LeKnott

A Beer with Steve Novick for US Senate

The newest campaign spot from the Steve for US Senate campaign. The ad is refreshingly original and humorous. Have a look! 

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Innovative New TV Ad for Steve Novick for US Senate

This creative political campaign commercial was produced by Eichenbaum Associates. National progressive bloggers Markos Moulitsas and Jerome Armstrong profile Eichenbaum in their book "Crashing the Gate" for his creative political spots and willingness to buck the political establishment. You Tube | digg story

Take a quiz to see who your Presidential candidate might be...

I was forwarded a link to a survey based on this one at Minnesota Public Radio:

Quiz to determine which Presidential candidate you might agree with most...

At first I was leery of such a tool for collecting data but I also agree that this is a valuable tool for many reasons.  I highly recommend taking a few minutes to fill out the form and check out the depth of the resources and information you receive as a result.

You are not required to submit any more personally identifiable information than standard things like your IP address unless you volunteer other info (gender, age, etc).  The form takes your submission no matter what fields you leave blank.

Check out the survey here.

Buying The War - An Amazing Documentary

This is a must-see documentary in 5 easy-to-stream video chapters.  I strongly suggest taking a few minutes to check it out.  If you are so inclined, please take the time to share it too.

The power of this documentary is it's expert analysis of the role of media in the events surrounding the 9-11 attacks, the run up to the War, and the 'War on Terror'. This is a sophisticated study of the swirl of rhetoric and strategic manipulation of thought and conversation around this critical time in our history.

View the video "Buying the War?" here.

Taking Our Government Back

By Barack Obama
June 21, 2007

Over one hundred years ago, around the turn of the last century, the Industrial Revolution was beginning to take hold of America, creating unimaginable wealth in sprawling metropolises all across the country.

As factories multiplied and profits grew, the winnings of the new economy became more and more concentrated in the hands of a few robber barons, railroad tycoons and oil magnates.

It was known as the Gilded Age, and it was made possible by a government that played along. From the politicians in Washington to the big city machines, a vast system of payoffs and patronage, scandal and corruption kept power in the hands of the few while the workers who streamed into the new factories found it harder and harder to earn a decent wage or work in a safe environment or get a day off once in awhile.

Eventually, leaders committed to reform began to speak out all across America, demanding a new kind of politics that would give government back to the people.

One was the young governor of the state of New York.

In just his first year, he had already begun to antagonize the state's political machine by attacking its system of favors and corporate giveaways. He also signed a workers' compensation bill, and fired a high-level official for taking money from the very industry he was supposed to be regulating.

None of this reform sat too well with New York's powerful party boss, who finally plotted to get rid of the governor by making sure he was nominated for the Vice Presidency that year. What no one could have expected is that soon after the election, when President William McKinley was assassinated, the greatest fears of all the entrenched interests came true when that former governor became President of the United States.

His name, of course, was Teddy Roosevelt. And during his presidency, he went on to bust trusts, break up monopolies, and do his best to give the American people a shot at the dream once more.

A Love Song To Public Transportation

Portland City Commissioner Sam Adams and his staff are really something special.  This cool video featured on his website right now is a great example of the countless things they do for their constituents and our city.  It's a video by Good Magazine of a local songwriter performing an impromptu version of his 'Love Song To Public Transportation" on the OHSU Tram above Portland, Oregon.

I had the honor and pleasure of working with Jesse Beason in Sam's office to create Sam's first blog a couple years back, and it was voted "Best Blog" in Portland by the major alternative weekly, Willamette Week.

Measure 37 Donors Looking at $700 Million Pay Out if They Can Defeat Measure 49

Voters in the November 2007 Oregon election have a chance to correct some serious problems caused by Meausure 37, which passed in 2004.  As a result of Measure 37, developers and timber companies have demanded about $15 billion (yes, you read that right - that's BILLION, with a "B") in compensation from taxpayers.

Of the $15 Billion in Measure 37 development claims, almost $700 million of them are from donors to the Measure 37 campaign.  That's right, the very people who funded Measure 37 are now filing massive compensation demands under the Measure.

Read more about the $15 billion demanded from taxpayers to pay for Measure 37 development claims.

Technorati Tags: Measure 49, Measure 37

NewsCorp Bid to Purchase The Wall Street Journal From Dow Jones & Co. Exposes Outrageous Effects

"Rupert Murdoch has always wanted to own The Wall Street Journal. But the Bancroft family, which owns a controlling interest in the newspaper's parent, Dow Jones & Co., does not want Murdoch to take control."

Check out this crazy interview where New Yorker columnist Ken Auletta offers his insights in a conversation with Steve Inskeep.  From the article on NPR:

How big is Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.?
News Corp. is a $70 billion company. It's probably the fourth-largest media company in the world. It began as a small newspaper company in Australia, under Rupert Murdoch's father. He expanded that dramatically and it's now the largest owner of newspapers in the world, with about 170 newspapers.

And now he wants a controlling share in a gigantic newspaper that's been owned by the same family for decades?
He's always wanted to own The Wall Street Journal. He told me that years ago. And when I was doing a piece two years ago on Dow Jones, and the family that owns, or controls, Dow Jones, they made it clear to me that the last person in the world they wanted to own that paper was Rupert Murdoch.                                                  
Why?
What they said to me was that they worry that his politics would spill not just on to the editorial page, which is close to his views, but on to the news pages. And they didn't want politics to bleed into the news pages.

Read the full story on NPR

Net Nuetrality - Save the Internet

This is a great mashup video spot about Net nuetrality.  I was turned onto this by Hans.  Check out recent news items regarding Net Nuetrality.  Read an in-depth article By Edward Felton on the Nuts and Bolts of Net Neutrality (pdf).

About Network Neutrality
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

(also "net neutrality," and, more rarely, "internet neutrality") is a principle of computer networks design. It is variously defined in a number of similar/related ways:

1. The satisfaction of all network application needs fairly. Any particular internet host, protocol or application should not receive preferential treatment, except to ensure correct operation of the network or protocol. A carrier's network that disfavors certain websites, protocols like Voip or multimedia services, for example, would be non-neutral.
2. Alternately, permitting the networking of all non-harmful devices, with open access carriage of packets.
3. Regulations that would attempt to legislate carriers to enforce neutrality on their networks. Anti-network neutrality regulations would enable a tiered internet.

     

What do you do when your political ass is in trouble? Reach again for the BIGOT CARD!

Now that we are finished with that mess in Iraq...

Bush hits hard at gay marriage
JENNIFER LOVEN
Associated Press

STATESBORO, Ga. - President Bush has for months cast the midterm elections as a choice about just two issues: taxes and terrorism. Now, with polls predicting bleak results for Republicans, he is trying to fire up his party by decrying gay marriage.

"For decades, activist judges have tried to redefine America by court order," Bush said Monday. "Just this last week in New Jersey, another activist court issued a ruling that raises doubt about the institution of marriage. We believe marriage is a union between a man and a woman, and should be defended."

The line earned Bush by far his most sustained applause at a rally of 5,000 people aimed at boosting former GOP Rep. Max Burns' effort to unseat a Democratic incumbent. In this conservative rural corner of eastern Georgia, even children jumped to their feet alongside their parents to cheer and clap for nearly 30 seconds - a near-eternity in political speechmaking.

Read the rest of the article from the AP Wire.