Liberal Lucidity

• I've made my choice; it's time for me to cast my vote

  I woke up this morning going over my mental checklist of things to do today. And I decided that one of those things was to vote. I'm not even sure where I'll be or when I'm working next Tuesday. And the results in South Carolina this weekend helped me to' [...]
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  Posted: January 28, 2008, 9:43am EST
  

• Why do I have such a sense of dread about 2008?

  I have been tending to other things these last few weeks. Work, sick people, family and friends, my dog, and all that encompasses the life of a dead politician. And now I'm ready to throw an opinion or two out there. I just hate that it's going to sound so [...]
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  Posted: January 24, 2008, 8:44am EST
  

• "Evangelical Cancer" on the Military?

  I saw this article by Col. David Antoon on Truthdig via Alternet. He talks about some differences that he's noticed from his time at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado as compared to what he and his son experienced at his son's orientation..........
  
  
  "Instead, my son's'" [...]
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  Posted: November 16, 2007, 9:04am EST
  

• Speaker Richardson, I've got one for you too.........

  
  Before I start, I know this post won't be the most popular one I've ever entered into this blog. It's very true that I am the product of a man that looked at a Beta VCR and saw the future. As a result of those' [...]
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  Posted: October 26, 2007, 10:14am EDT
  

• I feel like picking a bone today.........

  Okay, in a way, I do actually get a small kick out of watching three Republican governors finger point, call names, and go running to the White House to tell on one another. But, folks, the water crisis is serious. Despite water conferences between the three (Florida's Governor Crist' [...]
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  Posted: October 26, 2007, 9:04am EDT
  

• Ode to the Mullet

  
  Since I blogged about Izzy's slow recovery from his surgery a couple of weeks ago, many of you have continued to ask me about him. I'm glad to say that Izzy is almost back to his old self. But notice that I did say [...]
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  Posted: October 14, 2007, 3:51pm EDT
  

• Gore wins the Nobel Peace Prize

  Al Gore shares this year's Nobel Peace Prize along with the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate for their efforts to call the world's attention to global warming and the measures needed to fight it. The Nobel committee recognized Gore's early attention to the matter.
  
  The committee's decision [...]
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  Posted: October 12, 2007, 9:13am EDT
  

• Does the new "Bionic Woman" have fembots and cheesy sound effects?

  

  [...]
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  Posted: October 11, 2007, 6:03pm EDT
  

• Carter Slams Cheney; Al Gore Finally Getting his Due

  
  
  
  
  

  Former President Jimmy Carter took another swing at our amoral Veep yesterday, saying that Dick Cheney, "hasn't been right on hardly anything." Carter went on to call Cheney a "disaster" with "undue influence" on the president.

  I'm sure [...]

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  Posted: October 11, 2007, 8:22am EDT
  

• Hillary: First Iraq, now Iran?

  For someone who says that she regrets voting to give Bush authorization to use force against Iraq, Hillary sure has a funny way of showing it. Last week, Hillary became the only candidate for the Democratic nomination for POTUS to side with Sen. Lieberman to declare Iran's Revolutionary Guards' [...]
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  Posted: October 01, 2007, 4:53pm EDT
  

• My poor baby.........

  Number of comments: 7
  
  My friend Izzy is 11 years old now. He's normally picky, vivacious, spoiled, fiercely loyal, hard-headed, affectionate, and plays like a puppy.
  
  But yesterday, he had to have a large mass (benign, thankfully) removed and 4 teeth extracted. His poor little head is shaved,' [...]
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  Posted: September 28, 2007, 11:33am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• "........bad people with evil intent"

  Number of comments: 5
  Wow, I hope that my Georgia readers and others will wander over to Lydia Cornell's blog and check out "Blackwater Takes Taxpayer Money." Lydia reminds us that Obama and Clinton are upcoming guests on Basham and Cornell Radio. Recent guests have included Kucinich and Edwards. Their interviews are' [...]
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  Posted: September 26, 2007, 1:19pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• AJC's "Life or Death" series

  Number of comments: 2
  This week's AJC special series on the death penalty has made for some interesting reading for those of us that are interested in the topic. So far, lots of different angles have been covered by the AJC staff in terms of what kinds of cases get consideration, prosecutors and' [...]
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  Posted: September 25, 2007, 10:06am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• One and done baby!

