nilsonotes

Dear Governor Snyder,

Both the Governor and legislature have made it abundantly clear that the state's top two priorities are enabling corporations to maximize profits and enriching the state treasury, with the second being done despite glaring needs in social programs. There is no reason to expect any change in policy for the immediate future.

Therefore, I ask the Governor and Republican lawmakers to cease pretending to represent me, and refrain from expressing concern for my well being. This is a lie.

Furthermore, I request an honest acknowledgement of the state's true intentions, which are:
Enabling the rich to become even richer by reducing taxes on business. Increasing the tax burden on the middle class to support state spending.Gutting environmental protections which adds to global warming and greatly increases the risk to public health from air, water and soil pollution.Undermining the value of public education in favor of for-profit charter schools which have not proven…

What a great idea! Prison artists doing portraits of CEOs, and listing their crimes against the environment, economy and society. They can be seen in a book published by The Captured Project, whose website states that all "profits go toward holding corporations responsible for their crimes, reforming the criminal justice system, and removing corporate control over government" - the pillars of Bernie Sander's campaign for president.

The book displays the portraits (which are rendered quite skillfully) and lists the CEO's offenses below. Is it possible this kind of approach can open previously closed eyes and bring a new awareness of the crimes Big Business commits in order to "produce the products and services that better their customer's lives"?

For too long these corporate mobsters have been foisted off as champions of democracy and protectors of the common good, when they are nothing more than corruptors of the same. It's time they were stripped of …

A fiercely conservative editor at The Detroit News, posted a column recently about the effect Trump's travel ban is having on the local Muslim community. He pointed out that while the executive action has greatly increased the stress level of Arab-Americans, it has also had the surprising effect of greatly increasing support for the community from outside. In cities across the country, large numbers of non-muslims are marching in protest against the ban.

At first glance the column seemed to be about a silver lining amidst despair - you know, feel good stuff. Instead, it turned into nothing more than another excuse to lick old wounds from the beating conservatives took - at their own hands it should be noted - during the previous administration. The writer deftly turned a reprehensible action taken by the current so-called "President" - which turned out to have at least one positive effect - and used it to hi-lite a misguided policy of the former legitimate President.

H…

"The Deep State" is a term that has been growing incrementally in America's Political awareness for the past few years. My own introduction came by way of Bill Moyer's interview with Mike Lofgren, author of The Deep State: The Fall of the Constitution and the Rise of a Shadow Government. Since then, as more information has entered my awareness, I've felt a painful need to understand more about this hidden reality. I say painful because if even some of what's being reported is true, it means having to radically adjust the way I see the world.

After reading an OpEdNews article on the phenomenon, I felt the point had been reached where I needed to see if my understanding of what was being revealed about this hidden realm was correct. The following is a comment I posted on the article in which my understanding of the Deep State was laid out, along with several questions that such understanding evoked. Also included, is one of the replies.

The Comment
I have some …

Whatever the intended goal of the Republican plan to replace Obamacare, one thing should be clear - it's not to provide adequate health care for all Americans. I suspect it's simply to create additional profit for insurance and pharmaceutical companies. After all, the free market cures all ills.