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    Are The American People The Victim of Their Own Stupidity?

    Beneath the Spin * Eric L. Wattree

    Are The American People The Victim of Their Own Stupidity?

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    It's amazing how clueless people can be. I'm currently focused on how people can't see the negative impact that some of these ego maniacs like Cornel West and Ralph Nader are having on their lives. How can they not see that when you divide the vote of like-minded people that it only serves to help the people that they like least? So when they blindly follow people like Nader and West they’re allowing the mysterious agenda of these people to have a direct, and undue, impact on their very lives.
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    In an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times, Seth Masket and Hans Noel points out that "The last third-party candidate to win the presidency was Abraham Lincoln, in 1860, 151 years ago. But Lincoln's campaign was hardly independent. The Republican Party had been organizing for years, and it had representation in Congress. And one of the previous major parties, the Whigs, was collapsing, its followers mostly switching to the Republicans." (http://articles.latimes.com/.../la-oe-masketnoel-indies...)
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    In a similar article, "Third-party candidacies: Rarely successful, often influential," that ran in The Washington Times, Henry Olsen, who heads the National Research Initiative at the American Enterprise Institute, was quoted as saying, "‘Fringe candidates can affect the outcome of an election . . . They can be decisive in a lot of ways, often in ways that don’t necessarily show up in how well the candidates do, but rather where they do [it],’ said Mr. Olsen, who suggested George W. Bush may not have become president in 2000 were it not for Green Party candidate Ralph Nader . . . Mr. Nader was ‘inconsequential nationally, but because of our electoral system, he cost [Al] Gore Florida, and hence cost him the election,’ Mr. Olsen said" - and that’s what led to the Iraq war, the deaths of over a million Iraqi citizens, the death or disabling of thousands of American troops, and our current economic condition. Was it worth it, for the need of ideological puritans to simply vote their conscious? Personally, I don’t think so.
    (http://www.washingtontimes.com/.../third-party.../...)
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    So again, why can't these "ideological puritans," who claim they want to "vote their conscience," recognize that by dividing the vote of like-minded people, they’re actually helping the people that they like the least? In essence, they’re so upset with the Bogeyman, that they're leaving the backdoor unlocked for the Devil. It's pure stupidity.
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    George W. Bush, and his trickle-up policies are the primary reason that we’re in the condition that we’re in, and the Nader/West coalition is the primary reason that Bush was elected. But in spite of that, now we have Cornel West going all over the country doing $30,000 an hour speeches demonizing President Obama for not doing enough to remedy the situation.

    The sheer gall of this guy is unbelievable. West is like a guy who walks into a restaurant and craps on the floor, and then calls the Health Department because the owner didn’t get it up fast enough. People like Ralph Nader, Cornel West, Tavis Smiley, and Boyce Watkins are the quintessential hypocrites. People like these are pursuing their own limited and self-serving agendas while portraying themselves as the saviors of the very people they’re hurting the most.
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    After Ralph Nader was rejected for the 2000 presidential nomination by the Democratic voters, instead of acknowledging his rejection and falling into line to help defeat the Republicans, Nader went into a petulant snit and ran as a third party candidate. It was clear that he purposely ran as a third party candidate with the mean-spirited intent of sabotaging the Democratic effort, because third parties never win; the only purpose that third parties ever serve is to help elect the people that you like least, because they divide the vote of like-minded people.
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    Cornel West joined Nader in this foolish - or treacherous, you make the determination - campaign, and as a result, George W. Bush won the election over Al Gore by winning Florida by a mere 537 votes. The Nader/West coalition peeled off 97,488 votes from Gore in Florida alone. So when I say that Cornel West is more than a little responsible for George W. Bush becoming President of the United States, and thus, your current economic condition, don’t take my word for it – you do the math.
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    Most people, if they were sincere, would look at the disastrous results of their activities and be devastated. After all, causing Bush to be elected was the worst possible outcome for everything West is SUPPOSE to represent. So most people would conclude that they had made a grave error, and that they would never do anything to divide the progressive vote again. But not Cornel West, he teamed up with Ralph Nader yet again in the 2012 election against Obama, and tried do the very same thing that they'd done in the 2000 election that resulted in Bush's presidency. The only thing that stopped them was, this time the people weren’t buying it.
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    So yes, in September of 2011 Ralph Nader and Cornel West teamed up to try to sabotage the Democratic Party yet again. They canvassed the country for Democratic opponents to challenge Obama in the primaries. According to Nader, "Without debates by challengers inside the Democratic Party’s presidential primaries, the liberal/majoritarian agenda will be muted and ignored." And he goes on to say, "The one-man Democratic primaries will be dull, repetitive, and draining of both voter enthusiasm and real bright lines between the two parties that excite voters." What he failed to say, however, was it kept the liberal voice solid and united. So if Nader and West had been successful, they would have divided the Democratic Party just enough for Mitt Romney to squeak out a victory, and the nation would now be under conservative leadership. Now, just take a moment and think about what life would have been like for poor people then. But did the illustrious Cornel "I love My People" West care about that?  Not a bit. (http://wattree.blogspot.com/2014/10/is-cornel-west-judas-goat-when-was-last.html).

