18 November, 2008
Ed Jew STILL Doesn't Get It
Former San Francisco Supervisor (Sunset District) Ed Jew pleaded guilty about lying about where he lived while representing the Sunset District. For non-locals, he claimed to be living in the Sunset District when, in fact, he and his family lived in Burlingame, CA.
Jew had previously pleaded guilty to federal charges of bribery, extortion and mail fraud for shaking down several Asian-owned businesses in "his" district. For a guy who could potentially be doing a decade or so in prison, he seemed remarkably relaxed.
Well, maybe he harbors some regret:
Oh Ed, Ed, Ed. This isn't something that "happened", like an earthquake that strikes with no warning. YOU falsified information about where you lived so you could get yourself elected to the Board of Supervisors. And YOU are the one who shook down immigrant Chinese business owners in the district you were so anxious to
Gee, y'all say that like it's a bad thing!
Ah, well, I see Ed has studied the Textbook On Bullying: Threaten the kids in the school yard and take away their lunch money, then, when you get caught and face punishment, maintain that YOU are the victim.
Somebody call the whaaaaaaambulance!
Labels: in the news, personal responsibility, politics, San Francisco
~~ victoria on 12:33 PM ~~ 0 comments
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15 November, 2008
Photos From The Laramie Project Support Rally and the Join The Impact Rally
Labels: Alameda, in the news, politics
~~ victoria on 5:07 PM ~~ 0 comments
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14 November, 2008
Alameda Peeps: Two Things
1. A counter-protest tonight at Alameda High School. AHS is producing The Laramie Project. Fred "God Hates Fags" Phelps and his nasty band of trolls are planning to protest the production. Come and help buffer students and attendees from Phelps and his hate mongers!
2. I'M A STR8 AGAINST H8! Come Join the Impact at Alameda City Hall tomorrow morning starting at 10:30 a.m. (If you're not in Alameda, you can find your location here.) I've got a chiropractor appointment at 10:30 but will try to get over there as soon as I'm done with my appointment.
Labels: bullies suck, in the news, politics
~~ victoria on 12:14 PM ~~ 0 comments
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10 November, 2008
Olbermann on Prop 8
Submitted without further comment (for now).
Labels: in the news, KO, politics
~~ victoria on 8:05 PM ~~ 0 comments
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05 November, 2008
The Grey Cloud In My Silver Lining
I'm still trying to take in the fact that America has elected Barack Obama. I'm filled with so many emotions right now that I'm finding it nearly impossible to put them into coherent words (as my friend Olivia can attest to after I sent her an OMGPRESIDENTOBAMA!!! email last night).
But.
As I type this, Prop. 8 here in California is still too close to call. It sickens me to my core to think that so many Californians could be so influenced by the bigotry of religious zealots who don't even fucking live here!
As a progressive, I celebrate an Obama victory with my friends. But our work is just beginning. And that work is making damn sure that no one in this country is treated as a second-class citizen. That goes for my LGBTQ friends. And that goes for women.
The end of the nightmare of the Bush Regime is near. The hard work is just beginning. Let's take a deep breath and push up our sleeves.
Labels: extraordinaryness, grace, in the news, politics
~~ victoria on 7:27 AM ~~ 0 comments
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03 November, 2008
Repeated, For Emphasis (Part 1)
The Economist's Endorsement of Barack Obama for President.
For all the shortcomings of the campaign, both John McCain and Barack Obama offer hope of national redemption. Now America has to choose between them. The Economist does not have a vote, but if it did, it would cast it for Mr Obama. We do so wholeheartedly: the Democratic candidate has clearly shown that he offers the better chance of restoring America’s self-confidence. But we acknowledge it is a gamble. Given Mr Obama’s inexperience, the lack of clarity about some of his beliefs and the prospect of a stridently Democratic Congress, voting for him is a risk. Yet it is one America should take, given the steep road ahead.
