Baby Got PAC: Why there's even less difference between Santorum and Casey than you may think

KA-ching!

What's that sound?

It's the sound of the money being given by the same PACS to both Sen. Man-on-Dog (R-Va) and Bob "I put myown self to sleep when I talk" Casey, Jr. (DINO).

Last week Bob Casey's campaign asked, "Who owns Rick Santorum?" The answer is, the same people who own Bob Casey. Have a look at this.

These PACs have given a lot of money to Bob Casey: Cozen and O'Connor PAC, Delaware Valley PAC, Genesis Healthcare Corporation PAC, Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham LLP PAC, PH&S Federal PAC, Reed Smith PAC and the Tercenary Fund.

The same PACs bankroll Rick Santorum. But wait, there's more!

Bob Casey takes money from JazzPAC. Sounds like Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins formed a political action committee, doesn't it? Actually, it's Exelon, Northrop Grumman, SmithKline Beecham, Koch Industries, General Electric, and a bunch of others. Casey also took money from Narragansett Bay PAC. Must be environmental. Sure looks like a J. Crew ad. Nah, it's General Dynamics, SmithKline Beecham, Ernst & Young, Raytheon, General Electric, Bank of America; is this starting to sound familiar? And then, there's Ameripac. Can't you just smell the apple pie cooling? Well hold your nose; it's Harrah's, Tropicana, Bacardi, MGM Mirage, Time Warner, the New York Stock Exchange, General Dynamics, Bell South, Clear Channel; the list goes on. And that shadowy 527 group that Casey "exposed," Americans for Job Security? Their biggest donor is the American Insurance Association, which gave money to CHRISPAC, which gave money to Casey. And this is just the tip of a nearly half-million dollar iceberg.

Santorum or Casey: take your pick. Either way, you get the same people and the same lame excuses for prolonging the war, blocking universal health care, and undermining our fundamental rights. Either way, it's bridges to nowhere, pay raises for legislators, and defense contractors plundering what's left of the US Treasury. Either way, Pennsylvanians lose.

Mike from Comments from Left Field has published the full list of the kind folks who have given to both Santorum and Casey (and it's a LONG one):

There are 7 committees who gave directly to both Casey and Santorum:
COZEN O'CONNOR POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
DELAWARE VALLEY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
GENESIS HEALTHCARE CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
KIRKPATRICK & LOCKHART NICHOLSON GRAHAM LLP POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
PH&S FEDERAL PAC
REED SMITH POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
TERCENTENARY FUND

There are 8 committees who gave directly to Casey and indirectly to Santorum:
AMALGAMATED TRANSIT UNION-COPE
AMERICAN CRYSTAL SUGAR COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
ASSOCIATION OF TRIAL LAWYERS OF AMERICA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (ATLA PAC)
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FIREFIGHTERS INTERESTED IN REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION PAC
INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF BOILERMAKERS, IN SP BLDRS, BKMTHS, FRGRS & HLPRS-LEG ED..FUND
MANTECH INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
NEA FUND FOR CHILDREN AND PUBLIC EDUCATION
UNITED TRANSPORTATION UNION (UTU) TRANSPORTATION POLITICAL EDUCATION LEAGUE

There are 151 committees who gave indirectly to Casey and directly to Santorum:
ABBOTT LABORATORIES EMPLOYEE POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
ACCENTURE PAC
ACE INA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AEGON USA INC POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AETNA INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AFFILIATED COMPUTER SERVICES INC. GOOD GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE
AFLAC INCORPORATED POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE AFLACPAC
AIR PRODUCTS AND CHEMICALS INC. POLITICAL ALLIANCE
AKIN, GUMP, STRAUSS, HAUER & FELD LLP CIVIC ACTION COMMITTEE
ALLSTATE INSURANCE COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
ALTRIA GROUP INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AMERICA'S COMMUNITY BANKERS COMMUNITY CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE
AMERICA'S HEALTH INSURANCE PLANS PAC (AHIP PAC)
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY INC POLITICAL COMMITTEE (OPHTHPAC)
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF NURSE ANESTHETISTS SEPARATE SEGREGATED FUND (CRNA-PAC)
AMERICAN COLLEGE OF RADIOLOGY ASSOCIATION
AMERICAN COUNCIL OF LIFE INSURERS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (AXPPAC)
AMERICAN HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION PAC
AMERICAN HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION PAC
AMERICAN INSURANCE ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AMERICAN MARITIME OFFICERS VOLUNTARY POLITICAL ACTION FUND
AMERICAN PODIATRIC MEDICAL ASSOCIATION INC PODIATRY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AMERICAN SPEECH-LANGUAGE-HEARING ASSOCIATION PAC
ANHEUSER-BUSCH COMPANIES INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
ARENT FOX PLLC PAC (AFPAC)
ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN RAILROADS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (RAIL PAC)
ASSURANT INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AT&T INC. FEDERAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (AT&T FEDERAL PAC) BELLSOUTH CORPORATION EMPLOYEES' FEDERAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
BEVERLY ENTERPRISES INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (BEV PAC)
BIOGEN IDEC POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
BLUEPAC - BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
BOEING POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE ("BSC PAC")
BUCHANAN INGERSOLL PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION COMMITTEE FOR EFFECTIVE GOVERNMENT "BIPC PAC"
BUILD POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERS
BURLINGTON NORTHERN SANTA FE CORPORATION RAILPAC (BNSF RAILPAC)
C J PAC CEISLER JUBELIRER LLC
CALPINE CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
CAREER COLLEGE ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
CHARLES SCHWAB CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
CHUBB CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE-CHUBBPAC, THE
CINGULAR WIRELESS LLC EMPLOYEE PAC
CITIGROUP INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE-FEDERAL (CITIGROUP PAC-FEDERAL)
CLEAR CHANNEL COMMUNICATIONS INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
COMCAST CORP. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
COMERICA INCORPORATED POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
CONSTELLATION ENERGY GROUP INC. FEDERAL PAC
COUNCIL OF INSURANCE AGENTS & BROKERS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE; THE
CREDIT SUISSE FIRST BOSTON CORPORATION GOV'T ACTION FUND
CREDIT UNION LEGISLATIVE ACTION COUNCIL OF CUNA
CROPLIFE AMERICA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
DEALERS ELECTION ACTION COMMITTEE OF THE NATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE DEALERS ASSOCIATION
DELOITTE & TOUCHE FEDERAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
DICKSTEIN SHAPIRO MORIN & OSHINSKY LLP POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE ("DSMO PAC")
DISTRICT NO 1-PCD MEBA POLITICAL ACTION FUND (MEBA-PAF)
DLA PIPER RUDNICK GRAY CARY US LLP POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (DLA PIPER PAC)
ELI LILLY AND COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
EMPLOYEES OF NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORPORATION PAC
ENTERGY CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE "ENPAC"
ENTERPRISE RENT-A-CAR COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
ERNST & YOUNG POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
EXELON CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (EXELONPAC)
FEDERAL EXPRESS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
FEDERAL NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION POLTICAL ACTION COMMITTEE AKA FANNIE MAE PAC
FEDERATION OF AMERICAN HOSPITALS PAC (FEDPAC); (FKA AMERICAN HEALTH SYSTEMS PAC)
FINANCIAL SERVICES ROUNDTABLE PAC
FMR CORP. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
FULBRIGHT & JAWORSKI L L P FEDERAL COMMITTEE
GENERAL DYNAMICS VOLUNTARY POLITICAL CONTRIBUTION PLAN (GDVPCP)
GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (GM PAC)
GIBSON DUNN & CRUTCHER LLP PAC
GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE, THE
HARTFORD FINANCIAL SERVICES GROUP INC ADVOCATES FUND FKA (HARTFORD ADVOCATES FUND)
HSBC NORTH AMERICA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (H-PAC)
HUMANE USA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
INDEPENDENT COMMUNITY BANKERS OF AMERICA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
INDEPENDENT INSURANCE AGENTS OF AMERICA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (INSURPAC)
INVESTMENT COMPANY INSTITUTE POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (ICI PAC)
J. P. MORGAN CHASE & CO. PAC
JACOBS GOOD GOVERNMENT FUND
JOHNSON & JOHNSON EMPLOYEES' GOOD GOVERNMENT FUND
KEYCORP ADVOCATES FUND
KING & SPALDING NONPARTISAN COMMITTEE FOR GOOD GOVERNMENT
KOCH INDUSTRIES INC POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (KOCHPAC)
KPMG PARTNERS/PRINCIPALS & EMPLOYEES POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
L-3 COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
MASSACHUSETTS MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
MBNA CORPORATION FEDERAL POLITICAL COMMITTEE
MEDTRONIC INC. MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY FUND
METLIFE INC. EMPLOYEES' POLITICAL PARTICIPATION FUND A
MICROSOFT CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
MILLER BREWING COMPANY PAC
MORGAN STANLEY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
MORTGAGE BANKERS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BROADCASTERS TELEVISION AND RADIO POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF INSURANCE AND FINANCIAL ADVISORS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUSTS INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
NATIONAL MULTI HOUSING COUNCIL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA POLITICAL VICTORY FUND
NEW CENTURY FINANCIAL CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
NEW YORK LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
NEWS AMERICA HOLDINGS INC-FOX POL ACTION COMMITTEE (AKA NEWS AMERICA-FOX POL ACTION CMTE
NUCLEAR ENERGY INSTITUTE FEDERAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
O'MELVENY & MYERS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
ORACLE CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
OWENS CORNING BETTER GOVERNMENT FUND
PAUL HASTINGS JANOFSKY & WALKER LLP POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
PFIZER INC. PAC
PHARMACEUTICAL RESEARCH & MANUFACTURERS OF AMERICA BETTER GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE
PHARMERICA INC POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE AKA PPAC
PRINCIPAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
PROPERTY CASUALTY INSURERS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (PCIPAC)
PRUDENTIAL FINANCIAL INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (AKA - PRUDENTIAL PAC)
PURDUE PHARMA INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (PURDUE PAC)
R.J. REYNOLDS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE; REYNOLDS AMERICAN INC.
RAYTHEON COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
REAL ESTATE ROUNDTABLE POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE REALPAC FKA NATIONAL REALTY PAC
ROCHE INC. GOOD GOVERNMENT FUND
SALLIE MAE INC POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (SALLIE MAE PAC)
SAP AMERICA INC PAO
SEAFARERS POLITICAL ACTIVITY DONATION-SEAFARERS INTERNAT'L UNION OF NA-AGLIWD DIST (SPAD)
SECURITIES INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
SMITHKLINE BEECHAM CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (GLAXOSMITHKLINE PAC)
SOCIETY OF THORACIC SURGEONS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
SONNENSCHEIN NATH & ROSENTHAL LLP POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (SONNENSCHEIN PAC)
SPRINT NEXTEL CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
ST. PAUL TRAVELERS COMPANIES INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (STA PAC), THE
THE BOND MARKET ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
TIME WARNER POLITICAL ACTION CMTE
TRUCKING POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE OF THE AMERICAN TRUCKING ASSOCIATIONS INC.
UBS AMERICAS FUND FOR BETTER GOVERNMENT
UNION PACIFIC CORP. FUND FOR EFFECTIVE GOVERNMENT
UNISYS CORPORATION EMPLOYEES PAC
UNITED PARCEL SERVICE INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
UNITED STATES TELECOM ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (TELECOMPAC)
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INCORPORATED PAC (UNITED FOR HEALTH)
UST INC. EXECUTIVES ADMINISTRATORS AND MANAGERS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
VENTUREPAC
VERIZON WIRELESS/VERIZON COMM INC PAC
WALT DISNEY PRODUCTIONS EMPLOYEES PAC (DISNEY EMPLOYEES POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE)
WASHINGTON GROUP INTERNATIONAL INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
WASTE MANAGEMENT EMPLOYEES BETTER GOVERNMENT FUND
WELLPOINT INC. WELLPAC
WEYERHAEUSER COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
WINE AND SPIRITS WHOLESALERS OF AMERICA, INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
XCEL ENERGY EMPLOYEE POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
YAHOO! INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE

There are 73 committees who gave indirectly to both Casey and Santorum:
AIRCRAFT OWNERS AND PILOTS ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
ALASKA AIR GROUP INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
ALLIED CAPITAL CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (ALLIEDCAPPAC)
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF AUDIOLOGY INC PAC
AMERICAN BANKERS ASSOCIATION PAC (BANKPAC)
AMERICAN GAMING ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AMERICAN GAS ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE; THE (GASPAC)
AMERICAN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSOCIATION INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (AOTPAC), THE
AMERICAN OPTOMETRIC ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AMERICAN PILOTS' ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
AMERICAN RESORT DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (ARDA-PAC)
AMERICAN ROAD AND TRANSPORTATION BUILDERS ASSOCIATION PAC
AMERICAN SOCIETY OF ANESTHESIOLOGISTS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
BANK OF AMERICA CORPORATION FEDERAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
BLUE CROSS AND BLUE SHIELD OF MICHIGAN POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (BCBSM PAC)
BROWN-FORMAN CORPORATION NON-PARTISAN COMMITTEE FOR RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT
CAPITAL ONE FINANCIAL CORP. ASSOC. POLITICAL FUND
CARPENTERS LEGISLATIVE IMPROVEMENT COMMITTEE UNITED BROTHERHOOD OF CARPENTERS AND JOINERS
CHEVY CHASE BANK F S B POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
CINERGY CORP POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
CNF INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
COLLEGE OF AMERICAN PATHOLOGISTS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
COMMITTEE FOR RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT OF TEMPLE-INLAND INC. (FKA CMTE FOR GOOD GOV OF TE..)
COMMITTEE FOR/ADV OF SE COTTON (CASC) SOUTHERN COTTONGROWERS INC/SE COTTON GINNERS ASSN
COMPTEL/ALTS PAC
DELTA DENTAL PLANS ASSOCIATION PAC (DELTAPAC)
DIRECT VOICE THE POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE OF THE DIRECT MARKETING ASSOCIATION
DRIVE - DEMOCRAT REPUBLICAN INDEPENDENT VOTER EDUCATION - PAC FOR INT'L BROTHERHOOD OF T
DYKEMA GOSSETT FEDERAL PAC
E*TRADE FINANCIAL CORPORATION PAC
EBAY INC-COMMITTEE FOR RESPONSIBLE INTERNET COMMERCE
FAA MANAGERS ASSOCIATION INC. PAC
FMC CORPORATION GOOD GOVERNMENT PROGRAM
FMR CORP. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE - FEDERAL
FPL PAC FLORIDA POWER & LIGHT CO EMPLOYEES POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
GENENTECH INC POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (GENENPAC)
HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
INTERNATIONAL PAPER POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
INTERNATIONAL UNION OF PAINTERS AND ALLIED TRADES POLITICAL ACTION TOGETHER POLITICAL COMM
LASALLE BANK CORPORATION FEDERAL PAC, THE
LIBERTY MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY-PAC
MANAGED FUNDS ASSOCIATION PAC (MFA PAC) FKA MANAGED FUTURES ASSOC PAC (MFA PAC)
MCGUIREWOODS LLP
MERRILL LYNCH & CO. INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
MGM MIRAGE PAC
MICHIGAN CREDIT UNION LEAGUE LEGISLATIVE ACTION FUND
MORTGAGE INSURANCE COMPANIES OF AMERICA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
MWH AMERICAS INC. EMPLOYEE PAC
NATIONAL AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (AKA NATCA PAC)
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR UNIFORMED SERVICES PAC
NATIONAL FUNERAL DIRECTORS ASSOCIATION OF THE U S INC POLITICAL ACTION CMTE (NFDA-PAC)
NCR CORPORATION CITIZENSHIP FUND
NELSON, MULLINS, RILEY & SCARBOROUGH FEDERAL POLITICAL COMMITTEE
NORTHWESTERN MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY FEDERAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
OLDCASTLE MATERIALS INC. PAC
OVERNITE CORPORATION EMPLOYEE PAC (AKA OVERNITE EMPLOYEE PAC)
OWNER-OPERATOR INDEPENDENT DRIVERS ASSN INC POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (AKA OOIDA-PAC)
PG&E CORPORATION EMPLOYEES ENERGYPAC
PHYSICAL THERAPY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
PLANNING SYSTEMS INCORPORATED PAC
PMI MORTGAGE INSURANCE CO FEDERAL PAC
PROVIDIAN BANCORP SERVICES POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
QUALCOMM INCORPORATED POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (QPAC)
QWEST COMMUNICATIONS INTERNATIONAL INC POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
SHAW GROUP INC/STONE & WEBSTER INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
SUN PAC
SWISHER INTERNATIONAL INC PAC FUND
VANGUARD COMMITTEE FOR RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT
VERIZON COMMUNICATION INC GOOD GOVT CLUB
WAL-MART STORES INC. PAC FOR RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT
WASHINGTON MUTUAL POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (WMPAC)

So now you're asking yourself, "What am I supposed to do?" "We have to get Tricky Ricky out and Bob's the Candidate with the "D" beside his name.

Well, I have the scoop on some news that doesn't get ANY play in the MSM:

Despite what the Powers That Be would have you believe, there's actually OTHER Democrats running in this election, and despite Chuck Schumer's best efforts to have us all forget about it,

THERE'S STILL A PRIMARY ON MAY 16TH.There's a candidate out there who refuses to take money from any PAC. He's actually pro-choice in a BLUE STATE. And that matters because Casey is completely anti-choice. Perhaps that's why Casey's slipped 6 points in the polls. Despite his best efforts, the elctorate is starting to learn what his views are and who backs him.

Furthermore a recent Quinnipiac Poll shows that:

When it is pointed out to pro-choice Casey voters that he and Santorum both oppose legalized abortion, 63 percent of the Democrat's supporters say they still will vote for him, while 22 percent say they will not vote in this race.

