Roots

Where is everybody?

If Ned can score one Joe’s “Ned’s a racist” flyers, perhaps he should do a commercial holding it up and then have Rep Waters make a comment about it. Could be powerful.

Just a thought.

Jane, what have you been hearing from those African American leaders, and the African American community as a whole? Are they for-sure not buying it, or are we all just assuming that they’re not buying it because it’s such transparent crap and Ned has Maxine on his side?

TPM has the flyer.

Rootz! And I too would be very happy to have better connections to our African-American rootz!

http://www.democracynow.org/ar…..31/1435219

MUST READ

mp3 download to listen

fisk reports from lebanon

kobe !

Redshift @ 5

TPM has the flyer.

That’s it??? That’s their trump/race card???

here’s a transcript

ROBERT FISK: I went to Tyre, Amy. By the time this has happened — to get from Beirut now to the south takes 46 hours, because of the broken bridges and the bombed roads, and I realized that by the time I got down there, the wounded would have been in the hospitals in Tyre, and the dead would be already brought from Qana to the villages. So when I got there, I went straight to the government hospital in Tyre, where many of the wounded — and there weren’t many, because most of them died — had been taken and where they were counting the number of children.

When I arrived there, there were a number of, maybe 20, 30 children, the corpses of children, lined up outside the government hospital, hair matted, still in their night clothes. The bomb that killed them was dropped at 1:00 in the morning. And they ran out of plastic bags. They were trying to put the children in plastic bags, their corpses, and they would put on it, you know, “Abbas Mehdi, aged seven,” and so and so, aged one, and use a kind of sticking tape on it. But then they ran out of plastic bags, so they had to put the children’s corpses in a kind of cheap carpet that you can buy in the supermarkets, and they roll them up in that and then put their names on again. I was having to go around very carefully and write down, from the Arabic, their names and their ages. It would just say “Abbas Mehdi, aged seven, Qana.”

And, of course, every time I saw the “Qana,” I remember that I was actually in Qana ten years ago when the massacre occurred there then. This is the second massacre in the town whose inhabitants believe that this is the place where Jesus turned water into wine in the Bible, most of whom, 95% of whom, are Christians — I’m sorry, are Muslims. I think all who died were Muslims. The 5% is Christians who have been there for hundreds of years, their families, because they do believe it is the Biblical Qana. There is a claimant to the rival of Qana in Galilee in northern Israel actually.

The Lebanese soldiers were trying take down the names of all who had died, but I found a man with a clipboard who had taken down 40 names, and he said that they weren’t accurate, because some of the children were blown into bits and they couldn’t fit them together accurately and there might be — they couldn’t put the right head on the right body, and therefore they might not be able to have an accurate list of the dead. But he was doing his best in the circumstances of war to maintain the bureaucracy of government.

One by one the children’s bodies were taken away from the courtyard of the government hospital on the shoulders of soldiers and hospital workers and were put in a big refrigerated truck, very dirty, dusty truck, which had been parked just outside the hospital. The grownups, the adult dead, including twelve women, were taken out later. The children were put in the truck first. Pretty grim. As I said, the children’s hair, when you could see the bodies, were matted with dust and mud. And most of them appear to have been bleeding from the nose. I assume that’s because their lungs were crushed by the bomb, and therefore they naturally hemorrhaged as they died.

AMY GOODMAN: Robert Fisk reporting from Beirut. After the attack Sunday, Israel released what appeared to be video footage of Hezbollah rockets being launched from Qana toward towns in northern Israel. I asked Robert Fisk about the footage.

ROBERT FISK: I’ve seen the video footage. It’s impossible to tell from the footage if indeed this is from Qana. You know, you have to realize that last time the massacre occurred at Qana in 1996, when they killed 106 refugees who were sheltering in the then-UN base that was there — it doesn’t exist anymore, but it did then — more than half of them children, again. They said that missiles had been fired from within the UN base. It turns out that they were fired from half a mile away. They then said that they didn’t have a live time pilot-less aircraft over the UN base at the time. And, in fact, on the Independent, I found a UN soldier who did have a videotape, showing clearly at the time of the bombardment — this is in 1996 — a live time photo reconnaissance unmanned aircraft over the base. The Israelis were later forced to admit that they had not told the truth: indeed there was a machine over the base at the time. You know, you can do what you want with photo reconnaissance pictures and with photographs after the event. It’s interesting that we weren’t shown these pictures before the massacre. We were only shown them after the massacre.

But they may be correct. The Hezbollah are firing missiles from villages in southern Lebanon, just as, for example, when the Israelis entered southern Lebanon and go into places like Bent Jabail, they’re using civilian houses as cover for their tanks, so the Hezbollah use houses as cover for their missile launching. But the odd thing is the idea that for the Israeli military that somehow it’s okay to kill all these children; if a missile is launched 30, 90 feet from their house, that’s okay then. We’ve got some film to show the missiles were launched; that’s okay then. I mean, did the aircraft which dropped this bomb, a guided weapon, by the way — they knew what they were hitting. It’s a guided weapon. We know that because the computer codes have been found on the bomb fragments. Did they say, “Oh, well, then, the man who launched the missile is hiding with the children in the basement of the house we’re going to hit”? Is it the case now that if you happen to live in a house next to where someone launches a missile, you are to be sentenced to death? Is that what Israel thinks the war is about?

I’m sitting here, for example, in my house tonight in darkness — there’s no electricity — next to a car park. What if someone launches a missile from the car park? Am I supposed to die for that? Is that a death sentence for me? Is that how Israel wages war? If I have children in the basement, are they to die for that? And then I’m told it’s my fault or it’s Hezbollah’s fault? You know, these are serious moral questions.

It’s quite clear from listening to the IDF statement today that they believe that family deserved to die, because 90 feet away, they claim, a missile was fired. So they sentenced all those people to death. Is that what we’re supposed to believe? I mean, presumably it is. I can’t think of any other reason why they should say, “Well, 30 meters away a missile was fired.” Well, thanks very much. So those little children’s corpses in their plastic packages, all stuck together like giant candies today, this is supposed to be quite normal, this is how war is to be waged by the IDF.

The fact that when they made these comments, they went unchallenged on television, was one of the most extraordinary scenes I’ve seen. I got back from Tyre on a very dangerous overland journey on an open road, which was under air attack, and I got back, and just before the electricity was cut, I saw the BBC reporting what the Israelis had said, but without questioning the morality that if someone fires a missile near your home, therefore it is perfectly okay for you to die.

