The Salt Lake Tribune reported today that Obama has picked up another superdelegate in Utah Democratic Party chairperson Wayne Holland (as well as the add-on that Holland will appoint).

The headline reads "Obama gets two nods from Utah", but I think they buried the lede:

Before announcing his endorsement, Holland canvassed the 158 people running as Democrats in Utah for everything from governor to county commission and nearly 80 percent of them supported Obama.

continued...

See also: Video/audio proof: FL Dems' feeble attempt to stop GOP from setting early primary date by pattyp.

As far back as 9/07 and as recently as 5 days ago MakeItCountFlorida.com - the Florida Democratic Party's own PR website for its uncontested primary - carried on its FAQ page a certain item 10, which among other things included the following inconvenient passage:

...the Florida Democratic Party’s State Executive Committee voted twice to go with the January 29th primary date...

But now this FAQ item has been crudely scrubbed from the site. If you float your mouse down the list of hyperlinked bullet points on the current version of the FAQ page you'll notice that the list now skips from item 9 to 11.

conintued...

This request came to me from Chris Hughes, Facebook co-founder and a coordinator of online organizing for the campaign.

The request was contained in an email from Chris to the AtlantaforObama08 online campaign group and was forwarded to one of my groups (UtahForObama) by group administrator Misti Fowler. Misti was responding to questions and suggestions by other group members about contacting superdelegates to lobby them on Obama's behalf.

The full email is after the jump...

In the middle of the SCHIP fight some weeks back, I encountered a curious poster at the checkout of the local kwik-e-mart:

Smokers are being targeted for a 156% tax hike.
Tell Congress a $6.10 a Carton Tax Increase is Going Too Far.

The poster referred me to a website which urged people to contact their representatives about upholding the president's expected veto of the tax increase. Not surprisingly, the webpage was paid for by Phillip Morris and made no mention of the SCHIP program the tax hike would fund.

However, when I clicked through to another page entitled Latest Polling I discovered Phillip Morris funded polling that did eventually mention the SCHIP program and uncovered some interesting results. The survey, conducted in 11 congressional districts held by Blue Dog Democrats, gives us a rare detailed look into swing district attitudes about Democrats, taxation, SCHIP, and - oddly enough - progressive Medicare reform.

I used to get electricity through Rocky Mountain Power ( part of the for-profit PacifiCorp) which has a program called Blue Sky where customers can elect to buy wind power by the 100-kilowatt-hour block.

Now I live in a town that gets electricity through UAMPS, a 49 member non-profit municipal cooperative which does have wind as part of its enegy portfolio but which does not have any mechanism for allowing customers to elect wind power.

How can I help UAMPS develop a program like Blue Sky?

continued...

A few days before the election I posted a Gloating Guide for the Senate, considering the range of possible outcomes, to help my fellow Kossacks better prepare for today's important task of rubbing the Republicans' noses in their crushing, historic, and humiliating defeat in the Senate.

The Guide was not well received at that time, perhaps with good reason. But I offer it once more, in this improved climate, and tailored to the actual result, which was a pickup of 6 seats.

updated Guide after the break...

I've compiled a handy Gloating Guide to help you improve your gloating should the Republicans lose seats in the Senate next Tuesday as widely expected.  The guide covers outcomes ranging from a Democratic gain of 1 to a gain of 8 seats. I assume an order of pickups which is just my own opinion but also roughly reflects the pundit consensus.

DISCLAIMER: Please ignore posters who will scold us that we "haven't won anything yet". Of course we haven't, but proper gloating takes preparation.

continued...

James Dobson on Laura Ingraham yesterday:

I don't believe that conservative Christians in large numbers will vote for a Mormon but that remains to be seen, I guess.

Meanwhile, Romney addressed New Hampshire Republicans this past weekend, where he compared the US favorably to Iraq and Afghanistan:

"It is a very different nation and a very different world that we enjoy here," Romney said. "Where life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are not just words. They mean something very deep to us."

Find out how deep after the break.

Arar Commission Report, FACTUAL BACKGROUND: VOLUME II, p.481:

[Canadian] Ambassador Kergin was advised [in a 11/6/2003 meeting with Fran Townsend] that the U.S. Government in removing Mr. Arar to Syria attached a condition that he not be harmed which was conveyed to the Syrians.

Sec. of State Rice, 12/6/2005:

"The United States has not transported anyone, and will not transport anyone, to a country when we believe he will be tortured.  Where appropriate, the United States seeks assurances that transferred persons will not be tortured."

"Where appropriate" ?

That and other questions after the break...

From the wires today:

Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Tuesday "there is a need to cleanse the country's universities from secularism and liberalism,"...Iran's education system "has been dominated by secular thinking leading to a loss of our Islamic identity."

