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pantsonfire
pantsonfire's Journal
pantsonfire's Journal
April 13, 2016
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brian-hanley/bernie-sanders-has-alread_b_9671406.html
Bernie Sanders Now Received More Individual Campaign Contributions Than Obama’s Entire 2008 Campaign
Backed by one of the most well-organized grassroots campaigns in American history, Sanders has raked in close to 7 million individual donations. That’s more unique contributions than Obama received during his entire 2008 campaign.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brian-hanley/bernie-sanders-has-alread_b_9671406.html
April 13, 2016
Politifact rates Clinton's claim about Vermont's gun pipeline to NY "HALF TRUE"
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/apr/12/hillary-clinton/look-hillary-clintons-claim-about-vermonts-gun-pip/Our friends at the Washington Post Fact Checker gave Clinton’s claim Three Pinocchios out of a maximum of four -- not a very favorable score. But we’ll take a fresh look here.
But it’s important to note that Clinton said "per capita." So we divided the per-state gun haul by the state’s population and confirmed that Vermont does indeed have the highest rate per capita, thanks to its tiny population.
However, the academic experts we checked with echoed the concerns from the Fact Checker article -- that the raw numbers matter much more than the per-capita numbers do.
Clinton’s specific statistical computation is accurate. But beyond the numbers, Clinton’s claim is misleading for a varied number of reasons. From a policy perspective, experts say raw numbers of gun flows are likely a better measure. And while the ATF data set is the best we have, Clinton’s bold comment glosses over some important caveats about the data, including whether the guns it captures are representative and whether they line up with "trafficking." These caveats call into question whether Vermont’s gun policies are having the effect Clinton suggests.
The statement is partially accurate but leaves out important details and context, so we rate it Half True.
But it’s important to note that Clinton said "per capita." So we divided the per-state gun haul by the state’s population and confirmed that Vermont does indeed have the highest rate per capita, thanks to its tiny population.
However, the academic experts we checked with echoed the concerns from the Fact Checker article -- that the raw numbers matter much more than the per-capita numbers do.
Clinton’s specific statistical computation is accurate. But beyond the numbers, Clinton’s claim is misleading for a varied number of reasons. From a policy perspective, experts say raw numbers of gun flows are likely a better measure. And while the ATF data set is the best we have, Clinton’s bold comment glosses over some important caveats about the data, including whether the guns it captures are representative and whether they line up with "trafficking." These caveats call into question whether Vermont’s gun policies are having the effect Clinton suggests.
The statement is partially accurate but leaves out important details and context, so we rate it Half True.
April 12, 2016
538 had the Clinton Polls-Plus forecast at >99% with an average polling lead of 21 points.
Michigan may have been an anomaly, but it raises hope looking at the current forecast of NY they are projecting.
April 12, 2016
http://www.denverpost.com/election/ci_29755029/colorado-democrats-admit-mistake-that-cost-bernie-sanders
Colorado Democrats admit mistake that cost Bernie Sanders key delegate
Denver Post uncovers that Democratic Party told Hillary Clinton's campaign about caucus counting mistake, but kept public and Bernie Sanders camp in the dark.
Hillary Clinton's campaign discussed the error with state party officials last week, but the Sanders campaign apparently didn't realize the issue until being informed Monday evening by The Denver Post.
Hillary Clinton's campaign discussed the error with state party officials last week, but the Sanders campaign apparently didn't realize the issue until being informed Monday evening by The Denver Post.
http://www.denverpost.com/election/ci_29755029/colorado-democrats-admit-mistake-that-cost-bernie-sanders
April 12, 2016
Sheldon Wolin lays bare the realities of our bankrupt democracy, the causes behind the decline of American empire and the rise of a new and terrifying configuration of corporate power he calls “inverted totalitarianism.”
From 1981 to 1983, Wolin published Democracy: A Journal of Political Renewal and Radical Change. In its pages he and other writers called out the con game of neoliberalism, the danger of empire, the rise of unchecked corporate power and the erosion of democratic institutions and ideals. The journal swiftly made him a pariah within the politics department at Princeton.
“You don’t win,” Wolin said at the end of our talk. “Or you win rarely. And if you win, it’s often for a very short time....It’s not an occasional undertaking that we assume every two years or every four years when there’s an election. It’s a constant occupation and preoccupation. And the problem, as Max Weber saw it, was to understand it not as a partisan kind of education in the politicians or political party sense, but as in the broad understanding of what political life should be and what is required to make it sustainable. He’s calling for a certain kind of understanding that’s very different from what we think about when we associate political understanding with how do you vote or what party do you support or what cause do you support. Weber’s asking us to step back and say what kind of political order, and the values associated with it that it promotes, are we willing to really give a lot for, including sacrifice.”
Inverted Totalitarianism and the USA by political theorist Sheldon Wolin.
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/sheldon_wolin_and_inverted_totalitarianism_20151101Sheldon Wolin lays bare the realities of our bankrupt democracy, the causes behind the decline of American empire and the rise of a new and terrifying configuration of corporate power he calls “inverted totalitarianism.”
Inverted totalitarianism is different from classical forms of totalitarianism. It does not find its expression in a demagogue or charismatic leader but in the faceless anonymity of the corporate state. Our inverted totalitarianism pays outward fealty to the facade of electoral politics, the Constitution, civil liberties, freedom of the press, the independence of the judiciary, and the iconography, traditions and language of American patriotism, but it has effectively seized all of the mechanisms of power to render the citizen impotent.
