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Tom,
Can you get Chris Hedges on to talk about his book "Death of the Liberal Class"?
I just started reading the book & highly recommend it.
It's not class envy, but an all out war by the Corporations against the lower classes, & there is no longer a Democratic party representing the common people.
I would like to mention it is not the government. It is government; also, known as we the people. I want "we the people" picking winners and losers. The real debate is who owns government.
I don't want the Government to pick winners or losers, but I do want them to make, maintain and keep the playing field level. I want the Government to protect Unions as well as they protect corporations. Its not even picking winners or losers, its running a strong and stable country... is that so much to ask?
N
In all fairness, why is polygamy always talked about in terms of one man and multiple women? If this fellow was completely honest with his point of view, he wouldn't be talking about women being smart enough to make their own decisions, no he would be talking about adults being smart enough to make their own decision. Of course I doubt he can wrap his head around the concept of one women having multiple husbands. Though somehow that makes more sense, because then one women would have more potential sources of income to raise her children from a genetically diverse pool.
Though it seems to be quite out of the social norm, no matter how you look at it. However, there are lots of arguments that probably make one's head spin on both sides.
N
Consume, consume, consume... its the corporate mission statement. If you're not a gluten someone else is going to swallow your share, don't stop to think, just take take take.
Its sad, but true. You know Thom when you watch those old movies, you should also listen for what the off hand conversations of saving vs consumerism is, bet you might find more talk about saving then buying the latest greatest. I bet you could even pinpoint the change in dialog matching the rise of home television sets and the need to sell sell sell.
N
Your friend, Tom Friedman of the NYTimes, had some new magic bullets to cure our (USA) ills and bring us back to the future world that China has transformed into. He was interviewed on NPR about his new book. His solutions include cutting back on Social Security and having US workers produce 10 times the number of goods per unit time than the Chinese are producing now. He is an amazingly simple minded person. He speaks "Grandiosese" language with no detailed solutions. I distinctly had the impression that worker slavery might suit his needs adequately.
I have just returned from Kabul where I spent a month working with the Afghan midwives at Rabia Balkhi Women's Hospital. To pull out now would be an absolute disaster. Yes there is corruption in Afghanistan but there is also corruption in the US. Corruption is how humans do business in the absence of structures to prevent it. Corruption is not effective and it will decrease as models that work are put in place in partnership with Afghans. The focus of progressives must be to fight corruption in the US. A constitutional amendment to prevent corporate funding of elections is vital.
Just like the economy, the situation in Afghanistan is not good because of the years of the Bush administration where policy was based on economic benefits for those who hold economic power. But it takes more courage to work with a situation and improve it than to walk away.
http://www.truth-out.org/saving-social-security-stopping-obamas-next-bad-deal66099
Can we save social security?
The stench in the United States is unbearable.
Smells of America
I want to say to you in this open letter that I am deeply upset. Yes, I have been critical of my country and from my posts you, too, can sense my criticism but I tell it like I perceive it. What makes me deeply upset are the subtle rumors, probably by non-Americans, that America smells like human arm pits. If people are going to be critical of my country, they need to be honest and truthful in their assessment of the smells of America. I do not believe that America smells like human arm pits!
If people want an honest and truthful assessment of the smells of America, they must take the time and go outside to fill up their nostrils with the smell of napalm in the morning and the smell of burning human flesh in the evening. The smells of America are napalm and burning human flesh. These smells are my olfactory perception of America.
Week of December 20 – 26, 2010
A Joyous Season
As the days dwindle down to the birth of our Lord and Savior, let us reflect on why Christmas is a joyous season in our country. We are the leader in the sales of weaponry and mass destruction that will kill God’s children; we are the leader in corruption, hatred, and lies; and we are the leader in mass murders and war crimes. Yes, Americans are very joyous for the coming Christmas season. We are ten years into a one hundred year war in the Middle East with a goal to annihilate 6.3 billion people and have Leo Strauss’ dream come true with a planet of five hundred people. America’s manifest destiny will then be completed.
Information is power. Our American government wants to destroy sources of information, such as Wilkileaks, Julian Assange, Thom Hartmann, Rachel Maddow, Rob Kall, Arianna Huffington, Justin Raimondo, Ray McGovern, Richard Clark, and PD America to name some sources of many sources. The ending of Internet access will delight the conservative crazies and many Blue Dog Democrats.
http://original.antiwar.com/kevin-zeese/2010/12/19/deceit-and-truth-are-feeding-resistance-to-us-militarism/
A love affair with dishonesty!
http://www.stripes.com/blogs/ombudsman/ombudsman-1.8931/now-comes-don-t-read-don-t-tell-1.129107
Just remain stupid is the goal of our federal government.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/U-S-Taxpayer-Dollars-Kill-by-Ralph-Lopez-101217-967.html
Americans are killing Americans!!!
