The Mark Weaver Show

Statement on Kenneth Quinnell and the Florida Anti-Progressive Coalition

2009-11-14T09:05:00.006-05:00

Vers 2.0 (posted Weds morning) with new section "Why I am Shrill and Angry"

Comrades, I write you this morning banned and in exile in the swamps of far southern Florida. Like Obi Wan Kenobi struck down by the Evil Darth Quinnell in Episode I, I shall now only grow more powerful. We shall overcome. Shalom. Today I have torn up my Democratic Party voter registration card and shall register Monday with the Florida Green Party. I urge all of you do the same, but support genuine progressive Democrats (genuine, not all the fake progressives) and temporarily re-register Dem if you find one to vote for in a given election.

If you are new to the current controversy, the background is in the immediate posts below.

The immediate issue is that the so-called Florida Coalition Blog and Radio (which would more accurately be called the “Kenneth Quinnell Democratic Party Networking and Career Promotion site”), when it could have been a genuine force for a progressive reformation of the Democratic Party, instead is a Democratic Party Establishment, business as usual, more of the same, nothing will change, power elite propaganda organ with no serious critical examination of the domination of the party by conservative-big business-militarist forces whose control is facilitated by amoral consultants and political operatives such as KQ. I urge everyone at the FPC and its mysterious and no-contact-info-on-file board to make the FPC fully independent of any political party and its corrupting influences and the corrosive political career ambitions of any individuals. Since that ain’t gonna happen as it is now so clear that KQ will throw any individual, constituency or cause that interferes with his ambition for power under the bus, I call on all of you to work for the formation of an independent statewide Left blog and radio network to give voice to the social and economic justice and anti-war movements and their electoral counterparts in Progressive
Democrats of America, the Florida Green Party and the scattered individuals in the Democratic Party clubs.

Furthermore, I caution all of you that the FPC is every much a Mainstream Corporate Establishment media outlet as the MSM we all keep harping about. Don’t read it. We would all be better off it fades away, which it probably will once KQ lands his big power job. Find alternatives such as the Florida PDA and Green Party sites among others and attend at least one
of their meetings. You will be amazed at the higher level of political and moral awareness you find with them than from KQ and the FPC. FPC subtly corrodes and shapes your mind to support the interests of the ongoing Democratic Party power elites, which are not yours in the same way the Republican Party apparatus uses dumb people to Tea Bag and demonstrate against their own values and middle class interests, although it not so crass a way.

“Dear Ken,

I don’t love you anymore; you’re part of the problem.

You are a party hack, a careerist and a sycophant with a shockingly low level of political and moral awareness. But I don’t single you out. There are thousands like you in the Democratic Party in this country who are the problem. There is nothing unique about your own personal attributes in this regard and all of us are fortunate that this isn’t the typical petty egotistical
bitch cat fight that breaks out between activists. We can focus on the fundamentals. Nor does any of what I say here have to do with your snuffing out our show and voices. I realized two years ago what you are doing. I just didn't speak out because I didn't want you kicking me off the blog. Tee hee.

I call on you to end your conflict of interest as the manager of a blog of supposedly independent thinking of all progressives while serving as a paid internet campaigner for Kendrick Meek. Come clean and tell us who leaned on you to cancel our show. Those of us who know KQ know that to his great credit and integrity he has allowed us commentators complete freedom of
expression. Not once did KQ ever censor a word of my controversial thoughts. Tell us KQ, we deserve to know who controls the FPC. This a “teachable moment”. We all need to know how power works in the Florida blogosphere. Is the FPC really caught up and a tool of the Kendrick Meek-escalate-the-war-in-Afghanistan campaign? It was your boss Steve Schale, right? What did he tell you? Did you resist his demand? Did you two argue? Was it heated? Did you put up a fight, and then cave? Or just cave since it’s your ticket to a U.S. Senate staff job. Did he threaten to fire you? Or was it the henchman for the aggressive Ted Deutch, my other prime suspect? Deutch shut down Dennis Kucinich’s keynote, why not go after me too? Tell us KQ, it’s great for our ratings. This thing needs to go national.

(KQ has responded: “For the record, no one from any campaign or party requested this or suggested it, this was my decision.” I have no reason to doubt him on this. His decision must have been proactive thinking on how this was affecting his Meek job and political ambitions.)

Furthermore, I call on you to show some integrity and leadership and resign from the Meek for Senate campaign in protest over his endorsement of an escalation of the war in Afghanistan and the deployment of thousands more troops, just as Matthew Loh did from Sec. of State Hillary’s (whose resignation I now call for) pro-war, pro-30,000 more troops State Department. Instead of shilling for every god damned cheap politician out there you can glam onto, think of the national impact you could have as a key staffer quitting a U.S. Senate campaign. Just think what you could have accomplished actively recruiting an anti-war candidate for Senate. You could be a major factor in stopping the war instead of perpetuating it for years.

The simple reason YOU are the problem, Kenny, is that you promote rightwing Democrats (or maintain complicit silence regarding their rightwing side, or are oblivious to it) and you promote the party above all other values, above issues and even objective reality. Nothing you are doing is changing anything. You are perpetuating a decrepit rotten party. It’s just more of the same, more new asshole Democrats replacing the old asshole Democrats every election.

For two years I often got heart pounding angry reading your stuff and the conservative assumptions and thoughtless party shilling that ebbs and flows just beneath your writing. I realized all this two years ago. I just didn’t speak out about it. Thank you for freeing me to do so. Thank you for this teachable moment for all of us.

The single issue that towers above all your offenses to me, is promoting, even working for, people who are pushing to escalate the Afghanistan war debacle. At a critical moment in our history when there is a desperate need for an anti-war voice in the senate race, there is not a single one. And you are shilling for the pro-war guy. Kenny, you outrage me. I personally hold you responsible for the continuing and increasing death and maiming of so many of our young people in the armed services. You are destroying their lives for no good reason.

When you should be loudly denouncing how the party bosses have set up yet another uncontested farce of a primary election next year with Alex Sinking and Meek Kendrick already nominated, you are actually campaigning for one of them. If you really have to wonder why I am angry and shrill, a big reason is that your corrupt party bosses continuously muscle competition and genuine progressives out of races, kick them off blogs and radio shows and force their backroom picks down the throats of the sheep herd of Democratic primary voters.

“Extreme rhetoric”? Give us a fucking break Kenny. You’re either disingenuous or dumber than I thought. On the same page that you falsely accused me of this, you’re posting about the rightwing “trolls”. And the “award winning” and 2009 (Democratic Party) Netroots “Best Florida Internet Radio Show” Blast Off! With Sinfonian that has been second to mine in the ratings counts most of the year, regularly uses all kinds of “extreme rhetoric”. Okay, maybe it is extreme, maybe sometimes we go a word too far and we should reconsider, but it’s the blogosphere and to accuse me while you and Sinfonian…. But see folks, it’s just Kenny’s canard. His problem is I use the rhetoric against his fucking rightwing “allies”. (By the way, what do the rightwingers think of this whole tiff? I haven’t heard a peep out of them on this one. We may have them dumbfounded and speechless, a great position to have them in. One of the surprising things about my show and commentaries, the ones that bash Obama and the Democrats, is I’ve gotten repeated feedback from “conservatives” who initially go, “Cool man, he’s bashing Obama. I thought this was progressive radio.” And they’re listening and they start to scratch their heads and think, “Hey, wait a second, this guy’s bashing them for being conservative!” I fuckin’ love it. I’m actually considering doing a conservative format niche show where I emphasize the few conservative issues I agree with coupled with Democrat bashing.” Might create a whole new
talk radio genre – conprog or progcon.

WHY I'M SHRILL AND ANGRY

Forget for now that Sinfonian is shrill and angry too, as are many of us. I know I'm hard to take. Mark Weaver is hard to stomach, and you have spit me out. But I can't help it. One must focus on what makes me shrill and angry. When I use "extreme rhetoric" I am only emotionally describing the actions of rightwing Democrats. I'm just reflecting who they are, what they stand for. And I'm channeling the suffering of the people they are hurting, killing and oppressing. Let me tell you a short story. Several years ago I had a "tiff" with my evangelical Christian Republican, Love Bush and Cheney neighbors. I told them I held them directly responsible for the destruction of Iraq launched by Bush, particularly of its Christian community. I had to go back recently and apologize to them for having put Gore-Lieberman and Kerry-Edwards signs on my front yard (never again) and I denounced the Democrats for taking over the destruction of Afghanistan and expanding it to Pakistan. I told them I'm no longer a Democrat and that I'm now Green Party. I don't like being put in that position of hypocrisy by the Democratic Party.

I am shrill and angry because I am aware. I am aware of the suffering of our armed forces sent into absurd wars, the suffering of Muslims in our society who are now harassed as a result of America's war on Islamic fundamentalism, the suffering of societies and civilians being destroyed by America's militarism, the suffering of the people under horrific Israeli blockade in Gaza, the Israeli police state in the West Bank, the ongoing theft of Palestinian lands (900 more new homes announced yesterday) and homes never authorized by the UN creation of the original State of Israel, the suffering of the people of Sderot, who are victims as Palestinians shower them with rocket attacks in a desperate attempt to stop the theft of their lands and the brutal blockade that maintains an 80% unemployment rate and hunger. I am shrill and angry because I aware of their pain and I am channeling it.

I am aware that all of these policies are being pushed by most Democrat politicians, and Florida's are among the worst. I am pissed at the insidious role the Democratic Party and its operators play in election after election serving up unacceptable candidates who do not offer any meaningful alternative to the Republican assholes on the most fundamental issues of war and peace and the Big-Corporate domination of our economy and politics. Forgive me for using the term assholes. I am shrill. I am angry. I got the idea from Matt Taibi, the brilliant Rolling Stone contributing editor who invokes the word in his pieces to good effect.

I am shrill and angry that the Democratic Party bosses in this state, following the lead of the anti-progressive Bill Clinton, who needs to stay out of this state, are staging an uncontested Senate primary in which the herd of Democratic Party voters trot to the polls and, duh, vote for ..... Kendrick Meek. Kendrick Meek who is advocating escalation of the Afghanistan war when an overwhelming majority of Democratic voters in this country want the war ended; who is advocating an escalation of a war that countless experts are pointing out is utterly pointless; who is advocating sending thousands more of our young men and women to die for nothing except, on the advice of his amoral political consultants, to win a few red neck votes in the panhandle, and promote his cynical fucking political ambitions using the lives of our armed forces. Cindy Sheehan knows what I mean. And so should you. Yet your party promotes Kendrick Meek.

Kendrick Meek, who instead of joining the Progressive Caucus, joined the Pro-Big Business caucus, the House update of Bill Clinton's old DLC. Just take a look at the deluge of his campaign contributions coming from the financial services and health industries, especially after he stood on the House floor and rescinded his lip service support of single payer. Kendrick Meek who did nothing to push full public funding of congressional campaigns and other reforms, the single most important issue in our country, after I handed him a pamphlet about them with my phone number and email written on the title page. Kendrick Meek, who shamelessly parrots AIPAC talking points every time radical rightwing Israeli governments launch massive assaults on civilians, infrastructure and UN buildings in Lebanon and Gaza (which Bill Moyers desribed as 'state terrorism' and the UN Human Rights Council now calls war crimes.); Kendrick Meek, who just voted to bury the Goldstone UN investigation documenting the war crimes.

Kendrick Meek, who is going to be ground up by Marco Rubio. Kendrick Meek isn't' just wrong on major issues, he is running such a pathetic standard Democratic Party consultant DSCC rote text book campaign the party uses over and over and over again and is stuck in, that he's going to lose. He isn't even good politics. We're going to end up with Senator Marco Rubio because the Democrats couldn't field a clear and strong alternative to him. As Kenneth Quinnell himself has pointed out, Democrats don't win when they copycat Republicans. Yet that is the kind of campaign Meek, under the influence of his cynical political operators, is running. KQ is right that voters innately prefer authentic politicians. Meek is patently not one and that's why Charlie is tanking and going to lose the primary. He's so unauthentic he's a clown. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio. Meek the copycat is handing Rubio the election. Now I'm really angry!

I'm pissed that the Democratic Party cannot even produce a Leftish candidate in any election, the way the Republican Party generates authentic, principled if despicable candidates. I'm pissed that Democratic Party bosses such as Rahm muscle real progressives out of races and back conservatives. The amoral Democratic Party operators are just as responsible for bringing us Blue Dogs as Big Business and the Blue Dogs are themselves.

DEMOCRATS' INSANE CLOWN RIGHTWING POSSE

Promoting Democratic party rightwingers, aka insane clown posse, while snuffing out the voices and activism of those of us on the Left. Shame on you. If I could for a moment, elaborate on my concept of the insane clown posse. It’s not “extremist rhetoric”, though a bit tongue in cheek, but each of those words has great meaning for me. It’s my version of what you call “trolls” or “crazy wingnuts” and other variations. Except that it’s the people in your decrepit party, people
who are a serious threat to this country. I came up with the word “insane” when I started thinking about how these rightwing Democrats often espouse downright stupid public policies, in the same way the Republican wingnuts do, just to maneuver for electoral advantage or satisfy some other perverse political grinding ax of theirs, policies that prima facie make no sense. They are insane. The nonsense is compounded when these policies have only minority public opinion
support and in some cases are downright widely unpopular. The most egregious examples of this are support for the “public option”, which should have been framed as the “discount insurance plan”, and poll after poll showing majority support for getting out of Afghanistan. Yet we have your man Meek, under the influence of the cynical political operator Steve Schale and the other DSCC “consultants” (hasn’t anybody watched Robert Redford’s The Candidate lately?) campaigning against not only what a majority of the public wants but what a huge majority of Democrats want. It’s insane.

Yours untruly,

Mark Weaver Show

Mark Weaver Kicked Off Florida Progressive Coaltion and Radio by Kenneth Quinnell

2009-11-11T09:30:00.002-05:00

After 26 months, this was a long time coming and I will be commenting here in blistering length in a few days. Frankly, it had become an embarrassment for me to be associated with Kenneth Quinnell and his misnamed Florida Progressive Coalition (Democratic Party front) Blog and radio show because of his and others sophomoric commentaries, naivete and ceaseless thoughtless promotion of a Democratic Party that is dead wrong on so many issues. However, I bit my lip many a time, though not enough, in an effort to co-exist, which I am still willing to do, but of course those craven for power are not.

The FPC blog and radio were so compromised and lacking integrity they had become a joke. Quinnell is a paid staffer for the Kendrick Meek campaign, advising the netroots campaign operation. I have been unrelentingly critical of Meek's not-progressive, pro-corporate positions, but most of all his calls for escalating Afghanistan troop levels. Go figure. In addition, the phoney (Florida Democratic Party) Netroots Awards only recognize the blogs, writers and radio hosts who shill the best for the Florida Democratic Party business-legal-power elites, not any sort of deep independent thinking. Though I did not criticize the awards, many others did, pointing out most egregiously that Kendrick Meek, who was a netroots blip on the screen a year ago, swept many of the awards because his own web operation flooded the voting.

