I am blogging today from Boston where I am visiting with my sweet little sister Babita for Rakchha Bandhan. (I Was In Chicago? Facebook Places Messing Up) In NYC it feels like the buildings will all fall down on you. Boston is more manageable. She moved here from NYC over a year ago. Her place is much, much nicer than mine for a similar price. Like much much. Her neighborhood is straight out of the textbook. Mine only a few blocks away looks like I never left my country of origin. A North Carolina dude once told me, the only thing I like about New York is the doughnuts. I, on the other hand, love the city. My love is for the whole package deal, the filth, the crowds, especially the crowds.
I am going to be back in town to attend the Upper East Side community conversation, which is tomorrow.
Last night I showed up for the Lower East Side conversation. It was near the 14th Street and First Avenue intersection. It was well attended. It felt to me like I was seeing Reshma for the first time. I think the town hall format is my favorite setting in which to see Reshma in action, although I think she looks great on TV too. She is an amazing, amazing candidate. She is the most amazing politician I ever met. She makes it sound like Obama's health care reform has been the 1.0 version, and some day she would like to take a crack at Health Care Reform 2.0. Same about Wall Street reform.
The question answer session went great. There were one or two agitated ones, but that is statistical. You have to expect that.
It was good to see the staff again after long. It must have been two weeks since I last saw them, but it felt like ages. Reshma has a wonderful relationship with her staff. I used to hear that about John Liu last year on the campaign trail.
It was good to see Arthur, it was good to see Josh. And I bumped into Nina near 33rd Street when I went for a long walk after the event. She informed me of a major Reshma fundraiser that was taking place this evening. The host was someone who was a major player with Obama 08, yet another piece of evidence that the Obama people are slowly but surely coalescing around Reshma 2010. The Obama 08 people owe me one on this one. And it helps that Reshma is an Obama like candidate.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
Cordoba Controversy: America In Early Stages Of War On Terror
Image via WikipediaFirst of all, it is not a mosque, it is a community center. It is not a new idea. That community center has been in that location for ages. They are just trying to put a new building in that old place. It can not be called a Ground Zero mosque. It is not a Ground Zero mosque. It is not a mosque, and it is nothing to do with Ground Zero. The location just so happens to be a few blocks from Ground Zero. But that location predates the 9/11 tragedy. 9/11 killed many Muslims the day it happened. 9/11 has killed many Muslims in the ensuing years back there in the Arab world. Both the Bush soldiers and the Al Qaeda have gone on to kill many innocent Muslims.
But then since when did prejudice have logic? Prejudice by definition is illogical.
The American public opinion on the so called Ground Zero mosque controversy tells me America is very much in the early stages of the War On Terror. We are perhaps in the 1950s of the Cold War, or maybe 1960s. There is too much existent anti-Muslim racism in America for America to make rapid progress on the War On Terror. Politicians avoiding the debate and succumbing to the prejudice are not helping any.
America is going to have to become a non racist country to conclude the War On Terror.
Two major transformations have to take place. All Arab countries have to be turned into democracies, and my method of choice is nonviolent mass movements. And America is going to get rid of its anti-Muslim prejudice and racism.
Politicians succumbing to the prejudice should empathize with those forces that try to bring democracy to an Arab country and have a hard time doing it. Clinging to the status quo of prejudice or non democracy are not exactly forces of progress and change.
Similarly America is going to have to make progress on total campaign finance reform if it wishes to see multi-party democracy and federalism in China.
America is a concept, an idea, a mission. A total spread of democracy is America's mission. That is what this country was born for.
America needed the FDR transformation of its capitalism to be able to defeat communism. America is going to have to work to get rid of its Islamophobia to conclude the War On Terror.
Reshma, Obama And The Ground Zero Mosque
Political Office, Political Essence
Image via WikipediaJimmy Carter was President Of The United States. Bill Clinton was a first term Governor of a small state occupied by "four men and a dog." Their political offices did not even compare. But even then Jimmy Carter was able to see Bill Clinton was a bigger deal than him. Jimmy Carter's political office was bigger, but Bill Clinton's political essence was bigger, and Carter could sense that already. And so he did the natural thing to do, he shit on Clinton. He unleashed a whole bunch of Cuban refugees on Arkansas costing Bill Clinton reelection. Bill Clinton was Jimmy Carter's chosen one. Carter wanted Clinton to feel the pain of an electoral loss. It is not much fun being a one term president. You are not even considered for greatness by historians if you are a one termer.It can be argued Jimmy Carter was Bill Clinton's Charlie Rangel. (Charlie Rangel: Motherfucker)
Barack Obama has surpassed Bill Clinton in the greatness department. Barack has been wading FDR waters since the passage of health care reform.
My Progressive Political Religion
Positivity, Excellence, Dark Matter
Carolyn Maloney Is The Problem
Image via WikipediaMaloney Should Skip Radio Debate And Create Jobs For An Hour InsteadCarolyn Maloney: Feeling Ugly?
Carolyn Maloney's Newest Lie
Carolyn Maloney's Work On The Second Avenue Subway Line
Maloney Refuses Debate Yet Again
Carolyn Maloney: The Alan Keyes Of District 14
Carolyn Maloney: Chicken
Al Hagan, Carolyn Maloney: Did They Apologize Yet?
