Labor-state politics drive GovMo ... If the government-forced restructuring of General Motors and sale of Chrysler have you confused, you're not alone. This is uncharted economic territory, plus the rules by which the auto companies play appear to change daily. The latest piece of unexpected news was this week's revelation that GM wants states to pay a $200-million-or-more up-front bounty to keep endangered assembly plants open. That surprised Gov. Phil Bredesen, who had believed the quality of the plants and their work force would be keys to determining whether a new, small GM car would be built at idled plants in Tennessee, Michigan or Wisconsin. Shouldn't that matter most in deciding which plant to save? Not necessarily, based on how politics drive auto industry decisions and especially when two of the plants are located in Michigan and Wisconsin. (tennessean.com)Related video: Obama ID's domestic terrorist
Blame Saul Alinsky ... Saul Alinsky’s book “Rules for Radicals,” first published in 1971, has been read and assimilated by a number of those who espouse a Far Left agenda. Our current Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, wrote her senior thesis on Alinsky while at Wellesley College. The following excerpt is from that paper. “Much of what Alinsky professes does not sound ‘radical.’ His are the words used in our schools and churches, by our parents and their friends, by our peers.” Perhaps in your world, Madam Secretary—certainly not in mine. The point here is that “Rules for Radicals” has had a far reaching impact, especially on “community organizers” from Chicago—Alinsky’s home turf. America’s current POTUS, for example, is no doubt familiar with Alinsky’s “blurred vision.” This is a term I’ve taken from the book, where Alinsky describes the organizer’s mental map as a “blurred vision of a better world.” Blurred indeed. Running throughout “Rules for Radicals” is a whiny refusal to take personal responsibility for anything. It is always “their” fault. (canadafreepress.com)Bonus links:
• Summary of Saul Alinsky's 'Rules for Radicals'
• More Saul Alinsky stories: here
• 'Rules for Radicals' at amazon.com
Legitimate concerns raised about Barack Obama's political philosophy ... Whether or not Barack Obama is a Marxist is one of the most prevalent philosophically-related questions asked about him. Yet, if we are to go bythe reaction of current Vice President Joe Biden when he was confronted with the question on the campaign trail by Orlando television reporter Barbara West—“Are you joking? Is this a joke?”—the question isn’t even legitimate and is a “ridiculous comparison.” But the Vice President never gave that particular reporter a good reason why the question is ridiculous. He merely attacked her for asking it. Many studied philosophers, including myself, think the question is far from ridiculous and can not be dispensed with by mere Ad Hominem attacks against those who ask it. We will deal with it by asking two more questions over the course of the next two Philosopher’s Stone columns: “Can we tell that he is a Marxist from his associations?” and “Can we tell that he is a Marxist from the principles he adopts?” Attempts to argue that Barack Obama himself is a Marxist, given his past connections with known Marxists, have abounded on the Internet and on conservative talk radio, especially prior to the November election. That those connections do exist is hardly a matter for debate. Abundant evidence has been cited to show that his long-time mentor and father figure in Hawaii, Frank Marshall Davis, was a full-blown, active member of the Communist Party. After coming to Chicago, Obama for years attended the church of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, an ardent and vocal advocate of Black Liberation Theology, a movement with its roots planted firmly in Marxism. (dakotavoice.com)
UFCW big nabbed in huge CalPERS P2P fraud ... Companies that received multimillion-dollar deals with CalPERS pumped more than $300,000 into a union campaign fund overseen by Sean Harrigan while he was one of the giant pension fund's board members from 2000-2004. Harrigan, a veteran leader of the United Food and Commercial Workers union, acknowledged in an interview on Friday that while on the CalPERS board and voting on pension fund investment decisions he actively solicited money managers and pension fund industry consultants to donate to the UFCW Issues Education Fund. "I invited not more than two dozen firms to participate," added Harrigan, whose CalPERS board tenure included a stint as president. It was not a pay-to-play scheme, Harrigan insisted, and he never let the donations influence his decisions to either support or reject CalPERS investments. (sacbee.com)
Dreams from financial ruination ... Clues to the nation’s financial debacle are buried deep in the dustbin of history as the body politics most responsible for today’s money mess safeguard their sleights of hand as closely as any magician. In 1919, British economist John Maynard Keynes observed: “[Vladimir] Lenin is said to have declared that the best way to destroy the capitalist system was to debauch the currency. … Lenin certainly was right. There is no subtler, no surer means of overturning the existing basis of society than to debauch the currency. The process engages all the hidden forces of economic law on the side of destruction, and it does it in a manner which not one man in a million can diagnose.” President Barack Obama attempts to hide his tracks alongside the footprints of Marx and Lenin but his claimed authorship of Dreams From My Father highlights Communist Party USA member Frank Marshall Davis. “The record shows that Obama was in Hawaii from 1971-1979, where, at some point in time, he developed a close relationship, almost like a son, with Davis, listening to his ‘poetry’ and getting advice on his career path. But Obama, in his book, refers to him repeatedly as just ‘Frank.’” (globalpolitician.com)
Mr. Obama, drain this swamp ... Barack Hussein Obama--President of the United States, messiah to the world, the 'chosen' one to the Left, and the dreaded 'Fuhrer-in-chief' to many of us--stated that he wants to 'bulldoze' U.S. cities that are in a state of decline. I have a suggestion for 'Dear Leader.' Start by bulldozing D.C.--not the hallowed halls of government or our national monuments but the horrid, crime-ridden, drug-infested neighborhoods of the nation's capital where thousands neither affirm nor value liberty, the rule of law, or the U.S. Constitution. For far too long the nation's taxpayers have subsidized this monstrosity in spite of the fact that it's inhabitants refuse to allow upright citizens to carry a gun and proceed to demand that they have a voting member of Congress, although they are not and never have been a 'state.' So, if the 'President of the United States,' the One with all the answers that will 'save the world,' the epitome of deep intellectual contemplation and 'rational solutions,' wishes to bulldoze those cities that are a drag on the nation, what better place to start than D.C.? (examiner.com)
