November 14, 2011
Elizabeth Warren's First Ad
-- by Dave Johnson
Here it is, her first ad in her race for the US Senate in Massachusetts. Wonderful, and so is her website.
-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 3:51 PM PST on November 14, 2011.
Egypt-Style Attacks On Several Occupy Camps
-- by Dave Johnson
When Egyptians stood up to Mubarak they were met with tear gas and clubs. Once upon a time American had freedom of assembly, speech and protest. Even now, as long as protests don't take on the 1%, they are OK. But in today's America-for-the-1% protests, assemblies and speech against plutocatic, 1% rule are met with tear gas and police batons to the head.
Occupy Movement camps around the country follow strict practices of nonviolence and democracy. As with any diverse community of people, there are troublemakers who take advantage of loose organization and predators who prey on others. This is why we have police departments in every city and town. But plutocratic government response is to discourage the Occupy Movement, so government services are denied these citizens. Instead of helpfully serving communities, the frown of disapproving authority is cast upon their activities.
Disgust and fear are powerful propaganda tools, and there has been a remarkable "soften up public opinion" media drumbeat using repeated accusations of bugs, thugs, drugs, muggings, disease, rats, filth, and other disgust and fear-invoking imagery. (Perhaps worst of all in the "shame them" index, even beards and general non-consumerism and non-conformity are described!) So with the ground prepared and the way paved for police actions, Occupy camps in Portland, Oakland, Chapel Hill, St. Louis, Albany, Salt Lake City, Burlington, San Francisco, Denver and other cities were raided over the weekend.
"The 1% And Its Government Facilitators"
Of course in one form or another Occupy actions will continue as long as the 1% continues its extreme shock-doctrine power and wealth grab. There are still scores of other Occupy actions taking place in cities around the country and world.
In Oakland the mayor's legal advisor posted on Facebook that he has resigned over Monday's police raid of Occupy Oakland.
His Facebook post: "No longer Mayor Quan's legal adviser. Resigned at 2 am. Support Occupy Oakland, not the 1% and its government facilitators."
Report From Oakland
AlterNet's Joshua Holland reports on the police action in Oakland, in Thousands of Riot Cops Descend on Occupy Oakland, 32 Arrested,
It's the explosions and large volume of gunshots that made these actions excessive. The generous use of flash-bang grenades, tear gas and “less lethal” rounds deployed by police in heavy black body armor felt more like the opening scene to Saving Private Ryan than footage of, say, protests against the Vietnam War being broken up by helmeted police swinging batons. While the weapons deployed by police are designed not to kill or maim (if used properly), the visceral sensation of walking through streets dodging explosions and chemical agents while rounds crackle in the air creates an effect similar to that of actual combat – abject terror, disorientation and a sense of unease that lingers for days.
Roundups And Videos
RT has a roundup of of some of these actions, Occupy camps under attack across America
Here is an AP video roundup of some of these actions:
Here is CNN footage of various actions around the country:
Here is footage from an early Occupy event:
What You Can Do
Attend at least one Occupy event.
You may have heard about the "Occupy" protests that are occurring in cities around the country. They aren't what you are hearing. Please come to one and see for yourself. If you are young, old, white, black, brown, poor, rich, left, right, centrist, even Tea Party you will find people just like you. You might agree, you might disagree, you might love it, you might hate it, but you owe it to yourself to come and see for yourself.A lot of people feel frustration with the huge and increasing gap between the rich and the poor and the effect this is having on our country, culture, politics and the way we relate to each other as Americans. It seems like everything in the country is now geared toward the top 1%, and the rest of us are divided and supposed to keep quiet and accept this. Somehow the Occupy movement started at just the right time, when just the right number of people were fed up with the way things are going and the lack of solutions coming from our political leaders. It grew quickly, because people were tired of keeping quiet while our government seems to operate only for the benefit of the top few and expects the rest of us to sacrifice to pay for that.
