Are You Kidding Me?
What a stupid question that is when it comes to the largest welfare give-away in the history of the American republic. Welfare, socialism, communism, Marxism…whatever you want to tag it, this is the greatest rip-off since the theft of the American continent from the indigenous peoples.
Look up welfare and the freebies given the fat rats of Wall Street are the absolute epitome of welfare to the rich at the expense of the poor and diminishing middle-class. Here’s what the poor get; nothing but slashing of budgets on “entitlement” programs like Medicare and Medicaid. Isn’t it interesting feeding poor children or providing medical care to the elderly or treatment to war veterans is called entitlements but bailing out unethical and immoral financiers and politicians is called a “national emergency”?
The middle class gets the new opportunity to “finance” cars, schools and homes if they haven’t gotten in so deep their home’s equity is less than the loans already taken out. So, that means if you still haven’t learned; you can run up your personal debt even further. And it means the younger generation will get the same great deals as their elders to run themselves into the credit nightmare.
Now the poor bastard CEO’s of Wall Street responsible for the crash lose their “golden parachutes” but get to keep their jobs as an apparent reward for incompetence and greed at the very worst. Of course, before all this started you can bet your first born the fat rats of the Street “got theirs”. When the good ship Titanic Wall Street started sinking the captains and their mates jumped on life boats to faraway off shore accounts that can never be traced or touched by American legal authorities.
The golden parachutes are nothing compared to the golden cow of the USA tax payers. We have once again allowed the rich bastards to bend us over and impale us, folks. Ralph Nader said it the other night, “it will never stop until there’s a tax payer revolt”. And I’m not a Nader fan even though his logic and political smarts is very much what I believe.
Americans are being fed a huge pile of bull shit about saving the economy with this welfare for the rich bailout that will ultimately far exceed 700 billion dollars. This is the socialized form of government that the very same people have always railed against to protect their “free market” strategies. Well, we have found out the free market means the Monopoly money will be returned to the bank with a Get Out of Jail Free card. And the rat bastards of Wall Street get the yacht and sports car for their playing pieces while the American public gets the shaft as their playing piece. Welcome to Bradley Board Games for the Rich and Entitled.
If you want to know who won the last debate, you better look to Congress, the Executive Branch and the pathetic judicial that resembles a freshly neutered eunuch. Do I sound angry? If you’re not angry you’re not paying attention! O’Mama and McSwine are sharing credit for picking your pockets, stealing your dog and taking your most prized possessions. They have definitely shown the chops to be Presidential material.
Americans will allow the rats of Congress and Wall Street to sell their slight of hand deal by expounding on Adam Smith and all the other heavyweight economists that try to make science out of robbery. Find the cup with the pea under it and win the prize, they say. Or hit three baskets and get a stuffed animal. Don’t mind the shrunken rims or the fixed cups, America. Wall Street is your friend. What is it they create for us, again?
If I had a choice between being robbed on the streets of Denver by a gunman and bending over for Wall Street, I’d choose the gunman. At least he’s working for it and needs it more. I’d just throw up my hands and let him have my credit cards and the green Monopoly money in my wallet. The cards are maxed and the green barely buys my morning coffee. Help yourself, my friend. Just promise you’ll never play the market and cross over to the “dark side”.
Oh, yeah, I know any argument about this bailout is supposed to include all the facts and details based on science, religion, politics and insanity but damn, people, does it take a rocket scientist to figure out what a scam and sham this bailout is!? Do you need to know the tedious bullshit frothing from the mouths of the lying sacks to understand you just got screwed by the rich fat rats again? And once again they weren’t wearing protection.
First they gave you the lies of WMD’s and yellowcake and sent your kids off to die and kill. Then they told you, “oops, oh well, while we’re here maybe we should stay and help destroy the rest of Iraq and look at Afghanistan and Iran, too” All that while they sold you off to China and the Saudis. Your debt belongs to them. Welcome to the great “Amerikan Scheme”. Welcome to the Fantasy Island of rich schemers and lying bastards who would have you believe you live in the “free world” but forget to clarify that they mean a world free of peace, justice, accountability and shame.
Wm. Terry Leichner, RN
Denver VVAW member
Combat veteran of Vietnam
Monday, September 29
Wednesday, September 24
Fat Cats Cash In and Main Street Pays
I don’t know about most of my friends but I’m in a situation where I’m probably as close to foreclosure on my home as I’ve ever been. My debts continue to mount up as credit cards continue to be the method to buy the essentials like groceries and gas. My “real money” goes to the mortgage and equity loan and paying barely above the minimum on the plastic. And I consider myself very fortunate.
As the disgusting parade of fat cats goes before the bloated and hypocritical Congress to beg for a bail out, people on Main Street are going without hope of any rescue. Main Street is a place all the politicians claim to know but the only time they ever want to be there is to lie and bluster for re-election. These people are clueless about the reality show called “life”.
How are mothers and fathers supposed to feed their kids and themselves with the huge increases in housing, food, gas, electric, water, clothing and heat? The American worker has seen a decade or more of wages either being decreased because of jobs eliminated to be sent off shore or wages staying the same after the minimal cost of living increases. The prices of all the essential items they need have escalated far above those costs of living amounting to 1-3%.
The average wage of an executive of a major corporation is over ten times that of an American worker making decent wages (over 50,000). And that executive has a mission to reduce the number of workers, reduce the costs of doing business and if necessary “gutting” the company. For this he or she gets rewarded with fabulous payoffs. Jack Welch of GE is the epitome of the corporate robber baron. He’s heartless, ruthless and totally without ethics or morality.
Sam Walton and family is the other robber baron that comes to mind. Wal-Mart has never seen a union it wouldn’t like to break. It started out claiming to be an American company with the flag waving in commercials on the tube. Today, it would be more appropriate if Wal-Mart did ads with the Chinese national flag waving in the wind. Wal-Mart’s biggest distribution center is in China. The majority of the products it sells are made in China by “cheap labor”. Cheap labor is a code word for slavery. It means children and impoverished adults are working 12-16 hours each day for a few dollars if the currency were converted to the dollar.
Wal-Mart has invaded Main Street USA and turned it into a ghost town. Local pharmacies, hardware stores, grocers, flower shops, book stores, music stores and opticians are historical artifacts of most small to medium towns and cities in America. Wal-Mart has run the locals out of business with their ruthless tactics of huge inventories being sold at prices a local business could never match. Eventually even the most loyal customer gives in to the low prices.
The American consumer loves Wal-Mart but rues the loss of their downtowns. What were once close communities are now just company towns of Wal-Mart and the big box stores. The employment of Main Street USA is dominated with retail and service industry jobs that aren’t paying enough for a family to live on. The health insurance offered is too expensive for employees to match the employer’s contribution. Parents are put in the position of having enough food and paying bills that keep the heat on or having healthcare for their children.
I knew a small business owner who knew she had a lump in her breast but didn’t feel she could afford a doctor’s appointment and keep her business going. The irony was her business was a medical supply company. When she finally went to the doctor she had advanced breast cancer that had metastasized to her lungs, liver and bones. I knew her very well and she had always been thin. She managed to come out to Colorado for a visit and to let her brother try alternative medicine on her because the chemo and radiation had failed. She was left with palliative care until she died in a very short time.
When Marge got off the plane, my wife and I, both RNs, were shocked. She had edema (swelling) over her entire body. She looked like the Michelin man but her condition was real, painful and excruciating to see. She required a wheel-chair to get off the plane from Pennsylvania and we had to assist her in getting in and out of our car. She was very short of breath.
A year earlier, Marge had visited us and been in good spirits and seemed healthy except for a cough she felt she’d gotten from her plane trip. Actually she knew damn well what caused her cough. Her cancer was spreading to her lungs. We had a great visit with her. We took her to see the Avalanche in the playoffs the year they won the Cup. She’d never been to a hockey game but she loved it. She and my wife were a total hoot to watch and listen to. They yelled and screamed at refs and opposing players and cheered for every hit and goal the home team had. They laughed and did cheers. Marge was in her 50’s and my wife in her 40’s but they were having the fun of a child.
The contrast between the two years was startling for us. We took Marge to her brother in Pueblo, CO to be treated with needles, herbs and other treatments he was an expert at. He tried day and night to reverse the course of her illness but she had waited too long. One of the last days she was able to stay out of the hospital we took her to an Irish bar in Pueblo. She sat in her chair with arms and legs taut and sickly white in color but she flirted with the waiter, laughed at our silly attempts to lighten the mood and to bring her what little joy we could.
The next day, her daughter arrived to take her mom to a hospital in Denver. We adjourned to a hospital room as Marge slowly slipped away into death. We had a pizza party the night of her death. We stood watch over her through the night as her breathing became more and more labored. She tried to stay conscious to talk but finally went into a painful sub consciousness. Luckily we had nurses who understood the need for pain medications before it became too extreme.
Around 1 a.m. Marge’s breathing slowed into the final breaths before dying. She would have long gaps of time without breathing before the next shallow breath. And finally she let out a final gasp and her spirit left the hospital room. The group did a circle and prayed, and laughed and cried. We were glad Marge was no longer in pain. We were glad we had been there to see her final breath and to share our love with her.
Marge was my wife’s only sister. She helped raise Pam while her mother worked. They were very close. Marge took care of our kids while we went to school to get our degrees. And she died an unnecessary early death because she couldn’t afford early intervention and didn’t want to leave her family with huge debts from hospitals and doctors.
These are the choices Main Street USA faces. The fat cats of Wall Street play stupid games with the economy while the Congress turns a blind eye and the people like Marge struggle to stay out of debt to the point of killing themselves. Single moms, unemployed parents, latch-key kids and unsupervised teens are just the rabble to the fat cats. Their decision to gut a company to profit on its destruction means nothing to them. The loss of jobs, the misery associated with the closing of a business and the loss to Main Street USA is just part of the Wall Street “game”.
Since Ronald Reagan, the saint of the compassionate conservatives was President the people of Main Street USA were being sacrificed for the greed of Wall Street. The free market economy, with its trickle down, made Ronnie and his gang richer than ever before. Dot.com companies built a house of cards that was bound to crash but no one blinked or cried out the fall was coming.
After Ronnie, came the first Bush and voodoo economics and his answer was a small little war in the Middle East. After incinerating columns of fleeing Iraqis, victory was declared and sanctions imposed. Bill and Hillary followed with big ideas of moving to the center and stripping away welfare and entitlements for the weakest citizens. They overlooked the huge welfare being doled out to corporate America because they knew which side their bread was buttered on. Main Street USA continued to be ignored while the rich got even richer.
And finally, Dubya and Dick with Karl arrived to finish us off. First wars and destruction were started, and then the dismantling of the Constitution and Bill of Rights followed. White was black, day was night, fear, fear, fear and deny, deny, deny. The black hearted Queen had arrived and was going to take all the heads of the minions. The rabbit hole got larger and stranger and stranger. Doublespeak and police state became the norm. It was inevitable the fat cats would be allowed to raid the treasury before the dark evil forces of Bush left office. It was inevitable Main Street would have to sacrifice to keep the fat cats flush and fat. The only question is why is there so much damn surprise?
The fat cats win and folks like Marge continue to lose. That’s the American way.
As the disgusting parade of fat cats goes before the bloated and hypocritical Congress to beg for a bail out, people on Main Street are going without hope of any rescue. Main Street is a place all the politicians claim to know but the only time they ever want to be there is to lie and bluster for re-election. These people are clueless about the reality show called “life”.
How are mothers and fathers supposed to feed their kids and themselves with the huge increases in housing, food, gas, electric, water, clothing and heat? The American worker has seen a decade or more of wages either being decreased because of jobs eliminated to be sent off shore or wages staying the same after the minimal cost of living increases. The prices of all the essential items they need have escalated far above those costs of living amounting to 1-3%.
The average wage of an executive of a major corporation is over ten times that of an American worker making decent wages (over 50,000). And that executive has a mission to reduce the number of workers, reduce the costs of doing business and if necessary “gutting” the company. For this he or she gets rewarded with fabulous payoffs. Jack Welch of GE is the epitome of the corporate robber baron. He’s heartless, ruthless and totally without ethics or morality.
