Behind a burning red fog
The great Mind swims in confusion
Its blood ferments
In anger
Honor and Wisdom
Will cower
-neurosis
2.10.2003
2.04.2003
"This tax relief is for everyone who pays income taxes. ... Ninety-two million Americans will keep this year an average of almost $1,100 of their own money."
One third of all Americans will never see a dime of that tax cut. Half of all taxpayers will get less than $100 from the Bush tax cut. Those who make more than $1 million a year will get an average cut of $92,000. That may average out to $1,100, but it ain't going to the average family. As The New Yorker recently noted, if Bill Gates walked into a soup kitchen serving 60 bums, the average worth of the people in that room would be $1 billion each. But it would still be Bill Gates and 60 bums.
- Molly Ivins on Working For Change
One third of all Americans will never see a dime of that tax cut. Half of all taxpayers will get less than $100 from the Bush tax cut. Those who make more than $1 million a year will get an average cut of $92,000. That may average out to $1,100, but it ain't going to the average family. As The New Yorker recently noted, if Bill Gates walked into a soup kitchen serving 60 bums, the average worth of the people in that room would be $1 billion each. But it would still be Bill Gates and 60 bums.
- Molly Ivins on Working For Change
1.30.2003
Here's a selection of the history items that Geov Parrish always lists at the end of his articles. I only take a few of them; the rest can be found in his articles at Working For Change
Reclaim History!
Things that happened on Jan. 30 that you never had to memorize in school:
1838: Osceola, Seminole war chief, dies under questionable circumstances while imprisoned at Fort Moultrie, South Carolina.
1933: Nazi Leader Adolf Hitler assumes office, named Chancellor of Germany, after a controversy over the counting of ballots with partially punched chads in Bavaria. Bad things follow.
1948: Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the political and spiritual leader of the Indian independence movement, is assassinated in New Delhi by a Hindu fanatic.
1956: As Martin Luther King, Jr. stands at the pulpit, leading a mass meeting during the Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycott, his home is bombed. By chance, King's wife & 10-week-old baby escape unharmed. Later in the evening, a thousand angry African Americans assemble on King's lawn. When King appears on his devastated front porch, he'll tell them: "If you have weapons, take them home. ... We cannot solve this problem through retaliatory violence. ... We must love our white brothers, no matter what they do to us." King's speech lifts the nonviolent protest movement to new levels of effectiveness.
1973: James McCord and G. Gordon Liddy, of Nixon's re-election committee, found guilty of Watergate burglary and wiretap attempt.
1976: George Bush the first becomes 11th director of the CIA, four years before his first run for the Presidency and subsequent election as Reagan's VP.
1981: The Reagan Administration "de-emphasizes" the Endangered Species List "to concentrate on recovery rather than reporting new species."
The whole article is here.
Reclaim History!
Things that happened on Jan. 30 that you never had to memorize in school:
1838: Osceola, Seminole war chief, dies under questionable circumstances while imprisoned at Fort Moultrie, South Carolina.
1933: Nazi Leader Adolf Hitler assumes office, named Chancellor of Germany, after a controversy over the counting of ballots with partially punched chads in Bavaria. Bad things follow.
1948: Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the political and spiritual leader of the Indian independence movement, is assassinated in New Delhi by a Hindu fanatic.
1956: As Martin Luther King, Jr. stands at the pulpit, leading a mass meeting during the Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycott, his home is bombed. By chance, King's wife & 10-week-old baby escape unharmed. Later in the evening, a thousand angry African Americans assemble on King's lawn. When King appears on his devastated front porch, he'll tell them: "If you have weapons, take them home. ... We cannot solve this problem through retaliatory violence. ... We must love our white brothers, no matter what they do to us." King's speech lifts the nonviolent protest movement to new levels of effectiveness.
1973: James McCord and G. Gordon Liddy, of Nixon's re-election committee, found guilty of Watergate burglary and wiretap attempt.
1976: George Bush the first becomes 11th director of the CIA, four years before his first run for the Presidency and subsequent election as Reagan's VP.
1981: The Reagan Administration "de-emphasizes" the Endangered Species List "to concentrate on recovery rather than reporting new species."
