“Public Good”

The title of an article in today’s NYTimes informs us that :


"Pakistan’s Elite Pay Few Taxes"
The article’s opening and self-righteous propagandistic salvo further reveals, accusatorily and without a scintilla of self-analysis, that:

“The lack of a workable tax system feeds an inequality in Pakistani society, where the wealth of its most powerful members is not redistributed or put to use for public good."
Then, I guess  that

• the world’s largest taxpayer funded military budget

• the billions spent on political campaigns

• the world’s 37th ranked health care system

• epidemic and continuous environmental disaster cover ups

• rampant financial frauds

• pervasive predatory lending

• reductions in social services for the elderly

• our subpar public educational system

• our corporate profit driven University system

• our taxpayer funded bailouts

• the maintenance of military bases all over the world

• the maintenance of a health care system that is rated 37th in the world

• the support of sieges of innocent native communities, i.e. native Americans, Palestinians, Haitians…

are all paragons of  PUBLIC GOOD!

BP OIL: A GAME OF GREED

LONDON -- An obscure BP-themed board game in which players aim to avoid rig disasters has become an unexpected hit at a British toy museum.

BP Offshore Oil Strike was released in the early 1970s and allows up to four players to explore for oil, build platforms and construct pipelines. The first player to earn $120,000,000 wins.

Its "hazard cards" include "Blow-out! Rig damaged. Oil slick clean-up costs. Pay $1million.",,,

GREED KILLS

AFGHANISTAN ROCKS

Last night the US and the Pentagon announced that they have just uncovered vast amounts of minerals in Afghanistan, possibly worth TRILLIONS of US Dollars…AND the US has volunteered to help the Afghan government extract the minerals, because,-get this!:- …: Afghanistan’s infrastructure is inadequate to support major mining work

Allow me to share a couple of simple reactions to this bit of cozy news:

1) W T F?!!! (What Terrific Find...)
Ok…
2) I now realize how industrious the war complex is: as we invade and occupy, we also engage in altruistic geological inquisition; it makes sense, because the craters created by our bombs are ready made geological research sites, thus greatly diminishing the need for extensive digging; furthermore, the findings could greatly help the primitive locals. And…as the primary invaders we have automatic permission and primary rights to do whatever geological poking, excavating, experimenting, we like. We are indeed the deciders and who knows, we may find even additional buried wealth, to help the locals.

3) Amazing technology and precision instrumentation and brilliance of minds we have, between the Pentagon and the Army…to find, isolate and identify with precision, buried mineral treasures, estimate its locations, depths, cubic portent and economic value, and in a distant land no less!; however, we still cannot plug an oil leak in our own country

4) Equally fascinating is that the US government expressed the estimated value of the Afghanistan minerals in US Dollars (I guess we already own it…)…at the very least, why not Euros, since the Euro is stronger than the dollar?...wait a minute, there is a currency in Afghanistan, too! OK, OK, it’s about real strength and our real strength is GREED, which is really stronger than anything; so it has to be in dollars! …sometimes I forget.

An Unsustainable Path: lessons from Meg, Steve and Ben

Today's news of the current California electoral races, provide  simple little lessons to me(which I always appreciate) and simply make me wonder how sustainable this way of life is: 

1. Meg Whitman, a billionaire ex CEO is running for governor after spending megamillions (of her own pocket) on her campaign.

2. Mr Steve Poizner too spent 25 million dollars of his own money on his campaign. (Note that he is the current State Insurance Commissioner!... That's right... )

These are but two examples, and while we could cite many other ostentatious examples, to me, these are obscene, unjustifiable figures, even if the economy were booming...which is not... and I continue to wonder...

I wonder what could be done if every rich politician running for office (which applies to most), would pool their excess millions targeted for self-promotion, for a collectively useful National cause.(No, not the war!...)

I wonder if it will ever be possible for people to be elected based on the simple, unsanitized record of their merits and not on the size of their fortunes and sanitized resumes.

I wonder how this wallet driven system has really helped the poor of this Nation.

I wonder how this culture of greed has helped the elderly and hard working people who are now poor retirees

I wonder how this wealth club has helped provide no cost, accessible universal health care for all its citizens

I wonder how this "greed-is-good" mantra has helped our literacy and our overall Education system

I wonder how all this wealth and trillions spent in the war complex has created a more peaceful, more safe, more harmonious world that sees America as a benevolent nation among nations and not an aggressive nation who believes is above nations.

I wonder why, with so much wealth concentrated in those who either govern us or influence those who govern us, we have to borrow quadrillions from China (who will soon be raising prices and we will not be able to do anything about it)

I wonder why with so much concentration of wealth in high places, Ben Bernanke said today:

"the federal budget appears to be on an unsustainable path"

What he meant but was afraid to say is :
America is on an "unsustainable path"...

