This & that....

We Want Elizabeth Warren

Please don't let the war hawks lead us into war. Support the ‪#‎IranDeal‬.

Read more: http://goo.gl/bS5q2q

AlterNet

This says it all.

Occupy Democrats

Amen!

Thanks to Being Liberal.

You're a Republican?

Republican family values? Nonexistent.

Occupy Democrats

Cutting food stamps means more hungry children. It's that simple.

Thanks to Americans Against The Republican Party.

This & that....

Occupy Democrats

Republican actions speak much louder than shameless pandering.

Thanks to Being Liberal.

David Gregory Wakes Up and Busts Paul Ryan On His Lies About The Poor

In a rare moment of lucidity, Meet The Press host David Gregory called out Rep....

www.politicususa.com

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  Carl Younger

  I guess David Gregory finally realized that becoming Fox Lite by giving disinformation the validity of facts is insulting to a thinking audience.

We Support the Troops!

Bernie Sanders

We Support the Troops: http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/we-support-the-troops

Allowing Americans to go hungry is NO compromise!

Thank you Senator Markey for standing up for what's right!

Leo Maley

THANK YOU, Senator Edward J. Markey, for your vote against cuts to SNAP. The Massachusetts delegation was great on this. Still, the forces of heartless inequality can chalk up a "win." Not to worry, though, b/c Obama says its OK: "As with any compromise, the Farm Bill isn’t perfect – but on the whole, it will make a positive difference not only for the rural economies that grow America’s food, but for our nation." Yeah, right. http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/197416-senate-sends-farm-bill-to-obama

 

Edward J. Markey

Today, I voted against passage of the Farm Bill which cuts the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by $8.6 billion over ten years. SNAP is the most... effective anti-hunger program we have. In Massachusetts, 125,000 households may lose $70 per month in food assistance. Instead of stopping wasteful aid to the wealthiest farmers, the Farm Bill slashes SNAP benefits for the poorest Americans, the elderly and disabled. http://1.usa.gov/1gKnX9L

Republicans Abandon Veterans

Veterans and Active Duty Military are paid so poorly, they qualify for FOOD STAMPS, yet the Morally Bankrupt Republicans have SLASHED funding.

Because of the Republican failure to address the Sequestration, now MILITARY PAY CUTS?

What's the matter with a country so MORALLY BANKRUPT it continues to elect ignorant people who refuse to eliminate taxpayer-funded subsidies for DIRTY ENERGY, close tax loopholes, and adopt sound fiscal policies?

VooDoo Economics hasn't worked before and the blind followers of Grover Norquist need to enlighten themselves.

Military Family Appreciation Month

Week of November 11, 2013

An annual proclamation marks the beginning of a month-long celebration of the Military Family in which the Department of Defense and the nation will honor the commitment and sacrifices made by the families of the nation's servicemembers. Read More.

Hagel Says Pay Cuts Needed

Week of November 11, 2013

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel warned that troops and their families will be asked to sacrifice on pay and benefits to preserve readiness in an era of tighter budgets. Hagel listed politically-charged changes to compensation and personnel policy as one of his top six priorities in reforming the military following the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as the department gears up to meet new challenges. Read the full article on Military.com.

 

The Moral Bankruptcy of A Nation

Christians for a Change shared Blueprint Campaign Consulting's photo.

 

The DoD says nearly 5,000 military families will see their support cut. Is that who we are as a society? http://www.military.com/daily-news/2013/07/13/dod-5000-military-families-losing-food-stamps.html

Shouldn't we stand up for our VETERANS?

Carl Younger shared Hate Liberals? Bite Me.'s photo.

You Betcha!

Anti-Republican Crusaders shared Politics with Jarred and Dave's photo.

[hz]

 

Remember all the howling by Republicans about the closed monuments and war memorials during the Ted Cruz government shutdown? Remember how they helped World War... II vets storm their memorial on the very first day? Remember how Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-Tex.) snarled at a Park Service ranger for trying to abide by the law and keep the memorial closed to the public? http://wapo.st/1h7wQtS

 

 

 

 

Defining Moral Bankruptcy

Economist, professor, author and political commentator Robert Reich. (photo: Richard Morgenstein)

Why Washington Is Cutting Safety Nets

By Robert Reich, Robert Reich's Blog

02 November 13

o how to explain this paradox?

 

As of November 1 more than 47 million Americans have lost some or all of their food stamp benefits. House Republicans are pushing for further cuts. If the sequester isn't stopped everything else poor and working-class Americans depend on will be further squeezed.

 

We're not talking about a small sliver of America here. Half of all children get food stamps at some point during their childhood. Half of all adults get them sometime between ages 18 and 65. Many employers - including the nation's largest, Walmart - now pay so little that food stamps are necessary in order to keep food on the family table, and other forms of assistance are required to keep a roof overhead.

