It is a known fact that has historical significance and has essentially proven to be a “truism” of sorts; “the concentration of a ‘power of a few diminishes and threatens the lives of the many.” The recent acknowledgement of China’s facsimile of all his nation’s people, Xi Jinping, making himself the lifetime president shall result in a dictatorial regime similar to the oligarchy run by Putin in the Soviet Union. The fairly recent spread of authoritarian leaders throughout the globe is and should be a frightening situation that threatens humanlty and civilization itself.
Our own nation is an example of the concerted efforts over the past half century plus of our wealthiest corporations and politically connected have corrupted every governmental entity via buying the decision making process (politicians). Our wealthiest top 1% have assets/wealth equivalent to our entire middle class and poorest amongst us (95%). We’ve ceased being a democracy when our wealthiest and corrupted affluent deemed it was essential to negate every single advancement fought for and attained post World War II (1945) to the mid-’70s that benefited an entire nation’s populace with increased standards for all its citizenry (from the richest to our poorest). We’ve ceased from being a nation of “caring and sharing” to an out-of-control absolute unequivocal plutocracy en route under the present administration of becoming an absolute, unequivocal oligarchy, just like Putin’s regime.
Throughout the annals of human history forward with societal reprobates like Hannibal, Genghis Khan and Attila the Hun, and inclusive within modern history there is a multitude of equal “scum” (scurrilous, corrupted, unabashed malfeasants) such as Stalin, Pol Pot, Hitler and the Putins, and Trumps of the world that pillage their nations in an equally treacherous manner with the control of power that threatens an entire middle class and the very least amongst us.
The aforementioned list throughout human history has and continues to be (2018) predominantly “males.” If that predominant power structure of “male governance” does not change neither shall all the negative character traits, initiated, instigated, propagated, and perpetuated by them change as well, until there exists “by demand” the equally weighted “Voices and Votes” with parity (50% male, 50% female) in the governance and oversight of all tax-funded entities throughout the entire nation expeditiously.
One need only look at the statistical Information regarding crimes and corruption within the United States and the overwhelming numbers show it’s predominantly male-perpetrated
Frank C. Rohrig, Milford, Conn.
Connie Schultz’s column, “50 Years of White What-ifs” [5/1/18 TPP], brought to my mind Martin Luther King’s impassioned declaration that “all labor has dignity.”
In retrospect, the most meaningful, and what I now regard as the most important work I ever did, paid minimum wages and was considered by many as a demeaning job.
Back then I worked as an orderly at the L.A. County General Hospital. My duties included bathing my patients, emptying their bedpans and cleaning up their vomit, shaving them when they couldn’t shave themselves, and spoon feeding those who were too weak to hold a utensil.
I gave them back rubs, changed their bed sheets, and helped those who needed to get out of their beds and walk to the bathroom. In short, I strove to ease their pain and discomfort, and make them as comfortable as possible.
I’m sure Dr. King would have considered my work worthy of dignity. And if his life had been spared, I want to think that I would have joined him in his fight for all the working poor (regardless of their color) to be paid a living wage.
That an assassin’s bullet cut short that great man’s life, is a tragedy that parallels the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.
David Quintero, Monrovia, Calif.
Democrats Should Run on Impeachment
I agree with Ted Rall [4/15/18 TPP] that Democrats should run on impeaching Trump. The mainstream media states that that the Democrats should run on issues, not impeaching Trump. However Trump is the worst president in US history, who is destroying this country. He is also deranged, demented and a moral and criminal degenerate. It is up to the Democrats to inform Americans how dangerous it would be for the US to have the Trump bum remain in office.
Reba Shimansky, New York, N.Y.
We all sat blithely by as Trump staffed his cabinet with people who had openly opposed the true mission of their respective department. So, what were we thinking? “Oh, there’s no way they would actually run their department into the ground.”
Well, now we know we were wrong. And they are doing tremendous damage to our beloved country and its citizens. We need an all-out assault on the Trump administration to say this behavior is totally unacceptable. We have tried petitions to alter government behavior. We have used marches. We have used call-ins. We have used sit-ins. We have used boycotts. We have used divestments. We have filed suits. What can we do to stop this pillage of our country?
