Barackface

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Reshma's Is Top Primary Race To Watch In America: BusinessWeek In May

Image of Reshma SaujaniMay 6, 2010: BusinessWeek: Key Primary Races Worth Watching

Reshma Saujani Vs. Carolyn Maloney (New York, House, D)
Alan Mollohan Vs. Mike Oliverio (West Virginia, House, D)
Trey Greyson Vs. Rand Paul (Kentucky, Senate, R)
Blanche Lincoln Vs. Bill Halter (Arkansas, Senate, D)
John McCain Vs. JD Hayworth (Arizona, Senate, R)

Reshma Saujani is the top political news in America this election season. 2010 is to Reshma what 2004 was to Barack Obama. She has not reached that mainstream imagination yet, but consider yourself lucky if you know her already, either in person or in name.

It is amazing she topped this poll in May when the list includes also Senate races including the Senate race of the guy who I think just ran for president not long ago.

This list includes all races for both the House and the Senate and Reshma is top of the list. This is Reshma's year. And if Barack Obama recognizes that fact, he gets to keep the House in November. I say starting from September 15 just completely take over her schedule. Call her up and say, Reshma you are coming with me, you are crisscrossing this country with me. Last I checked I was still leader of the party.

Reshma Saujani Is The Second Stimulus Bill This Country Needs

Image via WikipediaNew York politicians in Congress who have raised gobs of money over the years from Wall Street have not known how to do the nuance thing. They have not known the difference between enacting Wall Street reform, which has been necessary, and refusing to demonize Wall Street. The Wall Street reform bill they have passed is weak, and their demonization of Wall Street has gone too far and has hurt the chances of this country bouncing back to low unemployment levels.

One politician in this country who has been able to do the nuance thing is Reshma Saujani and she has done it when she has not had the power that a Congressperson has. Reshma Saujani winning on September 14 has national implications. That is why the New York congressional delegation needs to do a fundamental rethink. It needs to distance itself from Rangel/Maloney, and it needs to come out in support of Reshma Saujani.

Because it is about jobs. It is about creating jobs. It is about the number one issue that will decide if Democrats or Republicans will take the House in November. The voters across this country are angry enough that they just might make the entire New York congressional delegation go stand in the corner.

Standing by Maloney is outright the dumbest move any New York politician could make right about now. To stand by Maloney is to wish a permanent 10% unemployment rate upon the American people. You will not be forgiven.

Al Hagan, Carolyn Maloney: Did They Apologize Yet?

WASHINGTON - APRIL 03: Committee Chair Rep. C...

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Express India: Indian-American Wins Primary For Congressional Polls: Reshma Saujani is giving a tough fight to veteran fellow Democrat Carolyn Maloney for the primary to be held in September for the Congressional seat from New York's 14th District.

Misery loves company. Carolyn Maloney is incompetent, and so is the firefighters' labor boss Al Hagan. These two individuals' attitude towards the failed 9/11 health bill has been the most perplexing aspect so far for me of the ongoing Reshma-Maloney contest. They have done everything except throw an outright victory party for the failed 9/11 health bill.

The first responders deserve better. The brave firefighters of this great city deserve better.
These two people have failed to get the 9/11 health bill passed year after year after year. They failed in 2001, in 2002, in 2003, in 2004, in 2005, in 2006, in 2007, in 2008, in 2009, and now they have failed again in 2010.

The question I am asking is if you were one of the first responders on September 11, 2001, and you got injured, do your injuries wait for your Congressperson and labor boss to get their act together and get a health bill passed in Congress? As in, do the blood cells take some time off? Does the decay go into freeze mode? Do the body processes patiently wait? I am guessing not. And if they wait, do they wait a full decade?

This whole Maloney-Hagan drama would be hilarious if it were not so tragic. Shamelessly invoking 9/11 does not seem to be a cure for basic incompetence.

Reshma's Integrity On Ground Zero Mosque And Wall Street

Image via Wikipedia

The Washington Post: Democrats' Craven Silence On Ground Zero Mosque Continues: I asked Chuck Schumer's office for his position on the Islamic center this morning. All his spokesman would say is that he "not opposed" to the plan. Asked for Schumer's views of the opposition, and asked if he actively supports the right of the center's builders to put it two blocks from Ground Zero, Schumer's spokesman declined to elaborate and said Schumer was declining an interview. ..... Schumer is also refusing to answer direct questions from reporters about this topic. ...... Dem Rep. Anthony Weiner, who's been widely hailed as a hero on the left for his supposed willingness to engage the opposition, is also refusing to say word boo about his position on the Islamic center. ...... he can't bring himself to stand up for their right to worship two blocks from Ground Zero. ...... Here's another Dem who has done the right thing: Reshma Saujani, an attorney and activist who is running against Dem Rep. Carolyn Maloney of Manhattan.

