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Oilwellian
Oilwellian's Journal
Oilwellian's Journal
July 1, 2015
The Federal judge in Alabama marriage cases orders all magistrate judges to immediately comply with
her orders, and the SCOTUS decision. Can we now see Judge Roy Moore's tantrum on live TV? 
The SPLC doesn't have the order on their website yet so will post link to their Facebook entry:
https://www.facebook.com/SPLCenter/photos/a.439820219699.236067.170591064699/10153467419864700/?type=1&theater
June 28, 2015
Bernie Sanders Official YouTube Page
It appears his YouTube page is posting all of his campaign speeches and media interviews. It's a great source for those who may miss any of his appearances and want to catch up.
https://www.youtube.com/user/SenatorSanders/featured
If you click Video right below his banner, you will see all of the videos in one place, starting with the most recent upload.
May 30, 2015
Bernie Sanders Scores A Win As The Postal Service Backs Off Plan To Close Plants
Who says Bernie can't get things done?
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) won another victory in the battle against privatizing mail delivery as the Postal Service has quietly backed off of a plan to close 82 mail processing plants.
In a statement, Sen. Sanders said:
The Postal Service had planned to close eighty-two more mail processing plants as part of a cost-cutting move. The USPS is being forced to cut costs because a Republican imposed mandate that the Service pre-fund 75 years of retirement benefits within a decade. The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006 (PAEA) plunged the profitable USPS into debt and forced four out of every five dollars taken in to be spent on funding this mandate.
The Republican passed mandate was designed to drive the Postal Service out of business. The GOP goal has always been to privatize all mail delivery. The mandate is forcing the USPS to make decisions that hurt customers and result in slower mail delivery as part of the larger Republican plan to use government to break a public service that benefits the public good.
http://www.politicususa.com/2015/05/30/bernie-sanders-scores-win-postal-service-backs-plan-close-plants.html
In a statement, Sen. Sanders said:
I am pleased that the Postal Service has decided not to shut down virtually all of the 82 mail-processing plants this year, but much more needs to be done to ensure that Americans throughout the country receive their mail in a timely manner.
The Postal Service should be speeding up the delivery of mail, not slowing it down. We should be working to strengthen the Postal Service, not sending it into a death spiral.
The Postal Service had planned to close eighty-two more mail processing plants as part of a cost-cutting move. The USPS is being forced to cut costs because a Republican imposed mandate that the Service pre-fund 75 years of retirement benefits within a decade. The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006 (PAEA) plunged the profitable USPS into debt and forced four out of every five dollars taken in to be spent on funding this mandate.
The Republican passed mandate was designed to drive the Postal Service out of business. The GOP goal has always been to privatize all mail delivery. The mandate is forcing the USPS to make decisions that hurt customers and result in slower mail delivery as part of the larger Republican plan to use government to break a public service that benefits the public good.
http://www.politicususa.com/2015/05/30/bernie-sanders-scores-win-postal-service-backs-plan-close-plants.html
April 30, 2015
Needless to say, when 2012 rolled around, I was less than enthused to create any new videos for the very disappointing President Obama, but I did muster this one up for a little fun:
I want to do some informative videos on Bernie
When Obama was nominated as the Dem candidate, I joined up with some fellow Dem activists and created some hard hitting videos on McCain and Palin. Here is a sample of what I did with the help of some very talented people. Music and singing were all contributed by the same activists. The voice in the first video was the voice of Buick for years, and the singers are all professional singers in the NY area. If you have any ideas on what I could do for Bernie, feel free to share. I think a video contrasting Bernie and Hillary would be interesting.
Needless to say, when 2012 rolled around, I was less than enthused to create any new videos for the very disappointing President Obama, but I did muster this one up for a little fun:
April 22, 2015
First Hillary backer from '08 dumps her this time
This is a small story that could presage a much larger one in coming months about Hillary Clinton's last-chance bid to become president.
One of Clinton's more prominent backers for the Democrat nomination in 2008 has opted to endorse someone else for the party nod next year in Philadelphia. Former two-term Miami Mayor Manny Diaz said Tuesday he was going with Maryland's former Gov. Martin O'Malley this time.
The 60-year-old Diaz, a Cuban emigre and former head of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, is one of the country's more prominent and successful Hispanic politicians and a key "get" for any Democrat seeking votes in the crucial swing state of Florida.
