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I thought all religions were evil and told everyone to kill people and piss on science books? How can any good come from a religious group?

I will assume that you're being humorous despite no ;).

 

If Obama's faith-based initiative is really pandering (and apprently the Christian right does) it's bound to fall flat, as this article shows. I have a huge amount of respect for the man openly supporting gay rights issues.

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After listening to an interview with Bernie today, I briefly considered moving to VT just so I'd feel better represented.

Well Chuck Schumer is no slouch imo. After all, he was the dude who said "bring me the head of Alberto Gonzales". :thumbup

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He's certainly trying to win the election. The question is whether his rightward shift will actually help him.

 

With McCain also moving right, it seems like Obama doesn't have to do much to capture the median voter. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Median_voter_theory)

 

It's seems likely to me that his shifts are just as likely to alienate voters of any persuasion (who will may see him as disingenuous).

 

I've noticed that a lot of his recent statements have been pretty inconsequential, all told. $500 million more for faith-based initiatives is not a big chunk for the feds. Agreeing with the supreme court about death penalty stuff that hasn't been implemented in decades isn't all that interesting.

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Look for Obama too keep drifting to the middle until the election. .... keep sending him money...remember at least the Supreme Court is at stake if nothing else. (Hell aren't we winning the war in Iraq????

 

LouieB

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Look for Obama too keep drifting to the middle until the election. .... keep sending him money...remember at least the Supreme Court is at stake if nothing else. (Hell aren't we winning the war in Iraq????

 

LouieB

 

I wasn't for him before - as I was a Senator Clinton supporter, but now he has my vote. I hope the rest of her supporters vote for him also. I would think the fact that she is working with him now should go a long way.

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I wasn't for him before - as I was a Senator Clinton supporter, but now he has my vote. I hope the rest of her supporters vote for him also. I would think the fact that she is working with him now should go a long way.

Not so fast, there, buddy!

 

 

 

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I think the fact that Colin Powell and Obama are getting cozy is kind of interesting.

 

Can't wait to read Colin Powell's memoirs.

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"Someone needs to speak it plainly. The word is fascism," - Jeffrey Lord, American Spectator.

 

 

I said it before, and I'll say it again:

 

1. Invoke a terrifying internal and external enemy.

2. Create secret prisons where torture takes place.

3. Develop a thug caste or paramilitary force not answerable to citizens.

4. Set up an internal surveillance system.

5. Harass citizens' groups.

6. Engage in arbitrary detention and release.

7. Target key individuals.

8. Control the press.

9. Treat all political dissents as traitors.

10. Suspend the rule of law.

11. Corporate cronyism

12. Election fraud

 

Hitler. Mussolini. Bush/Cheney. And as much as it makes his defenders howl, you've got to have your head in the sand/up your ass pretty far not to see it.

 

And as for oil exec's rights being violated -- there's plenty of people in jail for petty theft for trying to feed their families, and the level of white collar corporate crime going on in the Iraq is astronomical. Why would anyone try to defend that -- except those who are getting a cut?

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I have no problem with that, especially considering the source. Here's the basics:

 

Powerful and Continuing Nationalism: Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.

 

Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights: Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.

 

Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause: The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial, ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

 

Supremacy of the Military: Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.

 

Rampant Sexism: The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Opposition to abortion is high, as is homophobia and anti-gay legislation and national policy.

 

Controlled Mass Media: Sometimes the media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.

 

Obsession with National Security: Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses

 

Religion and Government are Intertwined: Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.

 

Corporate Power is Protected: The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite

 

Labor Power is Suppressed: Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.

 

Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts: Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts is openly attacked, and governments often refuse to fund the arts.

 

Obsession with Crime and Punishment: Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

 

Rampant Cronyism and Corruption: Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.

 

Fraudulent Elections: Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.

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I think the fact that Colin Powell and Obama are getting cozy is kind of interesting.

 

Can't wait to read Colin Powell's memoirs.

As much as I'd love to read this, I'd be very surprised if he does a tell-all. Even though if anyone has a right to take the Admin to task for the way they were hung out to dry it would be Powell.

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As much as I'd love to read this, I'd be very surprised if he does a tell-all. Even though if anyone has a right to take the Admin to task for the way they were hung out to dry it would be Powell.

 

(Humor me for a moment please) Whenever I

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As much as I'd love to read this, I'd be very surprised if he does a tell-all. Even though if anyone has a right to take the Admin to task for the way they were hung out to dry it would be Powell.

All these years I have been intensely curious of what took Powell from this...

 

"The former American secretary of state Colin Powell has revealed that he spent 2

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All these years I have been intensely curious of what took Powell from this...

 

"The former American secretary of state Colin Powell has revealed that he spent 2

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