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GEARING UP
Let’s review where we are:
We have been paying attention to:
Judith Miller-Scooter Libby—Dick Cheney
Abu Ghraib—Alberto Gonzales' role
Tom DeLay's indictment—Karl Rove's connection
Katrina-Rita-FEMA
Ohio voting—Tom Noe-Blackwell
IRAQ-IRAN-ISRAEL-PALESTINE-AFGHANISTAN-DARFUR-KOREA--war and violence
Global warming—arctic ice melt—oil
Supreme Court judges—fundamentalist religions
Poverty in America—civil rights violations within the USA
Health care—insurance, access, equity
Jobs—outsourcing, Walmart syndrome
There’s more, but these issues are what need immediate attention…
If we are the decision-makers about the direction of this country, and according to the Declaration of Independence, WE THE PEOPLE, ARE, we have not yet ratcheted up enough.
The march last weekend was meant as a mobilization. 500,000 of us need to actually MOBILIZE. But what do we mobilize around? Who will lead? Who will inspire?
The above list demonstrates the deep doo-doo we are in—all the issues are discrete but linked up with each other. Since violations of democratic principles are rampant within all of them, it is easy to get diffused and confused.
Most of us get up every morning and try to complete the tasks of the day. Lately, the tasks are increasingly complex and require a larger and larger amount of time to address.
Example: reimbursement for a doctor’s care. Another: finding a job with benefits
So how do we take our country back, given all the challenges of the day?
Already, most Americans have gone back to the routine of survival, and the momentum of the antiwar movement that was ignited a little last weekend has begun to dissipate.
What can we do?
UNITE: At the White House on Monday, people united in what are called “affinity groups”, meaning that they participated in alliances of mutual support. There was one person assigned as a support person for each affinity group arrested. This is also the original model for the Democracy Cell Project. The DCP is a large affinity group; your local communities are the source for the affinity group/ democracy cell you wish to be a part of. Many of us already have such groups—now is the time to train in earnest. Here is a list of activities and training sessions you can work toward:
1. Support a progressive candidate—canvassing, visibility, fundraising, letters to the editor
2. Read together: choose a book appropriate to local issues, or email us for a copy of FEAR UP, the script we developed for our fundraiser in September—it can be done as a living room read-aloud-and-discuss or as a staged reading as a fundraiser for your group or local candidates.
3. Invite a local activist to speak to your group about actions that can be taken on local issues—environmental, educational, economic, etc.
4. Take on the Progressive Pledge as a group effort to collect email addresses of people who may become a part of your group, and as a point of departure for discussions.
5. Report back to the DCP so other groups can benefit from your experiences.
WORK:
1. Even if you think you are alone, and have no affinity group, there is work you can do. See the above list.
2. Run for local office yourself—it can be done through a political party or you can run as an independent. You need friends, money, and a lot of energy and focus.
3. Contact your representatives regularly. When they do something positive, call them and thank them. When they do not represent your concerns, call them and let them know that too.
4. Be the media—write letters to the editor, op-eds, call your local radio and television outlets regularly, become a maven of truth and specific information in your community.
5. Disperse the Progressive Pledge to your friends, neighbors, and local officials. Let them know what is important to all of us, and sign them up.
COMMUNICATE:
1. Come back regularly to the DCP website and report on successes and failures, so we can all learn.
2. Email to your local group and contacts about what others are doing across the country to restore democracy. Inspire them.
DONATE:
1. We all proved in the 2004 election that even small donations add up to large amounts of support. The same happened with the Katrina debacle. Many organizations, like the DCP and other nonprofits, and the PACS/527s, need support to run ads, to develop materials, and to pay staff to coordinate the work. Candidates also need support. If you look around the internet, you can find many worthy causes. Consider taking on one or two, even to the tune of $10 or $20 a month, to show your support for their continued existence and to demonstrate to larger donors that you believe in their messages.
(To donate to the DCP, click on the GROW DEMOCRACY CELLS icon on the left nav bar! And thank you!)
