Thursday, January 10, 2013

From The Pen Of Joshua Lawrence Breslin- With Greg Brown’s “Walkin’ Daddy” In Mind




CD Review
Greg Brown-One Night- Greg Brown, Red House Records, 2000

…he came out of the heartlands, smack in the heart of the many-rivered heartlands, the place where America learned its rough-hewn democratic manners, learned to do without in a pitch, learned to lean, gently lean, on one’s goodfellow neighbor and return the favor, and learned to curse the world that impinged on its graces. Yah, he came of age out in those fields, corn, wheat, soy, barley, hell, even a strawberry patch, came out swinging, came out all Carl Sandburg hog butcher to the world, grain elevator to the world, mighty steel- maker to the world to sing, troubadour sing, just at that time when the earth had given up on troubadours, and their sing-song material, had given up on smoky meaningful Village cafes and smart North Beach hip hideaways, and gave that art form, that blessed angel democratic art form, ready to go under in a torrent of hubris and bad air a reprieve for a time.

And he sang, sang and wrote, and sang again of those heartland woes, sorrows, sadnesses, and joys, of coming of age, of grandma this and aunt that, and of their bounty and natural graces, of kindred Ozark hillbilly forbears heading west, of their moons and mishaps, of their rivers and wrongs, of old town life, livable town life, folded up in the night and vanished, of his father, image father, speaking of hillbillies, of walking daddy and of becoming walking daddies. Of fresh floundering love, all experimental and awkward, played out in grassy fields, along two-hearted rivers, and later in back seat cars and teenage dream lovers’ lanes, and every other spot where young love could blossom.

He cried out, cried out in pain I tell you, to see the despoliation of his land, to see the crooks and crackpots grabbing greedily for all that they did not create, to see the fading of the American, his American, sun for he could unlike others love his country if no those who governed it. Of the glue of society coming undone against the savage beast mall, the savage beast armies of destruction, the savage beast ultra-modern ways of thinking, ways of negating and mocking those simple child-learned graces. He sang too, maybe just a bit too much too, of Michigan, really UP, ur-Michigan, of fishing, damn blasted fishing, and some curled up book life as way to salve his soul. So be it.

And he sang, and let’s be candid in a non-candid world, of women, of every blessed angel devil one of them, of man’s woman woes and wonders, of sleepy and sweaty bed sheet nights, of armed truces, and unarmed truces, and flat out wars, wars that made international wars seem civilized by contrast, of modern day psych-outs and spills, of cheap hotel loves fortified by liquor, and fortified by desperate lonelinesses, of elegances and elegies, and of torrid love, and dead ashen flames of love gone off the track that no UP, no big two-hearted river, no Missouri grandma wisdom could save.

… and hence this album

Wednesday, January 09, 2013

Sudbury man convicted on terrorism charges receives award

Church honors Mehanna's 'struggle as a seeker of justice'

Published 7:10 AM EST Jan 07, 2013
Tarek Mehanna
BOSTON —Former Sudbury resident Tarek Mehanna was granted the 36th annual Sacco & Vanzetti Social Justice Award Sunday from the Community Church of Boston for his struggle as a seeker of justice, the MetroWest Daily News reported.
Following discussions on America’s history of oppressed people, Mehanna’s father, mother, brother and sister-in-law accepted the award on his behalf.
Mehanna is serving a 17-1/2 –year sentence at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Ind. He was convicted in 2011 on various terrorism-related charges after federal prosecutors said he traveled to Yemen to seek training in a terrorist camp in order to fight U.S. soldiers in Iraq and translated texts for terror groups.
The crowd of about 60 people at the Sunday morning service listened to a recording of Mehanna’s sentencing statement, in which he maintained his innocence, saying that although he advocates for Muslim’s right to self defense, he did not conspire to kill Americans.
Mehanna’s father, Ahmed Mehanna, said he wrote a three-page letter to US District Judge George A. O’Toole, who handed down the sentence in Mehanna’s case.
"The judge was from the get go … had the mind to convict him," Ahmed said.
Members of the Tarek Mehanna Support Committee rallied on behalf of Mehanna, who they said is a "political prisoner and target of FBI persecution."
Congressional Director Linda Jenkins called the evidence against Mehanna "laughable" and suggested the real reason for his arrest was that he was a politically outspoken Muslim who refused to collude with the FBI.
Ahmed said Mehanna’s prison sentence is "a very sad situation" for the family, but "truth will prevail."
Committee organizer Laila Murad read an acceptance statement from Mehanna, which read, "I would like to thank everyone at the Community Church of Boston for this award, but I must add that relative to others I can think of in the world today, I have done very, very little to deserve


