Liberal & Conservative-- Choices of Illusion

 I have to consider myself a radical leftist. Radical because I no longer believe we can solve our myriad of complex problems at the ballot box. Don't get me wrong, I love Bernie Sanders and all but could care less for his party, the Democrats. It was not all that long ago an "outsider" named Barack Obama was the anointed savior from the left. He more or less followed the policies of George W. who had more or less followed the policies of Bill Clinton (minus the ill timed oval office BJ). These guys are just the face of something so large it is invisible to most, the neo-liberal world order. I'm not talking about a James Bond style cabal of super villains. No, I think the reality is even worse. A tiny fraction of nameless, faceless people are hell bent on controlling the world's wealth at any cost basically run things for their own narrow benefit. When a British employee of Goldman-Sachs Bank said they run the world, he was not that far off. Basically everything is to be commodified and I mean everything- the gravel around your parking lot, each blade of grass, every tree and even the air and water. Everything of value is being sucked bone dry by those at the very top. Check out this this and this. So what does any of this have to do with Liberals, leftists and conservatives?        

Liberal and Conservative are different labels for the same product, neo-liberalism. Here is a list of one-hundred ways the Democrats and Republicans are the same. Now both try to throw bones to their bases, God in schools, anti-immigrant with a dash of homophobia on the Conservative side and protect the environment, nanny state with a bit of the government can fix everything on the liberal side. I get it, this is an over simplification but hopefully, you get the point. Think of it this way; while the USA is protecting rotten regimes in the middle east and elsewhere via drones, death squads and only God knows what else, some in an unknown skyscraper is raking in billions. The national dialogue focuses on things like gay rights, abortion, immigrants and nonsensical religious stuff. Sure, some of these things are important but they serve to limit our national dialogue. There are some things that are simply not talked about at all, like nationalizing healthcare, questioning our capitalist model or the ever growing militarization of our society. Neither major political party has a coherent energy policy and are completely incapable of solving the huge problem of catastrophic climate change. Our fossil fuel driven society lacks imagination and the ability to change. It looks like we are in for a crash landing sooner than we care to think.

Our only hope lies in resistance. It is not too late for non-violence to work. We need to do what we can to disengage from and delegitimize  the current neo-liberal world order and rebuild democracy from the ground up. Occupy was a start and it has not gone away. It has morphed into new movements like Black Lives Matter, etc etc. I think the best way to change the game is to stop playing. There is too much at stake not to listen to the lessons of history. If this thing goes violent, the world as we know it will cease to exist. It is scary as hell to think of the French and Russian revolutions with today's technology and weapons. In the coming years, we are going to be walking a fine line between just change and violence like the world has never seen before. All the paranoia and guns here in the USA, combined with growing inequality mixed with unprecedented powers of surveillance do not bode well for a peaceful future. Both major political parties are bought and paid for by financial interests who, blinded by greed, are incapable of seeing the tsunamis of climate change, energy depletion and overpopulation about to over take us all. This blindness is the reason why we must think radically about our collective future. So what will that look like? Will it be a disastrous crash landing or a controlled decent? Radical change is coming one way or another and sooner than you might think.                              

Reading

Racist Killing Fields

Wage Stagnation Explained

Wage Stagnation Explained

Independence Day

Let's look beyond the flag waiving a little shall we? Think beyond the obligatory fireworks, military hero worship and sales events to what this day should and could mean. Our democracy has been reduced to an illusionary choice between two political parties who are bound completely to the whims and wishes of multinational corporations of all stripes. By law, these same corporations have just one interest; their bottom line. Hint- this may or may not be in line with yours or my best interests. I think, more often than not, people's interests conflict with bottom lines of ledgers. Somewhere, somehow we have handed over our responsibility as citizens to banks too big to fail, oil giants, insurance companies and those who see healthcare not as a way to help people live better but to make money. We are now mere consumers of products. I cannot give you a date for when this happened. It may have always been this way "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss" as the old song goes. So my question to you on this Independence Day is, can there be any other way?

Yes, in fact there has to be and there will be one way or another. Let's look at the hard way first. We simply keep screaming down the tracks business as usual. Remember no one is driving the train and it is rapidly accelerating into a fog of ever more dangerous wars (the wars of this century may make the wars of the last look like a quiet day at the beach), catastrophic climate change, utter despair for millions (billions?) crammed into ghettos ans shanty towns the size of states. (Bottom Billion anyone- exists already) Presiding over this chaos will be a tiny group living in relative luxury and security. If history is any judge, this will last only so long. Basically, everything sill be smashed to pieces and we'll start all over (if any of us survive that is). Then there is the easier way.