DeLay says he didn't get to tell his side
By JANET ELLIOTT
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau
AUSTIN - The day after U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay's grand jury indictment, his lawyer and the jury foreman on Thursday appeared to contradict the Texas politician's assertions that he was not given a chance to speak before the jury.
The foreman, William M. Gibson Jr., a retired state insurance investigator, said the Travis County grand jury waited until Wednesday, the final day of its term, to indict him because it was hoping he would accept jurors' invitation to testify.
DeLay said in interviews that the grand jury never asked him to testify.
In a Wednesday night appearance on MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews, he said Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle never talked to him or asked him to testify.
"Never asking me to testify, never doing anything for two years," DeLay said in the interview. "And then, on the last day of his fourth or sixth grand jury, he indicts me. Why? Because his goal was to make me step down as majority leader."
On Thursday, DeLay said in another broadcast interview that he was under the impression that he wasn't going to be indicted because he hadn't been called to testify before the grand jury.
"I have not testified before the grand jury to present my side of the case, and they indicted me," said DeLay, according to the Associated Press.
Dick DeGuerin, the attorney representing DeLay, said Thursday that DeLay actually was invited to appear before the grand jury, where he would have been under oath. The Houston attorney was not yet on the legal team when DeLay was asked to appear, but he said other attorneys advised him not to testify — a decision DeGuerin supports.
DeGuerin said that DeLay may have been referring in the interviews to the fact that the grand jury did not subpoena him to testify.
Gibson said there was an open invitation, but the grand jury decided not to force him to appear.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/printstory.mpl/front/3376104
I just love the twisted logic of the DeLay team.
Refuse to play, and then play the vicitm card--"they didn't make me play!"
oy.
Anyway, this just in:
House Committee to Vote on Resolution of Inquiry on 9/14
A Resolution of Inquiry into Bush's war lies (H Res 375) now has 70 co-sponsors. It will come to a vote in the House International Relations Commitee on September 14th, where it has the co sponsorship of most of the Democrats and one Republican. To pass, it needs all the Democrats and three Republicans. The more Congress Members not on the committee who co-sponsor, the more likely some committee members are to vote yes. A substantial debate on the issue is expected. The committee meets in Room 2172, Rayburn House Office Building, at 10:30 a.m. this Wednesday.
You can Email Your Congress Member:
http://www.democrats.com/peoplesemailnetwork/50
Phone and Fax Your Congress Member
http://www.usalone.com/get_instantcongress.htm
Or call switchboard tollfree at (888) 818-6641
videos coming soon from last week!
House Committee to Vote on Resolution of Inquiry on 9/14
Am I nuts, or did 9/14 already pass us by?
Thanks Karen. That about sums it up.
To keep building on the momentum from last weekend's march (and the Camp Casey experiences) on the pro-peace movement, I would add weekly/monthly vigils to your list. They're fairly easy to organize; it can be as simple as a few people standing in a public square with signs.
It's so important that we continue to organize & talk about and act upon the issues. I feel much more hopeful now that we really do have a chance to make significant gains in the House & Senate in '06, but it will require diligent efforts from all of us to stay focussed & organized & rational. Just my two pesos worth this morning.
Hmmmmm. More bad news for the regime. Even though there are no penalities associated with the crime, it's just another example of the culture of corruption in which they operate...
Buying of News by Bush's Aides Is Ruled Illegal
WASHINGTON, Sept. 30 - Federal auditors said on Friday that the Bush administration violated the law by buying favorable news coverage of President Bush's education policies, by making payments to the conservative commentator Armstrong Williams and by hiring a public relations company to analyze media perceptions of the Republican Party.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/01/politics/01educ.html?hp&ex=1128225600&en=ed2345e1f9cc06db&ei=5094&partner=homepage
Interesting article from CNN...not always the most balanced reporting, we all know... But it appears that DeLay is causing more than a few Repub congresspeople to worry...
