A Sad, Sad Email,

An email directed at one of our Deaf Republicans organization founders. Pretty embarassing for its contents and how it was written:

Subject: Re: DeafRepublicans gain national attention!
you know what Deaf Republicans remind me of? Regendes.. Regendes was established by nazis party for deaf people in Germany in pre WWII era.. nazis even gave deaf people their own armored vechile outfit and deafies wore full nazis unifroms.. as Nazis approach WWII.. you know what happened to those deafies.. hmm? BEWARE.. Deaf Republicans website is not written by deaf people.. its language is too hearing and it is written by Republican party.. that is my impression.. I will forward you website that have rebuttal to this Deaf Republicans nonsense..

This poor soul who wrote this email is a lost cause who doesn't know any better. I don't know whether to be insulted or complimented knowing that the Deaf Republicans organization has a cadre of excellent Deaf/deaf/hh writers with savvy, political smarts who share many of the same Republican party's ideals. They certainly do not share any of the Nazism or socialist ideals. The Deaf Republicans organization abhor any suggestion of support for Nazism or Socialism. Those types of ideals do not jive well with the Repubican Party's ideals that respect all people of all kinds, but certainly not murderers, killers and rapists. Nazi Germany had a program and an agenda to eliminate all forms of disabilities, including deafness. What's scary is the lack of historical insight this guy has when it comes to eugenics and the history of oppression against people of all kinds of disabilities and conditions.

The guy's either jealous, has an agenda, or just an imbecile. Or maybe all of it? By the way, it's "renegade"...not "regendes." Even the word "renegade" does not fit the people of Deaf Republicans organization snce they are not faithless to principle or party. In fact, they're faithful to the principles and ideals of the Republican Party. What's more, the person's is right about how all of these written materials were written by the Republican Party because, you see, the Deaf Republicans organization is a part of the Republican party because they, too, belong to the Republican party. What else? Certainly not the Democrat party we belong to. We all work under that one giant Republican Party umbrella.

The Deaf Republicans organization is a contributor to the Republican party. The Deaf Republicans organization does all the work themselves without the help of hearing people, believe it not. This is not some hearing Republicans agenda in setting up a Deaf Republicans website to fool millions of Deaf, deaf and hard of hearing people. This is not even close because this organization has a Deaf, deaf, and hard of hearing Republican agenda to inform and provide proper facts to the millions of Deaf, deaf and hard of hearing American people of the Republican Party's ideals.

What this guy doesn't know is that the Deaf Republicans organization consists of Deaf, deaf, or hard of hearing professionals who helped establish this new national grassroots organization for Deaf, deaf, and hard of hearing Americans. The core group of this organization are founders of this new national grassroots organization. All of them are professional people. They are an attorney, business owner, hydrologist, international business traveler, forest fire fighter, and graphic designer who are founders of the Deaf Republicans organization. But with one notable exception is Richard Brkljačić (Brklacich) who found Deaf Republicans and is the website owner. The core group of people are either Deaf, deaf or hard of hearing. No hearing persons were involved in establishing the Deaf Republicans organization. And all written materials for the Deaf Republicans website were done by members of the core group of this organization. These are professional people who are serious about setting up a national grassroots organization to help disseminate facts and information to the millions of voter-age Deaf, deaf, and hard of hearing Americans.

What is expected every now and then hurled at the Deaf Republicans organization is the kind of hubris from disbelieving deaf and hard of hearing Americans about what the Deaf Republicans organization stands for. Disbelievers will go with the conspiratorial campaign that Deaf Republicans is run by hearing people with an agenda to fool Deaf, deaf, or hard of hearing people. What the guy said in the email insults every excellent writers who happens to be Deaf, deaf, or hard of hearing and are a product of great parental and educational upbringings.
These are the facts. Proof of concept that an organization such as the Deaf Republicans can be run by Deaf, deaf and hard of hearing professionals to the level and extent equal to all other professional organizations that are run by hearing people.

The person who wrote this email need to meet one of the official Deaf Republicans Representative from one of the 50 states. Or even meet members who know the founders of the Deaf Republicans organization. Having a blind eye or not having an open mind is a recipe for extreme prejudices and hate. Until you do one or the other, this will be a part of the pattern of hatred against true Democracy and the the right to form an organization.


Live and learn as they say. Hopefully they will learn something today.

Public Libraries not for B4B?

Yesterday I had the good usual weekly talk with my mother over the phone. She lives in Labelle, Florida, not too far east of Ft. Myers. She had just finished her 6 hr all-volunteer phone drive to help get President Bush re-elected. It went pretty well. She then proceeded to tell me that a few days earlier she tried to view some of my postings that had gotten on the Blogs for Bush website at the local Labelle public library's computer. You'd only have 30 minutes to log on if other people are wanting to use the computer. The first thing she did was type in the address, www.blogsforbush.com and pressed the return key. Next thing she saw was page saying that the website is blocked for viewing. She was a bit puzzled about all this. So was I. I'd understand if the computer had blocked other sites that were deemed to have offensive language or porn. But, this is none other than the nationally known and very clean Blogs for Bush website. Offensive materials? Perhaps to many of the Liberal Democrats.

My mother uses the public library's computer since it's free and it is where she gets her email. Plenty of older and retired people live in and around Labelle and use the libary's computer to a good extent. So, it's not all just kids that are blocked from seeing Blogs for Bush on Labelle public library's computers but potential voter-aged people who might want to learn more about President Bush.

I know that Matt Margolis and his team are doing a wonderful job in making sure in keeping their website absolutely clean of foul language. If "Four more years" is offensive to Democrats but not the "F" word in a Rolling Stone's magazine interview with John Kerry's blessing, then certainly America is misplacing their values in the toilet.

I wonder if this public library in Labelle and others throughout the country also exclude other political but clean blogsites such as Instapundit, Powerlineblog, Captains Quarters Blog, Polipundit and so on? I wonder if the website to Rolling Stone is blocked?

It'd be an interesting little tidbit of information here if we could do some quick little investigation. And upon knowing the results could create quite a bit of scorn on how some libraries are restricting clean, political websites such as Blogs for Bush.

Visit your local public library and see if your library restrict Blogs for Bush and other clean Republican political blog websites. America deserve to know this.

"It's the economy stupid!"

Al Sonnenstrahl:

Thank you for the kind response (although later verified this wasn't his original letter with 90% of being intact) on the successful establishment of our new deaf and hard of hearing national grassroots organization called "DeafRepublicans."

However, first off, what ever happened to the discussion on John Kerry's 20 years of "accomplishments" as a Senator from Massachussett regarding disability issues? And yet you mentioned Clinton four times in your open letter to DeafRepublicans and never about John Kerry. I can understand why, too. President Bush has done more for ADA than John Kerry and John Edwards, combined, ever did. And President Bush continues to support deaf and hard of hearing when it comes to telecommunications.

Second off, yes, the economy is far more important than relay services, captioning and access to emergency services for deaf people and the likes. Without ensuring a successful and strong economy none of these services would become available or at least become restricted for the general public.

But with a strong economy we are able to form grassroots organizations that address various concerns regarding social services and support to the general public, including people with various disabilities and conditions. With a strong economy we can well afford to address these social issues and support concerns when we have the ability to give tax breaks, offer grants, and other financial and economic incentives that would ensure that these social services and support concerns benefit deaf and hard of hearing Americans.

As you may know, the economy improved every month ever since the recesson turned around in late 2002. Stocks have gone up, record housing constructions were witnessed over the past two years, small businesses booming, tax-breaks to businesses have helped hire more people, and we have witnessed the lowest mortgage rate as low as 4.5% (much lower than even during Clinton's time) for a 30-year loan leading to an all-time record house buying spree never before seen. And with more buying of houses people buy furniture, appliances, and other materials for their houses helping the economy along and recover more strongly than ever. With a strong economy, we have strong consumers, including the 27 million deaf and hard of hearing Americans. And with a strong demand we can and must demand better services for deaf and hard of hearing Americans.

Today, right now, we have GDP = 3.7%. And what was Bill Clinton's at same point in '96? 3.4%.

And the jobless rate for President Bush right now is 5.4% compared to Clinton at the same time right before he was re-elected had a rate of 5.6%.

As you can see, a strong economy helps in getting better services to everybody because more money is available for services, technological development and business incentives enabling further growths.

Without a strong economy Research and Developments among the hundreds of companies' research laboratories would be stunted in their quest for new technology enabling deaf and hard of hearing Americans greater autonomy and independence.

It wasn't the deaf or hard of hearing American consumers who demanded we have the internet.

It wasn't the deaf or hard of hearing American consumers who demanded we have AIM, Yahoo, MSN, ICQ chat services.

It wasn't the deaf or hard of hearing American consumers who demanded that we have Blackberry PDAs or web-enabled cell-phones with a QWERTY feature built in for text writing.

