Politics from Hamlin

Top Black Donors See Obama’s Rise as Their Own…

(Akiit.com) DENVER, CO - When Gordon Davis, a top fund-raiser for Senator Barack Obama, made partner at his white-shoe law firm in New York in 1983, it was a vastly different world for aspiring black professionals like him.

At the time, there were just five black partners at major law firms in New York, Mr. Davis recalled. That group had a tradition of taking each new partner out to an intimate congratulatory lunch. Today, more than 200 take part in the ritual at the Harvard Club.

The change over just a few decades offers a glance at the advances that have enabled a cadre of black elites like Mr. Davis to emerge as a force in the most successful fund-raising operation in presidential campaign history.

Mr. Obama’s acceptance of his party’s nomination on Thursday, on the 45th anniversary of the speech by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington, signifies a powerful moment of arrival for blacks. But the milestone is especially telling for this upper-crust group, which has mobilized like never before to raise mountains of cash to power his campaign.

“There’s a sense of not only pride but of a point in the culture we’re a part of, the society we’re a part of, that this is different,” said Mr. Davis, now a partner at Dewey & LeBoeuf. “It’s a measure of how far we - and I don’t mean just black people - how far this country and the business world have come.”

There are 57 blacks out of the roughly 300 people on the Obama campaign’s national finance committee. Each member commits to collecting at least $250,000, a formidable task that typically requires deep business networks, something relatively few blacks had until fairly recently.

The list of top Obama bundlers includes John W. Rogers Jr., the founder of Ariel Investments, the country’s first black-owned money management firm; William E. Kennard, the first black chairman of the Federal Communications Commission; and Mr. Davis, who drove across the country 45 years ago as a newly minted college graduate to take part in the March on Washington, and went on to serve as the first black parks commissioner of New York City and the first black president of Lincoln Center.

Mr. Kennard and Mr. Rogers are among a half-dozen black bundlers who have raised more than $500,000 for Mr. Obama, putting them in a select group of just three dozen fund-raisers.

Most of Mr. Obama’s major black donors are new to big-money political fund-raising, but there are signs that at least some could go on to become players in Democratic circles. Some, for example, have already begun flexing their muscle by raising money for politicians who endorsed Mr. Obama early on.
(more…)

Bidengirl!

Friday night, it was zydeco and cajun at Glen Echo, then salsa in Adams Morgan until the clubs closed. Saturday night it was Yong Hi Moon and Dai Uk Lee at Ionarts. So Sunday, Cerise and I just hung around the house - my house, of course, which can be just as entertaining as any nightclub or concert hall, if I dare say so myself. And, after a light lunch of free-range, grass fed lamb shanks braised in grape seed oil, Hawaiian elephant garlic, Breton gray sea salt and organic shallots, with a roasted pignoli, heirloom tomato, arugula, endive and radicchio salad featuring twenty-four year old Italian balsamic vinegar and high-country Abbruzzo olive oil infused with white truffles; my own, homemade Peruvian purple fingerling potato basil rosemary gnocchi in goat butter, accompanied by a mellow 1994 Bertrand Ambroise Nuits Saint Georges Les Vaucrains Premier Cru; and finished off with chilled, baked Blue Ridge white peaches in sauterne custard and frosty flutes of Dom Pérignon, we retired to the den to watch my high-definition director’s cut of Bernardo Bertolucci’s “Sheltering Sky.”
Released in 1992, “Sheltering Sky” continued, enriched and enhanced Bertolucci’s already titanic career as an auteur of cinematic art. The director’s cut Cerise and I were viewing was a personal gift from a former French Minister of Culture, and, well, let’s just say it contains all the French parts of a magnificent French motion picture which most Americans, even the ardent art house movie types, have never seen; and right where the beautiful, tragic, existentialist artiste is experiencing the soul-wrenching epiphany that will drive her in to the arms of her enigmatic, drop-dead handsome and maddeningly mysterious Tuareg rescuer-cum-captor, Cerise’s exquisite leg crept from her silk robe onto my thigh, her velvet hands sought surcease in the curve of by biceps and her angelic face turned toward mine, lips slightly parted, her huge cerulean eyes gazing at me, twin pools of passion, infinite in depth.
Then the phone rang. I ignored it. Who wouldn’t?
She froze, waiting. It rang again.
Cerise gave me a big long, lingering kiss, unashamedly adorning my cheek with the blood red mark of her lusty, fragrant lipstick. “If that [expletive] telephone rings again,” she whispered, “you either have to answer it or turn it off.”
Then it rang again. What could I do? I got up to check my caller ID. I have my land line configured to ring six times before rolling over, so I appreciated Cerise’s point, no doubt about it - but on the fourth ring, I saw the caller ID and realize that, despite the circumstances, I had to pick up. To ensure, however, that Cerise would realize I had not forsaken her sincere affection for something trivial, I put the den on speaker phone:

