This graph is from 2007 but I think we can all agree on the trend. Nothing has changed that would bring the Upper 1% closer to the Bottom Fifth.
So here's my question. It's a simple one.
If those at the top of the socio-economic bracket are no longer "greedy, rich, bastards" but are now transformed into "Job Creators" and the salvation of The American Way...where are the fucking jobs?
Rich people are richer then they have ever been. They are taxed at a lower rate than they have ever been. They have less "skin in the game" in the American economy than ever before.
So, with all of this extra money these supposedly altruistic, patriotic, "Job Creators" have...where are the motherfucking jobs?
We shouldn't have ANY unemployed workers. These "Job Creators" have more than enough investment reserve to create assloads of new businesses employing every fucking body.
And yet...they don't. They are afraid that they might not be able to remodel their chef's kicthen in their summer home in Monaco if their gross income is reduced by 0.00001%,
They might have to reduce the hours of one of their undocumented, minimum wage toilet maids if their net wealth drops from $3.1 Billion to a mere $3.0 billion.
If these richest motherfuckers are really the engine that drives the American Economy, if they are really the most "American" Americans, if they are really so much better than everyone else that we should all bow down to our Corporate Saviors and be happy to be doing so, then maybe, just maybe, they should be giving up some of their shit to help us out.
After all, we are the ones who made them rich. We sell their shit and we buy their shit. Without us, they are NOTHING! So I say, they owe us.
Pony up, bitches.
Stop whining and kick in your fair share of our national infrastructure.
Here is why I'm not at all worried about President Obama winning a 2nd term.
According to the most recent NBC/WSJ Poll, these are the "candidates" that the Republicans who responded think are better qualified than Obama to lead America.
Let's take a look at them 1 by 1.
MITT ROMNEY 21%
Not only is "Mitt" a stupid fucking name, it's not even his first name. His first name is "Willard".
But stupid name aside, he's a Mormon. Just like Glenn Beck. when it comes to completely whacked out bizzaro doctrines, Mormonism is is just barely one small step above Scientology. Do the majority of Americans really want a President who believes in crazy shit like this?
He's the best they have to offer and he can't even get the support of 25% his own party? How the fuck is he going to get 51% of the entire country? He can't and he won't.
Plus, in this economy, I don't think that the majority of American voters can punch a ballot for a filthy rich, greedy, self-promoting ego-whore who is most famous for telling people "YOU'RE FIRED!".
The majority of Americans don't want this country to become a Theocracy with some twisted, fundamentalist Christian, Leviticus-based version of Sharia Law being imposed by the President.
NEXT!
GINGRICH 11%
We may be just over 24 hours away from a complete shut down of the government because Democrats and Republicans can't agree on a budget.
If that happens, the news stories will constantly remind people of the last person responsible for a government shut down. Newt Gingrich.
The rest of these ignorant fucktards don't even warrant further comment.
PAWLENTY 6%
BACHMAN 5%
SANTORUM 3%
BARBOUR 1%
The entire Republican party is fragmented, in disarray, and is actively pandering to the most ignorant, fundamentalist, delusional, bigoted, lowest common denominator of America's NASCAR-loving, trailer-trash masses.
It is inconceivable that any of these fools could ever be put in charge of such a great country.
I'm doing my thing today, scanning headlines, keeping up with news and opinion. Mostly international and national stuff.
Local politics bores the fuck out of me. Local politics is like watching little kids fight over who gets to eat the cat shit in the sand box.
I'm seeing these articles from Right Wing Fucktards like John Bolton, Karl Rove and William Kristol about how President Obama has been "dithering" over Libya.
That's the Krazy Klown Kollege talking point Buzzword Of The Day. Dithering.
"That word you keep using. Dithering. I do not think it means what you think it means."
I think the word they are searching for is deliberating.
It was in this context that I saw that the topic on NPR's "Talk of the Nation" today was "Sussing Out An Emerging Obama Doctrine".
Neal Conan would be discussing the subject with Bob Woodward, associate editor for The Washington Post and half of the Woodward/Bernstein Team that broke the Watergate Scandal and brought down the Nixon Presidency.
So, naturally, I had to fire off an email expressing my opinion on the subject.
Apparently someone on the NPR staff felt it was broadcast-worthy. Here is an excerpt from the transcription of today's broadcast:
"CONAN: Here's an email from Xavier, who writes: President Obama understands something a lot of people don't: Anything America touches is perceived by the rest of the world as being tainted and corrupt.
The only thing people in the Middle East despise more than their totalitarian dictators is us. After all, we bear primary responsibility for keeping those dictators in power by doing business with them.
When there's a popular uprising of people yearning for freedom, the best thing we can do for them is stay out of it and let them fight. As soon as we intervene, it becomes about us, and the freedom fighters are undermined by association with us.
Mr. WOODWARD: That may turn out to be the case, and it may not. If you -there's so much we don't know. If you asked who are the rebels in Libya? What are their names? I mean, there's vague data on it.
You know, apparently six of them are known; 24 or something like that are not known. You know, maybe these are wonderful people and great leaders. Maybe they're not."
