Hillary's Iran Vote, Not That Different From The Iraq Vote

Hillary Is Not The Nominee Yet, And Is Not Going To Be

This Iran vote feels too much like Hillary thinking, okay, now that I got the Democratic Party, how do I go get them independents and especially some of the Republicans?

Not so fast, Hillary.

So this vote shows flawed judgment on Hillary's part when it comes to the 2008 election itself, on the domestic front that is.

Repeat Vote

Rumsfeld famously said at a meeting after 9/11, "But there are no good targets in Afghanistan!" Bush had a standing army trained to fight a standing army so he was going to go look for a standing army to pick a fight with. And so he invaded Iraq.

Now Hillary is on a quest to find another standing army.

The military enemy of the United States is not a standing army, stupid. It is an organization called the Al Qaeda. Stronger you focus on standing armies, less will you be able to focus on that non standing army called the Al Qaeda. That diversion of focus was the number one mistake made by America through its invasion of Iraq made possible by Hillary's vote in 2002.

Hillary played a lead role in that vote call in 2002. She was no backbencher obeying the party whip. She rallied people to that war vote.

I don't blame her for wanting back then to bolster her defense credentials in preparation for a possible run for the White House, but if W is your role model in that department, god save the queen.

Plain Dumb

I call it a looking Tokyo going London move. You run away from a legitimate fight in Afghanistan to go fight a misguided, costly war in Iraq.

In Denial

Denial is not just the name of some river in Egypt. It is also Hillary's mindset.

She says she did not vote for the Iraq war in 2002, only for inspections. Now she is saying the same thing at a time when she is closer to Cheney's line on Iran than even Bush himself is. This is not Hillary Bush Lite, like Barack once said, this is Hillary being Bush On Steroids.

Bush On Steroids

If there is anything we have learned from W's presidency, it is how not to squander America's place in the world.

The First Step

This vote in not a war vote, as in tomorrow America is not going to invade Iran, or next week. But a mile long journey begins with that step. This is a step in the direction of war with Iran. This is a contemplation of World War III.

War Will Not Happen

America is not about to invade Iran. It can't. It does not have the soldiers. It does not have enough soldiers for W's idea in Iraq itself, forget Iran.

And so if this is not a war vote, this vote looks even more stupid. Because it makes it less possible now for America to find a political, diplomatic solution to the crisis with Iran.

What Is Hillary Thinking?

I think her enemies in the US Senate laid a booby trap and Hillary walked right into it. Washington is a strange town. People who don't think Hillary is going to make it are spreading rumors she has already signed a deal for her presidential library.

Contemplating War

Hillary says W must seek a second resolution from Congress if it intends to invade Iran.

Is that not like saying this resolution is half the work done? Is that not like saying war with Iran is an option? A near term option? America is so wasted in Iraq, war with Iran is not an option on technical grounds.

Rudy's Three And A Half Marriages

Three marriages and once living with a gay guy, I am counting that for half.

Bill Clinton, JFK, Barack, MLK

In 1992, Bill Clinton reminded Americans of JFK. The first few months, most people thought he had a rich father.

Black women in South Carolina worry about Barack's safety. They are thinking MLK.

I don't worry about Barack's safety. These are different times. And he has a secret service that has never been better at their job. I watched them at a Barack event. They were so tuned out of Barack's speech, you would think it was Rudy speaking.

Hillary's Inevitability Theme

It will come to haunt her. Now if she does not secure a strong first in Iowa, she is finished.

I Have Seen More Of Iowa Than Hillary Ever Will

True.

For a while I drove for the Iowa based Heartland Express. I know the state like the back of my hand.

And I have added most all Iowa newspapers as well all Iowa legislators to my mailing list for this blog.

Barack, I am in.

The Real Michigan Primary: Flip Flop Hillary

She wants to have it both ways. She was for the war. Now she is against the war. She was for complying by the DNC rules. But she refused to take her name off the ballot in Michigan.

