June 30, 2015

Definitions and synonyms for "Rancid"

A definition from Dictionary.com

adjective
1.
having a rank, unpleasant, stale smell or taste, as through decomposition, especially of fats or oils:
rancid butter.
2.
(of an odor or taste) rank, unpleasant, and stale:
a rancid smell.
3.
offensive or nasty; disagreeable.

Some synonyms and antonyms from Merriam Webster

Related to RANCID

Synonyms
abhorrent, abominable, appalling, awful, disgusting, distasteful, dreadful, evil, foul, fulsome, gross, hideous, horrendous, horrible, horrid, loathsome, nasty, nauseating, nauseous, noisome, noxious, obnoxious, obscene, odious, offensive, repellent (also repellant), repugnant, repulsive, revolting, scandalous, shocking, sickening, ugly

Antonyms
innocuous, inoffensive

I don't think it's right to describe Fellow Democrats that way.

June 30, 2015

I don't like the words "dismal" "radical" "rancid" used against the left. I am a proud liberal.

I have been aware for over a decade now that liberal had become a dirty word, even among the more conservative Democrats.

I have been taking that word back for several years now. I think there is room for liberals in the party, and I think the party should cherish us. Most of us who call ourselves that stand for the traditional values of the Democratic party...strong unions, a proud public school system, reproductive rights for women, the right for people to marry the one they love, separation of church and government, the belief that all are equal and deserve equal rights. There are many other issues that may change through the years, but those should be the basis of our Democratic beliefs.

I find it hard to take when others celebrate an article like that which appeared in The Guardian in 2012.

A letter to my dismal allies on the US left

Please, radical leftists, spare us the bitterness and negativity; we need hope and incremental victories and you provide neither.

That is not a true statement. I don't understand completely the author's premise. I do know calling the left, liberals names does not help anything.

Just a few quotes:

O rancid sector of the far left, please stop your grousing! Compared to you, Eeyore sounds like a Teletubby. If I gave you a pony, you would not only be furious that not everyone has a pony, but you would pick on the pony for not being radical enough until it wept big, sad, hot pony tears. Because what we're talking about here is not an analysis, a strategy, or a cosmology, but an attitude, and one that is poisoning us. Not just me, but you, us, and our possibilities.

If I had to interpret that it would be "don't make waves".

Believe me, a lot of us already know most of the dimples on the imperial derriere by now, and there are other things worth discussing. Often, it's not the emperor that's the important news anyway, but the peasants in their revolts and even their triumphs, while this mindset I'm trying to describe remains locked on the emperor, in fury and maybe in self-affirmation.

Uh, sometimes the emperor must be called out.

When you're a hammer everything looks like a nail, but that's not a good reason to continue to pound down anything in the vicinity. Consider what needs to be raised up as well. Consider our powers, our victories, our possibilities; ask yourself just what you're contributing, what kind of story you're telling, and what kind you want to be telling.

Sometimes there's a real need for that hammer.

This marginalization of liberals has gone on for years.

In his "Saving the Democratic Party" memo of January 1985, From advocated the formation of a "governing council" that would draft a "blueprint" for reforming the party. According to From, the new leadership should aim to create distance from "the new bosses"-organized labor, feminists, and other progressive constituency groups-that were keeping the party from modernizing. From's memo sparked the formation of the Democratic Leadership Council in early 1985. According to Balz and Brownstein, "Within a few weeks, it counted 75 members, primarily governors and members of Congress, most of them from the Sunbelt, and almost all of them white; liberal critics instantly dubbed the group 'the white male caucus.'"

One of the main phrases to keep us in our place is that we want to be right all the time, that we expect purity. One major way is to compare us to the Tea Party.

From TPM:

Blanche Lincoln calls out the Democratic Left

In a new interview with The Hill, Sen. Blanche Lincoln -- facing a tough Democratic primary challenge funded by national progressives on Tuesday -- called out her opponents on the Democratic left wing. Lincoln said she is facing criticism from a political movement that she suggested is divorced from the political reality.

