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With all due respect Thom, you are railing against Bush for torture, right? But you say not one word about Obama continue those programs, in fact expanding them. And Obama now claims the mantle that he can assassinate his own people. Which he has done. So how is it helpful to rail against an administration who has not had power for four years? Why isn't this administration held to account for furthering ALL of Bush'es programs, military, etc.
Please tell us why these programs have not been stopped when he had all three houses for two years, he did nothing but hire GE and Wall Street to sit at HIS table.
The Germans are not ready to pay for countries like Greek and Spain, which actually suffer from austerity. And I understand that perfectly. Greek did insane military overspending. Exact the same mistake as under Bush : shooting out our treasury in Iraq for nothing. South Europe is just as backwards as the south of the U.S. and this goes even for Italy: The Italians saw their Silvio Berlusconi was a crook though elected him again. Why? Because those European southerners are backward conservative Catholics. Same idiots like in our south. A few reasonable liberals, the rest are hicks. How they solve their problems is neither my business, nor the German's. But I don't want the Germans to waste money on them. I want the Germans to go on as good Keynesian example for the U.S. and you people bet they will! Why weren't the Germans ready to follow us to Iraq? Because they're smart.
President Obama's record is swell: The major terrorist is dead -- General Motors still alive. And he did his great work although being handcuffed in the House. From there comes the Republican shortfall, gridlock and filibustering. The Republican crooks try to destroy the economy, to blame it on the president. Dear Americans, if you make a mistake, by voting or non-voting, you might book these Gangsters for 4 years. If you for example blame the gas prices on the president, which are caused by corporations who work for the Republicans. It is a Republican trap. You're not going to fall for that Republican monkey business.
student loan debt has been securitized by Wall Street
Austerity in broadcast news is also trickle down. The less informed or misinformed the citizens are the better for those implementing austerity. It goes hand in hand, the corporate influenced media is doing it's job for the top of the piramyd while the general public is busy with diversions from reality. Soon the diversions will be too expensive. Perhaps then people will finally pay attention and react.
"Whenever the people are well-informed, they can be trusted with their own government." T.J.
The tide will turn when those who thirst for democracy figure out how to, "well inform," the electorate, more than big money and Fox, "well-misinform," them.
Also it might help if guys like the Kochs would take their damn medications!
How many times do we have to prove that austerity and budget cutting DOES NOT WORK? We understand how it works. And we know why our "leaders" keep pushing it. But why doesn't the electorate understand it, especially if they've lived through a recession or two?
Paul Ryan will never learn, but independent and progressive Americans can learn or have learned that austerity causes deeper recessions. That's why I am volunteering with Rob Zerban's campaign in Wisconsin. Rob is running against Paul Ryan in Wisconsin's 1st Congressional District. I'm also working at one of the recall offices to help in the recall effort to oust Scott Walker from the governorship. We have to get these crazies out of office!
The tide will turn when these irresponsible politicians are democratically replaced or when money is removed from the electoral equation or when pigs fly.
Hey Clarissa, as soon as the "Progressives" or "Democrats" show that they have any realization at all that by far the biggest threat to this country is the one trillion dollar a year shortfall in revenues, then I might actually take them seriously. But people like you continue to deny that there is a problem and come up with solutions like the "Bufett Rule" which closes the gap by a whopping 5 billion a year. Give me a break!!
Stop smoking weed and realize that this cannot continue very much longer, and tax increases are not the answer. Even the Germans, who you so fondly point at as being the country to aspire to, are forcing austerity measures on overspending EU countries like Ireland, Greece, and Italy. If the Germans could force austerity measures on the US they would.
The party is over, wake up and smell the roses.
The purpose of the Republican position on non-assistance for students, our future leaders, is the dumbing down of our younger generation. Those who are not able to intellectually intellectually think about the affects of right wing regressive Republican positions on the future of this country will not know how to vote for Congressmen / women who not only pass laws that affect all of us, but as important, the Senate passes or rejects the selection by the President of Supreme court nominees.
