Jack & Jill Politics

I love that picture. The president needed a little "something" his wife saw it and gave it.

love it. love them.

Me too, Val!

Like the Prez said at the poetry jam "the First Lady adds the poetry to his life". So sweet.

AFTERNOON OPEN THREAD IS UP!!

rikyrah: A TRIBUTE 2 the POWERFUL - - -OBAMA LOVE!:

+ Hold my hand - [Akon Ft Michael jackson Official] :>) :>)

This life don't last forever (hold my hand)
So tell me what we're waitin for (hold my hand)
Better off being together (hold my hand)
Than being miserable alone (hold my hand)

Cause I've been there before
And you've been there before
But together we can be alright.
Cause when it gets dark and when it gets cold
We can just hold each other till we see the sunlight

So if you just hold my hand
Baby I promise that I'll do all I can
Things will get better if you just hold my hand
Nothing can come in between us if you just hold, hold my, hold my, hold my hand.

The nights are getting darker (hold my hand)
And there's no peace inside (hold my hand)
So why make our lives harder (hold my hand)
By fighting love, tonight.

Cause I've been there before
And you've been there before
But together we can be alright.
Cause when it gets dark and when it gets cold
We can just hold each other till we see the sunlight

So if you just hold my hand
Baby I promise that I'll do all I can
Things will get better if you just hold my hand
Nothing can come in between us if you just hold my hand

A LOVE to CELEBRATE & EMULATE!! :>)

THANK YOU - - -PRESIDENT & FIRST LADY!! God Bless! :>)

Today's Conversation A World Without Zora and Malcolm

http://snipurl.com/iezrv

Today's Conversation Adam Lambert or Kris Allen As the Next Jeff Buckley?

http://snipurl.com/iep1r

Bill O'Reilly dividing American Idol's 'christian and gay' vote. http://queersunited.blogspot.com/2009/05/bill-o...

Urge congress to support the Stonewall Resolution http://queersunited.blogspot.com/2009/05/urge-c...

New York statewide call in for gender non discrimination GENDA
http://queersunited.blogspot.com/2009/05/new-yo...

Out in Africa
http://queersunited.blogspot.com/2009/05/organi...

Senate Votes to Block Funds for Guantanamo Closure
The Associated Press
Wednesday, May 20, 2009; 12:13 PM

WASHINGTON -- The Senate has voted to keep detainees held in the Guantanamo prison from being transferred to the United States, a major setback for President Barack Obama who wants to close the facility by January.

The 90-6 vote came a day before Obama is set to lay out his plan for closing the Guantanamo facility in a speech.

Obama put his Democratic allies in a difficult spot by requesting $80 million to facilitate closure of Guantanamo before developing a plan for what to do with its detainees. The Senate vote matched a move by the House last week to deny the money.

In the eyes of the world, the prison has come to exemplify harsh U.S. anti-terror tactics.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/ar...

Well, Mike Vick is out of prison, and is serving the rest of his sentence at his mini-mansion in Virginia.

And the nervous breakdowns of White folks across America continues ... :-)

He got a raw deal. That was just bogus bs. Michael Vick has NOTHING on Sarah Palin. She did her dirty deeds on national TV and nothing. Not a flicker of ANYTHING from PETA.

This is absolute BS

She apparently hasn't killed any dogs.
.
.

Although there was that poor turkey that was slaughtered during primetime....

Wordsmith: YEAH - - - BUT - - - -

IS THIS GRUESOME - - - or WHAT!!????

+ Sarah Palin under intense fire from animal rights groups :>(

Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has never hidden the fact that she's a proud hunter from her home state of Alaska, first with a famous photo (below) through which many Americans initially came to know of her with a caribou she shot, to Wednesday's photo (above) of the governor carrying a tote bag with the slogan "Real Women Hunt Moose."

But some animal rights advocates and activists have taken issue not only with her hunting practices, but more so her administration's stances on issues in Alaska regarding animal welfare.

Michael Markarian, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund, slammed the VP nominee in a blog post, saying Republican presidential candidate John McCain's choice "cemented" his organization's decision to endorse the Democratic ticket of Sens. Barack Obama and Joe Biden instead.