Tom: All right, go ahead.
Paisley: Tom? Are you there?
Tom: Me and Cerise. You interrupted us while we were right at that crucial scene in Bertolucci’s “Sheltering Sky.”
Paisley: Oh, you mean the part where the beautiful, tragic, existentialist artiste is experiencing the soul-wrenching epiphany that will drive her in to the arms of her enigmatic, drop-dead handsome and maddeningly mysterious Tuareg rescuer-cum-captor?
Cerise: Yeah, that one.
Paisley: Oh my God, Cerise, I am so sorry.
Cerise: That’s all right, you didn’t know, how could you?
Paisley: Thanks for being so understanding.
Cerise: You’re welcome, but, on the other hand, this had better be pretty God-damned important, or the next time I see you, girl, I swear I’m going to slap you right in the face.
Paisley: Oh, oh, Cerise, I am so, so, so, sorry, but oh, my God, yes, this is terribly important. As a matter of fact, it’s an awful lot like that scene in “Sheltering Sky,” because here I am, lost in a wilderness, and I’ve been rescued and/or taken captive by a savage presence with whom I have experienced an intense existential epiphany about which I am now engaged in a soul-shattering philosophical and moral maelstrom worthy of Ingmar Bergman!
Tom: Excuse me, but aren’t you in Denver, Colorado attending the Democratic National Convention as part of the grass-roots Obama team?
Paisley: Uh, yeah, why sure, of course.
Tom: That’s what I thought.
Paisley: Right. I’m here, in Denver, with the grass-roots Obama team, diligently preparing for the opening night of the Democratic National Convention; and your point is?
Tom: My point? You called me!
Paisley: Oh, [expletive]! I get it, Tom, I’m sorry, yes, okay, you don’t understand how anybody in a place like Denver could undergo what I just described, no matter what the [expletive] they were doing, much less making coffee, sending text messages, and monitoring blog traffic for Democratic wonks before some big stupid weenie-whacking party convention.
Tom: Essentially.
Paisley: Well Tom, you know, I’m very, very serious about your nephew.
Tom: And Jason’s crazy about you, Paisley, and, based on my experience with Jason, I’d say you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to him.
Paisley: Really? Like what?
Cerise: Like before you two hooked up, Jason was a slacking, derelict loser on his way to life of either pulling lattes for people too dumb and lazy to make their own espresso or writing PHP for third-rate Web sites that sell male enhancement products. Now, we’re hoping he might go to college.
Tom: Furthermore, my brother Rob Roy, Jason’s mom Katje, and I are all sincerely grateful for the positive influence you have exerted on him. And, I might add, we also know you two haven’t seen each other in almost two weeks.
Paisley: And that matters?
Cerise: At your age, hell yes, it does. What happened, anyway? Did you get a crush on somebody out there in Denver? Is that what this is all about? Did you fall for some tall, rangy, sun-baked cowboy in hand-tooled rattlesnake boots who smells like sweat-soaked saddle leather?
Paisley: Oh, Jeez… now that you mentioned it, that does sound pretty yummy, but no, this guy’s not even from Colorado.
Tom: Oh - so it’s like you’re hanging around the convention crowd in Denver then?
Paisley: Absolutely. I haven’t seen a native Colorado person, whatever you call them - what is it, Coloradan?
Cerise: Coloradan.
Tom: Yeah, that’s it - Coloradan.
Paisley: Well, of course, I’ve seen them, but really, I haven’t actually had a conversation with one of them yet. But this guy, he’s sure no cowboy. Not even from the West.
Tom: The East, then?
Paisley: Very much so.
Cerise: East… coast?
Paisley: Ah… yes.
Tom: Member of the Obama grass-roots team staff?
Paisley: Uh… no.
Cerise: Listen, young lady, I know for a fact that Michelle Obama will scratch your eyes out if..
Paisley: No, no, it’s not that! I mean, Barack’s kind of cute, I know… but that goofy grin… and those ears… I’m so sure I could never get them out of my mind while we were… I mean… it would be like [expletive] Dumbo or something!
Tom: Christ Almighty on a crutch, Paisley, tell us you haven’t developed a crush on Joe Biden!
