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RedditWith the nation's first billion dollar presidential campaign, pay-to-play scandals occurring at breakneck speed (think Jack Abramoff and Norman Hsu), results in elections that are flawed by suppressed votes and machine error (and a War that Stays the Course despite the millions who went to the polls in November 2006 with a demand to end it), the public has had it with politicians who don't listen to them, care about them, or respond to their concerns. This climate of discontent has led to a rethinking among champions of public financing and clean elections about how to channel their efforts into a larger, more holistic pro-democracy movement. The key question for these reformers is this: how do we fashion a movement that taps into voters' frustrations and captures the imagination for a cleaner, more democratic way?
Certainly there is good momentum in this direction. In Congress – where, for example, the entire Alaskan delegation is either under indictment or soon will be and the pressure for constant fundraising is unsustainable – there is a convergence of democratic values and ideals and more pragmatic considerations wrought by fundraising fatigue. ("The result of this nonsense is that almost one-third of a senator's time is spent fundraising," former Democratic Senator Ernest Hollings wrote in a Washington Post op-ed lat year.) There are two excellent bills with impressive co-sponsorship, the Durbin-Specter Fair Elections Now Act (S 1285) and in the House, the Clean Money, Clean Elections Act of 2007 (HR 1614). Both bills would allow candidates who show a qualifying level of support and opt-out of further private contributions to receive public funding. According to Senator Durbin, "Support is increasing for the idea of public financing in fair elections: seventy-four percent of all voters support public financing… 80 percent of Democrats, 65 percent of Republicans, and 78 percent of Independents."
There are also important state battles being waged and won in this arena. The Congressional legislation was modeled on successful public financing systems in Maine, Arizona and North Carolina. Connecticut has a new Clean Elections program and this week a Republican became the first candidate in the state to qualify for public financing in an upcoming special election. Maryland recently passed a public funding bill through its House of Delegates and fell just one vote short in the Senate. In all, seven states and two municipalities currently have publicly financed elections in which large private contributions are replaced by public grants and small donations.
"The environment for public financing is strong," says Nick Nyhart, President and CEO of Public Campaign, "due to both the continuing political scandals and the steady, inexorable rise in the cost of campaigns. There are new state victories ahead and the federal work is moving forward, though we are really only at the beginning of the Congressional fight…. It really seems to me that the key thinking needs to move from policy to strategy and organizing."
Which is why Nyhart and many of his colleagues are working to knit these democracy issues into a larger whole. Nyhart says that focus groups reveal that Americans of diverse economic, racial, and geographic backgrounds share a common, core complaint about politics today: that their representatives don't listen to them and aren't accountable to them. Pro-democracy proponents are finding new ways to frame issues – ranging from the racket of protecting incumbents through gerrymandered redistricting, to unreliable and easily hacked voting machines, to getting people to the polls with Election Day registration rather than suppressing votes through bogus allegations of voter fraud – in a manner that makes those standing in the way of reform pay a political price.
Nyhart likes to draw an analogy with the environmental movement. "In 1964, saying ‘I'm an environmentalist' had no meaning," he says. "Ten years later saying that made a candidate more electable. Right now, saying ‘I'm a pro-democracy' candidate' doesn't mean much. There is no set of issues for the public to relate that statement to. And you can't establish it with a single issue. So organizations are working to find a politically salient group of issues to achieve that kind of impact."
Returning to the example of the environmental movement, one modest proposal is to take a page from the League of Environmental Voters' invention of the "Dirty Dozen." This was an extremely powerful and effective way to identify politicians who stood in the way of bipartisan environmental progress. Many of them were defeated in their re-election bids in the 70's. So how about an Anti-Democracy Eight? Or a Democracy Day á la Earth Day devoted to maximizing voter turnout, making campaigns affordable for ordinary citizens, and producing reliable election results?
Perhaps Democracy Enemy #1 would be Senator Mitch McConnell. (Please offer your nominees for the Anti-Democracy 8 below!) Recently, an ad by Public Campaign Action Fund highlighting Sen. McConnell's favors to political donors was pulled by Insight Communications, a cable system owner. NBC, CBS, ABC and two other cable systems ran the ad after thorough fact-checking. But Insight pulled it without explanation in the 11th hour. Turns out Insight Communications executives – including the corporation's CEO and chief lobbyist – are allies of McConnell. After receiving 6,000 petitions in one day questioning Insight's motivations and demanding the ad run, the company reversed its decision. In trying to squash free speech, Insight proved the very point the ad raised about the cozy relationship between McConnell and his donors. Adding to the irony is that the ad concerns an $8.3 million McConnell earmark to a firm with ties to the senator. The contract paid the firm to provide MP-3 players to tribesmen in Afghanistan that played – of all things – pre-recorded messages promoting democracy!
