Austerity Cometh To America, How‘s It Feel To Be Held Hostage By Radical Bullies?

Robert Reich:

A conspiracy theorist might think they welcome more joblessness because they want Americans to be even more fearful and angry. Tea Partiers use fear and anger in their war against the government – blaming the anemic recovery on government deficits and the government’s size, and selling a poisonous snake-oil of austerity economics and trickle-down economics as the remedy.

Suffering caused by austerity is a tool used against the people.

It doesn't take a very conspiratorial mind to figure this out. They want people to suffer so they will get angry at the government. This assists their propaganda efforts in continuing to manipulate people into helping a radical, psychopathic pack of corporate and/or dominionist zombies destroy our country. They want to rebuild it into their vision of hate, fear, abuse and poverty, but for us, not them. For many of them this is about creating a theocracy as well as getting wealth and power for themselves. What a sick society we have to vote these kinds of people into office and allow them to get away with this.

Below is a partial list of what they have in store for 2013. They plan more cuts for future years. That means they will whittle some programs out of existence and others down to a nubbin. Think how many desperately poor people will be hungry, the crap education systems we will have, how many will have no place to live and all those who will loose their jobs. This Sequestration will also have a negative effect on the economy, of course. That is just part of the plan. Why do you think they refused to work on creating jobs?

Education cuts.

Federal employees laid off and furloughed.

Meals on Wheels cuts.

People cut from food stamps.

Children cut from Head Start Programs.

Low income childcare assistance cut.

HUD housing grants to states will be cut.

EPA cuts.

DOT transportation for rural areas will be cut.

DOJ staff cuts.

Services for veterans and those on active duty in the military.

The FDA will have to cut food inspections.

The Coast Guard will be patrolling and flying fewer hours.

Medicare payments will be lowered 2%.

DOT cuts will cause airport runways to be closed and there will be less air traffic controllers.

Visiting hours at national parks will be cut and they will have fewer rangers.

How sickening to find out Boehner decided his job as speaker of the house was more important than the people of this country or even the country as a whole. How many drinks did he have before he made that decision? Was a crying jag involved? How disturbing to find out the Republicans cheered when they found out the sequester will be happening. Essentially they said, FUCK YOU to the people of this country and left town for the week end. What do sociopaths and psychopaths care about other people’s ability to survive, they have theirs that is all that matters to them. Nothing more frightening than a cabal of little Hitlers plotting to hurt others, except large numbers of people supporting and voting for them. Void of conscience, having no empathy along with little skills uninformed voters have elected them to offices which have power over people’s lives. They could care less if your child or grandmother are hungry, if you are homeless or if a child who is underprivileged gets a helping hand so they can be successful contributors to society.

From 1935

Soon they will come for Social Security. President Obama has already stated he is willing to give some of the benefits away (CPI). Just give them time to implement the strategy and come up with some kind of false crisis.

Some of the above programs help people who through no fault of their own are having a rough time. They didn’t cause the economy to tank, they didn’t cause the banks to manipulate the housing market into the ground, they did not cause their disability and they certainly are not working for minimum wage because they think that is all they deserve or need. Meals on Wheels helps elderly and disabled people stay in their homes rather than have to go to a nursing home, helps low income people get a decent meal, checks on those in the program and gives shut-ins some social interaction if only for a couple minutes.

Imagine just barely surviving and getting a sorry, but we must inform you that our new guidelines disqualify you from food stamps or housing or any essential service letter in the mail. What if you are one of the people in a federal job that will be cut and you have kids, a house payment and other bills? Will Republicans who are on these programs realize the mistake they made when they voted for these bastards? Only when it devastates their own lives, because well, they are a special case, they deserve those “entitlements”, all those other people are undeserving, especially if their skin isn’t white.

It will be interesting horrifying to watch what happens in Alaska which has been addicted to federal money for decades.

Robert Reich:
Instead, the President should let the public see the Tea Partiers for who they are — a small, radical minority intent on dismantling the government of the United States. As long as they are allowed to dictate the terms of public debate they will continue to hold the rest of us hostage to their extremism.
 

