The top 20 percent of households own 90 percent of the stuff in America Their average net worth? $3 million. That leaves just 10 percent of the pie for the remaining 80 percent of the populace. The American top 1 percent gobble up twice as much (40 percent) as the top 1 percent in France, the U.K., or Canada, and more than three times as much as the top 1 percent in Finland.
“The time for whispered criticisms and quiet snickering is over,” Gerson writes. “The time for panic and decision is upon us. It is no longer possible to safely ignore the […]
the tragedy that took place in Charlottesville last weekend could not have occurred without the tacit acceptance of millions of ordinary, law-abiding Americans who helped create such a racially explosive […]
(Originally posted August 26, 2016) Genesis 4:9. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” He said, “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?” (1 Thessalonians […]
“Obedience to specific court orders is what keeps us from being a banana republic or fascist dictatorship. That’s a really big deal.” “Saturday’s ruling does not undercut the president’s executive […]
It’s a remarkable approach to defending the indefensible, and it’s hard to imagine Conway seriously believing her own rhetoric. It’s the closest I’ve ever seen a political figure come to […]
We should not waste our time or imaginations trying to reconfigure Trumpism to explain why all of the “good people” supported him. It is more important to see it for […]
The Republicans never have been a friend to miners, and they’re only perceived that way right now because the entire industry is collapsing and the gop says that they can […]
Melania Trump was paid for 10 modeling jobs before obtaining work authorization to legally work in the united states. Source: REPORT: Melania Trump worked in the US illegally – Business […]
Trump’s campaign manager Kellyanne Conway threatened Harry Reid for harshly criticizing Trump’s election and all the ugliness Trump stands for. Conway says Reid should be “very careful about characterizing somebody in a legal sense.” Reid replied “It only […]
This isn’t what might happen if we’re not careful. It’s a done deal. They aren’t sneaky about any of this. It’s happening right in front of our faces. Conservatives like […]
While I’ve opposed the Trump candidacy from the start, I’ve never disparaged Trump voters. Some are friends and neighbors; they’re all fellow Americans. We should take their concerns seriously. But […]
This discrimination, unjustifiably attributed to a Higher Authority, has provided a reason or excuse for the deprivation of women’s equal rights across the world for centuries. At its most repugnant, […]
Trump tells his crowd to poll-watch, adding, “You know what that means.” No, tell us, Donald, because if what “that means” is even close to how Republicans monitored voting stations in key minority districts back in 1981, it […]
On the heels of his Nevada caucus victory on Feb. 24, 2016, Donald Trump famously said “I love the poorly educated.” As it turns out, he had very good reason to, […]
Probably not. History was always one of those “who cares?” “boring” classes that most students endured but paid no attention to. Unfortunately: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned […]
bully noun A person who hurts, frightens, or tyrannizes over those who are smaller or weaker Someone who is mean to others and who throws his weight around. An overbearing […]
From veto message, February 21, 1811. “Because the bill vests in the said incorporated church an authority to provide for the support of the poor and the education of poor […]
“Nothing in the world is more dangerous than a sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.”: Martin Luther King, Jr.
Adam Smith’s An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations is the Bible of Capitalism. “The word VALUE, it is to be observed, has twodifferent meanings, […]
The actions of the Bundys, in Nevada and Oregon, are not the first time that arms have been taken up against agents of the Federal Government because someone didn’t want […]
Thanks to the internet we were able to watch Erev Yom Kippur at New Yorks’ Central Synagogue.The sermon by Rabbi Angela W. Buchdahl is the best I’ve every heard on […]
by 2020, the annual cost of medical care for seniors who fall is expected to reach $54.9 billion. Paul touted the “nobility of private charity” that’s the kind of philosophy that results in us spending about twice as much per person on health care as any other country on earth.
It is economic incentive that drives enterprise, not the supposed nobility of spirit of the wealthy. That idea is aristocracy. Our nation is founded on the self-evident truth that aristocracy is a lie, and that powerful elites do not share their money, power, and privilege with the people. We now have a new aristocracy, created by transferring literally trillions of dollars in wealth to the wealthiest people in our society
one of America’s most fundamental problems is that the alliance between the current form of Southern labor and the current form of New York finance is with us still. The Southernization of the Republican Party and the increasing domination of Wall Street’s over the nation’s economic life have combined to erode both the income and the power of U.S. workers. Unions are anathema to Wall Street and the GOP.
We don’t drug-test farmers who receive agriculture subsidies (lest they think about plowing while high!). We don’t require Pell Grant recipients to prove that they’re pursuing a degree that will get them a real job one day (sorry, no poetry!). We don’t require wealthy families who cash in on the home mortgage interest deduction to prove that they don’t use their homes as brothels (because surely someone out there does this).
It’s the religious far-right’s “special snowflake” syndrome: conservative Christians thinking that because they believe God sanctions their particular brand of bigotry, they’re special snowflakes who shouldn’t be restrained by human decency, much less the pesky laws that the rest of us are obliged to follow. If you hate hard enough, the rules don’t apply to you because you are a special snowflake, who really, really believes in what you’re doing.
Extracts from Ted Cruz Isn’t an Idiot — He’s Delusional and That’s Far More Dangerous By Sophia A. McClennen / AlterNet April 1, 2015
for those who think like Cruz, there is virtually no amount of data, reality checks or facts that can persuade the deluded citizen to give up their false ideas. This is the mindset of the Tea Party, the Koch brothers, and many on the far right. Nyhan and Reifler refer to this as “motivated reasoning.” What they find is that people who are attached to falsehoods perceive any correcting information as partisan and flawed. So conservatives don’t perceive science as information.
