Director of Ocean State Action, Peter Asen, brings this to our attention. Director Ron Howard and the Funny or Die people have brought together the old SNL crew of presidential impersonators to bring attention to some urgently needed legislation.

Hollywood isn’t generally known for precisely timed or well-defined campaigns aimed at specific legislative language as bills move through Congress. But the clip, directed by Ron Howard and written by Adam McKay and Al Jean, was produced in coordination with Americans for Financial Reform, a major pro-reform coalition based in Washington, and it hits just as Senate negotiators work toward a compromise on the CFPA in the Banking Committee.

This “compromise”, or castration, backed by Senate Republicans as well as nominal Democrat Connecticut Senator Dodd (who seems determined to end his career in complete ignominy), would fold the agency tasked with regulation into the Federal Reserve. Senator Barney Frank thinks this is “crazy” as The Fed already has regulatory powers but seems loath to use them. For more and to view clip go to HuffPo. (You would think Obama, or at least Michelle, would be getting tired of everyone talking about his balls all the time. We know you have ‘em B.)

Rhode Islanders should call Senator Reed and let him know that this banker-supported compromise is unacceptable. The regulatory agency must be independent.

Call Senator Jack Reed at 866.544.7573 and urge him to support the Consumer Financial Protection Agency.

And his name is George Hutchins.  Just a couple minutes poking around his campaign website for North Carolina’s Fourth District will make it clear that Hutchins is the real deal, not one of those fake conservatives.

And as any REAL conservative knows, the reason that our country is in the economic mess it’s in– and why Democrats have won overwhelming majorities in both chambers in the last two elections, and Obama trounced McCain –is not a result of 8 years of Bush’s radical conservativism: it’s because Bush wasn’t ultra-radical conservative enough.

Which is why Palin should waste not one minute in declaring Hutchins her VP candidate for 2012.  In fact, the best political decision of her life would be to announce him as her pick on Thanksgiving.  And no worries about it being a rushed decision.  After all, looking at his website is about the same amount of vetting McCain did when he chose Palin.

Imagine it, the most coordinated and massive robocall in human history.  Timed to hit at precisely the moment families across the nation are sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner, every house, business, and cell phone in the nation receives a call, and who’s on the phone but Sarah Palin to announce that in exactly 90 seconds, on Fox News of course, she will be making the most important announcement in the 6,000 years of the earth’s history. more »

Here’s an important call to action today from Ocean State Action. We need your help sticking it to the insurance industry. There’s some real momentum for the public insurance option, but our Senators need to hear from YOU to make it happen.

Please call Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse TODAY! Dial tollfree 1-877-264-4226 or click here.

Tell your Senators: “We’re counting on you to make sure that we end up with a Senate health care bill that requires employers to pay their fair share for health care, that makes health care truly affordable for all Americans, and gives us all the choice of a public health insurance option. Please sign onto Senator Brown’s letter calling on Senate Leadership to include the choice of a public plan in the final Senate bill.

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Why it is critical to make this call today:

While Senators Reed and Whitehouse helped move forward affordable health coverage options and a public plan in the HELP committee, the more conservative Senate Finance Committee has legislation that without a public plan and with less support to make insurance affordable for middle-income families. We need our senators to join Senate Sherrod Brown’s letter to senate leadership to make clear that a large number of members of the Senate’s majority caucus want to see a public plan in the final bill.

Call Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse today! 1-877-264-4226 or click here.

There will also be a vigil today at 4:30pm outside of UnitedHealthcare at 475 Kilvert Street in Warwick to call for real reform that benefits people, not the profits of the insurance industry.

To (almost) quote Emma Goldman, “If I can’t dance, I don’t want to be a part of your [health care reform].”

Dance you will this Friday at The 201. Providence’s dearly departed DJ duo Certified Bananas (Sammy Bananas now resides in Brooklyn, Certified Max in Boston - catch them while you can) will be on hand for a crazy set. The 201 has a bar and sexy couches and pool tables for the wallflower types. Organizers are requesting a $5 suggested donation, all proceeds will go to Young Invincibles, a national grassroots and e-advocacy effort aimed at encouraging young Americans to engage in the health care reform debate. Check out their website and photo petition.

Dance Rally for Health Care Reform w/Certified Bananas at The 201

Friday, October 9th 10pm-2am, 201 Westminster, across from the Dress Barn

Please give us $5 at the door.

Is dancing and drinking and lounging at a bar enough to pass the health care reform we need? Of course it isn’t. But the fight isn’t over, so let’s use this opportunity to start bringing our voices to the conversation.

Okay, so our Senators didn’t really say that. But what is true is that, even more important than hearing from Obama, our elected leaders need to hear from their constituents — that means YOU — that we need real health care reform, and we need it now.

Ocean State Action asks that you please call Senators Reed and Whitehouse TODAY tollfree at 1-877-264-4226 and tell them: “We can’t wait for health care reform!”

As our Senators go back to work after their recess–when opponents tried to drown out the voices of health care reform supporters by being loud and abusive, and often just plain crazy — we need to make sure our Senators hear our voices loud and clear: It’s time to move forward with reform that ensures quality, affordable health care for all — and to capitalize on the strong bill that the Senate HELP Committee has already passed.

Even if you’ve called our senators in the past in support of health care reform, they need to hear from you today as they get back to work. Now is the best opportunity we’ve had in decades to win real health care reform, and we must keep up the momentum and make sure Congress is hearing from us.

So be sure to call Reed and Whitehouse today at 1-877-264-4226. more »

And glorious:

Session’s out for somewhere between 2 and 28 weeks, so they say…

This one we’ll just straight-up gank from RIFuture:

Following on the heels of a great event this past Friday night and our President, Meghan Grady’s appearance on Newsmakers this morning, the RI Young Democrats released the official results of our survey conducted in Febuary, 2009.

John Nichols and Robert McChesney have a compelling article in the upcoming edition of the Nation, wherein they argue that government involvement is key:

The founders regarded the establishment of a press system, the Fourth Estate, as the first duty of the state. Jefferson and Madison devoted considerable energy to explaining the necessity of the press to a vibrant democracy. The government implemented extraordinary postal subsidies for the distribution of newspapers. It also instituted massive newspaper subsidies through printing contracts and the paid publication of government notices, all with the intent of expanding the number and variety of newspapers.

When Tocqueville visited the United States in the 1830s he was struck by the quantity and quality of newspapers and periodicals compared with France, Canada and Britain. It was not an accident. It had little to do with “free markets.” It was the result of public policy.

In particular, they argue for a tax credit, to go to individuals who spend money on newspapers — leaving the decision about which what to buy up to the consumer:

What to do about newspapers? Let’s give all Americans an annual tax credit for the first $200 they spend on daily newspapers. The newspapers would have to publish at least five times per week and maintain a substantial “news hole,” say at least twenty-four broad pages each day, with less than 50 percent advertising.

In effect, this means the government will pay for every citizen who so desires to get a free daily newspaper subscription, but the taxpayer gets to pick the newspaper–this is an indirect subsidy, because the government does not control who gets the money. This will buy time for our old media newsrooms–and for us citizens–to develop a plan to establish journalism in the digital era. We could see this evolving into a system to provide tax credits for online subscriptions as well.

In the era of tax credits for Hollywood and private equity firms, it sounds more than reasonable to me.

When not gambling on college hoops, suave Dose honcho, Dave Segal, is actually a grown-up with a job representing the good people of District 2 in the General Assembly.  He is also a thoughtful and persuasive writer and has a fine piece in this morning’s Providence Journal suggesting that the master lever/straight ticket voting issue is not as detrimental to our democracy as the winner-take-all system we use.  He makes an interesting point. (Still, we could get rid of the lever.)

I would like to add one thought.  Mr. Segal suggests that the Governor’s veto power provides a check against the Democratic hegemony of our General Assembly.  But that is hardly the same as creating a healthy democracy, as when opponents debate issues before an election, and incumbents know they may have a challenger for their seat. In fact, Mr. Segal’s reference to the “bottomless well of ink” filling the Governor’s veto pen, suggests a stalled-out and ineffective form of governance altogether.  Sure, it’s a check, but we never get anywhere.

We’re proud to present the newly redesigned ProvidenceRollerDerby.com with more of what you love. Below you’ll find a brief introduction to our new design and what it has to offer.

• Simple, Clear and Consistent – Providence Roller Derby has made every effort to create a Web site that’s simple, clear and consistent. No matter where you go on the site, you won’t be surprised by confusing clutter.
• Easy to Navigate – Each page is equipped with a drop-down menu. Simply move our mouse over any choice on the navigation bar, and you’ll be able to go wherever you want in one easy click.

In the months to come you can expect regular additions to our news and events on the front page. Make sure you sign up to get our newsletter!

Also, Providence Roller Derby is still recruiting for the 2009 season.

… just what I needed. Convicted felon Ted Stevens found out on his 85th birthday that he had lost his senate seat to democrat Mark Begich.  We can start thinking nice thoughts about Alaska again.

Man-about-town Dan White is one of the five finalists for the job of hosting Fox Providence’s new morning show, “The Rhode Show.” Right now he’s in second place, just behind a guy from New Hampshire. New Hampshire? Come on, we can’t allow a native to get beat by somebody from the Granite State. Also, you didn’t hear it from me, but somebody said that this guy from New Hampshire was actually raised as a Muslim in Indonesia and his middle name is “Bin Laden.”

You can vote for Dan.

It’s best when All Hallows’ falls on a Wednesday, because you end up with a full 10 days (two weekends) of spookiness. Friday might be the worst night for a Halloween — it can bleed a day forward, but festivities are firmly contained within the long weekend, with no room to breathe.

But we’ve got to work with what God’s given us — and so here’s how the holiday opens:

• Our lonely, loyal advertisers at the WBNA kick things off tonight, with their Ghouls’ Gala.
• The Century Lounge exists for a sec, to hold their Halloween Bash. (They’re deciding whether to stay open on a more permanent basis.)
• If you’re looking for a real chill down your spine, your best bet is to check out this evening’s wrap-up of the Planning Department’s charette, where Thom ‘The Grown Up‘ Deller will present his plans for downtown. (We hear he’s working a racket that has him selling the whole city to Johnson and Wales — for one dollar.)

I’m sure our listings will grow throughout the day and weekend. You can add your own over here.

Primetime Baby!

That’s right, Obama’s primetime address to the nation, all 3 million dollars of it, is already on the youtubes and ready for consumption by the TV-less. It’s embedded after the jump, and actually, there’s a video from today that I think it much more important.

Ok, first of all, that peanut butter and jelly sandwich line is ad-libbed. And it’s funny.

But I do think it’s important that Obama is pressing back hard (though in an outwardly good-natured way) against the socialism/secret communism/bullshit bogeyman spitballs that McCain-Palin has been chucking at him.

The reason the GOP is pushing the “spread the wealth”/socialism argument is clear, and it ain’t tax policy. As Hertzberg explains, it is laughable to think that “the difference between capitalism and socialism corresponds to the difference between a top marginal income-tax rate of 35 per cent [Current] and a top marginal income-tax rate of 39.6 per cent [Obama/Clinton].” Of course, it’s also laughable to think that Obama is some type of Eugene V. Debs, or for that matter that the GOP even cares about spreading the wealth, at least when it comes to spreading it to, say military contractors, or for that matter the people of Alaska. So what then? Here’s John Judis:

McCain and Sarah Palin’s attack against Obama for advocating “spreading the wealth” and for “socialism” and for pronouncing the civil rights revolution a “tragedy” because it didn’t deal with the distribution of wealth is aimed ultimately at white working class undecided voters who would construe “spreading the wealth” as giving their money to blacks. It’s the latest version of Reagan’s “welfare queen” argument from 1980.

more »

See, isn’t that much better than the insane racism that attends a Palin rally? You know, like the type that gets so bad that when someone straight up yells out that Obama is a “n*****”" DURING her speech, LOUD ENOUGH FOR HER TO HEAR , then she just goes on without saying anything? Like the type that gives sanction to idiots like this guy, to say nothing of Ashley Todd?

I suppose the simple point is just GOD BLESS THESE CHILDREN, not only for whats actually a pretty catchy version of T.I.’s Whatever You Like, but also for being awesome. You can vote however you like. Damn right.

Full video and lyrics after the jump, along with the tale of how Joe Biden became a Florida 5th grader’s “homeboy.” more »

The Downtown Neighborhood Charette (whose area of focus includes the Jewelry District too) kicks off today. Full schedule is posted here, and today’s workshops are as follows:

11 am-12:30 pm
Focus on Capital Center
What do we need to do to complete Capital Center? Are there any changes to the vision for this area?

1:30 pm-4:30 pm
New Parks/Pedestrian Bridge
Share your ideas on the design of Downtown’s two newest parks and the pedestrian bridge that will connect them after the relocation of Interstate 195 is completed

6 pm-9 pm
Visioning Session
Join your elected officials in a visioning exercise and share your ideas for the future of Downtown Providence

All workshops are at 222 Richmond St, Suite 200.

Photo somehow borrowed from FortWayne.com.  So hopeful they’ll either not care or not notice.