Sunday, July 25, 2004
Corporate America Uber Alles. (or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Plutocracy.)
Here's a shot in the dark. While reading Howard Zinn's, "A People's History of the United States," I became disgusted at the antics of the Carter-Reagan-Bush Bipartisanship. Grrr...
Playing off hatred, fear, class envy, social envy, gender envy, racial envy, etc. has been a tactic of those in power to keep those being controlled in check. Give a little freedom and power to those in the middle (or crying for freedom), and they'll bark like lap dogs for the Establishment.
I couldn't see how any blue collar or working poor American could support Reagan, Bush, or any Republican, until I thought about the role of feminism.
Here's the scenario:
Working class men, blue collar men, and liberal minded men traditionally were the bread winners. The economy goes to crap in the 70's and early 80's. (Unemployment got as high as 10% under Reagan, and he still was popular.) Now women entering the work force had little to no effect on men's jobs, but say you have a media that begins to pander to sexist stereotypes and anti-feminism. ('cough', 'cough', 'feminazi')
I'd say one of the fundamental shifts of the mid to lower income males in our country began to vote Republican due to the "threat" of feminism. It would make sense why middle to lower income men are staunchly Republican, even though voting R hurts their best interests economically.
This concept is supporting my idea that the R's and conservatives base all their arguments and innuendos in our society on the fears, stereotypes, and ignorance of the general public. It would explain why those of us with an education, are appalled by the R's, the right wing media attack machine, and so forth.
Add to the web of lies attacks on poor people (ie. welfare queens that never existed), lies about colleges/universities being the bastions of liberalism that preach nothing but communism and anti-americanism (Business colleges and engineering/tech colleges are notoriously conservative), lies about environmentalism/environmentlists(saving baby seals will cost jobs), and lies about anyone that has anything to say that might be anti-business or anti-establishment. (If they get out of line, call 'em commies, pinkos/reds, anti-American, un-patriotic, America haters... liberals. You get the idea.)
They feed on the ignorance of the masses about the inner workings of society, and play up to class based fears, gender based fears, racial/ethinic based fears, and education based fears. They play off fears and ignorance, and then make their viewers/audience feel self-empowered, and "informed." (We're just showing you the hypocrisy of liberalism, my friends.)
Today, the right-wing spin and attack machine is so well funded and pervasive, I'm not sure how long the level of freedom we enjoy will hold out. I think the Patriot Act, and it's ugly little brother Patriot Act II aren't being set in place to protect us from terrorists, but to "protect" us from democracy and democratic demonstrations, particularly like those in the 60's.
(When Vietnam began, most Americans were in support of the war, as the war dragged on into the early 70's most Americans were against the war. Anti-War protestors played a big part in getting Americans informed about the war. Particularly, those younger male Americans that would have to serve in a fight that made little to no sense. Today, right wing talk show pundits blame the loss in Vietnam on the protestors. They infer if people would have supported the troops, America would have won. Not true, and this sets up feelings in Americans to support the troops no matter what, even if America's military actions are questionable and unjustified. Root for America like you would a football team. Win or lose, right or wrong. Don't question it.)
We're being set up. The R's are working to prevent the 60's from ever happening again. They're doing it under the guise of providing for our "protection" and "security." Ask yourself, how is undermining the 4th, 5th, and 6th Amendments beneficial to me as a citizen?
Bush wants to make the Patriot Act permanent due to the fact that he, Cheney, and their ilk, have set into motion the state and cause of keeping America in a permanent state of war. (I know, the terrorists attacked us, but did we do anything to piss them off?) A permanent state of war is a boon to those that want to be in power and get away with un-democratic actions. Not to mention, war is very profitable for Corporate America. America can get access and control of all the world's resources, and 90% of it will go to 10% of the US population.
Even if we boot Bush out, we'll still lose. It'll be worse with Bush in office by far, but Kerry will be "meet the new boss, same as the old boss." Kerry is the lesser of two evils., but at least the economy will perk up under Kerry.
How do we stop this? Can we stop this? If not, should we join them?
We're living in interesting times.
Here's a shot in the dark. While reading Howard Zinn's, "A People's History of the United States," I became disgusted at the antics of the Carter-Reagan-Bush Bipartisanship. Grrr...
