I was proud of Tom Udall for his opposition to the original so-called “PATRIOT” Act (a despicable acronym). Now he joins others in trying to fix some of that act’s excesses. Bravo.

As an aside to every opponent of health care insurance reform: If you said, “they didn’t even read the health care act,” did you voice similar concerns about the longer, more complex “PATRIOT” Act? Why not? Moreover, you are wrong; I know our rep has read it. Were you as outraged by the “PATRIOT” Act’s demonstrable undermining of our freedoms as you are by the supposed threat posed by health care insurance reform? If not, STFU. peace, mjh

Bingaman, Udall want to reform the PATRIOT Act

by: LP

Thu Sep 17, 2009 at 20:30:00 PM MDT

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New Mexico U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Jeff Bingaman are in a group of nine Senators who wish to reform the PATRIOT Act. The two New Mexico U.S. Senators are part of an original group of nine cosponsors of the Judicious Use of Surveillance Tools In Counterterrorism Efforts (JUSTICE) Act.

The other original cosponsors are Russ Feingold (D-WI), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jon Tester (D-MT), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Daniel Akaka (D-HI) and Ron Wyden (D-OR). Feingold was the only U.S. Senator to vote against the original PATRIOT Act.

Recently, the administration of President Barack Obama announced that they were extending provisions of the PATRIOT Act.

From a Feingold press release:

The Judicious Use of Surveillance Tools In Counterterrorism Efforts (JUSTICE) Act would reform the USA PATRIOT Act, the FISA Amendments Act and other surveillance authorities to protect Americans’ constitutional rights, while preserving the powers of our government to fight terrorism.

Here’s a video of Senator Tom Udall, when in the House, he was one of just 66 House members who voted against the original PATRIOT Act, speaking on the need to reform the PATRIOT Act.

New Mexico Politics: New Mexico FBIHOP:: Bingaman, Udall want to reform the PATRIOT Act

I hated Ronald Raygun with a passion. During his eight years, I was depressed to be in the minority, surrounded by a herd of his dim-witted, adoring fans. Raygun’s fans worshipped him and despised people like me – Liberals, they sneered. It was a dark, unpleasant time. You know what I did? Toughed it out and waited for a better day.

I hated DUHbya most of all. He was a spoiled, stupid, rich frat boy masquerading as somebody humble and hardworking. Duhbya is even dumber than Raygun was. And, whereas Raygun used charisma to gain power, Duhbya and his thugs used bullying. After the 2004 election, Karl Rove, “the architect of victory,” declared Republicans would hold power for the next generation. You know what I did? I wrote my vision of that generation.

Now, after a single election and less than a year of a change in ruling party, what’s the minority doing? Everything they can to undermine the majority constantly. Nice, nice people. They’re frightened idiots who apparently have no faith at all in the strength of America to survive shifts in power. To Hell with them all.

I never called Duhbya a liar because I knew he was stupid enough to believe the lies fed to him by trusted advisors, such as Big Dick Cheney. And, mind you, I would happily give the finger to almost any conservative who has risen above the braying masses. Still, before Republicans devolved to the point they don’t just want to destroy all government but the Union itself, they used to decry the end of civility. At this point, they despise civility and want to drown it in the bathtub.

Don’t worry, we won’t treat you the way you would treat us. peace, mjh

… a thirteen-question survey in the mail from the RNC, and that one of the questions implied that the health care reform bills before Congress would purposely discriminate against people who affiliated with the Republican Party:

…

Of course the RNC survey is just one part of the scare tactics being used by opponents of health care reform. They have suggested that health reform could “pull the plug on grandma“, subject mentally ill children to “death panels,” and even herald in a new era of eugenics.

A spokesman for the RNC has now described the mailing as “inartfully worded.”

Sound familiar?

“Write those letters now. Call your friends, and tell them to write them. If you don’t, this program I promise you will pass just as surely as the sun will come up tomorrow. And behind it will come other federal programs that will invade every area of freedom as we have known it in this country, until, one day… we will awake to find that we have socialism. And if you don’t do this, and if I don’t do it, one of these days, you and I are going to spend our sunset years telling our children, and our children’s children, what it once was like in America when men were free.” – Ronnie Raygun railing against Medicare to the AMA in 1961

Heath Haussamen on New Mexico Politics: Reagan’s great Medicare blunder

So, how many Americans wish the GOP had defeated Medicare?

Think Progress » Frank slams protester comparing Obama to Hitler: ‘On what planet do you spend most of your time?’
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/08/19/frank-woman-hitler/

Last night, Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) held a contentious town hall in Dartmouth, MA to discuss health care reform. The crowded hall of more than 500 people had both supporters and opponents of health care reform, but the opposing side was “much louder and more raucous.” At one point, Frank asked the crowd: “Which one of you wants to yell next?” Frank then excoriated a woman who asked a question while holding up a picture of President Obama defaced to look like Hitler:

QUESTION: Why do you continue to support a Nazi policy as Obama has expressly supported this policy? Why are you supporting it? […]

FRANK: On what planet do you spend most of your time? … You want me to answer the question? Yes. You stand there with a picture of the President defaced to look like Hitler and compare the effort to increase health care to the Nazis. My answer to you is, as I said before, it is a tribute to the First Amendment that this kind of vile, contemptible nonsense is so freely propagated.

Frank concluded: “Trying to have a conversation with you would be like arguing with a dining room table.”