There are plenty of good activists and groups who have crafted a broad pro-democracy agenda in recent years. In March, the New Democracy Project, Demos, The Nation, and the Brennan Center for Justice released The Democracy Protection Act – 40 Ways Toward a More Perfect Union. The measures suggested in the report – building on the policies crafted by a score of good groups – challenged a system we described this way: "We have too much money and too few voters in our electoral process. Too much corruption. Too high barriers blocking access to civil justice. Too much contempt for the Rule of Law." We looked at things like national voting standards, paper trails, secure voting machines, Election Day registration, voter suppression and intimidation, lobbying laws, public campaign funding, and free air time for qualifying candidates.
But the challenge now – at this moment when democracy's image has been so tarnished by scandal, big bucks, and a shameful war falsely waged in its name – is to move beyond the policy suggestions to build something greater than the sum of its parts. Such a movement will go a long way toward retrieving democracy and restoring its promise.
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Katrina vanden Heuvel
Thoughts on politics, current affairs, riffs and reflections on what’s in the news and what’s not--but should be.
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Like McCain-Feingold and the creation of the "527s", which led to the "Swift Boat Vets for Truth", or going back to 1976, with the Federal Elections Campaign Act and the creation of "soft money"....it's always the unintended consequences of campaign finance reform (CFR) that always are the real surprise to us.
What will it be for "public financing"?
First thing I think of is an ACLU lawsuit saying that the "qualification number" arbitrarily set is un-Constitutional for a Federal grant. In other words, some "Green" or even "Natural Law" party guy who gets 24,990 signatures by August 1st, Election Year...but not the requisite 25,000 signautres...sues because he or she is being denied their "right to participate in our democracy".
Of coure the main problem is this little thing called the "First Amendment". You'll need the USSC to overturn "Buckley v. Valeo". And you'll need to figure out a way to keep the Exxon-Mobil corporation's "Citizens for American Energy Independence" from running ad after ad for Republican candidate X (or against Democratic or Green candidate Y or Z)...without violating free speech.
Posted by Mask at 09/17/2007 @ 1:06pm
former REPUBLICAN senator ernest hollings? sorry, had to pause on that. back to reading...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 1:13pm
all things considered (like the wealth and power of the anti-democracy plutocrats) it is amazing that so much progress is being made.
THIS IS THE KEY TO ALL OTHER PROGRESSIVE DREAMS
frustrated desires of the schmuks will ultimately result in ugliness. i think we are on the cusp of a great progressive activist revolution, and not a second too soon.
thank god, al gore, and the military for the internet.
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 1:19pm
and KVH and folks like her, of course...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 1:20pm
Posted by IBBLEBLIBBLE 09/17/2007 @ 1:13pm
Correction should be coming soon. Hollings was a Democrat.
Posted by Mask at 09/17/2007 @ 1:38pm
Posted by MASK 09/17/2007 @ 1:38pm
oh yeah...i waited his table in college...solid 15 percenter...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 1:42pm
Posted by IBBLEBLIBBLE 09/17/2007 @ 1:42pm
I couldn't listen to Hollings without thinking of Foghorn Leghorn's original inspiration....few have heard it, but old archives might have it [en.wikipedia.org].
Posted by Mask at 09/17/2007 @ 1:52pm
and KVH and folks like her, of course...
Posted by IBBLEBLIBBLE 09/17/2007 @ 1:20pm
don't forget yourself, IBBLEBLIBBLOUS
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 2:08pm
"We can have a democracy or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few. We cannot have both." Justice Brandeis.
Among other dangers to a democracy of "great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few" is the pernicious effect of great wealth controlling our politicians and thus our political policies. I'm sure that did not escape Brandeis's notice.
Posted by felicity at 09/17/2007 @ 2:20pm
The View From Above:
1) no machines, no chads, no, no, no
how's a pencil and a piece of paper sound. mark with X and put in box. next!
