Category: don’t speak…don’t speak!

HARD-LINE conservatives have gone to new extremes lately in opposing abortion. Last week, Richard Mourdock, the Tea Party-backed Republican Senate candidate in Indiana, declared during a debate that he was against abortion even in the event of rape because after much thought he “came to realize that life is that gift from God. And even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen.” That came on the heels of the Tea Party-backed Republican Representative Joe Walsh of Illinois saying after a recent debate that he opposed abortion even in cases where the life of the mother is in danger, because “with modern technology and science, you can’t find one instance” in which a woman would not survive without an abortion. “Health of the mother has become a tool for abortions anytime, for any reason,” Walsh said. That came in the wake of the Senate hopeful in Missouri, Representative Todd Akin, remarking that pregnancy as a result of “legitimate rape” is rare because “the female body has ways to try and shut that whole thing down.”

These were not slips of the tongue. These are the authentic voices of an ever-more-assertive far-right Republican base that is intent on using uncompromising positions on abortion to not only unseat more centrist Republicans — Mourdock defeated the moderate Republican Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana in the primary — but to overturn the mainstream consensus in America on this issue. That consensus says that those who choose to oppose abortion in their own lives for reasons of faith or philosophy should be respected, but those women who want to make a different personal choice over what happens with their own bodies should be respected, and have the legal protection to do so, as well.

In my world, you don’t get to call yourself “pro-life” and be against common-sense gun control — like banning public access to the kind of semiautomatic assault rifle, designed for warfare, that was used recently in a Colorado theater. You don’t get to call yourself “pro-life” and want to shut down the Environmental Protection Agency, which ensures clean air and clean water, prevents childhood asthma, preserves biodiversity and combats climate change that could disrupt every life on the planet. You don’t get to call yourself “pro-life” and oppose programs like Head Start that provide basic education, health and nutrition for the most disadvantaged children. You can call yourself a “pro-conception-to-birth, indifferent-to-life conservative.” I will never refer to someone who pickets Planned Parenthood but lobbies against common-sense gun laws as “pro-life.”

“Pro-life” can mean only one thing: “respect for the sanctity of life.” And there is no way that respect for the sanctity of life can mean we are obligated to protect every fertilized egg in a woman’s body, no matter how that egg got fertilized, but we are not obligated to protect every living person from being shot with a concealed automatic weapon. I have no respect for someone who relies on voodoo science to declare that a woman’s body can distinguish a “legitimate” rape, but then declares — when 99 percent of all climate scientists conclude that climate change poses a danger to the sanctity of all life on the planet — that global warming is just a hoax.

The term “pro-life” should be a shorthand for respect for the sanctity of life. But I will not let that label apply to people for whom sanctity for life begins at conception and ends at birth. What about the rest of life? Respect for the sanctity of life, if you believe that it begins at conception, cannot end at birth. That radical narrowing of our concern for the sanctity of life is leading to terrible distortions in our society.

Respect for life has to include respect for how that life is lived, enhanced and protected — not only at the moment of conception but afterward, in the course of that life. That’s why, for me, the most “pro-life” politician in America is New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. While he supports a woman’s right to choose, he has also used his position to promote a whole set of policies that enhance everyone’s quality of life — from his ban on smoking in bars and city parks to reduce cancer, to his ban on the sale in New York City of giant sugary drinks to combat obesity and diabetes, to his requirement for posting calorie counts on menus in chain restaurants, to his push to reinstate the expired federal ban on assault weapons and other forms of common-sense gun control, to his support for early childhood education, to his support for mitigating disruptive climate change.

Now that is what I call “pro-life.”

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:
Correction: October 28, 2012

A phrase in this version of the article has been changed to “every fertilized egg in a woman’s body” from “in a woman’s ovary.”

don't speak...don't speak!

Choice

The question of “choice” is much bigger, much larger than the conversation around the issue of abortion. And I think, with all due respect, that it is a simpleminded to think that “choice” can be just about abortion.

As American’s we have many things that are a choice. Many things that can and could be taken away if we begin to relinquish our rights as they have been handed down.

What are choices? Where we live. Where we go to school. Our Doctor. Our Church. Our profession. Our elected officials. Some get to choose who they legally spend their lives with. It’s our choice to have children and raise them the way we believe that they should be raised. The right to bear arms.

Would you be willing to give up your gun to stop abortion? Each cause the end of a life.

