As you will see, both equal rights and civil rights are of great importance to the Obama-Biden Administration and to the Democratic Party, as opposed to the George W. Bush eight year long Administration from hell, full of hate, bigotry, holier-than-thouism, discrimination, intolerance, dogma, doctrine, ignorance and "tradition". - Freethinker
Obama and Biden will work to overturn the Supreme Court's recent ruling that curtails women’s and racial minorities' ability to challenge pay discrimination. They will also pass the Fair Pay Act to ensure that women receive equal pay for equal work and the Employment Non-Discrimination Act to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.
Obama and Biden will reverse the politicization that has occurred in the Bush Administration's Department of Justice. They will put an end to the ideological litmus tests used to fill positions within the Civil Rights Division.
Obama and Biden will strengthen federal hate crimes legislation, expand hate crimes protection by passing the Matthew Shepard Act, and reinvigorate enforcement at the Department of Justice's Criminal Section.
Speak your mind and help set the policies that will guide this campaign and change the country.
Pay Inequity Continues: For every $1.00 earned by a man, the average woman receives only 77 cents, while African American women only get 67 cents and Latinas receive only 57 cents.
Hate Crimes on the Rise: The number of hate crimes increased nearly 8 percent to 7,700 incidents in 2006.
Efforts Continue to Suppress the Vote: A recent study discovered numerous organized efforts to intimidate, mislead and suppress minority voters.
Disparities Continue to Plague Criminal Justice System: African Americans and Hispanics are more than twice as likely as whites to be searched, arrested, or subdued with force when stopped by police. Disparities in drug sentencing laws, like the differential treatment of crack as opposed to powder cocaine, are unfair.
Obama and Biden will work to overturn the Supreme Court's recent ruling that curtails racial minorities' and women's ability to challenge pay discrimination. They will also pass the Fair Pay Act to ensure that women receive equal pay for equal work and the Employment Non-Discrimination Act to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.
Obama will sign into law his legislation that establishes harsh penalties for those who have engaged in voter fraud and provides voters who have been misinformed with accurate and full information so they can vote.
Obama and Biden will ban racial profiling by federal law enforcement agencies and provide federal incentives to state and local police departments to prohibit the practice.
Obama and Biden will provide job training, substance abuse and mental health counseling to ex-offenders, so that they are successfully re-integrated into society. Obama and Biden will also create a prison-to-work incentive program to improve ex-offender employment and job retention rates.
Obama and Biden believe the disparity between sentencing crack and powder-based cocaine is wrong and should be completely eliminated.
Obama and Biden will give first-time, non-violent offenders a chance to serve their sentence, where appropriate, in the type of drug rehabilitation programs that have proven to work better than a prison term in changing bad behavior.
Record of Advocacy: Obama has worked to promote civil rights and fairness in the criminal justice system throughout his career. As a community organizer, Obama helped 150,000 African Americans register to vote. As a civil rights lawyer, Obama litigated employment discrimination, housing discrimination, and voting rights cases. As a State Senator, Obama passed one of the country's first racial profiling laws and helped reform a broken death penalty system. And in the U.S. Senate, Obama has been a leading advocate for protecting the right to vote, helping to reauthorize the Voting Rights Act and leading the opposition against discriminatory barriers to voting.
I am tired of hearing how you cannot fight City Hall. In today’s shrinking world, getting people actively involved is simple – broadcast your message so they become a well-informed electorate. In every election people make the choice whether to allow the Special Interests to buy our freedoms by choosing to vote or not. The Special Interests depend on you, the American citizen, to sit in front of the TV and not become involved. Change takes involvement. Change takes a commitment. Change needs you to say, “No longer will we tolerate our elected employees to be bought by the Special Interests.”
Take the UNVOTE Pledge
We had lots of participation in our Health Care Matters Day Kick off on June 6, 2009 in San Dimas, CA. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTA86CDHhcI
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I got my email from my.barackobama.com the other day and it contained a mini script to get me started and my senators and congressmans phone numbers. I did my duty as an american. It is <strong>our</strong> government and if we let it run wild like a 3 year old child it will take every advantage it can find. So this is what we have to do to insure that democracy stays viable. We have to actually participate, what a concept. But a lot of us do not know, never even heard of such a thing, forgot how to, or figure it is pointless to try to actually speak to our representatives in person.
