Politics – Page 1124 – Politics Plus

Let Them Eat Koch

Posted by TomCat at 12:09 am Politics

Jun 042014

Marie Antoinette got a bad rap for the statement “Let them Eat Cake.” The statement was actually made my the wife of Louis XIV, Marie Thérèse. So even if she is the wrong Marie. she still ende3d up a head shorter because of it. The statement itself represents a callous disregard for the suffering of the common people. That disregard is reflected by many in the 1% and the Republican Party represents them. I found a fascinating article analyzing nine questions 1% Republicans use to blame the poor for the suffering that they cause. Here is just one of them.

…Shouldn't we cut public assistance and force people into the job market?

At some point in any discussion of jobs, someone will drop the nuclear option: cut federal and state benefits and do away with most public assistance. That'll motivate people to find jobs — or starve. Unemployment money and food stamps (now called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP) encourage people to be lazy. Why should tax dollars be used to give food to people who won't work for it? “If you’re able-bodied, you should be willing to work,” House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said discussing food stamp cuts.

The problem with such statements is 73% of those enrolled in the country’s major public benefits programs are, in fact, from working families — just in jobs whose paychecks don’t cover life’s basic necessities. McDonald’s workers alone receive $1.2 billion in federal assistance per year.

Why do so many of the employed need food stamps? It’s not complicated. Workers in the minimum-wage economy often need them simply to survive. All in all, 47 million people get SNAP nationwide because without it they would go hungry.

In Ohio, where I did some of the research for my book Ghosts of Tom Joad, the state pays out benefits on the first of each month. Pay Day, Food Day, Mother’s Day, people call it. SNAP is distributed in the form of an Electronic Bank Transfer card, or EBT, which, recipients will tell you, stands for “Eat Better Tonight.” EBT-friendly stores open early and stay open late on the first of the month because most people are pretty hungry come the Day.

A single person with nothing to her name in the lower 48 states would qualify for no more than $189 a month in SNAP. If she works, her net monthly income is multiplied by .3, and the result is subtracted from the maximum allotment. Less than fifty bucks a week for food isn’t exactly luxury fare. Sure, she can skip a meal if she needs to, and she likely does. However, she may have kids; almost two-thirds of SNAP children live in single-parent households. Twenty percent or more of the child population in 37 states lived in “food insecure households” in 2011, with New Mexico (30.6%) and the District of Columbia (30%) topping the list. And it's not just kids. Households with disabled people account for 16% of SNAP benefits, while 9% go to households with senior citizens.

Almost 22% of American children under age 18 lived in poverty in 2012; for those under age five, it’s more than 25%. Almost 1 in 10 live in extreme poverty.

Our system is trending toward asking kids (and the disabled, and the elderly) to go to hell if they're hungry. Many are already there…

Inserted from <Alternet>

As long as this excerpt appears, it is just a very small part of a very large article. You owe it to yourselves to read it in it’s entirety to prepare you to handle the Republican lies you will hear over and over again. I urge you to click through.

Finally the quote falsely attributed to Marie Antoinette is no longer appropriate. It should be upgraded to Let Them Eat Koch!

Open Thread–6/4/2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:07 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 042014

I’m writing for tomorrow, when I shall be leaving for prison volunteer training. I will return on Friday afternoon, I’m taking my notebook, but I don’t know how much I shall be able to do, while there. It will probably be little more than Personal Updates, if that. Please keep the Republicans at bay, while I’m gone. Day 44.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 2:52 (average 4:42). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Upworthy: Whenever I hear people condemn those who are financially less fortunate than themselves, I tend to tune them out (yes, sometimes I’m RUDE). A better idea would be to share the information from this infographic, because 1) it’s more tactful than what I usually do and 2) it might help some folks be a little more compassionate.

0604Poverty

The loss of IQ and mental illness factors help explain why some poor people vote Republican.

From Daily Kos: Fox News has fallen and it can’t get up. Ratings for the month of May 2014, have just been published, and the numbers are devastating for Fox News. While still occupying the top slot among the cable news networks, Fox saw about a quarter of its audience dissolve across every demographic group and time period.

Every Fox program in primetime dropped by double-digits, with Bill O’Reilly taking the deepest dive. Sean Hannity posted some of his lowest numbers ever in his new 10:00 pm time slot. And Megyn Kelly’s new, and highly anticipated, primetime show failed to improve on the ratings performance of her predecessor.

