BIG IS BAD
Johann Wagener 9-14-13
Well, at least when it comes to Government. Or so say the group of flag-wavers referred to as the Tea Party.
In reality, big government is good when it represents the people (not just the rich) and serves the people (not just the rich) and reaffirms that this is a government for the people, by the people; all the people. If it wasn't for government this country would have long ago turned into a serfdom ruled by an elite group of rich folks. Oh! Wait a minute!
How the 1 Percent Suckered the Tea Party Crowd into Doing Their Bidding
Saturday, September 14, 2013
Friday, September 13, 2013
Football subsidized by tax payers
VIOLENCE BEGETS VIOLENCE
Johann Wagener 9-13-13
Professional football games are not open to the public like your local neighborhood park. They are private venues whose owners charge a handsome amount (up to $500.00) and generate billions of dollars in profits from people who want this kind of entertainment. And, there's plenty of them.
It's also a given that people that attend these war-like, winner take all spectacles have what might be called a bad case of "blood lust". Not much different than the hoards that filled Roman Coliseums to rave at people ripping off heads, arms, and legs.
Given that combination it's not rocket science to predict violence; both on and off the field, at these debacles. So, why would we expect tax dollars to be used to promote these events by assigning police officers to play hide-and-seek with fans in order to bust them for doing what most of those attending are there to experience?
Undercover Cops to Wear Opposing Team Jerseys at Seahawks Games
Beginning at Sunday’s game against the San Francisco 49ers, Seattle police officers will be placed throughout the stadium looking to bust fans that are drunk, harassing other spectators, throwing items on the field or engaging in “behavior that is unruly, disruptive or illegal,” according to a statement by the team.
“We have great fans,” said Seahawks President Peter McLoughlin. “Our goal is to ensure a safe environment for all in attendance, including visiting team fans.”
The effort follows similar undercover operations at other stadiums, police said, as well as an NFL-wide crackdown on safety that includes a recent ban on carrying purses and backpacks into stadiums.
Taxpayers expect that their money will go to keeping the peace, not promoting violence and that their police force will be protecting our streets and neighborhoods, not private gatherings. Using that logic, the next time you have a party at your home and expect some trouble you should be able to request a team of undercover cops to hang out at no charge to you.
Johann Wagener 9-13-13
Professional football games are not open to the public like your local neighborhood park. They are private venues whose owners charge a handsome amount (up to $500.00) and generate billions of dollars in profits from people who want this kind of entertainment. And, there's plenty of them.
It's also a given that people that attend these war-like, winner take all spectacles have what might be called a bad case of "blood lust". Not much different than the hoards that filled Roman Coliseums to rave at people ripping off heads, arms, and legs.
Given that combination it's not rocket science to predict violence; both on and off the field, at these debacles. So, why would we expect tax dollars to be used to promote these events by assigning police officers to play hide-and-seek with fans in order to bust them for doing what most of those attending are there to experience?
Undercover Cops to Wear Opposing Team Jerseys at Seahawks Games
Beginning at Sunday’s game against the San Francisco 49ers, Seattle police officers will be placed throughout the stadium looking to bust fans that are drunk, harassing other spectators, throwing items on the field or engaging in “behavior that is unruly, disruptive or illegal,” according to a statement by the team.
“We have great fans,” said Seahawks President Peter McLoughlin. “Our goal is to ensure a safe environment for all in attendance, including visiting team fans.”
The effort follows similar undercover operations at other stadiums, police said, as well as an NFL-wide crackdown on safety that includes a recent ban on carrying purses and backpacks into stadiums.
The NFL creates the atmosphere where violence is glorified and cheered. They should then also be morally and financially responsible to clean up the mess it creates.
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
DEMOCRACY OR PLUTOCRACY?
A PIECE OF THE AMERICAN PIE
Johann Wagener 9-11-13
Hey folks! Uncle Sam is throwing a party and you're all invited!
We all know that it doesn't take much for you to find a reason to celebrate or commemorate something.
This party is to celebrate the "American Dream" and, for desert, you all get a piece of that American pie you were promised. To keep it simple Uncle Sam has invited 10 people who will represent you and everyone in the USA. Just as promised, everyone will get a piece of the pie so it's cut into 10 pieces.
