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March 31, 2006

Caption Scalia

This is Antonin "Tony the Fixer" Scalia, Justice of the United States Supreme Court, gesturing to a group of reporters as he was leaving church this week.

Here's a few captions to start you off, courtesy of The Agonist. Add yours in the comments:

1. "Here is the church, and here is the steeple. Open the doors, and %#!$ off, all youse people."

2. "I'm not giving you one finger, I'm giving you five fingers."

3. ""No, really... I was just wiping off a speck of communion wafer...honest."

Posted by Perry Dorrell at 06:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

March 26, 2006

Sunday Funnies







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March 24, 2006

Sy Hersh at the Progressive Forum

Sy Hersh, the Pulitzer Prize winning journalist who broke the story of prison abuse in Abu Ghraib, has been one of America's premier reporters for over 35 years. He was greeted with enthusiastic applause Thursday evening as he spoke as a guest of the Progressive Forum.

As the applause tapered down, he quipped, "This is the happiest you all are going to be all night." He went on to say that he had good news and bad news. The bad news was that there were still 1033 days left in the reign of King George II. The good news was that when we wake up tomorrow morning, there would be one less.

He said that there is a disconnect in the White House that gets bigger and more frightening everyday. He proclaimed that we should "get back to the Parliamentary system so we can have a snap election and get rid of him right away!"

I could not possibly do justice to Hersh by trying to summarize his presentation. It is obvious when listening to him speak that he has so much to say that it is more of an effort for him to limit himself to the timeframe than anything else. Since I cannot cover everything, I'd like to simply share some of the more memorable quotes and moments from the evening.

On the real cost of war:
With a monetary value of about one trillion dollars, HALF of the cost of the war could fully fund social security for the next 70 years.

After retelling a story about a soldier involved in the My Lai massacre in Viet Nam, he quoted the soldier's mother: "I gave them a good boy and they sent me back a murderer."

A woman returns from service at Abu Ghraib, exhibiting a total change in personality. Her mother says she doesn't know who she is anymore. The woman began getting new tattoos every weekend. Her mother says, "It's as if she wanted to change her skin." This soldier had 80 horrendous pictures from Abu Ghraib saved on her computer. Many would later be published.

We have yet to realize the true cost of this war. 120,000 Viet Nam veterans ended up on disability. War premanently and irrevocably changes every person it touches. How many of our country's sons and daughters will lose a part of themselves because of this war?

What now?
"The quicker we get out, the more quickly these people (the fueding factions in Iraq) will come to terms with each other.

"As long as we are there, we are the 200 octane fuel that fuels the insurgency."

On the Bush administration and the Senate:
"Rationality does not exist in the White House."

"On any given day, the Senate is either supine or prone. You take your pick."

"I think that once Bush is out of office, he will be chased around like Pinochet. Good thing he's got his ranch!"

Bush is "a revolutionary. A revolutionary with no capacity to learn; no capacity to change."

"He's a rebel with a bedtime."

This administration is an exhibit of "an astonishing failure of moral leadership."


Sy Hersh spoke the truth, both in the message he delivered, and also in the warning that we would be the happiest early in the evening. It is not a pleasant thing, dwelling upon all of the many tragic failures of the Bush administration. But as unpleasant as it may be, continuing to talk about it and staying focused on reclaiming our right to a government with dignity and real moral clarity - as opposed to the depravity masquerading as Christianity which now occupies the White House - is important. Defeatism never wins. If we will prevail, we must continue to face all of these issues head-on, no matter how much easier it seems to pull the covers over our heads and try to go back to sleep.

While much of the evening was devoted to subjects that anger and appall, Mr. Hersh did say that he believes that the tide has changed and that we are heading toward a massive shift in the balance of power. I certainly hope he is right. That thought is all that keeps me going lately.

Posted by Lisa Devereaux at 09:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

March 23, 2006

David Van Os to Filibuster at Special Session

March 23, 2006    

Contact: Rachel Barrios-Van Os, (210) 225-1955 


PRESS ADVISORY - Van Os to Filibuster at Special Session;

Accuses Abbott of Twiddling His Thumbs


"For 24 hours from noon April 17 to noon April 18, I'll be filibustering in front of the Capitol with fellow citizens, demanding a just and Constitutional system of free public education for all Texas children, like our forebears demanded when they declared independence from despotism in 1836, and like every generation of Texans has demanded ever since. Like every fight I take on, I'll fight this one 'till hell freezes over, then I'll fight it on the ice." – David Van Os 

Commencing at high noon on April 17, the first day of the special legislative session on school finance, Democratic Attorney General nominee David Van Os will conduct a 24-Hour Citizens' Filibuster for a Constitutional System of Free Public Education for all Texas Children.   

