2008-01-23

solarbird: (Default)
2008-01-23 12:10 am
Entry tags:

The new round of telecom immunity in the Senate

Okay, the thing that you can actually do something about first:

The first ACTION ITEM on the new round of telecom immunity is out on Glenn Greenwald's blog, down in "Update II" of the linked post. It's an effort to get the three major Democratic candidates (and the Edwards campaign in particular) to actually do something with their pledges to oppose this reward for telecom spying and lawbreaking. (And this is spying and lawbreaking which, thanks to the civil-lawsuit evidence investigations that the Democratic leadership is joining with the GOP to try to cut off, we now have evidence started before 9/11.) In the last round, none of the candidates other than Senator Dodd lifted a finger; Senator Dodd is now out of the race and is the presumed leader of this fight. Follow the link, go, and do.

In other news, the new Canadian manual on torture awareness correctly listed the United States as a state practicing torture - until Harper's government got embarrassed and ordered the manual be rewritten accordingly. That's unfortunate.

Mike Huckabee, fundamentalist asshat, "argues that a constitutional amendment that defines life at conception is necessary to prevent '50 versions of right and wrong.'" Federalism is, of course, beyond dead, but remember things like this whenever the GOP pretends to be in favour of small government or Federalism or any of that craptrap. Also, this is from the article:
The former Arkansas governor was joined by his friend and best-selling Left Behind series author Tim LaHaye, Pastor Don McClure of Calvary Way Ministries, and David Barton of Wall Builders.

Tuesday’s speakers will include Dr. Beverley LaHaye of Concerned Women for America, Dr. John Hagee of Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas, and Dr. Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel.
Mmmm, Beverly LaHaye, famous defender of gaybashers and well known for urging parents to throw queer children out onto the street - and don't lie to me and pretend it's not true, I've heard all that out of her own damned despicable mouth - and demi-Reconstructionist Tim LaHaye. Fun times!

Oh, and Bill Clinton, who can still go fuck himself, called Mike Huckabee a "very good man" right before the GOP candidate got endorsements from a little set of fundamentalist black ministers on MLK day. I speculate crankily that this is former President Clinton trying to split off parts of the black vote away from Senator Obama. But that's just speculation. But given his endorsement of and praise for anti-gay laws at the Federal level during his turm, and his urging candidate Kerry to condemn GBLT marriage rights in 2004, you'll forgive me if my interpretation is a bit spicy.
solarbird: (asumanga-yay)
2008-01-23 01:42 pm

Happy Birthday [livejournal.com profile] annathepiper!

Happy Birthday Anna!
solarbird: (music)
2008-01-23 04:05 pm
Entry tags:

This thing I'm writing today?

This thing I'm writing today? It has parts for gourd and bamboo. (Tho' really, it should be a pretty big gourd and in practical terms will probably be, I dunno, a djembe or a tsuzumi or something. Something with some depth to it, but still nimble.) I think it'll be fun. If you're not my drummer. ^_^

Hm. I could very much see rewriting this as a short taiko piece. But I should finish actually writing it first. *^_^*;;

ETA: Done. Four parts, if you count the shouting and four-count in Japanese, all transcribed and arranged. Muah!