"Just like the far right, I think the far left also believes that you've got to be with them 100 percent of the time or you don't meet the test," Lincoln told the paper. "I don't think there's anybody that you're going to be with 100 percent of the time -- not and be true to your constituency. My first commitment here is to Arkansas."

And a discouragement to "activists" and activism.

From 2003

The Real Soul of the Party

Hint: It is not activists.

Not only is the activist wing out of line with Democratic tradition, but it is badly out of touch with the Democratic rank-and-file.

"But the great myth of the current cycle is the misguided notion that the hopes and dreams of activists represent the heart and soul of the Democratic Party. Real Democrats are real people, not activist elites. The mission of the Democratic Party, as Bill Clinton pledged in 1992, is to provide "real answers to the real problems of real people."Real Democrats who champion the mainstream values, national pride, and economic aspirations of middle-class and working people are the real soul of the Democratic Party, not activists and interest groups with narrow agendas."

One last paragraph from Solnit:

There are really only two questions for activists: what do you want to achieve? And who do you want to be? And those two questions are deeply entwined. Every minute of every hour of every day you are making the world, just as you are making yourself, and you might as well do it with generosity and kindness and style.

I agree with that, and for sure it works everyone....not just liberals.

June 29, 2015

Oregon Gov Kate Brown signs test opt out bill in spite of funding threats from Arne Duncan

I was so happy to read this. Arne has gone around threatening to withhold funding whenever a state was going against his policy.

So good for Governor Brown.

Brown says she will monitor situation to ensure federal government does not withhold money from Oregon

Oregon governor signs Smarter Balanced opt-out law

SALEM — Brushing aside critics, Democratic Gov. Kate Brown has signed a bill that lets parents more easily opt their children out of new standardized education tests based on Common Core standards.

The move on Monday came despite pressure not to do so from federal education officials, who said the policy could jeopardize about $140 million of Oregon’s annual federal funding. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan personally called Brown in late May to talk about the bill.

But in a prepared statement, Brown said the bill would require teachers and school administrators to “engage with parents about the value of assessment and the potential consequences if parents opt out and student participation diminishes.”

“It is important to demonstrate for parents the connection between high levels of student participation in assessment and system accountability,” she added.

Brown acknowledged the pressure from federal officials and said she would monitor the situation to ensure that the federal government does not pull its money.

June 29, 2015

Secretary of FL charter school fired for reporting principals stash of pot as well as...

her fraternizing with male students.

This principal's behavior makes two charter school systems in Florida look bad. She had recently left one with a questionable reputation.

From the Courthouse News Service:

Secretary Says Firing Was Retaliation

Mavericks school is a charter high school which receives public money.

PALM SPRINGS, Fla. (CN) - A Florida high school secretary claims in a lawsuit that she was fired for reporting a principal who was bringing marijuana to school and fraternizing with students.
In a complaint filed in Palm Beach County on June 1, Jackelin Cruz claims she was fired from her job with Mavericks High School in retaliation for telling police about a weed stash that she spotted inside Principal Krista Morton's purse.
Cruz says she found out about Morton's marijuana use after entering a staff bathroom and discovering the principal's purse on the floor. She says she picked it up to return it, and immediately detected a "strong odor of marijuana." Upon further examination, she says, she saw "a bag of marijuana and a thick looking cigarette."
She claims she "went straight to an on-duty Palm Springs police officer," but no charges were filed against Principal Morton.
A few days later, Cruz was called into a meeting, and Morton allegedly asked her to resign. Cruz refused, so Morton fired her on the spot, the complaint says.

The principal, Krista Morton, was arrested in May.

Krista Morton: Controversy prone principal caught in car back seat with student


The principal of The Mavericks High of Palm Springs was arrested on Wednesday after police found her in the back seat of a marijuana-filled car with one of the school's students. Krista Eve Morton, 45 of Wellington, was arrested by North Palm Beach
on.aol.com

A Florida charter school principal was caught last week in the back seat of her car with one of her students, according to police, and subsequently arrested. But Krista Morton, 45, was not taken into custody for being with the the student, who was 18, but for possession of marijuana. But these improper acts aren't the principal's first brushes with controversy. That happened at another Florida high school where she was also principal.

