Pinocchio Can't Compete With Giuliani's Nose

I hate to bring a Disney character into this mess, but its the best comparison for Rudy Giuliani and the lies he tells on the campaign trail. If only Rudy's schnazz would grow with the amount of distortions, falsehoods and outright lies he could pole vault himself right into the East River from City Hall.

From The Daily News:

It is Rudy Giuliani's favorite boast on the presidential campaign trail: "I cut taxes 23 times" as mayor of New York, he says, a claim inevitably met by applause.

The impressive-sounding stat stars in radio ads this week in New Hampshire and Iowa, where the voiceover asserts that Giuliani "cut or eliminated 23 taxes."

Trouble is, it's not really true, say tax-cutting allies of the former mayor, as well as experts at the Citizens Budget Commission and elsewhere.

A close examination of the tax-slashing claims from a list provided by his campaign show that in at least four cases, the former mayor is seizing credit for cuts initiated by others and, in one case, for a tax reduction he fought.

You know Rudy, eventually people are going to call you on your bullshit. The Republican prospect for 08' did cut taxes in the city, but the ones he claims to have done are just a bit of a stretch. Now the people that actually did propose and pass certain tax cuts are calling him on his campaign slogan.

Why anyone would want to trust this man on anything is beyond me.

Congressman Weiner Gets It With The Saudi Arms Deal

It's always nice to see a little reasoned and common sense approach to the world coming from New York. Congressman Weiner (D-NY) gave us a dose of that today by speaking out against the multi-billion dollar arms sale to Saudi Arabia and other countries in that troubled region. Saudi Arabia is only friendly with us because of oil, but many citizens do not care about that (or their government for that matter) and want to do us harm. President Bush ignores this reality as the price of oil.

From WNYC:

NEW YORK, NY July 29, 2007 —The Bush Administration's proposed sale of weaponry to Saudi Arabia is being challenged by Congressman Anthony Weiner. The Democrat, who represents parts of Brooklyn and Queens, plans to introduce legislation today to block the multi-billion-dollar sale, which would include advanced weaponry and systems to enhance the striking ability of Saudi warplanes.

Weiner says the Kingdom's support for the war on terrorism has been questionable.

The proposed weapons sales are intended to strengthen U.S. allies at a time of uncertainty in the region. Egypt and Israel are also expected to receive financial support.

I would personally go farther than just say their support is "questionable," but it suffices for a member of Congress. United States arms dealers and merchants of death are frothing at the mouth for these weapons contracts. Their friends in the White House are happy to oblige, but at least one Congressman has the courage to challenge the status quo of our arms exports, especially considering who the recipients are.

If Fox News Can't Defend Gonzales, Who Will?

Rightwing bloggers and the President try their best, but even their minions are having trouble propping up the lying crook.

The Prince Of Darkness Anticipates His After-Life

The Prince of Darkness, technically named Robert Novak, reporter and pundit extraordinaire is getting older and wants to pontificate on his life in politics. He has been on Washington like white on rice for quite some time, often too close and lately playing the fool for the powers that be. Still, he has some interesting things to say now.

From The Examiner:

» On blogs: “I’m 76 years old, and pretty soon I’m going to a place where there are no blogs.”
» He said LBJ and JFK were the only Democrats he’s voted for, “but I regret Johnson.”
» On George W. Bush: “All presidents look better after they’re dead, and George W. Bush can count on that.”
» On Gerald Ford: “Fox News got me out of bed to talk about Gerry Ford [when he died]. I said how incompetent I thought he was. They got me out of that studio so fast …”

There was more of the same at Georgetown University on Wednesday night. He called CNN founder Ted Turner a “classic example of a madman” and said he’d turn Keith Olbermann down if the MSNBC anchor ever asked to meet him.

When someone asked how he got his sources, he replied: “How I developed them? I’m so charming.”

Charming is the last word that comes to mind when I think of the pundit-turned-puppet of the neo-conservative powers in the Bush Administration. Since Bob isn't going where there are any harpsicords or cherubs, he might see bloggers typing truth in his face for the rest of eternity while Keith Olbermann attacks George Bush's unconstitutional moves in the background. Have fun crossing the river Styx Mr. Novak.

