When Hillary Calls ...

No, this isn't a horror movie. This is an actual experience.
On Friday, we received a robo call from the Hillary Clinton for President campaign. Paraphrasing, it went something like this: Hi, I'm Hillary Clinton. My husband Bill and I will be at the State House for a rally on Sunday ... blah, blah, blah. Great.
Well, we deleted the message, one of four or five we have received from the woman's campaign in the last few months [Campaign calls, so far: five robo calls from Clinton's; one robo and three personal calls from Edwards' campaign; one personal call from Obama's campaign; one robo call from Richardson's]. It seems that every time she is within a 25 miles of my house, we get an invite to come "meet" her.
Of course, it is kind of a stretch to call Hillary's events "meet-and-greets" or "listening"-anythings. There isn't a lot of listening and there isn't a lot of greeting. There seems, to me at least, to be a lot of huge stadium-type events and the whole, "I'm Hillary, shut up and listen to me ..." speech. And what is this "change agent" stuff? Give me a break.
Anyhow, so I'm sitting at the house on Saturday, early evening, after a trip to the Fair which Hillary would crash herself on Sunday, and I get a phone call from a 703 area code in Virginia.
"Hello?" I ask, wondering who the heck would be calling me from there.
"Hi, is Anthony there?"
"This is Anthony."
"Hi, I'm so-and-so from the Hillary Clinton for President campaign."
Oh, a live one now. Great.
"Hi. What can I do for you?"
"Sen. Clinton will be at the State House for a rally on Sunday and she would like you to be there so she can meet you."
Yeah, right.
"Will you be attending?"
I ponder at what to say.
"Ah, no, I can't make it, sorry."
"Oh," the woman says, sounding surprised. "Well, have you decided who you plan on voting for in the primary yet?"
"No," I say, pausing for dramatic effect, "I haven't quite decided yet. But, I won't be voting for Hillary Clinton."
Silence.
"Oh, OK, well thank you."
"Thank you."
Click.
I thought for a moment after I revealed to the Clinton campaign that I would be a 4 and not a 1 or 2 on primary day, whenever that day is set, and whether that was such a good idea. It is always best not to reveal your position to the enemy. And believe me, Hillary is the enemy. Imagine her in control of the nation with all the draconian Executive Orders and laws implemented by the Bush Administration. Yikes! But, then again, if her campaign stops robo-calling my house, in order to save the 15 cents, that would be a welcome change.

OK, I fibbed

I have a new post before Monday. Here is a video collage from the annual family trip to the Hopkinton State Fair. The Fair will be running through Labor Day:

Holiday link dump

I can always tell when a holiday weekend is coming up because hits on Politizine just drop off the face of the earth. I can only assume that people are actually doing something other than looking at blogs. Imagine that. Wow.
For example, over the last 12 hours, the blog has exactly two hits on it and one of those was me. Usually, overnights, I get about 10 and change. Sometimes less, sometimes more. Some of them are overseas folks or night owl political junkies. But when those holiday weekends come, look out. The hits just drop off the face of the earth. And, ya know, that's kind of a good thing. It actually shouldn't be that surprising, especially with summer ending and all.
Since it is the Labor Day weekend, I will be doing the same thing other people seem to be doing: I'm going to be staying away from the computer for a bit. I will probably be back on Monday sometime, when I will be working for at least a few hours. Monday holidays are the worst for the publishing industry because it means you lose one of your key days to get things done.
However, Rory, one of my co-workers, came up with a cool idea: He is going to drive around in the town he covers and find people working on Labor Day. I think I may steal that idea, too, just because the holiday means were a little short on stories for the week [I can almost see the headline: Working on the worker's holiday ...].
So, for your reading pleasure, here is a holiday link dump, essentially sharing some interesting things which I haven't had a chance to post until now. Obviously, if our government attacks Iran or some other strange thing happens, I may jump back on. But for now, spend a few minutes here and then join me in shutting the computer off and living your life for a bit.