House Republicans ponder future
Moving day for DeLay; questions about Blunt
--snip--
"Everyone is rooting for Tom DeLay," said Rep. Zach Wamp, a conservative Republican from Tennessee. But, "the reality of the ordeal he faces is not as rosy as everyone's hopes and aspirations," he said.
--snip--
While, technically, there are no leadership openings, some lawmakers -- even those who have been fiercely loyal to DeLay -- expressed doubts about whether the 11-term Texan will return to his leadership post, or even stay in office after next year.
****
And don't miss this little tidbit...Wonder how much this will influence CNN's perspective & reporting on DeLay...
Tim Berry, who was DeLay's chief of staff, reported Thursday for his last day of work. A powerful player in almost all things DeLay, Berry had been planning to leave Capitol Hill before Wednesday's indictment, having accepted a job as a lobbyist for Time Warner, Inc., the parent company of CNN.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/09/29/delay.blunt/index.html
This certainly speaks volumes about this regime's priorities...
And BTW, I learned something yesterday from CNBC that should alarm everyone concerned with how the government sets budgets... As I understand this, the budgets are reset to $0 with every new president. That means that the guidelines Congress has to work with for the next budget are based on budgetary assumptions that were made in 2000, not last year! Good fiscal policy & planning? I don't think so...
Bush threatens defense bill veto, warning on prisoners
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Friday threatened to veto a $440.2 billion defense spending bill in the Senate because it wasn't enough money for the Pentagon and also warned lawmakers not to add any amendments to regulate the treatment of detainees or set up a commission to probe abuse.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050930/pl_nm/iraq_congress_defense_dc
Berry had been planning to leave Capitol Hill before Wednesday's indictment, having accepted a job as a lobbyist for Time Warner, Inc., the parent company of CNN.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/09/29/delay.blunt/index.html
Posted by: madame defarge at October 1, 2005 11:57 AM
That is SOOOOO WRONG!!!
Media should not need a lobbyest for one thing.
They should also not hire someone with political ties to someone indicted!
We should be calling and emailing CNN from now until eternity! Better yet, call your cable company and tell them to ditch CNN. Then call CNN and tell them you started your own lobby called, "Ditch CNN"!
Bush Haiku
This is a poem made up entirely of actual quotations from George W. Bush, arranged for 'aesthetic' purposes, by Washington Post writer, Richard Thompson. A wonderful poem like this is too good not to share.
Ah, yes! A testament to literacy in the age of Every Child Left Behind!
My favorite? "They misunderestimate me." (!!)
MAKE THE PIE HIGHER!
I think we all agree, the past is over.
This is still a dangerous world.
It's a world of madmen and uncertainty
and potential mental losses.
Rarely is the question asked
is our children learning?
Will the highways of the internet
become more few?
How many hands have I shaked?
They misunderestimate me.
I'm a pitbull on the pantleg of opportunity.
I know that the human being
and the fish can coexist. (??)
Families is where our nation finds hope.
Where our wings take dream.
Put food on your family! (???)
Knock down the tollbooth!
Vulcanize society!
Make the pie higher!
(Pass this on.
Help cure Mad Cowboy disease.)!!
Bush's brain?
http://www.alternet.org/wire/26260/
Posted by: Cyrano at October 1, 2005 02:54 PM
"How will history judge me? Well....we'll all be
dead." George W. Bush
I'm sending DiAnne, back to you
I had all the alarm clocks working at 6 a.m, so that we could have breakfast before she went...and she went. She will tell you more about news and everything abroad, but one thing is sure, that was great sharing....out of the old blog. On top, we had Amy.
DiAnne got stunned at our coverage about New-Orleans, and remoted places. Our jourbalists are not about to move, though.
Who is coming next to Paris?
Don't worry, we have sound news...and cable, and at home everybody speaks English. We ar just bloody French who love America dearly..
I can attest to Andree's gifts as hostess - good food, good wine, and wonderful company. Who could ask for more? I'm very jealous that DiAnne got to stay on another week.
Andree, we are bloody Americans who love France dearly!
