So Long, 2010. Bad Jib Jab Video.

I got to be honest. This year's Jib Jab sucks. I've watched and enjoyed 2008 and 2009, as well as several of their earlier works, because they had a great song and were creative with the narrative.

But this year's falls flat. The song is bad, the puppets were unrecognizable (that's supposed to be Biden--and there's one that's supposed to be jihad jane), and worst of all they missed a lot of big stories. For example, there is nothing about airport scanners and the Chilean miners. Yet they had a whole segment teasing Michelle Obama being a princess because she went to Spain (did you even know that story?)

Let me know what you think:

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

the Compromise

2011 will be something like this:

Obama/Democrats: The Earth is round. Republicans: No! it's flat!
The compromise: The Earth is a triangle.

Xmas Present for Forced Child Brides from GOP

Last week, Ros-Lehtinen, Rep. Dan Burton (Ind.) and other Republicans worked to block the International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act (S. 987).

The bill would ensure that child marriage is recognized as a human rights violation, and develop comprehensive strategies to prevent such marriages around the world.

The act unanimously passed the Senate and appropriated no new funds, but the Republicans objected to it on fiscal grounds anyway. Since the bill would have used existing resources, voting it down saved the country no money. It was politics--the GOP so desperate not to pass anything that could somehow be construed as a victory for Obama.

So Merry Xmas girls! Instead of going to school, the barbaric practice of forced marriages and rapes will force millions more girls into a life of slavery, sex abuse, domestic violence, and servitude will continue.

But at least we can stick it to Obama...

What to Say Instead of Happy Holidays

As Festivus ends and Christmas Eve begins, I am reminded of how blessed we are that we have soldiers fighting for us in this awful war. I, of course, am not talking about the war in Iraq or Afghanistan, but the real war... the Fox News created "War on Christmas".

Anyone who dares to say happy holidays instead of Merry Christmas is undermining our very Christian survival. I spoke of this war last year, and came up with a brilliant alternative to happy holidays.

Click the link for your appropriate greeting.

More Evidence Stupid People Vote in Florida

Here's the problem. Exhibit A in my local paper:My Word by Bill Barnes

Starts with this...

According to the Social Security Administration, the Consumer Price Index has not risen since 2008, and benefits will not increase in 2011. Congress just approved an $858 billion package of tax cuts but rejected a bill to give each retiree $250.

Then goes to this...

When I retired in 2000, our annual health insurance cost was $1,200. Today, the cost is $10,960. This amount does not include the amount my former employer continues to pay. Next month, our health insurance will increase by $600.

Here is what he concludes with...

So what do retirees have to look forward to? We could sit around, run out of money and die. Or we could mobilize with the Tea Party and hound elected officials until they cut spending and taxes and help retirees who worked a lifetime to make America great.

Okay Moron. You don't complain about overspending in the same letter you demand that every retiree get $250. That's number one. Number two--you complain about high health care costs, but then decide that your solution should be to join a group that sided with the very insurance industry that is currently gouging you.

I don't know why your are complaining, Mr. Barnes. It sounds like you got everything you voted for.


PS--to anyone bashing our prez: just remember that it was he who compromised with the GOP by caving into their demand that the uber-wealthy get an extra tax cut so he could SAVE YOUR middle-class tax cut along with the unemployment checks this holiday season. Your f*&^ing welcome.

Cutting Taxes for Superwealthy Has NEVER Created Jobs

During the first three years of the Bush tax cuts, America’s job total actually went down, from 132 million jobs in 2001 to 131.4 million in 2004. Job growth did improve during Bush’s second term, but overall the rate was “anemic” compared to that under President Bill Clinton.

The problem is that when wealthy people are given more money, their main priority is usually to use it to make even more money.

Several economic studies have indicated that the wealthiest people -- the top 3 percent who make more than $250,000 per year -- are more likely to invest tax cuts in stocks or other assets than to create jobs. Democrats point out that this year many large American corporations are posting record profits without sinking that money into payroll. Instead of spending money on tax cuts, money should be spent on actual jobs -- which, in turn, will bring businesses the customers they need to thrive.

Bottom line: Giving a multi-millionaire or billionaire another tax cut is not going to create work. It will definetly add hundreds of billions to the deficit, but not create jobs. If that was the case, the Bush years would have shown unprecedented job creation. Instead, it was just the opposite. The idea that tax cuts create jobs shows a fundamental misreading of capitalism. Businesses hire when there is a market need, not when their taxes are cut. Why would a business hire more people if there are no more customers?

PS-- The rant in today's Sentinel was posted by the author: The sheer refusal to help Americans in need during the holiday season unless the wealthiest Americans get another tax cut they don't need and we can't afford is morally reprehensible.

Senate GOP Whining About Working After Christmas

The only time I've ever posted anything from Harry Reid. We needed this fighting Reid two years ago. Here's hoping we see more of this--maybe the election really did wake his ass up.

DeMint and Kyl, the two men MOST RESPONSIBLE for wasting the people's time in the Senate, are whining about working after Christmas... calling it disrepectful. Well, the work has to get done, so I suggest you 2 bozos get to work and quit stalling! (PS, so does the 99% of the country that has to go back to work after Xmas hate Christians too?)

And by the way, who the hell is Jon Kyl to lecture anyone on anything? MR. my parents paid off my whore and all i got was this venereal disease. Stuff a stocking in it mister.

Boehner: Weeper in Chief

Babba Wawa hit the nail on the head. He has a real problem. He cries every single time he talks about anything but tax cuts. If Nancy Pelosi had crying fits like he did, she would be crucified by the right as weak. This is the GOP leader: Crybaby.

Also good point... he cries about his own life but has no tolerance for anyone else's suffering. An out of work single mom with a kid and no support he is kicking to the curb. He is fighting tooth and nail to stop her unemployment check this holiday season... but is willing to spend $700 billion to give the rich an EXTRA tax cut. A cut, I might add, that never produced any jobs.

Wipe your tears, crybaby. If anyone deserves to cry, its the American people.

Exactly 10 years ago today, America changed.

One partisan vote changed the face of America, and we suffer the awful legacy bestowed to this day:

Dante Atkins:

Ten years ago today, in a baffling and overtly political 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court decided that the only way to protect the equal voting rights of the people of Florida was to stop counting their votes--but only in this particular instance and no other, because they only wanted the votes to stop being counted when George W Bush was ahead.

The Bush legacy is one written in the red ink of debt, greed and death. An occupation of the nation hosting that did attack us, botched from an overweening desire to wage a preemptive war against a country that did not. Thousands of American lives and potentially hundreds of thousands of native lives lost in the process. Torture prisons in the name of national security. Warrantless wiretapping and other forms of surveillance and entrapment against United States citizens and nonviolent peace groups.

Not that the nation was just morally bankrupt: George W Bush did a number on our nation's fiscal health as well, with massive transfers of its wealth into the hands of those who needed the least help, and permission for private entities to loot the land and natural resources of this nation with no return to its taxpayers. And ten years later, virtually nobody has paid the price.

Many progressives--myself included-- felt that the Bush years should have been a national nightmare that we would just wake up from. That the immoral, absurd and illegal practices of those times were just a mere interregnum permitted by the ascension of a Manichean president operating during a time of national crisis, and that once he was out of office, we would instinctively revert to the comparative sanity we had under Bill Clinton. But we haven't yet, and it's likely that without systemic structural change, we never will.

The executive power grab is not restored, nor does it seem that the irresponsible, nearly trillion dollar tax cut for the superwealthy will be rescinded either. Let's bankrupt our nation further by adding $700 billion to our debt so Paris Hilton can get another $100,000 gift from the taxpayers. Nicely done, teabaggers and complicit Dems. Happy Anniversary all!

What Obama Can Learn from Clinton

I enjoyed watching the History Channel’s 2004 series "The Presidents", which I watched on You Tube yesterday. When they got to Presdient Clinton, Leon Panetta explained his showdown with Newt Gingrich. Clinton, like Obama, was dispirited after the 1994 election. But he said Clinton knew politics and KNEW that he had to draw a line in the sand. Gringrich thought he could bully Clinton with threatening to shut donw the government if he didn’t get his way.

Clinton didn't show weakness with the terrorist. He stood firm. He didn’t cave.

Gov’t did shut down for a bit. And people were outraged... not at Clinton, but at Newt and the GOP. It was Newt that came back to the bargaining table. It was newt and the GOP that suffered seat losses in 1996, along with the defeat of Bob Dole. Newt himself had a very close re-election bid, and he was spooked enough to give a speech that essentially said "message received loud and clear".

