Friday, May 30, 2008

Other Items

Agusta, Georgia's WRDW reports that over 20 people were protesting last night outside of Fort Gordon in support of US war resister Ryan Jackson who faces a military court today. Rest assured that our 'leaders' will find other things to gas bag on (mainly promoting Barack Obama).

On the 20 year high in veterans' sucidies, WGAL reports (link has text and video):

Donald Woodward, 23, of Lancaster County was an Iraq war veteran and committed suicide in 2006.
His mother, Lori Woodward, said the system needs to change.
"I want people to know this doesn't have to happen, they could save these young men and women," Woodward said.
Woodward has filed a wrongful death suit against the veterans' administration.


Gareth notes this from the BBC:

A US marine lied to cover up a squad's killings of 24 civilians in Iraq's city of Haditha in 2005, a US prosecutor has said at the officer's court martial.
The prosecutor's comments came during opening statements in the trial of Lt Andrew Grayson in California.
Lt Grayson is charged with obstructing justice and making false statements in connection with the case. He rejects the allegations.
He is the first of three defendants to go on trial.


NOW on PBS (which airs tonight in most markets) has won another award:

NOW on PBS Wins 2008 Gracie Allen Award for
"Outstanding Interactive Website"
Companion website for the episode "Child Brides: Stolen Lives"
investigates early child marriage around the world, and informs and
empowers users to stop it
NEW YORK, April 25, 2008 - The newsmagazine NOW on PBS has won a
prestigious Gracie Allen Award from American Women in Radio and
Television for "Outstanding Interactive Website." The website is a
companion to the national broadcast of "Child Brides: Stolen Lives," a
NOW on PBS special report. In the award-winning show, Senior
Correspondent Maria Hinojosa travels to Niger, India, and Guatemala for
a revealing exploration of child marriage in developing countries, and
how people can act locally and globally to solve the problem.
The website features exclusive video testimonials from young brides,
insightful journals from Maria Hinojosa and producer Amy Bucher, ways
for users to support programs that end the practice, and a free lesson
plan for teachers.
"Forced child marriage is today what female genital mutilation was 10
years ago -- a global issue affecting millions of girls and women, yet
one few people are talking about," said Hinojosa, an award-winning
reporter who found her role to be both a professional and personal
journey of a lifetime. "The website gives visitors a more in-depth and
interactive view of the problem, and empowers them to actually make a
difference."
The website's producer is Alexandra Walker; Senior Producer is Joel
Schwartzberg. The site, which includes a free, complete video of the
broadcast program, can be accessed at:
http://www.pbs.org/now/childbrides
ABOUT NOW on PBS
Called "fearless about challenging conventional wisdom" by Tom Brokaw
and "one of the last bastions of serious journalism on TV" by the
Austin American-Statesman, the Emmy-winning PBS weekly newsmagazine NOW
engages viewers with documentary segments and insightful interviews that probe
the most important issues facing democracy. Hosted by award-winning
veteran journalist David Brancaccio, NOW is a production of JumpStart
Productions, LLC, in association with Thirteen/WNET New York. The show
can also be accessed through On-Demand television, audio podcasting,
video podcasting, and streaming video on the NOW website at
www.pbs.org/now.

About The Gracie Awards
The Gracies are presented by the Foundation of American Women in Radio
and Television, the philanthropic arm of AWRT that supports educational
programs, charitable activities, public service campaigns, and
scholarships to benefit the public, the electronic media, and allied
fields. The Gracie Awards, established in 1975, honor programming and
individuals of the highest caliber in all facets of radio, television,
cable, and web-based media, including news, drama, comedy, commercials,
public service, documentary, and sports.


Congratulations to NOW.

A note on things that come in to the public account, we're not promoting Barack propaganda. If a program thinks it's 'news' that they're yet again pushing Barack, they don't know what news is. If the same program has never called out the rank sexism, if the host has offered that Hillary "cried" and then offered that he doubts it was genuine, go talk to trashy Amy Goodman, she'll gladly give you an hour and pretend you're both journalists but, hey, she chose to publish in Larry Fl**nt's Hu**ler magazine so that says all anyone needs to know about trashy Amy Goodman. But don't clog up the publc account with your nonsense. You had nothing to hype Barack with so you're reaching back at least a week into old news to try to ratchet up the indignation and it might mean something if you hadn't turned your entire program into an hour long infomercial for Barack Obama. I'm not interested and I damn well know the community isn't interested.


KeShawn notes Howard Wolfson's "HUBdate: Why Hillary is the Strongest Candidate" (HillaryClinton.com):

Why Hillary is the Strongest Candidate: In a letter to all superdelegates, Hillary outlines her case for why she believes she is the strongest candidate: "I believe I am best prepared to lead this country as President -- and best prepared to put together a broad coalition of voters to break the lock Republicans have had on the electoral map and beat Senator McCain in November." Read more here. For additional information -- read the letter, memo, and general election matchup information here.
Swing-State Advantage: According to Gallup: "In the 20 states where Hillary Clinton has claimed victory in the 2008 Democratic primary and caucus elections (winning the popular vote), she has led John McCain in Gallup Poll Daily trial heats for the general election over the past two weeks of Gallup Poll Daily tracking by 50% to 43%. In those same states, Barack Obama is about tied with McCain among national registered voters, 45% to 46%...In contrast, in the 28 states and the District of Columbia where Obama has won a higher share of the popular vote against Clinton in the 2008 Democratic primaries and caucuses, there is essentially no difference in how Obama and Clinton each fare against McCain…All of this speaks to Sen. Clinton's claim that her primary-state victories over Obama indicate her potential superiority in the general election." Read more.
A Champion For Native Americans: At a campaign stop in Kyle, SD yesterday, Hillary spoke to a "mostly Native audience of about 350 people" and pledged to fight for the issues that affect Native American veterans as well as all Native American families. "I will be your champion. I will fight for you. I will stand up for you. And I will work my heart out for you." Read more.
Puerto Rico Matters: Puerto Rico and its citizens are gearing up for a "chance for Puerto Ricans to shout to the world about what's important to them” on primary day on Sunday." Because of its extraordinarily high turnout rate, it's possible that the number of voters that come out to vote on Sunday will be "about the same number that turned out in states like Missouri and New Jersey." Read more.
If You Watch One Thing Today: Staffers on Hillary's campaign describe their support. Watch here.
Previewing Today: Hillary hosts "Solutions For South Dakota's Future" events in Huron, SD and Watertown, SD.On Tap: Hillary will host a "Rally for Puerto Rico's Families" in Old San Juan, PR.

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