Events in Iran following the outrageous actions of losing candidate Ahmadinejad (try to say it three times fast) and the supreme Ayatollah against massive street demonstrations in Tehran and across the country have turned violent. Though the secondary Ayatollah, the Iranian military and about half of the elite Republican Guard are supporting challenger Mir Hossein Mousavi, or at least staying out of the fray.

Six members of the Iranian national soccer team wore green armbands in solidarity during the first half of a World Cup qualifying game yesterday (June 17). The government has tried hard to cut off all lines of communication to the outside world, but sporadic cell phone service has allowed text updates and cell phone videos to be distributed. Twitter put off scheduled maintenance to keep its service going during this dramatic confrontation, incoming posts at #iranelection.

HuffPo’s Live Blog has incoming information day and night, the University of Chicago has opened a dedicated Iran fax line [at 1-888-308-3025 for incoming] as cell service gets more unreliable. Various volunteers have been receiving cell videos from Iran and posting them to YouTube.

Here’s how you can help, and many people have set their computers up for proxy to cover individuals reporting from Iran. Election challenger Mir Hossein Mousavi is posting regularly on his Facebook page, which can be read in English by clicking that version at the bottom of the page. He has called for a national day of mourning for “those killed in post-election clashes” June 18.

The whole world is watching, President Obama said the other day, and it’s true. So wear some green, try to keep up, and let’s all hope for the best outcome.

Alas, the now-marginalized Republican Party is desperately attempting to solidify the ‘base’ it lost in the past two general election cycles, even to the point of declaring wealthy radio hate-monger, opportunist, chickenhawk and drug addict Rush Limbaugh to be their new Dear Leader. Whoa. Can things get weirder than that?

Aparently so. We’ve got Bill O’Reilly and Bernie Goldberg talking about beating up editorialists with baseball bats on cable television. We’ve got Total Gym shill Chuck Norris and Glenn Beck talking about setting up sleeper cells, and some actual Senators and Congressmen talking secession! No, that wasn’t just a Sarah Palin deal for Alaskan Independence. They might be serious this time.

Neo-Nazis planning those “dirty bombs” Bush-II used to love so much as a scare tactic, total idiots stuffing the SCOTUS with challenges to Obama’s citizenship while telling troops they don’t have to obey the orders of the Commander In Chief, things are getting weirder by the day. Sedition. Advocacy of open rebellion, talk of terrorist acts and assassination.

These things were illegal – and considered real threats to National Security – back when it was liberals said to be doing the organizing. Why isn’t it illegal now? Was Timothy McVeigh a liberal nutjob or a militia wingnut? Our home grown terrorists and assassins aren’t generally from the ranks of the left, at least not since the Weathermen got shut down during Tricky Dick’s reign.

With Obama’s approval ratings hovering somewhere between 69 and 85% across the board, these people whose Neocon hero left office with less than 30% approval must surely be very frightened about their marginalization in last November’s election to “Southern Regional” that couldn’t even carry most of the south. They aren’t all that many, but they have powerful advocates in mass media and in the halls of Congress, and are being actively encouraged toward violence. The weak-minded among them will snap – that’s inevitable. Will we bring their puppeteers to face justice for yelling FIRE! in the theater?

These crazy people have always been with us, a reliable 20% of the population in the best of times but mostly lazy and/or inept. Perhaps Obama can manage to get some sort of universal health care concessions to cover psychiatric treatment most people can’t afford these days. In the meantime, I personally have been encouraged by some cross-linking of the Netroots DKos community and official FBI monitors of hate speech and crime, assassination threats, etc. That might seem like an odd pairing to you too, dear readers, but the pendulum has officially swung. America must be dragged – kicking and screaming if need be – into the 21st century.

I was born in the ’50s, but I sure don’t want to go back there at this late date. My memory is pretty good, and things weren’t really so great back then. I also remember ‘63 and ‘68. Things weren’t so great then either. In fact, I’m sick and tired of having all my hopes toward the future on the political and popular fronts dashed by assassin’s bullets and seditionist’s bombs. I’m not afraid of crazy Muslim Mullahs in caves halfway across the world, refuse to live my life in fear of them. There are people born and present right here in the U.S. of A. that are a heck of a lot bigger threat to my peace and prosperity quotient. I say we stop them this time before they kill hundreds or thousands of us.

