Mock GOP Cyber Debate

As we enter the 2012 election year, we can already see things heating up on the political front. What does that mean fothe rest of us? Lots of great humor will be coming out over the next year that will have us LOLing and ROFLing. In the tradition of election year politcal humor, Funny or Die along with Yahoo have put together a Mock Cyber debate among the Republican contenders. All the candidates are played by some well named comedians or former boxer turned reality star.

I'll be the first to admit that this humor is heavy handed and a bit childish but it is also quite funny. This is a long-ish video but don't start watching then quit once you get the gist. The jokes get better as the "debate" progresses. Plus, if you stop watching you'll miss the cherry on top ending - Obama's response.

I'm somewhat political by nature, in that I take politics fairly seriously. However, it is just as important to laugh every once in a while as it is to take the actual politics seriously. Enjoy, and let me know what you think in the comments.

Push Your Cause: Universal Healthcare

I have a friend at work who is a Libertarian and doesn't really like the idea of Universal Healthcare. He has a well-earned mistrust of government programs. I on the other hand believe in it whole heartedly because the system as it stands now has already shown its failings. In the coming year, with thousands losing their jobs, the numbers of people without health insurance will skyrocket and the health of our nation will suffer. When people are frightened for their own health many horrors will become apparent. People will die for one reason only, they have no way to pay for their medical care. Hospitals will close because there isn't enough money to support the hospital in smaller communities. People will have to travel even further for medical care, raising the cost of their care. More people will die because they can't make it too these distant hospitals fast enough. These events aren't made up, they are happening now. Many hospitals are bleeding money and are already cutting many different types of services to try and stay afloat. The numbers of people being laid off are astounding and without a job there is no way they can afford the joke that is Cobra. With thousands of others in the same market with the same skills looking for jobs it may be difficult to find one that allows them to do more than slow their descent into the poor house. So if you into Universal Healthcare, do your part and push H.R. 676 with your Representatives ( and Senators ). ...

Inform yourself and others by reading:
H.R. 676
and these three articles:

• Rose Ann DeMoro, Philadelphia Inquirer, December 8, 2008
• Physicians for a National Health Program, Talking Points, December 10, 2008
• Statement of Dr. Marcia Angell introducing the U.S. National Health Insurance Act

and by watching these excellent videos on H.R. 676. Pass them along in emails, on blogs, facebook and myspace pages. If you create videos on youtube, do one on national health care yourself:

• HR 676 - The Single Payer Solution, Part 1 of 4
• HR 676 - The Single Payer Solution, Part 2 of 4
• HR 676 - The Single Payer Solution, Part 3 of 4
• HR 676 - The Single Payer Solution, Part 4 of 4

Write a letter -- not an email -- in your own words to your member of Congress stating that you'd like their commitment to vote for H.R. 676. If your member of Congress is a co-sponsor of the bill, express your support for that stand.
President-elect Obama has asked for volunteers around the country to host discussion groups on the health care issue during the last half of December. Attend a discussion in your area and make the argument for single payer. Click here for more information.

For more information keep watching November5.org.

Participation in Politics

Well, congratulations to the USA. There was a larger participation in this election than any election in memorable history. My hope, is that people continue their involvement in their government. I myself was jaded until I got inspired by the grassroots campaign of Howard Dean in 2004. If you were too jaded to vote before this election, use your excitement as a springboard to having your voice continuously heard. Educate yourself on the issues that are most important to you, one great tool is opencongress.org. For those that voted for Barack Obama's hope, make sure that hope isn't crushed by corporate lobbyists and others who find that hope isn't in their best interest. For those that voted for any other candidate make your voices heard as well. There are elections again in 2010 that will decide who will sit in many congressional seats. Make sure your values are fought for by your congressmen and women. If they aren't, remind them that you can always find someone else who will fight for your values. Maybe you'll even run yourself!

It's November 5th, it is time to really take back our country. A good place to start may be November5.org.

Voting with Glassbooth

As you may have read in my previous post, I voted Saturday. In passing I mentioned that my mind had been changed on my choice for President. The main thing that made me change my mind was glassbooth.org. It is worth taking a look at regardless of your situation.

For instance if...
...you've already selected your candidate and you are not changing your mind:
Check out what some of the issues are and how your candidate stacks up to them. Regardless of who gets elected it is up to you make your values take shape in your government.

...you're on the fence about who to vote for:
Check out where you stand and see which candidates stand closest to you, then vote for that candidate.

...you just want to learn about more of the actual issues:
The site is set up so that each question has links to information about the issues so you can make up your own mind.

...you live in Wisconsin and you want information about the Senate and House races:
The site defaults to the US Presidential election but there is also information on Senate and House races in Wisconsin and a section about New Zealand. I'd love something like this for all my local elections.

For me I first used the site the traditional way. I used my 20 points to pick the issues that were most important to me then rated my stances on those issues and their sub-issues. After my initial results I wanted to make sure it would remain consistant for all categories, since the results were different than expected. I went through and put 20 points in each category. My results were consistant in almost every one. Glassbooth.org didn't change my vote, but it gave me the information to change my vote when I voted.

I voted, thank goodness its over.

