I keep reading and watching TV (okay, YouTube) about why Hillary Clinton would be the best Vice President pick for Obama.
If he did pick her, who would have rightly earned the Anything to Win title? I think it would be Obama in a landslide!
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Monday, June 30, 2008
Obama and General Clark
When Senator Clinton talked about Senator Obama being ready to be President, I thought it was just talk. But the way he has handled himself these past several days, I'm starting to wonder.
Wesley Clark was right. Being a Prisoner of War has nothing to do with being President of the United States or perhaps some of the people currently in Guantanamo, when they are finally released, can return to their home countries and run for the highest office. They will certainly be able to call themselves former Prisoners of War and given the new McCain rule, they should certainly have the credentials.
I only know what I've read about Senator's McCain's war record. I have no knowledge or judgment about it one way or another; but I do believe that General Wesley Clark was absolutely right in his statements that Senator McCain has not been in a leadership position so far.
But for Obama to do whatever he is asked to do by the Republicans while dissing the people who are actually going to vote for him (let me count the ways: 1) FISA retroactive immunity, 2) the death penalty, 3) the right to bear arms, and now 4) disavowing a 4-star general in favor of Bush III) is moving him more and more to the "have to vote" rather than "want to vote" status.
Good grief! He's starting to make the people who think they should support McCain seem to be smarter than one would have thought even if just on the basis of the logic of voting against your own self-interest.
What's next? Will he start cutting campaign commercials for Senator McCain?
Wesley Clark was right. Being a Prisoner of War has nothing to do with being President of the United States or perhaps some of the people currently in Guantanamo, when they are finally released, can return to their home countries and run for the highest office. They will certainly be able to call themselves former Prisoners of War and given the new McCain rule, they should certainly have the credentials.
I only know what I've read about Senator's McCain's war record. I have no knowledge or judgment about it one way or another; but I do believe that General Wesley Clark was absolutely right in his statements that Senator McCain has not been in a leadership position so far.
But for Obama to do whatever he is asked to do by the Republicans while dissing the people who are actually going to vote for him (let me count the ways: 1) FISA retroactive immunity, 2) the death penalty, 3) the right to bear arms, and now 4) disavowing a 4-star general in favor of Bush III) is moving him more and more to the "have to vote" rather than "want to vote" status.
Good grief! He's starting to make the people who think they should support McCain seem to be smarter than one would have thought even if just on the basis of the logic of voting against your own self-interest.
What's next? Will he start cutting campaign commercials for Senator McCain?
Monday, June 23, 2008
Zimbabwe
I've been doing stuff other than blogging lately, but this site, This is Zimbabwe, has forced me to look at what is happening there.
I remember in the 1960s being so proud of Robert Mugabe and the other African freedom fighters. They were sort of role models for me as I struggled to find my place in the American civil rights movement.
The pictures shown on the site make you wonder where we are going as human beings. To be able to treat other people in such a shameless and hateful manner seems unreal.
How can it get worse?
I remember in the 1960s being so proud of Robert Mugabe and the other African freedom fighters. They were sort of role models for me as I struggled to find my place in the American civil rights movement.
The pictures shown on the site make you wonder where we are going as human beings. To be able to treat other people in such a shameless and hateful manner seems unreal.
How can it get worse?
Monday, June 2, 2008
Hillary, Again
I've been listening to and reading the words of all these women who agree with Senator Clinton: Hillary or nothing. And it all sounded sort of familiar to me and I realized that many of these women were involved in the Women's Movement in the 1970s.
I remember going to lots of meetings and trying to get women involved in the issues that affected women in general and women of color in particular. But the upshot of the meetings was always that first we'd work on the issues that the white women felt were important and when those issues had been resolved, we'd move on to the issues that mattered to the other women.
The fact that all of this took place in Oakland, California and most of the women in the group were women of color probably explains a lot about why the group soon disbanded. My other vivid memory of those women was being given a hard time about being the mother of a son. As if women determine the gender of babies.
