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ckrob, it's like we're going back to the 1800s when rich men like Rockefeller, and Carnagie were making more money than could ever spend while their workers were barely getting by while working 16 hours a day 6 days a week. This gave rise to worker's unions. My union, The UA, was founded in October,1889. My local, UA Plumbers Local # 17 was chartered in Feb. 1890. The problem now is working people, whose financial interests are not served by by the rebublican politicians they vote for, vote for them anyway because they dodge the issue of personal income by saying they're anti- abortion or " I'm pro Gun" or anything else that will seduce a vote from the hand and the wages from the pockets of working class people. When it gets bad enough the people will once again rise up and demand their fair share again. They will also demand laws and a constitution that represent the people, not the corporations.
While "unemployment" is down, "under-employment" is up and on the rise -- ask any recent graduate. The economic fundamentals have not changed; and to mix a metaphor, they are akin to our physical infrastructure, broken and falling. This time around it will not be a housing bubble but rather the realization by the 97% that they have been taken for a ride again and, I believe, they will not let the politicans decide the outcome as usual. Hopefully, the 2014 mid-terms might provide a foretaste of how we might avoid a collapse in 2016.
This week's Le Monde has an article that uses the term "post-constitutional" in reference to the U.S.
Can we the people prevent a "packed convention" should our billionaires allow one to meet?
The recent Supreme Court decision (Hobby Lobby) should be considered not so much a religious rights issue as it is a massive, additional power-shift to the wealthy who own the already too powerful corporations. This follows the similarly purposed decision of Citizens United.
I feel compelled, for the first time since posting here, to make a public apology. My "Matt the rat" comment constituted a personal attack and was completely out of line. This is precisely what I've criticized Ken Ware for, time and again. I hate being a hypocrite, so I thought I'd wipe the slate clean once and for all. - Aliceinwonderland
Makes me proud of the state where I was born and raised, and lived the first 41 years of my life. And I agree, this IS the most important political issue of our time! - Aliceinwonderland
it would appear that the Supreme Court decision on Hobby Lobby may violate the Cilil Rights law by discriminatiing against women
Have you ever been told to leave a restaurant not come back? I have. In 1974 in Memphis Tennessee while working as a plumber apprentice in an old warehouse that we were putting heat in, the warehouse
workers were comming in at lunch time with some good smelling boxed lunches. I asked where they got them. They told me that they got them down the street at a restaurant about 200 feet away .I went there, placed my order got my lunch and then was told by the woman behind the counter "take this out of here and dont come back. I don't want no trouble in here". I had not done or said anything to provoke this response. It made me feel bad deep inside that I was not wanted there and I couldn't go back there for lunch because of the color of my skin. I'm white and the woman and the other people in the restaurant were black. It was racial discrimination pure and simple and a violation of my civil
ights. It was a lesson in how wrong any racial discrimination is. If it has never happened to you, you just don't know how it akes people feel.
There you go again Kend. You shoulda quit while you were ahead. - AIW
Marc, you crack me up.
Alice, why is it that Germany has completely been given a free pass on what they did. Which by the way I agree with we must move on. yet Americans and Canadians are still are given such a hard time hundreds of years later about moving into Indians or Mexican territories.
Well hello AIM. Yep I am back on here. glad to see you are still sharing your perspective on some semi interesting social/economical topics.
I agree "Obstruct" is a much better fit...Drives the point more directly.
Cheers!
Kend, thanks for your valuable input. Your Canadian heritage gives you a unique perspective on this topic. - AIW
last weekend a man about 80 years old and I got into a argument about Muslims. i was going to hire a Muslim man and he told me that I shouldn't trust them. I found this very interesting as he immigrated from Germany. Germany the country that about 80 years ago, when he was born, murdered millions of Jews. i asked him if I should trust him.
when I was A boy in school just 45 years ago there was only whites in my middle class School. It is far from that for my grandchildren. In a lot of ways we have been very excepting of other races. But yes we have a long way to go. With that said I am Canadian. This is where the underground railway that sent thousands of slaves to freedom came so maybe we are a little ahead of America.
Nachos, don't you mean "obstructing" rather than "instructing"? In that context, the former makes sense; not so much the latter.
I still can hardly believe you're back! - AIW
Hey Sandles, glad you found my messages. Would it be possible to do the chat room on a weekend? That's when our time is most flexible.
Your prediction as to the future of this blog sounds mighty gloomy. Oh how I wish I could dismiss it as an over-reaction! But given the environment we now find ourselves in, there's not much we can take for granted anymore.