2) the president's "mandate" [insert larry craig joke here] is typically 25% of eligible voters.
make the day a holiday! CLOSE THE MALL. only allow broadcasts of re-runs of "the prisoner" [en.wikipedia.org] on all channels until all the polls are closed nation-wide. give everybody the purple finger treatment a la iraq in order to shame people into voting. [good for the goose.........]
3) eliminate the electoral college. the world thinks you're insane.
4) codify the federal system FEDERALLY, not just some local boys sayin', "yep, this year we'z got somma them "dimebold" machines."
5) you can't sell smokes on t.v. anymore. allowing 30 second diatribes and insult sessions is just a toxic for the nation.
6) only permit lobbying to be done through e-mail. no contact. no dinners. no cheques.
GOOD LUCK!
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 2:24pm
Posted by MASK 09/17/2007 @ 1:52pm
lol - yeah, he has that "chaaalston" drawl bad! but it was the real deal! the southern version of bucklyspeak...
hollings is still spitting foghorn fire, and is a fascinating and edgy fellow. he's like a billionaire - cant shut him up and he dont care.
that said i worked on his 92 campaign and liked him despite(because) of his imperfections. my fellow intoxicated young dems and i crashed his private victory party - after a "what the hell" initial look i'll never forget, he recovered, cracked a joke, congratulated our detective abilities and politely booted us...very charismatic (if you can understand him).
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 2:29pm
Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/17/2007 @ 2:08pm
i just forgot myself...har har
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 2:39pm
Some answers, FROSTY---
1) no machines, no chads, no, no, no....how's a pencil and a piece of paper sound. mark with X and put in box. next!
----Still get "erasure marks", scratchs, torn ballots, etc. I think we can go high-tech AND secure. We went to the Moon for Gosh's sakes!
2) the president's "mandate" [insert larry craig joke here] is typically 25% of eligible voters. make the day a holiday! CLOSE THE MALL. only allow broadcasts of re-runs of "the prisoner" [en.wikipedia.org] on all channels until all the polls are closed nation-wide. give everybody the purple finger treatment a la iraq in order to shame people into voting. [good for the goose.........]
----Election Holiday a likely answer. Despite yours and MY fondness for Patrick McGoohan, the people won't stand for "Big Brother" or "According to Jim" be pre-empted though.
3) eliminate the electoral college. the world thinks you're insane.
----It wasn't originally a bad idea, to protect the smaller states. Now, you're right. Useless and silly.
4) codify the federal system FEDERALLY, not just some local boys sayin', "yep, this year we'z got somma them "dimebold" machines."
----Again, a likely possibility. Originally again, it was local because in the Old Days, local elections mattered more.
5) you can't sell smokes on t.v. anymore. allowing 30 second diatribes and insult sessions is just a toxic for the nation.
----We got this nasty thing called "the First Amendment" Down Here. Can't shake it...no dice on that one.
6) only permit lobbying to be done through e-mail. no contact. no dinners. no cheques.
----Again, 1st Amendment, as well as "petition the Government for redress of grievances" thing. That'd be un-Constitutional.
Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/17/2007 @ 2:24pm
Posted by Mask at 09/17/2007 @ 2:56pm
i always forget to post your answers for you!
----Still get "erasure marks", scratchs, torn ballots, etc. I think we can go high-tech AND secure. We went to the Moon for Gosh's sakes!
pencil and paper's how we do it. got one coming up in october here in ontario. can't remember any election fraud goin' down here.
----We got this nasty thing called "the First Amendment" Down Here. Can't shake it...no dice on that one.
beautiful thing that first. so why can't you sell smokes on t.v.?
----Again, 1st Amendment, as well as "petition the Government for redress of grievances" thing. That'd be un-Constitutional.
any suggestions, then. how do you turn k-streetville back into washington (remember him?)?
FZ
the t.v. comment was facetious [sort of]. but not the purple finger part.