Choice is not a simple idea or concept. It has deep roots that go beyond one persons, ideology or religion. The difference in what each of us believe is a choice does matter.

As Barry Schwartz says in the TED video below, “The way to maximize freedom is to maximize choice.”

Which to me means, that each and every time we are given the choice to choose, we have to think beyond ourselves and think of the potential ramification of that one choice. We choose to vote to not have a business open down the street from us because it’s a Gentleman’s Club. I don’t really want that in my neighborhood either, but to say no to that leave open the possibility that someone will say no to my choice to open, a bakery, let’s say in a community that has a high rate of obesity and diabetics. So some one takes their right to petition that I can’t open my business because it would be a bad addition to an already failing neighborhood.

Yes, the words “Pro-Choice” involve the ultimate beginning or end of a potential life. But to remove or end that choice is just the beginning. I’m not taking this lightly. Believe me. If you believe that allowing same sex couple to marry will lead to making it legal to marry your dog. Then I believe that taking away the woman’s choice to decide what is best for her could lead to me not being able to open a bakery anywhere I want. Or live where I want. Or choose my religion. The right to not have my house or person unreasonably searched. Or choose anything that today I probably take for granted is my right and will never be challenged because I’m an American citizen.

No one is standing in the way of those basic and what may seem as simple rights of being a citizen of theses Unites States. Which is why to start anywhere to allow the government or anyone to take away any right is the beginning of the end our rights as we know them.

I don’t know this of sure. But I would be hard pressed to say that they would stop at a woman’s right to choose.

What are our rights?

Bill of Rights

Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Amendment II

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

Amendment III

No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

Amendment IV

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Amendment V

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

Amendment VI

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.

Amendment VII

In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

Amendment VIII

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

Amendment IX

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

Amendment X

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

AMENDMENT XIPassed by Congress March 4, 1794. Ratified February 7, 1795.Note: Article III, section 2, of the Constitution was modified by amendment 11.The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State.

AMENDMENT XIIPassed by Congress December 9, 1803. Ratified June 15, 1804.

Note: A portion of Article II, section 1 of the Constitution was superseded by the 12th amendment.

The Electors shall meet in their respective states and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President, and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate; — the President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates and the votes shall then be counted; — The person having the greatest number of votes for President, shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed; and if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by states, the representation from each state having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two-thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall be necessary to a choice. [And if the House of Representatives shall not choose a President whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, then the Vice-President shall act as President, as in case of the death or other constitutional disability of the President. –]* The person having the greatest number of votes as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed, and if no person have a majority, then from the two highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice-President; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two-thirds of the whole number of Senators, and a majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.

*Superseded by section 3 of the 20th amendment.

AMENDMENT XIIIPassed by Congress January 31, 1865. Ratified December 6, 1865.

Note: A portion of Article IV, section 2, of the Constitution was superseded by the 13th amendment.

Section 1.
Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2.
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XIVPassed by Congress June 13, 1866. Ratified July 9, 1868.

Note: Article I, section 2, of the Constitution was modified by section 2 of the 14th amendment.

Section 1.
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Section 2.
Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice-President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age,* and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.

Section 3.
No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.

Section 4.
The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.

Section 5.
The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.

*Changed by section 1 of the 26th amendment.

AMENDMENT XVPassed by Congress February 26, 1869. Ratified February 3, 1870.

Section 1.
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude–

Section 2.
The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XVIPassed by Congress July 2, 1909. Ratified February 3, 1913.

Note: Article I, section 9, of the Constitution was modified by amendment 16.

The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.

AMENDMENT XVIIPassed by Congress May 13, 1912. Ratified April 8, 1913.

Note: Article I, section 3, of the Constitution was modified by the 17th amendment.

The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures.

When vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, That the legislature of any State may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.

This amendment shall not be so construed as to affect the election or term of any Senator chosen before it becomes valid as part of the Constitution.

AMENDMENT XVIIIPassed by Congress December 18, 1917. Ratified January 16, 1919. Repealed by amendment 21.

Section 1.
After one year from the ratification of this article the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited.

Section 2.
The Congress and the several States shall have concurrent power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Section 3.
This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of the several States, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the States by the Congress.

AMENDMENT XIXPassed by Congress June 4, 1919. Ratified August 18, 1920.

The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XXPassed by Congress March 2, 1932. Ratified January 23, 1933.

Note: Article I, section 4, of the Constitution was modified by section 2 of this amendment. In addition, a portion of the 12th amendment was superseded by section 3.

