An excerpt entitled "We've Got to Face the Issue of Corruption", from The Free Citizen: A Summons to Service of the Democratic Ideal by Theodore Roosevelt (edited by Hermann Hagedorn).

TR's immortal words (and my humble contribution to their relevance in today's Republican culture of corruption) after the jump.

Just an FYI...August 1, 2005 sees the launch of Al Gore's long-awaited TV network. Finally it has a name -- "Current" -- "created by, for, and with an 18-34 year old audience."

The press release sheds some light on the eagerly anticipated venture, explaining how Current seeks to reinvent informative content by using the new rules of the information age.

More on the flip.

In a find that could possibly turn Pinellas County, Florida from red to blue, an employee cleaning a desk came across a box containing 268 uncounted absentee ballots. The margin for George Bush in Pinellas County stands at just 226 votes, prior to this discovery.

More after the jump.

Peter King, (R-NY) showing an eerie confidence in the election results, while exit polls had Republicans panicking on the Hill:

"We won....It's all over but the counting. And we'll take care of the counting."

My take is this:

Any official who supports paperless e-voting is an enemy of democracy, they have no excuse. Any company which attempts to foist this sham on election officials is criminal and vile, and should be financially driven into the pavement and it's directors jailed. Any election official who says a paper trail is unneccessary or impossible should be impeached immediately.

Either that official is incompetent, uninformed, and egregiously cavalier about the value of your vote -- or they are a parasitic disease upon the beating heart of democracy itself, with full knowledge and intent to kill their host and feed on it's remains.

For the sake of democracy, this must be stopped. This is VOTE-MURDER.

(more resources and info after the jump)

Talk about your flip-flops...I'm surprised no one's diaried this yet (not that I've seen). Read this and count the ways this flies in the face of everything Bush has ever said or done.

Reuters: Bush would accept Islamic rule in Iraq

BBC: Bush: I would accept Islamic Iraq

(Reuters article reposted after jump, with commentary)

Just an FYI, if you see this rumor bubbling up (which I have seen repeatedly for two days in a very popular forum online) smack it down! Let's not allow this smear on John Kerry's faith to become urban legend. This rumor has been circulating for some time. It was even the subject of a Hannity smear story back in July.  

Please post any additional refutation links and resources here.

I did a diary entry on this subject yesterday, warning about fundie wackos claiming that John Kerry has been excommunicated by the Catholic Church. That ludicrous assertion was roundly debunked in yesterday's diary thread, and today has been denied by the Vatican itself. (article follows after the jump)

This is hard to believe, but I'd suggest we get on this right away before it takes root, either to debunk it (if false), or address it directly (if true) by calling for equal treatment of Gov. Arnold, Rudy Giuliani, Tom Ridge, George Pataki, and other pro-choice Catholic Republicans.

Here's the article, which just hit the wires (reposted in full after the jump):

Four years was not enough...vote for four more years of opposite day! It's easier than thinking!

On opposite day, you can conserve nothing, and still be a conservative! Why? Because it's OPPOSITE DAY, silly!

The US Commission on Civil Rights has issued their final draft assessment of the George W. Bush administration's record, and concludes that "the administration has failed to exhibit leadership or define a clear focus, relegating civil rights to a low priority" on matters ranging from voting rights to racial profiling, equality in education and environmental justice.

It's late and I'm tired, but heads up...this biased AZ Republic op-ed --

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/opinions/articles/1009sat1-30.html

is topping Google News right now, claiming that the very things that should indicate a deperate, angry Bush loss were actually the attributes of his victory. Did the author watch the same debate as the rest of us? (Article reposted after jump)

Bush's simple premise -- how can you bring allies to the table when you say "wrong war, wrong place, wrong time?" How can you ask our allies to join us in a "grand diversion?"

The answer is devastating and simple.

Kerry (who's already made compelling case that Bush is "wrong"): "How do you ask our allies to join us when we were wrong? You could start by apologizing for your mistakes. You start by apologizing to your friends when you were wrong. That's how. If you want to have a friend, you need to be a friend."

Hey all, nothing to substantiate this yet, but here's the article, reposted in full after the jump:

Bush and his administration have developed a pattern of untrustworthiness on matters of national security. Many have emphasized the need for KE04 to hammer Bush on this, his strongest suit, the one Bush is banking on for re-election. Here's how I propose we do that successfully.

It's official, California State Attorney General Kevin Shelly has ordered the Diebold Accuvote machines decertified, effective immediately. Today is a fine day for democracy in America.