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 3:10pm
Posted by ZERO 09/17/2007 @ 3:02pm
she ain't the only one.
tell all your friends and relatives about this site so they can see who is on whose shopping list [opensecrets.org]
extra-highly recommended (up to date campaign funds and their contributors)
watch the money pile up
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 3:15pm
Posted by ZERO 09/17/2007 @ 3:02pm | ignore
50 foot queenie is indeed in bed with murdochs of multiple big money interests...question is, will she bitch slap them once in office?
three viable candidates on dem side:
edwards, clinton, obama...
edwards and obama split the antihillary vote...
obama is the antihillary of the two non-hilleries, therefore by appealing to the uncomfortable/queezy hillbillerites, edwards might possibly maybe be able to sling a rock at 50 foot queenie early, esp. in his birthstate, souf cakalaka.
otherwise obama and edwards cancel each other out and 50 foot queenie takes the prize, in which case...
watchout for cowboy fred...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 3:17pm
Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/17/2007 @ 3:10pm
Well, the pen and paper thing was here too. And we had Tammany Hall. Presenting an ID might be a good idea too, but even if they're GIVEN away, it's somehow a "violation of our rights"...while requiring an ID to buy booze somehow isn't.
As for smokes on TV...hard to make a case that that's "political speech", which is EXACTLY what the 1st Amendment is intended for (some expound, like me, expound that to political EXPRESSION...i.e. flag-burning, as well). Any move to quell people, even nasty smelly Big Oil-funded groups, to the right to express their views...especially at election time...is un-Constitutional.
As for lobbying...get it out in the open first, before you TRY to squelch it too. Just the fact that Senator Claghorn has to DECLARE every year who's been buying him dinners and golf trips, might do a lot to help his opponent win next time around.
Posted by Mask at 09/17/2007 @ 3:43pm
Posted by IBBLEBLIBBLE 09/17/2007 @ 3:17pm
I'd pretty much write John Edwards off, unles he really turns on the steam around Christmas.
I saw a poll that had him at 3 (THREE) percent in South Carolina (one of the first primaries...and a step away from his home state of North Carolina).
The Blog Left vote (from what I've seen) seems split between Edwards and Kucinich...while the MAJORITY of Democrats are mostly for Hillary, some for Obama.
Posted by Mask at 09/17/2007 @ 3:45pm
Posted by MASK 09/17/2007 @ 3
i didnt get that low a number, but you are right, looking grim.
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 3:59pm
Posted by IBBLEBLIBBLE 09/17/2007 @ 3:59pm
Well, here's "Times/Bloomberg" for South Carolina...which is slightly better for JE in SC...but not much--
Times/Blooomberg 9/6-10/07 Pollster Dates N/Pop
Clinton--45%
Edwards---7%
Gore --- blank (sorry HSUB)
Obama---27%
Richardson---1%
Posted by Mask at 09/17/2007 @ 4:12pm
Posted by MASK 09/17/2007 @ 4:12pm
attack of the fifty foot queenie it is...i hadnt checked the polls in a while...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 4:22pm
Posted by RIO BRAVO 09/17/2007 @ 3:16pm
http://cat-e-whompus.blogspot.com/2007_05_01_archive.html
http://www.sacramentorepublicrat.com/2007/08/the_ant_and_the_grasshopper .php
http://the2amtalkradioshow.blogspot.com/2007/07/volume-37-watch-how-you- vote.html
is any one of these sites the source of your wisdom?
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 4:25pm
i guess today's "great silent majority" longs for the good old days...when the only thing we wasted buzillions of tax payer bling on was bullshit sex scandal mongering...as opposed the black hole of baghdad and ripley's republican believe it or not gallery of real scandal...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 4:27pm
Posted by IBBLEBLIBBLE 09/17/2007 @ 4:22pm
LA NUEVA PRESIDENTA DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS [en.wikipedia.org]
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 4:34pm
"great silent majority"
*sigh*
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 4:34pm
Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/17/2007 @ 4:34pm | ignore this person
exactly...but what is is...
my hope if barry o cant pull something is that 50 foot queenie will bitch slap some of her murdochs once enthroned.
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 4:48pm
Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/17/2007 @ 4:34pm
Glad you used "Giganta" and not "50 Foot Woman"....
no WAY I'd compare HRC and the late, great Allison Hayes!
(actually, I always liked using "She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed"...H.R. Haggard)
Posted by Mask at 09/17/2007 @ 4:55pm
Toasted by KIBBLEBLIBBLE 09/17/2007 @ 4:48pm
you had asked about gil scott-heron [tinyurl.com]
here is his myspace deal with 4 tunes and some vids.
the revolution will not be televised!
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 5:09pm
SHE who must be bought! ...SHE who must be lobbied! ...SHE who must be sold!
