Searching for the answer…
By bruce | July 27, 2010
A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her altitude and spotted a man in a boat below. She shouted to him,
“Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don’t know where I am.”
The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, “You’re in a hot air balloon, approximately 30 feet above ground elevation of 2,346 feet above sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude.
“She rolled her eyes and said, “You must be an Obama Democrat.”
“I am,” replied the man.
“How did you know?”
“Well,” answered the balloonist, “everything you told me is technically correct. But I have no idea what to do with your information, and I’m still lost. Frankly, you’ve not been much help to me.”
The man smiled and responded,
“You must be a Republican.”
“I am,” replied the balloonist.
“How did you know?”
“Well,” said the man, “you don’t know where you are or where you are going. You’ve risen to where you are due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem. You’re in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but somehow, now it’s my fault.”
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The Damage is done….
By bruce | May 26, 2010
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WE WIN! I got your “Drill Baby Drill” right here VA…
By bruce | May 6, 2010
Late news from Richmond… Cooch and Bob for Jokes sue Howard Gardner for his work on multiple intelligences. No work from Bill B. Must be in the bunker.
Interior Suspends Planned Va. Offshore Oil and Gas Lease Sale
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What if the Tea Party “People” Were Black????
By bruce | April 28, 2010
I’m just sayin…..
Let’s play a game, shall we? The name of the game is called “Imagine.” The way it’s played is simple: we’ll envision recent happenings in the news, but then change them up a bit. Instead of envisioning white people as the main actors in the scenes we’ll conjure – the ones who are driving the action – we’ll envision black folks or other people of color instead. The object of the game is to imagine the public reaction to the events or incidents, if the main actors were of color, rather than white. Whoever gains the most insight into the workings of race in America, at the end of the game, wins.
So let’s begin.
Imagine that hundreds of black protesters were to descend upon Washington DC and Northern Virginia, just a few miles from the Capitol and White House, armed with AK-47s, assorted handguns, and ammunition. And imagine that some of these protesters —the black protesters — spoke of the need for political revolution, and possibly even armed conflict in the event that laws they didn’t like were enforced by the government? Would these protester — these black protesters with guns — be seen as brave defenders of the Second Amendment, or would they be viewed by most whites as a danger to the republic? What if they were Arab-Americans? Because, after all, that’s what happened recently when white gun enthusiasts descended upon the nation’s capital, arms in hand, and verbally announced their readiness to make war on the country’s political leaders if the need arose.
Imagine that white members of Congress, while walking to work, were surrounded by thousands of angry black people, one of whom proceeded to spit on one of those congressmen for not voting the way the black demonstrators desired. Would the protesters be seen as merely patriotic Americans voicing their opinions, or as an angry, potentially violent, and even insurrectionary mob? After all, this is what white Tea Party protesters did recently in Washington.
Imagine that a rap artist were to say, in reference to a white president: “He’s a piece of shit and I told him to suck on my machine gun.” Because that’s what rocker Ted Nugent said recently about President Obama.
Imagine that a prominent mainstream black political commentator had long employed an overt bigot as Executive Director of his organization, and that this bigot regularly participated in black separatist conferences, and once assaulted a white person while calling them by a racial slur. When that prominent black commentator and his sister — who also works for the organization — defended the bigot as a good guy who was misunderstood and “going through a tough time in his life” would anyone accept their excuse-making? Would that commentator still have a place on a mainstream network? Because that’s what happened in the real world, when Pat Buchanan employed as Executive Director of his group, America’s Cause, a blatant racist who did all these things, or at least their white equivalents: attending white separatist conferences and attacking a black woman while calling her the n-word.