AMY GOODMAN: We’ll return to our interview with Robert Fisk of the Independent newspaper in Britain, reporting from Beirut.

[break]

AMY GOODMAN: We return to our interview with Robert Fisk of the Independent. He has been based in Lebanon for the last 30 years. I spoke to him early this morning, after he had just returned from Tyre. I asked him to respond to Israel’s announcement it would suspend air strikes over southern Lebanon for 48 hours.

ROBERT FISK: That would certainly give the United Nations and particularly the International Red Cross the opportunity of getting thousands of people out of the region. But whether you can arrange convoys for thousands of people to leave in that period of time, I don’t know. The people who the haven’t left are either too frightened to leave, or they’re too poor, or they have no cars, or they’re too elderly or too young. Can the International Committee of the Red Cross with whom I have been traveling for some of the last few days — does that give them enough time to get people out? Does that mean there will be no shells on the road, or is it just air attacks that are stopping?

You know, it’s very interesting that the Israelis should say now, now after all these days, they’re going to give 48 hours. Why didn’t they give an extra 48 hours at the beginning to get the people out? Why now? Is this a bonus, a plus point, something you — a supermarket extra card that you win because you’ve killed so many people? Is it a monopoly board that you’re going to gamble? Okay, you get 48 hours free of air attack, because you killed so many people yesterday. Is that what this is supposed to mean?

AMY GOODMAN: In an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, it voted Sunday not for a cessation of hostilities — the U.S. was opposed to that — but to deplore what happened in Qana and an end to the violence. I asked Robert Fisk to respond.

ROBERT FISK: John Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has consistently opposed any kind of ceasefire, because he believes, as Mr. Bush does and as our own dear prime minister, Lord Blair, as I call him, does, that the Israelis can accomplish these hopeless political military aims. Well, the Israelis believe that they can actually destroy one of the most disciplined and most ruthless guerrilla armies in the world. They can’t, anymore than the Americans could destroy the Vietcong or the North Vietnamese or British could destroy the IRA. And, believe me, the Hezbollah are not as weak and cowardly as the IRA was. But they can’t. These are hopeless political aims. All the United Nations is doing by postponing a ceasefire is condemning more Lebanese to death. I wrote in Saturday’s paper, before Qana, that the actions of Blair and Bush, and Bolton by extension, and Condoleezza Rice, were going to condemn more innocents to death.

You know, I went into a hospital in Marjayoun last week, and I saw this very beautiful young woman lying in bed, and her skin had been pitted with very familiar wounds, the little tiny round crimson holes of cluster bomblets. We used cluster bombs in Iraq in 2003. I know exactly what the wounds look like. I identified them at once. Indeed, she described the cluster bombs falling like grapes, as she put it, out of the sky, oddly enough an expression used by an Iraqi woman in 2003 to me. This young woman had been wounded 48 hours before I saw her. Had Bush and Blair insisted on a ceasefire at the beginning, this woman, her skin would not be destroyed in the way it has been.

On the ground, when you’re here, when you see the wounded, see the dead, you realize the immorality, the obscenity, the atrocity of statesmen, as they think they are, claiming that, you know, it isn’t yet time for a ceasefire. A hasty ceasefire would not be a good thing, as Condoleezza Rice said. 24 hours before, I saw a picture of her on a beach in Malaysia. And people remember this. People remember this. In the hospital it was a young man who said — turned to me, he said, “Why have you done this to us? Why have you done this to us?” And the woman I was talking to said the same: “Why does the West want to do this to us?”

You know, this has been going on for more than two weeks now. I’m traveling around the south, increasingly outraged at what I see, as a human being. And I’m not a Muslim. I’m not a Muslim. And I keep saying to myself, “If I was a Muslim, how much more outraged might I be?” I turned to an American friend of mine tonight back in Beirut before I came home, and I said, “You know, I’ve been watching this now for more than two weeks, and there’s going to be another 9/11.” There’s going to be another 9/11, and then we’re going to hear all the usual claptrap about how it’s good versus evil, and they hate us because we’re good and democratic, and they hate our values, and all the other material that comes out of the rear end of a bull that your president and my prime minister talk.

What’s going on in southern Lebanon is an outrage. It’s an atrocity. The idea that more than 600 civilians must die because three Israeli soldiers were killed and two were captured on the border by the Hezbollah on July 12, my 60th birthday — I’ve spent 30 years of my life watching this, this filth now, you know — is outrageous. It’s against all morality to suggest that 600 innocent civilians must die for this. There is no other country in the world that could get away with this.

You know, when — I wrote in my paper last week, there were times when the IRA would cross from the Irish Republic into northern Ireland to kill British soldiers. And they did murder and kill British soldiers. But we, the British, didn’t hold the Irish government responsible. We didn’t send the Royal Air Force to bomb Dublin power stations and Galway and Cork. We didn’t send our tanks across the border to shell the hill villages of Cavan or Monaghan or Louth or Donegal. Blair wouldn’t dream of doing that, because he believes he’s a moral man, he’s a civilized man. He wouldn’t treat another nation like that.

But when the Israelis treat Lebanon like that, it’s okay, and Blair doesn’t want a ceasefire. You can’t have a real ceasefire. In other words, we’ve got to have the Lebanese on their knees to sign the dotted line, before we give them a ceasefire. And that dotted line means the disarmament of Hezbollah, which will be impossible for the Lebanese to do without restarting the civil war, because to disarm Hezbollah, you must use the army, and most of the Hezbollah are, of course, Shiite Muslims, and most of the army are Shiite Muslims. So you’re going to have brothers assaulting brothers to take their weapons away. It will not happen. However much you may wish it and however much I may wish it, it won’t happen. And, again, this double morality: Blair wouldn’t dream of attacking the Irish Republic because the IRA crossed the border from Ireland, but it’s quite in order for Israel to attack the Lebanese Republic because the Hezbollah crossed the border from Lebanon.

AMY GOODMAN: Robert Fisk, speaking to us from Beirut, Lebanon. He had just returned from Tyre, where victims of the Qana bombing had been taken. We’ll play part two of this interview tomorrow on Democracy Now!

