National News – Page 19

August 9, 2011January 19, 2012

Celebrate The World Wide Web’s 20th Birthday — Ask Your Lawmakers To Oppose The Internet

It was twenty years ago this week that Tim Berners-Lee, while working at CERN, put the world’s first website online. It announced his new creation: the World Wide Web. Last year while urging Internet users to sign Demand Progress’s petition against the Internet Blacklist Bill, Berners-Lee wrote this about the principles that underpin his project:

“No person or organization shall be deprived of their ability to connect to others at will without due process of law, with the presumption of innocence until found guilty. Neither governments nor corporations should be allowed to use disconnection from the Internet as a way of arbitrarily furthering their own aims.”

The Internet Blacklist Bill — S.968, formally called the PROTECT IP Act — would violate those principles by allowing the Department of Justice to force search engines, browsers, and service providers to block users’ access to websites that have been accused of facilitating intellectual property infringement — without even giving them a day in court. It would also give IP rights holders a private right of action, allowing them to sue to get sites prevented from operating. Demand Progress’s new mash-up, posted here, explains the bill in more detail.

S.968 has passed the Senate Judiciary Committee, but Ron Wyden (D-OR) is temporarily blocking it from getting a floor vote by using a procedural maneuver known as a hold, noting that “By ceding control of the internet to corporations through a private right of action, and to government agencies that do not sufficiently understand and value the internet, PIPA represents a threat to our economic future and to our international objectives.”

The House is expected to take up a version of the legislation in coming weeks.

“We encourage Americans to mark this 20th birthday of the World Wide Web by defending the principles that underpinned its creation — now under persistent threat by overzealous governments and corporate interests across the globe,” said Demand Progress executive director David Segal. “In particular, the Internet Blacklist Bill would undermine the basic integrity of the Web, and we expect Congress to take it up when they return from their summer break.”

More than 400,000 Demand Progress members have urged their lawmakers to oppose the Internet Blacklist Bill. You can email your Senators and Representatives and ask them to oppose S.968 by clicking here.

August 4, 2011January 21, 2012

Erica’s New Book On The Wisconsin Fight

Many of you know Erica Sagrans from her time in Providence as a student and activist. This month she’s self-publishing an awesome new book about the labor fight in Wisconsin:

In February of 2011, the people of Wisconsin changed the political landscape in America overnight. In response to their Republican governor’s move to strip workers of the basic right to organize, Wisconsinites decided to fight back—occupying their Capitol for days on end and protesting in record numbers throughout the freezing Madison winter. Their bold action inspired progressives across the country, and revived the conversation on organized labor, direct-action, and civil resistance.

We Are Wisconsin gives an up-close,view of the Wisconsin struggle, as told by the grassroots activists, independent journalists, and Wisconsinites who led the fight. This collection of essays, blog posts, and original writing looks at what happened, what it means, and what comes next—including the real-time, fast-paced story of the Capitol occupation as told through tweets from those who were on the inside.

We Are Wisconsin will be released in August, and will be one of first books out on the Wisconsin fight.

July 25, 2011January 22, 2012

Uh Oh, President Obama to Address Nation Tonight at 9pm

This could potentially be very, very bad…

Tonight at 9 p.m. EDT President Obama will address the nation on the stalemate in Washington over avoiding default and the best approach to cutting deficits.

You can watch the speech live at www.WhiteHouse.gov/live starting at 9pm tonight. The expectation among progressives is that President Obama will reiterate his frustration at Republican intransigence for his desire to dismantle the social safety net that millioins of Americans rely on. To summarize:

Democrats asked Republicans to pass a clean bill, just as GOP leaders had supported many times in the past. Republicans said, “No.”Democrats invited Republicans to Biden-led bipartisan talks. Republicans quit. Democrats offered a $2.4 trillion debt-reduction package, 83% of which would come from spending cuts. Republicans said, “No.”Democrats sought a Grand Bargain, with more than $4 trillion in savings. Republicans said, “No.”Several Democrats offered some preliminary support for the “Gang of Six” blueprint. Republicans said, “No.”Many more Democrats signaled support for the McConnell/Reid “Plan B.” Republicans said, “No.”

Unfortunately, we can only rely on Republican intransigence to protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid for so long. As I said before, it took a Democrat to “end welfare as we know it.” And it’ll take this Democrat to gut the social safety net. Will Obama offer yet another path that fully capitulates to Republican demands? Will he abandon any and all revenue enhancements in the battle over the debt ceiling? It has been a slow progression away from what would be desireable, what would be reasonable, to what is ridiculous.