It is not impossible. Maybe a little frustrating, but worth it. If they know that we care and are actually checking on things and following through then they will REALLY have to do their jobs. When they vote they will actually have to think if it is really what WE want them to vote, because we may check up on them.
Many people all over the country buy stocks or get placed on board of companys and coprorations ans sign a proxy giving their right to vote on issues to someone else. So this sort of defeats the purpose of them even having a vote.
Maybe the banks and large corporations would not be in such a fix if people actually took the time to read on issues and personally vote on them.
I mean who would vote YES on a CEO getting a million dollar remodel. I guess the best friend of his/her that was in charge of all the proxies.
So you see, each of us can make a difference in our oun little way and as a group we are the most powerful country in the world.
Here is the response so far that I got when I tried to make my calls. I will continue to call until I thank them for supporting the stimulus. Even if I do not agree with everything about it they did take the time to show up and vote and they at least had some thought of putting money in to the economy.
Congress
Rep. John Conyers202-225-5126
he is not in office now call back in a few hours. 2/24/2009 10:05 AM EST
got rather annoyed lady operator left my number 2/24/2009 1:31 PM ESTSenateSen. Carl Levin202-224-6221rang and rang and rang no answer. 2/24/2009 10:09 AM EST
too busy to talk to people or return calls assistant did not take name or numbr 2/24/2009 1:33 PM ESTSen. Debbie Stabenow202-224-4822left message. 2/24/2009 10:11 AM EST
assistant took my name number said will get response from her 2/24/2009 1:35 PM EST
I personally think no problem ever gets solved by throwing money at it. But the best thing to do when people shout for money is to give ti to them so that they shut up (whining is distracting). Then work on a real solution.
Hi.
This is just a quick post to direct all to recent blog posts on the best electoral reform site bar none:
http://www.fairvote.org/blog/
t.tc
Contact: Alex.Karoub@gmail.com
This post is a brief overview of the Automotive Industry which describes some of the fundamental problems that are rarely spoken of. In addition, you will learn of a few of my personal experiences growing up, an environment where I was surrounded by the industry; you will learn of a few perspectives that are shocking and that even only a few within the industry know of. At the end of the post, you will better understand what happened to American Manufacturing and where it stands. The Auto Industry is at the heart of all of American Manufacturing. It is an industry that laid the groundwork for many other types of industries to follow, deemed at one point in history to be the highest of successes. But now, it sheds light on what can become warning signs for other businesses that mistakenly try to imitate it.This months hot topic is whether to bailout/rescue the regressing American Auto Industry. The original owners and their successors abandoned that industry long ago. The auto industry was ravaged and plundered by the wealthiest Americans a half century ago and has been in decline ever since. Shortsighted greed from one generation to the next has been the culprit. Since autos were first mass-produced and America monopolized the world, it was only natural that the American percentage/share of the market would eventually be reduced. However, total growth was enormous and total size of the market continues to grow even through today. Therefore, American growth of exports should have continued to grow, but does not significantly due to pillage and poorly planted roots. In simpler terms, we originally owned the entire pie. The pie was split up. Since the entire pie has grown dramatically, our piece should have grown too. However, the Big 4, 3, 2, … have been loosing market dominance and lead since the end of World War Two. Here we are years later in crisis, and the real question remains whether or not to rescue the real victims of the auto industry, the workers. People were not retrained or re-educated; most were never afforded real education's to start. People are now in despair and hopelessness. From my vantage point now living in Colorado for the last two decades, I have seen the high tech industry follow the auto industry, but at a learned and accelerated rate. Other industries are also copying the auto industry and are laying similar foundations also headed for disaster. Going back to a brief history, the misguided roots show how the decay started and why it spread.Although I did not grow-up during the inception of the Auto Industry, its roots surrounded me. I spoke with a few who were there in the earliest days, and spoke with many who were of the following generation. I absorbed its history by studying it while attending school in Motown (Motor Town), by natural osmosis, and in my earliest career dealing with the car makers.Growing up as a kid I lived less than a mile from Henry Ford's first moving assembly line factory, with GM’s World Headquarters’ just three miles away, and with Chryslers World Headquarters at the end of our street. The first Ford plant (in Highland Park, a city now surrounded by Detroit) and the first of GM's plants were built on the importation of the next generation of former black slaves and white share crop workers from the south (whites similar to former slaves whose white necks were red from working in the sunny fields, hence the mean spirited term 