The whole article is here.
I just had a troubling thought. Bill Gates and a very few other super-rich philantropists are giving oodles of money to try to help developing nations break free from the dieases that are ravaging them. This of course is wonderful, and other super-rich people should be encouraged to join the fight - Gates gave 200 million dollars, which is hardly noticeable to him. Others who are similarly rich should do the same.
But what happens when these nations start to see their population expanding and living longer? Unless their economy and society as a whole are prepared to deal with a lot more able-bodied people wanting to work, we will have a whole new breeding ground for terrorism on our hands. Especially due to the mental damage that will be present in these societies for gernerations over what they went through, they will be very vulnerable to being led down the dark path of violence and blame-shifting.
So I propose that a similar effort should be undertaken to prepare these countries with the economic and social infrastructure to handle an influx of people ready to work. There are so many advantages to starting this early, and having it ready when the changes start to take effect. Besides the clear relationship to the availablitity of decent jobs to the vulnerability of a society to terrorism, this could be a rare opportunity to develop new, expandable and scalable infrastructures that are based on the newest and most forward-thinking concepts available. Instead of taking baby steps towards true integration with the rest of the world, what if the first new buildings, for example, were built with eco-friendly energy generators, wireless internet access, and efficient but aesthetically pleasing civil engineering? What if we gave them the best, and not just the bare essentials? The rewards would pay for themselves in the long term when these societies and cultures were able to rise to being full participants in the global economy. When people have decent jobs, living conditions, and the hope that other nations see promise in them - justice and liberty are never far behind.
But what happens when these nations start to see their population expanding and living longer? Unless their economy and society as a whole are prepared to deal with a lot more able-bodied people wanting to work, we will have a whole new breeding ground for terrorism on our hands. Especially due to the mental damage that will be present in these societies for gernerations over what they went through, they will be very vulnerable to being led down the dark path of violence and blame-shifting.
So I propose that a similar effort should be undertaken to prepare these countries with the economic and social infrastructure to handle an influx of people ready to work. There are so many advantages to starting this early, and having it ready when the changes start to take effect. Besides the clear relationship to the availablitity of decent jobs to the vulnerability of a society to terrorism, this could be a rare opportunity to develop new, expandable and scalable infrastructures that are based on the newest and most forward-thinking concepts available. Instead of taking baby steps towards true integration with the rest of the world, what if the first new buildings, for example, were built with eco-friendly energy generators, wireless internet access, and efficient but aesthetically pleasing civil engineering? What if we gave them the best, and not just the bare essentials? The rewards would pay for themselves in the long term when these societies and cultures were able to rise to being full participants in the global economy. When people have decent jobs, living conditions, and the hope that other nations see promise in them - justice and liberty are never far behind.
1.28.2003
Below follows an unedited stream of consciousness of my watching the State of The Union, read at your own risk:
Basically, I am excited that he laid out plans for fuel cells and Aids help in africa
everything else, same old crap that won't help, and NOTHING new on iraq, or "terra" in general - He doesn't have a coherent solution, and his fly-by-night plans will cause so much more harm than good. And just watching Cheney back there gives me the creeps.
Basically, I am excited that he laid out plans for fuel cells and Aids help in africa
everything else, same old crap that won't help, and NOTHING new on iraq, or "terra" in general - He doesn't have a coherent solution, and his fly-by-night plans will cause so much more harm than good. And just watching Cheney back there gives me the creeps.
distinguished citizens, and fellow citizens.
"we have the doody"
every child...that can pay for it.
dhs - underfunded
tax relief - $300?
reforms? Holding them to account?
employ everyone...except the 8% that we don't on purpose
It's so fucking childish - one side stands the other doesn't -
Cheny is practically convulsing behind him, when he says the word "money"
$1,100 is a LIE that is not weighted!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He hasn't really said anything yet
big fucking deal - that doesn't help me
401k's dont count - but he doesn't want you to know that
Spending discipline - read:cut schools, build bombs
still pushing privatizing SS...
twisting words, still pushing the privitization of everything! IT WON'T WORK
medical liability reform - tell that to the woman who had a needless masectomy
energy - sounds good...
