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POPSDemocrats threaten floor vote to break impasse They are going to get it voted come hell or high water and it is probably the most expensive and important pieces of legislation yet. It is kind of like fish. If you don't consume it right away, it begins to smell.
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POPSIs it Ringling Bros. or the New York State Senate? Paterson has threatened to call the Senate back into session every day, including weekends and July 4. Maybe the threat of having to give up a holiday they just might decide to play nice and get some actual work done. I vote that we cut their number in half. They would get just as much work done at half the cost. Now that’s what I call fiscal responsibility.
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POPSDem Mutiny on Climate Bill Grows, Says Peterson 
Peterson has warned that the bill put together by Waxman and Energy and Environment subcommittee Chairman Edward Markey (D-Mass.) will fail if agriculture-related provisions aren’t altered, and he’s said he has as many as 45 votes on his side. That number of Democratic defections would certainly doom the prospects of passing the bill in the House. Peterson threatened to have enough votes to kill the bill if he didn’t get satisfaction, while Rangel said he wanted to focus on healthcare first, and leave the climate change bill for a later time. Pelosi stepped in on June 3, demanding all chairmen square their business by June 19. But Peterson said that deadline is looking tough to meet. And while the House seems stuck, momentum appears to be building in the Senate to follow the House’s lead of enacting as big a bill as possible. Following Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D-Nev.) recent comments that “If can do it, we can do it,” a group of 25 senators,
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POPSN. Korea Conducts 'Successful' Underground Nuclear Test I hope all those who wanted a "more level playing field", no one-superpower Country are feeling better and safer these days. Both N. Korea and Iran have blatantly stated that they are continuing their nuclear programs...and it ain't for defense purposes! Either those in Washington are so naive or things are so serious that they don't dare let on or they lack the will to deal with the inevitable. Dear President Grave Concern...please whip out your brilliant speaking abilities and convince these countries of the seriousness of our 'grave concerns'. Or perhaps, check in your index file from your community organizer days and find the answer to these ominous threats to global stability and security.
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POPSObama May Cede To Iran’s Nuclear Ambition president of the National Iranian American Council. “The US may still have zero as its opening position, while recognising it may not be where things stand at the end of a potential agreement.” Mr Fitzpatrick adds: “Obviously, no country wants to flag its fallback positions in advance. As soon as you let your fallback position be known, it becomes the new position.”
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POPSRegister Your Predictions Here onToxic Assets What's your guess on the avrg.price coming out of the auction for the mortgage assets. That's if they ever damn-well get around to it. Anyway, I'll have to say they just won't go over that hard 50% line in most cases and I'll say they end up going for between 45 ~ 50 cents on the dollar of the original over-inflated prices.
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POPSWildwood, review by Donna Southern This book is truly remarkable. The read itself is a walk through the woods. One becomes lost in its fervor. I am a meanderer of woodlands and at times it has been so essential for me to preamble while my mind reels: a form of healing and meditation amongst the trees. The wood or forest is a place that has allowed me to grow as a human being. This book has been able to transport me to be surrounded by the nature and instinct deeply buried within my soul. I have been united with a spiritual nourishment that can only genuinely be achieved by being with nature. Robert Deakin has eloquently expressed through the power of words, exactly that: an impossible peace in an impasse before the storm. Questioning our nature, Roger Deakin begs us to revisit the sensations of our birthright: a unity and return to our intimate kinship with nature. Within these thin slithers of wood, there are the most delicious cascades of mouthwatering descriptiveness that flow th
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POPSIsrael's War on Gaza: What US Media Won't Tell You Here are hard core interviews from within Gaza on the cause of the war, what is really happening. Israel was first to break the cease-fire, which provoked Hamas to fire rockets (killing only 1 Israeli), then Israel claims "attack in self defense". Typical of Israeli tactics: It’s not an attack on Hamas. It is an attack on the whole Palestinian population. Now if Democracy Now can get interviews like this, from journalists in Gaza, and even Israeli paper Haaretz, why do we not here ANY of what they are saying in American media? The same people who brought you the Iraq War, without questions or challenges, are doing the same again on your prime time news. Listen: audio or MP3 listening is best...go past the initial headlines to the 4 interviews listed...you will be stunned. DO NOT MISS THE VERY LAST GUEST INTERVIEW.
