes of your life, if you haven't seen this already, to check out <a href="https://youtu.be/9JVGx-hvY9I" target="_blank">Samantha Bee's take on Kris Koback:</a></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEc-mzzOMxiK378XWdhY51qfBWP7YgpTbjO7hm-odifsETXp6Z2eQFhqdVWFtlvlMhAmPvG9aVSLITYt2fcN-ZtYXRyV2EtsqwCmKlDBr91qPBWMWvBDmUWCNEw3xDI6Jl1QYGA/s1600/stephen-miller-reporters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="882" data-original-width="1328" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqEc-mzzOMxiK378XWdhY51qfBWP7YgpTbjO7hm-odifsETXp6Z2eQFhqdVWFtlvlMhAmPvG9aVSLITYt2fcN-ZtYXRyV2EtsqwCmKlDBr91qPBWMWvBDmUWCNEw3xDI6Jl1QYGA/s200/stephen-miller-reporters.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div>
<span georgia="" new="" quot="" roman="" serif="" times=""><b>Immigration changes</b></span><br />
<span georgia="" new="" quot="" roman="" serif="" times=""><br /></span>
<span georgia="" new="" quot="" roman="" serif="" times="">Trump is pushing the new <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/354/text" target="_blank">Raise Act</a>, and Terminator Stephen Miller was sent into the briefing room to push it. Quite simply, another way to resist the browning of America, is to limit who gets to enter the country. Limit the amount of non-English speaking people immigrating into this country, along with stopping the ability of families to be reunited in the US, and you have another way to forestall the changes in America.</span><br />
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<span georgia="" new="" quot="" roman="" serif="" times="">Essentially, all I'm saying is that what we're seeing is logical, but that doesn't make it right. Cancer is logical too, but needs to be resisted.</span>Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-30342686513052939462017-07-27T12:09:00.001-07:002017-07-27T12:30:59.057-07:00Illegal TweetHere is what Trump tweeted:
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"After consultation with my Generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States Government will not accept or allow Transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military," Trump said in a series of tweets. "Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail."</blockquote>
Besides the shock of how cruel Trump is, and is probably just laying out more distractions to keep our attentions away from Russiagate, et. al., it occurrs to me it's also probably just illegal. What if his tweet went something like this:<br />
<blockquote>
"After consultation with my Generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States Government will not accept or allow African American individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military," Trump said in a series of tweets. "Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that African Americans in the military would entail."</blockquote>
It would not be difficult to say that perhaps it costs more to treat sickle cell anemia in the African American population. It has been estimated that the medical costs of transgender are not really that significant. Just because Trump is the Commander in Chief, that doesn't give him the right to break the law. We would not stand for him banning black Americans, why should we help him in throwing our transgender brothers and sisters under the bus?Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-38343452121190139102017-07-17T23:39:00.002-07:002017-07-18T08:40:31.942-07:00The Death of Empathy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjphjvvGzk-Gj5pQP7_3vROLUymkwuD5SEO6sDuzT8rfY_5tiTNiwDgiV1w1znhyphenhyphenmJlq6dv-YafEwcSy4AhhNVRFaAybAysUV1AfeQeOGFqTs-9IcX8KqO68RQohqYnVX90lnm1Zw/s1600/pogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img align="left" border="0" data-original-height="433" data-original-width="282" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjphjvvGzk-Gj5pQP7_3vROLUymkwuD5SEO6sDuzT8rfY_5tiTNiwDgiV1w1znhyphenhyphenmJlq6dv-YafEwcSy4AhhNVRFaAybAysUV1AfeQeOGFqTs-9IcX8KqO68RQohqYnVX90lnm1Zw/s400/pogo.jpg" width="260" /></a><b>The End of Reason, and Health Insurance</b><br />
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It's always dangerous to think one has an important idea, since we are all so capable of self-delusion. But I'm going to try to communicate what should be a simple idea, but seems to have so little oxygen in the post-factual era of Trumpland. <br />
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<b>Here's the deal:</b> The very idea of insurance has been corrupted. We have been played so deeply to buy into this American ideal of self-reliance, that we lose sight of caring about those less fortunate, less healthy, less wealthy than we are. The whole idea of the 'skinny policies' Ted Cruz wants insurance companies to be able to offer, is crazy. <a href="http://www.rollcall.com/news/policy/insurance-companies-say-cruz-amendment-unworkable" target="_blank">Even the health insurance companies, no angels, agree it's unworkable</a>.<br />
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For all its shortcomings, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patient_Protection_and_Affordable_Care_Act" target="_blank">The Affordable Care Act</a> (aka Obamacare) tried to at least define what a real insurance policy is, and tried to get rid of 'junk policies.' Because of this, right-wingers constantly accuse Obama of lying, for saying "You can keep your doctor." The implication was simply that "You can keep your doctor, if your health insurance is not a junk policy." By mandating that all policies have certain minimum standards of coverage, and that all must have insurance, and the rich will help subsidize those that can't afford it, we have made great strides in lowering the number of uninsured. But, this is such an evil thing?<br />
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So, let me try and finish off my basic point. We have been fooled into thinking insurance is just healthy people paying too much money for insurance, and those 'other people,' those freeloading sick people, are benefitting from the rest of us. But insurance is much simpler than that. We are the sick people, we are the genetically disadvantaged, we are the ones with preexisting conditions. We may be healthy now, but someday we will be those people 'cashing in' on the insurance we paid into earlier when we were healthy.<br />
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See? What I've just said is pretty obvious. So obvious, it shouldn't need to be said. But, in this 1984 world we've entered, logic is unavailable. <br />
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<b>"<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empathy" target="_blank">Empathy</a></b> is the capacity to understand or feel what another person is experiencing from within the other person's frame of reference, i.e., the capacity to place oneself in another's position."<br />
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It shouldn't be so hard to see, but in a logic-free world, we've been bamboozled into not caring about "another person's frame of reference," and have nothing to hold on to, save our own <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solipsism" target="_blank">solipsism</a>.
We are pawns in a game of divide and conquer. Please wake up. We need each other. We need to help each other.
