Democracy for New Mexico

Meet Martin Sheen in ABQ Tonight

PRESIDENT BARTLETT comes to Albuquerque! Join Martin Sheen, star of "The West Wing," as he campaigns for John Kerry and Richard Romero!

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 29th, 7:00PM
La Posada de Albuquerque
125 Second Street NW

Please Call Lisa or Alexandra at 505-256-2570 to RSVP
Romero for Congress
Web: www.richardromeroforcongress.com
Email: info@richardromeroforcongress.com

THIS JUST IN: Teresa Heinz Kerry and Martin Sheen will appear Saturday, October 30th, at the Kachina Lodge in Taos at 12:15 PM (gates open at 11:00 AM) and at San Juan Pueblo's Casino Dome at 2:45 PM (gates open at 1:00 PM.

Tickets for the various rallies for Kerry can be downloaded here.

Clinton Adds Albuquerque Rally for Kerry on Sunday

In addition to Bill Clinton rallying the faithful in Santa Fe on Saturday (click here or see below), he'll be in Albuquerque on Sunday, October 31st for a Fresh Start for America Rally for Kerry/Edwards.

Tickets are required for this event. To print your complimentary ticket(s) or to volunteer for the rally, please click here: https://www.johnkerry.com/tickets

Sunday, October 31 - Gates open at 10:00 a.m.
National Hispanic Cultural Center
1701 4th Street, SW, Albq.
Due to security, please do not bring any umbrellas, bags, or signs. Please limit personal items as well. This event will take place RAIN or SHINE.

Tickets are also available at the following New Mexico Victory 2004 offices:

State Office, 3301 Central Avenue NE, Albuquerque
Rio Rancho, 4300 Ridgecrest Drive, Rio Rancho
Albuquerque South Valley, 2017 Yale Blvd., Albuquerque

MoveOn Holds Leave No Voter Behind GOTV Rallies This Saturday

From MoveOn: This weekend, join hundreds of other MoveOn members for one last huge rally before November 2nd. The election is the greatest challenge we've taken on together, and this rally will be the greatest gathering of MoveOn members yet. Tens of thousands of volunteers will be traveling from safe states to join us in our neighborhoods for this grand finale. We'll hear from inspiring speakers who will lay out how we're going to win this election, then you can join us in reaching out to voters right afterward.

Albuquerque: Downtown Civic Plaza
Saturday, October 30, 10:00 AM
MoveOn Leave No Voter Behind Get Out the Vote Rall

At the rally, MoveOn PAC staff will go over our 96 hour crunch plan, as well as where we are at to take this election! It is very important that all of our volunteers make it to this event. Please bring your friends and family. The Civic Plaza is just east of the City/County Building between third and fourth on Tijeras.

Santa Fe: Genoveva Chavez Community Center
3321 Rodeo Road
Saturday, October 30, 10:00 AM

At the rally, MoveOn PAC staff will go over our 96 hour final crunch plan, as well as where we are at to take this election! It is very important that all of our volunteers make it to this event. We'll also distribute new materials for the final push. Please bring your friends and family. Between the Fairground and Camino Carlos Rey on the north side of Rodeo Road.

Las Vegas NM: Carnegie Park
Across from the Library, 500 National Ave.
Saturday, October 30, 10:00 AM
Beat Bush in Las Vegas: One Door at a Time

This Saturday, October 30th, we are going out walking in the most important neighborhoods in Las Vegas to talk to people who are likely to oppose Bush but don't generally vote. We can beat Bush in New Mexico, but we need Kerry supporters to turn out in droves -- and with your help, we can make it happen. We'll gather at park across from Carnegie Library. Arrive on time and bring a clipboard if you have one.

To sign up or to find a MoveOn event in your area, .

Adios, Bambino (And The Curse You Rode In On)

And, how could I forget? Navajo Code Talker Chester Nez came through again, the total eclipse of the moon added a beautiful mystique to the night, and the Red Sox won the World Series for the first time in 86 years! Check out the front page of the Boston Globe's special edition. You can also view it as a pdf file here. And you can get full coverage of the Series with slideshows, videos and more at the main Boston Globe website. Can we consider this a positive omen for the presidential campaign of Bostonian and diehard Red Sox fan, John Kerry? You betcha. As Red Sox fans are fond of saying, You Gotta Believe!