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POPSIsrael Defends Itself - Blame Hamas Terrorists U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned Israel's offensive as excessive and demanded an immediate cease-fire. He said key international and regional players — including foreign ministers of the Arab League nations holding an emergency meeting Wednesday — must "act swiftly and decisively to bring an early end to this impasse." Can you believe the lowlifes at the UN - Hamas terrorist fire rockets into Israel constantly but condeme Isarel for striking back. What a bunch of moron!
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POPS"We have no words left" <<<In Europe and the Middle East, the gap between leaders and led could not be greater when it comes to Israel. Official complicity and support for Israel contrast with popular outrage at war crimes carried out against occupied people and refugees with impunity. With governments and international institutions failing to do their jobs, the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions National Committee - representing hundreds of organisations - has renewed its call on international civil society to intensify its support for the sanctions campaign modelled on the successful anti-apartheid movement. Now is the time to channel our raw emotions into a long-term effort to make sure we do not wake up to "another Gaza" ever again.>>> • Ali Abunimah is co-founder of The Electronic Intifada and author of One Country: A Bold Proposal to End the Israeli-Palestinian Impasse
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POPSAll Hope is Lost My friends in South Africa say there are so many problems on the continent of Africa, and this is just one more. They feel that nobody really cares about a bunch of blacks so far away from them. Apathy is the word for today.
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POPSZimbabwe Parliment broke, sends pols home till Nov 11
Talks to conclude the setting up of the power sharing agreement between the ruling party and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party reach a critical phase on Monday when regional leaders visit Harare. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) troika on security will try to persuade Mr Mugabe and his rivals Mr Morgan Tsvangirai and Prof Arthur Mutambara to finalise the allocation of Cabinet posts. The setting up of the inclusive government has been in the works since September 15, when the three leaders signed an historic power sharing pact to end Zimbabwe’s decade old political and economic crisis. Parliament is expected to approve a constitution amendment giving force to the power sharing arrangement and disruption of its settings might further delay the process. Compared to other law makers in the region, Zimbabwean legislators are poorly paid, with their monthly salaries averaging less than $5 (Sh400). They also complain that they had been i
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POPSWashington Mutual Succumbs It's the largest bank failure in US history. Will this bank failure provide the impetus for Congress to overcome its impasse over the bailout package? Or will Congress keep a cool head and not settle for a trillion dollar hasty plan?
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POPSStatement by The Elders on Iran, July 18, 2008 The Elders... "This group can speak freely and boldly, working both publicly and behind the scenes on whatever actions need to be taken. Together we will work to support courage where there is fear, foster agreement where there is conflict, and inspire hope where there is despair" The Elders * Nelson Mandela * Graça Machel * Desmond Tutu * Kofi Annan * Ela Bhatt * Lakhdar Brahimi * Gro Brundtland * Fernando H Cardoso * Jimmy Carter * Mary Robinson * Muhammad Yunus * Aung San Suu Kyi
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POPSThe FEC is Ready for Action (hopefully McCain action!)
The new commissioners joining sitting commissioner Ellen Weintraub, a Democrat, are: * Democrat Cynthia L. Bauerly of Minnesota * Republican Caroline C. Hunter of Florida * Republican Donald F. McGahn of D.C. * Republican Matthew S. Petersen of Utah Also, recess appointee Steven T. Walther, a Democrat, was confirmed to a full term, completing the six-member panel. These appointments come after six months during which the FEC could not take official action because it did not have the required minimum of four commissioners, making it impossible to issue advisory opinions or dole out public funding. As we've written about several times, the impasse began when President Bush sent a controversial nominee to the Senate for confirmation. As for the McCain debacle, "Knowingly violating the spending limit is a criminal offense that could put McCain at risk of stiff fines and up to five years in prison." http://www.democrats.org/a/2008/02/democratic_part_8.php
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POPSSenate Leader Losing It It offers pretty stunning evidence of how personally petty Reid is, as well as his penchant for defining “partisanship” as anything that keeps him from getting his way. The Senate was voting on a Medicare bill bloated with new spending. The bill was also an attempt to prevent cuts in payment rates to doctors who treat seniors on Medicare, and Democrats wanted to pay for that by taking the funds from Medicare Advantage, a private fee-for-service plan. The president would likely have vetoed the bill in its current form and Senate Republicans opposed the gutting of Medicare Advantage, so Senate Republicans blocked the bill. The trouble is that if the Senate doesn’t resolve the issue very soon, doctors will stop receiving Medicare funds. So Republicans proposed a 30-day extension to allow more time to hammer out a compromise. Democrats blocked the proposed extension. The impasse here caused Reid to go apoplectic on Mitch McConnell (I’ve highlighted the juicy parts):
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