Today's Doonesbury takes a savage poke at Goldman Sachs as well as the ineptitude of the White House in holding their feet to the fire. In the final frame, the Goldman Sachs people are depicted as pigs. Garry Trudeau really knows how to stick it to the guilty with panache and class.
"OneWest bank profit: $1.6 billion
As IndyMac, it sold last year for less than that. Investors win, but the FDIC could still lose nearly $11 billion on bad loans that the Pasadena institution made before its sale."
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/feb/20/business/la-fi-onewest20-2010feb...
....I would add Sir Isaac Newton, who developed differential calculus independently of Leibnitz (spelled "ei" not "ie" and with a "t" before the "z" by the way). Albert Einstein hailed differential calculus as perhaps the most significant step in the history of science. Newton's theory of universal gravitation allowed precise calculations of planetary orbits.
My understanding is that 17th century spelling was variable, depending on what spacing was needed and how many and which letters were left in the typesetter's tray. Thus, you might find alternate spellings in the same document, and one might fall on one's sord or sword or whatever. The devil was in the details.
Frank T.
I just want the focus on econ and specifics, which is the point of the site, we're all econ 24/7, bunch of mottos in the FAQ and user guide, about.
Anywho, well, this is an interesting background and I would welcome if you want to tackle China's recent industrial espionage/economic espionage activity, esp w.r.t. advanced Academic and industrial research rip offs....
I find the U.S. stuck on stupid with all of it going on.
But I still say you're doing that DK lump category deal and the reason is you can tell, we have people in agreement alot on this site, except whe one gets into politics and then the weird and strange comments come out...
but ya know I don't care if you're a purple rattlesnake if you can add up a bunch a numbers and see that derivatives are risking global contagion and that's really not a good thing.
I find your list of five greatest thinkers fascinating. I would bring to your attention Gottfried Liebniz, and before him, Nicholas of Cusa. Cusa in particular has been written out of our history, though I have no idea why. I would venture to say that Leonardo's work builds on that of Cusa, especially the concept of divine geometry.
I guess I would have to expand the list to ten, because I'm just uncomfortable honoring Jefferson, and not also Franklin and Hamilton. Franklin in particular was crucial - try reading a biography of him AFTER reading something like Allen Dulles' The Craft of Intelligence. It becomes apparent that Franklin was a top-notch spymaster, especially while he was based in Paris. Someday, hopefully, somebody will find some documentation or something, and write a book on Franklin's intelligence operations against England. And the way Franklin "herded cats" at the Constitutional Convention - while he was ill and infirm! - is one of the great untold stories of American history. (The key to understanding that is to look carefully at Franklin's relationship with James Wilson when reading a biography of Franklin).
All of which leads to making a point that I sadly have to make, regarding Mr. Oak. I greatly appreciate and admire the excellent work he does, but this thread demontrates that he does not have a good grasp of the key role played by intelligence services and operations in almost all of human history. I picked up a lot of history of intelligence services in college, because I majored in International Studies, with a focus on the Soviet military. This was in the early 1980s, when the Cold War was reaching a climax and racing toward its conclusion. So, you can imagine, I read a lot about the CIA and the KGB. In fact, I was hoping for a position with the CIA, but that didn't happen. At the time, I was a young hothead, making lots of trouble by questioning the status quo of mutually assured destruction. My senior paper was "New Technologies in Strategic Defense: The End of Offence Dominance in the Strategic Nuclear Balance." I sniffed around the Reagan campaign some, hoping I would be a good fit for what became the Strategic Defense Initiative, but, frankly, conservatives repel me personally. Probably because of my working class Chicago upbringing.
Anyway, the point is, I have always had what I guess is a rather unique perspective, of the role of intelligence operations, to bring to economic history. These days, though, there's no real excuse for not being aware of the influence of the clandestine services, after Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine, and John Perkins' Confessions of an Economic Hitman.
I could go on with some of my conclusions along these lines regarding the conservative movement in the United States, but I think I've already caused a few blown fuses.
