Let me first say that I was never a fan of Saddam Hussein. I thought what he did to his own people was unconscionable and he deserved to be punished for gassing the Kurds.

Let me also say that the timing of his hanging--during the morning call to prayer for Iraq's Muslims--has to have some significance that may turn out to be a serious cultural misstep on our part.

With that, the news of his hanging does not bring me any satisfaction whatsoever. Captial punishment has never been a successful deterrent against further crime, and given the volatile nature of the insurgency in Iraq, it is a safe bet that the violence may well escalate. (One of the few times I have agreed with President Bush, incidentally).

Let me also say that I have never been more ashamed of President Bush than I am at this point--and keep in mind he's done a lot of shameful things over the last six years. He displayed a complete lack of conscience by actually sleeping while the execution was going on. SLEEPING?????!

When asked why Bush slept through what he described as a "milestone," White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said Bush "knew it was going to happen." He was not awakened to be told it was happening or would have happened. How callous can one get? Enemy or not, a HUMAN BEING was put to death today. Doesn't that count for something?

I can honestly say that I am not holding my head up and waving the American flag today.

As we remember the life and accomplishments of President Gerald R. Ford, stories which were previously embargoed are now coming forward. This excerpt of an interview which President Ford granted in 1984 gives a "behind the scenes" look at a famous phrase used in his inaguration speech.
(Video courtesy of You Tube)

Tribute to James Brown and President Gerald R. Ford

A Virtual version of Unity's New Year's Eve "Burning Bowl" ceremony

Music today:

"Let it Go (pre-release version)" by Podsafe Music Network and PodsafeAudio.com artist Lori Malvey

"Gut Bucket" by Podsafe Music Network artist James Brown

"Wave Goodbye" by Podsafe Music Network group Steadman

"Sleep With the Angels" by Podsafe Music Network group Ivy League (f.k.a. De La Vega)

"End and Begin" by Podsafe Music Network group Backward Password Institute (if anybody is aware of a website or email for these guys, please let me know)

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and PodsafeAudio.com group EL84
 (buy their CDs at CD Baby)
Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my NEW voicemail at 206-984-3740.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace.

Thanks for listening, Stay Powerful, and Happy New You!

File this under "I just had to do it..."

Click here for your Christmas card

Happy Holidays!

David Byrd
Your host

Happy Holidays!

A different interpretation of the Nativity Story.

Also, a sackful of podsafe music.

Music today:

"O Holy Night" by Podsafe Music Network artist Allison Crowe

"One Day 2006" by Podsafe Music Network artist Gary

"Oh Little Town of Bethlehem" by Podsafe Music Network artist Ray Greene featuring Dow Brain

A series of instrumentals by Podsafe Music Network artist Doug Boldt (artist website unavailable):
-"O Come O Come Emmanuel with What Child is This"
-"Angels from the Realms of Glory"
-"Silent Night with It Came Upon the Midnight Clear"
-"Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming with Lully Lullay"
-"In the Bleak Midwinter"

"Just a Thought" by Podsafe Music Network artist David Ippolito (available for purchase at his website)

"If Every Day Were Christmas" by Podsafe Music Network group Podsafe for Peace

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my NEW voicemail at 206-984-3740.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace

Thanks for listening, Stay Powerful, and Happy Holidays!

Note: This is not the Christmas episode.

This is my Holiday gift to you: a collection of my favorite podsafe songs.

Since it is a gift, telling you what's inside would spoil the surprise, so you gotta listen!

Happy Holidays!

Wonder how long it will take President Bush to say this survey was conducted with discredited methods? (From PlanetOut.com)

---

Poll: U.S. troops fine with gay soldiers
      
      Wednesday, December 20, 2006 / 10:49 AM

SUMMARY: Seventy-three percent of U.S. service members aren't bothered by lesbians and gay men in their ranks, says a new Zogby International poll.

A recent poll from Zogby International and the Michael D Palm Center shows that US military personnel are increasingly at ease serving with openly gay colleagues.

The poll reveals that 73 percent of military members aren't bothered by lesbians and gays. Nearly one in four (23 percent) service members report knowing for sure that someone in their unit is lesbian or gay, including 21 percent of those in combat units.

"Today's poll is one more nail in the coffin of 'don't ask, don't tell,'" said C. Dixon Osburn, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network.

"Those who defend the law have argued that openly gay personnel harm military readiness. This research highlights the absurdity of such a hypothesis. Not only are there more than 65,000 lesbians and gays serving in the armed forces, but many are serving openly.

"Their straight colleagues are just fine with that. At a time when our fighting forces are stretched thin and leaders are calling for the recruitment of more troops, it is time for Congress to do away with this archaic law."

The survey of 545 troops who served in Iraq and Afghanistan also discovered that, even among those who did not know for certain if a gay colleague was in their unit, nearly half (45 percent) suspected as much.

Among those who did know a gay colleague, few said their presence undermined morale. In 1993, only 13 percent of enlisted personnel supported open service.

The Zogby poll is the latest in a series of polls and public statements indicating readiness for a chance in policy. A 2004 Annenberg poll found that a majority of junior enlisted personnel favor allowing gay men and lesbians to serve openly, up from 13 percent in other polls from 1993.

Among the general public, Gallup has found 79 percent support for repealing the gay ban. A recent Boston Globe poll found that a majority of conservatives and regular churchgoers favor repeal, too.

Senior military leaders are increasingly speaking up in favor of reviewing the ban on open service as well. Lt. Gen. Claudia Kennedy, the first woman to achieve three-star rank in the Army, recently called "don't ask, don't tell" a "hollow policy that serves no useful purpose."

Lt. Gen. Daniel W. Christman, former superintendent of West Point, told The New York Times that "It is clear that national attitudes toward this issue have evolved considerably in the last decade. This has been led by a new generation of service members who take a more relaxed and tolerant view toward homosexuality."

"There has been a seismic shift among the military and the public in favor of welcoming gay patriots in our armed forces," said Osburn. "Congress should follow the example of those who serve on the frontlines every day and repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' once and for all."

U.S. Rep. Marty Meehan (D-Mass.) will reintroduce The Military Readiness Enhancement Act, which would repeal "don't ask, don't tell" and allow gays to serve openly, when Congress reconvenes in 2007. During the 109th Congress, a bipartisan coalition of 123 lawmakers supported the bill. (Stewart Who?, Gay.com U.K.)

Ok, so Microsoft has released Internet Explorer 7, which it claims is its most advanced and powerful version of IE to date. No doubt, with the unexpected delay in releasing Vista, Microsoft is desperate to throw Windows users a few bones until the big launch, so they have released new versions of Media Player and Explorer.

My computer is set up to download updates to the Windows software automatically as they become available, and I recently upgraded to Media Player 11 and Internet Explorer 7. I have good news and bad news about my experience.

First, the good news. Media Player 7 does seem to be an improvement over the previous versions. The standard skin is a nice, sleek black color, which more than slightly resembles the styling on the Zune player. The album library now features cover art for the songs, provided the cover art is available. It's not iTunes, but it is getting better.

Some more good news comes from Internet Explorer 7. Microsoft has taken a cue from Firefox and Netscape and streamlined the appearance of IE 7, and the browser more than slightly resembles Firefox at first glance. New to this version is an anti-phishing detector which scans all websites and warns the user if the possibility of phishing exists. Other welcome features include the addition of tabbed browsing, which seemed to be limited to people using Windows Professional in earlier versions (correct me if I am wrong, please), and continued support for a person's preferred search engine.

Now, the bad news. IE7 is unbelievably slow. The anti-phishing routine does not run quickly enough, and a page takes forever to load, even on 100MB DSL.

Furthermore, after installing IE7 and restarting (why, oh why do we have to restart any time we install a Microsoft product?) Windows, I took the tour that Microsoft furnished when IE7 automatically launched after the restart. After seeing just how well Microsoft had tried to copy Firefox and include stuff everybody has had for at least a year already, I closed the browser. I immediately got the "Internet Explorer has encountered an error and must close..." error box. Needless to say, I sent that little error report to Microsoft This crash is not a fluke, as I have had it happen several times since when I close the browser, and Microsoft tries to blame it on a Yahoo! toolbar that needs to be updated. Yes, I did update it, and nothing has changed. Maybe they needed to spend a little more time on beta testing and a little less time on the tour program?!

So far, I am sticking with Firefox, and I am really not enthusiastic about the upcoming Vista launch. Maybe I do need to get a Mac...

College update:

I got straight "A"s, so I will be graduating Summa Cum Laude, and I am so thrilled!

Other topics:

Review of the Jim Brickman concert at Saginaw's Temple Theatre, which featured Anne Cochran, Jake Simpson, and David Klinkenberg.

Do closeted celebrities really owe it to the community to come out? My rebuttal to a recent Feast of Fools episode (Link and mp3 file courtesy of www.feastoffools.net)

Gay marriage opponents in Massachusetts sue the legislature for not voting on a proposed anti-gay marriage amendment.

Music today:

"Famous" by Podsafe Music Network group The Lascivious Biddies (Check out their podcast, too!)

"Keep Your Secret" by Podsafe Music Network artist Trapped in Paradise (Susan Govali)

"Dumbing of America" by Podsafe Music Network group Tadago Pie

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84. Buy their CDs at CD Baby

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my NEW voicemail at 206-984-3740.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

I'm done with college, and it's time to celebrate! Listen in as I talk about other things to celebrate as well.

Music today:

"Really, Really Happy" by Podsafe Music Network group The Muffs

"Happy Mother's Day" by Podsafe Music Network group The Alice Project

"Inspiration of Love" by Podsafe Audio.com artist Joe Sibol

"Thankful" by indie artist Heidi Bethune.

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

It's World AIDS Day. When will this epidemic end? When we want it to!

Music today:

"Change the World" by Podsafe Music Network  group Sunspot

"We're In This Together" by Podsafe Music Network artist Love = Action

"What We've Been Waiting For" by Podsafe Music Network  artist Rik Leaf

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84. (Buy their CD at CD Baby).

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

To my listeners:

My friend Heidi Bethune, a local independent musician, our church's music minister, and a frequent musical contrbutor to the show has been in the hospital for the last few days. The doctors think it is something to do with her pancreas, but I am told she is experiencing a high fever and swelling, which is complicating medical tests.

I am asking everybody out there to hold Heidi in the Light of Spirit, knowing that her right and perfect condition is total health and balance in her body. Heidi is a Child of God, as we all are, and she is heiress to all the Good that God is. Support her as she claims her perfect healing.

Thank you, and I am sure Heidi thanks you as well.

David Byrd
Host of That Blue Jeans Guy

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my listeners! What am I thankful for? Listen and find out!

Music today:

"HaPPy ThAnKsGiVinG" by GarageBand.com artist ZENNIA (no website)

"Thankful" by independent singer/songwriter Heidi Bethune

"Thanks to You" by Podsafe Music Network artist (and American Idol Finalist) Ayla Brown

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network  artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com
group EL84. Buy their CD at CD Baby.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace:
www.myspace.com/thatbluejeansguy/.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

A big thanks goes out to Mike Hipp for a great upgrade to my cover art!

