Bill Maher: Dropping the Ball

February 6th, 2012

Funnyman Bill Maher has long been a voice of the people, daring to speak what few others would risk saying, and he does it all on national TV. His ‘New Rules’ segment, often timely and inspiring, usually place Maher’s insights on the forefront of the progressive movement.

However, it is extremely frustrating to see him consistently fall into the trap of the two-party dictatorship. Time and time again, Bill Maher will lament about his precious Democrats standing strong only to crumble at the last minute. And, no matter how much Obama strays from the liberal agenda, Maher still pledges die-hard support behind his guy.

Maher fails to recognize that both Democrats and Republicans are two sides of the same coin, offering the public the illusion of choice, while the super-rich and the corporations run away with the political system. Or maybe he does realize this, and, as a super-rich guy himself, he’s okay with it.

Case and point, a few weeks back Bill Maher openly supported SOPA without even researching what the draconian legislation would entail. He just blindly stated that whatever stops file-sharing is a good thing, no matter how bad liberties and internet freedoms get squashed. Talk about missing the mark.

And now, on his latest episode, Bill Maher spoke out against the people’s uprising, calling the Occupy protesters “Douchebags” who need to “Get A Job”.  Wow, Maher sure has fallen prey to the mainstream media’s framing of the narrative.

Little does Bill Maher know, the Occupy movement grows stronger with every new day. Never has there been more numbers involved, and those who are involved are more organized, mobilized and better focused than ever before.

Time will tell if Maher does an about face to rejoin the progressive movement. If he doesn’t, then he risks being amongst the rest of the greedy oligarchs who are set to be overturned when the impending revolution is finally realized.

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Lessig and Hedges: Combating Corporatism

February 5th, 2012

Today’s offering is a delightful interview featuring two intellectual heavyweights, Lawrence Lessig and Chris Hedges, discussing and analyzing the Occupy movement and how it stands to rival the rise of Corporatism across America and the world.

Some key points:

  • A fraction of 1% of the population own the political landscape in America
  • Corporate forces have gutted opposing institutions, like community, education, and unions
  • Politicians at the State and Federal level are wholly owned subsidiaries of the Corporate State
  • It is this underlying corruption which is stirring the people’s uprising, like Occupy
  • The system could be too broken to fix, and will likely need to be purged
  • This uprising, like a sleeping giant, is only just starting to awaken
  • The pending revolution is imperative for the people to undertake
  • A crucial factor for the revolution is to get the police on side with the protesters

 

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The Most Powerful Group on Earth?

February 4th, 2012

There is a circle of about 70000 people, far less than 1% of the world’s population, who are considered ultra high net worth individuals, meaning they personally control over 30 million in US dollars. Like modern day royalty, these privileged few sit atop the world’s power structures, and have tremendous ability to dictate how the world works.

As top dogs of earth’s largest corporations and overseers of all the major industries, these select few get to expand their already massive fortunes off the backs of everyone else, many of whom are starving.

Yet we rarely hear about this because earth’s financial frontrunners also control the planet’s mainstream media companies, of which there are now 6 – down from 50 just a few decades ago. This big 6 monopoly provides well over 90% of what the world reads and hears as news and information. And every one of these 6 companies share the same general agenda for profits, along with a broader theme of keeping the public uninformed, fearful and distracted, all of which makes the population easier to govern.

Speaking of government, the top 70000 also have incredible sway when it comes to politics. It takes huge sums of money to run for high office, and even more to win. This means politicians are most often indebted to the people and businesses who’ve paid for their election victory. Once in office, they will repay the favor by bending the system towards their benefactors – undermining democracy and corrupting the political landscape.

Over time, as the system keeps catering towards to business interests, the whole world starts to functions like a giant corporation, where everything – people, life, and even the air we breathe – all get turned into commodities from which to extract maximum profits.

So, with that said, it may seem like this super rich circle are the most powerful group on earth, but there is a group with even more influence. It’s an ancient international organization with enough power to completely crush the top tiny percent if they were so inclined. This supremely powerful group is…. the entire human race. Its The 7 billion humans hold the true power, not the super-rich 70000.

But only by working together can we unleash this limitless force. The stronger we make our global community of people, the more we can seize the reigns that control the planet, and help steer humanity towards a brighter future for everybody.

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Watch Out! War Rhetoric Ahead

February 3rd, 2012

To keep Iran from becoming another of the West’s disastrously failed military endeavors, like Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya, it is imperative that we beat the drumbeats of peace louder than the drumbeats of war.