It wasn't the deaf or hard of hearing American consumers who demanded cell-phones with silent vibrating mode for calls.

It wasn't the deaf or hard of hearing American consumers who demanded that we have web-cams and high speed connection such as satellite, cable or a dedicated line enabling frame speed of 30 fps or more with near smooth video quality in real-time for easy sign language and video communication.

It wasn't the deaf or hard of hearing American consumers who demanded that we improve the telecommunication infrastructure such as Wi-Fi or Wi-max, and 3rd generation cell phones capable of taking pictures and record video shots that would put Dick Tracy's wrist phone to shame.

Because consumers' confidence and the confidence of large corporations and businesses to invest in technology in the United States, more deaf and hard of hearing Americans are seeing greater independence among themselves much more quickly because of a strong economy. Without a strong economy while in a deep recession would lead to a lack of consumer buying because jobs would be few and businesses would be languishing. We would have to wait for these technological marvels to develop when the economy improves. And because of President Bush's help, the economy rebounded after what no other president in history has gone through experiencing the horrible chain of events in a single year:

* Stock market crash
* Dot-com bubble burst
* Collapse of Enron and other large business who underwent a finacial shake-up by the SEC for massive frauds.
* Collapse of the NASDAQ financial regulations
*9/11 on American soils for the first time.
*Over 1 million jobs lost 3 months after 9/11

A sextuple (6) whammy all within a year! Losing a few trillion dollars in the process.

And yet we

*established a new Homeland Security department
*went to war in Afghanistan
*went to war in Iraq
*went to war against terrorists and terrorists organization
*offered tax-breaks to Americans that stimulated the economy and job growths.
*got stronger in our economy

And to add additional stresses to an already strong economy this year, President Bush and America had to weather four hurricanes that slammed into Florida. These events were unprecedented in all of weather record keeping when four hurricanes slammed into Florida in a single season. But because of a strong economy, we easily weathered the two month of economic fury by the four hurricanes causing billions of dollars of damage and numerous deaths. Bush quickly signed for monetary and relief effort from the impact of all four huricanes. The economy is still going strong and continues to get stronger.

No other president in all of American history experienced this sextuple (6) whammy in one year and recovered from it by having the shortest recession in American history! It wasn't Clinton, Carter, Bush 41, Reagan, Ford, Nixon, Kennedy and so on, it was President George W. Bush who had to experience all this, for bad and for good.

Without a strong economy abortion would be less of a focus. So would be about deaf services, gun control, and stem cell research. Because all you would want to do is survive and look for a job.

Just like what Clinton said in 1992, "It's the economy stupid." And he's right! Without a good economy none of things regarding services to deaf and hard of hearing Americans would mean not a thing when everybody is trying to survive. The economy has rebounded so much that America has faith in its businesses and people. And with President Bush' 3.7% GDP and 5.4% jobless rate, beating Clinton's GDP and jobless rate in the very same position a few days before he was re-elected as President Bush is now.


Now, let's review history over both Clinton and Bush's last year and half GDP growth records:

Clinton........GDP Growth.......Bush......GDP Growth..........
2nd Qtr '95......0.7%...............2nd Qtr '03........4.0%...............
3rd Qtr '95........3.3%..............3rd Qtr '03........7.4%...............
4th Qtr '95........3.0%..............4th Qtr '03........4.2%...............
1st Qtr '96.........2.9%..............1st Qtr '04.........4.5%...............
2nd Qtr '96.......6.7%...............2nd Qtr '04........3.3%..............
3rd Qtr '96........3.4%..............3rd Qtr '04.........3.7%..............
Avg GDP........3.3%..........Avg GDP.........4.5%...........

Source: - US Dept of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis. Knock yourself out.

In your letter Mr. Sonnenstrahl you mentioned Clinton 4 times but never mentioned anything about John Kerry's accomplishment in the areas of disability. President Bush technology alone is increasingly taking over the role that will benefit all of 28 million deaf and hard of hearing Americans. Components are being built more efficiently and easily because of the constant improvements in computational speed in computer ships and increasingly sophisticated software programming.

Now, if you say that's the economy is bad then it does not make any sense to pour more money into social services and support systems when you need to revive the economy first. A better economy means more money available for these things. And, again, if you still say the economy is bad, then certainly you're saying that Clinton's jobless rate and GDP records were no better either but worse than Bush.

What it all boils down to, Mr. Sonnenstrahl, is this phrase, "It's the economy stupid." And you can thank Clinton for that quote.

Comments are Now Open to Everyone

My apologies to those who tried to make comments to my blogs. I temporarily changed my template to my Kokonut Pundits blogsite and forgot that it defaulted to the "blocked except to members."

It is now open to everyone. Again, my apologies. I sincerely do want to hear from everyone.

DeafRepublicans First Email Spatz

Interesting email for a DeafRepublicans' first email spatz.

From: deleted@deleted.
Date: October 28, 2004 4:41:15 PM PDT
To: Info@DeafRepublicans.com

Subject: F*** YOU NAZI DEAF REPUBLICIAN Go to HELL you war LOVER and destroy our economies! YOU ALL WEALTHY DEAF PEOPLE GO TO HELL!

We destroy the economies? We brought it back from the brink, practically, if you hadn't noticed. First we had the dot-com bubble burst that began even before Bush took office in January of 2001, and stocks were getting sold left and right in the mad dash not to lose their hard gained profits. President Bush took office when the recession began several months before President Clinton left office.

Then we had all those "Enrons" who were finally getting caught cooking their books and inflating numbers that weren't real. The company Enron set the stage for a politcal and economic show down that further depressed the economy and shook investors' confidence of other companies who had gotten under the microscope as well.

Then we had 9/11. Everybody knows how that had an effect on the economy, people's confidence and their psyche.

Then three months after 9/11 nearly 1 million jobs were lost because of the triple whammy of dot-com bubble burst, the Enrons, and the devastating impact of 9/11 had on the economy. Everybody knows that.

But let's not stop there. We had to drag through 2002 which was the tail end of the recession. 2002 was a year when the recession began to turn around. We were looking at a serious recession back in ’01 but President Bush helped manage to turn the economy around. We had the shortest recession in modern economic times!

We had the shortest recession in modern economic times… it’s important to put this in perspective – 9/11, the war on terror, the rebuilding of the homeland security, the corporate scandals, the collapse of the NASDAQ and the equity markets. All of those external shocks to the economy, and yet the economy is still doing reasonably well.

By 2003 we were looking at an economic turn-around but weren't sure if this were to last. The economy continues to improve to this day. The economy improved despite the United States waging two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq at the same time in 2003.

This year in 2004 we have seen record housing construction boom, lowest housing mortgage rates never before seen allowing millions of first home buyers to get housing loans at low, low 30-year loan rate even low as 4.5%! Stocks have largely recovered and on the upward trend where thousands of internet businesses have gone bust in 2001 and 2002 leaving others barely alive but are now recovering and starting to see good profit gains this year.

During the Bush administration the NASDAQ stocks had a low of 1184 points in 2002 while the DOW Jones Industrial had a low of 7872 points in 2002. Both were at their lowest in 6 years. But now stocks have largely recovered with NASDAQ at about 2000 points, a 700+ points return since 2002, and a 2300 points return for the DOW Jones at 10,000+ points up since 2002.

The national jobless rate remains at 5.4% for President Bush prior to the November 2 re-election bid which is even better than Clinton prior to his re-election bid at a time when the United States had a jobless rate of 5.6% ! Facts do not lie. Bush at 5.4% versus Clinton at 5.6% right before their election night.

Now, we DeafRepublicans are wealthy? Why do you say that? We have DeafRepublicans who are college students (certainly not rich!). We have DeafRepublicans who are just starting out with a career or a job (just getting by, but certainly not rich!). We have DeafRepublicans who have a family and kids are in school (getting better at saving money, and begin an investment portfolio, but certainly not rich or wealthy, but the standard of living has improved lots). We have DeafRepublicans who are near retirements or are much older who have invested hundred of thousands of dollars , of which a Deaf democrat helps oversee and maintain their clients' portfolios over their retirement plans. These older Deaf, deaf and hard of hearing people own houses and cars but they are certainly much more prepared and well off (but certainly not wealthy!) than most younger fellas.

We're pretty like you in many ways but we believe in hard work and getting where we want to go life and be well off and comfortable rather tha being filthy rich or "wealthy." We can only wish. Only a few of us are that wealthy compared to millions of deaf and hard of hearing republicans and democrats who earn their daily living as middle class workers, not millionaires. Instead, we're a part of the "thousandaires" group.

Next is that we are not "war lovers" either. We don't like wars but we certainly do not want to see war on our soils, do we? We see the threats before us. Do you?

And lastly we do not like Nazis. Nor do we like the idea of socialism or a socialist republic. Capitalism and hard work both are key in the hope of becoming wealthy someday, or at least be well off when you retire.

I have a question for you. Do you believe in hard work?

