• Guest: conservative David Martosko, Center for Consumer Freedom. Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act. Violent Radicalization and
• Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007.
• Bush press conference this morning, the NIE Iran report.
• Hate crime, thought crime.
• The Second Amendment of the US Constitution: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
• Clips of Wendell Willkie, Ronald Reagan, Dwight D. Eisenhower sounding like Democrats.
• Corporate personhood and corporate taxes.

Details of what the show was about, upcoming events, and many links to articles, audio clips, quotes and bumper music.

Tuesday 04 December '07 National show

• Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act.
• SEC. 899A. DEFINITIONS.
  For purposes of this subtitle:
  1. COMMISSION- The term `Commission' means the National Commission on the Prevention of Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism established under section 899C.
  2. VIOLENT RADICALIZATION- The term `violent radicalization' means the process of adopting or promoting an extremist belief system for the purpose of facilitating ideologically based violence to advance political, religious, or social change.
  3. HOMEGROWN TERRORISM- The term `homegrown terrorism' means the use, planned use, or threatened use, of force or violence by a group or individual born, raised, or based and operating primarily within the United States or any possession of the United States to intimidate or coerce the United States government, the civilian population of the United States, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.
  4. IDEOLOGICALLY BASED VIOLENCE- The term `ideologically based violence' means the use, planned use, or threatened use of force or violence by a group or individual to promote the group or individual's political, religious, or social beliefs.
  H.R. 1955: Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007 passed the House 404 - 6, 22 Present/Not Voting, Oct 23, 2007.
• S. 1959: Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007, referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
• Guest: conservative David Martosko, Center for Consumer Freedom. The Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act and Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007. Last week Thom discussed them with Odette Wilkens, The Equal Justice Alliance. David Martosko said they were too alarmist. He does not think it is thought crime. It is about tertiary targeting - attacking people who are not involved, and makes it a federal and not just a state crime.
• Bumper Music: Five to One, the Doors.
• Activism alert: SB1959 may be voted on as early as today, call senators and ask them to vote no.
• Bush press conference this morning: "We know that they're still trying to learn how to enrich uranium... I think it is very important for the international community to recognize the fact that if Iran were to develop the knowledge that they could transfer to a clandestine program it would create a danger for the world.". Iran already knows how to enrich uranium, they are enriching it to 3% for nuclear power, but 97% is needed for nuclear weapons. Bush said today know the knowledge alone is enough, but it is probably still easy to find the information on the Internet. The NIE report was held since before the last elections.
• Bumper Music: Hello, NSA, Roy Zimmerman.
• Upcoming Event: Dec 6, Portland Oregon. The Willamette Store, 900 State Street - Salem, Oregon 97301 Contact: (503) 370.6772. 2 PM.
• Upcoming Event: Dec 14, Minneapolis MN. University of Minnesota Bookstore 7p - at Coffman Memorial Union. Show live from AM950.
• Clip:
  [David Gregory:] "When you talked about Iraq, you and others in the administration talked about a mushroom cloud; then there were no WMD in Iraq. When it came to Iran, you said in October, on October 17th, you warned about the prospect of World War III, when months before you made that statement, this intelligence about them suspending their weapons program back in '03 had already come to light to this administration. So can't you be accused of hyping this threat? And don't you worry that that undermines U.S. credibility? "
  [President Bush:] "David, I don't want to contradict an august reporter such as yourself, but I was made aware of the NIE last week. In August, I think it was Mike McConnell came in and said, we have some new information. He didn't tell me what the information was; he did tell me it was going to take a while to analyze. Why would you take time to analyze new information? One, you want to make sure it's not disinformation. You want to make sure the piece of intelligence you have is real. And secondly, they want to make sure they understand the intelligence they gathered: If they think it's real, then what does it mean? And it wasn't until last week that I was briefed on the NIE that is now public.

  And the second part of your question has to do with this. Look, Iran was dangerous, Iran is dangerous, and Iran will be dangerous if they have the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon. The NIE says that Iran had a hidden -- a covert nuclear weapons program. That's what it said. What's to say they couldn't start another covert nuclear weapons program? And the best way to ensure that the world is peaceful in the future is for the international community to continue to work together to say to the Iranians, we're going to isolate you. However, there is a better way forward for the Iranians.

  Now, in 2003, the Iranian government began to come to the table in discussions with the EU-3, facilitated by the United States. In other words, we said to the EU-3, we'll support your efforts to say to the Iranians, you have a choice to make: You can continue to do policy that will isolate you, or there's a better way forward, so that it was the sticks-and-carrots approach.

