3Dsound: Draggin' the Line

Eight years, eight minutes, hard to take, hard to believe, over

3Dsound — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 12:44:00 GMT

Video
The American experiment in pieces: Countdown with Keith Olbermann [hour-long weeknight news commentary program on MSNBC] (16-Jan-09), Keith Olbermann – 8 years in 8 minutes, online at www.YouTube.com (video RtnE4C9Gv5U) (accessed 19-Jan-09).

On the eve of Barack Obama's inauguration, here's a look back at where we've been.

Conservative Logic: Abandonment of analysis and discourse in favor of political ideology

3Dsound — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 22:15:00 GMT

Politics
Quotable

"The single most damning legacy of the new right as practiced by the Bush administration is the abandonment of analysis and discourse in favor of political ideology. By subverting rational thought processes in favor of wishful thinking, by abandoning scientific data, by ignoring academic experts who spent lifetimes studying specific areas, by promoting political goals over the well being of the country, the new right has failed this nation at every level. Whether we are talking about foreign relations, intelligence, economics, or civil liberties, the Bush administration has pursued goals based on purely political stances that had no real basis in fact. Every expose written about the white house by republican insiders essentially tell the same story. A complete lack of analytical thought, no dissent, and no real intellectual engagement by the President. There is no substitute for stupidity."

groland, commenting on the article "W. and the Damage Done" by Vincent Rossmeier and Gabriel Winant; article and comment published at Salon.com, January 8, 2009

Quotable? Immerse yourself in conservative logic.

Every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle

3Dsound — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 13:00:00 GMT

Politics
Quotable test

"Every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle. We have called by different names brethren of the same principle. We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists."

Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), third President of the United States
Inaugural address, March 4, 1801

Quotable

Conservative logic: Impervious to reason

3Dsound — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 00:05:00 GMT

Republican politics (updated below)
Quotable

"[Conservatives] are impervious to reason, but thin-skinned when it comes to criticism."

James Wigderson (15-Dec-08) writing at his blog The Other Side Of My Mouth, where he paraphrases someone else's observation and enjoins us to ridicule conservatives as our patriotic duty

Quotable? Immerse yourself in conservative logic.

UPDATE, Saturday, January 10, 2009: Case closed. Sarah Palin turned up in the news this week and whined like an adolescent about the unfair treatment she says she received from the media during the presidential campaign. Palin's comments lacked the tact and bearing we expect from someone aspiring to high public office, but she gave us a first-class example of the knee-jerk conservative defensiveness that James Wigderson tagged above.

The YouTube video of Palin's comments (Sarah Palin takes on the media!! Exclusive interview for "Media Malpractice", video 95wkCMeUkk, posted January 7, 2009) has been viewed more than one million times, indicating that many remain fascinated and horrified by her. Politics aside, Palin's performance is entertaining in a Jerry Springer kind of way – especially when she picks catfights with Katie Couric and Caroline Kennedy.

Unfortunately however, Palin is as serious in her indignation as any adolescent who possesses an unfirm grip on their emotions.

Palin is egged on in her confusion by right-wing propaganda producer John Ziegler. Ziegler interviewed Palin for a film he's producing about the biased reporting that prevented McCain and Palin from getting elected. Riiiiight. Top-down conservative thinking, such as Palin's and Ziegler's, brooks criticism not on substance but on the way it makes the conservative feel and whether it allows the conservative to get what they want.

Or, any criticism whatsoever permits the conservative to write off the media entirely, as Palin does with the controversy surrounding her fifth child's, Trig's, birth.

The editor of the Anchorage Daily News happens to agree with Palin that there is no controversy surrounding Trig's birth. Belatedly, he assigned a reporter to the story, in order to refute the unsubstantiated claims. His sympathetic support escaped Palin.

Reproduced below is the editor's blow-by-blow description of how Palin reacted badly to his newspaper's supportive inquiries. The article was originally posted online at community.adn.com by "editorsblog" at the Anchorage Daily News on January 9, 2009.

Gov. Palin's Press Office: 'There they go again?'
The governor's office issued a press release this afternoon with the title:

Governor Palin Says to Media, "There You Go Again"

You can read the full press release on the Alaska Politics blog, but this was the paragraph that jumped out at me:

Meanwhile, bloggers, the Atlantic magazine and even the Anchorage Daily News continue to give credence to the sensational allegation that the governor's child, Trig, is not hers.

The comment about the Daily News struck me as curious, at the least. Here's why:

On Dec. 31, eight days ago, I received an email from Gov. Palin asking several questions about news coverage in the Daily News. I took her inquiry seriously and by the end of the day had prepared a long email addressing each of her questions in detail.

This was her final question:

And is your paper really still pursuing the sensational lie that I am not Trig's mother? Is it true you have a reporter still bothering my state office, my very busy doctor (who's already set the record straight for you), and the school district, in pursuit of your ridiculous conspiracy?

This was my reply:

Yes, it's true.

You may have been too busy with the campaign to notice, but the Daily News has, from the beginning, dismissed the conspiracy theories about Trig's birth as nonsense. I don't believe we have ever published in the newspaper a story, a letter, a column or anything alleging a coverup surrounding your maternity.

In fact, my integrity and the integrity of the newspaper have been repeatedly attacked in national forums for our complicity in the "coverup." I have personally received more than 100 emails accusing me and the paper of conspiring to hide the truth (about Trig's birth.)

(I should acknowledge, however, that many people who commented on adn.com have alleged a coverup. Many of those were deleted as soon as we saw them, but many were not.)

I want to be very clear on this: I have from the beginning and do now consider the conspiracy theories about Trig's birth to be nutty nonsense.

If that's true, why has Lisa Demer been asking questions about Trig's birth?

Because we have been amazed by the widespread and enduring quality of these rumors. I finally decided, after watching this go on unabated for months, to let a reporter try to do a story about the "conspiracy theory that would not die" and, possibly, report the facts of Trig's birth thoroughly enough to kill the nonsense once and for all.

Lisa Demer started reporting. She received very little cooperation in her efforts from the parties who, in my judgment, stood to benefit most from the story, namely you and your family. Even so, we reported the matter as thoroughly as we could. Several weeks ago, when we considered the information Lisa had gathered, we decided we didn't have enough of a story to accomplish what we had hoped. Lisa moved on to other topics and we haven't decided whether the idea is worth any further effort.

Even the birth of your grandson may not dissuade the Trig conspiracy theorists from their beliefs. It strikes me that if there is never a clear, contemporaneous public record of what transpired with Trig's birth, that may actually ensure that the conspiracy theory never dies. Time will tell.

According to the "return receipt" feature of my email, my reply was opened shortly after I sent it on New Year's Eve. Other than that, I have received no response or acknowledgement of that email.

I think I was clear that we were not asking about Trig's birth in an effort to validate the conspiracy. Instead we were focused on the persistence of the conspiracy allegations. In the end, we didn't think the story was worth the effort required to develop it.

