From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE…
10 9 8 7 Weeks to Netroots Nation!
Yup---we're under the 50-day mark as the countdown to the big convention in San Jose continues. Here's your weekly dose of info:
• Volunteers are needed to make everything run smoothly at the convention. Linda is putting out the call for a few good men and women:
Yes, we are looking for volunteers! And if you're willing to work every day of the conference, we have an option for you to pay a ridiculously low registration fee. If you're interested in this, or volunteering in general, contact Eric Thut at eric [at] netrootsnation.org.
Besides helping to make the convention run smoothly, spending some time as a volunteer is a great way to meet people, especially if it's your first time at Netroots Nation. Plus it's just a blast.
• The Netroots Nation/DFA/America's Voice scholarship competition is in its last days. Winners get free passes to NN13 and accommodations. Click here to apply or vote for your favorite candidates. The competition ends at 11:59pm May 7th. There are some great candidates, so go check 'em out and vote 'em up. They thank ya kindly.
• Fun Fact: San Jose is represented by two congresscritters---Mike Honda in the 17th District (one-third of San Jose), and Zoe Lofgren in the 19th. Both dependable Democrats.
• Have you seen the list of panels yet? You can check 'em out here.
• To register for the convention, click here. And for official hotel info, click here. I have it on good authority (my cat) that instead of a mint they put a pie on your pillow.
• Follow NN13 on Twitter here and on Facebook here.
If you write for another blog, feel free to catapult this info so we can get the word out to as many people as possible. The more the merrier, I say. (I hear that's also true about orgies, bottles of beer on the wall and waffles.)
Meanwhile, Cheers and Jeers starts below the fold... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
Cheers and Jeers for Thursday, May 2, 2013
Note: Another sign that spring has finally arrived in Maine: the kitty de-winged her first housefly of the year yesterday. [Sigh] They grow up and become sadistic predators so fast…
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By the Numbers:
Days 'til Atlantic hurricane season starts: 30
Days 'til the 139th Kentucky Derby: 2
Number of U.S. kids who have at least one parent in jail: 7.3 million
Percent of prison inmates who are male: 93%
(Source: MSNBC)
Movement in the consumer confidence score between March and April: 62 to 68
Historic average consumer confidence score: 92
(Source: The Conference Board)
Estimated number of new jobs major economists expect to be announced for April when the new figures are announced tomorrow by the Labor Department: 160,000
(Source: AP)
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Your Thursday Molly Ivins Moment:
[A]pproximately one fourth of all fertilized eggs are swept out on the menstrual tide before they even get near to implanting themselves in the uterine wall, and we do not hold funerals over Kotex or Tampax. I suggest to you this means that the beginning of life is not a single specific event, but rather a process that deserves increasing respect as it continues toward birth---precisely the tripartite system set up under Roe v. Wade (and if you hear Roe v. Wade described as "abortion on demand," you are listening to a liar).
I respect those who oppose abortion, but I do not think they have a right to use the law as an instrument of coercion against people who do not believe (and it is a matter of faith) as they do. ... There were an estimated one million abortions a year in this country before Roe. Abortion can be safe and legal, or dirty and illegal. It cannot be stopped.
---From Who Let the Dogs In? (2004, Random House)
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Puppy Pic of the Day: "98…99…100…Ready or not, here I come."
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CHEERS to a very gay day. The tidal wave of wins in the American LGBT movement continues. Cue the bullet list:
• Civil unions are now the law in Colorado.
Linc Chafee's signature on Rhode Island's marriage
bill will mean equality in every New England state.
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• Marriage passed through committee and is headed for a full senate vote in Delaware.
• It's possible that today the final marriage bill will pass a perfunctory procedural vote and be signed by Governor Lincoln Chafee in Rhode Island.
• And a day after Washington Wizards center Jason Collins came out of the closet, online sales of his "98" jersey (to commemorate the year Matthew Shepard was murdered, a classy gesture of remembrance) are off the charts. Meanwhile, sales of Chris Broussard jerseys: negative to infinity.
Bigots: we're ready to accept your unconditional surrender. Preferably on the battleship the Village People used to shoot "In the Navy." (It's a bucket list thing.)
