First, a note on my previous post and Chris Hayes. After viewing about an hour's worth of MSNBC Chris Hayes clips on YouTube, I've concluded that Mr. Hayes appears to have two different personas. When he's a guest on Democracy Now and other non-corporate venues, talking about Twilight of the Elites, his message hits the mark & he definitely has credibility. On his own show on the prostitute corporate medium MSNBC, he's mostly an apologist for Obama...and fails to recognize (or perhaps conceals the recognition) that Obama is part of the Meritocracy that he deplores so in his book. That's my take on it, anyway.
--------------------------------------------
Let's begin by recognizing the unfortunate fact that the USA is no longer a Constitutional Republic. About half of everything that the Fed Gov't (at the highest levels) does is unquestionably unconstitutional. In large part, both Democrats and Republicans ignore the Constitution and instead pass laws or issue Executive Orders that they believe trump the Supreme Law of the Land. Once in a blue moon, to their credit, they do get things right. For example, just recently a Congressional Panel determined that the NSA's bulk collection of data is illegal. That's rare. Of course, don't look for anything significant to be done about that finding.
Despite the propaganda from the Gov't and Corporate Media, and despite the belief of most of our population, let's also recognize that neither is our form of gov't a Democracy...at least, not a genuine Democracy.
Not long after WW I, Walter Lippmann, writing about politics in America, described the general public as "ignorant, meddlesome outsiders" who should only be "spectators" in the political process and leave such matters to the ones who know what they're doing...in other words, the smart, informed people...the Meritocracy. Lippmann was part of the intelligentsia at the time; he was known as the "Dean of American Journalism"...and was a so-called "Progressive". So much for American style Democracy, at least, from his point of view (which was quite influential).
In 1928, Edward Bernays found a publisher for his book, Propaganda: Molding the Public Mind. In it, he made the case that propaganda is essential to the successful functioning of any Democracy. He said that the true rulers of the country are the ones who control the propaganda; the elites bought the proposition lock, stock, & barrel. Bernays later was recognized as the Founder of the Public Relations industry. His type of propaganda played a major role in our Govt's overthrow (in the '50s) of the democratically elected President of Guatemala.
The State-Corporate Complex flourished in the '50s and '60s...and beyond. Ike warned us about it, but We the People pretty much ignored his warning. The molding of the public mind was in full swing by then, with one of the promotions being that we lived in a "Democracy". The elites' version of democracy is this: every two years or so, the "ignorant, meddlesome outsiders", aka, the "spectators" truck on over to a designated site and pull one of two levers...and then go home. Each lever represents a candidate chosen, groomed, and financed by the Meritocracy...and sold to the public via Edward Bernays style propaganda. The public doesn't really know where either candidate stands politically...because all info given to the public is based on polls, studies, & focus groups that determine just what it is that the public wants to hear. Adjustments are made for the phony differences between the two candidates.
By the '80s, voters weren't even really "spectators" anymore...because the Reagan and Thatcher administrations became private and secretive. How many of you know about the Reagan-Thatcher concoction known as the "Washington Consensus"...it had a major impact on the world. It promoted Neoliberalism around the globe, much to the dismay of most third world countries. Not too many folks "spectated" that one.
By the '90s, transnational corporations (via institutions such as the GATT, WTO, IMF, and World Bank---that are completely secretive & absolutist--- as well as so-called "Free Trade Agreements") were creating a completely non-democratic, worldwide economic structure whose rules trumped U.S. laws. That's continuing on steroids today. So much for American style Democracy.
During all of this time, right through to the present, the American public (and the world public) is fed a steady diet of propaganda which basically and simply says, this is all good for you...and it will "create jobs". What a deceit and a scam.
So, what's to be done about it? Well, the first step is to stop drinking the Propaganda Kool Aid. I'll say it 'til I'm blue in the face. :)
Just my opinion.
Sunday, January 26, 2014
Friday, January 24, 2014
The Failure of the Meritocracy: Twilight of the Elites
Chris Hayes has it exactly right. He's an Editor-at-Large for The Nation, (at least he was in 2012) and has a book out titled, Twilight of the Elites: America after the Meritocracy. What I refer to as the Corporatocracy (from John Perkins, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man) or the Oligarchy, Mr. Hayes calls the Meritocracy. It's the same kettle of rotting fish.
The word "meritocracy" was coined by a British social critic in the 1950s. It was used in a satirical way to describe how the elites rig the game and make rules in their favor. Basically, the whole thing boils down to this:
1. in the ethereal atmosphere of the elitist world, the most valuable characteristic of Humankind is high intelligence;
2. the most valuable use of that intelligence is deemed to be the making of vast sums of money;
3. other considerations, such as a social conscience, egalitarianism, democracy, compassion, and the like are deemed to be unimportant...or even hindrances.
