The Hollywood Liberal

Condi Rice was confronted once again by Rep. Wexler on the lies the administration told to get us into iraq. Congress is prepared to vote on comtempt charges against Bush council Harriet Miers and former chief of staff Josh Bolten. Will Congress continue to persue this even after Bush is out of office, or will they just give him a free pass, as Nancy Pelosi wants so badly.

LA Times

Berkeley catches flak over Marines

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Robert Durell / Los Angeles Times

The City Council recently voted to give the group Code Pink a free parking space in front of the recruiting office.

The city’s declaration against recruiting by the Corps brings criticism from all over.

By John M. Glionna, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

February 12, 2008

BERKELEY — Under the image of a stern serviceman in uniform, the sign in the window of the U.S. Marine Corps recruiting station extols the traits of America’s armed forces: “Smart. Tough. Elite.”

This famously liberal town recently added its own descriptor: Unwanted.
In a move reminiscent of Berkeley’s 1960s antiwar protests, the City Council ignited a national firestorm last month by issuing a strongly worded declaration that blasted military recruiting techniques and labeled the Marine Corps as “uninvited and unwelcome intruders.” One council member said U.S. troops were responsible for “horrible karma,” and Mayor Tom Bates offered to help the Marines evacuate.

The return fire was swift. Several Republican senators sponsored a bill to reroute $2.3 million in federal funding from Berkeley to the Marines. In the last 10 days, city officials have received 26,000 e-mails, mostly from irate people who called the declaration irresponsible. Several council members have received death threats….

In recent days, Berkeley officials have backpedaled and Bates issued a public apology. Tonight, the council will consider a motion to remove the criticism about recruiting and express the community’s support for U.S. troops fighting abroad.

HL’s Take
Wow, what a bunch of total wusses those Berkeley city officials are. Back in the ’60’s Berkeley was the anti-war capital of the one of the 2 biggest anti-war cities in America. the University of California at Berkeley was the center of protest during that period, the city leaders who made the proclamation against the Marines probably lived in Berkley as young people, they probably went to the school. So when they said what they said agaisnt the Marines they obviously meant it. So now a few Freeper Republican yahoos who are trained to respond to anything that might go agaisnt there so called “values” (like man on man sex in airport bathrooms) respond with an all out campaign, of course it is just a few people with nothing better to do than register countless complaints each.
So what does the city leaders of Berkley do? Back down and now say they love the Marines. Where is the integrity? Those fools will get even less respect from Republicans, and military types now then they ever did. Why? because they backed down from their beliefs because they were afraid that those beliefs were not popular. No wonder the Iraq war has been going on for 5 years. What a bunch of worms. It reminds me of the scene in Full Metal Jacket. It was Christmas, and Sergeant Hartman asks Private Joker if he believes in The Virgin Mary

HARTMAN: I want that head so sanitary and squared away that the Virgin Mary herself would be proud to go in there and take a dump!

JOKER & COWBOY: (in unison) Sir, yes, sir!

HARTMAN: Private Joker, do you believe in the Virgin Mary?

JOKER: Sir, no, sir!

HARTMAN throws down the garbage can with a loud bang.

HARTMAN: Priivate Joker, I don’t believe I heard you correctly!

JOKER: Sir, the private said “No, sir,” sir!

HARTMAN: Why, you little maggot! You make me want to vomit!

HARTMAN slaps JOKER, hard, across the cheek.

HARTMAN: You goddam communist heathen, you had best sound off that you love the Virgin Mary . . . or I’m gonna stomp your guts out! Now you do love the Virgin Mary, don’t you?!

JOKER: Sir, negative, sir!!

HARTMAN: Private Joker, are you trying to offend me?!

JOKER: Sir, negative, sir!!! Sir, the private believes that any answer he gives will be wrong! And the Senior Drill Instructor will beat him harder if he reverses himself, sir!

HARTMAN: Who’s your squad leader, scumbag?

JOKER: Sir, the private’s squad leader is Private Snowball, sir!!!

HARTMAN: Private Snowball!

SNOWBALL double-times up to HARTMAN.

SNOWBALL: Sir, Private Snowball reporting as ordered, sir!

HARTMAN: Private Snowball, you’re fired! Private Joker is promoted to squad leader!

SNOWBALL: Sir, aye-aye, sir!….

