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�Once in his life, every man is entitled to fall madly in love with a gorgeous redhead�
-Lucille Ball
"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."
--Theodore Roosevelt, 1918
REGISTER TO VOTE
"The time is always right to do what is right"
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
"The "seven social sins": Knowledge without character,
Science without humanity,
Wealth without work,
Commerce without morality,
Politics without principles,
Pleasure without conscience,
Worship without self-sacrifice."
--Gandhi
"We have not inherited the world from our forfathers -
We have borrowed it from our children."
--Kashmiri, proverb
First of all, last night�s debate was fabulous (yes, I am a geek). In regard to my man, Dennis Kucinich�well�I think he kind of stumbled a few times. He made a lot of great points and got a LOT of applause (I don't understand why so many people agree with him but refuse to vote for him), but he just didn't seem very confident. I like him more when he's just talking, not in debate form. I guess that makes sense, but a lot of politicians thrive in debates. Dennis ain�t one of �em. That said, he�s still my man and I still actually trust him and how many politicians can you say that about?
As a side note, I can't believe all of the airtime Dennis is getting on Fox News! They did another interview with him last night and a rather lengthy one at that. They must just think he doesn't have a chance anyway, so what's the harm in giving him air time? Now they can use his appearances to support their "Fair and Balanced� claims.
During last night�s debate, Wesley Clark was questioned about Michael Moore's endorsement of him and he didn't field the questions very well. If you're gonna stand on a podium next to someone who is calling the President of the United States a deserter, you'd better either have proof of that or try to distance yourself from the comment. Clark did neither. He basically said it didn�t matter to him.
Clark is going to be a contender, though, I think (interesting article about his campaign can be found here). He is obviously being coached and rather well. He sounds better and better each time I hear him speak, especially when he's just giving a speech rather than debating (yes, I am one of the six people in this country who watch CSPAN and see all of these speeches. I so need a life). There are some things I like about him, even, especially his views on gays in the military. Plus, he's an attractive man, which goes a long way in our society. He is really bad with the waffling on the war, though. Essentially, no matter what he says now, he supported it at the time. From what I have read (articles he himself wrote at the time), his differences with Bush revolved around strategy, not whether to not we should go in to Iraq. And that�s not what he says now. That's the main reason I keep saying I don't trust him. As I have said in the past, I just don't understand why people can't admit they supported the war at the time because they believed the lies they were being told. What's so wrong with that? I assume they must think it's a sign of weakness and they can't be seen as weak in any way. Or something. I have no idea, really.
Sadly, I know a LOT of people who listen to Michael Moore (not me, rest assured) and that scares me. Hence my letter to him the other day. He is becoming like the Left's misinformation machine, akin to the sort of distortion usually attributed to the likes of Bill O'Reilly and Ann Coulter. While I applaud a lot of his past efforts and films, even Bowling for Columbine was very narrow in its scope and bordered on distorting the facts to support its cause. Luckily, it's a cause I believe in, so I didn't mind very much. :) But he is just getting worse and worse. I can't even read his web page anymore.
These days I'm assuming our (Democratic) ticket will be Kerry/Edwards. I'd be willing to lay odds that if Kerry wins, Edwards will be his running mate and for many of the reasons gp pointed out to me this morning, i.e. Kerry is going to have a hard time selling himself in the South. Not a bad ticket, I guess, but Kerry doesn't sit well with me, either. I like Edwards except for a few things, mainly his position on gay marriage which is just retarded*. Not that he's the only one who takes that position, of course (that it should be left up to each state to determine whether or not gay marriages will be recognized in that state. This is tantamount to saying it's up to each state to determine whether or not interracial marriages should be legal. And then, here you're happily married in, say, Vermont, and what if you have to move to Utah? That state doesn't recognize that you're legally married. That's bullshit. This is a civil rights issue and civil rights should never be left up to each state. Period. Someone aside from Dennis Kucinich needs to grow some balls and take this on). At this stage, however, I'd much rather have Kerry than Dean and I didn't start out this race feeling that way AT ALL. Dean used to be my second choice and he was the one I thought would win the primary (by the way, here is an interesting article on where Dean went wrong). Kerry, though, is just so...f'n boring. He's getting better, but even his recent transformation to me is so false that it turns me off. At least Dean is just himself, for better or worse. Kerry obviously has a bunch of staffers telling him to "shoot from the hip" and to get that Vet up on stage with him and all of that. It's just kind of gross. But of course, this is America and in the immortal words of Steven Hyde on That Seventies Show: "The real three branches of the government are Military, Corporate and Hollywood."