Mike is the author of the Podcastsoup.net site, where this podcast will soon be listed, and he also runs Soycandlesbyphebes.com!

I've visited his site, and I gotta have me some of those candles!

In this episode, I reflect on my career at Baker, what got me here, and where I go from here.

Music today:

"Difference Inbetween" by Podsafe Music Network artist Willie Shutter (no website)

"End and Begin" by Podsafe Music Network group Backward Password Institute (no website)

"Somewhere There Lies the Moon" by Podsafe Music Network artist Heather Sullivan.

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84 check out their CD at CDBaby.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace!

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

I'm so happy that Democrats are in charge of Congress, Michigan's Democratic governor has been given a second term, Michigan's House of Representatives has been given a Democratic majority and the Republican majority in the Michigan Senate is smaller.

Many thanks to everybody who voted for change!

I offer some advice to the incoming Congress on what to do to avoid re-creating the disaster after the 1994 Republican takeover and my wishlist for the imporant issues that need to be addressed.

Music today:

"Really, Really Happy" by Podsafe Music Network group The Muffs

"In Again" by Podsafe Music Network artist Mike Previti,

"Spirit of Lennon-Peace" by Podsafe Music Network artist Brad Stanfield (of the Freedom People).

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84 (Get their CD at CD Baby

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

This episode could also be entitled "A Tale of Two Ministers", since two ministers actions have been the subject of news stories of late.

The first involves a collection of 300 letters sent to a late pastor of a Baptist church in Jersey City, NJ. Click here for a slideshow of story-related pictures.

The second involves a minister in Colorado who has supported a "marriage = one man + one woman" amendment to the Colorado consitution, and a secret he has been hiding until recently. Click here for a slideshow of story-related pictures (Note: some of them are duplicates, and I can't figure out why).

Music today:

"Secrets" by Podsafe Music Network artist Jenny Dalton

"Secrets" by Podsafe Music Network artist Allison Crowe

"The Secret Life of Boys" by Podsafe Music Network group Delphinium Blue

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com  group EL84 (Buy their CD at CD Baby).

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage at , where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

The election is just days away, and the Republican party stands a good chance of losing at least one house--barring any funny business from the flawed electronic voting machines that many states have installed with federal money, that is...

But if President Bush is feeling confident, you would not know it from his belligerent stand against the New Jersey Supreme Court decision calling for the legal recognition of same-sex unions.

Given the fact that New Jersey (and all states) are sovereign states fully empowered to create, enact, and enforce their own laws, what business is it of the federal government's if a sovereign state decides to expand the rights of its citizens?

Oh, I forgot, democracy only matters when it reflects what Bush wants. Silly me!

Get out and vote on November 7, please!

Let's give Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid a "put up or shut up" notice by giving the House of Representatives and the Senate a Democratic majority!

Music today:

"To Be an Angel" by Podsafe Music Network group Uncle Seth

"He's Just Mean" by Podsafe Music Network artist David Ippolito (Check out his MySpace Page)

"Dubya" by Podsafe Audio.com group Swim Team.

Promos played:

"Second Life Simulcast of Uncle Seth concert"

"7th Son, Book 2: Deceit"-A podcast novel by J. C. Hutchins

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84 ( Buy their CD at CD Baby).

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace:

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

It seems the more technologically advanced the voting process gets, the easier it is to corrupt the process. Or, as Mr. Scott said it in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, "The more they overthink the plumbin', the easier 'tis to stop up the drain." If any of my listners or readers live in the Chicago area, it might be a good time to check your voter registration so you don't get a big, nasty surprise on election day. Here is the chilling article from CNN.com:

Watchdog: Glitch exposes 1.3M voters' info to hackers

CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- The city is investigating a security glitch in its elections Web site that hackers could have used to swipe Social Security numbers and the personal information of about 1.3 million voters, officials said.

It wasn't immediately clear if anyone actually stole or misused any of the information, Chicago Board of Elections spokesman Tom Leach said.

He said the problem had been fixed and a forensic computer expert would be brought in to examine the site's logs for any signs of illegal access.

"Obviously, we are very concerned," Leach said Monday. "We have no reason to believe there was (theft), but we want to be able to assure people there wasn't."

A watchdog group, the Illinois Ballot Integrity Project, exposed the vulnerability and alerted officials last week, Leach said.

"This was a very serious vulnerability," project member Peter Zelchenko said.

A malevolent hacker could have tampered with voter registration data, such as inactivating certain voters' registration or changing their polling places in the online database. They also could have accessed Social Security numbers, names, birth dates and addresses, the group said.

The Web site is designed to enable Chicago residents to register to vote online. It also explains how and where to cast ballots. About 1.3 million former and current registered voters have personal information on the site, which includes about 780,000 Social Security numbers, Leach said.

Leach said the site cannot be used to access the city's electronic vote-counting systems.

"Everyone can be assured their votes will be counted and counted accurately," he said.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Find this article at:

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/10/24/chicago.elections.ap/index.html?eref=rss_latest

A big "welcome to the other side of the closet door" goes out to TR Knight, one of the hot stars of ABC's hit medical drama series Grey's Anatomy. TR came out this past week, making the statement that he hoped the fact that he was gay was not "the most interesting thing" about him. No, but it does make him even hotter in my eyes...but I digress.

In this episode, I talk about David Kuo's book Tempting Faith, the firestorm of controversy surrounding it and his blog J-Walking, and I make a modest proposal to all disillusioned right-wing Christians and left-wing gays about their future in politics.

Music today:

"Closer-Radio Edit" by Podsafe Music Network group Lacuna Coil

"The Shim Sham Song" by Podsafe Audio.com group The Shim Shams

"Put a Little Love" by Podsafe Music Network artist Beatrice Ericsson.

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84 (buy their CD on CD Baby).

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage , where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Check out my page on MySpace.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Thanks to the hard work dedication, and "never say die" attitude of the content creators in the Blogosphere and the Podosphere, the nation is more aware than ever before about Net Neutrality and the telecommunication company near-monopoly that is threatening to make it as much a part of the past as the rotary dial telephone. Read on for the latest update on SavetheInternet.com's efforts:

---

Dear SavetheInternet.com Coalition member,

In the six months since the SavetheInternet.com Coalition was launched, millions of Americans have joined the campaign, spoken out for Internet freedom and put Congress and the phone companies on notice.

This grassroots movement barely existed at the beginning of 2006. Now we're on the verge of toppling one of the most powerful lobbies in Washington.

The reason for our success? Organized and overwhelming public support for a free and open Internet.

Here's where things stand today:

Staying Organized and Energized

Phone and cable companies have spent more than $100 million on lobbyists, Astroturf groups, political campaigns and PR firms. But they are finding that money can't overcome organized public opposition.

Internet users have mounted a defense of Net Neutrality using blogs, YouTube videos, MySpace sites and emails to send Congress an overwhelming message of public support for a free and open Internet — and opposition to any legislation that cedes control of the Internet to the phone and cable companies.

SavetheInternet.com's grassroots success has been covered in the pages of nearly every major U.S. newspaper and on innumerable blogs. According to a recent article at Salon.com, our "ragtag army" has put Congress and phone lobbyists on the run.

Tonight, Oct 18, PBS stations will air "The Net at Risk," a 90-minute documentary produced by Bill Moyers, which hails our grassroots efforts to support Net Neutrality. Please check your local listings and tune in. After the show, participate in a live Web debate featuring Free Press Policy Director Ben Scott and phone company flack Mike McCurry.

• For more information to participate in the PBS debate visit: http://www.pbs.org/moyers
• Read the Salon story: http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2006/10/02/slayers/
• Stay up to date on the latest developments at the SavetheInternet.com blog: http://www.savetheinternet.com/blog

Stopping the Lame Duck Congress

While we have stymied the Internet gatekeepers' efforts thus far, we're not out of the woods yet.

The Senate version of the telecommunications bill -- sponsored by Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska -- will not come to the floor for a vote before the Nov. 7 midterm election. But we must guard against any attempt by Congress to sneak through this legislation during the post-election "lame-duck" session.

SavetheInternet.com Coalition members need to keep the heat on elected officials in November and December -- before the 209th Congress gavels to a close. We need to pay particular attention to any senator who might side with the phone companies and attempt to pass Stevens' bill under the dark of night.

• Check out our Senate map to learn where your senators stand on the issue: http://www.savetheinternet.com/=senatemap

Keeping the Public Engaged

If Congress can't pass a communications bill in 2006, it will have to start over in January. It's possible that we will have a House and Senate that are more sympathetic to Net Neutrality. But don't expect the phone companies to simply roll over in 2007.

You can help by keeping your members and readers engaged in this fight. Here's what they can do:

• Write letters to their hometown newspapers: http://www.savetheinternet.com/letters
• Call their senators to support the issue: http://www.savetheinternet.com/=senatemap
• Spread the word to others. Tell your friends to stand up for Internet freedom: http://action.freepress.net/campaign/savethenet/forward

On the Verge of a Grassroots Victory

If we hold out against the phone companies until 2007, we'll have scored a victory "of historic proportions," according to Geov Parrish of WorkingforChange.com.

"Name the last time a lobby with that much power and money was stymied in its top legislative priority by a citizen movement," Parrish wrote "Offhand, I can't think of any examples at all. And this during the most corrupt, lobbyist-pliant Congress in recent American history."

Our success thus far reflects the Internet's new power to mobilize millions of people as a democratizing force. We've sent a potent message to Washington and need to go on the offensive in 2007 to ensure that Net Neutrality becomes law.

That's why your active involvement is so important. The more an organized public is engaged in the policy-making process, the more likely the Internet that Congress shapes will serve the people, not just powerful corporations.

If we keep up this fight, the era of corrupt media policy will soon come to an end.

Onward,

Timothy Karr
Campaign Director
Free Press
SavetheInternet.com
tkarr@freepress.net

P.S. To support our coalition work, please give to the Save the Internet Ad Fund

To all members and/or supporters of the organization known as "Perverted Justice":

Thank you in advance for NOT contacting me by email to tell me that Liberated Syndication, a.k.a, LibSyn is "supporting pedophilia", and that by continuing to pay my subscription fee, I am also by extension supporting pedophilia. I do not support pedophilia, and to suggest otherwise is bringing you within spitting distance of a libel charge.

LibSyn has informed all of its subscribers that it is conducting an investigation of the accused podcast and if futher action is warranted, then it will be taken.

All podcast producers who use LibSyn for podcast hosting have signed a contract with LibSyn. Like all contracts, this one has terms and conditions to which both parties must be bound. While we podcast producers are reasonably free to "take up stakes" and move our shows whenever we please, LibSyn is not as free to kick a show off of the site. I am no lawyer, but I have enough contract law knowledge to know that for LibSyn to break a contract and kick off a subscriber, then the management must determine with at least a preponderance of evidence that the subscriber was already in breach of contract by violating the terms of service--the terms of the contract. Until such time that LibSyn's management can furnish this proof, they are not able to take such drastic action.

You should also be aware of another matter of law regarding contracts. To advocate breaking a contract in order to create financial harm to one or more parties in the contract is a legal tort known as "Wrongful Interference With a Contractual Relationship." Torts are usually remedied with financial awards, and they can get expensive. A famous example of a very large tort case is the woman who won the millions of dollars from McDonald's over a cup of hot coffee. Hopefully, you get the idea...

