Data released this morning from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis showed that the nation’s gross domestic product—that is, the total value of goods and services produced in the U.S.—was up in the third quarter of 2022, increasing at an annual rate of 2.6%. This increase reflected increases in “exports, consumer spending, nonresidential fixed investment, federal government spending, and state and local government spending,” as well as decreases in imports. That growth was partly offset by lower housing sales.
It would be wonderful if those 40 million Americans hoping for student debt relief would vote Democratic. It is in their best interests to do so. The news is more and more disturbing every day. The antisemitism is sickening. After WWII, the mantra was and has been, "never again", but we see that it's spreading like a virulent disease.
Hopefully, the United States is not in a position where the only way to get votes is to purchase them through goodies handed out at the expense of others.
Which, is what student loan forgiveness is. Now, hold on, before you guys get too angry at me, in many cases I am in full support. A lot of those loans were handed out by sharks ripping off people trying to make the best of a tough life.
For example, at Union College, an expensive private college that is mostly white, many students attended on loans even though they had wealthy parents. The loans were used by their parents for their busineses (low interest loans right?).
However, covering the cost of those loans has to come out of someone's pocket, never mind that Ronald Reagan got us all thinking that printing money is free and nobody ever has to pay up.
That is wrong.
So, I personally hope that we can hold our Democracy without handing out money at the polling stations. I really do.
Isn’t there an application process? I do not believe that all will be eligible for the benefit. Nonetheless there are always those on any returns who take advantage. That should not stop us from helping those truly in need.
When we applied and were granted loans in the 1960s, college, even with student residents, was so so inexpensive and the loan money often paid for non educational perks. Often the loan was a grant. Even better. But “those were the days, my friend, we thought they’d never end.” Not that we want to repeat those years. Not at all. But corporations have too much power and they are running our economy and economic inequality.
Yes. When I was in college in the 60s and 70s, I could "pay as I went" with small loans and working two part time jobs, so I graduated from both undergraduate and graduate school with no debt. This was largely possible because public universities were subsidized since it was considered an asset to the country if people got an education. That's no longer the case, and no longer possible so that if there was no help for those who can't afford college, then there would only be rich kids going to college. Burdening college graduates with unbelievable debt hurts us all. It's time we reconsidered using the capitalist strategy for absolutely everything since this only benefits a small portion of the population.
Same here. Small loans all repaid and federal grants and scholarships. Graduate school was $22 a credit hour and the loan interest rate was 3% fixed. Edited: (my point being, the system was a lot more fair in the 60's and 70's especially for low income kids. I could not afford college today even while working.)
I actually took out small personal loans from the student services center short term loan program, and paid it back over the term. I believe there was almost no interest on these loans.
I, too, worked part-time (two jobs). I also enjoyed the benefit of the GI Bill. Ended up in night school as I opted to start a career in the private business sector. No debt. That took a bit longer, but it was a success.
Student loans have become preditory. Colleges now want to be profitable institutions. It is as though what was "up" now is "down"; and, vice versa. The concepts about what was ethically moral went out the window long ago.
You are correct. I saw a bumper sticker yesterday - "I'll believe corporations are people when Texas executes one." Someone inside me I see a connection with these huge profts being gathered at a time when sharing a partion would be so good for both the country and real people - not that I ever equated oil/gas corporation with "real" people. But even grocery store chains are playing that Greed Game. I say give the students a break. God knows they need one.
Ahh yes, corporations...They.., are deemed a citizen.., no? Somehow that needs to be erased! Enough of this governance by reprobates ($$$$.$$). After all, "they" are so fat, as keepers of the kitchen where bowls of gruel are handed out to the eager hands of the sloggers who have no voice. We individuals have been saddled by a holocaust of a different making. "They" are so pleased to hobble the real issues, like Womens Rights(!!!) with the ever-distracting, religion-driven word 'abortion'. Or, and this may sound trite, but virtually no mention (by them) of "gasoline" prices (lowered), and ZERO concern for the truckers who are being whacked by the price of diesel. A factor that Democrats or our simple-minded news medics seem unconcerned with. Like, when.., is the last time you heard "diesel" mentioned? The "truckers" of this nation VOTE, in addition to listening to talk-radio mile after mile. Those folks are absorbed by Faux news and "They" love it too.
Interesting, “holocaust of a different making.” As a trucker light, Only 2000000 miles driven, home 2 days per month, 20 hour workdays, paychecks absorbed by every state of the union at so-called safety and regulation check stations, treated as a criminal by local law enforcement agencies, hounded at night for my 4 hours sleep by desperate women, many college students by day, my relief was to listen to talk radio. Corporate America bringing you Rush Limburger in stereo throughout the day. Listening to Rush and dodging the road rage what could possibly be wrong? A free corporate shower every 2-4 days. I managed to get the groceries there on time. The money that I salvaged went straight to 3 of my children’s university costs, as did my schoolteacher wife’s entire salary. Just the all American over achievers grab it and growl sort of family. Were it not for Limberger’s wisdom we would never have known how hard the Democrats used us. I was so glad when the last child matriculated.WHEW! Thinking now about those days I begin to see the wisdom of a public education through an undergraduate degree. Somehow, despite their dad being an absentee father, they worked, we helped, we won. Still need a public education. Let me tell you jealous bastards one more time. Public education = 16 years. Ignorance is not bliss. We are nearly “pickled” by undereducation. If we can afford smart bombs then we can damn sure afford smart children!
Right, Irenie. I borrowed $6000 to get my MSW. It took only three years to pay it off, primarily because I got a good paying job right after graduation. That's the way it was supposed to work.
And we won't be holding our breath for those grifters to return that money, will we? Sure hope we've learned THAT lesson. While I understand the urgency of getting that federal money out to states and cities to keep their essential employees paid and on the job back during the pandemic, the same error was made that happened back in 2008-09 during that recession. The federal government rushed to bail out banks (too big to fail) and the auto industry. The rush jumped right over the steps of tracking the money to be sure it went to those who really qualified (not people like Jared Kushner and Trump businesses - who got in line ASAP and got money) and to ensure state and local government levels had systems in place to catch money before it was hacked off by scams (which happened). Perhaps we can share some of the blame with Trump who cancelled out a lot of programs that were in place to protect and prevent such scams - scams being his most successful business ventures.
You mean people cheat?? I was always in favor of spending money to nail the cheats, be they tax cheats, Medicare or whatever. Lordy, we could wipe out our national debt in no time. We are a nation of legal cheats…how dare we tighten the screws, how dare we not.
I know personally some very rich men. They have worked very hard to get to where they are financially. Yet it is so hypocritical when the constantly voice utter exasperation at all the "poor, lazy people"who cheat on their welfare type assistance and yet they literally pay more to hide/shelter/ finagle their income...and tax liability to avoid paying it to the state or federal tax boards than their actual tax liability...how do I know this...they brag about it...
With every social program there will be people who take advantage. It's human nature. That's not a good enough reason to not have the program. If we expect that a small number of people will stop trying to scam the system then we are mistaken. It's a price that has to be paid if we are to level the playing field for the larger majority of people who need it. We may need to improve how the programs are administered, but that's also a work in progress.
A fine comment J. I came to this conclusion long ago, amidst the cry about give-aways from righties (Ronnie being their big bully pulpit megaphone). A government program that helps the needy is bound to be taken advantage of by greedy persons who see an opportunity. Thankfully (or hopefully) the numbers are small. But Republicans (who say to pull yourself up by your boot straps, yet hiding your boots from you), point to the exceptions and scream about big program inefficiencies and ineffectiveness, and the duplicity of the people the program was meant to help. Or that the program is a de-motivator to help oneself. And, of course, being unwilling to provide the funds to properly administer the program. It is an evil and cynical way to look at society.
It is totally without conscience to view other members of your species with such contempt and of course reveals a lot about those who view people that way and very little about the targets of their contempt. And, they never refer to the give-aways they advocate - welfare for corporations, agribusiness, and the weapons industry.
The billions in corporate entitlements and billions lost in taxes sheltered by the ultra wealthy every year, the lack of any real attempt to investigate and recover some of the PPP loans fraudulently received and the billions scammed from medicare by the privatization scam of medicare+ are not a concern. The deficit has DECREASED by nearly 1.5 trillion under Biden despite his desire to keep his campaign promises and help millions of Americans struggling to live the American dream.
The problem Mike is that Republicans have abandoned all forms of public investment. They have stopped investing in public education and colleges after setting up land grant colleges in each state. Two of my daughters graduated from Cornell, originally established as a land grant agricultural college. The AG school still has instate tuition at half of the now private Cornell University. It helps, but all other fees, room & board, with amenities like food courts and gyms with climbing walls are too expensive for most students. Hence extremely huge loans. My father graduated from Cornell in engineering thanks to the GI Bill. He was the first on both sides of our family to attend college.
The loan forgiveness is a back end solution. Not the best solution. We should invest in free or extremely affordable public higher education as an option to expensive private education.
Republicans supported rural healthcare after WWII with establishing "critical access" hospitals. Maine has about 29 hospitals. About half were critical access fully supported by the Federal government. They had less than 25 beds, surgery, emergency and provided critical healthcare for most of the local population. Now many of these hospitals are closing or have such reduced services that most patients much travel hours for services they once got in their community.
Republicans once supported the cleaning up and protection of the environment. Nixon's administration created the EPA, which helped clean up the Hudson River returning from a nearly dead and poisonous river to a relatively clean and safe river for recreational and domestic water use.
Most of our attempts to save or get back to these values are back end bandaid that will never be as good as dead on pragmatic solutions.
We must overcome the current Republican obstruction and destruction. And promote people who think and do as Lincoln did.
A government, any government, subsidizes all the time. When they fix roads and airports and improve the bus system but they reduce bus routes in low income areas they are “handing out” help to those in the middle / upper classes who actually use airports and roads Same goes for the farm industry getting 100 years / interest free loans. It’s paid by our taxes but no one complains about it Mike, make a list of all the government subsidizes and check again who is benefited by it. It’s never the students in low income families OR their families.
Your argument makes no sense. You say a small amount of students at a private college with wealthy parents took out loans to pay for school and instead let mommy and daddy use the loan money for business. Then, those students of wealthy parents did not pay back their loans because they did not care about their credit rating or need for transportation and housing, and are now going to get some benefit from loan forgiveness.
Mike, it is my understanding that the student loan forgiveness program is designed for those making under $75000 per year. It would seem unlikely that the graduates from wealthy families that you describe would be in that category.
It refers to the borrower’s income, not their family’s (ie; parents), if that’s what you meant. There is a post here, up or down thread, with a link to the .gov site that explains the whole thing & application as well. Having worked in college student financial aid for 40+ years, with a lot of experience in loan counseling for students/parents, this forgiveness is a start in a process, loans and other aid, that needs to be revamped for current and future student needing financial assistance to attend college. Here in CA I watched as a state that once had an envied CC/CSU/UC system eroded by changes in state support. We need to invest in education from pre-K through college IMHO.
Student loan forgiveness must be the opening salvo in change that MUST come regarding the “business” of higher education.
Public education being regarded as K-12 is incorrect. It is entirely possible to create a degree program synonymous with the completion of a student’s journey through free and public education. To subject any capable student to a molehill or mountain of debt is a form of economic enslavement.
And the current Republican agenda of indoctrination of our students is not the answer in a Democratic nation. The answer is the complete and utter transformation of the architecture of public education. To me, that became sorely obvious during the pandemic.
I can go on and on…….hopefully conversation will evolve regarding this topic. It has seriously started in some circles.
There are rotten apples in every barrel. While understanding your point of view, having just calculated what a no vacation, no paid sick leave, and no affordable medical insurance, $15 an hour job brings in, I want those who had the courage to borrow for education and then were charged higher rates by lenders, to have their loans forgiven, even if some of those who receive forgiveness unfairly also do.
1) The loans forgiveness in question applies to federally funded loans, such as Pell grants to low income people. The maximum forgiveness is $20,000 for Pell borrowers, $10,000 for others. People who owe less than that, having paid off some of their debt already, get only their balance forgiven. People who owe more than the forgiveness amount must continue to make payments starting in January. (Payments were not required during the pandemic.)
2) I know people who have heard that all student loans will be forgiven. Not true. Borrowers who made over $125K as shown on their tax returns for 2020 or 2021 are not eligible for any loan forgiveness. Nor loans from private lenders.
3) I am much more critical of the abuses of Paycheck Protection Plan loans, a much bigger expense to taxpayers than student loans. Other countries administered their similar pandemic programs with far less fraud. A reason we did so poorly has to do with our aging computer systems not allowing agencies to rapidly share information already collected.
4) In the good old days students could work their way through school and graduate on schedule. Today’s cost of education is way up, but the federal minimum hourly wage, $7.25, has not changed since 2009.
Mike S, 'Twould seem handing out money at the polling stations is a more effective way to get it into the hands of relatively ordinary Americans than handing out the billions in dark money to the politicians...
I hope that this loan forgiveness doesnt get used like the PPL loans - where far too many individuals & businesses took advantage of them. As someone else here mentioned - lack of tracking appears to be something our government has issues with. But as a grandmother to a child that had a Pell Grant & several scholarships with a single mom who took out a loan for the remainder - yeah, I really would like to see this program be successful - in other words - help the people who NEED the help. What a novel experience that would be.
You have an excellent point, Mike. I don't begrudge student loan forgiveness. My husband and I were able to pay for our three daughters' college and post-college educations so they would not be burdened for years by student debt. However, many who owe tens of thousands of dollars cannot get ahead in life. If you have $100,000 in student loans, you work most of your life to pay off those debts and with the impact of Covid the past few years, many people cannot even find jobs or their work has been scaled back. Forget about the possibility of buying a home. Many people who paid for college resent this, but I do not. Many minorities are unable build family wealth and get ahead in life. All the money we shell out as taxpayers, be it to student debt forgiveness or to support the war in Ukraine, has to come from somewhere. I support both efforts.
The USA is in an awful position in that it charges so much for college. That has happened because people have to pay for it themselves. Ronald Reagan is the one who came up with this genius plan. Think of all of the diseases that might have already been cured if we had free college education and everyone could go who wanted to. Now the price is just prohibitive. Here is a not exhaustive list of countries where one pays little or no tuition to go to university. https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/countries-with-free-college Some of the ones with nominal tuition really have nominal tuition. Not just for their citizens, but for others. These people then graduate and contribute to their economies. So, they can attract the best and the brightest from around the world. They can attract students for areas where they have a shortage. We can attract the wealthiest. The amount of debt that some people are in after college is so much that they will never get out of it. They cannot file bankruptcy either. It is also meaning that parents have to work for a super long time to send their children to college. It is lowering the standard of living for both parents and children. I have a single mother friend who has to stay in a job where she is poorly treated because she cannot afford to work in a better environment and send her daughter to college. The amount that she is expected to pay is a lot also. It makes no sense. Too bad Americans are not used to thinking of going abroad. My daughter and one classmate are the only ones in their grade applying in another country. The previous year two students went abroad but to American schools where they did not need to learn the language. Again, we are not really preparing our students to deal with the world on the level that other countries are.
My daughter got her tuition free medical degree in Cuba about seven years ago. Cuba is about the size of Tennessee and trained about half as many first degree doctors as the US. About half or more of those came from other Latin American countries and Affrica. All were taught in Spanish. So now my daughter is bilingual. Cuba is a low cost economy relative to ours. Housing was free for first year in a dormitory transformed from military housing. Rooms in private homes or modest apartments could then be rented at small monthly fees at a fraction of US student housing. All food was self prepared. Our daughter graduated with a dozen other low income Americans for which Cuba's international medical school was intended for. American students were selected for their grit for living without affluent comfort and desire to work in underserved areas. NM recruited our daughter for residency in their rural health and clinic services with a high number of Hispanics. They gave her a fellowship in rural emergency medicine. Between Cuba's six year program, four years of US residency and fellowship, she put ten years into working in hospitals and clinics in Cuba, Haiti after their earthquake, Liberia during ebola, and several rural NM communities. This could be done for and with every medical school student in the US as we have far more resources per capita than Cuba. Cuba uses their medical education for diplomacy like we use our power, money and military. Education is the best investment, least expensive with the most ROI.
