A friend of mine and fan of this blog wrote me and told me she did not feel like the bailout was fair, but could not really tell me why as she did not have enough understanding of how our economy worked to make an informed decision about the bailout. What she DID understand was that she had just lost her job, and was trying hard to find a new one but good paying jobs are scarce now.
Here was my reply to her.
Dear friend,
I think your "personal opinion" is not uncommon. Many Americans do not understand. We are losing our jobs, our health insurance our Homes! Where is the government bailout for us? How can they reward these big corporations that gambled with bad loans and securities and lost? Why can't some of those billions of dollars go to save our, homes, our jobs, our health Insurance.
It doesn't seem fair, and it is not. It is not fair that these corporations were allowed to trade in these unsound securities for so long under an administration that touted "deregulation" and free "market" and tax cuts for the rich. This is capitalism gone amok.
The way our economy works is complicated, but at a very simple level, we "grow" our economy by lending money.
The Federal Reserve loans money to banks, the banks loan money to each other, and then to businesses , you and me etc.
when this Lending stops. the economy stops. No money for the banks, no money for home loans, college loans, and no money for businesses to grow and create jobs.
So something had to be done.
I think the mistake was to think it would work overnight. It has not. The market continues to plunge. The story is not over.
What can we do to see that it does not happen again?
Regulate my friends. Regulate these big corporations, Dump the golden parachutes that basically protect the CEOs from feeling the pain of their companies failures. Make CEOs accountable, regulate corporations to make sure they act as responsibly. And for God's sake, vote Democrat.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Thursday, September 11, 2008
September 11th, Never Forget
Today is September 11th 2008. It was 7 years ago today I stood in front of a TV at work and watched the greatest tragedy of my time take place. Being from Manhattan, I knew several people who could have been in the twin towers that day. None were.
As A boy I watched the towers take shape, slowly rising floor by floor over the Manhattan skyline to finally dominate the Southern tip of the Island.
I had been to the observation deck several times and once, stood on the roof the South Tower and marveled at the 360 degree view of my beloved home town.
When the Towers collapsed and the planes crashed on the fateful day, the world seemed to stop for a moment. The horror, the terror of that day, had here to for been unimaginable. We lost our innocence that day and we stand to loose allot more.
The United States gained the world’s sympathy, and received a large amount of good will and political capitol that could have been used to unite the world. Instead the administration and the powers behind it chose to use it to put forward a draconian ideological agenda directly at odds with the interests of the American People.
Iraq had nothing to do with AlKeida. There were no weapons of mass destruction. The Administration used Intelligence “Cherry Picking" to make their case that Saddam Hussein was an immediate threat to the security of the United States, and made it seem, like he was buddies with Bin Laden. Today as Colin Powell himself admited we know that nothing could have been further from the truth. The US went against the UN, NATO and the world when they attacked a sovereign nation with a “preemptive attack”. This is a dangerous concept. It effectively gives us the right to attack any nation we think might be a threat to us in the future. This is a subjective concept. What is really going on here? It all becomes clear when we examine one of the basic tenets of the Neo Conservative foreign policy, that is to enforce their economic policy with military power.
The Administration used 911 to push forward a decisive Neocon agenda that had been waiting on the drawing board for years. The Patriot act was a thinly disguised tool for expanding the powers of the White House and the Neocons so that they might remain in power to fulfill their agenda. Domestic Surveillance, the activation of the Propaganda Machine and the Colored alert system that is used to control the climate of fear in this country. It seems to remain perpetually at orange which is only one step away from the highest level of alert which is red.
If not for the US constitution and the relative independence of our judicial system, we would now be living in a police state. I think the clearest piece of evidence supporting this theory is that The FBI under direct instructions from the administration and acting under the Patriot Act has attempted and succeeded in some cases to subpoena library records of ordinary citizens. For what other reason than to find out what we are thinking. This is akin to the FBI surveillance of Martin Luther King and other Civil rights leaders in the 60s on a much much larger scale. Thank goodness most libraries have refused to comply with these Orwellian subpoenas which clearly violate our 4th amendment rights.