Gulf Live reported May 11 that Krista Morton's arrest for marijuana possession, not to mention the impropriety of being caught with a student with an illegal substance and presenting the perception of possible sexual activity, will only add to a resume burdened with controversy. Prior to signing on at Mavericks High School in Palm Springs, she was head administrator for Milburn Academy in Bradenton, Florida. A charter school, it was not provided a renewal of its charter due to several institutional failures.

....According to WFLA, police were called to the scene when someone reported "people in the back seat engaged in some sort of sexual activity or being attacked.” North Palm Beach Police said that a sergeant knocked on the car door. He quickly noticed that Morton had wings tattooed on her lower back prior to her opening the door and immediately saying, “We're just friends." The sergeant also noticed Morton's shirt was unbuttoned, leaving her shoulders and part of her chest exposed.

Then she altered her story to say she didn't know her fellow back seat occupier, had been "lonely" and had picked him up just to get to know him. “She continued to tell me that she had just met him, that she was lonely, she had just picked him up down the street and brought him here to get to know him,” the police officer said.

Here is more about Milburn Academy and the troubles it has seen.

Florida's failed charter schools: Cracks in the system Part I


The Richard Milburn Academy is seen at its former location in Fort Myers in August 2012. The charter school closed following an investigation that found students were receiving diplomas they had not earned. (Video frame grab provided by WFTX-TV Fox 4 Fort Myers)

NAPLES, Fla. - Seven times since 2006, Richard Milburn Academy of Florida has failed at running a charter school.

In Lee County, two RMA schools closed after administrators manipulated student grades. In the Tampa Bay-area, two RMA schools shut down due to poor academic performance. In Manatee County, one RMA school was shuttered after half of the graduating class received diplomas without earning enough credits.

Yet, in Florida’s charter school system, RMA of Florida is allowed to continue operating and opening new campuses. Many of the same people responsible for the seven failures are now running two charter schools near Daytona Beach, receiving about $2.8 million in taxpayer money last school year.

...That RMA still does business in Florida is but one example of cracks in Florida’s charter system, a world in which critics say too many ill-prepared and ill-intentioned operators are failing the state’s students and taxpayers.

I have not been able to find anything about Morton being fired. As far as I can tell, both charter schools still do business in Florida.

June 28, 2015

George Clooney producing 2016 remake of "Our Brand is Crisis", about Carville's GCS meddling...

in Bolivia. And other countries. Here is more about GCS.

"Our Brand Is Crisis" - Greenberg Carville Shrum in Bolivia, America's Backyard

In 2002, among the many creepy roles of James Carville was his work as strategist at Greenberg Carville Shrum (GCS), when the political consultancy firm he had helped to found went to work to help Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada (nicknamed “Goni”) win the hotly contested presidency of Bolivia. Although they thought the man to beat was Manfred Reyes Villa, the mayor of Cochabamba, certainly the one who most worried Washington was the indigenous leader, Evo Morales. But, what kind of choice was Sanchez de Lozada? According to BBC News, (Oct. 18, 2003), “The US-educated millionaire mining magnate, who speaks Spanish with an American accent, is nicknamed ‘gringo.’” He was hardly the most enlightened choice to make president of a country whose population consists largely of Quechua- and Aymara-speaking Indians (of whom Morales is one), who have been deeply impoverished by centuries of autocratic rulers allied to U.S. policy-makers and to foreign capitalists who have profited handsomely from Bolivia’s rich mineral resources (silver, tin, oil, gas). But, Sanchez de Lozada had previously been Finance Minister and, then, president from 1993 to 1997. He had worked closely with the World Bank and IMF and had miles to go on behalf of international capitalism. He had aggressive neo-liberal plans. None of this would have been news to the boys from GCS. They made their choice knowingly. Never mind matters of conscience or principle.