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<br />Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-61630694936031809542016-12-18T23:46:00.000-08:002016-12-18T23:46:04.104-08:00The Accidental President<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://inthesetimes.com/images/articles/trump_flicker_face_yess.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://inthesetimes.com/images/articles/trump_flicker_face_yess.jpg" width="200" /></a><b>What the hell happened anyway!</b></div>
A day or two after the election, we were still in shock, driving home on Alemany, near the farmers market. There was a guy on the median with a cardboard sign asking for money. Now, I'm one of those people that doesn't give money to panhandlers, I'm not even sure why, and I actually kind of admire people who do, but that's not what we're here to talk about. We're here to talk about the election. So, then this guy started yelling at me, telling me I'd give $5 to the panhandler across the street, who was working the traffic in the other direction. I said no, I wouldn't give him any money either. He then said yes I would, because the other panhandler was white, and they guy I was talking to was black. Mind you, this is all happening in just a few seconds, while waiting for the traffic light. As I started to realize what what going on here, the shock was setting in. I argued with the guy that it didn't make any difference to me, but he wasn't having any of it. Now maybe I'm making too much of this; it could just be that this was this guy's shtick to get some more money. I have no idea. But what I felt like at that moment was that the horrible election results were tearing us apart. Here in liberal San Francisco, we were coming apart, not together.<br />
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<b>The Blame Game</b></div>
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So it seems like everyone has a theory about what happened. I think it's way too simplistic. There's a phrase "The straw that broke the camel's back." The problem I have with that is it's so unscientific. When the camel's back breaks, it's from the combined effect of ALL the straws, not any one straw. In fact, considering the fact that Hillary Clinton won at least 2.9 million more votes than Trump, I'd say the cliché that's most appropriate would be "knocked me over with a feather" instead. The margin was so thin. It's actually more akin to one of those chaos theory clichés about butterflies and tornadoes. In short, a strange assortment of factors, and blind luck have put one of the most dangerous candidates into the most powerful office in the world. <b>Donald Trump, Accidental President!</b></div>
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<i>In no particular order, here are a few of the 'feathers' that knocked us over:</i></div>
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<b>Racism/Sexism</b></div>
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This is more like an undercurrent than an actual event. Trump gave people the permission to let their Ugly American freak flag fly. Enough white women stayed in their abusive relationships with the GOP to provide the margin. But wait, don't stop there. Muslim-bashing has its benefits too, not to mention the initial scapegoats: Mexicans. I wrote about <a href="http://ggould.blogspot.com/2008/08/bradley-effect.html" target="_blank">The Bradley Effect</a> 8 years ago, and I think the polling was just off enough due to people not admitting they were for Trump. The polling led to a certain amount of overconfidence. I mean, there's no way someone as ridiculous as Trump could be elected President, right?</div>
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<b>The FBI</b></div>
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Unbelievable. Caving in to rogue agents inside the FBI and other GOP agents, FBI Director Comey released a non-statement 11 days before the election, in defiance of long-standing policy, as well as laws that forbid members of the government from messing with elections that close to the date, that maybe, just maybe, there might be some new emails to look at. Many think this might be the biggest factor, but it's hard to say.</div>
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<b>The Media</b></div>
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Yes, we can certainly count #FoxNews as a factor, but that's not news. They always take the most hair-brained side, if it's against the Dems. But the other media sites, even including #MSNBC (I watch too much) were suckered into giving Trump billion$ in free press. Any time he happened to give one of his free-association word salad stump speeches, the networks ate it up, like it was real news. Trump even started bragging about all the free press he was getting, even while vilifying the media at every rally. Click on this graph of news coverage (so you can see the detail) , from <a href="http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2016/12/nothing-to-see-here-folks-trump-vs.html" target="_blank">digby's blog</a>:</div>
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The media was mesmerized by the whole reality TV show that was Donald Trump. Before anyone could spend enough time to really dig into the most recent gaffe/scandal/outrage, Trump would hit us with another gaffe/scandal/outrage. This had the effect of constantly distracting the media from anything deep, with the latest superficial outrage. Even now, after the election, Trump misdirects by talking about burning American flags, to keep us from focusing on the cabal at Trump Tower.</div>
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<b>The Russians</b></div>
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In the time I have been working on this blog, more and more has come out about the Russians trying to hack the election. This is potentially the most shocking story, but hard to prove the exact amount of effects. What seems clear is that Putin wanted to help Trump, and hurt Clinton. The Intelligence community tried to tell us this earlier. On Oct. 7, the Department of Homeland Security and Office of the Director of National Intelligence <a href="http://www.dhs.gov/news/2016/10/07/joint-statement-department-homeland-security-and-office-director-national">i</a><a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2016/10/07/joint-statement-department-homeland-security-and-office-director-national">ssued a joint statement</a> on behalf of the U.S. Intelligence Community. The USIC is <a href="https://www.dni.gov/index.php/intelligence-community/members-of-the-ic">made up of 16 agencies</a>, in addition to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. But, October 7th was the same date of the release of the infamous Hollywood Access tapes. What do you think American TV viewers would rather focus on? Russian cyberhacking, or Trump admitting to sexual assault, in graphic, crude language? The short attention span wins again. </div>
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<b>Fake News</b></div>
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Something that has increasingly come to light since the election was the effect of fake news. Most of the fake news stories (and by fake, we mean the entire story is fake!) were aimed at Trump supporters. This was mainly because they were more gullible, not necessarily that the people creating the fakes cared about Trump. <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/fake-news-how-partying-macedonian-teen-earns-thousands-publishing-lies-n692451" target="_blank">Many of the videos came from a small town in Macedonia</a>. Mixed in with this random fakery were <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/russian-propaganda-effort-helped-spread-fake-news-during-election-experts-say/2016/11/24/793903b6-8a40-4ca9-b712-716af66098fe_story.html?utm_term=.ff4c591f4c9f" target="_blank">fake news stories promulgated by the Russians</a> to sew more discord.</div>
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<b>Voter Suppression</b></div>
