Politics

Roughly every week or so, Daily Kos presents a Cattle Call ranking of the presidential candidates. A quick summary of his opinion of their current position in the Democratic presidential race, usually with a few notes about whether he sees them as heading up or down the chart, and why.

Having watched this for a while, I started to wonder just how the various candidates have fared over the months. So, with a little browsing through the Daily Kos archives and some tinkering in Excel, I can present a (fairly ugly) little graph of each candidate’s potential to grab the Democratic nomination, as ranked by Kos.

It’s actually fairly interesting to see. To me, the three most interesting lines are those of Richard Gephardt (light blue), Joseph Lieberman (medium blue), and Howard Dean (bright pink). Seeing Gephardt start fairly slow, then bounce around towards the top of the chart; Lieberman start strong, stumble for a couple months, then regain a top spot; and Dean’s fairly steady upward climb is a lot easier this way. I’m fairly sure that Kos will continue with the Cattle Call posts up until the Democratic nomination — I’ll keep updating my spreadsheet to see how all this turns out in the end.

There’s a good interview with Tom Tomorrow in Salon today. Usual disclaimers (subscription or sit through an ad for a day pass) apply. He’s been one of my favorite political cartoonists for quite a while, and I get a lot of good links from his weblog, so I definitely thought it was worth sitting through the ad for.

This is great — an eBay auction for the Texas ANG George W Bush Action Figure! I’ve taken the liberty of posting a screenshot, as it wouldn’t surprise me at all to see the auction pulled before too long.

This figure probably stands 14\” in height, and is exactly as the future Leader of the Western World(tm) appeared during his service defending our Nation’s borders from Mexicans and Bahamians.

Comes with detailed uniform (as imagined by base commander), sealed discharge papers, Coors Light keg, and “licensed to chug” bumper sticker.

[…]

The winning bidder will also receive TWO bonus gifts: the George W. Bush “Afternoon of September 11th 2001” tennis ensemble, and a genuine “First Lady Laura Bush Serving Sandwiches at a VA Hospital” action figure!

(via natasha)

Consider, for example, the remarks that public relations consultant John Rendon — who, during the past decade, has worked extensively on Iraq for the Pentagon and the CIA — made on February 29, 1996, before an audience of cadets at the U.S. Air Force Academy.

“I am not a national security strategist or a military tactician,” Rendon said. “I am a politician, and a person who uses communication to meet public policy or corporate policy objectives. In fact, I am an information warrior and a perception manager.” He reminded the Air Force cadets that when victorious troops rolled into Kuwait City at the end of the first war in the Persian Gulf, they were greeted by hundreds of Kuwaitis waving small American flags. The scene, flashed around the world on television screens, sent the message that U.S. Marines were being welcomed in Kuwait as liberating heroes.

“Did you ever stop to wonder,” Rendon asked, “how the people of Kuwait City, after being held hostage for seven long and painful months, were able to get hand-held American, and for that matter, the flags of other coalition countries?” He paused for effect. “Well, you now know the answer. That was one of my jobs then.”

Propaganda is all-encompassing when it comes to war, of course. The trick is to try to recognize when you’re being fed facts, and when you’re being fed propaganda. The above article is excerpted and adapted from Weapons of Mass Deception: The Uses of Propaganda in Bush’s War on Iraq, which looks to be very interesting, and worth picking up.

(via Tom Tomorrow)

When weighing the benefits and the drawbacks of the PATRIOT Act, it is clear to most Americans that preventing future acts of terrorism is much more important than trying not to offend Muslims in this country. American Muslims should see it as their patriotic duty to undergo more intense scrutiny than the average American. It only makes sense to do so if we are serious about combating terrorism. Turning away from the fact that an organization made up entirely of Muslims seeks our destruction is a fatal error in judgement.

Americans should not deny jobs or services to American Muslims, but we should not pretend that there are not hundreds in this country that are plotting to destroy us. Let’s not let our feelings get in the way of doing what is right for our protection. Following the course advocated by liberals like Ms. Isensee will only make us more susceptible to attack.

I don’t care how you justify or rationalize your racism, it’s still racism. It’s still ugly, small-minded, and disgusting, and it has no place in a country filled with people who would like to be able to say the words “land of the free, home of the brave” without bitter irony.

(via Atrios)

The day before Dean’s appearance here, our esteemed leader (cough) will be here. Information on planned protest rallys can be found at Action Alert and Stop Bush Seattle, but here’s the pertinent information:

Saturday, August 23rd\
Seattle waterfront, 12 noon

100,000 of us will come together in Seattle for a peaceful and joyful celebration of our numbers and our power. We will gather for an afternoon to strengthen and steady each other in our determination to be rid of this blight. The bully has to go.

Where: Myrtle Edwards park. 12 noon: Rally. 1pm: Loop march southbound on Alaskan Way to Madison St. and back to park. Speaking: William Rivers Pitt, of TruthOut.org. Why: A swaggering bully shows up in our neighborhood. We know his rep, and we know his plans. So, do we duck our heads and hope he picks on someone else? Or do we rouse the neighborhood and back this bully down? George Bush says he is coming on August 22, 2003. There is not a more arrogant and dangerous bully on the face of the earth.

There’s a strong chance I’ll be at this one, too.

(via Jon and natasha)

Howard Dean will be here in Seattle in a couple weeks. From Washington for Dean:

Join thousands of Washingtonians in welcoming Howard Dean and his “People-Powered Howard Sleepless Summer Tour” to Seattle for a PUBLIC RALLY on Sunday, August 24th, at 6:30 PM at Westlake Center, 4th and Pine, in Seattle. Doors open at 5:30 PM.

I’ll be there!