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It wasn't exactly a reversal of 1994, but in this year's Senate races Democrats erased much of the Republican majority that was established in that year of Grand Old Party hegemony. Democrats picked up at least five and perhaps six Republican-held seats, while losing just two. In several cases, the shifts were dramatic, replacing staunch conservatives with far more progressive legislators.
For example, Minnesota Democrat Mark Dayton, a liberal department store heir, displaced Republican incumbent Rod Grams, a conservative hundred-percenter famous for dismissing Senator Paul Wellstone's attempt to lodge a criticism of Chinese human rights abuses as "demagoguery." Missouri Republican John Ashcroft, perhaps the Senate's most outspoken advocate of the Christian-right agenda, will be replaced by Jean Carnahan, the widow of liberal Missouri Governor Mel Carnahan (although the threat of a legal challenge remains). Michigan Democrat Debbie Stabenow, a House member whose strong labor record won her passionate support from the powerful United Auto Workers union, beat Republican incumbent Spencer Abraham, a former aide to Dan Quayle who frequently zeroed out on labor's voting-record ratings. One immediate change could come in the area of campaign finance reform: Senator Russ Feingold of Wisconsin says he now believes there will be sufficient support in the Senate to get the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform bill passed. "The question now is whether we'll have a Democratic President, who will sign the bill, or a Republican, who will veto it," says Feingold.
Perhaps the biggest Senate disappointment of the night was the 51-to-48 loss of Brian Schweitzer, a Montana rancher who used his campaign to dramatize the high cost of drugs for seniors and in the final weeks closed the gap on antienvironment, antilabor incumbent Conrad Burns.
There was even more disappointment in the results in the House, where an expensive two-year Democratic drive to win the seven Republican seats needed to take back the House failed. While Clinton impeachment manager Jim Rogan went down in California, and Arkansas's Jay Dickey may have been beaten in part because of his support for removing the state's number-one homeboy, most targeted Republican incumbents withstood the challenge. At least one Democrat with a good record, Connecticut's Sam Gejdenson--a consistent liberal with a strong international affairs bent--was ousted, and several progressive newcomers, including California's Gerrie Schipske and Montana's Nancy Keenan, have been beaten. But Illinois's Lane Evans beat back a meanspirited Republican challenge, and new California Representative Mike Honda won with strong backing from labor, as did New York's Steve Israel, who won the Long Island seat vacated by Republican Rick Lazio--the man First Lady Hillary Clinton bested in the nation's highest-profile Senate contest.
At the state level, the nastiest fight was in Vermont. There, in a campaign that turned into a referendum on the question of whether gay and lesbian couples should be allowed the rights of heterosexual couples, Vermont Governor Howard Dean, who signed the state's groundbreaking yet controversial "civil union" law, won a decisive victory in his campaign for a fifth term as governor. Vermont Progressive Party gubernatorial candidate Anthony Pollina surprised observers by racking up 10 percent of the vote and helping elect several Progressive Party candidates to legislative seats.
North Dakota Democrat Heidi Heitkamp, the state's progressive populist attorney general, lost a race for the governorship. But Delaware Lieutenant Governor Ruth Ann Minner, who dropped out of high school at 16 to work on the family farm and returned to school after being widowed at age 32, was elected governor. Her win means there will now be five women governors--the highest number in history.
A key result of the elections at the state level will be their impact on redistricting, which will shape Congress for years to come. Democrats now control forty-nine state legislative houses of a total of ninety-eight, while Republicans control forty-five. Four legislative chambers are evenly tied. Democrats won control of the Colorado Senate and the Washington Statehouse Tuesday. But they lost the Vermont House, with thirteen incumbents being swept from office. "It was all the civil-union fight," says Kevin Mack of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. "Howard Dean won up there, but a lot of good Democrats lost on the issue."
The lesson of election 2000, no matter the final photo-finish
outcome, is that, for better or worse, the Democratic Party is the only
political home for those with a progressive agenda. That was recognized
by the overwhelming support for Al Gore among union workers, racial
minorities, lower-income people and voters who want government to be an
active agent in preserving the environment, empowering minorities and
women, protecting personal freedom and guaranteeing, as Hillary Rodham
Clinton promised throughout her campaign, that no child is left behind in
this prosperous nation.
It is elitist in the extreme for Ralph Nader to scorn the judgment of
those who make up the core constituency of the Democratic Party: labor,
women's rights activists, minorities, civil libertarians, gays,
environmentalists. What contempt he showed for his longtime allies, going
into Florida on the last day of the campaign to denounce Gore in terms
harsher than those he used for George W. Bush. Nader's nearly 100,000
Florida votes likely has cost Democrats the White House and with it the
veto power President Clinton has used to protect the very people that
Nader was bamboozling.
Does Nader really believe that Bush, if he prevails, would push for a
minimum-wage increase, earned income tax credit, affirmative action, food
stamps, Head Start or child care--programs that represent the margin of
survival for so many? Will Nader, now back in his role as consumer
lobbyist, not be begging Democratic stalwarts Ted Kennedy, Hillary
Clinton and California's Rep. Henry Waxman to hold the line on a
Republican Congress as it betrays patients to the big health care
If Bush has the White House, will Nader not look primarily to a hardy
band of Democrats to save the environment? Easy to deride the Democratic
politicians who, yes, do depend on fund-raising to survive. But can Nader
deny that it was Rep. Phil Burton, the late Democratic political boss
from San Francisco, who did more than anyone to save the redwoods and to
convince urban people of their stake in preserving the rural environment?
Burton was only one of many liberals who have fought the good fight that
Nader demeans.
If I sound angry it's in part with myself for having at times in the
past fallen for the siren song of what appears to be a purist politics
but ends up being mischievous when it's not downright destructive.
What Nader did was to impulsively betray a lifetime of painstaking,
frustrating, but most often effective, efforts on his part to make a
better world. He is a good man who went very wrong and who now seems to
find solace from his egregious error of judgment by getting drunk on his
own words. The day after the election wreckage he had helped to cause, he
was more arrogant than ever in his condemnation of the Democratic Party
as evil incarnate.
It is nothing of the sort. The Democratic Party, for all of its
contradictions and shortcomings, is the essential arena for progressives
to fight for their programs, just as the Republican Party provides that
venue for the Christian Coalition, which rudely rejected Pat Buchanan and
kept its troops in the GOP.
Nader should have done the same. Following the lead of the enormously
successful Jesse Jackson campaigns, he should have run in the Democratic
primaries, shaping the party from within. Jackson recognizes what Nader
willfully ignores: We have had party realignment. The white "Dixiecrats"
of the South are now all in the Republican Party, leaving the Southern
Democrats in Congress disproportionately black.
But it is not just African Americans who need the Democratic Party to
fight for their interests. It is also true of Latinos and new immigrants
who have found the Democrats to be their main ally in campaigns for
amnesty and in waging legal battles against anti-immigrant legislation,
such as California's Proposition 187.
Women of all races and classes also vote disproportionately for the
Democratic Party because it's committed both to a women's control over
her own body and to a level playing field in the job market. Perhaps the
most significant group making its home in the Democratic Party is
organized labor, which under the inspired leadership of the AFL-CIO's
John Sweeney has finally reemerged to take on Nader's nemesis: the titans
of the corporate world. Gore won the popular vote and the key
battleground states in the North largely because of the grassroots
organizing of labor.
By sticking with the Democratic Party, most of the people Nader has
devoted his life to helping proved smarter than he was in the crunch.
They dared not risk losing hard-fought gains to follow Nader into the
quicksand of a third party. It is time for Nader to stop playing the Pied
Piper and come home.
Bernie Sanders is right. Ralph Nader is "one of the heroes of contemporary American society." How sad, therefore, that he is helping to undo so much of his life's work in a misguided fit of political pique and ideological purity. The Nation's election editorial is wrong in its recommendation of "strategic voting" in this election. Ralph Nader's campaign does not deserve a single progressive vote on November 7. Not one.
To listen to the Naderites--many of whom I admire--you might believe they were constructing a diverse, representative progressive movement with the possibility of one day replacing the Democrats. How odd it is to note, therefore, that this nascent leftist movement has virtually no support among African-Americans, Latinos or Asian-Americans. It has no support among organized feminist groups, organized gay rights groups or mainstream environmental groups. To top it all off, it has no support in the national union movement. So Nader and company are building a nonblack, non-Latino, non-Asian, nonfeminist, nonenvironmentalist, nongay, non-working people's left: Now that really would be quite an achievement.
Although Nader has said that he would not consciously work to elect Bush over Gore, "he is not keeping his pledges," according to his onetime comrades in Nader's Raiders for Gore. Nader has been campaigning aggressively in Florida, Minnesota, Michigan, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin. If Gore loses even a few of those states, then Hello, President Bush. And if Bush does win, then Goodbye to so much of what Nader and his followers profess to cherish. Goodbye, for instance, to affirmative action, abortion rights, gun control, campaign finance reform, minimum-wage raises, environmental protection, consumer protection, class-action lawsuits, worker-safety legislation and just about everything else the government can do to help the neediest and most vulnerable among us.
