Mounties Marry! RCMP Has First Married Same-Sex Couple

Dressed in their scarlet uniforms, Jason Tree and Const. David Connors will become the first married same-sex couple in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. I wish I could attend. I have always found the RCMP uniforms sexy as all get-out, and the idea of a couple of these brave canucks getting hitched really gives me goosebumps.

From the story in the Chronicle-Herald: "Provincial RCMP spokesman Sgt. Frank Skidmore said the force was happy to hear about the union, adding that theyÂ’re proud RCMP officers reflect all aspects of the community."

Now that's the kind of diversity this country could use! As with any married couple in the RCMP, neither partner can serve in a position of power over the other in the same detachment. At home, well that's a different matter.

Anti-Gay Marriage Amendment Hearing Locked Behind Closed Doors - Feingold Walks Out

Russ Feingold (D-WI) has a heated exchange with Arlen Specter (R-PA), chairman of the panel holding hearings on a proposed Anti-Gay Marriage Amendment. As the meeting was moved into a secret session he walked out in protest.

Seems the Republicans want to do their dirty-work in secret. As with most things the Republicans do these days, secrecy is the new "black".

As Big Oil Trys To Diss Global Warming - Time For Social Responsibility Amendment

As the film by Al Gore, An Inconvenient Truth is set to premier in a few days the big oil companies have begun their campaign of dissinformation and rebuttal. No surprise, since these are the companies that have the most to loose if Americans wake up and reduce their dependence on fossil fuels. They ignore the disappearance of glaciers worldwide and the rising sea temperatures and state that there are reliable scientists who claim that it's not happening.

That lie, and it is a big one, is wrapped in the message that carbon dioxide is our friend. The campaign is one of the most outrageous misrepresentations of science ever. "Carbon dioxide, they call it pollution, we call it life." That may be the most insidious tag line since some of the old cigarette ads that had doctors as spokesmen. In 1943, Philip Morris placed an ad in the National Medical Journal which reads: "'Don't smoke' is advice hard for patients to swallow. May we suggest instead 'Smoking Philip Morris?' Tests showed three out of every four cases of smokers' cough cleared on changing to Philip Morris. Why not observe the results for yourself?"

It's time corporations took responsibility for living on the same planet and in the same country as the rest of us. A novel idea is put forth by the author of "Left Hand of God", Rabbi Michael Lerner. His proposal for a "Social Responsibility Amendment" to the Constitution would treat corporate charters much like the FCC treats broadcast licenses. Corporations would have to renew their charters every 20 years and be reviewed as to their performance regarding the public good.

Every corporation doing business within the US (whether located here or abroad) with annual income of over $20 million must receive a new corporate charter every twenty years, and these new charters will only be granted to corporations who can prove a history of social responsibility as measured by an Ethical Impact Report. which will measure the company's sensitivity to the needs of the environment, the community, and its employees. The Ethical Impact Report will be compiled by 3 different constituencies: the corporation itself, the workers (under conditions of confidentiality), and relevant community organizations around the world who wish to present their case about the social responsibility of the corporation.

There are details to be worked out, but it is an idea well worth considering. Of course if the oil companies and others who pollute our planet could find a way to make a profit from clean air, then that would go a long way toward solving the problem. After all, the current American version of capitalism thrives on unbridled greed, profit = good. Apparently a few companies have found a way to make clean air pay. During a recent trip to West Texas I saw fields dotted with wind turbans, drawing power from the prevailing Texas winds. Not a bad start.

Until more folks can get involved in this renewable resource, I suspect we will be choked with more ads telling us to make as much Carbon Dioxide as we want... after all it's what makes plants grow! Oh yea, and it's also poison if taken in sufficient quantities, and it's helping to melt the ice caps.

Why No Indictments Of Karl Rove Yet? Just Wait.

Truthout.org posted an update on the story about the indictment of Karl Rove that was posted last week by Jason Leopold. They stand by their story and offer further evidence that they now have confirmation from other sources.

I am content to wait. I know Mr. Rove is pulling every string he can to avoid this but in the end he will be brought before a court. Keep watching the skies!

US Plans To Bomb Iran

According to a story in the Herald the US has updated contingency plans to bomb Iran if international diplomacy fails. The plan identifies over 400 key targets, many related to Iran's nuclear program.

So anyone taking bets on when we start dropping bombs? My money is on late October, right about the time it looks like the Republicans are going to loose both houses of Congress. Not surprisingly, I can't seem to get anybody to give me odds on that bet.

Bush Must Step Down

Bush must step down. Strong words, but not unprecedented. Nixon was persuaded to resign after the Watergate scandal blew up to epic proportions. The Republicans in Congress confronted the President and persuaded him to leave office for the good of the country and the party. Where are those kind of Republicans now?

