23
POPSWrong Woman; Wrong Message Her down-home, divisive and deceptive speech did nothing to cosmeticize a Republican convention that has more than twice as many male delegates as female, a presidential candidate who is owned and operated by the right wing and a platform that opposes pretty much everything Clinton's candidacy stood for -- and that Barack Obama's still does. I get no pleasure from imagining her in the spotlight on national and foreign policy issues about which she has zero background, with one month to learn to compete with Sen. Joe Biden's 37 years' experience. When asked last month about the vice presidency, she said, "I still can't answer that question until someone answers for me: What is it exactly that the VP does every day?" When asked about Iraq, she said, "I haven't really focused much on the war in Iraq."
5
POPSWar Protesters Denied Free Speech: Hundreds Arrested 1,000 people marching in the streets. Thousands on the day before. Over 500 arrested in the week. Raids on homes before the convention. Another FBI informant agent provocateur turning in his room after encouraging his actions for months. Bad...bad, bad protesters, refusing to stay in the 'protester cattle pens," trying to walk down the street to get within a mile of the RNC convention center. Or...maybe bad...bad government that now prohibits legal protest that are, actually, allowed to line up across the street from any hotel or business, wave signs, chant , try to have their voices heard while for 8 years the media pretends they don't exist and the government wants to fence them in cattle pens.
2
POPSUS Military Deaths, Just a Number Only, declined, the casualties first suffered, since, the latest, at least 4,153, since....2003 These words used in the article seem to detach themselves from the fact that "our " brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, husbands, and friends are being killed in a war with Iraq. It makes me think that people may be viewing this as just " war " and maybe compared to " the Vietnam War " and not as " the war on terrorism " or " the fight for freedom." Maybe " that " is why people protest this war, not against the soldiers that are led there, but " the Politics behind it ". I may be wrong and you may not care what I think, but I hope " I still have the freedom ", to say it.
2
POPSPakistan Furious Over U.S. Insurgency Everything that Bush accused Russia of (not respecting sovereignty of Georgia) suddenly does not apply. Every invasion of Bush's imperial storm troopers (or under Clinton too for that matter, like Kosovo) is always justified, and any other country acting in self-defense or to defend their jurisdictions (e.g. Russia-S. Ossetia) is condemned. And for you hypocritical democrats who want Obama, he already stated he would do the very same thing, invade Pakistan for the "war on terrorism"! (Objective commentary based on principle must spare none who violate it). The hypocrisy is self evident, yet the MSM does not expose it. The wars will NEVER end until the people make the government stop and refuse to support ANY leader who violates the very restrictive principles of just war and the Constitution.
2
POPSPolitical Analyst~OR~Partisan Activists??? Olbermann's dominance brings out the worst in Matthews. Even Brokaw. They are both more balanced, when KO is nowhere in sight. An insightful eye can tell the difference when responding to Keith they are timidly stammering for words far enough in the extreme left bias to satisfy him. And their facial expression shows it - clearly. They are resentful, pressured, and under the thumb of Keith Olbermann. At a later point, with Olbermann gone, they are confident, balanced and natural. Myself, I can ferret out this kind of passive-aggressive, irresponsible phony journalism. There are just too many out there that cannot see that the line between news and amateurish blog has disappeared ~ probably for ever.
7
POPSThou doth protest too much ~"Hillary, despite what you've heard, is not the smartest woman in America. And can anyone dispute that one element of Obama's allure is the potential of his becoming the first African-American president? Palin is, without doubt, in part, a token pick. So what? The appeal of a candidate includes his or her policy position, but also background (that's why we are blessed with the folksy charm of Joe Biden), experience, ability, race and gender. "~
3
POPSAnyone surprised I will admit it took longer than I thought for them to back out of the deal, but once again they show their true colors.
4
POPSConservatives Claim "Liberal Media."
A) We do not have a liberal media; it's a corporate controlled media. The lack of coverage of the fine speeches of the war protest groups this week at the RNC, for example, shows the media bias. There IS massive opposition the the war; the news just doesn't cover it. Claiming "liberal media," is propaganda. B)Though our American media does like to zoom in on the crotch of teenage girls who have sex that doesn't mean they are "liberal," but rather just a degenerate example of a decaying civilization that thinks this is "News." In fact, Obama (a so-called, 'liberal,') was Very Clear: "Leave familes out of our politics, esp. the children of candidates." Any parent knows that no matter what they do or say their kids might screw around or screw up. This IS the prevailing reaction of real people along with what Obama said. The Republicans are playing this up deliberately. it does show the flaw, though, of Palin's sex ed idea of teaching ONLY abstinence as sex ed.
12
POPSWho Cares about Size of Government? How about Competent Government? Don't be so scared of government that you serve it, instead of it serving you. Revolutions of the past did not protest how much governments were doing for their well-being. Fundamentally, if taxes had ever been used to actually deliver services to the people instead of funding monarchs and their wars, there might be less fear of taxes. Overcome your fears. Make your government serve you. Like the French providing household assistance services for free to all new moms a few hours a week until the mother feels ready to handle everything.
2
POPSPolice raid RNC protesters headquarters Are Minnesota authorities more suspicious of what goes on behind closed doors? Are they less tolerant of groups planning on exercising their right to freedom of speech? Perhaps the police were taking their motto, to ‘Serve and Protect’, a tad bit too seriously when they busted in with guns drawn in order to issue a fire code violation. But they did get some nice photos to add to their collection.
4
POPSAre We Safer Now? I doubt if the public's safety was forefront in this misguided attempt to silence protest during the RNC. Partly because of hysterical paranoia of terrorists the powers that be have long used the pretense of protection to denigrate and undermine our most basic rights and freedoms. And do we stand up and raise our fists in anger over theses blatant stabs to our freedoms? Afraid not. It seems everyone just sits back in their easy chairs and watches as the powers that be wall off protesters to Orwellian "Protest Zones". Yes, bad people want to do us harm. But a modicum of sanity should accompany our plans to provide a reasonable level of protection from these people. As it is now, this smacks more of politics than of legitimate protection.
14
POPSPre-RNC raids: so who hates freedom now? Doesn't look like any evidence has been uncovered thus far of intent to commit anything beyond non-violent protests. Kind of an unnerving story if you ask me, but, hey, it's a post-9/11 world, and the cops are just trying to keep us all safe, right? (It's funny, when I was a kid growing up in the eighties, there used to be after-school specials about how this kind of thing happened in apartheid South Africa.)
2
POPSProtest and Revolution The Boston Tea Party Yet it was the meeting that took place on December 16, 1773 that sealed Old South’s fate as one of this country’s most significant buildings. On that day, over 5, 000 men crowded into Old South and joined in a fiery debate on the controversial tea tax. When the final attempt at compromise failed, Samuel Adams gave the signal that started the Boston Tea Party. The Sons of Liberty led the way dumping 342 chests of tea into the harbor at Griffin’s Wharf. If some people had their way, this would never had occurred, they would have been jailed preemptively and we'd be singing God Save the Queen.
9
POPSBig Brother Goes on the Offensive in Minneapolis Leave it to the GOP to out stage the Denver police in the repression department. Cowards. What are they afraid of? That people will speak the truth? Will their ears bleed from the demonstrators chants? I guess this goverment is afraid of it's people.