Other Smithfield boycotts and protests
This caught my eye while breezing through the Somerville Journal this week: ["Protest centers on Market Basket selling Smithfield products"]. I lived in Somerville for a few years and still like to keep up with what is going on there.
As previously noted, I and others are actively boycotting Smithfield products for other reasons: ["Boycott Smithfield Foods"].
Interestingly, or not so, I never did receive a response from Smithfield after emailing the company's corporate customer service department. I guess they don't really care about how I feel as a customer [or now, former customer, actually]. I mean, not even a form letter? Wow.
Although, they do seem to care about their corporate image: Politizine was visited by both a big law firm based out of Virginia and a corporate branding firm from Wisconsin after I posted the boycott blog entry. The corporate branding firm specifically searched "smithfield foods" on Google's blogsearch and spent just under 8 minutes checking out the site. One of their corporate links states the following: "Managing Issues: Focuses on protecting reputations and managing perceptions." Gee, how about not treating your corporate neighbors like sh*t, literally, for starters? It's interesting that Smithfield can spend time doing this but can't simply respond to my boycott email or spend the money they are spending on lawyers and corporate branding firms to clean up their messes. What backward corporate thinking in this alleged age of corporate enlightenment. Onward.

Campaign 2008
It was only a matter of time: ["Stop Her Now!"].
And, it was only a matter of time: ["Run Ralph, Run!"].
Former President Jimmy Carter gives John Edwards a wink but not a nod: ["Carter embraces Edwards on poverty, environment"].
An interesting dual endorsement here by the machinists: ["Trade unions back Clinton, Huckabee, Edwards"].
The Dems' 1988 nominee wonders about the party's chances: ["Dukakis, Once Burned, Refuses to Be Optimistic About 2008"].
Richardson, Dodd, and Biden sign onto DNC pledge: ["Democratic candidates asked to take primary pledge"].
More "proof" that Bloomberg probably won't run: ["Rather Says Bloomberg Ruled Out White House Bid"].
The Unity 08 group held an online talk about ballot access: ["Chat Transcript"].

Fox attacks Iran
I've never been a big fan of Robert Greenwald ever since I spent money on his "Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's war on journalism" DVD and realized that it was full of inaccuracies and half-truths [Plug: I've commended for being one of the only people in the media world to point out these inaccuracies, as noted here: "'Outfoxed' film misfires"]. While it is important to have the Greenwalds of the world out there watching the watchers, they need to get the story right.
However, this clip of compiled comments about the coming war with Iran he has put together is totally hilarious:

Short cuts
* Vince McMahon seems to want to do something about 'roid use in the wrestling world: ["WWE suspends TEN superstars"]. It's about time, frankly, considering all the deaths involved in the wrestling world of late. And, yes, I admit it, I will actually sit and watch wrestling for a bit if I find it out. Since I downsized to the basic cable service to save money, I don't get to watch it much. But, it is fun for a laugh or two. I joke to my wife, who still watches the soap opera she watched as a teen, that wrestling is like a soap opera geared towards males.
* For those of you who follow Boston media, you might be interested in reading this long piece from Boston Magazine: ["...And Now a Few Words from the Hosts"].
* More on the media, this link about the fabulous American Journalism Review: ["Journal's Pains Reflect Media's Malaise"]. This magazine, as well as the Columbia Journalism Review, is a must read and not just for people involved in the profession. However, I will admit that I often don't have time to read through CJR, never mind AJR. For this reason, I have never subscribed to AJR and only usually pick it up when I find it for free. It is work, if you will, to find the time to update yourself about your work! I would add that it is "big journalism" that is a dying format, it seems. Small micro publishers and local blogs are a rapidly growing sector and may be the wave of the future.
* Two important things from Dan Kennedy. First, this column from The Guardian: ["The dogs of war"] and this: ["Robert Dushman"]. Dushman was a stand up guy and I will always be grateful to him for his assistance in getting public documents when I was editor of The Winchester Star. Granted, it was what my company paid him to do. But, he was a great help.
* Lastly, I meant to post this a couple of weeks ago: ["Pentagon Paid $999,798 to Ship Two 19-Cent Washers to Texas"]. So, there is a million dollars for this but not for all kinds of other things which need to get paid for. Unbelievable.