With his approval ratings in free-fall and scandal after scandal popping up almost daily, I have to wonder if Bush reads or even cares about what the American people think. Bush has broken the law numerous times, the latest example being his domestic spying without warrants. He uses the unprecedented and highly questionable tactic of "signing statements" when he signs bills he doesn't want to follow as law, and he lies almost pathologically to the public. When will he be held accountable for any of this?

Democrats have thrown in the towel, opting to wait until the Republicans suffer a complete melt down. With the exception of Russ Fiengold, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi, they won't even use the power they have to block politicized nominees to the court. Though the 2006 election may give us a Democratic House and possibly Senate, what good will it do if they sit on their collective ass and do nothing?

Come on Democrats, stand up and call it like it is. Tell the Bush machine that its time is up. They have broken the country financially and militarily and it's time to reverse course. Why does it take John Stewart and Stephen Colbert to speak the truth? Isn't that why we elected you in the first place?

This fall, I will vote a straight Democratic ticket, not because I firmly support every candidate, but because I abhor what the Republicans are doing to my rights and my country. I want not only my country back; I want politicians who actually do something again. What a quaint thought.

Shades Of Nixon - NSA Collecting Info On Leaks To Media, Not Terrorists

So am I the only one not surprised by this news. The Bush administration is using the telephone records collected by the NSA to track down White House leaks, not Osama. According to Raw Story:

ABC's Brian Ross and Richard Esposito Report:
A senior federal law enforcement official tells ABC News the government is tracking the phone numbers we call in an effort to root out confidential sources.

And so all the talk about protecting Americans is a total lie, they are protecting their butts and using taxpayer money to do it. This administration will go down it history as the most corrupt ever!

Cheney's Hand Written Notes About Joe Wilson Turned Over To Fitzgerald

Dick Cheney made hand written notes in the margins of the New York Times Op-Ed column by Joseph Wilson according to a story today in Newsweek.

The notes, Fitzgerald said in his filing, show that Cheney and Libby were "acutely focused" on the Wilson column and on rebutting his criticisms of the White House's handling of pre-Iraq war intelligence.

This coming on the heels of news that Karl Rove has been indicted for perjury according to sources referenced by Jason Leopold of Truthout.org.

Watch the Sunday talk shows for hyper-spin!

Karl Rove Tells White House He Will Be Indicted

According to Jason Leopold of Truthout.org, Karl Rove told Bush and the rest of the higher ups at the White House that he will be indicted. He intends to resign when that happens.

Not much of a surprise to me. When Rove's position was changed at the White House last week, it was evident that they were already starting to position for damage control. Now he will be dropped like a hot potato. My hope is that he plea-bargains and fingers the rest of this criminal mob.

Let The Law Suits Begin! Time For Americans To Fight Back!

Verizon is the first company to be the brunt of public outrage over the revelation that the NSA sought and was given without a court order, phone records of all customers. Two New Jersey public interest lawyers are suing according to a story from the AP. The damages asked: $50 billion.

Bruce Afran and Carl Mayer, attorneys, filed the lawsuit Friday afternoon in Manhattan federal district court. On Verizon's part, the company declined to say whether or not it turned over any records because that information was "Classified". Sounds like the same defense used to stop the Justice Department from investigating the wiretaps. "ITS SECRET!"

Well that is not good enough. Claiming we can't tell you cause it's secret is not only lame, but since this surveillance clearly violates several laws it's a lie. Just because the President wants something, we are a nation of laws and he can't just get anything he wants and break the law, only later to declare it a secret. If he were a kid in grade school I could understand the petulance, but for an allegedly grown adult this is a poor kind of argument.

As for Verizon, their privacy policy on their web site clearly states:

"Personal information you voluntarily supply when obtaining information, purchasing products, or interacting with our advertising on verizon.com is not shared for non-Verizon purposes. This information is Verizon proprietary data and is not available for use to any outside company in this personalized form. Should any changes be made in the way we use personally identifiable information, Verizon will contact you via e-mail notifying you of this change and give you the opportunity to choose to opt out of such use."

I guess all bets are off if it's for secret stuff?

UPDATE:

Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a San Francisco watchdog group that has sued AT&T for its role in turning customer data over to the government. Let's hope it's the beginning of a flood.

Invade Iran - An October Surprise?

As the Bush approval numbers drop steadily (now 29%) and members of Congress on the Republican side begin squirming in their seats, I have to wonder if there might not be something really big coming. After all, when backed into a corner, unscrupulous people do unscrupulous things.

An administration that regularly breaks existing laws and claims that it "doesn't interpret it's actions as being illegal" could justify anything. Thus the fear of the October Surprise. Remember it worked for Reagan, and so these folks in power now, since many of them are really Reagan appointees might try it again.

