Texas Longhorns with newborn calf in Bluebonnets

Texas Longhorns with newborn calf in Bluebonnets

Please note I have a new phone number...

512-517-2708

Alan Maki

Alan Maki
Doing research at the LBJ Library in Austin, Texas

It's time to claim our Peace Dividend

It's time to claim our Peace Dividend

We need to beat swords into plowshares.

We need to beat swords into plowshares.

A program for real change...

http://peaceandsocialjustice.blogspot.com/2013/03/a-progressive-program-for-real-change.html


What we need is a "21st Century Full Employment Act for Peace and Prosperity" which would make it a mandatory requirement that the president and Congress attain and maintain full employment.


"Voting is easy and marginally useful, but it is a poor substitute for democracy, which requires direct action by concerned citizens"

- Ben Franklin

Let's talk...

Let's talk...

Friday, February 27, 2009

Another Vice-President enters the "Drop-Kick" controversy

I got a phone call from Vice-President Walter Mondale concerning my blog posting:

Joe Biden and the "drop kick"

Yes, the Senator from Minnesota, who in his feeble condition, came out of his cave long enough to encourage George Bush to bomb North Korea, is now on a crusade to make sure I properly hyphenate words.

The Vice-President (Mondale) told me that he is a stickler for details and that if I am going to pretend to be in the big leagues and write about football I should at least learn to hyphenate the words properly.

Okee-dokee Mr. Vice-President... I stand corrected:

I should not have written "drop kick;" I should have written "drop-kick."

My apologies to Mr. Mondale.



Then I got another call from Minnesota Republican State Representative Tony Cornish one of the more inteeligent and astooot members of the Minnesota State Legislature...

Tony said, "Maki, I got you this time. You are dead wrong. You don't know what you are talking about. Wayne Gretzky is not the home-run-king; Wayne Gretzky is a hockey player. If you don't know a hockey player from a baseball player you can't know much about anything else. I listened to many a hockey games in my day while hiding in the bushes trying to catch poachers."

Thank you Representative Cornish for catching my important mistakes; at least I didn't call Alan Greenspan an economist. Stay on the job. Minnesotans continue to appreciate your wisdom and hard work. I must say though, you didn't catch the missing "-" that Walter picked up.



Then there was this comment from Mrs. Barbara Distasio--- friend of the distinguished health care writer Kip Sullivan and former Attorney General Mike Hatch; Barbara claims to be the wealthy capitalist heiress to her family's fortune...

"Maki, you are a pervert."

I guess I won't be on the list of this wealthy philanthropist to receive her tax-deductible contributions from.



One writer, Pamela Johnson, from Iowa, wrote:

"Maki, I don't believe Vice-president Biden ever said anything about a drop kick. You made this all up to embarrass the President."



Actually, hundreds of people wrote asking me for a link to the story I was writing about so they could read for themselves what Biden said about the "drop kick;" or as Vice-President Mondale has pointed out, "drop (with a hyphen) kick."

A lot of people requested the link to the news story I used where Joe Biden made reference to the "drop-kick." Actually I read a few... here is one, there are many others... just do "a google" on... < Joe Biden and Drop-Kick >:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iWlfSGuSO1C1a8fpjnM7x11RPpLgD96IM47O0

This is the actual story at the link above:


Biden: Stimulus to 'drop-kick' US out of recession


WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday that the Obama administration's stimulus program is designed to "drop-kick" the economy out of its deep recession, declaring he is determined to ensure the $787 billion "gets out the door quickly and wisely."

Meeting with top members of President Barack Obama's Cabinet, Biden warned that he plans to use "the moral approbation of this office" to make sure the huge fund of stimulus money is put to use creating jobs and rebuilding American infrastructure.

Peter Orszag, the president's budget director, sitting to Biden's right in the White House Roosevelt room on Wednesday, said he intends to insure that Americans know how the money is being spent through the recovery. gov Web site, which he said already is receiving some 3,000 hits each second.

And Earl Devaney, the newly named chairman of stimulus plan accountability board, disclosed he will push each of the 50 states to name a watchdog to oversee spending.




