The 47%

The Republican presidential nominee has stated the 47% of Americans who do not pay income taxes are moochers and who feel that they are entitled to food, shelter, and medical care.

Who are these "moochers"? Well, according to the The Tax Policy Center , nearly half are senior citizens. These seniors, according to Romney feel entitled to the social security they paid into all those years they were working. One third of those "moochers" are the working poor who make less than $20,000 a year.

Mitt Romney has stated that his job as president is not to worry about those people.

I can only marvel at the crassness and obliviousness of Romney. I think the image below says it all:

Romney, by his own words, considers the elderly, disabled veterans, the working poor, and children living in poverty to be "moochers".

Like many other Americans in this economy, I teeter on the edges of being part of that 47%. Many years ago, I was part of that 47%. It was the safety net of a Pell grant, subsidized housing, the earned income credit, and the child care credit that enabled me to become a income tax paying citizen.

Past presidents like FDR, JFK, Nixon, Carter, Reagan, Clinton, and yes, even George W. Bush did care about the 47%. President Obama likes the moniker of Obamacare, because as he said, he does care.

A nation's greatness is reflected in how its most vulnerable citizens are treated. A nation cannot progress if people are starving. A nation cannot progress if laws are unjust and onerous. A nation cannot progress if people lack shelter. A nation cannot progress if people lack education. A nation cannot progress if disabled veterans do not receive the care they need.

Romney is not a leader. He knows how to game the system and has made millions upon millions on the backs of American taxpayers while all the while outsourcing American jobs overseas. Romney and his company, Bain, are directly responsible for many of those who find themselves as part of the 47%:

Romney is—you know, the old-school industrialists, like Mitt Romney’s father, they were men and women who built communities. They had factory towns. They were very anxious to leave, you know, hard legacies that people could see: hospitals, churches, schools—you know, the Hersheys of the world, the Kelloggs. But these new owners have absolutely no allegiance to American workers, American places, American communities. Their only allegiance is to the investors and to themselves. And so, it’s not at all uncharacteristic to have these situations where people are pleading for their jobs or they’re saying, you know, "We’ll tighten our belts, if you just make this concession and keep us." That’s irrelevant to the Mitt Romney-slash-Bain Capital-slash-Carlyle Groups of the world. They’re entirely about making profits. And if that means shipping jobs to China or eliminating jobs, that’s what they’re going to do. And that’s the new generation of corporate owners in this country.

Romney has no real investment in America. His true vision is profits. He's an opportunist who doesn't create any tangible wealth. What will he do with the United States if he is elected president?

Moribund

moribund,

Main Entry:
mor·i·bund
Pronunciation:
\ˈmȯr-ə-(ˌ)bənd, ˈmär-\
Function:
adjective
Etymology:
Latin moribundus, from mori to die — more at murder
Date:
circa 1721
1 : being in the state of dying : approaching death
2 : being in a state of inactivity or obsolescence
— mor·i·bun·di·ty \ˌmȯr-ə-ˈbən-də-tē, ˌmär-\ noun

The Republican party had a very good chance of changing with the selection of McCain as its presidential nominee. But he blew it with his choice of Palin as his running mate. His campaign became farce with Joe the Plumber. Instead of explaining his economic policy, McCain let an unknown plumber declare that Obama's tax plan sounded like Socialism/Marxism. Instead of explaining his policies, McCain and Palin both tried to use the tactics of fear. Between Palin's "little pockets of 'real' America" and a McCain adviser calling northern Virginia 'fake', a lot of voters, including me, were put off by the divisiveness.

With the selection of Palin, McCain experieinced a bump in poll figures. Yet as more people began to listen to Palin and learn about her, many began to question McCain and his leadership abilities. Many prominent Republicans such as Colin Powell openly endorsed Obama. Today, there are some calling for Operation Leper in order to purge the Republican party of those who don't support Palin. Talk about a cult following.

Obama moved the Democrats toward the center. McCain and Palin have moved the Republicans further right. Obama campaigned on hope and change. The Republicans could only offer the same worn-out tactics of fear and divisiveness.