To be sure, Fox was not the only network to see declines. In fact, CNN had an even larger dip. The news was much better for MSNBC who was down the least of all the cable news networks. They lost a relatively insignificant five percent of total viewers, but actually saw increases for Morning Joe, and for Chris Hayes and Rachel Maddow in primetime.

For Fox to post numbers that they haven’t seen since August of 2001 (before 9/11) is a painful blow to both their reputation and their bank account. But they have even bigger problems. The viewers that do tune in to Fox are significantly older than viewers of their competitors. Fox News has always had the oldest skewing audience in cable news. With a median age of 68.8 years, Fox’s audience is over six years older than either CNN or MSNBC. It’s even worse for their top rated program (O’Reilly) who’s average viewer is over 72 years old. And their Great Blonde Hope (Kelly), who was specifically brought in to draw younger viewers, also exceeded Fox’s average with her typical viewer voyeur being over 70.

You can sum up my response in two words. The first is "Wooo". Can you guess the second? 😉

From NY Times: The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to consider challenges from Democratic lawmakers who say the Alabama Legislature packed minority voters into a few districts, diluting their voting power.

In another case from Alabama last year, the Supreme Court effectively struck down Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, which has required permission from the federal authorities before states may change their voting procedures.

This is one to watch. Considering the record of the Fascist Five Injustices of SCROTUS (Republican Constitutional VD), I’m not expecting an outcome that agrees with our Constitution.

Cartoon:

0604Cartoon

Negotiating with Terrorists

Posted by TomCat at 1:02 am Politics

Jun 032014

There are two nations on earth, not allied with the US, that could engage the US using conventional military means. They are China and Russia. For any other nation or group, engaging the US militarily using conventional means would be suicide. Therefore those that do fight us use nonconventional warfare. For propaganda value, we label them terrorists, just like Great Britain labeled US patriots terrorists during the Revolutionary War. Therefore the notion that we can not negotiate with terrorists is obsolete, with one key exception.

After five years as a prisoner of Afghan militants, U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl has been returned to American custody. But because President Obama released five Afghan detainees from Guantanamo Bay in trade for Bergdahl’s freedom, several Republican lawmakers have attacked the administration for “negotiating with terrorists.”

According to Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon (R-CA) and Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), the exchange “may have consequences for the rest of our forces and all Americans,” because “our terrorist adversaries now have a strong incentive to capture Americans.” House Intelligence Chair Mike Rogers (R-MI) added that he is “extremely troubled that the United States negotiated with terrorists,” suggesting that the exchange “signals to terrorists around the world a greater incentive to take U.S. hostages.”…

…National Security Advisor Susan Rice took to several of the Sunday shows to defend the exchange. On This Week, she explained that Bergdahl was not a “hostage,” but a “prisoner of war, taken on the battlefield,” and that the U.S. has a “sacred obligation” to free such prisoners of war. She also clarified on State of the Union that the U.S. did not negotiate directly with the terrorist Haqqani network, but with the government of Qatar, which will hold the five released Taliban prisoners for another year.

One of the other complaints lodged against the exchange is that President Obama did not provide Congress with the 30-day notice required for releasing prisoners of war. Rice explained that the Departments of Defense and Justice had reasons to be seriously concerned about the urgent state of Sgt. Bergdahl’s health, and noted that Congress had long been informed that such negotiations were already underway…

Inserted from <Think Progress>

First let’s get real. Contrary to the Republican excuse for condemning Obama, the Taliban (or anyone else with whom we are at war) already has a strong incentive to capture American soldiers. It’s what battlefield enemies do.

Here is a clip of the infamous (in Republican fantasy) Susan Rice in an interview with a Republican mouthpiece at CNN.

Lopsided journalism aside, Rice is technically correct. We did not negotiate directly with the Taliban, but it would not bother me, if we did. Without negotiation withy enemies, how can peace be achieved?

Another angle to this is that the five “terrorists” released numbered among those that we could not bring to trial, because the Bush Reich extracted evidence against them illegally. Congress still refuses to allow Obama to imprison detainees here, and Afghanistan does not want them, so in the process, Obama got five people closer to closing the GOP Gulag at Gitmo.