I did get a kick out of the e-mail I received from Robert Schultz of Pittsburgh who had this to say about Earl Devaney, the guy who exposed the sex for oil scandal in the Department of Interior who is now supposed to keep an eye on the bankers. Apparently Devaney was with Biden when he let loose with the "drop-kick"... Mr. Schultz had this comment...

"The sex for oil scandal went on long enough. Devaney must have waited until his Viagra prescription ran out."




Then there was this e-mail from Sean Brown in my box this morning:

-----Original Message-----
From: Sean Brown [mailto:seanmcbrown@gmail.com]
Sent: Friday, February 27, 2009 3:28 AM
To: Alan Maki
Subject: Re: Joe Biden and the "drop kick"

Maki, you're a moron. And this thing you sent out really underscores it all. Do you think you're helping? You've got some good points, but they get lost in the gibberish.

till next time,
Sean


My response to Mr. Brown:

First, Mr. Brown, allow me to apologize to you and all middle class readers of my blog for putting you through such an ordeal.

All I can say in response to Sean Brown is "I am truly sorry."

I apologize to Mr. Brown for complicating President Barack Obama's "stimulus package."

I hope I haven't broken the President's concentration in trying to get his foot on the ball as he continues to drop-kick in scoring that big point.

Perhaps Mr. Brown is correct; I included way too much "gibberish."

I should have just come right out and told it the way it is:

President Barack Obama's "stimulus package" doesn't have a snowball's chance in hell of helping the economy recover because military spending torpedoed any chance of success.

Now the question is...

Will the American people give Obama another chance to "drop-kick"... should I be doing a poll?



And, as far as all the "gibberish" Sean Brown complains about; I assume he like many other people didn't know what a "drop-kick" is anymore than I didn't know Wayne Gretzky was a hockey player not a slugger. (Gees, does anyone catch that pun?)

Anyways... for those wanting to work their way through the "gibberish" as Sean Brown did in the e-mails I sent out here you go... here is where all the controversy around Vice-president Joe Biden's remark using a complex hyphenated word--- Drop-Kick--- all began with this one e-mail:



On Thu, Feb 26, 2009 at 8:36 PM, Alan Maki wrote:

--- On Wed, 2/25/09, Alan Maki wrote:

From: Alan Maki

Subject: Joe Biden and the "drop kick" ... oh, oh, did someone flub up the play?

To: rep.al.juhnke@house.mn, rep.bill.hilty@house.mn, rep.dave.olin@house.mn, rep.tom.anzelc@house.mn, rep.tom.Rukavina@house.mn, rep.tony.sertich@house.mn, rgettel@uaw.net, sdaniels@usw.org, sen.david.tomassoni@senate.mn

Date: Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Senator Tomassoni, could there be a "drop kick" in hockey I am not aware of?

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Joe Biden and the "drop kick"

Joe Biden said that Barack Obama's stimulus package was intended to be a "drop kick" intended to stimulate the economy and get us on the road to recovery.

However, Biden didn't mention the possibility or odds of success for a "drop kick."

Someone might want to check out the odds; Obama and Biden are gambling with our money.

Has anyone seen a smiling bookie lurking around the White House grounds?

I wonder when the Minnesota Vikings last accomplished a successful "drop kick."

Yikes!

Could it be Obama and Biden intended to punt and the quarterback got his signals crossed?

Alan L. Maki




--- On Thu, 2/26/09, Alan Maki wrote:

From: Alan Maki

Subject: Re: More on: Joe Biden and the "drop kick" ... oh, oh, did someone flub up the play?

To: Out_Of_The_Frying_Pan@yahoogroups.com, 'blehto@mnaflcio.org', amy_berglund@levin.senate.gov, "tim carpenter" , eliot.seide@afscmemn.org, jscannel@aflcio.org, medea@globalexchange.org, mnaflcio@mnaflcio.org, mzweig@notes.cc.sunysb.edu, "Ted Pearson" , peter.makowski@mail.house.gov, rep.al.juhnke@house.mn, rep.bill.hilty@house.mn, rep.dave.olin@house.mn, rep.tom.anzelc@house.mn, rep.tom.Rukavina@house.mn, rep.tony.sertich@house.mn, rgettel@uaw.net, sdaniels@usw.org, sen.david.tomassoni@senate.mn, "Rabbi Arthur Waskow" , william.pitt@truthout.org

Date: Thursday, February 26, 2009, 9:49 PM

More on: Joe Biden and the "drop kick" ... oh, oh, did someone flub up the play?

