Sunday, May 10, 2009
I thought a lot about it, and I realized that I'm not ready for the commitment to a weekly blog. I feel strongly about many issues, if asked I could probably give a decent answer, but things that inspire me to write do not occur often enough for a post every 7 days. If something changes, then there will be a post, and hopefully one day I'll be a consistent blogger but until then, if you want to talk politics, music, life, philosophy, food, whatever, I'll be here. Thanks-Ben
Monday, April 20, 2009
Something to ponder while high today
Happy 4/20 everybody, go and do something stupid. Enjoy yourselves, but don't get caught! You wouldn't want your rights stripped away from you as you get driven down to the station because you were acting suspicious or ordered one taco too many across from a cop who's being eyeing you because you smelled too dank.
Just have good clean fun under the influence today. Maybe next year we can celebrate with decriminalized weed. Maybe in two years we can celebrate with legalized weed. Maybe in three years an eighteen year old can walk into a liquor store, buy a cube of silver bullets and a prerolled blunt. Maybe in four years cats will grow on trees. Just keep in mind this may be one of the last years of a greater police presence on 4/20.
But this post isn't going to about marijuana. No, this post is about freedom and our apparent lack of it. The Democracy Index, a global ranking system that rates how well a country does in the act of democracy based on these five areas: "electoral process and pluralism, civil liberties, functioning of government, political participation and political culture." The US ranks 18th, just above the Czech Republic, a former Soviet satellite and below Japan where totalitarianism reigned until 1945.
Why are we so low on this list of freedom? We still fall into a top spot very well, yet we're losing to places that historically had always been beneath the US on terms of liberty.
We're lower on this list:
1. Because Americans expect help from the federal government and when Big Brother steps too close, citizens retreat to the state government, demanding congressman and governors stand up for them.
2. Because the War on Drugs has been a colossal failure resulting in upheaval in Mexico, Colombia, and Peru to name a few.
3. Because despite having the freedom to buy a semi automatic at Walmart, we keep killing each other to get on TV.
4. Because the government finds secret internment easier than the highly blocked up American justice system.
5. Because we are built on traditional, "moral" values that do not always stack up to what is freedom for anyone gay, female, non-white, non-Christian, non-able bodied, or poor.
6. Because the drinking age is too high.
7. Because we give environment-damaging companies the go-ahead to destroy wildlife, evict local tenants, and waste away valuable resources.
8. Because we allow corporations to become, "too big to fail."
There are more reasons, but I don't want to ruin your day. So get high, watch a movie, throw a frisbee, jam out, get some munchies, and feel good on this most holy of stoner holy-days. Tomorrow we gotta start fixing our country
Just have good clean fun under the influence today. Maybe next year we can celebrate with decriminalized weed. Maybe in two years we can celebrate with legalized weed. Maybe in three years an eighteen year old can walk into a liquor store, buy a cube of silver bullets and a prerolled blunt. Maybe in four years cats will grow on trees. Just keep in mind this may be one of the last years of a greater police presence on 4/20.
But this post isn't going to about marijuana. No, this post is about freedom and our apparent lack of it. The Democracy Index, a global ranking system that rates how well a country does in the act of democracy based on these five areas: "electoral process and pluralism, civil liberties, functioning of government, political participation and political culture." The US ranks 18th, just above the Czech Republic, a former Soviet satellite and below Japan where totalitarianism reigned until 1945.
Why are we so low on this list of freedom? We still fall into a top spot very well, yet we're losing to places that historically had always been beneath the US on terms of liberty.
We're lower on this list:
1. Because Americans expect help from the federal government and when Big Brother steps too close, citizens retreat to the state government, demanding congressman and governors stand up for them.
2. Because the War on Drugs has been a colossal failure resulting in upheaval in Mexico, Colombia, and Peru to name a few.
3. Because despite having the freedom to buy a semi automatic at Walmart, we keep killing each other to get on TV.
4. Because the government finds secret internment easier than the highly blocked up American justice system.
5. Because we are built on traditional, "moral" values that do not always stack up to what is freedom for anyone gay, female, non-white, non-Christian, non-able bodied, or poor.
6. Because the drinking age is too high.
7. Because we give environment-damaging companies the go-ahead to destroy wildlife, evict local tenants, and waste away valuable resources.
8. Because we allow corporations to become, "too big to fail."
There are more reasons, but I don't want to ruin your day. So get high, watch a movie, throw a frisbee, jam out, get some munchies, and feel good on this most holy of stoner holy-days. Tomorrow we gotta start fixing our country
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Let's All Go Teabagging!!!
John Oliver, the Daily Show correspondent said it best, "Everyone needs to chill the fuck out!"
