Obama: End Libya War Now and 14 Political Cartoons

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From Denny:  While America's war hawks and profiteers are thrilled to have spent $1 billion this week bombing Libya, it's time to complete The Hand Over to anyone else but us.  Americans did not expect to be the country spending 95 percent of the money in this police action and we are not happy about it. American taxpayers are fed up with footing the bill for everything all the time and for far too long. We spend decades in idiot unnecessary expensive wars started by previous presidents, then start "police actions" in a current administration.



It's admirable President Obama chose to help the Libyan people who are revolting against their dictator but it's now time for America to pull back, sit down and allow some other country to be the star of the international show. I vote for France.  Who cares if France wants to headquarter from Paris instead of New York?  Who cares if it's NATO or France doing the duty?  Why must American military commanders always dictate the terms?  We no longer must commit 95 percent of the money, the troops or the weapons.  The coalition partners all have robust and well equipped modern military.  There is no need for this "show boating."

Newt Gingrich Cartoons: Newtie 4 President - NOT!

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From Denny: Two words: Newt Gingrich. Two more words: Laughable Hypocrite. This guy has more ex-wives than should be possible. He lays a line of huge BS on them, they swallow it hook, line and sinker. Then, years later, they are shocked Newt admits he is shallow, two-timing and a total hypocrite.



His own words, recently revealed by the recent ex-wife: "It doesn't matter if I live up to what I tell others to do. They want me to tell them how to live. I can live however I choose. The important thing is others need to hear from my lips how they are supposed to live their lives." Can anyone get more arrogant or self-aggrandizing?



Newt Gingrich is a real piece of political and hypocritical artwork that seems to think his cruelty and deceit toward others will never catch up with him. Remember this is the former GOP House Speaker that ran his strategy to impeach President Clinton AND Vice President Al Gore so he could be the one to step into power as the new president. That fiasco backfired on him and he was forced to step down in shame.



Now he's running for president against Obama. No wonder Team Obama is so confident they will win reelection. Take a look at the Bozo Collection lined up against him in the Republican Camp: Bozo Bachman, Weirdo Palin, Foul-Mouthed Huckabee and now Laughable Hypocrite Newtie. Yeah, that's no competition - at least from among the Republicans. And never under estimate the will of the American people to be so ticked off with the current president to throw him out on his ear in favor of a Bozo. After all, George Bush, and co-president Karl Rove, set the standard for the New Low in American Politics.



Well, with the cartoonists, Ol' Newtie just can't pass The Smell Test. Take a look and get a weekend grin from the latest Buffoon Brigade running for President...

Updates: Wisconsin, Islamaphobia, Newsman David Broder and Political Cartoons

Supreme Court building Image via Wikipedia

Wisconsin



From Denny:  This past weekend 100,000 protesters came out again into the Wisconsin winter weather, committed to carrying the fight to the public court of opinion. While the governor and the Republicans believe they have won they may find they have ignited an Employee Firestorm across America against all politicians.



Recall petitions are gathering steam for the four Republican State Senators that voted against the workers. Another recall petition against the governor is in the works as well, though it cannot be executed until the governor has finished one year in office. Count on it these workers and the unions will be ready and waiting to pounce as soon as the minute past midnight strikes, signaling Gov. Walker has finished his first year on the job.



The workers have also gone to court to question the legitimacy of violating state Open Meeting Laws. No ruling as of yet on that count.



It's clear why the Republican Party has pushed so hard the past 30 years to stack the federal judiciary and the Supreme Court with conservatives they could bribe. What it amounts to is there is no longer any justice in the land for any but the small percentage of the wealthiest among us. If all employees in every sector stick together, unions or not, like they do in Europe, striking as one mass, is the only way to turn the tide of injustice.



Wisconsin Uprising cartoons: 

Wisconsin: Update, The Peoples Uprising Cartoons - 11 Mar 2011

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

From Denny:  Wisconsin Gov. Walker and his Shame Republicans think this issue is closed.  They plan on firing up to 7,000 teachers.  Their state's economy is already rocky and now this idiot governor is poised to rocket it into the abyss.  When the protesters chanted, "Shame! Shame!" they were on target for just how bad local governments have become.  Republicans are hell bent upon pleasing their corporate donors to the tune of wrecking the American economy.