Read more: http://www.wcvb.com/news/local/metro-west/Sudbury-man-convicted-on-terrorism-charges-receives-award/-/11983044/18032774/-/f4w7eq/-/index.html#ixzz2HUEwtGvk

Update 1/7/13: Whistle-blower motive under threat, supporters take action!

Help support Bradley! New banners available in the store!
Bradley Manning will be back in court for a pre-trial hearing that runs January 8-11. The government will be attempting to block reference to Bradley Manning’s whistle-blower motives during the merits portion of the trial. There is also a chance that Judge Lind will rule on last months motion to dismiss all the charges against Bradley Manning based on the unlawful pretrial punishment he endured at Quantico prison. (Read more…)
Supporters are taking action! A solidarity event is being held in London, UK and it will feature the soundtrack of the Collateral Murder video. “Come and show solidarity with Brad on Tuesday along with VFPUK and others, as he appears in court for his next pretrial hearing -Tues 8th Jan to Friday 11th Jan.” they write. (Read more…)
New banners are available from the Bradley Manning Support Network. Check them out in the online store!

Military judge rules Bradley Manning was illegally treated, awards 112 days credit

At Bradley Manning’s hearing in Fort Meade today, Judge Lind awarded 112 days credit off of any future prison sentence awarded due to the abuse Manning suffered in Quantico—little to keep the military from torturing next American soldier awaiting controversial trial. Earlier, the parties argued government motions to preclude evidence of core precepts of Bradley Manning’s defense.
By Nathan Fuller, Bradley Manning Support Network. January 8, 2013.
Judge Denise Lind. Sketch by Clark Stoeckley, BMSN.
Judge Denise Lind. Sketch by Clark Stoeckley, BMSN.
After more than two weeks of intense litigation by Bradley Manning’s defense, and hearing how Quantico brig staff blatantly disregarded Navy Rules, military Judge Denise Lind has confirmed that Bradley was punished unlawfully before trial by awarding 112 days credit. Instead of awarding 10-for-1 credit (or dismissing the charges altogether), which would severely reprimand the military and significantly impact Bradley’s potential sentence, Judge Lind gave 1-to-1 credit for selected portions of his Quantico confinement.
Judge Lind has granted credit for the 7 days Bradley was kept on suicide risk watch against Navy Rules, 75 days from November 1 to January 18 when he was kept needlessly on Prevention of Injury watch, and 20 days from April 1-20 when he was forced to remove his underwear at night. Lind said Bradley’s confinement was “more rigorous than necessary,” and that it “became excessive in relation to legitimate government interests.”
With this ruling, Lind affirms that both Brig Commanding Officers James Averhart and Denise Barnes abused their discretion in different ways. She said Averhart kept Manning on Prevention of Injury (POI) watch for too long against psychiatrists’ recommendations, and said that after November 1 it was excessive. She said that the fact that Barnes removed Bradley’s underwear for suicidal reasons but didn’t put him on Suicide Risk was legally authorized, but she said it was egregious to do so for so long.
Earlier in the day, the government litigated its motions to preclude discussion of Bradley Manning’s motive and of overclassification. The government says that Bradley’s motive, even if pure and noble, is irrelevant to intent, which it says is whether he knew or had reason to believe that the information could be used to harm the United States if made public. But the defense differed on the distinction: Bradley’s counsel David Coombs argued that motive does factor into intent at the time of the release. Coombs argued that the defense’s evidence could show not that Bradley wanted information to be generally free, but that he selected documents to release knowing that they wouldn’t cause harm to the United States. Coombs also argued that this motion was untimely: Judge Lind hasn’t yet seen the evidence that the government wants to preclude, and this motion now compels the defense to make some of its basic arguments in court before trial begins.
The government has also moved to preclude evidence of overclassification, arguing similarly that whether too much information is classified has no bearing on whether the documents Bradley is said to have released were classified at the time. But Coombs contended that as an Army intelligence analyst, well versed in the Army’s massive secrecy, Bradley knew that just because documents were classified didn’t mean their publicity would bring harm to national security. Furthermore, he said he could bring witnesses such as Col. Morris Davis who could comment on overclassification and whether it would’ve been reasonable to conclude that the classified documents at issue could bring harm to the United States.
Judge Lind will rule on those motions next week, at the January 16-17 hearing currently scheduled for the conclusion of the speedy trial motion. This hearing continues through Friday. Stay tuned throughout the week for continuing coverage.