Posted by: Andtée - France at October 1, 2005 04:24 PM
Andree,
I hear you're a great chef! I think I'll come next!
P.S. um...how warm is it in Jan, Feb, and March?
I just read Barak Obama's diarly over at dailykos. I have to say, that man speaks for me. I want him for my president. Not in 2012. NOW. I want him for my president NOW.
He exemplifies respect for difference - all kinds of difference, including difference of political thought and ideology. He is a true example of righteousness, that outshines the judgmental posturing of many so-called christians in our country.
My financial advisor is a Christian, she told me yesterday. I asked "What kind of Christian? There are so many different kinds these days." She responded with this:
"My son is forever quoting the Old Testament, and he carries his bible everywhere. Recently, interupting one of his tirades, I suggested that we don't need God anymore, as there are now so many down here doing his judging for him."
Then she said "I'm a New Testament Christian. Love they neighbor. Judge not. Blessed are the meek. Whatever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto Me. Feed the hungry. Minister to the poor. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of god. That's the kind of Christian I am."
Well, I didn't know what to say. Meekly, I responded "So there are still some of those out there, huh?"
Food for thought.
Karen, your baroque post was a delight.
Karen:
Looking over the list, I think we are in the forest--and we need to be on the mountain abit to understand where we are--and see it as a whole systemic issue.
I think we can make more correlations to the individual topics we're focused on. The corporate interests that have overrun the country, the lack of wherewithal by Congress to face them down because they weigh so heavily on the election processes, the corporatization of democracy that has sold the American populace down the river.
I want to examine the whole body now that we see all the symptoms. Where is the root wound that is causing this cancer? How do we begin to address it?
Amy:
Your post fills me with hope. Carry on, my girl, carry on...
I just read Barak Obama's diarly over at dailykos. I have to say, that man speaks for me. I want him for my president. Not in 2012. NOW. I want him for my president NOW.
Posted by: Amy at October 1, 2005 04:50 PM
Ditto, in spades.
Where is the root wound that is causing this cancer? How do we begin to address it?
Posted by: Fe at October 1, 2005 05:02 PM
To me, it's the "you're either with us or you're against us" mentality. Our country is broken in pieces because of this mentality.
Let the healing begin...with us.
Karl Rove made a trip to North Dakota last week, some say to try to recruit North Dakota John Hoeven to run against Senator Kent Conrad in '06.
In my estimation, the games of '06, have begun:
Yesterday, Hoeven announced, per the WaPo:
North Dakota Governor Won't Run for Senate
The Associated Press
Friday, September 30, 2005; 10:20 PM
BISMARCK, N.D. -- Republican Gov. John Hoeven, who was considered the GOP's strongest candidate to challenge Democratic U.S. Sen. Kent Conrad, announced Friday he would not enter the 2006 Senate race.
heh heh heh
more...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/30/AR2005093001717.html
and....
from The Hill:
Snow heads to North Dakota while Hoeven leaves for D.C.
By Peter Savodnik
When Treasury Secretary John Snow swoops into North Dakota tomorrow to discuss the politically fraught issue of Social Security reform, he’ll meet with business leaders, students and a handful of state lawmakers.
The one person he won’t be seen with is the most powerful politician in the state and a member of Snow’s own party: Gov. John Hoeven (R), who has yet to take a public position on what should be done about Social Security.
more....
http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Campaign/033005.html
OMG...Have your hankies ready!
http://www.democrats.org/a/2005/09/lending_a_helpi.php
Lending a Helping Hand to Hurricane Vicitims
On Friday, September 9, days after Hurricane Katrina had ravaged the Gulf Coast, I felt frustrated and angry. In the communications department here at the DNC, I spend most of my day working and watching the news, and although I felt informed of what was going on around me, I also felt helpless and powerless to help those so far away.
Posted by: Amy at October 1, 2005 04:50 PM
Amy,
I don't get the "new testament v old testament" reference but I certainly agree with this:
"Love they neighbor. Judge not. Blessed are the meek. Whatever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto Me. Feed the hungry. Minister to the poor. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of god. That's the kind of Christian I am."