This all brings us a chance to restore democracy not just in our communities, but within ourselves. By attending and participating, we are exercising the "muscles" of democracy, of speaking up and being part of something. The thing is, you won’t just see it, you’ll feel it. You'll feel what it is like to have so many people around you who agree with you. You'll feel what it is like to be part of something important.
How To Find One Near You
The "Occupy" movement has now been going on for just over six weeks, and has spread to hundreds of towns across the country. You can probably find one near you. Start at Occupy Together which is at http://www.occupytogether.org/. Take a look at the page where they show you what is happening in your area, using a map. Also, try typing 'Occupy' and the name of your town into Google just to see what pops up.
Also see them on Facebook, at http://www.facebook.com/occupyeverywhere, and http://www.facebook.com/Gilded.Age . Also visit the Rebuild the Dream movement, and, of course, MoveOn.org.
This post originally appeared at Campaign for America's Future (CAF) at their Blog for OurFuture. I am a Fellow with CAF.
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-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 2:34 PM PST on November 14, 2011.
Amazing Video From Early Occupy Event!
-- by Dave Johnson
See for yourself. Here is footage from an early Occupy event:
-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 10:46 AM PST on November 14, 2011.
November 11, 2011
Amish Haircut Attacks - What Did You Expect?
-- by Dave Johnson
OK, there is an Amish cult that is attacking traditional Amish and cutting their hair. Here's the thing, the cult is run by a guy name MULLET. What else would you expect from a guy with the name Mullet? See Ohio Sheriff: Latest Amish Haircutting Victim Attacked By His Son | TPMMuckraker
-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 11:59 AM PST on November 11, 2011.
November 10, 2011
NY Times Says Obama Bailed Out Banks
-- by Dave Johnson
The conventional wisdom machine in operation: No bailouts, Republicans agree at debate in Michigan
On a day when the stock market plummeted amid fears that Greek and Italian debt might bring European financial institutions to collapse, the candidates each rejected the idea that the United States should intervene to help, arguing that U.S. taxpayers should not be responsible for the missteps of foreign countries and companies and that the Obama administration’s bailouts of banks here two years ago amounted to government overreach.
The fact that a NY Times reporter has been tricked by the Republican misinformation machine, on something as well-known and important as this, is significant.
Note this article has been changed: (was reporter fired?)
This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:Correction: November 10, 2011
An earlier version of this article incorrectly attributed the bank bailouts of two years ago to the Obama administration. The Bush administration was responsible for the initial bank bailouts, and the Obama administration followed with additional bailouts.
-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 10:34 AM PST on November 10, 2011.
November 9, 2011
Mic Check
-- by Dave Johnson
In a democracy
In a democracy
The 99 percent
The 99 percent
Count just as much
Count just as much
As the top few
As the top few
In a democracy
In a democracy
It’s one person one vote
It’s one person one vote
And it’s not
And it’s not
One dollar one vote
One dollar one vote
In a democracy
In a democracy
Big corporations
Big corporations
Don’t get
Don’t get
To write the laws
To write the laws
In a democracy
In a democracy
We the People
We the People
Are the ones
Are the ones
Who make the rules
Who make the rules
In a democracy
In a democracy
We have rule of law
We have rule of law
And the rich
And the rich
Aren’t above the law
Aren’t above the law
Tell me what democracy looks like
This is what democracy looks like
Tell me what democracy looks like
This is what democracy looks like
-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 10:49 PM PST on November 09, 2011.
How To Bribe Politicians
-- by Dave Johnson
If you missed Jack Abramoff on 60 Minutes, here it is. This is significant. Watch this to understand how it's done, and why Washington only works for the 1%: Jack Abramoff: The lobbyist's playbook - 60 Minutes - CBS News
-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 10:23 PM PST on November 09, 2011.
It's The Trade Deficit!
