Just Because They Say It Doesn’t Make It So

Anyone who has had a family member in recovery will recognize this phrase, and as I watched the media's manipulation of last week's presidential primaries, I couldn't help but think it aptly applied in that case as well.

Have we become a nation of co-dependents who believe everything we hear without questioning the agenda or the pathological state of the pundit who's uttering it? It may be that we are so beat up by nearly eight years of completely unsubstantiated statements out of the White House,  "Mission Accomplished", WMD's, etc., that we are unable to decipher fact from fiction.

Ever since KPBS gave me the opportunity to become a Citizens Voices blogger, I've felt the responsibility to investigate the source of everything I read, or hear on TV, whether it's on John Stewart  or CNN or Fox. That often means researching the writer, and then the writer's affiliations, and finally, who's behind those affiliations. I can get lost in Googleland, just trying to track down the back-stories.

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Snobs-R-Us

Have you heard the story about the Prius-driving, latté-sipping Democrat?

It goes something like this: an elitist, upper-middle class, pseudo-intellectual snob goes into a group of his or her peers and begins spouting advice on how to fix their inbred, uninformed, and sad little lives. Not funny? No, it really isn't too funny. But for many non-Democrats (such as, Libertarians, Republicans, neo-cons, the apathetic masses, the creators of South Park, etc...) this is the vision of a liberal.

So, is there any truth to the stereotype? Does John Edwards' $400 haircut amidst New Orleans' ravaged Lower Ninth Ward signal what's wrong with liberalism? Or does the unseemly image of a bleeding heart Democrat preaching to the poor masses fog up the lens of perception?

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God Bless America?

Did you know today is the 57th Annual National Day of Prayer? Oh, stop rolling your eyes. Our country desperately needs all of the prayers it can get right now. The National Day of Prayer is an annual observance held on the first Thursday of May, inviting people of all faiths to pray for the nation. What? Are those crazy Christian fanatics at it again? No, this annual look to the heavens was actually created in 1952 by a joint resolution of the United States Congress (PDF), and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman.

"What about separation of church and state?" you worry (or in the case of Florida, the separation of church and plate). Where in the Constitution does it say as a nation we can't pray for divine guidance? Since the first call to prayer in 1775, when the Continental Congress asked the colonies to pray for wisdom in forming a nation, the call to prayer has continued through our history. Benjamin Franklin observed "the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth, that God governs in the affairs of men... and if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?"

I would submit that a nation can certainly fall without it. Some would say that America is on a precipice right now, very much in need of inspired aid.

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Defining Winning

As I write this I don't yet know who won the Democratic Party's primary in Pennsylvania.  Part of that is because the voting is still going on, part of that is because 'winning' seems to be very loosely defined, and part of it is because these primaries have dragged on too long.

Now that basic mathematics has ruled out conventional definitions of winning, winning is being redefined.  According to some, winning is no longer simply receiving the most votes cast.

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Citizen Voices Bloggers on These Days

Chris McConnell, Chuck Hartley and Candace Suerstedt were interviewed on These Days this morning. They spoke about the presidential race, the slowing economy and border issues.

The Iraq War

To start with, props to the WWE for offering to settle the fight between Obama and Clinton. I would personally love to see these two wrestle for the nomination, and it'd save a lot of time. But, my money is that "Stone Cold" Steve Austin would 'stunner' them both to take the nomination.

In other news, I was pleasantly shocked by Bush announcing support for troop withdrawal in Iraq. This is very welcome news to me, not just as a Libertarian, but also as someone against the war in Iraq.

Since it began, I swore up and down we had no business being in Iraq. In my opinion, we were lied to in order to get troops over there to finish up our President's Father's work. And even Bush Sr. was against the war.

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Presidential Debates, Godwin’s Law, and Bloggers Blamed

In Libertarian news, the 2008 Libertarian Party Presidential Debate will be broadcast live from Heartland Libertarian Convention in Kansas City on Saturday, April 5. You can hear it on KCXL or Blog Talk Radio.

