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Wednesday, March 30
Suicide Gene Bill Passes Iowa Senate
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 30 Mar 2005 04:39 AM CST
 Suicide Gene Bill Passes Iowa Senate
by Iowa State Rep. Mark Kuhn (D-Floyd)
Dear Friends,
SF 259,
the companion bill to HF 259, passed the [Iowa] Senate by a vote of
33-16 with 1 absent. I wrote and distributed a two-page letter to
the Senate [yesterday] asking them for further discussions before
passage of the bill, which is sure to be signed by Governor
Vilsack. My last ditch attempt to persuade the Senate to defer on
the bill for this legislative session and call for the appointment of
an interim study committee to study the issue failed. There was a
verbal agreement among Senate leaders to call for the appointment of an
interim study committee, but that was not written into the bill, and it
is not known if even that will happen. Even if it does, it's like
shutting the barn door after the cows are in the cornfield.
I want
to thank each of you for your support during consideration of this
bill. You all played a unique and important role in opposing this
bad piece of legislation. In conclusion, let me say that a democracy
void of discussion is not representative of the voices of the
people. Legislators introducing these preemptive seed laws are
not acting on behalf of the people they represent, they are acting
despite the will of the people.
Thank you for going against the grain and standing up for what's right.
Keep lookin' up,
Rep. Mark Kuhn, Mark.Kuhn@legis.state.ia.us
P.S. Please be assured I'll be writing Governor Vilsack ASAP to ask him to veto this legislation.
Click here to email Gov. Vilsack asking him to veto this dangerous bill.
 A big thank you from Blog for Iowa to Rep. Mark Kuhn for taking the lead on this important issue.
Submitted by Larry Hanus of Waterloo
Wednesday, March 23
Progressive Integration: A Glance Forward
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 23 Mar 2005 04:05 AM CST
 Progressive Integration: A Glance Forward
by Richard Hoefer
I've
been doing a lot of deep thinking the past five months since the
election, thinking which has become much more focused since Howard Dean
was elected to DNC Chair. A very hopeful sign no doubt, but not a
panacea by any means. A recent set of
meetings I attended in Washington, D.C., reveals to me that the
Democratic Party apparatus is still very commitedly entrenched in a
beltway-centric reactionary cultural mindset. And this rusty
culture expresses itself most visibly by the poll-driven inauthentic
voice of alleged leaders like Nancy Pelosi and John Kerry and Hillary
Clinton and Joe Biden - all of whom turn off and repel 50% of America
just by opening their mouths.
We are
in a terrible crisis, which to me feels worse than the
masterfully-malicious past four years of stagecraft which saw America
succumb to the neo-con message machinery. That well-funded,
think-tanked machinery used multiple channels like Fox News and paid
faux-journalists to seduce 60% of Americans into believing that we
needed to invade Iraq because Saddam Hussein was behind the 9/11
attacks - attacks which for real sent a collective fear shivering up
our country's spine, thus setting off a whole chain-reaction still
playing out today.
The
November 2 election, we all know, has been treated by the neo-cons as
authorization to not only occupy all three branches of government, but
also aggressively bulldoze every progressive gain fought for and won
over the past 30 years.
I
believe that it is virtually impossible for us to be rescued from this
crisis by any kind of reliance on the Democratic Party, even with
Howard at the helm. The Dean movement gave rise to a new class of
citizen activists and strategists, and we are the real frontline hope
to repel this neo-con machinery and push them back into the holes from
which they oozed while America slept.
Over the
past two years, there have been a number of initiatives I have posed to
[activist groups] in one form or another. Some have seen some
implementation, others not. The "shift" for me now is that we cannot
rely upon the formal Dean organization (DFA) to lead us to victory.
They have definitely provided potent ideas - like running and backing
local candidates for office, and they have executed some of their ideas
with great success. But they have failed to galvanize and unite
progressives outside of their sphere. And again, that job now belongs
to "free agent" citizen activists who have been part of multiple
progressive communities, from DFA to DailyKos to True Majority to
MoveOn to Democratic Underground to a host of others.
SUGGESTED ACTION PLAN
RECOMMENDATION:
If you haven't subscribed to DemSpeak, I do recommend it. http://www.DemSpeak.com
is being re-organized, top to bottom, and will probably relaunch in the
next 30-60 days.
DEMSPEAK PORTAL:
Like other portals I have developed over the past two years (DeanPort.com, ProgressiveStart.com), DemSpeak will be a startpage aggregator of all sites and resources surrounding the whole spectrum of Progressive Messaging:
Values
Inventory, Message Identification and Development, Engagement
& Rapport Strategies, Framing and Reframing language, Strategic
Development and Deployment of Frames, Mediaspace Injection
Choreography, and Framing/Media Crossfire training of Capitol Hill
Legislators, new TV spokespersons for progressives, Talk Radio callers,
and progressive leaders.