What did the Republicans think they accomplished by "winning the battle but losing the war"?  At present, they basically got rid of the teachers' rights to negotiate their wages and benefits.  Now the governor can set any level for their wages and they have to take it or leave the job.  That is not a choice.  Nor is it American to deny a person free speech.  Our Supreme Court gives free speech to nasty people like the Westboro Baptist Church that screams hate speech at the funerals of fallen gay soldiers.  Yet we cannot seem to give free speech rights to our own teachers.



What a bunch of traitorous hyenas running this country.  The country is set on a slow burn that could erupt like a volcano as this harsh Republican lunacy spreads from state to state.  Already my Louisiana governor is following the Christie-Walker leadership like some dancing puppet for our state budget. Fortunately, he is getting fought from both sides of the political aisle.

Funny But True: Exorcist Chasing Demons Out of Big Bank Chase

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From Denny: Don't you just love it? We are all outraged at the greed of America's Big Banks. Feel helpless? Feel vulnerable? No worries. Your local exorcists are here to save the day.



A bunch of New York City clergy banded together to go after JPMorgan Chase Bank. The ministers are angry at failed mortgage policies that simply don't well address the national foreclosure crisis. I've been posting about this crisis for some time on my American news blog, The Social Poets. Did you realize that over 21 million people are out of work for the past five years? Did you know that over 20 million homes are in foreclosure and more in the pipeline?



Well, these New York ministers decided they had enough of the corporate greed and plunder of America. They gathered at JPMorgan Chase today to close their accounts. They also went about their spiritual work, chasing off evil spirits inhabiting the bank.

Wisconsin: Dark Side Karl Rove, GOP War On Working Families, Anti-Union Ad

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From Denny:  It's official. Karl Rove, the lying hyena Bush political strategist is running an ad against the unions and paid for by the Koch Brothers. They have dropped the pretense it's all about balancing the budget. Now they admit it's all about busting the unions to benefit their billionaire employer handlers.



Of course, the figures are wrong. Even the conservative GOP think tank from which they inflated the figures, Cato Institute, corrected Rove and said he lied.



This lying ad from American Crossroads GPS, the obscenely well-funded Republican super PAC, is a 60-second spot that goes up today.  They take square aim at public employees as well as President Obama because he received support from the unions in his 2008 campaign.

Wisconsin Poll: Gov. Walker Gets Thumbs Down From Voters

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

From Denny:  Talk about bad. Gov. Walker does not fare well in the very Republican-leaning Rasmussen polling. So, you know that polling is really about five to seven points worse than these guys want to tell you since they spin it in favor of Republicans.



Clearly, the Wisconsin protests have taken their toll politically on this governor.  People are furious nationwide and protesting in support of the teachers in Wisconsin. It's just plain un-American to take away a worker's right to negotiate about his wages.  It's un-American to take away Free Speech.



Oh, did I mention how Gov. Walker has stopped payment of the paychecks to Democrats who fled the state?  Seems like those politicians have a lawsuit against him. Walker is still paying the Republicans.  What's wrong with that picture?  It doesn't take much imagination to see what he will do if he succeeds in denying collective bargaining rights to the teachers.



Recall petitions are finally circulating.  Some claim they have up to 50 percent of the signatures necessary to recall the Republican lawmakers.  Gov. Walker is safe from recall until his first year in office is finished.  Guarantee it he will be tossed out when the time comes.  He has left a bad taste in the mouth of the Wisconsin voter.

America Is NOT Broke Wisconsin Speech: Activist Michael Moore

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From Denny:  Sounds like Michael Moore has been listening in to the conversations at our house - or hijacked my keyboard strokes. :) Seriously though, great speech and ALL true! You can read the transcript or listen to the video he posted onto YouTube.



Moore spoke at a rally against Gov. Walker's decision to deny collective bargaining rights to the teachers he has decided to fire. First the public workers lose their rights, then the rest of us across the country watch our wages drop like a rock to ten cents an hour like in a third world country.



Women are now supposed to make exactly what men make for the same job since President Obama passed the new equal pay law when he first entered office. Since then the economy took a nose dive into another Great Depression that economists are afraid to label as such but the middle class knows it to be true. Almost 21 million people are out of work, whether long term or short term since Big Business started sending our jobs overseas. The big joke for tourism to India: "Visit India, Visit Your Old Job."

Do You Know Your Governors Donor List?

