brave new world

[jainen]

the mark of the beast,

Humphrey was one of the most interesting political figures of the 20th century. He played a key role at the Chicago Democratic Convention (yeah, that one too, but I mean the OTHER one). Adlai Stevensen couldn't pick a running mate. The fight unfolded for the whole world to see on the new technology -- television. Al Gore (no, the OTHER one) was locked in battle with Humphrey, the Minnesota senator who had fought prejudice against blacks in 1948 causing the southern Democrats to split off with their own presidential candidate Strom Thurmond.

Even stronger contenders were Estes Kefauver, a Tennessean who sported a Davy Crockett coonskin hat, and John F. Kennedy, a Catholic. With a field like that, it's understandable why they had to go to a second ballot.

Kennedy tried to make an alliance but was rebuffed by Senator Eugene Joseph McCarthy (no, the OTHER one) who as Humprey's campaign manager was prejudiced against Catholics (being one himself). When the Minnesota delegation switched to Kefauver, the floor was tied at 666, a numerologically significant figure identified as the mark of the beast.

The campaign collapsed, and no party convention ever risked a second ballot again.

Hubert H. Humphrey was later accused of personally bearing the mark of the beast, on the theory that H is the 6th letter in some ancient Aramaic alphabet.

[Bees Knees]

Do you seriously think that a majority of Members of Congress gave any serious thought to this question? That they even read what they were voting on?

Actually, they do understand the question. John Buckley, Tax Aid to Charles B. Rangel (Democrat - NY) understands perfectly that AMT will hit more and more Americans, not because of inflation or lack of AMT exemption indexing, but because of the tax cuts the Republicans crammed down the Democrats throats back in 2001.

Leaving AMT alone is pay back time for those who pushed through tax cuts. You can read for yourself what he said at http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_b...es/Buckley.pdf

[George Boutwell]

Actually, they do understand the question.

They understand the question now. They weren't thinking about it when the law was enacted.

[George Boutwell]

Humphrey was not a Senator in 1948. He was the not-very-well-known mayor of Minneapolis (population about 500,000; minority population perhaps 2% of that).

His speech at the Convention, however, was a turning point in the history of civil rights.

>>To those who say, my friends, to those who say, that we are rushing this issue of civil rights. I say to them we are 172 years late!

To those who say, to those who say that this civil-rights program is an infringement on states' rights, I say this: the time has arrived in America for the Democratic party to get out of the shadow of state's rights and walk forthrightly into the bright sunshine of human rights!

People, people--human beings--this is the issue of the 20th century. People of all kinds, all sorts of people, and these people are looking to America for leadership, and they're looking to America for precept and example.<<


*****

Scooter Libby goes to prison for 2 1/2 years -- as the Dutch Software Neocons would say, there may be some Justice after all!

[TMI Moderator]

Let's refrain from turning this thread into a political cowpie hurling derby.

"Police thyself, lest a policeman be provided for you."

(Attributed to Paul Roberts)