No More
Wall Street
Climate Change
Teflon Man - Anniversary
Edition
Older Stuff / notes etc
The concept of the media or press as a fourth branch stems from a belief that the news media's responsibility to inform the populace is essential to the healthy functioning of the democracy.The phrase "Fourth Estate" may be used to emphasize the independence of the press particularly when this is contrasted with the press as a "fourth branch".
Song about repression of media surrounding the republican convention in Minnesota.
Song about the lies leading up to Iraq war.This one got pulled by youtube for violating content policy - most likely pictures of civilian casulties. posted 2003. They cited some areas in the file but I no longer have it so I can't see what they are referencing. This was flagged and removed in 2024 20 years later- Are we scrubbing historical content? Now I'm the one drinking the koolaid! It just seems odd. They talk about clamping down on misinformation in a time of extreamism, and this is what you get. Stop the Iraq war before it's too late? It's not exactly current events. But yea, way to go. Really standing up for democracy and being proactive.
Black Friday edition
notes:
The stock market is not the economy for 99% of Americans.
To be among the top 1 percent in America in 2018, you needed a minimum household income of $737,697 before taxes
Most Americans depend on pensions (like social security) and savings (like 401(k),IRA’s etc.) in order to be able to retire from the work force
During the 1940s, labor unions became interested in pension plans and pushed to increase the benefits offered. By 1950, nearly 10 million Americans, or about 25% of the private sector workforce, had a pension. Ten years later, about half of the private sector workforce had one.
In 1978, Congress passed “The Revenue Act of 1978” in which Section 401(k) cleared the way for the establishment of defined contribution plans
During the Reagan administration during the mid 80s rules were changed to allow executive compensation with stock and corp ability to buy back their own stock which was illegal before that, paving the way for further consolidation of wealth at the top.
Pensions offer guaranteed income for life while 401(k) benefits can be depleted
and depend on an individual's investment and withdrawal decisions.
Companies moved to 401(k) because it was cheaper to fund than pensions. Employees
were told it could put them in a better position to retire.
The Glass-Steagall Act effectively separated commercial banking from investment banking and created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, among other things. It was one of the most widely debated legislative initiatives before being signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in June 1933.
In 1999, Democrats led by President Bill Clinton and Republicans led by Sen.
Phil Gramm joined forces to repeal Glass-Steagall at the behest of the big banks.
What happened over the next eight years was an almost exact replay of the Roaring
Twenties.
The repeal of Glass-?Steagall coincided with low interest rates that put pressure
on financial institutions to seek returns through more arcane financial instruments.
Wall Street investment banks, with their appetite for risks, led the charge………..
The Volcker Rule was a poor man's version of Glass-Steagall. Part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform bill.
the “Volcker Rule”, limited proprietary trading by banks and their affiliates. ...”Glass–Steagall” Section 16 prohibits banks from being a "market maker" or otherwise "dealing" in non-government (i.e., "bank-ineligible") securities.
On June 9, 2017, The Financial Choice Act, legislation that would "undo significant parts" of Dodd-Frank, passed through congress. On May 24, 2018, President Trump signed the partial repeal into law.
Teflon Man - Anniversary Edition
Why does nothing stick? Could you or I act that way and get away with it?
Let the light shine
Ode to people who keep trying to learn things
GOP Trojan Horse
Based on disrespect for the military by potus