With the 2008 presidential campaign just barely begun, it’s entirely fitting that, already, things are getting nasty. While some (yours truly included) are waiting for a Lewinsky-size scandal to rock American politics and finally wake the nation up to something called the government and its workings, for now we’ll have to settle with yet another irritating billionaire stirring things up—in this case movie and music maverick David Geffen.
John McCain has officially declared his candidacy for President in the 2008 Election, and some have wondered whether “his age may be Mr McCain’s biggest handicap. If he won the presidency, he would by then—at 72—be the oldest man ever elected to the White House.”
I think it’s more likely that McCain’s unpopular stances on issues, especially his support of sending more troops to Iraq, would overshadow concerns about his age in the minds of voters. What do you think?
Last Friday, Senator Dianne Feinstein graced our very own Cal campus with her glorious presence as part of a conference put on by Boalt to address climate change policy. Feinstein presented the conference attendees with five bills, all of which are designed to lower both future greenhouse gas emissions and the country’s dependency on fossil fuels. In between emphasizing the value of a moderate bill that can be strengthened and recognizing the fact that policy isn’t always perfect, DJ DiFi dropped some mad-crazy metaphors, declaring that “we are looking for the access ramp to the freeway for change,” and warning that global warming may be approaching a “tipping point;” sounds to me like the cow of the ozone layer is in some serious trouble! It’s great to hear that concerns about climate change are transforming into tangible policy changes, and that our campus can be the catalyst for these discussions and plans to be made!
The Daily Cal has more.
This story is infuriating:
Shawqi Ahmad Omar is an American citizen who, according to his family, moved to Iraq to help with the reconstruction effort, [but] was detained by U.S. Forces in October of that year on suspicion of having terrorist connections and has been languishing in U.S. military detention ever since. During that time, he has not been charged with any crime and has had no access to a lawyer. In December 2005, Omar’s family filed a habeas corpus petition in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia challenging the legality of his continued detention….While Omar’s habeas petition was pending, the U.S. government notified his family that it planned to transfer him into Iraqi custody—and conveniently out of the reach of the U.S. justice system.
Our federal judiciary is supposed to serve as a check on the power of Congress and the executive branch, ensuring that Americans’ basic rights are protected. But a radical doctrine promulgated by the Bush administration holds that there are virtually no civil liberties which cannot be trampled on if the president claims that doing so is in the interest of national security.
Maybe you’ve heard of FOX News’s new show, The 1/2 Hour News Hour (THHNH). (There have been ads on Facebook, and also on FOX, if you’re the type who, like me, watches O’Reilly for kicks from time to time). The latest project of Joel Surnow, the producer of the FOX primetime hit 24, THHNH is billed as a conservative foil to The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, and as a more lighthearted version of other “news” programming on FOX News.
Most reactions I’ve heard have been to the tune of: “This has got to be a joke.”
You may have noticed that conservatives like attacking programs such as…free health-care, public education, ending corporate welfare, taxation, and any proactive governance as the evil “Big Government.” The old phrase, “government is the problem, not the solution” is spewed forth like the word of God in an attempt to create so-called freedom through the market.
There’s just one problem with this: conservatives don’t practice it. Neither side does; a large government is far more convenient, something we can’t live without today. What we have now isn’t a battle over whether we should have a small government or a big government, but what KIND of big government we should have. What I see as the political/philosophical debate of our day is if we should have a government which invests in people, or one that invests in bombs.
Today we celebrate the 275th birthday of the Father of Our Country, George Washington:
Not bad for a near-tricentenarian, eh? Of course this is no ordinary man: President Washington is six-foot-eight and weighs a ton.
He’s also pretty smart. Take his famous Farewell Address, in which he warned the country against becoming overly entangled with foreign nations. (Contrast this doctrine of modesty with that of our current President George.) He also said in that address:
Promote, then, as an object of primary importance, institutions for the general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion as the structure of a government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public opinion should be enlightened.
It is with such an aim in mind that Cal Dems is launching this blog, which we call Connected. We hope you’ll enjoy our bloggers’ perspectives on politics, current events, and the like.
Even if they’re only six-four.
Connected: Blog of the Cal Berkeley Democrats
Although this blog is managed by Cal Dems in order to foster political debate among people interested in politics, current affairs, and public policy,
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED ON THIS BLOG ARE NOT NECESSARILY THE VIEWS OF THE CAL BERKELEY DEMOCRATS (“CAL DEMS”), THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, OR THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. CAL DEMS IS NOT TO BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR CONTENT POSTED BY INDIVIDUAL USERS. HOWEVER, WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO REMOVE OR MODIFY THE CONTENT, TO MODIFY THESE POLICIES, AND TO TALK EXCLUSIVELY IN CAPITAL LETTERS.
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The official website of the Cal Berkeley Democrats is www.caldems.com; you may email the webmaster with any questions or concerns.
We hope you thoroughly enjoy the time you spend on this Blog, and that you won’t be afraid to express your opinions.
And last but not least…GO BEARS!