Sam Walton and family is the other robber baron that comes to mind. Wal-Mart has never seen a union it wouldn’t like to break. It started out claiming to be an American company with the flag waving in commercials on the tube. Today, it would be more appropriate if Wal-Mart did ads with the Chinese national flag waving in the wind. Wal-Mart’s biggest distribution center is in China. The majority of the products it sells are made in China by “cheap labor”. Cheap labor is a code word for slavery. It means children and impoverished adults are working 12-16 hours each day for a few dollars if the currency were converted to the dollar.
Wal-Mart has invaded Main Street USA and turned it into a ghost town. Local pharmacies, hardware stores, grocers, flower shops, book stores, music stores and opticians are historical artifacts of most small to medium towns and cities in America. Wal-Mart has run the locals out of business with their ruthless tactics of huge inventories being sold at prices a local business could never match. Eventually even the most loyal customer gives in to the low prices.
The American consumer loves Wal-Mart but rues the loss of their downtowns. What were once close communities are now just company towns of Wal-Mart and the big box stores. The employment of Main Street USA is dominated with retail and service industry jobs that aren’t paying enough for a family to live on. The health insurance offered is too expensive for employees to match the employer’s contribution. Parents are put in the position of having enough food and paying bills that keep the heat on or having healthcare for their children.
I knew a small business owner who knew she had a lump in her breast but didn’t feel she could afford a doctor’s appointment and keep her business going. The irony was her business was a medical supply company. When she finally went to the doctor she had advanced breast cancer that had metastasized to her lungs, liver and bones. I knew her very well and she had always been thin. She managed to come out to Colorado for a visit and to let her brother try alternative medicine on her because the chemo and radiation had failed. She was left with palliative care until she died in a very short time.
When Marge got off the plane, my wife and I, both RNs, were shocked. She had edema (swelling) over her entire body. She looked like the Michelin man but her condition was real, painful and excruciating to see. She required a wheel-chair to get off the plane from Pennsylvania and we had to assist her in getting in and out of our car. She was very short of breath.
A year earlier, Marge had visited us and been in good spirits and seemed healthy except for a cough she felt she’d gotten from her plane trip. Actually she knew damn well what caused her cough. Her cancer was spreading to her lungs. We had a great visit with her. We took her to see the Avalanche in the playoffs the year they won the Cup. She’d never been to a hockey game but she loved it. She and my wife were a total hoot to watch and listen to. They yelled and screamed at refs and opposing players and cheered for every hit and goal the home team had. They laughed and did cheers. Marge was in her 50’s and my wife in her 40’s but they were having the fun of a child.
The contrast between the two years was startling for us. We took Marge to her brother in Pueblo, CO to be treated with needles, herbs and other treatments he was an expert at. He tried day and night to reverse the course of her illness but she had waited too long. One of the last days she was able to stay out of the hospital we took her to an Irish bar in Pueblo. She sat in her chair with arms and legs taut and sickly white in color but she flirted with the waiter, laughed at our silly attempts to lighten the mood and to bring her what little joy we could.
The next day, her daughter arrived to take her mom to a hospital in Denver. We adjourned to a hospital room as Marge slowly slipped away into death. We had a pizza party the night of her death. We stood watch over her through the night as her breathing became more and more labored. She tried to stay conscious to talk but finally went into a painful sub consciousness. Luckily we had nurses who understood the need for pain medications before it became too extreme.
Around 1 a.m. Marge’s breathing slowed into the final breaths before dying. She would have long gaps of time without breathing before the next shallow breath. And finally she let out a final gasp and her spirit left the hospital room. The group did a circle and prayed, and laughed and cried. We were glad Marge was no longer in pain. We were glad we had been there to see her final breath and to share our love with her.
Marge was my wife’s only sister. She helped raise Pam while her mother worked. They were very close. Marge took care of our kids while we went to school to get our degrees. And she died an unnecessary early death because she couldn’t afford early intervention and didn’t want to leave her family with huge debts from hospitals and doctors.
These are the choices Main Street USA faces. The fat cats of Wall Street play stupid games with the economy while the Congress turns a blind eye and the people like Marge struggle to stay out of debt to the point of killing themselves. Single moms, unemployed parents, latch-key kids and unsupervised teens are just the rabble to the fat cats. Their decision to gut a company to profit on its destruction means nothing to them. The loss of jobs, the misery associated with the closing of a business and the loss to Main Street USA is just part of the Wall Street “game”.
Since Ronald Reagan, the saint of the compassionate conservatives was President the people of Main Street USA were being sacrificed for the greed of Wall Street. The free market economy, with its trickle down, made Ronnie and his gang richer than ever before. Dot.com companies built a house of cards that was bound to crash but no one blinked or cried out the fall was coming.
After Ronnie, came the first Bush and voodoo economics and his answer was a small little war in the Middle East. After incinerating columns of fleeing Iraqis, victory was declared and sanctions imposed. Bill and Hillary followed with big ideas of moving to the center and stripping away welfare and entitlements for the weakest citizens. They overlooked the huge welfare being doled out to corporate America because they knew which side their bread was buttered on. Main Street USA continued to be ignored while the rich got even richer.
And finally, Dubya and Dick with Karl arrived to finish us off. First wars and destruction were started, and then the dismantling of the Constitution and Bill of Rights followed. White was black, day was night, fear, fear, fear and deny, deny, deny. The black hearted Queen had arrived and was going to take all the heads of the minions. The rabbit hole got larger and stranger and stranger. Doublespeak and police state became the norm. It was inevitable the fat cats would be allowed to raid the treasury before the dark evil forces of Bush left office. It was inevitable Main Street would have to sacrifice to keep the fat cats flush and fat. The only question is why is there so much damn surprise?
The fat cats win and folks like Marge continue to lose. That’s the American way.
Thursday, September 18
We Must Choose The Path To Leave Our Children
American Dream Becoming A Nightmare
Much is being made about the loss of the “American dream” with the crash of major financial groups like Lehmann Brothers, AIG, Merrill Lynch, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and a waiting list of many others. Pundits today try to tell us how all this came about without anybody knowing until the last minute. Try again. This deck of cards, just like the savings and loan crash (which one, John McCain played a major role in), the tech crash and Enron and Tyco, was bound to crash.
Lack of governmental oversight, or should it be said governmental complicity, was a sure formula to this outcome. Now American taxpayers are proud owners of two wars, Fannie and Freddie and AIG costing more than a trillion or so. That doesn’t include bailouts of other corporations via reduced taxation or no taxation. And the biggest supporter of no regulatory oversight of American multi-national corporations has been John “Wane” McCain. The “free market economy” has become just that, free. Free rides, free of prosecution, free of conscience and free of any responsibility.
The popular excuse for all this has become the foreclosure rates, which have reached record rates all across the nation. If only the peasants, desperately seeking to own their own homes and willing to be recklessly financed at absurd rates and conditions, had paid their mortgages this crisis wouldn’t have occurred. If only the lazy peasants hadn’t demanded a living wage they could still be working instead of watching their jobs go to places willing to enslave children and adults in sweat shops to garner more and more American corporate contracts. If only the socialist, Marxist agitators joining unions had realized the corporations know best, companies would have stayed in Detroit and all those other places that insisted on unions.
Instead, the American workers and dreamers of owning homes betrayed all of us. They quit paying mortgages and walked away from their homes. They took their families to homeless shelters and relatives’ homes for shelter rather than stay house poor and unable to eat, buy clothes and school supplies. They were selfishly trying to give their children adequate diets and clothing that fit while the poor investors in the Dow and the other markets that make America great saw their portfolios shrinking.
Without the markets where would we be in this country? All patriotic Americans invest and trade to keep the economy strong. The slackers and scofflaws have ruined it for those who invest in the future. And if they can’t invest at least they can run up their credit cards, so liberally given them, to keep the economic engine running strong.
So how many of you invest in the markets out there? Hold up your hands. Right. The monopoly game called the stock market is about as safe as a Vegas slot machine. The investors play a game with the lives of workers and the middle and lower classes throughout the world. If they invest in hostile takeovers costing thousands of jobs they don’t care as long as their “bet” gives them a payoff. Corporate deals and corporate steals take place every day without a whit of conscience about it harming thousands or millions of people.
Markets Are Responsible For the Growing Hunger
A report came out this week indicating 925 million people are living in hunger. Millions of the wealthier Americans live in homes worth more than half a million dollars. The square footage of those homes is larger than needed and equal to five to ten homes in most parts of the world living in poverty. The absurdity of two to three people living in homes that could house 20 is lost on most Americans. In fact, that absurdity is the “American dream”. For the 925 million living in hunger, it’s more than absurdity; it’s obscenity.
The American stock markets, combined with those in the rest of the world, are more than economic engines. They are exploiters. They determine the numbers of people who live in poverty. They determine the numbers who live in hunger. They determine who go homeless. The addition of 75 million people living in hunger this year is a result of increased food prices.
Increased food prices are a result of speculators in oil and other products which affect the prices of food. The insane use of corn to create ethanol fuels is an example of a boondoggle. The creation of one gallon of ethanol costs more for the consumer than one gallon of fossil fuel after transporting and processing the corn. The loss of corn to the food chain has caused dramatic increases in the costs of food worldwide. High fructose corn syrup is an ingredient in thousands of food items sold to millions despite possible health risks.
Speculators in the oil market, for the purpose of greed, have been a greater cause of increased gas prices than availability issues. Of course, the increased prices of gas have dramatically increased food prices and consumer costs for most things such as clothing and transportation. The increased price of transportation along with all the other increases has effectively decreased the incomes of most people in the world. Except the reckless speculators of the stock markets.
In the tradition of Reaganomics trickle down theory, the trickle down has been the increase of the misery index. The foreclosure rates are a direct result of the many factors created by Wall Street and the equivalents around the world. The selling off of American banks and insurance providers, like AIG, to foreign buyers is a direct result of speculation for greed taking place on Wall Street. Lack of governmental oversight and regulation to provide a free market provided lost homes, increases in poverty and hunger and a worldwide financial crisis, instead.
The Workers Have Become Slaves
Let’s not be fooled into believing the companies claiming they lack funding to go on are going poor. They are once again taking advantage of the taxpayers to fund their foolish and reckless way of doing business. The companies claiming a need for bankruptcy will not be without profit. Backdoor deals with the feds are going down at the same time others are being publicly bailed out. The Bank of America buyout of Merrill Lynch seems clear cut but the hidden part of the deal is the federal dollars that go for making this deal.
What has become clear is the American worker will be diminished to lower paying jobs as their higher paying jobs leave the shores of the US. The greatest consumer nation in the world will be reduced to a service industry for financial markets of the world. Slave labor will become a norm in the guise of employment dictated by employers without worry of strong unions or other employee advocates.
We can deny we are slaves but if most Americans lose one week’s pay, they fall into financial crisis. We are slaves to our jobs and subject to termination if we speak out, we develop medical problems, family members on our insurance (if we have it) develop problems or we grow older with higher wages and benefits.
In my particular profession of nursing, employers can now demand we work 12 or 16 hour shifts. As long as we don’t exceed 16 consecutive hours and 40 hours each week there are no limits. Employers advertising for RNs and LPNs advertise for these shifts. If applicants aren’t willing to work such shifts (fearing the quality of care will decrease), they won’t be interviewed.
Hospitals in my area frequently have reductions in force layoffs. The nurses laid off are frequently senior nurses. Almost within a week, ads for new positions at the same hospital appear. Most frequently new grads and nurses with limited experience are hired for much lower wages than those laid off. My advice to friends and family is never stay in a hospital one minute longer than necessary and always take someone to be with you when in a hospital.
Are nurses slaves to their jobs? They make decent wages. Without power and ability to challenge management, nurses are no better off than a factory worker. We have all become serfs to a system lacking humanity or morality.
And when things go astray and the market crashes, it is the serfs that get blamed because they can’t pay their mortgages or their hyper-inflated credit card rates. The purveyors of greed and promoters of obscene consumerism get the bail outs and we, the serfs, look toward shelters or family for our bail out. We have been played by the stock market world of monopoly 90% of us have nothing to do with. But our world and our lives are at the mercy of the merchants of greed and false dreams.
