Still Here (After All These Years)

Next week we celebrate the eighth anniversary of this web log.  While eight years of publishing is not such a very long time, in Internet history it is an eon.

What has changed the most is America.  While statistics were already trending in 2006, we have seen so much during the later years of the naughts, and the early years of the teens, that it is rather overwhelming at times.

We stand today in an America hollowed out.  Its industrial might has been hollowed out.  Its Bill of Rights has, in many ways, been hollowed out.  The framework of faith in the American dollar has been hollowed out.

What is left is a confused and muddled picture.  American federal leadership suffers divisions to the point of being nearly dysfunctional.  This is an extremely dangerous situation, full of potential pitfalls.  The poor have been suffering for a long time.  And now the middle class is under duress.  The wealth class, especially the top 1/10th of 1 percent, however, are doing better than they have in ages.

It is this imbalance which is so destabilizing and dangerous.  Even some of the wealthy, such as Warren Buffet are aware of this.  They know if there becomes too much of an imbalance between the haves and the have-nots, rot sets in and the foundations of society cave.

We cannot undo our recent past.  What we can do, however, is get as much information as we can and use that information to oppose the oligarchs and plutocrats wherever they may hide.  

The Musical Patriot: Erudite Traitors Seek to Pervert U.S. Constitution

The Musical Patriot: Erudite Traitors Seek to Pervert U.S. Constitution

The Crash of 2016: Can We Avoid It?

Author Thom Hartmann has presented evidence in his new book The Crash of 2016 that there may be a cycle in history which careens between cataclysmic economic events.  By the point of Chapter 3, the workings of the elites, or Economic Royalists, are becoming clear.  Just by seeing more clearly how the powerful protect and extend their reach over time, hope springs up that something can yet be done in this particular cycle.

It is also becoming clear that certain other powerful individuals, some with money, do not want to see the current reckless profiteering continue.  For one thing the Democratic Governors Association is very active in the effort to elect Democrats in states which seemed to go for Republicans in the tea party revolution of 2010.

In coming days I will have more on these efforts at turning back the tide which is now being called Fascist and foisted on America by the oligarchs and plutocrats of our time.  

The Crash of 2016

In his new book published last November*, author Thom Hartmann lays out a certain history of America in which he says about every eighty years there is a major economic crash followed by a major war.  For my purposes now I am not so concerned about the wars, but I am greatly concerned about the economic crashes.

We are, says Hartmann, headed for another major crash.  And this certainly goes along with other experts such as the writers of Aftershock, already referenced here.  The point Hartmann makes about the Great Forgetting following the Great Depression rings true, sadly.  Those who remember the Great Depression now, though not few in number, are an increasingly smaller proportion of the population and many alive now who do remember the Great Depression were too young to understand its true meaning.  Thus a book like Hartmann's is very important.

Yesterday, I obtained my own copy of this landmark new book and have begun reading it in earnest.  I am very happy with the book so far, grateful for its attention to the economic plight of average citizens and grateful for its clear recounting of such things as the difference of opinion between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson as found in their exchange of letters.

The main test of the book and of our times will be how well we learn from history and whether we are able to stem the tide of the march to disaster which at this point seems so inevitable.

In coming days I hope to have more hopeful things to say on this subject.

The Crash of 2016.  Twelve Publishing.  2013

Slow Growth Surprises Prognosticators

The U.S. economy barely grew in the first quarter of 2014, frustrating experts who expected a significantly stronger performance, according to today's New York Times. With growth at a near standstill there is wonderment over the Fed's announced intention to continue pulling back on stimulus measures.

Of course, stimulus measures of the kind the Fed engages in carry their own risks -- such as raising fears of inflation as well as exacerbating worries of a destabilized financial system down the road.  The Federal Open Market committee expressed confidence in their decision to pull back on Treasury and market-backed securities.  Fed chairwoman, Janet Yellin, indicated confidence in the direction the Fed is taking in a recent speech.  She declared the Fed is focused on the right things.

Despite all the talk of confidence in the economy, underlying factors such as a weak labor market remain areas of concern.  Federal Reserve members who have a seat at the meeting table should spend a day at an employment office and really listen to actual applicants seeking work in a tough economic environment.

Need Health Care in the U.S.? Get Arrested!

From Amy Goodman interview with Thom Hartmann --

THOM HARTMANN: I know the stories; I’m terrible with names. Yeah, this was a—this was a fellow who—he couldn’t find a job. He had a growth in his chest. He was concerned about, you know, "Where do I go? What do I do?" And he walked into a bank and gave the teller a—you know, "I’m robbing this bank for one dollar." And then he sat down and waited to be arrested. And it was because he needed medical care. And he said, you know, "If you don’t have your health, you have nothing. I’d rather be alive and in jail than be dying."
AMY GOODMAN: And get healthcare in prison.
THOM HARTMANN: Yeah, yeah. And he did, by the way. He got healthcare as soon as he was arrested.

The Coming Crash of 2016 and What to Do About It

This evening I am reading about Thom Hartmann's new book on what he calls the Crash of 2016.  It is obvious Hartmann has done his research.  It seems certain this is going to be another Hartmann book which hits its mark tellingly.

Hartmann says that on the surface things may seem the same as usual in the United States.  But if one looks behind the facade, one sees the country has been hollowed out.  Does this not ring true?  Don't we feel this?
One can say cynically that it is less painful for one to know the truth;  it is easier to live in a fantasy world. And, this is true in one sense.  But living in a fantasy world also has its pain -- the pain of frustration, the pain of disappointment in hopes not reached, the sense of incompleteness when vision is clouded and events don't seem to jibe with expectations.