From the Center for American Progress:

The infographic above shows that the president’s latest offer to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) is heavily titled toward spending cuts. In fact, the president’s offer contained about $1 trillion less revenue than the recent proposal from the so-called Gang of Six, a group that includes three Republican senators and three Democratic senators. It also represents significant movement from the president’s original debt reduction framework, which itself was already more conservative than the recommendations from the chairs of the debt commission (Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson) last December.

I suppose we’ll see what happens at 9pm. In the meantime, sign this petition asking our Congressional Delegation to stand strong against cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.

July 24, 2011January 22, 2012

Here’s what voter suppression looks like

July 22, 2011January 22, 2012

“Bomb Now, Pay Later”

Paul Craig Roberts lays bare what’s wrong with the deficit hype being used to foist the dismantling of the social safety net on the American people: Recently, the bond rating agencies that gave junk derivatives triple-A ratings threatened to downgrade US Treasury bonds if the White House and Congress did not reach a deficit reduction deal and debt ceiling increase. The downgrade threat is not credible, and neither is the default threat. Both are make-believe crises that are being hyped in order to force cutbacks in Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security…

There is no budget focus on the illegal wars and military occupations that the US government has underway in at least six countries or the 66-year old US occupations of Japan and Germany and the ring of military bases being constructed around Russia.

The total military/security budget is in the vicinity of $1.1-$1.2 trillion, or 70 per cent -75 per cent of the federal budget deficit.

In contrast, Social Security is solvent. Medicare expenditures are coming close to exceeding the 2.3 per cent payroll tax that funds Medicare, but it is dishonest for politicians and pundits to blame the US budget deficit on “entitlement programs.”

Entitlements are funded with a payroll tax. Wars are not funded. The criminal Bush regime lied to Americans and claimed that the Iraq war would only cost $70 billion at the most and would be paid for with Iraq oil revenues. When Bush’s chief economic advisor, Larry Lindsay, said the Iraq invasion would cost $200 billion, Bush fired him. In fact, Lindsay was off by a factor of 20. Economic and budget experts have calculated that the Iraq and Afghanistan wars have consumed $4,000 billion in out-of-pocket and already incurred future costs. In other words, the ongoing wars and occupations have already eaten up the $4 trillion by which Obama hopes to cut federal spending over the next ten years. Bomb now, pay later.

imho, the so-called “compromise” can be viewed as nothing short of a stunning betrayal of the Democratic base. Is it to soon to say “Nader 2012?”

July 22, 2011January 22, 2012

Stand Strong for Rhode Islanders in the Debt Ceiling Fight!

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The debt ceiling negotiations have heated up to match the mercury outside and Republicans and Democrats are proposing dranconian cuts to Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare while preserving tax breaks for the super wealthy and corporate tax subsidies.

Join us to ask the RI delegation to stand their ground for Rhode Islanders by defending these principles:

Defending the Well Being of Our Communities – Program cuts that eliminate benefits, reduce eligibility, demand participants pay more or force state governments to make cuts are not acceptable.
Responsible Reductions in Defense Spending – National security is essential, but our defense spending wastes billions. We can responsibly reduce outlays for defense while maintaining a strong, secure nation.
Fixing the Corporate Tax System is Imperative – We cannot afford a tax code that rewards corporations for hiding money offshore and permits them to benefit from accounting gimmicks and loopholes. As good paying jobs become harder to find and corporate profits continue to skyrocket, we need to strike the right balance of corporate citizenship and economic growth.
Restoring Fairness to the Income Tax – While the income tax structure is progressive, it does not make up for the regressive nature of the many other forms of taxation in our nation – property taxes, the sales tax and so on. We allow far too many people to hide wealth, or claim income as something else that is taxed differently – or not at all. We must ask the wealthiest – from hedge fund managers to the inheritors of fortunes – to be good patriots and contribute more to the commonweal.
Responsible Social Spending Reform – The only acceptable changes to programs like Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid are those that make the programs more efficient and successful. Any changes that result in the loss of income security or access to health care are unacceptable.

Add your name to the petition today and ask our Congressional delegation to HOLD THEIR GROUND!

It is with the utmost concern that we are following the negotiations between Congress and the President over the national debt ceiling. Many of the proposals, including those from Democrats as well as from Republicans, offer devastating reductions to programs including Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid that are necessary to keep scores of millions of Americans healthy, educated, financially secure and free from desperate need.