Organizing The Workers Is Necessary
In the end, Wall Street will always trump Main Street. The dollar will always rule over humanity. It’s a game to the players at the markets but for the rest of us its life and a way out seems impossible. Once, there were strong unions that challenged the robber barons and demanded worker’s rights.
Today I hear nurses and workers all across the US talk about unions as if lepers trying to steal money from them. They’ve been programmed by management to believe owners will give them a fair deal and the union only wants their dues.
I wonder how many more years of the crashes, the wars and the loss of jobs it will take before workers start to believe management isn’t going to come through with that fair deal. I wonder how much longer workers around the world will allow themselves to be exploited by rich men playing board games on Wall Street and then demanding the workers be taxed more to make up for their failed gambles.
Don’t we, the workers, have to start asking who has our welfare and well being in mind? Haven’t we, the workers, seen we’re no more than interchangeable parts to the rich owner classes of this world? Exploit, exploit, exploit and discard. That’s the business plan. So why should the worker dismiss organizing unions to seek redress from the exploiters?
A majority of nurses claim unions would jeopardize patient care if a strike were called but go along with management constantly allowing them to work short staffed and assigned too many patients to care for. They allow management to demand shifts that are too long and bound to cause medication and judgment errors. I always ask my colleagues how bowing to such demands is producing good patient care.
The workers are on the bottom of the feeding chain that starts in the markets like Wall Street. We aren’t humans; we’re assets or risks to the bottom line. It will remain that way until the workers determine they are the backbone of any business. The worker must determine they are the actual makers of the product. Their skills are needed to produce any product sold on the market. Their work is noble and should be valued. That will only happen if they organize and meet the owner class on terms that are more equitable than master to slave.
Unions are not the problem, they can be a solution. Leadership has always been problems for management and labor. A CEO getting rewarded for failure is a cognitive dissonance for most of us. Union bosses cozying up to management or seeing opportunity for personal gain are traitors and gangsters. The workers need to hold management and their own leadership accountable. Participation is necessary beyond just paying dues and leaving decisions to elected proxies.
Government should protect the worker with oversight of business and workers should protect themselves with oversight of their leadership. Cooperation of the owners with the workers requires energy and patience. It will require compromise and openness.
Either Utopian Dream or Draconian Nightmare
As American workers enter the new century there is much to be done. The necessary infrastructure of the nation is rotting away. The environment is in a danger zone that only gets worse unless humans decide to develop new sources of energy that are not polluting the planet. Technology exists to do what’s necessary but isn’t utilized for anything much beyond entertainment purposes.
The worker and the management and owners can choose to cooperate or the crash and burn cycles will continue until there is nothing to be saved. Increases in homelessness, hunger and lost pensions and healthcare is a recipe for revolutionary violence. It is a sure way to anarchy and police state beyond what is already in place.
American workers can’t confine unions and organizing to just the US any longer. We live in a world that must cooperate to survive. We can communicate in ways never available in past generations. What happens in the US affects all parts of the world economy but what happens in China, Japan, Mexico and all other nations affects the US economy. We must work to ensure all workers are valued and their labor rewarded in an equitable way. If a union in Mexico determines a need to take a job action or strike against a multi-national corporation, all unions across the world must honor that action. A world wide labor movement is not only preferable but absolutely necessary to establish peace and justice and put an end to the oppressive poverty faced by a majority of the humans on the planet, Earth.
It may seem like a utopian dream to propose such things but the draconian opposite of such a dream is the continued oppression, hunger and death coming from wars and slave labor. The nightmare is the destruction of the environment to a point it no longer sustains life. That may be the wishes of the end of times radicals but we shouldn’t allow radicals and fanatics to rule our lives. Rational and cooperative efforts to overturn the rule of the corporations and establish parity across this world isn’t only revolutionary it is absolutely a necessity.
We are at the tipping point of doing what’s right for the survival of the planet, Earth, or continuing to spiral down the drain of doomed consequences for our failures to cooperate. Future generations may look back at the time this generation chose to cooperate and create a new and better world or there may be no future generations in a very short time. Now is the time we must choose the path for our children and grandchildren to follow. Their future depends on our choices.
Much is being made about the loss of the “American dream” with the crash of major financial groups like Lehmann Brothers, AIG, Merrill Lynch, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and a waiting list of many others. Pundits today try to tell us how all this came about without anybody knowing until the last minute. Try again. This deck of cards, just like the savings and loan crash (which one, John McCain played a major role in), the tech crash and Enron and Tyco, was bound to crash.
Lack of governmental oversight, or should it be said governmental complicity, was a sure formula to this outcome. Now American taxpayers are proud owners of two wars, Fannie and Freddie and AIG costing more than a trillion or so. That doesn’t include bailouts of other corporations via reduced taxation or no taxation. And the biggest supporter of no regulatory oversight of American multi-national corporations has been John “Wane” McCain. The “free market economy” has become just that, free. Free rides, free of prosecution, free of conscience and free of any responsibility.
The popular excuse for all this has become the foreclosure rates, which have reached record rates all across the nation. If only the peasants, desperately seeking to own their own homes and willing to be recklessly financed at absurd rates and conditions, had paid their mortgages this crisis wouldn’t have occurred. If only the lazy peasants hadn’t demanded a living wage they could still be working instead of watching their jobs go to places willing to enslave children and adults in sweat shops to garner more and more American corporate contracts. If only the socialist, Marxist agitators joining unions had realized the corporations know best, companies would have stayed in Detroit and all those other places that insisted on unions.
Instead, the American workers and dreamers of owning homes betrayed all of us. They quit paying mortgages and walked away from their homes. They took their families to homeless shelters and relatives’ homes for shelter rather than stay house poor and unable to eat, buy clothes and school supplies. They were selfishly trying to give their children adequate diets and clothing that fit while the poor investors in the Dow and the other markets that make America great saw their portfolios shrinking.
Without the markets where would we be in this country? All patriotic Americans invest and trade to keep the economy strong. The slackers and scofflaws have ruined it for those who invest in the future. And if they can’t invest at least they can run up their credit cards, so liberally given them, to keep the economic engine running strong.
So how many of you invest in the markets out there? Hold up your hands. Right. The monopoly game called the stock market is about as safe as a Vegas slot machine. The investors play a game with the lives of workers and the middle and lower classes throughout the world. If they invest in hostile takeovers costing thousands of jobs they don’t care as long as their “bet” gives them a payoff. Corporate deals and corporate steals take place every day without a whit of conscience about it harming thousands or millions of people.
Markets Are Responsible For the Growing Hunger
A report came out this week indicating 925 million people are living in hunger. Millions of the wealthier Americans live in homes worth more than half a million dollars. The square footage of those homes is larger than needed and equal to five to ten homes in most parts of the world living in poverty. The absurdity of two to three people living in homes that could house 20 is lost on most Americans. In fact, that absurdity is the “American dream”. For the 925 million living in hunger, it’s more than absurdity; it’s obscenity.
The American stock markets, combined with those in the rest of the world, are more than economic engines. They are exploiters. They determine the numbers of people who live in poverty. They determine the numbers who live in hunger. They determine who go homeless. The addition of 75 million people living in hunger this year is a result of increased food prices.
Increased food prices are a result of speculators in oil and other products which affect the prices of food. The insane use of corn to create ethanol fuels is an example of a boondoggle. The creation of one gallon of ethanol costs more for the consumer than one gallon of fossil fuel after transporting and processing the corn. The loss of corn to the food chain has caused dramatic increases in the costs of food worldwide. High fructose corn syrup is an ingredient in thousands of food items sold to millions despite possible health risks.
Speculators in the oil market, for the purpose of greed, have been a greater cause of increased gas prices than availability issues. Of course, the increased prices of gas have dramatically increased food prices and consumer costs for most things such as clothing and transportation. The increased price of transportation along with all the other increases has effectively decreased the incomes of most people in the world. Except the reckless speculators of the stock markets.
In the tradition of Reaganomics trickle down theory, the trickle down has been the increase of the misery index. The foreclosure rates are a direct result of the many factors created by Wall Street and the equivalents around the world. The selling off of American banks and insurance providers, like AIG, to foreign buyers is a direct result of speculation for greed taking place on Wall Street. Lack of governmental oversight and regulation to provide a free market provided lost homes, increases in poverty and hunger and a worldwide financial crisis, instead.
The Workers Have Become Slaves
Let’s not be fooled into believing the companies claiming they lack funding to go on are going poor. They are once again taking advantage of the taxpayers to fund their foolish and reckless way of doing business. The companies claiming a need for bankruptcy will not be without profit. Backdoor deals with the feds are going down at the same time others are being publicly bailed out. The Bank of America buyout of Merrill Lynch seems clear cut but the hidden part of the deal is the federal dollars that go for making this deal.
What has become clear is the American worker will be diminished to lower paying jobs as their higher paying jobs leave the shores of the US. The greatest consumer nation in the world will be reduced to a service industry for financial markets of the world. Slave labor will become a norm in the guise of employment dictated by employers without worry of strong unions or other employee advocates.
We can deny we are slaves but if most Americans lose one week’s pay, they fall into financial crisis. We are slaves to our jobs and subject to termination if we speak out, we develop medical problems, family members on our insurance (if we have it) develop problems or we grow older with higher wages and benefits.
In my particular profession of nursing, employers can now demand we work 12 or 16 hour shifts. As long as we don’t exceed 16 consecutive hours and 40 hours each week there are no limits. Employers advertising for RNs and LPNs advertise for these shifts. If applicants aren’t willing to work such shifts (fearing the quality of care will decrease), they won’t be interviewed.
Hospitals in my area frequently have reductions in force layoffs. The nurses laid off are frequently senior nurses. Almost within a week, ads for new positions at the same hospital appear. Most frequently new grads and nurses with limited experience are hired for much lower wages than those laid off. My advice to friends and family is never stay in a hospital one minute longer than necessary and always take someone to be with you when in a hospital.
Are nurses slaves to their jobs? They make decent wages. Without power and ability to challenge management, nurses are no better off than a factory worker. We have all become serfs to a system lacking humanity or morality.
And when things go astray and the market crashes, it is the serfs that get blamed because they can’t pay their mortgages or their hyper-inflated credit card rates. The purveyors of greed and promoters of obscene consumerism get the bail outs and we, the serfs, look toward shelters or family for our bail out. We have been played by the stock market world of monopoly 90% of us have nothing to do with. But our world and our lives are at the mercy of the merchants of greed and false dreams.
Organizing The Workers Is Necessary
In the end, Wall Street will always trump Main Street. The dollar will always rule over humanity. It’s a game to the players at the markets but for the rest of us its life and a way out seems impossible. Once, there were strong unions that challenged the robber barons and demanded worker’s rights.
Today I hear nurses and workers all across the US talk about unions as if lepers trying to steal money from them. They’ve been programmed by management to believe owners will give them a fair deal and the union only wants their dues.
I wonder how many more years of the crashes, the wars and the loss of jobs it will take before workers start to believe management isn’t going to come through with that fair deal. I wonder how much longer workers around the world will allow themselves to be exploited by rich men playing board games on Wall Street and then demanding the workers be taxed more to make up for their failed gambles.
Don’t we, the workers, have to start asking who has our welfare and well being in mind? Haven’t we, the workers, seen we’re no more than interchangeable parts to the rich owner classes of this world? Exploit, exploit, exploit and discard. That’s the business plan. So why should the worker dismiss organizing unions to seek redress from the exploiters?
A majority of nurses claim unions would jeopardize patient care if a strike were called but go along with management constantly allowing them to work short staffed and assigned too many patients to care for. They allow management to demand shifts that are too long and bound to cause medication and judgment errors. I always ask my colleagues how bowing to such demands is producing good patient care.
The workers are on the bottom of the feeding chain that starts in the markets like Wall Street. We aren’t humans; we’re assets or risks to the bottom line. It will remain that way until the workers determine they are the backbone of any business. The worker must determine they are the actual makers of the product. Their skills are needed to produce any product sold on the market. Their work is noble and should be valued. That will only happen if they organize and meet the owner class on terms that are more equitable than master to slave.