There
will be a public-face aspect to DemSpeak, and there will be a private
"think tank" layer which is password-accessible only to
thoroughly-vetted citizen strategists.
This will become a vibrant hub which unites and aligns all such messaging initiatives and operations.
CONTEXT NOTE: PROGRESSIVE INTEGRATION PLAN
DemSpeak is one of 6 integrated initiatives which will map out and facilitate alignment within the entire progressive movement.
One of
the other 6 projects will be a completely new launch of a true
cross-organization National Grassroots Network featuring at its heart
the 50-state Clickable Map comprehensive database. This rethink breaks
from a Dean-centric model and expands much more broadly.
A third and critical component is GTV Network – a progressive cable TV network (cable and web).
There is
an overarching strategic component which integrates all 6 initiatives.
If you have a tangible role you've been wanting to play, and have not
known how to best apply your expertise, please contact me at: rh
AT deanport DOTCOM.
Wednesday, March 16
Support Our Troops? Not if You're Republican
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 16 Mar 2005 04:44 PM CST
 Support Our Troops? Not if You're Republican
by Randall Rolph, Nashua, Iowa
The U.S.
House of Representatives voted yesterday, March 15, 220 to 195, to
block any debate or vote on amendments to provide additional funding
for veterans' health care and mental health care in the War
Supplemental bill.
Rep.
DeLauro (D-CT) and Rep. Hooley (D-OR) were prepared to offer amendments
to provide better veterans' health care. The DeLauro amendment would
have added $238 million to the VA for post-deployment mental health
care. The GAO has reported that 6 out of 7 VA medical officials believe
they may not have the capacity for increased demand for Post Traumatic
Stress Disorder treatment. The Hooley amendment would have provided
$1.2 billion for FY 2005 for veterans' health care. This would have
helped facilities with operating deficits and hiring freezes, and it
would have reduced wait times for veterans to access high quality VA
provided health care.
The
House voted 220 to 195 to refuse to allow any debate or vote on these
amendments. The 220 lawmakers who voted not to have debate or a vote on
the DeLauro or Hooley amendments were all Republicans. The 195
lawmakers who wanted to debate and vote on the DeLauro and Hooley
amendments were all Democratic members and Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM).
Let all
give a big round of applause to Iowa's Republican Representatives for
their unyielding support of our young men and women in uniform fighting
in Iraq. Come to think of it, I bet every single one of them has a
"Support Our Troops" sticker on his car.
Bush Sells Snake Oil to Cure Social Security
by
Trish Nelson
on Wed 16 Mar 2005 08:00 AM CST
 Bush Sells Snake Oil to Cure Social Security
MinutemanMedia.com
by Donald Kaul
[George W.] Bush’s efforts to sell his peculiar “privatization” remedy
for the Social Security ‘crisis’ haven’t been going well. Recent polls
show that Mr. Bush gets his lowest marks on his handling of that issue.
But, like any good snake oil salesman, he presses on. He’s been
crisscrossing the country telling people that Social Security is sick
and that only privatization will make it well.
His sales pitch has been characteristically Bushian - dismissive
of evidence and encased in syntax that is virtually impenetrable to logic.
Here’s what he said the other day:
“I’ve been reading the newspapers and been seeing some folks
saying ‘There’s not a problem, he’s just exaggerating.’
Well, I’m going to keep telling people we’ve got a problem
until it sinks in, because we’ve got one. You can’t dodge whether we have a
problem or not. Because, see, the next follow-on question to that is, if you’ve
got a problem, what do you Republicans and Democrats and a few independents
intend to do about it up there?’”
He also said that, under his proposed privatization fix,
income from personal accounts, goes to supplement the Social Security check
that you’re going to get from the federal government. “See, personal accounts
is an add-on to that which the government is going to pay you. It doesn’t
replace the Social Security system.”
That either means he doesn’t understand the plan he’s
proposed (always a possibility) or that he is outright lying (more likely). You
can’t pay full Social Security benefits and have part of the payroll tax going
into personal accounts at the same time. There’s just not enough money to go
around. The term “add-on” is generally used to mean a payment into a private
account above and beyond what now goes into the retirement system. That’s not
what Bush is not what Bush is proposing.