Today is April 15th, tax day, everyones favorite right after the National Hangover Days (January 1st, July 5th, and the day after your birthday). Interestingly, this year features a 21st century variation on the 18th century Boston Tea Party with conservative activists around the country demonstrating their disapproval with the Obama tax code changes, namely a tax increase for the 5% of top US citizens (yet those people aren't teabagging). TEA stands for Taxed Enough Already by the way. The demonstrators are picketing and dumping teabags in the parks they are in all around the country (it's illegal to dump in the water, what do you think this is? 1773?) and speaking out against the new taxes from the Obama administration. Originally started by a Ron Paul-inspired "paleoconservative" libertarian campaign who rented a blimp with his face on it to throw tea out the windows, it was effectively hijacked by Fox News anchors who are pretending they came up with the idea, angering the paleos and making an expression of free speech laughable with their ignorant corruption
What's so unbelievable about this whole thing is just 1 day after the Homeland Security report warned of, "right wing extremists" the people getting on the news while speaking out against Obama are rather extreme, one even calling for, "book burnings" and "if you have children in high school or college, pull them out!" First of all, don't put crazy people on TV unless they can vocalize their thoughts into an active criticism of US policy. If you have a bunch of nutty people spewing xenophobic and Conspiracy theorists freaking out over how, "they" are all against "us," you're movement is going to half be written off as actual far right secessionists/revolutionists or covered extensively supported by an entire TV network representing an entire section of a mainstream political party.
Rachel Maddow pointed out that while these protests occur every year by civil disobedients and extreme political groups, this is the first year that one of the main parties (Republican obviously) have played a major role in the events. Even Rick Perry, the governor of Texas, basically refered to secession as an option on the table should, "things continue on this path." It is going to take a few weeks to see how far the right wants to go with these demonstrations. By protesting new taxes despite 95% of Americans being eligible for a cut and demanding the repeal of the "death tax" or income tax, these people will hope for starting a rebound in the popularity of conservative politics by the 2010 elections.
What pisses me off is that literally no one on TV was protesting the wars, the two wars that cost 1 BILLION DOLLARS PER DAY just to run and that at a minimum will not end until 2011. The reason the deficit Obama is running is $3 trillion over the next few years is because unlike his predecessor, he isn't hiding the price of war from us. War is the biggest detterent of all! We are in a horrific debt not just because of poor Wall Street management, but because Iraq and Afghanistan are so fucking expensive. If you don't like taxes, fine, I don't either. But if you still support the Iraq and Afghanistan wars to the extent both Obama and Bush do, one of which we won and the second of which is an expanding quagmire, then you're bringing down the future generations just as much as any tax/bailout. Suck on that teabag.
Today is April 15th, tax day, everyones favorite right after the National Hangover Days (January 1st, July 5th, and the day after your birthday). Interestingly, this year features a 21st century variation on the 18th century Boston Tea Party with conservative activists around the country demonstrating their disapproval with the Obama tax code changes, namely a tax increase for the 5% of top US citizens (yet those people aren't teabagging). TEA stands for Taxed Enough Already by the way. The demonstrators are picketing and dumping teabags in the parks they are in all around the country (it's illegal to dump in the water, what do you think this is? 1773?) and speaking out against the new taxes from the Obama administration. Originally started by a Ron Paul-inspired "paleoconservative" libertarian campaign who rented a blimp with his face on it to throw tea out the windows, it was effectively hijacked by Fox News anchors who are pretending they came up with the idea, angering the paleos and making an expression of free speech laughable with their ignorant corruption
What's so unbelievable about this whole thing is just 1 day after the Homeland Security report warned of, "right wing extremists" the people getting on the news while speaking out against Obama are rather extreme, one even calling for, "book burnings" and "if you have children in high school or college, pull them out!" First of all, don't put crazy people on TV unless they can vocalize their thoughts into an active criticism of US policy. If you have a bunch of nutty people spewing xenophobic and Conspiracy theorists freaking out over how, "they" are all against "us," you're movement is going to half be written off as actual far right secessionists/revolutionists or covered extensively supported by an entire TV network representing an entire section of a mainstream political party.
Rachel Maddow pointed out that while these protests occur every year by civil disobedients and extreme political groups, this is the first year that one of the main parties (Republican obviously) have played a major role in the events. Even Rick Perry, the governor of Texas, basically refered to secession as an option on the table should, "things continue on this path." It is going to take a few weeks to see how far the right wants to go with these demonstrations. By protesting new taxes despite 95% of Americans being eligible for a cut and demanding the repeal of the "death tax" or income tax, these people will hope for starting a rebound in the popularity of conservative politics by the 2010 elections.
What pisses me off is that literally no one on TV was protesting the wars, the two wars that cost 1 BILLION DOLLARS PER DAY just to run and that at a minimum will not end until 2011. The reason the deficit Obama is running is $3 trillion over the next few years is because unlike his predecessor, he isn't hiding the price of war from us. War is the biggest detterent of all! We are in a horrific debt not just because of poor Wall Street management, but because Iraq and Afghanistan are so fucking expensive. If you don't like taxes, fine, I don't either. But if you still support the Iraq and Afghanistan wars to the extent both Obama and Bush do, one of which we won and the second of which is an expanding quagmire, then you're bringing down the future generations just as much as any tax/bailout. Suck on that teabag.
