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Archive for Bonnie Yarbrough (Email)
08/29/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Stealth Governance
Categories :: Bush Administration :: Congress :: Social Security
With Katrina barreling up through the Mississippi Delta, there’s another “big blow” taking shape on radar screens focused toward Capital Hill. And yet another example of governance by stealth: when you can’t win, steal what you really want and proclaim it a victory.
08/22/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Dueling Frames: Views on Iraq
Categories :: Framing - Foreign Policy :: George W. Bush :: Iraq :: Propaganda/Spin
Two different views of Iraq keep emerging: is it more like World War II or like Vietnam?
07/29/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
PowerGate's Hit Parade
Categories :: Bush Administration
To those following the sadly disturbing RoveGate, TreasonGate, PlameGate, CIAGate saga, these latest details are all part of a very simple scandal: this is about Power—getting it, keeping it, and destroying anyone who threatens to take it—at any price. Abuse of power is easy when you also openly embrace a culture of corruption and greed. But it’s just plain showy when you have a parade.
06/10/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Wrongfooting Saddam and Linking Terrorism to War: New DSM documents
Categories :: Bush Administration
[Updated post: with a second document.] Scoop has another document regarding the Downing Street minutes and the run-up to the war. As more leaks out, additional updates will follow.
05/11/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Old Ghosts and Mangled Memories
Categories :: Bush Administration :: History :: Senators and Representatives
Just as Bush blundered into the Balkans to deliver his history-mangling rhetoric on minority rights as a benchmark for democracy, Frist was maneuvering eliminate them back home. Joe McCarthy would be proud.
04/15/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Do You Feel Nuclear, Punk?
Categories :: Senators and Representatives
Frist to headline radicals' telecast on nuking the filibuster to take over the courts.
04/08/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Three Strikes, unless you're Tom DeLay
Categories :: Tom DeLay
A New Term: UUYATD (Unless You are Tom DeLay)
04/04/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Deconstructing DeLay: Part Deux
Categories :: Congress :: Conservatives :: Hypocrisy :: Tom DeLay
New developments on the ongoing hubris of Tom DeLay. Just when he hit the nadir of legislative interference, he soars to new lows.
04/02/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Two Cheers--Do I Hear Three?
Categories :: Congress :: Tom DeLay
DeLay should be censored, hung out to dry, punished, and then shunned for his latest outrageous performance.
03/23/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
How long, oh . . . ,Lord
Categories :: Framing - Foundation
I’ve resisted with every fiber of my independent spirit not to weigh in on this issue, hoping that a woman’s right to privacy, decency, and, yes, non-governmental interference in her right to die would trump any political grandstanding by Tom DeLay, Bill Frist, or Rick Santorum. But, enough is enough.
03/11/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Good News Friday
Categories :: Social Security
Looks like the Democrats may actually stand their ground this time.
03/01/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
All Aboard the SS Titanic: Reports of Icebergs
Categories :: Framing - Individuals
Fair warning: if you decide to make the trip, you may want to alert the Carpathia, just in case.
02/18/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Friday's Funnies: The Shrub Zone
Categories :: Satire
Let me see if I’ve got this right. TeamBush, happily ensconced in their renovated Lincoln Bedroom are widely (mis)quoting FDR, Bill Clinton, and Harry Reid on privatization. When RepubliCons stoop to using popular and populist Democrats as their sources, you know you’re in The Shrub Zone.
Here are this week’s oxymoronic observations from deep within . . . The Shrub Zone (eerily lilting background music):
02/13/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Lost in the Funhouse
Categories :: Bush Administration
Here’s a Valentine for American progressives, Democrats, Independents, and other concerned citizens who think the challenge to protect democracy in America may very well depend on deconstructing the Bush budget. Instead of flowers, candy, or lingerie, why not spend a little time and energy on a collective call to action?
02/04/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Suitable for Framing: Republicans on SS
Categories :: Framing 101
It's been a bad week for the Bush Administration, in spite of aides eagerly chanting "Road Trip!" after the SOTU. Things aren't going well on the phase-out campaign trail.
01/31/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Heroes of Social Insecurity: A 'Leninist' Strategy
Categories :: Bush Administration :: Discrimination :: Hypocrisy :: Social Security
Americans don't need a secret de-coder ring to understand the PR push to sell the Plan to destroy Social Security, but some may enjoy a trip down memory lane before the State of the Union re-defines privatization.