We have the high ground here. DEMOCRATS voted for a straight middle-class tax cut. GOP filibustered it. GOP is willing to hold the unemployment benefits for struggling families hostage unless every millionaire and billionaire in this country gets $100,000 of tax payer money. They are willing to add $700 billion to the national debt for the wealthiest Americans, but say a few billion to help people who can’t find work this holiday season is too expensive. They don’t have a leg to stand on.

The only way to lose is not to fight. I hear on the radio yet another spineless Dem saying we need to take whatever deal is offered because the GOP is better at messaging than us, and that we will get blamed if taxes go up. I say enough is enough. I don’t know aobut you, but I am sick to death of this... right now we still have a SUPER majority in the House and Senate, and a Dem Prez, WHY are we still cowering? Do you really think if a deal is made the GOP will play nice?

Draw a line, dammit. No further. NO MORE. You rethug SOBs want to filibuster? DO IT!!

Maybe, just maybe, the American people will wise up to the REAL priorities of the GOP and maybe even bother to vote next time!

If the Dems can’t win this message war over what is blatantly obvious...they deserve to lose. If the Dems cave on this, who do you think is going to show up at the polls in 2012?

Draw the damn line.

PS:
WHY THE F*&^ ARE WE NEGOTIATING ANYWAY? We still have a super majority in the House, and we can do Budget Reconciliation in the Senate! That is what W. did to pass these massive breaks to the wealthy in the first place. Am I missing something?

Top 10 Movies Every American Should Watch

This was originally going to be entitled 10 books every American should read, but who are we kidding.

Every once in awhile, when watching a film, the point of the film hits me like a ton of bricks and I secretly wish that somehow I could get everyone to just sit and watch this damn thing so they could get it too. (SiCKO was the first one I thought of.)

Usually it is with a documentary, but sometimes a good fiction film can subtley drop its wise on you when you least expect it. Some of these films I remembered right away when I was writing this diary, but others I had remembered only after perusing film histories for awhile.

Anyway, here they are. Keep in mind these are movies EVERY AMERICAN SHOULD WATCH, not here are my top 10 favorites. (Otherwise, you'd be treated to a dose of bad B-movie sci-fi and lousy horror films.) Please give your take in the comments along with any films that YOU think every American should see. Thanks:

Terrorist on Trial: United States vs. Salim Ajami
This is the only film to date that managed to change my mind during the course of the film. I used to think lawyers were evil shysters and couldn’t imagine how anyone would defend a known terrorist. In watching the film I realized how unique and powerful our system of justice is. Justice can only be served when there is both a vigorous prosecution AND a vigorous defense. That is truly American and it sickens me that people in higher places (Dick and Liz Cheney come to mind) can’t grasp that fundamental American principle.

Revenge of the Sith
OK. I am a huge Star Wars fan and any of them are entertaining to me, even the first two prequels I found things to enjoy. The GOP accused Lucas of making this film about the Bush administration (especially that line about only Siths talking in absolutes), but Lucas cares too much about his films to reduce them to a political statement of any current administration.

However, his film shows how easy it is for ambitious, evil people to use fear to give up Democracy. Hitler and Mussolini didn’t come to power by telling everyone they would keep a boot on their neck... they did it by charismatically promising security and stability with a brand of patriotism that defines “us” vs. “them” (sound familiar?).

It wasn’t too long ago that idiot rethuglicans, who now call themselves teabaggers, made the case that we need to give up our Constitutional freedoms and allow the guberment to tap our phones, peruse our health and financial records, and clamp down on speech. (Once again, Cheney comes to mind). Yup, we had to be so afraid of the big bad terrorist that we had to give up our very freedoms. These newly named teabaggers did a complete 180 when a black man was elected president and now treason and open revolution are suddenly patriotic. Go figure.

SiCKO
If every American watched this damn film, which highlighted the injustice of the most bass-ackward health care system that managed to spend more money than any other nation in the world and still be the only civilized nation that didn’t cover one-fifth of its citizens (And screwed over almost everyone else), the debate would have lasted 3 days as opposed to a year and half.

The players for the status quo, the lies, the campaigns, the outlandish smears all coordinating to keep an unfair system that was so bad 9/11 heroes had to go to Cuba to get treatment they deserved. The stories were mind-blowing. The Reagan record creepy, and Nixon was Nixon (asshole even admitted the HMOs were a sham). Seeing how doctors and patients in the same situations, sometimes working for the same companies overseas are treated; it will leave you speechles.

Capitalism, A Love Story
M. Moore doesn’t disappoint with his final progressive documentary. The root of the financial crisis and why the ride has just begun. Plenty of things to make you mad in this film but, as always, Moore makes you laugh instead. What was nice is there were solutions in this film, including a better way than the current plutocracy. Companies that ran their boards like a democracy had a vested interest in their employees as well as their bottom line, and were very successful. Why is that so radical?

To Kill a Mockingbird
Atticus Finch was someone I wanted to emulate as a father when I saw this film. He showed how critical it is to stand up for what is right, even when everyone else had a mob mentality—and even when you lose. True character and a fighting spirit that transcends the political message, although I wouldn’t mind a few of our supposed Democratic leaders learning a little bit about standing up and fighting for what is right.

A Handmaid's Tale
What an American Theocracy would truly look like. A bigoted, right-wing fearmonger stages an attack, blames it on Islamic terrorists, and seizes control by suspending the Constitution and creating a teabagger paradise. Women are in complete subjugation and right-wing interpretation of the Bible is established as law that completely oppresses the people . Corruption abounds while ideology becomes law.
On a side note, with a felonious teabagger winning the governorship of Florida along with a veto-proof, corrupt right-wing majority in our state legislature, we might get a glipse of this GOP wet dream next year.

Finding Nemo
IT’s just a good film you can take the whole family to. Enjoy.

Network
A 1970s futuristic film that was very accurate in predicting TVs descent into appealing to the lowest common denominator. I thought we reached it when Fox ran Who wants to marry a multi-millionaire? Then there was the recent season of Survivor where they divided the teams by race (by the way, fathead Trump had the same idea). Then Kidstown. All very tame I’m sure in the decades to come. Then there is Fox News, which is proud of their ratings prowess and cult-like following. One thing they can’t be proud of is their “news”, which are slanted stories based on right-wing talking points from their wingnut pundits—and I believe they employ every single one of them with the exception of Rush Limbaugh. By the way, a good film for anyone who still insists Fox is fair is Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch’s War on Journalism.

Food, Inc.
Wow. This film wasn’t the hippie, tofu-eating propaganda dI was expecting. It examined the surprisingly frightening industrial production of meat and the industrial production of grain and corn (my God, corn is in absolutely everything!). The film also examined the extremely powerful economic and legal power of companies like the evil MONSANTO and the ridiculous anti-farmer food libel laws. You soon realize our food production is based on companies that need to supply cheap but contaminated and pesticide-laden food. Like any good documentary, the film provides solutions as well.

Saving Private Ryan
A good realistic war film that doesn’t glorify war while simultaneously honoring the collective memory of the heroes of World War II. It has the most realistic D-Day scene I’ve ever seen, the horror, the confusion, and the absolute bravery of these men overcoming overwhelming odds. The most powerful portion of the story are the letters at the beginning that were designed to comfort a mother who would learn she lost almost all of her sons in battle. It is patriotic, powerful, and allows a glimpse of what it truly means to serve for all of those wingnuts that like to play dress-up but are too cowardly to actually enlist.



OTHERS
There are plenty of movies that I did not include. I didn’t include An Inconvenient Truth because I haven’t seen it, but I heard it was powerful.

I can’t include crap like Day After Tomorrow, because even films that have a message I agree with that are crappy and not based on science shouldn’t be made.

The Siege with Denzel Washington made a few salient points on overreaction to terrorism, but insultingly made the military seem like unquestioning robots. I take real issue with that being a vet myself-and I once reminded my commander about unlawful orders when I was overseas.

Sorry, I didn't like V, either. Yes I get it, it just wasn't good. Same with Golden Compass. Kidman needs to quit making movies.

I liked Who Killed the Electric Car? and Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, but thought I already had plenty of documentaries.

Gattaca for its poignant commentary on bigotry and the triumph of perserverance over adversity.