Deaf Republicans in Uproar 2

The Sierra Times picks up the news over the uproar on Kerry/Edwards insult to millions of deaf and hard of hearing republican Americans.

Also, The Record spots the news as well.

DeafRepublicans goes National!

DeafRepublicans gets Yahoo News attention on "war of words" with the Kerry/Edwards campaign. Also, see Kokonut Pundits "open letter" to the Kerry/Edwards campaign a few days earlier. leading up to this breaking Yahoo News.


US election rivals in war of words over deaf vote
1 hour, 41 minutes ago

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The increasingly shrill battle for the US presidency has even led to a fight to win the attention of deaf Americans.


A Republican group representing the deaf bristled Thursday at a statement by Democrat John Kerry (news - web sites)'s campaign suggesting that all Americans with hearing loss were rooting for the Massachusetts senator in Tuesday's vote.

"While they are entitled to their own opinions about their candidate, they are most certainly not at liberty to speak for the entire deaf and hard of hearing community," said Richard Brklacich, of the DeafRepublicans group.

Insisting that many back President George W. Bush, he said: "We take offense to their presumptuous claim of endorsement by a community that is as diverse in their ideas and beliefs as America's general population."

The Kerry campaign website features a statement from Gregory Hlibok, co-chair of the National Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry-Edwards Steering Committee, which says the "27 million Americans with hearing loss" are backing Kerry.

Hlibok's co-chair, Judy Stout, added that "John Kerry has a proven record of providing opportunities to Americans with disabilities."

DeafRepublicans retorted that the 27 million figure was "inflated" and that Kerry's "paltry record on disabilities ... stands in stark contrast to the many noteworthy accomplishments of" Bush.

Kokonut Pundits Strikes again.

I made it on Blogs for Bush again. This time it's in the October 28, 2004 (today) B4B section. Now, I've come clean with my guilt!!


Thank You, President Bush
Written by guest blogger Mike McConnell of Kokonut Pundits.


I would like to use this opportunity to apologize. But technically I voted for you before I voted for Gore. But the coin flip I did at the polling place that day has haunted me ever since it landed "tails" and Gore got my "vote."

But the realization of how much bigger you really were as President suddenly came to fruition that day on September 11, 2001. You became the rock that day for America and for the next 3 years you were the rock that did not yield to the pressure of the world.

You have my vote. You have my admiration. And you have my humility when you help me realize that God and graces are what help keep America strong.

====================



Now, all in all the best one liner I wrote, which I thought was clever, "But technically I voted for you before I voted for Gore." If only Jay Leno could get this liner. :)

Deaf Republicans in Uproar

Read the news release by DeafRepublicans today. This was in direct response to my blog article covering this outrage by the Kerry/Edwards campaign.


=======

PRESS RELEASE: Deaf Republicans in Uproar Over Kerry “Endorsement”


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Deaf Republicans

Deaf Republicans in Uproar Over Kerry “Endorsement” DeafRepublicans Organization Condemns Statement By Kerry-Edwards Deaf and Hard of Hearing Group That Falsely Claims Support of 27 Million.

October 27, 2004 – LOS ANGELES - DeafRepublicans (www.DeafRepublicans.com), a national grassroots organization comprised of deaf and hard of hearingRepublicans issued a statement today in response to a press release issued bythe Kerry Edwards campaign on behalf of a group which purports to speak for theentire deaf and hard of hearing population in the U.S.

DeafRepublicans today repudiated recent statements by Gregory Hlibok, Co-Chair of the National Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry-Edwards SteeringCommittee, in which Hlibok claims his group “speaks to the confidence and commitment of America’s 27 million Americans with hearing loss have [sic] in John Kerry.” DeafRepublicans strenuously objects to this fictitious declaration of endorsement, and disputes their claim that John Kerry has a “proven record”on disabilities.

Richard Brklacich, of DeafRepublicans, today said in response to the statement released by the Kerry-Edwards Deaf and Hard of Hearing Steering Committee, “While they are entitled to their own opinions about their candidate, they are most certainly not at liberty to speak for the entire deaf and hard of hearing community, many of whom are active supporters and volunteers for the Bush-Cheney 2004 campaign and within the Republican Party”. Brklacich adds,“We take offense to their presumptuous claim of endorsement by a community that is as diverse in their ideas and beliefs as America’s general population. We call upon the Kerry-Edwards Committee to publicly acknowledge that they, in fact, do not speak for the entire deaf and hard of hearing community, and to admit that the only figure that they can safely count on with any degree of certainty to endorse Kerry is fourteen, the number of people in their committee”.

The members of DeafRepublicans take particular offense to the implication that all “27 million Americans with hearing loss” are securely within Kerry’s ‘win’column, and argues that this false perception has had the consequence of having the disability community’s issues and concerns largely neglected by an overly confident Democratic party. DeafRepublicans also observes that the inflated figure of “27 million” cited in the Kerry-Edwards release, which would include popular conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh who experienced the complete loss of his hearing three years ago, purports to speak for all Americans with even the mildest hearing loss, such as senior citizens, construction workers,musicians and airport ground maintenance workers.

DeafRepublicans points out that it was during a Republican Administration under President George H.W. Bush, that the landmark legislation, The American withDisabilities Act, was signed into law in 1990.

Other important Republican accomplishments on disability issues include:

• The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (President Richard Nixon)
• Supplemental Security Disability Income (President Dwight D. Eisenhower)
• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (President Gerald Ford)
• The New Freedom Initiative (President George W. Bush)
• Nationwide launch of 711 Relay Service for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (President George W. Bush)
• Nationwide launch of Video Relay Services for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (President George W. Bush)
• The No Child Left Behind Act , which increased funding for IDEA special education funds by 59% since 2001 to $10.1 billion. (President George W. Bush)
• The implementation of The Ticket to Work Act which enabled SSI and SSDI recipients to obtain job training and health care coverage while preparing to re-enter the workforce. (President George W. Bush)

John Kerry’s paltry record on disabilities, however, stands in stark contrast to the many noteworthy accomplishments of his opponent, President George W. Bush. In his 20-year Senate history, John Kerry has failed to sponsor or create asingle piece of legislation that relates to the issue of disabilities that successfully passed the Senate. Of the nine disability-related Senate bills for which John Kerry claims credit, all died in committee except one that passed: The Americans with Disabilities Act, written by Senator Tom Harkin and co-sponsored by a bi-partisan group of sixty-three Republican and Democratic senators (which included John Kerry), and signed into law by President GeorgeH.W. Bush, a Republican President.

“In fact, the only impressive thing about John Kerry's record on disabilityissues is the fact that he does not even have one,” said Richard Brklacich,“John Kerry introduced over 300 bills but passed only 5, none having anythingto do with issues relating to disability.”

DeafRepublicans ask each and every disabled American to take a close look at both candidates, and to vote on November 2nd for the only presidential candidate with a real record on disability-rights: George W. Bush.

About DeafRepublicans:
Deaf Republicans is a grassroots organization formed to foster the principles and values of the Republican Party within the deaf and hard of hearing community. The mission of Deaf Republicans is to build a national grassroots network within the deaf and hard of hearing community through which Republican ideals and beliefs can be articulated and embraced. Deaf Republicans believe that for our issues and concerns to be heard by politicians, the deaf and hard of hearing community must be represented on both sides of the political spectrum. Deaf Republicans will seek to develop and nurture relationships between the deaf and hard of hearing community and Republican leaders.

DeafRepublicans recently launched their new website, and plans to unveil, on each day leading up to Election Day on November 2, 2004, a new webpage, followed by an e-mail campaign, dedicated to issues important to the deaf and hard of hearing community in this PresidentialCampaign.

###

The Bloggers Made Us Do It!!

I am now noticing a trend, (even Michelle Malkin is noticing it) that big name journalists, if you want to call them that, are now getting into the infantile stage of blaming bloggers for their mistakes in reporting the news (whenever if it could do damage to the Republicans but ends up eggs on their faces).

Here lies in this blog a collection of these instances of journalists who cannot accept responsibilities of their own mistakes in reporting the news but would rather use bloggers as their scapegoats. These are the weenie hacks who have nothing better than to adhere to their own political agendas in their attempt to out President Bush or any Republican political candidates. The school of journalism has never taught a finer bunch as them when all they can say is "The Bloggers Made Us Do it!"



On Sunday night, New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller told Jeff Fager, executive producer of CBS's "60 Minutes," that the story they had been jointly pursuing on missing Iraqi ammunition was starting to leak on the Internet.

"You know what? We're going to have to run it Monday," Keller said.

=================

When "60 Minutes" reported on documents purporting to show Mr. Bush received preferential treatment in the Air National Guard, questions about the documents' authenticity originated and caught fire on the FreeRepublic and PowerLine blog Web sites; mainstream outlets followed. CBS News admitted two weeks later that it could not authenticate the documents. The NBC anchor Tom Brokaw recently likened the tone of the Internet coverage of the CBS National Guard report, presented by the anchor Dan Rather, to a "political jihad."