Unions are not the problem, they can be a solution. Leadership has always been problems for management and labor. A CEO getting rewarded for failure is a cognitive dissonance for most of us. Union bosses cozying up to management or seeing opportunity for personal gain are traitors and gangsters. The workers need to hold management and their own leadership accountable. Participation is necessary beyond just paying dues and leaving decisions to elected proxies.
Government should protect the worker with oversight of business and workers should protect themselves with oversight of their leadership. Cooperation of the owners with the workers requires energy and patience. It will require compromise and openness.
Either Utopian Dream or Draconian Nightmare
As American workers enter the new century there is much to be done. The necessary infrastructure of the nation is rotting away. The environment is in a danger zone that only gets worse unless humans decide to develop new sources of energy that are not polluting the planet. Technology exists to do what’s necessary but isn’t utilized for anything much beyond entertainment purposes.
The worker and the management and owners can choose to cooperate or the crash and burn cycles will continue until there is nothing to be saved. Increases in homelessness, hunger and lost pensions and healthcare is a recipe for revolutionary violence. It is a sure way to anarchy and police state beyond what is already in place.
American workers can’t confine unions and organizing to just the US any longer. We live in a world that must cooperate to survive. We can communicate in ways never available in past generations. What happens in the US affects all parts of the world economy but what happens in China, Japan, Mexico and all other nations affects the US economy. We must work to ensure all workers are valued and their labor rewarded in an equitable way. If a union in Mexico determines a need to take a job action or strike against a multi-national corporation, all unions across the world must honor that action. A world wide labor movement is not only preferable but absolutely necessary to establish peace and justice and put an end to the oppressive poverty faced by a majority of the humans on the planet, Earth.
It may seem like a utopian dream to propose such things but the draconian opposite of such a dream is the continued oppression, hunger and death coming from wars and slave labor. The nightmare is the destruction of the environment to a point it no longer sustains life. That may be the wishes of the end of times radicals but we shouldn’t allow radicals and fanatics to rule our lives. Rational and cooperative efforts to overturn the rule of the corporations and establish parity across this world isn’t only revolutionary it is absolutely a necessity.
We are at the tipping point of doing what’s right for the survival of the planet, Earth, or continuing to spiral down the drain of doomed consequences for our failures to cooperate. Future generations may look back at the time this generation chose to cooperate and create a new and better world or there may be no future generations in a very short time. Now is the time we must choose the path for our children and grandchildren to follow. Their future depends on our choices.
Monday, September 15
Welfare Jackals Are Lining UP
It's now clear the jackals of Bush and Co. are going to raid the treasury before the end of the nightmarish eight years. Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, Lehman, AIG and all the big financial leeches of the Wall Street gang are lining up with hands out to get the welfare of the American government.
For years and years the image of the welfare mother and the lazy welfare families has endured in this nation at the same time the largest recipients of welfare have always been the multi-national corporate robber barons of Wall Street and the military industrial complex. The poor families and individuals getting a pittance to barely survive have always been the fall-guy for the deficits in local, state and federal budgets. Forget wars, forget airlines getting bailed out, forget automakers getting bailed out, forget the sweetheart contracts of Halliburton and KBR....it has always been those fucking welfare moms and those lazy no-accounts not working that has caused the problem.
And the American people stand by and let their savings, their retirement funds and houses get ripped off by these bastards. They allow big oil and energy companies to hold them hostage. They allow the war mongers free reign to kill and destroy and now they will allow the rich and reckless to put their children, grandchildren and the granchildren of the grandchildren into debt beyond any ever seen in this nation.
We watched as the land grab took place following Katrina and said nothing. We watched as Halliburton and KBR took no-bid contracts and provided substandard food to the troops, endangered the troops with bogus convoys and paid slave wages to impoverished people from nations outside Iraq. We have held up our hands in submission as the leeches have reached into our pockets to take our wallets, our watches and even the pocket change we had on us.
Get used to it America; the gates to the treasury are open and the trucks of the greedy corporate bosses are lined up with engines running to empty all that's left before Dubya leaves office. This is the payoff for allowing a tyrant and his stooges to have control of the nation so they could gut the Constitution, Bill of Rights and any semblance of a government of checks and balances. This is the payoff for turning this nation into a third world corporate fiefdom.
It doesn't matter if McCain and Stepford Wife or Obama and Zionist Joe take office. The deed is done. We are Wal-Mart Nation now. The local hardwares are gone. The local groceries are gone. The local pharmacies and drugstores are gone. Our food is coming from corporate farms as the independent farmer is being starved out. New reports say GMO needs to be used to feed the world. Nuclear energy is needed to stave off the threat of foreign oil. If you want alternatives you might want to go to Europe or Canada but it's not likely to be much different.
Line up your children for the wars to come. They're running low on bodies. The only way they can go to college is through the new and improved GI Bill. They just need to survive intact to make it. Not to worry, if they die; there's a new improved death benefit. If they are mutilated, maybe the VA can help but you'll have to be patient to be a patient. Mental health? Suck it up!!
Yeah, let's all gather around and watch as everything saved up for years and years goes crashing down with the corporate deck of cards that has been teetering on the brink for years. Too bad we don't get those golden parachutes the inept and incompetent CEO's of major loser corporations get but that's the breaks. Maybe we'll be lucky to get fifty cents to the dollar for our pensions and savings.
This depression is brought to us by Bush, Cheney, McCain and Associates. To contact them call their off shore numbers in the Caymans. If you want to speak to a live representative make an appointment and don't hold your breath. If you want to access your accounts, think again.
W.Terrance Leichner, RN
For years and years the image of the welfare mother and the lazy welfare families has endured in this nation at the same time the largest recipients of welfare have always been the multi-national corporate robber barons of Wall Street and the military industrial complex. The poor families and individuals getting a pittance to barely survive have always been the fall-guy for the deficits in local, state and federal budgets. Forget wars, forget airlines getting bailed out, forget automakers getting bailed out, forget the sweetheart contracts of Halliburton and KBR....it has always been those fucking welfare moms and those lazy no-accounts not working that has caused the problem.
And the American people stand by and let their savings, their retirement funds and houses get ripped off by these bastards. They allow big oil and energy companies to hold them hostage. They allow the war mongers free reign to kill and destroy and now they will allow the rich and reckless to put their children, grandchildren and the granchildren of the grandchildren into debt beyond any ever seen in this nation.
We watched as the land grab took place following Katrina and said nothing. We watched as Halliburton and KBR took no-bid contracts and provided substandard food to the troops, endangered the troops with bogus convoys and paid slave wages to impoverished people from nations outside Iraq. We have held up our hands in submission as the leeches have reached into our pockets to take our wallets, our watches and even the pocket change we had on us.
Get used to it America; the gates to the treasury are open and the trucks of the greedy corporate bosses are lined up with engines running to empty all that's left before Dubya leaves office. This is the payoff for allowing a tyrant and his stooges to have control of the nation so they could gut the Constitution, Bill of Rights and any semblance of a government of checks and balances. This is the payoff for turning this nation into a third world corporate fiefdom.
It doesn't matter if McCain and Stepford Wife or Obama and Zionist Joe take office. The deed is done. We are Wal-Mart Nation now. The local hardwares are gone. The local groceries are gone. The local pharmacies and drugstores are gone. Our food is coming from corporate farms as the independent farmer is being starved out. New reports say GMO needs to be used to feed the world. Nuclear energy is needed to stave off the threat of foreign oil. If you want alternatives you might want to go to Europe or Canada but it's not likely to be much different.
Line up your children for the wars to come. They're running low on bodies. The only way they can go to college is through the new and improved GI Bill. They just need to survive intact to make it. Not to worry, if they die; there's a new improved death benefit. If they are mutilated, maybe the VA can help but you'll have to be patient to be a patient. Mental health? Suck it up!!
Yeah, let's all gather around and watch as everything saved up for years and years goes crashing down with the corporate deck of cards that has been teetering on the brink for years. Too bad we don't get those golden parachutes the inept and incompetent CEO's of major loser corporations get but that's the breaks. Maybe we'll be lucky to get fifty cents to the dollar for our pensions and savings.
This depression is brought to us by Bush, Cheney, McCain and Associates. To contact them call their off shore numbers in the Caymans. If you want to speak to a live representative make an appointment and don't hold your breath. If you want to access your accounts, think again.
W.Terrance Leichner, RN
Friday, September 12
The Forgotten Stories of Haiti and Cuba
As another huge hurricane approaches the shores of the United States the American press sends out their foolish reporters to stand in the winds to report the obvious. On this day of remembrance for the events of 9-11-2001, the foolish politicians have muted their second grade school yard bickering enough to remember the dead of America.
Too bad the foolish press and the bickering politicians fail to recognize a human tragedy just off the shores of this nation's southern coastlines. Haiti and Cuba have endured their third hurricane in less than a month. Cuba was better prepared for the onslaught but the impoverished nation of Haiti wasn't. Haiti is fast becoming the international equivalent of Katrina and New Orleans.
Haitian people are starving and going without water that's safe. Their homes are gone. Their roads are gone. Sources of food are gone. International relief efforts resembles the Bush response to New Orleans when the black community was abandoned.
Few Americans give a good goddamn about Haiti or Cuba. Cuba is part of the evil dictatorships bent on destroying the American "way" we've been taught. They stole our national pasttime and were better at it. They have been the sore reminder of American failure to bully some small nations. Haiti is the example of American bullying from the time the nation was first established.
The U.S. has been a constant in Haiti. A constant destabilizing force to prevent the will of the Haitian people. We, the people of the U.S.A, have allowed our government to dictate (with emphasis) what path Haiti would take in government. Whenever the people selected and elected some leader distasteful to American corporate interests, American government using military intimidation has chased the chosen leaders.
We once again have to ask how a nation like Haiti could be so impoverished considering the constant presence of the richest nation on the planet overseeing their affairs. How could President after President ignore the poverty so obvious in the streets and rural areas of this nation. Do Americans close their eyes whenever they encounter something disturbing?
It has become clear nations of black humans don't count in the minds of rich nations controlled by whites unless there is something for the rich nations to steal and profit from. Even if there is profit to be gained, poverty continues with U.S. sponsored dictators shutting the door on the hungry, homeless and weak. American politicians cry out they can't interfere with the sovereignty of other nations as the poor suffer without end. That rule is overlooked if there is something to be gained as there is in Iraq.
600 hundred are known to be dead in Haiti at this time. The numbers will undoubtedly increase into the thousands because so many are without basic items like food and water. And so many were already weakened by the incredibly harsh poverty imposed on them. Americans will close their eyes to a nation of black humans suffering such devastation. It disturbs them. And, in order to declare ourselves the greatest nation on Earth, we can't admit the immense effect American foreign policy has had to
perpetuate the poverty.
Of course, we failed New Orleans after Katrina and the outcry lasted less than six months. The Lower 9th Ward still waits. If we couldn't help our citizens who were so predominately black, how can we ever be expected to recognize the misery of Haiti or Cuba?
There remains a worldwide caste system that makes some catastrophic events far more important than the same event or a worse event depending on the location and the people. Is there a pattern that demonstrates such a caste system? Darfur and all of the Sudan are examples. Most of Africa is neglected in spite of the epidemics of war, AIDS and starvation which are made worse by droughts.
When the former Yugoslavia and Chechoslovakia broke up, sectarian wars ensued. We knew there were massacres and camps like those of Nazi Germany but did nothing until hundreds of thousands had died and much of the infrastructure was destroyed.
When Kuwait was allegedly "invaded" by the American chosen dictator, Saddam Hussein, the greatest military power in the world immediately sprang into action. Troops massed at the borders of Iraq and "smart bombs", "smart missiles" and unprecedented air power crushed the phantom resistance of the Republican Guard of Saddam. The atrocities claimed by the Kuwait government turned out to be the lies of a woman tied to one of the royalty of Kuwait.