So Today on 911, I am remembering the Victims and the tragedy of that day, but I am also remembering what George Bush and the Neocons have done to us.
BBM
As A boy I watched the towers take shape, slowly rising floor by floor over the Manhattan skyline to finally dominate the Southern tip of the Island.
I had been to the observation deck several times and once, stood on the roof the South Tower and marveled at the 360 degree view of my beloved home town.
When the Towers collapsed and the planes crashed on the fateful day, the world seemed to stop for a moment. The horror, the terror of that day, had here to for been unimaginable. We lost our innocence that day and we stand to loose allot more.
The United States gained the world’s sympathy, and received a large amount of good will and political capitol that could have been used to unite the world. Instead the administration and the powers behind it chose to use it to put forward a draconian ideological agenda directly at odds with the interests of the American People.
Iraq had nothing to do with AlKeida. There were no weapons of mass destruction. The Administration used Intelligence “Cherry Picking" to make their case that Saddam Hussein was an immediate threat to the security of the United States, and made it seem, like he was buddies with Bin Laden. Today as Colin Powell himself admited we know that nothing could have been further from the truth. The US went against the UN, NATO and the world when they attacked a sovereign nation with a “preemptive attack”. This is a dangerous concept. It effectively gives us the right to attack any nation we think might be a threat to us in the future. This is a subjective concept. What is really going on here? It all becomes clear when we examine one of the basic tenets of the Neo Conservative foreign policy, that is to enforce their economic policy with military power.
The Administration used 911 to push forward a decisive Neocon agenda that had been waiting on the drawing board for years. The Patriot act was a thinly disguised tool for expanding the powers of the White House and the Neocons so that they might remain in power to fulfill their agenda. Domestic Surveillance, the activation of the Propaganda Machine and the Colored alert system that is used to control the climate of fear in this country. It seems to remain perpetually at orange which is only one step away from the highest level of alert which is red.
If not for the US constitution and the relative independence of our judicial system, we would now be living in a police state. I think the clearest piece of evidence supporting this theory is that The FBI under direct instructions from the administration and acting under the Patriot Act has attempted and succeeded in some cases to subpoena library records of ordinary citizens. For what other reason than to find out what we are thinking. This is akin to the FBI surveillance of Martin Luther King and other Civil rights leaders in the 60s on a much much larger scale. Thank goodness most libraries have refused to comply with these Orwellian subpoenas which clearly violate our 4th amendment rights.
So Today on 911, I am remembering the Victims and the tragedy of that day, but I am also remembering what George Bush and the Neocons have done to us.
- Limited our freedoms under the constitution.
- Spied on us.
- Involved us in a perpetual War without due cause.
- Lied to us again and again to fulfill their hidden agendas.
BBM
Monday, April 7, 2008
Message to Amy Goodman of Democracy Now
Dear Amy.
The “Stimulus Payment” is a thinly veiled plot to divert our tax dollars directly into the private sector. This is money we have already paid into the system in the form of taxes which many of us would prefer to be used for universal health coverage, education, programs for the poor and other public sector programs to improve the lives of the many poor and underprivileged citizens of our nation. Instead we have seen the erosion of social programs and education under the Bush administration and the redirection of our tax money and escalation of deficit spending to either directly or indirectly enrich the wallets of the very rich.
The wealthiest 300,000 people in the United States now have more money than the rest of us combined. This concentration of wealth is easy to understand if you think of the private sector economy as a sort of pyramid, with the very top bricks at the point being these 300,000 wealthiest people. Beneath them are less wealthier people, corporations, another layer, investors, and as the pyramid broadens out at the bottom, we find working professionals and finally, at the lowest and broadest layer, the working poor and even immigrant labor.
In this model, wealth flows from the bottom up to the top of the pyramid. In a healthy economy, the wealth at the top would be dispersed more evenly throughout the pyramid, in the form of taxes and of course investments, philanthropic and otherwise. By taxing the very rich, and recycling that wealth in the form of social programs, education and health care, we prevent the concentration of wealth at the top where more money is flowing into the top of the pyramid than is flowing out of it.
