I was extended an offer today and I accepted. It was for more money than I expected.

I can't say enough at how excited I am!

on edit: I haven't had a job in ages.

I come here because it's filled with like-minded intelligent people. We always find a lot to disagree about and can have very lively discussions. I also like it when someone presents a point of view that hadn't occurred to me.

Because of DU I have changed my opinions on the decriminalization of marijuana, notification of parents of pregnant teens who want an abortion, and many other issues. I've gotten educated about subjects that I never believed were overly important.

There have been times I came looking for a fight, but it quickly dissipates because of the friendliness and the fun that can be found.

Also, I have found fellow DUer's as giving as they come. The willingness to help others is profound and moves me.

I've been frustrated to such degrees that I've left for long stretches and one time I honestly didn't think I was coming back, but I did. I always do because of all the things that DU offers.

So, what brings you here and what keeps you here?

When the Treasury Department's bailout czar provided an update this week on the government's $700 billion plan to rescue troubled financial institutions, he vowed that it would be an "open and transparent program with appropriate oversight.''

The next day, the Treasury Department put out an announcement about a major bailout-related contract with Bank of New York Mellon Corp. that fell short in the transparency department.

The copy of the agreement that was made public had blacked-out paragraphs in the section covering Bank of New York Mellon's compensation. If the Treasury Department is unwilling to disclose the particulars of that contract -- or even the general outline of the compensation scheme -- that raises questions about how it will treat disclosure of other bailout transactions.

http://bailoutsleuth.com/2008/10/the-end-o... /

Perkins, an influential conservative leader, said in his letter that he believes Cole, whose committee has been hemorrhaging money in an uphill battle against Democratic congressional candidates, "made a grave error in judgment" by pulling ads from Musgrave's and Bachmann's districts.

"The left is attacking both of these outstanding women because they are true conservatives," Perkins said. "They vote pro-life and pro-family."

Perkins wrote that both candidates are in "winnable districts," and that "pulling funds from their campaigns sends the wrong message to their supporters and gives their opponents a chance to produce headlines that the NRCC has undermined these campaigns."

"This is no time to cut and run from a fight," Perkins wrote.

He added that he will "urge supporters" of the FRC to stop contributing to the NRCC "until it starts supporting and fighting for conservative candidates in close races."

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/frc-...

Michele Bachmann called for congress to be investigated for anti-Americanism. Robin Hayes says liberals hate working Americans and God. Sarah Palin said that small towns are pro-America. A rep of the McCain campaign stated that there is a 'real' Virginia indicating that the rest of the state doesn't matter.

This is ALL in the last week!

The republican party is officially advocating for fascism.

So, why isn't the media, more Dems, and majority of America shaming these people for channeling McCarthyism and Mussolini? Where is the outrage?

I HATE Joe the plumber!

He's running for state representative. Shipley has been attaching himself to McCain. At early voting he was standing next to a life size cut out. It was funny to see. Anyway, about the robocalls. I've gotten three of them and went to the website. There was a number and I thought it was to his office or something. Well, he actually answered the phone. I explained to him that I was tired of the robocalls and the propaganda getting tossed into my yard. We've gotten a few of those, too.

He tells me that he has nothing to do with that. It's the republican party. I said, 'but you're a part of the republican party'. He says yes, but he doesn't have anything to do with the robocalls. I tell him you can stop the robocalls. They're nothing more than telemarketing calls and bush hates those. He says, well yes, he understands and begins rambling and stuttering like he suddenly lost the power to speak.

I laughed and said 'No wonder the republican party is losing so badly'. With nothing being accomplished I hung up the phone.

FACING SOUTH INVESTIGATION: How did Republicans get an $8 million bailout from failing Wachovia?

Wachovia Corp., a once-thriving financial giant now teetering on the brink of collapse, confirmed today that it was extending an $8 million loan to the cash-strapped National Republican Congressional Committee for last-minute activities to support GOP House candidates.

Wachovia's decision to lend money to the NRCC -- itself reeling from a damaging financial scandal earlier this year -- is sure to draw charges of favoritism, as Wachovia denies credit and freezes assets for thousands of other customers.

Allegations of favoritism are especially delicate for Wachovia, given the disproportionate support of Republican campaigns and organizations by the company's leadership.

What's more, Wachovia's loan to the NRCC comes as Wachovia awaits the outcome of precarious buyout negotiations which have relied on federal backing -- inviting questions over the political activities of companies whose survival depend on public support.

http://southernstudies.org/facingsouth/200...

It was a warm day in Castlewood, VA. My son Nathan and I arrived at about 12:45pm. We missed lunch so we got in line for some fish, hush puppies and more. It was great food with friendly people. This gathering was sponsored by the United Mineworkers of America. They did a great job!

