Fed Up American

For The Dumb Fucks That Plan On Voting For A Fraud

2012-01-03T12:59:00.000-06:00

The Obama budget cuts (just a few of them)

$3.5 billion from Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) funding;

$2.2 billion from nonprofit health insurance cooperatives;
...
$600 million from community healthcare centers;

$1 billion from HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and other disease prevention programs;

$1.6 billion from EPA's clean/safe drinking water and other projects;

$950 million from community development grants;

$504 million from nutrition aid for poor Women, Infants, and Children (WIC);

$500 million from education programs;

$390 million from home heating subsidies to the poor, as well as $2.5 billion for the Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) announced in February;

$350 million from labor programs, including grants for community service jobs for seniors;

other social service cuts;

$786 million from FEMA first-responder funding;

$407 million from energy efficiency and renewable energy programs;

$260 million from National Institutes of Health (NIH) medical research;

$127 million from the National Park Service; and

billions less for public infrastructure and transportation spending, while increasing war appropriations by multiples more, including for conquering and controlling Libya.

Moreover, Obama agreed to more draconian FY 2012 cuts and corporate tax breaks as part of a deal to raise the debt ceiling before reaching its mid-May limit. More as well over the next 12 years, including:

$4 trillion overall;

$770 billion from education, environmental, transportation, and other infrastructure cuts, as well as lower wages and benefits for federal workers when they need more, not less;

$480 billion from Medicare and Medicaid, besides another $1 trillion from Obamacare;

$360 billion from mandated domestic programs, including food stamps, home heating assistance, income for the poor and disabled, federal pension insurance, and farm subsidies; and

$400 billion from military-related spending from unneeded weapons, as well as healthcare and other benefits for active service members and veterans.The Obama budget cuts (just a few of them)

$3.5 billion from Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) funding;

$2.2 billion from nonprofit health insurance cooperatives;
...
$600 million from community healthcare centers;

$1 billion from HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and other disease prevention programs;

$1.6 billion from EPA's clean/safe drinking water and other projects;

$950 million from community development grants;

$504 million from nutrition aid for poor Women, Infants, and Children (WIC);

$500 million from education programs;

$390 million from home heating subsidies to the poor, as well as $2.5 billion for the Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) announced in February;

$350 million from labor programs, including grants for community service jobs for seniors;

other social service cuts;

$786 million from FEMA first-responder funding;

$407 million from energy efficiency and renewable energy programs;

$260 million from National Institutes of Health (NIH) medical research;

$127 million from the National Park Service; and

billions less for public infrastructure and transportation spending, while increasing war appropriations by multiples more, including for conquering and controlling Libya.

Moreover, Obama agreed to more draconian FY 2012 cuts and corporate tax breaks as part of a deal to raise the debt ceiling before reaching its mid-May limit. More as well over the next 12 years, including:

$4 trillion overall;

$770 billion from education, environmental, transportation, and other infrastructure cuts, as well as lower wages and benefits for federal workers when they need more, not less;

$480 billion from Medicare and Medicaid, besides another $1 trillion from Obamacare;

$360 billion from mandated domestic programs, including food stamps, home heating assistance, income for the poor and disabled, federal pension insurance, and farm subsidies; and

$400 billion from military-related spending from unneeded weapons, as well as healthcare and other benefits for active service members and veterans.The Obama budget cuts (just a few of them)

$3.5 billion from Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) funding;

$2.2 billion from nonprofit health insurance cooperatives;
...
$600 million from community healthcare centers;

$1 billion from HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and other disease prevention programs;

$1.6 billion from EPA's clean/safe drinking water and other projects;

$950 million from community development grants;

$504 million from nutrition aid for poor Women, Infants, and Children (WIC);

$500 million from education programs;

$390 million from home heating subsidies to the poor, as well as $2.5 billion for the Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) announced in February;

$350 million from labor programs, including grants for community service jobs for seniors;

other social service cuts;

$786 million from FEMA first-responder funding;

$407 million from energy efficiency and renewable energy programs;

$260 million from National Institutes of Health (NIH) medical research;

$127 million from the National Park Service; and

billions less for public infrastructure and transportation spending, while increasing war appropriations by multiples more, including for conquering and controlling Libya.

Moreover, Obama agreed to more draconian FY 2012 cuts and corporate tax breaks as part of a deal to raise the debt ceiling before reaching its mid-May limit. More as well over the next 12 years, including:

$4 trillion overall;

$770 billion from education, environmental, transportation, and other infrastructure cuts, as well as lower wages and benefits for federal workers when they need more, not less;

$480 billion from Medicare and Medicaid, besides another $1 trillion from Obamacare;

$360 billion from mandated domestic programs, including food stamps, home heating assistance, income for the poor and disabled, federal pension insurance, and farm subsidies; and

$400 billion from military-related spending from unneeded weapons, as well as healthcare and other benefits for active service members and veterans.

You Might Be A republicunt IF:

2011-09-21T16:07:00.001-05:00

You think the right to life ends at birth.
You think that corporations have more compassion than humans.
You think trickle down economics actually trickles down.
You understand that getting people to vote on abortion issues will keep you in office and let you pass tax cuts for the upper class
You think that the best way to protect people from illegal drugs is to put them in prison.
You think "compassionate conservatism" is when you feel sorry for the homeless guy sleeping in the gutter as you step over him on your way to a $1000 a plate fundraiser for Tom Delay.
You are opposed to increasing the minimum wage and in favor of repealing taxes on inherited wealth.
You are opposed to Affirmative Action in college admissions and attended a private university as a "legacy."
You really believe that cutting taxes increases government revenues.
You believe in "Liberty and Justice for All" (rich, white, straight men)
You rant and rave about Liberals but have never actually met any.
You actually think that Fox News does not "spin."
You are rotating so fast that you think Fox News is standing still and the rest of the world is spinning.
You dodged the draft during Viet Nam (with Daddy's help) and now you question the courage and patriotism of men who came back with medals (and scars) and understand wars are bad.
You think that a president lying about getting a blowjob is far more serious than a president lying about the reasons for starting a war.
You think it is treasonous for a newspaper to report that the government is lying, using torture, invading someone's privacy or breaking the law but think it's okay for them to expose the identity of a covert CIA agent for partisan purposes.
you think that (compared to you), a whiskey-guzzling, coke-sniffing, draft-dodging loser is the cream of the American crop and the best this country could offer up for President.
You believe you protect freedom by sacrificing it.

LET'S HAVE SOME MORE FOLKS

Too Little Too Late

2011-09-20T12:30:00.001-05:00

Bernie Sez STRENGTHEN Social Security!

2011-09-14T14:31:00.001-05:00

"Social Security is the most successful government program in our nation's history. For 76 years, through good times and bad, Social Security has paid out every benefit owed to every eligible American," Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday told a Capitol press conference. He introduced legislation to keep the retirement program sound for another 75 years. "The most effective way to strengthen Social Security is to eliminate the cap on the payroll tax on income above $250,000. Right now, someone who earns $106,800 pays the same amount of money into Social Security as a billionaire. That makes no sense. The Keeping Our Social Security Promises Act will ensure the long-term solvency of Social Security without cutting benefits or raising taxes on the middle class."

Sanders's measure is cosponsored by Sens. Daniel Akaka, Patrick Leahy, Barbara Boxer, Claire McCaskill, Sheldon Whitehouse, Al Franken and Richard Blumenthal. Rep. Peter DeFazio introduced the companion bill in the House.

Under the proposed legislation, the wealthiest Americans would pay the same payroll tax already assessed on those with incomes up to $106,800 a year. Social Security officials have calculated that the simple change would keep the retirement program strong for another 75 years.

The legislation also follows through on a proposal that President Barack Obama made in 2008 when he was running for the White House.

Since it was signed into law 76 years ago, Social Security has kept millions of senior citizens, widows, widowers, orphans, and the disabled out of poverty. Before Social Security, about half of senior citizens lived in poverty. Today, less than 10 percent live in poverty and more than 53 million Americans receive retirement or disability benefits.

The most successful government program in our nation's history has not contributed one dime to the federal deficit. It has a $2.5 trillion surplus, and it can pay out every nickel owed to every eligible American for at least the next 25 years, according to the Social Security Administration. A recent report from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that Social Security is in even better financial shape and can pay all promised benefits until 2038.

http://sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=63e35be3-17b8-43e6-8fad-6301211a0393

What "Team" Are You On?

