Ms. Marcel hit the nail on the head with one word, "scapegoat". You hear it ALL the time for EVERY problem. Its them vs. us. Liberals vs. conservatives, dems. vs. repubs, blacks vs. whites, evangelicles vs. traditional Christians, west coast vs. east coast vs. south, vs. heartland, Muslims vs. Christians vs. Jews and on and on. Its always "them" to blame. Quite convenient, but nothing ever gets solved by scapegoating. There seems to be zero true dialogue in the U.S.

A very well written and concise article, except for the phrase: "the rich are still with us, and they are still filthy rich".

This is a gross understatement as the filthy rich are getting richer by day as the rest of us are geeting poorer by the day.

The US Federal Reserve's monetary policy favors the wealthiest 2% at the expense of the rest of us. The Fed lowered interest rates again yesterday for the seventh time in as many months, further devaluing the US Dollar and providing more cheap money for the big banks to use to speculate on food and energy, thereby driving prices up even further.

There is no relief in sight as Congress is contemplating more deregulation and corporate welfare for the financial industry and the presidential candidates praise the Federal Reserve's actions when they should be promising to fire Fed chairman Ben Bernanke and the Board of Governors on January 20, 2009.

Roosevelt gave us the "New Deal".

It seems like it's time for a "Green Deal".

Can the gov't create a program that helps the environment and the economy?

Any candidates want to approach that one?

a free weapons distribution plan for the homeless will level the playing field a little

A wonderful blueprint to save our species is available. Please, all of you floundering in despair, check out Lester Brown's "PLAN B". It's the only thing that gives me any hope and I plan to spend my remaining years trying to help make it happen.

http://www.earth-policy.org/Books/PlanB_contents.htm

blurpghhh, this is the blueprint for a "Green Deal".

With hope!

I second the above rec for Lester Brown's Plan B 3.0--a book favored by many, many policy makers. This book, in its "third edition", can be downloaded for free.

Excellent work by Ms. Marcel but she forgot something in her delineation of what the average American has in those homes:

guns and, in many cases, lots of them.

Her fears are quite justified - we won't turn on the people who are really hurting us - we'll turn on each other instead. It's the way we've been trained.

Ms Marcel says it all is such a simple, straight-forward manner. Great article.

About the gun thing - how many of us on this side of the 'great divide' have guns? They seem like such a red-neck, republican kind of thing any more. My father owned a few guns and he was a Democrat, but he had a big family to feed, and those guns helped provide that food, and kept preditors from taking it.

I remember during the "hippy" days, when everyone was doing macrame, and the simple twine that had been so cheap suddenly became very expensive. With all the big gas guzzlers taking so much to fill up, and every family member having their own car, of course the cost went up because of the demand. Anyone who thinks those big oil companies wouldn't do what business has been doing for ages don't know business.

Great article. She failed to point out that the US nearly had a communist revolution at that time. Americans should be fired up at the government and protesting and demanding that the incompetent trash get thrown out of the white house. We are not. Why not? What's wrong with people? Is it the TV telling people to buy, buy, buy? Even the president wants us to buy. We are just objects to them. We dutifully go out and buy junk so that Chinese slave workers have jobs, and big fat cats get bigger and fatter. We are sleep walking and about to let peter piper lead us off the cliff.

We've also been a nation that has depended on the government to fix everything for us for so many generations, we've long since forgotten that we once didn't, and we no longer know how to take care of ourselves.

I just returned from San Diego where in the wealthier neighborhoods new model luxury cars line the streets with "for sale" signs on the windows. My host told me "you can tell the state of the economy by the (a) number of cars each Saturday, and (b) when the REALLY expensive cars show up."

Lots of cars, and most luxury.

Things aren't good and they won't be for a long while. We saw it coming and shouldn't lie that we didn't.

As always - a good article by Joyce Marcel.

Nature offers much to eat from the wild. Get a book now to help you identify edible plants. Also, never take all of the plants from one location. Leave some to spread seeds for next years crop.

Lester Brown's Plan B has one fundamental, horrible lack of vision, which ought to be corrected. He ignores the idea that better solutions can be invented, and quickly, and that caring or not caring about the process of invention is the most critical thing that society (or even a tiny subset of society) can do long-term to stop global warming.