Monday, April 13, 2009
The Banking Crisis is Over?! Since when?
In response to Douglas A. McIntyre's article :
"More Quickly Than It Began, The Banking Crisis Is Over" from Time Magazine
McIntyre argues that, " the great banking crisis of 2008 is over" which is in part true. He references the fact that Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and Citigroup are all recovering from the huge losses in 2008 and expect to do better throughout 2009. All good news to be sure. Financial insurance giants such as these are involved with such a tangled web of securities, equities, mortgages, hedge funds, CDOs, CDSs, and a whole host of ridiculously complex transactions that there is really no way of telling how frozen business would be should they have continued down the path they were on. AIG is only worth $50 billion dollars if it was sold tomorrow, but insures over $300 billion worth of other companies and governments.
The problem lies with the part of McIntyre's article where he notes that the trillion dollars the government has promised to use and threw nearly blindly at the banks is utterly useless now. Henry Paulson admitted that when they started the TARP program last year they, "gave away money so fast NO ONE kept track of it!!!" The American taxpayer is out billions upon billions of dollars, and is now crippled with debt for easily 3-4 generations.
Not only that, but just because the banks are turning around does not mean everything is going to be fine. We have an 8.5% unemployment rate that does not even count those not seeking working and trying to get back to school or have not registered as "unemployed." It does not address the fact that banks are still not lending again leaving new businesses in the dirt and homeowners ("struggling" is putting it lightly) to pay for homes, cars, food, school, and the whole mess of things any normal person has to deal with on a day to day basis!
How in the hell did these banks rebound so quickly? The TARP money could definitely be noted as helpful, but the Obama plans have barely gotten rolling yet. Treasury basically asked the banks and insurance companies for reports on how deeply they had gotten themselves in the earth, and over just a few months a bunch of institutions rebounded! McIntyre writes, "[there is] almost no one with an in-depth knowledge of the credit market tapestry who does not believe that there are hundreds of billions of Confederate dollars being held in the vaults of the major banks." You know what that means? It means that while these finance industries begged Congress for our money, they could just as easily had a plan B, C, and D to fix themselves if government stuck up their noses and sniffed, "screw you!"
Another thing. The key words above are, "almost no one." Treasury guys aren't stupid, but they aren't as corruptingly smart as the guys who figured out how to drag the world into this mess in the first place. It sounds like a conspiracy theory, (see The Obama Deception<--I do not agree with a majority of the views in that film) but the people who were at the very top of the banking food chain really fucked the rest of us with one hell of a good plan. The sheer volume of money that is getting poured like butter over the steaming crab legs of this injustice to Americans is enough to make one cringe, but what do we do now that investigations are showing us that some of these major institutions may have had their own safety nets? It's not a golden parachute, it's a goddam platinum mattress.
The government refuses to bail out the smaller, local banks that millions of Americans have their money in because they "don't affect enough people". They won't bail out automobile companies that actually make tangible products and employ 1/5 of the US workforce because of the companies own incompetence and refusal to change. Yet we hurled billions upon billions at insurance and banking giants who did not divulge any in depth reports on why they got the way they were (their own incompetence, see Matt Taibbi's article in Rolling Stone) did not give any explanations to their problems and just said, "Oh, you wouldn't understand, don't worry about it, we got it, it's cool. Can I have $500 billion please?"
We need more intelligent minds at Treasury working for the American people (not saying they aren't smart/patriots) and less of them going into shadow industries that ruin and lay waste to the world around them. We should not support massive bailouts if the causes of a half-year recession are not addressed (lack of oversight, government communication, hypercapitalism, etc.) and we should not blindly allow our elected officials to be connived into funding the insatiable pigs that are major finance companies. Not everyone is a bad guy, again see Taibbi's article for who is/isn't, but frankly it's a shame to let ourselves be suckered into this calamity
Greed and stupidity got Wall Street and unfortunately all of us into this catastrophe of catastrophes, but the more we find out about how much the insider guys knew about what was going to happen and cashed out while begging for our help, the sooner we can get our money back.
"More Quickly Than It Began, The Banking Crisis Is Over" from Time Magazine
McIntyre argues that, " the great banking crisis of 2008 is over" which is in part true. He references the fact that Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and Citigroup are all recovering from the huge losses in 2008 and expect to do better throughout 2009. All good news to be sure. Financial insurance giants such as these are involved with such a tangled web of securities, equities, mortgages, hedge funds, CDOs, CDSs, and a whole host of ridiculously complex transactions that there is really no way of telling how frozen business would be should they have continued down the path they were on. AIG is only worth $50 billion dollars if it was sold tomorrow, but insures over $300 billion worth of other companies and governments.