And, of course, as a bonus, securing a victory for Sanchez de Lozada would prevent Morales (not initially a leading contender) from becoming a president who intended to reverse the perverse legacy of 500 years that had made Bolivians among the poorest people in the world. That wouldn’t be James Carville’s idea of progress. So, Greenberg Carville Shrum put their money on –well, got paid to support—Sanchez de Lozada. It’s all captured in Rachel Boynton’s 2006 film, Our Brand is Crisis. Reviewing it in New York Magazine, David Edelstein put his finger on a key issue: “The problem,” he wrote, “is that the blinkered patrician Goni doesn’t have the know-how to fix a stopped toilet, much less a country on the verge of economic collapse, with a disenfranchised indigenous majority howling to be recognized.” This was the man whose candidacy Carville and his associates championed, rather than Evo Morales, whose election the Bush administration was passionately opposed to. (Four days before the election, U.S. Ambassador to Bolivia, Manuel Rocha, urged Bolivians not to vote for Morales –because he was associated with “drug dealers and terrorists”– or the U.S. might cut off aid.)

More about the 2005 "Our Brand is Crisis".

Our Brand Is Crisis

Our Brand Is Crisis is a 2005 documentary film by Rachel Boynton on American political campaign marketing tactics by Greenberg Carville Shrum (GCS) in the 2002 Bolivian presidential election. The election saw Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada elected President of Bolivia ahead of Evo Morales.

The film is distributed by Koch-Lorber Films.

"This film is a cautionary tale which comes at a very timely moment," said Koch-Lorber Films president Richard Lorber in a statement to indieWIRE. "The parallels to the current U.S. administration's approach to selling the war in Iraq are staggering."

A short trailer of the 2005 documentary



A longer 9 minute interview with the producer. It's very good if you ignore the very weird stuff at the beginning.



They are now filming a new version based on the old one. Most news coverage calls it comedy drama. That surprises me.

I doubt it's at all funny to those countries where GCS was messing around.

Our Brand Is Crisis (2016 film)

Our Brand Is Crisis is an upcoming American comedy-drama film directed by David Gordon Green and written by Peter Straughan. It is a remake of the 2005 documentary film of same name by Rachel Boynton, about the American political campaign strategies used by Greenberg Carville Shrum (GCS) in the 2002 Bolivian presidential election. The film stars Sandra Bullock, Scoot McNairy, Billy Bob Thornton, Anthony Mackie and Ann Dowd.

Principal photography began on September 29, 2014, in New Orleans, Louisiana. George Clooney and Grant Heslov are producing the film with Smoke House Pictures, while Warner Bros. will be releasing the film sometime in 2016, and is co-financing the film with Participant Media.

On April 22, 2007, it was announced that George Clooney would be producing a remake of 2005 documentary Our Brand Is Crisis along with Grant Heslov, which Warner Bros. would handle American distribution rights.[7] Peter Straughan was set to write the script, which Clooney was attached as a potential director and star in the film, about a 2002 Bolivian presidential election's campaign by James Carville's Washington, D.C. based political consulting firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner hired by candidate Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada.[7] On December 11, 2013, Sandra Bullock was in early talks to join the film for lead role, while Clooney would not direct the film and his role was also unconfirmed that time.[8] On August 21, 2014, Bullock's casting was confirmed to play a retired political consultant called 'Calamity' Jane Bodine,[9] and David Gordon Green was set to direct the film.[1] On September 11, Scoot McNairy was added to the cast in the political dramedy.[2] On September 15, Billy Bob Thornton joined the film.[3] On September 18, Anthony Mackie joined the cast of the film.[4] On September 24, Ann Dowd joined the film.[5] On October 10, Joaquim de Almeida and Zoe Kazan joined the cast of the film, Almeida would play Castillo, the former president of Bolivia, and Kazan would play a young woman who digs up dirt on political candidates.[6] On October 13, Participant Media announced to co-finance the film with Warner, which Jeffrey Skoll and Jonathan King would executive produce along with Bullock and Stuart M. Besser.[10]

June 27, 2015

Most alarming thing McCaskill said about Bernie Sanders...echoes of 2003. Calls us extremists.