A deeper examination of the sheer joy of Oklahoma students chanting about hanging n*gg*rs from trees
Racism is like money. It changes hands. It shape-shifts and finds itself a new carrier, a new account, a new way to express itself in changing times, but it never actually disappears. Suppressed racism is no less real than money in a savings account, but rest assured, suppressed racism always has a way of telling on itself—sometimes in the most despicable, hurtful, and shocking ways.
let me clear—racism is dangerous. It’s not funny. It’s not just words. It’s not kids being kids.
“Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat, but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires.” John Steinbeck
For the life of me I can not understand why people keep supporting politicians who have been bought and paid for by the likes of the Koch brothers and the oil and gas industry.
“$100 from 2 million people … a total of $200 million … is 20 percent of what the Koch brothers themselves are prepared to spend. … Maybe the game is over. Maybe they have bought the United States government. Maybe there is no turning back. Maybe we’ve gone over the edge. I don’t know. I surely hope not.
Global deals like the Trans Pacific Partnership will boost the profits of Wall Street and big corporations, and make the richest 1 percent even richer.
But they’ll bust the rest of America
How Trade Deals Boost the Top 1% and Bust the Rest
Suppose that by enacting a particular law we’d increase the U.S.Gross Domestic Product. But almost all that growth would go to the richest 1 percent. The rest of us could buy some products cheaper than before.
Outside of a very small group of friends and family, why do I want people to know what’s happening in my life?
Theft of the cheap cigars was so insignificant to the Ferguson Market that they did not even bother to call 911 about it — yet — the Ferguson Police Chief appears to want us to pretend that the alleged shoplifting of the cheap cigars somehow justifies Officer Darren Wilson killing the unarmed teenager who they claim was the alleged suspect.
Ferguson Store Owner Says NO ONE From His Store Called Cops To Report Cigar Theft
www.dailykos.com
September 11, 2003.
IN THE NAME OF RELIGION
Three years ago today a group of men flew planes into the World Trade Center towers, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania.
Why? Religion.
What we need now is a ban on the sale and possession of weapons that are only good for mass murder. You don’t need a 50 caliber machine gun or a rifle that can fire 100 bullets a minute to hunt ducks or deer. If you do, you should give up hunting.
Thomas Jefferson to Samuel Kercheval, July 12, 1816
Some men look at constitutions with sanctimonious reverence, and deem them like the arc of the covenant, too sacred to be touched. They ascribe to the men of the preceding age a wisdom more than human, and suppose what they did to be beyond amendment. I knew that age well; I belonged to it, and labored with it. It deserved well of its country.
“… I consider the business of hunting as already become insufficient to furnish clothing and subsistence to the Indians. The promotion of agriculture, therefore, and household manufacture, are essential in their preservation, and I am disposed to aid and encourage it liberally. … In truth, the ultimate point of rest & happiness for them is to let our settlements and theirs meet and blend together, to intermix, and become one people. Incorporating themselves with us as citizens of the U.S. … And we have already had an application from a settlement of Indians to become citizens of the U.S.
As incredibly complex as is the human brain there are some species which have capabilities we humans lack. For many insects the visible spectrum exceeds our own. Some are able to see ultra-violet light.
One of the favorite “buzzwords” the politicians keep using is “middle class.” Do you know who Romney or Obama are talking about when they use it? I don’t. It would be helpful if they would tell us who they mean when they say “the middle class.” I suspect they are not talking about the same people.
My curiosity got the better of me and I did a Google search to see what I could find. I got 510,000,000 results. I looked at a few.
Obama said it best when he said we are all in this together. It’s not about income redistribution, its about income fairness.
Mit Romney is a nice guy and his wife loves him.
Paul Ryan once washed dishes and waited tables at a restaurant.
As President and Vice President they will “lead from the front.” I didn’t learn where they will lead us or what path we’ll follow.
They will “protect” medicare. They didn’t say who or what from or how they’ll do it.
They will “restore America’s future.” I have no idea what they mean by that and they didn’t say.
Anger and Fear.
“Three types of anger are recognized by psychologists:
The first … is connected to the impulse for self-preservation. It is shared between humans and non-human animals and occurs when tormented or trapped.
The second type of anger … is a reaction to perceived deliberate harm or unfair treatment by others. ….
The third type of anger is … related … to character traits …”
“… angry people are more likely … to blame a person's behavior … on his nature than on his circumstances.
Who opposed the Declaration of Independence? … Conservatives. (They were called Loyalist.
History of the Pledge of Allegiance.
1892
"I pledge allegiance to my flag and the republic for which it stands: one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all."
1892 to 1923
"I pledge allegiance to my flag and to the republic for which it stands: one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all."
1923 to 1924
"I pledge allegiance to the flag of
Democrats have occupied the white house in 26 of the 62 years since 1948. Average GDP growth in the country over those 26 years has been 4.01%. Republicans have occupied […]
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”- george santayana (1863-1952) “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” “We cannot solve […]
Conservatism is not so much a philosophy as an attitude. It rests on doubt in human nature; it distrusts improvement, clings to traditional institutions and prefers the past to the future.
Hypocrisy: a feigning to be what one is not or to believe what one does not; especially: the false assumption of an appearance of virtue or religion
It is not simply failing to practice those virtues that one preaches, it is the state of pretending to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that one does not actually have. Hypocrisy involves the deception of others and is thus a kind of lie.
“The only vice which cannot be forgiven is hypocrisy.
Buzzwords are coded expressions that evoked a specific message for one group while sounding innocuous to others.
