Hi FriendThere is a new group that just started on Facebook that I thought Organizing for America members may be interested in joining. Please see United Against Racism -
http://apps.facebook.com/causes/354956/80588439?m=9dc74a6eUnited Against Racism
posted by David Apperson
As President Obama recently related to me regarding local service; "Now is our time to work together, reaffirm our enduring spirit, and choose our better history."
It is our responsibility as Americans to vote, and vote we must. And now is the time to prepare for the next election. I invite all citizens of Connecticut to post a message on the Connecticut Election Blog.
Connecticut Election Blogconnecticut-election.blogspot.com
During the first 100 days of the Obama presidency we have seen outstanding leadership in tackling the many issues facing our great nation. And it seems that overwhelming poll numbers indicate that America agrees with President Obama. see THE WHITE HOUSEThe question remains; What can we as fellow Americans do to help our neighbors and countrymen? Included are nine things you can do to help the President celebrate his first 100 Days in office:1. Donate unused suits to the Salvation Army2. Donate time to Americorps3. Donate toys for children at Toys for Tots4. Donate blood at the Red Cross5. Donate a can of food each week to a Local Shelter or Food Pantry6. Donate money to Save the Children7. Donate time at local a Veterans Hospital8. Donate an hour a day to your Child9. Donate to the Make a Wish FoundationParticipation is greatly appreciated. What you do for the least of our brethren, you do for yourself -http://donate.barackobama.com/page/community/post/president/gGxWJh
Barack Obama First 100 Days posted by David Apperson
I am writing with the hope that you may be able to assist me with my mortgage crisis. My mortgage lender is Indymac Federal Bank. I currently have a 30year conventional loan with a 6.8% interest rate. In July of 2008, I applied for a loan modification with Indymac Federal Bank. I applied for the modification because my husband was ill and was unable to work-full time. I was working full time but the payments were a struggle. I was denied the modification because Indymac stated that I did not meet the investor’s guidelines. Indymac would not tell me what those guidelines were or who the investors were. On December 31, 2008, I was laid off from my job. On February 10, 2009, I applied for another loan modification with Indymac. I was denied again. This time Indymac stated that I was denied because I did not have a job and that I did not meet the investor’s guidelines. (I supplied them with my husband’s income and my unemployment compensation). Indymac Federal Bank representatives stated that there is nothing that they can do for me until I gain employment. Indymac refused to work with me and I was denied a loan modification when I was employed and then denied again because of unemployment. Indymac has red-flagged my account with a note that says “the customer will call in when she is employed.” With the economy the way that it is, my job search has been extremely challenging. My mortgage is two months behind and I am on a temporary forbearance payment that ends in March. If I do not gain employment by March and if I am not able to get some type of loan modification, I may lose my home to foreclosure. I have three children and no where else to go. I know that the President is working on a mortgage relief plan that will be effective in March but Indymac representatives stated that I still may not qualify for his plan and that I will not qualify if my mortgage gets behind three months. At this time, I am turning to you for help. Kindly assist me and let me know if you have any suggestions as to how I can keep my home.
God Bless America!
Presidential Inaugural Address Delivered by President Barack Obama on 20 Jan 2009
My fellow citizens -I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition. Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents. So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans. That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights. Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met. On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord. On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics. We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction. This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions - who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage. What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account - to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day - because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control - and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more. Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort - even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate. Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends - hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism - these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility - a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.This is the price and the promise of citizenship.This is the source of our confidence - the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed - why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:"Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet it."America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.President Barack Obama
My fellow citizens -
I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition. Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents. So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.
Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.
We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.
For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.
For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.
Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.
This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.
For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.
Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions - who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account - to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day - because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.
Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control - and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.
Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.
We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort - even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.
For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.
As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.
For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends - hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism - these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility - a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship.
This is the source of our confidence - the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.
This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed - why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:
"Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet it."
America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.
President Barack Obama
Presidential Inaugural Speech - A message for all peoplehttp://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/president/gGxHqT
source: David Apperson, webmaster
The Pickens Plan: For those who would like to become an active participant in a solution for our nations energy needs I urge you to join with T.Boone Pickens in his quest for a cleaner planet through alternative energy.
Also see Green Wave Energy: Green Wave was founded by Mark Holmes and was formulated for viable alternative energy solutions. Green Wave Energy is promoting state-of-the-art energy-saving products and services throughout the country.
Green Wave Energy understands alternative energy technology will become “main stream” when
Call 949.645.1701 for information on how Green Wave Energy can help you save the planet.