It’s always dangerous to assume that [George W.] Bush is as
dumb as he sounds. He gets what he wants too often to be written off as a
dunce. It’s far more likely that he’s deliberately trying to confuse and
frighten people about Social Security so that they’ll be stampeded into support
for his cockamamie privatization scheme.
And I wouldn’t bet against him. He’s calling his shock
troops into the battle. Business groups are ratcheting up multi-million-dollar
lobbying efforts and the airwaves will soon be filled with stories of Social
Security’s peril. (Like they care.) And the people who gave you the Swift Boat
veterans (remember them?) are joining the fight. They have been hired by USA
Next, a big-money conservative lobbying group, to trash AARP as they did John
Kerry.
They’re trying to brand the seniors lobbying group as a
left-liberal, gay marriage-loving cabal that is standing in the way of the
brave [Bush]’s efforts to save Social Security. You would think that absurd
on the face of it, but this bunch managed to convince a lot of voters that
Kerry’s Vietnam credentials (three purple hearts) weren’t as good as those of
Bush, who hid from the fray. Maybe they can convince people that AARP is a
bunch of hippies.
Personally, I doubt that Mr. Bush will get his plan enacted
this time around but he might get a piece of it now, then push for more later.
That’s the way the Conservative movement works: patiently, relentlessly.
Conservatives have been talking about getting rid of Social
Security for the past 35 years, ever since Barry Goldwater suggested it be made
voluntary. He was laughed out of the election in 1968 but here, 37 years later,
we’ve got a two-term president who’s pushing privatization - voluntary Social
Security by another name - and no one’s laughing.
This so-called Conservative movement is not conservative, of
course; it’s reactionary. It looks longingly back on a time when retirement was
the exclusive province of the rich.
For the rest of us, it was work ‘til you die and if you
couldn’t, hope you died young. That’s the golden sunset Captain Bush is
steering us into now, or trying to.
Donald Kaul recently retired as Washington
columnist for the Des Moines Register. He has covered the foolishness in our
nation’s capital for 29 years, winning a number of modestly coveted awards
along the way. Kaul's columns can be found at MinutemanMedia.org.
 Click here to receive action alerts from Rapid Response - Iowa
Monday, March 14
This Week in the Iowa Legislature: Tipping Point for a Ravaged Earth
by
Linda Thieman
on Mon 14 Mar 2005 09:15 PM CST
This Week in the Iowa Legislature: Tipping Point for a Ravaged Earth
By Eileen Dannemann, National Coalition of Organized Women
The Tipping Point
Tuesday, March 15th
Steps of the Des Moines State Capitol
10:00am sharp
In the Iowa legislature this week: Genetically Engineered Foods, Seeds, and Cloned Animals unlabeled at the consumer level.
The Biogate Conspiracy: It’s on the fast track.
The word
has come down from the highest government authority, sent through Iowa
Governor Tom Vilsack’s channels, that under no circumstances should
Iowa HF 202 (amended to HF 642) and SBS 1144 (now SF 259) be stopped.
Through this bill, activated in 22 other states, the US, via its
partnership with the Biotech Industry (Biopharmaceutical industrial complex), is finalizing their acreage conversion plan that seeks totalitarian control of production. This is the last hurrah in Iowa to safeguard organic and sustainable agricultural, family farmers and community integrity.
This bill is aimed to sabotage the initiative in Mendocino and Marin
counties in California to ban GMOs and will affect the outcome of bills
all over the nation. If the bill fails in Iowa, by our efforts we
will have affected positively the national movement to save the
integrity of sustainable agriculture and consumer's right to choose.
Iowa is the Tipping Point.
Seven
years have gone by and CODEX, the lawmaking body of the World Trade
Organization (WTO), has succeeded in keeping the issue of labeling off
the calendar. This has enabled Monsanto and friends to covertly convert
185,000,000 acres all over the world into GMO crops even in the face of
great opposition by the European Union. Mexico has now fallen against
its own wishes and the once pristine and diverse corn crops are contaminated.
Many,
and perhaps the majority, of representatives in both the Iowa house and
senate have their orders. But some are beginning to think that a
totalitarian government is not what our founding fathers had in mind.
Others are beginning to see a downright evil hand at work. Shocked by
the temerity of the biotech industry to name their sterilizing
technology the Terminator and the Exorcist,
a few representatives have chosen not to follow orders. Monsanto,
seeking to terminate the reproductive nature of Mother Nature Herself,
has made many downright angry and suspicious of the source of this
bill. It certainly seems that wheat is being separated from chaff when
the choice is either to facilitate the bio-tech story by sabotaging
God’s Law of Abundance through the Terminator and the Exorcist or to
stand up for sustainability, safeguarding the sacredness of the seeds.