The problem lies with the part of McIntyre's article where he notes that the trillion dollars the government has promised to use and threw nearly blindly at the banks is utterly useless now. Henry Paulson admitted that when they started the TARP program last year they, "gave away money so fast NO ONE kept track of it!!!" The American taxpayer is out billions upon billions of dollars, and is now crippled with debt for easily 3-4 generations.
Not only that, but just because the banks are turning around does not mean everything is going to be fine. We have an 8.5% unemployment rate that does not even count those not seeking working and trying to get back to school or have not registered as "unemployed." It does not address the fact that banks are still not lending again leaving new businesses in the dirt and homeowners ("struggling" is putting it lightly) to pay for homes, cars, food, school, and the whole mess of things any normal person has to deal with on a day to day basis!
How in the hell did these banks rebound so quickly? The TARP money could definitely be noted as helpful, but the Obama plans have barely gotten rolling yet. Treasury basically asked the banks and insurance companies for reports on how deeply they had gotten themselves in the earth, and over just a few months a bunch of institutions rebounded! McIntyre writes, "[there is] almost no one with an in-depth knowledge of the credit market tapestry who does not believe that there are hundreds of billions of Confederate dollars being held in the vaults of the major banks." You know what that means? It means that while these finance industries begged Congress for our money, they could just as easily had a plan B, C, and D to fix themselves if government stuck up their noses and sniffed, "screw you!"
Another thing. The key words above are, "almost no one." Treasury guys aren't stupid, but they aren't as corruptingly smart as the guys who figured out how to drag the world into this mess in the first place. It sounds like a conspiracy theory, (see The Obama Deception<--I do not agree with a majority of the views in that film) but the people who were at the very top of the banking food chain really fucked the rest of us with one hell of a good plan. The sheer volume of money that is getting poured like butter over the steaming crab legs of this injustice to Americans is enough to make one cringe, but what do we do now that investigations are showing us that some of these major institutions may have had their own safety nets? It's not a golden parachute, it's a goddam platinum mattress.
The government refuses to bail out the smaller, local banks that millions of Americans have their money in because they "don't affect enough people". They won't bail out automobile companies that actually make tangible products and employ 1/5 of the US workforce because of the companies own incompetence and refusal to change. Yet we hurled billions upon billions at insurance and banking giants who did not divulge any in depth reports on why they got the way they were (their own incompetence, see Matt Taibbi's article in Rolling Stone) did not give any explanations to their problems and just said, "Oh, you wouldn't understand, don't worry about it, we got it, it's cool. Can I have $500 billion please?"
We need more intelligent minds at Treasury working for the American people (not saying they aren't smart/patriots) and less of them going into shadow industries that ruin and lay waste to the world around them. We should not support massive bailouts if the causes of a half-year recession are not addressed (lack of oversight, government communication, hypercapitalism, etc.) and we should not blindly allow our elected officials to be connived into funding the insatiable pigs that are major finance companies. Not everyone is a bad guy, again see Taibbi's article for who is/isn't, but frankly it's a shame to let ourselves be suckered into this calamity
Greed and stupidity got Wall Street and unfortunately all of us into this catastrophe of catastrophes, but the more we find out about how much the insider guys knew about what was going to happen and cashed out while begging for our help, the sooner we can get our money back.
Weekly Blog-ins
Hello All,
After some time away, I have decided that I will be updating thebenblog with new pieces every week or so. There have been quite a few things that I would love to share my opinion on, and I am taking the advice of a friend who noted how Facebook Notes are just not as wide a media as a more continuous and genuine digital column.
With that, I promise to put up a new post at least once a week. I am not sure if I will have a specific day of the week for doing so, or a set range of topics, but I can assure you each post will be thoughtful and hopefully not too partisan of a point of view.
Thanks for your continued support!
Ben
After some time away, I have decided that I will be updating thebenblog with new pieces every week or so. There have been quite a few things that I would love to share my opinion on, and I am taking the advice of a friend who noted how Facebook Notes are just not as wide a media as a more continuous and genuine digital column.
With that, I promise to put up a new post at least once a week. I am not sure if I will have a specific day of the week for doing so, or a set range of topics, but I can assure you each post will be thoughtful and hopefully not too partisan of a point of view.
Thanks for your continued support!
Ben
Friday, November 7, 2008
3 Steps Towards Revitalizing the USA
DISCLAIMER:The opinions expressed here provide a general outline on how to reshape the faltering structure of the United States of America and restructure the powers that be. Further information on specific topics will be provided as needed and as requested in order to engage in a proper debate of the American political system.
