Tamar spits flames yet again.
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
Introverts
See this article on Maureen Wilson's comic series Introvert Doodles. As one I can relate. Here's a sample:
The capitalist case for $15 minimum wage
See this article by Nick Hanauer. He's a businessman and raising the minimum wage is good business. The added income allows workers to buy products which they can ill afford on the current minimum wage. The increased wage would affect about 81 million workers to spend more on products that would increase the business bottom line, which then hires more workers, not less. Otherwise at the current wage workers need extra federal benefits, which cost would be greatly reduced with the higher wage.
Monday, September 28, 2015
The regressive attack on the CFPB
Here's Elizabeth Warrens FB post on the issue. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under its current director has returned over $10 billion to people defrauded by financial institutions. Now Congress wants to undermine the bureau by appointing political lackeys to a governing commission. It is a blatant tactic to undermine the bureau's effectiveness and prevent Wall Street from being held accountable to those it rips off. I'd call this unbelievable but we better believe that Congress is bought off to do Wall Street's bidding, not protect we the people from it.
Peer to peer economy and new civilization
See this article by Michel Bauwens and Franco Iacomella. It criticized our current economic system on three levels:
1. The current political economy is based on a false idea of material abundance.
2. The current political economy is based on a false idea of immaterial scarcity.
3. The pseudo-abundance that destroys the biosphere, and the contrived scarcity that keeps innovation artificially scarce and slow, does not advance social justice.
The new vision centers around civil society's duty to sustain the material commons as well as share the immaterial cultural commons. The private sphere has its place for scarce goods and services but must be regulated properly by the government sector to prevent destructive and pathological greed while promoting its social responsibility. Democratic economic businesses like co-ops are encouraged.
Boehner admits his Party is wack
See this article. He admits that the wack jobs in his Party know they can't do some of the crazy things they propose, like defund Obamacare. They do it to manipulate the Fox-nuts in their constituency into a frenzy. The wacks in his Party won't even vote for Republican-sponsored legislation because it's not crazy enough. He also admits that the Pope influenced him to speed up his intent to quit. I guess his religious conscience couldn't bear any more intentional sinning to appease what his Party has become.
Sunday, September 27, 2015
The :Pope lectures regressives on reality
Maher: "I love that Boehner invited him to talk to Congress, and there he was
the Grandmaster Flash of crazy non-evidentiary nonsense, lecturing the
Republicans on reality."
Saturday, September 26, 2015
The Pope heals infrastructure
Good parody by The Onion on the decrepitude of US infrastructure due to Republican obstruction.
Maher's Pope on interfaith commonality
The Pope participated in a interfaith service at the Twin Towers memorial in NYC. Maher jokes that he said: "We may hold different faiths but we are brought together by the knowledge that we all believe in some form of utter nonsense."
Friday, September 25, 2015
Toward a new social ecology
See the article here. An excerpt:
"Defenders of the status quo would have us believe that ‘green’ capitalism and the ‘information economy’ will usher in a transition to a more ecological future. But, like all the capitalisms of the past, this latest incarnation relies ultimately on the continued and perpetual expansion of its reach, at the expense of people and ecosystems worldwide. From urban centers to remote rural villages, we are all being sold on a way of life that will only continue to devour the earth and its peoples. Today’s high-tech consumer lifestyles, whether played out in New York, Beijing, Bangalore, or the remotest reaches of our human civilisation, aim to defy all meaningful limits, ultimately raising global inequality and economic oppression to previously unimaginable proportions while profoundly destabilising the earth’s ability to sustain complex life.
"Defenders of the status quo would have us believe that ‘green’ capitalism and the ‘information economy’ will usher in a transition to a more ecological future. But, like all the capitalisms of the past, this latest incarnation relies ultimately on the continued and perpetual expansion of its reach, at the expense of people and ecosystems worldwide. From urban centers to remote rural villages, we are all being sold on a way of life that will only continue to devour the earth and its peoples. Today’s high-tech consumer lifestyles, whether played out in New York, Beijing, Bangalore, or the remotest reaches of our human civilisation, aim to defy all meaningful limits, ultimately raising global inequality and economic oppression to previously unimaginable proportions while profoundly destabilising the earth’s ability to sustain complex life.
Spirituality/religion and politics
Early on in this FB IPS thread I
was questioned about the relevance of such political topics to
spirituality. Along that line I'd like to provide this from Elizabeth
Warren and her comments on the Pope's visit. The Pope obviously agrees.
"The Pope’s words today are a powerful reminder that these are not just political or economic issues – they also are moral issues that reflect our deepest values as a people."
"The Pope’s words today are a powerful reminder that these are not just political or economic issues – they also are moral issues that reflect our deepest values as a people."
Hedges interview on the Pope, Sanders
See this interview with Chris Hedges. He is first asked about the Pope's rhetoric on climate change and neoliberal economics, but what does the Pope do about it? Hedges agrees that the rhetoric is a step in the right direction by accepting reality, something the church has seldom done on the issue. Quite the contrary in the past. But the Vatican has offered no alternatives to the system creating these problems. It is just arguing for a kinder, gentler capitalism without addressing the system of capitalism itself. (Well not so; see this recent article.)
The GOP's much needed treatment
Perhaps this is why Speaker Boehner resigned his leadership today of this sick party?
Thursday, September 24, 2015
The Pope's speech before the US Congress
Here's the link. A few of my favorites:
On political morality:
"If politics must truly be at the service of the human person, it follows that it cannot be a slave to the economy and finance. Politics is, instead, an expression of our compelling need to live as one, in order to build as one the greatest common good: that of a community which sacrifices particular interests in order to share, in justice and peace, its goods, its interests, its social life."