This is what has happened. The top became greedy, and held onto the wealth by only cycling the money at the higher ends of the pyramid, effectively leaving ordinary workers out of the loop. So the poor got poorer, and goods kept getting more expensive because the corporations needed to make more money, because the flow of money to the top slowed down, because the workers weren’t getting paid enough to have any disposable income to feed the flow of money to the top of the pyramid.
So you have a vicious cycle they are calling recession.
The corporations don’t want to pay more in wages or pay big taxes into social programs because this reduces share price and “robs” the richest people at the top of profits.
The problem is, that there are many more workers at the bottom of the pyramid than there are very rich people at the top. So when they stop having disposable income, the upward flow of funds in the pyramid slows.
So you can now imagine these very rich powerful people sitting around trying to figure out “What are we going to do to kick start the flow of money to the top again?”
“I know” one think tank crony said. We’ll give the consumer some “free money” It will actually just be a tax kickback, but we’ll call a “stimulus payment” and encourage the consumer to spend it on something they don’t really need, and hopefully they’ll spend a little extra money from their savings, or even better, max out that credit card they’ve been sitting on.
Oh did I forget to mention. Consumer debt spending is a great way to send money up the pyramid without the top having to send any back down. To them, it really is like free money.
So, I’m on a mission, a mission to put a dent in their plans. We can’t stop the stimulus payments, but what if we all donated our payments a reputable charity. A charity that helps educate the underprivileged or feeds the poor, or provides medical assistance to citizens that can’t afford it. What if we spent the money on organizations that support the kind of social programs we wish our government were funding?
I think if the government and the people saw that there was all of a sudden millions of $300.00 and $600.00 donations to organizations like the united Negro College Fund, the Children’s Defense Fund, The American Kidney Fund and so on, then someone just might get the message.
Amy, I have been a fan of yours for many years. I admire your reporting style and your mission to report what others seek to hide. I’m asking you now for your help. Your help to get the word out about my proposal before everyone goes out and spends their stimulus payment the way the Neocons want us to. If I could have just 15 minutes with you on your show, to explain my simple pyramid analogy and expose what the rich and powerful are trying to do, then maybe we can get the word out to make a difference with this stimulus payment, instead of playing into the schemes of the powerful rich.
OK Who am I?
Without revealing my identity, I will tell you a little about myself.
I was born in 1957 and raised in NYC. There a child of liberal parents, I very early on became involved in the peace movement against the war in Vietnam. I was a member of the Student Peace Coalition by age 13 and trained in non-violent protest strategies. I volunteered as a “Peace Marshall” at many anti-war rallies and heard people like John Lennon speak out against the war in Washington Square Park. By the time I graduated high school and went off to arts college in California, the war seemed long over, and like many of my peers, I slipped into the mainstream of the establishment, until now. Through my alter ego, Big Blog Man, www.bigblogman.com I exercise my 1st amendment rights to complain, cajole, expose any injustice inflicted upon the peoples of this once proud nation. My banner cry comes from the now cult classic 1976 motion picture Network. “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.”
Please forgive me if I seem to hide behind this alter ego of mine. That is not my intent, Rather it is to divert any criticism or even praise of a person / personage that might detract from the message. I understand that you are reporter, and I will answer any questions you care to ask about my personage except to divulge any identifying information.
Please call, let’s talk, let’s do an interview, let’s get the word out, and let’s make a difference.
Big Blog Man.
Thanks for your time.
The “Stimulus Payment” is a thinly veiled plot to divert our tax dollars directly into the private sector. This is money we have already paid into the system in the form of taxes which many of us would prefer to be used for universal health coverage, education, programs for the poor and other public sector programs to improve the lives of the many poor and underprivileged citizens of our nation. Instead we have seen the erosion of social programs and education under the Bush administration and the redirection of our tax money and escalation of deficit spending to either directly or indirectly enrich the wallets of the very rich.
