Pictures From Space Station Include Vashon Seattle Tacoma

Thirty-five great photos taken over the last several months of the earth from the ISS. One photo even features the center of my universe Vashon Island, WA. via: boston.com big picture

Iran We hear Your Cry For Freedom!

I see the battle taking place in Iran as one between generations. The old one who remembers the 1979 uprising and blindly believe in the leaders who came to power in that earlier revolution and, the younger generation that sees the outside world and longs for greater personal freedom and a move away form an autocratic government.

Ironically the older generation always sees its revolution as being different from the one that follows. They suppress and brand the protesters as a "mob" or illegitimate, yet they are no more illegitimate then their generation was when they called for revolution in the past. "don't stand in the doorway don't block up the hall" , as Dylan put it in the song "times they are a changing".

There is a interesting story here about Neda the woman shot dead by a police sniper in the first days of the protests. Her violent death has become a symbol of the brutal suppression of the protests by Iranian authorities. Apparently her own mother is in denial about the responsibility for her death being caused by the those in power.“That’s what comes from pouring into the streets,” the mother is quoted as saying in the story. In the same story her brother talks of the disconnect between the older and younger generation in present day Iran.

Polaroid Sunset

Right Wing Media Enabling Racists Extremists And Lunatic Fringe

The ex-wife of James von Brunn, the racist nut who shot up the holocaust museum in Washington, DC yesterday, says she divorced him because he was totally consumed with hatred for Jews and "Negros" that “ate him alive like a cancer”.

How the heck can one be so fucking hateful and not be call on it by someone. Maybe it's because most of these nuts feel justified by what the right wing media passes off as news these days. Joe Scarborough of MSNBC thought it quite comical at the time that the Department of Homeland Security report indicated that right wing extremist groups and individuals posed a terror treat to the US. He remains to this day one of the biggest dumbshits on cable TV.

Hey Joe now that we've had the Tiller murder and the holocaust shooting, both by right wing crazies, what do you think of that DHS report now?

More Proof Senator Shelby Is An Idiot!

He claims that health care system in US is "best health care in the world". Well, that maybe if you actually have coverage provided and your an insulated rich SOB. Shelby somehow misses the point that we have the most expensive system in he world delivering what could the the worst coverage for the money spent, or that there are millions who have no medical coverage at all. We also have a huge population of unhealthy fat assess with no idea of what healthy living looks like. Many of these medically challenged obese are located in the region of the country where Shelby is considered to be a genius.

Gordon Brown Calls Omaha Beach "Obama Beach" in Speech

Whoops!

Moving Sculpture On Omaha Beach Comemorates D Day

Les Braves, by French sculptor Anilore Banon set up on Omaha Beach makes a moving statement I think that out does conventional attempts to portray just what happen that June day in 1944.

via: winds of change net

Alcoholic Monkeys Not Just Found At The Local Party

I always thought that people acted like monkeys when they indulged too much at the local party. Now I come to find out that monkeys mirror people with their drinking habits and actions after getting hammered. We're lucky monkeys can't drive.

A Photo Of Every Apple Product Ever Released

Yes a photo of every Apple product that's every been released. If you like to see a even bigger enlargement click here.

A New Practical Party Instead of the Republican Party Perhaps

I say woe to the left if someone could put together a political party that supported a mix between the best of libertarian thinking (not ideology) while also supporting practical efficient and needed basic government services to citizens. I think the Democrats would have their hands full. One of the best things about Obama has been his basic belief in doing what works, not necessarily doing what ideologues in his party or the other want.

Jesse Ventura the ex wrestler and former Governor of Minnesota, who appeared on CNN last night, seems to also be interested in doing what works when it comes to politics. As we all know by now Ventura is an interesting character and definitely a man's man type of fellow who is unbowed by the typical rhetoric from both the left of right.

I admire his ability to think for himself and not just blindly go with the flow like most ideologues and idiots do on both the right and the left. He got me thinking, especially in the light of the pending demise of the Republican Party who’s old angry white guy theme seems to be headed nowhere or the a left wing led Congress with the likes of go with the flow Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi or more Republican than Democratic Democrats

If independent populist reformers and libertarians like Ventura every completely got over their fear of government and its intervention in the lives of common people when necessary to provide basic public services we'd probably have something. I think they would be a formidable political force and the alternative to the present day no idea Republicans or the obstructing right wing Democratic types.

