Month: September 2011
Blessed are the peacemakers;
for they shall be called
the children of God.
Yeshua (Jesus Christ) Matthew 5:9
- Labels: peace
recession, it would be of value to compare the causes of our current economic
doldrums with the convergence of factors that brought on the Great Depression
of 1929. Although the specific
conditions and circumstances may vary, the similarities are striking.
national economy into a devastating tailspin from the seeming prosperity of the
1920s. The rapid decline occurred as a
direct result of many factors that were all interconnected. The so-called Great Depression lasted from
1929 through 1938.
Great Depression began on what is referred to as Black Tuesday â October 29
1929 – when 16 million shares were traded and the industrial stock index
dropped 43 points negating all the gains made over the previous twelve months. By the middle of November of that year, the
market had lost a third of its entire value or 40% of all the stock that was
traded on the Exchange. The reasons for
this sudden and calamitous event were multi-faceted.
the 1920s was, in fact, not representative of the majority of Americans. Following the hard times imposed by World War
I, economic production markedly increased, especially in regards to
automobiles, home appliances and construction.
In addition, overseas investment doubled to 7.5 billion dollars by
1929. Although consumer spending
increased markedly during this period, individuals were buying beyond their
means, placing themselves in a precarious position regarding personal
indebtedness.
skewed markedly to the wealthy. In 1929,
the top 0.1% of American households collectively had as much wealth as 42% of
the population and possessed one-third of all the savings. As a matter of fact, it has been estimated
that 80% of the population had no savings at all.
increased far more than any other indicator, and, more to the point,
outstripped actual production or sales of manufactured goods. One aspect of this marked increase in
transactions on the stock exchange was the practice of âbuying on margin.â Using this approach, an investor determined
to purchase $1,000 worth of stock valued at $10 per share, was legally enabled
to pay his broker as little as 10% of the actual worth of the stock or
$100. This practice was common in the
1920s; because, the value of stock seemed to be always increasing. With this in mind, the investor could then
wait until the value of the stock rose, sell it at a significant profit, pay
his broker and pocket the difference.
This kind of gambling persisted; until, the inevitable happened â the
bubble burst. To some extent, the
unraveling began in Great Britain when the country raised its interest rates to
lure back domestic investors. Aware of
the significance of this policy change, foreign and U.S. investors began
dumping U.S. stocks.
worsened as the nation inexorably slid into depression. Within three years, the so-called industrial
index â a quantitative measure of the performance of shares in major industries
such as automobiles â dropped from 452 in September of 1929 to 58 by July of
1932. It must be remembered that it has
been estimated that only 2.5% of the entire population actually invested in the
stock market; therefore the reason for the depression must have resided
elsewhere. The causes for the depression
itself can be explained by the following factors:
Decline in Industrial Production â Much of the
economic growth during this era can be directly related to two major
industries, the production of automobiles and construction. By the end of the 20s, both of these facets
of the economy were in decline.
Poverty and Personal Indebtedness â Poverty
was, in fact, widespread and personal debt was high as well. The wages of individual workers had only
increased by 8%; whereas, the productivity of the individual worker increased
by an estimated 32%. These data
translated into the economic reality that individuals could not afford to
purchase the products of industrial output.
This convergence of factors inevitably led to mass unemployment.
Bank Failures – Since banks were heavily
engaged in speculation on the stock market and since the banks were using the
savings of their customers for these questionable investments, they were unable
to effectively deal with rush on the banks when people wished to withdraw their
savings en masse. As a result, thousands
of banks failed and many lost their life savings.
to the economic deterioration as outlined above, the Dust Bowl of the 1930âs
had a devastating impact on farmers of the Great Plains. After years of farming without adequate
rotation of crops, an unusual period of extreme drought together with harsh
weather conditions resulted in the topsoil being literally blown away. Between 1933 and 1938, three to four inches
of topsoil were lost to the winds and created what was referred to as âBlack
Blizzards.â As a result, 500,000
residents of the Great Plains became homeless and 2.5 million moved out of the
region by 1940.
