Category: Politics

What has happened to this country…

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The Quiet Coup

 Author of the article, The Quiet Coup, is is Simon Johnson, former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund.

Here is a quote from the opening of the artilce:

“The crash has laid bare many unpleasant truths about the United States. One of the most alarming, says a former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund, is that the finance industry has effectively captured our government-a state of affairs that more typically describes emerging markets, and is at the center of many emerging-market crises. If the IMF’s staff could speak freely about the U.S., it would tell us what it tells all countries in this situation: recovery will fail unless we break the financial oligarchy that is blocking essential reform. And if we are to prevent a true depression, we’re running out of time.”

Scary stuff.

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Obama the Utopian

I describe myself as a Utopian.  I have a friend who when I said that would laugh and tell me I was being unrealistic.

I am a Utopian, not because I believe we will ever achieve Utopia, but because unless you aim high you will not achieve high.

It is obvious to me that Obama believes this principle.  He is a fellow Utopian.

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Must read article – “Why We Must Fix Our Prisons”

Senator Jim Webb wrote an article for Parade Magazine Why We Must Fix Our Prisons  Click link to read full story.

Some quotes from the article:

“With so many of our citizens in prison compared with the rest of the world, there are only two possibilities: Either we are home to the most evil people on earth or we are doing something different–and vastly counterproductive. Obviously, the answer is the latter. “ Continue reading “Must read article – “Why We Must Fix Our Prisons””

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Exactly what are we teaching our kids?

One of the big arguments I heard after Clinton’s escapade with the lady of the blue dress was that it was a horrible example for our children. While I thought Clinton was a good president I did wish he could keep his zipper up.

The latest go around of corporate greed is teaching a different lesson.

Teach your children well
Teach your children well
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To my email buddies/correspondents:

Anyone who knows me even slightly knows that I like to argue and talk politics.  They also know that I am somewhere to the left on the political spectrum.

I am probably not as near open minded about listening to other opinions as I fancy myself.  Nevertheless that is my goal.

I’ve been known from time to time pass on emails, editorials, jokes, Continue reading “To my email buddies/correspondents:”

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HP Pay Cuts – an unfair act of economic opportunism and greed.

Here is a link to a blog entry on DamianSanders.net.  It is somewhat long, but is an interesting case study in what is so wrong with this country (world?) that has been hijacked by corporate greed.

HP Pay Cuts – an unfair act of economic opportunism and greed.

I’ve been having a bit of a discussion about what is evil (See the article on Epicurus’  old questions).

It is obscene for the executives of these corporations to make the money they do.  Continue reading “HP Pay Cuts – an unfair act of economic opportunism and greed.”

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Would this treaty be signed today?

From the book, Doubt:  A History, by Jennifer Michael Hecht:

As second president of the United States, Adams signed into law the Treaty of Tripoli (1797), which declares that “the government of the United States is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion” and is in no way an enemy to Muslims.  On this basis “it is declared…that no pretext arising from religious opinion shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.”  Further, “The United States is not a Christian nation any more than it is a Jewish or a Mohammedan nation.”  It was carried unanimously by the Senate.

I just have a hard time believing that a treaty containing such language would be passed at all today, let alone unanimously!

I could even see the Okie delegation storming out in protest.

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Letter on Health Care Reform

There is fixin’ to be a big brouhaha in Congress about Health Care reform.

Below is a letter (email actually) that I have sent to both my Senators and my representative.  You may not agree with some or all of my comments, but you need to make your voice heard on this.  We do not need to let the profit driven corporations dictate our level of health care or even if we have health care any longer.

Find your Senator’s email address here

Find your Representative’s email address here

Dear Senator/Representative: 

There is going to a concerted effort by the Obama administration to Continue reading “Letter on Health Care Reform”

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Education, Education, Education

A quote from a Washington Post article:

Second, welcome foreign innovators. Harvard research fellow Vivek Wadhwa reports that immigrants have founded more than half of all Silicon Valley start-ups in the past decade. These immigrant-led, American tech companies employed more than 450,000 workers and grossed $52 billion in 2005. For U.S. companies to employ a highly specialized foreign worker, the employee must hold an H-1B visa, but current law allows for the issuing of only 65,000 H-1B visas per year.

The H-1B cap was established to prevent foreigners from taking American jobs, but, in fact, an education gap frequently leaves American candidates less qualified for these positions. Lawmakers could improve the situation all around by removing the cap on H-1B visas while imposing a 10 percent payroll tax above and beyond the benchmark salary for any position being filled by holders of such visas. The proceeds of the payroll tax could be channeled into U.S. reeducation programs. This compromise would bring the best innovators to work here while subsidizing the continued education of American talent.

Click here for full article

First Mr. Wadhwa or is it Ms. Wadhwa scares us by saying that there will be no new innovation in the USA without immigrants, specifically H-1B workers. Continue reading “Education, Education, Education”

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Four Indian Firms Hogged 10,000 H1B Visas

Original article at IndianExpress.com is no longer on Da ‘Net

I am not wild about the H-1B program, but if it were about individual Indians I would be a fan.  Admittedly it is a selected subset that I meet here, but they are generally intelligent, hard working, friendly folks.  If I have a complaint about them it is that they tend to be too compliant to the korporate overlords.  That and they undercut wages tremedously. This just adds to decreasing concern American korporations have for their employees.

However the program is about korporate greed here and in India.   It is about American korporations not investing in American workers or the American education system.  I read an article a while back about how American korporations were shifting their education dollars from American universities to those in China and India.  They did this because they felt they were getting more bang for their buck.

I do not know for a fact  how these firms that are hogging the H-1B visas treat their folks.  I do know that Indian work conditions, even for professionals, are Dickinsonian compared to American standards.

This whole paradigm of profit at any cost has got to stop.