Prog Blogs, Orgs & Alumni
Bank Slate
Betsy Devine
birch, finch, beech
Democracy for NH
Live Free or Die
Mike Caulfield
Miscellany Blue
Granite State Progress
Seacoast for Change
Still No Going Back
Susan the Bruce
Tomorrow's Progressives
Politicos & Punditry
The Burt Cohen Show
John Gregg
Krauss
Landrigan
Lawson
Pindell
Primary Monitor
Primary Wire
Scala
Schoenberg
Spiliotes
Welch
Campaigns, Et Alia.
Paul Hodes
Carol Shea-Porter
Ann McLane Kuster
John Lynch
Jennifer Daler
ActBlue Hampshire
NHDP
DCCC
DSCC
DNC
National
Balloon Juice
billmon
Congress Matters
DailyKos
Digby
Hold Fast
Eschaton
FiveThirtyEight
MyDD
The Next Hurrah
Open Left
Senate Guru
Swing State Project
Talking Points Memo
50 State Blog Network
Alabama
Arizona
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Missouri
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that tea partiers are having fits over a health care plan which they claim is a usurpation of our constitutional rights, but stripping Americans of their citizenship when someone suspects them of a crime is worth considering. Torture and indefinite imprisonment are perfectly in keeping with our founding principles but asking people to fill out a census form is Big Brother in action. Profiling anyone who some beat cop thinks might not be a citizen is a-ok, but making it difficult for terrorist suspects to buy a gun is an assault on the constitution. What the hell?
Economists are quick to tell us that our economy is showing signs of recovery. This seems to mean that Wall St. is doing well. Main St. doesn't seem to be ready to tap dance just yet. The unemployment rate for New Hampshire was seven percent in January. Those statistics are skewed to be lower than the real numbers of unemployed. They don't count folks who haven't been able to find a job long after their unemployment benefits ended, or those who weren't eligible in the first place. The real number is perhaps as high as 14%. More NH families are using food stamps than ever before. Our homes aren't worth what they used to be, though foreclosures seem to be slowing down. In other words, for the most part, the news isn't good. NH folks are having a tough time, and tough times always seem even tougher in the north country.
Do you think that the 200 billion dollars left over from the bank bailout should be used for a stimulus package to create jobs or should it go to reduce the federal budget deficit?
(Stealth Candidate Blues: Reality-based analysis edition. Part put below the fold. - promoted by Dean Barker)
As Dean wrote earlier, Kelly Ayotte continues to take heat from key Republican activists for the positions she held while Attorney General. This time it's regarding her stance on the Second Amendment.
According to NHPoliticalReport.com, last Friday Ayotte was "told off in front of hundreds of influential primary voters" by a former state Representative who publicly railed against her record of suppressing the rights of gun owners.
Citing her opposition to the "Castle Doctrine", a law which justifies the use of deadly force against an intruder on one's own property, former state Representative Richard "Stretch" Kennedy said Ayotte was not "good on guns." Kennedy told NHPoliticalReport that he spoke with Ayotte after his remarks and that "she was upset, but didn't deny the facts." He went on to say, "she is a nice kid, but she has no legislative experience and it is clear she has a lot to learn."
The owner of the Eagle Times in Claremont is a well known conservative. Likewise, the paper is also known for for it's right leaning ways. The reporting is pretty lacking and there really is no good reason to read it other than for the local sports.
Yesterday's paper, 4/16/09, had some interesting spreads about Glenn Beck, the Tea Party "demonstrations" and how the Obamas made $2.7 Million last year. The Tea Party and Obama story on the same page by the way. Typical stuff for this rag. But conveniently placed under the two stories was an ad for shooting lessons.
Am I looking to much into this? With all of the threats of violence by right wingers it seems a bit curious to me.
A friend, very knowledgeable in politics, said that to me yesterday.
So I thought it would be worth cataloging a few recent events:
The early motions are underway in the trial of Michael Addison for the October shooting death of police officer Michael Briggs.
The North Country is still mourning the death of a police officer who pulled over a local driver. The driver had a gun in the car, and murdered the officer. A passerby then used the officer's gun and killed the driver.
A Keene State student got into a mild dispute with his roommate, brought out a gun, and shot the roommate in the buttocks. When the police arrived the gunman took his own life.
Those are off the top of my head, from the last few months.
I'd hate to imagine what it would be like if New Hampshire did have a "gun problem."
I haven't done one of these in a while. The idea is, throw out nine comments on a topic without defending any of them, hoping to provoke discussion. (The number nine came from my first attempt: it might have been John Lennon's birthday, and the number 9 popped up.)
I've seen evidence that it is difficult to stay friendly with this topic, but we're a friendly group.
