That's How Lincoln Won The Presidency

"I think what he's doing today, talking to these young voters, that's really important. Because it's very hard for us to think that our voice is being heard," Cate Edwards said. "I think most young voters feel that our democracy has been taken away from us, and I think that most of us realize that this election is a big step towards taking it back.".........here

"Dan Rather Reports On Politics" Heads To St. Petersburg, FL

"Dan Rather Reports on Politics: The Florida Primary" will take place in front of a live audience at the Miller Auditorium at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, FL. A simulcast of the event will be aired at Fox Hall, an auditorium also at the college.........here

In Florida, The Recession Already Is A Reality

In Florida, people don't ask whether we are headed for a recession. They know a recession is here. For those who live in the area, the questions narrow down to two. How much worse will it get? How long will it last?......more

Dan Gelber for Florida Senate

It’s no surprise that Dan Gelber is spending his life dedicated to serving the public. In his family, public service is simply what you do. His father Seymour came to Florida in 1947 after serving in WWII, ultimately spending his life as a prosecutor, juvenile court judge and Mayor of Miami Beach. His mother Edith arrived from New York with teaching degrees from Hunter and Columbia colleges, and spent her life as a foreign languages teacher in Florida’s public schools......here

A President Like My Father

I want a president who understands that his responsibility is to articulate a vision and encourage others to achieve it; who holds himself, and those around him, to the highest ethical standards; who appeals to the hopes of those who still believe in the American Dream, and those around the world who still believe in the American ideal; and who can lift our spirits, and make us believe again that our country needs every one of us to get involved. I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president — not just for me, but for a new generation of Americans.......here

Will Lehigh Acres Become Second-Largest City In Southwest Florida?

Lehigh Acres could become the second-largest city in Southwest Florida if its voters say so Tuesday. The last time those voters were asked, they rejected incorporation by more than 3-1. Back in 1996, just over 10,000 Lehigh residents voted. There now are 22,700 registered voters in the Lehigh Acres Fire District.......more

Letterman: Barack gives the Top Ten

Chavez: Pull Reserves From US Banks

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez urged his Latin American allies on Saturday to begin withdrawing billions of dollars in international reserves from U.S. banks, warning of a looming U.S. economic crisis. Chavez warned that U.S. "imperialism is entering into a crisis that can affect all of us" and said Latin America "will save itself alone.".........here

Florida Prepares To Unplug Touchscreen Voting Machines

When you go to the polls next week for Florida's primary, it'll be the last time you use those highly touted touch-screen voting machines. After less than six years, the state is pulling the plug on most of its 25,000 touch-screen voting machines, once heralded as a way to prevent messy, embarrassing elections........here

Miami-Dade County alone must cast aside 7,200 touch-screen machines, for which it paid $24.5 million and still owes $15 million. Statewide, the debt is estimated at $32 million.

Litbrit: I Love My Country Part One

The French have Liberté, égalité, fraternité. Americans can choose from a broad selection of slogans, from the boisterous YOU-ESS-AAAY! to the beautiful and dignified The land of the free and the home of the brave, and everything in between. But what do we Brits have to say about ourselves--what can we say about ourselves?.........here

Linda Saul-Sena Pissing Off Ikea

How long do we have to wait in Tampa for the public to demand its city government be something better, something innovative, something sustainable? How long do we continue to accept mediocrity and laziness? If the hipper, cooler businesses won’t go green, won’t try innovation, how in the hell can we expect to force the Wal-Marts and chain restaurants of the world to do likewise? Saul-Sena and colleague Councilman John Dingfelder have been more strident than the Pam Iorio administration about moving toward greener, more environmentally friendly designs in urban planning and construction.........here

The Coast Of Florida Is Still Clear

Enviro-leftists who oppose drilling in the gulf should know that none other than Fidel Castro is taking advantage of the Outer Shelf. Cuba has gleaned $1.7 billion from oil and gas drilling as close as 60 miles from the Florida coast since 2004, according to Rep. John Peterson of Pennsylvania, and "is drilling closer to sovereign American property than we are."........here

The story did not mention higher fuel standards and mass transit as other options to achieving energy independence.

"Sicko" Gets The Oscar High-Five

Of course, every reporter who's called me in the past few days wanted to know if I plan on giving an "anti-war" or "anti-Bush" speech, should "Sicko" win, as I did when we won the Oscar for "Bowling for Columbine" in 2003. (As you may recall, it was the 5th day of the war when those Oscars were held, and I said from the stage that, while I enjoy making nonfiction films, we live in fictitious times with
a man of fiction in the White House.......here

Ron Paul Only Sane Person At GOP Debate

No Delegates? We Don’t Care.

For Democrats, the number of returned absentee ballots in Florida so far exceeds the total number turned in in the 2004 general election, and the number of Democratic early voters plus the number of absentees requested is more than the number of actual voters in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada combined........here

Off Rob Lorei's Bookshelf

Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic

Chalmers Johnson

Like ancient Rome, America is saddled with an empire that is fatally undermining its republican government, argues Johnson (The Sorrows of Empire), in this bleak jeremiad. He surveys the trappings of empire: the brutal war of choice in Iraq and other foreign interventions going back decades; the militarization of space; the hundreds of overseas U.S. military bases full of "swaggering soldiers who brawl and sometimes rape." At home, the growth of an "imperial presidency," with the CIA as its "private army," has culminated in the Bush administration's resort to warrantless wiretaps, torture, a "gulag" of secret CIA prisons and an unconstitutional arrogation of "dictatorial" powers, while a corrupt Congress bows like the Roman Senate to Caesar.........here

Thanks For Trying Mr. Kucinich

Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio is dropping his second long-shot bid for the Democratic nomination for president, he told his hometown newspaper, the Cleveland Plain Dealer. He said he would announce the decision officially in a press conference Friday......here

John Edwards On the Late Show

Florida Unions Working Hard for Hillary

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees is mailing its 110,000 members in Florida as well as its retirees urging them to vote for Clinton. In addition, the Florida Education Association, the statewide teachers union, is working its 250,000 members for Clinton as well........here

New Group In Town, Citizens for Equal County Representation

7 Single Member Districts

Citizens for Equal County Representation Is a group of citizens that have come together for the betterment of Hillsborough County Government. We are a countywide, non-partisan organization that believes that we must change the structure of the Board of County Commission to be more accountable to all they serve. To do that, we have a petition drive going to get a County Charter Amendment on the Nov. 8th Ballot which would change the Board of County Commission seats to 7 Single Member Districts.

Nomore Countywide Seats !

This will make all the Commissioners more accountable, give better geographical balance to the board, and bring forth REAL Term Limits. Sound good? If so, we need you!........here

Danny Glover Convicted Of Trespassing In Canada

Danny Glover, the American movie star turned labour activist, was convicted in a court in Niagara Falls, Ont., on Thursday for trespassing in a hotel during a union rally. Glover, who was not in court, was convicted along with union representative Alex Dagg and Ontario Federation of Labour president Wayne Samuelson........here

"It is sad that even though the police acknowledged everyone was well behaved and did not press charges, a rich and powerful company can pay to go forward with a private prosecution,"......Alex Dagg

"We must stand vigilant against Bush in these times,"........Danny Glover 2001

Bill Nelson, Florida's Lieberman

Today, Sen. Nelson was among 12 Democratic senators who voted to table the Senate Judiciary Committee's electronic surveillance bill, which would have withheld retroactive immunity for the telecommunications companies. In other words, Sen. Nelson voted to give aid and comfort to massive multinational corporations that may have assisted -- in fact, likely did assist -- the federal government in conducting covert electronic surveillance on American citizens, in clear violation of the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution........here
Looking For A Ned Lamont

CYPRESS CREEK POLLUTED AGAIN FROM TOWN CENTER SITE!

Video showing the massive amounts of silt-laden polluted water running off of the Cypress Creek Town Center site into Cypress Creek…AGAIN!

A Message From Eli Pariser - moveon.org

Democrats Urged To Campaign In Florida

Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink
One of only two statewide elected Democrats in Florida, strongly urged national and state Democratic leaders on Wednesday to let Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards campaign here after the South Carolina primary on Saturday. Sink and other top Florida Democrats said it makes no sense to hold presidential candidates to a pledge to boycott Florida after South Carolina Democrats vote. Florida's presidential primary is Jan. 29........here

Dean And Me: Roadshow Of An American Primary

Five years after he met Vermont Gov. Howard Dean and three years after Dean's insurgent presidential campaign ended where it started in Burlington, documentary filmmaker Heath Eiden is ready to show his movie on the campaign........here
Video clips can be seen at http://thegrassrootsmovie.com

Paul, Obama Favored Among U. South Florida Students

The results are in: Barack Obama and Ron Paul are the favorites among University of South Florida students, according to the USF straw poll. Students also approved of Amendment I, which garnered a "yes" from 44 percent of voters, and considered the economy/jobs the most important factor in selecting the presidential candidate.......here

The Florida Progressive Coalition Endorses John Edwards

The Florida Progressive Coalition proudly endorses John Edwards to be the next president of the United States. We did not arrive at this decision lightly. We surveyed our readers, members of Netroots mailing lists and blogs of other Floridians. We debated the issue internally for several days via e-mail. We even talked about endorsing no candidate because of our concerns that endorsing one candidate might alienate supporters of other candidates or that our choice for the presidency might be out of the race before January 29. In the end, we decided to vote for the candidate who offered the most progressive and realistic vision for America’s future — John Edwards........here

Cape Coral Residents Feel The Effect Of Florida's Decline

When Eric Feichthaler became mayor three years ago, this town was booming. The city issued 800 permits that month to build single-family homes. Cape Coral still has thousands of empty lots, but last month, it issued just nine permits. A number of factors explain the downturn, and many of them are not unique to Florida. But it is becoming clear the Sunshine State is losing some of its luster......here

4 Independent Candidates Call Central Florida Home

You know Hillary, Barak Rudy, and Mitt -- but how about Frank and Bob? Frank Zilaitis, of Melbourne, and Bob Adkins, of St. Cloud, are two of four independent presidential candidates who live in Central Florida........here

935 False Statements

A study by two nonprofit journalism organizations found that President Bush and top administration officials issued hundreds of false statements about the national security threat from Iraq in the two years following the 2001 terrorist attacks.The study concluded that the statements "were part of an orchestrated campaign that effectively galvanized public opinion and, in the process, led the nation to war under decidedly false pretenses."........here
International Criminal Court

Obama vs. Clinton – October 2002

In summary, on the most critical political question of the decade, a freshman state senator from Illinois was able to figure out what an experienced member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee could not - that Saddam Hussein was no longer a threat and that an invasion of Iraq would harm America’s national security interests. Over the next few weeks, Democratic voters will have the opportunity to decide whether which of these two leading candidates has the best judgment to lead this country during this next critical period........here

Florida Bloggers Should Hide Their Heads In Shame

I am going to have to put with all the media crap here in this state as the media and Democrats here trumpet their importance. I will have to watch as they write and say devastatingly ugly things about the man who is trying to rebuild the party throughout the country. But I sure do hate seeing it play out here like it has........here

Chelsea and America Ferrera in Nevada

Tampa Soldier Stops Torture At Abu Ghraib

Michael Keller was once a software executive from Florida. Then came September 11, 2001. A few weeks after the al-Qaeda attacks on America, he joined the Army National Guard and was deployed to Iraq in November of 2005. In this revealing collection of e-mails and photographs, Keller shares his first-hand experiences in the War on Terror.......here

A First, MLK Day Parade Marches On MLK Blvd. In Tampa

Martin Luther King Jr. Day was celebrated yesterday across the country and in the Tampa Bay area; major parades were held in both St. Petersburg and Tampa. Because of construction in West Tampa, the parade was held for the first time in East Tampa along Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard......here

Florida Voting Facts

here

Barack Obama Speaks At Dr. King's Church

Radar Has A Ruff Job At Florida Airport

Since 2001, a 9-year-old border collie named Radar has been patrolling the runway and chasing away any birds in sight. Birds being sucked into aircraft engines is one of the most persistent safety problems at airports. Border collies scare the birds but don't harm them.......here

Have Lunch With Samm Simposon And Ann Wright

Sunday, Jan 27, 2008

12:30pm-2pm - Ferg's 1320 Central Ave. St. Petersburg

4pm-6pm - Leo's Italian Restaurant 2900 Alt 19 Palm Harbor

If you reserve your seat now, $20 gets you fed and helps put your country back on track. Day of the event: $25 (And bring your checkbook to buy one of Ann's great books for only about $15. Autographed to boot! See http://www.voicesofconscience.com/) So for less than the cost of a lousy movie and dinner, you can get Samm one step closer to Washington, get yourself even more educated on civic responsibility, and have a great time. RSVP, send a check for $20 per event BEFORE THURSDAY to:
Samm Simpson For Congress
PO Box 228
Dunedin, FL 34697

For More Info. Mike Fox 727-320-4502

Living In The Woods Of Central Florida

An estimated 8,000 homeless women and men are living in makeshift camps scattered throughout the woods, cars or other parts of Central Florida. "Nobody wakes up at the age of 18 and says my career goal is to be a homeless person in a camp off John Young Parkway," Executive Director of the Homeless Services Network Kathy Jackson said. Jackson said there are more than 140 camps of homeless people in Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties........here

Police Armed With Dogs And Fire Hoses

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy..........Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King "I Have A Dream"