Now in this video Claire McCaskill does not actually call "us" extremists, but she says Bernie's message is extreme.

That is the same message that was used against another campaign in 2003. That we were fringe, extremists.

I will never forget the memos that came out in 2003 from the Democratic Leadership Council (now defunct, Third Way took its place as the policy shop.)

Howard Dean's campaign was shocking the party's establishment. They were furious with his supporters for being against the Iraq invasion. They were furious with him, though he was one of them for years.

First, Claire's words from Morning Joe this week...she was asked about the huge crowds Bernie Sanders was getting. She said:

"Rand Paul's father, Ron Paul, got massive crowds. Pat Buchanan got massive crowds.

It's not unusual for someone who has an extreme message to have a following."

Note the real extremists she chose for comparison. It was an insult.

Now back to 2003 and the memos.

The Memos

"Activists Are Out of Step" From and Reed 2003

SNIP..."These days, Democrats act as if they're so far gone they've forgotten where they're from.

Every weekend, yet another special-interest group hosts a candidate forum to pressure the presidential candidates into praising its agenda. Some of the candidates seem intent on running applause-meter campaigns, measuring success by how many times they tell the party faithful what they want to hear.

There's one big problem with this strategy: Most of those party activists the candidates are trying so hard to please are wildly out of touch not only with middle America but with the Democratic rank and file. The great myth of the campaign is the misguided notion that the hopes and dreams of party activists and single-issue groups represent the heart and soul of the Democratic Party. They don't.

The fact is, "the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party," as former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean likes to call it, is an aberration, a modern-day version of the old McGovern wing of the party, defined principally by weakness abroad and elitist interest-group liberalism at home. That wing lost the party 49 states in two elections and turned a powerful national organization into a much weaker, regional one.

Well, we have had massive losses the last 2 elections...just a reminder.

In 2003 Markos posted a powerful diary. It really laid out the fact that the attacks on Dean were a power play for the party's soul.

The battle for the soul of the Democratic Party

The real danger, of course, is that the establishment will try and sabotage Dean (if he gets the nomination, of course) in order to save itself. The notion of a true grassroots-generated political movement, with decentralized power nodes, threatens to diminish the need for proponents of old-school, top-bottom political structures. There are myriad consultants who may suddenly find themselves obsolete, and they're not happy about it.

The optimist in me hopes that this "establishment" will realize the power of what Dean (and SEIU in the union world) is building and embrace it, whether Dean wins the nomination or otherwise. There is no mystery as to why Dean (and Clark, to a lesser degree) have captured the fervent support of so many people, while their opponents struggle to make an impact. The establishment throws away that kind of success at its own peril.

Winning is the key, not who holds the levers of power at the DNC, DSCC, DCCC and other Democratic Party institutions. No one should lose sight of that goal.

The corporate wing of the party might try to do just what Markos said...anything to save themselves and their power.

That was not an accidental interview with Claire. It was the first major public attack, and it's an attack not just on Bernie but his message and on those who support him.

June 26, 2015

From You Tube. More from Claire McCaskill's interview. Digs hole deeper.

Here is the first part of the interview with Bernie's response.

Halperin was picking on her, he's good at that. However, he was not responsible for the words that came out of her mouth about liberal ideas.

She defined herself.

June 25, 2015

Bernie responds to Claire McCaskill. Good job, Bernie.

Here's Claire!

From Bloomberg.com There is a video of Bernie's response at the link.

Bernie Sanders Responds to Claire McCaskill Attack: This Is a First

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders on Thursday responded to criticism from his Senate colleague, Claire McCaskill of Missouri, that he is too liberal to credibly challenge Hillary Clinton.