During this difficult time, many of your constituents in Rhode Island have watched, with great pride, as you have been a voice of reason, calling on Congress to approach the issue of our nation’s long-term debt with compassion, fairness and moral principle.

We write to say thank you. On behalf of the people of Rhode Island, our working families and struggling unemployed, our cities and small towns, our schools, our health centers and our senior centers, we say “Thank you.” Thank you for understanding that harming the well-being of children, seniors, the poor and the disabled is not a solution of any kind. Thank you for taking action – through letters to the President, votes on the floor, interviews in the media, and messages to your constituents – on behalf of those for whom government programs provide support and hope during these hard times. Thank you for being the truly progressive leader that Rhode Island and America need today.

Thank you for recognizing that fundamental economic principles demonstrate that cuts during periods of high unemployment are counter-productive. Thank you for demanding that the long-term deficit be addressed not only by cuts, but also through fair, common sense revenue measures. You have articulated, cogently and forcefully, for the inclusion of these measures – including ideas like closing corporate tax loopholes, eliminating tax breaks for the wealthy, repealing the Bush-era tax cuts and asking the top brackets to chip-in as good patriots should. Thank you for being a voice that demands we ask as much of the fortunate few as we do of everyone else.

We also write to ask you to stay strong. As the negotiations continue, there will be pressure from within your party, from the press, and from powerful interests in our society to do the wrong thing. Those privileged few will call on Congress to cut programs instead of cutting corporate welfare. They will ask that you vote to devastate working families instead of asking the wealthiest to contribute a little more to the common good in return for the opportunities our nation has given them. They will ask that we base decisions on a faulty concept – that government is not an answer to our society’s ills, but rather the cause.

As representatives of communities and organizations that see, every day, how programs like Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid change people’s lives for the better, we know this view is wrong. We believe you share our belief that as a society, we have a moral duty to ensure that everyone has a chance to live a full, productive and economically secure life. That is the American Dream.

We ask that you support a resolution to this crisis based on the following principles:

Defending the Well Being of Our Communities. Program cuts that eliminate benefits, reduce eligibility, demand participants pay more or force state governments to make cuts are not acceptable.

Responsible Reductions in Defense Spending. National security is essential, but our defense spending wastes billions. We can responsibly reduce outlays for defense while maintaining a strong, secure nation.

Fixing the Corporate Tax System is Imperative. We cannot afford a tax code that rewards corporations for hiding money offshore and permits them to benefit from accounting gimmicks and loopholes. As good paying jobs become harder to find and corporate profits continue to skyrocket, we need to strike the right balance of corporate citizenship and economic growth.

Restoring Fairness to the Income Tax. While the income tax structure is progressive, it does not make up for the regressive nature of the many other forms of taxation in our nation – property taxes, the sales tax and so on. We allow far too many people to hide wealth, or claim income as something else that is taxed differently – or not at all. We must ask the wealthiest – from hedge fund managers to the inheritors of fortunes – to be good patriots and contribute more to the commonweal.

Responsible Social Spending Reform. The only acceptable changes to programs like Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid are those that make the programs more efficient and successful. Any changes that result in the loss of income security or access to health care are unacceptable.

These are principles reflected in the Congressional Progressive Caucus’ Peoples Budget (introduced as an amendment to Rep. Ryan’s budget proposal and voted on in the House on April 14). That document can and should serve as a guide towards a responsible resolution of our national budget challenges.We respectfully request that you join the other members of the Rhode Island Congressional Delegation in transmitting to the President the sense of the people of Rhode Island as embodied in the principles above. As August 2nd approaches and America faces the real possibility of not being able to meet its debt and other payments, the people of Rhode Island need to know that any resolution will not occur at the expense of the common good.

Thank you for being the champion we need in these trying times. We support your good work and stand ready to help in any way we can.

SIGN THE PETITION HERE!

May 21, 2011January 7, 2012

Analysis: Giveaways to Wealthy are Largest Contributor to U.S. Debt

An analysis by the non-partisan Center for Budget and Policy Priorities has found that the Bush-era tax cuts are the single largest contributor to the United States’ public debt, far bigger than the economic downturn, the measures enacted to combat it (including the 2009 Recovery Act), and the financial rescue legislation.

As the analysis stated, “Simply letting the Bush tax cuts expire on schedule (or paying for any portions that policymakers decide to extend) would stabilize the debt-to-GDP ratio for the next decade.”

