Lieberman's Remarks: Special Comment by my 72-year-old friend

By GottaLaff

My impassioned 72-year-old Twitter pal, who goes by the name 42bkdodgr, would like to share his feelings about Joe Lieberman's recent comments about stripping people of their U.S. citizenship and more. I am more than happy to oblige.

But first, a personal note from 42bkdodgr:

Many of you may wonder why I chose to use the “ 72 year old friend” as the introduction to my Special Comments. I selected the moniker so readers could see that from my age and life experiences I give a different perspective to the issues of today.

Now for his Special Comment:

Lieberman’s Remarks

As an American, I am furious and greatly upset by the remarks made Tuesday by Sen. Joseph Lieberman, that an American citizen should automatically lose their citizenship if accused of participating in a terrorist attack against our country on behalf of another country.

Sen. Lieberman, you seem to have forgotten that in the 1930s Jewish citizens of Germany were stripped of their citizenship because the Nazis considered them enemies of the state. Why is what you are proposing any different from what Hitler and the Nazis did?

Sen. Lieberman, when sworn in as Senator, you took an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States; yet here you are willing to tear the basic fabric of the Constitution apart by your proposal. Our legal system was founded on the basis “innocent until proven guilty”, are you now proposing that it be like many other countries in the world “guilty until proven innocent”?

Sen. Lieberman by your actions, you are unknowingly giving aid and comfort to our enemies; they will see your proposal as our country is beginning to lose its moral values.

It is times like these, that our faith in the Constitution is tested, yet you and many conservatives in the country are willing to sacrifice the basic principles on which this country was founded, by trampling the Constitution.

Sen. Lieberman your remarks and recent remarks made by Senators McCain and Graham regarding the reading of Miranda Rights and Second Amendment Rights for those on the terrorists watch list boggles the mind.

What I see happening in this country, is a group of people wanting to take this country back to the 18th Century when the rights that many Americans currently enjoy didn’t exist.

I sincerely hope you have time to rethink your position and not try to present a bill to Congress based on your remarks.

Many thanks again for another thorough, relevant piece, 42bkdodgr. You often say what many of us are thinking and feeling, and we thank you for your unique perspective.

VIDEO: President Obama eulogizes civil rights icon Dorothy Height

By GottaLaff

President Obama delivers the eulogy at the memorial service for civil rights icon Dorothy Height on Thursday at National Cathedral. (The Washington Post)

If you saw this live, then you were undoubtedly as welled up with tears as I was.

I can't seem to track down my favorite part of the part of the eulogy. If I find it, I'll update.

Live Streaming Video- Obamas attend funeral for civil rights icon Dorothy Height, President delivers eulogy

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

"I didn't go through all of that just to flash my boobs at a stranger...Security is an illusion."

By GottaLaff

One of our commenters wrote something very personal under the post about the airport scanner invasion of privacy ("Airport worker photographed screen as female passed through scanner"). She has generously allowed me to use her heartfelt comment as a post.

Please take the time to read the whole thing:

I am a sexual assault survivor and I have been told by the TSA that while we can request a wanding (to avoid a pat-down), if we opt out of going through the body-scanner, they cannot guarantee the personnel or a wand would be available. The TSA rep told me that she could not guarantee that if I refuse to go through the scanner, that I won't be subjected to a pat-down. This is totally unacceptable to me and this incident in the UK only reinforces my fears.

I fought my attacker off, who had a gun by the way. I got out of it without being raped and with only a bad burn on my forehead where he tried to shoot me (either the gun didn't fire properly or it was a blank, but as soon as I realized I wasn't dead I went berserk on the guy and he gave up). I didn't go through all of that just to flash my boobs at a stranger who might have a camera in his or her pocket, or to be touched by a TSA agent, every time I have to fly. The lack of control over who sees or touches my body is what is bothering me, and sexual assault victims like me, the most.

I am starting a consulting project in Chicago in a few weeks and I am seeking therapy for the trauma just thinking about this is making me go through. I feel violated all over again. I know I got off easy because I was not actually raped or hurt badly like other sexual assault victims. I can only imagine what they are going through, if it is making me feel this horrified.

