corporate media, America's Pied Piper

corporate media, America's Pied Piper

 

I prefer to think of Americans as the Children of Hamelin rather than the Rats, but either analogy will do so long as we do not look too closely at the tale by the Brothers Grimm. 

 

Once upon a time, not so long ago and not so far away, the Empire Builders became concerned over the rapidly growing discontent among their subjects.  "If we don't stop this insurrection," they cried, wringing their bejeweled hands, "they may begin demanding to share in our great wealth.  And that will never do." 

And so when their subjects gathered before their factory doors and made demands, they called upon their National Guards and hired Thugs and Bully Boys to drive them back to their work benches and production lines.  But this only seemed to anger their subjects, and the crowds grew and the demands became even louder.  "We must solve this problem or be faced with sharing," said the Empire Builder's Leader.  The thought of sharing stunned them into silence.  As they sat quietly there came a loud knock at their palace door.  "Who knocks?" they cried in unison. 

"It is me, Mass Media.  I have come to your rescue." 

Quickly they opened the door and brought this strange looking fellow in.  He stood before them in many shapes, looking like a hundred talking heads.  "Buy up all of the available radio and TV space and pay me my price and I will charm, deceive, trick, distract, confuse, and lead your subjects astray.  They will become so overloaded with my clever charm and bold lies that they will come to believe whatever I tell them." 

The Empire Builders cried out in unison, "Yes! Yes! We will buy up all of the air space and you just name your price." 

And the Mass Media named a price that caused the Empire Builders to blanch and tremble at the thought of parting with some of their great wealth.  Putting their heads together they whispered, "It's a great price, but we can make it all back.  And besides, if it works we can refuse to pay." 

And so it came to pass that the Empire Builders bought up all of the available time on the public air waves and turned the Mass Media loose to work his magic.  In only a few short years Mass Media had charmed the subjects and lulled them into compliance.  They were distracted by game shows, sports, reality shows Soap Operas and babbling newscasters who giggled and simpered and said nothing but vague chatter, and weather reports. 

The Empire Builders could not believe their eyes.  Their subjects went about their days doing the bidding of the Ruling Class and never finding time to gather and discuss issues.  And the Empire Builders went back to the business of conquering the world and attempting to satisfy their Greed. 

But one fine day there came a knock at their palace door.  "Who knocks," they cried. 

"It is I, Mass Media.  I've come for my pay." 

"Go away!  We no longer need you and we don't need to pay you, sucker."  My how they howled with laughter. 

But when they turned to watch their TV, a shocked silence befell them.  Countless thousands of men and women were gathered together in Madison, Wisconsin.  They were shouting and demanding that the governor come out and hear them.  Channel after channel showed the Empire Builders the bad news.  It was as if their subjects could no longer hear Mass Media and were once again gathering together around the country in planning meetings and marching in unison. 

And then they heard the mighty crashing of their palace gates. 

 

Curious Carl

 

*************
Too long have the workers of the world waited for some Moses to lead them out of bondage. I would not lead you out if I could; for if you could be led out, you could be led back again. I would have you make up your minds there is nothing that you cannot do for yourselves. --Eugene Victor Debs
1855-1926

Creativity Is a Habit

Subject: Creativity Is a Habit

In his article, Creativity Is a Habit, Robert J. Sternberg writes, "Oddly enough, then, the very "accountability" movement that is being promoted as fostering solid education is, in at least one crucial respect,  doing the opposite: It is discouraging creativity..." 

Robert J. Sternberg's article is interesting but never raises the question of why a government would encourage conformity as it's major objective in the education of it's young. 

The fact is that creativity threatens establishments.  The Empire Builders, currently holding forth as our government, do not want creativity among the rank and file population.  They want obedience. 

Of course, human nature being what it is, their very oppression will ultimately foster revolution, and their own downfall. 

 

Curious Carl

 

Scott Walker Padded Salary Increases for Cronies DuringBudgetary Distress: 24%

What's the lesson here? 

Simple.  Scott Walker takes care of his own.  Why can't we get the message and stop supporting these greedy fellows and begin supporting our own? 

 

Curious Carl

Scott Walker Padded Salary Increases for Cronies During Budgetary Distress:
24% Salary Increase for Aide with 2 Public Pensions



By BuzzFlash



Truthout, February 19, 2011



http://blog.buzzflash.com/node/12372



Scott Walker, the Governor of Wisconsin who is spearheading the GOP effort
to crush collective bargaining, lavished relatively large salary increases
on his staff when he was chief executive of the Milwaukee County Board.
Walker surreptitiously did this in 2008 without the approval of the county
board itself and at a time that the county was facing a fiscal deficit, and
Walker was about to lay off a large number of union workers.  In addition,
700 county positions had already been left vacant due to budgetary
pressures.



According to a 2008 Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (MJS)
http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/32492604.html milwaukee/32492604
article [1],which exposed Walker's illicit personal staff raises, one aide
was to achieve a 26% increase solely initiated and approved by Walker even
though the staffer, Tom Nardelli, was to receive tax-payer funded pensions
that would exceed $35,700 a year.  A member of the Milwaukee County Board of
Supervisors called Nardelli's salary increase "obscene," according to the
MJS.



