Benny's World

Saturday, November 19, 2005

Giving Thanks its Due..

I got this e-mail from one of my siblings. I think it's pretty neat and a message to go by:

FOR THE WIFE--WHO SAYS IT'S HOT DOGS TONIGHT, BECAUSE SHE IS HOME WITH ME, AND NOT OUT WITH SOMEONE ELSE.

FOR THE HUSBAND--WHO IS ON THE SOFA BEING A COUCH POTATO,BECAUSE HE IS HOME WITH ME AND NOT OUT AT THE BARS.

FOR THE TEENAGER--WHO IS COMPLAINING ABOUT DOING DISHES, BECAUSE IT MEANS S/HE IS AT HOME, NOT ON THE STREETS.

FOR THE CLOTHES-- THAT FIT A LITTLE TOO SNUGBECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE ENOUGH TO EAT.

FOR MY SHADOW THAT WATCHES ME WORK--BECAUSE IT MEANSI AM OUT IN THE SUNSHINE

FOR A LAWN THAT NEEDS MOWING, WINDOWS THAT NEED CLEANING,AND GUTTERS THAT NEED FIXING--BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE A HOME.

FOR ALL THE COMPLAINING I HEAR ABOUT THE GOVERNMENT--BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE FREEDOM
OF SPEECH (to say and to hear).


FOR THE PARKING SPOT I FIND AT THE FAR END OF THE PARKING LOT--BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM CAPABLE OF WALKING AND I HAVE BEEN BLESSED WITH TRANSPORTATION.

FOR MY HEATING BILL--BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM ABLE TO BE WARM.


FOR THE LADY BEHIND ME IN CHURCH WHO SINGS OFF KEY-- BECAUSE IT MEANS I CAN HEAR.

FOR THE PILE OF LAUNDRY AND IRONING--BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE CLOTHES TO WEAR.

FOR THE MESS TO CLEAN AFTER A PARTY--BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE BEEN SURROUNDED BY
FRIENDS
.

FOR WEARINESS AND ACHING MUSCLES AT THE END OF THE DAY--BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE BEEN
CAPABLE OF WORKING HARD.


FOR THE TAXES I PAY--BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM EMPLOYED

FOR THE ALARM THAT GOES OFF IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS-- BECAUSE IT REMINDS I AM PRESENT
ANOTHER BLESSED DAY
.

------
Easy to overlook those things...pax.

Friday, November 18, 2005

Kerry Fights Back for John Murtha

I received an e-mail from John Kerry this afternoon, which read:

Dear Benny,

This is our moment of truth. You and I have to make it absolutely clear that we won't stand for Republican "Swift Boat" style attacks on Jack Murtha.

Yesterday, an extraordinary congressman, former Marine Drill Sergeant and decorated Vietnam veteran, spoke out on the war in Iraq. He didn't come to that moment lightly. He spoke his mind and spoke his heart out of love for his country and support for our troops. No sooner had the words left his lips than the vicious assault on his character and patriotism began.

Today, in a statement on the Senate floor, in interviews with the national media, and in this message to you, I am seeking out every opportunity to defend a brave American hero that the Republican attack machine has set their sights on.

I urge you to do the same. Whether you agree or disagree with Jack Murtha is irrelevant. These despicable attacks on Jack Murtha's patriotism and courage must be met with an enormous public outcry. Call your local talk radio show, write a letter to the editor, phone your members of Congress - join me in acting now to reject these "Swift Boat" style attacks on Jack Murtha.

It disgusts me that a bunch of guys who have never put on the uniform of their country have aimed their venom at a marine who served America heroically in Vietnam and has been serving heroically in Congress ever since. No matter what J.D. Hayworth says, there is no sterner stuff than the backbone and courage that defines Jack Murtha's character and conscience.

Dennis Hastert -- the Speaker of the House who never served -- accused Jack Murtha of being a coward. Well let me tell you, Jack Murtha wasn't a coward when he put himself in harm's way for his country in Vietnam and earned two purple hearts -- he was a patriot then, and he is a patriot today. Jack Murtha's courage in combat earned him a Bronze Star, and his voice should be heard, not silenced by those who still today cut and run from the truth.

Instead of letting his cronies run their mouths, the President for once should stop his allies from doing to Jack Murtha what he set them loose to do to John McCain in South Carolina and Max Cleland in Georgia.