2011-09-13T11:18:00.000-05:00

FROM AN EMAIL RECEIVED FROM ALTERNET:

In America, our culture is all about teams -- belonging, being part of something bigger, rooting for your side against the "other" team. There are, of course, many kinds of teams that make up the fabric of America, and we all have our favorites.

And as we know, one of the most powerful ingredients in having a team on your side is having an enemy, the team you love to hate.

Over the past 10 years, mainly as a result of wrong choices after 9-11, the conservative, radical, religious, anti-Muslim, tea-party right has identified itself as a power-hungry, mean-spirited, spiteful, selfish team. And whether we like it or not, we are the "team" they love to hate -- that's right -- you and I are their enemy -- we are the "other." And they have declared war. And they are winning big time.

The richest leader of Team Tea Party, Charles Koch, told his conservative millionaire guests recently that the 2012 elections are a battle "for the life or death of this country." He said, "You, the people in this room, are the modern day patriots who will save this country or let it go by the wayside. It's up to us."
They are the patriots? What a propaganda joke! They want an America for the wealthy. They want our country dominated by conservative religion and the extremist Ayn Rand fanatics. For the Tea Partiers, everyone is on his or her own, except for themselves. They want to take away what millions of Americans have worked for their whole lives. As Koch said, "It is time to tackle the big things, like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security systems, because they are bankrupting America." That is, of course, a blatant lie. And by the way, in that talk, Koch called Barack Obama, “Saddam Hussein.”

Which Team Are You On?

So the big question is: Do you know which team you are on?

Personally, Im on MY side. Im looking out for myself because it seems ONLY I have MY best interests at heart, not the people we elect. PRIMARY OBAMA 2012 - Fed Up
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Let's Make 9/11 A Hallmark Holiday

2011-09-12T11:03:00.000-05:00

Is anyone else sick of the blatant exploitation of Americans killed on September 11, 2001?

I know I sure as hell am. I get how we should "never forget" what happened but the actual event seems cheapened by the media, the public, and OF COURSE the politicians du jour.

We started being fed this shit a month ago (if not longer) and will probably hear about the countless circle jerk memorial services for another month (if not longer) - all while forgetting that Americas reaction to the events of one day that saw near 3,000 people die was more destructive and costly to our country than the actions of a handful of crazy fruitcake bastards.

In the 10 years since we have become a parody of ourselves. Each years kumbayaa moment becomes more grandiose than the year before. We listen and weep as our Presidents (current and past) reflect on how our "freedom and democracy" were attacked that day, yet sugar coat our reaction as being something other than what it truly was - a god damn temper tantrum. And TEN YEARS LATER people are STILL dying. America finds itself in seemingly un-ending wars in the middle east and a near bankrupt economy at home. We find our neighbors at odds and borderline homicidal because of radical divides in our political differences. The political leaders that we elect have anything but our best interests at heart. Corporate greed is turning citizens into indentured slaves.

But I'M the bad guy for not believing in "Mr. Hope and Change" any more.

People need to wake up from their halcyon daze and take back the power we once had. We must remain a thorn in the sides of those we oppose. We need our message in the limelight. As much as we have this 9/11 "feel good" moments we have shoved up our ass every year.
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Whats Your Excuse America?

2011-08-15T09:12:00.000-05:00

What is your excuse America

I'm 70 years old, work two jobs at $10 per hr (no benes) to pay the living expenses. I have diabetes and cardiovascular problems along with fighting depression almost every week. $100 is taken from my monthly $803.00 and $100 is taken from Mr's 940 social security. Rent is $890.00 and we live with broken windows,rotting tile,rotting deck. The city of Puyallup charges us $100 per month for its services, garbage $80 and electricity varies from $100 to $400 in the winter. You brilliant conservative jerks are perfectly happy with cutting heating assistance. Mr is ill with heart problems and freezes in the winter. I do not know how I'm going to pay for the heat/electricity this winter. Now why in the hell do you think I would become depressed? Must be a chemical imbalance right?

Last year the mattress sprung a spring. We slept on it until it was totally unbearable. I bought a used matteress and had a neighbor deliver it to the house. Guess what, it had bed bugs! there is not enough money to have someone come and haul it away nor is there enough money to buy a new mattress that would be sure not to have bed bugs. That is only one reason I detest this country.

Mr. crawled under houses doing plumbing work most of his life at low wages with no retirement. Why didn't we save for retirement you say? Just how clueless are you. After paying the rent,utilities, car repairs, food, doctor bills you REALLY think there is some left over for the luxury of saving for retirement? Much less doctor and dentist bills! Just how clueless can you get?

Two years ago my daughter died from a condition that is preventable from death by proper medical attention. Do you have any idea how I resent having to work with and pay rent/utilites to those who have medical care? What makes you more valuable than her life? Money? Oh I see you had money or health insurance for which you got a tax deduction. I get a tax deduction for nothing and yes I so pay taxes. My land lord gets the tax deduction while I pay for it.

I kindest thing the poor can do for its children is not to have any. That way their soul and spirit would not be damaged. You anti abortionist are damned liars, you think life is so precious, you're not kidding the poor. The well to do can go to Canada or Europe and get an abortion, but not the poor. I think it is because you asshats need cannon fodder for your wars. We know the well to do and powerful do not put their children on the front line to die, but you put our children in the front lines to die protecting your damned corporations.

Do I sound a little angry? Geeze I wonder why. I'm sick of this country, especially when I see the medical needs of developed Europe do not let people needlessly die. doctors and dentist will not let the government train others in these skills in our government to serve the low income people because they might not get every nickel out of those needing their services.

Don't give me this crap about emergency rooms and state dental care. After the emergency room gets through taking you to a collection agency and the state is willing to pull your teeth but not repair the damage done by years of dental damage. Wonderful choices!

Capitalism works? For who? just like slavery worked fine except for the slaves. The poor are one of the most hated groups in this country. Pledge of Allegiance? Forget it, its your country not mine, I just live here. Wait until more jobs are lost. I guess that is what its going to take before we start looking like England and of course we know only the "criminally minded" riot? Just how stupid, compassionless and ignorant can a nation get?
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Welcome To Election Hell

2011-08-14T20:00:00.000-05:00

Welcome to Election Hell

Posted by McCamy Taylor in General Discussion

Welcome to Election Hell. Take off your coat. Make yourself comfortable. And abandon all hope. Forget all the elections you have seen before. The rules are different now.

In 2008, Obama made history by raising over $500 million. In 2012, $500 million will be chump change. Much more will be spent by Super Pacs. The money will come from the world’s billionaires, all of whom stand to make even more billions if they can get the right guy installed as a chairman of the FCC, FDA, FERC etc. For instance, the richest man in the world right now is Carlos Slim Helu from Mexico, whose business is telecom. He is going to be willing a pay a fortune in order to select the next FCC Chair. China will have several Super-Pacs, all with ultra American sounding names, all committed to raiding the Social Security trust fund in order to repay the U.S. debt to China. Saudi Arabia will have a few, too. When you see an ad denouncing global warming as “junk science that kills jobs” you won’t know if it is funded by one of the Koch Brothers or some guy in Dubai. Billions of dollars will flow through these anonymous, unregulated slush funds. Presidential candidates will have to sell their souls----and every single cabinet position---well in advance of the general election if they are going to stay solvent.

And that is just the start.

We may see a Democratic primary challenger---or two or three---who are supported (anonymously) by special interests who want to soften Obama up for the general election. And there will almost certainly be a left wing splitter candidate in the general election who will receive lots of help in the form of TV ads paid for by groups like “Free Weed!” or “Liberals R Us!”. Any potential right wing splitters will be hauled before the Republican House to be grilled until they repent their evil ways. Any attempt by the DOJ to regulate Super-Pacs that break the law will be denounced by the corporate media as “Nixonian style abuse of power”.