Leo Vincey*: Was that barbaric legislation necessary?
Ayesha*: It was necessary!
Maj. Horace Holly*: In God's name, why?
Ayesha: As a demonstration of my absolute power! How else could I hold my soldiers and these pathetic creatures as my subjects? How else but by instilling fear and terror into their very souls.
Maj. Horace Holly: But nothing is gained by fear and terror.
Ayesha: Well, it worked for Mr. Bush. And it shall work for me! BWAHAHAHA!!!!
*CAST
VINCEY--U.S. PUBLIC
AYESHA--HRC
DR. HOLLY--MASK
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 5:22pm
Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/17/2007 @ 5:09pm | i
good taste in music...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 5:51pm
Well, KVH, we have 7 states with public financing which means we need 30 more to get the 3/4ths of state legislatures needed for a constitutional amendment.
As Mask has aptly pointed out in his first post, the recent Supreme Court case on free speech necessitates a constitutional amendment to accompany any public financing scheme on the national level. Otherwise, we will get Swift-boated by moneyed interest groups which would undermine the very purpose of publicly funded elections.
Starting at the state level, however, does appear to be the correct tactical approach, and when we hit the magic 37 state number, then it's time to push Congress into passing a constitutional amendment to publicly finance elections and bar non-candidate sponsored political ads during the election cycle.
Posted by Metteyya at 09/17/2007 @ 6:04pm
Posted by ZERO 09/17/2007 @ 6:02pm
sorry - got a url?
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 6:06pm
Why not an amendment to the Constitution?
Posted by mtspence05 at 09/17/2007 @ 6:14pm
Belay my last. I just read the post above mine.
Posted by mtspence05 at 09/17/2007 @ 6:16pm
posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/17/2007 @ 2:24pm make the day a holiday!
Yes! And make it a full day - from 12:00 am East Coast time to 11:59 pm East Coast time. Many would-be voters in the West have already heard the projected results before they get off of work, and so don't bother. We must all feel equally invested in deciding elections.
Posted by Radscal at 09/17/2007 @ 6:21pm
Hey, RIO BRAVO,
Your Ant-alagy comparison to human wealth doesn't work because because: 1) The stores hoarded by the ant weren't originally inherited. 2) The stores aquired by the ant weren't the result of "legacy" benefits from a lucky chance of birth (getting into the 'right' schools; getting preferential job placement; etc.)
Besides, ants arguably live in the most socialistic non-human groupings on earth! Or did I misread your postings and you're actually a closet commie?
Posted by Radscal at 09/17/2007 @ 6:34pm
Posted by ZERO 09/17/2007 @ 6:02pm
sorry - got a url?
Posted by IBBLEBLIBBLE 09/17/2007 @ 6:06pm
here's healthy hillary [tinyurl.com]
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 6:42pm
Posted by ZERO 09/17/2007 @ 6:02pm - "Hello? Did anyone have comment? The Democrat "front runner" who just 2 weeks ago was shown to take money from crooks just announced her Reaganite health insurance proposal which will require us all by law to buy health insurance." -
Yup! She's just as bought and paid for as the Bushies (or most all high-ranking politicians)... just some of the owners are different monied interests.
BTW: I went to High School with Hilary. Of course, that was when she was prominent in the Young Republicans there.
Posted by Radscal at 09/17/2007 @ 6:58pm
Campaign finance reform is much simpler than the media, the special interest Congress and some other traitors want us to think. (and no special interest Congress will ever write a real campaign finance reform law, so we can't wait for that)
ONE SOLUTION: Let's not forget that we have the right to vote for any candidate we like. So enough of us must simply put candidates on notice that starting in the 200? Election primaries, we will NOT vote for an candidates who accept campaign donations, use advertisements, use their own money to gain advantage or who don't show up at lengthy public debates ready to answer whatever questions the voters have.
Then we will replace our Congress (and pres) of professional fundraisers with real leaders and public servants who are capable of reading and understanding the bills they sign into law.
(so sorry candidates who want to buy seats. throw away your 65 pages of negotiated rules that eliminate the tough debate questions!)(If the prime ministers of England can deal with real questions, so can any American candidate worth electing)
And I'm with you FROSTY, especially with the paper ballots. Yes, we can get rid of the chads in FL. But regular pen and paper ballots --with local citizens counting them --have worked for so long that there is no need to fix the system (it isn't broken!)