On a humane economy:
On political morality:
"If politics must truly be at the service of the human person, it follows that it cannot be a slave to the economy and finance. Politics is, instead, an expression of our compelling need to live as one, in order to build as one the greatest common good: that of a community which sacrifices particular interests in order to share, in justice and peace, its goods, its interests, its social life."
On a humane economy:
And what US Presidential candidate promotes Pope-onomics?
From Sanders' platform:
Creating Worker Co-ops
We need to develop new economic models to increase job creation and productivity. Instead of giving huge tax breaks to corporations which ship our jobs to China and other low-wage countries, we need to provide assistance to workers who want to purchase their own businesses by establishing worker-owned cooperatives. Study after study shows that when workers have an ownership stake in the businesses they work for, productivity goes up, absenteeism goes down and employees are much more satisfied with their jobs.
Creating Worker Co-ops
We need to develop new economic models to increase job creation and productivity. Instead of giving huge tax breaks to corporations which ship our jobs to China and other low-wage countries, we need to provide assistance to workers who want to purchase their own businesses by establishing worker-owned cooperatives. Study after study shows that when workers have an ownership stake in the businesses they work for, productivity goes up, absenteeism goes down and employees are much more satisfied with their jobs.
Pope-onomics
See this article. Some excerpts:
"But the kind of economics he reserves his highest praise for has less to do with ledgers and figures than with the challenges of people sharing and governing their enterprises together. It’s not an economics of the right or left, of Democrats or Republicans, but an economics of cooperation."
"Over and over, he has turned to grass-roots social movements, rather than economists, as his source of hope for change. While in Bolivia, he told a gathering of activists, 'The future of humanity is in great measure in your own hands, through your ability to organize and carry out creative alternatives.' The future Francis hopes for is one that comes chiefly from the bottom up."
"But the kind of economics he reserves his highest praise for has less to do with ledgers and figures than with the challenges of people sharing and governing their enterprises together. It’s not an economics of the right or left, of Democrats or Republicans, but an economics of cooperation."
"Over and over, he has turned to grass-roots social movements, rather than economists, as his source of hope for change. While in Bolivia, he told a gathering of activists, 'The future of humanity is in great measure in your own hands, through your ability to organize and carry out creative alternatives.' The future Francis hopes for is one that comes chiefly from the bottom up."
Sanders on the Pope's new world order
From his FB post:
"Pope Francis is not just asking us to alleviate poverty and move toward more a equitable distribution of wealth and income. Nor is he simply requesting that we act boldly to combat climate change and save the planet. He is asking us to create a new form of society where the economy works for all, and not just the wealthy and the powerful. He is asking us to become a different kind of person, where our happiness and well-being comes from serving others and being part of the human community - not by spending our lives accumulating more and more wealth and power while oppressing others."
"Pope Francis is not just asking us to alleviate poverty and move toward more a equitable distribution of wealth and income. Nor is he simply requesting that we act boldly to combat climate change and save the planet. He is asking us to create a new form of society where the economy works for all, and not just the wealthy and the powerful. He is asking us to become a different kind of person, where our happiness and well-being comes from serving others and being part of the human community - not by spending our lives accumulating more and more wealth and power while oppressing others."
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
Sanders in a league of his own
See this excellent article. It argues that the pundits would be right about Sanders' chances if he were playing by the rules they normally follow. But he's not. He's blazing a new trail that baffles the pundits at every turn because they just can't comprehend that Sanders is not politics as usual but a broad and wide populist movement. And one unlike any other on this scale.
More on de-growth
Continuing a recent theme, see this article on the UN's sustainable development goals. An excerpt:
"Given all the fanfare, one might think the SDGs are about to offer a fresh plan for how to save the world, but beneath all the hype, it’s business as usual. The main strategy for eradicating poverty is the same: growth. Growth has been the main object of development for the past 70 years, despite the fact that it's not working. Since 1980, the global economy has grown by 380%, but the number of people living in poverty on less than $5 (£3.20) a day has increased by more than 1.1 billion. That’s 17 times the population of Britain. So much for the trickle-down effect."
"Given all the fanfare, one might think the SDGs are about to offer a fresh plan for how to save the world, but beneath all the hype, it’s business as usual. The main strategy for eradicating poverty is the same: growth. Growth has been the main object of development for the past 70 years, despite the fact that it's not working. Since 1980, the global economy has grown by 380%, but the number of people living in poverty on less than $5 (£3.20) a day has increased by more than 1.1 billion. That’s 17 times the population of Britain. So much for the trickle-down effect."
Nonetheless Lindberg supports Sanders
Continuing from this post, Lindberg says near the end of his piece:
"As I’ve been writing this essay, I’ve revisited many of Bernie Sanders’ speeches, op-eds, and policy papers. I’ve got to admit, I really like the guy. I also think a good number of his policies could be useful in an America suffering catabolic collapse. [...] I understand why Sanders is not emphasizing his previous self-description as a socialist, but it is still visible in many of his policies, as well as his political temper. On a finite planet, we need to focus on the fact that we are all in this together, and Sanders has the potential to move us in this direction. I’ll certainly vote for him, and I may plant a 'Bernie' sign in our yard, amongst the unkempt weeds and rubble that symbolize my own catabolic slide out of the middle class."
