Do You Ever Wonder Why the Roads in Your Town are Turning into Gravel?

Wonder no more. It’s because ‘some people’ are not paying their fair share of the cost of government. Otherwise known as taxes. I know this story has been in the corporatist press but I thought this post:

Based on IRS records, a recent GAO report indicates that many corporations claimed to owe $0 in U.S. taxes from 1998 – 2005: roughly 28%-53% of large foreign-controlled and 23%-38% of large U.S.-controlled corporations. [The GAO considers a "large" corporation one with at least $250 million in assets or $50 million in gross receipts.] 

From NoQuarter had a lot more detail and so link to it.

There is a growing opportunity for those of us who are economically literate, a tiny minority, to take back the high ground in the never ending debate about taxes, government and what should be done by same. The ‘conservative’ shills who’ve been preaching the Friedman Lunacy for decades are gob-smacked that the ‘trickle down’ theory has at last been proved to be the utter bullshit that it is. There is a desperate air of ‘now what do we do…’  as the third artificial bubble of ‘asset building’, housing, pops following  the dot.com bubble and ‘financialization’ coming from the morons such as Greenspan who’ve been ‘supervising ‘ our economy. As Ol’ Shakespeare opined, ‘The truth will out…’ and now folks are waking up to the realization that while their real income has declined every year since Nixon under the Republican fantasy machine corporations and very wealthy individuals merely extract whatever amounts of cash they need from the U.S. Treasury, that’s us Homer, in the form of  taxes not paid.

This report points a finger at why you, yeah you Homer, ‘can’t’ have healthcare, good schools, well-maintained roads, safe food and on and on…. The next time some low-info fool tells you, ‘Oh, we can’t afford that…’ about some needed social program tell them the following:

‘Of course we can afford that. If corporations and the uber-rich would pay their fair share of taxes instead of bribing Congress to give them a free pass we’d’ have plenty of money to take care of the real, immediate needs of our society.’

And if they start bloviating tell them this:

‘Surely you are not advocating that some, particularly those best able to pay, should be excused from their social obligation to pay their fair share of the costs they helped create are you?’

More on how your are being screwed solely because you are NOT rich in future posts.

JUst Keep in Mind that the Law is not for you ‘Little People’….

Don’t look very happy does he? Well he should he just won one of the ‘spurious lawsuits….’ he and his cabal of jackals are allus goin’ on about. I let Majikthise fill you in:

Bork settles lawsuit over fall at Yale Club

Yep, nice to have the law there to help ain’t it? Mr. Robert ‘Original Conservative’ Bork. Damn shame you did not break your scrawny neck.

What an Act of Citizenship looks like…..

Ambassador Joe Wilson’s very entertaining talk on Neocons, America, patriotism, and Republican traitors:

And here’s the rest in order:

Part II

Part III

Part IV

Part V

Amazing the ‘Boyz on the Blogz’ don’t have time for this. I guess Sister Beezlebub’s plan to have Senator Obama assassinated is taking all their time and attention.

I’ve met Joe Wilson and talked with him. Every American should be proud that we have such men, and women like him, to stand up for our nation’s principles overseas and increasingly important…..

…..here against the face of Fascism which has taken root in our soil and bids to block out the sun of liberty were it not for such as Joe Wilson.

Take a look in the mirror tomorrow morning and ask yourself, ‘What do I intend to do to support such as Ambassador Wilson in the fight against American Fascism, wherever it may be found? What is my answer to B. Franklin’s question?’
Because folks, like it or not, your answers to those questions will determine if you children live free or as slaves.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm…..Now this is….Well, Barry do you and McSame want to explain this given your votes to fully fund…..

‘Lil’ George’s excellent adventure in Iraqi land?

We don’t know what we got.”

by tristero

Good morning! Are you sitting down?

In one case, according to documents displayed by Pentagon auditors at the hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, a cash payment of $320.8 million in Iraqi money was authorized on the basis of a single signature and the words “Iraqi Salary Payment” on an invoice. In another, $11.1 million of taxpayer money was paid to IAP, an American contractor, on the basis of a voucher with no indication of what was delivered…

The disclosure that $1.8 billion in Iraqi assets was mishandled comes on top of an earlier finding by an independent federal oversight agency, the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, that United States occupation authorities early in the conflict could not account for the disbursement of $8.8 billion in Iraqi oil money and seized assets.