Image by DonkeyHotey via Flickr

From Denny: Check it out and then you know who to blame - personally. :) These are the Republican donors to Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal who paid more than $5,000 to his reelection campaign between 1 Jan 2010 and 31 Dec 2010.



If you don't know who Gov. Jindal is, he's the guy labeled as the weird "Mr. Rogers" who failed in a Republican Response attempt to one of President Obama's speeches. He has been traveling all over America before that bomb of an appearance and since, chasing campaign monies to run for the 2012 presidential campaign. Even the Republican voters here in Louisiana are unhappy with him. Why don't they recall him? It's about time the voters across the nation get serious and recall and replace corrupt greedy politicians with people who will do the job for which they were elected - not run for the next campaign to improve their resume.



I have a great idea. How about we publicize ALL the donors that contribute to lobbyist government across America?



I have a better idea. How about we publish the names, home and business addresses of all the Washington lobbyists? That could take a while as there are at least 300 lobbyists to each federal politician. That does not begin to address all the state, county and city lobbyists.



If you are a blogger then I challenge you to put up your governor's donor list and that belonging to other representatives. It's time these people quit enjoying the quiet cover of anonymity.



Note: "Donors are listed by cities in alphabetical order according to the city - not the donor's last name." What can I say? Only in Louisiana do you find a file like this. And check out how many are from out of state. You can see who is benefiting from state no-bid contracts whether in construction, roads, oil, health or insurance industries and attorney lobbyists.



Jindal Campaign spending 2010



The Jindal campaign spent $1.4 million in 2010.

Obama: From Most Admired to Unpopular in America

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From Denny: According to the usually accurate Gallup poll, President Obama's popularity is not doing well at all at the end of the year 2010. In fact, his popularity fell in as many as 50 states.



Where does Obama do exceptionally well?



As expected in his native state of Hawaii, he is ranked with a 66 percent favorable rating. In the District of Columbia he is ranked higher with and 84 percent favorable rating.



His worst rating?



In the small state of Wyoming, notoriously very conservative and Republican they rank him as only a 28 percent favorable rating. No surprises there. Yet Obama continues to court the conservative strongholds to no avail - while stiff-arming the more traditionally Democratic strongholds. Obama has watched his support slowly evaporate in just two short years, mainly for rejecting the progressive agenda to curtail the outrageous influence of Big Business lobbyists in our government who are hell bent on destroying the middle class and driving the poor deeper into poverty.

Posts Roundup at Dennys Blogs - 28 Feb 2011

Choose from world news analysis combined with the best political cartoon opinion, celebrity watching, science and health news, arts, poetry, funny photos, serious photography, funny videos, great satire, awesome food and spiritual thoughts.





From Denny: The world is changing at a dizzying rate the past few weeks with all the political upheaval in the Middle East. This kind of change is good and will end up improving everyone's lives around the world. Thirty years of poor economies and human rights abuses brought it to a head. This change was inevitable. When people feel so desperate they no longer feel they have anything to lose is when people take high risks.



Egypt and Tunisia have been decided and they are in transition to developing new governments. Libya has yet to be decided though defections from the Army and other sectors has Gadhafi increasingly isolated from his former supporters - and enablers.



It's best the West stay out of this turmoil. We don't need to arm the rebels or protect the leader in the process of getting deposed. It is up to the people of Libya to rise up and do the work themselves. If America interferes it takes away their pride of their moment in history. It is not for us to be so paternalistic in attitude toward developing nations. They will learn to grow just as we are also learning to take a hands off approach and trust them to choose well for themselves.



Where you can easily find all the links to all the posts on all the blogs on a daily basis:



Dennys: News Politics Comedy Science Arts Food - an online newspaper

Dennys People Watching:



17 Best Oscar Gowns Ever 



Music Video: Britney Spears Song Spoof - Hold It Against Me 



Lady Gaga Mugs For Cameras For Supreme Magazine Shoot 



Funny Lady Gaga Makes Grand Egg Entrance To Grammys 



The Golden Globes 2011: Winners and Gowns 











The Social Poets:



