Republicans Party in House that Norm Built !!!

Today it was announced that the Grand Oil Party will hold their 2008 convention in the Twin Cities.

The main events, the traditional role call of the states, keynote address and the acceptance speach of the candidate that will be defeated in 2008 will take place at Xcel Energy Center.

No doubt Norm Coleman will be given a prominent spot as a speaker of some sort since he will be running for re-election at that time. It will be a good time to trot out the old Wellstone ad with a montage of Coleman declaring "I am a Democrat."

It will be a delightful celebration for them as they will be warmly welcomed by two Democratic Mayors, a Democratic Governor and a Democratic Junior Senator.

They should strongly consider inviting local talent for entertainment purposes- especially comedian Al Franken who could do a lengthy bit about Minnesota's senior Senator (who will be running for re-election). He might even have a word about his opponent.

The convention is scheduled for September 1-4th 2008, which seems late for a convention.

Pawlenty and Coleman (our fluffy senator) are no doubt going to bed tonight with dreams of riding this convention to high places (like VP candidate). To that, I think the idea is superb. Let Norman accept the candidacy for VP in 08. That would take him out of the running for senator that year and ultimately leave him unemployed in '09. Works for me.

This Guy is becoming the conscience of our nation.

I never liked his ironic look at the news but I will be looking for his show on MSNBC. H is the only public voice calling for this President to be in any way accountable. Check out the link.

$2.11 per gallon today in New Hope

I heard on late night talking news (MSNBC) for the first time the suggestion that the Republicans have been effective at "controlling" gas prices as evidenced by the recent and rapid reductions in pricing resulting from a mild hurricane season and (they keep saying this) relative peace in the oil producing regions.

If they concede now that government somehow has any control over this (like they did in the 2000 election when they criticized Clinton for letting gas approach the $1.50 range without consideration of opening the emergency reserves), then is it even possible for them to deny that they somehow had control when they allowed Gas prices (and will again) to top the $3.00 range?

I hope no one gets me wrong here. If higher gas prices ($3.00 range) will finally wake up our nation to the fact that we need an alternative to foreign oil (Jimmy Carter said as much in the 70's) and the extra money would go toward genuine developments that will move us there more quickly, I say (to quote GW) "BRING IT ON!!!" Unfortunately, anyone paying attention to what these thugs are doing knows better and I am in no mood to be fleeced as rich friends of power hungry politicians in order to make them richer and more powerful at my expense.

Look for this rhetoric to continue as prices drop below $2.00, perhaps as soon as next weekend.

It is difficult to watch this angry man- our president.

It is difficult because I keep thinking of the saying that goes something like-

" The cause for peace in our world begins with peac ein the heart of every individual."

How can someone who is apparently motivated by defensiveness and anger possibly be a person of peace? If anyone has an answer that is not scary let me know.

This Post (click) by Keith Olbermann

or rather the original commentary on which it is based will be rebroadcast tonight on MSNBC at 7 PM cst.

In an odd kind of juxtoposition I watched this online while the President continued his string of lies during a press conference today.

Not all blogs are wasted space-(check this out by clicking)

I had the opportunity to meet this woman once. She went out of her way to shake my hand while I was involved in running a fundraiser that had nothing to do with her.

I have never laughed at a characture of Michelle Bachman because there is nothing about her that is funny. She is just plain scary.

This is interesting

Your Taste in Music:

80's Rock: High Influence80's Alternative: Medium Influence80's R&B: Low Influence90's Pop: Low Influence90's R&B: Low Influence

How's" Your Taste in Music?

Read this Article (clickable)

In the mean time, Gas today in Bloomington, MN $2.18

$2.27 today in Bloomington.

Gas prices have droped 62 cents in 30 days. Who says you can't ut hogs on a diet?

Dick Cheney says, (click for link)

"We were out of touch then. We are out of touch now. And we don't care."

He tells us now that Bush would have ordered the US invasion of Iraq "regardless of intel." That's fine to say that now, but does he seriously believe that there would have been any support for such an act if they would have told the truth? Would our position now in Iraq and around the world, and our opinion of the current war be different if we had been told the truth?

The worst part of this interview, which you can watch in its entirety with the link if you have the stomach for it, is the arrogance of this man does not seem to wane in the least in spite of being so frequently wrong. The attitude that they are smarter and we just need to 'shut up' should be less and less tolerable to us.

I hope this interview, along with the continued support of thir ill conceived policies will demonstrate to the voting public how very much we need to give controll of congress to the Democrats.