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Robert Fisk Reports From Lebanon on the Israeli Bombing of Qana That Killed 57, Including 37 Children

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I hope Joe at least had the sense to have those “Ned is a racist” flyers printed at a union shop this time.

Is it just my monitor or are many of the images and videos coming out very dark?

d0n camillo @ 10

I hope Joe at least had the sense to have those “Ned is a racist” flyers printed at a union shop this time.

Yeah, I’m sure it was a union photocopier…

The remarkable thing is that the Lieberman camp is launching the racist attack the same weekend as Maxine Waters is stumping with Ned and just days before Al Sharpton comes to campaign for Ned.

How stupid does Joe Lieberman and his campaign brain trust (Sean Smith, Marion Steinfels, & Tom Lindenfeld) think CT’s black voters are? Gilliard’s right – these attacks on Lamont aren’t just spurious, they themself are racist.

Ned’s local Black leadership-type supporters know how to ‘play’ this flyer if they think it’s important to do. Black politics has its own style. Sharpton may have some ideas about it.

If this flyer was targeted at Black churches only, it’s important to let white folk know that Joe is playing the race card in last-minute desperation …

d0n at 10 — That would be a no.

*ilson46201 @ 14

Ned’s local Black leadership-type supporters know how to ‘play’ this flyer if they think it’s important to do. Black politics has its own style. Sharpton may have some ideas about it.

If it was me, I’d be saying something along the lines of, “Hey, everybody! Joe says Ned doesn’t care about the black community! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!”

I, um, may lack gravitas.

don @ 10 & eli @ 12 – no such luck…

The bottom of the flyer said that it was authorized and paid for by Friends of Joe Lieberman and printed “in-house with volunteer labor”.

It’s false, it’s non-union, and it’s racist. The new Lieberman fliers nail the trifecta.

It is just not an impressive flyer.

Hilda @ 18

It is just not an impressive flyer.

Nope. It kinda has “The End Is Nigh! Abortion Is Murder!” production values, IMO.

Salon article on Lieberman-

http://www.salon.com/opinion/f…..=whitelist

The flier’s front (Joe & Clinton) and back (attack on Lamont) can be viewed on Flickr courtesy of Maura.

Most interesting phrase on the flyer (down at the bottom of the second page): Says Lieberman is the only candidate “endorsed by the Democratic Party and President Clinton”. Since when has Joe been endorsed by the “Democratic Party”? I thought that’s what the primary was for?

Eli at 19,

It has no production values. A flyer has to grab your attention immediately and be limited to one page. Simple message, good graphics. This one doesn’t have much going for it.

Hilda @ 22

Eli at 19,

It has no production values. A flyer has to grab your attention immediately and be limited to one page. Simple message, good graphics. This one doesn’t have much going for it.

On the other hand, maybe they don’t want it to look too professional, so it’s easier for them to deny that the Lieberman campaign had anything to do with it. Just a few bad apples, don’tchaknow.

grayslady @ 22

Most interesting phrase on the flyer (down at the bottom of the second page): Says Lieberman is the only candidate “endorsed by the Democratic Party and President Clinton”. Since when has Joe been endorsed by the “Democratic Party”? I thought that’s what the primary was for?

i think that’s a reference to the CT Dem convention in April, where Ned forced the primary by getting 33% of the insider-Dems to vote for him. The balance was for Joe, which gave him “top-line” on the 8/8 ballot, and the “Dem endorsement.”

Also, thanks, me to me at 3:02. Incredible that such can happen on our planet.

Great pic, Jane!

Maxine Waters is one of my real living heroes. She picked up on some work regarding the race of prosecutors who have the discretion to seek death in this country. My friend calls it “the ivory snow study” because of how white that select group is 98% pure!) She and the congressional black caucus issued press statements and held hearings. Truly amazing to see an elected official try to right a wrong.

Syria is mobilizing it’s military. The escalation in the region continues.

Good to know that Schlumpy Joe is leading the new call for war and death.

IS he going to advocate carpet bombing in Bridgeport to stop crime?

-GSD

Maura said the racist flyer was folded into an official RGJoe flyer when put under windshields which is, in and of itself, apparently against Connecticut motor vehicle code. Ha!

http://www.myleftnutmeg.com/sh…..aryId=2407

It’s got the complete legal name of LieberSmear’s official campaign committee on it. No ambiguity or disavowal unless they pretend it is a fake (which does happen in politics)

As I said on an earlier thread, Joe and his consultants blew it by releasing the “Ned Lamont is Caucasian” flyer when they did. Now the preachers will have an opportunity next Sunday to call him out on his dishonesty.

Does anyone have contact information for Bill Clinton’s office? His picture is on the front of this flyer. He should disavow it. This is the way Joe rewards him for the endorsement?

Loserman.

That flyer is pathetic. I saw better stuff coming out of mimeograph machines in the first grade. Laughable!

Will Ned have virtual phone banks going over the weekend? Lots of free weekend cell phone minutes on the weekend…

Eli at 24

I think it says more about a “hurried” effort to get something out there. Or that his campaign staff is somewhat new or inexperienced.

One of the many delusions under which Holy Joe suffers is that he is black.

Others: that he’s a Democrat, that he’s a progressive, that he’s George Bush’s nemesis, that he’s representing Connecticut, that he’s BigDog’s friend.

Watch the scales drop from Joe’s eyes on August Ninth, when he phones around for moolah and help. Heh heh.

========
Had Enough?
========

shoephone got the flyer to a reporter at the Hartford NBC station about 2 hrs ago — hope it makes their evening news.

Howzat for action?!

Contact information for the BigDog Foundation:

http://www.kintera.org/site/c……cMSLnKbKvL

TeddySanFran

Another of Joenertia’s delusions is that he is making the country stronger and fighting terrorism by supporting Bush’s disasterous policies in Iraq.

And then there’s the one where he thinks he is supportive of pro-choice women…

At least mimeograph machines had that groovy blue ink smell.

Steve 949, I’ve got the same problem. Do you ALSO have an antique monitor?

spew warning: watertiger’s image of Condi playing piano

…and you could get a buzz from some of the chemicals used on those older replication systems (not good for the liver!)

