Samurai.Chris

Okay, I normally don't give such public endorsements to presidential candidates, after all, who am I to recommend anything to anyone? I'll be the first to admit that anybody who turns to me for political advice is probably out of their minds. However, this is a little different, for a couple of reasons:

 1) As a nation, we're in some deep deep shit (thanks a lot, George!) and the choices we make in the coming months are going to have profound effects for many years to come;

2) This is the most exciting presidential candidate that has come along in my lifetime. I happily cast my first ever presidential vote for Bill Clinton, but Barack is in a whole different league;

and 

3) As of this weekend's caucus in Washington State, I'm a delegate for my precinct (and am going to take a shot at going all the way to Denver).

Democrats/Liberals/Progressives are really lucky this year: we're being asked to choose between good and great! The fundamental question is: do we need an efficient and effective manager in the Oval Office, or do we need a transformational president... a visionary... someone who is going to change the direction of this country and show us a new way to think of ourselves and our place in the world? Obviously, I think we need the latter.

Dare to Hope. (click the image to learn more and maybe join the movement)
 

While it may not be absolutely precise, it's pretty damned close, given that the data is pulled from a variety of sources (including the UN, the EPA and the US Census Bureau). In any case, it's good food for thought...

And if you're at all interested in what I had to say, go here. 

"We've got to fight them over there so we don't have to fight them here." - W, et. al.

"Let's fight them here so we don't have to fight them over there." - OBL (paraphrased)

I've been churning on the coincidence here, since watching the Frontline America at a Crossroads special a week ago. Seems like charging into Iraq played right into the (real) enemy's hands... and right when we had pretty much broken their back completely!

And the cheap gas in my neighborhood is $3.45 a gallon. Not to harp... just pointing out some interesting food for thought.

"... things that make you go hmmmmmmm!" - Arsenio Hall
 

Yeah, it's just a midterm election, but this one is incredibly important. I really don't care HOW you vote (actually, I do, but your vote is your business), just THAT you vote. It's more than a right... it's a responsibility. America is user-participation citizenship. You get the government you deserve when you sit back and let it run itself.

If you haven't done so already (by absentee ballot), take the time and make sure your ballot gets cast on or by November 7. And if you notice anything strange (funky machine behavior, intimidation, etc.), please call 1 (866) OUR-VOTE immediately.

It's almost banal to observe that we live in very complicated times, particularly with respect to how we get information. Madison postulated that in order for the American Experiment to work, an informed public was a critical dependency. Yet we live in an era where much (if not most) of what we see and hear is governed by a few corporate megaliths.

The Nation recently published an interesting "manifesto" of sorts, dubbed A Ten-Point Plan for Media Democracy. The article was written by Jeffrey Chester, Executive Director of the Center for Digital Democracy. If you care about how information is delivered to you and the shape of things to come as we forge ahead into the digital age (and you should!), I think you'll find it a worthwhile read.

Net Neutrality is still up in the air, as well. It's important to keep abreast of the issue and keep the pressure on Congress not to allow the giant telcos to create an internet fast lane for the highest bidder and a dirt road for the rest of us.