"As I’ve been writing this essay, I’ve revisited many of Bernie Sanders’ speeches, op-eds, and policy papers. I’ve got to admit, I really like the guy. I also think a good number of his policies could be useful in an America suffering catabolic collapse. [...] I understand why Sanders is not emphasizing his previous self-description as a socialist, but it is still visible in many of his policies, as well as his political temper. On a finite planet, we need to focus on the fact that we are all in this together, and Sanders has the potential to move us in this direction. I’ll certainly vote for him, and I may plant a 'Bernie' sign in our yard, amongst the unkempt weeds and rubble that symbolize my own catabolic slide out of the middle class."
Medicare Part G
Someone forwarded this to me without an attribution, but it's worth passing on to show the hypocrisy in the US on elder and criminal care.
Say
you are an older senior citizen and can no longer take care of yourself
and need Long-Term Care, but the government says there is no Nursing
Home care available for you. So, what do you
do? You opt for Medicare Part G.
The
plan gives anyone 75 or older a gun (Part G) and one bullet. You are
allowed to shoot one worthless politician. This means you will be sent
to prison for the rest of your life where you
will receive three meals a day, a roof over your head, central heating
and air conditioning, cable TV, a library, and all the health care you
need. Need new teeth? No problem. Need glasses? That’s great. Need a
hearing aid, new hip, knees, kidney, lungs, sex
change, or heart? They are all covered!
As an added bonus, your kids can come and visit you at least as often as they do now!
Sanders on consumerism
Following up on the last post, see this video. The only major US Presidential candidate broaching this subject.
One and a half cheers for Sanders
See this article. It's a good article but long and I've only read about half of it so far.
And I agree with most of what he's saying, that we do have to let go of
the American Dream. And that progressives, while better, are still
stuck in it. And that Sanders only gets 1.5 cheers because he's on the
right track but still doesn't go all the way into the reduction of
consumption needed to avert disaster. I've said all of this all along,
that Sanders isn't the final answer, but that his policies are the
necessary predecessor to making the incipient neo-Commons available on a
larger scale. It's the neo-Commons that will get many more of us to
reduce our consumption and live more sustainable lives. But the likes of
Sanders will set the stage unlike any other candidate. I'll not let the
perfect be the enemy of the good.
Tuesday, September 22, 2015
Senate passes Warren's Truth in Settlements Bill
I'm amazed that this Bill unanimously passed the US Senate. Republicans actually voted for transparency in how Wall Street buys off regulators to get away with criminal activity with just a financial slap on the wrist. Now on to the House which will surely thwart it. Warren said:
"I’m glad the Senate unanimously passed the Truth in Settlements Act last night – my bipartisan bill with Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford to provide more transparency around government settlements. The idea behind this bill is straightforward: If the government is going to cut deals on behalf of the American people, the American people are entitled to know what kind of a deal they're getting. This legislation will shut down backroom deal-making and ensure that Congress, citizens and watchdog groups can hold regulatory agencies accountable for strong and effective enforcement that benefits the public interest."
"I’m glad the Senate unanimously passed the Truth in Settlements Act last night – my bipartisan bill with Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford to provide more transparency around government settlements. The idea behind this bill is straightforward: If the government is going to cut deals on behalf of the American people, the American people are entitled to know what kind of a deal they're getting. This legislation will shut down backroom deal-making and ensure that Congress, citizens and watchdog groups can hold regulatory agencies accountable for strong and effective enforcement that benefits the public interest."
Individual and social evolution
Kurt posted this link at FB, wherein he and co-author discuss the
difference between individual and social evolution in the following
quote. We discussed this in different IPS threads, how in kennilingus
individual evolutionary levels are just carried over wholesale onto
social evolution which isn't necessarily, and likely not at all, the
case.
"Wilson differentiates between natural selection for individuals and natural selection at what is called the 'group', or 'multi-level.' While at an individual level, natural selection often operates in a selfish, survival-of-the-fittest fashion, at the group level (think of group dynamics within larger eco-systems), it selects for structures and processes that serve the well being of the whole, and not self-interest groups. In other words, evolution is trending toward a world that works for all. This is a radical reversal of standard evolutionary understanding."
Robert Reich today released an excerpt of his new book, Saving Capitalism. The following excerpt relates to my last post in that a 'free market' of self-interested individuals is moot without the rules of the social contract via laws and regulations.
"Wilson differentiates between natural selection for individuals and natural selection at what is called the 'group', or 'multi-level.' While at an individual level, natural selection often operates in a selfish, survival-of-the-fittest fashion, at the group level (think of group dynamics within larger eco-systems), it selects for structures and processes that serve the well being of the whole, and not self-interest groups. In other words, evolution is trending toward a world that works for all. This is a radical reversal of standard evolutionary understanding."
Robert Reich today released an excerpt of his new book, Saving Capitalism. The following excerpt relates to my last post in that a 'free market' of self-interested individuals is moot without the rules of the social contract via laws and regulations.
Balder and me on A/A
Continuing from this post, Balder and I have pursued a discussion at FB and Ning IPS that follows. Follow them for more discussion on it, if it happens:
Balder: I hope you can make a good philosophical critique of aperspectivism (other than that you are tired of it). Or maybe this is more an emotional reaction?
Me: What have I been doing at Ning IPS for several years? Btw, as I said in the post, it's kennilingus aperspectivism, not the entire field.
Balder: You've critiqued IT for its latent metaphysics of presence, but I wouldn't equate that with aperspectivism.
