Getting off the phone earlier this morning with Martha Burk, I was struck by one thing more than any other - her focus. For a woman who five years ago put herself on the front lines for feminism in the most visible of ways, she is still more focused than ever. And still on the front lines.
Because while the golf establishment decided that Burk was a non-factor, the rest of the nation took notice. The fact that Augusta National is a sexist organization became blindingly clear to many due to Burk’s 2003 protest at the Masters. And the fact that it remains that way due to a member list that consists primarily of CEOs, politicians and the like is also equally obvious.
I wrote a blog post about Burk and her experiences before and after the 2003 Masters at WorldGolf.com. You can read that post by clicking here. I am also working on a feature story for WorldGolf.com that will take the story even further.
When I told Burk that the blog post I wrote would likely be met with by anger from the golfing community, she could not contain her laugh.
“Tell me about it,” she said.
I hope you go read the post. Because it was truly a pleasure to speak with the indomitable Martha Burk.
Simply put, John McCain has all but stood up and said “I will give you the exact same thing that Bush has given you,” during his topsy-turvy road to being the GOP nomination for President. Plus, he has proven that things like stopping torture and global warming - two issues he has taken very firm stands on in the past - are things he will vote against and then go on saying he’s a supporter.
Basically, John McCain is an older, more war-worshiping version of George W. Bush, and has made it clear that he believes the U.S. is headed in the right direction.
So if you like the major headlines of today, April 8, 2008, vote for John McCain:
The 2008 U.S. Presidential election comes down to one simple thing - if you read the above stories and think the last eight years have made the U.S. a better place, then vote for John McCain. It’s just that simple.
[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:
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.
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.
William K. Wolfrum made this statement to all his supporters at 3:30 p.m.
This year, more than ever, being a Blogger is the most important job in the world, and I say this without a whit of hyperbole.
However, being a top-notch Blogger has many responsibilities. Such as, one must be entirely clean from even the whiff of scandalous statements. There is no way a blogger can get his or her message across if someone, somewhere said something that offended someone else, somewhere else.
That is why today, I, William K. Wolfrum, officially denounce everything everybody has ever said, anywhere, ever.
I take this action because my staff has informed that people can be offended by a wide range of comments from “The Pope is a Bastard” to “Hey Sally, good morning!”
That is why I felt it necessary to what’s now known as a “mass denunciation” of all comments ever made on this planet. Please note, I also denounce my use of the phrases “The Pope is a Bastard” and “Hey Sally, good morning!” and apologize for using them and hope people will see that I was just using them as an example.
In fact, let’s be honest, most the things I’ve written, said, and even thought throughout my life have been controversial and offensive, to say the least. I denounce all of it, effective immediately. I hope my self-denunciation shows how serious I am on this effort to distance myself from all things offensive so that the nation’s dialogue can continue.
I’d like to point out that I am firm in my denouncements. I am not in any way trying to sneak a secret message across to the media, where reporters or fellow bloggers could grab a statement from here and use it as something to denounce me for. My denouncement is all-encompassing, and done with complete and utter honesty, and, in fact, includes a complete denouncement of this Statement of Denouncement.
I hope this statement clears things up about my beliefs of the statements of others. Because during this time of great importance, it’s vital we are all able to focus on real issues, like Eliot Spitzer’s recent bust on prostitution charges.
Note: I also denounce my above usage of the words “prostitution” and “Spitzer.”
Thank you for your time and I have retained counsel in this matter.
Hey everyone, William K. Wolfrum, AKA, “The Conspiracist” here. I’ve got some doozies for you so hold on to your hats and here THE TRUTH!
I’ve been scouring my anonymous sources for some time now, and while the “Mainstream Media” does it’s job of showering pictures of Eliot Spitzer’s prostitute on their front pages to keep the Sheeple shleeping, I have uncovered some amazing information - the maniacal New World Oligarchy that currently runs the Western World is planning an all-out attack on Iran, very likely before the November elections.
Hold on to your hats people, this is big.
First, my cousin heard this information second-hand from a trusted source: Admiral William Fallon, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East has resigned. Fallon who recently publicly criticized the Bush Administration’s policies on Iran, and resigned in a hastily called press conference, going totally under the radar on the mainstream media - but not under the radar of “The Conspiracist.”
The subversive underground magazine known as “Esquire” wrote a long article recently on Fallon, claiming “As the White House talked up conflict with Iran, the head of U.S. Central Command, William “Fox” Fallon, talked it down. Now he has resigned.”
The “Esquire” article was written by long-time Conspiracy advocate Thomas Barnett, a shady underground figure who has never been seen publicly.
The man most responsible for the departure of Fallon is Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, the savior of the war and the Bush administration with the surge, the counter-insurgency genius, the Washington-savvy Princeton grad, and a pretty boy called “King David” by many. His boss in the military is Fallon, commander of the Central Command, but from day one of his assignment to Iraq, Petraeus reported directly to the White House, thus circumventing the chain of command and virtually ignoring the views of his superior officer.
The author of this piece, the propagandist William M. Arkin finished his piece by writing “The good news is that with those kinds of resources being committed to Iraq, and with the lessons of the war, the likelihood of Bush and Cheney starting an Iran war is virtually zero.”
When a propagandist like Arkin writes about the New World government of Cheney and Bush learning lessons, you know more war is ahead.
But while Arkin tries to keep the public from looking too hard at the imminent attack and takeover of Iran, other mainstream sources are subtly setting out the Administration’s talking points: That Iran is a terrible, horrifying threat more devastating and dangerous that 50,000 Hitlers, 10 Stalins and a Mao.
By while the U.S. has continued to slowly push the image of a nuclear-armed, insane-with-power Iran that must be vaporized to the public, the little-known Conspiracy Web magazine “U.S. News & World Report” — run by three heroic patriots from an undisclosed basement in the South Indies - writes that the world is not falling for it. According to one of these anonymous patriots, writing under the pseudonym of “Thomas Omestad,” world support for an attack on Iran is dwindling:
The new survey has charted what, for the Bush team and its allies overseas, must be an alarming drop in support for economic sanctions or military strikes on Iran, which despite the passage of a third United Nations Security Council sanctions resolution last week is still refusing to suspend its nuclear work. Compared with a June 2006 BBC poll, backing for a tougher approach to Iran fell in 13 of 21 countries where people were questioned both times.
Even in a staunch ally like Britain, support for those measures fell 9 percentage points, from 43 percent to 34 percent. In Australia, the share dropped 10 points and in Germany 9 points. Even in the United States, the figure dropped from 66 percent to 60 percent over that period.
But take this from me, The Conspiracist - there is a conspiracy out there, and signs still point to Bush and Crew creating more war, more death and destruction. So while election results do have importance, don’t take your eye off this one important factor - The U.S. is still planning to attack Iran.