pollution cut - IS MANDATORY! but he wont tell you
forests - cut 'em all down! That way they won't catch fire! Makes sense
1.2 bn for fuel cells - J f'n C I agree with him
He set a timelime, I dont beleive it... this is encouraging at least
WOW
ok, lets move on
back the schwill - faith-based crap
gov't paid mentors, ok i'll bite
did you see his eyes blink talking about drugs
wow - drug Treatment - ok good
too much religion, but treatment is good
partial births - party line, a falsehood that is a lie
no human cloning - fair enough
afghanistan - not as good as it sounds - pretty much a disaster there
Africa AIDS - can't believe he's talking about it, lets see what he offers
Cheny has a "fish clap"
15 bn over 5 years - is that actually more than the UN asked for?
J f'n C!
ok on to "terra"
Cheny just looks so fucking evil! like, eeee-vihl. He stares and stares at W, I can just see his forehead veins popping
what a cold motherfucker - "They're no longer a problem"
buffalo - wasn't a cell
american justice = death or prison with no chance of a lawyer
homeland security - UNDERFUNDED
ballistic missles - we don't need it, they can't stop a box-cutter
I don't want a BushCo injection
threat intervention = TIA???
violence, free peoples...get to the point
ok, the meat
regimes
blackmail - already happened - korea
hitlerism, nazism, communism... defeated by the might of america
grow up
defend the safety, however, what you want to do will Lower our safety
are they booing him? or "woo woo-ing" him?
basically, a big f- you to all other nations
iran - didnt really say anything.
korea - oppressive, yes
what about all the treaties YOU pulled out of?
ie, blackmail
we already were blackmailed
iraq
"potential" wealth?
where are the 8,000 pages that no one else has seen?
those damn aluminum tubes aren't suitable for nuke production
"intelligence"
iraq has let scientists talk without "minders"
let's see some goddamed PROOF of what you're saying
Saddam would never arm terrorists, they'd take him out first
Don't threaten me with a day of "horra"
he had enough sense not to use them last time
dictator assemblimg wrlds most dangerous weapon - YOU
attacked villages with OUR support
I don't beleive the stories you're telling - don't intimidate me
The generals don't stand - they know he's a fool
finish it off with some god nonesense, i don't share your beliefs am i not one of your "Americans"?
I haven't written here in quite a long time, really only because I've been pretty busy, and there is SO much good blogging out there that I just don't have much to add to the impressive display of research and thought going on out there. There is a kind of big-picture conspiracy idea I'm trying to work on - well, not really conspiracy, but there are clues as to the origin and goals of the current right-wing, neo-nazi imperialistic administration that are slowly falling into place in my mind, and I need to get them onto (e-)paper. I think that not quite the beginning but close to it is Prescott Bush (Bush Sr's father)'s association with and funding of the Nazis during WWII and the businesses that were spawned from that. I have an uneasy feeling that the Nixon, Reagan and the Bushes, and I am not kidding, Hitler were pawns in someone or some other group's plan for the future. That sounds crazy, I know, but when the picture becomes clearer it might not be too far off from the truth.
Everyone else is writing fantastic stuff about the current Bush and his idiocy, and I can't compare to the depth and insight, so I'll just list my favorite sites and hope that you read at least a few of them - they are ALL Must Reads!
Working For Change
This Modern World by Tom Tomorrow
Common Dreams
Xoverboard
TruthOut
Reason
Tapped
Ted Rall comics
Fanatical Apathy
The Nation
And, what the heck, a little shameless self-promotion:
I play bass in the band Lunch - come see us play live!
DJ Max Cascone - You probably got here from there, but just in case.
Well, that's all for now, I hope to write more soon.
Live For Peace.
12.12.2002
Here's something interesting spoken by an Israeli judge on why a senior Palestinian official can't be held as prisoner of war:
"Terror is not an act of war, and therefore it doesn't fall within the rules of war."