Me: Wilber's version of it includes the aperspective of the metaphysics of presence, aka direct perception of the ultimate. As but one example, here's a post from our Ning discussion on Wilber's Supermind (and Superman) stuff.
Balder: I was thrown, I suppose, because you made this remark in your conversation with Bryan, who did not appear (from what I read) to be invoking aperspectivism in this context.
Me: Sure he is when he invokes "the means must justify themsevles" from his version of what integral-aperspetivalism means.
Balder: I hope you can make a good philosophical critique of aperspectivism (other than that you are tired of it). Or maybe this is more an emotional reaction?
Me: What have I been doing at Ning IPS for several years? Btw, as I said in the post, it's kennilingus aperspectivism, not the entire field.
Balder: You've critiqued IT for its latent metaphysics of presence, but I wouldn't equate that with aperspectivism.
Me: Wilber's version of it includes the aperspective of the metaphysics of presence, aka direct perception of the ultimate. As but one example, here's a post from our Ning discussion on Wilber's Supermind (and Superman) stuff.
Balder: I was thrown, I suppose, because you made this remark in your conversation with Bryan, who did not appear (from what I read) to be invoking aperspectivism in this context.
Me: Sure he is when he invokes "the means must justify themsevles" from his version of what integral-aperspetivalism means.
Aperspectivals Anonymous
See this post. For those of us with A/Aperspectivalism recovering from kennilingus. It means when one has tired of the integral-aperspectival bubble.
Monday, September 21, 2015
Social democracy has the happiest people
See this
article, which shows that social democracy is the political-economic
system conducive to producing the most happiness. Which is why the
Scandinavian countries always score the highest on the world happiness
index. It's also why the
oligarchs keep us starving and fearful, for if we were happy we'd get
their influence, and their political lapdogs, out of government. As the
article says of capitalism:
What Sanders means by democratic socialism
See this article and video. Speaking of Scandinavian examples he said:
"You have all kinds of capitalist entrepreneurship going on, a lot of wealth being created. But what else do you have? … An effort to make sure that all people benefit from the wealth that’s being created. So you have a much more equitable distribution of wealth and income."
This is the same form of democratic and socialist capitalism Robert Reich talks about. And it is the necessary socio-economic system that sets the stage for the emerging neo-Commons.
"You have all kinds of capitalist entrepreneurship going on, a lot of wealth being created. But what else do you have? … An effort to make sure that all people benefit from the wealth that’s being created. So you have a much more equitable distribution of wealth and income."
This is the same form of democratic and socialist capitalism Robert Reich talks about. And it is the necessary socio-economic system that sets the stage for the emerging neo-Commons.
Progressive morality
George Lakoff has long lamented that progressives need to frame their policies in moral language if they want to achieve a better society. Well according to this article that's exactly what Senator Sanders is doing, much like the Pope.
"Pope Francis and Bernie Sanders also agree on at least one strategy to begin changing the fundamental structure of our economy: democratizing wealth through worker ownership."
"Pope Francis and Bernie Sanders also agree on at least one strategy to begin changing the fundamental structure of our economy: democratizing wealth through worker ownership."
Paul Mason and panel on post-capitalism
Mason concludes that if capitalism isn't yet over then it needs a better version of itself. Recall Robert Reich's new book. And even in that scenario we need to envision what's after capitalism.
Sunday, September 20, 2015
Meeting our needs
This article explores what society would be like if we fulfilled our basic needs with the basic income. Then we'd be free to pursue our higher needs and achieve deeper fulfillment and satisfaction. But that's exactly why big business does not want us to get past our survival needs, for then we will accepts their crumbs out of fear. Thing is, when we move up the hierarchy of needs and are more deeply fulfilled we all benefit, even the rich. It's just that they can't have it all, because their sick greed for money and power has corrupted them.
Recalling Zak Stein on anti-capitalism
Continuing from the last post, we had a FB discussion about Zak Stein's anti-capitalist manifesto for the ITC discussion. Here's what Zak said in that discussion:
June 28 @ 7:38 am:
Been asked to weigh in here by Lex. Honestly, there is little for me to say thanks to prior comments:
Bruce: indeed, I would not have written a piece like this (with this structure, brevity, and tone) were it not for the demands of the ITC panel. That said, it was a useful (and apparently attention grabbing) exercise.
June 28 @ 7:38 am:
Been asked to weigh in here by Lex. Honestly, there is little for me to say thanks to prior comments:
Bruce: indeed, I would not have written a piece like this (with this structure, brevity, and tone) were it not for the demands of the ITC panel. That said, it was a useful (and apparently attention grabbing) exercise.
Integral economics
Bryan has recently joined the Ning IPS forum and stated his position in this post and a few following that. My response:
I can no longer talk kennilingus like second tier;
it's useless to me. Plus the notion that "the means must justify
themselves" smacks of the metaphysics of presence, as if the means are
self-justifying from some ultimate perspective in intself, aka the thing in itself.
Which of course such specious rationale is rampant in kennilingus, that
we can experience ultimate truth directly and clearly and operate from
that premise. The whole second-tier metaphysics of presence is a
self-reinforcing circle jerk bubble in which I no longer participate.
For me integral is something else, and an integral economics is more like the neo-Commons.
Saturday, September 19, 2015
Saving capitalism for the many, not the few
Robert Reich's new book is due out shortly. It seems to be about reforming capitalism to be consistent with democracy. It might be a step in the right direction toward the developing neo-Commons but it's still capitalism. But it's only a right step in that we're actually going back to a time when capitalism wasn't as corrupt and greedy, when it was held in check from those things by democracy and there was a more equitable distribution of wealth.