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This is probably one of the biggest reasons, but is not getting the press most of the other reasons get. There has been news about the states' efforts to restrict voting rights since the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/26/us/supreme-court-ruling.html" target="_blank">Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act</a> a few years ago. What is less reported is the use of the <a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/the-gops-stealth-war-against-voters-w435890" target="_blank">Interstate Voter Registration Crosscheck Program</a>, where a database of voting names is shared between states. You say your name is James Brown? Well, it looks like James Brown already voted in Virginia! We're going to throw your name out so you can't vote at all. This system threw massive amounts of minority voters off the rolls, even though that kind of voter fraud has been shown again and again to be almost non-existent. We're talking large enough numbers to change the outcome of states like Wisconsin, for example.</div>
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<b>So...</b></div>
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These are just a few of the reasons, none of which have anything to do with the issues, or what's important to the American middle class. I'd really like to have your comments on this. Vote for your most important factor, or mention some obvious ones I missed. In the meantime, God help us all for the next 4 years!</div>
Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-75878199141500344292016-03-19T23:43:00.002-07:002016-03-19T23:46:17.901-07:00To Trump or Not to Trump?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>What is Reality?</b><br />
I can't really figure this one out. It looks like Trump has stumbled into some kind of fascist wet dream. He loves playing the Mussolini strong man role, even if he has no idea on how to run the country if it is indeed handed to him. Many people are taking it quite seriously, He shows up to 'rallies' where he overbooks the capacity of the venue and gives the illusion of huge demand. Protesters try and disrupt him, but does it have any effect?<br />
<br />
<b>Questions:</b><br />
<i>So, what I want to know is:</i><br />
<ol>
<li><b>Does Trump really want the job of President?</b> Perhaps it's just a big joke, and after he destroys the GOP, he goes back to being Trump.</li>
<li><b>Are the protesters real? </b> Sometimes I wonder if they're just role players, pumping up Trump's ego.</li>
<li><b>Should protestors disrupt Trump events? </b> Are they playing into Trump's hands? How does it really help?</li>
<li><b>Is this truly the American Fascist Apocalypse? </b> If so, it's hard to fault anyone for trying to disrupt his march to power. Should the German people have tried harder to stop Hitler in the beginning?</li>
</ol>
Seriously folks. What the hell is going on? Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-11038369706473073362015-07-05T17:34:00.001-07:002015-07-05T21:54:02.370-07:00Grateful Dead 7/5/15<div><br></div>Set 1<div>China Cat Sunflower>I Know You Rider</div><div>Estimated Prophet </div><div>Built to Last </div><div>Samson and Delilah</div><div>Mountains of the Moon </div><div>Throwing Stones </div><div><br></div><div>Set 2</div><div>Truckin'</div><div>>Cassidy</div><div>Althea</div><div>Terrapin Station </div><div>>Drums>Beam>Space</div><div>>Unbroken Chain </div><div>Days Between </div><div>>Not Fade Away</div><div>(everyone but the drummers leave. Crowd chants)</div><div>(Crowd continues chant)</div><div><br></div><div>Donor Rap</div><div>Encore</div><div>Touch of Grey</div><div><br></div><div>Encore 2</div><div>Attics of My Life (a capella, except Bob acoustic, some drums, piano, organ)</div>Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-73152823594594950172015-07-04T16:58:00.002-07:002015-07-04T22:00:21.664-07:00Grateful Dead 7/4/15Set 1 (5:35)<br>
Shakedown Street <div>Liberty </div><div>Standing on the Moon</div><div>Me and My Uncle </div><div>Tennessee Jed</div><div>Cumberland Blues </div><div>Little Red Rooster </div><div>Friend of the Devil </div><div>>Deal</div><div>6:58</div><div>Set 2 8:00</div><div>Bird Song</div><div>Golden Road to Unlimited Devotion </div><div>Lost Sailor>Saint of Circumstance</div><div>West LA Fadeaway </div><div>Foolish Heart</div><div>>Drums>Space</div><div>>Stella Blue</div><div>One More Saturday Night </div><div>9:44</div><div>Donor Rap</div><div>Encore: </div><div>U.S. Blues</div><div>(fireworks)</div><div><br></div>Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-58895925684442250522015-07-03T17:42:00.001-07:002015-07-03T21:57:18.456-07:00Grateful Dead 7/3/15<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Set 1</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">Box of Rain</span><br />
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Jack Straw</div>
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Bertha</div>
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Passenger</div>
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The Wheel></div>
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Crazy Fingers </div>
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The Music Never Stopped <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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Set 2</div>
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Mason's Children</div>
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Scarlet Begonias </div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">>Fire on the Mountain</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">>Drums>Space </span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">>New Potato Caboose </span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Playing in the Band </span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">>Weather Report Suite Pt 2</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">>Help on the Way>Slipknot>Franklin's Tower</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Donor Rap</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Encore:</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Ripple (Bob on acoustic)</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br /></span></div>
Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-65870143196475521342015-06-28T14:54:00.002-07:002015-06-29T00:55:05.802-07:00Grateful Dead 6.28.15Set 1 6:23<br />
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Feel Like a Stranger </div>
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New New Minglewood Blues</div>
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Brown Eyed Women </div>
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Loose Lucy<br />
Loser</div>
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Row Jimmy</div>
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Alabama Getaway</div>
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Black Peter</div>
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Hell in a Bucket (<i>ends 7:52)</i></div>
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Set 2 (starts 8:53)</div>
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Mississippi Half Step Uptown Toodeloo</div>
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>jam>Wharf Rat</div>
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>jam>short beam space >Eyes of the World</div>
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>He's Gone </div>
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Drumz (guest percussionist)</div>
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>I Need a Miracle </div>
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>Death Don't Have No Mercy </div>
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Sugar Magnolia>Sunshine Daydream </div>
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<i>(Ends 10:35)</i></div>
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Donor rap</div>
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Moment of silence</div>
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Encore:</div>
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Brokedown Palace</div>
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<br /></div>
Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-79303337080432211112015-06-27T19:06:00.001-07:002015-06-28T12:01:55.041-07:00Grateful Dead 6.27.15<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
Set 1</div>
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7:33 start</div>
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Jam>Truckin'</div>
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Uncle John's Band </div>