An HBO movie called The Enemy Within, about a coup in the US that was believable, but I couldn’t say it had to be watched. Another HBO movie that should be viewed is The Tuskegee Airmen. They had to face everything that is horrible about war along with the disrespect and indignity of racism, and still kicked ass.

Being a history buff, I wanted to include an historical film on the Founding Fathers, but frankly none stand out in my mind. Too bad Hollywood isn't making one... the teabaggers need to learn the REAL history, not the history as made up by a self-described rodeo clown.

I have no doubt that I will wake up thinking of another movie repressed in the back of head, or that many of you have several movies that you would like everyone to see. I invite you to share those in the comments as well.

Thanks for reading.

Why They Don't Take Florida Seriously

Every single major newspaper in Florida, even the conservative ones, even the ones who said to vote Bush and McCain, were terrified of a Rick Scott governorship and got behind Alex Sink.

I wondered what an endorsement of Scott would look like. Something like this: "Be Optimistic About Our New Governor" by Jordan Swanson. This, I guess, is the closest thing to a "newspaper" endorsement. Last week my local college rag, the UCF Future, extolled the virtues of governor-elect Scott. (PS...If you click on the link, please read the site comments to this piece, they are hilarious!)

Granted, this piece at the Future doesn't come close to rivaling their other great works, such as the endorsement entitled "Bush Worthy of Great Leader Status" written shortly after Katrina, or the article gushing Palin. But it is still cringe-worthy.

The guest columnist, who has a little trouble with grammer, proudly claimed she didn't vote in the midterm election, but had "good reason". She didn't know anything. She even more proudly claimed to have based her whole opinion on watching political TV ads, although she did manage to catch his victory speech.

That is the only way it could have happened. A lazy kid pretending to be a journalist who is proud of being an idiot: and just as confidently states she did no research whatsoever.

But the reason I titled this rant why they don't take FLORIDA seriously as opposed to some irrelevant college paper seriously is because this is a microcosm of why Florida is in such bad shape. She did what a lot of people here do. Watch a few ads and make up their mind. Seniors voted for Rick Scott even though the guy LITERALLY stole from them.

What does Florida have to show for almost two decades of GOP rule? We have 12% unemployment, property values that are the worst in the nation, an education system that went from the top 10 to #48, overdevelopment, and toothless regulation that is about to be completely gutted.

So what does Florida do? A state with more registered Dems than GOP? Put a veto-proof, right-wing majority in the state legislature... and a felon responsible for the largest Medicare fraud in history in the governor's office.

OK, putting the obvious problem of having a criminal in the highest state office aside for a moment (yes, let's make a whole new argument here because that isn't enough), let's talk about his "plan" to create 700,000 jobs. Here just a taste of what he wants to do:

1. Bring Arizona's Anti-Brown Law here (which has cost that state nearly 100 million in revenue due to boycotts)
2. Force all women who want to exercise there legal right to an abortion to be VIOLATED with a forced ultrasound, a lecture, and then PAY for it (Who wouldn't want to live in a state that practices forced rape on a patient. And this was the guy that wanted government out of health care??? Fuck you)
3. Allow drilling on our coasts (Nothing bad can happen there)
4. Kill the high-speed rail line (that the federal government is already mostly paying for, killing hundreds of jobs instantly and ensuring years of gridlock on I-4)
5. Push the anti-teacher law that punishes teachers working with difficult children (We went from the top 10 to #48 in schools under GOP rule. Its going to get worse)

How is this going to create jobs, Rick?

All these things mentioned above will COST us jobs. The big plan is to cut the corporate tax, but Florida already has one of the lowest in the nation, and that hasn't created anything. Businesses hire when there is a market--and Rick Scott has ensured that Florida will be toxic to investors for years.

But columnist Jordan Swanson saw one of Scott's $73 million dollar TV ads featuring his mom saying he was a "good boy", so I guess I have every reason to be optimistic as the article tells me.

The GOP takes California seriously because the voters there took it seriously, and didn't let Meg Whitman buy the election although she spent twice as much as Rick Scott. In New York, Paladino was laughed off the electoral stage.

After years of taking our state down the toilet, the GOP was given more power. Worse, this new crop of teabaggers now have absolute control, and just put a guy in office his fellow republicans thought should be in jail. How could anyone take us seriously?

We were mocked for not knowing how to vote 10 years ago. What is more frightening is when some of us do.

Happy Veteran's Day! Happy 500th Post!!

It irritates me that I have to work today while those who never served get to lounge around. It infuriates me that rethuglicans who work so hard at cutting benefits for veterans surround themselves with veterans during campaign season. But it really sickens me that right-wing cowards who would never put themselves in harm's way nonetheless have no trouble pushing others and their children into battle. These are the conservative idiots who love to "play" war with paintballs or even more pathetic, people like Eric Ericsson of Redstate who even made patches that his followers actually wore. We fought for those too weak to fight themselves.

The photo is of a USAF Security Forces sentinel, which was the most awesome job I ever had. I was law enforcement, but also had acted as the Air Force's infantry (we were the ones who would hold the base if attacked while helping others escape). We trained as law enforcement specialists, but also had to go through Army infantry training at Ft. Dix, NJ. I served proudly and remember the time fondly. HAPPY VETERANS DAY!!

This is also my 500th post on this blog. This blog was started in early 2006 by the Democratic Chair of the Seminole Democrats as the official blog. She liked my writing and asked me to take it over. In 2007, I broke away so I could write my own mind without running it past anyone or speaking for anyone else. Here's to 500 more.

With 12% Unemployment, Dismal Property Values and Solo GOP Rule, Florida Ripe for New Depression

This was posted by Jim White at FireDogLake


If only the nation will pay attention, Florida has now become the perfect laboratory model for single-party Republican corporatist rule. When Alex Sink conceded to Rick Scott this morning, Republicans in Florida cemented a clean sweep of all statewide offices on the ballot. In addition, Republicans now hold over two thirds of the seats in both the Florida House and Florida Senate. Leading this merry band of corporatists will be Governor Rick Scott, who holds the distinction of having been CEO of the corporation that holds the record for the largest fine ever assessed ($1.7 billion) in settling Medicare fraud charges.

With unemployment in the state now at 12 percent and property values severely depressed from the burst property bubble, I see no way that a state without an income tax can withstand corporatist rule under these parameters without sliding into a New Depression.

FL: The CRIMINAL Won... Dear God Help Us ALL

Flying a flag upside down is an internationally-recognized distress symbol. The only time a flag should be flown in that position is in accordance with US Code "as a signal of dire distress".

For Florida, that time is now.

We have elected a pathological criminal to the highest office in our state.

Not a typical "all politicians are criminal", dishonest, money-grubbing and lobbyist-kissing criminal, but a REAL thug! I'm not talking about the hypocricy of railing against government healthcare only to make his fortune off of Medicare--I AM TALKING ABOUT KEEPING TWO SETS OF BOOKS as CEO! One of which was used just to STEAL from taxpayers and seniors!!! And if that wasn't enough... he ran for governor using the money he stole!!

His own running mate thought he was a criminal... until he picked her to run with him. That is unscrupulous, but at least she didn't steal from old people!

10 years ago our state was a national laughingstock because people couldn't figure out how to use a ballot. That is nothing compared to the majority of voters electing a slippery felon to work with an overwhelmingly corrupt state legislature.

This was a combination of the GOP allowing themselves to be hijacked by uneducated teabaggers who see nothing wrong with giving a proven hooligan state power... independents who allowed themselves to be swayed by millions and millions of dollars of adverstising using Rick Scott's blood money and foreign interest money that poured into shady right-wing groups... and finally, Democrats who were so fed up with their spineless leaders they decided to stay home and send a "message", while allowing this hell to be unleashed upon us. Yes, my fellow Dems, you allowed this to happen.

If he was just Sharon Angle crazy, I could live with it. Even though Rick Scott makes George W. Bush seem like a sane moderate: there is no telling the jaw-dropping teabagging nonsense that will be steamrolled into this fragile state for the next four years with teabaggers in control of the governor's mansion and state legislature. (AZ anti-brown people law? Forced ultrasound?)

But all of that will BE NOTHING compared to the illegal activities that this wicked man will perpetuate with his cronies and our complicit legislature.

Rick Scott is Florida's governor.

May God have mercy on us all!

Read This Before You Vote

The 8 biggest lies of this election season. Take a quick gander yourself:

1) President Obama tripled the deficit.
Reality: Bush's last budget had a $1.416 trillion deficit. Obama's first budget reduced that to $1.29 trillion.