My letter to the big guy:

“Dear President Clinton:

I have great respect for you and the leadership you have shown in the Democratic Party, both when you were President and since. So it is with a heavy heart that I must tell you I feel you made a major mistake by endorsing Sen. Joe Lieberman in his primary race in Connecticut. I hope you are aware by now that he used a photo of the two of you together on the front of a brochure that wrongly attacked Ned Lamont for being a racist, which he is not. This story is getting national exposure on the Internet, if not yet in the mainstream media. You need to come out and condemn Lieberman for this Lee Atwater-style venture into gutter politics. Respectfully, [neurophius], a Democrat for 34 years

More like a barfbag warning, that needed, punaise!

btw everyone, Steve Gilliard was nice enough to lighten up the picture above a bit, so you could see everyone’s faces. So if you refresh, you’ll get a better photo.

Having grown up in Greenwich, Lieberman’s “accusation” is laughable and pathetic – and I think many people in CT will think of it as such. It’s the same kind of tactic as focusing on the fact that Lamont is wealthy and lives in Greenwich.

Unfortunately, Greenwich has been the bastion of wealthy white people for generations. If anything, in the past 25 years it has become a bit more multicultural because of all the multinational corporations based in NY and CT bringing in top executives from around the world.

I can’t see how trying to “blame” Lamont for Roundhill Country Club’s policies or infer anything by his membership is going to do anything for Lieberman. Lamont can easily counteract that by the life he has chosen to live, i.e. teaching, public service, etc. He’s hardly coupon clipping.

What a putz Lieberman is. And I’m furious at Clinton. He had to know how his photo op would be used. As the days go by I get angrier and angrier at the Democratic establishment. I’ve been a life-long Dem but the party is about to lose me. If the “establishment” defeats Lamont the Dem party will never get one more penny from me.

I hate to say Ralph Nader was right in 1999 about both parties being about the same. They shouldn’t be – they didn’t used to be. However it’s beginning to look more and more like the Dem abdication of their role as opposition to the insane Bush admin is intentional, not circumstantial (i.e. 9/11)

Ha’aretz

Prime Minister says fighting won’t end until rocket threat gone

Olmert: There will be no cease-fire in coming days

By Ze’ev Schiff, Amos Harel and Aluf Benn, Haaretz Correspondents, Haaretz Service and Agencies

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s political-security cabinet voted in the early hours of Tuesday morning to expand Israel’s ground operation in south Lebanon.

Under the plan, and similar to last week’s operation carried out in Bint Jbail, IDF forces will mount raids on villages that have served as Hezbollah bases. The plan was presented to Olmert during meetings held Saturday with Defense Minister Amir Peretz and defense establishment heads.

lotus – sorry, your hurlage may vary

Uh Joe, you thundering industry hack – that flyer? Beyond pathetic. Man, you are the dumbest fuck imagineable. Roll over Short Ride, and good luck finding a decent knucklehead job anyfuckingwhere. You are an insult to our intelligence and a war whore.

Breaking news: Israeli Security Cabinet approves widening the ground offensive in Lebanon, officials tell CNN.

ABC News is also reporting this.

Heh,
I just got my new voter registration card in the mail. And ,Boy Howdy, do I plan to use it.

That flyer is a perfect metaphor for its message.

Shabby, low-class trash.

Wow, Christy and Steve G, thanks! Now I see there are not only three people there, but three of my favorite people!

Steve Gilliard, you are The Man in all ways.

The smiles and the warmth from that photo speak volumes about this race.

Oh Stephen Parrish, with that news I think I’m going to cry.

Time to call Clinton again. I already spoke to someone about Jane and Spazeboy’s ouster the other day. If Clinton is OK with this flyer my head will explode.

Bill, seems I hardly knew ya!

Another big article on the Lamont race–

http://www.prospect.org/web/pa…..leId=11785

Let’s shower the Clinton Foundation with feedback on his embrace of Ol’ Black Joe.

TeddySanFran posted a link at 3:24 p.m. above.

Don’t allow Clinton to remain silent on this.

there’s a derogatory saying in French: ca vole au raz de paquerettes which translates literally as “that flies just above the daisies”. it’s meaning is something like “that’s so low it’s beneath contempt”.

Joe’s flyer is buzzing the daisies.

Olmert and his “Security Cabinet” have just signed Israel’s death warrant.

Those stupid FUCKS!

Eli @ 3:06

I, um, may lack gravitas.

It’s ok Eli, you make up for it by being plucky and adventurey.

My fellow African Americans,

It has come to my attention that Ned Lamont has had his crazy web attack lambs “whiten” a picture of Maxine Waters. I would never “whiten” Maxine Waters, black is beautiful.

-Joe Lieberman

Link to Yahoo report on Syria’s military alert and report of a bombing in Golan in “solidarity” with Lebanon.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/200…..t_assad_dc

-GSD

Eli is plucky!

Thanks the photo looks much better…on both CRT and LCD monitors.

Looking at the seemingly solid alliance between the American right-wing Christian fundamentalists and the Israeli government, I think if I were Jewish I would be very skeptical. As I understand (and professing no expertise in the matter) the quite grim eschatology of the nutty Christian right, rests upon the supposition that the end of the world is near and that using the Book of Revelation, (as their only source of metaphysics) this end will begin in the Middle East and the Israeli’s will be the driving force. Accordingly, these religious fanatics believe that this Armageddon will occur in the context of genocidal warfare. According to this scenerio, Jesus Christ cannot return unless the Jews are in possession of the Holy Land. And before “the end”, the rapture will occur and the faithful will be lifted into the sky above the fray. And here’s the kicker. After all this happens, the Antichrist will massacre Jews who have not converted to Christianity and been baptized. If I were viewing all of this through a Jewish prism I might be concerned about what Bush, who afterall is a Christian fundamentalist who deeply subscribes the the rapture, has planned for all of us Jews. And perhaps who the religious right has in mind for the Antichrist to do end-game dirty work. From this perspective, if I were Jewish, I would not be friendly with the U.S Christian fundamentists. No way! And I certainly wouldn’t be helping the fundie lunatics accomplish their goals and be assisting them in annihilating my people. The alliance between the neo-con fundamentalists, who are driving this Mideast horror and Isrel seems simply to make no sense whatsoever.

DAB – it gets to you, but with Jane sending the Ned News, and Howie Klein showcasing one great candidate after another on the Sat. slots here, you feel better. Whether they are in our region or not, if we can start getting some of those candidates into Congress, they can make a difference. Even having them “knock and announce” helps.

punaise @ 40

spew warning: watertiger’s image of Condi playing piano

ROFLMAO! Thanks for the warning! That is definitely one of the best WT has put up!

