A Giant Mirror

Noah at Down with Tyranny:



Very very rarely, a church sign gets it right, and without pleas to invisible sky wizards.

These Marines Did Not Die in Vain

Because they weren't killing brown people or otherwise furthering U.S. imperialism.

The wreckage of a U.S. military helicopter lost on an earthquake relief mission in Nepal was found on Friday high on a mountainside, with all eight on board presumed dead, U.S. officials said.

A U.S. search team identified the wreckage as that of the missing Marines UH-1Y Huey helicopter deployed after the Himalayan state was hit by a massive earthquake last month that killed more than 8,000 people.

SNIP

The Huey went missing while it was distributing aid on Tuesday, the day a strong aftershock hit Nepal and killed more than 100 people.

Six Marines and two Nepali soldiers were on board when it went missing, after the crew was heard over the radio saying the aircraft was experiencing a fuel problem.

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter mourned the loss of the Marines, and a Pentagon spokesman said U.S. officials were in touch with the families.

"This tragedy is a reminder of the vital but dangerous role that American servicemembers play in delivering humanitarian assistance and disaster relief," Carter said in a statement.

SNIP

U.S. officials said the crash would not affect ongoing relief operations.

"We will continue to stand by Nepal as long as they need our help," Wissler told reporters.

That's the America people around the world love.  That's the America we should be all the time.

"Gay Rights Are Human Rights"

She would have made a terrible nominee and a worse president, but she will rank as one of the greatest Secretaries of State the nation has known.

This is the kind of thing that makes me proud to be an American.



Full remarks here.

Better Life, My Ass

They are the coolest commercials on television. Classic rock music, diversely attractive people doing exciting and rewarding yet unselfish things, exhortations to live life large.

If you're a boomer like me, you can't resist dancing a little. Smiling. Wondering what obviously liberal group has the money to spend on so many spots with such high production values.

You see this one coming, right?

By Lindsay Beyerstein at MajikThise in November 2004:

What is the "Foundation for a Better Life"?

Who are these people and what do they want?

The first I heard of them was last night at the movies. The Foundation bought up half the pre-movie ad time to show uplifting TV spots about "Including Others" and "Helping Others."

The FFBL describes itself as follows:

The Foundation for a Better Life is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization started in 2000. The programs and projects of the Foundation are non-commercial and are solely humanitarian endeavors; the Foundation does not seek nor accept contributions or donations of any kind and is privately funded. The Foundation supports the belief that each individual is entitled to personal dignity and self-respect and that most individuals are willing, when given the opportunity, to take personal responsibility for their actions and well-being. The Foundation also believes that capable people may also benefit from encouragement and reminders from time to time. Generally people who have the opportunity and the ability will make appropriate common sense decisions which will have a positive and uplifting effect on themselves, their community, and their country.

The Foundation claims to be non-religious and non-political. Perhaps I need more moral uplift to combat the cynicism rampant in this day and age, but I suspect there's a catch. The FFLB spots remind me of those free Book of Mormon TV ads from the 1980s.

If anyone knows who's behind this outfit, please leave a comment. If anyone has already written on the subject, please send a link and I'll post it. I'm very curious.

Update: Thanks to readers Wayne and Paperwight of Fairshot.

Paperwight writes:

It's a guy named Phil Anschutz, a conservative Denver oil, internet and media guy. See here. Cursory Google searching and internic domain name registration checks seem to confirm.

See also actsofkindness.org.

Wayne unearthed another hint of a Mormon connection: Gary Dixon is the President of the FFBL and an Honored Brigham Young University alumnus.

Here are some excerpts from the San Diego Indymedia item described in the Portland Alliance article cited by Paperwight (above) Colorado billionaire supporting nationwide propaganda campaign:

Philip Anschutz, who the BBC described as having "a reputation as one of the hungriest of US corporate vultures", is currently using his wealth and power to support a slick ad campaign appearing on 10,000 billboards, in hundreds of movie theaters, and on nearly a thousand TV stations across the country. The Foundation for a Better Life (FBL)—the non-profit entity that officially produces and distributes the ads—has no contact information on its website, forbetterlife.org, but a series of posts and comments to the portland indymedia open publishing newswire uncovered the connection between Anschutz and FBL.[...]

[Anschutz'] corporate empire includes a majority holding in Qwest Communications and ownership of several sports teams and arenas. Significantly, he also owns the United Artists, Regal and Edwards movie theater chains, where the FBL commercials are being shown. Whether or not FBL is paying for these slots is unknown. According to Outdoor Advertising Association of America, $10,000,000 worth of the cost of the billboard campaign is being donated by OAAA member companies. In other words, it is possible that this advertising blitz is costing FBL and Philip Anschutz very little money out-of-pocket. [...]

Yeah. A wingnut freakazoid on the danger level of the Koch brothers is using liberal music, liberal imagery, liberal language, liberal values to ... to .... what?

This has been going on for years, and the superficial message hasn't changed. If Anschutz has an ulterior motive, it's still hidden.

But there's one big clue that this is not what it appears.

Media Matters, last December:

Even when Fox is reporting on a completely innocuous story, they can't help themselves from lying. Fox & Friends ran a segment hosting one of their most prominent advertisers, the Foundation for a Better Life, and purporting to report "who's behind" the group, they hosted an unobjectionable, heroic woman who is featured in one of their ads. But, she's not "who's behind" the group; indeed, it doesn't even seem that she works for them. In fact, the actual people behind the group are right-wing, religious, anti-gay conservatives.

I think Media Matters got one thing wrong here: This is most certainly not "completely innocuous," and Fox does nothing accidentally or coincidentally.

