[The Democratic Party has] been effectively taken over by a small group on the left of the party that is protectionist, isolationist and basically will – and very, very hyperpartisan. So it pains me.
For an American to use the word “isolation” in any form when regarding U.S. foreign relations, it’s not just stupid, it’s a horrifying insult to the millions around the world that have lost their lives in one way or another to the U.S. military and U.S. policies.
Nottheenemy.com puts the number of people killed due to U.S. foreign policy since World War II at anywhere between more than 10 million to almost 17 million. And that hasn’t even counted the current Occupation of Iraq and most of the Afghanistan attack.
In 2001, Matthew White of the “Historical Atlas of the Twentieth Century,” put the number killed in wars for the 20th century at 188 million with the U.S. more than playing its part in it all. And with a great hand from the U.S., there seems to be little that would make one think that number will be any smaller when historians count up the number of people killed by war in the 21st century.
There are three remaining candidates for who will be the next U.S. President. And John McCain, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are far from being isolationists. Because that’s the last thing the U.S. has ever been. And there isn’t enough optimism on the planet for one to think that will change in the next four-to-eight years, if not ever.
The U.S. is a warring nation. Period. When the United States Government wants something of another country or its own citizens, people die. And the entire world knows it.
It’s why Turkish journalist Elif Özmenek wrote that the U.S. should be put in the Guinness Book of World’s Records as the “Most Interventionist Nation in History.” And it’s why any American who tries to make an argument that the U.S. “can’t afford to be isolationist” should be immediately sent off to Iraq, or Afghanistan, or anywhere else where America is using its military might to get the change it desires. Or more perhaps more correctly put, to get the dollars it desires.
Here’s just a partiallist of U.S. military involvements, from squashing internal strife, to overthrowing elected officials, to fighting in massive world conflicts, from Wounded Knee to Fallujah:
My Mom woke up the other night at 3 a.m. Which meant my Dad was awoken by her at 3:15 a.m. She was worried about the upcoming bone marrow drive. Would we have enough seats? Were we prepared? Was everything going to run smoothly?
My Dad asked her why she was worrying about it when the only responsibility she was given for the drive was to be there. She was just worried, she said, and ended up falling back to sleep at around 4 a.m.
So it’s good to see my Mom is really back to her old self. Because that’s what she does. She worries. To say she was a control freak would be just a slight understatement. But such is her way, and that she’s looking for things to control means she must be feeling well.
The Bone Marrow Donor Drive is tomorrow, and is sponsored by the National Marrow Donor Program. It’s been a moderate amount of work to put together at worst. It really hasn’t been a chore, especially because it was easy to get a place to host it - that place being the California Route 66 Museum.
We’re hoping to get a lot of people registered, but we’re being realistic. Whatever happens happens and won’t be due to a lack of effort. We got the word out for this event.
But I’ll be spending the rest of my life getting the word out that people need to get on the Bone Marrow Donor Registry.
Yesterday I spoke with Emru Townsend, who suffers from the same type of leukemia as my Mom but with a couple bonus ailments, and he said something that really hit home.
“Were you like me when you found out about this?” he asked. “Were you just wondering why everybody hasn’t signed up to be a donor?”
And it’s true. It requires very little. While there is a normal fee of $52 for tissue typing, that fee can usually be worked around. By working with the National Marrow Donor Program, I got our fee knocked down to $20. Plus minorities are free. Plus if you don’t have $20 to spare, you can still sign up.
To get on the registry requires just a painless swab from the inner cheek. To be a donor requires a minor procedure that is akin to getting a cavity filled. Assuming the cavity was located in your lower back, of course. There are potential complications. But there are potential complications in crossing the street, and lots of people seem willing to do that every day.
So hopefully tomorrow will be a glorious day where hundreds of people register and my Mom’s perfect match will be found. But even if not, the word is getting out a little more and there will be a few more people on the registry.