Tea Bag "populism" is very simply a varient of libertarianism, and that in turn, a kind of pseudo-religion embracing the peculiar notion that "the state" possesses moral agency when anyone in their right mind knows that only human beings can. To the libertarian, the workings and activities of "the state" are intrinsically evil and can only represent encroachments upon human "liberty", a principle which is accorded the status of an absolute and defined in largely sociopathic terms. War, for example, isn't opposed on moral grounds much as a Quaker or a Catholic might oppose it, but rather because it is "interventionist" and contravenes the rights of others. Economically, it is reactionary in the extreme, (1) extolling and enabling the very unregulated environments that have given birth to the abuses which have been realized in the present crisis, and (2) viserally opposing the deficits which would now seem so essential to basic human welfare and a de jure recovery. Tea Party populism is faux populism. What may have begun with noble instincts has allowed itself of late to be so identified with the worst sort of fascist, neo-con branding, that any distinction between it's and Republican Party interests is purely coincidental.
I AM SO ANGRY I CAN'T SEE STRAIGHT....FROM THE OUTSET I FELT IN MY BONES THAT THIS SOB-IN-POWER WAS BAD NEWS. COURTESY DEMAND THAT I DON'T USE THE LANGUAGE THAT COMES TO ME TO DESCRIBE THESE PEOPLE. TO YOU WHO WILL FIND A WAY TO JUSTIFY/WELCOME THIS GRAB, ONE LONG TIME RADIO MONEY ADVICE GUY STATED THERE WILL BE SOME, I WISH PEOPLE LIKE YOU, SPINELESS, GUTLESS, SLAVES THE WORST OF LIFE. GRANDMOTHER IN FLY-OVER COUNTRY.
MTGM caught an error on the CPI report. I noticed it too, but I didn't dig out the weighting, decided to ignore it, assuming something was weighted differently...oops, my bad, good work MTGM!
I think he should get the economics blogger gold star of the week for this one!
Seriously I was trying to get this written up quickly, I noticed that -0.5%, knew it didn't add up and plain didn't track it through...this is what the blogs are for...
digging around to look at the raw statistics, details.
Firstly define "extremist" ideas and secondly, this site at least is not putting forth "extremist" ideas. It's got to be the most practical, common sense type of stuff going, unless "extremism" means enact policies and government in the national interest and out of the hands of various lobbyists and special interests and their short term, short sighted, corrupt and even stuck on stupid in their own best interests....agendas.
Seriously. How beige can one get than to have an economics/finance site for the lay person with a focus on the U.S. national interest and working America's interests?
The only question is how to get the corporations and lobbyists out of D.C. and get real representation that act in the national interest instead of their own financial and personal power grab agendas?
But from what I can see, this site at least is simply telling people to get educated and to demand policies via letter writing, FAXing, speaking out and voting for policy/legislative specifics...
Ya say ya want a revolution, well, well, ya know....
I don't have any answers beyond we need a real FDR reincarnated...but I do believe if the entire nation just really demanded this of their government it could happen...there are only so many rigged elections and rigged politicians one can run through.
But first, I would find it oh so nice if the general public even understand what they are fighting for, in detail.
I've seen policies promoted, all over the place, that from practice to the economy theory, will assuredly hurt the U.S. middle class and the national economy yet it's like people do not realize this, they don't really grasp what they are even arguing for...
I think getting a firm grasp on economic reality would help push forward political change frankly and that's not there.
More than 400 similar facilities, called long-term acute care hospitals, have opened nationally in the last 25 years. Few of them have doctors on staff, and most are owned by for-profit companies. The Kansas City hospital is part of a chain called the Select Medical Corporation, a publicly traded Pennsylvania company that runs 89 long-term hospitals, more than any other company.blockquote>
True, but I think Tony made some very cogent economic-oriented remarks in his analysis, and used Veblen to do so.
As to those who peddle that "free market mantra" -- had there ever existed a free market in America, when Thomas Jefferson returned from his European travels, where he had met with, and observed, a futuristic-thinking French engineer, and began actively promoting the adoption of manufacturing replaceable, interlocking components utilizing an assembly line process, that phantom free market would have paid attention and jumped this country hundreds of years ahead of Henry Ford!
