I’ve decided it’s time to get out of Afghanistan. There’s nothing to be done if we don’t have a legitimite government there, and with Abdullah Abdullah likely to pull out of the run-off election, and following the massive fraud of the first election, it’s clear we don’t. Even if we did, it’s not clear that there’s much to be gained. There will always be unstable areas in the world for terrorists to assemble, and serving as an occupying force only provides assistance to terrorist recruiting strategies. Moving forward, we should utilize narrow tactical action militarily, admit that combating terrorism is not a war, but rather the pursuit of a criminal network, and then utilize soft power through political diplomacy, encourage human rights, and provide financial aid aimed at increasing access to education, and strengthening the economies of the developing world in order to ease the chaos and hostility that rise during economic turmoil.
Afghanistan: Stick a Fork In It
October 31, 2009 by Big BlueNY-23: Is It Better If We Lose?
October 31, 2009 by Big BlueI’m beginning to think it might be. A victory for independent conservative candidate Doug Hoffman might convince the party base — even more so than they are now — that the way to back to power is to push further to the right (how they could possibly think that so soon after the last two elections, which were a complete disaster for the conservative movement, is beyond me). That could make for a lot of weak candidates come next November. The really nutty thing is the number of nationally known Republicans campaigning for Hoffman over their own party’s candidate. When you get right down to it, it’s bizarre, and the only real explanation is that the Republican party is going through a major split right now, and the most active forces are pushing it away from any and all moderate positions. There’s a chance that might do them some good in 2010, but demographically, it nearly guarantees them minority status for a generation.
Even For Fox This is Pretty Bad
October 31, 2009 by Big BlueWho do you think is more determined to win the war in Afghanistan, President Obama or the leadership of the Taliban and Al Qaeda?
Scale: 1. Obama, 2. The Taliban/Al Qaeda, 3. Both, 4. Neither, 5. Not Sure
Damn. That’s about as loaded as a question gets. Luckily, we all know that Fox News is fair and balanced.
Schumer Tells What Happened
October 26, 2009 by Big BlueTPM has an interview with Sen. Schumer in which Schumer details how we got from the mixed messages of last Thursday to Reid’s announcement today that the public option would be included in the merged Senate bill:
As Schumer explains it, the disagreement between the White House and Senate wasn’t substantive so much as it was tactical: The White House had its doubts that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid could really get 60 votes for a public option with an opt out for states.”The President listened very carefully,” Schumer said in an interview moments ago. “He wanted to make sure that the strategy upon which we were embarking had the ability to carry through.”
As I said in my previous post. Reid is a very cautious man — it’s what drives a lot of us liberals crazy — and that’s what gives me faith that this bill will move through the Senate and on to conference. Reid wouldn’t go out an a limb if he thought it might break. Still keeping my fingers crossed, though. Tomorrow should be pretty revealing. Expect some news after the Democratic Caucus lunch.
It’s Official: Public Option Will Be in Merged Senate Bill!
October 26, 2009 by Big Blue
Sen. Harry Reid delivered some very good news to progressives today. He held a press conference to announce that a public option with an opt-out provision will be in the bill he delivers to the Senate floor. It’s going to be a squeaker to get that out of the Senate, but given Reid’s long history of being overly cautious, I imagine he feels reasonably comfortable with the chances this bill has for passage. I think this will put us in a great position going into the conference to merge the House and Senate bills. As for the opposition, the Republicans are putting a lot on the line in voting against this. If Snowe withdraws her support — and I suspect she will — then whatever legislation ultimately emerges from this process will be the sole possession of the Democratic party. My expectation is that overall, this reform will prove popular. The key is getting as many of the benefits front-loaded as possible. The public option will take a few years to get off the ground, so subsidies, and some catastrophic coverage plan need to be started in 2010 so Democrats have something to show the American people for their efforts. Thankfully, there’s mounting pressure within the party to do exactly that.
It’s a great day to be a liberal Democrat. We’re just weeks away from achieving a goal set forth more than six decades ago.