This is what I mean! Congratulations to her. . Your daughter is practicing medicine as it was intended. We notice that in Cuba they had over 90% of their population including children as young as 2 vaccinated against Covid 19 very quickly with what I understand was an effective vaccine. However, prior to getting to med school one has to get a basic education here. I know that tuition is free in Panama and Argentina too, which is where one might go for undergraduate education prior to medical school in Cuba. In Germany my daughter could also apply to med or dental school right out of high school. They would be free, but it is highly competitive to get into. She would also have to do a year of college preparatory school in Germany to learn how to study in the program and pass the tests in the medical field. She is going to university in Germany since she speaks the language. She will be taking the C1 language tests in December and January. Argentina and Panama make more sense for most people here to attend and even Spain which is not so expensive, because Spanish tends to be the language that is offered in most schools here. My daughter has also studied Spanish and Chinese. The Spanish is going to be better developed when her class goes on a service trip to Costa Rica at the end of the year, where they will be staying with host families and doing conservation work. They are raising money for part of the costs now. I have read that African students are going to study in China because they are offered full scholarships. When they look at the USA and see the cost and no scholarship they are not able to come here even though most would prefer it. That is part of China's diplomacy. Germany offers free tuition too. The architect that won the Pritzker prize in architecture this year, Diébédo Francis Kéré, is from Burkina Faso. He went to school in Germany and has his architecture firm there. He is now an African-German architect. His buildings use the materials in the environment where he is designing. He says that people should look at climate change, diminishing resources and population growth and consider that. Of course he considers beauty as well.
Now he lives in Germany. They have gained this wonderful architect by offering him a free education. In turn, he offers them a vision and possible solutions for future problems.
Jon Stewart responds to anti-semitism and also converses with Gabriel, a former BBC journalist in a fascinating podcast, one that is information rich and energy boosting. I find myself wearying of many podcasters' gloom. Jon keeps it lively and hope-filled without shying away from the stark reality of our time. His belief in America inspires. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVTXI-G0g4c
I'm realy finding Liz Cheney's actions to be remarkable. When a person like her has a "road to Tarsus" moment as she had, and then steps up and acts on what she knows and believes, regardless of personal cost, it's really quite something. I know I could disagree with her on many things, but on the Important Things, I respect her.
hear, hear! I'd much prefer seeing a principled conservative in office than the crop of double-speaking change-up artists on our current ballots; those whose websites have to be purged and re-written between the primary and the general election seasons. There's room in the political side of the government for people across the range of opinion, provided they are willing to debate and negotiate in good faith and come to agreements that are acceptable to the broad majority of the electorate. Issue by issue, there are majorities. Even on issues where there are large blocs of voters in opposition to one another, there are still places where agreement can be found. It's hard work (remember the "making sausage" idea) that has to occur in the halls of legislatures. It calls for thoughtful, hard-working individuals, not party-line sheep.
Nathan, in today’s political landscape “principled conservative” is an oxymoron. Voters are not SO stupid as to believe the “Change-up artists on our current ballots…..” when they have been trumpeting (no pun) their hateful anti-choice rhetoric for years!
It's quite possible to hold very personal views on that particular issue and still work with others of polar opposite opinions and find places to compromise and work together. Do you remember Bill Clinton's iconic quote? "Abortion should be safe, legal and rare". Who would argue that abortion is a preferable form of birth control? How many women would equate a trip to an abortion clinic with a visit to the dentist? My personal views are not the issue here. I don't agree with Liz Cheney on the majority of things she has voted on, but she has contributed more to the integrity of the House of Representatives than many less principled peers.
Nathan, Bill Clinton said a lot of things - this was not his most insightful. Please listen to the women. American men do not have the Supreme Court and Congress standing between them and their health provider. And from where do those structures receive their power ? From us ! For women, only since 1919 but we are not slow learners and we are not going back to being chattel.
"oxymoron". Yes! To oppose climate change mitigation measures is the crime of the century. Yet just about every conservative is on board with that attitude. "Principled" indeed.
While I agree, I also find it sad that simply doing the right thing is now remarkable. We have to guard against normalizing bad behavior and being surprised by good behavior.
When I think about Trump on the stage on Jan. 6th, instead of his egging on armed and angry people, I imagine a rational president in that situation, alarmed, or at least troubled, by the weaponry and imagery, and talking more about principled things, steering people away from their warlike posturing. Then I am kind of shocked by the discrepancy between what normal looks like and how Trump behaved. It's an important exercise: to actually visualize what normal would look like in order to remind us how far off track we've gotten.
Visualize no more! We have such a President right at this very moment--President Joe Biden. Why do the media and Americans keep overlooking this fact? We have normal right now sitting and working in the White House. We have got to break the addiction of mental ruminations of trump.
Absolutely agreed! Problem is that the media has made and still makes too much money off of Trump, in both for and anti directions. They are perpetuating their own interests.
The good things Joe and the administration do not make great clickbait. All I see is poll numbers and what death star and his minions are doing. And of course, inflation, which is this country, is lower than other places. We have been turning off the news more and more. Last night we were enjoying a meal in the new larger digs of our local black owned restaurant which has been subject to vandalism and bad reviews, by the usual suspects. The place was packed. Also we hear all sorts of bad news about downtown Salem, and it was also busy.
We also have got to break the norm of making mincemeat out of our elected representatives, all the way to the White House. A close acquaintance who just started college is choosing to major in Political Science. He's an astute, sensitive young man with great potential but, his interest in possibly going into politics was met with a scornful "Why would you want to do THAT?"
Good for him, I say. I remember the day that I thought I should have gone into politics, but the arts had always called louder, so I thought I was too old
I think about a favorite (of many!) scenes in my all time favorite movie, "It's A Wonderful Life" when George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart) is on his way to his honeymoon when he spots runs on the bank and goes back to his business. He talks the people down with logic and passion. We Democrats have the logic, I only see true passion in the more radical aspects of the party while it is everywhere in the MAGAs. Perhaps it is there and the media just doesn't cover it.
I am trying to channel my own passion into my letters to voters. Simple and to the point, I write my reason for voting:
"My vote is my voice, I WANT TO BE HEARD! YOU deserve to be heard, too. Please vote"
We have TODAY left, folks! Perhaps even tomorrow if you write early in the morning as tomorrow is the mail date for the letters to voters to be sent. It is really easy to do!
Any of those close races you are reading about in the news that might make you anxious? You can request addresses for that state and send your letters there.
Another point: it isn't too late, the letters to voters targets the infrequent, often indifferent or disenfranchised voters. The letter will arrive right when voting has started. YOUR letter that you write might be the impetus to get that potential Democratic voter to go vote.
Proof that the world is upside down. Never hurts to shake up an old dyed in the wool Dem like me. She has withstood the trial by fire, unlike the “stalwarts” like Romney, a weak force by any measure.
I had a supervisor I didn’t initially care for regarding his policy edicts, but came to respect him because, although he was tough, he was fair and consistent
When the playing field is fair consistent, its a workable situation. I believe Cheney brings that to the table
The math doesn't lie — and neither do Cheney’s actions on the ground in recent months.'
'JACKSON, Wyo. — In 2007, in this blue bastion of one of the reddest states in the country, liberal activists wheeled a giant statue of Dick Cheney through town to protest his star role in the Iraq War — before toppling it, Saddam Hussein style, for good measure.'
'Fifteen years later, his daughter Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) is turning to the same rare species in Wyoming — Democrats — to save her House seat. And Trumpist Republicans are doing everything in their power to thwart her.'
'The turnabout for Cheney — one of the more unlikely twists in Republican politics in recent years, in a party that’s had no shortage of them — will come into sharp relief next week at a gathering at Jackson’s Center for the Arts. Cheney will speak on a bipartisan panel about defending elections, addressing what should be a welcoming audience amid her running battle with former President Donald Trump over the Jan. 6 sacking of the Capitol.'
'What Cheney doesn’t know — until now — is that a band of Trump-loving Republicans will be on hand to greet her. They snapped up roughly a quarter of the 350 tickets, at $10 apiece, to give the embattled congresswoman a piece of their minds.'
“I was here when the … Democrats dragged her father’s effigy down a village road behind a truck at one of their rallies, and those are the people who are supporting her now, that she’s embraced,” an angry Rebecca Cloetta, 66, said over breakfast at a greasy spoon called the Virginian.'
“Can you believe it? Charging for a ticket! It’s a slap in the face,” said Rebecca Bextel, 41, another Trump-backing Republican planning to attend the voting event. “We have one person representing us” — Wyoming has a single House member — “and she shows up in town and it costs $10 to see her. It’s embarrassing.'
'Just as obvious is that Cheney needs Democrats and independents to change their party registration and cast their vote for her in the Aug. 16 primary. Her campaign is loath to talk strategy publicly, but the math doesn’t lie — and neither do Cheney’s actions on the ground here in recent months.'
'She has shunned town halls and other voter forums in Wyoming’s overwhelmingly red counties in favor of controlled events. At the March 22 event, which is being hosted by Issue One, a bipartisan organization that advocates for “sweeping reforms to fix our broken political system,” Cheney will answer pre-selected questions.'
'When Cheney was censured by the state Republican Party in February 2021, three of the eight votes against the move were by officials from Teton County, which encompasses Jackson. The dissenters included Mary Martin, now the county’s GOP chair.'
'Since then, however, Martin has soured on Cheney. She said the congresswoman is rarely in the state, despite having been urged to explain why she voted to impeach Trump.'
“She was absolutely invited to come and present what her facts were, to defend why you are doing this and instead she opted to call the Republicans radicals, which has made people upset within the party,” Martin said from the Jackson mansion of Nancy Donovan, a prominent Republican donor in Wyoming.'
“She’s not in the state, she has not been anywhere, maybe one or two places,” Donovan echoed. “She doesn’t show up … she’s very entitled. Her parents have events at their house, I’ve spent money to go to her house to fund her. … I truly will never vote for her again.” Donovan and Bextel are both members of Hageman’s grassroots leadership team.'
True. It is also true that within the last two years, Liz Cheney publicly on video accused Democrats of literally killing babies. She voted against voting rights and celebrated the slashing of reproductive rights. Too many people don’t know that. It might matter a lot in a few years that we remember both sides of who she is.
Thank you, Joan. It is crucial to remember. Liz Cheney, possibly polarized within? She is serving Democracy now. That cannot be put aside.
Liz Cheney released the following statement on the introduction of the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.
“It’s our moral obligation to do everything we can to protect the sanctity of life. We must fight every day for the most vulnerable among us, which is why I joined my Republican colleagues in the House to introduce the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. This is common sense legislation that protects the life of innocent babies and their mothers.'
“In recent weeks, we have seen Democrats introduce legislation across the country that enables the killing of babies. These far-left, extreme policies are evil and Democrat leaders in the House have remained silent while members of their party, including the Governor of Virginia, have advocated for what can only be described as the murder of innocent babies. We cannot allow the radical wing of the Democratic Party to turn our maternity wards into killing fields.' (LizCheney) See link below.
Remember Us: The Holocaust Bnai Mitzvah Project offers an invitation to children preparing for bar/bat mitzvah to connect with the memory of children lost in the Holocaust before they could be called to the Torah.
Well - it's the old conundrum - don't let the perfect stop the good. Let's use her best power to get rid of the orcs, and then we can discuss the next moves.
Give her time. Maybe one of her three daughters will need an abortion or explain to her mother that she’s already had one and Liz will have an Epiphany. That’s how this usually works.
William, it's about her ultra-rich, geographical political philosophy. Will she care if her daughter has an abortion as long as it's safe, under good medical care and a family secret? She and her father and the state of Wyoming are wed to fossil fuels... she'd have to move to Massachusetts to be a Democrat. I'm laughing are you?
I read this online and use it for those on the fence between candidates: “You’re not looking for a marriage. You’re looking for the bus that will get you closest to where you want to go.” Maybe we do this with those like Liz Cheney.
With at least one very big exception. I believe that Liz shares the belief that government action on climate change should not be a thing. She might come around on that (Romney has apparently judging from some of the opinion pieces he has put out of late). It is climate change that forms my feelings on the Republican party - and that is that it is the most dangerous movement the human race has to contend with right now. Because of its denialism of such an existential threat, and its ability to influence the entire world's actions.
Liz is playing the roll that Republicans as a political party used to play, while neither side has a monopoly on all the right answers to our problems, the one thing that has to be a given is, that both parties truly want to better the lives of all Americans, when those conditions are met progress is possible. If the Republican Party is going to have a future Liz Cheney is a classic example of someone that Democrats will want to have as loyal opposition, the key word here is “loyal”. I don’t have to agree with her to admire her courage in standing up to the fascist’s that have taken over the GOP. I would have no problem shaking her hand or sitting down to dinner with her, I respect her integrity which isn’t something I can say about the majority of elected republicans.
My fervent wish of the past several years that a ticket for higher office would be a Dem and Republican on same ticket or endorsement of candidates by opposite party is finally showing some traction. What got us here is deplorable but sometimes change demands extreme consideration.
I find it an effective road to pulling our country back to a moderate space and telling extremism to go fuck itself along with self serving extremists determined to destroy democracy. More importantly, uniting our country’s people under a banner of respect, care for all, equity and equality, and some dang common sense. Screw parties and the excruciating divisive fighting.
Yes. And, notice, the bi-partisan endorsement outreach in HCR's examples is done by women--Liz and Elissa, Lisa and Mary. If the bi-partisanship impulse can grow, there is hope there!
Yes, I agree. She has totally surprised me in a very good way. She has put country over party more than one time now and at great personal expense. I find it refreshing and a source of hope in these rather bleak days. Brava Liz!
TC, I found two locations of Tarsus. Now, could you help with the "road to Tarsus", please?
Tarsus is an ancient city on the alluvial plain of ancient Cilicia, the birthplace of St. Paul (Acts of the Apostles 22:3). I'm a New Testament dummy but wondering if the road to Tarsus is one that Paul took. 'A major road lead to the north where the famous mountain pass known as the “Cilician Gates” lay less than 29 miles inland. Sir William Ramsey described the pass as “one of the most famous and important passes in history.”
TC, could you have been thinking of the Bible story of Paul's road to Damascus conversion?
Tarsus is a historic city in south-central Turkey, 20 km inland from the Mediterranean. It is part of the Adana-Mersin metropolitan area, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in Turkey …' (Wikipedia)
I do believe TC was referring to the Road to Damascus conversion of Saul/Paul. Don't want to speak for him, but your post re: Damascus immediately sprang to my mind as well.
Michael, I don't have a position with reference to TC's comment, whether he was making a dramatic point and or a religious one. My thought is that TC doesn't usually make religious points. I am curious to hear from TC only because he pricked my interest with the 'road to Tarsus. Just curious. I like hearing from the person himself. Your question and mine are intended for TC.
"The danger posed by the current-day Republican Party’s embrace of authoritarianism is not going unchallenged. Indeed, it is remaking American politics as defenders of democracy band together...
Liz Cheney (R-WY) endorsed Representative Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) for reelection, her first endorsement of a Democrat since the Republican Party turned on her over her insistence on holding Trump to account...
...'While Elissa and I have our policy disagreements, at a time when our nation is facing threats at home and abroad, we need serious, responsible, substantive members like Elissa in Congress.'...
...And in Alaska, Senator Lisa Murkowski, a Republican, and Representative Mary Peltola, a Democrat, have just endorsed each other in the upcoming election. The Alaska Federation of Natives has endorsed them both..."