Lee Knohl, Evanston Ill.
Editor’s Note: There will be a congressional election Nov. 8, where Americans have the option of electing Democrats who would hold the president accountable, since Republicans have refused to do so.
Missouri held a special election on Feb. 6 to decide four vacant legislative seats. Democrats flipped one seat, Republicans held on to two others as expected. I want to point out what happened to Jim Scaggs, Democratic candidate in our 144th District. Jim is a local farmer and businessman in his district; a man of integrity and commitment, who is very well liked. He was elected Presiding Commissioner in Iron County in 2014, a year that wiped out nearly all Democrats.
This year a team of five lawyers appeared in Iron County and went over all tax records, other records and anything they could find. Jim introduced himself and was quite cooperative but, of course, they found nothing.
Jim raised $40,000 and contributed another $20,000 of his own funds and ran a very good campaign. About a week before the election $300,000 worth of mailers and radio ads began in the district. Voters received push polls with ten different imaginary scenarios. Jim’s family actually received death threats, not to him but to his family. He didn’t believe they were serious but you can’t take chances. He went to stay with their son and his wife stayed with their daughter the last week before the election, distracting him from the campaign.
It worked. Jim lost by only 300 votes in a district that went 80% for Trump in 2016.
Now why would the Republicans care that much about a poor, rural Missouri district deep in fly-over country? I can only speculate. But it does send a warning to those sitting back fat, dumb and happy expecting a big “Blue Wave” this November. It happened here. It could happen anywhere. They play dirty and have the dark money to fund it.
Barbara Stocker, DeSoto, Mo.
Trump has repeatedly said and tweeted that he didn’t know about the hush money to Stormy Daniels, and he didn’t know where the money came from. Now, May 3, he finally admits to reimbursing his lawyer for the $130,000 payment the lawyer made on the eve of the 2016 election. It’s good that he finally came clean on his lie, but does that absolve him from consequences of lying previously?
This is only one of more than 3,000 lies Trump has spoken or tweeted since becoming President. Clearly, such a liar cannot be trusted. How can public policy be based on such slippery slobber? This isn’t acceptable behavior for the leader representing our country. How can Republicans and Trump supporters continue to tolerate such dishonesty as normal?
Bruce Joffe, Piedmont, Calif.
I keep hearing that we should not be too hard on the morons who voted for Donald Trump despite his well-known history of lying, hanging around with mobsters, cheating contractors, use of Chinese steel in his buildings, outsourcing his merchandise to Chinese factories, discriminating against black and Latino potential renters and cheating on all three of his wives. Now he’s got us in a trade war with China, where the Chinese answered a 25% tariff on steel with a 25% tariff on pork, corn and soybeans from the US, and Trump says the tariffs may be tough for some but it will be better for the country in the long run. Farmers: Had enough Trump yet?
Nolan O’Brian, Dallas, Texas
Any attack on President Trump by the Liberals is an attack on the judgement of Evangelicals,” says one of the leaders of Evangelicals. Say What? Let us say that the Evangelicals were “conned” into judging Mr. Trump as a good Christian — just like hundreds of building contractors were conned; just like a few bankers were conned into giving Trump a line of credit; just like they did not object when Trump appointed Scott Pruitt to head the EPA he is now busy destroying our planet Earth; which has been enjoined by Christian Theologists to preserve her; just like he appointed Jeff Sessions as A.G. who has behaved in a very (un) Christian manner by his cruel actions on immigrants, just like he promised to do away with the Johnson Amendment [which prohibits tax-exempt organizations from getting involved in politics] and which was greeted by a thunderous cheers by the Evangelicals; just like it was no big deal that they were even bothered by Trump’s alleged infidelity. Christian Right should be renamed as Christian Wrong by this support of Trump as a president.
G.M. Chandu, Flushing, N.Y.
From The Progressive Populist, June 1, 2018
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