You should also be aware that Perverted Justice has been asked not to contact or ask others to contact LibSyn subscribers, so I am echoing this sentiment here.

Consider this fair warning that your email addresses and the contents of your messages are being archived in case they are needed for any reason.

I do not wish to get ugly, but it has gotten out of control.

Please know that I am not authorized to speak on behalf of LibSyn, and nothing that I post on my blog or in my podcast episodes is ever to be construed as the official opinion and/or policy of LibSyn.

Please also know that while I have talked of legal matters, I am not an attorney, nor am I qualified to give legal advice.

Please also know that I have complete faith that the management and/or ownership of LibSyn is completely competent and responsible and completely capable of making the right decision in this manner.

Please also know that I trust that you will make the right decision in this manner.

Thank you,

David Byrd
Your Host

A recent New York Times article pointed out something that I already knew, but it cast it in a light that gave me pause for thought.

Clergy members who do not live in church-owned parsonages can declare all housing-related expenses as tax-exempt income.

The argument is that the charitable work that clergypeople do entitles them to the deduction, yet the person who directs the local Red Cross chapter or the local domestic violence shelter does not get the same thing.

Is it right for clergy to enjoy the services of government and not pay for them?

I'd love to get some opinions on this one...

Music today:

"Preacherman" by Podsafe Music Network group O---Yeah! (could not find a website for them)

"New Day (I Feel Alone)" by Podsafe Music Network group Amphibians (Check them out on Garageband and MySpace)

"If You've Got the Money (I've Got the Time)" by Podsafe Music Network artist Merle Haggard (yeah, THAT Merle Haggard)

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Mark Foley...where to begin?

The Prayer Circle will not be in this episode this week.

I am considering spinning off the Prayer Circle into a separate episode.

More on this later.

Music today:

"Tired of Being Lied To" by Podsafe Music Network artist David Ippolito

"Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Pages" by Podsafe Music Network artist David Ippolito (This one is available for free download on his MySpace Page)

"My America" by Podsafe Audio.com group Mark Scott LaMountain and the Blue Thunder Band.

Intro Music:

"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:

"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84.

Contact info: You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

I am back in full force this week! I have started back to school for my last quarter before graduating, and the workload promises to be fun!

I will be getting another car soon, and I am looking forward to that.

I also am going to surprise my partner (he never listens to the show, nor does he look at the website) with tickets to Jim Brickman's concert in Saginaw at the Temple Theatre.
I have been wating for him to come this close for several years now, and I am not going to miss the opportunity!

In this episode, I give my viewpoint on the recent controversy surrounding my podcast host site, Liberated Syndication (LibSyn), a podcast that is currently hosted on LibSyn, and a strange overload that has hit the LibSyn system.

Disclaimer: the opinions expressed in this podcast are my own, and not those of the management and/or ownership of Liberated Syndication.

The other issue concerns a massive drop in my listenership lately, which concerns me greatly.

I am giving serious thought as to whether or not to continue with this show, and I need some feedback about what I can do to stop the bleeding.

The Prayer Circle is back!
As always, prayer requests are welcome in the Prayer Circle.
If you wish to submit prayer requests to the Prayer Circle, you may do so by any of the contact methods I have provided.

Music today:

"Listen Up" by Podsafe Audio.com group roGer

"Living Inside Your Eyes" by Podsafe Music Network artist David Spak

"Be Here Now" by Podsafe Music Network group Freedom People.

Intro Music:
"Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music:
"Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84.

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com group The Season of Us

Contact info: You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

My partner is such a generous man that he even shares his colds with me!
I did not want to skip another week, so I give you a heapin' helpin' of some of my favorite podsafe music.

There will be no Prayer Circle, as I am having difficulty speaking for more than a few minutes at a time.

I will be back next week, so until then, enjoy the music!

As always, prayer requests are welcome in the Prayer Cirle.
If you wish to submit prayer requests to the Prayer Circle, you may do so by any of the contact methods I have provided.

Music today:

"A Different Cowboy's Lament" by Podsafe Music Network artist David Ippolito

"How Things Have Changed" by Podsafe Music Network artist Ella Blame

"Northern Stars" by PodsafeAudio.com group The Rays

"True" by Podsafe Music Network and PodsafeAudio.com group True Margrit

"Deep Cycle Discharge" (the whole song!) by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

"I Wonder" by Podsafe Music Network artist Natalie Brown

"Take a Stand" by Podsafe Music Network group Roadside Zoo

"Do You Know How Beautiful You Are" by Podsafe Music Network artist Joshua Kadison

"Summer of Life (2006 pre-release)" by Podsafe Music Network group Peopod

"Let It Go-CD Mix" by Podsafe Music Network and PodsafeAudio.com artist Lori Malvey

"I Know You're There" by Podsafe Music Network artist Matthew Ebel.

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

For this episode, we join millions of people worldwide in the 13th Annual Unity World Day of Prayer , a 24-hour prayer vigil, affirming "United heart to heart in prayer...we awaken to the power of God within."

I invite you to help us surround the world in the light that God is. Together, we can make a difference on this planet.

As always, prayer requests are welcome in the Prayer Cirle. If you wish to submit prayer requests to the Prayer Circle, you may do so by any of the contact methods I have provided.

Music today:
"God Is in the House" by Podsafe Music Network artist Mark Laforme (check out his MySpace page, also)

We Are Together-Short Version by Podsafe Music Network group Quebb
 
"Common Ground" by Podsafe Music Network artist David Ippolito.

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com group The Season of Us

Music today:

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage , where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Apparently, Brad Pitt has decided to forgo marriage to Angelina Jolie, because they both want to see same-sex marriage legally recognized. While I appreciate any straight couple who supports same-sex marriage between consenting adults, this is not a couple I feel comfortable having in my corner.

Call me an ingrate, but Brad and Angelina are not exactly the type who will be able to make a convincing case to the "Family Values" crowd. Angelina has been married more than once, and Brad did not wait until he had finalized his divorce from Jennifer Aniston until he began dating Angelina. Two people with their record will be immediately dismissed by Dobson, Falwell, and company quicker than you can say "Send me all your money so I can fight the evil of poverty--my own." We can do bettter than these two advocating same-sex marriage.

For me, the most convincing opposite-sex couple was one I saw during a Pride parade in Nashville. They wore sandwich boards which said "Happily Married for 20 Years" on the front, and "And Gays Should Have the Same Right!". Admittedly, being married for twenty years is no guarantee the marriage will not fall apart tomorrow, but it is safe to say this couple could have at least some credibility with the Religious Right.

Brangelina, thanks, but no thanks for your support!

Here's the article:

Brad Pitt: I'll Marry When Everyone Can

My condolences go out to the family, friends, and fans of Steve"Crocodile Hunter" Irwin.

He was a beautiful soul who worked tirelessly to inform people about exotic and wild life, and was doing so when he received a fatal sting from a stingray.

He will be missed.

Five years after 9/11, many people still do not feel safer than they did on 9/10/01.

I believe that if we are ever to win the "war on terrorism" it will be when we set down our weapons and guarantee at least a minimum standard of living for all, the opportunity to earn as much as possible, and the responsibility to know that one's quest for improvement must not deprive another of the minimum standard of living.

If this can be achieved, then we will see peace break out on this planet.

In the Prayer Circle, we lay the spiritual foundation for raising the global
consciousness and establishing a world of peace.

Next week, September 14, 2006, Silent Unity will be holding its annual Unity World Day of Prayer.

For 24 hours, people around the world will be holding the world in the loving light of prayer.

I invite you to join us in a special episode of this podcast on September 14, 2006 and hold the world in prayer.

You may also submit the names of those you wish to hold in prayer, and the initials will be read during the Prayer Circle.

If you wish to submit prayer requests to the Prayer Circle, you may do so by any of the contact methods I have provided.

Music today:

"Change the World" by Podsafe Music Network group Sunspot

"Believe in Something" by Podsafe Music Network artist Captain WAM

"Just Another Day-Mixdown" by Podsafe Music Network artist Tonio

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com group The Season of Us

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

I am just three months from graduating from college and putting an end to an eighteen-year chapter of my life.

It feels good to be at this point, and I recognize that many people are to thank for this.

The source of all of this encouragement comes from the Christ within--that creative and guiding impulse we all have.

This guidance to be more than we thought we could be is the thing which whispers in our ear, "Go ahead; I dare you!"

If we are open to the loving intent of this voice and learn to separate it from ego, we are limitless in our potential.

In the Prayer Circle, we construct a picture of our wildest dreams, knowing that the picture is perfect.

We also examine and support the pictures of all other Prayer Circle members.

Join us and picture your life as more than you ever thought possible!

On September 14, 2006, Silent Unity will be holding its annual Unity World Day of Prayer.

For 24 hours, people around the world will be holding the world in the loving light of prayer.
 
I invite you to join us in a special episode of this podcast on September 14 and hold the world in prayer.

You may also submit the names of those you wish to hold in prayer, and the initials will be read during the Prayer Cirle.

If you wish to submit prayer requests to the Prayer Circle, you may do so by any of the contact methods I have provided.

Music today:

"Captain of My Soul" by Podsafe Music Network group Last Under the Sun.

"Risk It All" by Podsafe Music Network group Bree Noble

"I Want to Get to Heaven, But I Don't Want to Die" by Podsafe Music Network group Susan Govali (listed as "Trapped in Paradise on Podsafe Music Network).

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com group The Season of Us.

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller.

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Is it really a "smear campaign when it is true?

Read this article from Yahoo! News and decide:

R.I. candidate regrets anti-gay columns

I was having some challenges coming up with a topic for this week's episode, and thanks to Tom Holmes of the Deep Fabulousity Podcast, I took a look at the news events for inspiration.

I had mentioned one story last week about Virginia Senator George Allen using a potentially derogatory nickname toward a campaign worker for his opponent, Jim Webb.

The campaign worker was of Indian (not Native American) descent, but had been born and raised in Fairfax County, Virginia.

After several sloppy attempts to backtrack on what he meant in his videotaped speech, and podcasters, bloggers, the independent media, and (at long last) the mainstream media holding him accountable, George Allen apologized for his conduct.

Thanks to the resources that are available on the internet, we can ensure that things like this are not swept under the rug, which is why Internet Neutrality has to be preserved!

Visit SaveTheInternet.com and learn how you can help save the internet from a takeover by the telecommunications companies.

For this week's topic, I was also inspired by a song that just got posted on the Podsafe Music Network by the group Quinn called "Letting Your Light Shine".

I discuss several Bible references, including the verse about letting your life shine (Matt 5:14-16, NRSV), and what it means to let your life shine.

Basically, it means acknowledging that you have a power within you that is your full potential for good, clearing away blocks that do not allow this power to come forward, and then acting from that power in every moment of every day in your life.

In the Prayer Circle, we let our lights shine, mingle, and radiate to the entire Universe. Join us and glow!

The Prayer Circle is open to all people everywhere. If you wish to submit prayer requests to the Prayer Circle, you may do so by any of the contact methods I have provided.

