Category Archives: national

Is This It?

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Tomorrow’s the day, my ninjas. Sen. Hillary Clinton must win Ohio and Texas to have a chance at wooing enough super-delegates to make her the presidential nominee. Even if she wins both primaries, due to the Democrtic primary rules, the delgates will be proportionally split between she and Obama, leaving her trailing in pledged delegates. She has to win BIG. Considering Hillary’s bash techniques and quibbling, and Obama’s raw momentum I find it hard to imagine a Clinton surge tomorrow. That being said, the polls in these two States, for some ill-informed voterific reason, are really really close. Remeber, Obama has won 11 straight primaries and caucuses, leaving Hillary without a victory for the entire month of February. Also, ninjas should strongly consider the fact Sen. Barack Obama has a much better chance of beating Se. John McCain than Sen. Clinton does. Clintons just seem to have a bad habit of leaving a bad taste in peoples mouths (yes, that was an inuendo). All you ninjas out there who are voting tomorrow should browse through our archives and see just why we here at the dojo are so pro O. The other States holding contests tomorrow are: Wyoming, Vermont, Mississippi, and Rhode Island.

Debate Discussion 2/26

Not as much blood splattering as one would have expected last night. Both candidates remained cool, calm and collected. And they were both very much on top of their game.

Is it just me or were these “mediators” very antagonizing? Russert was asking stupid questions and the candidates handled him well. He tried to draw parralels to the life and times of Farrakhan to Obama, trying to bring about some guilt by association. He also tried to put over crazy hypotheticals and expected the candidates to have policy issues for rediculous situations (such as re-invading Iraq, or Iraq telling us to immediatly withdraw from their country). He’s a moron.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJkU1e-_r3w[/youtube]

Thanks, TPM

Hillary was stupid for complaining about receiving the first quesetion all the time and referencing an SNL skit. I don’t know what she was trying to do, but she got booed. It was also poor decision making to try and say “Well I think we need to be stronger and say reject and not denounce,” in referencing Barack’s position on Farrakhan. And Barack said, “Sorry, waht’s the difference? Okay, I denounce and reject Farrakhan.” 

My favorite moment of the debate was after the clip of Clinton making fun of Obama for being a dreamer and creating a painting of a world uniting and problems being solved (“and the clouds will open up and the sun will shine” … etc etc.), the clip ended Obama said “Sounds good” then credited her with a great performance and solid delivery.

To end the night it was Obama to start in with the feel-good moment which I thought was a great way of saying, it’s been good Hillary, it’s been real … but it hasn’t been real good, but now I have to go win the general election.

Debate Tonight

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Just so you ninjas know. There will be another debate tonight between Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. It will go from 9 – 10:30 and will air on NBC. Be sure to check back here for a run-down of the important aspects of what should be a bare-knuckle assault on Obama from Clinton.

The impending doomsday for team Hillary is one week from today when Texas and Ohio will have their primary elections.

I love that picture.

I Know You’re Out There

I know you’re reading the site, ninjas. I know, you come back, too. I even know some of you are hooked. What I don’t know is why I don’t hear more from you. Your input is always greatly appreciated and respected and I’d love to see some brave ninjas start expressing your opinions about what is posted here. You can comment on every post or you can send me an email here at philsalterego @myninjaplease.com So, hop to it.

The Debate Discussion

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So the debate tonight between Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama was interesting. It’s hard for me to say who won. They both performed well. I think it was crucial for Hillary to at least keep up with Obama. Of course, she succeeded at this because she’s stronger in debates than at giving speeches. She had some very positive moments, or at least moments the public wanted to see tonight. I thought she was trying to cry when she started talking about seeing those soldiers walk out to her with their injuries. It seemed a little forced. When confronted with having to stir up the thought of a struggle she immediately referenced to her public humiliation 8 years ago courtesy of her husband, President Bill Clinton. At least she acknowledged that others have gone through worse, she said these are a the people that make her get out of bed everyday. I was reminded of an SNL skit of Hartman as Clinton in a McDonald’s. After having taken a boys French-fries, Clinton says to his father “We’re gonna wake up everyday thinking about you.”

