News Stories Which Highlight the Structure of the System

[Nephew Twiddleton]

It really doesn't make much sense at all. Only a woman could possibly understand the true implications and a panel made up mostly of virgins sure as hell doesn't know what it feels like to be a woman or to need contraception. This only goes to perpetuate theories of patriarchal rule in western culture, which I usually find myself agreeing with.

As for the voter ID laws, I really am surprised so many cannot make the connection from the law to its implications on democracy. Especially since the affects of stricter voting requirements are much more direct than ,for example, corporate money to politicians during campaigns.

This is why I find it particularly amusing that the Catholic church sees fit to start getting motivated politically when anything involving human sexuality is involved.

Something to do with contraception? Ask the old dude who not only never got laid, but chose not to get laid.
Something to do with gay marriage? Ask the old homophobe running a house full of old dude with a penchant for diddling.

Honestly if priests had more sex with consenting adults their attitudes towards contraception would change immediately.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

It really makes me wonder what we could do to force them to enact change. How far will regular legal channels allow us to go? The public being incredible disapproving doesn't seem to do anything, only highlighting where their true interests lie. Secondly, if we did end up forcing them to enact change, it seems unlikely that corporations will just fall to the wayside. The might very well just find other loopholes and ways to game the system, such that reforms just can't keep up.

vote on the Constitutional amendment that will overturn Citizens United vs. the FEC: http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2011/11/02/358694/senators-introduce-citizens-united-amendment/

and get behind the Fair Elections Now Act: http://fairelectionsnow.org/about-bill

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Campaign finance corruption by corporations is the single largest thing standing between Americans and democracy. It is also the single largest thing standing between Americans and a functional economy. By which I mean an economy that benefits the lower and middle classes as well as the wealthy.

[Telarus]

Not technically a news story, so I won't quote the start. I think I've linked to this professor before, tho.

http://www2.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/class_domination.html

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Not technically a news story, so I won't quote the start. I think I've linked to this professor before, tho.

http://www2.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/class_domination.html

Nice!

[hirley0]

Nice!

did U Mean twice or just No dice

[Rococo Modem Basilisk]

Tangentially related by way of the "large international corporations getting away with shit" dept: http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/312-16/9972-monsanto-guilty-of-chemical-poisoning-in-france

Monsanto is probably known to people on this board already in relation to anticompetitive practices (notably having strains of crops that interoperate with their pesticides and then ensuring that those strains do not reproduce, so both the pesticides and the seeds must be bought after every harvest). I don't know enough about the poisoning angle to say whether or not Monsanto already has a history. The above article appears to spin it as another example of inadequate regulation of dangerous products (which I'm a little skeptical of... a farmer should know better than to inhale any pesticide, regardless of what it says on the box), but it's interesting to note that a Monsanto pesticide has recently (five years ago) been banned by the EU.

[Telarus]

Good, I didn't want to be US-centric in this examination.


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-20/icelandic-anger-brings-record-debt-relief-in-best-crisis-recovery-story.html

[Telarus]

Jesse Ventura talks about CIA implanted in State Government, his CIA interrogation and trip to Cuba

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIzfXOfpFcA

[Scribbly]

Good, I didn't want to be US-centric in this examination.


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-20/icelandic-anger-brings-record-debt-relief-in-best-crisis-recovery-story.html

This was a fantastic article, thanks for sharing Telarus!

Reminds me of a quote: ‘If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.’— Lao Tzu

[Telarus]

http://www.salon.com/2012/01/30/leon_panettas_explicitly_authoritarian_decree/

Defense Secretary and former CIA chief Leon Panetta, defending Obama's use of CIA-assassination on a U.S. Citizen without due process (also note the opening to the article, where the same journalists poses these questions to Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, and Michele Bachmann... all of whom applauded the action).

[Wolfgang Absolutus]

Cenk Uygar talks about war with Iran and how it stinks of idiocy. It like what Lenin said, you look for who will benefit and... uh... you know. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Uet6qsZpLo&feature=g-u-u&context=G25e86acFUAAAAAAABAA

[Junkenstein]

Cenk Uygar talks about war with Iran and how it stinks of idiocy. It like what Lenin said, you look for who will benefit and... uh... you know. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Uet6qsZpLo&feature=g-u-u&context=G25e86acFUAAAAAAABAA

Interesting video. Is there any truth to the claim that 7/10 US citizens believe Iran has nuclear weapons?

I suspect I am over-estimating the intelligence of humans again.

Totally unrelated,

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17145225

"The shareholders were paid £11m in dividends in that period. Ms Harrison, who is one of the five, received 87% of this, the public affairs committee heard this month."

This is a UK MP in charge of getting people back to work. Company currently being investigated for fraud, 9 arrests so far.
By the by, they've had major government contracts for several years, so this has potential to drag in some old faces. Previous and current government involved? I'm shocked.

Eventually people will begin to see the sense in paying any government official minimum wage and making them live in accommodation comparable to the average in their constituency.

[Wolfgang Absolutus]

I'm still kind of an anarchist at heart but I will agree that if we want to do the whole reform song and dance, this: "paying any government official minimum wage and making them live in accommodation comparable to the average in their constituency" seems like its not the worst idea in the world.

[Doktor Howl]

I'm still kind of an anarchist at heart but I will agree that if we want to do the whole reform song and dance, this: "paying any government official minimum wage and making them live in accommodation comparable to the average in their constituency" seems like its not the worst idea in the world.

Great.  Get that through congress/parliament, and we'll talk.