These are not the scare tactics of the "frightened liberals" that Nader and his fellow political puritans hold in such profound contempt. This is the truth. Nader supporters argue that his candidacy is likely to help elect a Democratic Congress. Oh really? In the first place, careful studies have never been able to identify the so-called silent progressive majority--the Nader voters who otherwise wouldn't make it to the polls but who once there would vote for lower-level Democrats--upon which this strategy rests. And wait a minute: I thought the Democrats weren't worth saving, anyway. The far more likely outcome of Nader's Pied Piper run is the election of a dimwitted right-wing President with Trent Lott, Jesse Helms, Tom DeLay and Dick Armey inaugurating an era of conservative reaction the likes of which Newt Gingrich could scarcely have imagined.
And for what? A party that polls single digits in national elections? Who needs it? While it has been salutary to see Nader speak some occasional truth to power on television, given the winner-take-all structure of national and local elections the US political system has no role for third parties other than that of a spoiler. Excluding the lunatic Reform Party, only one third party in the twentieth century, the Socialists, ran in more than two consecutive presidential campaigns. The Socialists are also alone in having won more votes in a second election than in their first. Yet as the democratic socialist founder of In These Times, James Weinstein, points out, "Even at the height of their influence they had no potential of becoming a major presence in Congress, much less of electing a president."
Nader's candidacy, moreover, manifests some of the least attractive aspects of the sectarian left. It demonstrates the old faux-revolutionary tendency to focus fire on one's natural allies on the center-left rather than one's genuine enemies on the right. Some Naderites have also displayed a streak of leftist McCarthyism in their attacks on those progressives who question their strategy of abandoning the Democratic Party to the corporations. And Nader has demonstrated extreme carelessness with his words in this campaign, calling the choice between Gore and Bush a choice between Tweedledee and Tweedledum. Given the obvious differences between the two parties (see "Bush or Gore: Does It Matter?" October 16), this posturing comes at considerable cost to the man's once unquestionable reputation for intellectual honesty and political integrity.
You don't have to like or admire Al Gore to vote for him. I sure don't. But elections are not therapy. Nor, as philosopher John Dewey reminds us, are they useful occasions for movement-building. If you have to start building your movement by the time Election Day comes around, it's already too late. Given the weakness of the left in America today, our elections are by definition a choice of the lesser evil. The mistake Naderites make is in their refusal to distinguish between those evils.
There is the Clinton/Gore evil where, yes, corporate power runs rampant and inequality is increasing, but minorities, gays, women and low-wage workers have made more economic (and in some cases, social) progress than at any time in nearly four decades. Then there is the Bush/Lott/DeLay evil where these same people will be pushed back to their traditional places, as the Republican Party revives its war against Social Security, progressive taxation, public education and the few remaining sources of democratic solidarity in America.
Had Nader taken a page from the Christian Coalition and challenged Gore and the party leadership in the primary process, he might have forced its center of gravity leftward in response to the organized populist anger we saw on display in Seattle last year. Indeed, I would have been happy to vote for him. A steady, patient challenge to the party's corporate domination at the grassroots and presidential level is just what both the party and its progressives need to build the kind of machine that can win tangible victories down the road. Instead, Nader has chosen to ape Pat Buchanan, leading his followers on a costly and quixotic march to nowhere. Too bad the poor and the powerless will be--as usual--the ones to pay.
In Chicago, in mid-October, I did a radio show with the Bill Buckley-ish Milt Rosenberg of WGN, a big station. Rosenberg said that because of the fairness doctrine our discussion of Al Gore: A User's Manual, written by Jeffrey St. Clair and myself, could not be broadcast until after the election. So we spent an hour bathing ourselves alternately in the dawn light of the impending Bush and Gore administrations.
It's Bush in the White House! And yes, he's there in part because of the Nader vote. The big liberal public-interest organizations, green groups, NOW, begin to roll out their mass mailings, delightedly fundraising against a backdrop of predicted catastrophe: the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge pincushioned with test drillings, polar bear cubs licking at the gobs of crude oil on their fur. With any luck Bush will nominate some James Watt look-alike for the Interior Department. Watt got nothing done, but he sure scared up a lot of money for green groups.
Ralph Nader holds an unapologetic postelection superrally. It's packed to the rooftop with exultant young people, who will carry the memory of the Nader/Green drive of 2000 as their transformative political moment. He reminds the Democrats of why they lost. They offered no appealing reasons for enough progressives to vote for them. He points out that throughout American history there have been moments of renewal, of creative destruction and then refreshment of the political process. Nader sketches out the line of march for the next four years.
It's Gore by a nose! Enough progressives who had been tilting toward Nader and the Greens were scared back into the fold those last weeks. Four more years of you-know-what.
"A vote for Nader is a vote for Bush." How quickly the Gore liberals adopted a totalitarian mindset, sounding like Soviet commissars back in the old days, who would urge the voters toward a 98 percent turnout for the Communist candidate, arguing that any deviation from absolute loyalty would "objectively" play into the hands of the imperialists.
A vote for Nader was first and foremost a vote for Nader. And since the programs of the Democratic and Republican candidates are pretty much the same on issues ranging from corporate welfare to Wall Street to the war on drugs to crime to military spending and the war in Colombia, a vote for Gore was actually a vote for Bush, and a vote for Bush a vote for Gore. You're getting them both.
Those waning days of the campaign there was a desperation to the alarums of the Gore people about Nader. For one thing, they knew that the Nader superrallies in New York, across the upper Midwest and in the Northwest had a hugely energizing effect on young people. Nothing like it since Jesse Jackson's populist bid for the nomination back in 1988. Back at that time Jackson folded in behind the Democratic ticket and rolled up his Rainbow, leaving hundreds of thousands of supporters with nowhere to go and nothing to do. It was one of the most despicable acts of self-interested betrayal of people's hopes in living memory. If Jackson had led the Rainbow out of the Democratic Party back then, it would have been a far better base for a third party than what the Greens have to offer.
The enthusiasms of these young activists weren't about to be quelled by lectures from Gloria Steinem or Barney Frank or Jesse Jackson Jr. about the need to take the mature view and root for Gore/Lieberman. For one thing, they watched the debates. Did they take from those labored encounters any nourishment from Gore on issues that they have an appetite for, like trade or sweatshop labor or the drug war or the growing divide between rich and poor?
Gore liberals such as Steinem, Patricia Ireland of NOW and Carl Pope of the Sierra Club have been trading in false currency for so long that they don't realize that as shills for the Democratic Party their credit was used up long, long ago.
Listen to Ellen Johnson, an organizer for the Arizona Greens, who teaches at Arizona State in Tempe. "Since the onset of the Clinton presidency NOW's once-stalwart support of many women's rights issues has eroded. While reproductive rights are important, so is quality childcare, a living wage, healthcare and eradication of environmental toxins. Although Clinton/Gore promised to address these issues in '92 and '96, no acceptable plans for improvement have been implemented. Why is NOW so willing to give Gore another chance? Oh yeah, I forgot, for abortion rights. What is Roe v. Wade worth to you, NOW? If it's the wholesale sellout of a constituency you once pledged to serve, then you are on the right track."
What the fall campaign did most of all was to show up the bankruptcy of people like Ireland and Pope--the people who soft-shoed for Clinton and Gore for eight years. The sort of people, come right down to it, who are now trying to fire Pacifica's Amy Goodman. Yes, Mary Frances Berry, consultant to the Pacifica board, was a prominent presence at an October 24 gig organized by People for the American Way, presided over by Bill Clinton, and designed to scare progressives back to Gore.
Of course they want to fire Amy Goodman! She puts on the best show on public radio, doesn't she? The liberals who run Pacifica would much rather have manageable mediocrity than Democracy Now! There's nothing so irksome as success not achieved on their terms, under their rules and their rubrics. Amy has edge. She doesn't take "guidance." She's a loose cannon. She brought Ralph Nader onto the floor of the Republican convention in Philadelphia. She's not Tweety Bird or Terry Gross. So she has to go!
How is the Pacifica directorate trying to dump the most popular voice on the network? Easy. Choke the woman with bureaucracy. Demand that she file broadcasting flight plans a week ahead. Insist that she get prior approval for all her speaking gigs. Put it about that Pacifica needs "new voices," a bigger share of the yuppo audience. Murmur not so softly that Amy is old hat, is not really and truly part of the big Pacifica Picture.
It's a control thing. There's nothing on this earth liberals hate more than radicals straying outside the reservation. Let's stray. Onward!
What a deal! Elect George W. Bush President and you get government
lite--eat all you want without gaining a pound. Bush promises to cut
taxes for all, dramatically increase military spending, finance a
trillion-dollar private Social Security system and eliminate the national
debt. And Bush claims he will put you, not some Washington bureaucrat, in
charge of your life (unless, of course, it concerns your right to
Just to state the main themes of Bush's campaign is to demonstrate
their inherent absurdity. But there's method to the madness. Make no
mistake: A Bush presidency, abetted by a Republican sweep of Congress and
increasing right-wing control of the courts, portends frightening
consequences for our lives.
Anyone who's been awake these past eight years should know that it's
the Republicans, dominated by their right wing, who tried to block every
measure to make government more responsive to the health, environmental
and educational interests of ordinary Americans. At the same time, these
false prophets of smaller government were pawns of the Christian right's
crusade to intrude the federal government into our most personal
decisions, beginning with a woman's control of her body. At no point has
Bush disowned that Republican agenda.
