SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
A Sad Scene in America, the Past Dishonored and the Future Neglected
Aug 22, 2011
Our nation has just been shook by a completely home grown, manufactured and totally avoidable economic crisis--the politization of the USA's ability to pay its debts. This has resulted in the downgrade of our country's credit worthiness--another blow to our economy and to the standing of the USA in the eyes of the world.
Now, of course, pundits and rightwingers will call even more loudly for national austerity and the dismantling of our social security net--especially for seniors. If we are to follow their hysteria and take more money out of the economy, we will only deepen the recession and drive the economy and the country further into an economic hole.
We have a jobs crisis. Creating jobs and working toward full employment is one of the best ways to put money in the economy, generate consumer demand, increase the tax base and restore economic health and sanity.
Further, our country has real and immediate needs that can only be met by people who are working.
Rightwing Republicans twiddle the nation's thumbs while we squander America's vast energy resources--the powerful wind on two coasts and down the middle of the country that could spin the turbines of vast wind farms, the sun that shines day after day in the deserts of our southwest, coal fired power plants the need upgrading and the installation of scrubbers and carbon sequestration. All this would require the upgrading of our transmission lines and electricity infrastructure. All this work would require thousands and thousands of people. Just as importantly, it would be an investment in America's future. China understands this. That's why they spend 2 billion dollars a month on renewable energy. Germany understands this. That is why they are working to be the leader of the world in solar power.
Investing in America. In this day of know nothing and do nothing tea bagging Republican members of Congress it seems like a quaint idea. What an affront to America's history! The Louisiana Purchase, the building of the transcontinental railroad during the Civil War, the buying of Alaska, the purchase and development of our national parks, the space program, the building of our interstate highway system, the arming of the Free World with ore and taconite from the Iron Range and steel from South Chicago and Gary and the factories across our Heartland during World War II and more and more and more.
We have great infrastructure needs today which can only be met by people who are working. Crumbling bridges and highways and dilapidated train stations and airports and rail lines and sidewalks and sewer and water systems all need repair. Most Americans would be horrified if they knew the conditions of the lines our tap water flows through.
In the age of austerity and tax cuts for the wealthy and privatization and the impoverishment of our nation's government we drift toward a country that no longer aspires nor cares to be great, that is content to let the sinews of equality of opportunity shred, that has lost sight of the Common Good, an America that dishonors its past and neglects its future.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Stewart Acuff
Stewart Acuff is the Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA) Chief of Staff and co-author of Getting America Back To Work.
Our nation has just been shook by a completely home grown, manufactured and totally avoidable economic crisis--the politization of the USA's ability to pay its debts. This has resulted in the downgrade of our country's credit worthiness--another blow to our economy and to the standing of the USA in the eyes of the world.
Now, of course, pundits and rightwingers will call even more loudly for national austerity and the dismantling of our social security net--especially for seniors. If we are to follow their hysteria and take more money out of the economy, we will only deepen the recession and drive the economy and the country further into an economic hole.
We have a jobs crisis. Creating jobs and working toward full employment is one of the best ways to put money in the economy, generate consumer demand, increase the tax base and restore economic health and sanity.
Further, our country has real and immediate needs that can only be met by people who are working.
Rightwing Republicans twiddle the nation's thumbs while we squander America's vast energy resources--the powerful wind on two coasts and down the middle of the country that could spin the turbines of vast wind farms, the sun that shines day after day in the deserts of our southwest, coal fired power plants the need upgrading and the installation of scrubbers and carbon sequestration. All this would require the upgrading of our transmission lines and electricity infrastructure. All this work would require thousands and thousands of people. Just as importantly, it would be an investment in America's future. China understands this. That's why they spend 2 billion dollars a month on renewable energy. Germany understands this. That is why they are working to be the leader of the world in solar power.
Investing in America. In this day of know nothing and do nothing tea bagging Republican members of Congress it seems like a quaint idea. What an affront to America's history! The Louisiana Purchase, the building of the transcontinental railroad during the Civil War, the buying of Alaska, the purchase and development of our national parks, the space program, the building of our interstate highway system, the arming of the Free World with ore and taconite from the Iron Range and steel from South Chicago and Gary and the factories across our Heartland during World War II and more and more and more.
We have great infrastructure needs today which can only be met by people who are working. Crumbling bridges and highways and dilapidated train stations and airports and rail lines and sidewalks and sewer and water systems all need repair. Most Americans would be horrified if they knew the conditions of the lines our tap water flows through.
In the age of austerity and tax cuts for the wealthy and privatization and the impoverishment of our nation's government we drift toward a country that no longer aspires nor cares to be great, that is content to let the sinews of equality of opportunity shred, that has lost sight of the Common Good, an America that dishonors its past and neglects its future.
Stewart Acuff
Stewart Acuff is the Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA) Chief of Staff and co-author of Getting America Back To Work.
Our nation has just been shook by a completely home grown, manufactured and totally avoidable economic crisis--the politization of the USA's ability to pay its debts. This has resulted in the downgrade of our country's credit worthiness--another blow to our economy and to the standing of the USA in the eyes of the world.
Now, of course, pundits and rightwingers will call even more loudly for national austerity and the dismantling of our social security net--especially for seniors. If we are to follow their hysteria and take more money out of the economy, we will only deepen the recession and drive the economy and the country further into an economic hole.
We have a jobs crisis. Creating jobs and working toward full employment is one of the best ways to put money in the economy, generate consumer demand, increase the tax base and restore economic health and sanity.
Further, our country has real and immediate needs that can only be met by people who are working.
Rightwing Republicans twiddle the nation's thumbs while we squander America's vast energy resources--the powerful wind on two coasts and down the middle of the country that could spin the turbines of vast wind farms, the sun that shines day after day in the deserts of our southwest, coal fired power plants the need upgrading and the installation of scrubbers and carbon sequestration. All this would require the upgrading of our transmission lines and electricity infrastructure. All this work would require thousands and thousands of people. Just as importantly, it would be an investment in America's future. China understands this. That's why they spend 2 billion dollars a month on renewable energy. Germany understands this. That is why they are working to be the leader of the world in solar power.
Investing in America. In this day of know nothing and do nothing tea bagging Republican members of Congress it seems like a quaint idea. What an affront to America's history! The Louisiana Purchase, the building of the transcontinental railroad during the Civil War, the buying of Alaska, the purchase and development of our national parks, the space program, the building of our interstate highway system, the arming of the Free World with ore and taconite from the Iron Range and steel from South Chicago and Gary and the factories across our Heartland during World War II and more and more and more.
We have great infrastructure needs today which can only be met by people who are working. Crumbling bridges and highways and dilapidated train stations and airports and rail lines and sidewalks and sewer and water systems all need repair. Most Americans would be horrified if they knew the conditions of the lines our tap water flows through.
In the age of austerity and tax cuts for the wealthy and privatization and the impoverishment of our nation's government we drift toward a country that no longer aspires nor cares to be great, that is content to let the sinews of equality of opportunity shred, that has lost sight of the Common Good, an America that dishonors its past and neglects its future.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.