2) President Obama raised taxes, which hurt the economy.
Reality: Obama cut taxes. 40% of the "stimulus" was wasted on tax cuts which only create debt, which is why it was so much less effective than it could have been.

3) President Obama bailed out the banks.
Reality: While many people conflate the "stimulus" with the bank bailouts, the bank bailouts were requested by President Bush and his Treasury Secretary, former Goldman Sachs CEO Henry Paulson. (Paulson also wanted the bailouts to be "non-reviewable by any court or any agency.") The bailouts passed and began before the 2008 election of President Obama.

4) The stimulus didn't work.
Reality: The stimulus worked, but was not enough. In fact, according to the Congressional Budget Office, the stimulus raised employment by between 1.4 million and 3.3 million jobs.

5) Businesses will hire if they get tax cuts.
Reality: A business hires the right number of employees to meet demand. Having extra cash does not cause a business to hire, but a business that has a demand for what it does will find the money to hire. Businesses want customers, not tax cuts.

6) Health care reform costs $1 trillion.
Reality: The health care reform reduces government deficits by $138 billion.

7) Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, is "going broke," people live longer, fewer workers per retiree, etc.
Reality: Social Security has run a surplus since it began, has a trust fund in the trillions, is completely sound for at least 25 more years and cannot legally borrow so cannot contribute to the deficit (compare that to the military budget!) Life expectancy is only longer because fewer babies die; people who reach 65 live about the same number of years as they used to.

8) Government spending takes money out of the economy.
Reality: Government is We, the People and the money it spends is on We, the People. Many people do not know that it is government that builds the roads, airports, ports, courts, schools and other things that are the soil in which business thrives. Many people think that all government spending is on "welfare" and "foreign aid" when that is only a small part of the government's budget.

Need more? OK. Here's the fact, reported by Bloomberg: The Obama administration cut taxes for middle-class Americans, expects to make a profit on the hundreds of billions of dollars spent to rescue Wall Street banks and has overseen an economy that has grown for the past five quarters.

We are on the right track, finally. The GOP has fought this administration tooth and nail every step of the way. Instead of finding solutions, they focused on their primary objective, as admitted by Mitch McConnell this week: make Barack Obama a one-term president. Saying NO to everything meant they could concentrate all of their energy and efforts crafting their narrative, which is the exact opposite of reality. The ditto-heads and teabaggers gobbled it up and spread the word without question.

The Democrats are not without blame. They failed to tought their accomplishments (some have even run from them). They also allowed themselves to be played again and again.

In fact, just recently Nancy and Harry were handed a game-changing golden opportunity with the middle-class tax cuts. They could have split the bill and held one vote for Americans making UNDER 250,000 and followed that up with one for citizens OVER 250,000. That would have been WIN WIN. The GOP would have had to either vote down the middle-class tax cut, or cave and hand the Dems a victory. The only way they could have lost is to punt...which is exactly what they did. Demoralizing their base once again.

And here we are...

It is frustrating, but I am watching all of my hard work in 2008 go up in smoke. I am seeing a GOP that is willing to drag their country down to win, and am I am watching helplessly as a supermajority of Democrats in power do nothing to stop them.

How sad and ironic that America is on the brink of putting the GOP back in power by replacing those who have actually grown the economy with people who really did triple the deficit last time they were in power.

Looks like its up to us again. Get the message out, and most importantly, VOTE!

Seminole Democrat's Voting Guide 2010

If Amendments 4, 5, and 6 pass, and Alex Sink defeats that immoral criminal Rick Scott, I will consider it a great day no matter what happens.

State Amendments:
There are six amendments written confusingly as always. I found a non-partisan site that broke them down in plain english, and who supports each side. Take a moment to read it.

Here is how I plan on voting on the state amendments:

1. NO
2. no position
3. REMOVED
4. YES
5. YES
6. YES
7. REMOVED
8. YES
9. REMOVED

Political Candidates
Governor: ALEX SINK

(Endorsed by every paper in the state, including the Orlando Sentinel

Senate: Charlie Crist

District 8: Alan Grayson

District 7: Heather Beaven

District 24: Suzanne Kosmas

District 3: Vote Independent. Don't vote GOP but do not vote for Corrine Brown. She doesn't deserve to be re-elected. Read her opposition to fair districts.

Attorney General: Dan Gelber

Chief Financial Officer: Loranne Ausley

Agriculture Commissioner: Scott Maddox

State District 33: Leo Cruz
State District 34: Steve Barnes
State District 25: Frank Layne Wood
State District 20: Eunice Garbutt
State District 24: Steve Edmonds

School District Candidate
School District 5: Dr. Tina Calderone

Judicial Candidates
There was a really bad one I wanted to lose when he ran in the primary, but unfortunately he succeeded. Then there was a good one who lost. I have a bad track record for judges. Fortunately, I am indifferent to this crop of judges. I do not endorse any Judicial candidate for the circuit court or county.

If you care, here is what the Orlando Sentinel thinks:

Circuit Court, 18th District, Group 3 - Jessica Recksiedler
Circuit Court, 7th District, Group 5 - Dennis Craig
Circuit Court, 7th District, Group 10 - Don Holmes
Seminole County Judge, Group 5 - Fred Schott
State Supreme Court justices - Yes to retain
Fifth District Court of Appeal judges - Yes to retain

Oviedo
Councilman Group IV: Judith Dolores Smith. She is a Democrat and the only minority in the race.

Amendments: In Oviedo, the voters must vote to any changes to the charter. (Who's bright idea was that?) I reviewed them and didn't see anything in any of them that would cause me to vote No. Generally, I defer to my elected local officials unless there is something shady (which I usually hear about) or it deals with growth management-which they always screw up.

OTHER
Nonbinding Statewide Advisory Referendum: NO (Inserted by teabaggers who ironically had no trouble with the deficit under the GOP)

County Referendum: Yes

I am happy to receive any comments on this list.

REMEMBER TO VOTE EARLY!!!! Democratic volunteers must call everyone on election day if they haven't voted, so having your name crossed off the list saves time for the big GOTV push on Nov. 2!

Non-Partisan Voting Guide to All of Florida's Amendments

This is a non-partisan guide from a University that gives all the amendments in plain English:

http://lynn.libguides.com/vote. Thanks for reading.

Dear God YES on Amendments 5 and 6!!

I am not exaggerating when I say that these two amendments, which prevent gerrymandering for Legislative and Congressional districts respectively, are the most important amendments that Florida has faced in decades.

In more than 400 legislative races over the past six years, only three incumbents lost their seats.

You see, unlike Florida, forty-four states already require that redistricting adhere to local boundaries. Thirty-six states require compactness, and twelve prohibit protecting incumbents. In a major state like Florida? NOTHING. Our constitution only requires redistricting every 10 years, but there are no rules whatsoever in drawing the boundaries. That means no matter what party is in power, the incumbents make backroom deals and rig districts to secure their own re-election.

Republicans are against this right now because they are enjoying the benefits in stacking the deck.

Democrats were guilty of this 20 years ago, but now there are sophisticated computer modeling programs that can allow the incumbents to draw maps around individual houses. Your only real hope in challenging an incumbent is two ways:

1. Defeat the guy in a primary
2. Hope for an in-state migration to dilute the redness of the district

Our state legislators can’t even be bothered to disguise what they are doing. These are the actual records used by former speaker Jack Merckl during the preredistricting debate that lead to this monstrosity.

As you can see, the incumbents are picking the voters... where it should be the other way around.

Incumbent Democrats, by the way, are just as culpable. You see, when they draw these districts to benefit the incumbent, they must also cram all of the "undesirable" voters in just one district so they can “bleach” the surrounding districts with their people. Of course, the incumbents in these sacrificial districts have no trouble agreeing to this scam. That is why asshats like Corrine Brown and Gary Siplin are trotted out by the GOP to make the bogus argument that somehow the current system protects minorities. Absolute garbage.

If that was really the case, the Florida NAACP, the Florida Conference of Black State Legislators, and the Florida Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials wouldn’t be supporting Amendments 5 and 6 so strongly. If anything, the current system is preventing diversity.

Measures 5 and 6 protect lines from being drawn for racial or language reasons, and forces the districts to be contiguous, compact and as equal in population as possible.

This is a no-brainer and any politician advocating against these measures, Republican OR Democrat, should be voted out of office.