So I don't understand the behavior of the governor's press office. Did the governor not share my email with the press staff? Did the press staff deliberately ignore what I said in order to have a longer list of press "outrages"? Or are they just sloppy with details? I don't know.

The governor's press release ended with this:

As a public official, I expect criticism and I expect to be held accountable for how I govern... often the refusal of the media to correct obvious mistakes, unfortunately discredits too many in journalism today, making it difficult for many Americans to believe what they see in the media.

Will the governor's press office correct its misrepresentation of the Daily News?

Time will tell.

3D's take on Sarah Palin.

Two high-school dropouts have a baby out of wedlock and name it after the grandmother's felony drug deals (at least, we hope that's their reference)

3Dsound — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 20:21:00 GMT

American life
Family values: AKMuckraker (30-Dec-08), Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston. Thoughts and a Message. The Mudflats [tiptoeing through the muck of Alaskan politics], online at www.themudflats.net (accessed 31-Dec-08). H/t to MsKrazyKat at StumbleUpon, who always has the best links.

Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Troopers: Johnston dodged press to deal 'hillbilly heroin'; Affidavit: She "did admit to selling her oxycontin pills" despite her son's sudden fame by Megan Holland, Anchorage Daily News

Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Bristol Palin has baby boy, Tripp Johnston, Associated Press, SFGate, online home of the San Francisco Chronicle

Here's AKMuckracker's research (hyperlinked above) into the etymology of the name that Bristol and Levi chose for their new baby:

...Imagine my surprise when I double checked the People Magazine website, and found out... yes. It was Tripp. Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston. Wow.

Tripp? Was this just a "Tr" name like Uncle Track and Uncle Trig? Did it mean something else? Why 2 "P"s?

Tripping is a hockey penalty. It's also a reference to drug use. Tripp's father is studying to be an electrician, so maybe tripping a circuit? Tripp can sometimes be a nickname for someone with a "III" after their name (triple), but not as a name unto itself... Hmm. We'll try another search.

How about the Urban Dictionary. (h/t Phil Munger at Progressive Alaska) The parents are young and hip... let's see what they mean. Maybe it means good looking, or cool, or, in the know...

or
Tripp: To engage in sexual intercourse with, usually while drunk or out of pure infatuation. Another word for having sex. She got drunk and tripped with him after the party.
(forehead on desk) I didn't want to see that. Really, I didn't. I wanted the baby to be named John Michael, or Timothy Paul, or Stanley Eric... I figured, kids rebel, right? Maybe she'll do exactly the opposite of what her parents did. But not this...

AKMuckraker is just getting started. Muckraker suggests meanings for "Easton" and "Mitchell" that are almost as surprising as that for "Tripp."

And Muckraker isn't done. Muckraker discusses the sale of Tripp's baby photos to People Magazine for $300,000 (a price jacked up by Levi's mother's recent arrest) and contrasts that sale with Governor Palin's official decision not to comment on Tripp's birth – not even to officially congratulate the new parents.

Muckraker speculates (more or less) that the entire extended Palin family is afflicted with "the inability to step out of one's own situation, and imagine how others will see it; to have the ability to see things from the perspective of another."

3D's take on Sarah Palin.

Conservative logic: Private property

3Dsound — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 03:51:00 GMT

Politics
Quotable

"'Private property,' in the mouth of a rightie, refers to the idea that the principal purpose of government is to become a protector of inherited wealth and privilege at the expense of upward mobility."

Barbara O'Brien (aka Maha) (27-Dec-08) at her blog The Mahablog

Quotable? Immerse yourself in conservative logic.

Betsy Newmark, reducto ad absurdum

3Dsound — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 21:05:00 GMT

Eliminationism test
Making us glad she's not our kid's teacher: Betsy Newmark (19-Dec-08), Blagojevich echoes Mugabe, Betsy's Page [right-wing blog authored by a government teacher at Raleigh Charter High School in Raleigh, North Carolina], online at betsyspage.blogspot.com (accessed 20-Dec-08).

Now that we've watched economic fundamentalism slide down from its Malibu cliffside perch and crash into the Pacific and have then watched Republicans flung down on top of it, there are fewer good reasons than there used to be to read from the right side of the blogosphere. Disaccreditation coupled with electoral rejection tends to make the right-wing polity and its blogs irrelevant (at least for the time being).

But, you can be sure that the internet's right-wingers continue in their various oligarchic, authoritarian and theocratic crusades. Betsy Newmark, for one, holds fast – at her blog Betsy's Page – to the right-wing themes of the Bush heyday.

Betsy is the government teacher at Raleigh Charter High School, in Raleigh, North Carolina, who never lets fact, accuracy, overwhelming countermanding evidence, or common sense stand in her way of regurgitating the most up-to-the-minute Republican talking point. Although, at least one of Betsy's latest blog articles has to make reasonable people ask if Betsy’s reflexive bashing of those not toeing her partisan line hasn't gotten the best of her.

Betsy likens Governor Rod Blagojevich – He's a Democrat, Betsy. Bingo! – to Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe. It's an absurd comparison and, coming from a celebrated educator, startlingly malicious.

Betsy cites Blagojevich's reaction to being accused of selling Obama's seat in the Senate to the highest bidder:

"I will fight, I will fight, I will fight until I take my last breath," he added. "I have done nothing wrong."
Except, in quoting Blagojevich from a FOXNews report, Betsy coyly doesn't include the report's full Blagojevich quote. She leaves off the part where Blagojevich asserts his innocence, which is an assertion that softens the strident temper of what precedes it.

After committing that little dirty, Betsy goes on to take her potshot at Blagojevich and claim:

Rod Blagojevich might have thought [he] echoed Winston Churchill but he sounds a bit like Robert Mugabe who made a similar vow.
Except, the FOXNews report provides no evidence to suggest Blagojevich was modeling himself after Churchill or anyone else. Betsy just made that up.

She thinks she's neutralized her partisanship by including so many weasel words in her comparison of Blagojevich to Mugabe ("might have", "sounds a bit", "made a similar"). We're not supposed to notice she can't distinguish between a Democratic politician accused of committing a crime and a dictator whose policies have rendered his country a failed state.

Makes you wonder how Betsy's willful partisanship finds it's way into her classroom, doesn't it?

Keep a watchful eye on Betsy Newmark – celebrated right-wing school teacher.

Goodbye, Iraq!

3Dsound — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 01:49:00 GMT

The shoe thrown round the world

3Dsound — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 00:34:00 GMT

War on terror
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful: Anonymous (14-Dec-08), Iraqi throws shoes at Bush during press conference (video) (slideshow), Huffington Post [news website and aggregated blog], online at huffingtonpost.com (accessed 17-Dec-08).