The President should finally find the courage to debate the real issue instead of destroying anyone who speaks truth to power as they see it. It's time for Americans to stand up, fight back, and make it clear it's unacceptable to do this to any leader of any party anywhere in our country.

I urge you to join today in a massive public outcry that rejects the attempt to demonize and destroy anyone who dares to disagree with George W. Bush's aimless "stay for as long as it takes" policy on Iraq.

Please act now. Call and email your elected officials. Flood talk radio with calls rejecting these vicious smear tactics. Send a letter to the editor. Express your outrage about the tired old Rovian "Swift Boat" style attacks on Jack Murtha.

Sincerely,

John Kerry

----------------

Senator, I wish you would have fought back like this a year ago, including whether or not the election was truly in question in Ohio. However, it's good to see you getting out there and fighting for Rep Murtha. His name is being smeared with pig excrement by Scott McLellan and the WH. This man is no Michael Moore, and he's certainly not left either. He's a centrist. More important, dissent is what makes our democracy healthy and this kind of slander would have had McLellan thrown out of a job or out of a university.

Hang in there, Rep Murtha. Thanks, Senator Kerry for sticking up for what's right.

Thursday, November 17, 2005

Mulla Colony, India

Josh from the One America Committee blog reports that he and JRE arrived in India earlier this week. JRE gave a rousing speech at the Hindustan Times Conference, but he and Josh paid a visit to one of the schools participating in the Pratham Education Initiative. As Josh wrote, "With the financial backing of the Ashoka Foundation, which promotes social entrepreneurship around the world, Dr. Chavan designed a low-cost, replicable way of bringing pre-primary and primary education to poor kids living in the urban and semi-rural slums of India."

I look at this picture and think about how the kids allegedly have a library, which Josh described as, "which we were told was one of the best in the area, consists of used paperback books dangling from two strings which extend from a crumbling brick home to a tree a few yards away. The students sit within feet of live oxen."

I've never studied or read a book near large animals before. I don't know if they are treated like domesticated animals in my home (although most Hindus are vegetarian--so perhaps they may be in rural areas). While I didn't have many advantages either as a child, the one thing my elementary did well was having a good library. In the summers, the library was open for 3-4 weeks, and often, I was one of the most prodigious readers in the school.

I agree with JRE that poverty is our problem, not just their problem. And I also agree with Bill Clinton when he suggested at the UAE conference this week where JRE also spoke, that oil-rich countries should think about investing in non-oil energy, and help their neighbors to use that energy when they live in sunny, warm climes.

To the children of Mulla Colony, dream. All of us are worthy of dreams, and many of your countrymen are doing better--to do good for others.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Elizabeth Edwards Speaks Her Mind

Dear Benny,
Each morning when I open the newspaper, I am disappointed.

Disappointed as a mother.

Disappointed as a woman.

Disappointed as an American.

I am disappointed in the way the Bush Administration and Republican leaders are handling the major issues facing our country right now.

Each morning, I read about another young life sacrificed in Iraq. As a mother, my heart breaks. These noble young men and women are carrying out their mission with skill and honor. But in Washington, our leaders are not doing the same. The president failed to conduct a full investigation of how we as a country were misled in the run up to the war in Iraq. The vice president and his staff continue to stonewall an investigation into how a covert CIA agent was revealed just to discredit her husband and why it was so important to discredit his revelations about faulty intelligence.

And unbelievably, the Republican leadership in Congress defends torture and secret prisons, the same type of human rights violations that we sent our young people into Iraq to stop, even though we know torture yields untrustworthy intelligence, smears our reputation around the world, and, above all, is wrong. The American people deserve better.

As a woman, I am disappointed and deeply concerned about the Supreme Court. First, the president nominated his personal lawyer to a position for which she clearly was not qualified. When the right wing of the Republican Party determined that she wasn't enough of an ideologue on their issues, the president pulled her nomination -- not because she wasn't qualified but because he couldn't convince a group of narrow extremists that she wouldn't jettison the Constitution in favor of their political agenda.

His second choice is a judge with a deeply disturbing record on women's rights and civil rights, one that will denude the Constitution if he is affirmed and his perspective prevails.

As the president was making these appointments, the nation was appalled to read the emails of Michael Brown, the president's appointee to head the Federal Emergency Management Agency. As the water was literally rising in New Orleans, Mr. Brown was more concerned with how he looked on television than with the lives that hung in the balance. And the "lessons" that the president assured us were learned from Hurricane Katrina don't seem to have stuck, because when Hurricane Wilma hit South Florida, FEMA was again unprepared and inept. I worry about our preparedness to respond to a disaster -- natural or man-made -- that we cannot anticipate.

