People, they are stealing you blind !

[kentuck]

You work your butts off for less and less and they take your tax dollars and give them to Big-Time crooks posing as "defense" contractors. There is no accountability and no responsibility. When they need more money than you give them in taxes, they simply borrow the rest and give that to the Big-Time crooks also. They put that on your children's and your grand-children's credit card. Wake up people! Before it is too late. Your country is going down the tube! You shall not be warned often.

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. I can't get my hubby to leave. I am hoping my kids will consider it when

they grow up.

[xray s]

6. we should leave

what is the point of staying? There are a whole bunch of countries that share the ideals of democracy, and have used democracy to limit corporate power and provide for the betterment for their citizens.

I am tired of getting screwed by these assholes.

The only other alternative is seceding. I'd like to seriously float that idea. Give the red states their freedom. Kick the idiots out.

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. They guardian pointed out the other

day what is obvious to many of us... the contry is fully atomized... I now believe that the path for the break up of the US into three or four successor states is well under way (and this is NOT what they want). It can still be stopped, but it will take a lot and for people to raelize, the old rules no longer work.

[kath]

21. Do you have a link to the Guardian piece?

[nadinbrzezinski]

22. hmm let me see... checking my old emails as I sent it to folks

Found it

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,,1566036,00.html

[kath]

28. Thanks! That's an *extremely* good piece - recommend you all read it.

Two (and 1/2) paragraphs I really liked (but it's ALL good)

Now the shock is something else. It is the shock of discovering that Oz is only an optical illusion and the Wizard is a small man with no magic power after all. America now looks like some fearsome robotic dinosaur stomping across the landscape, a gigantic Power Ranger toy, all bright gadgets and display but no power and nothing inside. It's Buzz Lightyear. It can't actually do anything useful after all.

<snip>
But it took Hurricane Katrina to expose the real emptiness under the US carapace. No wonder governing Iraq was far beyond the competence of a nation so feebly governed within its own borders. How does a state where half the voters don't believe in government, run anything well? A nation ideologically and constitutionally committed to non-government is bound to crumble at the core. Rome had no doubts about governance.
What the great Louisiana catastrophe has revealed is a country that is not a country at all, but atomised, segmented individuals living parallel lives as far apart as possible, with nothing to unite them beyond the idea of a flag.
<more>

[Horse with no Name]

32. To me...it's here in a nutshell

and it applies to our country AND Iraq.

"As the US finds that the power to break nations is useless without the power to make them, shock and awe is over."

[MadHound]

25. The point of staying is to take your country back

Geez, America was a great country not terrbily long ago, with potential to lead the world into a new age. But now, we've let the robber barons rule the roost again, and instead of fighting back and taking our country back from the bastards, people are simply throwing their hands up and leaving?! Man, we bitch about our leaders not having a spine, perhaps they're simply following the example of their contstituents, hmmmm?

Rather than leave when the going gets tough, stay and fight back. My God, if the working class had done that one hundred years ago, during the first Gilded Age, you and I very well might not be here, and this country would be vastly different(for the worse).

I get tired of hearing all of these people throwing up their hands and resolving to leave without a fight. THIS IS YOUR COUNTRY PEOPLE, GIVEN TO YOU BY OUR FOREFATHERS! ARE YOU HONESTLY GOING TO ABANDON IT WITHOUT A FIGHT? YOU HAVE EXAMPLE AFTER EXAMPLE OF US CITIZENS SUCCESSFULLY FIGHTING THE BASTARDS, YET YOU WEEP AND WAIL AND LEAVE AT THE FIRST SIGN OF OPPOSITION! HELL, THE BACKLASH IS JUST GETTING STARTED, STAY AND FIGHT FOR YOUR BIRTHRIGHT!

We have seen time and again examples of Americans having to fight and seize their country back from the corporatistas and the war hawks. Sure, it takes a bit to get the American people to rise up and throw the bastards out, but once the ball gets moving, it is an unstoppable force. Look what has happened during the Vietnam era, the Depression, the Socialist, Populist, and Labor movements. Civil Rights, Women's Rights, Gay Rights, all of this and more have been successful mass movements to one degree or another, yet after just four years, when it looks like we are now starting to reach the needed critical mass to really accomplish some good, you people are ready to bail out and leave the country? FUCK THAT!

Rather do what your ancestors did, stay and fight and win. All that a mass exodus of liberals will do is insure the failure of this great nation. Your actions will lead to this consequence, along with consigning the groups of people, the poor, disabled, the powerless, etc. to the very fate that you seek to escape.