Paisley: Oh! No, no, no! Ah… uh… how… how could you have…
Cerise: Quit crying and answer Tom’s question!
Paisley: Yes! Yes! He’s so handsome! So eloquent! Urbane, suave, and sophisticated, yet earthy, humane and passionate! And his command of legislative process, his astounding insights on foreign policy - his incisive macroeconomic genius, his mastery of diplomacy and global tactics, and his encyclopedic knowledge of the Senate Rules! I swear, I never knew, I never even suspected, how incredibly magnetic, how charismatic, how fatally attractive Joe Biden could be, until I met him in person! When that happened, I was helpless! I… just got this feeling… starting at the base of my spine, rising up through my lower chakras, into an intense, overpowering, bright, glowing and totally ecstatic sensation in my womb! Tom, I can’t tell you why, but I want to have Joe Biden’s baby!
Cerise: You mean, you want a toddler who’s so in love with the sound of their own voice, not only will they refuse to stop talking, no matter what the situation; they will also say one ridiculous thing after another, causing you nothing but utter, irredeemable embarrassment, no matter what the circumstances?
Paisley: Huh?
Tom: I think what Cerise is trying to say, Paisley, is that if you did, in fact, have Joe Biden’s baby, that kid would totally drive you nuts and probably ruin your life.
Paisley: Really? How come?
Tom: Because the child would have FIMD.
Paisley: FIMD?
Tom: Foot-in-mouth disease. It’s hereditary, progressive and incurable, and Joe Biden is an FIMD gene carrier. It’s DNA is completely dominant, and gets that way in a very insidious manner.
Paisley: What’s that?
Tom: It bores the other the genes to death, replicates, then takes over their places in the phenotype.
Paisley: Is is rare?
Tom: In the general population, yes, but, on the other hand, over half the current members of the United States Senate are carriers.
Paisley: John McCain?
Tom: Sadly, yes.
Paisley: And Barack Obama?
Tom: Sure. Can’t you tell?
Paisley: Then Hillary Clinton has it, too?
Cerise: If you don’t believe it, girl, wait until she gives her speech to the convention.
Tom: But you have to understand, Paisley, that McCain, Obama and Clinton, they know and understand their disability, and, consequently, they can control it - most of the time, anyway. Biden, however, has been in denial about his condition from the very beginning, and the result, unfortunately, has been an unending, increasing, uncontrolled spiral of FIMD incidents throughout his political career.
Paisley: Really? How bad has it been?
Cerise: Well, for instance, during the 2006 confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, Biden prattled away for over ten minutes before he managed ask Alito one single question. Then he spent thirty minutes regaling everyone with tales of his Grandfather Finnegan, his son’s application to Princeton and what he thought about Dianne Feinstein’s new eyeglasses.
Tom: And then there was that time he told an African American audience that he knew Obama had gotten tested for AIDS.
Cerise: Or the time when he told an overwhelmingly white audience in Iowa the reason that Iowa children score higher on scholastic achievement tests is “Here’s less than one percent of the population of Iowa that is African American. There is probably less than four or five percent that are minorities. What is it in Washington, DC? So look, it goes back to what you start off with, what you’re dealing with.”
Tom: Then there’s the huge vault of Biden quotes knocking Obama, all accumulated within the last three years.
Paisley: What did he say about Obama?
Cerise: He said he doubts whether American voters are going to elect “a one-term guy who has served for four years in the Senate.”
Tom: He said that the more people learn about Obama, the more their support for him will evaporate.
Cerise: He told voters in Iowa that Obama’s empty slogans are no match for action like his.
Tom: And he said all kinds of stuff about Iraq, too, and every statement shows that he swallowed the Bush Administration’s deceptions - hook, line and sinker.