01/28/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
The Language Gestapo
Categories :: Framing 101
Excuse me, but this is personal . . . oops, er, I mean, private.
In an uncertain world, it’s nice to know we can always count on the current Administration to provide some much needed semantic entertainment.
01/21/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
It Takes a Virtual Village
Categories :: Bush Administration :: Framing 101 :: Free Speech :: Progressive Strategy :: Social Security
Tracking, documenting, and correcting the continuing assault by The Second Administration requires a healthy village of progressive citizens to speak truth to power. The mounting campaign against raiding Social Security is one indication of the strength of this Village.
01/20/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
The Second Coming
Categories :: Bush Administration
For many Americans, the most memorable words George W. Bush spoke this week did not come in his second Inaugural speech.
01/14/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Update: Trickle-Down News
Categories :: Bush Administration :: Framing 101 :: Hypocrisy :: Outrages
Some details are beginning to emerge about the President's plan to destroy Roosevelt's successful Social Security safety net. Early signs of the marketing, the campaign process, and the rhetoric are troubling.
01/13/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
“Trickle-down News"
Categories :: Bush Administration :: Framing 101 :: Hypocrisy
Mr. Bush is failing to convince the GOP to brutalize Social Security despite fear tactics. Perhaps GOPPOTUS has less political capital than he at first claimed.
01/07/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Okifyar: “Searing Reality”
Categories :: Democracy
On the leaked WH memo, courtesy of Peter Wehner, *’s director of strategic initiatives and Rove’s deputy. If you haven’t read the whole memo, you should. . . The linguistic pattern is dangerous.
01/04/05 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
The “Others”: Empire-building
Categories :: Government
The lines have clearly formed in the reality-based community on the current issues facing the newly sworn-in 109th Congress. To clarify what’s at stake on the two sides, the title of this piece invokes previous installments. For background, link here and here. This post focuses on the contrast between the reality-based community and the “Others,” the Imperialist Extremists. Let’s look at the priorities evident in the activities of Day 1.
12/31/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
A New Year Anthem
Categories :: Progressive Strategy
Celebrate the new year with progressive anthems.
12/31/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Small steps correcting the Wrongs of the “Right”
Categories :: Election 2004
On this last day of a long, grim year as frustrations still swarm around Ohiogate, it’s important to note some small victories.
12/24/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
For Christmas Eve
Categories :: Humor
'Twas the Nightmare Before Inauguration In case you missed it the first time, here's a re-post. Just in time for Christmas Eve.
12/20/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Notable Quotes.2: Weekend Winds
Categories :: Blowhards :: Bush Administration :: Economy
The primary topics in the websphere this weekend, however, center on three tangled but related attack threads: the Economic “Summit,” the marketing of the Social Security “crisis,” and the continuing attacks on Rumsfeld’s Iraqgate.
12/17/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
“Frivolous” Justice: Bush on Trial
Categories :: Bush Administration :: Framing 101 :: Hypocrisy :: Propaganda/Spin
Finding credible information at the Economic "Summit" is proving to be more illusive than Bernie Kerik's "nanny." I doubt anyone familiar with Bush's record on the economy took the Economic “Summit” this week seriously, but at least the outrageous comments and mock discussions have gotten some fair criticism this time around.
12/15/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
"The Others": Marching Backward
Categories :: Election 2004 :: Framing 101 :: Hypocrisy :: Outrages :: Progressive Strategy
With Republicans smugly observing that Democrats seem to be in disarray these days, some suspect that we are both living in a parallel universe with two separate realities. Pundits have said that while Democrats were in angst at Disney World, “Glibs” were on the ground in Ohio, and bloggers from all over are still trying to figure out where the front is. For most of us, the sound of marching boots is hard to ignore and our compasses are working. . .
Here are 20 preliminary points for drafting the rules of engagement:
12/13/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Notable Quotes: A New Weekend Feature
Categories :: Activism
Stories circulating in the blogosphere over the weekend remind me that most of the people I know get their news online or through alternative web sources these days. For those who may have been on vacation, shopping, or off-line, here’s a sampling of weekend highlights.
12/10/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
December 12th is the National Vote March
Categories :: Election 2004
Those of you ready for action, here is your opportunity, and an important reminder: Tomorrow at noon is a nationwide protest/call for action regarding the 2004 Election, vote theft, and protecting voters’ rights. On Federal and state captial steps everywhere, citizens are urged to take part in this first, public expression of outrage over the voting suppression, irregularities, and vote fraud surrounding Election 2004.