In The News

Global Warming Takes Center Stage ABC News
Despite Gore's Nobel Climate Not Top Issue CBS News
'No end in sight' in Iraq, retired general says Los Angeles Times Sanchez, who led U.S. forces in Iraq for a year after the March 2003 invasion, accused the Bush administration Friday of going to war with a "catastrophically flawed" plan and said the United States is "living a nightmare with no end in sight." ........ described the current troop increase in Iraq as "a desperate attempt by the administration that has not accepted the political and economic realities of this war." ........ a glaring unfortunate display of incompetent strategic leadership within our national leaders." ........ negligent and incompetent ......... blasted war policies over the last four years ..... an "intractable position" in Iraq. ....... "Without bipartisan cooperation, we are destined to fail. There is nothing going on in Washington that would give us hope." ........ failing to "communicate effectively that reality to the American people." ........ a catastrophically flawed, unrealistically optimistic war plan ...... an insurgency erupted in Iraq, and he and other top officers were slow to respond to it, in part because of the reluctance of then-Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and other Bush administration officials to recognize its existence.
Sanchez: Iraq war 'a nightmare CNN International Sanchez: U.S. political leaders' "lust for power" has cost lives ...... Bush administration, Congress, State Department share equal blame for war ....... U.S. pullout would cause chaos with global implications, Sanchez said ..... Partisan struggle for power in Washington needs to end to resolve war ....... the Iraq war plan from the start was "catastrophically flawed, unrealistically optimistic" .......... without any concerted effort to devise a strategy that will achieve victory in that war torn country or in the greater conflict against extremism ........ the U.S. cannot pull out of Iraq without causing chaos that would have global implications. ....... "While the politicians espouse a rhetoric designed to preserve their reputations and their political power, our soldiers die" ........ The administration .. ignored messages from field commanders that warned repeatedly that "our military alone could not achieve victory" without corresponding help from the State Department. ........ "Our National leadership ignored the lessons of World War Two as we entered into this war and to this day continue to believe that victory can be achieved through the application of military power alone" ....... this administration has failed to employ and synchronize its political, economical and military power
Junta forces residents to march Hundreds of villagers living on the outskirts of Myanmar's biggest city, Yangon, marched in support of the country's military junta Saturday after being threatened with steep fines if they did not ...... demanded at least one person from each household march in the government's rally. Junta officials also approached local factories and demanded they provide 50 workers. ..... two top '88 Generation leaders -- Htay Gyae and Ming Aung Thing -- have been arrested and are currently in separate detention centers in the country. .......... another prominent activist -- Mie Mie -- had been arrested. ...... Hundreds of political prisoners have been locked in a Myanmar police compound and are facing squalid living conditions ...... kept in cramped conditions in small rooms, with some standing shoulder to shoulder, unable to lie down. Prisoners have also reported a lack of toilets, clean water and adequate food supplies. ......... Nilar Thein and other 88-Generation leaders and prominent activists were being hunted down by the regime and have retreated into hiding
Rice: Russian democracy in danger "I think there is too much concentration of power in the Kremlin. I have told the Russians that. Everybody has doubts about the full independence of the judiciary. There are clearly questions about the independence of the electronic media and there are, I think, questions about the strength of the Duma," said Rice, referring to the Russian parliament. ........ Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Friday received a chilly reception from Putin and senior Russian officials on U.S. proposals for cooperating on a missile defense system in Eastern Europe that Russia vehemently opposes. ....... "the purposeful construction of an authoritarian society and an onslaught on the people's rights, elections are being turned into farce, and human rights and opposition organizations are experiencing pressure." ....... intolerance of ethnic minorities, corruption and selectivity in enforcement of the law, and media restrictions and self-censorship.
The Nation Clinton’s Iran Vote: The Fallout New York Times which asked the Bush administration to declare Iran’s 125,000-member Revolutionary Guard Corps a foreign terrorist organization. Such a move — more hawkish than even most of the Bush administration has been willing to venture so far — would intensify America’s continuing confrontation with Iran .......... she has already shifted from primary mode, when she needs to guard against critics from the left, to general election mode, when she must guard against critics from the right ....... trying to reassure voters that she would be a tough-minded commander in chief. ....... Clinton is also solidifying crucial support from the pro-Israel lobby. ..... “The Revolutionary Guards are deeply involved in Iran’s nuclear program and have substantial links with Hezbollah” ......... she is implicitly supporting what they see as an attempt by the administration to build a case for war with Iran. ........ set off a debate among foreign policy experts ... has gone too far. ......... Think of it as Iran declaring that the United States military is a terrorist organization because it carries out President Bush’s orders. ......... Such a move, say some Iran experts — including some advisers to the Clinton campaign who declined to publicly criticize their possible boss — runs the risk of further alienating the Iranian population, because many Iranians are tied to the Revolutionary Guard or its many offshoots and enterprises in some way. .......... the Revolutionary Guards are not Al Qaeda ...... European diplomats argue that the move could further alienate the Iranian population. ...... this administration has an unduly broad view of the scope of executive power, particularly in time of war.” ..... If the administration believes that any use of force against Iran is necessary, the President must come to Congress to seek that authority.”
Turkish Official Cancels US Visit Over Genocide Resolution Voice of America
A Clinton-Obama Quandary for Many Black Women New York Times Clara Vereen, who runs a beauty shop in Loris, S.C., said of a possible black president, “I fear that they just would kill him.” ..... the beauty parlors that are among the social hubs for black women in the Carolinas ........ “I’ve got enough black in me to want somebody black to be our president,” she said ....... One way to protect him, she suggested, would be not to vote for him. ......... “We always love Hillary because we love her husband,” Ms. Vereen said. .......... 29 percent of all Democratic primary voters here were black women ....... whites might not be telling the truth when they say they will vote for a black man, and blacks might not be telling the truth when they say they are undecided. ......... Obama appears to have a big lead over Mrs. Clinton among black men ......... race, class and gender ....... most thought their votes would be based on intangibles and determined in the end by prayer. .......... the Obama campaign has organized a network around beauty salons, a central gathering spot for black women, particularly in rural areas .......... “He was just the husband, that’s all. She really ran the country.” ....... Voters tend to know more about the Clintons than they do about Mr. Obama. ..... how often these women described an almost maternal concern for Mr. Obama’s safety ........ Edwards ..... “He can be elected because this is still America, and white men still rule” ....... Mrs. Clinton’s first commercial, a radio spot, is aimed squarely at black women. ....... As the race intensifies, Mr. Obama is expected to showcase one of his chief supporters, Oprah Winfrey, and Mrs. Clinton to showcase former President Bill Clinton..... campaigns here are headed by black women. ........ They said they were also trying to calculate whether a black man or a white woman had a better chance of being elected. Which would encounter more resistance from the white male power structure? Would a black man stir up racial tensions that would boomerang and set African-Americans back? ........ there are still so many inequalities that exist, especially here in the South ....... S.C. stands for “Stop Clinton.” ....... “Men have been running the country for a while, and I’d like to see a woman in office,” she said. “Personally, I don’t feel the country is ready for an African-American,” she said, adding matter-of-factly, “He would be killed.” ....... Ms. Thompson said she was leaning toward Mr. Obama. “I don’t think they’d let a woman run the country,” she said. ....... “but I do like Bill, and it’s a way to get him back.”
