Where there is peace, there will be peace. Where there is violence, there will be violence.

We Are Not Broke!

I was appalled as I watched the unfolding of the drama enacted by our government this past week.    The republican party threatened to shutdown the government unless certain programs were hacked from the budget.  The original budget hoped to slash over $60 billion in national spending.  The democratic party caved and they all agreed upon budget cuts equaling $38.5 billion dollars from our national spending.  This is the biggest national budget cut in history - and yet it's no wonder.  We are now at war in four countries - more wars than we have ever had running concurrently in history.  We are also now into a decade of tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans and to multinational corporations.
Is it any wonder then that the government is screaming BROKE! We are financing the lifestyles of the very rich, and sacrificing our infrastructure, the livelihood of Americans, and our youth's education to do it! We have but to bring our troops home, (the privatization of many aspects of our military is also driving up the costs of our wars), and equalize the tax process.  Why is it that hardworking Americans must pay their taxes or risk going to jail, while large corporations like GE and Bank of America not only don't pay taxes, but receive tax deductions in the billions?  If we simply made GE, Bank of America, Verizon,  and other corporations pay their fair share, as the US Uncut graph below shows, we would save $21.7 billion dollars. 

Yet, contrary to what your politicians say, and what the corporate media spouts, We Are Not Broke!  Why is our government waging war against the middle, working and struggling classes?  The president in his speech discussed this as a time where two parties came together to make a tough decision.   Mr. President, here's a news flash.  We the people have been making "tough" decisions for a very long time.  Due to the increased cost of living and stagnation of wages, more people have had to decide to put gas in the car or buy groceries - to get the root canal or to have the transmission fixed.  We the people are tired of "difficult" decisions made on our behalf.  It is time for our government to start making "right" decisions.  Yet, they won't do this on their own.  Democracy is not passive, it demands that we be active.  Wherever you are friends, become active, join a campaign for economic justice.

Economic Justic Will Never Be Gained If We Remain a Nation Addicted to War

With trillions of dollars spent on four consecutive wars, in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Pakistan, we will never see economic justice in this country.  It is neither the countries, nor the people who win.  To believe that long term peace can be attained at the barrel of a gun is folly.  To believe that war will benefit the masses of either country is folly still.  The only winners in these wars are the corporations - the oil barons, the private contractors, the weapons manufacturers.  The people always lose.  Yet, our plight is not without light - or struggle not without hope.  United as a people we need to speak up, stand up and demand an end to the wars.  We are many, they are few.  Change is in the air - we just need to open our noses to it.  Change comes not by simply voting - as the last election proves.  As Emma Goldman stated "If voting changed anything, it would be made illegal."   Democracy is a lifestyle.  Let's start living it.

We All Shall Be Free!

I'm in this fight for democracy.  It's a fight for the moral right - yet though I fight, I fight not with my fist, nor with bullets or nuclear arms.  My weapons of choice are peace, compassion, and moral outrage.  I fight with my voice.  I will be heard and the millions of people in America and across this planet will be heard.  WE ALL SHALL BE FREE!

Economics with disregard to human rights might as well be genocide

"For unto everyone that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance.  But from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath." ~ Matthew 25:29, New Testament

Homelessness, unemployment, hunger, sickness and violence are all elements that jeopardize a person's physical ability to survive.  These are also elements that are often indicative of poverty.  Today, movements are sprouting up all over the world.  Here in the U.S., slowly individuals are realizing that just as in the days of old when Lords and Ladies governed the surfs who worked their lands, when the titled classes held the wealth and the struggling classes held the hunger, we have also today allowed a few to dictate our quality of life.  Here in the U.S. 400 people hold half of the wealth in our nation (Forbes 400 Wealthiest Americans, 2007).  These same people, when linked with corporations, are those who hold the economic power in our nation.  These same people are those who reap the economic benefits of our nation.  They hold the benefits of tax cuts, mortgage perks, excellent health care, chefs who provide nutritious meals, and body guards who protect them day and night.  These perks all too often have been gained on the backs of the middle, working and struggling classes.  These tax cuts are given at the expense of social services and jobs.  The wealthy gain and the other 98% lose.

Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers talks about what was termed by a sociologists as the "Matthew Affect" based on the verse above.  In essence, in our society those that have - reap the greater harvest, and those that have not - lose.  They lose because the economic system in which we live caters not to those on whose back wealth is generated.   The rich get the bigger tax breaks, yet they do so at our expense.  Too many of our brothers and sisters are left homeless, unemployed, ill and victims of a structurally violent society.