This is easy to say, but harder to do, especially if we don’t recognize pro-war propaganda when we see it. To help illuminate us, consider the following headlines that came out this week urging Americans (and the world) to wage war with Iran. (image credits to Glenn Greenwald)

The Guardian, today:

 

Wall Street Journal, today:

 

Wired, Wednesday:

 

Washington Post, Wednesday:

Notice the theme? Iran is the world’s worst country, by far, creating a threat that grows in severity for every instant we delay full-scale armed invasion.

These are the drumbeats of war, readying the public for what they want us to believe is inevitable. Yet war with Iran can be avoided, especially if the pro-peace side is able to mount the pressure needed to rival those forces driving us to war.

Sure, we are up against the multi-billion dollar industries which profit off of prolonged bloodshed. But when we number in the tens of millions, a handful of businesses – no matter how powerful they seem – will be no match for the strength of our solidarity.

*** UPDATE **

Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting (FAIR) did an analysis of ABC World News Tonight’s disgustingly biased piece on Iran, saying “At a time of heightened tension, journalists should act to question official rhetoric–not generate propaganda.”

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No Unconditional Support for Israel – Senior US Military Brass

February 2nd, 2012

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, 4-star General Martin Dempsey, let Israeli leaders know they will be without American support in a war against Iran, unless they wait for prior agreement from Washington.

Well, that’s probably a good thing, given how former Israeli Defense Forces Chief believes a military attack on Iran would culminate in all out war, engulfing the entire Middle East in conflict.

All the more reason to continue to pressure our governments to avoid another long, expensive and ineffectual invasion at all costs.

Still, one wonders if Israel’s interests have become too entrenched in the US’s political landscape when ranking members have to explicitly say ‘Look, Israel. We’re tight and all, but there’s only so much crazy we can tolerate, even from you.’

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Afghan Invasion a Failure – Secret Military Report

February 1st, 2012

It’s been more than 11 long, bloody years, since the military industrial complex waged a so-called ‘war on terror’ in the Middle East. Yet, according to a classified document from the US Military, the Taliban and their Pakistani backers remain ‘poised to retake Afghanistan’ as soon as foreign troops withdraw.

Well, this is to be expected, given the US’s track record of failed military endeavors. In Iraq, death tolls have been rising dramatically since American troops pulled out, sparking concerns about a resurgence by Al Qaeda. As for Libya, a UN report confirms two terrorist networks were significantly bolstered by the US-led bombing campaign.

For the sake of every life senselessly cut short, and for all of the precious treasure we’ve squandered, let us at least learn something from this: wars do not create peace and democracies cannot be built with bullets.

Unless we just want to keep lining the pockets of war-profiteers while reinforcing anti-West sentiment amongst radicals, we’d do well to retire the failed formula of a predominantly militarized approach.

Instead, we could look to methods that might actually work, like building up impoverished communities around the world so that they themselves can tackle the problem of extremism from within.

Makes sense, right? Goes to show what could happen if someone other than the gun-toting looneys gets to call the shots.

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Several Billion Reasons to be More Upset

January 31st, 2012

Across America, the fit is really hitting the shan. Regular citizens are expressing well-warranted dissent, only to find out just how much their country has crept into the clutches of a police state.

The question is, why aren’t you among them? If you’re not, then here’s a few billions reasons to be upset:

To start, taxpayer-owned mortgage giant Freddie Mac has invested billions of dollars speculating that U.S. homeowners won’t be able to refinance their mortgages at today’s lower rate. At the same time, Freddie Mac has been actively limiting the refinancing options available to these same homeowners.

Simply put, “Freddie Mac prevented households from being able to take advantage of today’s mortgage rates — and then bet on it,” says Alan Boyce, a former bond trader. It’s absolutely criminal what they are doing. Or at least it should be. But these greedy bankers will keep it up until the hammer of justice crushes them.

On the other side of the world, another robbery is being perpetrated. The Department of Defense has lost another 2 Billion Dollars. Whoops! Well, if they got away with it before, why would they bother to change?

These thefts are utterly reprehensible, and should, especially for those of you who are American taxpayers, rile up a foul taste in your mouth. It’s the feeling of being taken advantage of, and it will continue to happen until you get off your butt, get your voice heard, and help co-create a brighter future.

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Canadians Must Crush C-11

January 30th, 2012

Well-funded lobbyists representing the special interests of media giants have, for many years now, been engaged in an all out war against the Internet as we know it. The free exchange of information fostered by the Net represents a threat to their business models. Unwilling/unable to change themselves, these behemoth corporations are looking to change the Internet, even if it means destroying everything good about it.

Here in Canada the latest front in the battle against online liberty takes the form of Bill C-11, a piece of proposed legislation that has already garnered an extensive list of dissenting organizations, representing millions of Canadian voices.