Many parts of the pine cone are edible.

Ms. Marcel's political correctness kept her from mentioning the most damaging and dangerous form of division that the elites promote today to keep the hoi polloi distracted and politically impotent -- male vs. female.

Absolutely shake off this 'victim' mentality--this is the greatest opportunity we've had to make great and wonderful changes--to finally confront the cultural 'dominator story' that drives our systems/economy (and is obvious in food shortages where corporations are making millions while millions starve--yet some how no one questions the 'rightness' of this--its just the way the market it....

Riane Eisler's Real Wealth of Nations...creating a caring economics is a well thought out process for changing this! If we choose, we can change the cultural story to honor caring vs. domination.
We are not victims...we made up this mess, we can create something else.
www.realwealtheconomy.com www.rianeeisler.com

mr. d. May 1st, 2008 12:50 pm

EXCELLENT point! Thank you.

Guns a Republican red neck thing? Excellent example of scapegoating. 90% of every progressive Democrat or Independent I know owns a gun or two. A lot of people still hunt. I for one will keep a shotgun at home for self protection in any case. You've led a sheltered life if you don't know its a good precaution.

Get rid of all the guns, we'll get rid of all the crime......you bet.

Unrestricted access to unlimited number of assault weapons and Saturday Night Specials plus voter ID but no gun ID is, yes, a Republican red neck thing. Intransigence on any sane guns laws, yes, a Republican redneck thing. Get rid of all guns? Impossible, and a deliberate fear planted by Republicans to scare red necks into voting against their own self-interests. Scapegoats? No, dupes.

The United States is fast becoming a giant 99 cent store; and the only thing for sale that ordinary working people will be able to afford will be crumbs. This is of course after 4 years of the McCain presidency. His popularity numbers, too, will be at the bottom of the toilet, like his predecessor's, and yet he will be succeeded by Jeb Wanker Bush who will further diminish and impoverish the country and be succeeded by George Prescott Wanker Bush. Ad nauseum.

There are those of us who are WIDE AWAKE and we don't catch crumbs, we still rise up in protest in DC, but the MSM doesn't report it.

Unless you were there, you wouldn't know that on January 27, 2007, on a crisp cool day in DC history was made.

The NY TIMES buried the story on page 29 that the Capital was completely encircled that day, by a half a million strong concerned and committed peace and justice activists who turned out to demand Congress DO SOMETHING to bring our troops home from Iraq.

Young and old patriotic Americans had come together to raise awareness that security, peace and justice, can only happen, when there is an end to all war and occupations, and that will also help repair our economy.

Congresswoman Maxine Waters responded to this reporters question regarding the issue of divestment from Israel to help bring an end to the 40th year of the occupation of Palestine by stating, "This war in Iraq helps us understand we can no longer ignore what is happening in Israel Palestine; it is all connected in the Middle East and we must look at everything!"

Rabbi Lerner reminded the over 1,400 peace and justice member groups and hundreds of thousands of individuals that we Americans belong to the one human family of six billion people and that over three billion of us exist on less than $2.00 a day.

Representatives of Gold Star Families for Peace, Veterans for Peace and Iraq Veterans Against the War shared the stage and inflamed the crowd, "Men and women are coming home from Iraq and they are pissed off! Not one word in Bush's State of The Union address even mentioned the veterans!"

Activist and Actress Susan Sarandon quoted the statistics that one in three homeless people in America are veterans. That one in four suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome and the average wait for them to see a Doctor is two to three months for there is only one Doctor for every 500 veterans. There are currently 53,000 wounded veterans and returning veterans have a 70% divorce rate. Sarandon also pointed out that 65 billion dollars of benefits for veterans have been dropped by this Administration and not a word was mentioned in the SOUA and not one presidential candidate has yet to comment upon this.

Tim Robbins added that, "I just spoke with a woman whose 20 year old brother is being sent to Iraq with only two weeks of training instead of the usual twelve."

Raed Jarrar, Iraq Project Director of Global Exchange informed the engaged crowd, "The only hope to end the Iraqi violence is to end the occupation! I am one half Sunni and one half Shia and I am telling you that both secular and religious Iraqis agree that we want our county back! We want the occupation to end, NOW! Sunni's and Shia's have lived together for a thousand years and all Bush accomplished was to build a new dictatorship!"

