Schiavo: My wife's rant
Tue Mar 29, 2005 at 05:17:30 PM PDT
My spouse Thea is not the type to be overtly political. She did vote last November, the first time she did so in many years. She reads the news but generally feels that there is little she, or anyone else, can do to change the situation. I've been trying to gently persuade Thea that we need to take more action to reverse our country's course, but sometimes in my passion I come off a little shrill and we wind up arguing. (I can hear her scoffing now--"HA! 'Gently'? 'A
little'?!?" Ah, but such is love....)
But while many issues require her numbness to cope, the Terry Schiavo case has driven Thea to tears, and more, to words.
Fuel For Thought 2/24/05: Alcohol--Savior Of The World?
Thu Feb 24, 2005 at 03:16:00 PM PDT
Pardon the exaggeration above, but this Fuel For Thought discusses the potential of ethanol, especially in light of new ways to create it. Also, some major changes are in play--more opinion, less attempts to roundup every bit of data that comes my way. Less is more--after the bump.
The Cussingest Televangelist -- RIP
Tue Feb 22, 2005 at 10:34:49 AM PDT
I know that the deaths of Hunter S. Thompson has aggrieved many of us here, and for good reason. He was one of the great iconoclasts, but more so, he was a cantankerous ol' coot with a healthy dose of outrage at the powerful for their raping of the American Dream. He lashed out, partially through acid-and-booze soaked misadventures that left many perplexed if not furious, but more so through his insightful and delightful writing, which reached millions who laughed for all the right reasons while stoking their own fires of righteousness.
Alas, the very next day, we lost another gem of a curmudgeonly iconoclast--Dr. Gene Scott, the man Spin once called the "Morton Downey, Jr. of televangelists." He was one of the greats--a truly sincere Christian with a foul temper and a fouler mouth, a shaggy head of white hair, a cigar clenched between his teeth, and a lot of righteous anger of his own.
Fuel For Thought 2/10/05: Pebble Bed Reactors--The Good, The Bad, The Ugly
Thu Feb 10, 2005 at 04:44:37 PM PDT
Once again, Fuel For Thought is back, focusing again on nuclear power--but with a twist or two. Pebble bed reactors, nuclear industry smoke-and-mirrors, new power plant emission rules in the works in California, lots of excellent dKos energy diaries, and more--after the bump!
CSMonitor name-checks dKos, uses as citation for global warming article
Wed Feb 09, 2005 at 11:04:27 PM PDT
I was going to simply put this in the latest Fuel For Thought, but I didn't want to wait to share.
An online Christian Science Monitor article on global warming as world security threat recounts how Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, Bush's annointed nay-sayer on climate change, said at an international meeting that carbon dioxide levels were dangerously high and needed to be reduced drastically, immediately, to ensure humanity's survival. Dr. Pachauri replaced his predecessor as chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change because Exxon wanted someone less vocal in the role.
The article cites gfactor's diary on how this development is a major blow to the Bush Administration:
More after the bump....
Fuel For Thought 2/3/05: The Nuclear Option
Thu Feb 03, 2005 at 12:09:46 PM PDT
After being under the weather for the past week, I am proud to say that Fuel For Thought is back, with a full tank of nuclear energy concerns and a suprise investment in solar energy from a source I wouldn't have expected--or wanted.
All this and more, after the bump.
Kali's Lesson For Me--And For Progressives
Thu Feb 03, 2005 at 10:19:46 AM PDT
It's not every day that a god that I don't worship makes a difference in my life. Most of the few days when that does happen tend to be uncomfortable--witness fundamentalists' attempts to make life harder and more unfair for LGBT persons. But now and then, a slice of divinity bestows grace upon me, usually in unexpected ways.
Who would've expected grace to be bestowed by a deity whose titles include "Devourer of Worlds" and "Night of Destruction"?
Reaching For Eternity: Science and Spirituality Reconciled?
Fri Jan 21, 2005 at 12:10:25 PM PDT
Note: This essay is compiled from two different, but convergent, lines of thought I have been mulling over the past week or so. I have tried to bring them together in a whole here. I apologize in advance of any of this seems rambling.
The full essay continues after the jump....
Fuel For Thought Vol. 2: Peak Oil, Canadian Kyoto Woes, BioWillie and More
Wed Jan 19, 2005 at 10:29:13 AM PDT
Fuel For Thought is back, and this week, we are focusing on Peak Oil, problems with Canada meeting their Kyoto obligations, and support for biodiesel from an unexpected direction.
All this and more, after the bump....
Fuel For Thought Vol. 1: Energy News, Talk, & Snark
Wed Jan 12, 2005 at 07:40:39 AM PDT
OPINION
I am not an energy wonk. I am learning as I go along, and I am sure to say things that aren't polished or fully thought-out, or even necessarily articulate. But it seems best to write, as clearly as I can, the basis for my interest in energy news and policy, to give the reader a perspective through which I view this subject. This is what I believe:
I believe that energy has a massive impact on the economy, the environment, our quality of life, and in a very real sense, our survival as a civilization and as a species. We cannot take energy production, consumption, distribution, and environmental impact for granted.
