Dean's 48 State Strategy ... or How Republicans May Pick the Democratic Nominee

For months I've been saying that Michigan and Florida delegates must be seated at the convention. Democrats simply can't win in November if we disenfranchise voters in these two key states. I'm not alone in this. DCBlue, at Corrente, points us in the direction of an excellent post on the matter -- and really says it best:

For a depressing treatise on how to lose a general election with a 48-state strategy designed by the opposing party, go read Wayne Barrett.

The following are key paragraphs in Barrett's well written post:

In all the buzz about the media's pro-Obama tilt, its indifference to his resistance to including these states in the "actual" nominating process is its most disturbing favor, especially since this brand of "conventional politics," as Obama would put it, flies in the face of his contention that "the people" should pick the nominee. Obama's only proposal so far has been to split the delegates evenly, just like he and Michelle parcel out Christmas presents to their two daughters. [...]

The rules also demand that the DNC's 30-member Rules and Bylaws Committee conduct "an investigation, including hearings if necessary" into these matters. The purpose of such a probe is to figure out if Democratic leaders in a state that did move up "took all provable, positive steps and acted in good faith" to either "achieve legislative changes" to bring a state into compliance or to "prevent legislative changes" that took a state out of compliance. A DNC spokesman could not point to any real "investigation" the party conducted of the actions of "relevant Democratic party leaders or elected officials," as the rules put it. All that happened with Florida, for example, was that two representatives of the state party made a pitch for leniency immediately before the Rules Committee voted for sanctions. [...]

Had not the state's highest court overturned the earlier decisions by a 4-to-3 vote just days before absentee ballots had to be mailed out, the early primary would not have been held. Significantly, all four of the judges who voted to allow the election were Republicans, and two of the judges who voted against it were Democrats. [...]

The DNC critique of Florida's noncompliance included a reference to the fact that a Democratic state senator was the initial sponsor of the move-up bill in that house, which was seen as a sign of eagerness on the part of some Democratic leaders to break the rules. That senator was Jeremy Ring, an Obama supporter. Obama even named Ring's 2006 campaign manager to run his statewide Florida effort. Ring was such a champion of the early primary that when Obama, like all the other candidates, supported the sanctions and agreed not to campaign in the state, Ring withdrew his endorsement.

When Governor Crist signed the bill at a ceremony in West Palm Beach, the man at his side was Bob Wexler, the chair of Obama's Florida campaign. Wexler wasn't there because he wanted to defy Howard Dean. He was there for the same reason that almost all the Democrats in the legislature voted for the bill. He is the state's leading foe of paperless voting systems and filed two suits against them. He saw the bill as the governor's fulfillment of a campaign pledge "to make Florida a model state for the nation in terms of our election system."

Similarly, all three of the House Democrats who endorsed Obama -- Coleman Young II, Bert Johnson, and Aldo Vagnozzi -- voted in favor of the bill to push the Michigan date forward. When Obama later took his name off the Michigan ballot, Young and Johnson became sponsors of the bill to cancel the election they had just voted to authorize.

It appears that "Mr. Uniter" supporters were key players in early decisions to move up the Michigan and Florida primaries. How ironic, that some of these same supporters were key players in blocking revoting in these two key states.

It is understandable that Clinton supports want the Senator to stay in the race. When you include the results from Florida and Michigan Clinton leads Obama in delegates -- and probably in the popular vote as well. There are 10 more contests. Voters in these states deserve the right to cast their vote for the candidate of their choice. Maybe the campaign that thinks otherwise should be the one whose candidate is urged to drop out of the race.

In Memoriam - Jan Welch

A dear friend, who has battled cancer for more than a year and a half, has died. Jan was there for me during some challenging times over the past decade. She will be missed.

Eleanor Janet “Jan” Welch, a lifelong feminist activist, died at her home in Alexandria, VA on March 31 of complications related to pancreatic cancer.

Originally from Pennsylvania, Jan grew up in Washington, DC and returned to Pennsylvania to attend Temple University where she studied English and horticulture. Jan owned and operated her own landscaping business in Philadelphia where she was always proud of having exhibited at the renowned Philadelphia Flower Show. After returning to DC in the late 1970’s, Jan managed Blackistone’s Florist. She continued her love of flowers and plants throughout her life. Her favorite and last job was working for Pulp—card, gift, and everything store in DC.

In the early 1970’s, Jan was chapter president of Philadelphia NOW and considered the first out lesbian chapter president in the country. Jan leaves behind her devoted partner of 26 years, Alice Cohan.

Jan had created a "bucket list" -- and I was so honored that she included on that list attending the taping of our simulcast last week. She had brunch with friends over the weekend, spent a wonderful night at the theater with her partner Alice, and gently fell asleep. I'm so grateful that her final moments were so peaceful.

A dog lover, she adored Braco, and Braco adored Jan. I rented the basement apartment in Jan's home for about five years. I often worked long hours, and Jan would go downstairs to play with Braco while I was at work. That meant a lot to me.

When I needed major surgery, it was Jan who went to the hospital with me. She was semi-retired, but never at a loss for things to do. This wonderful friend cleared her schedule for nearly three weeks to take care of me during my recovery. That's the kind of friend she was.

I learned of Jan's cancer in October 2006. In December of that year Braco Lee was diagnosed with Cushing's disease. Both of my dear friends are now physically gone, but will remain in my heart forever. And if there is a heaven I'm sure the two of them are together again.

Big Weekend commitment and birding!

Photo courtesy of Voices of Central Pennsylvania-- yes, Kat is really that tall.

The commitment ceremony was incredible; thank you so much for your good wishes! There must've been at least 500 people there, cheering us on.

