Month: March 2008

Million Fag March Will Protest Westboro Baptist

Trish

Finally, someone is protesting the world’s most odious protester. The Million Fag March is set for Sunday morning, March 30 in Topeka, Kan., home of Fred Phelps’ Westboro Baptist Church.

Fred and his family (13 children and 54 grandchildren) show up at military funerals with signs reading, “God Hates Fags,” “God Hates America,” “Fags Die, God Laughs,” etc. Fred apparently arrives at these insights after personal discussions with The Creator wherein He tells Fred that everything bad that happens in the world is His revenge for America “tolerating” gays.

Organizers say it’s time to “show Phelps and his church that freedom of speech works both ways.”

One of Phelps’ horribly misguided supporters

There are two big challenges with the march. First is the laws passed in Topeka to protect other churches from Phelps. They prohibit the Freds of the world (of which, mercifully, there are few) from getting within 50 feet of a house of worship for a half-hour before or after services are planned. So the march might have to take place in Topeka but not too close to Westboro Baptist.

The second challenge could be even harder. Organizers are determined to keep the protest peaceful, but since Fred’s whole goal is to whip up feelings of intolerance and hate, not responding in kind will be a toughie. Still, the expectation is clear.

Absolutely. No. Violence. It doesn’t matter if Fred Phelps comes to the March himself and starts throwing punches. The police will handle it.

If you feel that you could in any way be provoked, do not plan on attending.

…The Phelps family uses hate speech to draw attention to themselves. To do that during the March would only be bringing ourselves down to their level. So, please, no hate speech on your signs, clothes, and mouths.

Besides, “God Hates Fred” signs are lame and obvious. You can do better. Sending the message you want to send without being blatantly hateful shouldn’t be all that hard for you.

If you’re anywhere near Topeka, please plan to attend the march. You can sign up here. If you’re not, organizers need donations for costs associated with permitting, security, etc. so your donations are welcome.

Politics Ain’t Bean Bags – Now Maybe We’ll See If Obama Can Fight

Jon Ponder

Barack Obama may yet sail to the Democratic nomination without having to engage in the sort of junkyard dog fighting required of candidates who find themselves — as Hillary Clinton has — in second place in a two-person fight. Ironically, however, if he maintains his momentum after losing Ohio and Texas to Clinton last night and easily wins the rest of the primaries, the result might be that he’s a weaker candidate against John McCain in the general.
To come from behind, Obama would have to resort to the sort of “Art of War” tactics we’ve seen from the Clinton campaign lately that have so outraged his fans.
Finding himself running decidedly behind Clinton would force to demonstrate that he can do more than inspire — that he knows how to fight to win. This would be reassuring to millions of Democrats who agree that Obama might be a great president but find the proposition moot because he lacks a track record of playing the sort of political hardball required to beat Republicans.

It is relatively easy to stay above the fray in the top spot, but if Obama lags into second, he’ll find himself trying to accomplish two opposing objectives: Preserving his image as an inspirational leader while simultaneously trying desperately to draw blood in a knife fight with Hillary Clinton. To come from behind, Obama would have to resort to the sort of “Art of War” tactics we’ve seen from the Clinton campaign lately that have so outraged his fans: attack ads, sharp criticism and negative campaigning (that, by the way, apparently worked).

The Clintons have only lost two elections since Bill’s political career began in 1974, and their path to power is littered with bloodied opponents. If Obama can beat them, he will enter the general as a giant slayer. This would also prove to the hordes of party faithful who are impervious to his charms, considerable as they are, that he can win a contested election. As has been noted in these pages before, Obama lost the only seriously contested election he has ever run, in a primary to unseat Rep. Bobby Rush, the former Black Panther.

Whether the Democratic nominee turns out to be Clinton or Obama, if the national polls remain consistent through the summer, he or she will enter the general running second behind John McCain. The Democratic candidate will face an onslaught of negative attacks would make John Kerry’s Swiftboat adversaries blush. Failure to return fire will result in either Clinton or Obama becoming the third in a series of honorable and decent Democratic nominees to lose on tactics, not merits, to an incredibly flawed GOP candidate.

The Democratic candidate should not expect help from the “liberal media” — they love John McCain as much as they already hate Hillary Clinton. Yesterday, we learned that the media is sharpening its knives for Obama — and he can now expect the same unfair treatment the Beltway guys and gals gave John Kerry over the Swiftboating charges, Al Gore over the bogus claim that he said he invented the Internet and the Clintons over Whitewater et al.

Like her or hate her, there is ample evidence Hillary Clinton is as ready as anyone can be for the Republican smears and lies. As it stands today, no one knows if Barack Obama is ready for this crucial test.

