Congratulations President Obama!

Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP

Well, it's time.  I've put this off too long.  Between you and me, I am concerned that when I write this that I will spontaneously-combust (99.94% sure, anyway).  Okay, probably NOT the most rational thought pattern, but just to be sure, I have aluminum foil on the floor surrounding my rolling desk chair, I've basted myself with Kikkoman Teriyaki Glaze and...  I've got three cups of rice started in the new Rice Cooker up in the kitchen.  You know, just in case there is a sudden burst of heat and I 'go into the light' over this one.

With the November, 2012 elections nearly three months in the rear-view mirror, I want to take a break, to slow down, and share with you a few words of praise for the President.  Oops, I'm sorry, he's OUR PRESIDENT.  He represents all of US, doesn't he? 

Yes.  Yes he does.  

The Constitution works.  He won.  Time for me to get over it.  

And now, a few heartfelt words of praise and thanks for the President for his victory and the hard-fought battle so many made possible... 

Now is the time.   Now is the place.  Now is the post:



Words of Praise for the President of the United States and His Party

The world breathed a sigh of relief and a shout of joy went up clear across the country when Ohio was called for President Barack Obama on election night, putting him over the 270 electoral college threshold to win four more years.
 
Yet in that shout of joy for a giant people's victory was also the realization that we can't miss a beat going forward in this ongoing battle to wrest the country from the grip of the reactionary, corporate right-wing extremists.
 
We and the country have been through a remarkable, challenging, grueling, exhausting and exhilarating year, really two years.  We have given our all within a maturing, expanding broad  electoral alliance and people's movement.

Congratulations are in order!

Our projection that the election was at the heart of the class struggle, that we were at the crossroads for democracy has been born out.  Our policy of the need for and commitment to help build a broad united alliance against the extremists is being proven sound.
 
The election of tea party Republicans to Congress and Governorships and State Houses in 2010, reflecting a racist backlash from the election of the first African American president, brought with it a full blown campaign to undo every democratic achievement ever won by the people of this country.  Finance capital was on overdrive to grab every public asset for the private profit of a few at the expense of the many.
 
The extremes between great hoarded wealth and growing poverty exposed the inequalities of capitalism and gave rise to giant struggles for livelihood and the right to be heard. 
Millions became engaged, many for the first time, from the massive fights for workers' rights in Wisconsin and Ohio, to the dramatic protests of economic inequality by Occupy and at Bainport, to the inspiring actions for social justice by the Dreamers, to courageous stands in defense of women's reproductive rights and marriage equality, to  determined fightback against racist voter suppression most notably in Florida, Texas and Pennsylvania, and then the realization, in the wake of Storm Sandy, that yes, we are all in this together.
 
All these challenges, experiences, and organizing drives laid the groundwork for a historic effort by labor, civil rights, women and youth along with environmental and LGBT organizations.  The result is majority repudiation of the politics and policies of the 1%, exemplified by the glimpse into raw class warfare as Mitt Romney dismissed 47% of the people.
 
Romney's outrageous statement blaming his loss on "Obama's gifts" (like healthcare and student loans) to "certain groups" ramps up the class warfare and disrespect.
 
The media plays up the idea that the election shows a widening racial divide.  In reality, what this election shows is a new level of co(m)ing together, of class and social solidarity, of rejecting racism.

It was growing class consciousness that made victory possible for so many progressive candidates and ballot measures which featured anti-corporate arguments in their campaigns.

The high finances and tactics of Karl Rove, the Koch Brothers and company to seize this election did not work.  Gerrymandered redistricting, restrictive voting laws, anti-Communist baiting, racist ads, lies and trickery backfired.
 
These blatant attacks got people's attention.  They gave rise to a civil rights style movement in communities across the nation embracing the increasing diversity of our country.

Determination and resolve became the order of the day to overcome all obstacles and get out the largest vote ever.  In Ohio the mobilization by African American churches and organizations, refusing to be disenfranchised, filled long lines at early voting stations for a month.  On election day, in some precincts the wait was hours long (in Miami-Dade County till 1:30 am!), but people stood it out.  In New Jersey and New York, despite the consequences of storm Sandy, voters cast their ballots.
 
