The Latest Hot Issues

Nader
Noticed that the Ralph Nader issue is picking up steam. Supposedly he will announce this Sunday on Meet the Press what he plans to do. Democrats are going all out to convince him otherwise. One on his long time friends made this comment: Mr. Green said that he, in turn, told Mr. Nader that during a talk Mr. Green recently gave about his new critique of Mr. Bush, "The Book on Bush," 93 of 100 audience members who said they voted for Mr. Nader in 2000 said they would not do so again. "I relayed that as a way to say, a) It may hurt Kerry and help re-elect Bush and b) It won't help you given how much more you have to contribute." Joshua Marshall points out in his Talking Points Memo :A reader notes that since Nader now isn't even running as a Green, he has apparently abandoned even the pretense that he is in the race to create a viable third party in American politics. If he runs, it would now be strictly on a platform of vacuous moral posturing and self-aggrandizement.

SF Marriages
A judge blocked conservative groups from denying gays the right to marry . Gee, guess these groups won't have the chance for a few days to further their bigotry. I know, I know, there are 2 sides to this issue, but I'm sorry, I still don't get the side that thinks this is harming the "sanctity of marriage". Gov Schwarzenegger weighed in with this comment: saying that "San Francisco's actions are directly contrary to state law and present an imminent risk to civil order." What? The conservatives are going to rise up and wage war on the gays in the streets? Actually, that wouldn't surprise me. Update: Here's an interesting article on Mayor Newsome and his reasons for taking on this issue.

GW slips Another One by
George installed Willaim Pryor Jr to a Federal Appeals court during a Congressional recess. First we get Pickering, now we get Pryor. Pretty slick - you just get tired of Democrats filibustering, so you appoint them while the Congress is out. Fortunately they can be removed in the future when the Senates gets to vote on them - all the more reason to elect Democrats to Senate seats, who will rid the court of all these ultra-conservatives.As a state official in Alabama, Mr. Pryor, 41, gained prominence as an outspoken opponent of legalized abortion and as an advocate for a greater Christian influence in government Furthermore, Mr. Pryor is also known for defending the right of high school athletes to pray "spontaneously." And, in a brief before the Supreme Court, he argued that if a law in Texas outlawing sex between homosexuals was overturned, it would open the way for legalized "prostitution, adultery, necrophilia, bestiality, possession of child pornography and even incest and pedophilia."

Staring Into the Mouth of the Trade Deficit SEATTLE - Huge container ships steam into this port every day loaded with clothes and shoes, furniture and video games, electronics and aircraft parts made in Asia.

On their return trip, those same ships often cross the Pacific half empty, bearing chemicals, meat, grain and engines and routinely stuffed with hay or scrap paper. "This is what the nation's trade imbalance really looks like," said Mark Knudsen, the deputy director of the Port of Seattle. "We've got so much empty cargo space, it pays to ship over hay for Chinese animals, or scrap paper to be recycled into packaging for Barbie dolls."

Obviously the trade debate is going to be a big issue in the upcoming election. Many think that outsourcing to other countries is hurting us, but there are others who don't see it that way. Will be an interesting debate. As I've said before, if you want to watch someone who really is outspoken about this, watch Lou Dobbs on CNN.