Motley Moose – Archive

This is the third part of a series of posts analyzing the swing state Florida. Part four can be found here.

The I-4 Corridor

If there is a holy grail of Florida politics, it is winning the I-4 corridor. This refers to the Interstate 4 highway, which begins in Tampa Bay, travels though Orlando, and ends in Daytona Beach.

Here is the performance of a relatively weak Democrat, John Kerry, in the I-4 corridor:



John Kerry gets absolutely pummeled. There is a sea of red counties. This is the reason why John Kerry lost Florida.

Here is the performance of a stronger Democrat, Barack Obama:

More below.

PPP released their poll on the Massachusetts Senate race and they have Republican Scott Brown LEADING Democrat Martha Coakley by a point.

One could argue Coakley is running a bad campaign, but why the fuck is a Republican even getting 48% of the vote in Massachusetts

Our day are numbered. This is an open thread.  

In a calculated move that can be interpreted as no less than attempted genocide…Canada has declared war on Moose. With justifications that are tenuous at best, Canadian leaders have put forth a plan to establish their dominance over Moose. While the U.N. scrambles to review International Law in regards to interspecies warfare, Canada has already begun its campaign of terror against the Moose.

In grade school, American children are taught the immortal words of Patrick Henry, “I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!” What the children don’t learn about that speech is that what has come down to us wasn’t recorded until 40 years after Patrick Henry gave the speech and that it has been recreated by a writer from the memories of those who heard him speak that day. I can understand why teachers don’t want to confuse the issue, since what they are teaching is not his words, but the sentiment of his speech. “Give me liberty or give me death” is the quintessential American motto. Whether someone actually spoke those words is irrelevant.

Americans have laid down their lives in support of liberty ever since those days more than 200 years ago. They marched barefoot through the snow and left their blood on that snow in an effort to achieve full liberty. In the centuries that followed, they fought and died all over the world in defense of those liberties and to secure the liberties of others. Men like my uncle died in Europe fighting totalitarianism. I acted as a pallbearer for friends who died in Southeast Asia fighting for what they thought was the same cause. Even today, young American men and women are dying in foreign lands fighting for those same liberties. If any one thing defines us as a nation, it is the shared belief in the truth of this sentiment.

When I was a young boy, which is admittedly a long time ago, I was taught that Americans were brave defenders of liberty. We learned about the men who won the Revolutionary War. We learned about Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett at the Alamo. We learned about heroes from The Great War like Sergeant York and General John J. Pershing. We sat in rapt wonder as members of our parents generation told stories about storming the beach at Anzio and the beaches of Normandy and South Sea islands.

Dear Mr. Fettig,

When I started having trouble with the Whirlpool washing machine that was already installed in my home when I purchased it last year, I began to entertain the idea of simply replacing the machine with a high-efficiency model. My locality offers incentives for converting to the latest “green” technologies, and I was intrigued by the rave reviews and greater capacity and performance these machines seemed to offer. After much research, I had just about settled on one of the new Maytag Bravos (now a subsidiary of Whirlpool). So far so good.

Lastly, I wanted to be sure my purchase would align with my personal convictions and values. As an Iraq combat veteran, I care deeply about the fate of our country and its people. So many families and hard-working citizens are suffering today from predatory lending and credit practices, inadequate access to routine health care, and the reduction in government services due to revenue shortfalls caused by off-shoring and high unemployment. I didn’t put my life on the line in a foreign land only to return to watch my neighbors being ravaged by a government that redistributes their wealth to the already-wealthy through lax regulatory practices and a corrupt political system.