Imagine that a black radio host were to suggest that the only way to get promoted in the administration of a white president is by “hating black people,” or that a prominent white person had only endorsed a white presidential candidate as an act of racial bonding, or blamed a white president for a fight on a school bus in which a black kid was jumped by two white kids, or said that he wouldn’t want to kill all conservatives, but rather, would like to leave just enough—“living fossils” as he called them—“so we will never forget what these people stood for.” After all, these are things that Rush Limbaugh has said, about Barack Obama’s administration, Colin Powell’s endorsement of Barack Obama, a fight on a school bus in Belleville, Illinois in which two black kids beat up a white kid, and about liberals, generally.
Imagine that a black pastor, formerly a member of the U.S. military, were to declare, as part of his opposition to a white president’s policies, that he was ready to “suit up, get my gun, go to Washington, and do what they trained me to do.” This is, after all, what Pastor Stan Craig said recently at a Tea Party rally in Greenville, South Carolina.
Imagine a black radio talk show host gleefully predicting a revolution by people of color if the government continues to be dominated by the rich white men who have been “destroying” the country, or if said radio personality were to call Christians or Jews non-humans, or say that when it came to conservatives, the best solution would be to “hang ‘em high.” And what would happen to any congressional representative who praised that commentator for “speaking common sense” and likened his hate talk to “American values?” After all, those are among the things said by radio host and best-selling author Michael Savage, predicting white revolution in the face of multiculturalism, or said by Savage about Muslims and liberals, respectively. And it was Congressman Culbertson, from Texas, who praised Savage in that way, despite his hateful rhetoric.
Imagine a black political commentator suggesting that the only thing the guy who flew his plane into the Austin, Texas IRS building did wrong was not blowing up Fox News instead. This is, after all, what Anne Coulter said about Tim McVeigh, when she noted that his only mistake was not blowing up the New York Times.
Imagine that a popular black liberal website posted comments about the daughter of a white president, calling her “typical redneck trash,” or a “whore” whose mother entertains her by “making monkey sounds.” After all that’s comparable to what conservatives posted about Malia Obama on freerepublic.com last year, when they referred to her as “ghetto trash.”
Imagine that black protesters at a large political rally were walking around with signs calling for the lynching of their congressional enemies. Because that’s what white conservatives did last year, in reference to Democratic party leaders in Congress.
In other words, imagine that even one-third of the anger and vitriol currently being hurled at President Obama, by folks who are almost exclusively white, were being aimed, instead, at a white president, by people of color. How many whites viewing the anger, the hatred, the contempt for that white president would then wax eloquent about free speech, and the glories of democracy? And how many would be calling for further crackdowns on thuggish behavior, and investigations into the radical agendas of those same people of color?
To ask any of these questions is to answer them. Protest is only seen as fundamentally American when those who have long had the luxury of seeing themselves as prototypically American engage in it. When the dangerous and dark “other” does so, however, it isn’t viewed as normal or natural, let alone patriotic. Which is why Rush Limbaugh could say, this past week, that the Tea Parties are the first time since the Civil War that ordinary, common Americans stood up for their rights: a statement that erases the normalcy and “American-ness” of blacks in the civil rights struggle, not to mention women in the fight for suffrage and equality, working people in the fight for better working conditions, and LGBT folks as they struggle to be treated as full and equal human beings.
And this, my friends, is what white privilege is all about. The ability to threaten others, to engage in violent and incendiary rhetoric without consequence, to be viewed as patriotic and normal no matter what you do, and never to be feared and despised as people of color would be, if they tried to get away with half the shit we do, on a daily basis.
Game Over.
(H/T ephphatha-poetry.blogspot.com)
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Bush Wins in WV Coal Mine Deaths
By bruce | April 6, 2010
Bush’s eight year campaign to kill OSHA and the MSHA through budget cuts, while reducing fines to nothing and refusing to prosecute violations worked.
Also his support for Massey’s union busting tactics also leave Massey’s employees NOWHERE to go.
The Feds weren’t around (Bush cut staffing to the bone and his coal mine management pimps delayed enforcement), they had no union to complain to, Massey was “the great economic engine” to be protected at all costs, and 25 WV Miners will be having their funerals shortly.