Co-chair of the Progressive Caucus, Congresswomen Lynn Woolsey received thunderous applause by stating, "It is not about winning or losing; it is about doing the right thing! Everyone knows this except the President! You know what they say is the definition of insanity; persisting in the same behavior and expecting a different result. We don't need any more study groups...we need...to bring our troops home and end the occupation."

Arab American, Nicholas Mouracade who flew from Florida because, "I love America and I served in the Air Force during Vietnam. And now my nephew is in the 82nd Airborne Division and all he and his unit do is guard the oil fields. I'd like to know whose making the money on the 2.5 million barrels of oil being produced every day in Iraq."

John Dowell, USMC Retired Captain and Tiger Shark UAV Pilot informed me, "In the last few months I have made more money than I ever have in my entire life. I had been a civilian contractor flying UAV's for a private company and the money is humongous. But. It is your money for every person born today begins life with a $30,000 debt because of this war. We got here because we the people have not been paying attention. But, it's not too late, we can do something! It's time for a revolution!"

Over 800 of the committed, patriotic peace and justice activists remained in DC to further the revolution by descending on Congress on January 29th to affirm that the only way to truly support our troops is to bring them all home.

Power didn't care, but we the people have power we have yet to fully WAKE UP to:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that, among these, are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; that, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; and, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it. -July 4, 1776. The Declaration of Independence

Bush's Doctrine of Fear that was implemented after THAT DAY we call 9/11 blew off common sense and that is what we must regain to change anything:

"Soon after I had published the pamphlet "Common Sense" [on Feb. 14, 1776] in America, I saw the exceeding probability that a revolution in the system of government would be followed by a revolution in the system of religion... The world is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion."-Tom Paine

e
http://www.wearewideawake.org/

maplefudge- lester brown has a plan.I have just started looking at it, and i will reserve judgement until later. the initial impression i have, however, is that he is still inside the system. that's why every time this subject comes up i am still encouraging peeple to get Vandana Shiva's book Earth Democracy. Shiva is writing from the perspective of the majority world- the Global South where the hungry people live- which gives her work a power and cogency i do not believe mr. brown can find.

this is her website

http://www.navdanya.org/earthdcracy/index.htm

also in this interview with bill moyers she makes a very clear summary of her work

http://www.pbs.org/now/transcript/transcript_shiva.html

It is a long road back from poverty.

There's one mistake I keep hearing. We keep waiting on someone else to provide a solution.

We have a media owned by corporations. We have politicians and political parties owned by corporations. Corporations are going to look out for the interests of their stockholders and executives.

So, why are we expecting corporate-owned politicians to provide us an answer that will work for us? Why do we keep watching the corporate media waiting for it to broadcast an answer?

Isn't it obvious that if they do say they have an answer, that it will instead benefit the stockholders and executives?

so Samson, what are u advocating, a revolution? are u ready to die for america's future? what can we do, the political, economic, social infrastructures are set in stone man!

Each one of us has the ability to reform our lives, our communities, our nation and the world. And we can encourage our neighbors to do the same - without judgement.

The current situation offers the following:

1. We do not have a two party system - we have varying shades of a corporate culture. One that depends upon us to ignore reality of hard issues like poverty and instead polarizes and distracts all meaningful public discourse.

2. Our govenrment is a tool of the uber-corporations. To regain power we must exert pressure on the corporations. And we can!

3. The fourth estate needs a rebirth - and this is beginning to happen within the cyber-community.

4. Money is power - and when it is seen as a total cost in all regards, it can be a great force for change. in the long view, when measured over all costs, doing the right thing is also the most profitable.

In the words of John Perkins - who paraphrased from many others: if you see an area that needs to change, then put all that you have into making the change.

My good friend Tom Ledue put his humble career as an educator on hold to put all of his energy in raising the level of discourse in Maine's U.S. Senate race. In the measurements of our self-perpetuating system, his chances are small. But, when people actually listen to his message and see that he is offering a simple plan built on a powerful framework of thought, they get it. Most people understand the interconnectedness of all issues and all people across this tiny planet.