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Obama-s-Afghan-Strategy--by-Allen-L-Roland-101218-965.html
The sell out of our troops!
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Corporate-America-s-New-Pl-by-Richard-Clark-101218-621.html
Screwed again!!!
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Corruption-is-slowly-killi-by-Adnan-Al-Daini-101217-897.html
Democracy’s death!
“It's sad to look toward the next two years as a series of "cave-ins" by Obama, which is what I expect will happen as he inflicts his deranged bi-partisan proclivities upon Americans who had no clue that it would mean giving in more than Republicans expected, like his sabotaging the future of Social Security by defunding it.” - Rob Kall
“We are facing the end of safety nets in the United States of Mortal Sin.” - Gerald
The only hope for this country is to become a socialistic nation where the Golden Rule is practiced on a daily basis.
Accidentally repeated on Blackberry
The only hope for this country is to elect Bernie Sanders or Russ Feingold in 2012. We have nothing to lose (Supreme Court will self-implode as it is now constituted). Put a fork in him. Obama is done.
Accidentally repeated on Blackberry
Accidentally repeated on Blackberry
Accidentally repeated on Blackberry
Who are we kidding. There has been a coop by the rich to take over the Country and they're almost done. They don't want government regulation or taxes, they don't want government period. They are getting they're way and there's no will in the Country to stop them. The party's over. I'm retired, but most of you will become the working poor.
@fatfax, chances are little and none that Obama will be in the Oval Office after January 19, 2013. He is history!!!
Another comment for December 18, 2010
The defense budget has now ballooned to $725 billion that we know at this point. However, we do not know what is under the table. Is it another $725 billion? Average Americans will pay this bill so the American rich and their fat asses are protected. The rich received another tax break; yet they are the people who should be paying a higher percentage of the taxes because they have the most to lose. Personally, average Americans would be better off living in a socialist environment.
Another comment for December 18, 2010
The defense budget has now ballooned to $725 billion that we know at this point. However, we do not know what is under the table. Is it another $725 billion? Average Americans will pay this bill so the American rich and their fat asses are protected. The rich received another tax break; yet they are the people who should be paying a higher percentage of the taxes because they have the most to lose. Personally, average Americans would be better off living in a socialist environment.
December 18, 2010
The party of no!!!
http://themoderatevoice.com/95278/the-winter-of-our-discontent-republicans-are-singing-let-it-no-let-it-no-let-it-no/
Julian Assange will be imprisoned for life!!!
http://consortiumnews.com/2010/121610.html
The world is mocking the United States of Mortal Sin.
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/LL16Ak02.html
"Fox news" is not news it is the Nazi Fox Reich "Fox politische paramilitärische, propagandaapparat organisation".
The Reich propagandaministerium Premierministerin is Joseph Goebbles otherwise known as "das schwein Rush Limpballs".
John
America needs a Cspan like paparazzi. Have you ever noticed no paparazzi? Thom just witnesses a Senator drunk and being held up by 2 females(probably hot). But? Where is the paparazzi? Yes the American people are partially to blame for DC, but not entirely because we cannot see what is going on. If we saw in pictures the 2500$ plate dinners with Senators and CEOs (Bank CEOs, oil and gas CEOs, etc) then the American people would put 2 and 2 together.
Where are the damn pictures?
Where is the paparazzi?
Obama I think will just turn over the keys in 2012 after putting up a losing fight. He will lose and sacrifice every key liberal populist fight along the way because he is a corporatist sellout. because that is his job as a corportist - is to obstruct the liberal will of the American people, as he has done for the past 2 years. Bush/Cheney should be in jail. Filibusters should have been rare. And? Not a word from Obama. Not from the bully pulpit. The only way to breakthrough the FOX News Reich Krieg is the bully pulpit of the President AND Obama rarely uses it, but when he did he attacked his base. Obama is not stupid so? It is intentional. Obama has conceded the bank bailout(keeping Geitner and Sommers), the public option(allowing Baucus to throw liberals in jail - where was the bully pulpit of Obama? SILENT), etc.... It goes on and on Obama is complicit with rape of liberals because he is silent. So much was lost. Just look at all the Pelosi bills passed through the House and stopped in the Senate. Where's Obama? Silent. Always silent.
Obama is Obama's worst enemy(liberals too). Obama chooses not to turn things around. We can work as hard as we can to turn things around But? If Obama keeps his wrongheadedness continuing the way he has, and the bully pulpit SILENT, we can do nothing to very little facing huge Neocon/Republican propaganda forces.