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Alligator>Cumberland Blues </div>
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Born Cross-Eyed</div>
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Cream Puff War </div>
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Viola Lee Blues>Lovelight tease>end of set 8:39</div>
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Set 2 9:40</div>
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Cryptically Envelopment>Dark Star tease/fireworks>Dark Star</div>
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>St Stephen>The Eleven (William Tell)</div>
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>Turn On Your Love Light </div>
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>Drumz>space>What's Become of the Baby?</div>
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>The Other One </div>
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>Morning Dew</div>
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Organ donor rap</div>
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Encore 11:54</div>
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Casey Jones</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by David Fung</td></tr>
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Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-57170672956134940412015-05-09T22:07:00.000-07:002015-05-09T22:11:11.879-07:00Canary in a Coal Mine<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/150429000907-baltimore-riots-curfew-exlarge-169.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/150429000907-baltimore-riots-curfew-exlarge-169.jpg" height="178" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Police enforcing Baltimore curfew</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Explanations, not Excuses</b><br />
<br />
I started writing this almost two weeks ago, and things have moved swiftly since then. What was first on my mind was trying to talk about the looting and violence that followed the funeral of Freddie Gray, the young man who died after having his spinal chord 80% severed, and enduring what was euphemistically called the "rough ride" inside a police van.<br />
<br />
What followed was classic looting and burning. The local CVS was looted and heavily damaged, which seemed to be the most common example we saw on TV. For sure there were lots of young black men seen involved in the mayhem. Immediately, both President Obama and the mayor of Baltimore, Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (a black woman) characterized the looters as "thugs." I think at that moment, it was obvious they were trying to make a point, trying to separate the law breakers from all the other citizens of Baltimore.<br />
<br />
Predictably, the situation deteriorated into a back and forth about the word "thug." Before you could say 'Tupac,' one group was accusing anyone of using the word "thug" of racism. Of course there were lots of examples of white college kids burning things down, white soccer 'hooligans' burning and rioting, and so on. All true of course, but that doesn't excuse the behavior, of the kids in Baltimore, from the colleges, or the soccer games.<br />
<br />
On one side of the discussion is a plea for 'personal responsibility.' On the other side stands the stark reality of a hollowed out inner city full of lost promises, where nobody should be blamed for their behavior.<br />
<br />
Nothing happens in a vacuum. To keep it simple, what I think the looters are, since I can't call them thugs, is weak. None of us are perfectly strong under any amount of stress; I know I'm not. When we see rioting like that, we aren't seeing good citizens, but we are seeing signs of social/environmental stress. No, you shouldn't trash a store. But these things are not happening because the kids are inherently bad either. The seeds of trouble in Baltimore have been growing and taking root for a long time. Just like a canary in a coal mine, these troubles are a sign of something bigger, more serious.<br />
<br />
You can't solve a problem if you won't see the cause.Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-71992302044155327882014-06-09T22:45:00.000-07:002014-06-09T22:45:09.239-07:00Thought ExperimentA <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thought_experiment" target="_blank">Thought Experiment </a>is a method for testing an idea. The common goal of a thought experiment is to explore the potential consequences of the principle in question. One of the most famous thought experiments is Schrödinger's cat, which is briefly seen in the short video below:<br />
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<object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/d1tn56vWU_g/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/d1tn56vWU_g&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/d1tn56vWU_g&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>
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Now, for those fans of the <a href="http://youtu.be/LFBrRKnJMq4" target="_blank">Big Bang Theory, you've probably already seen some humorous explanation</a>. But the point I'm making is that thinking through the consequences of an idea is a an accepted mode of inquiry. What I'm asking you to do is think about the Open Carry movement in this way.<br />
<br />
So, look at the picture below. What do you see? Perhaps you see people exercising their constitutional rights. Perhaps you see people with unhealthy fetishes with weapons. Do you see potential terrorists? <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim3PititcNNd9X86DXjW4AloOuL_UzqXu1lVo1S77FnLzKtSpdYWekcfXCfcCd5RUtzrdDMcMsLRFT7ygV8dhB-daRFL5yEfsf1CvHDHygJUS-PHf_SVfNxFKY_3uYtCovwBR6OQ/s1600/pb-120612-gun-protest-jm-0.photoblog900.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim3PititcNNd9X86DXjW4AloOuL_UzqXu1lVo1S77FnLzKtSpdYWekcfXCfcCd5RUtzrdDMcMsLRFT7ygV8dhB-daRFL5yEfsf1CvHDHygJUS-PHf_SVfNxFKY_3uYtCovwBR6OQ/s1600/pb-120612-gun-protest-jm-0.photoblog900.jpg" height="230" width="320" /></a></div>
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Now, look at the picture below:<br />
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<a href="http://patdollard.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/new-black-panthers-600x350.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://patdollard.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/new-black-panthers-600x350.png" height="186" width="320" /></a></div>
What do you see? Perhaps you see people exercising their constitutional
rights. Perhaps you see people with unhealthy fetishes with weapons.
Do you see potential terrorists?<br />
<br />
I think you can see where I'm going with this experiment. We could go on, substitute Muslims for the Open Carry folk, Latinos, and so on.<br />
<br />
So, this last weekend, a white married couple murdered two police officers in Las Vegas, then covered the officers' bodies with a "Don't Tread on Me" flag. Where is the uproar about domestic terrorists? I went to FoxNews.com to look for the story, and it was hard to find. Now, go back to your thought experiment machine, and imagine 2 Muslims killing 2 policemen, and an innocent bystander, while proclaiming the upcoming revolution. How do you think FoxNews would treat this story?Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-28329244230604408742012-12-15T23:28:00.002-08:002012-12-15T23:28:42.700-08:00Obama is not the messiah<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2012/12/14/516014180_14540517-78c7319d78644a0cc7be26fdf951b05f128523e2-s51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2012/12/14/516014180_14540517-78c7319d78644a0cc7be26fdf951b05f128523e2-s51.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>"Meaningful Action"</b></span><br />
<br />
In the wake of the <a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/12/15/167344805/sandy-hook-elementary-victims-names-released" target="_blank">Sandy Hook shootings</a>, I feel compelled to say something, but I'm not really clever enough to propose any solution. <br />
<br />
I do however feel very frustrated at the <a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sophomoric" target="_blank">sophomoric</a> nature of the discourse flooding facebook and twitter, or any online forum. The trolls are out in force, and almost everyone is yelling at each other, without listening.<br />