I joined him in this effort because our nation and our world are crying out for a powerful change of course before the damage is more dire than we can survive.

But his effort is political - gravely needed - but it is only one piece. We need to demand of each other true social governance. We need to demand of corporate shareholders, true corporate governance. By fighting hard for what we each believe in, we can instigate true and meaningful societal change quite quickly. And even if our work does not bear immediate fruits, and we die trying, then we will have tried - which is better than wallowing in cynicsm.

"so Samson, what are u advocating, a revolution? are u ready to die for america's future? what can we do, the political, economic, social infrastructures are set in stone man!"

Well, the Founding Fathers were ready to die for our future. So were the escaped slaves who enlisted in the Union Army. So was my grandfather's generation at places like Anzio and Normandy. You or I may not be, but ultimately others will get fed up enough to, if things get bad enough. As JFK said, "Those who make peaceful revolution impossible, make violent revolution inevitable." In 1776 British control of the colonies must have seemed to be set in stone. In 1861 slavery looked pretty permanent too. I think violence is terrible, but humans have this habit of setting off chains of events that they cannot control. I hope we come to our senses before it's too late.

Ever eat a rock? Many parts are edible!
------
Will the masses ever change? It's hard to reprogram programable people who believe they are god.

Years ago, driving through Death Valley in my 1965 volkswagen beetle, you know it was hot when those cars didn't even have a fan. I stopped at a rest stop just before a duststorm was about to hit. The sky was turning orange and the restroom door slammed shut behind me, you could hear the wind howling and moaning through cracks in the windows. Someone had scratched this into the many layers of paint in the stall:

"Life is a shit sandwich, the more bread you have the less shit you have to eat."

I realized then, as I do now, that this summarizes (as well as anything) the economic reality of life in America.

It's late in the thread, but Military or Market-Driven Empire Building: 1950-2008 must be read.

kscola23 - "The political, economic, social infrastructures are set in stone man..."

Political, economic, social infrastructures are set in thought. The Soviet Union was set in thought. One day, they all changed their minds and the Soviet Union disappeared. Thought is an equitably distributed substance. If it was set in stone, the scions of power wouldn't be so worried about what you think.

Kscola, with your attitude the ruling class have it made. That's just what they want: defeatists like you.

Think positive, man! Don't tell us what can't be done - get off your ass and change things.

If you start, others will follow!

You forgot to mention Al Qaeda - aren't they to blame for the sorry state we're in? Just another distraction to have us looking in the other direction while we were robbed blind. Wake up America!

Good article. The rich are getting richer. We have the poor and supposedly [religious?], 1/3 of our country that always votes against the working class. Add them together with the elite and their machine, [corporate media, rigged elections, owned politicians, owned courts, military complex] and you have almost total control. We, the citizens, that have somehow been able to see through the smokescreens and propaganda machines, are left to twist in the wind. The stupid 1/3 get to twist along with us, but they, like some self flagellating religious cultist, seem to like the abuse.
I will always do my part to stay informed, and always do what I can from my diminishing position as a citizen. I think each of us should live close to our means, and push, when we can for a more social and sustainable society.

Yeah you want filth, come to Las Vegas. The MGM Grand just opened up a new "special" swimming pool, where it costs over $1,000 to rent a cabana poolside for one afternoon. The nightclubs here? You can't even get in unless you call ahead and fork over your credit card for a $500 bottle of vodka. I write letters to the editor to the local paper expressing dismay, but nobody else does because the working people of this city have been nicely trained that we're all here to give our hi-roller tourists pedicures, and shut up about it and hope for a tip. Nice new 21st century playground for America, isn't it .. Let them eat paper umbrellas!

"Maybe the next president will save us. Maybe that person will wear a cape and be able to fly. Or at least blow something up and give us a moment's release from our pain."

Perpetual war abroad - blowing stuff up to give the masses a moment of superficial relief through shock and awe - is certainly easier to envision, and easier to orchestrate, than finding a new chief executive who can fly faster than a speeding bullet.

A really excellent essay by Ms. Marcel. This quoted passage near the tail end seems somehow out of place. Perhaps I'm missing her intended meaning.

Bill from Saginaw

wcdevins May 1st, 2008 6:01 pm

Unrestricted access to unlimited number of assault weapons and Saturday Night Specials plus voter ID but no gun ID is, yes, a Republican red neck thing.