 

The larger reality is that most Americans are still living in the Great Recession. Median household income continues to drop. In last week's Washington Post-ABC poll, 75 percent rated the state of the economy as "negative" or "poor."

 

So why is Washington whacking safety nets and services that a large portion of Americans need, when we still very much need them?

 

It's easy to blame Republicans and the rightwing billionaires that bankroll them, and their unceasing demonization of "big government" as well as deficits. But Democrats in Washington bear some of the responsibility. In last year's fiscal cliff debate neither party pushed to extend the payroll tax holiday or find other ways to help the working middle class and poor.

 

Here's a clue: A new survey of families in the top 10 percent of net worth (done by the American Affluence Research Center) shows they're feeling better than they've felt since 2007, before the Great Recession.

 

It's not just that the top 10 percent have jobs and their wages are rising. The top 10 percent also owns 80 percent of the stock market. And the stock market is up a whopping 24 percent this year.

 

The stock market is up even though most Americans are down for two big reasons.

 

First, businesses are busily handing their cash back to their shareholders - buying back their stock and thereby boosting share prices - rather than using the cash to expand and hire. It makes no sense to expand and hire when most Americans don't have the money to buy.

 

The S&P 500 "Buyback Index," which measures the 100 stocks with the highest buyback ratios, has surged 40 percent this year, compared with a 24% rally for the S&P 500.

 

IBM has just approved another $15 billion for share buybacks on top of about $5.6 billion it set aside previously, thereby boosting its share prices even though business is sluggish. In April, Apple announced a $50 billion increase in buybacks plus a 15% rise in dividends, but even this wasn't enough for multi-billionaire Carl Icahn, who's now demanding that Apple use more of its $170 billion cash stash to buy back its stock and make Ichan even richer.

 

Big corporations can also borrow at rock-bottom rates these days in order to buy back even more of their stock - courtesy of the Fed's $85 billion a month bond-buying program. (Ichan also wants Apple to borrow $150 billion at 3 percent interest, in order to buy back more stock and further enrich himself.)

 

The second big reason why shares are up while most Americans are down is corporations continue to find new ways to boost profits and share prices by cutting their labor costs - substituting software for people, cutting wages and benefits, and piling more responsibilities on each of the employees that remain.

 

Neither of these two strategies - buying back stock and paring payrolls - can be sustained over the long run (so you have every right to worry about another Wall Street bubble). They don't improve a company's products or customer service.

 

But in an era of sluggish sales - when the vast American middle class lacks the purchasing power to keep the economy going - these two strategies at least keep shareholders happy. And that means they keep the top 10 percent happy.

 

Congress, meanwhile, doesn't know much about the bottom 90 percent. The top 10 percent provide almost all campaign contributions and funding of "independent" ads.

 

Moreover, just about all members of Congress are drawn from the same top 10 percent - as are almost all their friends and associates, and even the media who report on them.

 

Get it? The bottom 90 percent of Americans - most of whom are still suffering from the Great Recession, most of whom have been on a downward escalator for decades - have disappeared from official Washington.

---

Robert B. Reich, Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley, was Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration. Time Magazine named him one of the ten most effective cabinet secretaries of the last century. He has written thirteen books, including the best sellers "Aftershock" and "The Work of Nations." His latest is an e-book, "Beyond Outrage." He is also a founding editor of the American Prospect magazine and chairman of Common Cause.

Republicans: Food Stamp Cuts to Veterans

Anti-Republican Crusaders shared Crooks and Liars's photo.

(cc)

 

Struggling with hunger...Thank you Congressman McGovern for standing for what's right!

Only a Morally Bankrupt Nation would be debating this issue.

USAction and Ruth Rodriguez shared Congressman Jim McGovern's photo.

 

Share if you're ready to stand with me on this tough fight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Defining a Nation's Moral Bankruptcy!

When a nation allows its poorest citizens to go without food, yet refuses to close tax loopholes or end Welfare for the Wealthy, that defines OUR Moral Bankruptcy.

Is that what you support? Is that how you define your Christian Values?


Bernie Sanders

Feed the Hungry:

More than 47 million Americans who receive food stamps will see their benefits cut starting Friday. Sen. Bernie Sanders said the “incomprehensible” cuts will “have a horrendous impact” and send more people to volunteer food banks that already are overwhelmed. A family of four receiving food stamps will get $36 less a month when the program intended to help people weather the recession runs out at midnight.

The cutoff comes as Senate and House negotiators are working to resolve differences in competing versions of a farm bill that funds the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. As the recession’s impact has lingered, 1 in 7 Americans are now on food stamps. The numbers have gone up as the economy has struggled to recover from the worst recession since the 1930s. Sanders was among 20 senators to sign a letter urging colleagues on to prevent “harmful cuts” and avoid putting up new barriers to participation in the program....