Not only is Diaz prepared to endorse O'Malley, he's also put his name atop a breakfast for the former Baltimore mayor to meet-and-greet Miami Democrats on May 8. People attending such affairs are prime donor candidates.
Read More At Investor's Business Daily: http://news.investors.com/politics-andrew-malcolm/042215-749001-manny-diaz-backs-martin-omalley-over-hillary-clinton.htm#ixzz3Y48UqT9z
April 14, 2015
Hillary must feel so proud...One million dead from Iraqi invasion and occupation
Anyone who voted for this illegal war should NEVER become president of the United States. EVER.
A recently published report has revealed that the US invasion and occupation of Iraq was responsible for the deaths of approximately 1 million Iraqis, which is 5 percent of the total population of the country. The report also tallies hundreds of thousands of casualties in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Authors of the report, titled "Body Count: Casualty Figures After 10 Years of the 'War on Terror,'" have told Truthout that other casualty reports, like the often-quoted Iraq Body Count (IBC), which has a high-end estimate at the time of this writing of 154,563, are far too low in their estimates, and that the real numbers reach "genocidal dimensions."
Joachim Guilliard, the author of the Iraq portion of the study, told Truthout that the new study relied heavily on extrapolations from a previous study published in the prestigious Lancet medical journal, which put Iraq's numbers at 655,000, but the study was published in 2006 and is now dramatically out of date.
"The numbers of Lancet, reaching genocidal dimensions, represent a massive indictment of the US administration," Guilliard said. "Most Western media are not interested in it. The IBC numbers, however, are [seen as] acceptable. They are in line with the general picture of the war in Iraq according to which the Iraqis themselves are primarily responsible for most violence."
Truthout
Authors of the report, titled "Body Count: Casualty Figures After 10 Years of the 'War on Terror,'" have told Truthout that other casualty reports, like the often-quoted Iraq Body Count (IBC), which has a high-end estimate at the time of this writing of 154,563, are far too low in their estimates, and that the real numbers reach "genocidal dimensions."
Joachim Guilliard, the author of the Iraq portion of the study, told Truthout that the new study relied heavily on extrapolations from a previous study published in the prestigious Lancet medical journal, which put Iraq's numbers at 655,000, but the study was published in 2006 and is now dramatically out of date.
"The numbers of Lancet, reaching genocidal dimensions, represent a massive indictment of the US administration," Guilliard said. "Most Western media are not interested in it. The IBC numbers, however, are [seen as] acceptable. They are in line with the general picture of the war in Iraq according to which the Iraqis themselves are primarily responsible for most violence."
Truthout
April 5, 2015
If $842K can be raised for a pizza joint, what can WE raise for homeless children?
I hope we can raise twice as much...
There is much disgust and consternation in the LGBT community over a viral fundraiser effort, that has as of this writing, earned $842,387. Many have lamented, "If only our cause could raise that much money that fast."
I say, yes, we can.
So I looked and saw that Cyndi Lauper's True Colors Fund has set April 29 as the first national #40toNoneDay to end #LGBT youth homelessness! And I thought, would it not be totally awesome if we equality supporters (and pizza lovers) could match that #MemoriesPizza "charity" by April 29? Can we match their amount and help homeless youth get off the street, learn life skills and get an education and jobs?
I'm an dreamer, but I say yes, we can!
All proceeds will go to The True Colors Fund which works to end homelessness among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth, creating a world in which young people can be their true selves. READ MORE HERE…
The True Colors Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Your contribution is tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
http://www.gofundme.com/Pizza4Equality
I say, yes, we can.
So I looked and saw that Cyndi Lauper's True Colors Fund has set April 29 as the first national #40toNoneDay to end #LGBT youth homelessness! And I thought, would it not be totally awesome if we equality supporters (and pizza lovers) could match that #MemoriesPizza "charity" by April 29? Can we match their amount and help homeless youth get off the street, learn life skills and get an education and jobs?
I'm an dreamer, but I say yes, we can!
All proceeds will go to The True Colors Fund which works to end homelessness among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth, creating a world in which young people can be their true selves. READ MORE HERE…
The True Colors Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Your contribution is tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
http://www.gofundme.com/Pizza4Equality
March 31, 2015
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has become the latest high-profile progressive to endorse Cook County Commissioner Chuy García's challenge to Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D).
“I am going to Chicago to support Chuy García and [City Council candidate] Susan Sadlowski Garza. I support them because we need a political revolution in this country and we need the kind of working-class coalitions that Chuy and Susan are pulling together,” Sanders said in a statement.