President Obama needs to give this country a second stimulus bill, and this is what it has to look like. Reshma wins big on September 14, and he needs to outright go ahead and endorse her to make doubly sure she wins on September 14. Then he crisscrosses the country with her all the way to November. She requests her to raise as much money as possible. She enters Congress. He asks her to help him mend the frayed relationship between Wall Street and Main Street. That is what the second stimulus "bill" will look like. You want Reshma Saujani in Congress because you want this country to go back to work. This Reshma-Maloney contest stopped being just about District 14 a long time ago.

The bozos don't tire of calling Reshma "Wall Street's candidate." These are people who wish a permanent 10% unemployment rate on this country. Reshma wants that to come down to a more manageable 5%. And she knows the US federal government can not afford another trillion dollar stimulus bill. But she also knows private companies are sitting on a trillion and a half dollars that they could be putting to good use right now but aren't because Wall Street demonization has gone too far. When Maloney criticizes workers on Wall Street for making their individual contributions to Reshma which they can do as citizens while taking gobs of Wall Street PAC money herself, you know Wall Street demonization has gone too far, you know Maloney's hypocrisy has monkeyed to ever new heights.

Reshma Saujani was John Kerry's top 10 fundraisers in 2004. But that was in the pre-Wall Street demonization era, and so noone called her Wall Street's fundraiser back then. And now she has been raising money like an incumbent, and bozos are like, wait a minute.

She is really good at raising money. Like really, really, really, really good. Fundraising happens to be one of my personal blind spots, so I appreciate it even more. Da how?

"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." (Bible)

Money, message, organization are the three fundamentals. She is exceptionally good at all three of them. I have never met or read about a politician anywhere who was so exceptionally good at all three. Most people are good at one or two of the three at most. Some are excellent at one of the three. She is excellent at all three. That is remarkable.

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Reshma: Obama's Number One Weapon For November 2010

After his congratulatory phone call on September 14, Barack should just go ahead and totally take over Reshma 2010. That is the single most important thing he could do to keep the House in November.

He should say, look Reshma, I don't think you are sweating to win in November. Your victory party is the only thing you needed to do to ensure your personal victory in November. But I am sweating and I could use your help. Make me the Democrat from Punjab. And crisscross with me across the country, because I would really like to keep the House.

I think she is going to be happy to help.

She has not been a member of the New York congressional delegation that has stood by Charlie Rangel as his nefarious ways have come to light. She has not been part of Wall Street demonization. She is one politician in America best positioned to give the country its next stimulus bill. It is called mending the frayed relationship between Wall Street and Main Street.

She will be a new face. If you want a new Congress, vote Democratic. That will be the message.

Can't beat two Chicago people.

Their names rhyme: Reshma, Obama. Bara, Para. My name struggles in the race.

NYDailyNews: End Game: Maghabe notes Reshma Saujani, Rep. Carolyn Maloney's primary challenger, has hired Obama voter microtargeter Ken Strasma of Strategic Telemetry.
Politico: Saujani Hires Obama, Bloomy Microtargeter: to do microtargeting and voter modeling for her campaign. .... Strasma did that kind of work for Team Obama in 2008 and for Mayor Bloomberg in his third-term effort last year. ..... an interesting hire, especially because Saujani is operating with a smaller war chest than her rival, and because which voters will turn out in the primary will depend on GOTV and strong targeting.
PoliticalDog101: Reshma Saujani Blasts Maloney And The Entire NY Delegation In Congress Over The 9/11 Bill Failure…… Talk about getting everyone’s attention! .... Democrats have pledged to bring it up again after the August recess.....Saujani seems to have stirred up a hornet’s nest with her comments, which were part of a broader story about one of the attorneys on a 9/11 health care lawsuit contributing to Saujani’s campaign.