Markarian's stinging criticism of Palin:

Gov. Sarah Palin’s (R-Alaska) retrograde policies on animal welfare and conservation have led to an all-out war on Alaska’s wolves and other creatures. Her record is so extreme that she has perhaps done more harm to animals than any other current governor in the United States.

Palin engineered a campaign of shooting predators from airplanes and helicopters, in order to artificially boost the populations of moose and caribou for trophy hunters. She offered a $150 bounty for the left foreleg of each dead wolf as an economic incentive for pilots and aerial gunners to kill more of the animals, even though Alaska voters had twice approved a ban on the practice. This year, the issue was up again for a vote of the people, and Palin led the fight against it — in fact, she helped to spend $400,000 of public funds to defeat the initiative.

What’s more, when the Bush administration announced its decision to list the polar bear as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, Palin filed a lawsuit to reverse that decision. She said it’s the "wrong move" to protect polar bears, even though their habitat is shrinking and ice floes are vanishing due to global warming. (Note: It's not the first time L.A. Unleashed told you about Palin's polar bear controversy.)

The choice for animals is especially clear now that Palin is in the mix. If Palin is put in a position to succeed McCain, it could mean rolling back decades of progress on animal issues.

French film icon and well-known animal enthusiast Brigitte Bardot also has been harsh about criticizing Palin, referring to the governor's joke about the difference between her and a pitbull having to do with lipstick, our Dish Rag reports from Britain's Telegraph:

Referring to Palin's pitbull-with-lipstick crack, Bardot adds: "I know dogs well, and I can assure you that no pitbull, no dog, nor any other animal is as dangerous as you are. By denying the responsibility of man in global warming, by advocating gun rights and making statements that are disconcertingly stupid, you are a disgrace to women and you alone represent a terrible threat, a true environmental catastrophe."

Bardot lashed out at Palin for supporting Arctic oil exploration that could threaten ecosystems and for dismissing measures to protect polar bears.

"This shows your total lack of responsibility, your inability to protect or simply respect animal life," she wrote.

The 74-year-old former film star is notorious in France for her outspoken views on immigration, the environment and animal rights. She has been convicted and fined four times in Paris for anti-gay and racist remarks.

But all the criticism may have little to do with how pet owners view her ticket, as McCain had their votes over Obama earlier this summer. However, we must note, that survey was taken before Palin was unleashed into the political campaign.

--Francisco Vara-Orta

LOOK AT THIS PIC!! :>)

No wonder she didn't - - PAY NO MIND - 2 that "HEADLESS TURKEY!!" :>)

LMAO! Yeah....ole tommy the turkey got merked on live television. what a way to go.

McCain's VP Pick, Sarah Palin, No Friend to Animals
http://animalrights.about.com/b/2008/08/29/mcca...

Sarah Palin and all things animal
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/unleashed/2008/...

Aerial Wolf Gunning 101
What is it, and why does vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin support the practice? http://www.slate.com/id/2199140/

Sarah Palin's Shocking Animal Cruelty
http://www.alternet.org/story/98918

etc. but you are right. Wolves were okay to kill but she didn't kill any dogs. . . . . utter BS Vick deserves his life back.

Val: I'm sorry. Didn't C this. APOLOGIES! :>)

girl we here "moving two fingers back and forth from my eyes to your eyes". lololol We working it GreenLady.

Val: Oooo-Kaaaay! :>)
***slowly gettin up outta the "BAD CHAIR!"*** :>)

Yeah - same genus, different look. I forgot that ole' shooting wolves from the helicopter.

What a ..... c***

You know he's served his time and lost everything. He should be left in peace now.

I just came from a meeting where one of my caucasian colleagues brought this shyt up, "Well it seems like people don't care as much about animals as they do...people."

SMH. Maybe I could handle this if I were in a more progressive environment, but when it comes from out of the mouths of Georgia saltines, it is inevitably tinged with racism.

Georgia saltines...

Wait a minute - if saltines aren't crackers, what are they?