You can listen to the full podcast here. Conan reads my email between the 19:09 and 20:09 marks.
Just to wrap this up, I'll point out that the oppressed people of the world aren't looking for us to liberate them.
They want to liberate themselves! Yes, they want what we have. They want freedom. But not at the price that we charge. They want to get it themselves, on their own terms, without owing America a Goddamn thing.
The absolutely worse thing we can do is to "help" them. They don't need or want the help of the people who facilitated their oppression by doing business with their oppressors and keeping them in power.
When we "help" people fighting for their freedom, the rest of the world interprets that as us co-opting the fight for our own political purposes and that delegitimatizes the freedom fighters.
It's all good! Keep up the good work Dems! The more rabid the Tea Baggers get the more confident I am that we're moving in the right direction.
The sputtering rage of hordes of ignorant, closet rascist, right wing Fox-zombies is a pretty good compass to move us forward. As long as we keep them in our rear view mirror we are making progress.
As you may know, I follow a handfull of radical, right wing blogs.
The most rabid, foaming at the mouth, insane, right wing nut job is without a doubt "Mike's America".
This guy had his panties in a twist over (his headline) "Michelle and Barack Behaving Like Low Rent Tourists at London Summit"
Putting aside for a moment the blatant racism in referring to our President and First Lady as "low rent tourists", let's look at his specific complaints.
These two were supposed to improve our image around the world?
"With all the faux pas coming from both Michelle and Barack Obama during the London summit one wonders whether it might be necessary to install a teleprompter in the room to give them instructions.
Curt has the photo of Obama bowing to the Saudi King in the presence of other world leaders. No previous American President has ever bowed to a foreign leader. Doing so here suggests submission to the ruler of the land of Islam's holiest sites. But of course we all know Obama is not a Muslim (he told us so didn't he?) so why bow?"
Again, you have this not-so-subtle suggestion that our President is some sort of Manchurian Candidate Muslim sleeper agent. I'm no expert on diplomatic protocol, but paying respect to the leader of another soverign nation, especially at the first meeting, seems entirely appropriate to me.
Every American President on an international diplomatic trip is coached on what to do and what not to do to show respect and not give offense to the leaders of other countries. Foreign Leaders coming to the United States recieve similar coaching from their advisors on how to engage and address our president.
For President Obama to give a brief, polite (not subservient) bow to the King of one of our allies (that's a whole other issue...don't even get me started) at a G20 Summit does not seem to be that big of a deal.
Certainly not as big of a deal as President Bush holding the same King's hand on a long, romantic walk at the ever so private and secluded Camp David.
You tell me, who comes away with more Presidential dignity intact...Obama or Bush?
Then there was the whole matter of Mchelle Obama "touching" the Queen of England! Egads! What cheek! Rather! Bloody Hell!
Michelle Violates Royal Protocol By Embracing the Queen
"Nearly everyone but a Chicago politician's wife knows you don't go up and touch the person of the British Monarch. It... is... just... not... done!"
[xo - he says this as if he were still a subject of the British Crown! Such righteous indignation!]
"But Michelle Obama did it and the usual apologists are knocking each other over trying to make excuses."
[xo - Apparently, the "usual apologists" include Buckingham Palace - "It was a controversial moment as Michelle Obama broke royal protocol and puts her arms around Queen Elizabeth II. However, what may be unclear to some is that it was the Queen who first made the warm gesture of friendship, putting her arm around the First Lady.
The now-controversial embrace happened at a Buckingham Palace reception for world leaders. No one can remember a similar gesture by the Queen during her entire 57 year reign.
Traditionally, no one is supposed to touch the queen so informally, but a Buckingham Palace spokesman told INSIDE EDITION:
"It was a mutual and spontaneous display of affection and appreciation between the Queen and Michelle Obama. There is no offense. There's no breach of protocol."]
But apparently Mike disagrees.
"Whatever you want to say about former President and Mrs. Bush they knew how to behave. They were well schooled in the do's and don't of protocol and formal events. Barack and Michelle are proving to be embarrassing bumblers who are making the U.S. a laughingstock overseas."
*** sputter ***
"They were well schooled in the do's and don't of protocol and formal events"
Oh, so George Dubya Bush just knew that German Chancellor Angela Merkel secretly wanted an impromptu shoulder rub from the American President in front of the international press at the G8 Conference?
"How 'bout you Berlusconi? You want a shoulder rub?"
Oh yes. Such dignity.
Apparently it is also OK to spew obscenities about one country to the leader of another country while chomping around a mouthful of food like a Ray County hillbilly. Nice!
Obama is absolutely right to be apologizing to Europe and the world for the last 8 years of arrogance on the part of the United States.
I hope we keep apologizing until the rest of the world only vaguely remembers that brief, embarassing, and ultimately inconsequential period of history when The United States of America suffered through 8 years of temporary insanity, completely abandonded everything it ever stood for, and sank to the lowest depths of the enemies it swore to fight against.
It's time to start the long, slow climb out of the deep hole of shame and hypocrisy we have dug for ourself.