Obama is losing because he chooses to.
If you apply what Thom has said about voters choosing a real Republican over a Democrat who acts like a Republican then bingo! Obama is a Democrat acting like a Republican and he will lose 2012. If Obama keeps slaping liberals in the face he will lose 2012. If Obama bully pulpit remains intentionally silent while liberals are thrown in jail Obama will lose 2012. If Obama continues to fail the liberal fight of bringing the issues to the American people when there is a problem(like FDRs fireside chats) then Obama will lose 2012. THAT is why I think we should run Feingold in the primary against Obama, because Obama is doing everything to fail. We have nothing to lose because Obama is already choosing to lose 2012.
Oh yeah uh How believable is it that Obama will fight the tax cuts in 2012? Lol what? I don't see Obama fighting the tax cuts for the rich. What I see is Obama giving away the house and the kitchen sink AGAIN while getting a few crumbs in return. Michelle must have negotiated for their house, because Obama can't negotiate for S#*#. Just kidding. Obama negotiates to win for the rich and negotiates to lose for the poor.
Obama will just lose the negotiation for the nomination of a tiebreaker Supreme Court Justice for Kennedy. So we might as well try to primary Obama with Feingold in a very "positive" primary. Otherwise, we will just hear some bogus excuse about why Obama could only negotiate for another Alito to replace Kennedy.
Sorry folks Obama is damaged goods. Obama is the only one who can turn things around, but I don't see it happening. The Republicans are even stronger now which just means Obama will give them more of everything while getting less than a few crumbs in return.
We lost so much in the past 2 years. Obama really sold America out. Why would liberals want Obama to win in 2012? THEY DON'T. So wake up out of fantasy land pretending Obama is something he is not. Primarying
Obama is the only chance America has.You never know we could make history again with Feingold.
Sorry folks I wish it were not so. I voted for Obama, because I believed what he said. Now I see he says and does 2 different things. So? It is time to move on by building a primary movement against Obama.
I am so tired of hearing about why we have to accept c*#*# and crumbs because Republicans are are the extreme crazy alternative otherwise. Don't you see that is just the rich having a temper tantrum and manipulating everyone to get their way? Wakeup Stand proud Take a chance on America.
You never win without taking risk.
Primary Obama with Feingold.
John
Frankly, things need to get bad enough for people to give a damn and start a real movement, and actually have a desire to learn for themselves what the issues are. Things are bad now, so there are a lot of people starting to get it, but there is so much disinformation out there that people are being confused into diverting their attention in a useless direction and that is true for both the left and the right. I am afraid things will have to get worse before more people wake up. I think more than half of Americans are still relatively isolated from the plights of the rest.
Because most lack necessary empathy, until more people are directly affected (including the rich), disparity will continue to grow. The wealth will continue to consolidate at the top, until a threshold is reached where capitalist kings have so much and the poor so little, that the entire system collapses completely from the top heavy weight crashing down on an economy built on a deck of flimsily stacked cards.. i.e. it will be impossible to continue the lie, and truth will finally win.
Until then we need to keep the truth alive, and keep pushing it hard via advertising, activism, and grass root movement politics like the sierra club, drinking liberally, and bold progressives.
I am with you... I will get active....
Let me say this, If the tax rate on millionaires was 65%, I would still not refuse to become a millionaire. Is there anyone that would? So, if their are any millionaires out there, living in fear of taxes getting higher, I can releive you of your pain and suffering.
I can no longer lend monetary support to the Democratic Party. So I guess its a good thing they made some friends with the rich.
My wife is a 54 year old 99er (actually a 140er at this point) and has been abandoned by the people she voted into office. Luckily I still have my job for now, but everything we have read indicates those over 50 that have been unemployed longer than 2 years might as well forget about ever workking again (in this country). She is now getting responses from her resume that say " we are no longer interviewing people without a history of working within the last 6 months" - so essentially if you are a 99er you will be the last to be hired. They don't expect full recovery in CA. until 2017 - she will be 60..... We will have to survive on one income until we die. And it looks like social security will be gutted next.
I have signed up to attend every local democratic meeting for the next three months - WE will become active. I just hope attending does not require money, which seems like all the politicians care about lately. Maybe my wife can run for some office. She was an office manager and paralegal. She is also capable of saying "cut spending", "no tax increases", "99ers are lazy and take advantage of the system" and (I love this one) "entitlements are the death of America" , which seems to be the only criteria for getting elected nowadays.
I hope becoming active makes a difference - if not, plan 2 is to migrate to Canada. Plan 3 is to purchase a gun, go as long as we can, and when that day comes where we have to decide between people food and cat food - we blow our freaking brains out.