The Poor Man quotes beloved-by-the-America-right Solidarity leader Lech Walesa saying something W would clearly much prefer us to forget:

“America failed its exam as a superpower,” says Lech Walesa, the former Solidarity trade-union leader who became Poland’s first post-Communist president. “They are a military and economic superpower but not morally or politically anymore. This is a tragedy for us.” Mr. Walesa laments what he sees as America’s squandered leadership because he thinks the EU isn’t ready for prime time…. [C]an Europe offer itself and the wider world a vision to match, and perhaps one day even supplant, America’s role as “leader of the free world”? …

“We shed our blood for them but they don’t treat us well,” says Mr. Walesa, who visited the U.S. this fall to meet officials and politicians. He had no trouble getting a visa himself but made little headway in securing easy entry for his compatriots. “America doesn’t like Poles; it only likes Walesa,” he says.

They’re both still getting out from under their elections! Okay, Washington State has no seedy poisoning accusations, but still.

I was stunned to see in the WaPo this morning that the spread has narrowed to ten votes – in Gregoire’s favor!

I’ll say it again: I never liked Christine Gregoire for governor. I thought she was in denial about the state of Washington’s badly overdrawn infrastructure. I thought her stand against a state income tax while saying nothing against the regressive taxes that keep showing up on our ballots was short-sighted and pandering. And for no logical reason, it really got up my nose that she chose to market herself as ‘Chris’ Gregoire. What, we don’t know she’s a she? My vote was absolutely a vote against Dino Rossi.

But wow, what a lot of backbone Ms. Gregoire has shown in this race. I have nothing but respect for her tenacity. I don’t know what’s driving her, but I’m awe-struck by how much of it she seems to have.

“This wasn’t about who wins the race,” Gregoire said after the court ruling. “It’s about protecting these voters’ sacred right to have their legitimate votes counted.” Hallelujah.

Ten votes. Never say your vote doesn’t matter. Never.

I’m filing this little tidbit from Engadget under “ha,” but it’s really note funny.

So the other day a UPS driver in New Hampshire was on his way to the Cheshire Medical Center in Keene to deliver some much-needed parts for a piece of medical equipment when he got into a crash. He suffered a head injury and was taken by ambulance to the very same hospital he was headed to, but they weren’t able to do any of the tests they needed because the brain scan machine was broken–and the parts needed to fix it were sitting in his wrecked truck on the highway. If only there were some word to describe situations like these…

Read the whole story here.

Most Saturday mornings, Julius gets up early and runs in to Aigen to the bakery. He goes to buy kipferl, the crescent shape rolls that Austrians insist are the predecessor to the croissant. (This should not be confused with a vanillekipferl, which is a ground-nut-and-butter shortbread crescent shaped cookie.) Kipferl come with and without raisins. I’m not a fan of the kipferl, I find them to be a bit too plain, and Julius knows that, so for me he brings the brownest, grainiest rolls they’ve got on the shelf that morning. Yesterday he brought a couple of ‘fladen’ – oatmeal and multigrain flat bread about the size and shape of a Pop-Tart, and a couple of spelt ‘weckerl’ – square brown rolls that are dense and chewy.

Read the rest of this entry »

Here are some thoughts for George’s second term.

It is our duty now to begin to lay the plans and determine the strategy for the winning of a lasting peace and the establishment of an American standard of living higher than ever before known. We cannot be content, no matter how high that general standard of living may be, if some fraction of our people— whether it be one-third or one-fifth or one-tenth— is ill-fed, ill-clothed, ill-housed, and insecure.

This Republic had its beginning, and grew to its present strength, under the protection of certain inalienable political rights— among them the right of free speech, free press, free worship, trial by jury, freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures. They were our rights to life and liberty.

As our nation has grown in size and stature, however— as our industrial economy expanded— these political rights proved inadequate to assure us equality in the pursuit of happiness.

We have come to a clear realization of the fact that true individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence. “Necessitous men are not free men.” People who are hungry and out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made.

In our day these economic truths have become accepted as self-evident. We have accepted, so to speak, a second Bill of Rights under which a new basis of security and prosperity can be established for all—regardless of station, race, or creed.

Among these are:

• The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the nation;

• The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;

• The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;

• The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;

• The right of every family to a decent home;

• The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;

• The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;

• The right to a good education.
  

All of these rights spell security. And after this war is won we must be prepared to move forward, in the implementation of these rights, to new goals of human happiness and well-being.

America’s own rightful place in the world depends in large part upon how fully these and similar rights have been carried into practice for our citizens.

That’s from FDR’s State of the Union speech on 11 January 1944. Roosevelt saw security as including economic security.

Into The Storm is hard to describe, but really good–part fashion mag, part cultural criticism… check it out.

From Atrios, an image that really makes one confident that the Preznit is gonna overcome the “challanges” our economy faces.

Grow the pie higher, idiots.

Wonderful letter from David Brock of Media Matters to Bill O’Reilly, using his own words against him to call him a coward for not letting Brock come on his show. A classic.

Taken in the Fransiscan Church in Salzburg. I have more pics of Salzburg here.

In the divine spirit of the ensuing holiday I decided to do a great search for the PERFECT baby Jesus for our manger. I didn’t want one too white, as we all know…. I certainly didn’t want to have one made of popsicle sticks as I thought it didn’t capture the true meaning that I was looking for this year! I looked for a Jesus Chew Toy, but found none (note to self: untapped market). I did find the Jesus Pacifier, but I thought that it was too ‘In Your Face” and not in the holiday color scheme.

But then, across me screen, the perfect Jesus for the Manger…now I just need to find an appropriate cradle….thinking….thinking…..but wait i found it, the real REAL one!