Shorter David Brooks: Four years ago Barack Obama promised to fix all of the messes our government has somehow fallen into, yet we still have problems. Obama should immediately institute big programs. I will not mention the facts that the Repubublicans created the problems, left the problems for others to clean up, will do everything humanly possible to prevent the problems from being fixed, and will spend the entire time that Obama is cleaning up the mess telling the country that Obama is destroying the world.
Brooks will also not tell us that the creative destruction worked; that the middle class is now poorer, the very rich is now very richer, the decent jobs have gone overseas and left behind clerking jobs, and that after that wholesale theft, Obama handed the banks more of our money and refused to prosecute any of the thieves.
A very long time ago I said that the rich were working actively to steal your money, eliminate Social Security and Medicare, and force you to work for third world wages, while eliminating their own taxes and offloading all their liabilities on the taxpayer. They are well on their way to accomplishing this goal because they have all the money and power and we have none. If we cannot stop the theft of a way of life, torture, persecution, lawlessness, and loss of privacy, we are powerless.
That is the bigger picture. The smaller picture is that the Republicans are effing crazy and you can't let Crazy loose or they'll kill the chickens and scare the horses. So yes, we vote and fight and mock, whatever we do best. Vote for Obama if you must, and elect councilmen and representatives and mayors who will hopefully help the poor instead of the rich.
But the rich see the big picture. They paint it, stroke by stroke, and their works will last long after they are dead. They spent millions putting Obama in office because they knew he would hand over taxpayer money to the banks. Don't tell people to shut up or go away because they're just too precious to live in our cold cruel world when they try to tell the truth.
We like to joke that facts have a liberal bias but they don't. They are constant and inexorable and they will not go away no matter how much we may wish to ignore them. The only way we are ever going to regain our power is to tell the truth. Truth has more power than any political party, nation, or class.
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They spent millions putting Obama in office because they knew he would hand over taxpayer money to the banks
McCain would have done any different? Bank failures would have thrown the world into a full-on depression.
If McCain is your standard, you're in trouble.
No, austerity for the poor and giveaways to the rich would throw the world into depression. And hey, guess what. The world economy isn't doing so well. The only ones who have recovered are the rich. The banks, Wall Street, the stock market, industry.
But China is slowing. Europe is still limping on. Our middle class is broken. There are no jobs. There is no money.
Now, this is not absolute. A lot of people are doing just fine. But the poor are very much worse off. More people are going on disability, probably because they can't support themselves. More are poorer. More are on food stamps. More have stopped looking for work.
We have a choice: ignore the poor and vote our own interest or fight. But fighting is horrible, it's dangerous and humiliating and expensive. So we close our eyes and pretend that we are perfectly happy with the crumbs we are left.
Bank failures would have thrown the world into a full-on depression.
Bailing out the banks was necessary. Protecting and rewarding the criminals responsible was not.
But that's what Obama, Geithner, and Holder have done.
Arthur Silber, May 2008:
The Wall Street plan for the Obama-bubble presidency is that of the cleanup crew for the housing bubble: sweep all the corruption and losses, would-be indictments, perp walks and prosecutions under the rug and get on with an unprecedented taxpayer bailout of Wall Street.
~
We are given a national candidate to vote for, one with establishment backing, money, power. We are told we must vote for him because he is the only one who has enough money and power to win. Ergo, we will always end up with the establishment candidate.
The rich and powerful, like the rest of us, act according to their interests. They pick the candidates via donations. Therefore the candidates will act in the interests of the rich, not the powerless.
But we are only powerless as long as we are divided. United we are a mob, which terrifies the rich. So the elite go to great trouble to divide us. Republican vs Democrat, feminist versus mullet head, Obama vs Hillary Clinton. We are pitted against each other and the rich steal everything that isn't nailed down.
We can either band together against them or let thm pit us against each other. Knowing Americans, we will pick each other off a few at a time as a type of ritual sacrifice of those insane enough to believe all the lies.
I cannot imagine how voting for Obama, who has made plain what class he serves, is going to help accomplish any of what you propose Susan. It would seem to me that the first step in this struggle is to reject false choices. The hard work ahead will be in rebuilding, from scratch, a new system, not willingly participating in a fraud. If I find myself a little short on the rent this month and happen upon a game of three-card-monte how likely will I be keeping that roof over my head if toss my last $150.00 on the table then crossing my fingers?
There's a case to be made for local elections but the legacy parties at the national level are utterly without value.
It takes a long time to destroy people's beliefs in God, country, and Mom.
The world would be a far better place if David Brooks were placed into a rocket ship and fired at the sun.
Megs can ride shotgun.
Yee haw!