 
We start using the last bits of freedom we have to take control of our government(s). Remember of the people, by the people and for the people? Now is is of the corporations, by the big banks for the billionaires. This cannot end well. People get all hung up when I say not to vote. I've explained before having no real choice renders voting all but meaningless. VOTE but VOTE with meaning. Voting for candidate A because candidate B is even worse is what we've been doing for my whole lifetime. It has not worked. For too many things are worse. We can and must find a way to get money out of our political system. Otherwise, even a guy like Bernie Sanders  will be little more effective than Obama. We have to find a way to get politicians who are accountable to people and not monied interests. So how can we make it so?                      

Further Reading On Income Inequality

 

More on Income Inequality

 

 

It is not only me talking about this. Hopefully, change will come before it is too late.



Wage Inequality

Steamy Bullshit Alert

On social media I've seen the crazy comparisons between fast food workers, soldiers and other professionals. The argument being do you think you minimum wage earners are worth the same as these professionals? This misses the point. Wages at all levels (except the top) here in the USA have been stagnant for three decades. Meanwhile, the wealth gap has increased dramatically. The old saying, "the rich just get richer" has never been more true than now. It can work up to a point. But there comes a time when it breaks down. The end game can be ugly, very ugly. If you don't know what I'm talking about, refer to a few history books on revolutions. Yeah, get some different perspectives. Then think about what that could look like in the modern age with modern weapons in a country over flowing with small arms. Consider what's going on. More and more people have come to the conclusion that government no longer works for them but rather multinational conglomerations who pay for the whole circus we call an election cycle. It's early but consider Bushes and Clintons who both support the neo-liberal world view are leading candidates for president. Yet, somehow, this is democracy. If you still believe in trickle down economics, I'd like to talk to you about some investment opportunities in some Utah beach-front casinos or ski resorts in Honduras. Even the IMF has admitted this is farce.  The splendid isolation of the super-rich, think-tankers and almost all of our political elites is dangerous. The notion of a $20 crisis is as removed from their reality as asteroids to dinosaurs. Much less, people who live on less than a dollar a day, the bottom BILLION! And if we are not careful, the result may be the same. The picture is gloomy but far from hopeless.

Consider Iceland. They seemed to have thrown out the minions of neo-liberalism and jailed many of the leading fraudsters. The planet still turns. Greece may be headed in a similar direction. We have to break the cycle of soul-sucking loans to countries which keep them owing for generations to entities who's interest is only the bottom line. The TPP has been stopped at least temporarily but I doubt we have seen the last of it. The conglomerations that want it have an uncanny way of getting what they want. It is not all that hard when among their assets are national governments. Slowly, ever so slowly, the word is getting out and the tired old myths that perpetuate the current power structure are starting to unravel. Artificial divisions are still a big barrier. Labels like "Liberal" and "Conservative" need to be recognized for what they really are- a false dichotomy serving as a powerful tool of control. These seemingly harmless facebook posts are an important reminder of our powerlessness to change anything.

How dare we think a burger flipper is worth as much as a paramedic or any other professional! No, let's not use our heads. Let's just accept wage stagnation of the last several decades is just how things are (and always will be).  Don't join in on the crab bucket mentality. Pull others up! If you see someone trying to get fair wages via protest or other means, don't do the bidding of their over lords by mocking them. It just makes YOU look like an asshole and an ill informed asshole at that. Besides, do you really think their bosses give a damn about you? Rather, ask yourself who benefits from this message? HINT: it is not you (unless you are a millionaire or billionaire).                 

Religious Freedom?

Just when ya think it could not get any worse, we have finally hit the bottom, bam! "Religious Freedom Laws." In a nutshell, this gives businesses the right to discriminate for religious reasons. This in now the law in two states and counting. Really terrible, right?  Just think of the money wasted keeping a few dark age dead-enders (yeah a Rumsfield word) happy. Well, there is a way to view this in a positive light. This is one of the last gasps of a tired old right fading into the twilight. Anyone with just a few brain cells to rub together knows the courts will shoot down this insanity. I wonder who will be the first to step up and refuse service others based on this lunacy? Talk about an easy way to spot the bigots! How can that be a recipe for business success? And then there's history. She will not be kind to these fools. But this is the legacy they think they want to leave. This will back fire in all kinds of ways. Most people can only look on in horror as these small -minded state legislatures bought and paid for by so-called "conservative" business interests enshrine religious insanity into state law. Keep in mind the only way these groups cling to power is via endless fear mongering driven by bottomless wells of money. Most people don't want to return to the dark ages. The backlash is coming soon. Those in power never study history.    

Readings 2.22.2015

Here are a few sites I read on line. Now you know why I'm such a yo-yo. 

Anti-War

Dr. Henry Giroux

Dr. Juan Cole

James M. Greer

Dmitry Orlov 

What We Get Right

Yeah, this blog can be a bit of a downer from time to time. The point is to try and speak a little who cannot speak for themselves. I don't mean to be all negative, hiding under some Marxist rock casting pebbles at unsuspecting passers-by. The truth is I'm an optimist. What I say on here is getting out into the world by many people writing better than I do and to a much bigger audience. People like Chris Hedges, Henry Giroux and Stan Goff inspire me to spread the word like some kinda crazed TV evangelist but without all the sex scandals and running make-up. We don't write for the sake of being hopeless, rather the opposite.

