Tuesday, June 03, 2008

Obama makes history, clinches nomination




WASHINGTON — Barack Obama clinched the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday, seizing a place in American history on the final day of a grueling five-month primary that forced him to battle rival Hillary Clinton to the very end.

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AP: Obama effectively clinches nomination

Barack Obama has effectively clinched the Democratic presidential nomination, based on an Associated Press tally of convention delegates.

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Sen. Obama won the Democratic nomination!

Sen. Clinton will conceed the race tonight.

Monday, June 02, 2008

National Treasure III: Go Nic, go!

There is no escape. It's Hollywood. There will be a National Treasure 3 sequel, according to producer- director Jon Turteltaub.
"We're trying," Turteltaub says in an on-line interview set up to promote the current DVD release of National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets.

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Why Vote Democrat?

"House Democrats are introducing the New GI Bill of Rights for the 21st Century to honor the bravery of our troops and the tremendous sacrifices that their families have made. The New GI Bill will repeal unfair tax burdens on military families, provide Veterans with the benefits they deserve like affordable health care, education and job training, strengthen our support for our men and women in uniform and improve benefits for our National Guard/Reservists."
--from the web site of Congressman George Miller (D-California, 7th Congressional District)

Why doesn't McCain support this bill? The G.I. Bill was in full effect when he was in the active military. Isn't his constituancy suffering? Don't they matter?

Sen. Obama cares and is backing this bill.

"That's why I've pledged to build a 21st century VA as President. It means no more red tape - it's time to give every service-member electronic copies of medical and service records upon discharge. It means no more shortfalls - we'll fully fund VA health care, and add more Vet Centers, particularly in rural areas. It means no more delays - we'll pass on-time budgets. It means no more means-testing - it's time to allow every veteran into the VA system. And it means we'll have a simple principle for veterans sleeping on our streets: zero tolerance. As President, I'll build on the work I started in the Senate and expand housing vouchers, and launch a new supportive services housing program to prevent at-risk veterans and their families from sliding into homelessness."
--from the web site of Sen. Barack Obama

What else is Barack doing?

Obama Demands VA Investigate Allegations of PTSD Misdiagnoses to Reduce Costs

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Barack Obama sent the following letter to Secretary of Veterans Affairs James Peake, calling on him to investigate reports that a psychologist at a Texas Veterans Affairs (VA) facility told staff members to refrain from diagnosing veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in order to reduce costs. According to today's Washington Post, the psychologist, Ms. Norma Perez, apparently emailed Teague Center staff members suggesting the alternative diagnosis to limit the number of tests required to diagnose PTSD. Since the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan began, thousands of service members have returned home suffering from combat-related psychological injuries like PTSD, which require much-needed treatment.

Obama campaign makes steps toward November primary, pulls more superdelegates

Presidential Candidate Sen. Barack Obama has quietly, respectfully been making strides toward winning the November contest in his bid for the presidency, focusing less on Sen. Hillary Clinton's primary woes.
Today he picked up another superdelegate.

Connecticut Democratic Party Chair and Superdelegate Endorses Obama
By Sam Graham-Felsen - Jun 2nd, 2008 at 9:22 am EDT

Senator Barack Obama has helped to energize thousands upon thousands of Democrats in Connecticut and across the country. He has inspired the electorate and won their confidence by demonstrating sound judgment, strength of spirit, dedication to those in need, and belief in the transforming power of community.

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My Perspective
Personally, the general public should realize that major news outlets need a logical, easy-to-understand way to present something as complex as a United States election to the masses.
What the public hears and sees in news content should be balanced with their own value system, thoughts and feelings about how well or poorly they have fared these past eight years and so forth.
All of that combined should help personalize the decision to vote Democratic or Republican.

Sunday, June 01, 2008

Universal Studios Fire On Historic Back Lot - Entertainment

A massive fire raged on a back lot at Universal Studios early Sunday, spewing thick smoke as it devoured blocks of movie sets. There were no immediate reports of injuries.

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Jamaica's Bolt sets world record in 100 meters at Reebok

NEW YORK -- Like a bolt out of nowhere, Usain Bolt is now the world's fastest man.The Jamaican runner, who doesn't even consider the 100 meters his best race, set the world record Saturday night with a time of 9.72 seconds at the Reebok Grand Prix, .02 seconds faster than the old record held by his countryman, Asafa Powell.

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Clinton wins Puerto Rico but Obama still leads

Reuters - Hillary Clinton won the Democratic nominating contest in Puerto Rico on Sunday, but still badly trails front-runner Barack Obama as he draws closer to clinching the party's presidential nomination.

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