Is Sex A Problem For Bloomberg?

This isn't the start for a Viagra commercial starring the Mayor and potential Independent Presidential candidate. That could be better than a rehashing of a nasty sex scandal that occurred a few years ago when Bloomberg was running his media empire. According to the suit filed ten years ago, the then-CEO had quite a mouth when it came to commenting on women in his company.

From The Huffington Post:

Among the allegations in the complaint:

_Bloomberg asked the woman who sued if she was giving her boyfriend "good" oral sex.

_He said "I'd like to do that" and "That's a great piece of a--" to describe women in the office.

_When he found out the woman was pregnant, he told her "Kill it!" and said "Great! Number 16!" _ an apparent reference to the number of women in the company who were pregnant or had maternity-related status.

Bloomberg denied the accusations. Both sides were barred from commenting because of confidentiality agreements. Stu Loeser, the mayor's spokesman, said Friday he had no comment for this story.

Bloomberg just sounds like another typical elite member of the Old Boys Club. The story made minor headlines when he ran for mayor and didn't have much effect. Of course this is New York and anything to do with sex is pretty much ignored unless it is really, really bad. If the Mayor actually gets into the race, he can be hurt by allegations like these in places that care about a bad-mouthed chauvinist.

Olbermann On The House Of Secrets

A Crime To Speak Your Mind On A Banner

Our nation's highways are adorned by advertising billboards and all things that can distract drivers. As long as there have been paved highways, someone has been trying to get your attention for what they can sell or convince you of. So when a couple of activists in suburban Chicago hung a sign that calls for Bush and Cheney to be impeached, they got charged with crimes.

From The Downers Grove Sun:

Jeff Zurawski, 39, of Downers Grove and Sarah M. Hartfield, 45, of Naperville were initially charged with disorderly conduct for displaying a banner that read "Impeach Bush and Cheney - LIARS" on May 6 on the Great Western Trail above Interstate 355.

But more charges were brought against the two war protesters last week in DuPage County Circuit Court in Wheaton: reckless conduct and unauthorized display of a sign in viewing of a highway, both misdemeanors.

The new charges each carry a penalty of up to one year imprisonment, while the original charge was up to a three-month sentence in the county jail.

"This is political prosecution," said environmental rights attorney Shawn Collins, who has taken on Zurawski and Hartfield's case pro bono.

State officials claim that the penalties were assessed because of the location, not the message. That is complete bullshit. If that were the case then the jails would be full of advertising executives. Hopefully the judge in this case uses some common sense, but then you never know when you get one of those 'activist' judges appointed by George Bush and his kind.

FOIA: By The People, For The People....Blocked By GOP

The Freedom of Information Act was created to make our government more honest, open and accountable. Of course it is hard to make every bill work exactly how you want it, and with the FOIA there are still snags that prevent people from accessing information about governmental agencies and what not. Unfortunately a bill that seeks to remedy the problems is being blocked by the party that wants the most repressive and closed government this nation has ever seen. Which party might that be....well you already know.

From RawStory:

"The Republican obstructionism continues in the Senate and the latest casualty is Americans’ access to their government," Senator Leahy said. "I am deeply disappointed that Republicans continue to block attempts to pass the Openness Promotes Effectiveness in our National Government Act” (“OPEN Government Act”).

In Senate floor action on July 26, Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS) held up passage of Leahy's legislation.

"It is my understanding that there are ongoing discussions with both sides of the aisle as well as the administration to come up with bipartisan consensual language on this issue and that we are unable to get clear the agreement at this time," Cochran said in his floor statement.

He then objected to the bill on behalf of himself and 'several Republican Senators,' preventing the legislation from being adopted by 'unanimous consent.

Sometimes the rules of the Senate really piss me off. They helped us when we were in the minority, but now that the tables have changed and the Senate is trying to do some good in this nation instead of continually setting it back, it is kind of a pain. Wouldn't it be great to have 60 Democratic Senators one day so that we can skip this crap and reform our government for the better?