In Congressional elections, expect to see some surprising results in Democratic primaries as black horse candidates come out of nowhere, thanks to a last minute blitz of anonymous advertising. There is literally no limit to the amount of money that the GOP can (secretly) funnel to these candidates. They can throw a monkey wrench into every race in the country. No matter how safe your Democratic Representative or Senator may seem in your true blue state, he may lose out to some loser with a criminal record.

And it gets worse. There will probably be at least one phony Super-Pac whose real job will be to solicit contributions from North Korea, Iran etc. and then pretend to spend it “helping” Obama and other Democrats. When Politico breaks the story Hamas caught funding Obama Republicans will be shocked! Shocked I tell you! Oh, and while the banksters are secretly funneling billions of their bailout money to the GOP, they will publicly spend a few million on Obama, so that the so called progressive media can complain how about the president has been bought by Wall Street.

They say $5 billion was spent in 2008 altogether. I expect four times that amount to be spent in 2012. We are talking guys who have so much extra cash lying around they could not spend it in a million lifetimes. And the U.S. elections will be like one big flea market, with all those rich guys looking for bargains.

I would say "I hope I am wrong" but I don't have a lot of hope at this point. Anyone want to try to cheer me up?
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The President Who Wasnt There

2011-08-11T07:52:00.000-05:00

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1710736

I remember a moon lit night in early November of 2008. There were crowds of young and old, white and black and all the shades in between. The people cheered until the downtown Chicago streets reverberated with their enthusiasm. Jesse Jackson cried, and when the cameras panned over his face, collectively, the nation breathed a sigh of relief. We had done what no one in the USA had expected was possible, certainly not in the fifties to the eighties, and certainly not in the nineties, but now in 2008, it was done. The United States of America had elected a black person to assume the nation's highest office.

And the people cheering had one unifying factor - a well spoken, intelligent man, who spoke to Progressives about Progressive issues, who had just torn the nation away from eight years of Republican rule and he did it with:

A SIXTY TWO PERCENT MANDATE
Expectations were high, and most of us who had been around the block a few times certainly understood that Barack Obama couldn't suddenly turn the problems into solutions overnight.

We eagerly awaited the inauguration. And while watching our 44th President take the oath of office and deliver his address to the nation, we heard these words:

"That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly, our schools fail too many -- and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet."

"The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works -- whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account, to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day, because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government."

"Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched. But this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control. The nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity, on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart -- not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good." (Applause.)

"As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers -- (applause) -- our Founding Fathers, faced with perils that we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man -- a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience sake." (Applause.)

President Obama went on to end his speech with these words, an important reminder from days past:

"At the moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words to be read to the people:
"Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive... that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet ."

Everything that the President needed to do was in that speech. Note one word that did not come up, the word that the WH spokesperson stated last Thursday as being the most important guiding principle of the Administration: Compromise.

No on the day that he was elected, President Obama acted Presidential. He laid it out:

1) The nation faces a terrorist threat from outside
2) The economy is weak, because of GREED and IRRESPONSIBILITY
3) He says that: "Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered." So we have an expectation that something will be done about this.
4) In terms of health care reform, his emphasized point is this one: "Our health care is too costly"

But somewhere along the way, President Obama has neglected this fine outline of what needed to be done. Where his speech implies that Greed and Irresponsibility would be put in check by regulations, where it says that the people are suffering a great loss of homes, and jobs, and their businesses too, an expectation is put in place that his policies will protect those interests. Yes, somewhere along the line, in the last thirty months, he decided that colluding with the forces that We The People had tried to place in the dustbin of history was more important.

That compromise with a group of people whose members number less than 18% is more important than holding to the ideals he had run on., That making the progressive base happy was less important than upsetting the Tea Party members, the Republicans, Big Pharma and Big Insurers, Monsanto, and Wall Street and MIC interests.

I will end on this note, his other rather buried statement that is exceptionally important:

"The nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous."

It is time for President Obama to understand what he has done to this nation by forgetting the excellent concepts he had put forth in this speech. He still has another eighteen months in office. Maybe someone who reads this has the ability to wake him up.

Otherwise, the People themselves, armed with the same manner of weapons that they used to obliterate first Old School Candidate Hillary Clinton, and then John McCain, will continue to use Facebook, Twitter and other social networks to continue the message now raging at "Primary Obama." (Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/357529270668/ )

And no one who understands Obama's betrayal can blame them.
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The Party's Over

2011-07-10T07:53:00.000-05:00

Sarah Palin imploded, Beck is essentially gone, Tea Party rallies struggle to fill a phone booth

Posted by Tom Rinaldo in General Discussion

FOX news ratings keep dropping and their owner is neck deep in a major scandal. This is no longer 2010 when American voters decided to give Republicans a chance out of frustration over the economy.

Republicans got that chance and they blew it badly. Newly elected Republican Governors are fighting it out to see who can lose the most voter approval polling points each month, while recall petitions blossom for them and their legislative stooges. There isn't a single Republican Presidential candidate to the left of loony who is generating any grass roots Republican enthusiasm.

Republicans took power in the House of Representatives over the issue of lost jobs, then promptly ignored the economy to focus on "social values" issues and their crusade to strangle government. That included fumbling Republican assaults on two of the most admired government programs in the country, Social Security and Medicare. Meanwhile Republicans continued to hitch their wagon to homophobic outrage while a sea change took place among the electorate in favor of gay marriages. With unemployment stuck at extremely painful high levels, the Republican response boiled down to eliminating the jobs of public workers. The only group of voters who want the national debate to focus on cutting the deficit rather than adding jobs are tea party fanatics who keep shrinking in numbers and loosing support from the public every week.

So how on Earth, with Democrats perfectly positioned to cash in on the electorates buyers remorse over having voted in Republicans last time, after the electorate has vehemently rejected Republican plans to "reform" Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and with Americans clearly demanding more jobs, rather than more belt tightening, how on earth did we end up in this place?

Why is a Democratic Party President agreeing with the increasingly marginalized Right that deficit reduction is the central debate in America, with trillions of dollars of spending cuts now one of his highest priorities? And why the hell did he put Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare back on the table to face cuts when the public emphatically wants those benefits preserved?

My guess would be because he and the elected dem leadership are just as big of fuck ups as their republicunt counterparts.

A Letter To My Creditors - (feel free to copy and send to yours)

2011-06-27T21:21:00.000-05:00

Dear Creditors:

This is to inform you that as of July 1, 2011, I will be temporarily suspending all payments on my current obligations.

Unfortunately this has become necessary because, based on my current contracts, agreements and other necessary spending, I will run out of cash by August 1. While in the past, I have gone to financial institutions or – if necessary – friends and/or family to secure loans in order to stay current, ‘greater minds than mine’ have informed me that these actions have been irresponsible. Even though I have already assumed these obligations, I am advised that I should suspend paying all of my bills until such time as I have formulated a plan that will reduce my level of future spending to the point that outside financing will not be necessary.

This may take a while, as the vast majority of my expenses are for necessities; rent, food, clothing, transportation, health insurance, assault weapons, ammunition, etc. Then, of course, there’s things like phone and internet. While some I have asked feel these are unnecessary luxuries, others tell me they are essential. While I think getting rid of them entirely might actually do more harm than good, as it would greatly hamper any efforts to secure full-time employment, I’ll need to figure out a way to cut these costs.

As for luxuries such as ‘going out once in a while’, I’ve discontinued that – but as I had already cut back significantly, the present savings are minimal.

I had thought about asking my employers to pay more for my services in order to increase my revenue to a level where I might -- along with cutting back on non-essentials such as meat and fresh fruits and vegetables – be able to make ends meet. But again, I have been advised that revenue is not my problem – spending is.

So, since it would be irresponsible of me to pay current obligations and necessary expenses until I have a fiscally responsible plan to avoid future debt in place, as stated above, I will suspend all payments effective July 1, 2011. I am unable to tell you at present when the new plan will be in place, but remain confident it won’t be long, as by August I imagine I’ll be getting pretty hungry.

In the event you don’t hear from me by August 10th, just assume its my way of telling you to GO FUCK YOURSELVES you greedy blood sucking whores.

I remain confident that this necessary action will in no way impact our future business relationships, particularly in areas such as the fees and interest charged on my accounts.