Here's a list of links you can follow to read the local (and not-so-local) coverage of the event:

Local TV Channel 6 coverage

PSU's paper's coverage

Some other web site's coverage

Centre Daily Times coverage (State College's newspaper)

Altoona Mirror coverage

YouTube - Pride Commitment Ceremony at Penn State University -- these kids and their internets

The official site for the event -- contains stories about a lot of the pre-event publicity, both positive and not-so-positive

I'm supposed to get a bunch of photos from the million different photographers who were covering the event, so I'll post more photos when I get them!

The geographically closest Flock members Susan Gets Native and Laura H Somewhere in New Jersey were able to drive in for the event and we went birding on Sunday morning! They've both got coverage of our trip to the marsh as well, so be sure to check that out.

Unfortunately, I haven't even had a chance to download my photos from the camera, so I'll have pics later. For now, I'll tell you that the marsh really showed off for these Flock members! We saw
-wood ducks--at least 50 of them! of course, we were being bad birders and laughing and talking the whole time, so we only saw them as they flew up in terror!

-two sharp-shinned hawks, a male and a much larger female, trying to get it on in mid-air! The male was chasing the female, but only once did it look like they came close to a talon-lock; after that, the female played extremely hard-to-get.

-first-of-year tree swallows -- several pairs were arguing over the few nest boxes out there on the marsh. I'm thinking I need to make a couple of nest boxes tonight and mount them on the other side of the marsh, nearer the house

-Northern pintails -- from far away enough so we saw them on the water

-Great blue heron -- also fleeing in terror, but with those huge slow-motion elegant wingbeats

-mallards -- flying and honking at us for scaring them

-American coot -- in a driveby! We were on the boardwalk, and he half-flew/half-ran across a clearing in the loosestrife and cattails right in front of us

-red-tailed hawk soaring over the hill across from the marsh

-Carolina wren, calling a lot

-spring peepers, peeping even during the day

-muskrat -- a life mammal for Susan

-coyote poo, complete with little bones and fur in it--courtesy of Susan pulling it apart

I think that's everything we saw; an important development came when Susan and Laura informed me that you can call any bird that you can see from your backyard a "yard bird," which increases my yard bird number bigtime! I'll have to update my lists and see what I get.

We also discussed the possibility of having a birding festival right there on the marsh -- and you won't believe it, but Creeped-Out-by-Birds-Kat (COBBK?) came up with that idea! We could camp out in the backyard in tents and bird all over Penns Valley. Or who knows? Maybe I can swing something with the owners of the marsh and the very nice old bed-and-breakfast right next to it! This idea has definite possibilities, so stay in touch! We have a lot of great birding areas in this area, including a couple of hawk watches. Hmm...

Susan lobbied long and hard to make our next Flock gathering at Magee Marsh in May. Interesting--they have "garlic mustard pulling parties" there; perhaps we should have "purple loosestrife pulling parties" on the marsh. Believe me, now's the time; it's all dead and easy to grab, and then we could have margaritas in the backyard.

Sunday Funnies

A Little Night Blog Surfing ...

Here are a few posts not to be missed!

Take Your Boobs and Go Home Watch
by Melissa McEwan at Shakesville

A Black Woman on the Republican Ticket?
by egalia at Tennessee Guerilla Women

Backstabber: Move On's Contempt for the Will of the People
by egalia at Tennessee Guerilla Women

Dear Democratic Elite: Back Off
by Taylor Marsh

Finally Friday
by Taylor Marsh

Hillary Clinton ahead in Pennsylvania, and why she will win there
by SueJ at Nailing Jello to the Wall

Now I feel better about everything!
by vastleft at Corrente

Yet Another Round of What Obama Really Meant
by BDBlue at Corrente

There's Something About JJ
by digby at Hullabaloo

Constitutional Concern Trolls
by digby at Hullabaloo

A Family Thing

I called my sister last night, to catch up on all that has been happening lately. She said that Hillary Clinton was in Anderson recently, and that she had gone to see her. My sister is four years older than I am, so we are both part of that "older woman" demographic that supports Sen. Clinton.

I could tell it had been an emotional experience for her, and she confessed that she actually started to cry as Hillary took to the stage. I could understand her feelings. She has waited longer than I have to see a viable woman presidential candidate.

My niece is voting for Hillary, too!

My sister shared with one of the local party leaders that she was voting for Hillary, her daughter was voting for Hillary, and that her sister -- me -- had already voted for Hillary.

What can I say ... it's a family thing.

Pundits Versus Reality

I'm really exhausted tonight, so this is shamelessly stolen from TaylorMarsh.com!

Campaign 2008: Pundits Versus Reality

THE PUNDITS
Hillary Clinton will lose New Hampshire and the race will be over

THE REALITY
Hillary Clinton wins New Hampshire, defying the predictions and the polls

THE PUNDITS
Hillary Clinton will lose the big states on Super Tuesday and the race will be over

THE REALITY
Hillary Clinton wins the big states on Super Tuesday – and wins them by double digits

THE PUNDITS
Hillary Clinton will lose Texas and possibly Ohio on March 4th and the race will be over

THE REALITY
Hillary Clinton wins both Texas and Ohio on March 4th – and she wins Ohio by double digits

THE PUNDITS
Despite Hillary Clinton's big victories on March 4th, "the math" works decisively against her and the race is essentially over

THE REALITY
The math is simple: neither candidate has reached the number of delegates required to secure the nomination and either candidate can win

THE PUNDITS
Barack Obama is substantially ahead in the pledged delegate count; pledged delegates are the only measure of success; therefore the race is essentially over

THE REALITY
The candidates are within fractions of one another on delegates; Barack Obama needs super delegates to win; and a marginal pledged delegate lead does not determine the outcome

THE PUNDITS
Barack Obama is substantially ahead in the popular vote; Florida and Michigan don't count; therefore the race is essentially over

THE REALITY
The popular vote is virtually tied; half of Barack Obama's narrow vote advantage is from his home state; and his lead excludes Florida and Michigan

THE PUNDITS
Once the remaining states vote, Barack Obama will be substantially ahead in delegates and votes and the race will be over