Incumbents have done everything they could to keep these amendments off the ballot. They tried bullying the movement's leader. Senate President-designate Mike Haridopolos yelled "Look at me!" to Ellen Freidin, who was made to stand during two hours of testimony before the Legislature in February.

They tried killing the amendments in court. And they tried sabotaging 5 and 6 by proposing a COMPLETELY BOGUS and confusing amendment (Amendment 7) of their own to "clarify" amendments 5 & 6, which would have in effect killed them. Thankfully, the judge threw that amendment out when challenged in court.

If the legislators worked as hard on creating jobs as saving their own, they could probably win the elections on their own merits and not need to cheat.

If you vote for any amendments, vote YES on Amendments 5 and 6! Tell your friends to do the same!

Thanks!

ALL FLORIDIANS!: VOTE YES on AMENDMENT 4!

If I had to pick the critical amendments for Florida in the past 10 years, it would be this year's amendments 4, 5, and 6.

5 and 6 prevent gerrymandering (Florida is the worst in the nation--but more on that later), and amendment 4 is HOMETOWN DEMOCRACY: which is the best and only chance we have against the nonstop sprawl in our state.

The developers have poured MILLIONS into fighting this, and the lies are maddening. They will stop at nothing to defeat this, and they are currently winning. Let me tell you exactly what it IS and what it ISN'T, and what's at stake.

Every community in Florida is required to have an overall master plan that sets aside land for development. This plans are called the Local Comprehensive Land Use Plan. They should rarely ever be changed once in place. However, right now, these plans are an absolute joke in Florida.

The developers bribe our commissioners with campaign contributions, who in turn change these plans over and over and over again. This is why there is so much sprawl and empty development...and the Florida taxpayers always foot the bill for this.

All Amendment 4 does is put any changes to this plan, which should be rare, to a vote by the community when the commission wants to let development occur “out of bounds” according to their own damn land use plan.

Citizens will only vote on changes to the local comprehensive land use plan.

They won’t vote on routine rezonings, variances, or individual development approvals. Voters won’t weigh in on every new grocery store or hotel, but will vote when a speculator wants to change, for example, farmland to apartments, or turn a residential area into a commercial zone. Only speculators who insist on building outside the community’s already agreed-upon areas will face a vote.

As of now, all a developer has to do is throw money a politicians way, and they get to bulldoze a rural area so they can throw up another strip mall or housing area. THIS COSTS US MONEY! The new developments require new roads, sewer, schools, police and fire services, and guess who has to pay for all of that? Why the hell shouldn’t we get a say?

Ever wonder who is putting all those very fancy signs you see everywhere and who is paying for those expensive commercials? The very same over-building developers and real-estate speculators that crashed Florida’s economy and the politicians who serve them.

These publicly traded construction companies engaged in reckless speculation, over-built many communities, and crashed Florida’s economy. Yet they received huge taxpayer bailouts this year and are now using them to try to deny Floridians the right to vote by funding the opposition to Florida Hometown Democracy Amendment 4.

Here’s a breakdown of recent contributions from the Bailed-Out “Bubble Builders” to Amendment 4’s opponent:

(Source: Citizens for Lower Taxes & A Stronger Economy PAC, Fla. Division of Elections – Searched by “Contributions” and “Amount” 4/1/2010-7/16/2020):

These are some of the big donors (how much they gave to fight Amendment 4 is the first number, how much public bail-out money they got is the second number):

Lennar Homes FL $367,000 $251.1 million
Meritage Homes $34,000 $93 million
M.D.C. Holdings $39,000 $142.6 million
Standard Pacific of Tampa $132,000 $103 million
Pulte Homes $567,000 $800 million
Ryland Homes $135,000 $97.6 million
KB Homes $255,000 $191.7 million
K. Hovnanian Companies $96,000 $250 to $275 million
Beazer Homes $75,000 $101 million
M/I Homes $73,000 $31 million
Toll Brothers $43,000 $78.8 million
MDC Holdings $39,000 $142.6 million


This is not a liberal or conservative amendment. Established politicians on the left and right who enjoy getting campaign donations are fighting their own citizens. Big name Democrats like mayor Buddy Dyer and his allies hate it just as much as the GOP funded politicians do.

Ironic that they argue that voters are wise when they put them in office, but suddenly become uninformed dolts who can’t handle having a say when a developer wants to sprawl in their communities. I would think that Florida teabaggers, who claim they want to take power from the government, would be all over this.

The latest line of attack is one of the most ridiculous arguments made yet... that this will somehow cut jobs. Preposterous.

Overdevelopment crashed Florida’s economy, leaving us with empty buildings and foreclosed subdivisions. Our local master plans have plenty of land set aside for development and builders could be building right now if it weren’t for the busted real estate bubble. In fact, there’s enough land set aside in Florida’s local comprehensive plans right now accommodate 100 million people – five times more than the 18 million people we have living here now.
It is ridiculous to suggest that giving people a vote will affect the job market.

Overdevelopment created eyesores and cost local taxpayers millions of dollars. Giving voters the chance to approve or veto projects will protect our homes and our pocketbooks.

VOTE YES on Amendment 4, and request your friends do so as well.

GOP Using Foreign Money to Buy Elections

This is due directly to the Citizens United case brought to you by the John Roberts Supreme Court...

Thanks guys...

Sink Hits Rick Scott in New Ad...FINALLY

Only in Florida could a bona-fide criminal who stole money from taxpayers and seniors; and not to mention barely escaped imprisonment, be a contender for high office. (Using the money he stole, no less).

In this ad, Republicans and law enforcement officials talk about uber-criminal Rick Scott:




Transcript of Ad:

Fifth"

TV :30

Michael McAuliffe (State Attorney, Florida 15th Judicial Circuit): Take it from prosecutors who know - Rick Scott just can't be trusted.

William Cervone (REPUBLICAN State Attorney, Florida 8th Judicial Circuit): Scott claims he didn't know the company he led was systematically defrauding Medicare.

Paul Southwick (Sergeant, Tampa Police Department): Ripping off seniors and taxpayers.

McCauliffe: But when he was questioned under oath, Rick Scott pled the Fifth seventy-five times.

Robert Crowder (REPUBLICAN Sheriff of Martin County): That means Scott refused to answer questions to avoid incriminating himself.

Cervone: Seventy-five times, Rick Scott refused to answer.

McCauliffe: Rick Scott couldn't be trusted as a CEO. And Florida can't trust Rick Scott as governor.

I would LOVE for Alex Sink to also run an ad on Rick Scott ALSO being on the Board of Directors of a company used by Saudi Arabia and Iran to suppress Internet access!


Throw in an extra ad for his extremist views, and you can nail this bastard.

Yes, she has positive ads as well, but frankly people need to know the alternative. There is no contest here. No rational person could pick a criminal over the most qualified person in years.

Wake Up Florida! You are soooo much better than this!

Rush Limbaugh on Family Guy

Rush Limbaugh on Family Guy

Tax Cuts: How the Dems Are Screwing Up a Sure Thing

Maybe I'm missing something here...If I am, please enlighten me in the comments section...

But I think this is SOOOOO simple.

All we need to do is have debate on two, TWO, tax cuts packages.

Call the first: Obama's Middle Class Tax Cut (for those making under $250,000)

Call the second: Bush's Upper Class Tax Cut Extension (for those mkaing over $250,000)

Everybody wins.

We DO NOT have the second without the first. No tax cuts for millionaires without a tax cut for the middle class first.

That way each has a fair vote. The conservadems who want to vote for the rich one can do so...after the vote on the middle class one. If they and the GOP want to add $700 BILLION to the deficit to give $100,000 tax break to multi-millionaires...go for it.


Mitch McConnell says he has all 41 rethugs lined up to fillibuster if they aren't together. FOR GOD'S SAKES.. LET HIM! "Give Em Hell Harry" Reid, (who would be more aptly named "Please don't hit me Harry"), should demand that if they want to fillibuster, they go on the floor and actually do a damn fillibuster on the MIDDLE CLASS TAX CUT.

It will fail. Miserably. The GOP will be in lose-lose...in one motion they will simultaneously be seen as stopping a middle class tax cut and fighting for a tax cut for millionaires. If they cave, which is likely, they will be forced to cede the victory to the Democratic Congress.

Harry is being wishy-washy on this as usual. My God, if I didn't think that Nevada deserved to suffer under that crazed teabagging loon Sharon Angle, I would be happy to see Reid go and be replaced by a smart Democrat with a spine like Chuck Schumer.