Van Os in particular blasts Attorney General Greg Abbott's handling of the latest round of school finance litigation, pointing out that, "Instead of rolling up his sleeves and going to work for the people of Texas to help craft a Constitutional public education system, Greg Abbott sat back and twiddled his thumbs while the legislature struggled through session after session with no assistance from the state's top legal officer. Then when the legislature kept fouling it up so bad that citizens had to keep asking the courts to intervene, Abbott's response was to try to convince the courts of Texas they had no authority to do anything about it under the Abbott theory of Constitutional law, otherwise known as 'Constitution, what's that?'"  

"So now the courts have given the governor and the legislature their last chance, and again where's the attorney general in this acute and long-running Texas Constitutional crisis?" Van Os asks. "The legislature is facing its last stand, the governor and legislature haven't agreed on anything, any bill has to pass Constitutional muster, and still the state's chief lawyer and Constitutional advisor is nowhere around."  

"I'll answer my own question," says Van Os. "Instead of jumping in and doing his part to help his fellow Texans solve this pressing and urgent issue, Greg Abbott is saying to himself, 'Why should I care? I got my education, I made it through law school, I got appointed to a big job on the Texas Supreme Court by my pal George Bush, I got to run for Attorney General when my Republican political cronies raised a lot of money for me, and I get lots of money from my political buddies in the boardrooms and big law firms to keep me in office; heck, I'm doing fine, so what's the fuss? Why do some people have to fret all the time? Aren't we all doing fine?'"  

"Greg Abbott may be too busy hobnobbing with his silk-stocking buddies to worry," continues Van Os, "but I know where I'll be on April 17, on the grounds of the seat of government, demanding that the leaders of my State cease the political games and remember who they are. They are Texans, and we Texans don't put up with mediocrity. From the earliest days, we Texans have demanded the best in public education and we even rose up in revolution over it. When our forebears declared independence from despotism and proclaimed a new nation, one of the reasons they did it, to quote from the Texas Declaration of Independence, was because the tyrannical central government had 'failed to establish any public system of education, although possessed of almost boundless resources, (the public domain,) and although it is an axiom in political science, that unless a people are educated and enlightened, it is idle to expect the continuance of civil liberty, or the capacity for self government.'"  

"Fellow Texans," Van Os concludes, "what was true to the authors of the Texas Declaration of Independence in March of 1836 is just as true today. The continuance of civil liberty and the capacity for self government depend on the bright light that education shines on all of society. From noon on April 17 to noon on April 18, I will be filibustering in a call for Texas to turn that light on. Like every fight I take on, I'll fight this one 'till hell freezes over, then I'll fight it on the ice. Fellow Texans, this is a fight we all have to win. Please join me." 

Posted by Lyn Wall at 09:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 22, 2006

Lamar H.S. Young Democrats Carwash

Lamar H.S. Young Democrats Carwash

April 1st, 11 a.m.-5 p.m

Lamar High School
3325 Westheimer
Houston, TX 77098

Come and support the Lamar High School Young Democrats as they hold their 1st annual Car Wash Fundraiser!

Posted by Lyn Wall at 11:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Think Hart InterCivic Machines Give Accurate Results? Think again.

From the San Angelo Times

Ballot recount stopped

Problems with voting machines delay results

By PAUL A. ANTHONY, panthony@sastandardtimes.com or 659-8237
March 22, 2006

A recount of ballots cast during the March 7 primary election ground to a halt Tuesday - midway through its second day - after workers could not resolve discrepancies that affected more than 1,400 ballots.

Tom Green County Republican Party Chairman Dennis McKerley suspended the recount of the County Court-at-Law No. 2 race about 1:30 p.m. after seeking advice from the Texas Secretary of State's Office, which suggested shutting down the recount until what appear to be problems with electronic voting machines could be fixed....

...Initial election results, certified by the county Saturday, showed Edwards finishing 12 votes behind Roberts for second place and the right to face Hughes in the April 11 runoff election.

