Bad Precedent
Something Bob Herbert wrote a couple of weeks ago has stayed with me:
During the last administration we saw how malevolence feeds off crises, either real or contrived. But an important part of that dynamic is the willingness of people to believe there's a crisis, or to be distracted, or to simply not care. Like Herbert, I've been amazed by the general apathy out there. And to the extent that apathy might encourage bad actors, present and future, to wonder what's possible, it's chilling.
Meanwhile, Wall Street is living it up. I’m amazed at how passive the population has remained in the face of this sustained outrage. |
During the last administration we saw how malevolence feeds off crises, either real or contrived. But an important part of that dynamic is the willingness of people to believe there's a crisis, or to be distracted, or to simply not care. Like Herbert, I've been amazed by the general apathy out there. And to the extent that apathy might encourage bad actors, present and future, to wonder what's possible, it's chilling.
posted by The Cunning Realist at Sunday, November 01, 2009
5 Comments:
Ohhh... You r wrong. There is a lot of anger out there. I've been angry for 9 years and have only had company the last two. Have congress organize a giant "townhall" meeting anywhere in the midwest and see how that goes... Lol. The majority of people in the midwest understand they have been sold down the river for our "betters" imperial ambitions. Even most of the new recruits I talk to understand this but out of necessity they "need a job".
Also the mob has to be well organized if they r going to make a difference... Imagine if the race riots ala rodney king happened in the mayor's, police chief's, DA's gated communities... The riots would have made a real impression on these people then... Until some of these people's heads wind up on stakes... Nothing is going to change.
That op-ed by Bob Herbert said it all!
The poor invisible, middle class stressed, & wealthy too busy with their luxury living & reality programs. People are working really hard at their jobs & when they have a moment to wind-down they need to tune-out. Wouldn't a person have to dedicate their life to fixing our broken Democracy? Who is willing to give up their life's work. Doing the right thing is very expensive & will not be rewarded in this lifetime given our current attack environment enabled by sensationalized journalism.
When I talk to folks in the trades, they are pretty apathetic & pragmatic. Many have multiple jobs. They buy real assets. They have close-knit like-minded associates who trade skills. On the weekends they go hunting, to the races, or sports, with friends. A stock is something you do to your pantry. They live in the real world, not a contrived virtual derivative world. Another thought, does an immigrant's country of origin determine their social/political involvement. Many current immigrants come from regions that haven't had a healthy government in a long time or the bible is all they know. There are also some citizens that will never care because they are either under-educated, disenfranchised, or just want to work. They know that they will never make enough money or have enough clout to "matter" to their Representatives or Wall Street.
A society is a network of educated people. We have trust that people will do their jobs. For example, we expect the bridge construction worker to do their job (so we don't fall into the river & die), he in turn expects safe materials to be supplied, & the architect to come up with a quality plan. The architect can focus on doing his job because the business manager, accountant, & lawyer all did their job. And we all benefit. In this same light, we expect our Representatives to do their job. We don't expect to do their job. We had a system of checks & balances, so we could concentrate on our part with the trust that there are systems in place (over the last 30 years these have been shredded) to fix the problems & seek justice against abuses. We need better politicians, rebuild our institutions, better journalistic reporting & change our financial system. The one we have is too corrupt and broken.
At least someone is putting out some common-sense action ideas: My Action Plan: 15 Things Every American Can Do Right Now
I don't think Mr. Herbert should be looking at the common man and saying where are you. He should be looking at the wealthy & the media, & asking where have you been. Mr. Herbert is right, the money never trickled down, but the ethics, or lack of, sure did.
ALOHA !!
"Mr. Herbert is right, the money never trickled down, but the ethics, or lack of, sure did."
Since when has any government based on "leveraged taxation without representation" ever had money trickle down? In any PONZI scam "money has to trickle up not down"!
You pay your taxes every paycheck. You become more poor as those pay check deductions expand.
At the end of FY2009 the US Treasury owed the American people some $44TRIL USD in the form of "non-marketable" securities known as Government Account Series. These are IOUs backed by the US Congress whereby you funds that are deducted from your check are spent on US Treasury outlays as soon as they hit Washington DC and the various Public Trust Funds. This applies to pensions as well.
Let me give you an example. In my business days I made $7,000USD per week. Just for Social Security deduction I had to pay in $875USD every weekly pay check. More was deducted for Medicare and Federal withholding and State withholding to the point where I netted around $4,000. Just my income tax liability 1040 was over $100,000 every year.
A few weeks ago I get a little pamphlet from the Social Security Admin that shows my projected return on that investment. Depending on what age I retire I can expect to get $900 to $1200USD per month. So, I pay in over $100,000 per year and I get back $14,400 tops! Then to add insult to injury I am paying in at the height of my career with 1990s money and I am getting back 2000 money, ravaged by corrupt government policies that waste billions every single day. To put that in layman's terms I am paying taxes into the US Treasury when gasoline is under $2.00 per gallon and I am retiring when gasoline is over $3 per gallon.
DO THE MATH!
Even Tony Soprano would be arrested ...
Your future and your kid's future depends on who you vote for. So far American voters have done an abysmal job of voting.
“Perpetual vigilance on the part of the citizens can achieve what a thousand laws and dozens of alphabetical bureaus with hordes of employees never have and never will achieve: the preservation of a sound currency.” – Ludwig Von Mises, The Theory of Money and Credit 1940
I was reminded of your blog entry when Dick Armey was on Nightline. Did you see Nightline on Monday night? They had Dick Armey on to talk about an organization called FreedomWorks. They are suppose to be the angry teabaggers. Armey is paid $500,000 to run it. When asked by Terry Moran who funds FreedomWorks he would not say. He said they want their privacy and they would be attacked if known. Interesting. The common man has to be desperate, maybe like a Cindy Sheehan, or paid by someone to stand up like maybe an Armey or even Limbaugh.
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