There is an important race in Washington this year. I am not talking about  the Governor's race or the seat for district 8 (although both important), I am talking about the race for Public Land Commissioner.
In one corner we have Republican incumbent & sexual deviant Doug Sutherland, a career politician who favors the interests of big business (timber & mining) over the interests of environmentalists and advocates of sound public policy.
In another corner we have Peter Goldmark a progressive Democrat with a Ph.d in molecular biology and experience as a rancher. He would put the interests of the environment over the interests of big corporations. (He has been endorsed by Washington Conservation Voters

(Please read Teacherken's superior diary about his former classmate.)

I heard rumors floating around inside my head that Kos might be a dark-horse candidate for the VP.

Articulate, attractive and alliterate, Kos would be a great choice as Obama's running mate.

Obama could accomplish three things in picking Kos as his VP

1. Showing strong commitment to progressive politics

2. (really) shoring up excitement amongst Latino voters

3. having a VP candidate that would devour the opposition as an attack dog.

(will delete if already diaried) Evo Morales the first indigenous President of Bolivia has come out victorious in a recall referendum. He garnered over 62% of the vote. Bolivians have said YES to democratic socialism!

 
One of the most unimaginable things is that fellow human beings die of starvation. And the numbers are staggering

According to the World Health Organization, hunger is the gravest single threat to the world's public health. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, more than 25,000 people died of starvation every day in 2003, and as of 2001 to 2003, about 800 million people were chronically undernourished. The WHO also states that malnutrition is by far the biggest contributor to child mortality, present in half of all cases. Scientists say millions of people face starvation following an outbreak of a deadly new strain of blight, known as Ug99, which is spreading across the wheat fields of Africa and Asia.

A good season for the Cubs- showing a lot of promise of going all the way!

All in all it has been a good season for Barack Obama also showing strong promise of going all the way..

Car wash workers (largely Hispanic) out in Los Angeles have been attempting to form a union because of the poor & dangerous working conditions they face. And now the workers face other dangers because of their attempt to unionize, such as intimidation and job loss.
Some of the most frequent complaints of the workers- they are cheated out of pay, earn less than minimum wage, while working for tips only. Also workers lack protective equipment and are constantly exposed to dangerous chemicals.

I love the beautiful music of song birds. I have at times felt something close to a transcendent joy listening to birds chirping and singing. I would rather hear birds chirping than people bickering.

Though a relatively recent study has suggested that song birds living in urban area's are under stress.

 I was wondering how HR 5353 (Internet Freedom Preservation Act) is doing? The bill introduced by Congressman Edward Markey that would

assure consumers, content providers, and high tech innovators that the historic, open architecture nature of the Internet will be preserved and fostered.  H.R. 5353 is designed to assess and promote Internet freedom for consumers and content providers.  Internet freedom generally embodies the notion that consumers and content providers should be free to send, receive, access and use the lawful applications, content, and services of their choice on broadband networks, possess the effective right to attach and use non-harmful devices to use in conjunction with their broadband services, and that content providers not be subjected to unreasonably discriminatory practices by broadband network providers

.    
This important piece of legislation has only 14 co-sponsors? The congress bent over backwards for the telecom companies on FISA, will the congress bend over backwards for net neutrality?

I'm a socialist. Bernie Sanders and Eugene Debs are my two political hero's. After the failings of our current corporate capitalist state I believe we would be better off with some friendly humane democratic socialism. But who am I kidding?
As much as I admire Obama for being a nuanced moderate liberal- any sensible person should realize Obama is no socialist. But we live in an age where the word sensible is not very applicable to our political discourse.

And so perhaps to satisfy the Republican base which wants to portray Obama as some sort of radical leftist, John McCain suggests Obama with his "extreme" voting record might actually be a socialist. (As if socialist was some dirty word.)

Peter Goldmark (a Kossack) was one of my favorite netroots candidate back in 06. You can read Teacherken's 2006 personal diary about Goldmark here.

Peter and I began as freshmen living in adjacent rooms on the 2nd Floor North of Barclay Hall at Haverford College.  That was September of 1963.  Peter is quite bright, having achieved a Ph. D. in Microbiology in 4 years at Cal Berkeley.  But he grew up in rural Eastern Washington, and has never lost his connections with the rural area and agriculture.   This is not his first run for public office, having been elected to his local school board.   And as you will read in the material below, he has statewide service in agriculture and in higher education.

Human beings can be destructive in the pursuit of profits or commercial activity. Certain forms of capitalism has no vision of the sustainable and has a nasty habit of exploitation of resources.

 Overfishing is one example.

Professor of Marine Conservation at the University of York Callum Roberts stated

Overfishing is destabilizing the marine environment, contributing to the spread of anoxic dead zones and the increasing prevalence of toxic algal blooms, for example. Nature's power to bounce back after catastrophes or absorb the battery of stresses humanity is subjecting it to is being eroded, collapsed fishery after collapsed fishery, species by species, place by place.

Once upon a time in the land of Daily Kos Russ Feingold was the choice of Kossacks for President.

Needless to say I reckon Russ is still pretty popular around here.

Some Feingold in the news ...

Not my words, but Congressman (D) Raul Grijalva of Arizona.

The reason why?

Well, like many other issues the Democratic leadership is afraid of making any bold stands on any issue. In this case it is immigration.

(Take the poll below please! The rest is just filler.)

Beside Merle Haggard or Two Quarters I wonder how many cool musicians or bands are supporting Hillary Clinton? Hmmm.

Obama has gotten a good amount of support from musicians.
For example Obama has gotten the support or endorsements from The Grateful Dead, Jeff Tweedy (Wilco), Bright Eyes, - Joanna Newsom, and even punk and hardcore bands have endorsed Obama.  http://profile.myspace.com/...

  I am not known for having astute perception.

It goes with saying a lot of people on Daily Kos like and respect George W. Bush. I do not understood the appeal. I have never been on the Bush bandwagon, no I don't need to put photos of him underneath my pillow at night. I might get some slack for saying this but Bush does not make my personal hero list I keep on me at all times.

Who are my three hero's you don't ask?

Well, my hero's are well known and are beloved by many many here. In fact after Bush they are perhaps the most revered figures at Daily Kos, more so than Al Gore, Barack Obama, Howard Dean, or Russ Feingold.

 I'm not a very serious person. There is hardly a day in my life in which I don't watch or think about the slapstick of Harold Llyod, Fatty Arbuckle, Buster Keaton, or Charlie Chaplin. If there wasn't comedy in this bleak violent world how could we go on?

But the gun violence in this country has me concerned, sad, angered. It seems like every week there are new cases of violence that shocks the community. Writing this there is a blur in my head of all the shootings. A hospital in Georgia, a City Hall in Missouri, a Wendy's in Florida, a college in Illinois, another local shooting on the city's mean streets. I was going to provide links but the stories are already known.

It's time to send a message to the Democratic Party. No longer will we donate to candidates just because they are Democrats.

There is a man who we can help to win the White House. He is a true American hero, he has what it takes to be the next President.
Come join me in this historic once in every 4 year opportunity to make a stand for democracy!

Man oh Man.
Man on Man.
   I love day dreaming about driving a bitchin' camaro while I day dream about Obama picking his Vice Presidential candidate.
 
He could pick a woman, a Governor, a General, a Senator, a hispanic, a former VP, or a time traveling teenager? Who knows? (except the time traveling teenager)

But I like to think Obama on a sunny Howard Dean Spring day, would pick his candidate much like someone would pick out a balloon.