Still, we need that sort of capitalism as a springboard toward a true democratic economy, and that is indeed the neo-Commons when capitalism has run its course. And no, the neo-Commons is not the sort of socialism we've seen to date out of Russia and Cuba, but more out of the socialist democracies of Scandanavia and Bernie Sanders. That is the sort of democratic socialism/capitalism hybrid that is the forerunner of a true neo-Commons. From the Amazon blurb:
Still, we need that sort of capitalism as a springboard toward a true democratic economy, and that is indeed the neo-Commons when capitalism has run its course. And no, the neo-Commons is not the sort of socialism we've seen to date out of Russia and Cuba, but more out of the socialist democracies of Scandanavia and Bernie Sanders. That is the sort of democratic socialism/capitalism hybrid that is the forerunner of a true neo-Commons. From the Amazon blurb:
Sanders with Colbert
Colbert asked good questions. However when Colbert asked if Bernie promoted higher taxes he didn't answer yes outright when he should have.
Maher on false prognostication
The regressive Republicans made lots of predictions but were wrong every time. And yet that never stops them from making the same claims despite evidence to the contrary.
Elizabeth Warren on Planned Parenthood
Recall this one, since the US House already voted to defund Planned Parenthood with the Senate next. Plus these regressives have threatened to shut down the government over this. Warren sets the record straight on their agenda.
Friday, September 18, 2015
Jim Wallace on the Pope's US visit
From this article.
"The pope is changing the perception of the church from being closed and judging to becoming open and encountering -- reminding us that the 'joy of the gospel,' as he calls it, is to embrace each other and especially those we have left out and behind; and to protect and preserve this earth we have as our common home."
But what he can't change is the reality that the US Republican Party is closed and judging at best and beyond the Pope's help.
"The pope is changing the perception of the church from being closed and judging to becoming open and encountering -- reminding us that the 'joy of the gospel,' as he calls it, is to embrace each other and especially those we have left out and behind; and to protect and preserve this earth we have as our common home."
But what he can't change is the reality that the US Republican Party is closed and judging at best and beyond the Pope's help.
The regressive strategy to a tee
You know she's going to pull that football away again when he tries to kick it.
Toward an open cooperativism
See this interesting article. The abstract:
Two prominent social progressive movements are faced with a few contradictions and a paradox. On the one side, we have a re-emergence of the co-operative movement and worker-owned enterprises which suffer from certain structural weaknesses. On the other, we have an emergent field of open and Commons-oriented peer production initiatives which create common pools of knowledge for the whole of humanity, but are dominated by start-ups and large multinational enterprises using the same Commons. Thus we have a paradox: the more communist the sharing license used in the peer production of free software or open hardware, the more capitalist the practice. To tackle this paradox and the aforementioned contradictions, we tentatively suggest a new convergence that would combine both Commons-oriented open peer production models with common ownership and governance models, such as those of the co-operatives and the solidarity economic models.
Two prominent social progressive movements are faced with a few contradictions and a paradox. On the one side, we have a re-emergence of the co-operative movement and worker-owned enterprises which suffer from certain structural weaknesses. On the other, we have an emergent field of open and Commons-oriented peer production initiatives which create common pools of knowledge for the whole of humanity, but are dominated by start-ups and large multinational enterprises using the same Commons. Thus we have a paradox: the more communist the sharing license used in the peer production of free software or open hardware, the more capitalist the practice. To tackle this paradox and the aforementioned contradictions, we tentatively suggest a new convergence that would combine both Commons-oriented open peer production models with common ownership and governance models, such as those of the co-operatives and the solidarity economic models.
Thursday, September 17, 2015
Sanders on the regressive debate
He's left with commenting on their debates, since the DNC refuses to have enough debates to respond to all these lies in order to protect Clinton from Sanders.
The Republican debate devoid of fact
Not that regressives ever let facts or science get in the way of their ideology. See this fact check with several detailed analyses of regressive statements. Also see this article for more fact checking. A few examples from the latter: Insisting That Hispanics Used to Love Republicans, Implying the U.S. Government Funds Abortion, Saying We Are Almost the Only Ones With Birthright Citizenship, Lying About Vaccines.
Paul Zerdin wins AGT
While my two favorites, the Professional Regurgitator and Oz Pearlman, made the top five, they didn't make the final two. While I thought Zerdin's skit making Howie the dummy was brilliant he wasn't as consistently excellent like my favorites.
The marriage of church and state
How the regressives see one of the foundations of the US Constitution in their alternate universe.
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Integrating activism into governance institutions
See this story. It's amazing what we the people can do if we but get active. An excerpt:
"The idea of the commons as an organising principle has moved from the streets to the heart of the European political establishment. For the first time, one of the European Parliament’s 28 Intergroups – groups made up of members from different political groupings, and that focus on certain issues – is devoted to discussing and defending the commons.
The Intergroup on Public Services and Common Goods was launched at the end of May, with support and members from the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, the Greens, the European United Left and Italy’s Five Star Movement.
The Intergroup’s stated goal is to defend shared, common goods – such as water, medical innovations and open-source code – from privatisation.
"The idea of the commons as an organising principle has moved from the streets to the heart of the European political establishment. For the first time, one of the European Parliament’s 28 Intergroups – groups made up of members from different political groupings, and that focus on certain issues – is devoted to discussing and defending the commons.
The Intergroup on Public Services and Common Goods was launched at the end of May, with support and members from the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, the Greens, the European United Left and Italy’s Five Star Movement.