Initially, I was encouraged to confirm that Whirlpool/Maytag is indeed based in the USA, thus fostering our own economy. But I was extremely dismayed to discover where your political contributions have gone: Sen. Max Baucus, who had single-payer advocates arrested during hearings on health care reform, just for peacefully and respectfully trying to get that option on the table; Rep. John Boehner, who stands solidly against environmental progress (one of the reasons I want a new washing machine!); Sen. Tom Coburn, who seemingly prayed for Sen. Byrd’s death just to block health care reform; Sen. Jim DeMint, who has blocked nomination of a new TSA chief in the wake of several very troubling security threats, because of the possibility of unionizing the TSA (when many public service sectors are in fact unionized, and certain federal employees can be ordered not to strike — remember the air traffic controllers?); Sen. Blanche Lincoln, who seems to feel no shame in holding health care for all Americans hostage to her personal whims and interests; and I won’t even bother going on about Stupak, Grassley, and the rest. Clearly, the purchase of a Whirlpool/Maytag machine would NOT be in line with my core principles: to improve our global environment and our domestic happiness and prosperity.

I am posting this to several blogs and to my Facebook page. I promise, in fairness, to post any response you may have.

Sincerely,

Cheryl Kopec

Tacoma, WA

forgets 9/11?

“What [Obama] should be doing is following the right things Bush did. One of the right things he did was treat this as a war on terror. We had no domestic attacks under Bush. We’ve had one under Obama,” Giuliani said.

Cross posted from Nourishing the Planet.

While touring Lilongwe, Malawi, we met Kambuku (which means “leopard” in Chichewa), who was soundly sleeping in his 2,500 sq meter backyard of fenced green landscape. He was rescued by the Lilongwe Wildlife Centre after poachers shattered his knee in Nyika National Park (making it impossible for him to ever return to the wild.) As we toured the facility nearly every animal we saw – from baboons to alligators – had a similar Cinderella story of overcoming insurmountable odds to survive and, in most cases, return back to the wild.

As we toured the animal rescue, rehabilitation and education facility, it was clear that the staff felt a deep commitment to their cause. The organization funded, in part, by UK-based retailer The Body Shop abides by the philosophy that all animals have the right to live in the wild and that teaching conservation is key to protecting the rights of wildlife.

Not only do they provide sanctuary space for rescued, confiscated, orphaned and injured wild animals of Malawi, but the Center is one of the leading organizations in Malawi pushing lawmakers to enforce and enact legislation in support of wildlife conservation and environmental protection. They also develop local partnerships and training programs with the farmers and communities surrounding national parks. The struggle between protecting wildlife and agriculture is becoming especially evident as drought, conflict, and hunger continue to affect sub-Saharan Africa.  I’ll be visiting other projects, including Community Markets for Conservation (COMACO), in Zambia that are helping educate-and increase economic opportunities-for farmers living inside and near conservation areas.

Should you feel inspired to help the Center, you can donate directly by clicking here. Also, for a more hands-on experience, they are actively looking for volunteers on the ground to help.

The following is the letter of inquiry to the Arizona offices of the Modern Whig Party.

At the end of last year, or the last decade if you prefer, President Obama named Amanda Simpson as a Senior Technical Advisor to the Commerce Department, specifically in the Bureau of Industry and Security.  Her job will be to monitor the exportation of weapsons systems.

As a general rule this would probably be a rather routine appointment.  After all, Ms. Simpson

brings considerable professional credentials to her new job. For thirty years, she has worked in the aerospace and defense industry, most recently serving as Deputy Director in Advanced Technology Development at Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, Arizona. She holds degrees in physics, engineering and business administration along with an extensive flight background.

This appointment, however, has generated some controversy because Ms. Simpson is one of the first transgender presidential appointments.

My taste in literature, film, and music is rather eclectic (for that matter, as is my taste in near anything). I can’t always explain ‘WHY’ I like something…sometimes it just ‘FEELS‘ right. Music and Art especially resonate with me in such a manner…not anything that can really be put to words, just a sense. Something that my untrained ear or my untrained eye picks up on subconsciously…something that just strikes a chord in me.

The following selections fall into that category, I do not know exactly WHY I like them…they just FEEL right to me. I am fully aware, though, that just like my love of the smell of the salt marsh, of paper mill, and of gasoline…not everyone agrees with my tastes.

So, lemme know your thoughts. What are the books, movies, and songs that just FEEL right to you?