In an interview last week Mr. Brokaw said CBS News had clearly made mistakes. But, he said, "I think there were people just lying in the Internet bushes, waiting to strike, and I think that particular episode gave them a big opportunity."

Say it, Tom Brokaw, just say it.

=================

"There's a political jihad against Dan Rather and CBS," said the insensitive Brokaw. "We know a mistake was made, but it's been blown out of proportion. It's an attempt to demonize CBS news. It's a demagoguery unleashed on the Internet.” The fact that Tom Brokaw would call the needed watchdogs that hold Rather accountable jihadists only reinforces how out of touch old media is. Only a week ago, real jihadists beheaded two innocent Americans in Iraq. But Tom Brokaw not only proved his absolute out of touch elitism with this comment, but also showed his paranoia as he continued.

=================

More weenie journalists to follow?.....

Kerry blunders...Morris is right.

In PowerlineBlog one of the owner said that

Dick Morris thinks that the Kerry campaign committed a major blunder by running with the New York Times story on Al Qaqaa. On the other hand, Dick Morris always thinks the Kerry campaign is committing blunders.

Can we safely say that the Kerry campaign is always making a blunder allowing Kerry the luxury to do his patented flip-flops?

Jason Lamberton and his blogs

Seems like Jason is one happy fella. Just when a person thinks he's the only Deaf republicans around, out comes others through the political woodwork many more Deaf, deaf and hard of hearing republicans. We're the invisible and unheard of new political breed. We're beginning to make some noises and soon, deaf and hard of hearing democrats will certainly cringe at this new political force seeking truth whereever it may be. Leap tall buildings... faster than a speeding....er...never mind.



Other news, I recently, just got a word from the owner of DeafRepublicans that a fellow Deaf/deaf/hh republican from California not too far from where owner works found out about the DeafRepublicans organization through the Blogs for Bush website in the October 26, 2004 blog section under "Bush Photos." Kokonut Pundits was mentioned and B4B placed a link to my blog section covering the President Bush rally in Alamogordo, NM that Sunday. Apparently he saw the photo of me holding up the www.deafrepublicans.com sign while President Bush spoke at the podium. I wonder who the guy is from Kalifornia....I mean California? I'll find out more later.




You might be asking right now, what are the philosophy and goal for the DeafRepublicans organization and reason for its existence? Read below...


Deaf Republicans is a grassroots organization formed to foster the principles and values of the Republican Party within the deaf and hard of hearing community.

The mission of Deaf Republicans is to build a national grassroots network within the deaf and hard of hearing Americans community through which Republican ideals and beliefs can be articulated and embraced. Deaf Republicans believe that for our issues and concerns to be heard by politicians, the deaf and hard of hearing community must be represented on both sides of the political spectrum. We will seek to develop and nurture relationships between the deaf and hard of hearing community and Republican leaders. Together we will address issues and policy matters of importance to the deaf and hard of hearing community, and resolve them in ways consistent with the pull-yourself-up-from-your-bootstraps Republican ideals that enable members of our community to:

• achieve their goals on level playing grounds
• eliminate barriers to opportunities and participation in society
• accomplish self-determination and self-reliance, attain economic empowerment
• free themselves from dependence on government services and entitlements

Any questions? Give me buzz.

"Vote or Die" versus "Vote or go to Hell"

You have a choice: "Vote or die" or "Vote or go to Hell".

Checking the Iraq the Model website in the October 22, 2004 blog section under the title, "Clerics Endorse Democracy", had Ahmed Al Safi, a senior aide of Ayatollah Sistani who made his announcement that "Those who don’t participate in the elections will end up in hell” and he added in his speech that “we must bear the responsibility and we must all participate in the elections because it’s a patriotic duty and not doing so is like treason”. I like that part. If you don't vote, it's like treason and and a very unpatriotic one. Of course, not doing so will earn you a ticket to Hell, according to Clerics, after you've lived a full life. Sort of like Catholic parents warning you during your adolescent years not to play with yourself else you go to Hell.

Now, P. Diddy has his own brand of the "Choose or Lose" slogan using an unnerving slogan that you better vote or you will dieeeee! Sort of a Saddam-esque way of encouraging voters to participate in an election process that earned him 100% of all of the votes. Those Iraqis would be nuts not to vote. Voting for Saddam would be much more preferable than getting shot in the head. But that wasn't the intention of P. Diddy's slogan, although the slogan certainly does raise some nasty images of how you could die if you didn't vote. But these are impressionable adults we're talking about. Even Hillary got into the groove with P. Diddy "Vote or Die" campaign when she made use of her own brand of Liberal soundbites in support of Diddy's "Vote or Die" one liner ditty:

"Hey, do I want to wake up in five years and have more violence in the streets than we do now, more homelessness, more people out of work? Kids not even having a chance to get educated, hospitals closing down?" This is a direct impact on their lives and I believe your slogan, "vote or die," is accurate.

Now, she's being prophetic. But, then again her own prophecy could be said true if you vote for Kerry and the results would be more homelessness, people out of work, more uneducated kids, and more people dying. But Hillary wasn't talking about "dying" but a "direct impact on their lives". But with Kerry, you'd die as a result of a nuclear explosion from a bomb snuck into the United States by terrorists, chemical attacks, dirty bombs, and the likes. This would be conceivable since Kerry insist on waging a more "sensitive war" against terrorism in the first place. The "Vote or Die" is much more aligned with the possibility of that happening if you do vote for Kerry since Kerry would rather wait until a terrorist attack takes place inside the United States. And when that happens "any attack will be met with a swift and certain response" by none other than Kerry.

So, either you "Vote or Die" or "Vote or go to Hell". Talk about being in a rock and a hard place.

In tribute of Maj. Gregory Stone

Let this be a tribute to Major Gregory Stone who was my cousin.

Maj. Gregory Stone was murdered (not killed but murdered by traitorous Sergeant Asan Akbar) in a tent grenade attack in Camp Pennsylvannia in Kuwait of last year in 2003.

And then a second travesty occurred, Michael Moore filmed the Arlington memorial scene of Betty Lenzi (Stone's mother) and Tammie Eslinger (Stone's fiancee') without their permission and used the scene in Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 movie.


Here's the link to the memorial tribute of Major Gregory Stone at Arlington Cemetary.

Kokonut Pundits officially recognized!

After only 3 days of intense bloggings I'm now officially recognized by Blogs for Bush in the October 26 (Tuesday), 2004 blog section! All because of my getting the perfect spot at a Bush rally on October 24 in Alamogordo, NM, with the right amount of sunshine shinning on President Bush at 4 PM using the huge US flag as a backdrop, along with a steady breeze stiff enough to lift the 30ft by 20 ft US flag supported by a crane to lazily flap in the winds were enough to get me those stunning photos of President Bush at his best moment with his finger to the podium that he meant business!! Among the 50 photos I took, I picked the best two for my blogsite.

Such an inspiration just by looking at those stunning photos of President Bush in his raw and honest form. This is a President that is as American as you can get as a large US flag waving stoically, unwavering and proudly for everyone to see. Somebody is smiling upon me and President Bush right now.

God bless America.

Semper Fi for my nephew (and the rest of the gang) of the 3rd Marine Air Wing who just got back from Iraq!

And prayer to Maj. Gregory Stone who was killed in 2003 during a grenade tent attack at Camp Pennsylvannia in Kuwait. He was my cousin.

Terry McAuliffe gets scathing letter

If you thought that patting on the heads of adults in wheelchairs by Edwards and the lack of an interpreter in Rochester, NY, that have one of the largest concentration of deaf people in the United States were bad enough, wait til you read the scathing letter to Terry McAuliffe by the Center for Disabilty Rights of Rochester.

By the way, the link to the scathing letter will produce a letter with enlarged words for the sight impaired. At any rate, these are the secrets that the Democrats do not want you to know about Kerry and Edwards' condescending attitudes toward disABLED and deaf and hard of hearing people.



March 2, 2004

Mr. Terry McAuliffe, Chairman
Democratic National Committee
430 S. Capitol Street SE
Washington DC, 20003

Re: Disability Issues and the Democratic Party

Dear Mr. McAuliffe:

The disability community is appalled that disability issues have been excluded from the speeches and debates of the Democratic Presidential contenders. We are further outraged at the actions of one candidate in particular, Senator John Edwards.

As you are aware, there have been significant issues with the way that Senator Edwards has interacted with people with disabilities. During a campaign stop in Rochester, NY, Senator Edwards’ staff did not make American Sign Language Interpreters available, despite the fact that Rochester has the largest per capita number of Deaf people in the world. During this same campaign stop, while Senator Edwards was shaking hands with the audience, he actually patted two women who use wheelchairs on the head.