The way the white wing media is carrying on about Michael Vick you would have thought he waterboarded some muslims, I mean terrorist, I mean people. Or blew up a federal building. Or bombed an abortion clinic. Or shot his pal in the face.

Exactly, Booky -

I'm no fan of dog fighting, those who promote it, raise dogs to fight or even kill dogs. The man took what they gave him, he served his time. It's over. Leave him alone.

And for the record, I'm not a football fan either.

LOL......its just like Fox News back around October. When that reality starts to set in and they realize it doesn't matter how you contort and twist and grind your teeth and all that..time still marching on. So they can bitch all they want too but they'll watch him in the UFL or the NFL but makes no difference, because they'll be watching.

Do you think the Falcons will take him back?

I hope Michael Vicks gets to play in the NFL again.

Nope, they couldn't if they wanted too - that line is drawn in the sand. But its gonna be hilarious the day he steps back in the GA Dome with his next team...OMG....it will be a classic. When Deion got traded from the Falcons..when he came back and he SAID he was going to do this beforehand...he returned a kick or an interception (I cant remember) for a TD - and he ran down the side of the field where the Falcons bench was...and WAVED THE FOOTBALL OUT to them as he ran that TD....that will pale in comparison to what's gonna happen when Vick comes back.

I hope he does get with another team and kicks butt all up an down the field. This was a travesty of justice.

The rebirth of the Dawg Pound.

Me too. It was jealous people wanting to take down a brother!

Email!

I need to talk!

Michael Vicks' situation gives a whole new meaning to the saying:

"AMERICA is going to the DOGS."

You AIN'T lying!

LOL spirit-55z! Michael Vick's situation is proof white america cares more about the treatment of dogs than they do the treatment of human beings. This from a country that thought it was OK to great Africans like animals.

May 20, 2009
Categories: 2010

Davis, frontrunner?

There was always an argument to be made that Obama's personal story, unusual name, and African-American identity would play to his advantage with an American electorate eager for dramatic change, a new beginning, and a racial healing.

That's a harder case to make in Alabama, where a black congressman, Artur Davis, is making a bid for governor.

His campaign, though, is touting a poll that shows him with leads in the primary and the general election, attempting to dismiss concerns about his electability.

And if Alabama elects a black governor, that would — I suspect — surprise even optimists of the Axelrod school, not to mention Neil Young.


http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0509/Dav...

and the long time "bachelor" just got married this year. I don't know well that will play. Maybe Charlie Christ can give him some advice.

That would surprise GOD. There is no way my homestate will be electing Artur Davis as governor...not even if Paul Bear Bryant rose up out the grave with his houndstooth hat on and formally endorsed him, he still wouldn't win.

Your homestate will elect the "right black guy" and Artur Davis is certainly the "right" black guy.

From the politico.com link

The problem with these types of stories is that the underlying message is that if you don't vote for this guy (regardless of the fact that you have nothing in common with his politics), you are a racist. Republicans have demonstrated over and over that they have no problem voting for African-Americans who share their political ideology.

Sure, that's why Michael Steele is in the Senate...

Oh, he's not?

I'll say it again.

Steele got 30% of the Black vote in Maryland.

Show me a WHITE Republican that has ever lost when getting 30% of the Black vote.

Uh huh.

so, G-T-F-O-H on Republicans have no problem voting for African-Americans.

Black Snob is back with a new series of essays.

Today's is:

Blame It On the In-in-in-in-integration (Unconventional Wisdom)
Wednesday, May 20, 2009 at 10:00AM
Or The Case Against Integration



http://blacksnob.squarespace.com/snob_blog/2009...

Just saw Jesse Ventura get on Hannity (Huffington Post). Didn't care for him as Gov but at least he says what he believes instead of "partyline bs." I know Spirit spoke on him yesterday but it was nice to see him shut down Hannity bs on all points.

He seems to be pretty good at slapping down foolishness whether it was in the ring or with nimnoles (Hasselbeck and Klannity) on tv. Dude just can't govern.