The Intergroup’s stated goal is to defend shared, common goods – such as water, medical innovations and open-source code – from privatisation.
WSJ wrongly cites an expert on Sanders
See this story for the details, where the Wall Street Journal cited an expert economist as saying Sanders' economic proposals would cost us $18 trillion. The very same expert said the WSJ can't do math, as what he actually said was that Sanders' proposals would cost $5 trillion less over the next 10 years than what we're currently paying while simultaneously insuring everyone while eliminating co-payments and deductibles! And yet the WSJ spins these facts into a farce. Go figure.
2 new studies on unions and better lives
We all know this to be true, even the greedy corporate bastards. But the truth is the greedy bastards do not want us to have a fair piece of their pie in a safe and healthy work environment. Hence the unremitting war on unions over the last decades with the consequent reduction in real wages, benefits and job security. If you want a fair shot at work support and join or form a Union.
Elizabeth Warren on Planned Parenthood
And the regressive thread to shut down the government over its funding. I like her piss and vinegar fighting spirit, the same kind Senator Sanders has. And the same kind we progressives need to stand up to these regressive bullies and want to takes us back to the 50s. Here's her Facebook post:
"Sometimes I look around the Senate and think: Did you guys fall down, hit your heads, and think you woke up in the 1950s? I simply cannot believe that in 2015, the Senate would consider shutting down the government to defund Planned Parenthood and women’s health care. So Ted Cruz wants a big fight over defunding Planned Parenthood? I say: Bring it on, Ted. I’ve lived in a world with backward-looking ideologues interfering in women's health. We’re not going back. Not now - not ever."
"Sometimes I look around the Senate and think: Did you guys fall down, hit your heads, and think you woke up in the 1950s? I simply cannot believe that in 2015, the Senate would consider shutting down the government to defund Planned Parenthood and women’s health care. So Ted Cruz wants a big fight over defunding Planned Parenthood? I say: Bring it on, Ted. I’ve lived in a world with backward-looking ideologues interfering in women's health. We’re not going back. Not now - not ever."
The Pope: help the poor or pay taxes
The Pope does it again. If your church is not going to help the poor then it needs to pay fair taxes like any other business. Churches have to take their religion to the streets and help people in need, not just make money for themselves.
An evangelical responsds to Sanders
When Bernie addressed Liberty University. This audio is from a Liberty U alumni. A full transcript is here. A brief excerpt follows:
"I listened to Bernie Sanders as he said he wanted to welcome the immigrants and give them dignity, as he said he wanted to care for the sick children and mothers and fathers who do not have health care, as he said he wanted to decrease the amount of human beings who are corralled like cattle in the prisons, as he said he wanted to do justice for those who have nothing and live homeless. And I remembered the words of Jesus who warned his disciples that there will be judgement, and on that day he will look to his friends, and he will say 'Blessed are you for you cared for me, for I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you cared for me, I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was in prison and you came to visit me, I was homeless and you gave me shelter.' And his disciples said, 'When did we do any of those things for you?' And he said, 'If you have done it for the least of these, you have done it for me.'
"I listened to Bernie Sanders as he said he wanted to welcome the immigrants and give them dignity, as he said he wanted to care for the sick children and mothers and fathers who do not have health care, as he said he wanted to decrease the amount of human beings who are corralled like cattle in the prisons, as he said he wanted to do justice for those who have nothing and live homeless. And I remembered the words of Jesus who warned his disciples that there will be judgement, and on that day he will look to his friends, and he will say 'Blessed are you for you cared for me, for I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you cared for me, I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was in prison and you came to visit me, I was homeless and you gave me shelter.' And his disciples said, 'When did we do any of those things for you?' And he said, 'If you have done it for the least of these, you have done it for me.'
Tuesday, September 15, 2015
Gaby wins SYTYCD
It was a toss up between my two favorites Gaby and Jaja until Gaby's recent performance with Hailee doing Travis' choreography. For me that was what made her this season's winner.
There IS an alternative
See this article on Corbyn and Sanders. We're tired of the old refrain "there is no alternative" to the capitalistic oligarchy that all the major Parties in both the US and the UK have supported. Well now there is an alternative and it is exemplified by Corbyn's win in the UK to lead the Labour Party and Sanders rise to challenge Clinton for the US Democratic nomination.
It was business as usual with the Third Way leaders like Bill Clinton and Tony Blair and championed by integral theorists like Ken Wilber. These leaders embraced financial deregulation that led to the financial meltdown, as well as austerity programs that decimated the middle class and drastically cut welfare programs that literally starved the poor.
It was business as usual with the Third Way leaders like Bill Clinton and Tony Blair and championed by integral theorists like Ken Wilber. These leaders embraced financial deregulation that led to the financial meltdown, as well as austerity programs that decimated the middle class and drastically cut welfare programs that literally starved the poor.
American Ninja Warrior history
Last night history was made as two guys made it to and completed stage 4 of the competition. First was Geoff Britten in the video below, the first to ever achieve this. Then came Isaac Caldiero, who beat his time to win the competition and $1,000,000 (in the next video).