So why are so many otherwise reasonable people planning to vote for a
candidate selling them this ludicrous bill of goods? It's because the guy
comes on as a moderate with a disarming smile that could make him the
impish star of a sitcom. Just when you realize he's conning you and the
bleary face of Newt Gingrich hyping his "contract with America" starts to
come into focus, reminding us that we've been through this destructive
drill, Bush turns on the all-inclusive charm.
The great deceit of the Bush campaign, beginning with the GOP
convention last summer, has been to get voters to forget that it's been
the Republican Congress that has threatened America with gridlock and
political chaos unless we bend federal government to its skewed
agenda--an agenda that Bush has assured the right wing he endorses. The
religious right has gone along with the charade, muting its criticisms
while Bush plays to the center. Let him fake the moderate for now, they
say, knowing that is what it takes to win. For example, Pat Robertson
told reporters that he refrained from criticizing the Federal Drug
Administration's approval of the abortion pill RU-486 for fear of costing
Bush the election. Bush also avoided the issue. The payoff for the
right's reserve in the campaign, as Bush has made amply clear, is that he
will deliver to them on the judiciary. If the Republicans maintain
control of the Senate, which now seems highly likely, a Bush victory
would guarantee judicial appointees from the Supreme Court on down who
are drawn from Jesse Helms's wish list.
For all of his talk of bipartisanship, Bush, in citing Antonin Scalia
and Clarence Thomas as his ideal models for future Supreme Court picks,
has promised to mold what should be the most independent branch of
government in the ideological image of the far right. Indeed, the
oft-repeated promise of the Bush campaign to the religious right is that
Bush would never repeat the "disaster" that his father made in appointing
moderate David Souter to the court.
With the court divided by one vote on most environmental and consumer
regulatory matters as well as affirmative action, with only two votes
needed to overturn Roe v. Wade and with at least three or four of its
members likely to leave the court, the next President will have enormous
power through his judicial appointments to shape the future of our
government as we know it.
The "strict constructionists" Bush prefers are people who believe the
federal government should be crippled as a regulator of big business, as
an advocate for racial and economic justice and as a protector of the
environment. On the other hand, they would weaken constitutional
protection of individual rights and blur the separation of church and
The Republican right wing is concerned about personal freedom only
when it comes to indulging the National Rifle Association or corporate greed by
savaging government regulation. But in matters of individual freedom, be
it reproductive rights, protection from job discrimination or hate crimes
because of sexual orientation or racism, the Republican leadership,
including George W. Bush, is eager to intrude a narrow religious and
ideological bias into the most important decisions of our lives.
That's why this election is of crucial importance. What we're facing
is the possibility of right-wing control of the presidency, Congress and
the courts. And with that will go the saving grace of our system of
checks and balances.
It won't be a revolution, but progressives see support for much of their agenda.
"When the ax came into the woods, the trees all said, 'Well, at least the handle is one of us.'" There is more intellectual content in this old Turkish folk warning than in the entire output of the "lesser evil" school. Here comes Albert Gore Jr., striding purposefully toward us with a big chopper resting easily on his shoulder.
Multiracial and populist, New York's Working Families Party gains ground.
Take this as a national parable. Once upon a time--in the early eighties, actually--there was a progressive coalition in Vermont designed to become a third force in politics. One of its prime spokesmen was Bernie Sanders, who became mayor of Vermont's largest city, Burlington. Sanders duly became a leading proponent of the idea that America needed a third party of the left.
In 1988 the coalition backed Sanders for Vermont's single seat in Congress. Then as now, orthodox Democratic liberals accused the radical progressives of being wreckers. The radicals said that yes, some creative destruction was necessary. A Sanders candidacy might put Republican Peter Smith into Congress over liberal-populist Democrat Paul Poirier, but that wasn't the concern of an independent force. Just as he's now bashing Ralph Nader, Barney Frank bashed Sanders' candidacy as bad for gays (whose legislated well-being Frank regularly conflates with the fortunes of the Democratic Party) and liberals. And so it came to pass. Sanders swept up Poirier's liberal base and denied Democrats the victory they would otherwise have obtained. Smith won with less than 50 percent.
The progressive coalition had a long-term strategy. It knew Sanders would not win on that first outing. The essential victory was to persuade progressives to vote, finally, for their beliefs, to stop deluding themselves that the Democratic Party would fulfill even a sliver of their expectations. Two years later, Sanders again made a bid, this time against the incumbent Republican. The Democrats effectively quit the field. Sanders swept to victory.
Creative destruction worked. The progressive coalition matured and expanded. It replaced Sanders with Peter Clavelle as mayor of Burlington and took numerous seats throughout the state. Last year it formally constituted itself as the Progressive Party of Vermont and put up Anthony Pollina, a leftist with years of grassroots activism in the state, as its gubernatorial candidate for November 2000.
Once again, the state echoes with the anguished bellows of liberals that Pollina's candidacy will install Republican Ruth Dwyer and take Vermont back to medieval darkness. The Progressive Party has refused to stand down. Incumbent Governor Howard Dean is a DLC-type Democrat who never met a corporation he didn't like or a mountaintop he wasn't willing to sell to a ski-resort developer. Pollina, who had led Vermont's successful fight for public financing of statewide elections, became the first to benefit from it. As required by law, he raised $35,000 (from donations averaging $22), then qualified for $265,000 in public money, the only funds he can spend. Pollina was on an equal money footing with Dean. But not for long. A court threw out the law's spending limit, and immediately Dean inoperated years of pious blather about campaign finance reform. Five days after lauding such reform at the Democratic convention, he rejected public financing and put himself back on the block for corporate contributions and soft money from the Democratic Party.
Pollina and the Progressives have taken the Democrats' scare strategy straight on. They say, Vote Your Hopes, Not Your Fears. The campaign is rich with proposals on healthcare, environmental protection, a living wage, stability for small farmers and small businesses. Pollina has plenty of ammunition against Dean, who has been running Vermont longer than Clinton/Gore have been in the White House. It's the pathetic national story. In Vermont, 95 percent of men under 22 in prison do not have high school equivalency. In the past ten years prison spending has increased by 135 percent, while spending on state colleges has increased by 7 percent. One of every seven Vermont men between 18 and 21 is under the supervision of the Corrections Department.
And Pollina doesn't shrink from reminding voters that at the very moment in the early nineties when Vermont was poised to become the first state to have universal healthcare, Governor Dean, a physician by trade, killed off all such hopes, as he did a bill this year that would have established prescription-drug price controls.
Democrats of the stripe of Dean and Gore know how to talk the talk. They don't move a finger to expand human freedoms or opportunities, then boast that they alone are the bulwark against right-wing attacks on such freedoms and opportunities. After undermining choice and gay rights for much of his Congressional career, Gore now tells women and gays that he is the prime defender of choice and gay rights. At a gay event in Los Angeles, Dean claimed the hero's mantle for signing Vermont's civil union law giving gay couples the same state benefits as married couples. But he was never out front on this issue, moved only under direct order of the courts and then, in an act of consummate cowardice, nervously scribbled his signature to the law secluded from press or camera. So what does our Vermont parable add up to? Independent in name only, Sanders sold out to the Democratic machine long ago. He's no longer part of a movement. He's not a member of the Progressive Party and has not endorsed Pollina. In his re-election race for November, he's outflanked on both politics and gender, facing a Democrat to his left (Peter Diamondstone) and a transsexual moderate Republican (Karen Kerin). But the big story is not Sanders' dismal trajectory; it is that third-party politics in Vermont has moved out of his sad shadow and is changing the face of the state. The Progressives have also endorsed Nader.
"This race, a lot like Nader's nationally, has posed the question: If we want good people to run, and they get on the ballot, what do we want to do with that? Do we wish to use their campaigns to build up a progressive movement, or do we once again want to squander our power on business as usual?" Thus Ellen David Friedman, a long-term Progressive organizer in Vermont. "People under 30 don't give a damn about the spoiler stuff. Most of Pollina's campaign workers are under 25. They want to be able to work for what they believe in. Demographically, these are the people who will be making the difference, organizing progressive campaigns in the years to come."
THE NOVEMBER 7 ELECTION is not merely about ending six years of GOP dominance but also about assuring that the next Congress is pulled in a more enlightened direction. Starting early this year, The Nation began tracking races around the country, keeping an eye on contests where progressive incumbents are battling to keep their seats and identifying the next generation of leaders on economic and social justice issues. The Nation adopted author and activist Michael Harrington's "left wing of the possible" standard--looking for candidates who combine a chance of winning with a commitment to use the victory to fight for real change. None of the contenders profiled in this year's "Nation Dozen" list--which represents only a fraction of the progressive candidates running as Democrats, Greens or independents--are assured victory; indeed, several had to overcome daunting odds just to earn a place on the November ballot. But they have put themselves in contention with strong support from groups like the AFL-CIO, NARAL, the Sierra Club, the League of Conservation Voters, Peace Action PAC, the Human Rights Campaign Fund and the National Committee for an Effective Congress. A decade ago, Minnesota professor Paul Wellstone beat an entrenched Republican US senator and went on to serve as a mentor to other progressives, including several of this year's Nation Dozen. Says Wellstone: "Progressives have got to get serious about these Congressional races around the country. We need to recognize that it matters a great deal when we elect members who understand human rights and economic justice issues; that those members will have the power to raise issues, to shift the direction of the Democratic Party and to build coalitions that can actually prevail." With that thought in mind, here is the "Nation Dozen." With support from Nation readers and other progressives, they have the potential not only to win but to change the way Washington does business.