"....Hobbes had it right: when citizens are insecure and at the same time driven by competitive aspirations, they yearn for political stability rather than civic engagement, protection rather than political involvement.”
From 1981 to 1983, Wolin published Democracy: A Journal of Political Renewal and Radical Change. In its pages he and other writers called out the con game of neoliberalism, the danger of empire, the rise of unchecked corporate power and the erosion of democratic institutions and ideals. The journal swiftly made him a pariah within the politics department at Princeton.
He saw the militarists and the corporatists, who formed an unholy coalition to orchestrate the rise of a global American empire after the war, as the forces that extinguished American democracy. He called inverted totalitarianism “the true face of Superpower.” These war profiteers and militarists, advocating the doctrine of total war during the Cold War, bled the country of resources. They also worked in tandem to dismantle popular institutions and organizations such as labor unions to politically disempower and impoverish workers. They “normalized” war. And Wolin warns that, as in all empires, they eventually will be “eviscerated by their own expansionism.” There will never be a return to democracy, he cautions, until the unchecked power of the militarists and corporatists is dramatically curtailed. A war state cannot be a democratic state.
“You don’t win,” Wolin said at the end of our talk. “Or you win rarely. And if you win, it’s often for a very short time....It’s not an occasional undertaking that we assume every two years or every four years when there’s an election. It’s a constant occupation and preoccupation. And the problem, as Max Weber saw it, was to understand it not as a partisan kind of education in the politicians or political party sense, but as in the broad understanding of what political life should be and what is required to make it sustainable. He’s calling for a certain kind of understanding that’s very different from what we think about when we associate political understanding with how do you vote or what party do you support or what cause do you support. Weber’s asking us to step back and say what kind of political order, and the values associated with it that it promotes, are we willing to really give a lot for, including sacrifice.”
All his fears for the nation have come to pass. A corporate monstrosity rules us. If we held up a scorecard we would have to say Wolin lost, but we would also have to acknowledge the integrity, brilliance, courage and nobility of his life.
April 11, 2016
Bernie Sanders wins New York in shocking primary upset.
It was a dream, but still....that'd be a nice headline to wake up too.
April 11, 2016
http://progressivearmy.com/2016/04/10/bernie-sanders-wins-missouri-after-all/
4 delegate swing, #feelthemath (every delegate counts!)
Bernie wins Missouri, #feelthebern
Bernie Sanders Wins Missouri After All
On March 15, Hillary Clinton narrowly won the Missouri primary with 49.6% of the vote, compared to Bernie Sanders’ 49.4% share of the vote. Since delegates are allocated proportionally, it was projected that Hillary Clinton would win 36 of the 71 pledged delegates, and Sanders would walk away with the other 35 delegates.
However, just like in Nevada, many Hillary Clinton delegates didn’t show up to these meetings and Bernie Sanders was able to snatch more District-Level delegates than what he was supposed to have. Reported delegate allocation by the Missouri Democratic Party shows that 681 delegates (51.4%) were allocated to Bernie Sanders and 644 delegates (48.6%) allocated for Hillary Clinton.
Sanders should get 37 pledged delegates and Clinton would get 34 delegates.
However, just like in Nevada, many Hillary Clinton delegates didn’t show up to these meetings and Bernie Sanders was able to snatch more District-Level delegates than what he was supposed to have. Reported delegate allocation by the Missouri Democratic Party shows that 681 delegates (51.4%) were allocated to Bernie Sanders and 644 delegates (48.6%) allocated for Hillary Clinton.
Sanders should get 37 pledged delegates and Clinton would get 34 delegates.
http://progressivearmy.com/2016/04/10/bernie-sanders-wins-missouri-after-all/
4 delegate swing, #feelthemath (every delegate counts!)
Bernie wins Missouri, #feelthebern
April 11, 2016
Original release from Clinton campaign chair Podesta: 'The American people can handle the truth' on UFOs
More distraction politics?
Clinton Campaign Promises to Declassify UFO Files.....not a joke.
If Clinton's elected, "she'll ask for as many records as the United States federal government has to be declassified"
Hillary Clinton campaign chair John Podesta doubled down Thursday on Clinton's promise to declassify UFO-related files if she wins November's election.
She reiterated her stance in a March appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, and Bill Clinton previously told Kimmel he had reviewed files related to Area 51 and UFOs around the anniversary of Roswell, and found nothing of note.
"I'm going to do it again," Hillary told Kimmel. "I want to go into those files and, hopefully, make as much of that public as possible. If there's nothing there, let's tell people there's nothing there. If there is something there, unless it's a threat to national security, I think we ought to share it with the public."
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/clinton-campaign-promises-to-declassify-ufo-files-20160408
Hillary Clinton campaign chair John Podesta doubled down Thursday on Clinton's promise to declassify UFO-related files if she wins November's election.
She reiterated her stance in a March appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, and Bill Clinton previously told Kimmel he had reviewed files related to Area 51 and UFOs around the anniversary of Roswell, and found nothing of note.
"I'm going to do it again," Hillary told Kimmel. "I want to go into those files and, hopefully, make as much of that public as possible. If there's nothing there, let's tell people there's nothing there. If there is something there, unless it's a threat to national security, I think we ought to share it with the public."
Original release from Clinton campaign chair Podesta: 'The American people can handle the truth' on UFOs
More distraction politics?
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