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The Shell Game (and the Political Revolution)

Posted by Unknown Thứ Hai, 11 tháng 4, 2016 0 comments

The Shell Game. What will you find under the middle one? The left one? The right one? How long will it take before you realize you've been had? 

 This past week we learned about the "Shell Company Game" for the super wealthy, courtesy of the Panamanian law firm of Mossack Fonseca. "The Panama Papers" reveal the where and how of the 1%'s billions that "disappear" so the money can't be reported as income and taxed. An international consortium of journalists began publishing names and details, and it's still early days in this leak of 11.5 million files. The opening stories reveal the tip of a very large iceberg, one that's already struck and sunk the Prime Minister of Iceland, a leader who ironically had up until recently been seen as tough on the banksters who collapsed the world's economy in 2008. 

We'll have to wait and see what big names will be named in the weeks to come, but hold onto your hats while reading this next statement: This fiasco was predicted four and a half years ago by one outspoken independent Senator from Vermont, Bernie Sanders. Watch this short C-Span video with his prophetic words on the subject:



 Here are some articles on the Panama Papers and what could happened next.

Bernie's prediction of the Panama Free Trade agreement would lead to financial crimes:
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/04/05/while-clinton-backed-2011-trade-deal-sanders-foresaw-panama-papers-fiasco

It's amazing how much Americans could benefit from this money being hidden overseas: http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/36236-its-amazing-what-america-could-do-with-the-money-the-rich-hide-overseas

How could the Panama Papers affect the presidential race?
http://www.askmen.com/news/power_money/how-the-panama-papers-leak-will-impact-the-us-presidential-election.html 

The Panama Papers are exactly why Hillary Clinton can't be president.
http://thefederalist.com/2016/04/08/the-panama-papers-make-the-case-against-hillary-clinton/ 

And how could it effect our government, our economy? 
 http://time.com/4280864/panama-papers-capitalism/ 

The journalists who broke the story and the nature of the files they uncovered:
http://panamapapers.sueddeutsche.de/articles/56febff0a1bb8d3c3495adf4/

John Podesta, current Hillary Clinton campaign chairman, and his brother Tony Podesta, a Hillary campaign bundler, have a shell company in Panama:
 http://freebeacon.com/issues/panama-papers-implicate-podes

Sec. of State Hillary Clinton accepts $485K in speaking fees from Deutche Bank after pushing the Panama Free Trade agreement that help the bankers: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/4/5/1510760/-Panama-Papers-Hillary-connection-to-Deutche-Bank

Bill and Hillary Clinton's Delaware shell companies-- sharing the same mailing address  as 285K other shell companies: http://freebeacon.com/issues/delaware-address-home-200000-shell-companies-including-hillary-clintons/

Bill Clinton's mysterious shell company:
 http://www.businessinsider.com/bill-clinton-has-a-mysterious-shell-company-2015-5?r=UK&IR=T

A related piece we ran in December about the investigation into the Clinton Foundation's tax records and its tie to foreign powers and arms deals: http://bernie2016.blogspot.com/2015/12/hillary-clintons-blood-money.html

The following links concern the Clinton family's speech-making activities and the large sums of money they've generated.

Chelsea Clinton's $65,000 ten minute speech at University of Missouri-KC:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/a-college-balks-at-hillary-clintons-fee-so-books-chelsea-for-65000-instead/2015/06/29/b1918e42-1e78-11e5-84d5-eb37ee8eaa61_story.html


Mitchell Blatt, editor of Bombs and Dollars, shares this piece of revealing information and graphic.

According to an analysis at Bombs and Dollars, the Clintons earned $2.5 million speaking to companies that also lobbied Mrs. Clinton while at the state department and donated to her foundation, including corporate tax dodger and mega-lobbyist GE.

Overall, the Clintons earned their most money from financial firms--$4.5 million.

Here's the link to the complete article (with many thanks to Mitchell for sharing it):
http://bombsdollars.com/index/index.php/2016/02/11/lobbying-paying-clinton-speeches-foundation/

Bernie Sanders' new campaign video shines a bright light into this quagmire of billionaires squirreling away their money in foreign shell companies so they can skip paying taxes and instead buy elections. It sums up all that's wrong with our corrupt campaign finance system. Share it with friends, family and co-workers who might not understand how the Citizens United ruling has allowed the billionaires to influence politicians.