President Obama carried all the tipping point swing states.  His electoral college sweep and popular vote win is a tremendous accomplishment made possible by a powerful grass roots on-the-ground effort joining together labor and progressive democratic-minded forces.  It set the framework for all the other races.
 
While the U. S. House of Representatives remains in Republican hands, it is a different House with new dynamics.  Republicans won the majority of seats due to gerrymandering, but more votes were cast for Democrats nationwide.
 
Six tea party incumbents were defeated by progressive democrats.   Additional progressives won open seats, although every race was not won.  Tea party leaders Alan West, Joe Walsh, Brian Bilbray and Mary Bono Mack are out. Progressives Alan Grayson from Florida,  Tammy Duckworth from Illinois, Carol Shea-Porter and Annie Kuster from New Hampshire, Dr. Raul Ruiz from Riverside California, and Mark Pocan, a leader in the Wisconsin walkout, are in.
 
The composition of the 200 member Democratic Caucus will make history. In the words of Nancy Pelosi, "for the first time in Congressional history -- the majority will be women and minorities. We expect to have 61 women, 43 African Americans, 27 Hispanics, 10 Asian Americans and 6 LGBT Americans in our Caucus."
 
In the Senate, the Democratic majority has been enlarged to 54.  Notorious tea party Republican challengers Todd Aiken and Richard Mourdock went down to defeat. Newly elected progressive women bring the total of women Senators from 17 to 20.  Mazie Hirono the first Asian American woman, Tammy Baldwin the first openly gay woman, and Elizabeth Warren who said "the system is rigged against you." Heidi Heitkamp won in North Dakota, Chris Murphy defeated billionaire wrestling mogul Linda McMahon.  Sherrod Brown, who was a top target of the right-wing, won re-election in Ohio as did Bernie Sanders in Vermont. Tim Kaine won in Virginia.

...


The attempts to minimize the vote for President Obama and the progressive shift in the overall election is a continuation of the vicious racism since 2008.  The 2012 victory was definitive despite every possible tactic used by and on behalf of the Romney/Ryan campaign.
 
The vote was not spontaneous.  It was hard fought and unprecedented.  It was the result of millions of conversations at doors, at work, on the phone and on social media.
 
In the last four days alone, AFL-CIO members from 56 unions made 10.7 million door knocks and phone calls. SEIU members knocked on 5 million doors including 3.7 million in battleground states on those final days.
 
70% of union households voted for Obama in Ohio, and 65% nationwide. The contribution of the labor movement with its multi-racial, male-female, young-old, gay-straight, immigrant-native born membership to this election cannot be over stated.  This includes release time given to staff, mobilization of members, and especially in framing the debate around class issues and exposing Romney/Ryan for undermining jobs, not creating them and threatening the future of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
 
In battleground states, where Workers Voice, the AFL-CIO super PAC was utilized, union members were freed up to speak with all voters and not just other union members.  Nearly 400,000 Workers Voice volunteers made 80 million phone calls and knocked on 14 million doors.
 
Hearing their message helped shift the thinking of white workers who had been for Romney.  In these battleground states, white working-class voters rejected racist appeals and supported Obama at a much higher rate than elsewhere.  In Ohio, 65% of white union members voted for Obama.
 
Working America households, the community affiliate of the AFL-CIO, voted 66% for Obama.  In battleground areas where there was extra focus, Working America households voted 74% for Obama.

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Yes, congratulations are in order.  So here they are, in black and white, just above, on your computer, tablet, or mobile device screen.   

For those of you who have known me for a while, you already know that I did not write the above sections in italicized text.  And, you also know that I will never lie to you (well, not knowingly, at least). 

Please remember at the beginning of this post I promised to post,  "a few heartfelt words of praise and thanks for the President for his victory and the hard-fought battle so many made possible... ". 

So, I did.  They just weren't MY words.  See?  I didn't lie to you.  Please do not hold me to a higher 'truthiness' standard than you hold the President to. 

The words above belong to a group which works tirelessly to advance the principles, philosophies, and precepts of the Democratic Party. 

The above text (and more, so MUCH more) were published by the DNC's first cousin, the: 
 
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CPUSA    

For the folks not accustomed this this particular acronym, it stands for "Communist Party USA". 