JEERS to wondering if you should've closed the barn door 13 years after the horse left and died of old age. Former Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O'Connor, furiously trying to erase the blackest stain on her record, now wonders if maybe the court made a mistake taking Bush v. Gore and handing the White House keys to what turned out to be a catastrophic president and his warmonger veep. But I seem to remember that when O'Connor heard that Gore might win back in 2000, she made it pretty clear about where she stood:
Repairing the window that
my respect for Sandra Day
O'Connor escaped from.
O'Connor and her husband, John, a Washington lawyer, have long been comfortable on the cocktail and charity-ball circuit. So at an election-night party on Nov. 7, surrounded for the most part by friends and familiar acquaintances, she let her guard drop for a moment when she heard the first critical returns shortly before 8 p.m. Sitting in her hostess's den, staring at a small black-and-white television set, she visibly started when CBS anchor Dan Rather called Florida for Al Gore. "This is terrible," she exclaimed. […]
Moments later, with an air of obvious disgust, she rose to get a plate of food, leaving it to her husband to explain her somewhat uncharacteristic outburst. John O'Connor said his wife was upset because they wanted to retire to Arizona, and a Gore win meant they'd have to wait another four years.
Given the opportunity, she and her four conservative pals on the court installed Bush. Her replacement: Alito. Now she's thinking she might like takesie backsies, if it's not too much trouble. Hey, MIT---how's that time machine coming along?
CHEERS to #32. Sixteen years ago today, a national memorial honoring Franklin Delano Roosevelt officially opened in Washington, D.C., making FDR only the 4th president to get such VIP treatment.
FDR and Fala. Friends 4evuh.
[T]he monument, spread over 7.5 acres, traces 12 years of the history of the United States through a sequence of four outdoor rooms, one for each of FDR's terms of office. Sculptures inspired by photographs depict the 32nd president alongside his dog Fala. Other sculptures depict scenes from the Great Depression, such as listening to a fireside chat on the radio and waiting in a bread line, a bronze sculpture by George Segal. A bronze statue of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt standing before the United Nations emblem honors her dedication to the UN. It is the only presidential memorial to depict a First Lady.
All Reagan got was a dumb airport in the 'burbs named after him. And George W. will be lucky if he can convince anyone to name a one-holer at a rest stop after his sorry ass.
JEERS to Tsarnaev's little helpers. Three suspects have been arrested for allegedly being recruited by Dzokhar Tsarnaev to help him erase his tracks after the Boston Marathon bombing. To quote the knight in the third Indiana Jones movie: He chose…poooorly.
CHEERS to the days of jobs and surpluses. On May 2, 1997, President Clinton and congressional Republicans came to terms on a plan to balance the budget over five years. Said Newt Gingrich of the bipartisan agreement: "This is a great moment for our children and our grandchildren and our country, and we are proud to be part of that." Fourteen years later, as a presidential candidate, Gingrich foolishly raised his hand when asked if he would veto a budget with ten dollars in cuts for every 1 dollar in revenue increases. But in fairness, he did also offer jobs to our children and grandchildren. As janitors. So be grateful, ya little shits.
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Five years ago in C&J: May 2, 2008
CHEERS to the mane event. In tomorrow's Kentucky Derby, Hillary Clinton is putting her money on Eight Bells. Barack Obama seems to be backing Colonel John. And John McCain is rooting for whichever horse supports bombing Iran.
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And just one more…
"Oh my god! We killed Kenny!"
"You bastards!"
CHEERS to the end of an era. We're feeling a little blue this morning in Portland, Maine. We've lost a trusted companion. Kenny led a clean existence. Loved soaps and squeezed every last drop out of life. Oh, sure, some accused Kenny of being an agitator. Others said Kenny was a master of spin. But Kenny could be quite delicate at times, believed strongly in a permanent press, and took on some seriously dirty business while we were off distracting ourselves with frivolous things. Sadly, after a thorough examination we were told by a specialist that Kenny had died of old age. There was nothing we could do but throw a sheet over Kenny and call the junk hauler. So this morning please join Michael and me in bidding a sudsy farewell to Kenny, our 20 year-old Kenmore heavy-duty washing machine. We'll miss you, buddy. You were always---[
Sniff]---full of Cheer.
Have a nice Thursday. Happy Birthday, Jed Lewison---and many blessings on your camels. Floor's open...What are you cheering and jeering about today?
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Today's Shameless C&J Testimonial:
If the elections were held today, Quinnipiac found, 41 percent of voters said they'd pick Bill in Portland Maine, while 37 percent would choose the Republican.
---McClatchy News
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