Gosh! Almost as though folks other than the historically most entitled members of our society have something (read "values") important (read "lifesaving") to contribute to politics. Who could ever have imagined *that*?
Not to be overlooked, all are women working towards a common purpose. Reminds me Ireland peace negotiations: "A critical factor that helped secure and preserve the peace is too often overlooked: the participation of women. "
Let’s not forget that Ginni Traitor Thomas, Amy Coney Island Barrel, Kari Lake, and Melania T are all our enemies. Gender should not matter and mostly it doesn’t. But be careful what you wish for.
If only people talked about men in leadership this way. Moreover, until there is a critical mass of women in power, the “bad apple” theory of making gender irrelevant doesn’t hold water for me.
Yes, Kristin. If women were running the, half the wars around the world would disappear. Testosterone boner-heads have led us down the road to destruction.
There are women who 'go along to get along' and women who support other women. The first category of women (I think around 30%) has always calculated it is the 'smart' move to support systems that promote men at the expense of women, firmly pushing any women who 'pop up' down. These women are worse than the biggest male misogynist, more vicious, more effective. They are used against other women. Women need to fight back against these women of poor and weak character and take back the majority's power.
Systematic Curiosity - "The first category of women (I think around 30%) has always calculated it is the 'smart' move to support systems that promote men at the expense of women, firmly pushing any women who 'pop up' down"
The fourth episode of 𝘔𝘳𝘴. 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢 on Hulu features a debate between Betty Friedan and Phyllis Schlafly in real life. And yes, the debate really did happen. You can watch a similar debate between Friedan and Schlafly in the embedded video later in this article, which took place a few years later. The actual debate as depicted in the episode isn’t on video, but accounts from the time indicate that the real-life debate was very close to what we saw in the episode.
Yes, there are examples of women who follow their repub party and are actively working against policies that help all citizens, like reproductive health choices, voting rights, and equality. So for now we have a math problem. Not enough women in government to represent all voters instead of joining an undemocratic party. It’s a challenge to change history. But that’s changing. These modern times are changing in our knowledge and action. Just Google it. https://www.google.com/search?q=history+and+change+are+slow&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari#ip=1
Not suggesting that women aren't flawed, too. But an utterly male-dominated world provides a mountain of evidence that change is long overdue. And women have been oppressed forever.
BRAVA, Christine! Right on!! We WOMEN bring our lived experiences to the table where, otherwise, our particular concerns aren’t seen in laws, policies, & funding (repro rights, maternal health, childcare, equal wages, VAWA issues, etc.). We are wrongly rendered invisible because “gender doesn’t matter” (ha!). Tired of women being shoehorned into The Toxic Male Paradigm into order to walk the halls of power. Also, how about the reverse idea to those who love to raise the exceptional negative woman (e.g., Palin) to claim gender is irrelevant — Why should it matter (and it does matter in practice) that there should be men in power when we’ve had male leaders like Hitler, Stalin, Napoleon, Pol Pot, Nixon, Putin, Trump, et al.? Look deeper at the person — and know that male aggression & violence are real things to account for and not ignore. Why do most men get a pass on negativity when they reach for power but women do not (see, e.g., Hillary Clinton)? Why are men presumed leaders but not women, who need to continually knock down barriers? Tired of the “I look past gender” — it’s like the racist “All Lives Matter” crap, as if all are treated equal (not!).
I agree and disagree. The statement in its brevity is sexist and prejudiced. However, our American culture is bent around weapons, war, and religious authoritarianism (born again in the 1930s). This has fostered hypermasculinism, where men are expected to over-provide and over-protect. Men must re-evaluate their masculinity: Cooling their heels and letting women run the show is a starting point.
Sexist? Please. And do I have to write a treatise? The world would be better off with many more women with real power to course correct. This became abundantly clear in the pandemic.
My Irish-American grandmother, Catherine Alexis Holihan, approves this message. (😎)
I was a student at Trinity College in Dublin in 77 & 78, and spoke at great length with many of those women leaders in both the Republic and the North of Ireland. They were done sacrificing their husbands, sons, fathers, brothers and lives to war and terrorism. They stepped into the leadership vacuum and persisted. Same as we need to continue to do here in this country.
Those women, particularly my grandmother, inspire me every day to do just a little more. For my daughters, my nieces and nephews, for my friends who collect SS and rely on Medicare, hell, for the planet. The UN report on the climate that was just released is terrifying. Time to do more. Time to lead with values that protect and nourish.
Sheila, got my PhD at Trinity in 2000. Mary Robinson handed me my diploma! I spent the 90's there-- Celtic Tiger days and Cease fire and Peace Accord days. It was a transition time for sure. Had an incendiary device go off in my face in a lower level shop at Christmas in the early
90's and went through border checkpoints travelling to the North. Toward the end of the decade the Northern Ireland Tourism Board opened an office just outside the west gate of Trinity on Nassau St. I will hate to see violence start up again with the Brexit hard border problems. Irish women are much stronger than Irish men-- in my experience!
Authoritaran government in the United States was the norm until the Civil Rights Legislation of the 1960's. Totally normal. Blacks have been disenfranchised from voting most of American history ensuring that "Democracy" was never actually part of our history until fairly recently........below, the NY Times provides a today look at why some people want to go back to what was always the case until 1965.
A picture of that part of America that is embracing authoritarianism. Knowing what is happening in much of America is important.
I can’t agree that the Racist Based Authoritarian preferences of Dixie until the 1960’s was also represents anAuthoritarian American Government. The US Presidential surprises from Dewey’s defeat through Carter to Obama demonstrate a decided plurality of choices reflecting shifting American values.
Racism as an Authoritarian mechanism of populations in the former Slave States enabled the long term Congress members to artificially perpetuate Jim Crow restrictions until LBJ bravely sacrificed the Southern cabal to the growing racist Republican Party. But this did not mean their nasty denial of human rights became national.
The New York Times article articulates the sad plight of the entrenched White Supremacist culture that is unwilling to share freedom and the bounty of America.
If the Republicans are successful in the upcoming election we can expect them to sow the seeds of disintegration by aligning with Putin and Orban with Authoritarian rejection of human diversity as a permanent condition of freedom.
I heard yesterday the two repubs, Sarah Palin and Ben something, detest each other but Mary Petola, the dem who replaced the deceased Don Young, and Palin are friends. Palin supports her and so does Murkowski. An emerging trend?
Meanwhile, accountability continues in the wake of the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Rioter Albuquerque Head is sentenced to 7.5 years for his participation in the riot. Judge Amy Berman Jackson reminds us:
"'Mr. Head didn't just get caught up in something. This case is not about getting carried away,' Jackson said. Fanone, she said, 'was protecting America. That's who Officer Fanone was. That's what Officer Fanone was doing.'"
"'People need to understand that they can't do this, or anything like this, again. They can't try to force their will on the American people once the American people have already spoken at the ballot box. That's the opposite of democracy — it's tyranny. And the threat to democracy, the dark shadow of tyranny, unfortunately, has not gone away,' Jackson said."
When I wrote the above about the sentencing of the J6 rioter, I did not know that Joyce Vance had devoted her entire blog to the story. Well worth the read. As reader "Mike in the Desert" comments: "Joyce, you make these complex issues, for example what seems like a pass with barely a prison term, understandable for your readers who only have attended google law school."
She's become my go-to source to get the legal interpretations for news that affects the law.
Watched Governor Janet Mills debate Paul Lepage last night. Janet Mills was articulate and maintained her composure as Lepage interrupted and showed himself as a bully and disrespectful. He and Trump are great examples of entitled men, who are unable to govern for the people. Narcissism is not a trait that makes a good leader as they lack empathy. My belief is women in general are better able to be empathic. I see woman like Kari Lake, who suffer from narcissism as well. The lack of empathy for Fetterman in hi s debate was disheartening. His courage to do the debate was amazing. People critical of his speech and unable to focus on his message is disappointing. We have Dr Oz who wants local politicians to decide if woman can have an abortion. How absurd. Local politicians can decide if I can have medical care??? My healthcare is between me and my physician. It is not a political decision.
Good for you...I tried to watch the LePage/Mills debate but I so loathe listening to "Paul the Bloviator" bully, interrupt and just generally demonstrate his lack of respect for anyone or anything other than himself, that I simply couldn't stand it and turned the TV off before I threw something at it.
Sadly, Susan, I fear that your healthcare has evolved into being between you, your doctor and the insurance company bent on making a profit in whatever way it can muster. Guess what companies are amongst the larger donors to politicians? I fear we all must grapple with our local politicians involved in our healthcare via insurance companies.
You are right in that we have insurance companies, drug companies, healthcare organizations all based on for profit. There is something wrong with a for profit system. I wonder why these for profit companies would deny women reproductive rights ?
Are we seeing a new political center emerging in our national politics? Are there Republican politicians seeing, (at last!) that we have fundamental issues in common bigger than “policy differences” threatened by the growth of rabid partisan zealotry that has infected so much of our body politic?
One hopes so, and one hopes this phenomenon will be reflected in November on election day by an emphatic rejection of MAGA candidates.
“‘Empirically, something is different,’ Jonathan Greenblatt, chief executive officer of the Anti-Defamation League, told Michelle Boorstein and Isaac Arnsdorf of the Washington Post. ‘’The level of public animosity towards Jews is higher than it’s been in recent memory.’ My own guess is that increasing antisemitism on the part of Republicans is not simply the encouragement of hate such as that exhibited four years ago today when a gunman murdered eleven people and wounded six more at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, but is rather an attempt to signal directly to neo-Nazis before the election that the party wants their support.’”
In 2,000 years of anti Semitism, nothing new. America was born in racism and slavery. We slammed the indigenous... after the Spanish sickened the Aztecs. Tribal behavior: human behavior. All men are created equal... Abe Lincoln was our greatest. And saddest.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson will lead SCOTUS and Justice in America.
Joe KNOWS Us ... three words spoken by Majority Whip James Clyburn to answer a question - Black womenfolk flipped South Carolina for Joe Biden and saved the nation from Trump.
It’s now time - to Vote. 18 up, Vote. Republicans have fallen to fascist racism...
Thank you Rowshan, for your post. “’The level of public animosity towards Jews is higher than it’s been in recent memory.’ I’m rereading “Plot Against America” by Philip Roth. It’s antisemitism in America, 1930s and 40s, the majority supporting a government that embraces antisemitism and fascism. It’s fiction. Or is it?
Definition of Fascism: far-right, authoritarian, ultranationalist political ideology and movement, characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hierarchy, subordination of individual interests for the perceived good of the nation and race, and strong regimentation of society and the economy. Sounds just like the trumplican/des-anity parties trying to destroy all our rights so they can be kings. I don't think so.
Fascists saw World War I as a revolution that brought massive changes to the nature of war, society, the state, and technology. The advent of total war and the mass mobilization of society erased the distinction between civilians and combatants. A military citizenship arose in which all citizens were involved with the military in some manner. The war resulted in the rise of a powerful state capable of mobilizing millions of people to serve on the front lines and providing logistics to support them, as well as having unprecedented authority to intervene in the lives of citizens.
Fascism rejects assertions that violence is inherently bad and views imperialism, political violence and war as means to national rejuvenation. Fascists often advocate for the establishment of a totalitarian one-party state, and for a dirigiste economy, with the principal goal of achieving autarky (national economic self-sufficiency) through protectionist and economic interventionist policies. Fascism's extreme authoritarianism and nationalism often manifests as belief in racial purity or a master race, usually blended with some variant of racism or bigotry against a demonized "Other", such as Jews. These ideas have motivated fascist regimes to commit genocides, massacres, forced sterilizations, mass killings, and forced deportations.
We have very clear choices at this pivotal moment: Fascist regime? Or save and protect and improve our Democracy? DO NOT allow the fascist party to win. They have permeated our state and local governments under the mask of fake Christianity—weed them out. Deep autumnal gardening. VOTE anti-fascism. Do it America.
(Posting as many times as I can stomach on my troll stroll this morning on the fox propaganda machine).
“Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't.” ― Mark Twain, Following the Equator: A Journey Around the World. tags: books, truth.
I can't believe I had to scroll more than three-quarters of the way down the page to view any comments about the rise of antisemitism. Some anonymous group here in upstate New York has been attacking a Jewish political candidate in a very obvious and disturbing way. Where the *#&$ is this country going?? I am angry.
FDR declined to have the WWII army bomb the railroad tracks leading to Hitler’s death camps because he did not want to risk alienating American antisemites.
according to The Wise Men, ( a wonderful book,) neither Churchill nor FDR wanted their fingerprints on that decision. It was made by Asst. Secretary of War John J McCloy. He also was responsible for commuting the sentences of several Nazi war criminals.
Bruno wrote 20. Love Is Not Enough was his next, his first hit, his break through, 1950. He walked from Dachau and Buchenwald early. Came to the US early 1940s. Raised me from Monday, January 9, 1950, at The School, 1365 East 60th Street, on The Midway: 34 beds, 10 girls, one dorm, four boys’ dorms.
Thank you Sandy, we must be watchful. All that you mentioned is accurate and readings appreciated......Also something we must fight for is:
The majority of Americans need Social Security and Medicare. There are so many unforeseen circumstances Americans go through: bankruptsies, crippling accidents, mental circumstances, many more common issues......taking care of one another through these social programs is a necessity not a luxury.
I have followed far right media for years. Over this time I have seen many of their issues bubble to the top of the Republican agenda either intact or modified as something like test balloons. This includes things like a small reference to Putin - 'maybe he shouldn't have invaded Ukraine?' But full blast criticism of Zalensky and that the U.S. should go over his head and negotiate with Russia. Now , antisemitism is coming to the fore from the right even though there are far right Jews and Blacks. Us Democracy minded folks need to get behind our Democratic party and vote like hell ! Thanx for the info Dr. Richardson.
One thing people keep forgetting about the economy is that you cannot have indefinite growth without sustaining irreparable (and possibly unsurvivable) environmental damage. See Washington Post article...
Perhaps growth of quality outweighs growth on sheer quantity when it comes to consumption. David Attenborough talks about how world population more than doubled since humans set foot on the Moon. we certainly can't keep doubling and doubling. Populations of many sorts of wildlife are already crashing.
interestingly, birth rates for an increasing number of "rich" countries has dropped beneath the population replacement rate. It's middle-income and low-income countries that continue to grow internally. The US is growing substantially by immigration, the "Wall" notwithstanding. Japan is shrinking in population. China's birth rate has plummeted to the point that the central government is attempting to stimulate the populace to have more children. Economists have real trouble with zero or negative economic growth. We have to find ways of replacing material consumption with other measures of improved quality of life. Who could argue with fewer diabetics amongst the older population? Who could argue against lower transportation costs as we convert to cheaper and cleaner forms of energy? Who would argue against neighborhoods designed for walking, cycling and golf-cart shopping?
With virtually ALL economic growth coming at the expense of the environment (see my comment above), there is an urgent need for a new method of calculating economic growth which includes the amount of environmental degradation "contributing" to that growth.
Changing the calculations for economic growth is urgently needed. It must take the negatives more into account. It also needs to include more of the caretaking and services "industries" that provides quality of life. Doing so would shift expectations that we always must increase our stuff to living a sustainable life that increases our well being. Some things are good enough.
And yet they do, Republicans being very hostile to sustainable energy and high speed rail. Who would argue against taking measure to reduce the spread of COVID? And yet more could be done to promote evidence-based approaches. And yes, affluence and education tend to favor "family planning".
This is a difficult situation. Progressives need a "strong" economy to attract enough voters to obtain enough power to legislate and administer policies that will provide a sustainable environment. Long-term thinking is not our strong suit. Lust for immediate power and greed will obstruct progress every step of the way. Billionaires desiring more billions have a much larger microphone than progressives desiring an opportunity for everyone's grandchildren's grandchildren.