And according to MyDD, the Bambino's curse has moved onto Bush's team, the St. Louis Cardinals. Read all about it.

(Photo of October's "Blood Moon" or "Hunter's Moon" in total eclipse courtesy of NASA.)

Proof that Al Qaqaa Explosives Weren't Guarded?

Truthout is reporting a story by Eyewitness News 5 in Minneapolis about footage their reporters shot in Iraq on April 18th, 2003 that allegedly shows 101st Airborne troops entering explosives bunkers at Al Qaqaa and then leaving them unguarded. Go to this site to read the story and see the report and footage filmed by KSTP-TV. The video link is near the top of the page.

As the KSTP-TV story says says, "The missing explosives are now an issue in the presidential debate. Democratic candidate John Kerry is accusing President Bush of not securing the site they allegedly disappeared from. President Bush says no one knows if the ammunition was taken before or after the fall of Baghdad on April 9, 2003 when coalition troops moved in to the area."

According to Truthout, "The KSTP video is incredibly important in this context. It shows boxes marked 'al Qaqaa' and 'High Explosives.' It shows 101st Airborne troopers cutting the locks to the facility to get inside. Worse, it shows the KSTP embedded reporters stating flatly that, despite the fact that all these explosives were inside the facility, the place went completely unguarded."

Clinton Visits Santa Fe Plaza This Saturday

Bill Clinton will be rallying for Kerry/Edwards on the Santa Fe Plaza this Saturday. Gates open at 3:30 PM. Tickets are required and will be available starting at 6 PM today (Thursday). Call the Kerry/Edwards campaign at 256-2570 in Albuquerque or 982-5727 in Santa Fe for information.

JUST ADDED: Teresa Heinz Kerry will join Clinton on the Plaza at this rally.

(Photo of Clinton and Kerry in Philadelphia courtesy of Kerry-Edwards 2004, Inc. from Sharon Farmer. Click image for larger version.)

What's Good for the Red Sox Is Good For Kerry?

Quite a night for the 18,000 plus supporters (including me) at the Kerry rally last night at Civic Plaza in downtown Albuquerque. I don't think I've ever seen as many people in one place in the Duke City except at a sporting event or concert.

Steve Terrell, who writes for the Santa Fe New Mexican, has an excellent article on his website about last night's rally. Our own Frank from Amsterdam, of Frank and Page, has a rally diary with photos on Daily Kos that's worth a look. And there's a bunch of excellent photos from last night at .

A highlight of the rally was a Navajo (Dine) corn pollen blessing bestowed on Kerry and the crowd by 83-year-old Chester Nez, one of the four surviving members of the 29 Navajo Code Talkers who served so ably in WWII. You could hear a pin drop when Mr. Nez opened his small deerskin pouch and offered pinches of the sacred pollen to the Four Directions while offering blessings to those present. Many Navajos and members of the 19 New Mexico Pueblos were present at the rally, and Kerry has received the endorsement of each of the tribal councils.

Mr. Nez's blessings have apparently been very effective in helping the Boston Red Sox in their record-breaking surge to the World Series. On April 10th, Mr. Nez threw out the ceremonial first pitch and offered a blessing for the Red Sox. They won the next 7 of 9 games. And when the team was down 3-0 in their league championship series with the Yankees, Mr. Nez stepped outside his home in Albuquerque, faced east and bestowed another blessing. You know what happened next.

The Red Sox are now 3-0 in the World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals. Our own Mary Ellen, born in Salem MA and a diehard Sox fan, was equipped with a headphone radio last night at the rally so she could keep up with the game. She helped update Kerry on the score at one point and her Red Sox cap and sweatshirt were a good match for the Red Sox jacket and cap worn by Mr. Nez himself while onstage. Red Sox Nation!

As for Kerry, he gave another excellent stump speech and had the crowd cheering and almost giddy at times at what may well be his final visit to New Mexico before the election. There are rumors, however, that Teresa Heinz Kerry and Wesley Clark will travel here before the election, and Bill Clinton is slated for a visit to Santa Fe and Albuquerque this Saturday and Sunday. Stay tuned.

(Photo of Kerry and Chester Nez courtesy of Frank's Daily Kos diary. Click image for larger version.)

Eminem Sez Vote

I'm not in any way a fan of hiphop, but this new video by Eminem is powerful indeed. It's flying around the internet(s) at warp speed. Check out Eminem's animated video Mosh.