Hear that Schumer, Reid and Hillary? Twenty-two percent will sit out the race because you all decided that it was good for the party to run an anti-choice candidate in a BLUE STATE. And that 22% means bye-bye to a Casey win.

So who's the candidate who refuses PAC money? The one who won't have anyone who's pro-choice, pro-living wage, strongly anti-Iraq War sitting on their hands?

It's Chuck Pennacchio. And, I implore you to check him out here or donate to his campaign here.

The Bubble-zone Ordinance PASSED

Rich Lord wrote today:

Pittsburgh City Council gave final approval to legislation restricting protests outside of abortion clinics and other healthcare facilities today.

Mayor Tom Murphy's administration would not say whether he will sign the ordinance, but the council majority in favor of it appears large enough to override a veto.

The vote was 6-3 in favor of barring protestors from getting within 15 feet of the doors of any healthcare facility. Inside of 100 feet from the doors, protesters could not approach within eight feet of clients without their consent.

The Downtown-based Women's Law Project heralded the passage as a win for clinic clients who are "often subjected to intensely confrontational and sometimes physically intimidating protest activity" when approaching the facilities.

Other groups have said the ordinance is a restriction on free speech and have pledged to challenge it in court if it is enforced.

Recent Posts

An Open Letter to My Councilman, Gene Ricciardi

Dear Councilman Ricciardi:

I was unable to attend the Pittsburgh City Council meeting on Wednesday, December 7, 2005, and couldn't see a broadcast of that meeting until this week. When I was finally able to view the meeting, I was both surprised and dismayed at the statement that you made before voting against the "Bubble Zone" Ordinance.

You stated that all the emails you received against the ordinance were personally written while the all the emails you received in favor of it were form letters. I notice that you did not refer to any PHONE CALLS that your office received regarding the ordinance. If you had, you would have had to admit to receiving at least one (NON-FORM) phone call from a CONSTITUENT who asked that you vote in favor of the ordinance.

I know this for a fact because I called your office myself on Tuesday, December 6, 2005.

I will note that I got voicemail, but I did leave a very clear message and the message was left well before 5:00 PM (perhaps you/your staff were too busy reading emails from college students in Ohio to pick up the phone). I will also note that when I called Councilwoman Twanda Carlisle's office minutes later on the same subject, I got an actual person on the phone, and ironically enough, the person who answered actually knew me.

But, then again, I doubt that any phone call or email from actual Pittsburghers (constituents or otherwise) in favor of the ordinance would have made a dent in your decision process. You biases showed immediately in your pre-vote statement when you referred to all clinic patients as "Moms," a term that is not only emotionally loaded, but inaccurate as non-pregnant women also go to these clinics for basic health care services.

You further stated that there was a need to communicate effectively to these "Moms" and that the buffer zone ordinance would "seriously damage the free choice to save a life." Your thoroughly patronizing view that there's some sort of necessity for women entering these clinics to hear an opposing view (echoed by Councilman Len Bodak's remarks that the protesters were just trying to "get people to think about what they're doing") is offensive. It presupposes a view that women don't take their choices seriously or that they are somehow incapable of seeking out or considering opposing opinions on their own. As Councilman Doug Shields reminded you at the meeting, Pennsylvania already has restrictive abortion laws including a 24 hour waiting period (because, you know, we girls just can't think on our own without direction from The State).

In your statement, you referred almost exclusively to the thoughts and opinions of a group of out-of-state college students to the exclusion of the thoughts and opinions of the many Pittsburgh women who also addressed Council. You stated that the college students were "caring counselors" and not protesters. You repeated their talking points that were "prayerful and peaceful." You said that these "counselors" must be able to look the women entering the clinics in the eye to see into their "heart and soul" in order to conduct their "ministry."

Well, unlike you (and Bush with Putin), I am not so adept at seeing into the souls of others. I find that I need to rely on people's words and actions. So I will refer to the words of one of the college students: Billy Valentine (resident of Virginia and matriculating in Ohio).

Billy spoke at the meeting. Billy also has a blog ( http://billyvalentine09.blogspot.com ) and is reported to be by Truth Caucus as 'a rumored “rising star” in Virginia' (http://www.truthcaucus.com/index.php?id=839 ).

In his blog ( http://billyvalentine09.blogspot.com/2005/11/operation-yellow-elephant-names-me.html ), Billy writes that he was named by Operation Yellow Elephant as "The Most Cynical Yellow Elephant Yet!" (Operation Yellow Elephant is a group which asks military-age pro Iraq war people -- especially students -- to back their convictions by actually enlisting in the military).

During the Council hearing Billy stated that not only was he "peaceful and prayerful," but that his mission is to "be Jesus Christ to these women."

And, how does Billy talk to women when the adults aren't looking? In responding to a woman in the comments section of the Operation Yellow Elephant post, Billy said the following ( http://operationyellowelephant.blogspot.com/2005/11/most-cynical-yellow-elephant-yet.html):

At 2:23 PM, Billy Valentine said...

You seem to have something against straight men Sadie... Not too much luck in the vast world of dating?

He also commented on gays in the military as follows:

At 2:21 PM, Billy Valentine said...

"And we all know faggots are cowards, right?"

Yep.

"They're not real men?"

Pretty much.

Doesn't sound too Christlike to me, but then I can't see into the hearts and souls of people like you and the Franciscan University of Steubenville (Ohio) can. I can, however, listen to the pleas of Pittsburgh women to be able to obtain legal medical services in a safe environment, which you seemingly cannot.

And, while I realize that this letter is becoming impossibly long, I do have one more thing to say:

The thought that you, who are about to start serving as a magistrate, are more concerned with your own idea as to what "damages a moral high ground" than what you admit is "Constitutional" is rather frightening to me. I hope your statements in Council do not reflect some sort of "activist" style as a magistrate.

Sincerely,

Maria (full name and address appear in the letter)
_____________________________

(emailed to Gene Ricciardi and cc'd to all members of Pittsburgh City Council)

Other posts on this subject:
December 6, 2005: A Matter of Public Safety
December 8, 2005: Some follow-up Info on the "Bubble Zone" Ordinance

tags: pittsburgh city council ravenstahl peduto twanda carlisle doug shields ricciardi len bodack sala udin dan deasy jim motznik

Some more on Jack Kelly's Column

I had a few more thoughts about Jack Kelly's column that, if anything, really show us where his moral compas points.

The whole piece is yet another defense of the increasingly indefensible Bush Administration - this time however he does it by attacking the CIA. Far be it from me to defend the CIA, but take a look at what one of the things Jack he finds reprehensible:

Intelligence analysis isn't the only thing the CIA does sloppily. The Bush administration suffered major embarrassment when it was disclosed that the United States was holding top al-Qaida suspects in "secret prisons" in eastern Europe and North Africa.

A Swedish journalist who prepared one of the first stories on the CIA flights that transported al-Qaida captives told Josh Gerstein of The New York Sun the CIA did a poor job of covering its tracks.

"I would say they didn't give a damn," Fredrik Laurin told Mr. Gerstein. "If I was an American taxpayer, I'd be upset."

For a show broadcast in May of last year, Mr. Laurin traced the tail number of a Gulfstream jet used to transport captives to a clearly phony company in Massachusetts.

"You weren't able to trace the name to any living individual," Mr. Laurin said. "They were all living in post office boxes in Virginia."If that's all the imagination they can drum up at Langley, I'd fire the bunch," Mr. Laurin added.

I hope everyone notes that it's not the existence of the secret prisons that offends the fine upstanding Mr Kelly, but that the CIA couldn't (or chose not to) keep them a secret.

A rogue CIA that subverts American democracy has long been a staple of moonbat mythology. How ironic that the rogues in the CIA should turn out to be leftists who harm America to benefit Democrats.

So, according to Jack, the threat to the America is the CIA's leaking - but not the secret prisons.

Yea, and it's only wrong if you get caught.

Happy Hour for Better Government

Happy Hour for Better Government
at the Brillobox
4104 Penn Ave (Penn & Main), Lawrenceville
Tuesday, December 13, 6-9pm
RSVP Online: here

'Come hear special guest speakers tell YOU how to run for office...And how to win. Let us nudge you into saying "yes, I want to see a better Pittsburgh, and I will work to engage my community."'

(Think you might want to run for your local party committee, but can't make it? Email Matt Preston at mattpreston@gmail.com for more information.)

Meet Chuck Pennacchio @ the Beehive Tonight!

From Chuck's website:

Chuck is heading for Pittsburgh tomorrow, December 12th. He'll be working the strip beginning around 3PM and on into the evening. Then from 8PM until 10PM, he'll do what he likes to do best -- drink coffee and talk politics -- at the Beehive Coffee House and Dessertery at 1327 East Carson Street. If you're anywhere within 100 miles, please stop in and say hello.

Mike over at Comments from Left Field has more info here.

Jack Kelly distorts AGAIN

Take a look at this. It's from today's Post-Gazette. Here's how the hardworking Jack Kelly starts the column:

On Aug. 2, Dafna Linzer of the Washington Post reported that "a major U.S. intelligence review has projected that Iran is about a decade away from manufacturing the key ingredient for a nuclear weapon, roughly doubling the previous estimate of five years."