ED FLANAGAN, Vermont, US Senate
When Ed Flanagan won the Democratic nomination for the seat held by Republican Jim Jeffords, the incumbent warned that Flanagan's progressive populist style would not go over well in the tradition-bound Senate. "He makes a lot of noise, shakes things up, and that's the last thing we need down in Washington," said Jeffords, who is best known for singing in a barbershop quartet with Trent Lott. Jeffords is right about Flanagan; he would shake things up. A former intern to liberal Republican Senator George Aiken and a four-term state auditor, Flanagan condemns "the military-industrial complex that does not have America's defense interests in mind, but is simply out to make the big bucks," and he asks how the Senate can justify a failure to implement living-wage legislation "in the context of an economy that is so rich but has concentrated so much wealth with so few people and so few huge multinational corporations." The odds against Flanagan are long, in part because he is an openly gay man running in a state where conservatives are stirring a backlash against Vermont's just-implemented civil union law. But he is betting that the state that sends Bernie Sanders to the House is, indeed, prepared to shake up the Senate (www.flanagan2000.org).
NANCY KEENAN, Montana, House, At-Large
To understand where Nancy Keenan is coming from, you need to know the story of the Smelterman's Day Picnic that used to be held every August 8 in Anaconda, Montana. Keenan, the daughter of a boilermaker, would line up with the other kids at the picnic to receive a silver dollar from the copper-smelting company that gave the town its name. "As you stepped forward, the management representative would look you straight in the eye and press that shiny silver dollar firmly in your hand. The message couldn't have been clearer: You knew who owned you," Keenan recalled in a speech to the state AFL-CIO. "But the company was wrong. They might have owned our sweat, they might have owned our labor, but because we were members of a union family, they could not own our souls." Keenan, who is seeking to be a voice for hard-pressed factory and farm families in a state where annual incomes are among the lowest in the nation, got into politics to battle for corporate responsibility: After Atlantic Richfield shuttered the Anaconda smelter in 1980, she was elected to the legislature and helped pass a plant-closing notification law. Now, the three-term state superintendent of public instruction is running for Congress against a right-wing opponent on a platform that includes pledges to fight for labor-law reform, vigorous enforcement of antitrust laws against agribusiness monopolies and guarantees that farmers and workers "are not sacrificed at the altar of international trade relations." She says politics beats her old job--shoveling ore and wrangling buckets of boiling copper. "You wore an asbestos suit and counted on your workmate to beat out the flames when you occasionally caught on fire," recalls Keenan, who promises to fight to toughen workplace safety regulations (www.nancykeenan.com).
BRIAN SCHWEITZER, Montana, US Senate
Long before Al Gore and the Democratic National Committee read polls that told them prescription drug prices were a potent political issue, Brian Schweitzer, a peppermint farmer with no political experience, began loading senior citizens onto buses and driving them over the border to buy cheap drugs in Canada. The first-time candidate's political instincts proved so good, and so threatening to troglodyte conservative incumbent Conrad Burns, that a faked-up "citizens' group" funded by drug manufacturers began blanketing the state with anti-Schweitzer commercials. Schweitzer took the attacks as a badge of honor, while the Billings Gazette joked that anti-Schweitzer forces would have a hard time convincing Montana voters to fear him as a candidate "coming to strip us of our God-given right to be shafted by the pharmaceutical industry." After Burns voted against a proposal to place a moratorium on agribusiness mergers that harm Montana farmers, Schweitzer detailed Burns's $198,608 in contributions from agribusiness lobbyists. When he is not banging away at corporations, Schweitzer works to heal rifts between unions and environmentalists that Burns and other Western conservatives have fanned in order to divide progressive voters in states with depressed economies and threatened natural areas. "The debate over the past ten years has been jobs versus the environment," says Schweitzer. "The results are in, and it's clear that we're losing both" (www.brianschweitzer.com).
LANE EVANS, Illinois, District 17
Congress has no truer heir to the prairie populist tradition of the Midwest Progressive, Farmer-Labor and Non-Partisan League movements than Illinois's Lane Evans. In nine terms as the representative from a farm-and-factory district that hugs the Mississippi River, Evans has been one of the few members who consistently earn top ratings from the AFL-CIO and progressive groups. In a district where Republicans remain a powerful political force and where business groups pump thousands of dollars into the campaigns of his Republican challengers, Evans talks tough about corporate crime, wages lonely battles on behalf of family farmers and helps lead the fight against Wall Street's free-trade agenda. This year the GOP has made Evans a top target. The Congressman is suffering from Parkinson's disease, and while he is fully capable of performing his Congressional duties--which would include chairing the powerful Veterans' Affairs Committee if Democrats retake the House--his weakened condition has been the target of whispering campaigns and none-too-subtle jabs from Republican backers of his opponent, a former TV anchorman (www.laneevans.com, www.house.gov.evans).
ELEANOR JORDAN, Kentucky, District 3
With Eleanor Jordan in Congress, the House of Representatives would be a lot more representative. An African-American woman old enough to remember segregation days in the border state of Kentucky, a onetime teenage single parent who understands the challenge of meeting childcare and health bills, a neighborhood activist who got mad enough about legislative neglect to run for and win a seat in the General Assembly, she has lived the issues that most members of Congress only debate. Jordan, who directed a childcare center before her election, has emerged as one of the Kentucky House's most effective advocates for programs that aid children and working moms--winning a high-profile battle to prevent the gutting of the Kentucky childcare policy council. Now, Jordan is challenging incumbent Anne Northup, a conservative Republican who came to the House as a Newt Gingrich protégée and who has established one of the most reliably reactionary records in Congress. Jordan proudly identifies herself as an "outspoken advocate for women, working families, minorities, the poor and children." She says she's not proud of all the earlier choices she made in her life. "But they were choices I had to live with, and people get the benefit of your experience only if you tell them" (www.jordanforcongress.com).
BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota, District 4
Even before she won the Democratic Farmer Labor Party nod in a hard-fought, four-way primary to fill an open St. Paul-area seat, Betty McCollum had lined up support from the Sierra Club, the League of Conservation Voters and other green groups that usually withhold endorsements until after nominations are settled. It wasn't that her foes were so bad but rather that McCollum was so good. She was a leader in the fight to secure funding for one of the first urban wetlands restoration projects in the country. And as a member of the Environmental Policy and Environmental Finance committees of the Minnesota House, she earned a national reputation for developing and advancing innovative legislation to combat air and water pollution, destruction of natural habitats, urban sprawl and environmental racism. McCollum, who continued to work as a clerk at a St. Paul department store during her years as a legislator, is outspoken in her support of living-wage initiatives, organizing rights for unions and protections for working women. Normally, her labor, feminist and environmentalist backing would be enough to secure victory in this liberal district. But McCollum faces a tough race against a former Democratic prosecutor running as the candidate of Governor Jesse Ventura's Independence Party and a well-funded conservative Republican state senator (www.mccollumforcongress.org).
MARYANNE CONNELLY, New Jersey, District 7
Abortion is supposed to be too "dangerous" an issue for candidates in close Congressional races to touch--especially Democratic candidates seeking to grab suburban seats previously held by conservative Republicans. But Maryanne Connelly is breaking the political rules, putting her support for abortion rights front and center in her campaign to win the New Jersey seat being vacated by Republican Senate candidate Bob Franks. "I believe every woman should have the right to choose.... It's no place for the government to be involved," says Connelly. Her tough talk did not endear her to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which endorsed her primary opponent, a more pliant pol backed by powerful political machines in the region. But Connelly's emphasis on women's rights, gun control and campaign finance reform gave her the edge in the primary. In her general-election campaign against a conservative Republican, Connelly continues to eschew compromise. A former police commissioner in her hometown of Fanwood, she is fiercely critical of the NRA, promising to fight to require that all handgun owners--"just like all automobile owners"--must register their guns, have a photo license and pass a safety test (www.connellyforcongress.com).
GERRIE SCHIPSKE, California, District 38
Gerrie Schipske wasn't supposed to be the Democratic nominee against moderate Republican incumbent Steve Horn for a Long Beach-area House seat. Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee insiders had groomed a young, not particularly political teacher--whose chief qualification appeared to be the fact that she had been featured on national television programs as an innovative educator--for the race to reclaim the historically Democratic seat. But Schipske, a nurse practioner, lawyer and healthcare policy consultant to the Service Employees International Union, won a primary upset with backing from labor and the district's large gay and lesbian community. Allies including Congressman Barney Frank have worked with labor and the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund to keep Schipske, who is openly lesbian, even with Horn in fundraising. She is in an uphill fight, but, says Frank, "She's serious, she's progressive, she's got a chance to be elected, and if she wins she will immediately be a leader in Congress on healthcare issues" (www.schipske4congress.org).