And Obama Continues Cautious Hits On Clinton MSNBC he will draw stronger distinctions between himself and his rivals in the Democratic primary. ....... we’ll have more emphasis on the contrast between myself and the other candidates ...... the recent back and forth between his campaign’s and Hillary Clinton’s on the issue of Iran, said that these are the types of distinctions voters want to hear about and did not mark a departure from his pledge to run a positive campaign. ........ where do you differ in terms of Iraq, where do you differ in terms of Iran, how would you actually deliver on healthcare as opposed to just talk about it ....... pointed to Clinton’s vote on Iran as a sign that her positions do not stray too far from the current administration ........ on foreign policy ........ On domestic differences, Obama said that he and Senator Clinton overlap on many issues, including health care, but that the real difference between them was she tends to think more conventionally at a time when we are facing a series of unconventional questswho could most effectively carry out their agenda, alluding to the idea that Clinton could polarize the electorate. ....... who can bring the country together and overcome the special interest driven agenda in Washington to deliver on a plan for universal healthcare, or to deliver on a bold energy police. And I would not be running if I didn’t think I was going to be more effective in breaking out of the gridlock in Washington
Obama Woos Rural Iowa, Using Ill. Lesson The Associated Press a big-city black lawyer with a strange name. .......... Here in little Henderson County, just across the Mississippi from Iowa, only 30 people voted for him in the Democratic primary in 2004. The overwhelmingly white, blue-collar voters knew almost nothing about Obama. "They didn't even think of him," recalls the county Democratic chairman, Richard Bigger. ........ he can bring to Iowa some of the hard work, strategy and charisma that helped him in Illinois. ...... Obama has 31 field offices in Iowa, 10 more than Clinton. He is building relationships with community leaders who can influence voters, a strategy that helped him in Illinois. ........ trying to get Obama to as many rural communities as possible before Clinton shows up. ....... a golden corn field ready for harvest served as a backdrop. ..... commented on the fine Iowa scenery as storm clouds hovered overhead and a cool breeze swept through. ...... he used humor to soften the charge that he is too inexperienced. "Sometimes I think it's because I look young," Obama said. "I got these big ears. I look like Opie." ....... His Chicago staff may need occasional help understanding Iowa — a newspaper article about hog waste hangs in the office with "Hogs matter to Iowans!" scrawled across it. ........ "That border along the Mississippi River is a little bit artificial" ....... As a state senator from Chicago, Obama showed up at political events throughout Illinois in 2002 when he began setting his sights on Capitol Hill. ....... "They were like, 'How do you spell his name? Where is this guy from?'" ......... "Down here, people are often suspicious about people from Chicago ....... Matt Hynes, who managed a rival campaign in the Senate primary, recalls that as Election Day approached, tracking polls showed Obama going "up and up and up. It was amazing." ..... "When I look at the polls in Iowa, I think, 'Just wait and see,'" Hynes said. ....... Obama captured 27 percent of the downstate vote in a seven-way primary. ....... In the November election, he won 92 of Illinois' 102 counties as he earned 70 percent of the vote against Keyes. He got 61 percent of the downstate vote. ........ the community remains a bit suspicious of Obama — of his middle name, Hussein, and his religion. Obama is a member of the United Church of Christ, considered the most liberal of the mainline Protestant groups.
Obama: Iowa campaign on track DesMoinesRegister.com said his Iowa campaign is “exceeding expectations.” ....... his campaign has “the best organization on the ground” ..... before the door-to-door event began ....... he was well behind in the polls in his race in the U.S. Senate in 2004 until about the last month and credited his win largely to efforts such as the door-to-door events. ...... Supporters went door-to-door in about 50 communities in Iowa .......... Obama, for about an hour, campaigned in the 1400 and 1500 block of Hutton Street on Des Moines’ east side. He was accompanied by a busload of reporters and photographers, who marched down the street near him. ........ Dozens of residents looked out their windows or stepped out into the street, inquiring about the commotion. ....... people were thrilled that Obama would campaign in their area, a working class neighborhood made up of a rich mix of racial, social and economic diversity. The campaign had not informed any of the residents ........ “I’m 45 and I’ve never had anybody knock on my door and talk with me” ....... She said Obama and Clinton were her top choices and that Obama’s visit likely won her vote. ..... “I couldn’t believe it. I thought somebody killed somebody,” Williams said of the crowds swarming his neighborhood. ....... “I’m going to vote for him. Most black people are going to vote for him but the problem is they think it’s a wasted vote”
Obama on civil rights nod to Clinton: No help in Iowa Baltimore Sun we have probably the majority of Georgia elected officials including two congressmen who have endorsed us,'' Obama says ...... as much respect as I have for John Lewis, it’s not going to have much of an impact on the Iowa caucuses, or the New Hampshire primary,'' the senator from Illinois adds. "And ultimately, that is what is going to determine who the next nominee is.”
Obama: Bye-Bye Mr. Nice Guy? Chicago Tribune plans to more pointedly and aggressively go after frontrunner Sen. Hillary Clinton.
Obama’s wife takes fight to Hillary Clinton Times Online has delivered a spirited warning to Hillary Clinton ..... “Nothing is inevitable,” said Michelle Obama, vowing that her husband was a “uniter” who could beat Clinton to the party nomination. ...... she said that her husband had the magic to defeat the Clintons’ machine ...... he has brought in more money than any other candidate from a broader base of support ....... implicitly likened the rival campaign to a familiar but faded outfit at a time when America needed a fresh approach. “There is a choice we can make. It is a little scary because change is scary. Americans are creatures of habit ......... “Sometimes we wear the same suit even if it’s got holes in it. We need a new suit, not just a new tie or new pants.” ....... an attractive and eloquent advocate ..... At 5ft 11in she has the looks of a model, but she is also emerging as a feisty campaigner. ...... She made it plain that they had no intention of letting Clinton walk over them. “A lot of times we’ve had leadership that has played on the divisions in this country, but the core values that unite us are real.” She thinks the key to victory lies in early primary states, where voters are seeing her husband close up. Obama, she claimed, was “neck and neck with one of the toughest political dynasties that we’ve seen in my lifetime”. ........ “The Clintons were supposed to be able to out-organise us. They haven’t . . . We’re building a grassroots movement of people and have an organisation that is unmatched in the early states.” ....... Michelle Obama will be the star guest at a $100-a-head “Obama for America” fundraiser in London tomorrow – a sign that her husband’s team is creatively targeting every possible source of revenue, including affluent Americans abroad. “We talked about whether I could go to the theatre or maybe shop, but it will just be one day in and out,” she said. ......... Clinton has moved into a commanding 21-point lead over Obama in the opinion polls. In Iowa, an early voting state, Clinton holds just a three-point lead but the dial appears to be shifting in her direction. ........ he was a “uniter, not just here but globally”. ..... The process of democracy did not have to be “caustic” ...... a staunch tribute ..... is too “snorey and stinky” for his daughters when they sneak into bed for a cuddle. ....... they are still the centre of our universe. ...... “If Barack becomes the next president of the United States, I’ll be in Britain often!”
Richardson Sees Clinton Claiming Victory The Associated Press Richardson criticized Clinton's decision not to remove her name from the primary ballot in Michigan ...... "She wants to have it both ways, you're either in or out," Richardson said. "We got to have leaders in this country that are clear, that take strong positions." ...... The governor walked through downtown Las Vegas at a Hispanic Day parade.