-- by Dave Johnson
A huge part of the reason we can't get out of this unemployment slump is the trade deficit. We don't buy American and neither do our "trade partners." We buy from them, they sell to us -- that's not "trade." Stimulus means we buy from them. Cutting taxes means the extra cash buys from them. Nothing we try brings jobs here because we don't buy enough here that's made here and they don't either. If we want to fix employment we have to fix trade.
The current unemployment crisis results, at least in large part, from the trade deficit. This has been masked by bubbles like the tech bubble and the housing bubble. Economist Paul Krugman explains, in a blog post, The Return Of Secular Stagnation,
But then the question is, why do we find it so hard to achieve full employment even with saving somewhat low by historical standards. And the answer seems clear: it’s the trade deficit. America in the 70s and 80s could have high savings, not hugely strong investment, but still have full employment because trade deficits weren’t as large compared with the economy as they are now.And this in turn means that the savings glut possibly making the natural real rate negative is actually originating abroad, not at home.
Krugman is taking issue with the economist argument that we have a problem of too much savings without investment, using a chart showing savings declining. (Note that the inflection point is right as Reagan's policies start to hit.) He explains how this demonstrates that the problem is really our trade deficit.
Easier to understand: We have to fix trade if we are going to fix the economy.
China has accumulated more than a trillion dollars by selling to us and not buying from us. Think about what would happen to our economy if China used that money to place orders for US-made goods. Factories would be opening up, people would be hired, stores would be humming... When you think about how much good that would do, you are understanding the harm their sell-only trade policy has done. They were supposed to buy from us, too, because that is what trade is. But they didn't, and here we are.
Now, think about how much good it would do for China's economy, if our economy was humming from all those orders for our goods! When you think about that, and realize that China is not doing that, you might start to think that this is not an economic game China is playing. If it was about economics, they would use that money to place those orders, to revive our economy, which would mean we would be placing even more orders from them.
But they aren't. Why is that?
This post originally appeared at Campaign for America's Future (CAF) at their Blog for OurFuture. I am a Fellow with CAF.
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-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 6:25 PM PST on November 09, 2011.
Latest Right-Wing Lie
-- by Dave Johnson
Over at Smoking Politics I write about The ‘Christmas Tree Tax’ Lie.
-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 9:39 AM PST on November 09, 2011.
November 8, 2011
Occupy Movement Is Spreading And Growing
-- by Dave Johnson
Our captured government won’t do its job. It doesn't keep Wall Street and banks and giant corporations from ripping us off and doesn't prosecute them after they do. It doesn't stop polluters - even as the effects of climate change increase. It doesn't enforce employment and labor laws, so all of us who work fall further and further behind. It doesn't take care of those in need even as more and more of us are in greater and greater need. It just helps the connected rich get richer. So people finally got fed up, and started "occupying." Now the occupy movement is spreading to more and more cities, growing with more and more people, and expanding people's understanding of the power that comes from speaking out.
It started with Occupy Wall Street, people rising up over the greed and inequality, the1% vs 99%. Labor joined, adding their voice and grievances. Veterans, teachers and others are showing up in greater and greater numbers now. Others are joining. Now it's everywhere: Hundreds of towns like Occupy Orlando and Chicago and Portland and Nashville and Asheville and Oakland and even little towns like Redwood City.
People are getting arrested as the powers-that-be react to the spreading and growing crowds. According to Chris Bowers at Daily Kos,
Arrests in Chicago, New York City, Fresno, Eureka, Denver, Portland, Boston, Seattle, Oakland, Ashville, Riverside and more cities over the weekend has brought the total number of arrests of Occupy protesters over 3,350.
Globalization Of Protest
The world feels the effect of their common wealth draining to shock-doctrine attacks from the 1%. Economist Joseph Stiglitz writes at Al Jazeera that in reaction to this we are seeing The globalisation of protest,
The protest movement that began in Tunisia in January, subsequently spreading to Egypt and then to Spain, has now become global - with the protests engulfing Wall Street and cities across America. Globalisation and modern technology now enables social movements to transcend borders as rapidly as ideas can.And social protest has found fertile ground everywhere: A sense that the "system" has failed, and the conviction that even in a democracy, the electoral process will not set things right - at least not without strong pressure from the street.