Question of the Day

The election of Barack Obama is historic. The United States has looked beyond the color of person's skin and judged on character. Another historic election comes to mind, that of John Kennedy, the first non-Protestant president.

I have one question. Could a non-Christian be elected president?

The Strength of a Nation

The United States is unique. We somehow are able to weave the 300 million individual opinions that exist and still strive to work together. Sometimes we have arguments that can be very contentious. I know I've been very outspoken about my views on Sarah Palin. Some of my readers, many I consider friends, may have been bewildered at the direction I've been gone these last few weeks. I'm hoping the Republican Party can once again the Big Tent it used to be and no longer consider some parts of America to be 'real' and by that implication, other parts not 'real'.

Our greatest strength has always been us. Some examples:

My Vast Right Wing Conspiracy

Crossing the Rubicon

Jack's

Yourish

Seraphic Press

Volokh Conspiracy

Confederate Yankee

Likelihood of Success
Here's to the real America: All of us!!

Update: I'll be adding other links as the day goes by.

DovBear

Daisy Cuter

Obama

President.

Too Close to Call

Usually, as soon as the polls in Mississippi close, the networks declare Mississippi for the Republicans. They are still showing Mississippi too close to call. Alabama was called for McCain in about 15 minutes after the polls closed in that state. West Virginia, which looked like it may have leaned toward Obama last week has been called. Texas, Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina, Arkansas, and Louisiana have been called for McCain.

Georgia, Florida, Virginia, and Mississippi are still too close to call! They just called Virginia for Obama!

Update: At 9:53 PM, Mississippi has now been called for McCain. I think it is still too close to call for Mississippi. The lead McCain has has been diminishing and there is still 36% of precincts not reported.

I'm very happy to say that it looks like Obama will be our next president!!! Florida has been called for Obama!!! Obama now has 324 electoral votes!!!!

Voting Machine Irregularities

Voting Machines Elect One Of Their Own As President

Informal Exit Poll

The radio station I listened to asked callers to tell who they voted for. Some of the responses:

Mickey Mouse
G-d
Green Party-Cynthia McKinney
Ralph Nadar
Bob Barr

McCain and Obama votes were tied.

Vote Today

Beautiful weather. Marshall Ramsey of The Clarion Ledger



No matter who is elected today, McCain or Obama, he will be our president. I still think Obama has a chance to win in Mississippi. From the polls, Obama will more than likely be our next president. Record numbers are expected to be voting today. Go vote!

Another Endorsement for Obama

I missed this yesterday The Clarion Ledger, a Jackson Mississippi has endorsed Obama for president. This is a big change for The Clarion Ledger. It had, let's say, a color-skewed view of the Civil Rights Movement.

Since the 1970's, The Clarion-Ledger has been changing as has the whole State of Mississippi. So far, for 2008, there have been no reported cases of hate crimes in Mississippi. There are still KKK members, but most of those handful of sick and twisted people, are ignored. Mississippi has changed so very much from the 1960's. The Clarion-Ledger endorsement of Obama is just another step in the direction for change, hope, and progress. Some excerpts from the endorsement:

McCain has more experience than Obama in the Senate, more knowledge of foreign affairs and has military experience. But Obama, 47, offers the character and achievement of someone his age that is exemplary, including election to his state's legislature, election to the U.S. Senate, editor of the Harvard Law Review and professor of law at the University of Chicago. Few candidates for president have ever had his intellect and academic achievements.

But the American public doesn't always judge candidates on their paper accomplishments either - whether that's Andrew Jackson's roughhewn populism or Reagan's folksiness, or John F. Kennedy's charisma.

We gauge people not only by what they have done, but what we believe they will do, based on who they are and what they have achieved. Voters look for "it," an indefinable something that gives them hope, a thrill, a belief in America.

Obama offers that "something" - call it charm, charisma, a positive vision for the future, a voice for empowerment, a role model for youth - Obama has "it." That seems clear to the young and those who don't regularly engage in politics.

And he has "it," whatever "it" is, with a party machinery eager for change after eight years of corruption, division, war, greed and economic failure.