Pelosi has been showing some spirit, but she so far hasn't committed to vote on any tax proposals before the election.

Now FAUXNews is smelling blood in the water and has on its front page right now: Expiring Tax Cuts Hit Americans at Every Income Level

In the words of Jon Stewart.. HOW CAN THE DEMOCRATS F*&^ THIS UP??

Contact Harry Reid:
http://reid.senate.gov/contact/index.cfm

Contact Nancy Pelosi
http://www.speaker.gov/contact/

Two packages... two votes... VICTORY. Simple, right?

Question for the Teabaggers...

Who was the last president to balance the budget?

And who was the last president to inherit a budget surplus and quickly turn us to deficits?

Final question...where the hell where you during the Bush administration?

It was that question that poured angry venom in my inbox from Teabaggers. I asked one if he thought Glenn Beck was a thoughtful intellectual...I got this reply...

By 2020 100% of axes collected will go to pay for Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare and interest on the debt. How is Bush responsible for that? The problem is you have to go back decades and study history to find out why we are where we are. am no fan og George Bush and left the Republican party while he was president. Out long term unfunded liabilities are 130 trillion dollars and do you know the entire wealth of our country? 50 trillion! Make sense? Look at the entitlements that the government has taken over and every one of them is a case study in mismanagement and certain bankruptcy. And you want to give them the best health care system in the world! 52% of all medical discoveries come from where - the US. You are clamping down the free market and killing the system that improves the lives of everyone in the world. You have no problem with 2500 pages? No problem that it was voted on 24 hours after completed? No problem that it was not written by Congress? No problem that the CBO says it cannot even calculate the new govt jobs and offices created? No problem that Omama said the negotiations would be on span and it turned inot back room deals, lies and corruption. No problem that America did not want this? No problem that Nancy Pelosi said we have to pass the bill to see what is in it? No problem that the CBO already has corrected the cost projections? Every view your party hold is idiotic and bent on bringing down this country. I don't know how you do not see it, but you may not have much of a country left. An yes Glenn Beck is a brilliant man. You may want to try watching him instead of swallowing the lies you are being fed by a machine that has no answer for him. Take the red pill Neo!

·

Wow... so much insanity, so little time..

I replied:

I do listen to Beck, Do you?

Here is Goldline charlaton Glenn Beck WHINING about how awful our Health Care system is, calling it a "nightmare" just a few months before he decided there was money to be made as leader of the teabagger lemmings:


Thing is, friend, you could not have a MORE inefficient system of healthcare. Our government spends more per person than any other nation, yet we are the only industrialized nation that doesn't cover all of its citiZens. Thanks to Obama, we have a national health care policy that finally regulates the insurance industry and guarantees coverage without recision.

BY the way, the health care bill CUTS our deficit according to the CBO.

What I want to know is, where were you when the GOP rammed the Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage in 2003? Here's Forbes--that cost over $1 TRILLION dollars and was added completely to the deficit!! Unlike Obama, the GOP did not require it to be deficit neutral.

And not to confuse ideology with FACTS, but according to a USA Today analysis, tax bills last year were at their lowest levels since 1950!!!

George Bush's massive tax cuts for the wealthy are the single largest chunk of our structural budget deficit. If we let them expire for those making more than a quarter million, the budget deficit would instantly shrink by about 30%, or more than $300 billion dollars. But you guys oppose that...just as you oppose any regulation of Wall Street. Just like you oppose anything that could hurt the insurance company's obscene profits. For God's sakes, your right-leaning WSJ ADMITTED that the Democrats plan cuts taxes for the Middle Class...look at their chart.


You are being used, my friend. Take a good look at this picture before you respond:





Take the blue bill.

I have yet to get a response...

This is what you get when you watch FoxNews

Thanks to the Arlington County (Virginia) Democratic Committee's Deputy Chair Maureen Markham:

Dear Friends,

I wanted to write and tell you about an experience that I had in Maryland on Highway Route 40 today. I had been to visit my parents in Delaware and was driving home to Arlington. Often I avoid the heavy traffic on I-95 and take Route 40 to Baltimore. I was stopped at a traffic light, about to turn right to jog over to join 95 and take the tunnel under the harbor, when a dark sedan pulled up alongside me, beeped, and the driver motioned for me to roll down my window. It was not an isolated place and in broad daylight with lots of other cars around. I thought the person wanted to ask directions or something so I put down the window. The driver was a normal-looking young white man, maybe 35 or so, with short sandy hair. He leaned forward from his open window and said to me “Did you vote for Obama?”

I should say here that I have two bumper stickers on my back fender. One says “Peace is Patriotic.” The other is a round circle that says Obama-Biden. I answered "I sure did." Then he got loud and excited in a sneering sort of way and asked something like, "Are you happy now with the way things are going?" I thought “uh-oh” but I answered again, "I sure am." Then the guy went off his rocker and started verbally accosting me saying something like, "I hope to God someone shoots you dead, you liberal Pig..." Sophie started barking and I said "Oh that’s nice" as I rolled up my window. He lurched forward, cutting me off in the lane and beeping his horn and I made my right turn, glad to get away from him.

I had time to think about this during the rest of the drive home. I could not find anger in my heart toward this person, but rather a deep sadness took over me. Is this what our country is coming to? I’ll bet this person thinks he is a Christian. I thought about how oppression, violence and intolerance have characterized human history, and it makes me sad that we have made so little progress. I feel that our Country is in deep trouble, threatened by people who claim they want to “Take our Country Back” – from whom? Take it back where? What Constitution are they reading? What Bible are they reading?

I am thinking of Nazi Germany before World War II when ordinary German citizens felt vaguely uncomfortable about what was going on but did not speak up because it did not impact them directly, and then afterward because they were afraid. It is a wake-up call to Progressives, Liberals, Moderates, and Independents who do believe in the values that this country was founded upon, among them freedom from persecution because of your beliefs and because of your religion. If we want our streets to be safe to drive on, we need to find a way to defuse these people without being wimps and just giving in. We cannot let these people take over our Government!

Please, if you are not paying attention to your local elections this fall, now is the time to get involved. If you voted for Obama and are now disappointed because he is not Left enough, think what it will be like when they try to undo what he has managed to accomplish. If you voted for Obama and are now disappointed because he is too Liberal for you, do you really want to go back to the Wild West days when people wore guns in holsters on their hip? Do you approve of people trying to threaten and intimidate others just because they voted for a Black man for President? Did you all really think that we could turn around 8 years of war and decline in just 18 months? Do you really want to hand over the reins of government to the people who drove us into the ditch and who have stubbornly refused to be part of any solution to pull us out? These people would rather see Obama fail, and the middle class suffer, and the country pulled apart by strife and conflict than do anything to make things better. This is not putting country first. Don’t let this kind of cynicism succeed!

Please folks, don’t sit this one out. If we fail to participate, and the other side wins for lack of enthusiasm on our part, then truly Fear will triumph over Hope. We just can’t let that happen! Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.

Thanks for reading, and feel free to pass this on.

Still a Hope Monger,

Maureen

Good Match: Scott's Running Mate Has Ethics Problems Too

No, Jennifer Carroll didn't defruad Medicare recipients, swindle taxpayers, or sit on a board of directors at a company that Iran and Saudi Arabia used to suppress the internet like her running mate, Rick Scott. She's not THAT bad.

But she was busted with a fake degree from a diploma mill, which is a crime in several states. Of course, not Florida.

Match made in teabagger heaven.

Glenn Beck=Pathetic Rodeo Clown

Telling your followers to change America and invest in a scheme called Goldline. Actually, he's not pathetic...he's rich. It's his broke, lemming followers who I'm blown away by. These anti-government rallies chant against all taxes and government interference in their daily lives ("but keep your hands off our Medicare!") and then bitch about the long waits to get back home on the (government-run) trains, saying that someone should have put more cars on duty for the rallies. They FIGHT LIKE HELL for tax cuts for the rich and de-regulation fo Wall-Street, but then bitch about paying for the infrastructure of this nation.



Glenn Beck actually said he is the new Martin Luther King. No, Glenn, You are a radio morning show DJ and self-described rodio clown. You are a scam artist.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
I Have a Scheme
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Seminole School Board District 5: Dr. Tina Calderone

One day we'll get a decent Democrat on the board. But this is rightwing Seminole County. So for the Seminole School Board District 5, the choice is very clear:

Becky Erwin is a no-go. One thing Seminole does not need is more right-wingers. Her website doesn't show much experience, but there are several pages dedicated to her being the only "True Conservative". Great--anti-government teabaggers on the school board for PUBLIC schools.