If that’s the case at the federal level, think about the role the Carcieri breaks to the wealthy have played in Rhode Island’s fiscal situation. We can’t afford to keep slashing services for the poor and raising property taxes for working families to produce bigger and bigger handouts to the state’s most fortunate.

And this week, you have the opportunity to stand up against these failed policies! H6095, the 95/5 Civic Responsibility bill (which would raise $134 million in FY2012 by restoring upper-bracket rates to their previous levels, affecting only 5% of Rhode Islanders) has a hearing before the House Finance Committee this Thursday at 1pm. We know conservative groups will be there to try to drown out the voice of reason, which is why it’s so important that supporters of fair taxes join us Thursday. If you have a story about how the inequality of the current tax structure is hurting you, those are the stories that our legislators need to be hearing.

So come out Thursday at 1pm! RSVP on Facebook or email rifairtaxes@gmail.com with questions or if you’d like to testify.

July 9, 2010January 25, 2012

How to Further Destroy the Economy in Two Easy Steps – A Tutorial Brought to You by Obama and the Democrats

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Step One: Form a “Fiscal Commission” tasked with developing a plan (with the end result of implementing the plan) to reduce the budget deficit during the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. This will be done by slashing spending on social services, MediCare, Social Security, education, etc. (all the things that working folks depend on), but not the military budget, bailouts for banks, corporate subsidies to businesses sending jobs overseas, etc. Check!

Step Two: Ignore the growth of income inequality in the U.S. over the past 30+ years, which is actually at the root of the economic problems the country faces. Don’t even mention it, and especially don’t do anything about it. Check!

I have watched in shocked horror over the past couple weeks, as conservative deficit hawks enabled by the Democratic Party, have marched toward a fiscal austerity program that will take the depressed and down economy and pummel it to a bloody pulp. This is all being done in order to alleviate some mythical inflationary pressure that wealthy bankers are terrified of (remember, inflation is the biggest enemy of accumulated wealth).

Of course none of this really matters to the tens of millions of people who are looking for work, have had their hours cuts, have been forced into part-time work, or are in fear of losing their jobs (55% of all adults in the labor force have been affected by this recession in some way).

The real problem is that people aren’t spending money because of the recession, and that is directly related to the growth in income inequality, albeit in complicated ways. Since the 1970s, U.S. wages have largely remained stagnant. At the same time, the vast majority of all the wealth created in the country over the last 30 years has been flowing upward.

Because the super wealthy don’t actually work to generate their income, wages as a share of national income has been declining for just as long. What that means is less and less money is being earned by workers, and that’s bad for the economy because workers spending money is what fuels economic growth. Consumers earning more money means that they can buy more goods and services, increasing the effective demand in an economy. Seems pretty simple, right? Well, yes, it is.

But Brian, if wages have been stagnant for 30 years, then why has the economy been growing that whole time? I’m glad you asked. The economy didn’t tank sooner because people have been supplementing their stagnant or declining wage income with credit and debt. As a society, America took out more and more, and larger and larger, loans either through credit cards, home equity loans, mortgages, payday loans, and all the other delightful financial products offered by financial institutions intent on making money off of your debt. Notably, as fake housing wealth grew, people used their homes as ATMs – we’re currently seeing how good of an idea that was (and once the housing bubble burst, the $1 trillion of increased demand that was based on it vanished).

As a result of all this borrowing, middle class Americans tripled their debt over the last 30 years. As we all know, when debt rises, service on the debt rises. That is yet another mechanism that sucks dollars from a local economy and puts it in the bank account of CEOs, exacerbating the income inequality problem (always remember that when millions of people have been losing their jobs since 2007, Wall Street managed to find $145 billion to pay in bonuses in 2009 alone).

Yes, there’s more to the story, there always is. But here we are, discussing the budget deficit and the national debt when the real problem is that average workers are getting screwed, they haven’t been making enough money to keep pace with the increases in the cost of living, virtually all the wealth accumulates into the hands of the few, and Democrats and Republicans continue to let it happen.

We need to put more money in the hands of people who will spend it in the economy – that’s the only way jobs will come back. Why the federal government isn’t spending every waking moment developing a strategy for making this happen is beyond me. Instead we get bank bailouts and financial reform legislation that makes Wall Street happy.

We expect Republicans to screw workers – that’s what they do. But Democrats have, time and again, been complicit in the weakening of the middle class. And it’s no different now.

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