Martin Luther's I Have a Dream has come so very far when a state known for its evil and rank history of racism can say 40 years later: "We gauge people not only by what they have done, but what we believe they will do, based on who they are and what they have achieved".

I may be disappointed tomorrow morning but I do believe Obama has a chance to win in Mississippi tomorrow. I think the poll numbers are a lot closer than indicated. I may have to eat my words, but I believe the majority of Mississippians want change. Yesterday, WLOX, had coverage on McCain and Obama activities on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Obama supporters walked along the new Biloxi-Ocean Springs Bridge and were filled with enthusiasm.

Another Gotcha Question

iReporter Brad Bailey asks Sarah Palin why he is the only minority there. She responds that that the Constitution preaches equality. Then, she just couldn't help herself. She states, "We live it". She says that because her husband has Native American ancestors. Here's a picture of Todd Palin.



Brad just chuckles after her "We live it" statement.

The Real Maverick

The old McCain . This is the person I like and respect.

McCain's Really Bad Choice

I voted by absentee ballot Friday. As of Friday, 6,000 voters in Harrison County had done the same. I still believe the poll numbers are closer Obama in Mississippi than indicated. It may be wishful thinking on my part because I would like Obama to win in Mississippi. The most recent national poll numbers show Obama with a comfortable lead in poll numbers and the latest polls reflect Obama has garnered over 300 electoral votes.

This race could have been a lot closer for McCain. However, the closer to Tuesday, the more negative his campaigning has become. The 'real' America, the 'elitists', the 'fake' Virginia, the 'liberal' media, and so many other catch phrases have turned away many moderate conservatives and independents.

McCain's biggest problem has been the selection of Palin as his running mate. He had a real chance to change the direction the Republican has been heading for many years. The Republican party has been ensnared by the Moral Majority and the evangelical movement.

This has always bothered me. I have always doubted the wisdom of entangling religion with politics. I've mentioned in several previous posts that the United States is not a Christian nation. I believe it to be a nation of Christians, Jews, Muslims, atheists, and many others. Little did I know that Obama said basically the same thing:

Read Obama's 2006 "Call to Renewal" address. While affirming his own Christianity as well as his belief in separation of church and state, he called on secularists to respect religion. He also said this: "In fact, because I do not believe that religious people have a monopoly on morality , I would rather have someone who is grounded in morality and ethics, and who is also secular, affirm their morality and ethics and values without pretending that they're some one they're not . . . Moreover, given the increasing diversity of America's population, the dangers of sectarianism. Have never been greater. Whatever we once were, we are no longer just a Christian nation; we are also a Jewish nation, a Muslim nation, a Buddhist nation, a Hindu nation, and a nation of nonbelievers."

McCain used to have the same view point but the presidential race became more important to him somewhere along the road:

Years ago, on another planet it seems now, McCain called Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson and other extreme right-wing pastors "agents of intolerance." That was during his failed 2000 presidential campaign. This time around, he embraced Falwell -- even after the late evangelist blamed 9/11, in part, on "the pagans and the abortionists, and the feminists and the gays and the lesbians."

Earlier this year, he sought and accepted endorsements from Rev. John Hagee, who has called the Catholic Church "The Great Whore", and from Pastor Rod Parsley, his "spiritual adviser," who calls Islam a "false religion" that should be "destroyed." After negative publicity about both endorsements, McCain finally rejected them.

The same Newsweek article asks this of Sarah Palin:

Why didn't she renounce David Brickner, Executive Director of Jews for Jesus, when he spoke earlier this year at Palin's Wasilla Bible Church and described terrorist attacks on Israelis as God's "judgment of unbelief" of Jews who haven't embraced Christianity.

Before Palin was selected to be Vice-President, Adam Brickley started a web-site called Palin for VP. He is described thusly:

Brickley’s family, once evangelical Christians, now practice what he calls “Messianic Judaism.” They believe that Jesus is the Messiah, but they also observe the Jewish holidays and attend synagogue; as Brickley puts it, “Jesus was Jewish, so to be like Him you need to be Jewish, too.” Brickley said that “the hand of God” played a role in choosing Palin: “The longer I worked on it the less I felt I was driving it. Something else was at work.”

