OWS

[Vrede too]

Oxfam’s crystal ball confirmed: The top 1 % now own over half of the world’s wealth
The world is experiencing an immense problem with wealth inequality, and it’s not just a problem of economics, it’s a problem of power.




Disgusting. Time for a (hopefully nonviolent) revolution.

[Vrede too]

Democracy Spring

I might just join in. If we don't fix our democracy, we don't fix anything else.

[O Really]

Democracy Spring

I might just join in. If we don't fix our democracy, we don't fix anything else.

The "risk of arrest" might be much less than the risk of getting run over, depending on the route they take from Philly to DC.
Besides, those other "Spring" events didn't really turn out as hoped for.

[Vrede too]

These 6 Corporations Control 90% Of The Media In America



:gthumb: :cussing:

[Vrede too]

Thank you for contacting me about the proposed Charter Communications acquisition of Time Warner Cable. I appreciate hearing from you.

I understand your concerns about Charter Communications proposal to acquire Time Warner Cable. As you know, to be competitive in the global 21st century economy, high speed Internet is non-negotiable. North Carolina has become a magnet for technology companies, drawn to an educated and growing labor force. With the state's continued growth, digital infrastructure undergirding state-wide access to high speed Internet must expand to keep pace.

The best way to speed broadband deployment is to allow the free market to work and to let the needs of customers set the rate and scope of adoption. Ultimately, I believe it is best to let the marketplace, not government, dictate the success or failure of this combined business venture. Currently, the Federal Communications Commission is considering the acquisition. I look forward to reviewing their findings....

Sincerely,
Thom Tillis
U.S. Senator (R-NC)

See infographic above. What "free market"?

[Vrede too]

Obama's 2 Mistakes That Lost the Country

... Nothing Obama could have done would have avoided the tsunami of vicious racist and xenophobic hatred that washed over him and the country, aided and abetted by the savagely partisan and vitriolic FOX news. Nothing would have stopped obscenely rich and intensely self-interested individuals like the Koch brothers from pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into campaigns to discredit and defile the President and the government in general.

But Obama might well have stunted the emergence of a rightwing populist movement if he had pursued an aggressive populist strategy of his own, one that demonstrated government could effectively challenge giant corporations and unbridled private greed on behalf of small business and the average family....

To his credit Obama did try to make systemic changes in both the financial and health care sector. To his everlasting discredit he tried to make these changes without actually structurally changing the system. Instead of confronting power he bribed the powerful: $700 billion in direct support and trillions in low cost money for the banks, $500 billion for the health insurance companies. He enlisted the support of giant pharmaceutical companies, among the most profitable of all manufacturing firms, by refusing to cap drug prices. He enlisted the support of giant insurance companies by embracing an individual mandate he had opposed during the campaign, thus guaranteeing the companies millions of new mostly healthy younger customers, whose premiums would be heavily subsidized by the government.

At one point Obama met with the CEOs of the nation's 13 largest banks. He accurately warned them, "My administration is the only thing between you and the pitchforks." But rather than make demands, he pleaded with the bankers: "Help me help you." They were only too glad to do so.

Those with the pitchforks were enraged. Anti-government activists were delighted. The American public needed someone to blame and if Obama wasn't willing to blame those who deserved it, the Koch brothers and Fox News and others were more than willing to step into the vacuum and blame the government....

[rstrong]

Obama did try very hard to bring in a proper public option health care system. But in the end he simply didn't have the votes needed in Congress.

So instead he went with 15 years of Republican healthcare policy, because it was better than nothing. Republicans could hardly oppose it, right? (Wrong, of course. Instead they labelled it "ObamaCare", declared jihad against it, and still managed to get it watered down.)

[Vrede too]

I agree with the author that Obama never really did try and fight for the structural changes that the Roosevelts and Reagan did, and I don't believe he's achieved the best that he could have on a wide range of topics. But, that's opinion, we'll never know.

[billy.pilgrim]

As I have said since about February 2009, I believe obama is a fucking republican

tax increases on the working poor
biggest tax break in history to the 1%
never tried to defend or promote real health care reform - he didn't even try to counter the fake death panels, or showed any sort of passion for describing the inadequacies of the highest cost health care system in the world
no prosecution of war criminals
no prosecution of the bankers who brought down our economy
the continuation of bush's wars
no meaningful work on voting reform
and the list drones on and on

Although indirectly, he is responsible for the teabaggers

oh yeah, he did stop waterboarding

[Vrede too]

... oh yeah, he did stop waterboarding

By Americans, probably, he did continue rendition to torture states.

[billy.pilgrim]

... oh yeah, he did stop waterboarding

By Americans, probably, he did continue rendition to torture states.

True

[Vrede too]

Also, he continued internal rendition to torture prisons in Afghanistan.

... and the list drones on and on ...

[Vrede too]

From Americans for Tax Fairness:

When Congress passed the huge $686 BILLION tax cut package last week – benefitting individuals and corporations – we had some wins and some losses.