Section 1.
The terms of the President and the Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January, and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on the 3d day of January, of the years in which such terms would have ended if this article had not been ratified; and the terms of their successors shall then begin.

Section 2.
The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall begin at noon on the 3d day of January, unless they shall by law appoint a different day.

Section 3.
If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President elect shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of his term, or if the President elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice President shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.

Section 4.
The Congress may by law provide for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the House of Representatives may choose a President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them, and for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the Senate may choose a Vice President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them.

Section 5.
Sections 1 and 2 shall take effect on the 15th day of October following the ratification of this article.

Section 6.
This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years from the date of its submission.

AMENDMENT XXIPassed by Congress February 20, 1933. Ratified December 5, 1933.

Section 1.
The eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed.

Section 2.
The transportation or importation into any State, Territory, or Possession of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating liquors, in violation of the laws thereof, is hereby prohibited.

Section 3.
This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by conventions in the several States, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the States by the Congress.

AMENDMENT XXIIPassed by Congress March 21, 1947. Ratified February 27, 1951.

Section 1.
No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of President more than once. But this Article shall not apply to any person holding the office of President when this Article was proposed by Congress, and shall not prevent any person who may be holding the office of President, or acting as President, during the term within which this Article becomes operative from holding the office of President or acting as President during the remainder of such term.

Section 2.
This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years from the date of its submission to the States by the Congress.

AMENDMENT XXIIIPassed by Congress June 16, 1960. Ratified March 29, 1961.

Section 1.
The District constituting the seat of Government of the United States shall appoint in such manner as Congress may direct:

A number of electors of President and Vice President equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives in Congress to which the District would be entitled if it were a State, but in no event more than the least populous State; they shall be in addition to those appointed by the States, but they shall be considered, for the purposes of the election of President and Vice President, to be electors appointed by a State; and they shall meet in the District and perform such duties as provided by the twelfth article of amendment.

Section 2.
The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XXIVPassed by Congress August 27, 1962. Ratified January 23, 1964.

Section 1.
The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay poll tax or other tax.

Section 2.
The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XXVPassed by Congress July 6, 1965. Ratified February 10, 1967.

Note: Article II, section 1, of the Constitution was affected by the 25th amendment.

Section 1.
In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.

Section 2.
Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.

Section 3.
Whenever the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President.

Section 4.
Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.

Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office.

AMENDMENT XXVIPassed by Congress March 23, 1971. Ratified July 1, 1971.

Note: Amendment 14, section 2, of the Constitution was modified by section 1 of the 26th amendment.

Section 1.
The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.

Section 2.
The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

AMENDMENT XXVIIOriginally proposed Sept. 25, 1789. Ratified May 7, 1992.

No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of representatives shall have intervened.

A More Perfect Union

Lastly, I hope this TED video is accessible, Barry Schwartz: The Paradox of Choice.

Sorry can’t get the link to work. If you copy and paste this in a browser it should bring up the talk.

Tags Bill of RIghts, Choice, Pro-Choice, Pro-Life, RIghts

don't speak...don't speak!

Good Transition

In a week I’ll transition from one great job to what has the potential to be an equally great job. After last year I doubted my ability to have a great job. Funny and annoying what one will let others do to their confidence.

I’m not one that needs to be patted on the back or even ever told I’m doing a good job. Just give me a nice place to work that embraces, professional respect and accountability. I’m a firm believer that you can have this anyplace in any business. And surprise, surprise I found it in a shipyard of all places.

The shipyard is unique because it’s real. The work is real. The people are real. I spent 15 years in the world of drama that is the creative industry. I’m not saying that the people or the work there isn’t real in the creative industry (when I hit the publish button on this post I risk – well let me say this – creative industry peeps – my apologies – do not take this personally) But really, the worry of the day there in the world of worries is, well pretty insignificant.

Shipbuilding is a dangerous business. The people there are smart, talented, focused, engaging and interested in who their co-workers are. And how their co-workers are doing. They are ready with an answer to your question and take pride in what you learn, even if they weren’t the one teaching you. They welcome the opportunity to teach you. They care about their co-workers and take pride in what they accomplish as a team and individually. They take pride in showing off their daily accomplishments. They can’t afford to think of only themselves. That can be fatal.

Their code is;

Be Smart-Be Careful-Be Productive-Be Flexible-Be Considerate

And you know what, they are. And much more.