Oklahoma kiddo -

It’s an extreme disconnect lately – I have friends, passionate progressives, Jewish, who are playing the “Israel has to defend itself” card. I’m speechless.

How can a liberal defend this? Especially if you care particularly about Israel and its people. Like lotus said above, it’s a death warrant.

Jane: No offense to Steve, but he’s both busy, and I’m a professional photographer, so if you need help with an image (fixing, not doctoring, I’ve never bothered to learn the tricks needed to make those look decent) drop me a note.

TK

Ayatollah Sistani is making some noises about the Lebanon/Israel war.

Al Sadr also has deep roots in Lebanon too. This is looking like the “Shiite Crescent” might become a ring of fire with 130,000 Americans smack dab in the middle.

(Snip)

“Islamic nations will not forgive the entities that hinder a cease-fire,” al-Sistani said, in a clear reference to the United States.

“It is not possible to stand helpless in front of this Israeli aggression on Lebanon,” he added. “If an immediate cease-fire in this Israeli aggression is not imposed, dire consequences will befall the region.”

(End)

Perhaps this is why Bush/Cheney are ramping up US troops in Iraq.

Pride goeth before the fall.

http://www.canada.com/story.ht…..48a0c02eda

-GSD

Nice post, Jane. But I have to admit I’m starting to get just a wee-bit uncomfortable with the constant invocation of race in this … race.

Look: both candidates are rich white males. Neither is an overt racist, but in the eyes of people of color, I can assure you that neither is pure as driven snow either.

I’m a Connecticut resident, an Asian American, a technology entrepreneur whose 2 business partners are African American, a Buddhist, a political activist, a humanist, a naturalist, and a voter. In other words, race is not the only orienting factor in my worldview and persona. When my business partners and I socialize with white folks (e.g. investor meetings, posting on the liberal blogosphere), I don’t mind talking about race at all, in fact I enjoy good dialogue on this crucial subject; but there comes a point when it begins to seem like that’s all we’ve been talking about for too long, and then it begins to feel like my race is all white folks can see when they relate to me. Any person of color knows what I’m talking about: I mention movies, they say they love kung fu flicks; I mention sports, they say they love Ichiro; I mention my love of fine food, they mention their favorite Chinese restaurant. It’s a familiar pattern.

My point is this: Ned Lamont can win African American votes and Asian votes and Latino votes by simply speaking the truth and standing up for what’s right. I can assure you that Lieberman’s pathetic flyers are no match for that.

In my view, it would be a mistake to over-racialize Lamont’s candidacy. There’s something offensive about over-emphasizing that angle. Bill Clinton could get away with it because he’s Bill Clinton; most white politicians should not try it. Lamont just needs to stay true to himself and his own humanity; he should speak from the heart, without guile; in communities of color, that’s more impressive than any politically-motivated manipulation of imagery or rhetoric.

Peace.

Jane’s remark about Joe thinking he’s black reminded me of the time when me, Jane, the DumpJoe guys, the Kiss Float, and CTBlogger were hanging out on the sidewalk during Joe’s AFL-CIO BBQ.

As soon as Joe’s car pulled up, the track on the CD player was changed to “Soul Man” and the volume was turned up to 11.

The man is delusional.

Per Oklahoma kiddo at 3:45
Jewish Voice for Peace
“Opposed to Bombing Civilians? Sign Jewish Call to Action Petition
Saw the “What is Israel Doing?” ad we are running in The Nation?”….

Have been reading the good blogs for days and have yet to see an analysis of the rovian election strategy at play in the attack on Lebanon.
Israel is obviously the giant wedge between the Democratic Party leadership and pundits (totally cowed by AIPAC) and the Democratic base (naturally repelled by jingoistic militarism). With one deft blow of the IDF mallet Karl has driven this wedge deep into what was barely starting to resemble a challenge to his 4th Reich. Even Howard Dean has felt compelled to made a total ass of himself over the Maliki comments. I would guess that those remarks were penned in the WH, giving a tiny bone to Maliki for his relatively non-existent base while advancing Karl’s agenda of demonizing the Shia (the next puppet’s probably supposed to be a Sunni anyway) at the same time he slips the Dems a poisoned red herring.
I wish one of the big blog brains would tackle this soon; as usual Karl has a two week lead and appears to be pulling away fast.

Eli is plucky!

I wish that sounded like a good thing…

In my view, it would be a mistake to over-racialize Lamont’s candidacy. There’s something offensive about over-emphasizing that angle. Bill Clinton could get away with it because he’s Bill Clinton; most white politicians should not try it. Lamont just needs to stay true to himself and his own humanity; he should speak from the heart, without guile; in communities of color, that’s more impressive than any politically-motivated manipulation of imagery or rhetoric.

I thought that was what he was doing…

Topics have gone way off on this thread, but Billmon has a comment from Hosni Mubarak that sort of sounds like Egypt’s distancing themselves from Israel. That is not a good development.

John Casper 72

Thanks for the link. I will send it around, but as far as I can tell the positions are so hardened that no one is listening. sigh.

Does Ned have a campaign slogan? To highlight the differences between him and Joe, how about:

A Democrat you CAN believe in.

Please watch this video and then decide who did 9/11

http://www.c-span.org/

“Theories about 9-11 (American Perspectives) (7/29/2006)”

JennyftB, I give you terrific credit for even trying.

What Kai said at 70 mades sense to me Lamont wins by speaking the truth and standing up for what’s right.

Lieberman’s playing of the race card is so patently tawdry (and so badly done!) that I think it can quite safely be left to speak for itself.

Fern @ 79

Lieberman’s playing of the race card is so patently tawdry (and so badly done!) that I think it can quite safely be left to speak for itself.

It has a definite “Some of my best friends are black” feel to it…

John Casper, thanks.

I’d love to share some of the emails I’m getting from friends, but it’s just too much. I have to be honest, I’ve limited my contact with some of these people lately. This issue goes to the heart of who you are as a human being and I’m straining to understand… with no luck.

Senator Hagel, you undermine the presidents’ credibility at our nations’ peril.