***

Democracy Spring is on the March--
and Bernie accepts an invite from the Pope


It's been a fascinating week full of great news stories. First of all, Democracy Spring marchers began their 140 mile trek from Philadelphia's Liberty Bell to the Mall in Washington DC. PoliticalRevolution.TV has a live stream broadcast unit embedded in the group and have been broadcasting the marchers live daily as they make their way to the big gathering at the Mall on April 11-18. Read more about their sit-ins plans and protest activities at their web site: http://www.democracyspring.org/ and the reasons why some are marching here. 

In another Bernie Sanders-related news story, on Friday Pope Francis issued an invitation to Bernie to speak at a conference on social, economic and environmental issues during Bernie's April 15 visit. Bernie has long expressed his admiration for the Pope's moral stance on "the idolatry of money." Both man have remarked on how we should care more for our less fortunate brothers and sisters and take action to clean up the environment for the benefit of all mankind. This auspicious visit takes place just four days before the crucial New York primary, too.  

Good luck to you, Bernie, and the best of luck to all our Democracy Spring marchers. #FeeltheBern as you help us realize the political revolution!

***
Enjoy this song video that shows how much we need a political revolution and read its interpretation by the songwriter.

 
Evolution of Revolution
by Wayne Gathright

The song Evolution of Revolution is a perfect statement about the transformation of politics that is happening right now in America. The Bernie Sanders political revolution is a result of the frustration that so many people in America feel.

Revolution historically has been about change, but never before has revolution been like what we see today. It has evolved into a dynamic mesh of social media taking advantage of tools such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook among others, plus the emergence of both the young and old demanding the end of the political establishment that is in the pocket of big business. They are demanding a political candidate and a leader that is willing to be the face of this social wave. This is not just a movement--it is a revolution to overthrow both political and corporate corruption.

The song begins with a statement about the unwillingness of people to even listen to the opinions of others. This typifies the ones that are blind to anything but what they have been fed by the media.

The memorable chorus echoes the frustration that is felt by so many in this movement, and ends up calling for others to participate in the "Evolution of Revolution."

The second verse pokes fun of the "right" and the "left" political parties that are ignorant of the true "hammer that is coming down" from above. That hammer is in the form of a financial crisis, security crisis, environmental crisis or even a social crisis--unless things are changed.

The bridge of the song is a statement that the public is tired of being pushed to the background and holding their tongues. The participants in this social revolution are not afraid to let their voice be heard because they are the ones that are fighting for the freedom of America. They are strong and proud and ready to stand up for what they believe.


***
 This Woman is Bernie Strong!
a weekly commentary by female Bernie supporters
 
This week we have a heartfelt letter sent to our favorite presidential candidate:

Dear Bernie Sanders,

How can I encapsulate with mere words the incredible surge of  esprit de corps you have rekindled in my fellow Americans and me? Your courage, strength and constancy continue to elucidate those ideals which so many of us want to preserve and cultivate for future generations. Your campaign shines brightly through the quagmire of our country’s status quo and illuminates the prospect of an improved America, which would restore, among other things, dignity to those who are disenfranchised. 

Your long term commitment as a public servant stands as a testament to the true activist that you are. Your optimism continues to awaken and excite those who feel downtrodden, offering a chance for real change and a promise of equitable prosperity. You value people of all colors and creeds. Your integrity is exceptional. What more could we ask from a presidential candidate?

I have heard you speak of political revolution in regards to your grassroots efforts and the changes we as American citizens will create when we work together. Your campaign contribution totals alone are revolutionary, proving the effectiveness of what a group of like-minded people can accomplish. I believe you have had several other revolutions as well: the astounding legions of people in attendance at your venues, the continual positivity of your campaign in spite of the “spin” the other candidates use to thwart your progress, the revival of the true American spirit and “can do” attitude which we all carry within us. Bernie, you demonstrate for all of us what a modern day revolutionary is.

That being said, I believe your candidacy alone has done more than ignite a revolution. Revolutions can only usher a cause so far. What I see has a much farther reach than a revolution.  No longer will the American people accept the elitist status quo. No longer will the American people feel disheartened and unrepresented. Bernie, you have become that pivotal point from which our quantum leap forward begins. You, Mr. Sanders, have championed an evolution.  Our forward momentum cannot be stopped. So, let’s remove the “r” from revolution, take that giant leap together and forge the bonds of the Great American Evolution.

