tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88592882010-01-20T21:40:03.851-08:00Politics from an Independent's perspective.Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.comBlogger360125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-30622110712259423822009-11-26T05:32:00.000-08:002009-11-26T05:32:57.949-08:00

Check out my latest at the Partial Observer:Victory In Sport And War.

James Leroy Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11620822221586726516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-59918367950132938162008-10-15T23:03:00.000-07:002008-10-15T23:08:33.200-07:00

Joe the Plumber, who McCain spent a lot of time talking about in tonight's debate, apparently earns more than $250,000 if he won't be among the 95% of Americans (81.3% according to Tax Policy Center) getting a tax cut under the Obama Administration. He reportedly worked a lot of 10 - 12 hour days doing skilled blue collar work. I'll earn less than $40,000 this year while working full time. It was

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-82147371461378645252008-10-05T18:36:00.001-07:002008-10-05T18:36:58.998-07:00

I've been wondering when and where we'd see the grimy smudge of Tucker Eskew's fingerprints come to the fore in the Presidential campaign ever since McCain shocked former officials of his 2000 campaign by hiring Eskew to work for Sarah Palin. You'll recall that in 2000 Tucker Eskew and pals propagated the depraved racist rumor that McCain's adopted Bengali daughter Bridget McCain was actually

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-53978998177477359882008-09-15T09:18:00.000-07:002008-09-15T09:19:01.823-07:00

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-91169503053614484872008-09-06T14:02:00.000-07:002008-09-06T14:03:20.354-07:00

John McCain = agent of change? I used to think so.When McCain ran in 2000 I didn't just stick my toes in the water to test how comfy it was, I jumped into the deep end of the pool. In fact, my very first website - a previous version of The Independent Voter - was dedicated to rallying Independents to John McCain's candidacy. I still have several "McCain 2000" bumper stickers that I got from the

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-76504978405044209292008-05-10T11:13:00.000-07:002008-05-10T11:19:32.933-07:00

Now we have hard evidence showing why Gordon Smith has singled out Jeff Merkley in his latest attack ad with the Democratic Primary still 10 days away - a new poll: Merkley and Smith in statistical tie, Novick lags behindOne of the most compelling aspects to this new poll is that it's a General Election match-up. Which means that it reflects all Oregonians rather than just Democrats as the

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-29610394068498195662008-04-07T08:13:00.001-07:002008-04-07T08:13:50.703-07:00

Ever so briefly at the very beginning there's a shot of me talking to Jeff.

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1758439999033702992008-03-26T21:49:00.000-07:002008-03-26T22:56:06.583-07:00

Steve Nader... er... Novick indulged his inner Nader yet again by taking a shot at Jeff Merkley over at Politicker OR. But that was just a smoke screen intended for what he presumes to be a gullible public. Really it was a veiled shot at Barack Obama. (Sshhhh... we're not supposed to be intelligent enough to have figured that out for ourselves)The subject of Steve's latest Nader moment was Social

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-6010947622358749722008-03-18T18:23:00.000-07:002008-03-20T20:09:42.111-07:00

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-27996259003387522202008-02-02T09:13:00.000-08:002008-02-02T09:15:04.311-08:00

This is a Democrat I'm supporting for U.S. Senate.

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-2937262310612806322007-04-01T14:18:00.000-07:002007-04-01T14:19:37.536-07:00

Take the quiz to find your preferred Presidential candidate (from the two major parties).Remember that "The results are scored on a curve. 100% means that we are 100% certain that the top candidate on your list shares more of the views you indicated than any other candidate." So the top choice will get a 100% score, but that doesn't mean you are in 100% agreement with him/her, only that you agree

James Leroy Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11620822221586726516noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-72512513679753568642007-03-24T13:40:00.000-07:002007-03-24T14:04:32.663-07:00

It's been a long time since I've written much of anything here. That's because I've been just totally consumed with starting a fledgeling business while maintaining a full time job.So far I only have a very rudimentary website up but I am proud to introduce Oregon Rain Sticks. The quality of the pictures isn't very good so far but I think they give you basic idea of what we're creating.For those

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-2389637975768811622007-03-02T07:56:00.000-08:002007-03-02T08:49:50.678-08:00

For those unaware just how completely Bush and the Courts have swept aside the Constitution, Jacob Hornberger explains. Too lengthy to excerpt here, I recommend reading the whole piece. But the gist of it is: Jose Padilla, an American citizne was detained and tortured as an "enemy combatant" in the "War on Terror" where he was tortured and refused contact with his family. A federal district court

James Leroy Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11620822221586726516noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1169835960189373082007-01-26T10:23:00.000-08:002007-01-26T10:26:00.213-08:00

For a long time now I've found it both perplexing and amusing that president Bush has so often touted "liberal democracy" as a value to be striven towards around the world while he and his political base remain steadfastly dedicated to a brand of TheoConservatism which has more in common with those pesky "islamofacists" than with anything resembling a liberal value.A disturbing news report this