For what it's worth (and, given that the Bush Regime has left our standing in the world in shambles, it ought to be worth quite a lot), The Economist's Global Electoral College shows that most of the world is overwhelmingly in favour of a Barack Obama presidency.
It's interesting to note that, among the many reasons why The Economist does not endorse John McCain, the Sarah Palin pick is yet another indication of the of the sloppiness of the McCain campaign. It is telling that, many of the reasons they give for being unable to support his presidency are much the same reasons I've heard from Republicans who have either moved to support Obama or remain undecided. And if he had paid more attention to the more moderate among the GOP, this may have been a very different campaign.
If only the real John McCain had been running
That, however, was Senator McCain; the Candidate McCain of the past six months has too often seemed the victim of political sorcery, his good features magically inverted, his bad ones exaggerated. The fiscal conservative who once tackled Mr Bush over his unaffordable tax cuts now proposes not just to keep the cuts, but to deepen them. The man who denounced the religious right as “agents of intolerance” now embraces theocratic culture warriors. The campaigner against ethanol subsidies (who had a better record on global warming than most Democrats) came out in favour of a petrol-tax holiday. It has not all disappeared: his support for free trade has never wavered. Yet rather than heading towards the centre after he won the nomination, Mr McCain moved to the right.
And, most the damning observation of what a mess his 2008 campaign has become:
The Economist, while endorsing Senator Obama, is not all hearts and flowers. They share the concern held by many (myself included) about his resume being on the skimpy side and acknowledge that all the charisma in the world won't fix the fundamental problems we have in the United States and abroad.
But, if the last ten weeks of this campaign have shown American voters anything, it is that John McCain has proven himself wholly incapable of running his own campaign. How in the hell can we expect him to be able to run this country, much less provide the leadership needed to tackle the many crises we face (not forgetting that most of these crises are a result of the failures of the Bush Regime--which had the support of Senator McCain more often than not)?
Labels: in the news, politics
~~ victoria on 1:08 PM ~~ 0 comments
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01 November, 2008
There's a Reason They're Called WingNUTS
I honestly was having a hard time believing that this was NOT a SNL sketch.
Bill O'Reilly, actually (sort of) defending Barack Obama? The souls in hell better grab a sweater: I think it's about to get quite chilly down there.
Labels: gah, in the news, politics, whatever
~~ victoria on 10:34 AM ~~ 0 comments
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29 September, 2008
Quote of the Day
From this AP story (bold mine):
"How could this have happened? Is there such a disconnect on Capitol Hill? This becomes a problem because Wall Street is very uncomfortable with uncertainty," said Gordon Charlop, managing director with Rosenblatt Securities. "The bailout not going through sends a signal that Congress isn't willing to do their part."
Wha-wha-WHAT? Look, pumpkin, you and your lot are gamblers. The finance industry took a HUGE gamble on very shaky mortgages and guess what? Y'all lost! Big! Do you really expect the American people to believe, for even a nanosecond, that, had your gamble continued to pay off, that money would be put to the good of the American people? Because the last time I checked, the banking and finance industry were lobbying congress pretty hard to make it damn-near impossible for the average American to file for bankruptcy and you've fought regulation tooth and nail (both endeavors costing, no doubt, millions of dollars). Bank charges for the average customer are outrageously exorbitant and financial institutions are allowed to play shell games with people's money so that they incur hundreds, and sometimes thousands of dollars in bank charges--and they've done that with impunity. And yet, you damn consumers as "irresponsible".
I'll agree with you that there is--and has been--a disconnect on Capitol Hill, but only in that the Representatives have consistently failed the very people who voted to put them in office in favor of industry lobbyists who shower Congressional Representatives with gifts for doing their bidding. Every time the opportunity to help Americans in financial difficulty has arisen, the banking and finance industry rebelled and insisted that the free market is the only solution to the problem. "Those people were irresponsible enough with their money that they're in financial trouble: Let 'em twist in the wind," y'all said. "They should have known better."