'Redneck'). The joke that Henry Ford must have laughed at and that went around town was "each worker would get paid enough to buy a Ford" (Of course using infamous 'Ford Credit' which was a primary direct withdrawal from their pay checks.) Henry manipulated a built-in guaranteed customer base and tapped double profits, being profits on the cars and the profitable bonded interest. Those were scams that he copied from sharecropping. The remains of their wages were so low that they had to live in shacks; but after all Henry felt, they came from shacks near the fields in the south. So much bigotry and repeated methods from sharecrop economic slavery. Instead of updating and rebuilding the original plants and without regard for the people who were the workers, the emerging auto giants left to go further to the suburbs. So, as they moved and grew they imported shipload after shipload of immigrant economic slaves from Poland (to Hamtramck, MI) and more economic slaves from the Middle East (to Dearborn, MI). There were other minorities imported as well, also imported for economic servitude to supporting industries such as mining, iron works, steel fabrication, glass works, textile, …. Astonishing how easily the game of 'divide and conquer' worked upon the variety of minorities; a game of keeping the workers pitted against each other using race and ethnicity; all to hold back the power of the people from truly uniting. WW2 caused the Automakers not only to retool but also to reevaluate their future directions.Soon, after the victory of WW2, came the Auto Giants grand visions for economically conquering the world via expansion outside the U.S. They quietly boasted that that would leave mainly world headquarters executives, designers, and engineers in the U.S. with the prestigious white-collar jobs. It was felt then (and these are not my bigoted opinions, not from me, yikes) that after all even 'the weaker sex' could do factory labor jobs as seen during WW2 (i.e. Rosie the Riveter). So why not have the 'stupid foreign workers' do the labor outside the U.S. What also gave way to the idea that manufacturing could succeed outside the U.S. was Mexico; since Mexican workers were also imported, but only temporarily during WW2. (By the way, the temporary Mexican workers were never fully paid back as promised during WW2.) A tremendous wave of pride about white-collar jobs became very popular in Detroit and in other automotive communities during the 50's. That vision sat poised on the back burner, but a pre-planted seed was already in place, which was Canada (Windsor) just across the Detroit River. Canada was a much-desired orchestrated precedence for the automakers; it set the stage for grace given by the government as an easily set up protocol for off-shoring jobs. Soon after, the automakers made a migration south to other states, then further south to Mexico, and finally overseas and on to economic slavery in China.Today we see the results of the destructive path the industry has taken. Layoffs, instead of being temporary situations reserved for pauses during new model changeovers, eventually became the mark of permanent labor plant closures. Obvious abandonment of people soon became the name of the automakers game. Along the swathed trail are - Highland Park, Detroit, Pontiac, Flint, Marquette, Gary Indiana, Pittsburgh, Toledo, Cleveland, …, which became known in the early 80’s as 'The Rust Bowl’. Sort of a rape, pillage, and burn mentality, which continues to today. Amazing how well the reasoning of "that's the way it's always been" persists and grows from one generation to the next. Excuse after excuse gave temporary reasoning to incremental geographic movements for global conquer. Temporary excuses ranged from the need to originally amass large workforces, to the hindrance of union pressures, to American workers are lazy, to 'over' government regulation, to …, all straw obstacles as to why the auto industry needed to move as it did. No! Greed is not good. We see how those at the top of the industry have each come in, grabbed with their greed, and left. Now today, we see how greed has caused "what once was, no longer is". So in short, now we see the results of greed, poorly planted roots, and disregard, taking its toll on America. Equally, is the toll on the myriad of unrelated businesses, old and new, that have adopted the auto industries infectious habits of having little to no regard for individual people that make up the American workforce. People.While being raised in the center of Detroit, I experienced many situations involving the Auto Industry; the following although early was not my earliest, and is an actual example. Around 1963, when I was 11 years old, I remember George Romney visiting our house to exchange political favors. Our 23-room house was a rundown relic of a past era, but it cleaned up well as a phony front for wealth and pretentious power. I remember we kids had to pretend that we were Christian Protestants for the visiting Governor (former Chairman of AMC) who was doing his Christian Mormon tradition of visiting the homes of his new legislators. How ostentatious they both were with fraudulent humility of how they rose from their humble beginnings. But more to the point, I remember Romney sitting at our dinning room table and saying "The Big Four Automakers don't have to worry about giving the Unions what they want, as long as the benefits will not be due for decades. By that time the labor plants will be outside the U.S." That shocked my brother Jimmy and I, as we listened playing in the sunroom just off the dinning