“At a time when the wealthiest people and largest corporations are becoming richer while virtually everyone else is becoming poorer, working-class people have got to fight back. And that is what the campaigns of Chuy and Susan are all about.”
García is in a closely-watched runoff race with Emanuel, President Obama’s former chief of staff. Emanuel failed to get more than 50 percent of the vote in a February round of voting that would have precluded a runoff election.
More
Bernie Sanders endorses Rahm challenger
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has become the latest high-profile progressive to endorse Cook County Commissioner Chuy García's challenge to Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D).
“I am going to Chicago to support Chuy García and [City Council candidate] Susan Sadlowski Garza. I support them because we need a political revolution in this country and we need the kind of working-class coalitions that Chuy and Susan are pulling together,” Sanders said in a statement.
“At a time when the wealthiest people and largest corporations are becoming richer while virtually everyone else is becoming poorer, working-class people have got to fight back. And that is what the campaigns of Chuy and Susan are all about.”
García is in a closely-watched runoff race with Emanuel, President Obama’s former chief of staff. Emanuel failed to get more than 50 percent of the vote in a February round of voting that would have precluded a runoff election.
More
March 14, 2015
Tom Cotton Corruption Of Blood Bill Would Have Convicted Family Members Of Iran Sanctions Violators
This guy is an American? From 2013:
WASHINGTON -- Rep. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) on Wednesday offered legislative language that would "automatically" punish family members of people who violate U.S. sanctions against Iran, levying sentences of up to 20 years in prison.
The provision was introduced as an amendment to the Nuclear Iran Prevention Act of 2013, which lays out strong penalties for people who violate human rights, engage in censorship, or commit other abuses associated with the Iranian government.
Cotton also seeks to punish any family member of those people, "to include a spouse and any relative to the third degree," including, "parents, children, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, grandparents, great grandparents, grandkids, great grandkids," Cotton said.
"There would be no investigation," Cotton said during Wednesday's markup hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee. "If the prime malefactor of the family is identified as on the list for sanctions, then everyone within their family would automatically come within the sanctions regime as well. It'd be very hard to demonstrate and investigate to conclusive proof."
The amendment immediately sparked objections from several members of the Foreign Affairs Committee, who noted that the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees due process rights to anyone charged with a crime under American law.
(More)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/22/tom-cotton-corruption-of-blood_n_3322251.html
The provision was introduced as an amendment to the Nuclear Iran Prevention Act of 2013, which lays out strong penalties for people who violate human rights, engage in censorship, or commit other abuses associated with the Iranian government.
Cotton also seeks to punish any family member of those people, "to include a spouse and any relative to the third degree," including, "parents, children, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, grandparents, great grandparents, grandkids, great grandkids," Cotton said.
"There would be no investigation," Cotton said during Wednesday's markup hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee. "If the prime malefactor of the family is identified as on the list for sanctions, then everyone within their family would automatically come within the sanctions regime as well. It'd be very hard to demonstrate and investigate to conclusive proof."
The amendment immediately sparked objections from several members of the Foreign Affairs Committee, who noted that the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees due process rights to anyone charged with a crime under American law.
(More)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/22/tom-cotton-corruption-of-blood_n_3322251.html
February 10, 2015
Whether we want to admit it or not, we are on the verge of entering a proxy war with Russia, and Ukraine's volunteer neo-nazi militias called the Aidar Battalion have joined the Ukranian military in that fight.
Ukraine: Abuses and war crimes by the Aidar Volunteer Battalion in the north Luhansk region
It’s not Europe. It’s a bit different… There is a war here. The law has changed, procedures have been simplified… If I choose to, I can have you arrested right now, put a bag over your head and lock you up in a cellar for 30 days on suspicion of aiding separatists.
--Aidar battalion commander to Amnesty International researcher
Members of the Aidar territorial defence battalion, operating in the north Luhansk region, have been involved in widespread abuses, including abductions, unlawful detention, ill-treatment, theft, extortion, and possible executions.
The Aidar battalion is one of over thirty so-called volunteer battalions to have emerged in the wake of the conflict, which have been loosely integrated into Ukrainian security structures as they seek to retake separatist held areas.
Typically, the fighters abducted local men, often businessmen or farmers, whom they accused of collaborating with the separatists and held in makeshift detention facilities before either releasing them or handing them over to the Security Service (SBU).