As if this was not enough, on March 1, 2004, the NY Times ran an Op-Ed piece written by Senator Edwards, in which Senator Edwards provides a comparison between a person’s life before the person acquired a disability and after. To illustrate this comparison, Senator Edwards writes, “And the once broad-shouldered man now spent his days hunched in a wheelchair, surrounded by fast-food containers, overflowing ashtrays and plastic bags filled with his own urine. He was forced to communicate by typing words on a keyboard.”

Once again, Senator Edwards has managed to reinforce a deep systemic bias that individuals with disabilities must confront everyday. His description of this person with a disability is actually a perpetuation of a stereotype of our community. The perpetuation of stereotypes about any minority group is simply unacceptable behavior. In addition, his attempt at conjuring sympathy for people with disabilities is equally offensive. Our community does not want sympathy or pity; we deserve the same respect that is afforded to any other group.

That Senator Edwards, and the rest of the Democratic Presidential contenders, refuse to talk about our issues and instead resort to stereotypical depictions of individuals with disabilities is an outrage. Senator Edwards’ actions, and the lack of disability issues in the public discourse, reflect badly on the entire Democratic Party.

Therefore, we are requesting a public apology from the Democratic National Party regarding Senator Edwards’s behavior and the exclusion of disability issues. In addition, we are requesting that you meet with ADAPT and leaders from the disability community by March 31, 2004 to discuss how the Democratic Party will address the issues that are important to voters with disabilities.

Please contact Bruce Darling at 585-370-6690 to arrange for this meeting.

Sincerely,


Bruce E. Darling, Center for Disability Rights, Rochester, NY


cc: Becky Ogle, Director Disability Outreach, DNC
Daniel Okrent, Public Editor, NY Times
Senator John Edwards

UPDATE: Well, not really but prior to the scathing letter to Terry McAuliffe there were several efforts by people and the Center for Disability Rights to get the attention of Kerry or Edwards and get them to speak about disability issues. Not much success. Then there was a Senator Edwards' Campaign Rally in Rochester that Sunday, February 22nd. The people from the Center for Disability Rights attended the event. However, Edwards made the famous mistake of not getting an interpreter for the Rochester event as well as the "head patting" incident.

Before the event, we struggled to find out if there would be a sign language interpreter for our Deaf members. Several staff reported that they did not know then we finally found one staff that knew the answer. No. We asked them to honestly address the issue by having Senator Edwards apologize for this oversight. Edwards' staff denied this request and instead offered a private photo and brief conversation with the Senator for the Deaf people at the rally. Our people turned down that offer, because the conversation would do them no good since there was no interpreter!

You'd think Edward would've learned from all of this and apologize for the oversight. But Edwards being the lawyer he is would probably rather take a chance of not apologizing if it's the last thing if he ever did. As far as I could tell, no apologies were ever issued after the letter was sent to Terry McAuliffe of DNC. This will be confirmed soon.

Experts sought lip read Bush and Kerry.

Gallaudet University was contacted by people wanting them to review a tape of one of the debates between Bush and Kerry so they can lipread them. Apparently some people wanted to know what was said between the two at the beginning of the debate before going over to their microphones.

Bush's last comment, by the way, is definitely "good job".

So I see the
conversation as follows: Bush: ".... I wish you the best..."

Kerry:
[lost to camera angle]

Bush: "... where will you be next?" [I think in
reference to the travelling both men have ahead of them]

Kerry: "Ohio,
and then [lost to angle]"

Bush: "Good job tonight"Kerry: "Thank you

No real conclusion of mine since the video tape of the close encounter of two kinds does not work in the link given above. A couple of deaf people responded to The Daily Recycler's request to help lipread. Even the skill of lipreading can be invaluable during a debate.

Ed's snootiness and disABLED people

And y'all think John Edwards is a real thoughtful, human person when it comes to people with disability?

The Center for Disability Rights knocked Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards’ speech in Rochester, saying Edwards didn’t have sign language interpreters and instead patted the heads of people in wheelchairs.

"It seems that Sen. Edwards lacks disability etiquette," Debbie Bonomo, who has cerebral palsy, said in a news release. "Just because I am a woman who uses a wheelchair, does not mean anyone should be patting me on the head. That is so 1950s."

The Rochester-based group said they had to resort to using sign language themselves in order to pass along Edwards’ message. Rochester has an active deaf community, with more than 1,200 deaf and hard-of-hearing students at the Rochester Institute of Technology and its National Technical Institute for the Deaf.

The disability rights group also said there was poor access for handicapped people at the building where Edwards spoke Sunday night. They were also frustrated that Edwards didn’t address disability rights during his 20-minute stump speech before about 500 onlookers.

Why couldn't John "clueless" Edwards shake the hands of these people and show real regards for them rather than a simple pat on the heads. Pretty condescending if you ask me.

Is Kerry a "poopiehead"?

It was an odd but startling revelation to read a blog piece from the “The Misanthropic Bitch” with a blog title “John Kerry is a Poopiehead”. I agree with her one hundred percent, John Kerry is a bunch of hooey but for a different reason from her own analysis of the subject.

Instead of working with that ample material, Kerry made himself an easy target. For a man with three Purple Hearts, he has no balls -- or catchy chant that can be used to drown out the opposition.

And fearing a Bush return she joins the "Anybody but Bush" bandwagon carried over from the Howard Dean screamfest crowd flip-flopping their way into infamy.

This year, I feel backed into a corner. Four more years of Bush means that he has the opportunity to stack the Supreme Court with conservative justices whose rulings will affect us for decades. Another Bush term has implications that extend far past January 2009, and anyone with a tinge of liberalism should be frightened at this man having that kind of power.

She being the Independent –I-would-rather-choose-a-third-candidate die hard who had to suddenly concede to the rest of the Democrat masses illogical jump on the rickety bandwagon in their quest to get Bush out rather than to vote on a candidate for his or her qualities to serve as President. They rather do this than worry about consequences of picking a real dud, a dangerous dud. They just want Bush out. No rhyme or reason will get them to see a Democratic candidate for what he is. Just for what party he belongs to.

So, you may be asking what is so odd about my startling revelation? Well, several months back she blogged a piece called “Deaf as I Wanna Be” which is a scathing write up about her general view that all Deaf people are a bunch of SSI holding, no-good yahoos, who cannot live for the day to be able to go out and work on their own for a change and have large Deaf block parties with 6 foot high speakers thumping away.

After five years of Deaf block parties, Deaf relatives living in their RVs with an electrical cord running to the house, disability payments for being Deaf, driving while Deaf, the Deaf husband chasing the Deaf wife with a shotgun, Deaf teenagers silently destroying the property of hearing non whites in the area and, oh yeah, Deaf block parties with loud, vibrating music, I've taken away only one thing from the experience: I hate Deaf people with a seering passion.

Deaf people, as I came to learn, are largely undereducated and underemployed because they avoid the evil Hearing World in favor of the the warm womb of militant Deafism. They have their own culture and language, both of which they guard fiercely at the expense of jobs, literacy, education and self-sufficiency. Being deaf -- rather, Deaf -- is not a disability. Far from it. It's simply a different way of being. Just as pedophilia is simply a different way of expressing one's sexuality. Neither sets out with the intention of being deaf or perverted, but hey, if God gives you lemons, make a new culture out of them that makes you feel damn good about yourself and your shortcomings.

Well, there is a general problem in this area concerning underemployment and such but by far is never the case for everybody. There are too many Deaf professionals who are lawyers, accountants, attorney, actors, and the likes who are a deservedly rare and growing breed. Not only just Deaf teachers. Or Deaf counselors. Maybe she should go out her way and really meet professional Deaf Republicans for a change? I doubt they live in decrepit RVs.

This is one angst ridden adopted Democrat Misanthropic Bitch who want nothing more than to see Bush out. If she’s criticizing Kerry, then maybe Gephardt should have been the presidential nominee for the Democratic party in the first place? This would have saved the Democrat party a lot of embarrassment along the way without having to watch reruns of Flipper all the time.

Perhaps she could expand her horizon by having a beer with the rest of the deaf and hard of hearing Republicans on November 3, 2004 after Bush wins the re-election? Would that make her hate Deaf (the culturally deaf ones) Republicans even more than just the general Deaf population? I can already hear the Dean scream emanating from her lungs in a fitful of rage. If you missed the good old days of the Dean campaign, go here.

Meanwhile, someday in time, she will find out about the Deaf Republicans organization consisting of Deaf, deaf and hard of hearing people, many of them professionals, and see that we’re a pretty good bunch of people not wishing harm on anybody…even the people running the Democrat Headquarters.


- I am not a real Deaf person, I just play one on tv. Mike McConnell

The Bush Rally.....the second coming.

My second Bush rally in less than 3 weeks, only this time it was alot closer to my home. The rally was stupendous with some 10,000 people converged onto the Alamogordo high school baseball field. The weather couldn't be any nicer although the sun was quite strong and the temperature of 80 degrees that day. Clear, bright, with a slight hint of crisp air breezing through enough to wave the 20ft x 30 ft American flag serving as a backdrop for President Bush.