-Sloppy Joe Lieberman

Sen. Hagel calls for an end to the “sickening slaughter”.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20…..0731194413

-GSD

CBS evening news just had a nice (and lengthy) profile on the the CT race with a lot of exposure for Ned. Really nice to see the exposure and explanation of the importance of the race.

Fern 79 -

Unfortunately that’s what Kerry thought about the Swiftboat lies. It can’t safely be left to speak for itself.

I agree Eli at 4:01, as though Joezoe has the ballast be be able to call someone else a racist.
Since I’m not in CT, it’s tough to tell how to respond, and African Americans are not a monolithic group, which I’m sure Ned’s people already know.
Ultimately, Ned just has to stay on message. More than most Americans, African American are very much against the Iraq Occupation. Plus, a lot of them will remember that MLK so disappointed LBJ, when he came out against Vietnam.
I have not yet called Maxine Water’s office to tell her how much I appreciate her support for Ned. If anyone has a better way of expressing gratitude to her, I’m interested.

CNN – israel mobilizing another 15,000 reservists

I don’t think Ned should spend a whole lot of time on this, but he does need to put Joe’s lies in their place. It’s a matter of self-respect.

Did SteveG PhotoShop that pic on a PC or a Mac? Just askin’.

@; )

I am getting something really funky in the comments that I have never seen before. Every comment has at the end in gray highlight Quote this Comment. Mouse over links to curren post. Also, all dates have red * afer them.!!!!!

AND after the comment appeared, more gray stuff came up, includin the option of editing this comment!!!!????

I think my son did a better flyer when we lost our dog. And he was three years old.

OT -

Sam Seder is back on the air with a vengence. :)

M @ 89

I am getting something really funky in the comments that I have never seen before. Every comment has at the end in gray highlight Quote this Comment. Mouse over links to curren post. Also, all dates have red * afer them.!!!!!

M, check down a few threads – new nifty comment capabilities, and “Quote this Comment” is one of them. :)

(Not sure what the red asterisks are, though.)

Thanks JennyftB. IMO it’s all about “readiness.” They are not ready and I suspect you would only make things worse if you tried to push it.

The Nefarious Leslie @ 93

(Not sure what the red asterisks are, though.)

Possibly comments that are less than 40 minutes old, but I’m not entirely sure why.

Thanks, NefLes- sorry I am overwhelmed with work today. But it is kinda weird being able to edit your own comment– I mean that could ***really*** confuse the discussion- as in NO, I didn’ say that…. and hell for the mods too, maybe, if I were to go back in slip in something hmmm and then they had to look at the comment again!!!

Eli @
95

The Nefarious Leslie @ 93

(Not sure what the red asterisks are, though.)

Possibly comments that are less than 40 minutes old, but I’m not entirely sure why.

They go away when one refreshes the entire page.

Valley, it’s explained in this thread.
http://www.firedoglake.com/200…..en-thread/

They go away when one refreshes the entire page.

I saw something in the explanation thread about comments since one’s last comment being highlighted or something, but that doesn’t appear to be what they are.

Watching the BBC news is heartbreaking. One many crying, “Is there no conscience left in this world?” I’m pissed that Israel thinks that just telling people to get out is justification for slaughtering them. Where are they supposed to go? Why are they supposed to leave everything they have in this world? What if they don’t have the ways and means. What if they didn’t get the message? To add insult to injury, Monster Mustache speaking at the UN is just nauseating.

new thread: Book Club: “50 Simple Things you can do to Fight the Right”

Jenny from the Blog @ 84 & 87:

I agree, Ned should respond swiftly and severely to Joe’s ridiculous attacks (okay, here’s a racial stereotype for y’all: I’m an Asian martial artist who firmly believes in unapologetic self-defense). I mentioned on a previous thread that I think Lamont should offer his defense standing alone, without a crutch/token black leader by his side, demonstrating his confidence in his own humanity and the intelligence of voters. When black leaders are tokenized by white politicians, both parties erode their respect in communities of color. I’m happy to say that there’s no conflict between your suggestion and my rant at 70.

Also, I agree with you re Israel-Lebanon, but that’s a whole other topic…

Peace.

Ah. I think they’re supposed to mark comments from since the last time I checked, but it might only take page refreshes into account rather than use of the Refresh Comments button.

Kai 102 -

I mentioned on a previous thread that I think Lamont should offer his defense standing alone, without a crutch/token black leader by his side, demonstrating his confidence in his own humanity and the intelligence of voters.

That is an outstanding idea. Peace to you, Kai.

Meta 48 said:
“Roll over Short Ride, and good luck finding a decent knucklehead job anyfuckingwhere.”

That was mean. And wrong. Joe isn’t going to lose because he has a lot more principles he can abandon in the next week if he has to. Even if he should lose, which he won’t, Dubya will appoint him Abstinence Only Sex Education Czar. Those kids won’t be thinking about sex when Joes’ Picture is hanging in every schoolroom in America!
Take that fangy lambkins!

This is odd: My very moderate comment (no. 73) took 15 minutes to to post! It finally appeared in its correct chronological location with a note “your comment is awaiting moderation”. Can someone please explain?

M,

Hello my friend! How is Grant?

Burying the lede, Jane? *g*

Joe is raising over $100,000 a day now from people who have gotten good paying gigs in the Bush kleptocracy.

This is shocking. Reverend Sharpton might highlight this in Connecticut communities he speaks with when he visits. It’s appalling that there are people with this kind of money eager — nay, anxious — to allow RGJoe to keep his life peerage.

America simply doesn’t work that way anymore, suckers.

Welcome to the 21st century — and kobe rules!

You guys are on a hell of a roll. Feels like those Bobby Kennedy days of yore. I hope it’s infectious.

Oh yeah, Watch out Ms. Ned…

Imm- DEaDline tomorrow. An all-nighter for sure. Def. birth pangs- CSection (not that I’ve done either)… just taking a few moments to decompress by reading FDL..and how was VacationLand?

meta 100 -

You said it so beautifully — You speak for me.

Vacationland was terrific! But I returned with some wicked flu bug. I am bed ridden with fever and off to the Doc tomorrow. Guess my body craved more downtime. Meanwhile, August 14 deadline on my article. Help!!