On Dec. 5, the Jerusalem Post reported that Mohammed ElBaradei, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, "confirmed Israel's assessment that Iran is only a few months away from creating an atomic bomb."

My, how time flies. It hasn't seemed as if 10 years have elapsed since last summer.

Sounds like a slam dunk argument, huh? Unfortunately for JackKelly's credibility, things got complicated once I started looking. Here's what the Jerusalem Post wrote:

IAEA chairman Muhammad ElBaradei on Monday confirmed Israel's assessment that Iran is only a few months away from creating an atomic bomb.

If Teheran indeed resumed its uranium enrichment in other plants, as threatened, it will take it only "a few months" to produce a nuclear bomb, El-Baradei told The Independent.

What can we learn from these two paragraphs? First that Commando Kelly is capable of distorting from two paragraphs. He said that ElBaradei confirms that Iran is only a few months away from creating an atomic bomb but cleverly declines to tell us the very next sentence from the Jerusalem Press' article. I'll retype it out again in case you missed it.

If Teheran indeed resumed its uranium enrichment in other plants, as threatened, it will take it only "a few months" to produce a nuclear bomb, El-Baradei told The Independent. [emphasis added.]

Hmm, that's a little different, isn't it? If Teheran has resumed its uranium enrichment, then it would only take a few months to produce a bomb.

Well that does leave an important question: Has Teheran indeed resumed it's enrichment program? The Jerusalem Post doesn't say but since it is quoting The Independent, it would seem to be a good idea to see what that article says. Reporting 101.

Unfortunately, The Independent's article is locked behind a subscription wall (looks like it costs a pound to see it - anyone float me a pound?). Fortunately, Mediamatters.org has some of the text. Here's what they say:

ElBaradei's "few months" quote first appeared in a December 5 article (subscription required) in Britain's The Independent. The article stated that "[a]lthough IAEA officials have said it would take at least two years for [the Iranians' underground uranium enrichment facility at] Natanz to become fully operational, Mr. ElBaradei believes that once the facility is up and running, the Iranians could be 'a few months' away from a nuclear weapon." The article noted that Iran so far has not begun the process of re-opening the plant at Natanz. [emphasis added]

Looks as though The Jerusalem Post was spinning just a tad, huh? And it's obvious that Jack Kelly was too.

Anyway, what did Jack Kelly say again? Iran is now only a few months away from an atomic bomb. Too bad he distorted a distortion to reach that "conclusion."

To sum up, The Independent article says that:

• Iran hasn't begun the process of reopening the plant and
• Once that process has begun it will take at least two years to become fully operational and
• Only when it is fully operational would Iran then be a few months away from nuclear weapons.
  

Not now, as Jack Kelly dishonestly asserts.

Let me be clear that I don't think that Iran having nuclear weapons is a good idea - it's a very very bad idea. But with a little research, I discovered the truth in about 10 minutes. Why didn't Kelly?

Or maybe he did and decided to spin it all anyway. Only Jack Kelly knows for sure.

Jack Kelly, Media Matters

We wish Dennis Roddy Well

Dennis Roddy, P-G columnist, was involved in a bus accident a few days ago. He writes about it here. The column begins:

Her name is Debbie. She's a legal secretary. Whether she will be one again, I do not know. She has broken ribs, a battered skull and, if God is merciful, no memory of 6:51 a.m. Monday at the corner of Stanwix and the Boulevard of the Allies.

I'd caught the early 36A out of Mt. Lebanon while it was still dark, so I could stop at the Theater Square box office to get tickets for "Wicked." I was in a rear seat, just behind the back door, when I heard, in succession, a thump, some screams and the sound my face makes when it hits a metal-and-plexiglass partition. My next memory is ankles turning into legs turning into the faces of the strangers who raised me from the floor. I wondered if my left eye had gone blind. It was clouded by blood.

I know I speak for the Other Political Junkie in saying that we wish them both good health and a fast recovery.

File Under: "WHY WE'RE SO FUCKED"

"Bush did NOT know there was difference between Sunni & Shiite Muslims until Jan '03"

(Full story here)

This is about politics (Tim Murphy Psychobabble-style)

Also last week, Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa) was on C-Span's Washington Journal trying to prop up Bush's War. As he was spewing NeoCon Talking Points on Iraq, he was trying to get a point across along the lines that "Democracy Isn't Easy."

You know, the kind of thing that you can hear from many on the Right about how we can't expect the NEW IRAQ^TM to be perfect from the start...that we had our own problems with our revolution...how just because we had slavery at the start didn't mean that our country didn't end up in a good place...yadda, yadda, yadda.

As he's going on like this with his examples of "some aspects of history" he throws in this gem:

"...but in this county if you look at our history and the struggles that we have had in racism. With early on in our history the difficulties between Native American Indians and white settlers, etc., you would also see fighting that continues on. We have to remember this, and if there's anything that I have learned in my years operating as a psychologist, it is that there is certainly within all of us a capacity for bad and there is also a great capacity and drive to do good. Eternal vigilance is the price of freedom someone once said and it is something that we have to make sure, if there is any message that we can teach that is of value to the people of Iraq, it is that same concept."

(Audio clip here -- 12/1/05, about 59.20 into the program)

"Difficulties"?

"Difficulties"?!?

Well I guess when you compare Abu Ghraib to the Trail of Tears, Ghraib really is only a walk in the park...

Thanks, Tim, for putting it all into perspective for us! :-) :-) :-)
(Hmmm, do you think Murphy realizes that we are the bad guys in his little analogy?)

This is not about politics

I get the New York Times headlines emailed to me daily which also means that I get the New York Style section emailed to me weekly so I can know what I should be wearing and cannot afford to be wearing. Last week's What to Wear section advised us all that we need to "Dress Like Your Dad? He Rocks". (For the record my dad's record collection did not rock. It was heavy on John Philip Sousa marches and The Four Lads, a group who wouldn't know rock if one hit them on the head, though The Residents did a suitably bizarre takeoff on TFL's "Istanbul" called "Constantinople" that I'm sure must have driven my father up a wall, but I digress... )

Anyway, according to The Paper of Record:

In the last year or two, the trappings of rock's raucous era have acquired a mass appeal, recycled or reinvented for a candidly nostalgic age.

But the tales of boho mother/daughter shopping trips for overpriced remade/remodeled Rolling Stone logo T-shirts didn't get to me as much as this bit at the end of the article:

Nor will the sight of a baby boomer tricked out in leather and flares raise many eyebrows, Mr. Padilla added. "In the 60's, if you had a record executive walking around in a Sonic Youth T-shirt, you would have thought he was out of his mind.

"But today it's O.K. for a 50-year-old to wear a Sonic shirt, because everybody in Sonic Youth is 50 years old."

Actually, in the 60's, if you had a record executive walking around in a Sonic Youth T-shirt, no one would have known who the fuck Sonic Youth were: that band formed in 1981. (And for the record, only one of them is 50+.)

But I'll take the Time's word on it that I got to get me some of those T's.

Self-Serving Blog Post

For those of you who can't readily wander around the more trendy sections of Pittsburgh searching for interesting things to read, take a look at this.

It's the cover story for The Front Weekly.

And I wrote it.

Stay tuned to The Front Weekly, there may be more stuff from this Political Junkie.

Some follow-up Info on the "Bubble Zone" Ordinance

The "Bubble Zone" Ordinance (that the Other Political Junkie wrote about here) was passed yesterday in City Council. The vote was 5-3 (voting for: Peduto, Shields, Carlisle, Deasy and Motznick. Voting against: Bodack, Ricciardi and new City Council President Ravenstahl. Udin was not present).

The Shields-Peduto Ordinance seems to revolve around a couple of definitions. The "Eight-Foot Personal Bubble Zone" and the "Fifteen Foot Buffer Zone."

Here's what the Ordinance says on the 8 foot zone:

No person shall knowingly approach another person within eight feet (8’) of such person, unless such other person consents, for the purpose of passing a leaflet or handbill to, displaying a sign to, or engaging in oral protest, education or counseling with such other person in the public way or sidewalk area within a radius of one hundred feet (100’) from any entrance door to a hospital and/or medical office/clinic.

And here's what it says about the 15 foot zone:

No person or persons shall knowingly congregate, patrol, picket or demonstrate in a zone extending fifteen feet (15’) from any entrance to the hospital and or health care facility. This section shall not apply to police and public safety officers, fire and rescue personnel, or other emergency workers in the course of their official business, or to authorized security personnel employees or agents of the hospital, medical office or clinic engaged in assisting patients and other persons to enter or exit the hospital, medical office, or clinic.

This is how the Post-Gazette characterizes it:

If the restrictions become law, protesters would be barred from getting within 15 feet of the doors of any healthcare facility. Within 100 feet of the doors, protesters could not approach within eight feet of clients without their consent.

There's no word whether Mayor Murphy will sign the legislation - there was no comment from the Mayor's office.