George Bush surprised the Iraqis by paying them a farewell visit over the weekend. One Iraqi, at least, responded to Bush's sudden proximity by throwing their shoes at him, rather than showering Bush with the flowers that Bush had so furtively hoped for.

In an act of civil disobedience worthy of Thoreau, Rosa Parks, Steve Biko and so many famous and anonymous others, journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi (Arabic: منتظر الزيدي‎) interrupted Bush's press conference – and encomium on the "success of the surge" – and threw his shoes at the "dog" Bush, in the name of the Iraqi women and children who are widows and orphans because of Bush's preemptive war.

Al-Zaidi said and did what many have wanted to.

"This is a farewell kiss from the Iraqi people, you dog", Muntadhar al-Zaidi (منتظر الزيدي) yelled as he threw his first shoe.

"This is for the widows and orphans and all those killed in Iraq", Muntadhar al-Zaidi (منتظر الزيدي) yelled as he threw his second shoe.

When deprecated public art fights back

3Dsound — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 12:56:00 GMT

Fort Collins built environment
Draggin' the Line

It's not easy being a piece of public art. Unless you're a piece that excites public sentiment (and benefits from being well sited) – or a piece that's lucky (and well sited) – the vast majority of your "public" will ignore you.

Occasionally, though, whoever owns you will decide they've had enough of you and will work to rid the landscape of your presence. They deprecate you.

The most famous example of deprecated public art in Fort Collins is a sculpture entitled Dance Formation, which was carved from a cottonwood tree by Richard Scorpio in 1984. There's a great photo of Dance Formation by subscriber "clau-huevo" at deviantArt. And blogger "catfc" – who authors Lost Fort Collins – has published an informative (and probably the only) report on the sculpture's provenance, along with some good photos of her own.

Basically, according to catfc, the City of Fort Collins paid Scorpio $2,000 to carve the sculpture from a dead tree that was otherwise inconveniently located in front of City Hall. Twenty years later, the city moved the sculpture to an out-of-the-way place in Lee Martinez Park, on the north side of the city. Weeds and brush have grown up around the sculpture. Neglect and an expectation of decay have set in. You can see the sculpture from Poudre River Bike Trail. (And actually, as catfc points out in her article, the sculpture looks fantastic in its natural setting... Perhaps surprisingly, a second example of funky, environmental art is also only visible from a bike trail in Fort Collins. This art is decaying even more quickly than Dance Formation, so catfc should write about it soon. It's a story right up her alley, and I'm sure she knows the art I'm referring to.)

Other deprecated art in Fort Collins includes the lifelike bronze statue of Louis Armstrong, which formerly stood near the stage in Old Town Square. I cannot say I liked the statue. It was mawking and fawning and embodied the worst in gratuitously realistic art. The statue got deprecated when it was stolen from its site one morning in 2001. It's never been recovered. I do not endorse the theft or vandalism of public art (even art as God-awful as the Louis Armstrong statue). But, I also don't miss that statue.

Which brings me to the public art that's located at the corner of East Prospect Road and Specht Point Drive, which is an area zoned for commercial and industrial uses. You can see the art when you drive by on Prospect or look across the parking lot from the Girl Scout office.

The art involves a pair of facing steel arcs – each, I'd guess, ten feet tall (see the photographs above). The concrete foundation of the eastern arc is signed T. HICKS 79, which refers to Thomas C. (Tommy) Hicks, Jr. of Tesque, New Mexico.

Tommy Hicks founded the famous Shidoni Foundry and Galleries in 1971. In 1986, he donated a steel sculpture entitled Between to the City of Fort Collins. That sculpture is located on the grounds of the Lincoln Center and can be seen from Meldrum Street, near the intersection with Magnolia Street. I imagine that the provenance of Hicks' sculpture on Specht Point Drive also dates from 1986.

When I moved to Fort Collins in 1993, the Specht Point Drive sculpture was painted a nice bright shade of industrial orange. And it was very visible from Prospect, before the landscaping grew up and filled in. Then, around 2000, someone painted the sculpture dark blue, as if they wanted it to disappear and go away. All the paintjob did was look terrible. More recently, someone has painted the sculpture again. This time: rustoleum orange and beige, which simply looks ridiculous.

In spite of the indignity of its paintjobs, the Hicks sculpture has stood its ground and refused to recede from view. It has fought against being made invisible (when painted blue) and being made provincially acceptable (when painted its current "safe" colors). Its arcing forms defy deprecation. Why not take a drive east on Prospect, turn right on Specht Point Drive, swing into the parking lot, and find out what integrity can look like in abstract public art.

Then, someone should call up Tommy Hicks, and ask him how to restore the original color.

Steel Splat Fort Collins: Doris Laughton at CSU

3Dsound — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 11:23:00 GMT

Fort Collins built environment
Draggin' the Line

Colorado artist Doris Laughton created the orange and yellow steel sculpture that's seen in front of the Colorado State University Center for the Arts on Remington Street in Fort Collins. Entitled Steel Splat and installed in November 2007, the sculpture is part of the University's permanent collection, which is administered by the University Art Museum.

Laughton works in many media, as documented at her website (www.dorislaughton.com), yet she returns repeatedly to the "splat" shape – which is a seven-armed amoeba that simultaneously suggests biomorphic and liquid properties. The shape reminds us of something we might see drawn in the Sunday comics, and like the comics, it can evoke an immediate and humorous response from us.

Laughton constructed Steel Splat from four interlocking steel plates. The relationships among the plates draw our attention away from the spontaneity of the arms and towards the center of the splat, from where the arms arise.

The sculpture surprises us. But, it's not as punchy in its fun as some of Laughton's pieces. Which is why it looks so good after a fresh snow.

The next time snow blankets Fort Collins and homogenizes the distinctions between the plant material and built environment, go look at Steel Splat. See if it doesn't communicate a bit better with you, when it's expansive predilections become frozen in place.

Fort Collins first snow and built environment worth looking at

3Dsound — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 18:52:00 GMT

Fort Collins built environment
Draggin' the line

We got our first snow of the year last Thursday – An accumulation of three to four inches, which came later in the season than what might be usual. By comparison, I remember the year my daughter was born. There was lots of snow on the ground in early December of that year, with the temperatures frigid and way below freezing. That first month our new baby was born, for some reason, we constantly took her outside with us, wrapping her up in layers of clothes and a Pendleton blanket – But that was fifteen years ago.

Yesterday the sun reflected off the snow brilliantly, and the Northern Colorado sky shone its most crystalline robin's-egg blue. I went out and took pictures of some of my favorite places around Fort Collins.

What you see below are the grounds of the Colorado State University Center for the Arts, including a photo of the Andy Warhol giant soup can; the serpentine wall behind the ADP building on Remington Street; the zigzag lines of Morgan Library; and the angelic doors of Danforth Chapel.

