Primaries, Immigration, and an Appetite for Change

May 21, 2010 By Michele Waslin

Michele Waslin: Immigrant advocates will be asking themselves what role immigration played in the primaries. The fact is that the immigration issue probably plays a small role, if any. Quite frankly, Members don’t have much of a record on the issue for voters to base their votes on because Congress has been too scared to take on the issue and see what their constituents say about it. But the sentiments behind the immigration debate echo what we saw in the polls—the public has grown tired with inaction.

O.J., Blumenthal, Souder, and Other Liars: What’s the Point?

May 21, 2010 By Michael Sigman

Richard Blumenthal (Photo by Chion Wolf)

Michael Sigman: It’s one thing for a sociopath like Simpson to think he can get away with asking, in effect, “Who do you believe, me or your lying eyes?” But why do politicians — who love to praise the smarts of “the American people” — tell lies time and again when common sense dictates they’ll be caught, especially now that online searches allow facts to be instantly checked and communicated?

The Media & the Murder of Aiyanna Jones

May 21, 2010 By Sikivu Hutchinson

Sikivu Hutchinson: When a little white girl goes missing, online news, supermarket tabloids and cable network stations bombard us with up-to-the-minute dispatches on the crime, the victim, her shattered family and anguished community. When a little black girl is murdered in cold blood by a big city police department it is up to the community and those who care about social justice to ensure that the case doesn’t fade into the national obscurity that is usually reserved for the lives of people of color.

A Bonny BP Ditty

May 20, 2010 By Jerry Drucker

Jerry Drucker: The U.S. Congressional Hearings were held to learn where the blame lies between British Petroleum, Halliburton or Transocean for the largest oil spill in U.S. history. The circle of lies has started going round and round, where it stops everyone knows. BP blames Halliburton, Halliburton blames Transocean and Transocean blames BP. We can see the blame lies in a circle of lies. The only real question remaining is which big oil CEO will be the first to receive a billion dollar bonus.

How Many is “Too Many”?

May 20, 2010 By Ron Wolff

Ron Wolff: In Los Angeles County, child abuse hotline tips flow in at a rapid clip. Responsibility for investigating them falls to the Department of Children and Family Services. The Los Angeles Times reports that more than 18,000 cases are unresolved within the mandated time limit of 30 days, at least in part because there are simply not enough social workers.

Haiti: “Americans Can See Exactly the Way We Live”

May 20, 2010 By Georgianne Nienaber

Georgianne Nienaber: Writing about the shattered hopes and dreams of the Haitian people is like trying to describe the movements of a symphony to a hearing-impaired person. How does one separate the elements of the whole, the hundreds of conversations, pleas, and stories that assault the senses, while explaining to an indifferent world that they must open their eyes because the cries of the Haitian people are certainly falling on deaf ears?

Mutual Respect: The Passing of Bill Elkins and the Lessons of Growing Old

May 20, 2010 By Anthony Asadullah Samad

Anthony Samad: I’m sure many attended the service out of a deep love and friendship for Bill Elkins. I’m all were there in a show of deep respect to Bill Elkins. I know I was. A life lesson we often miss when we are young searching for respect, never understanding that it is earned in ways one least expects. Respect becomes mutual as time reveals the results of our stands. Sometimes it takes a passing to realize what the fight was really all about. We both wanted progress, just in different ways.

Pennsylvania’s Primary: Good News, Bad News for Progressives

May 20, 2010 By John Peeler

John Peeler: The 2010 Pennsylvania Primary had a lot of good news for progressive Democrats. The 18 May balloting saw Representative Joe Sestak take out five-term Senator Arlen Specter, just a year after the latter switched to the Democratic Party in the face of an assured loss in the Republican primary. And, the Democrats held the seat long occupied by the late Jack Murtha. On the other hand, the most progressive candidate in the gubernatorial primary, Joe Hoeffel, finished a poor fourth, and the winner, Dan Onorato, is not only less progressive, but starts well down in the polls against the Republican nominee, state Attorney General Tom Corbett.

Winograd vs. Incumbent Harman: The Margin Narrows

May 19, 2010 By admin

With less than 3 weeks to go in the primary election, a new poll shows the Winograd/Harman race is competitive and may be reflecting an anti-incumbency wave. The IVR Poll of nearly 1,000 Likely Voters Indicates Winograd is within four points of the embattled incumbent. The poll of likely primary voters shows Congressional Candidate Marcy Winograd (CA-36) may well defeat opponent Jane Harman in the June 8th Democratic Party primary.

Send Another Incumbent Home

May 19, 2010 By admin

Incumbent Jane Harman was so supportive of Republican policies that she referred to herself as “the best Republican in the Democratic Party”. Well, what we witnessed in Pennsylvania can happen again. The voters told incumbent Arlin Specter to go home. The same can be done with incumbent Jane Harman. If you want to tell the incumbent Jane Harman to go home, you can do that by phone banking in the comfort of your own home. Send and email to email [email protected] and Bill will give you a login phone account. It’s just that easy to give support to a true progressive, Marcy Winograd.

Newsweek Blew It

May 19, 2010 By Michael Sigman

Michael Sigman: it was refreshing to hear Washington Post Chairman Donald Graham’s candor about the fate of Newsweek, his company’s iconic money-hemorrhaging magazine, about which he said earlier this month, “If anyone should take the blame for this ending, it is me — for not seeing early enough and reacting in the right way to the changes that have come to our industry.”

Sarah Palin Supports Arizona’s Law? You Betcha!

May 19, 2010 By Seth Hoy

Seth Hoy: After weeks of negative press, calls for boycotts, and talk of legal challenges to Arizona’s law, Gov. Brewer is on the defensive—as evidenced by trotting out Sarah Palin to launch a new website. For the most part, Palin used Arizona’s controversy as a soap box for her Tea Party talking points—Washington: broken, President: bad, Sarah: good.

For Capitalists, Obesity Is a Sign of Marketing Success

May 19, 2010 By Tina Dupuy

Tina Dupuy: Obesity and the hidden costs behind it are a classic example of privatizing profit and socializing losses. The more successful the food industry is, the fatter we become and the more society has to absorb those costs. The military has reportedly turned away over 48,000 recruits since 2005 for being too fat to serve. And if they can’t pass the military’s standard of 26% body fat, they’re not likely to make it as a civilian first responder either.

I Will Defend My Mother’s Purity!

May 19, 2010 By Carl Matthes

Paul Rudnick (Pholo: Michael Mahoney, Hat Head Studios)

Carl Matthes: What prompted TCT to produce “Fabulous”? Andy recollected, “We have always been huge fans of Paul Rudnick’s work with his play “Jeffrey” recently produced in Austin at the Arts on Real Theatre. “Most Fabulous” is a play with a lot of humor, but with a lot of heart as well. We pride ourselves in staging all types of live theatre and with much variety to every season. We always hope to appeal to the wide range of people who make up the Austin theatre community.”

The “Mad-As-Hell” Party Scores as the Anxious Class Stews

May 18, 2010 By Robert Reich

Robert Reich: It’s the economy, stupid. American politics is turning anti-establishment because so many Americans feel screwed by the economy and they blame the establishment. If there’s a trend here, it’s not left-wing Democrats versus right-wing Republicans. It’s the “Mad-As-Hell” Party against both.