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<a href="https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/182343_479783868727156_522594419_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="146" src="https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/182343_479783868727156_522594419_n.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
First, the pro-gun side: I've read endless variations on the "guns don't kill people, people kill people" meme. Yes, it's kind of true, and pretty darn useless too. One poster lists all the other things besides guns that kill people, one of them being cars. It apparently didn't dawn on him that it's harder to legally get a driver's license, car, and the alcohol necessary to become a menace to society than it is to buy a gun. In a strange bit of coincidental weirdness, I just read <a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2012/12/2012121481220620325.html" target="_blank">an article on Al-Jazeera about another attack on school children in China</a> the same day, by a knife-wielding assailant. Just as terrible a target, but the difference is nobody was killed. It's pretty simple algebra: The Connecticut attack, minus the China attack, equals guns.<br />
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I'm not going to engage in false equivalencies here, I don't really believe the gun-control side is as clueless as the NRA-fed folk, but I'm distressed at some of the energy directed at President Obama, as if he could just do something about it if he really cared.<br />
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First, let me cop to being a full-fledged <a href="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Obamapologist" target="_blank">Obamapologist</a>. I love the guy, and am continually impressed with him whenever I get to hear him. I don't think he's perfect, but I do think <a href="http://whattheheckhasobamadonesofar.com/" target="_blank">he's done a great deal of good</a>. But I fear we are headed down the same path taken after the glorious euphoria of the 2008 election.<br />
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People were so happy Obama was elected, it was as if history would forever be changed, and utopia was right around the corner. People went to sleep, thinking the battle was over, and were even disappointed when Obama couldn't single-handedly deliver single payer health care. That led to the disastrous GOP 2010 takeover of Congress and many statehouses and governorships. Because this happened in 2010, a census year, congressional districts were heavily gerrymandered to favor the GOP. Even though a majority of people voted Democratic in the 2012 Congressional races, the House remains under GOP control.<br />
<br />
Obama is <i>only</i> the President. Check your copy of the <a href="http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution.html" target="_blank">Constitution</a> for what that really means. Right now, it doesn't mean as much as it could. Yes, the most important thing a President does is nominate Supreme Court justices, but the President cannot enact legislation or raise or lower taxes. He can sign or veto bills that deal with those topics, but he doesn't get to make them. <br />
<br />
Getting back to gun control, there have been <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/14/white-house-vigil-gun-control_n_2304278.html" target="_blank">protestors outside the White House this weekend</a>, directing their energies at Obama. Yes, he can certainly use the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bully_pulpit" target="_blank">bully pulpit</a> of the President to drag the country into a debate, but are we ready for that? I think many liberals are unwilling to do the heavy lifting necessary here. The US already has 300 million guns, and even if gun sales stopped tomorrow (I'm not suggesting that!) we could go another 100 years with enough firepower to power many more massacres. I'm confident President Obama would sign any reasonable bill like a new assault weapons ban, or controls on the huge ammo clips that help make such mass carnage attainable. The real fight is huge. The NRA has enough legislators in both parties on their payroll. The gun culture is huge, and will not be reversed with a stroke of a pen. The real fight is against the John Boehner's of the world. <br />
<br />
Perhaps this most horrific of tragedies will actually get people <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keep_Talking" target="_blank">talking</a> <i><b>to</b></i> each other instead of <i><b>at</b></i> each other.<br />
<br />
What do you think?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/6e/Pink_Floyd_-_Division_Bell.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/6e/Pink_Floyd_-_Division_Bell.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-3108946729427226402012-07-07T16:45:00.001-07:002012-07-07T16:46:24.438-07:00The Citizens United Tax<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Mitt-Romney1-e1334258751834.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="176" src="http://thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Mitt-Romney1-e1334258751834.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">President Romney?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Pay Your Taxes!</span></b><br />
<br />
I'm going to keep this as short as possible, but I've been thinking about it for a while, and need to see if I'm making any sense.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://ggould.blogspot.com/2012/04/have-machines-achieved-sentience.html" target="_blank">My last post</a> was about the Citizens United decision, and I'm sure everyone that reads this already knows what it is, and probably doesn't like it, or think it's fair.<br />
<br />
I'm glad to hear <a href="http://www.sfgate.com/opinion/editorials/article/California-s-push-back-against-Citizens-United-3689661.php" target="_blank">California has joined the fight against Citizens United</a>, but for now, it is the law of the land. Period.<br />
<br />
So, here's the deal: What Citizens United functionally means is that we have to pay extra to get government to do what we want.<br />
<br />
<b>It's not the way it <i>should</i> be, it's the way it is. </b><br />
<br />
Corporations recognize this, and they are paying their voluntary 'tax' with a vengeance. It's much easier for them than for ordinary citizens, er I mean people, or I guess I mean carbon-based <i>homo sapiens</i> life forms, to pay these 'taxes.' And guess what? Corporations are happy to pay their fair share, especially if you and I don't.<br />
<br />
I think ordinary people need to pony up and send money in to defeat the corporate <span id="goog_44254426"></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_PACs#Super_PACs">Super-PACs<span id="goog_44254427"></span></a>, which we can do, even if we can't match their level of spending. Sometimes, I can only drop in $3, sometimes more.<br />
<a href="http://images.politico.com/global/2012/02/120217_irish_obama_605.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="108" src="http://images.politico.com/global/2012/02/120217_irish_obama_605.jpg" width="200" /></a>I even spent $30 on an Obama t-shirt for St. Patrick's Day! I'm sure it would have been better to just give them the $30, instead of extorting a cool super-large shirt out of them, but I hope they got some money out of the deal!<br />
<br />
I think besides Obama, we need to help the overall races to take back the House, and protect the Senate, as well as individual races. I think it will be a major victory if we can get Elizabeth Warren elected to the Senate, ousting beefcake GOP tool Scott Brown.<br />
<br />
If we just sit back and whine about how we've lost our democracy, then we can all sit back and whine about losing our democracy.<br />
<br />
What say ye?<br />
<br />
Helpful links:<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.barackobama.com/" target="_blank">Obama 2012</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.dccc.org/" target="_blank">Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee </a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.dscc.org/" target="_blank">Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee</a>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://elizabethwarren.com/" target="_blank">Elizabeth Warren Senate Campaign</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