Guide to Japanese patterns: Higaki, cypress fence pattern

3Dsound — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 12:52:00 GMT

4th in a Japanese design series
Draggin' the line

Most Westerners know that Noh drama involves an exaggerated – or contracted – conception of time, where ghosts, gods, priests and royalty all come together to declaim mysteries that – by many accounts – routinely put audiences to sleep. It's easy to believe that one of Noh's most difficult roles involves an actor who assumes a crouching position on stage and then emotes from behind a mask for an hour and a half. While an audience is present throughout.

What's not well known is that Noh is the invention of one person – Zeami Motokiyo (1364-1443), who had some help from his father.

Zeami wrote about 50 plays. One of his best known in English – The Woman Within the Cypress Fence – features a priest and a strange old woman who makes daily ablutions in a nearby river.

Here's how the old woman introduces herself to the priest and to the play's audience,

When I draw water from the River White
The shinning moon, floating, soaks my sleeves.

Natch. The moon, not the river, soaks the old woman's sleeves, which tips us off she's operating on a different plane of experience than are the priest and the rest of us. The priest senses this and belatedly asks her her story. Actually, he just asks her her name, but she takes the opportunity to unload her troubles.

She says she's consigned to living in a cypress fence hut and feels compelled to make daily, difficult trips to the river to purify herself. Also, she's a ghost.

From that point on, Zeami introduces us to a narrative structure where the rules of verb tense don't apply, and the dynamics of what's happening to the old woman/ghost – or not happening to her – become murky.

For her part, the old woman/ghost talks about her current difficulties and her former life as a court dancer. She holds a conversation – or recounts one – with Lord Okinori. And altogether, she seems to have a firmer grasp on what's up than we do. Near the end of the play, she declares,

I, once the woman within the cypress fence,
Began to perform a dance of my days that had passed.

(The ghost performs a graceful court dance)

That might seem like an epiphany, but the play soon concludes with the old woman/ghost beseeching the priest for his help, while commenting on the ephemeral nature of foam, cranes flying overhead, and weeds.

Which makes me wonder what good reason there might be for trying to decipher this mess... And I'm not sure there is one, but a couplet from one of the old woman's first speeches includes a pair of images that resonates with Zeami's apparent theme (or, at least, supplies a Western reader with a novel expression of a familiar thought):

Ice, formed of water, is colder than water;
Indigo, derived from blue, is darker than blue.

A whole can be more than its parts... And that's as good a way as any to describe the visual impact of the repeating graphic patterns known as diaper motifs.

Traditional Japanese patterns often make use of diaper motifs, as this blog's series on Japanese patterns has previously shown with the seigaiha and shippo patterns and with some versions of the syoubu pattern. The diaper motif that Zeami alludes to in his play is known as the cypress fence or higaki pattern, which we know in the West as a herringbone pattern.

Shown below are three examples of the cypress fence diaper motif. When you look at these examples, think of ice, formed of water, and indigo, derived from blue, and an old woman consigned to a cypress fence hut.

Guide to Japanese patterns: See the series.

Grand Ayatollah James Dobson: 'Secularize Christmas my way, or else'

3Dsound — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 12:54:00 GMT

Fundamentalism
God rest ye: Focus On The Family Action [political arm of Focus On The Family] (13-Nov-08, updated 19-Nov-08), Focus On The Family Action's 2008 Christmas-friendly shopping guide, online at www.citizenlink.org (accessed 20-Nov-08).

The recent election has rendered Grand Ayatollah James Dobson down on his influence.

The most obvious casualty for the Ayatollah is the rapidly approaching end of days of the Department of Faith (DOF, i.e., the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives) – That pool of millions of public dollars, which the Ayatollah and his fellow theocrats have enjoyed under Dubya's patronage (the stories of DOF reviewers laughing, when they received a proposal for funding from a non-Christianist group tells us what we know happens when the state sponsors religion; and the obscene millions that the DOF wasted on abstinence propaganda probably explains case studies like Sarah Palin's high-school daughter, who obviously could have used accurate information about the ease-of-use and effectiveness of birth control and the consequences of forging ahead without it).

The Ayatollah's star is sinking into history – But not before he can issue his yearly bull about Christmas not being secularized to his liking. The Ayatollah has just published his yearly hit-list of retailers that do not use Jesus' name with every ring of the cash register. Your inspection of the list (reproduced below with highlighting mine) might make you wonder what the Ayatollah's fuss is all about. The list clearly shows that most retailers celebrate Christmas in accord with the Ayatollah's preferences. But, the Ayatollah is an absolutist kind of guy. His theocratic spirit is irreparably offended by any deviation from his dictates. And when it comes to Christmas, Lord knows this is the Ayatollah's season for getting his message of cultural divisiveness and theocratic hegemony into the headlines. (As opposed to, say, spreading the good news about Jesus' birth.)

Most of us grew up listening to protests about the commercialization of Christmas. We know you don't have to be religious to recognize a loss when the spiritual dimension of Christmas becomes conflated with the secular celebration of winter.

But that, of course, is not how the Ayatollah sees it. He wants Jesus' birth synonomized with buying presents and putting them under the tree. He wants Jesus inserted into every seasonal commercial transaction and every public holiday reference. He demands that Jesus trump Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and every other community and personal reason for celebrating at this time of the year.

The Ayatollah understands what we do not. That Jesus is diminished and made irrelevant when He's not repeatedly, explicitly, and noisily linked to commerce and the crassest of our holiday impulses.

Focus on the Family Action's 2008 Christmas-Friendly Shopping Guide
How Leading Retailers' Messages Rate
We welcome your use of these ratings in your shopping decisions. As an additional way to help you communicate with the retailers we evaluated, we are providing the convenience of a petition which you can sign by visiting focuspetitions.com.

Retailers will be presented with petitions – thanking those that embrace "Christmas," and alerting those that have purged or marginalized "Christmas" that you object to the secularization of Christmas. We hope you will "stand for Christmas" with us and encourage the continued acknowledgement of this historic Christian observance in our culture.

"Christmas-friendly" retailers – prominent acknowledgment of "Christmas"

Cabela's
Crate & Barrel
Dillard's
Eddie Bauer
JCPenney
Kohl's
L.L. Bean
Lands' End
Linens 'n Things
Lowe's
Macy's
Neiman Marcus
Nordstrom
Pier 1 Imports
Sears
The Home Depot
Target
Toys "R" Us
Wal-Mart

"Christmas-negligent" retailers – marginalized use of "Christmas"

Barnes & Noble
Bed, Bath & Beyond
Best Buy
Borders
Circuit City
Dick's Sporting Goods
GAP
KB Toys
Kmart

"Christmas-offensive" retailers – apparent abandonment of "Christmas"

American Eagle
Banana Republic
Bloomingdale's
Lane Bryant
Old Navy

Glade Reservoir is not the "least environmentally damaging practicable alternative"

3Dsound — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 00:33:00 GMT

Colorado
Because water quality, stream morphology and wetlands matter: Kevin Duggan (18-Nov-08), EPA has Glade concerns: Foes say it could devastate project; supporters say they're a step ahead, Coloradoan [Fort Collins, Colorado], page A1 [above the fold]-A2, and online at coloradoan.com (accessed 19-Nov-08).

