Filibuster...

Finally, the squabble is over. Filibusters are in, three nominees are in, respect and dignity for the Senate is out. You know, I think Dubbyuh's nominees should have been tossed when the Democrats threatened their approval just like every other president has been forced to do when their nominees were seen as too radical to the minority in the Senate. I think the GOP is acting like a pig in mud with their new majority in the federal government.

But I also think that regardless of what side of the aisle you supported in this battle, it is clear that the American public now sees our federal government as a playground. Gone are the days of groundbreaking legislation and respect for all sides of the issue. I wonder what it was like to live in America during the civil rights movement. I would love to watch C-SPAN and see Congress debate and negotiate for such profound changes in American policy. For now we are stuck with an all-or-nothing President and a group of Congressmen who are being forced into that Christian agenda.

I'm waiting for a hero. A political Tiger Woods who just completely awes the public with his talents, his abilities, his class. Someone who works 20-hour days on a regular basis, someone who packs a sack lunch for work like everyone else and goes to Capitol Hill to do his or her best for America, someone who sleeps in their office late at night while rewriting an amendment to a bill, someone who is hard on issues but who appeals to the public is such a way that they transcend partisanship, someone who tells it like it is and can appeal to the average American and get their vote.

The latest polls, and the general consensus of people I talk with, continue to show discontent for the Senate and the way what Washington is being run. I don't blame them. Heck, I'm turning into one of those people myself. Give me a hero. Someone stand up and act like those which you represent. Be honest, be simple, be a true representative of goodness and character. Please, go to Capitol Hill early tomorrow, stay late at night, and talk to us in a common voice about what you are doing to make our lives better. Get out of this club of formality and "schmoozing" and get back to being "for the people."

Polls...

I love polls. They are a great way to get outside of your own personal thoughts and emotions and look at how other people think. Of course, it is very easy to confuse questions and skew the data to create a desired result. But, if you know anything about research methods and how to collect data it is possible to use the information gathered from a poll to draw some conclusions.

Gallup polls, I find, are very accurate and widely accepted by the intellectual community as a good resource for polling data. I listen/watch their daily briefing to get an idea of where others stand on current issues. I learned today that most Americans oppose the changing of Senate rules to eliminate the filibuster option regarding judicial nominations. I also learned that the more you attend church, the less likely you are to vote Democrat (I guess they didn't poll Grannie or mom). Click on the link to the right side of the screen and take a look at the numbers.

I'm really mad about these Radical Right Senators. They're willing to break the rules to get their way. What a 5-year-old mentality. They remind me of a daycare center. C-SPAN has been my channel of choice lately. More people should switch over there at least once a week and see how their government works. If you care about politics and political process in this country, it's a gold mine of information. I watched an hour of the debate of the judicial nominations today. If every American saw what I did, even more would agree that the blatant arrogance and deceptions this group of radical lawmakers are passing off as fact is downright offensive.

The problem is most Americans don't watch C-SPAN. We see some TV ads during the summer every four years, vote in November, and sit idle afterwards while those elected do whatever it is they do. No real interest in the system, no reading newspapers or watching what they actually voted for. Even worse is that people are now going to church to get their political news. That's some scary stuff folks. I think this will all backfire on the GOP in the long run, but that's going to happen later rather than sooner and the Radical Right is taking advantage of the momentum the Christian Coalition and powerful religious leaders are giving them.

Maybe the Democrats should start campaigning at the church. I think, at very least, every elected Dem should be more vocal on their Christian affiliations and try to remove this aura of "Christian = Republican." That is false. The GOP is trying to drive a wedge between Americans by claiming that if you're a person of faith, you should be on their side.

I'm getting too pissed off now. I'll think more about this issue and blog on it later or else I'll never get to sleep... WATCH C-SPAN! GET MOTIVATED!

A Last Resort?...

I read this morning on cnn.com that a memo written for the eyes of intelligence officials on Downing Street leaked to the press. I read the brief synopsis and found a full copy of it here.

Two things should jump out to the reader here, the second of which is very profound; 1) this war was designed and planned months in advance to its execution; 2) the facts and evidence justifying this war were fixed around the policy of war with Iraq and removal of Saddam Hussein. Finally, some proof that the decision to wage war against the regime predated the decision that war was justified. Typical of this administration, decide what the agenda calls for then spin the facts to make it seem justifiable. It's one thing to do that with some gang violence bill passed yesterday, but it's quite another to use this doctrine to invade another country against the will of the international community.

Read the document and ask yourself, "Is it right to decide to invade a country and then skew the evidence to convince the public and leaders of the free world afterwards?" Does it then say that the war was not the last resort, but the only resort from the beginning? Do you really think that there was any intent for a diplomatic remedy to alleged WMD and Al-Qaeda links after reading this memo explaining the desire of the Bush camp to fight a war? It states in plain english that "The NSC had no patience with the UN route, and no enthusiasm for publishing material on the Iraqi regime's record." That seems like somone has already made up their mind on what they are going to do.

Too bad this article at cnn.com is at the bottom of the list of links to articles. Unfortunately, you'll never hear any more of it except maybe on the Daily Show with John Stewart tonight. I'm glad the 89 members of Congress stood up yesterday asking for an explanation. Maybe something will happen.