Click through to the continuation page to see the lyrics.

Eminem - Mosh Lyrics

[I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America
And to the Republic for which it stands
One nation under God
Indivisible・
It feels so good to be back..]

Scrutinize every word, memorize every line
I spit it once, refuel, reenergize, and rewind
I give sight to the blind, mind sight through the mind
I ostracize my right to express when I feel it's time
It's just all in your mind, what you interpret it as
I say to fight you take it as I'm gonna whip someone's ass
If you don't understand don't even bother to ask
A father who has grown up with a fatherless past
Who has blown up now to rap phenomenon that has
Or at least shows no difficulty multi task
And juggling both, perhaps mastered his craft slash
Entrepreneur who has held long too few more rap acts
Who has had a few obstacles thrown his way through the last half
Of his career typical manure moving past that
Mister kiss his ass crack, he's a class act
Rubber band man, yea he just snaps back

Come along, follow me as I lead through the darkness
As I provide just enough spark, that we need to proceed
Carry on, give me hope, give me strength,
Come with me, and I won't stear you wrong
Put your faith and your trust as I guide us through the fog
Till the light, at the end, of the tunnel, we gonna fight,
We gonna charge, we gonna stomp, we gonna march through the swamp
We gonna mosh through the marsh, take us right through the doors

To the people up top, on the side and the middle,
Come together, let's all bomb and swamp just a little
Just let it gradually build, from the front to the back
All you can see is a sea of people, some white and some black
Don't matter what color, all that matters is we gathered together
To celebrate for the same cause, no matter the weather
If it rains let it rain, yea the wetter the better
They ain't gonna stop us, they can't, we're stronger now more then ever,
They tell us no we say yea, they tell us stop we say go,
Rebel with a rebel yell, raise hell we gonna let em know
Stomp, push up, mush, fuck Bush, until they bring our troops home come on just . . .

Come along, follow me as I lead through the darkness
As I provide just enough spark, that we need to proceed
Carry on, give me hope, give me strength,
Come with me, and I won't stear you wrong
Put your faith and your trust as I guide us through the fog
Till the light, at the end, of the tunnel, we gonna fight,
We gonna charge, we gonna stomp, we gonna march through the swamp
We gonna mosh through the marsh, take us right through the doors, come on

Imagine it pouring, it's raining down on us,
Mosh pits outside the oval office
Someone's trying to tell us something, maybe this is God just saying
we're responsible for this monster, this coward, that we have empowered
This is Bin Laden, look at his head nodding,
How could we allow something like this, Without pumping our fist
Now this is our, final hour
Let me be the voice, and your strength, and your choice
Let me simplify the rhyme, just to amplify the noise
Try to amplify the times it, and multiply it by six
Teen million people are equal of this high pitch
Maybe we can reach Al Quaida through my speech
Let the President answer on high anarchy
Strap him with AK-47, let him go
Fight his own war, let him impress daddy that way
No more blood for oil, we got our own battles to fight on our soil
No more psychological warfare to trick us to think that we ain't loyal
If we don't serve our own country we're patronizing a hero
Look in his eyes, it's all lies, the stars and stripes
They've been swiped, washed out and wiped,
And Replaced with his own face, mosh now or die
If I get sniped tonight you'll know why, because I told you to fight

So come along, follow me as I lead through the darkness
As I provide just enough spark, that we need to proceed
Carry on, give me hope, give me strength,
Come with me, and I won't stear you wrong
Put your faith and your trust as I guide us through the fog
Till the light, at the end, of the tunnel, we gonna fight,
We gonna charge, we gonna stomp, we gonna march through the swamp
We gonna mosh through the marsh, take us right through the doors

[Eminem speaking angrily]
And as we proceed, to mosh through this desert storm, in these closing statements, if they should argue, let us beg to differ, as we set aside our differences, and assemble our own army, to disarm this weapon of mass destruction that we call our president, for the present, and mosh for the future of our next generation, to speak and be heard, Mr. President, Mr. Senator

Espanola Valley Woman Quits National Guard

I got this letter from Petra Salazar (photo left), who grew up in the Espanola Valley here in New Mexico. I found it to be so moving and inspiring that I wanted to print it here in its entirety. Petra obtained a consciencious objector discharge from the National Guard and she explains why she felt it necessary to leave the military, regardless of the views others might have about her actions. You can learn more about her story in this article. She wanted to have this published as a letter to the editor at the Rio Grande Sun, but it looks unlikely because the newspaper apparently has had enough of this controversy. Well, we have space here . . . .