Endorsements by wingnuts and something called the "Ronald Reagan Assemblies", along with pictures of far right conservatives like Marco Rubio don't inspire confidence.

There are already too many wingnuts in our school district pushing ideology to the detriment of our children. We don't need another.

Skip Becky for District 5.

In fact, DEFINTELY skip Jeanne Morris as well. She is the incumbent, and one of the ones who rolled over for the superintendent's diabolical plan to allow highly paid administrators to "double-dip" by collecting their obscene pensions along with their paychecks by "retiring" for 30 days. This kind of stuff makes me sick.

Anybody running against these two would probably automatically get my vote...but it so happens the third option is actually a qualified, good choice:

Orlando Sentinel:

We prefer Tina Calderone, a successful businesswoman with a doctorate in education. She proved her commitment to the county's public schools as director for five years of its fundraising foundation.

Ms. Calderone vows to put her business experience to work on the board and "leave no stone unturned" in looking for savings. She has some ideas worth exploring, including outside audits and energy-saving initiatives. She promises to ask tough questions.

They are all GOP, but Tina is qualified and the most sane.

It's Time for Corrine Brown To GO! Endorsement of Scott Fortune!

Corrine Brown sold us out. She joined the GOP legislature in their quest to "bleach" the surrounding districts by cramming in as many Democrats as possible into District 3. Although this gaurantees a GOP loss in Corrine's district, it allows for a maximum number of GOPers in the surrounding gerrymandered districts.

This has led to a very lopsided, right-wing state government in a state where Democrats far outnumber republicans. It's incumbents picking voters instead of the other way around.

Corrine doesn't care. Fair representation in Florida may mean she isn't gauranteed a seat in District 3.

Corrine Brown filed a lawsuit against you, trying to get the Florida Supreme Court to remove Amendments 5 and 6 from the ballot.

When that failed, Corrine Brown then joined ALL the GOP legislators into instituting Amendment 7. Whereas hundreds of thousands of signatures of citizens put 5 and 6 on the ballot...the right-wing legislature (and Corrine) tried to put an amendment so deceptively worded that it would have nullified Amendments 5 & 6.

Thankfully, the courts struck this power play down.

WE DESERVE BETTER!!


Vote Scott Fortune: http://scottfortuneforcongress.com

No More Crist Cronies!! (18th Judicial Circuit, Group 16)

Charlie Crist had some humdingers when he makes selections for important posts.

There is the one you all have heard about, of course...Jim Greer. Given his shady dealings, I predicted in 2006 that it would end badly, but even I was surpised about how badly.

Then there's the Senate pick. When Martinez left to lick his wounds, Uncle Charlie appointed personnel buddy, George Lemiuex, to be our sitting senator until next election. I guess the $200,000 bonus wasn't enough.

MY absolute favortie was this: Charlie picked a young dermatology assistant with NO EXPERIENCE to to head the Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC). There were several qualified candidates who actually had credentials, but the young lady was the wife of Crist's General Counel. (Also, he needed someone closeby to help with his tan...that orange glow doesn't work itself folks.)

Which brings us to Judge Michael Rudisill. Crist appointed him to succeed James E.C. Perry, who was promoted to the Florida Supreme Court by Crist in March 2009. Michael Rudisill was the least experienced of six finalists nominated for the job. One finalist was a Florida attorney for 38 years, another for 20.

Michael Rudisill had 7 years...as well as a lack of civil court experience. While his more qualified opponents wasted time getting references from judges and lawyers, Rudisill picked right-wing legislators.

Lucky for Rudisill, the judicial nominating committee included right-winger Chris Dorworth's wife and the Seminole County GOP chair Jason Brodeur...both appointed by Crist no less. Rudisill was picked handily.

Loyal party activists get rewarded in politics...that is reality. But I have a REAL ISSUE when the reward is a position on the bench. The Orlando Sentinel is calling for voters to fix this mistake.

To be fair, although I am disgraced by HOW Judge Rudisill attained the position, I cannot comment on his tenure in the court room. For a formal endorsement, I would have to inteview both candidates and watch them in action. Since I cannot do that, I am providing links to both candidates sites. Review them carefully and draw your own conclusion:

http://jeffdowdyforjudge.com/
http://www.judgerudisill.com/

Breaking: Pigs Fly! I Fully Endorse Charlie Crist for Senate

This blog was started in 2006 as the official blog of the Seminole Democratic Party. I was very proud to carry the message. In 2007, however, I left because I didn't want to speak for anyone but me. Although my posts were never rejected or even edited, I can imagine that if I was still with them, this one most assuredly would be.

Going back to 2006, you can see that I had NO LOVE for Charlie Crist. This same blogger who has relentlessly attacked Crist for years is doing something that I never thought I would do.

I fully endorse and back Charlie Crist for Senate.

I think I have some explaining to do.

First, the why-nots:

Jeff Greene:
He is currently in the lead for the Democratic nomiation, if that means anything. He has 17% to Meek's 13%, while their opponenets are in the 30th percentile. Jeff Greene was a republican who decided to be a Democrat and enter this race after Meek's candidacy failed to catch on. He is quite a character: Mike Tyson was his best man at his wedding, ex-Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss lived in his guesthouse, and he made MILLIONS betting on the housing collapse that killed our economy. I join many of my fellow Dems in saying No Thank You.

Kendrick Meek:
Unlike Jeff Greene, I like Kendrick Meek. I like him a lot. More well-known Dems didn't join the Senate race because Dems and GOPers alike all assumed that Crist was a shoe-in. His was a long shot. Another long shot? Marco Rubio. At least Meek had a clear field to the general. Rubio actually thought he could take the nomination from the crowned prince of Crist?

But that is exactly what happened. The wealthy benefactors of the joke that is the teabag party told their members to rally behind the wingnut without question. The GOP establishment responded by trying to get Crist to go more wingnut, but it didn't work. Rubio overcame a huge deficit and surged ahead of Crist.

I brought this up with the founder of DailyKos when he was calling on Crist to run as a Dem or Indie long before his switch. At the time I was furious…why can’t a progressive website get behind the damn progressive?

But I think Kos was just less idealistic than I was. He knew what I learned…herding liberals is like herding cats. Although the virtue of this is obvious…we think for ourselves and never follow a cracked whip (we will never get behind Jeff Greene)…the downside is it makes it difficult to get real liberals elected.

On the other hand, teabaggers do what they are told. This is also why the GOP nominee for governor is going to be Rick Scott, a bona-fide criminal for crying out loud.

The numbers speak for themselves. Meek is stuck at 13%--even behind Greene. It has been many, many months and people still don't know him. It is obvious to everyone that he is not going to catch fire. In fact, billionaire Greene just started a massive media blitz attacking Meek over a development scandal. Meek cannot afford to respond. So those who don't know him will soon know the negatives. If anything, he will go further down. I strongly support MEEK for the primary, but bottom line, Meek will not be the next Senator.

WHY CRIST?
There are too many posts on my blog attacking Charlie Crist. Some of my posts attacking him even made our local paper. Just search “Crist” in the search block and see what I mean.

I have little respect for Crist as governor: He appointed cronies, he never had and still has no ideas on how to handle our state's numerous problesm, such as our outrageous deficit, our broken education system or the insurance crisis. Not only did he refuse to tackle the big issues, but when our state was drowing in red ink with no end in sight and we needed strong leadership the most, Crist decided to bail and escape to the Senate.

So why do I back him now?

I have several reasons, but first, the primary reason. We cannot afford Marco Rubio.

He is our own Sharon Angle and will wreak havoc not just on our state, but all the others as well. Between the two, I pick Crist every time.

Rubio is part of the culture of corruption that led to the self-imposed implosion of the Florida GOP that has already led to the arrest of former GOP chairman, Jim Greer.

But if you thought Greer's spending habits were bad, Rubio, who has the nerve to run as a "fiscal conservative", racked up over 100,000 on his personal GOP credit card. The IRS is still investigating his abuse of the credit cards for personal expenses without reporting or paying taxes on additional income.

Rubio released a statement saying that his expenses were for "legitimate political purposes." So I guess groceries, plane tickets for family, and a back wax constitute legitimate political purposes.

Reckless spending aside, Marco Rubio is a wingnut's wingnut.

