Blago is History

The Illinois Senate voted to remove Gov. Rod Blagojevich from office Thursday, marking the first time in the state's long history of political corruption that a chief executive has been impeached and convicted.

The 59-0 vote followed several hours of public deliberation in which senator after senator stood up to blast Blagojevich, whose tenure lasted six years. And it came after a four-day impeachment trial on allegations that Blagojevich abused his power and sold his office for personal and political benefit.

Good riddance.

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Obama Signs First Piece of Legislation Into Law!

President Obama this morning signed a law that expanded the time frame in which workers can sue for discrimination they have experienced based on gender, race, national origin or religion.

The legislation -- the first he has signed since becoming president nine days ago -- is named for Lilly Ledbetter, who after years as a manager at Goodyear Tire & Rubber discovered she was being paid less than her male counterparts. She filed suit and won a jury verdict in 2003. But the lawsuit was deemed invalid, because it wasn't filed within six months of when the discrimination -- unknown to Ledbetter at the time -- began.

"And I sign this bill for my daughters, and all those who will come after us," Obama added, "because I want them to grow up in a nation that values their contributions, where there are no limits to their dreams and they have opportunities their mothers and grandmothers never could have imagined."

The first thing he does is level the playing field. Woohoo. Proud to be an American again.

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100% of House Republicans hate on America

After their president nearly-ruined our country, house republicans have the nerve to vote against a stimulus package aimed to help ordinary Americans. After making multiple compromises to the bill to gain republican support, EVERY republican voted against America and avoiding a depression.

What horrid people these republicans are. Sheeesh.

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Mercury in much of U.S. corn syrup

Many common foods made using commercial high fructose corn syrup contain mercury as well, researchers reported on Tuesday, while another study suggested the corn syrup itself is contaminated.

In one study, published in the journal Environmental Health, former Food and Drug Administration scientist Renee Dufault and colleagues tested 20 samples of high fructose corn syrup and found detectable mercury in nine of the 20 samples.

But the Bush administration did not think the FDA needed any teeth to protect Americans. Sheesh - care for a little mercury with your yogurt?

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Congressional Budget Office compares downturn to Great Depression

The nation's current recession is likely to be the longest since World War II, and by some measures could be the worst since the Great Depression, a new Congressional Budget Office forecast said Tuesday.

And it was only a few months ago that the republicans claimed that the fundamentals of our economy were strong. Now they are trying to thwart any attempts at recovery. Sheesh. Who voted in these republican yahoos?

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Caterpillar Moves to Cut 20,000 Jobs

The heavy equipment maker, Caterpillar, said Monday morning in a statement that it planned to cut 20,000 jobs as part of an aggressive effort to lower cost as the economy continues to slow.

And the layoffs continue...

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State Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand to replace Clinton in Senate

New York City television station WPIX is reporting that the state's Democratic governor, David Paterson, has settled on Democratic Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand as the successor for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's now-vacant U.S. Senate seat.

Gillibrand is a moderate Democrat, the 42-year-old mother of two young children who lives in Hudson, N.Y., and is in her second House term.

Nice pick, Paterson.

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Obama keeps promise to close Guantanamo Bay

Promising to return America to the "moral high ground" in the war on terror, President Barack Obama issued three executive orders Thursday to demonstrate a clean break from the Bush administration -- including one requiring that the Guantanamo Bay detention facility be closed within a year.

During a signing ceremony at the White House, Obama reaffirmed his inaugural pledge that the United States does not have "to continue with a false choice between our safety and our ideals."

We are already moving forward under Obama. What a relief.

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A new day in America - President Obama!

The dawn of the new Democratic era - with Obama allies in charge of both houses of Congress - ends eight years of Republican control of the White House by George W. Bush. He leaves Washington as one of the nation's most unpopular and divisive presidents, the architect of two unfinished wars and the man in charge at a time of economic calamity that swept away many Americans' jobs, savings, homes and dreams.

As to the future, I know we can.

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More biting and less barking please.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Sunday that she was open to pursuing investigations of abuses by the Bush Justice Department.

"I think that we have to learn from the past and we cannot let the politicizing, for example, of the Justice Department, to go unreviewed," Pelosi said on "Fox News Sunday." "Past is prologue. We learn from it."

If only we could believe these words. This is classic Democratic maneuvering. Bark Spot, bark.

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Another buh bye.

Circuit City Stores Inc., the bankrupt consumer-electronics retailer, named four liquidators to sell the remaining merchandise in 567 U.S. stores before it goes out of business.

James A. Marcum, acting chief executive officer, said, "The company had been in continuous negotiations regarding a going-concern transaction. Regrettably for the more than 30,000 employees of Circuit City and our loyal customers, we were unable to reach an agreement with our creditors and lenders."

