Gimme Indie Rock! -

I listened to it at work last night. The executive department has engaged in an all-out war to increase and consolidate power. The international boundary commission thing really rankled me.
Of course, you've seen the Frontline programs regarding Alberto Gonzalez' attempts to get Ashcroft to re-authorize the warrantless wiretap law, WHILE HE WAS IN THE HOSPITAL!

The great irony is that Bush himself doesn't like confrontations...
In another Frontline program about Iraq and Ambassador Bremer's screw up in de-Ba'athifying iraq, it was made clear that once Bremer was out, bush simply told him in an offhanded manner that he would no longer had his job.
So, Bush "Doesn't like confrontation" yet he uses his bag men to intimidate, threaten and ultimately badger the president's neo-conservative agenda.

you might want to check out
http://desertbeacon.blogspot.com/2008/02/candidates-signing-statements.html

which has the current candidates take on signing statements

I don't think I could listen because that is one of my biggest issues with this presidency and none of the new candidates even address this. There needs to be more serious checks on presidental power. Gah.

I saw Ralph Nader speak Monday at FSU and he had a really good point about how just knowing these injustices doesn't mean a thing unless we act on them. He said that there is an old Chinese proverb that goes, "To know and not act is not to know." It really got to me, because when you look at what people that were my age in the 60s did and then you look at what we do now...it's really disturbing. We are so apathetic, in the sense that, despite maybe complaining, we don't do much beyond that.

There are things you can do if you want to participate in the upcoming election.
At least for the Obama campaign, you can phone bank from home into states that have not held their primaries yet. I have done phone banking in Mass. and door-to-door campaigning for Barack in R.I. If you're not for Obama, I'm sure that the other campaigns have similar ways for you to get involved.

Wow, I second all of this. cook_ting and I just had this big "things are so messed up in this country" talk last night, but like you, I haven't figured out how to actually DO something about it. We just keep half-joking about moving to Canada...

when dukey builds his sheep farm and bomb shelter, I'll let you know. the bomb shelter will also be a wine cellar, so it is sure to be good times even without cable. By that time you may be ready to give up librarian-dom and weave woolen undergarments. If not, we can have a library in the bomb shelter too and you can be in charge of cataloguing and researching our legal rights if, say, Iran takes over the U.S. ...

I was a Government and World Affairs major for a couple of years in college. It was so depressing, that I just couldn't do it. I actually failed a Peace Studies course, because I couldn't write a 30-page paper on a viable peace strategy. (I came to the conclusion that peace wasn't possible.) I've been out of politics for a while now (though I do vote), because I used to get so upset.

After I heard Nader speak, I was just like, "Dude, I am scum." I have so much emotion behind my political beliefs - I should be putting it to use, even if it can be frustrating. There are so many people out there that don't care at all. One of the concepts I really like is conscious consumerism. Oftentimes it is spoken about when discussing environmentalism or child labor (which are important), but also you can choose to support/not support corporations that fund political parties. BuyBlue.org is a great site to check out. They are working on a new website, but they have links to check out in the meantime.

You're the third person on my flist today to tell me to listing to that episode of TAL. :))

Also, your icon is magnificent. :D