From the monthly archives: May 2011
The House is voting on a “clean” debt ceiling bill today — a bill to raise the debt ceiling without any “hostage-taking” conditions. This is the right thing to do for the country and every Democrat should vote for this. Voting for a clean bill will draw the contrast for the public between those who [...]
The United States can’t have it both ways: ratifying disarmament treaties while building facilities to arm nuclear warheads.
Republicans announced something they called a “jobs plan” today. This time it’s different. It really is. This time it really will create jobs instead of just handing even more money to a few at the top at the expense of the rest of us. You might not believe this because Republicans [...]
In 2010 Republicans and corporate front groups ran ad after ad after ad after ad claiming that Democrats had “Cut 500 billion from Medicare.” Those ads brought them the senior vote, and they took the House. Confident in their ability to “create their own reality” they came out with a plan to privatize [...]
In DC the elite are gathered around tables discussing budget cuts but not jobs to cure a deficit largely caused by a lack of jobs and by tax cuts. The last time these DC geniuses gathered around tables they extended tax cuts for the wealthy, dramatically worsening the deficits that are causing their fainting spells [...]
From Shana Mosher at Human Services Council:
On May 12, 25,000 people united to march on Wall Street, rally against budget cuts that will severely impact our communities and social safety net, and demand that banks and Wall Street corporations pay their fair share.
The energy and momentum before and on the day [...]
To read most of the media most of the time — mainstream, alternative, or even the political blogosphere, it is hard to find much mention of Roy Moore. This is somewhat odd, since the announcement of his exploratory committee made national news.
Moore, the disgraced former Chief Judge [...]
The latest round of argument within the progressive coalition over the Obama Administration – touched off by Cornel West’s scathing criticism – has generated a lot of heated discussion. Most of it seems to simply repeat the same arguments that have been played out over the last two years: Obama is a sellout, [...]
Sarah Posner reports at Religion Dispatches about how professors in class at the law school founded by the late Jerry Falwell pressured students to choose “God’s Law” over “Man’s” in an exam question about a notorious kidnapping case. The two professors who taught the class at Liberty University are personally involved in the [...]
It seems to be déjà vu at Fukushima — like Bill Murray in “Groundhog Day.” Tepco is dealing with the same problems and in the same ways as immediately after the earthquake and tsunami.
A few days ago, Phoenix Suns president Rick Welts revealed that he is gay. And the whole sporting world exploded yawned.
Okay, that’s not precisely true. There has been a bit of comment and analysis. But so far, no controversy. No homophobic ranting, no athletes stepping up to say that Jesus [...]
Trends in income inequality relative to GDP
There are no clever mathematical models here, only facts. No Nobel prize for me.
I analysed income per family divided by GDP per family. First look at the 90% majority:
Since about 1970, their average share of income relative to GDP has steadily declined, from almost half, to [...]
One of the consequences of the creeping Religious Rightism in the Democratic Party has been the steady erosion of reproductive rights and access to reproductive health care for women, especially abortion care.
Two items in the news underscore the situation. A special issue of Conscience magazine questions whether the [...]
You hear it again and again, variation after variation on a core message: if you tax rich people it kills jobs. You hear about “job-killing tax hikes,” or that “taxing the rich hurts jobs,” “taxes kill jobs,” “taxes take money out of the economy, “if you tax the rich they won’t be able to provide [...]
What can a democracy like ours do when giant companies say, “Rules? We don’t need no stinkin’ rules! We don’t got to pay you no taxes!” and “We will just move out of your puny country if you try to tell us what to do.”
Government is beginning to enforce labor laws again, [...]
When we hear about the deficits we hear a lot of scare stories, which most “serious” media just echo and amplify. The prevailing “serious” narrative we hear is that we must cut entitlements — any “serious” budget proposal cuts Medicare and Social Security. Even though they just extended tax cuts for the rich the deficits [...]
The On May 12 Coalition is holding actions in New York City tomorrow to hold big banks and corporations accountable for crashing our economy and asking them to pay their fair share to help get the country back on track. Mayor Bloomberg is asking for terrible budget cuts, while the big Wall Street [...]
Supposedly Godfather’s Pizza CEO Herman Cain (and third generation military veteran) will announce he’ll run for president. Of the United States, yes.
A three-way debate among GOP POTUS contenders Trump, Palin, & Cain would be Teabagger Comedy Hour. Let’s look into the special Dirty Hippies crystal ball, and see what would transpire. It would be broadcast on FOX and co-moderated by David Brooks (in a show of bipartisanship) and for gravitas, Andrew Breitbart.
Why did Deputy National Security Advisor Brennan use decapitation as a metaphor for killing bin Laden?
Is there a “block” of “centrist” voters who “move” one way or the other, to Democrats or Republicans, depending on whether a candidate takes positions that are “between” the positions of those on the “left” and “right?” This is the standard model followed by many Democratic pollsters, who advise their clients to take wishy-washy positions [...]
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On winning and values
So, right-wingers, you want a society where families are stable, where everybody looks like you and shares your Christian faith, and where the government pretty much stays out of your business? It’s not in some Randian fantasy, it’s right here in the USA.
Empowerment and education: Why young people don't vote
“Greater education of our civic processes must be the fulcrum of any program to increase voter participation amongst young people. … When people stop participating in democracy then that is an institutional failure, not a failure of the citizens. Assuming otherwise leads us down a slippery slope to elitism and nothing could be more anathema to the American Republic.”
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