Jim's Guts

Yes of Referendum 71...

There’s a great acronym from the computer industry called FUD, it stands for Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt. In short, it means to attempt to influence not with facts, but by appealing to peoples’ most base instincts. There is a ton of FUD in relation to Ref 71, but the reality is this –

• Ref 71 does not grant special rights (these are the same rights that married people have)
• Ref 71 is not just for “teh gay”, domestic partnerships are extensively used by seniors as well

These are the facts. No amount of Fear, Uncertainty, or Doubt change them. This isn’t about special rights, or hurting kids, or redefining marriage, it’s about equal rights for everyone.

If you’re a Washington resident please vote YES on Referendum 71.

"Death panels"...

Salon has an excellent piece on healthcare rationing entitled "The 'death panels' are already here"...

"The future of healthcare in America, according to Sarah Palin, might look something like this: A sick 17-year-old girl needs a liver transplant. Doctors find an available organ, and they're ready to operate, but the bureaucracy -- or as Palin would put it, the "death panel" -- steps in and says it won't pay for the surgery. Despite protests from the girl's family and her doctors, the heartless hacks hold their ground for a critical 10 days. Eventually, under massive public pressure, they relent -- but the patient dies before the operation can proceed.

"It certainly sounds scary enough to make you want to go show up at a town hall meeting and yell about how misguided President Obama's healthcare reform plans are. Except that's not the future of healthcare -- it's the present. "

There's been a lot of talk recently about the government interfering and/or rationing an individual's healthcare (beyond the so-called "death panels") and how no one should have that happen to them. Let me all fill you in on a little secret... As someone who has suffered from a chronic illness (Ulcerative Colitis) for over 15 years, I'm here to tell you that insurance companies have been interfering in my healthcare for YEARS. 

Look, we can have a serious debate about the role of government in healthcare, and that's a debate I'm happy to have with you, but those opposed to President Obama's plan should stop with the whole "the only voice in you're health plan discussion should be your's and your doctor's" argument. It hasn't been that way for years and it's disingenuous to pretend otherwise.

Sen. DeMint is an asshole...

...I know that's not news, but even by Republican standards this was pretty stupid and low;

"If we're able to stop Obama on this (health care reform), it will be his Waterloo, it will break him."  Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) from a conference call with conservative activists via Washington Post

Really? I don't think anyone would argue that we're facing serious issues with our current health care system. We might argue on how best to address those issues, and whether or not there should be a public option, but everyone pretty much agrees that there's a problem. What's Sen. DeMint's idea? Defeating Obama. And they wonder why they're called "The Party of No". Idiots...

They "doth protest too much"...

I generally believe that when someone has an affair, it's their issue. It's sad for the spouse and family affected, but it's basically personal. I understand that when it involves a public figure it's news (see Edwards, John), and I'm fine with that, but I wouldn't necessarily feel the need to comment on it.

That said, this story about Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) is a whole different animal. You see, it's not that Sen. Ensign had an affair (we all make mistakes), it's that his hypocrisy goes to 11!

Here is candidate Ensign in 1998 suggesting that Bill Clinton resign because of his affair, saying that he "had no credibility left" (how's the credibility thing working out for you?)

Here is Sen. Ensign explaining in 2004 that we need a Constitutional amendment protecting marriage from Teh Gay (I'm guessing that's why he had an affair, because LGBT people love each other).

Here is Sen. Ensign in 2007 explaining why Larry Craig should resign ""There's too many people that paint with a broad brush that we're all corrupt, we're all amoral. … And having these kinds of things happen, whether it's a Republican or Democratic senator — we certainly have had plenty of Democratic scandals in the past — we need people who are in office who will hold themselves to a little higher standard." (that one pretty much speaks for itself)

Listen Senator - You take care of your own house before you go telling everyone else how theirs ought to be built...

Eric Holder ROCKS...

Our current Attorney General is excellent, today while speaking to U.S. attorneys in DC;

"Your job as assistant U.S. attorneys is not to convict people," Holder said. "Your job is not to win cases. Your job is to do justice. Your job is in every case, every decision that you make, to do the right thing. Anybody who asks you to do something other than that is to be ignored. Any policy that is at tension with that is to be questioned and brought to my attention. And I mean that."

Note to Messrs. Gonzales & Ashcroft - That's how it's done.

Shepard Smith on "Glen Beck Friday"

I'll be honest, I actually like Shepard Smith. Of all the Fox Noise talking heads, he seems to be the most level one they've got over there, but if he keeps pulling stuff like this there's no telling what they'll do to him...

BTW - For "history" on "We Surround Them" check out Hunter at the GOS

"George W. Bush’s Disposable Constitution"

Scott Horton at Harper's Magazine has an outstanding piece on the so-called "Bush Memos" that is well worth a read, but here's the kicker (and I couldn't agree with him more);

"We may not have realized it at the time, but in the period from late 2001-January 19, 2009, this country was a dictatorship. The constitutional rights we learned about in high school civics were suspended. That was thanks to secret memos crafted deep inside the Justice Department that effectively trashed the Constitution. What we know now is likely the least of it."

If you'd like to read a further, and slightly more legal look at the issue, Jack Balkin has an equally excellent write up as well;

"This theory of presidential power argues, in essence, that when the President acts in his capacity as Commander-in-Chief, he may make his own rules and cannot be bound by Congressional laws to the contrary. This is a theory of presidential dictatorship."

(h/t GOS)

A New Day...

That’s what this feels like, a New Day. A lot of conservatives, and to a much greater extent far Right Wingnuttia just can’t understand that. They’ve worked themselves into believing that I, and so many like me, think that Mr. Obama will take the oath and suddenly everything will be rainbows and happiness. That’s not going to happen; I know that, you know that, most people know that.

But it is the end of 8 years of gross negligence (the attacks of 9/11, the financial markets collapsing, Katrina), political cronyism (“heck of a job Brownie”, the entire DOJ “leadership”), false bravado (a staged landing on a US Navy Aircraft Carrier, “Bring ‘em on”), lawlessness (illegal searches, the suspension of Habeas Corpus, torture), and ruinous foreign policy (Iraq, ignoring Afghanistan, the Middle East and most everything that wasn’t Iraq). Back in early 2001 Mr. Bush said that he was “A uniter, not a divider”, and while it’s taken him 8 years, trillions of dollars, and thousands of American lives, he’s finally right – Mr. Obama takes office this morning with an 80% approval rating.

No, things are not going to magically get better tomorrow, but it IS the start of a New Day

Not "Must See TV"...

The New York Times' Gail Collins discusses about Mr. Bush's farewell speech tonight;

"The White House has promised that in his final address, the president will be joined by a small group of everyday American heroes, which means that the only person on stage with a history of failing to perform well in moments of stress will be the main speaker."

The whole piece is well worth a read, but suffice it to say, I won't be tuning in.