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Americans for Democracy
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"But you must remember, my fellow-citizens, that eternal vigilance by the people is the
price of liberty, and that you must pay the price if you wish to secure the blessing.
It behooves you, therefore, to be watchful in your States as well as
in the Federal Government." - Andrew Jackson, Farewell Address, March 4, 1837
"Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it and eventually they will believe it" - Adolph Hitler
"Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because
it is a merger of state and corporate power" - Benito Mussolini
"The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power
to a point where it becomes stronger than their democratic State itself.
That in it's essence, is Fascism - ownership of government by an individual,
by a group or by any controlling private power." - Franklin D. Roosevelt
"When fascism comes to America it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross" - Sinclair Lewis
"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself" - Franklin D. Roosevelt.
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities" - Voltaire.
This page is neither Democrat or Republican and is objectively maintained by
middle-of-the-road Independent Voters who, with the majority of Americans,
are very concerned that our country is going in the wrong direction.
The American people must wake up to the fact that Republicans now have an extreme,
dangerous, culture of corruption that will greatly harm our country.
They are no longer the moderate, common sense party of President Eisenhower but rather
a far right organization whose real constituents are the super wealthy who bribe corrupt politicians.
Their tactics of fear, hate, religious bigotry & false propaganda are clearly not the American way but they
have used phoney wedge issues to fool the most ignorant and bigoted Americans into supporting them.
They have also proven to be extremely incompetent.
We must all work together to stop this. It is clearly time to clean House
(plus Senate, White House & Judiciary) by voting responsible Democrats
to replace corrupt, incompetent Republicans.
Using the road metaphor, we have gone into the ditch on the right and need
to grab the steering wheel to get us back to the middle of the road. There
may come a time in the future when we go into the ditch on the left and need
to correct. We are all Americans and need to work together to solve our problems.
Too many voters were disenfranchised in the 2000 & 2004 elections and as a result
corrupt Republicans got elected instead of Al Gore & John Kerry.
We must fight for verifiable paper backups on voting machines,
getting all potential voters; registered, unregistered or homeless in our Progressive database,
registering Progressive voters to vote by mail in ballot so they don't have to stand in
ridiculous long lines and much more.
Don't give up now. Please visit http://www.blackboxvoting.org ,
http://www.verifiedvoting.org & a report on Diebold here.
It took over ten years to recover from the Republican depression started under Republican President Herbert Hoover.
Our President in 2012 is doing a fantastic job of helping us to recover from the Republican depression
under Republican President George W Bush. We cannot go back to the failed Republican policies
that would once more devastate our country.
Click above for information.
Remember- If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem.
See President Eisenhower's warning against Military-Industrial Complex here.
Republicans, no longer the reasoned moderates of the past, have a very dangerous culture of corruption that will greatly harm our country. Their tactics of fear, hate speech and false propaganda have fooled some of the most ignorant and bigoted Americans into voting against their own best interests. The middle class has started to go backwards while a corrupt Republican kleptocracy gets richer. It is absolutely vital that we get at least the Progressive turnout to vote in 2012 that we had in 2008 and not go back to the Republican disaster we experienced 2001-2008.
Regarding the Tucson shooting of Representative Gabrielle Giffords on January 8, 2011, the Tucson sheriff said that Arizona (and other red states and red areas within states as well) have become a mecca for prejudice and bigotry, see details here . Hate speech from Fox Broadcasting, Limbaugh, Beck, O'Reilly, Palin, Bachman, etc. is often the only media available in red states and is causing unstable persons on the fringe to commit acts of violence. Sarah Palin had put a rifle scope targeting Representative Giffords on her website! details here. When Representative Giffords voted in favor of health care bill, her office in Tucson was attacked & vandalized, details here. In 2009, another gun nut showed up where Representative Giffords was speaking (at another Safeway) & dropped his gun, details here. Representative Gifford's opponent held a June event 2 "Shoot a Fully Automatic M16" to "Get on Target" & "Remove Representative Gabrielle Giffords", details here. When Palin put rifle crosshairs on a map with Representative Giffords & 19 other Democratic congressmen/women, she urged followers to "reload" & "aim" for Democrats. Representative Gabrielle Gifford's response is here. Sharon Angle urged supporters to use second amendment rights and shoot Senator Harry Reid.
We need to provide security (readily available from local police) for all politicians when in public but more importantly, we must shun these hate merchants on the right (and left if there are any) so they dry up and go away. Our democracy depends on it.
Visit Biden Harris Whitehouse at https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/
Visit US Senator Patty Murray's web site here.
Visit US Senator Maria Cantwell's web site here.
Visit US District 10 Marilyn Strickland's web site here.
Visit Washington State Governor Jay Inslee's web site here.
Visit Washington State District 22 Senator Sam Hunt's web site here.
Visit Washington State District 22 Representative Beth Doglio's web site here.
Visit Washington State District 22 Representative Laurie Dolan's web site here.