This is what I was thinking the moment Resident Shrub called the 9/11 attacks "an act of war." That wasn't war, it was terrorism. Calling it an act of war validates it to a certain extent, and excuses the perpetrators from responsibility for their actions. The only reason we're at "war" right now is to line the pockets of the super-rich oil- and weapons barons who currently have a stranglehold over our nation's policy makers, our money, our media, and our conscience. Calling an act of terrorism an act of war reduces the vileness of the act and gives the terrorists an amount of defensibility that it doesn't deserve.
"Terror is not an act of war, and therefore it doesn't fall within the rules of war."
This is what I was thinking the moment Resident Shrub called the 9/11 attacks "an act of war." That wasn't war, it was terrorism. Calling it an act of war validates it to a certain extent, and excuses the perpetrators from responsibility for their actions. The only reason we're at "war" right now is to line the pockets of the super-rich oil- and weapons barons who currently have a stranglehold over our nation's policy makers, our money, our media, and our conscience. Calling an act of terrorism an act of war reduces the vileness of the act and gives the terrorists an amount of defensibility that it doesn't deserve.
in the cd spinner today:
James Lauer - Rapid Transit a departure from his house background into more progressive styles, but still sneaking in some house tracks along the way, i like it a lot. I also like that he finally split the mix into tracks!
Max Cascone - MCIII i always feel a need to listen to a cd that I give to people the night before, as if to validate that it is worth listening to.
System of a Down - Steal This Album! A collection of songs that didn't make it onto either of their two previous albums, this album starts off a little grating (except for "innervision") but becomes pure System goodness a little over halfway through. Their beautiful songs only get more beautiful with each listen; the faster, heavier ones show their meaning after a few listens, and the melody and rhythm begin to make sense.
James Lauer - Rapid Transit a departure from his house background into more progressive styles, but still sneaking in some house tracks along the way, i like it a lot. I also like that he finally split the mix into tracks!
Max Cascone - MCIII i always feel a need to listen to a cd that I give to people the night before, as if to validate that it is worth listening to.
System of a Down - Steal This Album! A collection of songs that didn't make it onto either of their two previous albums, this album starts off a little grating (except for "innervision") but becomes pure System goodness a little over halfway through. Their beautiful songs only get more beautiful with each listen; the faster, heavier ones show their meaning after a few listens, and the melody and rhythm begin to make sense.
12.11.2002
"This administration is set to complete what the railroad barons pushed the Grant administration to start: to take democracy and its institutions of governance from the hands of the human citizen/voters the Founders fought and died for, and give it to the very types of monopolistic corporations the Founders fought against when they led the Tea Party revolt against the East India Company in Boston Harbor in 1773.
And, in the ultimate irony, the new man in charge of economic policy as Secretary of the Treasury will be a multi-millionaire Bush campaign contributor, chairman of The Business Roundtable (an elite corps of 100 of the nation's most powerful corporate CEOs), and, himself, a railroad baron. "
The robber barons are finishing the job, read this masterful article here.
And, in the ultimate irony, the new man in charge of economic policy as Secretary of the Treasury will be a multi-millionaire Bush campaign contributor, chairman of The Business Roundtable (an elite corps of 100 of the nation's most powerful corporate CEOs), and, himself, a railroad baron. "
The robber barons are finishing the job, read this masterful article here.
12.06.2002
The evolution is Ours
We are drowning in an ill-conceived wave of corruption and death brought upon us by the short-sighted fascinations of old men and frightened politicians. The energy to power the light of the future is being concealed by the filth produced by the energy of the past. The evil men who push us down are clinging to their last reserve of power and wealth. Soon the truth will be revealed and a new era will begin. World peace is possible in this new vision.
go here
We are drowning in an ill-conceived wave of corruption and death brought upon us by the short-sighted fascinations of old men and frightened politicians. The energy to power the light of the future is being concealed by the filth produced by the energy of the past. The evil men who push us down are clinging to their last reserve of power and wealth. Soon the truth will be revealed and a new era will begin. World peace is possible in this new vision.
go here
Wow, they actually did something about the White House's economic team! Good riddance, you bastards! Maybe O'Neill will go back to looting California's energy market, which he excelled at when was a CEO at Enron(!).