I am suspending the radio show for a couple of weeks to take a long needed break and to do some Florida camping and strategize on a new and better basecamp for The Mark Weaver Show.

The single issue that really brought things to a head for me over the last several months was watching Florida Democrats backing the escalation of the Afghanistan war. As they escalated, my analysis, anger and militancy escalated. But this is what happens when America goes to war, the war is also fought out between us here at home.

As I shall explain, this incident is a revelatory milestone in the development of Florida real-progressive politics as it lays bare how the Democratic Party and its power seeking sycophantic shills think, operate and repress those who oppose their vile use of power.

My commentary that broke the Democratic camel's back is the post in the next window below: "Florida Dems' Insane Clown Rightwing Posse."

Kenneth Quinnell's statement was:
http://quinnell.us/sspb/?p=6994

I have removed Mark Weaver as a member of the Florida Progressive Coalition blog and radio station. The primary reasons for this are that Mark is working at direct odds with the endeavors that myself and others are working on, he is unwilling to work as part of a team, he has engaged in the use of extreme rhetoric against people who are allies and supporters of the blog and in his most recent post, he engaged in language that could easily be considered libel against a private citizen. This confluence of actions, over a period of time, led me to decide to no longer allow Mark to post at the blog whose url bears my name.

I’m not a big believer in censorship, so I won’t be deleting any posts or radio shows featuring Mark. He is welcome to continue commenting on posts that others write and call in to shows on the FPC radio station if the host(s) of those shows allow it. I encourage Mark to set up his own blog and radio station and I will add him to the blogroll and include him in regular round-ups where appropriate.

I hold no ill-will or emnity against Mark, but he is harming efforts that I am pursuing on the blog that I created. While he has the freedom to do what he thinks is appropriate in the realm of politics, it is inappropriate for him to pursue those things on this blog.

Read more on Florida politics at the Florida Progressive Coalition blog (http://flaprogressives.org) and the Florida Progressive Coalition Wiki (http://quinnell.us/sspb/wiki/).

Florida Democrats' Insane Clown Rightwing Posse

2009-11-10T14:54:00.007-05:00

FLA Dems’ Insane Clown Rightwing Posse

Written by Mark Weaver on 10 November 2009 — Leave a Comment

Over the past week plus, several incidents have illustrated the depravity of the Florida Democratic Party and the need for genuine principled, issues and values progressives, not the Party hacks, to get it together and take control of the party from these clowns who in some combination 1) are vicious rightwing shadow Republicans using the Democratic Party for cover, 2) are espousing stupid if not venal public policies opposed to the interests of most of their constituents, 3) advocating policies that the majority of the public rejects, 4) cynically maneuvering to advance their own political careers by following the “advice” of amoral, unprincipled political operatives like Steve Schale (who helped bring us Obama and the growing Afghanistan debacle) trying to score cheap election wins by pandering to mis-labeled conservative, moderate and independent voters because these candidates and operatives are too rudderless to assertively advocate a vision that could appeal to such voters.

The latest configuration of this insane clown posse consists of Kendrick Meek, Ted Deutch, State Rep. Kevin Rader, Palm Beach commissioner Burt Aaronson, Debbie Schultz, Alcee Hastings, Suzanne Kosmas and Allen Boyd (the usual suspect). If we include the mob cheering them in the street we would have to include the entire Florida congressional delegation, with a provisional pass for Kathy Castor and Alan Grayson.

Each of these incidents was egregious in its own way, but let’s quickly dispatch with Kosmas and Boyd, who couldn’t even vote for the watered down, health industry-protection racket reform bill that is nevertheless a marginal improvement in the current dysfunction and neglect. (Yes, I’m finally endorsing it, despite the hemorrhaging nightmare that it is.) Boyd is not news, but one would have hoped that the freshwoman Kosmas would have been part of a change in the Democratic Party. On issue after issue she’s been voting like a rightwinger. We all have to examine how a woman like this was allowed to come through the ranks and win a Democratic nomination for high office. It was great to see that 60 party activists picketed her last week. Right on, guys. Those 60 should have been recruiting and backing a good progressive to run in New Smyrna two years ago and actively vetting and blocking Kosmas. By being so spineless and politically inept, Kosmas deserves to lose next year. Let’s hope the 60 can field a strong primary challenge to her!

More disturbing is the emergence of the vile Ted Deutch as successor to Robert Wexler. Deutch has been the leading purveyor in the state legislature of the Iran lies, sponsoring the AIPAC inspired Iran sanctions resolutions with a long list of whereases which are riddled with exaggerations, distortions, mischaracterizations, falsehoods, omissions and downright lies demonizing Iran. Deutch is one of the leading figures pushing bombing and war with Iran, among other vicious rightwing Middle East policies and it is a symptom of the sickness within the Democratic Party that he is allowed to succeed Wexler WITH NO RESISTANCE, ACCOUNTABILITY OR EVEN AWARENESS of where he is taking us, which endangers the people of Israel, not to mention the lives of countless Iranians, Palestinians and Lebanese. All we read is the clueless amoral party hacks celebrating what great fundraising he is doing (through the AIPAC extremist network) and his impressive old-line establishment endorsements.

Deutch really revealed his true colors last week when he, and fellow travelers State Rep. Kevin Rader and County Commissioner Burt Aaronson, who called the selection of Kucinich “an absolute horror” and said he would refuse to share the podium with him (the sentiment is probably mutual), boycotted the selection of Dennis Kucinich as keynoter at the Palm Beach Democratic Party’s annual fundraiser, forcing Kucinich off the bill. Deutch, lying as he does with the Iran resolutions, said Kucinich is “someone whose position on Israel stands in total opposition to the conscience of this community.” The only truth to such a statement would be if the conscience of the community really does endorse the war crimes committed by the Israel Defense Forces in Gaza as documented the Goldstone investigation, about which more shortly.

Legitimate policy differences with Kucinich aside, what is so enraging about Deutch, Rader and Aaronson is their tea bagging thuggery and intimidation in shutting down discussion of foreign policy alternatives. Kucinich would not even have addressed Middle Eastern issues in his talk, given its keynote nature, and would have focused on health reform. The lack of civility alone by these three is grounds for their censure and expulsion from the Democratic Party. They can run as Republicans. I urge every Floridian to call Palm Beach chairman Mark Alan Siegel (561.433.1112) and support him in his booking and defense of Kucinich and his level headed take on Kucinich and AIPAC and request a vote of censure of Deutch, Rader and Aaronson. Maybe that’ll take some of the steam out of Deutch’s coming special election and anointment. Meanwhile, Wexler, who never met a war he couldn’t back while in Congress, has given Deutch a glowing endorsement.

Next up we have Kendrick Meek, Debbie Schultz and Alcee Hastings signing a letter with 53 Democrats nationwide (and Bill Nelson separately) trying to take the steam out of the bipartisan push to end the travel ban to Cuba, which is refreshingly, finally on the verge of passing. There are several problems with this. First, the single most important thing we can do to bring democratic change to Cuba is to open up travel to Americans. Can you imagine the effect it will have? Americans telling their stories to Cubans in Cuba. Talk about fomenting a velvet revolution. But no, Meek, Nelson, Schultz and Hastings are too, too, what is the word for it? They’re not stupid, or are they? I guess they have some insane rationale for pandering to the fading hardline Cuban exile community. But according to the latest credible poll, A MAJORITY OF CUBAN AMERICANS NOW SUPPORT AN END TO THE TRAVEL BAN. It doesn’t even make sense, for a Democrat, but this is the corruption and depravity of the party I keep talking about. Furthermore, what they are espousing is just wrong. It’s oppressive and anti-freedom. It’s arrogant, audacious, venal, and on and on an on. Think about it. Meek, Nelson, Schultz and Hastings are telling YOU that you cannot go to Cuba for their own twisted ideological and vote-calculating reasons. They are denying you your freedom. On top of all this, it is just idiotic politics. Does Meek and his crass operator Schale really think that Meek can win votes campaigning through all of Florida (outside a couple of square miles of west Little Havana and the state’s millionaire enclaves, which will vote Republican anyway) telling people that he wants to take away their freedom and that they can’t visit the beautiful beaches, hills, mountains and Spanish-colonial cities of Cuba? The final outrage, I swear my head is going to fucking explode right now, is this: while we have this crazy extremist Republican party that blocks all sort of progress, the one moment where we actually have a bipartisan coalition come together around a progressive reform, 53 Democratic Party assholes step in to kill it. Do you see what I mean about the pervasive, nonsensical corrupt rot of the Democratic Party? They have become the Soviet Communist Party of 1985.

Finally, we have the entire Florida delegation voting to reject and deny the Goldstone report documenting Israel’s numerous war crimes in Gaza resulting in the deaths of 1,400 Gazans while Hamas’ crude rockets killed 7 Israelis around Sderot. Every single fucking Florida Dem (except Kathy Castor and Alan Grayson) cosponsored the resolution, which Goldstone himself rebutted point by point, twelve of them, proving as if in a court of law, each of them to be falsehoods. Castor and Grayson deserve at least a shred of credit for not allowing themselves to be herded by AIPAC. The disingenous positions these people take are “see no evil, hear no evil.”

Do you see what I mean about this insane clown posse?

The Green Party Alternative to the Decrepit Democratic Party

2009-10-31T09:28:00.001-04:00

Guest is executive director of the Green Party of the U.S.A., Brent McMillan, in an hour long discussion of the state of the Democratic Party and Green Party strategies for creating a genuine progressive space in American politics. With corporatists, militarists and their shills dominating the Democratic Party and actively undermining the few genuine progressive elements of the party, and the feeble President Obama stuck in Iraq and expanding wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, threatening Iran over its legal nuclear program, facilitating the continuing theft of Palestinian lands and the inhuman blockade of Gaza by Israel, the institutionalization of most of the fascistic civil liberties violations of Bush & Cheney, the protection of Big Business economic domination and the failure to curb the excessive power of Wall Street, it is now time to seek alternatives to the Democratic Party.

Why the Left Must Now Confront the Democratic Party

2009-10-28T12:36:00.001-04:00

Forget the Republican Party, we all know how utterly depraved it has become. What troubles me far more is the extent to which the Democratic Party has become a tool of the giant corporations that use public policy as a profit enhancement business strategy (so revealed by this year’s health “reform” charade), and the Pentagon-industrial and right wing foundation foreign policy establishment on a militaristic rampage throughout much of the world.

Except for a shockingly small number of individuals who genuinely believe in social and economic justice (and deserve our support), the Democratic Party is a degenerate, power-corrupted entity controlled by these corporate-militarist elites and their careerist politicians and promoted by clueless activists too loyal to their party and influenced by the Establishment media to autonomously perceive this reality.

This week’s Mark Weaver Show is developing a new strategy to hold the Democratic Party accountable by implementing “modes of confrontation”. Guest is Brent McMillan, director of the Green Party of the United States. Democrats, independents, please call in.

Just take a quick look at where we are under President Obama (I will reprise in detail on the Oct. 31 Mark Weaver Show). If you are unaware of all this, and are blindly promoting the Democratic Party, there is something very wrong with you. You need to examine yourself, your values and your very awareness of the world beyond your slavish unthinking devotion to the Democratic Party.

We now have more troops in foreign combat than we did on January 20th, and further escalation is imminent. Obama has dramatically escalated the Predator drone assassination campaign against Taliban and other fundamentalist Islamic militants in Pakistan with high civilian casualties which just yesterday drew a UN official’s call for transparency that could reveal war crimes by Nobel Laureate Obama. He has coerced the Pakistani army into two major assaults on Islamic fundamentalists in Pakistan, driving over two million Pakistanis from their homes. All of this is pushing the relatively stable Pakistan under Bush-Cheney into a needless civil war. Aside from the surreal pointlessness of all this, Obama is committing hundreds of billions of dollars and condemning thousands of lives to a long debacle. And it’s all deficit financed. With his goofy impotence in confronting rightwing extremists on every issue, such as the fanatical government of Israel, Obama is leading us down a path to a war on Iran. By further assaulting and enraging millions more people, Obama is endangering our national security. President Obama and his Democratic Party are destroying this nation every bit as much as the Republicans did for eight years. The only differences are the kinds and emphases of the destruction.

And it’s not just Obama. It’s the party that created him. Virtually the entire party leadership backs this militarism. Kerry, Levin. In Florida, Kendrick Meek and Bill Nelson have already backed troop increases, before Obama has even made any decision. Alcee Hastings says he’s “not averse” to them. Only Allan Grayson, Corrine Brown and Alcee Hastings have even cosponsored a bill calling for a no-deadline exit strategy from Afghanistan that could be fifty years from now.

And it’s not just the wars. It’s Obama’s cynical breaking of dozens of his campaign promises, from union card check, to don’t ask don’t tell, to transparency, to his continuation and institutionalization of most of the Bush-Cheney power grabs such as the state secrets privilege, rendition and the rejection of habeas corpus rights to the retention of dozens of Bush-Cheney appointees in the Pentagon, the CIA, the national security apparatus and the appointment of Republicans such as Tim Geithner.

It’s time to hold the Democratic Party accountable for this mayhem.

A 15 Month Afghan Exit Plan

2009-10-24T12:30:00.002-04:00

15 month exit plan for Afghanistan involves 'no-Al Qaeda' agreement with Taliban, and economic aid ... Guest is Erik Leaver, research fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies in D.C...Peak oil is finally here, $4 gasoline, smaller cars imminent ... Gitmo bans Chomsky's "Interventions" and sentences Al Qaeda press secretary to life for 'propaganda' ... Gibbs watch out! ... Fidel sheds jogging suits for 'tropical casual' to signal larger role ... U.S. police state confiscates $1 billion a year of property without warrants or due process, goodbye 4th Amendment ... Talban commander breaks down in tears at an Obama drone attack that kills civilians, hates Obama more than Bush for escalating attacks ... Obamacare plan only a ten year patch to unsustainable health care system.

Florida at Leading Edge of U.S. Push for More Nuclear Power

2009-10-17T10:13:00.000-04:00

With President Obama (D-Exelon) furthering the Cheney-driven resurrection of nuclear power (so much doesn’t change, does it?) and Progress Energy and FPL now pushing to build four new problematic nuclear power reactors in Florida with the help of Florida gov candidate Alex Sinking (D-FPL) after a much deserved 30 year hiatus, guest is Ft. Lauderdale attorney George Cavros discussing FPL’s Florida nuke applications...We’ll look at how government subsidies and loan guarantees and other devices prop up a fundamentally uneconomic industry that makes giant centralized electric utilities like Exelon, Obama’s single largest campaign contributor, and FPL, which big-bankrolls Sink, big profits.... Afpakistan situation continues to deteriorate: Financial Times of London is reporting Obama administration will send 45,000 more troops, but this is so outrageous it’s hard to believe... Meanwhile, Obama-Clinton’s continuing pressure on the Pakistani Army to launch a civil war against its tribal populations is generating pushback from insurgent groups now hitting back with attacks on Pakistani military targets. Nobel winner Obama is the direct cause of the increasing violence in Pakistan.... Democrats.com activist and author David Swanson’s intriguing book signing in Miami.

