Well, I'm not sure how my last blog was received as I know that most of you are well meaning and decent American citizens who hardly need to be filled in on the perils of voting for Republicans or not voting at all. The fact is that what I said represents an amalgamation of stances that Tea Partiers and Republicans have taken, and if they had their wishes, I'm sure they would try to pass their draconian platforms. Luckily, Obama is in the Whitehouse, so even if they do take over the House and the Senate this fall, it is unlikely that any conservative legislation will get through; instead we'll just be subjected to all kinds of inquisitions and investigations, and perhaps even an impeachment. I guess that's what you get for being a moderate, eh Barack? That's Karma for not pushing single payer, and as this blog has established, Karma is a big, big bitch.
Anyway, what really horrifies me most about this upcoming election is that tons of corporations, including foreign ones, are putting forth a shitload of money to elect Republicans. The worst offender is perhaps the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, who has taken money from all kinds of places, including China, India, Dubai, and other countries with questionable records on human rights (of course, since Bush and Cheney and their love of torture, I don't suppose we hold the moral high ground on that topic like we used to). It is estimated that the U.S. Chamber will spend $75 to $80 million in this election, and receives money from 80 foreign owned companies. They say that they carefully separate the funds, foreign and domestic, but then again, since Republicans in the House and Senate refused to vote for the DISCLOSE act, which would have forced those influencing our political process to at least say who they are and where they got their money, I guess we'll never know. And this is not the only shadowy group spending money in this midterm election--there are others, such as a group called American Crossroads, spearheaded by Karl Rove, whose goal is to spend $50 million to elect conservative candidates. In all, these groups plan to spend over $200 million--all of it to elect Republican candidates.
Now, if we put it all together, here's the simple scenario. All of the following are facts (not sure if Republicans believe in these anymore, but trust me, they DO exist). Bush was elected in 2000, and was president until 2008. During his administration, he successfully passed massive tax cuts, started two wars on manufactured/false information, and turned a blind eye to business regulations, ranging from Wall Street to Big Oil. During this time, the federal deficit soared, wages stagnated, and ultimately, the economy crashed, forcing a federal bailout of some of America's most influential corporations (this now should be enough to convince anyone considering voting for Republicans to immediately reverse their position). In addition, Bush appointed two justices to the Supreme Court: chief justice John Roberts and justice Samuel Alito. These judges were key players in a court ruling known as Citizens United (2010), which paved the way for the current flurry of spending in our state and federal elections.
So to sum up: Bush elected, appoints justices (that lied to Congress, based on the Citizens United ruling), election spending laws are nullified, and corporations (in support of deregulation and shipping jobs overseas) spend money in elections to elect Republicans, who will...be lapdogs to the corporations who sponsored their election.
Listen, I understand that candidates from both parties take campaign donations from moneyed interests in order to get elected, but that is precisely what has ground our political system to a halt. That is precisely what is wrong with our government! The influence of money on our elected officials has totally betrayed the American people, and it has made our government totally ineffective. And surprise, surprise, the forces that WANT this system are supporting Republicans. Therefore, it is unlikely that Republicans are ever going to support legislation, or what we really need, a constitutional amendment, that cuts them out of this loop of money.
Think of it this way: elected offices are jobs. Jobs with fantastic benefits (including a tremendous health care plan), a nice salary, and given their agenda lately, a hell of a lot of time off! Politicians want to keep these jobs, and spending money on elections is one of the primary ways in which they do so. And while it is becoming increasingly apparent that most voting Americans are unable to do so, I can assure you that our elected officials do what is in their best interests, and for Republicans, that is taking money from multinational corporations that want to see American jobs sent overseas, tax breaks that saddle the middle class with funding our government, deregulation of industry, and non-competitive government contracts, otherwise known as pork.
If Americans elect Republicans this fall, as it looks like they will do, the message to all of our elected officials will be this: voters don't care if you are on the take, and irresponsible governance doesn't matter as long as voters have a scapegoat (Bush or Obama).