Reshma, Obama And The Ground Zero Mosque

Gandhi, Reshma And Tornadoes

Barack Obama: The Huffington Post: Obama Defends Ground Zero Mosque Plans In Ramadan Dinner Speech

Obama on Friday forcefully endorsed allowing a mosque near ground zero, saying the country's founding principles demanded no less. ..... a controversy that has riven New York City and the nation. ..... "This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakable." ..... a $100 million Islamic center two blocks from where nearly 3,000 people perished ...... the place where the twin towers once stood was indeed "hallowed ground," Obama said that the proper way to honor it was to apply American values. ....... earlier times when the building of synagogues or Catholic churches also met with opposition. ...... Bloomberg, an independent who has been a strong supporter of the mosque, welcomed Obama's words as a "clarion defense of the freedom of religion." ..... heard by Muslims worldwide. The president has made it a point to reach out to the global Muslim community .... nearly 70 percent of Americans opposed the mosque plan ..... a Muslim-themed community center. ..... a hub for interfaith interaction, as well as a place for Muslims to bridge some of their faith's own schisms.

Who Is The Congressperson For Ground Zero? Not Maloney
Al Hagan: Capable Of A Hate Crime
Nadler Should Vacate The Maloney Sinking Ship
Hard Fact For Al Hagan: Maloney Failed To Pass 9/11 Health Bill
Organized Labor Bosses Backing Maloney Are Acting Blind And Stupid
Reshma Is Gujarati Like Gandhi, I Am Bihari Like Laloo
Extrapolations To Reshma 2016
Reshma On CNBC
Iran, Obama 2010, Reshma 2010
Positivity, Excellence, Dark Matter
July 2010: The Busiest Month At This Blog So Far
The First Time I Heard The Obama Name
Organized Labor Has No Business Endorsing Maloney
Obama, Reshma
The Daily Beast: Reshma Saujani: Palin's Ground Zero Insult

The debate around the Cordoba House—or “the Ground Zero Mosque,” as it is sensationally being referred to in the media ...... That religious freedom and interfaith dialogue can endure at such a symbolic site, I believe, is a testament to the strength of American democracy. ...... Sarah Palin urged her supporters to reject the “Ground Zero Mosque” and implored “Peace-seeking Muslims” to scrap plans for the Cordoba House because it represents “unnecessary provocation” and a “stab in the heart.” ...... Michael Berry, a Republican talk-radio host in Houston, told listeners, “I hope the mosque isn’t built, and if it is, I hope it’s blown up, and I mean that.” ..... they have forgotten what makes this country great. The Cordoba Initiative was actually named for the city of Cordoba, where Jews, Christians, and Muslims lived in peace for nearly 800 years during the Middle Ages...... In many ways, New York City today strikes me as a modern day Cordoba ..... We must both relentlessly pursue terrorist networks and staunchly defend our pluralistic democracy. The raw human component of this challenge calls on us to make an equal effort to combat extremism with education, intolerance with interfaith exchanges.

Gandhi, Reshma And Tornadoes

I am staying away from the Reshma 2010 plans for the India Day Parade tomorrow. It is August 15, it is Independence Day. It is Gandhi's day, it is Reshma's day. I have decided to give them space on their day. (Reshma Is Gujarati Like Gandhi, I Am Bihari Like Laloo, Extrapolations To Reshma 2016)

Other than the daily blogging, I am going to be making a major push with this: Please Fund My Work For Iran Democracy: Email. This is a better, much better way to penetrate the Upper East Side than by making phone calls: More Than 100 Voice Mails.

But my next big thing to do for Reshma 2010 are the community events slated for the final week of the month. I intend to work those four events like a tornado. I am going to be working out plenty leading up to those dates. I want to be in good shape. And by that I mean mood.

Community Conversations

August 23rd - Lower East Side: 7:30 PM 14th St Y Community Room, 344 East 14th Street, L train 1st Ave
August 25th - Upper East Side: 7:30 PM 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Ave, 4,5,6 train 86th Street
August 29th - Roosevelt Island: 5:00 PM Trellis Diner in Roosevelt Island, 549 Main Street, F train Roosevelt Island
August 30th - Queens: 7:30 PM Holiday Inn -Lower Level Meeting Room in Long Island City, 39-05 29th Street, N/W train, 39th Ave

Perfect Time For Congress Reform

Image via WikipediaBefore the November election is a perfect time to enact Congress reform. It is enough time. It is about time, don't you think?