We can't pretend there isn't a lack of concern for genocides in nations that lack something of corporate interest or strategical importance to increased power. We can't deny racial profiling at the highest level occurs when African nations are allowed to starve and be torn apart by brutal sectarian wars. Haiti no longer interests our leaders unless they elect a socialist or Marxist leaning leader. Then as in Central America, the leaders make sure the oppressors of our choice get the support they need to suppress or overthrow any government that might actually try a form of democracy.
So, the storms will crush Haiti and Cuba but the foolish media will be in Galveston or Houston waiting to get wet and battered by the same storm where the population is much better prepared to endure. The impoverished will die of the surge of the storm, the flood, falling buildings or disease caused by lack of clean water. Many will be young children. The media will tell warm stories of families from rich neighborhoods having to go north and stay in a motel or gym until the storm passes. The personal "tragic" story of an elderly person losing a pet or a home will fill the news. The real story will remain a small article in a paper or a ten second mention on the news. The real tragedy is considered too disturbing to the people of this "great" nation.
The human tragedy of Haiti and Cuba won't enter our hearts as much as missing pets in the U.S. where the next hurricane comes ashore. Haiti is not important. Haiti doesn't rate. Haiti has always been trouble. Haiti has always been that way.
Haiti is populated by humans that God is said to have created. Cuba is populated by humans Jesus Christ, Himself, would bless and come to their aid. If we strip away the insanity of politicians we will find our brothers and sisters in Haiti and Cuba. They need us.
Wm. Terry Leichner, RN
Too bad the foolish press and the bickering politicians fail to recognize a human tragedy just off the shores of this nation's southern coastlines. Haiti and Cuba have endured their third hurricane in less than a month. Cuba was better prepared for the onslaught but the impoverished nation of Haiti wasn't. Haiti is fast becoming the international equivalent of Katrina and New Orleans.
Haitian people are starving and going without water that's safe. Their homes are gone. Their roads are gone. Sources of food are gone. International relief efforts resembles the Bush response to New Orleans when the black community was abandoned.
Few Americans give a good goddamn about Haiti or Cuba. Cuba is part of the evil dictatorships bent on destroying the American "way" we've been taught. They stole our national pasttime and were better at it. They have been the sore reminder of American failure to bully some small nations. Haiti is the example of American bullying from the time the nation was first established.
The U.S. has been a constant in Haiti. A constant destabilizing force to prevent the will of the Haitian people. We, the people of the U.S.A, have allowed our government to dictate (with emphasis) what path Haiti would take in government. Whenever the people selected and elected some leader distasteful to American corporate interests, American government using military intimidation has chased the chosen leaders.
We once again have to ask how a nation like Haiti could be so impoverished considering the constant presence of the richest nation on the planet overseeing their affairs. How could President after President ignore the poverty so obvious in the streets and rural areas of this nation. Do Americans close their eyes whenever they encounter something disturbing?
It has become clear nations of black humans don't count in the minds of rich nations controlled by whites unless there is something for the rich nations to steal and profit from. Even if there is profit to be gained, poverty continues with U.S. sponsored dictators shutting the door on the hungry, homeless and weak. American politicians cry out they can't interfere with the sovereignty of other nations as the poor suffer without end. That rule is overlooked if there is something to be gained as there is in Iraq.
600 hundred are known to be dead in Haiti at this time. The numbers will undoubtedly increase into the thousands because so many are without basic items like food and water. And so many were already weakened by the incredibly harsh poverty imposed on them. Americans will close their eyes to a nation of black humans suffering such devastation. It disturbs them. And, in order to declare ourselves the greatest nation on Earth, we can't admit the immense effect American foreign policy has had to
perpetuate the poverty.
Of course, we failed New Orleans after Katrina and the outcry lasted less than six months. The Lower 9th Ward still waits. If we couldn't help our citizens who were so predominately black, how can we ever be expected to recognize the misery of Haiti or Cuba?
There remains a worldwide caste system that makes some catastrophic events far more important than the same event or a worse event depending on the location and the people. Is there a pattern that demonstrates such a caste system? Darfur and all of the Sudan are examples. Most of Africa is neglected in spite of the epidemics of war, AIDS and starvation which are made worse by droughts.
When the former Yugoslavia and Chechoslovakia broke up, sectarian wars ensued. We knew there were massacres and camps like those of Nazi Germany but did nothing until hundreds of thousands had died and much of the infrastructure was destroyed.
When Kuwait was allegedly "invaded" by the American chosen dictator, Saddam Hussein, the greatest military power in the world immediately sprang into action. Troops massed at the borders of Iraq and "smart bombs", "smart missiles" and unprecedented air power crushed the phantom resistance of the Republican Guard of Saddam. The atrocities claimed by the Kuwait government turned out to be the lies of a woman tied to one of the royalty of Kuwait.
We can't pretend there isn't a lack of concern for genocides in nations that lack something of corporate interest or strategical importance to increased power. We can't deny racial profiling at the highest level occurs when African nations are allowed to starve and be torn apart by brutal sectarian wars. Haiti no longer interests our leaders unless they elect a socialist or Marxist leaning leader. Then as in Central America, the leaders make sure the oppressors of our choice get the support they need to suppress or overthrow any government that might actually try a form of democracy.
So, the storms will crush Haiti and Cuba but the foolish media will be in Galveston or Houston waiting to get wet and battered by the same storm where the population is much better prepared to endure. The impoverished will die of the surge of the storm, the flood, falling buildings or disease caused by lack of clean water. Many will be young children. The media will tell warm stories of families from rich neighborhoods having to go north and stay in a motel or gym until the storm passes. The personal "tragic" story of an elderly person losing a pet or a home will fill the news. The real story will remain a small article in a paper or a ten second mention on the news. The real tragedy is considered too disturbing to the people of this "great" nation.
The human tragedy of Haiti and Cuba won't enter our hearts as much as missing pets in the U.S. where the next hurricane comes ashore. Haiti is not important. Haiti doesn't rate. Haiti has always been trouble. Haiti has always been that way.
Haiti is populated by humans that God is said to have created. Cuba is populated by humans Jesus Christ, Himself, would bless and come to their aid. If we strip away the insanity of politicians we will find our brothers and sisters in Haiti and Cuba. They need us.
Wm. Terry Leichner, RN
Thursday, September 11
Remembering 9-11, Seven Years Later
I remember telling my wife "we're going to war" as the towers collapsed on that September day in 2001. I didn't feel we should go to war but I knew in the cynical depths of my gut, Bush and Cheney would take us to war.
I remember not being surprised. I'm old and have lived through Vietnam, the Cuban missile crisis, the Cold War, the assassination of JFK, MLK, RFK and Malcolm. I've lived during the times of lynching, fire hoses and police dogs used against black citizens, Church bombings against black citizens and the blame for all the nation's ills on blacks and other non-whites. This always contradicted the fact power has always rested with whites.
I grew up ducking under desks in the ludicrous exercise to protect myself against nuclear attack. I grew up in fear some politician in some part of the world would start a war that would truly end the world. And it seemed most likely the politician could be American. Fifty years after ducking under my desks I still visit missile sites with nuclear war-heads at constant ready. The danger still exists but we've grown apathetic to that danger.
I remember the first Earth Day and the issues were exactly the same as they are today. That was in the 70’s. The only difference is we may be too late and all the wars and stupidity of politics will mean nothing. We will have poisoned our planet and destroyed most species on Earth because we wouldn’t listen, wouldn’t see and wouldn’t sense things were wrong with the environment. We take the most important things for granted and eventually we must pay for our neglect.
I remember burning crosses and white hoods being almost a normal event. I remember Kent State students being shot by American National Guardsmen, black students at Jackson State and an Orangeburg, S.C. bowling alley being beaten and shot and high school students in L.A. and other Chicano neighborhoods being gassed and beaten by police.
I remember the Tet Offensive of 1968 well from personal experience. I remember hearing D.C. and other American cities were burning after Dr. King was shot while there in Vietnam. I remember the fall of Saigon after 3 million Vietnamese and 58,000 plus American lives were lost. I remember veterans marching on the White House to throw medals over a fence. I remember J. Edgar Hoover's FBI tapping the phones of so many of us.
I saw an American President impeached for a single break in, another one almost impeached for a blow job and another one never coming close to being impeached for being a war criminal. I saw a B-movie actor become President and an election stolen by a political party priding itself on the legacy of Lincoln.
I've seen South Africa apartheid come to an end and Israeli apartheid continue. I've seen the American capitol look like a third world banana republic with snipers and police presence more that of a dictatorship than a democracy. I've seen six conventions where police beat down free speech in Chicago, Miami, New York, Boston, Denver and Minneapolis-St. Paul.
I've been alive so long there is not enough memory left to remember all the tragic and dramatic events of this nation since 1949. September 11, 2001 was only one event of so many. What September 11, 2001 did symbolize was the beginning of a new and more dangerous tyranny being allowed to take place in America. If 2000 marked the stealing of an election for the Presidency, 9-11 marked the entrenchment of the thieves.
For most this year, as every year since 2001, all eyes will be on New York City where nearly 3,000 lives were lost. I can no longer look toward New York, however. My thoughts and heart goes out to the children of Baghdad who endured a decade of starvation and deprivation brought to them by sanctions and who then had to endure American "shock and awe". Far more than two thousand children were lost to a war that should never have happened and only happened to allow Americans to avenge two thousand.
I'll think of the city of Fallujah that was destroyed and destroyed again by Americans after mercenaries of Blackwater incited their anger with tactics of goons and thugs. I think of the photos of Dhar Jamail showing dogs eating humans on the streets of Fallujah while Marines patrolled the streets.
I recall the stories of my friend, Dahlia Wasfi, describing the lack of electricity and potable water during her two journeys to Basrah to visit family members following the start of the war. I think of her father here in America not being able to see his family again because it was so unsafe.
I think of the legalization of torture by an American government intent on destroying all the moral values of this nation for some concept of "protecting" the American people. I think of the stories by veterans with saddened eyes about running children and other civilians over in convoys because rules of engagement wouldn't allow them to stop.
I think of Jeff Lucey and Doug Barber who killed themselves in the aftermath of their war experiences in Iraq. I think of the many families who never got the same person back from the wars. I think of Pat Tillman being declared a hero only to find out he was killed by his own troops. I think of Suzanne Swift and all the thousands of American women who were troops in the wars that were not only exposed to combat PTSD but sexual assault and harassment caused PTSD inflicted by the men in their units.
I think of mothers losing children. Fathers seeing sons without arm or legs. Daughters never knowing their mother. Sons without fathers. American parents, Iraqi parents and parents of the people of Afghanistan all cry for their lost children. They lose countless hours of sleep in dread and worry, not knowing if their children are safe.
I think of my mental health patients that have had their care reduced, their medical and housing expenses cut because over 10 billion dollars each month is being spent for wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I think of kids doing without prenatal care, healthcare and quality education here in the U.S. because the money was being used to wage wars. I think of political parties spending obscene amounts to campaign while millions die around the world from our wars and their effects.
I think of Gino Strada and Kathy Kelly trying to join with other dedicated humans to help the victims of war. I think of jails being filled with non-violent peace makers who had the courage to resist. I think of the failure of moral leaders in churches and other areas of public life to call out against the madness of this time when life is cheap and expendable to the American government.
I wonder if the people of Afghanistan feel safer today because we've brought them democracy. I wonder if the people of Iraq can still love Americans as they did before we destroyed their nation. I wonder if my grandchildren will have any rights left by the time they become my age. I wonder if the homeless care about Sarah Palin's lipstick or Barack Obama's pig. I wonder if the hero status of John McCain is the same in Haiphong and Hanoi as it is here in the U.S.. And I wonder how we could dare call him a hero.
On September 11, 2001 it wasn't only the Twin Towers that fell; it was the honor of Americans and America that was falling. The goodwill of the world toward this nation was soon dried up as illegal and immoral wars based on lies, greed and corruption poisoned it.
September 11, 2001 was symbolic of the hate the American government has brought down on this nation by continued militarism, war-mongering and support of dictators and tyrants instead of freedom and liberation. It was symbolic of the anger created by the pillaging of nations for natural resources to perpetuate American narcissism and consumerism.
