The disappearing Middle Class or Class Warfare?

Bill Moyers Journal episode from 6-13. Moyers examines a hard working family in Los Angeles, and how they must hold two and sometimes three jobs to just make ends meet. The frustrations and decisions they face are problems the majority of Americans are facing within the last decade. Workers productivity increased 76% but wages have only increased less than 2% in the last 30 years.

You can download the video or just watch it here.

Sphere: Related Content

Silicon valley sees middle class disappearing..

The rate is alarming..and its should scare the bejesus out of everyone. From the NYT writeup:

The report found that from 2002 to 2006, middle-wage jobs fell to 46 percent of the work force, from 52 percent.

At the same time, while the percentage of higher-end jobs rose slightly — to 27 percent from 26 — lower-wage jobs expanded to 27 percent, from 22 percent of the work force. In all, more than 50,000 middle-income jobs have disappeared over the four years measured by the study.

The vanishing jobs — defined as those paying $30,000 to $80,000 — represent workers who had been in the lower part of the white-collar pyramid, including secretaries, clerks and customer support representatives. The picture was blurred, however, by growth in some blue-collar, middle-income professions like electricians and plumbers, and several white-collar areas like computer support technicians.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that if the middle disappears, you can not support the top. If my dumb ass can figure that out..why in the blue hell can’t the financial wizards see it?

Sphere: Related Content

How the MSM spins the truth about the economy..

TomPaine.com, which is now known as OurFuture.org,  is a great site that should be in everyone’s favorites..or blogroll. I get their daily newsletter that has articles and OpEds by some of the most intelligent and informed folks there are, that happen to be left of the center or just fond of the truth. Today’s piece will give you a taste of how bad the economy is..and how the MSM will not even come close to telling you the truth. Ready? Here we go:

Read this AP story on productivity growth and labor costs, then read the note below (written Wednesday) about the same Bureau of Labor Statistics report on employment, wages, output and productivity. This is a very clear example of how the media spin the news every day to hide economic troubles and mislead those who believe they are following economic conditions. All the major media spun this story in almost exactly in the same way as the AP.

The key finding in that report is that the total number of hours worked (and paid) in non-farm businesses during the fourth quarter of 2007 fell at an annual rate of 1.5 percent. Indeed, the total number of hours worked in the fourth quarter was less than in the fourth quarter of 2006. The report shows total non-farm jobs also falling at a 0.5 percent annualized rate in Q4 and rising by only 0.4 percent year over year.

Read more

Sphere: Related Content

Nothing Pays Like Failure

I guess none of us should be surprised, really.

At the top of the Federal Government are two miserable failures. Chimpy ran 3 businesses into the ground, traded Sammy Sosa when he ran the Texas Rangers, and as President has yet to do anything that could be pointed to as a positive accomplishment. Chimpletons may tell their fairy tales, and Chimpletons may believe their fairy tales, but all of the lies the wingtards tell the world-and themselves-won’t change one truth.

Chimpy’s VP, the trigger-happy alcoholic “Shooter” Cheney, is the guy who saddled Halliburton with a lifetime of asbestos liabilities. He’s been trying to undo that mistake since he got installed in Washington, but it doesn’t appear that he’ll ever see legislation passed that would fix what he screwed up.

In America we’ve always been told that the way to prosperity is to always do the right thing. Work hard, study hard, be honest, and good things will happen to you. Right?

Oh HELL no, that’s not right. Honesty, diligence, and intelligence apparently don’t get you squat in today’s America. However, you can be the most completely dishonest moron the business world ever produced, and you’ll be rewarded beyond your wildest dreams. The time-honored “do the right thing” fable of American prosperity has been turned completely on its head. Clearly in these times, if you want to get anywhere in the world you must do the WRONG thing. Don’t worry about how many people you may hurt, or what you might destroy-just make that quick buck. And if you’re in an executive position in an American corporation, don’t worry about getting fired later for your screwups. The chances are excellent that the retards on your Board of Directors are probably as pathologically greedy and criminally-inclined as you are. They’ll watch your back, leaving you free to bend over your shareholders, customers, and country.

Read more

Sphere: Related Content

Traditional bullshit on ice…

Angry Black Bitch tells us what is going down..and it’s not pretty, but its friggin real~Dusty

A bitch has been annoyed as hell over the use of language lately. When I hear certain words I just want to projectile vomit straight into the speaker’s mouth.