Judge Returns 'Jena 6' Teen to Jail Time
Sri Chinmoy, Meditation Guru, Dies Chinmoy's organization said the Indian guru died of a heart attack Thursday at his home in the Queens borough, where he ran a meditation center. ...... the British jazz-rock fusion guitarist John McLaughlin ..... Guitarist Carlos Santana was introduced to the guru by McLaughlin and became a follower until a falling-out in the early 1980s. ..... His organization, the Oneness-Heart-Tears and Smiles, was responsible for collecting and distributing medical supplies throughout Asia and Africa
British Court: Gore Film 'Political' Al Gore may have just won the Nobel Peace Prize, but some of his ideas are under fire in the British court system. ....... In February, the national government announced plans to send a DVD of the documentary to each of England's 3,385 secondary schools as part of a climate change packet. ...... Gore, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize this morning for raising awareness of man-made climate change ...... nine scientific errors and omissions that he believes Gore raised in the context of alarmism and exaggeration ........ There was also not sufficient evidence to back the film's claims that global warming caused Hurricane Katrina, the melting of snows on Mount Kilimanjaro or the evaporation of most of Lake Chad ........ teachers will now need to wade through a 60-page document in order to understand the film's inaccuracies ... For already overworked teachers, that's an inconvenient truth indeed.
Iran TV's Holocaust Series
Why Evangelicals May Turn to Romney a handful of evangelical notables started to lean more publicly — and more urgently — in the direction of former Massachusetts governor, Mitt Romney. ........ The question shouldn't be, 'Could I vote for a Mormon?' but, 'Could I vote for this Mormon?' ....... I am more concerned that a candidate shares my values than he shares my theology. ........ the system-wide Stop Rudy At All Costs campaign ..... two other social conservatives, Gary Bauer, president of American Values, and Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, met with reporters in Washington and made some positive comments about the Massachusetts governor ....... Thompson's lackluster rhetorical skills and questionable ideological commitment. ....... Romney's strong family values and faithful recitation of the conservative gospel — no new taxes, no gay marriage, no abortion. ........ an appeal to the business and technocrat wings of the party, they point to his record as founder and CEO of Bain Capital, his management of the Salt Lake City Olympics and track record as a turnaround artist. ......... a voting block that has yet to find a hero as the primaries approach.
10 Questions for Jenna Bush The idea that you can get aids from holding hands or sharing food still runs rampant all over the world. ....... We don't watch too much television. The world is such a big place, and there's so much that goes on, but a lot of the media really just cover the same thing over and over again. ........ It is difficult to watch my father being criticized. ...... I have been able to travel to Africa with my mother twice and meet amazing people. ...... Education is what breaks the cycles of poverty, illness and abuse. ........ Our whole family loves to laugh. My parents' marriage advice is to laugh and forgive.
Selling Substance Over Style in Iowa Hornsby was only a little worried that the content of the speech might induce fidgeting. On the way to the auditorium he told his kids, "It's kind of like school. We're gonna be quiet and listen to Miss Hillary." ........ how much of the income gains over last six years have gone to the wealthiest 10% (all), the last year at which income inequality was as great as it is now (1929), the cost of the Iraq war per day ($300,000,000) and the number of home foreclosures in the past year (1.3 million). ........ Clinton's unapologetic emphasis on substance and her decision to talk about emotional issues — health care, education — in dry policy terms allowed her potential supporters to embrace her intellect while they themselves supplied the pathos and the spirit ......... assist homeowners "trapped in unworkable mortgages," and to put an end to international debt. ..... Even teenage girls squealed, "We love you, Hillary!" ....... "She's been raked over the coals. I'm amazed she's willing to go through it again." ..... "I don't know exactly what it is, but the Republicans hate her" ....... Clinton, unabashed about presenting Iowans with a commanding style
Anatomy Of a Failed Revolution a country that has been ruled for almost a half-century by a barbaric military junta. Burma's monkhood and military are roughly the same size--each has 300,000 to 400,000 men ........ these protests pit Burma's most beloved institution against its most reviled. ....... rich culture, breathtaking landscapes and hospitable people ....... People grew poorer and were stalked by disease and malnutrition. Schools and hospitals crumbled from neglect. Insurgencies raged along the rugged borders. The only real constant has been the junta, which seized power in 1962 and has run a promising nation into the ground. ....... Mobile phones and the Internet arrived ....... an unbroken, mile-long column--barefoot, chanting their haunting mantras, clutching pictures of the Buddha, their robes drenched with the late-monsoon rains. ....... Their effect on Rangoon's residents is electrifying. At first, only a few brave onlookers applaud. Others clasp their hands together in respectful prayer or quietly weep. Then, as people grow bolder, the monks are joined by tens of thousands of Burmese, some chanting their own mantra, in English: "Democracy! Democracy!" ........ Standing behind barricades manned by riot police, Suu Kyi prayed with the crowd for 15 minutes before tearfully urging them to march on. ......... three demands: "Release Aung San Suu Kyi and all other political prisoners; begin a process of national reconciliation; lower the prices of daily commodities." ........ The New Light of Myanmar, a junta newspaper, blames the violence on "hot-blooded monks" who "are jealous of national development and stability." ......... The demonstrations are so large that downtown Rangoon has a carnival atmosphere. ...... unmistakable crackle of live ammunition ...... Overnight, troops surge into monasteries across the city, beating and arresting monks. ...... the floors are puddled with blood, the thin dormitory walls perforated with holes from rubber bullets. ........ A devout Buddhist will not even step on the shadow of a monk. ...... With soldiers and police still inside Ngwe Kyar Yan, hundreds of local people surround it. "We had no weapons," a neighbor tells me. "Everyone just wanted to protect the monks." Eventually, with night approaching, the security forces fight their way out with live rounds, killing two people. ............. hundreds of troops marching in formation ...... Miraculously, despite the bloodshed, people are still protesting, still chanting ....... The New Light of Myanmar gives its version of yesterday's events: "Groups of demonstrators mobbed security forces, throwing stones and sticks at them, using catapults and swords," it reads. ........ The sacred rallying points, the Shwedagon and Sule pagodas, are locked and guarded. Everywhere there are troops arresting and beating people. ......... the junta's victory may yet prove Pyrrhic. The brutal crackdown has shattered the relationship between the generals and the monks. ........ The assault on a revered institution may yet cause divisions in the army's ranks. "Soldiers are humans," says a Burmese analyst with close ties to the military. "They have families. They have monks among their relatives." Already stories are being told of monks damning to hell the soldiers who beat them--and the soldiers breaking down in tears, believing they have been condemned. ......... The prospect of eternal damnation is not the army's only problem. It is crippled by low recruitment and high desertion rates. Money is scarce, even for the regime's enforcers. I saw many troops carrying only rusting rifles. The soldier who killed Nagai was wearing flip-flops. ......... Half of Asia's malaria deaths occur here; a third of the children under 5 years old are malnourished; most of its people live on less than a dollar a day. ....... China's influence over Burma--and its willingness to use it--is probably exaggerated ....... The '07 Generation--monks and laypeople alike--may yet rise again.
Elizabeth's Lusterless Golden Age spies and assassins scuttle through the corridors of power ....... Blanchett and Owen do what they can with it — she is alternately coy and bawdy; he is blunt, refreshingly lacking in courtly wiles and drawn to one of her ladies in waiting (the winsome Abbie Cornish) — which is not very much. ....... a faux epic — swell costumes, historically authentic settings, a certain amount of bustle and skulking, but very little dramatically gripping activity. ....... Wit might have animated it. Or authentic passion. Or a certain imperiousness in Blanchett's playing, a certain dangerousness in Owen's.
Doris Lessing's Road to the Nobel geopolitical checkers match ...... China (Gao Xingjian, 2000) Trinidad and Tobago (V.S. Naipaul, 2001), Hungary (Irme Kertesz, 2002), South Africa (J.M. Coetzee, 2003), Austria (Elfriede Jelinek, 2004), England (Harold Pinter, 2005), Turkey (Orhan Pamuk, 2006). ........ she was born in Iran, known then as Persia, in 1919; raised in Zimbabwe, known then as Rhodesia; and lives in the U.K. ........ "that epicist of the female experience, who with scepticism, fire and visionary power has subjected a divided civilisation to scrutiny." ........ Lessing bridled at their strict Edwardian mores and left school at 13 — that was the end of her formal education, although she continued to read voraciously. She left home at 15, moved to England and became associated with the Communist movement. ......... over 40 books ....... feverishly experimental ...... a shattered self, richly adorned with ruthless commentary on psychoanalysis, Communism, England and Africa, and modern fiction ...... break certain forms of consciousness and go beyond them. While writing it, I found I did not believe some of the things I thought I believed: or rather, that I hold in my mind at the same time beliefs and ideas that are apparently contradictory. ......... she avoids being identified with movements or ideologies, political or literary. She refuses to settle for simple answers or received wisdom, and she has never been afraid to commit heresy. ......... a new novel, The Cleft, in which she re-imagines the history of the human race — originally, she proposes, humanity consisted entirely of women, all the trouble having begun when women inexplicably began giving birth to male babies. "The best thing one can say of anyone is that they fight," Lessing wrote in The Golden Notebook. Over nine decades, she has done nothing but.
Does the Supreme Court Still Matter? the first Chief Justice whose schedule has included back-to-school night at his children's grade school ....... he favors authority and tradition while distrusting reforms and revolutions because he believes in the ancient notion that it is human nature to screw things up. ......... a mind-set always focused on the fact that even well-intended changes often go awry. ........ In two terms, Roberts has not taken a single position on a high-profile case that you would not expect a darling of the conservative Federalist Society to take. ......... After a brief honeymoon of unanimous opinions in obscure cases, it is the same four Justices on the right and the same four on the left in one high-profile case after another, with Kennedy determining the law. Bombast, rhetorical excess and dueling opinions are thick as Pompeian ash. ........... trend--a steady shrinking of the judicial role in public policy and a handing over of issues to the states--is consistent with Roberts' conservative philosophy. And it points to an obvious question about the highest court in the land. How much does the Supreme Court matter anymore? ........ hot-button controversies--abortion, affirmative action, the death penalty, police powers ....... a man more interested in the steady retreat of the court from public policy than in a right-wing revolution ......... the left-right division will matter mainly in the realm of theories and rhetoric, dear to the hearts of law professors and political activists but remote from day-to-day existence. ........ "most of the court's agenda lies some distance from the nation's." ......... Last term's output of just 68 decisions was the lowest since 1953. Court watchers and even the Justices themselves aren't sure why the docket is so small. ......... The U.S. is the world's most litigious society ...... which meant studying the personalities of Justices to whom he would direct his arguments and identifying the questions that might pique their intellectual fancy. ........ Dwight Eisenhower put Earl Warren in the job after the then Governor locked up California for Ike in 1952. .......... Many of them have been enfolded from an early age in the ideological apparatus of the right or the left. ........ Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's cocoon was the American Civil Liberties Union. Stephen Breyer's inculcation came on Senator Edward Kennedy's Judiciary Committee staff. ......... a Vatican conference room filled with adepts in Augustinian theology debating arcane questions in hurried Latin. ........ such robust egos and large minds ...... But if the Justices are polite in conference, the muzzles come off when they set pen to paper. ....... opinions are characterized by clear prose and occasional sports analogies ........ once wrote of Brown, "Probably no case ever to come before the nation's highest tribunal affected more directly the minds, hearts and daily lives of so many Americans." ........ The unanimous court in Brown needed just 14 calmly crafted pages to deliver its ruling. .......... Justice Clarence Thomas reiterated his often expressed opposition to affirmative action of all kinds, this time in 36 pages. ........ each faction of the court wanted the public to believe that the other side was soft on racism and imperiling one of the monuments of American justice. All based on a case that broke little new ground and affected few, if any, people. ........... the Roberts Court so far is better known for making symbolic mountains out of real-life molehills. ........ In places, they read like the midnight bull session of the world's smartest law students. .... the long settled fact that police are allowed to enter a home to stop domestic violence, with or without consent. ........ The decision to uphold a federal ban on so-called partial-birth abortions provoked a speculative outburst from the legendary women's rights advocate. ...... a right ..... its centrality to women's lives ..... Many of these Justices seem to seek the spotlight--the hotter, the better. ........ jet around the globe to conferences and panel discussions.
Behind the Battle for Madonna At a time when lagging CD sales and music piracy have made the album a mere accessory to touring, merchandising and licensing ..... Live Nation, the world's largest concert promoter, is close to stealing away pop music icon Madonna for a cool $120 million in cash and stock. ...... 10-year deal ..... a company that has never represented an artist before would suddenly be overall talent agent to one of the world's world's biggest music acts ......... so-called 360-degree deals ..... The wave of consolidation in the industry may make sense for the suits, but it's not clear that it benefits the artists. Some acts like Radiohead and Prince have recently bypassed labels — and the tremendous cut of profits they typically take — altogether. ...... "She is 49 years old and this is enormous risk mitigation"
The Television-Internet Connection
A Seating Problem at McDonald's 6,000-odd outlets across Europe ...... McDonald's has called its high-profile strategy to bring upmarket style to the world's most ubiquitous restaurant the Less Is More campaign.
Why Banked Blood Goes Bad five million patients who receive blood transfusions every year ........ study after study shows a disturbing spike in heart disease and death in patients receiving transfusions ....... within hours of leaving the body, levels of nitric oxide in the blood begin to drop, until, by the time donated blood expires after 42 days, the gas is almost nonexistent. "The reality is that we are giving blood that cannot deliver oxygen properly"