Security is an illusion. This technology is not even proven. Our government should not force its citizens to comply with such an egregious form of violation of our constitutional right to privacy if there is not guarantee it will work.

I have decided to take a stand. On my first return flight home, I will wear a one-piece bathing suit through security. I am a former competitive swimmer and while my body is not as toned as it used to be (having twins will do that to a woman) I feel comfortable being in front of people in my bathing suit (not a bikini - and for those of you who would like to make racy comments - please refrain because it is people like you who make me want to jump through my computer and commit bodily harm).

I want to take back control over what I will allow people to see and this is the only thing I can think of doing. My racing suit will show everything a scanner or a pat-down would detect and it would provide me with a way to control who sees what parts of my body. I will respectfully ask that they perform a visual scan, without touching me. If they will not comply, I will not fly, but I will take a stand.

Thank you for sharing that with us. You are a survivor, and security is indeed, an illusion.

Video- Smokey Robinson, Jennifer Hudson and The Blind Boys of Alabama Perform at the White House

Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, John Mellencamp, Smokey Robinson, Jennifer Hudson, Will.i.am and more artists took the stage earlier this week in Washington, DC, for a Black History Month special titled “In Performance at the White House: A Celebration of Music from the Civil Rights Movement,” which aired last night on PBS. The concert was originally scheduled to take place on February 10th, but the threat of the northeast blizzard forced the production to film one day earlier. All of the performances are streaming now on the PBS Website.

Video- President Obama Pretends To Sing At White House Jamboree

Headline proudly lifted from Wonkette.

Barack and Michelle Obama welcomed a dazzling line-up of stars to 'In Performance at the White House: A Celebration of Music from the Civil Rights Movement".

Why I cried

By GottaLaff

I don't know if it was due to feeling weakened and vulnerable from a week of having the flu, or a legitimate emotional response to what has occurred over the past few weeks, but at 7:30 this morning, I broke down in tears. I sobbed. It was way too early in the day to feel much of anything, let alone an avalanche of despair. But I did.

Or was I mourning? With each L.A. Times page that I turned, my eyes filled with more tears, no matter how hard I tried to talk myself out of them.

With each report on the Supreme Court's decision, with every sentence about the current Prop 8 court battle, with every photo of the devastation of Haiti, with every twist and turn in the health care "debate", with each postmortem of the uncanny Coakley loss to a former centerfold whose policy positions frustrate me no end, with every military death, with each inept, biased piece of news reporting, I found myself succumbing to tears that I tried like crazy to resist.

My sons are facing a world of things I can't even fathom. Where I had hopes, I now have anxiety. Where I thought the world would be safer for them, I see growing dangers that I thought would dissipate over time, not intensify. Health care hurdles, hatred, financial roadblocks, discrimination, wars, political obstruction, you name it.

Who do they turn to for justice? How can fairness be achieved? What happened to judicial objectivity? Who can provide that for them? Certainly not the highest court in the land.

Five people have changed my kids' futures. Five people have made voting seem nearly meaningless. Five people who should be standing up for fairness and democracy have instead slammed a whole lot of doors in my children's faces. And mine. And yours.

And so I cried. I cried because I, along with so many of you, continue to fight, and continue to lose to irrationality. We do what we can, both individually and collectively. Speaking for myself, I donate, I tweet, I post, I Facebook, I try to get a message out, I vote, I scream, I explain, I quip. But it hasn't been enough.

I feel smaller than I've ever felt, more insignificant even though I'm reaching thousands on a daily basis. I fight as hard as I can, and give as much as I can give, but this latest body blow from SCOTUS really hurt.

And so today I finally broke down and cried.

However...

As impotent as I feel, and I suspect many of you are feeling the same way, I have no intention of giving up. None.

I'll continue to donate, tweet, post, Facebook, vote, scream, explain, quip. But just like you, I need to vent sometimes in order to unload the negative and start all over again with the positive.

I hope you understand, I'm not whining. I'm not surrendering. I'm not walking away. I haven't lost my resolve. I'm simply sharing the overwhelming rush of emotion I had this morning, because if I didn't, my head would explode.