A TALE OF TWO SIEGES

“This is a siege across the entire gulf. This… is holding everybody hostage, not only economically but physically. And it has to be attacked on all fronts.”
- Admiral Thad W. Allen, US Coast Guard

With these words the Admiral sums up what needs to be done…unfortunately he was only referring to one siege: the one authored by BP. Not much is said about the atrocities of the other siege; Both sieges are diabolical, destructive and devastating and the result of greedy domination.

But the US is indeed dealing with both sieges; in fact:
- It has contributed hundreds of millions to both sieges; to eradicate one and to perpetuate the other. A bipolar support which we know will lead to equally bipolar selective fairness and justice: You see, in DC we have people who can deal with(or contribute to) the outcome of both Sieges:

> Mr Rahm Emanuel Ex IDF member and White House Chief Of Staff

> Dr Stephen Chu, US Energy Secretary and ex recipient, from BP, of $500 million for his lab. And Dr Steve Kooning, US Undersewcretary of Energy, Ex BP Top Executive

Naturally these Government Officials will deal with both sieges. Oh yes they will! How will we, THE PEOPLE deal with them? It is up to us to raise our voices and do what is necessary for justice! Otherwise…

WE are headed for a complete siege of our liberties, a siege of justice(already taken place) and we will certainly be headed for:
“THE WORST OF TIMES”

The World According to Euphemedia

I admit with reluctance and false humility that I am a bad writer and I envy journalists and writers who are able to eloquently lay out narratives of current events, accompanied by elegant and imaginative labels with their unbiased assessment of these events and related key players. I am learning a lot from them. Lately I have been studying the use of euphemisms and euphemistic expressions, in mainstream publications; how they present a gentler, more palatable picture of facts. We have so much violence in the world; so it makes great sense to provide a gentler, more soothing expression of facts. There is a lesson here, so pay attention, please:


The euphemism is an important expressive (and impressive)device and I too must learn to use it if I want my writing to be read by the masses.  Read on and I'll show you what I've been working on at the end of this writing.
For now, I owe a debt of gratitude to the NYTimes and other mainstream publications and media for their numerous and eloquent teaching moments provided to me. The transformation of facts into euphemistic jewels of communication is a magical feat accepted and loved by all, just like a magician's sleight of hand delights and amuses young and old.
For instance here are some magical euphemistic moments one finds by just paying some attention :

-History's most catastrophic environmental disaster caused by a greedy corporation  becomes the
 "unfortunate BP spill"

-War Crimes become
"necessities of conflict"

- Illegal occupations of sovreign nations become:
"the country's duty and mission of bringing democracy to our world"

Corporate fraud and theft by corporations become:
"Ethical lapses"

The most crippling recession in decades becomes:
"A dip in the economy"

Genocide and installation of concentration camps becomes
"our comprehensive program to provide adequate and ample services to serve our beloved native american population"

The killing of civilians becomes the well worn:
"collateral damage"

You see the elegance, the soothing literary imagery that is poured into our intellectual cups, as organic poetic ambrosia, a comfortable cup of linguistic chamomile that calms and relaxes ahhh...in fact, I am so calm now after reading another issue of the NYTimes, that if you'll allow me, I'll indulge in just-in-time applied learning to test my level of fluency with this journalistic device, as I attempt to apply it to well known facts:

The isolationist, racist wall built by Israel to keep Palestinians in a ghetto of desolation and despair, can become:
"An intellingent continuous wind barrier to protect the beloved Palestinians from adverse wind fluctuations, and maintain an intact diaspora"

The building of illegal settlements on ancestral native lands can become:
"A multi faceted, progressive beautification architectural project"

The destruction of vineyards and orchards can become:
"An agricultural clearance and environmental purification endeavour"

The control of vital food and water to the people in the Gaza strip can become:
" A wholistic program to stimulate self sufficiency, portion control and obesity avoidance"

The cold blooded, calculated and brutal killing of unarmed peace activists in international waters can become:
" A mutually unfortunate lapse in judgment and a cultural maritime misunderstanding"
And so on.

Finally my lesson hit me like a ton of lovingly baked Siena colored paninis of local clay (aka"bricks") :
                                            The-Nile... ain't just a river in Egypt!

Criminal Inquiries: Slick Rhetoric or Solemn Pledge? The Whole World is Watching

"If laws were broken, leading to this death and destruction, my solemn pledge is that we will bring those responsible to justice on behalf of the victims of this catastrophe"
Today, President Obama said these words referring to the BP oil disaster; we, the people urge our President to pledge the same to the peace activists of the flotilla attcked by the IDF and to the people of Gaza who are under siege with our continued complicit assistance to Israel, funded by the US Taxpayer.
Mr President, we need words and actions we can believe in! NOW!