The debate will feature George Phillies; Wayne Allyn Root; Christine Smith; Michael Jingozian; Dr. Mary J. Ruwart; and Mike Gravel. It will start at 10:00 a.m. Central Standard Time, so it will be at 8 a.m. Saturday morning Pacific Standard Time (For those of us on the West Coast!).

Also, a 30-minute recap of the debate is scheduled! I urge all those interested or curious about third-party politics to listen in for my party's candidates.

In other news, it seems the Right Wing's spokeswoman, the 'beloved' Ann Coulter, made headlines this week when she compared Obama's autobiography, "Dreams From My Father", to "Mein Kampf".

She does make some interesting points, but this is, by far, not the first time a candidate has been Godwin-ed in the news. Does this mean we can stop paying attention to Ann Coulter now, as she'll have noting more of value to say? Lord, I really hope so.

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Loyalty

There are few modern political heroes, but one of mine has definitely been James Carville.

The “Ragin’ Cajun” is the star of the documentary “The War Room” and, although not quite single handedly, he still masterminded former President Bill Clinton’s first campaign for the position of “most powerful man in the world.”  If you haven’t checked out this movie, and don’t mind seeing a Democrat win the presidency, please check it out.

James Carville is whip smart, articulate, and tough as nails. Over the years he’s appeared as the lone liberal on countless Sunday morning political talk shows (not counting any station bias, for those believing in a liberal media) and he filleted right wing punditry better than a master sushi chef on display.

I have held Carville in such high regards for so many years that I even pleaded with him in a letter before the 2004 election to run for president. This is a man who is so cool he appeared in JFK Jr.’s politically inspired magazine, George, where I remember Carville saying if he were elected president, every Tuesday would be red-beans-and-rice day.

Although the menu pleased me, it wouldn’t have been the sole reason he would’ve received my vote. I even love that he married Republican consultant Mary Matalin because it just shows how secure he is in his beliefs.

Alas, after so many years on a pedestal, Mr. Carville has at last finally let me down.

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Confused? Not My Fault

Interesting to see in the news Tuesday that the Secretary of State is investigating complaints that some voters are making regarding party affiliations. According to the Associated Press report, some voters have complained that their party affiliations were changed when they filed address changes with the DMV.

Having worked at a poll during California's February primary, I can say there was certainly more confusion over party registration than I expected to see.

Not just independents concerned about being unable to vote in the Republican Party's closed primary, but self-professed independents finding themselves registered with the American Independent Party and vice versa. There were probably some confused Democrats, or wannabe Democrats, as well, but they didn't make as much of an impact on me as the others did.

Given that voter confusion in Florida arguably determined the outcome of the 2000 presidential election, I guess it's only natural that election officials are going to have a heightened sensitivity to it during this election cycle. But from where I was sitting, it seemed like a certain percentage of the electorate was going to be confused no matter what precautions were taken.

-Citizen Voices blogger Chuck Hartley is an attorney who lives in Escondido.

Time for War on the War on Terror

"I am a wartime President." - George W. Bush to Tim Russert before the 2004 Presidential contest.

Four years later and he's still very much a wartime president – it is in fact the most honest thing that can be said about his presidency. The next man or woman who swears the oath of office will inherit W.'s legacy and with it his mantel of Wartime President – none will relish and revel in it the way W. has and does.

Former presidents Abraham Lincoln (suspension of habeas corpus) and Harry S. Truman (seizing privately held steel mills) legitimized extraordinary executive acts as necessitated by wartime emergencies – both caught flak for it and both were rebuked by the courts. Bush has used the undeclared war in Iraq and more nefariously the War on Terror to pull off the most audacious and cynical power grab in the history of the American Presidency.

I don't think it is hyperbole to say that he has managed to blast a lasting crack in what seemed the most solid of American values –  the Constitutional system of checks and balances.

We have been taught and told that the War on Terror knows no single front and must be fought on all fronts at all times. The greatest weapon against terrorism, according to this President, is secrecy. Secret prisons, secret courts, secret wiretaps, secret renditions, secret violations of privacy and civil liberties.

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