Statewide Anti-War March in Orlando

2009-10-14T12:06:00.001-04:00

Statewide Anti-War March in Orlando Saturday

With the passive and unprincipled President Obama and his Democratic Party sheep supporters dragging our country into a worsening, long term, tragic debacle in Afghanistan and Pakistan, despite that 73% of Democrats and a majority of voters now want the war ended, over 40 Florida peace and justice groups are converging at the entrance of the University of Central Florida at noon Saturday for a mass rally and march to protest Nobel Peace Prize winner Obama’s wars and call for an end to the military economy. The march will culminate at the Central Florida Research
Park local divisions of Raytheon, Boeing, Northrup Grumman, and General Dynamics. This is a critical event here in Florida in the course of the growing Afpakistan debacle that deserves the attendance of 100,000 Floridians. You can contact your local peace group for people to travel with. If you cannot go you can support the march by spreading the word and making a contribution to its considerable organizing expenses.

While the location and message of this march address important issues contributing to America’s growing militarism and provide a “teachable moment”, I am deeply concerned that the event is not addressing, more clearly and effectively, issues more directly related to halting Obama’s wars against Afghanistan and Pakistan. Militarism and these contractors are a marginal issue for the general public that we need to be reaching. This march’s primary message should be demanding an exit from the two countries, explaining its cost, destruction and false premises, and holding Obama and the Democratic Party accountable for what they are doing. The march should send an unmistakable, militant message to the Democratic Party that we are fed up with their wars, we denounce the party and we are abandoning the party (except for support of its few anti-war politicians, the only one of which there is in Florida is Alan Grayson). There need to be speeches and signs at this event denouncing President Obama and politicians like Kendrick Meek and Bill Nelson who are advocating more troops, as are others in the Florida Democratic Party. Silence and deferral to the poor judgments of President Obama by politicians like Debbie Schultz and Robert Wexler, among others, is not acceptable.

The Democrats have to be sent the message that these policies are tearing their party apart, alienating us and will lead to their loss of elections, since this is the highest value of the Party that trumps all ethics. This is the only message Democrats will respect. Until then they will continue playing us for manipulable fools. A more effective location for this march would have been the offices of Bill Nelson or even better, Kendrick Meek, who aspires to a Senate seat and needs to be challenged for his pro-war views and whose ascent to the Senate must be stopped if we are to halt the perpetuation of these wars.

We must be holding Florida’s congressional Democrats accountable for not holding hearings on Afpakistan while allowing the secret deliberations of Nobel winner Obama’s war councils that are not even considering an exit option. We must demand acknowledgment from the Party and its Congressional Budget Office of the ten year projected cost of Obama’s new policies at a time when we have a $1.2 trillion deficit. The deficit financing of these wars and the bloated $700 billion military budget is eroding the future of our country, especially at a time that we need to be digging out of the financial collapse, creating jobs in America and rebuilding our aged deteriorating infrastructure.

Out of Afghanistan ... Obama's Preposterous Nobel

2009-10-10T12:08:00.002-04:00

Obama Nobel preposterous and undermines anti-war movement ... McChrystal calling for 80,000 more troops in Afghanistan but right to go public ... Obama Afghan overhaul setting up an even greater disaster ... Guest is Patricia DeGennaro of the World Policy Institute on an Afghanistan exit strategy... Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Kendrick Meek back troop increase ... David Swanson of AfterDowningStreet.com talks about his new book on creating real democracy: "Daybreak" ... Big Orlando anti-war march on Oct. 17th.

The False Demonization of Iran

2009-10-03T08:36:00.000-04:00

Malou Innocent, Foreign Policy Analyst with the CATO Institute in Washington, D.C. discusses her libertarian take on Iran's and Israel's nuclear programs. Also, peace movement stuck in ineffective historical leftist rut needs to adopt new strategies and messaging to broaden appeal; unemployment hits magic 10%, real rate 17% with 263,000 more jobs lost and possible economic stall. But hark! Goldman Sachs paid $25,000 summer internships while banks fight executive pay limits; why you need to watch Al Jazeera News; solar electric roofing tiles now shipping!; light rail lines a hit in Phoenix.

Alan Grayson for U.S. Senate

2009-10-01T11:19:00.002-04:00

Alan Grayson for U.S. Senate

Written by Mark Weaver on 15 May 2009 — 3 Comments

Finally, a strong credible leader and progressive has emerged out of Florida’s pathetic Democratic Party landscape (other than Matt Damon, who still needs to hit the speaking circuit). Yesterday, the entire Florida Congressional delegation, EXCEPT ALAN GRAYSON, voted for President McCain’s $70 billion supplemental war funding bill to continue the Bush-Cheney slaughter of civilians and promotion of civil war in Iraq and Afghanistan. Grayson was one of 51 decent Democrats and 9 Republicans to vote no on the spending.

I am calling on all genuine progressive Floridians to form a delegation to go to Orlando and meet with Congressman Grayson to persuade him to run for the Democratic Senate nomination. Or meet on your own. We cannot allow war-Democrats Gelber and Meek to get this nomination. We will brainstorm with Alan on how to frame a campaign and suggest the many resources in Florida and nationwide that can form the infrastructure of a winning end-perpetual war campaign. Email me at mwshow@bellsouth.net. We also need to be pressing Gelber and Meek for their positions on Afghanistan. Like the bloggers are saying, it’s time to hold candidates accountable on the critical issues of our time and stop letting them get away with manipulating us with their triple talk hedging and deceit as to their real positions on issues. Exhibit A = Barack Obama. Meek and Gelber, are you for or against an immediate end to the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan?

The expansion of the war on Afghanistan by the feckless Obama is pointless and absurd. Last week, Obama’s forces committed the largest civilian slaughter of the entire war, killing over 100 civilians including 97 children by one new account. If you are confused by the Pentagon’s psychological operations denying the high numbers and blaming the rest on the Taliban (it’s always someone else’s fault, isn’t it), given the credible non-military accounts of the U.S. nighttime aerial bombing raid on several villages, you are naive, or just young.

McCain was right about 50 years in Afghanistan, the now eight year old war will not end until the U.S. gets out and allows the balance of forces and interests within Afghanistan to find an equilibrium that the U.S. is denying the country with its artificial imperial presence. The war against the Taliban is nonsense when you know that Reagan helped form and finance their predecessor Mujahadeen and Clinton had every top Taliban government official on the U.S. payroll into 1999. Even if the Taliban were to retake power in our absence (not at all a probability), it is a simple matter to get them to prohibit Al Qaeda from maintaining bases in the country with U.S. financing to enforce it. Better yet, we should arrange a quiet, informal peace agreement with Al Qaeda under which they halt attacks on the U.S. mainland and we stop financing and supporting the authoritarian governments oppressing their political movements in their native countries which are none of our arrogant business anyway.

Florida's Emerging Progressive Supernova

2009-10-01T11:15:00.000-04:00

Insidious Privatization and Tolling of Our Roads; Afghanistan, Vietnam and ACORN

2009-09-26T11:22:00.001-04:00

Obama rapidly sinking in AfPakistan quicksand: the chilling repetition of Vietnam; Also, guest is Gina Downs of the Citizens Transportation Coalition in Naples, a national expert on the highway privatization scam that is selling off America’s public tax-payer built roads to corporations who then set up tolls and squeeze more profits out of us victims. Gina’s fighting the privatization of Alligator Ally on I-75; Also, former ACORN organizer Weaver, who helped sell boys into prostitution to build up their college tuition funds …. hey, just goofing, takes a look at how the Right has been working for years to destroy ACORN because it is organizing low and moderate income people to challenge corporate price setting power. We also look at the ILLEGAL recording antics of “the prostitute and her pimp” (who complained to Rutgers U. administrators that the elf on the Luck Charms cereal in the cafeteria was an anti-Irish stereotype) and the need for a management overhaul at ACORN to save and strengthen America’s largest community organizing group.

Statement on Obama's Pseudo Health Reform

2009-09-25T13:08:00.001-04:00

The following is the original text of my “Statement on Health Pseudo Reform” delivered to the American people on the September 12th Mark Weaver Show

At its core the health “reform” spectacle we are witnessing – the town hall thuggery, the blatant lying, most notably of the woman who came within six percentage points and a heart attack of the presidency, the insult on the floor of the House by its #1 recipient of health industry money, the telling $150 million ad campaign of the price gouging pharmaceutical industry FOR reform, the preposterous shut out of single player advocates from the discussions, to the Blue Dog and Gang of Six insurance industry shills to the industry shmucking president and his resulting conflated messages to the nightmare patchwork of the emerging bill itself – is a war by the medical industry to maintain its hegemonic pricing power over our healthcare. And guess who is going to win.
Every event of this spectacle, every one, can be explained by this motive. It explains the emerging bill itself.
At its core the reforms preserve the main (though not only) cause of all our problems – the superfluous middle man health insurance industry with its high administrative overhead to fight billing claims, pay multimillion dollar executive salaries, stock dividends and profit margins. Eliminating this overhead is the Big Enchilada of health reform. It cuts costs $350 billion a year on wasteful paperwork alone, enough to cover all the uninsured and reduce premiums. All the squabbling about deficit neutrality and whether insurance subsidies should cost $88 or 90 or $120 billion a year is a false debate derived from the war to maintain the profiteering insurance industry. The U.S. is the ONLY country in the world, the only one, that allows a for-profit health insurance industry. This is the primary reason we pay the highest health care costs in the world. America is a country where a super powerful industry exploits its citizenry and President Obama is actively perpetuating that.

The verdict is still out on this health reform. We’re at S in the alphabet of the process and all the issues have yet to be decided. We know the broad outlines but the actual working system that is enacted is still unknowable. Even then, how the details are filled in over the next few years by the administration and how they are actually implemented will determine the fate of reform. Even then, the system is so complex that it will take several years after they go into effect in 2013, that’s right, none of this is going into effect for over three years, to know how things are working themselves out. We won’t know til 2015 if this was worth it.

But we do know that the improvements being proposed in this rapacious dysfunctional system have to be looked at in light of the directive to preserve this system of exploitation of our need for health. And there are some major major improvements. The insurance companies will no longer be able to reject people with pre-existing conditions, cancel them when they get too sick or jack up their premiums as you get older. There will be no more annual or lifetime limits on the payout of a policy if you get desperately ill. The House plan slaps a $5,000 annual maximum on an individual policy for out of pocket expenses. That means if you get cancer, the most you’ll pay in one year is five grand. This is all very big stuff. But there’s a catch, as there is with everything in this ticking time bomb of pseudo reform. These new claims and bigger insurance payouts are going to cost the insurance companies money and they will add these to everybody’s premiums. Nothing in the “reforms” controls the premiums the insurers can charge.
But wait, you say, astutely pointing out that millions of uninsured healthy people will now be required to buy insurance, that adds billions to the premium pool which will cover the costs of the ill and older. Don’t bet on it. The medical industry is riddled with greedy predators who know, who sense, who smell that a sick person is easy prey to charge what the market will bear, which is increasingly without limit. Just talk to the 900,000 victims of medical bankruptcy in this country each year, a phenomenon unheard of in most of the world. Fortunately, the reforms are going to dramatically reduce these bankruptcies. But the insurance industry is going to roll all these higher payouts into its rates. Premiums may actually go up under Obamacare, which is why it all comes down to the public option, how strong it is and how much pricing pressure it can put on the private insurance companies to curb their profits and executive salaries and dividends. The public option is on the ropes and even if it survives it will be too weak to reign in the insurance companies. The Blue Dogs have already forced the House plans to increase Medicare payments to doctors from Medicare plus 5%, which might have been reasonable, to whatever they can negotiate for new rates, which wipes out most of any pricing reductions in the public option. As we watch the public option/ insurance cooperatives debate unfold, remember, it’s all about the pricing power of the medical industry, to what extent there is going to be downward pressure on their pricing power – how much private insurance will cost us and how much the government is going to have to fork over to the insurance companies for the subsidies.
In a deeper sense, the predation of the medical industry is THE crux of the health reform spectacle. The shocking thing about Obamacare is that it is NOT going to substantially reduce the bloated costs that everyone says are the core of the problem. Obama admitted as much in his address to Congress. The only cost reduction number he cited was a one-tenth of one percent reduction per year in the rate of cost increases. Why? As with everything with these reforms, the answer is that the reforms are centered around preserving the profiteering medical industries.
While there are some long term cost reduction mechanisms in the bills, they don’t amount to much. Electronic medical records will take ten years to phase in but won’t cut costs that much. Malpractice tort reform, if it is ever meaningfully enacted over the campaign contributions of the Democratic Party trial lawyer lobby, would help, but it’s not among the really big contributors to the price of health care.
Obamacare will leave intact the 30% administrative paperwork overhead for filing claims with 1300 different insurance companies. The average doctor will still spend $64,000 a year on medical billing and hire one and a half clerks to do it. It’d be insane if it didn’t make perfect sense for the insurance industry. VERYTHING about health reform revolves around preserving the money making power of the medical industry.
Take the pharmaceutical industry. Obama negotiated a secret deal with them, despite his campaign promise to make the health reform process transparent. They’re gonna give a 50% discount to people in the ridiculous Medicare part D “doughnut” hole, that political compromise under W whereby people with moderately high drug expenses have to pay out of pocket but if your drug costs are lower or catastrophic you’re covered. Finally you’re gonna get a 50% break. That’s going to cost Big Pharma $8 billion a year. But Obamacare does NOTHING else to cut overpriced drug costs and profiteering. Nothing. Obama negotiated away the most important drug reform of all, allowing Medicare, and any public option, to negotiate volume discounts with the drug companies. The $8 billion “concession” by this price gouging industry that gets away with charging us far more for drugs than the same drugs cost in other countries is only point two percent of their annual revenue. That’s .2%.
Hospital costs? The industry has “promised” to pursue cost cuts of $15 billion a year, not much in the giant industry. It sounds good, but most of that will come from a decrease in the charity care it has to provide at discount or no cost to the uninsured and others who can’t pay their bills. This is an improvement in the insane system of tacking charity care costs onto paying patients and insurance bills. But its cost shifting to the government and people forced to buy insurance now. The reforms do little, other than some pilot programs which Medicare and Aid have been running for decades looking for more efficient ways of doing things, to ring the profiteering out of the for profit hospital and non profit act alike industry.
Most importantly, reform does not create the push needed for hospitals and doctors to move away from the gouging “fee for service” private practice system to integrated systems like the Mayo and Cleveland Clinics where doctors work for the organization and are paid annual salaries and collaborate on diagnoses and care. It takes the pressure off doctors to nickel and dime patients and insurance companies to cobble together an income. These clinics rank the highest in the quality ratings and the lowest in costs. It’s an essential reform. Many many experts say so, but it’s not in the “reform”.
Despite all these problems, the reforms are going to put a big dent in the number of uninsured, although they are probably only going to increase the number of insured people from 85% of the population now, to about 94%. Six percent are still going to fall through the cracks and they’ll still be going to emergency rooms and getting charity care which will get rolled into insurance rates. Still tens of millions of people are going to be added to the insurance rolls. There’s going to be a dramatic expansion of Medicaid to people making 130% of the poverty level. And there are billions of dollars in subsidies to lower income people making more than that to help them afford insurance.
All this is very good, but it’s unnecessary if we went to single payer and this is what’s so disturbing about Obamacare, like I keep saying, it’s all about preserving the profiteering. All of these subsidies are going to be paid to the insurance companies. It’s a massive transfer of wealth from taxpayers to the insurance companies, the insurance companies with no price controls, the continuing 30% administrative waste, the bloated executive pay and the dividends. It’s insane. That’s why its important to watch who is going to pay for all of this. All Obama has committed to is taxing high end insurance plans. There’s still a gaping hole in the financing and there will be a big fight over who plugs it.
Why did Obama sell us out on all this? The drug industry agreed to spend $150 million of pro-reform advertising. It’s in their interest, not yours. Think of how many billions they’re going to make from the newly insured, much of which will come from the taxpayers in the subsidies. Obama’s deal is no deal. It’s a pathetic give away. If I had an agent bargaining for me like that I’d fire him, and sue him for malpractice. But the deeper reason Obama caved is that by keeping the industry flush it won’t spend hundreds of millions next year trying to defeat Democratic congressmembers, or Obama in 2012. And that illustrates the sickness of our political system, that they are able to get a way with that threat.
This gets us to the heart of America’s pseudo democracy. Why was Big Pharma and Big Insurance and Big Hospital Corporate Nursing Homes and Big Diagnostics and the AMA able to get away with all of this? It’s because they and the other financial titans – Wall Street, the giant corporations, the media corporations – have near total control of our society. We live in a corporate dictatorship and their domination is so pervasive that many of you reading this don’t even realize it, especially the ones who dumped this essay when it got too “militant” for them. These economic behemoths have no competitor to challenge their power in elections. They can pump billions into campaigns of their shill candidates like Bill Nelson and Kendrick Meek while the conservative corporate media brainwash the electorate into industry complicity, lead by the loud mouth wingnut TV and radio hosts. They have half the Senate and half of the House. Wanna run for Congress? Just make the rounds of the big business groups, shill for them and bingo you’ve funded your campaign.They own this sycophant president and they also have the Supreme Court including Sonia Sotomayor, who doesn’t have the vision let alone will to advocate powerfully for constitutional restraints on the unfettered political power of the giant corporations, which is to be expected from an appointee of this corporate stooge of a president.

