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Political Ponerology, by Andrew M. Lobaczewski
I am surprised Thom brushed this book off so quickly. It is the single, most important book ever written about humanity, governments, and how they work. The nuts and bolts of sociology. A difficult read but certainly worth the effort. I highly recommend it.
Especially so I recommend it to Thom.
Parceling out oil fields from the Middle East to western countries is highway robbery and we are the equivalent of Nazi Germany and Communist Russia. We are truly a fascist-Nazi nation. We are evil and the vast majority of Americans are Satan's disciples.
Definition of Outlawery, see:
F. Pollock and F. W. Maitland, The History of English Law Before the Time of Edward I (1895, 2nd. ed., Cambridge, 1898, reprinted 1968).
The reason Trump's toupe' looks so freaky is Trump is hiding President Obama's birth certificate under it.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Libya-All-About-Oil-or-A-by-Ellen-Brown-110414-179.html
It’s all about the money and natural resources.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/How-Socialists-Built-Ameri-by-John-Nichols-110416-959.html
Socialists built America!
rladlof, I agree with you regarding Donald Trump. For the life of me, I do not understand why he's allowed to pretend that he's successful.
@IAMNOW: Thom did give his sources . . . For his observations regarding Ayn Rand source of being.
OBSERVATION: Every single person heard or mentioned in the Ayn Rand mash-up is a sociopath or displays sociopathic tendencies.
Thom, if you are going to tell such a gruesome story about Ayn Rand and the "guy who inspired" her, please make sure to back up your statements with facts and sources. It's stunningly too gross to be believed!
I don’t understand why sane or sober individuals continue to insist that the single most bankrupt person in the entire history of the known universe and the dead animal strapped to his head be given free advertising for his Reality TV show on every available media outlet.
Also consider the myth that they need to be rich because they create the jobs. Maybe in China or India, but not here.
Help spread the message to OUR President !
Mr President , Go on National TV! Use the microphone and Talk to America and tell Everone Why We need the Debt Ceiling lifted, and lay out the idea of usig the new credit to "INVEST in AMRICA !!" "TO Create NEW Jobs !!" The "Private sector" won't "SO I WILL !!" Make this case Mr President and the people will follow IF You Follow Through!!!
We Need Infrastructure projects in EVERY State, City & Town Lets put America back to work with this New Money! Do IT !! Mr President !! National TV PRIME TIME TV !!
Thanks Everyone who reeads this! PLEASE!! Help Spread the word !! Carpenter Jeff
In Wisconsin, we have the Dictator of Dictators, in Mr. Walker who claims to be our Governor. I refuse to call him such as he doesn't govern; he dictatees. He is probably on the phone with Michigan's gov. daily. We too just 'lost' a very close State Court election when the Repubs 'found' 7500 votes after the liberal apparently won by a couple hundred votes. Now Walker is much safer in keeping his anti union, state busting 'budget' law! Too bad for Wisconsin. I agree Thom, we are on the path to no middle class in America. We have to fight to get rid of the Republican rule!
In Florida we have a dictator named Rick Scott who had charges against him.He pleaded the 5th amenment 75 times.Got elected and gave away a high speed rail system from Tampa to Orlando to another state. We need to impeach him.
I was just going to comment that the driving philosophical force behind the unabashed takeover of our country's resources - with pathetically little pushback until, hopefully, now - is Ayn Rand's "Objectivist" philosophy, and now I see that Thom has done an excellent segment on the subject today. Her appeal transcends intelligence for folks who, ironically, deify intelligence and cultivate a cold inability to empathize with the suffering of others. As a student (more than 40 years ago) I came under the spell of her exaltation of narcissism; it inspired me to major in philosophy. I very shortly came to understand how shaky the intellectual foundations of her philosophy are (not to mention its moral repugnance). Ayn Rand was - or aspired to be - the kind of individual a corporation now legally also is: a sociopath, and it was enlightening to discover that her admirers are very influencial in our government: Alan Greenspan, Clarence Thomas, Rand Paul, Paul Ryan, et al. One could make a case that the naive assumption that people are too moral to operate from purely selfish motives in the role of "public servant" has made us lazy about our own civic duties (i.e paying attention so we don't leave a huge mess for our children and grandchildren to cope with). Humanitarians of all stripes, as you state very well, have an obligation to consider one another's well being. Ayn Rand's followers are seduced by the "freedom" of complete lack of moral responsibility for others, and the consequences are clear in the raid of our country's financial base and exemplified in W's assurances that the only sacrifice we needed to make for our country post 9-11 was to continue spending. Makes sense if all you care about - as a matter of principle - is maximizing your own profit, since accumulating as much wealth as possible by whatever means possible is the mark of your worth as a human being in that universe.