  

  Dawgs take it in OT in T-town! h/t Dawg Videos

  [...]
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  Posted: September 24, 2007, 8:45am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Radical Christian Conservative "Activists" Gear Up for 2008

  Number of comments: 2
  First of all, if you haven't figured it out by now, if someone introduces themselves to you as a "Christian conservative activist," this is your cue to run away as quickly as you can in the opposite direction. Because these are people that are led by some of the most' [...]
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  Posted: September 23, 2007, 10:20am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Thank goodness for the Blogroll!

  Number of comments: 7
  I didn't have a lot of time for posting last week. But I did do a lot of reading from the blogroll. Thanks guys and girls for keeping me informed..........
  
  Mel means business (even on Saturday morning) with this youtube clip that she posted over at Blog for' [...]
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  Posted: September 22, 2007, 12:59pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Ditch the Electoral College?

  Number of comments: 8
  Since Republicans are trying to move California away from a winner-take-all electoral state, perhaps it's time to seriously think about doing away with the electoral college altogether. This isn't a new question. There have been proponents of a move to deciding elections for POTUS by popular vote for as [...]
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  Posted: September 12, 2007, 9:37am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Bush and China and the Death Penalty

  Number of comments: 2
  Bush is in Sydney, Australia for the APEC summit. Yesterday, he spent 90 minutes with China's leader Hu Jintou. Amongst the topics for discussion were currency exchange, product safety, and North Korea. And Bush accepted an invitation to attend the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
  
  New York Democratic Senator' [...]
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  Posted: September 07, 2007, 8:42am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• UGA "Dawgties" Cowboys, 35-14

  Number of comments: 2
  
  
  

  As expected, the 13th ranked Georgia Bulldogs defeated the Oklahoma State Cowboys, 35-14, yesterday to open the 2007 college football season. UGA controlled the game throughout, but the Cowboys were still in it at halftime, trailing only by 7.

  But that's when UGA's much [...]

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  Posted: September 02, 2007, 12:53pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Should we boycott the Beijing Olympics?

  Number of comments: 2
  According to this Yahoo News article, Richard Gere thinks we should..........
  
  "Why should the world reward people who are obviously so bad to their
  own people, so bad to other people."
  
  Here in Atlanta, we saw for ourselves what the International Olympic Committee is really all [...]
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  Posted: September 02, 2007, 12:28pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Dawgs vs. Cowpokes 'Tween the Hedges, Plus Predictions

  
  It's time! It's time! Every August goes by so slowly, as if it knows that it's about to yield to the very best time of year. I know we have another month of summer. But when fall collides with college football, it just doesn't get [...]
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  Posted: August 31, 2007, 9:11am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• From the Blogroll: "Edwards is en fuego," Brzezinski Endorses Obama, Hillary Still Thinks She's the Best

  Number of comments: 5
  As I perused my blogroll this morning, a few items caught my eye. First of all, Amy, who recently returned from a trip to Iowa stumping for John Edwards, is all smiles after this AlterNet article on John Edwards' rebuke of "Corporate Democrats." I've been very happy with [...]
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  Posted: August 27, 2007, 8:39am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Progressive Daily Beacon: The DLC and their "Perfect Tempest"

  Number of comments: 1
  From the Progressive Daily Beacon:
  
  "The consultants and right-wing DLC have convinced Congressional Democrats that they shouldn't aggressively confront Mister Bush's failed Iraq War or move forward with impeachment proceedings. The Democrats have foolishly heeded this outrageous advice and as a result, they have lost the support of" [...]
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  Posted: August 23, 2007, 5:15pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Scottsdale, AZ Prefers Al Gore Too

  Christopher spotted this blurb about a poll of Scottsdale, AZ Democrats. Last week, the majority of 400 Michigan Dems polled said that they wanted Al Gore as their nominee in 2008, 36% to 33% over Hillary Clinton. Scottsdale Dems like Gore even more and Hillary even less - [...]
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  Posted: August 23, 2007, 9:38am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Sino-Russian Empire?

  
  Even though our last three presidents have called Russia and China "friends" of the U.S., I'm glad that others are paying more attention. I don't necessarily feel compelled to label either nation as an "enemy" of the U.S. per se. But I hope it [...]
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  Posted: August 23, 2007, 8:33am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• "Take this Job and Ship it"

  Last year, North Dakota Senator Byron Dorgan wrote a book about the outsourcing of American jobs to sweatshops in foreign countries. Take this Job and Ship It: How Corporate Greed and Brain-Dead Politics Are Selling Out America, takes a look into how average Americans have been weaseled out of [...]
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  Posted: August 16, 2007, 1:16pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Michigan prefers Al Gore

  Number of comments: 1
  
  Draftgore.com is all abuzz with a Detroit news poll of 400 likely Democrat and 400 likely Republican voters and their preference for our next POTUS. It revealed that Michiganders aren't completely happy with their choices for their respective party nominations for POTUS. 36% [...]
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  Posted: August 15, 2007, 1:53pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Why wasn't Hillary treated the same as Edwards at HRC?

