The 99 percent

[BikerDude]

Well it looks like there is more to the 99 percenters than bluster.
A big new economic study that says that the health and inevitable success or failure of a society is most closely related to the success or failure of the "average person".

A new argument that a country's ultimate success, or failure, is tied to how the average person does. Doesn't matter if it?s ancient Rome, Venice, China, or the U.S.A.

Why do nations rise, and why do they fall?  For centuries, explanations have rained down on us.  It's geography.  It's culture.  It's climate.  Free markets.  Colonization.  Military might.

A whopping new study of the ultimate question says it comes down to this:  Whether it's ancient Rome or Venice or China or the United States of America right now, the wealth of a nation is tied most closely to how much the average person shares in the overall growth of the economy.  That it really is about the ninety-nine percent.

http://audio.wbur.org/storage/2012/03/onpoint_0321_why-nations-fail.mp3

[DigitalBuddha]

It's the common dude every time that makes it happen; but they want us to believe that it is "them," the "elite," AKA "the best and brightest" that must lead the nation. BULLSHIT!!!!!!!!!!

The Founding Fathers of the United States apparently believed otherwise; "Government by the people, of the people, for the people." NOT "Government by the elite, of the elite, for the elite." And when the so-called "elite" fuck with the country, it's just that; totally FUCKED. Your basic "fubar" situation; "Fucked Up Beyond Any Recognition."

So far "the best and brightest" have brought us massive national debt, the fucking China man buying up huge sections or America and thumbing their noses at us as they do it, gas prices out of this world, welfare for Wall Street, bankers that have robbed and fucked Americans in the ass on an unprecedented level, a massive real estate meltdown, people losing their homes all over the country, failed small businesses all over the country (the corner stone of the American economy and prosperity for the common dude), corporations who own Congress and get away with just about every form of ripoff they can dream up and even get paid to do so by our tax dollars, unemployment up the yin yang, etc, etc., etc.

I say hang the bastards, hang em' high!

[Caesar dude]

What do you pay for a gallon of petrol over there in the states?

Today I was charged ?1.39 per litre...1 gallon = 4.55 Litres....so I was charged ?6.77 per gallon....or $10.70 

Can't imagine your in the same league yet guys...

Fucking scumbag politicians....

[cookiemeat]

I just paid 4.79 the other day. One republican is handing out signs with a gas pump and 2.50 plastered on them along with "don't believe the liberal media"

I think the oil people are trying their hardest to boost prices so they can use that as a bargaining chip to get a republican in there. So much for anti trust laws.

[RevJason83]

Sadly I think the 1% have known that for the longest time, hence the reason they are trying harder to take away basic rights. They want to keep their power as long as possible and that's the only way they know how.

[BikerDude]

Lately it occurs to me that the reason why American manufacturing jobs went away is simply because they were the home of organized labor. It had absolutely nothing to do with the cost of US labor.
Honda and Toyota run manufacturing plants in the US that are 100% UAW workers and they remain the most successful auto companies.

Never doubt the length that the wealthy will go to in order to stop people from organizing.

[milnie]

My special lady worked for a company for 13 years, which was bought by an American company for it's patents and promptly closed all European sites! Fuckers!
No offense to our American dudes

[meekon5]

They preach loyalty whilst it's to their advantage, then shit on you at the first point they can profit, loyalty out the window.

Welcome to the capitalist ethic.

[ispamforfood]

The biggest flaw in our government is the executive branch.  The President, Governors and Senators (who are technically legislative, but act as though they are executive branchers).  They all essentially answer to no one.  The job of state representatives is to (allegedly at least) vote the will of the people.  Senators are commonly assumed to do the same, HOWEVER, they generally vote based on the antiquated ideals of their party, quite often against the will of the actual party members.  If we want a truly representative government, we should eliminate (or severely restrict) the executive branch, as well as eliminate the senatorial positions.  What we'd have left is the house of representatives.  They have the shortest terms and can be held most accountable for their mistakes.  If you must have a president, he should NOT have veto power.  As much as I'd love for some bills never to leave congress thanks to a presidential veto...  Vetoes generally hinder more than they help.  Mostly because they are grossly misused.  They're more of a party tool to keep one political party from "taking over"...  But in all honesty, all they do is prevent ANYTHING, good OR bad, from getting done. 

A president should be a man or woman who is an ambassador to other countries, leader of the military (with current checks and balances of course) and one attempts to unite congress towards certain goals, without actually having the power to veto anything. Beyond that, we don't need (and I certainly dont want) Him/her to do ANYTHING else.