What the wingnuts are saying about Barack's credit card company initiative:

Like the mortgage crisis--blame the niggers. Regard: http://tigerhawk.blogspot.com/2009/05/by-all-me...

Lawdy, lawdy, that's what they get for snatching us from the MOTHERLAND.

Didn't think we would ever be freed. Now we got a Knee-grow in the White House and nigras trying to get houses and credit like the rest of us "REAL Americans.....

If they didn't have Black folks, they'd have nobody to blame.

Yep. They cannot bring themselves to accept that they f88'd themselves. Plus with the credit cards, it helps feed their denial that they themselves, and their kids, went buckwild on VISA, MC & Amex in the fat times. Indeed, the white folks who know the truth are the ones who went bankrupt on medical expenses, etc. Now everyone is feeling the pinch, and quite a few wingnuts are holding their noses and agreeing with Obama on this...

My problem is that the credit card reform, doesn't seem like much of a reform. The most meaningful part of the reform was the cap of 15% interest introduced by Bernie Sanders which was not even alliowed to have a floor vote.

Sure they are going to stop 'excessive' over the limit fees, but no one defined 'excessive' and they are going to send out notices of raises in rates ( big forsnookin' deal).

The only good part worth much is that they will cease 'universal default'..where if you late on some other bill..they get to raise your rates.

This reform falls far short and particularly when the bankruptcy foreclosure went nowhere.

Health Law
Mom Disappears with Son After Court Orders Chemo for the Boy
Posted 2 hours, 43 minutes ago
By Debra Cassens Weiss

A judge who ordered a 13-year-old teen to receive chemotherapy has now issued an arrest warrant for the mother after she and the boy disappeared.

Colleen Hauser had resisted treatment for her son, Daniel, because she is a member of Nemenhah, a religious group that favors natural healing methods used by some American Indians, the Associated Press reports.

Daniel has Hodgkin's lymphoma, a cancer considered highly treatable with chemotherapy and radiation. Judge John Rodenberg of Brown County held Hauser in contempt of court and issued the arrest warrant yesterday when she failed to show up for a court hearing with her son, the Pioneer Press reports.

A cout-ordered doctor’s appointment on Monday showed Daniel's tumor had grown. The boy's father, Anthony, told the judge he last saw his wife Monday evening when she told him she was going to leave for a time and "that's all you need to know."






http://www.abajournal.com/news/mom_disappears_w...

This mom sounds like a lunatic. The overwhelming majority of native peoples use a combo of usual medical/pharma treatments on and off tribal lands, and traditional medicines and curatives.

Catholic Priests and Nuns beat and rape thousands of school children

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/20/irish-...

Im not Catholic and i dont bash anyones religion. but dont sit up here and talk about reproductive rights and human rights if your only going to fuck the kids afterwards. utterly ridiculous. And if the pope can sit here and claim that PBO is the most radical pro abortion president he better damn sure address shit like this.

Here's just a few of the allegations against The Sisters of Mercy" "

Mercy, indeed...

OMG, that was my the order of the nuns at my elementary school, a hundred years ago. I did get hit a coupla times on my hand with a ruler.

That's crazy!! How people can justify that ish is beyond comprehension.

Here's just a few of the allegations against The Sisters of Mercy" "

Mercy, indeed...

Lord have mercy.....it was systematic...throughout the world.

No protest or outrage about PEDIPHILIA though. Don't hold your breath.

I know that's right. Clean up your own house first.

Cosign. And the same goes for these evangelicals here in the US.

WHAT WENT WRONG IN THE KING FAMILY? EVERY STORY OF LATE IS ABOUT THEM FEUDING ...CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG?
http://www.accessatlanta.com/movies/content/mov...

I don't think they're even trying to get along...they need their collective azzes whupped. I dont care who's wrong or right..doesn't matter at this point, the public foolishness needs to stop.

Kaine, Klobuchar, Mondale Up Pressure On Pawlenty To Seat Franken

DNC Chairman Tim Kaine penned a letter to Tim Pawlenty on Tuesday, asking the Minnesota Governor to persuade Norm Coleman to concede and, short of that, sign the certification of Al Franken's election once the state's Supreme Court makes its final ruling.