And having done that, it's time to start over, breathe, and do everything in my power to make the world better for my kids, myself, and anyone who wants to join me.

Video- Rep Foxx Lies About Civil Rights & Democrats

Sounds like North Carolina has "revised" their textbooks like Texas has tried to. She is such a piece of work.
Thanks to FDL for the vid.

Video- New Ad Links Health Care Reform To Civil Rights Struggle To Mobilize Minorities

Some rather interesting takes on this over at Greg's, what do you all think?

Major Civil Rights Group Writes CNN a Letter: Remove Lou Dobbs

By GottaLaff

(via BuzzFlash)

Lou Dobbirther is becoming a bit of a drag on CNN. The President of the Southern Poverty Law Center, a major civil rights group, wrote a letter to CNN President Jon Klein, and it went a little something like this:

Dear Mr. Klein,

As an important and respected news organization, CNN has a special responsibility to ensure the accuracy of its reporting. We have written to you before about our concern that Lou Dobbs repeatedly fails to live up to this standard in his reporting on immigration. Now, Mr. Dobbs is again trading in falsehoods and racist conspiracy theories, questioning President Obama's American citizenship.

On the July 15 edition of "Lou Dobbs Tonight," Mr. Dobbs questioned the official certificate provided by the president and the State of Hawaii and complained that President Obama has not made public the "original document." On his radio program, Mr. Dobbs has repeatedly questioned the president's fitness for office, demanding he "show the documents" and, at one point, jokingly suggesting President Obama may be "undocumented."

The truth about the president's birth is not in dispute. It has been verified by Factcheck.org, among many other serious news organizations, and his official birth documents have been made public. CNN itself has repeatedly reported on the falsity of the claims of the "birthers," and the network's esteemed legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, recently called those claims "a joke." As you know, even Mr. Dobbs' frequent fill-in anchor, Kitty Pilgrim, debunked the birthers on the July 17 edition of Mr. Dobbs' own CNN show. The fact that Mr. Dobbs suggests otherwise on CNN -- while real CNN reporters tell the truth -- is both deplorable and an embarrassment to all serious journalists.

As he has in several other instances, Mr. Dobbs, in taking up the birthers' claims, is adopting an unsubstantiated conspiracy theory that originated on the radical racist right. As Gawker.com has reported, this particular conspiracy theory was first developed by an open anti-Semite and circulated by right-wing extremists who cannot accept the fact that a black man has been elected president of the United States. Among its adherents was neo-Nazi James von Brunn, the alleged murderer of a security guard at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., this June. Von Brunn had helped spread the birthers' claims on the Internet and attacked the "dishonest & conspiratorial Media" for not taking them up.

This is not the first time Mr. Dobbs has pushed racist conspiracy theories or defamatory falsehoods about immigrants. We wrote you in 2007 to bring to your attention his utterly false claim that 7,000 new cases of leprosy had appeared in the United States in a recent three-year period, due at least in part to immigrants. (The real number, according to official statistics, was about 400. Mr. Dobbs took his spurious information from the late right-wing extremist, Madeleine Cosman.) In addition, Mr. Dobbs has reported as fact the so-called Aztlan conspiracy, which claims that undocumented Mexican immigrants are part of a plot to "reconquer" the American Southwest. He has suggested there is something to a related conspiracy theory that claims the governments of Mexico, the United States and Canada are secretly planning to merge into the "North American Union." He has falsely claimed that "illegal aliens" fill one third of American prison and jail cells. And Mr. Dobbs has routinely disparaged, on CNN's air, those who have had the integrity to point out the falsity of these and similar claims.

Respectable news organizations should not employ reporters willing to peddle racist conspiracy theories and false propaganda. It's time for CNN to remove Mr. Dobbs from the airwaves.

Sincerely,
J. Richard Cohen
President

And what did J. Richard do?

TVNewser reported today that Jon Klein sent a memo to group of Dobbs' staffers explaining in no uncertain terms that the whole "birthers" story is "dead."