Stiglitz writes that arond the world these protesters are sounding an alarm:
They are right that something is wrong about our "system". Around the world, we have underutilised resources - people who want to work, machines that lie idle, buildings that are empty - and huge unmet needs: Fighting poverty, promoting development, and retrofitting the economy for global warming, to name just a few. In America, after more than seven million home foreclosures in recent years, we have empty homes and homeless people.The protesters have been criticised for not having an agenda. But this misses the point of protest movements. They are an expression of frustration with the electoral process. They are an alarm.
... On one level, today's protesters are asking for little: A chance to use their skills, the right to decent work at decent pay, a fairer economy and society. Their hope is evolutionary, not revolutionary. But, on another level, they are asking for a great deal: A democracy where people, not dollars, matter, and a market economy that delivers on what it is supposed to do.
Seniors Occupying Over Social Security & Medicare Cuts
More groups are expressing their own dissatisfaction with the captured government cutting back in order to preserve the tax cuts and other benefits of the top 1%. At The Huffington Post, Lizzie Schiffman reports in, Seniors Join Occupy Chicago, Protest Cuts To Medicare, Social Security
More than 1,000 senior citizens and their supporters marched from Chicago's Federal Plaza to the intersection of Jackson and Clark Street Monday morning to protest proposed cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and Housing and Urban Development (HUD).… Amid chants demanding that the cuts be forestalled -- with suggestions for alternatives, including tax hikes -- 43 demonstrators were escorted from the intersection (see video, above) by police and issued citations for pedestrian failure to "exercise due care," or for blocking traffic. Those cited included four protesters using assisted mobility devices and at least one centenarian.
Moving Money From Banks
In conjunction with the Occupy Movement, people have started to move money from the too-big banks to non-profit credit unions that exist to actually serve the customers instead of the few at the top. 650,000 pedople moved from banks to credit unions just in October -- more than all of the prior year -- and early estimates of the recent November 5 action calculate that perhaps $60 billion was moved.
Occupy The Super Committee
Congress' supercommittee of the 1% is discussing how much money to take out of the economy of the 99% by cutting back on the things our government does for We, the People. They want to cut the deficits that resulted from tax cuts for the rich and huge increases in military spending -- without undoing those. So now a group is setting up to occupy the supercommittee. The Occupied Super Committee Hearing of the 99%
OccupyWashingtonDC to hold Occupied Super Committee Hearing for the 99%
Wednesday, November 9th at 11:00 AMOccupyWashingtonDC.org will hold a hearing on the economy for the 99% that will examine how to create a fair economy for all Americans.
The Occupied Hearing will contrast with hearings on Capitol Hill which are destined to enrich the 1% and protect major donors.The Occupied Super Committee Hearing for the 99% will examine critical issues facing the economy and the federal budget. The hearing will include testimony from people with great understanding of the issues facing the country as well as comments from the 99% who are directly affected by the economy.
Hundreds Of Thousands Of Views Of A Congressman's Occupy Video
How often does a member of Congress put a video on YouTube and quickly get hundreds of thousands of views? Keith Ellison (D-MN), Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, made a video for the "CongressionalYoutube Town Hall" series, talking about the Occupy Wall Street movement. The video has received 340,000 views as of Tuesday morning.
Occupy Everywhere And Everything
Possible new Occupy actions include places that the government is ignoring its responsibilities, and people are sick of just taking it. Some ideas:
Encouraged by the Occupy Movement, more and more people are finding their voice and speaking out.
This post originally appeared at Campaign for America's Future (CAF) at their Blog for OurFuture. I am a Fellow with CAF.
Sign up here for the CAF daily summary.
-- Posted by Dave Johnson at 2:30 PM PST on November 08, 2011.
