SANTA'S BLESSINGS?

• This photo was created by an Arizona gun club in 2011 that offered the chance for customers to pose with Santa.  "Our customers have been looking for a fun and safe way to express their holiday spirit and passion for firearms," said the gun club manager.  The UK's Guardian published the story and ran the photo with it.  See it here.  Peter Woodruff and I will do the first hour of our weekly radio show on the assault weapons theme on Wednesday from 6-8pm (EST).  Our show slot got changed again.  You can listen online via WBOR
• It will be interesting to hear what the Christians say about the militarization of Christmas.  Next we'll see images of Jesus on the cross holding an assault rifle.
  
• The scripted (remember professional wrestling metaphor) "fiscal cliff crisis" in Washington is nearing its long anticipated crescendo.  Obama and the Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner have started playing footsie following their opening round of snarling and cursing at one another.  Trial balloons are being floated that Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid will take hits as expected.  Increased taxes on the rich will come but "negotiations" are presently underway to determine if they will start at $250,000 or $500,000 per year income brackets.  Not much being said about the Pentagon budget except for a few strains of that familiar tune "wasteful military spending" (which is of course true) but does nothing to indicate a serious reassessment of the U.S. military empire.  If you are so moved you can reach your representative and our senators through the Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121.
• We had a really good statewide meeting in Augusta last Saturday.  Were about 40 folks there from 20 Maine communities and we came up with an initial campaign called Budget for all....why not?  Also decided to call our efforts the Alliance for the Common Good.  The whole intent was to say that we have to connect the dots between all our issues and find ways to support one another.  The "good old days" of single issue focus are dead.  We are all getting our asses kicked and need to work together when possible.  Our next meeting will be in Augusta on February 9.  Two TV stations showed up and did interviews but nothing appeared on air.  One newspaper reporter came and stayed for the entire meeting which is very unusual.  The story ran in three papers across Maine on Sunday.  See it here
• I earlier wrote that I did a phone interview with Iranian TV on Saturday.  On Sunday morning they called again and I did another live interview on Press TV in Tehran.  It was about a three-minute spot and they asked me to talk about the growing conflict between Japan and China.  I suggested that the U.S.-Japan military alliance was about surrounding China and trying to destabilize the region - just as U.S.-NATO are currently doing in the Middle East and Africa.