There are thousands of people looking for the perfect match so they can receive a bone marrow transplant to live. My Mom is just one of those people, as is Emru Townsend. But there are thousands out there, and your bone marrow may be what they need to live.
So please, wherever you are, join the bone marrow donor registry. You may give someone the gift of life. And pass the word along. Thanks.
It wasn’t that long ago that The Politico came on the scene, bolstered by roughly 75,000 links from Matt Drudge. They were a right-wing site, and everybody knew it, regardless of how often they denied it.
While debuting with prominent beltway pundits, The Politico quickly set the tone for what they were all about - by “breaking” the story that John Edwards received a $400 haircut.
Nowadays, The Politico seems to have given up pretense and has embraced the fact that it’s a right-wing noise machine. Stories on yesterday’s front page at Politico?
– Urban issues get short shrift (”Despite two Democratic presidential candidates with urban interests, mayors and experts say too little attention paid to them.”)
– Taxes: Obamas prospered as he soared
– Indictment: Iraq paid for junket
– McCain: We can’t do whatever we want (”John McCain calls for more humility but a stay-the-course approach to Iraq war.”)
– Bush-haters won’t stop McCain (”In an ideas column, Brown contends president isn’t the albatross around McCain’s neck many people think.”)
– Racial problems transcend Wright (”Voting patterns show Obama’s uneven record on getting beyond race.”)
– McCain’s approach to foreign policy is a unique blend
– The Clinton myth: The backstory (”Her campaign rests on a game of make-believe.”)
So really, they can say they’re centrist, or non-partisan, or Independent, or Klingon, or whatever they like. But it’s a right-wing Drudgian machine at its heart. And now, Yahoo News prominently features stories from The Politico, with a front-page link to the hard-hitting story “Southern Dem warns party to avert disaster,” a 1,300-word epic about Tennessee governor Phil Bresden, who’s certain that the Obama-Clinton battle will be doom for Democrats.
Perhaps you’ve already seen a snazzy commercial for Divided We Fail, a “call to action” led by the AARP, Business Roundtable, SEIU, and NFIB. With the help of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) and the Motion Picture & Television Fund (MPTF), Divided We Fail put out this PSA showing celebrities being ordinary folk, while talking about their commitment to the non-partisan saving of the U.S. economy and healthcare system.
Starring Ben Affleck, Garth Brooks, Dakota Fanning, Morgan Freeman, Eva Mendes, Joaquin Phoenix, Jeremy Piven and Reese Witherspoon, the PSA is basically a silly tribute to the phrase “why can’t we all just get along.”
“The entertainment industry’s leadership felt that we could make a major contribution to Divided We Fail,” said MPTF Foundation Chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg. “Hollywood can call attention to these problems and help galvanize the public into taking action, which is a key first step in solving them.”
Now, far be it for me to insult any effort that claims at its core that all it wants is to make America better. But simply put, Divided We Fail is a stupid, naïve and impotent project. It’s quite easy to see why celebrities were so eager to get involved. It gives them a chance to look like serious, politically minded activists who truly care. But much like a great many of the actors that dominate the American entertainment landscape, it’s all sound and fury signifying nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Thus far, 244 members of Congress has signed Divided We Fail’s “pledge” or accepted their insipid and meaningless “platform”. I would imagine before it’s over, every last member of Congress will climb on board. There’s absolutely no downside to pledging to the platform, because at it’s heart, the platform is political empty calories.
What does Divided We Fail want? They want a better healthcare system and better long-term financial security for Americans. And they don’t want partisanship. That’s what the problem is, after all. They have no answers or even concepts of how to make these things happen, but that’s what they stand for. And they’re very serious about it.
We stand as strong champions for the new American dream — to build a 21st century America where these issues are paramount so that all people can have the opportunity for a prosperous future. We also believe that individuals, businesses, health care providers, non-profit organizations, and government must work together to find solutions - personally, privately and publicly. We represent tens of millions of Americans and we believe that all of us share a responsibility for making our society work and restoring peace of mind to all Americans.