Though the Brit who coined the term meant it in the vein of 1984, or Animal Farm, or Brave New World (in other words, dystopian societies), elites have (supposedly by mistake) adopted the concept as a model for society. As a result, they have come to view themselves---because most of them are super-intelligent---as a class apart, superior to the Average Jane or Joe in every way. They also have developed a strong sense of solidarity within their Class because they are, in their minds, vastly superior to the "little people". [I was stunned when the International Head of BP, in a national TV news interview, referred to the Gulf residents as the "small people". The man reeked of condescension...and I think, knew it.]
This all has resulted in a situation in which the elites, who are great Institutionalists, wind up protecting the people in the institution (public or private) rather than the people whom the institution serves...the overwhelming majority of any population. Those of us in the lower socio-economic classes are viewed as Insurrectionists, and there is little or no concern for our well-being. Example: the cover-up (or ignoring) of the Sandusky affair at Penn State by the hierarchy of that institution. Example: the opposition to Cesar Chavez when he protested the lack of protection for farmworkers from pesticides, back when pesticides were barely regulated.
Those at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder have experienced the negative effects of the Meritocracy for decades and decades. What's different now is that the Upper Middle Class, since about the late 1990s or 2000, also has been experiencing those negative effects...especially economically, but also socially. Wages/salaries have largely stagnated, people have to work longer in order to survive retirement in anything resembling a comfortable fashion, economic "bubbles" often have negatively impacted retirement funds, the National Security State is becoming more and more demanding and intrusive, wealth is being transferred from the Middle Class to the upper one percent at a truly astounding rate, and on & on.
The Sea Change in all this, the thing that has the elites very concerned, is the fact that the Upper Middle Class (and even many of those at the bottom of the ladder) is demonstrating that it will not put up with business-as-usual. Sometimes actively, sometimes passively, they are expressing their extreme displeasure. Faith in institutions of all kinds is in a free-fall decline...and most of those institutions are controlled by elites.
The Meritocracy/Oligarchy knows that something bad for them definitely is in the wind. Because they're mostly short-term-gain thinkers, I predict that in the not-so-distant future we'll have more economic bubbles and more "too big to fail" bailouts, or something even weirder, enabling the upper crust to scam even more billions. Financial "derivatives" may be instrumental in that scenario...again. I hope I'm wrong.
Partly just my opinion.
The word "meritocracy" was coined by a British social critic in the 1950s. It was used in a satirical way to describe how the elites rig the game and make rules in their favor. Basically, the whole thing boils down to this:
1. in the ethereal atmosphere of the elitist world, the most valuable characteristic of Humankind is high intelligence;
2. the most valuable use of that intelligence is deemed to be the making of vast sums of money;
3. other considerations, such as a social conscience, egalitarianism, democracy, compassion, and the like are deemed to be unimportant...or even hindrances.
Though the Brit who coined the term meant it in the vein of 1984, or Animal Farm, or Brave New World (in other words, dystopian societies), elites have (supposedly by mistake) adopted the concept as a model for society. As a result, they have come to view themselves---because most of them are super-intelligent---as a class apart, superior to the Average Jane or Joe in every way. They also have developed a strong sense of solidarity within their Class because they are, in their minds, vastly superior to the "little people". [I was stunned when the International Head of BP, in a national TV news interview, referred to the Gulf residents as the "small people". The man reeked of condescension...and I think, knew it.]
This all has resulted in a situation in which the elites, who are great Institutionalists, wind up protecting the people in the institution (public or private) rather than the people whom the institution serves...the overwhelming majority of any population. Those of us in the lower socio-economic classes are viewed as Insurrectionists, and there is little or no concern for our well-being. Example: the cover-up (or ignoring) of the Sandusky affair at Penn State by the hierarchy of that institution. Example: the opposition to Cesar Chavez when he protested the lack of protection for farmworkers from pesticides, back when pesticides were barely regulated.
Those at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder have experienced the negative effects of the Meritocracy for decades and decades. What's different now is that the Upper Middle Class, since about the late 1990s or 2000, also has been experiencing those negative effects...especially economically, but also socially. Wages/salaries have largely stagnated, people have to work longer in order to survive retirement in anything resembling a comfortable fashion, economic "bubbles" often have negatively impacted retirement funds, the National Security State is becoming more and more demanding and intrusive, wealth is being transferred from the Middle Class to the upper one percent at a truly astounding rate, and on & on.
The Sea Change in all this, the thing that has the elites very concerned, is the fact that the Upper Middle Class (and even many of those at the bottom of the ladder) is demonstrating that it will not put up with business-as-usual. Sometimes actively, sometimes passively, they are expressing their extreme displeasure. Faith in institutions of all kinds is in a free-fall decline...and most of those institutions are controlled by elites.
The Meritocracy/Oligarchy knows that something bad for them definitely is in the wind. Because they're mostly short-term-gain thinkers, I predict that in the not-so-distant future we'll have more economic bubbles and more "too big to fail" bailouts, or something even weirder, enabling the upper crust to scam even more billions. Financial "derivatives" may be instrumental in that scenario...again. I hope I'm wrong.
Partly just my opinion.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
More: Class War and Politics
Once again, I offer my response to an email from a "Conservative" friend. He asked me about political "sides" (e.g., Right v. Left, Conservatives v. Liberals, etc.), and also whether or not I thought our economic system might collapse...and what I thought might come after that, specifically, would it be a leaner, more conservative system.
