MB,

We have so much to repent from as a nation. To think that racism is no longer problematic is so clueless.

Thanks for your posts.

C. Krob

I hope the prosecution angle works. It's brilliant, although I don't know how war crime law could apply, since ISIS isn't the army of a sovereign nation. But maybe there's provision for rebel armies.

With their ability to accumulate virtually unlimited power, how can our society restrain the billionaire class?

This comment is an objection to your program today, 9-3-14, regarding the dentist Joon Kim that you had on your program.

I cannot believe you would have someone on your show supporting the use of fluoridation in public drinking water. This is not a debate, or an opinion. It is a fact that fluoride is toxic to the human body. It is not a nutrient, element, or vitamin. It is poison. You just set back years of trying to educate the public about the lies from the American Dental Assoc, FDA, and USPHS. Thousands of people listen to your show every day. You have a responsibility to ensure your speakers are knowledgable. You might as well have broadcasted that smoking does not cause lung cancer, or that its okay to breathe the fumes from leaded gas, or that the Koch brothers are charitable people who care about poor people. You owe your listeners an apology, and an explanation that Fluorine compounds are deadly poisons to mammalian tissues; they disrupt cell biology, and carry aluminum to cells in the brain to produce Alzheimer-like changes.

You just supported big aluminum businesses and pharmaceutical companies. You just invalidated the work of F.A.N. Congratualtions. Did you even entertain the idea of becoming educated about it first?

Refer to :

www.facebook.com/.../i-have-had-enough/10152150678891795

Dr. Hardy Limback, University of Toronto

Prof. Paul Connett of New Zeland

Dr Frederick B. Exner, radiologist, world authority on Fluoride

"The Fluoride Deception" by Christopher Bryson

The late dr John Colquhoun, former Chief dental officer of Auckland New Zealand was a fluoride-promoter turned critic said, "How many cavities would have to be saved to justify the death of a child with osteosarcoma?"

So weird watching Lone Liberal Rumble today. The conservatives were clearly some of the least bombastic of the lot (which is the best compliment you will get from me in this environment), yet their discussion was so hollow even when forced to maintain some sense of plausibility because Thom kept them on point (barely). But as always, Thom is the frustrated progressive that seems to think these people will see the obvious without hard hitting, aggressive and almost personal attacks on the factual stonewalling he often encounters from them. Even so, because I have no personal experience lobbying in DC, I often have a mixed response to the issues discussed. However, when the NRDC piece came on - an area where I do have first hand experience - the conservative response was so ignorant and lame, so as to be laughable in the company of intelligent adults, I just had to wonder why Thom even makes room for these people on his show. They are not qualified to speak to the issues.

This country spends over 100 BILLION a year on illegals(check google), no doubt that $$$ could have helped the 99% a lot. Just think how much that could have added to the quality of life for so many. People better wake up soon.

This is a perfect case for a consumer unions to exist. The entire fossil fuel industry is based on consumption. The need to move people, products and services, virtually all rely on fossil fuels one way or another. Oil above all of the fossil fuels is most reliant on consumption because it exist in thousands of different products, along with being the primary source of private transportation and commercial transport of products and services. All products shipped by sea are moved by oil based fuel. The entire war effort in the Middle East is a direct result of the strategic oil reserves, regardless of all the souring political rhetoric. The preservation of oil consumption by the government and private interest, that control the political will of government institutions, cost the world an uncountable amount of money, resources, environment and lives each year. Even the corrupt practice of speculation is based on future consumption of goods and services.

Currently there is no organizations or institutions that the citizens of the US and or any other country can turn to or use to combat the strangle hold large corporation have on our governments. If a nationalized or international Consumer Union (CU) existed. There could be strategic boycotts and civil action as a two prong approach. The boycott against the private enterprise and the civil action against the government. You would have to have a massive CU in order for this to be effective, but time and work could provide the membership. Especially, since the idea of collective controlled consumption is both a practical and beneficial to society. We must reduce consumption in order to survive and help fight against climate change.

Let me return boycotting the oil company. First, if you want substantial change you must be willing to sacrifice something to gain something. The oil industry like every other industry in the economy is based in consumption. An organized well planned strategic boycott against the oil industry would take some imagination and serious cooperation. You’d have to have members drive strictly for essential use only. A public education campaign to get non-member to participate in solidarity. Coordinate with other socially conscious organization to join the boycott. Use public transportation, car pool, ride bikes, walk, anything that can be thought of to reduce oil consumption. People can be very resourceful and imaginative, especially in an organization like a CU, where member participation is expect and encouraged.

The civil action against government collusion with the oil companies could also be addressed by the CU. The approach would be different in some ways. The CU could help coordinate public protest, legal action and civil disobedience, if it comes to that kind of protesting. Environmental groups would be a natural ally to this kind of protesting. This could lead to making demands to the government to invest in clean forms of energy, mass public transit and environmentally responsible regulation with real teeth. The organization doesn’t have to be strictly about controlling consumption as a tactic but I have reasons for basing the principles of consumerism at the CU core.