It wasn’t however the only reference to times before Bush. Clinton tried to remind us of how good we had it before GDubz. She assured us that she could get us back on the track we were on before he took over. She wanted us to know that the policies of Bill would carry over into Hillary. Unfortunately, we don’t have the same ingredients for that recipe this time around.

Then there was Barack Obama. He did a fantastic job of keeping up with her considering she needed to really shine tonight. Is it me, or did he sound like he’s had the flu? His single greatest moment was in rebuttal to Hillary’s shrug-off of the question of super-delegates and pledged delegates. Hillary said that she didn’t think it would come to her going after super delegates and possibly upsetting the popular vote over THEIR choice for a nominee. Obama made the argument that the supes ought to strongly consider voting along with he people based on the point that the popular vote being over-turned again would be very disheartening for a population has only increasingly felt alienated from the behaviors of the government. I agree that such a situation would be a call on people to ensure their government is listening. His reference to “silly season” was my favorite part of the night. After being attacked for taking a line from Mass. Governor Duval Patrick (we’re neighbors, no joke) Obama warns of the dangers of negative energies of this kind. His demeanor was good tonight, and I appreciate his tone. I think Obama takes more time to articulate the response he’s looking for in these debates, but I think he goes a lot deeper than she does.

McCain and Lobbyist Too Close

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BREAKING NEWS – Apparently the last time John McCain ran for president his relationship with a certain lobbyist raised some suspicions. Now 40 year old Vicki Iseman was seen around McCain so much that his advisors had to step in and end the relationship. Iseman was representing companies for whom McCain had provided favors for, in the form of letters to federal regulators.

The New York Times has the article.

Again, this isn’t something that is going to sink McCain, it’s just something he’s going to have to deal with in the long run. The long time party boy seems capable of the accused actions. Some people think that the details of his personal life (the relationships he’s had with strippers and hot lobbyists) are inconsequential but this was a lobbyist with clients for whom he did favors. That does not look good on your public service record. Ninjas should could just consider it about the character of a big-whig favor giving Washington pure-bred.

The response from McCain.

The Post also has a piece with more names and games.

Obama x10

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Just in case you ig’nant and haven’t heard the latest news on the election front I thought I’d help a ninja out with a recap of recent events. Last night Obama won his 9th and 10th consecutive contests, winning a primary in Wisconsin and a caucus in Hawaii. In Wisconsin Barack won big, with 58% of the vote compared to Hillary’s 41%. A margin of 17%! Just for a bit of perspective of what a trouncing that is: the only thing Republican front runner John McCain can do to foul his nomination is quit and he only beat Mike Huckabee by 18%. In Hawaii the results were far more ludicrous with Obama taking 76% of the vote to Hillary’s 24%. These victories ensure that Hillary will go the entire month of February without a victory. That is a long ass time in this kind of atmosphere, ninjas.

Obama now leads in total delegates with 1,319 to Hillary’s 1,245. His camp claims that she will have to win every race from here on out by more than 20 points to recover. Do Hillary’s supporters really think that after he beats her, any heat coming from the Republicans will be worse? I mean she’s hitting him with everything she’s got and she can’t even make a dent in his momentum. I think if he beats her it proves the ‘Republican attack machine’ can’t stop him either.

The hits just keep on coming for Hillary, who plans to attack Obama on not being ready for the Oval Office. Sister, who is? 

$ Cash Money $

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President Bush released his plans for the ’08 – ’09 national budget today (the fiscal year begins October 1). Naturally, Bush is confused about what ‘spending’ actually means. For the first time in our nation’s history the budget will exceed 3 trillion dollars.

And, true to form, Bush left people in favor of social programs wanting with cuts in education, Medicare and Medicaid, among others.