Though maybe we need to refine the definition of what is a "strong" economy. Is it enough that billionaires make billions or is the quality of life on "Main Street" a better gauge? It is certainly a more democratic one. T. Roosevelt's "Square deal" and FDR's new deal were a better deal for the general public, and that has seemed to have been shrinking since "Reaganomics" became the law of the land. Extended long-term and "whole picture" thinking seems to me to be essential to wisdom. It also seems to me that that perspective is vital to approaching genuine justice.
It's a sticky wicket as we try to distance ourselves from the grip of big oil. The quest for nickel (needed for EV batteries) in Minnesota leaves many worried about the environmental impact it will have.
I wonder how much of the worlds mined and refined nickle has ended up in landfills? There are recycling efforts for some of the more specialized products, but they don't make it easy.
I agree. I am most familiar with Nevada, because I have family members who are Western Shoshone...and ironically one of them works at the Silver Peak mine. I am personally somewhat torn about the issue, because I like the technology that currently uses lithium (cell phone, hybrid/electric cars, solar batteries, etc, etc) but I worry about the continued disregard for tribal sovereignty, rights and environment. I was shocked to find out how much water is used (abused) in mining.
It's easy to advocate for something when it's not in your backyard, Juanita. Having family members on both sides of the issue surely makes it harder for you. I live nowhere near Minnesota or Nevada, nor do I have friends or relatives there. Still, I worry about the lives of those whose backyards will be affected by our high tech demands.
I didn't see the WaPo article but listened to an NPR segment yesterday with the startling reminder that virtually ALL economic growth comes at the expense of the environment with the majority (60% + ?) of toxic emissions (CO2, methane, etc) and direct destruction (deforestation, strip mining and mine tailings, drilling, etc) coming from exactly those countries with the largest economic growth. The segment concluded with the urgent need for a new method of calculating economic growth which includes the amount of environmental degradation "contributing" to that growth.
There was a time in our aboriginal past when we did not "extract" massive amounts of mineral and carbon resources in order to live; the hunter/gatherer life did not support untold millions living in close proximity and careening around the planet in every manner of mechanical vehicle. We have conquered the earth, progressively destroying it in the process, and it is responding by chewing us up and spitting us out.
Interesting book! There was also a TV series on the History Channel (I think) called The World Without People—interesting if a bit over the top CGI effects (think car chase/crash scene vibe). To push the narrative further, there is ‘How It Ends—From You To The Universe’ by Chris Impey (2009), also an interesting read. Somehow I don’t think humans, who are depleting Earth’s resources and fellow critters apace, will be around when our sun goes all red-giant in some 7+ billion years. I’m skeptical that we can ‘science’ our way out of our problems, tho there will probably be some good solutions/advances along the way…just not enough IMHO.
I'm absolutely certain that we can't 'science' our way to salvation as a species. Throughout history, humans have written origin stories and mythology about apocalyptic endings. The Christian tradition for a second coming of Christ is a tremendous statement of hope. 2000 years ago, more or less, a culture recognized that we were headed for destruction and would need divine intervention to survive our own worst tendencies. I recently enjoyed a TedEd presentation that postulated that if humans disappeared from the face of the earth today, most evidence of our prior presence would be gone within a couple hundred years and all evidence would be gone within a few thousand years; the blink of an eye in geologic time. Our salvation will only be occasioned by a higher sense of stewardship and our "place" in the order of living things on this planet. A pandemic reducing human-kind by some billions of persons might buy us another half-century to figure it out, as horrific as that sounds.
And some (many?) of the wealthy and powerful think their wealth and power will save them from what is coming….it won’t in the long run of course. Most of the rest of us will be ground up by any manner of horrors (pandemics, climate disasters & large swaths of the earth no longer livable, etc.) that are likely coming toward us likely before they will, so I guess they buy some time. I will likely be long gone back to the elements before the worst of it hits on multiple fronts. In the meantime I’ll do my part to help and try to take joy in my remaining ‘ride’ on this pale blue dot….
"... Shell says it will use the windfall to buy back about $4 billion of its shares, making this year’s total buybacks $18.5 billion. " And there it is - 'trickle down economics' at work; the tricklers and the chosen tricklees. Rewarded handsomely on several ends before, during and after by governments (leases, tax favors, etc.). Great racket... somewhere, reagan and others still smile.
It's not trickle down. It's sucking the money up from the proletariat which is paying higher gas prices, then using that to buy back its stock and increase its value for those wealthy enough to own any.
Well Trickledown always was a scam. When and where did it ever perform as advertised? Making the rich way, way richer was always under the hood of "Reaganomics".
One more time. Will Rogers, 1932. “The money was always appropriated for the top in the hopes that it would trickle down to the needy. Mr. Hoover didn’t know that money trickled up. Give it to people at the bottom and the people at the top will have it before night, anyhow. But it will at least have passed through the poor fellow’s hands”. Big difference today. The republicans know full well that the money NEVER trickles down.
As you might guess Jeri, Will Rogers and his 'truth witticisms' are among my very favorites ! Cheers friend ! *edit in - And as I think of this, I have a beauty of the same right now adorning my FB page. It goes as follows, " Well son; There are 3 kinds of men in this world; The ones that learn by reading. The few who learn by observation. And the rest of them who have to pee on the electric fence for themselves." (lol !)
Like super-massive black holes in space, monopolies hoover up everything in reach, and that reach snowballs as they become more massive. Those who crafted anti-trust legislation and rules prohibiting over-concentration of ownership of media were well aware of that; but somehow the public was bamboozled into loving monopolies. How many market leading companies in the mid 20th Century are now just divisions of a few super-massive conglomerates? And with market domination, consumer/workers lose their bargaining power. Even the government becomes hostage. During the Subprime Crash/Bailout Obama's AG Eric holder said "I am concerned that the size of some of these institutions becomes so large that ... if you do prosecute, if you do bring a criminal charge, it will have a negative impact on the national economy, perhaps even the world economy." Well that's just too frickin' big.
I think we, the world, might be waiting a long while for any to stumble, fall and fail. We have ‘corporate personhood’ and ‘money as speech’ giving them great wealth and power, enough to bend our politicians and governments to their will. For most, sadly, too much is never enough.
And Republicans are against any measures that increase the incomes of large groups of people. They'd rather increase their misery index so that they'll vote in a panic for the authoritarian grifter who says, "Follow me, I'll save you!"
Meanwhile, Elon Musk has completed his purchase of Twitter and fired its top executives.
So, this becomes a space to watch with eagle eyes and sharply critical mind.
(Media -- take note!)
Question:
What, if any, are the limits to what money can buy?
Are there limits to corporate power? What are they?
Are we all to be pigs in their poke?
"They" of course include Putin and his den of thieves and murderers. Interesting, how Satan's representatives have appointed themselves heralds of what they call "Christianity", spokesmen for "Christian values". Intriguing, how -- like Hitler and Mussolini in the 1930s -- they denounce what they in fact represent.
These men are on tenterhooks, waiting for America's voters to turn the tide and rescue them. And America's voters are blind to the lowering threat of another 1933 moment.
*
Can nothing be done to make the media aware of their duty to their country, to the world?
Can nothing be done to get said media to publish prominently these Letters and the urgent advocacy of Substack writers Snyder and Hubbell?
Are they really all slaves to dull habit and "business as usual" ?
Even at this moment when the New Abnormal is slavering to devour "business as usual" and replace it by forces that serve its exclusive "interests" -- which are no one's.
Joeh - "We need government to restrain the actions of business that would harm the environment, the powerless, and the economy."
This 𝙞𝙨 where Government comes in. The role of government is to adjust the playing field, so prices and practices result in what’s best for overall society long-term.
Government is the only entity that can change things around to align the individual incentives (“𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘩?”) with the community incentives (“𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘺?”)
I believe this over-simplifies things significantly. Corporations are organizations governed and administered by individuals and boards, constrained by laws and the public sentiments of their customers. They are often owned substantially by mutual funds with millions of beneficiaries. Many of those funds have social constraints in their charters. There are many and complex influences on corporate behavior, far more so now than in the past.
Nevertheless, the problem remains, especially since Citizens United, of the corporate voice drowning out all others and, behind that, giant corporations' power which exceeds the power of States and is largely independent of them. Power wielded for purposes sometimes in harmony with those of States and citizens, sometimes clashing with them.
Different timescales, limited motivations as opposed to the general interest. No harm in those limits per se, but both individuals and groups do tend to exist in their own walled-in space without sufficient windows. States of separation. Sometimes it's telescreen projections that dominate...
All this and the exercise of immense pressures to free economic actors of all constraints, regardless of the effects on the interests of mankind or the planet.
the quote suggests that the profit motive will ultimately drive all corporations towards immorality. It's more accurate to describe the profit incentive as amoral; without regard for morality. Amoral does not necessarily have to evolve to immoral, unless you are willing to postulate that profit is a-priory immoral. In non-profit organizations, there is an understanding; "no margin, no mission". Higher margins lead to expansion of the mission, one example of where growth is generally good.
The Fed's moves already have slowed inflation. The CPI increase for the past three months (0% plus 0.1% plus 0.4%) has totaled .5% or 2% if the pace keeps up for three more quarters. That's the Fed's target. The price index for gross domestic purchases increased 4.6 percent in the third quarter, compared with an increase of 8.5 percent in the second quarter. The Personal Consumption Expenditure price index, which the Fed watches, increased 4.2 percent, compared with an increase of 7.3 percent. It's not just the rise in interest rates. It's a big slowdown in money supply growth after a stunning rise.
Encouragement for voters in Elissa Slotkin's district:
I don't live in Michigan's 7th Congressional district but nevertheless have had the opportunity to spend an hour or a bit more with Elissa Slotkin in an informal, small-group setting that included plenty of back-and-forth conversation.
For background, let me note that I am a skeptic in general, more cynical than most people, and strongly progressive in my political views. Nevertheless, I was greatly impressed by Elissa's intelligence and straightforwardness and her clear commitment to working for her constituents and the country, not to leverage a seat in Congress to gain personal power or enrich herself. As she put it, "Government's job is to make everyone's lives better." She's a moderate Democrat who also understands the everyday problems her more conservative constituents face, and she's absolutely committed to our democratic form of government, imperfect though it may be at times.
You can look up her bio and background for yourself; suffice it here to say she has the chops and has established her intellectual and patriotic bona fides beyond any doubt. Elissa is exactly the sort of person -- someone of excellent character, ability, and integrity --who should be in a top public leadership role.
If you're in the Michigan 7th, please vote for Elissa. It matters now more than ever before.
It would be wonderful if those 40 million Americans hoping for student debt relief would vote Democratic. It is in their best interests to do so. The news is more and more disturbing every day. The antisemitism is sickening. After WWII, the mantra was and has been, "never again", but we see that it's spreading like a virulent disease.
New poster:
NEVER! AGAIN, NEVER !!!
Joanna,
Hopefully, the United States is not in a position where the only way to get votes is to purchase them through goodies handed out at the expense of others.
Which, is what student loan forgiveness is. Now, hold on, before you guys get too angry at me, in many cases I am in full support. A lot of those loans were handed out by sharks ripping off people trying to make the best of a tough life.
For example, at Union College, an expensive private college that is mostly white, many students attended on loans even though they had wealthy parents. The loans were used by their parents for their busineses (low interest loans right?).
However, covering the cost of those loans has to come out of someone's pocket, never mind that Ronald Reagan got us all thinking that printing money is free and nobody ever has to pay up.
That is wrong.
So, I personally hope that we can hold our Democracy without handing out money at the polling stations. I really do.
Isn’t there an application process? I do not believe that all will be eligible for the benefit. Nonetheless there are always those on any returns who take advantage. That should not stop us from helping those truly in need.
When we applied and were granted loans in the 1960s, college, even with student residents, was so so inexpensive and the loan money often paid for non educational perks. Often the loan was a grant. Even better. But “those were the days, my friend, we thought they’d never end.” Not that we want to repeat those years. Not at all. But corporations have too much power and they are running our economy and economic inequality.
Yes. When I was in college in the 60s and 70s, I could "pay as I went" with small loans and working two part time jobs, so I graduated from both undergraduate and graduate school with no debt. This was largely possible because public universities were subsidized since it was considered an asset to the country if people got an education. That's no longer the case, and no longer possible so that if there was no help for those who can't afford college, then there would only be rich kids going to college. Burdening college graduates with unbelievable debt hurts us all. It's time we reconsidered using the capitalist strategy for absolutely everything since this only benefits a small portion of the population.
Same here. Small loans all repaid and federal grants and scholarships. Graduate school was $22 a credit hour and the loan interest rate was 3% fixed. Edited: (my point being, the system was a lot more fair in the 60's and 70's especially for low income kids. I could not afford college today even while working.)
I actually took out small personal loans from the student services center short term loan program, and paid it back over the term. I believe there was almost no interest on these loans.
Free public education as Thomas Jefferson envisioned is much lower cost than this loan stuff.
I, too, worked part-time (two jobs). I also enjoyed the benefit of the GI Bill. Ended up in night school as I opted to start a career in the private business sector. No debt. That took a bit longer, but it was a success.
Student loans have become preditory. Colleges now want to be profitable institutions. It is as though what was "up" now is "down"; and, vice versa. The concepts about what was ethically moral went out the window long ago.
Brilliant post. Thank you.
You are correct. I saw a bumper sticker yesterday - "I'll believe corporations are people when Texas executes one." Someone inside me I see a connection with these huge profts being gathered at a time when sharing a partion would be so good for both the country and real people - not that I ever equated oil/gas corporation with "real" people. But even grocery store chains are playing that Greed Game. I say give the students a break. God knows they need one.
Ahh yes, corporations...They.., are deemed a citizen.., no? Somehow that needs to be erased! Enough of this governance by reprobates ($$$$.$$). After all, "they" are so fat, as keepers of the kitchen where bowls of gruel are handed out to the eager hands of the sloggers who have no voice. We individuals have been saddled by a holocaust of a different making. "They" are so pleased to hobble the real issues, like Womens Rights(!!!) with the ever-distracting, religion-driven word 'abortion'. Or, and this may sound trite, but virtually no mention (by them) of "gasoline" prices (lowered), and ZERO concern for the truckers who are being whacked by the price of diesel. A factor that Democrats or our simple-minded news medics seem unconcerned with. Like, when.., is the last time you heard "diesel" mentioned? The "truckers" of this nation VOTE, in addition to listening to talk-radio mile after mile. Those folks are absorbed by Faux news and "They" love it too.
Interesting, “holocaust of a different making.” As a trucker light, Only 2000000 miles driven, home 2 days per month, 20 hour workdays, paychecks absorbed by every state of the union at so-called safety and regulation check stations, treated as a criminal by local law enforcement agencies, hounded at night for my 4 hours sleep by desperate women, many college students by day, my relief was to listen to talk radio. Corporate America bringing you Rush Limburger in stereo throughout the day. Listening to Rush and dodging the road rage what could possibly be wrong? A free corporate shower every 2-4 days. I managed to get the groceries there on time. The money that I salvaged went straight to 3 of my children’s university costs, as did my schoolteacher wife’s entire salary. Just the all American over achievers grab it and growl sort of family. Were it not for Limberger’s wisdom we would never have known how hard the Democrats used us. I was so glad when the last child matriculated.WHEW! Thinking now about those days I begin to see the wisdom of a public education through an undergraduate degree. Somehow, despite their dad being an absentee father, they worked, we helped, we won. Still need a public education. Let me tell you jealous bastards one more time. Public education = 16 years. Ignorance is not bliss. We are nearly “pickled” by undereducation. If we can afford smart bombs then we can damn sure afford smart children!
You might find this piece interesting re corporate ‘personhood’ & how it came to be (farther back than I realized!) & how our founders opposed the idea: https://hartmannreport.com/p/could-todays-crises-help-america-e71?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
Thank you, Barbara, for the link. That is a very interesting background piece on how we got to where we are with the notion of 'corporate personhood'
Right, Irenie. I borrowed $6000 to get my MSW. It took only three years to pay it off, primarily because I got a good paying job right after graduation. That's the way it was supposed to work.
