June 20, 2016

Good Night until November

This is my last post before taking a hiatus from DU until after the election.

When the 2016 election began 14 months ago, I committed to support Bernie Sanders within minutes of the formation of the BSG. No one really knew what to expect. I thought it possible that Bernie would run out of money quickly and would have to fold his campaign in a short time. As we know, although as Camp Weathervane will admit it, the campaign was a great success, not in the sense that our candidate will be the next president, but in the sense that our candidate survived the process with the deck stacked against him to be the voice of disenfranchised Democrats in Philadelphia next month.

Make no mistake about it: the deck was stacked and the stacking continues as this is being written. David Brock’s lies, Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s unilateral decisions on debate scheduling and the obscene ploy of unilaterally cutting the campaign’s access to its own files on the DNC database, the lies coming out of the Nevada state party convention and the clearly rigged judgments of the voice by by a party chairwoman who is apparently deaf, the corporate media’s declaring Mrs. Clinton the winner of debates by rote, even after a ridiculous performance about her support for Wall Street being about the September 11 attacks and had nothing to do with millions in campaign funds and even exorbitant speaking fees going straight into Mrs. Clinton’s purse. Of course, there was all that coverage they gave Bernie. It was journalistic malpractice.

I paid no attention to the residents of Camp Weathervane and the nonsense they produced. For example, charging that any attack on Mrs. Clinton’s campaign finance ethics being a “smear.” I’ve got some beachfront property by the Sea of Tranquility at bargain prices for anyone who believes that. I also found Camp Weathervane’s mindset of primary-campaign-as-sporting-event annoying. They actually thought all this campaign was about was who would be the Democratic nominee. We Sandernistas have known all along that it is about much, much more. And we won because Mrs. Clinton failed to stop us. We won because we will continue to fight for our vision of America, a vision in which it is hard to see crooked bankers like Legs Dimon and Pretty Boy Lloyd. The only place for people like them in our vision of America is Fort Leavenworth.

I can’t say with certainty that, if it were not for the underhanded Mr. Brock, the scurrilous, biased behavior of Mrs. Wasserman Schultz, the tainted money of Wall Street banksters and other corporate criminals or the lies from the corporate media that Bernie Sanders would be the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee instead of Hillary Clinton, but it’s a sure bet that the vote count would have been even closer than it was.

We Sandernistas stand with people made of flesh and blood, not with corporations made of legal documents. We are the true heirs of the New Deal. We will continue to fight for human rights, a clean environment, political justice and economic justice. If that last element is a code word for socialism, then let us make the most of it. The Third Way is the way Reaganomics and neoliberalism, of income inequality, rising personal debt and austerity. It is doomed, perhaps not in this election cycle, but perhaps the next one or the one after that. Neoliberalism is an unsustainable model and it will crash. Adapt to the changing times with us, or die alone.

We are the future.

June 15, 2016

So, the primaries are over

Hillary Clinton is about to win the Democratic nomination. Big deal.

The system is rigged. We all know that.

Mrs. Clinton is the banksters' moll. We all know that, too. Debbie Wasserman Schultz is crooked down to her socks and should be replaced as DCN chair and as the congressional representative of Florida's 23rd district.

She's still better than Der Donald, we all know that. At least Mrs. C could pass a high school civics exam. Trump could not. I'd really like to hear him explain separation of powers. I could use a good laugh right now.

Mrs. C will get my vote if that is what it takes to keep Der Donald from picking up my state's 55 electoral votes.

After that, I'll still oppose free trade and NSA spying, and I'll insist that communications and banking industries be re-regulated and payday lending outlawed. Wall Street bankers should be investigated for fraud and prosecuted. I will still demand that the government subsidize renewable energy and stop giving away money to oil and coal; I demand that the government put in place a plan to supplant and eventually supplant fossil fuels with renewable sources, the sooner the better. I oppose wars for oil. We don't need oil, we need to put this plan into effect and now. In addition, I insist that upper class tax cuts be rolled back pre-Reagan levels. If the forgoing is not implemented, Mrs. Clinton will not get my vote under any circumstances in 2020.

Whether this can be done within the structure of the Democratic Party or whether the party is now so corrupt that it is beyond hope for progressives to expect accommodation is a discussion that needs to take place, but is prohibited by the longstanding rules of DU. Therefore, for those who want to have this discussion, I'll see you at Jackpine Radicals, where this post is cro54rss posted.