Mr. Bush said he would cut or terminate 151 programs, saving $18 billion in 2009. One agency, the Education Department, accounts for 47 of the terminated programs and three of the programs to be cut. But he would increase spending in areas that fall under the umbrella of “national security.”

Bush is also suggesting the Pentagon receive a 7.5% increase in their budget, which brings it to $515.7 billion dollars. For those of you ninjas who don’t do that math stuff that means they account for 17% of our total budget (this does not include the ‘Raq).

David Broder is the man.

David Broder

Note: from now on I am going to try and post after every David Broder opinion column from the Washington Post. You should all read it anyways because the man is good.

Case and point: Today’s article (12/5) highlights the most important events of the international community according to how they might affect the U.S. Broder tells us that things are different than they were two weeks ago. Now, his near perky article must have been a result from this weeks BIG STORY: the NIE report on Iran’s nuclear capabilities.

Anywho, he got me thinking about how much I want a Democrat in the White House, AND a Democrat controlled Congress. This would be the ill na na, ninjas. Actually … f*ck that, I just don’t want Giulliani or Romney-Bushified chuckle heads. If the Reps cared about themselves they would rally around McCain with Huckabee as the VP. Huckabee is ill because he’s the Republican I could see stabbing the neo-cons right in the heart and letting the blood drip all over him. Interesting guy.

The point is, ninjas, change is on the horizon. If you live in a swing-State, I plead with you: don’t vote for an asshole. Take the time to listen to how these candidates talk, what they talk about, their demeanor, their grace or lack their off … In all sincerity, I think Hillary Clinton should get the nod.

Ninjas, the war on terror needs to end. Because it’s not really a war on terror, this government seems to be all too pleased to feed this fire.

Al Gore wins Nobel Peace Prize

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This dude is wild. After eight years of Vice-Presidency he loses his bid to be the head honcho; grows a beard and completely drops out of the lime-light [kind of like the future Nathan Petrelli in Heroes]. Apparently, during his time off he was doing some heavy research in to this whole Global Climate Change thing (global warming IS bunk, people. Just because SOME places are getting warmer doesn’t mean it’s happening everywhere; some places are getting colder. So there.) Gore has devoted much more to this one particular issue than to have it just be a theme of a scheme, or a some means to achieve some end. This man has subscribed to a theory and really wants us to know about it.

So after the flick An Inconvenient Truth he walks away with an Oscar or an Emmy or some shit. Now, finally, he has been rewarded to his dedication of this cause with one of the most distinguishable awards in the world, the Nobel Peace Prize. Good for you Al Gore. If I voted I woulda voted for that dude. Speaking of voting … Wouldn’t it be great to see this give Big Al [this dude has the most unfortunate name: Albert Arnold Jr…. wow] enough confidence to jump on the campaign trail for the Donkeys?

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Don’t get me wrong Barack and Hillary, I love you, you’re ninjas, both of you. But one of you is a black man and one of you might be a woman. These are traits that some people feel the president shouldn’t possess; and we know Al Gore is kind of better bet. We like Al Gore. Would one of you please just be his VP? For the party?

p.s. All you [dumb] *uckers who say that Global Climate Change in phooey should recognize. We can and very well should do what we can to reduce green-house gazes and all the other hub-bub “greening-up” involves. If you’re two lazy you can come up with a better excuse than “Christ is coming back anyway, he won’t make us clean up”, at least blame it on China. They’re *ucked.

[Around here we don't refer to them as right-wingers as some less ninja-inclined blogs would have you believe]

Freepers Creepers / Deja War

Incredibly, it’s happening again. As if Iraq never happened, as if the innumerable lessons from that national shame and continuing horror never happened. As if the ‘06 election slapdown and clear annunciation of the people’s will never happened.

Incredibly, the same cast of chickenhawk fools and lazy legislators who brought us Iraq are now dragging the country into an even bigger pile of bushit. Incredibly, the media awaits their next sage utterances on the “progress” in Iraq and the need to bomb the hell out of Iran as if they had a shred of credibility remaining.