Monday, September 14, 2015
Sanders at Liberty University
Sanders has bridged political parties with support from all angles, now he bridges religious differences. And how both religious conservatives and progressives agree on several issues. Here's one excerpt from an article on his speech before this most conservative of religious bastions:
"Sanders’ praise for Francis hinted at both a willingness to work with ideological opposites as well as a subtle nod to the growing influence of progressive people of faith. Religious progressives — who often discuss their faith in ways similar to Sanders — are a rapidly expanding portion of the population: A 2013 poll from the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) found that left-leading faithful will soon outnumber religious conservatives, and a 2015 PRRI survey reported that most American religious groups are now supportive of same-sex marriage. Meanwhile, U.S. Catholics — newly energized by the compassionate teachings of Pope Francis — are now more progressive than average Americans on most issues."
"Sanders’ praise for Francis hinted at both a willingness to work with ideological opposites as well as a subtle nod to the growing influence of progressive people of faith. Religious progressives — who often discuss their faith in ways similar to Sanders — are a rapidly expanding portion of the population: A 2013 poll from the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) found that left-leading faithful will soon outnumber religious conservatives, and a 2015 PRRI survey reported that most American religious groups are now supportive of same-sex marriage. Meanwhile, U.S. Catholics — newly energized by the compassionate teachings of Pope Francis — are now more progressive than average Americans on most issues."
US GOP regressives furious about Pope's visit
They are furious about these points the Pope will address before them Sept. 24. I found the following quite interesting:
"Pope Francis does not see creationism and evolution as exclusive."
"Pope Francis does not see creationism and evolution as exclusive."
Climate change contributes to European immigrant crisis
Even
the US Pentagon predicted this. But the regressives, usually hawkish
about national security, can't bring themselves to admit these facts. See this article which states:
"From 2006 to 2011, large swaths of Syria suffered an extreme drought that, according to climatologists, was exacerbated by climate change. The drought lead to increased poverty and relocation to urban areas, according to a recent report by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and cited by Scientific American. 'That drought, in addition to its mismanagement by the Assad regime, contributed to the displacement of two million in Syria,' says Francesco Femia, of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Climate and Security. 'That internal displacement may have contributed to the social unrest that precipitated the civil war. Which generated the refugee flows into Europe.' And what happened in Syria, he says, is likely to play out elsewhere going forward."
"From 2006 to 2011, large swaths of Syria suffered an extreme drought that, according to climatologists, was exacerbated by climate change. The drought lead to increased poverty and relocation to urban areas, according to a recent report by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and cited by Scientific American. 'That drought, in addition to its mismanagement by the Assad regime, contributed to the displacement of two million in Syria,' says Francesco Femia, of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Climate and Security. 'That internal displacement may have contributed to the social unrest that precipitated the civil war. Which generated the refugee flows into Europe.' And what happened in Syria, he says, is likely to play out elsewhere going forward."
The economics of Planned Parenthood
Regressive Republicans that want to defund PP, and are even willing to shut down the government over it, are not only morally wrong but wrong on the beneficial economics of PP.
A note on the Encyclical
Following up on this post, see this article discussing preparation for the Pope to speak at the UN. A few excerpts:
"A central insight of the encyclical is “integral ecology.” The term, integral, highlights the profound interdependence of people and planet. Integral ecology, then, moves us beyond simply an anthropocentric position and towards the roots of our present environmental situation. That is, our philosophies and sciences make us aware that humans cannot be removed from social, ecological, and cosmological processes that have given rise to us."
"A central insight of the encyclical is “integral ecology.” The term, integral, highlights the profound interdependence of people and planet. Integral ecology, then, moves us beyond simply an anthropocentric position and towards the roots of our present environmental situation. That is, our philosophies and sciences make us aware that humans cannot be removed from social, ecological, and cosmological processes that have given rise to us."
Sunday, September 13, 2015
Burning Man parody
While it's true that big business is appropriating the festival, that doesn't mean the festival itself, or many of those that attend, are also so bought off. Just like Uber doesn't mean the sharing Commons economy is all part of capitalism. If anything it means that the Commons is having a profound influence on moving our culture to the next wave of evolution, and that the capitalists are seeing the trend and trying to cash in on it.
Murdock buys National Geographic
See this story. Big
media pretty much controls of all mainstream outlets, including NPR. A
free and open internet is our only recourse, and even big media wants
that. It's why we have to keep up the fight for it, as the ISPs are lobbying Congress with billions to get around the FCC's new rules keeping it open.
Saturday, September 12, 2015
The non-impact of raising minimum wage
See this story.
"Walmart could pay workers $14.89 an hour without raising prices, just by ending stock buybacks. Now, a Marketplace and Slate report finds that Walmart could pay workers a living wage of $13.63 and only raise the price on a box of mac and cheese by a penny."
"Walmart could pay workers $14.89 an hour without raising prices, just by ending stock buybacks. Now, a Marketplace and Slate report finds that Walmart could pay workers a living wage of $13.63 and only raise the price on a box of mac and cheese by a penny."
Corbyn on public ownership
Newly elected UK Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn:
"I believe in public ownership, but I have never favoured the remote nationalised model that prevailed in the post-war era. Like a majority of the population and a majority of even Tory voters, I want the railways back in public ownership. But public control should mean just that, not simply state control: so we should have passengers, rail workers and government too, co-operatively running the railways to ensure they are run in our interests and not for private profit. This model should replace both the old Labour model of top-down operation by central diktat and Tories favoured model of unaccountable privatised operators running our public services for their own ends."
"I believe in public ownership, but I have never favoured the remote nationalised model that prevailed in the post-war era. Like a majority of the population and a majority of even Tory voters, I want the railways back in public ownership. But public control should mean just that, not simply state control: so we should have passengers, rail workers and government too, co-operatively running the railways to ensure they are run in our interests and not for private profit. This model should replace both the old Labour model of top-down operation by central diktat and Tories favoured model of unaccountable privatised operators running our public services for their own ends."
