Top 10 Deleted GOP Sullivan Tweets!
The internet is forever… especially when you see stuff and grab it before it’s deleted. For progressives and left-leaning voters all three GOP senate candidates were nightmares on social issues. It got down to splitting hairs about which combination of mother or baby should be allowed to die while denying a medically necessary abortion. And in a state like Alaska where a rapist is allowed to sue for custody or visitation rights of his offspring when he gets out of jail (yes this is really true), you wouldn’t think anyone would want to force women to have those babies if…
The Silver Lining on Prop 1
Congratulations, Alaska! Thirty-one percent of registered voters decided for 100 percent of us what is “best for Alaska” in an election this week. Last week I knew we were in trouble when employees of oil companies were bussed to the early polls. Buses with gift baskets and snacks. Must be nice. The election worker balked when I asked for a Republican ballot. I smiled. I voted. Voting early on Tuesday, I drove into town and kept seeing signs made of bed sheets on the overpasses. One in particular got to me. It was the eight gold stars with “Vote Yes”…
Primary Post Mortem
Alaska’s primary election night is over, but the election itself is not quite done. About 14,000 absentee ballots remain to be counted, and the final results will not be known for days. That said, it will be a tough hill to climb for the passage of Ballot Measure 1, which would reinstate the ACES oil tax system put in place by former Governor Sarah Palin and a bipartisan coalition in the Alaska legislature. Sean Parnell, former ConocoPhillips lawyer and lobbyist, and Palin’s former Lt. Governor dismantled ACES with Senate Bill 21 which would give billions from Alaska’s treasury to the…
Election Central Live Blog
9:15pm Ok, Mudflatters… I’m martinied (is that a word) up, and here at Election Central. There’s a decent crowd and the first returns are coming in. I’ll report on the Republican Senate race and Prop 1, and anything else that is a surprise. Right now, the first numbers have come up on the big board: Sullivan – 39% Miller – 33% Treadwell – 23% Prop 1 Yes 50.01 No 49.9 Miller has a better showing than people expected. But, he did that last time. A 6 point margin can be made up in the remaining precincts. Prop 1 is an…
Corporate Greed vs. Bedsheets
We’ve been and will be advocating really hard through today for what is a very Alaska specific issue, albeit one which illustrates the larger, nationwide problem of unrestrained corporate power exerting itself at the expense of school children, retirees, a decent infrastructure, and the basic services on which people in a civilized society depend. We‘ve been heavily outspent, with Exxon, BP, Conoco and their lobbyists dropping $15mil on a very small population. The two deciding votes in our legislature for the corporate welfare bill known as SB21 are both on the payroll of—as in employed by—Conoco Phillips. Our governor is an…
Awkward Kid Explains Oil Taxes
Totally confused by Prop 1 on Tuesday’s ballot, or just want to see an awkward kid totally own the oil companies. Either way, here’s a coffee break treat! We love this kid. And this video (especially the sign part). The oil companies have spent millions of dollars to confuse you, and make you think it’s all just sooooo complicated. It’s actually not that hard to figure this whole thing out. This kid sure did. The numbers are close, Alaskans. And to keep from sending our treasury to big fancy glass offices in Houston, and London, we need to do one…
Mudflats Chats: Sen Candidate Mark Fish (L)
Mark Fish is one of three Libertarian candidates running for the U.S Senate seat currently held by Democrat Mark Begich. We sat down and talked about libertarianism, the Republican field, the Republican field, abortion, mining, and corporate personhood among other things. Grab a cup of coffee, and sit in! Libertarian Philosophy JEANNE DEVON: I guess I’ll start off with a philosophical question because sometimes I think it’s difficult, especially in today’s world where everything and everyone is so interconnected, to make a case for libertarianism. MARK FISH: It is difficult. DEVON: Because we’re interconnected people, and the actions of an individual…
Oil Companies Deceive and Divide Us
I listened to a public radio story this week about Anchorage neighbors and their sign war. They are friends who trade snow plowing for boat storage space, but can’t talk about the most important vote for Alaskans in my lifetime. Instead they keep making their signs taller and bigger. Another woman had her “Yes on One” sign burned in her yard and a “No” one put beside it. I have friends who are on their fifth “Yes” sign because they keep disappearing. That’s what millions of dollars have bought, and brought to our state. Sign wars – millions of dollars…
BREAKING: Guy Smarter Than Big Oil
The oil tax bill SB21 (paid for by BP, ConocoPhillips, and Exxon) is designed for “Alaska’s future” (according to BP, ConocoPhillips, and Exxon). Here’s what Alaska’s future has to say about it. This guy gets it. And he is awesome.