As in...  These guys

 

Yes, the fawning words of support for the President, the devotion to Unions, outreach to the 99%ers, and every fringe wack-group in the country is right here, residing at your NEW (no, not improved) Democratic Party Headquarters the... CPUSA! 

"Radical Ideas.  Real Politics." 

Oh yeah, groovy baby!  (Please read the preceding as Austin Powers might, if he was actually a real person.)

The above "Ode to Communism and Nothing But Love for POTUS" was found under an CPUSA post entitled, "The People are Fired Up and Ready to Go!"

I was hoping that I would find the American Nazi Party had weighed in on the President's re-election efforts, but I realized quickly after skimming their site that they're probably NOT tremendous fans of the "man-of-Kenyan-descent" currently in the White House. 

So, not surprisingly, they sat this election out. 

Hey, better luck next time Aryan Brothers and Sisters!  As I ponder this (I often 'ponder' when I'm alone), Hillary COULD pass for a Nazi - she's got the look AND she most definitely has the 'tude  Go ahead and Turn Those Frowns Upside Down you happy-go-angry Aryan folks!  2016's Looking good for you and your fellow "Master Racers"!  

Hang in their Nazi boys and girls, you'll get your moment in the sun (again)!  But just don't get TOO MUCH SUN, because then you'll be hating yourself - ya know what I mean?

So that's it for today, as promised, a few words of praise for the President on his milestone accomplishment (just not MY words), an update on the CPUSA (coming soon to a bunker near you!), and a general update on the lack of any update on the American Nazi Party.   

The worst part of monitoring the Nazi Party Website is that I found out they didn't have a Christmas Party announced this year.  2011's I heard that 2011's event was a real Cross-burner...  

Oops, did I confuse my Extremists?  Sorry, the world of Hate is so confusing to me. 

I hope you have a great weekend, and remember, when you have nothing nice to say about someone...

Just go the CPUSA website and they'll give you the words you need to write a post 'you weren't even thinking about' when you woke up this morning. 

TTFN

2012, The Year In Review (Re-Moo?) First Six Months

2012 - Ah, yes, this most EXCELLENT year is coming to and end with an even MORE excellent year is queuing up at midnight tonight...

Yes, I KNOW - it should have been the final year for the Obama Presidency.  Yet, at the direction of the People (apparently, most of whom should not be allowed to drive a motorized vehicle, yet alone 'vote') President Barack Obama has an additional four years to do, um, whatever it is, he plans to do.  (But don't worry, you'll find out soon enough.  Oh, and if you were planning on purchasing a weapon for personal, or home defense, NOW would be a good time to do that...  We did.)  

Prepare to embrace another four years of the Fundamental Transformation of the United States of America!

[SIGH]

But hey, enough of my well-founded and well-documented healthy distrust of President Obama's vision of America.  It's time to get back to the topic at hand - this year's edition of 2012 The Year in Review!!!  (In two installments - as I'd like to enjoy New Years' too...) 

It's time spend a few minutes looking back at the Posts (Ghosts?) of 2012 and speculate as to what NEXT year holds for all of US.

January - Did you ever wonder what inspired Margaret Sanger to create that 'warm and fuzzy' organization known as "Planned Parenthood"? 

Well I did, and with more than 11 months of showers behind me, I still feel soiled (a.k.a.: 'oogey') about what I found in her writings.  A word of caution here, you may want to go out and buy your soap (a lot of it) in advance of reading the following post at the link below. 

You can read all about:

• Why the 'Great War' was a GOOD thing!
• Why the Poor should not be allowed to procreate!
• Why Margaret Sanger and Adolf Hitler are currently sharing a cafe table in Hell...  Together!!!

All these answers (and more) can be found in "Meet Maggie!"

February - Remember how someone in the White House decided that American Kids should be eating healthier?  Remember how kids in school districts across the country began selling 'Contraband' food to their classmates at lunch time so that they wouldn't have to eat the Healthier Lunch Program items?  Yeah, me too. 