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1169524675332967732007-01-22T19:28:00.000-08:002007-01-22T20:14:04.650-08:00

The Next Prez blog has lists of official, probable, and possible Presidential candidates, from major parties to smaller parties to independents, from the well-known to the obscure.Among major-party candidates who have announced, Democrat Bill Richardson stands heads and shoulders above everyone else in terms of paper qualifications. Before running for political office, he had experience in the

James Leroy Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11620822221586726516noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1169060070301901032007-01-17T09:41:00.000-08:002007-01-17T10:54:30.550-08:00

Now that Democrats have retaken control of Congress some conservatives have questioned whether Congress has the legitimate constitutional authority to defund a military action against the President's wishes. From what I've seen it seems to be a kneejerk reaction stemming from a shallow grasp of the so-called Unitary Executive view of presidential authority.It is noteworthy that Justice Alito, an

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1167593452862480132006-12-31T11:11:00.000-08:002006-12-31T11:30:52.890-08:00

I'll never forget the Summer of 1974. I was ten years old and had somehow acquired a crystal AM radio. One day late that Spring I happened across a local radio station in Medford, Oregon broadcasting the House Judiciary Committee hearings and later the Nixon Impeachment hearings. I was instantly hooked on politics and avidly followed Republican politics in particular for the next ten years,

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1167166514865443042006-12-26T12:28:00.000-08:002006-12-26T13:11:10.536-08:00

The scuttle coming out of Eugene continues to be that Independent John Frohnmayer, younger brother of former Oregon A.G. and current University of Oregon President Dave Frohnmayer(D), might challenge Senator Gordon Smith(R) in 2008.Meanwhile Senator Smith continues to take a beating for the perceived insincerity of his recent flip-flop on Iraq.I've never voted against Smith, including his failed

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1166459163336294252006-12-18T08:25:00.000-08:002006-12-18T08:26:03.386-08:00

Rude Pundit writes about the Family Research Council's latest Prayer Team marching orders courtesy of FRC head honcho Tony Perkins. It seems that Perkins is deeply concerned about the results of this year's Congressional elections. Presumably all those who voted for Democrats were defying God's will because "The next two years may bring the most profoundly anti-faith, family and freedom

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1166130078248952272006-12-14T13:00:00.000-08:002006-12-14T13:01:18.303-08:00

Buried in the middle of a news report on McCain's visit to Baghdad is a very interesting quote."I do not know where (additional troops) will come from. I am told time after time that United States can handle other contingencies like North Korea and Iran so it seems to me that we can come up with troops to have here."Could McCain be playing a high-stakes game of bluff with the Bush administration

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1166120859659614902006-12-14T10:26:00.000-08:002006-12-14T10:27:39.686-08:00

A piece in Tuesday's USA Today talks about fear among the American Muslim community. Fear of what their fellow Americans will do to them. Fear of being targeted by the government simply because they are of Arab descent and practicing Muslims. DEARBORN, Mich. — The Arab Muslims who came here eight decades ago to work on Henry Ford's new assembly line believed their American future was limitless.

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1165987130250586912006-12-12T20:58:00.000-08:002006-12-12T21:18:50.276-08:00

Oregon state senator and Indie gubernatorial candidate this year, Ben Westlund, has joined the Democratic party.I can't say that I'm not disappointed because I am. But, I don't begrudge him the decision either. And while he says that the decision wasn't motivated by politics, I suspect that politics did play a role and perhaps the central role. Sure, he could have caucaused with the Dems in the

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1165854294598703052006-12-11T08:24:00.000-08:002006-12-11T08:24:55.286-08:00

The Bloomberg Model: independent voters make the differenceWhether Mayor Bloomberg's "people" are floating the idea, or the media is looking to "sell papers", or the US business class sees a favorable opportunity for future political involvement, the wires are still buzzing with the question "Will Michael Bloomberg run for President in '08?" And implicit in that question, because of who he is and

Nancy Hankshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17428253702914703243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1165780751826151732006-12-10T11:58:00.000-08:002006-12-10T17:04:44.290-08:00

Via the latest factcheck.org mailing which is not yet on their website:Bush: On the issue of secret evidence – another creation of the Clinton/Gore Justice Department – I am also troubled by the disturbing stories of how this policy is being implemented. More and more, new immigrants, often Arab or Muslim immigrants, face deportation or even imprisonment based on evidence they've never seen and

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8859288.post-1165505997860917522006-12-07T07:39:00.000-08:002006-12-07T07:39:57.890-08:00

The rightwing blogosphere's response to the Iraq Study Group's recommendations: Unleash Hell. Apparently not enough innocent blood has been spilled to satisfy their seemingly unquenchable thirst for death. Of course I'm assuming the perhaps unlikely possibility that they even believe that anybody over there outside of the Kurds qualify as innocents. But not all is lost. The really deep thinkers

Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17195785408018792847noreply@blogger.com0