This is the most important and hopeful thing that I heard...
"THE PRESIDENT: Well, and part of what happened over the last 15, 20 years is that so much money was made in finance that about 40 percent, I think, of our overall growth, our overall economic growth was in the financial sector. Well, now what we're finding out is a lot of that growth wasn't real. It was paper money, paper profits on the books, but it could be easily wiped out.
And what we need is steady growth; we need young people, instead of -- a smart kid coming out of school, instead of wanting to be an investment banker, we need them to decide they want to be an engineer, they want to be a scientist, they want to be a doctor or a teacher. And if we're rewarding those kinds of things that actually contribute to making things and making people's lives better, that's going to put our economy on solid footing. We won't have this kind of bubble-and-bust economy that we've gotten so caught up in for the last several years."
YES! Let's encourage a FACT AND REALITY BASED economy where people produce real things that have actual value!
New knowledge, new products, new efficiencies, new materials, new jobs! Let's figure out how we can ALL survive and thrive on a sustainable basis that benefits EVERYONE.
Tonight, President Barack Hussein Obama, our first (but not last) African-American president, addressed a Joint Session of Congress. That means The House of Representatives, The Senate, and the Justices of The Supreme Court.
The entire government of The United States of America.
Our President, our Commander in Chief, the man addressing this amazing assembly is the child of a white American, Christian woman from the heart of Kansas and an African, Muslim father from Kenya. He was born in Hawaii and attended school in Indonesia.
After his speech, the Republican...let me repeat that...the REPUBLICAN response, was given by Piyush "Bobby" Jindal, the Governor of Louisiana and at 36, the youngest Governor in the country. His parents were Punjabi Indian immigrants. Jindal was born and raised a Hindu, but converted to Catholicism in high school.
Barack Hussein Obama and Piyush Jindal.
Get used to it, Bubba. This ain't your daddy's America anymore.
It's new and improved! With more color, more diversity, fresh ideas and yes, hope.
I've never been more optimistic about the future of America.
30 percent express confidence Wall Street will make right decisions to end recession
75 percent say President Obama will make the right moves regarding recession
Poll: Obama has more Republicans trusting him than Wall Street has
Majority opposes providing rest of bailout money to banks
By Paul Steinhauser CNN Deputy Political Director
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Call it a sign of the times. A new national poll indicates that when it comes to dealing with the economy, Americans have more confidence in the White House and Congress than Wall Street, the banks or auto executives.
So much for the Free Market Economy and Republican policies that got us into this mess.
I love the fact that McCain and Palin are campaigning as two "mavericks" who buck the system, upset the apple carts, and chart their own course! The Republican party has never been so enthused and energized!
What The Fucking Fuck?
Question: Why was the Right Wing so dead set against McCain in the first place?
Answer: BECAUSE HE WAS A FUCKING MAVERICK!
They couldn't count on McCain to tow the party line, to loyally salute the GOP flag and blindly support whatever wrong-headed agenda they happened to be shoving down America's craw.
He had voted against the President too many times! He couldn't be trusted! Because he committed The Cardinal Republican Sin...sometimes, he actually made up his own fucking mind about issues and voted accordingly.
BLASPHEMER! APOSTATE!
Republicans aren't supposed to think! They aren't supposed to analyse data or question authority!
That's for those gay, Birkenstock-wearing, wine-sipping, cheese-nibbling, wife-swapping, tree-hugging, French-speaking, Volvo-driving, intellectual-elitist, terrorist-coddling, Liberal DEMOCRATS (spit)!
NO! Republicans are supposed to start their day with a download of Karl Rove Approved Talking Points and regurgitate as necessary. Ya know, the same way ya learned The Bible!
The Republican Establishment has HATED John McCain for years because they didn't think he was "one of them". He wasn't "on board". Wasn't following "the program".
And he wasn't. Until this election campaign.
He realized that being his own man, being a "maverick" didn't work for him in 2000 for all of the reasons I just mentioned. He couldn't win the support of his own party. They went with the incredibly intellectually stunted and easily manipulated Shrub instead.
But now, in the most incredible but completely unsurprising display of hypocrisy the world has ever seen, the Republican Establishment is enthusiastically whipping up a frenzy of support for their very own "John McCain! Maverick! Agent of Change!"
Horse.
Shit.
They swallowed John McCain's primary win with all the enthusiasm of a ruffied bimbo at a porn booth glory hole going down on some smelly wino cock. [graphic ommitted in deference to your delicate sensabilities]
Now they are proclaiming it's the best thing they've ever tasted and everyone else should gobble it up too! YUM!
Watching the Republicans rally around McCain and Palin because they are "mavericks" is one of the most intellectually and historically laughable circus side shows I've ever seen.
Yeah. I want someone with THAT world view to be a heartbeat away from the most powerful position on earth.
Don't speak Russian? Try speaking "tongues". I'm sure that the United States issuing a mandate that all of the translators at the United Nations learn "tongues" will boost our standing in the world.
While we're at it, "goon-babble" might be a good language skill for them to acquire.