Love how the opponents of loan forgiveness depict it as an expense for taxpayers rather than reduced profits for lending institutions.
And we won't be holding our breath for those grifters to return that money, will we? Sure hope we've learned THAT lesson. While I understand the urgency of getting that federal money out to states and cities to keep their essential employees paid and on the job back during the pandemic, the same error was made that happened back in 2008-09 during that recession. The federal government rushed to bail out banks (too big to fail) and the auto industry. The rush jumped right over the steps of tracking the money to be sure it went to those who really qualified (not people like Jared Kushner and Trump businesses - who got in line ASAP and got money) and to ensure state and local government levels had systems in place to catch money before it was hacked off by scams (which happened). Perhaps we can share some of the blame with Trump who cancelled out a lot of programs that were in place to protect and prevent such scams - scams being his most successful business ventures.
Yes, Georgia Girl, there is an application process and I agree that we should not stop helping those truly in need.
You mean people cheat?? I was always in favor of spending money to nail the cheats, be they tax cheats, Medicare or whatever. Lordy, we could wipe out our national debt in no time. We are a nation of legal cheats…how dare we tighten the screws, how dare we not.
I know personally some very rich men. They have worked very hard to get to where they are financially. Yet it is so hypocritical when the constantly voice utter exasperation at all the "poor, lazy people"who cheat on their welfare type assistance and yet they literally pay more to hide/shelter/ finagle their income...and tax liability to avoid paying it to the state or federal tax boards than their actual tax liability...how do I know this...they brag about it...
With every social program there will be people who take advantage. It's human nature. That's not a good enough reason to not have the program. If we expect that a small number of people will stop trying to scam the system then we are mistaken. It's a price that has to be paid if we are to level the playing field for the larger majority of people who need it. We may need to improve how the programs are administered, but that's also a work in progress.
A fine comment J. I came to this conclusion long ago, amidst the cry about give-aways from righties (Ronnie being their big bully pulpit megaphone). A government program that helps the needy is bound to be taken advantage of by greedy persons who see an opportunity. Thankfully (or hopefully) the numbers are small. But Republicans (who say to pull yourself up by your boot straps, yet hiding your boots from you), point to the exceptions and scream about big program inefficiencies and ineffectiveness, and the duplicity of the people the program was meant to help. Or that the program is a de-motivator to help oneself. And, of course, being unwilling to provide the funds to properly administer the program. It is an evil and cynical way to look at society.
It is totally without conscience to view other members of your species with such contempt and of course reveals a lot about those who view people that way and very little about the targets of their contempt. And, they never refer to the give-aways they advocate - welfare for corporations, agribusiness, and the weapons industry.
I, at least, often post about corporate welfare.
Yes, in fact there are people and whole systems who are invested in keeping people poor. But, yes, poverty is a public health crisis.
To apply for student loan forgiveness go to the Department of Education. Click on the Student Loan tab. The whole process takes 5 minutes. Good Luck!
Also
Here is the link for information on public service student loan forgiveness. Deadline is October 31.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/careersandeducation/student-loan-forgiveness-pslf-deadline-is-october-31/ar-AA13qSEd#:~:text=Student%20loan%20forgiveness%3A%20PSLF%20deadline%20is%20October%2031
And
https://studentaid.gov/articles/student-loan-forgiveness/#:~:text=SHARE-,Student%20Loan%20Forgiveness%20(and%20Other%20Ways%20the%20Government%20Can%20Help%20You%20Repay%20Your%20Loans),-LOAN%20REPAYMENT2.5
I support student loan forgiveness.
Good to see you back Barbara.
I support free public education.
I support free education for the historically disadvantaged.
I don’t support tying any of that to the political process of getting votes.
As I pointed in a specific example.
Thank You Mike. It's nice to see you are still in good form in the comments section. : )
Dr. Richardson provides us fertile ground for discussion does she not? 😊
The billions in corporate entitlements and billions lost in taxes sheltered by the ultra wealthy every year, the lack of any real attempt to investigate and recover some of the PPP loans fraudulently received and the billions scammed from medicare by the privatization scam of medicare+ are not a concern. The deficit has DECREASED by nearly 1.5 trillion under Biden despite his desire to keep his campaign promises and help millions of Americans struggling to live the American dream.
Completely agree.
The problem Mike is that Republicans have abandoned all forms of public investment. They have stopped investing in public education and colleges after setting up land grant colleges in each state. Two of my daughters graduated from Cornell, originally established as a land grant agricultural college. The AG school still has instate tuition at half of the now private Cornell University. It helps, but all other fees, room & board, with amenities like food courts and gyms with climbing walls are too expensive for most students. Hence extremely huge loans. My father graduated from Cornell in engineering thanks to the GI Bill. He was the first on both sides of our family to attend college.
The loan forgiveness is a back end solution. Not the best solution. We should invest in free or extremely affordable public higher education as an option to expensive private education.
Republicans supported rural healthcare after WWII with establishing "critical access" hospitals. Maine has about 29 hospitals. About half were critical access fully supported by the Federal government. They had less than 25 beds, surgery, emergency and provided critical healthcare for most of the local population. Now many of these hospitals are closing or have such reduced services that most patients much travel hours for services they once got in their community.
Republicans once supported the cleaning up and protection of the environment. Nixon's administration created the EPA, which helped clean up the Hudson River returning from a nearly dead and poisonous river to a relatively clean and safe river for recreational and domestic water use.
Most of our attempts to save or get back to these values are back end bandaid that will never be as good as dead on pragmatic solutions.
We must overcome the current Republican obstruction and destruction. And promote people who think and do as Lincoln did.
Great post and I agree wit all you have said.
I exist because of essentially free college tuition at A&M
A government, any government, subsidizes all the time. When they fix roads and airports and improve the bus system but they reduce bus routes in low income areas they are “handing out” help to those in the middle / upper classes who actually use airports and roads Same goes for the farm industry getting 100 years / interest free loans. It’s paid by our taxes but no one complains about it Mike, make a list of all the government subsidizes and check again who is benefited by it. It’s never the students in low income families OR their families.
Agree. I am in favor and benefitted from essentially free college tuition.
I am not in favor of making that part of the political process by wooing votes.
Your argument makes no sense. You say a small amount of students at a private college with wealthy parents took out loans to pay for school and instead let mommy and daddy use the loan money for business. Then, those students of wealthy parents did not pay back their loans because they did not care about their credit rating or need for transportation and housing, and are now going to get some benefit from loan forgiveness.
GMH.
I am saying the parents are paying the loans after having misappropriated the money and, further, some of the loan. amount can be forgiven.
Mike, it is my understanding that the student loan forgiveness program is designed for those making under $75000 per year. It would seem unlikely that the graduates from wealthy families that you describe would be in that category.
I believe you are right. However, I do not know if the family income plays a part. It might.
It refers to the borrower’s income, not their family’s (ie; parents), if that’s what you meant. There is a post here, up or down thread, with a link to the .gov site that explains the whole thing & application as well. Having worked in college student financial aid for 40+ years, with a lot of experience in loan counseling for students/parents, this forgiveness is a start in a process, loans and other aid, that needs to be revamped for current and future student needing financial assistance to attend college. Here in CA I watched as a state that once had an envied CC/CSU/UC system eroded by changes in state support. We need to invest in education from pre-K through college IMHO.
I believe it’s household income that is considered. College graduates from wealthy families are unlikely to be living with their parents.
Of course, I could be wrong.
And. Of course. I fully support free public education.
What I don’t support is tying any of those societal building activity to political party votes.
Student loan forgiveness must be the opening salvo in change that MUST come regarding the “business” of higher education.
Public education being regarded as K-12 is incorrect. It is entirely possible to create a degree program synonymous with the completion of a student’s journey through free and public education. To subject any capable student to a molehill or mountain of debt is a form of economic enslavement.
And the current Republican agenda of indoctrination of our students is not the answer in a Democratic nation. The answer is the complete and utter transformation of the architecture of public education. To me, that became sorely obvious during the pandemic.
I can go on and on…….hopefully conversation will evolve regarding this topic. It has seriously started in some circles.
Salud, Mike!
Unita 🗽
I completely agree Christine.
There are rotten apples in every barrel. While understanding your point of view, having just calculated what a no vacation, no paid sick leave, and no affordable medical insurance, $15 an hour job brings in, I want those who had the courage to borrow for education and then were charged higher rates by lenders, to have their loans forgiven, even if some of those who receive forgiveness unfairly also do.
I prefer free public education.
Less cost overhead and more egalitarian.
The loan process is rife with crooks.
1) The loans forgiveness in question applies to federally funded loans, such as Pell grants to low income people. The maximum forgiveness is $20,000 for Pell borrowers, $10,000 for others. People who owe less than that, having paid off some of their debt already, get only their balance forgiven. People who owe more than the forgiveness amount must continue to make payments starting in January. (Payments were not required during the pandemic.)
2) I know people who have heard that all student loans will be forgiven. Not true. Borrowers who made over $125K as shown on their tax returns for 2020 or 2021 are not eligible for any loan forgiveness. Nor loans from private lenders.
3) I am much more critical of the abuses of Paycheck Protection Plan loans, a much bigger expense to taxpayers than student loans. Other countries administered their similar pandemic programs with far less fraud. A reason we did so poorly has to do with our aging computer systems not allowing agencies to rapidly share information already collected.
4) In the good old days students could work their way through school and graduate on schedule. Today’s cost of education is way up, but the federal minimum hourly wage, $7.25, has not changed since 2009.
PPP was, indeed, a giant mistake and riddled with fraud.
Thanks! This is great information
Mike S, 'Twould seem handing out money at the polling stations is a more effective way to get it into the hands of relatively ordinary Americans than handing out the billions in dark money to the politicians...
I hope that this loan forgiveness doesnt get used like the PPL loans - where far too many individuals & businesses took advantage of them. As someone else here mentioned - lack of tracking appears to be something our government has issues with. But as a grandmother to a child that had a Pell Grant & several scholarships with a single mom who took out a loan for the remainder - yeah, I really would like to see this program be successful - in other words - help the people who NEED the help. What a novel experience that would be.
You have an excellent point, Mike. I don't begrudge student loan forgiveness. My husband and I were able to pay for our three daughters' college and post-college educations so they would not be burdened for years by student debt. However, many who owe tens of thousands of dollars cannot get ahead in life. If you have $100,000 in student loans, you work most of your life to pay off those debts and with the impact of Covid the past few years, many people cannot even find jobs or their work has been scaled back. Forget about the possibility of buying a home. Many people who paid for college resent this, but I do not. Many minorities are unable build family wealth and get ahead in life. All the money we shell out as taxpayers, be it to student debt forgiveness or to support the war in Ukraine, has to come from somewhere. I support both efforts.
The USA is in an awful position in that it charges so much for college. That has happened because people have to pay for it themselves. Ronald Reagan is the one who came up with this genius plan. Think of all of the diseases that might have already been cured if we had free college education and everyone could go who wanted to. Now the price is just prohibitive. Here is a not exhaustive list of countries where one pays little or no tuition to go to university. https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/countries-with-free-college Some of the ones with nominal tuition really have nominal tuition. Not just for their citizens, but for others. These people then graduate and contribute to their economies. So, they can attract the best and the brightest from around the world. They can attract students for areas where they have a shortage. We can attract the wealthiest. The amount of debt that some people are in after college is so much that they will never get out of it. They cannot file bankruptcy either. It is also meaning that parents have to work for a super long time to send their children to college. It is lowering the standard of living for both parents and children. I have a single mother friend who has to stay in a job where she is poorly treated because she cannot afford to work in a better environment and send her daughter to college. The amount that she is expected to pay is a lot also. It makes no sense. Too bad Americans are not used to thinking of going abroad. My daughter and one classmate are the only ones in their grade applying in another country. The previous year two students went abroad but to American schools where they did not need to learn the language. Again, we are not really preparing our students to deal with the world on the level that other countries are.
My daughter got her tuition free medical degree in Cuba about seven years ago. Cuba is about the size of Tennessee and trained about half as many first degree doctors as the US. About half or more of those came from other Latin American countries and Affrica. All were taught in Spanish. So now my daughter is bilingual. Cuba is a low cost economy relative to ours. Housing was free for first year in a dormitory transformed from military housing. Rooms in private homes or modest apartments could then be rented at small monthly fees at a fraction of US student housing. All food was self prepared. Our daughter graduated with a dozen other low income Americans for which Cuba's international medical school was intended for. American students were selected for their grit for living without affluent comfort and desire to work in underserved areas. NM recruited our daughter for residency in their rural health and clinic services with a high number of Hispanics. They gave her a fellowship in rural emergency medicine. Between Cuba's six year program, four years of US residency and fellowship, she put ten years into working in hospitals and clinics in Cuba, Haiti after their earthquake, Liberia during ebola, and several rural NM communities. This could be done for and with every medical school student in the US as we have far more resources per capita than Cuba. Cuba uses their medical education for diplomacy like we use our power, money and military. Education is the best investment, least expensive with the most ROI.
This is what I mean! Congratulations to her. . Your daughter is practicing medicine as it was intended. We notice that in Cuba they had over 90% of their population including children as young as 2 vaccinated against Covid 19 very quickly with what I understand was an effective vaccine. However, prior to getting to med school one has to get a basic education here. I know that tuition is free in Panama and Argentina too, which is where one might go for undergraduate education prior to medical school in Cuba. In Germany my daughter could also apply to med or dental school right out of high school. They would be free, but it is highly competitive to get into. She would also have to do a year of college preparatory school in Germany to learn how to study in the program and pass the tests in the medical field. She is going to university in Germany since she speaks the language. She will be taking the C1 language tests in December and January. Argentina and Panama make more sense for most people here to attend and even Spain which is not so expensive, because Spanish tends to be the language that is offered in most schools here. My daughter has also studied Spanish and Chinese. The Spanish is going to be better developed when her class goes on a service trip to Costa Rica at the end of the year, where they will be staying with host families and doing conservation work. They are raising money for part of the costs now. I have read that African students are going to study in China because they are offered full scholarships. When they look at the USA and see the cost and no scholarship they are not able to come here even though most would prefer it. That is part of China's diplomacy. Germany offers free tuition too. The architect that won the Pritzker prize in architecture this year, Diébédo Francis Kéré, is from Burkina Faso. He went to school in Germany and has his architecture firm there. He is now an African-German architect. His buildings use the materials in the environment where he is designing. He says that people should look at climate change, diminishing resources and population growth and consider that. Of course he considers beauty as well.
https://www.pritzkerprize.com/laureates/diebedo-francis-kere
Now he lives in Germany. They have gained this wonderful architect by offering him a free education. In turn, he offers them a vision and possible solutions for future problems.
Jon Stewart responds to anti-semitism and also converses with Gabriel, a former BBC journalist in a fascinating podcast, one that is information rich and energy boosting. I find myself wearying of many podcasters' gloom. Jon keeps it lively and hope-filled without shying away from the stark reality of our time. His belief in America inspires. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVTXI-G0g4c
I'm realy finding Liz Cheney's actions to be remarkable. When a person like her has a "road to Tarsus" moment as she had, and then steps up and acts on what she knows and believes, regardless of personal cost, it's really quite something. I know I could disagree with her on many things, but on the Important Things, I respect her.
hear, hear! I'd much prefer seeing a principled conservative in office than the crop of double-speaking change-up artists on our current ballots; those whose websites have to be purged and re-written between the primary and the general election seasons. There's room in the political side of the government for people across the range of opinion, provided they are willing to debate and negotiate in good faith and come to agreements that are acceptable to the broad majority of the electorate. Issue by issue, there are majorities. Even on issues where there are large blocs of voters in opposition to one another, there are still places where agreement can be found. It's hard work (remember the "making sausage" idea) that has to occur in the halls of legislatures. It calls for thoughtful, hard-working individuals, not party-line sheep.