Iran has long been the boogie man of our middle eastern foreign policy. Bush includes them in the Axis of Evil, and since he rarely changes his mind, he will go after them. Even conservative columnist Pat Buchanan suspects there may be some unexpected political play.

There is a pool going on amongst my friends as to what day we will officially start a war with Iran. My heart is on "never" but my money is on the third week in October.

OKC Tribal Fire Conference Notes

Sunday night I got back from Oklahoma City and a very enjoyable event called Tribal Fire. The three day conference put on by National Leather Association - Oklahoma City, featured a vendors market and three days of workshops for kinky folk in all areas of BDSM. As a presenter, I was treated like royalty by the organization and I am very grateful to them for all their hospitality.

All these conferences are great places to learn new information and to catch up with old friends from around the country. Since many of the presenters come from other states, the leather conferences are much like family reunions.

What I found interesting was that this year there were no protestors outside the hotel. I remember the first Tribal Fire event, when the Concerned Women of America showed up to demonstrate their moral outrage at the event. Strange that most of those protestors, were men not women. I made an effort to speak with them and before the event was over a couple of them and I had real conversations about spiritual matters and BDSM. They had no idea what it was really about, they just knew that the images of leathersex were dark and foreboding and that was enough. Surely, they thought ths must be evil.

As a practicing Christian and a progressive, I managed to speak to them in their own language, and let them know that our activities were not only consensual, but in my opinion, spiritual in nature. I spoke about how people involved in the scene communicated and connected at a very deep level. To me, that connection is a sacred act. Another human being allowing you to interact with them on such a deeply physical level requires trust. It is trust from the receiver as well as the giver, both working together to assure that the scene will be fulfilling and ultimately safe.

In a way I kind of miss the protestors at this years event, I always like witnessing to people. Sharing with those who have no idea what BDSM is the joys and benefits it can bring. On the other hand, I suspect that some day, a few of those concerned "women" will eventually find their way into the leather scene and they will be healed of their self doubt and loathing. God bless them all.

NSA & Bush Are Out Of Control!

For a long time I thought it was just me who thought the Bush administration was trying to consolidate power and become a de-facto dictatorship. After a few friends called me "crazy" I let it go. But now I have company. CNN's Jack Cafferty made the best argument today on TV. Crooks & Liars has the clip.

Watch it. Watch it again and then write Cafferty and thank him for having the guts to say what is really going on. With a goose stepping congress controlled by Neo-cons and a judiciary that is fast becoming a rubber stamp, it doesn't take much to envision an executive branch that can pretty much do and say whatever it wants. That's the "unitary executive" concept. That translates into "dictatorship" and it's time it is brought back into balance as our nation's founders intended.

Obergruppenfuhrer Delay To Resign June 9

Heir Delay will be stepping down not only as House Leader but resigning from his seat as well. Raw Story obtained a copy of the letter of resignation. Looks like Democratic opponent Nick Lampson will have a good shot at getting to Washington.

Delay, who is deeply involved in his own defense on money laundering charges has no doubt seen the last act of Götterdämmerung, Wagner's famous mythic opera where the Gods all march off to Valhalla as the curtain falls. Could it be that Delay wants to get there first so he will have a good seat to watch the rest of his criminal buddies as they arrive?

I love a good opera, and I think I hear a Fat Lady warming up for the finale!

Hey Laaaaaydeee!

Ooops! Wrong Jerry Lewis. This one is California Rep. Jerry Lewis, Republican chair of the House Appropriations Committee. Talking Points Memo reported that the L.A. Times story fingers not the actor but the Congressman from Redlands, CA. Looks like he was involved in the Duke Cunningham scandal as well. The government is looking into a possible connection between Lewis and his longtime friend Bill Lowery. Lowery, no surprise, was a lobbyist whose clients were awarded earmarked contracts by Lewis' committee.

Doesn't look like this Jerry Lewis will be nearly as funny as the actor, unless you are a Democrat watching on the sidelines as he gets to do the perp-walk.

Time To Start Laughing At Bush

As noted in a recent by AmericaBlog, Chicago Sun-Times commentary, the recent White House Press correspondents dinner was the first time Bush actually heard real people talking about his policies and his illegal behavior. Stephen Colbert not only was drop dead funny, he was honest. Now it's time for the rest of America to get honest.

When Bush speaks at public gatherings and makes one of his infamous "Bushisms" we need to laugh, laud and long and right in his face. He needs to know how bad a leader we feel he is and what an object of derision he has made the Presidency.