But, as history demonstrates, there was no free market in either America or France, nor does that creature exist today.
But, in a awesomely controlled society, whereby 50,000 foundations steer the popular consensus along with corporate-controlled media, extremist ideas are really the only way out; the only real solution.
Trust me, I've been contacting my congressional creatures for well over 35 years, and it doesn't work, least of all today.
My congressional creatures only answer to the money people.
...as I believe Corrections Corporation of America (subsidiary: Prison Realty, Inc.) is owned by private equity firms, as are most of the private prison corps.
And I do believe in the worst where private equity combines with private prisons. (And as to those rumors that they have ready access to psychos who they then train and use for their own nefarious prupose....well, I don't have any evidence as of yet, but have found some fairly interesting rumors on it.--- Yeah, I know I'm mentioning hearsay, but think of it as a probable future instead.)
but from what I've read and seen he got a lot of shit for it and grumbled intensely, hated the fact that whole Church group/anti-women/anti-gay people grabbed hold of the conservative movement. It's in his documentary Mr. Conservative as well as a host of other documentation.
What's my point? My point is I see every damn day things like "we must have limited government, government is the problem" and then I see "those teabaggers are wacko nut jobs" and "those Progressives are socialists" and on and on and on.
It's literally empty. Seriously, it reminds me of the Dr. Suess's The Sneetches.
and it's also beliefs, philosophies and it's all so stupid and black and white and derisive.
I think the point is to divide people frankly.
But most importantly, most important of all, is it is not focused on actual details per issue, per policy.
Let's take "Stimulus" as an example. Ok, now I'd say the "left" is pretty "Pro Keynes" and the right believes Keynes doesn't work...
but he's the deal. The Stimulus was NOT Keynes theory implemented! Then, Keynes is for domestic economies, there is no way Keynes works when one is offshore outsourcing U.S. taxpayer (public expenditures) overseas as direct spending.
So, we have talk shows and the usual fires arguing over something that is not even valid or understood.
I can point to free trade, free markets as another example...supposedly the cure all for self professed conservatives.
Well, U.S. trade policy is no way, shape or form is the actual theory of free trade, not even close. All one has to do is look at the preferred status of emerging economies and see they can set tariff schedules where other nations can't or just look at national VATs...to know this is simply not the theory at all.
Then, by the theory itself, it will show, depending on how implemented, it's not this huge "win-win" that is sold all of the time, in fact a 1st world economy can indeed lose!
So, what's my point? My point is this site is to focus on all of these topics, to get to the nitty gritty, to get people, regular people to start educating themselves and quit with these granfalloon self identity groupings and arguments....
because they have a tendency to vote into office (any party) bought and paid for's on the corporate dole, because people are not paying attention to the facts, details, learning about economics, economic policy specifics, cause and effects and so on and instead having a grand time arguing as if this is some sort of big huge football league and which team do you personally identify with?
This ain't no game and during all of these useless arguments, the nation is going down the tubes and the middle class is being wiped out....
People need to get off of these identity politics and labels and onto what works and the actual details of policy and legislation and demand.....what will work.
Drives me nuts. Why the site motto is "when in doubt, use a calculator".
I wish you were right, but I fear that isn't and won't be the case. Not the end-all panacea, simply a substitution for the completely corporate-controlled and disseminated media (newspapers, TV, cable, and so forth).
Observe Iran. The 'net and Twitter can be compromised and halted. Stealth users and operators on Twitter gave out disinformation, misleading directions and misinformation.
Observe China. Taking advantage of the backdoor into Google (placed there at the behest of DHS), they hacked them good! To the detriment of certain Chinese freedom-seeking dissenters.
Nope, I'm afraid, as a British poster said several years ago, we've enetered into a Sociopolitical Singularity, where the powerful have gotten so bloody powerful that so very many are unaware of it.
How many people realize so many of those foundations which support specific programs don't even employ anyone, they are simply financial paper constructions?
How many people realize that NPR is so very little from Foxtard? So very few people.