However, the story that didn't receive quite so much coverage was of a child whose Mother packed her lunch only to be told by school Cafeteria Workers that the lunch was not 'adequate' for the child and that she HAD to purchase a school lunch...  Which included Chicken McNugget 'knock-offs'. 

Only problem is, she didn't WANT them. 

When I first looked into this story, I was surprised that Lunch Nazis had the ability to determine what your kids eat under Department of Health and Human Services guidelines - what surprised me even more was the other things I found when I went looking for 'school lunch stories' online.  It was at this point that I found out WHAT your kids are being fed under the watchful eye of clipboard-carrying Federal Inspectors of the USDA. 

You can read it in its entirety by clicking here:  "Eat Me"

March - Before we knew Sandra Fluke was going to be one of the folks in consideration for TIME Magazine's 'Person of the Year'.  I had a bit of fun at her expense, mostly because she made the case for the Obama Administration for putting the cost of birth control at MY (and your) 'expense' via ObamaCare legislation (effectively neutering the right of religious organizations to 'Just say NO' to paying for birth control). 

This, of course, was LONG before I learned that 'Fluke' is pronounced, 'Fluck', so as not to be confused with a bottom-dwelling, worm-eating fish. 

No, that's not HER at all...

You can read the rest of the post by clicking here:  "Sandra Fluke Opens Up"

April - President Obama seems to have issues when it comes to the United States having three 'co-equal' branches of government.  I continue to find this 'odd' as I heard he taught law and was a Constitutional 'scholar' prior to becoming the junior Senator from Illinois.  

With a bit of digging, it didn't take long before I found another President operating under a similar premise as our current POTUS (thinking that the three branches of government are merely a singular 'trunk' operating at his sole discretion). 

The difference between this President and the former discussed in the post is that there were Americans who stood up and demanded that the President obey the base tenets of the Constitution back then.  Today, the Courts and Congress pretty much sit back and watch as their powers are usurped.  Not too clever for organizations made up of the 'Smartest Legal Guys / Gals' in the room...

You can read the post at:  The FDR 'Channel' 
 

May -   EV's are HOT!!!  To the acronym-challenged (I fall into this category) the 'EV' stands for 'Electric Vehicle' category of automobiles.  Yes, we've long heard the virtues of electric vehicles, 'going green', saving the Planet, saving the Baby Whales, saving the Harp Seals, saving our entire ecosystem via the use of low-emissions, carbon-friendly electric cars and now, the promise of BIG THINGS from EV's have come to pass!

Yes, your Federal Tax Dollars have been used to place big bets on US-based businesses in Detroit (and Finland - one of the 57 states that Candidate Obama visited) to bring you the absolute BEST in electric transportation for the future!!!

Only one teensy-wheensy-teenie-tiny problem... 

EV's are so hot, they're burning their owner's homes down.  I wrote the following post back in May, prior to SuperStorm Sandy.  All things being equal, I should have waited to write the post - you see, when you 'flood' Karma Fiskers they don't burst into flames...  They explode dramatically!!!

You'll find the post here:  "More Bad Karma"

June - This final installment for the first half of 2012 is one of my favorite posts.  Not because it's particularly insightful but rather,just because it's so darn 'down homey' and such. 

Yes, back in June of 2012, if you contributed to the Obama re-election campaign, you could register to win a 'Date Night' with President and Mrs. Obama!!! 

Gee, doesn't THAT sound swell?!?! 

No, I didn't win, but some lucky stiff must have had a grand old time dining with the Obama's!  Only problem is, I guess, is that since President Obama took office - your personal slice of the 'Debt Pie' has increased by about $30,000 per household (last June's numbers - six months later we're in the $42k per household range.)


The post, in its entirety, can be found here:  "Swallow Hard"


Well, that's it for me today - I've got to do 'stuff' to prepare for this New Year's Eve extravaganza!  (a.k.a.:  De-icing the driveway (for the third time in two days) and figuring out what to cook for dinner)

I wish all of you a Happy New Year as we close out 2012. 

Good riddance.

Next year will be a LOT better...

How do I know? 

If you've survived the past four, the next four will be 'very similar'.  You're still kicking, right?  Come on, they say that the best revenge is 'Living well'. 

So, start 'Living'!!!  Best wishes to you and yours for the New Year - have fun (it ticks 'them' off)!