Breaking: John McCain to Be Endorsed Tomorrow By Worst President Ever

Jon Ponder

NBC is reporting that, in light of John McCain’s accruing enough delegates in primaries tonight to be the GOP nominee, he will be endorsed tomorrow at the White House by George Bush, the worst president in the history of the United States.

Aides say Bush will also campaign for McCain.

Bush’s support should help bolster support for McCain among the 19 percent of Americans who still approve of Bush’s handling of his job.

Bush to Meet with Son of Hussein in Oval Office Today

Jon Ponder

Not Uday or Qusay, sons of Saddam Hussein. They’re dead. George Bush is meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan, the son of the late U.S. ally, King Hussein of Jordan.

Sorry for the chicanery but the headline of this story is meant to illustrate the point that “Hussein” is as common a name in the Middle East is “Henry” is in the West.

Because Barack Obama’s middle name is Hussein, Republicans have been trying their best to associate the name Hussein with Saddam Hussein in order to ramp up fear that Obama is a Muslim.

Obama is Christian.

The topic of the meeting between King Abdullah and Bush will be Bush’s last-minute efforts to bring peace to the Middle East, which Middle East experts see as all futile:

Daniel Levy, a former Israeli peace negotiator, said that key players in the region are moving beyond the Bush administration. “The feeling is that if you keep the flash points on a lower or somewhat higher flame, it will give you more cards when a new administration comes in,” he said, speaking in a phone interview from Israel. “Everyone is sucking up to the Iranians,” he added.

The signs of American irrelevance are apparent throughout the region. Even Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, hailed as a potential peacemaker by the Bush administration, mused last week to the Jordanian newspaper al-Dustour that in the future it might be necessary to return to armed struggle against Israel. And Syria, which received an unexpected invitation to Annapolis, believes that the peace summit was “an exercise in public relations” and that Bush has no interest in peace, as Syria’s ambassador to Washington, Imad Moustapha put it last week.

Ironically, Bush and his top officials heaped scorn on Pres. Bill Clinton for trying to bring about a peaceful resolution to the Israel-Palestine conflict in his last days in office.

Crist’s Sneaky Motivation for Another Florida Primary

Trish

Isn’t it magnanimous of Gov. Charlie Crist to hold another Democratic primary in Florida? I doubt it.

Charlie is widely favored to be John McCain’s running mate. John McCain stands to gain the longer the Democratic side remains unsettled.

Behind the generosity with taxpayer money, which the electorate recently voted to cut drastically, might be a big, honking ulterior motive. Charlie is widely favored to be selected as John McCain’s running mate. John McCain stands to gain the longer the Democratic side remains unsettled. If Florida holds a new election (an assinine idea, in my view), the ball could very well be bandied about right through the convention. Meanwhile, the McCain message can be broadcast loud, clear, and interference-free.

I already voted in the Florida primary. I had a full slate of candidates from which to choose, even though I had not been allowed an opportunity to hear or see them campaign, meet any of them, or get their views on issues related to my state. But that was Howard Dean’s doing, and it’s over.

If Crist succeeds in holding another election, besides being a huge waste of funds at a time when essential services to the most needy and at-risk residents are being cut, it will be a callous political move. I have no doubt our Republican-led legislature will happily comply once Charlie explains it to them, but it’s the wrong thing to do. Period.

Alternative View: Pressure Is Also On Obama to Close Deal Tomorrow

Jon Ponder

Conventional wisdom has it that the primaries tomorrow in Texas, Ohio, Vermont and Rhode Island are do or die for Hillary Clinton’s presidential ambitions. That is probably true but amidst all the Clinton bashing in the media, and from some members of her own party, it is refreshing to hear a little balance.

Michael Goodwin of the New York Daily News has a question about Obama: Can he close the deal?

This is Barack Obama’s third chance to knock her out. If he can’t close the deal this time, maybe he can’t close the deal, period.

Either the third time is the charm for him, or it could be strike three against him. Any result tomorrow that doesn’t finish her off lets her argue that Democratic voters’ love affair with Obama was just one of those flings. She’ll say buyer’s remorse has set in, and it’s time to get serious about winning the White House.

She’ll also bring up her wins in the disputed Michigan and Florida primaries and repeat her vow to fight for those delegates.

Given the wacky past two months, those arguments would keep her alive. They start with the claim that even a split decision tomorrow would fit a pattern showing voters can’t commit to the Illinois rookie.

Obama’s two other failed attempts, according to Goodwin, were in New Hampshire and on Super Tuesday. Prior to this primary season, his track electoral record was spotty. He won his U.S. Senate seat as well as the Illinois Senate seat without facing serious competition. He lost in a primary run to unseat Rep. Bobby Rush, the former Black Panther.

The odds favor Obama tomorrow, and beating the Clintons would be huge, but if Hillary Clinton survives tomorrow, even with a split decision, as Goodwin says, “She is like an incumbent, and the longer the race goes on, the more she benefits just by surviving.”