In fact many of those who have already been dumbed down have been elected to Congress as Republicans supported by those who hold their financial leash, ALEC. The under-educated are a favorite target. They listen to their peer group, which has no valid support for any of their opinions. This is much easier for the comfortably stupid, which is much easier than seeking independent information about political thought and responsible decisions.
A major issue every voter, young or old, needs to look closely at are the rules regarding super pacs facilitated by the Citizens United decision by the Republican majority in the Supreme Court. There are so many problems caused by this Supreme Court "legislation" that I encourage those who are not familiar with this decision to Google it and learn how this decision could be the undoing of our political future.
Regarding student responsibility for education I feel everyone owes something to our country beyond money. I think even the wealthy need to become more aware for what we stand. This service may be military, Peace Corp, or any one of a number of services many of which have not yet been developed. Monitoring and administering these must consider the time element that would be required, hopefully, working for your father's presidential run would not be included.
SUPPORT CONTINUED EDUCATION OF OUR POPULATION, IT IS OUR LIFE BLOOD
"Procelliusmetaciously ugly"? I'm not even going to try.
Sharnhorst is an idiot. Sexual orientation should be taught by physicians??
Guns should be left in cars?? No danger there!
First lets get something straight. The US bankers and the ludicrous theories of Ayn Rand are the cause of the worlds financial problems and deficits have nothing to do with it. Europe is not the cause of the US problems that is just current US nonsense trying to transfer the blame from themselves.
The problems are getting worse because the economies are driven by consumers and consumers are having their spending ability severely reduce on a continuous basis. Banks are neither job creators nor producers. They produce nothing.
My favourite British historian wrote just after WW2 a brilliant comment on the 1929 depression:-
" The depression had little to do with the preceeding war,though men did not think so at the time. The depression was started by the collapse of a speculative boomin the US; and the unemployment which followed was swelled by the failure of purchasing power to keep pace with the increased resources of production. Everyone understands this now; just as they know the way out of a depression is to increase government spending. In 1929 hardly anyone knew it".
I find it startling that a comment in a history book should be so clear. The present situation is a carbon copy of the mistakes of the past.
If France turns to the socialism it might begin a real solution to Europes problems. Of Course, that would be no solution for the US. The US is determined to turn itself into the France of the 18th Century and is well on the way to succeeding.
Many colleges were free Like the U of C till REagan threw that out. CHicago had a free TEaches College in 60 's and beyond Its an investment in our childrens and our countries future. More eeducated folks, more taxes collected, less umemployment paid out, the more productive we are as workers.
Trickle-down Economics leads to a trickle-up (but not very far up) recession. This then calls for Trickle-Down austerity measures which lead to trickle-up social unrest? What then? Trickle-down police and military force to quiet the masses? If so, that could lead to trickle-up revolution.
I agree, they are fools!
Trickle down has never worked over the long term and it's never worked here. As the wealthy get ever wealthier they get rid of more rules with less and less transparency, eventually trashing the economy because no one knows the real extent of the risk -until it's too late.
The notion that the free market is somehow inherently benevolent is one of the stupidest ideas in history. And the GOP's insistence that we cure the disease with it's cause will doom the American economy and the world's. Unfortunately too many voters believe the BS -I simply cannot understand why. What does it take?
Knowing several students who fell into the student loan trap, a good majority cannot repay their loans. Not paying a debt that you don't agree with is a form of civil disobedience. And of course I agree with Thomas Jefferson that all schooling should be free. We provide free education until the student is 18 and old enough to start collecting debt, then with no other way to pay, the student becomes a debt-slave wage-earner and risks becoming trapped under debt slavery for the rest of their lives with no real chance at a fair shot. Its even harder now to crawl out from debt slavery since bankruptcy doesn't get rid of student loans, there for life!
I just heard in the top-of-the-hour news that the UK is planning to continue its austerity in response to its austerity-caused recession. Fools.
Sometimes even what looks like nature is man-made. As I look out my window at work I see trees and grass, but it's all landscaping, and that was someone's idea too. Someone had to figure out how to get that result without later suffering landslides, stagnant puddles, cracked pavement from tree roots, etc.