Sincerely,

Fed Up American

cc. The United States House of Representatives
The United States Senate
The White House
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Why The Dems and W.bama Got Their Asses Whupped In 2010

2011-06-23T10:47:00.001-05:00

These are thought about this article

First, apologists for the president and the Democrats rightly claim that their hands are tied: the Republicans just won't let them pass any legislation that might move the economy forward, so their only tools are ineffectual ones such as tax cuts and exhortations to the business community to invest.
But what this account leaves out is that this state of affairs is entirely of the Democrats' creation. Had the White House and the supermajorities the president started out with for two years simply done what the voters asked them to do -- and what the House actually did do with remarkable speed in 2009 -- the Democrats' hands would not be tied today.

.....

Second, by running scared and adopting Republican talking points on economics, Democrats have created a self-fulfilling prophecy. Listening to the same pollster-industrial complex that advised them in 2002 to support George W. Bush's trillion-dollar unfunded bloodbath in Iraq, Democrats have joined with Republicans in offering massive giveaways to millionaires and billionaires and then telling working and middle class Americans that the sky is falling and we (they) have to tighten our (their) belts. Democrats inside the tightened beltway (with the exception of a strong contingent in the House and a dozen or two Senators) appear to have become convinced by the new conventional wisdom in Washington, that Americans aren't really concerned as much about jobs as they are about the deficit.

If you stop and think about it for a moment, that notion is absurd on the face of it. Is it really possible that Americans who have lost their jobs or fear losing them are more worried about an abstraction -- the budget deficit in Washington -- than about the realities of their lives -- that they face a budget deficit around their own kitchen table at the end of every month when they're trying to pay their rent or make their mortgage payment on their rapidly depreciating home?

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That brings us to the third reason so many Democrats have created a third wing of the Republican Party: because they're competing for the same corporate money, which leads them to support the same policies. The major difference between Republicans and Democrats is that virtually all of the Republicans are quite comfortable being bought because it fits their ideology, whereas most of the Democrats who are beholden to one industry or another are conflicted about it -- but not conflicted enough to pass a fair elections bill when they had the chance last year that might have taken away some of the advantages of incumbency but restored integrity to our electoral system.

.....

Americans need a choice again between two parties, not between two strains of Hoover Republicanism.
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Thanks For Creating All These Jobs

2011-06-22T22:00:00.000-05:00

W.bama and the democrats are just as guilty as the republicans on these issues but I felt that since Helene Wexler took the time to compile this list I should have the decency to help spread the word.

Republicans said if they took control of the House of Representatives they would start creating jobs. This is a list of some of the things they’ve done, instead of creating jobs. Click on each example to find a link to an article regarding t...hat issue If you have anything to add, please include it in the comments.

Symbolically read the constitution, skipped parts of it, and also read part of the Declaration of Independence, while still claiming to be reading the constitution.

2 Congressman swore themselves in by watching the swearing-in ceremony on TV, without actually attending. They later had to be sworn in again, and 2 of their votes were deemed invalid since they had not been properly sworn in.

“Symbolically” voted to repeal the healthcare bill. Spent hours debating it beforehand, even though they knew it was purely symbolic and would not become law.

Attempting to de-fund Global Warming research.

Attempting to defund healthcare, which is also mostly symbolic.

Proposed a budget that would cut billions of dollars in aid to the poor, the homeless, and women and children.

Extended the Patriot Act.

Attempted to cut all funding for Planned Parenthood and PBS.

Attempted to redefine rape to no longer include statutory rape, incest rape, or drugged rape.

Cut Pell Grants

Attempting to cut 1 billion dollars from Head Start. This would mean that over 200,000 kids would lose their spots in preschool.

Working on adding guidelines to delay implementation of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell repeal, despite overwhelming support for its repeal.

Proposed a bill that would let a hospitalized pregnant woman die instead of having a life saving abortion, if she needed it.

Holding hearings into “radicalization” in the American Muslim community.

Attempted to cut money to Veterans.

1 married Republican congressman was found to be looking for women on craigslist.

Refused to compromise on a budget and are threatening a Government shutdown, which will put thousands of people out of work.

Made 2 responses to President Obama’s State of the Union Address. Neither of them offered any real solutions to create jobs.

Currently considering privatizing Medicare.

Voted to fund chemical contraception for wild horses, but voted to cut funding for contraception for human women.

Voted to continue spending millions of tax payer dollars to sponsor a NASCAR racecar.

Michelle Bachmann stated she believes Glenn Beck is qualified to solve the budget deficit.

John Boehner has decided to use the Congress to defend DOMA in court, since the Justice Department will no longer defend it.

Voted against letting the last surviving, American, World War 1 veteran be honored in the Capitol building’s rotunda, after he passed away.

John Boehner has said himself that if jobs are lost because of his proposed cuts to the budget “so be it”.

John Boehner has cried excessively over his own personal history, but has not cried once for the millions of Americans who lost their jobs thanks to policies he supported while Bush was President. Policies he still supports.

We have only one political party now in America. Its called republidemocanocrat. Its what happens when the elephant fucks the donkey and its mongoloid offspring fucks America.

To My Fellow Democrats

2011-06-21T10:39:00.000-05:00

There is nothing of "purity" in what I want from Obama (and Democrats in general)!

I need the policies that will stop the slide into poverty for my family and friends.

I am only asking for: what we used to have in this country. Not asking for anything new. Nothing. Not a thing.

I am asking Obama to merely step away from radical Right Wing policies. I want the dis-mantling of the social safety net to cease.

Stepping back from radicalism isn't ideological purity. I am not asking him to get body piercings, ride a Vespa or invite Iggy Pop to the White House.

And the casual, and continual tossing of the "P" word most likely just demonstrates that some here at DU are living in a more privileged America than I am. What's "pure" is the destruction of my blue-collar world.

Some still have the luxury of seeing (the already completed) destruction of that world and the (continuing) destruction of the middle-class as interesting little details in the Grand Game of political sport..

But it may just be a matter of time before y'all are kicked out of your cubicles and join my desperate friends in the endless lines at the Job Center.

Please stop attacking those who are suffering! You don't tri-angulate with destruction and ruin!

Just to be clear. The Democrats that I have defended, voted for, worked

and donated money to stood for the things that Democrats before us accomplished.

Things like:

8-hour workday

Social Security

Minimum Wage law

G.I. Bill of Rights

Marshall Plan

NATO

Peace Corps

Medicare

Medicaid

Operation Head Start

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Voting Rights Act of 1965

Water Quality Act

First Man on the Moon

Women's Suffrage Amendment

Worker's Compensation Act

Unemployment Compensation Act

Rural Electrification Act

FDIC

Securities and Exchange Act

Guaranteed Student Loan Program

FMLA

School Lunch Program

Motor Voter Act

Davis-Bacon Act

Yes, these are ACCOMPLISHMENTS that benefited the common person in this country. The ones that ELECTED Democrats fought for and achieved.

I am hereby drawing my line in the sand that ANY Democrat that seeks to dismantle, change, or otherwise corrupt the work that REAL Democrats before them achieved...will NOT get my vote.

I don't care how high of an office they are.

We have never been the party of tearing down...we have always been the party of building.

If you...as an elected Democrat feel the need to tear down rock solid Democratic values, please do us ALL a favor and cross the aisle and join your brethren who ONLY believe in the betterment of the corporations and give US our fucking party back so we can get the real work done and HELP...not HURT.

So when you cry foul to the things I post and whine about me not supporting W.bama, a President that I helped elect, I politely say O FUCK YOURSELVES. I do NOT subscribe to your ridiculous hive mentality. I vote based on principles and progressive values.

Why the fuck dont you?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1332482

Congress Sues W.bama To End War

2011-06-15T12:37:00.000-05:00

AWESOME!!!

Congress Members Sue Obama to End War

Posted by davidswanson in General Discussion

On Wednesday in federal court, 10 members of the U.S. Congress sued President Obama in an attempt to end U.S. involvement in a war in Libya.

These are the plaintiffs: Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), Walter Jones (R-NC), Howard Coble (R-NC), John Duncan (R-TN), Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD), John Conyers (D-MI), Ron Paul (R-TX), Michael Capuano (D-MA), Tim Johnson (R-IL), and Dan Burton (R-IN).