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
Who Is The Congressperson For Ground Zero? Not Maloney
Look Who Is Talking: Carolyn Maloney's Dipshit Lies
Charlie Rangel, Carolyn Maloney And Their Ethics Violations
Carolyn Maloney: Missing In Inaction
Rangel And Maloney Need To Vacate The Premises And For The Same Reasons
Organized Labor Has No Business Endorsing Maloney
Maloney: Stifling Debate, Stifling Innovation, Stifling Job Creation
Carolyn Maloney: The Al Sharpton Of Gender Relations
Ed Koch And Carolyn Maloney: Bush Democrats
The Anti Maloney Brigade
Obama Has No Business Kissing Maloney
Maloney Is Too Ordinary To Be Representing District 14
Carolyn Maloney's Six Sins
Joke Of The Day: Carolyn Maloney
Maloney Wrote A Book Saying Her Best Is Not Good Enough
Maloney's Idiotic Debate Non Stand Can Be Countered Through Use Of Social Media
Debating Is "Stunt" In A Maloney Democracy
Reshma Saujani, Carolyn Maloney
| The Colbert Report | Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Better Know a District - New York's 14th - Carolyn Maloney | ||||
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Maloney Should Skip Radio Debate And Create Jobs For An Hour Instead
This is me feeling Baruch College's pain. This is me feeling the pain of NY1. This is me feeling the pain of the League Of Women Voters. Maloney disrespected each of them and it is still not too late to remedy the situation.
Maloney kept saying she is too busy creating jobs for America to bother accepting debate invitations. Now I know how the unemployment rate went down from 12% to a measly 10%. I want it to go down to 8%. And I want Maloney to not show up for her radio debate on September 7. Because I care. Because I think it is important that jobs are created.
I have always known Maloney is kind of on the old side. But I did not realize how old until she expressed her preference for FDR era technology.
I hereby propose as one of Barack's earliest and strongest supporters in the country that Barack switch from his weekly addresses on YouTube to exclusive radio addresses. Pay homage to FDR, yo. He was a great president. Even Newt Grinch thinks he was a great president.
I am so offended by the radio format of the September 7 debate that I am going to actively campaign for Carolyn Maloney to not show up for the debate. Carolyn, I don't want you there. Stay put in DC, go create some jobs. You have overstayed your welcome. How I know that is because you got a serious attitude problem. Somewhere along the way you acquired senioritis.
If you ask me, I think this whole debate circus has gone way out of hand. Folks, we got a situation on our hands. Are you paying attention?
The Debate Format
The Debate Format
Image via WikipediaBaruch Plus Radio Plus NY1 Could Work
Carolyn Maloney: Feeling Ugly?
Carolyn Maloney's Newest Lie
Finally A Debate? Is A Non Debate A Debate?
Debating Is Not About Media Attention To Reshma Saujani
Maloney Refuses Debate Yet Again
Carolyn Maloney: The Alan Keyes Of District 14
Carolyn Maloney: Chicken
Who Is The Congressperson For Ground Zero? Not Maloney
Look Who Is Talking: Carolyn Maloney's Dipshit Lies
Charlie Rangel, Carolyn Maloney And Their Ethics Violations
Charlie Rangel: Motherfucker
So I guess the debate is happening after all. The clock on the Reshma 2010 site has been pulled down. After 100 days Carolyn Maloney has finally agreed to a debate. That is one mean record to have for 100 days.
It is going to be a radio debate, but I think TV cameras will be allowed. And I really hope the whole debate ends up on YouTube. In this day and age, I mean. I am opposed to the idea of physically carrying Maloney to weekly debates as a matter of principle, (How My Grandfather Became Mayor The First Time) otherwise what I would really have liked is weekly debates. But looks like we are getting just that one debate. Maloney is not going to be creating jobs for those two hours. What a loss!
I look forward to the debate. What I am really looking forward to this moment is the event this evening on the Lower East Side. (Arthur Schwartz, Jeff Kurzon, Reshma 2010)
Mainstream Media Kept Saying John Liu Was Losing
An Empire State Of Mind: The Final Countdown
Baruch Plus Radio Plus NY1 Could Work
My Progressive Political Religion
Reshma Saujani Loves America
Carolyn Maloney: Feeling Ugly?
Barack Obama Just Endorsed Reshma Saujani
Carolyn Maloney's Newest Lie
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Mainstream Media Kept Saying John Liu Was Losing
Image via WikipediaLast year the buzz was that John Liu was losing. From the New York Times all the way down to mid level magazines, the buzz was Yassky was winning. It was close. It was a tossup. And of course there were unfair comments about John Liu, to the point at one instance John called his opponent "the three headed Yassky."
At the end of the day John Liu won easy. Later in November he got more votes than Bloomberg.
And I am seeing some of the same media bias against Reshma. Several of the print magazines have been putting out articles that are in absolute no resonance with what is actually happening at the ground level.
It used to be Reshma Saujani, Wall Street's candidate. Now it is Reshma Saujani, sure to lose candidate. These remind me of some of the negative articles about John Liu I used to read.
The answer is to keep focused on the fundamentals of the campaign, to focus on new/social media, more on community media.
Although I must say some TV spots have been good.
More than one newspaper article has quoted polls supplied by the Maloney campaign that are months old.
Challenging an entrenched incumbent is not easy. But some of the mainstream media makes that task harder by perpetuating some outdated attitudes.
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