You think so, just try running a democrat who supports gun control and watch the majority of democrats vote for the republican. A majority of democrats believe we have enough or even too many gun control laws. That's why the Democratic Party has all but dropped support of gun control laws. Every time the democrats start pushing gun control the republicans will win the vote.

kscola23 May 1st, 2008 10:53 pm

so Samson, what are u advocating, a revolution? are u ready to die for america's future? what can we do, the political, economic, social infrastructures are set in stone man!

Are you dense, quit buying from the major corporations, the 2000 top companies in America are responsible for destroying our country. Quit buying things you don't really need, get rid of your credit cards and don't buy nothing on credit except for small houses and fuel-efficient automobiles. Get rid of your cell phones, they are really nothing but a rip off. Get rid of your cable/satellite TV hook-up they're nothing but 500 channels of junk anyway.

I've been doing it for several years now and I don't plan on going back. Screw the major corporations.

Newday May 1st, 2008 11:42 pm

'4. Money is power'

Money is not power it is nothing but a tool. Money is only power when people allow those with it makes it so. Quit being impressed with people who have a great deal of money. Anytime money is controlled by a small group of people money becomes worthless and people do turn to other ways of doing business. You don't need money to trade a bushel of corn for a bushel of wheat. You can get people to help you build a house as long as you're willing to help them build theirs.

Here's what I predict: middle-class/working class Americans will simply work more hours to make up for financial shortages, and cut down on unnecessary expenses and driving. To one extent or another, this has already been happening for years. This will increase, up to the point that there are no more hours left in a day to work and no more to cut back on as it begins to really annoy and hurt. Then they'll just accept that "that's the way it is". No revolution, no great protest, no sea change in anything. Like sheep to the slaughter.

"Unrestricted access to unlimited number of assault weapons and Saturday Night Specials plus voter ID but no gun ID is, yes, a Republican red neck thing. Intransigence on any sane guns laws, yes, a Republican redneck thing. Get rid of all guns? Impossible, and a deliberate fear planted by Republicans to scare red necks into voting against their own self-interests"

Agreed, except that you don't have to be a "red neck" to own a gun....planted by Radical Leftists to scare liberals.

I'm not an admirer of Sarandon and Robbins, they are far. far too left to suit me, but their points were right on the money. I'd also like to say that though I detest America haters that anyone that would call the demand to bring our troops home unpatriotic is the most unpatriotic of all. This is a wrong and dastardly war, but those soldiers are defending the right of every person in our country to express their view. Many don't agree with being there, mostly older heads, the young frequently are gung ho.

Newday May 1st, 2008 11:42 pm

Good points! Civic duty requires civic responsibility and those that duck, fight or obscure civic obligatioon are a big part of the problem.

Please enough of this empire talk. If we had wanted one or really wanted one we would have made the Roman Empire look like pikers. America is not an Empire by any stretch of the imigination.

Unless you are referring to the attempt by Corporations to build a Global reality? The One world propaganda. That did originate in America but many others have joined up.

a lot of our problem is a mind-numbing mainstream media. build the internet! when was the last time you sat down and really worked at an effective statement of your ideas and sentiments on a topic? when you post such things, no matter what your persuasion, you help tremendously to build an alternative to the coma.

with all due respect David Grayling and others:

I do not consider myself a defeatist or anything close to it... I get off my ass on a daily basis to feed my family firstly, and secondly to attempt to educate myself.. I do think we have much work to do but I am certainly willing to join, and lead if I can, in any efforts for true movements towards peace and justice..

I am simply speaking what i beleive to be the relative truth.

As Voxclamantis corrected me appropriately, the infrastructures are 'set in thought'... which is not stone, so thanks for making a clearer point, but one that was the direction I was thinking...

rickster469:

thanks for asking if I am 'dense' in the first sentence, I did not read past that. Talk about a way to end a conversation quickly, wow!

finally Thomas,

You may be correct in defining the new global corporate run world not as an American empire, but since we are seen as the most powerful nation, where the majority of those corps come from then...its basically semantics from that point on right?