First, let me say a special thanks if you were one of the 15,270 individuals who sent more than 45,000 letters to Congress the last couple of weeks regarding these tax cuts. Your letters matter to members of Congress – they keep a daily tally of how much mail they get on critical issues to figure out how their constituents want them to vote.

Here is how our work impacted the final bill:

We had a major victory when Congress made permanent two critical tax credits that encourage low-income families to work: improvements made to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC). This will put $118 billion into the pockets of low-income working Americans over the next 10 years. For example, a single mom working minimum wage with two kids at home will get $1,725 more in her pocket thanks to your advocacy. Overall, this win will keep 16 million people from falling into poverty or deeper into poverty.

Another victory was the renewal of the American Opportunity Tax Credit. It provides a tax credit of up to $2,500 per year for expenses incurred while attending college such as tuition, fees and course materials. This will give a helping hand to millions of families struggling with the costs of higher education.

Finally, nearly 40% of the tax breaks in this legislation – approximately $250 billion – benefit working Americans who are overwhelmingly low- and middle-income. Typically, when Congress has passed tax-extender legislation in the past individuals have gotten just 20% of the tax breaks, so we doubled the benefits for working families.

But I’ll be frank with you – we lost a lot in this tax bill.

Corporations got more than $400 billion in tax breaks – none of which were paid for. Not one loophole was closed or tax subsidy eliminated to pay for this largesse. That really hurts.

It is also very painful that a big lobbying operation by Wall Street financial institutions made a major tax loophole permanent, which makes it easier for them to stash profits offshore and avoid taxation here at home. Known as the Active Financing Exception, this $78 billion (over 10 years) tax loophole has helped General Electric go five straight years without paying any federal income tax, and instead get billions in refunds.

Rather than puff up the profits of some of America’s richest corporations, that same amount of money could guarantee preschool for every low and moderate income four-year-old in America over the next 10 years.

Another offshore tax loophole, the CFC Look-Through Rule, was extended for five years at a cost of $8 billion.

And a gratuitous gift called Bonus Depreciation—originally intended as a recession fighter, and not even good at that—will go on for another six years, losing us $28 billion in corporate tax revenue. The damage could have been a whole lot worse – the House-passed version of this tax break cost 10 times as much – $280 billion!!!

So we were able to pare it way back and phase it out, rather than renew it every year, as has been the pattern. But, we will need to be vigilant as hundreds of lobbyists will work to revive it in a few years.

You can tell, I’m not sugar coating the situation with a lot of holiday cheer. We won and lost in this big fight.

Conservatives are in charge in Congress and corporations can call the tune – all too often with both political parties when it comes to doling out tax breaks.

Clearly, we have our work cut out for us. And it is going to take all of us together, if we’re going to have clean wins on these tax fights in the future.

If you’d like to learn more about the recent tax-extender fight in Congress check out my Huffington Post column here, and see this table we prepared showing the tax cuts that were enacted.

I hope you and your loved ones have a restful holiday season.

Sincerely,
Frank Clemente
Executive Director

[billy.pilgrim]

Obama gave huge tax cut to the rich when he made bush's cut permanent

[rstrong]

Obama gave huge tax cut to the rich when he made bush's cut permanent

Seriously....?

A better description would be that he lost a long and hard-fought fight against making Bush's cut permanent.

Heck, he couldn't even get the support of the American people in the fight. All that most of them heard was "Obama wants to increase our taxes!"

[billy.pilgrim]

Obama gave huge tax cut to the rich when he made bush's cut permanent

Seriously....?

A better description would be that he lost a long and hard-fought fight against making Bush's cut permanent.

Heck, he couldn't even get the support of the American people in the fight. All that most of them heard was "Obama wants to increase our taxes!"

because obama wasn't invested in explaining or selling - he turned communications over to the media and arrogantly expected the public to see through all the noise.


bush passed the 10 year cut with 51. it could have easily been repealed in 2009 with 59

There were a lot of things he conveniently wasn't able to do
and most favored wall street

[billy.pilgrim]

people listened to FDR because he took the time to speak to them

[Wneglia]

Obama gave huge tax cut to the rich when he made bush's cut permanent

The rich got a tax increase as Obama let their Bush tax rates expire and revert to the Clinton rates.

[billy.pilgrim]

Obama gave huge tax cut to the rich when he made bush's cut permanent

The rich got a tax increase as Obama let their Bush tax rates expire and revert to the Clinton rates.

Did you mean "if" instead of "as"

It was framed that way and obama failed to make the obvious point that Bush republicans were the ones who scheduled the cut to expire. So no cut, just a scheduled change.

One of the reasons for the 10 year cut was to offer proof of tinkle down bullshit
As these cuts only further enriched the rich and pushed working people further in the hole, there was no reason to continue the cuts.

Unless obama is a goddamn repug

[Vrede too]

Meet the lobbyists, donors and bundlers behind Hillary's $157 million juggernaut