LEFT OF DAYTON
THURSDAY POLITICS;IRAQ, AL GORE,MORMONISM & A “WINTER SOLDIER” INVESTIGATION
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It’s another cold day in December
Will Iraq’s Great Awakening Lead to a Nightmare? 
Washington Dispatch: U.S. casualties are down in Iraq. But a retired Army Colonel argues that the surge and American payoffs to Sunni tribal leaders may eventually backfire—producing more instability and possibly a regional war.
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Accepting the Nobel Peace Prize By Al Gore December 10, 2007
http://www.consortiumnews.com/Print/2007/121207b.html
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IRAQ VETERANS AGAINST THE WAR PLANNING IRAQ/AFGHANISTAN WINTER SOLDIER INVESTIGATION
http://www.ivaw.org/wintersoldier
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Huffington Post: Lawrence O’Donnell was Right About Mormonism
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ryan-j-davis/lawrence-odonnell-was-ri_b_76475.html
The Rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party
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“This Republican Party of Lincoln has become a party of theocracy.” The theocratic right seeks to establish dominion, or control over society in the name of God. D. James Kennedy, Pastor of Coral Ridge Ministries, calls on his followers to exercise “godly dominion … over every aspect … of human society.” At a “Reclaiming America for Christ” conference in February, 2005, Kennedy said:
Twenty-five years ago dominionists targeted the Republican Party as the vehicle through which they could advance their agenda. At the same time, a small group of Republican strategists targeted fundamentalist, Pentecostal and charismatic churches to expand the base of the Republican Party. This web site is not about traditional Republicans or conservative Christians. It is about the manipulation of people of a certain faith for political power. It is about the rise of dominionists in the U.S. federal government.
According to acclaimed journalist and television host Bill Moyers,
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The Ministers, the Dayton City Anti-Discrimination Ordinance and the Future
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It’s Saturday, at the 2nd Street Market, and I’m talking to one of the vendors when I hear a muffled hello. Turning, I see the HAT moving down the aisle…it’s Mayor McLin. Taking the opportunity in hand, I walk up and tell her, “I am very glad for the stand that you took Wed at the City Commission meeting in the anti-discrimination ordinance “debate”. ” Smiling broadly, she replied, “Oh, thank you so much”. Ms McLin acknowledged that there had been quite bit of pressure brought to bear on the Commission, but, that she and the other members who voted for the ordinance had concluded the time for discussion was over and a decision needed to be made. I’ll make mention that I was not the only one to make a positive comment on this issue to her. Politics in the air at the Market!
Some may dismiss this slight woman as a “figurehead” mayor, but in my estimation it took a quite a bit of extra spine/courage to stand up to the Interdenominational Ministers Alliance’s assault on the ordinance. This same cabal has opposed progressive initiatives based on questions of sexuality for years. They seem to have a degree of credibility that may not be justified by the actual numbers of their followers, which I think is an open question. And, I don’t mean being able to get 30-40 people to attend a city commission meeting…maybe that is everybody you represent? Those in the “know” about Dayton’s semi-underground political culture are fully aware of the checkered past of some of the leaders of this group and that, in part, is why the extra spine displayed Wed needs to be applauded. (more…)
Musings an Miscellania 11/17/07
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NY Times movie Critic A O Scott discusses movies about the Iraq War in a short video”column“ http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2007/10/26/movies/20071028_IRAQMOVIES_FEATURE.html
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MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann: How to Really Support Our Troops [VIDEO]
Olbermann is the antithesis of the Faux News O’Reilly/Hannity spin cycles. http://www.alternet.org/blogs/waroniraq/68165
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HOMOPHOBIC MINISTERS WANT TO DERAIL DAYTON CITY GLB ANTI-DISCRIMINATION ORDINANCE
On the local front, it appears that much of the Interdenominational Ministers Alliance opposition to the City of Dayton’s proposed ordinance granting gays and lesbians equal protection against discrimination is driven by homophobic hysteria. Members of the alliance have ties to national church groups with strong stands against homosexuality, especially the Southern Baptist’s. I find it very troubling that an organization ostensibly geared toward fighting discrimination would employ discriminatory tactic to deny others equal protection under the law.The proposed ordinance is scheduled for discussion and a vote at the next City Commission meeting Nov 22 @6 pm. Commissioners should ignore the homophobic rantings of the local Talibanist’s and pass this legislation post haste
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State may cut benefits for kids Parents fighting Medicaid limits on mental-health care/
Saturday, November 17, 2007 3:56 AM
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
KIRK IRWINDISPATCH
Keegan McCann, 6, walks to the car with his father, Jay, after being picked up from school at Ohio State University’s Harding Hospital. Keegan, who is severely autistic, attends the school 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. five days a week.
“Bye, Dad.”Simple words to most parents; they hear them every day.
But they were very special words to Jay McCann when he heard them for the first time recently from Keegan, his 6-year-old, severely autistic son.
“That moment felt like the day he was born,” McCann said. “I saw a rebirth of my son.”
A rule proposed by the Strickland administration has McCann and other parents concerned that their children may be deprived of the specialized services they now receive.