It looks like the EPA doesn't think much of the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District's plan to dry up the Poudre River.

And what's there to say? Reducing the river's flow by 70% is a bad idea ecologically, not to mention economically for Fort Collins.

The Conservancy District defends itself by claiming it's in negotiations with EPA to resolve their differences. Which casts the problem as if it were a matter of tweaking the pumping rate, rather than recognizing that the District intends to ignore twenty years of Larimer County landuse planning and the alternative strategies for providing water to the Front Range.

I've cited the Coloradoan story on the EPA report above and reproduced the story below (the highlighting's mine).

EPA Has Glade Concerns
An environmental study of Glade Reservoir and the Northern Integrated Supply Project offers "insufficient information" and does not adequately describe the project's impacts, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

In comments on the draft Environmental Impact Statement for NISP, which would include Glade Reservoir, EPA officials said they are concerned about the project's impact on water quality, stream morphology and wetlands.

Opponents of Glade said the EPA's comments validate what they've been saying all along: Scientific analysis doesn't support the project.

"The EPA is saying the same thing," said Gary Wockner, spokesman for the Save the Poudre Coalition.

"There are major environmental problems with this project, and participants should be considering alternatives that are less damaging."

Wockner said the agency's comments could portend a veto of the project if it is permitted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

But Glade supporters say the comments are just part of the process of developing a final EIS for the project, which would provide water for 15 regional municipalities and water districts.

"We're already working with EPA to address their concerns," said Brian Werner, spokesman for the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District. "There is no fatal flaw here."

Glade Reservoir would be built north of Ted's Place and draw from the Poudre River, primarily during times of peak flow. The reservoir would hold 170,000 acre-feet of water, about the same as Horsetooth Reservoir.

The EPA's comments are among several hundred received on the project. The agency takes issue with several areas of the draft EIS, including its analysis of impacts of Glade on the Poudre, the South Platte River and Horsetooth Reservoir.

The draft document also does not support the contention that Northern Water's plan for Glade is the "least environmentally damaging practicable alternative" for NISP, according to the EPA.

Studies by the city of Fort Collins and other entities have raised concerns about how the project would affect the Poudre's water quality through the city and on to its confluence with the South Platte at Greeley.

Werner said Glade proponents "are very comfortable the water-quality issues can be dealt with" in the final EIS for the project.

The draft EIS is so flawed the Corps "should start all over" with a new analysis, Wockner said. The EPA's view of the document is "extremely significant," he said.

"I think this is potentially devastating for the entire project," he said. "The participants would do well to pay attention to what the EPA says."

3D's coverage of Glade Reservoir, NISP and drying up the Cache la Poudre River

North Star Destination Strategies and client dissatisfaction

3Dsound — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 16:30:00 GMT

List (updated; bumped up from 08-Jun-08)
Draggin' the line

Abilene, Texas: Public dissatisfation typical of a North Star engagement.

Abilene is one of about 100 communities that has used North Star Destination Strategies of Nashville, Tenn., to develop a brand, but not all have been keepers.

In each community, North Star Destination Strategies CEO Don McEachern said, the initial reaction varies.

The brand's "intent is not to win a popularity contest, but to go to work in terms of making better use of the resources and efforts that are being used to market Abilene," McEachern said. "It strikes a passion with people when people are passionate with their hometown, so that's a good thing."

North Star's brand for Abilene – "Abilene Frontiering" – was unveiled Tuesday by the Abilene Branding Partnership. Initial reaction in comments left on stories on www.reporternews.com has been negative.

The partnership is made up of the Chamber of Commerce, Abilene, the Abilene Cultural Affairs Council, the Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau and DevelopAbilene...

Jared Fields (14-Nov-08), Branding often stirs reaction, firm says, Reporter News [Abilene, Texas], online at www.reporternews.com (accessed 15-Nov-08).

Fort Collins, Colorado: Rejection of logo.

A local design firm has been picked to create – for free – an alternative new city logo in an effort to quell criticism of a different new logo widely panned by residents.

Linden marketing will work with the public and city leaders to develop a logo to potentially replace the iconic image of geese flying in front of Horsetooth Rock.

"We're looking at things through a local lens," said Linden account manager Jackie O'Hara. "It's not about the money. It's about helping the city find a solution."

Elected officials and city manager Darin Atteberry have been deluged with criticism over the new $2,500 logo, which was announced in March, put on hold, then withdrawn but not before being used on some printed materials.

That new logo, designed by a national firm called North Star, featured the city's name in large type, along with two curvy lines meant to evoke mountains and rivers.

But critics said the North Star logo was everything from generic, dull and lacking heart, to too similar to Greeley's, which was also designed by North Star...

Trevor Hughes (02-Apr-08), Fort Collins firm to help design alternative new city logo for free [article for sale online], Coloradoan [Fort Collins, Colorado] (accessed 07-Jun-08).

Galveston, Texas: Rejection of brand messaging.

...Galvestonians and tourists alike repeatedly cited "dirty beaches" and the town's "unclean feel" during recent interviews conducted by a marketing firm hired to help boost Galveston's image.

"Your beach is most known, but neither visitors or residents think highly of it," says the report, commissioned by Galveston's top tourism promoters. "Flaunt the uniqueness of your island. Your beaches and island are not dirty – they are colored with stories, history and culture."

That's among the advice contained in the $76,000 promotion report commissioned by the Galveston Island Park Board of Trustees, which is responsible for overseeing tourism promotion on the island. Officials plan to spend another $24,000 designing and distributing print ads and billboards promoting Galveston around the state of Texas and to targeted cities around the United States and Canada. The money comes from hotel-occupancy tax revenues in Galveston.

Parts of the new tourism campaign by North Star Destination Strategies of Nashville, reflect Galveston's promoters' desire to celebrate that history. The Galveston Island Convention & Visitors Bureau already has adopted the recommended slogan: "The Legend Continues"...

Promoters are eager to exploit the town's magnificent architecture and often tragic history to lure tourists, but they are far less keen about other North Star recommendations.

The firm had recommended taking part "in a big way" in the national "Talk Like A Pirate Day" on Sept. 19, an idea at which locals and tourists alike scoffed...

Brown said that talking like pirates for a day was probably one of those recommendations where town officials would end up smiling and turning the page. Ditto the proposal to build a huge "pirate's sandbox" in Houston filled with Galveston sand, a pirate's ship and planks to walk.

"They kept mentioning pirates," Brown said. "I think they went a little overboard on the pirates."

One recommendation that city officials rejected immediately was to change the city's name. The proposal to rename it the "City of Galveston Island" provoked such hostility that Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas felt the need to reassure residents that no such change was imminent...