Republicans had one more beef and that’s where the key exception in my intro comes into play. Republicans say Congress should have ad a 30 day notice. Obama had noted that he felt that restriction violated his Article II authority at the time he signed the NDAA. To do otherwise he would have had to veto all defense spending. Also, given the Republican track record for leaking top-secret data to score political points, and given the posture of congressional Republicans, they are a greater threat to America than Al Qaeda ever was. By informing them of the process, while keeping them out of the loop on the specifics, Obama fulfilled his obligation out to negotiate with terrorists.

Open Thread–6/3/2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:58 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 032014

I’m writing for tomorrow and starting early to get the jump on a very busy day. Tasks include a trip to the barber shop, putting the files I’ll need to take to Salem on a DVD, firing up the notebook computer long enough to make sure it’s fully charged and updated for my prison volunteer trip, and cleaning the kitchen area thoroughly, so as not to leave a mess behind. Day 43.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 4:18 (average 6:18). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Reuters: The U.S. power sector must cut carbon dioxide emissions 30 percent by 2030 from 2005 levels, according to federal regulations unveiled on Monday that form the centerpiece of the Obama administration's climate change strategy.

The Environmental Protection Agency's proposal is one of the most significant environmental rules proposed by the United States, and could transform the power sector, which relies on coal for nearly 38 percent of electricity.

Gina McCarthy, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, said on Monday that between 2020 and 2030, the U.S. amount of carbon dioxide the proposal would reduce under the plan would be more than double the carbon pollution from the entire power sector in 2012.

Imagine what could have been done with cooperation from Congress.

From Robert Reich: I spent several days in New York last week with students from around the country who were preparing to head into the heartland to help organize Walmart workers for better jobs and wages. (Full familial disclosure: My son Adam is one of the leaders.)

Almost exactly fifty years ago a similar group headed to Mississippi to register African-Americans to vote, in what came to be known as Freedom Summer.

Call this Freedom Summer II.

The current struggle of low-wage workers across America echoes the civil rights struggle of the 1960s.

Today, as then, a group of Americans is denied the dignity of decent wages and working conditions. Today, just as then, powerful forces are threatening and intimidating vulnerable people for exercising their legal rights. Today, just like fifty years ago, people who have been treated as voiceless and disposable are standing up and demanding change.

Like Robert Reich, The Reich on the left, not the Republican Reich on the right, I fully support Freedom Summer II.

From Huffington Post: Asked whether she would be running for president in 2016, Elizabeth Warren framed the coming debate as one of defining values at a critical moment. She stopped short of committing to or rejecting a White House bid, and her answer will likely further speculation about a Warren candidacy.

In an interview with The Huffington Post that will air in full on Monday evening, Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, was asked about the promise in her book that she was "fiercely determined to do everything I can to help us once again be the America that creates opportunities for anyone who works hard and plays by the rules." She was also questioned about her warning that "we're running out of time."

I do not think Warren will run for the Democratic nomination, but if she does, she will have my full support.

Cartoon:

0603TCBarber

Monthly Report for May 2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:30 am Blog News, Monthly Report, Politics

Jun 022014

In May, Politics Plus improved in every category except Sites and Pages, which was unusually high last month, so I’m pleased with the progress. This is a highly abbreviated report. Normally, collecting the data and formatting it takes several hours, and with this week’s schedule, it’s several hours I just don’t have. Please accept my apology. Next month’s should be back on track.

usage5-2014

Stats5-2014

In the monthly totals, a Site is any website from which someone accessed our server, a Hit is every access attempt to our server, and a File is every access attempt to our server that returned data. The difference between Hits and Files is from access attempts that were sent in error or damaged in transit and failed attempts by hackers, spammers, phishers, and Republicans to access the back end and take control of the site. Any questions?

Here is our latest Clustrmap:

Map5-2014

This is the new map that is starting to look less naked. It shows only the visits from March 2 to May 31.

Our improved performance again last month was because of you. Thank you for everything you do.

Open Thread–6/2/2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:29 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 022014

I’m writing for tomorrow, and I’m still 3/4 bleary-eyed after last night, but I have too much work to do to take the day off. Tomorrow I’m trying out a neighborhood barber to see if ugly can be fixed. It’s about 1/4 mile away, so it may interfere with articles for Tuesday. Day 42.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 2:35 (average 4:22). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Short Takes:

From Daily Kos: It is pretty good odds that a mass extinction is going on right now as you read this. This ticking time bomb proves that we are like insects, which live just a few days and will never experience changes in a season much less years. You and I will never know from experience the history of this planet. Much of that history is as abstract to us as the dimensions of the universe. Our planet is a complex, dynamic system that we probably will never fully comprehend. The Earth system, like the human body, comprises diverse components that interact in complex ways. The Earth’s atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere, and biosphere is a single connected system.