I cannot imagine how voting for Obama, who has made plain what class he serves, is going to help accomplish any of what you propose Susan.
The destruction of Social Security and Medicare is lots less likely. Not entirely unlikely, but lesser evil et cetera.
Obama said repeatedly that he wanted to cut it, so I assume he will. He pressed the matter even when he dido not have to. I believe that people will do what they say and demonstrate they want to do.
I doubt it will disappear all at once or completely but unless they are stopped, our political parties will ease it out.
Maybe the age will be raised again or more cuts in revenue made or increases eliminated. As long as they don't cut too much at a time they'll succeed. What are people going to do? Refuse to vote? That is not a popular viewpoint. People will go along.
The world would be a far better place if David Brooks were placed into a rocket ship and fired at the sun.
Yeah, but what about the Sun? We need the sun, you know!
If I was a young man and know what I know today, I could have prepared better. I have 5 months to go before 'receiving' SS and have no plan if it ever goes away. Oh wait, I could just die. That would please someone, I guess.
Sorry. Forgot to put my name to the above.
Truly, a wise entry. Clearly, the Evil Rethuglicans caused all of Obama's problems. Honestly, all would be well in America if the Evil Rethuglicans would just die already, leaving the Noble Progressives to implement their own variation of what the awful, nauseating Evil Rethuglicans do.
There is no question: Obama is a hero, but the Evil Rethuglicans have thwarted him at every turn.
That right there ^^^^^^^^^^
is why Brooks is wrong. He doesn't go far enough. He doesn't call for the annihilation of the entire Evil Rethuglican Universe.
For me, the case for Obama is captured in one word: "RATS" (Roberts, Alito, Thomas & Scalia).
Obama said repeatedly that he wanted to cut it, so I assume he will.
The platform is full of weaselly language.
If Mr Boggioni can't cut through the denial, I at least looked at the religions - http://downpuppy.blogspot.com/2012/09/2-testaments-1-meathead.html
Brother Downpuppy has finally distilled it all!
http://downpuppy.blogspot.com/2012/09/kiss-up-kick-down-jesus.html
NEVER FORGET
http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/09/09/megan-mcardle-on-the-coming-burst-of-the-college-bubble.html
WHO WILL BE BRAVE ENOUGH TO CLICK THIS FIRST!
I saw that, god help me. Since she has the cover article I guess I should write about it.
Dear god, the pain.
Shorter megan mcardle: the poors shouldn't go to college because the rich need better servants.
And there's video. I have to watch and listen to her now. God hates me.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/09/10/chicago-teachers-take-to-the-picket-line.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thedailybeast%2Farticles+%28The+Daily+Beast+-+Latest+Articles%29
I am scared. She is trying to make up lack of output fast.
http://blogs.reuters.com/felix-salmon/2012/09/10/the-necessity-of-a-college-education/
My post disappeared when my internet went in and out--I'll try again tomorrow.
McArdle responded to Salmon with a bunch of non-sequiters. More "I don't know anything about this but I must be right."
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/09/11/more-on-the-value-of-college.html
There would be a good case for avoiding college, if there weren't so many Megans out there making sure that the working class gets the shaft.
McArdle knows it's a class issue as well as a practical issue. A college graduate has non-monetary advantages over those who do not go to college. And of course she does not discuss the value of improving yourself, learning thinking skills, stretching your mind, learning to navigate a new world. If McArdle does not experience something herself it does not exist.
Vocational schools are all well and good but so many of the good old jobs are gone.
More "I don't know anything about this but I must be right."
Ah, the classic argumentum de intestini Meganii. One of the most powerful in the rhetorician's arsenal.
Susan:
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/09/self-help-books-dressed-up-in-a-lab-coat-.html
Obviously I agree with Poole here, but given that Megan's written a self-help book...
Also, there's a lot of illuminating stuff she admits about herself.
While waiting for Susan to get her fight back, I've been reduced to blogging about a motel -
http://downpuppy.blogspot.com/2012/09/living-my-life-in-slow-hell.html
I've been ill. I'll try to catch up today.
So much stupid. So little time.
"Suddenly I shared the wistful and slightly angry sense of a profound loss of possibility; I too had realized that there was no longer time for me to try another career, take up ballet, or enlist in the military. "
How very tragic for all of us that McMegan did not pursue a military career.
Her own Private Benjamin.
Why not become a chef? Or interior designer? Surely the elite would be successful at anything they do, since they are so intelligent, are such hard workers, and have that special free spirit that can never be crushed by the looters and mooches?
At least you don't have to deal with McMegan's tuition article -
http://downpuppy.blogspot.com/2012/09/20000-views-espectacular.html
Takes care of it.
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