Works so well in fact that it got congress to scramble out of its normally glacial speed to swiftly pass an unconstitutional bill! Funny how when they felt the citizenry…and Steven Colbert…reaching for the pitchforks the normally arrogant and unresponsive Know-Better Do-Nothings turned into Do-Better Know-Nothings!
Of course….they did still get it wrong, waste time, miss the point and totally screw up by passing an ex post facto bill of attainder to tax the chump change of the AIG bonuses….but they did it because they were SCARED OF US….the little darlings!
Aren’t they positively cute when they are frightened into action by the righteous wrath of their employers!
Now all we have to do to get some MEANINGFUL changes…like investigating massive corporate fraud, War Crimes, and heck, maybe even their own corrupt asses… is harness that same wrath, agree on what needs to be done and KICK SOME KEESTER.
Of course it is that middle part that is tricky. The harnessing and deciding part. We seem to have a bit of a problem with that, historically speaking.
What with all the wedge issues, distractions, pork centered bribes and …..oh wait! Most of that shit was and is perpetrated by Republicans, or was the result of Dems being more scared of Republicans than they are scared of US!
And of course, the Republicans have lied cheated, sex scandaled and hypocritized themselves into a quivering, directionless pile of goo that ….deliciously and ironically….is small enough to fit in a bathtub and drown!
So now…getting back to that pesky harnessing and deciding and directing part. We now know that Citizen Power works. All we need now is to figure out how to a) keep it going. b) concentrate it on the areas and issues that need to be fixed or attended to…which unfortunately after Bush is, to put it mildly, fucking everything, and c) communicate that to Congress.
In NO uncertain terms.
Obama has Health Care and a probably weak ass but the best we can do Climate Crisis bill covered. Energy is next on his list. The War Machine is still too powerful to be meaningfully challenged but at least Barack has them moving in a better direction, so that leaves….
MASSIVE INVESTIGATIONS.
Of just about everything.
(btw, when has it ever been so hard before to get politicians to grandstand for investigations?)
If we play our cards right, which is by no means an easy task mind you, this IS the time when we could use Citizen power to do a real, and long overdue House Cleaning. From Wall St. to the Abramoff tentacles….right up to the War Crimes of the previous occupants of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
So fellow Citizens of a possibly once again democratic nation instead of an aristocratic plutocracy….
Who wants to play cards?
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I would have thought it was obvious that they did this exactly because it is an unconstitutional law they know will never be able to be enforced. Why do something which will actually happen when you can grandstand and let them keep their money?
Stephen Colbert.
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unconstitutional at all. The main reason being that it is a new tax on money that is being paid in 2009. This happens all the time. It would not be post ex facto in any case as that only applies to crimes, not taxes.
As for being a bill of attainder, that fails as well, as we are not declaring them to be criminals and therefore forfeiting their assets. This is really a very legal way to go at this, all the pundit talk to the contrary.
And most of that stuff is already sitting in offshore accounts or other well-laundered investments elsewhere.
Or AIG will use it to pay “creditors” who bear an uncanny resemblance to themselves and/or their corporate allies.
its kinda too bad there’s only 3 or 4 people engaged in it. I am outside in the gorgeous weather on tne macbook which I am not used to.grrr.
Haven’t quite made my way through all the comments as yet!
An interesting thing I learned yesterday was that in Congress’ dealings with AIG, the language about bonuses was built into their contracts, or whatever instrument was used. That was over a year ago — seem Congress people don’t read very well. Someone (some journalist — can’t remember who) asked the question about why is the stink happening now and not a year ago?
Eliot Spitzer, the ousted NY governor, is coming back into the picture and he is in full swing.
In February, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a Corporate Fraud Hearing. Among those testifying was FBI Deputy Director John Pistole, who said:
As part of (finally) taking action to provide some oversight,
Here’s what we can do: Follow the progress of S386–which was referred to Committee on March 5, 2009…and contact our Senators to support the Bill.
Of course, it’s only one little thing, but it’s something.
in a sack and sink it in the Potomac? 🙂