Just like GOP nutcase Sharon Angle in Nevada, Rubio opposes Social Security and Medicare as he explained to Joe Scarbarough in this video. (Bonus—you can hear his rousing support for Glenn Beck).

Marco Rubio also proposes to spend trillions of dollars while overwhelmingly sending the benefits to the very, very rich. And we all know how well that strategy works.

We cannot, cannot, cannot afford this extremist teabagging idiot to be our representative in the US Senate.


But a full-throated endorsement deserves something a little better than the lessor of two evils.

First off, I believe Crist will caucus with the Democrats. The GOP has burned their bridge with Charlie, going so far as to insult him openly and even hock his official portrait on ebay. Good riddance.

However, more importantly, I do believe that what made Crist an awful governor will make him a decent Senator. If you know anything about Crist, you know that he is the most colossal panderer in politics today. When Obama was riding high after the election, Crist embraced him and supported the stimulus. When the harder times came and Crist was trying to get the GOP nomination, he suddenly attacked everything Obama and hated the stimulus. This is just one example of who Crist is.

A successful governor is one who needs to make tough, unpopular executive decisions that directly benefit the state, even if the benefit is not immediately seen. That man is not Charlie. He always put his finger in the wind and did what he thought was most politically popular. (Another case in point: his pet project, Amendment 1. Floridians got a mild property tax cut that cost the state billions and induced trauma on the already bleeding services many Floridians depended on.)

But as far as traits go, this is not too bad in the body of the Senate. Right now, the GOP is marching in goosestep lockstep (as always) with the SOLE goal of hurting Obama—no matter what he supports.
Health care of 9/11 victims?
Wall Street gambling reform?
God-damned unemployed insurance?

To hell with what the people want.

THIS is not Charlie.

I would much rather have someone who panders to the citizens rather than someone who panders to the worst fringe of a failed party—which is what a Rubio candidacy gaurantees. Other Senators, like Ben Nelson and Blanche Lincoln, pander to special interests that bankroll their candidacy.

THIS is also not Charlie.

Yes, he will pander to whatever is popular, but in the scheme of things in the Senate, that is not a bad place to be.

Finally, a Crist win might just send a message to the GOP. Pushing moderates out to pander to the teabagging fringe = FAIL. They already messed up what looked like a sure thing in Nevada, possibly even Kentucky, but Florida was considered a GOP lock. How sweet to see it go.

One year ago I never would have predicted this. But here it is. I will be voting for Charlie Crist for Senate this November. I strongly urge you to do the same.

Bud Chiles Is A Selfish Bastard...

That is going to turn purple Florida into a right-wing paradise...

With Scott as the GOP nominee – and his nearly $30 million ad blitz has vaulted him into the lead in the Republican primary – he gets 29 percent, Sink 27 percent and independent Bud Chiles 14 percent.

With McCollum as the Republican nominee, McCollum gets 27 percent, Sink 26 percent and Chiles 14 percent. Scott leads McCollum by 11 percent in the GOP primary

Rick Scott is a bona-fide criminal, and is (of course) backed by the extreme right-wing teabaggers. With a right-wing corrupt teabagger at the helm, there will be NOTHING to stop our gerrymandered, far right legislature from making purple Florida into a wingnut paradise.

Arizona's anti-brown people law (which has ruined their economy) will be brought here, as will coastal drilling, as will the forced rape bill that was narrowly defeated, as will the anti-teacher law.

Because Bud Chiles, who is only running on his father's name and has 0% chance of winning, is siphoning off votes from Alex Sink. This allows Rick Scott, who has TONS of money from DEFRAUDING Medicare patients, to spring over the top and wreck our state.

If he truly cared about Florida and its citizens, he would back out and save us from the certain devastation that a Glenn Beck run government would bring us. But that would be putting people and principles ahead of ego...and that is something bad politicians don't know how to do. That is why I know Sarah Palin, who should know she has no business running a fruit stand much less a government, is going to run in 2012. Because some people want to BE something, not DO something.

Bud sees the numbers. Bud knows, and doesn't care. He is a failed politician who desperately wants to BE somebody, but will only be a GOP stooge that will bring the failed policies of the past to our vulnerable state along with a radical right-wing social agenda.

The only thing that can help us is an informed voter. Here in Florida.

GOD help us all.

GOP Steps On Unemployed to Fight for Super-Rich

Deficit hawks?

The spend-crazy GOP that spent like drunken sailors under Bush for bridges to nowhere and tax cuts for the wealthy decided to make a stand... they will FIGHT tooth and nail to prevent the unemployed (or "funemployed", as teabaggers call them) from getting payments.

Costs too much, really. And these people don't really want to work, as some GOP Congressmen argued that it would be a "disincentive" to find work. (The fact that these people have been unemployed for over 12 months and in dire straits never enters their radar screen).

No, a few million added to the deficit so families with kids can feed their children and keep their homes is crazy. Even though, I might add, it is money that comes right back into our economy since they need to spend it all just to survive.

No, we have to fight that because the GOP ARE DEFICIT HAWKS now.

Except...when it comes to the super-rich.

That's right. The GOP is ready to fight to permanently keep in place tax cuts for the richest of the rich. These cuts for the super-rich add HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS to our national debt. Hundreds of billions that do not go back to our economy (there aren't that many billionaires, and there is only so much discretionary spending a multi-billionare can do for Gods' sakes). Hundreds of billions that go to the people who need it least, and are not asking for it. Hundreds of billions that kill jobs, not create them.

Obama is asking that we keeps the tax cuts for those who make less than $250,000 a year, but let the Bush tax cuts for the super-rich expire. That means Bill Gates' 50 billion will have to pay 39% as opposed to 35%. I think he'll be okay. They all will.

Where is your soul, GOP? How can you fight against the unemployed middle-class who are struggling in one breath and fight for the richest of the rich, in the words of Republican Mike Pence, "with everything we've got?"

For all your Bible-thumping, I guess you really don't believe in an afterlife, do you?

Jobs? Economy? NO! GOP Candidates Only Focus on AZ Immigration Law

From the Miami Herald:

More than 1 million people in Florida are out of work. The oil spill is wreaking environmental and economic havoc. The state is one hurricane away from catastrophe.

But anyone listening to Republican gubernatorial candidates Rick Scott and Bill McCollum would think that one of the most pressing concerns in this non-border state is illegal immigrants scaling palm trees and jumping over hibiscus bushes.

The article gives the numbers and shows how illegal immigration has dropped by hundreds of thousands here in Florida. This is not as a result of any fence or strong immigration policy, but mostly because there is little point in sneaking over here since we have no jobs. This is a factor you might think would give McCollum and Scott more to talk about: Neither one has a plan for the economy, how will stop our 6 billion deficit, or ideas for job creation.

Arizona's law is misguided, but at the very least they can point to problems of Mexican cartels smuggling drugs into the US--which, by the way, is not a primary issue here in Florida since they tend to use the border states. Florida doesn't even have a large Mexican population. Primarily, Florida's hispanics are overwhelmingly Cuban, who become legal if they make it here, and Puerto Ricans-who happen to be US citizens. Even Haitians have an easy time applying for temporary legal status given the earthquake. In fact, the majority of immigrants here are South Americans who have overstayed their visas.

Can we can the "scary brown people" meme and focus on the real issues affecting Florida?

Presidential Scholars Rank Obama 15th Greatest Prez!

From Politico:

A new poll of leading presidential scholars ranks Barack Obama as the 15th best president of the United States, just below Bill Clinton but ahead of Ronald Reagan.


The Siena College poll, which surveyed 238 presidential scholars at U.S. colleges and universities, asked scholars to rate the nation’s 43 chief executives on 20 attributes ranging from legislative accomplishments to integrity and imagination.

Read more

Ahead of Reagan... which will really explode a teabagger's head. Given that Obama has gotten things done with unified GOP opposition on everything, I'd say that's pretty amazing.

P.S.: No surprise... W. is ranked as one of the worst.

Drill BABY Drill!!!

Notice the GOP doesn't have their minions chanting this anymore...

Brutally Honest Ad: Clint Webb for Senate

Why can't all politicians be this honest...

Iconic Ironic Photo Taken at BP Gas Station

Certain policians, like GOP Minority Leader John Boehner, are suggesting that taxpayers help foot the bill for the oil spill. Sure. Gulf residents struggling to pay their bills after this disaster should certainly pull their weight instead of picking on the giant, multi-billion dollar foreign oil company that actually caused the damage.

Teabagger logic: YOU are responsible for spills.

Nice sentiment....