UN Investigators Accuse Israel of War Crims in Gaza

2009-09-19T09:11:00.001-04:00

UN accuses Israel of pervasive war crimes and violations of humanitarian law during Gaza assault, it's time to suspend U.S. military aid to Israel. We review Florida Democrats such as U.S. Senate nominee-designate Kendrick Meek's venal cheerleading for those crimes-in-progress last January; We need to shut down the vile Rush, Glenn, Savage, Sean + with massive boycotts; Left needs to buy TV network, radio stations and newspapers, otherwise we'll remain caught in the loop of getting beat up year after year after year by the Right. Iraqi shoe thrower tells of American destruction his shoes walked upon; Roosevelt and Obama; Great news! House ends student loan subsidy give-aways to private lenders and socializes student loans: Socialism on the march!!!;

Offshore Oil Drilling, Obamacare Preserves Industry Profiteering and 911 Denial

2009-09-12T10:57:00.001-04:00

Guest is Adam Rivera of Environment Florida telling us everything we don't want to know about offshore oil drilling.

The 911 memorials we saw across the nation on Friday, and the media coverage of them, were sickening in their obliviousness to the Pentagon killing operations in Muslim countries that provoked the attacks, portraying America as a blameless victim of sociopathic criminal terrorist attacks. In reality, our 3000 dead were victims of the bipartisan imperialist U.S. foreign policy that props up authoritarian dictatorships in scores of countries around the world and runs killing operations against opposition groups such as the fundamentalist Islamic groups being violently shut out of political influence in their native countries, with U.S. financing, arms and training support. What goes around comes around, huh? Also, my Statement on Pseudo Health Reform: all the reforms are centered on preserving the pricing power of the medical industries, which explains the convolutions to achieve a few improvements against a backdrop of continued exploitation and price gouging of Americans for their most-expensive-in-the-world health care.

Dramatization of a CIA Sadistic Interrogation!

2009-09-05T12:37:00.000-04:00

Re-enactment of a CIA sadistic interrogation: part of our "You were there" series. Hypocritical anti-war Democrats desert Cindy Sheehan and movement now that war president is a Democrat. 216,000 more Out of Work as real unemployment pushes 17% and Obama is failing on job creation. Last decade in Arctic warmest in 1900 years. Obama mortgage rescue plan failing as banks stonewall and Administration too weak to confront them. (Geez, Rush is getting his wish, Obama IS failing!) Netanyahu gives the weak Obama and EU the finger and approves hundreds of new homes in West Bank. Jewish Left says it's time for boycott, disinvestment and sanctions on Israel.

My 30 Minutes with Teddy at the Biltmore Hotel

2009-08-29T12:33:00.002-04:00

My 30 minutes with Teddy at the Biltmore Hotel. Feingold 1st Senator to call for Afghan exit as poll majorities now say war not worth it. Shocking: Chancellor Obama retains Bush rendition and border laptop/camera/Ipod search policies. Mexico decriminalizes drugs. Housing prices(and bad mortgages)turn around as recovery gains surprising steam. I finally review Oliver Stone's hoot of a film: W.

Feingold Says: Out of Afghanistan

2009-08-28T14:02:00.003-04:00

I disagree with some of this. Still too timid. He still buys (partly) into neocon stereotypes and assumptions, thus undercutting his own position. There isn't a question about this; we need to be out in 12 months. Still, I see a president here. Don't you? Feingold 2012!

Out of Afghanistan!

2009-08-24T10:10:00.003-04:00

As you watch this, take notes. Then organize four people to meet with your congressmember and Senator. Ask them to stop voting for Afghanistan war funding and to sponsor a resolution directing the President to extricate all U.S. combat forces from Afghanistan within 12 months. Then call the show some Saturday morning and tell us how it went. Then recruit a good candidate to challenge the recalcitrant in their primary next year.

Democrats' Massachusetts Health Model No Good

2009-08-22T10:00:00.005-04:00

Guest is Dr. Rachel Nardin, Prof. of Neurology at Harvard Medical School talking about the failures of the Massachusetts health reform on which Obamacare is based. Floridians in poll back "government run" healthcare 58-34%. Brits defend their National Health Service. Also, Afghan elections deepen quagmire. Oceans hit record temp. Chinese communist workers revolting against privatization!

Four Questions for "U.S. Senator" Kendrick Meek

2009-08-20T12:51:00.001-04:00

(Note: this is a commentary, not a show link).

Here’s the final question you should be asking Kendrick Meek (and the rest of our congressional delegation): With the extremist right wing leadership of Israel threatening massive bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities within months, including those in its capital city, using American weaponry bought with my tax dollars, an attack many experts say would be only partially effective due to the underground sites and would set back Iran’s nuclear program only several years and require recurring bombings into the future, unite the Iranian people behind the conservative regime just when Iranian politics are evolving beyond the revolutionary radicalism of 1979, and launch a major cross-border war in the Middle East that could dwarf the insular Iraq and Afghanistan invasions and subject the Israeli people to missile strikes, death and destruction, and result in disruption of oil production and transport through the Strait of Hormuz, which could cause $200 or more per barrel oil, $6 a gallon gasoline and possible shortages and gasoline lines that I will have to wait in, and probably draw the United States into its third war of aggression within eight years at great expense on top of our $1.8 trillion annual deficit, which will further enrage world opinion against the United States and increase the danger of revenge attacks within my country, leading to the continuing erosion of my civil liberties and trillions of dollars more spent on militarization, why are you cosponsoring the Iran Refined Petroleum Sanctions Act of 2009 (H.R. 2194) which would embargo imports of refined petroleum into Iran, which to be successful would require interception of cargo ships approaching Iran, which would probably trigger armed clashes in the Persian Gulf, as a deliberate policy of shutting down Iranian transportation, industry, electricity generation, home heating and food production, which, according to numerous observers, would result in mass unemployment, hunger, hardships such as living without electricity or heat in the cold Iranian winters, and even death; which is essentially a declaration of war on Iran; why are you cosponsoring this act aimed at shutting down Iran’s uranium enrichment program, which is a country’s right under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty it has signed, when the act says nothing about curbing Israel’s illicit nuclear arsenal of several hundred warheads or address its failure to join the Nonproliferation treaty or submit to any of the international inspections you unilaterally demand of Iran or address Israeli’s continuing illegal land confiscations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, even in the face of requests by President Obama to cease, let alone address the now-documented war crimes Israel committed against hundreds of civilians in Gaza using weapons you yourself have voted to provide with my tax dollars, why are you not instead sponsoring a resolution to demand that Israel not attack Iran and be subject to a cutoff of U.S. military aid if it does so?

For background on Iran, check out the Mark Weaver Show site and search “Iran”

Third question for you to ask Meek: Why aren’t you cosponsoring the Fair Elections Now Act for strong public funding and media vouchers for congressional campaigns? Alan Grayson, Suzanne Kosmas and 75 others are. The health industry is flooding the air waves with hundreds of millions of dollar of advertising, most of it supporting (or should I say “buying”) watered down reforms that preserve industry price setting power. If congressmembers weren’t so afraid of big money going against them next year, they’d be fighting for real reform.

Note: these questions aren’t just for Kendrick Meek, they’re for all of Florida’s not-so-progressive Democratic congressional delegation (with the exception of Alan Grayson).

By the way, why is our fire breathing liberal Robert Wexler AWOL on this? I keep telling you, he postures as a great liberal, but he falls flat. Where are the rest of them? Debbie Schultz is no surprise, just another in her long list of rightish positions on important things.

Health reform? Here’s an excerpt from the Aug 1st Mark Weaver Show interview with Tallahassee M.D. Raymond Bellamy of Physicians for a National Health Program.

Here’s the 2nd of four: why didn’t you join the Progressive Caucus?

Answer: if you don’t like his answer, time to start shopping around for a real progressive Senator. I still think Matt Damon should be approached.

Here’s the first of four questions you should ask Democratic Senate nominee Kendrick Meek: Why aren’t you opposing the expansion of the war in Afghanistan? which is now costing taxpayers $1 billion a week when we have a trillion dollar deficit, Florida’s infrastructure is crumbling, and we can’t come up with enough money for health reform, when 54% of the public opposes the war in the new CNN poll and only 44% support it, there is continuing billions dollar contractor fraud, waste and abuse in the country, the Taliban had no knowledge of or direct relationship with 9/11 and were even being salaried by the Clinton administration until 1999, the 911 plot was carried out from Al Qaeda “bases” in Florida and Hamburg, Al Qaeda soldiers are now dispersing to new “bases” in Tajikistan, Somalia, Yemen, Algeria and other countries, not to mention that the eight year old invasion is taking twice as long as it took to defeat both Hitler and Imperial Japan, not to mention killing and maiming increasing numbers of our troops and thousands of Afghanistan civilians and independence fighters which is generating more hatred of the U.S. and motivating further terror attacks inside the U.S. which is further destroying our civil liberties, driving the politics of this country to the right and bleeding our economy with trillions of avoidable security spending?

Answer: you won’t get one, just vague deflections, unless you are highly informed on these issues and actually pin the guy. I regard the Florida gubernatorial and U.S. Senate races as a joke. It is an outrage that two utterly conventional Establishment party figures are allowed to walk away with such important nominations without any sort of competition or meaningful discussion.

Iraq, Sex, Drugs, Rock, Roll and Woodstock

2009-08-15T09:39:00.002-04:00

Certain to be one of the best Mark Weaver Shows of the year, the show starts with a wonderful "you were there" reliving of Woodstock 40 years ago today by journalist Julie Klein. But the show stealer is one of the best interviews I have ever done, as New York Stonybrook State University sociology professor Michael Schwartz regales us for an hour and a half on the shocking neo-colonization of Iraq by the U.S. The breadth and depth of Schwartz' knowledge of Iraq is breathtaking, but in a nutshell, the Obama administration is attempting to consolidate and perpetuate a U.S. client government that will implement U.S. economic and foreign policies in Iraq through U.S. civilian administrative control of Iraqi society down to candidate recruitment and funding, the school curriculum and neoliberal privatization policies, all designed to perpetuate a client government in the country "freely" elected by the Iraqis. So far the Iraqis have refused to enact the famous oil law that the U.S., and recently Biden, have pushed to open the oil industry to international oil companies and increase oil production to challenge OPEC and drive down the price of oil to benefit Western economic interests. All other oil rich Middle Eastern countries maintain state control of their oil industries with revenue financing the government. Schwartz expects the U.S. to maintain five "core" bases in Iraq with perhaps 50,000 troops over the long run, despite public rhetoric to the contrary. The military presence will maintain U.S. influence on the government and provide forward basing for U.S. operations against Iran and other Middle Eastern hot spots. He thinks Prime Minister al Maliki will eventually "ask for", under U.S. pressure, for a re-neogitation of the Status of Forces Agreement, whose referendum requirement has already been violated. Watch for a re-negotiation of the SOFA come summer 2011, or sooner if Israel bombs Iran and Obama uses the war as a pretext to maintain U.S. bases in Iraq. This is a show you should revisit in two years, if you can remember that long (make a note) to see how correct our analysis of these things is.

Health "Reform" Shows Need for Public Financing of Elections

2009-08-08T11:28:00.002-04:00

How to deal with the right wing town hall Brown Shirt thugs. Medical industry's co-option of reform legislation dramatizes the dire need for public financing of congressional elections. Guests are U.S. Public Interest Research Group's Campaign finance advocate Lisa Gilbert and Healthcare Advocate Larry McNeely talking about the role of insurance money in the current fight and the status of the public campaign finance bill. Late in show, anonymous genius from Minnesota calls and regales us with brilliant encyclopedic knowledge of the U.S. healthcare system. Recession ending this summer but unemployment up (247,000) to 9.7% and years long recovery expected. Real rate (U6) dips to 16.5%.

Democrats' Emerging Healthcare Fiasco, Part I

2009-08-05T13:09:00.001-04:00

Note: this is a commentary, not a link to a show.

