Corporatism, Trump, Syria, and Raytheon Corp.

As reported on the Democracy Now news hour yesterday (you won't find this on the Corporate News Media, such as NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox, etc.)---
1.  The missiles used in the unconstitutional attack on Syria that was ordered by Trump have a price tag of over $1 million each.
2.  After the attack, Raytheon (the maker of those missiles) had a big increase in their stock on Wall Street.  Their total stock value jumped up by about $1 billion.
3.  Trump has investments in Raytheon, so he benefitted directly.
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Perhaps it was all an innocent coincidence.  I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions.  Be well.

Question for His Lordship: On What Authority???

In terms of foreign policy, we've gone from Donald Trump (which was bad enough) to Hillary Trump...the Perpetual War Hawk.  Yes, the gassing of civilians was horrific, & allegedly done by Assad; that doesn't mean the US Gov't has any right to attack Syria.  The attack violated both the U.S. Constitution and International Law.  But then, our Gov't has been doing that for decades.

Before he was elected, Donald Trump tweeted (back when) that Obama had to have the approval of Congress before airstrikes in Syria could be launched.  [If I recall correctly, Obama never obtained that approval, & very few of us objected.]  Apparently the puppet Hillary Trump has changed his/her mind.  So far, the only Repub politician I've seen protest His Lordship's violation of the Constitution is Rand Paul.

The "Unitary Executive" concept reigns supreme.  That's Executive Absolutism.  Bye-bye, Congress...you're screwed.  The public and private Oligarchs in this Land are trying to provoke another major war.  That's what Oligarchies do when a country's economy is tanking and the Propaganda no longer is effective.

Not only my opinion.  Be Well

Observations on the Insanity of the Elites and on the Progression of Corporatism

Let's first define one term.  By "Elites", I'm referring to those who are either super-rich, or in positions of super-power and/or influence, or both.  These people are in public or private positions, or both.  It's a general definition; there are always a few exceptions to any general rule.  The exceptions, however, do not invalidate the general statement.
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1.  We've had the National Security & Surveillance State since at least 9-11-01.  Yes, security is important; however, excesses in that field by the Elites have created a monstrous problem.  It is this:  the Fourth Amendment essentially has been eliminated.  Other constitutional guarantees of protection against an errant gov't have been seriously compromised as well.  The Elites have done all this by various means, but often it's by passing laws in the dead of night before any of our "Representatives" have had a chance to even read a particular law.  Those who originate these laws (e.g., The PATRIOT Act, FISA, the National Defense Authorization Act, etc.) seem to have the insane idea that even though the laws are in conflict with the Constitution, somehow they trump that document, which of course, is the Supreme Law of the Land.  We the People appear to be putting up with this nonsense.

Perhaps it's past time to recognize that the "Security" State is more concerned with security for the State as opposed to for us.  We are fast going toward a Hard Fascist State, and leaving behind the Soft Fascism which we've had for at least a decade or more.  Many people don't believe that because, I think, they associate Fascism mainly with the anomalous weirdness of the German Nazis & their obsession with the elimination of Jews.  Let's not forget Franco's Spain and Mussolini's Italy; they were more truly Fascist.  Fascism means the marriage of the power of the State to the power of Big Business.   It's a totalitarian rule by public & private Elites.  That's what we're rushing toward in the USA.

2.  Not since the Cold War with the old Soviet Union have we been so close to a nuclear war disaster in the world.  The current crop of politicians in DC seem to hold the insane view that:  (a) "tactical" nukes can be used without any significant, serious, long-term, detrimental consequences to humans and our planet; these business folks probably haven't had a science class since high school, & they are clueless on this subject; and (b) a "first-strike" war is permissible under the Constitution and International Law... not true.

Critics of this critique probably will say something to the effect of:  Iran, Russia, and especially North Korea are a distinct danger to us, and threaten us repeatedly.  Some of that is true, but not to any serious degree.  What those countries are doing, for the most part, is pushing back against our threats to them.  We have economic and financial sanctions against them (especially N. Korea & Russia).  Sanctions are an act of war.  The Bully-Boy US Gov't seems to believe it can act against any other gov't in the world (including allies) and there will be no blowback.  That's an insane belief.

As reported by the dissident, Noam Chomsky (on Democracy Now), not long ago N. Korea offered to sit down and talk about their stopping weapons-delivery testing in exchange for our Gov't lifting sanctions against their country.  Our DC politicians refused to even consider it.  Naturally, to my knowledge that whole business never was revealed by the Corporate Media.  I'm not defending N. Korea; I'm against any totalitarian regime.  The point is, our Gov't appears to be escalating the situation, rather than diffusing it.  Worse, with Buffoon Trump, the politicians now are talking about a first-strike...with a possible nuclear option.  That's unmitigated insanity.

3.  Our top-level politicians, including both Democrats and Republicans (and those in the Corporatist Cabinet), seem to have lost all common sense.  Here are just a few examples of that.

(a)  The Democrats keep harping on the concept of Russia "interfering with" or "influencing" the last election here.  They can't or won't face the fact that the real reason they lost the last election (& not only at the national level) is because We the People no longer buy into their Corporatist and/or Neoliberal crap.  Almost without exception, top-level Dems are shills for the Wall Street Casino Capitalists.  They truly do represent the Status Quo...which most Americans have no patience for anymore.  Dems whining about the Russians displays hypocrisy to the Nth degree.  Our Fed Gov't has a history of interfering with elections, influencing electoral outcomes, and even overthrowing democratically elected gov'ts.  During the Clinton Era, our Gov't made sure that Boris Yeltsin got elected in Russia.  Top-level Dems are insane to keep on with this Russian interference narrative.

(b)  Trump and the Corporatist/Neoliberal Repubs are in the process of making it easier for the Financial Sector, especially the monopolistic Mega Banks, to screw over the bottom 99% of Americans.  They are doing so by removing the paltry restraints on the Crony Capitalist, Mega Banks.  They are guaranteeing the next Bust in the Boom-Bust American Business Cycle.  We're right on the cusp of being overdue for that Bust, and they are hurrying it along.  They do this because, for the most part, the Super-Rich benefit greatly from such a Bust.  How?  It's simple:  during a major recession or depression, the Elites can buy up assets cheaply.  We've seen it over & over in our history.  For example, not long after the 2008 Crash, Mega Banks bought up smaller and/or troubled banks at pennies on the dollar.  The "Too-Big-to-Fail" Mega Banks grew by 37%.  During the Great Depression of the 1930's, super-large landowners and banks bought up small farms and a myriad of other assets at bargain prices.  Assisting that type of scenario, as the current Repub Corporatists are doing, is insanity.  It will further ruin our country and cause great suffering among the majority of us.

(c)  Similar to the point above, both Repubs AND Dems refuse to bring back the Glass-Steagall Act.  In my view, their refusal is because they are Wall Street shills.  If Mega Banks want to play at Casino Capitalism using bizarre financial derivatives, then they should do so with their own money, not ours.  That's just common sense.  Anything else is insanity.
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Not only my opinion.  Be Well

Lessons From the Tragic/Comic Ryan-Trump Reality Show

Lessons The Don should have learned---
1.  He's not the big, bad, tough deal maker he thinks he is.
2.  Talking about riding a bronc and doing it are two different things.
3.  Like everyone else, sometimes he's a failure at executing a task.
4.  Many people don't respond well to bullying and/or ultimatums.
5.  Politics can be complicated.
6.  He's not the Boss of the Congress.
7.  It takes time to craft a decent piece of legislation.
8.  Running the Executive Branch is not the same as running a corporation.
9.  He has no popular mandate.
10.  He doesn't know as much as he says he does.

Lessons We the People (especially Trump supporters) should have learned---
1.  All ten points above, plus...
2.  The Don is in over his head.
3.  For the most part, he's full of hot air.
4.  He's not an effective politician, not even an effective rebel politician.
5.  His style & manner do not command respect.
6.  He displays either ignorance or naivete regarding crucial subjects/topics.
7.  When he says things such as, "Nobody knew that healthcare is so complicated...", that suggests he's not fit to be President.
8.  He makes promises he can't keep...and he knows that.
9.  He'll be a disaster on the international stage.
10.  He's not a genuine Populist.
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With The Don & his Crew in office, we're all in deep trouble...nearly everyone in the entire world.  In fact, the most recent election cycle has demonstrated that the so-called Two-Party System in USA politics (which is NOT mandated in the U.S. Constitution or anywhere else) is working against common people and fostering Elitism.  In other words, this problem is way beyond just Trump.  Until that System is peacefully changed, our country will continue to experience SSDD... in politics, economics, finance, and almost all social matters.

Not only my opinion.  Be Well

Let's All Take Our Heads Out of the Sand and Stop Drinking the...

Edward Bernays style Propaganda Kool Aid.  In addition to the National Debt numbers, the online "U.S. National Debt Clock" (in real time) has a wealth of other information.  [A small portion of it is listed below.]  As opposed to what Janet Yellen and many politicians are saying, that info gives us a genuine dose of reality...instead of propaganda.

Since the end (sometime in the early 1960's) of the Golden Age of American Capitalism, here's what Republican & Democratic politicians, the Fed Reserve, Financialization, Globalization (of a certain type), Crony Capitalism, and Corporatism have all brought us to---

1.  Our public National Debt is almost $20 trillion.  [We are now among the world's top debtor nations.]
2.  U.S. Total Debt (public & private) is now a bit over $67 trillion.
3.  42.6 million Americans are living in poverty.
4.  31.4 million Americans are without insurance (the Debt Clock doesn't specify whether that's health insurance or all types of insurance).
5.  The U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is about one trillion dollars less than the public National Debt.
6.  The Median Income in the U.S. is now $30,123.
7.  The Median New Home Price in the U.S. is now $311,015.
8.  The "Official Unemployed" number is 7.616 million.
9.  The "Actual Unemployed" number is 14.949 million.
All the above is only a tiny fraction of the valuable info found on the Debt Clock.
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Glenn Greenwald, who was on a Team that shared a Pulitzer Prize, has pointed out that the Financial Sector in the USA essentially has captured our government.  Financialization and the revolving door between Mega Banks and high Gov't positions have contributed greatly to the hollowing out of the Middle Class in this Land.  We now have a President & Executive Branch Administration who want to roll back the paltry regulatory protections of Dodd-Frank, thus giving the Financial Sector even more freedom to practice Casino Capitalism... which will further put our financial and economic systems at risk.

The rationalization for such action is that jobs will be created.  History says otherwise.  Starting with the elimination of the Glass-Steagall Act during the Bill Clinton Era and right through to the lack of prosecution of crooked bankers during the Obama Era, it's clear that:  banking needs strict regulation (enforcement and prosecution); and the Mega Banks need to be broken up.  Casino Capitalism does not create jobs for the Lower & Middle Classes; it simply enriches the Super-Rich.  That's what Trump is pushing/peddling.

Not only my opinion.  Be Well

Trump Orders Wiretaps on World Leaders :), AND a Correction

Relative to the first part of the title above, I'm just saying that.  I have absolutely no proof to present as to its authenticity.  None whatsoever.  I'm following the lead of our Tweety-Bird President, who claims that Obama wiretapped Trump Tower...but then the Don failed to offer even a shred of evidence.  IF Obama actually did do the deed, that's a major scandal and it should be exposed.  What's more likely, though, is that President Trump made up the story in order to distract from the many problems facing him & his staff... especially those involving Russia.  If that's the case, it's also a major scandal...and should be exposed.  I have no idea which scandal is true, but I hope we find out.

A third option is that Trump was misinformed about the Obama story.  If that's the case, it reinforces why it's crucially important for anyone to obtain hard, irrefutable evidence before babbling in public about some particular supposed action.  As far as I can see, Trump failed to do that.

Mr. President:  you FAILED to present any evidence (at least, as of this writing)... and perhaps you also failed to even obtain any evidence.  Your credibility just keeps getting worse.  Why should world leaders (or anyone) believe anything you say???
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Correction---
In the piece immediately previous to this one, posted a couple nights ago, I mistakenly stated that the National Debt was $19.981 trillion.  At that time, it was $19.961 trillion... As of tonight, it's $19.963 trillion.  The Debt Ceiling "Holiday" is almost over.
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Not only my opinion.  Be Well

What Our Tweety-Bird President & His Administration Don't Seem to Grasp

During his Address to Congress at least, King Donald did almost zero whining.  Thank Heaven for that.  I'm guessing the primary reason for that blessing was the fact that the speech was 100% scripted, and Trump pretty much read it word for word.  The content (and other statements), however, revealed some genuine flaws in the thinking of this Corporatist Administration.  Here's what they don't appear to grasp...or they do and they're simply presenting a fraud.  It's hard to know which one.

1.  Trump and some of his staff claim that the budget increases for the Defense Dept. (which should go back to its original name, War Dept.) and for Homeland Security will be offset by cuts in other Depts./Agencies.  Since they claim that, they must already have the numbers.  Let's see those numbers.  I very seriously doubt their claim to be true.  My guess is that all the cuts won't amount to even 10% of the billions in increases.  Furthermore, the proposed cuts undoubtedly will be in social programs and environmental/health/safety (EHS) programs... you know, those programs that improve the lives of common people.  The combined budgets of all those programs already are dwarfed by the Defense Dept. budget before the increase (never mind Homeland Security's budget).  In addition, our "Defense" Budget already is larger than the next seven largest in the world COMBINED.

2.  Along those same lines, Trump & staff are proposing a TRILLION Dollar infrastructure re-building program.  At the same time, they're proposing a massive tax cut.  Supposedly, the economy will boom so greatly that the trillion dollar expenditure will be covered by tax revenue generated by all the unemployed we have now, those who soon will have full-time permanent jobs.  The Don appears to believe that tax cuts and regulation reduction will result in Mega & Mid-Size Corporations making capital investments and thus creating many new jobs.  Fairly recent history suggests otherwise.  In this sorry Age of Financialization, mega & mid-size companies no longer need to hire more people in order to increase company profits.  Instead, they downsize, or ship facilities overseas (cheaper labor there), or invest in Hedge Funds, or become a bank (General Motors makes just as much money on car loans as it does on car production), or invest in foreign factories or real estate, or invest in foreign currencies or bonds, or become corporate raiders buying up companies and then downsizing or dismantling them, or simply bank the extra cash...usually offshore.

3.  As David Stockman (formerly of the Reagan Administration) wisely points out, a crucial date is looming--- March 15, 2017.  That's the day when the Debt Ceiling "Holiday" (developed by Obama & Boehner) ends.  After that, the National Debt by law cannot exceed $20 trillion unless a Republican Congress raises that Ceiling and thus kicks the can down the road again.  By summer, the Fed Gov't will be out of cash for everything but absolutely essential services.  According to Stockman, tax cuts will not yet be in place, ObamaCare will not yet be replaced, and any job-producing Infrastructure activities will have to be postponed.  As of tonight, the National Debt is $19.981 trillion dollars and increasing at a phenomenal rate.  It won't be long at all before it hits $20 trillion.

4.  To avoid the Mother of all Fiscal Crises, it seems to me the Congress will be forced to raise the Debt Ceiling yet again.  [They always do.]  Most likely, that will result in foreign governments and banks dumping the Dollar even faster than they are now.  That will bring the demise of the Dollar ever closer.  The Petro-Dollar already is on its last legs.  These events will hasten the culmination of the worldwide economic crisis already in progress... and will render Trump's vague economic plan useless.

5.  Trump's proposed slashing of the EPA will freeze the SuperFund Toxic Waste Cleanup Program (that's already happened), the Radon Program, the Brownfields Redevelopment Program, and several other programs that greatly contribute to clean air, clean water, and unpolluted land.  The result will be a poorer quality of life for everyone.  Trump mistakenly believes that any money saved by companies being able to avoid EHS regulatory compliance will be used to create jobs.  That's the great myth.  See the second half of number 2. above for the reality.

6.  Except for bashing immigrants & refugees and beating the Perpetual War drums, Trump & Crew seem to have no focus.  Rarely resolving anything, they jump from one item to the next.  That's especially true of the Don.  Yes, it's early yet in his Kingship; however, if the first forty or so days are any indication, the man won't accomplish much at all that's positive and good for We the People.  On top of that, the Executive staff slots still aren't all filled.  Plus, with seemingly sincere & consistent---but incompetent & narrow-minded---people like Jefferson Beauregard Sessions in place, the whole Reality Show of an Administration becomes a circus.
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Finally, a few closing observations (and reminders)---
1.  During the Golden Age of American Capitalism (from the end of WW II through the 1950's & into the early 1960's), the greatest economic expansion in our history as a nation, with few exceptions corporations were taxed at a 90% rate.  They now pay (if at all) 35%.
2.  Politically speaking, I'm not Red or Blue; I prefer Purple.  So do 41% of American adults.  25% are Red and 31% are Blue.  3% don't give a damn, and given our recent history (30-40 years), can't say that I blame them much for that view.  :)
3.  Trump & Company are either incompetent, ignorant, or devious fraudsters... or some combination of those.  In any case, they are wrong for this country and the world.

Not only my opinion.  Be Well