Despite what some may say, these ideas all work under the restraints of capitalism, and while they will radically change the face of America, they can come about peacefully and without civil violence or propaganda techniques we have all become too used to. If these three major “umbrella” topics become the top priorities of our day, we can create the best incarnation of the United States in our nearly 250 years of existence. Do NOT accept the status quo! Change America, protect our future, save the world!
1. End Gerrymandering With a Constitutional Amendment!
Gerrymandering is the redrawing of congressional district boundaries for political gain. It is because of this that legislative bodies ends up so divided at the local, state, and national level. By redrawing district lines, the elected politicians are much more radical to either the right or left because they can retrace their electorate into demographics that will support their policies despite the politician’s refusal to work with the opposing side, no matter the cost.
Look, for example, at the massive budget crisis in California. This year hundreds of thousands of students will attend schools that have no official budget and be taught by teachers that are unsure of whether or not their jobs will still exist by the end of the semester. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a relatively moderate Republican governor, is in a political stalemate with the California State Legislature. The Democrats refuse to cut funding for programs in the state, and Republicans refuse to raise taxes. Neither side will sign the budget should their particular issue be batted down by a majority rule, and so, California is stuck in an awful political stalemate. The recent “bailout” only passed because the American people finally demanded a bipartisan change, not legislatures mindless bickering over who is right and who is wrong while they await the next election.
By ending gerrymandering with a Constitutional amendment, we can redraw political lines according to geography and location, not party affiliation or demographics. In this way, politicians who do not completely agree with either side will be elected, and will work together as moderates to get things done! It will not be easy to get things passed, which is why we must:
A. Elect a president who can propose such an amendment
B. Create a nonpartisan coalition in each state to redraw district boundaries
C. Write to your representative and tell them you support the end of gerrymandering, by doing so, you show you may still support them if they propose/pass such a bill despite what how it could affect their electorate.
D. Fight for change! Gerrymandering is one of the least talked about issues in the United States today right along with our collapsing infrastructure and horrifically faltering education system. Change the law and elect politicians who aren’t guided solely by reelection and witness the greatest peaceful revolutions in American History.
2. Let The Economy Die!
Yes, I said it, and let me explain why. The great “Emergency Economic Passage” has made it from the Treasury Department, Federal Reserve, Congress, and President Bush, with the urgency an ambulance because we were told if it did not pass quickly, the economy would immediately fell. Well, look what happened. The DOW tanked. It fell below 10,000 points for the first time since 2004 and now the President has the nerve to come on TV and say the bill’s effects may, “take some time”. People in our great capitalist country fear for their savings, retirements, homes, and health, yet we were promised this great “package” would put us on the right track.
Economics is about 80% mental and the rest is actual monetary problems, and this large drop in the stock market just shows that the world and the United States did not have faith in the “bailout”. They panicked, sold shares, and now the mess that has been tipping over the brim of the garbage can is now about to overflow onto the masses of anxious people waiting at the bottom.
The unemployment rate is 6.1%, which is high, but not historically tragic. The poverty line for a four person household or less is under $22,000 a year, a very conservative number to set the bar at, sadly lowering the standard of living in this country. Currently, about 17% of the US is under this line. Should either of these percentages increase substantially any time soon, more panic will spread about the downfall of the world economy and American prosperity, perhaps setting off a major recession or even depression.
Good. It took horrendously high numbers (from a Western standpoint) of poverty during the Great Depression to pass some of the best political reforms ever written. The “invention” of Social Security for the elderly and the 100 Days acts by FDR, helping banks and farms out of bankruptcy and debt. The National Recovery Administration who helped employ thousands, built public projects, and aided in sustaining worker well being. The adoption of Keynesian economics that helped the mid 20th century US become a global superpower and maintain a smart debt until the Reaganomics years and beyond. While the country suffered and struggled to pick itself up again, these socializing and nationalizing reforms bettered the men and women of 1930s America.
We will NOT have another Great Depression. There are too many significant oversight and regulation systems to allow for a total collapse and utter failure of the banking system like in 1929, but I admit, it can get close. However, this could be a golden opportunity to finally get some things done around the United States that desperately need to be changed. Bring back the New Deal in all its glory. Truman tried to continue it, but became caught in a tangled web of political follies that FDR had basically circumvented. We can make a better state than any in the developed world if only we allow ourselves a few years of pain. What does not kill you makes you stronger, and at the end of this crisis will emerge a better United States of America!
3. Revamp Education!
The most important piece of any society is education. From the Romans to the Polynesians to the Incas to the Chinese, education is a stalwart way of benefiting society. Civilizations absolutely depend on it to progress and people need it to survive in their ever-changing world.
Schools should be held to new national standards not based on silly tests and failed programs (e.g. No Child Left Behind). Teachers should give personal evaluations of their students’ abilities and commands on differing subjects. This means that class sizes must be smaller, certain subjects must be combined, the school year must be longer, and universities must have acceptance staff that can take the time to read these evaluations and learn about their new undergraduates personally, not just through grades and test scores.