In part, Klein writes, "It seems this story is dead- because anyone who still is not convinced doesn't really have a legitimate beef." Klein asked CNN researchers to dig into the question of why Obama couldn't produce the original birth certificate. The researchers contacted the Hawaii Health Dept. and confirmed that paper documents were discarded in 2001 when the department went paperless. That reportedly includes Pres. Obama's original birth certificate.

H/t: Ellen

Civil Rights Group Mobilizing On Dawn Johnsen's Behalf

By GottaLaff

My original posts about Dawn Johnsen's potential here, and the GOP filibuster threat here. But... and there's nearly always a but... thankfully, civil rights groups are all over this:

While it's not clear how serious Senate Republicans are about filibustering Dawn Johnsen's nomination as chief of the Office of Legal Counsel at DOJ, civil rights groups aren't waiting to find out.

Marge Baker, executive vice president of People for the American Way says, "We're going to do whatever we can to mobilize our members to make sure they're in contact with their representatives."

She says they'll be armed with two stories: that, contra Sen. John Cornyn, Johnsen is eminently qualified to head the OLC [...] and that GOP calls for a filibuster are hypocritical given the Republicans' usual contention that the president should have broad leeway to choose his advisers and cabinet officials, and their opposition to the filibuster for judicial nominees.

Baker:

"It's not ok to filibuster a lifetime appointment but it is ok to filibuster a temporary one?" She asked rhetorically. "It should be backward."

Speaking of backward... scilbuphsuR.

Florida Gov’t Cancels Tea Party Fearing ‘Too Many Attendees’

By GottaLaff

From the Department of Neener Nanner:

See, Big Government is infringing on all those Tea Parties, see, because they're so gosh-durned popular that they have to be shut down. The injustice! Whatever happened to free speech and freedom to spontaneously assemble?! Why... why... this is absotively unAmurkin!

[T]today in Cape Coral, Florida [...] city officials canceled a tax day tea party gathering because they “feel too many people could show-up.”

That’s right, folks, the God-given, long-held American right to assemble and protest the actions of our government has been canceled due to too much popularity of the protest.

And what does it come down to? Money. You see, the city officials want an insurance policy taken out so that organizers can cover any loss that might occur as a result of the rally. And those insurance policies cost hundreds of dollars.

The tea party organizers of Cape Coral, though, aren’t the only ones to find this restriction of their free speech and rights to assemble. Tea party organizers all across the country have begun to find out just how difficult, if not impossible, it is to be “allowed” to exercise their God-given right to speak their minds against government excess and criminality. City governments all across the country are charging fees for “permits,” forcing organizers to pay out huge sums for “insurance policies,” and binding tea party organizers in all sorts of government red tape.

In many instances, organizers are being told that they aren’t “allowed” to hold rallies on government property. Imagine that? We, the taxpayers of the city/state/federal government aren’t “allowed” to gather on property that our own taxes paid for.

Thinking back... hmmm. What does this remind me of? Oh yeah! This , this, this, and this.

And then there are the “permits” required to reserve the day, arrange the police protection, and clean up afterward. Often those “permits” can only be applied for at certain times a year, precluding any spontaneous assembly. Also, these “permits” can be denied with no reason stated quashing at birth any plan to exercise the right of assembly.

Welcome to our world.

Here one might wonder how it is that we so often see those lefties appearing on our TV sets engaging in their many organized protests? Don’t the flotsam and jetsam of the far left seem to have large protests all the time? One might be drawn to imagine that the government is involved in some sort of grand conspiracy to allow those with anti-American sentiment, the moonbats of the left, to march with impunity. But, hold the tinfoil hats, won’t you? Because the wackjobs of anti-war ilk and the shrill, circus acts of the Code Pinkos are expected to cut through the same red tape the tea party organizers have been confronted with. The lefties are just better at it.

Well, yeah. ::blushing:: There is that superiority factor. But, ahem, that aside, see previous links to a few little setbacks we've experienced.

Your new president is one of them. Being part of government, these leftie protest marchers help write the rules, being intimately associated with government they are quite well informed about what is required and how to get around or satisfy those rules. [...]