THE REALITY
The race is a dead heat now and no one knows where things will end up after millions of remaining voters in the upcoming states make their choice

THE PUNDITS
Hillary Clinton's situation is dire; her campaign is struggling; her supporters are disillusioned and desperate

THE REALITY
Hillary Clinton and her supporters are calm, confident, and focused heading into the key state of PA, where she is running strong

THE PUNDITS
Hillary Clinton's campaign lacks significant grassroots energy; only one candidate has mobilized supporters to take action for the campaign

THE REALITY
Hillary Clinton's supporters across America have written letters, blogged, donated tens of millions of dollars, volunteered millions of hours and made millions of calls

THE PUNDITS
here is a loud and growing chorus of voices asking Hillary Clinton to withdraw from the race

THE REALITY
Precisely the same number of voters (22%) think Barack Obama should drop out of the race as Hillary Clinton

THE PUNDITS
Hillary Clinton is the candidate running a negative, divisive campaign; she is throwing the "kitchen sink" at Barack Obama

THE REALITY
Barack Obama has been throwing the sink, the stove, the plates and the garbage can at Hillary Clinton, attacking her integrity and character every day

THE PUNDITS
For Hillary to win the nomination, super delegates will have to "overturn the will of the people"

THE REALITY
The will of the people is split and both candidates need - and are making their case to - super delegates

THE PUNDITS
Hillary Clinton is threatening to poach pledged delegates from Barack Obama

THE REALITY
Barack Obama is reportedly already trying to poach pledged delegates from Hillary Clinton

THE PUNDITS
Florida and Michigan's voters won't be heard and their delegates won't be seated all because of complicated procedural roadblocks

THE REALITY
Barack Obama is intentionally disenfranchising voters in two critical states for purely political reasons, namely, that he'll lose his small advantage if they count

THE PUNDITS
Every single word or action from Hillary Clinton, her campaign, her surrogates and her supporters is part of a calculated and cynical political strategy

THE REALITY
Hillary Clinton is a loyal Democrat, a lifelong public servant, a tireless and tenacious candidate, and is fighting hard - and fair - to win with the help of millions of dedicated supporters

Clinton throws down gauntlet on Michigan and Florida

Public service announcement

Please see this post on my other bloggy to explain why I'm going to be off the blogs for a few days. Enjoy your weekend!

Listserv email trauma

I am enrolled (or whatever you call it) on the PA Birds listserv, and I just had a little trauma, thanks to my over-eager posting. A while back, I found what I thought was a feather from a Northern (yellow-shafted) Flicker. I posted my discovery here, along with some other photos.

Anyway, just now, someone sent a call out on the listserv for an ID of a feather -- with pics of a feather just like mine. The sender said something to the effect that "if you're really confident, reply to the whole listserv; if not, just reply to this other address." So of course Eager Beaver Delia (stop snickering!) writes, "I'm fairly certain that's a Northern Flicker feather, as I found one just like it after seeing a flicker in my yard last year!" etc. etc. I even linked to my blogpost and everything! I'm thinking, "boy, oh boy, maybe I'll get a little more traffic on the blog!" right?

But wait -- So then another listserv guy sends in an email that says he'd bet his boots that it's a guinea fowl feather. So I panic--I google guinea hen, and sure enough -- their bellies are covered with these spotty feathers! I've just embarrassed myself on a statewide listserv!

I then think--I should take my guess back! So I email the listserv and say "oh, you know that guy's probably right -- there's a farm about five hundred yards away with guinea fowl" or something to that effect.

But wait again!--neither of my emails has appeared... I then get an email saying that for some reason, my listserv email was sent to the listserv's monitor, who happens to work at the same company I do (cool). So that's why my email did not appear yet! So then I think, my pal the monitor -- he'll delete it before it goes out, if I ask him to! So I send him an email and ask him to delete my other email. Then no sooner do I send that email than I get a second "your email's being sent to the monitor!" email from the listserv! Sorry, pal who is the listserv monitor and works at my workplace!

AAGGGH!!!! Sometimes I hate the immediacy -- and the some-time lack thereof -- of email.

Exhausted, but very happy

Anyone who has ever worked on a project over a lengthy period of time I'm sure will identify with the feelings you have as the project winds to a close. It's a mixture of joy and sadness.

As I write this, literally thousands of people are sitting in theaters all across the country watching something that I helped produce. It's like waiting in the reception area waiting for news about the new baby. Will it be healthy? Will it grow into something meaningful? Will it make a difference in the world?

No one ever does a project like this alone, but it certainly is fun to be part of the team!

The reviews are in from the Washington Post -- Together for the Cause of Separation -- and they are very good. Reports are coming from other media outlets as well -- We’re with Tom Jefferson,’ celebs say. But the real reaction I'm waiting for is the one from the audience. What do they think? How will they react to all the information given to them? Will they take the challenge and engage in asking the 10 Questions of political candidates this election season?

Only time will tell.

Another Great Night!

The lights have been turned off, the mic's put back in their cases, and the studio is now quite. But just a couple of hours ago it was filled with everyday citizens sharing their personal stories about their battle to safeguard separation of church and state.

I sat back stage with Lindy Maddox, an absolutely charming woman from Alabama, there to tell her story about standing up to Judge Roy Moore who -- under cover of night -- brought a Ten Commandments monument into a judicial building

All the windows had been shot out of her house. Her parents, who were battling cancer, were harassed, most of her legal clients took their business elsewhere -- but when I asked her if she planned to leave the area she said "no. If I leave there will be no one to fight for what's right." What an amazing woman, and an amazing amount of courage she has.

Dr. Susan Wicklund, who for years was the only doctor providing abortion services in a THREE STATE AREA, talked about the "Lambs of Christ" who would follow her daughter into her public school and hand out fliers saying "Sonia's mother is a baby killer." They would place concrete barrels in front of her driveway, to prevent her from entering or leaving her property. She would have to literally climb into the trunk of a car to exit an airport, because if these zealots saw her, they would block the car and actually chain themselves to the axle to prevent her from getting to a clinic.