Well, I was going to report on the St. Paul RNC this week like I did the DNC in Denver last week, but it never quite caught my attention. Hardly anybody went (including the President and Vice-President of the United States, who are the party’s figureheads), Weather was lousy in Louisiana so the first day got put off altogether, and Fred Thompson makes me go to sleep.

But I’ve honestly gotta say, this whole Alaska Momma mooseburger beauty queen thing with Sarah Palin has me utterly and completely befoozled. Bamboozled. Conundrumated. WTF???

First thing out of the gate was that she’s been governator for less than two years, and before that was mayor of a town the same size as Wilburton, Oklahoma (where Granny lives). Then she violated military regulations and operations security by telling everybody her 18-year old son is deploying on September 11. Then she lied about her close relationship with indicted AK senator Ted Stevens and his “bridge to nowhere”, and ‘forgot’ to tell anyone that her own state Senate has her under current investigation for abuse of power. Oops.

Then she threw her pregnant 17-year old daughter under the bus to ‘prove’ the Downs Syndrome baby is really her son and not her grandson, even though just showing his birth certificate would have done the trick fine. Then she denied ever being a member of the Alaskan Independence Party, but only addressed their conventions occasionally as some sort of ‘courtesy’. Before it came out that her hubby indeed was a member of AIP – and its “plastic explosives deal gone bad” characters until 2002. Then… then…

It’s just a scandal a minute, I can’t keep up! Obviously, no one from McCain’s campaign – or the government – ever vetted Ms. Mooseburger. Well, there’s a reason for that too, now that the mainstream media’s awake and paying attention. Turns out she was vetted by James Dobson & Crew, who apparently got carte blanche from the McMansions campaign to pick the V.P. And I’m guessing the only vetting CNP did was to call her hometown preacher. Just… Wow.

So. Since I’m too fascinated by this soap opera to bother with the RNC, here’s the icing on the cake:

Via NRO, Enquirer reporting Palin Adultery

Another incredible allegation emerging from the family war is that Palin, a mother of five, had an affair with a former business associate of her fisherman husband, Todd.

“Todd discovered the affair and quickly dissolved his friendship and his business associations with the guy,” charges an enemy. “Many people in Alaska are talking about the rumor and say Todd swept it under the rug.”

Who knows if that one’s true? It *is* the Enquirer, which isn’t noted for its journalistic standards. But then again, they’re the ones who busted John Edwards, so it might be. I’m not taking any odds at this point, given how completely bizzaro this whole thing is so far.

And it’s been less than a week since we first heard of her. Just… Wow.

I’ll admit I was a little worried that Bill’s baton-passing might be as empty of discernible passion as Hillary’s, or that he just might express his personal pique at Democrats’ rejection of his wife’s bid for power. So I was greatly relieved to once again experience Bill Clinton’s utter mastery of the art of political rhetoric – his legendary ease with the forum, his self-assured ability to speak his heart effectively, and his sometimes magical talent for drawing trust and confidence from his listeners. Best speech of the convention so far, though John Kerry hit some righteous points as well.

Here are some particularly good quotes from the speeches thus far that definitely should be replayed regularly in You Tube viral clips, in television and radio ads, and in print campaign literature through November…

Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid:

“For over a quarter of a century, the Republicans have sold their magic beans with a promise of a giant beanstalk and gold over the horizon. Look what they’ve done to our country. Look what they’ve done to our planet.”

Pres. Bill Clinton:

“And so, my fellow Democrats, I say to you: Barack Obama is ready to lead America and to restore American leadership in the world. Barack Obama is ready to honor the oath, to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. Barack Obama is ready to be president of the United States.”

“People the world over have always been more impressed by the power of our example than by the example of our power.”

Hillary Clinton:

“How to we give this country back to them? By following the example of a brave New Yorker, a woman who risked her life to bring slaves to freedom along the Underground Railroad. On that path to freedom, Harriet Tubman had one piece of advice: ‘If you hear the dogs, keep going. If there’s shouting after you, keep going. Don’t ever stop. Keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going.’”

Sen. John Kerry:

“…the flag doesn’t belong to any ideology. It doesn’t belong to any political party. It is an enduring symbol of our nation, and it belongs to all the American people. After all, patriotism is not love of power or some cheap trick to win votes; patriotism is love of country.”

Soon-to-be VP Joe Biden:

“Let me make this pledge to you right here and now. For every American who is trying to do the right thing, for all those people in government who are honoring their pledge to uphold the law and respect our Constitution, no longer will the eight most dreaded words in the English language be: ‘The Vice President’s office is on the phone.’”

Quite the nice build-up to tonight’s Big Speech in Invesco Stadium by Barack Obama. I’m expecting some especially great quotes to come from that one, so again, stay tuned!

It has continually struck me quite odd ever since the DNC started that the also-ran got so very much nervous attention. Why so many big-wigs worried about whether she’d actually help the party’s nominee in this very important election, or whether she’d stab him in the back in a fit of leftover pique over losing what she (and the entire Republican Establishment) believed was her “rightful due.” As if OUR country, OUR leadership somehow became during the 1990s a monarchy instead of the Democratic Republic the founding fathers established.

Sure, the Bush “dynasty” did make it seem just like that monarchy, and God knows George Junior certainly has treated the position as if he has some sort of divine right to rule in flagrant disregard for what the country wants or needs. Yet that’s precisely what Democrats are running AGAINST in this election, not something Dems need to affirm when their turn comes around again. Maybe it’s a creeping mental illness, a delusional state easy to fall prey to in an era of Bush family totalitarianism. But the Clintons were better than that.

Oh, she gave a strong, spirited speech. She repeated her support for Obama and Biden several times, and came down hard on why the country absolutely doesn’t need another Bush (disguised as John McCain). But I saw no warmth, no genuine enthusiasm, and too much playing with the power she supposedly wields over a bunch of Republican plants whose jobs were to get her the nomination because that’s who the Republicans were determined to run against – because that’s who they could beat.

So I did shed a few tears for what I didn’t see last night, what I didn’t hear in her speech. The torch truly has passed, and it got passed from the last of the old dynasty – Ted Kennedy – straight to the Obamas. Skipped the Clintons completely, and yes, I suppose they’re bitter about that too. I am so sick of bitter, spoiled, rich politicians of any variety. A pox on all their houses!

Yeah, I’ll watch Bill’s speech, but it’s going to have me cringing right from the start. He can make this right if he really wants to. I get the feeling that making things right isn’t the Clinton’s true goal. That’s a shame, but politics has never been an honest game. The American people don’t need a king (or a queen). We don’t need more repression and a lower standard of living. We don’t need a savior either, so I’m hoping Obama doesn’t give in to his own hype either. I’m jaded, but probably not as jaded as Bill and Hill.

In lighter news, and related to my brief note about Dallying Dems, one of the better, most realistic sustained attacks on John McCain at the convention has been coming from Planned Parenthood, which is distributing pink condoms to the attendees labeled “Protect Yourself from John McCain” and which come in a series of 10 “fun facts” about McCain’s positions on women’s health issues. I predict these will become one of the most valuable of 2008 political memorabilia in the future, so I’ve gotta order me a set!

Posts to the DNC Series:

Stoopid Network Tricks and Dallying Dems
Assassination Plot Busted, Teddy’s Speech
Hard-Hearted Hillary Made Me Cry
Bill Is Still The Godfather

…and Michelle Obama’s home run to the nosebleed seats. Wow. What a way to start a convention!

In a bizarre twist, the DailyKos blogging team – DKos is the official host of the “Big Tent” blogger-space attached to the Denver Convention Center – somehow got bumped from their posh hotel suites at the last moment and ended up having to spend the night before the convention at a hotel in Glendale (where the Newsweek convention crew was also ensconced) before arranging better accommodations for the rest of the convention. But during that first night there was some big excitement when the entire Denver SWAT team staged a big meth bust of a room across the hall, rousting the crew and leaving them witness to some very exciting police action.

…only to find out that they had been bumped right smack dab into the very midst of serious political intrigue when it was announced that the bust was part of a possible Obama assassination plot! The SS, ATF and FBI are all involved in investigations of the busted conspirators, apparently a small group of wackos from the White Supremecist corner of the hard-right wingnut end of the spectrum. Updates state that “at least” four people are under arrest in connection with the plot

Day one didn’t go off without any hitches, but it sure got exciting right out of the starting gate! The Teddy Kennedy cry-fest didn’t bring as many tears as expected from this blogger, but his own personal appearance and strong speech full of Kennedy fire that lasted a good 20 minutes was deeply, deeply gratifying. It may be the last of the great speeches from the storied Kennedy brothers, that generation of inspired public servants who fought so hard and paid too high a price to give back to the American society some of the privilege they had enjoyed. That the youngest would have lived the longest, and still be so strong and determined as he faces his own end, may be one of the greatest legends of political dynasty ever lived or written. The Bushes and Clintons are babes in the woods compared to those brothers!

So yeah, when the speech was over and poor Teddy wandered from one side of the stage to the other not sure where he should go and what he should do, the tears finally came. Wow. God bless you and keep you, Uncle Teddy.

It was a hard act to follow, for sure. What we got was Michelle Obama, who pointed her well-manicured finger toward the skybox nosebleed seats and promptly hit the ball so hard its leather cover came right off before it soared over the top. Now the only question is how Barack will best use the considerable smarts on Michelle’s side of the family to make HIM a better president! Check out the CSPAN videos of her speech here, bottom of diary.

This afternoon the Republican platform committee starts its business [CSPAN2], hoping to craft a platform that doesn’t look quite as banal as the last 8 years of “we do what we want.” And tonight we get to see Hillary and Bill finally get over their misplaced sense of absolute privilege and acknowledge that they are not personally the sum total of the Democratic Party. It’s about damned time.

Stay tuned! It’s going to be an exciting week for sure…

Posts to the DNC Series:

Stoopid Network Tricks and Dallying Dems
Assassination Plot Busted, Teddy’s Speech
Hard-Hearted Hillary Made Me Cry
Bill Is Still The Godfather

As I sit here listening to CSPAN pre-convention inanities and old speeches in the background while waiting for the kickoff (and a Teddy Kennedy cry-fest), I figured I’d go ahead and report the first Odd-News story of the ‘08DNC. It certainly gave me a giggle.

The DNC pool coverage this year is being provided by… of all possible sources… Fox News. Just about 12 hours exactly from the opening, the sprinkler system in a Fox skybox was set off, flooding the downstairs concourse and club areas so badly the fire department had to suck it up with shop-vacs. The massive amounts of lighting and broadcasting equipment – and attendant wiring – had to be hastily removed to prevent electrical fire. The link is from KSUA-TV 9 in Denver:

Part of Pepsi Center flooded by sprinkler system

Some immediate pointed asides occurred to me, so of course I perused the bored-as-me blogosphere to see what kind of speculations might be floating around. The best I’ve found so far for satirical or just plain humorous value are:

• Since it’s the Pepsi Center, was it Aquafina?
• Their pants were on fire.
• Pundit hairspray meets Limbaugh’s cigar.
• Hot air from Sean Hannity.
• Methane. Too much bullshit too close to hot lights.

On the fact that some fundamentalists were out front praying for rain…

• Proof positive prayer works.
• Proof that one needs to word prayers carefully.

Hahaha!!! Whew! Presuming Fox’s lighting crew figured out they can’t put those hot spots within a foot of the heat sensors for the sprinkler system, I’ve also been idly watching the interactions between people and groups of people wandering through the convention center. If you thought the YKos and NetrootsNation conventions were regular hotbeds of rampant pair-bonding (mostly temporary), the DNC has to take the cake!

I’m sure there’s an equivalent amount of close encounters that take place during the RNC, so I’m not saying only one side of the aisle is sexier. It’s just that at the RNC it’s mostly chemically-enhanced and happening in the men’s rest rooms. [rim shot]

Hehehe!!! Okay, I think I’m prepared to spend the next four days glued to all-day platform committee hammering, all-evening speechifying and all-night partying – on CSPAN, sans commercials. Should be fun!

Posts to the DNC Series:

Stoopid Network Tricks and Dallying Dems
Assassination Plot Busted, Teddy’s Speech
Hard-Hearted Hillary Made Me Cry
Bill Is Still The Godfather

We should know by Friday (or, Thursday when the Obama camp promises to ‘leak’ the choice to selected bloggers who will immediately ‘leak’ it to the rest of us). Who will it be? Will we be surprised? Disgusted? Outraged? Glad?

