For The Trees

Who is our economy FOR, anyway?

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About the Authors:
Dave Johnson
John Emerson
Richard Reich
Thomas Leavitt

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Voting Machines - California To Require Voter-Verified Paper Trails

State changes rule on electronic voting machines:

"In an effort to prevent fraud, California's top election official Friday ordered all counties using electronic voting systems to provide voters with printed receipts by 2006.

'As the state progresses with new technology, all Californians must have confidence that every vote cast is a vote counted,' said California Secretary of State Kevin Shelley. 'These new requirements will provide this confidence.'

Shelley's decision could prompt other states to adopt similar rules as they update their balloting systems. That's because California has more than 10 percent of the nation's voters, and companies that sell the machines here likely will offer them elsewhere. "

--- Posted at 11/22/2003 07:50:00 AM by Dave Johnson

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Fighting Back Against Republican Smears

THIS is how you fight back!

All I can say is GOOD FOR THEM!!!

Update -- Here's the script.

--- Posted at 11/21/2003 02:11:00 PM by Dave Johnson

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The Medicare Privatization Bill

I want to say this to Democrats in the Congress as they prepare to vote on the Medicare Privatization Bill. If you are thinking of voting for this so the Republicans won't campaign against you, saying you opposed prescription drugs for seniors, they're going to ANYWAY!

If you voted for the war, they campaigned against you as unpatriotic ANYWAY!

If you voted for Bush's tax cuts, they campaigned against you as being a "tax and spend" Democrat ANYWAY!

If you voted for the education bill, they campaigned against you as blocking education reform ANYWAY!

If you voted against the minimum wage, they campaign against you as "anti-business" ANYWAY!

If you voted to let 98% of Bush's judicial nominations through, they say you are an obstructionist blocking Bush's judicial nominations ANYWAY!

You need to start listening to talk radio, and hear what they are saying about you. It is worse than anything you can imagine, and it is in the public's ears 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Radio is unabashedly pro-Republican and ridiculing Democrats, and it is repeated and repeated and repeated until even Democrats are repeating their anti-government, pro-corporate messages.

Voting with them isn't going to help, not even a little bit.

--- Posted at 11/19/2003 10:22:00 AM by Dave Johnson

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Bomb On Rumor

Stories like this, make me wonder:

"The military said the bombings were part of Operation Iron Hammer, the new aggressive tactic of initiating attacks against insurgents before they strike."

You mean they weren't attacking the hideouts of insurgents BEFORE? You mean they weren't going after the people leaving bombs for our troops BEFORE?

Or is this a new policy of killing anyone they SUSPECT of being a threat? Or maybe anyone they get a tip about? Sounds like a good way to get rid of someone you don't like -- tell the US military they are a threat.

--- Posted at 11/19/2003 10:12:00 AM by Dave Johnson

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Say What?

This story, Dean Calls For New Controls on Business includes this line:

"Dean has excited core Democratic voters with a relentless assault on corporations and the rich, and he is moving quickly to stake a position as the candidate with the boldest plans for tempering the influence and power of U.S. businesses."

Say what? Dean in a "a relentless assault on corporations and the rich"??????? Where did that come from?

--- Posted at 11/19/2003 09:05:00 AM by Dave Johnson

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The Beginning Of The Big One?

Dollar falls to fresh low against euro:

"The dollar fell to a record low against the euro on Tuesday as data showing sharply weaker capital flows prompted new fears over the funding of the US current account deficit.

Treasury figures showed net capital inflows into the US fell from about $50bn (E42bn) in August to $4.2bn in September, the lowest since the near-collapse and bail-out of the Long Term Capital Management hedge fund rattled markets in 1998.

The euro rose two cents to $1.1953 against the dollar, beating its previous lifetime high of $1.1933, set in May.
The data raised fears that the US may have difficulties funding its current account deficit, which ran at about $46bn a month in the first half of the year.

'The September data is the strongest evidence to date that the record US current account deficit has become too large to finance through the net foreign investment into US securities, and is thus contributing to the long-term decline in the US dollar,' said Michael Woolfolk, senior currency strategist at the Bank of New York."

It just might be a good time to own gold and Euros.

--- Posted at 11/18/2003 09:10:00 PM by Dave Johnson

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New Article

I have an article over at Media Transparency: Lowering the Bar: The conservative movement's well-funded attacks on trial lawyers.

--- Posted at 11/18/2003 12:34:00 PM by Dave Johnson

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Under Bush There Is No Law Or Accountability - Anywhere

Read this story, U.S. destroys suspected guerrillas' homes:

In a tactic reminiscent of Israeli crackdowns in the West Bank and Gaza, the U.S. military has begun destroying the homes of suspected guerrilla fighters in Iraq's Sunni Triangle, evacuating women and children, then leveling their houses with heavy weaponry.

Then read Article 33 of the Geneva Convention:

Art. 33. No protected person may be punished for an offence he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited.

Pillage is prohibited.

Reprisals against protected persons and their property are prohibited.

It doesn't get much clearer than this. We are blatantly violating the Geneva Convention. Under Bush there is no law or accountability at home or abroad.

This isn't the first time we've been in blatant violation of Article 33. I wrote then, and say it again now, "The Party can get away with threats, intimidation and blatantly violating laws in the U.S., because they control the House, the Senate, the Justice Department, the FBI, the Courts, the military and the press. Can they continue to get away with it internationally as well?"

Update - Billmon has much more.

--- Posted at 11/18/2003 11:54:00 AM by Dave Johnson

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Tom Gets Off

Thinking It Through: STOP THE BLOG -- I WANT TO GET OFF 11-18-03:

"Well I guess it’s about time to come clean folks. I’ve loved this blogging thing over the last fifteen months but, I’m afraid to say, it’s time to hang it up."

--- Posted at 11/18/2003 09:57:00 AM by Dave Johnson

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Today's Google Experiment

Let's do a Google Search: on "diebold 18181" and see what we get.

--- Posted at 11/17/2003 03:31:00 PM by Dave Johnson

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Nice Work

From Eric Alterman::

"Nice work if you can get it:

“Edison Schools, a company created to run public schools like private businesses, accepted a $182 million buyout from Florida’s pension fund Wednesday in a deal that follows years of losses but promises millions of dollars for the CEO. ”

--- Posted at 11/17/2003 03:20:00 PM by Dave Johnson

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Oh Yeah!

Go here FOXNews.com, scroll down to "Setting the Record Straight" with Gen. Clark, and watch what happens when the FOX guy tries out the "Do you think it's right for you to say these things while our men and women are fighting in Iraq?"

Ooooo - Weeee! Not gonna try THAT again!

--- Posted at 11/17/2003 02:14:00 PM by Dave Johnson

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21,600 More Unemployed

Yahoo! News - About 21,600 Accept Buyout From Verizon:

"NEW YORK - About 21,600 employees accepted a buyout offer from Verizon Communications and will leave the payroll by the end of the week, nearly double the number that the nation's biggest telephone company estimated last month."

21,600 more unemployed people. My question: will they show up on next week's newly unemployed count?

--- Posted at 11/17/2003 11:07:00 AM by Dave Johnson

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