Our current economic system simply is not working.  As those in Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, Libya and scores of countries across the world have discovered -  Economics without social justice and the respect of human rights might as well be called genocide.  When a mother must sit and watch in horror as her child dies because her insurance company won't pay for the heart transplant; when a husband and wife who have worked their entire life suddenly finds themselves living in a tent during a cold Chicago winter because they both lost their jobs due to cuts; when a man loses his disability check to student loan vultures because he cannot afford to pay back the loan due to unemployment; can we not call this monetary murder?  Whenever one person commits suicide because after working all their lives, at the age of 55 they are laid off and have no means of providing for themselves; whenever a person dies because they lack health coverage; whenever parents cannot provide their children with three wholesome meals because the cost of food has risen astronomically, this is indicative of a system that does not work - and I for one call any related death needless and the result of economic genocide. (each of the previous are real life examples)

Far too often we have seen where the government has placed its priorities - with the corporations, and with the military industrial complex (industrial being the operative word - linking back to corporations).
I for one will not serve the corporatocracy.  I will not serve the Lord and Lady of the Manor and I will not submit to their leadership.  This month I will be attending three demonstrations standing up against the economic genocide of our brother's and sisters and the categorical murder of our democracy.  If you are in New Jersey, I ask you to join me.  On this Saturday, March 19th, in New Brunswick we will stand up against the military industrial complex which is stripping away social programs and jobs by the thousands each year with its endless wars.  On Saturday, March 26th in front of Bank of America, also in New Brunswick, we will demonstrate against the corporate robbers and tax dodgers and we will do an education focused demonstration on the campus of Monmouth University on March 29th also against corporate robbers and tax dodgers.  Join the fight - for life, liberty and justice for ALL!

Pushing the Arc of the Moral Universe Towards Justice

How much legislation has been allowed to pass as many of us slept through its passing?  The state of our nation did not happen overnight.  Poverty levels are nearly at an all time high, our unions have shrunk to levels lower than before 1929, and the middle class is rapidly becoming the struggling class and the struggling class (those of our brothers and sisters who we classify as poor…I no doubt fit into this class as a struggling student) is drowning in debt simply to survive. This has happened, friends, because we have allowed our democracy to become an oligarchy headed by corporate robber barons.  We mistakenly thought that we had done our democratic duty when we went to the voting booth and voted for change.  Oh how we were mistaken.

Yet, there is hope.  All great change in this society happened not because congress suddenly grew an altruistic heart, or because the president said – “You know what? This is unjust. Let’s pass a bill to rectify this.”  No.  All great change came about because WE the PEOPLE stood up and said “this is unjust.”  Now is the time for us to be like Wisconsin and walk, march, demonstrate, and peacefully protest like an Egyptian. A former Wisconsin governor said that “Democracy is a life." Democracy doesn't end on election day. The real work happens afterwards. 

We are facing a kadesh barnea point.  Will we stay put or will we move towards the promised land?  Will we sit quietly and allow this oligarchy ruling through elected officials pass yet another bill that will affect the lives of the masses?  No.  It must not be so.  Right now our government has proposed a budget that will cut essential services that helps the struggling, and working classes. It's perilously close to passing.  This is not something we can sleep through. This is not simply a quest about corporations, and the government against the people.  This a moral quest.  This is a quest based on what is right and what is wrong - what is just and what is unjust.  When we suffer our brothers and sisters to be homeless, unemployed, and ill - while a few sacrifice nothing and seek to balance their budgets on the backs of these same people - we are on the wrong side.  Martin Luther King said that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.”  Yet, if we seek moral justice we must act.

Currently, there are many people demonstrating.  They are on the streets, exercising their democratic rights of protest against unjust acts.  One of these movements is the U.S. Uncut movement, which this past Saturday had its first, national demonstration.  Their mission is simple.  If tax dodgers like Bank of America (which didn’t pay any taxes in 2009 – after being bailed out by YOU the tax payer) actually paid taxes, we wouldn’t have a budget deficit.  Hence, we wouldn’t need to cut social services (like social security which is now on the table folks).  I propose that we take this demonstration a bit further. 

My proposal utilizes the good ole, one, two, THREE punch.  We demonstrate, we boycott, we strike.  We go for the corporate pocket book.  We have sacrificed enough.  Let the top two percent shed a little bit.  They can afford it. The unions were seen as such a powerful 
force because they literally had the power to shut down the economy. 
The PEOPLE had the power.  Not the market.  Somehow we must martial 
and regain this power...compassionately, peacefully, yet forcefully. 
 If we back this up with policy…a friend and classmate of mine is researching a current piece of legislation addressing this and is on the table in Maryland…then we will send a 
powerful message to congress and the white house.  For me, this is not 
just about having corporate robbers pay up.  It's about a regime change.  Corporations are allowed to dodge taxes because they have 
been running our country.  It's time to say that the jig is up and we want our Democracy back!