Alternative EnergySource: David Apperson
url: http://veterans.barackobama.com/page/community/tag/alternative-energy
Obama-Biden PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION TEAM is giving all people a voice in the administration -
The PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION TEAM is doing a great job. Thank the Almighty Creator that this is a new day in the history of this great nation.
Internet Webmasters, Designers and Developers
If you are an independent webmaster, designer or developer and have linked a business, personal, or political website or blog to your barack obama posts or other barackobama.com web pages and would like to be recognized for your efforts let me know. Mail your contact and other pertinent information to: David Apperson, Webmaster 10336 Loch Lomond Rd PMB 105Middletown CA 95461or email contact information to yofast@gmail.com
"Sen. Joe Lieberman will keep his chairmanship of the Senate Homeland Security Committee despite hard feelings over his support for GOP nominee John McCain during the presidential campaign. The Connecticut independent will lose a minor panel post as punishment for criticizing Obama this fall.
Lieberman's colleagues in the Democratic caucus voted 42-13 Tuesday on a resolution condemning statements made by Lieberman during the campaign but allowing him to keep the Homeland Security Committee gavel. He loses an Environment and Public Works panel subcommittee chairmanship, however."
(Actually, he gave up his position on the Environmental and Public Works Committee altogether. However, Lieberman is also on the Armed Services Committee, where he chairs an important subcommittee.)
The article concludes with a statement made Friday by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who opposed the move.
"To reward Senator Lieberman with a major committee chairmanship would be a slap in the face of millions of Americans who worked tirelessly for Barack Obama and who want to see real change in our country. Appointing someone to a major post who led the opposition to everything we are fighting for is not 'change we can believe in."'
I discussed Lieberman's situation in my new blog, Keep Joe Lieberman, which has now achieved its purpose. By their actions, the Senate Democrats have shown that there’s hope for them yet!It is also important to note that Lieberman caucused with the Democrats as an Independent Democrat, so he was not obliged by this to support Obama, just as Bernie Sanders could have supported
I'm glad that Obama seeks to govern rather than to seek revenge. Too bad there are so many "Democrazies" out there who aren't getting the message.
Keep Joe Lieberman
For those of you non-clickers, here is the first post.
Democrazies
Here is the petition you are urged to sign at http://liebermanmustgo.com/
"We CANNOT tolerate a leader of the Senate Democratic Caucus who supports George Bush and McCain's War in Iraq. We CANNOT tolerate a Democratic chairman of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee who endorses and stumps for McCain. We call on the Senate Democratic Steering Committee to strip Joe Lieberman of his chairmanship and his leadership role."
This is preceded by the statement:
"Demand the Steering Committee remove Joe Lieberman's position within the Democratic Caucus in 2009."
These people are so busy foaming at the mouth that they can't even write plain English. Do they want Lieberman removed from the Caucus entirely or just as chairman of Homeland Security. What is his "leadership role", other than his chairmanship." He is not on the Steering Committee, according to them.
As for the petition itself, it is laughable. These people are clearly living in the past. The election campaign is over. Obama is President-Elect. He says he will be president of all the people, which includes Lieberman and McCain. The latter even referred to him as “My president” in his concession speech.
So this group who “cannot tolerate…” is indeed intolerant. And hypocritical as well. They refer to “George Bush and McCain’s War.” Let’s see. Those voting for it included Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and John Edwards, among others. (But not my Senator, Carl Levin, to his everlasting credit.)
This group also wants to disenfranchise the people of Connecticut, who re-elected Lieberman (running as an "Independent Democrat") in 2006. They seem indifferent to the following facts.
Hello fellow Connecticans!
As you may know, Jim Himes is backed by Barack in his race against Chris Shays for Connecticut's 4th district seat in the U.S. House. I'm a big fan of both Jim and Barack, and I was wondering if anyone would be interested in helping me...
Despite popular outcry from the American Jewish community, Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman pressed ahead with his third annual appearance at John Hagee's summit for Christians United For Israel (CUFI), an evangelical group with powerful fundraising capabilities and long-standing ties to DC insiders including President Bush. Over 42,000 petitioners called for Lieberman to renounce the controversial televangelist as Senator John McCain did this past May when it was discovered Hagee was selling DVDs which included a speech he made implying that the creation of Israel was the result of God's plan for Hitler to wipe out six million Jews.