Last year after being dropped to half time, banished to the basement (my dining room table) and leaving on a date set by employer at what I thought was my dream job (more risk here after I hit publish) for a handful of mistakes. Small mistakes they said. I doubted everything. I thought about listing some of those small mistakes. Or listing the mistakes (some similar some not so small) I saw others make as I sat in my dining room table working of the final three months at 20 hours a week. But I’m not competitive when it comes to wining, so I’m certainly not competitive when it comes to mistakes.

So to hear the things I heard last Friday from one of the General Manager’s, it’s alleviated some of the still present sting from last year. Simple professional respect and an acknowledgement of abilities I believe I possess.

In the preface of one of the books a read a few years back, “how” by Dov Seidman he writes. “Think about it. If you make stronger connections and collaborate more intensely with your co-workers, you can win. … “The tapestry of human behavior is so diverse, so rich, and so global that it presents a rare opportunity, the opportunity to out behave the competition.”

Be different out behave your co-workers, take respect and professionalism to a whole new level. Regardless of where you are.

I will miss you shipyard, but you have restored my faith in respectful, accountable profesional business.

Tags professionalism, Respect

don't speak...don't speak!

Me smart?

“We will never have the elite smart people on our side.”

Not any where near elite and never considered myself smart. Until I listened to this. I actually, don’t think that I’m smart in the traditional sense. But I do my best to read, read and read some more so that maybe have something behind my opinions. Maybe?

[youtube]http://youtu.be/0n5oa55EsmI[/youtube]

Santorum also claimed “the media” and “colleges and universities” would not be “on our side” because “they want to tell you what to do.”

Interesting since I’ve been reading that the Koch brothers are donating tons of money, strings attached to colleges and universities. Strings being their choice of faculty and curriculum. Telling them what to do, what to teach. Maybe Santorum isn’t on the Koch email distribution list for their updates on education?

Granted my experience working in the “media” was framed in an full summer internship while in school. As were several friends in college, during the Gulf War. If you are in the media, you see everything. Un-edited, un-filtered straight up news from the world. Video feed that comes through from where ever is not edited. It is as it happens. That lead me to this conclusion. If the media is “liberal”, it’s because they see everything. Un-edited and un-filtered. So even if they never tell the whole story or tend to lean one way or the other. Depending on the network. It’s because they see it all. If you saw it all, you might think or feel differently.

Tags conservative, Koch, liberal, Media, Santorum

don't speak...don't speak!

Keeping Quiet

by Pablo Neruda

English version by Alastair Reid

Now we will count to twelve
and we will all keep still.

For once on the face of the earth
let’s not speak in any language,
let’s stop for one second,
and not move our arms so much.

It would be an exotic moment
without rush, without engines,
we would all be together
in a sudden strangeness.

Fishermen in the cold sea
would not harm whales
and the man gathering salt
would look at his hurt hands.

Those who prepare green wars,
wars with gas, wars with fire,
victory with no survivors,
would put on clean clothes
and walk about with their brothers
in the shade, doing nothing.

What I want should not be confused
with total inactivity.
Life is what it is about;
I want no truck with death.

If we were not so single-minded
about keeping our lives moving,
and for once could do nothing,
perhaps a huge silence
might interrupt this sadness
of never understanding ourselves
and of threatening ourselves with death.
Perhaps the earth can teach us
as when everything seems dead
and later proves to be alive.

Now I’ll count up to twelve
and you keep quiet and I will go.

don't speak...don't speak!

Despite…

Despite our differences, I still believe in US.

Despite the hate I read, I still believe in US.

Despite the hate I hear, I still believe in US.

Despite the dissension, I still believe in US.

Despite the intolerance, I still believe in US.

Despite the inability to work together, I still believe in US.

Despite the finger pointing and blame, I still believe in US.

Despite the fact that politics will always be just politics, I still believe in US.

Despite it all. I still believe in all of US. Because we are all better than our differences, the hate, the dessension and the intolerance.

creative don't speak...don't speak! TED

I wish…

“An honorable enterprise that advances the public interests.” #42

I wish I were perfect so that I could cast stones with ease.

I wish others would think before they cast.

I wish I were smart enough so that I understood tax credits, capital gains, health care, health insurance.

I wish I knew with out reservation who was right and who was wrong, factually.

I wish I were smart enough and had the time to find fact from fiction.

I wish that I were so sure of what I believed was right, but at the same time still cared about those around me.

I wish I understood exactly what created the national debt.