In Solidarity with all that is Just, True and Good,

Bobbie

From Cairo to any Corner U.S.A. Seeing Similarities

Like many people across the globe I was inspired by the solidarity, determination and passion shown by the Egyptian people during the last two weeks.  As a friend of mine posted on my face book wall, “6000 years of history changed in 6 days.”  From the Pharaohs who used the poor to build the massive monuments we view in awe today to Mubarak who garnered billions while he suffered his people to starve, Egypt has suffered at the hands of autocratic leaders.  Yet, on last Friday Egypt, the cradle of civilization, finally changed their history.   They said no to an autocratic leader….and amazingly he heard. 

Tunisia as well, after years of leadership by an oppressive authoritarian leader rose up as a people and said enough is enough.  Like Mubarak, Ben Ali also heard the people.  Sudan, after decades of war, has brokered a fragile peace agreement – separating the two warring factions, the north and the south into two countries.  There are other examples of countries that have recently begun to revolt against the powerful elite who has for years waged war against the average citizen.  They wage war by depriving them of their basic human rights such as their right to a job that pays a livable wage, a decent home, health care, and food to name just a few.  These countries have not entered a period of utopia, and their journeys have only just begun and will be fraught with difficulties.  Yet, the people spoke…and the oppressors heard.  There is power and hope in that. 

Yet, as we in the western world view the rise of the people in North Africa against their autocratic leaders, I wonder how many of us see that we, just like they have been oppressed?  Perhaps many don’t feel it.  Yet, as a person who strives to live simply, to reduce my carbon footprint, and not get into further debt with predatory lenders, I gave up my leased vehicle and have recently begun to take public transportation.  In the morning, I see the picture of oppression…of people who are struggling to survive.  I listen to the conversations and hear people discuss how to make a comfortable pallet on the floor because bed bugs infested their mattress and they can’t afford a new one.  These are not the deserving poor.  For I don’t believe there are any deserving poor in this country – most people I have met would love to have a job that would pay enough to keep a roof over their head.  I don’t know of a person who likes not knowing where their next meal is going to come from, or if they will be able to pay the next month’s rent.  Having been in both situations before, I can tell you the feeling ain’t so pleasant.  So yes, there are oppressed people in this country – and they don’t deserve to be so.  Not when the CEO’s of companies that send jobs overseas get tax breaks, or when the finance companies that helped create the 2008 financial crisis get bonuses while the people they have gotten rich from are booted from their homes.  

Did you know that that 1% of our population holds 42% of the wealth in our nation?  Did you also know that while some of us voted for a president who we thought would bring change, he actually appointed many people who were major players in the 2008 catastrophic debacle?  Goldman Sachs has several former employees, from Robert Ruben to Timothy Geitner in the Obama Whitehouse.  If 1% of our population holds 42% of our wealth then you can also bet you bottom dollar that this same 1% has significant say in the direction of our country.  Our country is run by market financiers, and corporations though we elect what we suppose are change agents.  Do I hear autocracy anyone?  Perhaps it’s not an autocracy as in one single person, but it does appear to be a single group of players pulling the strings…corporations. 

I believe that today, in the American mindset, the revolution is not being televised, as Gil Scott Heron wrote in his legendary piece.  Yet, as our current budget continues to be cut (cuts that will affect social services that assist the poor) – in the face of continued tax cuts for the extremely wealthy, and as the cost of living continues to rise, and the wages continue to stay the same, the revolution will burst forth from the hearts and minds of America’s people and like Egypt we will demand justice.  We will demand that our human rights be recognized, that our democracy be one that is truly by the people, and for the people…not by the few or for the few.  This is not simply a political awakening that will happen friends, but a spiritual one.  When we as a people unite against the corporate tyranny and speak out not just for ourselves, but every low income person standing on a bus stop, or waiting in line for food stamps, then we are joining in a cause that is Divine.   