This is the Bush Legacy…
How sad,
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Health Care Reform – Yipee!!!!
By bruce | March 31, 2010
Been a while, but life is what happens when you plans fall through. I thought that I could start up again by talking about the Health Care Reform just passed by congress and signed by the president.
In an attempt to not reinvent the wheel I suggest that you all read a great book by T.R Reid called The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper and Fairer Health Care. He’s also got a way cool website with some great bullet points about health care systems around the world. I guess one of my biggest gripes with those railing against ObamaCare is that they often have no concrete reasons why it’s bad, they just say “Socialized Medicine is bad” or “this is a Government take over of health care.” The things they want to get rid of, do not include the Veterans Administration Health System, or Medicare or Medicaid.
Reid and I have the same basic premise, Health Care Reform is a moral issue. So many things need taking care of in this country, but I’m dumbfounded by the people that have such a strident position on the unborn, but then have no compassion for the 44 million Americans that have no health care today. The data shows that annually 45,000 Americans die annually because they have no health care. Those in congress that say we have the best health care in America are only partially right. It’s the best IF you can afford it. Click on the graphic below to see where we are today…
One of the things I find most difficult to wrap my head around is that annually in America we have 770,000 Americans file for bankruptcy due to medical problems. So the issue is, to me, moral. How can we reduce infant mortality, bankruptcy’s, increase life spans, reduce health care costs?
I think Obama and the congress did it and there more to come…
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We Loved You Buddy…
By bruce | January 22, 2010
RIP 
Coldstream Grant’s Guardian “Sam the Dog” died tonight aAT 7:31 PM in the loving arms of Beth and Bruce. What a joy for 12 years and 29 days. We are so sad…
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How Humbled am I……
By bruce | January 19, 2010
On Monday I was proud to accept the Lord Fairfax Community College’s Martin Luther King “Walk the Talk” honors at a ceremony at the Middletown Campus.
Wow. I gave the concluding remarks and told those in the room that Dr. King was a true gift for America. I shared my ignorance of Dr. King growing up in a small farming community in upstate New York (there were 54 kids in our High School graduating class). Full disclosure, we were ignorant.
I first started to admire Dr. King’s messages when I was on the USS Intrepid in the South China Sea off the coast of Vietnam. The day after his assassination young black men set fires on the ship. All this while several of America’s cites were also in flames. The only problem was that it’s a bit hard to evacuate when you’re 500 miles from a safe shore.
Keeping with my budding mantra of CYA (challenge your assumptions) I tried to learn what could cause such anger and truly irrational behavior. I learned more and more of Dr. King and especially his stand against the Vietnam conflict. My admiration only grew and my resolve to try to do more to promote justice and equality.
I must admit that I didn’t (and don’t) have nearly the impact of Dr. King, but can be responsible for doing what I can in the moment when I am aware of injustice and inequality. I’ve tried to do that in my life.
I ended my remarks with a quote from Dr. King on persistence and staying the course. He said in a speech as Spellman College in 1968, “if you can’t fly, run. if you can’t run walk. if you can’t walk crawl, but never stop moving.”
I know for me that means accepting incremental change, but doing what you can, when you can. Am I upset that in this great country every American does not have access to quality and affordable health care? You betcha. But social security got fixed after the initial bill was watered down. Crawling. Does that mean I’m going to go easy on Mark Warner and Jim Webb if they vote for less? Not this guy, but crawl…
Dr. King and President Obama got the Nobel prize and both said many others deserved it before them. This I share with them, but I proudly accepted my award, because it’s good to see a fat white guy who believes in Dr. King’s messages – and then does something about it.
The Honor was humbling, and all because of a few fires on an aircraft carrier 42 years ago and a guy who refused to accept the status quo.
Crawl…
b
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Darth Snyder Loves Bob McDonnell, Say No More….