No cookies for strikers ... Welcome to the picket line outside the Stella D'Oro cookie factory in Riverdale. The strike began last Aug. 13 when negotiations broke down between the factory's owners, Brynwood Partners, and Local 50 of the Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers (BCTGM) International Union. Since then, the 136 members of Local 50 have picketed every day from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. outside the factory at 237th St. and Broadway. On a recent day, Lisandro Parada, 58, stood out in the chilly rain, picketing the factory where he's worked for the past 15 years. "We are in bad shape," said Parada. "Nothing has been fixed. We are submerged in the strike." (nydailynews.com)
How did we get into this SEIU-ACORN mess? ... To her unroyal highness Queen Pelosi, most of us are people of modest means, and we are not the rich or the elite. We were not trumped up and stood up by George Soros and Move on.org. We were not paid by the DNC and SEIU like ACORN and the Federal Government and are not WARDS of the state that can be shipped in to represent a groundswell. We are peace loving law abiding folks that simply want Government to know who they work for. Like most everyone there, we love our country and feel that our elected representative no longer work for us. But rather we see Democrats and Republicans towing the Party lines before considering what is best for all Americans. Politicians are elected to serve the people regardless of party line. Lately some politicians don’t even support their own party but rather choose to enrich themselves and we the people know this. (community2.myfoxorlando.com)
Card-Check a matter of religious conviction ... The debate over the Employee Free Choice Act, or Card Check, which has raged for months, has taken an interesting turn — straight through church doors. At its heart, the EFCA eases union organization rules and, in theory, clears a path for organized labor to eliminate a secret ballot in elections on whether to unionize. Republicans and business leaders say union leaders will use the open voting process to intimidate workers they know oppose unionization. But church leaders in Colorado, including a handful in Fort Collins this week, disagreed, calling the proposed legislation “morally” the right thing to do. Not everyone believes that supporting the EFCA legislation equates to moral behavior, however. Colorado Republican Chairman Dick Wadhams said the EFCA issue is not as complicated as some people make it out to be. Although Wadhams didn’t want to comment directly on the Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice in Colorado, he did have critical words for the EFCA legislation. “Card Check is nothing more than an attempt to eliminate the secret ballot in union elections that would open the door to worker intimidation by union bosses,” Wadhams said. “The unions want to take away the secret ballot so they can directly intimidate workers into unionization. That takes away the heart of what makes America great, which is secret ballots.” (coloradostatesman.com)International Collectivism
Chávez greed risks labor unrest ... Despite the recent sharp rise in oil prices, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez last month expropriated 70 oil service companies in western Venezuela, putting some 10,000 Venezuelans out of work, turning local unions against him and forcing production cuts at important oilfields. The action has drawn little international attention because Chavez stopped short of nationalizing big U.S.-based multinationals such as Halliburton or Schlumberger that carry out technical and highly skilled work in producing oil. Nor have the owners of the 70 Venezuelan firms - in addition to four foreign-owned firms - protested publicly, fearing that doing so might jeopardize settlement negotiations with the government. (miamiherald.com)
Wade Rathke, union-backed fraud group surface in Iran ... Although most commentators predicted a close election in Iran, the official results show Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with a sweeping victory. There are many allegations of election fraud mostly as a result of the failure to require photo IDs and other voter identification, which permitted multiple voting. Multiple voting resulting from lack of identification. Sounds like ACORN. More votes than people. Sounds like Minnesota. Voter identification is the key to preventing voter fraud. Which is why the Department of Justice’s refusal to allow states, such as Georgia, to implement identification systems based on alleged disparate impact is so damaging to the credibility of elections. (hotair.com)
Fail Robert Mugabe ... Zimbabwean Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara has appealed for an end to sanctions and more international investment in South Africa. Speaking at the World Economic Forum on Africa summit in Cape Town, Mr Mutambara said: "Sanctions in this juncture in our history are meaningless. Help us help ourselves by removing all those sanctions so Zimbabwe can have a fresh start." Zimbabwe's African neighbours have failed to respond to its pleas for a $2 billion economic rescue package. Investors from South Africa are waiting for the implementation of a new bilateral investment promotion and protection agreement before they move in. "Zimbabwe doesn't have the luxury of time on its side," warned South African deputy president Kgalema Motlanthe. Finance Minister Tendai Biti said tax revenues did not begin to cover even basic salaries and that Zimbabwe's state-owned companies were a further drain on the economy. (pww.org)
Argentina braces for post-election surge of anti-capitalism ... A united front of 15 business organisations, including the two largest industrial associations, three from the exporting sector, and two banking groups, condemned Chávez’s moves and attacked Argentine President Cristina Fernandez for not defending Argentine “national interests”. Even the president of the General Confederation of Workers (CGT), an important ally of the government, came out against Chávez’s moves. “I do not agree with the decision to nationalise private companies because it was not the policy that [former nationalist Argentine president Juan Domingo] Peron taught us in his time,” commented Hugo Moyano. For days, the front pages of the major newspapers echoed these sentiments. Opposition parties claimed the government’s unwillingness to challenge Chávez’s decision was a signal that the moderate Fernandez would unleash her own wave of nationalisations after June 28. (greenleft.org.au)