The problem in the recount appears to be with new, federally mandated electronic voting machines, provided by vendor Hart InterCivic. During a hand recount, the machines are designed to print out paper ballots for each voter's choices, but Mc-Kerley said the machines that were used to register early votes printed out only 75 percent to 80 percent of the votes believed to have been cast.

more...
Also reported at BradBlog.

All the more reason to replace Beverly Kaufman with James G. Pierre who supports adding a voter verified paper trail to these machines.

Posted by Lyn Wall at 10:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

On the ROADwomen

OK, stop thinking that.

Last night I attended the monthly ROADwomen meeting at which Nick Lampson spoke and took questions. He was joined by Gary Binderim, CD-02 candidate, and statehouse challengers Sherrie Matula and Janette Sexton. There were representatives from the campaigns of Diane Trautman, Mark McDavid, and Ellen Cohen as well as Barbara Radnofsky and David Van Os. The judicial candidates in attendance included Bill Connolly, Chuck Silverman, and Leora Kahn.

Stace Medellin and the roadtrippers from Kingwood were also in the audience.

This organization of powerful women is going to make a difference in the 2006 elections. Count on it.

Posted by Perry Dorrell at 06:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 19, 2006

What I Heard About Iraq - March 20


"WHAT I HEARD ABOUT IRAQ" ~

a multimedia performance"

Join us in a world-wide "artistic act of dissent" on the third anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq!

Monday, March 20, 2006 7:00pm
First Unitarian Universalist's Church, 5200 Fannin at Southmore

FREE staged production. Multi-media production presents astounding historical quotes from politicians and military officials, US and Iraqi citizens, media footage music.

Los Angeles director and producer Simon Levy adapted Eliot Weinberger's article by the same title, published in the London Review of Books, (3/14/05). Weinberg's text was the most-visited article ever on the magazine's website, linked on some 100,000 other websites and translated in over 20 languages. The Peter Weiss Foundation for Art and Politics (International Literature Festival Berlin) are coordinating performances of WHAT I HEARD ABOUT IRAQ in over 40 cities.

The Community Involvement Committee of First Unitarian Universalist Church, invites the public to also participate in a candlelight vigil on Fannin Street and build a memorial rock cairn 5:00 to 7:00 pm to honor those who have died in the war on Iraq.

Sponsored by Pacifica Radio KPFT, Voices Breaking Boundaries, the Miranda Project, the Community Involvement Committee of the First Unitarian Universalist Church, Code Pink, Houston Peace News.

See a review WIHAI performance: http://www.neworleansvfp.org

Los Angeles reviews: http://www.fountaintheatre.com/press.html

Europe cities and review: http://www.literaturfestival.com/news1_3_2_48.html

Posted by Lyn Wall at 08:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Sunday Funnies (March Madness edition)



More... --->


And from 2003:

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March 17, 2006

Immigrants as Scapegoats

Thanks to Murvin Auzenne, Chair of the HCDP Communications and message group for this post:

I had the “pleasure” of catching Dan Patrick in all his glory answering questions before the TMO [The Metropolitan Organization] about 2 weeks before the March primaries. It was a most enlightening experience. After telling us that his religious faith would guide every decision he made once elected (something he said with a straight face) , he proceeded to inform the audience that the healthcare crisis here in Harris County was caused by all those illegal immigrants and that the solution was to crack down on them. He was of course just using the talking points provided for him by the spinmiesters of the Republican noise machine, but he was also telegraphing one of the key themes of the upcoming midterm elections. We will be having an Issue Forum on April 8 th to develop a message frame on this issue. Go to http://www.democracyforhouston.org/ for details. More below…

At the TMO event, the minister running the affair promptly asked for a show of hands – how many people present who were struggling with basic healthcare coverage were illegal aliens. No hands went up. The fact of the matter is that 80% of those who lack health insurance are citizens! Of course, this won’t stop Dan and his breed throughout the Republican Party from saying it , over and over, until the uncountered lie becomes the common knowledge of the media class and of the general public.

I think the evidence is clear. Immigrants , as far as the GOP is concerned , are the new “gays”. They can be blamed for everything. They are a narrative theme to which one can attach national security, health care costs, lost jobs. Scapegoating and fear mongering, SOP for the Mighty Rightwing Noise Machine , are the tactics of choice and the GOP thinks they have found a winner in the immigrant issue.