By bruce | October 19, 2009
I am a Washington Redskins season ticket holder. I was on the list for about 20 years before they called and said some room was available in Section 426 of FedEx near the top. In the 10 years I’ve been going to see my beloved Skins, the Danster bought the team and has proceeded to destroy one of 
the greatest franchises in the history of the game. Now he gives $50k to Bob McDonnell.
Now if you’ve every read this Blog you gotta know that I’m a huge Creigh fan and would never vote for McDonnell in a million years. After all he is who he is. But if anyone ever needed confirmation about what a loser McDonnell is, the Danster loves him!
Dan Snyder who has brought in a succession of losers and never beens, meddled with what passes for a front office/coaches, and continues to have an escalator that still doesn’t work, and loves Bob McDonnell!!!!!! Is there any thing more to be said? Really!
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Frank Wolf, Call me, somehow. OK just use your shoe phone…
By bruce | September 10, 2009
A friend whith whom I serve on the 10th Congressional District Democratic Committee of the Democratic Party of Virginia, shared this communication with me relative to Frank Wolf’s supposed “tele-town hall”. Very interesting. I’m thinking more and more this is gonna be an open seat.
Afternoon All -
I just got off the phone with an aide from Rep. Wolfs office. I called because I had been led to believe that the Congressman was supposed to have had his tele-town hall meeting by now and since I signed up through his website and had not heard anything, I was curious.The woman I spoke with told me that the tele-town hall meeting is scheduled for TONIGHT at 7:10 P.M. Surprised, I asked her why I hadn’t been notified earlier. She had no idea when the decision had been made, she just knew was that it was tonight. I asked her for the number to call into so I could take part in the
event and she responded that there wasn’t one. “Then how am I going to be able to take part?” I asked. She said that as long as I had signed up in advance and they had my email address, they would be calling me.I asked what my email address had to do with making a call and again, she had no answer. So finally I asked “Does this mean that the Congressman is not going to be attending the President’s Address this evening?” She laughed and said she didn’t know, unless he was holding the tele-town hall downtown.
Can you believe this crap? Has anyone else heard anything about this supposed event that coincidentally is scheduled for roughly the same time as the President’s speech? Just thought you should know. Feel free to distribute this information to anyone and everyone.Rich
Sounds like Congressman Wolf has some really neat technology from the House Science and Technology Sub Committee.
On a somewhat related note, the far right is all abuzz with priase for that dufus from South Carolina that acted like some breathless birther blooger during the President’s speech last night. Not quite the “Free Speech” perspective they applied to Cindy Sheehan. I’m just sayin…
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Jackson Miller’s Campaign, a Train Wreck????
By bruce | September 3, 2009
According to sources the Jackson Miller campaign is coming off the rails. The campaign manager and political consultant firm have been fired.
Always a good sign when you’re supposed to be a lock for re-election. Hmmm. Wonder if Jackson knows something we don’t??
And what’s up with ducking the NAACP forum? Perhaps the previous manager was a secret health care freak and just wanted to rally the 58% that voted for Barak last year. Well the good news is that BVBL is making the Miller campaign look very professional. With friends like these…
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Wolf Operates Like Connolly???
By bruce | August 25, 2009
Congressman Wolf sorta doing the same thing Congressman Connolly is, Tele-Town Halls. Gerry was vilified by the wing-nuts but not a peep about Frank (they were probably doing Kenyan genealogical or eugenics research ).
Wolf To Hold Town ‘Call’ on Health Care Reform
By Jason Jacks
Tuesday, 25 August 2009Loudouners will get a chance to add their two cents to the heated debate on health care reform without having to fight traffic to do so.
On Sept. 8, U.S. Rep. Frank Wolf (R-10th) will hold what is being billed as a “Town Call,” where residents will be able to opine on President Barack Obama’s plan to restructure the nation’s health care insurance system via their telephones.