So MASK (the very first poster to weigh in): There is no need to overcomplicate things or worry about the first amendment or the Supreme Court, unless they outlaw voting! We are entitled to vote for anyone we like. If we prefer candidates who don't take donations to buy seats in Congress or the oval office, that's our choice.
MTSPENCE05: your idea of a constitutional amendment would work, also! And it would ensure things don't backtrack once we've replaced our special interest servants with public servants once again.
Posted by voterpower at 09/17/2007 @ 8:40pm
Posted by VOTERPOWER 09/17/2007 @ 8:40pm
Ah, but VOTER, that would involve PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY and hard work.
Much easier to dream of the Government "reforming" the system with things that either don't work or are un-Constitutional!
Posted by Mask at 09/17/2007 @ 9:50pm
good taste in music...
Posted by IBBLEBLIBBLE 09/17/2007 @ 5:51pm
and blogmates, too!
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 10:03pm
Posted by RADSCAL 09/17/2007 @ 6:34pm
very, very true
and all run by a QUEEN!
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 10:05pm
we will NOT vote for an candidates who accept campaign donations, use advertisements, use their own money to gain advantage or who don't show up at lengthy public debates ready to answer whatever questions the voters have.
BY VOTEPOWER
hate to be cynical but people would rather by a pair of nikes with the SWOOSH than the exact pair of swoshless shoes made in the same factory.
remember the study where kids thought the carrots in the mcdonald's bag tasted better than the carrots in the plain bag?
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 10:10pm
Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/17/2007 @ 10:05pm
in place of a dark lord (cheney, that is - mushmouth is just the mouth of sauron, a cool minor character that got cut in the movie version) you wiLL have a DARK QUEEN!
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 11:00pm
WOW
looks like i beat mask to the top of the thread. looks out of place up there.
looks like i'm referring to kvh...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/17/2007 @ 11:02pm
MASK and FROSTY: I think everything has a tipping point. So many I know are fed up and seem ready to take some action (dems, repubs, indpendents, religious and non, wealthy and less so, etc.)
I guess one thing voters of all types can agree upon is that we should have responsive reps in government. And it seems that over the past few years, people have begun to recognized that we can't sit back, watch Britney or faux news and expect our democracy to run itself.
I'm confident that it is doable to mobilize enough voters to not vote for candidates who buy their positions and to require candidates to earn votes based on the results they deliver. Any business leader would have to perform or get out. People understand this simple dynamic.
Posted by voterpower at 09/17/2007 @ 11:13pm
Posted by VOTERPOWER 09/17/2007 @ 11:13pm
i hope, nay, pray you are right.
we've got a planet under our feet that's pretty scared.
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/17/2007 @ 11:22pm
I suggest that all of you get a life...I've just come from hearing the inimitable Nation columnist Naomi Klein lay out the arguments in her new book "The Shock Doctrine"/ to a full full house of 1500...she is brilliant in understanding that THERE ARE ALWAYS ALTERNATIVES IN OUR POLITICS, ECONOMICS AND HISTORY...and that --on a day when Alan Greenspan launches his book...we have a woman, a powerhouse of a thinker, on a geopolitical scale, who respects life, dignity and those who seek and quest for a way out of the crisis-ridden unregulated capitalism we know has failed us....And on the life front...I came home after Naomi's "tour-de-force" talk...well, to lapse into my tv mode..."The Long Goodbye" with Elliot Gould and Sterling Hayden...and, well. lots of angst and love and grief and sex and talk....What better than IDEAS AND ..well. the rest.kvh
Posted by Katrina vanden Heuvel at 09/18/2007 @ 12:16am
Posted by KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL 09/18/2007 @ 12:16am
goodnight. excellent suggestions. jeremy cahill was on abc news tonight. blackwater.
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/18/2007 @ 12:48am
Posted by KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL 09/18/2007 @ 12:16am
see, canadians have the master plan
:=]
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/18/2007 @ 01:05am
Off Topic Post:
Why hasn't anyone from The Nation posted about the revocation of Blackwater's business privileges by the Iraqi government?
Posted by ILOVEPHYSICS at 09/18/2007 @ 08:50am
Posted by KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL 09/18/2007 @ 12:16am
I'm sorry, but....what the hell are you talking about, Ms vanden Heuvel?!?!?
