Stevens Featured Again On TPM

In a post over at TPMMuckraker they covered the announcement of Begich becoming a kinda Senatorial candidate by slamming Ted and Don. Which is OK, but they focus on the earmarking process. Which is legal, though it makes you cringe but as far a scandal goes is kinda like low fruit on the tree. There certainly is some corrupt crap they have done that is a little more hidden. It will take more than just picking press releases from Taxpayers for Common Sense and making links to them.
The bad ju-ju comes out in the comments as it becomes a pile on for all us greedy Alaskans. You get a feel for another way in which these asses have damaged our State.

Ellen wrote,

"Why, Alaskans will all tell you that by the act of moving up there they became the sole owners of everything found in the ground. Earmarks are only a small recognition of their generosity in allowing the rest of us to enjoy a little bit of their God-given inheritance."

I had to respond and am surprised to find myself defending Ted.

Geez Ellen,
That is a pretty broad brush to paint all of us Alaskans with. I do believe I have an inheritance and I work to ensure that it is here for my kid and his kids. The inheritance is open space, wildlife and intact eco-systems.

Not all of us are pleased with the job that our delegation has been doing. Many of us are like you, and I am hoping a majority, are disgusted. This process of earmarking is wrong and certainly needs a revising. But, I ask you to look around your community and identify how much is built with federal dollars. Airport, roads, infrastructure that makes the economy run. We don't have an infrastructure here. We have many basic needs that haven't been addressed. Many of our villages have water and sewers that are third world. Stevens has done much to solve this issue and many others here. He also has sold out many Alaskans to greedy corporations and is corrupted by the power he has. I have never voted for him.
You can knock the politicians, but please don't lump me in with them.

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Supreme Exxon Court

What do think the chances are that this Supreme Court is really going to rule against Exxon?

Come on! Really. These Supremes put that oilman in the White House, most are Republicans and Republicans are all about personal responsibility. Kinda like they want their personnel to take responsibility for all the bad shit the corporations do. It was Hazelton's fault.
He got tanked up at the Pipeline Club before taking that tanker out of the Terminal. He paid his debt to society doing community service and picking up all that trash. It is over, right, forget about it. Exxon has.

Howdy and Thank You Texas

I would again like to THANK Texas. That land of my birth, the land were all my family of origin continues reside, the first political playground of the major oil companies and a state where the people saw the potential of G.W. Bush and hoisted him on the rest of us. Texas, you have made me proud, in a relative sense, to say that I am an Alaskan. You have shown me that it can be worse.

Although Alaska’s representation in Congress is shameful, shortsighted and downright dumb, the Texans have put forth Senators dumber and so shortsighted, they view the world in reverse. (Isn’t that the definition of a conservative.) Check out the League of Conservation Voters National Environmental Scorecard comparing our Senators with theirs. We kick their ass with positive score of 27% and 40% versus 0% and 7%. How do you get a 0%. You would have to be really motivated to get a 0.



So as bad as we have it, it can always be worse. Could you imagine if Frank became President! And I have been thinking I may have to vote to return Don Young to Congress. What if he returned to teaching? Think of those poor children.

Who Do You Fear More?

Wow. I just heard on the news that Amtrack is now placing guards with automatic weapons on the boarding platforms in the busier train stations. Security measures.

That is so dumb. I get the overwhelming sense that this loosely gathered band of a couple of thousand radicals has won. On both sides. And we are paying for their party. Banana Republic?

Maybe living out in the woods and only getting into the "city" once every 4 months has given me a false sense of security. I just don't realize how bad it is out there. Should I get one?

Who are these guards going to shoot and how are they going to miss all the rest of us standing around. Are we now going to be considered collateral damage? Is it better to be shot by your own guys than blown up by some "terrorist?"

Infrequently I travel, and when I have been in Mexico in the past and have seen their military/police walking around with their little machine guns, I get the feeling that it is more a show for the general population. I have always been impressed.

We have lost our minds.

Cluck Cluck

Around Alaska, coastal communities lucky enough to have ferry service are struggling with the cut backs in the Alaska Marine Highway System as proposed by our Governor. The reduced service could cause quite a shift in our communities with increases in the cost of living and reductions in the ability to maintain, not to mention expand, current levels of, well, everything.

Some of it smacks of an administration that is unaware or uncaring of the needs of the smaller communities or some it smacks of the chickens coming to roost. With the legislative personalities and rail-belt power-base still holding sway, cost of fuel and labor, I am not saying that a democratic governor wouldn’t have been facing similarly hard decisions. I am fairly certain that a democratic administration would be more likely to support the continuation of the historic levels of service to communities. (Rightly or wrongly, Gov. Knowles expanded service to communities back when the state was in a rough patch financially.)

Zero taxes, reduction in the size of government, and privatizing government services has been the mantra repeated over and over and voted for by the majority of Alaskans for the past 25+ years. All my Republican friends who are now crowing about reduction in this government services strike me as a little hypocritical.

Caucus

We held a Democratic caucus here is Seldovia that had a total of 16 folks show up. I was hoping for more, but was OK with 16. 13 people newly registered as Democrats. I think that at this time of year there are 200 people around town which gives us around 12% of the population which seems on par with what the rest of the state had show up.

This was my first caucus, as it was for almost everyone. The process was a little frustrating and the Party officials in Homer didn't seem to prepared for the turn out. They filled the auditorium at the Islands and Ocean to over flowing and then the Fire Marshal was going to shut them down. But they were able to make it work but it was chaotic and unpleasant to listen too as we sat over in the school calmly waiting to vote. 

But in defense of the folks in Homer, in 2004 they had 70 people show up. This year it was close to 400. I would like to think that it is all some good old grass roots organizing that is developing progressive politics around the country, but I really know that it is a bungling inept and dangerous regime in the White House. Alaskan's might have even over looked the corruption and stink that is our Congressional delegation and put them back in to continue the $$ pipeline coming our way, but not this year. 

Oh, I got to vote my conscience and for Edwards on the first "fan out" so I don't have to be tempted by those other parties. That fan out in Seldovia has 14 for Obama and 2 for Edwards. The second and final had 15-Obama and 1-Clinton. Tracy is ever the non-joiner and she really doesn't even like Clinton.