SUSAN BASS LEVIN, New Jersey, District 3
Susan Bass Levin, a first-time Congressional candidate who has served four terms as mayor of Cherry Hill, doesn't try to be all things to all voters. When the House voted to cut $32 million from the Clinton Administration's civil rights enforcement budget, she angrily condemned the move as an affront not just to minorities but to women, noting that "working families already lose more than $4,000 a year on average because women do not receive equal pay." The founder of a statewide fundraising network to elect pro-choice Democratic women, Levin has thrown a scare into GOP incumbent Jim Saxton. A relative moderate, Saxton for years cultivated links with labor--so much so that after he voted with labor against granting China permanent normal trade status, the state AFL-CIO executive board recommended that unions remain neutral in the Saxton-Levin race. Not a fan of neutrality, Levin sought a roll-call of unions. She won the endorsement by a 4-to-1 ratio, capitalizing on her years of work with local unions to promote pay equity, minimum-wage increases and expansion of worker health and safety programs. "I'm an activist," says Levin. "That's why I signed on to being an elected official" (www.levinforcongress.org).
MIKE KELLEHER, Illinois, District 15
If first-time candidate Mike Kelleher wins an upset victory in his race for an open Congressional seat, it will be on the strength of a paper clip. His better-known and better-funded opponent, Tim Johnson, is a veteran GOP legislator who should be coasting to victory in a rural district with a long history of sending conservative Republicans to Congress. But Johnson got caught using a paper clip to hold in place the button that recorded his legislative votes, making it possible to appear to be present when he was absent. Kelleher, an Illinois State University professor originally regarded as a sacrificial lamb, has juxtaposed Johnson's slacker service against the work ethic of the farmers, factory hands and smalltown shopkeepers who form the core of the district's electorate. Kelleher is airing commercials that feature a construction worker trying to paper-clip shut his lunchbox, and he's launched a www/timspaperclip.com website. He backs up his populist appeal with attacks on HMOs, drug companies and paper-clip pushing Republicans (www.kelleher2000.com).
DAVID WU, Oregon, District 1
Few members of Congress were better positioned to stamp their return ticket to the House with a single vote than David Wu. The first-term Democrat from Oregon represents an international-trade-reliant West Coast district where the politically powerful business community was chomping at the bit to capitalize on "free trade" with China. But Wu, the first person of full Chinese ancestry ever elected to Congress, chose his commitment to international human rights over the easy route to re-election; he voted against the permanent normal trade relations bill, which brought to an end annual Congressional review of China's human rights record. Wu was one of only a handful of West Coast Democrats to do so. Retribution was swift. High-tech corporations in his Portland-area district--a region known as the Silicon Forest--began pouring money into the campaign of Wu's challenger, right-wing Republican State Senator Charles Starr. Wu is standing firm, telling reporters, "If the voters of Oregon decide to send me home for [the PNTR vote], I'll have to live with that. But I'd rather turn my back on the office than turn my back on my principles" (www.wuforcongress.com, http://www.house.gov/wu).
MARYELLEN O'SHAUGHNESSY, Ohio, District 12
In a Columbus district where a quarter of the population is African-American, City Councilor Maryellen O'Shaughnessy is working to build a multiracial coalition by positioning herself as a contender who won't lose sight of the need to strengthen the federal commitment to education, healthcare and senior programs. "I know how hard it is to make ends meet," says O'Shaughnessy, who put herself through college working night jobs and in recent years struggled to care for her ill mother. Running in a GOP-leaning district against a state representative who has received maximum backing from retiring conservative icon John Kasich and national Republicans, O'Shaughnessy has driven her opponent to distraction by expressing a mother's horror at his legislative votes against programs designed to protect low-income children from lead poisoning. "This woman deserves to win," says Representative John Conyers, who campaigned in Columbus for O'Shaughnessy. And, he adds, "I'm convinced that if she wins, Democrats retake the House" (www.meos2000.org).


text:
Outlander 6x6
Outlander & Outlander MAX 2013-2015 (except with 400 engine)
Outlander 2012 with 800R or 1000 engine
Renegade 2013-2015
Renegade 2012 with 800R or 1000 engine
- Maximizes performance by increasing air flow throughout RPM range.
- Maintenance-friendly, i.e. just wash, re-oil and re-use after riding in severely dusty/muddy environments.

subset: commoncrawl


text: Boone you could offer the people some serious discussions. instead of waiting hrs at a time to hear from someone. I mean you hardly find any good chatrooms for MMA. This could be a break through for all MMA followers.. Come on matt how hard could it be to put a chat room with Registered names so no one can steal you identity. Im sure it would be a hit and if not its just something else to offer... any one that agrees POST in THIS FORUM


text:
Motorcycle Safety Foundation plans massive campaign
January 18, 2006
Filed under Uncategorized
IRVINE, Calif. – The Motorcycle Safety FoundationSM and RADD (Recording Artists, Actors & Athletes Against Drunk Driving) are partnering on a massive public awareness campaign to curb drunk driving and riding in California.
The "Figure it Outtm" campaign offers designated driver rewards and is being promoted throughout January with a promotional effort that includes a $200,000 radio ad buy, 40,000 point-of-sale standees, 60,000 posters and 7,000 window clings. With one of the campaign's RADD Designated Driver's Licenses, participants can receive free non-alcoholic drinks, discounts on food and other items at more than 3,000 restaurants, bars and clubs. And a mail-in contest will reward one lucky contestant with a $2,500 travel voucher. Materials, some of which are in Spanish, have been shipped to more than 350 motorcycle dealerships throughout California.
Actor Catherine Bell, who is an avid motorcycle enthusiast, is among several celebrities lending their images to the campaign.
"To increase rider safety, we need to keep warning against drunk driving, and motorcycling fatalities and injuries would dramatically drop if people didn't drink and ride," said Dean Thompson, director, communications for the MSF. "Car drivers have more options than riders, including a designated driver or leaving the car and taking a cab. Since a motorcyclist can't have a designated driver, a rider needs to decide between riding or drinking. The two just don't mix."
Besides finding them at participating retailers, the RADD Designated Driver's Licenses can be downloaded from www.radd.org


text:
Napa Valley
Made in California
From the northern coast of Napa to the canyon hillsides of Temecula, California wine holds an international repertoire and panache for the distinctive fruit flavors of its varietals. With more than 2,800 wineries registered in the state and owning 107 of the 188 American Viticulture Areas (AVA) in the U.S., California wine accounts for 90 percent of all U.S. wine exports – an industry that is valued at more that $17.5 billion annually.
Traveling California's Wine Country blends the unique combination of everyday living with lush vineyard greens and a casual equestrian landscape – offering year-round destinations that savor the fruits and ambient charm of the region. Join us as we sample some of wine county's finest labels, exploring California's natural viticulture from both the North and South Coast terroirs.
Downtown Napa Revisited
If you haven't visited Napa recently, prepare to be delighted; the city's downtown district is experiencing a renaissance, with a $72 million waterfront revival boasting exquisite new hotels and restaurants, and a new winery district ripe for discovery.
Start your Wine Country adventure by booking a room or suite at the stunning AVIA Napa, located in the heart of downtown Napa and steps from local boutiques, wine bars and restaurants. The hotel, open since July 2009, is designed in a contemporary style with sleek appointments, modern furnishings and soothing hues with occasional bursts of color. Staying at the AVIA Napa is like being a guest of gracious local hosts; each evening the hotel's chef offers "bites and flights," the concierge crafts customized itineraries for guests, and a new wine bar allows you to mingle over coffee in the morning and fine wines in the evening. Web: aviahotels.com/hotels/napa
Exploring Coombsville
Continue your Napa exploration by visiting a small grape growing region on the cusp of discovery, just five minutes up the road from downtown. Gaining notoriety for the truly great wines it is producing, Coombsville is home to some 20 wineries, most of which offer private tastings – often with the winemakers themselves. With a combination of cool air, varied elevations, well-drained and mineral-rich soils, wineries here produce what is rapidly gaining recognition as some of the world's best Cabernet Sauvignon.
Meteor Vineyard is a Coombsville winery not to miss; the soil here, which contains a unique type of small volcanic stones, produces a Cabernet Sauvignon with intense, luscious fruit found in modern Napa wines along with a unique minerality and structural complexity found in traditional Bordeaux styles. Web: meteorvineyard.com
Nearby Caldwell Vineyard is a wine lover's jewel, with winemaking operations located within an excavated cave; it is heralded for well-balanced wines including Syrah, Merlot, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon blends. Also visit Palmaz Vineyards, where winemaking takes place within the living rock of Mount George in a maze of tunnels and lofty domes. Palmaz produces elegant and complex wines including Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling and Chardonnay. Web: palmazvineyards.com; caldwellvineyard.com
Coombsville is pursuing AVA (American Viticulture Area) designation and is doubtless headed into future fame. Tours and tastings are available by appointment only.
Thornton Wineries – The Gateway of Temecula Wine Country
Highlighting the flavor, freshness and individual characteristics of the fruit, Thornton Wineries has for more than 20 years produced premium wines with the intention of creating distinct varietal expressions for each wine with a unique signature note and aroma. Spanning 20 acres of vines, the winery employs the 'Methode Champenoise' process to creating several complex and interesting sparkling wine varietals – emulating the classic wine styles of the Mediterranean and Rhone regions.
According to Winemaker David Vergari, an industry veteran of 20 years, a good white is foremost derived from "good grapes. One of the most critical decisions, is when to pick; it's a window of opportunity when grapes are at their optimum [ripeness], depending upon the [varietal] style. [Essentially], the devil is in the details." Vergari recently joined Thornton, looking to make his mark on the 2010 blends of Chardonnay and Muscat Canelli coming available this year.