After we ate we found seats at a decent spot and I was surprised to see Gov. Tim Kaine meeting and talking with people. I can't tell you how friendly he was and how available he was to anyone. Even though we were from TN, he was very happy to see us. Here is a pic of him with my son.



It started off with a prayer from a preacher and let me tell you it was long. Nathan, my son, said 'It's about time' when the man finished. The folks behind us laughed. After a few speakers Gov. Tim Kaine came out and gave a great speech. He's not the 'let 'em have with both barrels' kind of guy so it's probably better that Obama did not pick him for VP, IMO. Biden did say that it's very possible Tim Kaine could be a future president which got people clapping.

Anyway, Joe Biden was finally introduced and he came out to a rousing ovation. It was great! He was very passionate and he spoke the truth. This was mainly focused on coal, jobs and unions. He did let McCain have it and people stood up and applauded every time.

Here is a video of Biden and a small portion of his speech about McStupid:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcDspQaekwc

Afterward, the audience was motioned to come forward and Nathan and I did. I had only waited a few minutes when Senator Biden came close. He shook my hand and I was so nervous all I said was, "I'm a vet and my husband is a vet. Thank you so much for everything you've done for us. He gave me a kiss on the cheek! I couldn't believe it!

Here is a picture of me with Senator Biden...



I let my son play around with the camera and he took this photo of Joe Biden.



Anyway, we had a lot of fun and people were great. We came away with a few buttons, a bumper sticker and a wonderful experience we'll never forget!

"Ask Jack Abramoff if I'm an insider in Washington," McCain often contends. "You'd probably have to go during visiting hours in the prison, and he'll tell you and his lobbyist cronies of the change I made there."

But how much change did McCain actually effect? And is he all that removed from Washington's special interests?

A review of campaign finance filings shows that the Arizona Republican has accepted more than $100,000 in donations from employees of Greenberg Traurig, the very firm where Abramoff once reigned.

Those donations include several thousand dollars from registered lobbyists who represent, or have represented, businesses such as NewsCorp, Rupert Murdoch's media empire; Spi Spirits, a Cyprus based company that has fought with the Russian government for the rights to the Stolichnaya vodka brand name; El Paso Corp, a major energy company; General Motors; and the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition, a group of businesses and trade associations "concerned" about the shortage of lesser skilled and unskilled labor.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/02/12/m...

And more....

A little-known document, however, shows that McCain may have taken steps to protect his Republican colleagues from the scope of his investigation.

In the 2006 Senate report concerning Abramoff's activities, which McCain spearheaded, the Arizona Republican conspicuously left out information detailing how Alabama Gov. Bob Riley was targeted by Abramoff's influence peddling scheme. Riley, a Republican, won election in November 2002, and was reelected in 2006.

In a December 2002 email obtained by the Huffington Post -- which McCain and his staff had access to prior to the issuance of his report -- Abramoff explains to an aide what he would like to see Riley do in return for the "help" he received from Abramoff's tribal clients.

An official with the Mississippi Choctaws "definitely wants Riley to shut down the Poarch Creek operation," Abramoff wrote, "including his announcing that anyone caught gambling there can't qualify for a state contract or something like that."

The note showed not only the reach of Abramoff, but raised questions about Riley's victory in what was the closest gubernatorial election in Alabama history.

And yet, despite the implications of the information, McCain and the Senate Indian Affairs Committee sat on the controversial portion of the email. According to an official familiar with the investigation, McCain also subsequently refused to make the email public after the report was released.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/02/25/m...

I grew up in a white conservative religious home. Even today little of that has changed. A few times I've heard some of them make homophobic and racist remarks that have made me cringe inside and they are as fundamental about their christianity as ever.

Despite their stances, they are still my family and I love them. We can all still get together for enjoyable holidays and have loads of fun. We can passionately argue politics and religion, but those topics never diminish our feelings for one another.

I'm still a Hillary supporter and I do believe she'd make the best president, but Obama's speech today had something that very few political speeches have: HONESTY

He spoke honestly about his family. It almost sounded like my family he was talking about and I connected with him on that level. IMO, he connected with a lot of folks on a similar level.

Now, I'll dismiss a lot of crap that comes out about politicians as far as what it means in the big picture. I've watched many here at DU proclaim that one thing or another means something and it spells a politician's doom. Majority of the time it doesn't. That's because I've been on that roller coaster before and I refuse to be taken in by it. The uproar over Obama's preacher was very firmly put to rest and there will be more talk about the speech than the comments that preceded it.

Very rarely do I give predictions. Mainly because I got burned in 04 and that loss was a kick to the gut. But I will give one now. Even as much as I like Hillary, and still root for her, my prediction is that Obama will win the White House. For the Dems, the delegate count will get him the nomination.