Kai, I’m not getting your reference to white politicians tokenizing black politicians. I doubt Maxine Waters sees herself as any kind of “a crutch/token black leader by his side” and neither do I. It’s possible that the African American community sees it as a genuine coalition as well. Maxine believes in Lamont, and she wanted to be there. Her choice. She wants him to win and she is taking it to the streets. I don’t see anything offensive on either of their parts. This is what community looks like.

I hope the votes of African Americans are counted in Connecticut. Or will it be like everywhere else in the past 6 years?

Doesn’t matter how many blacks … or any other Conn. voter … VOTES — it matters whether it is counted or not.

Did Israel ever send troops to Iraq after 911? Did Bush ask? I don’t remember…

Jenny, I’m just beside myself with the horrific cruelty. Images of people wandering in shock with nothing left, children sobbing, grandmothers with emptiness in their eyes, bodies and destruction everywhere. I will never understand this. Never.

even George Bush recognized that sending Israeli troops to Iraq would be politically poisonous and impossible which is not to say that Israel has not been involved in supportive roles in Northern Iraq (Kurdistan).

cc, NO, Israel never supplied troops to Iraq or was asked to — they’d have been the first mown down, had they been there.

HOW-EVAH …

Sy Hersh on Israeli-Kurdish pussyfooting

meta @ 113:

You’re right, Waters is no token, which is a major part of why we love her (I lived in L.A. before I moved to the Northeast). Beyond that, I’m not sure what else you’re trying to say, since the phenomenon of white politicians tokenizing black leaders for cynical purposes isn’t exactly ground-breaking at this point … is it?

My own point is quite simply that I think it would be a strong statement of confidence for Lamont to defend himself against Lieberman’s absurd slur without leaning on a black leader by his side whose entire presence would certainly have a “token” dimension to it. If Waters chose to play such a role, I’d still respect her for all she’s done, but I’d be ever so slightly disappointed in both parties.

If you have further questions about my statement, I’d be happy to answer them as best as can. Thanks for your comment.

Peace.

meta -

I like Kai’s idea a lot. Nothing to do with which person or people stand beside Ned – just the notion of him standing alone is a standout image with a lot of impact. I think that’s what Kai is saying.

And I tried to compose a longer answer back to your 100 but all I can say over and over again is I’m heartbroken and more. This is so bad… our foundations are crumbling so rapidly. I’m grateful you’re so articulate because at the moment I’m just drop-jawed and practically mute with horror and sadness…

Hmmm – my totally innocuous comment did not post at all. It was a comment about the Salon article.

What’s up?

*ilson said…even George Bush recognized that sending Israeli troops to Iraq would be politically poisonous and impossible which is not to say that Israel has not been involved in supportive roles in Northern Iraq (Kurdistan).

Politically, do you think Bush will eventually send American troops in? If Israeil is asking for International troops, which nations are they expecting to come to their aid to kill civilians?

Ooo, thunder nearing again, so I’ll prolly hafta split soon. Before I go, would somebody please remind me when Colbert reruns the next day? Thankee.

(If you haven’t read that Sy Hersh piece before, or it’s fuzzy in your memory by now, it’s pretty uncanny.)

In other words, I just can’t picture who would want to help…

OT (again)
imm- sounds wicked bad, not wicked good! Drink plenty of liquids! We can talk later about that Aug. 14 thingy. Ouch, as I’m sure a flu bug is not what you needed. Frankly, reading FDL’s “Your daily Ned” every day has kept me going. I am feeling upbeat on that account at least.

The weather has been oppressive here, heat and humidity, AC broken, so my VLand break was a great respite. My recent drink du jour has been “Alka-Seltzer on the rocks”. Actually, a bit of advice and this is not as whacko as it may sound- I find it does make a difference- get some potassium gluconate tabs from the local Rite-Aid– seems to help with low energy for me. Also, have awakened screaming in the night from sudden muscle cramps in legs– truly painful. Also some Mg tabs- one mineral almost anyone is deficient in. Both have seemed to help for energy, and also one or the other has stopped the horrible muscle stuff! Go easy on the Mg tho- small dose only, as it can lead to… umm.. rapid passage of stuff out the anatomical end of the the digestive system.. oh geez.. sorry for all the detail, but as we are in EPU land I hope I will be forgiven.

Apologies to all- I am following the horrific stuff too, but just don’t have the heart to add much credible to the discussion right now.

Jenny, I too agreed with Kai on that point. But sharply disagree with his logic. I think what is happening is perfectly good.

Jenny @ 121:

I too have been badly shaken by what’s happening in Lebanon. And what makes matters worse is the utter absence of rational dialogue in America on how to help alleviate this predictable mess (e.g. first, stop killing; second, start talking; third, keep on talking rather than killing). The decontextualized declaration than “Israel has a right to defend herself” is neither a relevant statement nor a path to peace. As a martial artist, I believe in firm self-defense, but I would not kill an entire family after being slightly bruised by one of its toddlers.

My favorite Jewish progressive publication, Tikkun (founded by the amazing Rabbi Michael Lerner), offers this suggestion in search of hope. Check out the entire site for more nuggets of sanity…

Peace (please).

Kai, I understand perfectly well that people of color are often tokenized in all walks of life. I guess we just don’t understand each other! That’s ok. I believe you are contributing a lot to the discussion, and I’m just trying to express my reaction on a day when I am filled with a lot of emotion. Thanks.

meta 127 -

Gotcha. Apologies if I misunderstood.

kai 128 – Thanks, I will check out your link.

meta @ 127:

Yes, what is happening is perfectly good. Indeed, I’m a volunteer in the Lamont campaign, and I don’t see our disagreement…?

meta @ 129:

I feel you. It’s been a tough day for me too (actually, more like tough week, maybe month). As Christy said in a recent post, we’re all a bit frayed around the edges. Times of war are like this, I guess.

I’m glad we managed to have a good, civil exchange.

Peace.

this is odd: my very moderate comment (no. 73) took 15 minutes to to post! it finally appeared in its correct chronological location with a note “your comment is awaiting moderation”. can someone please explain?

i’ve had the same problem often times. so i accidentally wind up posting twice, and looking like a real schmuck.

Well I must say I am enjoying African-American day in the blogosphere.

Props to Christie for her strong black woman post this morning. You put me to shame.

Neurophius – “‘Ol Black Joe” – LMAO

Kai – Your posts have been on the money all day.