Dr. Wicklund is one of the most caring physicians I have ever met. She is the kind of doctor who treats the "whole" patient. If she senses that a woman is being pressured into having an abortion (by a partner or family member), she encourages the woman to take the time necessary to make her own decision about whether or not to have an abortion.

Dr. Wicklund understands that treating the whole woman means understanding that she might need to have an abortion for her economic well being, her chance to finish school (or get an education at all), and her mental well being if she is simply not ready to be a mother.

I've known this wonderful woman for 16 years, and have tremendous admiration for her and the work she does. The photo above of Susan at a NOW press conference in 1996, was taken by me. If you haven't done so already, pick up a copy of her book "This Common Secret."

And just so you know, there were some men in the show! Matthew LaClair challenged his high school teacher history teacher who taught his students there were dinosaurs on Noah's Ark! Or as Barry Lynn would say "the kind of guy who thinks The Flintstones is a documentary." He has such poise for someone so young. Just amazing.

And David and Ryan Antoon, father and son, who shared a dream that Ryan would follow in his father's footsteps and attend the Air Force Academy. They are a father and son who clearly love each other dearly, and love their country. When David attending the Academy the focus was on "leadership." Developing young men into leaders. When Ryan arrived the focus has shifted to developing "warriors." And the diversity of religions had shifted to a focus that was almost exclusively evangelical. Ryan, with the full support of his father, decided against attending the Academy.

They are speaking out about this to anyone who will listen because they are deeply concerned about an entity within our government, charged with protecting and defending our citizens AND our Constitutional guarantees actually doing just the opposite! I'm pretty tired, so this might not be coming out exactly as it should, but the assault on our courts and our military should be frightening to everyone.

If you are reading this I hope you live near one of the 37 cities that will show the program on Wednesday night. You can check the First Freedom First web site for a theater near you.

This week on the marsh

Last night, I took advantage of the ever-increasing amount of daylight remaining when I get home from work and took a walk on the marsh. I got another picture from up high near the road of some ducks, including American Wigeon and Northern Pintail (though I don't think there are any wigeons in this pic): I decided I would get closer to the Long Pond, and if I scared away the ducks, I would just camp out there and wait for them to return. Well, sure enough, just as I saw some Wood Ducks swimming around, I scared them away and then it was pretty much a mass freak-out as ducks everywhere scurried from my fearsome presence:

help!

omigosh!

please don't eat us!

Um—sorry ’bout that... And while some ducks did return, they never returned to the area near where I sat down with my scope and camera, all set to take some award-winning photos. Instead, they flew over me and scowled, thinking, “Get out of here!” I think what I need to do is take some sort of portable blind with me out there, and then I could just sit inside and wait for the ducks to come back. They're too smart to come anywhere near someone watching them while holding a big black tube. They're no dummies.So I got up and saw a sparrow and, as I was watching it for ID purposes, I heard what sounded like a small plane buzzing about two feet over my head! I was just about ready to hit the dirt when I realized it was two mallards, giving me the business! I felt a little like this:

Run, Cary!

At one point, though, I think I might have heard a Common Snipe, but there were so many RWBLs all around, and all of them were being very vocal and telling me to leave their area right now!, that it was hard to tell what all I was hearing. I also heard what sounded like a baby’s “waaah,” coming from a densely brushy area (damn that purple loosestrife!). I couldn’t see what was making the noise. This morning, I went to What Bird? and listened to the sounds made by all the likely marsh birds I could think of (Virginia Rail, Sora, Snipe, Woodcock) just to make absolutely sure, but I didn’t hear anything like the waaah noise. Any guesses?

I did, however, see a real cat on the marsh:

He was stalking around toward the Long Pond when he saw me and then just sat there, staring at me, while I stared back at him. And just look at those evil eyes, staring at me and burning into my soul! Right after I took this photo, he decided he’d had enough and ran the other way. I’ve never seen this kitteh anywhere around the marsh before; I wonder where he came from.

I also heard (drumroll please) SPRING PEEPERS! Now I know it’s spring! They started up by the time I got back home.

Some other things I saw:
Mr. Cardinal, calling for Mrs. Cardinal. Loudly.

This may well be the best picture I've ever taken of a RWBL:I lightened this up a bit so that you could see that this RWBL is doing his “oh-ka-lee” (or as Earl Cootie would say, his “Jim Cav-ieeeeee-zel!”) thing here.

These two muskrats were doing some sort of mating ritual where they swam in unison, like a pair of ice skaters, always about a foot apart, all around the Long Pond:

“Looks like muskrat luhuhuh-uh-uv!”

This was right around the time those two crazy ducks buzzed me, and I figured it was time to leave! The rest of the pics were taken on the walk back to my house.

Another RWBL, in the sunset (red wings in the sunset, way out on the sea...):
Some rather strange scat here; you can see it’s almost like a bunch of really black grapes, pressed together in a big lump. It was probably two inches across. Any guesses?

One bunny’s very bad day:I thought I’d found an owl pellet right next to this, but I think it was just some old cat poo. Dangit... and gross.

This egg has been here since the last time I was on the marsh (3/9/08 – I forgot to report it here), and since then it’s snowed and been really cold: It’s right near my garden, just on the marsh side of the fence. It’s about the size of a chicken egg, and it doesn’t look like anything’s been brooding on it. Why is it here? What bird would lay an egg under the grass like this and then just leave it? We don’t have any chickens anywhere around the marsh, but it’s perfectly white and chicken-sized. Maybe it’s some other animal’s egg? (Platypus???) I didn’t touch it, just in case maybe someone has been tending it, but it’s a mystery egg for now.

A really great show!

Today I spent most of the afternoon at a television studio in Washington, DC. It was rehearsal day for the program "Everything you always wanted to know about separation of church and state ... but were afraid to ask!" One word comes to mind tonight ... excellent!