I wish I understood how tax breaks created jobs.

I wish that the difference between us created dialogue and not hate.

I wish that if you didn’t watch this yesterday when I posted it that you will now.

Dare to disagree

I wish that Republican’s and Democrat’s alike, had thinking partners and not echo chambers.

I wish that when you think of our differences, or diverse ideas, that you see those as a positive not a negative.

I wish that you would and will see the good in everyone.

I wish that compassion could be a mandate and that hate wasn’t an emotion.

What do you wish?

Tags 2012, DNC, Hate, politics, RNC

don't speak...don't speak!

deff ears

From time to time, I have been known to post things of a political nature on Facebook. I try to leave the commentary to my “friends”, as I navigate the wonder that is “political”. I don’t know much, but I know that if I don’t read a lot I will have a skewed and possibly incorrect understanding of what I would form as an opinion. And sometimes, those “friends” have done some reading as well and have sound, factual rebuttals.

Occasionally, I respond to a “friends” post. Again, trying to be as factual as I can with all the wonder this is out there to procure that is factual. And to be a decent human being about what our differences are when I do respond. I’d also like to think that even in our difference; we can have an intelligent, insightful, respectful conversation. That’s, “I’d like to think…”.

Yeah, phew! “I know you are, but what am I.”

Mr. Tim above has every right to voice his opinion. But who is he fooling?

Last night I Goggled “did Michelle Obama ban soda”. The first two pages of the search were articles about Michael Bloomberg asking for a ban of large servings of sugary drinks in New York and Michelle Obama supporting or applauding the effort. In one article, “First lady Michelle Obama says banning big servings of sugary drinks isn’t anything she’d want to do at the federal level, but she offered some kind words Tuesday for New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s effort to do just that. She later issued a statement backing away from taking a stand on New York’s controversial proposed ban.” Mr. Tim can have an opinion, but the First Lady needs to keep her mouth shut. How could she possibly care about the state of children’s health?

We don’t talk about the real issues. The core of what the problem is. We talk about the garbage barge in the river that has nowhere to go. (Ann and her therapist in, “sex, lies and video tape”)

Ann: Garbage. All I’ve been thinking about all week is garbage. I can’t stop thinking about it.

Therapist: What kind of thoughts about garbage?

Ann: I just… I’ve gotten real concerned over what’s gonna happen with all the garbage. I mean, we’ve got so much of it. You know? I mean, we have to run out of places to put this stuff eventually

Ann: The last time… I started feelin’ this way is when that barge was stranded and, you know, it was goin’ around the island and nobody would claim it. Do you remember that?

Therapist: Yes, I remember. Do you have any idea what may have triggered this concern?

Ann: Yeah. Yeah. You see, the other night John was taking out the garbage, and he kept spilling things out of the container, and that made me.. started imagining, like, a garbage can that produces garbage. And it doesn’t stop, it keeps producing garbage. And it keeps overflowing. And, you know, what would you do to try to stop something like that?

Therapist: Ann, do you see any pattern here?

Ann: What do you mean

Therapist: Well, last week we were talking about your obsession with the families of airline fatalities. Now we’re talking about your concern over the garbage problem.

Ann: Yeah… So?

Therapist: Well, if you think about it, I think you’ll see the object of your obsession is invariably something negative which you have no control over.

I truly don’t understand the hate. I truly don’t understand the level of disdain that some carry for others. There are things and people who I am diametrically opposed to. But when it comes to people I am a bit more forgiving. I hope.

Thank you for reading this far. Now here’s a twelve minute treat for you.. Please watch. http://www.ted.com/talks/margaret_heffernan_dare_to_disagree.html

don't speak...don't speak!

Semanitcs

Semantics

I’ve been doing a little reading today. A “little bit”. I did want to enjoy my day off.

Here is my search, When did auto plant in Janesville, Wisconsin shut down?