"get a life"...then "I heard Naomi Klein say there are always alternatives"..."Alan Greenspan"..."crises capitalism"...and then "The Long Goodbye" and "angst and love and grief and sex and talk"??!?!
Is that supposed to be stream-of-consciousness or something?
Posted by Mask at 09/18/2007 @ 09:55am
she'll hand the moon to anyone in any way if that is what it takes
what a joke this election system is -
Posted by ZERO 09/17/2007 @ 3:02pm
ZERO, You hit the nail on the head. I think our leaders are underpaid, but at the same time are not held accountable for their actions as public leaders.
I think the president of the U.S. should make at least a million per year. The job might attract more qualified personnel other than W, Mrs. Clinton and the rest of the bought off folks we get to select from. How does the saying go... you get what you pay for? Well, we got the latest president at the five and dime store.
We also need to hold these folks accountable. Since they are supposed to lead by example, they should at least have to follow the laws of the land. I think they should be held to higher standards, not lower standards than the average citizen since they are definitely not ignorant of the law...or shouldn't be anyway.
The fact that these people don't even attempt to enforce the constitution (with the exception of a handful of senators) over their own personal political careers says a great deal about their integrity and their views of the office and positions they hold. That goes for the president and his administration as well.
All of us Americans are being screwed by the folks in D.C. wetting their beaks while the rest of the country suffers. The electoral college is a joke as is the way our policital leaders are selected for us.
Posted by Wolfgang1 at 09/18/2007 @ 10:10am
Posted by ILOVEPHYSICS 09/18/2007 @ 08:50am |
hell yeah - scahill, a contributor here, was featured on, of all places, abc news last night, talking about it.
the only problem i sometimes have with the nation is a someties slightly weak foriegn policy coverage. yeah, its "the nation", not "the world", but...
i'm thinking someone is getting something ready. this is kind of the nation's baby...so i'm thinking they have to be preparing something.
the armed murderous cowboys of blackwater apparantly killed so many iraqi civilians that even the iraqi gov is fed up. even fox lite abc news is reporting it with some concern and shock...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/18/2007 @ 10:22am
Posted by MASK 09/18/2007 @ 09:55am |
i'm thinking she had some fun...
Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/18/2007 @ 10:24am
I suggest that all of you get a life...
Posted by KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL 09/18/2007 @ 12:16am
I've got one, actually, more than one...see, I'm an efficiency freak...live 28 hrs per day on just 24 blog hours.....just NOT sure your ultra-super-duper-Regulars like RESE, PLUNGER, MASK, CRABB, FROSTY, HSUB, Empty, IBBLE (returns)...LOL!!
Posted by Happy at 09/18/2007 @ 10:52am
Check out Bill Greider's post about Iraqi Interior Ministry revoking Blackwater's right to operate in Iraq...essentially banning this ultra-secretive, shadowy mercenary army which has operated with no accountability ...Nation's Jeremy Scahill wrote THE book about Blackwater and his important analysis and insights have been out there through his appearances yesterday on CNN/ABC/CBS and tonight Lehrer newshour...He'll also have a major article in Nation next week. As to getting a life or free-associating--we all have the right to do so at end of a long and turbulent day --or after spending an evening listening to the brilliant Naomi Klein. As for --was it Mask?--who raised question about why I didn't bring in ending the duopoly--It's a theme close to my heart and mind and one I wrote about on ed cut a couple years ago--check out "End the Duopoly" --and I plan to return to it...this ed cut had a difft focus. I also like the ideas shared by those who understand power of progressive federalism in these times of literal and figurative gridlock in DC--that is, with seven states signed on to some form of public financing--fight to get another 30 and move to const amendment...cheers. kvh
Posted by Katrina vanden Heuvel at 09/18/2007 @ 11:19am
KVH: ....question about why I didn't bring in ending the duopoly--It's a theme close to my heart and mind and one I wrote about on ed cut a couple years ago--check out "End the Duopoly" --and I plan to return to it...
As a Nation blog reader since just this year, I have been surprised at just how mainstream you are....the `nail in the confirmation coffin' was your total silence on the whole Norman Hsu story! Can't imagine a progressive media old timer NOT piping up!
You are, based on what I read (rather, NOT read) this year, hard-core HRC Loyalist.....! Since you're a woman, makes some sense! From your own "End the Duopoly" comment, seems like it's been your `game' for "a couple of years"!
