Joe Madison uses an old trick rather focus on the issue being debated, he switches the argument to “what people are saying.” He never identifies who these “people” are. Joan Walsh doesn’t let him off the hook.
This is from the Save Darfur Coalition.
Campaigns are often about contrasts. But one thing unites the three major candidates remaining in the 2008 presidential campaign—outrage about five years of genocide in Darfur.
The candidates’ joint statement on Darfur is a hopeful sign that the next occupant of the White House will make peace and security for Darfur a top priority.
I am glad they did this. It’s a remarkable show of unity on issue that’s largely ignored. My sole point is that the road to solving the problems Darfur runs through Beijing.
The following is the text of a letter sent by Hillary Clinton yesterday to all Democratic super delegates.
Dear ___________,
The stakes in this election are so high: with two wars abroad, our economy in crisis here at home, and so many families struggling across America, the need for new leadership has never been greater.
At this point, we do not yet have a nominee - and when the last votes are cast on June 3, neither Senator Obama nor I will have secured the nomination. It will be up to automatic delegates like you to help choose our party’s nominee, and I would like to tell you why I believe I am the stronger candidate against Senator McCain and would be the best President and Commander in Chief.
Voters in every state have made it clear that they want to be heard and counted as part of this historic race. And as we reach the end of the primary season, more than 17 million people have supported me in my effort to become the Democratic nominee - more people than have ever voted for a potential nominee in the history of our party. In the past two weeks alone, record numbers of voters participated in the West Virginia and Kentucky primaries. And with 40 and 35 point margins of victory, it is clear that even when voters are repeatedly told this race is over, they’re not giving up on me - and I am not giving up on them either.
After seven years of feeling invisible to the Bush administration, Americans are seeking a President who is strong, experienced, and ready to take on our toughest challenges, from serving as Commander in Chief and ending the war in Iraq to turning our economy around. They want a President who shares their core beliefs about our country and its future and “gets” what they go through every day to care for their families, pay the bills and try to put something away for the future.
We simply cannot afford another four - or eight - years in the wilderness. That is why, everywhere I go, people come up to me, grip my hand or arm, and urge me to keep on running. That is why I continue in this race: because I believe I am best prepared to lead this country as President - and best prepared to put together a broad coalition of voters to break the lock Republicans have had on the electoral map and beat Senator McCain in November.
Recent polls and election results show a clear trend: I am ahead in states that have been critical to victory in the past two elections. From Ohio, to Pennsylvania, to West Virginia and beyond, the results of recent primaries in battleground states show that I have strong support from the regions and demographics Democrats need to take back the White House. I am also currently ahead of Senator McCain in Gallup national tracking polls, while Senator Obama is behind him. And nearly all independent analyses show that I am in a stronger position to win the Electoral College, primarily because I lead Senator McCain in Florida and Ohio. I’ve enclosed a detailed analysis of recent electoral and polling information, and I hope you will take some time to review it carefully.
In addition, when the primaries are finished, I expect to lead in the popular vote and in delegates earned through primaries. Ultimately, the point of our primary process is to pick our strongest nominee - the one who would be the best President and Commander in Chief, who has the greatest support from members of our party, and who is most likely to win in November. So I hope you will consider not just the strength of the coalition backing me, but also that more people will have cast their votes for me.
I am in this race for them — for all the men and women I meet who wake up every day and work hard to make a difference for their families. People who deserve a shot at the American dream - the chance to save for college, a home and retirement; to afford quality health care for their families; to fill the gas tank and buy the groceries with a little left over each month.
I am in this race for all the women in their nineties who’ve told me they were born before women could vote, and they want to live to see a woman in the White House. For all the women who are energized for the first time, and voting for the first time. For the little girls - and little boys - whose parents lift them onto their shoulders at our rallies, and whisper in their ears, “See, you can be anything you want to be.” As the first woman ever to be in this position, I believe I have a responsibility to them.
Finally, I am in this race because I believe staying in this race will help unite the Democratic Party. I believe that if Senator Obama and I both make our case - and all Democrats have the chance to make their voices heard - everyone will be more likely to rally around the nominee.
In the end, I am committed to unifying this party. What Senator Obama and I share is so much greater than our differences; and no matter who wins this nomination, I will do everything I can to bring us together and move us forward.
But at this point, neither of us has crossed the finish line. I hope that in the time remaining, you will think hard about which candidate has the best chance to lead our party to victory in November. I hope you will consider the results of the recent primaries and what they tell us about the mindset of voters in the key battleground states. I hope you will think about the broad and winning coalition of voters I have built. And most important, I hope you will think about who is ready to stand on that stage with Senator McCain, fight for the deepest principles of our party, and lead our country forward into this new century.
As someone who grew up with the Puerto Rican superstar Ricky Martin and basically worshipping him, I am thrilled that he today exhorted his fellow Boricuas (what Puerto Ricans call themselves, the island is known as Boriquén in the Arawak language) to vote en masse for Hillary Clinton. Here’s the story covering the press release (translation follows):
Ricky Martin se unió hoy al grupo de figuras públicas que respalda a la precandidata demócrata a la presidencia de Estados Unidos, Hillary Clinton.
“La senadora Clinton siempre ha sido consistente en su compromiso con las necesidades de nuestra comunidad tales como la educación, la salud y el bienestar social”, expresó el astro boricua en un comunicado.