Joe Stinebaker (11-Dec-06), 'Unpolished' Galveston hopes to brighten tourist image, USA Today, online at usatoday.com (accessed 07-Jun-08).

Longview, Texas: Rejection of tagline, and termination of North Star relationship.

Longview residents together with local public relations and advertising firms will play a major role in the city's continued efforts to complete its branding campaign, while North Star Destination Strategies will not.

North Star's contract will be terminated, Mayor Jay Dean announced Thursday. The decision to fire the Tennessee-based firm hired to develop Longview's marketing campaign was the recommendation from the newly-formed Branding Process Review Committee.

"It is the opinion of the committee that North Star will be unable to regain the level of confidence from the Longview citizens necessary to deliver the branding product results we intended from the beginning," Dean said.

In March, the city unveiled a branding campaign developed by North Star that included the logo and tagline, "Longview, East Texas, Pure and Simple."

Though the logo was touted to be unique for Longview, within days of its unveiling at least two other U.S. cities were found to be using the same "pure and simple" phrase.

Longview and the sandy white Beaches of South Walton in the Florida Panhandle share nearly identical phrases, featuring the words "pure and simple" above the logo.

In Colorado, ski resort Gunnison-Crested Butte, has a trademark on its version of "pure and simple."

With the discovery, city officials opted to discontinue use of the tagline and began talks with North Star about the development of another logo and tagline that would be unique to Longview.

The firm submitted numerous proposals which were reviewed by the Branding Process Review Committee, but the committee decided instead to terminate the contract, Dean said...

Sherry Koonce (06-Apr-07), Mayor: Longview to fire North Star: Committee suggests use of local resources to create new logo, Daily Sentinel [Nacogdoches, Texas], online at dailysentinel.com (accessed 07-Jun-08).

Peoria, Arizona: Dissatisfaction with tagline.

Peoria's new branding slogan "Naturally Connected" is catching flak from residents and city officials.

The West Valley city spent more than $100,000 to develop the branding slogan, including paying $81,000 to North Star Destinations Strategies to come up with a catchphrase it hopes will help grow its economy, including attracting a major corporation, medical center and college.

But few seem happy with the catch phrase that some say seems confusing because it can mean so many different things: that Peoria is naturally connected to Lake Pleasant, its rivers and trails, employment opportunities and amenities.

"I do have a real concern with the tagline 'Naturally Connected,' " said Councilman Ron Aames, who has a marketing background. "I think this is off-mark. I think this is a strikeout."

Aames said, a tagline should be immediately recognizable, such as Budweiser's "The King of Beers," Coca Cola's "It's The Real Thing" and Home Depot's "You Can Do It, We Can help." He suggested using "At the Heart of the Valley of the Sun."

The logo/catchphrase issue was the subject of heated debate at a recent City Council meeting. One resident, Dolores Ceballos, spoke against the tagline and questioned whether the city could get back the $81,000 paid to the consultant.

"It's not a unique tagline," she said. "I want to see something that really defines us."

•Cecilia Chan (26-May-08), Peoria's new slogan catching flak from all sides: Tagline 'a strikeout,' not catchy, Arizona Republic [Phoenix, Arizona], formerly online at azcentral.com/arizonarepublic (accessed 07-Jun-08). •For a discussion of how the Peoria tagline and alternate tagline both duplicate those used by Canadian cities, see Steve Wright (30-Nov-07), What's the deal with Americans ripping off our tourism slogans? Brand Canada Blog [tourism, marketing and destination branding], online at cblog.brandcanadablog.com (accessed 15-Nov-08).

If interested in the limitations of the North Star BrandPrint™ process, see my coverage of the Fort Collins logo affair.

Ted Haggard: 'Being abused as a child made me the media whore I am today... Wanna see my scars?'

3Dsound — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 00:53:00 GMT

Fundamentalism (updated below)
Mind-numbing shamelessness: Associated Press (12-Nov-08), Disgraced pastor Haggard: I was abused as child, Yahoo News, online at news.yahoo.com (accessed 12-Nov-08).

Ted Haggard is nothing if not addicted to the spotlight. He's someone who transgresses practically any standard of propriety to focus attention upon himself – always working for that pot of gold, which the fundamentalist gullible give up for him at the end of his shenanigans.

In Ted's latest manipulation of information about himself that's so personal you'd think it ought to remain private (and – if the information is true and newly recognized as Ted claims – allowed the grace of healing), Ted has announced he was sexually abused as a 7-year-old boy.

Why would someone having Ted's history of sexual disgrace and media manipulation offer up such tragic information for public parsing? Did Ted announce this information as an excuse for his soliciting a homosexual prostitute and taking methamphetamine? Or is he just finding a way to call attention to his new insurance business in ~~Colorado Springs~~ Arizona? Or perhaps he's laying the groundwork for a new pastorate.

Who cares.

Whatever calculation lies behind Ted's latest appropriation of the spotlight, you can be sure it's intended to groom Ted's interests. Which, unfortunately, we need to recognize because of Ted's continuing influence among right-wing Christianists (this all came to light because of two invited sermons Ted gave at an Illinois megachurch, where the ABC video of the event [accessible through the hyperlink above] shows 'em crying in the pews and is guaranteed to make you cringe).

UPDATE, Tuesday, November 25, 2008: Talk about cringe inducing... The Coloradoan yesterday published a veeerrry long profile of Ted Haggard's march back into the spotlight (Eric Gorski [AP religion writer] [24-Nov-08], Disgraced pastor returns as businessman, Coloradoan [Fort Collins, Colorado], page A8). The Associated Press distributed the profile nationally, and you can easily find it online (by searching on the title "Disgraced pastor returns, as Christian businessman," published November 23, 24 or 25).

The profile discusses Ted's November 2nd preaching engagement at the Open Bible Fellowship in Morrison, Illinois. The Fellowship turns out not to be a megachurch but rather a congregation of only 350 people (which – true to Ted's media savvy – didn't stop him from briefly posting his two sermons from the engagement on his website [registered through GoDaddy.com; created on 30-Jul-07; as of 17-Nov-08, scheduled to expire on 29-Jul-09] under the headline, "Alive!").

Ted's enabler in arranging the engagement was an old friend of his, from his undergraduate days at Oral Roberts University. Rev. Chris Byrd thought Ted would be a great speaker because, Byrd unctuously explained, "I had confidence [Ted's] heart was solid, his theology is sound and the message he's always bought to the body of Christ would come forth." An assertion that certifies Byrd as a card-carrying member of the non-reality based community.

I won't belabor the issue. We all know Ted out-Gantries all of them. Gorski – who wrote the AP profile of Ted – explains what's up:

While his exact plans remain unclear, Haggard is unmistakably making himself a public figure again, nine months after his former church said he walked away from an oversight process meant to restore him.

Keep up with Ted.