In the interest of confidentiality, I will only give initials and location of the person during the Prayer Circle.

Music today:
"Letting Your Light Shine" by Podsafe Music Network group Quinn
"Shine" by Podsafe Music Network group Peter Moon Band
"Be Here Now" by Podsafe Music Network group Freedom People

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com group The Season of Us.

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller.

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com group EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

First of all, a big "Congratulations!!!!" goes out to Fausto Fernos, Marc Felion, Miss Ronnie, Amanda Steinstein, Cesar Torres, Sal-E, and everybody else responsible for the Feast of Fools podcast. The Podcast Awards added a GLBT category this year, and the Feast of Fools not only was nominated, but they won! Feast of Fools was one of the first podcasts to which I subscribed after podcasts were added to iTunes, and I have been a fan ever since. I am totally addicted to the show, and I can not do without my daily dose of the "Fools". If you have not given the podcast a listen yet, then please treat yourself. I will warn you that it is not work-safe and people have been known to burst out in fits of laughter while listening at the gym, but it will put a smile on your face, a spring in your step and...well, I'd better leave it at that, since this is a "G-rated" podcast. ;-) Congratulations again, guys and gals!

Prejudice is the act of holding preconceived ideas about somebody or something else, or an entire group.

Having lived in a small, rural town in East Tennessee, I have experienced prejudiced attitudes, and as an openly gay man, I have experienced them first hand.

A Virginia Senator running for reelection referred to an Indian employee of his opponent as "Macaca". In one definition of the word, "Macaca" refers to a genus of monkeys. Was this the Senator's intent? Watch the video and make up your own mind.

Another event happened recently in Caro, MI, in which a group of Arab-American college students were buying a large number of Trac Phones to resell at a higher price. A Wal-Mart employee called the police on suspicion of terrorism and a plot to blow up the Mackinac Bridge was being linked to these guys. The terrorism charge is being dropped by the federal prosecutor, but they are still being held on money laundering charges connected with the Trac Phone transactions. Was prejudice at work here? Read the story and make up your own mind.

I believe that prejudicial ideas are the greatest danger to humanity. Prejudice is the driving force behind war, terrorism, unchecked poverty, and profit at the expense of others.

If we are ever to be truly free and peaceful on this planet, we must deal with the inner demons of prejudice.

The Prayer Circle is open to all people, and in this week's Circle, we opened ourselves to a higher expression of love for each other and for the world.

If you wish to submit prayer requests to the Prayer Circle, you may do so by any of the contact methods I have provided.

In the interest of confidentiality, I will only give initials and location of the person during the Prayer Circle.

Music today:
"I'm So Busy" by Podsafe Music Network group The Alice Project

"Common Ground" by Podsafe Music Network artist David Ippolito

"Love Song" by Podsafe Music Network artist Kelly Goodlad

"Love Revolution by Podsafe Music Network artist The Allmighty Whispers

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by <a Podsafe Audio.com group The Season of Us

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84.

Contact info: You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

To all my valued listeners:

You probably have noticed that I am VERY late getting an episode together for this week. I always work to provide the best possible episode I know how to do, and this week, I have been busy with school and the job, and I have little time to do a quality job. Therefore, I will not be posting an episode this week. I apologize for missing a week, and I will be back in full force next week. Thanks for your understanding and patience.

Stay powerful!
David

Continuing with the theme of creating peace within ourselves and in our world, an important component of achieving peace is to learn to forgive.

We only need to look at the situation in the Middle East between Israel and Lebanon to see the destructive effect that unforgivenness has on a group of people.

As individuals, we may also hold others in unforgiveness, and we may find that we are just as captive as the person we refuse to forgive.

I read from Matthew 18:21-35 and discuss a metaphysical interpretation of what can happen when we refuse to forgive.

In this week's Prayer Circle, I share a meditation taught to me by Reiki Master Beth Simmons Stapor.
The meditation has served me well, and I am glad to passit on to you.

If you wish to submit prayer requests to the Prayer Circle, you may do so by any of the contact methods I have provided.
In the interest of confidentiality, I will only give initials and location of the person during the Prayer Circle.

Music today:

"Unforgiven" by Podsafe Music Network group John and Paul.

"Move On" by Podsafe Audio.com artist Loretta Angus (could not find a website for her)

"Forgive Me" by Podsafe Music Network artist Cofield Mundi (visit her website)

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com group The Season of Us.

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller.

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

You can also contact me by Gizmo Project at Gizmo ID thatbluejeansguy.

Visit my webpage at http://thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.
While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

First of all, let me give a big "congratulations" to Lance Bass of the boy band *NSYNC for his decision to come out publicly, and for getting a hunky boyfriend like Reichen Lehmkuhl. You go, Lance!

Also, a shoutout to Garrett Husveth and Brent Dolan of the Haunted New Jersey Podcast. I have had an interest in paranormal phenomena for quite some time, and their podcast is a great source of info. They have been doing recordings in the warehouse where their studio is located, and I heard some EVPs in one of the recordings. I sent the files to them, and they mentioned me in Episode 30. Thanks, guys! Check out Haunted New Jersey's website here.

Between, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Israel, Syria, Darfur, and everywhere in the world, people are concerned about the rise of violence
and the possibility of WWIII having already been started.

I say that we do not have to go there, and we can instead choose to create peace. We have within us all the creative power of
the Universe, and we have used it to get where we are now.

By just choosing differently, we can begin a new era of peace and prosperity, and it begins with us.

I believe that if we are to see peace outside of us, we must know peace within us.

Christ Jesus used the command "Peace, be still" to still the stormy Sea of Galilee, and I believe we can use the same command
to still the storm and violence in our own minds.

As we raise our minds and hearts to a state of peace, we can not help but raise the collective consciousness of the planet.

Today, I make the commitment to create peace within myself, and I invite you to do the same.

I invite you to join the Prayer Circle, a growing online community we are creating with this podcast.

The Prayer Circle is open to everybody everywhere.

Bring your greatest triumphs and your greatest challenges and place them in the circle.

You will never be alone, and we will support you.

Prayer requests can be emailed or voicemailed.

In the interest of confidentiality, I will only give initials and location of the person during the Prayer Circle.

Music today:

"Soulution (Peace Within)" by Podsafe Music Network group The Radical Thought Resistance.

"Common Ground" by Podsafe Music Network artist David Ippolito.

"Spirit of Lennon-Peace" by Podsafe Music Network artist Brad Stanfield (listed under his group Freedom People.

"We Are Together" by Podsafe Music Network group Quebb.

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com band The Season of Us.

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller.

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84 (buy cd at http://www.el84rocks.com)

Contact info: You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage at http://thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Sometimes it is easy for us to base happiness on the outcome of our own, or somebody else's life.

Additionally, it is easy for us to base happiness on things going on around us.

Being able to be happy in the face of anything that presents itself to us is true freedom and safety.

The challenge is to stay centered on the Truth within: we are powerful, creative, and capable of being more than our human mind allows us to think.

I know this challenge firsthand, as I have been dealing with some self doubt and self-destructive thoughts about my future.

I needed the lesson that I share with you in this episode.

As promised, the Prayer Circle continues.

The Prayer Circle is open to everybody everywhere.

Bring your greatest triumphs and your greatest challenges and place them in the circle.

You will never be alone, and we will support you.

Prayer requests can be emailed or voicemailed.

In the interest of confidentiality, I will only give initials and location of the person during the Prayer Circle.

Music today:

"Still Happy" by Podsafe Music Network artist Kelly Mueller

"Really, Really Happy" by Podsafe Music Network group The Muffs

"Rhythm of Our Feet" by Podsafe Audio.com group Somebody's Closet

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com band The Season of Us

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Podsafe Music Network artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by Podsafe Music Network and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Well, I have made it to twenty-five episodes, now! Seems like just yesterday I was beginning this thing. If you have been listening to my podcast since episode 1, then thank you, and please email me or voicemail me.

Continuing with the new direction for the podcast, I discuss the idea of creating a new reality.

You have within you the power to create a new reality that is everything you always wanted--and more.

I present my idea for how that can work, and I invite you to give it a go!

Also, the Prayer Circle continues.

The Prayer Circle is open to everybody everywhere, and I will make every effort to make it as ecumenical as possible.

Prayer requests can be emailed or voicemailed.

In the interest of confidentiality, I will only give initials and location of the person during the Prayer Circle if you send any names.

Credit for the Prayer Circle needs to go to Fausto Fernos, the co-host of the Feast of Fools Podcast.

Fausto did a creative visualization on a recent episode, and it inspired me to do the Prayer Circle.

Thanks, Fausto!

Music today:

"Create Your Own Fate" by Podsafe Music Network band Steadman
(the band's entire catalog is available for free, legal download at their website),

"Thankful" by independent, podsafe artist Heidi Bethune (check out her MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/heidibethune).

"Let It Go" by Podsafe Music Network artist Lori Malvey (check her out at Independent Artists Company's
website)

"We Are Together" by Podsafe Music Network group Quebb.

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com band The Season of Us
(check out their website).

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by PMN artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller (also available at Derek's website).

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by PMN and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

In this past week, I've grown more concerned as the situation in Iraq and Iran seems nowhere near a resolution, North Korea test-fired missiles that either landed in the Sea of Japan or broke up in the air, and then North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Il, said more tests would be coming.

And then, there is the big question of the current and future state of the environment...what has brought us seemingly to the brink of destruction?
 
Could it be that the answer is so simple as we have forgotten how to love ourselves and each other?

My inspiration for this week's episode came from one of the songs in my Podsafe Music Network playlist.

As I listened to "Pass On Love" by People Coyote, I thought that the simple idea of passing on love could be an answer to the state of the world right now.

This is not the same as the "Make Love, Not War" slogan of the 60's.
Rather, this kind of love is the kind of love that would consider unacceptable the idea of depriving people of at least a humane standard of living so that someone else can stuff pockets with billions.

This kind of love would not think of poisoning our environment and ensuring that life as we know it can not continue without a forced change.

This kind of love would understand that what we do to another we also do to ourselves.

If we just learn to love ourselves and pass that love on to others, it might just make a difference in how we live life on this planet.

Starting with this episode, I will also be hosting what I intend to become the largest prayer circle in the Podosphere.

I will do everything in my power to ensure that this prayer circle is as ecumenical as possible, and I welcome people from all spritual paths,
as well as those who do not follow any particular spiritual path.

Together, we can make a difference, and I invite you to join us.

Music today:

"Pass On Love" by Podsafe Music Network band People Coyote

"Peace Around the World" by PMN band Freedom People

Background music during Prayer Circle is "The Season of Us" by Podsafe Audio.com band The Season of Us.

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by PMN artists Simon James and Derek K. Miller

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by PMN and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84.

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage at http://thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

In the ongoing fight to keep the tollbooths off the information superhighway, we have many allies who understand the longterm consequences of doing away with Net Neutrality. John Kerry is one such ally, and he has checked in with Save The Internet.com and provided a guest blog entry of the progress of the Senate version of the bill.

