Author's posts
Dec 10 2011
The New 999: 9% of the 99% are Totally Screwed
Middle class suffers while billionaire dodges taxes and builds a spaceship that doesn’t fly with tax dollars
Graphic by Alex Karpati and Mark Szeltner Based on three separate surveys of 1,202 individuals in 2009, 2010, 2011 |
In August 2009, researchers from Rutgers began following a nationally representative sample of unemployed Americans who lost their jobs during the recession of 2008.
See the little stick figure guy standing on top? He represents up to 700,000 Americans who have recovered from the recession according to data compiled over three years by the John Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. The poor smucks at the bottom who are either “devastated” or “totally wrecked” represent up to 3,600,000 American workers. The survey explains in detailed demographics just who these little stick people are, and why they fit into their respective categories. While the bottom categories are aptly named, they might both be rolled into one category; “Totally Screwed.” |
Oct 10 2009
Perhaps the FEMA Internment Camps are a Good Idea Afterall
There over 600 prison camps in the United States, all fully operational and ready to receive prisoners. They are all staffed and even surrounded by full-time guards, but they are all empty. These camps are to be operated by FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) should Martial Law need to be implemented in the United States.
We missed an opportunity to capture 1,000,000 or more of the paranoid parasites when they came to Washington to Teabag Health-care Reform. But don’t worry, we can easily lead them into a trap.
PLAN A:
I.Kidnap the leaders
A. Send in the Black Helicopters to whisk away Beck, Hannity, Limbaugh
1. Straight jackets should be size ‘Portly’ with extra large head openings.
2. Transfer to Black Jets at the secret base in Mena, Arkansas
3. Guantanamo
B. Replace them with duplicates
1. This may require cosmetic surgery; kidnap Michael Jackson’s doctor.
2. Follow me below the fold ::
Sep 07 2009
Another tired sports metaphor:…3-2-1 Obama shoots
Over dinner at a Thai restaurant in Pittsburg during NN09, we were discussing the level of wing nuttery at town hall meetings.
I suggested that we should show Obama some patience because the screamers would increase their level of crazy and marginalize themselves, soon to be followed by the Republican base baiters and Blue Dogs.
I said that perhaps Obama would then step forward coolly an calmly and cut their nuts off.
Someone then aptly called this Obama’s Rope-a-Dope.
Well, since The Big O enjoys his hoops, I have changed that tired sports metaphor to this new tired sports metaphor.
Obama at the buzzer for 3. It’s good! Game over
Sep 06 2009
The Summer of Hate 2009
Hunter S. Thompson revised 2009
The
hippiesWingnuts, whohad neverreally believed they were the wave of the future anyway, saw the election results as brutal confirmation of the futility of fighting the establishmenton its own termsby stealing elections and voter suppression.There had to be a whole new scene, they said, and the only way to do it was to make the big move – either figuratively or literally –
fromBerkeley to the Haight-Ashburycognitive dissonance to sheer lunacy, from pragmatism to mysticism, frompoliticspropaganda todopeviolence…The thrust is no longer for “
changeobscene wealth” or “progressretrogression” or “revolutionblind obedience,” but merely toescapeenslave, to live on thefarfar right perimeter of a world thatmight have beenthey do not understand.
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Aug 22 2008
A billion here, a billion there….
Unless a photo of Obama holding a white baby in a Pakistani motel emerges, we should have a new President in 2009. Martha Reeves’ royalties for “Dancin’ In the Street” will go through the roof in November.
But, what’s gonna be #1 with a bullet in 2009-10-11-12.
You are aware that what Barack Obama says he’s gonna do is not necessarily what’s gonna happen? Right? There’s 535 other politicians plus a horde of lobbyist with monkey wrenches in hand and billions of bucks earned the old fashioned way (foreclosing on our homes) that must be considered. And Barack is a politician after all and sometimes what politicians say turn out to be false promises lies different from what they actually do.