This is just page one and two of the search results. There is no truth. Unless you can figure out from all of this who’s telling the truth if there is a truth, then I am all ears. Ping me!

http://www.politifact.com
By December 2008, when President George W. Bush authorized nearly $14 billion in loans to General Motors and Chrysler, both of which were near financial collapse, GM had already warned it might close the Janesville plant because of sagging sport-utility vehicle sales. The plant was effectively shut down on Dec. 23, 2008, when GM ceased production of SUVs there and laid off 1,200 workers. (Several dozen workers stayed on another four months to finish an order of small- to medium-duty trucks for Isuzu Motors.)

http://www.jsonline.com
The Janesville plant stopped production of SUVs in 2008 and was idled in 2009 after it completed production of medium-duty trucks.

http://cnsnews.com
The plant shut its doors for good in 2009. According to an Associated Press article in the local Rockford Register Star, the plant ceased operations of large SUVs – its main product — on December 31, 2008 and was scheduled to completely shut down several months later.

http://www.nationalreview.com
A lot of liberal bloggers are insisting that the plant was “shut down” under the Bush administration. There’s the point when the orders for new vehicles stopped coming in, and the point when the plant actually completed its orders and stopped making them. One was in the closing months of the Bush administration, the other was in the opening months of the Obama administration: “The Janesville plant stopped production of SUVs in 2008 and was idled in 2009 after it completed production of medium-duty trucks.”

http://news.firedoglake.com
After General Motors announced on June 3, 2008 that it intended to close the nearly 100-year-old plant by 2010, Ryan joined a core group of about a dozen other Wisconsin officials from both parties in the GM Retention Task Force. Their efforts were ultimately unsuccessful, and the company suspended all operations at the facility by Dec. 23, 2008, eliminating 2,400 jobs. It has been in “standby” mode since.

http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com
The Detroit News noted that Obama said during a visit in early 2008 that government help and some restructuring could keep the plant open. But after the financial crisis and a collapse in demand for the SUVs the factory produced, it shut down in December 2008 in the waning days of Bush’s second term. It’s still owned by GM, but has been closed ever since.

http://www.washingtonpost.com
Let’s break down, then, the exact chronology of the Janesville plant closing; Conn Carroll of the Washington Examiner has helpfully posted one here, which I add to below. The basic takeaway, however, is this: by December 2008, the plant had reached a point of no return where the plant would be shut down regardless of federal action. Ryan was faulting Obama for an that was event that was inevitable over a month before he took office.

http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com
In June 2008, however, GM announced that the plant would close by 2010 due to the aforementioned lack of demand for SUVs. The Bush administration, which was also promoting a move toward more fuel-efficient vehicles, described the plant closure and related moves by the company as a sign GM was “adapting well” to the shifting business climate.

http://www.freep.com
After taking office in January 2009, Obama did ask for more severe cost cuts from GM and Chrysler, but the choice of which plants would survive or close was made by GM and Fiat management, which took over Chrysler as part of the larger auto bailout.

http://www.nationalreview.com
It is easy to see why Democrats want to argue about when the plant closed and notwhy it closed. Both the crushing weight of employee benefits negotiated by unions and the failed state stimulus plan don’t comport well with their narrative.

http://mrctv.org
Let’s start with what Obama said and see if any reasonable human being who isn’t simply shilling for the President could possibly reach the same conclusion as Politifact: I know that General Motors received some bad news yesterday, and I know how hard your Governor has fought to keep jobs in this plant. But I also know how much progress you’ve made – how many hybrids and fuel-efficient vehicles you’re churning out. And I believe that if our government is there to support you, and give you the assistance you need to re-tool and make this transition, that this plant will be here for another hundred years. The question is not whether a clean energy economy is in our future, it’s where it will thrive. I want it to thrive right here in the United States of America; right here in Wisconsin; and that’s the future I’ll fight for as your President.

http://www.drudge.com
Sorry, I can’t actually really figure out what’s going on here on this page, but in an effort of full disclosure didn’t want to leave it out. jmg

http://newsbusters.org
The Romney campaign points out that there were still a few operations — it had to do with more of Isuzu Motors rather than GM that were coming out of that — after December 2008. But for all intents and purposes, that plant was pretty much closed down before President Obama took office.

http://battlegroundwatch.com
The media want to claim Ryan is blaming Obama for closing the plant. That is neither what Ryan said nor what is even implied.

http://dane101.com
The plant, which is in the Congressional district Ryan’s represented since 1999, was closed for production of GM vehicles in December of 2008, a month before Obama was sworn in. It remained open until April of 2009 to finish a subcontract the plant had with Isuzu.

http://www.therightsphere.com
So it seems workers at that GM plant in Janesville were indeed working in February of 2009. In fact, they worked on that joint GM/Isuzu project producing new vehicles until May 2009, under President Barack Obama.

I can read it, but I am not smart enough to even begin to know who’s right. Like I said, if you figure it out, I’m all ears!

don't speak...don't speak!

Untitled

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Archives

Categories