Yes, We Can!

Barack Obama is our next president! Hooray!

Dress Code on Election Day: WWJD?

A friend, who is another Deaf American for Obama, asked if I would mind sharing this image he created. I think we all agree that number one on Election Day is casting our vote. I will pull my jacket over the buttons. But this is an amusing and thoughtful take on this matter.

Thanks to Aubrey Sparks for this contribution!

Photos of Obama signing I Love You

Here are two photos of Barack Obama using the ASL sign of "I Love You," a Deaf symbol of friendship. I share these for my fellow Deaf Americans & friends. These were passed on to me by Paula Blackburn.

Who benefits from their tax plans?

This is the last comparison that I have of the effects of the competing tax plans of Barack Obama and John McCain. Today (Oct. 14) McCain is going to release his new economic plan initiatives--so he says and that might affect his tax plans.

The Real Iraqi Surge

We continue to hear from the McCain campaign about The Surge in Iraq. What they and sadly the mainstream media does not bring to our attention has been the real tragic human surge of refugees out of Iraq. The Surge that John McCain likes to discuss worked to bring down some statistical violence, but the stability of that is questionable and internal events already threaten it; little is said about the terrible human crisis to which we have been a major party. I present to you an important piece of information on this and the link to read more.

One in five Iraqis have been displaced.
According to the UN Refugee Agency and the International Organization for Migration in 2007, almost 5 million Iraqis had been displaced by violence in their country, the vast majority of which had fled since 2003. Over 2.8 million vacated their homes for safer areas within Iraq, while 2 million were living in Syria, Jordan, Iran, Egypt, Lebanon, Turkey and Gulf States. Most Iraqis are determined to be resettled to Europe or North America, and few consider return to Iraq an option. Iraqis have no legal work options in most host countries and are increasingly desperate and in need of humanitarian assistance. They face challenges in finding housing, obtaining food, and have trouble accessing host countries’ health and education systems. Their resources depleted, small numbers of Iraqis have returned to Iraq in the past few months. Most of those who returned were subsequently displaced again.

http://www.refugeesinternational.org/content/article/detail/9679

One of the strengths of the McCain-Palin campaign

Watching news coverage of today's Barack Obama's campaign appearance at the University of Miami (Florida) where he focussed on issues important to women and families, I saw the moment where a group calling themselves something like "Blacks against Obama" raised signs about abortion and gay marriage and interrupted Senator Obama's speech. He was courteous to them and they were escorted out only after their refusal to quiet down.

Only once recently have I seen this at a McCain or Palin appearance. That was a moment at the RNC when a few protestors brought out their signs during Senator McCain's speech. They were quickly lead out of the hall. But since then the campaign staff has been very adept at keeping out dissenters and anyone who might ask tough questions of either of the two members of the Republican ticket. They will not be distracted by real dialogue or tough questions. They will avoid all challenging venues. They will shut down all inquiries and investigative procedures that threaten their electability.

Yes, they are very good at this. This is what they will bring to Washington, D.C. if elected. American citizens will speak only if asked to speak (see "deference").

Watch for a constitutional amendment to rein in the First Amendment under a McCain-Palin administration. Or would it be a Palin-McCain administration as she uttered yesterday?

To corsicate

A proposal for the Twenty-first Century Political Dictionary*

Corsicate: to fabricate, gather false stories and data, and publish such information in a publication with the goal of smearing, maligning and defeating its intended target. This is done without regard for veracity, ethics, or the harm to the intended target or anyone associated with the target.

Corsinian: behavior in the manner of corsicating (see to corsicate).

Corsi, Jerome: the person who developed the art form of corsication.

(* If there is no such dictionary, there should be!)