Tea'd Off by Motivatedinohio

I was at Think Progress this morning and  I read how Senator Marco Rubio (R. FL.) said Medicare and Social Security made the average person lazy and dependent. Unfortunately, I'm old enough to remember when average workers in the United States got pensions as part of their income. As a safety net, Social Security was there for people whose company had no pension or for those whose circumstance made it impossible to live on the pension they did receive. The government then made incentives for 401K's to be the new retirement plan, thereby, making sure Wall Street got their cut of the retirement of the average worker. Of course, Wall Street then turned into a casino and gambled with everyone's retirement.

The people who haven't had to cash in their 401K to live are worried it may not be there when they retire. The Republicans continue to vilify Social Security and Medicare and, of course, this is part of their plan to end these programs. The Republicans have outsourced good jobs and they have called Americans, who are unemployed because of the actions of these same Republicans, lazy. They have created an economy where a million people recently applied for 60,000 jobs at McDonald's and they are now attacking the last vestige of hope for the elderly, Medicare and Social Security.

 

What's next? Will we end up in a world, like in the novel Logan's Run, where everyone over a certain age is put to death? Will we just make sure elderly people are so poor they commit suicide or starve to death? If this is not evil, I don't know what is.

Bonus: Here's an additional comment from Motivated to a Tea Party member on the Moveon.org blog who insisted teabaggers are not going to go away:

"Actually they are going away. Most of America views the Tea Party as what they are: crazy, reactionary Republican racists. Your group has a 51% unfavorable rating. You and your ilk have taken this country to the bottom. You have shipped jobs overseas, gotten rid of tariffs, which used to be a big part of the U.S. budget, brought us giant wars and deficits, and lowered taxes for the mega wealthy. There is noting left for you guys to steal from the average American.You work for the Koch Brothers and you lie about everything; even what country the President was born in. You have no credibility. You hurt the poor in the name of God. Your group is an abomination."

Found this quote at http://handthatfeedsyou.blogspot.com/ and thought it fit the People of the Tea perfectly: "Get by them, therefore, as you would by an angry bull; it is not for a man of sense to dispute the road with such an animal."  -- Thomas Jefferson

Note from Cletis: Motivated gets fired up and I love that quality in a person. Their blog is one of the most informative blogs on the net. http://www.motivatedinohio.com/

Also, sometime back my sister suggested  we create a menu for a Republican feast. We're going to call it The Feast of the Oligarchs and the main course will be (again my sister's suggestion) Peasant Under Glass. (That's me and you, folks.) I would love your ideas for other entrees, appetizers, side dishes, desserts, drinks, etc. Let us hear from you our brilliant friends. Make your suggestions and we'll put together an appropriate menu.

The Evil That Was The Renaissance by Fred C.

Fred C. is the keeper of a fascinating place over in Thailand where we like to visit. Interested people are also interesting people and Fred is the perfect example of that fact. Here's the link to his place. http://spineasytime.blogspot.com

Recently, it has come to my attention that Representative Michelle Bachmann (R. MN.)  has issues with the Renaissance. (http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2011/08/michele-bachmann-is-worried-about-the-renaissance.html) Following the lead of anti-Renaissance, extremist Christian "thinkers" like Francis Schaeffer (in the '70's) and Nancy Pearcy (more recently), Ms. Bachmann is quite verklempt because those evil, secular-humanist (and frequently homosexual) artists led society away from God.

This is really typical of the selective approach that these so-called Christians use when they purport to analyze history. Sure, Michelle, it was Leonardo Di Vinci who moved us out of the good old Dark Ages, it was Michelangelo who put human beings into the equation in place of the God, God, God of the Middle Ages. In a pig's eye, maybe.

These are the most ambitious Reactionaries that could be imagined. Not content to wind back the clock to the Gilded Age of the late Nineteenth Century, they want to go all the way back to the Thirteenth Century.

As a point of reference, bear in mind that the Medieval Period of history was a time of bright-line distinction between the haves and the have-nots. To describe it in modern terms like "income disparity" does it no justice at all, and actually misses the point entirely. In those days, ALL of the income went to the elites of the time, the aristocracy and the church, ALL of it, and the remainder of the people were not merely poor, they were bereft, and virtually enslaved.

The haves were anointed by God Almighty, and were possessed of all of the land and all of its fruits; the have-nots were suffered to live, if, and only if, they worked hard, were limitlessly respectful of the church and the aristocrats, never, ever, complained, and were lucky enough never to be charged with witchcraft by jealous neighbors or aristocrats who coveted their wives. So this is the golden age devoutly to be wished by our right-wing Christian politicians. Where are the real Christians, I wonder, and why do they put up with these people and their weird formulations?