governmentâs response to this deepening crisis was inadequate. Although President Herbert Hoover felt
compassion for the millions who were suffering and although he attempted to use
some of the governmentâs resources to address the issue â he requested 2.25
billion dollars from the Congress for public works progress – his political
philosophy constrained his efforts in this regard. He felt strongly that the government should
not be involved in direct relief by providing resources to those or were poor,
starving and unemployed. He felt that,
âIt is not the function of the government to relieve individuals of their
responsibilities to their neighbors, or to relieve private institutions of
their responsibilities to the public.â In
the general election of 1932, the people chose Franklin Delano Roosevelt as
their next president, who promised a New Deal.
The fundamental focus of the New Deal was threefold â the so-called 3 Rs
â relief, recovery and reform. In order
to accomplish these ambitious goals, fifteen major pieces of legislation were
submitted to Congress from spring to early summer.
of all these efforts, it was the onset of World War II that effectively brought
the country out of the Great Depression.
- Labels: Uncategorized
The recent attacks against the United States Postal Service (USPS) are more than signs of desperate times – a natural sunset moment for a service rendered archaic by FedEx and UPS. Rather, the Postal Service has been under constant, vicious assault for years from the right, who views this as an epic battle with the goal of finally taking down the strongest union in the country, the second largest employer in the United States (second only to Wal-Mart,) and a means to roll the country ever closer toward the abyss of privatization.
The Postal Service, which is older than the Constitution itself, stands at a precipice. If this great institution, which provides one of the oldest, most reliable services in the country, is permitted to fall and Congress kills its great union, then truly no collective bargaining rights, no worker contract, no union will be safe within the United States.
As the USPS spirals toward default, the historically uncontroversial mail service system has suddenly become a hot-button issue. It’s an unlikely organization to inspire such hysteria. The Postal Service isn’t paid for by taxpayer dollars, but rather fully funded by the sale of stamps. It’s easy to forget what a marvel this is – that today, in 2011, one can still mail a letter clear across the country for less than 50 cents. And if the impressiveness of that feat still hasn’t sunk in, attempt this brain exercise: consider what else you can buy for $0.44.
It was only a few years ago that the USPS was considered not only stable, but thriving. The biggest volume in pieces of mail handled by the Postal Service in its 236-year history was in 2006. The second and third busiest years were in 2005 and 2007, respectively. But it was two events: one crafted during the Bush years and another supervised by House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, that would cripple this once great institution.
Perhaps it was its booming history that first drew Congress’ attention to the Postal Service in 2006 when it passed the Postal Accountability Enhancement Act (PAEA), which mandated that the Postal Service would have to fully fund retiree health benefits for future retirees. That’s right. Congress was demanding universal health care coverage.
But it even went beyond that. Congress was mandating coverage for future human beings.
“It’s almost hard to comprehend what they’re talking about, but basically they said that the Postal Service would have to fully fund future retirees’ health benefits for the next 75 years and they would have to do it within a ten-year window,” says Chuck Zlatkin, political director of the New York Metro Area Postal Union.
It was an impossible order, and strangely, a task unshared by any other government service, agency, corporation or organization within the United States. The act meant that every September 30th, the USPS had to cough up $5.5 billion to the Treasury for the pre-funding of future retirees’ health benefits, meaning the Postal Service pays for employees 75 years into the future. The USPS is funding the retirement packages of people who haven’t even been born yet.
The hopeless task was made even more daunting when Wall Street blew up the world’s economies. It was this, and not the invention of email, that became the Postal Service’s death knell. Zlatkin finds the whole “blame it on the Internet” excuse amusing. The Internet had already existed for quite a while in 2006, the USPS’s busiest year, not to mention that every item purchased on Amazon and eBay – every piece of information addressed to stockholders and bank customers – still needs to be snail mailed, which is enough volume to keep the Postal Service prosperous.