Let's call it the Practical Party. A new party that would be willing to be open minded enough to support a national health care program, for instance, or see the benefit of social security for the elderly. Or be open to things like federally mandated worker protections and unions. Or stop interfering in marriage rights of its citizens or interjecting religion into politics. Or make it a policy to curtail American propensity for xenophobia and militarism.

Instead of just the ideological of every man or woman for himself or no tax anti government of any type that pervade most of the right wing types or the equally frustrating lemming like lefties that toe the party line even when it's not working or practical. I'm talking a hybrid here, so let's simply forget the use of too many labels.

Admittedly Ventura has never been one to follow any one ideology. He seems more interested in practical solutions to the problems at hand and solutions that offer the least amount of government intervention into the private affairs of citizens. He wants to decriminalize drugs, create rapid transit and rail, and prosecutes Cheney and anyone else involved in torture, get organized religion out of politics and on and on. He supports same sex marriage civil unions and many things most liberals, lefties and libertarians would agree with.

He now is living in Mexico part time and as he said "off the grid". He claims he watches no TV anymore and instead does lots of reading and surfing. If nothing else he is definitely an original and one has to admire him for that. Here is the interview from Larry King last night.

UFCW Single Payer Ad Attacks Insurance Companies

Let it be so Mr President!

Gay Marriage Proponents Attack On Bimbo Miss California Counterproductive

Okay she’s as dumb as a post. but I believe the 21 year old sheltered and conservative Carrie Prejean may not be the best target for gay marriage proponents to focus their wrath. As we all know now, she mangled the $20000 dollar question about gay marriage during the Miss America pageant and invented a new definition in the American lexicon of “opposite marriage” doing it.

First off Perez Hilton called the woman a “cunt” on cable television the day after which had to play badly and flame the fire with the vary people the gay marriage movement seeks support. It went down hill from there. I believe that Hilton’s antics played badly with straight moderates and independents in the middle of this question.

I also think this type of behavior from Hilton and the likes of Michael Musto cheapen the conversation and made gay talking heads look petty and superficial. The 21 years old beauty pageant contestant from a conservative family probably has a better chance to go to the moon then to know anything about the issue of gay marriage. She was viciously and immediately attacked for the mistake of stating her ditto head opinions.

I realize that same sex marriage is a civil right that needs to be codified in law throughout the nation. Perez Hilton and other self appointed gay marriage spokespersons lower themselves and the bar to the level of the opposition when they trivialize and belittle this unworldly blond little Miss Sunshine. I believe Miss Prejean would have had her 15 minutes of fame and that would have been the end of it except for the antics of Hilton and others to demonize her based on her own ignorance. In the end they made it all about intolerance, her and her breast augmentation.

Hilton certainly had a teachable moment, but instead he decided to turn it into drama queen catfight. I think Hilton saw that there’s no such thing as bad publicity and reviled in promoting the controversy by calling the woman a “dumb bitch” the night of the pageant then retracting the statement only to reinstate it the next day, adding that he should of called her a “the C word” instead. Then there’s the leaked news that the woman’s tits weren’t even real. She had a boob job paid for by the Miss California people I guess. It seemed like the leak was a cheap shot aimed at solidifying the beauty queen’s bimbonic status. Hypocrisy from the gay community that spends a lot of time dressing things up to make them appear like something else.

Most straight women, and many men, who are supportive of gay marriage would not approve of a woman being called a bimbo and cunt on national TV no matter what their feelings on the legalities of same sex marriage. Hilton selfishly inflamed the controversy with his potty mouth for personal gain, fame and fortune, using the righteousness of the gay marriage issue as a smokescreen. This motivation poisoned most meaningful and respectable discussion of the issue from the beginning of the controversy. Perez has also helped make the woman a national symbol for bigots to roll out when needed. I think it painted the same sex marriage movement as intolerant and reactionary rather then what it really is a rights movement interested in simple justice. God she’s freaking beauty queen, not a Harvard lawyer.

In the end I think most straight people saw the whole drama as overkill or ganging up on a weakling who really didn't deserve that much attention.