As with the current "budget crisis" in the State of Wisconsin, Walker was
helping to create a budget deficit, while using the situation he is
responsible for to try and break the unions.



According to a February 18 New York Times editorial [2], "Just last month,
he [Walker] and the Legislature gave away $117 million in tax breaks, mostly
for businesses that expand and for private health savings accounts.  That
was a choice lawmakers made, and had it not been for those decisions and a
few others, according to the state's Legislative Fiscal Bureau, the state
would have had a surplus."



It's appropriate then to backtrack to 2008 and Walker's history of gilding
the lily for his cronies while trying to break the back of working families
becomes illuminated.



According to the MJS article entitled "Walker Issues Hefty Raises to Top
Milwaukee County Aides":



Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker wants a 26% pay raise for his chief
of staff, former Ald.  Tom Nardelli, while bypassing traditional County
Board approval in quietly issuing large pay raises over the summer to
several other top aides.



Nardelli would get the biggest pay increase of top-tier county officials, a
nearly $20,000 raise to $95,000 a year.  Seven county administrators also
scored increases of up to 12.5%.



Some supervisors are upset about being left out of the decision-making
process for many of the raises and say Walker's timing couldn't be worse.
Heavily rewarding a few top managers while Walker puts final touches on a
2009 budget that's expected to call for scores of layoffs of union workers
sends a message of callous disregard, critics of the raises say.



Among the other big winners among Walker's top aides was Mitchell
International Airport Director Barry Bateman.  His pay rises $13,595, or
11%, to $136,299 a year.  Facilities Management Director Jack Takerian got
an $11,771 (12.5%) raise, to nearly $106,000.



One of Walker's highly questionable claims in his Koch Brothers' efforts to
squash unions by first going after public worker collective bargaining is
that the union benefits are higher than in the private sector.



Yet, in 2008, the MJS reported:



Orville Seymer, field director for Citizens for Responsible Government
Network, said the raises for Nardelli and some other Walker aides appeared
excessive.



"I just think all these people are overpaid" and unlikely to command such
salaries in the private sector, Seymer said.



In his stand-off as the point man for the Koch Brothers, Dick Armey, and the
national Republican Party, Walker is doing in 2011 what he did in 2008:
enrich his cronies and the well-off at taxpayer expense, create a budget
crisis, and then using the budgetary problem that he is responsible for to
crush the unions.



History repeats itself, doesn't it and so does the hypocrisy that threatens
the existence of the American working family.



Source URL:



http://blog.buzzflash.com/node/12372

when is a government no longer a government?

When is a government no longer a government?  When it becomes the Oppressor. 

Can we honestly sing, "Oh say does that Star Spangled banner yet wave, o'er the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave"? 

 

Curious Carl

 

Subject: [acb-l] Uniting a State's Body Politic

The following is an e-mail message I received from a friend who is working
for Wisconsin's Department of Workforce Development:

-----*----*-----*----*----*----
Just a tiny quote from an article about the latest budget bill:
Medicaid, the state-federal health plan for the poor, includes BadgerCare
Plus, Family Care, SeniorCare and other services. It covers 1.2 million
people in Wisconsin, or one in five residents. Enrollment has swelled in
recent years as eligibility expanded and the recession led more people to
sign up.
Walker called the program "an unsustainable budget challenge" and proposed
$500 million in cuts.
About $110 million would come from Family Care, which provides long-term
care for people who are elderly or disabled. The reductions mean about 5,000
people on a waiting list for care would be taken off indefinitely, said Lynn
Breedlove, executive director of the advocacy group Disability Rights
Wisconsin.
"For some people, it could mean they'll be forced into a nursing home," he
said.
SeniorCare recipients who qualify for Medicare Part D would have to enroll
in the federal drug program instead, saving the state $15 million.
Other trims would come from limiting payments for end-stage kidney disease,
getting rid of birth control services for men and eliminating supplemental
payments to some hospitals.
To achieve much of the savings, the state would scrutinize Medicaid
enrollment and make patients pay more for services.
Walker's budget repair bill for this year, introduced last month but stalled
after 14 Democrats boycotted a vote in the Senate, would give the state
Department of Health Services new powers to restrict eligibility, modify
benefits and make other changes to Medicaid with less legislative review
than is required now.

(Thank goodness for the "Wisconsin 14")
----*----*-----*----*----*----

I think it is important to note that this friend has always been a
conservative much more in the GOP camp than even an independent!

Why Does USA Today Hate Public Workers?

Why Does USA Today Hate Public Workers? 

My God!  Do we really need to ask this question? 

Let's see, on one hand we have this newspaper that is owned lock stock and barrel by the Establishment. 

On the other hand we have a bunch of disgruntled workers demanding better working conditions, higher wages, health coverage and the like. 

Now on another hand we know that many of these workers also buy the newspaper that is owned by the Establishment. 

But on even another hand, the newspaper understands that its very existence depends upon not upsetting the Establishment.  This creates friction.  Friction creates anger.  The newspaper can't afford to get angry at the Establishment, so it turns on the workers. 