I was able to get within 30 feet of President Bush as he spoke on the podium and when it was over he was 6 feet away but the crush of the crowd reaching for a handshake prevented me from doing the same thing. But I'm quite satisfied with the way things turned out for my photos. Great shots. Never more of a patriotic photo have I ever gotten with the huge U.S. flag waving behind Bush. An excellent way to frame the shot.

Met two deaf families who managed to get to the interpretter section that was more or less "reserved" for those who know sign language. The two families were the Bacas and Wentzels, both of Alamogordo. And four new members to the Deaf Republicans organization that I helped introduce them to.

After 7 hours of continuous standing I went home feeling pretty good, tired, and a sun-burned face.




President George W. Bush, Laura Bush,
and Congressman Pearce.



President Bush is serious.



When President Bush speaks,
everybody pays attention.



Mike McConnell, chief member and
New Mexico representative of
Deaf Republicans organization.




The Baca family, members of
Deaf Republicans organization.




The Baca family and Mr. and Mrs.
Wentzel with hearing friend in glasses
in back. Bacas and Wenztels - members
of the Deaf Republicans organization.




Mike McConnell post Bush rally. A
Victory Rally!
Visit www.deafrepublicans.com and be
a part of the deaf political history.



All in all this was a great rally. Much better than the one I went to Hobbs, New Mexico three weeks earlier.

All photos are copyright of Mike McConnell. Please credit Kokonut Pundits as the source.

A Blogger gets Blogged in Blogosphere.

Came across this nice blogger site and his name is Tucker Eskew. I have heard of him before but now he has a blog site. Nice! Be sure to bookmark his site. And no, he's not deaf but a professional hearing pundit. He's a “senior advisor” to the President’s re-election and former White House aide. And he recently gave an interview on Fox news, and if you're a political junkie, like me, you should find Eskew's site informative and entertaining. It's good see these types of people getting into the blogosphere for the first time, like me, who have no qualms in making themselves publicly known for the work they do.

I am hoping he'll see my blog site as I make myself known to him and point him to the soon-to-be-unveiled (tomorrow) deaf and hearing Republican website called www.deafrepublicans.com. This website is the culmination to get the grassroots organization formed to foster the principles and values of the Republican Party within the deaf and hard of hearing community. Tucker! Eskew! Can you swing by here for a sec? You'll be glad you did. It's not everyday that you see an officially unveiling of a national Deaf Republicans website a week before the election.

This Deaf Republicans website is to represent all deaf and hard of hearing people who support President Bush' re-election and/or are Republicans. This is a premier website run by professional people (hydrologist, forest fire fighter, graphic designer, entertainment industry professional, international traveler, and so on who are either deaf or hard of hearing). This website is not your namby-pamby fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants run by a couple of snot-nosed kids who are attempting to make some grabs in the political spotlight. No. It is more than that. This is a website and grassroots organization run by professional adults that are laying the groundwork now and for the next four years in preparation for the 2008 election (Franks? McCain? Anybody else?) as well as informing the public along the way regarding disability issues, politics and support for the growing deaf and hard of hearing Republicans.

Tucker, if you do not know why we are pushing this website it is because it's time! Also, we want to make known to the people in the Kerry/Edwards campaign whose deaf and hard of hearing group they endorsed by which this group in turn endorsed the Kerry/Edwards ticket. There is nothing more repugnant than to see the Kerry/Edwards website splash a headline in their website announcement and make a grab on behalf of the 28 million people who are deaf and hard of hearing with this blatant lie:

Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans Endorse Kerry-Edwards Ticket

What a bunch of hooey and typical for Kerry to make this audacious claim. I, as a hard of hearing person, do not endorse the Kerry-Edwards ticket. And they do not speak for me and for the rest of the millions of deaf and hard of hearing Republicans, Bush supporters and Independent thinkers. It's nigh time to get this Deaf Republicans political grassroots going and see the chutzpah for what we are.

Gallaudet Univ - how liberal?

In a survey released for 2004 on commencement speakers by the Young America's Foundation , again, indicates students across the nation overwhelmingly heard from liberal guest speakers during commencement ceremonies. Gallaudet University has increasingly used more commencement speakers who were Democrats or leaned heavily toward Democrats such as news anchor Sam Donaldson of ABC in 2003 than conservative speakers. What I have suspected in the past was that Gallaudet University took more than their fair share of liberal speakers than conservative or Republican speakers. With that suspicion I collected the names of all commencement speakers dating back to 1976 up to 2004 and did a little quick research over the internet. What I've found was that Gallaudet University did indeed have more liberal guest speakers than Republican speakers, especially over the past 13 years. And Bill Clinton was the commencement speaker in 1994! That was a rare treat for the graduating class and a seemingly clinching moment in the real shift towards more liberal commencement speakers beginning in 1991 with Peter Jennings of ABC.


Gallaudet University Commencement Speakers

1976 - Art Buchwald. Washington's humorist columnist. (Party affiliation - does it really matter?)

1977 - Jack Ashley, Member of Parliament (Britain govt)

1978 - Nanette Fabray MacDougall (Party affiliation - unknown)

1979 - Dr. Steven Muller, President of The John Hopkins University (Party affiliation - unknown)

1980 - The Honorable Eleanor Holmes Norton. (Party affiliation - Democrat) At the time of her commencement Holmes was the Commissioner for the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 1977-1981. She is a Democrat Congresswoman for District of Columbia.Eleanor Homes Norton, who has no voting privileges on the House floor, was the first among D.C.-area members of Congress to say she supports same-sex marriage. Norton is one of the leading opponents of a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage.

1981 - Frank G. Bowe (Party affiliation - unknown)

1982 - Louise Fletcher, Actress. (Party affiliation - unknown)

1983 - Senator Bob Packwood.(Party affiliation - Republican)

1984 - The Honorable David E. Bonior (Party affiliation - Democrat. U.S. Representative for Michigan in the 12th District from 1977 - 1993).

1985 - The Honorable William Bennett (Party affiliation - Democrat. Became a Republican in 1986)
Mr. Randall L. Tobias, CEO of AT&T Communications (Party affiliation - Republican. Very good friend of V.P. Dan Quayle).

1986 - Ms. Lesley Stahl, White House correspondent for CBS (Biased towards Democrats. Graduate of Wheaton College)

1987 - The Honorable Larry M. Speakes (Party affiliation - Republican. Press Secretary to the President. Speakes was chief spokesman for the president during the Administration of Ronald Reagan from 1981 to 1987.

1988 - Dr. John Slaughter, Chancellor of University of Maryland (Party affiliation - unknown)

1989 - Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole, President of Spelman College (Party affiliation - Democrat. First African American woman to serve as president of Spelman College. In 1992, Johnnetta Cole was named to President-Elect Bill Clinton's transition team as Cluster Coordinator for Education, Labor and the Arts and Humanities and soon assissted President Clinton in the formation of his first Administration.

1990 - Dr. Harvey J. Corson, Provost of Gallaudet University (Party affiliation, unknown).

1991 - Peter Jennings (Biased towards Democrats. He's the anchor on ABC, what else?)

1992 - Roger Wilkins, George Mason University (most likely a Republican. GMU is known for their conservative professors).

1994 - William Jefferson Clinton, President of the United States. (Party affiliation - Democrat, of course).
1996 - Marian Wright Edelman, Founder and President of Children's Defense Fund (Party affiliation - strong suspicion for her to be a Democrat ).

1997 - The Honorable Robert J. Dole (Party affilation - Republican)
Jack R. Gannon, Author of Deaf Heritage (Party affiliation - unknown)

1998 - The Honorable Richard W. Riley, U.S. Secretary of Education (Party affiliation - Democrat).

1999 - Dr. William C. Richardson, President and CEO of Kellogg Foundation (Party affiliation unknown)

2000 - David Miller Sadker, Professor, The American University. He has been a board member and state legislation liaison for the South Dakota Association of the Deaf since 1966, serving as president from 1974 to 1985. (Party affiliation: unsure. Some indication in my research shows he's a Democrat. He wrote a book frowning upon Reagan and Bush 41 in cuts on education).

2001 - William Earl Kennard, The Aspen Institute.(Party affiliation - Democrat)

2002 - Congressmen David E. Bonior (party affiliation - Democrat)

2003 - Sam Donaldson, ABC News Correspondent (Biased heavily towards Democrats. What do you expect? It's ABC)

2004 - Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, President of University of Maryland at Baltimore. (His background history suggest he might be a Republican but strongly suggest him to be a Democrat)

If George W. Bush wins for another 4 more years will Gallaudet University try and get him to host one of their commencements? After all Gallaudet University gets about 74% of their funding from Congress for school year 2003. George W. Bush was the commencement speaker for Yale by breaking the "no commencement speaker" tradition for the first time. If another 4 more years then maybe we pundits ought to try and get George W. Bush to be the commencement speaker for Gallaudet University? Would it be time to try and break Gallaudet University's tradition of "no conservative commencement speakers" for the first time?