The wealthiest 300,000 people in the United States now have more money than the rest of us combined. This concentration of wealth is easy to understand if you think of the private sector economy as a sort of pyramid, with the very top bricks at the point being these 300,000 wealthiest people. Beneath them are less wealthier people, corporations, another layer, investors, and as the pyramid broadens out at the bottom, we find working professionals and finally, at the lowest and broadest layer, the working poor and even immigrant labor.
In this model, wealth flows from the bottom up to the top of the pyramid. In a healthy economy, the wealth at the top would be dispersed more evenly throughout the pyramid, in the form of taxes and of course investments, philanthropic and otherwise. By taxing the very rich, and recycling that wealth in the form of social programs, education and health care, we prevent the concentration of wealth at the top where more money is flowing into the top of the pyramid than is flowing out of it.
This is what has happened. The top became greedy, and held onto the wealth by only cycling the money at the higher ends of the pyramid, effectively leaving ordinary workers out of the loop. So the poor got poorer, and goods kept getting more expensive because the corporations needed to make more money, because the flow of money to the top slowed down, because the workers weren’t getting paid enough to have any disposable income to feed the flow of money to the top of the pyramid.
So you have a vicious cycle they are calling recession.
The corporations don’t want to pay more in wages or pay big taxes into social programs because this reduces share price and “robs” the richest people at the top of profits.
The problem is, that there are many more workers at the bottom of the pyramid than there are very rich people at the top. So when they stop having disposable income, the upward flow of funds in the pyramid slows.
So you can now imagine these very rich powerful people sitting around trying to figure out “What are we going to do to kick start the flow of money to the top again?”
“I know” one think tank crony said. We’ll give the consumer some “free money” It will actually just be a tax kickback, but we’ll call a “stimulus payment” and encourage the consumer to spend it on something they don’t really need, and hopefully they’ll spend a little extra money from their savings, or even better, max out that credit card they’ve been sitting on.
Oh did I forget to mention. Consumer debt spending is a great way to send money up the pyramid without the top having to send any back down. To them, it really is like free money.
So, I’m on a mission, a mission to put a dent in their plans. We can’t stop the stimulus payments, but what if we all donated our payments a reputable charity. A charity that helps educate the underprivileged or feeds the poor, or provides medical assistance to citizens that can’t afford it. What if we spent the money on organizations that support the kind of social programs we wish our government were funding?
I think if the government and the people saw that there was all of a sudden millions of $300.00 and $600.00 donations to organizations like the united Negro College Fund, the Children’s Defense Fund, The American Kidney Fund and so on, then someone just might get the message.
Amy, I have been a fan of yours for many years. I admire your reporting style and your mission to report what others seek to hide. I’m asking you now for your help. Your help to get the word out about my proposal before everyone goes out and spends their stimulus payment the way the Neocons want us to. If I could have just 15 minutes with you on your show, to explain my simple pyramid analogy and expose what the rich and powerful are trying to do, then maybe we can get the word out to make a difference with this stimulus payment, instead of playing into the schemes of the powerful rich.
OK Who am I?
Without revealing my identity, I will tell you a little about myself.
I was born in 1957 and raised in NYC. There a child of liberal parents, I very early on became involved in the peace movement against the war in Vietnam. I was a member of the Student Peace Coalition by age 13 and trained in non-violent protest strategies. I volunteered as a “Peace Marshall” at many anti-war rallies and heard people like John Lennon speak out against the war in Washington Square Park. By the time I graduated high school and went off to arts college in California, the war seemed long over, and like many of my peers, I slipped into the mainstream of the establishment, until now. Through my alter ego, Big Blog Man, www.bigblogman.com I exercise my 1st amendment rights to complain, cajole, expose any injustice inflicted upon the peoples of this once proud nation. My banner cry comes from the now cult classic 1976 motion picture Network. “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.”
Please forgive me if I seem to hide behind this alter ego of mine. That is not my intent, Rather it is to divert any criticism or even praise of a person / personage that might detract from the message. I understand that you are reporter, and I will answer any questions you care to ask about my personage except to divulge any identifying information.
Please call, let’s talk, let’s do an interview, let’s get the word out, and let’s make a difference.