Thom pointing out how you and you're wife are dealing with a disease and the current health care system seems quite appropriate. It personalizes it, and to me that makes the weight of your words all that more pressing.
N
We are separating from a bunch of criminal fascists, which sadly occupied the good ol' Gallant Old Party. Racist minds, election-fraudsters, liars, who have no scruples to let a helpless grandma starve. They have to be defeated, because they're ruining your country my friend.
Say, what are you smoking? Are you sort of guru? In my ears you sound like smoking weird stuff, sitting on a bed of nails and talking crazy. You cannot win an election with that kinda spiritistic noise.
We are all one is the solution to the divisions that we have created ,and now no longer serve us as they no longer work for the highest good of all.The fact that we see ourselves as seperate to life and each other is creating most if not all of the problems and all this comes from a world view that is fallacy.
The solution is to experience oneness everywhere NOW.
In our governance,
In our economics,
In our spirituality,
In our ecology,
In the education of our offspring,in everything that we put in place in our society.
Our politics is our spirituality demonstrated and keeping spirituality out of politics is one of the craziest ideas that we have come up with.
namaste
By the way NO REPUBLICAN should try again to tag any Democrat, Liberal, Progressive, or our president "marxist" ore whatever....
You better not do it, for I hit you so hard, you won't forget it. I prove you morons and twitter it out....
I feel like getting into the hot crunch mode of this campain. I am improving my strategy, willing to fight and strike even harder. Romney won't make it to presidency, but this isn't enough. Because if we shouldn't get the House too, president Obama's smartness won't help us much. We can't elect a president and then handcuff him via House! Four more years gridlock? Impossible!
President Obama is the best man we have. Though it should be clear, the heart of democracy is CONGRESS. Stop underestimating the importance of CONGRESS, people!
The Netherlands had been a pretty progressive country in the past, but they might have gone crazy....
It's all up to the voters. In democracy they decide austerity or not. If you Americans make too many stupid decisions until November, you are able to punish yourselves for decades. I hate to hear that common complaining about Congress. The voters are responsible for who gets in there. Just vote and then take it.
The average American is more interested in Dancing With the Stars than in politics. This is an open invitation to the GOP to fraud. Whoever once voted Republican in his life has no right to complain. 18% approval rate for Congress is a SCANDAL!!! If you people are so stupid to hate the heart of this democracy, you might pay a terrible price.....
The greatest nonsense is this, "We're all one": We're NOT, we're divided -- and we have to fight that out. Standing at the sidelines, just watching Dancing With the Stars, is impossible. Yes, ignorance and stupidity is being punished in life....
Back to marxism: Right now it's just a GOP-tag. The GOP is trying to tag anything that is not Republican "marxist" and that's ridiculous. Marxism is actually non-existent. You can define communism via Communistic Manifest ect, but not 'marxism'. Marx was just a philosopher and author who described the problems of his time. He uttered some ideas and tried a prognosis, but during his later years saw himself, this didn't work out. Marx himself was not dogmatic, he just described and criticized and in this he was spot-on. He was right at his time, but today you cannot solve the problems of our world with Karl Marx' ideas.
People who call themseves "marxists" are a small minority. Communism was a threat during the depression of the 30s (FDR prevented America from drifting into communism). Today's threat in America is the GOP. The GOP is extremely dogmatic, they're dominated by libertarians and this is dangerous. The libertarian ideology is just as harmful as communism. Both are extreme ideas of the 19th century and a threat to democracy. Libertarianism is a variation, a form of communism! The GOP is closer to communism than president Obama. Reagan's union policy sounded pretty much like in the Soviet Union of his time.
Both alternatives as written contain truth. The law does indeed violate the 1st, 4th, and 14th Amendments. But so what, when you're dealing with this Court's right-wing majority? My prediction is we'll see another of those 5-4 decisions upholding it.
@dianhow,
"But it will not work with voters who can think crititcally & use logic"
True--so that's 15% to 20% of American voters we don't have to worry about. :-/