A French-styled chateau with herb gardens and an alfresco fountain terrace, Thornton Winery welcomes the sounds of its annual Champagne Jazz Series during summer months, bringing nationally renowned contemporary jazz artists to the Valley. Between the flavors of its vines and winery ambiance, Vergari notes its all about the "beauty of blending, [and] finding synergy." Web: thorntonwine.com
Wines of Note
2009 Viognier
Nose: apricot and spice
Mouthfeel: even finish with peach and crisp fruit flavors
Blend: 100% Viognier, aged for 7 months
2008 Gewurztraminer
Nose: lemon citrus
Mouthfeel: peach and apple
Blend: 100% Gewurztraminer, aged for 7 months
Wilson Creek – Home of the Valley's Famed Almond Champagne
Famed for their Almond Champagne, Wilson Creek Winery and Vineyard is a family legacy in every sense; a united front, three generations of the Wilson family are home to the winery and its operations – even the family's five golden retrievers often roam the property. As the 14th winery in Temecula, currently holding 92 acres (75 of which are fully farmed), Wilson Creek continues to garner a number of national accolades, including gold and silver medals for their most recent 2009 Muscat Canelli, 2008 Late Harvest Zinfandel and 2008 Viognier.
"It's about balance and texture, having a rich full mouthfeel," notes 25 year industry veteran Winemaker Etienne Cowper, when describing a good white wine. "My theory is, treat the fruit gently. If any corrections are necessary, it's to the juice – not the finished wine. You never want to strip it out, or [even] loose its character."
According to Owner Bill Wilson, "we are the unofficial, official wine of the Navy." In 2001, the USS Constellation requested a private label for the ship; Wilson has since provided labels for eight aircraft carries, including the USS Nimitz and USS Roosevelt. Web: wilsoncreekwinery.com
Wines of Note
2010 Estate Viognier, 607 cases
Blend: 90% Viognier, 10% Chardonnay
Color: light straw with a slight green tinge
Nose: aromas of honeysuckle, cherry lifesaver and musk
Mouthfeel: supple and round in the mouth, with flavors of peach, green melon, ripe apple and a hint of tangerine in the finish
Harvested: August 31, 2010
2010 White Cabernet, 2,072 cases
Blend: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Color: pastel white
Nose: bright floral strawberry with a hint of perfume
Mouthfeel: soft and inviting in the mouth with a refreshing, light sweetness and bright berry fruit (strawberry jam) in the finish
Harvested: September 16-18, 2010
Keyways – Temecula's Only Female Owned & Managed Winery
Sharing in the romance of wine country, Terri Delhamer – Keyways' owner for the past five years – is most rewarded by "making sure people enjoy themselves." A former real estate broker and lawyer, Delhamer took the initial listing for the winery's founders, only to have purchased the property as an investment for herself. With 13 acres, the boutique winery extends concerts on the terrace during the summer and a white rose garden amid the vines for weddings. The tasting bar even boasts a Brazilian onyx counter, lit from underneath.
For the past two years, Winemaker David Raffaele has made his mark on Keyways' flavor. A former photojournalist for the Navy, Raffaele spent a lot of time in Europe, soaking in information about the wine making process. And according to Delhamer, "Compared to other winemakers, he is definitely more adventurous, constantly learning new techniques and blends."
"For me, I look for the expression of the varietal," she notes on defining a good white wine. "You smell it, taste it and know. I like crispy whites, [offering] a nice balance between acidity and sugar. It's not overbearing, not too dry and not overly sweet. [I'm really liking] our 2010 Chardonnay, it has a lot of personality with complex layers of flavors and fruit character." Web: keywayswine.com
Wines of Note
2009 Simply Rousanne
Blend: 100% Estate Rousanne, off-dry style
Nose: apricot and honey
Mouthfeel: light sweetness with creamier texture, retaining the rich and delicate flavors of the French grape
Pairings: Asian cuisine and seafood
2009 Estate Reserve Viognier
Blend: 100% Estate Viognier
Nose: peach, apricot and violet
Mouthfeel: full bodied with crisp citrus and soft velvety finish
Pairings: Mahi Mahi filets and mango chutney
2010 Muscat Canelli
Blend: 100% Muscat Canelli
Nose: floral and perfume
Mouthfeel: Red Delicious apple, kiwi, pears and apricots
Pairings: grilled citrus chicken, spicy Asian cuisine or exotic fruits


text:
A Free Syrian Army fighter fires a machine gun at the frontline in the Al-Sakhour neighborhood of Aleppo, June 21, 2013. REUTERS/Muzaffar Salman
AMMAN: A car bomb in Syria's northern city of Aleppo killed 12 government soldiers on Sunday while another powerful blast rattled the capital Damascus, killing at least three people, activists said.
The explosion in the capital went off behind a bakery in the Ruken al-Deen neighborhood, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. It reported 10 wounded and said there was no immediate claim of responsibility. The Syrian news agency SANA confirmed the blast and said there were casualties but did not give a number.
The Syrian army has been on the offensive against rebels in districts outside Damascus that are used as launching pads to attack the capital, President Bashar Assad's seat of power. Troop movements and heavy shelling Saturday appeared to be an attempt to cut links between rebel-held districts there.
Elsewhere, the Observatory said 12 soldiers loyal to Assad were killed in a car explosion in the suburbs of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria's commercial capital.
It provided no other details, but both the government and the opposition have recently declared offensives in Aleppo.
The attacks coincided with a meeting of an 11-nation group that includes the U.S., dubbed the Friends of Syria, in the Qatari capital of Doha to coordinate military aid and other forms of assistance to the rebels.
Late Saturday, the donors agreed to do more to help the embattled rebels, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said. While he offered no specifics, Kerry said the assistance would help change the balance on the battlefield.
Kerry also denounced Assad for inviting Iranian and Hezbollah fighters to fight alongside his troops, saying the Syrian president risked turning the civil war into a regional sectarian conflict.
Syria's al-Thawra newspaper, the mouthpiece of the government, assailed the Friends of Syria meeting for providing aid to the rebels.
"It's clear that the enemies of Syria are rushing to arm the terrorists to kill the chances for holding the Geneva conference," the newspaper said, referring to a gathering planned to bring Assad's government to negotiate an end to the crisis with the fighting rebels.
It pledged that the Syrian army would "continue the showdown to eliminate terrorism and restore security and stability."
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Not a fan of anti-bullying bill
April 12, 2013 To the editor: Please contact your legislators and tell them NOT to support the "Safe and Supportive Minnesota Act," House file 826, and Senate file 783. 1. more »»
Pass tobacco price increase
April 5, 2013 To the editor: As a tobacco control advocate, I'm happy to say that this legislative session has been encouraging: The House heard testimony about bills that would close the "little cigar" loophole... more »»
Charged with assault
April 2, 2013 To the editor: My name is Gerhard Ziemann, an insurance agent and investment representative for the past 20 years since 1992 in southwest Minnesota. more »»
Child care providers need support
April 2, 2013 To the editor: While I appreciated the chance to hear Senator Gary Dahms and Representative Chris Swedzinski speak at Tuesday night's Town Hall Meeting, I feel more information needs to be given to... more »»
Music to their ears
March 30, 2013 To the editor: The Marshall Music Boosters would like to publicly commend Marshall Public Schools for receiving the National Association of Music Merchants' designation of Best Community for Music... more »»
Support anti-bullying legislation
March 30, 2013 To the editor: We thank our state representatives, Senator Gary Dahms and Representative Chris Swedzinski for taking the time to host the recent town hall meeting in Marshall. more »»
Thanks for coverage of state champs
March 26, 2013 To the editor: I want to send my thanks and appreciation to columnist Ellayne Conyers and the Independent sports staff for their fine coverage of the 50th anniversary of the Minnesota State... more »»
School insurance, or lack thereof
March 20, 2013 To the editor: First, I would like to say thank you to the Marshall High School staff and teachers for all they did when my son broke his ankle. They were very accommodating. more »»
Thinking outside the 'heliocentric box'
March 20, 2013 To the editor: Sometimes when writing something controversial, I will get a response from an anonymous online commenter, who will say: "Isn't this the guy who wrote letters a few years ago about the... more »»
Take advantage of good program
March 12, 2013 To the editor: Emma Thompson once said, "Any problem, big or small, within a family always seems to start with bad communication. more »»
Child care providers need to do their research on unions, legislation
March 8, 2013 To the editor: Minnesota Family Child Care Providers are once again fighting against the effort to unionize their small businesses. more »»
Same sex marriage will leave society 'spiritually disoriented'
March 6, 2013 To the editor: This is in response to the Feb. 28 "Planning the next step in marriage equality?"( PFLAG interview. more »»
Social engineering
February 16, 2013 To the editor: I feel I'm entitled to respond to the letter to the editor from Valerie Dallenbach (Marshall Independent, Feb. 7, 2013). In her letter she referred to my earlier letter (Jan. more »»
History teaches us to not disarm
February 14, 2013 To the editor: "Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect everyone who approaches that jewel. Unfortunately, nothing will preserve it but downright force. more »»
Are we still a Christian nation?
