Freedom Is A Good Feeling

NPR article, My American Dream Sounds Like Nina Simone


Feeling Good,  performed by the incomparable Nina Simone

Lyrics:

Birds flying high you know how I feel
Sun in the sky you know how I feel
Breeze driftin' on by you know how I feel

(refrain:)x2
It's a new dawn

It's a new day
It's a new life
For me
And I'm feeling good

Fish in the sea you know how I feel
River running free you know how I feel
Blossom on the tree you know how I feel

(refrain)

Dragonfly out in the sun you know what I mean, don't you know
Butterflies all havin' fun you know what I mean
Sleep in peace when day is done
That's what I mean

And this old world is a new world
And a bold world
For me

Stars when you shine you know how I feel
Scent of the pine you know how I feel
Oh freedom is mine
And I know how I feel

Songwriters: LESLIE BRICUSSE, ANTHONY NEWLEY

Independence Day - Happy 4th of July!

Best wishes to all my American friends on this hot (for most of the country), dry 4th of July holiday.

A few bloggers have posted wonderful essays for today, so I think I will link with brief quotes. If you have a few minutes, they are all worth reading!

"I have always found the inclusion of “the pursuit of happiness” as an inalienable right to be appealing. One does not expect to see such a quaint sentiment in a revolutionary political document, and its presence sheds an interesting and positive light on the minds and aspirations of the people who drafted it." On the pursuit of happiness,  Mano Singham (Theoretical Physicist, professor, blogger).

Please handle fireworks with
extreme caution this year.

"Contrary to what many believe, the American Revolution was not about taxes alone and it had nothing at all to do with establishing a Christian nation. As the Declaration so aptly states, it was about being deprived of such things as the benefits of trial by jury, for taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and  altering fundamentally the forms government without any input from the people.  It was about the Crown suspending it’s own legislatures and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate in all cases whatsoever. It was about the ability of the Monarchy to wage war on it’s own citizens and, without reservation, to plunder our seas, ravage our coasts, burn our towns, and  destroy the lives of our ancestors without any judicial or legislative regulation." Independence Day is not a religious holiday, nor is the United States a Christian Nation, Al Stefanelli (former Christian pastor, author, blogger and freethought activist).

"Who is the true citizen? The one who talks of abolishing public schools, rails against taxes, toys with the idea of seceding, and yet waves a flag and recites a pledge? Or, the one who believes in social responsibility, sees taxes as her civic duty, and yet questions whether foreign wars are necessary? I’m seriously not sure how the right stole the robe of patriotism. I’m not sure how flag waving became more important than social responsibility. I’m not sure how speaking of seceding is somehow more patriotic than questioning a foreign war." Happy Fourth: On Libertarianism, Citizenship and Social Responsibility,  Libby Anne (thinker, philosopher, blogger - former child of the Quiverfull movement)

"True patriots don't hate the government of the United States. They're proud of it. Generations of Americans have risked their lives to preserve it. They may not like everything it does, and they justifiably worry when special interests gain too much power over it. But true patriots work to improve the U.S. government, not destroy it.
But these days, some Americans loathe the government -- and are doing everything they can to paralyze it, starve it, and make the public so cynical about it that it's no longer capable of doing much of anything. Tea Partiers are out to gut it entirely. Norquist says he wants to shrink it down to a size where it can be "drowned in a bathtub."
When arguing against paying their fair share of taxes, some wealthy Americans claim "it's my money." They forget it's their nation, too. And unless they pay their fair share of taxes, America can't meet the basic needs of our people. True patriotism means paying for America.
So when you hear people talk about "preserving and protecting" the nation, be warned. They may mean securing our nation's borders, not securing our society. Within those borders, each of us is on our own. These people don't want a government that actively works for all our citizens." The True Meaning of Patriotism,  Robert Reich

Dan Fincke from Freethoughtblogs is traveling today but posted links to several of his older posts discussing American Values. Two of my favorites below:

The brave patriots who declared Independence framed the
American nation around explicitly anti-conservative values.