44 Wisconsin Uprising and Federal Budget Fight Cartoons



In Passing poem - Libations Friday 25 Feb 2011



17 American Uprising Cartoons: Wisconsin 



Funny News: Fake David Koch Punked Idiot GOP Wisconsin Gov. Walker 



Italy: Women Fed Up With Whoring Bersculoni



Egypt Revolution: Late Night Jokes Roundup 



42 Obama 2011 Budget Cuts and Economy Cartoons



The Obama Budget and American Economy Cartoons



Posts Roundup at Dennys Blogs - 13 Feb 2011



Gabby Giffords Speaks 1st Words, May Attend NASA Space Launch



American Political Cartoons - 12 Feb 2011

44 Wisconsin Uprising and Federal Budget Fight Cartoons

Image by DonkeyHotey via Flickr

From Denny: Everyone is watching their wallet - or the government's wallet, that is. From the Congressional halls to the state legislatures across the nation all eyes are on how our politicians are handling deficits. Their solutions? Most are Republican controlled and so they passed tax cuts for the wealthy, both on state levels like Wisconsin and the federal level like Obama too.



Tax cuts to the wealthy always bring out the same tired song: take money away from teachers, firemen, police and the middle class that built this country, protect it and teach it. The middle class is the economic engine not the wealthiest among us. Yet it is the wealthiest among us that continue as a scourge upon regular working people.



Well, the working people have finally had enough. The working people have finally figured out just how serious these Republican activists truly are about lowering the minimum wage, union-busting and getting rid of health care. And that's just for starters, folks. These guys are a ruthless greedy bunch, led by the billionaire Koch Brothers, the robber barons of this century.  The Koch Brothers want to concentrate wealth into their hands - which is why they have purchased so many federal and state politicians to do their bidding.  Walker is just one of hundreds of their minions.



Check out the political cartoons expressing the cartoonists' opinion on the news, especially the Wisconsin uprising about the Gov. Walker and the legislature taking away collective bargaining rights from teachers.  Oh, and in case, you didn't catch a previous post, get a laugh at this tidbit.  Gov. Walker sent out a pink slip to the teacher wife of his own GOP Speaker of the House.  Smart move, don't you think?  Bet that guy's wife wants to take a baseball bat to Walker now - you know, that same baseball bat Walker said he reserved for Democratic lawmakers who refuse to bow to this autocratic will.



Today over 70,000 protesters marched in Wisconsin. MoveOn.org organized marches all across America this weekend in support of the workers in Wisconsin. Looks like the Second American Revolution has begun.



As it stands now, Walker still plans to fire at least 6,000 teachers. You think that's bad.  What about Texas?  They plan to cut as many as upwards to 100,000 teachers.  I wonder how many teachers - who vote Republican - will be asking themselves why they believe "in small government" when they are the government.

If not for various services like education and security there would not be much societal advancement and we would be reduced to a lack of law and order.  The kind of "small government" the GOP advocates means no one to enforce minimum wages, all laws in the courts and on the streets, no food safety, no public heath safety, no interstate highways and bridges maintenance.



Everything you take for granted as part of your daily comfortable life would be done away with if the Republicans had their way.  They would turn America into a police state, concentrating the taxpayer monies on military build-up.  Seems like the last country to do that was Russia, formerly the USSR, and all those satellite countries ended up breaking their economy.  As it is, with Iraq and Afghanistan and Pakistan, it is America that now has too many satellite countries bleeding dry the national treasury.



So, now we hear today that Obama and Hillary want to start sending weapons to the rebels in Libya?  Are they crazy?  That's how the Taliban and Bin Laden got their start when we supplied them during the Reagan years against the Russians in Afghanistan.  Don't these politicians ever read our own recent American history?  Do we really need yet another American satellite country to burden the middle class?









Speaker Boehner and the GOP:

17 American Uprising Cartoons: Wisconsin

From Denny:  Have you heard the latest humor twist on this jerk of a governor in Wisconsin? Turns out the fool sent out a pink slip to the teacher wife of his own GOP Speaker of the House in Wisconsin. Yeah, now when it happens to Republicans suddenly it isn't so funny any more. I bet that Speaker's wife now wants to take a baseball bat to the governor.



The Republican governors in Louisiana (my state), Indiana and Ohio are all backing down from their high horse attitudes of firing every one and taking away their rights. Talk about public outrage and backlash this past week.



I'm sure the GOP strategists are telling them to back off to put this issue to bed quickly before no Republican can get elected. Sure hope they stay stubborn and keep pushing the issue. :) At least now, a lot of people who were never quite sure this union-busting was true are sure of it now. The public is also now aware of just how much our wages are in peril in every industry because of corrupt politicians.