Recently, I wrote a McCain piece at DKos and I committed the cardinal sin of blogging. I failed to look at both sides of the coin, and I learned that maybe there are not two different sides of this coin.
Jun 19 2008
John McCain: A Punk and A Mean Little F*cker
Just ask his schoolmates…
A classmate, Malcolm Matheson, described him as a “tough, mean little fucker”, according to Robert Timberg’s ‘The Nightingale’s Song.McCain’s nicknames at Episcopal High School in Alexandria, VA, were Punk, Nasty and McNasty.
Prior to attending EHS, McCain was bounced from school to school as a result of his father’s military career. McCain wrote of his early education in his autobiograpy.
My first purpose during my brief stay in these schools was to impress upon my classmates that I was not a person to suffer slights lightly. My second purpose was to prove myself as an athlete. When I was disciplined by my teachers, which happened regularly, it was often for fighting.”
McCain, Faith of My Fathers, p. 100.
Jun 17 2008
Meet the Governor of the 51st State, my Nephew Nick Messenger
Lots of good news from Ohio lately. Several polls now show Obama in the lead. I think this is largely attributable to the “Youth Vote”. Obama has gotten those pesky kids interested in politics and I’m very proud to say that my nephew (actually grand-nephew) is one.
Every year since 1936, 1,400 Ohio High School Seniors travel to Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio to participate in Buckeye Boys State, a nine-day hands-on experience in the operation of the democratic form of government, the organization of political parties, and the relationship of one to the other in shaping Ohio government.
For the first time ever, Bowling Green can officially claim one of its own as Governor of Buckeye Boys State.
Nicholas Messenger, a rising senior at Bowling Green High School and a representative of the Federalist party for BBS, is set to be inaugurated at this evening’s ceremony at Anderson Arena.
Jun 07 2008
Is Everybody In?
Is everybody in?
Is everybody in?
Is everybody in?
The ceremony is about to begin.
Wake Up!
You can’t remember where it was
Had this dream stopped?
Choose they croon the Ancient Ones
The time has come again
Choose now, they croon
Beneath the moon
Beside an ancient lake
Enter again the sweet forest
Enter the hot dream
Come with us
Everything is broken up and dances.
The movie will begin in five moments
The mindless voice announced
All those unseated will await the next show.
We filed slowly, languidly into the hall
The auditorium was vast and silent
As we seated and were darkened, the voice continued…….
Jun 07 2008
Get Skinny, Fly Cheap
Welcome to Derrie-Air, the world’s only carbon-neutral luxury airline, where you don’t have to choose between living the high life and saving the planet. Nine out of ten scientists agree-we need to reduce our carbon emissions or perish from the face of the earth. Air travel is one of the biggest sources of carbon emissions and global warming. Derrie-Air will be the only airline that plants trees to offset every pound of carbon that our planes release into the atmosphere.
The more you weigh, the more you’ll pay.
But not only will we do our part to protect the environment, we will expect you, our passengers, to do your part as well. The magic comes from our one of a kind “Sliding Scale”
How much will your tickets be?It depends on how much you and your luggage weigh. These masses will be combined and then turned into a price with our “Sliding Scale”. If you and your luggage have a combined weight of less than 200 pounds, the cost savings is considerable-as high as sixty percent for domestic flights!
Jun 06 2008
Freak Flag High
Almost cut my hair
It happened just the other day
It’s gettin kinda long
I coulda said it wasn’t in my way
But I didn’t and I wonder why
I feel like letting my freak flag fly
Cause I feel like I owe it to someone
Yeah (sing the song brother…)
Now if uh, six uh, huh, turned out to be nine
Oh I dont mind, I dont mind uh ( well all right… )
If all the hippies cut off all their hair
Oh I dont care, oh I dont care.
Dig.cause Ive got my own world to live through and uh, huh
And I aint gonna copy you.White collar conservative flashin down the street
Pointin their plastic finger at me, ha !
Theyre hopin soon my kind will drop and die but uh
Im gonna wave my freak flag high, high !
Jun 05 2008