Wednesday, June 18, 2003

Letter to the Editor of the Austin American-Statesman Governor Perry's calling for a special session for redistricting is nothing more than the latest power grab by the Republicans. There is no need for redistricting, and the absolutely assured cost of defending whatever plan comes out of this session in court will be more money that could have gone to something actually useful to Texans. Perry seems to be more concerned about his Party than Texas as a whole, and is clearly not concerned about the children who no longer have affordable health care or the homeowners who needed REAL insurance reform. The only thing that matters to Republicans and Perry is keeping themselves in power, even if it is illegal, unnecessary or ill-advised. Following Bush's lead, Perry is trying to steal what the Republicans could not win at the ballot box. Instead, they are trying to steal more power in the lobbyist covered halls of the Capitol. Shame on them. The Democrats must remember the spine that they found in Oklahoma and stop the Republicans by any means necessary. 4:39:56 PM    comment []

HOOK'EM!! Hook'em Horns!!. Tonight the Texas Longhorns beat the Miami Hurricanes 5 to 1. The Longhorns now play Rice for the right to go to the College World Series final. In order for the Horns to advance they will need to beat the Owls twice. All those with burnt orange blood stand up and support our boys in their quest to bring ANOTHER National Championship back to Austin. [Written for the Screen] 11:39:20 AM    comment []

Tuesday, June 17, 2003

What they think of us Posted at www.gtroyp.com the home of all Troy Pickett material. The BBC online is doing a "what do you think" regarding the poll taken finding out world opinion about the United States. Here is what I sent them: My country is a product of myth making and wishful thinking. The "land of the free" has the largest prison population in the world. The "home of the brave" has become a haven for those who would pick and choose what they tell the American people and the world about going to war. A government "by the people and for the people" has become dominated by corporate interests instead of human ones, both at home and abroad. A country founded on religious freedom, and a government founded on the principle of seperation of religion and politics has become dominated by a fundamentalist sect of Christianity. In every way The United States of America has been diverted, corrupted and manuvered away from what it could, should, and purports to be. This should be the stump speech for every Democrat for the next two years. Just attach "And I will do my best to see that America can, should, and if you elect me, will be a better place." Beat the Republicans in '04. Impeach Bush in '03. 8:12:40 PM    comment []

Friday, June 13, 2003

Liar or misinformed : It doesn't make any difference. Originally posted on www.gtroyp.com the home of all Troy Pickett witticisms. Let's get to brass tacks. I don't care if the President said "Hey Dick, we need support for this war. Make up a lot of intelligence and I'll use it to dupe the American people into begging me to go to war." It's the same thing if they just said "Yes that's very bad, buying uranium from Africa. No, stop, that's enough, don't tell me about the details, it's possible right? Well, I don't have much of a choice do I?" Either way, the Bush administration lied. Willfully or not, they effectively deceived the American people, Congress, the U.N. and pretty much the rest of the world. The argument coming out of the West Wing is that we just didn't know. Bull shit. If they didn't know that's what we should have heard, but instead we were given certainties and absolutes. They acted like they had addresses and phone numbers of weapons production teams. They didn't have accurate information about where Iraq was on the globe for god's sake. This administration has committed the most grievous of sins. They misled the country about going to war. And I for one will not rest until they are brought to justice, the country convinced of the truth, and the movie of the week made about the person that will finally come out and admit that they were told to cook the books. Cooking the books comes natural to an administration that was financed by Enron (did you think we forgot George? No way.) They do it in every economic debate, why not in foreign policy. The time has come for a careful audit, not done by Arthur Anderson, but by Congress, in front of the American people. 8:43:14 AM    comment []