Cerise: Paisley, you’re smart enough to realize that the Republicans can’t wait to pull every one those statements out and put them in McCain campaign advertisements. Did you know that the Los Angeles Times called Biden a “gaffe machine?” Did you know that, right now, there’s a clip of Biden on YouTube where he insults Indian-Americans, saying “In Delaware, the largest growth in population is Indian-Americans moving from India. You cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin’ Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent.” Oh, sure, it’s obvious he’s trying to pay the Indian-American community a compliment, but it comes off sounding like a moronic racial slur. There’s another one, where he’s trying to explain his position on racial relations to the South Carolina electorate, where he literally brags that Delaware was a slave state, too, and should have fought on the Confederate side, but “we couldn’t figure out how to get to the South, because there were a couple of other states in the way.” Then there’s the one where he accuses Rudolph Giuliani and Dennis Kucinich of believing in flying saucers; the one where he calls gun owners mentally unbalanced; and the one where he insults African-Americans by saying that Obama is the first black presidential candidate who is “articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy.”
Tom: And then there’s that gem from back in 2000, when he told a bunch of laid-off airline workers. “I hope you will support my work on Amtrak as much as I have supported you; if not, I will screw you badly.”
Paisley: And all these things, they’re symptoms of FIMD?
Cerise: Damn straight, girlfriend. Consider this - when asked to describe, in twenty-five words or less, why Democrats should nominate him, Biden took forty-one words to answer. And what’s more, you have to realize, Paisley, that Biden’s been exhibiting frank and fulminating FIMD for at least twenty years. As long ago as 1987, during his presidential campaign back then, in a C-SPAN interview, he insulted his interviewer by claiming that he, Joe Biden, obviously had a higher IQ than his interlocutor, and then proceeded to make up a pack of ridiculous lies about his academic record to “prove” that his absurd rant was “true.” What’s more, just yesterday, the RNC launched a “Biden gaffe clock” to document the exact time and place of every Biden FIMD incident between now and Election Day.
Tom: And he’s already managed one - he called Obama “Barack America!” Like he’d totally drawn a blank on his running mate’s last name!
Cerise: And on top of all that, the guy steals other people’s speeches.
Paisley: Plagiarism?
Cerise: He stole a British politician’s life story speech, changed the details to fit himself, and presented it as his own life story.
Paisley: So, is committing plagiarism a symptom of FIMD?
Tom: No, committing plagiarism is a symptom of a sociopathic personality. But there are other things to consider, Paisley. If you do have Biden’s baby, you’ll have to appear on Larry King Live, The View, Good Morning America, and The Oprah Winfrey Show, after which, you will never, ever be able to get a serious job on Capitol Hill.
Paisley: Hey, wait a minute! They can’t make me…
Cerise: Listen, honey, if you’re having Joe Biden’s baby and you don’t go on those shows and tell all… and I do mean everything, then the National Enquirer will come after you, and you’ll end up on the cover, sandwiched in between reports of the Loch Ness Monster kidnapping nuns and accounts of how Britney trashed her latest rehab center, right there in the checkout line at Food Lion, which, by the way, you will have absolutely no trouble finding - because that will be the only place left in America that will hire you!
Paisley: Uh, Tom?
Tom: Yes?
Paisley: Does Jason have any, like, hereditary problems?
Tom: Unless you count being descended from an eccentric bartender who named all his children after his favorite cocktails, no.
Paisley: Okay, then, I guess… when I see Joe Biden coming, I’ll just look the other way.
Cerise: Good strategy.
Tom: Yeah - it’s just too damn bad Barack Obama didn’t think of it.