The fact is- these guys are scary!!

$2.33 Sunday 8 AM in Shakopee, MN

Okay, I wasn't exactly wrong when I said;

"I made, to myself, a similar prediction this morning. My thought was, with GOP's in desperate straits in the up-coming elections, it is likely that their friends at the oil companies will so what they can. We may see gas prices drop into the $2.50 range so that an electorate with the attention span of a flea will consider how wonderful these incuments have been for us."

I was, believe it or not, less cynical than I should have been. It looks now like the gas prices will dip below $2.00, and likely sooner than anyone would have predicted. But, don't buy the 'BS' that this is somehow connected to a seasonal shift or a change in our behavior. Don't buy either the notion that this is because of the effectiveness of our govenment officials.

Be certain, however, that this reprieve in gas prices will be very short lived. Elections are November 7th. Look for increases within a week of that date.

Opposition Research (clickable)

Gone is the pretense of running a clean campaign. They've given sleazeball campaigning a name now. They also seem to be elevating negativism and rumor mongoring to an art form.

Let noone be fooled. These people are all about power. Let's take it away.

$2.34 per gallon on Sept 9 at 6:30 PM in Shakapee, MN

Resume' of George W. Bush (revised from email sent by Linda)

Dear Senator, Congressman or Governor of the Republican Party.

I offer my services for your upcoming campaign. You will find that my experience and credentials will be of great benefit for you as you seek to win or retain your current office.

W

Resume

GEORGE W. BUSH
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC 20520

EDUCATION

I attended Yale University and maintained a strong C average while being involved in many extra curricular activities including service to my community as a cheerleader.

I was also active in a student group on Campus- "Skull and Bones Society". This was a selective fraternal organization that assists students of a certain demographic so that they have improved opportunities for success in a world that frequently works against them.

OTHER EXPERIENCE

LAW ENFORCEMENT
I have been involved in legal issues for over thirty years.

In 1976, I offered a guilty plea and paid a fine after being arrested in Kennebunkport, Maine as a result of laws (established by liberals) against driving under the influence of alcohol. My driver's license was suspended for 30 days.

My Texas driving record remains unavailable. Regrettably, irresponsible (probably liberal) civil servants have apparently lost these.

MILITARY
Member - Texas Air National Guard
Missed opportunity to serve my country in Vietnam

Was grounded as Pilot after refusing to take a drug test imposed on the military by Liberals to infringe on soldier's rights.

After continued infringements on my personal freedoms I found other opportunitiesthat did not permit me to be available to complete my service to the National Guard in a timely way.

PAST WORK EXPERIENCE

After the Liberal Media conspired against me in my run for congress I began my lengthy associations in the Oil Industry in 1975.

With the support, confidence and money of others I began my career in the oil business in Midland, Texas, in 1975. Unfortunately, the company was unable to find oil in Texas at that time. I remain confident to this day that the oil was there before and if someone chooses to keep looking, they will undoubtedly find it.

There was a large stock sale that caused the compnay to go into bankrupcy. Even in those extreme circumstances, I was one of the only members of the corporation to make money throughout that period.

I bought the Texas Rangers baseball team and negotiated a land deal using taxpayer money.
Even though all the other people around me at this time were incompetent I managed to make money during the worst period of the team's history.

Associations with oil industry executives and through my family gave me the opportunity to offer my services as Governor of Texas. I am proud to count Ken Lay of Enron among my strong referrences. I ran a successful campaign against a strong incumbent liberal.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS AS GOVERNOR OF TEXAS

Revised Texas pollution laws to strengthen the economic environment for power and oil companies,

Helped make Texas the most polluted state in the Union. During my tenure, Houston replaced Los Angeles as the most smog-ridden city in America.

I provided tax cuts for the very richest of Texans. I was able to build strong personal relationships with powerful people in the oil and financial industries. Unfortunately, an unforseen bankrupcy of the Texas Treasury made it necessary to borrow billions of dollars to fund government operation.

I set the record for the most executions by any governor in American history. I personally witnessed a large number of these executions.

After losing a general election by more than 500,000 votes I organized a highly effective team of brilliant strategists (including the Governor of Florida, a former President, and members of the US Supreme Court) to become President of The United States.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS AS PRESIDENT

I am the first President in U.S. history to enter office with a criminal record.