My response---
Here's what I believe in terms of "sides". I came to this after about 5 yrs of serious consideration---
There is no longer any choice between so-called Liberals and so-called Conservatives; that's all an Oligarchical distraction - a Divide & Conquer strategy. It certainly wasn't always that way; maybe 10 to 20 yrs ago the choice was genuine...no longer. To illustrate, take Kennedy & Obama as examples. I believe that JFK was a genuine Liberal/Progressive...and I think he truly loved this country. I didn't agree with most of his politics, but I thought he was sincere in his beliefs. Obama is a snake. Those smitten with Obama-worship appear to believe that he's a Liberal; those opposing him appear to believe that he's a Socialist. I firmly believe he's neither...OBAMA IS A CORPORATIST through and through. I've detailed my reasons for that belief in various Blog posts.
Here's what John Pilger, a self-admitted Socialist (and an investigative journalist), had to say about O---
"He's a product of Madison Ave. propaganda---Brand Obama... and it's all fake. Don't believe what he says; watch what he does.".
"Conservatives" point to ObamaCare as an example of socialism; what a joke. The ACA was a bailout of the health insurance industry; it should have been called the Affordable Insurance Act. It did nothing for health care; it basically gave $$$ to mega insurance companies. It's "affordable" because many customers now have higher premiums than before, and because many people are now forced to buy coverage they don't need (such as maternity care for single men). The extra money supposedly is diverted to subsidize poorer customers. In any case, it's PRIVATE companies that benefit. That's fascism, not socialism; it's the power of the State married to the power of Big Biz. Despite their phony bitching & moaning about OCare, I firmly believe that the health insurance industry loves it. It's a windfall for them. It's also a windfall for PRIVATE doctors, PRIVATE clinics, PRIVATE hospitals, etc. Why? More business.
So, as to "sides" in the current political climate, I see only two real choices--- the Oligarchy, and the rest of us. Unfortunately, that means the now phony Conservative-Liberal and Repub-Dem splits have to be ignored or dismantled, or both. People will think that's ridiculous, impossible, unimaginable. I say, look at History; something very similar has happened over & over, not only around the world, but also in the short span of this country. For example, the Republican Party was not around for decades earlier in our political history. Our Founders were all "Liberals", but later "liberal" no longer meant "for freedom". NeoCons are called Neoliberals everywhere but in the USA. Reagan & Thatcher were proponents of Neoliberalism to everyone but Americans...and that was a bad thing to most foreigners. The current political state of things is not carved in concrete. It's not even unusual for such things to totally change. But the Oligarchs would like us to believe otherwise...because the current setup is a perfect Divide & Conquer strategy for them. And please, it's not any kind of "conspiracy"; it's simply good business to them.
As to the Tea Partiers, it's very hard to assess them...they're of various beliefs and decentralized to a large degree. They are not, despite what the Corporate Media calls them, only ultra-conservatives. If I were to guess, I'd say they're near the right track, but not on it. Of course, my "right track" may not be yours. [It does bother me that I've seen some evidence that most likely their "grassroots" movement really was started and funded by Oligarchs such as the Koch brothers. The evidence is not definitive, but it's there. In my mind, that taints the whole movement to some unknown degree. They may be a good thing...or not. It's too hard to tell right now.]
....................................................
I don't know for sure whether or not your excellent questions were rhetorical, but I'll give my opinion regardless. :) [Many more Americans should be giving serious thought to these things; instead, they seem to be distracted by Bread & Circuses.]
Naturally, all of the following is pure guesswork on my part. I've learned that the older I get, the less I really know for sure. That said, I believe our current system is doomed...probably not within my lifetime, or maybe even yours, but doomed nonetheless. All the signs are there. The national debt will continue to grow until the collapse; that will come shortly after the world no longer accepts the dollar as the world's reserve currency. People in positions of power didn't say much when an unprecedented event happened fairly recently---for the 1st time ever, a major country (China) called for a discontinuation of the dollar as the world's reserve currency. That's monumental; it's the first crack in our worldwide financial dike.
Before the dike bursts, however, I believe that the Oligarchs (with the aid of their Cronies in DC...just like before) will pull off one or two more great heists...bailouts and trillions in loans (like before) at less than 1% interest. Everything's pretty much in place for that to happen again. The biggest things in the financial markets STILL are derivatives...they're still being sold hand over fist...and they're STILL backed by zero reserves. It's the biggest scam in the history of humankind...all for the benefit of Oligarchs, and all facilitated by their Cronies in DC---Repubs and Dems. The One Percenters appear to be very short-term thinkers. They will get more billions to secure their immediate families, and the rest of us can go to hell and/or the poorhouse.
