On November 5, a majority of Californians who went to the polls voted to pass the controversial Proposition 8 and deny homosexuals the right to marry. Prop 8 seeks to add language to the California constitution to make clear only marriages between a man and a woman would be recognized as legal. Prop 8 was a response to a decision by the Supreme Court of California earlier this year ruling unconstitutional a family law provision that contained identical language to Prop 8. Thus, Prop 8 supporters sought to go over the heads of the Justices and take it to the people to change the California Constitution.

Prop 8 has commanded a great deal of attention since Election Day mainly because of the public outcry that followed its passage, as evidenced by very vocal (and sometimes violent) protests in California. The reaction to the reaction has been very polarizing and perhaps counter-productive to opponents of Prop 8 seeking broad public support for their cause. Many Californians were outraged by the protests because it extended their commutes, while others were forced to question their stereotypes of gays as passive and weak (obviously not watchers of the L Word). It also has had the unfortunate result of feeding the lunatic fringe of social conservatives who were all too happy to refocus their anger on homosexuals as the greatest threat to our Country, a label they had unsuccessfully tried to stick to President-elect Obama. I actually heard a discussion on conservative talk radio to the effect that the gays would not stop with being able to marry one another, but actually wanted the ability to marry animals.  Oh that’s right, I remember hearing about that…something about animal husbandry. Maybe its time to apply an IQ test to voters, just to make sure they have one. But I digress.

Read the rest of this entry »

I don’t really understand the whole concept of a politician “pardoning” a turkey. In this MSNBC video Sarah Palin pardons a turkey however, while being interviewed, you can see others being slaughtered behind her. (WARNING THIS VIDEO IS NOT FOR ANYONE WHO DOESN’T WANT TO SEE HOW TURKEYS ARE KILLED)

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 45 million turkeys are cooked and eaten in the U.S. at Thanksgiving. That’s alot of birds!

Want to do something to takepart on Thanksgiving? Visit http://www.volunteermatch.org/ and find volunteer opportunities to participate in on Thanksgiving. Volunteer Match pairs volunteers up with volunteer opportunities.

Representative Henry Waxman of California was voted Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee today. Waxman ousted longtime committee Chairman John Dingell of Michigan by a vote of 137-122 in a secret ballot amongst House Democrats. Dingell had been the Chair or Ranking Member of the Energy & Commerce panel for the past 28 years. The Waxman-Dingell battle for the committee was one of the more hotly contested intra-party battles in DC in recent memory and clearly signals a new direction in the House regarding Energy Policy.

Waxman holding the gavel on energy matters in the House is what we call good news around here. Michigan Democrat Rep. Dingell was one of the staunchest advocates of the policy wishes of the Big Three Detroit automakers that the Capitol Dome had ever seen and it’s kind of hard to drastically change the energy policy, the way President-elect Obama and the Democratic leadership have proposed, when a key committee chair from your own party undermines you.

Read the rest of this entry »

William Ayers was brought up numerous times during the election this year.  Sarah Palin used him to try to convince people that Barack Obama was “palling around with terrorists” and it became a major news story.  During the campaign Ayers kept quiet but now he is getting the chance to speak out.  I recommend you listen to NPR’s Fresh Air interview with Ayers. Not only do you get to listen to Ayers speak, you also get a brief history of him in the beginning of the piece.

I think that it is important to give a listen to the man who had his name dragged through the mud, so takepart to listen to the interview and learn who William Ayers actually is.

(*photo from http://eviltwinbooking.org/media/events/image_7_1.jpg)

A new documentary entitled Not Evil, Just Wrong is out to prove that Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth was not only inaccurate but also dangerous.  I’m actually surprised a documentary like this didn’t come out sooner, like before the election.  Seems like it would have been a good way to rally the troops to get some McCain/Palin votes.  Nevertheless it is coming out now and the trailer below proves that creepy music and beautiful images can make some  quality almost convincing propaganda:

Of note is the part of the trailer where they say “we’re human beings, we all have a right to be here” or some such thing - the reality is that without a healthy planet, we won’t be able to be here.  And also, why do we have” a right” to be here?  We are lucky to be here and we need to stop abusing our planet and expecting it to support us.