According to a statement from Congressman Kucinich:

"The lawsuit calls for injunctive and declaratory relief to protect the plaintiffs and the country from (1) the policy that a president may unilaterally go to war in Libya and other countries without a declaration of war from Congress, as required by Article I, Section 8, Clause 11 of the United States Constitution; (2) the policy that a president may commit the United States to a war under the authority of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in violation of the express conditions of the North Atlantic Treaty ratified by Congress; (3) the policy that a president may commit the United States to a war under the authority of the United Nations without authorization from Congress; (4) from the use of previously appropriated funds by Congress for an unconstitutional and unauthorized war in Libya or other countries; and (5) from the violation of the War Powers Resolution as a result of the Obama Administration’s established policy that the President does not require congressional authorization for the use of military force in wars like the one in Libya."

I would have liked to see the Kellogg-Briand Pact and the United Nations Charter extend that list to seven items, but doing so would probably not have altered the result. What will the result be?

During the 70 years since Congress last declared war, the congressional authorizations of war have grown weaker, vaguer, and broader, but the Libya War has set a new mark by excluding Congress entirely. Courts have also tried to claim that even wars never explicitly authorized by Congress become constitutional once Congress funds them. For years now, we've watched congressional "critics" and "opponents" of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan vote over and over again to dump hundreds of billions of dollars into them. The Libya War, here too, sets a new mark: Congress has not authorized a dime for it.

Courts, nonetheless, might be inclined to do the very same thing Congress does on these matters: pass the buck. Congress, a court might argue, has the power to declare a war over, to forbid the spending of funds on it, and/or to impeach its architect. Congress has done nothing of the sort. A growing number of senators is writing a letter to the president. "My kids have done that," a judge might remark. The House has held a vote on a resolution to end the war and failed to pass it. The House has attached amendments to two different bills forbidding funds from those bills being used for the Libya War, but those bills have yet to pass the Senate, and funds can come through other bills. The House, sadly, passed another amendment to one of those bills that would effectively transfer the powers of warmaking to presidents. Even once those bills pass, they might have to be applied retroactively to impact this case. The House has also passed a non-binding resolution expressing its concern that the Libya War has never been authorized, but failing to do anything about it. I don't know on which side of this case that odd resolution will provide support, if either.

Let's assume, however, that the courts do not try to pass the buck back to Congress. Is the Libya War illegal?

I spoke to a college class Tuesday night, and one student asked me if I wasn't being extremist or tactless by calling a war, and in fact all war, illegal. But "illegal" is not a derogatory description like "fat" or "ugly." "Illegal" has a very precise meaning. It means that an action violates written laws. The current war violates the Kellogg-Briand Pact, which under Article VI of the US Constitution is the supreme law of the land. It violates the UN Charter which holds the same status. It also, in its conduct, almost certainly violates the terms of a UN resolution that is being used to justify it. But let's look at the five points the court will look at:

(1) the policy that a president may unilaterally go to war in Libya and other countries without a declaration of war from Congress, as required by Article I, Section 8, Clause 11 of the United States Constitution;

This was the clear meaning of the Constitution, and overwhelmingly its interpretation both by those who wrote it and by those who used and studied it through most of US history. The catch is the past 70 years of history. If a law is violated routinely for 70 years, must it or can it or should it be enforced?

(2) the policy that a president may commit the United States to a war under the authority of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in violation of the express conditions of the North Atlantic Treaty ratified by Congress;

The North Atlantic Treaty affirms the UN Charter, and the UN Charter forbids war. But if that were the argument that the plaintiffs intended, wouldn't they have listed the UN Charter? Presumably, they intend to rely on the North Atlantic Treaty itself, Article I of which states: "The Parties undertake, as set forth in the Charter of the United Nations, to settle any international dispute in which they may be involved by peaceful means in such a manner that international peace and security and justice are not endangered, and to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force in any manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations." But there the defense can point to the UN resolution used to launch the war, and it will become necessary to point out that the United Nations passed a resolution for a humanitarian intervention, a no fly zone, a cease fire, an arms embargo, and a ban on foreign ground troops, but it was immediately used to bomb civilians, introduce arms, and employ foreign ground troops, not to mention drone bombings and an apparent assassination attempt. But if that were the argument the plaintiffs intended, wouldn't they have listed the UN resolution on Libya? Perhaps they intend to argue that the North Atlantic Charter permits only wars in response to an attack on a NATO member, and that no NATO member was attacked. Fair enough. But the War Powers Resolution (see #5) is also only applicable if the United States is attacked, and everyone simply pretends otherwise, including presumably this lawsuit.

(3) the policy that a president may commit the United States to a war under the authority of the United Nations without authorization from Congress;

Here we return to the same ground as point #1 above. The Constitution says one thing. The historical precedent, including President Clinton's actions in the former Yugoslavia, say something else. Again, does violation of a law serve to permit future violation of a law?

(4) from the use of previously appropriated funds by Congress for an unconstitutional and unauthorized war in Libya or other countries;

Congress has appropriated incomprehensibly vast sums of money for the military and for secret budgets. President Bush the Lesser gave himself and his successor(s) the power to secretly transfer funds to secret budgets. The CIA has been given the "legal" if unconstitutional power to do just about anything it wants, and to keep what it does secret. One result of that could be that this case is conducted in secret or is shut down due to secrecy concerns. Obama authorized the CIA to arm Libyan fighters, and the CIA has been on the ground in Libya since before the official launch of the US/NATO war. It would not be surprising to hear from the US Justice Department as early as today the cry of "state secrets privilege." NATO might also serve as a money laundering operation here; once funds are handed over to NATO, it could be argued they are beyond US law.

(5) from the violation of the War Powers Resolution as a result of the Obama Administration’s established policy that the President does not require congressional authorization for the use of military force in wars like the one in Libya.

Clearly the Libya War is illegal under the War Powers Resolution. Either it is illegal because the United States was not attacked. Or it is illegal because required information has not been reported to Congress. Or it is illegal because it has gone on for over 60 days without a declaration or authorization of war. In no case is it legal.

The same might be said of the unmentioned Kellogg-Briand Pact. That pact bans war. This is a war. It is not a war that fits the exception for an attack on the United States, because Libya did not attack the United States or even threaten to or even attack or threaten to attack any US ally or imperial outpost. In no case is the war legal.

Unless it's not a war but something else, which is another argument we might see. There is a lot at stake in the question of whether dozens of small and even unmanned killing operations around the world are wars or something else. And if they are something else, do we have any laws that apply to them?

Laws are what people choose to make of them. So is Congress. Whether or not this lawsuit succeeds, for Congress to continue to exist as the first branch of our government, it will have to stop deferring to the judicial branch and instead stand on its own two feet.

On June 3rd the House blocked a resolution to end the war by passing a toothless resolution asking that all sorts of information be provided by the President within 14 days. That comes due this Friday. It would not be shocking if the President missed the deadline or failed to actually include much of the requested information.

The House could then pass the resolution it rejected two weeks ago, ending the war. Or it could pass one barring the use of any funds for the war. Either such measure would have to be passed by the Senate as well.

The House on its own could simply refuse to appropriate any funds for the war. The Senate would not be needed. But thus far the House has already done that, and the funds have simply been found elsewhere in the President's imperial pockets. This is why the decision on point #4 above is extremely important.

In the end, the continued meaningful existence of the House rests on the impeachment power. Bruce Fein has already drafted articles of impeachment for Obama over Libya. But the impeachment power was effectively removed during the presidencies of Clinton and Bush. Its revival does not appear imminent.
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Who Is The Worse?

2011-06-13T17:19:00.001-05:00

NBA versus NFL - u gotta love this..........

Even if you aren't a sports fan this is very interesting!

36 have been accused of spousal abuse,
7 have been arrested for fraud,
19 have been accused of writing bad checks,
117 have directly or indirectly

bankrupted at least 2 businesses,
3 have done time for assault,

71, I repeat 71!!! cannot get a credit card due to bad credit,
14 have been arrested on drug-related charges, 8 have been arrested for shoplifting,
21 currently are defendants in lawsuits,
and
84 have been arrested for drunk driving in the last year !!!

Can you guess which organization this is?

NBA? NFL?

Give up yet?

Neither!