Consider locally, the flirtation of John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison with the Minute Men militia. Cornyn went so far as to endorse them as a supplement to the Border Patrol and only backed off this when there was a generally negative hue and cry. Claiming that he as so concerned and frustrated his anger got the better of his judgment, he retreated to fall back position #2- draconian and comprehensive reform.

Hutchingson , in turn is sponsoring the most Draconian of the present covey of “immigration reform” bills before Congress. It gives a nod to the use of the armed, and untrained, non-Spanish speaking Minutemen to aid in border surviellence . It also s criminalizes the employment of “illegal aliens”. I suspect that neither she nor Cornyn believes or wishes passage of their bills. It is their re-election dog and pony show, red meat for the base.

Of course my stronger suspicion is that what we have here is a classic “good cop”, “bad cop” game. Recall that President Bush offered us his version of a “guest worker” program during the 2004 presidential campaign. It also is not likely to pass anytime soon.

As if I needed further evidence that I am on the right track. This mornings’ paper brings the news that there will not be enough time for “comprehensive” reform measures, the Senate will have to simply go with beefed up border security measures. Add this to the fact that “In December, the House passed a border enforcement bill and blocked debate on temporary worker visas…” and you have the Repub formula on this issue.

What this all means is that now Cornyn and Kay Bailey and their ilk can have their cake and eat it too. They can run on their “tough” reform postures and at the same time, not anger their business base supporters.

The Big Picture

By the numbers:

Public Opinion [ from http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/state/13383350.htm ]

“….a new poll shows that Texans are increasingly losing patience with the government's efforts to crack down on illegal immigrants and the employers who hire them.

Seventy-nine percent say the government is not doing enough to stop illegal immigrants, according to a newly released Scripps Howard Texas Poll conducted for the Star-Telegram and other publications. The finding reflects a 10 point increase from February of 2004 and a 21-point hike from August of 2001. The survey included 1,000 Texas adults, and the poll has an overall margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Well over 1 million illegal immigrants, mostly from Mexico, are believed to be living in Texas, making the state's population of undocumented residents the second largest in the nation behind California. An estimated 11 million illegal immigrants are in the United States.

Eighty-four percent of Texans surveyed consider illegal immigration a serious problem, while 76 percent believe the number of unauthorized immigrants crossing into Texas has been increasing in recent years.”

Then there is the association of illegal immigration with national security stated. See here for example. http://www.woai.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=64230380-765E-43AE-ACD7-82CC0D612AB5

How should we frame this issue? I have no final answers, I start with these principles:

[ these last 5 paraphrased from a presentation at a TMO meeting by the head of immigrant issues for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. I have added the values I think they speak to. ]

We need to do right on this issue. Hopefully this contributes to starting the necessary discussion.

I encourage everyone to join us on April 8th to discuss this very important topic. No one knows how best to frame our position, but together we can make a beginning on this important work. As Democrats we are strong when we work together as a community. These events are intended to help build that community through dialogue and at the same time to create and disseminate good strong value based messages.

It was Jim Wallis in his book, God’s Politics who said it best, “We are the people we have been waiting for….” Be part of solution. Register and come on April 8th.

Posted by Lyn Wall at 02:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

On the 3rd Anniversary of the Invasion - Stop the War

Tomorrow is the 3rd Anniversary of the Iraq war and yesterday the administration escalated the assault on the Iraqi people, launching Operation Swarmer, despite evidence that the tactic of escalating the violence inflames the insurgency.

Code Pink is sponsoring a Jazz Funeral procession and rally:

Saturday, March 18
Demonstration and rally on 3rd anniversary of Iraq invasion. STOP the War Abroad and Here at Home.

CodePink Houston Jazz Fuuneral begins at about 11 a.m near the VA Hospital, corner of Holcombe Blvd. and Almeda Rd. We will march to Old Spanish Trail and back for the Rally @ 1 p.m. just north of the hospital.

Posted by Lyn Wall at 11:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Latino Access to Higher Education in Houston

Latino Access to

Higher Education in Houston

Come listen to local College and University Presidents speak on their institution’s initiatives to recruit and retain Latino students. College and University recruiters will also be distributing valuable information about their respective institutions.