When Bush says,"We cannot allow our enemies to hold us hostile..." We should guffaw. When he remarks that , "thousands of OB-GYNs across this country cannot practice their love of women." We need to laugh so hard it hurts. Maybe humor can do what all the posturing and politics cannot. End this joke of an administration as soon as possible. The 2006 election will be critical. Let's hope we are all laughing afterward, and a little dancing in the street as well!

Bush CIA Pick Described as "Dishonorable And Without Integrity"

Russ Tice, whistle-blower and former intelligence analyst for the NSA, describes Bush's latest pick to head the CIA as "a lapdog" for the Bush administration. His harsh remarks come in an interview with Defensetech.org.

Tice went on to say that Hayden has lied about the scope of the illegal domestic spying program that Bush has undertaken and was picked strictly because of his loyalty. Tice attributes the demise of porter Goss to his occasional spats with the administration and sees Hayden as a completely complicit "enemy of the Constitution of the United States".

Another CIA Bailout! Can Tales Of Hookers Be Far Behind?

The CIA’s number three guy, Kyle 'Dusty' Foggo has resigned according to Raw Story. Speculation is running high that he might be implicated in the ongoing investigation of Randy "Duke" Cunningham. Foggo as well as "nine-fingers" Brant Bassett, who worked for Porter Goss at the CIA.

The 1999 party was attended by Foggo, Cunningham and a nine-fingered former CIA officer named Brant Bassett, who worked for Goss when the outgoing CIA chief was House Intelligence Committee chair. The scandal revolves around the poker party thrown by defense contractors Brent Wilkes and Mitchell Wade who provided suites at the Westin and Watergate Hotels complete with prostitutes.

Bush Approval Slides Again!

If it weren't enough that Porter Goss will probably be implicated in the unfolding prostitution scandal, Bush hit a new record, 31% approval rating according to USA Today. Even among the strongest supporters of the President , Republicans, his approval rate has hit an all time low. It seems that many republicans in Congress are wondering whether to distance themselves from Bush in hopes of not falling into the "black hole" of his unpopularity.

As gas prices continue to rise, the public feels less optimistic that they might escape any economic hardships, and indeed many are already feeling the pinch. In many states the price of regular is above $3.00 per gallon yet auto-makers continue to churn out SUVs and gas guzzling cars. Why? According to auto industry expert Erich Merkle, "the price would have to top $4.00 per gallon in the next 6 to 9 months to affect SUV sales".

We'll see. Gas prices will no doubt affect cost of delivery for goods to stores and that cost will be passed on to consumers. The end result is that the middles class and the poor will be squeezed again, and that spells trouble for the Republicans in the fall.

Exxon/Mobil CEO Debunks Refining Capacity Myth

Rex Tillerson, CEO of Exxon/Mobil was interviewed by Matt Lauer of the Today Show. During the interview Tillerson made the following statement in response to a viewer question suggesting big oil is intentionally restraining refinery capacity to keep prices high.

"Exxon-Mobil has expanded refinery capacity in recent years at a rate greater than the expansion of demand."

Myth Busted! The excuse given over and over buy oil company execs and the press is that refinery capacity can't keep up with demands. Those environmentalists have prevented the oil companies from building new refineries and that this is the real problem. Now we know it's a pack of lies.

Others point to the rise in oil prices, but unless the gas companies are marking things up more that should not translate into 8.4 billion dollars in profits this quarter. In defense of this Tillerson gave the argument that Exxon/Mobil is a global corporation and much of their profit is made outside the US.

Whether you buy his defense or not, his answers show the biggest problem in America today. Global companies have no allegiance to any nation; they only are responsible to their shareholders, in theory. So when we ask companies like Exxon to do what is right for America, they look puzzled and ask, why? We aren't Americans; we are a "global" company.

I am a big advocate of free trade, but it must also be free trade with a sense of responsibility. Selling goods made by virtual slave labor, or gouging the middle class and lying about it are both irresponsible acts. If you are going to use the Global excuse for your actions, then you must act as a responsible citizen of the world. That means treating everyone fairly and not exploiting one nation at the expense of people’s lives or livelihoods.

Exxon/Mobil claims to be a Global company, but the CEO lives in the USA. Their headquarters in here in Dallas, TX (or Irving, TX to be precise). They enjoy lives of unprecedented wealth and power here in this country and I would argue that they are a US company. As such they should take the national interests of Americans into consideration when they hike prices to line their already golden pocketbooks. After all, the economy and infrastructure of our country makes their business possible, we built roads with public money that brought on the boom in the automobile and in the end their record profits. Isn't it time they understood that all Americans are "stakeholders" in their enterprise? As such don't we deserve a little consideration?

I know Wall Street would be disappointed, but what if they only made 6 billion dollars profit this quarter and eased the burden on the lives of the poor and middle class in this country, couldn't the good will that would bring be worth it?