If you look closely, real closely, at the emerging Democratic healthcare “reforms”, you’re going to get nervous and you should become alarmed. The system in creation is a dysfunctional patchwork nightmare of unneccessary, over-bureaucratized, over-regulatory, mandates, tax subsidies to profitmaking insurance companies, penalties and fines, about which in part II in a few days. There is now a growing possibility that the plan has become so convoluted it will collapse under its own weight come the congressional vote. If it does pass, and the momentum is still in its favor, although the politicking of the August recess will probably determine its fate, we appear to be getting a system that is marginally improved for everyday people but so full of dysfunctions that the system will be an operational nightmare that might even fail and also be open to political attack from the right. This raises a central question for the Left now: do we continue to support reform for the sake of reform and push for the strongest public option, little of which is now even left, and other features or do we join the Republicans, for opposite reasons, and kill this monstrosity before it is born and start from scratch with a simple, efficient, elegant single payer plan. Ironically, regardless of what we do, this might be where events take us anyway.

And here’s another reason to be alarmed. These Rube Goldbergian health bills are everything the Right has always bashed the liberals for, discredited the liberal label and enabled them to dominate American politics for the past 30 years. The liberals are repeating that part of their history that discredited them and this could wreck the Democratic Party in the coming elections and make Obama a one-termer. But maybe that would be a good thing so that enough people are finally shocked into understanding how corporate liberalism keeps the Democratic Party stuck in a decades long cycle of arguing marginal issues with the Republican corporate party which results in see saw elections determined by a couple of percentage points or even the Supreme Court, or whether or not there’s an economic collapse at the time of the election. Maybe a collapse of the Democratic Party is what it is going to take for a progressive reformation within the party, or the ascendancy of the Green Party.

You can hear the discussion of these issues on this week’s Mark Weaver Show, Aug 1, now archived, with guest Tallahassee surgeon Raymond Bellamy of Physicians for a National Health Program.

The deeper I looked at the emerging legislation, the more it didn’t make sense. I swear. I didn’t realize what a mess it is. The impression I had had from the TV reports and cursory readings of the news articles was that we were on track for a much better, more coherent healthcare system. But we’re not. It didn’t make sense. How could these intelligent people be doing this? Slowly I had a revelation, that the reasons behind most of these absurdities wasn’t rational public policy, because it’s not rational, but politicized compromises designed to preserve almost in totality the for-profit middleman health insurance in this country that adds 30% to health costs in unnecessary adminstration and large profit margins , the only one in the world, I’ve heard, while trying to mitigate all of the problems this superfluous brokerage system has caused.

The responsibility for all of this, and the way out of it, lies with President Obama. Healthcare is one-sixth of the economy. This is a reform of historic proportions. It’s a major major effort and it’s hard. It requires a President in charge. Dr. Bellamy pointed out in my interview that Obama’s mistake was to hand health reform over to the congressional committees with little guidance. I agree. Congressional committees are parochial fiefdoms involved in turf wars and ego battles and subject to excessive influence from the business interests that fund their campaigns. A big issue like this requires strong, LBJ style unifying leadership from a President, and specifically a moderately detailed vision from the president of a future healthcare system. Obama has made the exact opposite of the mistake the Clintons made: they presented an overly detailed plan, derived in secrecy, to congress as a fait accompli.

And the vision Obama should have proferrered is single payer. Forget whether single payer is passable. It’s irrelevant. It should have been the foundation for the congressional negotiations. Far better for the nation through the media to have debated, and to have made compromises to a single payer plan, no matter how stinky they may have been to a lot of us, than to bargain away what the Democrats are in the process of bargaining away, whatever that was to begin with. Actually, the House, with strong LBJ leadership, could probably pass single payer by a narrow majority vote. How much better off we would have been, can you imagine?, if the conference negotiations this fall had been over a Senate filibuster-compromised for-profit system and a House socialized system. If health reform collapses we must besiege Obama to start over again along these lines, although that won’t happen. If everday people are to curb corporate power to set high prices for basic needs it is essential to have a strong, principled, committed leader as president. This sycophant Obama is not capable of that and we’re not going to change his personality. It is the great tragedy of his presidency and our country that he arrived at precisely the historic moment when genuine progressive reforms on the order of the Reagan revolution could have been enacted.

Democrats' Crazy Convoluted Health Reforms

2009-08-01T12:51:00.003-04:00

Col. Reese memo: mission FINALLY accomplished, we can get out of Iraq within a year. Obama's destructive drone war in Pakistan often kills more civilians than fighters, generates enemies and must be stopped.

Guest is Dr. Raymond Bellamy of Physicians for National Health Program. With the conflicted Democratic Party, under the weak center-right neo-liberal leadership of President Obama, unable to challenge the superfluous profiteering middle-man health insurance lobby, the party is in danger of settling for piece meal reforms that leave the fundamental problems of our dysfunctional healthcare system in tact. This week’s Show features Tallahassee orthopedic surgeon Raymond Bellamy of Physicians for a National Health Program deconstructing the emerging health reforms such as the continuing illogic of mandating (with penalties) employer and individual health insurance, the cost inflating fee-for-service system, the problems with health insurance cooperatives and an enfeebled “public option” that won’t be able to “compete” with for-profit insurance companies and complicated subsidies, subsidies and more subsidies. All of these convoluted acrobatics to avoid a fight with the insurance industry, while still getting it, create lines of attack for the Republicans and others who want to preserve the privileges of the few in the current system.

Palestinian Suffering and the Democratic Party

2009-07-18T10:47:00.003-04:00

The Gaza Blockade 101, Palestinian suffering and the Democratic Party. Conservatives dominate Sotomayor hearings while passive visionless Dems lay low when they could be pushing her on civil liberties, corporate dominance and populist election reform. Sonar killing whales. Ocean acidification. Goldman Sachs bandits resume looting you.

Guest is Phyllis Bennis, Director of the New Internationalism Project of the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C. explaining the Israeli-Egyptian blockade of Gaza, which is a deliberate policy of enforced hunger, poverty and suffering on Gaza’s population in an attempt to overthrow the 2006 Palestinian elections.

Shocking! Florida Congresswoman Debbie Schultz goes on TO to side with Netanyahu, not Obama, on no-two states and more settlements in recent White House meeting.

How To Win an Argument on Afghanistan

2009-07-14T10:07:00.003-04:00

Warmonger: The Taliban oppress women so we have to fight them.
You: Malalai Joya, the Afghan women's rights leader, says the main reason for the oppression of women now is the Northern Alliance fundamentalists, who are mentally the same as the Taliban but physically different, who have come to power.

The Saudi Arabian dictatorship prohibits women from driving and requires them to get the permission of their male possessor to work. Sudan publicly flogs women who wear pants. When did you say were you enlisting to invade and overthrow these two dictatorships?

Warmonger: The Taliban are brutal thugs. They publicly flog women who violate their strict religious morality. They murder girls who go to school or throw acid in their faces.
You: These are relatively isolated incidents by extremist factions and criminal rogue individuals in the Taliban. Many Taliban condemn these excesses and support the right of women to education. You distort and exaggerate incidents like these to mislead people and justify your own killing of Afghans. Shame on you.

The Northern Alliance fundamentalists are U.S. "allies" and part of the new Aghan government. The group is responsible for murdering about 2000 Taliban prisoners of war they captured in 2001 by suffocating them in airtight shipping containers and firing bullets into them. Saudi Arabia beheads people. Singapore whips people in multiple sessions with canes soaked in water for maximum effect, often to the point of unconsciousness. So you are calling for invasions of Saudi Arabia and Singapore?

Warmonger: If we don't destroy the Pakistani Taliban, they're going to take over the country and get control of the nukes.
You: The Taliban control less than five percent of Pakistan territory, in the traditionally independent Pashtun tribal areas of western Pakistan. They have virtually no support in the rest of the country which is not Pashtun, not fundamentalist and is even secular. The chances of the Taliban taking over the country are just another disingenuous paranoid scare tactic you use to justify your destructive wars. Shame on you for misleading people.

Worse, your attacks in Pakistan are creating hatred of the United States and threatening to divide the Pakistani army into pro-Taliban and anti-Taliban camps, which would seriously destabilize the country. While the Taliban aren't going to take over the central government, other factions might. You are creating the nightmare you claim to avoid. You are endangering the security of the United States homeland and the future of my children with your policies. Stop it.

Biden Greenlights Israeli Bombing of Iran; Left Revolt Brewing in Democratic Party

2009-07-11T10:40:00.005-04:00

Biden green lights Israeli bombing of Iran in major step toward Iran War; Mullen says it would "destabilize"; feckless Obama must say NO to Israeli extremists but instead is encouraging them. Also, Al Qaeda in Mahgreb ups Africa attacks and threatens attacks in European countries sending troops to Afghanistan. Environmentalists and Hip Hoppers souring on Obama, joining anti-war movement and gays as left revolt brews in Democratic Party. History repeats with Fort Worth gay bar brown shirt raid on anniversary of Stonewall raid.

Exiled in My Own Country on America's 233rd Birthday

2009-07-04T10:50:00.003-04:00

Patriotic 4th of July extravaganza! Why I have become an exile in my own country and am unable to "celebrate" today. America at 233, a nation in decline and evolving into a police state with the highest incarceration rate in the world, dominated by military and financial oligarchies who now wage endless wars of aggression against foreign peoples and manipulate government regulation, avoid taxation and use taxpayer funds to enrich themselves while their reckless greed has thrown 6.5 million people out of work and a lackey president and a rotted complicit Democratic Party facilitate it all while falsely posturing as an opposition party. Original description: Celebrate the 16.5% unemployment rate and the 50 million uninsured. Celebrate Obama's assault on South Afghanistan and the death, maiming and destruction the good ole USA reigns down today -- the worst since Bush firebombed Fallujah in '04. Celebrate the 3 million refugees Obama's driven from their homes in Pakistan. Celebrate the Wall Street oligarchy's domination of the economy: special report on how Goldman Sachs Democrat-Republicans control the U.S. government and how they're going to get rich off cap and trade while you pay them with higher energy prices.

Criminal Justice Reform Wave Builds

2009-06-27T12:53:00.001-04:00

Eyewitness story of Stonewall Inn gay riots 40 years ago this week that led to nationwide wave of organizing in following months. Criminal justice reform wave building. Obama's timid liberalism. Teaching empathy. Raise the gas tax! Stop the oil speculation!

Orlando Congressman Emerges as Anti-War Leader

2009-06-16T15:07:00.004-04:00

Guest is Congressman Alan Grayson (Orlando), Florida's Ned Lamont and the ONLY Floridian voting NO on continued funding of Obama's wars on Iraq and Afghanistan, talking about an exit strategy for the 8 year war and the politics of extrication from quagmire. Grayson reveals that he is the #1 target of the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee next year in the 8th district with a 2,000 Republican registration edge which he won last year from four term incumbment Ric Keller 52-48% in a self-financed campaign. Grayson says the U.S. is squandering trillions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of lives fighting 800 foreign Al Qaeda and other global jihadists in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Also, latest quadrennial National Intelligence Council concludes U.S. power in decline and nothing we can or should do about it as Earth shifts to multi-polar world with regional powers like Brazil, Iran, China, Russia and India asserting order in their spheres.

And, Florida and Obama Feds launch largest operation yet in war on drugs, arresting 144 people in raids in all 67 Florida counties on residential grow houses. In biggest crime of all they seize 15 children from their parents and put them in state custody.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) Calls for Legalizing Drugs

2009-05-30T15:24:00.000-04:00

Guest is Neill Franklin of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) on legalizing marijuana, cocaine and heroin!

Not acceptable: Obama's corporate litigator, prosecutor, bad tempered, conservative-enabling Supreme Court nominee. Special report on Israeli Settlements: Obama actually talking tough for once. Energy efficient passive buildings.

Sadistic Interrogation

2009-05-27T10:59:00.003-04:00

This is one of the three reasons why there has to be an independent commission (retired judges?) to investigate the Bush, Cheney, Yoo and Company, CIA sadistic interrogation practices. #1 is they probably committed illegal acts and if we are a civilized country that goes by rule of law, well ..... #2 is there has to be an investigation and probable prosecution to draw the line in the sand to future thugs and fascists that this won't be tolerated, it's essential to retaining our national identity and stopping the slide into fascism and #3, like she says, those torture memos were just the authorizing legalese, we still don't know what REALLY happened and it is probable that other abuses occurred beyond those authorized in the memos, and the tactics authorized were probably exceeded in many instances.

No Comment II

2009-05-25T13:38:00.002-04:00

Conservative Host Plays Back MW Show Soundbites

2009-05-25T12:58:00.000-04:00

Hollywood, Florida conservative internet radio host David Allen (Independent Politic, 7pm weekdays) kills time editing 23 soundbites out of my show on Obama's Four Wars (Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Terror) nonsense, plays em back on his May 25th show .... and comments.

Allen's show gets off to a slow start with a lot of plugs and treading water but kicks into high gear after five or ten minutes and goes on for a riveting two hours. While some of his excerpts take me out of context and he at times distorts what I had meant, he does make a good faith effort to comment on my actual views. This isn't a disingenuous hatchet job.

Fascinating radio.

Guantanamo, Medical Marijuana, Obama's Two Million Pakistan Refugees & Black Homophobia

2009-05-23T09:23:00.000-04:00

Guest is Kim Russell of People United for Medical Marijuana discussing Florida's initiative campaign. Obama's 2 million Pakistan refugee disaster & argument with Florida conservative talk host David Allen. Only 6 at Guantanamo are 911 involved. Netanyahu calls Obama "childish and stupid" after Oval Office talks. Black homophobia.

Obama's Vietpakistan Disaster

2009-05-16T12:18:00.001-04:00

Forget the first 100 days, it took 120 for Republican President Obama to blunder into his first major disaster. First, U.S. troops bombed over 100 civilians to death in Afghanistan, the largest civilian slaughter of the eight year old war. Next, Obama, Holbrook and Company coerced the Pakistani military into launching a major offensive against the Taliban, driving 1.5 million Pakistanis from their homes in the largest internal migration in the history of Pakistan. Meanwhile, Florida Rep. Alan Grayson is the first to break ranks on the Afghanistan war and votes NO on the $70 billion Obama war supplemental. Weaver endorses Grayson for the U.S. Senate nomination.

Guest is Robert Naiman of Just Foreign Policy, who deconstructs Obama's Pakistan disaster.

Also, Mark explains the origin of life from ultraviolet light and reports on the ascendant atheist movement in the U.S. More.

Support Deregulation, Vote Republican

2009-05-11T11:33:00.000-04:00

Obama, Healthcare nonreform and Pakistan Quagmire

2009-05-09T12:43:00.003-04:00

Guest is Richard Polangin of Florida Public Interest Research Group talking about the corporate campaign against affordable health care. Obama fomenting civil war in Pakistan, commits largest civilian massacre of Afghan Occupation. Depression of '09 is bottoming out!!!! Happy days are here again.

Florida Dems Pushing War on Iran Again!

2009-05-08T10:06:00.002-04:00

(This is a commentary, not a link to any show).