Listen to the interview here: http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/food-stamps-103113

Read the letter here: http://www.sanders.senate.gov/download/farm-bill-letter?inline=scribdSee More

Food Stamps | Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont

www.sanders.senate.gov

I Was Shocked To Hear About One Guy Who Is On Food Stamps...

My Name Is Jason, I’m A 35-Yr-Old White Male Combat Veteran…And I’m On Food Stamps

By Jay Kirell

My name is Jason. I turned 35 less than a week ago. My first job was maintenance work at a public pool when I was 17. I worked 40-hours a week while I was in college. I’ve never gone longer than six months without employment in my life and I just spent the last three years in the military, one of which consisted of a combat tour of Afghanistan.

Oh, and I’m now on food stamps. Since June, as a matter of fact.

Why am I on food stamps?

The same reason everyone on food stamps is on food stamps: because I would very much enjoy not starving.

I mean, if that’s okay with you:

...Mr. or Mrs. Republican congressman.

...Mr. or Mrs. Conservative commentator.

...Mr. or Mrs. “welfare queen” letter-to-the-editor author.

...Mr. or Mrs. “fiscal conservative, reason-based” libertarian

 

I do apologize for burdening you on the checkout line with real-life images of American-style poverty. I know you probably believe the only true starving people in the world have flies buzzing around their eyes while they wallow away, near-lifeless in gutters.

Hate to burst the bubble, but those people don’t live in this country.

I do. And millions like me. Millions of people in poverty who fall into three categories.

Let’s call them the “lucky” category, since conservatives seem to think people on welfare have hit some sort of jackpot:

Those living paycheck to paycheck? They’re a little lucky.

Those living unemployment check to unemployment check? They’re a little luckier.

Those living 2nd of the month to 2nd of the month? *ding* We’ve hit the jackpot!

The 2nd of the month being the time when funds gets electronically deposited onto the EBT card, [at least in NY] for those who’ve never been fortunate enough to hit that $175/month Powerball.

I fall into the latter two categories. But I’ve known people recently - soldiers in the Army – who were in the first and third. They were off fighting in Afghanistan while their wives were at home, buying food at the on-post commissary with food stamps.

 

And nobody bats an eye there, because it’s not uncommon in the military.

It’s not uncommon – nor is it shameful. It might be shameful how little service-members are paid, but that’s a separate issue.

The fact remains anyone at a certain income level can find it difficult from time to time to pay for everything. And when you’re poor you learn to make sacrifices. Food shouldn’t be one of them.

The whole concept is un-American. People living here, in the greatest country on Earth, with the most abundant resources, should be forced to go hungry because of the intellectual notion of fiscal conservatism and the ideological notion of self-reliance.

Are you fucking kidding me?

I didn’t risk my life in Afghanistan so I could come back and watch people go hungry in America. I certainly didn’t risk it so *I* could come back and go hungry.

Anyone who genuinely supports cutting food stamps is not an intellectual or an ideologue – they’re a bully.

And nobody likes a bully. Except other bullies.

It’s time for regular Americans to stand up to these bullies. Not cower in the corner, ashamed of needing help. Because if there’s one thing life has taught me, it’s that you never know when you’ll be the one in need.

 

 

 

 

US Uncut

35-year-old Afghan combat veteran Jason has been on food stamps since June. He thinks the reality of being on food stamps isn’t shameful, but the fact that people living in the richest country on Earth should go without food is downright un-American.

35-Year-Old US Veteran: I Am On Food Stamps Because I Enjoy Not Starving

www.classwarfareexists.com

This essay was written by Jason: 35 years old and a white male combat veteran of Afghanistan, Jason has been on food stamps since June. He thinks.....

Republicans Don't Even Support Veterans!

At a time of rising poverty and declining wages, the Food Stamp program supports families, reduces hunger and Republicans slashed the programs with no consideration of those affected.

Please stand with Veterans and speak out by adding your name below.

Last week, Republicans passed a Farm Bill that would kick 170,000 veterans off food assistance.

Faced with a looming, losing debt ceiling fight, Tea Party Republicans have turned to veterans and the poor as a sacrifice designed to appease their austerity-starved base.

We've been fighting this battle for a few months, but the stakes are higher than ever this week.

It's critical that you send a letter to your Senator telling them to oppose any legislation that cuts food assistance for veterans and military family members. You can do that here:

http://action.votevets.org/food-assistance

It gets worse...

A Department of Agriculture study last year found that over 5,000 active duty service members receive food assistance. And, in the same year of the study, over $100,000 in food aid was used on military bases.

Hundreds of VoteVets veterans have also told us they're currently receiving assistance. We're going to fight for them on this issue.

Thanks for standing with us in that effort.

All the best,

Jon Soltz
@JonSoltz
Iraq War Veteran and Chairman
VoteVets.org