Martin instó a los latinos a movilizarse masivamente en lo que resta del proceso primarista.
“Como todos sabemos estas elecciones tienen repercusiones históricas tanto para los Estados Unidos como para el mundo. En el caso de las primarias presidenciales, la participación latina será determinante por lo que debemos aprovechar esta oportunidad para dejar sentir nuestra fuerza”, agregó.
The translation:
Ricky Martin today added his name to the list of public figures that support Hillary Clinton as the Democratic nominee for President.
“Senator Clinton has always been consistently committed to delivering the necessities that our community requires such as education, health care, and social beneficence programmes,” expressed the Boricua star in a press release.
Martin called on Latinos to mobilize massively in what remains of this primary process.
“As we all know these elections will have historic reprecussions for the United States and the world. In the case of the primaries, Latin participation will be a determining factor and we should take this opportunity to make our voices heard.”
Un, dos, tres, un pasito pa’lante. One, two, three, a step forward.
Update: More Endorsements in Puerto Rico for Hillary
San Juan’s El Nuevo Dia reports that José Alfredo Hernández Mayoral, the scion of one of Puerto Rico’s most important political families and the son of former governor Rafael Hernández Colón has endorsed Senator Clinton. Clinton also gained the endorsement of two Puerto Rican legislators, Margarita Ostolaza y Roberto Prats. Prats was especially harsh on Obama for the brevity of Obama’s visit (less than 24 hours) and for not mingling with the people.
“Hay un distanciamiento de la campaña de Barack Obama en Puerto Rico y sería igual de distante si llegara a la Casa Blanca”, anticipó Prats.
That translates as “there is a distancing between the Barack Obama campaign and Puerto Rico right now and it would be the same if he were to get to the White House.”
FIFA, the world governing body for football (soccer in the United States), has awarded the 2011 FIFA World Cup for the 20 and under classification to Colombia.
Great moments in history of Colombian soccer have been rare. On the club level, two clubs have won the South American championship: Atlético Nacional of Medellín (twice) and Once Caldas of Manizales (in one of the biggest upsets ever on the continental stage over one of the powerhouses of world football, Boca Juniors of Buenos Aires). On the national club level, Colombia has won the Copa América, the South American championship held quadrennially, but once in 2001.
Reuters is reporting that Indonesia will quit OPEC. Indonesia’s crude oil output has fallen in recent years due to ageing wells, a lack of investment, and the absence of any major oil finds. The move had been widely expected. Indonesia is the only Southeast Asian member of the oil cartel having joined OPEC in 1962 but declining production levels have turned it into a net importer.
Indonesian Government is to withdraw from OPEC, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said today.
“During the Budget planning meeting, the President mentioned that we have to withdraw from OPEC and … when I get back to the office … I would sign that we withdraw from OPEC,” Mr Yusgiantoro said.
Jakarta was forced to make an unpopular fuel price hike as it struggled to bear the cost of importing gasoline and diesel at record high prices and selling it at heavily subsidized prices. OPEC’s continued adovacy of higher global energy prices thus put it at odd with Indonesia’s internal political realities. While Indonesia’s production of hydrocarbons remains large though declining, the increase in domestic consumption is outstripping its ability to sell a surplus in the world market. This report from Indonesia’s Antara reviews Indonesian hydrocarbon production.
Indonesia is still an exporter of natural gas. Ecuador was the last country to quit the oil cartel but it has since rejoined. Angola joined OPEC last year.
This US Department of Energy report provides an outlook for the Indonesian energy sector.
A new video by Flineo. Worth a viewing.
A new video by GeekLove!
The last surviving Topeka plaintiff in the Brown v. Board of Education case that led to the landmark ruling outlawing school desegregation has died at 88. Zelma Henderson died Tuesday in Topeka, six weeks after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. In 1950 she signed onto the litigation on behalf of her children challenging Topeka’s segregated schools. In all, 13 black parents, including the Rev. Oliver Brown, took part in the federal court case. Pity that she lived to see it gutted by the Bush Administration.
The full story on the life of Zelma Henderson is at Education Week.
She was just sixteen. She was the rebellious and free-spirited daughter of a traditional Afghan family living in Hamburg, Germany who wanted to live a normal life. Her murderer was her 23 year old brother Ahmad Obeidi. He resented her for her uncovered hair, her makeup and her short skirts. He himself was such a good Muslim that he drank. He himself was so inhumane that he lured his sister to a parking lot where he stabbed Morsal twenty times. She was just sixteen.
Morsal Obeidi has suffered a fate that more than 5,000 women a year suffer in the Islamic world, murdered for daring to be free. Morsal Obeidi was not born to Western Civilization but she adopted our culture and yearned for its freedom. She is an adopted daughter of the Hellenistic world, a heroine of the rights of conscience inalienable. Morsal you will not be forgotten.
I have no tolerance for intolerance and I make no apology for being free. Islam is a curse upon humanity. It is the most evil of religions and wholly incompatible with Western Civilization and the cause of human freedom. I would like to think that we can co-exist with Islam but events like this make it very hard to accept Islam on their terms.
The full story from Germany’s Der Spiegel.
And this related story on Red Tape Leaving Muslim Women Unprotected.
For more on honor killings in the Islamic world, please visit these websites: National Geographic Special Report and Brandeis University’s Project on Honor Killings.