June 1, 2016

Professor

Guys like Trump rub me the wrong way. He's a bully. I was the smallest kid in my class. How much do I despise Trump? I'll even vote for Hillary Clinton to block him from the White House. That's desperation, not a ringing endorsement of Mrs. Clinton.

I'll stay out of the campaign this year. I have little good to say about Mrs. Clinton, so I'll say nothing at all. I heard of bumper stickers in New Orleans during the gubernatorial election of 1991, Edwin Edwards vs. David Duke, proclaiming It's Important -- Vote for the Crook. That's exactly how I feel about this election.

Sure, I oppose the TPP, but not because it will help China. In fact, I can think of no way in which it will. It should be obvious to all that in addition to being a racist, misogynist, a sectarian bigot (although he's no more religious than my cat) and a climate science denier, Mr. Trump doesn't know what he's talking about. Hillary Clinton may have demonstrated poor judgment often, but at least it is informed poor judgment.

May 20, 2016

The Nevada Convention proves the point Bernie has been running on for a year

the establishment -- the leaders of corporations, the leadership of both major political parties, major mainstream media outlets, Hillary Clinton herself, Donald Trump himself, and their donors and campaign organizations -- are corrupt, totally corrupt, conniving liars, irresponsible, unprofessional, undemocratic and totally unworthy of any position of leadership or responsibility in a democratic state. They should be removed from power immediately and replaced by a transparent, open, inclusive and democratic system of popular government.

Down with the Robber Barons! Power to The People!

May 16, 2016

I won't go quite that far

It is clear that Roberta Lange played highhanded in a manner not suitable to a democratic process. Ms. Lange's behavior is consistent with shutting down discussion and imposing her predetermined rules, not deciding what the rules should be and then going forward after debate and deliberation..

To me, that sounds less like incompetence and more like willful tyranny.

The party establishment doesn't want to split the Democratic Party, but what they want is entirely unreasonable. They want us Sandernistas to lay down and take it and vote for Mrs. Clinton in November and give her carte blanche for whatever she plans to do. That's out of the question. No citizen owes the president that kind of loyalty, whether the citizen voted for that president or any one else. Several weeks ago, I came across a post by a Camp Weathervane dweller claiming that any good Democrat always supports a Democratic president. Really? He must be awfully young and naive. I'd like to talk to that greenhorn and tell him how we Democrats supported Lyndon Johnson and his dirty little war in Vietnam back in '68. It really was one of our prouder moments.

I would suggest to my fellow Sandernistas that we keep our council for now. I'm tired of being told our opinions count for nothing, that in spite of mounting an impressive insurgency against the party establishment that we should have no place at the table and stilll ought to work without question for the election of a president who will let crooked bankers off the hook, puts combat troops in the Middle East and pursue more trade deals and more trickle-down economics, all policies that have been disastrous for the overwhelming majority of the American people of both parties. If the party grandees want our support, they will have to talk to us as equals. Otherwise, it is Roberta Lange, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Hillary Clinton who have excluded us from the party. The onus is on them get us back if they want our help.

I expect Hillary Clinton to defeat Donald Trump in November. Whether she does or doesn't, we will see if the party leaders wish to reconcile with us. If not, we may have to make a decision how to move forward without the support of the party establishment. the divide will simply continue at least through 2018.

May 9, 2016

Please don't exaggerate

I am speaking only for myself.

There are not hundreds, or even dozens, posting here whose threats to not vote for Hillary should be taken seriously. Right now, it doesn't look like Mrs. Clinton is going to have any trouble defeating Trump and defeating him soundly. Those circumstances may change over the summer and, if so, so will their reluctance to vote for Mrs. Clinton. In that case, more, although doubtlessly not all, will vote for Mrs. Clinton. Remember the bumper stickers from the 1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election, which pitted Edwin Edwards against David Duke? It's important -- Vote for the crook! That may be the attitude of many when November comes around. Nobody, except other proto-Nazis, really wants to see a proto-Nazi with an atrocious combover in the White House.

I know someone, personally, who says he will vote for Trump ahead of Clinton, but he'll probably vote for Jill Stein. He and I see Mrs. Clinton almost the same way. For me, she is the most problematic Democratic nominee pf my lifetime, and I'm 64 years old. She is committed to policies that have have only succeeded in widening the income gap, curtailing civil liberties, weakening labor unions and killing manufacturing jobs while taking money from Wall Street, which gives it to her in order to remain deregulated and crooked. I'll vote for her in order to block Trump, but I'm not expecting anything positive form her.