Posted by Happy at 09/18/2007 @ 11:41am
Posted by KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL 09/18/2007 @ 11:19am
Katrina, I read the article and have also read previous articles from multiple sources about Blackwater Inc. Maybe you are someone else can enlighten us as to why a private company is doing what the U.S. military should be doing.
Also, if there is to be some kind of settlement for the families of the people killed by Blackwater, would it not be Blackwater's responsibility to settle it, not the U.S. government? Since when is Ms. Rice Blackwater's damage control person. I thought she was supposed to work for us tax payers.
Posted by Wolfgang1 at 09/18/2007 @ 11:44am
Posted by KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL 09/18/2007 @ 11:19am
No, sorry, wasn't me. Not really sure what "ending the Duopoly".
If you're referring to third parties, they're a mixed bag. Wallace still gave us Nixon. Anderson went nowhere. Perot did give us Clinton twice (which I think was good). Nader gave us Bush twice (which I think was bad).
And anybody talking third party now is on the Left, and that means a split Democratic vote again.
You really want to repeat 2000?!???!?
Posted by Mask at 09/18/2007 @ 1:36pm
Posted by IBBLEBLIBBLE 09/18/2007 @ 10:24am
If it was a one paragraph version of how these threads degenerate...didn't quite make the joke, s'far as I can see.
Frankly, most of the time when the thread finally gets to me and FROSTY discussing William Shatner as Canadian ambassador or which song from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang fits JOHN MAASCH...the topic has alread been pretty hashed-out by whatever side the posters are on.
Plus, it's usually some "proposal" from one of the "Nation" writers...like impeachment, or single-payer health care, or a protest rally...that isn't quite relevant or realistic anyway.
Posted by Mask at 09/18/2007 @ 1:39pm
Posted by MASK 09/18/2007 @ 1:39pm
not to get off topic but ¿have you ever watched this [youtube.com]?
before you watch, some vocabulary [en.wikipedia.org]
and to be honest, the light of ridicule could just as easily be shone in this direction.
nonetheless, it's very funny. and if you're patient, you will see governors, vice-presidents and presidents in action.
nothing personal, ol' buddy
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/18/2007 @ 2:59pm
Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/18/2007 @ 2:59pm
Look, I went to school in North Carolina and believe me...
you Canucks and Kay-bekers ain't got nothing on this stuff [en.wikipedia.org]
Posted by Mask at 09/18/2007 @ 3:50pm
Posted by MASK 09/18/2007 @ 3:50pm
mask, i just ate.
see, ya!
Posted by frosty zoom at 09/18/2007 @ 4:11pm
MASK:
Where did you go to school?
Posted by jorcheim at 09/18/2007 @ 7:07pm
Posted by JORCHEIM 09/18/2007 @ 7:07pm
Same place as Emily Proctor of CSI-Miami....ECU.
Posted by Mask at 09/18/2007 @ 7:55pm
MASK:
I used to play against ECU in rugby ALL the time. I loved partying at ECU. So much fun.
Posted by jorcheim at 09/18/2007 @ 8:07pm
Hello RESE!
I believe your heart is in the right place, but I have a suggestion to help you get your points across. Stop smothering the posts!
I'm sure that I'm not the only reader who has taken to skipping right past your posts because they are so long, and come in interminable streams.
If you must post on so many subjects, I advise you to post short summations only along with your links to the full articles.
Just tryin' to help :-)
Posted by Radscal at 09/18/2007 @ 8:09pm
Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 09/17/2007 @ 10:05pm
Good point, Frosty. As an American of Irish ancestry, I can't believe I'm typing this, but... Long Live The Queen!
Posted by Radscal at 09/18/2007 @ 8:36pm
Posted by JORCHEIM 09/18/2007 @ 8:07pm
I played in high school....we had T-shirts that said "Rugby Players Eat Their Dead!"
Posted by Mask at 09/18/2007 @ 9:25pm
Posted by RADSCAL 09/18/2007 @ 8:09pm
Sorry, RAD...RESE won't listen.
She's clinically paranoid and obsessive. Or more simply, she's a "street preacher" of the Blogosphere trying to "save our souls" and shouting about the Devil from the corner.
Posted by Mask at 09/18/2007 @ 9:27pm