Tea Party Fascista Joe Miller

Who the hell needs entertainment in Alaska when all you have to do is read about the crazy radical right wing politicians. Even Steven King couldn’t come up with a more frightening story than this. When I say crazy I mean personality disorders with symptoms such as narcissism, paranoia, delusions of grandeur, and sociopathy. On Sunday Joe Miller demonstrated one of the principles of fascism for us: forcibly suppressing opposition and criticism. He had his paramilitary fascists abuse a member of the press. Joe Miller did an internship with the Department of Law. Prosecutors make things up and fake evidence. They orchestrate people to be set up. These hired thugs most likely were placing themselves in front of Tony Hopfinger to block and then direct him away from Miller so he could not ask questions. They were afraid other reporters or anyone else might get this on camera. When they say Hopfinger pushed someone he was most likely standing his ground and pushing back against being pushed. One’s IQ does not have to be very high to read between the lines here, especially after a bit of information about the “security company“ the Drop Zone. Prosecutors are also very skilled at demonizing people, so the campaign issued a statement designed to do just that. While reading it think of a prosecutor in a court room who starts with the statement, “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury.”

The Miller campaign was required by the facility to provide security at the event. Even though Joe had spent nearly an hour freely answering questions from those in attendance, the blogger chased Miller to the exit after the event concluded in an attempt to create and then record a 'confrontation' with the candidate. While Miller attempted to calmly exit the facility, the blogger physically assaulted another individual and made threatening gestures and movements towards the candidate. At that point the security personnel had to take action and intervened and detained the irrational blogger, whose anger overcame him. It is also important to note that the security personnel did not know that the individual they detained was a blogger who reporting on the campaign. To them, the blogger appeared irrational, angry and potentially violent.

We all know Joe does not freely answer questions and has said so during a press conference. When he says “the blogger” chased him he is exaggerating that he followed him and guess what, that is what journalists do at public events where political candidates are speaking. Maybe someone can fill Joe Miller in on what country we are in. Oh, yea I forgot Joe thinks we are in Germany during the cold war era and he’s Winston Churchill, “an "iron curtain" has descended across the Continent.“

It is clear the above statement is designed to spread misinformation and demonize the reporter. He tries to make is seem like Hopfinger planned the whole incident. “To them, the blogger appeared irrational, angry and potentially violent,” give me a break. They knew he was some kind of press that is why they erased the recording of the arrest incident from his camera and that is why they were trying to run him off. The arrest may have actually occurred so they could get to the camera. I find it very hard to believe they did not know who Hopfinger was considering the Alaska Dispatch is suing for the release of Joe Miller’s employment files from the Fairbanks North Star Borough. The statement above is damage control and reeks of lying attorney speak.

Statement by William Fulton the security guard who made the false arrest:
From CNN story.

"The Dispatch reporter repeatedly pushed a camera into the face of Mr. Miller. He continued to aggressively pursue him. I told the reporter several times that he needed to stop and that he was trespassing. He ignored me. He then proceeded to stalk Mr. Miller and even shoved an individual into a locker. Based upon this trespass and his assault, we detained him and escorted him from the premises."

A man who is running for the senate in the United States thinks a reporter at a public event should not ask questions or shove a camera in his face, and he can be threatened with a trespassing charge? They think a reporter aggressively trying to get questions answered is “stalking”. What the f***! If he is that thin skinned he has no business in politics. Why do you think they call it public office Joe? We all know the real reason he has a problem with reporters asking questions, his refusal to answer questions about his past. What more does anyone need to know about this man to know not only do we not want him as our senator we sure as hell don’t want him as a judge, magistrate or even a shyster attorney.

Here is a statement from the owner of the private security company:
From MSNBC story:


“After I told him he was trespassing, he said he was a reporter,” Fulton said. “I said, ‘Sir, that doesn't matter: you've been asked to leave, this is a private event.’ At that time, I told him again he was trespassing, then he hit the guy -- he pushed the guy, well, pushed the guy, into the locker. And at that point we decided he had become violent and would effect the arrest.”

The announcement about the event on MIller's website called the event a “Town Meeting”, not a Tea Partiers only affair. Nothing said it was a private affair. What kind of a politician has a private publicly announced event?


TownHall Anchorage

When:Sun, October 17, 3:00pm – 4:30pm

Where:1405 E street Central Middle School (map)

Description Why: Because your friends, colleges, family, acquaintances, neighbors, need to be informed and hear Joe Miller speak for himself. Don't let the media skew your views. Make the decision for yourself. Help send Joe to DC!