How many people realize that when some "guest speaker" from the American Enterprise Institute, or some other shill tank appears, he or she is working for an outfit financed and run by the owner of the largest hedge fund on the planet?
So very few people.
If it's tech, it can be altered, compromised and controlled.
Not so very long ago I heard the well-known media critic, Robert McChesney claim that we are getting closer and closer to the "Propaganda State."
Heck, we've long sinced reached that, as there are so very few who truly understand what is taking place.
Why? Because one has to invest so much darn time and resources to reach said understanding.
And while I'm not casting aspersions on Mr. McChesney, I am suspect of some of the financial backing the organizations he's been affiliated? Makes a sometimes aware person such as myself very suspicious.....
The MSM is controlled by corporations, political candidates are controlled by corporations and to even sue somebody, a. you had better have a million dollar case and b. you're looking at 10 years probably to get anywhere and c. the lawyers will eat up all of the money recovered.
i.e. the courts is a money and legal game, little justice involved.
Even Academia is corrupt at this point. We have biased studies all over the place and one finds some grant by some large corporation behind the scenes or some large pharmaceutical company funding the research or trial....never mind biased "white papers" coming from clearly sponsored "think tanks" where literally I've seen assumptions and equations from theory manipulated...never mind study data.
That's really bad for without objectivity, a place where outside influences cannot bias theory and science, we're in for deep dodo for one needs some sort of social institutions and methods where one can trust there is not a bias and it's based on real objective research, real theory, real science.
Also, thank God for it. It's really the economics, financial bloggers who warned on the impending financial implosion. If it was left up to the MSM, I doubt you would have heard much about it. It gives anyone, any expert a voice and it's really the credibility of their writing, expertise which then draws readers.
It's why it is so important to protect privacy and free speech on the Internets too, it's the ultimate public square and even better one can organize the public square so it's intelligible. (i.e. if this was a physical public square you would just hear shouts and noise with no way to organize 100 million voices and topics).
Cartoonist: Doonesbury
Today's Doonesbury takes a savage poke at Goldman Sachs as well as the ineptitude of the White House in holding their feet to the fire. In the final frame, the Goldman Sachs people are depicted as pigs. Garry Trudeau really knows how to stick it to the guilty with panache and class.
Is he up there close to Hudson, Keen, Galbraith, Batra and Schumacher in your view? (Question for Mr. Woolley)
"OneWest bank profit: $1.6 billion
As IndyMac, it sold last year for less than that. Investors win, but the FDIC could still lose nearly $11 billion on bad loans that the Pasadena institution made before its sale."
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/feb/20/business/la-fi-onewest20-2010feb...
*imho*
....I would add Sir Isaac Newton, who developed differential calculus independently of Leibnitz (spelled "ei" not "ie" and with a "t" before the "z" by the way). Albert Einstein hailed differential calculus as perhaps the most significant step in the history of science. Newton's theory of universal gravitation allowed precise calculations of planetary orbits.
My understanding is that 17th century spelling was variable, depending on what spacing was needed and how many and which letters were left in the typesetter's tray. Thus, you might find alternate spellings in the same document, and one might fall on one's sord or sword or whatever. The devil was in the details.
Frank T.
I just want the focus on econ and specifics, which is the point of the site, we're all econ 24/7, bunch of mottos in the FAQ and user guide, about.
Anywho, well, this is an interesting background and I would welcome if you want to tackle China's recent industrial espionage/economic espionage activity, esp w.r.t. advanced Academic and industrial research rip offs....
I find the U.S. stuck on stupid with all of it going on.
But I still say you're doing that DK lump category deal and the reason is you can tell, we have people in agreement alot on this site, except whe one gets into politics and then the weird and strange comments come out...
but ya know I don't care if you're a purple rattlesnake if you can add up a bunch a numbers and see that derivatives are risking global contagion and that's really not a good thing.
I find your list of five greatest thinkers fascinating. I would bring to your attention Gottfried Liebniz, and before him, Nicholas of Cusa. Cusa in particular has been written out of our history, though I have no idea why. I would venture to say that Leonardo's work builds on that of Cusa, especially the concept of divine geometry.
