“Someone really should give these guys a primer on negotiating skills!?!” said a former Dem staffer. Wake up! They know what they are doing, and they are NOT making a "mistake". meanwhile, Obomber will thrust his chin out and upwards, not comment at all , and attend a few more $8,000 a plate luncheons.

If the GOP is going to stonewall everything that the Democrats in Congress propose,

then wouldn't it be better, to push a progressive agenda, which would make the

majority of American people happy?

The positive roar of the crowd might impress the GOP, that they need to rethink their strategy.

Shoot for the moon. Ask for everything we need. Let the Republicans go on record opposing the citizens of the USA.

Only the people who can be fooled all the time are still believing this two party fairy tale and all it's fantastic sub-plots.

This crap doesn't even mesure up to the standards of profesional wrestling.

Dear author;

I trust your fall from the turnip truck was not overly traumatic, given that you were still able to pen this breathless play-by-play of the Über Catfood Politburo's "negotiations".

I especially like the part where Max Baucus, who managed to ram through the Wealth Care Industry's public option-free, mandated-purchase insurance plan, is now inept in the art of wheeling and dealing.

Absolutely. Neither ObamaCon nor the Democans have failed at or bungled anything. As a matter of fact, they have been spectacularly successful at conning so-called Progressives into believing their fantasy charades. Wake up people! Embrace the OWS movement (in hopes that is doesn't become co-opted by the corporatists) rather than these kabuki dancers. Why are we even bothering to cover this stuff in our alternative media? What a waste of time and energy.

"Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee ( PCCC), a liberal activist group, echoed Welch’s message Thursday, saying the Democrats’ early offer to cut Medicare and Medicaid is “just incompetent negotiation strategy.”

WRONG. It is not an incompetent strategy at ALL. As usual, the "progressives" out there refuse to see the glaring truth - that the Dims have the SAME STRATEGY AS THE REPUBLICANS. Viewed in that light, their "incompetent strategy" suddenly makes a helluva lot of sense. But until and unless people start seeing the Dims for what they obviously are - just a different wing of the Corporate Plutocratic Duopoly with the same goals - then they will continue to scratch their heads in confusion over how the Dims could possibly keep giving away so many things to "the other side."

Too bad for the future that only 0.00000001% have a clue about our rulers, who own everything, and their goals.

Yes there will be a massive collapse of everything, but probably many of those overpriced weapons will get used in the ultimate slaughter.

It does not matter what level of cuts to Medicare and Medicaid the Democrats on the committee say they are willing to enact. As long as they insist on tax increases, the Republicans on the committee will reject everything, and the committee will not meet its deadline.

That will result in (if I understand the process) automatic across-the-board cuts in every program, including defense. The Pentagon will go berserk at the tought of that happening, so some sort of smoke and mirrors solution will probably be done at the last second.

Unffortunately, like making sausage, the details of the compromise will be unpalatable for everyone.

The OCCUPY movement is NOT about CHANGING the system. It is about TRANSCENDING the system and developing new ways living successfully in the 21St Century, a new MYTHOS. Apply your talents to building the future.

We cannot change a system of entrenched corruption, we must move beyond it. Help each other through these hard times during the transition. If Government and Corporations continue to work against us WE will DEFUND it, and those who are the enemies of the people. We are the 99%, we are CREATIVE, and now we are ACTIVE and GROWING.

Conservative Democrats = Republican operatives, corporate sleeper agents, banker spies, oligarchy deceivers

Direct democracy

What did you expect? Obama willingly abdicated his office and passed the baton to the super committee. Obama has been working on cutting SS since spring of 2010. When the supper committee pushes austerity down our throats with cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and SS, there will be no one to blame. Obama, (R)s and (D)s will all be pointing their fingers at each other. Just remember, Obama drove the bus over the cliff. (http://www.niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=ask_this.view&askthisid=00456) Wake up and shake it up.

Guys, guys. It was 80 degrees in Colorado one day, and snowed six inches the next. This game the overlords have been playing for a couple thousand years is over. They have brought Hell down on all of us. This Climate Change thing is going to wipe the chess board and start a new game.

Come election time these liberals will support Democrats as the lesser of two evils. The Democrats know it, they have little faith that the left will do anything other than whine and vote for them. OWS is a real threat, which is why Obama is kissing up to them. He'll work to bring them into the fold and if we in the OWS movement are so foolish as to accept we will be nothing more than Moveon. So they'll listen to the weak, ineffective liberals whine then crack the whip. Round and round we go, election after election after election. Look at what happened to Nader when he dared to run for president from the left. To this day knuckle dragging Democrats will start barking at the very name. I wonder if they felt so entitled when the Socialists were getting 6% of the vote in the early 20th century. Any rate, just a week after the three horrible free trade deals were signed we have this charade. If the left doesn't build something outside of the Democratic Party and have a long term strategy (beyond the next freaking election) the game is over.

We need to smash these bastards. Enough is enough. They exist in a little bubble and we need to burst that bubble and scare these pricks. They talk about "balanced" sacrifice. What the f*ck do you call decades of stagnating wages, de-industrialization, the financialization of the economy (and the mountains of debt that accompany it) and the explosion in wealth inequality. Its THEIR damn policies that have gotten us to this point. THAT is our sacrifice you a$$holes!