Tagging the Northern Colorado loon: Kevin Lundberg

3Dsound — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 23:54:00 GMT

Colorado (updates published in reverse chronological order; bumped up from 23-Oct-08)
Theocracy called to task: Adam Molzer (25-Sep-08), Lundberg's term is a failure of leadership [letter to the editor], WindsorBeacon.com [Windsor, Colorado], online at coloradoan.com (accessed 23-Oct-08).

UPDATE, Wednesday, November 12, 2008: As a consequence of last week's election – a consequece that I'm sure most voters didn't anticipate – right-wing loon and ineffective Republican Representative Kevin Lundberg could assume a more prestigious position in state government than just serving out his last two years in the Colorado House.

Here's what's up: Republican Steve Johnson won election to the Larimer County Board of Commissioners and will resign his seat in the Colorado Senate. Lundberg could be appointed to serve out Johnson's term.

A Coloradoan editorial this morning states the obvious. Lundberg is unfit to assume Johnson's seat (Coloradoan editorial board [12-Nov-08], page A6). The editorial urges the Republican Party to replace Johnson with someone who Northern Colorado voters won't reject at their first opportunity in the 2010 election... Although, now that I think about it, maybe Northern Colorado would benefit from less Republican representation in state government. For example, who's more likely to do the right thing for Fort Collins, Bellvue, Laporte, Livermore, Waverly and Wellington by advocating for water conservation rather than the construction of Glade Reservoir? A Republican or a Democrat?

Lundberg in the Senate is looking better to me all the time.

Lundberg Won't Help GOP Position: Republicans Need to Appoint Moderate, Realistic Voice
The Larimer County Republican Party has a choice: either appoint someone to fill Steve Johnson's seat in the state Senate that will be an effective representative who will work across the aisle or risk losing the seat altogether by choosing a right-wing extremist.

Johnson, who holds the Senate District 15 seat, was elected last week to be the next Larimer County commissioner. He intends to hold onto his Senate seat until the end of this year. Upon his resignation, the county GOP will have 10 days to name a replacement to serve until the end of Johnson's term in 2010.

Senate District 15 essentially covers much of Larimer County with the exception of Fort Collins. It is a diverse area that includes Windsor, Loveland, Estes Park and Berthoud.

Already, some talk has emerged that the county party would select Rep. Kevin Lundberg to the seat; Lundberg was just re-elected to state House District 49, which covers much of the same area as Senate District 15, except Loveland.

Such an appointment would be a mistake. Lundberg is an extremist who has little to show for his work in the state House beyond making headlines for his extreme conservative social views, including prohibiting domestic partnerships for gay and lesbian couples and for being the only nay vote in censuring Rep. Douglas Bruce for his outrageous behavior. While his social views may well reflect some of House District 49, his work as a legislator has not been significant in resolving issues such as transportation funding, health-care reform and ongoing budget challenges.

Johnson has been a moderate, realistic voice in the state Senate. He is well respected by Republicans and Democrats for his fiscally conservative values and is a strong voice in questioning the role of government. The next senator should be an equally strong conservative who will not be dismissed in an Assembly controlled by Democrats.

The county GOP has the right to choose Johnson's replacement, of course. But this term will last two years, and if Lundberg is the wrong choice, the party risks losing its hold on what has been a traditional Republican seat. More importantly, Senate District 15 risks losing effective, meaningful representation.

UPDATE, Thursday, November 6, 2008: Kevin Lundberg might have gotten tagged in this election, but he escaped getting bagged. Lundberg defeated James Ross 58 to 42 percent.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE, Thursday, October 23, 2008: A resident of Berthoud, Colorado, Kevin Lundberg has made a national name for himself as the theocrat representing Colorado House District 49, which includes rural Larimer County and Windsor but not Fort Collins and Loveland. Lundberg has served in the Colorado State House since 2002 and is now running for reelection against James Ross. If reelected, term limits would make this Lundberg's last shot at spreading his divisive Christianist views.

How do we know he's a bona fide loon?

•Obsessed with sex.

•Doubts you're a Christian if you don't believe like him.

•A know-it-all, intends to legislate the curriculum used at Colorado State University for training undergraduate students in forest management, which reflects his personal war on learning.

•Wants to dry up the Poudre River.

How did he recently get tagged?

Check out Adam Molzer's letter to the editor of the Windsor Beacon (highlighting mine):

Residents of House District 49, do not be misled by recent mailings endorsing Kevin Lundberg. These ads are from a big-money 527 political group in Denver currently under investigation for violating campaign finance laws, and paint Lundberg as a "proven leader" running on a "proven record." The reality is that Lundberg’s time in the legislature has been a failure of leadership and an embarrassment for northern Colorado.

Lundberg's voting record reflects his own extremist views and not those of the people he supposedly represents. His narrow focus on fringe issues has done nothing to help the middle class and working families living in our district. Rather than give real attention to issues of health care, job development, programs for seniors and youth, public education, transportation and local environmental concerns, Lundberg has bent to the fanatical and divisive appeals of special interest groups and ideologue activists.

By voting for James Ross for House District 49, we have a clear alternative to two more disgraceful years of radical antics by Lundberg.

James Ross understands the real needs of residents in HD-49 and will represent our interests to create a safe and secure community.

Vote for James Ross for House District 49.

Adam Molzer
Laporte

Frothing Georgia Congressman Paul Broun asserts his Republican right to ‘Let the manipulative fear-mongering begin!’

3Dsound — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 11:27:00 GMT

Republican politics (updated below)
Typical: Ben Evans (10-Nov-08), Georgia congressman warns of Obama dictatorship, Associated Press, online at ap.google.com (accessed 11-Nov-08).

"[S]igns of being Marxist... [E]xactly what Hitler did in Nazi Germany... [E]xactly what the Soviet Union did... I'm just trying to bring attention to the fact... It may sound a bit crazy and off base..."

No, Congressman Paul C. Broun Jr. M.D. of Georgia's 10th Congressional district – which includes Athens, Georgia – you don't sound "crazy" or "off base" one bit. Fact is, we've heard your 1990s-style Republican trash-talk so much, we know exactly what it means, where it comes from, and what its intents are. It's a half-cocked exaggeration of something you've taken out of context – divisive, ignorant, and shamelessly partisan and derailing of someone else's goodwill.

Beyond that, let's face it. You're the politician whose claim to national fame is a sanctimonious drive to remove Playboy from military bases. So naturally, when confronted with President-elect Obama's popularity and his somewhat progressive yet centrist politics, you recoil in fear and loathing before a politician who's simply your better.

Being a country boy (I'm guessing), Congressman, you should take a listen to the new Alan Jackson song entitled "Country Boy" the next time it comes on the radio. You'll like the imagery:

Big 35s whinin' on the asphalt
Grabbin' mud, and slingin' up some red dirt

Think of those big 35s as President-elect Obama's politics and a metaphor for how Obama connects with what really matters in Americans' lives and why he won the election. Before spouting off again, Congressman, why don't you buckle your "baby butt" into Obama's right seat, and let a real leader take you for a ride, "Up city streets, down country roads." And maybe you'll get a needed lesson in American culture and priorities, one that the School of the Conservative Resurgence won't teach you.