Although it is well-known the membership of CUFI adopts an apocalyptic theology calling for the annihilation of the Jewish race as a key part of the impending rapture, Lieberman's logic is unclear to many in the Jewish community who sincerely hope God will not exterminate them any time soon. Lieberman was accompanied Tuesday by Democratic Congressman Eliot Engel of New York who also ignored a public outcry against his attendance at the event, claiming their affiliation with CUFI lay in the shared belief that the U.S. should use it's military resources against Iran. Engel even abdicated his own Congressional power as part of a March 2007 war appropriation, granting President Bush authority to strike Iran without Congressional approval. Engel also also allowed the Congressional committee he chairs to become a forum for radical pro-war Israeli voices, calling for apartheid, not peace.
"I'm also convinced as a former Peace Corps volunteer that Barack Obama will appeal and excite the imagination of younger people to stand up and contribute to give something back to our country. Barack pointed out a few minutes ago, how I was inspired by a former American president. I've been asked a million times, over the last forty years, why I did I joined the Peace Corps, I did because a American president asked me to. I think today we're witnessing across this country that people are asking for leadership to ask them to be involved in something larger then themselves. And this candidacy of Barack Obama, I believe inspires that."Chris Dodd
By Sara, New York University
On Monday night I had the privilege of meeting Senator Chris Dodd at an economic panel and reception in New York, NY. Ever since his endorsement, I've felt a very profound sense of gratitude for the man who is the senior senator of my home state, Connecticut. My gratitude stems not only from the service that he's given our country, but from the words that he put forth when he endorsed Senator Obama this past February.
I first heard Senator Obama speak in June of 2007- that night was for all intents and purposes, life altering. Before me stood a presidential candidate who was articulating what I had always been thinking. His candidacy has not only given me a reason to get involved, but it has given me a sense of empowerment. He was a man who asked for our assistance. He's never offered to be our saving grace, or to provide all the answers…but what his candidacy guarantees is an energized and active new generation of participants.
He has asked an entire generation to step up. He has reminded an entire nation of the sentiments conveyed by Robert Kennedy in his Day of Affirmation address- "the answer is the worlds' hope; it is to rely on youth". We are the answer, and for far too long a belief in our abilities has been stifled by a society that insists that young people, that all people, are incapable of making a difference.
Never in a million years would I have thought that I could become so impassioned about political activism. For the first time in my lifetime, a politician has emerged and has asked us to invest in something larger than ourselves; the subsequent response is something that we can all be proud of. He has asked us to invest in a notion ascribed to by Martin Luther King Jr. that we are all tied together in a single garment of destiny.
Although the cynics insisted that college students didn't care, or that we would never bother to do more than wear buttons, members from our generation have come out of political hibernation to confirm what Senator Obama knew to be true, there is a hunger for change in this country that has caused us all to respond with a firm YES to the request to engage in something larger then ourselves. We have reacted to a shared belief that the state of our nation doesn't reflect the spirit of its people, and the realization that the people are capable of changing that for the better.
At the end of Monday's event I approached Senator Dodd to let him know that his words and the words of Senator Obama's weren't falling upon deaf ears. I told him that just as President Kennedy had sparked his desire serve, Senator Obama had sparked my own. I thanked him, because his speech clarified the unique transformation that I had gone through, a transformation mirrored by young people across the country. I wasn't quite sure what to make of my sudden desire to read all things political, and my hunger to really grasp the complexities of our economy, healthcare, the parameters of the war, the basics of our political process and its history.
I shocked myself in my sudden infatuation with helping people- the people that I'd meet volunteering in other states stayed with me, their stories inspired me and kept me going in the midst of even the most disheartening media coverage.
It took Senator Dodd's endorsement speech for me to understand that I wasn't in a phase as some of my more skeptical friends had predicted, I had found a purpose in society, but perhaps more importantly, I realized that this sense of purpose is one I could have embraced all along as it is the basis of what this country was founded on. What's going on right now transcends one election. The problems we face will take generations to fix. Just as the young people who participated upon the request of John F Kennedy built a legacy for themselves, the young people who have come out for Senator Obama will make a continuing impact in the years and decades to come.
That's something that you can be sure of.
This is the most exciting thing that has happened to America since the moonwalk. For those of us who remember how things were before the Civil Rights Movement, the momentousness cannot be overstated. I haven't been an actrivist for many, many years, but I want to be a part of this.
Anyone in the Hartford area who is looking to get something going, please contact me.
Remarks of Senator Barack Obama at Wesleyan University Commencement
Put down one more in our column, guys! (And check out the CT poll numbers cited in the last paragraph. Good stuff!)