Oh well. So, what does this have to do with Hillary. Seems to be the same thing happening again. Listening to and reading the words of some of her most fevered supporters I keep reliving the 1970s. Hillary and only Hillary. Doesn't matter that she's lost, doesn't matter that her sense of entitlement didn't save her...she deserves this nomination and the rest of us be damned.
It is up to the Obama supporters to reach out to the Clinton supporters. Not the other way around. I just heard Obama talk about Senator Clinton in the most gracious manner and yet Allida Black, co-founder of WomenCountPac, just said on Warren Olney's To the Point that Senator Obama had to be more gracious about Senator Clinton and stated that Senator Obama has not been kind to Senator Clinton lately.
Listening to Ms. Black go on an on about "counting all the votes," I wondered where she was in 2004 when the election was being stolen by the Republicans. I was in Seattle on the steps of the Federal Building with one of my best buds (meow!) demonstrating against the tyranny. There weren't a lot of people with us and it was pretty lonely. But I'm sure Ms. Black was in the streets along with former President Clinton and soon to be Senator Clinton.
I think she's getting Obama supporters like Rev. Michael Pfleger confused with the Senator himself. I watched the YouTube of Rev. Pfleger's remarks and thought they were on target. I also read the AP article Obama Campaign Used Party Rules to Foil Clinton and it too is on target.
Makes me think of Oakland and 1972.
I remember going to lots of meetings and trying to get women involved in the issues that affected women in general and women of color in particular. But the upshot of the meetings was always that first we'd work on the issues that the white women felt were important and when those issues had been resolved, we'd move on to the issues that mattered to the other women.
The fact that all of this took place in Oakland, California and most of the women in the group were women of color probably explains a lot about why the group soon disbanded. My other vivid memory of those women was being given a hard time about being the mother of a son. As if women determine the gender of babies.
Oh well. So, what does this have to do with Hillary. Seems to be the same thing happening again. Listening to and reading the words of some of her most fevered supporters I keep reliving the 1970s. Hillary and only Hillary. Doesn't matter that she's lost, doesn't matter that her sense of entitlement didn't save her...she deserves this nomination and the rest of us be damned.
It is up to the Obama supporters to reach out to the Clinton supporters. Not the other way around. I just heard Obama talk about Senator Clinton in the most gracious manner and yet Allida Black, co-founder of WomenCountPac, just said on Warren Olney's To the Point that Senator Obama had to be more gracious about Senator Clinton and stated that Senator Obama has not been kind to Senator Clinton lately.
Listening to Ms. Black go on an on about "counting all the votes," I wondered where she was in 2004 when the election was being stolen by the Republicans. I was in Seattle on the steps of the Federal Building with one of my best buds (meow!) demonstrating against the tyranny. There weren't a lot of people with us and it was pretty lonely. But I'm sure Ms. Black was in the streets along with former President Clinton and soon to be Senator Clinton.
I think she's getting Obama supporters like Rev. Michael Pfleger confused with the Senator himself. I watched the YouTube of Rev. Pfleger's remarks and thought they were on target. I also read the AP article Obama Campaign Used Party Rules to Foil Clinton and it too is on target.
Makes me think of Oakland and 1972.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Hillary Clinton and RFK
It would be so easy to believe that Hillary simply mispoke. But she's been exhorting white working class voters (code for racist rednecks) to support her. And now, on the eve of the anniversary of the assignation of Robert Kennedy, she reminds us that RFK, like Obama, was on his way to winning the Democratic nomination when he was killed.
Good grief - what the hell was she thinking? I don't think she's putting a contract out on Obama, but I do think that she's gotten so far in to this denial that she will say anything, regardless of who it hurts, to further her cause.
Sorry and sorry it had to end this way. Will these comments also end her political career except for the US Senate? Only time will tell.
Good grief - what the hell was she thinking? I don't think she's putting a contract out on Obama, but I do think that she's gotten so far in to this denial that she will say anything, regardless of who it hurts, to further her cause.
Sorry and sorry it had to end this way. Will these comments also end her political career except for the US Senate? Only time will tell.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Health Care
Listening to John McCain's health care plan you have to wonder What is He Thinking? He clearly has been receiving government sponsored health care his entire life. I know I read this somewhere, but can't remember at the moment.