I would like to express my gratitude for the sacrifices that you, your wife, and your children make each and every day for us. Your ever-growing American team, whether they work with you directly or indirectly, deserves my thanks as well.  I am also grateful for my fellow Americans’ incredible displays of support for you and your campaign. May our mutual dream for a renewed America come to fruition. I firmly believe with you at the helm, we have the best chance of making that dream a reality.

While the term hero connotes a multitude of images which may differ from person to person, when we apply that term to you, Bernie, we all stand in agreement. You are our hero! We want you as our president!

With my sincerest gratitude, your fervent supporter,

Anne H. E. DeVore

Bio: Anne says, "Originally from the Chicago area, I've lived in Paris, France and now living the rural life in a small town in Pennsylvania. Graduated from Dominican University (formerly Rosary College) with a BA in psychology and sociology. When I'm not  using my one person makes a difference approach to fan the flames of change to support Bernie, I work with special needs children."
***



Editor's Note
I've been working on persuading non-progressive voters to consider Bernie Sanders as a presidential choice on a "neutral" political web site. If you can, please visit my blog postings there and hit the "like" check mark at the bottom left side of the blog and/or leave a comment. Feel free to share the blog links (below) with others, too. I realize it might even be easier to get some friends to read a pro-Bernie piece at a web site without his name in the title.

The more hits I get on my writing at Political Storm, the more they'll ask me to write another flattering Bernie piece and so on. It's all part of my plan to help bring about the political revolution one voter at a time. Thank you.


My second post (so far): A Consistent Digital Footprint


To end this week's blog on a high note, here's a "tweet" you can share with others.
https://twitter.com/BERNARDBIRD2016/status/717092555666501632

Now, get on out there and phonebank, canvass and spread the news about Bernie Sanders to other voters. Remember it's #NotMeUs. The New York primary is coming soon--help Bernie win it!

The Greatest Threat to American Democracy

Posted by Unknown Thứ Hai, 7 tháng 3, 2016 0 comments


Citizens United, a.k.a. billionaires buying elections. This week we take an in-depth look at the damage it's done to our political system. With Bernie Sanders' leadership, the American electorate are lining up around the block to vote in their primaries and caucuses. We the people can fight back against the oligarchs! We can take our country back from those who threaten our very freedoms... Together we can do it with Bernie in the White House!

The Greatest Threat to American Democracy
by Subhra Bhattacharya


In many ways, I am grateful to be living in the twenty first century. I can expect to live much longer than my ancestors. Diseases which were considered fatal and incurable a few decades ago can be easily cured today, at least for those who can afford the treatment. Distances that took months to navigate in the past can be conquered in hours now. We can heat our homes without having to scavenge for wood, video chat with our friends living half a world away. If we need to learn about something we can do so from the comfort of our homes.

Yet life is far less idyllic, far less utopian than it was a generation ago. As we solve one problem another creeps up. Old issues resurface in various guises. Civilization seems to go around in cycles as Foucault conjectured.

We read of meaningless violence every day to the extent where we now come to expect it as a part of life. Children being harmed in schools. Worshipers in churches. We hear stories of comfortable retirement from past generations, but are not convinced  we will achieve that. We see the homeless and others in poverty. We see middle class families facing bankruptcy, being denied available medical treatment due to lack of insurance coverage. We see our prisons fill up with meaningless and preventable incarcerations. We see the rising cost of education and the diminishing returns of a college degree. We hear the war drums marching on.

The most appealing aspect of a democracy is that it is a system of government where citizens solve their own problems. Sometimes they do it directly and at other times indirectly. In Athens, the first democracy of the Western world, citizens would gather in a public place and debate a problem, and then use the process of voting to choose among the various proposed solutions. In modern times we choose our representatives to form a government who in turn debate and use other democratic processes to solve our problems.

Or at least we hope so.

Given this framework any problem can be solved using the democratic process. We simply need to vote for a representative who we feel will represent our issues, and once the representative gets elected through majority voting we expect her to work for us. Given this assumption all the problems that a society faces seem solvable, at least in theory, given a democratic framework.

What happens when the democratic framework itself is under attack? When we are no longer able to elect representatives who we feel will represent us, but we see our representatives being chosen by the wealthy and the influential? What happens when "one person one vote" is no longer the truth, rather, it is "one dollar one vote."

That is the mother of all issues we face today because it robs us of the very process that we use to solve issues. It is an issue that is not a threat to a particular constituency but to all of American democracy. The role that money plays in our system today to influence the outcome of elections results in depriving the citizens of the influence that they rightfully should instead have. And money elects representatives who  help the moneymakers make even more money who in turn grow more powerful and continue to influence the elections even more, and the cycle perpetuates, leaving ordinary citizens in the dust.