So, here's how it goes;
After everyone takes a seat at the table, the person at the front of the table starts off by taking 5 pieces for the 10% of the people he represents.
The top ten percent of earners in the United States took home more than 50 percent of all income in 2012, the highest amount ever recorded since data was first collected in 1917, according to an updated report from economists Emmanuel Saez and Thomas Piketty.
Whoa! Now there's only 5 pieces of pie left to share among the other 9 folks left at the table. Well, that's not so bad. If you cut those 5 pieces in half then there's still enough for the 9 other guests. And, after all, the way our system works, the person at the front should get more because they are more talented and work much harder than the rest of us. If it wasn't for them we would not have a pie to eat (or so they say).
People often wonder exactly how much income and/or wealth someone needs to have to be included in the Top 1% or the Top 20%; Table 1 below lists some absolute dollar amounts associated with various income and wealth classes, but the important point to keep in mind is that for the most part, it's the relative positions of wealth holders and income earners that we are trying to comprehend in this document.
But, this is where it begins to get complicated. Why? The second person at the table (another 10% of the population) claims they deserve more than the other 8 people at the table because they represent the "professional " class which obviously contributes more than the others because they are the ones who make things work, and without them there would be no pie to share. But, they'll be fair and just take 4 pieces so there's some left for the rest of us. All we need to do is split 1 piece of pie 8 ways!
In the United States, wealth is highly concentrated in a relatively few hands. As of 2010, the top 1% of households (the upper class) owned 35.4% of all privately held wealth, and the next 19% (the managerial, professional, and small business stratum) had 53.5%, which means that just 20% of the people owned a remarkable 89%, leaving only 11% of the wealth for the bottom 80% (wage and salary workers). In terms of financial wealth (total net worth minus the value of one's home), the top 1% of households had an even greater share: 42.1%. Table 2 and Figure 1 present further details, drawn from the careful work of economist Edward N. Wolff at New York University (2012).
When all is said and done 2 people went home from that party with 9 pieces of the pie while the remaining 8 of them scurried back with whatever they could shave off the remaining piece grateful to be living in a Democracy (is it really?) where everyone has an opportunity to get a piece of the pie. Well, at least 20% of us. As the other 80% were leaving they heard someone say;"these losers should be grateful that got anything at all. They have nothing to whine about. They can go back to their mortgaged to the hilt homes, kick back, open a can of beer, order a pizza, watch a football game and go to sleep knowing that the "Anerican Dream" is still just that; a dream.
Johann Wagener 9-11-13
Hey folks! Uncle Sam is throwing a party and you're all invited!
We all know that it doesn't take much for you to find a reason to celebrate or commemorate something.
This party is to celebrate the "American Dream" and, for desert, you all get a piece of that American pie you were promised. To keep it simple Uncle Sam has invited 10 people who will represent you and everyone in the USA. Just as promised, everyone will get a piece of the pie so it's cut into 10 pieces.
So, here's how it goes;
After everyone takes a seat at the table, the person at the front of the table starts off by taking 5 pieces for the 10% of the people he represents.
The top ten percent of earners in the United States took home more than 50 percent of all income in 2012, the highest amount ever recorded since data was first collected in 1917, according to an updated report from economists Emmanuel Saez and Thomas Piketty.
Whoa! Now there's only 5 pieces of pie left to share among the other 9 folks left at the table. Well, that's not so bad. If you cut those 5 pieces in half then there's still enough for the 9 other guests. And, after all, the way our system works, the person at the front should get more because they are more talented and work much harder than the rest of us. If it wasn't for them we would not have a pie to eat (or so they say).
People often wonder exactly how much income and/or wealth someone needs to have to be included in the Top 1% or the Top 20%; Table 1 below lists some absolute dollar amounts associated with various income and wealth classes, but the important point to keep in mind is that for the most part, it's the relative positions of wealth holders and income earners that we are trying to comprehend in this document.
| Table 1: Income, net worth, and financial worth in the U.S. by percentile, |
| Wealth or income class | Mean household income | Mean household net worth | Mean household financial (non-home) wealth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top 1 percent | $1,318,200 | $16,439,400 | $15,171,600 |
| Top 20 percent | $226,200 | $2,061,600 | $1,719,800 |
| 60th-80th percentile | $72,000 | $216,900 | $100,700 |
| 40th-60th percentile | $41,700 | $61,000 | $12,200 |
| Bottom 40 percent | $17,300 | -$10,600 | -$14,800 |
But, this is where it begins to get complicated. Why? The second person at the table (another 10% of the population) claims they deserve more than the other 8 people at the table because they represent the "professional " class which obviously contributes more than the others because they are the ones who make things work, and without them there would be no pie to share. But, they'll be fair and just take 4 pieces so there's some left for the rest of us. All we need to do is split 1 piece of pie 8 ways!