And the Second American Revolution begins in  The Heartland of America: Wisconsin

Funny News: Fake David Koch Punked Idiot GOP Wisconsin Gov. Walker

From Denny:  Talk about hilarious. A liberal blogger, Ian Murphy of Buffalo.Beast.com, decided to place a call to Gov. Walker, claiming to be billionaire businessman, David Koch, left in the above photo, of the famous Koch Brothers. The governor bought it hook, line and sinker. The Koch brothers are these guys who are bankrupting America and whittling away at basic rights, employee rights, affordable health care and much more. These guys are really nothing but anarchists trying to overthrow an elected government by ruining the economy and national wages in order to concentrate the country's wealth into fewer and fewer hands: theirs. These billionaires are so damned greedy that they crave more billions and not enough politicians seem to have the will to stop them.



The Koch brothers are also the same guys who sponsor all these crazy political think tanks that, on the surface, sound like good American values - until you dig deeper. There are literally hundreds of these so-called think tanks on the internet.  Many people claim they get no pay for working for them which is more lying.  There are other ways to get compensated than directly.  Yet we all know they are nothing but fact-twisting propaganda sites that churn out the manufactured lies on a regular basis.



Well, turn about was fair play in this Wisconsin uprising. For some time smart media has maintained that Gov. Walker's position never was about the budget. Rather it was always about a GOP agenda - a Koch brothers agenda - to break the unions. The unions are the last thing left to help a portion of the middle class hold on to what wealth they still own. Too bad most of the white collar workers in America never unionized like they should have decades ago. We all would have had the power to own our government - not the lobbyists.



Gov. Walker completely bought it as if this prank call was for real.  He believed he was actually talking to his supporter David Koch. Walker talked about taking baseball bats to beat up the Democrats, laughing  like it was deliriously funny.  What a jerk.



What this phone call, in Gov. Walker's own voice, shows is the strategy of the GOP to destroy American workers and their livelihoods. And for what? Money. Money in the pockets of all these GOP corrupt politicians like Gov. Walker.  Why are the Wisconsin voters not recalling this corrupt governor?

42 Obama 2011 Budget Cuts and Economy Cartoons

President Bush and President Obama Image via Wikipedia

From Denny: Well, it's unanimous - most of America hates these budget cuts. We have all figured out we are getting screwed by our corporate politicians. If we get sick, grow old, desire higher education or want any kind of stable financial future then we are just "shit outta luck" with this President and this Congress. They appear to be beyond shame and keep feeding their Greed Monster: Big Business.



To the rescue? Looks like Lady Karma will be dealing some harsh hands to the same hard hearts slapping at - and dismissing with a cavalier wave of the hand - all the vulnerable in our society. The way Big Business is going just about everyone will end up in the Vulnerable category, from what's left of the middle class down to the poor.



At some point Americans will have to riot and take to the streets to reestablish real values in this country. I wonder how long it will take before Americans understand how over the past 30 years the Republicans and Big Business have whittled away at the middle class wealth to drive us into perpetual economic slavery?





Obama and the new budget that takes from the poor and gives to the rich:

The Obama Budget and American Economy Cartoons

Image via Wikipedia

From Denny: A politically divided Congress and President Obama tackle the nation's budget. The Republicans want to kill off all old people who are not rich so employers don't have to pay into Social Security. Did I mention they want yet more tax cuts for the rich? And the quickly evaporating middle class and the poor are supposed to have their taxes jump by high increases. Talk about insulting. And we elected any of these people? "Throw them from the train!" may become the new national chant.



The current budget proposal from Obama is $3.73 trillion, trimming $1.1 trillion a year for the next 10 years. Supposedly, this budget claims it will "help boost the U.S. economy and make it more competitive." How cutting college loans will accomplish that is beyond common sense. There are 200 federal programs getting the axe or severely slashed, many related to education. How does shutting out millions of American school children from a better educated future help develop those smart enough to secure America's future? Oh, that's right, we will bring in foreign visa workers to fill the gap. When are we going to invest in American education from top to bottom and stick with it over the long term?