Fox deliberately lied about the real person behind the FFBL, and they did so for a reason.

The FFBL and values.com are a poisoned apple. Don't eat it.

American Greatness Liberalism

As Washington conservatives - both republican and democrat - prepare to destroy the economy that has made America the envy of the world for more than a century, here's a reminder from February 2010 of just how critical American economic strength is to American global leadership.

Steve Benen:

AMERICAN GREATNESS LIBERALISM.... One of the more robust applause lines in the State of the Union address came when President Obama said, "I do not accept second place for the United States of America."

E.J. Dionne Jr. chatted with Vice President Biden yesterday, and brought up the line. Biden "replied emphatically" on the subject, rejecting the notion that "we just can't make this transition in the 21st century."

Dionne explained quite well why a "hidden political issue of the 2010 elections" is actually the "larger debate over how to maintain American preeminence."

Beneath the predictable back-and-forth between Obama and his Republican adversaries over government spending lies a substantively important difference over how the United States can maintain its global leadership.

For Republicans, American power is rooted largely in military might and showing a tough and resolute face to the world. They would rely on tax cuts as the one and only spur to economic growth.

Obama, Biden and the Democrats, on the other hand, believe that American power depends ultimately on the American economy, and that government has an essential role to play in fostering the next generation of growth.

Notice that when Obama spoke about keeping America in first place, he said not a word about the military. He referred instead to the efforts of our competitors in the public sphere of the economy, and of our past complacency.

"Washington has been telling us to wait for decades, even as the problems have grown worse," Obama said [in the State of the Union]. "Meanwhile, China is not waiting to revamp its economy. Germany is not waiting. India is not waiting. These nations aren't standing still. These nations aren't playing for second place. They're putting more emphasis on math and science. They're rebuilding their infrastructure. They're making serious investments in clean energy because they want those jobs."

Suddenly, Obama's approach is not about old-fashioned Democratic spending. It's about patriotism, competing successfully, investing to maintain American economic leadership.

Republicans may prefer to avoid this argument, but it's reasonable to think just about every policy dispute on the American landscape can, and probably should, be reframed to answer the question: how does this position the United States for global competition in the 21st century?

Every major power on the planet offers universal health care to its citizens -- except us. This puts America at a competitive disadvantage, undermines wages, creates job lock, and stunts entrepreneurship. Republicans are satisfied with this, because their goal is to prevent "big government," not position the United States for a competitive future. Are Americans OK with that?

Countries like China intend to create the world strongest system of higher education. Are Americans prepared to let that happen? A variety of rivals are preparing to dominate the next phase of the energy revolution. Will the United States deliberately skip the race and fall behind?

To keep America on top, the government is going to have to make real investments and establish a new foundation for growth. Republicans are staunchly opposed to making those investments and don't see the need for such a foundation.

So, let's have the debate, and take it out of the left-right dynamic and put it the global-competition dynamic. Why not make it the centerpiece of the 2010 elections?
I've long believed it creates an opportunity for American Greatness Liberalism -- progressive ideas, investments, and priorities needed to keep the U.S. on top for the long haul.

Obama/Biden have a plan to maintain American preeminence in the 21st century; Republicans don't. Voters can decide whether to look forward or backward.

Everything good and worthwhile in this nation was created by liberals. Doubt it? Read The Progressive Revolution: How the Best in America Came to Be, by Mike Lux, for details.

Be Sure Your Spending Reflects Your Values

From TPM:

Worried your donation to the Human Rights Campaign could be diluted thanks to your Target habit and the company's support of anti-gay politicians?

The Sunlight Foundation has you covered with their new Checking Influence tool, which analyzes online bank account and credit card statements to show how your spending is being used to influence the political process. The tool allows users to determine if their spending habits are aligning with their political beliefs.

"We created this tool to help Americans be more informed consumers and citizens. Just as some people check to see if their coffee is free trade or if their clothing is manufactured in sweatshops, they can know if their purchases help fund lobbying campaigns," Ellen Miller, co-founder and executive director of the Sunlight Foundation, said in a statement.

The tool, says the Sunlight Foundation, does not store any information about bank transactions that could be personally identifiable.

Corporate spending in elections has spiked since the Supreme Court's decision in the Citizens United case. Target took heat from gay rights organizations due to their support of Republican Tom Emmer in Minnesota. The company said their support was purely for his stance on economic issues.

A test run of the tool only tied a percentage of the purchases in one bank statement to companies in the Sunlight Foundation database. The tool recognized line items from iTunes purchases and Starbucks charges but did not turn up any results for purchases at smaller businesses.

If we've learned one thing over the past year, it's that money is the only thing corporations and their rethuglican politicians understand.

So spend yours in ways that send the right message.

American Values

Those who have a vested interest in perpetuating lies about what the majority of Americans want from their government will never change their tune, of course, but if you're stockpiling ammunition for debates about real American Values, here is the latest proof that Americans are a bunch of fucking commies.

Steve Benen finds the wheat germ in the repug talking points chaff:

* 88% said the federal government has a responsibility to help rebuild communities affected by natural disasters.

* 68% said the federal government has a responsibility to make sure all Americans have food.

* 66% said the federal government has a responsibility to make sure all Americans have health care.

* 52% said the federal government has a responsibility to provide housing to those who cannot afford it.

* 51% said the federal government has a responsibility to make sure all Americans who want a job have a job.

For a "center-right nation," most Americans seem to have a pretty ambitious vision for what the federal government has a "responsibility" to provide to its citizens.

Fox News polls spreading commie propaganda. What has this nation come to?

Cross-posted at They Gave Us A Republic.