Extinction is a dire word for an extreme event. There has been five mass extinctions in our planets history due to either asteroid impacts, climate change caused by volcanism and the shifting of tectonic plates. The sixth mass extinction is being fueled by you and me. Mass extinctions are relatively short periods of history during which a significant quantity of species die off beyond the standard background extinction (normal process of a species dying out and is usually a natural occurrence).

If this happens, which Republicans seem bound to guarantee, I hope that intelligent life evolves. Earth needs some, for a change!

From Alternet: NRA’s Chris Cox: Why would we listen to doctors when it comes to the effects of firearms?

The NRA’s chief lobbyist penned some twaddle in the Daily Caller [propaganda delinked] just a few days before the Santa Barbara killings. He was disputing the validity of the pro-gun control group Doctors for America, who have had the nerve to endorse a ban on certain types of semi-automatic firearms and buyback of others. What do they know about firearms, he asked?

Right, what the hell would doctors who treat people with gunshot wounds know about guns and their effects?

The piece: “We Love Our Moms and Trust Our Doctors, But We Don’t Want Gun Control,” was basically a paranoid screed directed at two of the more vocal groups trying to fight the epidemic of gun violence in this country: Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, and, what Cox calls “the dubiously named Doctors for America.” Yeah, wow, that does sound dubious. People with medical training. These two groups, writes Cox, are just rebranding gimmicks for what he calls the “civilian disarmament advocates.”

Nobody gets to disarm civilians, Cox rants, while trying to sound like a reasonable man. Not moms, not doctors, nobody. Only more heavily armed civilians can do that.

We love you Mom, Cox assures. Hope you don’t get shot. If you do, the solution will be obvious. Not a doctor. More guns.

This is just one of eight outrageous Republican statements from last week alone. Click through for the other seven Republican idiots.

From Crooks and Liars: The RNC’s Reince Priebus wasn’t the only one on Fox News Sunday throwing every ounce of poop against the wall to attack former Sec. of State Hillary Clinton over their fake Benghazi "scandal." Faux "news" regular Liz Cheney took right up where Priebus left off with the name calling, and surprise, surprise, she now has a problem with politicians and officials lying to the American people over matters of national security.

Someone needs to tell her to take that up with her daddy Dick. Chris Wallace sure as hell wasn’t going to do it.

The Lizard of Lies sure takes after her daddy, doesn’t she?

Cartoon:

0602Cartoon

Republicans Vote for Theft

Posted by TomCat at 12:02 am Politics

Jun 012014

There are companies out there that routinely steal money from their workers. The practice is called wage-theft, and it’s a lot more common than you might think. There should no question that companies who steal money from their employees should not be rewarded by our government, but Republicans just voted that they should.

Once again House Republicans prove that they have absolutely no interest in even pretending that they’re interested in looking out for the working class as opposed to the 1 percent that are lining their campaign coffers.

House GOP Votes Down Measure Aimed At Curbing Wage Theft:

Early Friday morning, House Republicans voted down a measure that would have discouraged the government from giving contracts to companies that have committed wage theft.

The Democratic-sponsored amendment to a funding bill would have denied taxpayer money to firms with documented wage violations while under government contract. The idea, championed by members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, was to make sure public dollars don’t go to companies with low-road labor practices…

Inserted from <Crooks and Liars>

Photo credit: The Stand

Keith Ellison explained the problem.

Because Republicans support rewarding government contractors, who steal money from their employees, while on government contract, with even more government contracts, your tax dollars will continue to fund wage theft. There is only one right way to reward Republicans for doing that. On November 4, pull the lever, just like you do when you flush.

Poll Results–6/1/2014

Posted by TomCat at 12:01 am Blog News, Politics

Jun 012014

Here are the results of our Hillary Primary Opposition Poll. Politics Plus Polls are not scientific, because those who respond are not balanced according to demographic categories. Therefore, we do not accurately reflect the makeup of the US population. Nevertheless, our polls are often both accurate and indicative of the nation’s view.

0601Poll

And here are your comments.

Showing comments 1–14 of 14.

Posted by Patty 6 hours ago.