What races do you think are important?<br />
<br />
<br />Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-83637942275386235462012-04-14T18:14:00.005-07:002012-04-15T23:20:15.458-07:00Have the machines achieved sentience already?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4"><tbody>
<tr> <td width="36%"><a href="http://chasness.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/skynet-terminator.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="134" src="http://chasness.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/skynet-terminator.jpg" width="238" /></a><span class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></span></td> <td width="64%"><a href="http://static8.businessinsider.com/image/4d54b87b4bd7c869331b0000/karl-rove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img align="middle" border="0" height="143" src="http://static8.businessinsider.com/image/4d54b87b4bd7c869331b0000/karl-rove.jpg" width="192" /> </a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Watching the current situation in politics in the post-Citizen's United world, it seems indeed like the machines have taken over. The question seems to be, "when did it happen?"<br />
<br />
In the movie Terminator 2, we see that the machines became 'self-aware' (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sentience#Science_fiction">sentient</a>) at a certain point, and then proceeded to attack humans. In the past (our present day) the presence of a remnant of a future robot is linked to the problem, and the focus is on eliminating it to save the future. Even though I'm a big Star Trek fan, I'm not going to discuss time travel plot lines and weaknesses. It just makes me wonder where the tipping point was, and whether or not it's already too late to tip it back.<br />
<br />
It's not easy to point to one specific action that led to our current state. I'm just going to ask a few questions, and hope you'll join the conversation. Where do you agree? What do you think we can do about it? Is it too late?<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizens_United_v._Federal_Election_Commission">Citizen's United Case</a></b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq"><i>Argued March 24, 2009; Reargued September 9, 2009; Decided January 21, 2010</i> <br />
This is a good place to start. This is the decision that gave corporations (the machines) the same free speech rights as people. Money is considered a form of speech, and for some reason, corporations are now allowed to spend unlimited amounts of money on political campaigns, and they don't even have to disclose who's supplying the money!</blockquote><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bush_v._Gore">Bush v. Gore</a> (2000) </b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">Even though Al Gore won the election, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States">Supreme Court</a> stopped the vote count in Florida, thereby selecting Bush as the president. During the reign of George II, he was able to appoint Justices <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Roberts">Roberts</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Alito">Alito</a>, two extremists, which kept the balance of the court tilted to the right.</blockquote><b>The Nomination of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_Thomas">Clarence Thomas</a> (1991)</b><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">George H. W. Bush was disappointed in his nomination of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Souter">David Souter</a>, who did not turn out to be as conservative as hoped. For Bush's 2nd appointment, he hit a conservative home run with Thomas. Thomas has been an embarrassment as a justice, never recusing himself for many conflicts of interest.</blockquote><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Clara_County_v._Southern_Pacific_Railroad">Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad</a> (1886)</b><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Bancroft_Davis.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Bancroft_Davis.gif" width="125" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bancroft Davis</td></tr>
</tbody></table>This is perhaps the seed of the whole 'corporate personhood' problem. The idea that corporations were persons, and entitled to equal protection under the 14th Amendment was actually written by the court reporter, former president of the Newburgh and New York Railway Company, J.C. Bancroft Davis, in what is called a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Clara_County_v._Southern_Pacific_Railroad#The_headnote">'headnote' to the decision</a>. Even though the justices in the decision didn't write this, it has stood as a settled concept, and is the direct forefather of Citizens United. I had heard about this decision from <a href="http://www.thomhartmann.com/">Thom Hartmann</a>, who I believe is an incredible resource of facts and history, and I wish I could hear him more often on the radio.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>How this works</b><br />
So, the machines to me are these <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_action_committee#Super_PACs">Super PAC</a>s, who spend unlimited amounts of money to brainwash the populace into accepting the rule of the machines. We see the Tea Party already, doing the machine's bidding, even though most of the people who see themselves as Tea Party members are doing so against their own self-interest. The Super PACs have no compunction about truth, they exist to carpet bomb the electorate with disinformation. It is a self-perpetuating system.<br />
<br />
Is it too late?<br />
Will it simply run its course, only to be ignored?<br />
If so, will that happen in time?<br />
<br />
Please, let me know what you think about this.Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-3450113066117619662012-02-11T13:50:00.000-08:002012-02-11T13:50:01.907-08:00Render Unto Caesar, Take 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.romanemperors.com/julius-caesar-coin-1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.romanemperors.com/julius-caesar-coin-1a.jpg" width="194" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: large;">Coin of the Realm</span></b><br />
<br />
Almost a decade ago, I gave a<a href="http://ggould.blogspot.com/2002/10/render-unto-caesar.html"> talk at church that got me into a lot of trouble</a>. But, as time has passed, I have to say I have never found any reason to change my views on the intersection between religion and public life. <br />
<br />
The basic idea was found in a famous phrase Jesus is said to have made:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">"Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's."</blockquote>This spoke to me as a call to appropriateness, that one has to operate in the sphere that makes sense. It is often said that the freedom to swing one's arm ends at someone else's nose. Unfortunately, too many times, people's noses are bloodied due to religious disagreements. Even in a country like the U. S., founded by people trying to escape the state religion of England, we cannot seem to escape our own home-grown Taliban trying to tell us what to do. <br />
<br />
Cue up FauxNews, and let's all get outraged that an institution such as a Catholic Hospital or University would have to follow the law of the land when getting government subsidies for health care plans. In every other business, women's contraception is included in basic health insurance, but for some reason, all these people are screaming "1st Amendment!" and decrying Obama for trampling on their religious freedom.<br />
<br />
I think everyone is aware of the 1st amendment, but most of us probably aren't aware of how short it is:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."</blockquote>So, all these right-wingers are screaming "freedom of religion," but as far as I can see it, it's pretty twisted. There's only two ways the 1st Amendment deals with religion. First, the government is prohibited from creating or supporting any religion. Second, the government is not to get in the way of a "free exercise" of religion. So, apparently these days, "free exercise" means you get to impose your religious beliefs and practices on others. Really, it's that simple. <br />
<br />