UPDATE: I agree with Ezra on this. I’ve been willing to give the administration a lot of room on how they pursue their agenda, but I think we’re far deep enough into this process now that the White House should be aggressively involved. And I hope those reports at the end of last week that the White House was more inclined to Snowe’s approach, and was skeptical of the opt-in route Reid has taken were false, because I’m of the opinion that any “trigger” on the public option is a trigger that will never be pulled.
Grassroots Come Alive!
October 20, 2009 by Big BlueOFA made today, October 20th, a national call to action. They set out with the goal of getting 100,000 calls placed to Congress in support of the president’s health reform plan. As of 2:40 PM, the number of calls stands at 112,174! And it’s still climbing rapidly. Nice to see that the grassroots network is still capable of stepping up their game.
If you haven’t, take the time to contact your representatives in the House and Senate and let them know you support the president’s health reform plan. From that same page, you can then report your calls to Organizing for America.
UPDATE: That number now stands at 116,000+, which means every serving member of the House or Senate has received an average of 217 calls today in support of progressive health care reform.
UPDATE II: 150,000 calls made. 280 for every serving member of Congress. Huffington Post reports that Congressional phones are “ringing off the hook.”
UPDATE III: A total of 335,000 calls were placed or pledged tonight, tripling the original goal. Good to see the fire is still burning in the Democratic base.
I’m Glad This Woman’s On Our Side: Maddow Blasts Tim Phillips
October 16, 2009 by Big BlueOn the whole of the interview, I actually think this a good back and forth — not intellectually, but in that both sides basically hold their own while hurling insults — but I’ve gotta say, Rachel Maddow (aka “the love of my life”) has some serious guts to call out Americans for Prosperity spokesperson Tim Phillips (and through him the wealthy elite who pose as ordinary Americans in order to advance specific corporate agendas) as a “parasite” who feeds on the fear of ordinary Americans. It’s dead on the money, but it’s not the kind of thing I’m used to hearing liberals articulate on TV. It’s not the kind of rhetoric I’d want to hear all the time, because I think it does have a tendency to muddy the intellectual substance of a debate. But at the same time, the right has never had a problem throwing punches, and it’s good to see that we’ve got some heavy weights on our side now, too. A quick side note: isn’t it odd that so many “Americans for Prosperity” are already prosperous? Shouldn’t it be “Americans for Keeping Things the Way They Are”?
The full interview can be viewed on You Tube: Part 1 and Part 2.
Music Appreciation: Bag of Hammers
October 16, 2009 by Big BlueI discovered Thao, as with so many of my favorite bands, opening for Rilo Kiley. Her debut album “We Brave Bee Stings and All” is definitely one of my favorites of the past year. This is her video for “Bag of Hammers,” the second track on that album. She’s on tour now, and I’ll be catching her November 9th in Atlanta at The Earl, one of my favorite venues.
Things Have Changed: EPA Denies Permit to WV Mining Company
October 16, 2009 by Big BlueRemember those infamous mountain-top removal projects? The ones that decimate the wilderness, clog streams and rivers, and basically turn God’s scenic beauty into a gravel parking lot? Well, the EPA has denied a mining permit to the largest mountain top removal project in West Virginia history, and Ken Ward nails this story to the wall over at his blog for the Charleston Gazette. This is just a small piece, for a truly informative take, read the whole thing. But the short point is this: elections have very real consequences, and anyone who says they can’t see the difference between Bush and Obama is out of their fucking minds.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials today announced the gigantic news that they have formally moved to veto the Clean Water Act permit for the largest mountaintop removal mine in West Virginia history.
Details of the action are just now coming out, but EPA has been warning since early September that it would do this if the federal Army Corps of Engineers and Arch Coal Inc. officials did not do more to reduce the environmental impacts of the company’s proposed Spruce No. 1 Mine in Logan County, W.Va.
In a statement just issued, EPA said:
EPA is taking this action because it is concerned about the magnitude, scale, and severity of the direct, indirect, and cumulative adverse environmental and water quality impacts associated with this project . The Spruce Mine as currently configured would bury more than seven miles of streams.