Let me say once again that Net Neutrality is something that we can not afford to lose. If the telecommunications companies get the right to charge exorbitant amounts to ensure that a website downloads quickly--or at all--then the internet as we know it will be gone. Podcasts, blogs, personal websites, politically and socially active sites, etc., may not be able to survive in the reality of an internet without Net Neutrality. You can help stop this by contacting your Senators today!

Stay Powerful!

I am back in school now, and everything is going great.
I anticipate the classes being a little more challenging, as they should be, but I am ready for the challenge!
 
In this week's episode, I discuss one of the more basic and essential concepts of the Unity belief system, the Christ. Hint: Jesus isn't the only one!

Music today:
"I'll Be Alright" by Podsafe Music Network artist Marina V.
"The Incidental You" by PMN band Quebb.
"Evolution Is Revolution" by PMN artist Nadir, featuring Iayaalis.

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by PMN artists Derek James and Simon K. Miller (also available at Derek's Website)

Outro Music "Power Inside" by PMN and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84 (buy cd at http://www.el84rocks.com).

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.
While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Due to the better sound quality of my mic, I have recorded new voiceovers for the intro, contact and outro parts of my show.
Hopefully, these sound better than the old ones. My life is going great, so I'll get to the point.

I talked about net neutrality one time before, and since then, the House of Representatives has passed a bill that would gut net neutrality and slow or block access to websites purely at the discretion of the telecommunications companies.

This bill would also take away local communities' ability to negotiate with cable companies for their franchises.

This bill has been either ignored or misrepresented by mainstream media, and only the blogsphere and podosphere have been talking facts.

Join in the fight to keep the net neutral by contacting your Senators and voting.

You still have the power in this country; use it or lose it!

Music today: "God Save the Internet" by The Broadband. Listen to and download the song at http://www.savetheinternet.com/broadband.html

"Dubya" by PodSafeAudio.com artists The Swim Team.

Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by PMN artists Derek James and Simon K. Miller (also available at http://podcast.penmachine.com)

Outro Music: "Power Inside" by PMN and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84 (buy cd at http://www.el84rocks.com).

Contact info:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Everything is going great here.

I am still out of school and the job is going great.

I will be in summer school, due to the way this accelerated degree program is set up. I don't mind that, since it will be only two more terms and I will be a college graduate. Yeehaw!

This week, I received some guidance to go back to a more spiritual episode and discuss the idea of affirmative prayer.

It's different from the prayer most people may have learned, and it is a powerful tool for creating the kind of life you want to have. Listen in for more.

Music today:

"The Way" by PodSafeAudio.com artist John Ludi

"Belief" by PodSafeAudio.com artists The Swim Team

"Soulution (The Peace Within)" by Podsafe Music Network artists The Radical Thought Resistance. Buy their CD through CD Baby at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/radthought


Intro Music: "Deep Cycle Discharge" by PMN artists Derek James and Simon K. Miller (also available at http://podcast.penmachine.com)

Outro Music "Power Inside" by PMN and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84 (buy cd at http://www.el84rocks.com).

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage at http://thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Despite the fact that Iraq now has an elected national leader with a fully appointed cabinet, and Al-Zarqawi has been assassinated, President Bush has still rejected calls for a withdrawal of our troops. This call has come not only within this country, but within Iraq as well. Congress seems just as unlikely to call for a withdrawal any time soon, despite the fact that they hold the purse strings for this operation. The excuses for staying in Iraq have grown thin, frayed, and are completely full of holes, but everybody seems to keep pretending the Emperor is not naked. The economic and human costs of staying in Iraq are too great to risk staying there much longer, we need an exit plan, and we need it now!

In times past, people have used fasting for spiritual and physical cleansing, and often as a means of protest when all other measures fail. When our elected officials turn deaf ears to the people whose interests they are supposed to represent and listen only to multinational corporations who stand to benefit from our continued occupation of Iraq, we must take some radical steps to get those same officials' attention. Will you consider joining me and what may be millions others in fasting and putting our bodies on the line to bring home the men and women who have put their bodies on the line far longer than was needed? If enough people do this, it may finally get somebody's attention.

Click on the TroopsHomeFast graphic on my blogpage, or go to this link.

Thanks in advance, and Stay Powerful!

David

Note: The link was not working correctly. Hopefully this will correct the problem.-David

I don't normally watch Comedy Central's The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, but this clip might just make a regular viewer out of me. I saw the link on the Human Rights Campaign website, so I clicked on it.



Here's the link, which includes four different videos. It's worth watching.

http://www.comedycentral.com/motherload/index.jhtml?ml_video=70273

Warning: make sure you're not drinking anything. I am not responsible for any property damage resulting from spewed liquids.

Sorry this episode was late. I was a busy person this past week, but things should be slower come next week.

I am done with school for a couple of weeks, and I am looking forward to the break.

The job is going great, and I am enjoying doing what I am doing.

The Federal Marriage Amendment was defeated in the US Senate this past week, only getting 50 votes out of the required 67 to send it to the House.

What's more, two Sentors, Arlen Specter (R-PA) and Judd Gregg (R-NH) changed from a "yes" to a "no" since the last time this worthless amendment came up for a vote.

Many thanks to both of my Senators, Carl Levin (D-MI) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), who also voted "no" on this worthless amendment!

This amendment vote is nothing but a political strategy to get a checklist of who voted which way so that the Religious Right can target the "no" voters with negative campaigning and publicity.

The House of Representatives is supposed to vote on a similar amendment soon, and it is not expected to pass, but we must make sure.

Contact your representative and tell him/her you don't want discrimination written into the Supreme Law of the Land.

G'day to any Aussies who might be listening in, as the podcast was added to a directory in the land of Oz.

Music today:

Sensory Motor "Note to the Bringer of Life" from PodsafeAudio.com

Classic Graffiti, "Raven"-check Classic Graffitti out at http://www.myspace.com/graffittiguitar

David Ippolito "Common Ground" from the Podsafe Music Network and his website http://www.thatguitarman.com

Intro Music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by PMN artists Derek James and Simon K. Miller (also available at http://podcast.penmachine.com)

Outro Music "Power Inside" by PMN and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84 (buy cd at http://www.el84rocks.com).

For questions, comments, or other feedback:

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage at http://thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Dear David, Hurricane season has arrived -- and two fresh studies point to a link between global warming and an increase in the number and power of storms like Hurricane Katrina. What are Republicans doing about it? They're smearing former Vice President Al Gore. One right-wing pundit compared Gore to Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi propagandist. Another right-winger, who's been on the payroll of corporate special interests, likened Gore's pursuit of solutions to global warming to Adolf Hitler's pursuit of genocide. I'm sending Al a note this week telling him to keep fighting, to keep standing up for the truth no matter how vicious the attacks. I thought he might like to hear from you, too. Sign on to this note of thanks, and add your own note of encouragement here: http://www.democrats.org/keepfighting Facts are facts. Global warming is happening, and it threatens our very existence. But it also presents a historical opportunity to rise above politics and act boldly. Despite right-wing efforts to silence him, Al Gore has articulated one of the great moral challenges of our time and tried to move people to act. This should not be a political issue. We need a conversation about climate change and its consequences. But special interests in Washington have a tight grip on the Republican leadership, and an entire network of corporate-funded front groups has emerged to deny reality and attack the messenger. They hope that scorched-earth political tactics will cover up the reality that the scientific debate is one they've already lost. Vice President Al Gore deserves our thanks for his courage and leadership. Let him know you appreciate his stand by signing on to this letter of thanks before this week is over: http://www.democrats.org/keepfighting Did you know the National Academy of Sciences joined academies in the other G8 countries last year by concluding that global warming requires "prompt action"? Or that insurance companies are fleeing coastlines and charging huge premiums to avoid taking more losses from massive hurricanes? How about the fact that climate researchers have a new worry: that we could cross a tipping point that sends sea levels rising by 20 feet by the end of the century? If you didn't know, that's by design. Corporate special interests are deeply invested in keeping us hooked to the status quo -- high gas prices, inefficiency, and dependence on foreign oil. That's why last year, in the middle of a record-breaking hurricane season, Republicans in Congress and the White House gave oil companies $6 billion -- even as those companies ran away with the largest corporate profits in American history. And that's why we still have yet to see the Bush administration stand up and do anything to stop global warming. Enough is enough, and people know it. Al Gore is demonstrating exactly the kind of courage and moral clarity that Democrats will bring when we take back Congress and win elections up and down the ballot this year. The inconvenient truth is that global warming exists -- and thanks to Al Gore, it's now more likely that America will come together and do something about it. Sincerely, Governor Howard Dean, M.D. P.S. -- To get more information about the crisis of global warming and what you can do to help solve the problem, visit: http://www.climatecrisis.net Citations "You don't go see Joseph Goebbels' films to see the truth about Nazi Germany. You don't go see Al Gore's films to see the truth about global warming." --Sterling Burnett, DaySide, Fox News, May 23, 2006. "Gore believed in global warming almost as much as Hitler believed there was something wrong with the Jews." --Bill Gray, as quoted in The Washington Post Magazine, May 28, 2006.
	Paid for and authorized by the Democratic National Committee, www.democrats.org. This communication is not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. Democratic National Committee, 430 S. Capitol St. SE, Washington, DC 20003

Thanks to our fair-minded friends in the Senate (and two new ones added, by the way!), the Constitution was not raped to give George W. Bush any kind of political advantage at the expens of GLBT people. Now, how about getting us out of Iraq and getting George W. Bush out of the White House?

If your Senator is listed below, there are two actions that are very important:

1. Contact him/her/them and give thanks for voting against amending the Constitution to legalize discrimination and the creation of a second-class citizenship status for GLBT people. We've come too far since 1787 to start turning back the clock on establishing democracy--in this country!
2. Participate in the aforementioned democracy by voting to keep these fair-minded Senators in office. The real reason this amendment came up was to give the misanthropic Right Wing plenty of ammunition to use against progressive thinkers in November. The vote on the FMA in 2004 was used against many progressive members of Congress, and may have played a big role in John Kerry's defeat in his race for President. You can bet the venom will be flying in the form of TV and radio ads, direct mailings, telephone calls, and on shows like the 700 Club and the entire Fox News Channel. Help our friends by voting for them and by spreading the news that fair-mindedness is here to stay and hatred is on its way out.

If one or both of your Senators is not listed below, then:

1. Contact him/her/them to say that you do not appreciate it when an elected official gives in to hatred and prejudice and that you will not be voting for him/her/them in November.
2. Back up your words with actions.

Thanks again to everybody for helping advance equal rights for all!