Nathan, in today’s political landscape “principled conservative” is an oxymoron. Voters are not SO stupid as to believe the “Change-up artists on our current ballots…..” when they have been trumpeting (no pun) their hateful anti-choice rhetoric for years!
It's quite possible to hold very personal views on that particular issue and still work with others of polar opposite opinions and find places to compromise and work together. Do you remember Bill Clinton's iconic quote? "Abortion should be safe, legal and rare". Who would argue that abortion is a preferable form of birth control? How many women would equate a trip to an abortion clinic with a visit to the dentist? My personal views are not the issue here. I don't agree with Liz Cheney on the majority of things she has voted on, but she has contributed more to the integrity of the House of Representatives than many less principled peers.
Nathan, Bill Clinton said a lot of things - this was not his most insightful. Please listen to the women. American men do not have the Supreme Court and Congress standing between them and their health provider. And from where do those structures receive their power ? From us ! For women, only since 1919 but we are not slow learners and we are not going back to being chattel.
I am afraid the right to decide is up to no one but the individual woman, her physician and her family, or not.
I agree. But Bill’s point is a good one.
"oxymoron". Yes! To oppose climate change mitigation measures is the crime of the century. Yet just about every conservative is on board with that attitude. "Principled" indeed.
While I agree, I also find it sad that simply doing the right thing is now remarkable. We have to guard against normalizing bad behavior and being surprised by good behavior.
When I think about Trump on the stage on Jan. 6th, instead of his egging on armed and angry people, I imagine a rational president in that situation, alarmed, or at least troubled, by the weaponry and imagery, and talking more about principled things, steering people away from their warlike posturing. Then I am kind of shocked by the discrepancy between what normal looks like and how Trump behaved. It's an important exercise: to actually visualize what normal would look like in order to remind us how far off track we've gotten.
Visualize no more! We have such a President right at this very moment--President Joe Biden. Why do the media and Americans keep overlooking this fact? We have normal right now sitting and working in the White House. We have got to break the addiction of mental ruminations of trump.
"We have got to break the addiction of mental ruminations of trump." Yes Barbara, YES! Enough already.
Absolutely agreed! Problem is that the media has made and still makes too much money off of Trump, in both for and anti directions. They are perpetuating their own interests.
The good things Joe and the administration do not make great clickbait. All I see is poll numbers and what death star and his minions are doing. And of course, inflation, which is this country, is lower than other places. We have been turning off the news more and more. Last night we were enjoying a meal in the new larger digs of our local black owned restaurant which has been subject to vandalism and bad reviews, by the usual suspects. The place was packed. Also we hear all sorts of bad news about downtown Salem, and it was also busy.
We also have got to break the norm of making mincemeat out of our elected representatives, all the way to the White House. A close acquaintance who just started college is choosing to major in Political Science. He's an astute, sensitive young man with great potential but, his interest in possibly going into politics was met with a scornful "Why would you want to do THAT?"
Good for him, I say. I remember the day that I thought I should have gone into politics, but the arts had always called louder, so I thought I was too old
(40).
I think about a favorite (of many!) scenes in my all time favorite movie, "It's A Wonderful Life" when George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart) is on his way to his honeymoon when he spots runs on the bank and goes back to his business. He talks the people down with logic and passion. We Democrats have the logic, I only see true passion in the more radical aspects of the party while it is everywhere in the MAGAs. Perhaps it is there and the media just doesn't cover it.
I am trying to channel my own passion into my letters to voters. Simple and to the point, I write my reason for voting:
"My vote is my voice, I WANT TO BE HEARD! YOU deserve to be heard, too. Please vote"
We have TODAY left, folks! Perhaps even tomorrow if you write early in the morning as tomorrow is the mail date for the letters to voters to be sent. It is really easy to do!
Any of those close races you are reading about in the news that might make you anxious? You can request addresses for that state and send your letters there.
PLEASE CONSIDER!
www.votefwd.org
Another point: it isn't too late, the letters to voters targets the infrequent, often indifferent or disenfranchised voters. The letter will arrive right when voting has started. YOUR letter that you write might be the impetus to get that potential Democratic voter to go vote.
Good and bad are very subjective ideas. Ethical, Equal, and Just are more my choice
Proof that the world is upside down. Never hurts to shake up an old dyed in the wool Dem like me. She has withstood the trial by fire, unlike the “stalwarts” like Romney, a weak force by any measure.
I had a supervisor I didn’t initially care for regarding his policy edicts, but came to respect him because, although he was tough, he was fair and consistent
When the playing field is fair consistent, its a workable situation. I believe Cheney brings that to the table
'Liz Cheney turns to Democrats to save her hide
The math doesn't lie — and neither do Cheney’s actions on the ground in recent months.'
'JACKSON, Wyo. — In 2007, in this blue bastion of one of the reddest states in the country, liberal activists wheeled a giant statue of Dick Cheney through town to protest his star role in the Iraq War — before toppling it, Saddam Hussein style, for good measure.'
'Fifteen years later, his daughter Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) is turning to the same rare species in Wyoming — Democrats — to save her House seat. And Trumpist Republicans are doing everything in their power to thwart her.'
'The turnabout for Cheney — one of the more unlikely twists in Republican politics in recent years, in a party that’s had no shortage of them — will come into sharp relief next week at a gathering at Jackson’s Center for the Arts. Cheney will speak on a bipartisan panel about defending elections, addressing what should be a welcoming audience amid her running battle with former President Donald Trump over the Jan. 6 sacking of the Capitol.'
'What Cheney doesn’t know — until now — is that a band of Trump-loving Republicans will be on hand to greet her. They snapped up roughly a quarter of the 350 tickets, at $10 apiece, to give the embattled congresswoman a piece of their minds.'
“I was here when the … Democrats dragged her father’s effigy down a village road behind a truck at one of their rallies, and those are the people who are supporting her now, that she’s embraced,” an angry Rebecca Cloetta, 66, said over breakfast at a greasy spoon called the Virginian.'
“Can you believe it? Charging for a ticket! It’s a slap in the face,” said Rebecca Bextel, 41, another Trump-backing Republican planning to attend the voting event. “We have one person representing us” — Wyoming has a single House member — “and she shows up in town and it costs $10 to see her. It’s embarrassing.'
'Just as obvious is that Cheney needs Democrats and independents to change their party registration and cast their vote for her in the Aug. 16 primary. Her campaign is loath to talk strategy publicly, but the math doesn’t lie — and neither do Cheney’s actions on the ground here in recent months.'
'She has shunned town halls and other voter forums in Wyoming’s overwhelmingly red counties in favor of controlled events. At the March 22 event, which is being hosted by Issue One, a bipartisan organization that advocates for “sweeping reforms to fix our broken political system,” Cheney will answer pre-selected questions.'
'When Cheney was censured by the state Republican Party in February 2021, three of the eight votes against the move were by officials from Teton County, which encompasses Jackson. The dissenters included Mary Martin, now the county’s GOP chair.'
'Since then, however, Martin has soured on Cheney. She said the congresswoman is rarely in the state, despite having been urged to explain why she voted to impeach Trump.'
“She was absolutely invited to come and present what her facts were, to defend why you are doing this and instead she opted to call the Republicans radicals, which has made people upset within the party,” Martin said from the Jackson mansion of Nancy Donovan, a prominent Republican donor in Wyoming.'
“She’s not in the state, she has not been anywhere, maybe one or two places,” Donovan echoed. “She doesn’t show up … she’s very entitled. Her parents have events at their house, I’ve spent money to go to her house to fund her. … I truly will never vote for her again.” Donovan and Bextel are both members of Hageman’s grassroots leadership team.'
https://www.politico.com/news/2022/03/14/liz-cheney-democrats-wyoming-00016905
True. It is also true that within the last two years, Liz Cheney publicly on video accused Democrats of literally killing babies. She voted against voting rights and celebrated the slashing of reproductive rights. Too many people don’t know that. It might matter a lot in a few years that we remember both sides of who she is.
Thank you, Joan. It is crucial to remember. Liz Cheney, possibly polarized within? She is serving Democracy now. That cannot be put aside.
Liz Cheney released the following statement on the introduction of the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.
“It’s our moral obligation to do everything we can to protect the sanctity of life. We must fight every day for the most vulnerable among us, which is why I joined my Republican colleagues in the House to introduce the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. This is common sense legislation that protects the life of innocent babies and their mothers.'
“In recent weeks, we have seen Democrats introduce legislation across the country that enables the killing of babies. These far-left, extreme policies are evil and Democrat leaders in the House have remained silent while members of their party, including the Governor of Virginia, have advocated for what can only be described as the murder of innocent babies. We cannot allow the radical wing of the Democratic Party to turn our maternity wards into killing fields.' (LizCheney) See link below.
https://cheney.house.gov/2019/02/06/cheney-its-our-moral-obligation-to-do-everything-we-can-to-protect-the-sanctity-of-life/
Remember Us: The Holocaust Bnai Mitzvah Project offers an invitation to children preparing for bar/bat mitzvah to connect with the memory of children lost in the Holocaust before they could be called to the Torah.
http://www.remember-us.org/
I do. I am very cynical of her now 'profile in courage'.
She is not pro choice for one....
Well - it's the old conundrum - don't let the perfect stop the good. Let's use her best power to get rid of the orcs, and then we can discuss the next moves.
Give her time. Maybe one of her three daughters will need an abortion or explain to her mother that she’s already had one and Liz will have an Epiphany. That’s how this usually works.
That’s exactly what happened with SSM. Liz reconciled with her sister and on TV said, “I was wrong.”
Good for you, William! 😃
William, it's about her ultra-rich, geographical political philosophy. Will she care if her daughter has an abortion as long as it's safe, under good medical care and a family secret? She and her father and the state of Wyoming are wed to fossil fuels... she'd have to move to Massachusetts to be a Democrat. I'm laughing are you?
I read this online and use it for those on the fence between candidates: “You’re not looking for a marriage. You’re looking for the bus that will get you closest to where you want to go.” Maybe we do this with those like Liz Cheney.
I read that in 2016 over on Stonekettle Station. So appropriate, both then and now. Bernie Bros did not listen, and we got TFG.
Re-read my comment, please.
With at least one very big exception. I believe that Liz shares the belief that government action on climate change should not be a thing. She might come around on that (Romney has apparently judging from some of the opinion pieces he has put out of late). It is climate change that forms my feelings on the Republican party - and that is that it is the most dangerous movement the human race has to contend with right now. Because of its denialism of such an existential threat, and its ability to influence the entire world's actions.
Liz is playing the roll that Republicans as a political party used to play, while neither side has a monopoly on all the right answers to our problems, the one thing that has to be a given is, that both parties truly want to better the lives of all Americans, when those conditions are met progress is possible. If the Republican Party is going to have a future Liz Cheney is a classic example of someone that Democrats will want to have as loyal opposition, the key word here is “loyal”. I don’t have to agree with her to admire her courage in standing up to the fascist’s that have taken over the GOP. I would have no problem shaking her hand or sitting down to dinner with her, I respect her integrity which isn’t something I can say about the majority of elected republicans.
My fervent wish of the past several years that a ticket for higher office would be a Dem and Republican on same ticket or endorsement of candidates by opposite party is finally showing some traction. What got us here is deplorable but sometimes change demands extreme consideration.
I find it an effective road to pulling our country back to a moderate space and telling extremism to go fuck itself along with self serving extremists determined to destroy democracy. More importantly, uniting our country’s people under a banner of respect, care for all, equity and equality, and some dang common sense. Screw parties and the excruciating divisive fighting.
We the People. All of us this time.
Salud, TC, and thank you, brother.
Unita. 🗽
Yes. And, notice, the bi-partisan endorsement outreach in HCR's examples is done by women--Liz and Elissa, Lisa and Mary. If the bi-partisanship impulse can grow, there is hope there!
👋 👋 👋 👋 👋 👋 👋
Yes, I agree. She has totally surprised me in a very good way. She has put country over party more than one time now and at great personal expense. I find it refreshing and a source of hope in these rather bleak days. Brava Liz!
TC, I found two locations of Tarsus. Now, could you help with the "road to Tarsus", please?
Tarsus is an ancient city on the alluvial plain of ancient Cilicia, the birthplace of St. Paul (Acts of the Apostles 22:3). I'm a New Testament dummy but wondering if the road to Tarsus is one that Paul took. 'A major road lead to the north where the famous mountain pass known as the “Cilician Gates” lay less than 29 miles inland. Sir William Ramsey described the pass as “one of the most famous and important passes in history.”
TC, could you have been thinking of the Bible story of Paul's road to Damascus conversion?
Tarsus is a historic city in south-central Turkey, 20 km inland from the Mediterranean. It is part of the Adana-Mersin metropolitan area, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in Turkey …' (Wikipedia)
He is referring to Paul the Apostle, previously referred to as Saul of Tarsus.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_the_Apostle
Salud, Fern.
Unita 🗽
I thought that I indicated as much. Thank you.
I do believe TC was referring to the Road to Damascus conversion of Saul/Paul. Don't want to speak for him, but your post re: Damascus immediately sprang to my mind as well.
Amidst all that is going on, I am amused and happy that TC sent me to the Bible. I don't expect that of him.
Why in such a calamitous time are we afraid to talk about God? Rhetorical question. Not trying to start a conversation.
Michael, I don't have a position with reference to TC's comment, whether he was making a dramatic point and or a religious one. My thought is that TC doesn't usually make religious points. I am curious to hear from TC only because he pricked my interest with the 'road to Tarsus. Just curious. I like hearing from the person himself. Your question and mine are intended for TC.
Not sure why not. It’s one of the greatest stories of faith in the Bible.
Unita. 🗽
"The danger posed by the current-day Republican Party’s embrace of authoritarianism is not going unchallenged. Indeed, it is remaking American politics as defenders of democracy band together...
Liz Cheney (R-WY) endorsed Representative Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) for reelection, her first endorsement of a Democrat since the Republican Party turned on her over her insistence on holding Trump to account...
...'While Elissa and I have our policy disagreements, at a time when our nation is facing threats at home and abroad, we need serious, responsible, substantive members like Elissa in Congress.'...
...And in Alaska, Senator Lisa Murkowski, a Republican, and Representative Mary Peltola, a Democrat, have just endorsed each other in the upcoming election. The Alaska Federation of Natives has endorsed them both..."
Gosh! Almost as though folks other than the historically most entitled members of our society have something (read "values") important (read "lifesaving") to contribute to politics. Who could ever have imagined *that*?
Not to be overlooked, all are women working towards a common purpose. Reminds me Ireland peace negotiations: "A critical factor that helped secure and preserve the peace is too often overlooked: the participation of women. "
I’ve yearned to see women take charge and become the primary leaders. Men need to take a seat.
Let’s not forget that Ginni Traitor Thomas, Amy Coney Island Barrel, Kari Lake, and Melania T are all our enemies. Gender should not matter and mostly it doesn’t. But be careful what you wish for.
Don't forget to include the chair of the Republican Party, Rona Romney McDaniel, in that list of malevolent females!
Elise Stefanik is also on my list...
Don’t forget MTG and Boebart!
MaryLee G.....from the bowels of hell (MTG and Boebart,,,and others mentioned by Elisabeth Iler)
Oh, MaryLee, I don’t forget them….omg.
Good reminder, Elisabeth.
If only people talked about men in leadership this way. Moreover, until there is a critical mass of women in power, the “bad apple” theory of making gender irrelevant doesn’t hold water for me.
Yes, Kristin. If women were running the, half the wars around the world would disappear. Testosterone boner-heads have led us down the road to destruction.
The list of male reprobates is much longer, of course....let us count the ways....