Americans do not have the rights they always thought they did. There is no right to protest government. There is no right to assemble. The people have no rights at all to voice their displeasure. Shut up people. Go home. Nothing to see here. Go quietly back to your IPods and DVDs. Big daddy government will take care of you. The Obemmessiah will decide what’s best for you. Don’t worry your little heads. Oh, and thank you for your payments on April 15th.

Oh, sorry. For a minute there, I thought they said Bushemessiah. Big Bush daddy government. My bad. That was so 2001-2008 ago, remember? We've got the bruises, scars, illegal search and seizure marks, and prison records to prove it.

Put away the tar and feathers, won’t you? There’s a nice fella.

Wow.

Oh, and what's that saying about the shoe and the other foot?

Attorney General Holder promises to restore DOJ civil rights

By GottaLaff

I hear music. An "unfinished symphony". Prelude to Justice, maybe? Symphony Number 44 in A Minor(ity)? It doesn't matter. Standing O regardless:

“Under my leadership, the Civil Rights Division will fight discrimination and inequality just as fiercely as the Criminal Division fights crime,” Holder promised in the sanctuary that often served as a local headquarters for civil rights activists in the ’60s. “Under my leadership, in all that it does, the Civil Rights Division will reflect the spirit of the movement that inspired its creation.”

Speaking about law enforcement — seen by some blacks as more foe than friend — Holder said he would strive for the police to “salute the residents of every neighborhood and for every resident to salute them in return.”

“That will require the Justice Department to work hand in hand with police and communities to get neighborhoods engaged in promoting their own protection,” he said. “That won’t happen unless we relentlessly pursue an end to the scourge of racial profiling of African-Americans, Muslims and other Americans that alienates citizens from their own communities.”

Holder, the first African-American ever to serve as the nation’s chief law enforcement officer, hinted at the once-unlikely prospect of a black attorney general standing near where white police officers clubbed young civil rights marchers.

“Few would have predicted, on that dark day 44 years ago, that a black man would become our nation’s 44th president,” Holder said.

Of course, the Politico piece reprises the comments discussed here. Let's not ever let that go, okay? Let's bring it up as often as possible, countering a positive message of progress and civil rights. Let's not allow an opportunity go by without doing that.

At 104, woman is living U.S. history at inauguration

I can't even imagine how wonderful this will be for her.

CLEVELAND — Ella Mae Johnson hasn't just paid attention to American history, she's lived it.

And come Jan. 20, she'll be part of the crowd to witness President-elect Barack Obama make history.

At 104 years young, the black woman from Cleveland plans to celebrate her 105th birthday by attending Obama's inauguration a week later. Johnson was invited by Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat from Cleveland, at the suggestion of Johnson's retirement home.

"It is fitting that she should mark her 105th birthday this January by witnessing the swearing in of our nation's first African-American president," Brown said in a statement. "I am honored to be part of her journey."

(snip)

She said Wednesday that although she admired the incoming president, she was more impressed with Obama's young family, his willingness to show affection to wife Michelle and daughters, and with his roots to Kenya.

"This affects young people in a way that's different," Johnson said. "I think it's good for us all. He's leading the country in the direction of taking care of each other."

Odetta, Voice of Civil Rights Movement, Dies at 77

Sad.

Odetta, the singer whose deep voice wove together the strongest songs of American folk music and the civil rights movement, died on Tuesday at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan. She was 77.

The cause was heart disease, said her manager, Doug Yeager. He added that she had been hoping to sing at Barack Obama’s inauguration.

A judge has cleared the way for gay marriages to begin in Connecticut today.

That's the headline from CNN, more as soon as I get it. Man, two steps forward, one step back.

LA Times-

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- Gay marriage is legal in Connecticut now that a judge has cleared the way.

New Haven Superior Court Judge Jonathan Silbert ruled at a brief hearing today morning that gay and lesbian couples now may pick up marriage license forms at town and city clerks' offices statewide.

Many gay and lesbian couples are planning ceremonies today.

The judge ruling followed a historic decision by the Connecticut Supreme Court.

The high court ruled 4-3 on Oct. 10 that same-sex couples have the right to wed rather than accept a civil union law designed to give them the same rights as married couples.