The letter is the latest in a growing effort to ramp up the pressure on the governor - and Republican Party as a whole - to seat Franken, as the Minnesota Senate race drags on more than six months since the actual election. In his note, Kaine claims it is "all but indisputable" that Franken won the election and urges Pawlenty to "use [his] influence to bring this process to an end by asking Norm Coleman to allow his neighbors and yours, their full representation in Congress."

"However," Kaine adds, "if Mr. Coleman refuses to concede and this case is heard and decided by the Minnesota State Supreme Court, I urge you to commit to signing an election certificate for the rightful winner as soon as the Court issues a ruling in this case. To allow this to process to continue into the federal courts for no other reason than to deny for as long as possible the seating of another Democratic Senator would make what has been a bad situation for Minnesotans even worse. I urge you to do everything within your power and influence to bring this process to an end."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/20/kaine-...

I would not have even wrote anything concillatory to Gov. Pawlenty......cuss the mofo out and cuss him out good, along with Norm Coleman......it is past due time to settle this mess. they oughtta be ashamed

Is Pawlenty able to serve another term after this one?

Yes, he's already a two term govenor. Under MN law he can run again in 2010. I think he's got his sights on a presidential run.... Which I find completely hysterical.

Coleman and Pawlenty, BEGONE!

Celebrity Deathmatch:
Pawlenty vs. Sanford.
"Dumb vs. Dumber"

MAY 20, 2009 Obama Begins Interviewing Potential Supreme Court Picks

By JONATHAN WEISMAN and NAFTALI BENDAVID
President Barack Obama began interviewing potential Supreme Court candidates Tuesday, while a senior White House official defended the president's stated preference for a nominee who will give the powerless "a fair shake."

White House adviser David Axelrod said the U.S. Constitution, like any document of its vintage, must be subject to interpretation in a modern context.

"Fidelity to the Constitution is paramount, but as with any document that was written no matter how brilliantly centuries ago, it couldn't possibly have anticipated all the questions that would be asked in the 21st century," Mr. Axelrod said.

Mr. Axelrod's comments come as conservative activists gear up for a fight over a nominee they say will inevitably be a "judicial activist," since the president has said he will seek a justice who can use life experience and empathy for the powerless and downtrodden to help shape court rulings.

White House officials have chosen to emphasize Mr. Obama's track record of comity and civility as they try to avoid the kind of bruising battles that have marked Supreme Court nominations under Republican presidents.

Read on
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124277909079237...

Is the First Lady wearing a protective vest around her middle?

I doubt it. It's probably the pooch you can't quite get rid of after you have kids unless you starve yourself and start working out the day after you have your baby (i.e. Heidi Klum- not hatin', just sayin').

Or want to model for ann Wintour of Vogue.

Hormones play a role in weight gain as well as mood & temperament. An increase in estrogen can produce that extra lil pooch around the middle.

Bruce Springsteen Sends a Sign to Obama

Team Obama was well represented last night when the Boss held up a sign from someone in the audience at the Verizon Center that said: "Obama called, he wants Rosie."

That sign now belongs to President Obama.

Backstage after the concert, Bruce Springsteen personally autographed the Rosie poster and gave it to White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel to deliver to Obama at the White House, an eyewitness tells the Sleuth.

In the crowd at last night's Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band show were: Emanuel; Obama's deputy chief of staff, Jim Messina; Patrick Gaspard from the White House political office; and veteran Democratic spinmeister Jenny Backus, who is now spokeswoman for Department of Health and Human Services.

Backus sat with Messina and her big man, husband Ed Pagano, chief of staff to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), just one section away from the Sleuth. David DiMartino of BGR Holding (formerly the deputy chief of staff to Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska) also sat in their area.

Emanuel's wife, Amy Rule, is personal friends with Patti Scialfa, the hottest member of the E Street band and wife of Springsteen. Emanuel and Rule sat in a section just offstage, along with New York Timesmen Carl Hulse and David Brooks , and Phil Schiliro, the president's assistant for legislative affairs, among others

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/sleuth/2009/05...

