My son has the "blessing" of being born on the 4th of July. Growing up in and around Philadelphia, I can remember a time, the years around the Bicentennial mostly, when the idea of being born on Independence Day might have meant something. Currently, it's good for a day off, and the relatives have a better reason to congregate in a big group other than to hear and see fireworks explode overhead. As George W. Bush and his kleptocratic cronies have forced a sunset on the America I loved and admired, I don't know whether I'm looking at a toddling future patriot or a future refugee.

I know, I know. This isn't a sports blog. Having said that, if you are in teh United States right now and you're not tuned to NBC, you're missing one hell of a hockey game.

I am for all sides being heard, and I must admit that this process the Rules and Bylaws Committee is going through today is unprcendented. However, I'd like to address my comments to the person who thought that it would be a wonderful idea to televise these proceedings and let everyone and his brother into the meeting room.

I used to watch 60 Minutes on a fairly regular basis in the BC (Before Couric) era, many days gone by. When the late Ed Bradley and Mike Wallace were holding court, the show was guaranteed to have one exchange with an interview subject that was unforgettable.

           Many years ago, they had an interview with noted millionaire Paul Peterson (I hope I’m spelling his name right). The story he appeared on was a story about Social Security, and how to stabilize the program for future generations. A few contingencies were discussed, such as means testing, alternate funding and abolition. He made mention of Grover Norquist, Newt Gingrich and their many acolytes who wish to abolish Social Security as a program. I’ll never forget what he said:

"To them, I would say ‘Careful what you wish for in removing the social safety net’".

     When talking about nonsense such as intelligent design in this forum, I fully realize that in many ways I’m preaching to the choir. Having said that, I’d like to bring forth my arguments against it anyway. I encourage everyone here to take these arguments with you, refine them and throw them in the faces of the less enlightened.

Today is primary day in my former homeland of Pennsylvania. While Hillary Clinton is expected to come away as the victor in this particular contest, going forward she carries on her back the hopes and dreams of a group within the Democratic Party who with each passing day become more and more an irrelevant anachronism.

Bush taped a "surprise good luck video" in the White House Library on March 17 for Army Captain Joe Kobes who served in Iraq and was a contestant on the NBC show "Deal or No Deal," the White House said on Friday.

The program with Bush will air on Monday, April 21.

White Flight.

Those two words have been used for decades in the United States to cover up one of the more covert and ugly practices of white urban homeowners. Namely, at the first sighting of a black family on the block, move away as fast as you can.

A combination of Barack Obama and the subprime mortgage crisis are bringing this disgusting practice to an end.  

crossposted here        

       "...promote the general welfare..."

I’m not a constitutional scholar, and would never pretend to be, but as an American, whenever I think about the potential of the land of my birth, I go to the preamble to our Constitution. Those 52 words ratified 221 years ago hold great promise, neatly summarizing the goals of a new country.

crossposted here

       As a former resident of Pennsylvania, I can tell you that when it comes to voting, the Keystone State is an odd place. There are blue areas around the state, mostly Philadelphia and other urban centers, but Pennsylvania is still a place where a good candidate, no matter what party, can rise to the top and become a force. Pennsylvanians tend to look at each individual candidate not so much for party affiliation, but for stands on individual issues.

crossposted here  

       It has been 4 days since I first put forth a proposition to the campaign of Hillary Clinton for President.

By any reasonable mathematical equation, Hillary Clinton cannot win the presidency without cajoling or making wild and unwieldy promises to the sizable swath of uncommitted superdelegates in the Democratic Party. She has currently won fewer states, has fewer pledged delegates and yes, she also trails in the popular vote, unless you apply what I call the Lieberman Theorem. This theorem posits than when you finish anywhere but where you expect to finish, it’s best to call it a tie, such as a three-way tie for third when you finish fifth in New Hampshire. There’s no such thing as a statistical dead heat when all the votes are counted. Either you finished first, or you lost. Hillary Clinton is currently in second place. The only entity that reverses the absolutes of voting mathematics is 5 extremists in black robes on the Supreme Court.

crossposted here

As the effects of the banking and mortgage crisis become more apparent, it offers all of us an opportunity to look at some of the less visible reasons behind it.

The primary reasons for it are obvious at this point. We have the adjustable rate mortgage, which may very well be the greediest lending avenue ever devised by humankind, automobile leasing being a close second. Some of the percentage increases now former homeowners were faced with when ARM’s reset at higher interest rates were staggering, so much so that many homeowners have chosen to send house keys to the bank rather than pay an inflated mortgage on a home that’s losing its sales value. Add to this fact that there are many mortgage brokers rewarded not so much for minimizing risk to their lender employers, but for getting a signature on the dotted line, and the ingredients for disaster begin to congeal.

I have an announcement for everyone here. It may come as a shock to all of you, but I make this announcement as a preemptive strike in the event that Hillary Clinton somehow becomes the nominee of the Democratic Party for the presidency. Despite the fact that Barack Obama is leading in states won, pledged delegates and the popular vote, Hillary Clinton can still win by cajoling superdelegates into voting for her at the convention with the argument that she is the more electable alternative to Senator Obama.

My announcement is simple. I voted for Barack Obama in the Wisconsin primary. By virtue of that, I have now attained the status of Supervoter.

crossposted here

For purposes of full disclosure, I must state that I am not only a subscriber to Sirius Satellite radio and have been for two years, but I also am currently a holder of 100 shares of Sirius stock. While this is not a large amount, I can be reasonably judged to have a vested interest in what I write about. I disclose this because it’s the right thing to do.

crossposted here

As someone who is part Italian and part Irish, I learned at a very young age that I needed to do my best to keep my genetic predisposition towards hyperanimation and anger in check. The presidency of George W. Bush has severely tested the limits of my personal patience. In most cases when I visit here, I have done my level best to be civil and to bury the more guttural speech that was part of my upbringing in Philadelphia.

crossposted here

While the race for the Democratic nomination for president has yet to be decided, the choice of a vice-presidential candidate will soon be upon us. Unlike other topics lately (Clinton vs. Obama, Ralph Nader, "my candidate can beat up your candidate"), the few discussions undertaken thus far in this forum regarding potential running mates have been fairly civil, with many good ideas.

The purpose of this diary is the encouragement of a brainstorming session to put forth the pros and cons of potential Vice Presidential candidates from different segments of the Democratic Party. For purposes of organization, I have tried to put the groups in three categories, starting with:

crossposted here

It has been snowing off and on in Milwaukee since December 1st. Portions of the sidewalks here are now icy, thanks to a brief melt of snow yesterday. How this affects turnout for the Wisconsin presidential primary tomorrow in this area remains to be seen. I can tell you that speaking as a person who is 41 and whose polling place can be seen from his front door, I can predict one solid vote for Obama in tomorrow’s primary.

crossposted here        

       So, here we are. The economy is crumbling into a recession created from a unique stew of governmental malfeasance, corporate greed and investor myopia.

George W. Bush’s all-purpose "solution" is the same play book we’ve seen since those heady early days of 2001; give businesses ridiculous tax breaks and send the poor a check equivalent to a fraction of the monthly rent.