To be fair, money has always played a role in elections. It is utopian to imagine an electoral process completely free of the influences of the wealthy. However, until recently, we have had common sense laws that limited this influence. We had laws in place that placed sensible limits on how much the wealthy, the corporations and  special interest groups could spend to ensure their candidates of choice get elected. An example of such a common sense law is the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA).

This sensible system of restraint came tumbling down six years ago when five justices of the Supreme court sided with Citizens United to rewrite campaign contribution laws of the country. In one stroke of the pen these justices ushered in an era of unlimited campaign contributions by corporations and super-PACs, the vehicles of the wealthy. This single-handed assault on democracy has resulted in its greatest defacement that our generation has ever seen.

Citizens United vs FEC (2010) was the greatest example of a legal circus in recent history. In an unashamed display of judicial law making the five conservative justices of the Supreme Court banded together with the conservative lobbying group to overrule decades old rulings that had prohibited some forms of campaign contributions by corporations ( Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Commerce (1990) and McConnell v. Federal Election Commission (2003)) while partially overturning the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 as unconstitutional. The ruling vastly exceeded the request of the plaintiff and was much broader and expansive than what the original complaint required. It was truly a case of judicial legislation. In the process, the majority opinion changed hands from Chief Justice Roberts to Justice Kennedy as it became broader. The drama required two sessions of oral arguments.

The argument that the court used to overturn the previous rulings and invalidate the campaign finance law was that any limitation on campaign finance violated the First Amendment's Freedom of Speech guarantee and was thus unconstitutional. It maintained that the First Amendment guarantees any corporation the freedom to spend as much money it wished to influence the outcome of an election. In doing so, it asserted two things : 1) that money equates to free speech, and 2) that corporations are equivalent to human beings and enjoy the same protections of the First Amendment.  

Now, one cannot come up with a finer example of distortion of constitutional interpretation, of judicial activism and of total disregard for common sense in law than what was displayed by the majority justices in this case. First, they said that money is free speech, that spending money is equivalent to speaking one's mind and thus protected by the constitution. Living things express themselves in many ways--dogs bark, cats meow, humans speak. There are also non-verbal ways of expression, using body language, smiling, crying, sulking, and through creative endeavors like music, art etc. All of these are innate and natural. Money is not. It is a construct of society, an artificial one that allows us to navigate our day to day life. We had free speech and free expression before society invented money.

Individuals have more or less the same capacity to express themselves in basic terms. The framers of our constitution understood this and enshrined the clause to protect us as an equalizing measure. Protecting an individual's right to free-expression seemed to them as something natural and something which gave every member of society more or less similar rights.

This equation changes when money is equated to free speech. Individuals are no longer equal; a great disparity in their capacity to express themselves through their ability to spend money emerges. The billionaire now is a million times more capable of expressing herself than the person who only has a thousand bucks in her bank account. Our founding fathers must be turning in their graves to see their words being interpreted thus.

Killer Mike and Bernie take on the Koch Brothers
The second abuse that majority justices in this case perpetrated was to assert that corporations have the same protections under the Constitution as individuals. No stretch of imagination will convince me that a corporation, whose sole motive is to make money for its owners, is a human being and should enjoy the same rights and protections.

The justices in their majority opinion said that since a corporation is an association of individuals it should enjoy the same protections as an individual. This logic is highly flawed. An association of constituents is an aggregate entity and it does not assume the identity of its constituents. The identity of the aggregate is not the same as the identity of its members, and thus, cannot be treated equally. There are many examples in case law where associations of individuals are treated differently than the individuals themselves. For example, a marriage is an association of two individuals, however, it is treated differently for tax purposes than the two members of said marriage would be if they filed  as single individuals. The law treats the association as a different entity than the individuals who constitute it.

The ramifications of the verdict of Citizens United vs FEC 2010 is more damaging to our democracy than any other current threat. It enables billionaires like the Koch brothers and their corporations to spend unlimited amounts of money to support their candidates of choice and to defeat candidates they don't like. They can spend it in any way they like--run TV ads, phone campaigns, engage in lobbying, organize rallies, fund litigation... They can make sure anyone they want wins. And the people the Koch brothers support are obligated to them, owe them, and will work in the favor of the rich after they are elected, crafting legislation and making policy decisions that will benefit the wealthy. This makes the wealthy even wealthier. They can elect even more politicians to their liking and the cycle perpetuates. This comes at the expense of the common citizen who has virtually no power today to affect elections when pitted against the money of the wealthy. 

No wonder the income inequality in America has reached unprecedented heights never before seen since the era of the Great Depression. The top 1% by wealth today controls more than 20% of America's money. The last time this happened was in 1928.

It is not easy to fix this problem. Overturning Citizens United to limit the influence of the wealthy in the electoral process can happen in only one of two ways. When vacancies arise, a president may appoint justices in the Supreme Court who will be willing to overturn this should a suitable case ever reach the court. It is widely believed that as many of four justices may retire from the Supreme Court in the next four years giving the next president an opportunity to appoint their replacements. (Editor's note: This was written before the death of Justice Scalia.) The other way is to create a constitutional amendment. This will require the support of the president, the Congress as well as the state legislatures.

Both are difficult processes where success is not guaranteed. However, we will need to start somewhere. Unless we can fix the way our representatives get elected there is little hope that any of the issues that affect us will be addressed. As long as our representatives feel the support of the wealthy is all that matters they will keep on working for the wealthy only. The issues of the common individual will never be addressed. That is what is happening in America today.

The only way to fix this is to elect representatives who want to fix it, and the only way they will want to do it is if they do not owe allegiance to the wealthy, rather to the common citizens. This cannot happen if we elect people who are too close to the rich and the corporations, who are too friendly with the wealthy and who benefit from them.
 
The spectrum of presidential candidates today offers a bleak picture. The Republicans, of course, owe their allegiance to money. That is part of their political philosophy, but the picture on the Democratic party side is not pretty, either.
 
http://bibliolist.com/candidate-financials/

Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton has deep roots in the wealthy and powerful community. She is the darling of Wall Street, of media barons, of Big Pharma and many other wealthy corporations and individuals. Not only is she personally friendly with these people but she has in the recent past spoken at their venues. It his hard to imagine she will do much that will harm the interests of these friends and patrons of hers if she were to be elected as president.

The only candidate who has consistently spoken up about the usurping of the system by the wealthy and about economic inequality in America is Bernie Sanders. True to his commitment, his support is totally grassroots. His campaign does not depend on the Super-PACs created by the wealthy and the powerful. He does not owe any allegiance to them. His voting record in Congress has consistently shown him to be the champion of the common American. Income inequality lies at the forefront of his campaign agenda.

Let us take our democracy back from the wealthy. Vote for Bernie Sanders.


Bio: Here's what Subhra says about himself: I live in Jersey City, NJ and work in Manhattan. I am a Software Engineer and work for a trading firm building electronic trading systems. I have worked in Wall Street firms for almost my entire work life - in the past I have worked for two of the firms that precipitated the meltdown of the economy, Lehman Brothers and Bear Sterns. In that sense, I have seen the workings of Wall Street from the inside.

Having seen it, I believe that something needs to be done to limit the influence of money in our political system, and it needs to be done sooner than later.



***
This Woman is Bernie Strong!
a weekly commentary featuring Bernie Sanders' female supporters
Pioneers! O Pioneers! 
by Barb McMillen 

After listening to The Diane Rehm Show this 
morning, I was mulling over what has been a slow 
rising sense of Bernie’s campaign. That we as 
Americans have lost our way, that we have allowed 
ourselves to be lulled into complacency and victim-
hood and we have become fat and lazy eating 
Monsanto chips with ALEC dip.

The reason the Corporations and the Billionaires 
have taken over is we have allowed ourselves to be
 hypnotized into futility. Bernie Sanders has given us our marching orders. 
Nothing will change in this country, the Oligarchy will close over us like a 
blanket over the dead.
It's official--Bernie Sanders 
Campaign office opens in Toledo! 
(There was cake, too.)

Last Wednesday evening saw the grand opening of the Official
Bernie Sanders office in the the Toledo, Ohio area, located at I.B.E.W. 
Local 8 Union Hall at 807 Lime City Road in Rossford. Phone-banking and 
canvassing operations will take place on a daily basis from now until the Ohio primary on March 15. Don't hesitate to come by the hall or contact 
Kristen Robideaux on the official Facebook page about how you can help 
Bernie in the Buckeye state. Volunteer  today! You're in good company.
 
And you can sing along and learn more about Citizens United:

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