facts and fiction: 2011-07-31

Saturday, August 6, 2011

Republicans fit the profile of a classic abuser - Chicago liberal | Examiner.com

Republicans fit the profile of a classic abuser - Chicago liberal | Examiner.com: "Republicans fit the profile of a classic abuser

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Julie Driscoll, Chicago Liberal Examiner
August 1, 2011 - Like this? Subscribe to get instant updates.

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As a former victim of domestic violence - in another lifetime - I learned a lot about the abusive personality. When it was over, and I was out, I became a domestic violence hotline counselor . . . the classes I took to train me for that taught me, one, that abusers aren't psychotic, but instead have character disorders, and two, the abusive behavior isn't uncontrollable - it's a learned social behavior."

hit the link for the full article....really good.

Mainstream Media Ignores S&P Attack On Republicans | Truthout

Mainstream Media Ignores S&P Attack On Republicans | Truthout: "Mainstream Media Ignores S&P Attack On Republicans
Saturday 6 August 2011
by: Thom Hartmann, ThomHartmann.com | Op-Ed

(Photo: SpeakerBoehner / Flickr)

Have you seen, anywhere, in any media, or even heard reported or repeated on NPR, the following sentence? “We have changed our assumption on this because the majority of Republicans in Congress continue to resist any measure that would raise revenues, a position we believe Congress reinforced by passing the act.”

It’s right there on Page 4 of the official Standard & Poors “Research Update” – the actual report on what they did and why – published on August 5th as the explanation for why they believe Congress – and even the Gang of Twelve – will be unable to actually deal with the US debt crisis.

Perhaps it’s just lazy – the bullet points at the beginning of the report don’t mention the Republicans or taxes, but instead just say, for example (part of one of six quick bullet-points): “[T]he downgrade reflects our view that the effectiveness, stability, and predictability of American policymaking and political institutions have weakened at a time of ongoing fiscal and economic challenges…”"

Hit the link for more....

Perry's Response: Wingnuts Will Heal A Nation In Crisis | Common Dreams

Perry's Response: Wingnuts Will Heal A Nation In Crisis | Common Dreams: "Perry's Response: Wingnuts Will Heal A Nation In Crisis
by Abby Zimet

Presidential wannabee Gov. Rick Perry's day of prayer and fasting on Saturday will feature the wackiest of the religious right-wing. Among their beliefs: blackbirds are dying because of gay soldiers, the Statue of Liberty is a 'demonic idol,' the gay rights movement is a “satanic anointment,' Hurricane Katrina was divine retribution for the city's sins, and Oprah is a “forerunner to the harlot movement' who signals the Apocalypse. Well, they might be right on that one. Still, it may be a flop: Only 8,000 believers signed up beforehand for a stadium that seats 71,500, and none of the 49 governors invited plan to attend. So much for a nation healing itself. Rachel Maddow has more on who will be there, and why you might not want to be."

The debt crisis - Boston.com

The Willful Ignorance That Has Dragged the US to the Brink | Common Dreams

The Willful Ignorance That Has Dragged the US to the Brink | Common Dreams: "The Willful Ignorance That Has Dragged the US to the Brink
The Tea Party version of the American Revolution is not just fundamentalist. It is also Disneyfied, sentimentalized, and whitewashed

by Sarah Churchwell
Here's a monumental historical irony: a moment in the origins of the United States that every American schoolchild learns to view with pride, the Boston Tea Party, has now become a symbol of our (inter)national shame. In one sense, it is difficult to know what to say in response to the utter irrationality of the Tea Party's self-destructive decision to sabotage the American political process – and thus its own country's economy, and the global economy."

Click on the link to continue reading...

The Beast Is Starved: Welcome to the Next Great Depression | Common Dreams

The Beast Is Starved: Welcome to the Next Great Depression | Common Dreams: "Since Reagan, Republicans have been on a “starve the beast” campaign – by which they mean eviscerate the government by taking away as much revenue as they can.

Starving the beast has been the biggest bait and switch con game that has ever been perpetrated on the American people. And the most tragic."

Click on the link to continue reading.

good ol' Rick

Cartoons of the Day- Rick Perry | The Political Carnival

Friday, August 5, 2011

Health Insurers Sacrifice Americans for Profit | MichaelMoore.com

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Rick Perry Pushes ALEC-Backed Education Policies To Turn Texas Universities Into Businesses | ThinkProgress

And the people of Texas get dumber and dumber.....

how corporations serve us......

If corporations are so great, why do you spend half your life on hold?
O.K., so you try and call your health insurance company to find out if a certain medical procedure is covered under your plan. After being forced to listen to nine options, you press customer service and a recorded voice tells you that due to the company "experiencing excessive call volume," you will need to wait to speak to an "available agent."
When someone finally answers, they have a foreign accent - as you know from past calls, the customer service benefits department has been offshored - and after you ask your question, you are asked if you mind being put on hold while the representative consults his or her manager. After several minutes, the customer service agent - who is paid a subsistence wage - removes the hold and asks if this is a pre-existing condition. You point out that since you've had the policy for two years, the pre-existing condition restriction no longer applies.
The benefits representative in a distant land responds that he or she needs to again consult with the manager and you are put on hold.
When you again hear a voice, you are told that the diagnostic testing is covered, but that you have a $4,500 deductible, so the insurance won't be paying for it. You are then asked if you need any further help.
Then you call your bank that is "too big to fail" about a discrepancy in your monthly statement and are put through a loop of recorded questions and answers that don't resolve your problem, but it doesn't matter much because when you press a number that you thought would lead you to a real person, you are somehow disconnected.
Next, you call the electric utility to tell them that a tree just fell on your house power line and the house is without electricity in 98 degree heat, and after being on hold for 20 minutes, someone comes on the phone and asks if the line is sparking or setting anything on fire. You answer no, not that you can see, and then get told that since it is not an emergency, no one can come out for a few days because there aren't enough line men or women at this time to handle other than live "hot" wire repairs.
And then you call the liquor store to see if they deliver - and they answer right away, and you order a bottle of gin.
Two weeks later, you get a letter from your health insurance company informing you that although you called a benefits consultant you failed to call the department that does prior authorization and, therefore, your claim is denied and it won't even go toward your deductible.
You call the liquor store and order another bottle of gin, and are mystified at how corporations are held up as models of customer service and efficiency while the government is constantly disparaged.
And then you take another sip of gin because the liquor store is about the only business that delivers what you want.
Mark Karlin
Editor, BuzzFlash at Truthout

The Hidden History of ALEC and Prison Labor | The Nation

Rick Perry's 'Texas Miracle' Includes Crowded Homeless Shelters, Low-Wage Jobs, Worker Deaths

His hype is all lies. All of it...

Monday, August 1, 2011

Seeking Arrangement: College Students Using 'Sugar Daddies' To Pay Off Loan Debt

Sad, sad note in our society...

Sunday, July 31, 2011

Outrage: Denied The Right To Vote For Not Having Bank Account With Enough “Activity” | Before It's News

Can there be anything more un-american? How can this be legal?

facts and fiction