February 14, 2013 To the editor: It seems that the truths of the Bible, written in ancient times, used to anchor our country in a moral society, has been downgraded to where they have become almost meaningless. more »»
Keep corporate influence out of Health Insurance Exchange Board
February 7, 2013 To the editor: In the Saturday, Feb. 2, edition of the Marshall Independent newspaper, I was utterly amazed to see the headline "Representative wants exchange group to have more accountability. more »»
Supports price hike on tobacco
February 7, 2013 To the editor: The leadership recently shown by Rep. Ann Lenczewski (Bloomington) is something Minnesotans can be proud o. more »»
Give your love away
February 1, 2013 To the editor: The Christmas season is over. Such a wonderful time of the year! All the merry Christmases, Happy New Year, best wishes to all our friends and even strangers we don't know. more »»
No one will 'take your guns away'
January 30, 2013 To the editor: In Valerie Downing's letter to the editor, she goes to great length comparing the issue of drunk driving to gun violence in this country and then states: "[Drunk-driving] Offenders of... more »»
State pension systems better off after 2010 reforms
January 30, 2013 To the editor: A Ja. more »»
News, Blogs & Events Web


text:
SMOKE from forest fires raging in Mexico this spring mysteriously affected lightning in the central US.
Normally, about 10 per cent of lightning is "positive", when electrons stream up from the Earth to clouds. These strikes are more destructive than negative ones moving the opposite way.
However, figures from the US National Lightning Data Network show that the fraction of positive strikes tripled during smoky periods. Walter Lyons of FMA Research in Fort Collins, Colorado, says the smoke may affect charge development (
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text:
On June 3rd, 2009, Brian Culberston and a small army of well respected musicians in the Smooth Jazz community, descended upon the legendary Capitol Studios in Hollywood to film and record a LIVE career retrospect of well loved tunes from his GRP and other labels'' catalogs.The resulting session is presented in full on a DVD directed by filmmaker Joey Castro and on a CD with 12 of the songs they performed including the brand new song "Go."
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text:
Hardy to Sit Out 2005-06 Basketball Season
Jan. 27, 2006
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana second team all-league and freshman All-American wide receiver James Hardy, who also saw action as a walk-on forward for the IU basketball team last season, will sit out the 2005-06 basketball campaign. After catching 61 passes for 893 yards and 10 touchdowns last fall, the 6-7, 215-pound Hardy is using this winter to rest some football injuries in order to participate in the Hoosiers' spring football drills, which begin on March 21.
Since his arrival in Bloomington in August, 2004, Hardy has been working out non-stop with either the Indiana football or basketball programs, and the wear and tear of constant competition caught up with him.
"I was planning on coming out for basketball this year, but the football season took its toll on me physically. I needed to rest and rehabilitate some injuries," Hardy said. "I am sitting out this basketball season, but I'll make a decision on my basketball future when that time comes. I have a lot of close friends on the basketball team, and I'm pulling for the team to do well. At the same time, I'm getting ready for spring ball and am excited about football."
IU head football coach Terry Hoeppner and IU basketball coach Mike Davis each support Hardy's decision.
"It takes a special athlete to compete at such a high level in both football and basketball," Hoeppner said. "James came here to play both sports, and I admire the way he handles the dual role. Wide receiver is one of the more complex positions on the football field, so to have that much success in his first season speaks volumes about James' talent and potential."
"James came to Indiana to do both sports, so ultimately the decision is his," Davis said. "He had a great football season, and I am really proud of him. He has a bright future ahead, and we want to do whatever is necessary to help him reach his goals."
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Photo gallery: FC Kansas City 1, Portland Thorns 0
FCKC stops Alex Morgan and Thorns in National Women's Soccer League match at Durwood Stadium.
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Mount Wilson Trail Race Fleece Jacket & Vest Pre-Order
Interested in pre-ordering a Mount Wilson Trail Race fleece jacket or vest? Choose your own size, cut, and color. These two items are only available via pre-order and will NOT be sold on race day. Fleece jackets are $45.00, and fleece vests are $35.00. Order forms and payment must be received by Monday, May 6th. No late orders accepted. Acceptable forms of payment are cash or check, make check payable to "City of Sierra Madre".
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Forecasters differ slightly on local economic prospects
Thornberg does, however, caution that California and San Diego face some of the same risks that the nation as a whole faces, such as trade difficulties arising from an overly soft dollar, inflation and rising long-term interest rates.
"The more endogenous problem is what's going to happen to California's state government and its budget," Snaith said.
"I am, myself, pretty optimistic that, directly or indirectly, the governor will get some of the mandates taken care of and drive business-friendly measures through the legislature," he said.
That said, he cautions that the country could see "an uptick in inflation," especially if China's economy becomes overheated.
"The U.S. export market is crucial to China. That's why they've been buying U.S. bonds to fix their currency against the dollar," he said. "I will get more nervous if I see inflation start to take hold in China."
That sounds about right to the regional chamber's Singer, an economist.
"The inflation rate is, indeed, a concern," Singer said.
"I tend to be a little more conservative (than the Anderson folks), so I put the risk of a recession at 10 to15 percent; nevertheless, there is an inflationary risk."
The underlying reason for that risk is that worker productivity is declining nationwide, he said, meaning that the ratio for labor to capital is "evening out." That means income growth will require businesses to hire more workers.
"But hiring creates inflationary pressures," Singer said.
Inflation already is being fueled by rising gasoline, housing and utility prices, he said.
"The San Diego economy is slightly different than the California or the U.S. economy," Singer said. "We're expanding faster than they are, and we have been for about 10 years. Consequently we run a higher inflation rate than the rest of the state, so maybe we can just absorb more inflation when it comes," he said.
"It's not a large concern, but it's a concern," he said.
Contact staff writer Edmond Jacoby at (760) 739-6675 or email@example.com .


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Canada Day is a special day for us but especially for those who have left their home, jobs and family for a better life here. Whether they come for work, study or for permanent settlement in Canada, these immigrants have chosen Canada as their destination of choice.
Often I find immigrants as the most patriotic of Canadians as they know how good they have it here in Canada. And after all, it is immigrants that make Canada what it is today. We are lucky to live here and I am very privileged and honoured to have helped thousands of families come to our shores. I look forward to many more opportunities to help.
Happy Canada Day!


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pedal steel
A musical instrument consisting of one or more electric guitar necks mounted on a rectangular stand, the pitch of the strings being controlled by sliding a steel bar along the fingerboards or by depressing any of several pedals. Also called pedal steel guitar.
pedal steel
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a steel guitar mounted on legs and equipped with pedals that serve as an additional means of changing pitch


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Ralf Rangnick's unbeaten record as coach was maintained as Schalke picked up a 1-1 draw away to Werder Bremen to keep both teams in the Bundesliga mid-table. The hosts went ahead thanks to a goal from Sandro Wagner in the 59th minute, but Edu's header four minutes later earned Die Konigsblauen a point and maintained Rangnick's unbeaten record since taking over as coach last month.
The point is probably too little for the UEFA Champions League semi-finalists to still make it into Europe next season via the Bundesliga since they now trail fifth-placed Mainz by eight points with four games remaining. With a six-point cushion over the bottom three, Bremen should be confident of avoiding relegation.
Petri Pasanen was left bemused by the referee's decision to rule out his headed goal in the 11th minute due to a foul by Per Mertesacker on Schalke goalkeeper Manuel Neuer. Tim Borowski almost had the ball in the back of the net again within three minutes, but Neuer made an excellent save to deny his former Germany team-mate.
Shattered Schalke
Bremen continued to press and look for an opening goal with Schalke, visibly tired - more mentally than physically - from their exertions against Inter Milan in midweek, just building a wall to try and stop them from scoring.
On the counter-attack, they showed how they had demolished the Champions League holders so emphatically with Raul almost putting them ahead in the 25th minute but he headed straight at Tim Wiese.
The home side went ahead on the hour mark when Wagner converted the rebound after his penalty was saved by Neuer. Claudio Pizarro had been fouled by Benedikt Howedes and Wagner was grateful to see the ball fall back out for him after Neuer dived the right way to keep the initial spot-kick out.
Their lead lasted just four minutes, though, before Edu brought Schalke level with a header from Atsuto Uchida's right-wing cross. Raul thought he had given Schalke the lead in the 73rd minute when he tapped in the rebound after Edu's header hit the post, but the Spaniard was in an offside position.
At the other end, Clemens Fritz brought a fine save out of Neuer as the game opened up with both sides looking for a winner. However, neither was able to find a second goal as they were forced to share the spoils at the Weser Stadion.


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To help undergraduate students monitor their academic performance, faculty members will provide a warning to students with unsatisfactory performance at midterm. Each semester, the Registrar will establish and announce the dates for the window within which midterm grades may be posted by faculty members and read by students and advisors. Faculty members will assign a midterm grade of "D" (danger or potential failure) or "F" (failure) by signing into MyIUP through their IUP network account.
The midterm grade is an advisory grade and is not a permanent part of a student's academic history. It is not used to determine enrollment status, dismissal, or eligibility for financial aid, housing, or athletics.
Faculty members may enter midterm "D" and "F" grades for undergraduate students on class rosters in which he/she is the primary instructor the week following the first half of academic semester. Exact dates in which the midterm grades may be entered can be found on the Academic Calendar.