The proponents of Bill C-11, much like those who pushed the outlandish SOPA bill until it was shelved due to unprecedented public uproar, largely consists of Hollywood film studios, major record labels, and other high-level mucky-mucks who earn their keep in the entertainment industry.

Several proposals in C-11 would create what is essentially a digital lock, allowing courts to order websites blocked from Canada without the need for any proof of copyright infringement or due process. In other words, they want the right to censor the Internet on a whim, and to hell with what any of you whiny citizens may want.

Clearly this bill would be a bad thing for the majority of freedom-loving Canadians. Worse still, should this bill pass, it would give the precedence for other countries to follow suit. ‘Look, the Canucks are doing it… we should too!’

If you haven’t already done so, you need to step up to the plate. Write or call your MP, your MLA, and any other politician you can think of. Plead with your friends and family to get involved. Without sufficient backlash from the Canadian people, this bill will pass. And then the next one, then the next one, until the Internet is nothing but a portal to corporate products and their corresponding commercials.

If my words aren’t enough to motivate you, then I’ll leave you with this inspiring call to action from Redditor Stormy_Fairweather:

SOPA, PIPA, ACTA, C-11, TPP, PCIP… the writing is on the wall. Those who would rule are terrified of the internet. They are doing everything they can to choke it, to control it, to bring it under their rule.

We MUST not allow it, for the future of our species, it is time to fight, it is time to overthrow our masters, it is time we stopped being domesticated and embraced the greatness within us. Every man should be his own master, and if we do not make this happen then we will all be slaves.

For Humanity!

 

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Occupy Rages On in Oakland

January 29th, 2012

By now you are familiar with the routine: peaceful protesters engaged in non-violent civil disobedience meet armor-clad government-sanctioned thugs. Said security goons escalate situation by confronting and encircling large mobs of unarmed civilians. A clash ensues, tear gas and rubber bullets are fired. Many are injured, and many more are unlawfully detained. Freedom of speech takes yet another blow.

Yesterday this scene was re-enacted in downtown Oakland, as thousands of activists sought to reallocate an abandoned building, turning it into a headquarters, shelter, and symbol of something beautiful. ‘Not on our watch’ was the police response, as evidenced by the video below.

Keen observers will notice something new – the protesters are using makeshift shields along with a loosely followed phalanx formation. No doubt an adaptation learned from being shot at far too many times.

Speaking of an evolving response, cyber-activist group Anonymous released this video, along with the personal information of Oakland’s mayoral office. That’s sure to get someone’s attention.

If there’s a couple things to be learned from this, one, is that the people’s uprising isn’t going anywhere. And two, if you give humans training and a badge, along with a gun and the pretense to use it, you are pretty much guaranteed to see shots fired.

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Unite Earth’s 99% to Find World Peace

January 28th, 2012

When it comes to human organizations, be it a business, a religious institution, or the population of an entire country, what most often develops is a pyramid type structure. The leaders with the most power sit at the top, and then with each step you take down the ladder you get larger groups of people holding a decreasing amount of individual influence.

Within most of the world’s various pyramids there is a power struggle taking place between pretty much everyone involved. But the more disorganized and divided the groups at the bottom, the greater the ability for those at the top dictate what happens to the rest of the population.

These leaders, like every human on earth, are inherently selfish and will inevitably try to sway the system in their own favor, which usually means the rest of us get screwed.

Fortunately, in most places on earth, a peoples uprising has begun. The Occupy movement, the arab spring, the SOPA protests. And its not just the bottom rung getting involved. People from all parts of the pyramid have grown tired of the inherent injustice of the system.

The 99% are uniting, throwing themselves upon the levers of power. As millions upon millions of humans flip the mental switch from passive to engaged, the masses involved will be enough to force the system to function more to everyone’s benefit, and less to just those at the top.

This unification is just awesome, because once the 99% start coming together within individual pyramids, its just a few more steps to uniting the world’s 99%. And when that happens, we won’t have major armed conflicts on earth anymore. I’m talking about World peace, and it could be here within the decade!

See, war happens when leaders of one pyramid pit their own 99% against another leader’s 99%. So what ends up happening is two groups people who are pretty much the same end up fighting and killing each other when they could just as easily coexist peacefully.

Yet only with the vantage point to see war this way will we do away with it forever. And this is exactly what the Internet is giving us. Never before have we been more connected, and social cohesion around the globe will only tighten. We are awakening to see we really are one people, and that allowing our governments to wage war only worsens the world in which we all live.

Just keep uniting the world’s 99%. Together, we’ll have the power to stop the 1% who’ve been hurting the rest of us.

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