I am committed not to making Mrs. Clinton a successful president because I do not believe she can possibly be a successful president. I am committed to helping others lay the groundwork for an anti-neoliberal revolution.

May 8, 2016

My first election was in 1972 when I voted for McGovern

I was optimistic when Carter won, but he spent four years spinning his wheels trying to get a handle on what he was doing. Carter was president when I got married and our first child was born. Runaway inflation made it a miserable time to start a family. He gets a C-. I like Carter personally and wish he had done better.

I was optimistic when Bill Clinton won, but was disappointed when at the end of his eight years he failed to reverse the middle class squeeze that became epidemic under Reagan and Bush the Preppy. Clinton at slowed down the rate of the increase in the income gap, so I will award him the best president of my lifetime, in spite of pursuing a basically Republican policy that featured a disastrous trade agreement (NAFTA) and an equally disastrous deregulation of finance industry that set the stage for the crash of 2008. While Reagan and Bush the Preppy each get a D-, Bill Clinton gets a C.

Bush the Frat Boy served two full terms as president despite never being elected to either. He began two wars, one premised on a pack of lies and allowed large amounts of funds to AWOL in one them; he pushed upper class tax cuts that were supposed to create jobs and growth, but produced the opposite and capped off his his tenure in the White House with the global market crash of 2008, although much of that was caused by Clinton's unwise deregulation of Wall Street, as already noted. Nevertheless, the Frat Boy either didn't see it coming or just had no will to do anything to stop it. This led to the TARP program in which crooked Wall Street banks were bailed out, the last big heist of the Bush administration. The Frat Boy gets an F.

I was utterly giddy about the election of Obama, who promised national health insurance, the end of the Iraq War, to employ a less`belligerent foreign policy and restore lost civil liberties at home. His healthcare package was a big improvement over the largely privatized system that preceded did not include a public option and let millions to remain uninsured. Spying on American citizens by the NSA began during the Frat Boy's tenure and Obama continued it without apologies. He got us out of Iraq, but then started us well on a primrose path back. He will pass to his successor the war in Afghanistan, which he also inherited from Bush the Frat Boy. His goal of a less belligerent foreign policy has similarly mixed results. Obama's greatest success has been due to his preference for negotiating with adversaries as opposed to simply going to war as a first option. The best example of this is the nucl;ear deal with Iran. On the other hand, Obama continues belligerent action in the world's trouble spots with drone strikes that have a high likelihood of creating a great deal of collateral damage. Otherwise, upon taking office, Obama failed to prosecute Bush administration war criminals or Wall Street criminals who nearly destroyed the world economy. Although Wall Street fraud continues, Obama's justice department has only levied fines to punish the banks for their misbehavior and failed to bring any criminal case against any crooked bank executive.. To date, this has failed to abate Wall Street fraud. Finally, Obama has continued negotiating free trade deals that hurt American workers and make it easier for corporations to avoid taxes and bring cases against governments challenging their right to mandate limits on pollution or occupational safety and health standards. Obama's legacy will look a lot better if the three remaining trade pacts he has in the queue fail to pass Congress. Obama gets a C-.

April 27, 2016

It's no wonder that young adults are turning away from the free market

What goes under the label of "free market" (Reaganomics, neoliberalism, supply-side, trickle-down) isn't capitalism; it's fraud. A healthy economy cannot be dominated by a parasitic industry like banking and finance. The whole scheme is to cycle and recycle debt. We need oil, so let's go to war and claim our oil under the Arabs' sand. Going to war is very, very expensive, so we go into debt. Get a college education, one goes into debt. Can't make ends meet with all that debt? Don't worry, the bank will extend your credit, and then extend it some more. Banking is a funny industry. Money in the bank may be an asset to you and me, but it's a liability to the bank; the bank has to pay you interest on your savings. On the other hand, your debt is an asset to the bank, because you're going to pay it back, someday. You may have to go into your savings, but if the the system starts to collapse, they may legally steal your savings first.

Isn't banking deregulation and modernization wonderful? There's no such thing a fraud. Fraud is legal, and if it's legal, then it isn't fraud, is it?

I'm not young and haven't been for a long time, but I certainly don't blame young people today for turning way from anything so decadent as the free market. This certainly isn't my Dad's capitalism.