But now...NOW you've decided that socialism is a Good Thing? You've Free Marketed yourselves into a deep, deep hole and now you want me and my fellow Americans--too many of whom have to decide between paying the mortgage/rent or buying food or gas or paying the electric bill--to bail your stupid, irresponsible, overpaid asses out?
Oh HELL no!
(p.s. I'd like to give props to my Representative, Pete Stark, who voted No on the bail out. When the Revolution comes, he'll be spared.)
Labels: in the news, ITMFA, JesusBloodyChrist, politics, ranting
~~ victoria on 2:22 PM ~~ 0 comments
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27 September, 2008
Al Gore @ Current for the Presidential Debate
Scott Beale at Laughing Squid was at Current TV for the opening debate Friday night and posted a series of photos and a video of Al Gore's welcome speech. le Sigh... I'm off to go look for him on Twitter, now.
Which reminds me: I was very pleasantly surprised to note that Twitter stayed up throughout the debate last night. Nary a Fail Whale to be found! Excellent work, Twitter Team!
Labels: in the news, politics
~~ victoria on 1:45 PM ~~ 0 comments
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Quote of the Day (Year, Possibly)
"I don’t hate old people. I just don’t want to elect one. Especially one with a belipsticked bulldog crazypants as his benchwarmer."
Derek Powazek in the comments to his spot-on post about Friday night's presidential debate.
~~ victoria on 1:18 PM ~~ 0 comments
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Barack Obama on Friday Night's Debate
Labels: in the news, politics
~~ victoria on 1:18 PM ~~ 0 comments
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23 September, 2008
In Case You Weren't Quite Sure
We live in a fascist police state. (Article quoted text in italics.)
Oh hang on, it gets BETTER:
So don't even think of coming into the United States and expecting your civil liberties to come through customs unscathed if you look anything OTHER than a White Christian or if you've traveled to a country full of ZOMG!!!1!@!! Brown Heathens!
These sweet little fascist policies were first enacted by (big surprise!) the Reagan administration in 1986 after US citizens complained of being subjected to search and seizure when they returned from Nicaragua. Yet even the original Reagan-era policies (and the revised version from the Clinton administration in 2000) required customs agents to have reasonable grounds for suspicion before seizing and reviewing documents.
You know, I like to try to be helpful whenever I can. So if US Customs (and, by extension, the Bush regime) didn't get the earlier memo (or it got misfiled) and they really want to probe MY thoughts, this one's for them:
Labels: in the news, ITMFA, JesusBloodyChrist, politics
~~ victoria on 8:24 PM ~~ 0 comments
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22 September, 2008
Tough AND Conditional Love
You know, there is the ever-so-slight chance that I might possibly consider going along with the $700 billion bailout (I refuse to call it a "rescue") of the financial industry with these conditions (just for a start; I'm sure I'll have more):
* That there is SOME oversight over how this bailout money is allocated (let's call this "No, Mr. CEO, You Do Not Get Rewarded With A Blank Check For Fucking Up");
* To help pay for this bailout, the executives of these financial institutions who got rich off of the subprime mortgage scams must get taxed at a rate of 90% on their salaries, bonuses and any stock they sold for a profit while their institutions traded in these subprime mortgages (let's call this "You Sailed The Ship Into The Storm, Now Buy Your Own Damn Pail");
* If these executives don't have the money to pay their taxes on their ill-gotten booty, they get to spend a year in prison for every million dollars they personally profited from trading in subprime mortgages. (let's call this "Actions Have Consequences, Bitchez");
* Two words: Credit Counseling. These financial institutions don't get one goddamned dime until they go through credit counseling. (While we're at it, we don't release a stinkin' penny until everyone in this administration AND in congress goes through credit counseling, too.) Let's make it as difficult for them to be released from their debts as they've made it for consumers. (We can call this one "Walk A Mile In My Shoes Then Give Them Back Because I Have To Sell Them So I Can Buy Groceries This Week".)
