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Departments National Issues Stop picking on the poor plutocrats Of course, further investigation tends to reveal that the crimes of this mythical nouveau-Soviet assault by Democrats in D.C. are a combination of tasks performed for their masters on Wall Street and tasks they would never perform even under enhanced interrogation technique. The Obama-gang of rabid leftists stands accused of bailing out banksters and mega corporations, as of course they have eagerly done, just as have their Republican partners in crime. And they stand accused of taxing the rich and cutting the military while providing healthcare, education, retirement security, renewable energy, and affordable housing to the least well-off among us, as of course they will do the day Newt Gingrich turns monogamous. I've just read a forthcoming book whose publisher I doubt will pay to place it in prominent display among the breathless coverage of the coming commie apocalypse. It's called "Pity the Billionaire" by Thomas Frank. On its surface, the book is a rather blatant argument for self-publishing, since the delay that traditional publishers create has rendered the book out-of-date before it's publication. Frank's book treats the Tea Party as the latest thing and has never heard of Occupy. In the dated world of "Pity the Billionaire" an explanation is sought precisely for the absence of something like Occupy, as well as for the bizarre presence of the Tea Party: "Now, There is nothing really novel about the idea that free markets are the very essence of freedom. What is new is the glorification of this idea at the precise moment when freemarket theory has proven itself to be a philosophy of ruination and fraud. The revival of the Right is as extraordinary as it would be if the public had demanded dozens of new nuclear power plants in the days after the Three Mile Island disaster; if we had reacted to Watergate by making Richard Nixon a national hero." Frank compares the response to the crash of 1929 with the response to our latest Great Recession and suggests that, "should you happen to hear an homage to the spirit of the Boston Tea Party nowadays, the demands that follow will be the opposite of those striking farmers of 1932. What makes the rebel's blood boil today is not the plight of the debtor but the possibility that such 'losers' might escape their predicament — that the government might step in and do the things those Iowa farmers wanted it to do eighty years ago." Frank dissects the incredible inversions of fact and logic that constitute the victimology of the meritocratic victors of the Ayn Randian, Glenn Beckian Tea Party mythology. But he concludes the book with this sentiment: "It is preposterous. It is contemptible. But you know what it's better than? It's better than nothing. . . . The real tragedy of the Great Recession is that moneyed interests no longer have anything to fear from us, and they know it." Arguably that has changed in the past few months, and there is potential for greater change to come in this regard. If the Occupy movement did not exist, we would have to invent it. Frank, writing when it did not yet exist, was pointing out the need for its invention. Talking to the media in Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C., some weeks back, the most interesting interviews for me were those with Northern European journalists who would ask me with sheer bewilderment to explain the phenomenon of people demonstrating to demand that they not be provided with healthcare. These reporters did not ask why our country lacked any popular movement for peace, justice, and the social good. It was too late to ask that long-standing and most vexing of questions. But what the next several months will bring is anyone's guess. The analysis Frank provides of the Fox News fantasy of noble entrepreneurs victimized by the Socialist State will remain valuable regardless. But it may continue to require contextualizing in a country with a healthy and active resistance movement from the left. Or, on the other hand, it may appear perfectly up-to-date and immediately applicable to everything around us. After all, this is an election year. After 10 months of election obsession and lesser-evilism, this place could look more or less the way it would have had Occupy never arisen. That situation would leave us with no option but to confront this question, which we ought to come to an understanding of regardless, the question of why people would expend energy to urge each other to pity billionaires. ------------------------ David Swanson is the author of When the World Outlawed War, War Is A Lie and Daybreak: Undoing the Imperial Presidency and Forming a More Perfect Union. He blogs at David Swanson and War is a Crime and works for the online activist organization Roots Action Article |