  You might remember the United States said at that point in time, we'll put the WTO on the table for consideration, or we'll help you with spare parts for your airplanes. It was all an attempt to take advantage of what we thought was a more open-minded Iranian regime at the time -- a willingness of this regime to talk about a way forward. And then the Iranians had elections, and Ahmadinejad announced that -- to the IAEA that he was going to -- this is after, by the way, the Iranians had suspended their enrichment program -- he said, we're going to stop the suspension, we'll start up the program again. And that's where we are today.

  My point is, is that there is a better way forward for the Iranians. There has been a moment during my presidency in which diplomacy provided a way forward for the Iranians. And our hope is we can get back on that path again. But what is certain is that if Iran ever had the knowledge to develop a nuclear weapon and they passed that knowledge on to a covert program, which at one time in their history has existed, the world would be more dangerous. And now is the time for the international community to work together.

  "
  [David Gregory:] "Mr. President, thank you. Just to follow, I understand what you're saying about when you were informed about the NIE. Are you saying at no point while the rhetoric was escalating, as "World War III" was making it into conversation, at no point nobody from your intelligence team or your administration was saying, maybe you want to back it down a little bit?"
  [President Bush:] "No, nobody ever told me that. Having said -- having laid that out, I still feel strongly that Iran is a danger. Nothing has changed in this NIE that says, okay, why don't we just stop worrying about it. Quite the contrary. I think the NIE makes it clear that Iran needs to be taken seriously as a threat to peace. My opinion hasn't changed. And I just explained, Jim, that if you want to avoid a really problematic situation in the Middle East, now is the time to continue to work together. That's our message to our allies, and it's an important message for them to hear. And here's the reason why: In order for a nation to develop a nuclear weapons program they must have the materials from which to make a bomb, the know-how on how to take that material and make it explode, and a delivery system. Now, the Iranians -- the most difficult aspect of developing a weapons program, or as some would say, the long pole in the tent, is enriching uranium. This is a nation -- Iran is a nation that is testing ballistic missiles. And it is a nation that is trying to enrich uranium. The NIE says this is a country that had a covert nuclear weapons program, which, by the way, they have failed to disclose, even today. They have never admitted the program existed in the first place. The danger is, is that they can enrich, play like they got a civilian program -- or have a civilian program, or claim it's a civilian program -- and pass the knowledge to a covert military program. And then the danger is, is at some point in the future, they show up with a weapon. And my comments are, now is the time to work together to prevent that scenario from taking place. It's in our interests."
  Press Conference by the President, December 4, 2007.
• Either Cheney told Bush to go away while adults talk about it, for plausible deniability, or he's lying. Scary either way.
• Bumper Music: Learning to Fly, Tom Petty.
• Hate crime, thought crime. Thom: "If you're a member of a minority, and I target you with a crime not to terrify you; you're the one who ends up being beaten up or dragged around or killed or whatever, but I'm targeting you in order to terrify all your friends; that's what a hate crime is. A hate crime is a crime that isn't just targeting an individual; it's targeting a whole group. I'm doing it against you because you're black or you're Jewish or you're gay; that's what a hate crime is.

  On the other hand, if I'm going after you because I don't like the fact that you own Wal-Mart, I don't like the fact that you're experimenting with animals, that's behavior that you're engaging in. It has nothing to do with the color of your skin when you're born. They are two completely different categories of crime.