The American people deserve better. Contribute to Democratic candidates who share your commitment to leadership and accountability in government.

I am disappointed as an American, because I know the American people deserve better. But the same papers that bring news of the disappointing performance of our political leaders also bring encouraging news that reminds me of the fundamental decency of the American people.

Last week, voters in Virginia and New Jersey stood up for principle and elected governors who are committed to accountability and leadership. Thanks to your support, John was able to travel to Virginia and New Jersey and campaign for a number of state legislative candidates so that these new governors would have the support behind them to move their agendas.

Across the country, voters are holding their elected officials accountable -- and that gives me hope. Simply put, we need to elect public officials who are as good as the American people. That's what John and I have committed to doing, but we need your help. In the past year, your support enabled us to raise $3.8 million for local, state and federal candidates who are committed to leadership and accountability on behalf of ALL Americans. The election two weeks ago shows us that these candidates can win, IF they have the resources to run against their well-funded opponents.

Please join John and me today and stand up for leadership and accountability in government. We don't need to be disappointed in our elected officials. We need elected officials as good as the American people.

Thank you.
Elizabeth Edwards

Other than Barbara Boxer, I cannot think of another woman who politically as well as lawfully can articulate the problems in our three branches. Elizabeth is on the mark here. She's not tall, but her beliefs are strong--and right.

Thanks, EAE for speaking up.

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

Wonkette is Wonked Out

I think Wonkette and her writers need a vacation, or find more Republican controlled investors, such as News Corp to support her blog, Wonkette. Wonkette's blog was so nasty to John Edwards recently for admitting he made a big mistake. Instead of just acknowledgement, Eric P on Wonkette tried kicking out JRE's teeth by making satire or sarcasm out of JRE's looks.

Hello, is it a crime to be attractive, smart, thoughtful, feeling, male, and being 52 all at once? Eric, perhaps you realize that may not be your fate, so instead, you turn vicious. I don't care if you are of either party; what you posted with his picture is in violation of JRE's rights when he was getting ready for a TV appearance; sorry you didn't show him with his reading glasses on to prepared. I've seen that before on the web and mentioned that site in passing, but didn't post a link because I thought it may have been in violation of his privacy.

You focused on his appearance and not on his message. Guess you are vacuous. Sorry for you.

Never mind he was asked to be the closing keynote speaker in India today on "Building a Better Future", then on to the UAE whereby he and Bill Clinton are the only US political leaders asked to speak on opportunities.

I'm not even posting that link to Wonkette because her blog needs a rest from in order not to "bitch us up". Get a grip, Wonkette. Pick on someone your own size...a little smaller, perhaps.

Edwards' splash

From the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle:


Former VP hopeful is setting himself apart from crowd and party

(November 15, 2005) — Practically absent from the national
political scene since last year's presidential election, Democrat John Edwards made quite a splash last weekend. Without equivocation, the unsuccessful 2004 candidate for vice president admitted he was wrong to vote to support going to war in Iraq.

Edwards' candid admission and his plan for winding down the war came in an op-ed piece published in the Washington Post. It was particularly
noteworthy because it marked the first time that a high-profile Democrat who supported the war publicly acknowledged making a mistake.

The admission, no doubt, will strengthen Edwards' efforts to appeal to
grass-roots, anti-war Democrats as the race for the party's 2008 presidential nomination gathers steam.

True, other prominent Democrats considered to be presidential timber, such as Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden and Evan Bayh, have hardly worn their "yes'' votes on the war as badges of honor. But they have refused to renounce their actions.

Instead, these big-name Democrats have argued that they were misled by the Bush administration, which provided flawed intelligence.

End of story.

By accepting "responsibility" for his mistake and devising a plan for action, Edwards is not only setting himself apart from the crowd of presidential aspirants, but from the party as well.

After all, Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean seems to be relishing the withholding of details about the party's agenda on Iraq and change, overall. "Right now, it's not our job to give out specifics,'' he told a TV news show [host, Tim Russert on MTP]Sunday.

Never mind that polls show that 52 percent of swing voters
believe Democrats have no clear vision for the future.

At least Edwards seems to recognize the urgency of seizing the moment and the importance of acting differently to achieve a different outcome.

I think JRE is developing his vision, and hopefully, gathering more ideas as time goes on, to help our country get back on the right track. Does it mean he's running for office? Not yet.

