Bush cancels, GOP weighs shorter convention

AP – President Bush, Vice President Cheney and prominent GOP governors are all skipping the Republican National Convention, and the party is considering shortening its big four-day event as Hurricane Gustav approaches the Gulf Coast with potentially deadly strength. 
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Crist weighs in on McCain’s VP pick of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin

Gov. Charlie Crist, himself chatted up as a possibility for the spot, is the latest Republican to weigh in on the vice-presidential pick.

“Senator John McCain has made a great pick in Governor Sarah Palin,” Crist said in a statement circulated by the Republican Party of Florida.

“She has demonstrated tremendous leadership as the chief executive of her state, working to bring Republicans and Democrats together to do what’s right. I congratulate both Senator McCain and Governor Palin on this historic choice for our people.”
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Retire Social Security

Social Security Is Morally Bankrupt

By Alex Epstein

August 14 marks Social Security’s 73rd  birthday–placing it eight years past standard retirement age. But, despite the program’s $10-trillion-plus dollar shortfall, no politician dares to suggest that this disastrous program be phased out and retired; all agree on one absolute: Social Security must be saved. While the program may have financial problems, virtually everyone believes that some form of mandatory government-run retirement program is morally necessary.
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Let’s Stop Making Disasters More Disastrous

Three years after Hurricane Katrina, it’s time to rethink government programs that lure people into harm’s way.

By Thomas A. Bowden

It’s the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the savage storm that inundated the Mississippi Delta in late August 2005, leaving more than 1,800 people dead and causing widespread property damage.

Disasters can sometimes shock a nation into questioning entrenched practices. But Hurricane Katrina, one of the worst natural disasters ever to befall America, has failed to spark serious challenge to long-standing government policies that actively promote building and living in disaster-prone areas.

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ABC Reporter pushed into traffic by Denver police, later arrested

Asa Eslocker Was Investigating the Role of Lobbyists and Top Donors at the Convention

This should scare the bejeesus out of all Americans. Even if the sidewalk is owned by the hotel, which seems hard to believe, you have a law enforcement official putting him in harm’s way by pushing him out into the street – and then the officer says he is impeding traffic! This is scary, scary stuff.

Watch the video. Read the story.

Florida Today Editorial makes my point brilliantly

Failure to distinguish between the essential and non-essential reduces heroes to status of scoundrels.

If you want proof of the decline of journalistic ethics, look no further than the Florida Today.

I had just posted my column about negative campaigns when I stumbled across this beauty on the Florida Today opinion page. Note their concern isn’t with finding the truth and halting the flow of misinformation – they want everyone to be able to spread lies freely, without having to worry about being ‘negatively’ attacked for not telling the truth.
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Dissecting the ‘art of smear’

Negative attacks aren’t always wrong and sometimes required
The truth by itself isn’t ‘negative’ – it just is

There has been a lot made of the negative campaigns run by some of the candidates this primary season. I have heard from several long time Brevardians this is the nastiest election cycle they have ever seen. Because I was knee deep in covering what has been described as the nastiest of them all, I wanted to weigh in on this issue and share my thoughts.
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Let Doctors Protect Conscience by Contract

Washington, DC – In its latest faith-based initiative, the Bush administration wants to shield anti-abortion and anti-contraceptive doctors from being fired for refusing to deliver such services. Opponents fear that proposed regulations creating “provider conscience rights” would leave rape victims without an emergency room doctor to prescribe morning-after contraception, or a pharmacist to dispense the pills.

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The Tone and Tactics of Change in Politics

The disappointing tone of this election year makes the job of voters much more difficult in making decisions on candidates.

This week nominees, and in some cases elected office holders, were selected in Tuesday’s Primary Election.

There were a lot of candidates and many decisions for us to make. We tried to do our part in bringing you the candidates that would make the time to come in on the show and share their visions for how your government should operate. As voters we have made that call and will now turn our attention to the General Election on November 4th. Given how some of this went, I am almost surprised that the electorate was able to make the call. And maybe we didn’t do that so well. As I write this, I have no idea.
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Concession Letter from Needelman Campaign

Truth continues to escape Needelman, even in gracious concession letter. His mind must be a very strange place indeed…

“To my friends, neighbors, and supporters,

I want to thank you for giving me the opportunity to run for Brevard County Clerk of Courts. We all knew we faced a challenge in going against an incumbent for this position. My feelings were strong, and they still are, that we needed a change in this office. Therefore I decided to make the run.
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