Culturally Deaf people fear work?

Here's a sad part where some Deaf people actually fear of getting put to work without their SSI with the subject heading screaming:

BUSH WILL MAKE ALL DEAFS TO WORK WORK WORK and STOP SSI, SSA, AND
SSDI IN N

Kind of keeps the perception about Deaf people and government welfare going hand in hand here. But actually I think the subject heading was not meant to say it that way but still you gotta wonder.

A Gally student blogged the RNC

Found one Gallaudet University student, a second year student named Jim Crane, who blogged for 3 days at the RNC event this year in September. Lucky bastard. He received press credential to gain access to the widely successful Republican event.

Middle school students vote for Bush

At Chaparral Middle school in Alamogordo a mock election took place a few days ago where my 6th grade daughter took part of among 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. Alamogordo being a town of 30,000 and home of nearby Holloman AFB 117A stealth fighter planes, it's not surprising to see so many Bush/Cheney signs all over the place with a few spotty Kerry/Edwards signs standing meekly next to large B/C signs. I figured we have a 3:1 ratio with no less than 2:1 with Republicans being the majority. Alamogordo is lucky enough to have President Bush visit the town for the second time coming this Sunday for a Bush rally. The first President's visit took place two years ago.



Alamogordo is also home of Joseph Hudson, former prisoner of war, one of six members of Fort Bliss’ 507th Maintenance Company who were captured by Iraqi forces on March 23, 2003, and whose face was shown worldwide on television. No wonder this town is heavily Republican.

The results of the Chaparral Middle school's mock election netted a George W. Bush win.


George W. Bush..........345 votes.
John F. Kerry..............195 votes.
Ralph Nader.....................3 votes.

Nearly a 2 to 1 margin for Bush win. Let's see if the National election will produce the same result this November 2, 2004.

The Second Coming..........

A second trip to a Bush rally in two weeks. I would have never guessed this would happen so soon. Bush had a change of schedule at the last minute and now will show up at Alamogordo this Sunday, October 24, 2004 at the Alamogordo soccer field.

This was in response to a smashing turnout to Sen. Domenici’s early voting rally at the White Sands shopping mall in Alamogordo, New Mexico on Wednesday. The Bush campaign abruptly put Alamogordo on the map for a presidential visit before the National election.

A limit of 10,000 tickets is to be handed out with 5000 handed out in Alamogordo and 5000 in Las Cruces located 50 miles away. The news was so early when it came out, the lines were so small by Friday night that I was able to get my ticket at the Alamogordo's fairground booth in about 2 minutes flat. I asked a few people waiting for the tickets that they, too, were surprised to hear the news. But by Saturday the crush to get the tickets in Alamogordo changed all that when the news finally caught wind.

I checked the George W. Bush website for the calendar of events and saw that Alamogordo was not even on it. This was a last minute adjustment by the Bush team to come here and I'm happy he's coming to Alamogordo this time, again, as he did a year and half ago.



My first Bush rally ticket.

A few weeks ago I was in Hobbs, NM for a Bush rally that had about 25,000 people there. It went great, a little cool for everybody, and I was almost standing at the very back. Bush still looked good far away. This time I plan to show up a few hours before the gate opens at 12:15 PM to get to the front as possible for the Bush rally in Alamogordo. And also, bring a better digital camera with a 5-megapixel camera with a zoom len rather than a stale 1.2 megapixel camera I used at the Bush rally in Hobbs. Big mistake. How often do I get in my lifetime to see the President of the U.S. for the second time and avoid the mistakes from the first time? Pretty good karma for me right now.

Jason Lamberton's website

Interesting site I found. Jason Lamberton's website. I emailed him about the Deaf Republicans organization already formed and hopefully he'll respond. He's continuing work with one of those robotic hand gloves that recognizes sign language movements in his PhD work. Also, dang impressive layout he got going there as well. Made me wish I started blogging a year or so ago.

Jason has a deaf politics website going. Also, I realized in my google search he tried to start a grassroots "Deaf Republicans" thing going in one of his old but no longer active blog site which sits forlornly alone. But no longer will he be alone. He'll soon find himself with many new deaf/hh Republican friends. Hopefully he'll stop by read my blogs or at least respond to my email to him today.

Opening salvo against Kerry's grab

It happened. Finally happened when a Democrat deaf and hard of hearing American group called "National Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry/Edwards Steering Committee" (a mouthful!) was officially endorsed by the Kerry/Edwards in their website as the lay claims to 28 million deaf and hard of hearing Americans as their own. Needless to say they do not represent me, nor to the million others deaf and hard of hearing Americans who support George W. Bush.

I am opening my salvo in an "open letter" to those who are interested in giving support to George W. Bush against John "Flipper" Kerry for those interested in distributing. The letter has been sent to some of the most notable Republican luminaries and Republican bloggers and radio talk show hosts hoping for a response.

Welcome to my new blog website after running a previous blog I had in Livejournal for a year. I decided to continue with my blogging with Blogger.com. Thank you readers for following me here. My old Livejournal blog is no longer running. The Kokonut Pundits blog website is anything but a coconut.

============

Dear sir or ma’am (an open letter, please distribute):As of late something has come to my attention regarding the 28 million people in the United States with hearing losses (mild to profound) that the Kerry/Edwards campaign is claiming to have full support/endorsement of. A group called the “National Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry-Edwards Steering Committee” whose letter of endorsement that was placed in the Kerry/Edwards website purporting to say that essentially “27 million” deaf and hard of hearing people endorse the Kerry-Edwards ticket. This is a blatant attempt by this new organization and the Kerry-Edwards campaign to lay claim a base of 27 to 28 million people who are deaf and hard of hearing as their own. This could not be further from the truth.


Currently, I am in close association with one deaf owner of a new website being designed called Deaf Republicans. This is a website that has an eclectic mix of culturally Deaf, deaf, hard of hearing, hearing people and even to a great extent cochlear implant users who whole heartedly support George W. Bush. Most members go to a nationally recognized deaf and hard of hearing forum called Deafreedom where most members are staunch Republicans and Independents, with some Bush Democrats, who are GW Bush supporters.

This growing body of deaf, hard of hearing and hearing Bush/Republican supporters regularly uses the Deafreedom discussion forum website forum to discuss (mostly) politics (as well as other non-political topics), Iraq, Afghanistan and the likes in show of support (and sometimes criticism) of Bush over the past year and a half. It is the only national website home to deaf and hard of hearing (and even hearing) Bush supporters while equally giving weight and time to those who are Democrats and supporters of Kerry to contribute without fear of reprisal or lose membership as in the case in many other deaf forum websites who are not too keen on politics or only want hear from Democrat or Kerry/Edwards supporters. But as you might have guessed, the Deafreedom website has probably a 7:1 ratio of Republicans to Democrats supporters. Bush’ vision is FREEDOM. So is the Deafreedom website to those who want to air their opinions unfettered.


Currently the Deaf Republicans website can be accessed but the meat of it is yet to be ready until a few more days so that memory will be fresh upon the minds of people accessing the site once it becomes available for the next several days prior to the national election on November 2.


The Deaf Republicans website exposes Kerry-Edwards lies and misdeeds against deaf and hard of hearing Bush supporters, as well as other deaf and hard of hearing issues for the time being. This is a website intended to last more than just a few weeks. It is in the hope that it will last for the next four years in preparation for the next presidential Republican election. We are just beginning here. We are awakening from a deep and long slumber to the rouse of the Kerry/Edwards campaign incoherencies just as Mt. St. Helens is now finally coming to life. Be careful what you wish for.


Recently, I put out a FReeper alert regarding the travesty of the wanton taking by the Kerry/Edwards campaign along with the National Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry-Edwards Steering Committee obtuse belief they can get away thinking there are no staunch deaf and hard of hearing Bush supporters among the 28 million people who are deaf and hard of hearing. Well, they are wrong. Horribly wrong. It is naïve to even think that 28 million deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States support the Kerry-Edwards ticket. The Bush crowd is also the deaf and hard of hearing crowd with notables such as Tom Ridge, Rush Limbaugh (a cochlear implant user) and the likes.


