The power structure is failing

[catnhatnh]

Austerity will be the tipping point. The Eurozone is the tip of the spear. A cadre of bankers direct a veneer of "national" governments and the church as moral authorities to force privation on the masses of citizens, forcing reparations from the abused to the abusers. Iceland is the answer and North America is the next test case. Obama is the better hope but it remains our duty to both support him and to direct him toward economic fairness. Vote for Obama and push for an Icelandic solution.

[MadHound]

1. Sorry, but no matter who is in office, we're not going to get an Icelandic solution

Our choice will be between a kinder, gentler austerity, or a much harsher version. What do you think the Catfood Commission was about? The only thing that prevented it from being enacted was the upcoming reelection bid. Once that's out of the way, all bets are off.

[tama]

3. Yes and no

People of Iceland rebelled and got rid of the banksters and corrupt politicians, held couple of referendums and crowd sourced a new Constitution.

So yes, people in US need to rise up against both parties and the whole corrupt system - as Occupy movement has been doing. And no, revolutionary change similar to Iceland (etc.) is not impossible in US either. It has begun, we don't know how long it takes and where and how the process goes, but it really begun about year ago.

[Selatius]

5. That's likely because we have privatized elections.

The money raised is private. The voting machines are privately owned. The system naturally favors the wealthy. They have a competitive advantage as far as raising cash goes. It would take several dozen working class stiffs donating cash to equal the buying power of the average multimillionaire.

Few Europeans would put up with that kind of bullshit. Many of their constitutions have mandated publicly funded elections since the end of World War 2. The last time government was allowed to so closely align with major business interests, they called it fascism. We call it corporatism today.

[MannyGoldstein]

10. Unless we demand it.

Emphatically.

[liberalmuse]

2. Yes! Well said!

Kick!

[dkf]

4. People from other countries are funding Spain and Greece and Italy.

I don't see how protesting convinces others to keep on providing funding.

All the protestors will do is crash their own government and their own economy. It's kind of like saying "give me money or I will blow my brains out".

[catnhatnh]

8. Bullshit-and I'm tired of your's

Other countries are funding only the rape of the 99% of those countries by helping "reimburse" the elites and insisting on increased "austerity" (read:fucking of the workers) in return.

[dkf]

11. Okay so you want them to default and lose access to outside funding.

I'm fine that. They should do that so they can see the level of benefits that their economy can provide. Rip the bandaid off then they can rebuild. That is the fastest way to achieve equilibrium.

[reformist2]

6. There is $50 trillion in wealth in this country. All we have to do is have the courage to tax it.

[lonestarnot]

7. watching carefully.

[truebluegreen]

9. Yes. nt

[Joe Shlabotnik]

12. Come Nov 7th

Obama will be in the white house, and hopefully more Dems in congress. But the religious right, purveyors of war, Wall street elite and the army of corporate lobbyists aren't about to give up. Casting a ballot is an essential first step in prevent a Republican catastrophe, but thats only the beginning.

Come November 7th, push left. Push HARD left, and keep pushing, so that maybe if we're lucky we'll see something that resembles what used to be the center. On Nov 7 2016, it might be Jeb smiling and waving, so a lot of work must be done before then.

The president and congress (and likely a supreme court pick) must be pushed leftward to address:
the environmental crisis that we are in.
They must be pushed left to restore civil liberties that have been eroded over the last 11 years.
They must be pushed left to create jobs that are sustainable and meaningful.
They must be pushed left to accept that 'market based solutions' and trade agreements are creating an extreme amount of wealth for the very few, and are simply a re-branding of "trickle down" economics.
They must be pushed left to accept that capitalism as we know it is deeply flawed and getting worse, and band aids aren't enough anymore.

As individuals it is incumbent upon each one of us to hold elected representatives feet to the fire. It is also incumbent upon every person to reevaluate whether their worth is calculated by the contents of their wallets, or the contents of their hearts. Every person who has a stake in the future should start realizing the status quo is crashing, and its up to us to decide whether we want to crash and burn, or manage a soft landing.

[catnhatnh]

13. WOW

Just fucking WOW...well said