In nearly all cases documented by Amnesty International the victims were subjected to beatings at the moment of capture and/or during interrogations, and either had to pay ransom for their release, or had possessions, including money, cars, telephones, and other valuables seized by the battalion members. Many of the witnesses and victims approached by Amnesty International were reluctant to share details of the incidents, fearing retaliation from Aidar battalion members. The names of victims and witnesses in illustrative cases detailed below have been changed.
Amnesty International
Why, why, WHY are Democrats proposing we arm neo-nazis with weapons to be used on the Russian border, and civilians are caught in between? Why are DEMOCRATS supporting this Republican neocon wet dream of what could EASILY become a HOT WAR with Russia? Judging from history, when Nazi symbols appear on Russia's doorstep, there will be a brutal response. The only difference is, this time, America will be on the wrong side of history.
Democrats Push Obama to Send More Arms to Ukraine's Military Which Includes Neo-Nazi Militias
Hawkish Republicans have leaned on President Obama for the better part of a year to give weapons to Ukraine as it battles Russian-backed separatists. Now it’s members of Obama’s own party—both within Congress and from members of his own administration—that are calling on the president to arm the Ukrainians, before they lose even more territory to the Kremlin’s proxies.
On Capitol Hill there is a renewed sense of urgency: The top-ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, Adam Smith, will join with his Republican counterpart Mac Thornberry on Tuesday to present a bill that would further pressure the president to give the Ukrainian government weaponry, although legislators have yet to spell out the specifics of the bill.
And in the last week, a bevy of Democratic pols and former diplomats have said that the United States should do more.
“Later this week—if it goes any later than that...” Rep. Eliot Engel, the top-ranking Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told The Daily Beast on Monday. “They need the weapons, they need them soon, and they need them quick. Our credibility is on the line, and what’s right is on the line,” Engel said.
The Daily Beast
On Capitol Hill there is a renewed sense of urgency: The top-ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, Adam Smith, will join with his Republican counterpart Mac Thornberry on Tuesday to present a bill that would further pressure the president to give the Ukrainian government weaponry, although legislators have yet to spell out the specifics of the bill.
And in the last week, a bevy of Democratic pols and former diplomats have said that the United States should do more.
“Later this week—if it goes any later than that...” Rep. Eliot Engel, the top-ranking Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told The Daily Beast on Monday. “They need the weapons, they need them soon, and they need them quick. Our credibility is on the line, and what’s right is on the line,” Engel said.
The Daily Beast
Whether we want to admit it or not, we are on the verge of entering a proxy war with Russia, and Ukraine's volunteer neo-nazi militias called the Aidar Battalion have joined the Ukranian military in that fight.
Ukraine: Abuses and war crimes by the Aidar Volunteer Battalion in the north Luhansk region
It’s not Europe. It’s a bit different… There is a war here. The law has changed, procedures have been simplified… If I choose to, I can have you arrested right now, put a bag over your head and lock you up in a cellar for 30 days on suspicion of aiding separatists.
--Aidar battalion commander to Amnesty International researcher
Members of the Aidar territorial defence battalion, operating in the north Luhansk region, have been involved in widespread abuses, including abductions, unlawful detention, ill-treatment, theft, extortion, and possible executions.
The Aidar battalion is one of over thirty so-called volunteer battalions to have emerged in the wake of the conflict, which have been loosely integrated into Ukrainian security structures as they seek to retake separatist held areas.
Typically, the fighters abducted local men, often businessmen or farmers, whom they accused of collaborating with the separatists and held in makeshift detention facilities before either releasing them or handing them over to the Security Service (SBU).
In nearly all cases documented by Amnesty International the victims were subjected to beatings at the moment of capture and/or during interrogations, and either had to pay ransom for their release, or had possessions, including money, cars, telephones, and other valuables seized by the battalion members. Many of the witnesses and victims approached by Amnesty International were reluctant to share details of the incidents, fearing retaliation from Aidar battalion members. The names of victims and witnesses in illustrative cases detailed below have been changed.