This is our platform for positive change and our commitment to current and future generations.
Divided We Fail, but together we can do anything.
Wow, that’s impressive stuff, on par with, say, every last speech given by every high-school valedictorian for the past several decades. Basically, it’s meaningless claptrap. But it’s the perfect grandiose-yet-meaningless type of platform that makes perfect sense for these celebrities.
They don’t have to say anything about the two wars going on at this very moment. That would make them seem un-American. They don’t have to pick a side between political parties, therefore they don’t alienate Republicans or Democrats. They don’t ask for Universal Healthcare, that’s socialist. In fact, they don’t actually say anything except “we want affordable healthcare and for people to have more money.” Who can argue with that?
But it’s all a complete load of nothingness. Really, look at their platform. Follow the links. Some of their big points:
– “Lack of exercise and overeating, smoking and drinking too much, pose a growing threat to our nation’s health.”
– “Imagine an America with affordable, quality health care. Let’s work to guide our nation’s policymakers to commit to and achieve changes that will restore America’s peace of mind.”
– “Financial security in retirement is a promise that must be kept. Social Security must be strengthened to meet the needs of Americans.”
– “If you work hard all your life, it’s only fair that you should be able to retire with dignity. That’s the American dream, and we need to make that dream a reality.”
– “All Americans need to learn more about how to earn, spend, save, invest, and protect their own money.”
Of course, they give not even one idea or even theory on how any of this should be done. It truly is an empty campaign that appears to take place in some weird alternate reality where politicians aren’t already owned by corporations and where partisan politics will disappear if Reese Witherspoon shops for enough shoes, Joaquin Phoenix washes enough dishes and Ben Affleck builds enough dollhouses.
I just can’t stress this enough - Divided We Fail is a moronic, self-indulgent, farcical load of crap. It’s a bunch of groups getting together and wasting money that could go to much better use. It’s an opportunity to pander to Americans and come off as politically active, while not taking a stand on anything.
Any way it’s added up, Divided We Fail is an utter failure.
Peggy Noonan on Meet the Press on Barack Obama’s recent speech on race issues in the U.S.:
“There are people saying, ‘Will this solve race relations in this country?’”
Could the people that have been saying “Will this solve race relations in this country?” about that speech please step forward. Anyone? There’s a cookie in it for you.
Still, there are some people saying that Peggy Noonan is a very seriousperson.
A couple days ago, my Mom learned what models have being saying for years now, normally to deaf ears: Being a model isn’t easy.
But my Mom is a natural and her beauty stole the show as she and our upcoming donor drive was featured on a front-page story by the Victorville Daily Press. You can click here or click the photo to see the story, which was well-written by Beatriz E. Valenzuela. Reneh Agha was the photographer and he made my Mom feel at ease during the shoot, which was held at the California Route 66 Museum, where our donor drive will be held on March 29.
As well as capturing the spirit of our drive, Valenzuela did a very good job of pointing out how important it is for people of all ethnicities to get on the bone marrow registry. Being a different race does not preclude one from being a match from someone of another race, but the percentages favor someone of the same race being the perfect match.
For better information on that, and a great deal of information on Bone Marrow transplants and the need for donors in general, head over to Emru Townsend’s site. Townsend is of African-Caribbean descent, and he’s quite well aware of how ethnicity plays a part in the donation process and the need for ethnic donors. Like my Mom, Emru needs a bone marrow transplant to live.
I’d like to thank the Victorville Daily Press (where I once worked many moons back) for helping my Mom and helping us tell people about the drive and the need for bone marrow donors. I’d really appreciate if you took a visit to their site to see the story (which includes a couple controversial and colorful quotes from yours truly) and give them some of the love they showed my Mom, as well as everyone searching for that perfect match.