Democrats Defending Pelosi
Caucus Stands Behind Leader in CIA Briefing Controversy
By Paul Kane
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, May 20, 2009

House Democrats have rushed to the defense of Speaker Nancy Pelosi in her public battle with the CIA, a reflection of the enormous loyalty the California Democrat enjoys in her caucus despite a month-long effort by Republicans to use the dispute to weaken her standing.

Yesterday several leading Democrats joined her in criticizing the CIA's procedures for briefing Congress on intelligence issues and, rather than distancing themselves from Pelosi, top Democrats said they believe that the CIA misled her in a September 2002 briefing about controversial techniques used during interrogations of alleged al-Qaeda operatives. Some questioned the agency's new director, Leon Panetta, for defending officials for actions that occurred before his tenure, while others tried to poke holes in the accuracy of the CIA's recordkeeping.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/ar...

Idiots.

Please do not confuse Pelosi with Harry Reid. Unlike Reid, she's an effective leader. Moreover, the CIA's story is crumbling.

May 19 2009, 5:58 pm by Marc Ambinder
A Response From Donald Rumsfeld

Keith Urbahn, a spokesman for former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, e-mails a statement denying that Rumsfeld had anything to do with the Christianization of those World Intelligence Update cover slides.

The slides in the "World Intelligence Update" were prepared on a daily basis by military personnel serving on the Joint Staff, which reported to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, not the Secretary of Defense. The report was briefed regularly to senior military officials in the Pentagon - only occasionally to the Secretary of Defense and not to the President of the United States.

Rumsfeld was fully aware that words and actions could be harmful and counterproductive to the war effort. It's safe to say that some of these cover slides could be considered in that category. The suggestion that Rumsfeld would have composed, approved of, or personally shown the slides to President Bush is flat wrong. It did not happen.

Given that Draper used anonymous sources for this charge as well as for the rest of the innuendo in his piece, one would think he might have at least done a cursory review of the facts. He might then have avoided being taken by people with an axe to grind. When Draper goes back and checks reality against his reporting, he might also check whether GQ is in need of a new gossip columnist.

http://politics.theatlantic.com/2009/05/a_respo...

lol this isnt haha funny but fuck you funny. you notice how he only denied the prtins about the military briefings not the portion about katrina? sorry ass bastard

Rat bastards, ALL of them. You know the Bush admin did give a rats ass
about KATRINA.

Rat bastards, ALL of them. You know the Bush admin did give a rats ass
about KATRINA.

Rat bastards, ALL of them. You know the Bush admin did give a rats ass
about KATRINA.

I'll post the video later but Rep Jim Bunning stepped up to the plate and called out Fredo on paying off AIG's obligations at 100% while requiring the bank and bond holders of Chrysler. Fredo claims systemic risk. The lie is many of those contracts were not due to be paid but required more capital to held by AIG in case they became payable.

Did anyone hear that Steven Spielberg is set to make a bipic on MLK? I read it on a blog then searched the web and was able to confirm this. Do you think this is a good idea? Why or Why not?

My answer is: Extremely skeptical

Some of you took my skepticism of Spielberg doing a biopic on MLK as me thinking that since he is white, he cannot portray the black experience or a black leader. No...no....I am skeptical about any Hollywood, mass produced biography on King period regardless of the race of the director.

I find that King's legacy as I have expressed on this blog multiple times has been distorted even by "scholars". I could care less about who is acting than how accurate of a depiction it will be. We need no more distortion of our movements or activists. To portray the real King may be too controversial for the American mainstream...is this movie going to go there or will it be yet another safe depiction? Remember that we are dealing with Hollywood, capitalist dollars...

I hope they show him in the ghettoes of Chicago 1966/67 and not just in Birmingham 1955/1963. I hope it includes "Where Do We Go From Here?" and not just the "I Have a Dream" speech. It is even deeper than that.

I am thinking about substance not aesthetics. I could also care less about how accomplished a director has been with other projects as much as I want to be assured that he will do justice with this one and not fall into the same mainstream storyline of MLK's life.

I am hoping it serves the purpose of enlightenment and education and not simply entertainment.