Education should be a four-way relationship between government, teacher, parent, and student. Education should include logical deduction, kinetic learning, philosophical discussion, Socratic seminars, environmental awareness, current event discussion, visual and auditory training, the classic “three R’s”, historical lessons in government, law, and society, scientific analysis, athletic activity and teams, and a highly social atmosphere. Psychological research should be incorporated into education and teacher sponsored contests should be discouraged. This means that the students should be encouraged to be creative as they wish and be provided with the materials with which to do so, not forced competition to create the “best” of one particular item.
Be aware that this system will take time to come into being and needs obvious elaboration beyond this outline, but even the smallest steps in the right direction are miles ahead of steps in the wrong direction.
The four-way relationship mentioned before would require this of each party involved:
A. Government: Send representatives to study other countries and study what those children are being taught and then use the Department of Education to implement the best ideas into schools, after consulting with representatives of the other three parties. Most importantly, fund education programs as the number one national priority, don’t just lower the standards and call it improvement!
B. Teachers: Accept that some parents will not agree with subject matter, but teach it anyway. Remain nonpartisan to material unless asked. Encourage questioning, encourage activism, encourage group discussion, and do not abandon a student lagging behind. Work with lawmakers and parents to explain how where pupils are improving, and where they need further instruction.
C. Parents: Talk to your student and their teacher. If an issue comes up, discuss the problem with them, don’t just run off to the PTA and complain. Get involved with the school your child goes to but do not be over protective of your child. Finally, encourage creativity at home too, and don’t just let children rot in front of the TV.
D. Students: Show up to school! Learning will be more enjoyable if you are involved at your place of education. Be social, be creative, and be present. You are the future, so learn about the past. With your knowledge of more “ancient” times, you will be better prepared to confront the problems of tomorrow!
Despite what some may say, these ideas all work under the restraints of capitalism, and while they will radically change the face of America, they can come about peacefully and without civil violence or propaganda techniques we have all become too used to. If these three major “umbrella” topics become the top priorities of our day, we can create the best incarnation of the United States in our nearly 250 years of existence. Do NOT accept the status quo! Change America, protect our future, save the world!
1. End Gerrymandering With a Constitutional Amendment!
Gerrymandering is the redrawing of congressional district boundaries for political gain. It is because of this that legislative bodies ends up so divided at the local, state, and national level. By redrawing district lines, the elected politicians are much more radical to either the right or left because they can retrace their electorate into demographics that will support their policies despite the politician’s refusal to work with the opposing side, no matter the cost.
Look, for example, at the massive budget crisis in California. This year hundreds of thousands of students will attend schools that have no official budget and be taught by teachers that are unsure of whether or not their jobs will still exist by the end of the semester. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a relatively moderate Republican governor, is in a political stalemate with the California State Legislature. The Democrats refuse to cut funding for programs in the state, and Republicans refuse to raise taxes. Neither side will sign the budget should their particular issue be batted down by a majority rule, and so, California is stuck in an awful political stalemate. The recent “bailout” only passed because the American people finally demanded a bipartisan change, not legislatures mindless bickering over who is right and who is wrong while they await the next election.
By ending gerrymandering with a Constitutional amendment, we can redraw political lines according to geography and location, not party affiliation or demographics. In this way, politicians who do not completely agree with either side will be elected, and will work together as moderates to get things done! It will not be easy to get things passed, which is why we must:
A. Elect a president who can propose such an amendment
B. Create a nonpartisan coalition in each state to redraw district boundaries
C. Write to your representative and tell them you support the end of gerrymandering, by doing so, you show you may still support them if they propose/pass such a bill despite what how it could affect their electorate.
D. Fight for change! Gerrymandering is one of the least talked about issues in the United States today right along with our collapsing infrastructure and horrifically faltering education system. Change the law and elect politicians who aren’t guided solely by reelection and witness the greatest peaceful revolutions in American History.
2. Let The Economy Die!
Yes, I said it, and let me explain why. The great “Emergency Economic Passage” has made it from the Treasury Department, Federal Reserve, Congress, and President Bush, with the urgency an ambulance because we were told if it did not pass quickly, the economy would immediately fell. Well, look what happened. The DOW tanked. It fell below 10,000 points for the first time since 2004 and now the President has the nerve to come on TV and say the bill’s effects may, “take some time”. People in our great capitalist country fear for their savings, retirements, homes, and health, yet we were promised this great “package” would put us on the right track.
Economics is about 80% mental and the rest is actual monetary problems, and this large drop in the stock market just shows that the world and the United States did not have faith in the “bailout”. They panicked, sold shares, and now the mess that has been tipping over the brim of the garbage can is now about to overflow onto the masses of anxious people waiting at the bottom.