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Sarteep Kader of Middlesex wants to take some of the pain out of holiday travel (GB 2356179). Instead of lugging a heavy suitcase around, you stroll on ahead while it follows obediently behind. The case has wheels driven by a battery-powered motor, and its owner carries a transmitter that sends out coded infrared signals, like a TV remote control. A sensor on the front of the suitcase is designed to maximise the signal from the transmitter, so it tries to stick close to its owner. The transmitter and sensor have matching codes so the suitcase does not follow the wrong person. But of course, the traveller has to remember to pack a battery.
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William George O'Brien
Position: HB
Height: 6-0 Weight: 180 lbs.
Born: August 25, 1924 in Detroit, MI
Died: May 8, 2005 in Eastport, MI
High School: University of Detroit
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Weighted Career AV (100-95-...): 0 (14760th overall since 1950)
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Fortin, J-F. and Jacob, P. and Mathieu, P. (2005) 'Generating function for K-restricted jagged partitions.', The electronic journal of combinatorics., 12 (R12). pp. 1-17.
We present a natural extension of Andrews' multiple sums counting partitions with difference 2 at distance $k-1$, by deriving the generating function for $K$-restricted jagged partitions. A jagged partition is a collection of non-negative integers $(n_1,n_2,..., n_m)$ with $n_m\geq 1$ subject to the weakly decreasing conditions $n_i\geq n_{i+1}-1$ and $n_i\geq n_{i+2}$. The $K$-restriction refers to the following additional conditions: $n_i \geq n_{i+K-1} +1$ or $ n_i = n_{i+1}-1 = n_{i+K-2}+1= n_{i+K-1}$. The corresponding generalization of the Rogers-Ramunjan identities is displayed, together with a novel combinatorial interpretation.
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Kenyan Shilling Weakens for a Second Day as Trade Deficit Widens
May 30 (Bloomberg) -- Kenya's shilling fell for a second day, retreating to its lowest in more than four months, as the nation's trade deficit widened due to higher imports.
The currency of East Africa's biggest economy depreciated as much as 0.8 percent and traded down 0.5 percent to 86.35 by 2:24 p.m. in Nairobi, the weakest since Jan. 16 on a closing basis, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Kenya's trade deficit increased in March as fuel imports rose to the highest in seven months, the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics said today on its website. The gap increased 22 percent from a year earlier to 80.3 billion shillings ($930 million).
"The shilling is under pressure from the widening of the trade deficit through increased imports at a time earnings are not strong enough to meet demand for dollars," Duncan Kinuthia, a dealer at Nairobi-based Commercial Bank of Africa Ltd., said in a phone interview today. "On a daily basis we are seeing panic buying as businesses accumulate dollars in anticipation of further weakening," he said.
Imports rose 14 percent to 124.6 billion shillings, with fuel shipments accounting for about a third of the total. Exports increased 1.1 percent to 44.4 billion shillings. The three-month trade gap was 197.5 billion shillings, up 18 percent from a year earlier.
Kenya, the world's largest exporter of black tea, sold 31,280 metric tons of the leaves in March, down 13 percent from a year earlier, earning 7.8 billion shillings. Coffee sales rose 21 percent to 5,069 metric tons.
Ugandan shilling was little changed at 2,479.5 per dollar while Tanzania's shilling appreciated 0.2 percent to 1,586.33 per dollar.
To contact the reporter on this story: Johnstone Ole Turana in Nairobi at email@example.com
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Higher levels of air pollution reduced the frequency of North Atlantic hurricanes and other tropical storms for most of the 20th century, a study said Sunday.
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Originally written on Razzball | Last updated 4/9/13
As Sam Cooke said when looking at John Axford on my fantasy teams, "Change is gonna come." Thanks, Sam. Sam also said the same thing after I gave a waiter twenty dollars on a $12 bill. Speaking of paper money, is it me or do people pull out a five dollar bill and also wonder to themselves, "Hey, when did they put Daniel Day Lewis on money?" The Brewers said we need to look at the closing situation with Axford. HAHAHAHAHA *breathe, Grey, breathe* HAHAHAHAHA *inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale* Oh, man, that it is rich. They need to look at it?! Really?! That's like saying there's a goiter the size of a cantaloupe growing out of your head and you might want to get it checked out. Hey, you got a goiter growing out of your bullpen, Brewers! Check on it! Obviously, you need to grab The Muppeteer, Jim Henderson. I'd hold Axford for now (on my bench), but he could be out of the mix for saves for a while if he can't his shizz together when he enters games in the 7th and 8th innin...
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Mfg.: Bunn
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Ferrari 599 GTO driven
A Ferrari GTO is a rare beast – this 599 version is only the third in 63 years. TopGear tracks it down in Tuscany...
Posted: 21 Jan 2011
For me, this new 599 GTO fully earns its badge. It's not a profiteering exercise like the Lamborghini Reventón, which is identical to the Murciélago LP640 under the skin despite its £900,000 price tag. The GTO is far more capable than the 599 on which it's based, a technical tour de force. Roll on 2041.


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'The Vampire Diaries' Season 5 promo and key art revealed - Watch the videoAdd to Favorites | The Vampire Diaries
Things are about to get even darker on "The Vampire Diaries."
The CW just released another, longer promo for Season 5, and Silas' presence doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon -- and that doesn't mean anything good for Stefan, who has been drowning at the bottom of a lake all summer. Let's hope Damon notices something is off about his "brother," and saves Stefan ASAP. The fact that Silas is flirting hardcore with a human Katherine should tip Damon off pretty quickly, right? Everyone knows Stefan would never get back together with Katherine.
The key art for Season 5, first posted on TVGuide.com, also takes on a much darker, edgier look than we've seen before on "TVD." The poster features two Nina Dobrev's, a.k.a. it looks like human Katherine is going to be a main fixture this season. Please let her learn how to do her hair ... that rat's nest on top of her head in the promo isn't really her style.
There is also some good news for "Forwood" shippers: Tyler Lockwood is on the poster, standing next to Caroline. Now that Klaus is off in New Orleans, these two star-crossed lovers might finally have a chance to make things work ... as long as Whitmore College upperclassman Jesse doesn't complicate things too much.
Watch the promo below:
"The Vampire Diaries" Season 5 premieres Thursday, Oct. 3 at 8 p.m. on The CW.


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Why do different species of bird lay different numbers of eggs?
December 10, 2008
Climate proves to be on the determining factors say scientists
Analyzing data on clutch size, biology, and habitat for 5,290 species of birds, a team of biologists — Walter Jetz (UC San Diego), Cagan H. Sekercioglu (Stanford University), and Katrin Böhning-Gaese (Johannes Gutenberg-Universität) — developed a model to predict variations in the number of eggs a species lays. They found clutch sizes are consistently largest in cavity nesters and in species occupying seasonal environments. The findings add depth and complexity to previous research that has shown short-lived species — ones that face high predation or have low survival rates among offspring — tend to lay more eggs than longer-lived species, which invest more resources in raising their offspring.
Eggs in a Great Tinamou Nest. Photo by Dr. Çağan H. Şekercioğlu
"In this study we answer one of the most basic questions asked about birds: Why do bird species lay different numbers of eggs?," added Cagan Sekercioglu, a senior research scientist at Stanford University. "The integration of geographic and life history datasets enabled us to simultaneously address the importance of ecological, evolutionary, behavioral and environmental variables in shaping the clutch size of world's birds. We show that increased environmental variation causes birds to lay larger clutches."
Pauraque nest eggs. Photo by Dr. Çağan H. Şekercioğlu
The researchers say the findings may help conservationists assess risks to threatened species and devise strategies for their protection, especially in the face of climate change.
The egg of the extinct Elephant bird (Aepyornis maximus), a species once native to Madagascar. The egg on the far left is a chicken egg, while the one in the middle is an ostrich egg. Photo from Berenty, Madagascar.
"The majority of bird species live in the tropics," added Sekercioglu. "Tropical birds' smaller clutch size is greatly shaped by more stable climates and these birds' survival depends on the continuity of the weather conditions they have adapted to during millennia. Climate change and a potential increase in climatic fluctuations in the tropics may make these birds highly vulnerable. Hundreds of tropical bird species are already threatened with extinction and a potential clash between changing climate and their reproductive strategies may cause additional harm."
CITATION: Walter Jetz, Cagan H. Sekercioglu, and Katrin Böhning-Gaese. The Worldwide Variation in Avian Clutch Size across Species and Space. PLoS Biol 6(12): e303 doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.0060303
Related articles
Birds face higher risk of extinction than conventionally thought
An interview with ornithologist Dr. Cagan Sekercioglu July 15, 2008
Birds may face higher risk of extinction than conventionally thought, says a bird ecology and conservation expert from Stanford University. Dr. Cagan H. Sekercioglu, a senior research scientist at Stanford and head of the world's largest tropical bird radio tracking project, estimates that 15 percent of world's 10,000 bird species will go extinct or be committed to extinction by 2100 if necessary conservation measures are not taken.
Sedentary, not migratory birds, face higher extinction risk June 24, 2007
Sedentary birds face considerably higher risk of extinction than migratory birds, reports a new paper published in the journal Current Biology. The findings have implications for the conservation of increasingly endangered wildlife populations.