I was watching TCM (1790) and “Death of a Scoundrel” with George Sanders and Yvonne De Carlo. George Sanders was the scoundrel and very similar to the scoundrels who are America’s fascist-Nazis. He could never have enough money. He had to cheat everyone. If you have a chance to watch this movie, please watch it and see the similarities with today’s fascist-Nazis.
There is "No Difference between all of the major the policies of the Obama administration and the policies that would've been put in place by John McCain." - Chris Hedges
Really? I can think of 6 impossible things before breakfast also - how about; There is no difference between what Chris Hedges would of said if McCain/Palin would of won the election and Obama would of remained a Senator.
Prove me wrong.
You can't prove negatives. Or Assume that they are true. Or believe that anyone can predict history. If you do, then I have something to sell you that will make you very rich.....!
.... America polices have been supporting dictatorship for years..Scratch! Scratch ! ( Why) Dictator stuff is Just waitting for the right time to spring up when people are ready to say Yeah! But don't have a clue, Its a fashion show. Wow! I'll vote for you everyone tells me so, just look at that crowed of screaming manias ! Will we be fooled again and again, Most likey! We love to be dizzieled. We love pack leader's of show and wealth. Slowly we turn, Step by step,Inch by inch, Why look Niagara Falls ! Its a Brick in the wall. Thom Another Great Show and Reporting. "Bringing Home!
The GOP World - Group Of Profiteers (GOP)! The GOP does not have the interest of the American People in mind - it is all about Self-Interest.
When are people going to wake up to this most fundamental fact? Why does a majority, any majority, so easily fall for the con man! It happens in Religion, in Politics, in Economics, in almost any sphere of human activity. It is almost a truism!
Cons knows how to fleece their victims. All they have to do is exploit weakness, emotions, and fear, and turn that into a very lucrative payoff.
The Con is now gone big time. Think of the Karl Roves, the Koch Brothers, and the GOPers. And yes they are the Cons of Cons, and they have a lot of MONEY! They own the MEDIA! And they LIE like the best of cons.
And the American people are being taken in like a bunch of sheep. And like sheep we all being led to slaughter.
When are the American people going to wake up here? The only winners in this game, short term, will be the corporate fascists who are stealing the wealth of the American People, destroying American Democracy, and basically emasculating the rights of the American people. When and if the American people ever do wake up, it may just be too late to realize that we will no longer have a Democracy, a country or even a viable society to live in.
Last November the American People got conned big time and are now reaping the whirlwind of exactly what the Group Of Profiteers were really up to. And what is even more amazing is that most of them still believe in this Big Con! They simply do not want to accept the fact that they were stupid enough to have been conned in the first place. That is the only explanation I have for this, especially when these cons are now busy dismantling the very programs that benefit the majority of these very Americans, and then transferring that wealth to the rich corporatists who are divesting that wealth in other countries.
The BIG LIE! There are many defenders. You’ll even read them in this blog. They are all very persuasive. But ask yourself this very fundamental question: If the GOP con states that is it is a GOOD thing to eliminate Medicare (Social Security, Taxes, Laws etc), who does it fundamentally benefit – YOU who is or will be the beneficiary of this program, or is it whomever is paying the GOP con to convince you of this lie?
This is the BIG LIE – the BIG CON!
This is easy. You have money in a checking account. Someone approaches you on Sunday morning after church services and states that they have a scheme to double your money in 3 months. All you have to do is to give them that money so they can then place it in their account. Would you fall for it? Maybe. Especially when the con takes place at your local church! And some do. And this is exactly the GOP cons are doing. After all, the message is coming from our Senators, our Representatives, our Ministers, our Judges, and our Media! They wouldn’t all be lying to us. They wouldn’t all be misleading us. Really? Maybe 30-40 years ago when the GOPers still had ethical and moral values. But no more! Most, if not all, of these GOPers are now wholly owned by the new corporate fascists who are busily working to create a new fascist state.