  Number of comments: 1
  I came across this from John R. Bohrer at Huffington Post today. At the HRC candidate forum last night, John Edwards was asked about a comment credited to him in Bob Shrum's book No Excuses. The comment Shrum says Edwards made was, "I'm not comfortable around those (gay) people." [...]
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  Posted: August 10, 2007, 12:07pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• My girl? I don't think so

  Number of comments: 5
  So last night at the AFL-CIO Democratic Candidate Forum, Hillary pounds her fists on her platform and declares, "I'm your girl!"
  
  What an odd occasion for her to choose to make that declarative statement! The AFL-CIO? Mrs. NAFTA telling labor advocates that she's their girl?
  
  The [...]
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  Posted: August 08, 2007, 6:38am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Is Georgia about to execute an innocent man?

  Number of comments: 2
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  From Moni Basu of the AJC..............
  
  

  "She never spoke openly about the murder of Savannah police Officer Mark
  Allen MacPhail. Not with her friends, not with her family. Only years later did
  she tell a [...]

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  Posted: July 15, 2007, 2:04pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Check your Chinese-made tires

  Number of comments: 3
  The list of tainted and defective goods imported from China grows. Seems like there's something new every week. This week it's tires.
  
  
  

  "Although Hangzhou Zhongce disputed the assertion its products
  were defective, the case broadened an ongoing controversy over Chinese imports in the United States. Recent cases [...]

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  Posted: June 27, 2007, 2:33pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• AJC's David McNaughton: "China is poisoning trade with the United States"

  Such is the opening line of his op ed on the recent rash of unsafe food and goods made in China appearing on U.S. store shelves. Fish, toys, cosmetics, pet food...............what's going to be next?
  
  McNaughton heeps scorn on the inability or unwillingness of Chinese officials to [...]
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  Posted: June 22, 2007, 1:23pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• What Has "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Done for Our Country?

  Christopher highlights a youtube video pointing out a few statistics and the possible rammifications of Hillary's husband's gift to gays, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
  
  Please sign the petition. [...]
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  Posted: June 19, 2007, 12:04pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• The Vatican's Ten Commandments of Driving: Does this apply to Atlanta?

  This news item out of the Vatican caught my eye. Considering that the metro Atlanta area is one of the worst places on Earth to drive, I thought I'd share it.
  
  Here is the Vatican's "Drivers' Ten Commandments." How does it apply to your home town?
  
  1. [...]
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  Posted: June 19, 2007, 10:23am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• What is it with China and our consumer goods?

  Number of comments: 5
  First it was pet food. Now you need to be careful about your toothpaste. Toothpaste made in China contains DEG (antifreeze). Chinese officials don't seem to be worried about it as they claim that DEG is in a lot of the goods that their own citizens consume. Isn't [...]
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  Posted: June 08, 2007, 9:45am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Bush Comparison of Iraq to South Korea Called "Ignorant"

  In this morning's AJC, there is an op ed by Dr. Han S. Park, who is director of the Center for the Study of Global Issues at the University of Georgia. Dr. Park is recognized as an expert on Korean and Asian geopolitical issues. And he's often consulted and [...]
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  Posted: June 08, 2007, 8:37am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Dogfighting? What's the problem?

  Number of comments: 2
  I haven't blogged on the open investigation into Falcons' QB Michael Vick's possible involvement in dogfighting. Even though it sounds bad, I thought I'd wait to see if any charges would be filed against Vick first and go from there. But Washington Redskins RB Clinton Portis and Tackle Chris Samuels [...]
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  Posted: May 23, 2007, 7:43am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• For Tennis Fans

  Number of comments: 3
  
  These past few days, the University of Georgia has been hosting the men's and women's NCAA tennis championships. Athens has proven to be, by far, the most successful location for this tournament for the past 30 years. The beautiful Henry Field tennis stadium, the [...]
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  Posted: May 21, 2007, 1:21pm EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• "The Assault on Reason"

  Peter, from Blog for Democracy, gives us some good reasons to pick up Al Gore's new book. He needn't apologize for being a fan of Al's. I am too.
  