I guess my question is: really? Are Americans really this fucking stupid? Because if we are, we deserve a shitty economy and a bad health care system. We deserve for multinational corporations to take our money and abuse us. Mark my words: this is the beginning of the struggle of the proletariat vs. the bourgeoisie that Karl Marx predicted. And mark this: I'm not a Marxist--I'm a democratic capitalist--but if we don't start governing ourselves more responsibly, we're going to turn that man into a fucking prophet.
The fact is, by allowing foreign companies to influence our elections to their benefit, Republicans and their supporters are committing treason against this nation. And it looks like their going to get away with it, because people are too stupid to pay attention to what is going on. Don't be one of them. And don't let the treason take place silently. Whine about it. Bitch. Moan. Fight. If we don't stand now, we may never have the chance.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Friday, October 8, 2010
Remember, remember
A few things that folks need to remember before they go to the polls, or mail in their ballots this fall. Remember, you are not just voting for a candidate. You are voting for a philosophy, for a paradigm, for a party’s methods, and for its worldview.
You may be angry, as I am, that the party currently in power, the Democrats, haven’t delivered the change that they promised us in 2008. You may be angry that the economy is bad. You may be angry for any number of reasons—and you’ve a right to be. Every single American citizen who’s seen their opportunities erased, their health care costs rise, their wages stagnate, has a right to be angry. But if you’re a Democrat, or a liberal, and that keeps you home, or if you’re an independent, or a moderate Republican (the few that still exist), and you’re considering voting Republican or Tea Party, be forewarned of the consequences of these actions.
Remember, by not voting, or voting Republican, you are endorsing the idea that foreign money should be able to influence our elections. You are endorsing the practice of millionaires and billionaires spending untold amounts of money to sway public opinion in order to elect Republicans (the rich want to keep their tax cuts), and the fact that if they do, those they elect will be in the pockets of multinational corporations, acting in THEIR best interests, rather than representing WE, the American people.
Remember, if you stay home, or vote angrily for the opposition, you are in support of privatizing social security, in support of abolishing Medicare, and in support of ending our country’s guarantee to a free, public education. You are in support of privatizing police and fire departments; in support of the right of corporations to profit, without regulation, on the backs of doctors and their patients. Moreover, you are in support of the health insurance industry’s right to deny coverage to those with pre-existing conditions, even children. You also support THEIR right to put lifetime caps on YOUR coverage, and to use significant portions of YOUR premiums to deny YOUR claims so that they can continue to pay THEIR CEO’s millions of dollars a year in compensation.
Remember, by electing Republicans, you support tax breaks for the richest 1% of Americans, adding $700 billion to the federal deficit. You support the shipping of jobs overseas, including tax breaks for corporations who do so. Most of all, you support the idea of trickle-down economics: cutting taxes for large, multinational corporations in the hope that this will somehow catalyze job creation for the middle class. You also support cutting regulations designed to protect consumers and the environment, again, in the hope that even though this can end in horrible tragedies (such as the one witnessed this spring and summer with the gulf oil spill), it might sponsor job creation (news flash for those that haven’t noticed: Bush and the Republicans cut taxes and regulations during the first 8 years of this decade, and all we have to show for it is high unemployment, a shrinking middle class, and a ballooning federal deficit).
Remember, by casting your ballot for Republicans, or staying home, you’ll be supporting the denial of civil rights and reproductive rights to women, including the refusal to grant things such as an abortion in cases of rape and/or incest, or when the mother’s life is at risk, and even access to birth control, if your pharmacist happens to morally disagree with it. You’ll be supporting people, such as Rand Paul, who think the Civil Rights Act of 1965 was a big mistake. You’re also in support of the right of government to spy on its citizens, deny them due process of law, insert itself into every aspect of your private life, and judge you based on THEIR religious yardstick.
Remember that joining you at the polls to cast ballots for the Republicans will be all of America’s white racists, homophobes, and extremists. You’ll also be among people who believe that the Bible is the precise word of God, and don’t believe in evolution or climate change. Many of them won’t believe that our president is a U.S. citizen, and some of them will have marched and protested carrying signs of him depicted as a witch doctor, monkey, or terrorist. You’ll be voting in harmony with all of them; or by staying home, tacitly approving of their agenda.