On the other hand, the Mayor-Elect's spokesman told the P-G that Mayor-Elect O'Connor "says his goal is to have Pittsburgh be the safest and cleanest city in America and the O'Connor administration plans to vigorously enforce all laws of the city."

Not sure what to make of all those words.

Another View on The Pittsburgh City Council

Recently the Other Political Junkie wrote this about the recent election for a new President of Pittsburgh City Council.

Local Political Analyist Jon Delano (remember him? I interviewed him here.) has some more info on the newest President of Pittsburgh City Council. Here is what Jon wrote in a recent "PSP" e-mail:

So what's the real story behind Luke Ravenstahl becoming, at age 25, the youngest Pittsburgh city council president in history? Well, it depends who you talk to. Here's a possible scenario, but get out a play card because it gets complicated. First, the incumbent city council president, Gene Ricciardi, decided earlier this year to leave council and was elected district magistrate for the Southside in November. Ricciardi takes office on Monday, January 2 (remember that date) and will resign from city council that morning. He was not obligated to resign his council presidency beforehand, but decided to do so to help his long-time friend, city councilman Jim Motznik, secure the presidency for himself.

Motznik thought he had five votes lined up -- his own, Ricciardi, Ravenstahl, Dan Deasey, and Len Bodack. But Bodack (former director of the Allegheny County Democratic Committee) bailed out, apparently because Motznik was under attack by other Democrats for his support of Republican Michael Diven over Democrat (now state Sen.) Wayne Fontana in that special state Senate election to replace former state Sen. Jack Wagner (now auditor general). Motznik used to work for Diven when he was a Democratic city councilman, and he stuck with Diven against his fellow Democrats. To party loyalists like Bodack, that may have proved to be too much. In any case, Motznik lost his fifth vote, and could not win the presidency.

So Motznik, in some quarters, masterminds the election of young Ravenstahl. Why? To get back at Bodack and the other council members who refused to support him. Others say that gives Motznik too much credit -- that Luke was just a good compromise choice. In any case, Motznik, Ricciardi, Deasey agree to back Ravenstahl, but, of course, Luke still needs a fifth vote. Enter, according to some sources, Mayor-elect Bob O'Connor. The story, which is vehemently denied by others, is that O'Connor got his protege and one-time top aide, councilman Doug Shields, to give Ravenstahl the fifth vote -- and the council presidency. Why would O'Connor and Shields do that? Well, nothing helps a mayor more than a city council president who owes him something.

But this story is not over yet. Ravenstahl is only president until Tuesday, January 3, when an eight-member city council reorganizes and elects its new president (again with five votes). At that time, Ricciardi (a vote for Ravenstahl) will be gone and his replacement unknown until a special election in March, and Tonya Payne will have replaced Sala Udin (whom she defeated). So Ravenstahl will have four votes (Motznik, Deasey, Shields, and his own), if they all stick with him for Round II. But he will need one more from either Payne, Bodack, Twanda Carlisle, or Bill Peduto. Insiders think Payne holds all the cards in this game. She can wheel-and-deal to help Ravenstahl or maybe back someone else who can put together five votes. Of course, the same is true for Bodack, Carlisle, and Peduto. Luke needs one of those four (Tonya, Twanda, Len, or Bill) to win a full two-year term as! president. It's also conceivable that no one on City Council has five votes. In that case, the council clerk, Linda Johnson-Wasler, presides until council sorts it all out.

Whew!

Candidate Forum Today at DfP Meetup!

Five candidates will be speaking at Democracy for Pittsburgh's meeting this evening:

Georgia Berner, Candidate running for U.S. Congress in Pennsylvania’s in the 4th Congressional District (www.georgiaberner.com )

Tom Kovach, Candidate running for U.S. Congress in Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District (www.kovachforcongress.com)

Matt Smith, Candidate for State House in the 42nd Legislative District of Pennsylvania (www.mattsmith2006.com)

William Sargent, Candidate for State House in the 42nd Legislative District of Pennsylvania, (www.votesargent.com)

Steve Karass, Candidate for State House in the 34th Legislative District of Pennsylvania, (www.karasforpahouse34.zoomshare.com)

Also, Democracy for Pittsburgh will vote on endorsements for the May primary in February. In order to vote in February, a member must have attended at least one of the three previous monthly meetings (November 2005, December 2005 or January 2006).

So if you haven’t been to a meeting for a while: you need to attend in either December or January.

DfP meetings are always held at 7:00 PM on the first Wednesday of the month.

December’s meeting info:>

Event Title: Monthly Meetup
Event Type: DFA-Link Meeting
Event Date: Wednesday, December 7, 2005
Event Time: 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Venue Name: Mario’s South Side Saloon (upstairs)
Address: 1514 E Carson St
City: Pittsburgh
State: PA
Zip Code: 15203
Phone Number: 412-381-5610

R.S.V.P. at http://tools.democracyforamerica.com/link/event.php?id=2844

I thought that it was "Take Your Son to Work Week"...

...when I glanced up at my TV screen but when I heard everyone addressing the person at the podium as "Mr. President" I soon realized that Councilman Luke Ravenstahl (25) had been elected President of Pittsburgh City Council.


The Post-Gazette reports:

Councilman Doug Shields nominated Mr. Ravenstahl for president. Councilman Len Bodack nominated Councilwoman Twanda Carlisle.

Because Mr. Ravenstahl was nominated first, council took a roll-call vote on his name. He received yes votes from Mr. Shields, Dan Deasy, Jim Motznik, Mr. Ricciardi, and himself - just enough to win the post.

Ms. Carlisle and William Peduto voted no, and Mr. Bodack and Sala Udin abstained. Because Mr. Ravenstahl won the post, no vote was taken on Ms. Carlisle's nomination.

Yes, I know, there's nothing really wrong with electing someone young to an office in Pittsburgh for a change, other than making me feel old (see The Angry Drunk Bureaucrat's take on that), but Lou's List has some thoughts on why Ravenstahl is really Old at Heart:

Ravenstahl is a scion of the city's old-line Democratic establishment and has opposed working with the state to implement budget remedies for the city.

But read his entire post here. It's worth your time. As are the comments posted there which include the following gems:

PtBreeze said... Since Shields acts at Bob's request, this should be considered Bob's first move as Mayor. So, when given the opportunity to support an african american woman or another white guy, Bob chose the white guy. That does not bode well for the coming administration.

Karen said... But it was a YOUNG guy. See, Bob loves the (white, male) kids!

tags: pittsburgh city council ravenstahl peduto twanda carlisle doug shields ricciardi len bodack sala udin dan deasy jim motznik

A Matter of Public Safety

Pittsburgh Councilman Doug Shields and Councilman Bill Peduto proposed an ordinance to create a "bubble zone" near clinics, hospitals and other medical facilities so that protesters can't stand directly in front of the doors. This ordinance would create a 100 foot area in which protesters would have to back away when asked, and a small 15 foot zone right in front of the clinic where protesters cannot congregate at all.

A similar ordinance in Colorado has already been found to be constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in a 6 to 3 decision in 2000.

The creators of the ordinance have said the following about it:

Mr. Shields said protesters sometimes cross the line, getting in women's faces or trying to shove literature in their purses or jackets. Mr. Dick countered that anti-abortion counselors are sometimes pushed by "escorts" deployed by the clinics, or occasionally punched by mothers of clinic patients.

And:

Peduto said a woman's right to have an abortion was settled by the U.S. Supreme Court. "We are just trying to provide public safety," he said.

And, if you believe that only the Left favors this bill, the Progress Pittsburgh blog reports the following:

Those of you who saw WQED's "On Q" last night will note that even resident Rushwannabes Ruth Ann Dailey and Fred Honsberger agreed that this ordinance was extremely fair and reasonable.

Any of you out there familiar with Dailey or Honsberger know that both of them would consider themselves "pro-life."

Of course not all are in favor of the proposed legislation. It does not appear to be well loved by Operation Rescue for example:

"We will be in court," said Keith Tucci, pastor of Living Hope Church in Latrobe, as he ripped up a copy of the proposal.

"Our behavior is not going to change. ... We will not abide by it." Mr. Tucci was director of the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue from 1990 to 1994.

The Post-Gazette also reports today:

Some 20 protesters held graphic signs near the entrance to the Hilton Pittsburgh hotel, Downtown. They said they chose the location because itis 100 feet from American Women's Services, an abortion provider in GatewayTowers at 320 Fort Duquesne Blvd.

If the ordinance passes, "we're going to have to [protest near] places like this," said Helen Cindrich, executive director of People Concerned for the Unborn Child, as she gestured toward the hotel.

Of course, the ordinance says nothing of the sort. Protesters do not have to be 100 feet away, but that is the kind of lie that is being told about this legislation.

So is it needed? An article on Saturday in the Post-Gazette noted some recent violence outside a clinic in East Liberty and went on to say:

Abortion providers describe the East Liberty incident as the most vivid example yet of what they have been seeing on sidewalks outside their clinics since last spring, when the cash-strapped city of Pittsburgh withdrew regular police patrols that had been stationed Downtown and in East Liberty to stop confrontations before they escalated. With police gone, said Kim Evert, chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania, protesters became more forceful and patients and families responded in kind.