Posted by: Amy at October 1, 2005 04:50 PM
I have found a website that has given me hope. I have had a couple other people I respect highly "on the side of truth" take a look at it, and was told it was a good site.
It consists of many posts by "those kinds of Christians" who realize that the right wing-NUTS
do not represent ANYTHING Jesus taught about during his three years of public teaching.
There might be a few nuts sprinkled in between, but, before you lose hope for all Christians everywhere, give this a look-see. You'll feel better, I promise.
You might not agree with everything that is being said, but at least it's a chance to see that not all Christians are charletons.
At least these people think for themselves instead
of being gang led and spoon fed.
http://www.publicchristian.com/index.php?p=320#comment-1084
Interesting look at the first trip of Karen Hughes as undersecretary.
"Many people around the world do not understand the important role that faith plays in Americans' lives," she said. When an Egyptian opposition leader inquired why Mr Bush mentions God in his speeches, Hughes asked him whether he was aware that "previous American presidents have also cited God, and that our constitution cites 'one nation under God'."
"Well, never mind," he said.
With these well-meaning arguments, Hughes has provided the exact proofs for Bin Laden's claims about American motives. "It is stunning to the extent Hughes is helping bin Laden," says Robert Pape, a University of Chicago political scientist who has conducted extensive research into the motives of suicide terrorists and is the author of Dying to Win: The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism. "If you set out to help bin Laden," he says, "you could not have done it better than Hughes."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1581335,00.html
Sparrow, I think what my acquaintance really meant to say is that she follows Jesus, rather than the old laws. Her Christianity is rooted in his words, rather than in the books written long before his time. Many literalist christians focus heavily on the old testament which of course says nothing about Jesus.
Amy,
Sorry to grill you on this, but I'm just trying to understand.
Lest we forget election reform...John Edwards speaks up!
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/10/1/152742/088
Posted by: Truth Shall Prevail at October 1, 2005 05:47 PM
Yes, 06 has begun!
That's why we need everyone onboard now!
Amy--check your forum!
Sparrow,
I think the reason religion comes up here once in awhile is because many of the leaders in the right-wing church crowd and the current administration use their "christianity" as a ticket to power, and arrogantly point fingers at
others while self-righteously giving the appearance of godliness or goodness. All the while they are being covert in their bad behavior and corruption and it affects millions of Americans, and world citizens.
That kind of behavior sheds a bad light on all
Christians everywhere.
For me the intent is not to be anti-semetic.
For me the point is that when I see the words Jesus taught (and yes, many others believe other teachers' words were just as valuable), I believe He was speaking to Jews and Gentiles alike.
In every religion and every culture there are those who scratch and claw their way to the top.
Jesus taught those he was born and raised around.
He tried, in his three years of public teaching, to teach mankind (he didn't single out the Jews)
that what is most important, more important than money, more important than status, more important
than power and recognition and comfort, is a person's heart attitude. Just like we say here at the DCP, we care about "matters of the heart".
I think Jesus in the New Testament was suggesting
that men and women try to get over the superficiality and selfishness of that kind of
behavior, and that mindset, that sooner or later
creeps and crawls it's ugly head into all kinds of institutions and societies, leaving destruction
in it's wake.
The reason I come to the DCP to learn and to share is because I have seen demonstrated time and time again that the people here at the DCP care about "matters of the heart". They see beyond the superficiality of the quest for money and power, and fame and opportunity, at the expense of everything and everyone else.
That's why I am here, because regardless of what religion we are individually, I know without a doubt that the DCP has some of the most caring people in this country. They care about the impact they are making on their society, and want to do something constructive to right the wrongs in this country. They choose not riches and stature, but to reach out and help others to learn to make a difference, too. And,
they teach by example.
Believe me, I wouldn't be here if I didn't truly believe that.
