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Hartmann: GOP admits they're "frightened to death" by OWS

Zaid Jilani, Think Progress.org join's Thom Hartmann. One day after Occupy Los Angeles was evicted - the LA City Council plans to pick up their message. Next week - the city council will be voting on a resolution calling for Congress to amend the Constitution to end corporate personhood - one of the primary demands of the Ocuppy Wall Street movement. Voters in Boulder, Colorado and Missoula, Montana have passed similar resolution. This is just the latest victory for the 99% movement - that has managed in just two months to steer debate in America away from deficit reduction and austerity - and toward job creation and wealth inequality. So needless to say - Conservatives - and their campaign donors who reside comfortably in the 1% - are a little worried. So - in their latest effort to silence the voice of Occupy Wall Street - they've reached out to their favorite wordsmith - right-wing pollster Frank Luntz. That's right - the guy who brought us "death panels" in an effort to kill meaningful healthcare reform - and "job creators" in an effort to keep the Bush tax cuts in place for millionaires and billionares - is now targeting Occupy Wall Street. This week - Luntz attended an event in Florida with the Republican Governors Association - and admitted that he's "frightened to death" by Occupy Wall Street because it's, "having an impact on what the American people think of capitalism."

Full Show - 11/30/11. After Raids. Will OWS Shift Tactics?

Thom speaks with an Occupy Philadelphia protestor recently released from Jail and gets the latest developments on the Occupy Los Angeles movement. Later Thom Debates his two conservative guests in the Lone Liberal Rumble.

Hartmann: Big Pharma - Scalping Cancer Drugs?

So, have you ever scalped a pair of tickets for a baseball game? Better yet - have you ever scalped some cancer drugs to save your life? That's right - scalping drugs is the latest "get rich quick scheme" in our distorted health care system that's costing tens of thousands of people their lives each year - but making big money for doctors, health insurance providers, and pharmaceutical companies. Right now there are more than a half million cancer patients in the United States who can't get the medication they need to save their lives. And the reason is - companies are buying up all the drugs at wholesale - and then trying to sell them back to hospitals and patients at anywhere between 650 to 4000 percent above costs. They're the scalpers - and they operate in a "grey market" - without safety regulations - calling up hospitals all around the nation to pass off their drugs at new super-high prices. Here's the kicker - it's perfectly legal

Hartmann: Massive strike shuts down UK - Winter of Discontent?

Ari Berman, The Nation Magazine, joins Thom Hartmann. Massive labor strikes rocked the UK today - as public workers took to the streets to protest ongoing austerity measures. Last year - the Conservative government passed a slew of austerity measures - laying off public workers - cutting back on pensions - and ending social welfare programs - claiming it was what needed to happen to get the British economy back on track. A year later - the British economy still hasn't grown - and now the government is calling for more austerity. In response - over two million civil servants are protesting. Schools, hospitals, airports, courts, and government buildings are all being affected by the strike - which is the largest in over a generation in the UK since the "Winter of Discontent." According to the Guardian - 19000 out of 21700 schools in England and Wales are closed or partially closed - and roughly 6000 non-urgent operations have been cancelled. The Occupy London movement made their voice heard today too - storming the offices of mining company Xstrata - and targeting the higest paid CEO in the UK They made it all the way to the road of the buiolding and hung a banner that read "All power to the 99 percent" before police regained control. So where did the British government go wrong - and where is this sort of social unrest that we're seeing spring up all around the world taking us?

Hartmann: The Good, The Bad, and The Very Very Sibylinely Ugly

The Good! Newt Gingrich! He probably didn't MEAN to make this list - but he ended up on it because he let this little bit of truth slip out while at a town hall even in South Carolina last night. The Bad! Glenn Beck. Ever heard of the guy? Glenn Beck continues his descent into irrelevance after leaving GOP TV's Fox so-called News - but he did return to his old employer and spew some nonsense on the O'Reilly Factor. And the Very, Very Ugly...Gulnare Freewill Baptist Church. The Pike County, Kentucky charge jumped in a time machine and traveled backward forty years to issue a resolution that bans interracial couples from becoming members of the church or participating in worship activities. Unclear if they'll also be taking the word Freewill out of the name of their church

Hartmann: OWS student loans - are student debt strikes coming?

Sarah Jaffe, AlterNet, joins Thom Hartmann. For the first time ever - outstanding student loan debt this year will top one trillion dollars. And with tuition for college soaring - and prospects for jobs after college plummeting - the situation for students across America looks grim. But now - with the Occupy Wall Street movement in full swing - student debtors are feeling empowered - and are striking back against the big banks that got bailed out three years ago but are unwilling to help their debt-saddled customers now.