Here's the email:

Dear David, In the battle for fairness, the Federal Marriage Amendment suffered a resounding defeat this morning in the U.S. Senate. Not only did not a single Senator on our side buckle to pressure and advertising campaigns from right-wing groups to switch their vote, but we gained two Senators, Senators Gregg (R-NH) and Specter (R-PA), who voted the other way in 2004. President Bush and the Republican leadership gambled their dwindling political capital on a discriminatory amendment and came up empty. To read the coverage in the press, visit http://www.hrc.org/voteno/headlines.htm. Thank you for your crucial support. We have been working 24/7 to get this message of fairness out across the country and to leaders on Capitol Hill, but HRC's secret weapon has been you. You sent more than 250,000 messages to Capitol Hill. Many of you gave time, energy and funds to the cause. Your voices ensured that the message of equality was heard loud and clear. Your support has made all the difference, enabling HRC to assemble a strong lobby team, work daily with the news media, provide vital support to our friends in the Senate, and work daily with a broad-based coalition of over 120 organizations and with religious leaders opposed to discrimination. Please take a moment to take one more action, and thank your Senators if they stood with our community today. By calling the capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121, you can reach the offices of the Senators who voted this morning to keep discrimination and bias out of the Constitution. A list of Senators who voted with us appears below. This is a day to celebrate. But HRC is already laying the groundwork for what will undoubtedly be an even harder-fought effort in the volatile, right-wing House of Representatives. Speaker Boehner has said today that he will bring the FMA up for a vote in July. Our work is far from finished. We're counting on you to continue your active, vocal and determined support of the Human Rights Campaign and the fight for equality. Thank you.

Joe Solmonese
President

Senators who voted with us:

Akaka, Daniel K. (D-HI)	Kohl, Herb (D-WI)
Baucus, Max (D-MT)	Landrieu, Mary L. (D-LA)
Bayh, Evan (D-IN)	Lautenberg, Frank R. (D-NJ)
Biden, Joseph R. (D-DE)	Leahy, Patrick J. (D-VT)
Bingaman, Jeff (D-NM)	Levin, Carl (D-MI)
Boxer, Barbara (D-CA)	Lieberman, Joseph I. (D-CT)
Cantwell, Maria (D-WA)	Lincoln, Blanche  (D-AR)
Carper, Thomas R. (D-DE)	McCain, John (R-AZ)
Chafee, Lincoln D. (R-RI)	Menendez, Bob (D-NJ)
Clinton, Hillary Rodham (D-NY)	Mikulski, Barbara A. (D-MD)
Collins, Susan (R-ME)	Murray, Patty (D-WA)
Conrad, Kent (D-ND)	Nelson, Bill (D-FL)
Dayton, Mark (D-MN)	Obama, Barack (D-IL)
Dorgan, Byron L. (D-ND)	Pryor, Mark (D-AR)
Durbin, Richard J. (D-IL)	Reed, Jack (D-RI)
Feingold, Russell D. (D-WI)	Reid, Harry (D-NV)
Feinstein, Dianne (D-CA)	Salazar, Ken (D-CO)
Gregg, Judd (R-NH)	Sarbanes, Paul S. (D-MD)
Harkin, Tom (D-IA)	Schumer, Charles (D-NY)
Inouye, Daniel K. (D-HI)	Snowe, Olympia (R-ME)
Jeffords, James M. (I-VT)	Specter, Arlen (R-PA)
Johnson, Tim (D-SD)	Stabenow, Debbie (D-MI)
Kennedy, Edward M. (D-MA)	Sununu, John E.  (R-NH)
Kerry, John F. (D-MA)

I'm baaaack!!!!

Thanks to everybody for the patience over the last two weeks as I recovered from the effects of the cold.
The voice is completely better than it was last week, and I am ready to go at this thing again!

I am going to experiment with talking a little less and playing a little more music.

This week, I play a clip from Ken Lay's press conference after learning that he was (shock, horror!) convicted by the jury. The clip comes from the Democracy Now! podcast.

The clip is truly bizarre, and I don't mind pointing out the weirdness.

Music today:

Brother Love "Summertime" from the Podsafe Music Network

RoGer "Selling Souls" from Podsafe Audio.com

David Ippolito "The Enron Song: Where Dat Money Go?" from PMN and his website

Heidi Bethune "You'll Never Win". Check out Heidi's MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/heidibethune.

Intro Music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by PMN artists Simon James and Derek  K. Miller (also available at http://podcast.penmachine.com)

Outro Music "Power Inside" by PMN and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84 (buy cd at http://www.el84rocks.com)

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage at http://thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

I knew that Left and Right would eventually have to come together on something. It took the possibility of losing Net Neutrality for it to happen, and it's a beautiful thing! We are all in this fight together, and we all stand to lose if Net Neutrality becomes a thing of the past. Help keep the internet neutral.

Read on:

Dear MoveOn member,

We never thought we'd see the day, but it's come: we're working together
with the Christian Coalition. You read that right--the Christian Coalition
has joined everyone from Google to MoveOn to the Gun Owners of
America in the fight for Internet freedom. The momentum is on our side.

Internet companies like AT&T have been trying to win this fight by
telling Republicans in Congress this is just a left-wing issue. But
MoveOn and the Christian Coalition have designed a full-page
New York Times ad to expose the truth: people across the spectrum
are united behind Internet freedom! If we get that message out, we win.

The ad will cost $70,000 to run. If 2,000 people give $35 each, we'll
be there. Plus, every dollar you give will be matched by a generous
bequest.

Can you contribute to run an Internet freedom ad with the improbable
pairing of MoveOn and the Christian Coalition? Click here to see the
ad and make a donation:

https://civic.moveon.org/donatec4/save_the_internet.html?id=7780-6985143
-7XsgpnELgxFqIOjpYCwSwA&t=3

This ad will make a big splash in Congress, with the public, and in the
news. We'll share the cost of the ad with our partners, and any funds
raised above our share will help support the organizing costs of MoveOn's
Internet freedom campaign.

Last year, we received a very humbling gift: a MoveOn member named us
in her will for over half a million dollars. This money is set up as a matching
fund for critically important initiatives like this one. Every dollar you give
today will bring in a dollar from this bequest, up to $100,000.

Everyone knows we deeply disagree with the Christian Coalition on many
issues. It's safe to say the same is true for them. But we can agree on
preserving the Internet as a venue for democratic participation, economic
innovation, and free speech.¹ The only serious opposition to Internet
freedom comes from AT&T and other Internet operators who are spending
millions lobbying Congress for more control over what we see and do online.

To win this fight, we need to show Congress the huge public backlash
they will face if they sell out the Internet. The pairing of MoveOn and
the Christian Coalition is unheard of, and it's sure to get Congress'
attention.

Help run this attention-getting ad featuring MoveOn and the
Christian Coalition. You can make a contribution at:

https://civic.moveon.org/donatec4/save_the_internet.html?id=7780-
6985143-7XsgpnELgxFqIOjpYCwSwA&t=4

Internet users of all political stripes are fighting back together.

The SavetheInternet.com Coalition--led by Free Press--includes the

Christian Coalition, MoveOn, Gun Owners of America, the ACLU,

Craig from Craigslist, Free Press, small businesses, consumer

advocates, Internet advocates, musicians such as Moby, R.E.M.,

Q-Tip, The Roots, Trent Reznor of NIN, the Indigo Girls, and the Dixie

Chicks, and over 700 other organizations from around the country.

Also supporting Net Neutrality are high-tech pioneers like Google,

Amazon, and eBay, as well as "fathers of the Internet" Vint Cerf and

Tim Berners-Lee (the inventor of the www). We're part of something huge.

Thank you for all you do.

--Eli Pariser, Adam Green, Noah T. Winer, and the MoveOn.org Civic
Action team
  Thursday, May 25th, 2006
  
P.S. You can find out more about naming MoveOn as a beneficiary
in your will by clicking here:

http://civic.moveon.org/bequest/?id=7780-6985143-
7XsgpnELgxFqIOjpYCwSwA&t=5

Source:
1. "Christian Coalition Announces Support for 'Net Neutrality' to
Prevent Giant Phone and Cable Companies From Discriminating
Against Web Sites," Christian Coalition, May 17, 2006
http://www.cc.org/content.cfm?id=329

Well, I promised a full episode this week, but the body is still recovering from the cold and the voice was not allowing itself to be pushed. Therefore, I am treating you to another collection of my favorite podsafe music from the Podsafe Music Network, Podsafe Audio.com , and some indie music I have permission to share.

I will be back next week with a full episode. I am holding healing thoughts in the meantime.

Music today:

Puce Wallpaper "Walking on Grass" from Podsafe Audio.com

Jakes Bitter "Heaven", also from Podsafe Audio.com

Classic Graffitti "Will Always I Imagine" (indie with CD available to order-email me)

Latin All-Stars "Nuestro Himno" (permission granted by Urban Box Office, available for download from iTunes)

Heidi Bethune "Star Spangled Banner" (indie-email me to order her CD)

Madly Jadly "Keep the Home Fires Burning" (available on PMN).

Intro Music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by PMN artists Derek James and Simon K. Miller (also available at podcast.penmachine.com).

Outro Music "Power Inside" by PMN and Podsafe Audio.com artist EL84 (buy cd at www.el84rocks.com).

Email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

Call my voicemail at 206-339-8915.

Visit my webpage where you can send me an Odeo voice mail and stick a pin on my Frappr map.

While you are there, check out the links to my favorite podcasts' home pages.

Thanks for listening, and Stay Powerful!

I am experiencing the last stages of a cold, and the voice was not up to doing a complete episode. I am fine otherwise, and I will be back next week.

In the meantime, enjoy some of my favorite indie and Podsafe Music Network artists. Songs are:

"Blessings" by Heidi Bethune (indie, but not on PMN yet)
"I Know You're There" by PMN artist Matthew Ebel
"Through These Eyes" by Podsafe Audio artist David Gielan
"On the Horizon" by indie (also not on PMN yet) band Classic Graffitti
"Queen of Me" by PMN artist Natalie Brown.
"Living Inside Your Eyes" by PMN artist David Spak.

All PMN artists are available at http://music,podshow.com.
Podsafe Audio artists are available at http://www.podsafeaudio.com.

Heidi Bethune and Classic Graffitti are selling independently.
Email me if you want to buy a CD!

Intro music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller. Derek is a PMN artist and his music is also available for free (and legal) download at http://podcast.penmachine.com.

Outro Music "Power Inside" by PMN and Podsafe Audio artists EL84, but please buy their CD at http://www.el84rocks.com.

Stay Powerful!

Hey, everybody!

The episode will be a little late this week.

I've been busy with work and finishing a term paper and my body decided to treat me with a mild cold! I should have the voice to do the episode, but it will be Friday or Saturday before I post it.

Until then,

Stay Powerful!

We have the privilege of accessing practically any content anywhere on the internet, provided the owner of that content has granted permission for access.

No internet service provider has the right to block or slow down access to that content in favor of any other content.

This is known as "net neutrality" and it is something that internet users take for granted.

This freedom is in danger, and could be eliminated if a bill in the US Congress, HR5252, becomes law.

This bill would give ISPs the right to block or slow access to any site for any reason, or to charge higher fees for faster access.

Please help all of us stop this takeover of the internet by corporate America by signing the online petition at http://civic.moveon.org/save_the_internet.

Thanks for listening and Stay Powerful!

Thanks to everybody for your concern about my partner. He was able to come home from the hospital on the same day, and he has recovered well from his surgery.

He was part of an experimental drug test to check the efficacy of a new drug to help reduce hardening of the arteries. We don't know if he had the drug or the placebo, but we do know he went from 70% blockage to 50% blockage during the course of the study! Thank you, God!

For the rest of the episode, I present a letter to the President of the United States in podcast form. I get more than a few things off my chest...