If you believe that the buffer zone is a good idea you can call your council member (or call ALL of them):

District 1 - Luke Ravenstahl - 412-255-2135
District 2 - Dan Deasy - 412-255-8963
District 3 - Gene Ricciardi - 412-255-2130
District 4 - James Motznik - 412-255-2131
District 5 - Doug Shields - 412-255-8965
District 6 - Sala Udin - 412-255-2134
District 7 - Len Bodack - 412-255-2140
District 8 - Bill Peduto - 412-255-2133
District 9 - Twanda Carlisle - 412-255-2137

You can also attend tomorrow's City Council Meeting and give brief public testimony in support of the ordinance (Please contact jhirsh@ppwp.org ):

Wednesday, December 7, 2005
10:00 A.M.
Standing Committees Meeting, commencing with the public comment followed by the Committee on Finance and Budget.
Pittsburgh City Council
510 City - County Building
414 Grant St.
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
Telephone:
(412) 255-2138

A vote is expected to occur on this ordinance tomorrow.

Justice?

From oregonlive.com:

Judge rules teen filed false report in rape case

Four stories - Teen never recants, and her lawyer says the verdict may stop others from reporting sex crimes
Saturday, December 03, 2005DAVID R. ANDERSON

BEAVERTON -- A municipal judge found a 19-year-old woman guilty Friday of filing a false police report after she said she was raped by three young men.

Even though the woman never said she lied or recanted her story, city prosecutors say they took the unusual step of filing charges against her because of the seriousness of her accusations.

The woman's attorney and advocates for rape victims say the prosecution sets a dangerous precedent and could discourage others from reporting sexual assaults.

"This will have a huge chilling effect on men and women across the board," said Erin Ellis, executive director of the Sexual Assault Resource Center in Washington County. "We're sliding backwards."

After a day-and-a-half trial, Municipal Judge Peter A. Ackerman on Friday convicted the woman of filing a false police report, a class-C misdemeanor. Ackerman explained his decision, saying there were many inconsistencies in the stories of the four, but that he found the young men to be more credible. He also said he relied on the testimony of a Beaverton police detective and the woman's friends who said she did not act traumatized in the days following the incident.

[snip]

The bottom line, Naemura [the assistant city attorney who prosecuted the case] said, is that people can't use the criminal justice system to further their own ends.

This case should not deter legitimate victims from reporting crimes, he said.

Ellis of the Sexual Assault Resource Center disagreed. She said this case could make others think twice about reporting sex crimes.

Ellis, who provided peer support for the woman during the trial, said she was especially disturbed by the judge's comments about the woman's believability.

"There's no typical response for a rape survivor," Ellis said.

Kevin Neely, spokesman for the Oregon Attorney General's Office, said it was rare for alleged sex crime victims to be charged much less convicted of filing a false police report.

"Our concern is always with the underreporting of sexual assaults," he said, "not with false reporting. It's a safe bet that prosecutions for false reporting are rare."

The girl was 17 at the time of the rape. And, I say "rape" because it seems that while the judge found inconsistencies in the stories of all involved, he also based his ruling on the girl not acting "traumatized" enough.

Note that I am not in any way trying to claim here that there are no instances of false claims of rape, I am saying that the prosecutors and the judge in this case far overstepped the evidence in charging and convicting the victim.

Shakespeare's Sister got this story rolling in the blogosphere with this post and by emailing many bloggers on her blog roll (including 2 Political Junkies) on Saturday and followed up with two more posts with comments from rape survivors here and here, many of whom note the ridculousness of trying to determine what what would be seen as a "normal" response vs. the proper "traumatized" response.

Kevin from The American Street apparently has known the girl "since she was a baby" and is justifiably angered at the judges verdict, but one of the best posts I've seen on this subject was in the comments section of his blog from a reader named David:

This case is shocking because the burden of proof in a criminal case is very heavy - to convict the woman, the judge had to conclude that the evidence against her was so overwhelming that there was no reasonable doubt as to guilt. So, he had to find that she was lying and the accused rapists were telling the truth. It would not be enough to think she was “probably” lying, or that she “probably” consented to sex with the men. Yet, based upon what we’ve been told here and elsewhere, the judge apparently only found that there were inconsistencies in her testimony, as there were with the accused rapists’ testiomony. Having practiced law for 18 years, it is very diffult for me to see how the judge could have found her guilty beyond a reasonable doubt under those circumstances.

This is why this is such a troubling case. If the judge was able to conclude that she was lying - beyond a reasonable doubt - simply because of conflicts in testimony, it suggest that he may have been biased in the first instance. And this is the point Kevin and others are raising: that bias against rape victims still persists in our criminal justice system. This particular woman may or may not have been raped, but if a judge can find her guilty so easily, what will happen to truthful victims who turn to a criminal justice system that is biased against them? I thought we had progressed beyond this.

Furthermore, "The Countess" comments at The Heretik that the judge's background is in "intellectual property issues company-wide concerning trademarks, patents, copyrights, trade secrets, licensing and sales, antitrust, product liability, warranties, joint ventures, and human resources" which hardly seems to make him an expert on how women and girls "should" act when they've been "traumatized."

"Audrey the phone sex op" over at Pandagon notes just how ugly things can become when one just can't summon tears that others believe are called for on cue:

It's not just rape, either.When I finally, after years of physical abuse at the hands of my parents, came forward to police (after running away and DEMANDING to go to juvenile rather than be returned to my parents), I was told that clearly, I hadn't been abused -- because while I was telling the counselors and such what had happened, I never cried. Clearly, any woman who suffers abuse or rape should be sobbing incoherently the whole time, or else she's a cold, calculating bitch who's doing it to get back at someone she doesn't like.When I was told why they didn't believe me, I started sobbing because I knew it would mean I'd end up returned to my parents -- the one prospect that horrified me beyond any other. The cops looked at each other and smiled. "Yep," the one said. "Seems like she can cry when she gets caught LYING!"

And, MEDIA Girl notes here:

Already, rape is the one violent crime where the victim's testimony is rarely enough to bring about a conviction. Now we have victims risking charges if they don't put on a good show for the D.A.?

Pam from Pam's House Blend adds the following:

And imagine, we recoil in horror at the worldwide atrocity of rape as weapon and instrument of control during wars, but we don't have to look beyond our own borders (or legal system) to see this is a crime that continues to barbarize and intimidate victims who choose to speak out because of ignorance, misogyny or both.

Jesus, one certainly hope that those women and girls acted the "right way." If they didn't, perhaps they can be charged with war crimes.

Maybe what's really amazing in all these posts is that in the relatively smallish number of women who have political blogs a seemingly high percentage of them have survived rape. But maybe that's not really so amazing. When you survive a very ugly act that takes away your control -- your say in what happens to your body -- maybe that politicizes you to want to have a public say. A voice to catalog and comment on the hypocrisies, injustices and general bullshit that goes on.

Well, add me to the list of women bloggers who have been raped. And, I will note that I too felt too numb to cry much at the time and "put on a good show" and probably did not show enough signs of being "traumatized." But, hell, that's sometimes what gets you through it.

Melissa Hart does the Right Thing

I'll leave it to you, oh gentle reader, to decide whether the title is a pun.

The AP has recently reported that some members of the US House of Representatives are returning the donations they got from disgraced former Congressman "Duke" Cunningham. This includes our own Missy Hart. Check out the story here.

Other lawmakers who have announced they had donated the money or planned to do so were Reps. Mary Bono of California, Jim Gerlach and Melissa Hart of Pennsylvania, Rob Simmons of Connecticut, Michael Ferguson of New Jersey, Jon Porter of Nevada, Jeff Fortenberry of Nebraska and John Sullivan of Oklahoma.

On a side note, leave it to that bastion of political ethics, Katharine Harris, to keep the Dukester's ill-gotten cash.

The interesting part of the story, though, is that The Dukester has been under criminal investigation for sometime now. But check out this out:

For months, Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham was the focus of highly public federal investigations, and this week pleaded guilty to conspiracy and tax evasion charges.

Throughout, the House ethics committee, which is supposed to look into wrongdoing of members, has been silent.

Cunningham pleaded guilty to taking $2.4 Million in bribes and the Ethics Committee of the Republican controlled House of Representatives has made nary a peep in the matter.

So it's a good thing that Missy Hart returned the thousand dollars Cunningham donated to her various campaigns, seeing how she's on the House Ethics Committee.

By the way, the Republican chair of the Committee, Doc Hastings, has also received some Cunningham cash. Take a look.

So in a nutshell, Ethics Committee member Melissa Hart accepted contributions from Randy "Duke" Cunningham and now only after he's pleaded guilty to bribery charges, does she decide to donate the cash to charity. But before the California Republican pleaded guilty, the House Ethics committee said nothing about Cunningham's corruption.

Hmmm...don't you think someone should ask her about this?

