They Are Not Hearing Us. . .

Most Americans Only "Hear" MSM, Fox, and/or Born-Again Networks
by The Old Hippie Because They Are Not Listing To Us - It Is Getting Worse.

We in the choir, the reality-based - We who actually take the time to determine the truth from multiple sources, which includes the MSM, Fox, and/or The born-again networks, (we do hear them, even as they ignore us,) but we also watch/listen to the BBC, CBC, Democracy Now!, CommonDreams, Alternet, Truthout, CorpWatch, OpenSecrets, Cursor, Now, Frontline, Liberty-TV, Air-America, OneWorld, Center For American Progress, Free Speech News, (both,) Counter-Punch, From the Wilderness, the Crisis Papers, Watching America, Working For Change, WorldWatch Institute, et al - They don't.  And the "they" of this administration know they don't.

And that, dear choir, is why it "continues to be allowed" to get worse, not better.  And as the fictional character "V" said, "...if you are looking for the guilty, you need only to look in a mirror."

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Two More. . .

1st From Tom Tomorrow, 2nd From "Hardball" With Chris Matthews



[ Be sure to view the video in the "Read The Rest..." below. . . ]
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I rarely agree with Chris Matthews, or Pat Buchanan for that matter - But for once, they are dead-on.  I'm encouraged to finally hear this kind of truth spoken clearly within the MSM, as it has been repeatedly spoken by the independents and left for the past decade. . .

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Just Two Short Videos. . .

...Couldn't Have Said It Better Myself - "We Can't Make Here Anymore"


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This 2nd video is a take-off from "V For Vendetta"
[ An excellent movie - If you've not seen it, do yourself a favor - see it. ]

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Since. . .

It Is Currently All Over The Web, I'll Put In My 2 Cents Worth
by The Old Hippie Because Some Small Events Are Worth Discussion

“In politics, nothing happens by accident.  If it happened, you can bet it was planned that way.”
– Franklin D. Roosevelt

On this Bush-Blair caught on the open microphone at the G8 meeting thing. . .  There is a lot of talk of it being on purpose, or maybe not.  FOX is blowing it off as "our common man" president being himself, let's move on.  It is still being shown all over the MSM, over and over again - Therefore the corporate controllers of the MSM have not stopped it, or diminished it - So one can be pretty sure someone wants this to be seen, (by Bush's base?)

The fact it also displays "our" president's rudeness in talking with his mouth full, to a leader of a major ally, (Blair,) at a prestigious meeting of world leaders, while knowing the cameras are on, and showing a non-caring lack of class, or even simple manners.  The incorrect use of "irony," the "Yo Blair," the "this shit," the "Some of these guys talk too long.  Gotta go home." All of these mannerisms and attitudes speak very loudly, and clearly, to so many.

What is most telling is the "displayed reactions" to them.  Please take the time to compare the "displayed reactions" of the "observers" from the right, left, MSM, independents, etc.  The education is in the observation of the displayed reported reactions, not the unplanned "accidental photo-op" of the president's and Blair's conversation.

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Someone You Should Know. . .

Just In Case You Don't Know Of Him, Meet Mr. Paul Craig Roberts
by The Old Hippie Because Some In The Paleoconservative Wing Of Conservatism, Make Sense

Paul Craig Roberts's Wikipedia Profile Link Here.

He is an economist, a former Senior Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution, a former Asst. Sec. of the Treasury in the Reagan Administration, and a prolific and popular journalist.  He is a

nationally syndicated columnist for Creator's Syndicate and Investors Business Daily.  He is a former editor and columnist for the Wall Street Journal, Business Week, and Scripps Howard News Service.  He is a graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology and he holds a Ph.D. from the University of Virginia. He considers himself, and is considered by others, to be part of the paleoconservative wing of conservatism, although he claims to have received harsh criticism from both sides of the political spectrum.  In recent years, he has become increasingly known as an opponent of free-trade agreements like NAFTA, and the WTO, and a critic of the administration of George W. Bush.  He is openly opposed to the Iraq war.

Paul Craig Roberts

Try to spend some quality time reading the links provided at the Wikiopedia profile linked above.

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It Seems. . .

The Seams Are Beginning To Rip, Maybe Soon To Burst. . .
by The Old Hippie, Because The Insanity Of The Continued "Allowing" Is Being Realized.