The Afflecks & Damons: Baby Bumps for Obama

Expectant couples Ben Affleck & Jennifer Garner and Matt Damon & wife Luciana turned out for a Miami fundraiser Saturday for Barack Obama.

Garner, sporting a small baby bump, looked radiant in a chic short black cocktail dress and sexy high-heeled sandals. Luciana, very pregnant, was decked out in a long black skirt with a strapless tank top.

The couples attended a private $1,000-per-person VIP reception at club SET to support the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate.

After spending orientation time in The Trophy Room, the four friends headed for SET’s Hip Hop Room to socialize with guests before giving speeches from the stage.

“Jennifer Garner gave the first speech supporting Obama, and she was very witty, clever and funny,” says a source at SET. “She was followed by her husband Ben, then Matt Damon. The men gave serious political speeches on how the country needs change.”

The stars drank bottled water and took pictures with the guests.

“They were all in great moods and very friendly to everyone,” says another source, accompanied by a host who plunked down $5,000 for his group to meet the stars and support Obama.

Damon, who has a house in Miami Beach, told reporters outside of SET why he is supporting Obama: “For a lot of reasons. But mostly because I don’t like the path this country’s on and if McCain is elected we’ll be continuing down that same path.”

Also, Affleck told PEOPLE outside of SET that he doesn’t know if he is going to the Democratic Convention, but “I’d like to.”

The Afflecks and Damons departed in a limo after about 90 minutes and headed for a private party at Anthony Kennedy Shriver’s Miami Beach home.

Shriver is the founder and head of Best Buddies charity and first cousin of Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg, who is a member of the Obama Vice Presidential Nominating Committee.

Source: People Magazine

Hillary Delegate does McCain ad

Five reasons the world wants Obama

By Melinda Brouwer | Monday, September 1, 2008 | AlterNet.org

“…Global public opinion data shows a clear Obama trend across much of planet Earth….”…BS

http://www.alternet.org/election08/96838/

Barack Obama’s Reagan moment

By Joan Vennochi | Sunday, August 31, 2008 | The Boston Globe

“…Obama spoke about the promise of the future and wrapped up with the history that makes his quest so poignant. Referring to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and the famous ‘I Have a Dream’ speech delivered 45 years ago, Obama noted that King’s listeners did not hear anger; instead, they heard ‘the preacher’ say that ‘in America, our destiny is inextricably linked.’

It was a powerful message. Ronald Reagan would approve.

There were other convention snapshots Reagan would appreciate….”…BS

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2008/08/31/barack_obamas_reagan_moment?mode=PF

Important features for the perfect pushchair

Baby obaby pushchairs, buggys or pushchairs as they are also recognized, are becoming more and more complicated in their design. This editorial outlines the central concept of each type of baby buggy and what advantages or disadvantages they have.

For a newborn baby, you have the choice of chosing for a traditional petite star pram or a multi feature baby buggy, which can do both jobs with a few adjustments. A pram looks nice but some of the better models can be high-priced, notably as a pram may only be used for the initial few weeks. However, a pram can doubled up as a second cot until the baby gets larger.

A second issue the pram has compared to the pushchair is its size. They are ideal for walking on a rough path or in the park but they are almost unmanageable to get on most coaches and they are also hard to manoveer in a busy shopping area.

In recent years, highchairs and baby stroller or baby carriage has become more fashionable as they are usually more compact, lighter but still offer the stability of a pram. A baby baby buggy can also be used for many more months than a pram, even for times depending on the brand you decide on.