We Need Candidates With Good Judgment

Guest Perspective/Lee H. Hamilton

All over the country, political candidates, consultants, reporters, campaign volunteers, and politically active citizens are pondering a single question: What do voters want in a candidate? Will voters be motivated in next year's elections by issues, personalities! or some intangible mix of qualities in the candidates they're considering?

Every voter makes up his or her mind differently, of course, but my suspicion has always been that most voters weigh a mix of considerations; the true "single-issue voter" is rare. To be sure, they want to know candidates' stands on the issues they care about - how they articulate them and what they consider most important. They also want to get a sense of the candidates' overall vision and where they want to take us as a nation, how they see the role of the federal government at home and whether they propose a muscular or more restrained foreign policy.

They look for less tangible things as well, qualities that would make them comfortable with a candidate. Voters generally want a sense that a candidate knows why he or she is running for office - and in particular, that it has to do with a desire to accomplish goals or to improve the common good, rather than simply to slake some person! al ambition.

Voters also want to feel good about a candidate's values, intelligence, and sensitivity to their concerns. This is why candidates who are masters of statistics and dense policy arguments sometimes leave voters cold, while candidates who can present a compelling "story" attract attention and support.

Over the years, poll after poll has suggested that voters put "integrity" and personal honesty at the top of their requirements in a candidate. My sense is that other concerns come higher. If voters like what a politician stands for or find some deeper personal connection, they can forgive a lot: Witness the re-election of Richard Nixon in 1972 or the high poll numbers Bill Clinton enjoyed despite questions about his personal conduct.

One such consideration, generally dismissed by pundits but clearly embraced by voters, is simple likability. Americans want to feel at ease with the person they're voting for. And while they won't admit it, at least not to pollsters, they take physical attractiveness into account, as ! a string of handsome presidents in the television age - John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, both Bushes, Bill Clinton - suggests.

But I have always thought that perhaps the most important trait in a political leader is invisible, or at least difficult to discern ahead of time: sound judgment. It often gets confused for intelligence, but intelligent people can misjudge affairs if they're led astray by ideology, dogmatic thinking, or even good intentions.

On the other hand, you can often tell if candidates lack good judgment: If they are unable to be wary of their own passions, inclined to dismiss other views, unsuspecting of the information they receive, or unwilling to admit that their views might be wrong, then it's a good bet they will mishandle people, events and the difficult situations that confront our nation regularly.

A great deal is at stake in this regard. Historians note, for instance, that while George Washington was neither a good speaker nor a! scintillating intellect, he possessed very good judgment about people and events. The course of our nation's history would surely have been different had he been otherwise.

Good political judgment calls for a keen sense of what will work and what won't in a given set of circumstances, and what the best means might be to achieve policy goals - in essence, it requires that leaders see the world as it is, not as they would like it to be. It demands great insight into others: who is competent and who is not, who will speak the truth to them and who will not, whom to believe and whom not to believe, who will persevere and who will fold.

It demands equally keen insight into complex situations and events, and an ability to discern possibilities for progress that others might miss. Finally, it requires a keen sense of what can be accomplished given the personalities and events in play: when to compromise, when to yield, and when to stand firm.

It is probably expecting too much that voters will be able to see all this as they go ! about choosing whom to vote for. But we can certainly hope they will try.

Lee Hamilton is Director of the Center on Congress at Indiana University. He was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 34 years.

Daily Kos August Straw Poll

Yikes, more than 29,000 respondents. Wow. That's bigger than a convention.
Here are the results: Edwards 34 [down from a peak of 40 in April], Obama 30 [back up from lower numbers previously], Clinton 9 [steady], Kucinich 8 [gaining], Richardson 6 [steady], Other 5, No Freakin' Clue 4, Dodd 2 [the poll was posted a day before the IAFF endorsement], Biden 1 [steady], and Gravel 1 [steady, 167 votes separate Biden and Gravel].