For example, change.

Saying change doesn’t equal making change and, even if it did, that wouldn’t guarantee that the change you intend to do will be positive. Every time I hear a politician say change I sit there waiting for someone in the audience to shout “Hey asshole, are you allergic to specifics or is your complete lack of them due to a moral objection to keeping it real?”

Shit, Scooter B. brought about change and this bitch will require years of therapy to recover from that shit.

Read more

Sphere: Related Content

Bush outlines his plan to kick start the economy

As I sat and listened to the Idiot-in-Chief Friday morning, I wondered if he actually believed what he said or just hopes to hell that we believe it.

He wants the tax cuts for the top one percent to be made permanent, but the ones he is outlining for the rest of America should only be a one-time deal.

Of course the following part really jacked my jaw: Folks at the bottom of the economic rung shouldn’t get squat..because that is considered welfare.

Fuck you Frat boy.

Here it is, what the Jackass-in-Chief wants and what lies and half-truths he spewed. Some lowlights:

The economic team reports that our economy has a solid foundation, but that there are areas of real concern. Our economy is still creating jobs, though at a reduced pace. Consumer spending is still growing, but the housing market is declining. Business investment and exports are still rising, but the cost of imported oil has increased.-Ok, the December report on how American’s spent their money showed it was in the toilet, the worst since 1991. The New York Times stated: Strong evidence is emerging that consumer spending, a bulwark against recession over the last year even as energy prices surged and the housing market sputtered, has begun to slow sharply at every level of the American economy, from the working class to the wealthy.

Sorry Bush, but your full of bat guano on that first point right out of the box. The way the government fixes it’s statistics on job growth have been crap for years. Too many variables that should be included in that statistic aren’t.

Read more

Sphere: Related Content

Introducing This Election’s Swing Vote

This post is reprinted with permission from MovementVisionLab.org. It’s a vitally important topic for the coming election year. You can watch the Heartland Presidential Forum in it’s entirety here. They also have portions of this forum on their YouTube channel here. The Forum was held in Iowa on December 1st and five of the Democratic candidates(Edwards, Obama, Kucinich, Dodd,Clinton) attended. -Dusty

This past weekend more than 3,600 people braved an ice storm to attend the Heartland Presidential Forum at the HyVee Hall in Des Moines, Iowa. The event, launched by the national Campaign for Community Values, hosted five Democratic presidential candidates’ and featured an unprecedented format that gave everyday people the opportunity to speak directly to the candidates about issues that matter to all Americans.-Martin Matishak

Introducing This Election’s Swing Vote
Posted by: Sally Kohn , December 05, 2007

Real people and real issues will be front and center at the next presidential election.

It’s rare that everyday Americans take center stage in the presidential election. News pundits and political consultants are more concerned with the sex lives of the candidates than the real stories and real issues of voters. But this election, everything will change. Real people and real issues will be front and center. And if the candidates listen closely, they’ll hear a new story of hope and possibility for the future of America.

The American people are tired of the politics of division and isolation. For too many years, politicians on both sides of the aisle have told us we’re on our own, that we have to pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps, that it’s an us-against-them world and selfishness and greed are our best defense. But the politics of isolation have only led to a broken economy and a broken social safety net, division between nations and division between communities. We, the people, have had enough. It’s time for a new politics in America.

This past Saturday December 1, in Des Moines, Iowa, more than 3,600 people packed a crowded hall in Des Moines, Iowa, to hear everyday Americans tell their stories to five of the top presidential candidates. At the Heartland Presidential Forum, Senators John Edwards, Barack Obama, Chris Dodd and Hillary Clinton and Representative Dennis Kucinich did more listening than talking as real people finally took center stage in this election.

Read more

Sphere: Related Content

Hillary hearts NAFTA.

David Sirota has made a YouTube of Hillary’s response to NAFTA questions at last nights candidate debate on CNN.

Hillary is a DINO for the most part. She is a Rethug in Democratic clothing on many of the important issues. NAFTA expansion is one of THE most important domestic issues facing us today. NAFTA has affected our workforce as no other bill passed by our congress ever has in the last decade or so.. imho.His article about her stance is here. Its short and sweet, so let me give it to ya now:

Read more

Sphere: Related Content