DATE:  Thursday, March 23, 2006

LOCATION: Cesar Chavez High School

8501 Howard Drive

Houston, TX 77017

TIME: 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Presented by:

Texas Association of Chicanos in Higher Education

(TACHE)-Gulf Coast Region

in cooperation with

University Outreach Center Houston

&

LULAC Council #18

Questions? Contact: houstontache@yahoo.com

Posted by Lyn Wall at 10:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 15, 2006

Take the Rita Evacuation Survey

Transtar wants to hear from you, and I'm just guessing you have something to say about the Rita evacuation. It's a short survey: http://traffic.houstontranstar.org/ritasurvey/.

Posted by Lyn Wall at 08:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 12, 2006

Sunday Funnies



More ... --->



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March 09, 2006

Happy Birthday HoustonDemocrats.com!!!!!

Thanks to everyone who's helped make our first year a great success!

ttbbanner.jpg
Image courtesy of DFH ESC Member Abner Brown, Jr.

Posted by Lyn Wall at 08:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBack

March 08, 2006

Get well Ann Richards!

From the Austin American Statesman

Former Gov. Ann Richards diagnosed with cancer

AUSTIN — Former Texas Gov. Ann Richards says she has cancer of the esophagus.

The 72-year-old Democrat will undergo treatment at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

An aide says Richards went in for tests Monday and got the results yesterday.

Spokesman Bill Maddox says Richards is waiting to learn from officials at M.D. Anderson as to when she can check in.

Maddox also says the former governor is, quote: "facing this challenge."

Richards was the 45th Texas governor, serving from 1991 to 1995.

Ms. Richards was a great governor, followed by two losers. Here's to wishing her a complete and speedy recovery.

Posted by Lyn Wall at 02:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Congratulations to Yesterday's Primary Winners

and good luck to the candidates who find themselves in runoffs. To view the results, go to http://election.co.harris.tx.us/.

And remember, organizing your precinct for the November elections starts today. Visit www.hcdp.org/organize.htm for organizing strategies and resources.

Posted by Lyn Wall at 01:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 07, 2006

Tom DeLay, the Movie

The producers and distributors of the big buyI was lucky enough to get dismissed from jury duty today early enough to attend the press conference for the release of The Big Buy. The new documentary that focuses on the story of Tom DeLay. Unfortunately, although Mr. DeLay received numerous requests to be interviewed for the film over the course of the 3 years it was in production, his office did not respond to the requests.

I came home with a copy of the DVD but no time to watch it today. The teaser, which you can download at http://tomdelaymovie.com/ is very powerful, ending with Jack Abramoff saying, "Tom DeLay is who we all want to be when we grow up. Thank God Tom DeLay is the Speaker of the House".

The speakers at the press conference were the film's directors, Mark Birnbaum (who, far from being a liberal partisan, voted in the Republican primary) and Jim Schermbeck as well as BraveNew Films' Chairman Rick Jacobs.

KHOU, Channel 11 filmed the entire press conference (including a long shot of my David Van Os Tshirt). AP was there and KTRK, Channel 13 showed up at the end.

Those of us who've been following it know the story. It's about time the rest of the nation learns how corrupt Tom DeLay really is.

Posted by Lyn Wall at 04:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack

March 05, 2006

Sunday Funnies




And there's more...



Posted by Perry Dorrell at 11:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 04, 2006

Update: Live blogging from David Van Os' Filibuster in Austin

The filibuster started at 6pm last night and they've had some very good crowds throughout the event. I arrived about 10:30 this morning to a crowd that included John Courage and Larry Stallings among others. It's beautiful weather so if you're in the mood for a road trip, head to the Austin Capital steps.

My internet connection is very slow, so I'll post photos later. More when I get a better conection...

Not so live Sunday update:

David Van OsFilibuster SignI arrived at 10:30 Saturday morning. The die-hards, including our own Perry Dorrell had been up all night. Many passers by stopped to see what we were up to and stayed to listen to David Van Os speak.

Among the notables who stopped by (besides David) were

More photos:

The Van Os Family
The Van Os family

David Van Os
David Van Os

Elliott Naishtat
Elliot Naishat

David Van Os (That's a very sleepy Perry Dorrell in the background)
David Van Os

Filming the Filibuster
Filming DVO

Posted by Lyn Wall at 11:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack