Posted by bosskitty on July 7, 2009
The world is reeling from political upheaval, economic meltdown and environmental catastrophe.
What does the national media focus on for two weeks? The high drama of a controversial musical artist who has the audacity of dying. News that effects each and every person on this planet is buried under hype and circumstance.
People are starving, people are being caught up in conflicts beyond their control. People are trying to adapt to a more environmental and economical lifestyle. Celebrity nonsense is the stuff of blogs and checkout rags, not the national media that employs “high quality” journalists. Unemployed journalists are a dime a dozen right now. The choice to focus national media on celebrity hype is network management.
SHAME ON YOU!
Posted in Abuse of Power, Dirty Media, Media, Media Spin | Tagged: MSM | Leave a Comment »
Posted by bosskitty on June 29, 2009
It’s Fourth of July week, and so it’s time for an extra-patriotic rendition of the Texas Progressive Alliance blog roundup.
Off the Kuff takes a look at the latest Lyceum poll on the Governor and Senate races in Texas.
Neil at Texas Liberal suggests that instead of blowing of your fingers lighting fireworks–during a drought in Harris County no less—that maybe you would be better off reading a book instead.
With 2010 spinning up, it’s funny to watch all the different players already on the field line up to take their first hits. McBlogger, of course, thinks they’re all deeply in need of a little advice which he graciously provides (with surprisingly sparse use of profanity)!
WCNews & Dembones at Eye On Williamson post on the latest controversy involving the Williamson County Commissioners Court, Budget officer not just a good idea, it’s the law.
John at Bay Area Houston says Turn out the lights, the family values party is over.
CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme thinks online Texas Republican commentary on Mark Sanford is interesting.
The similarities between Mark Sanford and Ray Bolger (as the Scarecrow in “The Wizard of Oz”) are just too weird, notes PDidde at Brains and Eggs.
The wise men are willing to pay a tax on their favorite junk food to pay for health care reform.
WhosPlayin.com Video bring you EXTREME Congressional Town Hall – Special “Losing our freedoms” edition, sponsored by Prozac.
Over at TexasKaos, Libby Shaw calls our attention to Confessions of a Former Health Insurance Exec: “We Dump the Sick”. Who knew? All the posturing , hypocritical , offers of self-reform and insurance relief are just so much bogus cover up for an industry too greedy to ever be trusted to regulate themselves!
The Texas Cloverleaf discusses gay pride, bar raids, and millions of gays marching in DFW this past weekend during the 40th anniversary of Stonewall.
Texas Vox reports on Texas’ record setting energy consumption and the need for renewable peak energy over boring old baseload from coal, gas, and nuclear.
Burnt Orange Report covers TX-10 Congressional candidate Jack McDonald’s campaign expansion in the Austin area.
Posted in Texas, Texas Blogs, Texas Politics, Texas Progressive Alliance, Views From Texas | Tagged: Texas, Texas Blogs, Texas Politics, Texas Progressive Alliance, Views From Texas | Leave a Comment »
Posted by bosskitty on June 25, 2009
Photos courtesy of LA Times photo slide show.
Photos courtesy of LA Times photo slide show.
The Ayatollah who thinks he’s Allah has visions of grandeur. If Khamenei has received a “divine message”, one would wonder if he heard it right. Khamenei behaves as though he is infallible, is he guilty of pride and arrogance? Hadith Qudsi, Allah says: “Greatness and Pride is my cloak (My qualities) whoever claims to have these, I will enter him into the fire of hell”. How long can Khamenei get away with mutating Islam to his own benefit? He appears to interpret a very narrow, self serving view of the words Muhammad brought from Angel Gabriel. Why are there so many clerics in Iran who have taken on the cloak of arrogance without regard to the clear, UNEDITED words Muhammad spoke. Khamenei thinks no one can see through his con? He deludes himself that his personal gratification is holy and cannot be questioned. Allah gave his words to his prophet Muhammad, showing great disdain for pride and arrogance. Khamenei rules for himself and not the words Allah gave to the Prophet.
The children of Abraham all have disdain for the sin of pride and arrogance as written in the Quran, Torah and Bible
“God elevate s a person who is humble for the sake of God, but whoever tries to exalt himself, God humiliates him”. In addition, we are told by Allah (swa) Himself that He “does not love the arrogant”.
Allaah, Almighty, Says (what means): “I will turn away from My Ayaat (verses of the Quran) those who behave arrogantly on the earth, without a right, and (even) if they see all the Ayaat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons signs, revelations, etc.), they will not believe in them…” [Quran; 7:146] and (what means) “… truly He likes not the proud.” [Quran; 16:23]
Photos courtesy of LA Times photo slide show.
The Prophet also said: “The Fire complained saying: ‘I am the dwelling of the arrogant and the tyrants’.” [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
Al-Bukhaari and Muslim also reported that the Prophet said: “Allaah will not look on the Day of Judgment at him who drags his robe (behind him) out of pride.”
Then, Abu Bakr said: “O Messenger of Allaah, one side of my robe slacks down but I am very cautious about it (i.e. I raise it).” Thereupon, the Messenger of Allaah said: “But you do not do that out of pride”
Pride is an inner bad moral that makes the afflicted with it see himself “above” the others due to the perfect qualities and attributes that he “believes” to have.
This is a very dangerous flaw that afflicts so many people, even some ascetics, scholars, and worshipers of Allaah. Surely it is so dangerous because the Prophet stated that he who has in his heart the weight of an atom of pride will not enter Paradise.
Pride deprives the prideful person from Paradise because it prevents him from acquiring the qualities of the believers, for he cannot like for the believers that which he likes for himself, nor can he be humble, or avoid animosity, envy, or wrath, or restrain his anger, or accept good advice, or refrain from despising and backbiting people. In short, he is subject to all blameworthy morals.
Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is seen during his meeting with Iranian lawmakers today.
Photos courtesy of LA Times photo slide show.
And (what means): “They said: Shall we believe in two men like ourselves…?” [Quran; 23:47]
Arrogance. The daddy of all sins, the characteristic found in history’s most villainous beings, the reason behind the downfall of Satan and the root of all spiritual sicknesses. It is also the most despicable trait found in man. No one likes an arrogant person. We dislike those individuals who look down at others, those who think they are superior to others in terms of looks, intelligence, status or piety, those who are convinced that they are right whilst everyone else is wrong, those who can not speak without praising themselves, those who belittle or talk down to others and have huge egos. Since we strongly detest this trait, it makes sense that we scrutinize our own characters and check whether or not we possess the very same thing that we can’t stand in others.
Reporting from Tehran — Authorities arrested 70 university professors after a meeting with an opposition leader, a dissident website announced today as state-controlled broadcast outlets intensified a media blitz against the West.
Khamenei said the government would not give in to pressure over the disputed presidential election, in effect closing the door to compromise with the opposition.
Dissident website says their whereabouts are unknown. Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says he won’t reconsider the presidential vote results or bow to public pressure. Broadcast outlets intensify attacks on the West.
Khamenei’s comments were widely viewed as an attempt to keep lawmakers in line and prevent them from defecting to the opposition camp. Many of them are pragmatic conservatives opposed to Ahmadinejad’s messianic brand of politics and critical of his handling of the economy. Parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani recently voiced criticism of the government’s response to the crisis, acknowledging in a televised appearance that many Iranians believe Ahmadinejad’s election to be fraudulent.
The intelligence division of the Tehran police announced a raid on a building in the city center used as a “headquarters” for the opposition. A source said the building was Mousavi’s newspaper, where 25 journalists were arrested Monday.
Mashallah, protesters!
Posted in Abuse of Power, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Clash of Philosophies, Dignity, Elections, Hypocracy, Iran, Iran's Guardian Council, Islam, Mismanagement, Quran, betrayal, conflict of interest, contradictions, dictatorship, insurgents and innocents, oppression | Tagged: Abuse of Power, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, betrayal, Clash of Philosophies, conflict of interest, contradictions, dictatorship, Dignity, Elections, Hypocracy, insurgents and innocents, Iran, Iran's Guardian Council, Islam, Mismanagement, oppression, Quran | 8 Comments »
Posted by bosskitty on June 23, 2009
It’s Monday, the day after the first day of summer, and it’s time for another Texas Progressive Alliance blog roundup. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Texas, Texas Blogs, Texas Politics, Texas Progressive Alliance, Views From Texas | Tagged: Texas, Texas Blogs, Texas Politics, Texas Progressive Alliance, Views From Texas | Leave a Comment »
Posted by bosskitty on June 22, 2009
Excerpt from a CNN interview with Fareed Zakaria: ‘Fatal wound’ inflicted on Iranian regime’s ideology‘
- “We are watching the fall of Islamic theocracy” in Iran, Fareed Zakaria tells CNN
- Zakaria: “Street and state are at odds again, but this time the clerics are divided”
- Obama’s overtures make it hard for regime to demonize U.S., Zakaria says
Zakaria: … I don’t mean the Iranian regime will fall soon. It may — I certainly hope it will — but repressive regimes can stick around for a long time. I mean that this is the end of the ideology that lay at the basis of the Iranian regime.
The regime’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, laid out his special interpretation of political Islam in a series of lectures in 1970. In this interpretation of Shia Islam, Islamic jurists had divinely ordained powers to rule as guardians of the society, supreme arbiters not only on matters of morality but politics as well. When Khomeini established the Islamic Republic of Iran, this idea was at its heart. Last week, that ideology suffered a fatal wound.
CNN: How so?
Zakaria: When the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, declared the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a “divine assessment,” he was indicating it was divinely sanctioned. But no one bought it. He was forced to accept the need for an inquiry into the election. The Guardian Council, Iran’s supreme constitutional body, met with the candidates and promised to investigate and perhaps recount some votes. Khamenei has subsequently hardened his position but that is now irrelevant. Something very important has been laid bare in Iran today — legitimacy does not flow from divine authority but from popular support.
“God’s Will”, “Inshallah”, variations: If Allah (God) wills; When Allah (God) wills; If Allah (God) wishes. If it really is ‘Inshallah’, why does the Ayatollah use violence to get his way? The Ayatollah has put himself between Allah’s people and Allah himself and learned the wrath of intervention by a mere mortal. Mashallah, protesters!
Posted in Abuse of Power, Ahmadinejad, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Clash of Opinions, Clash of Philosophies, Fareed Zakaria, Iran, Islamic Republic, theocracy | Tagged: Ahmadinejad, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Fareed Zakaria, Iran, Iran Election Protest, Islamic Republic, Mashallah, theocracy | 2 Comments »
Posted by bosskitty on June 19, 2009
Myanmar’s opposition leader is spending her 64th birthday in Yangon’s Insein prison as supporters across the world continue to call for her release.
Aung San Suu Kyi is on trial for violating her house arrest after an American man swam to her lakeside residence.
A court decision is expected on Friday on her appeal to allow two previously barred witnesses to testify in her trial.
Confined for nearly 14 of the past 20 years, the Nobel laureate’s birthday on Friday is being marked around the world by campaigners seeking an end to decades of military rule in Myanmar.
But the day has taken on added significance this year amid international outrage over her trial, which is widely expected to end with a guilty verdict.
In Yangon, members of her National League for Democracy (NLD) will gather at the party’s dilapidated headquarters to release doves and call for the release of more than 2,000 political prisoners and a meaningful transition to democracy.
Protests are also planned outside Myanmar’s embassies in major capitals around the world.
An online campaign, www.64forsuu.org, drew thousands of messages of support, including good wishes from world leaders and celebrities.
She says the trial, set to resume on June 26, is politically motivated to exclude her from next year’s elections promised by the military government as a step towards democracy but derided by critics as a sham to entrench military rule.
In London, Ivan Lewis, the British foreign office minister, said Aung San Suu Kyi was being tried on “ridiculous and bogus trumped-up charges”.
He said the European Union would consider further sanctions against Myanmar after the end of her trial.
Myanmar’s high court agreed this week to hear arguments from Aung San Suu Kyi’s lawyers to reinstate two banned defence witnesses.
But even if the ban is overturned, it is not likely to have any impact.
Mark Canning, Britain’s ambassador to Myanmar, told Reuters that there was no doubt she would be found guilty and that she would probably be sentenced to a further period of house arrest, rather than prison.