  "
• Clip:
  "It's a bloodthirsty religion that's practiced over there by a bunch of throwbacks, and we're to kill 'em." Michael Savage. He's suing an Islamic group.
• Article: 911 tape traces deadly shootings by Pasadena man. What if you decide to play the role of government and take justice into your own hands? Vigilance justice.
• Article: U.S. Most Armed Country With 90 Guns Per 100 People: Global Guns Are Burning Up the Planet in Violence.
• Article: Hearing Impaired Man Tased by Police. "Donnell Williams had just gotten out of the bath tub, wearing only a towel around his waist, when he turned the corner to see guns pointing right at him."
• Quote:
  Amendment II
  "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
  Constitution of the United States, final version, September 21, 1789 (ratified December 15, 1791).
• Quote:
  "Let a regular army, fully equal to the resources of the country, be formed; and let it be entirely at the devotion of the federal government; still it would not be going too far to say, that the State governments, with the people on their side, would be able to repel the danger. The highest number to which, according to the best computation, a standing army can be carried in any country, does not exceed one hundredth of the whole number of souls; or one twenty-fifth part of the number able to bear arms. This proportion would not yield, in the United States, an army of more than twenty-five or thirty thousand men. To these would be opposed a militia amounting to near half a million of citizens with arms in their hands, officered by men chosen from among themselves, fighting for their common liberties, and united and conducted by governments possessing their affections and confidence. It may well be doubted, whether a militia thus circumstanced could ever be conquered by such a proportion of regular troops."
  The Federalist Papers/No. 46, James Madison (Publius), January 29, 1788.
• Quote:
  "The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed; a well armed and well regulated militia being the best security of a free country; but no person religiously scrupulous of bearing arms shall be compelled to render military service in person."
  Amendment II, James Madison's first draft, Annals of Congress, House of Representatives, 1st Congress, 1st Session: pp. 451, June 8 1789.
• Quote:
  "A well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, being the best security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed; but no person religiously scrupulous shall be compelled to bear arms."
  Amendment II, House of Representatives, 1st Congress, 1st Session: pp. 778, August 17 1789 draft.
• Quote:
  "A well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, being the best security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed; but no one religiously scrupulous of bearing arms shall be compelled to render military service in person."
  Amendment II, Journal of the Senate of the United States of America, Volume 1: pp. 63, August 24 1789 draft.
• This was all about creating state militias. And now you've got the NRA, the gun lobby, pushing right to murder laws. How brutal is the U.S. becoming?
• Bumper Music: Do Ya, Electric Light Orchestra.
• Upcoming Event: Dec 6, Portland Oregon. The Willamette Store, 900 State Street - Salem, Oregon 97301 Contact: (503) 370.6772. 2 PM.
• Upcoming Event: Dec 14, Minneapolis MN. University of Minnesota Bookstore 7p - at Coffman Memorial Union. Show live from AM950.
• Clip:
  "I believe that the forces of free enterprise must be regulated. I'm opposed to business monopolies. I believe in the right of collective bargaining by labor without any interference, and full protection of that obvious right. I believe in minimum standards for wages and maximum standards for hours, and I believe that such standards should constantly improve. I'm in favor of the regulation of interstate utilities; of banking, of the security market. I believe in federal pensions, in adequate old age benefits and in unemployment allowances. I believe that the federal government owes a duty to adjust the position of the farmer with that of the manufacturers. If this cannot be done by parity prices then some other method must be found without too much regimentation of the farmers' affairs."
  Republican Wendell Willkie, 1940 presidential election.
• Clip:
  "This is Ronald Reagan speaking to you from Hollywood. You know me as a motion picture actor but tonight I'm just a citizen pretty concerned about the national election next month and more than a little impatient with those promises the Republicans made before they got control of Congress a couple years ago.

  I remember listening to the radio on election night in 1946. Joseph Martin, the Republican Speaker of the House, said very solemnly, and I quote, "We Republicans intend to work for a real increase in income for everybody by encouraging more production and lower prices without impairing wages or working conditions", unquote. Remember that promise: a real increase in income for everybody. But what actually happened?

  The profits of corporations have doubled, while workers' wages have increased by only one-quarter. In other words, profits have gone up four times as much as wages, and the small increase workers did receive was more than eaten up by rising prices, which have also bored into their savings. For example, here is an Associate Press Dispatch I read the other day about Smith L. Carpenter, a craftsman in Union Springs, New York. It seems that Mr. Carpenter retired some years ago thinking he had enough money saved up that he could live out his last years without having to worry. But he didn’t figure on this Republican inflation, which ate up all of his savings, and so he's gone back to work.

  The reason this is news, is Mr. Carpenter is 91 years old.

  Now, take as a contrast the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey, which reported a net profit of $210 million after taxes for the first half of 1948; an increase of 70% in one year. In other words, high prices have not been caused by higher wages, but by bigger and bigger profits.

  The Republican promises sounded pretty good in 1946, but what has happened since then, since the 80th Congress took over? Prices have climbed to the highest level in history, although the death of the OPA was supposed to bring prices down through "the natural process of free competition". Labor has been handcuffed with the vicious Taft-Hartley law. Social Security benefits have been snatched away from almost a million workers by the Gearhart bill. Fair employment practices, which had worked so well during war time, have been abandoned. Veterans' pleas for low cost homes have been ignored, and many people are still living in made-over chicken coops and garages.

  Tax-reduction bills have been passed to benefit the higher-income brackets alone. The average worker saved only $1.73 a week. In the false name of economy, millions of children have been deprived of milk once provided through the federal school lunch program. This was the payoff of the Republicans' promises. And this is why we must have new faces in the Congress of the United States: Democratic faces.