We need someone more Progressive than Hillary. but I would vote for her if she is the candidate.

Posted by Fred Lemon May 23, 2014 at 11:34 pm. From 198.91.208.x

Encourage responsible democrats unlike the GOP which let the loonies out of the bin and had them running for office.

Posted by Edie May 18, 2014 at 6:20 pm.

I marked "neither". If she is the nominee, I will vote for her, but I think we should not close out any other options. I like her, but she is a seasoned politician, and will do what is best for herself.

Posted by mamabear in reply to Edie May 22, 2014 at 1:32 am.

Edie, lol She already has and will do what is best for herself. In 2008 she thought no one could beat her and in itself was a wake up call for her. Yes she is seasoned no doubt, but in the scheme of things we as a country can not let a republican/teaparty return in the White House. The Democratic Party should take some lead a grow a back bone before all the work that has been done goes to just another side note in history. We must play hard ball or we will lose.

Posted by mamabearclaw May 18, 2014 at 6:59 am.

I think she should run and encourage her. I think it is time for a woman to get in the White House It would be a stepping stone for another great woman like Elizabeth Warren. Who will address all our concerns. Yes Andrew Cuomo and even Biden but in order for our country to go forward we now need an old school like Hillary to push us into to future. Obama has done a wonderful job showing respect for women and our party is the one who take the White House for another 20yrs? So that is what we can do.

Posted by gene May 17, 2014 at 3:27 am.

Hillary is a fine woman but I am more progressive than she by many orders of magnitude. She’d play the "game" the way it always has been played and I want it played in an entirely new way, a way suitable for the 21st century, new ideas, new approaches, all the people of this world valued and cared for, not just pawns to argue over; and more, this world cared for in a serious way we have never yet done, because future generations depend on us and we are failing them. It is time to start fresh. And catch up to the rest of the civilized world in our economic, political and environmental practices. More of the same is just not enough, not anymore, not now.

Posted by Phil Hanson in reply to gene May 25, 2014 at 6:33 pm.

Exactly, Gene! Just because Hillary lacks balls doesn’t mean she’s not one of the good ol’ boys.; a Hillary Presidency would be disastrous for the country for the same reasons that the Obama Presidency is.

Posted by Joanne D May 17, 2014 at 3:26 am.

Boy, if there was ever a question where the answer was "It depends," this is it. Crass though it is, we must consider electability. You can be the greatest Progressive in the world but you can’t accomplish a thing if you can’t get elected. Primary challenges tend to hurt the eventual candidate’s electability, though there are exceptions. There are many people I would rather have as President than Hillary, but I am not sure I’d encourage any of them to run now. I would like to know how David Nir and David Jarman at Daily Kos would answer this question, since I doubt whether anyone understands elections better.

Posted by Rixar13 May 16, 2014 at 3:37 pm.

Neither –

Posted by Marva May 16, 2014 at 6:11 am.

We shouldn’t be putting up an "annointed one." Lots of good, honest debate through a Democratic primary will help show undecided voters what the Dems stand for.

Posted by misstexaskitty May 16, 2014 at 3:52 am.

We need to encourage more voices to speak to possible presidential runs. I like Andrew Cuomo, and would like to hear what vision he has.

Posted by Patty in reply to misstexaskitty 6 hours ago.

If you lived in NY state, you wouldn’t like him that much. He is in bed with some very rich people and still caters to them a bit too much.

Posted by misstexaskitty in reply to Patty 5 hours ago.

I have no doubt that is true, Patty. As does Hilary and anyone that might be considered for a run in 2016. Hilary is on the consultant board for Monsanto, that does irritate

me.

Posted by Yvonne White May 15, 2014 at 4:16 pm.

The party needs to get it’s act together & redefine what it is & what it represents! A solid Progressive/Liberal platform will eject those old-school DINOs for the good of ALL Democrats!

Hillary or not – the Leader MUST be Liberal, NOT another Bu$h League Corporate enabler!

I voted neither. Someone who needs to be dragged into running for President will be a far less enthusiastic campaigner than someone who really wants the job. That said, if there were a more progressive candidate for the Democratic nomination that actually had a chance at winning the general, that candidate would have my support. I’m not thrilled with Hillary, because she’s less progressive than Obama. Nevertheless, if nominated, Hillary will have my enthusiastic support, because the Republican opposing her will be less progressive than Caligula and less competent than Nero.

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