A new AP poll shows that even 1/4 of republicans want the thugs ousted.  The Middle East in an expanding explosive war between Israel and Hezbollah.  Along with Palestinians pouring across the borders from the surrounding countries to "join up," and more and more rockets being launched across the border, by both sides, and so many innocents being killed on both sides.  Now

{-The Way Many Picture Me-}

add in the reports of stressed induced insanity spreading among our own troops in Iraq, raping and openly murdering innocents, caught in the middle of a civil war that our illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq caused.  Add into this mix, the fact that, finally, most Americans are waking up to the reality that the world's nations, including all of our allies, are seeing us as an extremely dangerous war-mongering, corporate profits over even life, imperial bully of the worst kind, run by a criminally insane group of ideologues, bent on world domination.  And to top off all of this doom and gloom?  Now proven beyond the pale to even the least rational of America's denialists, global warming is not only real, its effects, because of global dimming, are now known to be no less than 10 times worse than it was predicted just a few years ago. . .

And guess, as it turns out, just who is really happy about all of these events?  The truly insane right-winged so-called Christians who "know" that "The Rapture" it will happen, or "believe" that it will happen within their lifetime.  [ By the way, for those of you haven't bothered to notice - Those "believers" make up nearly 44% of our nation's electorate. ]  They are, right now, celebrating these events - Check it out - From their own mouths. . .  Linked Here.

Keep in mind - We knew private corporations, run by two arrogant "Bush Pioneers," - two brothers heading both corporations, had "opportunistic" control of "our" voting computers - without any "checks and balances" on their manipulations - and we knew these same corporations had 23 convicted felons in positions of management, and software control, of the programs that control the "count," without any traceable paper trail.  We knew it, and allowed it to happen anyway.  And even more mind-boggling, is we are still "allowing" them, these proven corrupted machines, to be used in the upcoming national elections.

And Now. . . ?  The voting machines have spread even further in the states.  We know that they corrupted all of the last three national elections, (2000, 2002, and 2004.) - But yet - Even in the face of all the expose facts of criminal corruptions - We continue to "allow" their use?!?  Seriously - What part of the "allowing" do you just not understand?

Are we, as a nation, insane?  Or simply stupid???

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My only question is - - -

How much more destruction and death will it take, to stop the allowing?

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From A "Fading" Hero Of Mine. . .

His Rant, That Speaks For Many Of Us In The Reality-Based Community
by Eric Blumrich, At The Infamous BushFlash.com - Original Linked Here - (July 10, 2006)

{-Abeer Qasim Hamza's ID Card-}

See the identity card to the left?  It used to belong to fifteen-year-old Abeer Qasim Hamza- an Iraqi girl who lived in Mahmoudiya.  Every day, she had to pass through a checkpoint, manned by American troops.  She was always scared of them- she told her mother about how these strange american soldiers were making inappropriate advances towards her. On march 10, 2006, Abeer's mother Fakhriyah had a conversation with a neighbor, Omar Janabi, expressing her fears that her daughter might be assaulted or raped by the americans.  Janabi agreed to give Abeer shelter among the women of his household.  But, after making his promise, he spoke with Abeer personally, and tried to assuage her fears.

He told her "the Americans would not do such a thing."

Alas- the next day...

American soldiers came to Abeer's house, separated her from her family, and raped her (apparently to death.)  In an attempt to cover their crimes, these american soldiers fatally shot Abeer's mother, father and seven-year-old sister, before attempting to burn Abeer's body.

When neighbors entered the house after the incident, they found the dead family, along with Abeer sprawled in a corner, with her dress pulled up to her neck, her hair and a pillow next to her consumed by fire.

Now, before I proceed, the soldiers responsible for this horror have been arrested, and are certain to face a military court- however, they will go scott-free.  The punishment for the crimes that these cretins committed, under the uniform code of military justice, is death, and there's no way that the assholes that are running this war are going to allow such a sentence to be carried out- it's just too much "bad press" for them to deal with, right now.

In the months following, this whole incident will be swept under the rug, and will be "old news", as the corporate media continues to spend more time covering "So you think you can dance", than the ongoing war.

I've been to Freeperville, to check their comments about this incident, and quite frankly, what they're saying doesn't warrant repeating- it's just too horrific- people are CHEERING and EXCUSING the rape of a 15-year-old girl, and the murder of her family.

Myself?  This is another reason why I can't do animations.  When I was reading the details of this atrocity, I was banging my head against my desk, and screaming bloody hell- I wanted to die, out of sheer shame of being a citizen of a country that would allow this sort of crap to happen.

The anger I feel about this war can no longer be portrayed in a flash slideshow, and things are just going to get worse.  I don't say this as a pessimist, or a doomsayer-  I say this, because that's the way things are going to be.

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Eric's BushFlash.com site will be going down soon.  Do yourself a favor - If you have not, or even if you have, stop by the site before it goes down, (he explains why and when at the site.)  Watch a few of the videos/animations, maybe even share them with others that may not have had the "education" they impart.  Maybe read a bit of his rambling rants - You just might gain a perspective you didn't have before.

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Things To Keep Your Mind On. . .

Things, Events, Happenings That Require Your Diligent Attention
by The Old Hippie Because The Fog Obscures So Much That Is Truly Important

1.  Immovable Object, Irresistible Force 2.  Where’s the Outrage...?  And Greenwald's Follow Up. 3.  Recruiting Hatred  [Into Our Military Forces] 4.  Election 2006: Looming, Dire Question Of Trust 5.  Hacker Invades FBI Computers  [Got 38,000 Passwords!]

6.  John Ashcroft And His Staff Had Extraordinary Ties To Abramoff  [Well, Duh! Dept.]

7.  Maybe, Just Maybe, I was Wrong. . .  Sanity Just Might Prevail After All. . .

8.  Bush Picks Anti-Regulatory Zealot To Head "Super-Powerful" Public Safety Office

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‘Don’t Turn Us Into Poodles’

Nick Kristof Responds To The "Right" — Again. . .
by Nick Kristof

The fact is, journalists regularly hold back information for national security reasons; I recently withheld information at the request of the intelligence community about secret terrorist communications.

More broadly, the one thing worse than a press that is "out of control" is one that is under control.  Anybody who has lived in a Communist country knows that.  Just consider what would happen if the news media as a whole were as docile to the administration as Fox News or The Wall Street Journal editorial page.

When I was covering the war in Iraq, we reporters would sometimes tune to Fox News and watch, mystified, as it purported to describe how Iraqis loved Americans.  Such coverage (backed by delusional Journal editorials baffling to anyone who was actually in Iraq) misled conservatives about Iraq from the beginning.  In retrospect, the real victims of Fox News weren’t the liberals it attacked but the conservatives who believed it.

We could, and often do, have a press that reports exactly what the administration wants to see.  But, borrowing a page from Eric Boehlert, Kristof explained, "Watchdogs can be mean, dumb and obnoxious, but it would be even more dangerous to trade them in for lap dogs."

[This is a direct C&P from the original at Crooks and Liars - Linked Here -]

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230 Years. . .

What A Long Strange Trip It Has Been
by The Old Hippie Because It's Our Nation's Birthday

I really wonder, these days, how much longer, and truly, how much stranger can it get.  Six short years ago most of us would have said, a lot longer and not much stranger - But most of us would have been wrong - "Us" in the sense of all segments and/or sides of the political spectrum, have got to be in some sort of political shell shock about now.

I could be wrong, but I don't believe anyone could have even imagined, much less predicted, the incredible and devastating path our nation has taken.  What amounts to a complete reversal of all aspects of our nation's greatness.  From a nation respected and looked up to, to a nation despised and feared.  From a nation that proudly fought with the rest of the world against tyranny, to a nation that is now correctly viewed as a the tyrannical imperial corporate bully.  From a nation that was a force for good, to a nation of criminal corruption making the whole of the planet a much less safe haven, environmentally, economically, and socially.

I am sure it is possible it could get much worse, and with the corrupted voting machines being used in even more polling places, it most likely will get stranger, but I really don't know just how much longer it will continue to be "allowed" to "stay the course" it/we are currently traveling.

I never thought I would live to see our nation become something other than "American" at its core, especially not this low of the sneeringly arrogant criminal that it has become "in our name" - But it has.  And it's no one's fault, but our own, for "allowing" it to get this bad in the first place.

"Happy" birthday America?  I do not think I'll be doing much "celebrating."  Shame, at this level of reality, is something a bit too hard to ignore, or celebrate.

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