Dave Parker has said private security can make arrests like a private citizen. There has to have been an actual crime committed to make a citizen’s arrest. This was clearly a manipulated incident. The security company and Joe Miller’s campaign need to be sued and the thugs need to be arrested for assault and false arrest. Will the department of law have the guts to do that? No. Will they charge the reporter? Remember the DOL is owned by the governor in Alaska and Sean Parnell has endorsed Miller, of course. Can the DOL figure out how to build a case out of these obvious lies? Maybe, it’s what they do for a living. They don’t have a case, but that has not stopped them in the past. I myself have been arrested on false charges when it was clear there was no evidence. They employed a frequently used tactic by the INS to keep illegal alien detainees from communicating with anyone. I was moved to four different jails and prisons in less than a month while being told each time I was moved I was going somewhere for a hearing and guess what I was never taken where they promised. They did this to try to shut me up.

Private security guards have to have a license in Alaska, issued by the Commissioner of Public Safety. These guys need to loose theirs. Apparently they also work as bounty hunters, there are no specific requirements for bounty hunters in Alaska. Doesn't that make you feel safe?

In Alaska there is criminal trespassing and civil trespassing. For either one to occur the person has to knowingly go onto the property without permission. It could be assumed consent to enter the property was implied since the public was invited to the event. The reason they told him he was trespassing is in Alaska when an owner of a property tells someone they are trespassing and they do not leave they can be charged with criminal trespassing. That dog won’t hunt here because this was a public event and on public property.
 

ROBERT REICH SHOULD BE IN THE WHITE HOUSE WORKING ON THE ECONOMY

I have been doing a lot of reading about the economy and events leading up to the Great Depression. The circumstances that caused the Great Depression and the Great Recession are very similar, both involved banking and economic problems in many countries. For instance, Germany after WWI had to pay reparations with payments that were so high they could not afford to run their government after they had been devastated by fighting in a war. There were recessions and depressions on and off after WWI, especially in Europe, but also in the United States. Germany was hit the worst with hyperinflation. The people of Germany looked for someone to blame. Remember politics and economics go hand in hand. They had multiple theories split among the population of who was to blame, the Kaiser, the new government, communists, or Jews. In German society, an elite class had enjoyed many privileges and many resented them. Many skilled workers had been killed in the war, their infrastructure was falling apart, people were starving, there was a shortage of fuel, and a shortage of raw materials. Germany was also being shunned internationally.

Hardships such as starvation and lack of work cause people to become radicalized due to fear and anger. They had a lot of people swing both left and right. There were attempts at revolutions. The government used a group of right wing soldiers to try to get control. We all know what this lead to later. The people of Germany were very disillusioned and looking for hope. They did not understand what was happening; they were just trying to have a better life. Hitler made brilliant speeches, got the rich to pay for propaganda, and terrorized people with the paramilitary. President Hindenburg made Hitler his chancellor thinking he could control him and his followers. He took a negative destructive leader of people who fueled support for his movement by anger and hate into his administration.



Right now in the United States, we have a prison system this is overflowing, problems with police brutality, loss of civil rights, surveillance, disillusionment, radicalization, illogical blaming, racial hatred, immigrant hatred, and rich elite who have caused huge damage to the economy who also pay for propaganda. Our highest court has given the wealthy the power to control the outcome of elections in a huge way, we have people calling many established parts of our social nets socialism while working to destroy them. The United States was shunned by many countries for a war that should not have happened along with other acts of imperialism that have gone on for the last few decades. Many have been affected by loss of jobs, homes, lack of health care, inability to afford education and more. People are angry and afraid. The paramilitary in Germany attacked in many ways those who opposed Hitler. We have some similar activities in the United States by those who are against certain individuals or a party who are targeted, manipulated, have dirt dug up on them, false information circulated about them, tricks pulled, prosecution, ignoring of requests by government agencies, and courts that favor those with wealth and particular political leanings.
One of the biggest mistakes the White House has made is not giving the citizens enough information to understand their thinking behind the decisions they are making. They make the economy sound too complex and mysterious for the average citizen. Their explanations that the Bush administration caused the problems just sound like blaming on the right. Bush is not the whole story anyway, it started way before Bush. Information is distributed by those with a corporate agenda on some hack news show often by someone with just a high school diploma let alone a degree in economics. It has become abundantly clear that one reason for this is the White House focused on Wall Street instead of Main Street while campaign promises were broken. The corporations were the number one priority. From what I understand, the Obama administration did keep us from having a second Great Depression. Job plans for the unemployed middle class and working people were an afterthought. We are going to have huge unemployment for a long time. I understand President Obama was handed a bucket of crap from failures in the past, but telling people who have lost their homes and don’t have jobs to stop whining is not going to motivate people to follow him. It only makes people angrier. What is he thinking?