I guess I would have to expand the list to ten, because I'm just uncomfortable honoring Jefferson, and not also Franklin and Hamilton. Franklin in particular was crucial - try reading a biography of him AFTER reading something like Allen Dulles' The Craft of Intelligence. It becomes apparent that Franklin was a top-notch spymaster, especially while he was based in Paris. Someday, hopefully, somebody will find some documentation or something, and write a book on Franklin's intelligence operations against England. And the way Franklin "herded cats" at the Constitutional Convention - while he was ill and infirm! - is one of the great untold stories of American history. (The key to understanding that is to look carefully at Franklin's relationship with James Wilson when reading a biography of Franklin).
All of which leads to making a point that I sadly have to make, regarding Mr. Oak. I greatly appreciate and admire the excellent work he does, but this thread demontrates that he does not have a good grasp of the key role played by intelligence services and operations in almost all of human history. I picked up a lot of history of intelligence services in college, because I majored in International Studies, with a focus on the Soviet military. This was in the early 1980s, when the Cold War was reaching a climax and racing toward its conclusion. So, you can imagine, I read a lot about the CIA and the KGB. In fact, I was hoping for a position with the CIA, but that didn't happen. At the time, I was a young hothead, making lots of trouble by questioning the status quo of mutually assured destruction. My senior paper was "New Technologies in Strategic Defense: The End of Offence Dominance in the Strategic Nuclear Balance." I sniffed around the Reagan campaign some, hoping I would be a good fit for what became the Strategic Defense Initiative, but, frankly, conservatives repel me personally. Probably because of my working class Chicago upbringing.
Anyway, the point is, I have always had what I guess is a rather unique perspective, of the role of intelligence operations, to bring to economic history. These days, though, there's no real excuse for not being aware of the influence of the clandestine services, after Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine, and John Perkins' Confessions of an Economic Hitman.
I could go on with some of my conclusions along these lines regarding the conservative movement in the United States, but I think I've already caused a few blown fuses.
Tea Bag "populism" is very simply a varient of libertarianism, and that in turn, a kind of pseudo-religion embracing the peculiar notion that "the state" possesses moral agency when anyone in their right mind knows that only human beings can. To the libertarian, the workings and activities of "the state" are intrinsically evil and can only represent encroachments upon human "liberty", a principle which is accorded the status of an absolute and defined in largely sociopathic terms. War, for example, isn't opposed on moral grounds much as a Quaker or a Catholic might oppose it, but rather because it is "interventionist" and contravenes the rights of others. Economically, it is reactionary in the extreme, (1) extolling and enabling the very unregulated environments that have given birth to the abuses which have been realized in the present crisis, and (2) viserally opposing the deficits which would now seem so essential to basic human welfare and a de jure recovery. Tea Party populism is faux populism. What may have begun with noble instincts has allowed itself of late to be so identified with the worst sort of fascist, neo-con branding, that any distinction between it's and Republican Party interests is purely coincidental.
I need to mention that because we don't really have a place to just talk about whatever you find or think that's not directly associated with a post.
I'll start adding it when I put together these lists of things you need to check out.
I AM SO ANGRY I CAN'T SEE STRAIGHT....FROM THE OUTSET I FELT IN MY BONES THAT THIS SOB-IN-POWER WAS BAD NEWS. COURTESY DEMAND THAT I DON'T USE THE LANGUAGE THAT COMES TO ME TO DESCRIBE THESE PEOPLE. TO YOU WHO WILL FIND A WAY TO JUSTIFY/WELCOME THIS GRAB, ONE LONG TIME RADIO MONEY ADVICE GUY STATED THERE WILL BE SOME, I WISH PEOPLE LIKE YOU, SPINELESS, GUTLESS, SLAVES THE WORST OF LIFE. GRANDMOTHER IN FLY-OVER COUNTRY.
MTGM caught an error on the CPI report. I noticed it too, but I didn't dig out the weighting, decided to ignore it, assuming something was weighted differently...oops, my bad, good work MTGM!
