The New "Open Threads" Topic

Here's a great little idear that came in from the grassroots today (thanks, Bev!).  Why not create a topic in the Topics component in the right sidebar of Blog for Iowa for posts that don't really fit any of the current main blog posts but, nevertheless, need to be seen?

This will work a little bit differently from the way Blog for America uses open threads.  Of course, Blog for America has a much higher traffic volume than we have, so they need frequent Open Threads.  (More on that tomorrow, as I file our one-month anniversary report!)

We, on the other hand, as Bev pointed out, need a place to go where off-topic posts will not get lost.

So, I've added the Topic "Open Threads" and you can go there to post about anything at all.  That will be the central location where we can keep track of such things.

Of course, I would like to add, just FYI, that I do see all the new posts in the comments each day because there is a feature on the control panel that lists all the comments in chronological order.  But the Open Threads topic would allow everyone else to track idears, too.

So, consider this the Open Thread.  For easy access, this post will appear on the main blog and in the Open Thread topic at the same time.

One last note to facilitate using Blog for Iowa: when clicking on a link on Blog for Iowa, use this system to open the link into a new window.

Right click, Open in New Window

That way, you won't have to reload the blog over and over again.

The Revolution Is Here

Back when the Baby Boomers took to the streets to register their discontent, the standard phrase was "when the revolution comes. . . ." We were speaking about that time in the not-too-distant future when the people would win their struggle and the oppressors would be overthrown. Well, the revolution's here. How do you like it?

Of course this ain't the revolution we were hoping to tip our hat to. But this revolution is just as profound as the Industrial Revolution was to the 18th and 19th centuries, resulting in a sea change in the way people in modern societies live, work, recreate and even die.

Permit me to get a bit academic on you. In this country, the Industrial Revolution had its most profound effect on rural America, resulting in the migration of millions from farms to cities. In 1890, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, there were roughly 63 million Americans; 43 percent were farmers and farm laborers. By 1920, as industrialization took hold, that figure had dropped to 27 percent. By 1970, the U.S. population had risen to 204 million, and the farm population had plummeted to barely 5 percent. Millions of people had to find new ways of living. For those who couldn't cope, lifestyles and lives were shattered.

Which brings us to the new revolution. Historians may call it the Technological Revolution, and its impact may not be totally realized for centuries. It began when automation started eliminating manufacturing jobs, and it's still continuing, evidenced by the outsourcing of white-collar jobs. We don't know when this revolution will end (probably when the next one begins). But we do know that like the Industrial Revolution, it includes the potential for massive political and social upheaval.

So far we have escaped catastrophic unrest, because previous leaders have been wise enough to recognize when innovation and change was called for. The Great Depression could have destroyed America but for President Franklin Roosevelt's government interventions such as social security, unemployment insurance and federally sponsored public works projects that put people back on payrolls. (Oddly enough, the right has excoriated FDR's New Deal reforms as anathema to capitalism, but they just might have saved the Republic.)

Today's society is a witch's brew: unease created by the ongoing Technological Revolution, plus a mighty dollop of fear resulting from 9/11 - which Georgedick Bushcheney has shamelessly exploited. Ever since 9/11 Bushcheney has played the role of Mommy, saying to us, "Hold my hand, trust me, love me, and it'll be all right."

But kids soon learn not to trust parents who tell them everything's all right when it's not. So it's up to progressives to show everyone that we know how to get it together. Because the revolution sure as hell is here.

Contact Ira Lacher here.

Fundraiser for Paul Johnson
Iowa City - May 15

Iowa City is the setting for a fundraiser for progressive Paul Johnson, the Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives from Iowa's 4th Congressional District.

When:   Saturday, May 15 - 5:00-6:00 p.m.

Where:  River Room 1, Iowa Memorial Union
            Madison and Jefferson Streets, Iowa City

$25 suggested contribution
RSVP 319-338-0695

To read more about Paul Johnson, visit http://www.votejohnson.org.  The site is still under construction, but nevertheless, there is plenty of great information for you to base your decision on.

The Great Turtle Island vs....Islam?

If Richard Clarke is correct, that overcoming Middle East terrorism is all about understanding and eventually helping to ease the ideological battle within Islam, we are lost.

"It is a war that we are losing," Clarke, author of the book Against All Enemies, wrote in Monday's New York Times, "as more and more of the Islamic world develops antipathy toward the United States and some even develop a respect for the jihadist movement.

"I do not pretend to know the formula for winning that ideological war," Clarke goes on. "But I do know that we cannot win it without significant help from our Muslim friends, and that many of our recent actions (chiefly the invasion of Iraq) have made it far more difficult to obtain that cooperation and to achieve credibility."

The reason is obvious: Americans don't know or care about cultures, much less religions, other than our own. America as a Judeo-Christian nation is advanced, modern-thinking and progressive, and everyone else is a sand-eating camel jockey, spear-throwing cannibal, rice-growing slant-eye and you can add your own hateful epithet. Even Europeans aren't immune. And we haven't even begun to talk about other religions.

For all the talk about "Judeo-Christian," Judaism is marginalized, as witness to the Supreme Court's ruling several years back that a Christmas tree is not a religious symbol, kids' sports leagues thinking nothing about scheduling events on Jewish holidays, much less Friday nights and Saturday mornings, and other examples.