The administrative rule, which would limit some services eligible for Medicaid payments in an attempt to head off action from the federal government, is scheduled for a public hearing Monday before the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review. (more…)
Secret Report: Corruption is “Norm” Within Iraqi Government
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As Congress prepares to receive reports on Iraq from General David Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker and readies for a debate on George W. Bush’s latest funding request of $50 billion for the Iraq war, the performance of the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has become a central and contentious issue. But according to the working draft of a secret document prepared by the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, the Maliki government has failed in one significant area: corruption. Maliki’s government is “not capable of even rudimentary enforcement of anticorruption laws,” the report says, and, perhaps worse, the report notes that Maliki’s office has impeded investigations of fraud and crime within the government. The draft–over 70 pages long–was obtained by The Nation, and it reviews the work (or attempted work) of the Commission on Public Integrity (CPI), an independent Iraqi institution, and other anticorruption agencies within the Iraqi government. Labeled “SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED/Not for distribution to personnel outside of the US Embassy in Baghdad,” the study details a situation in which there is little, if any, prosecution of government theft and sleaze. Moreover, it concludes that corruption is “the norm in many ministries.” READ THE COMPLETE NATION ARTICLE @ |
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Ann Coulter@Xavier U/9-06-07 an Update
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – August 30, 2007
Contact: Bo Shuff, Equality Ohio (614.224.0400 or bo@equalityohio.org)
Over $25,000 raised for Xavier University progressives;
“Thank You Ann” rally and celebration Thursday
Cincinnati, OH – A coalition waged a “Thank Ann Coulter” campaign to raise money – over $25,000 to date – for Xavier University progressive student groups working for the causes Coulter regularly bashes. Equality Ohio, ProgressOhio, People for the American Way, and other sponsoring partners announced the latest total today after a month long effort.
Checks will be presented to student groups at Xavier this Thursday, September 6, 2007 at a celebratory rally on the Xavier Greenspace at 7:00 p.m. That is about the same time Coulter is due to speak at the Cintas Center on the opposite side of campus.
“She has every right to speak her mind, even if it is divisive and hurtful rhetoric,” said Bo Shuff, Director of Education and Public Policy for Equality Ohio. “This campaign was designed to give Xavier’s students who promote diversity, inclusion and tolerance the resources they need for dynamic programming over the upcoming year.”
Ann Coulter typically is paid between $20,000 and $30,000 for her appearances. That works out to about $5 for every Xavier student. Most contributions for the “Counter Ann Coulter” Campaign have been just $5-$10. The $25,000 raised will be donated to student groups like the Xavier Alliance, the Xavier Women’s Center, and the Black Student Association, among others.
“Xavier is a diverse and welcoming campus,” added Patrick McNearney, President of the Xavier Alliance. “This support will help us create programs and events that celebrate that part of Xavier. We are so excited to be a part of this effort.”
On Thursday, September 6 at 7:00 p.m. students, supporters, and sponsoring organizations will gather on the Xavier Greenspace for a celebratory rally and an announcement of the final total raised. Final speakers and entertainment details are being finalized.
“When someone like Ann Coulter brings a message of division to Ohio, we want to empower people to look for the common good in all of us,” said Brian Rothenberg, Executive Director of ProgressOhio. “The last time I checked, you can’t fight fire with fire; you fight fire with water.”
ProgressOhio link: http://counteranncoulter.blogspot.com/
The Monitor / Embezzlement in Cleveland Diocese{more news not found in the DDN}
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The Monitor / Embezzlement in Cleveland Diocese / 8.24.2007
Dear Friend,
An embezzlement trial opened in Cleveland this week, spotlighting theft at the highest levels of the Cleveland diocese.
For a useful overview of the Cleveland case, read our special version of a recent New York Times article, with links to relevant court documents.
The defendants say the money they took was authorized by the diocese’s financial and legal secretary, a priest they accuse of also routing payments to himself and to his girlfriend. The chancery’s “system of secret compensation” involved dummy corporations and hundreds of bank accounts, the defendants say, including a $500,000 off-book account for former Bishop Anthony Pilla.
Why do cases of financial abuses within the Church interest us?
Over and over again, we’re seeing that the Church’s financial and sexual crises are entangled in the same skein of secrecy and lawlessness. Tug one thread and you pull the other.
Example: As part of bankruptcy proceedings, the Portland OR archdiocese was required to file 50,000 pages of financial records. In 2006, Oregonian reporters sifting through the archive discovered documentation of many more victims and abusers than the archdiocese had ever acknowledged.
But it goes deeper, this enmeshment of theft and sexual abuse. It begins with the crimes themselves.
At every level, theft funds crimes of cover-up. Bishops take money from the unwitting faithful to seal victims’ lips in secret settlements. In Boston, millions of dollars collected to fund priests’ retirements were diverted to pay for sex offenders’ lawyers and therapists. In parishes, embezzling priests blackmail pedophile priests into silence.
Most practically, theft pays for the abuse itself. Priests rob the collection basket to buy child pornography. They steal to buy the tools of grooming: gifts, fine meals, nice cars, and, crucially, overnight trips with the victim.
And when embezzlement is reported to the chancery, we’ve seen the diocese punish the whistleblower, not the priest.
In the Cleveland case, the Church has fought to block the release of financial documents, despite the judge’s order. A lot is at stake for the diocese. And for you and me. If the contents of the documents become public during the upcoming trials, we’ll learn how high the corruption went in Cleveland. And we’ll have a pattern to look for in other dioceses.
We’ll keep you posted.
Regards,
Anne Barrett Doyle
Co-Director
LEFT OF DAYTON 