And if America becomes the monolithic militaristic fascist state that we all fear it could become, well guess what, whatever country that you flee to won't protect you, and you will only be consigning the entire world to the fate of a fascist American state uber alles. Or the complete destruction of the global society as we know it.

This is OUR problem, one that we ALL need to fight. Fleeing is the cowards way out, especially at the moment that matters are starting to turn our way. But we need everybody to insure that victory, so please, I beg you, don't flee. You will only insure the whole world's fate.

[cassiepriam]

29. Aren't most Americans like Bush??

Stupid, greedy, immoral, apathetic??
How are we supposed to get them to fight for anything?

[MadHound]

30. No, they're not. Remember, the majority of Americans

Didn't vote for Bush. In fact the majority of Americans didn't vote period.

And even among those who did vote for Bush, more and more everyday are starting to abandon him, and even work actively against this misadministration.

We are on the cusp of a revolution here, and if you leave, you'll miss it. Besides, we need all the help we can get.

[SammyWinstonJack]

26. I'd certainly leave if I were financially able to. I see no point in

staying here. It gets worse everyday and the Dem Leaders are either too afraid, marginalized, or are in cahoots with the GREED PIGS that are currently in power.

[Horse with no Name]

31. That's the answer that I keep coming back to as well

the country is divided already by politics and morals...go ahead and do the geographic split.
I honestly don't think it is fixable at this point.:(

[Tace]

2. I'm Just A Cheering Turd Circling The Drain

Love you more! Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle.

[PuraVidaDreamin]

3. CR keeps on looking better and better

Pura Vida Kentuck

[natrat]

4. preachin to the choir

[kentuck]

7. I know, natrat....

I keep clinging to my last shred of faith that someone else might read it and believe it to be true. I'm about ready to close down this church.

[are_we_united_yet]

5. Hey kentuck...

Isn't it the saddest state of affairs that this is not blatantly obvious to some people?

:(

[melody]

8. people are leaving

My friend in Scotland tells me the second largest group of foreign residents are Americans.

The best influences in this country are progressive. Once we leave with all the information, technology, arts and talent, to say nothing of a massive tax base, the red states are going to be left with a third world country helmed by multi-national robber barons who would rather shoot them all than bother about them. Lets see how much attention their "God" pays to them then without the heathen blue-staters to back up their tiny voices.

[natrat]

10. really reinforces how fragile this country is

without a real media or some kind of proportional representation like in europe it seems that the bad guys have taken over way too easily

[buzzsaw_23]

11. yep

scream it out every day.



From d.a. levy
"Really"
                     the police try to protect
                     the banks - and everything else
                     is secondary"

[undergroundpanther]

12. Bush cabal

Is a gangster cabal.The bullies among us dominate humanity. Time to stop playing make believe game and get rid of "self made leaders" and refuse to recognize thier"authority"..People with integrity need to care about each other and keeping thier integrity. Let the morally inferior pigs across the nation and in positions of power who would abuse others for selfish gain suffer for thier own hatred of weakness,thier sick bullying of the weaker and thier consummate cowardice and greed..FUCK them all Fuck every abuser dominator sociopathic egotistical asshole and thier demands of respect entitlement or loyalty fuck the criminal gangs of pigs,and every bully asshole that exists in this world.

[whistle]

13. Hasn't America's wealth always been about political corruption...

....bribery, greed, cronyism, inemptitude and big-time crooks regardless of which political party has been in power? However, when republicans are in power, the corruption goes off the scale. and trillions of tax payer dollars just disappear.

<snip>
September 03, 2005

How the Free Market Killed New Orleans

By Michael Parenti

<snip>
America the Beautiful and Powerful, America the Supreme Rescuer and World Leader, America the Purveyor of Global Prosperity could not accept foreign aid from others. That would be a most deflating and insulting role reversal. Were the French looking for another punch in the nose? Were the Cubans up to their old subversive tricks?

Besides, to have accepted foreign aid would have been to admit the truth---that the Bushite reactionaries had neither the desire nor the decency to provide for ordinary citizens, not even those in the most extreme straits.

I recently heard someone complain, “Bush is trying to save the world when he can’t even take care of his own people here at home.” Not quite true. He certainly does take very good care of his own people, that tiny fraction of one percent, the superrich. It’s just that the working people of New Orleans do not number among them.
<more>
<link> http://www.zmag.org/Sustainers/Content/2005-09/03parenti.cfm

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20000306/sherrrill

http://www.crisispapers.org/topics/corruption.htm

[firefox]

14. The criminals are in charge

I watched the Emmys tonight and Brokaw and Rather took the stage with the big screen behind them with a picture of Jennings as the extolled their dedication to excellence in journalism that guided their lives.

It about made me puke. People were applauding for these thoughtherders like they have done us all a great service and all without any of them ever coming to the conclusion in their career/life that America has slam gone to hell and has unleashed its military in the ever elusive dream of world conquest and all for the benefit of the criminals that stole the country.

We are ruled by treason. That is my conclusion, but does anyone else dare to admit it?

[KoKo]

15. I don't know, at this point, if we can really get away from it...

GLOBILIZATION! Isn't that the "meme" since Katrina? Isn't that what Clinton was talking about at the "Globilization Conference" where I posted here I just had to turn it off?

Look at Great Britain with Blair. If one reads the "Guardian" or listens to BBC snips on NPR...it's getting to be the same there as it is here.

And, look at Germany. So far it looks like Merkel couldn't pull it off but it was close.

"Globilization" dreams of the Think Tanks and World Bank and IMF control us all, no matter where we go, I fear.

There's that old saying: "Bloom where you are planted."

Right now some of us Blossoms are withering away from lack of nourishment and attention by our Dem Gardeners. Maybe there are other ways to find nourishment besides joining with the Evangelicals and Praising Jesus all day. Maybe there's something else..

[kentuck]

16. Perhaps we could start a "new" Party, KoKo01??

One with balls and a backbone? One that tells it like it is in the shortest and truest words possible? One that challenges America to think for themselves, rather than acting like stupid robots? The corporations are so close to complete dominance they are rubbing their hands together in glee and they can smell the victory...

[KoKo]

17. I think it will come to that....but

it will be long after some of us have a chance to enjoy it. Maybe not...maybe we should be optimistic. But, it would be great to dump this baggage we've been hauling around for decades and start fresh wouldn't it!

In times of great crisis history says "a great leader will emerge."

I don't see one yet, but I hope to hell they get off their butt and emerge soon. A great "truth teller" who will blast away the lying crooks and thieves and set them on their heads.

Sorry...to be glum... Maybe it's Katrina aftermath that's got everyone here down more than usual. We could try to look on the bright side at those poll numbers and figure he's pretty much missed his "bullhorn moment" and there aren't too many tricks left he can pull. Maybe the people of the Gulf will outsmart the crooks and thieves. After all, the Iraqi's haven't taken too kindly to their "reconstruction," so those in the Gulf have some warning as to what they are up against. :shrug:

[kentuck]

18. Perhaps it is Katrina ?

How much longer can we wait for a "great leader"? And why aren't we optimistic? Because we know you can never underestimate the gullibility of the American people. Those that are bad-mouthing Bush today could be back on his bandwagon tomorrow...

[shadowknows69]

20. So step the fuk up and lead us

Or I'll do it. Help me take back this country. No more easy ride. Time to stand or hide. Which is your side?

[natrat]

23. yea we could call it the new populist movement

and any leader we bring forth will be summarily murdered in a small plane

[nadinbrzezinski]

19. Koko I fear what is coming down the pike is what almost happened

in 1932... can you say Revolution? Most folks don't realize it but FDR had the political will to enact his very radical New Deal (It was for the time) because it was one way to save Capitalism and he was so resented that the Industrialists even tried to get a military Coup against him, but the Marine they contacted turned them in... essentially.

I fear this time we will have a revolution for more and more people are realizing the ballot box will do nothing... I reached that conclusion over the last 72 hours... '

To paraphrase Kennedy, those who prevent peaceful revolutions only ensure a violent one.

[natrat]

24. i fear there will be no revolution,,, just riots due to hunger

followed by subjugation, and military lock down with no internet type communications---i think they are planning it this way once no one believes the lies anymore---that chertoff omfg is he right out of the 3rd reich or what

[KoKo]

27. yes...I've felt that it's coming...

We didn't finish it in the 60's and 70's. And, what caused the troubles then has come back. Actually the issues then never went away but were covered up and leaders pushing forward alternatives were "taken out" (to use a Bush Admin. term)

I really don't want to go through it again...so I try to hope that this one will be peaceful..but I know what you mean...and I fear it could start with New Orleans. It might have to come...I and others here tried to stop it in our small ways. But, when Leaders don't listen to the people the last resort is to make them listen. These people running America have closed their ears and drunk with power they belittle and ridicule everyone who is not with them. That's what's different about these people. They aren't a Nixon or Reagan or an LBJ who were aware of criticism. They thrive on it.

[Rex]

33. Warnings don't work anymore, TV has drained the will to move.

Couch zombies who work like cattle and watch as their health insurance skyrockets! Pitchfork and torches? Naw, more like monday night football! Hey look, it's the silver bullet train! Woo woo! BEEERR!!!!

Rome fell and so will America.