Read the Rest @ Thinking Peace or read about Bush and the Freepers

DRUG EXTRAVAGANZA: 1969

So, as we stated before, previous-like, back in the day, the month of August is our official Drug Extravaganza. Welcome!

In more or less 30 days we hope to at least peripherally cover more or less 30 years of the War on Drugs. It’s interesting to note that the term “war on drugs” wasn’t coined until pretty late in the game. We’ll get to that in a week or two.

Link

While there’s an aspect of history lesson in this whole presentation, we’re going to keep it light and fun. As you can see, the year up in the subject line of this post is 1969. We know that the drug war didn’t really start then so we’ll sum it up for you. This is bitten from Wikipedia but in my own words.

Regulation of illegal drugs, or psychoactive substances (basically) began in the United States in the early 1880′s when the US and China agreed to stop the shipments of opium between the two countries. This all happened after the opium wars between China and England. You can obviously go check out the wiki about the opium wars if you want to, but what happened was that China tried to enforce the laws against trading opium with Britain. Britain reacted by beating the piss out of them in a heroin-induced frenzy. Here’s a quote:

By the 1830′s, the English had become the major drug-trafficking criminal organization in the world; very few drug cartels of the twentieth century can even touch the England of the early nineteenth century in sheer size of criminality. Growing opium in India, the East India Company shipped tons of opium into Canton which it traded for Chinese manufactured goods and for tea. This trade had produced, quite literally, a country filled with drug addicts, as opium parlors proliferated all throughout China in the early part of the nineteenth century. This trafficking, it should be stressed, was a criminal activity after 1836, but the British traders generously bribed Canton officials in order to keep the opium traffic flowing. The effects on Chinese society were devestating. In fact, there are few periods in Chinese history that approach the early nineteenth century in terms of pure human misery and tragedy. In an effort to stem the tragedy, the imperial government made opium illegal in 1836 and began to aggressively close down the opium dens.

Link

So while most people think it was the British fighting a war against Chinese importation of opium, it was actually the British themselves who were importing the opium to China, and then balling out financially from said trade.

So, fast forward 50 some odd years and America has agreed with China to stop any opium trade, because by this time it has become popular enough in China that they’re growing it (I guess). Another 50 years would see Americans dealing with prohibition.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wqid7KvEKi0[/youtube]

And so that’s that… Just before prohibition, the United States had convened an organization which would sign the first international drug treaty, the International Opium Convention. That convention would be responsible for the first regulation of marijuana as a drug. That brings us to about 1969, the year in our subject line. You should be just about all caught up. If you’re not go read all these joints.

Now fortunately for us, a Google search revealed a very necessary timeline from PBS Frontline. Therefore, we will be using this timeline as a guide for the rest of the month.

Late 1960s Recreational drug use rises in U.S. In late 1960s recreational drug use becomes fashionable among young, white, middle class Americans. The social stigmatization previously associated with drugs lessens as their use becomes more mainstream. Drug use becomes representative of protest and social rebellion in the era’s atmosphere of political unrest.

Link

It’s ’69, baby! A time when pills were a-popping, and titties were a-swinging. Hendrix is at Woodstock and everybody is having a totally groovy time, or about to be anyway.

A drug subculture involving the use of marijuana and other hallucinogenic drugs began to emerge in mainstream American society in the late ’60s and was loosely associated with an overall atmosphere of political protest concerning the Vietnam War and civil rights.

Link

[googlevideo]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3981364972665945187&q=jimi+hendrix+woodstock+duration%3Along&total=10&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=1[/googlevideo]

As far as protest and drug use goes, well there are a few interesting links out there that point to how it was in the late 60′s. Here is a list of 60′s protest songs. Here’s a good article about the Berkeley in the 60′s. And here’s a good link to the Hate-Ashbury gallery that mnp published on months ago.

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Yeah, so, everybody was having a good time right? Well things were about to get hairy. Stay tuned.