There are women who 'go along to get along' and women who support other women. The first category of women (I think around 30%) has always calculated it is the 'smart' move to support systems that promote men at the expense of women, firmly pushing any women who 'pop up' down. These women are worse than the biggest male misogynist, more vicious, more effective. They are used against other women. Women need to fight back against these women of poor and weak character and take back the majority's power.
Systematic Curiosity - "The first category of women (I think around 30%) has always calculated it is the 'smart' move to support systems that promote men at the expense of women, firmly pushing any women who 'pop up' down"
The fourth episode of 𝘔𝘳𝘴. 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢 on Hulu features a debate between Betty Friedan and Phyllis Schlafly in real life. And yes, the debate really did happen. You can watch a similar debate between Friedan and Schlafly in the embedded video later in this article, which took place a few years later. The actual debate as depicted in the episode isn’t on video, but accounts from the time indicate that the real-life debate was very close to what we saw in the episode.
https://heavy.com/entertainment/2020/04/betty-friedan-vs-phyllis-schlafly-debate-real-life/
or go directly to the Debate segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WncN6PWEMGo&t=14s
The whole series takes about eight hours to watch but is worth it.
Yes, there are examples of women who follow their repub party and are actively working against policies that help all citizens, like reproductive health choices, voting rights, and equality. So for now we have a math problem. Not enough women in government to represent all voters instead of joining an undemocratic party. It’s a challenge to change history. But that’s changing. These modern times are changing in our knowledge and action. Just Google it. https://www.google.com/search?q=history+and+change+are+slow&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari#ip=1
Oh, the female vipers are the deadliest of all, I fear
And you encounter many of them where you live!
I enjoy your comments and seek them out, Jeri.
Not suggesting that women aren't flawed, too. But an utterly male-dominated world provides a mountain of evidence that change is long overdue. And women have been oppressed forever.
Respectfully, I disagree. Gender does matter and commands respect for differences intended to be appreciated and create a sum greater than the parts.
I, for one, believe this is the great work always intended for women. Our hearts always believe in the equation 1+1=3!
Salud, Elizabeth!
Unita all! 🗽
BRAVA, Christine! Right on!! We WOMEN bring our lived experiences to the table where, otherwise, our particular concerns aren’t seen in laws, policies, & funding (repro rights, maternal health, childcare, equal wages, VAWA issues, etc.). We are wrongly rendered invisible because “gender doesn’t matter” (ha!). Tired of women being shoehorned into The Toxic Male Paradigm into order to walk the halls of power. Also, how about the reverse idea to those who love to raise the exceptional negative woman (e.g., Palin) to claim gender is irrelevant — Why should it matter (and it does matter in practice) that there should be men in power when we’ve had male leaders like Hitler, Stalin, Napoleon, Pol Pot, Nixon, Putin, Trump, et al.? Look deeper at the person — and know that male aggression & violence are real things to account for and not ignore. Why do most men get a pass on negativity when they reach for power but women do not (see, e.g., Hillary Clinton)? Why are men presumed leaders but not women, who need to continually knock down barriers? Tired of the “I look past gender” — it’s like the racist “All Lives Matter” crap, as if all are treated equal (not!).
I agree and disagree. The statement in its brevity is sexist and prejudiced. However, our American culture is bent around weapons, war, and religious authoritarianism (born again in the 1930s). This has fostered hypermasculinism, where men are expected to over-provide and over-protect. Men must re-evaluate their masculinity: Cooling their heels and letting women run the show is a starting point.
Sexist? Please. And do I have to write a treatise? The world would be better off with many more women with real power to course correct. This became abundantly clear in the pandemic.
"Governance is women's work. Men have blown it. Time to change." A slogan running around in my mind since 2014.
My Irish-American grandmother, Catherine Alexis Holihan, approves this message. (😎)
I was a student at Trinity College in Dublin in 77 & 78, and spoke at great length with many of those women leaders in both the Republic and the North of Ireland. They were done sacrificing their husbands, sons, fathers, brothers and lives to war and terrorism. They stepped into the leadership vacuum and persisted. Same as we need to continue to do here in this country.
Those women, particularly my grandmother, inspire me every day to do just a little more. For my daughters, my nieces and nephews, for my friends who collect SS and rely on Medicare, hell, for the planet. The UN report on the climate that was just released is terrifying. Time to do more. Time to lead with values that protect and nourish.
Sheila, got my PhD at Trinity in 2000. Mary Robinson handed me my diploma! I spent the 90's there-- Celtic Tiger days and Cease fire and Peace Accord days. It was a transition time for sure. Had an incendiary device go off in my face in a lower level shop at Christmas in the early
90's and went through border checkpoints travelling to the North. Toward the end of the decade the Northern Ireland Tourism Board opened an office just outside the west gate of Trinity on Nassau St. I will hate to see violence start up again with the Brexit hard border problems. Irish women are much stronger than Irish men-- in my experience!
God bless your granny Holihan!
Governance is women's work. Amen.
So glad, Sheila, that your Grandmother would approve!
Yes, indeed, Karen!
Amen, Sister.
Salud, Karen.
🗽
JJ,
Authoritaran government in the United States was the norm until the Civil Rights Legislation of the 1960's. Totally normal. Blacks have been disenfranchised from voting most of American history ensuring that "Democracy" was never actually part of our history until fairly recently........below, the NY Times provides a today look at why some people want to go back to what was always the case until 1965.
A picture of that part of America that is embracing authoritarianism. Knowing what is happening in much of America is important.
From the NY Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/23/us/politics/republican-election-objectors-demographics.html?unlocked_article_code=UQfKOze_r1nw9Zdvez8zJLfNB98PQNLPob811juIUHnDPvDxOsSo7bg5mwWOweKjRK5mUyGLoyjrd1OoGl1pS1DFODMsYqmf-Fr4Nn1L5EPEEewif7LiP2npuRt0xDonap5-9UOmieloBesoHKOEPqQoK7ij9PU9UYHt183tOm7OxYq8Kk7sAEeHFkweCIo4J2kRsjpqLni7kpv1g_KzUJDSqVo950qoIiQ0CGwOvXsXn48i-EEyxMHHI6_wwK6Sqg30WDeS6mZH3gAYdBkxE50AJqGus5dAMoayriGVX4MFA0OqDStVK7tuVDZltWQ8O21z7rHczoaviJTCPvwsiiY2mQZ564Reip4dQfbRr8qBw11wyDUBHw&smid=share-url
I can’t agree that the Racist Based Authoritarian preferences of Dixie until the 1960’s was also represents anAuthoritarian American Government. The US Presidential surprises from Dewey’s defeat through Carter to Obama demonstrate a decided plurality of choices reflecting shifting American values.
Racism as an Authoritarian mechanism of populations in the former Slave States enabled the long term Congress members to artificially perpetuate Jim Crow restrictions until LBJ bravely sacrificed the Southern cabal to the growing racist Republican Party. But this did not mean their nasty denial of human rights became national.
The New York Times article articulates the sad plight of the entrenched White Supremacist culture that is unwilling to share freedom and the bounty of America.
If the Republicans are successful in the upcoming election we can expect them to sow the seeds of disintegration by aligning with Putin and Orban with Authoritarian rejection of human diversity as a permanent condition of freedom.
What a wonderful man. You were blessed. If only everyone had a parent like that!
You were so fortunate to have a parent with such love and compassion. May he rest in peace.
I heard yesterday the two repubs, Sarah Palin and Ben something, detest each other but Mary Petola, the dem who replaced the deceased Don Young, and Palin are friends. Palin supports her and so does Murkowski. An emerging trend?
Be very leery, vipers don’t change spots either
Thank you, Heather, for today's Letter!
Meanwhile, accountability continues in the wake of the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Rioter Albuquerque Head is sentenced to 7.5 years for his participation in the riot. Judge Amy Berman Jackson reminds us:
"'Mr. Head didn't just get caught up in something. This case is not about getting carried away,' Jackson said. Fanone, she said, 'was protecting America. That's who Officer Fanone was. That's what Officer Fanone was doing.'"
"'People need to understand that they can't do this, or anything like this, again. They can't try to force their will on the American people once the American people have already spoken at the ballot box. That's the opposite of democracy — it's tyranny. And the threat to democracy, the dark shadow of tyranny, unfortunately, has not gone away,' Jackson said."
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/jan-6-rioter-dragged-mike-fanone-crowd-sentenced-75-years-prison-rcna54314
When I wrote the above about the sentencing of the J6 rioter, I did not know that Joyce Vance had devoted her entire blog to the story. Well worth the read. As reader "Mike in the Desert" comments: "Joyce, you make these complex issues, for example what seems like a pass with barely a prison term, understandable for your readers who only have attended google law school."
She's become my go-to source to get the legal interpretations for news that affects the law.
https://joycevance.substack.com/p/in-praise-of-the-federal-judiciary/
Joyce Vance is brilliant. She keeps everyone centered and focused in a remarkable way of explaining the intricacies.
Thank goodness for this outstanding Judge!
Agree, Marlene!
Watched Governor Janet Mills debate Paul Lepage last night. Janet Mills was articulate and maintained her composure as Lepage interrupted and showed himself as a bully and disrespectful. He and Trump are great examples of entitled men, who are unable to govern for the people. Narcissism is not a trait that makes a good leader as they lack empathy. My belief is women in general are better able to be empathic. I see woman like Kari Lake, who suffer from narcissism as well. The lack of empathy for Fetterman in hi s debate was disheartening. His courage to do the debate was amazing. People critical of his speech and unable to focus on his message is disappointing. We have Dr Oz who wants local politicians to decide if woman can have an abortion. How absurd. Local politicians can decide if I can have medical care??? My healthcare is between me and my physician. It is not a political decision.
Good for you...I tried to watch the LePage/Mills debate but I so loathe listening to "Paul the Bloviator" bully, interrupt and just generally demonstrate his lack of respect for anyone or anything other than himself, that I simply couldn't stand it and turned the TV off before I threw something at it.
I try to remember to throw a soft slipper instead of my 3in heels.
Salud, TL!
🗽
Just read that New Zealand now has a female majority in Parliament. Historic? Cause for celebration.
Sadly, Susan, I fear that your healthcare has evolved into being between you, your doctor and the insurance company bent on making a profit in whatever way it can muster. Guess what companies are amongst the larger donors to politicians? I fear we all must grapple with our local politicians involved in our healthcare via insurance companies.
You are right in that we have insurance companies, drug companies, healthcare organizations all based on for profit. There is something wrong with a for profit system. I wonder why these for profit companies would deny women reproductive rights ?
Are we seeing a new political center emerging in our national politics? Are there Republican politicians seeing, (at last!) that we have fundamental issues in common bigger than “policy differences” threatened by the growth of rabid partisan zealotry that has infected so much of our body politic?
One hopes so, and one hopes this phenomenon will be reflected in November on election day by an emphatic rejection of MAGA candidates.
I dream
Too little, too late?
1932-33 again?
Never again, again?
Dynamics of prejudice are ignorance and fear. We have both in abundance.
Dynamics of Prejudice, Morris Janowitz and Bruno Bettelheim required reading by Five Star General Dwight David Eisenhower, Commander, SHAPE.
The antisemitism on the rise is unconscionable!
“‘Empirically, something is different,’ Jonathan Greenblatt, chief executive officer of the Anti-Defamation League, told Michelle Boorstein and Isaac Arnsdorf of the Washington Post. ‘’The level of public animosity towards Jews is higher than it’s been in recent memory.’ My own guess is that increasing antisemitism on the part of Republicans is not simply the encouragement of hate such as that exhibited four years ago today when a gunman murdered eleven people and wounded six more at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, but is rather an attempt to signal directly to neo-Nazis before the election that the party wants their support.’”
In 2,000 years of anti Semitism, nothing new. America was born in racism and slavery. We slammed the indigenous... after the Spanish sickened the Aztecs. Tribal behavior: human behavior. All men are created equal... Abe Lincoln was our greatest. And saddest.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson will lead SCOTUS and Justice in America.
Joe KNOWS Us ... three words spoken by Majority Whip James Clyburn to answer a question - Black womenfolk flipped South Carolina for Joe Biden and saved the nation from Trump.
It’s now time - to Vote. 18 up, Vote. Republicans have fallen to fascist racism...
Vote or we will lose our democracy.
A republic, if you can keep it, Ben Franklin.
“ Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson will lead SCOTUS and Justice in America.”
Her intellect and tenacity gives me hope
Her decency and integrity and brilliance... !
Thank you Rowshan, for your post. “’The level of public animosity towards Jews is higher than it’s been in recent memory.’ I’m rereading “Plot Against America” by Philip Roth. It’s antisemitism in America, 1930s and 40s, the majority supporting a government that embraces antisemitism and fascism. It’s fiction. Or is it?
Definition of Fascism: far-right, authoritarian, ultranationalist political ideology and movement, characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hierarchy, subordination of individual interests for the perceived good of the nation and race, and strong regimentation of society and the economy. Sounds just like the trumplican/des-anity parties trying to destroy all our rights so they can be kings. I don't think so.
Fascists saw World War I as a revolution that brought massive changes to the nature of war, society, the state, and technology. The advent of total war and the mass mobilization of society erased the distinction between civilians and combatants. A military citizenship arose in which all citizens were involved with the military in some manner. The war resulted in the rise of a powerful state capable of mobilizing millions of people to serve on the front lines and providing logistics to support them, as well as having unprecedented authority to intervene in the lives of citizens.
Fascism rejects assertions that violence is inherently bad and views imperialism, political violence and war as means to national rejuvenation. Fascists often advocate for the establishment of a totalitarian one-party state, and for a dirigiste economy, with the principal goal of achieving autarky (national economic self-sufficiency) through protectionist and economic interventionist policies. Fascism's extreme authoritarianism and nationalism often manifests as belief in racial purity or a master race, usually blended with some variant of racism or bigotry against a demonized "Other", such as Jews. These ideas have motivated fascist regimes to commit genocides, massacres, forced sterilizations, mass killings, and forced deportations.
We have very clear choices at this pivotal moment: Fascist regime? Or save and protect and improve our Democracy? DO NOT allow the fascist party to win. They have permeated our state and local governments under the mask of fake Christianity—weed them out. Deep autumnal gardening. VOTE anti-fascism. Do it America.
(Posting as many times as I can stomach on my troll stroll this morning on the fox propaganda machine).
“Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn't.” ― Mark Twain, Following the Equator: A Journey Around the World. tags: books, truth.
I can't believe I had to scroll more than three-quarters of the way down the page to view any comments about the rise of antisemitism. Some anonymous group here in upstate New York has been attacking a Jewish political candidate in a very obvious and disturbing way. Where the *#&$ is this country going?? I am angry.
FDR declined to have the WWII army bomb the railroad tracks leading to Hitler’s death camps because he did not want to risk alienating American antisemites.
according to The Wise Men, ( a wonderful book,) neither Churchill nor FDR wanted their fingerprints on that decision. It was made by Asst. Secretary of War John J McCloy. He also was responsible for commuting the sentences of several Nazi war criminals.
Another story about the USA’s early involvement in Germany is Erik Larson’s 2011 book, “In the Garden of Beasts.” Roosevelt and cabinet had more than adequate time to fight the Nazis. They ignored Ambassador Dodd’s warnings in early 1930s. More than tragic. Blatant antisemitism. https://www.google.com/search?q=in+the+garden+of+beasts&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari
Re-reading Hitler's Willing Executioners.
Social Change and Prejudice, including Dynamics Of Prejudice.................. I have that book.
Bruno wrote 20. Love Is Not Enough was his next, his first hit, his break through, 1950. He walked from Dachau and Buchenwald early. Came to the US early 1940s. Raised me from Monday, January 9, 1950, at The School, 1365 East 60th Street, on The Midway: 34 beds, 10 girls, one dorm, four boys’ dorms.
Thank you Sandy, we must be watchful. All that you mentioned is accurate and readings appreciated......Also something we must fight for is:
The majority of Americans need Social Security and Medicare. There are so many unforeseen circumstances Americans go through: bankruptsies, crippling accidents, mental circumstances, many more common issues......taking care of one another through these social programs is a necessity not a luxury.