The article wastes no time in noting that, as usual, the decision to boot O'Neill and Lindsey was purely political and to create the appearance that they actually give a damn about us non-billionaires. Full article here.
update: my mistake, Secretary of the Army Thomas White was the tool who was at Enron in California. O'Neill was just the CEO of Alcoa, the largest aluminum maufacturer in the world
The article wastes no time in noting that, as usual, the decision to boot O'Neill and Lindsey was purely political and to create the appearance that they actually give a damn about us non-billionaires. Full article here.
update: my mistake, Secretary of the Army Thomas White was the tool who was at Enron in California. O'Neill was just the CEO of Alcoa, the largest aluminum maufacturer in the world
12.05.2002
On John Kerry, 2004 Presidential hopeful gleaming in his eyes: "Kerry has a strong presence within his own party: he’s a war veteran who later became a war protestor, giving him a unique advantage of being able to play both sides of the war card. He’s a staunch advocate of many core left-wing Democratic ideals (I am happy because I got to use the word "staunch" today) and has a prior history of taking on corporate fraud- something which hopefully could be used as a 2004 campaign strategy seeing how it’s all nice and fresh from no one using it in the 2002 elections, you stupid, stupid, stupid Democrats. Stupid."
From the awesome Xoverboard.
From the awesome Xoverboard.
"Hoover, Eisenhower and Goldwater were conservatives. George W. Bush is not. He's a radical right-winger applying selective liberalism in order to create an expansionist military empire centered around an oppressive police state."
Ted Rall's latest column, read it all here.
Ted Rall's latest column, read it all here.
I think I've got to recant my "eh" rating of Sasha's Airdrawndagger. It's really starting to grow on me ("like a rash", according to Andrew) and I'm starting to hear where he's coming from and what he's trying to do. It does sound like it was all made with all the same gear though; there isn't a huge depth of sounds but I'm starting to appreciate it. I do hear a few live basses and guitars which is interesting.
12.03.2002
"How convenient to divert the public's attention from other problems with the notion that the whole world must be turned upside down to combat terrorism, when marginal and avoidable mistakes by our government allowed the dreams of madmen to be fulfilled in blood."
Read it here.
Read it here.
11.26.2002
11.22.2002
Welcome to WorkingForChange From around the Web
Quotes and quips
TOTAL(ITARIANISM)INFORMATION AWARENESS
'I don't use the f-word myself -- in fact, for years, I've made fun of liberals who hear the approach of jackbooted fascism around every corner. But to quote a real authority on the subject, 'Fascism should more properly be called corporatism, since it is the merger of state and corporate power.' -- Benito Mussolini.'
Molly Ivins on WorkingForChange
SMOKE SCREED
Pot is better, just not the 30 times better that Walters cites to scare today's voters. Walters is disingenuously comparing the best pot of today with the worst of yesterday, rather than comparing average marijuana of a generation ago with average marijuana now. He's ginning up the figures he wants by contrasting stuff you might line your cat's litter box with to the alleged 30-percent pot--the likes of which a lucky (or rich) smoker might encounter once every several years.
Daniel Forbes in Slate.com
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENTS
But if the moderates want to make a real vote of conscience, if they want to stand above partisanship and represent the great American political middle, there is another choice they can make: Chafee, Snowe and Specter can pull a Jeffords -- leave the GOP, become Independents, and caucus with the Democrats, which will give the Democrats control of the Senate.
Michael Kieschnick on WorkingForChange
BIN LADEN. YOU REMEMBER BIN LADEN.
Howard Kurtz of The Washington Post dismissed bin Laden as 'a blast from the past.' Well, that was a helluva blast, Howard, and I for one haven't forgotten it. I want that son of a bitch dead or alive, and I want getting him to be this country's top priority in terms of enemies.
Molly Ivins on WorkingForChange
AXIS OF IDIOCY
So let us say that sex is an area where we lefties have a more mainstream view than the Bush administration. The Bush administration has consistently blocked programs of sex education aimed at the prevention of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases if those programs mention any method other than abstinence. On an international level, they are joined in this view by Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Libya and the Vatican.
Jon Carroll in the SF Chronicle
AFGHANISTAN. YOU REMEMBER AFGHANISTAN.