Big Blog Man.
Thanks for your time.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Donate your IRS stimulus payment!
Can you believe it"? That's what they're calling them, "Stimulus Payments", not tax rebates, not kickbacks, but stimulus payments.
OK, Stimulate what? They don't explain that in the letter they sent me, informing me of the windfall of $300 -$600 I will receive presumably to stimulate me.
Well as soon as I got it I looked at my dick to see if there was any activity down there, nope. So What are They trying to stimulate? Ohhhhhhh my spending! They think that by sending me a little bit of money for free, that I will go out and spend it , and buy something I really don't need and that this is going so save the flailing economy.
Well not just me of course, but if they send every Tom Dick and Harry that made more than $3000.00 last year a $300.00 bonus check, then we'll all go out and buy stereos, and TVs and send all that money back up to the top of the pyramid. That's IF we spend it the way They want us too and not on something we need , like rent or groceries.
So this is really the opposite of Trickle Down Economics. This is sort of Trickle Up Economics, or as I like to call it Upchuck Economics. The theory being that the consumer is really strapped in these hard times and instead of spending money, they are either going into debt or (God Forbid) Saving Money. Well, with Upchuck Economics we "poke" (Stimulate) the "Consumer" with a small payment, in order to jump start (upchuck) their spending and hopefully, empty their savings account where the money really isn't helping Them, or make them go deeper into debt which is also good for the rich folks at the top.
So who are They that are benefiting from this plan.
Simple, The people at the top of the economic pyramid. The richest 300,000 people in the US who have more money than the rest of us combined.
Never mind that they are already rich beyond there own lifetimes, these people really worry when the flow of money slows down. And why is it slowing down? Because you can only squeeze a sponge so much. The sponge I'm talking about is the "Consumer"
They, need consumers to have jobs, to make money, to spend on services and goods to make the rich richer. On the other hand, they don't want to pay us too much because that would cut into the profits of the Big Rich corporations that are always trying to maximize profits by paying labor as little as possible.
This creates an interesting dynamic. The Rich want us to make money to spend but not so much that the wealth starts to transfer flow from the top 300,000 people to the rest of us. Also, by transferring basic services like health care to the private sector they keep that money in the pyramid instead of allowing it to flow into social services like education, health care and programs for the poor. Isn't that what taxes were supposed to be for?
This is sort of thinking that has us closing trauma centers and dumping state mental patients on skid row because "That's the best place for them". This is the sort of thinking that is indirectly siphoning off our tax payments and redirecting them directly into the private sector. And all the billions we spend on the War in Iraq. It seems quite a bit of it has wound up in the hands of Dick Cheney's pet company HaliBurton.
So what am I going to do with my stimulus payment? I'm going to donate it. That's right. I'm going to donate it to some program that will improve the lives of our nations poor. I'm going to do what Uncle Sam SHOULD be doing with it, instead of trying to stimulate me to empty my bank account for the already way too rich people at the top of the pyramid.
Once again, "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore" I hope you are too.
-BBM
OK, Stimulate what? They don't explain that in the letter they sent me, informing me of the windfall of $300 -$600 I will receive presumably to stimulate me.
Well as soon as I got it I looked at my dick to see if there was any activity down there, nope. So What are They trying to stimulate? Ohhhhhhh my spending! They think that by sending me a little bit of money for free, that I will go out and spend it , and buy something I really don't need and that this is going so save the flailing economy.
Well not just me of course, but if they send every Tom Dick and Harry that made more than $3000.00 last year a $300.00 bonus check, then we'll all go out and buy stereos, and TVs and send all that money back up to the top of the pyramid. That's IF we spend it the way They want us too and not on something we need , like rent or groceries.
So this is really the opposite of Trickle Down Economics. This is sort of Trickle Up Economics, or as I like to call it Upchuck Economics. The theory being that the consumer is really strapped in these hard times and instead of spending money, they are either going into debt or (God Forbid) Saving Money. Well, with Upchuck Economics we "poke" (Stimulate) the "Consumer" with a small payment, in order to jump start (upchuck) their spending and hopefully, empty their savings account where the money really isn't helping Them, or make them go deeper into debt which is also good for the rich folks at the top.