Wall Street has been reformed, but the US Congress that made Wall Street bad behavior possible is still the same old, same old. And that is pointing fingers at both the parties.

Charlie Rangel is the Bear Stearns of US Congress. The damage has to be contained this time. The damage has to be localized. This guy has to be isolated and quarantined.

It has been hard for me to read up on his 13 allegations. I have actively tried to avoid doing that. It is like watching crime happen in real time. It is not a good feeling. You can avoid the news articles. But it is near impossible to avoid the headlines. They are all over the place.

Look at some of what this guy has done. He would send a letter on official letter pad to some big, fancy corporation asking them to donate 100,000 dollars to the Charlie Rangel Vanity Endowment Fund and when they did he would quietly put in an earmark in some bill to send 10 million dollars to that corporation. That is every taxpayer's dream money manager. And that is only one of the 13 allegations. One thing that has not even been included in those 13 allegations is how his relatives, friends, associates have been running this network of NGOs. Donating to those NGOs earned you "virtual" currencies in the Rangel empire. Rangel would do you favors if you donated to those NGOs from which Rangel made no profits.

The show on the Hill has started to stink.

The Huffington Post: Reshma Saujani: A New Ethic of Leadership in Broken Washington

Eight House members, from both parties, are currently under investigation for raising money from financial services lobbyists just before voting on the financial reform bill..... independent ethics oversight, curb conflicts of interests, and eliminate the influence of lobbyists. .... Today, members of Congress must police themselves...which is why they don't. ....... At the same time that BP's deep sea drilling permit was under review or the Wall Street reform bill was being negotiated, members of Congress maintained hundreds of millions of dollars in personal investments in the same companies they were in the process of regulating. While peddling poisonous subprime loans, dozens of Congressional members actually betted against the housing market prior to the 2008 crash and their investments outperformed the market by over 12 percent....... In 2009 alone, more than 13,000 registered lobbyists spent more than $3.5 billion influencing elected officials on legislation, the highest amount ever recorded...... I have not taken a penny of special interest corporate PAC money during my campaign, and I believe all PAC contributions should be banned. It is time for a new system of publically financed campaigns

NYDailyNews.com: Democrat Using Rangel Against Democrat

Maloney wrote a $2,500 check to Rangel’s re-election campaign ..... Maloney has chosen to donate to an elected official facing a 13 count ethics investigation — and she is urging Maloney to reconsider.

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Uptown Upstart

Look at this news angle. When Reshma gets "criticized," that makes news in the Indian circles. It will very soon make news in India. Oh no, Reshma got criticized. How dare they! By the time it is time for Reshma to make her national moves, there will be perhaps 200 million Indians online. She is no longer going to be a "minority" person if she ever was. Between the Indians coming online and the women in this country getting into social media, her demographics look just fine.

News India Times: Reshma Saujani Criticized for Comment About Rival “Reshma stands by both of her statements. Carolyn Maloney has tried her best to pass a health care bill for 9/11 workers. But last week, her best wasn’t good enough and Congress failed to get this critical bill passed to help the heroes of 9/11 and their families. She is part of a broken political system in Washington that has failed to deliver for New Yorkers – and last week was a perfect example.”

Millstones And World Peace

Image via Wikipedia

YourNabe.com: Battle Brews Over Queens Plaza Millstones by Nathan Duke An effort to preserve a pair of Long Island City millstones from the 17th century has split western Queens community activists who are debating where the artifacts should be stored even as the city plans to relocate them to a neighborhood library. ..... believed to be the oldest surviving European artifact in Queens .... leaders of the Dutch Kills Civic Association and the Greater Astoria Historical Society have clashed ..... the Department of City Planning intends to move the stones from Queens Plaza to the Queens Library’s Long Island City branch on 21st Street for storage at an undisclosed time. ..... “We’re being rolled over,” Dutch Kills resident Megan Friedman said of the city’s plan. ...... another example of the city steamrolling over the interests of the neighborhood. ...... cited the city’s delay in implementing a 2005 plan to rezone Dutch Kills, which enabled a number of hotels to obtain permits to build in western Queens. ...... “It’s the straw that broke the camel’s back. ...... a bombshell to the community.” ...... would hire a preservation consultant to keep an eye on the stones. ..... “Mr. Singleton is nothing more than an interloper,” said civic member George Stamatiades. “He has not taken an interest in the stones for 20 years. Now he wants to be the great white knight. ........ the stones are currently encased in plywood boxes with barriers and locked behind a 10-foot gate at Queens Plaza. ..... Reshma Saujani, a Manhattan attorney who is challenging U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Astoria) for her seat, said the millstones have suffered from years of “abuse.” “The residents of Dutch Kills have voiced their concerns about the future of the historic millstones that have suffered years of abuse and neglect,” she said. “The city’s decisions about moving the millstones have been made in backroom dealings instead of in open public forums.” Saujani said she would like to see the Greater Astoria Historical Society care for the stones. ...... The stones, which are more than 6 feet in diameter and weigh at least 400 pounds, were used as part of the tile mill’s operation to grind wheat into flour. But the mill was closed down in the 1820s