3 thoughts on “Military judge rules Bradley Manning was illegally treated, awards 112 days credit

Government seeks to block reference to Bradley Manning’s whistle-blower motives

In this week’s January 8-11 hearing at Fort Meade, the government brings multiple motions that attack the core of Bradley Manning’s defense: namely that he blew the whistle on war crimes and that the documents released shouldn’t have been classified in the first place. We’ll summarize each day’s proceedings here at BradleyManning.org.
By Nathan Fuller, Bradley Manning Support Network. January 7, 2013.
Government prosecutors speaking to Judge Denise Lind. Sketch by Clark Stoeckley (BMSN).
Government prosecutors speaking to Judge Denise Lind. Sketch by Clark Stoeckley (BMSN).
The next hearing for PFC Bradley Manning may not appear to have to the same dramatic flair that the Article 13 hearing had – with long hours of vital testimony, courtroom presentations of Bradley’s tiny cell and coarse blanket, and Bradley himself taking the stand – but it could have a major impact on the remainder of the trial. At Fort Meade, MD, from January 8-11, the government will argue multiple motions that could change the way Bradley is allowed to defend himself in court.
The government is moving to remove discussion of Bradley Manning’s motive in the merits (guilt/innocence) portion of the trial, contending that motive doesn’t change whether an act occurred or not and is therefore irrelevant to determining Bradley’s guilt. This is yet another attack on Bradley Manning’s whistle-blower defense, because the government doesn’t want the court to hear why Bradley released documents, that he observed high-level crimes and abuse and couldn’t abide by them as other soldiers did.
In a similar vein, the government is also moving to preclude discussion of overclassification. If Judge Denise Lind granted this motion, Bradley couldn’t explain that the U.S. suffers a massive secrecy problem and that these documents should not have been classified in the first place.
Judge Lind could make a ruling on these motions this week, and she could also rule on last month’s Article 13 motion. She could throw out the charges altogether if she recognizes that Bradley was unfairly punished, or she could grant multiplied credit at sentencing (for example, 10 days of credit for every day he was in solitary confinement), or she could grant merely the seven days total credit for the days Bradley was on Suicide Risk against psychiatrists’ orders, as the government proffered.
We believe that since Article 13 was clearly violated and Bradley was punished before trial, the charges against him should be dismissed. However, we would see Judge Lind awarding extensive credit for potential sentencing as a step in the right direction: if she later decides to throw out the egregious and pernicious ‘aiding the enemy’ charge, sentencing credit could severely reduce the remaining sentence.
Following this hearing, the defense will conclude its speedy trial motion on January 16-17. Next month, shorter hearings will deal with discussion of how to handle classified information during trial, and when to close sessions to the public. By the time Bradley gets to trial, currently scheduled for March 6, 2013, he’ll have been in prison awaiting court-martial for more than 1,000 days.

Bradley Manning ensured leaks would not harm US, lawyer insists

David Coombs tells military hearing that Manning had 'no evil intent' to help enemy and selected harmless material to publish
Bradley Manning is escorted away from his Article 32 hearing
Bradley Manning. Military prosecutors are seeking to preclude any discussion of Manning's motives from the trial itself Photograph: Mark Wilson/Getty Images
Bradley Manning, the soldier accused of instigating the largest leak of state secrets in US history, consciously selected the information he passed to WikiLeaks to ensure that it would be of no harm to the US and would not aid any foreign enemy, his lawyer argued on Tuesday.
David Coombs, Manning's civilian lawyer, revealed at a hearing at Fort Meade military base in Maryland what is likely to be a central pillar of the defence case at the soldier's court martial. A full trial is scheduled to start on 6 March.
Coombs said that the defence would be calling as a witness Adrian Lamo, the hacker who alerted military authorities to Manning's WikiLeaks activities, to give evidence about the web chat he had with Manning shortly before the soldier's arrest in Iraq in March 2010. The content of the web chat, Coombs suggested, would be used by the defence to show that Manning selected information to leak that "could not be used to harm the US or advantage any foreign nation".
The issue of Manning's motive in allegedly leaking hundreds of thousands of US diplomatic cables and war logs from Afghanistan and Iraq to WikiLeaks goes to the heart of the case against the soldier, Coombs argued. The most serious charge against him, "aiding the enemy", that carries a maximum sentence – in this case of life in military custody with no chance of parole – rests on the US government proving that Manning knew, or reasonably should have known, that the leak would be exploited by anti-US forces.
The prosecution has previously stated its case that by placing confidential documents on the internet, Manning in effect handed the intelligence to al-Qaida as the information was then freely available to anyone with a computer.
But Coombs insisted that the content of the Lamo web chats, backed up by evidence of other unnamed witnesses who would be called at trial, would show that Manning had no "evil intent" to help the enemy. Quite the contrary: he actively selected the material he passed on for its harmless impact on the US. He also believed that "information that is out in public can't do any harm", and thus having it "out there" would negate any of its potential for damaging national interests, Coombs said.
The disclosure of such an important line of defence – that goes to the core of Manning's thinking as he embarked on the massive WikiLeaks trove of state secrets – came amid legal argument relating to a prosecution motion relating to the issue of motivation. The military prosecutors are seeking to preclude any discussion of Manning's motives from the trial itself, arguing that they are irrelevant to determining whether or not he committed the offences for which he is charged.
The prosecution lawyer, Captain Angel Overgaard, told the court that in the US government's opinion, Manning's motives for leaking had no bearing on his state of mind or intentions when he carried out the acts and thus was irrelevant to the determining of the facts of the case at trial. "If somebody stole a loaf of bread to feed her family, she still stole the loaf, even though her motives were good," Overgaard said.
The presiding judge, Colonel Denise Lind, who will hear the trial without a jury at the request of the defence, quizzed the prosecution over aspects of its motion. Lind put herself into the character of Manning, and wondered whether the intensity of his motive could have blotted out his awareness of the consequences of his actions: "I'm thinking so much about what I want to do with this information that the enemy never crossed my mind," Lind speculated.
The hearing will continue with a prosecution motion to preclude any discussion at trial of the over-classification of state information. Part of Manning's motivation, the defence has argued, was that he believed the US government to be overbearingly secretive, but again the prosecutors contend that is irrelevant to the question of his guilt or innocence.

Tuesday, January 08, 2013

Folksinger’s Corner- Out In The American Wilderness-Greg Brown’s “Walkin’ Daddy”



… he walked into the town, into the winter snow drift town, all shivering and cold, all buck in his pocket all in change , not more, all life’s possessions on his back, rucksack some odds and ends hanging from a couple of straps to make walking daddy walk easier out on that desolate hitchhike highway, bedroll, a stray bag or two carried in every arm, things recently bought, or recently “clipped,” and not fit-able in solely essentials rucksack, all hell fire and brimstone cursing against that damn truck driver who had dumped him off the Interstate rather than as he had planned stopping off in this winter snow drift town. And so walking daddy, for the one hundredth, or maybe one thousandth time, was walking into some place town (Prestonsburg ,Gallup, Neola, Racine, Fargo, hell, all the Dakota towns, Pacifica, Two Rivers, Three Rivers, Boise, Helena, Nashua back east, Olde Saco up in start up Maine, the names kept rolling off to keep him rolling warm) after some off-beat angel ride to some exit six, or sixty-six, or six hundred and sixty- six.

A few flakes on his collar causing another shiver, a few flakes on his greying beard making him look more like some old time patriarch, some old testament prophet in sack cloth and ashes, he entered Aunt Milly’s Diner (amazed as always at the number of aunts, good christian aunts for the most part, of sturdy yeoman stock, whose names were attached to these small winter snow drift town diners and amazed too that they all served generous portions of food fit for kings and prophets, new and old , and cheap too, or to be had for a few dishes washed in trade), and began his spiel, his “hi, how are you’s,” his small snow drift town version of brother can you spare a dime (that dish-washing in lieu of cash picked up in hard knocks early road time where he learned that on route 6, 66,666 the coin of the realm was if you wanted to eat you had better work). No commie red mad monks run amok on the western plains and hills (back east don’t even bother, just pan-handle or con because that land is fresh out of angel aunts).

After a successful negotiation (one hour’s pearl-diving for one big entrée, ha, meal, plus dessert, fair enough) now setting himself up as walking daddy after the warmth of the diner took that damn chill of his chest he sat down at the counter (as always, and as always on the single swivel stool red vinyl seat, on the formica counter a paper place setting with some god awful advertisements for local this and local that, hog feed, real estate, guns, you name it, and, maybe suggestions for the local attractions, Jimmy’s Ant Farm or something, utensils wrapped around paper napkin and a patiently waiting downturned coffee cup, ceramic) and was, as usual, asked by some curious lonesome local where he, the lonesome hobo (road moniker –Charles River Blackie, but not used in the aunt diners of the world) was from (knowing everyone in the aunt diner local and not him) and what was his business. And as the diner began filling up with good local farmers and ranch hands he had this to say in his laconic way so that everybody could hear:

“I have walked this country shoe leather bare ever since I started out some years back east in Olde Saco, that’s up in ocean Maine [thus solving the “from” question], hitching and hiking, hitch-hiking, riding flatbed rails, hell a couple of times riding horses across Wyoming when you could do that without frightening the damn beasts with all that damn traffic. I have been to Helena, and hell, Boise, and batty, Cheyenne, and corralled (jailed, okay), and so if you ask me my profession just say I am a walking daddy (except that hour I will be putting in for Aunt Milly after this fine meal), a pure walking daddy, walking now just to keep walking. And to keep spreading the good word, if you know what I mean.” And that seemed to satisfy the diner crowd, mainly at that time of day men as they thought about their own long gone walking daddy dreams…

Walkin' Daddy


i'm walkin' daddy  in the steps that you put down
i'm walkin' daddy  & i know not where I'm bound
 
 
i'm walkin' daddy this road is dark & long
i'm walkin' daddy  & your blood is in me strong
 
 
i'm walkin' daddy where the jack's fork river bends
down in missouri  where the jack's fork river bends
with you & ma & my sister  & with all my dear friends
 
 
you're walkin' daddy off through the woods you old hillbilly
you said "this is my son in whom I am well pleased"
 
ain't no road a good road until it's free to everyone
we're walkin' daddy  father holy ghost & son
 
 
ain't no sorrow can dim the love comes shining through
i'm walkin' daddy  I know what I am here to do
 
 
to be of use try to help the deal along
i'm walkin' daddy  & i'm just gonna keep walkin' on
 


Monday, January 07, 2013

Top 100 Richest People Now $241 Billion Richer

By: Thursday January 3, 2013 5:20 am

Sometimes it seems like the system is rigged and the rich just keep getting richer – it seems that way for a reason, it’s true.
From the Los Angeles Times:
The richest people on the planet got even richer in 2012, adding $241 billion to their collective net worth, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a daily ranking of the world’s 100 wealthiest individuals.
The aggregate net worth of the world’s top 100 stood at $1.9 trillion at the market close Dec. 31, according to the index. Of the people who appeared on the final ranking of 2012, only 16 registered a net loss for the 12-month period.
And while they may be claiming burdensome regulation and Obama’s “socialist policies” are destroying wealth our old friends the Koch Brothers got a nice boost.
Koch Industries’ two other shareholders, the brothers Charles and David Koch, are each worth $40.9 billion, up $7.1 billion, or 20.9%, for the year.
Yeah, we live under a socialist regime – socialism for the rich (capitalism for the poor). That’s probably why in America the richest 1 percent have more financial wealth than the bottom 95 percent combined.

21 Responses to “Top 100 Richest People Now $241 Billion Richer”

EvilDrPumaJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 2:05 pm
Divites este.
bluedot12January 3rd, 2013 at 2:07 pm
The richest one percent? Sounds fair.
PublicLobbyistJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 2:18 pm
Ron Paul, most of whose ideas are admirable, has made contradictory statements with regard to the Rich. On the one hand he states that financial interventionists are motivated by envy but also says that one of the causes of our financial political crisis is a “gross discrepancy in wealth distribution going from the middle class to the rich.” So, if there is a problem in distribution, why do we need to interject envy into the matter? Which is it, Libertarians, envy or injustice? I say if you correct the injustice, you’ll assuage envy considerably.
ShotoJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 2:19 pm
Of the people who appeared on the final ranking of 2012, only 16 registered a net loss for the 12-month period.
I wonder if they’ll be able to derive any tax benefit from those losses that will sorta, you know, wipe out the losses over time? Um…duh…I dunno…
ShotoJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 2:21 pm
In response to PublicLobbyist @ 3
Ron Paul is (how do I state this delicately) vastly overrated. He sounds sane for the first several minutes, after which his rhetoric and logic break down into the most infantile and unimaginable gibberish.
RetirinInFiveJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 2:46 pm
And the card reads, “Advance to Go. Collect $2.41 billion.”
1derJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 2:46 pm
- According to the IRS, which recently released 2009 data from the 400 richest individual income tax returns, the real runaway growth in wealth has come from capital gains. In the last years of the bubble, the “Fortunate 400″ made nearly half their income from capital gains (a.k.a.: profit from the rising value of an investment, such as stocks or property) and less than 10% of their income from old-fashioned wages.
- The average income of a top-400 earner grew by 650% between 1992 and 2007 to a whopping $344 million. Over that time, the average salary didn’t even double. But the average capital gains haul increased by 1,200%. So how do the richest get richer? Not from their wages. From their investments.http://finance.yahoo.com/news/richest-400-people-america-got-201519751.html
And those “investments” are safeguarded by hedge fund crooks and their bankster partners scamming from The Street. Ben and Timmy stand arms crossed at the vault, while the “50 or 60 far right extremists” that Schumer is bitching about are turning the hallowed halls of Congress(choke) into a Delta Chi remake, the irony.
The shoe that is yet to drop is the one where we stop Quantitavingly Easing those capital gains with our stimulatin’ free money. Supporting their Versailles lifestyle, job creators, what bullshit. Going broke.
Deflation bitches, then depression, socialism! Kenya wins! Keep prepping preppers. We are ruled by fools.
seaglassJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 2:49 pm
It’s time for titles again so we can identify our new Masters. Lord Trump sounds about right or Charles Koch Earl of Manhattan etc. et al. Whose fooling who anymore we lost the Revolution against the Monarchist and the aristocrats, time to seal the deal. Let these pukes buy titles from the Gov’t that they need to pay for every yr. to maintain say for a miserly 50 mil. and they can’t pass it on to their kids. ( only the money to keep up the title.) They’ll love it. Oh and lets have an elected King or even Emperor as well.
Alice XJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:00 pm
Emmanuel Saez at the University of Berklee has done extensive work on income and wealth inequality. The former leads to the latter, of course.
You can find him and an excellent excel spreadsheet here.
I don’t have the latest version of excel installed so I can’t go through all of the current information.
In numbers I previously understood from several years ago, the top twenty per cent of holders of wealth in the US had eighty five per cent together. This could be divided into to 34 per cent for the top 1% and 51% for the remainder of the top quintile.
The middle two quintiles (forty percent of the population) had the remaining 15% of wealth. The bottom forty per cent had no net wealth at all. Most wealth there is in their houses. They have been plundered there.
That is net wealth.
The quote from Michael Moore’s film regards financial wealth. In other words, holding stocks, bonds, debt derivatives (things that the lower quintiles have unfortunately bought into with their pension plans, etc.
), what have you and the complexity there is endless.
But financial wealth is the basis of capitalism and that is basis of inequality.