This naturally brings to mind the classic post by billmon, "Scenes From the Cultural Revolution", from March 2005.

continued...

Question:
Do you recognize this map?

answer after the break...

Hillary Clinton was right on Iraq.

At least she was by the standards that people at dKos apply to many of their pet presidential candidates for 2004 and now 2008. She must have been "right," because her position in the fall of 2002 was the same as that of the much lionized Dean, Clark, and Gore during that time.

Disclaimer: I voted for Dean in 2004, largely due to his Iraq War opposition during the campaign. But I vote for Clinton in every 2008 straw poll - and I present this diary about her - not because she is my ideal candidate, but out of frustraion with the unfair and growing dismissal she gets from this site, and because I don't see many other strong alternatives.

(more after the break)

If you've spent any time on right wing blogs you know that whenever the subject of MLK comes up, within .0002 seconds someone will post that MLK was a big plagiarist (and yet somehow the African-American vote eludes them). That's exactly what happened on Ben Domenech's blog back on August 22, 2003 after he posted Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech along with some qualified praise for the man.

The first commenter reflexively posted:

Are you aware the "Dr." King plagiarized extensively on his doctoral thesis, as well as on a number of other writings and speeches?...

Here's Ben's magnanimous response:

Of course I'm aware, Josh. Thomas Jefferson hacked up the Bible and buggered his slaves, but I don't feel that those sins ought to undermine his integrity on the issues that matter most.

Big of him, eh?

~END~

The Rape Exception
Human Rights Watch, Feb 2006:

Mexican officials actively prevent rape victims from gaining access to legal and safe abortion, and they fail to punish rape and sexual violence inside and outside the family, said Human Rights Watch in a report released today. The 92-page report, "The Second Assault: Obstructing Access to Legal Abortion after Rape in Mexico," details the disrespect, suspicion and apathy that pregnant rape victims encounter from public prosecutors and health workers.

The Other Rape Exception
Conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly, Feb 2006:

A man's life has been sacrificed, and three children have been denied their father by malicious feminists who have lobbied for laws that punish spousal rape just like stranger rape and deny a man the right to cross-examine his accuser. They have created a judicial system where the woman must always be believed even though she has no evidence, one in which the man is always guilty.

continued...

Lone Peak Press Editor:

I am writing in support of Alpine Council Member Kent Hastings. It's really sad that not everyone realizes the great value of his "Resolution on The Natural Family: A Vision for (name of city)."  Some have said that this Resolution is beyond the scope of city government.  But Mr. Hastings, in his recent letter to the editor, has now explained that the Resolution will "guide our public policy in zoning, city ordinances and other city decisions."

For example, under the new Natural Family zoning map, the old areas for half acre, 1 acre, and 5 acre lots would be reclassified as Q-4, Q-8, and Q-12.  These areas would be open only to families with the appropriate number of children in their quiver.  The large lots up Fort Canyon Road would naturally be reserved for those with a "full quiver" of 12 kids (Q-12). Also, all homes in these zones should have a garden, and it should be "ringing with the laughter of many children," except between the hours of 10pm and 6am and on Sunday.

NOTE:
Let me make it very clear that when I say "best strategic outcome," I mean best strategic outcome for preserving medical and privacy rights in the US.  I'm not talking about the best strategic outcome for Democrats electorally (though that's obviously part of the equation).

For purposes of this poll, let's assume the matter will be resolved between the 2006 and 2008 elections and before any further changes are made to the composition of the Supreme Court.

I'm also curious whether people think the SD law, or some other (future) state law with possibly more exceptions, would make the better test case.

Two items caught my eye today in the print edition of the Salt Lake Tribune (02/11/2006):

"Bill on teen abortion goes to Senate"

"W. Jordan police say teen gave birth, left baby boy on shelf to die"

More after the break...

From The Times Online:

"Once again, the media elites are proving that their pet projects are more important than profit," Janice Crouse, of Concerned Women for America, said. "None of the three [Golden Globe winners] - Capote, Transamerica or Brokeback Mountain - is a box office hit. Brokeback Mountain has barely topped $25 million (£14.2 million) in ticket sales."

We'll ignore for the moment the fact that Brokeback is making more money per screen than any of the current "box office hits," and just note that by the standards of Concerned Women for America, whose mission is to "protect and promote Biblical values among all citizens", the movie to see last week was box office leader Hostel (rated R for "brutal scenes of torture and violence, strong sexual content, language and drug use"), which made $25 million just last week alone.

But a quick visit to the website of CWA reveals that the group has not always preached the gospel of strong profit margins. Examples after the break.