Everyone was mesmerized by the stories being told -- even the crew.

Everyday citizens talking about their battles to protect our Constitutional guarantee of church-state separation. The young high school student who took on an entire school administration over the fact that his history teacher was talking about the Bible, instead of history. Or the parents who wanted their children to learn science in their public school science classroom - not creationism.

A wife who wanted to honor the memory of her husband, who was killed in Afghanistan, by having the symbol of their faith included on his grave marker.

And a lawyer, challenging the display of a Ten Commandments monument on government property, who had all the windows in her home shot out.

If you have not yet reserved your seat for the simulcast, I urge you to do so today! It's a program you won't want to miss.

Bird's eye views and the lack thereof

While doodling around the birding blogs this morning, I came across a very cool link to MSN's Live Search Maps, which has a "bird's eye view" option so that you can view your own property from the air! As an example, here's my parents' house:

That's it, boxed in red. (ed. note: their house is for sale, and it's in Harlingen, home of the RGV birding festival! Hint hint!)

Note the fact that while others in the neighborhood chose to build pools in their backyards, my parents chose to beautify by planting all kinds of trees and plants--pecan, citrus, grape, peach, bottlebrush, hibiscus, roses, etc.--that serve to attract many different bird species to the backyard. You'll remember way back from when I started this blog that my mom is a bit of a bird lover herself. She gets tons of hummers, doves, chachalacas (which scared the pee out of me the first time I saw one pecking at the glass patio door -- her babies are nothing if not demanding of regular feeding).

Anyway, so I punched in my address, thinking I was finally going to get a beautiful aerial shot of my house and the marsh.... Yeah--no. No bird's eye option for me! I guess I haven't done enough to merit a spy satellite taking pictures of my house (yet). This was the best I could get:

Black and white, and not too legible. Hmph. Still--I've highlighted some areas of import. The small rectangle up top is my property--you can kind-of see my house and the crazy-uncle house/Kat's office below it. The circled area is Small Pond, where I haven't seen any ducks or anything yet this year. The longish area is Long Pond, where I saw the wood ducks, etc. last week. The dark area to the right of Long Pond is where the marsh owners built the short boardwalk and observation deck last year.

Boy, am I disappointed that I can't get a beautiful view of my area with the bird's eye option. I guess I'll just have to keep working on that rocket-pack.

Taken for Granted

It's amazing to me that Sen. Obama can say that he will be able to get Sen. Clinton's supporters to vote for him, but that she would not be able to get his supporters to vote for her.

On Meet The Press this morning both Jon Meacham, Newsweek editor, and conservative pundit Peggy Noonan are convinced that Obama supporters won't vote for Sen. Clinton if she is the nominee, but that Clinton supporters are jumping at the chance to support Obama. Who are these folks taking to?

No one that I know who support Sen. Clinton is 'jumping at the chance' to support Obama. Many, like me, might hold their nose and vote for him ... but that's it. And ABC News reported that only 53% of Clinton supporters would back an Obama candidacy.

In a sign of just how divisive and ugly the Democratic fight has gotten, only 53% of Clinton voters say they'll vote for Obama should he become the nominee. Nineteen percent say they'll go for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and 13% say they won't vote.

Sixty percent of Obama voters say they'll go for Clinton should she win the nomination, with 20% opting for McCain, and three percent saying they won't vote.

I think this is something the party, and the super delegates, need to take a look at as this contest moves forward. What is their plan?

When you consider that it was Obama's people who blocked a revote in Michigan, I think that is a problem for the party. And Florida voters, who strongly support Sen. Clinton, are not going to have their votes counted -- I think that's a problem for the party.

When you include Michigan and Florida in the delegate count, Sen. Clinton is one delegate ahead of Sen. Obama, and probably -- though I don't have the numbers in front of me -- ahead of him in the popular vote. What does all this mean? To me it means that regardless of what votes ANYONE decides will actually count, Sen. Clinton is in a dead heat with Sen. Obama. So there is no justification for anyone to ask her to drop out of the race.

And my final though on all this is to say Obama supporters, and his surrogates on television, need to think twice before claiming that older women, who register and vote in greater numbers than any other group, can be taken for granted.

Sunday Funnies - the Easter Edition!

Historic Simulcast For Church-State Separation Coming to a Theater Near You

I'm particularly proud of this event, as it's something I've been working on it for a few months now. This simulcast offers a unique opportunity for citizens across the country to hear directly from individuals who have placed themselves on the front line in the battle to protect our Constitutional guarantee of church-state separation.

On Wednesday, March 26, Actors, musicians and comedians will join church-state activists from across the country to put church-state separation on the national agenda during the 2008 election season.

In movie theatres in 37 cities across the nation, people will gather to learn about the threats to church-state separation and to demand that presidential hopefuls and candidates for other offices answer questions about key issues dealing with individual freedom. A list of 10 great questions to ask candidates will be featured.

Titled “Everything You Always Wanted to Know about the Separation of Church and State … but Were Afraid to Ask!,” the program is being hosted by First Freedom First, a joint project of Americans United for Separation of Church and State and The Interfaith Alliance Foundation.

Celebrated actor and filmmaker Peter Coyote will emcee the program, which is to include a performance by special guests, The Bacon Brothers (actor Kevin Bacon and his brother Michael).

Other actors and celebrities participating include Michael J. Fox (“Family Ties” and “Spin City”), Jack Klugman (“The Odd Couple” and “Quincy, M.E.”), James Whitmore (“The Shawshank Redemption”), Wendie Malick (“Just Shoot Me!”), Dan Lauria (“The Wonder Years”), Catherine Dent (“The Shield”), stand-up comedian and Air America host Marc Maron, singer/songwriter Catie Curtis and singer/satirist Roy Zimmerman.