So who are They that are benefiting from this plan.
Simple, The people at the top of the economic pyramid. The richest 300,000 people in the US who have more money than the rest of us combined.
Never mind that they are already rich beyond there own lifetimes, these people really worry when the flow of money slows down. And why is it slowing down? Because you can only squeeze a sponge so much. The sponge I'm talking about is the "Consumer"
They, need consumers to have jobs, to make money, to spend on services and goods to make the rich richer. On the other hand, they don't want to pay us too much because that would cut into the profits of the Big Rich corporations that are always trying to maximize profits by paying labor as little as possible.
This creates an interesting dynamic. The Rich want us to make money to spend but not so much that the wealth starts to transfer flow from the top 300,000 people to the rest of us. Also, by transferring basic services like health care to the private sector they keep that money in the pyramid instead of allowing it to flow into social services like education, health care and programs for the poor. Isn't that what taxes were supposed to be for?
This is sort of thinking that has us closing trauma centers and dumping state mental patients on skid row because "That's the best place for them". This is the sort of thinking that is indirectly siphoning off our tax payments and redirecting them directly into the private sector. And all the billions we spend on the War in Iraq. It seems quite a bit of it has wound up in the hands of Dick Cheney's pet company HaliBurton.
So what am I going to do with my stimulus payment? I'm going to donate it. That's right. I'm going to donate it to some program that will improve the lives of our nations poor. I'm going to do what Uncle Sam SHOULD be doing with it, instead of trying to stimulate me to empty my bank account for the already way too rich people at the top of the pyramid.
Once again, "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore" I hope you are too.
-BBM
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
...I'm not going to take it anymore!
Those are the prophetic words shouted by the main character (Peter Lynch) in the 1976 movie classic "Network".
The movie satires a generation of people who have become lethargic, complacent and whose minds have become softened by the seduction of television. That is until the main character, a news anchorman, decides to break out of this complacent mold and stand up for change.
Well, I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!
I'm mad as hell that...
My friend had to go bankrupt to get a lifesaving operation.
We spend billions on the war in Iraq enriching corporations at the expense of our own blood.
We don't pay our teachers what they deserve.
We spend more money on prisons than on schools.
The richest 300.000 people in America today have more money than the rest of us combined.
OK that's good for starters. You can see that much of what I'm mad about are things that I feel I have no control over. Well, I'm tired of having no control, I'm tired of just being one of those TV mind softened sheep just watching the injustices of our society go unchecked. I'm tired of the Neocons and powerful corporations trying to control us with fear and "stimulus payments" from the IRS. I'm tired of being a "consumer".
I'm a person, I have feelings, and I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore. I'm going to exercise my first amendment rights, and broadcast my perception of the deep injustice this once proud nation now inflicts on it's own peoples.
I think that's good for an opener.
-BBM
The movie satires a generation of people who have become lethargic, complacent and whose minds have become softened by the seduction of television. That is until the main character, a news anchorman, decides to break out of this complacent mold and stand up for change.
Well, I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!
I'm mad as hell that...
My friend had to go bankrupt to get a lifesaving operation.
We spend billions on the war in Iraq enriching corporations at the expense of our own blood.
We don't pay our teachers what they deserve.
We spend more money on prisons than on schools.
The richest 300.000 people in America today have more money than the rest of us combined.
OK that's good for starters. You can see that much of what I'm mad about are things that I feel I have no control over. Well, I'm tired of having no control, I'm tired of just being one of those TV mind softened sheep just watching the injustices of our society go unchecked. I'm tired of the Neocons and powerful corporations trying to control us with fear and "stimulus payments" from the IRS. I'm tired of being a "consumer".
I'm a person, I have feelings, and I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore. I'm going to exercise my first amendment rights, and broadcast my perception of the deep injustice this once proud nation now inflicts on it's own peoples.
I think that's good for an opener.
-BBM
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