The unemployment rate is 6.1%, which is high, but not historically tragic. The poverty line for a four person household or less is under $22,000 a year, a very conservative number to set the bar at, sadly lowering the standard of living in this country. Currently, about 17% of the US is under this line. Should either of these percentages increase substantially any time soon, more panic will spread about the downfall of the world economy and American prosperity, perhaps setting off a major recession or even depression.
Good. It took horrendously high numbers (from a Western standpoint) of poverty during the Great Depression to pass some of the best political reforms ever written. The “invention” of Social Security for the elderly and the 100 Days acts by FDR, helping banks and farms out of bankruptcy and debt. The National Recovery Administration who helped employ thousands, built public projects, and aided in sustaining worker well being. The adoption of Keynesian economics that helped the mid 20th century US become a global superpower and maintain a smart debt until the Reaganomics years and beyond. While the country suffered and struggled to pick itself up again, these socializing and nationalizing reforms bettered the men and women of 1930s America.
We will NOT have another Great Depression. There are too many significant oversight and regulation systems to allow for a total collapse and utter failure of the banking system like in 1929, but I admit, it can get close. However, this could be a golden opportunity to finally get some things done around the United States that desperately need to be changed. Bring back the New Deal in all its glory. Truman tried to continue it, but became caught in a tangled web of political follies that FDR had basically circumvented. We can make a better state than any in the developed world if only we allow ourselves a few years of pain. What does not kill you makes you stronger, and at the end of this crisis will emerge a better United States of America!
3. Revamp Education!
The most important piece of any society is education. From the Romans to the Polynesians to the Incas to the Chinese, education is a stalwart way of benefiting society. Civilizations absolutely depend on it to progress and people need it to survive in their ever-changing world.
Schools should be held to new national standards not based on silly tests and failed programs (e.g. No Child Left Behind). Teachers should give personal evaluations of their students’ abilities and commands on differing subjects. This means that class sizes must be smaller, certain subjects must be combined, the school year must be longer, and universities must have acceptance staff that can take the time to read these evaluations and learn about their new undergraduates personally, not just through grades and test scores.
Education should be a four-way relationship between government, teacher, parent, and student. Education should include logical deduction, kinetic learning, philosophical discussion, Socratic seminars, environmental awareness, current event discussion, visual and auditory training, the classic “three R’s”, historical lessons in government, law, and society, scientific analysis, athletic activity and teams, and a highly social atmosphere. Psychological research should be incorporated into education and teacher sponsored contests should be discouraged. This means that the students should be encouraged to be creative as they wish and be provided with the materials with which to do so, not forced competition to create the “best” of one particular item.
Be aware that this system will take time to come into being and needs obvious elaboration beyond this outline, but even the smallest steps in the right direction are miles ahead of steps in the wrong direction.
The four-way relationship mentioned before would require this of each party involved:
A. Government: Send representatives to study other countries and study what those children are being taught and then use the Department of Education to implement the best ideas into schools, after consulting with representatives of the other three parties. Most importantly, fund education programs as the number one national priority, don’t just lower the standards and call it improvement!
B. Teachers: Accept that some parents will not agree with subject matter, but teach it anyway. Remain nonpartisan to material unless asked. Encourage questioning, encourage activism, encourage group discussion, and do not abandon a student lagging behind. Work with lawmakers and parents to explain how where pupils are improving, and where they need further instruction.
C. Parents: Talk to your student and their teacher. If an issue comes up, discuss the problem with them, don’t just run off to the PTA and complain. Get involved with the school your child goes to but do not be over protective of your child. Finally, encourage creativity at home too, and don’t just let children rot in front of the TV.
D. Students: Show up to school! Learning will be more enjoyable if you are involved at your place of education. Be social, be creative, and be present. You are the future, so learn about the past. With your knowledge of more “ancient” times, you will be better prepared to confront the problems of tomorrow!
Proposition 8 and a sentiment that will undoubetdly piss off some people
You assholes. Are you serious? While I am not too utterly amazed Prop 8, the bill banning gay marriage in California (for those of you living underground), passed, I am mostly shocked at the reasoning behind it. As I read articles pertaining to Prop 8's success, I couldn't help but notice the flawed logic that helped this right's stripping bill into law.
The National Review's Jennifer Morse said, "the people of California are deeply troubled by the idea of small children being taught about homosexuality in the schools without their parents’ knowledge or consent." ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME? Yep, you're right Jen, that is exactly what we all think, our teachers, since the courts ruled gay marriage legal, decided to teach all their precious little pupils all about the joys of being a homosexual. And if your parents are gay, they definitely tell you being gay is the ONLY way to go. You don't teach homosexuality. You can't pick this up, it is not a goddam condition! You can't get cured!