I think he should get the economics blogger gold star of the week for this one!
Seriously I was trying to get this written up quickly, I noticed that -0.5%, knew it didn't add up and plain didn't track it through...this is what the blogs are for...
digging around to look at the raw statistics, details.
Firstly define "extremist" ideas and secondly, this site at least is not putting forth "extremist" ideas. It's got to be the most practical, common sense type of stuff going, unless "extremism" means enact policies and government in the national interest and out of the hands of various lobbyists and special interests and their short term, short sighted, corrupt and even stuck on stupid in their own best interests....agendas.
Seriously. How beige can one get than to have an economics/finance site for the lay person with a focus on the U.S. national interest and working America's interests?
The only question is how to get the corporations and lobbyists out of D.C. and get real representation that act in the national interest instead of their own financial and personal power grab agendas?
But from what I can see, this site at least is simply telling people to get educated and to demand policies via letter writing, FAXing, speaking out and voting for policy/legislative specifics...
Ya say ya want a revolution, well, well, ya know....
I don't have any answers beyond we need a real FDR reincarnated...but I do believe if the entire nation just really demanded this of their government it could happen...there are only so many rigged elections and rigged politicians one can run through.
But first, I would find it oh so nice if the general public even understand what they are fighting for, in detail.
I've seen policies promoted, all over the place, that from practice to the economy theory, will assuredly hurt the U.S. middle class and the national economy yet it's like people do not realize this, they don't really grasp what they are even arguing for...
I think getting a firm grasp on economic reality would help push forward political change frankly and that's not there.
Interesting news article just came across (actually tipoff from Mr. Kosman -- thanks!):
Long-Term Care Hospitals Face Little Scrutiny
True, but I think Tony made some very cogent economic-oriented remarks in his analysis, and used Veblen to do so.
As to those who peddle that "free market mantra" -- had there ever existed a free market in America, when Thomas Jefferson returned from his European travels, where he had met with, and observed, a futuristic-thinking French engineer, and began actively promoting the adoption of manufacturing replaceable, interlocking components utilizing an assembly line process, that phantom free market would have paid attention and jumped this country hundreds of years ahead of Henry Ford!
But, as history demonstrates, there was no free market in either America or France, nor does that creature exist today.
But, in a awesomely controlled society, whereby 50,000 foundations steer the popular consensus along with corporate-controlled media, extremist ideas are really the only way out; the only real solution.
Trust me, I've been contacting my congressional creatures for well over 35 years, and it doesn't work, least of all today.
My congressional creatures only answer to the money people.
...as I believe Corrections Corporation of America (subsidiary: Prison Realty, Inc.) is owned by private equity firms, as are most of the private prison corps.
And I do believe in the worst where private equity combines with private prisons. (And as to those rumors that they have ready access to psychos who they then train and use for their own nefarious prupose....well, I don't have any evidence as of yet, but have found some fairly interesting rumors on it.--- Yeah, I know I'm mentioning hearsay, but think of it as a probable future instead.)
but from what I've read and seen he got a lot of shit for it and grumbled intensely, hated the fact that whole Church group/anti-women/anti-gay people grabbed hold of the conservative movement. It's in his documentary Mr. Conservative as well as a host of other documentation.
What's my point? My point is I see every damn day things like "we must have limited government, government is the problem" and then I see "those teabaggers are wacko nut jobs" and "those Progressives are socialists" and on and on and on.
It's literally empty. Seriously, it reminds me of the Dr. Suess's The Sneetches.
and it's also beliefs, philosophies and it's all so stupid and black and white and derisive.
I think the point is to divide people frankly.
But most importantly, most important of all, is it is not focused on actual details per issue, per policy.
Let's take "Stimulus" as an example. Ok, now I'd say the "left" is pretty "Pro Keynes" and the right believes Keynes doesn't work...
but he's the deal. The Stimulus was NOT Keynes theory implemented! Then, Keynes is for domestic economies, there is no way Keynes works when one is offshore outsourcing U.S. taxpayer (public expenditures) overseas as direct spending.