It's the 535 members of the United States Congress

The same group of Idiots that crank out hundreds of new laws each year designed to keep the rest of us in line.
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America CANNOT Fix Itself

2011-06-10T12:36:00.000-05:00

Do you know why America can't fix itself?

Posted by MrScorpio in General Discussion

It's because we make a national pastime of kicking people when they're down. One bad break brings a lot more insults to injuries. It doesn't matter what "side" you're on. All sides do it gleefully.

Make a mistake and you're toast.

Lose your job, get a minor conviction, get caught doing something that you otherwise shouldn't be doing and you might as well hang yourself. Because you're going to fall off the planet, at least where this country is concerned. Once you're shit outta luck, there are lots of people who can exploit your shit-outta-luckness with a very lucrative and perfectly legal business model.

Hell, you don't even have to screw up… All you need to have done to you is to be classified as an "outsider". Then you're NEVER legit.

Disenfranchising voter rolls, mass round ups of undocumented workers, denigrating public servants and private sector community workers… It's all part of the game.

When people are classified as "useless" and kicked to the curb en masse, then a cycle starts that never stops…

We can never stop looking for Wiccans to immolate. Too much fun!

The rest of us, we're scared of being next. Which is exactly how the big boys love to have us.

Besides we shouldn't ask for whom the fiery stake burns, right? For at any given time, it could burn for us.

So, I don't apologize for taking sides and staying loyal… After all, I'm a Scorpio, that's how we roll. I stick with Democrats and have done so all my life, even when they screw up. At least I have a side to stick with. When a Democrat is down, I'd rather pick him or her up. I'd rather be a friend and lend a hand up, instead of someone who turns his back. What embarrasses me isn't what someone else does, it would be if I turned my back on a friend.

I don't think that I could look at myself in the mirror if I did that.

Which is why it bothers me that the same goes for the poor, the unemployed, the person paying back their debt to society and the people who are trying to make a better life for their families even if they have to cross some artificial border, and the cheer squad is always out to get them. The chorus is happy to say, " Gimme an F ...u ...c ...k ...'e ...m ...a ...l ...l. What does that spell? FUCK 'EM ALL!" Nothing leaves and emptiness in the pit of my soul like shit like that.

I'd rather look for the best possible deal for everyone, rather than cheering on the select few genetic lottery winners, as they roll their loaded dice and win again.

I figure that we're all better off when we're ALL better off.

If we want to turn this country around, we should all be a bit more loyal to ourselves and look out for each other, instead of promoting the rich fuckers who are getting even richer by getting us all to fuck each other over… And cheering about it.
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How To Fix Our Ecoomy

2011-06-05T09:02:00.000-05:00

There is much gnashing of teeth today as we realize that following Herbert Hoover policie for the past few years (giving even more money to the wealthiest and scraps to the rest) has not turned the economy around: indeed, we seem to be taking another turn for the worse. Real unemployment (as measured prior to Clinton's re-jiggering) continues to be stuck at almost 20%, and we lost many jobs last month after accounting for population growth.

20% FUCKING PERCENT!!!

So what do we need to turn this sucker around? We need money in the hands of working Americans. The data clearly show that if you give a dollar to a rich person it just goes into the bank: indeed, the wealthy and corporations are sitting on unprecedented piles of cash already, when we give them more money they just make those piles bigger.

Give a dollar to a working person, they spend it on stuff. Food. Clothing. Cars. Appliances. Housing and renovations.

There are multiple ways to get money into the hands of working Americans:

1. We can cut their taxes. Do you know that the median American pays twice as much in taxes (as a percentage of income) as they did during the economic boom years of the 1950s and 1960s? (The wealthiest Americans pay two-thirds less than they did back then). Of course, we should also restore taxes on the wealthiest to historical levels, so as to keep funding government.

2. We can have a middle class bailout, a jobs program like FDR got started. If it's anywhere near the size of the bailout that the bankers got (trillions of dollars in gifts and loans, with no important strings attached), then we would be in much better shape. In FDR's first four years as President, unemployment halved and GDP increased 8% per year.

3. We can forgive debt, or lower usurious interest rates that many pay on credit card and other debt.

That's it. that's what we need to do.

Now we hear, from both parties, that we need to cut government spending. This will mostly cut spending on working Americans, which will fuck the economy up worse. The cuts have already started, and we see that the result is the economy heading down for another dip. Al while the almighty savior, the poster child for hope and change, CONTINUES the failed policies that got us into this mess. This is madness. W.bama has done NOTHING - not a mother fucking thing - to turn the American economy around.

Yet his moronic supporters make any excuse they can to avoid facing the reality that their mesiah is nothing but a Trojan horse with a huge hairy Bush.

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Too Sick And Poor To Be Sick And Poor

2011-05-30T21:33:00.000-05:00

There’s poor. And then there’s poor.

The members of the second group know what I’m talking about. You are Too Poor to be “Sick and Poor” in America, when you qualify for government funded insurance, but you only have two dollars in your pocket and the co-payments for the three asthma drugs you need will cost you thirty dollars--- make that twelve, if you take your prescription to Wall-mart, which is still ten dollars more than you have right now. Monday through Friday, a social worker can get you a voucher so you don’t have to pay that thirty dollar fee, but today is Saturday. And there is a holiday weekend coming up. Too bad the poor are not allowed to take a holiday from being poor in celebration of Memorial Day. Did I mention that the woman with only two dollars and the bad lungs is a veteran?

You are Too Poor to be “Sick and Poor” in America, when you find out your co-payment to see your doctor will now be twenty-five dollars. That extra fifteen dollars was supposed to be your gas money---your city, which is one of the largest in the state, still does not have a bus, even though it has helped pay for two stadiums. So, now you have a choice. Drive to your doctor’s clinic, but do not get seen because you can not pay your part of the bill. Or, stay at home and use the twenty-five dollars to make a payment on your $20,000 “burial” insurance policy. Too bad you live in a community property state in which your spouse will be forced to hand over that $20,000 to your creditors when you die---creditors in this case, being the credit card company which you had to use to pay for all the extras that your health insurance did not cover. You, my friend, are too poor to get buried in America.

You are Too Poor to be “Sick and Poor” in America, when you can not get Social Security benefits for your many health conditions, because you are too poor to get the tests that would confirm that you have the problems which you know that you have, like sleep apnea, a pinched nerve in your back, emphysema and a bad heart. You’ll have to wait until two years after your first stroke to qualify for Medicare. Just be sure to go to a hospital when your right side goes numb and you lose the ability to talk. If you try to weather it at home, to avoid tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills, and if your symptoms eventually get better, then the stroke never happened, as far as Social Security is concerned.

You are Too Poor to be “Sick and Poor” in America, when you have to sign up for a Medicare managed care plan, because that’s the only way you can afford your prescriptions, but none of the doctors on your so called Medicare Advantage plan are taking new patients right now, so you can’t get a prescription for the drugs that you can now afford.

You are Too Poor to be “Sick and Poor” in America, when you do not have a photo ID to prove you are who you say you are when you go to the doctor’s office. The government is too broke to give away your indigent healthcare to some other poor person. It gave all our tax money to the banks, including the one that owns your medical debt that you can never write off, because real Americans do not get something for nothing and if they make bad economic decisions---like suffering a heart attack they could not afford---- they have to pay the consequences.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/McCamy%20Taylor/586
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republicans Are Psychopaths

2011-05-29T14:22:00.000-05:00

Wikipedia lists a number of behavioral items looked for in the diagnosis of psychopathy.

As I read them, it struck me that a surprising number of these items, especially the ones under "Factor 1", appear to apply to politicians ESPECIALLY the republicans of today that we are all so weary of.

Here are the factors. What do you think?

Factor 1
Aggressive narcissism
Glibness/superficial charm
Grandiose sense of self-worth
Pathological lying
Cunning/manipulative
Lack of remorse or guilt
Emotionally shallow
Callous/lack of empathy
Failure to accept responsibility for own actions

Factor 2
Socially deviant lifestyle
Need for stimulation/proneness to boredom
Parasitic lifestyle
Poor behavioral control
Promiscuous sexual behavior
Lack of realistic, long-term goals
Impulsiveness
Irresponsibility
Juvenile delinquency
Early behavioral problems
Revocation of conditional release

Traits not correlated with either factor
Many short-term marital relationships
Criminal versatility

I can point out some of these same traits used by the Democrats too. One in particular that occupies the White House currently.
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Does Anyone See A Pattern Here?.

