The war lover doesn't fall far from the war criminal

Liz Cheney, daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, is seeking the Wyoming senate seat from her father's 30 year friend, incumbent Mike Enzi. Normally, we progressives ignore a primary fight between two arch conservatives where the winner is assured election against a nominal Democratic opponent. This primary fight is different. Liz Cheney must not become US Senator. She has spent the last four and a half years championing her father's record of unleashing criminal war in Iraq that killed hundreds of thousands, squandered trillions of our precious, limited treasure and left Iraq a smoldering, war torn shell of the once stable country it was, albeit under totalitarian rule. She has delighted in Pop's use of torture and his stunning braggadocio that he'd torture again if he had the chance. Liz projects a near sociopathic, ghoulish delight in defending dear ol' dad's policies on the innumerable news shows she appears when responsible media outlets should shun her and her repugnant views.

Since Barack Obama, a near polar opposite of the blood lusting Vice President, became president, Liz and Dick have worked the media in tandem to destroy him every chance they get. Liz opened her senate campaign by asserting Obama isn't serious about disarming al Qaeda, conveniently omitting that Obama had Osama bin Laden murdered and has rained hundreds, maybe thousands of drone bombs down on al Qaeda operatives. Cheney the Younger doubles down on this lunacy by claiming Obama actually wants to make America weaker. She's defended "birthers" by asserting "people are fundamentally uncomfortable with an American president who seems to be afraid to defend America and stand up for what we believe in". Translation: President Obama is a non American "other" who supports terrorists and must be stopped by Cheney Family Values. The importance of her election extends far beyond the barren expanses of Wyoming. The Beltway Neocons view star power Liz as their hope to win back the traditional war mongering GOP from libertarian and anti war super star Rand Paul (R. KY). He may have the momentum right now but Liz has got the truly important M Word, money, from her father's years long war profiteering.

As the father of two daughters I certainly appreciate unconditional daughter father love. Liz Cheney has taken this laudable concept a tad too far. She demonstrates that in the Cheney crime family, the war lover doesn't fall far from the war criminal.

Music Pick: Jimmy Scott

When he performed "The first time ever I saw your face" at this Clint Eastwood music tribute in 2009, singer Jimmy Scott was already 83 years old and in his 61st year as a stunning, magnificent balladeer. Alive toda...y at 87, he may still be performing but his website lists his last concert date as July 22, 2011. Anybody know?

Scott's career was derailed more often than a runaway freight train and he worked menial jobs for years till being re-discovered in the late 1990's to our great fortune as the depths of his art only increased.

Singing as slow as he does rings the upmost emotion and feeling out of a lyric but may be the toughest singing skill to master. Scott won the title in the 1940's and still hasn't relinquished it. When he sings no more it will be retired.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwnBOIH7PkE

Sen. Brady completes perfect foursome of homophobe enablers in HOP Gubernatorial Primary

It took persistence but I finally elicited a response from Sen. Bill Brady's senate office as to whether or not he will support marriage equality for all Illinoisans now that he's seeking the Illinois HOP (Homophobe Only Party, a.k.a. GOP) nomination for Governor a year from this November 4th. Sort of. After repeated calls, a pleasant staffer finally offered only that there would be no update from the good Senator aside from his NO vote to marriage equality when it passed the Illinois Senate last February. But, I persisted, maybe now that Brady seeks to govern all 13,000,000 Illinoisans, he's had an epiphany and realizes that all 13,000,000 deserve full civil rights including the roughly half million gay Illinoisans. "No further update, so you can infer what you wish", she said, and quickly ended the call. OK, I get it. Senator Brady, no doubt without a true homophobic bone in his body, must play homophobe enabler to the virulent homophobes who rule in the HOP Primary. In so doing he joins Senator Kirk Dillard (HOP, 24th), HOP stalwart and state treasurer Dan Rutherford, and Illinois' version of Mitt Romney, investment mega millionaire Bruce Rauner, who all pull the "incredible shrinking politician" ploy when the subject of marriage equality is broached.

Sadly, all four have passed on my previous suggestion that they hold a "sit down" mafia style, to unify behind marriage equality for all Illinoisans. This would be a sensible way of both doing the right thing for remaining second class Illinoisans being discriminated against due to their inherent nature,  and removing marriage equality as in issue in the HOP Primary.

A major reason for the demise of the HOP in Illinois is the cowardly pandering that HOP leaders exhibit instead of courage and decency concerning good governance of all the people. They remind me of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse; Pestilence, War, Famine and Death as described in the Book of Revelation from the New Testament who pose a Christian apocalyptic vision upon the world as harbingers of the Last Judgment. In 1924, sportswriter Grantland Rice poetically wrote about the modern Four Horsemen; Stuhldreher, Miller, Crowley and Layden, the four Notre Dame footballers who tore through opposing teams like the dramatic Four Horsemen of the Bible. Alas, the quartet of Dillard, Rutherford, Rauner and now Brady, wrecking havoc on the HOP in Illinois would more appropriately be described as jellyfish.

Sen. Dillard throws hat in HOP ring to govern the chosen 97% of Illinoisans

My state senator Kirk Dillard (HOP, 24th) officially began his quest Monday for the HOP (Homophobe Only Party) nomination to govern the 97% of Illinoisans who aren't gay. The 3% who are gay won't be treated as 100% Illinoisans under a Dillard governorship as he's chosen to cast his lot with the homophobes dominating the HOP Primary who require homophobic purity regarding marriage equality as a litmus test for getting a primary vote.

Dillard completes his two day fly around Tuesday to trumpet his campaign to govern the chosen 97%. And the 3% who will be left out of a Dillard governorship? They, along with the majority of the chosen 97% who seek marriage equality for their gay brothers and sisters, should show up at Tuesday's fly around locations, turn their back on Senator Dillard and hold up signs stating something like this:

WE DESERVE A GOVERNOR WHO WILL GOVERN ALL 100% OF ILLINOISANS EQUALLY

Here is Dillard's Tuesday fly around schedule for those interested:

Tuesday, July 16, 2013
•10:00 a.m. in Peoria: Byerly Aviation, 6100 W. E.M. Dirksen Parkway, Bartonville
•12:30 p.m. in Murphysboro: 17th Street Bar & Grill, 32 N. 17th St, Murphysboro
•4:30 p.m. in Rockford: Rockford Airport
•7:00 p.m - 9:00 p.m. in Lombard: Trademark Tavern, 777 E. Butterfield Rd. Lombard

If Senator Dillard cannot bring himself to support marriage equality for all Illinoisans, he should withdraw from the HOP gubernatorial primary...and save the aviation fuel.

Florida justice: Kill an innocent...walk; kill a ceiling...get 20 years

Just about every mentally functioning American knows George Zimmerman was acquitted of any Florida state wrongdoing in the shooting death of unarmed neighborhood passerby Trayvon Martin. But likely just an infinitesimal number know about another Florida guntoter, Marissa Alexander, serving a 20 year sentence imposed in May, 2012, for her August, 2010, transgression of firing warning shots into her ceiling to dissuade her husband from administering another beating. She was convicted on charges of felony assault with a deadly weapon which carries a 20 year minimum sentence in Florida. Since Alexander aimed at the ceiling, prosecutors may have believed she intended her bullets would dislodge chunks of ceiling which would strike her abusive husband dead. It's possible.

Both verdicts deserve additional scrutiny. Everyone outraged by the Zimmerman verdict should join the NAACP petition requesting the US Justice Department investigate possible federal charges against Zimmerman for violating Martin's federally protected civil rights by killing him. And Ms. Alexander? I would argue that her 14 months served is sufficient punishment for first degree ceilingcide.