Website: http://www.ianhines.org |
Let this be an example to the mood of those Americans who are not overly interested as we are... the reason I stopped visiting the community is because I just got fed up with the news and the campaigns. I just got frustrated so I took time away to reflect and gain perspective. Now that I've done that, I am back, and ready to get involved again.
Anyone know if Kerry HQ needs help with anything other than Data Entry this summer?
Rep. John Hostettler, R-Indiana, "completely forgot" he had the gun in his bag as he prepared to take a US Airways flight to Washington for the first day of work after a two-week recess, a spokesman for the congressman said.
A Homeland Security Department official said Hostettler had a loaded 9 mm Glock pistol in his bag at Louisville International Airport .
The congressman said he did not know the gun was in his bag and apologized, the official said.
Continued in the Extended Entry...
But in the last week there has been a drastic turn of events here in Maryland's First District, and now it seems that the Dems have another chance to get back into the race with a strong candidate. The Salisbury Daily Times reports:
"I am sad to do this, but it is the best for everyone, especially the Democratic Party," the 79-year-old Centreville resident said in a prepared statement. "I want the people of my district to be well-represented, and I am unable to do this with my illness."
Margaret Revell Goodwin, campaign manager for Tamlyn, said the Democratic candidate was making political appearances for the Nov. 2 general election when her kidney illness worsened last week.
"It is really, really serious," Goodwin said Wednesday. "It's to the point that she would have to get a new kidney to survive."
There was an interesting diary written by user Lavoisier1794 about the possiblity of Joe Trippi - who lives in a ranch on Maryland's Eastern Shore - entering the race to be the new Democratic Candidate. But those rumors were laid to rest yesterday when Ryan Davis, former Sampson Campaign Manager and writer at Not Geniuses, spoke to Trippi via Cell Phone and inquired about whether or not he would seek the nomination:
Joe has been incredibly busy promoting his new progressive grassroots organization, Change For America.
"I'd prefer people join Change For America, instead of speculating about me," he added.
So that means that the race looks like it's going to come down to Sampson and Alexakis...
I have had a running theme in my Diaries of late in that I have been trying to build a stronger sense, at least for myself, of the character and personality of the dKos community. Tonight I want to learn more about our demographics...
So where are you from? How old are you? Have you always lived there, or have you moved around? Obviously the responses will probably be a bit biased because of the Time of Day, but I think there will still be a decent amount of East Coasters on (if they are at all like me).
The primary criticism seems to be on the issue of privacy and security. The question is, "If it scans all my emails, how can I be confident that my personal correspondance is kept private?"
The answers seems simple enough to me: If the scanning of the email is automated, no person will ever read your emails, and a computer doesn't engage in gossip or spying. Furthermore, it doens't matter if the system archives or stores data on what key words were found or how many emails contained certain words, so long as they do not store any specific information pertaining to an individual email. I.E. - I don't care if they know statistics, as long as no information specific to me is stored.
If I can be sure that my anonymity can be maintained and that the entirety of my email will not be in any way archived or stored in any way, then I think Gmail sounds like the greatest thing since sliced bread. How can you argue with 1GB of free email hosting? And ian@gmail.com even has a nice ring to it...
What do you think?
So if you feel like hearing another criticism of the President based on a string of facts you almost definately know, click "There's more" below. I figured I worked a good long time on it, I may as well put it on here for disection and criticism.
P.S. - All my quotes have footnotes at the bottom, but the footnotes obviously aren't going in the diary, so take the quotes on good faith...
For example, do you only give a 4 rating to posts who expose ideas that you agree with? Or do you give them to comments that are thought provoking and well spoken?
How does one decide?
And what does someone have to do to earn a 1? I often feel like I cannot give someone a 1 rating because I feel like that is for the most awful of commenters and I never feel like I am ready to label someone as that. Should we use 1 ratings to discipline trolls rather than trying to argue with them via comments, as I tried to do earlier today with user Copernicus?
Comment ratings are a potentially powerful tool, one of the greatest things about the Kos Community. How do you handle it? What are your thoughts on it?
But not only did I notice that these names are more traditional, but they tend to be longer. Somehow, it seems, our society has develop a general association (I know there are exceptions, including some in my preferred list) of longer names with deep, interesting people of character and short names (i.e. Vicki, Jenn, Erin, Bob, Jim, John, Ed) with ditsy, shallow, uninteresting individuals. I know this is a false association, so why is it so?