Obama opening Arizona offices, McCain hits fundraising trail Bizjournals.com
The Obama Campaign's Memo Atlantic Online Senator Clinton and her campaign have abandoned the politics of “let’s have a conversation,” in favor of purely tactical posturing. ..... Clinton attacked Barack by calling him naïve and irresponsible for a position which she has agreed with him on 2 of the 3 occasions she has addressed it. ....... we can see why she and her campaign might continue to get irritated by tough questions about her changing positions – they must be very tough to answer. ......... “Here’s what I would do as president: I would engage in negotiations with Iran, with no conditions.” In all fairness, that was the position she seemed to have before launching her attack on Obama for his commonsense policy of not fearing meetings with anyone. ........ On her torture position, first she was for some forms of torture then she opposed all forms, then she refused to tell the Washington Post whether the administration’s policy was one she would continue. ........ As other early states get more engaged, we will see a much closer race. ...... South Carolina is a very close two way contest between Obama and Clinton already. .... We have the strongest precinct organization in Nevada, which will be paramount. Organization will win the Nevada caucus. There is no existing list of prior caucus goers at the precinct level and turnout estimates vary wildly. ....... In Iowa, where the race is most developed, over 70% of the electorate is not choosing her ...... Hillary Clinton must win every contest. The forcefulness with which they embrace the aura of inevitability will make it shatter if she does not win in every single state. Inevitability does not come with state exceptions. Early setbacks will fundamentally alter the race, especially given our campaign’s financial and organizational strength that will allow us to capitalize fully on early momentum on February 5, where we already have much more developed campaign organizations than the Clinton campaign. ......... The Clinton operation is the greatest money machine in the history of American politics. The fact that Barack Obama, who has been on the national scene only briefly and who had no national fundraising network in place, has outraised Clinton by $12 million dollars this year and has a huge lead in the number of donors speaks to the hunger for change and an alternative to the frontrunner. ......... and stay focused on measuring our progress in the early states, the only barometer that matters right now.
Ms Obama heads for London to raise funds Guardian Unlimited Wife hopes to reinvigorate campaign that candidate admits has lost steam ..... Obama, who is struggling to recapture the early promise of his presidential campaign ..... for a bare knuckles fight against Hillary Clinton. ..... he needed to take her on more directly. ..... Mr Obama, who leads all of the 2008 presidential contenders in overseas fundraising ...... Ms Obama's mission now is to make her husband appear presidential. "She will be talking about her husband as the person who knows him best, from her personal perspective, on his judgment, his experience, and his strength as a leader. ...... She will also talk about the Obamas' life at home with their two young daughters, fleshing out her husband's political resume and drawing a sharp contrast with Ms Clinton's famously troubled marriage. ..... Mr Obama is running out of time to prove himself ..... An opinion poll for National Public Radio yesterday for the first time rated Ms Clinton more electable than Mr Obama against a Republican opponent. ..... the presidential contenders set to spend $1bn between them between now and November 2008 ..... In the first six months of this year, expatriates donated $471,000 to presidential candidates ..... Most was raised in London, which accounted for $270,000. .... The biggest beneficiary by far was Mr Obama, who raised $194,000 outside the US. Rudy Giuliani took in $119,000, and Ms Clinton $51,000. ....... Associate at Chicago law firm Sidley & Austin, where she mentored Barack Obama. .... Rises at 4.30am to run on a treadmill. On Vanity Fair's best-dressed list.
Clinton Ignores Debate Over Experience The Associated Press the New York senator has never run a local or state government ........ Clinton has the wrong kind of experience — being too close to lobbyists and too willing to compromise key issues. ...... Clinton chuckles at the competing thoughts. ...... Obama has been making frequent stops at churches in this key early primary state as part of his "40 Days of Faith & Family" program.