room. Later we were once again physically punished (beaten-up), this time for listening to adult talk. Jimmy a year older than I, and intellectually gifted, soon became a Page at the State Capital. The accounts he returned with were shocking as well. Growing up as we did would make your head spin and open your eyes to disgust. We continued living in those surroundings until we grew out of our teens. Then we moved on to make our own adult lives, creating better environments much different from what we were born and raised in.Recalling back to my teens, I realized back then the Detroit riots were not only about race, but was also about economic oppression. It was the minorities who were oppressed the worst, most especially African-Americans. Bad however you measure it is bad. (For a better understanding of the decline of Detroit and to better understand the riots, take a look at my other post: “DETROIT RIOTS OF 1967, A RECOLLECTION OF THE TRUTH.” You will also better understand how very close we came to seeing a nationwide repeat of the riots in the coming Spring of 2009.)Unions, workers, man-hours, laborers, …, are not people, they are burdens to be minimized and eliminated. While watching Lee Iacocca being interviewed on Charley Rose last year, I noticed Iacocca admit that he new all the way back during negotiations with the unions, in the early 80’s, that Chrysler would never have to pay off in full on long term commitments to the unions. As Iacocca danced around the issue he said "now the unions will have to face reality". And, as Rose went on to discuss it more, Iacocca was getting more uncomfortable, and eventually managed to change the subject away from discussing past union negotiations. Iacocca was a bit slicker than George Romney was, since Iacocca was on national TV. It made me ashamed that Chrysler World Headquarters was at the end of our street when I was a kid. And, that as a young adult I had so proudly in my early career returned while working for a couple of electronics companies to Chrysler's World Headquarters R&D operations. I thought it an honor to have paid Iacocca's in-house barbershop to cut my hair, even his same barber. Some honor.Following Chrysler, I moved up to deal with GM, and was puzzled. I listened to upper executives at GM complain that they constantly had to bribe Mexican government officials and border guards for GM plants. I guess they also assumed I already new and accepted that the plants in the late 70's had already begun their exodus to Mexico and other countries. I have always looked at bribery as disgusting and wrong, it was not for me or those who I dealt with, that's among the many good things that a mentor named Jack Bazzy taught me as a young kid. By becoming acquainted with other mentors as an adult, I learned to seek out highly reputable employers and quality knowledgeable friends. I learned how to educate myself, and moved up very high in the scientific and technical industries, all of which I enjoyed.Although I grew up in Highland Park / Detroit, that was not anywhere near my top focus in choosing Obama. But, it is a simple history for me to recall, amazing how many more details I can give, but the main points have been brought forward. In addition, from being a mutt of sorts myself, to being a self made man, be that what it may, I have no illusions of being great. What I do mean here is that I quickly recognize many of Obama's unique insights, although mine are different but a bit similar in nature. Like many Obama supporters, I have personal experiences on most issues Obama has raised. So, above is just one of many examples that I can personally give.To better understand manufacturing in America, you can read my other blog: WHAT SCREWED UP MANUFACTURING FOR AMERICA
Blog members can reply here, anyone is welcome to email me at: Alex.Karoub@gmail.com
My hope, prayers and belief in Barack Obama's ability to do a great job running this country caused me to sacrifice many volunteer hours over the last 13 months for his campaign and I was ultimately sent to the battleground state of Ohio where I worked as a Vote Corps Field Organizer. I spent the last 5 consecutive weeks of the presidential campaign in Ohio and helped to turn it into a “Blue State”, literally knocking on thousands of doors and making almost as many phone calls! Unfortunately, there's no way to show that on my Dashboard on this site, but oh well. :-) The experience in Cleveland, OH was probably the hardest, yet most rewarding experience of my lifetime to date, & I’ll probably never be the same!
I titled my bog post "Wow! - MY Road to Change" because of my experiences with this campaign. I am now very inspired to become even more involved in politics and help elect more people who will help to pass laws that are good for our district, our state and our country. I absolutely love what this campaign has done in terms of unity for our country and the world, thus far, and I want to become even more involved because I now realize that, truly, "WE ARE THE CHANGE THAT WE SEEK.” Accordingly, I have applied as a candidate for an Assembly Delegate in my district (AD15). Who knows where that road will lead . . . maybe eventually to me running for President one day! (smile)
So, if you or anyone you know, was a registered democrat in AD15 on or before October 20th, 2008, I solicit your votes on Saturday, January 10th, 10:00am - 12:00noon at the UDC Headquarters, 1501 N. California St., Walnut Creek, CA. I WOULD GREATLY APPRECIATE YOUR VOTE! Check here to see if you're in AD15: http://192.234.213.69/amapsearch/framepage.asp THANK YOU.