Brickley is an authentic heartland voice, but he is also the product of an effort by wealthy conservative organizations in Washington to train activists. He has attended several workshops sponsored by the Leadership Institute, a group based in the Washington area and founded in 1979 by the Christian conservative activist Morton Blackwell. “I’m building a movement,” Blackwell told me. Brickley also participated in a leadership summit held by Young America’s Foundation (motto: “The Conservative Movement Starts Here”) and was an intern at the Heritage Foundation. He currently lives in a dormitory, on Capitol Hill, run by the Heritage Foundation, and is an intern with townhall.com, a top conservative Web site.

There are others who have doubts about McCain's choice of Palin:

The selection of Palin thrilled the Republican base, and the pundits who met with her in Juneau have remained unflagging in their support. But a surprising number of conservative thinkers have declared her unfit for the Vice-Presidency. Peggy Noonan, the Wall Street Journal columnist, recently wrote, “The Palin candidacy is a symptom and expression of a new vulgarization in American politics. It’s no good, not for conservatism and not for the country. And yes, it is a mark against John McCain.” David Brooks, the Times columnist, has called Palin “a fatal cancer to the Republican Party.” Christopher Buckley, the son of National Review’s late founder, defected to the Obama camp two weeks ago, in part because of his dismay over Palin. Matthew Dowd, the former Bush campaign strategist turned critic of the President, said recently that McCain “knows in his gut” that Palin isn’t qualified for the job, “and when this race is over, that is something he will have to live with. . . . He put the country at risk.”

(Read the rest of New Yorker article)

McCain & Khalidi

Shira the Bookkeeper

John McCain has latched onto Joe the Plumber and now Tito the Builder to buttress the lies that Obama's 'spread the wealth' statement is somehow Socialist when it reality it is nothing more than a progressive tax. Sarah Palin has stated: "And Alaska we're set up, unlike other states in the union, where it's collectively Alaskans own the resources. So we share in the wealth when the development of these resources occurs." She used the word collectively and the phrase 'share the wealth'. Can I now accuse her of being a Communist since she used the word collectively? Or is she is a Socialist because she used the phrase 'share the wealth'? Share the wealth is not much different from spread the wealth.

Seventeen years ago I fled from a brutal husband. I had nothing more than an Associates Degree, a job, a car, and a child to support. I took advantage of Section 8 housing out of necessity. Doing so, I was able to save on both electricity and housing costs. I also benefited from the Earned Income Tax Credit during those early years. Now some may consider the programs I mentioned as Socialist. But the end result proves them wrong. Even though I didn't pay Federal income taxes, I was still a tax payer. I paid taxes for Social Security and Medicare. I paid state income tax and sales tax. I paid property taxes on my vehicle. I paid Federal taxes on my phone bill.

What those programs did was allow me to regroup at a time when at the end of the week I was lucky to have $2.00 left in my checking account. I did not receive aid for families with dependent children, nor did I receive food stamps or benefit from Medicare. There has only been two times in my life when I had to use food stamps. The first was when I lost my job and the second was after Hurricane Katrina.

I'm one of those who also benefited from programs set-up to help people like me to buy homes. Through FHA, I was able to purchase an affordable home and Mississippi helped with the down payment. Because of that, I now pay property taxes.

Over the years, because of the programs I benefited from, my income steadily increased and I've moved up two tax brackets since then.

If those programs had not been there, I couldn't say what would have happened to me and my son. But they were there and they are set-up to help people like me.

Obama's tax plan is similar. It seeks to help ease the tax burden on those whose taxable income is less than $250,000 move up so that in the end they can too can moan and groan about the taxes they have to pay.

Call it Socialism if you like, but it seems it is more an investment in our country's future. The more people are able to move up into the middle class, the better off our country will be. I and millions of others like me, are not looking for a handout. We're looking for a hand-up and that is what those so-called Socialist programs have done.

There's Something About Sarah

I realize McCain is the Republican nominee but more focus has been on his choice for running mate. Given the erratic behavior of McCain these past weeks, little wonder so much focus has been on Palin. McCain hasn't been himself since he began campaigning for president.