  Idealists tend to get blasted these days. But Peter embraces that mantle unabashedly. As for his call [...]
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  Posted: May 21, 2007, 10:33am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• C'mon Jimmy, don't back off now!

  Former President Carter created a huge stir this weekend when he called the Bush administration "the worst in history," because of its lack of diplomacy and foreign policy blunders in the Middle East. Of course, Jimmy's known for saying what he thinks. He's been openly critical of Reagan, Bush [...]
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  Posted: May 21, 2007, 10:05am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Festival of Books puts the big picture together on Iraq and Bush

  Number of comments: 2
  Saturday afternoon I got caught up in the re-run of CSPAN's coverage of last April's L.A. Times Festival of Books. One segment included a panel of journalists and scholars, each having written books on the war in Iraq or aspects that greatly affect Iraq, came together to discuss the [...]
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  Posted: May 14, 2007, 10:12am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• South Carolina is kicking our ass.............again

  Number of comments: 1
  Atlanta environmental law attorney, Scott Hitch, has the scorecard on the souteast's race for biofuels supremecy in today's AJC:
  
  "However, Aiken, S.C., across the Savannah River from Augusta, is a great place for a biodiesel plant. South Carolina now offers a tax credit of 20 cents to 30 [...]
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  Posted: March 30, 2007, 9:35am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Young Harris and Cathy Cox both pick winners

  
  
  Young Harris College has long been one of my favorite college campi ever since I first visited there as a child. Tucked away in the North Georgia Blue Ridge mountains on our borders with Tennessee and North Carolina, Young Harris is almost like a [...]
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  Posted: March 30, 2007, 9:07am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Hoops, 2008, and Life Cycle Analysis

  I have been watching a little mens and women hoops in the last few weeks. UGA's Dawgs and Lady Dawgs have both seen their seasons come to an end. Overall, I would say that both had successful seasons. Georgia's men continued to improve under Coach Dennis Felton. The number [...]
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  Posted: March 27, 2007, 10:48am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Rep. Brooks on the Wrong Side of Payday Loans

  I'm not sure why Georgia State Rep. Tyrone Brooks (D) plans to vote for Republican Rep. Earl Ehrharts's HB 163 which would legalize payday lending in our state. According to this AJC article by Carrie Teegardin, he says its because of a past experience that his grandmother had with [...]
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  Posted: March 27, 2007, 9:10am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• PDB Scorches Jack Kingston

  The folks over at Progressive Daily Beacon don't like Rep. Jack Kingston (R-D1) very much. In fact, they've pegged him as a "Republican extremist:"
  
  
  "Kingston is, of course, anti-abortion and opposes stem cell research. He would say his position is based upon good Christian "pro-life" values, [...]
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  Posted: March 12, 2007, 9:23am EDT
  by Button Gwinnett

• Shirley Franklin: One of NPR's Leading Ladies

  
  America's number one mayor, Atlanta's own Shirley Franklin, is one of NPR's "Leading Ladies." This is just the latest honor for perhaps the best current public official in Georgial. She is NPR's 4th featured lady joining such luminaries as Carol Moseley Braun, Geraldine Ferraro, [...]
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  Posted: March 09, 2007, 1:14pm EST
  by Button Gwinnett

• Shop Progressive! Costco vs. Wal-Mart/Sam's Club

  One of the side stories to the 2004 presidential election was the fact that the nation's two largest warehouse companies took sides. Wal-Mart went for Bush and Costco went for Kerry. When you look at how each does business and treats its employees, that should come as no surprise. [...]
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  Posted: March 09, 2007, 11:20am EST
  by Button Gwinnett

• Gov. Bill Richardson (NM) Democratic Darkhorse?

  
  That's what NYT writer David Brooks (via the Post-Bulletin) says anyway. He also calls Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico the most experienced Democrat running for president. He's probably right about that. It's hard to argue with Richardson's credentials. If we have [...]
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  Posted: March 08, 2007, 4:27pm EST
  by Button Gwinnett

• Ann Coulter Makes Nice With a Gay Porn Star?

  Oh this is just too good! Apparently Ms. Coulter, who called John Edwards a "faggot" at last week's Conservative Political Action Conference, on the same night and at the same event had her picture taken with an alleged gay porn star.
  
  Seems the man in question has been[...]
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  Posted: March 08, 2007, 4:00pm EST
  by Button Gwinnett