2011-05-28T13:14:00.000-05:00

There's a phrase in the working world that drives me crazy. One guy says, "The money's not great, but I love my job." And somebody responds, "Hey, happiness is all that really matters."

Yet these are the same people that go on and on about how much their job sucks. Which logically would mean that these people are happy with being miserable, because you cant bitch so much about something and NOT be miserable right?

Does anyone see a pattern here?.

So its further stands to reason that in order to become more happy they need to increase their level of misery. They accomplish this by "taking a stand" on certain political issues and they seek out others of opposing views and try to appear more sophisticated than them by reducing the opposing view to the ridiculous. Each side is playing the same game and one rarely switches sides so all it is is a bitch fest
But, THANKFULLY only our side has it right and the other guys are completely off the charts crazy and THEY are the reason America is so fucked up. ALL of this misery makes them more and more happy.

Does anyone see a pattern here?.

So we go shopping. Even if we cant afford to. We spend money that we dont have because we get to go into debt. AWESOME!!! This means we might have to get a second or third job to help me feel more miserable/happy because there are few jobs available IF ANY so it affects my health now with headaches, ulcers and high blood pressure but who REALLY cares about that anyway because who the heck has health care coverage anyway?

Does anyone see a pattern here?.

And as if things aren't fucked up enough, to compound our misery which in turn increases our level of happiness we elect lying greedy bastard politicians instead of people that do what they said they would do on the campaign trail. We judge the people by not what they say they will do but instead on their affiliations. We actually know very little about the people running for office and quite a few of us dont even bother to vote. But we STILL bitch and moan about things because it makes us happy.

Does anyone see a pattern here?.

Is it any wonder why America is so fucked up?
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Better Than Nothing

2011-05-04T09:53:00.000-05:00

I read a report today that there were 179,000 jobs released by the private sector in April.

Upon further investigation I discovered that the vast majority were jobs paying less than $10 per hour. Hardly an income that can sustain more than an entry level booger picker. These jobs are merely designed to enslave the worker to their corporate masters so I say BIG FUCKING DEAL!

Now I can hear my critics saying "well its better than nothing" to which I reply BULLSHIT!

Try telling your landlord/mortgage company or any other company that sends you a bill that you can only afford to pay half of their bill and that your payment is "better than nothing" and see how far that gets you. Or go fill up your gas tank and only give the station owner $20 and tell him HEY ITS BETTER THAN NOTHING.

Get my point?

Americans have been turned into indentured slaves by settling for abuse by their corporate masters. This is no ones fault other than the worker who accepts this abuse. Much like a beaten and battered woman that stays in an abusive relationship despite getting her ass kicked by her asshole mate for breathing the wrong way. The abuse stops when you remove yourself from an abusive situation.

So you may ask what your alternative is. PLENTY!

Its time to stat thinking outside the box. Freelance our talents. Work your passion. TOP MAKING EXCUSES and break the chains that not only bind you financially but also bind your brain.

Remember that America was NOT formed by the corporate masters but the small business OWNER that writes his own ticket.
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Whats The Big Deal?

2011-05-02T12:04:00.001-05:00

Ding dong the witch is dead....

I LOVE watching the stupid Americans on TV singing The National Anthem, The Star Spangled Banner or that moronic Na Na Song - jumping around like crazed sports fans after a playoff victory - with the news that Osama bin Laden has been killed by our mighty military.

But really WTF is all the celebrating about?

Will America withdraw military forces and cease occupation of foreign lands at the taxpayer expense?

Can we now avert funds that have paid for these wars to go towards funding much ignored and seriously maligned projects in America now?

Will we stop being molested when we chose to fly?

Can we stop being afraid of our shadow fearing a terrorist around every corner?

Or are we STILL going to be afraid? Molested? Broke?

So REALLY - WTF is the celebration about? Sure we finally caught up to the big bad wolf responsible for 9/11. BIG DEAL! It will NOT bring back the dead. It will NOT rebuild buildings. It will NOT repair ANY of the damage done.

Not to mention the incredible story my suspicious self conjures up that, upon further thought, does not seem all that far fetched. I had my doubts that bin Laden was alive and had been dead for years. He was just a face to put on the reasons for war. How convenient it was for American military to give the body a nice burial at sea.

How convenient it will be for W.bama to use this to catapult him into his second term.

Im just not buying the whole story. After eight years of bush and now two plus of "Mr Hope and Change" Im not in a trusting mood when it comes to my government. I guess I wanted to see the body paraded around the streets of America so I too could become one of those merry makers - feeling good about each other and being American. Hugging my neighbor in the ultimate kumbaya moment.

But I cant. Reality does not permit it.
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Get Up Stand Up

2011-04-26T10:51:00.000-05:00

How Americans Can Get Up and Stand Up

Posted by davidswanson in General Discussion

In December 2009, psychologist Bruce Levine published an article at Alternet called "Are Americans a Broken People?" His timing couldn't have been better. Americans of good will and bad analysis were suffering a severe fit of Obamanation withdrawal. The article was reposted everywhere, commented on endlessly, and responded to voluminously. (This was my response.) Levine has now developed his article into an important book called "Get Up, Stand Up."

Setting aside the particular burst of raging defeatism that has swept through the ranks of borderline Democratic Party loyalists who had placed their hopes in the Savior of 2008, there was always a problem. We had sat on our hands through blatantly stolen elections. We shrank the peace movement as wars grew less popular. We watched the government hand our grandchildren's unearned pay to Wall Street in the biggest theft ever committed, and while a majority of us "opposed" it, almost nobody did a goddamn thing about it. The labor movement won't engage in serious production-halting strikes, being too busy rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. Wal-Mart shoppers trample people to death for cheap televisions and refuse orders to disperse, but crowds protesting enormous crimes pen themselves in free-speech cages, while airport travelers meekly submit to gropings and pornoscans, and the natural environment is being deliberately and methodically destroyed for all time before our knowing but glassy eyes. There's a long-standing lack in our society of whatever it is that causes other societies to not put up with this kind of shit.

Let's set some other things aside for the moment. We need a lot of reforms to the structure of our country. Political bribery should be criminalized, union organizing should be legalized, the media cartel should be broken up, the two political parties should be broken up, etc. We need better leadership in activist campaigns, which should stop bowing down before the Democratic Party, selling out, and opposing aggressive nonviolent disruption of business and murder as usual. I believe those are all hugely important topics. Activist energy is being misdirected and under-utilized all the time. It also exists in far greater measure than the corporate media tells us, adding to the importance of creating a useful communications system. But Levine's topic, which does not necessarily exclude or dismiss any others, is the state of the individual U.S. activist, or inactivist as the case may be.

When a group of people gives President Obama $76,000 in order to politely protest his criminal policies for a couple of minutes, there is something wrong with their strategy. But there is probably something wrong in their souls as well. And everyone else in the room who stands by embarrassed that people would bring up the topic of torture: are they healthy? And the hundreds of millions of people doing nothing and telling each other that nothing can be done? There may not be a purely systemic solution to their mental damage. There may be something broken inside them. They may need to be cured of some strain of bubonic babbittry or corporatocritis. And there may or may not be a cure.

I've struggled with how to answer what I think of as the "But why don't we all just kill ourselves?" questions that really started coming up in speaking events in 2009. In the guise of asking a question of an author, people cough defeatism all over the room by declaring everything hopeless and citing some of the supposed reasons why. How does one respond? Telling people they're mentally damaged doesn't seem an ideal solution. Telling people success is right around the corner is dishonest and unpersuasive. I'd prefer ultimately to see people able to do what needs doing and enjoy it regardless of whether success is visible on the horizon or not. I'd like to see us motivated by morality. Similarly, I think the peace movement's focus on the damage wars do to Americans is off-track, as U.S. wars do ever less damage to Americans while killing ever more people. Unless we learn to care about non-Americans, our military will destroy the world. But how do we get to the point where people are motivated by morality, or even by a combination of morality, expectation of success, excitement, solidarity, and peer pressure? The same facts can prove that change is hopeless or guaranteed; the choice comes from inside each person. How do we make it the right one?