Some of you took my skepticism of Spielberg doing a biopic on MLK as me thinking that since he is white, he cannot portray the black experience or a black leader. No...no....I am skeptical about any Hollywood, mass produced biography on King period regardless of the race of the director.

I find that King's legacy as I have expressed on this blog multiple times has been distorted even by "scholars". I could care less about who is acting than how accurate of a depiction it will be. We need no more distortion of our movements or activists. To portray the real King may be too controversial for the American mainstream...is this movie going to go there or will it be yet another safe depiction? Remember that we are dealing with Hollywood, capitalist dollars...

I hope they show him in the ghettoes of Chicago 1966/67 and not just in Birmingham 1955/1963. I hope it includes "Where Do We Go From Here?" and not just the "I Have a Dream" speech. It is even deeper than that.

I am thinking about substance not aesthetics. I could also care less about how accomplished a director has been with other projects as much as I want to be assured that he will do justice with this one and not fall into the same mainstream storyline of MLK's life.

I am hoping it serves the purpose of enlightenment and education and not simply entertainment.

Some of you took my skepticism of Spielberg doing a biopic on MLK as me thinking that since he is white, he cannot portray the black experience or a black leader. No...no....I am skeptical about any Hollywood, mass produced biography on King period regardless of the race of the director.

I find that King's legacy as I have expressed on this blog multiple times has been distorted even by "scholars". I could care less about who is acting than how accurate of a depiction it will be. We need no more distortion of our movements or activists. To portray the real King may be too controversial for the American mainstream...is this movie going to go there or will it be yet another safe depiction? Remember that we are dealing with Hollywood, capitalist dollars...

I hope they show him in the ghettoes of Chicago 1966/67 and not just in Birmingham 1955/1963. I hope it includes "Where Do We Go From Here?" and not just the "I Have a Dream" speech. It is even deeper than that.

I am thinking about substance not aesthetics. I could also care less about how accomplished a director has been with other projects as much as I want to be assured that he will do justice with this one and not fall into the same mainstream storyline of MLK's life.

I am hoping it serves the purpose of enlightenment and education and not simply entertainment.

Rhonda Smith: He has TALENT & a HISTORY of SUCCESSES! HE! CAN! DO! THIS!! :>)

One need only look at Steven Spielberg's body of work, Armistad and Schindler's List, The Color Purple, among the few films, to know he produces masterful works.

I'm highly confident he can produce a work of extreme beauty and truth telling with the King Biopic.

In my opinion, Spielberg is one of the few Hollywood [ethnics] who isn't interested in blaxploitation. He did us very well with Amistad and the Color Purple. I trust that he'll hold form with the King biopic.

Spielberg said he was going to produce it. He didn't say he was going to direct it. To be honest, I wouldn't be against him directing it too.

Casting and script will be the keys, though.

which one of King's kids will be first in line for the hand out? LOLOL

I thought about that too.

I'm not in the least bit skeptical. Spielberg did a wonderful job telling our story in The Color Purple and Amistad. I can't remember the last bad movie he made.

Spielberg did a beautiful job with The Color Purple.

Black stories need to be told WELL, period. The only question should be is the director a good director, not what his skin color is. I want black directors to be able to direct movies which don't involve a specific African-American storyline.

I never made any mention of skin color or race. My skepticism is any movie on MLK because I find that his legacy has been too distorted. That is my issue not the race of the director.

Torture Appropriations
Greg Sargent suggests the error revealed today in the CIA briefing list--that the CIA claims an appropriations staffer attended but he didn't--is no big deal.

This, obviously, is not the biggest foul-up in the world.

Perhaps. Perhaps not. We don't know.

Remember what Nancy Pelosi said about the way the Bush Administration used the appropriations committees to bypass the intelligence committees in Congress.
Read More
http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2009/05/19/to...

Love how the President & Michelle are touching each other and sending love messages! They are too cool. Love them!

The connection between those two is so beautiful. They never miss an opportunity to show their love for one another.

I so agree Womanistmusings. I love watching them. Their love for each other is so clear. Everyone can see it. What role models for love!