Newday

You are absolutely correct...
Again, I am not a defeatist or wallowing in cynicism, but I do have my cynical moments, do you not? Regardless, this is not about my own cynicism, I simply asked a question... what can we do? A couple of posters gave ideas which is tremendous...and I agree completely with...
'And even if our work does not bear immediate fruits, and we die trying, then we will have tried'....It is funny though that you guys somehow know what I do or who I am from one cynical comment.

Ms. Marcel,

Thank you and your mother for reminding me of childhood trips with my father to the City Hall downtown in NYC in the 60s, the automats and seeing people making catsup soup.

My father's mother fed people during the Depression. My father did what he could in his life.

Too many Americans have bought into "look out for #1" without looking out for others too. It would be hard to construct an America in 2008 that is as ill-prepared for the tsunamis of economic/ecologic and political bad tidings.

Many people are, in actions small and large, seeing their way to a more inclusive, more sustainable way of living. The overall effects of corporate dominance will wreck many of these small boats because of devastatingly huge effects.

We must find our way to both real democratic civil discourse and collective action against the abuses of our system and towards a country and world that will benefit the vast majority of Americans and world's citizens.

I thought you'd like to check out the political allegory of mine that I just found a literary agent for. It's a story set in the context of a teacher discussing with his class all of the evidence that the Bush administration is as corrupt as it is incompetent...and how to rectify the Constitutional crisis we face. It's couched in a discussion about the urgent need to stop abusing Mother Nature. I wrote in 3 dozen celebrities to play the students, so it's very funny despite how infuriating it is. You can read it at www.stoplittering.com/theswitch.htm and, yes, StopLittering.com is my site.

kscola23 May 2nd, 2008 6:25 pm

thanks for asking if I am 'dense' in the first sentence, I did not read past that. Talk about a way to end a conversation quickly, wow!

That's OK I recognized your type. When slapped with the truth you duck and run. Do you know one of the reasons so many of our young people are so stupid anymore? We don't think it's polite to tell them to quit being stupid when they do something stupid.

If I'm being dense or acting stupid I hope someone will tell me and tell me why so that I can understand were their coming from. How else am I going to know if somebody doesn't point it out?

Your question was either dense or stupid though so I answered it.

'That's OK I recognized your type. When slapped with the truth you duck and run. Do you know one of the reasons so many of our young people are so stupid anymore? We don't think it's polite to tell them to quit being stupid when they do something stupid.'

Ok, now I get it oh great rickster, you dropped some truth on me and I ran from it..haha..thats a good one. Since when do you know 'the truth' outside of it relative form for one? Two, its funny how your solutions to the problems that we perceive is to stop buying from corporations, yet people like you have had absolutely zero effect on the political/economic processes... hmm, whose the one that is really lost in the clouds? I actually make distinctions between reality and what I may want reality to be. Seems you do not so much...I agree screw the major corporations, but our livelihood, medicine/food, infrastructure is now being produced by these assholes...Ever see a list of all of GE subsidiaries?

You posted 'money is not power it is nothing but a tool.' What the hell do you mean by that? you've got to be kidding me! The way the most of the world, as well as the dictionary, defines power is ability to promote change..So I challenge you to give me an example of something that has had more ability to affect change in the world we live. Everything is relative, so to say money is not power, at least in a relative sense is out of left field...I guess we're on the same page then with our dense statements...

hey rickster469

Who manufactured your computer, and all the parts necessary for you computer, and your landline.. who enabled that to work? who is going to manufacture your 'fuel efficient car'? You?

Let me get my violin and play as the empire burns. Stupidity and greed deserve nothing better. The truth cannot be spoken any longer.

"Tent cities grew up on the outskirts of towns. People sold apples on the street, or begged, or caught crumbs in the basements of bakeries to help support their families." These are all things for which people can be punished with jail time and fines.

"Soup kitchens and bread lines were people's lifelines." Who would fund the soup kitchens today? Government now provides platitudes, not aid ("Work hard and play by all the rules", "Pull yourself up by the bootstraps", etc.) Companies today usually destroy surplus goods such as bread, although some still donate to food pantries. Unfortunately, donations have fallen well below the number of Americans in need. But it's not so bad, really. At least, no one has to worry about falling into welfare dependency (except the deserving rich, of course).