After their reckless Iran naval blockade resolution backfired last year, Congressmembers Robert Wexler (who had the good sense to revoke his cosponsorship after being exposed by The Mark Weaver Show, although any causal connection is unproven), unrepentant Ron Klein and Republican Gus Bilirakis are pushing war-by-other-means-leading-to-real-war with a “rebranded” act to choke off Iran’s refined petroleum imports. This time around the destructive duo are joined by newly elected Democrat Suzanne Kosmas, who picked up one of two Republican seats in November. Funny how the Democrats keep the perpetual war pipeline full with people who are no better, and often times worse, than the Republicans they replace on the greatest issues of war and peace while diverting funds from the progressive agenda with their bloated military spending.

J Street, the new moderate Jewish lobby (they’re still a tad too center-right for me) formed as a counterweight to the extremist right American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) says the backers of the resolution are trying to “thwart” and “undercut” President Obama’s efforts to negotiate with Iran. The opponents of Obama’s agenda, J Street’s Issac Luria says, “are proposing aggressive new sanctions on Iran just as diplomatic outreach begins …. the Orwellian named “Iran Diplomacy Enhancement Act” was introduced in the House (cosponsored by Kosmas, Klein and Wexler in Florida, among others) - a bill that in reality does nothing to ‘enhance diplomacy’ but instead imposes further sanctions on Iran, directly undercutting the President’s diplomatic message.”

Neoconservative scholar Fred Kagan of the American Enterprise Institute says “Iranians are going to die if we impose additional sanctions.” We can therefore infer that Democrats Kosmas, Klein and Wexler are advocating the killing of Iranian civilians. Kagan, who supports the sanctions, being a neocon, is at least honest. He says there is a “human cost” any time sanctions regimes take away a “vital resource” from a society. A U.S. embargo on spare aircraft parts is already causing an increase in civilian airplane crashes in Iran, so the killing is already underway.

Imagine a Chinese-dominated international embargo on gasoline and jet fuel imports into the U.S. It would drive up prices and wreak havoc in the U.S. Do you think that would drive American public opinion toward war with China?

The Senate version of the Act was introduced by …… are you ready for this? ……. Joe Lieberman. We can therefore infer as we learned in our algebra classes that at least in this critical case Joe Lieberman = Ron Klein = Robert Wexler = Suzanne Kosmas = Florida Neocons in Liberals’ clothing. The House bill is introduced by Republican extremist Mark Kirk (IL). What are these three Florida Democrats doing joining up with Bilirakis, Kirk and Lieberman?

I am heartened to see that there is a growing cry from Rick Spisak, Susan Smith and others of the FPC and other grassroots Florida Democrats for accountability from Democratic politicians and getting them on the record on the major issues.

We need to get Senate candidates Kendrick Meek and Dan Gelber on the record on this. Would they cosponsor or would they vote for Joe Lieberman’s Act? This is the most important vote on Iran so far in 2009. It’s major folks. It could get us into a war with Iran.

You can hear more about the coming war with Iran, along with Obama’s alarming bumbling into a war in Pakistan, on the May 9 Mark Weaver Show — The Leading Edge

These Democrats will probably weasle by telling you that they support Obama’s diplomacy but they want to back him up with the coercion of more sanctions as another “bargaining chip”. Why this is destructive, needless and will probably backfire is the subject of part 2. I heard Wexler tell Nicole Sandler on WINZ last year that if it comes down to it, we should bomb Iran. And of course, not having any political background whatsoever, she left him unchallenged.

The Tragedy of Obama's First 100 Days

2009-05-02T10:01:00.001-04:00

100 Days of Lip Service: The Tragedy of Republican President Obama: No Withdrawal Yet from Iraq, Escalating Afghanistan, Drone Attacks Worsening Pakistani Rebellion, Covering Bankers' Asses and Stalling Recovery, NAFTA Renegotiation Now Off Table, Gays in Military on Back Burner, Mortgage Relief? For it but Didn't Fight ....; also Launching "Mark Weaver Armed Forces Radio!"

Conditions for Normalization of Relations with the U.S.A.

2009-04-26T13:02:00.001-04:00

(This is a commentary that does not link to any show).

With Emperor Obama declaring that “the ball is now in the Castros’ court” after his minimalist token easing of the Bush travel/remittance restrictions on Cuba and demanding that Cuba free all political prisoners, restore freedom of speech and press and end its 20% tax on remittances,

with ever-pandering and behind-the-curve U.S. Senate candidate Kendrick Meek, opposing even these token gestures and running for Senator of Hialeah,

all this despite Monday’s Bendixen poll showing a “stunning change of heart” in CUBAN-AMERICAN attitudes showing 67% approval for totally ending the trade and travel embargo ….

Mark Weaver, host of the explosive Mark Weaver Show, last Saturday (4/18) urged the Castros to hold firm and issued conditions for restoration of diplomatic relations with the U.S. of A.

1) The U.S. must return Guantanamo to Cuba since it is illegally occupying a sovereign nation on land it stole through force of war.
2) The U.S. must restore the freedom of travel to its own people and end their imprisonment north of the Florida Straits.
3) The U.S. must restore habeas corpus rights to all detainees on Cuban territory and at its Bagram prison and other prison sites and release the hundreds of detainees who are believed to have been innocently swept up in the War on Assymetric Tactics.
4) The U.S. must free its own people and establish a single-payer healthcare system that eliminates the predatory extortion and profit making greed of the American medical industry taking advantage of the sick, and re-socialize health personnel to care for the sick out of compassion rather than with Norte Americano dollar signs in their eyes, as Cuba has done.
5) The U.S. shall bring freedom of speech to the American Left who are shut out of any meaningful influence in Americano sociedad by the corporate profit making Mainstream media such as the Miami Heraldo, the Orlando Sentinel and the mere 60 radio stations that Thom Hartmann (the #1 progressive host) is on while Rush Limburger is on 600 stations, which is why people like Trish of the Pensito Review can be be ecstatic over Obama’s tragic minimalist center-right presidency and ready to work hard for his re-election and eight years of tragedy and opportunistic lost opportunities. Cuba will NEVER turn its media over to wealthy ownership and right wing domination.
6) The U.S. shall free the dozens of political prisoners who have been jailed on trumped up charges of “providing material support for terrorism” by making charitable donations to Mid Eastern charities that have working relationships with the elected governing Hamas and Hezbollah Parties of Lebanon and Palestine.
7) The U.S. shall fully fund and socialize its education system from age two through vocational school and college through progressive income taxes, as Cuba has done, giving us the best performing education system in all of Latin America according to the Stanford Professor interviewed last year on the Mark Weaver Show.
Cuba will NEVER end its 20% tax on remittances, dummy! That’s how we fund free health care and education for the people receiving the remittances!

Upon fulfillment of these conditions Cuba will
1) End its trade and travel embargo of the U.S. which has impoverished the Americano people.
2) Graciously allow the U.S. into the Organization of Americano States.
3) free any political prisoners who have not engaged in material violent subterfuge of the Cuban government
4) legalize all political parties and hold free regular elections within the context of a political system of working class control of the media and full public financing of elections based on nonpaid signature gathering with all private contributions over $100 to be banned
5) We might even be willing to work with those Cuban exile families who unfairly had their properties confiscated in the Cuban revolution, but only upon determination that these families had not extorted their properties through coercion and force, stolen them or exploited their employees or previous property owners to gain these properties or used ties with the Bautista dictatorship for same.

Futhermore, upon normalization of relations with the new Socialist States of America, we shall invite Mark Weaver to broadcast his show out of Havana, throw a ticker tape parade down the Malecon for uniting our two nations, and invite him and his friends like Betsy Angert, Benjamin Kirby and other Real Progressives to our finest hotel on our finest beach where they can all sip Mojitos.

U.S. Green Party's Highest Office Holder Talks

2009-04-25T12:41:00.004-04:00

Guests are newly elected (80% win!) Arkansas State Rep. Richard Carroll (Green Party), and Florida Progressive Radio host SINFONIAN talking about his famous Keith Olberman, Pensacola Tea Party crashing video. Weaver joins in with what he would have said. Also, Obama's Pakistan policy eclipsing Iraq as #1 foreign policy disaster. Carbon dioxide causing ocean acidification and killing Florida's reefs. Latest on the New American Police State: Florida Keys teens charged by Taliban prosecutor with felony child porn and facing 15 years for videotaping legal sex in bedroom. Riviera Beach Taliban ban low pants, charge 20 young Black men. Public defender sues for violation of Constitutional First and Fifth Amendment rights.

The Green Party Alternative

2009-04-18T10:04:00.002-04:00

The Bush Torture Memos and Obama's failure to investigate takes us another step toward a police state. Also, U.S. Green Party co-founder Greg Gerritt talking about Green Party campaigns, the war economy, the environment and the economic crisis. Obama's timid liberalism.

New Solar City, Strip Searches, Teenage Sexting, Progressives and Liberals, Afpakistan, Gaza

2009-04-11T11:50:00.002-04:00

Gay film star Jack Wrangler dies; Florida's new "Solar City"; strip searching 13 year olds and D.A. filing pornography charges against teenage "sexters"; Progressives, Liberals, Lies and Democrats; Obama Report -- wading even deeper into Afpakistan quagmire and his Republican-heavy hedge fund Administration; latest on Israel's war crimes in Gaza.

For the second time, Blogtalk censors have taken their axe to my show description. Note how their filter rejected my use of the word pornography in the above description and forced me to change it on blogtalk to "***nography" to get past the filter. Orwellian and Stalinesque, huh? Also stupid.

Boycott the Democratic Party

2009-04-04T12:00:00.003-04:00

Why we must boycott the Democratic Party (except for genuine left candidates): speech to the Florida March for Peace in Melbourne. Guest is march organizer Jeff Nall talking on the anti-war movement. Depression era Bushvilles springing up nationwide, including St. Pete, Florida. Iowa and Sweden legalize gay marriage. Also, despicable Florida Attorney General running campaign ads with taxpayer money that exaggerate online sex predation and foment fear. Breaking news: Timothy Geithner is a Republican.

How Larry Summers Nixed Derivative Regulation in 1998 'Cause It Threatened Profits

2009-03-21T08:54:00.009-04:00

Conficker C may attack computers on April Fool's. Zombie banks, Zombie Democrats, Obama is a zombie, even I was a zombie. Timothy Geithner and the corporate Democrats' role in the floundering mortgage-bank recovery. New book on gays in the military. Latest shocking revelations on Israel's "holy war" in Gaza. Growing threat of a Mideast War as Netanyahoo comes to power bent on bombing Iran and Obama too compromised to stop him.

Solar Cells, Terrorist Sympathizer, Challenging Dem Incumbents, Israeli War Crimes, Jewish Dems Kill National Intelligence Appointment

2009-03-14T12:24:00.005-04:00

Guest Jeff Hauser of new Accountability Now PAC supporting leftish challengers in Democratic primaries. Now there's an idea. Rooftop solar cells and distributed grid green electricity. Gainesville is first city in U.S. to pay over-market for renewable energy. Why Florida House Republican leader Adam Hasner is a demagogic terrorist sympathizer as Amnesty Int'l documents Israeli war crimes in Gaza. Jewish Democrats trash Obama's truth-telling national intelligence council appointment.

Charles Schumer and Steve Israel (NY), among many others, forced the Obama Administration to withdraw the nomination of Charles Freeman as Chair of the National Intelligence Council for talking truthfully about the Israeli government's foreign policies. Freeman would have been in charge of the administration's all-important National Intelligence Estimates. Freeman says "the tactics of the Israel Lobby plumb the depths of dishonor and indecency and include character assasination, selective misquotation, the willful distortion of the record, the fabrication of falsehoods and an utter disregard for the truth."

Watch for cooked intelligence regarding the Mid East coming from his successor nominee. What's so outrageous about this is that the Israeli government apologists consistently use these tactics against anyone who challenges their distorted worldview -- including me and you if we ever get their attention. I keep hearing this stuff time and again as I follow these issues. This is what they do to Jimmy Carter even. Be prepared to fight back!

Adam Hasner is a Terrorist Sympathizer

2009-03-11T15:32:00.003-04:00

We know that Florida House Majority Leader Adam Hasner’s logic is wingnut sick and he must be denounced for his McCarthyite attacks on Adam Bedier and United Voices for America, but if you apply his own logic to himself, one has to say that, by his own definition, he is probably a terrorist sympathizer. He condones, justifies, even applauds Israel’s assault on Gaza, which killed 1300 Palestinians, about half of them civilians, women, children. You watched it on TV. You ought to know. Bill Moyers rightfully called it “state terrorism”. Amnesty International just came out with a report documenting numerous war crimes committed by the Israel Defense Forces. Check it out. The IDF dropped white phosphorous on civilians. They bombed UN schools, even the headquarters. They killed children with Hellfire missiles “Made in Orlando”. Adam Hasner is a terrorist sympathizer. Prove me wrong. But don’t prove to me that he is justified being a terrorist sympathizer. There’s a big difference. Every editorial board in this state ought to be denouncing him for the obvious. He is a terrorist sympathizer.

Hasner calls Adam Bedier a “known terrorist sympathizer” because Adam has defended University of South Florida professor Sami Al-Arian, who was coerced into plea bargaining guilty and is now serving five years on charges related to his making donations to charities related to Hamas. From the press accounts at the time it sure looked to me like al-Arian was convicted of a political “crime”. I think he’s the classic example of a political prisoner. Yes, it does happen here in the U.S. in-denial police state.

Now let’s assume for a moment, I’m sure Hasner would verify this if you ask him, that Hasner donates to Jewish charities in Israel. I would hope he does. By his own logic, and the logic of the U.S. police state prosecutors, such money may work its way to families with members serving in the Israel Defense Forces, or replace money that is used such. I’m sure Hasner would love it if it did and would tell you so. “Support the troops,” you know. That aside, Hasner supports U.S. military aid to the Israel Defense Forces that finances the wanton attacks on civilians. So Hasner provides “material support for state terrorism” doesn’t he? Doesn’t he? Say yes. You need to break through the rightwing brainwashing you are under and it helps by verbalizing the new modes of thinking. Out loud.

We all have to start denouncing the disingenuous hypocritical distorted demonizations of Hamas as a terrorist organization. Hamas is a complex political party with a military wing and a political wing. Like our political parties it has moderates and radicals (like Hasner). Hamas provides social services, education, garbage pickup, etc., which al-Arian was probably contributing to. Hamas won the majority of seats in the 2006 parliamentary elections in what international observers called free and fair. Some of Hamas’ leaders and members engage in isolated attacks on Israeli civilians as part of their war to stop Israel’s land confiscations of their land in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. (Just last week Israel demolished 88 Palestininan homes in Arab Jerusalem, which can be construed as more state terrorism only using bulldozers instead of bombs.) But Hamas is no more a terrorist organization than the Israeli government is. If I were a radical, I would get down in the radical mud with Hasner and call ISRAEL the terrorist organization. But being a moderate, I know that it’s not constructive to solutions. Israel is no more a terrorist organization than Hamas is.

People, you can’t let the rightwingers, even those in the Democratic Party who keep repeating and reinforcing the demonizations of Hamas, keep clubbing you into submission with their intimidation and use of fear. Every time someone reduces Hamas to a terrorist organization you must interrupt the conversation and correct them. Every time you see it in print or on TV, you must get on the horn and demand that the media stop spreading rightwing distortions as if they were facts.