So, we have talk shows and the usual fires arguing over something that is not even valid or understood.
I can point to free trade, free markets as another example...supposedly the cure all for self professed conservatives.
Well, U.S. trade policy is no way, shape or form is the actual theory of free trade, not even close. All one has to do is look at the preferred status of emerging economies and see they can set tariff schedules where other nations can't or just look at national VATs...to know this is simply not the theory at all.
Then, by the theory itself, it will show, depending on how implemented, it's not this huge "win-win" that is sold all of the time, in fact a 1st world economy can indeed lose!
So, what's my point? My point is this site is to focus on all of these topics, to get to the nitty gritty, to get people, regular people to start educating themselves and quit with these granfalloon self identity groupings and arguments....
because they have a tendency to vote into office (any party) bought and paid for's on the corporate dole, because people are not paying attention to the facts, details, learning about economics, economic policy specifics, cause and effects and so on and instead having a grand time arguing as if this is some sort of big huge football league and which team do you personally identify with?
This ain't no game and during all of these useless arguments, the nation is going down the tubes and the middle class is being wiped out....
People need to get off of these identity politics and labels and onto what works and the actual details of policy and legislation and demand.....what will work.
Drives me nuts. Why the site motto is "when in doubt, use a calculator".
I wish you were right, but I fear that isn't and won't be the case. Not the end-all panacea, simply a substitution for the completely corporate-controlled and disseminated media (newspapers, TV, cable, and so forth).
Observe Iran. The 'net and Twitter can be compromised and halted. Stealth users and operators on Twitter gave out disinformation, misleading directions and misinformation.
Observe China. Taking advantage of the backdoor into Google (placed there at the behest of DHS), they hacked them good! To the detriment of certain Chinese freedom-seeking dissenters.
Nope, I'm afraid, as a British poster said several years ago, we've enetered into a Sociopolitical Singularity, where the powerful have gotten so bloody powerful that so very many are unaware of it.
How many people realize so many of those foundations which support specific programs don't even employ anyone, they are simply financial paper constructions?
How many people realize that NPR is so very little from Foxtard? So very few people.
How many people realize that when some "guest speaker" from the American Enterprise Institute, or some other shill tank appears, he or she is working for an outfit financed and run by the owner of the largest hedge fund on the planet?
So very few people.
If it's tech, it can be altered, compromised and controlled.
Not so very long ago I heard the well-known media critic, Robert McChesney claim that we are getting closer and closer to the "Propaganda State."
Heck, we've long sinced reached that, as there are so very few who truly understand what is taking place.
Why? Because one has to invest so much darn time and resources to reach said understanding.
And while I'm not casting aspersions on Mr. McChesney, I am suspect of some of the financial backing the organizations he's been affiliated? Makes a sometimes aware person such as myself very suspicious.....
The MSM is controlled by corporations, political candidates are controlled by corporations and to even sue somebody, a. you had better have a million dollar case and b. you're looking at 10 years probably to get anywhere and c. the lawyers will eat up all of the money recovered.
i.e. the courts is a money and legal game, little justice involved.
Even Academia is corrupt at this point. We have biased studies all over the place and one finds some grant by some large corporation behind the scenes or some large pharmaceutical company funding the research or trial....never mind biased "white papers" coming from clearly sponsored "think tanks" where literally I've seen assumptions and equations from theory manipulated...never mind study data.
That's really bad for without objectivity, a place where outside influences cannot bias theory and science, we're in for deep dodo for one needs some sort of social institutions and methods where one can trust there is not a bias and it's based on real objective research, real theory, real science.
Also, thank God for it. It's really the economics, financial bloggers who warned on the impending financial implosion. If it was left up to the MSM, I doubt you would have heard much about it. It gives anyone, any expert a voice and it's really the credibility of their writing, expertise which then draws readers.
It's why it is so important to protect privacy and free speech on the Internets too, it's the ultimate public square and even better one can organize the public square so it's intelligible. (i.e. if this was a physical public square you would just hear shouts and noise with no way to organize 100 million voices and topics).
Clip is at this site.
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