Mirror On America

Saturday, January 21, 2012

The South Carolina Primary

So, Little Newton Leroy spanked Willard in South Carolina.

Newt Gingrich is projected to be the winner of South Carolina.

It's not even close.

Newt - 41%
Willard - 26%
Santorum-18%
Newsletter Paul - 13%

Here's the thing....they might vote for the Mormon in the general when faced against the Kenyan Mooslim Soshulist in the White House, but, for now, the Holy Rollers aren't giving their votes to the Mormon.

Among those who take the religious identity of the candidates seriously, Romney was stomped by Gingrich and Santorum. Romney won only 22 percent of evangelicals.

22%!!!

According to exit polls, Mitt Romney lost voters of all income levels to Newt Gingrich except those making over $200,000 per year in CNN’s exit polling. Among these wealthiest voters, these early numbers show Romney winning 47% to Gingrich’s 31%.

hee hee hee

The GOP Clown Car continues.

found this tweet:

Seriously, cannot overstate the historic SC vote. Mitt the first establishment frontrunner to lose SC GOP primary EVER. As in "EVER.

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Let's Support RED TAILS

This Friday, the Movie Red Tails, will be opening. It is a movie about the Tuskegee Airmen and their fight to be able to fight in World War II.

It was produced by George Lucas.

Rob M left this in the comments last week:

VIA an email sent to me:
For all you movie buffs. Please help get the word out. As you may know, Red Tails is George Lucas' version of the story of the Tuskegee Airmen,
20 years in the making, and has a predominantly Black cast, certainly all the main actors are Black.

As it goes, when the movie was finally ready for production, no production company would take it, so George Lucas had to write a check. After production was completed, no distribution company would take it. So, George Lucas had to write another check. The advanced viewing was sponsored by Wells Fargo and the Museum for Black History Diaspora (not sure of the exact name).

The movie is intriguing and has edge-of-your-seat action. It's well done, and certainly worth the look.

I'm urging all of you to see this movie, and tell others about it as well. Anything we can do to ensure large numbers of viewers in the first few
days of release, scheduled for 20 Jan 2012, will make a statement to the production and distribution companies that were not interested in
this film for whatever reasons, that they made a mis-calculation.

If each of you tells as many people about this as you can, and attempts to take 4 or 5 people with you to see the film, that will be like a
geometric progression, and could potentially push the numbers off the chart.

Black folks like to talk about the lack of choices that we get as Black-centered entertainment. Well, when something different comes up, we need to support it.

Red Tails Trailer 2 Official 2012 [HD]

GO WISCONSIN!! Opponents file ONE MILLION SIGNATURES TO RECALL WALKER!!

In the fight against radical right-wing agendas, the people of Wisconsin have spoken:

Those involved in the fight to recall right-wing Koch Brother Stooge Scott Walker have filed ONE MILLION SIGNATURES in their fight.

From Business Week:

Wisconsin Governor’s Foes Have 1 Million Names for Recall
January 17, 2012, 7:48 PM EST
By Tim Jones and Marie Rohde

Opponents of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker have about 1 million signatures on petitions to force a recall election, according to a state Democratic Party news release.

If the state’s Government Accountability Board rules that at least 540,208 signatures are valid and any legal challenges fail, Wisconsin will hold the third gubernatorial ouster vote in U.S. history. The Republican politician championed restrictions on bargaining by public-employee unions, prompting the effort. The signatures are to be filed today.

Today’s submission in Madison, the capital, will escalate a partisan war that has raged 11 months and divided a state with a history of progressive politics. Voters ousted two senators in August who voted for Walker’s collective-bargaining curbs, and now the governor, lieutenant governor and four Republican state senators face possible removal votes in the second or third quarter.

The million people favoring a recall election for Walker compares with the 1.1 million votes that elected him in 2010.

Walker, in an interview today over Milwaukee radio state WTMJ, called the effort “a baseless recall.”

“We’re going to get a chance to do what’s never been done before: be elected twice in the same term,” Walker said.

Democrats and union members also collected about 850,000 signatures to recall Republican Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch and 20,600 names to recall Senator Scott Fitzgerald, about 4,200 more than necessary. Also targeted are Senators Pam Galloway, Terry Moulton and Van Wanggaard.

Out-of-State Money

The Accountability Board has said it will need at least 60 days to verify the signatures, and Kevin Kennedy, its director, said Jan. 12 he would need even more time to search for duplicate and fictitious names. The board has estimated the cost of the recall to be at least $9 million.

No Democratic candidate has emerged to challenge Walker.

Recall campaigns in nine legislative districts in 2011 were prompted by the battle over public-employee union collective bargaining rights and drew $44 million in contributions, most coming from out-of-state interests, according to the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, a nonpartisan watchdog group based in Madison.

In August, Walker said in an interview that voters had “had it” with recalls and that ‘things will quiet down.’’

