Recently in Change Category

Act to Blue MN has less than $100 to go to reach it's goal of $2000. I have to have some readers willing to give as little as $5. Today is the last day of this quarter. Help us to put Minnesota Democrats into congress. Give to Al Franken, Ashwin Madia, Elwyn Tinklenberg, Steve Sarvi.

New York Times

News of the quake has dominated Chinese television. The state-controlled media have been especially aggressive in their coverage, with reporters fanning out across the stricken region. Home video, cellphone images and commentary have been flowing uncensored onto Web sites.

Quite the contrast with Myanmar, isn't it. I can't help but wonder if China sees the international communities response to that crisis and realize it would be better to be open and cooperative, ask for assistance, and show they care about their citizens.

This really is a level of openness for China that is unprecedented.

Ballot Access News

On January 27, the Minnesota Independence Party, which has been ballot-qualified since 1994, voted to affiliate itself with the new Independence Party of America. The Minnesota party's webpage already mentions this step. Thanks to ThirdPartyWatch for this news.

I can't help but wonder what this portends for the Republican party. As more and more of the party members resign or announce their intentions to retire, I can not help but think they know the party is dying, poisoned by their own arrogance, avarice, and malice.

Perchance the Independence party will become the next national party, with what is left of the Republican party resigned to the fringes, a regional party muscling itself a few seats along side the Green party, and others, clinging to the final, fading vestiges of it's past glory.

Or more frightening; the Democratic party will swing over to the right, with some new party taking over the left/progressive spectrum of the political realm in the United States. I suspect that political re-alignment is not a slim possibility, but the hoped for amount of change that is coming. A hoped for outcome that is wildly underestimated.

A Chinese curse is headed our way. And wouldn't you know it, I am not in the mood for anything interesting.