Seriously I hope everyone realizes that from a voting perspective black people don’t change their votes because of a flyer or an appearance by Al Sharpton. As Christie and Kai so eloquently stated African-Americans have the same concerns as everyone else, and Lamont should continue with his positive outreach.

Carry on soul sistas…

They had better put this fire out quick,bush or no bush,’cause it has the potential to burn the whole world.60%of the worlds energy comes from a area the size of Illinois.I am sure it has crossed the mind of many that if they destroy the transport facilities,and leave the production intact,they could destroy the USA in 30 days.less if you count what will happen to the financial markets

Thanks Skippy,
I was worried lest some form of censorship was involved. Still no response to No.73; so I suppose there will be none.

da nada, nobtsheep.

NationofBTS — If you’re still around, “moderation” means that the spam filters netted your comment for reasons that are known only to the filters. A moderator will rescue it, usually quite quickly, but sometimes on a busy night it can take a while. It may already have been released, but you won’t see it if you just hit “refresh comments.” Refresh the whole page (F5) and you should see it at the time slot you originally posted it. And welcome, if you’re new! P.S. Skippy, you never look like a shmuck. Ever.

Skippy is the cat’s pajamas!!!

Breaking CNN….

Fidel Castro hands over power to his brother. WOW!

Edited: Might be only temporary due to surgery…

Fidel Castro hands over power to his brother

And in a fit of pique and one-upsmanship, George hands the reins of the White House to Neil.

Another Rovian trick by Dan Gerstein has been to set up a fake “unofficial” blog that supports Lieberman.

Lieberdem is a blog that has a tag line “The (Unofficial) Blog for Practical Progressives”. It also carries a disclaimer that

“This website is not funded by, authorized by, or affiliated with any campaign or candidate.”

That is a boldface lie.

But the reality, hidden from readers is that one of the two “contributors” is Dan Gerstein, now newly identified as an official Lieberman spokesperson.

Ironically, the blog’s newest post is entitled “More Truth on Lieberman’s Record” but it pitches this material in the guise of being an independent voice, separate from the campaign. Nowhere on the site is there any acknowledgment that Dan Gerstein is a paid Lieberman flack/hack.

Jane –

I’m getting nervous. With a week left until the primary, Lieberman is putting a boatload of cash into the GOTV effort. I’ve heard little to nothing about Ned’s GOTV plans.

It’s all well and good to pat ourselves on the back and wave the NY Times endorsement in Joe’s face, but that won’t mean squat if Ned falls short next Tuesday. I know you probably can’t divulge details, but what is your impression of Ned’s operation at the moment?

Mocha Dem @ 134

Seriously I hope everyone realizes that from a voting perspective black people don’t change their votes because of a flyer or an appearance by Al Sharpton.

Thanks for your comment, Mocha Dem. You’ve succinctly stated what I’ve been trying to say for like a dozen posts.

Cheers.

Lieberdem huh? stupid fucks! Guess who just now owns the LieberDem domain? Moi !

In about an hour, the forwarding will take hold and http://www.LieberDem.com will go to an amusing place …

jane baby! You look fabulous…yeah well you ARE fabulous!

I have tremendous respect for the CBC.
Those congressman and congresswomen can teach us all about how to fight the good fight with both passion and intellect. They are truly inspiritional!

It is dishonest, fraudulent bullshit to say that the Democratic Party has “endorsed” Joe Lieberman. What a criminal load of bullshit. Is it illegal to produce fake endorsements? If I say that NARAL endorsed me and they did not, is that an FEC issue? The whole point of the election as noted in another comment above to answer that very question. Had he said Schumer or the DSCC, maybe.

Self-righteous ponderer moralist Joe. Fraud. To think I took joy in his nomination for VP.

WOW! It took me a whole 15 seconds to stop laughing! Way to Go!

Keep up the good work! Next, show a copy of the Kiss Float stalking the LieberBus!

Follow it up with an Windows Media Clip of Maxine Waters holding up and denouncing that Rove/Lieber/Reed hit piece appearing on windshields at Black Churches. It would be so wonderful to hear her get indignant at Joe’Nertia’s going lower than a snake’s belly in a Wagon Rut! Can’t you hear it now: “How dare Senator Lieberman stoop this low and insult our intelligence….does he really think we are stupid enough to buy this?” The Windows clip would be a great way to get the message across cheaply. When Granny speaks about the message she got in the church parking lot–her grandkids could be there playing Waters and would that make someone mad at being played for the fool, or what?

Follow that up with Ned holding up the flyer on TV and denouncing it himself. He could simply get on TV, White Shirt, Tie, Rolled up sleeves and hold it up as another Reason “why Joe’s Rovian dirty tricks, should be ended once and for all”.

Just wanna say, awesome pic. That’s what the America I want to live in looks like.

JFK wouldn’t even recognise this party anymore. It’s been so taken over by pseudo-Republicans like Joe Lieberman !

Representative Democracy in the form of a Federal Republic is based on people from each state voting in that state. It is somewhat revealing that you feel you should to leave the state that legally represents you in Congress and try to influence the will of the people in another state. I don’t care who CT sends to Congress, it is none of my business as I don’t live there. Unless you are a resident of CT, leave the representation of that state to the citizens who live there. If they aren’t smart enough to vote the way you want them to, that should remain their problem.
Just exactly what form of government do you think this country should have?

[ Moderator: 80% of Lieberman’s contributors are from out-of-state. They paid for that CT seat, fair and square! ]

EEprom @
152

JFK wouldn’t even recognise this party anymore. It’s been so taken over by pseudo-Republicans like Joe Lieberman !

As for JFK not recognising the party……YOU ARE RIGHT!!

But he would definately be on the side of Joe!! JFK was a conservative…..remember who sent a warning shot across the bow of Russian vessels….hmm…..I think he would roll over in his grave if he knew which direction the Dem party was going right now!!

http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/progjfk4.htm

Fiscally, JFK was also hardly the “progressive.” As noted, his entire pre-presidential career had been based on distancing himself from the New Deal tradition. To be sure, he had to support all of the existing New Deal programs but there is no evidence that he had any desire to implement a new wave of big government spending. Indeed, the one thing of JFK’s fiscal policy that is most remembered is his call for a cut in the capital gains tax, an idea that is now at the centerpiece of the Republican economic program. JFK’s own Secretary of the Treasury, Douglas Dillon, had been a Republican holdover from the Eisenhower Administration.