Shameful political scams continue. Where is International pressure? Where is the concern for ‘Human Rights’ and ‘Democracy’? No oil, no play, especially if China has the say!
Posted in Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma, China, Myanmar, house arrest | Tagged: Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma, China, house arrest, Myanmar | Leave a Comment »
Posted by bosskitty on June 16, 2009
Oh, the contradiction of it all.
WASHINGTON (CNN) — President Barack Obama will sign a memorandum Wednesday granting health care and other benefits to the same-sex partners of federal employees, two senior administration officials said.
The signing will take place in the Oval Office and follows sharp criticism of the president over a Justice Department motion filed last week in support of the Defense of Marriage Act — which opposes same-sex marriage — that used the government’s interest in opposing incestuous marriages to support its position against same-sex marriage.
This is a nice gesture on Obama’s part. It appears to be a tiny olive branch in the war for equal rights. Not exactly what was expected, but it is a start. But, on the other hand, disparity continues to flourish everywhere.
San Angelo mayor last month resigned his post and moved to Mexico to live legally with his partner.
Austin-American Statesman: Sunday, June 14, 2009
SAN ANGELO — The mayor of this West Texas sheep ranching town offered a stunning explanation when he suddenly resigned last month: He was in love with a man who was an illegal immigrant and had gone to Mexico.
They had to move, he said, because there was no legal way for them to remain together in the United States. Same-sex couples can’t secure green cards for their partners like heterosexual spouses can.
“It wasn’t a decision that any U.S. citizen should have to make,” former Mayor J.W. Lown said from Mexico. “I left a home. I left a ranch. I left a promising political career.”
His local prominence and his departure on the day he was supposed to be sworn in for a fourth term caused jaws to drop, but it also became a high-profile example of the thousands of Americans who face a similar choice — separate or move abroad .
About 36,000 Americans are in this situation, said U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., citing information from the advocacy group Immigration Equality.
Well, maybe its just a Texas thing. Depending on where you are in Texas, you can travel from the most modern, progressive space-age city into the stone age. There is a wide range of culture in between. Progress can start somewhere and trickle into the corners of this country at an excruciating pace. The right for gays to marry is withheld, and couples who cannot get legally recognized are subject to separation when one is deported. Once the Immigration Agency gets added into the mix, enforcement of the most backward laws takes front seat. It’s not exclusively the agency’s fault, the laws they enforce are too vague and antiquated to make much sense. Based on a terrorist event eight years ago, and based on the imposition of primitive religious beliefs into the government’s business, everyone is still suspect.
Any progress made on one front is knocked down on another. Immigration laws are seperating families with no remorse. Sending wives of dead soldiers back to where they were born. Uprooting businessmen who have contributed to their American communities for years, is an everyday event. Immigration laws do not focus on the violent destructive crimes that they need to, they choose the easy, stationary targets to increase their numbers. A lot of media play is given to drug smuggling, but pure numbers reveal that Immigration Laws cannot distinguish between good and bad. So, like America’s history of “strategic bombing”, the collateral damage is unbearable and unacceptable.
Posted in Clash of Philosophies, Federal Employees, GLBT, Gay, Gay Rights, Lesbian, Views From Texas, civil rights, consequences, critical resources, deportation, exclusive - inclusive, exiles, illegal aliens, immigration, lifestyles, social policy | Tagged: contradictions, critical resources, deportation, Federal Employees, Gay Rights, immigration, Views From Texas | 6 Comments »
Tehran, beating women and children and students — and the demonstrators broke out, it was her ill-fortune to become one of the first victims of Basiji homicide, though she was doing nothing more than standing by innocently, watching.
I feel very GREEN today. I signed up for Twitter, today, to see what all the Iran action was all about. Whoever you are, wherever you are, if you had access to Twitter you would have been riveted. The unfolding drama is still mesmerizing and frightening to read personal experiences real-time. Learning about the Ayatolla’s personal mercenaries, homicidal Basiji thugs. Who are the Basiji? I found a 
‘Five Hashemi-Rafsanjani relatives arrested’ 