I'll tell you this, the memo is just a start. There will be more people to leak more on the issue as long as the fighting in Iraq continues. I just hope Colin Powell will speak his mind openly and honestly soon. We need to hear his real opinion on the war and what he thinks now. I don't believe he was as gung-ho as the rest of the White House was, nor do I believe that Bush would have the support that he does if someone like Powell were more vocal and honest with America.

The REAL ID Act of 2005...

Just yesterday, Congress passed a war-spending bill which will send $82 billion to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, our wonderful representatives up in Washington threw some pork in the barrel. Enter the REAL ID Act of 2005. You can read it here. Take a look at Title II (page 42 within the listed link).

Improved Security For Drivers' Licenses And Personal Identification Cards. What a name. It sounds like good legislation, from the surface... until you actually read it. There are some guidelines that all states must follow in order to have their drivers' licenses accepted as a form of national identification and most of these, including other procedures, I find acceptable.

The problem is that this is Big Brother at the hand of the GOP which claims to be "conservative" and in support of small government and states rights. I'm sure Fox News is claiming that this is completely voluntary and states have no obligation to do anything. Yeah, right. Can you imagine being told, after you buy an airplane ticket, that if you're from states A, B, and C you must have a valid passport to get on the plane because the FAA doesn't accept your states' drivers' license as a valid form of identification. I would hardly call that a voluntary piece of legislation.

What frustrates me even more is the lack of public outcry by the Democrats. Why aren't we hearing anything from them? Why aren't they shouting from the rooftops that this was an unnecessary add-on to a bill that everyone knew would not be challenged? I think we could get some swing-voter support if we start getting more public with our disapproval of this Radical Right agenda. More so, I think that if we point out, immediately and loudly, this "conservative" crew isn't conservative at all we may get some of our seats back in the next Congressional election. What's so conservative about telling states how they can make their own drivers' licenses? What's so conservative about an administration that spends and spends and spends, collecting more and more debt while at the same time claiming they must fix a Social Security budget crisis that won't hit for another 35 years?

We must take advantage of every opportunity we have to gain momentum. Right now, we have none. Call them out on their "conservative" attitude being more liberal than a California Democrat. Drum up some public attitude and build some headway with your own agenda. Get MoveOn.org to get an ad or two going. We're not going to win over any votes if people don't start changing their minds about the Radical Right and what they do, or don't, stand for.

The UN...

There's a lot of talk about the UN going on these days. John Bolton is just one of the issues. He's got an unorthodox management style, but he's expected to be a hard-liner when it comes to confronting reform at the UN. The man is just one pawn on the table (I'd call him a knight, actually). There are far too many variables to put all of your faith (or lack thereof) into John Bolton fixing the UN. Does it even need fixing? Let's consider a few things.

John Bolton, I believe, would be an exceptional representative for the US in the UN if you are pro-war, ultra-conservative, and blame everyone but America for the problems in the UN. This makes up the vast majority of Republicans, hence their push to get Bolton in there to "stir the pot." If you believe that the war in Iraq was an immoral action, and that America should not be dictator to the world, someone more moderate would be acceptable for the US representative to the UN. This makes up everyone else in America and this is why the DEM's are bringing out all of the ammo they can against a representative with such a GOP attitude to world politics.

This is what I think...

John Bolton is just another person who represents the GOP's agenda in this country, which is: a) everything should be in the name of God; b) diplomacy is just a formal pretext, threaten war with America and you'll either see the results you want or win the war; c) America knows what's best for everyone else. Such a selfish way of thinking. It reminds me of colonialism and the ways of oppressive monarchy. The oil-for-food program seems to be the root of this call to reform the UN, but I think it's just a way to create changes that promote more American policy under the Bush administration than it is to promote world order and protect those in need on a global scale.

I believe the Republicans feel that they are going to keep their control over Congress for at least two more elections. They seem to be doing all they can to keep their political momentum, regardless of the immediate public opinion of the issue (ex. Terri Schiavo). The democrats are so damn reactive to just about every issue, they seem to be treading water rather than swimming the lake. The United States is just one country out of 191 that make up the member states of the UN. I wonder how many of them want a member of Bush's radical-right to represent the most powerful nation. I think that this administration is not only declaring it's world dominance and control of the rest of human existence, but also banking on the fact that our economic and military might can support this mentality.

What happens when the rest of the world realizes that they don't need America to prosper? What do we do when the Chinese market has enough buyers to where they can tell America, "I'm sorry, but because we oppose your ideology, your oppression, and your dominance of other nations, we won't trade with you." It is irritating that these other nations see us as some sort of necessary evil to which everyone must accept our practices and policies. Our good fortune will eventually end. I'm willing to say that if the policies set by this administration continue for ten years or more, we will most definitely see at least one major country impose very high tariffs on exported goods to America. Sort of like how we handle Cuba with imports/exports and how we dealt with Iraq before the latest war - they will choose to beat us at our own game. With our products becoming more expensive and our trade deficit growing, this is the only way the rest of the world can fight back.

The formalities and kind gestures at large state dinners will eventually come to an end as long as policies to invade other nations against the will of the rest of the world continues. Our alliance to fight the war in Iraq is a mere business deal. They give us what little international support for our actions that we need to justify in our minds that we are doing the will of the world and they get a "get out of jail free" card when they need help from the US.

Go ahead, have John Bolton promote your radical one-sided agenda in the UN. You have exactly 30 nations to help you recover from the fallout. I'm so glad that we have the political power of Moldavia, Estonia, and Tonga on our side.