Standard Baby Strollers - The usual buggy looks the most like the traditional pram out of all the styles. It is also the type that can carry out the most number of tasks. As well as a buggy, it normally has a big amount of space for bags and accessories and also often comes with a detachable cot or child carrier. A good all-rounder.

Umbrella Baby Strollers / Buggies - The umbrella pushchair is the lightest and most compact of them all, and probably the most unpopular for those reasons. These strollers are easier to take on busses, trains and will fit without a problem into the car boot. They normally come with a rain hood and a small carrying tray / net underneath.

There is an even lighter report of this pram, which doesn’t have a hood or any carrying compartments, it’s very portable but you have to hope it doesn’t rain!

All Terrain Baby Strollers - This type of stroller is often a 3 wheeler and is the most stylish of the bunch. In fact, many paternity go for this type for the manner domain as much as whatsoever else. They can often be more expensive due to their silky design but do offer a comfortable ride for both passenger and pusher. Bear in mind that many of these strollers are often heavier than standard ranges.

Jogging Baby Strollers - Like the all all weather pram, these have air crammed tires, which of course can rupture. These will impart a smoother ride and incapable of tackling rougher terrain. The theory is you can keep fit while exercising your child, as long as the baby is old enough.

Each baby baby buggy offers features, which may or may not be proper for you, so when you buy your pushchair, keep in mind how and where you are going to use it and you won’t go far criminal.

This Is Obama’s Friend

What’s more troubling is the pathology he exudes.

Top court eases rules for foreigners to try to stay in US

We’ve absolutely lost our minds – this court is the worst ever to rule in the US… From Yahoo! News:

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court made it easier Monday for some foreigners who overstay their visas to seek to remain in the United States legally.

The court ruled 5-4 Monday that someone who is here illegally may withdraw his voluntarily agreement to depart and continue to try to get approval to remain in the United States.

The decision essentially embraced a proposed Justice Department regulation governing the treatment of similar cases in the future.

read more…

California Is On Fire Thanks To The Tree Huggers!

We just got a health warning because of the smoke from 1200 wildfires, and the State Air Resources Board voices its goal of slashing emissions by 30 percents by 2020. The scheme is based on increasing utility bills and on blackmailing businesses. Often, in the morning, when my kids fight over the newspaper’s weather page, I tell them to look outside. Look at that smoke!

Every year, wild fires destroy millions of oxygen generating trees because some believe in the unconditional protection of the forests. As a result, sanctuaries are not regularly cleaned; fuel packs up below the trees, waiting for the right spark that will turn everything to ashes before the erosion of the charred sterile soil begins. It is not nuclear science: trees transform carbon in oxygen while fires generate smoke and carbon; eventually, rotting dead trees will also release carbon. The board should focus on fire prevention and forest maintenance and protection. Human activities and fuel fossil burning have historically been presented as the main responsible for the Green house effect that causes Global warming. Last year, the fires in San Diego released in one week 25% of the CO2 that the whole of California releases in one month. In 2002, 7 million acres of forest burnt to the ground and in 1997, the Indonesian fires were credited for the tens of thousands of tons of CO2 that made that particular year the worst ever in co2 emission. While we point fingers at fossil fuel for Global Warming, we conveniently avoid talking about these wildfires that have become more destructive than ever in human history because of the laws put in place to protect our forests: no logging, no cleaning, no access at all in sanctuaries, fuel amassing on the ground…These restrictions have caused more damages ever and for the first time in century, fire resistant forest have burn to the ground, literally gone in smoke.

It is easy to remember, and so logical:

Burning forest in America release about 10 tons km-2 of CO2 annually.
Burnt trees stop processing carbon.
Dead biomass (dead trees and plants) rot and release more CO2
The whole cycle releases as much CO2 -if not more- as fossil fuel burning.
Extra C02 increases the Green House effect.
Increase of the Green House effect increases the dryness of our forest.
Extra dry forest -what ever is left- burn just looking at it.

CO2 emissions from wildfires are predicted to increase by 50% by the year 2050…

Where will your children be?

Eric Chevreuil

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