We must fight for Honest and Open Government, Fair Elections, Real Security, Science and Technology,
Energy Independence, Affordable Health Care, Job Creation, Retirement Security,
Protecting our Environment, Civil Rights/Justice, Immigration Reform, Better Education,
The current problem with Congress is the Republican Culture of Corruption. The future of our country depends on sweeping Republicans out of office.
Fourteen Defining Characteristics Of Fascism
Dr. Lawrence Britt has examined the fascist regimes of Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Hitler (Germany), Suharto (Indonesia) and several Latin American regimes.
Britt found 14 defining characteristics common to each:
1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottoes, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial, ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.
4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.
5. Rampant Sexism - The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.
6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.
7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
8. Religion and Government are Intertwined - Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.
9. Corporate Power is Protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.
10. Labor Power is Suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.
11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.
12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forgo civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.
13. Rampant Crony ism and Corruption - Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.
14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.
Note: Travel expert Rick Steves has an excellent essay on fascism here
Democracy 101 Basics
1. Corrupt Republican neocons have managed to stay in power through rigged elections, phony religious wedge issues that fool people into voting against their own best interests and by playing the fear card. Since the 1980's Republicans have used fear and misinformation to get the most ignorant and bigoted Americans to vote against their own best interests. We must expose this corrupt Republican plutocracy, show religious people that the teachings of God are Progressive and show, as Franklin Roosevelt did, that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. The days of Lee Atwater/Karl Rove style Republican dirty politics are in the American history Hall of Shame.
2. The main reason that Democrats lose votes in elections is that they are perceived as knee jerk tax raisers. That is why it is so important for Democrats to first leave no stone unturned in fighting for efficiency in government. For example in our State of Washington Governor Chris Gregoire & Representative Derek Kilmer get it & are first fighting for standardizing and computerizing health care paperwork which would save 1/3 the cost of health care. They are also fighting for performance audits which would make government more efficient. If the voters are convinced that their elected officials have first done all they could to cut costs & more funds are still needed, then they are a lot more likely to go along with tax increases to balance the budget.
3. We have a winner-take-all two party election system. Third party candidates only act as spoilers. For example, Ralph Nader caused Al Gore to lose the 2000 election by taking away the votes needed to put Al Gore in the winners column. As a result we have had to endure the destruction of our country by the Bush Administration. Likewise persons who don't vote in an election because they are not 100% satisfied with the Democrat candidate only help to elect a corrupt Republican candidate they are 100% dissatisfied with. We may have our vigorous debates before the final elections but we must come together stronger than ever at the end of the day to defeat the corrupt Republicans in the general election. The bottom line is that we must win elections to be part of the political process. If we don't win, we are irrelevant.
4. We are in a global economy and need fair trade agreements including international labor, wage, environmental standards that give us a reasonably level playing field on which we can compete. Americans can compete with anyone as long as we have this level playing field. Attempts at protectionism such as the Smoot Hawley Act will not work and are wrongheaded. We must improve our public education system so we can remain the world's leading economy.
We must not overreact to current problems caused by large corporations and the military-industrial-congressional complex. Corporations are just another form of business structure and without businesses, we would have no employment, taxes or government. The problem comes from large corporate owners or managers making huge contributions to corrupt Republicans who in turn pass legislation favoring these large companies over the needs of the American people. There is a well known revolving door between government and employment by large companies or the military-industrial-congressional complex as lobbyists. The military-industrial-congressional complex keeps needlessly attacking other countries while hiding its expenditures and illegal activities so it can keep getting a larger share of our taxpayer dollars. The answer is to ban corporations from making political contributions and from being granted the same status as American citizens. Each American citizen must be limited to a fixed political campaign contribution amount whether it be to a candidate or a PAC.
5. Your participation in DFA, DNC and other Progressive meetings is much more important than you may realize. If you don't keep up with the day to day issues, you won't be prepared when the crunch time at elections arrive. Our strength in numbers is very important & we can discuss our differences to arrive at a common, united agenda. We must improve the shamefully low participation by Progressives in elections because corrupt Republicans are sure to get their voters to the polls in high percentages. There are more Progressives than corrupt Republicans so even if we just match the percentage turnout of corrupt Republicans, we win.
6. Republicans are not the enemy of the American people (although it sure sounds like they are). Republicans are just unenlightened fellow Americans that we have to keep talking to so they will eventually see the light. The traditional, financially responsible Eisenhower-Barry Goldwater type Republicans have already moved on to the Democratic Party leaving only corrupt Neocons and misled Evangelicals in the Republican Party. The only remaining constituency that actually benefits from the Republican agenda are a few corrupt rich individuals and corporations. Unfortunately, many people have been fooled into voting Republican by Karl Rove style wedge issues and dirty tricks. Our elected officials are left trying to work with these Republicans to move our country forward.
7. It is a foolish waste of valuable resources to have two Democrats competing with each other for one elected position, especially when a Democrat is already an incumbent in that position. Instead we should make sure that we have a Democrat running competitively for all open positions. No elected position should be left unchallenged.
8. Politics is the art of compromise and you never get all of what you want. For example, there are those Progressives who say that health care reform, which is being blocked by corrupt Republicans, doesn't do enough so they are going to give up. This is a tragic mistake.