Condi Says If The President Authorizes Torture It's Okay

The Young Turks produced this excellent cell phone capture video from a meeting with students at Stanford University where former Secretary of State Condi Rice, in the style of the trailer of the Frost-Nixon movie, states in so many words, "if the President authorizes torture it's okay." Extraordinary!

God I'm sick of the main stream media enabling the authorization of torture, by using the rationalization that if it worked, which is questionable, irrelevant and probably a lie, it is somehow justified. It's a god damn crime people! If you rob a bank, the cops don't let you go if your successful, like the constitutional law professor has pointed out. IT'S A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL LAW GET IT. We are a nation of laws. Justice is blind.

I'm going to vomit on the TV the next time Chris Matthews, or some other supposedly well informed news anchor, claims torture is justified because a polls says 62% of the dumb ass uninformed citizens say it's so. Have we become a nation of retards who can't put 2 and 2 together when it comes to enforcing the law. Ask yourself, are we going to leave it to a Spanish court to enforce the law and prosecute the criminals who authorized torture?

I Not Against Guns I'm Against Paranoid Nuts With Guns And Assault Weapons

I more or less grew up with guns around. I when hunting when I was younger. I use firearms in the army during the Vietnam Era. In fact I now get a disability check each month from the VA because my hearing was permanently damaged from firing a rifle repeatedly without proper ear protection while in the service.

But in those days the people I knew in the army and in civilian life who had an appreciation of guns for hunting, or even self defense weren't ideological nuts or neo-Nazis like "Obama going to take our guns away" crowd of douches bags we see around today. Nearly all of these folks appear to have a screw loose. They come off sounding like a broken record of unfounded right wing cliches and psycho-babble when you try to talk to them about THEIR guns.

No one is going to take their freaking guns away, and you don't need an assault weapon for sport hunting or self defense. Their politics on guns is based mostly on unfounded fear or ideological tea bag extremism.

"Address Gun Violence in Cities: As president, Barack Obama would repeal the Tiahrt Amendment, which restricts the ability of local law enforcement to access important gun trace information, and give police officers across the nation the tools they need to solve gun crimes and fight the illegal arms trade. Obama and Biden also favor commonsense measures that respect the Second Amendment rights of gun owners, while keeping guns away from children and from criminals who shouldn't have them. They support closing the gun show loophole and making guns in this country childproof. They also support making the expired federal Assault Weapons Ban permanent, as such weapons belong on foreign battlefields and not on our streets." (from Organizing for America Obama website urban plan)

When I worked for the Obama campaign door to door in Texas and Montana last year the fear of "Obama repealing the 2nd amendment" comprised the main objection of the anti Obama crowd I had interactions with. In many cases these folks barely had a pot to piss in, yet this one issue trumped all others including such things as having a job or universal medical coverage. I was struck with confusing nature of their priorities. It seemed illogical to me that you'd put this blind and unfounded fear of not being able to own a gun, including assault weepons, above all others.

They seemed to have all bought into the narrative of Obama the Muslim Manchirian candidate or Obama the Socialist, fascist or whatever the favor of the day is, being promoted by Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh types or their local racist group or other wing nut of the month club. These clubs and groups of individuals bred in these people irrational justifications for taking armed action, if neccessary to save a supposedly brainwashed nation. It is no wonder that the Department of Homeland Securities recent report named right wing groups as a growing threat to our democracy.

1918 Influenza Pandemic Could It Happen Again?

The answer is yes! The only question is the new outbreak of swine flu currently centered in Mexico the begining of the modern pandemic. Hear a podcast synopsis from the PBS American Experience documentary Influenza 1918.

In 1918 people around the world soon came to the realization that nothing could stop the spread of this common and deadly Spanish flu. Medical science, limited in it's understanding of the virus, was unable to find a cure. Has our complacency, and our modern human egos once again put us at risk of making the same mistake of underestimating the killing power of such a flu pandemic?

Republicans moderates demanded we cut 870 million dollars from the stimulus package aimed directly at research and preparation for such a flu pandemic. Carl Rove howled about wasting taxpayers money on pork. Now they look like the dumb assholes that they actually are.

I wrote about Bush administration pandemic preparation foot dragging nearly 4 years ago. The problem with Republicans is they fail to see that government is the last
defense against a medical crisis of this nature. It's every rich bastard for himself or herself with them. They figure their not going to be the ones that die. As it is in their dirty little wars that's for us unwashed masses out here to do.

Ode To Era Of The Muscle Car Like The Pontiac GTO

My Little Pontiac GTO

Back when Americans made things that had a certain quality their was GM's Pontiac. These were damn good cars. Yes they guzzled gas, but at 32 cents a gallon who cared. The concern for good gas mileage , in due course, came later. The sheet metal was thick and the durability and quality of the cars was considered to be the best in the world of consumer cars. Nowadays you can't even get a stapler made in America that will go through more then two sheets of papers without getting jammed. Then Japanese and other foreign automobiles were considered inferior. Boy have things changed.

General Motors announce today that it was discontinuing the Pontiac Model line as part of bankruptcy reorganization. I have sweet spot in my heart for Pontiac. My mother loved Pontiacs and bought a 1958 Bonneville 2 door hard top. She occasionally let me take the car on a spin. Invariably I’d take it to cruise the Golden Gardens or Alki beach in the summer making sure the kids I hung out with saw me. Pat Sloan, my best buddy in high school, dad had a 1959 Bonneville 2 door hardtop that he spent many a Friday night burning rubber with as we left the local Dag’s or Dick’s drive in.

Pontiacs were later known for power and torque muscle cars like the GTO. I owned a 1964 GTO for about a year that I impulsively sold one day because a GTO nut made a offer that I couldn’t refuse and I needed beer money.

With the announcement today by GM I sure it’s must be a sad day for Pontiac lovers everywhere.

Another Nitwit Republican Gets In Over Her Head With Al Gore

Republican Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee continues the GOP tendency to have their head up their ass while trying to paint Al Gore as motivated by greed when it comes to climate change.

Seattle Moisture Festival Photos

The 2009 Moisture Festival just concluded and it was a roaring success. Many of us who where involved in the festival felt it was the best ever. Here's a link to photos by Michelle Bates. Check it out and mark you calendar for next year's festival.

Tea Bag Your Tea Bag

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

My niece inadvertently posted an announcement in my facebook news feed about how I should consider attending a local tea party to protest high taxes, government bailouts and "the pork".

I fired back that apparently she hadn't gotten the memo that being a nitwit isn't allowed in our family. She responded that her husband had misappropriated the use of her account on facebook and posted the right wing drivel. "Obviously too much something of the AM radio persuasion", she offered. I'm not sure what his source is, but it's apparent he loves Glenn Beck and tends to believe all the bullshit you normally find on FOX News, where Beck has free reign to make up shit as he goes along and put it out there into the national intellect.

Beck's main message lately is that the Obama administration is really just a fascist plot to destroy America. In actuality Beck and some right wing radio personalities represent plain old fashion demagoguery the likes of which we've seen before during the era of Joe McCarthy or Father Coughlin. Unfortunately, it appears most of these folks who buy into this crap don't know the difference. But grassroots movement it's really not. Simply explained, it is corporate America using the marginally informed to centralize it's power so it can fuck them over some more. Wake up and smell the fucking coffee people!

What's worse is I have a growing fear that nuts like Beck maybe inflaming the unstable and unbalanced fringe elements of the right into doing the unthinkable. The question is who gets shot next. I believe that conservatives have the right to speak their mind. They can complain as much as they like. They should organize and protest if motivated to do so. But thinking and fact finding are also important. Most of these people are actually protesting against things the government is doing that are actually in their own interest. They end up protecting the corporate and conservative oligarchy and only prolonging their own exploitation by these powerful elements.

It's not a big surprise that wingnuts are unable to separate fact from fiction. Shrinking numbers of right wing diehards egged on by FOX News and other conservative radio talk nitwits blindly protest tax increases when most of them will get a tax cut in Obama's new budget if they make under $250K. They oppose reforming health care coverage when many of them are uninsured or paying skyrocketing medical costs. They protest bailouts but offer no alternative to stimulate the economy. Protest pork when it is a small portion of the real problem with government spending, if it is in fact a problem at all. My congressional district or State's pork is good and yours is bad I guess. No one has convinced me that pork barrel spending is a bad thing. It's just another easy target for right wing ditto heads.

I'm probably preaching to the choir here, but you'd think that these people would see their being boondoggled again by the same criminals and nitwits who created the real crisis with are living in today.