You can post comments on my website at http://thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, or you can email me at thatbluejeansguy@libsyn.com.

While you are on my website, check out my new section of links to the homepages of my favorite podcasts. It's a work in progress, so check back often!

You can send me an Odeo voice mail by clicking on the Odeo button on my Libsyn page. You do not have to be a member of Odeo, and there is no charge for the Odeo voicemail.

You can also click on the Frappr link to put a pin on my Frappr map. Let me know where you are listening from!

I also have a Gizmo ID, which is thatbluejeansguy, and you can leave me a voice mail there at no charge to either one of us.  

Intro music is a clip from "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller. Derek's podcast is available from iTunes or at podcast.penmachine.com.

Special music is "Souls Communicate" by Somebody's Closet.

Bonus music "Common Ground" by David Ippolito.

Outro music by EL84. You can get their CD and more at http://www.el84rocks.com.

All artists are also available through the Podsafe Music Network, and Somebody's Closet is available from Podsafe Audio. Please consider purchasing their CDs and supporting them financially, because they are not paid for Podsafe Music Network downloads.

Thanks to everybody for listening, and Stay Powerful!

The partner was in the hospital for an angiogram, and I was not sure how much time I would have to do a studio recording, so this is my first remote podcast. I recorded the bulk of this in the cafeteria in St. Mary's Hospital in Saginaw.

I discuss the idea of healing and releasing thoughts that can keep one from realizing the true nature of the body--that of perfect health.

I added in some extra podsafe music to keep you entertained.

You can post comments on my website at http://thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, or you can email me at thatbluejeansguy@libsyn.com.

You can send me an Odeo voice mail by clicking on the Odeo button on my Libsyn page. You do not have to be a member of Odeo, and there is no charge for the Odeo voicemail.

You can also click on the Frappr link to put a pin on my Frappr map. Let me know where you are listening from!

I also have a Gizmo ID, which is thatbluejeansguy, and you can leave me a voice mail there at no charge to either one of us. 

Intro music is a clip from "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller. Derek's podcast is available from iTunes or at podcast.penmachine.com.

Special music is "Souls Communicate" by Somebody's Closet.

Bonus music "The Search Is Over" by Collin Raye.

Outro music by EL84. You can get their CD and more at http://www.el84rocks.com.

Derek Miller, Collin Raye, and EL84 are also available through the Podsafe Music Network.

Somebody's Closet is available through Podsafe Audio.

Please consider purchasing the podsafe artists' CDs and supporting them financially, because they are not paid for Podsafe Audio Network downloads.

Thanks to everybody for listening, and Stay Powerful!

One of the many reasons I respect Senator Feingold and Neil Young:

"We don't all have to believe what our president believes to be a patriot" -- Neil Young   Dear David,   Listen to the new Neil Young album, then take action to bring our troops home in 2006.     Early this morning, TrueMajority began offering free streaming audio of Neil Young's new, surprise antiwar album in it's entirety.Though he wrote the defining protest anthem of the Vietnam era, Young initially supported President Bush's "war on terror." Like most of America, though,1 he says that what is happening now in Iraq is just plain wrong. Take a listen to a powerful voice for ending the quagmire, and while you're there you can raise up your own -- TrueMajority members today are launching a push behind a new Senate amendment to get our troops out of Iraq by New Year's Day. The amendment, introduced by Sen. Russ Feingold, says that Congress will only hand over the latest $68 billion that President Bush wants for the Iraq War if his administration gets the troops out by Dec. 31st, 2006. It would support the troops, but not the unending war. This is a great chance to bring more people into the growing movement for sanity in Iraq. So check out the album, sign the petition, and tell your friends. Feeling a change in the wind, Matt Holland Online Director, TrueMajority "Living With War" on the TrueMajority website: http://neilyoung.truemajority.org 1 "US Support for Iraq War Down to 28%." March 16, 2006.

---

Contribute
If you like what you see, please click here to contribute. ...and keep these messages going to more people!

TrueMajority.org is a grassroots group of citizens who believe in America's true values of openness, fairness and compassion. We believe participating in an effective government is the best way to be mutually responsible for our community.

TrueMajority.org, 191 Bank Street, Third Floor, Burlington, VT 05401

This has been a busy week for me so far!

I started my new job Monday and have spent HOURS in front of a computer learning about sales techniques, more info about washers and dryers than I thought I would ever want to know, and just how to be a good active listener.

I am grateful that I had the opportunity to draw unemployment for the time I was without a job, but I am also glad to be able to transition off of it. One of the great things about life is the truth that we never run out of chances to start anew.

Every moment of every day, we are a new person, and if we create our new experience consciously, we can have amazing results. See what great possibilities you can create for yourself.

Visit my website at http://thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can send me an Odeo voicemail or stick a pin on my Frappr map.

You can email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

You can call me on Gizmo. My ID is ThatBlueJeansGuy.

You can also call my new voicemail line at 206-339-8915.

Intro music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller (podcast.penmachine.com).

Special music "Create Your Fate" by Steadman (www.steadmanband.com).

Outro Music by EL84 (www.el84rocks.com).

All artists also available on the Podsafe Music Network (music.podshow.com).

Stay powerful!

MOLECULAR GENETIC STUDY OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION

Researchers from the Evanston Northwestern Healthcare Research
Institute, Northwestern University, University of Chicago, and
University of Illinois at Chicago are searching for genes that
influence male sexual orientation.

They are seeking families with two or more living gay brothers to
assist them in their research. Participants are asked to provide
blood samples and answer questionnaires. Participants will be
reimbursed for time and any expenses associated with the study.

For more information visit http://www.gaybros.com or email
malegene@enh.org.

Please pass the word on about this to any email groups or listservs
that you are a part of!

Peace in Christ,
Justin R. Cannon, founder
TruthSetsFree.net ( http://www.truthsetsfree.net )

_____________________________

Hey, everybody! I didn't want to wait until next week to announce this, so here it goes!

I did my podcast yesterday, because I was supposed to be going out of town on Thursday to spend a few days at the cottage with the partner. After uploading everything and setting the episode to post on Thursday, I worked on some other things.

I got a phone call, which was nothing, because I was getting them all day, often interrupting my recording sessions. This one was different.

I had said that it might take a week to get the results back from the background check so the company could complete the job offer, but apparently it didn't take that long after all. The phone call I got was from somebody at the company saying that everything came through already, and the job is mine!!!!!!!

I will start on Monday doing stuff in the office to begin my four weeks of training, and I'm so excited that I could burst.

I was doing the "Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy" dance all over the place (but not on the podcast, since it's not podsafe!).

 I'm thankful and grateful to God, the Source of All Good, and to everybody who has prayed that I would get another job. Now, I gotta rethink the podcasting schedule...

Anyway, I hope everybody has a great weekend, and remember this: Stay Powerful!

David

I hope everybody had a great weekend, celebrating as you saw fit!

I interviewed for a part-time appliance sales position with a major nationwide retailer, and I am confident that this will be a great job for me. 

In today's episode, we look at the fifth and final of the basic Unity principles, which invites us all to use what we know to create the life we desire to have and to make our lives reflections of the life that God is.

I have enjoyed doing this series of episodes centering around the basic aspects of the Unity faith, and I would love to receive some comments on the material I have presented.

You can post comments on my website at thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, or you can email me at thatbluejeansguy@libsyn.com.

You can send me an Odeo voice mail by clicking on the Odeo button on my Libsyn page. You do not have to be a member of Odeo, and there is no charge for the Odeo voicemail.

You can also click on the Frappr link to put a pin on my Frappr map. Let me know where you are listening from!

I also have a Gizmo ID, which is thatbluejeansguy, and you can leave me a voice mail there at no charge to either one of us. 

If you send voicemail or email and do not want it shared, please indicate your wishes. Otherwise, all voice and electronic mails are subject to being included in future episodes.

Intro music is a clip from "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller. Derek's podcast is available from iTunes or at podcast.penmachine.com.

Special music is "Common Ground" by David Ippolito. David's music is available at his website www.thatguitarman.com.

Outro music by EL84. You can get their CD and more at http://www.el84rocks.com.

All artists are also available through the Podsafe Music Network, but please consider purchasing their CDs and supporting them financially, because they are not paid for Podsafe Audio Network downloads.

Thanks to everybody for listening, and Stay Powerful!

Happy Easter, everybody!

This celebration originated with the celebration of the Spring Equinox and the apparent return of life to the world. Under the Christian tradition, the celebration was modified to celebrate the return of life to Jesus' body.

Resurrection is possible for all of us, because we unconsciously call life into our bodies every time we heal from disease and/or injury. Imagine the possibilies if we consciously called forth life! I invite you to call forth life today and enjoy the results.

Music by the Podsafe Music Network:

"Amazing Grace" by David Spak,

"Wish You Were Here" by Jeff Eaton

"He's Alive" by Jacques Grant Rewired

"We Are Together" by Quebb.

Notice of copyright and permitted use:

"The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright (c) 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. Used by permission. All rights reserved."

Email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com

Visit my webpage at thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com

Send me an Odeo voicemail from my page by clicking on the Odeo button.

Pin my Frappr Map by clicking on the Frappr button on the same page.

Stay powerful!

This is the first episode I've done since my podcast was listed on iTunes. I am stoked about the possibilities that being on one of the largest podcast directories will bring. I welcome and thank all the people who have already subscribed.

I am the proud owner of a new USB microphone, and the sound quality is great. Now if I can only do something about the standing waves in the room...

Since my last episode, a tornado tore through Middle Tennessee, just north of Nashville. I have family members who live in Goodlettsville, and they are ok. Many people are homeless, and they need help. Please consider donating to the Red Cross at www.redcross.org or www.nashvilleredcross.org. Thanks in advance!

In this episode, I discuss the fourth basic Unity principle, which talks of the use of prayer, meditation, denials, and affirmations to bring our hearts and minds in alignment with God.

Intro music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller, available through the Podsafe Music Network music.podshow.com, or Derek's site podcast.penmachine.com.

Special music "Common Ground" by David Ippolito, also availabe at the Podsafe Music Network and his site, www.thatguitarman.com.

Outro music by EL84. Band info and CDs are available at www.el84rocks.com.

Leave comments at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com, or at thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com. 

While you are at my page, you can click on the Odeo button to leave me voicemail or to go to my Frappr map.

Thanks for listening, and stay powerful!

Ok...I am going to try this one again.

The first time I copy/pasted my email from Apple congratulating me on my podcast being added to the iTunes Music Store, but for some reason it was junking my entire blog page. I'm not an expert on HTML, so rather than try to figure out the problem, I deleted the post. I will restore the Odeo, Podsafe Music Network, and Frappr buttons, since I also reset my page to the default template. Bear with me while I redo everything.

Here is the link to get to the specific page in iTunes:

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=141410659&s=143441

Stay powerful!

David

I made a serious boo-boo in my last episode. It was James Earl Ray, not Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Martin Luther King, Jr. Thanks to Tom of the Deep Fabulousity Podcast (www.deepfabulousity.com) for catching my error!

Best of luck to Katie Couric, who will be leaving NBC's Today Show to anchor the CBS Evening News, as well as the first solo female anchor for a network newscast.