He raised $7.6 million in anticipation of a recall, according to a Jan. 10 report filed with the board. He recently attended fundraisers in Washington and Austin, Texas.

Rev. Al discusses it:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Ed Schultz did a segment on this:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Wisconsin State Senator Jon Erpenbach talks with Rachel Maddow about the massive response to the call for signatures on recall petitions to remove Governor Scott Walker.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Happy Birthday, First Lady Michelle Robinson Obama

Happy Birthday, First Lady Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama.....

First Lady Michelle Obama stands with President Barack Obama, not pictured, as they wait for the arrival of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip for a reciprocal dinner at Winfield House in London, Wednesday, May 25, 2011.
-----AP Photo/Charles Dharapak

Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., kisses his wife, Michelle Obama, after giving his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention at Invesco Field at Mile High in Denver Thursday, Aug. 28, 2008.
----AP Photo/Alex Brandon

Happy Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

hat tip-The Obama Diary:

Today we celebrate the national holiday honoring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Presidential Proclamation -- Martin Luther King, Jr., Federal Holiday, 2012
MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR., FEDERAL HOLIDAY, 2012

- - - - - - -

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

On a hot summer day nearly half a century ago, an African American preacher with no official title or rank gave voice to our Nation's deepest aspirations, sharing his dream of an America that ensured the true equality of all our people. From the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. inspired a movement that would push our country toward a more perfect Union.

At a time when our Nation was sharply divided, Dr. King called on a generation of Americans to be "voices of reason, sanity, and understanding amid the voices of violence, hatred, and emotion." His example stirred men and women of all backgrounds to become foot soldiers for justice, and his leadership gave them the courage to refuse the limitations of the day and fight for the prospect of tomorrow. Because these individuals showed the resilience to stand firm in the face of the fiercest resistance, we are the benefactors of an extraordinary legacy of progress.

Today, Dr. King is memorialized on the National Mall where he once spoke, a symbol of how far our Nation has come and a testament to the quiet heroes whose names may never appear in history books, but whose selflessness brought about change few thought possible. Dr. King's memorial reminds us that while the work of realizing his remarkable dream is unending, with persistence, progress is within our reach.

On the Martin Luther King, Jr., Federal Holiday, we celebrate the man who fought for the America he knew was possible. Dr. King's faith in a God who loves all His children and a Nation grounded in the promise of equality would not let him rest until victory was won. As we work to meet the challenges of our time from fixing our schools so every child gets a world class education to ensuring all Americans have access to strong and secure economic opportunity let us draw strength from Dr. King's stirring affirmation that "Everybody can be great because everybody can serve." In his memory, let us continue climbing toward that Promised Land, one more fair and more just for all people.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 16, 2012, as the Martin Luther King, Jr., Federal Holiday. I encourage all Americans to observe this day with appropriate civic, community, and service

projects in honor of Dr. King, and to visit www.MLKDay.gov to find Martin Luther King, Jr., Day of Service projects across our country.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand twelve, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.

BARACK OBAMA

MLK Day Legacy: John Lewis

MLK Day Legacy: Ruby Bridges

MLK Day Legacy: Reverend Dr. Joseph E. Lowery

Vulture Capitalism at its finest: When Mitt Romney Came To Town

When Mitt Romney Came To Town — Full, complete version

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Upward Mobility Down and Inequality Up: How the American Dream Has Become A Fairy Tale

The 'American Dream' has been a fairy tale for many in this country for years now. Pundits and researchers are finally catching up and are discovering what people toward the bottom of the socio-economic ladder have known for years. Barbara Ehrenreich has been sounding the alarm for at least a decade now.

NPR's 'On Point' covered the issue of falling upward mobility and rising inequality this week. Europe and Canada now have better upward mobility than the United States. Scandinavian Countries in particular were found to have much better upward mobility. How is this possible with the huge social safety net programs in Europe? American (Conservative) economic philosophy tells us that the cost of social safety nets, healthcare, and labor regulations would create such a drag on economies that no jobs would be created, slow growth would be endemic and nations would be full of poor people. But what Scandinavian economies have shown is that you can have meaningful and responsible social safety nets, strong healthcare programs, labor protections while maintaining healthy growth and a solid standard of living for citizens across the board. In fact, the labor rights and good healthcare allow for greater mobility and more balanced economies. When people are confident that they will have a job, they are more willing to go out and spend money. When people are more secure about their health (knowing that they don't have to choose between food and medicine and won't go bankrupt just because they get sick), they are more comfortable with spending money and even making big ticket investments in their future. On the contrary, when people are job and food insecure, as many are in the United States right now, they are more likely to hold on to their money, not knowing if tomorrow will be the rainy day when they will need it. Conservative economic theorists don't get it. The bubble that they live in doesn't allow them to grasp this simple concept.

This is also an issue about national priorities. European Countries have made a fundamental decision to make education, investing in infrastructure, and investing in human capital (their people) a high priority...at least higher than what we see in the U.S. In Europe, there is not the same drive to be global cop and thus defense spending is not such a huge chunk of budgets overseas. Europeans care less about maintaining some sort of global empire. They even get to slack on their own defense. Canada and Europe have little incentive to maintain robust defense budgets, since the U.S. has everything covered. It all comes down to priorities. Until the U.S. makes a fundamental change on the question of what its priorities will be in the future, then no one should expect any change in economic disparities.

How bad is the inequality in the U.S.? The following map, based on the Gini Coefficient, shows that the U.S. is out of step with most of the developed world. When it comes to economic disparities, the U.S. looks more like some of the world's poorer countries.

Whether you make it in the U.S. (reach the middle class or higher....or whether you are able to do better than your parents) increasingly depends more on who you know, or who your parents know...and what socio-economic class you were born into rather than any variable that you control.... (like working hard, obtaining education, etc.). A college education no longer guarantees a pathway to the middle class and the "American Dream".

I have written about my own realization that the American Dream was more of a myth than anything that could actually be achieved. See my latest piece on the subject, How Do You Maintain Your Manhood and Dignity While Living Underemployed? (See the full commentary here). More and More data has surfaced lately, letting me know that this issue is not just my imagination. This is nothing new for the working class, and those who have graduated from college in the past few years who are struggling to find meaningful work. I have been a canary in the coal mine. I have watched my American Dream fade over the past decade or so. As I mentioned, not only have I not done better than my father... I have actually done worse. Just as an example... this past year, I lost my health coverage. The new company that I was absorbed into after a management shakeup doesn't offer any real coverage. For the first time in my life, I don't have health coverage. For 37 years, I had health coverage. Hard to wrap my head around to this day. Even when I was in poverty in my early childhood living with my biological mother in St. Louis...in one of the worst ghettos in America, I still had health coverage (through State and via military). It's amazing that i'm doing worse now. 2011 was one of the worst years of my life. 2012 won't be much better.

There will be no relief for the U.S. anytime soon. None of the Republican Presidential candidates will seriously address the issue. In fact, they want to make it easier for the top 10% of earners to make even more money, while maintaining a system of high job insecurity. They want to go back to Bush era policies that allowed corporations to ignore regulations, ignore workers and rake in billions. Leading economists called the 2000's (the Bush era) "the lost decade". This is what the GOP wants to go back to. In this tax averse culture (an atmosphere created by Republicans), there will not be enough revenue for human needs, or to get the deficit and debt under control. How Republicans have won this national argument (at least so far) is truly amazing to me. Americans actually agree with Progressives when this issue is broken down into practical pieces that voters can understand (when they can get a sense of how policies will affect them), yet we lose the national argument. This is largely due to the lack of Progressive leadership...lack of a message, and a lack of media savvy in my opinion. There is no reason why Progressives should lose the argument on these fundamental issues. This years general election will come down to these kinds of core questions... basically it will come down to who we are as a nation. It is strange that with all of the indignation aimed at Wall Street, Americans are considering literally putting Wall Street (Mitt Romney) into the White House as a solution to the Country's problems. It makes no sense to me... but a lot of things don't make sense to me about this Country.

Not only have the Republican candidates avoided addressing this issue with any real solutions, they have engaged in not so subtle racist attacks to gin up support from their base. I am frustrated beyond words when Santorum and Gingrich... two rich, privileged white men who have no idea what real work is all about, suggest that Blacks just want to lay around and collect food stamps. The suggestion (in their mind) is that lazy filthy blacks don't want to work. The message that they want to send to their base is that lazy Blacks are stealing tax dollars...and they (along with their Black President) are responsible for decent hardworking white people not having a job. They used to call this dog whistling.... code that only white racist constituents in red and purple states could hear...like a dog whistle that is barely audible to the human ear. But it's safe to say that members of the Republican field have thrown their dog whistles away. They are trying to out scream one another with their racist comments...and this is just the beginning of the Republican Primary. I was expecting the blatant racism in the general election... not this early.

President Obama? I'm not convinced that this is a top priority for him either. However, at least he has pushed initiatives that are helpful to working people, such as college tax credits, programs for reducing the impact of student loans, and healthcare reform (although flawed). At least I get the sense that this President won't exacerbate the mobility and inequality problem by stacking the deck completely against workers. But I have to admit that my vote (if I vote) will be against the Republican Party...to try to prevent someone worse from taking the White House, as opposed to a vote FOR Obama. Although my vote in Missouri will likely not make a difference.... being that this State is fairly anti-Obama. This is what I hate about a system of 51 separate elections...as opposed to a true national election. This is one of the primary reasons why I don't see the American system of voting as a truly fair and Democratic one.

Is the American Dream still alive for you? I think the answer to that question has a lot to do with what socio-economic position you were in before the economy (an already sluggish economy) got worse in 2007-2008. The answer also has a lot to do with what kind of family you were born into, etc. When you have resources... and you can network...or you have family that can network for you... it is easier to get through an economic crisis.