We can delude ourselves in this nation that we're loved by the world, that we're moral and a beacon of freedom but the ugly American truth is we're feared as a bully, we've lost our moral beacon and even our own people don't recognize the concept of freedom. Instead we mistake it for nationalism and a phony sense of patriotism.
As sad as the eleventh day of September was seven years ago, it is even sadder we've not even come close to understanding what caused those events to happen. We continue to ignore the many elephants in the rooms that should tell us we have failed our responsibilities as true patriots and true citizens of the world. We have failed to lead and instead ignored the poorest and most in need peoples of our world to carry out our own supposed manifest destiny. We decry religious fanatics and radicals that seek to destroy us but allow our own religious fanatics and radicals to destroy us.
I can hardly remember that day seven years ago because my mind has been scarred by the horrific events we've allowed to happen as a response to that day. Instead of looking at "ground zero" I look at the ground of New Orleans still moldy from neglect. I think about the depleted uranium and PTSD that is still to come back to haunt us.
It is a day of national reflection. Let's hope we can reflect beyond the city of New York to the lessons of our world that we've failed to learn.
Wm. Terry Leichner, RN
Denver VVAW member
USMC combat veteran "67-`69
I remember not being surprised. I'm old and have lived through Vietnam, the Cuban missile crisis, the Cold War, the assassination of JFK, MLK, RFK and Malcolm. I've lived during the times of lynching, fire hoses and police dogs used against black citizens, Church bombings against black citizens and the blame for all the nation's ills on blacks and other non-whites. This always contradicted the fact power has always rested with whites.
I grew up ducking under desks in the ludicrous exercise to protect myself against nuclear attack. I grew up in fear some politician in some part of the world would start a war that would truly end the world. And it seemed most likely the politician could be American. Fifty years after ducking under my desks I still visit missile sites with nuclear war-heads at constant ready. The danger still exists but we've grown apathetic to that danger.
I remember the first Earth Day and the issues were exactly the same as they are today. That was in the 70’s. The only difference is we may be too late and all the wars and stupidity of politics will mean nothing. We will have poisoned our planet and destroyed most species on Earth because we wouldn’t listen, wouldn’t see and wouldn’t sense things were wrong with the environment. We take the most important things for granted and eventually we must pay for our neglect.
I remember burning crosses and white hoods being almost a normal event. I remember Kent State students being shot by American National Guardsmen, black students at Jackson State and an Orangeburg, S.C. bowling alley being beaten and shot and high school students in L.A. and other Chicano neighborhoods being gassed and beaten by police.
I remember the Tet Offensive of 1968 well from personal experience. I remember hearing D.C. and other American cities were burning after Dr. King was shot while there in Vietnam. I remember the fall of Saigon after 3 million Vietnamese and 58,000 plus American lives were lost. I remember veterans marching on the White House to throw medals over a fence. I remember J. Edgar Hoover's FBI tapping the phones of so many of us.
I saw an American President impeached for a single break in, another one almost impeached for a blow job and another one never coming close to being impeached for being a war criminal. I saw a B-movie actor become President and an election stolen by a political party priding itself on the legacy of Lincoln.
I've seen South Africa apartheid come to an end and Israeli apartheid continue. I've seen the American capitol look like a third world banana republic with snipers and police presence more that of a dictatorship than a democracy. I've seen six conventions where police beat down free speech in Chicago, Miami, New York, Boston, Denver and Minneapolis-St. Paul.
I've been alive so long there is not enough memory left to remember all the tragic and dramatic events of this nation since 1949. September 11, 2001 was only one event of so many. What September 11, 2001 did symbolize was the beginning of a new and more dangerous tyranny being allowed to take place in America. If 2000 marked the stealing of an election for the Presidency, 9-11 marked the entrenchment of the thieves.
For most this year, as every year since 2001, all eyes will be on New York City where nearly 3,000 lives were lost. I can no longer look toward New York, however. My thoughts and heart goes out to the children of Baghdad who endured a decade of starvation and deprivation brought to them by sanctions and who then had to endure American "shock and awe". Far more than two thousand children were lost to a war that should never have happened and only happened to allow Americans to avenge two thousand.
I'll think of the city of Fallujah that was destroyed and destroyed again by Americans after mercenaries of Blackwater incited their anger with tactics of goons and thugs. I think of the photos of Dhar Jamail showing dogs eating humans on the streets of Fallujah while Marines patrolled the streets.
I recall the stories of my friend, Dahlia Wasfi, describing the lack of electricity and potable water during her two journeys to Basrah to visit family members following the start of the war. I think of her father here in America not being able to see his family again because it was so unsafe.
I think of the legalization of torture by an American government intent on destroying all the moral values of this nation for some concept of "protecting" the American people. I think of the stories by veterans with saddened eyes about running children and other civilians over in convoys because rules of engagement wouldn't allow them to stop.
I think of Jeff Lucey and Doug Barber who killed themselves in the aftermath of their war experiences in Iraq. I think of the many families who never got the same person back from the wars. I think of Pat Tillman being declared a hero only to find out he was killed by his own troops. I think of Suzanne Swift and all the thousands of American women who were troops in the wars that were not only exposed to combat PTSD but sexual assault and harassment caused PTSD inflicted by the men in their units.
I think of mothers losing children. Fathers seeing sons without arm or legs. Daughters never knowing their mother. Sons without fathers. American parents, Iraqi parents and parents of the people of Afghanistan all cry for their lost children. They lose countless hours of sleep in dread and worry, not knowing if their children are safe.
I think of my mental health patients that have had their care reduced, their medical and housing expenses cut because over 10 billion dollars each month is being spent for wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I think of kids doing without prenatal care, healthcare and quality education here in the U.S. because the money was being used to wage wars. I think of political parties spending obscene amounts to campaign while millions die around the world from our wars and their effects.
I think of Gino Strada and Kathy Kelly trying to join with other dedicated humans to help the victims of war. I think of jails being filled with non-violent peace makers who had the courage to resist. I think of the failure of moral leaders in churches and other areas of public life to call out against the madness of this time when life is cheap and expendable to the American government.
I wonder if the people of Afghanistan feel safer today because we've brought them democracy. I wonder if the people of Iraq can still love Americans as they did before we destroyed their nation. I wonder if my grandchildren will have any rights left by the time they become my age. I wonder if the homeless care about Sarah Palin's lipstick or Barack Obama's pig. I wonder if the hero status of John McCain is the same in Haiphong and Hanoi as it is here in the U.S.. And I wonder how we could dare call him a hero.
On September 11, 2001 it wasn't only the Twin Towers that fell; it was the honor of Americans and America that was falling. The goodwill of the world toward this nation was soon dried up as illegal and immoral wars based on lies, greed and corruption poisoned it.
September 11, 2001 was symbolic of the hate the American government has brought down on this nation by continued militarism, war-mongering and support of dictators and tyrants instead of freedom and liberation. It was symbolic of the anger created by the pillaging of nations for natural resources to perpetuate American narcissism and consumerism.
We can delude ourselves in this nation that we're loved by the world, that we're moral and a beacon of freedom but the ugly American truth is we're feared as a bully, we've lost our moral beacon and even our own people don't recognize the concept of freedom. Instead we mistake it for nationalism and a phony sense of patriotism.
As sad as the eleventh day of September was seven years ago, it is even sadder we've not even come close to understanding what caused those events to happen. We continue to ignore the many elephants in the rooms that should tell us we have failed our responsibilities as true patriots and true citizens of the world. We have failed to lead and instead ignored the poorest and most in need peoples of our world to carry out our own supposed manifest destiny. We decry religious fanatics and radicals that seek to destroy us but allow our own religious fanatics and radicals to destroy us.
I can hardly remember that day seven years ago because my mind has been scarred by the horrific events we've allowed to happen as a response to that day. Instead of looking at "ground zero" I look at the ground of New Orleans still moldy from neglect. I think about the depleted uranium and PTSD that is still to come back to haunt us.
It is a day of national reflection. Let's hope we can reflect beyond the city of New York to the lessons of our world that we've failed to learn.
Wm. Terry Leichner, RN
Denver VVAW member
USMC combat veteran "67-`69
Wednesday, September 10
McCain is A Criminal, Not A Hero
It has to be said over and over again that John McCain is NOT a war hero; he is a war criminal. He flew 22 bombing missions lasting about 30 minutes each time dropping bombs not only on "military" targets but also on civilian centers. He broke the very Geneva Convention rules he claims to put so much stock in by violating the concept civilian centers are not to be endangered by use of weapons that indiscriminately kill enemy and non-enemy.
On McCain's 23rd mission he was shot down as he attempted to once again drop ordinance on areas with hundreds of civilians. Injured in the crash he was saved from villagers who could have well done him in. He did spend time in a POW camp but was treated preferentially for some time because he was the son of Admiral McCain of the Pacific fleet command.
McCain made several statements that were broadcast back to the States condemning the actions of pilots dropping bombs on civilians. He was the most frequently taped POW used for North Vietnamese propaganda. He was under severe duress few of us could ever understand but being captured doesn't make anyone a hero. It makes them a victim of war and a survivor.
McCain didn't have to see the results of his "work" on the ground as thousands of the combat troops in Vietnam had to do. He didn't have to endure heavy artillery, small arms fire and mortar rounds on a routine basis. He didn't have to walk trails as a daily routine looking for trip wires. He didn't have to see his best friend lose limbs or die bleeding out as evac helicopters were being waited on. McCain never had to see babies charred by napalm or entire villages burned to the ground by napalm. He never had to watch the results of white phosphorous on the human body.He never had to watch the parents crying as a result of his "work".
John McCain earned the bulk of his medals of valor automatically for being a POW not for the heroic act of facing enemy fire in an attempt to save other members of his unit. He never gave himself up to take wounded comrades out of harm's way. McCain never stormed a position of an enemy machine gun in an ambush. He was awarded the same medals of valor that those who did such things were awarded.
Much has been made of the reports by the Swift Boat idiots that smeared McCain and Kerry to further George W. Bush's career. One of the more notorious of that group has put out a lie filled book about Barack Obama which hit the top ten of many reader's lists because the right wing radical Christians bought the book in bulk for reading groups and to get the book on the lists.
We should be able to differientiate between the smear tactics of the right wing radicals and the truth of McCain's military record. We should realize McCain was a fuck up in the Naval Academy and during his flight school days to the point anybody but the son of a high ranking admiral would have been washed out more than likely with a less than honorable discharge. McCain was a "cowboy" who got away with recklessly crashing million dollar jets because he was the son of Admiral McCain. John McCain has always been part of a Praetorian Guard elitist group here in America.
The life of a POW is one that deserves recognition but isn't one that makes a man or woman necessarily a hero. A military record should be looked at for the entirety of the the time served in the military. When a man drops bombs indiscriminately on villages full of civilians he has acted without regard for human life and his actions are evil not heroic.Justifying such actions by saying one was just doing their duty or that it was just part of war doesn't detract from the criminality of the actions.
Whether we became part of My Lai type situations or dropped bombs on innocents, we who did time in Vietnam, weren't heroes for our actions simply because we spent time in combat or in a POW camp. We were participants in an immoral war that killed 3 million Vietnamese and left the lingering legacy of Agent Orange that still kills and deforms the Vietnamese.
John McCain started this campaign with an ad talking about those who told stories about war wistfully were either stupid or were never there. He has sold the press on his humility about his war record but at every stop his campaign has played the POW and hero card to sell his credentials for being a President. He made his "story" of POW a central part of the recent RNC speech he gave to accept the nomination.
His people made sure VFW members were up front for that speech. But McCain never mentioned VA care and benefits for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan despite a contingent of those vets marching in the streets to point out his poor record of helping other veterans.
McCain dismissed Adam Kokesh making it into XCEL to hold up a protest sign. Adam is a leader of veterans against the war. The ironic chant of "USA, USA" drowned out Adam, who went to war for those who were chanting. Their disregard was as bad as spitting on him.
The truth of John McCain's war is he spent about 24 to 48 total hours in an actual combat situation compared to an infantryman spending up to 13 months. His capture and time as a POW no doubt caused him great stress. He is without a doubt demonstrating symptoms of PTSD when he is observed to be Senator "McNasty" and when he screams at groups wanting him to support them on getting information about POW's whose bodies were never found.