I cannot speak for those listed above but I can speak for myself. So what do we get right here in the USA and some other places? Despite all the set backs in the last ten to twenty years, we still have the right to free speech and protest. Contrary to popular belief, Occupy has not died. Despite a lot of effort from those in power to pretend it has gone away, we are still here. We have only grown and morphed into more movements and joined other established organizations working on issues that matter; Moral Mondays, Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League, NCWarn  and The IRC. These are all right here in my community. Take a look around where ever you are. You will find a lot of positive going on I assure you. Hey, Occupy still exists. I think in organizations like these is where the justice we seek, humanity we demand and creating a better future are to be found. We cannot vote our way out of all the deep and complex problems we now face with a truly broken and morally bankrupt political system where he who has the gold makes the rules. We have managed to get a few things right in spite of our broken political system.

I'm a person with a serious physical disability. Had I been bore a generation or two before, there's a very god chance I would have been institutionalized early in life. Imagine a life long prison sentence having done nothing wrong! Going to school, getting a job and living independently would have been out of the question. I owe much of my success in life to The Disability Rights Movement. Here is a brief overview. I think this goes hand in hand with The Civil Rights Movement. Here in the USA, most places are handicapped accessible. That means I don't have to rely on others to get where I want to go. There are other countries that also do a good job, but world-wide there is still a long way to go. Later on in life Dr. King expanded the struggle of racial equality to include advocating for the poor. I'm hoping we have about bottomed out and the growing income inequality gap will start to slow and swing the other way. Surely, some people in power must know how explosive this could get.  

What an exciting time to live in!                   

40% Don't vote and I don't blame them

Voting is not a magic bullet. Yes, there are differences between the two mainstream parties here in the USA, the Democrats and the Republicans. The Democrats don't seem to be anti-science, anti-gay, and are less inclined to turn the USA into a theocracy. The Democrats are in favor of keeping abortion safe and legal, for the most part. All of which sounds great to me! The Republicans have twisted good ideas like personal responsibility and self-reliance into some kind of winner take all Darwinian dystopia. So why have I pretty much given up on voting?  I no longer have a voice in government. I'm not at all sure I ever did.

I'm going all Marx here. The most powerful set up the government to do what exactly? Yes, keep them in power. That has not changed. The power of government does nor reside within the people. That's an illusion and a well managed one at that. Think about this mr. voter. Why pays for your choice? The wealthy, very, very wealthy. They want two things, your docility and complacency. They buy this via funding the circus every four years that somehow passes as a free and fair election. It is neither. How can we expect to change anything when we realistically have no say in who can even run? Politicians do the bidding of their true masters.

This is why I think-
There is no talk of alternatives to capitalism.
There is no talk of alternatives to neo-liberalism and neo-colonialism.
There is no serious talk of nationalized healthcare.
There is no questioning of creeping militarism of our police.
There are no controls or limits on how much the Pentagon spends.
So little concern about climate change.          

 Here are a few more,

Don't let The Marx reference mess it up for you. That's just one way to illustrate the current situation. The most important thing to keep in mind is the current path will end one way or another. Growing inequality never ends well, especially for those at the top. Now, in addition, to all that goes along with inequality, we have rapid climate change. No one in national politics takes either problem seriously.

If we cannot vote our way out of this mess, what then? Simple, stop playing the game. But then what happens?

Voters... as sick gamblers

I think we can all agree we are in a really big mess. Sadly, it seems to only be getting worse. Why? It seems to me those really running the show here have forgotten history. Anytime there is huge gaps in equality conflict often follows. I'm not talking about shouting matches on morning talk shows conflict. Its more like crimes against humanity, mass graves, mass executions and general failed state collapse. Yes, this can happen here and will if we just keep playing along pretending our two main political parties actually represent the interests of the people of the United States. They don't. Both parties do the bidding of those who pay for the circuses that pass for elections in this country. Why would either party want to reform (get rid of the massive amount of 'anonymous' cash) a system they both benefit from?  

I grew up around gamblers; card players, bookies and beters. I would have to agree with those who say this is a type of mental illness. Gamblers have to have a place to go, the House. While gamblers are by their nature losers, the House is the opposite. The House wins. Always. The House has gambling literally down to a science. The House provides an illusion of hitting it big by allowing a few here and there to do just that. It happens just enough to keep the others coming back. For most, its a long trip home with an empty wallet or worse. Voters are gamblers. Occasionally, something good happens like the Civil Rights Act, Welfare or Social Security. But little really changes. Racism goes underground (mass incarceration or minorities as well as profiling). Welfare gets "reformed" (new restrictions etc) and Social Security gets commoditized (soon).

Want real change you can believe in? Stop playing the game.