A billion here, a billion there…

And then check this out:

The mysterious payments, whose amounts had not been publicly disclosed, included $68.2 million to the United Kingdom, $45.3 million to Poland and $21.3 million to South Korea. Despite repeated requests, Pentagon auditors said they were unable to determine why the payments were made.

“It sounds like the coalition of the willing is the coalition of the paid — they’re willing to be paid,” said Mr. Waxman

And some more details:

In one instance, a United States Treasury check for $5,674,075.00 was written to pay a company called Al Kasid Specialized Vehicles Trading Company in Baghdad for items that a voucher does not even describe.

In another case, $6,268,320.07 went to the contractor Combat Support Associates with even less explanation. And a scrawl on another piece of paper says only that $8 million had been paid out as “Funds for the Benefit of the Iraqi People.”

But perhaps the masterpiece of elliptic paperwork is the document identified at the top as a “Public Voucher for Purchases and Services Other Than Personal.” It indicates that $320.8 million went for “Iraqi Salary Payment,” with no explanation of what the Iraqis were paid to do.

Whatever it was, the document suggests, each of those Iraqis was handsomely compensated. Under the “quantity” column is the number 1,000, presumably indicating the number of people who were to be paid — to the tune of $320,800 apiece — if the paperwork is to be trusted.

“…if the paperwork is to be trusted.” Now that’s funny. But the joke’s on us.

Tell ya what….
I ain’t laughing.

Man….I luvs me some Courage Campaign…

…and this is why:

instead of hysteria about ‘bitches’ and ‘racists’ we get measure thoughtful campaigns such as this from Eden and his crew.

I do have a question for ya though: ‘Do you really think that just sitting on yer backsides and watching TeeBee or lurking in the threads in the ‘sphere is gonna turn the country around?

Yeah, I know….you’ve all got jobs, kids, house payments etc. You are buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuusssssssssssssy! Well…did ya ever stop to think that the reason your are so busy is that the uber-rich through their
sockpuppets have appropriated the cabbage, the molah, the frikin’ money to such and extent that there really, really isn’t much ‘left over’ for you and your children. That thought ever cross your mind?

Well it should.

And I really hate to break it to ya but….

It’s gonna get worse. This next ten years will tell the tale. Will the SuperClass and their meatpuppets the Republican and ‘Democrat’ Party be able to finally kill of the will of the people and their representatives, members few though they be of the Democratic Party…progressive orgs like MoveOn.com. the afore mentioned Courage Campaign, folks like this and this and these folks at ActBlue!

It’s really up to you and I will be frank from what I’ve heard lately you are not up to it. People are under the delusion that Barry is gonna win the GE and he will magically transform the existing government almost overnight. This is highly unlikely for many a reason and it’s not my intent to get into it here. If you wanna argue meet me in the comments. And bring you more than a butterknife…it will be a shootout at the OK Corral partner.

This election is gonna be the last wake up call you are gonna get. I highly recommend you not leave it to the Pelosi’s, Emmanuel’s and Schumer’s much less the disappointing Dean and the deranged Brazile to do what is really your job:

Clean House in the House.

I guess I just have too vivid of an imagination…..

See folks are yellin’ at me about what a disaster McSame would be and how Roe vs. Wade and SCOTUS are at stake. And yeah maybe they are right but I just keep thinking.

There could very well be worse things ahead if certain folks can take power. Yeah, see…I can imagine that figure Sinclair Lewis warned us about. You know the one who was coming
to take power,

‘….wrapped in a flag and carrying the Cross.’

Remember that warning, he made that prediction circa 1930, about Fascism coming to America, said nothing about whether the Fascist Leader was to appear from the right or……

….the supposed Left.

Think for yourself and then:

‘Fight Back!’

A Message from Our Founder…..

…well he ain’t really but hey…I figured you’d be tired of all the yellin’ and screamin’ from Sister Beezlebub and The Precious. So….

I thought I’d shove the discussion in another direction. No, don’t thank me….it ain’t that kind of direction.

Think about it…then….

‘Fight Back!’

Flash Alert: Yoo Protest This May 17th….Will you be there?

This just in….

