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.  

Reading

The Spectacle of ISIS: Resisting Mainstream Workstations of Fear

Veteran's Day Hypocrisy

I'm not a vet, but if I was one, nothing would piss me off more than all the obligatory flag waiving rah rah gibberish of Veteran's Day. I do come from a family of vets. My Brother, Dad and Grandfather all served in the military. Unfortunately for me, (or fortunately?) they don't take handicapped people. My job often involves helping vets find work. Soon, that will be even a larger part of what I do. I see and talk to vets almost every day. No, I'm not saying I have a perfect understanding of being a vet, but I think I know more than a lot of people. So here's my problem. We, as a country, treat vets like any other commodity. We use them and throw them away. I'm more cynical than most. I see everything the US Government does as making more money for those who already have money. Iraq was never about WMD. Obviously, it was / is about oil. Operation Iraqi Liberation was the initial name given to the invasion of the invasion and take-over of Iraq; OIL. Some PR guy caught this and the name was changed. Meanwhile, in Afghanistan this guy was hanging out. Somehow, the war in Iraq was all about fighting for our freedom. The troops fight for our freedom! Freedom isn't free! Fight them over there or fight them here! The last slogan is my favorite. Somehow, I cannot picture 10-20k Jihad types mounting an invasion of the USA. Perhaps I just missed it. I never heard OBL say we hate you for your freedom. No, the real threat to our freedom is an uninformed citizenry that stopped asking hard questions. But I'm digressing.

We send good young people off to places like Iraq and Afghanistan (why are we still there this long after OBL's demise?) to kill and be killed. Even if you want to believe the official party line for going to such places, there is no denying how bad we treat our returning "heroes." I've yet to meet a vet that likes being called a hero, even the ones who are. Short of all the flag waving and related hoopla, we treat our returning vets shamefully. Check it out... 

More deaths by suicide than combat

Homeless Veterans

Vets Not Treated Properly with PTSD

And just consider

True Costs of War


So until things change a lot, I'll pass on the Veteran's Day chest thumping, meaningless slogans and bumper stickers that do NOTHING to address the challenges returning vets face.  

If you are serious about helping vets; hire one, call your senator to raise hell about the above mentioned problems and or simply be there for one. If you do none of the above get that damn sticker off your car.