I have received so many e-mails since my posts to many list serves with my Biden and his "drop kick" comment yesterday I cannot ever hope to respond to each one individually even though I have tried... they just keep pouring in... some people liked my analogy, some thought I was being too hard on Biden and Obama, many who don't care about football didn't know the difference between a "drop kick" and a "punt" so my analogy was lost on them.

Below is my explanation of the "drop kick" highlighted in yellow for those who want to know what a "drop kick" is... those who know can proceed beyond the yellow highlight:

Anyways... my football analogies.

I couldn't resist... most of the e-mails I sent out went to people who I know like football and would understand.. . but I got such a chuckle out of what I wrote I figured I would send it out more widely and see if many people caught on. Most others didn't. I don't really care for football myself but when I read this really stupid remark Biden made, my playing football as a kid just came back to me and I thought it was funny.

Ok, here goes...

A "drop kick" is probably about the most risky play in football and the play with the least chance of having any success for scoring a point.

The person with the ball has to let the ball drop and hit the ground one time and when it bounces up he has to kick it though the goal posts.

It is such a difficult play it has only been successfully accomplished once in professional football history here in the United States (as far as I know; I haven't followed football for years--- if I am wrong I am sure someone will correct me)... I think it was successfully accomplished back in the 1940's or 1950's; if I would have saved my old football cards I could tell you for sure.

I think most people (and probably Biden) thought he was referring to a "punt;" where you just drop the ball and kick it before it hits the ground.... its a very common play.

Biden must have figured "drop kick" was better for a sound bite.

So, here you have the Vice-president of the United States who traveled all over the country talking football for small talk "with the boys" now comparing the chance of success for stimulating the economy with a play so rare, with so little chance of success, most any bookie would be delighted to take any bet without hesitation feeling pretty confident the play will fail..

I just found it hilarious that Biden would choose a play with such little chance of success to compare their "stimulus package" to.

Wouldn't you expect Biden to at least use a well known winning play? Or, maybe he was sending out a subliminal message? Maybe he is even chuckling to himself over the analogy and is just so arrogant he figured no one would catch his own joke? Could he and Obama be laughing at us suckers?

It was just my humor in saying I think Obama's "stimulus plan" will fail.

Hopefully Biden knows a little more about economics than football... but that is probably a long shot, too, that any bookie would be happy to take a bet on.

What it all boils down to for working people is you probably have a better chance buying a lottery ticket to solve your financial problems than waiting for Obama's "stimulus package" to kick in because I really doubt this "drop kick" is going to be a success.

Could it be Biden and Obama already know their "drop kick" has failed?

The more I think about it the funnier it is... my grandson has his football here and I was looking at it remembering as kids playing football out in the field behind our house how we always tried the "drop kick" hoping we would be successful in doing what no professional football player had ever done except one time.

Now I look at that football with its odd shape and wonder how the heck would anyone ever think they can "drop" a ball shaped like that on the ground one time and expect to accurately kick it through the goal posts... gees, after the ball hits the ground most of the time you never know which direction it will bounce in... combine that with pulling your leg back far enough to have the power to kick the ball between the goal posts... you have to be lucky just to get your foot in contact with the bouncing football.

Gees, I should see if some cartoonist will buy my idea... a cartoon with Biden and Obama trying to "drop kick" their "stimulus package" in the form of a football might be the best cartoon from the Obama years.


I'll get off the football analogy as far as politics and economics because I really don't know much about football... I just played it for fun when I was a kid... I just couldn't resist the "drop kick" comment by Joe Biden... for all I know he was talking about some other sport I know nothing about, either. I just figured since he always talked football "with the guys" on the campaign trail I just couldn't let that one get by.

It just left me laughing... I maybe shouldn't have joked about such a serious problem.