“I’ve yet to figure out a way to mail a shirt through a computer,” he chuckles. (read more)
- Labels: capitalism, fascism
The USS Liberty incident was an attack on a United States Navy technical research ship, USS Liberty, by Israeli Air Force jet fighter aircraft and Israeli Navy torpedo boats, on June 8, 1967, during the Six-Day War. The combined air and sea attack killed 34 crew members (naval officers, seamen, two Marines, and one civilian), wounded 170 crew members, and severely damaged the ship. At the time, the ship was in international waters north of the Sinai Peninsula, about 25.5 nmi (29.3 mi; 47.2 km) northwest from the Egyptian city of Arish.
Both the Israeli and U.S. governments conducted inquiries and issued reports that concluded the attack was a mistake due to Israeli confusion about the identity of the USS Liberty. Attack survivors contacted in 2007, by John M. Crewdson for a Chicago Tribune article about the attack, “to a man” rejected Israel’s mistaken identity explanation. Also, the Tribune article said that most senior U.S. government officials, involved with the incident, did not believe that the attack was a mistake. The attack remains “the only maritime incident in U.S. history where [U.S.] military forces were killed that was never investigated by the [U.S.] Congress.”
James Bamford, a former ABC News producer, in his 2001 book Body of Secrets, proposes a different possible motive for a deliberate attack: to prevent the discovery of a massacre by the IDF of Egyptian prisoners of war that was allegedly taking place at the same time in the nearby town of El-Arish. In 1995, mass graves of Egyptian soldiers were discovered outside of El-Arish, and IDF veterans have admitted that up to 1,000 unarmed civilians and prisoners of war were murdered in the 1967 War. According to Israeli reporter Gabriel Bron, a former IDF soldier who witnessed the massacre, “The Egyptian POWs were ordered to dig pits, then army police shot them to death”. Deputy Foreign Minister, Eli Dayan offered compensation to the victims families in 1995, but explained that Israel was unable to pursue those responsible due to the statute of limitations.
The press release for the BBC documentary film Dead in the Water states that new recorded and other evidence suggests the attack was a “daring ploy by Israel to fake an Egyptian attack” to give America a reason to enter the war against Egypt. Convinced that that attack was real, President of the United States Lyndon B. Johnson launched nuclear-armed planes targeted against Cairo from a U.S. aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean. The planes were recalled only just in time, when it was clear the Liberty had not sunk and that Israel had carried out the attack. The video also provides hearsay evidence of a covert alliance of U.S. and Israel intelligence agencies. (read more)
- Labels: betrayal, history, military, propaganda, war
Josephine Baker (June 3, 1906 â April 12, 1975) was an American dancer, singer, and actress who found fame in her adopted homeland of France. She was given such nicknames as the “Bronze Venus”, the “Black Pearl”, and the “Créole Goddess”.
Baker was the first African American female to star in a major motion picture, to integrate an American concert hall, and to become a world-famous entertainer. She is also noted for her contributions to the Civil Rights Movement in the United States (she was offered the unofficial leadership of the movement by Coretta Scott King in 1968 following Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination, but turned it down), for assisting the French Resistance during World War II, and for being the first American-born woman to receive the French military honor, the Croix de guerre. (read more)
Operation Northwoods, or Northwoods, was a false-flag plan that originated within the United States government in 1962. The plan called for Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) or other operatives to commit genuine acts of terrorism in U.S. cities and elsewhere. These acts of terrorism were to be blamed on Cuba in order to create public support for a war against that nation, which the US had recently labled as communist under Fidel Castro. One part of the Operation Northwoods plan was to “develop a Communist Cuban terror campaign in the Miami area, in other Florida cities and even in Washington.”
Operation Northwoods included proposals for hijackings and bombings followed by the introduction of phony evidence that would implicate the Cuban government. The plan stated:
“The desired resultant from the execution of this plan would be to place the United States in the apparent position of suffering defensible grievances from a rash and irresponsible government of Cuba and to develop an international image of a Cuban threat to peace in the Western Hemisphere.”