Well I finally voted today and thank goodness I can quit thinking about it. My wife did most of the research this time around, I guess 2010 will be my turn. Actually, I hope to start the research process much earlier next time. Heck, maybe there will even be something worth running for! The great thing is that this time I went beyond just who I was voting for and begin to pick who I was voting into a certain position. That is why for some positions I felt a libertarian was a better choice or a republican or a democrat. Unfortunately I only had one place to vote for a Green party candidate on my ballot but hopefully the state party will begin the work right after the election to gain ballot access in the next election(s). ...

I'm glad it is over, for me at least. All that is left to do is wait for the results. Sure, perhaps I can change a few minds before they walk into the voting booth but at this point I don't find it too likely. Of course I did change my choice for president this morning so who knows.

One thing I grasped from the experience that I found important was the need to not vote along party lines. Voting in this country was not meant to be 'us versus them', it was created to be 'who/what do I think is best for my country/state/county/city'. With that in mind certain personal values, while important for some positions, may not even matter in other postions or it could be a bad thing. That is one reason why voting multiple parties makes sense to me. Another reason is checks and balances. Different values come together at some point, so only the most important issues will pass with ease. This keeps us from spending too much or creating too many laws just because the power is there. Finally, the best reason to vote multi party is that you get to vote for an individual. While the parties do hold quite a sway over many politicians, on the local level it doesn't seem as bad. Individuals really are just that and many( if not most ) have great dedication to their communities that can make the best candidate be someone outside of your 'chosen' party.

What do you think?

Synchronized debates

We all could have stopped watching after the first one. We probably could have not watched any.

Get the latest news satire and funny videos at 236.com.

Ralph Nader on News Hour with Jim Lehrer

I am a big fan of public broadcasting. Often the news that we can get from PBS ( often supplied by the BBC* ) shares many stores you just won't get from the mainstream media. Unfortunately NPR and PBS haven't covered the alternative candidates very much. Somewhat understandable, but unfortunate given what public broadcasting should be about. But the alternatives have been covered, including Ralph Nader. ...

Recently Ralph Nader was on News Hour with Jim Lehrer. The interview was extremely professional. Ralph Nader, instead of being told he can't win ( which is not true, he is a longshot ) was asked what he would do as president about the economy, Afghanistan and Iraq.

_{*Why does the BBC provide more news and less story than our mainstream media?}

What's Your Breaking Point

With election day just a week away I thought I would ask, "What's your breaking point?" Everywhere I look, even my beloved NPR, there are only two sides to this election. While listening to NPR yesterday they had 2 people who were pro Obama and two people who were pro McCain on. Its as if there isn't anyone else to vote for. ...

The truth is, there are other people to vote for. People, by nature, don't like to rock the boat (too much) and so voting outside of the 2 main stream candidates doesn't even occur to most people. While there are some good reasons to respect both Barack Obama and John McCain, I have a feeling many people are looking at their mainstream candidates through rose colored glasses.

The economy is big. What is your candidates stand? The Iraq war is big. What plans does your candidate have? Are they inline with your ideals? There are other big issues, health care, domestic spying, drilling for oil, nuclear power, privatization, gas prices and standing behind personal principles. You may be suprised by what you see from your candidate if you actually look.

With that in mind there is a website called What's Your Breaking Point that checks your candidate versus your uncompromisable values. Check it out and see if they match. Even if you have already voted, its fairly educational.

After you are done here are some other candidates to look at:
Cynthia McKinney - Green Party
Ralph Nader - Independent ( with some help )
Chuck Baldwin - Constitution Party
Bob Barr - Libertarian Party

You also might want to check out who you really match up with at glass booth.
^{The previous picture used from lifehacker without permission and does not represent my results.}

Penn Says: You can't vote against someone

Maybe I'm in a magic mood lately. It seems I keep posting videos of magicians. Well magicians or political videos. So today I thought I would post a political rant by one of the bad boys of magic, Penn Jillette. As is usual with Penn, it is a rant but behind his abrasiveness he does make some very good points. His main point? You can't go into the voting booth and vote against someone. You can only vote for someone. ...

By the way, there is no magic in this video :)

The next debate

While some people may be focusing on the major party debate tonight, I think I've had enough. I'll still watch tonights debate, at some point, but after the second presidential debate I have a feeling it will be more of the same. Pre-planned stump speeches that I have heard time and again.

Since I'm a fan of alternative parties, I am happy to say that there will be a debate this Sunday between 3 of the 4 candidates who also have their names on enough ballots to have a chance at the White House. Independent candidate Ralph Nader, Green Party candidate Cynthia McKinney and the Constitution Party's Chuck Baldwin will all be on stage at Columbia University in New York. The Libertarian Party candidate, Bob Barr has a scheduling conflict but debate organizers said he only wants to debate Ralph Nader.

According to Third Party Ticket the debate will be broadcast online via Break The Matrix and possibly other internet venues Sunday, October 19th from 7PM to 9PM EST. The Miami Herald article I read said that the moderator will be Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now! and recent winner of the Right Livelihood Award, also known as the alternative Nobel.

I recommend everyone watch these debates, even if you are an Obama-Mama( Dad's too :) ) or a McCainanite. If you haven't heard these candidates talk you will hear fresh perspectives that may inspire you to action. Once we are aware of the alternative, we can all help the major candidates see them as well.