Motorcyclist in Michelle Obama crash cited Baltimore Sun the motorcyclist who hit a van carrying the wife of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama earlier this week in northern Iowa has been cited for passing too close to an intersection...... Motorcyclist Timothy Emerson, 41, of Iowa Falls, who was involved in a crash with a campaign van carrying Michelle Obama, was cited by the Franklin County sheriff's office ...... None of the six people in the campaign van were injured, and Emerson was treated and released after being airlifted to an area hospital.
Motorcyclist Who Hit Van Carrying Michelle Obama Ticketed WHO-TV
Michelle Obama's van involved in Iowa crash Chicago Tribune

Obama Camp Sees Flip-Flopping by Clinton New York Times she said twice that she would negotiate with Iran “with no conditions.” ...... because we don’t really understand how Iran works. We think we do ....... So: Mrs. Clinton is ruling out meeting early with President Ahmadinejad without conditions, but she is in favor of negotiating early with Iran without conditions. Is there a difference between those two positions? Is this another example of Clintonian nuance? ........ and said that we could lose propaganda battles if we met with leaders we didn’t like. ...... on everything from Iran to Iraq to Social Security, it seems she’s trying to have it both ways ........ end the cowboy approach to diplomacy that has been used by the Bush administration .... So, readers: A flip-flop, a thoughtful strategy for diplomatic negotiations, or something else?
Obama lashes out at Clinton Chicago Tribune Obama lashed out at Democratic presidential rival Hillary Clinton this morning, contending her changing positions on the Iraq war would make her vulnerable to a Republican election opponent who could portray her as flip-flopping on issues and not being open with the public. ....... "Every single one of us running for president only had one chance to make a judgment about whether or not to go to war," Obama said. ..... "instead of pretending that the vote was for anything but war." ...... diplomacy should be conducted "separately from any saber-rattling about checking Iranian influence with our military presence in Iraq." ....... while Clinton chided him for being naïve for saying he would meet, as president, with leaders of rogue nations, she has now said she would encourage talks with Iran without precondition....... "So I'm not sure if any of us knows exactly where she's standing on this issue," Obama said. "But I can tell you this--when I am president of the United States, the American people and the world will always know where I stand."
Obama, Edwards accuse Clinton of flip-flop on Iran Reuters
Rep. Lewis Endorses Clinton New York Times Clinton advisers cast the endorsement as a political coup ...... Mr. Lewis was an early supporter of Mr. Clinton during his 1992 race for president, and they have remained close over the years. ........ Just before the Selma anniversary, Mr. Lewis told The New York Times last winter that he was inclined to endorse Mr. Obama until he received a phone call from former President Clinton. Whatever the two men discussed helped persuade Mr. Lewis to remain neutral and take more time evaluating the candidates. ........ Obama has major black supporters in his own ranks, including the Rev. Jesse Jackson, a two-time presidential candidate, and Oprah Winfrey. ....... Mr. Lewis explained his endorsement in a statement, using language that reflected the Clinton campaign’s political argument against Mr. Obama ...... countered that he has the best judgment to be president .... Political endorsements .. tend not to move blocs of voters that a candidate cannot move himself or herself.

Burma: 400, 000 Members, 400,000 Dollars

400, 000 Members, 400,000 Dollars

Facebook Group: Support The Monks' Protest In Burma (400,000 Members in 15 days)

I was already an avid fan of Facebook. After seeing how fast this Facebook group has grown, I have fallen in love with the site all over again. There is no better way to organize.

Now the question I am asking is will we put our money where our mouth is? Will each member donate a dollar each? That will make a huge difference. I know from my own experience when we did this thing for Nepal in April 2006.

First, money is needed. Second, in our effort to raise and coordinate the expenditure of the money we will take our organization and coordination to a whole new level. It is like adding mild radiation to the blood stream to detect where the blood goes. The book keeping has to have an element of transparency. Ultimately there has to be near total transparency within a limited group of people.

This will help us measure how well we are coordinating with those on the ground in Thailand or not. This will mean we are not spending all our time talking to the converted.

Money, Message, Organization

Those are the three ingredients. And money is a big one. We could raise a million just like that. And we must.

What Will The Money Do?

First, it will force all Burmese diaspora organizations to coordinate with each other. And it will force all Burmese organizations in Thailand to coordinate with each other. And once we establish the mechanism of not only raising money, but also spending it with accountability, we are going to be able to raise big sums, online, like after the tsunami. Ordinary people everywhere will happily give. We are going past governments and we are going directly to the masses.

As to what the money will be spent on, we will let the Burmese groups in Thailand to discuss and decide. They will know best. I would think they will spend money on cameras, computers, medicine, phones, food. Let them tell us.

We will need to set up a command center in Thailand. We will need to set up safe houses in Rangoon.

Burma: Time For Nonviolent Guerilla Warfare
Burma: Time For Hyper Action
The World Is Failing Burma
Burma: Than Shwe Is Going To The Hague
Britain Is Betraying Burma
Burma: Time For All Out Sanctions By All Powers
Burma: Momentum Is Key To Victory
In Solidarity With The Burmese People





In The News

China calls for dialogue to resolve Myanmar tensions - Xinhua Forbes, NY
China joins in strong statement to Myanmar Los Angeles Times, CA China joined Western powers for the first time to deplore Myanmar's brutal crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations and call for political dialogue in a statement issued Thursday by the U.N. Security Council. ....... to free all political prisoners and protesters soon and prepare for a "genuine dialogue" with main opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. ....... In an interview aired Thursday on PBS' "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the U.N. would continue to use its "moral voice" to pursue change in Myanmar. "We have been mobilizing all possible political influences of leaders in the region and in the world," he said. ........ "The Security Council strongly deplores the use of violence against peaceful demonstrations in Myanmar," said the statement read by council President Leslie Kojo Christian of Ghana after Western nations and China haggled for six days over the text. ...... United States, Britain and France, which initiated the statement
Myanmar Rejects UN Call for Negotiations The Associated Press
UN Security Council deplores Myanmar crackdown Euronews.net, France
Myanmar issue should be resolved by itself China Daily, China "China is ready to continue to actively promote the proper settlement of the Myanmar issue together with the international community," Liu added. He said the UN Security Council's adoption of the presidential statement was aimed at supporting the mediation efforts of the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and his special adviser Ibrahim Gambari, and provide constructive help to all concerned parties of Myanmar to realize reconciliation and promote democracy and development in Myanmar through dialogue.
15-Body UN Security Council Adopts Presidential Statement On Myanmar AHN
Group appeals for arms embargo on Myanmar regime Taipei Times, Taiwan
Myanmar Lashes Out at West for Protests The Associated Press described protesters, who continue to be hunted by the military across the country, as "stooges of foreign countries putting on a play written by their foreign masters." ...... singled out "big powers" and radio stations — the British Broadcasting Corp., Voice of America and Radio Free Asia — as being behind the demonstrations. ........ Troops crushed the protests on Sept. 26-27 with gunfire, beatings and mass arrests. ....... Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said. "The international community should help in a constructive way to help Myanmar to realize stability, reconciliation, democracy and development." ......... Reports from Myanmar indicate the crackdown on dissidents is continuing underneath a seemingly calm surface. ....... security officers had been threatening dissidents' relatives and neighbors ..... Human Rights Watch urged the U.N. Security Council to impose an arms embargo on the country. India, China, Russia, and other nations supply Myanmar with weapons that the military uses to commit human rights abuses and to bolster its power ....... A delegation of Myanmar's air force, meanwhile, is visiting Russia, one of Myanmar's main arms suppliers
US talks tough on Myanmar as UN dithers Canada.com, Canada
Dissidents: Myanmar Detainees Beaten The Associated Press guards at Myanmar's detention centers have beaten protesters rounded up from last month's crushed pro-democracy demonstrations and refused lifesaving medical care for some, resulting in their deaths. ........ dissident Democratic Voice of Burma, a Norway-based shortwave radio station and Web site run by dissident journalists, said it based its report on the beatings on interviews with at least a dozen released detainees. ....... "They beat everyone, including women and girls" ...... Monks were targeted and they were not only beaten but also verbally abused by security officers. ........ "I heard people shouting and crying from the interrogation room, and then I saw an army medical surgeon carrying people away," the woman said. ........ a video of an unidentified man who said "dozens" of detainees died. Another man was quoted as saying he saw two people die from severe beatings at Yangon City Hall. One boy died when authorities failed to give him medical treatment for a gunshot wound, and then even denied him water to drink ........ up to 6,000 people were seized ..... around 100 former inmates, has put out a report describing homosexual rape, electric shocks to the genitals, partial suffocation by water, burning of flesh with hot wax and other abuse. ...... The embattled junta lashed out at Western powers and foreign media Thursday, accusing them of fomenting last month's protests. ........ Both Suu Kyi's political party and the military have taken some conciliatory steps. .... the official press stressed the regime was bent on following its own timetable to a so-called "roadmap to democracy," which includes the new constitution and referendum to be followed by elections at an unspecified date.
UN Security Council Stumbles on Myanmar Conflict NewsMax.com, FL