Posted by: Truth Shall Prevail at October 1, 2005 08:42 PM
Yes Truth (and Amy)
I in no way tried to imply anti-semitism, but I was trying to figure out why the litergists who use the old testament seem so much harsher.
FBI Admits Mistakes in Security Wiretaps
Patriot Act Critics Troubled by Errors Made During Terrorism Probes
WASHINGTON (Sept. 30) - The FBI says it sometimes gets the wrong number when it intercepts conversations in terrorism investigations, an admission critics say underscores a need to revise wiretap provisions in the Patriot Act.
The FBI would not say how often these mistakes happen. And, though any incriminating evidence mistakenly collected is not legally admissible in a criminal case, there is no way of knowing whether it is used to begin an investigation.
Parts of the Patriot Act, including a section on "roving wiretaps,'' expire in December. Such wiretaps allow the FBI to get permission from a secret federal court to listen in on any phone line or monitor any Internet account that a terrorism suspect may be using, whether or not others who are not suspects also regularly use it.
The bureau's acknowledgment that it makes mistakes in some wiretaps - although not specifically roving wiretaps - came in a recent Justice Department inspector general's report on the FBI's backlog of intercepted but unreviewed foreign-language conversations.
The 38,514 untranslated hours included an undetermined number from what the FBI called "collections of materials from the wrong sources due to technical problems.''
Spokesman Ed Cogswell said that language describes instances in which the tap was placed on a telephone number other than the one authorized by a court.
"That's mainly an instance in which the telephone company hooked us up to the wrong number or a clerical error here gives us the wrong number,'' Cogswell said.
He had no estimate of how often that happens, but said that when it does the FBI is required to inform the secret court that approved the intercept.
The FBI could not say Friday whether people are notified that their conversations were mistakenly intercepted or whether wrongly tapped telephone numbers were deleted from bureau records.
Privacy activists said the FBI's explanation of the mistaken wiretaps was unacceptably vague, and that in an era of cell phones and computers it is easier than ever for the government to access communications from innocent third parties.
"What do you mean you are intercepting the wrong subject? How often does it occur? How long does it go on for?'' said James Dempsey, executive director of the Center for Democracy and Technology.
David Sobel, general counsel of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, said technological advances have made it harder, not easier, to "conduct wiretapping in a surgical way'' because digital communications often carry many conversations. "It's not like the old days when there was one dedicated line between me and you,'' Sobel said.
The FBI has acknowledged errors in the past. An FBI memo from 2000, made public two years later, described similar problems in the use of warrants issued by a court that operates in secret under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. In 2002, an FBI official said the bureau averaged 10 mistakes a year in such cases.
These warrants are among the most powerful tools in the U.S. anti-terrorism arsenal, permitting secret searches and wiretaps for up to one year without ever notifying the target of the investigation.
The court approved 1,754 such warrants in 2004.
The Patriot Act, passed 45 days after the Sept. 11 attacks, gave the government sweeping powers in terrorism investigations, including allowing the use of roving wiretaps. The authority also applies to espionage and other foreign intelligence cases.
The FBI is not supposed to use material it collects either by mistake or from people who happen to use phones that are tapped legitimately, but that requirement doesn't satisfy some lawmakers.
"They have recorded the information, but they're saying, 'Trust us, we won't listen to what we recorded,''' said Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va. "People ought to be concerned.''
Versions of the Patriot Act renewal that passed the House and Senate during the summer both contain the roving wiretap. It would expire in 10 years under the House-passed bill and four years in the Senate version. Congressional negotiators are expected to hammer out final details of the legislation starting in late October.
The Justice Department fought congressional efforts to require investigators to determine that the target of surveillance actually was using the tapped phone or computer before they listened in. Some lawmakers said such a requirement would reduce the chance that other conversations would be intercepted.
Administration officials argued that safeguards in the law already require the government to discard those conversations. "Such a restriction would make it harder to use multipoint wiretaps in terrorism and espionage investigations than in drug trafficking and other ordinary criminal investigations,'' assistant Attorney General William Moschella wrote Scott.