McCain did block attempts to have the North Vietnamese release key documents that could help families determine if loved ones had been imprisoned or their bodies discovered by the Vietnamese. He verbally attacked a female in a wheelchair who was part of a POW family delegation demanding the release of documents from the North. According to that group, McCain was the only one opposing the release and his power on committees and his "hero" status kept the document release from occurring.
We must also remember John McCain, corruption fighter and reformer of this Presidential campaign, was a member of corrupt legislators called the Keating Five who enabled moneyed supporters to get away with stock scams back in the 80's. He continues to be in bed with lobbyists and money people who buy his influence with support for his campaign.
While others are hesitant to challenge the portrayal of McCain as a hero of this nation, I have no problem saying he was truly a "baby killer" by the action of dropping bombs on villages filled with innocent civilians. During an interview for Vanity Fair and The Nation in 2000, McCain told the interviewer his role as a naval pilot was the "perfect job" for him because he could shoot and blow up things and return in time for "happy hour".
McCain has never come across beng remorseful for the carnage he inflicted in those 22bombing runs before he was shotdown on the 23rd run. His remorse has always been about getting shot down and colluding with the enemy at times because of the duress he faced.
The experiences of John McCain has only made him a war monger who is unable to think of ways to avoid war by diplomatic process. He thinks only in terms of shallow "victory" in war without understanding the irreparable harm to civilians, American troops and the image of America around the world. He cares little we are looked upon as bullies and feared for our militarism. He cares little accidental bombings, that happen far too often, are incendiary symbols of our bullying and a great recruitment fodder for new insurgents, terrorists and others who come to hate America.
While it is important to keep the facts and sources straight about McCain, such as phony claims he's the Manchurian Candidate and the "songbird" of the Hanoi Hilton, there can be no refuting he did carry out those bombing missions that led to the deaths of countless numbers of civilians during terroristic bombing on North Vietnam by American forces. He wasn't a hero then and certainly isn't one now since he continues to make the same mistakes of war and violence as a way of American diplomacy.
John McCain, like many of us who have gone to war, has taken part in evil and unforgiveable acts against humanity. We can never give back the lives we took without reason. We can understand what we did and attempt to prevent it happening again. McCain has shown no tendency to work for the prevention of such atrocity. His failure to learn from our history makes him a fool and a criminal. Not a hero.
Wm. Terry Leichner, RN
Denver VVAW member
USMC combat veteran ('67-'69)
On McCain's 23rd mission he was shot down as he attempted to once again drop ordinance on areas with hundreds of civilians. Injured in the crash he was saved from villagers who could have well done him in. He did spend time in a POW camp but was treated preferentially for some time because he was the son of Admiral McCain of the Pacific fleet command.
McCain made several statements that were broadcast back to the States condemning the actions of pilots dropping bombs on civilians. He was the most frequently taped POW used for North Vietnamese propaganda. He was under severe duress few of us could ever understand but being captured doesn't make anyone a hero. It makes them a victim of war and a survivor.
McCain didn't have to see the results of his "work" on the ground as thousands of the combat troops in Vietnam had to do. He didn't have to endure heavy artillery, small arms fire and mortar rounds on a routine basis. He didn't have to walk trails as a daily routine looking for trip wires. He didn't have to see his best friend lose limbs or die bleeding out as evac helicopters were being waited on. McCain never had to see babies charred by napalm or entire villages burned to the ground by napalm. He never had to watch the results of white phosphorous on the human body.He never had to watch the parents crying as a result of his "work".
John McCain earned the bulk of his medals of valor automatically for being a POW not for the heroic act of facing enemy fire in an attempt to save other members of his unit. He never gave himself up to take wounded comrades out of harm's way. McCain never stormed a position of an enemy machine gun in an ambush. He was awarded the same medals of valor that those who did such things were awarded.
Much has been made of the reports by the Swift Boat idiots that smeared McCain and Kerry to further George W. Bush's career. One of the more notorious of that group has put out a lie filled book about Barack Obama which hit the top ten of many reader's lists because the right wing radical Christians bought the book in bulk for reading groups and to get the book on the lists.
We should be able to differientiate between the smear tactics of the right wing radicals and the truth of McCain's military record. We should realize McCain was a fuck up in the Naval Academy and during his flight school days to the point anybody but the son of a high ranking admiral would have been washed out more than likely with a less than honorable discharge. McCain was a "cowboy" who got away with recklessly crashing million dollar jets because he was the son of Admiral McCain. John McCain has always been part of a Praetorian Guard elitist group here in America.
The life of a POW is one that deserves recognition but isn't one that makes a man or woman necessarily a hero. A military record should be looked at for the entirety of the the time served in the military. When a man drops bombs indiscriminately on villages full of civilians he has acted without regard for human life and his actions are evil not heroic.Justifying such actions by saying one was just doing their duty or that it was just part of war doesn't detract from the criminality of the actions.
Whether we became part of My Lai type situations or dropped bombs on innocents, we who did time in Vietnam, weren't heroes for our actions simply because we spent time in combat or in a POW camp. We were participants in an immoral war that killed 3 million Vietnamese and left the lingering legacy of Agent Orange that still kills and deforms the Vietnamese.
John McCain started this campaign with an ad talking about those who told stories about war wistfully were either stupid or were never there. He has sold the press on his humility about his war record but at every stop his campaign has played the POW and hero card to sell his credentials for being a President. He made his "story" of POW a central part of the recent RNC speech he gave to accept the nomination.
His people made sure VFW members were up front for that speech. But McCain never mentioned VA care and benefits for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan despite a contingent of those vets marching in the streets to point out his poor record of helping other veterans.
McCain dismissed Adam Kokesh making it into XCEL to hold up a protest sign. Adam is a leader of veterans against the war. The ironic chant of "USA, USA" drowned out Adam, who went to war for those who were chanting. Their disregard was as bad as spitting on him.
The truth of John McCain's war is he spent about 24 to 48 total hours in an actual combat situation compared to an infantryman spending up to 13 months. His capture and time as a POW no doubt caused him great stress. He is without a doubt demonstrating symptoms of PTSD when he is observed to be Senator "McNasty" and when he screams at groups wanting him to support them on getting information about POW's whose bodies were never found.
McCain did block attempts to have the North Vietnamese release key documents that could help families determine if loved ones had been imprisoned or their bodies discovered by the Vietnamese. He verbally attacked a female in a wheelchair who was part of a POW family delegation demanding the release of documents from the North. According to that group, McCain was the only one opposing the release and his power on committees and his "hero" status kept the document release from occurring.
We must also remember John McCain, corruption fighter and reformer of this Presidential campaign, was a member of corrupt legislators called the Keating Five who enabled moneyed supporters to get away with stock scams back in the 80's. He continues to be in bed with lobbyists and money people who buy his influence with support for his campaign.
While others are hesitant to challenge the portrayal of McCain as a hero of this nation, I have no problem saying he was truly a "baby killer" by the action of dropping bombs on villages filled with innocent civilians. During an interview for Vanity Fair and The Nation in 2000, McCain told the interviewer his role as a naval pilot was the "perfect job" for him because he could shoot and blow up things and return in time for "happy hour".
McCain has never come across beng remorseful for the carnage he inflicted in those 22bombing runs before he was shotdown on the 23rd run. His remorse has always been about getting shot down and colluding with the enemy at times because of the duress he faced.
The experiences of John McCain has only made him a war monger who is unable to think of ways to avoid war by diplomatic process. He thinks only in terms of shallow "victory" in war without understanding the irreparable harm to civilians, American troops and the image of America around the world. He cares little we are looked upon as bullies and feared for our militarism. He cares little accidental bombings, that happen far too often, are incendiary symbols of our bullying and a great recruitment fodder for new insurgents, terrorists and others who come to hate America.
While it is important to keep the facts and sources straight about McCain, such as phony claims he's the Manchurian Candidate and the "songbird" of the Hanoi Hilton, there can be no refuting he did carry out those bombing missions that led to the deaths of countless numbers of civilians during terroristic bombing on North Vietnam by American forces. He wasn't a hero then and certainly isn't one now since he continues to make the same mistakes of war and violence as a way of American diplomacy.
John McCain, like many of us who have gone to war, has taken part in evil and unforgiveable acts against humanity. We can never give back the lives we took without reason. We can understand what we did and attempt to prevent it happening again. McCain has shown no tendency to work for the prevention of such atrocity. His failure to learn from our history makes him a fool and a criminal. Not a hero.
Wm. Terry Leichner, RN
Denver VVAW member
USMC combat veteran ('67-'69)
Thursday, September 4
FemiNazi vs Stepford Wife Fascist
(top - right to left: Sojurner Truth, Mother Jones)
(bottom - right to left: Mary Church Terrell, Alice Paul)
The neocons and evangelical fanatics have long called the feminist movement "femi-Nazis" with the implication feminists want to "impose" their values on all of us. This especially includes the supposed superior gender, males.
For these fanatics and tyrants, Hillary Clinton is the epitome of the feminist they call a Nazi. First, she came onto the scene and worked hard to bring healthcare reform that would include all people and might even include a single payer system much like the more efficient and comprehensive plans in Europe and Japan. Hillary wore the pants in the family as much as Bill did at times. She represented a woman who thought women should have a choice in birth control and a choice of bearing a child or ending a pregnancy for whatever personal reasons a woman chose. Hillary represented women coming out of the kitchen and going into the workplace to have equal pay for equal work. She represented women having the same opportunities of education, employment and equal rights as men. She represented an end to sexism, misogynistic hate toward women and the sexual exploitation of women.
Now, I'm not a big fan of Hillary because I think she sold out to AIPAC and corporate interests in her ambition to become President. Of course, every other candidate has sold out to corporate interest and special interest since the beginning of this nation. I'm not a big fan of any current candidate.
But, the symbolic candidacy of Hillary Clinton was important for women in this nation and around the world. For one thing, it showed the U.S. has possibly matured to the emotional age of pre-adolescence as a people.
Hillary is not Sojurner Truth, Mother Jones, Alice Paul, Lucy Stone, Margaret Sanger, Rosa Parks, Mary Church Terrell, Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, Betty Friedan, Susan Brownmiller, Barbara Jordan or Shirley Chisholm by any means but she became the first woman to have a legitimate chance to be nominated for the Presidency and she was a symbol of the bravery and the struggle of all these women, whether she deserves it or not. Hillary represented a stop gap to the counter movement to take away much of what was gained with so much struggle and pain.
Radical Christian dominionism seeks to overturn a woman's choice gained in Roe vs. Wade, it seeks to take women out of the workforce to stay at home with children and it seeks to continue the misogyny of female subjugation to men thought to be declared in the Bible.
Chris Hedges writes about the "cult of masculinity" (American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America) in the radical evangelical movement. That cult is widespread and promotes the idea it is the work of Satan for women to question the authority of the male hierarchy of the Christian evangelical churches. "The good woman, they tell you, is the obedient woman." a former member of an evangelical church told Hedges. She told him she was encouraged to run for Miss Michigan to use the position as a pulpit to spread "the word" like a modern Esther of the Bible.
Hypermasculinity creates fear and intimidation as a way of life for women in the Christian right. Those who fail to adhere are considered "contaminants" and servants of Satan. The Christian right uses the obedience to the male authority to control the family under the guise of family values, then they control the church and finally they seek to control the nation. With them, you're either part of the church or you're an agent of Satan.
Children and born again members of huge congregations know only the culture of the Evangelical movement. Their lives are spent in church activities that consume most of their time. They are taught to fear nonconformity and to turn their lives over to the male authority of their churches who "speak" for God.
James Dobson of Colorado's Focus On the Family, Erik Prince, leader of Blackwater, Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, Walden O'Dell, CEO of Diebold, Bill McCartney, CU football coach and founder of Promise Keepers, Supreme Court Justice A. Scalia, many military leaders from General and below, K. Rove, G.W. Bush, D. Cheney and tens of millions claim membership in the evangelical movement that considers men as the leaders who speak for God and do His "will".
While it is doubtful Bush, Cheney and Rove are true believers instead of opportunists, the Christian Right must not be underestimated. Their numbers are growing in local and national governments. They are well organized and intend to make America a "Christian" nation. They are on a "crusade" against their perceived enemies which include feminists, homosexuals, secular humanists, Muslims (who they claim are the anti-Christ religion), Jews and Catholics. They align with Israel to fight Islamic terrorists. They align with Catholics to fight the intrinisic evil of abortionists and homosexuals. But, their hateful rhetoric shows the Christian right is anti-Semites and consider Catholicism as a cult.
They fail to fight the intrinsic evil of war, racism and hate mongering toward gays. They fail to acknowledge the Zionist terrorism against the indigenous people of Palestine. To do such a thing would be a Satanic act for this group of radical Christians.
Timothy LaFaye and Jerry Jenkins, authors of the End Times series of apocalyptic end of the world novels, are examples of the Christian right's culture of death. The radical Christian right has its members indoctrinated to only hearing and reading the propaganda they produce from their powerful media machines. They believe the "rapture" will come and take them, and them alone, to the side of Christ and God. They believe Christ will strike likea a great warrior to kill all non-believers.
Words like liberty, rights, love, truth, wisdom, death and life have been perverted to mean different things than what most of us think. Liberty means the freedom found in finding Christ but not necessarily freedom to think for oneself. Truth means the truth as the conduits of God interpret it. The conduits being the male hierarchy. Wisdom is whatever the male hierarchy say it is. Rights are those given by these leaders. Life comes from death and the rapture. Love has no room for romance. It is love of God as interpreted by the leaders of the church, men.
Creationism instead of evolution has been endorsed and is in practice in more and more public schools in the U.S.. Billions of dollars has been siphoned to "faith based" organizations to teach abstinence sex education only,and to publicly fund other radical Christian programs. Contraception and education about the physical aspects of sex, pregnancy and condoms for protection has been taken out of many public schools. Planned Parenthood clinics no longer receive public funds.
Chris Hedges writes "Debate with the radical Christian Right is useless. We cannot reach this movement. It does not want a dialogue. It is a movement based on emotion and cares nothing for rational thought and discussion….This movement is bent on destruction….These dominionists hate the liberal, enlightened world formed by the Constitution, a world they blame for the debacle of their lives. They have one goal-its destruction." (American Fascists).
The path of destruction is clear. The poor and disenfranchised are considered agents of Satan who lack faith. The programs meant to help them are considered evil attempts to take away from the people of Christ. The radical Christians believe they are entitled to wealth and prosperity because they are true believers. The problem with this belief is the wealth still goes only to a few. It isn't shared with those who apparently lack "enough" belief.
The Christian Right is only a small minority of Americans but they wield a mighty hammer of influence on the government of this nation. The executive and judicial branches of federal government are dominated by them. Close to one third of the legislative branch are members of the Christian Right. The number in the military leadership is significant. Election machines sold to local election boards are often manufactured by this group. A large mercenary army has a presence in Iraq as "contractors". The company, Blackwater, is owned by Erik Prince, a staunch member of the Christian Right.
And now we come to the Stepford wife fascist nominated for the Vice Presidency of the U.S., Sarah Palin. John McCain has once again sold his soul to the forces of evil with his choice of the former beauty contestant, former mayor of an Alaskan town and the current governor of Alaska to be his running mate.
Sarah Palin has become the poster woman of the radical Christian Right. Not only was she vetted by McCain's staff but a group of Christian Right leaders that included Erik Prince, James Dobson and their representatives also vetted Ms. Palin. She is attractive, speaks with emotion and passion the words given her by the campaign staff writers, that seem to include Rush Limbaugh and Karl Rove, and she believes what she's saying.
The nomination of Palin should not be underestimated. She was never meant to be a candidate to bring in Hillary's faithful. She was brought into the campaign to energize the radical Christian Right with all their money and influence. McCain failed to gain endorsement of Dobson and others in the movement until he "chose" Palin. She was forced upon him to gain the power of the radical believers of the Christian neocons.
Sarah Palin is the perfect choice for these radical theocrats. She believes in the "crusades" of Iraq and Afghanistan. She is pro-life with great fervor and her birth of a Down's Syndrome child is proof of her strong anti-abortion stance. She has been quoted as dismissing the theory of global warming. She is said to have the mindset of someone in the 1940's concerning environmental issues according to environmental group spokespersons.
Palin is an avid believer in Amendment 2's right to bear arms. She believes in abstinence education only as sex education. She is angry at the liberals and non-believers and does well at voicing her anger. She is vengeful against perceived enemies. She is currently under investigation for demanding the firing of a police officer or state trooper who divorced or left one of her family. She has cut the budget of the state of Alaska at the same time the federal budget has been radically sliced to further increase the pain index of the poor and marginalized. She has cut the budget for the poor and needy of Alaska approximately 60 percent in her two year reign.
Sarah Palin's pattern of administration she proudly calls executive "responsibility" fits the pattern of a woman under the influence of the radical Christian Right filled with hate, racism, sexism and a belief of might being right in the affairs of the world. She discounts community activism if done by "liberals" but has no problem turning social programs over to religious "charities".
This is a dangerous woman because she believes the dogma of the leaders of the radical Christians. She believes in the culture of death and embraces "the rapture" finally coming to the world.
She believes. She most likely cannot be swayed by rational arguments or reasoning. She and her family have been programmed. Some have accused McCain of being the Manchurian candidate because he cooperated with the North Vietnamese. Actually, the brainwashing was done to his choice of running mates.
God help us if the woman chosen to be a heartbeat away from the Presidency is elected and the oldest President in history should die unexpectedly. The apocalyptic scenes of LaFaye and Jenkins could become a reality.
Wm. Terry Leichner RN
Denver VVAW member
USMC combat veteran '67-'69
Tuesday, September 2
Comply or Die
When the free speech icon Amy Goodman tries to do her job as a journalist but instead gets manhandled and arrested do we need to question what’s going on in America.
What is violent about demonstrators going to the streets at the site of the GOP or Democratic conventions to provide a message to the “representatives” in the government of the “people” about their concerns of the way this nation is operating? Does a group of people temporarily blocking a few streets warrant an attack by a superior force of police with riot equipment? Does young people, people of color and peaceful activists constitute terrorism with a response of tear gas, concussion grenades and brutal throw downs by large males on a 50 something woman who is slightly built and maybe weighs over 100 pounds? Does a young woman approaching riot police with a flower in a gesture of good will deserve to be maced several times by nameless and badgeless riot police? What danger did she present? Allergic reactions by a cop to the flower?
I wonder how there are almost daily demonstrations in European cities without police reacting violently toward those demonstrators in the streets. How do these police in cities that have known far more terrorist attacks than the cradle of democracy, the USA, manage to restrain themselves most of the time? It just makes no sense the so-called epitome of free speech and human rights feels threatened by groups going into the streets to peacefully demonstrate and voice warranted anger about the state of the nation. Threatened enough to physically harm their own citizens, the children of our nation, the elders of our nation and the disenfranchised of our nation.
Why would anyone be surprised property destruction and violence results after police time and time again beat down peaceful groups wanting the opportunity to have a voice in their country, too? The chant “whose streets, our streets” isn’t a declaration of war or of intended violence. It is the declaration of freedom and one stating all people should have a voice.
There are some, no doubt, who want to angrily destroy symbols of oppression and authority. Some are just seeking opportunity to be violent because it is their nature. So, do we paint all demonstrators as being violent when in fact over 90 per cent of them are completely peaceful? If we do so, then we end up painting all police as “pigs” because of the way too many act. Mass punishment of the entire village because of a few is against the Geneva Convention’s rules of engagement during wartime. Why is it permissible in an open society called America?
The analogy of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan has to be made. Since American troops occupied both countries in an alleged attempt to liberate them, the danger to the troops didn’t recede. The numbers of so-called insurgents actually increased. After violent confrontation following violent confrontation that killed more innocent than identified enemy, the anger and hate toward Americans grew. House raid after house raid, street brutality after street brutality only grew the numbers opposing American troops.
Police brutality and intimidation against peaceful citizens time after time will result in the divide between citizens and police growing ever wider. Suppression of legitimate free speech and the gathering of citizens in public areas only create a hostile environment that is provoked by the police. Do they expect they’ll gain the respect of those bullied and beaten?
We cannot call ourselves a free society if free speech is expected to be only what the government officials say it is. We can’t be a free society if there are only free speech zones behind chain link fences with guards surrounding them. Free speech isn’t limited to where police or government authorities want it. What they want is compliance which is an odious word and a more odious expectation of free people. Acquiescence to intimidation and police thuggery is a concept of a totalitarian nation.
The recent Olympics in Beijing exposed a nation of contradictions. The government rules with an iron fist and ignores human rights while the people greet those from other nations with kindness and friendliness as long as conversation doesn’t broach the subject of challenging the rulers.
How are we different in the U.S. if the government dictates when and where we can exercise our constitutional rights? Both the Democrats and the Republicans give a lot of attention to the American “dream”. What is that dream? Is it the dream of Martin Luther King? Or is it the nightmare of oligarchy, totalitarianism, oppression and brutal violence against any citizen who steps out of line?
What is that dream so often referred to by the elected officials of this nation? Do we give the terrorists what they want by taking away the Bill of Rights? Do we revise the Constitution to eliminate privacy and the right to dissent? Do we beat down those who dare to dissent? That is not a dream. That is a nightmare that is quickly becoming a reality. Compliance to only the version of freedom the government allows is a nation of people so afraid of possible attacks implied by rogue leaders the people capitulate basic rights to protect an illusionary idea called the “American dream”.
For too long we have allowed a small group of politicians and their corporate bosses to dictate what patriotism and freedom is in this country. For too long we have allowed them to tell us how to think and how to behave. They have created an atmosphere of constant fear that the American way of life is in jeopardy. They’ve created a culture of death with constant wars, a culture of over consumption and pollution for corporate gain and a culture of arrogance to promote a nationalistic and imperialistic notion Americans are better than any other people on Earth.
The nationalistic arrogance of Americans has not brought us friends. It has brought us enemies. We continue to ignore the problems of other people unless there is a way for us to benefit. We are lousy citizens of this world. We pollute more and consume more than any nation in the world while every thirty seconds a child dies of conditions caused by poverty. We start wars to impose our way of life and to plunder the natural resources of other nations.
Police forces in this nation aren’t here to serve and protect the average citizen. They’re here to protect the government and corporate interests. If we stop and look at Amy Goodman being arrested that truth is obvious. If we watch marchers in streets of our cities being attacked by anonymous riot police for merely marching what else can we conclude? If we see and hear about raids on houses of activists wanting to send a peaceful message to our government, how can we think the police serve us?
The government lies to the people and the police are their enforcers to make the people comply with the designated script of “freedom”. Divert from the script and the play is over for you. Try to go by the rules of the Constitution and expect to see a cell.
We must keep the image of our children in the streets chanting for peace and justice being attacked by men and women in gear that makes them look like the villains in Star Wars. But this is not a movie. This is real. Imagine your child with the tears caused by gas in their eyes and a bloodied face for being in a street with others asking for what is morally right. Does the inconvenience to traffic and the business of the city justify beating our children? Seriously, is the business of corporations so important that we allow police to brutalize people who interrupt it for an hour with a march asking for an end to war, a return of sons and daughters from the war and some justice for people who are marginalized and forgotten completely?
The Christians of America are fond of saying “what would Christ do?” What would Christ do if He were to see what has occurred in Denver and Minneapolis-St. Paul? What would Christ do to the politicians who send the young to kill and be killed? What would Christ say to the religious leaders who have failed to come forth to seek peace and justice along with the young and disenfranchised? What would Christ do seeing the neglect of the poor of all nations by the richest nation in the world?
Do we fear the truth so much we are willing to brutalize our own? Apparently we do. Those who say this is a free nation, a Christian nation or a moral nation live in a fantasy world that doesn’t exist.
William T. Leichner, RN
Denver VVAW member
USMC combat veteran ’67-‘69
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