But the newspaper has to be clever about this, so it "creates" news that will keep the unruly workers spending their money to buy newspapers. 

The workers buy the newspapers in order to read the lies being printed about them.  That makes them angry and they start writing angry letters to the newspaper.  The newspaper prints the letters.  The workers buy more papers to read their letters that they sent.  The newspaper publishes editorials condemning the workers.  The workers picket the newspaper.  They try to organize the newspaper's nonunion employees.  The newspaper calls out the cops and the governor calls in the National Guard.  This disrupts the production of newspapers. 

And then we ask, "Why Does USA Today Hate Public Workers?" 

 

Curious Carl

 

Let's not be distracted

Someone wrote, "...Everyone wants everything, and no one wants to pay anything to have it." 

You know, I'm just not seeing this.  For example, most of the Blind folks we work with want to pay for the aids and appliances that we insist are being provided at no cost to them.  Over and over again we hear folks say, "Oh, I don't need that.  somebody is probably worse off than I am." 

When we tell folks that there is no charge for our services they want to know where they can send a contribution. 

Of course this is the older Blind population, but I think it's pretty much true with all decent people.  Cathy and I live in an area where our neighbors give and share among one another.  The same was true when we lived in the crowded city. 

Sure, we all run into the greedy, grubby grabbers, and they sometimes seem to overshadow the larger majority of good, decent folk, but I think that we get distracted with these kinds of stories.  Sure, I have known a few hoarders in my time.  But what they did was peanuts compared to what the Corporate Empire Builders are doing on a daily basis.  If you are going to put out energy getting mad, then let's get mad at the people who tell us we need to suck it up and sacrifice, while they come and go as if nothing has changed.  Let's get worked up over the Corporation that takes resources from the land and leaves nothing but devastation behind.  But rather than admitting their destruction, they underwrite articles that point the finger at old aunt Nell for hording toilet paper.  Well, what a deal!  A basement of toilet tissues compared to polluted rivers, clear-cut forests and starving little children. 

 

Curious Carl

 

Right to Work or right to return to the poor house

 

During World War II my dad would take me along on Saturday's to the Union Hall somewhere in down town Seattle.  A bunch of people, mostly men, but sometimes a couple of gnarly old women, would sit around and tell horror stories of "how it used to be" back in the bad old days. 

The coffee was thick and black and the air was blue with cigarette smoke. 

My dad's older brother was born in 1900.  Dad said Bill would brag about how he went about finding work.  He said he would walk up to a construction job and ask for the boss.  When that fellow showed up Bill would point to one of the workers and ask, "What are you paying him?"  When he found out, he would tell the boss that he could do twice the work for less than he was paying the fellow. 

This is what we call, "Supply and Demand".  Currently we have this large pool of unemployed people. 

Once Unions have had their teeth pulled or been shut down, employers will offer jobs to the lowest bidder.  Make no mistake about it.  Except for the past 60 or 65 years, this was the working man's fate. 

Go back and read some of the novelists from the 19th and 20th centuries.  Start with Charles Dickens.  He paints vivid pictures of life among the lower classes in England.  Mark Twain gives us detailed scenes from the same time period on the American side.  Read O'Henry or John Steinbeck or...the list is overloaded with novels depicting the hard, bleak life of the majority of Americans. 

Enter Hollywood.  With the advent of the moving pictures film makers quickly moved away from recounting the grim side of life, and began to weave wonderful fantasy worlds of life among the rich.  For a period of time it seemed that all of America lived in fine mansions and drove fancy cars and had houses full of servants.  Movies became our escape from the harshness of the Great depression and then from the brutal World War. 

Escape from reality seems to have become our passion.  Stop for a moment and count all of the ways Americans have at their disposal for avoiding their dreary, mundane lives. 

Well my friends, good news for those who long to return to the "good old days".  We're headed smack dab down that road. 

Think of that wonderful world where we can once again put in an honest 6 day, twelve hour day.  And our children will be allowed to work, too! 

Wives can take in laundry and do mending to pull enough extra money for such luxuries as fruit and shoes. 

We won't be bothered by too much TV or radio, because with the big crash we won't be buying much of the stuff currently being hawked over the airwaves.  Internet will be too costly and too closely monitored to be of any use to us.  Movies and sporting events will be priced out of our pocket books, and probably most of them will shut down.  If we're lucky enough to live in towns where electric trolleys run, we can get to town.  Otherwise we'll need to wait for the green grocers and the bread and meat wagons to pass through our neighborhoods. 

And where will this "return to the good old days" leave us blind folks?  Remember terms like, "Elizabethian Alms House"?  Or, what about "going over the hill to the poor farm".  With the shift back toward company control, we blind workers will find ourselves at the bottom of the labor pool.  Remember how it was for those of us with no or limited vision on the play field when sides were chosen up?  Who usually was ignored or picked last? 

We need to take a giant step away from debating politics and talk about our survival as blind men and women in the work force.  Who do we turn to for support?  How do we go about building alliances to protect our hard won gains? 

 

Curious Carl