I will say this about Howard Dean: I think people are making MUCH too much out of his little rah-rah session after the Iowa caucuses. What�s funny is, nobody is talking at all about his singing the National Anthem while people were protesting him, something I found much more disturbing than his �We�re going to New Mexico, Wyoming�and we�re gonna take back the White House, yee-haw� speech. I mean, did I dream that or what?
*I just read in the paper where Ohio has not only refused to legalize homosexual civil unions (which aren't even marriages), but they've also made it illegal for state employees to receive the same benefits for their domestic partners as married couples receive. I just...I can't even tell you how angry that makes me. Not yet, anyway. :)
~~~
Dear MoveOn member,
During this year's Super Bowl, you'll see ads sponsored by beer companies, tobacco companies, and the Bush White House.1 But you won't see the winning ad in MoveOn.org Voter Fund's Bush in 30 Seconds ad contest. CBS refuses to air it.2
Meanwhile, the White House is on the verge of signing into law a deal which Senator John McCain (R-AZ) says is custom-tailored for CBS and Fox,3 allowing the two networks to grow much bigger. CBS lobbied hard for this rule change; MoveOn.org members across the country lobbied against it; and now our ad has been rejected while the White House ad will be played. It looks an awful lot like CBS is playing politics with the right to free speech.
Of course, this is bigger than just the MoveOn.org Voter Fund. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) submitted an ad that was also rejected.4 But this isn't even a progressive-vs.-conservative issue. The airwaves are publicly owned, so we have a fundamental right to hear viewpoints from across the ideological spectrum. That's why we need to let CBS know that this practice of arbitrarily turning down ads that may be "controversial" -- especially if they're controversial simply because they take on the President -- just isn't right.
To watch the ad that CBS won't air and sign our petition to CBS, go here.
(If you want to skip the ad and just sign the petition, click here.)
We'll deliver the petition by email directly to CBS headquarters.
You also may want to let your local CBS affiliate know you're unhappy about this decision. We've attached a list of the CBS affiliates in your state at the bottom of this email. Remember, a polite, friendly call will be most effective -- just explain to them why you believe CBS' decision hurts our democracy.
CBS will claim that the ad is too controversial to air. But the message of the ad is a simple statement of fact, supported by the President's own figures. Compared with 2002's White House ad which claimed that drug users are supporting terrorism,5 it hardly even registers.
CBS will also claim that this decision isn't an indication of political bias. But given the facts, that's hard to believe. CBS overwhelmingly favored Republicans in its political giving, and the company spent millions courting the White House to stop FCC reform.6 According to a well-respected study, CBS News was second only to Fox in failing to correct common misconceptions about the Iraq war which benefited the Bush Administration -- for example, the idea that Saddam Hussein was involved with 9/11.7
This is not a partisan issue. It's critical that our media institutions be fair and open to all speakers. CBS is setting a dangerous precedent, and unless we speak up, the pattern may continue. Please call on CBS to air ads which address issues of public importance today.
Sincerely,
--Adam, Carrie, Eli, James, Joan, Laura, Noah, Peter, Wes, and Zack
The MoveOn.org Team
January 22nd, 2003
P.S. Our friends at Free Press have put together a page which explains simply how CBS and the FCC rule change are integrally linked. Check it out here
P.P.S Here are the CBS affiliates in your state:
KCBS-TV, Los Angeles: (323) 460-3000
KFMB-TV, San Diego: (858) 571-8888
KPSP-TV, Thousand Palms: (760) 343-5700
KBAK-TV, Bakersfield: (661) 327-7955
KCOY-TV, Santa Maria: (805) 925-1200
KGPE-TV, Fresno: (559) 222-2411
KION-TV, Salinas: (831) 784-1702
KPIX-TV, San Francisco: (415) 362-5550
KVIQ-TV, Eureka: (707) 443-3061
KOVR-TV, West Sacramento: (916) 374-1313
KHSL-TV, Chico: (530) 342-0141
Footnotes:
1. "Who's Buying What At the Super Bowl," Ad Age, 1/20/04
2. CBS fax to MoveOn.org Voter Fund, 1/14/04
3. "Democrats Fold on 39% TV Cap Fight", Broadcasting and Cable, 1/21/04
4. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
5. "New Media Campaign Stresses Link between Drugs and Terrorism," U.S. Dept. of State
6. "CBS Television Network Soft Money Donations," Opensecrets.org
7. "Misperceptions, the Media and the Iraq War," PIPA/Knowledge Networks Poll
~~~
Word of the Day for Friday January 23, 2004:
unguent UNG-gwuhnt, noun:
A salve for sores, burns, or the like; an ointment.
~~~
This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness. --Dalai Lama
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