"Fundamentalist Evangelical Christian theology, values, and political behaviors could hardly be less consistent with the distinctive American values which are most celebrated as the source of American prosperity–let alone be claimed to be their logically necessary precondition. There is little logical connection between closed-minded, fundamentalist, reactionary, authoritarian, hierarchical, superstitious, theocratic nostalgia and America’s open-minded, idealistic, progressive, liberty-loving, egalitarian, scientific, democratic optimism." American Values vs Fundamentalist Values, Daniel Fincke (philosopher, professor, blogger).

"In other words, the uniqueness and specialness of America is precisely in its audacious claim to be founded specifically on rationally self-evident and non-tradition-specific principles and beliefs. Invocation of the necessity of one religion over another for either the source or justification of distinctively American principles is as antithetical to the true beliefs and values that distinctively characterized America." How Christian Beliefs And Values Are No More Creditable With America’s Founding Than Islamic Ones, Daniel Fincke.

Final word goes to Steve at Left Hemispheres:

"The belief that god would “Bless America” as His special nation gives credence to the false and dangerous belief that America is infallible and immune to criticism either from within or from without, just like the Christian god. This is entirely delusional to begin with but it reeks of Totalitarianism and Nationalism. Not Patriotism. True patriots challenge and criticize their fellow citizens, their representation and their government. They don't stomp their feet, point fingers and claim fellow citizens are immoral for thinking differently. Patriots do not look another citizen in the eye with contempt for merely suggesting another potential solution to our shared problems. Patriots do not accuse people of treason for disagreeing with them. Patriots do not suggest that their fellow citizens are evil, immoral, in league with Satan. This behavior is reminiscent of every totalitarian regime in history." God_less America,  (Steve, Left Hemispheres)

The president spent part of the day welcoming new citizens, like USMC Lance Cpl. Byron Acevedo who became a naturalized US citizen today. 

Letting go of God - Part 7

Letting Go of God - Part 6

Isn't That Just Ducky!

I am at the beach again. I am happy and excited! I love the water!

I am just like my hero, the Newfoundland.

Look! Look! I am a Newfoundland! 

See my black, fluffy fur? See my erect posture, my joy in the water and my lolling pink tongue? 

Yes! I am a Newfoundland!

Isn't that just Ducky!

Four Horsewomen of the Netherlands - To The Rescue!

I don't know what I love best about this video:  that it has such a good, satisfying happy ending: that it is an animal video (a hundred horses - what's not to love?) or that it was four resourceful women who calmly and efficiently rescued the stranded, frightened horses.

Best of all -  FOUR horsewomen!  I know it's a little silly, but I do love it.

via Mano Singham (check out his whole post for more smiles!).

Just Because...I Still Love Hillary

Obamacare Coverage

A few words from the President which distills in a few minutes just why the Affordable Care Act is so important.

Also, Mano Singham gives an excellent brief review  of some of the reasons why continuing to put up with the current "system" makes no sense at all for the vast majority of Americans.

NPR reports that many doctors welcome the Supreme Court ruling that upholds Obamacare,  but, (as expected), they are also reporting that the Roberts grenade - calling the Healthcare provisions a "tax" - will indeed be deployed by Republicans seeking to use the ACA as a weapon against the president and Democratic candidates in their election campaigns.

Memo to Republicans:  That strategy will be a loser. People like and want affordable healthcare!

Speaking of losing strategies, Mitt Romney continues to campaign on the platform that he will repeal Obamacare on Day 1 if he wins the presidential election. No coherent explanation of how this stance squares with his confused stance regarding the embarrassing reality of his own Massachusetts healthcare law - aka Romneycare. Romney has had trouble striking just the right note of criticism for Obamacare without slamming his own effort at better healthcare in Massachusetts (which, incidentally, is highly popular in Massachusetts - people like affordable healthcare!). Romney wants to cash in on the success in Massachusetts while essentially saying that what was brilliant when he did it suddenly morphs into a disaster when President Obama delivers it for the country.

Hmmm. No wonder Mitt Romney is in difficulties. Good is bad, right is wrong, justice is injustice...oh wait. Romney is a religious man. He ought to be well-used to this sort of cognitive dissonance. Perhaps he won't have such a devil of a time with this after all!