Seeds are being genetically manipulated, privately owned and the
quality of a free abundant reproductive nature and availability is
being terminated for the express purpose of monetary gain, with no
consideration of the land or the people. And this is being speedily
processed by Governor Vilsack and perpetrated by our State government
this week.
Inside the Iowa Legislature
Due to
many brilliant efforts in the agricultural committee last week,
discussions are now taking place in caucus whether to obey orders from
the national and international hierarchy or to make considered
decisions for the welfare of the State of Iowa. In the taking
away of local control, the Iowa State Legislature is, in turn, losing
their sovereignty as well. By falling in lockstep with the governor and
senators like Chuck Grassley who, in turn, are being pre-compliant with
the World Trade Organization, Iowa legislators see themselves as
significant players; important and connected.
But some
courageous legislators are trying to protect Iowa’s agricultural
portfolio. They are trying to preserve diversity in an irresponsible
system that has allowed Iowa to invest 90% of its soybean fields in
biotechnology, a technology that has already proven itself to be
dangerous.
The bill is being fast tracked through the Iowa house. The only place we can stop it is in the senate.
The key
leadership in the senate is Senator Kibbie, Senator Reilly and Senator
Fraise. Only an expression of outrage from their constituency
would provide a legitimate excuse for tabling this bill against blanket
orders to pass it.
We have
the opportunity, Tuesday, to take a stand, witnessed by all, to stand
up for Mother Nature. Every farmer and consumer within earshot of this
message is asked to show up on Tuesday, March 15th. Be on the steps of the State Capitol in Des Moines, a hundred strong; men, women and children at 10:00 AM. Your presence and prayers will make all the difference!
Contact your state senator here.
Saturday, March 5
Grassley Bombs Out on Taxpayer Funding of Bush Propaganda
by
Linda Thieman
on Sat 05 Mar 2005 05:47 PM CST
 Grassley Bombs Out on Taxpayer Funding of Bush Propaganda
by Randall Rolph, Nashua, Iowa
Lip Service Seems to Be All Iowans Can Expect from our Senior Senator
Senator
Chuck Grassley's concerns of taxpayer funds being used by the current
administration to disseminate propaganda in the public domain appears
to be nothing more than lip service to his consituents. His assertion
that he has written a letter to the Education Department regarding this
issue falls far short of his commitment made to the good people of Iowa
on January 11, 2005.
During
Grassley's community meeting held on January 11, 2005, in Charles City,
Iowa, the question was asked of him if he would call for an
investigation and/or support the call for an investigation into the use
of federal funds for the purpose of propaganda. His answer to that
question was a distinct, 'Yes'.
As we
and Senator Grassley are well aware, such use of federal funds is
prohibited by law. Further, the use of said funds for said purpose goes
well beyond the Department of Education. As further facts have arisen
relating to this issue, others have been identified as to receiving
federal funds for their efforts in dissemination of propaganda.
Recently, reports have surfaced that the amount of taxpayer dollars
being spent by the current administration for propaganda purposes is
being estimated at over $97 million dollars.
What some of us may not know is, the
current rules in the Senate allow for the call for an investigation
into an issue to be made only by the presiding chairman of a committee.
As Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and as the only
committee member having the authority to call for an investigation,
Senator Grasley has failed on his commitment made to the people of Iowa
during his community meeting in Charles City, Iowa on January 11, 2005.
Wednesday, March 2
Iowa Author's Peace Novel Even More Relevant Today
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 02 Mar 2005 11:22 AM CST
 Iowa Author’s Peace Novel Even More Relevant Today
By Meta Hogan
"Joe
Coffee's Revolution" is about an idealistic political neophyte trying
to participate in big-time American politics. He is a Democrat trying
to tell the truth in Iowa.
Book Review: "Joe Coffee's Revolution" by Mike Palecek
by Meta Hogan, Voice of Olympia, Olympia, Washington
It is
always refreshing to read about creative, compassionate people who are
working to effect positive change against great odds. It's almost as
inspiring as being around such people. But “Joe Coffee's Revolution” is
anything but inspiring. Don't get me wrong - the story is
substantial and satisfying. The characters' lives are full of palpable
detail, handled deftly by the author. Palecek's greatest talent lies in
his ability to depict the ordinariness of life. Many of the  scenes are
in real time, grinding along at the pace of the characters' days, full
of the irrelevant details that mortals must endure. Coffee cups are
handed across tables, food is chewed, doors slammed, children listened
to, movies rented, trucks thrown into reverse in muddy driveways. After
a few chapters of Palecek's tender attention to the characters' small
lives, readers will feel the same itch for revolution that the
characters give into. By the end of the book, we are so familiar with
the characters' bodily space and personal experience that it is almost
physically painful when the [end comes]. It is a good read….