Michelle and Barack are each others ROCK. They are a SOLID couple.

A good thing happened today. JG Wentworth went into bankruptcy. They play on greed. From todays Philadlephia Inquirer:
In the Region
Company files for bankruptcy
J.G. Wentworth Inc., a Bryn Mawr finance company, filed for bankruptcy protection in Wilmington in a deal that will eliminate $370 million in debt. JLL Partners Inc., a New York private-equity firm that bought a majority stake in J.G. Wentworth in 2005, agreed to put $100 million into the company as part of the bankruptcy arrangement, enabling it to retain its majority position, Ken Murray, J.G. Wentworth's chief marketing officer, said. Many current debtholders will also receive equity, Murray said. J.G. Wentworth pays people discounted lump sums for settlements that would otherwise be paid out over a number of years. But to make the up-front payments, it has to borrow money in the asset-backed securities market. The turmoil in the nation's capital markets made that difficult and expensive. The company still employs 70 in Bryn Mawr, Murray said. - Harold Brubaker

Has there been any discussion here of the Dumping in Dixie problem that's followed in the wake of the TVA coal ash spill? It seems like the toxic sludge is being shipped to poor black areas in the South.

See here:
http://allotherpersons.wordpress.com/2009/05/20...

and here

http://www.southernstudies.org/2009/05/tva-send...

environmental racism at its best...

Meet OUR 47-million year-old ancestor: UPDATE w/Video
In 1983 2 fossil-hunter/collectors found an interesting fossil skeleton of a creature in a shale pit in Germany.

For whatever reason, they split the thing in 2 and sometime later parted company. One piece went to hang on a wall, another piece went into obscurity.

Then, over the past couple of years, working quietly, a team of specialized foresic experts conducted and completed a diligent examination of the complete skeleton.

And they have decided that this skeleton of a 9-month old infant is by far the oldest common primate ancestor ever discovered.
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/5/20/733...

They always touching each other.

I know, it is so sweet. I'm sure they embarrass Malia and Sasha to no end.

actually I think it is the opposite. They revel in it and will have the confidence in their own relationships later in life.

I think Sasha eats it up when she sees her parents display affection. Malia's older and probably a bit more shy.

Both girls willl have the memories sketched in their brains and in their hearts about how a man is supposed to treat a woman.

Parents, the ULTIMATE ROLE MODELS.

Pelosi or Cheney? Who's the Torturer in Chief?
Beltway journalists seem finally to have a found a torture story they like. Mind you, not the one about the Bush/Cheney White House possibly okaying drowning to extract "information" to justify an Iraq attack -- not that story. The story the Beltway bulldogs have decided to get stuck into is a story about Democrats.
Read More
http://www.thenation.com/blogs/notion/437037/pe...

Pelosi is a non-issue. She is a scapegoat for the repubs to get a breather from the non-stop public beat down they have received since early last year.

Cheney shot a guy in the face.
CHENEY WINS!

you know they have really found a smoke screen in Pelosi. They are the problem and they can't take my mind away from that. They did the crime...the Republicans and nothing they can say about Pelosi will take that off my mind. And anyone knows that given the party that is in charge, the CIA will do what they are told. There have been other people to speak out on the fact that they found dates and times that they were supposed to have been briefed by CIA and they were false.

Expert Panel Rejects Iran Missile Threat to Europe
The Post reports this morning that a team of US and Russian technical experts want to put the kibosh on US plans for putting a missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic:
A planned U.S. missile shield to protect Europe from a possible Iranian attack would be ineffective against the kinds of missiles Iran is likely to deploy, according to a joint analysis by top U.S. and Russian scientists.
The U.S.-Russian team also judged that it would be more than five years before Iran is capable of building both a nuclear warhead and a missile capable of carrying it over long distances. And if Iran attempted such an attack, the experts say, it would ensure its own destruction.
Read More
http://www.thenation.com/blogs/dreyfuss/437023?...

Good Morning Your track for the day.Enjoy
Deep Sensation - Somehow, Somewhere
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSLOKky3Qoc