DNC Helps Fred Thompson

See, Democrats really do care about Republican candidates, even "frontrunner" Fred Thompson. In fact, the DNC was so nice, they sent some people over to deliver some lifejackets for their faltering campaign.

Hitting Fox News Where It Hurt$

We can bash Fox News and their propaganda all we want but it won't get us very far in the long run. Sure, getting a Democratic debate canceled is nice, but what really knocks them back is taking them out through their sponsors. Liberals on the net are starting to step up to the challenge of pressuring companies that patronize Fox's airwaves from the ground up.

From the AP:

MoveOn.org, the Campaign for America's Future and liberal blogs like DailyKos.com are asking thousands of supporters to monitor who is advertising on the network. Once a database is gathered, an organized phone-calling campaign will begin, said Jim Gilliam, vice president of media strategy for Brave New Films, a company that has made anti-Fox videos.

The groups have successfully pressured Democratic presidential candidates not to appear at any debate sponsored by Fox, and are also trying to get Home Depot Inc. (HD) to stop advertising there.

At least 5,000 people nationwide have signed up to compile logs on who is running commercials on Fox, Gilliam said. The groups want to first concentrate on businesses running local ads, as opposed to national commercials.

"It's a lot more effective for Sam's Diner to get calls from 10 people in his town than going to the consumer complaint department of some pharmaceutical company," Gilliam said.

Since Fox is so big, it is much more effective to start on the local level. So if you see someone advertising on Fox, call them up and tell them to place their ads somewhere else. Principles are everything, especially to small companies. Places like Pfizer and Boeing won't care at first, but if there is a groundswell, don't be surprised to see big changes and depleted revenues for big bad Fox News.

Voluntourisming

When most people think of taking vacations, places like the Caribbean, Hawaii and Disneyworld most often come to mind. But for the brave and noble few (not to mention humble) there is the world of voluntourism. It really isn't a word you can find in the dictionary, at least not yet, but among activists and Good Samaritans it is a growing industry where one can experience another country and make a difference in the lives of the locals.

From Time:

Getting in touch with your inner Angelina Jolie is easier than it used to be. The so-called voluntourism industry, which sends travelers around the globe for a mix of volunteer work and sightseeing, is generating almost as much praise and criticism as the goodwill ambassador herself. Are volunteer vacations--which have become so mainstream that CheapTickets recently started letting online customers book volunteer activities along with their vacations--merely overpriced guilt trips with an impact as fleeting as the feel-good factor? Or do they offer individuals a real chance to change the world, one summer jaunt at a time?

Voluntourism trips are shorter, more entertaining versions of the kind of international work long sponsored by the likes of church missions and the Peace Corps. During trips that can be as short as a day and usually don't last longer than three weeks, work--which is often physically intensive--is punctuated by excursions to each destination's artistic, historical or recreational highlights. Ambassadors for Children volunteers, for example, who range from teenagers to retirees, pay $2,025 for 11 days in South Africa (airfare and lodging included), spending about a week with children infected with or orphaned by HIV/AIDS. Plus, they get a daylong safari as well as a tour of the Robben Island prison that held Nelson Mandela for 18 years. In Thailand, Globe Aware charges $1,090, not including airfare, for a week split between teaching English to impoverished schoolchildren and visiting floating markets or trekking through temple ruins. These kinds of blended experiences are key to the multifaceted cultural education that tour operators are aiming for. "You don't walk away from the destination only with this snapshot in your mind of 'Oh, my gosh, it's this wretched, horrid poverty,'" says Voluntourism.org founder David Clemmons. "You see there are other sides."

The immediate response is that this is a great way for Americans to go out and do some good in the world that isn't as wealthy as they are. Yet critics assail it is more of a feel-good experience that really doesn't change much in the lives of those we want to touch. Especially since voluntourists do not stay long enough to form a strong bond with the community that they are interacting with.

In my book, a mitzvah is a mitzvah. If your intent is to do good instead of looking for a way to feel good, then that is what truly counts. The people who's lives are touched momentarily still benefit from that sincere feeling of compassion and love for another person, regardless of where they are from or how differently the circumstances that they grow up in.

Don't Ever Shut Up

John Edwards gets riled up and means business: