Category: capitalism
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The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW or the Wobblies) is an international industrial union that was formed in 1905. The origin of the nickname “Wobblies” is uncertain.
The IWW promotes the concept of “One Big Union,” contends that all workers should be united as a social class and that capitalism and wage labor should be abolished. They are known for the Wobbly Shop model of workplace democracy, in which workers elect their managers and other forms of grassroots democracy (self-management) are implemented. IWW membership does not require that one work in a represented workplace, nor does it exclude membership in another labor union.
The Wobblies differed from other union movements of the time by its promotion of industrial unionism, as opposed to the craft unionism of the American Federation of Labor. The IWW emphasized rank-and-file organization, as opposed to empowering leaders who would bargain with employers on behalf of workers. This manifested itself in the early IWW’s consistent refusal to sign contracts, which they felt would restrict workers’ abilities to aid each other when called upon. Though never developed in any detail, Wobblies envisioned the general strike as the means by which the wage system would be overthrown and a new economic system ushered in, one which emphasized people over profit, cooperation over competition.
One of the IWW’s most important contributions to the labor movement and broader push towards social justice was that, when founded, it was the only American union (besides the Knights of Labor) to welcome all workers including women, immigrants, African Americans and Asians into the same organization. Indeed, many of its early members were immigrants, and some, like Carlo Tresca, Joe Hill and Mary Jones, rose to prominence in the leadership.
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- Labels: altruism, capitalism, corporations, corruption, democracy, freedom, greed, profit
At the Green Partyâs 2012 National Convention in Baltimore over the weekend, Massachusetts physician Jill Stein and anti-poverty campaigner Cheri Honkala were nominated the partyâs presidential and vice-presidential contenders. We air the conventionâs keynote address delivered by Gar Alperovitz, a professor of political economy at the University of Maryland and co-founder of the Democracy Collaborative. Alperovitz is the author of “America Beyond Capitalism: Reclaiming Our Wealth, Our Liberty, and Our Democracy.” In his remarks, Alperovitz stressed the importance of third-party politics to challenge a corporate-run society. “Systems, in history, are defined, above all, by who controls the wealth,” Alperovitz says. “The top 400 people â not percent, people, 400 â own more wealth now than the bottom 185 million Americans taken together. That is a medieval structure.” [includes rush transcript]
Gar Alperovitzâs Green Party Keynote: We Are Laying Groundwork for the “Next Great Revolution”
- Labels: capitalism, corporations, politics, power
Unity Day
Members of the African-American faith community have joined forces with Occupy Wall Street to launch a new campaign for economic justice inspired by the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Faithful to its philosophical origin, the “Occupy the Dream” coalition has called for a National Day of Action to Occupy the Federal Reserve tomorrow to focus attention on the gross injustice visited upon the 99% by the financial elite. Clergy members and Occupiers in over 16 cities will come together in Austin, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, DC, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Richmond, San Francisco, St. Louis, Wilmington, and beyond. In Manhattan, we will gather tomorrow (Jan. 16th) from 10am to 1pm at 33 Liberty Street (NY, NY 10045)…
more > Occupy Wall Street | NYC Protest for World Revolution
#J20: Occupy The Courts Nationwide, San Francisco to Occupy Wall Street West
via Occupy Portland:
This is a national day of action (January 20,2011) just one day before the second anniversary of the infamous Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which held that corporations (as people entitled to the rights of the U.S. Constitution) can spend unregulated and undisclosed sums of money in order to influence elections. [There are] over 80 rallies at federal courthouses around the country, including the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C.
Occupy Wall Street | NYC Protest for World Revolution
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
- Labels: bill, capitalism, economy, education, enlightenment
Not all gift cards are redeemed,
which can be for a multitude of reasons.
Common reasons may include loss of the card,
time decay (expiration and fees),
personal uninterest in the store
that the card is accepted, complex
rules of redemption, and the attempt
of the recipient to save money for the giver.
It has been estimated that perhaps
10% of cards are not redeemed,
amounting to a gain for retailers
of about $8 billion in the US in 2006.
Gift cards may seem attractive but
they are just another marketing device
designed to drain you of your cash,
you are giving your money away
for free when you choose gift cards.
$$$$!!!! 8 Billion !!!!$$$$
Unbridled capitalism
is a money machine
that will eat you alive,
kill the monster.
- Labels: capitalism, greed, health care, pharma, truth
Provocative political commentator Arianna Huffington yanks back the curtain on the unholy alliance of CEOs, politicians, lobbyists, and Wall Street bankers who have shown a brutal disregard for those in the office cubicles and on the factory floors. As she puts it:
“The economic game is not supposed to be rigged like some shady ring toss on a carnival midway.” Yet it has been, allowing corporate crooks to bilk the public out of trillions of dollars, magically making our pensions and 401(k)s disappear and walking away with astronomical payouts and absurdly lavish perks-for-life.
The media have put their fingers on pieces of the sordid puzzle, but Pigs at the Trough presents the whole ugly picture of whatâs really going on for the first timeâa blistering, wickedly witty portrait of exactly how and why the worst and the greediest are running American business and government into the ground.
From 1997 to 1999, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, the number of registered lobbyists in Washington grew by 37 percent, to more than 20,000, while the amount of money they spent reached $1.42 billion. Crunch the numbers: That’s roughly 38 lobbyists for each member of Congress. Like a swarm of ravenous termites reducing a house to sawdust, they are making a meal out of the foundations of our democracy.
And what are we ordinary Americans doing about it? Not much– at least not yet.
(excerpts from Powell’s Books)
- Labels: cannibalism, capitalism, corporations, corruption, now