I recognize and know many of the names of the people listed in the “National Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry-Edwards Steering Committee” group (see at bottom of letter). Most of the people are associated with the Deaf cultural group (capitalized with “D”eaf to discern a cultural difference with deaf or hard of hearing people who do not sign using American Sign Language as the primary mode of communication or do not view themselves as culturally deaf) who have ties to or are alumni of Gallaudet University or the Rochester Technical Institute of the Deaf or similar Deaf communities. It is estimated, by my calculations, that approximately 900,000 people in the United States are Deaf (i.e. “culturally deaf”) and use American Sign Language as their primary mode of communication. These people are a part of the eclectic Deaf, even sometimes perceived as exclusionary, group in America. In fact, some of the names and people I recognized in the list below were a part of the former deaf Deaniacs screamfest crowd (Deaf Americans for Dean) who have jumped over to the Kerry-Edwards campaign ticket in their “anybody but Bush” vote charge. The Dean support did not last long, of course, going from Dean, who was the anti-war candidate, to Kerry who flipped flopped his way through by being the war to anti-war to semi-war U.N. supporter candidate turned Democratic presidential nominee while siding with Kofi Annan as being the “incorruptible” U.N. Secretary-General with Clinton probably not too far behind to get the UN Secretary-General title in 2006. This is enough to give any Republicans a heart attack. “Surreal” is not an accurate enough word here.


One famous Deaf person seen in the list below is Greg Hlibok. He was the Deaf leader in the March of 1988 protest that took place at Gallaudet University who led deaf, Deaf, hard of hearing, hearing university and staff protesters up to the Capitol steps in Washington D.C. This was a world famous protest called “Deaf President Now”. A protest that garnered so much national attention it resulted in a pitted 3-way conversation with the newly elected hearing Gallaudet University president, Elizabeth Zinser, Marlee Matlin (famous Deaf actress in Children of a Lesser God with William Hurt – www.marleematlinsite.com ) and Greg Hlibok in the famous Ted Koppel ABC’s Nightline drama in March of 1988.

What we have here is a group pandering to the Kerry/Edwards deaf and hard of hearing crowd using nationally recognized Deaf/deaf members in the attempt to lay claim the 27 to 28 million people who are deaf or hard of hearing as their own using a very misleading title - “Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans Endorse Kerry-Edwards Ticket”. What is ironic is that about 27.1 million deaf and hard of hearing people out of 28 million deaf and hard of hearing people do not even know who these people are, much less Greg Hlibok. The “National Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry-Edwards Steering Committee” group does not speak for me as a person who is hard of hearing, fiercely independent and who also witnessed the “Deaf President Now” protest while as a freshman student at Gallaudet University as I watched Greg Hlibok lead the protest charge to the Capitol steps in 1988. Nor do this group and the Kerry-Edwards campaign team speak for the rest of the deaf and hard of hearing American people in getting their blanket carte blanche endorsement. Much of the deaf and hard of hearing Americans have used technology, education and hard work as their key cornerstone to attain true independency and not rely on government welfare in all 50 states. Independency is a track record to be noted for, not government reliance for welfare help. Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.


The “National Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry-Edwards Steering Committee” group asserts that “John Kerry has a proven record of providing opportunities to Americans with disabilities. His senate record on the Americans with Disabilities Act , Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, MiCASSA, the Telecommunications Act, and on accessible transportation and voting demonstrate that he understands the issues of the disability community.”


Yet this deaf/Deaf group effectively ignored GW Bush’ vision and what he has done for millions of deaf and hard of hearing Americans:


1) Opposed any legislative or judicial weakening of disability civil rights protections by Congress or the Courts—In an interview with John M. Williams from Business Week Online (June 21, 2000), George W. Bush said, “Let me lay this principle out. No law should undermine the Americans with Disabilities Act. The ADA must stand. The ADA is a good law. I want your readers and followers to know that George W. Bush, the son of President Bush who signed the Americans with Disabilities Act, fully supports the ADA in spirit and in law. I would not do otherwise. There is a role to enhance the ADA: I want to make sure the law is fully complied with. The Federal Government has made acommitment to protecting civil rights. The ADA is a civil-rights legislation.” In the same interview, President Bush declared his opposition to the “ADA Notification Act" (also known as the Foley Amendment) because it would “open up the whole law” to changes.


2)Believes that all Americans should have the opportunity to learn and develop skills, engage in productive work, choose where to live, and participate in community life. Although progress has been made over the last two decades -most prominently with passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990—Governor Bush believes that much more needs to be done. Governor Bush has proposed a "New Freedom Initiative," $1.025 billion over 5 years to expand access to assistive technology, to integrate more Americans with disabilities into the workforce, and remove barriers to full participation in community life for all Americans. (Bush-Cheney 2000 Campaign Statement). True to form when George W. Bush was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States he launches the New Freedom Initiative increasing funding and access to assistive technology.


3) Install additional text telephones (TTY) equipment for 9-1-1 emergency services, and for offices that receive calls from the public or provide information to the public by telephone, for people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have speech impairments.


4) Increases Funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA funds will be increased in order to reduce the burden that states and local districts bear in meeting the special needs of their disabled students.

5) On February 1, 2001, President George W. Bush, announced his Freedom Initiative on Disability, earmarking over $1 billion to expand research in assistive and universally designed technology, to further integrate Americans with disabilities into the workforce and to remove barriers that limit full participation in community life. President Bush remarked, “I am committed to tearing down the remaining barriers to equality that face Americans with disabilities today."


On February 12, 2003 President George W. Bush, stated, “My New Freedom Initiative strives to provide people with disabilities increased opportunities to lead more independent lives by expanding education and job opportunities, and by ensuring that the latest technologies, which often make education and employment possible, are readily available.”As result of this effort small businesses such as Able Planet was able to take advantage of Bush’ “Freedom Initiative on Disability” act by providing a new technology for people with hearing loss to successfully access telephone with and without use of a hearing aid. Thus giving 500 Million worldwide users who now have the opportunity to communicate via telephones, cellular phones and to hear computers, televisions, and DVD players.“This advancement in hearing technology expands the applications of this invention,” said Waldron. “As a person who is deaf, I was amazed when I could hear and understand speech clearly without using my power hearing aid. I tried using both the Able Planet™ wireline phone and hands-free system with a digital cell phone without even wearing my hearing aid. I was truly in shock. I had always used my micro-technology while switching my hearing aid to the T-coil setting.

Clearly we can see that George W. Bush has done so much to encourage innovations and independency among the 28 million deaf and hard of hearing people in America. With vision from George W. Bush comes with the desire to succeed and raise the bar with greater expectation in helping level the playing field for everyone in America. It is a moral duty for Bush and the rest of the nation to ensure this continuance.What we need is your loyal support by contacting the owner of Deaf Republicans to supply names and contact of those who are deaf and hard of hearing who support Bush in the hope that such recognizance will instill hope and inspiration for all of us. George W. Bush continues to strive for all of deaf and hard of hearing’s interest to become independent as possible with much success in life.


If you have any questions please contact the owner of Deaf Republicans via email or contact Mike McConnell. Mike McConnell is hard of hearing and can be contacted over the phone via voice to voice.Thank you for your support.


See the letter of endorsement below in the Kerry-Edwards website:

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Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans Endorse Kerry-Edwards Ticket ----NOT! Posted on 10/21/2004 1:45:47 PM PDT by mcconnellOctober 8, 2004

(Note: if web address in the link above is gone, go to Archive org and insert web address in the search engine).

Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans Endorse Kerry-Edwards Ticket Kerry Edwards Campaign Announces Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans National Steering Committee For Immediate Release The Kerry-Edwards campaign today announced its National Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry-Edwards Steering Committee.


The Steering Committee includes national leaders, political activists, social service providers, heads of national organizations, and educational specialists. Co-chairman Gregory Hlibok, a leader in the Deaf President Now movement, said “the strength of this National Steering Committee speaks to the confidence and commitment of America’s 27 million Americans with hearing loss have in John Kerry to ensure that every American has the opportunity to fully participate in society.”


Hlibok is joined on the committee by co-chairperson Judy Stout. Stout is a life-long political activist, and teaches political leadership at Gallaudet University. “John Kerry has a proven record of providing opportunities to Americans with disabilities. His senate record on the Americans with Disabilities Act , Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, MiCASSA, the Telecommunications Act, and on accessible transportation and voting demonstrate that he understands the issues of the disability community,” said Stout. John Kerry has detailed a plan for an America that ensures freedom, independence, and choices for people with disabilities. It includes ideas on issues ranging from health care, community living and employment, civil rights enforcement and education, to transportation, technology, and housing, and continues the fight for fairness and equality.


These committed individuals will join the 50 Kerry-Edwards Deaf and Hard of Hearing state coordinators in organizing the 27 million Americans with hearing loss nationwide to elect the Kerry-Edwards ticket.


Deaf and Hard of Hearing Americans for Kerry-Edwards National Steering Committee

Co-Chairs
Gregory Hlibok -Maryland Judy Stout - Maryland

Members
Henry Bergstresser - California
Ryan Bondroff - Massachusetts
Pepe Cervantes - California
Lise Hamlin - Maryland
Cheryl Heppner - Virginia
Kevin McLeod - Tennessee
Teri Mosier - Kentucky
Kellye Nelson - Maryland
Damara Paris - Oregon
Angel Ramos - Idaho
Howard Rosemblum - Illinois
Trudy Suggs - Minnesota