And their paid minions are busily spreading the BIG LIE. It is all about MONEY now, and the GOPers have LOTS of it!
Wake up America. Demand an accounting. That is if you are not sheep.
(" A dictatorship. . . coming to your town soon.") It's what America wants and it's what America voted for. Had America wanted to retain it's democracy they would have fought to retain it.
Pennies for dollars! Cardboard boxes for houses! Scratching for the crumbs "if" they fall from the rich man's table!
Back to work you infants and elderly!
Back to work you poor, miserable fools!
The ideals comparison is great. Napoleon, like our former Republican Decider, was great at bankrupting his nation due to over-extended militaristic adventures. That out of control French military budget led directly to Jefferson's successful 1803 Louisiana Purchase at 3 large cents per acre.
The overthrow of Benton Harbors Democracy is too close to all who care about Representative Govt. I think the Marines need to be sent in to protect the citizens from Snyder's Grande Armee.
I welcome the Libertarian nightmare to come to Michigan. While I feel sorry for the people in Michigan, I don't live there and don't plan on ever going, so let the people get what they voted for. When the experment fails as we all predicted, we'll have an example right at home to show people why these failed ideas should not be implemented. The main problem I see with this is that the truth will probably never see the light of day other than on Thom's show or something like that.
The following might be of interest:
My husband and I in our late sixties are pretty"well off" under the present circumstances. Old rickety, but paid off house, small pensions, Soc. Sec., Medicare, and additional health insurance as a retirement benefit from the places where we worked. What makes me sad is that we have come to the conclusion that we, just pre-babyboomer, truly are the "lucky" generation. No wars affected us personally, we did not suffer through a depression. We grew up middle class, modest wishes, but never really wanting for anything. Got excellent affordable educations. Oil and food were inexpensive for a long time, and the "entitlements" (to which we contributed ourselves for many decades) will most likely last our life times.
These times, we feel, will never come again. Anyone born middle class, 10 to 15 years after us, will never have the decent lives or retirement we had and have. We are not rich, but having no debts goes a long way toward living without worries.
What truly blows me away is that for years now, younger generations have been voting, if they vote at all, for people who blatantly have no interest in their well being: Now or in future. Books like Thomas Frank's "What's the matter with Kansas", and others, clearly and repeatedly, point this out.
The post from shayes mentions the apathy and disinterest of some people. I would go further and say it is stupidity. Years of underfunding schools and underpaying teachers have created a dumbed down population which appears to have lost the ability to think, As an example: Why would anyone argue against universal health care? This is the norm in most of western countries. It is a matter of basic consideration or "duty of care", we all should feel for each other. It has nothing to do with "socialism", "communism" or "fascism" (the fact that I have heard the term: "fascist communist" shows you the basic ignorance). It is simply a humanitarian issue. Even a Christian one.
Corporate fatcats stand at the sidelines egging on "rebels without a cause", funding their little tea parties, while handing them pink slips, and shipping their jobs overseas. When the desperation about being unemployed is large enough, you may get your job back, perhaps, at $5 an hour. Because there will be no union to plea your cause and fight for a fair wage.
The general energy and drive for a better tomorrow, many of us "children of the sixties" had, has now been rewritten in the history books as "subversive". Texas is rewriting history in school books. Evolution is now for "heathens" and the earth has become 5000 years "young". Years of promoting a diet of cheap fast food has made ever younger people fat and sick. If you want to be completely cynical, perhaps the plan is that they won't live long enough to ever need "entitlements". And health care costs will be prohibitive for this group and refused under the term: "preexisting condition".
If this isn't "1984", I don't know what is. And most people appear to have no clue that they are being bamboozled about the socalled threats to our security, while, under educated with no future prospects, they are being herded into the armed services and losing life and limb while singing their last patriotic song; "spreading democracy" around the world. Hurrah! USA, Number One.
It isn't and probably never will be again. And it is tragic.