Mike





  

What's In a Name?

Photo:  Huffington Post, Saturday, October 20, 2012

"If you don't have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare voters.

If you don't have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from. You make a big election about small things.

And you know what? It's worked before, because it feeds into the cynicism we all have about government. When Washington doesn't work, all its promises seem empty. If your hopes have been dashed again and again, then it's best to stop hoping and settle for what you already know.

 

I get it. I realize that I am not the likeliest candidate for this office. I don't fit the typical pedigree, and I haven't spent my career in the halls of Washington.

But I stand before you tonight because all across America something is stirring. What the naysayers don't understand is that this election has never been about me; it's about you.

It's about you.

For 18 long months, you have stood up, one by one, and said, "Enough," to the politics of the past. You understand that, in this election, the greatest risk we can take is to try the same, old politics with the same, old players and expect a different result. You have shown what history teaches us, that at defining moments like this one, the change we need doesn't come from Washington. Change comes to Washington.

Change happens -- change happens because the American people demand it, because they rise up and insist on new ideas and new leadership, a new politics for a new time.

America, this is one of those moments.
...

It is that American spirit, that American promise, that pushes us forward even when the path is uncertain; that binds us together in spite of our differences; that makes us fix our eye not on what is seen, but what is unseen, that better place around the bend. That promise is our greatest inheritance. It's a promise I make to my daughters when I tuck them in at night and a promise that you make to yours, a promise that has led immigrants to cross oceans and pioneers to travel west, a promise that led workers to picket lines and women to reach for the ballot.

And it is that promise that, 45 years ago today, brought Americans from every corner of this land to stand together on a Mall in Washington, before Lincoln's Memorial, and hear a young preacher from Georgia speak of his dream.

 

The men and women who gathered there could've heard many things. They could've heard words of anger and discord. They could've been told to succumb to the fear and frustrations of so many dreams deferred." 

--- Junior Senator Barack Obama, DNC Acceptance Speech, August 28, 2008

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Hard to believe that the above words were spoken by Barack Obama a little more than four years ago.  The lofty goals offered, the soaring rhetoric, the man's eyes raised above the crowd to scan for any who may have been overcome with the emotion of the moment, (requiring medical assistance), a quick wave to the EMT's and... 

The 'Hope'.  The 'Change'.  The 'Scam'.

Yes it was just over four years ago.

Twenty-Eight 'dog years'.

And seemingly a 'lifetime' ago for some reading this (I fall into this particular category).

Longer, though perhaps for those people who thought that Barack Obama WAS 'the guy they've been waiting for all their lives'.  They pinned their hopes, their dreams, their very futures on the man from the Land of Lincoln.  He followed Abraham Lincoln's example and 'rode the rails' from Illinois to Washington, DC in February 2009 to stake his claim in the history of America. 

Yes, what a difference four years makes.

Fast-forward from his chilly inauguration to the present day and we find President Obama NOT pointing to HIS accomplishments, but rather, AT his opponent. 

The President's major objections to Romney:  You can't trust THIS guy, he's rich, he's successful, he's managed budgets, he's made payroll, he's got a family who supports and respects him, how can YOU possibly trust HIM?  AND, may I remind you that, he's a MORMON, and I'm a MUS..., oh never mind, no one should bring religion into this as it denigrates the office of President!  Look how far we've come so far, we can't turn BACK now!  Plus, um, I really like that jet!!!

As I type this (waiting for the High School Marching Band to wrap their drill for this evening's competition) I am shocked at how quickly this President has been able to diminish his office.  There are those who may argue, "Well yeah, what about Bush?  You know, he stunk up the place too - right?!?!?"

Yup, I get it.  There were plenty of times when I was NOT a fan of GW Bush.  If you go back to my posts from 2007 and 2008 you will find that I was critical of President Bush.  The difference is that I never believed that President Bush wanted to damage our Nation, either by 'misunderestimation' or by 'design'. 

President Obama on the other hand? 

Well, he's no George W. Bush...

Photo:  AP

The 'Obama Roll' began early in his Presidency with America's first glimpse of the new President's unique method for handling political negotiations...