Roseanne Attacks Oprah Winfrey's Endorsement Of Barack Obama

Oprah doesn't really seem to respect the intelligence of her audience at all. Obama slaps the faces of his supporters with his traitorous praise of Ronald Reagan, the man who singlehandedly destroyed the working people, the economy, and the mental health safety net in this country.......here

Fight The War On Greed

Buyout industry executives with multi-million dollar incomes have been exploiting a tax loophole that allows them to pay a lesser tax percentage rate than most of the workers in the companies they manage. This is a disgrace! Tell all the presidential candidates to pledge to close the buyout industry's tax loopholes

Obama: Palm Beach Post Endorsement

Why vote for Sen. Obama? Because his opponents, Democratic and Republican, now tout the "hope" and "change" on which Sen. Obama has campaigned from the start. No candidate has more directly and correctly addressed the unease that pervades the country after seven years of a terrible presidency........here

A Look At Florida, The 4th Largest State

here

Indian Doctor Inducted Into Hall Of Fame By Florida Governor

According to a statement issued by the governor’s office in Tallahassee, the capital of Florida, Dr Pallavi Patel and two other women will be honoured by the governor on March 11 at a ceremony to be held in the Capitol Courtyard........here

Edwards: "I will never use Reagan as an example for change"

McDonald's Florida Report Cards

McDonald's Corp. has voluntarily pulled its sponsorship of report-card covers in Seminole County, Fla., public schools. "This is a good day for parents and children in Seminole County and anyone who believes that corporations should not prey on children in schools," said Dr. Susan Linn, director of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood.......here

Canada puts U.S. On Torture 'Watch List'

Canada has put the United States and Israel on a torture watch list, according to CTV. A Canadian government document cites the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and interrogation techniques that include "forced nudity, isolation, and sleep deprivation."......here

Howard Dean Not Welcome In Orlando

If national Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean was contemplating spring break in sunny Florida, he might want to reconsider. "He would not be welcome," says Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, a Democratic former state senator. Not a very friendly stance for the head of a city known for its embrace of tourists seeking suntans and all things Disney........here

Gayest Democratic Convention Ever?

The Democratic National Committee's Executive Committee on Friday approved 25 delegates -- seven of whom are LGBT -- to the 2008 Denver Democratic Convention's standing committees on platform, rules and credentials........here

The appointments were recommended by Gov. Howard Dean

Fidel Castro On Bushs Visit To The Middle East

It seems unreal to see Bush, the conqueror of other peoples’ raw materials and energy resources, setting out guidelines for the world careless about how many hundreds of thousands or millions of people die or how many clandestine prisons and torture centers must be created to attain his objectives.......here

John Edwards Rocks LA

Back when moving the California primary up to February 5th was being debated, opponents insisted that the candidates would never actually campaign here as they do in Iowa and New Hampshire, and besides, the nomination will be decided well before February 5th anyway, so what's the point!? Oh really?.......here

Slideshow.......here

Switch To DFA Wireless

Now there's a new way to take our country back: DFA Wireless. When you call with DFA Wireless, 10% of your charges go directly to Democracy for America. Now the phone calls you make every day will build our movement and fight for a progressive America.......here

Broward Senator Makes Plea To See Presidential Candidates

State Sen. Ted Deutch asked the Democratic party chairmen in four states with presidential nominating contests before Florida to relent and allow presidential candidates to campaign in the Sunshine States.......here
"I would simply like two days for the Democrats of Florida to feel the fervor for change and real leadership that the candidates will bring to our state, and two days to remind Florida voters that the Democratic Party is committed to winning here in November."

Off Rob Lorei's Bookshelf

Mirage: Florida and the Vanishing Water of the Eastern U.S.
Cynthia Barnett

Part investigative journalism, part environmental history, Mirage reveals how the eastern half of the nation---historically so wet that early settlers predicted it would never even need irrigation---has squandered so much of its abundant fresh water that it now faces shortages and conflicts once unique to the arid West......here

Huckabee: Amend Constitution to Reflect God's Standards

Ann Wright Is Coming To Clearwater

Saturday, January 26th, 7:30pm
Clearwater Unitarian Universalist Church, 2470 Nursery Road, Clearwater

Clinton, Obama Spar Over Florida

Is Hillary Clinton breaking her pledge not to campaign in Florida? Democratic rival Barack Obama raised the question - even though he insists Florida's vote won't matter - one day after a poll showed him 21 points behind in the state. An Obama campaign memo Tuesday pointed to "signs that she may be planning to campaign in the state, inquiring about large venues and increased organizing activity." In fact, the Clinton campaign inquired Tuesday if the Miami Beach Convention Center will be available for a "rally" on Jan. 27, two days before the state holds its earliest primary in history......here