The Pickens Plan: For those who would like to become an active participant in a solution for our nations energy needs I urge you to join with T.Boone Pickens in his quest for a cleaner planet through alternative energy.
Also see Green Wave Energy: Green Wave was founded by Mark Holmes and was formulated for viable alternative energy solutions. Green Wave Energy is promoting state-of-the-art energy-saving products and services throughout the country.
Green Wave Energy understands alternative energy technology will become “main stream” when
Call 949.645.1701 for information on how Green Wave Energy can help you save the planet.
Alternative EnergySource: David Apperson
url: http://veterans.barackobama.com/page/community/tag/alternative-energy
Article from the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH 'Hope' springs anew for Washington University grad students
November 19, 2008 -- Carianne Noga, a graduate student of art at Washington University, ties tags of hope onto a sculpture outside the University City Post-Office. Noga and fellow student Maya Escobar started soliciting people's hopes to place on the sculpture. (Christian Gooden/P-D) By Margaret Gillerman ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH 11/29/2008
UNIVERSITY CITY — Georgia O'Keeffe found inspiration in the light and shapes of New Mexico.
Mary Cassatt found hers in mothers and children.
Maya Escobar and Carianne Noga, two graduate students at Washington University's Sam Fox School of Art and Design, found inspiration for their latest project from the long lines on Election Day at a Ben and Jerry's ice cream shop in the Loop.
There, on the sidewalk outside the shop, which was giving away scoops of ice cream to voters, the two women felt excitement and hope among voters. They said they found that same feeling across the street in the long line of voters waiting to vote at the Loop polling place.
Before the polls closed, they had begun to create their "I hope…" project.
They first staked out a site: outside the University City Post Office at 561 Kingsland Avenue.
They then provided people with bright red tags and paint markers for them to write down their hopes for a better future.
The tags then are affixed to a permanent lattice wood sculpture already on site outside the Post Office.
"As difficult as it can be sometimes to voice our wishes and dreams, it can be strengthening," the artists say in explaining their mission. "We can be reminded of the rest of the world outside our own immediate concerns. In this period of great change and near infinite possibilities, it is time for us to voice our hopes."
While the project is for all people, Escobar said it holds special meaning for young people.
"This is our moment to make a difference for our communities," Escobar said. "We need to be aware — of our national situation, of the economy."
Many of the hopes expressed — most recorded anonymously — so far are noble and universal: "I hope for world peace" and "My hope is that hate is no longer."
Some of the hopes are personal. "I hope to not fear death," wrote one.
Others have a distinctly political bent: "I hope we get out of Iraq and don't go to war with Iran." And some are just fun, like the person hoping for "chocolate cake for dessert ..."
A University City police officer named Hope — Reginald Hope — shared with them his own hope: for safety for police officers. A fellow officer was killed while on duty near the Loop last month.
Washington University Chancellor Mark Wrighton gave his hope and "wishes for better health and greater prosperity for all."
The artists also are encouraging people to submit their hopes online at togetherwehope.com.
[click here for full story]
PLEASE VISIT HTTP://TOGETHERWEHOPE.COM AND SHARE YOUR HOPES FOR THE FUTURE
There are just three days to go until Election Day, and there's no time to waste. I've seen how excited Georgians are for Jim and how ready they are to vote for change. The momentum is on our side. We can't stop now.Every dollar you give helps us rent more vans to take voters to the polls, buys us more radio time in key markets, and funds our final get-out-the-vote push. Please click here to make a contribution of $50, $100, or $250 today. We will rush every contribution directly into the field to be used immediately.If there's one thing I know, it's what a winning campaign looks and feels like. There's a buzzing headquarters, dedicated volunteers pounding the pavement, and a candidate sprinting to the finish. That's what we have in Georgia, and that's how I know we can win this race.I’m doing everything I can to help Jim win – I hope you're doing the same. I know you've dug deep for Jim before, and I know you'll dig deep again to help Jim finish strong. Sincerely,Donna BrazileP.S. There are just three short days left – don't wait until it’s too late to make a contribution. Please click here to make a contribution of $50, $100, or $250 today.