But when it comes to the General Election, Obama's handling of this whole thing with his preacher and the speech he gave about race has basically sealed it for him, IMO. He handled it with grace and generosity. Obama expressed what at least I feel in my heart for my family despite their stances. I can't cut them out of my life for their narrow-minded ways any more than they'll cut me out of theirs for being a liberal atheist. It won't happen and I know this from the very bottom of my heart.

Obama said what needed said and he did so with honesty. As much as I've disagreed with him on other issues, I respect the hell out of him for what he did today. I don't think I'm the only one, and as long as he doesn't make any major stumbles, which I doubt he will, he'll win the White House and this speech will be a big reason why, IMO.

After reading on Raw about Tweety denying his misogyny and then slamming Barbara Walters of the View...

http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Matthews_sla...

I decided to do a little googling. I typed 'Chris Matthews' and 'Hillary Clinton'. I got over 21,000,000 links. Just hitting the first five pages I got the following. I did not include the massive number of hits that referred to Tweety's other obsession besides Hillary...her marriage to Bill Clinton. Tweety has spent a lot of energy questioning what goes on in their marriage.

So, here you go Tweety...please keep denying you don't hate Hillary and keep denying your obsession of her.

snip:
The outrage is no put-on. Aboard a recent shuttle flight to Washington, Matthews spotted New York Sen. Hillary Clinton. Earlier in the day, he'd been complaining privately that, as first lady, she'd rejected a health-care plan that would allow nurses to give care to public school students because it was "too narrow-bore."

"In other words, 'I'm not going to get enough credit for this,' " Matthews told a colleague in the cafeteria of MSNBC headquarters in North Jersey. "Madonna won't get flowers brought to her. I hate her. I hate her. All that she stands for."

http://www.oliverwillis.com/archives/2007/... /

Matthews called male supporters of Hillary Clinton "castratos in the eunuch chorus.

http://guerillawomentn.blogspot.com/2007/1...

Matthews and others on NBC networks have repeatedly linked Clinton to fictional Nurse Ratched

http://mediamatters.org/items/200712070003

Hillary gets accused of playing the gender card, but look at obsessed Tweety is with her and her gender...

http://guerillawomentn.blogspot.com/2007/1...

Tweety projects his issues with women onto Hillary

http://news.aol.com/newsbloggers/2008/01/1...

This is only one of the images people see when the think of Nazism. This is why any attempt to compare the bush administration to Nazism will have many rolling their eyes at you. This is why the argument is lost.

You can raise as many similarities as you like, but the fact is this image is one of many that are ingrained in people's minds and IMO, making these comparisons denigrates the millions that died. It minimizes the horror and the tragedy, IMO.

ON EDIT: This is not a denial of what the US has done in Bush's war. That is not the point of this post. The point of this post is to show why I believe using the word 'Nazi' to describe or compare the bush administration will have people rolling their eyes at you or walking away when you want to highlight why they are so horrible.

The Inspector General found that the Pentagon hasn't been able to properly equip the soldiers it already has. Many have gone without enough guns, ammunition, and other necessary supplies to "effectively complete their missions" and have had to cancel or postpone some assignments while waiting for the proper gear, according to the report from auditors with the Defense Dept. Inspector General's office. Soldiers have also found themselves short on body armor, armored vehicles, and communications equipment, among other things, auditors found.

"As a result, service members performed missions without the proper equipment, used informal procedures to obtain equipment and sustainment support, and canceled or postponed missions while waiting to receive equipment," reads the executive summary dated Jan. 25. Service members often borrowed or traded with each other to get the needed supplies, according to the summary.

Pentagon officials did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment.

The audit supports news reports and other evidence that U.S. troops have been stretched too thin or have performed tasks for which they were ill-prepared. It is likely to add fuel to the opposition to President George W. Bush's decision to send more troops to Iraq in an effort to quell the violence there.

http://www.businessweek.com/print/bwdaily/...

C'mon, everybody: Let's get ready to rumble!

We've just confirmed that the former Bush-appointed leader of the U.S. rebuilding effort in Iraq will face his longtime critic before a panel of the Democratic-led Congress to answer questions about his leadership.

L. Paul Bremer, onetime head of the former Coalition Provisional Authority, responded positively to an invitation extended ten days ago to testify along with his chief critic, Iraq audit and investigation chief Stuart Bowen, before Rep. Henry Waxman's (D-CA) Government Reform Committee.

"He's confirmed," a Waxman spokesman told me this afternoon, referring to Bremer, who stepped down in June 2004. President Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom six months later, despite a long series of scathing reports by Bowen about mismanagement, waste, fraud and abuse among Bremer's staff.

It will be the first time Bremer and Bowen will testify together before Congress, according to Bowen spokeswoman Christine Belisle. Get your popcorn ready.

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/00244...