Matt Damon for U.S. Senate

2009-03-07T15:56:00.003-05:00

Segment I: Matt Damon for U.S. Senate (D-FL)? With Meek and Gelber running neocon echo chamber debate in Florida senate race, we need a progressive in the race. Demand hearings on Obama's Afpakistan escalation. Blogtalk server dumps me off air.

Segment Two: It's time to stop using the neocon construct of "terrorism." The Depression intensifies and Obama muddles. (Show picks up after blogtalk server dump).

We Need Hearings on Obama's Afpakistan Escalation!

Quick, make a phone call today to your Congressmember (and Dan Gelber), particularly our Senate candidates Meek and Gelber (and heck, Matt Damon while you’re at it). Get them on the record on this. Get your DEC to pass a resolution. With President Obama escalating drone attacks into Pakistan, which are further destabilizing the country, and in the process of DOUBLING the number of our troops in Afghanistan, and his “envoy” Richard Holbrooke talking paranoid neocon nonsense about how our Reagan-era-funded Taliban allies are now a “threat” to Washington and Islamabad, and the U.S. slowly wading deeper into a $trillion dollar$ Vietnam style quagmire (kind of makes you long for Bush’s relative neglect, huh?) while our nation sinks into a Depression, why are there no Congressional hearings on the next Iraq?

We need hearings on what we’re getting into. Televised.

Demand hearings. Why aren’t there any hearings????????????????????????????????????

Post their responses, or get them to post their position on hearings on the FPC.

We need to know so we know who Accountability Now needs to run anti-war candidates against in the primaries.

Next, and quickly, we need them to sponsor resolutions calling upon Obama to halt troop escalations and deployments into Afpakistan. Me, I don’t need to wait for hearings. I’m already up on this stuff. But the nation needs hearings.

Matt Damon for U.S. Senate

With Democratic Party career politicians Gelber and Meek repeating the same tired old imperial foreign policy platitudes as the Republicans on the Middle East that will keep us in perpetual war that is draining our economy at the very time we are sinking into another Depression, the Democratic nomination race for U.S. Senate is shaping up as just another right wing echo chamber that shuts out any discussion of an alternative foreign policy and will deny Florida voters a fundamental choice that is at stake in next year’s election.

Matt Damon has the potential to add that voice to the debate, and actually be electable. He’s smarter (Harvard) than Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarnegger (and to my knowledge does not have a naked picture published in a body building magazine with his body all oiled up) and has been involved in numerous humanitarian civic causes. He knows public policy. If potty mouth Al Franken (another pro-war Democrat unfortunately) can win in Minnesota …. I rest my case.

From the point of view of us on the True Left, there are two major questions surrounding a Damon candidacy.

One is if he believes this country needs to turn away from the militaristic Bush-Obama-Gelber-Meek-McCain foreign policy (escalating war in Afpakistan, overarming Israel with no constraints and condoning its Gaza slaughter and war crimes (see last week’s Amnesty International report), threatening the bombing of Iran, ever engorging Pentagon budgets, the futile pursuit of a phoney war on “terror”, and on and on). His political sensibilities indicate he may, although he will have to do some crash coursework on foreign policy, just as Dan Gelber is no doubt doing).

Matt, if you believe in a new foreign policy, call me. I will brief you and point you to resources. And most importantly I will guide you to people who will help you frame and advocate a new foreign policy in a way that is electable. 305 893-1566. You can also email me at mwshow@bellsouth.net. You might want to wade through the archive of the Mark Weaver Show, indexed by topics.

The second question is how Matt Damon can win. Matt, I can give you some (partial) advice on this too. You will need a team of consultants more expert than I on campaign strategy, but there is some uber-advice I can give you: be careful who you pick. There are many Democratic Party consultants who view winning above ALL ELSE. Avoid them. You need to win, but you can do that while holding true to your values and principles. Too many consultants will trick you into selling out. There are consultants out there (in and out of the party) who truly want to make politics more progressive rather than just hitching themselves to the candidate they think is going to win and add to their resume. Obviously they are not on the Meek and Gelber teams. Also, there are many powerful interests out there who will try to use you as a vehicle to advance their interests, just like I am, except I’m not powerful. Some of these groups have worthwhile agendas, others don’t. I only hope that you too want a new foreign policy for the U.S. If not, I hope you don’t run. A Senator Matt Damon advocating the same policies as Gelber and Meek is pointless.

Domestic policy will be easier for you since you seem to be within the generic Democratic Party consensus on domestic issues. I can advise you on some tweaking on that to refine more True Progressive positions that address the populist issues of the Florida lower and middle classes AND how to message these.

You will have to neutralize the anti-celebrity reaction to your candidacy, but that will be easy if you study the issues, are serious and meet the editorial boards of all the newspapers in the state in addition to the leadership and meetings of the major interest groups.

One concern I have about Matt’s electability (although something like this did not stop Al Franken or Arnold), is this video. It’s not going to go over well in Ocala, but then again he’d probably pull more votes there than Gelber or Meek in the general, even with the video circulating).

This video is hilarious. And it shows what a great sense of humor and how charismatic candidate Damon would be. He could be our Ronald Reagan, our Schwarznegger.

If any of you know anybody who knows Matt Damon, please get this to him.

Matt, I live near you. Let’s take a four hour walk up Miami Beach and talk about this stuff.

Matt Damon for U.S. Senate. Maybe.

Orlando Hellfire Missiles Used in Israeli War Crimes in Gaza

2009-02-27T12:05:00.002-05:00

(This is a post, not a show.)

Who’d a thunk. While children are in delight at Disney World, children in Gaza are being killed by Hellfire missiles made a few miles away, courtesy of the Florida Congressional delegation (including Senate candidate Kendrick Meek) and, as soon as he can get his thumb on the Senate electronic voting lever, Dan “Israel Can Do No Wrong” Gelber.

A just-out report by Amnesty International documents that Israeli forces used white phosphorus and other weapons supplied by the USA, such as an AGM 114 Hellfire missile made by Hellfire Systems of Orlando (wonderful corporate name, huh?) which killed three paramedics and a child, to carry out serious violations of international humanitarian law including war crimes. The attacks resulted in the death of hundreds of children and other civilians and destroyed homes on a massive scale. The Israeli aggression, which Bill Moyers has called “state terror”, killed 1300 Gazans in response to Palestinian rocket attacks in Israel which killed 7 Israelis over the past four years, attacks which were in response to the Israeli blockade of Gaza over the past 20 months and its continued building of settlements on Palestinian land in the West Bank.

The report also accuses Hamas of war crimes for firing rockets into civilian areas of Israel and calls for a comprehensive arms embargo of both Israel and Hamas.

The Mark Weaver Show is looking for an activist to research the campaign contributions of Hellfire Systems executives and give an on-air report. We need to know if Hellfire has given contributions to Meek and Gelber and to monitor Meek and Gelber’s campaign contributions from armament companies for their Senate campaigns. You can email mwshow@bellsouth.net.

Regardless, Meek and Gelber must be stopped from getting the Democratic Senate nomination. The Democratic Party must stop offering up Republican war clones on foreign policy issues. We need a candidate who will at least signal some desire to put the brakes on the over-arming of Israel and its military aggressions against its neighbors, not to mention the entire militaristic Imperial foreign policy of the U.S.

If you have not already seen this, you can read the full text of Meek and Gelber’s justifying statements on Israel’s “incursions” on my previous posts on this issue in January. Just look up Mark Weaver posts.

Have a nice day. I’m not.

Obama Jumps Into Afpakistan Vietnam Quagmire

2009-02-21T11:11:00.002-05:00

It didn't take him long. On Day 31 Obama made what may become the single most fateful decision of his presidency. Instead of getting out, he decided to jump into the quagmire by adding 17,000 troops (for starters) for $70 billion a year and escalate drone attacks in Pakistan, both of which will widen the war into Pakistan. Day 31, remember it. Also, how the U.S. is sinking into Depression and Obama's rudderless centrism is eroding decisive action; forced feeding at Guantanamo.

Inaugural Address of Mark Allan Weaver as 44th President of the United States of America

2009-02-14T11:09:00.005-05:00

The speech we wanted to hear January 20th: Inaugural address of President Mark Allan Weaver as 44th President of the United States of America laying out the Left's domestic and foreign policy agenda. Make this viral! Also, Obama's teetering rudderless centrist presidency. Jimmy Carter on Gaza.

Can Mr. Smith Get To Washington Anymore?

2009-02-07T09:13:00.003-05:00

Guest is charismatic Missouri State Senator Jeff Smith, star of the 2004 documentary film "Can Mr. Smith Get To Washington Anymore?" talking about his grassroots citizens' campaign and the reality of life in the Missouri Senate. Also, Ross Eisenbrey of the Economic Policy Institute on the Employee Free Choice Act and the auto bailouts. Obama emerging as a sleight-of-hand magician.

Democratic War Hawks

2009-01-31T13:20:00.001-05:00

Obama's Second Week -- He's "changing" Bush's Afghan strategy of economic development and low level war to "focus on fighting". Democratic War Hawks lining up for Florida Senate seat: Dan Gelber, the Joe Lieberman of Florida. And, Gaza seige continues.

Obama's First Week: Inconclusive

2009-01-24T13:24:00.003-05:00

Obama's First Week -- Inconclusive. But he launches first terror attack and kills 3 Pakistani civilians with Evil Empire Predator Drones. Gaza fallout. Let's raise the gasoline tax and slap on a stock transfer tax. Obama's federal health insurance program -- the one to watch this year.

Na Na Hey Hey, Kiss Him Goodbye

2009-01-17T13:29:00.001-05:00

Join us as we celebrate the End Of Bush with an unforgettable singalong: "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye." Also, Floridian Jeff Nall, founder of Humanists for Peace, talks of MLK's legacy and the peace movement, and Sydney Levy of Jewish Voice for Peace, as Israeli atrocities deepen with white phosphorous, amputations, fire bombing and bombing UN schools and headquarters. Terror threat at Obama inaugural.

Israeli Massacre in Gaza and the Democratic Party

2009-01-10T09:33:00.000-05:00

Special report on the Israeli massacre in Gaza with Chris Toensing, editor of The Middle East Report, returning, on the evolving nightmare, its causes and peaceful solutions to bring security and peace to Israelis and the Palestinians. With Florida Democrats justifying the mayhem, we examine the moral corruption of the party.

Terror in Gaza

2009-01-03T08:19:00.000-05:00

Israeli terrorists attack Gaza. Guest Chris Toensing, editor of Middle East Report. We trace how U.S. is funding and supplying Israel's attack, how Florida Liberal Democrats support and condone this, Israel's 18 month blockade of Gaza, how the U.S. and Israel have tried to overturn Hamas' 2006 election victory and deconstruct the Israeli government propaganda campaign of lies and distortions.

NOTE: blogtalk radio server problems with two disruptions but show goes three hours. Drag slider through two interruptions, one of ten+ minutes. Disruptions capture a little of the chaos of Gaza.

Top 8 Shows of 2008!

2009-01-01T10:43:00.000-05:00

Everybody has their favorite Mark Weaver Show. Here are mine. Like fine red wine, these are actually better in retrospect than the day I did them.

#1 (Best show of 2008)
All About Impeachment (March 8th)
One of those serendipitous moments where everything coalesces. Guests were Rep. Pat Schroeder of the House Judiciary Committee that impeached Richard Nixon with an amazing perspective on George Bush. Marjorie Cohn, President of the National Lawyers Guild laid out the case for impeachment. And David Swanson of Democrats.com talked about the politics of impeaching Bush including commentary on Rep. Robert Wexler. All still relevant even as Obama sweeps the crimes of the Bush administration under his centrist rug. I was damn good too!

#2 Opposing Barack Obama (July 20, 2008)
As Obama shifted further and further to the right after the decisive Indiana primary which sealed his nomination I had to speak out and denounce his nomination with 16 reasons (that went off script during the show and grew to 20) why real progressives could no longer “go along” with the pathetic shadow Republican nominees the Democratic Party keeps serving up. If it weren’t for the amazing guests on my impeachment show, this one would have been best of year hands down. In light of the past month, dare I say, “I told you so.”

#3 Florida Liberal Democrats Pushing War on Iran (July 12, 2008)
Like most of you, I was naive. I admit it. I thought the Democrats were the “good guys” who were resisting the warmonger Republicans when they could. But it turns out they just have different wars they want to fight. I became concerned in fall 2007 when I discovered that Florida liberal Democrats lead by State Rep. Ted Deutsch (with Rep. Dan Gelber cosponsoring among many others) were actually taking the lead pushing resolutions and sanctions through the Florida legislature falsely portraying, distorting and demonizing Iran, laying the intellectual and propaganda groundwork to sow the field of Florida public opinion for an attack on Iran. Turns out this was a run up to a wider Mideast war with most Florida Democrats’ sickening cheer leading for Israel’s war crimes and killing spree in Gaza.

#4 Sea Level Rise in Florida (May 31, 2008)
Another scary classic. We really should call it The Mark Weaver Horror Show. I reviewed the studies predicting sea level rise on Florida. I linked to maps of Jacksonville, Tampa, Ft. Lauderdale and Miami Beach. Huge areas are going to be under water by 2100.

#5 Cuba’s Top Performing Education System (July 26, 2008)
July was a hot month. Three of the top five shows, must have been the heat. I discovered a Stanford Professor (my alma mater) who studied Latin American education systems, found that Cuba’s was the top performing and has heard stories that Cuban immigrants in Dade County are performing better than their American counterparts. But he couldn’t get a grant for a comparative study. Go figure. As policy wonks we’re always looking for models for Florida’s education system. Right? Viva Fidel!

#6 Bullies, the War on Drugs and the Fascist Shift (May 3, 2008)
This show encompassed serials I was doing on ending the war on drugs and the slow fascist shift in the U.S. since 1968. I started talking about bullies and what an under rated social problem they are and how school bullies grow up to be fascists and war mongers who use government to bully us and bully other countries when a very smart teacher from Oklahoma called in for a great conversation.

#7 Live From the Cone of Hurricane Ike (September 6, 2008)
One of the themes of the Mark Weaver Shows is hurricanes and public policy. This one got out of hand and bizarre when it looked like Cat 4 Hurricane Ike might actually hit Miami in 3 days. Feel the fear.

#8 Almost Banned by Blogtalkradio (May 24, 2008)
This was the show that Blogtalkradio, which turns out to be just another corporate, ad revenue driven, truth and controversy-adverse, mainstream media outlet, threatened to cancel my show over. Their official objected to me calling the Bush Administration a terrorist organization in my posted description of the show, which I had to “tone down”. Hey, Bush was killing civilians right and left in Iraq and Afghanistan and Pakistan as “collateral damage” and sometimes wantonly by rogue troops and Blackwater mercenaries. And the U.S. labels Hezbollah, Hamas and the Iranians Quds terrorist organizations for doing the same thing with different means. The right wing finger-pointing hand usually has three fingers pointing back at it, doesn’t it?