The
action in this book is far removed from the powers that govern it,
making the characters even more helpless, not only to effect change,
but even to defend their very lives. People planning to challenge the
status quo should be informed about the difficulties they will
potentially face. They should be aware that powerful, well-organized
opponents await them, and that even their allies have a built-in
resistance to change.
You can order your copy of “Joe Coffee’s Revolution” at www.iowapeace.com. Scroll to the bottom of the page.
Mike
Palecek lives with his family in northwest Iowa. He was the Iowa
Democratic Party nominee for the United States House of
Representatives, Fifth District, in the 2000 election. He received
67,500 votes on an anti-military, anti-prison, pro-Hispanic platform in
a conservative district. His novel, "Joe Coffee's Revolution," gives a
fictional account of his campaign experience.
Tuesday, March 1
A Blog for Iowa Reader’s ‘Call to Arms’
by
Linda Thieman
on Tue 01 Mar 2005 04:22 PM CST
A Blog for Iowa Reader’s ‘Call to Arms’
by Sean Holzinger, Cedar Rapids
Recently,
I read an article from the New York Times that really got me. Do you
remember when President Ronald Reagan proposed the Strategic Defense
Initiative, otherwise known as “Star Wars?” Now it’s known as the
National Missile Defense Program. Despite the technological
advancements this program is fraught with failure - even under a
tightly-controlled environment based on the most ideal conditions. War
is anything but ideal and it’s anything but a tightly-controlled
environment. How can we trust such a system to protect our nation from
a full-scale nuclear assault?
I read a
book a long time ago entitled “Through The Eyes of The Enemy,” written
by GRU (Soviet Military Intelligence) Col. Stanislav Lunev and another
book entitled “Biohazard,” written by Dr. Ken Alibek. Dr. Ken Alibek
was second in command over the Soviet Union’s biological weapons
program. It was known as Biopreparat.
In Col.
Lunev’s book, he spelled out the GRU’s capacity to build nuclear suit
case bombs. All the items needed to build such a bomb could easily be
brought into this country via diplomatic pouch. Diplomatic pouches are
not subject to customs inspections since they fall under the laws of
diplomatic immunity. In Dr. Alibek’s book he spelled out the success
that the Soviet Union had in regards to biological weapons, such as
weaponizing the Marburg virus. Marburg is a very close cousin to Ebola.
Within 14 days every major organ in your body is liquefied. They were
also successful in creating a biological cocktail weapon known as a
Chimera weapon. They would take a strand of DNA from two biological
pathogens and impregnate them into another, such as taking a strand of
DNA from anthrax and a strand of DNA from smallpox and injecting them
into something like Marburg.
This
leads me to this question. Would a National Missile Defense System
protect us from a chemical, biological, or radiological attack? If the
money ($50 billion) is to remain in the Defense Department, shouldn’t
it be put to solutions to more practical threats we face as a nation?
After September 11, 2001, Shrub and Rumsfeld said we are in a new kind
of war. I agree with them, we are. However, I have a question for Shrub
and Rumsfeld. If we are in a new kind of war, why are you stuck in the
past with a Cold War mentality? With their "misleadership" and apathy,
we face greater threats now than ever before. Syria and Iran now have a
mutual defense alliance agreement. Iran may now be a nuclear threat as
well as North Korea. And the Middle East is a more dangerous powder keg.
Thanks
to Shrub, the noose is tighter around our neck and we have very few, if
any, tools at our disposal to alleviate the situation that would make
us safer. This band of pitiful people that now occupy the White House
have proven themselves as diplomatic failures and our military is
stretched beyond all limits.
As a
Progressive, I’ve been told by the media and the talking head class on
the television talk shows, radio talk shows and the corporate-driven
printed press that I’m weak on national security and national defense.
In fact, I take a back seat to no one when it comes to the defense of
our great nation. The blood of the “Minute Men” runs through my veins
as my ancestors fought in the Revolutionary War. I think it’s High Time
that we Progressives answer the Clarion Call of our Nation before it’s
too late. Let us be the “Minute Men/Women of our time. We should take a
back seat to no conservative.
We have
a proven track record in regards to the defense of our nation.
President Wilson was the one with the idea of the United Nations
[League of Nations]. It was FDR that saved the world from fascism. It
was Kennedy that saved the world from the brink of nuclear
annihilation. It was Carter that put human rights at the corner of our
foreign as well as defense policies. So say we all!!
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