Politico.com, January 23, 2009:  Obama to GOP, "I Won"
President Obama listened to Republican gripes about his stimulus package during a meeting with congressional leaders Friday morning - but he also left no doubt about who's in charge of these negotiations. "I won," Obama noted matter-of-factly, according to sources familiar with the conversation.

...

But perhaps taking a cue from Obama’s “I won” line when Democrats were asked if they were concerned about Republicans blocking the package, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid had a swift one-word answer: “No.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the bill was on track for passage by February 16, while Republicans continued to voice their opposition.

“We expressed our concerns about some of the spending that’s being proposed in the House bill,” House Minority Leader John Boehner said after meeting with Obama.

“How can you spend hundreds of millions of dollars on contraceptives?” Boehner asked. “How does that stimulate the economy?”

Boehner said congressional Republicans are also concerned about the size of the package.

[Moos Note:  Something about Boehner questioning contraceptives and the 'size of the package' strikes me as funny, but that's probably just me...]


But once again, I digress.  The bottom line is that the President who coined (read on the teleprompter is more likely) 'Hope and Change' has devolved to 'NameCalling' as his primary strategy for defending his record.  I must admit, it's an interesting political strategy, last employed by myself and another kid in Third Grade when we had our 'nearly legendary' "Rank Out" contest at recess by the swing set.  To quote the President:  "I won" that particular skirmish.

Then, of course, three other kids beat me mercilessly on the playground to prove that sticks and stones COULD 'break my bones' but words?  Not so much. 

[Note to Mom:  I made this up, nobody every beat your #2 boy at school (sometimes being 'big' is a good thing.  You know, I come from 'Big People'...]

Tomorrow the Nation will see President Obama and Mitt Romney (and the Moderator) 'go at it' one last time.  Whether Bob Schieffer becomes the 'lightning rod' of this debate as Candy Crowley was in the last, well, we'll see. 

Questions I have:

• Will President Obama reference Romney's "Romnesia" during the debate to Romney's face? 
• Will the word "Binder" be used in a sentence? 
• Will a large yellow bird have anything to do with this conversation of National Security issues? 
• Will contraception be another pivotal National Security issue introduced by the President, or 'Women's Rights', in general? 
• Conversely, will Romney cite actual facts about international policy and National Security to make the President look inept? 
• Will Michelle Obama once again break with pre-approved debate guidelines and begin clapping for her husband in the unlikely chance that he puts 8 - 10 coherent words together?
• Will Candy Crowley show up to say that she was wrong during the last debate for interjecting herself into the Libya conversation?  
• Will Bob Schieffer end his professional Presidential Moderating career with a bang, a whimper, or a thud?

Will either of these guys change any one's mind about them, or their respective vision of the next Four Years with this last debate? 

As for myself, I don't think so. 

If you don't have an opinion on 'your guy' by now, you probably ought not be dressing yourself in the morning.  The differences between these two guys are pretty distinct.

If you don't see this, please, do us all a favor... Stay home.  For if the 2008 election taught us nothing else, it taught us that the uninformed voter is a Democrat's 'Best' constituent.

Indications are that in 2012, we're in for 'More of the Same'...

Jimmy Kimmel Video Link:  HERE

p.s.:  FREE ADVICE for President Obama - I know it's hard NOT to descend to name-calling your opponent since you have nothing much to run positively on.  But four years ago you gave America 'Hope'...  Why has all that 'Changed'?  Spend your time in the last debate talking about what you have personally DONE to increase our National Security - be positive, be assertive, most importantly, be factually correct!

p.p.s.:  NO this will not help you, but it will keep your answers much shorter than they have been in the past, and between you and me?  I've heard enough.  Since your team is averaging almost 10% more 'talk time' than Romney and Ryan's in the prior three debates, give these guys the mic a bit more, unless of course, you're afraid of what they might say?  But you're not afraid.  Are you?  That's right Mr. President Scaredy-Cat, you're not afraid of nothing, are you???  You've got a (greatly diminished in the past four years') military, don't cha?  And all I've got is this old HP laptop...

p.p.p.s.:  Please note that I have devolved to name calling.

p.p.p.p.s.:  I feel so, so, Presidential!