He used to speak about how he was willing to cross party lines in order to facilitate solutions. It is sad that he has decided to run a negative campaign. We now hear from his campaign phrases such as the 'real' America, 'fake' Virginia, accusations that a raise in taxes for those whose taxable income is over $250,000 is 'socialism' or 'Marxist', and lately trying to paint Obama as a radical because of his ties to Khalidi. He does this while seeming to forget that an organization he chairs gave $850,000 to Khalidi's organization. Does this make McCain an extremist? No, no more than it makes Obama an extremist for listening to Khalidi at a dinner party. You can find out more about Khalidi and Obama.

McCain's campaign has been one of instilling fear. It has waged a verbal war of words against 'elitists'. By his choice of Palin, his campaign has devolved even further.

The United States has been a leader in scientific research. And yet both Palin and Mccain deride scientific research that has been both beneficial and cost-effective.

McCain blasted research on the DNA of bears and Palin blasted research on fruit flies. McCain could perhaps be forgiven for not understanding the purpose of the research on bears, Palin blasted fruit fly research calling it a waste of money. She was in Pittsburgh when she did so and her speech also focused on the issues of disabilities and special needs. Palin's youngest child, Trig, has Down's Syndrome. Too bad she didn't know that some research done with fruit flies includes autism.

Christopher Hitchins blasts her:

With Palin, however, the contempt for science may be something a little more sinister than the bluff, empty-headed plain-man's philistinism of McCain. We never get a chance to ask her in detail about these things, but she is known to favor the teaching of creationism in schools (smuggling this crazy idea through customs in the innocent disguise of "teaching the argument," as if there was an argument), and so it is at least probable that she believes all creatures from humans to fruit flies were created just as they are now. This would make DNA or any other kind of research pointless, whether conducted in Paris or not. Projects such as sequencing the DNA of the flu virus, the better to inoculate against it, would not need to be funded. We could all expire happily in the name of God. Gov. Palin also says that she doesn't think humans are responsible for global warming; again, one would like to ask her whether, like some of her co-religionists, she is a "premillenial dispensationalist"—in other words, someone who believes that there is no point in protecting and preserving the natural world, since the end of days will soon be upon us.

Videos taken in the Assembly of God church in Wasilla, Alaska, which she used to attend, show her nodding as a preacher says that Alaska will be "one of the refuge states in the Last Days." For the uninitiated, this is a reference to a crackpot belief, widely held among those who brood on the "End Times," that some parts of the world will end at different times from others, and Alaska will be a big draw as the heavens darken on account of its wide open spaces. An article by Laurie Goodstein in the New York Times gives further gruesome details of the extreme Pentecostalism with which Palin has been associated in the past (perhaps moderating herself, at least in public, as a political career became more attractive). High points, also available on YouTube, show her being "anointed" by an African bishop who claims to cast out witches. The term used in the trade for this hysterical superstitious nonsense is "spiritual warfare," in which true Christian soldiers are trained to fight demons. Palin has spoken at "spiritual warfare" events as recently as June. And only last week the chiller from Wasilla spoke of "prayer warriors" in a radio interview with James Dobson of Focus on the Family, who said that he and his lovely wife, Shirley, had convened a prayer meeting to beseech that "God's perfect will be done on Nov. 4."

There's just something about Sarah that I cannot trust. She reminds me too much of a fundamentalist who once told me I was going to hell. Can we really afford someone like that who is just a heartbeat away from the presidency? And what does it say of McCain's judgement in selecting her?

Mississippi: Now Weak GOP

This was the map from Electoral.com yesterday:



This is the map today:




Two weeks ago, McCain had a 13 point lead. It is now down to 8 points.

Maverick

Main Entry:
1mav·er·ick

Function:
noun
Etymology:
Samuel A. Maverick †1870 American pioneer who did not brand his calves
Date:
1867
1: an unbranded range animal ; especially : a motherless calf
2: an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party

John McCain was once a maverick. He was a maverick to such an extent that some conservatives, myself included, were members of a group of bloggers who wanted any Republican nominee for president other than McCain. He was seen as being to socially conservative. He bucked the party line many times. He had a chance to change the direction in which the Republican party was drifting.