Through much of August, federal lawmakers have been holding town halls across the country to gather constituents’ feedback on what the government should do with respect to health care. Some of the gatherings have turned into shouting matches, with backers on both sides attempting to drown out the other.
As for where Wolf stands on the issue, he said he opposes health car legislation now in Congress due to its expected high cost and option for a government-run coverage plan.
“I believe that any plan put forward must control costs, not add billions of dollars to an already ballooning deficit; ensure competition and choice, and provide that patients and their doctors make the decisions on medical care rather than a government-run agency,” he said in a statement.
With the town call, constituents who signed up to receive Wolf’s e-newsletter through his Web site and supplied their phone number and zip code as well will likely receive a call in the late-afternoon on Sept. 8 asking if they want to take part. During the call, Wolf will give an opening address and then take questions.
Wolf spokesman Dan Scandling said Wolf has been holding tele-town halls for the past two years to rave reviews from participants.
“People love it,” he said. “You don’t have to leave your house and you can hear what you want to hear … It’s an easier way to communicate than town halls.”
Scandling added that while health care reform will likely dominate discussion during the Sept. 8 call, constituents can ask questions on any topic they please.
Double standard?? I think not. Just business as usual…
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Speech from Prince William County TEA Party about evil Democrats…
By bruce | July 8, 2009
July 4th, 2009
Quote from a speaker at the Prince William County TEA Party. They sure do hate us for our freedoms.
Darkness falls across the land
The midnight hour is close at hand
Creatures crawl in search of blood
To terrorize y’alls neighborhoodThe foulest stench is in the air
The funk of forty thousand years
And grizzly ghouls from every tomb
Are closing in to seal your doomAnd though you fight to stay alive
Your body starts to shiver
For no mere mortal can resist
The evil of the thriller
CORRECTION. Seems the karmic signals were crossed and this Michael Jackson Thriller Lyrics must have intruded into my internet tubes from VH1 or Palladia. I thought Obannon sounded too much like Vincent Price. They are both pretty scary tho…
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Time to get FIT Virginia…
By bruce | May 12, 2009
As one opposed to the soon to be built through NOVA Dominion power line, I’ve been primarily focusing on the low hanging fruit of demand side management, but recently have been reflecting on the progressive environmental perspectives that seem to put us mostly into the “party of no” column. No mountain top removal, no nukes, no new coal plants, no offshore gas or wind… These are all righteous, but leave us with out the capability to propose real solutions.
I’ve recently become quite the zealot on Feed-In Tariffs (FIT) as THE way for us to promote dramatic increases in our renewable energy resources as well as take some of the power away from Dominion. The FIT program internationally had proven to increase renewable power and in some cases even reduced the Kw hour costs! It’s often been described as Democratizing energy production as so many individuals, small businesses, co-ops etc generate the power.
This program is very new to Virginia and I’m seriously thinking of starting a PAC to move the conversation in the Commonwealth to a different agenda. Would you be interested in helping in some way?
I know this stuff is new so I’ve got a link to two recent forums on the topic to get you up to speed and a LINK of the Washington Monthly article on the Rooftop Revolution.
New America Foundation forum on FIT
World Future Council FIT Symposium
The Washington Monthly The Rooftop Revolution
I’ve also prepared and delivered a FIT briefing book for Deeds and Bowerbank.
FIT’s have the potential to really separate us from the pack with real proposals to reduce our dependence on carbon based power generation, and with Obama’s new ’smart grid’ allow us to move much closer to a generation centric distribution system as opposed to a grid centric one that now requires all that cheap coal electricity being shipped from parts unknown (losing electrons along the way).
Interested? EMAIL ME AT ROEMMELT[AT]EROLS.COM
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Deeds Wins 10th CD Straw Poll…
By bruce | May 9, 2009
Creigh Deeds won the straw poll conducted at the 10th CD reorganization meeting this morning at Heritage High School in Loudoun County.