In addition, Americans who have fought for individual freedom will tell their stories, including: Bryan and Christy Rehm (who fought creationism in Dover, Pa. science classes), Matthew LaClair (a New Jersey high schooler who exposed religious indoctrination at his school), Roberta Stewart (an Afghanistan War widow who fought for equal rights for Wiccan veterans), Dr. Susan Wicklund (who wears a bullet-proof vest to provide reproductive services in underserved areas) the Rev. Madison Shockley (pastor and reproductive rights advocate), David and Ryan Altoon (who oppose fundamentalist proselytism at U.S. military academies), Melinda “Lindy” Maddox (who successfully sued Alabama “Commandments” Judge Roy Moore) and Susan Jacoby (author of The Age of American Unreason).

It is my firm belief the power of the blogosphere can help get people, who may have never heard these stories before, into one of the 37 theaters. From the presidential campaigns to city council races, candidates need to hear why protecting our Constitution and Bill of Rights matters!

Oops ... Chief of firm involved in passport security breach is Obama adviser

Maybe the headline should read: The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight Wants to Lead Country? It appears the president of the firm involved in the security breach of Sen. Obama's passport is an Obama adviser on ... well ... security.

And these guys want to be in charge of our national security? Good grief.

The Obama campaign has been trying to pin the blame on the Clinton's, but that strategy now seems to have blown up in their face.

CNN reports:

The CEO of a company whose employee is accused of improperly looking at the passport files of presidential candidates is a consultant to the Barack Obama campaign, a source said Saturday.

John O. Brennan, president and CEO of the Analysis Corp., advises the Illinois Democrat on foreign policy and intelligence issues, the source said.

Brennan briefed the media on behalf of the campaign this month.

The executive is a former senior CIA official and former interim director of the National Counterterrorism Center. [...]

The Washington Times, which broke the story Thursday night that Obama's records had been improperly accessed, reported Saturday that the State Department inquiry is focusing on the Analysis Corp. employee.

As I've said before, Obama is simply not ready for prime time.

And That Was the Week That Was

"Amateur hour." "Rookie mistakes." Good grief.

What's Obama Afraid Of?

Could it be he fears that if Michigan and Florida citizens are allowed to revote he will lose once again? So much for a "new" kind of politics ... "Mr. Hope" ... or "Mr. Uniter" ... geezz!!

Craig Crawford says it all:

How amazing that Democrats have a frontrunner who is seemingly afraid to allow re-votes in Michigan and Florida. Or at least that is how Barack Obama is allowing it to appear.

Obama is all that stands in the way of letting voters try again in those battleground states. That’s probably a winning strategy for the party nomination. But the general election is another story.

For what it’s worth to Democrats, only Hillary Rodham Clinton has ended up with the political incentive to seat the convention delegates from Michigan and Florida. Obama sees no such advantage.

A Democratic national convention without Florida and Michigan suggests the need for an Electoral College strategy that contemplates victory without either state in the party’s November tally.

Obama States Qualms About Michigan Re-Vote Plan
Obama Slipping Against Both Clinton And McCain

Like I said ... geezz

Birdy movie review: Fly Away Home

Last night, Em and I watched one of our favorite movies, Fly Away Home. In the movie, 13-year-old Amy discovers a nest of Canada goose eggs, abandoned when developers come into a marsh and start mowing down trees. She raises the geese, and then she and her father attempt to lead them southward for fall migration.

There are lots of cute shots of the goslings following the actress who plays Amy (Anna Paquin, whom I like a lot), bathing with her, and just being sweet baby geese. The cinematography and the music are beautiful, and it’s a great film for anyone who loves birds and feel-good movies. The movie also stars Jeff Daniels and Dana Delany (whom I've had a crush on since her work on China Beach).

I had always thought that the movie plot was pretty much all true, complete with cute kid befriending and leading the geese, but it's actually based on the efforts of an artist-inventor-pilot named Bill Lishman, who first taught geese and then whooping cranes and trumpeter swans to follow a migratory path by flying with the birds in an ultra-light aircraft. He's a lot like the Jeff Daniels character in the movie, but there is no teenage daughter in real life, which means that the tale I heard a few years ago, that the girl had died in a ultra-light accident, wasn’t true! (I'm kinda relieved about that.) Lishman started Operation Migration to continue his efforts to help endangered birds. Check out his efforts by following that link. Pretty cool.

Blog Against Theocracy is Here!

Yes, it's BAT time boys and girls ... so get your posts rolling! This is, after all, the SECOND annual Blog Against Theocracy. We've all had practice. So this should be a snap!

There is certainly no shortage of things to write about, but if you find yourself stuck ... First Freedom First has helpful hints. Or check out the AU web site -- where you will find a plethora of useful information!

And before I go can I have everyone's assurance that you won't tell my boss I used "ass" and "AU" in the same post? ha


h/t to Blue Gal for starting this in the first place!

ABC-Sleazy News Network's Gutter Journalism

Can there be any doubt about sexism in the media following the sleazy reporting surrounding the release of 11,046 pages documenting Hillary Clinton's schedule as First Lady? Just when you think they can't set the bar any lower, along comes Brian Ross at ABC News with THIS report:

Hillary Clinton spent the night in the White House on the day her husband had oral sex with Monica Lewinsky, and may have actually been in the White House when it happened, according to records of her schedule released today by the National Archives.

Lambert at Corrent is urging everyone to send BRIAN ROSS at ABC SLEAZY NEWS your thoughts or call -- 212-456-7612 -- and tell him politely what you think of his report!

Why should anyone expect anything OTHER than this from a news network that would demote a female anchor when she became pregnant?

Keep in mind we are selecting a president, so shouldn't the focus in reviewing Sen. Clinton's papers be on what role she played as a representative of the United States government when traveling abroad? What does the infidelity of her husband have to do with her ability to be president?

But wait ... there's more!