See? What did I tell you? Murtha's getting Swiftboated

A while back, I wrote of Congressman Jack Murtha:

How long until we see a right-wing funded "True Marines for Truth"? I am sure they can "find" some "evidence" that will prove to the right side of the blogosphere that Murtha was wearing women's underwear when he forged the documents used to award him the Bronze Star and the TWO Purple Hearts. And that Vietnamese Cross for Gallantry? It only proves that he was brainwashed, just like that crazy Senator McCain. He probably has lunch with Michael Moore and Jane Fonda once a week.

And a few days later Pittsburgh Post-Gazette columnist Dennis Roddy wrote:

Soon the Swift Boaters will be afloat, suggesting that Mr. Murtha's Vietnam service was a charade (he won a Bronze Star), and that his Purple Hearts were undeserved.

Well gang, never let it be said that Mr Roddy and I were wrong on this (although I must confess to writing with a bit more hyperbole than Mr Roddy). Nor should it ever be said that some elements of the right have absolutely no shame.

I stumbled across this from St. Ann of the Inescapable Adam's Apple. After listing a few expressionss of praise by some prominent Republicans, Ms Coulter rattles off tthis tidy little bon mot:

I've never heard a single liberal preface attacks on Oliver North with a recitation of North's magnificent service as a Marine. And unlike Murtha, who refuses to release his medical records showing he was entitled to his two Purple Hearts...[emphasis added]

Amazing - in less than two dozen words, Ann Coulter questions whether Congressman Murtha actually deserved the medals he was awarded. She's saying that becuase he's "refusing to release his medical records" he must be hiding something and that something must be that he's a wimp who somehow cheated the United States Marines out of some medals.

Amazing, isn't it?

But before we go on, let me address the Oliver North thing.

Decades before he admitted to lying to Congress and decades before he suggested to then-National Security Advisor John Poindexter that Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega be offered a million dollars of Iran-Contra funds to "take care of" the Sandanista leadership and decades before he was indicted and found guilty of obstructing a congressional investigation and shredding documents (convictions that were later vacated with a little help from his friends at the ACLU), Lt Col. Oliver North was an American Hero. He was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts.

Thank you for your service to this country, Col. North.

Now, back to Ann Coulter. What's up with Murtha's Medal record? An answer can be found in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Earlier in this century another Republican, candidate Bill Choby who was running against Murtha, questioned the Congressman's Vietnam medals. Here's what the P-G says:

Choby criticized Murtha, the first Vietnam combat veteran elected to Congress, for not turning over medical records proving he's entitled to his two Purple Hearts. Murtha spokesman Brad Clemenson insisted his boss deserved the medals.

Marine Corps casualty records show that Murtha was injured in "hostile" actions near Danang, Vietnam, on March 22, 1967 and May 7, 1967. In the first incident, his right cheek was lacerated, and in the second he was lacerated above his left eye. Neither injury required evacuation.

Hmmm...Marine records show what? Congressman Murtha was injured in Danang twice in 1967. By the way, Ann Coulter was about 6 at the time.

Then she get got even wingnuttier:

We also know what Rep. Randy Cunningham, R-Calif., did to earn his medals. One of only two American Navy aces that the Vietnam War produced, Cunningham shot down five MiGs, three in one day, including a North Vietnamese pilot with 13 American kills. Cunningham never did something as insane as proposing that we withdraw troops in the middle of a war, but this week he did admit to taking bribes.

Uh, last time I checked, bribery is a crime. And bribery in an elected official is a very serious crime. I'm confused - what is she asserting here? That we should be praising the Duke-ster for his Vietnam service before describing his various corruptions?

I'm not sure what Kool-Aid Ann Coulter is drinking these days.

Ann Coulter, Jack Murtha

A Santorum Update

Via Atrios. Seems that our Junior Senator is in a little bit of trouble.

Here's the AP article that Atrios links to. It starts with:

If the grandfather and grandson walking together in Sen. Rick Santorum's Internet ad look familiar, it could be because the same two actors are in a television ad that a third-party group is running in support of Santorum.

A spokeswoman for Santorum, R-Pa., has repeatedly denied any connection between Santorum and the group, Americans for Job Security.

The campaign for Bob Casey Jr. - the leading Democratic challenger in his 2006 Senate race - said Friday the coincidence is too much to be ignored.

Atrios has artwork and everything.

The basic gist here is that the "Americans for Job Security" political ad running in some parts of Pennsylvania has some parts that look remarkably similar to an internet ad that Lil Ricky is running. The AP story says that both ads tout a plan that would guarantee Social Security benefits for those over 55. Both have footage of the same actors (a grandfather type and a little boy type) wearing the same costumes and walking in the same forrest.

Of course it's all a biiiiiig coincidence.

That makes complete sense, doesn't it? A Senatorial campaign and an astroturf advocacy group who are supposedly working completely independently just happen to choose the same footage of the same two actors to promote the same tax policy.

Complete coincidence, of course.

World AIDS Day

From the New York Times:

AIDS is outrunning us. The annual report of the United Nations' AIDS agency, released last week to mark World AIDS Day today, informs us that this year there will be 5 million new infections, a record, and more than 3.1 million deaths, another record.

The most troubling aspect of the report by the agency, Unaids, is its grim evidence that many large countries are still closing their eyes to limited AIDS epidemics that will soon explode into the general population. India is providing numbers no one believes. Russia has the world's fastest-growing epidemic, fueled by intravenous drug abuse. Drug abuse also now accounts for half of China's AIDS cases, and it is spreading AIDS infections rapidly in Vietnam, Indonesia and Pakistan.

There is a proven way to halt the spread of AIDS among intravenous drug abusers: provide them with clean needles so they need not share dirty ones. But many governments won't do it because they fear being seen as endorsing drug abuse. The United States prohibits the use of its money for needle exchanges and is actively trying to prevent anyone else from working on the issue. In Russia, whose epidemic is nearly entirely due to drug abuse, it's illegal even to advocate needle exchanges. The price of this shortsightedness will be AIDS epidemics that spread into the general population.

More HERE:

From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

And you can still get a FREE AIDS TEST TODAY (until 3:30 PM) at the Allegheny County Health Department. 3441 Forbes Ave. No appointment is necessary. For more information, call 412-687-2243.

Also today and continuing through Saturday, the University of Pittsburgh's Pitt Program Council will present 120 blocks of the AIDS Memorial Quilt in the William Pitt Union. The display is open to the public from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Mike has more links here.

Pick On Maria Day See above

I keep hearing my name pop up on the Honsberger is a Liar Honsberger Live TV show this morning on the "After-Hours Club" calls that he's playing (and why wasn't that blog called "Honsberger Lies" anyway?).

I hardly call that show anymore.

I barely listen to it half the time and if it's a Tuesday or Wednesday, I have City Council playing in the background (I am at work).

Entire weeks go by without a call from me.

And, the main reason why I don't call in much on my coffee breaks anymore is because Fred has taken to cutting me off after two sentences and then he spends the next five minutes "debunking" what I had to say which translates as him spewing the latest NeoCON/Newsmax talking points to his audience.

I guess my name came up again because the subject is Iraq and some callers still feel the need to try to dispute something or other that I said two weeks ago...whatever.

(I swear these folks call in about me more than I call in. I should get residuals!)

Geez, now there goes Fred just NOW talking about "callers like Maria..."

OK Now I demand some residuals! LOL

Why Does FOX News Hate Christmas?

FOX News is selling "Holiday" ornaments for your "Holiday tree"

And, speaking of FOX News, when will Bill O'Reilly put 2 Politcal Junkies on his enemies list?!?

"THE PLAN"

A little over a year ago, the New York Times published a fascinating profile of George W. Bush. One of the most striking paragraphs to my mind was the following:

The [Bush] aide said that guys like me were ''in what we call the reality-based community,'' which he defined as people who ''believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality.'' I nodded and murmured something about enlightenment principles and empiricism. He cut me off. ''That's not the way the world really works anymore,'' he continued. ''We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality -- judiciously, as you will -- we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.''

This passage speaks to the heart of the Bush/Republican ability to hoodwink the American people. While John Kerry published position after position and floundered from one message to another and while progressive bloggers, activists, the netroots, the Congressional Black Caucus and others decried and deconstructed each and every Bush/Republican policy/lie in great detail, our Faith-based Government chugged along growing ever more bold and the public seemingly ever more oblivious to their crimes.

By calling them "faith-based" I am not necessarily referring to religion here. I am referring both to their ability to gain the public's faith and their ability to successfully ignore, distort and lie in the face of reality.

The Bush Administration is a Presidency that had it's start in the smearing of all opponents and the fixing of elections. It gained credibility by capitalizing on the fears (justified and unjustified) of the American People. It thrived on a web of distortions and lies backed by it's own network house organ (Fox News), the echo-chamber of Conservative talk radio, and religious groups and big corporations with their own agendas.

It was aided and abetted by the mainstream media who does not like to make waves for their advertisers and by a public who both hates and ignores "politics" and "the Government."

As long as the majority of the people felt reasonably assured that they would not be literally blown up as they contended with their own day-to-day struggles, they were willing to believe in Bush. The more partisan among them made a fetish of the man as a Great and Moral Leader who would bring the country back to some mythical time when women didn't work, all worshipped at the same altar, and everyone knew their place.