The results:
Terry 23
Brian 24
Creigh 49
Woot!
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Ronald Reagan Switches Parties, DINO No More…
By bruce | April 29, 2009
Much hand wringing by the right over Specter. It was fine when old Ronnie did it.
One to go…
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That Gay Storm…
By bruce | April 21, 2009
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Just in case we forget what a good president W was…
By bruce | March 4, 2009
Ben & Jerry created “Yes Pecan!” ice cream flavor for Obama.
They then asked people to fill in the blank to the following:
For George W. they created “_________”.
Here are some of their favorite responses:
- Grape Depression
- Abu Grape
- Cluster Fudge
- Nut’n Accomplished
- Iraqi Road
- Chock ‘n Awe
- WireTapioca
- Impeach Cobbler
- Guantanmallow
- imPeachmint
- Good Riddance You Lousy Mother (Censored)… Swirl
- Heckuvajob Brownie
- Neocon Politan
- Rocky Road to Fascism
- The Reese’s-cession
- Cookie D’oh!
- The Housing Crunch
- Nougalar Proliferation
- Death by Chocolate… and Torture
- Credit Crunch
- Country Pumpkin
- Chunky Monkey in Chief
- George Bush Doesn’t Care About Dark Chocolate
- WMDelicious
- Chocolate Chimp
- Bloody Sundae
- Caramel Preemptive Stripe
- I broke the law and am responsible
for the deaths of thousands…with nuts
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How HOPEful to have an HONEST President…
By bruce | February 22, 2009
The New Your Times reports today that President Obama will include in his first budget, 2.7 Trillion dollars of spending that “W” failed to in his past budgets. The number includes the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as Medicare reimbursement to physicians, and disaster response numbers. And Bush was the first MBA President?
Telling the truth is a great way to regain the faith of the American people and the world in the American Presidency. I believe that one of the key elements in our recovery from the Bush Depression is the American people regaining their confidence in our government.
Bush’s response to 911 – “Go Shopping”
Obama’s response to this Gilmorel-like power transfer present – “Go to Work”
What other dirty little secrets will be uncovered from the Bush II era?
Now the tough work begins but this first Obama budget is a huge start.
b
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Wondering where the converted have been…
By bruce | February 17, 2009
Watching my boy Keith tonight and as usual I was just amazed at the Republic rage over the impact of the stimulus package. The local Right Wing blogs are awash with “we’re doing everything we can to keep the Reagan Faith… but Obama is going to cause Armageddon with this plan.”
I’m just uncomfortable with understanding deficits, GNP, etc. My supposed area of expertise is teaching, not economics, but this reaction to a true national crisis is just mind boggling. And as usual Rove is leading the way by continuing to craft the Right’s talking points.
My question is relatively simple. Where was the GOP the last eight years? All this crap about not being involved in the process. I for one recall the Delay Days. Ahhh – truly a bi-partisan party them days were.
But when you ask the question who do you trust to get us out of this mess, I suspect it all starts with historically who reduces the national debt the most (or at all). Looking at Obama’s approval ratings seems to me that the “Real America” is on board with my guy Barack.
Bush was a nightmare on so many levels, but I again ask where was the outrage the past eight years? When the Patriot Act passed without any discussion? When the BS War in Iraq was not even included in the deficit numbers? And on and on…
So I went to the Wiki on the National Debt and was just astonished by the chart below.
Eric Cantor, did you just fall off the turnip truck???
Don’t you just long for the days of old Ronnie when we increased our national debt by over 20%? “W” looks like a rocket surgeon with “just” a 15% increase. This just might move him up to the 8th worst president. I know it’s Clinton’s fault for leaving the MBA President with a surplus!
Not me baby. I’m happy that Obama is the man and trying to engage, but as he told the reporters in ChiTown this week, “I’m no sap.” Mr. President, you have my permission to administer a group dope slap at your discretion.
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