Tennessee Guerilla Women provides this evidence of sexism as well:

ASSOCIATED SLEAZY PRESS: Schedules show Hillary Clinton was home during husband’s encounters with Lewinsky -- WASHINGTON - Hillary Rodham Clinton was home in the White House on a half dozen days when her husband had sexual encounters there with intern Monica Lewinsky.

SLEAZY TIME: Clinton First Lady Papers Released (WASHINGTON) — Hillary Rodham Clinton kept her schedule packed when allegations exploded that her husband had an affair with a White House intern.

WALL STREET SLEAZY JOURNAL: Clinton’s Calendar and Vince Foster -- Among the many things Hillary Clinton’s schedule sheds light on are her activities before, during and after major events in her husband’s presidential tenure — such as the death of Vince Foster. . In July 1993, he was found dead in a park in Virginia with a gunshot wound. After a three-year investigation by Whitewater Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr, Foster’s death was ruled a suicide, but many conspiracy theories persist suggesting he was murdered.

TGW suggested reading list:

Susie Madrak at Suburban Guerrilla: And if we let them get away with this, they will do even worse to whoever turns out to be our nominee.

Donklephant: ABC News’ Gutter Journalism

The Brad Blog: 'Investigative' Reporter Brian Ross Defines Shameful New Low...On the 5th Anniversary of the Iraq War, No Less...

Glenn Greenwald at Salon: The worst, sleaziest press corps possible

Jill at Brilliant at Breakfast: Would someone please get the mainstream media laid already?

Are Obama Surrogates Making this a Race Race?

Or are they just clueless?

h/t to TaylorMarsh.com

More from Keith "Reject and Renounce" Olbermann

It would seem that Keith Olbermann is losing viewers left and, well left ... since he probably never had any on the right. Jerome Armstrong, from MyDD writes this about Olberman.

More, from Keith "Reject and Renounce" Olbermann (what a hypocritical joke he's become):

The video comes to us from You Tube user olbermanwatch -- who says:

If you have any doubt that Keith Olbermann is out to sink the Hillary Clinton campaign and slobber over Barack Obama at any cost, then this series of comparison clips should settle that question once and for all.

Guess that about says it all.

It's almost here!!

Yes, it's almost time for the 2nd annual Easter Weekend Blog Against Theocracy! To get you in the "spirit" I thought I would share this message from Catherine Dent.

Blog Surfing

No time for blogging today, but I did want to leave you with a few items for your review.

I Am Hillary Clinton
by The Red Queen

Interesting
"CBS Poll: Gender Matters More than Race"
by Davidson at Corrente

Obama to Philly: "Honey, I've changed."
by Lambert at Corrent

And clips from two articles in the Detroit News. First this about a revote:

"Clinton folks will do anything to open Michigan back up," said [State Sen. Tupac] Hunter, who is co-chairman of the Obama campaign in Michigan.

"She is in a hunt for delegates. Why this sudden pull out all the stops to give Hillary Clinton every opportunity to try to catch up? Guess what? It's not going to happen. ...
Clinton spokesman Phil Singer said, "By refusing to embrace a plan that has broad support, the Obama campaign is blocking the people of Michigan from being able to vote and make their voices heard."

It appears Obama supporters LIKE disenfranchising people.

And Clinton calls out Obama on Michigan Primary

"I believe the families of Michigan are just as important as the families of any of any other state," Clinton said in a hastily arranged campaign appearance downtown.

Putting aside her standard campaign speech, Clinton made a stark appeal to Obama, saying his failure to allow new votes in Michigan and Florida -- both states have been stripped of their national convention delegates because they held January primaries -- will help Republicans carry those states in November and violates "a bedrock American principle" that every vote should count.

"Senator Obama speaks passionately on the campaign trail about empowering the American people," she said. "I'm here today to encourage him to match those words with actions."

More on Obama and "The Speech"

Bonnie Erbe, writing for U.S. News & World Report, has an interesting take on Obama's speech.

How effective was Barack Obama's Tuesday speech on faith and race, in terms of putting to rest questions about his ties to controversial minister Jeremiah Wright? Polls reflecting America's reaction to the speech won't be out for days or weeks, but it appears the speech did little but preach to those already in Obama's flock.

Obama had the opportunity to lure undecided Reagan Democrats, independents, evangelical Christians, and American Jews, deeply suspicious of Wright's close relationship with Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan. But he said renouncing the pastor would be like renouncing part of himself. In so doing, he thrilled African-American and liberal Democratic supporters but lost an opportunity to appeal to centrist voters, who will be critical to victory in November should he secure the Democratic presidential nomination.

Obama's speech, however, is likely to add grist to conservative claims that he has been less than honest about his knowledge of Wright's most controversial remarks. Obama himself last week posted remarks online denying he'd ever heard Wright make controversial remarks in person.

One conservative website claims to have proof that Obama was indeed present for at least some of the controversial rhetoric last year.

Meanwhile, Obama's national popularity has predictably taken some hits as a result of recent revelations. Reuters reports that:

Democrat Barack Obama's big national lead over Hillary Clinton has all but evaporated in the U.S. presidential race, and both Democrats trail Republican John McCain, according [to] a Reuters/Zogby poll released on Wednesday. The poll showed Obama had only a statistically insignificant lead of 47 percent to 44 percent over Clinton, down sharply from a 14 point edge he held over her in February when he was riding the tide of 10 straight victories.

Obama the day after ... the speech

Tuesday was another busy day, but I did stop for 40 minutes to listen to Sen. Barack Obama's speech. I must confess that I was able to focus on it for about 20 minutes, and then I found myself drifting off to thoughts of what I needed to do.

I also found myself thinking that I do agree with what he is saying, and there is no question that he is good at delivering a speech, but at the same time there was something missing.

I'm not sure this will come out the way I hope it will, but here goes.

There is absolutely no question that racism exists. Just as there is absolutely no question that sexism exists. What I am still so frustrated about is that we have now heard a 40 minute speech on racism, and we have yet to hear anything about the sexism that has gotten so bad some progressive bloggers have called for a strike against certain progressive blogs.