As to emerging from the ashes with a leaner, more conservative theme, I hope not...because today's "Conservatism", based on what I've seen from Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Bill O'Reilly, the anchor on Fox (name escapes me), Bill Kristol, etc. appears to be a cross between Attila the Hun and Trotskyism. I'm serious...it barely resembles Conservatism at all. It's NEO-conservatism, through and through. They don't believe in Peace through Strength; rather, they believe in Peace through WAR... pre-emptive war...in other words, naked aggression. That's very UNconservative. In the financial/economic arena, they believe in working with Cronies in DC in order to rig the game in their favor, making them richer & richer. Supposedly, according to the propaganda, that's so they can "create jobs". What a joke and a scam. Instead they destroy jobs, eliminate jobs, ship jobs offshore, cut costs by eliminating benefits, hire part-time workers, fire those about to retire, and in general, play the Enron Game. All very UNconservative.
I believe some millionaires/billionaires have made it honestly, but in general, I think one has to be unethical or crooked, or both, in order to get to that level. Very UNconservative.
So, my preference (coming from the ashes) would be the Capitalist version of Anarcho-Syndicalism. [There is a Socialist version, but I don't advocate that one.] As viewed today, "Conservatism" simply isn't lean enough. Today's "Conservatism" is way too Statist in nature. Just my opinion.
Be Well, Pard
My response---
Here's what I believe in terms of "sides". I came to this after about 5 yrs of serious consideration---
There is no longer any choice between so-called Liberals and so-called Conservatives; that's all an Oligarchical distraction - a Divide & Conquer strategy. It certainly wasn't always that way; maybe 10 to 20 yrs ago the choice was genuine...no longer. To illustrate, take Kennedy & Obama as examples. I believe that JFK was a genuine Liberal/Progressive...and I think he truly loved this country. I didn't agree with most of his politics, but I thought he was sincere in his beliefs. Obama is a snake. Those smitten with Obama-worship appear to believe that he's a Liberal; those opposing him appear to believe that he's a Socialist. I firmly believe he's neither...OBAMA IS A CORPORATIST through and through. I've detailed my reasons for that belief in various Blog posts.
Here's what John Pilger, a self-admitted Socialist (and an investigative journalist), had to say about O---
"He's a product of Madison Ave. propaganda---Brand Obama... and it's all fake. Don't believe what he says; watch what he does.".
"Conservatives" point to ObamaCare as an example of socialism; what a joke. The ACA was a bailout of the health insurance industry; it should have been called the Affordable Insurance Act. It did nothing for health care; it basically gave $$$ to mega insurance companies. It's "affordable" because many customers now have higher premiums than before, and because many people are now forced to buy coverage they don't need (such as maternity care for single men). The extra money supposedly is diverted to subsidize poorer customers. In any case, it's PRIVATE companies that benefit. That's fascism, not socialism; it's the power of the State married to the power of Big Biz. Despite their phony bitching & moaning about OCare, I firmly believe that the health insurance industry loves it. It's a windfall for them. It's also a windfall for PRIVATE doctors, PRIVATE clinics, PRIVATE hospitals, etc. Why? More business.
So, as to "sides" in the current political climate, I see only two real choices--- the Oligarchy, and the rest of us. Unfortunately, that means the now phony Conservative-Liberal and Repub-Dem splits have to be ignored or dismantled, or both. People will think that's ridiculous, impossible, unimaginable. I say, look at History; something very similar has happened over & over, not only around the world, but also in the short span of this country. For example, the Republican Party was not around for decades earlier in our political history. Our Founders were all "Liberals", but later "liberal" no longer meant "for freedom". NeoCons are called Neoliberals everywhere but in the USA. Reagan & Thatcher were proponents of Neoliberalism to everyone but Americans...and that was a bad thing to most foreigners. The current political state of things is not carved in concrete. It's not even unusual for such things to totally change. But the Oligarchs would like us to believe otherwise...because the current setup is a perfect Divide & Conquer strategy for them. And please, it's not any kind of "conspiracy"; it's simply good business to them.
As to the Tea Partiers, it's very hard to assess them...they're of various beliefs and decentralized to a large degree. They are not, despite what the Corporate Media calls them, only ultra-conservatives. If I were to guess, I'd say they're near the right track, but not on it. Of course, my "right track" may not be yours. [It does bother me that I've seen some evidence that most likely their "grassroots" movement really was started and funded by Oligarchs such as the Koch brothers. The evidence is not definitive, but it's there. In my mind, that taints the whole movement to some unknown degree. They may be a good thing...or not. It's too hard to tell right now.]
....................................................
I don't know for sure whether or not your excellent questions were rhetorical, but I'll give my opinion regardless. :) [Many more Americans should be giving serious thought to these things; instead, they seem to be distracted by Bread & Circuses.]
Naturally, all of the following is pure guesswork on my part. I've learned that the older I get, the less I really know for sure. That said, I believe our current system is doomed...probably not within my lifetime, or maybe even yours, but doomed nonetheless. All the signs are there. The national debt will continue to grow until the collapse; that will come shortly after the world no longer accepts the dollar as the world's reserve currency. People in positions of power didn't say much when an unprecedented event happened fairly recently---for the 1st time ever, a major country (China) called for a discontinuation of the dollar as the world's reserve currency. That's monumental; it's the first crack in our worldwide financial dike.
Before the dike bursts, however, I believe that the Oligarchs (with the aid of their Cronies in DC...just like before) will pull off one or two more great heists...bailouts and trillions in loans (like before) at less than 1% interest. Everything's pretty much in place for that to happen again. The biggest things in the financial markets STILL are derivatives...they're still being sold hand over fist...and they're STILL backed by zero reserves. It's the biggest scam in the history of humankind...all for the benefit of Oligarchs, and all facilitated by their Cronies in DC---Repubs and Dems. The One Percenters appear to be very short-term thinkers. They will get more billions to secure their immediate families, and the rest of us can go to hell and/or the poorhouse.
As to emerging from the ashes with a leaner, more conservative theme, I hope not...because today's "Conservatism", based on what I've seen from Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Bill O'Reilly, the anchor on Fox (name escapes me), Bill Kristol, etc. appears to be a cross between Attila the Hun and Trotskyism. I'm serious...it barely resembles Conservatism at all. It's NEO-conservatism, through and through. They don't believe in Peace through Strength; rather, they believe in Peace through WAR... pre-emptive war...in other words, naked aggression. That's very UNconservative. In the financial/economic arena, they believe in working with Cronies in DC in order to rig the game in their favor, making them richer & richer. Supposedly, according to the propaganda, that's so they can "create jobs". What a joke and a scam. Instead they destroy jobs, eliminate jobs, ship jobs offshore, cut costs by eliminating benefits, hire part-time workers, fire those about to retire, and in general, play the Enron Game. All very UNconservative.
I believe some millionaires/billionaires have made it honestly, but in general, I think one has to be unethical or crooked, or both, in order to get to that level. Very UNconservative.
So, my preference (coming from the ashes) would be the Capitalist version of Anarcho-Syndicalism. [There is a Socialist version, but I don't advocate that one.] As viewed today, "Conservatism" simply isn't lean enough. Today's "Conservatism" is way too Statist in nature. Just my opinion.
Be Well, Pard
Friday, January 10, 2014
When Will the Feds Ever Learn!?
It was reported on the 1-9-14 CBS online news broadcast that the upsurge in violence and deaths in Iraq is NOT due primarily to Al Qaeda activity after all, but rather due to the ongoing, never ceasing clash between the Iraqi Sunnis and Shiites. [Congratulations, CBS, you finally discovered that; independent investigative journalists have known it for a very long time.]
Meanwhile, our Fed Gov't is supplying massive arms to the Shiite Gov't of Iraq... you know, the one backed by Iran. So once again, those at the highest levels in our Fed Gov't have (unconstitutionally) stuck their big noses into what is essentially a civil war. I know the mega corporate Oligarchs love to sell arms and munitions, but come on, this is beyond ridiculous.
As I look back over the past decade or so, my conclusion is that an astute 12th grader could run our foreign policy better than the Bush and Obama administrations have done. That conclusion is both tragic and comic at the same time.
I suggest to those of you still stuck in the anachronistic, basically farcical, political paradigm of Republicans v. Democrats that you seriously re-think the matter. What's going on in the political arena should be blatantly obvious. Never mind Iraq for the moment, let's consider probably the worst economic & financial advisors in our country's history, those of the last Bush term...then Obama, in his first term, keeps them. So we wind up with Hank Paulson, former head of Goldman Sachs, as Secretary of the Treasury--- oh my, no conflict of interest there [:)]. He and the FED give billions to mega banks AND make trillions in loans available to them at almost zero percent interest. At the same time or shortly thereafter, some of those elitist banks buy out other banks, thus becoming even bigger while eliminating some of their competition. On top of all that, we later go through legislative "financial reform"... which turns out to be mere window dressing. Finally, we're now enduring "too big to jail".
Good grief... wake up, America.
Just my opinion.
Meanwhile, our Fed Gov't is supplying massive arms to the Shiite Gov't of Iraq... you know, the one backed by Iran. So once again, those at the highest levels in our Fed Gov't have (unconstitutionally) stuck their big noses into what is essentially a civil war. I know the mega corporate Oligarchs love to sell arms and munitions, but come on, this is beyond ridiculous.
As I look back over the past decade or so, my conclusion is that an astute 12th grader could run our foreign policy better than the Bush and Obama administrations have done. That conclusion is both tragic and comic at the same time.
I suggest to those of you still stuck in the anachronistic, basically farcical, political paradigm of Republicans v. Democrats that you seriously re-think the matter. What's going on in the political arena should be blatantly obvious. Never mind Iraq for the moment, let's consider probably the worst economic & financial advisors in our country's history, those of the last Bush term...then Obama, in his first term, keeps them. So we wind up with Hank Paulson, former head of Goldman Sachs, as Secretary of the Treasury--- oh my, no conflict of interest there [:)]. He and the FED give billions to mega banks AND make trillions in loans available to them at almost zero percent interest. At the same time or shortly thereafter, some of those elitist banks buy out other banks, thus becoming even bigger while eliminating some of their competition. On top of all that, we later go through legislative "financial reform"... which turns out to be mere window dressing. Finally, we're now enduring "too big to jail".
Good grief... wake up, America.
Just my opinion.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
More on Class War
Below is my response to a forwarded email sent by a good friend of mine, a "Conservative". [I put that in quotes because I'm old enough to know that there are no Conservatives anymore, only NeoConservatives...a completely different ball of wax.] The jist of the email to which I responded is this: people who are getting "free stuff" in this country outnumber those who are paying for it, and not only that, but those getting the stuff want even more; the implication was that those folks are lazy. Finally, the email suggested that's what's ruining this country.
My response---
1. The piece below [meaning, the email sent to me] assumes that the main concern of some people is "free stuff". I suggest: that's a false premise. If I'm right, the whole piece below is false...or at least, the conclusion is false/wrong.
2. The piece below implies that those receiving "free stuff" are doing so because they're lazy, crooked, or in some other way no good. I suggest: perhaps many/most of them are truly desperate because Oligarchs have moved manufacturing/jobs to Asia or Mexico, and have (with their mega corps.) displaced/run out of business thousands of small businesses across America, thus eliminating even more jobs. On top of that, the Fat Cats often pay wages that are about equivalent to an SS check. I further suggest that age, sex, & race discrimination definitely exists in the job market. There's no question about that. It may be against the law, but it's almost impossible to prove.
3. The piece below implies that the overwhelming majority of those receiving assistance prefer that to having a decent job, the pride of accomplishment, and a way to improve their lives. I suggest: that implication is nonsense. I imagine that there are a few who would rather be on the dole, but to think that most folks would is ridiculous.
4. I suggest: the piece below is nothing but a purposeful distraction from what's really important, as follows.
A. One percent of Americans own 50% of the wealth of this country. Job creation is not high on their priority list. Cutting costs and maximizing profits are their main concern. If that means paying obscenely low wages or shipping jobs out of the country, they figure, so be it.
B. Those one percenters work in league with corrupt politicians in order to rig the game in their favor. The financial sector is a prime example of that, but the corruption extends to all sectors of Mega Business.
C. One tenth of the one percent (the Big Boys) are outright criminals, and their Cronies in DC have deemed them "too big to jail". If you don't believe that, you're not paying attention.
D. The Oligarchs distract We the People with hot button issues (abortion, religion, gay rights, gun rights, "terrorism", etc.) that have nothing to do with the most important issue--- the fact that our country is being turned into a Feudal Society with only two classes, the relatively poor wage slaves and the extremely rich Oligarchs. Oligarchs don't own slaves anymore, instead, they rent them...and the rent is low.
5. I suggest: the piece below is an excellent example of Propaganda Kool Aid; spit it out.
6. It's downright hilarious to me that the Oligarchs promote the idea that they're being attacked by Class Warriors. I suggest: they look in the mirror to see who's doing the attacking...and who is waging Class War.
7. I suggest: forget the anachronism of Right v. Left. That's a farce. The right-wing and left-wing Oligarchs are on the same team. They don't care about such distinctions. Do you really believe that the multi-millionaire entertainers Glenn Beck and Bill O'Reilly care about the "little people", or that George Soros does, or that the Koch brothers do? Please.
Just my opinion.
Be Well
My response---
1. The piece below [meaning, the email sent to me] assumes that the main concern of some people is "free stuff". I suggest: that's a false premise. If I'm right, the whole piece below is false...or at least, the conclusion is false/wrong.
2. The piece below implies that those receiving "free stuff" are doing so because they're lazy, crooked, or in some other way no good. I suggest: perhaps many/most of them are truly desperate because Oligarchs have moved manufacturing/jobs to Asia or Mexico, and have (with their mega corps.) displaced/run out of business thousands of small businesses across America, thus eliminating even more jobs. On top of that, the Fat Cats often pay wages that are about equivalent to an SS check. I further suggest that age, sex, & race discrimination definitely exists in the job market. There's no question about that. It may be against the law, but it's almost impossible to prove.
3. The piece below implies that the overwhelming majority of those receiving assistance prefer that to having a decent job, the pride of accomplishment, and a way to improve their lives. I suggest: that implication is nonsense. I imagine that there are a few who would rather be on the dole, but to think that most folks would is ridiculous.
4. I suggest: the piece below is nothing but a purposeful distraction from what's really important, as follows.
A. One percent of Americans own 50% of the wealth of this country. Job creation is not high on their priority list. Cutting costs and maximizing profits are their main concern. If that means paying obscenely low wages or shipping jobs out of the country, they figure, so be it.
B. Those one percenters work in league with corrupt politicians in order to rig the game in their favor. The financial sector is a prime example of that, but the corruption extends to all sectors of Mega Business.
C. One tenth of the one percent (the Big Boys) are outright criminals, and their Cronies in DC have deemed them "too big to jail". If you don't believe that, you're not paying attention.
D. The Oligarchs distract We the People with hot button issues (abortion, religion, gay rights, gun rights, "terrorism", etc.) that have nothing to do with the most important issue--- the fact that our country is being turned into a Feudal Society with only two classes, the relatively poor wage slaves and the extremely rich Oligarchs. Oligarchs don't own slaves anymore, instead, they rent them...and the rent is low.
5. I suggest: the piece below is an excellent example of Propaganda Kool Aid; spit it out.
6. It's downright hilarious to me that the Oligarchs promote the idea that they're being attacked by Class Warriors. I suggest: they look in the mirror to see who's doing the attacking...and who is waging Class War.
7. I suggest: forget the anachronism of Right v. Left. That's a farce. The right-wing and left-wing Oligarchs are on the same team. They don't care about such distinctions. Do you really believe that the multi-millionaire entertainers Glenn Beck and Bill O'Reilly care about the "little people", or that George Soros does, or that the Koch brothers do? Please.
Just my opinion.
Be Well
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
More of the NSA Nightmare
I doubt that you'll hear about this on the prostitute Corporate Media broadcasts. The whistleblower Jacob Appelbaum, speaking at the Chaos Communications Congress in Germany, revealed that the NSA has some sort of radar wave generator gizmo that allows the agency to view any targeted computer keyboard (and monitor). In other words, they can see what the person is typing. So...this should be a good thing relative to the so-called "War on Terror". The problem is: what does a person have to do to be considered a potential terrorist by the Fed Gov't? Answer: not much.
Some of you may be thinking, well, this has nothing to do with me...I would never be considered a potential terrorist. Perhaps the following will change your mind.
1. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2012 designates our entire country as a battleground in the "War on Terror".
2. The NDAA also gives the President the power to, all by himself, declare a national emergency which suspends presumption of innocence, due process, access to an attorney, and trial by jury. In addition, it gives the President the power to have a potential terrorist executed without a trial...all this in the Land of the Free.
3. Several writers are considered potential terrorists because they exercised the Natural Right of free speech by writing news stories contrary to the Govt's view of whistleblowing.
4. Not long ago, the State of Missouri issued a sort of terrorist bulletin to law enforcement which stated that anyone with a Ron Paul bumper sticker should be viewed as a "potential terrorist". [That was not an action by the Feds, but it shows what's possible.]
5. Also so designated in that bulletin were "constitutionalists" and "militia members", and anyone associated with them.
6. According to whistleblowers, the NSA considers anyone who visits certain websites to be a potential terrorist. In other words, if you read material not approved, you're a potential terrorist. Worse, anyone associated with you, and anyone associated with them, is considered a potential terrorist.
The Fourth Amendment is deemed by the Fed Gov't to be not relevant to potential terrorists. The same is true of the Fifth (due process) and Sixth (speedy and public trial) Amendments. Guilt by association appears to be more important to the Feds.
I love this country, but the Fed Gov't is not this country. The well respected historian and Bill Clinton's mentor at Georgetown U., Professor Carroll Quigley, wrote this in 1966, "The tragedy is that we no longer have a representative government in this country [or in any country]; the hope is that the little people will accept that, because there is nothing they can do about it." ~ Quigley, Carroll, Tragedy and Hope, 1966. Quigley considered himself to be one of the Oligarchs, thus he referred to Americans in general as the "little people".
All the Oligarchs, including those at the highest levels of our unrepresentative Fed Gov't, consider all of us to be the little people. We're viewed by the Big Boys & Girls in much the way ranchers view livestock.
Just my opinion.
Some of you may be thinking, well, this has nothing to do with me...I would never be considered a potential terrorist. Perhaps the following will change your mind.
1. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2012 designates our entire country as a battleground in the "War on Terror".
2. The NDAA also gives the President the power to, all by himself, declare a national emergency which suspends presumption of innocence, due process, access to an attorney, and trial by jury. In addition, it gives the President the power to have a potential terrorist executed without a trial...all this in the Land of the Free.
3. Several writers are considered potential terrorists because they exercised the Natural Right of free speech by writing news stories contrary to the Govt's view of whistleblowing.
4. Not long ago, the State of Missouri issued a sort of terrorist bulletin to law enforcement which stated that anyone with a Ron Paul bumper sticker should be viewed as a "potential terrorist". [That was not an action by the Feds, but it shows what's possible.]
5. Also so designated in that bulletin were "constitutionalists" and "militia members", and anyone associated with them.
6. According to whistleblowers, the NSA considers anyone who visits certain websites to be a potential terrorist. In other words, if you read material not approved, you're a potential terrorist. Worse, anyone associated with you, and anyone associated with them, is considered a potential terrorist.
The Fourth Amendment is deemed by the Fed Gov't to be not relevant to potential terrorists. The same is true of the Fifth (due process) and Sixth (speedy and public trial) Amendments. Guilt by association appears to be more important to the Feds.
I love this country, but the Fed Gov't is not this country. The well respected historian and Bill Clinton's mentor at Georgetown U., Professor Carroll Quigley, wrote this in 1966, "The tragedy is that we no longer have a representative government in this country [or in any country]; the hope is that the little people will accept that, because there is nothing they can do about it." ~ Quigley, Carroll, Tragedy and Hope, 1966. Quigley considered himself to be one of the Oligarchs, thus he referred to Americans in general as the "little people".