Another corporation that can't take care of itself. Sheesh.

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Good bye and good riddance!

Finally, after 8 humiliating years, President Bush gave his farewell address to the nation.

After allowing our homeland to be attacked on 9-11, never getting Bin Laden, failing horrifically after Hurricane Katrina, torturing countless people, authorizing the killing of women and children, illegally spying on Americans, belittling our standing in the world, ruining our economy, decimating our middle class, depriving millions of healthcare, promoting racism and hate, we will finally have relief.

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Roland Burris sworn in as Obama Senate replacement

It's official, we have a new senator, Roland Burris. The Illinois Democrat was sworn-in by Vice President Dick Cheney today at a Capitol Hill ceremony.

Will the circumstances of his appointment prevent him from being an effective legislator?

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Retail sales dive in December

Retail sales plunged far more than expected in December, a record sixth straight monthly decline as consumers were battered by a recession, a severe credit crisis and soaring job losses, none of which are likely to ease anytime soon.

The recession is not only having an effect here in the United States, but also debilitating much of the rest of the world.

Sale anyone?

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Clinton confirmation hearing today

It's supposed to be the hot seat, but the reception Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., got today from her fellow senators was decidedly warm as they began examining whether she has what it takes to become Secretary of State.

it is so exciting to see strong, smart people filling important roles, rather than cronies and political friends of a moron.

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Bush holds final news conference of presidency

In his final news conference today, a candid President Bush reflected on the mistakes and milestones of his eight years in office and considered what lies ahead for President-elect Barack Obama.

In an event he billed as the "ultimate exit interview," Bush addressed the mile markers that will likely shape his legacy -- from the debate about weapons of mass destruction to the government's response to Hurricane Katrina.

All I know is that eight days can't go by quickly enough.

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Blagojevich impeached by Illinois house

The Illinois House of Representatives voted 114-1 on Friday to impeach Gov. Rod Blagojevich on corruption charges that include allegedly trying to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.

Here we go. Talk it up...

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Ouch. 2.6 million jobs lost in 2008.

Yet another sobering government labor report released Friday showed the economy lost 524,000 jobs in December, bringing 2008's total job loss to 2.6 million.

Last year's steep drop in employment marked the highest yearly job-loss total since 1945.

It already seems that the scope of the Obama stimulus package may not be broad enough to right the wrongs of the last 8 years.

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Obama to select CNN Gupta as Surgeon General

President-elect Barack Obama has offered the job of surgeon general to Dr. Sanjay Gupta, the neurosurgeon and correspondent for CNN and CBS, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation.

I never minded Dr. Gupta on CNN until a few years ago when he questioned Michael Moore's movie on healthcare, Sicko, and claimed that health insurance in this country isn't that bad... oh please.

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Loser Coleman suing to get seat he lost

Republican Norm Coleman said Tuesday he is suing to challenge Democrat Al Franken's apparent recount victory in Minnesota's U.S. Senate race, delaying a resolution of the contest for weeks or months.

Even though Coleman, when he was ahead, said lawsuits like his were frivolous, he has now decided he does not want to be unemployed while facing huge legal challenges. Maybe his model wife in California can loan him some money.

What a jerk. It's time to go, loser.

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Israeli tanks, soldiers invade Gaza Strip -- it's on!

Israel launched a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, sending tanks and infantry into battle with Hamas fighters who have defied eight days of deadly air strikes with salvoes of rocket fire into Israeli towns.

Here we go...

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Nearly 50% of Americans on Internet over one hour per day

Americans' frequent use of the Internet has almost doubled over the last five years; 48% now report using the Internet more than one hour per day compared to 26% in 2002.

I cannot say that I am surprised, as almost everyone I talk to relies on the internet as their primary method of communication. What do you think?

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Pitbull Palin barking back about couples education

Gov. Sarah Palin spent part of Wednesday countering what she considers inaccurate descriptions of how much education her daughter's fiance has, an effort culminating at the end of the day with her first public statement about her new grandson.

Palin got touchy when the unwed parents were referred to as "drop outs". According to Palin, Bristol is going back to school to get the final credit she needs for graduation and Levi is finishing high school online. Uhuh.

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Happy New Year OpenCitizens!

2009 is here, and with it the prospects of an Obama presidency and a stronger democratic majority in congress. The last eight years of the Bush administration's incompetence will finally come to an end.

This year will also be a great year for OpenCitizen with many additional features planned for roll-out during the course of the next several months. One thing that will NOT change is our dedication to American democratic principles and our desire to expose hate and greed. (That's not too grandiose, is it?)

If there is anything you would like to see here in 2009, please let us know in the comments section.