Dear Editor,

I am currently studying abroad in Austria and have heard in my absence that the article regarding my military discharge and my political beliefs has been quite controversial in my beloved Espanola Valley. I have not read any of the editorials for nor against my choice to leave the Army National Guard, but still believe I should make things very clear, especially at this crucial time before the presidential election. My life is blessed with two great events, the first is my enlistment in to the armed forces and the second and most significant is my discharge. I feel no compulsion to defend that which I own so proudly and want to avoid wasting anymore time dodging the real issues, Bush’s war and his administration’s motives. I told my story in hopes that it would open peoples’ eyes to the fact that not all GIs are in bed with the Bush administration and not all are blindly following a gun-wielding shoot-and-ask-questions-later go-it-alone cowboy administration. I was meant only to be an example. The main point of the article I hope was not lost.

Thousands of soldiers around the country and in Iraq are in strong opposition with the current administration and feel very used. This war is a gross exploitation of our military, and people need to wake up to that realization and stop encouraging politicians to use the lives of our sons and daughters for their own selfish gains. To be a Bush supporter within the military is to me an amazing defense mechanism. Of course these troops want to believe their Commander in Chief is in the right -- how else would they justify or cope with their buddies’ unnecessary deaths? How would they justify killing another human being in their minds if they knew or realized what they were doing is wrong and that they were mere tools of a corrupt administration? Our administration wants the troops to paint the face of Bin Laden and Saddam on every Iraqi. Bush says this is a fight against Terrorism, but not only has his war reinforced terrorism, it has provoked even more. Islamic communities all over the world believe this as an attack on their people, and it is.

Anti-American sentiment is growing feverishly due to the greedy imperialistic and non-democratic motivations of this administration. In the International Relations, Political Ideas, and Intercultural Communication classes I am taking here in Austria, the sentiment is obvious and blatant. I have not met one European who is in agreement with this war. We are the Roman Empire, and we are falling under this administration. The US is seen right now in a very negative light here in Europe. We are burning bridges left and right. The EU is a strong and growing power that the US needs as a civil tie. However, most Europeans believe we are fools. Respect for our country is rapidly diminishing all around the world.

How many people have to die before we see that this war is wrong? How many lives are going to be ruined by the end of this mendacious mess? Of the 1,246 coalition deaths, 1,107 have been American soldiers. Also, 7,532 soldiers have been wounded. The number of civilian Iraqis killed in this war is up to 15,357. Indiscriminate stray bullets and bombs kill not only their target but also the elderly, women, teens in their prime, children, and babies (Where are Bush’s anti-abortion advocates with their baby killer signs now? Hiding behind the skirt of a hypocritical administration?). Our politicians in the White House have a nice dehumanizing term for these types of murders, “collateral damage.” Does the end (if it ever comes) of this war justify the means by which this war was conducted? This is the question that we have to face when we look at the pictures of our dead. And if money is the main concern, take a look at our debt and add up the billions upon billions of dollars that we’ve committed to this war. Is it any coincidence that the only hard dollar profiteers from this war are the same people who initiated it?

Read up on this war. Do the background research. Back up your political beliefs. Then please give me a solid argument after researching this war and the current administration as to why anyone who lives below the top percent wealth line would believe this to be a legal and just war. You can email me at peaonbush@hotmail.com.

If you are going to support something you should first know what you are supporting.

Websites:

https://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2003/iraq/forces/casualties/
https://www.iraqbodycount.net/

Books: The Iraqi War Reader

Definitions: Paradox- Hispanic female Bush supporter
https://www.baltimorechronicle.com/bush_record_sep00.html
https://www.wa-democrats.org/Blueprint/bush_minority_issues.htm
https://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/vol18/issue39/pols.hispanics.html
https://womensissues.about.com/
*https://www.wglobalscorecard.org/index.htm (very good site)

October 20, 2004
Sincerely,
Petra Salazar

Kerry - Clinton Fever in Philly

I just had to include this photo from Daily Kos. Crowd estimates for the Kerry - Clinton rally in Philadelphia today? 100,000 to 120,000! Philadelphia Freedom? And Philly native Patti LaBelle sang the national anthem before Clinton took the stage. Wow.