WonderGrunion
WonderGrunion's JournalMike Michaud: Yes, I am gay. ‘But why should it matter?’
http://bangordailynews.com/2013/11/04/opinion/mike-michaud-yes-i-am-gay-but-why-should-it-matter-2/When I entered the race for governor, I did so because I love the state of Maine and am tired of seeing it dragged in the wrong direction. There was never any question that it would be a tough race, but I know I have the vision, the experience and the commitment to lead Maine forward.
Once I jumped to an early lead in the polls, I knew it was only a matter of time before individuals and organizations intent on re-creating the uncertainty that led to our current governor’s election three years ago would start their attacks. Already my opponents have tried to blatantly distort my support for a woman’s right to choose and my tireless commitment to our nation’s veterans.
So I wasn’t surprised to learn about the whisper campaigns, insinuations and push-polls some of the people opposed to my candidacy have been using to raise questions about my personal life. They want people to question whether I am gay.
Allow me to save them the trouble with a simple, honest answer: “Yes, I am. But why should it matter?”
If Rep. Michaud wins, he would be Maine's first openly gay governor, but more importantly he would unseat Teabag dumbass Paul LePage.
And Mike, it shouldn't matter.
Mike Michaud for Governor 2014
Saying you like your fraud insurance plan at $69 per month
is like saying you like cheap toilet paper
All you are left with is a handful of crap.
The Myth of Minimum Wage Killing Jobs
The only argument conservatives ever use against raising the minimum wage is that it will kill jobs and job growth. They rely completely on this scare tactic to terrify low-information voters into voting against their own self-interests. I recently did some research to see what happened to unemployment after each increase in the minimum wage and this is what I found:
Contrary to the conservative narrative, unemployment actually decreases a majority of the time when the minimum wage is increased. The few times that unemployment increased after a raise in the minimum wage can only be used to claim there is no correlation between minimum wage increases and job growth. The idea that there is statistical proof that raising the minimum wage kills jobs is laughable at best.
Monthly unemployment statistics were not available until 1948 but yearly unemployment when the minimum wage was established was 19.1% and I think we all know what direction it went after that.
Poll: Many Americans Believe President Obama is No Different Than a Killer Whale
http://www.forwardprogressives.com/poll-many-americans-believe-president-obama-is-no-different-than-a-killer-whale/Recently, the Sheridan Heritage Endowed Endeavors Publication polled Americans on a few questions related to President Obama. And as it turns out, about 20% of the respondents polled believe President Obama is no different than an orca—more popularly known as a killer whale.
...snip...
Staggering! Until I found this poll I never realized just how many similarities there are between President Obama and killer whales. It’s no wonder why many Americans fail to see any differences between the two or believe that they’re exactly the same.
But of course, there was never any poll done by the Sheridan Heritage Endowed Endeavors Publication where Americans claimed that they believe there’s absolutely no difference between President Obama and a killer whale—because it doesn’t exist. Nor was there any poll done where 20% of the people that responded believed President Obama and killer whales were exactly the same.
...snip...
But President Bush didn’t:
Improve our economy—8 years of his policies crashed it
Find, and order the killing of, Osama bin Ladin
Save the American auto industry
Reform student loans
Pass landmark health care legislation which gave Americans with pre-existing conditions coverage (some for the very first time)
Reform credit cards
Pass Wall Street reform
Bring our country out of one of the worst recessions since the Great Depression
Repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell
Publicly endorse marriage equality for same-sex couples
Expand stem cell research
Pass the Lilly Ledbetter Act
Pass the Hate Crimes Prevention Act
Do more to push this country toward green energy alternatives than any President in history
Preside over the largest reduction in year-to-year deficits since World War II
Create nearly 7 million private sector jobs in his first 5 years in office
Just to list a few of Obama’s bigger accomplishments. There are many more.
Is it wrong to think that Snowden is a criminal AND the NSA needs massive reform?
I think the facts are simple that in addition to the press releases Snowden gave to Greenwald, he also stole computers with classified information. Those are serious crimes, regardless of what else Snowden made public.
Having said that, it appears that the NSA is obeying the law as written in regards to FISA warrants. It also appears those warrants are granted too liberally and with little or no review or oversight. That's a bigger problem with the law than the NSA itself. I would like to see congress step up and revisit the law and curtail some of the authority the NSA now has.
The big schism on DU appears to be over exactly what we objected to about Bush
When it came to Bush and spying, we objected to the "Warrantless Wiretapping" he was engaged in.
If your objection was to the "Warrantless" part, you don't have as big an issue with President Obama forcing the NSA to go through the FISA courts. If you objected to the "Wiretapping" part, then it is easy for you to say that Obama is continuing Bush-era policies.
When it came to Bush and war, we objected to Iraq because it was a "War Based On Lies".
If your objection was to the "Based On Lies" part, you probably had no issue with the invasion of Afghanistan and applauded President Obama for ending the war in Iraq and completing the objective of Afghanistan by taking out bin Laden, just like Howard Dean. If your objection was to the "War" part, then President Obama is as much a puppet of the Military Industrial Complex as Bush ever was.
There has been some discussion lately about how we were all united under Bush, but now "It's OK If A Democrat Does It". But the things that you may have thought we were untied against aren't necessarily the things we all objected to.
No whining about DU, just trying to add some perspective.
If the NSA gathers up all the phone calls and e-mails, then Julian Assange publishes it on Wikileaks
Is the information then clean because it is now free?
Some were asking how we could be so sure Chained CPI would never be accepted by Repukes
Look at today's vote on background checks. 90% of the public approves and we can't even get all the Democrats in the senate to support it much less the Repukes. As long as it's a bill proposed by President Obama, there is no chance of it ever getting out of congress.
President Obama realized this when he put forward Chained CPI. It was simply put out there to highlight Boener's proposal.
The "Fiscal Cliff" vote is over, did we cut Social Security?
As I said in this thread:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022053713
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