There is no reason women should continue to be treated this way in this day and age. The right to swing your arm (from a religious freedom point of view) ends where it discriminates against the health concerns of women. I saw something funny on the <a href="http://ed.msnbc.msn.com/">Ed Show</a> the other night. Ed can be pretty ham-fisted at times, but this was pretty funny. He acted as if he had just been handed a major breaking news item. I don't have the exact quote, but it was something like:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">"We have breaking news, it's 2012!"</blockquote>Really, are we fighting about contraception in 2012?<br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Breaking News! (Really! I'm not kidding)</span></b><br />
<br />
This story had moved so fast, that the speed of my blogging is no match for what has been happening. It appears as though Obama has made another brilliant chess move. He worked out a deal where religious institutions won't have to pay for the contraception, the insurance companies will cover it. The Catholic hospitals are happy, the women's health groups are happy, leaving only the ayatollahs on the right unhappy, and the insurance companies mildly grumbly about how this sets a precedent. They won't grumble too loud, as they know it's cheaper to provide for contraception than unwanted pregnancies.<br />
<br />
This won't end here; nothing Obama does is ever going to agree with 30% - 40% of the electorate. But I'm glad to know that our president is standing up for women. I think many of us were just expecting him to cave on this. Things are getting interesting.Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-69633230262518901692011-08-13T22:57:00.000-07:002011-08-13T23:03:36.817-07:00How Lazy Are Liberals?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://conhomeusa.typepad.com/.a/6a0133f4f7f710970b015390ac0726970b-pi" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="83" src="http://conhomeusa.typepad.com/.a/6a0133f4f7f710970b015390ac0726970b-pi" width="400" /></a></div>Last week, a flood of outside money blunted what could have been a historic exercise of democracy in Wisconsin. As it was, two GOP state senators were recalled, and that's a good thing. But we needed to get three to block the wholesale assault on worker rights that's going on there.<br />
<br />
So, time to give up and go home? Whine about how we'll never be able to beat the billionaires?<br />
<br />
Today, Texas governor Rick Perry announced his candidacy for President, and it was like déjà vu, all over again. Here was a smarmy Texas governor, spouting obvious platitudes and lies, knowing his billionaire backers would be running interference for him. Here's a direct quote from his speech today:<br />
<blockquote><i>"We cannot afford four more years of this rudderless leadership. Last week, that leadership failed, and the tax and spend and borrow agenda of this President led to the first ever downgrade of the credit rating of the United States of America."</i></blockquote>Now for those of you not scoring at home, the recent credit downgrade of the US Treasury from AAA to AA+ came from Standard and Poor's, who explicitly laid blame for the downgrade on the GOP, which <a href="http://www.standardandpoors.com/servlet/BlobServer?blobheadername3=MDT-Type&blobcol=urldata&blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobheadervalue2=inline%3B+filename%3DUS_Downgraded_AA%2B.pdf&blobheadername2=Content-Disposition&blobheadervalue1=application%2Fpdf&blobkey=id&blobheadername1=content-type&blobwhere=1243942957443&blobheadervalue3=UTF-8">can be read in their report</a> [from page 4]:<br />
<blockquote><i>"Compared with previous projections, our revised base case scenario now assumes that the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, due to expire by the end of 2012, remain in place. We have changed our assumption on this because the majority of Republicans in Congress continue to resist any measure that would raise revenues, a position we believe Congress reinforced by passing the act."</i></blockquote>I am not here to talk about the deficit, very few people are being honest about it anyway. I only bring up this example of a hired hand (Perry) willing to lie, knowing vast amounts of cash and power will protect him. In this post-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizens_United_v._Federal_Election_Commission">Citizens United</a> era, I guess it's game over, right? We should all just give up?<br />
<br />
In case you hadn't noticed yet, the conservatives never give up. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koch_brothers">The Koch Brothers, and their father before them</a> have been supporting right wing causes for decades. I believe the election of Barack Obama was a great event, but it also created the illusion that the battle was over. Obama had the ruby slippers, and all he needed to do was click them, and we'd all go home and be happy.<br />
<br />
But, then came the 2010 elections. When Obama didn't give us the magic flying sparkle pony that farts glitter, we got bored. We didn't show up to vote, and the teabaggers took over Congress. Things were bad enough with the GOP minority in the Senate able to filibuster any meaningful legislation, now there would be none to block!<br />
<br />
So, let's wrap this up. I think nothing is more important than the re-election of Obama, and the defeat of the teabaggers, and the hopeful return of Congress. So, the question is, is the game already over? Is it too late? Will the propaganda machine win?<br />
<br />
I don't think it has to end that way.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.craftycrafty.tv/ruby_slippers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://www.craftycrafty.tv/ruby_slippers.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-69436028927840008542011-07-08T15:04:00.000-07:002011-07-08T15:04:14.436-07:00Treason Enough?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/hash/5f/45/Michele%20Bachmann_14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/hash/5f/45/Michele%20Bachmann_14.jpg" /></a></div>I know it's a harsh word, and perhaps a little too charged, but <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treason">what is treason</a> anyway?<br />
<br />
Today, when the disappointing unemployment numbers came out, <a href="http://www.examiner.com/political-buzz-in-national/michele-bachmann-says-she-hopes-bad-jobs-report-helps-her-candidacy-video">an interviewer asked of Michele Bachmann</a>: “Does it strike you that as unemployment goes up, your chances of winning office also go up?” Bachmann responded by saying: “Well that could be. Again, I hope so.”<br />
<br />
Perhaps treason is not the most accurate term for her acknowledgement that a bad economy will help her defeat Obama is 2012. Disloyal? Unpatriotic? What do you think this means?Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-77878661550276252152011-06-30T22:42:00.000-07:002011-06-30T22:48:49.990-07:00Shared Sacrifice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhcJeMCjlyi32xGk2PZ0nTAF5IBcgML5GYllqk77-3NLqoLZ95ZfRrZ_KYlj2CW_tls4hrvl56fusaW2dKKbV9SSaJwhHCYYO0R8HJ0NfibVkuaE8z3F6q0LGUGA_TUhb9_8N5Q/s1600/dollar4dollar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhcJeMCjlyi32xGk2PZ0nTAF5IBcgML5GYllqk77-3NLqoLZ95ZfRrZ_KYlj2CW_tls4hrvl56fusaW2dKKbV9SSaJwhHCYYO0R8HJ0NfibVkuaE8z3F6q0LGUGA_TUhb9_8N5Q/s320/dollar4dollar.jpg" width="247" /></a></div><b>What a Dream I Had</b><br />
<br />
Right now, the Democrats and the GOP have reached an impasse over how to solve the budget deficit. In short, the GOP wants all savings to come from budget cuts, and none from taxes. The Democrats are proposing about 17% of the savings to come from closing tax loopholes.<br />
<br />
In past times, when this sort of thing has happened, compromises were reached, with roughly half of the savings coming from cuts and half from taxes. But we are living in an age where compromise is a dirty word, and we need to find some middle ground.<br />
<br />
What I'm trying to do is simply start a '<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meme">meme</a>' here. The politicians are waiting for the public to provide enough support to push the negotiations in one direction or another. I believe that the Democrats (worst poker players ever!) are asking for too little, and we need to return to the classic 50-50 compromise.<br />
<br />