Like I said, this is only the beginning of my list of things I need to see in that three-page "plan" before I will even think of supporting a bailout of the financial industry. A lot of tequila might loosen me up a bit on this, too.
What's on your list?
Labels: ITMFA, JesusBloodyChrist, personal responsibility, politics, ranting
~~ victoria on 8:29 PM ~~ 0 comments
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23 April, 2008
I Totally Am Not Surprised By HuffPo's Mass Suicide
Seriously, if the Democrats are so godsdamned weak that having a competitive race up to the convention is going to OH NOES! DESTROY! the party then they should just pack the fuck up and go home now.
The Democrats' problem is not Hillary Clinton. The Democrats' problem is that they can't seem to multi-task to save their souls. The party needs to be working to make sure the Republicans are defeated soundly in November while letting Obama and Clinton play the nomination process out. Because there are still a few primaries to go yet and the voters in those states deserve a chance to have their votes count.
edited for clarity and to add proper paragraph tags
~~ victoria on 7:28 AM ~~ 0 comments
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05 February, 2008
SuperDooperPooperFat Tuesday
Up until the moment I sat down in the polling cubicle, I had not decided which of the candidates would get my vote. I momentarily considered getting a Republican ballot just to fux with them, but I took the NP Democrat one instead because this election year IS THAT IMPORTANT. My candidate, up until last week, was John Edwards: I nearly filled in the line next to his name, just on principal.
In the end, I tossed my Mardi Gras beads to Hillary Clinton. It was NOT a vote against Barack Obama: Come November, I will vote for either one of them. It came down to Clinton's experience, as a statesman and as a working woman. She has had every misogynistic epithet thrown at her, she has (as most women do) worked twice has hard--or more--to get the same recognition as her male counterparts. She has been ripped apart and her every action second-guessed and scrutinized in ways that her male counterparts could never imagine. People find reasons to hate her, no matter what she does. She's too cold. She's too emotional. Blah Blah Blahbitty-freakin' Blah. And it's not bad enough that she's faced this from the Right Wing; she's had to face it from people who call themselves Liberals for whom it's not enough to disagree with her policies, they have to disagree in the most disparaging, deeply misogynistic way. I'm deeply ashamed to admit I've participated in that myself, up until I listened to the words I was saying and didn't like what I heard. (The Left Coaster has taken on the disheartening task of listing the ways that institutionalized misogyny is alive in well, not just in the mainstream media but in much of the progressive blogosphere as well. h/t to quixote at Shakesville) Don't get me wrong, the Clinton campaign has let loose some amazingly cringe-worthy racist comments. But Barack Obama hasn't been picked apart simply for being black in the way that Hillary Clinton has simply because she's a woman. And after all of that, Hillary Clinton is still standing. John Kerry couldn't even survive the Attack of the Swift Boaters. That says a lot.
Anyway, I'm really not here to rant. The thing is, I could just as easily have voted for Barack Obama tonight and I'm very happy for my friends who did vote for him. He is an incredibly dynamic man and his candidacy, along with Clinton's, has breathed life into a Democratic Party that has largely been DOA. This is history being made, people! We have the first woman candidate for president competing with the first African American candidate for president! It's amazing and it's exciting and it's wonderful and, at last, I can look toward November with a feeling of hope instead of a feeling of dread.
edit to add: Oh, man, this sucks. LA County is huge. Too huge to not have their shit together on this so that poll workers and voters are properly informed on voting procedure. As a Decline to State voter, I had no problem at all tonight at my polling place.
'nuther edit: Yes, I know that the GOP, in their paranoid state, made it so that you must be registered GOP to vote on the Republican ballot. Honestly? The idea of getting a Republican ballot to fux with them was a fleeting gleefully evil thought. To be sure, I'd set fire to my ballot before I'd waste it voting for one of those candidates.
~~ victoria on 8:27 PM ~~ 1 comments
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