But the reason I'm mentioning it now is thinking about my own issues with health care. Up until 2003, my employer paid for my health care. I had an individual managed care plan that, until I turned 55, cost about $425 a month. The month I turned 55, the coverage jumped to over $800. If my employer hadn't covered me, I would never have been able to maintain coverage.
Within nine months we moved to Greece and had to provide our own coverage. We found a great carrier that provided expatriate health care at the low premium rate of $450 a month for both of us, our doctors in Seattle were in the "network," but, as usual, my pre-existing conditions were not covered. Oh, yeah - we also signed on for a $1,000/year deductible (we pay the first $1,000).
As the years went by and we grew older, the premiums went up to $550 per month. Last year I turned 60 and Michael turned 65 and our premiums went up to $1,000 per month. We looked everywhere for a plan with lower premiums without success. When we renew our coverage this summer we expect our premiums to go up once again.
If McCain thinks a tax break would help, he's more out of touch than I imagined. As to his claim of competition and lower rates, he obviously hasn't had to deal Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO). HMOs were supposed to lower prices, instead they lowered coverage and added more bureaucracy to the chore of trying to stay healthy.
When I lived in the US, I had a co-pay of $20 for each prescription and every year I was forced to go to my doctor and get my prescription for my thyroid condition renewed. Here in Greece, I pay less than 4 euros (about $5.66) for a two months' supply. I am never asked to renew this prescription (after all this is a maintenance program, not something that's going to make me happy!) so I save money by not having to go to the doctor as well.
One more reason to vote for a Democrat, but neither of the last two standing had as good a plan as John Edwards.
But the reason I'm mentioning it now is thinking about my own issues with health care. Up until 2003, my employer paid for my health care. I had an individual managed care plan that, until I turned 55, cost about $425 a month. The month I turned 55, the coverage jumped to over $800. If my employer hadn't covered me, I would never have been able to maintain coverage.
Within nine months we moved to Greece and had to provide our own coverage. We found a great carrier that provided expatriate health care at the low premium rate of $450 a month for both of us, our doctors in Seattle were in the "network," but, as usual, my pre-existing conditions were not covered. Oh, yeah - we also signed on for a $1,000/year deductible (we pay the first $1,000).
As the years went by and we grew older, the premiums went up to $550 per month. Last year I turned 60 and Michael turned 65 and our premiums went up to $1,000 per month. We looked everywhere for a plan with lower premiums without success. When we renew our coverage this summer we expect our premiums to go up once again.
If McCain thinks a tax break would help, he's more out of touch than I imagined. As to his claim of competition and lower rates, he obviously hasn't had to deal Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO). HMOs were supposed to lower prices, instead they lowered coverage and added more bureaucracy to the chore of trying to stay healthy.
When I lived in the US, I had a co-pay of $20 for each prescription and every year I was forced to go to my doctor and get my prescription for my thyroid condition renewed. Here in Greece, I pay less than 4 euros (about $5.66) for a two months' supply. I am never asked to renew this prescription (after all this is a maintenance program, not something that's going to make me happy!) so I save money by not having to go to the doctor as well.
One more reason to vote for a Democrat, but neither of the last two standing had as good a plan as John Edwards.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Lose this Meme
I've decided that the phrase or meme I'm tired of most today, 23 April 2008, is that Obama can't win the White, blue-collar vote in November because he's not winning that segment of the population during the primaries. What a stupid meme.
If he's running against another Democrat, there's an opportunity for that other Democrat to win over more of those voters. But if he's the only Democrat, and White, blue-collar men and women of all ages decide to vote their interests instead of that of the media and others, Obama will win those voters too.
The primaries are different than the general election. That's why primaries are sometimes closed and the general is always open to everyone to vote for whom they please.
So, can we stop saying this?
If he's running against another Democrat, there's an opportunity for that other Democrat to win over more of those voters. But if he's the only Democrat, and White, blue-collar men and women of all ages decide to vote their interests instead of that of the media and others, Obama will win those voters too.
The primaries are different than the general election. That's why primaries are sometimes closed and the general is always open to everyone to vote for whom they please.
So, can we stop saying this?
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