It depends on the definition of “working”

Driving back from St. Louis yesterday my wife and I were listening to old blues CDs. Listening to Muddy Water's "I've Got my Mojo Working" I started wondering about what he meant when he said he had his "mojo working." He had gone down to Louisiana to get it, he had it working but "it just don't work on you." Had it ever worked on anyone? By "working" did he simply mean that he had prepared it and was using it according to the instructions? Or did he know it was "working" because it worked on some people, just not on "you"? My wife is strongly of the opinion that he would only say it was working if it had worked on someone. I am not so sure. Would you say you have a magic spell "working" if you had set it into action, regardless of results? What do you think? I have put up a poll on this question over on the right.

They don't hate us for our freedom

An editorial in today's New York Times talks about the results of the latest Pew global opinion poll and provides strong evidence that people who don't like us around the world do NOT hate us for our freedoms. They largely share our ideals. They dislike us because we do not live up to them.

The central finding of the latest Pew global opinion poll is, alas, drearily familiar: President Bush and his misguided war in Iraq have dragged the United States far, far down in the world’s eyes.

The only good news — and it’s not much comfort — is that most countries give higher ratings to the American people than to the country. That means a change of government could bring a change of attitude toward America. But there is a long way to go, especially to correct the perception that the United States promotes its values globally not because they are universally good, but because they are good for American interests.

The survey found that majorities or pluralities in 33 of the 47 countries polled expressed a dislike of American ideas about democracy, with the hostility highest in three allies: Turkey, France and Pakistan. The poll also showed a widespread perception that Washington acts without considering the interests of other countries. And strong majorities everywhere saw the United States as the worst culprit in “hurting the world’s environment.”

What the Pew poll reflects is a profound disappointment in America’s failure to live up to its own ideals and standards.

This shows clearly how big a lie Bush's often repeated contention that "They hate us for our freedoms" truely is. The fact that so many Americans believe it just shows how effective the technique of endlessly repeating a lie can be.

How do Americans feel about illegal immigrants?

I just received the following message as part of an email from the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC):

We have some timely news to share with you. For the past few weeks, AFSC has been conducting the a large, independent study on the U.S. public’s views on immigration issues, and now the results are in. Here are a few key findings:

* The U.S. public strongly supports the idea that “keeping families together should be a priority in our immigration policies”

* The public believes that the broken, outdated immigration system needs fixing, but that more border fences and scapegoating are not the answers.

* Two-thirds of the public supports a legal path to permanent residency and eventual citizenship for all undocumented immigrants who have built a life in this country.

AFSC’s National Immigration Opinion Survey shows that the majority of the public supports more humane and less punitive measures than currently appear in the Senate bill.

Two out of every three Americans think that immigrants who have been working and putting down roots in our communities should not have to live in fear of at any moment being arrested and summarily deported. Two out of every three Americans think it is wrong to have 12 million people among us working and paying taxes but without any rights, vulnerable to exploitation.

Why is the less than one third of Americans who oppose giving legal status to illegal immigrants so much more vocal than the two thirds who support it? If you believe in a compassionate, caring America, rather than a punitive, vindictive one, you need to speak up.

A minority of 22% can sure make a lot of noise

According to a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll taken last weekend and released yesterday 78% of the American people feel immigrants now in the country illegally should be given a chance at citizenship.

Wow! If you read the comments posted online to any news article or blog entry that mentions illegal immigrants you would get the feeling that there are an awful lot of Americans who think that all the undocumented should be immediately deported the moment anyone in law enforcement becomes aware of them, no matter how long the immigrants have been here and how many roots they have put down in our communities. Apparently those who feel that way are much more vocal and much more likely to publicly state their opinion than the 78% majority who feel otherwise.

Maybe the release of this poll will embolden people to be more assertive in defending the most vulnerable and least powerful among us -- the more than 12 million undocumented. You can't go back in time and stand up to the school-yard bullies like you now wish you had but you do have the opportunity to confront the adult bullies who think just because they were born here they can push around defenseless people who were not.

Poll shows Edwards Toughest Against McCain or Giuliani

According to a new Investor Business Daily poll John Edwards does better against either John McCain or Rudy Giuliani than either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama.

In a potential presidential matchup, McCain led the former one-term senator from North Carolina and 2004 vice presidential nominee by 44% to 43% but had a more comfortable margin over the two Democratic heavyweights expected to run. New York Sen. Hillary Clinton trailed McCain 48% to 41% while Illinois Sen. Barack Obama was down 48% to 36%.

In a matchup against Giuliani, the former New York mayor, Clinton and Edwards both trailed by 5%, (48%-43% and 47%-42%, respectively) while Obama lagged by 13% (49%-36%). But as in the matchup against McCain, Edwards showed a bit better ability than the former first lady to pull in Republicans and independents.

Read the article