I detest George Bush and the Republicans and everything they stand for as much, possibly more, than most people... and I certainly agree that it is a relief that Bush/Cheney and PART OF THEIR GANG is gone.

However, I think it is quite dishonest to claim that most people voted "FOR" Barack Obama and Joe Biden when in fact most people I talk to can't stand looking at either one of them any more; any more than they could stand looking at George Bush.

People voted for Obama and Biden and the Democrats to end eight long, dreadful years of Republican rule... had Snoopy been the Democratic candidate he would have defeated John McCain... for sure my loveable, amiable dog Fred could have trounced McCain.

The sad fact of life though, and I need make no analogies here, is that the Democrats--- including Joe Biden and Barack Obama--- were part of the problem, too; right along with Bush and Cheney just about every step of the way.

As rotten and corrupt as Bush and Cheney are it simply is not true that Obama and Biden inherited this mess as if they were not major players in creating it along with most of those Obama has chosen to keep around him. There are those who may not like hearing this but it is true none-the-less.

In their better moments the Democrats acquiesced and went along with the Republicans... in their worst moments they supported Bush and the Republicans; I think the list of their dirty needs need not be listed because they are well known... if you request me to do so, I will.

Like you, I support the few good things that Obama has done.

But, these good things are very few and far between--- I think we have been made aware of them all... a three fingered man could easily list them... four fingers for sure would do.

The bad things Obama has done, already, are numerous. In his short time in office he has taken our country and our people (and the rest of the world) where no human society should ever have ventured to go... our country has been sold out--- lock stock and barrel, to Wall Street's bankers and coupon clippers when we could have bought out the entire works for much less using their own stock market to accomplish this and owned the whole kitten and caboodle to boot.

Barack Obama and Joe Biden began their journey in shame--- silence, as the Israeli killing machine both Democrats and Republicans have funded, in an act of bi-partisan unity, for years; this Israeli killing machine went into Gaza Strip and butchered and slaughtered the Palestinian people who are only trying to survive under the most racist and intentionally imposed poverty-stricken and deplorable conditions--- many have no access to drinking water, sewers running beneath their feet, no electricity and only the fuel which could be smuggled in through deep and dangerous tunnels as wars for oil are being fought--- a ghetto or reservation, intentionally created just like any Indian reservation in the United States or the Warsaw Ghetto--- and, for the same reasons.

But, it is worse than the silence.

All the facts point to Obama and Biden knowing the pogrom would take place and what it would consist of--- in Biden’s case as the Chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations he was most certainly in on the planning of this most cowardly and despicable, murderous rampage; and Obama probably was, too; fully complicit with Israel and Bush and Cheney in these heinous crimes against humanity--- there were no war crimes... this was a slaughter of defenseless people--- children were actually pre-planned to be among the intended targets and victims.

Now Obama sends Hillary Clinton forth with an offer of 900 million dollars supposedly aimed at rebuilding the Gaza Strip--- well, think about this... it cost over 650 million dollars to build the first phase of the Mall of America here in Bloomington, Minnesota--- back in the early 1990's... I do not have to travel to Gaza Strip to know that that figure is an insult to any thinking person--- to the Palestinian people it is like rubbing salt into their many wounds.

I would venture to guess that it cost U.S. tax-payers many times more than 900 million dollars to fund this dirty deed--- a twenty-two day pogrom--- carried out by the Israeli killing machine. If any American politician thinks I am wrong, let's have the details... or, are these acts of dirty deeds falling into the same category as not requiring oversight and accountability like in the mortgage banking industry... completely unregulated with no accounting required?

And, by the way, the figure for the Mall of America did not include the cost of public infrastructure--- roads, SEWERS or ELECTRICITY... but, like in Gaza Strip the price of a bottle of water at the Mall of America is about equal to the cost of oil. Like in Gaza Strip, in the Mall of America, there is no free drinking water... at least not fit to drink.

So Barack Obama and Joe Biden don't enter our discussion with such clean hands, in my opinion, when it comes to human rights issues... needless to say, there were many Democrats who sat in silence as the heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto were being slaughtered by the Nazis in a similar manner. And Roosevelt even led the opposition to supporting hundreds of young Americans--- over fifteen hundred--- who died fighting Hitler's fascist friend, Franco, in Spain--- they died because they ran out of bullets to fight back. I notice no one is suggesting arming the Palestinians to fight for their freedom against the Israeli killing machine... but neither are we tying the hands of these Israeli butchers behind their backs as should be done to these criminals and carted off to trial for crimes against humanity.