R.I.P. Richard Jewell

Richard Jewell, an American hero, if you think about it, died earlier today: ["Richard Jewell dies at 44"]. This guy, falsely labeled the "Una-bubba," by the likes of Howie Carr and others, saved a ton of lives during the Atlanta Olympic games. Then, the FBI was looking at him as a suspect and hell broke loose. In the end, he wasn't. He was a hero. But I'm sure the stress of being the "Una-bubba" didn't help him, health-wise.

Dodd gets big endorsement ... but will it really help?

I don't know. But the IAFF, representing tens of thousands of firefighters, could help in some key states. It might give Sen. Dodd a few extra points. I just don't see him getting much more than that out of this. He, frankly, is too far down in the polls at this point to really factor in. He is barely middle tier, if there was a middle tier. Richardson is middle tier, alone. Dodd is barely a blip on the screen, a point or two above Gravel. Unlike John Kerry, who was in the top tier of candidates when he received the IAFF endorsement.
Anyhow, here is some video from the endorsement:



Bubba's $$$
I was sent this link from an aquaintaince who thought I might be interested in Hillary Clinton's financial disclosures. I wasn't, really, but clicked through anyway. Here is the link: ["U.S. Senate Financial Disclosure Report"]. What shocks me about this disclosure is that Bubba is making $150k to $250k a speech! No wonder everyone wants to be president!! The post-presidency speaking fees!

I love this woman
Katherine Prudhomme-O'Brien, rightwing trollop or gadfly Goddess? You decide, but I know what I think: ["Inquisitive NH Voter Reacts to Giuliani Remark"]. This is the same lady who asked Al Gore in 1999 during a town hall meeting what he thought about Juanita Brodderick's rape allegations against Bill Clinton and Gore looked dumbfounded and said, Hmm, hmm, alot, without really saying anything. Had he had the stones and said he believed her or thought Bubba should apologize or something relevant instead of looking like a mannequin, he would have shown he was a true leader ... and champion of women's rights, too.

Short cuts
* Someone punk'd Rove's car: ["White House pranks punk Rove's car"].
* Ted Nugent was a chickenhawk!: ["Facing a draft, Nugent wet his pants"]. For all his big, bad-ass talk about machine guns and Democrats, and he found a way to get out of it. He should shut up and play his guitar.
* Interesting potential czar find: ["Find Could Be Russian Heir's Remains"].

* While this tart is out of jail after one day, the guy who stole the slice of pizza and it was his third strike, is still in jail: ["Lohan Gets 1 Day in Jail on DUI Plea"].
* A cartoon about Mormon history: ["What Mormon Theology Is Really All About"]. I love the bit about the "Mormon Jesus" and his wives and how blacks are neutral in the war between the "Mormon Jesus" and Satan and that is why they are black. Oh my word.
* Hmm, this is interesting: ["Hannity's "Freedom" concerts are reportedly a money scam"]. I wonder how much money is actually getting to the kids.
* I got a nice mention in Chris Lovett's piece on whether or not Boston should cancel its preliminary election during non-mayoral race years: ["For Council at Large: Later and Less Often"]. Civil Boston, Lovett's blog, is a good read.
* The Weekly World News is now, officially, defunct: ["Weekly World News"].

The $7M man?
Could be: ["WTKK deal may make Carr $7M man: Ratings bonuses would boost pay"].

Haiti UFO hoax?
It sure looks like it:

Is an economic collapse coming?
Let's take a look at some of the signs: First, consumers are defaulting on their credit cards payments: ["Credit-card defaults on rise in US"] and now, because of that corrupt bankruptcy bill, folks who are getting hammered by debt will never get out from underneath it.
Housing sales are crumbling, literally: ["Home Sales Hit Slowest Pace in 5 Years"] and this is one of the engines which has kept this economy growing. However, not unlike most economic growth, because it has been unregulated, it grew too fast and was corrupted by greedy loan officers selling people bad mortgages with high commissions. Now things are falling apart ... instead of steadily going along at a regulated pace in order to ensure that everything lasts and home buyers get into their homes.
Experts think it is a recession: ["US could be heading for recession"] but I wonder if it couldn't be worse. Between the hundreds of billions of dollars fleeced from consumers by the big oil companies charging way too much for gas and the subsequent increases in almost everything due to higher fuel costs, this recession could be pretty big.
One of the neat things about reading the WSJ is that you really get an incite into how these speculators see things. This morning, there was this interesting column from today's newspaper, about the leverage buyout craze: ["The Real Deal for Buyouts"]. These people seem to be sucking the life our of the credit business by buying up these businesses and squeezing every bit of life out of them.
And don't get me started on the globalism stuff. "Economists" have encouraged whole sectors of the American economy to carve out billions and send it overseas. And they really didn't think there would be some sort of backlash, financially?
Lastly, isn't it great that the Fed can basically just start printing money to make sure there isn't a "credit crunch." So, they can just start printing paper or clicking clicks on a computer screen but we can't do that for ordinary folks who are getting hammered, like those in the Katrina disaster. Up is down and down is up. The sky is green. Ugh.

What the heck is this?
"1-18-08":

September Noise Chart
Reporting stations: WAAF, WBCN, WFNX, WMBR, WMFO, WTCC, WZBC
1.Hallelujah the Hills – Collective Psychosis Begone
2.Buffalo Tom – Three Easy Pieces
3.Frank Black – The Best of Best
4.Polyethylene – What Goes On Inside Houses
5.Reports – Mosquito Nets
6.The Big Disappointments – The Big Disappointments
7.Willard Grant Conspiracy – Let it Roll
8.The Atlantics – Atlantics Live
9.The Luxury – This is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things
10.Everyday Visuals – Things Will Look Up
11.The Gobshites – Get Bombed
12.Trans Am – Sex Change
13.Various Artists – “History of Boston Rock, Here and Now”
14.Sarah Borges and The Broken Singles – Diamonds in the Dark
15.Cheater Pint – “Control Freak”
16.Dear Leader – The Alarmist
17.Frank Smith – Heavy-Handed Peace and Love
18.Three Day Threshold – Against the Grain
19.Viva Viva – Art, Sex, Death, and Time EP
20.Brown Bird – Such Unrest
21.Desolation Bells – What is Your Trajectory?
22.Frog Eyes – Tears of the Valedictorian
23.Girls Guns & Glory – Alt Country Extravaganza
24.The Lavas – Wall to Wall
25.Don Lennon – Radical
26.Prime Movers – back in line
27.Martin Sexton – Seeds
28.Various Artists – “Knock from the Underground – The Best of Underplayed Boston”
29.Dreamers Wanted – “End War Now”
30.Auto Interiors – Let’s Agree to Deceive Our Best Friends

John Edwards in Concord

John Edwards campaigned at Concord's historic White Park on Saturday afternoon.
I finally got a chance to go out and see a presidential campaign here in New Hampshire. Today, Edwards dropped into Concord, holding an outdoor town hall meeting at Concord's White Park. I figured out that my crappy digital camera actually records video although only about 5 minutes worth. So, there isn't a lot here:

Last week's Iowa debate

I missed the Iowa debate last week so I didn't offer comment on it. However, I did find this lovely debate clock, again courtesy of the Dodd campaign. And like the previous ones, this one says a lot:

John Edwards is in Concord today, holding a town hall forum at White Park. I'm going to try and go to it today and check it out. I will post photos or video or something later on.

R.I.P. Aaron Russo
About 30 minutes ago, I received an email stating that Aaron Russo, the film producer ["Trading Places," "The Rose"] and Libertarian presidential candidate, has passed away. I don't know if this is legit or not although I know he was sick. I still haven't watched "From Freedom to Fascism," although I bought it on DVD quite awhile ago. I guess it might be time to watch it now.

Update: Russo died of cancer: ["Aaron Russo dies of cancer"]. Those wishing to offer a card or donation to help offset medical expenses can do so here:

All Your Freedoms, Inc.
P.O. Box #1213
264 South La Cienega Blvd.
Beverly Hills, California 90211