More after the bump!
Transgender is NOT fair game
Thu Jan 06, 2005 at 04:48:59 PM PDT
Pardon me if I get emotional here. I will do my best not to be shrill or unreasonable. In fact, I think my position here is very reasonable. To wit, I've seen my fellow Kossacks, on at least two occasions, use transgenderism as an attack on Republicans--once against Ann Coulter, and once against Tom DeLay. Such attacks should rightly disgust every person who champions progressive values. There are plenty of ways to confront Republican hypocrisy without ad hominem attacks that rely on stereotypes and shameful emotions which denigrate a beleagured and persecuted minority.
Weekly Diary Series--What do you think?
Tue Dec 14, 2004 at 10:42:13 AM PDT
I've been avoiding posting new diaries in an effort to help reduce diary churn. But things have stabilized somewhat, and I've been thinking about how to best use the ability to post diaries here, rather than simply posting whatever screed or wonkery comes to mind.
In the spirit of Brian Nowhere's :08 Minute Activist and Jeffrey Feldman's Frameshop, I am considering a weekly diary, focusing on one of the following categories--energy, LGBT issues, or music for activists.
But which category, and should it be a weekend posting, or a weekday posting?
Update [2004-12-15 10:37:6 by lilithvf1998]: Right now the raw figures would seem to suggest that I should have a weekday energy diary. Yet, I can't help but notice that, aggregate, there are as many votes for an LGBT roundup as there is for an energy roundup. I'll make a final decision this weekend, so vote now!
Update [2004-12-28 1:25:5 by lilithvf1998]: The poll is closed, and I will focus on the energy roundup diary. However, we need someone to work on an LGBT diary too--see below.
Poll follows the bump...
New blood, new ideas, new victories
Thu Nov 18, 2004 at 04:58:23 PM PDT
Two articles on
TomPaine.com have me feeling more excited than usual. Why? Because they have excellent points about how we could begin to regain our lost footing. One provides an example from Washington state, where a Democrat was able to win over a conservative, rural/suburban voting district to defeat a religious Republican incumbent. The other makes an excellent case for a radical change to our tax code that would simultaneously be more progressive and better for the economy, while simultaneously gutting income tax for all but the most wealthy. One is about tactics; the other, about an issue that could provide a huge bounty for us.
Details after the jump....
Have we misunderstood the undecided?
Wed Nov 17, 2004 at 01:55:42 PM PDT
I'm not a huge fan of The New Republic, but now and then they do have articles that are worth reading.
This one is no exception. Christopher Hayes writes about his experiences trying to convince swing voters in Wisconsin to vote for Kerry, and while his experience is anecdotal, it's very compelling.
If Hayes is onto something, then we've been seriously missing the mark as far as strategy towards the undecided, and need to make a two-pronged overhaul of our campaign strategies.
The South Will Rise... To The Left
Wed Nov 10, 2004 at 01:31:40 PM PDT
Is it unreasonable for those of us who were born in the South, and/or live there now, to feel resentment when certain Democrats start talking trash about the South? I certainly hope not, because I'm far from happy about it, and if I, someone with progressive philosophies, can get riled up over this trash talk, I can only imagine how it'd go over with someone who, to the end, was unsure whether to pick Bush or Kerry. And such trash talk is certain to drive them towards Bush, guaranteed.
More after the bump....
Boldness and The Center--Like Oil and Water
Thu Nov 04, 2004 at 02:13:46 PM PDT
Fortune favors the bold.
-- Virgil
Ariana Huffington made an excellent point in her most recent article. Kerry lost, not because of our efforts, and not even because of "culture war" issues--although the "values" debate was used brilliantly, if cynically, by the Right to get their base mobilized. No, Kerry lost because he refused to run a bold campaign, preferring to woo the center, where he presumed the undecideds lie. While pursuing undecided voters may be worth while during an ordinary election, the 2004 Presidential election was anything but ordinary.
More after the bump....
IGOTV pt 1: The Democratic Party - Shorline, WA
Sat Oct 30, 2004 at 05:56:29 PM PDT
I was a little nervous.
It wasn't my first campaign effort but it's the first since several huge changes in my life. Frankly, I was fairly certain I'd be canvassing--the caller advised I wear comfortable shoes and bring something to drink. No biggie. I've done soliciting before--Boy Scout and orchestra benefit sales, raising money for charities, etc. But, well, I'm not exactly the same person I was when I was a Boy Scout. I'm not exatly a boy anymore, to say the least. And while North King County isn't totally illiberal, things do get markedly more Red-State upon leaving Seattle. So, how would a transsexual fare in helping to get out the vote, up close and personal?
Well, fortunately, that proved not to be a problem.
More, including Jay Inslee's take on moshthevote.com, after this bump.
North King Co. (Seattle) Political Observations
Fri Oct 29, 2004 at 01:29:42 PM PDT