“To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time that a colleague has attacked me,” said Sanders, a Vermont socialist who joined the presidential race about two months ago, in an interview with Bloomberg Politics' Mark Halperin and John Heilemann. “You'll have to ask Senator McCaskill why.”

Here's what McCaskill said:

McCaskill, who supported President Obama during the 2008 election, was quick to back Clinton this cycle, and said on MSNBC's Morning Joe Thursday that Sanders “is too liberal to gather enough votes in this country to become president.” Her comments came on the heels of Bloomberg Politics polling in Iowa and New Hampshire that showed Sanders gaining ground on Clinton, though the former secretary of state still holds a formidable lead.

....“Do I believe, in opposition to Senator McCaskill, that we need trade policies that are fair to the American worker, and not just benefit CEOs and large corporations?” Sanders said. “I plead guilty.”

Sanders said he “absolutely” believes in a single-payer health care system and opposes the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Shameful that she compares Bernie Sanders to Pat Buchanan and Ron Paul.

June 25, 2015

Great post at DailyKos about Bernie's NPR interview today.

BERNIE - Amazing NPR Interview "what Democracy is about"

Basically the question was "Aren't you just ruining Hillary's chances?"

The BERN responds with the ultimate take down:

"Is your point that people should not contest elections, that we should simply have the establishment bringing forth a candidate? So the implication is that somebody should decide who the lead candidate is, and we'll go to sleep. That's a good idea, that's what democracy is about, right?"

The interviewer seemed obsessed that Bernie wouldn't at first use the phrase "Black Lives Matter".... and then Bernie derided all the phraseology... like a politician using a phrase will change anything.

The poster added some comments from listeners at NPR...since I don't know where to look for them at NPR I will use some he posted at DKos.

"I also love how he TOTALLY schooled David Green several times! At one point, especially, Green was interested only in getting Bernie to diss Hillary Clinton for her "ALL lives matter" statement, but Bernie didn't just dodge the question; he showed Green how stupid, meaningless, and insulting to voters the question was."

Another:

I had a hearty laugh when Bernie scoffed and derided "Phraseology"

More:

Yeah I was dumbfounded by how unprofessional David Green was in this interview. "It sounds like you are not ready to say that phrase (Black lives matter)." Why focus on this irrelevant minutia?

Bernie wanted to talk about the real issues behind this divide and David Green was baiting him to say some inflammatory phrase the media has blown up over.

Adding this comment from the Daily Kos post:

Bernie is schooling interviewers (11+ / 0-)

not to ask him dumb questions. With takedowns like these, they will hesitate to try it.

Neither of our candidates are the least bit racist in views or actions. We do them both harm with such attacks.

I will vote for Bernie in the primary. I will vote for the one who wins the nomination.

June 23, 2015

"Not a bloodless process"...

Transcript of Obama's speech at the Brookings Institute 2006

I think that if you polled many of the people in this room, most of us are strong free traders and most of us believe in markets. Bob (Rubin) and I have had a running debate now for about a year about how do we, in fact, deal with the losers in a globalized economy. There has been a tendency in the past for us to say, well, look, we have got to grow the pie, and we will retrain those who need retraining. But in fact we have never taken that side of the equation as seriously as we need to take it. So hopefully, this is not just going to be a lot of preaching to the choir. Hopefully, part of what we are going to be doing is challenging our own conventional wisdom and pushing boundaries and testing these ideas in a vigorous and aggressive way.

....Just remember, as we move forward, that there are real consequences to the work that is being done here. There are people in places like Decatur, Illinois, or Galesburg,Illinois, who have seen their jobs eliminated. They have lost their health care. They have lost their retirement security. They don't have a clear sense of how their children will succeed in the same way that they succeeded. They believe that this may be the first generation in which their children do worse than they do. Some of that, then, will end up manifesting itself in the sort of nativist sentiment, protectionism, and anti-immigration sentiment that we are debating here in Washington. So there are real consequences to the work that is being done here. This is not a bloodless process.

I guess we soon find out who the losers are in this deal that is about far more than trade.