Tag Archive for 'US'

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The Tea Party – of the people, by the people, for the rich

The “grassroots” movement “reclaiming” America’s “honored” past turns out to be nothing but a front for fascism. In a most excellent piece of investigative journalism by Jane Mayer of the New Yorker, it is revealed the Koch brothers have been funding the Tea Party the entire time.

The Koch brothers have a long standing history of self-serving agendas. The Tea Party is but the latest attempt by these ultra-rich businessmen – in the US their wealth is only eclipsed by Bill Gates and Warren Buffett – to change political environment of the country to favor the ultra rich.

It really is amazing how the Tea Party has been branded to stand against special interests and the “Washington politics” while at the same time being held together by funds from the very people the party is supposedly against. This has to be one of the greatest branding successes ever. It’s truly amazing that these are the same people who accuse Barack Obama for having some sort of a hidden agenda.

The Koch family history is a history of racism, disregard for the environment to enrich the family, communist witch hunts and behind the scenes political dealings. Its agenda is total abolition of all consumer protections, taxes, unnecessary Government agencies (incl. FBI and CIA) and all regulations that regulate businesses in the US.

-TPP

The War Against WikiLeaks

Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com writes about the escalating war against WikiLeaks.org by the United States Government.

WikiLeaks.org is a non-profit organization devoted to exposing Government and corporate corruption around the world. It’s published a number of embarrassing documents about CIA, The Pentagon and other branches of the US Government. As a result they’ve found themselves a target of around the clock surveillance and at least on one occasion a WikiLeaks volunteer, who is underaged, was detained and questioned by (allegedly) US State Department and CIA personnel in Iceland.

You gotta wonder when exactly did the US Government forget the reason the United States was formed.

-TPP

A Nation of we can’t

I’m not really fond of Bill Maher, because he almost always seems to articulate his ideas in the most inflammatory way, but I think he’s onto something with his recent article about how we (as in the US) can’t seem to manage to make anything happen any more.

Well, I hate to be a nudge, but why has America become a nation that can’t make anything bad end, like wars, farm subsidies, our oil addiction, the drug war, useless weapons programs – oh, and there’s still 60,000 troops in Germany – and can’t make anything good start, like health care reform, immigration reform, rebuilding infrastructure. Even when we address something, the plan can never start until years down the road. Congress’s climate change bill mandates a 17% cut in greenhouse gas emissions… by 2020!

We weren’t always like this. Inert. In 1965, Lyndon Johnson signed Medicare into law and 11 months later seniors were receiving benefits. During World War II, virtually overnight FDR had auto companies making tanks and planes only. In one eight year period, America went from JFK’s ridiculous dream of landing a man on the moon, to actually landing a man on the moon.

The last two paragraphs are typical Bill Maher, however, but the larger point about a population of sheep is completely valid. “Yes We Can” has been “Yes We Could, but The Bachelor is on!” for a long time.

-TPP


Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-maher/new-rule-if-america-cant_b_299383.htmlWe weren’t always like this. Inert. In 1965, Lyndon Johnson signed Medicare into law and 11 months later seniors were receiving benefits. During World War II, virtually overnight FDR had auto companies making tanks and planes only. In one eight year period, America went from JFK’s ridiculous dream of landing a man on the moon, to actually landing a man on the moon.

The analog levies have broken!

A great catastrophe has struck the country. Three million households are unable to receive TV advertising.

It is refreshing to see the Government working so effectively to address dire needs of its citizens. The efforts to plan for, prepare and execute plans to mitigate negative affects of this national catastrophe are truly inspirational.

-TPP

The New York Times documents war crimes by the US Government

A New York Times article documents the plight of a Pakistani citizen, Mr. Muhammad Saad Iqbal, who was arrested in Indonesia in 2002, then transferred to Egypt by CIA to be tortured.

He was finally released from Guantanamo Bay in August of 2008 after more than six months in captivity. He had repeatedly been cleared by lie detectors and other interrogation techniques of having anything to do with Al Qaeda. Yet it took the US six years to release this man.

He’s been on antibiotics for more than five years and is dependent on multiple drugs. He has multiple infections in his ears and suffers from injury to his back that’s making walking difficult. He’s attempted suicide twice and went on hunger strike three times while held illegally by the United States.

You have to wonder about a Government that’s supposed to be the champion of democracy and justice all over the world, and does things like this to innocent people. Here’s hoping a jury awards this man a multi-billion dollar settlement once his lawyers get around to suing the US Government for torture, kidnap and illegal detainment.

-TPP

Yes we can!

Yesterday marked the beginning to an end of “compassionate conservatism”, “trickle-down economy” and all the other bullshit that’s been screwing up this country for the past 8 years.

It was fun watching the wake on Fox News with Karl Rove.

-TPP

Enough of the “debate”

I can’t listen to the schoolyard bickering and “he said, she said” type of nonsense any longer.

I’m sure plenty of commentators will spend the the night and morning “debating” about who won, but one thing is for sure…the American public lost. That’s not debating, it’s yacking about insubstantial crap.

-TPP

Buypartisan

I saw this on the Internets. It’s a definition of a new word.

Buypartisan: A bill sponsored by politicians from both parties who are both being paid off

Strangely appropriate.

-TPP

What are the Republicans really saying?


Lindsey Graham is an awful speaker. There’s no rhythm to his speech, his gesturing looks rehearsed and the message sounds phony, because it’s delivered like he’s reading it from the prompter rather than speaking to a crowd.

Nevertheless there was one gem in his RNC speech yesterday. I don’t think he or the Republicans really understood what they’re saying though.

Check his speech on YouTube from 5:45 to 5:55.

Here’s a transcript of those 10 seconds:

Let there be no — let there be no doubt about it. We are on the road to victory.

Victory! You can say it at this convention. We are winning!

Pretty usual posturing that has no basis in reality, but the really golden moment came right after he paused for applause. On the gigantic screen behind him they were showing the tombstones of American soldiers in Arlington Cemetery. A screenshot is posted above.

Yes, we are winning, indeed.

-TPP

New York City air quality is horrible

The American Lung Association released their State of the Air 2008 report this week.

New York City receives a failing grade for particle pollution and rises to 8th place in the list of cities most polluted by ozone. Furthermore respiratory diseases are on the rise in the city.

Louise Vetter, president and ceo of American Lung Association of New York City, says New York City’s air problems are the result of high traffic and the density of traffic.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the wisdom of our State legislators in Albany. They recently decided to floor New York City Mayor Bloomberg’s proposal for congestion traffic pricing in New York City. I thank them for their contribution in increasing pediatric asthma cases in New York City. I hope your children living in upstate New York continue to enjoy fresh air. Just be careful when coming over to visit us city folks here in New York City. As you may know the air quality here will just keep worsening. Thanks to you.

-TPP