Hartmann: Lone Liberal Rumble - Ayn Rand Rum Balls Anyone?

Heather Cirmo, Conservative Strategist & Daniel Halper, Weekly Standard, join Thom Hartmann. In this week's Lone Liberal Rumble - inquiring minds want to know: how much longer can the GOP justify protecting the interests of the 1 percent at the expense of the rest of the country? Also, Herman Cain has now denied more sexual relations in the last few weeks than most men have had in their entire lifetimes. A woman has come out saying she's carried on a 13-year loving and friendly affair with the pizza man. Why is a consensual romantic relationship worse than sexual harassment to Republicans? Plus what about "Ayn Rand Rum Balls?"

Hartmann: After raids...will OWS shift tactics?

Clark Davis, Media Liaison - Occupy Los Angeles & Sarah Seltze, Alternet join Thom Hartmann. Occupy LA and Occupy Philly are no more. So with two more of the largest patriot camps wiped out by law enforcement - what's next for the 99 percent movement?

Full Show - 11/29/11. The Euro crisis in Depth

Economist and author of "Capitalism Hits the Fan", Richard Wolff provides an In-depth perspective of the financial meltdown in Europe and its negative effects for the US economy.

Hartmann: Money is free speech...how about tents?

So why is it - going off the decision by the high court in Buckley versus Valeo - that when political expression is given the "broadest possible protection" - money is protected, but tents are not? And why is it - when recogning the CREATIVE dynamic of free expression - that again - money is protected, but tents are not? I think the answer is fairly obvious - corporations have a lot of money...and not a lot of tents. The ironic thing is - Occupy Wall Street is demonstrating - in large part - against these two court cases - against the idea that money is speech. So in essence - rulings that big green pieces of fabrics are NOT a form of free speech is just fine...just as long as the court is consistent and rules that the little green pieces of fabric are not speech either. But until that happens - until the court treats all fabric in the same way - then Occupy Wall Street needs to keep camping out. And my tip to the movement is simple - start building your tents out of stitched-together dollar bills

The Good, The Bad, and the Very Very Spodogenously Ugly

The Good! Norm Stamper. As the former police chief in Seattle - Stamper has a perspective we should all listen to when it comes to the crackdown on Occupy Wall Street. The Bad! Steve Doocy. GOP TV's Fox and Friends was at again this morning - rejoicing over Congressman Barney Frank's decision to retire next year. And Doocy did a little rewriting of history too - trying to pin the blame of the 2008 financial meltdown on...you guessed it...Barney Frank..And the very, very ugly...The Scottsdale Gun Club. What better way to get in the Christmas spirit than to let children pose for pictures with Santa Claus...and assault rifles!

Hartmann: Are lies and sabotage the only hope for the WI GOP?

Chris Bowers, Daily Kos joins Thom Hartmann. Desperate times call for desperate measures! But are lies and sabotage really the only hope left for the GOP in Wisconsin as they try to battle efforts to recall Governor Scott Walker

Hartmann: The man who invented pepper spray speaks out

Kamran Loghman, developer of pepper spray joins Thom Hartmann. Police around the country are resorting to increasingly violence tactics as they face off with Occupy Wall Street patriots - but the man who invented one of those tactics says that they are WAY out of line.

Hartmann: Democrats & Republicans ONLY agree on subverting the Constitution

The Senate is set to pass a controversial piece of legislation that will forever change the America as we know it. It looks like the ONLY thing Democrats and Republicans on the Hill can agree on is ways to subvert the Constitution. If there is still any doubt left on whether or not our nation is rapidly turning into a police state - the Senate plans to squash it in the next few days. This week - the Senate plans to give the President more powers to detain people without any charges or trial. A vote is expected this week on the Defense Authorization bill - that includes a provision allowing the military to capture civilians anywhere in the world - including US citizens right here at home - and detain them indefinitely if they're suspected of being a terrorist. As in, if somebody in the Administration decides you're affiliated with Al Queda - for whatever reason, something you said, maybe? - then they can arrest you and keep you in prison for the rest of your life without you ever seeing a lawyer, judge, or jury. Until the day you die. And the bill - and that provision - are expected to pass - despite the fact that the President hinted that he may veto it. Today - one Senator - Mark Udall from Colorado - attempted to strip out the global battlefield, indefinite detention provision - but his amendment was defeated. So here we are now...on the road to torching our Constitution...

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