The economic and political conditions we have in this country now have historically caused huge problems for countries. For decades, mainly the Republicans and a few Democrats have caused the decline of the working class and middle class by their policies that deregulated and favored big business over the welfare of the United States as a whole. Our judicial system is designed to favor big business and the decline of labor unions took away the voice of the workers. President Obama has attempted to unite with the Republicans with their hateful, negative, illogical and often insanely selfish agenda. The result of this is Republicans have done everything they could to halt all progress for the middle class and working people by blocking reforms or watering them down. So, we have not gotten very far. The movement we all got behind when we got Obama elected was sabotaged and people have lost hope.

If the Republicans get back into the White House, especially the Tea Party brand they will destroy this country. People who did not normally vote in Germany came out of the woodwork, especially the young and women to vote for Hitler. The support for the Nazis was highest among Protestants and those in the rural areas. Older people who believed Hitler would restore traditional German values were behind him. Does any of this sound familiar?

I am not saying the Republicans are Nazis, but they have among their ranks some twisted people who are capable of great evil. These conditions are similar to what happened in Germany that allowed the population to be controlled by a power hungry insane man because they were looking for hope and change. When these conditions occur catastrophically bad things can happen. We have the advantage of knowing this, unlike the people of post WWI Germany. The United States and everything our constitution stands for could disappear. Let us all be conscious of this and not let this situation get any worse than it is. At this point, we can turn it around.

Robert Reich’s book, Aftershock, The Next Economy and America’s Future is amazing. He explains what has gone on to cause the recession and what we need to do to get a strong economy back in a way that a non-economist can understand. It is not a long book and an easy read. The recession did not happen because the middle class spent too much money and did not save. High debt is a symptom, not the cause of the recession. Our politicians who are more concerned with being reelected than the good of the country have opted for short term solutions rather than lasting solutions. It is not difficult to see that by eroding the middle class capitalism cannot work. It is also not hard to understand that if all of the money is concentrated with a tiny percentage of the population the economy is rendered dysfunctional. We have to have reform to survive and have a healthy economy over the long term.
Robert Reich should be in the White House helping President Obama straighten out the economy. For one thing, he is able to explain what is going on and why certain choices are made to the American people. Information and truth calms people and goes a long way to prevention of radicalization. People also feel a lot different about failure when they know the White House is on their side and doing their best, Robert Reich would engender trust. The point of a country is to work together for the benefit of the majority. Together we can do things we cannot do alone. We have not been building infrastructure for a long time and many on the right are trying to take away our social nets that help prop up the economy in difficult times. A true democracy follows through with the consensus of the majority and this is not happening.

“The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few…”, Mr. Spock.



 
 

We are in danger of loosing America. Forces with an agenda are trying to take control. They say what they think people want to hear to get their support, but those following them don‘t understand what they really are. In my research about workplace bullying one of the consequences is those with an agenda other than the work at hand cause great dysfunction, corruption, abuse and waste of finances. The same thing happened with the leadership of our country over decades getting worse with time until the eight years of George W. Bush‘s chaotic presidency ended with the Great Recession. The real work of running this country for the benefit of all was hijacked.

Without education about what is going on people cannot get behind what we need to do to get our economy and political system back on a healthy track. A healthy democracy does not work without a highly educated population, not propaganda, but education. This helps prevent radicalization as well. Conspiracy theories and lies propagate behind a void of the truth. Where is that transparency we were promised.


Read Robert Reich’s blog post for today:
The President’s Backyard Discussion of the Economy (as It Could Be)

Robert Reich at a book signing in New York: