This is a true story. Almost. And, it’s almost fiction. But not quite. I should know, I was there.
Tag: corruption
Mar 25 2009
“V” is for Virtue
Power is not alluring to pure minds. – Thomas Jefferson
The position of A.I.G. at the tippy-top of the pyramidal ponzi-scheme called “finance capitalism” is the same position as the Fairy Godmother in a Fairytale. But, obviously, we don’t live in a fairy tale. It has “Happily Ever After” as part of its DNA.
But life is something else and the secret of life is we create our own reality – and we reap what we sow.
Mar 13 2009
Swimming with Sharks
All the money is gone. Well, there never was any money, but accounting entries which created money through the issuance of debt. Nonetheless and you can argue magicians’ tricks endlessly, but now not only is the rabbit gone but so is the magician’s top-hat.
Overnight, as though someone turned on a switch which turned off the air itself, trillions upon trillions of dollars of wealth disappeared. Overnight. Poof. Now you see it and now you don’t.
But, just as a magician’s tricks are illusions and not real so to is the disappearance, virtually overnight, of the world’s wealth. Because how can nothing disappear?
Feb 08 2009
How does anyone make it on $263 million a year?
The disparity in wealth in this country is obscene, and the failure to restrain the mindless and monumental greed that led to it has been our downfall.
The income of the 400 wealthiest Americans swelled in 2006, soaring nearly 23 percent from the previous year, to an average of $263 million, according to data released Thursday by the Internal Revenue Service. Since 1996, this group has nearly doubled its share of all income earned in the United States.
The top 400 paid just more than $18 billion in federal income taxes in 2006, or an average of $45 million, on a record $105 billion in total income – the lowest effective tax rate in the 15 years since the agency began releasing such data.
Dec 28 2008
Paying to Play And Paying The Price
Crossposted from ePluribus Media to here and to DailyKos.
The Daily News has obtained an exclusive photo of President George W. Bush shaking hands with Isaac Toussie‘s father;1 the photo had been taken earlier this year. According to Daily News political correspondent Celeste Katz, it was not immediately clear whether the photo was snapped before or after Toussie’s father made his April contribution of $28,500 to the Republican National Convention.
The timing of the picture — both the appearance of it now, as well as whether it was taken before or after the hefty contribution — could significantly add to the potential controversies that the Bush Administration and the Republican party have to worry about, particularly with regard to Bush’s legacy.
Hypocrisy, thy name is GOP
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The Bush-Toussie picture was first published exclusively on the New York Daily News; the Bush-Abramoff photo was found on Tennesseefree.com and was apparently originally posted on MSNBC.msn.com
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Dec 06 2008
“almost homeless”
Wearing ‘almost homeless’ sign, ex-executive seeks work
Paul Nawrocki says he’s beyond the point where he cares about humiliation.
Nov 30 2008
The Perils of Non-Impeachment
J*#@%s F&(#%+g C&$!@t! From tomorrow’s NYT:
The Labor Department is racing to complete a new rule, strenuously opposed by President-elect Barack Obama, that would make it much harder for the government to regulate toxic substances and hazardous chemicals to which workers are exposed on the job.
snip
Public health officials and labor unions said the rule would delay needed protections for workers, resulting in additional deaths and illnesses.
Nov 25 2008
Obama holds press conference, promises “whatever is required” for Wall Street
Original article, by Tom Eley, via World Socialist Web Site:
On Monday, US President-elect Barack Obama held a press conference in Chicago to announce selections for his “economic team.” After these introductions, Obama spoke briefly and in vague terms about a proposed economic stimulus package, and then took five questions from reporters.
Nov 22 2008
The elections in Venezuela
Original article, by Alan Woods, via In Defence of Marxism:
On Sunday November 23, 2008 Venezuela faces one of the most decisive elections in its history. These elections will determine who controls the governors and the key municipal positions throughout the country. What happens on Sunday will have a profound impact on the future of the Bolivarian Revolution.
Nov 17 2008
Saxby “Sugar” Shameless
[posted late last night on the blog with the half-hour shelf-life]
[apparently Saxby tales are coming out of the woodwork in a steady stream]
Hopefully this tale will help undecided or unmotivated Georgia voters to get out and vote in the run-off election between Saxby Chambliss and Jim Martin. Just to be up front here, I sent Jim Martin a donation on Nov 5. After the roving that Saxby did to a true American hero, Max Cleland, I had to do something.
Here’s the story of a United States Senator using the power and influence of his office to persuade the families of dead and severely burned victims to not seek restitution. He abused his Senate subcomittee position to tarnish a whistleblower in the case. He may have colluded with the company owner to make this all go away quietly. He is in the process of tainting the jury pool should any trial for actual damages occur.
Chambliss Refusing to Speak in Imperial Sugar Case
Fourteen dead. Scores injured. An “accident” that was bound to happen. Greed and arrogance prevailed. Lives were lost and ruined. Now it’s time for the boys in power to make it all go away. Hush it up and after a while no one will remember. Just a speck of dust blown away. No problem. Call the senator and have him fix it. Move on. Appeal the OSHA fines. Delay and postpone. Business as usual.
Oct 31 2008
Former CEO of Postville Plant Arrested
Finally, some action is being taken against the management of the Agriprocessors meatpacking plant in Postville, IA, the site of one of the largest raids of undocumented workers in U.S. history when 389 people were arrested on May 12th of this year.
Federal immigration agents arrested Sholom Rubashkin, the former CEO of the plant, on Thursday. Rubashkin is being charged with conspiracy to harbor undocumented immigrants for financial gain, aiding and abetting document fraud, and aiding and abetting aggravated identity theft. He resigned shortly after the May 12th raid. If convicted on all counts Rubashkin faces up to 22 years in prison and $750,000 in fines.
Oct 21 2008
Vampire Kisses: Did Abramoff and Wilson Bleed Romero in NM Election?
Crossposted from ePluribus Media
Dennis Greenia, Vampire Slayer
I first learned about Jack Abramoff’s successful plot to help Heather Wilson ambush and bleed dry my good friend, Richard Romero, in two separate New Mexico congressional elections while strolling with dengre down K Street. Both times, Abramoff employed a stealth PAC purportedly championing health care reform. By 2004, New Mexico’s political aquifer flowed red.
I’m not the first person to learn about Abramoff from dengre. He’s one of the brave few whose nocturnal obsession with vampires unearthed Washington’s Empire of the Undead for the slumbering masses.
Dengre, aka Dennis Greenia, reminds me of Van Helsing. He wears rumpled plaid shirts and seems to sport a permanent case of bedhead. He talks about Abramoff all the time. I’m not sure if he sleeps.