Even though I have worked inside the Democratic Party for over thirty years, including serving as Chairs of several County committees and very recently as an elected member of the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party's State Central Committee, I have never been thrilled or proud of the Democratic Party... I work in it as I work in any other mass organization or labor union or civil rights, peace or environmental organization for the purpose of pushing forward things that will make life better for working people. And my position has always been to fight for each and every reform that makes life better for the working class in any little way... in my opinion, anything that contributes towards making our world a better place to live in for us all should be encouraged and fought for.

On the other hand, I also believe that anything aimed at making life worse, and more miserable, misery which others profit from should be fought against with the same tenacity and without any excuses.

Again, I see the issue of school lunches raising its ugly head... children--- who can't afford a hot lunch--- are fed cheese sandwiches like common criminals incarcerated in the county jails.

I am willing to push Obama and Biden to do what is right by the people; but, just because they do a few things right does not give them a license to do many wrongs, nor should it give them some kind of free pass to do things wrong and remain silent in the face of injustice... again, the Israeli killing spree and pogrom carried out against the Palestinian people while Obama stuck his nose in the air passing demonstrators asking him to speak out on the way to get his daughter an ice cream cone.

I would point out that George Bush and Dick Cheney never promised us anything other than wars and misery for the many as the wealthy few they represented got even richer. If they didn't say it this bluntly, their actions made it obvious.

Now here we have Obama who campaigned on a theme of "hope" and "change" and "yes we can" making people think we could look forward to a new and more progressive vision for America. Most people never believed his hype; like Obama used them to climb his way to the top, the American people by and large used him to get rid of the Republicans without any illusions Wall Street's strangle-hold on our country would end... even if many liberals, progressives and leftists from the middle class suffered from such illusions and delusions; as many still do--- although their numbers are quickly shrinking to only the few who work for organizations whose funding comes from the great philanthropists who derived their wealth from exploiting the rest of us. There names are numerous--- from Tom Hayden to Linda Burnham.

To be sure Barack Obama has his cheerleaders in great numbers--- those who will fawn and dote over his every word as he sticks his nose in the air and shakes his finger. There are those who will purchase Obama paraphernalia of every sort and kind from baseball hats to t-shirts and even condoms... the same way they do with their favorite football, basketball, baseball, hockey or soccer team.

People can get into Barack Obama rallies for free--- provided they leave their "single-payer" and "end the wars now" signs outside; well I got news for all these Obama fans among whom are these middle class intellectuals who tried to provide Obama with the cover of being liberal, progressive, left and even socialists and in some cases they compared him to Che Guevara even though nothing can be further from the truth.

The news I have for these middle class people is that the working class along with real liberals, real progressives, real leftists, real socialists and real communists had a candidate at one time who not only filled football stadiums and Madison Square Gardens to the brim... he even charged for admission to fund a real progressive people's campaign. His name was Henry Wallace who was intent on carrying through the real New Deal reforms on a platform of peace and social justice--- many of the CIO unions rallied to his side. Because of the price these people paid, today Barack Obama can laugh off charges of being called a socialist, Marxist and communist by the likes of Sarah Palin or Rush Limbaugh.

What do working people get now in return for their having voted for Barack Obama?

A few bones tossed our way to appease us in an attempt to keep us quiet while Obama gives away our entire country for generations to come; a give-away to Wall Street bankers and coupon clippers while we are facing the worst economic nightmare in human history and everything that poverty entails.

I think I have a right to ask, "Where is '"The People's Bailout'?" "The People's Bailout" should have come before the bailout of any banks or corporations... certainly before funding the Israeli killing machine, the frauds and crooks of the home mortgage industry who took advantage of people who only dreamed of having a place called: home. An auto industry which has taken the wealth created by its North American labor force and invested in huge, modern plants in Brazil, China, Thailand and Korea and now the robots and the slave labor cannot purchase back what has been produced.