Today, Mark Pazniokas reports on Courant.com,
The Connecticut Democratic superdelegate ranks are complete with the selection of State Senate President Pro Tem Donald E. Williams, D-Brooklyn.
Under the arcane Democratic rules, Connecticut had 11 superdelegates -- people whose status was determined by their political offices or positions in the Democratic Party -- plus an add-on to be chosen by the other delegates this week. That was Williams.
Williams is technically unpledged, as are all superdelegates, but he is a leader of the Obama campaign in Connecticut. With the selection of Williams, Connecticut now has eight supers publicly committed to Obama, one for Hillary Clinton and three uncommitted.
A Quinnipiac Poll out today shows Obama leading Republican John McCain, 52-35, in Connecticut, while a McCain-Clinton matchup would put the state in play. Clinton leads McCain, 45-42.
BARACK IS A UNIVERSAL WORD MEANING TO BRING A BLESSING.
ACCORDING TO HOSEA 4:6 WITH A VISION WE HAVE THE ETERNAL RIGHT TO SPIRITUAL LEADERSHIP, GUIDANCE and HOPE FOR A BETTER FUTURE.
In this digital age we need courage, leadership and true vision. Obama has shown such in the proper use of political blogging. It is my belief that the message of HOPE spoken by Obama is a God given word and that the vision must not slip from the grasp of the American people or the other nations, peoples and tongues that support Barack Obama around the world.
This is a day the Lord has made. Barak Obama is on his way to the THE WHITE HOUSE . . . .
and I am humbly honored to finish this message with the closing remarks of the world famous CIVIL RIGHTS leader, DR MARTIN LUTHER KING, born 15 JAN 1929, who proclaimed to the world at the LINCOLN MEMORIAL on 28 AUG 1963 in his famous freedom speech:
I HAVE A DREAM
And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.But not only that: Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.From every mountainside, let freedom ring.And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!
And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.
Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.
Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.
But not only that: Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.
And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!
THAT DAY IS HERE - YOU ARE FREE
UPDATE: OBAMA MAKES HISTORY as FIRST BLACK PRESIDENT and YES HE DID
HONOR PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN 1861-1865
Please meet Julia (and her son AJ), one of the almost one million grassroots supporters who has donated to the campaign:
As a public school teacher in the local high school throughout the Bush administration, I often felt discouraged by the apparent apathy of my young students toward their government and their feelings of powerlessness to affect change in their world. People would often tell me that it was a “teen thing” and that it was something maturity would set right.Then I met their parents, and it soon became clear that it wasn’t just my students who felt disillusioned and left out. It went way beyond that. I left teaching day school to be a stay at home mom by day, but I continue to teach kids who have dropped out of the day program at night so they can earn their diplomas. These kids have seen their share of hard times. They are by no means your academic elites, though many of them are extremely bright and talented. Most work minimum wage jobs from sunrise to sunset with little hope of much advancement, some are teen parents, some have substance abuse problems, and none have healthcare. Yet, day after day, they come to class on empty stomachs after the long work day to complete their high school education. This past year, I noticed a shift in interest in my students. They have been reading the newspaper. They have been talking about healthcare, the economy, and the war in Iraq. They have discussed the election prospects and process and examined the candidates’ platforms and positions. I was stunned and thrilled. They began to care, and soon, to believe that their voices could matter and they could be part of something bigger and more important than themselves. Many went on to get involved in their communities as well as to volunteer for the candidate of their choice. I can tell you this -- that choice was Senator Obama nearly 95 percent of the time. Anyone who can inspire this group of young people to believe that, in the face of incredible odds, ordinary people can indeed accomplish extraordinary things, is an extraordinary leader, and one who deserves (and has) my full and unqualified support. As a teacher and a mom of two very small children, I feel that there is no time to waste in repairing the damage that years of neglect and bad decisions have created and that our kids could inherit. We owe it to them to get out of our armchairs, however comfortable they may be, and get involved in the process. Senator Obama enlists us in this effort. It’s a collective one, not a singular one. This is why all things become possible, and why my vote will go to Barack.
If you haven't given yet, even if $10 or $20 is what you can afford right now, now is the time to join in and help us get to one million grassroots donors:
And hop on board and help usreach another important goal -- one million calls to voters in upcoming states by March 4th. We've made record numbers of phone calls before each recent election -- and we've seen record turnout at the polls. These calls are so important:
Please send us your statements of support with a picture to Blog@BarackObama.com -- or upload a video stating your support to YouTube and email us the link.