ANALYSIS-Nobel is sweet revenge for Gore, blow to Bush Reuters
Gore Wins the Nobel. But Will He Run? TIME picking up an Oscar and an Emmy ...... the leaders of the Draft Gore movement have been clinging to a single fervid dream: that Gore would win the Nobel Peace Prize and use it to catapult himself to an eleventh-hour bid for the presidency. ....... "probably the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the measures that need to be adopted" to combat climate change ....... he's staying out of the race ....... she has extended her lead nationally, edged ahead in Iowa, and taken on an aura of invincibility that has brought the Democratic power structure into line behind her ........ a hard-won happiness. Gore is happier these days because he is living the kind of life he always wanted to lead. He's happier these days because he is free from the excruciating requirements of electoral politics, the glad-handing and the money-grubbing ........ 90% of Democrats, 80% of independents, 60% of Republicans — now say they favor "immediate action" to confront the climate crisis.
Where Are Burma's Monks? Rangoon's normally bustling Shwedagon pagoda, almost deserted except for a few soldiers patrolling ........ mostly locked and empty, while wooden barricades and bales of rusted barbed wire that police used to seal off Shwedagon ...... mostly silent monasteries ...... When the military and police moved to crush the demonstrators, they first went after the monks. ...... Under cover of darkness ... doors of monasteries were kicked in ...... The New Light of Myanmar, raids on 18 monasteries netted the authorities some 513 monks, one novice, 167 men and 30 women. The monks were summarily defrocked and interrogated ..... One man who helped shelter a young monk who had suffered a deep gash on the head while escaping from a monastery raid told me the monk had later fled for the provinces. He believes the attack on the clergy of this devoted Buddhist nation and the imprisonment of monks will come back to haunt the junta. ........ the generals are waging a propaganda war to win back Burmese hearts and minds. ........ The New Light of Myanmar assured readers that the military was only targeting "bogus" monks ........ But many, even some members of Burma's own oppressive security forces, remain unconvinced. On Monday evening, a 26-year-old member of the plainclothes security apparatus knelt to pay a final homage to the Buddha at Shwedagon before fleeing for the Thai border. The officer had taken part in the nighttime roundup of monks, and it still weighed heavily on his conscience. "I have had enough. I have to leave," he said as he rose from his knees and started his journey to the border. ......... police are still trying to put names to faces on video footage of those who took part in the demonstrations ..... For just a moment I could see the frightened faces of the prisoners inside: Dozens of young teenagers, boys and girls wearing brightly-colored T-shirts, packed cheek-to-cheek, their outstretched arms and hands grasping at the world passing by outside.
Gore and UN Panel Win Peace Prize for Climate Work New York Times
Turkey Threatens Repercussions for US ABC News
Obama, trailing Clinton, hopes to move US campaign into high gear AFP "I'm waiting for the knock out," complained civil rights leader and former Democratic presidential candidate Jesse Jackson. ....... has been panned as "cranky," "cool," "reserved," and "less exuberant" ...... "Truly Kennedyesque moment ... never been so inspired" by a presidential candidate, said Maryland Attorney General Douglas Gansler. ...... dismissed opinion surveys because they fail to convey Obama's true image, because they are conducted by old-fashioned land lines when young people only use cell phones. ........ "I'm happy if the Clintons want to do victory laps in October; I'll take ours in January and February"
Obama lacks the emotion, drama of '04 Toronto Star One cable news channel marked the anniversary with Clinton yesterday by asking her about health care, taxes, small business and social security. .......... appearance on national news shows. ..... Clinton was the polarizer, the tired face of a political dynasty, the woman reluctant to take a bold stance or break new ground. ..... is winning support from Democrats across the nation by playing the role of policy geek, a member of a political establishment who plays in a different league and looks presidential. ......... the party "dated Dean, married (John) Kerry.'' .... Obama has never again approached the emotion, the drama and the heartfelt call for unity of his historic speech to the Democratic convention in Boston in 2004 that launched him in the American consciousness. ..... "I think her judgment was flawed on this (Iraq) issue,'' Obama said on CNN yesterday. "I do think that Senator Clinton has tried to massage the past a little bit, suggesting it was a vote for inspectors.'' ....... no newspaper headline on Oct. 12, 2002 read "Congress Authorizes Diplomacy.''
Clinton, Obama tangle on Iraq and Iran USA Today Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are ramping up a conflict over who has better judgment on Iraq and Iran. ...... "prevent history from repeating itself." The visual at that point is a headline that says "Bush: Headed for war with Iran?" ..... Clinton, who has criticized Obama for saying he'd meet with Iranian leaders with no preconditions, said today in New Hampshire that she'd do the same thing herself.
Rivals rip into Clinton over Iran vote Los Angeles Times a recent vote that they say could bring the nation closer to war with Iran. ....... a resolution that labeled the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, a government-sponsored military organization, a terrorist group. ...... "Hillary Clinton may try and argue all sides to justify her vote, but the truth is her vote has helped open the door for George Bush and Dick Cheney to go to war with Iran" ....... called the Iran measure "dangerous" and "reckless." ...... Last week, Clinton signed on as cosponsor of legislation that would bar U.S. spending on military operations against Iran without explicit congressional approval.
Clinton Says She'd Negotiate With Iran The Associated Press Hillary Rodham Clinton called Barack Obama naive when he said he'd meet with the leaders of Iran without precondition. But her comments Thursday on the issue prompted him to question whether she's changed her mind. ....... Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Cuba and North Korea. ...... said twice that she, too, would negotiate with Iran "with no conditions." ....... "I would engage in negotiations with Iran, with no conditions, because we don't really understand how Iran works. We think we do, from the outside, but I think that is misleading" ......... Obama's campaign wondered whether Clinton had changed her mind. ...... Obama will restore our place in the world by basing foreign policy decisions on consistent principles and not political calculation.
Civil Rights Pioneer Endorses Clinton Washington Post "I have looked at all the candidates, and I believe that Hillary Clinton is the best prepared to lead this country at a time when we are in desperate need of strong leadership" ...... chairman of the activist group Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee during the early 1960s ...... best known for his role leading protestors across the Edmund Pettus bridge in Selma ..... went on to become an icon of so-called "Bloody Sunday." ....... When Lewis led a pilgrimage back to the site earlier this year, Sen. Barack Obama attended and spoke at his annual church service. Not to be outdone, Clinton and her husband - who has close ties with Lewis -- scheduled an appearance in Selma to match. All of them marched across the bridge together in something of a media circus. ..... "Barack Obama has great admiration for John Lewis and understands his long relationship with Bill Clinton. He looks forward to his support when Barack Obama is the nominee."
Obama Takes `Sister Souljah' Tack to Gain Ground on Clinton Bloomberg Telling an interest group what it doesn't want to hear ........ Obama, 46, has talked up tougher emissions standards in Detroit, gone to the Nasdaq Stock Market in New York to chastise Wall Street executives over tax loopholes ...... told black men in South Carolina that they need to ``stop acting like boys'' and face up to parental responsibilities. ...... In Philadelphia in July, he endorsed merit-based pay before the National Education Association, the nation's largest teachers' group, which opposes it. In New Hampshire, a state with a tradition of environmental activism, the Illinois senator refused on Oct. 9 to rule out new nuclear power plants. ...... a strategy to try to cut through and get noticed, and that's consistent with a candidate who is playing catch-up ....... By contrast, Clinton rejected tax increases, benefit cuts or raising the retirement age to bolster the Social Security system at a Sept. 20 debate organized by AARP, the nation's biggest senior-citizens' group. At a June 9 appearance in Detroit, she wouldn't say whether she supported a Senate bill requiring U.S. cars to meet stricter emissions standards. .......... she ``continues to methodically lock down the support of the various constituencies that make up the nominating electorate ....... Her reluctance to offend even extends to baseball: At a Sept. 26 debate, she equivocated about whether she roots for the New York Yankees or the Chicago Cubs. ......... traditional Democratic constituencies like teachers and automakers ....... it was pretty quiet, nobody clapped ...... she this month picked up the endorsement of the 1.4 million-member American Federation of Teachers. ...... likened the performer to white supremacist David Duke for asking whether violence in the black community might be reduced if blacks ``have a week and kill white people?'' ....... In his 2004 autobiography, ``My Life,'' Clinton wrote: ``After challenging white voters all across America to abandon racism, if I kept silent on Sister Souljah I might look weak or phony.''
Edwards Plans to Boost Nevada Campaign The Associated Press a tripling of its Nevada operation. It also plans to open two new offices in November, doubling its total. ....... On Wednesday, Obama's campaign announced plans to open four new campaign offices, bringing its total to seven, and said it would boost the number of his field operatives to 50. Clinton's campaign would not site specific numbers, but claims to have "several dozen" staffers. ..... large, precinct-level organization needed to win a caucus. ..... Edwards expects to receive between $10 million and $12 million in matching funds for the primary, and currently has $12 million in cash on hand
Hillary Clinton Is Endorsed By John Lewis, The Hero of Bloody Sunday Atlantic Online
Clinton Privately Weighs Social Security Tax Hike ABC News The indignation of the Edwards campaign was unleashed Thursday when a reporter for The Associated Press wrote that she had overheard Clinton, who has rejected the Edwards plan in public, privately tell a prospective voter she would consider a Social Security tax hike that resembles the approach favored by the former North Carolina senator. .......... "Voters deserve to know why she would consider one thing in private, but won't tell the American people where she stands in front of the TV cameras." ........ flip-flopping ...... Clinton's private comments to Bowman stand in contrast to a position she recently staked out during a Democratic debate sponsored by the AARP. ........ "I want to focus on the fiscal responsibility piece of this," adding, "before we do anything else, we need to get back to what was working" in the 1990s. ....... "So was that no? Was that no?" asked Edwards to which Clinton replied, "It's a no." ....... the Clinton campaign is not challenging Bowman's claim that Clinton is considering a Social Security tax hike among several "worthy ideas." ...... He says, however, that the candidate who might come closest to his views on Social Security may be Sen. Barack Obama. ........ he recently penned an op-ed in The Quad City Times, an Iowa newspaper, in which he floated the idea of completely eliminating the Social Security tax cap and imposing the 12.4 percent tax against everyone's entire income with no exemption for income between $97,500 and $200,000.

Obama Returns to 2002 New York Times Last week, Senator Barack Obama’s chief strategist lamented that he had only 14 seconds of video from what his presidential campaign believes to be a moment of political gold: Mr. Obama’s 2002 speech against the Iraq war just nine days before Congress, with support from several of his primary campaign opponents, authorized the invasion. ....... crystal-clear audio of the speech .... a recently recorded version ..... “I would kill for that,” he was quoted as saying. “No one realized at the time that it would be a historic thing.” ...... “The last time Barack recorded an audio version of his written words he won a Grammy,” Mr. Burton said, “so he thought he’d give it another shot.”

Obama: Bye-Bye Mr. Nice Guy? Chicago Tribune he is opening the "next phase" of his campaign and plans to more pointedly and aggressively go after frontrunner Sen. Hillary Clinton. ...... we're going to be laying a very clear contrast between myself and Senator Clinton," the Illinois Democrat told CNN. "Not just on the past, not just on Iraq, but on moving forward." ..... said he is not concerned about his polling numbers and does not expect them to change soon. ...... "Those national polls aren't going to change too much until the early state votes take place." ...... a Clinton spokesman, said, "It's unfortunate that Senator Obama is abandoning the politics of hope and embracing the same old attack politics

Barack Obama is JFK heir, says Kennedy aide Telegraph.co.uk John F Kennedy's closest living aide has anointed Barack Obama as the heir to the assassinated president's legacy and predicted that Hillary Clinton would lose an election to a Republican. ....... 1960 when another youthful senator espousing hope and change was written off by the Establishment. ....... "Both Kennedy and Obama have fantastically winning smiles and I might say both are very relaxed in front of an audience and on television. They don't shout into a microphone, they talk. ....... "The principles, the values Obama and Kennedy are enunciating are not five-point plans for new health care programmes, which is more Hillary's style." ....... Just as the Massachusetts senator was dismissed by the party hierarchy because of his age and unconventional background, Mr Obama is also being branded an also-ran. ....... Clinton will lose a general election and in practice is not much different from President George W Bush. ........ Sorensen said that her election would be "a continuation of the Clinton-Bush 20 years" and business as usual in Washington. ........ vehemently rejected the contention, driven home relentlessly by the Clinton campaign, that Mr Obama lacked the experience to be president. ....... "He has great judgment ....... "Judgment is the single most important criterion for selecting a president. At the time of the [1962] Cuban missile crisis, Kennedy's powers of judgment were tested as no president has ever been tested. Fortunately for all of us, he really came up with the right answers. He was 45. Obama's 46 so he's an old geezer." ....... when he is at an Obama rally the message, mannerisms and atmosphere make it seem like the 1960 campaign once again. ........ "I've heard a lot of shrieks of approval, which I assume were coming from young women," he said. "I'm told the phenomenon known as leapers has returned. ....... they report leaper sightings when Obama appears." ...... the thing that most makes Mr Obama .. "on track" to become the new Kennedy is his determination to transform American politics. ......... "We've had these candidates who give those five-point programmes, who sound like they are trying to convince the New York Times board of editors. ........ "That doesn't reach the hearts of the voters. Kennedy reached the hearts of voters. And so does Obama."

Obama must rekindle the flame New Statesman, UK Obama once wrote that, in his youth, marijuana "could flatten out the landscape of my heart". ....... his past as a community organiser in poor 1980s Chicago, following the collapse of the steel industry. ..... "Camp Obama ..... I attended one over a sunny summer weekend. A hundred and fifty of us crammed into the cafeteria of the New York high school where Fame was filmed. The atmosphere was electric. ........ A homeless woman talked about her anger at the war being what attracted her to Obama. A somewhat precocious teenager said she was in it for Obama but also because she wanted to stand for office in the future. ....... The political consultant Bob Shrum (currently Gordon Brown's election adviser) points out that at this stage national polls reflect only name recognition. ......... I have slid back down to earth as Obama looks increasingly managed ...... Obama is cautious and conciliatory, a centrist at heart. He often portrays himself as a reformist, not a revolutionary, and it seems to have worked so far. ..... 24,000 hipsters turned out in New York to see him speak. When I met Obama I liked him - he said the right stuff, he was attractive, he had a firm handshake and a nice smile