Yesterday, The Amazon Post, or the paper formerly known as The Washington Post, printed bold headlines of a supposed new low in Pres. Obama's popularity.  This new low was allegedly creating headaches for Democratic candidates in this year's races.  I refused to buy the paper.  I decided this was not the kind of focus which was going to be strengthening to me now.  Instead, I decided to look at alternative sources of information to try to understand what is going on.

And that led me to the new Hartmann book.  I look forward to reading this new tome and I sincerely hope it will offer some insights as to what can be done by the average person now to combat this burgeoning oligopoly, so poisonous to the body politic.  


The Coming Crash of 2016 and What to Do About It

The Coming Crash of 2016: Thom Hartmann

Coming later this evening:

Thom Hartmann's new book on the gathering economic storm  

The Most Notable Event of the Week

Unfortunately, holidays and a non-serious illness have kept me away from this blog for the past week. 

However, I have been staying abreast of events to some extent. 

In my view, the latest Supreme Court attack on affirmative action must stand as the most significant event.  This is so clearly a Supreme Court majority, in general, which is out of step with history, and the direction this country must move in to fulfill its promise of equal opportunity for all.  The subject of affirmative action has its complexities.  But the underlying attempt at justice must be supported.  The arcane twistings going on behind the velvet curtains at the Supreme Court are another form of Dred Scott-ism. 

Opposing the Culture of Fear

From today's New York Times on line --

Patrick  16 minutes ago

Saturday April 19th is the anniversary of the Waco Texas Massacre and the Oklahoma City Bombing. Everybody be vigilant. 

                                                                ****************

This past week has been a blast from the past with a return to the rhetoric of the "naughts."  We have seen a spate of articles and news reports, some on TV with scary music tracks, on the Boston Massacre of one year ago.  Then came the Boston hoax of 2014.  

Now we have The New York Times putting on one of their pages the above comment by "Patrick."  

What is going on here?  The main question is why The Times put this on one of their pages, for Patrick's statement is neither literary nor explained.  "Everybody be vigilant."  That's a fine sentiment, but what does it mean?  In practice what does it mean?  It really can mean only one thing to the vast majority -- watch out for strange-looking and strange-acting people.  For how else would I, an average citizen, know what to look for?  

The effect of this is corroding and devastating.  It is an impingement on our freedoms and way of life. The argument is raised:  but America is under attack.  We must be Vigilant. 

This takes us back to 2001 through 2008 when any manner of government vigilance and surveillance was justified in the War on Terror.  Are we going back to that infamous and officially-abandoned "War?"  Did the so-called war even actually end?  

I am going to be vigilant, all right.  Vigilant against dangers to America both foreign and domestic. 

****************************

Also of interest --

An excerpt from an NYT article on the abololition of an infamous New York Police Department agency which spied on Muslims, including in their houses of worship. 

A court motion filed last year by the Handschu lawyers included stark declarations like the one from a man who was paid by the police to spy on a Muslim student group even though he said the police did not think the group was “doing anything wrong.” The paid agent said his handler told him that the department viewed “being a religious Muslim a terrorism indicator.”

Despite sending out waves of spies, the department never uncovered the “incubators” or radicalism it set out to find. Instead, it put innocent people on notice that they were regarded as terrorism suspects until proved otherwise.

SCOTA Enforcement Agency: Part 2

Columnist Leonard Pitts describes the extreme urgency of the Supreme Court attack on voter rights:


A Call to Wake Up

Supreme Court Majority an Enforcement Agency for the Very Rich

The decision of the Supreme Court last week to further weaken campaign contribution limits on the very rich, is raising hackles in the land.  You may consult the article below for further information.

Let me be plain:  I want my country back.  To be perfectly honest, I want my country, period.  For in most ways this has been a country run by the rich for a very long time.  The '60's and '70's saw the most resistance to the oligarchy in a generation. 

Now, however, we are back to the 1920's when the militia was called out to arrest workers.   (Think the forcible removal of Occupy Wall Street protestors.)

When is this repression of people's God-given economic rights to end?  How long must we suffer this war on the average citizen?  The citizens are united, all right.  We are united in opposition to the tilted scales of economic injustice which now measures human life by dollars and cents.  Shameful!


Government of, by, and for the Very Rich People


Awaiting copyright information.  Any infringement will be rectified. 

Video: Democratic Senators Lambaste Latest Supreme Court Decision on Campaign Finance

Senators Schumer and Whitehouse have lambasted the latest 5-4 Supreme Court decision on overall personal campaign contribution limits.  In the video  below, the Senators explain how this decision must, in essence, have been politically motivated.

This was a very useful press conference.  Highly recommended.




Democratic Senators Lambaste Latest Supreme Court Campaign Decision

Familiar Names on the Internet Suffer at the NASDAQ

Google Class A shares sank 4.6% today, and Facebook was down the same percentage bringing Facebook's two-day slide down a total of 9.5%.  This is a significant drop.  

What it portends is something to be commented on further.  Please return here for more reports in coming days.

The Bloomberg report on falling technology stocks:
Bloomberg Reports on Major Sell-Off of Technology Stocks

Technology Stocks Fall; Investors Fearful

Just posted at "TIME" --

The NASDAQ indexes are down as investors demonstrate concern over familiar names such as Google, Yahoo, and Facebook.

While I would not be so foolish as to say this is the beginning of the big crash so many have predicted, since this decline is a trend ever since the first of the year, investors concern seems justified -- to say the least.

You can read more here:
Latest News: Technology Stocks Fall  .