But it does mean that other Dems need to rethink what their own visions are for the US, then find affinities. We cannot be outnumbered for too much longer.

Sunday, November 13, 2005

Taking Moral Responsibility

I received the following e-mail from JRE this morning:

Dear Benny,

I was wrong.

I wrote these words about my vote to authorize the Iraq war in a Washington Post op-ed piece and I want to share my views with you as well.

Almost three years ago, we went into Iraq to remove what we were told -- and many of us believed and argued -- was a threat to America. But in fact we now know that Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction when our forces invaded Iraq in 2003. The intelligence was deeply flawed and, in some cases, manipulated to fit a political agenda.

It was a mistake to vote for this war in 2002. I take responsibility for that mistake. It has been hard to say these words because those who didn't make a mistake -- the men and women of our armed forces and their families -- have performed heroically and paid a very dear price. It is not right, just or fair that we made a mistake, but they pay for that mistake.

The world desperately needs moral leadership from America, and the foundation for moral leadership is telling the truth. While we can't change the past, we need to accept responsibility because a key part of restoring America's moral leadership is acknowledging when we've made mistakes or been proven wrong -- and to show that we have the creativity and guts to make it right.

The argument for going to war with Iraq was based on intelligence that we now know was inaccurate. The information the American people were hearing from the President -- and that I was being told by our intelligence community -- wasn't the whole story. Had I known this at the time, I never would have voted for this war.

George Bush won't accept responsibility for his mistakes. Along with Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld, he has made horrible mistakes at almost every step: twisting intelligence to fit their pre-conceived views about Iraq's threat; failed diplomacy; not going in with enough troops; not giving our forces the equipment they need; not having a plan for peace.

Because of these failures, Iraq is a mess and has become a far greater threat than it actually ever was. It is now a haven for terrorists, and our presence there is draining the goodwill that our country once enjoyed, diminishing our global standing. It has made fighting the global war against terrorist organizations more difficult, not less.

The urgent question isn't how we got here, but what we do now. We have to give our troops a way to end their mission honorably. That means leaving behind a success, not a failure.

What is success? I don't think it is Iraq as a Jeffersonian democracy. I think it is an Iraq that is relatively stable, largely self-sufficient, comparatively open and free, and in control of its own destiny.

A plan for success needs to focus on three interlocking objectives: reducing American presence; building Iraq's capacity; and getting other countries to meet their responsibilities to help.


First, we need to remove the image of the imperialist America from the landscape of Iraq. American contractors who have taken unfair advantage of the turmoil in Iraq need to leave Iraq. If that means Halliburton subsidiary, KBR, then KBR should go. Such departures, and the return of the work to Iraqi businesses, would be a real statement about our hopes for the new nation.

We also need to show Iraq and the world that we will not stay there forever. We've reached the point where the large number of our troops in Iraq hurts, not helps, our goals. Therefore, early next year, after the Iraqi elections and a new government has been created, we should begin the redeployment of a significant number of troops out of Iraq. This should be the beginning of a gradual process to reduce our presence and change the shape of our military's deployment in Iraq.

Most of these troops should come from National Guard or Reserve forces. That will still leave us with enough military capability, combined with better trained Iraqis, to fight terrorists and continue to help the Iraqis develop a stable country.

Second, this redeployment should work in concert with a more effective training program for Iraqi forces. We should implement a clear plan for training and hard deadlines for certain benchmarks to be met. To increase incentives, we should implement a schedule outlining that as we certify that Iraqi troops are trained and equipped, a proportional number of U.S. troops will withdraw.

Third, we must launch a serious diplomatic process that brings the world into this effort. We should bring Iraq's neighbors and our key European allies into a diplomatic process to get Iraq on its feet. It's not just in America's security interest for Iraq to succeed, but the world's -- and the President needs to create a unified international front.

Too many mistakes have already been made to make this easy. Yet we must take these steps to succeed. The American people, the Iraqi people and -- most importantly -- our troops who have died or been injured there and those who are fighting there today deserve nothing less.

America's leaders -- all of us -- need to accept the responsibility we each carry for how we got to this place. Over 2,000 Americans have lost their lives in this war; and over 150,000 are fighting there today. They and their families deserve honesty from our country's leaders. And they also deserve a clear plan for a way out.

John
-------------------------------------
Amen, Senator. Thank you for your honesty. I'm hoping more senators will follow your lead.