That was a break from regular programming. And now I would like to go back to thinking about world peace.

Read News: Paterson Takes A Swipe At Rangel No-Shows The governor, a longtime ally of of the Harlem congressman, urged people not to rush to judgment on Rangel and said the charges against him did not compare to other recent offenses committed by lawmakers, including the case of ex-state Sen. Hiram Monserrate who was booted from the Senate for assaulting his girlfriend. “They are real,” Paterson said of the charges against Rangel. “They are serious
News India Times: Reshma Saujani Criticized for Comment About Rival “Reshma stands by both of her statements. Carolyn Maloney has tried her best to pass a health care bill for 9/11 workers. But last week, her best wasn’t good enough and Congress failed to get this critical bill passed to help the heroes of 9/11 and their families. She is part of a broken political system in Washington that has failed to deliver for New Yorkers – and last week was a perfect example.”

Iran Democracy

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Iran: Am I Running Late? Maybe Not

Iran Democracy

Image by break.things via Flickr

Iran's Uprising Continues -- From Prison Cells The Huffington Post News about Iran's Uprising is scarcely found on mainstream media these days...... few stories chronicle the constant struggle for democracy and human rights in Iran. This, however, does not mean that the struggle is dead. It is a daily struggle that continues ever vigorously. ..... there are so many incidents, and so many other major stories are waiting to be covered that updates about the continuing struggle for freedom are simply ignored ..... Majid Tavakoli is perhaps the most important student leader inside Iran right now..... many family members of prisoners have claimed that in the past two months, conditions are getting even worse. ..... as soon as news of the hunger strike found space in a few online social media networks, the Iranian government quickly cut-off phone services inside Evin's Ward 350 where the solitary confinement cells are located in an effort to prevent the news from further permeating through the blogosphere. ....... Kahrizak was an infamous detention center in Tehran where scores of detainees died from hunger, thirst, disease, and torture following the Iranian Uprising last year. ..... Staff were quoted as telling the prisoners that they had 'thrown the country into chaos' and now they were 'throwing the prison into chaos, too'. ..... opposition leader Mir Hussein Mousavi asked the prisoners to end their strike in a statement posted on his website ...... dozens of other stories that continue to come out of Iran. Surprisingly, finding them isn't hard. The time of millions wearing green in the streets seems to have passed. The government has resorted to absolute terror in an attempt to stifle the movement, but it lives through these brave men and others. What the Iranian people need is for free people to be their voice

I could not revive it in Burma. The uprising in Burma died in a matter of weeks, and when it died I felt like it might be another decade or so before we can revive the spirit there. Tibet is harder than Burma, more complex.

In Iran you see ambers right now. Are they dying ambers? Or are they ambers with which you can light the fire all over again?

Makes me so very angry with the dumbfucks in New York City who messed with me in June 2008. They took me away from the peace process in Nepal. They took me away from Iran. When the green revolution was in full swing would have been a great time to get involved. But I was too busy trying to pick up the pieces of my life at that point. I just didn't have the bandwidth.

It was such a waste. Such a grand loss.

The street show was impressive, but it was a politically immature revolution. All the shouting in a soccer stadium is enough energy to maybe make a cup of coffee. So much of the pain could have been avoided if the political homework had been done.

But I see hope. I think this work can be done. The spirit can be revived. But the work has to start in the diaspora. Asking the people to brave the streets again has to be the final step. And that part should not last more than a few weeks. Such has to be the political preparation beforehand.

Action 1: A tweet.

Pages

Sunday, August 15, 2010

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Saturday, August 14, 2010

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Thursday, August 12, 2010

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Wednesday, August 11, 2010

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