These so-called progressive blogs have allowed people to use language that is incredibly hateful and misogynist in talking about Hillary Clinton, or in responding to people who support Sen. Clinton.

Where is the 40 minute speech addressing this?

When do women get to hear someone say this contest should not be about what Hillary looks like in a pantsuit, that she is only a Senator because her husband cheated on her, or hear her called "Shrillary" for speaking out passionately on issues of the day?

In all the comments I've read regarding Obama's speech, these two most clearly touched on my thoughts about the speech.

Melissa McEwan, at Shakesville, had this to say:

There's one significant (to me) issue I have, and it's his failure to mention Clinton (at least in the prepared text), at whom some of Wright's invective was personally directed. It probably wouldn't bother me except for the fact that Obama's been a little ungracious to her on a personal level during this campaign. Clearly, they and their surrogates have provided plenty of reason for them not to like one another, and maybe they don't—but they are still colleagues and ideological allies at the end of the day. And, call me old-fashioned, but I still would like my president to treat people, even people with whom s/he has disagreements, with respect, despite Bush having spent the past seven+ years trying to make that expectation an antiquated notion.

I don't like it when I see Obama turn his back on Clinton, or refuse to look at her during debates. I don't like that he has failed to say he expects his supporters to vote for her if she gets the nomination, and has generally ignored issues of sexism—which I strongly suspect is not because he doesn't care about it (he is the father of two daughters, after all), but because he worries that its mention will remind people of his opponent.

It's an attitude that really rubs me the wrong way. One of the things I always really liked and admired about John Edwards was the fact that he was demonstratively respectful of his opponents. Even when he debated Cheney, who is arguably one of the most loathsome political figures in American history—but was also the vice president, the office of which deserved respect, even if the man who held it did not—Edwards looked at him when he spoke.

That says more about Edwards, ultimately, than it does about Cheney—which is something I feel like Obama hasn't quite grokked yet. He looked utterly contemptuous of Hillary when he would give up only "You're likeable enough," again, without looking at her save for a sideways glance, after she graciously noted how "very likeable" he is.

It's a decidedly unkind moment—and because, as Morrissey once so eloquently put it, "it takes strength to be gentle and kind," it also whiffs of weakness. I had the same feeling reading Obama's speech today, when he references "the white woman struggling to break the glass ceiling" and seems to be casting that sideways glance at Hillary, without actually looking at her. [...] It wouldn't kill him to note that she's more than "likeable enough." Actually, it would make him a lot more likeable, too.

Jerome Armstrong at MyDD writes:

I figured. What Obama wants to do is pivot it back to Clinton vs Obama, and get the Republican attack on him through Wright off the table, so he's equated Wright and Ferraro multiple times in the speech. We'll see if the Clinton surrogates fall for it or rise above and ignore it.

On one end of the spectrum, we’ve heard the implication that my candidacy is somehow an exercise in affirmative action; that it’s based solely on the desire of wide-eyed liberals to purchase racial reconciliation on the cheap. On the other end, we’ve heard my former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright, use incendiary language to express views that have the potential not only to widen the racial divide, but views that denigrate both the greatness and the goodness of our nation; that rightly offend white and black alike.

...We can dismiss Reverend Wright as a crank or a demagogue, just as some have dismissed Geraldine Ferraro, in the aftermath of her recent statements, as harboring some deep-seated racial bias.

This is pretty ugly and unfair though of Obama, to equate statements by Ferraro with Wright. Obama goes on and on about how great a person Wright is, without a single kind word about Ferraro, just rubbing it in further. I believe the campaign has reached a new low.

Otherwise, great speech.

Waterfowl on parade!

Yesterday after work I walked out on the marsh and saw quite a few new ducks and some other spring birds.

Here's the big view of what I could see (in the low light of a cloudy evening) from the road:

click for larger version

I can make out some Northern Pintails and Mallards, but can anyone else help ID any other species of duck? See the ones toward the back with the brownish heads? They look like Canvasbacks but they're too small, I think. Help! Looking from the road gives the highest-up vantage to see the Large Pond, but in that fading light and all the way from the road, and hand-held, this is as clear a photo as I could get.

Here's a cropped shot showing some mallards and some Northern Pintails:

I like that one who's apparently bowing up to take off. I loves me some ducks.

I also saw six or seven Wood Ducks farther back and to the right of these ducks, but I didn't get even a blurry photo because--despite my best imitation of Mary's stealthy sneaking--I still spooked them. I saw them through my binocs before they flew off, though, and it was definitely my best look at a wood duck. I wish I had a pic!

I also saw a pair of Eastern Bluebirds; I cropped this photo within an inch of its life:

The following pic is the result of fiddling with one's camera settings despite not having read the manual:

Behold! The wonders of a wide-open aperture and high ISO, without a tripod. See the two blurry blue areas? Those are bluebirds (blur-birds) taking off. I can't wait until all these clouds are gone, and we get some decent sun.

Here are some ducks flying over--UPDATE: Canada Geese, thanks to new commenter Richard, whose blog looks cool!--and you can tell how dark it is by this time (it was close to 7pm):

I debated with myself about whether to crop out the little guy to the left, but I finally just left him in. Cropping is an art form, and if I were printing this to mount on my wall or something, I'd likely have cropped out the guy on the left. But here--well--I just couldn't decide.

Long-time readers will remember that the marsh owners, Greg and Mary Kay Williams, added a boardwalk and viewing station to the marsh last year:

The purple loosestrife may be dead, but it's still clogging up the entire marsh. Here's what it looks like from the viewing platform:

Were the loosestrife gone, you could probably see the large pond (at least one end of it).

When I got back to my yard, I remembered to check a spot where I found one little morel mushroom last year. Here's what I found last night:

Is that a young morel, I wonder? I'll keep checking.