A simple message for those trying to skew the 99% and Occupy Wall Street movements.
The capitalists broke game. They bent the rules. They grabbed all the money. We are all paying the consequences of people taking advantages.
In order to move forward, we have to admit some truths as a country. “Denial ain’t just a reservoir in Egypt” - Ali G
62 Million Americans Have Zero Or Negative Net Worth
62 million Americans have zero or negative net worth. Wow. Think about that for a second.
These are hard working people. They made good decisions. They did not take massive risks. Deregulated markets were going to provide the ways and means, they were told.
But a decade of unparalleled financial thievery and corruption, of artificially inflated commodity prices, we now have millions displaced from their homes through a rotten and perverted mortgage market, all the worse because of the crimes of the modern financial elite.
Take your pick: from bribery and insider trading and market manipulation, to backroom dominance of government and the usurping of the regulatory structure from within, the 50-headed hydra of Wall Street corruption simply can’t be seen by the public or put on TV.
So what do people do? They pick on a myth. Are 62 million people lazy? Should they just “get a job” to make it better? When the real evil is clearly the banks, certain types vindictively want to pick on their fellow man, the 99%, and place blame on them. For not struggling enough? For not having 3 or 4 jobs which still are not enough?
The point is we should not all be struggling. The system played us all. It’s time to change the system.
$44 trillion in wealth was lost around the world in the financial and banking failures of 2007-08. That’s $44,000,000,000,000 Wall St gambled away.
Context [2006 data]:
* $64 trillion = world’s output, the collective GDP
* $119 trillion = total value of stock and bonds
* $473 trillion = derivatives market valuation
* [Additional perspective, derivatives climbed to $684 trillion (as of June 2008)]
Wall St has created such a massive market out of speculation, that it dwarfs actual GDPs of the world. It’s 10 times the size. So if you want to think they are not in control, then wake up.
Sub-prime mortgages:
Do you think banks created them to take advantage of new owners in order to bundle and leverage the debt obligations at ratios of 33:1, as well as, reap massive profits in the home building industry bubble?
Or
Do you think risky, jobless, asset-less new owners forced the mighty banks into creating sub-prime mortgages, and additionally, force the banks to loan the money to the developers to build all the homes, and the trillions in leveraged securitized mortgages was just a wee coincidence? Seriously.
The Tea Party was always about personal attacks on Obama. Blame one guy for everything going wrong and every fear you have.
These are same people who have the “don’t blame the banks, blame yourself” mentality when faced with the cold truth of what is really the root of the crushed economy. They never think of the real problem or how to solve them, just come up with an obtuse, willfully ignorant Obama character assassination bordering heavily on racism to distract you from any deep thought or understanding of a subject you have no clue. - douglas/liberalsarecool
Obama Tax Proposal Has Overwhelming Support
Andrew Sullivan: “Every single poll shows that the American public overwhelmingly supports higher taxes on the wealthy as part of a package to cut the deficit. The margins are staggering: the NYT poll shows a majority of 74 - 21; even Rasmussen shows a majority of 56 - 34. What the president proposed this morning is simply where the American people are at. If he keeps at it, if he turns his administration into a permanent campaign for structural fiscal reform, I don’t see how he loses the argument.”
That’s 3:1 support!! Three regular people for every one delusional corporatist hack. #end_the_plutocracy
The U.S. Army, in a memo announcing that the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ law prohibiting openly gay and lesbian soldiers from serving in the military will formally end tomorrow.
“By the time I feed my family, I have maybe $400,000 left over.”— Rep. John Fleming (R-LA), in an interview on MSNBC, on why as a small business owner he can’t afford a tax increase.
Would $410,000 make it better? Paying your fair share and getting the economy going would help your small business make more money, but the “me first and me only” dynamic of Republicans makes that all too hard to comprehend.
Pro-life is OFFICALLY over. The meaningless political stance [who isn’t pro-life?] is now a front for pro-suffering and pro-indifference, matched by their previous pro-torture policies.
The GOP, the supposed party of life, cheers affirmative when countered, “should society let this man die” after being asked who hypothetically should help an uninsured man with cancer.
A for-profit health care system championed by the Republicans is the worst case of hypocrisy you can imagine. Every life is precious? My ass. If you don’t have money, then you’re on your own.
Ron Paul, a doctor, says “freedom is your own risk?” What a vacuous shitty thing to say about a very specific situation. His sage medical wisdom and years of public service comes down to “sucks to be you”.
Countries on our level like Japan, Germany, France, England, and even ravaged Iraq take care of their own through socialized health care, regardless of money.
America is the ONLY country in the world where you go bankrupt due to medical costs.
The GOP/Tea Party/Libertarian fish rotted from the head down. Last night, we got a whiff of the smell.
Even Rick Perry was shocked: “I was a bit taken aback by that myself. We’re the party of life. We ought to be coming up with ways to save lives.”
"I wouldn’t have written that book if I was going to run for the presidency of the United States."Rick Perry. The Texas governor conceded his book, “Fed Up!”, published last year, continues to be a goldmine for his detractors.
Knowing about how Perry thinks is bad for his career. Interesting concept.
Republican Class Warfare: on what moral ground do you stand?
The GOP are anti-business by threatening a default and bringing on a downgrade.
The GOP are anti-consumer by pushing more taxes on the Middle Class.
To the GOP, a family of four making $22,350 is living the high life, they need more tax burdens to ground them. While billionaires and mega-corporations with runaway historic profits need more breaks. #WTF