There were a lot of honorable mentions in 2008. Just check the index to find a topic that hits you.

The Year in Review

2008-12-27T08:35:00.000-05:00

New Year's party extravaganza reviews highlights of the 2008 Mark Weaver Shows.

The Ponzi Age

2008-12-20T08:50:00.000-05:00

Guest is Danny Schechter (M.A., London School of Economics) author of "Plunder", co-founder of Globalvision and former news producer for CNN and ABC 20/20 talking on The Ponzi Age. Plus: Obama's center-right Administration: financial-deregulation advocates of the 1990s now in charge of "fixing" the catastrophe they created. Go figure. Environmentalists give thumbs down to new Interior Secretary Salazar and thumbs up to Carol Browner; former Dallas mayor and free trader Ron Kirk now U.S. Trade Representative, Labor Secretary gets thumbs up with Hilda Solis and to top it all off anti-gay bigot Rick Warren to give invocation at inauguration. Also, more on the war on the war on terror, U.S. and New Zealand two biggest pot smoking countries on Earth, and the possible destruction of Europe or the Eastern U.S. by asteroid on Easter Sunday 2036.

It's STILL the Mortgages, Stupid!

2008-12-13T09:44:00.000-05:00

Obama stiffing progressives; man-boy entrapment, solar cell plants, Republican toll roads, third parties, Cuba embargo, it's STILL the mortgages, stupid. Florida's most progressive talk show. LARGE GAP IN SHOW: DRAG SLIDER TO 1hr 12min mark when show goes dead.

The Descending Depression

2008-12-06T10:47:00.000-05:00

First signs that we could be descending into a depression (defined by ten percent unemployment), worst since Great Depression. Two million now thrown out of work. Special guest Chuck Collins of the Institute for Policy Studies in D.C. talks about the economic bailout - limiting CEO pay and a fair plan to pay for the recovery. Also, majority of Miami Cuban-Americans, for the first time, support an end to the trade embargo (55%) and, get this, 65% support normalized relations! And, Bombay: America's future. In other Florida news, state commission strongly backs adopting California's leading emissions standards for vehicles sold in state; Republican legislature to block.

Obama's Center-Right Administration

2008-11-29T10:24:00.002-05:00

Obama's center-right administration shapes up with new association: Toby Keith. Plus more chitter chatter from America's most progressive talk show host: Bombay, nuclear proliferation and more chilling news on the American global police state.

It's the Mortgages, stupid!

2008-11-22T10:03:00.000-05:00

Capitalist crisis: Bush and Paulson still fiddling while USA burns. Why immediate mortgage bailout is populist key to the crisis and critical to stopping the collapsing economy. Plus, Obama to govern from center-right and Gaza heats up again as Israel violates six month cease fire, kills six Hamas tunnelers and Hamas hits back with rockets.

Clinton's Center-Right Third Term Begins

2008-11-15T10:07:00.000-05:00

Obamawatch begins: some critical decisions to watch for as Clinton's shadow neo-con DLC center-right third term launches and why "change" is looking more and more like the farce it always was.

2008 Elections, the Dust Settles

2008-11-08T13:02:00.000-05:00

A sweeping review of the election highlights: Obama wins Florida by 200,000 votes and 2.5%. Dems pick up two seats in Congress while Cheatin' Mahoney loses his Democratic seat. Dems gain only one seat in the State House and none in the Senate. Nationwide, voter turnout is 62.4%, second highest in modern times and almost eclipsing 1964's Johnson-Goldwater 62.6%. Latino vote was up 24% over 2004 and voted lopsided 68% for Obama. Meanwhile, Washington state passed a watered down assisted-suicide law, California ordered larger cages for farm animals, Michigan and Massachussets decriminalized marijuana, Massachussets and North Dakota voted 70% to retain their state income taxes. But the Bible Thumping assholes slapped constitutional bans on gay marriage in California (52%) , Arizona and Florida (64%).

Hear it all on today's Mark Weaver Show. ACTUALLY PROGRESSIVE.

Ralph Nader for President, Again!

2008-11-01T15:20:00.000-04:00

Ralph Nader for President and why supporting Obama continues the empowerment of the flaccid shadow conservative-neoliberal Democratic Party establishment which can't confront the right wing zeitgeist and stop the fascistic militaristic drift of this country.

Floriduh's Still-Dysfunctional Election System

2008-10-25T16:09:00.000-04:00

Why I oppose Obama (McCain goes without saying). Also, how the dysfunctional election system could create another contested election or even throw the election to McCain. Special guest Pamela Haengel of the Florida Voters Coalition updates us on the integrity of the Florida vote.

NOBAMA, NOVO(TE)CAINE!

2008-10-18T08:16:00.000-04:00

Why you're drunk on Kool-Aid if you're for Obama (unless you're a Trojan Horse Republican anyway). How McCain might pull a Truman upset. Racial voting. Capitalist Crisis -- McCain gets it right with progressive Bottom Up Plan to bail out homeowners; Obama opposes. The coming Afghanistan Quagmire. Frisco to waste $60 million on suicide barrier.

Capitalist Crisis, Republican Brownshirts and Ike's Aftermath

2008-10-11T11:04:00.000-04:00

Capitalist crisis. Bush must resign immediately. Republican Brownshirts. McCain gets it right on the mortgage crisis, while craven Obama shills for Wall Street. Hurricane Ike aftermath. And get this .... military now calling for negotiations with Taliban!

First Anniversary Show!!!

2008-10-04T09:51:00.000-04:00

First Anniversary Show!!?*$!! -- we review some of the highlights of the past 52 shows. Plus, Democrat Alligators prepare for feast as McCain tanks, shocking Olmert call for justice for Palestinians, 16 year old vote, Crist shoring up '12 presidential bid with Christian-right Supreme Court appointments, alligator wrestling and other Florida tales.

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

2008-09-27T10:12:00.000-04:00

The MW Show returns after a two week hiatus with new commentary on the prez campaign and other news of interest to decent people in Florida and beyond.

Live from the Cone of Hurricane Ike

2008-09-06T14:39:00.000-04:00

Bizarre live reporting from Miami of a state of mind in the path of Hurricane Ike 930 miles away (which may have turned out to be a false alarm), along with a discussion of the need for national catastrophe insurance, how insurance companies have been cutting their coverage, raising deductibles, rejecting claims, cherry picking low risk, high profit policies and dropping higher risk people and gaining record high profit margins and record low payout ratios. Also, a call for a state Hurricane Hardening and Rapid Recovery Agency to recruit, train, license, vet, hire and supervise contractors to install hurricane hardening on all buildings according to high statewide standards and (affordable) prices and also build a national network of registered qualified honest contractors who can be rapidly deployed to a disaster area for rebuilding.

Democrats, U.S. Terror, Permatemp Work & the Decline of the Middle Class

2008-08-30T13:33:00.000-04:00

Democratic Convention hangover. U.S. troops kill 95 civilians in one of largest terrorist attacks of Afghanistan invasion. Hurricane forecasters plead for a little money. One-fourth of U.S. jobs now in "security" industry -- and you still don't believe me about the fascist shift? Plus, stock picks in the new security economy. Labor Day report on "permatemp" work and the decline of the Middle Class.

Florida's First Anti Iran-War March

2008-08-23T13:42:00.000-04:00

Guest Jeff Nall, co-founder of Brevard Patriots for Peace and the Space Coast Progressive Alliance talks about Florida's first anti-Iran war march. Hurricanes, a human problem. Lower the drinking age to 18! U.S. hypocrisy on Georgia and the revival of the Cold War.

The newly repackaged "Right War" on Afghanistan, "Permatemp" Jobs and the Decline of the Middle Class

2008-08-16T10:43:00.000-04:00

Florida's first anti-Iran War march! The four false "justifications" for the newly repackaged Obama-McCain "The Right War" on Afghanistan. Bush's destruction of Iraq's Saddam era gay community. Iraq's female suicide bombers. Bishop Robinson wearing bullet proof vest. Latest U.S. terror attack in Iraq. Orlando's nascent hydrogen car infrastructure. "Permatemp" jobs, the exploitation of (probably) YOU and the decline of the Middle Class (starts at 1:45 hr mark).

All About Iran

2008-08-09T13:30:00.000-04:00

Special guest Sasan Fayazmanesh, Ph.D., Professor of Economics, California State University talks about Liberal Democrats’ rationales for pushing for war on Iran with special analysis of Barack Obama’s chief Iranian policy advisor (10am). Also, Patrick Walsh, co-founder of the Black Mangrove Collective in Miami talks about grassroots organizing and how to fight for progressive causes in spite of the Democratic Party (9:40).

Obama health plan, Israeli settlements, Hamas Truce and Latest U.S. Terrorist Attack

2008-08-02T13:19:00.000-04:00

Florida's nude beach, Obama protest, new Israeli settlement, Hamas truce, latest U.S. terrorist attack, Obama health plan, Santeria animal sacrifice raid.

Cuba's Top Performing Education System

2008-07-26T12:00:00.000-04:00

Special guests Tallahassee radio host Hans Meyer plus Stanford University Professor Martin Carnoy talking on his research on the best performing educational system in Latin America -- Cuba's -- and what the U.S. can learn from it. Also, Miami International now laciviously strip searching passengers with milimeter waves.

Opposing Barack Obama

2008-07-20T10:38:00.000-04:00

The Top 16 Reasons Why You Should OPPOSE Obama for President and work for an actual progressive cause instead. Also, the final installment of our long series on the War on Drugs. Note: nothing in this should be construed as anything other than total condemnation of the evil McCain/Republican Party.

Liberal Democrats Pushing War on Iran

2008-07-12T08:32:00.000-04:00

Liberal Democrats pushing war on Iran with House Res. 362; latest U.S. terror attack kills 47 civilians in wedding party; people who love dogs more than people; Naomi Wolf's "The End of America," Hitler's takeover, FISA and the U.S. fascist shift.

Israel's Continuous Expansionism

2008-07-11T14:14:00.000-04:00

Israel's Manifest Destiny. Enough is enough. The expansionism must be stopped at the 1967 borders.

The Middle East

2008-07-11T14:10:00.000-04:00

A Just Palestinian State

2008-07-11T13:55:00.000-04:00

This plan is the most just I've seen. It starts with Israel's pre-1967 seizure border and equally swaps land to address population changes since, adding territory to a Palestinian state (gray) and adding territory to Israel (black). Jimmy Carter favors this plan and the map is from his book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid.

Iran, Floriduh's Toilet & Socialist Party Presidential Nominee

2008-07-05T13:23:00.000-04:00

Patriotic Fourth of July show! Breaking news on Iran war ramp up; Florida's Toilet: dumping sewage offshore because it's too anti-tax to build plants; interview with USA Socialist Party Presidential Candidate Brian Moore!

Democrats Beating Iran War Drums; Cuban Exiles; U.S. Sugar and the Everglades

2008-06-28T12:42:00.000-04:00

Florida Democrats demanding blockade of Iran and provoking war, the destructive role of the anti-communist Cuban exiles in American politics and the need to abolish the electoral college; plus the stunning U.S. Sugar buyout and the still uncertain future of the Everglades and South Florida.

Bush's War Crimes at Kandahar, Bagram, Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo .....

2008-06-21T09:47:00.000-04:00

Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Feith, Condi, Bolton, Ashcroft, Gonzalez+ must be tried for War Crimes. U.S. General says Bush committed war crimes and "authorized a systematic regime of torture"; Former Pakistani ambassador to U.S. says U.S. troops killed 11 Pakistani troops deliberately; FPL building solar plants; 2000 recount still possible!; the eery parallels between Hitler's rise and Democratic capitulation on FISA. Film review: "No End in Sight".

Obama Careens Right and "Progressive Democrat" is an Oxymoron

2008-06-14T09:56:00.000-04:00

Obama careens Right, the definition of Progressivism and why "Progressive Democrat" is an oxymoron; Minnesota Democrats endorse Instant Runoff Voting (How 'bout Florida?); Reform the electoral college NOW; new study in the War on Drugs in Florida.

Obama NOT

2008-06-07T10:19:00.000-04:00

Shorts today: Obama NOT; McCain impeachable; Criminalizing everything: teen felony-busted for taking naked pic of himself; South Florida public defenders rejecting flood of felony cases and police militarizing with high power rifles; insurance companies jacking rates again

Sea Level Rise In Florida and Stop Electing Judges

2008-05-31T12:53:00.000-04:00

Special guests Melissa Meehan, Florida Climate Organizer with the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, and Jennifer Rennicks talk about heading off sea level rise, about carbon taxes and the abandonment of central Fort Lauderdale, Tampa and St. Petersburg. Plus Dr. James Obrien, Professor of Meterology and Oceanography at Florida State University. Also, why Florida must STOP electing its (hanging) judges. And continuation of our series on the fascist shift in the U.S.

ALMOST BANNED BY BLOGTALK RADIO!

2008-05-24T13:34:00.000-04:00

This show was almost banned, until I talked them out of it. This is the original description that they objected to. Compare it to the slightly rewritten one that this link takes you to. Draw your own conclusions and post your comments.

Today's watershed MWSHOW formally Denounces Barak Obama for his neocon foreign policy statements and officially designates the U.S. Government as a Terrorist Organization. Also, kicking off our series on sea level rise in Florida.

Hard Voting in Florida, Reframing "Terrorism" and the War on Drugs

2008-05-17T12:08:00.000-04:00

Yet another Last Place for Florida -- the hardest state to vote in; Reframing "Terrorism"; the Hashish cafes of Amsterdam and our continuing serialization of Naomi Wolf's "The End of America" on the fascist shift in the U.S.

2nd most regressive tax state

2008-05-12T17:14:00.001-04:00

Floriduh, America's Third World State

2008-05-10T11:34:00.000-04:00

Florida, America's Third World Colonial State. By every measure Florida ranks near the bottom of U.S. states and it's because we are dominated by predatory business interests that exploit our land and people. We have one of the lowest tax, regressive systems in the country. The heart of the problem is there is no state income tax. Special guest: Matt Gardner of the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy in Washington, D.C.

Also, Obama wins the nomination and probably the Presidency as all stars are aligning for a Democratic landslide in November. Latest in our continuing deconstruction of the War on Drugs.

Introducing John McCain

2008-05-06T08:24:00.001-04:00

Bullies, the War on Drugs and the Fascist Shift

2008-05-03T07:33:00.000-04:00

Interesting how they tie together: Bullies, our continuing deconstruction of the War on Drugs and the latest serialization of Naomi Wolf's "The End of America" on the fascist shift. + meat eating and porous streets.

War Drums Pounding Louder on Iran

2008-04-26T10:23:00.000-04:00

The Coming War on IRAN. With Hillary threatening to “obliterate” Iran in a nuclear war the war drums are beating louder and louder. Plus more on the new American police state and the War on the War on Drugs — cocaine and the hallucinogens.