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Recent National Issues Articles Extraordinary interview: In love with tortured man -- Indefinite imprisonment, torture, terror inside California prisons through eyes of woman of courage Stop picking on the poor plutocrats Don’t mute Newt My declaration of war on Christmas Pvt. Manning and Imperative of Truth The Real Christmas Story The trial of Bradley Manning — Rule of law or rule of intimidation, retaliation & retribution Are Americans in line for Gitmo? Project Bugsplat Eliminate tax subsidies for big oil companies ? The last whistleblowers Lesson of White House Strafing: Limit Guns Now The bravest man I ever met I'm thankful for Occupy Occupy Crackdown: PCJF and NLG Demand Records of Federal Involvemen Mass day of action on 2-month anniversary of Occupy Wall Street Seven arrested at demonstration at US Bank in downtown Columbus, Ohio Move to Amend gaining momentum Listen to the song: Occupy Wall Street From Occupy Wall Street to Occupy the Neighborhoods Occupy movement demands home mortgages correction Will the 1% steal Ohio's labor rights referendum? Democracy key to fixing economic and eco crises, says Van Jones during visit to Columbus Former Tea Partier reaches out to Occupy Movement Official VFP statement regarding police assaults in Oakland Numbers justify Occupy Movement Occupy our chambers of commerce Arab Spring revolutionaries meet with Occupy activists in DC The abandoned class: Will Occupy Wall Street hold together long enough to cut to the deep chase? Jim Hightower tells Occupistas : just being out here is a big part of the battle Occupy The Hood Let's protest big banks at their Columbus branches Obama vs. jobs; Hope vs. reality Be a part of history. Help Occupy Columbus. Ohio Right of Life: Informed consent v. informed consent -- it's all situational Dr. Cornel West and 14 others arrested protesting corporate power at U.S. Supreme Court Occupy Columbus continues with gatherings at Ohio Statehouse and so-called Columbus Commons Class warrior from Wisconsin says building a movement requires courage, solidarity, and long-term organization Occupied -- What now? Former CIA analyst Ray McGovern : the movement is building Hey DC--You Look So Sexy ! To build a mass movement we got to care more and be uncomfortable, says flaming fundamentalist Columbus Free Press photos : Occupation in Freedom Plaza, D.C. Mass movement appears to be getting started, says David Swanson Our overripe moment We Are The 99 Percent The Progressive Humanifesto Declaration of the Occupation of New York City A judge grants dubious probation The old integrity You've convinced me...Now go out and make me do it. Fracking (if done right) is a way to combat Global Warming, says Congressman Tim Ryan The NFL will remember 9/11 in all the wrong ways I just found 29 million jobs 9/11 and the Orwellian redefinition of "Conspiracy Theory" An upcoming Charlottesville conference highlights the importance of whistleblowers when addressing the corruption present in military contracting How do we build a movement to defeat right-wing extremism? How the budget cutting Is going to go down Did Tenet Hide Key 9/11 Info? Equal and opposite lunacy Obama on the Backs of the Poor Budget deal Is a “Huge Mistake” If you declare bankruptcy, will everything be OK in a few days, weeks? Balance the budget on the backs of billionaires Move the budget debate to one of those democracies we're bombing into place The "There's Plenty of Money Act of 2012" King George III won: Happy Fourth of July! Fight Back Radio Show with Wayne Madsen In Memoriam: Gil Scot Heron Libertarians say restore freedom, repeal Patriot Act Perfecting the art of civil protest Down the rabbit hole with democracy and three urgent pleas The cure for plutocracy: Strike! White House website lying about your taxes Did you just call me a Socialist? Local and national political leader Norman Solomon officially launches his run for Congress in the North Bay Stand Up for Women's Health Rally Manning Marable and me In a Heartbeat: Ruling Class keeps the Bush tax cuts then attacks the middle class. Michigan fascism old news in DC The Green Bay Packers and the union backers Go to Wisconsin, President Obama The Push of Conscience and Secretary Clinton Fighting the 5 fascisms in Wisconsin & Ohio Fight yields victory, points the way! Ohio Republicans would execute Medicare recipients NFL---The untold story! Decades in the making: The U.S. police state Profiles of the Targeted: FBI Raided My Home, Wanted to Know About "My Indoctrination" An extremist for love: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: Then and now A Time for Action -- Not Servility Following, not just commemorating, Dr. King – in Words. Deeds. Action… Bradley Manning and the rule of law The Tuscon shooting: We must place blame where it belongs Welcome to 2011: The american dream lives -- while you're asleep Repeal, replace, ... ridiculous Read National Issues Articles by Year: |
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