Capitalism is about inequality.
Financial holdings income comes in capital gains which makes the recent ‘fiscal cliff’ fraud even more appalling.
It would take some analysis to verify Moore’s number. It would not surprise me if it were close. But the inequality of wealth is very complex and simple statements can be somewhat misleading.
SynoiaJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:01 pm
Where are the Jobs, from these “Job Creators.”
If the “Job Creator” meme be true, than this $241 Billion should have created at least 4.8 Million new jobs (at $25,000 to $50,000 pr job).
Where are the jobs?
Alternatively at 50% tax rate, we could have see about 4.8 Million new infrastructure jobs world wide.
onitgoesJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:18 pm
If Obama’s a “socialist,” then perhaps we need to elect a “capitalist” next time around… at least in terms of the Orwellian-speak that our corp-owned propoganda media engages in.
Any time I hear conservatives I know vetching and whiiiing about teh poorz “ruining” everything I point out how the “wealth” is being re-distibuted upwards, NOT downwards. And that my mostly-entrepreneurial, truly small bus. owner conservative pals are being screwed over royally by both parties. In other words, neither the Republicans or Democrats are their friends.
I am starting to get a few looks in my direction that show a possibilty that a penny is beginning to drop & they might be seeing the truth from fantasy fiction… but I won’t hold my breath. Too many citizens continue to engage in the fantasy that they, too, are really truly part of the 1%, and therein lies the rub.
GlenJoJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:27 pm
In response to Synoia @ 10
Funny, I don’t have the numbers in front of me, but that 4.8 million is almost exactly how many lost jobs we still have from the Wall St TBTF banks implosion.
Just a coincidence I’m sure.
stewartmJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:29 pm
In response to onitgoes @ 11
If Obama’s a “socialist,” then perhaps we need to elect a “capitalist” next time around… at least in terms of the Orwellian-speak that our corp-owned propoganda media engages in.
Ah, but no. Here’s a snippet I cut from The New Orwellian Dictionary:
“Socialist” = conservative capitalist
“Capitalist” = fascist.
-stewartm
newcarguyJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:49 pm
I musta read a different book ‘cuz this scenario doesn’t fit my understanding of “socialism”.
Did I miss a memo???
newcarguyJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:50 pm
In response to stewartm @ 13
Apparently I missed a WHOLE dictionary.
newcarguyJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:51 pm
In response to GlenJo @ 12
Remember what Yogi said:
“That’s too much of a coincidence to BE a coincidence.”
Berra, not “the bear”.
newcarguyJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:53 pm
In response to Shoto @ 5
INdeed, his “window of sanity” is quite small. Actually, quite a shame.”A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” Rick Perry among others.
newcarguyJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:54 pm
In response to bluedot12 @ 2
SOMEBODY has to have the MOST money. Makes sense if you think about it. /s
newcarguyJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 3:56 pm
Tell how old I am. I remembner when $200 MILLION was a lot of money. THese guys don’t eve USE the “M” word.
SynoiaJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 4:04 pm
In response to newcarguy @ 15
Dicktionary.
New type of book.
raisedbywolvesJanuary 3rd, 2013 at 4:52 pm
The very wealthy have as much of a character disorder as serial killers or mass murderers do. None of them are “crazy” – but they are addicted to control; they just express their addiction to control in a different way.
What is similar between serial killers, mass murderers, and the ultra-wealthy is that they all have an obsession with control – and a total lack of empathy for other human beings. In fact, they don’t see other human beings as beings at all, but as objects to be used at their pleasure. That’s what the whole trophy wife thing is about. Even they see that their sole function in the world is taking from others without being made to pay for it.
While serial killers prefer to be directly involved in their killing, and mass murderers give the orders to kill and then distance themselves from the carnage, the very wealthy are more like bloodless vampires. They suck the life out of everyone and everything around them, but it’s not done with drama. It’s dreary sweatshops and slave wages, it’s buying the law so that they can make their own policies, take people’s resources and avoid accountability. Just because they don’t have actual firing squads at their disposal doesn’t mean they don’t fantasize about having them and using them.
Sorry but the comments are closed on this post