This is where Levine's book begins to point us in some very useful directions. We need to develop individual self-respect and collective self-confidence, Levine writes. We need to unite as anti-authoritarians, regardless of other differences. We need to learn from immigrant groups that have been least infected by our culture of disempowerment. Many factors are working against us: long work hours, lack of health care, and lack of job security or home security. Psychologists now drug people who display signs of anti-authoritarianism, which is treated as a crime. Our prisons are packed with some of our society's most rebellious, and therefore useful, members. We're administered every greater doses of television, which is ruinous regardless of the content:

"Researchers confirm that, regardless of the programming, viewers' brainwaves slow down, transforming them closer to a hypnotic state. That's part of the explanation for why it's so hard to turn the television off even when it's not enjoyable -- we have become pacified by it."

While watching all that television, we fail to talk to each other and build friendships. Increasingly, Americans live alone and lack confidants, something online social media provide only a false sense of. If we had more friends we would be more active citizens. We have learned helplessness, writes Levine, comparing us to a group of dogs in an experiment who were conditioned to believe they could not escape an electric shock and who then failed to escape even when an easy way out was made available.

We also feel helpless because we are. Increasingly, Americans do not know how to grow their own food or even cook their own food, repair their car or their plumbing, or otherwise survive without expert assistance. This, too, teaches inactivism. We're in debt, including student debt, which tends to make people less challenging of their employers. We also feel spied on because we are, by both our employers and the government, and even by family members. We're trained to value money and to put a price on everything. We're conditioned to identify with the Wall Street gang that’s robbing us blind. We're taught in school to be elitist and, above all, obedient. And if we're not, we're diagnosed with "Oppositional Defiant Disorder." U.S. psychologists once invented a disease with which to blame slaves for escaping. They now have diseases for activism.

According to Levine we are in an abusive relationship with corporatocracy, and the abuse has been made to seem normal. Obsession with money and consumption and greed has been normalized. Banks foreclosing on people's homes is viewed as a natural force or a law of physics, not an immoral act by a bunch of bankers. We must start seeing through lies and treating horrors we have come to accept as horrors to be resisted. We must, Levine writes, forgive ourselves for believing the lies, stop allowing the corporatocracy to define us, and form relationships with other survivors.

Most people think,
Great god will come from the skies,
Take away everything
And make everybody feel high.
But if you know what life is worth,
You will look for yours on earth:
And now you see the light,
You stand up for your rights.

We need to build social connectedness, and to raise children and young people with self-respect. This means that parents and teachers have a special role in developing citizens capable of activism. This also means that our salvation is years away -- unless we can find therapy for adults. Levine is a psychologist who often finds his patients to have been misdiagnosed with a medical problem when their problem is political:

"I have counseled hundreds of young people and adults who had been previously labeled with oppositional defiant disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, substance abuse, depression, schizophrenia, and other psychiatric diagnoses. What strikes me is how many of these people are essentially anti-authoritarians."

Essentially. Meaning they're built that way. They're what our society needs to fight off the virus of tyrannical plutocracy, and yet we remove them with drugs, prisons, and coercion. Levine tells parents that coercing an anti-authoritarian child is counterproductive:

"I ask them if they would try to coerce their homosexual child into being heterosexual or vice versa, and most say, 'Of course not!' And so they begin to see that temperamentally anti-authoritarian children cannot be similarly coerced without great resentment."

What if we didn't? What if we were all raised ideally and the prison walls came tumbling down? Then what? Then populists should unite across the lines of non-corporatist issues, those things like abortion and guns that the corporatocracy takes no position on. They should organize, win small victories, and develop confidence. They should learn from current examples of success, which my Email box is drowning in but I never find in the newspaper. They should learn from past successes: Levine recommends Lawrence Goodwyn's book "The Populist Moment," as do I, for its account of the building of a mass movement at the end of the nineteenth century.

Our movement should not begin or end or necessarily be involved at all in electoral politics. Every campaign and tactic should be evaluated for whether it builds individual self-respect and collective self-confidence. The answer to the ubiquitous question "Who can run against Obama for us?" should not be a list of names. There are thousands of qualified candidates. The answer is that we should build a confident and militant movement that will challenge the corporatocracy. The replacement or reform of politicians will follow.

"A major role of the US government in a corporatocracy," writes Levine, "is to deflect people's anger from the corporate elite. The corporate elite need elected officials to be taken seriously by the populace. Thus, a demonstration against government is actually a statement that the people are taking their elected officials seriously, which is exactly what the corporate elite want, though of course the elite don't want demonstrations to actually alter government policy in ways that negatively affect the elite."

Immigrants rights marches in 2006, Levine recalls, blocked bad legislation in Congress. But the corporatocracy was neutral or on the side of the immigrants. The civil rights marches of the 1960s were more effective than the anti-war marches, Levine argues, because the corporatocracy backed the war but not segregation. I would argue that the anti-war marches eventually helped end the war nonetheless. Levine points to the work of groups that are using direct action and public shaming of banks to prevent foreclosures as a way to win small victories and develop activists. I'm inclined to agree. I may not be aware of the extent to which my background of having experienced countless victories by ACORN before ACORN was destroyed has made me immune to defeatism and hopium withdrawal.

I'm thrilled to see the independent activism of campaigns like USUncut going after the corporatocracy, even though I wonder whether saving particular houses wouldn't build more activism than holding PR protests, protests that send a message more than they actually interfere with business and robbery as usual. I also favor targeting Congress in ways that may not lead to immediate or complete victory but inspire people through how much fun they are and how clearly they communicate the problem. Imagine if everyone who needs a job showed up at Congress with a resume in hand: http://briefcasebrigades.org Imagine if online organizing, while detached and isolating, promoted independent and empowering messages that could then be taken into real communities: http://rootsaction.org

Levine recommends learning from planned communities and withdrawing from the corporate economy, considering the possibilities for state secession, and as long as our government won't make education free avoiding -- if possible -- the disempowering student-debts that come with university degrees. In 2001, he points out, MIT put 1,900 of its courses online for free. Most college education comes from books, and books can be had without the colleges. Levine recommends foreign travel and volunteer work. He praises collective businesses and farms. But he is not so much preaching escapism and false purity as he is counseling therapeutic preparation for the struggles people seem unable to take on, struggles we could quite easily win if we had our heads on straight.

If We Never Elected W.bama

2011-04-12T10:22:00.000-05:00

Why, if we hadn't elected W.bama

......we might have had a president who refused to roll back taxes on the wealthy, who refused to establish a windfall profits tax on oil companies, who refused to investigate activities carried out by telecom companies who illegally helped the government tap our phones, and who continued to tap phones without a warrant, who would have turned his back on Miranda, who would refuse to investigate any of the Bush Admin. lies, incompetence, corruption or torture, who would support anti-democratic, murderous coup regimes in Central America, who might refuse to restore Habeas Corpus, who would have left Guantanamo open indefinitely and maintain that its inmates had no rights at all, who might have continued extraordinary rendition and torture, who might have fought to keep Dick Cheney's remarks to Plame investigators secret, who would have done nothing of substance to rein in Wall St., who would have continued to issue signing statements, who might have continued to delay investigations of CIA torture and even investigate those who protest that torture, who would have traded away the Public Option even while saying he was in favor of it, who would have expanded the war in Afghanistan, who would have opened "vast expanses" of Atlantic seaboard, Gulf of Mexico and Alaska to oil and natural gas drilling, who would have 'put politics before science' and at first minimized the BP oil spill and then might have claimed that there was practically no oil left and that "the microbes ate it!", who might have continually filed briefs in favor of large corporate polluters, who might have even been in favor of whale hunting, who might have used cluster bombs on civilians in Yemen, who might have refused to investigate Bush's political firings of US Attorneys, why we might even have a president who would appoint a bunch of right wing psychopaths to the Commission of Fiscal Responsibility and try to balance the budget on the backs of the poor and middle class while allowing Wall St. Banks, the filthy rich and military corporations to continue plundering our economy, or who might try to institute policies which would effectively shut down the internet.

But wait…no. That's what W.bama actually did do.

Never mind
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