In the United States, wealth is highly concentrated in a relatively few hands. As of 2010, the top 1% of households (the upper class) owned 35.4% of all privately held wealth, and the next 19% (the managerial, professional, and small business stratum) had 53.5%, which means that just 20% of the people owned a remarkable 89%, leaving only 11% of the wealth for the bottom 80% (wage and salary workers). In terms of financial wealth (total net worth minus the value of one's home), the top 1% of households had an even greater share: 42.1%. Table 2 and Figure 1 present further details, drawn from the careful work of economist Edward N. Wolff at New York University (2012).
| Table 2: Distribution of net worth and financial wealth in the |
| Total Net Worth | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Top 1 percent | Next 19 percent | Bottom 80 percent | |
| 1983 | 33.8% | 47.5% | 18.7% |
| 1989 | 37.4% | 46.2% | 16.5% |
| 1992 | 37.2% | 46.6% | 16.2% |
| 1995 | 38.5% | 45.4% | 16.1% |
| 1998 | 38.1% | 45.3% | 16.6% |
| 2001 | 33.4% | 51.0% | 15.6% |
| 2004 | 34.3% | 50.3% | 15.3% |
| 2007 | 34.6% | 50.5% | 15.0% |
| 2010 | 35.4% | 53.5% | 11.1% |
| Financial (Non-Home) Wealth | |||
| Top 1 percent | Next 19 percent | Bottom 80 percent | |
| 1983 | 42.9% | 48.4% | 8.7% |
| 1989 | 46.9% | 46.5% | 6.6% |
| 1992 | 45.6% | 46.7% | 7.7% |
| 1995 | 47.2% | 45.9% | 7.0% |
| 1998 | 47.3% | 43.6% | 9.1% |
| 2001 | 39.7% | 51.5% | 8.7% |
| 2004 | 42.2% | 50.3% | 7.5% |
| 2007 | 42.7% | 50.3% | 7.0% |
| 2010 | 42.1% | 53.5% | 4.7% |
When all is said and done 2 people went home from that party with 9 pieces of the pie while the remaining 8 of them scurried back with whatever they could shave off the remaining piece grateful to be living in a Democracy (is it really?) where everyone has an opportunity to get a piece of the pie. Well, at least 20% of us. As the other 80% were leaving they heard someone say;"these losers should be grateful that got anything at all. They have nothing to whine about. They can go back to their mortgaged to the hilt homes, kick back, open a can of beer, order a pizza, watch a football game and go to sleep knowing that the "Anerican Dream" is still just that; a dream.
Monday, September 9, 2013
George Zimmerman Wife Standing Her Ground
ONLY IN FLORIDA
Johann Wagener 9-9-13
Can a person with a history of violence (actually killing someone with a gun) can go out, buy another gun, threaten to shoot someone and have the police respond with, "no one filed a complaint, so no crime was committed. I didn't know it worked that way. Maybe that's the reason he got off after killing someone. They were not able to file a complaint.
George Zimmerman Questioned After Gun-Related Incident
Johann Wagener 9-9-13
Can a person with a history of violence (actually killing someone with a gun) can go out, buy another gun, threaten to shoot someone and have the police respond with, "no one filed a complaint, so no crime was committed. I didn't know it worked that way. Maybe that's the reason he got off after killing someone. They were not able to file a complaint.
George Zimmerman Questioned After Gun-Related Incident
George Zimmerman, acquitted of charges relating to the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, was questioned by police on Monday following an altercation that, reportedly, involved a gun. This isn't the first run-in Zimmerman's had with the law since going free this summer. While earlier reports, citing Lake Mary police, indicated that Zimmerman was in custody, a police spokesperson now says that Zimmermanis no longer in custody.
Here is Shellie Zimmerman's 911 call, via WKMG.
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