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    Proof That The Ralph Nader/Cornel West Coalition Purposely Helped Bush Become President
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    Outside Magazine, August 2000:
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    "If California tips Green enough, Bush could win the state and the whole damn election. Which, Nader confided to Outside in June, wouldn't be so bad. When asked if someone put a gun to his head and told him to vote for either Gore or Bush, which he would choose, Nader answered without hesitation: ‘Bush.’ Not that he actually thinks the man he calls ‘Bush Inc.’ deserves to be elected: ‘He'll do whatever industry wants done.’ The rumpled crusader clearly prefers to sink his righteous teeth into Al Gore, ... [and] concludes with the sotto voce realpolitik of a ward heeler: ‘If you want the parties to diverge from one another, have Bush win.’
    (http://www.hereinstead.com/QUOTATIONS-FROM-RALPH-NADER.htm)

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    Those are the words of a clueless and self-serving lunatic who is more interested in his own agenda than he is the best interest of the American people, as the results of his activity clearly demonstrates. Thus, it was no accident that Nader and West teamed up. They are of the very same ilk - they’re brothers in self-serving indifference to America. In addition, they’re both self-absorbed, they both crave attention, and they’re both extremely petty and spiteful, as demonstrated by Nader’s antipathy toward Al Gore, and West’s spitefulness toward Barack Obama.

    Nevertheless, in the past, they were both highly respected for what appeared to be their selfless advocacy for the people. But their current activities clearly demonstrate that what seemed to be "selfless advocacy" was actually self-promotion. As mentioned, they both crave attention, and they both have a contrarian nature, so in the past, it just turn out that their contrarian dispositions just happened to coincided with the public interest, so they seized upon the opportunity in order to promote themselves. But now, they’ve both made it perfectly clear that they’re willing to turn their backs on everything that they were suppose to believe in so passionately if it's in conflict with either their pettiness, or own self-interest. A perfect example of that is to ask yourself, how many people did Cornel West influence to stay away from the polls in the last election by the suggestion that it was alright not to vote if they disagreed with any one of President Obama’s policies - he said in a Time.com article, "I couldn’t vote for a war criminal." (http://time.com/3475306/hear-cornel-west-on-obama-a-drone-presidency/)

    As a direct result of such messages being sent to the American people, we now have a Republican controlled house and senate - and what kind of compassion does this Republican controlled congress have for the people who West is supposed to "love" so passionately . . . ?
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    Congress Eliminates Child Tax Credit, Mortgage Deduction And E.I.T.C From Tax Code
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    "The deeply unpopular congress, whose approval rating hovers around a historic low of 10%, has voted to remove the child tax credit, the earned income tax credit and the mortgage interest deduction from the tax code starting with the 2014 fiscal year. The move is almost assured to solidify the perception of the 113th Congress of the United States as deeply disconnected from the struggles and desires of the populace it is supposed to serve." (http://nationalreport.net/congress-eliminates-child-tax-credit-mortgage-deduction-e-t-c-tax-code/#sthash.TFe9dRm1.dpuf)
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    Thus, in the 2014 midterm election, the American people decided to thumb their nose at the man who prevented them from going into a second Great Depression, saved the American auto industry, and provided affordable health care for millions of Americans, to follow demagogues, and the very people who are directly responsible for their dire economic straits. I’d call that, blatant stupidity.
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    A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves. - Edward R. Murrow.
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    Eric L. Wattree
    Http://wattree.blogspot.com
    [email protected]
    Citizens Against Reckless Middle-Class Abuse (CARMA)
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    Religious bigotry: It's not that I hate everyone who doesn't look, think, and act like me - it's just that God does.

    Comments

    This didn't happen.

    congress... voted to remove the child tax credit, the earned income tax credit and the mortgage interest deduction from the tax code starting with the 2014 fiscal year.

     

     


    Contrarian,
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    I want to thank you for bringing this to my attention.  I should have said, that congress has "failed to renew" the deductions in question:
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    For the past 10 months, tax planning for millions of Americans has been on hold. The reason? A whopping 55 tax deductions, tax credits and other tax-saving laws expired Dec. 31, 2013.

    This hodgepodge of individual and business tax breaks -- some of which apply to large groups of taxpayers, others that are much more specific -- has been on the books for years.

    But technically these laws are temporary.

    Each has a specific end date, typically the conclusion of a tax year. For the most part, Congress has extended them year after year. That's why the collective bunch is referred to as "extenders."

    Congress has promised to deal with the extenders sometime after the Nov. 4 elections. But there's no firm timetable for legislative action. And there's no guarantee that all the expired tax provisions will be renewed retroactively to the beginning of the 2014 tax year.