Let me remind you, it was Democrats in both the Senate and the House who shamefully voted to approve the brutal, murderous carnage of the Israeli killing machine as they saw for themselves--- with their very own eyes--- the atrocities being committed as they voted unanimously and overwhelmingly to support this most grotesque pogrom against the Palestinian people in Gaza Strip while not one single Democrat in the House or Senate has brought forward legislation for "The People's Bailout."

Here in Minnesota a handful of state legislators now have "The People's Bailout" moving through legislative channels... but where is their major opposition coming from? Republicans? No. The opposition is coming from Democrats!

You may read the legislation here:

http://thepodunkblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/original-message-from-alan-maki.html

Obama should have brought forward legislation for a full and complete moratorium on foreclosures and evictions as his very first act in confronting this economic mess--- not just a moratorium for the middle class few, but for everyone. It would have been so simple (it still is)... he only needs to look into the television cameras and wiggle that big index finger of his, cock his head to the side with his nose in the air and say, "I'm not going to stand by as people lose their homes when we know of the widespread corruption that has taken place in the mortgage and banking industry; until we sort through what has taken place and we get this money which has been fraudulently stolen from home buyers back and the crooks have been prosecuted and these mortgages renegotiated; people are going to stay put in their homes and those who were evicted should return to their homes if their homes are still vacant. These foreclosures and evictions are going to stop this very day." And his handlers bring to the representatives and senators this legislation for their approval. Simple as that. Roosevelt did it before. It has been done. No big problem, why has Obama refused and reneged?

Obama has appealed to the "middle class" for his support. Some people thought he was talking about the working class... we now know this was not the case.

Everything he has done has been done with an eye towards satisfying the "middle class" in a way that will shut them up as he turns the country over to Wall Street. Politically there is a reason for this. In spite of its relatively small size in this country, the middle class has among it the most educated liberal elements.

I do not want to insult anyone here; but, to most middle class intellectuals--- many involved deeply in liberal, progressive and even left causes--- the problems of working people are something to write about while they do not have to live the problems they write about. This is very important to note because for these middle class intellectuals there is no URGENCY in solving the problems of the working class. I have noted this time and time again. In struggle after struggle.

I will give you a very recent example from just this week.

A nice middle class woman who lives near me and is active with me in the Democratic Party came to me and said, "That hog barn down the road from me smells terrible. Will you help us work up a resolution for the upcoming precinct caucuses banning hog barns in residential areas?"

This is a woman who for over eight years I have been asking her to support our efforts to organize casino workers who are forced to work in smoke-filled casinos at poverty wages without any rights in the Indian Gaming Industry... mind you, an industry created by the Democratic Party through "Compacts."

At the last state convention I asked her to "second" my motion for discussion on this issue... she told me, "Alan, give it a rest; your time will come. We have more important things before us at this convention." I did not argue with her... after I pushed a resolution supporting single payer universal health care through the convention which Amy Klobuchar proceeded to walk out of the convention seeking the nearest reporter from Minnesota Public Radio to tell them in no way, shape or form did she support this single-payer resolution and wouldn't be bound by it... I got up and left the convention, too.

But now, here comes this nice liberal-minded middle class lady (who by the way refused to second my motion for an immediate end to the war in Iraq because she was afraid her son over there might become the target of officers in retaliation for her action) comes asking me to support a resolution controlling family farming through imposing restrictions on "smells" from hog barns.

So I politely asked her, "Who was there first: you or the farmer?" She got up from my kitchen table where we had been having coffee and left. I had insulted her.

She did not care about the livelihood of the farmer down the road from her any more than she cared about the two-million casino workers in this country, many of whom are women of child-bearing age, who are forced to work their shifts in smoke-filled casinos eight, ten, fourteen hours a day. But now, it becomes urgent that I help her get a resolution through the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party because the smells from hogs interfere with her pristine country life as her husband teaches horticulture at the local college.

I have had similar experiences over and over and over again with middle class people... as long as their problems are being addressed by politicians every thing is alright... the heck with working people.

Well, working people in this country now have some very urgent and pressing problems--- joblessness, home foreclosures and evictions, they can't afford health care and no longer have access to health care, the water they drink is contaminated, the air they breath in the workplace and in the communities where they live is unfit to sustain human life without creating health problems, illnesses and disease, their children are being shipped to war to kill workers in other lands instead of being sent to college, the right to organize unions has been restricted to the point where workers fear signing a union card and more states than not have "at-will hiring, at will firing" legislation so even if "card check" passes this Congress and is signed by Obama it will mean nothing for working people in twenty-eight states including Minnesota and even Michigan.

In fact, there are issues both you and I agree on that Obama has done good; the fact of the matter is in all these cases Democrats had the power to say "No" to Bush and Cheney and they did not.

And Bill Clinton was responsible for more deregulation and freeing these money grubbers to ply their trade without oversight than any Republicans ever did. Bill Clinton gave rise to the mortgage scandal and he increased military spending beyond the military-financial-industrial complex' wildest dreams. His support for the Israeli killing machine was second to none, and he still defends it as does Hillary.

The health insurance industry supported Bill Clinton to the hilt... one only has to look at where his campaign contributions came from... its a matter of public record.

I would agree that Obama has leveled the playing field for the real middle class... but, for the working class that playing field has more holes, bumps and pitfalls than ever before--- compliments of Barack Obama and his "drop kicker" Joe Biden.

Nothing short of Obama supporting a federal people's bailout modeled on "The Minnesota People's Bailout" will convince me that Obama intends to get us off this road to perdition that is becoming a living hell for so many people... and no matter what Obama does for working people in this country will not give him a license to wage wars against the working people in other countries nor fight wars for oil, poppies or regional domination.

The "game plan" is to create a peaceful and prosperous world we can all live together in cooperation in... I am probably playing a different game, that has different rules... or do those in power just change the rules as they go along so that they always win, and we always lose?

Anyways, I don't know much about any sports except baseball and I can't even tell you how many home runs Wayne Gretzky hit last season. So, just forget about Joe Biden's recent political "fumble" it probably meant nothing.


--- On Wed, 2/25/09, Alan Maki wrote:


From: Alan Maki maki_alan@yahoo. com

Subject: Joe Biden and the "drop kick" ... oh, oh, did someone flub up the play?

To:
Date: Wednesday, February 25, 2009
The "game" has gone on for years now.

We are just about done playing.

Capitalism is all played out.

I see no chance of "success" for Obama's recovery plan because it is a plan designed to allow Wall Street to profit from our problems right to the end of the game.

What we need to do is have a People's Bailout to hold us over until we can choose a different game.

Personally I think the socialist solution is the way to go but I know there are many other anti-capitalist ideas out there.

We have allowed the same people to call all of the plays for so long allowing them to think for us and look at the mess they have gotten us into; we need to start doing our own thinking based upon what is good for all of us not just a wealthy few... and we had better start this dialogue quickly because I think this road to perdition might be shorter than it appears.

Alan L. Maki





--- On Wed, 2/25/09, Alan Maki wrote:
From: Alan Maki
Subject: Joe Biden and the "drop kick" ... oh, oh, did someome flub up the play?

To: rep.al.juhnke@ house.mn, rep.bill.hilty@ house.mn, rep.dave.olin@ house.mn, rep..tom.anzelc@ house.mn, rep.tom.Rukavina@ house.mn, rep.tony.sertich@ house.mn, rgettel@uaw. net, sdaniels@usw. org, sen.david.tomassoni @senate.mn
Date: Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Senator Tomassoni, could there be a "drop kick" in hockey I am not aware of?

Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Joe Biden and the "drop kick"
Joe Biden said that Barack Obama's stimulus package was intended to be a "drop kick" intended to stimulate the economy and get us on the road to recovery.

However, Biden didn't mention the possibility or odds of success for a "drop kick."

Someone might want to check out the odds; Obama and Biden are gambling with our money.

Has anyone seen a smiling bookie lurking around the White House grounds?

I wonder when the Minnesota Vikings last accomplished a successful "drop kick."

Yikes!

Could it be Obama and Biden intended to punt and the quarterback got his signals crossed?

Posted by Alan L. Maki