Case Wagenvoord discovered the site through Salon, so when I mentioned the November 9th meeting he said he was sorry he couldnt come since he lives in New Jersey and works in Brooklyn. He'd love to start a think tank group in Brooklyn, so if you know of  anyone in that area, send them the link to the blog and have them read Gar Alperovitz's living room study action group proposal, posted 12/13/04. They can email naomi@observationdeck.com and I can hook them up with Case.

Case recommends "Growth Fetish." by Clive Hamilton,  which  says, "...a social democracy that does not strike fear in the boardrooms is no social democracy."  This is the problem with the DNC. 

He goes on to say:

The Ukranians have a lot to teach us about protesting a rigged election where the media is in the ruling power's back pocket and the opposition candidate is fed a diet of dioxen.  I don't have the details, but I believe they reduced their protest to one word and the color orange. 

Supposing our protest were reduced to two words:  No More, and we expressed it with a swatch of light blue ribbon pinned to our clothing.  Imagine leaving your house with a mouthful of bubble gum, a roll of inch-wide blue ribbon and a pair of scissors.  You could really make a statement if you cut and stuck as you went.

Sophy Burnham writes

I  have great faith in history. It's time the US fell from being the ONLY superpower.  That is an unhealthy position for a state to have. It makes us arrogant and cocky.  The one rule in life is that all things change.  Usually faster than we imagine!

Sophy has a new name for our secretary of state: candolevil rice.

She goes on to say

 Remember that Bush is already a "lame duck" president -what a curious term - and can't be re-elected, and after the flush of victory from the election (so called) people including republicans will start to look at him and knock him down.  That's always the way with American presidents.  We elect them and then tear them down!

   We can burst out laughing at Kerik's nomination and the love nest and the not one but 2 mistresses (so much for family values) and the mob ties (so much for high morals).   We can poke fun at Bush.  Laugh at his no child left behind -- because no child is allowed ahead!   We can refuse to take things very seriously; and nothing could enrage a good demogogue more than not being taken seriously.

     So,  I say, enough of the rage  and mouth-frothing.  Now we need something really serious:  like laughter!  Comedy.

    We must write great books and poke fun and constantly remind ourselves of the incompetence, which is quite evident, and slowly it will dawn on the other 1/2 of the population that maybe they are in the hands of simpletons. (smart ones, yes, but let's not tell them that). But I have faith in the System. There's an election in another 2 years.....

The great mistake that Kerry made was...  he didn't display his high sense of humor.  Bush out-laughed him!   Bush is very good with sarcasm.   Laughter is the tool of the strong.

 

Let us conclude with the question - why the hell do we use the term  lame duck?? Ducks don't do a lot of walking do they?

 

12:27:03 AM