My prayers are with the people of Dyer County, TN, which was devastated by a tornado. West Tennessee has had its share of bad news lately, and they need your help. Donate to the Red Cross Disaster Relief Effort.

In today's episode, I discuss the Third Basic Unity principle, which I think follows logically from the first and second principles.

Shoutout to Joseph Fenity of the "Porn Stars Talk to Joseph Fenity" Podcast www.pornstarstalk.com, who left me a comment on one of my blog posts.

Also, a shoutout to Nillo of the Nillo's Night Podcast nillosknight.libsyn.com.

As always, comments are welcome.

Visit my webpage at thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can leave me a written comment under the episode entry or send me a voice message via Odeo.

Also, visit my Frappr map by clicking on the button on the site.

Intro music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller podcast.penmachine.com.

Special music "Common Ground" by David Ippolito, a.k.a, That Guitar Man From Central Park www.thatguitarman.com

Bonus Special Music "Soulution (The Peace Within) by The Radical Thought Resistance. Order their CD at cdbaby.com/cd/radthought/ and they will include this song as a bonus single.

Outro music "Power Inside" by EL84 (www.el84rocks.com).

Stay powerful!

I just love getting emails like this one:

Date:	Tue, 04 Apr 2006 16:34:52 GMT
From:	"TrueMajority" <alerts@truemajority.org>
To:
Subject:	DeLay Quits, Honesty Wins

This is a special episode marking the 38th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On April 4, 1968, Dr. King was gunned down at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, TN.

Dr. King shared his dream of a day when everybody would be truly free, and his dream outlived his time in the body. Much work remains to be done, so I challenge everybody to do your part to free yourself from limiting thoughts, attitudes, and feelings toward yourself and toward others. This is one more way we can achieve peace and authentic power.

Intro music "Amazing Grace" by David Spak. Outro music "Dream" by Corey Andrew. Both artists are available on the Podsafe Music Network music.podshow.com.

Robert F. Kennedy's speech can be found at the Online Speech Bank at www.americanrhetoric.com.

Stay powerful!

I got this email from True Majority, an organization dedicated to placing the power of the United States government where it belongs: in the hands of everyday citizens like you and me. That is what democracy is, after all, and one very important facet of a democratic government is the existence of free and fair elections.
I encourage all my listeners to sign this online petition which will be given to the Congress to show the amount of support that exists for making sure that questionable vote outcomes like those in 2000 and 2004 are a thing of the past.

Remember that the world will change when we are ready to change it. This is one way we can do it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------
Movement for Honest Elections Grows in Congress


Dear David,

There's a bill in Congress that would set the "gold standard" for honest elections. Sign a petition supporting it today.

For two years, TrueMajority members have been leading the fight for honest, accountable ballot technology in American elections. The "Computer Ate My Vote" campaign has generated hundreds of thousands of messages, letters to the editor, and news stories. Now, the tide is turning toward victory.

Twenty-seven states now require voter-verified paper trails to ensure an accurate recount if there is a question about the outcome of an election. In Congress, Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ) has introduced legislation (HR 550 �¢?? The Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act) that has the bipartisan support of more than one-third of the House of Representatives and has been called the "gold standard" by good-government groups across the country.

To sign the petition to make sure your representatives support HR 550 and voter-verified paper ballots, click here:

http://action.truemajority.org/campaign/supportHR550

Rep. Holta's bill was stalled in committee for two years by Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH), chairman of the Committee on House Administration. Mr. Ney resigned as chairman in January after being subpoenaed in the Jack Abramoff case.

Now that hearings will be held on HR 550, Congress needs to hear from you that Americans want clean elections we can depend on. The sooner our representatives hear from you, the more likely they will be to act quickly and the better chance we will have of there being verified votes across America for the midterm elections in November.

If you're a TrueMajority member, click "Reply" and "Send" to take action. If you're not a member, click the link below to sign the petition:

http://action.truemajority.org/campaign/supportHR550

With an important mid-term election approaching, it's vital that we bring more people into the verified voting movement. Please forward this to anyone you know who cares about honest elections.

Thanks for your dedication to fair elections,

Matt Holland TrueMajority Online Director



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here's the text of the petition:

On September 19, 2005, the Commission on Federal Election Reform co-chaired by President Jimmy Carter and former Secretary of State James Baker issued its Final Report. The Report, among other things, called on Congress to enact legislation requiring both a voter verified paper ballot of every vote and routine random audits to check the accuracy of electronic voting.

Voting integrity activists who have been championing this cause for several years are pleased that the Commission confirmed the need for this critical security measure. However, the report also recommends that the status of the voter verified paper ballot should be determined by states rather than mandated as the ballot of record nationwide. This means that any individual state can decide to disregard the only record that the voter has confirmed in favor of the record inside the electronic machine and make the voter verified paper ballot a meaningless and expensive placebo. In addition, the report suggests that pre-election machine "audits" may also be acceptable. Such audits would constitute simply another pre-election machine test, and should not be confused with meaningful independent audits of actual election results.

Rep. Rush Holt's Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act (HR 550) will, however, mandate an effective and meaningful voter-verified paper record and independent audit requirements. It already has the bipartisan support of 1/3 of the House of Representatives, and has been endorsed by VoteTrustUSA and VerifiedVoting.org as the "gold standard" in verifiability legislation. Not only would it mandate a voter verified paper record for every vote cast, it would also:

(1) establish a mandatory uniform national standard that states that the voter verified paper ballot -- the only record verified by the voter rather than the voting machine -- is the vote of record in the case of any inconsistency with electronic records;

(2) provide Federal funding to pay for implementation of voter verified paper balloting;

(3) require a percentage of mandatory manual (by hand count) random audits of actual election results in every state, and in each county, for every Federal election;

(4) prohibit the use at any time of undisclosed software, wireless communication devices, and internet connections in voting machines;

(5) require full implementation by 2006; and

(6) protect the accessibility mandates of the Help America Vote Act.

The language in this bill was carefully written with input from computer scientists, disabilities organizations, and election reform advocates. It should be passed as written and in time to protect the 2006 elections.

There are many politically contentious election reform issues mentioned in the report but making sure that votes are counted accurately is not one of them. Elections are the foundation of a representative democracy, and representative democracy lives or dies based on the integrity of its elections. HR 550 will help restore voters' confidence and ensure the accuracy and integrity of America's elections.

We urge you to pass HR 550 as written immediately.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(end of email)

Stay powerful!-David

Spring is finally here in Bay City, and the skates have come out of the trunk! I've skated every day since Sunday, and I am getting better, but there is much room for improvement.

In today's episode, I discuss the second basic Unity principle, which I think follows logically from the first principle.

Special shoutout to Tom of the Deep Fabulousity podcast. I reported last week that Tom was part of the Rainbow Podsquad Network, but that was not true as of last Friday. Tom's podcast is available at his website, www.deepfabulousity.com, and you can subscribe via iTunes.

As always, comments are welcome. Visit my webpage at thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can leave me a written comment under the episode entry or send me a voice message via Odeo.
Also, visit my Frappr map by clicking on the button on the site.

Intro music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller (podcast.penmachine.com).

Special music "Common Ground" by David Ippolito, a.k.a, That Guitar Man From Central Park (He's also a David, and begins his nickname with "That"...I swear I didn't plagiarize from him! LOL) www.thatguitarman.com

Outro music "Power Inside" by EL84 (www.el84rocks.com).

Stay powerful!

I am taking a different direction with the podcast, starting with this episode. I originally wanted to do a podcast that would share my personal beliefs without being preachy. I will begin today by talking about the first of the five basic Unity principles, which covers Unity's concept of God.

As always, comments are welcome. Visit my webpage at thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can leave me a written comment under the episode entry or send me a voice message via Odeo.
Also, visit my Frappr map by clicking on the button on the site.

Intro music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller (podcast.penmachine.com).

Outro music "Power Inside" by EL84 (www.el84rocks.com).

Stay powerful!

I am off of school for a couple of weeks.

I just bought some in-line skates and will be learning how to use them. Stay tuned for details.

My work continues with my prerequisites for Unity Institute.

The impeachment talk is getting stronger, and a Senator from Wisconsin has introduced a measure calling for the censure of President Bush.

Do you know what five rights are guaranteed by the First Amendment?

Visit my webpage at thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can leave me a voice message on Odeo.
Also, visit my Frappr map by clicking on the button on that site.

Intro music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller (podcast.penmachine.com).
Special music "Hello" by Pop Machine (www.podsafeaudio.com).
Outro music "Power Inside" by EL84 (www.el84rocks.com).

Stay powerful!

Today is National Get Over It Day. I can't wait for the greeting cards for this one.

I give an update on Unity Institute's new master's degree program. I also talk about a grass-roots effort from some Vermont towns to start the ball rolling on a possible impeachment of President Bush.

Email me at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

Visit my page at thatbluejeansguy.libsyn.com, where you can leave me a voice message on Odeo.

Also, visit my Frappr map at www.frappr.com/friendsofthatbluejeansguypodcast.

Intro music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller (podcast.penmachine.com).


Outro music "Power Inside" by EL84 (www.el84rocks.com).

In this episode, I discuss the Oscars, the telecast, and my opinions on the winners and why Brokeback Mountain did not do as well as people expected. I also hand out my own personal awards, the Eddies. These are not your usual awards, so listen in! Email me at thatbluejeansguy[at]gmail.com. Click on the Frappr link on my Libsyn webpage to leave your pin on the map. Send me an Odeo voice mail at the link on my Libsyn page: thatbluejeansguy[dot]libsyn[dot]com.

Thanks for downloading! This episode will be considerably shorter, because this is a lot of work!

It is snowing beyond belief today, and I am not looking forward to snowblowing the walk.

Congratulations to Alex Izykowski, Bay City native and member of the bronze-winning men's 5000m Short Track Relay!

Bode, what happened????

Sasha Cohen, what happened????

Congratulations to Irina Slutskaya on her bronze medal in Ladies' Figure Skating.

Thanks and a shoutout to Fausto Fernos of the Feast of Fools podcast. Fausto and his boyfriend Marc Felion put together a podcast that is well worth listening to. Visit their site at www.feastoffools.net.

I now have an Odeo set up. Leave me a voice mail message, and I might include it in a future episode. I have a link on my Libsyn page.

I also have a Frappr map set up. You can also access it from my Libsyn page.

Email always is welcome at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com.

Intro music: Deep Cycle Discharge, by Simon James and Derek K. Miller. His music is available through the Podsafe Music Network (music.podshow.com), and Derek's site podshow.penmachine.com.

Outro Music by EL84. Get their CD at www.el84rocks.com.

Thanks for listening!

This is the first episode of my podcast. I introduce myself and talk about where I came from and where I live.

I talk about the Olympics and the Michigan connection to these games.

I also give my take on some news stories and Willie Nelson's gay cowboy song, and gay-friendly country stars.

Intro music "Deep Cycle Discharge" by Simon James and Derek K. Miller (podcast [dot] penmachine [dot] com) Outro music "Power Inside" by EL84 (www.el84rocks.com). Leave me a comment here or at thatbluejeansguy@gmail.com