I'm so angry at the FCC's impotence I could scream. That damned institution has been worthless, offering us little if any support in our struggle to keep the public airwaves open and democratic, as they were meant to be. We're losing our democracy, one paper cut at a time. It's stunning how petty and mean these oligarchs can be, like cutting off Thom's air conditioning! Wow. I really don't know what else to say but "Wow".
This blog has been great. I know that I've been pretty ornery much of the time. I'm passionate about so many of the issues Thom brings up, and some people can really trigger me. But it still has been great. I've connected and built rapport with many wonderful folks here; intelligent, articulate, eloquent, loving, courageous free spirits! They inspire me on a daily basis. They help me stay sane by reminding me that I'm not the "lone ranger". There really are kindred spirits all around this country who I've never met, many residing far, far away, who share my values and vision while struggling against the same adversarial forces. You guys know who you are.
Guess I've rambled long enough. In closing, I'd just like to thank Thom for all his fabulous work, not the least of which has been providing us this forum from which to debate, commiserate and vent. - Alice IW
Welcome back, Nachos! When I first saw your post, I had to rub my eyes 'cuz I thought I was hallucinating. I don't think I'd been back on this forum as much as a week last fall before you disappeared. I figured something was up. Sorry to hear your family has been having such a rough time. I can relate; my mother suffered both dementia and incontinence at the end of her life. Yeah, it was difficult. Not a happy memory.
Anyway, I'm thrilled you're back. You were missed. This forum can use more of your kind of energy, with some of the (ahem) newcomers in this bloody circus. I don't know if you've had the time or inclination to follow what's been going on here, even on an occasional basis, but it's been lively. Always is when the right wingers climb onboard! Gives the rest of us plenty of pap to chew on and spit out. - Aliceinwonderland
Oh the tangled web we weave.
Yes racism is an issue, and I don't like it either, but as long as man chooses to instruct civility by means of Law under a Capitalist driven, Robber Barron run, economic caste system, there will always be racism. However that being said I personally do agree that a person does have "the right" to form an ignorant (racist) "opinion".
You're right Thom, the Civil Rights Act was just the beginning...just as cutting the head off a dandelion is just the beginning of weed control; if you don't destroy the roots, the weed grows back. The roots of racism have not been destroyed; sadly they've grown deeper and stronger. We now have a generation of people who believe that racism is their Constitutional right, that telling them they can't be racist is a violation of their freedoms.
Thom, we only cut the head off the racism dandelion; the roots are alive and well...AND GROWING!
A political bill of rights is no longer sufficient. We need a second bill of rights. An "economic" bill of rights.
DAM -- Are you making stuff up? Have you studied any of the explosions of much smaller electrical substations? They destroyed buildings in Westchester here in LA County. Those large capacitors blowing up can almost be confused with a bomb. I thought there were blackouts on 9/11. Do we know what seismometers in the area measured? Were there not some fireballs?
In any case, I was just repeating what one of the 200 signers said. Both he and I agree there should be more investigation.
My real question, is there not somebody with a little bit of money that can run various simulations of the buildings and the forces effecting their destruction?
I think we can come up with even more scientists etc that deny global warming (fortunately that group is declining).
A few years back, a large plane (maybe a 747) landed on top of a small aircraft (maybe a beechcraft). There was a lot of fire. An eyewitness called into the radio station I was listening to and said he saw a small missile hit the plane. I remember the radio announcer saying who let that guy on.
Pal -- I thought the ruling elite wrote the repug playbook.
When the dems were able to get their wounded stimulus package by the repugs, I thought it was token bullshit. It should have been $2 trillion. The wounded package was $800 billion with at least $200 billion in tax cuts. I was stunned by the results. We went from losing 700,000 jobs a month at increasing rate to gaining 200,000 jobs a month. 200,000 is far less than we need, but now I would not call it token bullshit.
I think the passing of card check would help more than any voting for greens. Admittedly, I would be scared that voting for greens or whatever would create a more fascist govt. You say it would get people into the streets. It might, but I am more concerned it would enable a security state that would last for a thousand years e.g. the dark ages. The people in the streets would be the excuse to create the security state.
Tom 1945 -- Thanks for that info. I didn't know there was enough ozone around to convert the methane in only 20 years.
You should also mention that it takes a lot more energy to convert water to water vapor. As I remember, it is 512 vs 80. This absorption of energy by evaporation also keeps the temperature steady. However, the water vapor creates tornadoes, floods, etc.
The billionnaires lassoed the American Dream and rode of into the sunset with it.
MMmmNACHOS,
My G-ma ended her own life at age 87 after 8 failed hip surgeries that left her with a crushed sciatic nerve and in constant agony. It is hard. I totally agree Death with Dignity should be a civil right!