And into this harmonious God-centered world intruded the Renaissance, evidently. Somehow those anti-God artists managed to screw up the whole thing. Those artists, "caught up in the traps of false and harmful world views," as the "Medieval world merged into the Renaissance." Which begs the question: why was the Medieval world moving towards a Renaissance in the first place? The suggestion that the Renaissance was driven by Art is ridiculous. Art is a mirror, not a hammer.

All Medieval Art was religious for a reason: no one else had the money and the inclination to sponsor art. (The aristocrats had the money, but not the inclination.)

Maybe those Christian righties mention it somewhere, or maybe not, but the biggest driver of change during the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries was the Black Death. After that major kick-in-the-ass, and because of it, came an appreciation of the nobility of labor, an age of exploration, and major scientific advances (optics; navigation; the printing press). Along the line came the rise of a merchant class with money to invest in art, and this in turn caused the church to invest even more heavily in art to aggrandize itself, which then drove a Protestant Reformation. Society during the Renaissance was not turning from God, it was waking up from the nightmare of God.

Oh that we could see a similar leap forward today, and wake up from the nightmare of Michelle Bachmann. But since these leaps so often follow catastrophes like the Black Death, maybe I should be more careful what I wish for.

Barack, of course I know Michelle Bachmann's a pain in the ass but I am not changing my name.

CS #36 420 Chars by Greg Bryant

Note from Cletis: Recently, I found out through Bryon Cannon that Greg Bryant  had put forth a new literary genre based on a regulation at Facebook whereby you may not use more than 420 characters in your status updates and yes, my dear friends, spaces count as characters. Greg's genre appeals to me because...well, because I am incredibly lazy.


Here are a few examples for your enjoyment. Try one or two and leave them as a comment. 

420 chars #1

Posted on July 18, 2011 by Greg Bryant

This is a genre I’ve just named. I didn’t invent it, since it consists only of the limitation on the size of a Facebook status (hence the name). I just decided “420 chars” needed to name a genre of ultracondensed prose, when you have a big thought and a ridiculously short space to say it in. It makes a writer cull the crap out of his or her prose, re-examine punctuation, search for Anglo-Saxon synonyms for Latinate words (obfuscate → blur), sacrifice modifiers, conflate ideas, and so on. When I hit Share and FB tells me—

"Status updates must be less than 420 characters. You have entered 504 characters here. Notes can be much longer. Would you like to edit and post your update as a Note instead?"

…instead of giving up, I move the prose to a text editor and start working. The result usually calls for a lot more interpretive work on the reader’s part, but that’s okay too. Here’s my first one consisting of 409 characters:

The following two "420 chars" are by Greg Bryant:

If art isn’t the purpose of life, it’s the only mirror of purpose we have, the glass through which we see darkly. This side of art is biological necessity. Beyond art is nothing we can understand. Art is either sacred or the only face of the sacred. So when we are driven to destroy something in service of what we think is our purpose in life, we had better make sure before we destroy it that it is not art.

235 years ago, to give themselves a republic and the right, on paper at least, to a list of freedoms including speech, some rebels signed a document that could get them all hanged. When you speak your mind fearing reproach as little as they feared for their lives, you honor them and the sacrifices of the fighters and free speakers who came before you. You, and not the one who tries to shut you up, are the patriot.

Here's a couple from Cletis:

Young men brutally murdered. Left in pieces on the soil of an ancient land. Was there pain? Was there blood? Were there flies? Flies buzz the dead you know. Your son okay? Your daughter? Still recovering from that graduation bash? Looking forward to a summer by the pool? Will it be Morehead, Eastern, or the University of Kentucky this fall? So much excitement. So many options.

It's late and Earistotle is creating a ruckus in the pasture. The moon is nowhere to be seen and I suspect they are huddled under a blanket in the far corner of the pasture drinking again. Dear God, what was that? I'd better go now. Earistotle and Luna are fist fighting and I need to get out there. We've already had the police out here five times this year. You wouldn't believe what goes on with those two.


Here are two from Bryon Cannon and each is exactly 420 characters: Note: I hate Bryon.


I need to raise my personal debt ceiling. There are so many things I need and want. But because I can’t decide whether to do this through spending cuts or additional revenue, I’m going to have to notify all my creditors, and the grocery store, and the gas station, along with the phone and electric cooperatives that they won’t be receiving payments until I get this sorted out. It’s tricky, though, and may hurt others.

The family Bible sits in a position of honor on the mantel. Note the kid leather cover with the family name embossed in gold. Look at the gilt-edged pages, the beautiful photos of great religious art placed throughout. It’s a red-letter edition, so the words of our savior are easy to find. And it’s in larger type than most Bibles, for easier reading. Oh, no, we rarely open it. That way it stays in pristine condition.

© 2011 Greg Bryant under the Creative Commons

Bryon's place: http://catsignal.com/

Music Saturday # 5 Leiber and Stoller

Jerry Leiber passed away Monday at age 78 and that breaks my heart. What's that? Who in the hell was Jerry Leiber and what did he have to do with my life? Well, if you are a fan of Rock and Roll, you have been singing Jerry's lyrics all your life and you certainly know the songs he penned with his buddy Mike Stoller. Here are just a few of the songs they wrote:  Jailhouse Rck, Hound Dog, and Don't were #1 hits for Elvis Presley. Also, Love Potion # 9, Stand by Me, Spanish Harlem, Kansas City, On Broadway, Is That All There Is, There Goes My Baby, Yakety Yak, Charlie Brown, I Who Have Nothing, Ruby Ruby...it really is a very long list.

Leiber wrote the words and Stoller wrote the music; two young Jewish  men, enamored with black culture, transcended race and time and found the humanity that binds us all. Here's Hound Dog by Big Mama Thornton from 1953 and a later version by some young guy from Tupelo, Mississippi who covered the song in 1956.

Interesting anecdote from Wikipedia: "...1956 trip to Europe for Stoller and his first wife, Meryl, on which they met Edith Piaf. Their return to New York was aboard the ill-fated SS Andrea Doria, which was rammed and sunk by the Swedish liner MS Stockholm. The Stollers had to finish the journey to New York aboard another ship. After their rescue, Leiber greeted Stoller at the dock with the news that "Hound Dog" had become a hit for Elvis Presley.^[6] Stoller's reply was, "Elvis who?"

Here you go, from two of the Founding Fathers of Rock and Roll, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, two great versions of a great song. Rest in peace, Jerry, and thank you for teaching us to sing and dance.

Liberty School My Ass

Lately, I’ve not had a lot to say about my community. My health isn’t great so I’ve been concentrating on my writing and more recently several art projects. I still subscribe to our local paper though and every now and then something catches my eye that raises my blood pressure about two hundred points. Once again our local conservative  columnist is responsible. His recent column regarding the national press coverage of our local Liberty School was about all I could take. This “school” is the most ludicrous thing I’ve read about since the opening of the Creation Museum in Northern Kentucky.

The Liberty School concept is the idea of conservative stalwart, Glenn Beck and is supported by the People of the Tea. Remember those loyal Americans? They are the good citizens who “want their country back.” This, of course, is code for wanting a return to those happier days when black people were in the fields and women were little more than chattel.

My guess is the people who run this "school" are not providing an opportunity for students to fairly compare and contrast the relative merits of communism, socialism, and capitalism. In his column, our local neo-con took the usual conservative shot at public schools, but I can guarantee you the students at the area high school are getting a far more balanced look at historic economic forces than the students of Liberty School.

Some years back Ronald Reagan called the Soviet Union an “evil empire.” Personally, I agreed with Reagan but we need to remember something; capitalism in its purest form is also evil. It certainly is not compatible with the teachings of Jesus Christ. Jesus and his disciples practiced socialism but I doubt if the pupils at Liberty School have spent much time discussing that.

I know by now the good folks at Old Liberty are“skipping a light fandango and turning cartwheels across the floor.” They don’t want to hear any of this. The truth, however, is still the truth. The early Christian church existed for more than 300 years as the greatest socialist experiment the world has ever known. Then, it was hijacked by the Emperor Constantine and was unrecognizable until Martin Luther sat down and actually read the Book of Galatians. The whole point of Christianity is to love God and love your neighbor as yourself. Like it or not, that’s far more in accordance with the principles of socialism than it is the market forces dogma pushed by Milton Friedman and his disciples.

Personally, I’m a big fan of profit motive and deeply respect the innovative genius of people around the world who have pushed us forward. I’m not, however, a fan of those who disparage socialism while at the same time checking into a hospital using their Medicare card. The quality of life in America today is generally good and this is largely due to capitalism, but it is also due to the efforts of those who have worked selflessly to mitigate the damages caused by capitalism.

I can’t help but wonder if the vital role labor unions have played in the development of workplace safety laws and employee benefits is being discussed in Liberty School. Actually, how many of the pupils would even be in school if unions had not worked to abolish child labor? Isn’t it more likely they would be working as chimney sweeps?

Parents who want the best for their children do not spoon feed them ignorance nor do they permit others to do so. Taking your kids to the Creation Museum where they can see early man saddling up a dinosaur is an act of cruelty. Enrolling them in a place like Liberty School where they can learn to be patriotic but mindless citizens does not serve the interest of our country or our state.

Unfortunately, clinging to ignorance in Kentucky is an old story. A couple of years back, when state officials were searching for a slogan which would capture the essence of the Commonwealth, I suggested, “Kentucky: Backward and Looking Forward to Staying That Way.” Inexplicably, the state opted for “Unbridled Spirit.” A few more projects like the Creation Museum and Beck's Liberty School and they might want to reconsider.

The Good Old Days?

Shuddddeeeerrrr by Daniel Berry

I believe the single biggest problem facing our country today is the total lack of rational, productive political debate. There is way too much emotional spewing of unsupported, twenty second sound bites and way too little sustained intelligent discussion that allows the public to draw informed conclusions. That is why I must apologize in advance for what I am about to say. It is an extreme example of the absolute worst in modern American political discourse. Nevertheless...

Congressman Eric Cantor (R. VA) gives me the willies. There is something just not quite right about this guy. They are going to find something horrific in his basement someday. He seems like the nerdy, sissy guy who never quite fit in but desperately needed to do so. He was willing to do whatever it took to feel accepted and discovered that student council and class president were his ticket to happiness. Now, he finds himself at the head of the class, so to speak, without a clue as to what to say or think other than what the controlling hand up his puppet ass says and thinks for him. He is completely incapable of thinking for himself. The fact that this hollow, shell of a man is House Majority Leader scares the bejesus out of me.

I hope I'm wrong and that I turn out to be just the sort of hateful, irrational idiot that I constantly rail against. Nevertheless...

Eric Cantor

Note from Cletis: Lawrence O'Donnell certainly agrees with Daniel. Here's what he said when Cantor said the House of Representatives could simply pass a bill into law without bothering with Senate approval let alone the President's signature.

"The luckiest man in the United States House of Representatives now is Eric Cantor, lucky that rank stupidity is not an expellable offense. He is also lucky that the press core has unanimously, in this era of overwhelming Tea Party idiocy, as exemplified on a daily basis by Michele Bachmann and others, defined idiocy down to the point that Eric Cantor is, even after today's press conference, taken seriously by the political press. Every day that Eric Cantor lets pass without an apology to his constituents, to the congress, to the President, and to every high school student in America who knows more about government than he does, Eric Cantor stands as an unpardonable embarrassment to every adult in his congressional district who voted for him, and a stain on the intelligence of every Republican House member who voted for him for leader."


The Silly Season by Ruthmarie Hicks

August 19, 2011

The Silly Season Continues - Michelle Bachman promises $2/gallon gasoline

 

After Nov. 2010 - I thought we were through with the “silly season” of politics for a while. We had quite a time - between Carl Paladino wielding a baseball bat, Sharon Angle and her “second amendment" solutions, and Christine O’Donnell - who reportedly still is not a witch. 

 

For a trip down memory lane with some prose and videos you can go to BOO!!! The Silly Season of Politics Turns Scary! or Concession Speeches dos and dont’s.

 

As entertaining as all this was - the specter of would-be public representatives behaving this way was uniquely disturbing. The reprieve from lunacy ended abruptly with the Iowa straw polls where the politics once again descended from the merely absurd and dangerous to the insane and surreal. Once again - you can’t make this stuff up.

 

Ed Schultz - of MSNBC’s “The Ed Show” reported that Michelle Bachmann is now promising that if she became president, gasoline would return to levels not seen I was earning my Ph.D. (I think we went north of $2.00/gallon in about 2002). Promising gasoline prices less than $2.00 a gallon which would be achieved by a “drill baby, drill” policy of off-shore drilling.

 

According to Bachmann, this would increase our production by 500,000 barrels a day by 2030 - magically creating a glut of oil and lowering prices. Hmmm…..500,000 barrels a day is a drop in the bucket - no pun intended. And 2030 is almost 20 years away last I checked.

 

Ed Schultz rightly pointed out that the price of gasoline is driven by world demand and that gasoline prices below $2.00/gallon would require a world wide economic melt-down. But then again - maybe that’s the whole point. A Bachmann presidency might be the catalyst to do just that. I’m just sayin’…..

Saint Shelly smites her foes.

 

Head of State

All I can say is that this is going to be a long season of the silly and surreal…..

© 2011 - RMGHicks - http://www.therobberbaroneconomy.com - All rights reserved.