I don't remember a point in my life when I woke up in the morning, gasped as I sat up and thought, "I'm straight!" I didn't have some talk with my parents saying how I prefer having sex with women over men, or how I have chosen not to take it up the ass, I just am straight. Just like if you happen to be gay, you just are gay. It is NOT a choice. Why would someone choose to be of a certain minority constantly bombarded with hatred and bigotry? Why would you choose to have you're rights as a citizen stripped by you constituents? Wake up you ignorant fuckshits, by voting for proposition 8, you have set all progress towards ACTUAL equal rights in America back another generation.
Now, I realize that there are other reasons to vote against gay marriage whether they be religious, ignorant, or just plain fear. There is a deep seated confusion and ignorance around homosexuality stemming all the way from holy scriptures and the basic problem that, you can't see homosexuality. The prejudice against gays is in part due to the realization that one cannot see if someone else is gay. Unlike racism or most other "isms", people are afraid of what they can't see when it comes to homosexuality. Not comprehending homosexuality to be only one aspect of a person, they fall into the bigoted remarks of some leaders preaching to rid the world of this dreaded illness. The unknown frightens voters and so they choose, instead of being a little..dare I say it... SMART about it, to sign away the rights of people that did nothing to deserve it and are just like everyone else.
I know that the lobby against prop 8 is at fault too. By consistently comparing the fight for gay rights to the civil rights movement, they instantly marginalized their support. Blacks and Hispanic voters did not appreciate the comparison of their struggle to that of homosexuals, and majorities of both ethnic backgrounds voted to ban same sex marriage. The angle they should have taken (the anti-prop 8 people) was that of showing gays for who they are in society, EVERYDAY PEOPLE. If more voters could simply understand that being gay is not a choice and is just a way some of their fellow man are, the amendment may not have passed.
There is still a bit of hope yet. The LA Times reported nearly 1,000,000 absentee votes coming in to California are yet to be counted, and in a historic election year as close as this one in so many states, there is a chance prop 8 will be overturned. Unfortunately, this is a dim light at the end of a very dark tunnel. I am sure that in my lifetime we will have equal rights for straight and gay, but this disgusting display of ignorance will sadly postpone that milestone for a later date. Thanks a lot you retarded dickfores.
I realize I may have offended some people. I'm sort of sorry. Dickfore
The National Review's Jennifer Morse said, "the people of California are deeply troubled by the idea of small children being taught about homosexuality in the schools without their parents’ knowledge or consent." ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME? Yep, you're right Jen, that is exactly what we all think, our teachers, since the courts ruled gay marriage legal, decided to teach all their precious little pupils all about the joys of being a homosexual. And if your parents are gay, they definitely tell you being gay is the ONLY way to go. You don't teach homosexuality. You can't pick this up, it is not a goddam condition! You can't get cured!
I don't remember a point in my life when I woke up in the morning, gasped as I sat up and thought, "I'm straight!" I didn't have some talk with my parents saying how I prefer having sex with women over men, or how I have chosen not to take it up the ass, I just am straight. Just like if you happen to be gay, you just are gay. It is NOT a choice. Why would someone choose to be of a certain minority constantly bombarded with hatred and bigotry? Why would you choose to have you're rights as a citizen stripped by you constituents? Wake up you ignorant fuckshits, by voting for proposition 8, you have set all progress towards ACTUAL equal rights in America back another generation.
Now, I realize that there are other reasons to vote against gay marriage whether they be religious, ignorant, or just plain fear. There is a deep seated confusion and ignorance around homosexuality stemming all the way from holy scriptures and the basic problem that, you can't see homosexuality. The prejudice against gays is in part due to the realization that one cannot see if someone else is gay. Unlike racism or most other "isms", people are afraid of what they can't see when it comes to homosexuality. Not comprehending homosexuality to be only one aspect of a person, they fall into the bigoted remarks of some leaders preaching to rid the world of this dreaded illness. The unknown frightens voters and so they choose, instead of being a little..dare I say it... SMART about it, to sign away the rights of people that did nothing to deserve it and are just like everyone else.
I know that the lobby against prop 8 is at fault too. By consistently comparing the fight for gay rights to the civil rights movement, they instantly marginalized their support. Blacks and Hispanic voters did not appreciate the comparison of their struggle to that of homosexuals, and majorities of both ethnic backgrounds voted to ban same sex marriage. The angle they should have taken (the anti-prop 8 people) was that of showing gays for who they are in society, EVERYDAY PEOPLE. If more voters could simply understand that being gay is not a choice and is just a way some of their fellow man are, the amendment may not have passed.
There is still a bit of hope yet. The LA Times reported nearly 1,000,000 absentee votes coming in to California are yet to be counted, and in a historic election year as close as this one in so many states, there is a chance prop 8 will be overturned. Unfortunately, this is a dim light at the end of a very dark tunnel. I am sure that in my lifetime we will have equal rights for straight and gay, but this disgusting display of ignorance will sadly postpone that milestone for a later date. Thanks a lot you retarded dickfores.
I realize I may have offended some people. I'm sort of sorry. Dickfore
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