  This is why we must not only elect President Truman, but also men like Mayor Hubert Humphrey of Minneapolis, the Democratic candidate for Senator from Minnesota. Mayor Humphrey at 37 is one of the ablest men in public life. He's running against Joe Ball, who was a member of the Senate Labor Committee, helped write the Taft-Hartley law. The Republicans don't want to lose Ball, and are spending a small fortune on his campaign. They've even sent [Thomas] Dewey and [Earl] Warren to Minneapolis to speak for him.

  President Truman knows the value of a man like Hubert Humphrey in the Senate, and he has been in Minneapolis too, campaigning against Joe Ball. Mayor Humphrey and Ball are the symbols of the political battle going on in America today. While Ball is a banner carrier for Wall Street, Mayor Humphrey is fighting for all the principles advocated by President Truman; for adequate low cost housing, for civil rights, for prices people can afford to pay, and for a labor movement freed of the Taft-Hartley law. I take great pride in presenting my friend from Minneapolis, Mayor Hubert H. Humphrey, candidate for United States Senator.

  "
  Reagan Campaigns for Truman in 1948.
• Bumper Music: Lovin' the Ride, Healy & Orr.
• Quote:
  "Should any political party attempt to abolish social security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes you can do these things. Among them are H. L. Hunt (you possibly know his background), a few other Texas oil millionaires, and an occasional politician or business man from other areas. Their number is negligible and they are stupid."
  President Dwight D. Eisenhower, November 8, 1954 letter to his brother Edgar.
• Militia, right to bear arms.
• Bumper Music: Little Bit Of Life, Craig Morgan.
• Article: Congress (Probably) Didn't Compel Release of Iran Intel Report, Spencer Ackerman.
• Victoria Jones of Talk Radio News. Bush is claiming not to have known about the NIE report. She was at the press conference. It sounded like he was saying the truth, but no way would they let him make a fool of himself in front of the whole world. RFK did not tell JFK the details of what he was doing, but this is different - he was talking about it in public forums all the time, and we've been negotiating with Europeans about more sanctions against Iran, saying stuff that was not true. Spencer Ackerman article - Intel rather than Congress released the report; pushing back. A few months ago the military pushed back. Process of elimination - who wanted the NIE report out? We were told there would be no more. Only military or Intel would want stuff out. Maybe Mike McConnell is the good guy. Bush calling David Gregory 'august' was just joshing, though they get testy at times. He started by lashing out against Congress. Near the end, he said "I came out today to talk about Iran" - but he didn't. He said how Iran wasn't enriching and shouldn't enrich uranium - but they are already doing it for nuclear power.
• Clip:
  [Toby:] "Thank you. Another issue -- on another issue of credibility in the Mideast, at the Annapolis summit, you used your influence to get Saudi Arabia to the table. But I wonder whether now you will use your influence to do something about the Saudi rape case that's gotten so much international attention. What goes through your mind when you hear about a 19-year-old Saudi women getting gang-raped by seven men and basically a Saudi court blames the victim and sentenced her to 200 lashes? You spoke to King Abdullah by telephone in the last couple of weeks. Did you press him on this case? If so, what did you say? And if not, are you giving him a pass?"
  [Bush:] "My first thoughts were these: What happens if this happened to my daughter? How would I react? And I would have been -- I would have been -- I'd have been very emotional, of course. I'd have been angry at those who committed the crime, and I'd be angry at a state that didn't support the victim. And our opinions were expressed by Dana Perino from the podium and -- "
  [Toby:] "But did you press King Abdullah about it, personally?"
  [Bush:] "I talked to King Abdullah about the Middle Eastern peace. I don't remember if that subject came up."
  [Toby:] "But if it's that important to you, why wouldn't you bring it -- at that level, bring it directly up to King Abdullah?"
  [Bush:] "We'll have plenty of time. He knows our position loud and clear."
  Press Conference by the President, December 4, 2007 (17:40 on the video).
• When Bush senior was running against Michael Dukakis, the moment Dukakis collapsed, politically, after the Willy Horton ads, was when he was asked: if his wife had been raped and murdered, would he still be against the death penalty? He answered in abstract terms, nothing about feelings. In that campaign the guy who brought the far right religious vote was George Bush junior, and he saw that. So when he was asked about the Saudi rape case, unusually for him his eyes went up to the ceiling, remembering Dukakis, and he did not want to make the same mistake. But then half way in, he realizes will have to pick on the Saudis if he carries on down that road. He began with a great big smile on his face, then caught himself. The deficit will be $10 trillion when he leaves, mostly from Reagan, Bush senior and Bush junior. King Abdullah is lending some of it.
• Bumper Music: Crazy, Gnarls Barkley.
• Article: State Report: Texas Has Too Many Reports.
• A couple of students in Ohio decided to rob a bank because they could not afford tuition.
• Article: Young chimps trash college kids in memory test.
• Shouldn't education be free? It used to be cheap or very free. His mother worked her way through college with a summer job as a lifeguard.
• Global warming: Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich proposing adding increasing gas tax, jet fuel tax and kerosene tax, have a carbon tax, phase out mortgage deductions for homes over 3,000 square feet.
• Bumper Music: Pink Houses, John Mellencamp.
• Upcoming Event: February 23 to March 1: Air America Cruise. Thom and Louise will be there for part.
• Upcoming Event: Dec 6, Portland Oregon. The Willamette Store, 900 State Street - Salem, Oregon 97301 Contact: (503) 370.6772. 2 PM.
• Upcoming Event: Dec 14, Minneapolis MN. University of Minnesota Bookstore 7p - at Coffman Memorial Union. Show live from AM950.
• From the chat room: [blueinmo] Well Thom that's not fair! the Chimp needs to be tested after 2 or 3 years of drinking and pot smoking to level the playing field lol
• Thom:
  "A corporation should not be considered a person in the terms of a natural person. The rights that corporations have acquired since 1886 need to be stripped from them. It is totally inappropriate that a corporation be able to claim a fourth amendment right to privacy in order to hide what they know about the dangers of asbestos or tobacco, as has been used. It's totally inappropriate that a corporation be able to use the fifth amendment to hind behind their own knowledge; their own guilty knowledge of the toxicity or dangers or deadliness of their product, or of their own behaviors, as has happened in the case of meat packing plants that were selling contaminated food.