Friends & fellow-activists,

Come out Saturday to protest the impunity granted to war-criminal John Yoo
by the Boalt Law School at UC Berkeley!

The Law School graduation is this Saturday morning, 5/17, and we need your
help to pull together a rousing turnout from AAT and other participating
groups, including the National Lawyer’s Guild, Code Pink, and World Can’t
Wait. We’ve talked to Boalt students who said that most of the graduates
are supportive of the planned protest (despite the shrill blogging of a
few).

We’re going to make our voices heard outside the Boalt graduation ceremony
to lend numbers to the call issued by the National Lawer’s Guild and
endorsed by the Center for Constitutional Rights: “John Yoo should be
disbarred and he should not be retained as a professor of law at one of
the country’s premier law schools. John Yoo should be dismissed from Boalt
Hall and tried as a war criminal.” (See the NLG press release at

http://www.nlg.org/news/index.php?entry=entry080409-083133
).

Will you join us on Saturday?

Where: Hearst Greek Theatre, Berkeley California (east side of campus, on
Galey Rd – see directions below)
When: Saturday May 17, 2008
8am (ticketed guests will all be inside by 9 — you can take
a nap in the afternoon!!!)
A reception at the law school, just around the corner
(southeast corner of the campus) will follow the graduation
ceremony.

A recap of our e-mail of 2.5 weeks ago follows; and at the bottom we’ve
included directions for getting to the graduation, at the Hearst Greek
Theatre on the east side of the Berkeley campus. Want to come but don’t
think you can get there via the transportation options described below?
Drop us an e-mail and we’ll do our best to help out.

To recap: You’ve probably followed this month’s revelation of the
contents of John Yoo’s legal brief of March 14, 2003, advising the White
House how it could get away with torture. Jameel Jaffer, director of the
ACLU’s national security project, said Yoo’s legal reasoning puts
“literally no limit at all to the kinds of interrogation methods that the
president can authorize. [...] The whole point of the memo is obviously to
nullify every possible legal restraint on the president’s wartime
authority. The memo was meant to allow torture, and that’s exactly what
it did.” In the wake of the memo’s release, the National Lawyer’s Guild
has called for Yoo’s dismissal from his position at UC Berkeley, his
disbarment, and his prosecution for war crimes. The Center for
Constitutional Rights has released a letter in support of this call.

The graduation ceremony starts at nine, but our protest will happen BEFORE
the ceremony, beginning at 8 am when the gates at the Greek Theatre open
to guests (only folks with tickets will be allowed inside, but we’ll have
plenty of opportunity to make our point as students, faculty, and families
arrive through the two entrances to the Greek Theatre). During the
ceremony we’ll take a coffee break, and will return to line the route
between the Greek Theatre and the Boalt Law School where a reception will
be held.

We plan to have the usual orange jump suits & our cage, lots of orange
ribbons that we’ll ask people to wear inside the graduation, and excellent
signs for the many of you we expect will come out for this action.

Please join us on Saturday!!

Yours,

Act Against Torture

http://www.ActAgainstTorture.org

===================================
Directions to the Greek Theater
===================================

Direction to the Berkeley Greek Theatre FROM INTERSTATE 80:
===================================
* Exit on University Avenue.
* Continue east approximately 1.5 miles to Oxford Street.
* Turn left on Oxford Street.
* Turn right on Hearst.
* Continue east past Euclid Avenue.
* Parking lots will be on the corner of Hearst and Gayley Road, and past
Gayley above the Greek Theatre on the right hand side of the street.

Direction to the Berkeley Greek Theatre FROM HWY 24 WESTBOUND:
===================================
* Exit on Telegraph Avenue
* Continue north on Telegraph approximately 2 miles to Durant Street.
* Turn right on Durant, and turn left on Piedmont Avenue.
* Continue north, and Piedmont will turn into Gayley Road.
* The Greek Theatre will be on your right.
* Continue past the Greek Theatre to Hearst.
* Parking lots will be at the corner of Hearst and Gayley, and also right
on Hearst, above the Greek Theatre on right hand side of the street.