There is a lot of time and money spent on controlling the minds of men/women. Ad Agencies, PR firms, think tanks and other institution that are dedicated in influencing public opinion. There are industries that do nothing but compile and sell consumer spending trend information to companies. Every time you answer a survey about a product, you are helping to create a demographic that is used to market a product, to manufacture a sense of want, for a product that you most likely don’t need. The entire economic system is based on the pseudo-science of getting the most out of the consumers while giving the least amount in return. This is why I advocate for Consumer Unions and the education of members is vital to breaking the vicious cycle of the manufacture of want.

After BP disaster in the Gulf, the company started running ads, stating how much they were sorry and how concerned they were for all the damage they did to the fishing industry and the way of life down along Gulf. The truth is BP along with Halliburton fought against having to pay any kind of restitution, so how sincere do you think those commercials really were? The did have to pay a huge price but their profits far exceeded the penalty, which, leaves the company ready and willing to commit more disasters because if their making billions using the same unsafe practices with profits virtually unaffected they are going to continue exploit the corrupt system. The CU could combat this injustices. The CU could advocate that a country’s resources should belong to its citizens. The citizen would easily go for a gradual switch for fossil fuels to green energy for self-preservation alone. But the fossil fuel industries CEOs are mandated, like all industry, to put investor profit above any moral guiding principles, regardless of the effects they might have on environment, humanity or the very existence of life on this planet.

I do not see a mass movement that existed like there was in the 1930’s. The fear of communism and socialism created the ground work for the New Deal. The labor movement that come out of the struggles of the great depression have been beaten almost to submission. The civil rights movements of the 50 and 60 helped to civilize the US, but all these mass movements have been crippled over time because of one under lying commonality. They did not fundamentally change the system. And it is reflected in our current political climate. Voter protection laws are starting to be challenged all around the country, anti-immigration sentiment is everywhere -a parallel to the Wilson era the RED SCARE, unlimited military and security state budgets, fascist police tactics with military arms and training are being used against the citizenry, all economic safeguards have been reduced, limited or completely eliminated, the working class and the poor have been marginalized to the point of no political influence, corporation have been granted extraordinary citizen status, working rights have been completely dismantled, unions are on the brink of extinction. All of these things are happing because the system is still fundamentally corrupt. Regulations, Laws and policies are just targets for the ruling class to take aim and systematically dismantle within the prevision of the system.

I’ve gotten off course but the fundamental strategies of the CU would be the strategy of corporation. Undermine markets to achieve optimal benefit. When I say optimal benefit, I just mean a fair, reasoned and justifiable system that provides for as many people as possible but still exist as a market. The oil companies have had their hand on the throats of American politics and public policy since the first discoveries of oil in the west. The fossil fuel industry shouldn’t even exist. That is a product that should be completely controlled by the people and Consumer Unions could be a vehicle for such a vision to become reality.

My political thought lately has been mostly focused on how self-identifying minorities can be protected by the system of government. (Self-identifying because if the labeling of a minority is required from outside, it takes a struggle just to get that.)

Chancellor Merkel's push for federalism in Ukraine is one of the points that should be included in such a system--decentralization. The others that I've thought of are over-representation of minorities (meaning a minority can get something done), under-representation of majorities (meaning a majority can be stopped under some circumstances), and voluntary compromise. That last is what's required to be able to have any of the others, but it can't be formalized.

Scotland is going to have a referendum on Sep. 18th on whether to secede from the UK. I would see secession as a sign of failure, but the problem Scotland has is that it doesn't have the political power (under-representatoin of the majority in this case) to keep London from draining it dry.

The plastic bits in toothpaste probably also pose the same problem as the microbeads in makeup. I now listen to the show through WCPT, and heard that Illinois has just banned those microbeads because the plastic is accumulating in Lake Michigan.

That's odd. I see no boat ad. I use ABP (Ad Block Pro) and DuckDuckGo, and also Firefox as you do... might want to look into whichof the other 2 things I do that you do not. my guess is something is tracking you, and it saw the boat part in the article and added the ad accordingly....

I agree Johnnie, and I hate the Clintons with a bloody passion. Before casting a vote for Hillary, I'd vote for Bozo the Clown.

Dave Thurman, I've had similar thoughts many, many times. Kinda creepy, isn't it!

And Thom, I wholeheartedly agree with Mr. Jeffer (post #3). With due respect, you need to call out the Democrats a lot more. That the Republicans are an evil bunch of sleazebags is a given; I think you'd have very little disagreement on that from this crowd. But Mr. J isn't the first person to point out that over the past several decades, the Dems have not been friends of the working classes either. I for one am sick of the Democrats. Everytime I get e-mails from Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid, they get deleted... Immediately! - AIW