  It's totally inappropriate that a corporation, as Nike tried to claim back in 3, 4 years ago, should be able to go to the Supreme Court and say we can lie in commercial speech because we're a person, we have first amendment right of free speech.

  It's totally inappropriate that a corporation, as many big chain stores have over the years, should claim 14th amendment rights of anti-discrimination claiming that, you know, to say we don't want a Wal-Mart in our neighborhood is the same as saying we don't want somebody with, you know, very light or very dark skin sitting at our lunch counter. They're completely different things.

  Corporations are not living persons. They should not have personhood, it's that simple.

  And taxing them or not taxing them has nothing to do with personhood, nothing to do whatsoever. It has to do with whether or not they're engaged in economic activity. And if a corporation is engaged in economic activity, that economic activity that they're engaged in is using the resources of the commons, of the commonwealth. The corporation is using our educated workforce which we pay for with our taxes. The corporation is using our roads and our highways either to transport their products or to get their people to work, which we pay for collectively with our taxes. The corporation is using the water supply that we pay for collectively with our taxes. They're using the sewer supply.

  They're using the cultural commons. That's the biggy. That's the huge one. If you look at underdeveloped countries, countries where you don't see corporations saying, "Gee, let's move to Namibia today", or, "let's go out to Zambia". Look at underdeveloped countries and what you see is the main reason why corporations are not going in there and saying, "oh, there's lots of cheap labor, let's go there and exploit it", is because the cultural infrastructure, the governmental infrastructure is not in place. That's the main thing that China started building in the 1970s and 80s after the cultural revolution, to prepare for the 1990s and, you know, all these trade deals that has caused them to explode, is that they're providing the cultural infrastructure. You know, an educated workforce, government things like intellectual property laws, contract law, mechanisms for enforcing those laws, courts, all of those things are paid for with tax dollars. And if corporations are using them, they should be paying for them. When Dwight Eisenhower was president, corporations paid half the tax load in this country; now it's under 7%; you and I are picking up the rest, and it's wrong.

  "
• Bumper Music: You Learn, Alanis Morissette (video).
• Conservatives like Michelle Malkin, Norman Podhoretz are freaking out, saying that the Intel community is trying to sabotage Bush with the NIE report. He says the next step is to bomb Iran.
• Article: EXAMINING THE VOTE: THE OVERVIEW; Study of Disputed Florida Ballots Finds Justices Did Not Cast the Deciding Vote, November 12, 2001. "A comprehensive review of the uncounted Florida ballots from last year's presidential election reveals that George W. Bush would have won even if the United States Supreme Court had allowed the statewide manual recount of the votes that the Florida Supreme Court had ordered to go forward...

  A statistical analysis conducted for The Times determined that if all counties had followed state law in reviewing the absentee ballots, Mr. Gore would have picked up as many as 290 additional votes, enough to tip the election in Mr. Gore's favor in some of the situations studied in the statewide ballot review.

  "
• Bumper Music: I'm The Man That Built the Bridges, Tom Paxton.