Playing off hatred, fear, class envy, social envy, gender envy, racial envy, etc. has been a tactic of those in power to keep those being controlled in check. Give a little freedom and power to those in the middle (or crying for freedom), and they'll bark like lap dogs for the Establishment.
I couldn't see how any blue collar or working poor American could support Reagan, Bush, or any Republican, until I thought about the role of feminism.
Here's the scenario:
Working class men, blue collar men, and liberal minded men traditionally were the bread winners. The economy goes to crap in the 70's and early 80's. (Unemployment got as high as 10% under Reagan, and he still was popular.) Now women entering the work force had little to no effect on men's jobs, but say you have a media that begins to pander to sexist stereotypes and anti-feminism. ('cough', 'cough', 'feminazi')
I'd say one of the fundamental shifts of the mid to lower income males in our country began to vote Republican due to the "threat" of feminism. It would make sense why middle to lower income men are staunchly Republican, even though voting R hurts their best interests economically.
This concept is supporting my idea that the R's and conservatives base all their arguments and innuendos in our society on the fears, stereotypes, and ignorance of the general public. It would explain why those of us with an education, are appalled by the R's, the right wing media attack machine, and so forth.
Add to the web of lies attacks on poor people (ie. welfare queens that never existed), lies about colleges/universities being the bastions of liberalism that preach nothing but communism and anti-americanism (Business colleges and engineering/tech colleges are notoriously conservative), lies about environmentalism/environmentlists(saving baby seals will cost jobs), and lies about anyone that has anything to say that might be anti-business or anti-establishment. (If they get out of line, call 'em commies, pinkos/reds, anti-American, un-patriotic, America haters... liberals. You get the idea.)
They feed on the ignorance of the masses about the inner workings of society, and play up to class based fears, gender based fears, racial/ethinic based fears, and education based fears. They play off fears and ignorance, and then make their viewers/audience feel self-empowered, and "informed." (We're just showing you the hypocrisy of liberalism, my friends.)
Today, the right-wing spin and attack machine is so well funded and pervasive, I'm not sure how long the level of freedom we enjoy will hold out. I think the Patriot Act, and it's ugly little brother Patriot Act II aren't being set in place to protect us from terrorists, but to "protect" us from democracy and democratic demonstrations, particularly like those in the 60's.
(When Vietnam began, most Americans were in support of the war, as the war dragged on into the early 70's most Americans were against the war. Anti-War protestors played a big part in getting Americans informed about the war. Particularly, those younger male Americans that would have to serve in a fight that made little to no sense. Today, right wing talk show pundits blame the loss in Vietnam on the protestors. They infer if people would have supported the troops, America would have won. Not true, and this sets up feelings in Americans to support the troops no matter what, even if America's military actions are questionable and unjustified. Root for America like you would a football team. Win or lose, right or wrong. Don't question it.)
We're being set up. The R's are working to prevent the 60's from ever happening again. They're doing it under the guise of providing for our "protection" and "security." Ask yourself, how is undermining the 4th, 5th, and 6th Amendments beneficial to me as a citizen?
Bush wants to make the Patriot Act permanent due to the fact that he, Cheney, and their ilk, have set into motion the state and cause of keeping America in a permanent state of war. (I know, the terrorists attacked us, but did we do anything to piss them off?) A permanent state of war is a boon to those that want to be in power and get away with un-democratic actions. Not to mention, war is very profitable for Corporate America. America can get access and control of all the world's resources, and 90% of it will go to 10% of the US population.
Even if we boot Bush out, we'll still lose. It'll be worse with Bush in office by far, but Kerry will be "meet the new boss, same as the old boss." Kerry is the lesser of two evils., but at least the economy will perk up under Kerry.
How do we stop this? Can we stop this? If not, should we join them?
We're living in interesting times.
Wednesday, July 21, 2004
Alan Greenspan, Economic Weatherman...
Have you ever noticed that when Alan Greenspan talks, the DOW drops like a stone?
I was listening to NPR on the way home yesterday, and Greenspan was talking about how the economy was buzzing along just fine, and that boom times are ahead. Sounds great. Except...
Things don't feel like they're turning around. People don't talk like things are turning around. Most avoid the subject altogether, or have little positive to say.