In my cabinet I have assembled individuals who have demonstrated personal successthat models my own. Their persoonal wealth exceeds that of any previous administration in our nation's history. The poorest of these, the multi-millionaire Dr Condoleesa Rice has an oil tanker named after her.

I set the record for the most campaign fundraising trips of any sitting US President. I hold a record in our nation and in the world for receiving the most (and largest) corporate campaign donations. The largest of these contributors, Ken Lay, contributed funds and services, including use of corporate jets, while presiding over the largest corporate bankrupcy in US history and defending himself against rediculous charges of fraud.

I invaded and occupied two countries at a continuing cost of over one billion dollars per week.

I shattered the record for the largest annual deficit in U.S. history.

I set an economic record for most private bankruptcies filed in any 12-month period as well as the all-time record for most home and business foreclosures in a 12-month period.

I set the all-time record for the biggest drop in the history of the U.S. stock market. In my first year in office, over 2 million Americans lost their jobs and that trend continues every month.

I have protected my friends at Enron and Halliburton against investigation or prosecution. More time and money was spent investigating the Monica Lewinsky affair than has been spent investigating one of the biggest corporate rip-offs in history.

I presided over the biggest energy crisis in U.S. history and refused to intervene when corruption involving the oil industry was revealed. I presided over the highest gasoline prices in U.S. history.

I changed the U.S. policy to allow convicted criminals to be awarded government contracts. I appointed more convicted criminals to administration than any President in U.S. history.

I created the Ministry of Homeland Security, the largest bureaucracy in the history of the United States government.

I've broken more international treaties than any President in U.S. history.

I successfully released the US from the burdons of the UN Human Rights Commission by refusing to abide by their standards and withdrew the US from the World Court of Law. I have stood against laws imposed from outside the US by refucing to follow terms established by the Geneva Convention.

I am the first President in history to refuse United Nations election inspectors (during the 2002 U.S. election).

I set the record for fewest numbers of press conferences of any President since the advent of television.

I set the all-time record for most days on vacation in any one-year period. I ended my first (month-long) vacation in office early in order to preside over the worst security failure in U.S. history.

After September 11, 2001, in less than 1 year, I turned the US around from being an object of world sympathy by refusing to engage in "diplomacy' that would undermine our position of strength in the world.

I have set the all-time record for most people worldwide to simultaneously protest me in public venues (15 million people), shattering the record for protests against any person in the history of mankind.

Against strong opposition from my own citizens, The United Nations, and the world community, I am the first President in U.S. history to order an unprovoked, pre-emptive attack and the military occupation of a sovereign nation.

I have successfully reduced the burden of health care benefits for war veterans and support a cut in duty benefits for active duty troops and their families-in-wartime.

I am highly successful at providing necessary false information to further my agenda. In my State of the Union Address, I lied about our reasons for attacking Iraq and then blamed the lies on our British friends.

I am the first President in history to have a majority of Europeans (71%) view my presidency as the biggest threat to world peace and security.

I support development of a nuclear "Tactical Bunker Buster," a WMD.

I have so far failed to fulfill my pledge to bring Osama Bin Laden to justice.

RECORDS AND REFERENCES

Kenneth Lay, Former CEO of ENRON (deceased)

George Bush, Former President

Jeb Bush, Governor of Florida

Tom Delay, US Representative for the State of Texas

All records of my tenure as governor of Texas are now in my father's library, sealed and unavailable for public view. All records of SEC investigations to my insider trading and my bankrupt companies are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view. All records or minutes from meetings that I, or my Vice-President, attended regarding public energy policy are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public review. >> >> I am a member of the Republican Party. >> >>

These facts are all verifiable and worthy of your consideration in the mid-term elections.

I paid $2.39 per gallon today in Bloomington, MN

I have been lulled into the sense that this was somehow good for me. This time last year- even after Katrina, I was paying less.

Katie Couric interviews GW Bush

in the middle of a prime-time special that reminds us how terrible the world is and how wonderfully strong and adept this President is KC gets to ask the 'tough questions.'

Too bad she did not actually get him to answer the questions, nor did she really even try.

Stick to interviewing Tom Cruise, Katie.

I was hoping CBS would offer some sense of balance in this emotionally driven 'report'. I think Walter Cronkite would cry.

$2.43 in Bloomington, MN

This is happening faster than I thought.

Circumstances in my life bring me back today to an old post from March of 2005. It is helpful for me, in times of discernment, to remind myself of what this is all about.