RSA Animate - Crises of Capitalism

Crises of Capitalism Video

I would not describe myself as a Marxist. However, this short video by David Harvey does explore important points regarding the world's current and predominant economic system. Capitalism is what many of us were born into here in America. It's the only economic system must of us know. However, that does not mean it is the only way, or the best way. The point the video makes is a simple one. Let's begin a discussion. A discussion must be had on the future of our economic system. The question must be asked amongst ourselves and our legislators...How can we have a more just and equitable economic system? I don't know what system will make it better.  My Christian brothers and sisters will understand when I ask, What sort of system would Christ wish to exist in?  Certainly not one that represents oppression of the poor.  When I dream of my own ideal society, I would see one based on bartering. I believe our society would be more peaceful and equal with the elimination of money. However, with that idea I know I'm just "whistling Dixie" as its adoption in our current society is as highly probable as the government usurping the financiers bonuses and giving it to the America's poor and working class. Let's discuss this. Please leave a comment, tell me what you think of the clip. 

Who Needs Economic Justice?

         

        

                It’s been two years since the first bank bailout occurred in 2008.  Today, according to Obama during his State of the Union Speech, we have the “largest most prosperous economy in the world.”  This may be true, though the source of that prosperity is questionable….Did I hear someone say China?  Some may wonder, why is economic justice important in a country that is so prosperous?  It is because of this “prosperity” that economic justice is so important.

             According to the N.Y. Daily News the economy has grown by 3.4%.  Yet, the unemployment rate is still above nine percent as of December.   This unemployment rate does not include the millions who are homeless, those who have stopped looking for jobs after two or three years of unemployment, or those who are working jobs that don’t pay a decent livable wage. The average person’s ability to make ends meet has become increasingly more difficult over the last 20 plus years.  The top 5% of America’s wealthy saw their income grow by 73% between 1979 and 2008.  Yet, those in the lower 5% income bracket saw a decrease in their income by over 4% during this same time period.  It’s unmistakable for the average working class person to see that the cost of living has gone up while their income has either decreased or remained the same.  This is why economic justice is important. 

           When the CEO of a company making $27,000.00 per hour pays percentage wise less in taxes than his maid who makes $7.25 it becomes obvious that our system is broken.  It also becomes obvious that our system is catering to an elite few who having been bailed out after sending the world into a tailspin of economic catastrophe in which millions of people are still trying to recover, have not been convicted of a crime.  Not one person has been convicted of what in reality was a massive ponzi scheme that risked everything accept the bonuses that the top executives of Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and a host of other banks and investment firms heaped upon themselves.  This problem needs to be redressed.  So, after the president’s rousing speech that would tell us that all is well, let’s remember there are still many people who are struggling because of an unjust economic system that must be fixed.  

Resources:  

 http://www.libraryindex.com/pages/2297/Employment-Poverty-Among-Homeless-UNEMPLOYMENT.html

http://extremeinequality.org/?page_id=8

http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/income_expenditures_poverty_wealth.html

Cutting off our Legs

“Give me your tired, your poor, 


Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, 


The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. 


Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, 


I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" (Emma Lazarus, 1883)

For centuries, these words have welcomed masses to the eastern shore of the United States.  Millions of people have wandered to her shores seeking wealth, prosperity and rest from the injustices heaped upon them by the unjust economic systems of their native lands.  Hoping to work towards the realization of the American dream, many worked hard to own land and provide for their families.  Yet, the U.S., founded in-justly, stolen irreparably, and built on slavery, never genuinely offered a dream that was meant for all.  When the Declaration of Independence was written, the independence declared was specific to a particular segment of American society during the 17^th century.  


Today, the masses are still struggling for an economically just society.  In fact, that struggle is perhaps worse than it has been since the great depression.   The gap between the rich and the poor is higher than it has ever been. The U.S. is now ranked with Argentina, Cameroon and the Ivory Coast in terms of economic inequality - the lowest rank of any industrialized country (CIA.gov, 2010).  In case you didn't know those three countries are what are typically and offensively termed "3rd world" countries.

A recent Washington Post article states that the Republicans are hoping to cut $100 billion dollars to non military programs.  This will begin by cutting one-third of the budgets of most federal agencies.  This will affect millions of people across the nation.  Having just hung up with a dear relative who has been unemployed for two years, has sent out hundreds of resumes to no avail, and has had very little luck accessing social programs, this is disheartening news indeed.  Why is that our government continues to insure the wealth of America's richest 5% while cutting off the legs of those from whom that wealth was gained?

One of my professors posted this quote that I believe is important to remember. "Remember this:  We be many and they be few.  They need us more than we need them.  Another world is not only possible, she is on her way.  On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing. ~ Arundhati Roy.    We elected Obama as a change candidate.  He never said he would do it...but encouraged us to.  Change - economic justice - has to happen because WE make it happen.