Updated to add: This alternet article, Why Justice Roberts' Opinion Could Set Alarming Precedents, by Steven Rosenfeld fleshes out the reasons behind that uneasy feeling many people had yesterday when it was apparent that Chief Justice Roberts - a deeply conservative Bush appointee - had an ulterior motive for siding with the more progressive end of the Judicial bench. The tax/election red meat is only the tip of the iceberg, unfortunately. But, of course.


Also, it is always a good time to provide a link to PNHP (Physicians for a National Health Program).

The Affordable Healthcare Act Stands!

The news is good:  The Supreme Court has upheld the Affordable Healthcare Act in its entirety.  Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the decision for the majority, affirming the provisions for the act, including the individual health insurance mandate.

Roberts did manage to throw one big, meaty bone to the Republicans:

"The Federal Government does not have the power to order people to buy health insurance. Section 5000A would therefore be unconstitutional if read as a command. The Federal Government does have the power to impose a tax on those without health insurance. Section 5000A is therefore constitutional, because it can reasonably be read as a tax," Roberts said in his opinion. (emphasis mine).

Look for a quick turnaround in Republican campaign strategy now as they raise the spectre of new taxation.  This will no doubt inflame the teavangelicals and the rabid fringe (Bachman, et al). Supporters of healthcare reform need to get to work immediately to counter the inevitable lies and fear tactics leading up to the November election.

But for today, let us all celebrate the fact that for the second time in recent memory, the Supreme Court has done (mostly) the right thing:  The Affordable Healthcare Act has been ruled constitutional.

Here is a brief look at what that means to Americans as individuals and for businesses.

NPR coverage.

New York Times.

I'm still on the road, but will pull together as much information as I can, and will post links to sources and analysis.

Tuesday Tonics - Hank Fox and Al Stefanelli

Still out of town, but I had to post briefly to link to two excellent FTB posts.

Hank Fox responded with his usual amazing clarity of thought and spare, straightforward writing to Ian Cromwell's call for essays elaborating on the title "Because I am an atheist". As usual, Hank has read my mind.

This ought to be passed around the blogosphere and hopefully out into other venues of mass communication. Especially this:

"…I understand the incredible human tragedy that religion represents.

Across millennia during which “hope” was measured against the willingness of an unknowable God to fix problems or provide a future of abundance for people, rather than the capabilities of hard-working, educated, compassionate humans, we Earthlings have continued to waste our vast potential, losing out on near-infinite opportunities. During that time, huge amounts of effort and wealth have been bent toward pleasing this or that capricious god, or his supposed Earthly representatives, stealing away the value of human endeavor in order to build castles of worship, create artworks of fear-driven piety, and produce – rather than textbooks for learning – mere holy books, the printed tools for brainwashing billions of hapless victims.

Through those hundreds and hundreds of years, how many have starved, or died, or lived in pain and fear and enforced ignorance while fat priests sat in literal castles, built on the backs of their enslaved fellow men? Because I’m an atheist, I can despise the malignant, manipulative human spiders who spin and maintain those enslaving webs of belief."  Hank Fox, Blue Collar Atheist.

Also this week. Al Stefanelli outdid himself with an amazing and disturbing post about the Christian apologist William Lane Craig, whose veneer of academic credentials hides a pernicious and destructive determination to obfuscate and confuse as many people as possible. Al's takedown of this notorious liar is his usual epic and well-written work.  It is well worth not only reading, but bookmarking, quoting and sending onward.

A sample:

"In case you don’t know, William Lane Craig is an oft-trundled-out source of Christian apology because he has a lot of books out with fancy titles and is a pseudo-academic. As a Research Professor of Philosophy at Talbot School of  Theology in La Mirada, California, Dr. Craig spends a fair amount of time on the lecture and debate circuit, performing feats of mental gymnastics in an effort to explain some of the contradictory principles and answer some ”tough questions” that inevitably come up when one chooses to live their life according to a world view that includes magic, unicorns, giant demigods having sex with human women, wizardry, sorcery, fire-breathing half dragon-half roosters, Satyrs, human birds, bones coming up out of the ground and dancing around, UFOs, dancing and talking animals, flying people, teleportation and all the other batshittery that is in the bible." Al Stefanelli, A Voice of Reason.

Read!  Pass it on!  The internet is the last freethought medium - let's use it to save humanity.