HARTMAN: Private Joker is silly and he’s ignorant, but he’s got guts, and guts is enough. Now, you ladies carry on.

So in the movie the Sergeant thought that Joker was stupid and wrong. He wasn’t of course, and neither are the city leaders of Berkley, but Joker had the balls to stick to his convictions and got promoted. The Berkley people are cowards who will now be looked upon as people who fold when the going gets tough. Perhaps the good people of Berkley should vote these city heads out and get some people in their who can sound off like they have a pair.

— 3 February 2008 — Exclusive to New Jersey Impeach Groups – ImpeachThem.com — We received a phone call today from a source in the Kucinich for President campaign, telling us there’s more to the story of Rep. Kucinich’s withdrawal than is publicly known. The source gave us permission to publish this, but without attribution. We can say the source is high up in the campaign. Most progressives are aware there’s been a large flood of money feeding a campaign by Cleveland City Council democrat Joe Cimperman, who seeks to win the primary for Dennis Kucinich’s seat in Ohio’s 10th congressional district, where Dennis has served the interests of working people for 6 consecutive terms — since 1996. Here’s the rest of the story, untold ‘til now. — Click the KUCINICH BANNER to read the rest —

Before the Nevada primary, Dennis was visited by representatives of Nancy Pelosi and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee — AIPAC. They told Dennis that if he would drop his campaigns to impeach Cheney and Bush, they would guarantee his re-election to the House of Representatives.

Kucinich threw them out of his office.

Dennis now faces the toughest election campaign of his entire tenure in congress, with huge amounts of money being spent to turn his constituents against him due to “his neglect of his district while he ran for president.” Citizens should legitmately ask where Cimperman’s immense media warchest comes from.

So yes, Virginia, it is exactly as you suspected. This man the mainstream media say is not relevant, poses such a threat to the powers that be that they are hellbent to destroy him, and remove that troublemaker from congress.

It’s up to us, all who understand the crucial voice of Dennis Kucinich speaking up for justice and working to stop our country’s fall into fascist barbarity, to come forward to help him continue the peoples’ work. There’s no better time than right now, so go to CONTRIBUTE TO DENNIS KUCINICH. Help Dennis now. Help him TODAY

by HL
I got a lot of great comments to my last posting on the Debate that took place in Hollywood last week. A couple of people wanted me to explain my disdain for both of the Democratic candidates still in the race. I was going to reply back as a comment but this will make a good post all on it’s own.

OK in the general election I will probably vote for whichever democratic candidate is nominated. i suppose I would prefer Barack over Hillary, but really I don’t see much difference.
However this Tuesday my vote is still going to Dennis Kucinich. People who believe he is the best candidate should still vote for him because if he could pull a decent amount of delegates, he could use those delegates to help pull the party to the left. When the party platform is written/discussed at the convention, the more delegates a candidate had who is not the nominee, the more pull he will have with deciding the direction of the party.
The democrats have proven time and time again since they took control of congress two years ago that they are much more interested in helping Bush, then helping anyone else. I don’t see that changing IF they win the election. Which right not I would put at about 50-50.
As far as I can see they are still doing nothing about stopping voter fraud. Will this lead to them losing an election they really won for the 3rd consecutive cycle? We’ll have to wait and see.
Sorry if I am bumming people out in my contempt of the Democrats. The last straw for me came when I interviewed my congressman Henry Waxman, who is supposed to be such a fighter, but turned out to be just as much of a weasel as any of the other members of congress up there on the hill. In the past 4 or 5 congressional elections I have punched Waxman’s name without even thinking about it, but this time I may well have to vote against him, Even though his seat is the probably the safest seat in the entire congress. Henry is the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, and instead of doing something important like holding hearings on the Sibel Edmonds matter. He feels it is much more important to investigate Steroids in baseball.
It was after I interviewed Waxman that I figured out the goal of all politicians especially members of Congress.
“Make it look like you are doing something when Actually you are doing nothing.” Thats it, that is the code they live by. Recently I was watching a trailer for the movie “Charlie Wilson’s War” in it Julia Roberts who is playing a rich socialite who is trying to enact change asks Tom Hanks who plays a member of the house: “Why is Congress saying one thing, and doing nothing?” Hanks’ answer “Well, it’s tradition.” Yep, exactly.