12/10/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
No Fairy Godfathers at This Ball
Categories :: Outrages
Despite troop frustrations voiced to Rumsfeld for adequate protection, the “ball” preparations are in full swing. Meanwhile our troops are scrounging through the trash for basic daily protection that our government has failed to provide.
12/09/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Hearing on Vote Suppression and Election Fraud Demand National Action
Categories :: Election 2004
The House Judiciary Committee's hearing on voter suppression and election fraud demands citizen action and brought to light several proposed legal and constitutional solutions.
12/08/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Breaking News: This Ain't Over
Categories :: Civil Rights
C-Span covers the hearings. Tune in for testimony and evidence on the vote fraud in Ohio.
12/05/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Holiday Economics
Categories :: Progressive Strategy
Political Strategy is Economic Strategy.
12/03/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Calls for Impeachment Continue
Categories :: Bush Administration
The White House is in full party mode, both figuratively and literally. Decorations and Christmas carols are now passing for “hard news” on CNN. But the background music, for anyone who cares to listen to it, carries a plaintiff and lilting dissonance.
11/26/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Thanks for the Memories
Categories :: Outrages
Black Friday is here, and the holiday spin has begun. . .
Here at PS, however, the memories springing from brain stems still functional for the moment are focused on other issues: 1) ongoing investigations of balloting fraud and other election irregularities, 2) GOP power abuses, 3) CIA resignations, and 4) White House leaks. The grafs below hit some of these highlights.
11/21/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
'Twas the Nightmare Before . . .
Categories :: Humor
Word is that Democrats, progressives, Greens, moderates, and other rational, critical thinkers have been a little down lately. Time for a little levity, a change of pace, Holiday "cheer,"and perhaps, alternative memes.
11/19/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Re-framing Moral Values
Categories :: Reader Interaction
As long as we’re re-framing reality for the new (old) administration, perhaps we should re-visit the notion of “moral values” again. Serious confusion is rampant on this and related issues, particularly about what constitutes genuine spirituality, moral vision, and ethical behavior. In fact, “either-or” thinking (“You’re with us or you’re against us.”) is propelling agendas across many disciplines other than politics: religion, science, education, language, music, and art.
11/17/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Framing Reality: “Reds” on the Hill
Categories :: Outrages
Recent outrages from the Hill and environs.
11/11/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Letter from Elizabeth Edwards
Categories :: Reader Interaction
Elizabeth Edwards' update
11/09/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Bits 'n Pieces on the Bush Agenda
Categories :: Environment
The Bush Agenda is shaping up quickly.
11/08/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
The Seal is Broken (Again)
Categories :: Religion
George W. Bush has broken the great seal separating church from state, the seal of “religious indifference” that de Crevècoeur in 1782 recognized as the distinguishing trait of Americans.
11/06/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Political Strategy: A Real, Virtual, and Compassionate Conversation with America
Categories :: Blogging on Blogging :: Conservatives :: Election 2004 :: Progressive Strategy
Reality sets in. . . . The American electorate may have been a bit bloodied in the months leading up to the final fray, but the search for an authentic, healing march toward democracy remains unbowed
11/02/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Polls Stay Open in NC
Categories :: Election 2004
Polls Staying Open Late in NC
11/02/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Ten More Reasons Kerry will be outside the "Margin of Litigation"
Categories :: Election 2004
"Let me be clear." . . . Regardless of all the legal activity, all the evidence points to a staggering participation by the American electorate. That benefits Democrats.
11/02/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Outside the Margin of Litigation
Categories :: Election 2004
A good hint of how unreliable the current polls may be is wafting through mainstream media newsrooms and virtual communities . . . but a pattern is emerging.
10/31/04 :: By Bonnie Yarbrough
Democracy’s New Challenge
Categories :: Elections
The release of the OBL tape has generated mixed, if somewhat muted, responses in the mainstream media’s last full news cycle of the Presidential election. Fortunately, the Internet community operates under fewer restraints regarding copy deadlines. As political consultants scramble to re-shape strategies for each tarmac touchdown, any glitch in the expected daily framework presents an opportunity. But for a brief moment, pundits, campaigns, and viewers alike appeared to be caught in mid-stride, interrupted before heading into the final weekend before the big finish. Although both political candidates responded to the tape’s release in understated comments, the differences were subtle but telling.
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