Thursday, June 12, 2003

Training Progessive Campaigns Posted at www.gtroyp.com the home of all Troy Pickett material. The internet located Moveon.org is trying to put together a progressive voice. I think that it should do more, and soon. It is the perfect way to get people together and come up with a consensus on how to run elections, i.e. what methods work, how to organize effectively, all the things that campaigns have to do. Moreover, it can serve as a new way to do these things, like Open Source Politics. Everyone working on the same basic project, and everyone sharing that information and work with everyone else. We can make politics work better, we can actually beat republicans. But, we have to come up with a way to get together now. I suggest Moveon.org. I contributed the following to the Moveon.org's web site right after I posted it here. Written for the Moveon.org website posted there as well: This sounds very Big Brother-ish, but it is true. Candidates do not run their own campaigns, staffs do. Those people need training and the Democratic party does a horrific job of it. The "Right" however, are very, very, very good at it. If we want to be able to compete on a candidate against candidate level across the country then we are going to have to find, train and place campaign staffers with new ideas, methods, and hopefully results. We are in essence going to have to take over the leadership of the Democratic party before we can take on the Republicans. Moveon.org is the mechanism for getting the best and most innovative minds together, and finding new ways to practice politics, new ways to win. Grass-roots groups do not win by donating money alone (although it is an enormous part of winning) they win by influencing an even larger group of voters, the non-activists. Grass-roots groups power lies in that influence. The religious right wrote the book on how to do this. We need to learn from them and beat them at their own game. Because we have the advantage. Our policies are actually good for people. That advantage and that power has to go somewhere, get candidates elected in order to do any good. At every level of government, we need progressive thought and action. We need to develop people to run those campaigns (and now that I think about it, candidates as well) and we need to do it soon. I truly believe that progressives can win elections and lead this country to a place that it has never been, growing and maturing into a voice of reason in the world, and not what it is today, which is less than growing (stature wise) nor reasonable. 6:44:12 AM    comment []

New Main blog I am currently putting the final touches, well no, it more like I am pouring the foundation on a new home for my weblog. This SalonBlog is great and it's smaller environment is a great way to expose your writing faster and to a larger audience. So I am going to keep posting here, and linking eveything to the larger, more expansive, better designed gtroyp.comso as to let people know where I keep the rest of the goodies. 6:43:16 AM    comment []

Friday, May 2, 2003

George W. Shrub is no Texan Not really. I mean, he says he is, was governor and all. But he's really not, not in any real way. He's all hat and no cattle. Here's a guy who was born to a Congressman, in Connecticut for fuck's sake, and lived for a time in D.C. a fact left out of his official white house bio, and went to high school in Massachusetts. He may of moved to Texas, and they may have been where he lived for a long time, but he's not from here. His folks aren't Texan. His brother sure doesn't play up his Texas roots in Florida, and they grew up in the same house. Why does George W. play his up, because it sells. Because it covers up his intellectual inadequacies. He says he's from Texas because he like to play dress up. Look at him on his farm, where he says that one of his favorite things to do is clear brush. I grew up on a farm, and I can assure you that no one worth a shit wants to clear brush. You had to pay the migrant workers $10 an hour to clear brush, they usually worked for $3-5 an hour, and it was worth it. He wears flannel shirts, even though it's too damn hot in Texas for flannel, ALWAYS. He wears flannel because it's the outfit of a farmer, which he really ain't. Today he took a joy ride in a fighter jet and "tailhooked" a landing on an aircraft carrier from which he would later deliver a speech to the country. Notice two things here: 1. Again with the dress up, in full flight suit Bush emerged from the plane looking like the fighter he never was. He spent more time in that plane today than he spent in any fighter while he was supposed to be serving in the National Guard. 2. Shrub never gives speeches in uncontrolled environments anymore. He is always in front of a friendly crowd, so much so that his last few speeches that the cameras could watch have been in front of military personnel or military contractors. The only two solid supporters for the actions in the middle east that you could easily trust. No risk for slip-ups. Lastly, further proof that he's not from Texas, George was a failure that Daddy's friends and Daddy's influence kept out of trouble and headed in the direction they needed him to go. Real Texans will not let their Daddy's clean up their messes, they stand up for themselves, and they think for themselves. George W. Bush is no real Texan. And I am. Born in Lubbock, raised in Texas, schooled in Texas, and a proud graduate of the University of Texas, I am a Texan, native and all. I am not ashamed that Bush says he's from Texas, everyone wants to be. I am ashamed that people believe it. 3:02:01 AM    comment []

Thursday, April 24, 2003

Shameless Self Promotion Looky here, a photo from the fotolog. Go visit the fotolog at: GT Pickett's image Emporium 5:31:07 AM    comment []

Wednesday, April 23, 2003

New Spring Things So, I got tired of writing about the war, about politics, and about gave up on this country. But, hope springs eternal and it is that time of the year. In keeping with that fine tradition, I have something new. A fotolog this new thing that is just getting started. It was bound to happen, so many cameras, so many frustrated artists, read all about it here. My personal fotolog address is for now at least http://www.fotolog.net/barzilla. So maybe this will get me in front of the computer again, maybe some work might get done..... 3:10:25 AM    comment []