All the Oligarchs, including those at the highest levels of our unrepresentative Fed Gov't, consider all of us to be the little people. We're viewed by the Big Boys & Girls in much the way ranchers view livestock.
Just my opinion.
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Whistleblowers Are Patriots
Patriots, if they can, expose government wrongdoing. The hypocrisy of those in the upper levels of our Outlaw Fed Gov't is beyond the pale. If China, or Israel, or Russia, or any other country spies on us, the Feds go bananas; but when our Gov't spies on our own allies, oh, there's nothing wrong with that. The National Security State trumps any concept of Right and Wrong...and the Natural Rights that all humans possess.
In case you haven't heard, and as reported in Der Spiegel, the NSA has an elite computer hacking unit that has been remotely installing spyware and malware on computers using the Windows Operating System. Not only that, it has been intercepting the delivery of new computers ordered online, installing spyware, and then sending the machines on their way. This illegal process also includes cell phones. The existence of the hacking unit, Tailored Access Operations (TAO), was revealed in documents sent by Edward Snowden to Der Spiegel.
Judge Pauley, who contradicted another Fed Judge who said the NSA's phone records collection was "almost Orwellian", in a very real sense claims that if the NSA does it to everyone, then that's constitutional. Please, is he serious?! Judges have been throwing out court cases because the individuals bringing suit don't know for certain if their records are being collected...they have no "standing". It's clear to me that the Judicial System, in a very large part, is not independent of the Political System. That's called corruption. Read the Fourth Amendment; what the NSA is doing is blatantly unconstitutional. Unfortunately, we can't even rely on the Supreme Court to be totally independent...remember the Kelo v. City of New London case? The City seized private property using Eminent Domain and sold it to PRIVATE developers, claiming that the taxes to be generated qualified as "public use" of the property. If that's true, then anyone's property can be seized under the guise of Eminent Domain, and the seizure doesn't have to be for a public road or public building, etc. Where is the common sense in that? The same is true for Judge Pauley's opinion that as long as the NSA does it to everyone, that's constitutional. Have mercy.
If you look at History, you'll see that the Govt's response to Whistleblowers is to smear and criminalize them. The U.K. is as bad as the U.S.A. in that regard. Ask Glenn Greenwald, who now lives in Brazil. He's wary of returning to England because he's being investigated for "terrorism". Terrorism is the great catch-all now for governments. Constitutions can be ignored, Natural Rights can be ignored, due process can be ignored...just label the person a potential terrorist. In this country, because of the NDAA, such a person can be executed without a trial (according to an article in Forbes, & many other sources). When he signed that bill into law, Obama said, "I would never do that.", or something to that effect. Well, guess what? I'm not reassured. History shows us that no politician, present or future, is to be trusted.
Just my opinion.
In case you haven't heard, and as reported in Der Spiegel, the NSA has an elite computer hacking unit that has been remotely installing spyware and malware on computers using the Windows Operating System. Not only that, it has been intercepting the delivery of new computers ordered online, installing spyware, and then sending the machines on their way. This illegal process also includes cell phones. The existence of the hacking unit, Tailored Access Operations (TAO), was revealed in documents sent by Edward Snowden to Der Spiegel.
Judge Pauley, who contradicted another Fed Judge who said the NSA's phone records collection was "almost Orwellian", in a very real sense claims that if the NSA does it to everyone, then that's constitutional. Please, is he serious?! Judges have been throwing out court cases because the individuals bringing suit don't know for certain if their records are being collected...they have no "standing". It's clear to me that the Judicial System, in a very large part, is not independent of the Political System. That's called corruption. Read the Fourth Amendment; what the NSA is doing is blatantly unconstitutional. Unfortunately, we can't even rely on the Supreme Court to be totally independent...remember the Kelo v. City of New London case? The City seized private property using Eminent Domain and sold it to PRIVATE developers, claiming that the taxes to be generated qualified as "public use" of the property. If that's true, then anyone's property can be seized under the guise of Eminent Domain, and the seizure doesn't have to be for a public road or public building, etc. Where is the common sense in that? The same is true for Judge Pauley's opinion that as long as the NSA does it to everyone, that's constitutional. Have mercy.
If you look at History, you'll see that the Govt's response to Whistleblowers is to smear and criminalize them. The U.K. is as bad as the U.S.A. in that regard. Ask Glenn Greenwald, who now lives in Brazil. He's wary of returning to England because he's being investigated for "terrorism". Terrorism is the great catch-all now for governments. Constitutions can be ignored, Natural Rights can be ignored, due process can be ignored...just label the person a potential terrorist. In this country, because of the NDAA, such a person can be executed without a trial (according to an article in Forbes, & many other sources). When he signed that bill into law, Obama said, "I would never do that.", or something to that effect. Well, guess what? I'm not reassured. History shows us that no politician, present or future, is to be trusted.
Just my opinion.
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