Tag Archives: BP

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TGIF …&some News …


It is my contention and belief that any and all negative numbers regarding jobs, a double dip recession, or legislation that is unaddressed, voted on or finished is on the backs of Republicans and remain that way from now on. Republicans have done nothing to help create jobs nor do they have solutions, which, would be easy … vote Yes to move America into the black and stop making the failure of this President your goal instead of doing the business of the People.

It is the end of the week with a lot of craziness going on everywhere in the world and it all seems to affect the up coming elections. If you listened to the reports today, Congress left Capitol Hill without finishing the business of Americans. I want to believe that a break will help some folks on the right hear from their constituents on the Gulf Coast because they are more needy then the rest of the country. The people on the Gulf Coast suffer from the BP disaster and now a rejection from their very own representatives who essentially voted against small business, the workers, the fishing industry, boaters, hotels, restaurants and all the employees associated with the industries listed above.

To be sure and fair; this is an election year so getting election campaigns started probably is more important than getting legislation passed, but the blame is with Republicans and we all need to remember that. The effort to get the peoples work done  has been harder in Senate then the House, specifically, unemployment, financial reform immigration, climate, and clean energy are all subject to the 60-vote rule and the right has block, stalled and tricked the Democrats in the Senate thus far. Republicans have decided to bet against the failure of our economy over the needs of people in their own States, which is such a strange thing. The last vote rejecting a Jobs bill that included unemployment benefits happened without the late Senator Bob Byrd, so as our government honors him today his replacement plus one more Republican could make the difference in giving folks a chance to continue paying at least some of their bills and look for work without stress.

Some of us on the left feel we know what side of every issue Republicans are on but we need to remind them and ourselves that what happened to our economy was and still is a non-partisan issue. It was a sad to know that people voted into political office continue to be on the side of Wall Street and not with Main Street; a great example being Republican Senator Sessions and others like Sharron Angle stating that Americans are spoiled, that Americans are too use to getting entitlements and be more self sufficient.   The problem is that for every one job there are 6 people applying for them so the question for Republicans is how can we recover without more jobs? Ms Angle, there are not enough jobs to go around.

I already know that as hard as cable-heads work to have  or want me to hear and or watch Polls that are negative for the Democratic Party it will be what they actually have done to make change happen however slow it may be because the financial crisis didn’t just happen overnight as the house of Bush wanted people to think, it was a car on the interstate driving without brakes and no one to steer it clear of anything in it’s path…that being derivatives, AIG, Goldman Sachs, Wall Street in general, home foreclosures because big Banks were closing their ranks.  The financial crash and the information about the crash did not get to the public until the last moment and that was right before we all had to vote for President in 2008. The choice was a no-brainer when you think of who was on the other ticket… completely unqualified and out of touch.

The biggest news today is what team will Lebron James choose and why it will affect the rest of our economy. It seems like every cable station has had on the various Mayors or Governors praying hoping and stumping for James to come to their state.  There is no doubt everyone wants a piece of King James and he has kept his choice very very quiet up until this point. It is obvious Lebron James has great PR people, with reports that he is not just interested in playing BB but wants to make a difference in the community as well is a plus for any basketball team looking to pay him what he wants. It is obvious whoever gets him will have a bona-fide BB King, a goodwill ambassador and serious community advocate/activist as well. You would have to be living under a rock if you did not at least hear how folks in Vegas betting on this free agent and hopefully it will be an organization that can use his talents and be willing to let him do his thing… get it done King James.

Other News …

**The President signed a bill creating even more sanctions for Iran

**California Gov.Schwarnegger has given orders for State worker salaries to be slashed to 7.25 per hr -to minimum wages

**Reports are that the employment rate is 9.5% and -the census jobs the Private Sector gained 83,thousand, which considering the thing no one is talking about …that number is not good but it is a plus not 800thousand lost jobs -the reality is Private Sector is holding back, under-employing and trading or investing not hiring

**


C-SPAN …

June Unemployment Falls to 9.5% Employers cut 125,000 jobs

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported this morning that the unemployment rate for June moved down to 9.5% with 125,000 jobs lost during the month. This includes the expected reduction of 225,000 temporary census workers. Private sector jobs increased by 83,000.  In remarks this morning, Pres. Obama spoke about the employment numbers and noted that this was the 6th straight month of job growth in the private sector and that 600,000 private sector jobs have been added this year versus a loss of 3.7 million jobs last year.   BLS Commissioner Keith Hall testified earlier today on the latest numbers and recent developments in the labor market before the Joint Economic Committee. Commissioner Hall elaborated that BLS noticed job growth trends in manufacturing and a continued strong employment market in health care related services.

Hearing on Supreme Court Nominee Concludes

Outside witness testimony concluded Thursday following the U.S. Senate’s adjournment in recognition of Senator Robert Byrd on Capitol Hill. Thursday’s witness panels included those both in favor of and opposed to Kagan’s nomination.  Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan finished her last day of hearings on Wednesday. During the two days of questioning, Ms. Kagan was challenged over her treatment of military recruiters while dean of Harvard Law School, and asked to share her perspective on gun rights. When questioned on the subject of partial-birth abortion, Kagan described it as “an incredibly difficult issue.” The Committee hopes to approve her nomination and hold a floor vote in late July. If confirmed, she would replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens and become the fourth woman in the Supreme Court’s history.
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Congress is on Break …stay tuned


The Senate will convene at 2:00 p.m. on Monday, July 12.

Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will proceed to a period of morning business with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each. Senators should expect a roll call vote at approximately 5:30 p.m. on confirmation of a judge.

———————————————————————————

The next meeting is scheduled for 2:00pmET Tuesday July 13, 2010

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Mormon Church and Prop 8: The shocking truth


A shocking new film. A call to action.

Once in a while, you walk out of a movie theater knowing you’ll never be the same.

You’ve probably heard about the Mormon Church’s involvement in California’s 2008 marriage ban. But I think you’ll still be shocked watching the new documentary
8: The Mormon Proposition.

The film uses former church members and leaked documents to make a case for exactly how the Mormon Church evaded the law and orchestrated Prop. 8. It’s a movie you absolutely must see.

And this week ONLY – to bring more resources to the fight for equality – the film’s distributors are offering a DVD of the film as a thank-you gift for any donation to HRC of $75 or more.

No matter how much you give today, you’ll receive a membership to HRC, including one year of our magazine Equality, and 100 percent of your gift will go to supporting HRC’s work to promote equal rights across the country. Any amount will help, but I hope you don’t miss this chance to see the film.

The film notes that while just two percent of Californians are Mormon, 71 percent of the money behind Prop. 8 came from Mormons. What happened? This clip shows how church leaders told members how much to donate, based on their income records – and threatened them if they didn’t give:

In the film, secret documents from a Mormon whistleblower show how the Mormon Church helped create a front group before Prop. 8 (the National Organization for Marriage) and stayed out of the spotlight in California. They show how the Church concealed its involvement in Prop. 8 so egregiously that last month it was still drawing fines for campaign finance violations. Get your copy now »

Those documents also detail an anti-marriage campaign in Hawaii a decade earlier – a blueprint for Prop. 8. There, Church leaders funneled money to a coalition that masked their activities. They hid their faces, opened their wallets, and honed their strategy.

Every single day the Human Rights Campaign is out there with people like you, going up against NOM, the Mormon Church, and other groups with vast resources and hateful agendas. But we’re also building up – making millions of people’s lives better, from hospitals to workplaces, from schools to houses of worship. It’s what we do.

And it’s on behalf of those millions of people, and their simple desire to be treated equally, that we have a message for the Mormon Church: your lies, your half-truths and your bigotry will be exposed.

Thanks for supporting this fight.

Sincerely,

Joe Solmonese
Joe Solmonese
President

P.S. Bruce Bastian, an HRC board member who was raised Mormon and helped work on this film, had this to say: “Although the Mormon Church may be small in numbers where you live, their influence is being felt in very big ways all over this country. I believe every LGBT American should see this film to better understand the war we are in and at least one of our main enemies.” Get your copy now »

Join Now

This link is specific to you, so please make your own gift before you forward to your friends. Having trouble clicking on the links above? Simply copy and paste this URL into your browser’s address bar to reach the donation form:
https://secure3.convio.net/hrc/site/Donation2?df_id=5282&5282.donation=form1

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

On to the Senate


Organizing for America

Last night, just before 7 p.m. Eastern Time, the House passed Wall Street reform by a vote of 237 to 192. This is a huge victory for our movement — and all American consumers.

Now, there’s just one hurdle left before this historic bill can be signed into law. It must be passed by the Senate — a vote likely to come right after the July 4th congressional recess.

Protecting consumers and holding the big banks accountable is a key piece of the change that all of us fought for in 2008. It’s up to us to bring it across the finish line — making sure every champion in the Senate knows that we’re standing with them, and that those in opposition know that Americans are demanding reform.

Can you take a moment now to write to your senators?

http://my.barackobama.com/WSRSenateVote

Thanks for making it possible,

Mitch

Mitch Stewart
Director
Organizing for America

P.S. — A lot of OFA supporters have been passing around this clip from Rachel Maddow’s show about the incredible changes made during the Obama administration. Take a look:

http://my.barackobama.com/MaddowClip

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Stuck on Stupid: Big Oil Says NO To Green Jobs


Brave New Foundation
Donate

Click here to watch the video

Big oil companies haven’t only destroyed our environment but they are putting Americans out of a job. They work very hard in coming up with new lies and propaganda, trying to convince you that the health of our nation’s economy depends on their well-being. You and I know they are dead WRONG!

We’ve already seen a wave of job losses due to BP’s disaster in the gulf – communities wiped out economically because of their criminal irresponsibility. What they try to hide from us is their obsessive obstruction to a clean energy economy.

Our future lies with the creation of green jobs that will provide for a more sustainable and innovative economy.

Sign this petition to tell Congress that you want them to act on green energy solutions, and that you’ll be in their offices, at their townhalls and on their phones this summer to check on their progress!

It is up to you to spread this message with your friends and family and act today to fight back against all the lies and the propaganda peddled by the oil companies.

Sincerely,
Robert Greenwald
and the Brave New Foundation team

P.S. Please contribute so we can complete our next videos and keep the momentum going toward achieving cleaner, more independent and progressive America.