I also love how they use “ordinary people” to try to not only prove their point, but also to try and profit.  Not only do they want “ordinary people” to help get the movie seen across the country - they also went them to donate to their cause on their website.  They want them as they put it, “to be a part of history”…

Read the rest of this entry »

The election might be over but SNL goes on and while it might not be as funny as it was with Tina Fey’s Sarah Palin, the show is still pretty funny.  Politics wise, they opened with  Joe Biden skit to help all of us deal with the loss of Sarah Palin:

Joe’s pretty great, but he’s no Sarah. Alas

Read the rest of this entry »

Radio Commentator Rush Limbaugh has one-upped even himself by calling the current economic crisis “The Obama Recession” on both his radio program and website. Before Election Day, when poll after poll showed Barack Obama with a considerable lead in the Presidential race and the Democratic party poised to gain seats in both houses of Congress, I often wondered what conservative voices such as Limbaugh and Sean Hannity would say once it became clear their dogma simply wasn’t working on the electorate anymore. It didn’t take long to find out, and the strategy is unfortunately not surprising. Lie, make excuses and rewrite history seems to be the only recourse left to folks like this to whom being wrong is simply unheard of.

Now let’s be honest, if we did a post around here every time Rush Limbaugh said something patently absurd, we’d have run out of space on our servers about three days after our launch. But this particular nugget is a telling example of the sad state of the “conservative ideals” Limbaugh claimed to steward. Limbaugh blaming the current economy on Barack Obama is about as disingenuous as an arsonist blaming the firefighters for the fire he’s been setting, kindling and adding fuel to for over 20 years.

Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday Gina wrote about Sarah Palin’s interview to FOX News in which she talks about “some blogger, probably sittin’ there in his parents’ basement wearin’ pajamas”…spreading rumors.

So bloggers at 23/6 are responding to Palin’s accusations with pics of their bloggers in pajamas giving Sarah Palin the finger. I plan to send mine in later this week once I get out of my parents basement.

Want to celebrate the beauty of free speech and free press? takepart and start your own blog at http://www.wordpress.com

Oh Sarah… Even in your own clothes you make me laugh.

Sarah Palin was interviewed by Fox News the other day in an effort to clear up some of the rumors that are floating around about her these days.  She spends the first 8 minutes of the interview circling around some of the issues and then finally a little after 8 minutes she says what she really thinks - that bloggers are to blame! Specifically bloggers who blog in their pajamas in their parent’s basements.

Well Sarah, I may be in my pj’s as a write this, but my parents basement? I think not.  I blog about you in my very own apartment that I pay for with my own hard earned money - unlike your campaign clothes, which seem to me like the equivalent of a very expensive parental basement:

Read the rest of this entry »

Many many months ago, we told you that the incredibly-bearded Chuck Norris had asked Congress to drill here and now.  Well, Norris is back, and has posted an open letter to President-elect Obama (if you recall, Bush has, oh, let’s say…three months left?), giving him some advice.

It seems Norris is concerned that “Democrats have a virtual monopoly over our land, with control of the White House, both houses of Congress, a majority of gubernatorial positions, state legislatures, the courts, the news media, the unions and the entertainment and educational fields,” and wants to make sure this doesn’t ruin the good thing going we have called AMERICA.  And so he says,

It’s no big surprise that I don’t see politically eye-to-eye with you. Actually, I stand in stark opposition to most of your politics. Still, even in our differences, I realize that we must learn to work together if we are to see our country get back on track. After Election Day, I asked myself, despite the outcome, how can I work for our new president to help better America? Then the thought occurred to me, the first question that should be answered is: How will you work for me? After all, it is “We, the People” of the Constitution for whom you are employed, correct?

It’s kind of like what JFK said upon inaguration, except the exact and complete opposite.  Anyhow, Norris outlines four points for Obama to follow to be a good president:

1. Use and cite the Constitution. What does this entail, Mr. Norris?

Read the rest of this entry »