Sunday Morning, 9 AM

In order for the reader to fully appreciate the frustration I am feeling right now you need to have a better idea of where I am staying while in Sydney.

My hotel is in an area called Kings Cross. It is the red light district for Sydney and has been, so I am told, since the second world war. Mostly live-and let-live stuff, pretty seedy, but nothing that would make the average Joe feel unsafe (truth be told, there are streets within blocks of where I live where I wouldn't go at night but I get no feeling like that around here).

I have discovered that, if one is walking, the easiest and often most direct way to get to where you are going is to walk down Darlinghurst Rd from KC to Oxford Avenue (the predominantly gay area).

At the corner of Darlinghurst and Oxford is an old Catholic Church. A rather simple structure and pleasant but not well maintained. It is exactly what you would expect to find in the heart of the city including seemingly inviting steps that lead from the front door right down to the sidewalk and street.

During the day you will find, again as one might expect, skateboarding males who range in age from about 13 to 24. At night you will find some of these same young males trying to sell themselves in order to pay for shelter and food.

Walking back from the concert last night I heard many of these calling out- "Need some company mate. Take me home, mate. Worth your while, mate" or "let me take care of you mate" or "do anything for ya, mate?" In many ways it was all the same, and altogether too sad.

Being an observer of the human condition, I watched this parade go on for a bit last night.
I considered how it is that these, roughly the same age as Chris and Brad from before, could have ended up resorting to such behavior. If I had more time- this would be a story worth pursuing, I think.

By contrast, the Cathedral of St. Mary, a bit further from my hotel, is the jewel of the city. Very attractive on all sides and picturesque inside. There is a book and gift store inside that is open at all hours and I understand it is quite difficult to book weddings there (I thought it odd that the curator of the gift store would see fit to share that piece of trivia).

Based on my experiences of both of these places I was more interested in seeing how Jesus resides in the less flashy part of town.

As I entered St James I was greeted by large black partitions (think of office cubicle walls). They were covered with large bold set printing which I determined to be copies of a letter the Parish Council had forwarded to their bishop. It appears there is some dispute about the use of the campus of a dying inner-city parish for development of a local Catholic University.

I might have been more interested as the woman greeter proceded to give me the details but it quickly started to sound like the whininess that can be all to prevalent in church people.

There was no talk of what they could be doing with the space, simply that they did not want the college with all "those kids" and the parking concerns. She was really upset that the worship space would be reduced to about half the space that existed now.

Just perhaps, the bishop who they were trying to rally against had visited them on a Sunday and observed what I did. And just maybe, having observed, decided that Jesus had moved on (or at least was on vacation).

The church itself seats about 400 people. Pews on either side seat ten people and they extend back 20 rows. Half-way back there is a cross aisle for traffic from the side doors. It is in this area where the music ministers stood.

At the back of the church ( the area inside the front door) there was a statue of the Blessed Mother with votive candles surrounding at her feet. Most Catholics know that these prayer candles are there to light for your particular needs. They become a visible reminder to others that there exist people in the world who need our prayers and those faithful in turn can offer prayers on your behalf, even with no awareness of what your particular need is. There is almost always a cash box for freewill donations to offset the cost of the candles.

I sat in front of the cross aisle on the right hand side. This happened to be in front also of the overly ampliphied music leaders.I must confess that as the Mass was about to begin I wondered if there would be music at all since the music ministers were nowhere to be found.

At about 9 AM a nun dressed in white with a brown veil, possibly a benedictine (the order of hospitality) which makes the rest of this story more ironic.

There were 46 of us present for the Mass. We were spread throughout the large church (about 1/10 of the capacity). The nun, after lighting the candles on the altar (six of them, purple in color) moved to the music area and introduced our opening song (Hosea):

"Come back to me

with all youir heart.

Don't let fear,

keep us apart...

The amplification of the thrill canary-esque voices of this nun and the guitar accompanist was deafening (this from a guy who was in third row at a Neil Diamond concert the night before).

The presider, probably a decent enough sort, processed in from the side of the sanctuary. He gave a few opening comments about next Sunday being "Palm" or "Passion Sunday" and proceeded with the opening prayers of Mass.

As father moved forward to read the gospel I noticed a young man entering the side of the church to my left quietly so as not to draw attention to himself. He was carrying a skateboard and looked pretty rugged.

He genuflected and worked his way to the back of the church to the statue of Mary and the candles.