9. Initiatives mostly tend to make government dysfunctional. Initiatives should always be voted against unless there is an absolutely clear & good reason to vote for.
10. Oregon already votes 100% by mail-in (absentee) ballot. Washington currently votes by mail-in in very high percentages. We should go ahead and move the entire State of Washington to voting by mail-in ballot. By doing this: (1) All voters would have a verifiable paper trail. (2) The cost of elections would be greatly reduced because we would have just one voting system. (3) Absentee voters vote in much higher percentages meaning better democracy. (4) Fraud by electronic voting machines such as Diebold would be avoided. (5) People would not be forced to take time out of their very busy schedules to stand in ridiculously long lines. Let's move to 100% voting by absentee ballot now.
Republicans go Orwellian: Have you noticed that Republicans have gone Orwellian & we can't trust what they say anymore? Clear Skies Initiative means they are going to pollute our air. Healthy Forests Initiative means they are going to destroy our forests. We must continue to challenge any misleading legislation & re frame the issues to reflect reality. Clear Skies & Healthy Forests are really Dirty Skies and Sick Forests Initiatives because of what they actually do.
It is time for Republicans and Undecideds to rethink: It is not conservative to run up the largest deficits in US history caused by extreme neocons & theocrats. It is not Christian, evangelical or compassionate to (1) rob from those less well off and give huge amounts to corrupt, super rich campaign contributors (2) kill thousands of people in illegal attacks on other countries (3) kill many citizens with the death penalty (4) kill or starve many children living in poverty without health care.
Regarding the Christian religion, would Jesus steal from the poor and give to the rich like Republicans are doing? or thumb his nose at the environment, global warming and drive gas hogging SUV's like Republicans are doing? or kill thousands by "shock and awe", the death penalty and taking away health care like Republicans are doing? or be bigoted like Republicans are? or spread disease by taking away medical prevention like Republicans are doing? or ignore much of the world that lives on less than $1 a day and dies in large numbers from easily preventable diseases like Republicans are doing? Of course not! We must keep the separation of church and state. Americans of all faiths must work together as rational citizens to solve our problems and keep their religion private.
It is not conservative to launch preemptive attacks on other countries that are not a threat thereby depleting our armed forces to very dangerous levels. It is not good that corrupt Republicans have caused the first major decline of the middle class since the Hoover Administration. It is not good that corrupt Republicans are trying to destroy your Social Security because you might need it someday. It is not good that these extreme Republicans are trying to destroy the separation of church and state. It is not conservative to excessively & permanently take away our liberties through the Patriot Act. It is in no one's interest to destroy our environment. Republicans want to take us back to the days of the Hoover Administration with no civil rights, robber barons, etc. while Progressives want to move forward in the 21st century. There is no good reason to support the failed Republican agenda.
No matter where you are on the political spectrum, this year is the time to vote for Progressive or Democratic candidates. The current Republican Culture of Corruption has put our country in great peril and on track for rapid decline. The only persons benefiting from the Republican Culture of Corruption are the top one percent of the country who get legislation benefiting them in exchange for large political contributions. The rest of us will be greatly damaged by this corruption.
Some religious organizations have been duped into voting Republican against their best interests because of phony Karl Rove wedge issues. The last thing Americans needs is an American Taliban manipulated by corrupt Republicans.
We must vote smart now before it is too late. Now is the time to leave the dark side of corrupt Republicans & join Progressives to once again lead our country in the right direction! Get the latest news about our country here.
Small businesses create most of the jobs in the United States. We have a large pool of unemployed persons in the United States who could start small businesses but they need a business coach to show them the way and they might need micro loans to provide sufficient capital. The internet allows them to easily expand their markets including overseas. We can do this and get our economy growing again.
The American people must also learn to save and invest again. Too many people are continuously in debt to the loan sharks including credit cards, auto loans, mortgages, pay day loans, etc. and never get ahead. The ability of savings and investments compound and grow over time is amazing.
Republicans have famously said that their objective is to make President Obama a one term president. To accomplish this goal they have tried to sabotage our economy thinking that voters will blame President Obama and a Republican president will be elected. The Republican refusal to raise the debt ceiling is like a family deciding not to pay bills they have already accumulated such as mortgage payments, groceries, new TV, etc. How long do you think it would be before the creditors declared them deadbeats, raised their interest rates and tried to collect? This is what is starting to happen to our country right now because of corrupt Republicans.
Progressives and Independents won in 2008 because they turned out in high percentages. In the 2010 election Progressive and Independent turnout to vote was only around 40% so corrupt Republicans took over the House by default and the sabotage of our economy began. Some Progressive and Independent voters sat our the 2010 election because they didn't get everything they wanted but politics is the art of compromise and you never get everything you want. To win in 2012 we must have the turnout by Progressives and Independents at the rate we turned out in 2008 or better. President Obama should give those famously inspiring speeches and set forth an agenda that we all can get behind and soundly defeat corrupt Republicans in 2012.
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