    The Senate Finance Committee has approved most of the extenders as one package, but it has yet to be approved by that full chamber. The House Ways and Means Committee is addressing the various laws in smaller groups. Eventually, representatives and senators will have to agree on one set of extenders to send to the president for his signature.

    Popular individual tax breaks that expired Dec. 31, 2013

    Tax benefitType of tax breakState and local sales taxesDeductionPrivate mortgage insurance premiumsDeductionEducators' out-of-pocket expensesDeductionHigher education tuition and feesDeductionResidential home energy improvementsCreditRollover of IRA distribution to a charityIncome exemptionMortgage debt forgivenessIncome exemption

    Read more: http://www.bankrate.com/finance/taxes/tax-breaks-dead-until-congress-revives-them.aspx#ixzz3JlO2ABpK


    Follow us: @Bankrate on Twitter | Bankrate on Facebook


    Right. National Report just isn't a trustworthy source. Here's a Snopes write up about the article in question: http://www.snopes.com/media/notnews/taxcredit.asp  As the piece from bankrate.com explained, tax breaks generally are set to expire.


    As far as the 3 specified breaks:

    1) Mortgage Interest: This is regressive, so I'd put it in a different category from the other two, which I consider 'good tax breaks.' It's not clear to me that we should want to save a regressive tax break that may encourage debt. Relevant discussion http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/11/23/the-debt-economy and http://kimkleinandthecommons.blogspot.com/2010/08/is-mortgage-tax-deduction-worth-it.html

    2) Child Tax Credit: My understanding is that the GOP actually supports an expanded child tax credit. Historically it's a tax break they've advocated and this NYT article implies that they're on board: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/19/business/in-congress-crunch-time-for-dubious-tax-breaks.html?_r=0 However the immigration situation may have complicated that.

    3) EITC: This one just became front and center politically because the right is concerned that Obama's executive order on immigration has made illegal aliens eligible to receive the nonrefundable tax credit. This affects the discussion of the child tax credit too, but to a lesser extent. http://www.politico.com/story/2014/11/undocumented-workers-irs-taxes-113078.html

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    The problem with the GOP is they've never seen a tax cut for the rich that they didn't want to enact, and they pay for it on the backs of the poor and middle class. That's why since the Reagan administration the simply rich have become filthy rich, and the poor and middle class have been constantly sliding downhill.  Today the top 5% of the population controls 72% of the wealth.  What happens when it becomes 82%, or 92%?  By definition, we'll then be slaves. The only difference between that and being actual slaves is that we'll have to provide our own housing.
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    The Middle Class Slide Since the Reagan Administration

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    "In 1982, Forbes magazine began its now much-read annual list of America’s richest men and women. At the time of the first list, there were 12 billionaires in the country and fewer than 200,000 millionaires. By the year 2000, there were nearly 300 billionaires and about 5 million millionaires. Smith’s account of the rise of the rich and super-rich tells the story of five types of individuals: entrepreneurs, dealmakers, investors, tycoons (corporate executives, who are distinguished from
    entrepreneurs), and entertainers."
    http://www.beardbooks.com/beardbooks/the_rise_of_todays_rich_and_super_rich.html
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    "No matter how you slice it, when it comes to income and wealth in America the rich get most of the pie and the rest get the leftovers. The numbers are shocking. Today the top 1 percent of Americans control 43 percent of the financial wealth (see the pie chart below) while the bottom 80 percent control only 7 percent of the wealth. Incredibly, the wealthiest 400 Americans have the same combined wealth as the poorest half of Americans — over 150 million people."

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    A recent Princeton study Shows that America is no longer a democracy. We are now an Oligarchy, controlled by the rich. So it is essential that we wake up. Racism is no longer the war; racism is now merely a TOOL of war. We are now knee-deep in a CLASS WAR, and the American people are losing badly - ALL of the American people.
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    Here’s the game that we're allowing the corporatists to run on us. They’ve convinced America that if we give the rich enough money, they’ll use that money to create jobs for the poor and middle class. Now, I don’t claim to be an intellectual giant, but it doesn’t take a great mind to understand that demand fuels supply, not the reverse.
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    If I made my living selling Gucci Bags, for example, I don’t care how much money you give me, I’m not going to hire anyone to produce any more Gucci Bags than I have in stock if I'm being forced to sell those bags in a homeless shelter. It wouldn’t make sense, because in a homeless shelter no one would have the money to purchase my product. The only way that you’re going to get me to hire people to produce Gucci Bags is if you gave that money to the people in the shelter so they’d have the money to buy my merchandise.
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    That's exactly what's happening in America today. Corporate profits are at record highs, and the information and charts above clearly show that corporations and corporate executives are currently making more money than they've ever dreamed of in the past. So there's no reason for high unemployment. The rich are not putting that money into creating jobs; that money is going into offshore accounts, and we never see it again. That's why the rich are getting so much richer, and the middle class so much poorer.

     


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