Amnesty International
German TV Shows Nazi Symbols on Helmets of Ukraine Soldiers
Germans were confronted with images of their country’s dark past on Monday night, when German public broadcaster ZDF showed video of Ukrainian soldiers with Nazi symbols on their helmets in its evening newscast. In a report on the fragile cease-fire in eastern Ukraine, Moscow correspondent Bernhard Lichte used pictures of a soldier wearing a combat helmet with the "SS runes" of Hitler’s infamous black-uniformed elite corps. A second soldier was seen with a swastika on his gear. “Volunteer battalions from nearly every political spectrum are reinforcing the government side,” the ZDF correspondent said in his report.
The video was shot last week in Ukraine by a camera team from Norwegian broadcaster TV2. “We were filming a report about Ukraine’s AZOV battalion in the eastern city of Urzuf, when we came across these soldiers,” Oysten Bogen, a correspondent for the private television station, told NBC News. Minutes before the images were taped, Bogen said he had asked a spokesperson whether the battalion had fascist tendencies. “The reply was: absolutely not, we are just Ukrainian nationalists,” Bogen said.
NBC News
Germans were confronted with images of their country’s dark past on Monday night, when German public broadcaster ZDF showed video of Ukrainian soldiers with Nazi symbols on their helmets in its evening newscast. In a report on the fragile cease-fire in eastern Ukraine, Moscow correspondent Bernhard Lichte used pictures of a soldier wearing a combat helmet with the "SS runes" of Hitler’s infamous black-uniformed elite corps. A second soldier was seen with a swastika on his gear. “Volunteer battalions from nearly every political spectrum are reinforcing the government side,” the ZDF correspondent said in his report.
The video was shot last week in Ukraine by a camera team from Norwegian broadcaster TV2. “We were filming a report about Ukraine’s AZOV battalion in the eastern city of Urzuf, when we came across these soldiers,” Oysten Bogen, a correspondent for the private television station, told NBC News. Minutes before the images were taped, Bogen said he had asked a spokesperson whether the battalion had fascist tendencies. “The reply was: absolutely not, we are just Ukrainian nationalists,” Bogen said.
NBC News
Ukraine’s ‘Romantic’ Nazi Storm Troopers
September 15, 2014
Exclusive: While most civilized people view the Swastika and other Nazi symbols as abhorrent reminders of unspeakable evil, the Washington Post trotted out a new way of seeing them – as “romantic” – a sign that apologists for Ukraine’s coup regime know no limits, reports Robert Parry.
By Robert Parry
The U.S. mainstream media’s deeply biased coverage of the Ukraine crisis – endlessly portraying the U.S.-backed coup regime in Kiev as “the good guys” – reached a new level of absurdity over the weekend as the Washington Post excused the appearance of Swastikas and other Nazi symbols among a Ukrainian government militia as “romantic.”
This curious description of these symbols for unspeakable evil — the human devastation of the Holocaust and World War II — can be found in the last three paragraphs of the lead story in the Post’s Saturday editions, an article about Ukraine’s Azov battalion which has become best known for waging brutal warfare under Nazi and neo-Nazi insignia.
Nazi symbols on helmets worn by members of Ukraine’s Azov battalion.
(Images filmed by a Norwegian camera team and shown on German TV)
Consortium News
September 15, 2014
Exclusive: While most civilized people view the Swastika and other Nazi symbols as abhorrent reminders of unspeakable evil, the Washington Post trotted out a new way of seeing them – as “romantic” – a sign that apologists for Ukraine’s coup regime know no limits, reports Robert Parry.
By Robert Parry
The U.S. mainstream media’s deeply biased coverage of the Ukraine crisis – endlessly portraying the U.S.-backed coup regime in Kiev as “the good guys” – reached a new level of absurdity over the weekend as the Washington Post excused the appearance of Swastikas and other Nazi symbols among a Ukrainian government militia as “romantic.”
This curious description of these symbols for unspeakable evil — the human devastation of the Holocaust and World War II — can be found in the last three paragraphs of the lead story in the Post’s Saturday editions, an article about Ukraine’s Azov battalion which has become best known for waging brutal warfare under Nazi and neo-Nazi insignia.
Nazi symbols on helmets worn by members of Ukraine’s Azov battalion.
(Images filmed by a Norwegian camera team and shown on German TV)
Consortium News
Why, why, WHY are Democrats proposing we arm neo-nazis with weapons to be used on the Russian border, and civilians are caught in between? Why are DEMOCRATS supporting this Republican neocon wet dream of what could EASILY become a HOT WAR with Russia? Judging from history, when Nazi symbols appear on Russia's doorstep, there will be a brutal response. The only difference is, this time, America will be on the wrong side of history.
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