If promises made to Afghanistan go unfulfilled, if the United States does nothing to challenge warlord dictators who come to power in the aftermath of its military victory there, what reason is there to believe the United States will do better -- be more engaged and care more about post-war democracy and reconstruction -- in Iraq?
David Corn on WorkingForChange
FIGHT THE POWER
Rage Against the Machine or Public Enemy couldn't get the 8 Mile treatment if they wanted it (and they probably don't), because their anger tends to be focused at the more powerful, not the less powerful. Fighting the power isn't useful to power; killing fags and hos, on the other hand, works just fine. Pop culture is a tricky balance between validating things people already feel and relate to, and selling, selling, selling.
Geov Parrish On WorkingForChange
THAT'S NUDES TO ME
Women from all ages and walks of life took off their clothes, not because they are exhibitionists but because they felt it was imperative to do so... They wanted to unveil the truth about the horrors of war, to commune in their nudity with the vulnerability of Iraqi innocents, and to shock a seemingly indifferent Bush Administration into paying attention.
Organizers of naked peace rally in The Point Reyes Light
Quotes and quips
TOTAL(ITARIANISM)INFORMATION AWARENESS
'I don't use the f-word myself -- in fact, for years, I've made fun of liberals who hear the approach of jackbooted fascism around every corner. But to quote a real authority on the subject, 'Fascism should more properly be called corporatism, since it is the merger of state and corporate power.' -- Benito Mussolini.'
Molly Ivins on WorkingForChange
SMOKE SCREED
Pot is better, just not the 30 times better that Walters cites to scare today's voters. Walters is disingenuously comparing the best pot of today with the worst of yesterday, rather than comparing average marijuana of a generation ago with average marijuana now. He's ginning up the figures he wants by contrasting stuff you might line your cat's litter box with to the alleged 30-percent pot--the likes of which a lucky (or rich) smoker might encounter once every several years.
Daniel Forbes in Slate.com
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENTS
But if the moderates want to make a real vote of conscience, if they want to stand above partisanship and represent the great American political middle, there is another choice they can make: Chafee, Snowe and Specter can pull a Jeffords -- leave the GOP, become Independents, and caucus with the Democrats, which will give the Democrats control of the Senate.
Michael Kieschnick on WorkingForChange
BIN LADEN. YOU REMEMBER BIN LADEN.
Howard Kurtz of The Washington Post dismissed bin Laden as 'a blast from the past.' Well, that was a helluva blast, Howard, and I for one haven't forgotten it. I want that son of a bitch dead or alive, and I want getting him to be this country's top priority in terms of enemies.
Molly Ivins on WorkingForChange
AXIS OF IDIOCY
So let us say that sex is an area where we lefties have a more mainstream view than the Bush administration. The Bush administration has consistently blocked programs of sex education aimed at the prevention of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases if those programs mention any method other than abstinence. On an international level, they are joined in this view by Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Libya and the Vatican.
Jon Carroll in the SF Chronicle
AFGHANISTAN. YOU REMEMBER AFGHANISTAN.
If promises made to Afghanistan go unfulfilled, if the United States does nothing to challenge warlord dictators who come to power in the aftermath of its military victory there, what reason is there to believe the United States will do better -- be more engaged and care more about post-war democracy and reconstruction -- in Iraq?
David Corn on WorkingForChange
FIGHT THE POWER
Rage Against the Machine or Public Enemy couldn't get the 8 Mile treatment if they wanted it (and they probably don't), because their anger tends to be focused at the more powerful, not the less powerful. Fighting the power isn't useful to power; killing fags and hos, on the other hand, works just fine. Pop culture is a tricky balance between validating things people already feel and relate to, and selling, selling, selling.
Geov Parrish On WorkingForChange
THAT'S NUDES TO ME
Women from all ages and walks of life took off their clothes, not because they are exhibitionists but because they felt it was imperative to do so... They wanted to unveil the truth about the horrors of war, to commune in their nudity with the vulnerability of Iraqi innocents, and to shock a seemingly indifferent Bush Administration into paying attention.
Organizers of naked peace rally in The Point Reyes Light
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