April 24, 2016

I hope so

I belong to the party of the New Deal, progressive civil rights legislation and opposition to imperialist wars in Vietnam and Iraq.. I believe in an open, inclusive and just society. I believe in egalitarianism at home and abroad, and that slavery and imperialism are the two greatest crimes against humanity. I believe that human beings are made of flesh and blood, not legal documents, and that corporate personhood is a legal principle limited to business law, where its best use is to allow common people to take a corporation to court for damages to a small farmer's property, extortion, fraud and other acts of wrongdoing. Those are traditional Democratic values. The Third Way believes that government should be partner in crime to America's unworthy elites.

The establishment of the Democratic Party does not seem willing to give us a place at the table, although Bernie has won eight out of the last ten contests. It is the establishment that does not represent the values of the Democratic Party. A Democrat does not ship Americans' jobs overseas. A Democrat does not put Social Security or medicare on the bargaining table. A Democrat strives for universal healthcare for all Americans. A Democrat does not suggest that she would be willing to compromise on a woman's right to choose to terminate her pregnancy or anybody's right to vote. A Democrat puts an end to NSA spying, A Democrat does not embrace the criminal deregulation of Wall Street banks, does not take bribes for them and prosecutes the likes of Legs Dimon or Pretty Boy Lloyd.

The Republican party is dying of its own stubborn puritanism, its outdated crony capitalism and it vicious bigotry against about 65% of the American people. We have no long term fear of harm from that rotting body that is almost a corpse. What we fear is a faction of our own party that embraces corruption and crony capitalism and eschews democracy. A house divided against it slef cannot stand. Following this coming election, a decision must be made about the future of the Democratic Party.

If Hillary Clinton, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Jon Cowan want to read us FDR Democrats out of the party, let us tell them that they do so at their own peril and let them know that they shall be responsible for any unpleasantness that rises from a permanent split. In the mean time, let us be prepared to rebuild the Democratic Party apart from this rotten shell that remains from the hostile takeover of the party by Al From and the Clintons. We shall make room for our future and the future of all Americans, with ot without the Third Way.

If this fate can be avoided, fine and well. That is up to the Third Way interlopers. If not, let us make the most of it.

April 16, 2016

DWS invites Wall Street criminals and oil comapies into our party's Big Tent

This was the subject of a thread in LBN yesterday, but the video should be seen.
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Debbie Wasserman Schultz is full of baloney. Along with crooked banks and major fossil fuel polluters -- and let's not forget Debbie's pal, your friendly neighborhood payday lender -- let's invite private prison corporations and mercenary service corporations like Blackwater Xe Academi into the Big Tent.

The American and world economy is in crisis because of entire industries that should be done away with. Private prisons, mercenaries and payday lenders have no more right to exist than an unregulated recreational drug industry or unregulated loan sharks, which is what a payday lender is and DWS wants to keep it that way. I'd rather have heroin legalized than private prisons or mercenary service companies as those are industries than strive on high crime rates and international tensions. A legalized dope industry would be easier to regulate and contain, while private prisons and mercenaries would demand criminals to fill their prisons and wars, wars and more wars and bribe generously contribute to the campaigns of crooked politicians to make sure they are sustained by high crime rates and pointless wars.

Speaking of pointless wars, there are more reasons than anthropogenic climate change to want to do away with fossil fuels. The oil companies should stop lying about it; we know that knew about the dangers of climate change before the public did and immediately launched a PR campaign to deny there was any problem at all. We should make every effort to supplement and eventually supplant fossil fuels with wind and solar power in the next thirty years. If we had begun this process forty years ago, we'd done by now and the world would be a much better place with more blue sky and green grass.

Banking by its nature is a parasitic industry; it produces no wealth and only serves to move money around, which could be a useful enterprise when properly regulated. The notion that banks create wealth by making loans is nonsense in the best circumstances and dangerous sophistry when combined with quantitative easing (i.e., the Federal Reserve prints money and gives it to the banks at zero percent interest), as is the case now. Money is not wealth, it is a convenient medium of exchange and nothing more. Through quantitative easing, at least the Fed keep the bank from lending money it doesn't have (that would be fraud), but it doesn't mean that there is no word for what happens when that money, printed without regard to an increase in goods and services, goes into general circulation and that word is inflation. There is no question that Wall Street banks should be re-regulated by returning to the status quo ante prior to 1999 when the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act became law and, in addition, the banks broken up to reduce the likelihood that a failure of one too-big-to-fail financial institution will drag the rest of the economy down with it. If that doesn't look like an adequate solution, then we can always nationalize the financial industry, which might be the ultimate solution to any parasitic industry.