In their view, Bush/Republicans were the Saviors of America and in Walmart We Trust. (They can still be heard calling into C-SPAN each morning bleating that because Valerie "Flame" drove to work every day to the CIA in Langley, Virginia she could not possibly have been an undercover operative and that Joseph Wilson outed his wife in the pages of Vanity Fair.)

And thus it would still be if the damn had not literally broken. Katrina was a cold slap in the face of reality. The illusion that Bush was not just competent, but the only one who could protect them, drowned along with the residents of the Sixth Ward of New Orleans. The reality that race and class still play a part in not only who thrives but who survives in America could not be ignored.

That the gross negligence in the Bush handling of Katrina came along on the heels of record gas prices and a rising death toll in Iraq only made the fall back to Earth faster and harder. Eyes which had been sleepy were opened. Questions that could not even be formed before Katrina were now being asked in public...even on Fox News by the likes of Shepard Smith and Geraldo Rivera.

And Bush's magic fixer, Karl Rove, was up to his neck in his own problems. While still not indicted, there's no reason to assume that he's safe from prosecution at this point. And so the Bush Administration continues to stumble over even the little things -- like manufactured PR events -- the kinds of things that they used to excel at.

But now, the scales have finally fallen off the eyes of the public and what they see is a corrupt, incompetent administration rife with cronyism and liars. An administration that can no better conduct a war in Iraq than they could save flood-stricken citizens here. An administration that has lost the support of even some of the fiercest hawks for and in the Pentagon.

With support for the Iraq War not only slipping among the American people but among Congress itself, Bush felt compelled yet one more time to give a "MAJOR SPEECH" on the war today. The speech came with it's very own "National Strategy for Victory in Iraq" which was billed as "A PLAN" but, as The Washington Note asserts:

George Bush's speech this morning is almost entirely a counter-point response to James Fallows' important cover story in the Atlantic Monthly this month. Bush seems to be asserting that Fallows' assessment and math are wrong.

I'll be commenting on this later, but my sense is that Fallows went into extensive, nearly tedious detail about the thus far failed effort to train and "stand up" Iraqi security forces. The President's assertions about the great successes training Iraqi forces do not stand up to scrutiny.

and about which Think Progress notes:

The problem is, it’s not a new strategy for success in Iraq; it’s a public relations document. The strategy describes what has transpired in Iraq to date as a resounding success and stubbornly refuses to establish any standards for accountability. It dismisses serious problems such as the dramatic increase in bombings as “metrics that the terrorists and insurgents want the world to use.” Americans understand it’s time for a new course in Iraq. Unfortunately, this document is little more than an extended justification for a President “determined to stay his course.”

Moreover, it would seem highly doubtful that "THE PLAN" was drawn up in 2003.

But back to the speech itself. In it, Bush said:

This is an enemy without conscience, and they cannot be appeased. If we're not fighting and destroying this enemy in Iraq, they would not be idle. They would be plotting and killing Americans across the world and within our own borders. By fighting these terrorists in Iraq, Americans in uniform are defeating a direct threat to the American people.

and

Victory will come when the terrorists and Saddamists can no longer threaten Iraq's democracy, when the Iraqi security forces can provide for the safety of their own citizens, and when Iraq is not a safe haven for terrorists to plot new attacks on our nation.

But this begs the question:

Who is the enemy? Who are the "terrorists" and "Saddamists"?

When eighty-two percent of Iraqis polled have said that they are "strongly opposed" to the presence of the troops and forty-five percent of Iraqis believe attacks on U.S. and British troops are justified, just who is the enemy?

When Iraqi leaders themselves demand a timetable for the withdrawal of coalition troops from Iraq just what does "staying the course" mean and what good is "A PLAN" without any sort of timetable?

When the vast majority of those who are fighting us in Iraq are Iraqi citizens, just who and what are we fighting for?

Thus we return to the beginning of this post. We can only draw the conclusion that George W. Bush is still living outside of the "reality-based community." The rest of us who live in the real world -- the majority of the American public, the majority of the Iraqi public, the majority of the world community -- continue to shake our heads in disbelief at Bush's continuing "faith" that he can create his own reality and at the mounting disasters that result from that belief.

Mike Wallace Needs to Sue Someone

Mike Wallace was on Hardball with Chris Mathews on Monday night and I cannot tell you one thing that was said on the show because I was too busy gasping at the screen.

After watching the show I am left with many questions:

- Did Wallace's enemies payoff the makeup person?

- And, how much was the bribe?

- Does it hurt to have Miniwax Sedona Red #222 Wood Finish on your face for that long?

- Did they really have to use the entire tube of Revlon Super Lustrous "Pink Afterglow" Lipgloss on him?

- And finally, if was willing to lunge at a TLC inspector for messing with his driver, why didn't he KILL the person who did this to his face:

Now you'll just have to take my word for it that the above picture does not do justice to the pumpkin hue of his cheeks, the inch of non-made up skin at the hairline, the Clown White that they used above and below his eyes, and the oh-so-shimmery pale pink lipgloss. He was like some bastard child of Tammy Faye and Kathleen Harris.

The colors were so mesmerizing that I could barely tear myself away long enough to grab the camera and take some snaps.

My friend said, "Maybe it's a bad tan," but then Wallace would gesture with his hands which were clearly of some other race/species...

And, it really didn't help when they'd split-screen him with Chris Matthews. Obviously the camera used on Mathews had been borrowed from The View and someone forgot to wipe off the inch of Vaseline on the lens.

Seriously, Wallace deserves better than this.

Looking for a Few Good Women

Seeking Women to Run for State Legislature in 2006

There is a growing movement to recruit and support women from WPA, who will run for the State Legislature in 2006. Currently all of WPA’s State Representatives are men and, especially in light of their recent shenanigans, they are not representing us well.

If you know a woman who may be interested in running for State Representative, Gloria Forouzan of www.run-baby-run.com would like you to contact her. And, in order to mount viable campaigns, they must have candidates in place by early next week. You can email her at rbr@percolater.com .

So, if you agree that we need women in the house, please help www.run-baby-run.com to recruit women of integrity, regardless of political party, by forwarding this information to anyone that you think might be interested.

For more information and to sign up for an email newsletter, please go to:
www.run-baby-run.com

You can read more about this effort in Brian O’Neill’s “You’ve Come A Short Way Baby” column in the 11/22/05 Post-Gazette:

"Run, Baby, Run'' can help women there. The organization might not match dollar for dollar, Ms. Forouzan said, but there will be matching money. E-mail may be sent to rbr@percolater.com .

"Come forward and we'll support you.''

A candidate could win a House primary with fewer than 6,000 votes. Given the scarcity of recent competition, it's hard to be more precise than that, but a door-knocking candidate might reach half that many homes in 12 weekends of work. Twenty doors an hour in a six-hour campaign day is Ms. Forouzan's rule. This isn't an easy game.

The rest of Pennsylvania isn't so hesitant to elect women. Eight of the state's 50 senators are women, as are 28 of the 203 representatives. The female contingent in the statehouse has tripled in the past 25 years, but Pennsylvania still ranks 46th among the 50 states in the percentage of female representation, Ms. Forouzan said.

This Is What We're Fighting For

From the New York Times:

Sunnis Accuse Iraqi Military of Kidnappings and Slayings

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Nov. 28 - As the American military pushes the largely Shiite Iraqi security services into a larger role in combating the insurgency, evidence has begun to mount suggesting that the Iraqi forces are carrying out executions in predominantly Sunni neighborhoods.

Hundreds of accounts of killings and abductions have emerged in recent weeks, most of them brought forward by Sunni civilians, who claim that their relatives have been taken away by Iraqi men in uniform without warrant or explanation.

Some Sunni men have been found dead in ditches and fields, with bullet holes in their temples, acid burns on their skin, and holes in their bodies apparently made by electric drills. Many have simply vanished.

Some of the young men have turned up alive in prison. In a secret bunker discovered earlier this month in an Interior Ministry building in Baghdad, American and Iraqi officials acknowledged that some of the mostly Sunni inmates appeared to have been tortured.

[snip]

Ayad Allawi, a prominent Iraqi politician who is close to the Sunni community, charged in an interview published Sunday in The London Observer that the Iraqi government - and the Ministry of Interior in particular - was condoning torture and running death squads.

[snip]

One Sunni group taking testimony from families in Baghdad said it had documented the death or disappearance of 700 Sunni civilians in the past four months.

[snip]

"There is no question that bodies are turning up," said the investigator, who agreed to speak on the condition of anonymity, citing safety concerns. "Quite a few have been handcuffed and shot in the back of the head."

[snip]

In one Sunni neighborhood, Sababkar, residents said the Iraqi Army surrounded the neighborhood and took away 11 of its Sunni men in July. Most of the bodies were found the next day; television stations here showed pictures of bodies that had been burned with acid and drilled with holes by electric drills. Most of the men had been shot in their temples.

But I'm sure that putting Saddam on trial will stop this sort of thing.