Parking at the Berkeley Greek Theatre:
===================================
* Parking is available at U.C. controlled lots. Unattended lots are
available at varying fees. Upper and lower Hearst lots are also available.
* Disabled Berkeley Greek Theatre parking is available in the lots nearest
to the Greek Theatre.
* Use Parking Machines in unattended ‘S’ Lots throughout campus

In general, during commencements at UC Berkeley, lots that typically allow
‘S’ (Student) Permits will be open to the public for a $10 fee. Drivers
must purchase a $10 dispenser machine ticket (DMT) from the parking
machine in the lot and display it on their dashboard. The $10 dispensing
machine ticket is ONLY valid in “S” permit areas. Please read parking
signs carefully.

Berkeley Greek Theatre Public Transportation:
===================================
BART directions:

* From the RICHMOND LINE -
* Exit at the BERKELEY STATION (Shattuck and Center Streets).
* Walk 1 block east on Center Street to the campus, then consult the
campus map at the West Entrance and walk east across campus to the Greek
Theatre (approximately a 20 minute walk) located on Gayley Rd.

From the CONCORD LINE -
* Exit at ROCKRIDGE station and take a #51 AC Transit bus north on College
Avenue to the campus and exit at Bancroft Way and College Ave.
* Walk east on Bancroft to Piedmont Avenue/Gayley Road. Walk north on
Gayley Road and the Greek Theatre will be on your right.

Alternatives to Parking: Shuttle Bus Service to Greek Theater Commencements
===================================
* Avoid parking stress and consider using the BearTransit shuttles to get
to Greek Theatre Commencement Events.
* Catch an eastbound shuttle near the Downtown Berkeley BART station
[buses stop at Addison and Shattuck Sq. next to Bank of America]; or at
the intersection of Hearst and Euclid streets.
* Shuttle cost is $1 except for graduates and their families.

Shuttle lines make a circuit of campus at approximately 12-minute
intervals. See BearTransit page and shuttle schedules for “P-Line” and
“R-Line” for actual times.

* Perimeter (“P”) Line Stops & Schedule
* Reverse Perimeter (“R”) Line Stops & Schedule

For further information on routes, you can also refer to the BearTransit
system map.

For more info see

http://pt.berkeley.edu/parking/special_events/commencement.html

Not going to get angry about this….will not lose my temper….Nope, not gonna get angry….

but I am going to ask you to take action. It seems our ‘Democrat’ Party lawmakers can’t even do that. Make laws that is without some outside help that is. Yep, the Telcos have stepped up to the plate to ‘help’ resolve the FISA crisis. I say send their CEOs and head legal counsel to the chokey. They all knew what they were doing and are still doing today was and is illegal. Totally illegal….

That’s why they want a get out of jail card folks. And guess who’s their to ‘help’ them ‘help’ the House. Our pals, our Democratic ‘Leaderscum’ Queen Pelosi and  her faithful sidekick Steney ‘I love Money’ Hoyer. Here’s a link to tell Hoyer, ‘Hell no!’ on this. Here’s one to the House and here’s one to the Senate. Let ‘em know how you feel. And, no, I don’t care how polite you are these assclowns are obviously listening to the sound of big money and ya gotta really get fierce to be heard over that.

And as we approach the elections please remember that Sister Beezlebub, McSame and The Glass-Jawed Barry are not the only game in town. We’ve two very progressive candidates for Madame Speaker’s job and frankly I can think of no better way to send a message than to give her the boot. That may not be possible, no polling exists as far as I know, but at the least we can send her a message. Something along the lines of, ‘Shape up or Ship Out!’

Frankly, I’d like to see her go or lose her Speakership. She’s been, as have many others in the Dem caucus, much more Republican than Democrat and that is not what the citizenry wants. Of that I am certain sure.

So, stay tuned. McSame vs. Whoevah! is not the only game in town.

Uh…Miss Nancy? Excuse me…yeah, I know you are very busy……

planning the next great big give away to your corporate pals, gonna be hard to top the farm bill that’s for sure, but…well, you see…What with:

Impeachment of the table….

Another 178 Billion for Bush’s excellent adventure….

No action on literally dozens of folks accused of everything from child rape to big time embezzlement to a guy changing legislation after it was sighed by your best pal Mr. Decider…..

Some have made up their minds like this lady:

That it’s time for you to go. Go away where you can no longer damage the Democratic Party, no longer damage our nation, no longer damage our society.

As mah cousin Pat allu sez: ‘Don’t let the door  knob hit ya where the good Lord split ya!’ on your way out.