WASHINGTON — New found evidence has shown that President George W. Bush and Vice-President Dick Cheney were officially in the White House when two wars were ordered, leading to widespread death and a complete embarrassment for the nation as both wars turned into horrible failures while leaving the nation’s military in shambles, according to experts.
The U.S. and China are two of the most important nations on the planet. One is known for torture, eliminating political opposition a government shrouded in secrecy.
The other is China.
And right now, China is doing it’s best impersonation of the Bushian War Machine to let the know the world the horrifying threat it faces in Tibet, lead by the blood-thirsty and sinister (and exiled) Dalai Lama.
BEIJING (Reuters) - China warned of a “life and death” struggle with the Dalai Lama on Wednesday, as it sought to end a wave of protests in its Tibetan regions with arrests and tightened political control.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has accused the Tibetan spiritual leader of masterminding the protests — which culminated in a riot on Friday in Tibet’s capital, Lhasa — from his base in the Indian town of Dharamsala, where he lives in exile.
“We are in the midst of a fierce struggle involving blood and fire, a life and death struggle with the Dalai Clique,” Tibet’s Communist Party secretary, Zhang Qingli, told a teleconference of the region’s government and Party leaders.
“Leaders of the whole country must deeply understand the arduousness, complexity and long-term nature of the struggle,” he said in remarks carried online by the China Tibet News.
China’s state-run media says 105 people surrendered to police for taking part in the Lhasa protests after authorities set a midnight deadline for rioters to turn themselves in over the violence that the Dalai Lama’s officials believe killed 99.
China, whose Communist troops entered Tibet in 1950 after taking power in Beijing, puts the death toll in Lhasa at 13. Foreign media are denied access to the area without government permission, making the competing claims difficult to verify.
China’s authorities are keen to stem the violence quickly and regain stability over the country’s remote far-west before the Olympics, which its capital, Beijing, will host in August.
But the Olympics also makes China more sensitive to international opinion over its policies in Tibet and its response to the unrest, and some activists overseas have demanded that the mountainous region be withdrawn from the Olympic torch relay that starts next Monday.
Now, first of all, can someone explain to me how exactly China got the 2008 Olympics? But more importantly than that, can you explain to me why the U.S. is not only unwilling to boycott the games, but actively promoting them and China?
“I’m going to the Olympics. I view the Olympics as a sporting event,” said George W. Bush. “I mean, you got the Dalai Lama crowd. You’ve got global warming folks. You’ve got, you know, Darfur,” he said. “I am not gonna you know, go and use the Olympics as an opportunity to express my opinions to the Chinese people in a public way.”
China is run by a group of a group of the most despicable humans, none of which could care less about the human rights of anyone. They defecate on free speech and freedom of the press, murder dissidents, and turn a blind eye to all manner of atrocities in the name of making money. The Chinese government is truly a blight on the Earth.
And they will be hosting the Summer Olympics. And young American athletes will perform for them.
Yet even with a horrifying record of human rights and the current crackdown and murder of dissidents in Tibet, the United States continues to buy their products and refuses to even consider the possibility of boycotting its Olympics. If you need to see what America stands for in 2008, look not only at the picture of a dead Iraqi child, but look at a dead Tibetan protester or a poor Chinese citizen, as well.
Because the U.S. in 2008 is pro-any human rights violation, so long as money bleeds out of it. They used to speak of how the Soviet Union had no soul. But now the U.S. embraces China, without a soul to be found anywhere within the embrace. Because the U.S. has sold off its last shred of humanity for a continued influx of cheap and poisonous children’s toys made by slave labor.
The U.S. and China have a lot in common. One country could care less about Chinese or Tibetan citizens and would gladly see them abused as much as humanly possible in order to feed its economy. And the other is China.
If you were a scientist - a real, dedicated scientist - could you think of anything more fulfilling than spending your days examining Tiger Woods sweat? Well, Scientists at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute do just that. See for yourself:
For more on the hard work done by these scientists on a golfer’s bodily fluids, click here to see my WorldGolf.com blog on the subject.