Several other proposals were included within the Operation Northwoods plan, including real or simulated actions against various U.S. military and civilian targets. The plan was drafted by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, signed by Chairman Lyman Lemnitzer and sent to the Secretary of Defense. Although part of the U.S. government’s Cuban Project anti-communist initiative, Operation Northwoods was never officially accepted and the proposals included in the plan were never executed.
Journalist James Bamford summarized Operation Northwoods in his April 24, 2001 book Body of Secrets:
Operation Northwoods, which had the written approval of the Chairman and every member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called for innocent people to be shot on American streets; for boats carrying refugees fleeing Cuba to be sunk on the high seas; for a wave of violent terrorism to be launched in Washington, D.C., Miami, and elsewhere. People would be framed for bombings they did not commit; planes would be hijacked. Using phony evidence, all of it would be blamed on Castro, thus giving Lemnitzer and his cabal the excuse, as well as the public and international backing, they needed to launch their war. (read more) (watch video)
- Labels: truth
When life hands you a lemon, make lemonade.
Drop the idea that you are Atlas carrying the world on your shoulders. The world would go on even without you. Don’t take yourself so seriously.
Those who are fired with an enthusiastic idea and who allow it to take hold and dominate their thoughts find that new worlds open for them. As long as enthusiasm holds out, so will new opportunities.
It is of practical value to learn to like yourself. Since you must spend so much time with yourself you might as well get some satisfaction out of the relationship.
Joy increases as you give it, and diminishes as you try to keep it for yourself. In giving it, you will accumulate a deposit of joy greater than you ever believed possible.
Believe it is possible to solve your problem. Tremendous things happen to the believer. So believe the answer will come. It will.
Never talk defeat. Use words like hope, belief, faith, victory.
Watch your manner of speech if you wish to develop a peaceful state of mind. Start each day by affirming peaceful, contented and happy attitudes and your days will tend to be pleasant and successful.
The trouble with most of us is that we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism.
A positive mental attitude is a belief that things are going to turn out well, and that you can overcome any kind of trouble or difficulty.
The tests of life are not meant to break you, but to make you.
Live your life and forget your age.
If there is no fun in it, something is wrong with all you are doing.
Empty pockets never held anyone back. Only empty heads and empty hearts can do that.
- Labels: acceptance, peace, perspective, philosophy, sharing
- Labels: Uncategorized
Behold the rain which descends
from heaven upon our vineyards,
there it enters the roots of the vines,
to be changed into wine,
a constant proof that God loves us,
and loves to see us happy.
Benjamin Franklin.
“150 human animal hybrids grown in UK labs.”
Scientists have created more than 150 human-animal hybrid embryos in British laboratories.
The hybrids have been produced secretively over the past three years by researchers looking into possible cures for a wide range of diseases.
The revelation comes just a day after a committee of scientists warned of a nightmare “Planet of the Apes” scenario in which work on human-animal creations goes too far.
Last night a campaigner against the excesses of medical research said he was disgusted that scientists were “dabbling in the grotesque”.
Figures seen by the Daily Mail show that 155 “admixed” embryos, containing both human and animal genetic material, have been created since the introduction of the 2008 Human Fertilisation Embryology Act.
This legalised the creation of a variety of hybrids, including an animal egg fertilised by a human sperm; “cybrids”, in which a human nucleus is implanted into an animal cell; and “chimeras”, in which human cells are mixed with animal embryos.
Josephine Quintavalle, of pro-life group Comment on Reproductive Ethics, said: “I am aghast that this is going on and we didnât know anything about it.
Why have they kept this a secret? If they are proud of what they are doing, why do we need to ask Parliamentary questions for this to come to light?
The problem with many scientists is that they want to do things because they want to experiment. That is not a good enough rationale.” (read more)