Islam? Despite the rush to understanding following 9/11, almost half of Americans still equate Islam with violence. A poll taken last September by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life found that 44 percent of Americans say that Islam is more likely to encourage violence than other religions. (Obviously, Americans know little or nothing about the Crusades, Western Christian Europe's war on the Muslim "infidels," which may have given rise to anti-Westernism more than a thousand years ago.)

What's most chilling about the poll is that instead of listening to what Clarke is saying - that the key to overcoming Middle East terrorism is through understanding of Islam's divides and how to appeal to Muslims who don't believe in the jihadists - we are retreating farther into our shells like turtles. Fewer of us believe we know "some" or "a great deal" about Islam than before the attacks, and fewer people say Islam and their own religion have a lot in common.

Clarke ends his essay with a call to common sense: "We all want to defeat the jihadists. To do that, we need to encourage an active, critical and analytical debate in America about how that will best be done." But the only thing we're seeing is intolerance. A sampling of popular best-selling titles about Islam on Amazon.com includes: Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia  by Ahmed Rashid; Holy Blood, Holy Grail by Michael Baigent; and Onward Muslim Soldiers: How Jihad Still Threatens America and the West by Robert Spencer. Confidence is not high.

Contact Ira Lacher here.

Howard Dean's New Websites

The new websites are up for Democracy for America and Blog for America.  A big improvement, I'd say.  Lots of colors, and well organized.

DFA 2.0 also has their first BAT up.

Take a look, and take a swing, if you are so inclined.

http://www.democracyforamerica.com

http://www.blogforamerica.com

According to Tom McMahon today, the Commons/Get Local/Deanlink feature is being revamped, too, and ought to be up and running soon.

Although, weirdly, there is no picture of Gov. Dean on either of the sites.  Maybe Dean Rapid Response should turn that into an action item!  Well, if they don't, I imagine the Crushies for Dean site will.

Astounding News Out of DFA!

Excerpts from Chat with Tom McMahon

Here are some choice excerpts from today's chat with DFA Executive Director, Tom McMahon.  When a link becomes available to the entire transcript, I'll add it here.

State and Local Groups

FreeSpirit: What is the timeframe for implementing DFA2 plans for establishing communication channels with local groups?

Tom McMahon : We are in the process of doing this right now. I have begun reaching out to different groups and individuals, and plan on doing chats like this and blogging on a regular basis. Starting next week we plan on doing ongoing conference calls w/ grassroots supporters in each of the states. More importantly, I am interested in all of you telling me how we can open up communications between DFA II and the grassroots community.

Supporting Candidates

Tom McMahon : We plan on providing on our website links to candidate websites within states that we feel Dean supporters should give serious consideration to supporting. We also plan on working in conjunction with State organizations to find the best candidates.

Tom McMahon : Gov Dean will be stumping for not only Congressional candidates, but will also stump for local and state level candidates as well. We feel strongly that every race is equally important from the US Senate races all the way down to local council races.

Tom McMahon : Our primary goal in the near future is to begin raising money for DFA 2 and begin channeling campaign resources and tools to individual candidates. Closer to the fall is when we are likely to ask for donations to particular candidates. We want to focus on finding candidates to oppose every right wing republican and giving them the resources to win.

Tom McMahon : Governor Dean is committed to going to Texas to stump for Richard Morrisson since getting rid of right wingers like Tom Delay is what Democracy for America is all about.

DFA's Future Goals

Tom McMahon : DFA2's goal involves looking to the future and getting quality candidates to run at the state and local level so that in a few years, they can run for higher offices and be formidable candidates and improve their chances of getting elected.

Tom McMahon : Since it's the long-term goal, it will give all of us plenty to do for the next 8-10 years.

Tom McMahon : We will continue to try and help each and every campaign that embraces the DFA2 goals.

Note from Linda:  Well, it seems to me that this is rather astounding news.  Just think of the implications for what DFIA can accomplish with this kind of support from Democracy for America.  Suddenly, it makes some of these long-shot races here in Iowa look not quite so quixotic.  Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines!

CHAT LIVE NOW with Tom McMahon

You can chat LIVE from 1pm to 2pm (Iowa time) with Democracy for America's Executive Director, Tom McMahon.

Click here to go directly to the chat.

Federal Report: Iowa Fails Abused Children
WHOTV.com

Des Moines - According to a new federal report, America isn't doing enough to protect its children.  Investigators have given all 50 states a failing grade when it comes to child welfare programs. States have been given 2 years to improve or risk losing federal funding.

Where does Iowa stand in this federal report?  Iowa only meets 2 out 7 federal standards focusing on safety and well-being of children.  The most alarming fact is a dramatic increase in child-abuse cases.

Iowa is failing its children according to a federal review conducted over the last 3 years.  The report finds the biggest problem in Iowa is children are taken into state custody only to be put back into an abusive situation. "There are often re-abuses which cause the child to bounce back into the foster system," says Roger Munz, Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS).  "We do poorly on that measure."

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National Playground Safety Week
KWWL.com

It's National Playground Safety Week and some schools in eastern Iowa are celebrating their new, safer playgrounds made possible by $500,000 in state funding.

Cedar Heights School in Cedar Falls cut the ribbon on a new playground today.  It features a new rubber surface made out of recycled tires.  It's some of the newest technology designed to keep your kids safe when they fall.

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