Yes, you are right to be angry about the state of our country. I am too. But I know that if I vote for Republicans this fall, or decide to sit this election out, I am supporting everything stated above. So while your vote is your business, and every U.S. citizen has a right to vote for whom they wish, please remember, remember. Remember to think about the consequences of your decision, because as a voting member of this democracy, every citizen is in some small way responsible for the state of this nation. So remember. Remember.
You may be angry, as I am, that the party currently in power, the Democrats, haven’t delivered the change that they promised us in 2008. You may be angry that the economy is bad. You may be angry for any number of reasons—and you’ve a right to be. Every single American citizen who’s seen their opportunities erased, their health care costs rise, their wages stagnate, has a right to be angry. But if you’re a Democrat, or a liberal, and that keeps you home, or if you’re an independent, or a moderate Republican (the few that still exist), and you’re considering voting Republican or Tea Party, be forewarned of the consequences of these actions.
Remember, by not voting, or voting Republican, you are endorsing the idea that foreign money should be able to influence our elections. You are endorsing the practice of millionaires and billionaires spending untold amounts of money to sway public opinion in order to elect Republicans (the rich want to keep their tax cuts), and the fact that if they do, those they elect will be in the pockets of multinational corporations, acting in THEIR best interests, rather than representing WE, the American people.
Remember, if you stay home, or vote angrily for the opposition, you are in support of privatizing social security, in support of abolishing Medicare, and in support of ending our country’s guarantee to a free, public education. You are in support of privatizing police and fire departments; in support of the right of corporations to profit, without regulation, on the backs of doctors and their patients. Moreover, you are in support of the health insurance industry’s right to deny coverage to those with pre-existing conditions, even children. You also support THEIR right to put lifetime caps on YOUR coverage, and to use significant portions of YOUR premiums to deny YOUR claims so that they can continue to pay THEIR CEO’s millions of dollars a year in compensation.
Remember, by electing Republicans, you support tax breaks for the richest 1% of Americans, adding $700 billion to the federal deficit. You support the shipping of jobs overseas, including tax breaks for corporations who do so. Most of all, you support the idea of trickle-down economics: cutting taxes for large, multinational corporations in the hope that this will somehow catalyze job creation for the middle class. You also support cutting regulations designed to protect consumers and the environment, again, in the hope that even though this can end in horrible tragedies (such as the one witnessed this spring and summer with the gulf oil spill), it might sponsor job creation (news flash for those that haven’t noticed: Bush and the Republicans cut taxes and regulations during the first 8 years of this decade, and all we have to show for it is high unemployment, a shrinking middle class, and a ballooning federal deficit).
Remember, by casting your ballot for Republicans, or staying home, you’ll be supporting the denial of civil rights and reproductive rights to women, including the refusal to grant things such as an abortion in cases of rape and/or incest, or when the mother’s life is at risk, and even access to birth control, if your pharmacist happens to morally disagree with it. You’ll be supporting people, such as Rand Paul, who think the Civil Rights Act of 1965 was a big mistake. You’re also in support of the right of government to spy on its citizens, deny them due process of law, insert itself into every aspect of your private life, and judge you based on THEIR religious yardstick.
Remember that joining you at the polls to cast ballots for the Republicans will be all of America’s white racists, homophobes, and extremists. You’ll also be among people who believe that the Bible is the precise word of God, and don’t believe in evolution or climate change. Many of them won’t believe that our president is a U.S. citizen, and some of them will have marched and protested carrying signs of him depicted as a witch doctor, monkey, or terrorist. You’ll be voting in harmony with all of them; or by staying home, tacitly approving of their agenda.
Yes, you are right to be angry about the state of our country. I am too. But I know that if I vote for Republicans this fall, or decide to sit this election out, I am supporting everything stated above. So while your vote is your business, and every U.S. citizen has a right to vote for whom they wish, please remember, remember. Remember to think about the consequences of your decision, because as a voting member of this democracy, every citizen is in some small way responsible for the state of this nation. So remember. Remember.
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