At the same time, the nun who was leading music moved from her spot and walked toward the back of the church as well. Anyone who has had the privilege of Catholic education can imagine vividly the demeanor she took on during this time. Sister Mary Nazi was on the prowl.

It is important to note that the Gospel Reading taking place at this time was the story of the raising of Lazerus.

This particular story, in the context of Lent and in preparation for the remembrance of the passion next weekend has two of the most profound statements of faith that exist in the whole of the Gospel. There is Thomas the Apostle's "let us also go to die with him." and Martha's "Lord I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Holy One of God."

So as the 40- some of us are having the Gospel opened for us the nun found her way to the young man, who after lighting his candles took a spot in one of the back pews kneeling in prayer. She said something to him that was audible (halfway across the church) but not understandable to my ear.

He tried to slide down the pew from her and continue his prayer. I had since changed my posture because I wanted to observe this spectacle better.

She followed after him now and was asking him to empty his pockets and in the background at this exact moment I could hear the priest recalling the words of Jesus to Martha "your brother shall rise again".

He took two of the votives out of his pocket and started to cry as she called him a thief and told him that people pay for those candles that he used and tried now to steal. She pointed to the front door and he left. His sobs were so strong that his chest was heaving.

The rugged hard shell that exists when one is forced into selling their own body was gone.

This woman used the capacity that God gives us all to reach within another human being and instead of showing him the face of Christ, or better still letting the face of Christ come forth from him, shamed him and made him feel like a defenseless weeping little boy.

"The Gospel of The Lord" could be heard in its overampliphied tones along with the response "thanks be to God".

I decided that the mood for worship was gone for me and departed from the church. I am not sure if I will be able to find another opportunity this Sunday but couldn't stay after having witnessed this debacle.

As I went out the front steps of the church I noticed that this young man was the same one that had called out the night before, "Need some company, mate. Take me home, mate. Worth your while, mate."

He was crying on the front steps of the same church where he had been the night before. When I asked if he was okay, between his sobs, he offered this sponteneous confession of sorts.

"I got nothing, mate. I am worthless and homeless.

I wanted to pray. I needed to go to church.

I stole candles to try to get some food.

I've been selling my bum trying to get some money for food and a roof.

I got no where to go."

I gave him the $10 intended for the collection basket.

While I have no doubt this boy will be out on the streets again tonight I still felt it was better used then it would have been by this particular church. I also have no doubt that the nun who seemed a bit too satisfied with herself will be telling a whole different account of this story.

Would this parish in one of the seediest parts of town be struggling for its life if the people represented by the woman who greeted me, the nun and the over ampliphied self-important musician actually put into practice the messages of the lenten gospels?

I am not surprised that places like the Cathedral of St Mary exist. In fact, you can pretty much count on it in every city in the world, whatever the religion. But when the church of our Lord exists in an area where his love is clearly needed we all-to-often blunder at letting him work in us.

Whatever your faith, look for the opportunity to offer God's love to others. Even if they don't see it in themselves, each and every one is worthy of God's goodness- reach out and say to the most desperate ones you can find - rise, see, believe, live.

Good News All Around (click)

Note especially that Hatch is pulling ahead of his incumbent opponent "Hack"!!!

Republican Candidates Run from President and His (their)Record

So Mark Kennedy is not alone on this one. This is the part of the article related to the local two-faced, lying, say-anything to get elected candidate:

In Minnesota, where an open Senate seat is at stake, Republican Rep. Mark Kennedy has an ad titled, “Crossing Party Lines,” in which he says: “I’m a Republican. On issues like taxes and spending, I vote like it. But on other issues, I cross party lines.” In 2002, in his run for the House, a Kennedy ad showed him walking and shaking hands with Bush at the White House. Today, he lists the issues on which he has split from the president.

Click the above link for whole story.

Is Anybody nervous about GW Bush saying this (click)?

“... My message to the world is this: just treat us as we treat you,” Bush said. “I believe we can compete with anybody, anytime, as long as the rules are fair.”

All this a part of a larger speach where the president reminds us again that we are "addicted to oil."

Duh!!! The pusher tells us we need to break our 'habit' even as the suppliers are lowering there price to keep us hooked. Haven't we heard this before?

Good thing Mark Kennedy, The Prez and their ilk want to lift the tax burden on the oil companies in return for their efforts to keep us addicted and get rich in the process.

63 days to election. We can cut this guy off at the knees for his final 2 years in office if we pay attention and stay focussed.

$2.49 at BP in Saint Paul, across from State Fair Grounds