He had a chance to turn the Republican party away the divisive of 'us' against 'them'. As Senator, he worked closely with Democrats and other parties. He was truly a maverick knowing full well that only by working together can things be achieved. He became very unpopular with some Republicans because of his views.

He could have chosen to be the maverick in this presidential race. Instead, he chose to ignore his on record and selected someone I find intolerable to be vice-president. Sarah Palin is to be admired for raising her family while at the same time being elected mayor of Wasilla and then becoming governor of Alaska. She is very attractive and that is part of her appeal. My problem with Sarah Palin is that she represents the many things wrong with the Republican party.

The Republican party seems to be nothing more than a rage machine. Palin, at one of rallies, speaks of little pockets of 'real' America. A McCain advisor speaks of 'fake' Virginia. In seems that those who lean liberal are not to be counted as 'real' Americans.

That in and of itself is not an American view. America is not a one-size fits all country. We are country of many different view-points. We are a nation of immigrants. I take pride in knowing that my country opened its doors so that my great-grandfather and grandfather were able to escape the tyranny of Ukraine. Like many immigrants and those born in this country, they took advantage of the great opportunities our country offers. My grandfather married a very liberal women. She worked as Adlai Stevenson's secretary. She died before World War II ended. I have her address book and it makes me proud that she worked with many committees to improve racial relations.

Palin, with her 'real' America stance implies that my grandmother was not a 'real' American. And yet, it is Americans such as my grandmother who show the true spirit of America. The idealism of all men are created equal and that all should be given the opportunity to succeed is at the heart of our country. The Statute of Liberty has inscribed on its base "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to be free,".

Palin's 'real America stance is not the only problem I have with her. She is part of the religious right. The Moral Majority and others in the Evangelical movement have been trying to foist their religious ideology on America. The latest attempt is to have Creationism, gusied now as Intelligent Design, taught in our schools. Many have castigated Obama for being a member of Reverend Wright's church. But what of the church Palin belongs too?

Back in August, the church Palin goes to invited the leader of the Jews for Jesus movement. Here is a brief excerpt of what Palin may have listened to:

Take a look at some of the sermons done by Palin's pastor. Take a look at what one of the guest speakers at her church had to say back in August:

Palin's pastor, Larry Kroon, introduced Brickner on Aug. 17, according to a transcript of the sermon on the church's website. "He's a leader of Jews for Jesus, a ministry that is out on the leading edge in a pressing, demanding area of witnessing and evangelism," Kroon said.

Brickner then explained that Jesus and his disciples were themselves Jewish. "The Jewish community, in particular, has a difficult time understanding this reality," he said.

Brickner's mission has drawn wide criticism from the organized Jewish community, and the Anti-Defamation League accused them in a report of "targeting Jews for conversion with subterfuge and deception."

Brickner also described terrorist attacks on Israelis as God's "judgment of unbelief" of Jews who haven't embraced Christianity. "Judgment is very real and we see it played out on the pages of the newspapers and on the television. It's very real. When [Brickner's son] was in Jerusalem he was there to witness some of that judgment, some of that conflict, when a Palestinian from East Jerusalem took a bulldozer and went plowing through a score of cars, killing numbers of people. Judgment — you can't miss it."

From the link above, you can read other sermons by Palin's pastor to get an idea of what she has been listening to.

The problem is that religion should not be tied up with politics. The United States does not have a national religion. Many say that because the majority of people who live here are Christians, we are a Christian nation. This flies in the face of our country. We are a united nation of Christians, Jews, Muslims, atheists, Wiccans, and many, many others.

Our greatest strength is the many different views that been integrated into our society. MccCain's campaign is run on 'us' against 'them'. McCain is no longer the maverick. He chose to go with the very tiresome and old politics of divisiveness.

Real America

Obama in Denver yesterday, 100,000+:



McCain(do not know when or where this was taken):




Photos from Fark.com

Et Tu?

Joining many, many others, The Anchorage Daily News endorses Obama.