Or, if that’s too much trouble, give Obama's advice from his acceptance speech some serious thought:

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long.

UPDATE, Wednesday, November 12, 2008: Well, it looks like Congressman Paul Broun was too busy watching Fox News – or something – to take my good advice seriously and reflect on why Obama and the Democratic Party swept aside Republican right-wing politics in the election. Or maybe Broun isn't an Alan Jackson fan. Whatever the explanation, Broun released a statement yesterday that solidifies his commitment to Republican fear-mongering and demonization. Broun neither apologized nor backed down from the comments he made about Barack Obama on Saturday at that Rotary Club function.

Broun's statement is reproduced below. The highlighting indicates my responses.

You may have seen news articles with blaring headlines such as 'Congressman Warns of Obama Dictatorship' written by the AP's Ben Evans hyperlinked above with regard to remarks that I recently made regarding statements by our president-elect.

Personally, I think that such headlines are a bit sensationalistic. Because they accurately summarize what you said, Congressman, and focus attention on your demagoguery? What's sensational are your untoward accusations about the President-elect. That's where the news lies. The focus really should be more on Barack Obama's remarks than upon what I have said about them. Barack Obama's spokespeople and national commentators have described how your interpretation of Obama's remarks is taken out of context, partisan, and independent of the standard definitions for the ideological affiliations you accuse Obama of holding.

Mr. Obama certainly did state in a July speech that 'We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set. We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded.' Give it up, man.

One would think that back in July members of the media should have begun asking Mr. Obama exactly what he meant. Since they did not, I think it is perfectly appropriate for members of Congress to do so. As I serve on the House Committee on Homeland Security, I think it is particularly appropriate for me to raise questions. Indeed, bringing accountability to the Executive Branch is what Congress is suppose to do, and we can only wish that our various Republican Congresses over the last eight years had not abdicated that responsibility. Still, Congressman, try hard not to confuse accountability with calling the President-elect a terrorist, OK?

Perhaps Mr. Obama's call for a civilian national security force on par with the authority and funding of the military is innocuous. However, historical examples of such organizations in other countries, present ample cause for concern. Unfortunately for demagogues everywhere, rhetorical posturing isn't the same thing as asserting an historic parallel.

Furthermore, the vicious attacks upon Joe the Plumber, Forget about Joe the Plumber, Congressman; everything about Joe is a fraud, which may explain why Republicans who invent their own realities – such as yourself – find him so convenient... for asking a simple question regarding Obama's tax plans, and upon Barbara West, the Orlando television reporter who dared to ask the obvious-How is wealth redistribution not a Marxist idea?-and upon her husband as well, cause one to wonder to what extremes the Obama political machine will go to suppress dissent. You've made the national news. What's your beef?

Attacking private citizens and members of the media for simply asking questions is hardly a shining example of adherence to democratic principle. Anyone who is not alarmed by such intimidation tactics needs to think again. You sound paranoid.

I firmly believe that we must not fall victim to the 'it can't happen here' mentality. I adhere to the adage 'eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.' It's a shame you couldn't have turned that "eternal vigilance" onto the authoritarian consequences of Bush's unitary executive.

By the way, why has no one asked Mr. Obama about the premise of his remark: 'we cannot continue to rely only on our military' for national security? Because it wasn't a policy statement. Why exactly do you think your loaded question about something you've taken out of context would interest a wide audience? As a United States Marine and former Navy medical officer, I take exception to his assertion. I take exception to your divisive partisanship.

It seems that during the campaign, the 'mainstream media' was strangely disinterested in Mr. Obama's personal history, particularly his long-time associations with the most radical, fringe-elements of the American Left, including those with a history of violence, such as William Ayers, and bitter anti-American rhetoric such as Rev. Wright and Louis Farrakhan. Those accusations have been aired and addressed (unlike Sarah Palin's and her husband's comradery with secessionists); Obama has disassociated himself from Wright (something McCain has never done with Rod Paisley and only belatedly did with John Hagee). The issue's a non-starter for anyone who follows the news. Isn't it interesting that in the post-election world, these characters have gone public? No.

As to socialistic/Marxist principles, Mr. Obama's confiscatory tax and wealth redistribution schemes (once that cat got out of the bag) are a self-indictment. The question by Barbara West was never answered by Joe Biden and has never been answered. It also has never been asked again of Mr. Obama or Mr. Biden by any major journalist. Why not? Let's think about it. Obama has proposed tax-relief for the middle class and tax increases for wealthy Americans like yourself, Congressman. Your name-calling smells like sour grapes. Furthermore, I don't recall hearing you pound your chest in protest against "socialism" during the last eight years, when Bush tax policies were precipitating history's largest redistribution of the wealth upwards from the poor and middle classes to the wealthy. But Republicans are like that. They're all for redistribution of the wealth when it's driven by economic fundamentalism that benefits them.

Finally, Mr. Obama's political record shows that he is no friend of the Second Amendment. The Second Amendment is rooted in the understanding of our Founders that only armed citizens can remain truly free. Or dead. Like that 8-year-old boy who recently killed himself with an Uzi at a gun show, while being supervised by a certified instructor.

I never called Mr. Obama a communist, nor did I accuse him of being Hitler, We heard your dog whistle, Congressman, and your words included, "[Obama]'s showing me signs of being Marxist"... but I do not apologize for stating the obvious: his socialist views are out of the mainstream of American political thought, and history shows that 'civilian national security forces' bode ill for citizens. You're just mad and acting badly because Americans elected Obama and rejected the right-wing politics that Republicans have traded in for so long. Like I said before, Congressman, you need to figure out what Obama and the Democrats have done right, and try to emulate it.

It is perfectly appropriate for members of Congress, members of the media, and private citizens to hold Mr. Obama accountable for his views and his intentions. When we do, we should not be marginalized. At least you understand where your trash talk has gotten you.

I hope my concerns are completely unfounded, They are... as I am eager to work with our president-elect when he is constitutionally correct. True to your right-wing breed, you claim your own views are the only ones legitimate. I hope Mr. Obama will embrace his executive role by becoming a bipartisan leader. Bipartisanship is a two-way street, Congressman, and there's nothing in what you say that would make anyone believe it's a street you intend to cross. I am extremely pleased to witness the election of our nation's first African American president, and I wish Mr. Obama much success as he leads Americans forward.

Heedless self-interest

3Dsound — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 03:18:00 GMT

Economics
Quotable

"We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals; we know now that it is bad economics."

Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945), 32nd President of the United States
Second Inaugural Address, 20-Jan-37

Quotable? Tell me what you know.