I have followed far right media for years. Over this time I have seen many of their issues bubble to the top of the Republican agenda either intact or modified as something like test balloons. This includes things like a small reference to Putin - 'maybe he shouldn't have invaded Ukraine?' But full blast criticism of Zalensky and that the U.S. should go over his head and negotiate with Russia. Now , antisemitism is coming to the fore from the right even though there are far right Jews and Blacks. Us Democracy minded folks need to get behind our Democratic party and vote like hell ! Thanx for the info Dr. Richardson.
Did Fox lead the way
One thing people keep forgetting about the economy is that you cannot have indefinite growth without sustaining irreparable (and possibly unsurvivable) environmental damage. See Washington Post article...
Perhaps growth of quality outweighs growth on sheer quantity when it comes to consumption. David Attenborough talks about how world population more than doubled since humans set foot on the Moon. we certainly can't keep doubling and doubling. Populations of many sorts of wildlife are already crashing.
interestingly, birth rates for an increasing number of "rich" countries has dropped beneath the population replacement rate. It's middle-income and low-income countries that continue to grow internally. The US is growing substantially by immigration, the "Wall" notwithstanding. Japan is shrinking in population. China's birth rate has plummeted to the point that the central government is attempting to stimulate the populace to have more children. Economists have real trouble with zero or negative economic growth. We have to find ways of replacing material consumption with other measures of improved quality of life. Who could argue with fewer diabetics amongst the older population? Who could argue against lower transportation costs as we convert to cheaper and cleaner forms of energy? Who would argue against neighborhoods designed for walking, cycling and golf-cart shopping?
With virtually ALL economic growth coming at the expense of the environment (see my comment above), there is an urgent need for a new method of calculating economic growth which includes the amount of environmental degradation "contributing" to that growth.
Changing the calculations for economic growth is urgently needed. It must take the negatives more into account. It also needs to include more of the caretaking and services "industries" that provides quality of life. Doing so would shift expectations that we always must increase our stuff to living a sustainable life that increases our well being. Some things are good enough.
And yet they do, Republicans being very hostile to sustainable energy and high speed rail. Who would argue against taking measure to reduce the spread of COVID? And yet more could be done to promote evidence-based approaches. And yes, affluence and education tend to favor "family planning".
OK Nathan!!! Are you considering being nominated for an office of leadership???
Thanks for your amazing input!!!
Go Nathan,Go!!!!
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This is a difficult situation. Progressives need a "strong" economy to attract enough voters to obtain enough power to legislate and administer policies that will provide a sustainable environment. Long-term thinking is not our strong suit. Lust for immediate power and greed will obstruct progress every step of the way. Billionaires desiring more billions have a much larger microphone than progressives desiring an opportunity for everyone's grandchildren's grandchildren.
Though maybe we need to refine the definition of what is a "strong" economy. Is it enough that billionaires make billions or is the quality of life on "Main Street" a better gauge? It is certainly a more democratic one. T. Roosevelt's "Square deal" and FDR's new deal were a better deal for the general public, and that has seemed to have been shrinking since "Reaganomics" became the law of the land. Extended long-term and "whole picture" thinking seems to me to be essential to wisdom. It also seems to me that that perspective is vital to approaching genuine justice.
It's a sticky wicket as we try to distance ourselves from the grip of big oil. The quest for nickel (needed for EV batteries) in Minnesota leaves many worried about the environmental impact it will have.
https://news.yahoo.com/minnesota-residents-worried-local-nickel-144150453.html
I wonder how much of the worlds mined and refined nickle has ended up in landfills? There are recycling efforts for some of the more specialized products, but they don't make it easy.
There’s at least one Israeli startup working on generating electricity with algae instead of elements mined from the ground...
Wow, interesting, Joan!
As is the mining of lithium. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/oct/18/lithium-mining-nevada-boom-car-battery-us-climate-crisis?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other
Thanks, Juanita. My guess is Minnesota and Nevada are just two of many more states whose tribal lands face being sacrificed.
I agree. I am most familiar with Nevada, because I have family members who are Western Shoshone...and ironically one of them works at the Silver Peak mine. I am personally somewhat torn about the issue, because I like the technology that currently uses lithium (cell phone, hybrid/electric cars, solar batteries, etc, etc) but I worry about the continued disregard for tribal sovereignty, rights and environment. I was shocked to find out how much water is used (abused) in mining.
It's easy to advocate for something when it's not in your backyard, Juanita. Having family members on both sides of the issue surely makes it harder for you. I live nowhere near Minnesota or Nevada, nor do I have friends or relatives there. Still, I worry about the lives of those whose backyards will be affected by our high tech demands.
I didn't see the WaPo article but listened to an NPR segment yesterday with the startling reminder that virtually ALL economic growth comes at the expense of the environment with the majority (60% + ?) of toxic emissions (CO2, methane, etc) and direct destruction (deforestation, strip mining and mine tailings, drilling, etc) coming from exactly those countries with the largest economic growth. The segment concluded with the urgent need for a new method of calculating economic growth which includes the amount of environmental degradation "contributing" to that growth.
There was a time in our aboriginal past when we did not "extract" massive amounts of mineral and carbon resources in order to live; the hunter/gatherer life did not support untold millions living in close proximity and careening around the planet in every manner of mechanical vehicle. We have conquered the earth, progressively destroying it in the process, and it is responding by chewing us up and spitting us out.
The World Without Us, Alan Weisman.
Interesting book! There was also a TV series on the History Channel (I think) called The World Without People—interesting if a bit over the top CGI effects (think car chase/crash scene vibe). To push the narrative further, there is ‘How It Ends—From You To The Universe’ by Chris Impey (2009), also an interesting read. Somehow I don’t think humans, who are depleting Earth’s resources and fellow critters apace, will be around when our sun goes all red-giant in some 7+ billion years. I’m skeptical that we can ‘science’ our way out of our problems, tho there will probably be some good solutions/advances along the way…just not enough IMHO.
I'm absolutely certain that we can't 'science' our way to salvation as a species. Throughout history, humans have written origin stories and mythology about apocalyptic endings. The Christian tradition for a second coming of Christ is a tremendous statement of hope. 2000 years ago, more or less, a culture recognized that we were headed for destruction and would need divine intervention to survive our own worst tendencies. I recently enjoyed a TedEd presentation that postulated that if humans disappeared from the face of the earth today, most evidence of our prior presence would be gone within a couple hundred years and all evidence would be gone within a few thousand years; the blink of an eye in geologic time. Our salvation will only be occasioned by a higher sense of stewardship and our "place" in the order of living things on this planet. A pandemic reducing human-kind by some billions of persons might buy us another half-century to figure it out, as horrific as that sounds.
And some (many?) of the wealthy and powerful think their wealth and power will save them from what is coming….it won’t in the long run of course. Most of the rest of us will be ground up by any manner of horrors (pandemics, climate disasters & large swaths of the earth no longer livable, etc.) that are likely coming toward us likely before they will, so I guess they buy some time. I will likely be long gone back to the elements before the worst of it hits on multiple fronts. In the meantime I’ll do my part to help and try to take joy in my remaining ‘ride’ on this pale blue dot….
"... Shell says it will use the windfall to buy back about $4 billion of its shares, making this year’s total buybacks $18.5 billion. " And there it is - 'trickle down economics' at work; the tricklers and the chosen tricklees. Rewarded handsomely on several ends before, during and after by governments (leases, tax favors, etc.). Great racket... somewhere, reagan and others still smile.
It's not trickle down. It's sucking the money up from the proletariat which is paying higher gas prices, then using that to buy back its stock and increase its value for those wealthy enough to own any.
Well Trickledown always was a scam. When and where did it ever perform as advertised? Making the rich way, way richer was always under the hood of "Reaganomics".
One more time. Will Rogers, 1932. “The money was always appropriated for the top in the hopes that it would trickle down to the needy. Mr. Hoover didn’t know that money trickled up. Give it to people at the bottom and the people at the top will have it before night, anyhow. But it will at least have passed through the poor fellow’s hands”. Big difference today. The republicans know full well that the money NEVER trickles down.
As you might guess Jeri, Will Rogers and his 'truth witticisms' are among my very favorites ! Cheers friend ! *edit in - And as I think of this, I have a beauty of the same right now adorning my FB page. It goes as follows, " Well son; There are 3 kinds of men in this world; The ones that learn by reading. The few who learn by observation. And the rest of them who have to pee on the electric fence for themselves." (lol !)
Vampirism.
Starting with Earth's blood and bones. Then...
It’s not trickle down, it’s sucking up!
Like super-massive black holes in space, monopolies hoover up everything in reach, and that reach snowballs as they become more massive. Those who crafted anti-trust legislation and rules prohibiting over-concentration of ownership of media were well aware of that; but somehow the public was bamboozled into loving monopolies. How many market leading companies in the mid 20th Century are now just divisions of a few super-massive conglomerates? And with market domination, consumer/workers lose their bargaining power. Even the government becomes hostage. During the Subprime Crash/Bailout Obama's AG Eric holder said "I am concerned that the size of some of these institutions becomes so large that ... if you do prosecute, if you do bring a criminal charge, it will have a negative impact on the national economy, perhaps even the world economy." Well that's just too frickin' big.
Tricksters is more like it. These companies have robbed us while smiling in our faces. May they suffer great losses...someday.
I think we, the world, might be waiting a long while for any to stumble, fall and fail. We have ‘corporate personhood’ and ‘money as speech’ giving them great wealth and power, enough to bend our politicians and governments to their will. For most, sadly, too much is never enough.
Thank you, Professor, for continuing the good fight of speaking truth. It matters and it is appreciated beyond measure. Thank you!
And Republicans are against any measures that increase the incomes of large groups of people. They'd rather increase their misery index so that they'll vote in a panic for the authoritarian grifter who says, "Follow me, I'll save you!"
Meanwhile, Elon Musk has completed his purchase of Twitter and fired its top executives.
So, this becomes a space to watch with eagle eyes and sharply critical mind.
(Media -- take note!)
Question:
What, if any, are the limits to what money can buy?
Are there limits to corporate power? What are they?
Are we all to be pigs in their poke?
"They" of course include Putin and his den of thieves and murderers. Interesting, how Satan's representatives have appointed themselves heralds of what they call "Christianity", spokesmen for "Christian values". Intriguing, how -- like Hitler and Mussolini in the 1930s -- they denounce what they in fact represent.
These men are on tenterhooks, waiting for America's voters to turn the tide and rescue them. And America's voters are blind to the lowering threat of another 1933 moment.
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Can nothing be done to make the media aware of their duty to their country, to the world?
Can nothing be done to get said media to publish prominently these Letters and the urgent advocacy of Substack writers Snyder and Hubbell?
Are they really all slaves to dull habit and "business as usual" ?
Even at this moment when the New Abnormal is slavering to devour "business as usual" and replace it by forces that serve its exclusive "interests" -- which are no one's.
I'm going to repost this (from ages ago - as we tend to forget)
“That is what companies are for.
They are designed to multiply capital; what they make is irrelevant.
Torpedoes, food, clothes, furniture. It is all the same.
To that end they will do anything to survive and prosper.
Can they make more money employing slave labour?
If so, they must do so.
Can they increase profits by selling things which kill others?
They must do so again.
What if they lay waste the landscape, ruin forests, uproot communities and poison the rivers?
They are obliged to do all these things, if they can increase their profits.”
“A company is a moral imbecile.
It has no sense of right or wrong.
Any restraints have to come from the outside, from laws and customs which forbid it from doing certain things of which we disapprove.
But it is a restraint which reduces profits.
Which is why all companies will strain forever to break the bounds of the law, to act unfettered in their pursuit of advantage.
That is the only way they can survive because the more powerful will devour the weak.
And because it is the nature of capital, which is wild, longs to be free and chafes at each and every restriction imposed on it.”
from Stone’s Fall by Iain Pears
ain't it so.
“The business of business is business”.
We need government to restrain the actions of business that would harm the environment, the powerless, and the economy.
Joeh - "We need government to restrain the actions of business that would harm the environment, the powerless, and the economy."
This 𝙞𝙨 where Government comes in. The role of government is to adjust the playing field, so prices and practices result in what’s best for overall society long-term.
Government is the only entity that can change things around to align the individual incentives (“𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘩?”) with the community incentives (“𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘰𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘺?”)
Thank you for this, Hugh Spencer.
The problem is how companies monopolize liberty, leaving no ground, no air, no space for others' freedom.
No space for OUR freedom.
I believe this over-simplifies things significantly. Corporations are organizations governed and administered by individuals and boards, constrained by laws and the public sentiments of their customers. They are often owned substantially by mutual funds with millions of beneficiaries. Many of those funds have social constraints in their charters. There are many and complex influences on corporate behavior, far more so now than in the past.
Useful reminder, thank you.
Nevertheless, the problem remains, especially since Citizens United, of the corporate voice drowning out all others and, behind that, giant corporations' power which exceeds the power of States and is largely independent of them. Power wielded for purposes sometimes in harmony with those of States and citizens, sometimes clashing with them.
Different timescales, limited motivations as opposed to the general interest. No harm in those limits per se, but both individuals and groups do tend to exist in their own walled-in space without sufficient windows. States of separation. Sometimes it's telescreen projections that dominate...
All this and the exercise of immense pressures to free economic actors of all constraints, regardless of the effects on the interests of mankind or the planet.
That may well be the case - but the dynamics remain the same.
the quote suggests that the profit motive will ultimately drive all corporations towards immorality. It's more accurate to describe the profit incentive as amoral; without regard for morality. Amoral does not necessarily have to evolve to immoral, unless you are willing to postulate that profit is a-priory immoral. In non-profit organizations, there is an understanding; "no margin, no mission". Higher margins lead to expansion of the mission, one example of where growth is generally good.
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Twittering will need to divert $1billion a year to pay Musk's loans. This could be a house of cards.
thankfully I have the ultimate power over Elon; it starts at the "App store". I haven't downloaded the app and I don't intend to.
As well.
Will the 2024 presidential race be run/determined solely by Twitter feeds?
Heaven forbid!
It ain't the twittering machinery that troubles me but the one man throwing a boulder in the dirty pond at this juncture.
Good newsletter, Heather, Thank You!
The Fed's moves already have slowed inflation. The CPI increase for the past three months (0% plus 0.1% plus 0.4%) has totaled .5% or 2% if the pace keeps up for three more quarters. That's the Fed's target. The price index for gross domestic purchases increased 4.6 percent in the third quarter, compared with an increase of 8.5 percent in the second quarter. The Personal Consumption Expenditure price index, which the Fed watches, increased 4.2 percent, compared with an increase of 7.3 percent. It's not just the rise in interest rates. It's a big slowdown in money supply growth after a stunning rise.
Encouragement for voters in Elissa Slotkin's district:
I don't live in Michigan's 7th Congressional district but nevertheless have had the opportunity to spend an hour or a bit more with Elissa Slotkin in an informal, small-group setting that included plenty of back-and-forth conversation.
For background, let me note that I am a skeptic in general, more cynical than most people, and strongly progressive in my political views. Nevertheless, I was greatly impressed by Elissa's intelligence and straightforwardness and her clear commitment to working for her constituents and the country, not to leverage a seat in Congress to gain personal power or enrich herself. As she put it, "Government's job is to make everyone's lives better." She's a moderate Democrat who also understands the everyday problems her more conservative constituents face, and she's absolutely committed to our democratic form of government, imperfect though it may be at times.
You can look up her bio and background for yourself; suffice it here to say she has the chops and has established her intellectual and patriotic bona fides beyond any doubt. Elissa is exactly the sort of person -- someone of excellent character, ability, and integrity --who should be in a top public leadership role.
If you're in the Michigan 7th, please vote for Elissa. It matters now more than ever before.