<b>How is this supposed to work?</b><br />
I have no experience with politics or grassroots movements. I've started a simple one-issue <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dollar-for-Dollar/173093086086862">facebook page</a> where all you have to do is click on the 'like' button. I'm hoping that you will also click on the little facebook 'f' that's just below the title of this blog post. If for some reason this resonates with enough people, we'll take the next step and share this info with the politicians. I'm hoping some of you are better at this than I am, and have some good advice too!<br />
<br />
Maybe this is a crazy idea, maybe not. Either way, I don't expect this situation to last for long. What do you think?<br />
<br />
<iframe src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/likebox.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fpages%2FDollar-for-Dollar%2F173093086086862&width=292&colorscheme=light&show_faces=false&border_color&stream=false&header=false&height=62" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border:none; overflow:hidden; width:292px; height:62px;" allowTransparency="true"></iframe>Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-33444593594958595402011-06-30T10:47:00.000-07:002011-06-30T11:18:31.612-07:00Hostage Negotiations<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c1/Natlamp73.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c1/Natlamp73.jpg" width="237" /></a></div><b>Negotiating With Terrorists</b><br />
<br />
How does one negotiate with the GOP on the budget? Using the analogy of the satyrical magazine cover to the left, (apologies to animal lovers, it's a joke!) the basic GOP position is:<br />
<blockquote><b>If you don't shoot the dog, we'll shoot the dog!</b></blockquote>If that seems hard to make sense out of, I think the basic idea is that if the Democrats don't go along with dismantling the government, the GOP will allow the budget default to happen, further weakening the government, hurting the economy, and hopefully, ensuring Obama loses in 2012!<br />
<br />
It's a great plan, right?Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-60231275127631630982011-06-23T15:21:00.000-07:002011-06-23T17:24:29.465-07:00None Dare Call it Treason<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://thatsmycongress.com/images/ericcantor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://thatsmycongress.com/images/ericcantor.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Majority Leader Eric Cantor</td></tr>
</tbody></table><b>Will They Get Away With This?</b><br />
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Something that has seemed obvious to me for quite a while is finally being publicly acknowledged by some Democrats. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/22/democratic-senators-job-creation-deficit-reduction_n_882215.html">Yesterday, Democratic senators finally called out the GOP for being willing to hurt the economy, so that Obama will not be re-elected.</a> Today, Majority leader Eric Cantor dropped out of the budget talks until Democrats stop asking that billionaires pay their fair share of the taxes. Purely and simply, it would seem the GOP is willing to let the economy collapse to insure that 2012 goes their way.<br />
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I think this is treasonous, and the GOP is essentially working for multinational corporate interests, and they don't care about this country. There, I've said it. If you agree, don't be quiet about this.<br />
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style="border:none; width:450px; height:80px"></iframe>Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-45604018285369146892011-05-25T21:05:00.000-07:002011-05-25T22:17:37.162-07:00The line it is drawn<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media.kansascity.com/smedia/2011/05/25/19/568-Congress_Democrats.sff.embedded.prod_affiliate.81.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://media.kansascity.com/smedia/2011/05/25/19/568-Congress_Democrats.sff.embedded.prod_affiliate.81.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Harry Reid after vote.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><a href="http://www.bobdylan.com/songs/the-times-they-are-a-changin"><span style="font-size: large;">The curse it is cast.</span></a><br />
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Today, before the Republicans in the Senate had a chance to wise up, Harry Reid held a vote on radical GOP congressman Paul Ryan's budget proposal, which includes the notorious plan to end Medicare as we know it. <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/politics-government/ci_18140603">While the bill was solidly defeated 57-40</a>, if it were to be held a week from now, there would be even fewer Republican senators willing to take a stand.<br />
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After <a href="http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/05/25/6718267-dnc-chair-celebrates-ny-26-win">last night's historic special election in New York's 26th Congressional district</a>, Reid quickly pushed to get GOP senators on record as supporting the GOP budget. Now, if the Democrats have the resolve to stick to the message (even though they have a tendency to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory), they can spend the next year and a half reminding voters that Senator so-and-so voted to end Medicare. There are only 10 GOP senators up for re-election in 2012, compared to 23 Democrats, so it would be a stretch to think the Republicans can be reduced to sub-filibuster levels, but in this era of unlimited anonymous election spending by right-wing billionaires, the Democrats need all the help they can get.<br />
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<a href="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/art/blog/2011/05/conversation-bob-dylan-turns-70.html">Speaking of Medicare, Bob Dylan turned 70 yesterday!</a>Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8555715.post-31464153391734300862011-02-22T21:40:00.000-08:002011-02-22T21:43:13.845-08:00Passing on Wisdom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQs_NJuR3m4jWhPzpG7SbE2Rwz484V84c6rOVObjWMrbIRs0J2TIK08Q_ijNHXR9Gqk5bUKUOa_FXYI0UPuso1_5tjVViaNk8wNKjeSL-_3n9Qp0I4WV2QFjPjVZYJ2yBIX7Z5Fg/s1600/pendulum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQs_NJuR3m4jWhPzpG7SbE2Rwz484V84c6rOVObjWMrbIRs0J2TIK08Q_ijNHXR9Gqk5bUKUOa_FXYI0UPuso1_5tjVViaNk8wNKjeSL-_3n9Qp0I4WV2QFjPjVZYJ2yBIX7Z5Fg/s320/pendulum.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><b>Biting My Tongue</b><br />
Today I went to the <a href="http://calacademy.org/">California Academy of Sciences</a> since I have the week off, and just before I left, after having a nice, overpriced lunch in their killer cafeteria, I went to visit the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foucault_pendulum">Foucault pendulum</a>. I had just done a small pendulum lab in my physics class, and felt like just closing the circle, so to speak.<br />
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Not to be too technical, but what this pendulum proved, over 150 years ago, was that the earth truly was spinning on its axis in space. The swinging ball would stay pointed toward some spot in space while the earth turned beneath it. There's a sign on the side saying essentially just that.<br />
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So, there I am, kind of mesmerized, thinking of how I used to watch this same ball as kid, when some dad starts explaining it to a group of kids. He talks about how some motor swings it back and forth, and how the earth's magnetic field makes the ball move in a circle!<br />
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I wanted to tell him he was wrong, that he was misinforming the kids, but I didn't. I can be a real know-it-all jerk in situations like that, and just sort of suffered silently as he led his little group on to who-knows-what. It's a good thing that parents bring kids to a science museum, right? I'm not really sure what to say here, but I'm sure we've all passed along some sort of misinformation to the younger generation. I know I have. Still, I wish those kids could know just how cool this spinning ball was!Geoff Gouldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12361851625830195798noreply@blogger.com8