Don’t know if I have a favorite in this beauty contest. I’ve heard a lot of things, and thought about others. I’ve heard Hillary is out of the running, but she sure seems to still feel it’s her ‘right’ to be on the ticket. And given that she got half the votes cast, she may have a point. But how effective could Obama’s leadership be if he had a 2-fer on the Veep end that worked constantly against his policies and hogging the spotlight? So no, I wouldn’t be happy to see Hillary’s name drawn.

I’ve heard Richardson is out, but darned if I can figure out why. He’s plenty of admin and foreign policy experience, and would appear to lend strong National Security credentials. I think he’d be a good choice. I also think Biden is a good choice, though he himself says he’s out of the contest. I don’t know why on that one either.

My previous fave would have been Edwards, who could be kept plenty busy working on health care and poverty during Barack’s Presidency. Of course, the recent-ness of his revealed sexual infidelity means he’s not a serious consideration, even though John McCain has long been quite proud of his own sexual infidelities. Go figure.

It’s probably not going to be Dennis Kucinich, since he wouldn’t lend any mainstream clout to an Obama administration. Nor will it be that weird Libertarian-leaning guy with the beef against the Fed. Governor Sebelius could be an interesting choice, capable as well as female. But Hillary’s Hoards would never tolerate that.

General Wesley Clark? Might be good for the whole wartime NS situation given Obama’s lack of experience in those areas. Plus, Clark could run a tight JCS and probably get along with the various commanders on a militaristic level. Tom Daschle? Jim Webb? Evan Bayh?

Oh, well. We sit on pins and needles awaiting the official word, and the Convention awaits. I’ll certainly ‘leak’ the news the moment it gets ‘leaked’ to us, then do some background on the candidate. Let’s all hope it’s the best of all good choices!

Well folks, it’s 8-8-08, which of course means it’s the End of the World. Right on cue, it’s revealed that John Edwards, best-looking Presidential Wannabe in this nation’s history, was revealed today to have enjoyed an extramarital affair. Might even have fathered one of America’s many (a majority these days) “fatherless” bastards. Wow. I’m so not frothing.

No, we don’t use the word “bastard” anymore to talk about REAL fatherless children. We call him or her our “Love Child.” It’s been that way since the 1960s, becomes more popular every year. Yet the leftist Democratic blogosphere goes absolutely ballistic over this non-news, as if the socialist-leaning, populist, progressive population is this country isn’t the exclusive enclave of Hippies who managed to live through those glorious ’60s (and their children, and their grandchildren, many/most of them fatherless or on step-father #4 by now).

Suddenly they’re all strict Old Testament moralists of the Pharisee variety, buying fake beards and arming themselves with stones. It’s just enough hard core, disgusting hypocrisy to make me sick to my stomach. Get a life, people!

1. John Edwards dropped out early. Might have been guilt for the affair, but it’s more likely that he realized he didn’t have a real shot. He is NOT the Democratic nominee.

2. Affairs, especially engaged while the long-suffering wife is in dire straits with cancer or injuries or something, is a regular way of life on the ‘Pug side of the aisle. The actual Republican nominee is rather famous for screwing around on his injured wife with his now-current wife, whom he has publicly called a “cunt” even though he really does like her corporate jet.

3. Apparently John Edwards and his wife Elizabeth, who is in remission from breast cancer, are still together and “working it out.” Whatever that means. In which case, it’s none of our damned business. Really, now. Watch some porn if you’re that hard up for something sexy to excite you.

I can recall when Francois Mitterand’s long-time mistress and their daughter were moved into an annext of the Esysee Palace at state expense. She was just his favorite of many. Both attended his funeral. Jacques Chirac had a penchant for Japanese women. John Kennedy is said to have been ‘partying’ on his yacht with several young women while Jackie was in labor, and then there was the whole Marilyn Monroe birthday cake thing. Then there’s Hillary Clinton, who got a lot closer to the Democratic nomination than John Edwards. She had her wayward hubby – who subjected the entire country to 8 years’ worth of impeachment distraction because he couldn’t keep his fly zipped – out on the campaign trail for her.

This sort of grotesque puritanism and blatant hypocrisy is one of the things I like least about the American public’s so-called “values.” I am flat-out disgusted. Not by John Edwards, or by his and Elizabeth’s private lives, but by all the fickle flirts out there in the blogosphere who once tried so hard to turn him into a sex object, and who are now screaming and raging because they weren’t the ones who got to do the dirty deed. Time to call a waaaaaambulance.

Enough, already.