The Obama version of the budget calls for a five-year freeze on our domestic spending and a couple of tax hikes on oil companies and large institutions. There is an eleven percent increase for funding to education while it cuts college loans. That sure leaves a lot of us scratching our heads as to which end is up.  We are going to increase taxes to the oil companies at the same time while we continue awarding them insanely huge subsidies. This budget has us all wondering if this is really a satire spoof from Saturday Nite Live.



Want to read The Obama Budget in all its glory word for word? Check out this link for your very own pdf file. One thing is for sure, Obama gets high marks for a readable proposal - OK, it's actually a speech attached to a budget proposal - instead of the usual academic government gobble gook verbiage.  But at least it made for more of a yawn-free read.











If Congress and the President really wanted to balance the budget quickly and efficiently they would stop the Afghan and Iraq War messes and strike down that $900 billion tax cut to the wealthy they passed in December.  That would get America the true deficit reduction we all want and in short order - not by cutting energy bill assistance in the dead of winter to old people and young widows with children.



What ever happened to a nation - and leaders - of compassion?  In the end, our legacy as a nation will be judged by how well we responded to those in need.  Right now, the Baby Boomer generation will not go down well in the history books if this lobbyist purchased Congress and corrupt Supreme Court are any indication.



Check out this story over at Pew Research: Fewer Want Spending to Grow, But Most Cuts Remain Unpopular

Gabby Giffords Speaks 1st Words, May Attend NASA Space Launch

Image via Wikipedia

From Denny: It's only been one month since Gabrielle Giffords was so seriously injured, shot at her political meet and greet. She has astounded doctors with her strong will to recover. She has met with shouts of joy when she first understood commands, moved her legs, and now has uttered her first words. Just this week, Monday morning, Gabby requested the one word, "toast" with her breakfast. I guess she was tired of yogurt and oatmeal, wanting something that tasted different.



Currently, Gabby is doing speech therapy every day, several hours a day she is so motivated to get back to her life as she knew it. When she was shot, the bullet went through the left side of her brain, the side that controls speech. Doctors were not sure she would speak again.



It's good to know Gabby is able to eat three meals a day, a good indicator her appetite is back and her body healing well. The doctors say "she is recovering at lightning speed but that this is a marathon process." Hopefully, if all goes well, Gabby will be able to attend her husband's space shuttle launch for the Endeavor.

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American Political Cartoons - 12 Feb 2011

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From Denny:  What a whirlwind week with the peaceful people's Egypt Revolution finally winning and ousting Mubarak! America was on the periphery. President Obama was clueless as to what to do, constantly changing his position from day to day. Republican think tanks were apoplectic, frothing at the mouth trying to force Obama to their strong man line of leadership, how he was supposed to be in control of Egypt and Mubarak.  Israel, Jordan and other Middle Eastern countries were frantically calling Obama to come out and declare this or that, in other words, lead the situation.



This Egypt Revolution was of the people and no one else for a pleasant change. This was one time my father's precious damned CIA, the Pentagon and the White House were not working feverishly in sync to destabilize and topple a foreign government just to place their favorite puppet in power. When American politicians, military and intelligence finally get their egos out of The Big Picture this world will be a better place. Why does it always have to be about what's good for America? Don't they understand that what is good for that particular country ends up being good for everyone in the end?



Man up, world governments, and learn to respond and adapt to what evolves in any situation. Quite trying to control it and then cover up your mistakes when things go awry. The weak indecision of President Obama actually played in his favor in the Egypt situation. As usual, Obama is late to the party. He isn't a joiner. He isn't a people person. He isn't a leader. He's a professor who should have stayed in the classroom that he could control. Real leadership is messy because life is messy. America is a democracy, not an autocracy, contrary to what the Republicans and this White House want to create for their convenience and ease of operation.



By doing nothing Obama looked like he was not interfering in Egypt, therefore not creating a backlash onto America as the Republicans would have slammed our way.  It could have escalated into a bigger mess with Middle East anger directed at America for all the past mistakes of previous presidencies. Obama gets a gold star in my book any way.  Sometimes, it is better to stay out of the game.







George Bush weird:

Breaking News: Egypt Jubilant, This Blogger Called It Right: Mubarak Leaves

Image by robertxcadena via Flickr

From Denny:  This blogger gets to tell the mainstream media, "You were wrong!" They were claiming Mubarak would not leave. This blogger told them Mubarak was just doing his military leader version of The Long Goodbye. "I told you so!" never felt so good because now the Egyptian people have a real chance at democracy and truly free and fair elections of their own choosing.