(Continued in the extended entry because I don't wanna waste space for the real political commentary)
What was it?
It's things like this that build community...
Kerry's criticisms were in reference to a new report by his campaign showing that an alarming 220,000 young Americans were priced out of a college education just this year because George Bush turned his back on college affordability. These are 220,000 young people who would have attended a four-year public university but did not because George Bush broke his campaign promise to increase student aid and did nothing to help struggling states.
"Once again, the president just does not get it," said Kerry. "A college education means more than ever in today's economy, yet this president has done nothing to make to make it more affordable. In fact, he's done just the opposite. His broken promises and failed economic policies are making it harder to get an education. That's not leadership. That's failure on the part of a president who is out-of-touch, out of credibility and letting young Americans down."
2 points for Kerry! Continued with poll...
I just don't know. Neither of the candidates this year accepted the funds, and I doubt they will next year. As a matter of fact, I was a Deaniac, and he didn't take the funds either.
And yet, should I, on principal, give my $3 to the fund in the hopes that spending will go down, finance laws will be followed, and the system will improve. I just don't know. So simple, and yet so trivial.
Ya know, not to ramble too long about this, but that money which may never be used for campaigns, might help some senior citizen pay for their medication. Kerry may need that money to pay back the defecit...
What do you guys think... Matching Funds or No?
There didn't seem to be any dedicated youth outreach person. At least nothing like Dean had with GenDean. We had a few highly dedicated individuals that worked around the clock specifically on youth outreach and organization. And I don't mean just Students, I mean youth: sometimes people forget that there is a distinct difference.
So now it's a month later, and look what's up: The "Change Starts with 'U' Campus Tour!" which on the surface seems really great. Here's what the campaign says about it on the Frontpage:
"This week, I'll be unveiling a Compact with the Next Generation - your generation - that says we're going to bring back the basic bargain at the heart of America: if you're willing to do right by America, then America is willing to do right by you," Kerry said.
Several notable celebrities, entertainers and high-profile Democrats will join Kerry on the tour including rocker Jon Bon Jovi, popular rock band Guster, Blink 182's Tom DeLonge, Senator Hillary Clinton and others.
Sounds pretty good, but is it?..
I didn't know what to tell them.
Am I a political hack? Did I really support Dean in the first place? Do I really support Kerry? Am I ABB, or did I actually stand for one candidate based on real reasons?
I just didn't know.
I thought about it for a long time and decided that I am a realist. Dean is not running for president; Kerry is. I loved Dean for America: I loved almost everything that we fought for, every soundbyte (except those well known ones that shot us in the foot), every rally, every speech, every bat, every blog, every meetup. I loved it because it inspired me to believe again. I'll vote for Kerry, and if I am asked to I'll work for him as best I can, but he hasn't really inspired me yet. Not like Howard did. I would've moved to Burlington for Howard... I'll move my car to the DC metro station for Kerry.
So when my friend asked me, it made me realize. I am nostalgic for Howard... and DFA just ain't what it used to be.
Anyone else out there nostalgic for the Pre-Iowa days?
I have some thoughts about the third one, but I am short on time and therefore will be posting them in a later diary. I look forward to your opinions on these 3 questions, so if you have the time, please tell me what you think...
I had other things, but in the process of writing up that one and watching the news, I sorta forgot them. I'll be back tomorrow (this is my second diary... I am trying to respect the rules) when I remember them.
We have some enormously intelligent people in this community that can think up some really incredible stuff. Lets see if we can't think of a strategy for bringing the peace to this country -- for our benefit and theirs.
I am posting again re: my movie choices, and I hope I do not offend anyone... I tried to wait until a relatively late hour so that I would not bother anyone.
I did end up staying home tonight, and I did end up renting movies. Yes, plural. I rented two. 'The Matrix: Revolutions' & 'The Core.'
In the extended entry are brief reviews of these movies and a bit of a musing about the whole 9/11 commission / Iraq Rebellion bit. Yes, don't look too surprised, I actually have a mind beyond the DVD player too...
I was thinking The Matrix: Revolutions, because I still have not seen it, but I have heard mixed reviews.
What do you all think? Help me out and give me some ideas...
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