So, I thought, if Mr. Greenspan was a meteorologist he might be a genius in recognizing cloud patterns, air pressure, and pretty darn good at predicting weather. The trick is forecasting the weather is still not terribly accurate. Despite all the doppler radar, weather satellites, and rapid quick communications in our day and age, meteorologists can only really predict the weather fairly accurately about a day ahead of time. Even then, I'd say they're right about 50% of the time.
Not to knock Mr. Greenspan, he's very well educated and probably a genius with economics, its just when he's talking about the state of the economy, and seeing a bright future ahead, I wonder if he bothered to check what the man/woman on the street has to say about the economy.
It seemed to me that Mr. Greenspan would be like a weather forecaster predicting the weather while locked deep in some secure and remote bunker. He's got the latest computer models and satellite photos, but he didn't bother to open a window and look outside. His information tells him that the forecast looks sunny and bright for the week ahead, yet outside, storm clouds are clearly visible.
Now, economies and markets are not machines. In a similar fashion guessing how a market or economy will go is very similar to predicting the weather. Markets are based on on organic life forms, namely us humans. There are things one can do to screw up an economy or help it.
I had the image in my head of Mr. Greenspan surrounded by fellow millionaires. They all seem quite happy and pleased. (Especially with one of their own in the White House.) Now, I would guess that Greenspan gets the impression that all is rosy. I wonder, if Mr. Greenspan knows any of the unwashed masses in the US.?
Economic forecasting is based on some questionable models. The GDP is not a great indicator of economic well being. Unemployment is not a great indicator either. To get a fairly accurate glimpse of the state of the economy, I'd say one needs look at the whole body of it.
Say we only look at the upper 10% of our economy. Things look great for them, but that would be like only looking at one section of a patients brain. If the brain is strong, and the body is weak, I wouldn't say the patient is in good health.
I like Jim Hightower's idea of not just paying attention to the DOW Jones average, but at also looking at the Doug Jones average. Doug, in this case, is representative of the average Joe's and Janes in our country. They'd be the muscle and backbone of our economy. If they aren't doing well, the economy isn't doing well.
Right now, there are too many things showing that the economy has some improvements, but its got a ways to go before its booming. Essentially, the economy is at an equilibrium point. Greenspan has been working very hard to move America to that point where everything is balanced. No inflation, no recession, things just stay even keel.
From where I'm standing in the economic spectrum, things don't look so hot. Basically, if a job doesn't need a physical human presence, it can be farmed off to a Third World country and an American will be stuck jobless, or taking a low paying job here at home. Actually taking several low paying jobs here at home. The problem is there is only a finite supply of jobs here at home.
Bush's tax cuts have failed to spur the economy into a boom cycle. Greenspan has said the tax cuts avoided a deep recession or depression. I'm not so sure.
The Dow Jones is a good barometer for how investing is going. It's remained fairly steady for the past two years. It's been in the mid to low 10,000 range. Business earnings have been ok, but not great. You'd think that those tax cuts would make the upper 10% pour their extra cash into investments like stocks, but they haven't. I'm guessing they've been pumping it into real estate, and other things besides stocks.
All I can say is, if the current economy looks good to Greenspan, and Bush, things will get really bleak in the next four years if Bush gets re-selected in November.
Have you ever noticed that when Alan Greenspan talks, the DOW drops like a stone?
I was listening to NPR on the way home yesterday, and Greenspan was talking about how the economy was buzzing along just fine, and that boom times are ahead. Sounds great. Except...
Things don't feel like they're turning around. People don't talk like things are turning around. Most avoid the subject altogether, or have little positive to say.
So, I thought, if Mr. Greenspan was a meteorologist he might be a genius in recognizing cloud patterns, air pressure, and pretty darn good at predicting weather. The trick is forecasting the weather is still not terribly accurate. Despite all the doppler radar, weather satellites, and rapid quick communications in our day and age, meteorologists can only really predict the weather fairly accurately about a day ahead of time. Even then, I'd say they're right about 50% of the time.
Not to knock Mr. Greenspan, he's very well educated and probably a genius with economics, its just when he's talking about the state of the economy, and seeing a bright future ahead, I wonder if he bothered to check what the man/woman on the street has to say about the economy.
It seemed to me that Mr. Greenspan would be like a weather forecaster predicting the weather while locked deep in some secure and remote bunker. He's got the latest computer models and satellite photos, but he didn't bother to open a window and look outside. His information tells him that the forecast looks sunny and bright for the week ahead, yet outside, storm clouds are clearly visible.
Now, economies and markets are not machines. In a similar fashion guessing how a market or economy will go is very similar to predicting the weather. Markets are based on on organic life forms, namely us humans. There are things one can do to screw up an economy or help it.
I had the image in my head of Mr. Greenspan surrounded by fellow millionaires. They all seem quite happy and pleased. (Especially with one of their own in the White House.) Now, I would guess that Greenspan gets the impression that all is rosy. I wonder, if Mr. Greenspan knows any of the unwashed masses in the US.?
Economic forecasting is based on some questionable models. The GDP is not a great indicator of economic well being. Unemployment is not a great indicator either. To get a fairly accurate glimpse of the state of the economy, I'd say one needs look at the whole body of it.
Say we only look at the upper 10% of our economy. Things look great for them, but that would be like only looking at one section of a patients brain. If the brain is strong, and the body is weak, I wouldn't say the patient is in good health.
I like Jim Hightower's idea of not just paying attention to the DOW Jones average, but at also looking at the Doug Jones average. Doug, in this case, is representative of the average Joe's and Janes in our country. They'd be the muscle and backbone of our economy. If they aren't doing well, the economy isn't doing well.
Right now, there are too many things showing that the economy has some improvements, but its got a ways to go before its booming. Essentially, the economy is at an equilibrium point. Greenspan has been working very hard to move America to that point where everything is balanced. No inflation, no recession, things just stay even keel.
From where I'm standing in the economic spectrum, things don't look so hot. Basically, if a job doesn't need a physical human presence, it can be farmed off to a Third World country and an American will be stuck jobless, or taking a low paying job here at home. Actually taking several low paying jobs here at home. The problem is there is only a finite supply of jobs here at home.
Bush's tax cuts have failed to spur the economy into a boom cycle. Greenspan has said the tax cuts avoided a deep recession or depression. I'm not so sure.
The Dow Jones is a good barometer for how investing is going. It's remained fairly steady for the past two years. It's been in the mid to low 10,000 range. Business earnings have been ok, but not great. You'd think that those tax cuts would make the upper 10% pour their extra cash into investments like stocks, but they haven't. I'm guessing they've been pumping it into real estate, and other things besides stocks.
All I can say is, if the current economy looks good to Greenspan, and Bush, things will get really bleak in the next four years if Bush gets re-selected in November.
Wednesday, July 07, 2004
The facts of Fahrenheit 9/11: here.
Run, don't walk, to go see Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 before it's pulled out of theaters. The Carlyle Group bought up Loew's theaters, so, I'd imagine they'll pul the flick pretty quickly.
What are you waiting for, go... go now!!
What are you waiting for, go... go now!!
I get the feeling that Mr. Letterman is not a fan of Mr. Bush:
Letterman's Top Ten List: Top Ten George W. Bush Complaints About "Fahrenheit 9/11":
10. That actor who played the President was totally unconvincing
9. It oversimplified the way I stole the election
8. Too many of them fancy college-boy words
7. If Michael Moore had waited a few months, he could have included the part where I get him deported
6. Didn't have one of them hilarious monkeys who smoke cigarettes and gives people the finger
5. Of all Michael Moore's accusations, only 97% are true
4. Not sure - - I passed out after a piece of popcorn lodged in my windpipe
3. Where the hell was Spider-man?
2. Couldn't hear most of the movie over Cheney's foul mouth
1. I thought this was supposed to be about dodgeball
Letterman's Top Ten List: Top Ten George W. Bush Complaints About "Fahrenheit 9/11":
10. That actor who played the President was totally unconvincing
9. It oversimplified the way I stole the election
8. Too many of them fancy college-boy words
7. If Michael Moore had waited a few months, he could have included the part where I get him deported
6. Didn't have one of them hilarious monkeys who smoke cigarettes and gives people the finger
5. Of all Michael Moore's accusations, only 97% are true
4. Not sure - - I passed out after a piece of popcorn lodged in my windpipe
3. Where the hell was Spider-man?
2. Couldn't hear most of the movie over Cheney's foul mouth
1. I thought this was supposed to be about dodgeball