It will be exciting to watch it unfold over the months ahead.  Do not underestimate the Egyptian people.  They will not allow a fundamentalist Islamic regime to grab power.  They are fed up with being held down, oppressed, and treated like starving dogs.



Right now the status is that Mubarak left Cairo last night after giving his unwelcome speech as the crowds swelled to millions in the Tahrir Square. The mainstream media were churning out stories of how Mubarak was still in power but with much less power since he transferred much of it to the new Vice President Omar Suleiman .



Right now the Army is taking over the transition to new government, aiding the Vice President who is basically the new President until someone can be elected.  The Army came down on the side of the protesters, giving Mubarak a safe exit.  Today many of the military are out in the Tahrir Square celebrating with the protesters.  After all, how can Mubarak ask the military to fire upon their own relatives and friends?  It was never going to succeed for Mubarak to hold onto power.



Another interesting development is the protesters are demanding to know, "Mubarak, where is all the money?" You guessed it. Follow the money. Turns out today the Swiss banks froze Mubarak's assets until this all shakes out. I guess the next question is, "But did Mubarak move money to Saudi Banks?"  They do own controlling interests in several American banks.  Are they hiding any of Mubarak's money in America? As you recall, the Saudi monarchy wanted to prop up Mubarak because they fear their own people will riot and depose their regime.



Egypt has a lot of well-wishers in the Arab world besides in the West. Palestinians in the Gaza and the Tunisians all took to the streets, horns blaring, celebrating with jubilation.



From Egyptian anchor Amr Nassef, who was once imprisoned in Egypt for alleged ties to Islamists, cried emotionally on the air and said: "Allahu Akbar (God is great), the Pharaoh is dead. Am I dreaming? I'm afraid to be dreaming."



It's a good day in Egypt!  We wish them well.



Watch the video of the celebration as Richard Engel reports:

Breaking News: Mubarak Angers Protesters As Saves Face, Justifies Rule, Long Goodbye

Image by robertxcadena via Flickr

From Denny: Mubarak seriously ticked off the thousands of protesters in Tahrir Square in Cairo as they just heard him speak to the nation. He did not quickly capitulate to their demands to leave immediately.



Mubarak tried the argument of how the economy and "the little people" will suffer if they don't quit with the protests and come back to his style of law and order.  He attempted to sway any Egyptians sitting on the fence who have yet to side with the protesters.



Mubarak pointedly told "outside powers" that he will not give in to their demands. There must be more foreign countries calling than we know, pressuring him to leave. Interesting. Saudi Arabia is just as obnoxious. They threatened President Obama they will prop up Mubarak if Obama comes out in favor of the protesters. Like that would work at this juncture.



Mubarak is known for being a very stubborn man and so I certainly did not expect a former general to state precisely he would give in to them and leave now. What I did expect is exactly what he did. He did the usual military leader dance, detailing how he has been a true patriot for decades, how he loves his country, how he paternalistically always had their best interests at heart even if they are too stupid to understand. His one mild concession was to tell the protesters they had "legitimate demands and they were just."



Mubarak went on to try and sell "free and fair elections in September" and that's when he will make his graceful exit. Like most military leaders, Mubarak is tone deaf to his people. He repeatedly spoke about his grand vision for Egypt. Clearly, no one else shares his vision among his countrymen.



Mubarak claims he will give - let's see, maybe "share" is a better word - some of his presidential powers to  the newly created Vice President position. No one believes that either. Unanimously, the protesters rejected his speech and his vision.



What is clear is that Mubarak will leave, what he thinks is his own timing: September. The protesters do not trust him to keep his word for free and fair elections. Nor do they trust him to properly investigate and punish those security forces who killed hundreds of protesters.



What Mubarak has accomplished is to strongly unify the protesters and increase their numbers by the hour.  Government workers have thrown in with them, especially those on the almighty money maker, the Suez Canal.  Mubarak is worried about his economy now?  After that disastrous speech, the whole country will now refuse to come to work tomorrow.  He can't last until September.



Western journalists keep pounding the message that Mubarak is not stepping down. Yes, he is. He is doing it with his own version of the truth and trying to save his dignity. This is what every former general does and how he does it. Write it on a rock and take it to the bank. Stubborn or not, proud or not, resistant or not, Mubarak is out.