George Lakoff on the Pope's Encyclical
See his article here, where he said the following. See the link for much more.
"First, he got all the science right -- no small task. I have been writing for some time about role of systemic causation in global warming and the environment. The Pope not only got the ecological system effects right, but he went much, much further linking the environmental effects to effects on those most oppressed on earth by poverty, weather disasters, disease, ocean rise, lack of drinking water, the degradation of agriculture, and the essential aesthetic and spiritual contact with unspoiled nature. And more, he spoke of our moral responsibility toward animals."
"First, he got all the science right -- no small task. I have been writing for some time about role of systemic causation in global warming and the environment. The Pope not only got the ecological system effects right, but he went much, much further linking the environmental effects to effects on those most oppressed on earth by poverty, weather disasters, disease, ocean rise, lack of drinking water, the degradation of agriculture, and the essential aesthetic and spiritual contact with unspoiled nature. And more, he spoke of our moral responsibility toward animals."
Friday, September 11, 2015
Hartmann on Mathews insider shill status
See this post. Hartmann's conclusion. (Same can be said of Mara Liasson of NPR.)
"You won’t hear this on Fox So-Called
News, CNN, MSNBC, or any of the traditional letter networks, but the real
divide in Washington isn’t between Democrats and Republicans, it’s between
insiders and outsiders. Insiders are like the mafia. If you’ve proven your
insider bonafides by not straying too far outside what DC elites think is ‘acceptable,’
then you’re a made man who can do no wrong. But if you do stray outside the
acceptable limits of Beltway opinion, and start actually calling for real
change, then prepare to catch the wrath of the insider elite. This is what’s
going on right now with Chris Matthews’ Bernie Sanders socialism obsession.
Nonmetaphysical consciousness
The last post reminded me of this post from the Ning IPS archive:
Can we be conscious during deep sleep? It
seems perhaps so, but it is a prereflective or reflexive sort of
consciousness. When awakened from deep sleep sometimes we forget who are
what we are, but we know that we are. This is a temporary loss of our
reflective, autobiographical self that must be reconstituted by memory.
But there is a certainly about our prereflective awareness in that
moment. I'm reminded of the discussion of the aggregates
in the fold thread, how they are impermanent and fleeting and must be
continually reconstituted from moment to moment. But that would apply
equally as well to this prereflective awareness, that it too is not some
permanent, pristine or original face.
Yogacara and Vedanta schools posit that
upon awakening one remembers the experience of this prereflective state.
It's a state of consciousness without an object, whereas waking and
dreaming have objects. It is an absence of objects but not of awareness.
However it is interpreted as a pristine, original and metaphysical face
due to its lack of taking fluctuating objects as its focus, the True
Self or Witness, when in actuality it is simply our natural, embodied
and prereflective awareness. Sure it seems like something
metaphysical due to activating more primal brain areas and temporarily
suspending the brain areas that give a sense of self in relation to
space and time. But that is an apparent phenomenological sense devoid of
the more third-person neurosciences that contextualize it more
accurately.
Mindfulness and less accurate memory
See this article. Might this account for how such traditions claim direct experience of ultimate reality based on their philosophical indoctrination?
“When memories of imagined and real experiences too closely resemble each other, people can have difficulty determining which is which, and this can lead to falsely remembering imagined experiences as actual experiences.”
“When memories of imagined and real experiences too closely resemble each other, people can have difficulty determining which is which, and this can lead to falsely remembering imagined experiences as actual experiences.”
Thursday, September 10, 2015
We can't address the EU refugee crisis
without addressing global capitalism says Zizek. Here's more:
"It was the European intervention in Libya which threw the country in chaos. It was the U.S. attack on Iraq which created the conditions for the rise of ISIS. The ongoing civil war in the Central African Republic is not just an explosion of ethnic hatred; France and China are fighting for the control of oil resources through their proxies. But the clearest case of our guilt is today’s Congo. [...] Back in 2001, a UN investigation into the illegal exploitation of natural resources in Congo found that its internal conflicts are mainly about access to, control of, and trade in five key mineral resources: coltan, diamonds, copper, cobalt and gold. Beneath the façade of ethnic warfare, we thus discern the workings of global capitalism."
"Another feature shared by these rich countries is the rise of a new slavery.
"It was the European intervention in Libya which threw the country in chaos. It was the U.S. attack on Iraq which created the conditions for the rise of ISIS. The ongoing civil war in the Central African Republic is not just an explosion of ethnic hatred; France and China are fighting for the control of oil resources through their proxies. But the clearest case of our guilt is today’s Congo. [...] Back in 2001, a UN investigation into the illegal exploitation of natural resources in Congo found that its internal conflicts are mainly about access to, control of, and trade in five key mineral resources: coltan, diamonds, copper, cobalt and gold. Beneath the façade of ethnic warfare, we thus discern the workings of global capitalism."
"Another feature shared by these rich countries is the rise of a new slavery.
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"Mason is no anarchist railing against the powers that be, far from it. In Mason’s view the way forward can only be paved by our leaders, both politicians and the new wave of tech-industry giants. Mason makes clear, numbers don’t lie, global debt is reaching critical mass- privatization must stop, we must recognize the market cannot save us — it will not reach equilibrium, but more, extensive and involved planning by a strong government hand will be needed as the guiding force, like it or not."
And that government must be led by the likes of Sanders and Corbyn.