Ecosystem Update: Who's Got A Case Of The Mondays?

(Reuters) - Anonymous, a hacker group sympathetic to WikiLeaks, plans to release e-mails obtained from Bank of America Corp early Monday morning, according to posts on the group's Twitter feed.

The group, unrelated to the document leak website founded by Julian Assange, said it plans to release documents exposing "corruption and fraud" at the largest U.S. bank by assets.

Link.

Who Inspired This Man? What Inspired This Man?

The man who shot this woman point blank in the head? She's Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ).

Giffords, 40, took her seat in Congress in 2007 and has advocated for immigration reform, among other Democratic-led issues. She was among 20 members of Congress who were on former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin's so-called "hit list," depicted in a graphic online with targeting crosshairs over their individual districts, still viewable on her Facebook page. "Palin has crosshairs on our district; people have to realize there are consequences to that," Giffords told MSNBC. Link.

Back in June 2010, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords's (D-AZ) Republican opponent Jesse Kelly had an event at which voters could shoot an assault rifle with the candidate, promoted as thus:

Get on Target for Victory in November Help remove Gabrielle Giffords from office Shoot a fully automatic M16 with Jesse Kelly

The "Ecosystem Of Corruption"

Hmmmm...it looks like Julian Assange of Wikileaks may be sitting on a rather interesting (and large) pile of emails from a large U.S. bank. A pile that he says will illustrate the "ecosystem of corruption"...

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It will give a true and representative insight into how banks behave at the executive level in a way that will stimulate investigations and reforms, I presume.
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Yes, there will be some flagrant violations, unethical practices that will be revealed, but it will also be all the supporting decision-making structures and the internal executive ethos that cames out, and that’s tremendously valuable.
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You could call it the ecosystem of corruption. But it’s also all the regular decision making that turns a blind eye to and supports unethical practices: the oversight that’s not done, the priorities of executives, how they think they’re fulfilling their own self-interest. The way they talk about it.
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A major U.S. bank...Got any guesses? The full interview here.

Only One Solution

We can't help but wonder how much coverage the corporate media will give to other plans to reduce the deficit. To what extent will the corporate media follow conservative talking points by repeating endlessly that the only way to solve the problem is by cutting existing programs--and completely ignore growth and job creation as viable alternatives.

Alternative plans DO exist. Alternative possibilities DO exist. Austerity DOES NOT have to happen:

The Blueprint takes a very different approach from other prominent proposals, specifically prioritizing a strong economic recovery because widespread job creation and robust economic growth are essential to successful deficit reduction.

The plan will produce the following short- and long-term results:

Substantial and sustained increased funding for job creation and investments, especially in the near term; A budget path that significantly improves the 10-year budget outlook;

A transition from a primary deficit to a primary surplus in 2018, and sustainable debt levels by the end of the decade;

An improvement in the long-term path for public debt, stabilizing debt as a share of the economy beyond 2025;

A solid footing for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid for the long term; and A modernized tax code that raises adequate revenue fairly and efficiently.

The Blueprint’s budget path boosts funding for near-term job creation, achieves lower deficits in the medium-term and balances the primary federal budget in less than a decade. It does so with the recognition that boosting—rather than cutting—spending on national priorities, including infrastructure, transportation, technology and education, is critical to American prosperity.

If our entire economy's health is predicated on spending money, then how can it be a good thing to freeze wages? Or to not invest in infrastructure, transportation, technology, or education? See, 'cause if people don't have money, they don't buy stuff. That's kind of an important concept here. Firing people, freezing wages and not investing in our country won't help matters.

Here are some more ideas you'll never hear or see again:

Use our tax dollars wisely by making targeted, common-sense cuts to military spending.

Shore up funding for Social Security by expanding the payroll tax to include more of the earnings of high-income individuals.

Get the economy back on track by investing in immediate job creation and a strong economic recovery.

Do you need to be reminded that it's all about the children (like they say in church)?

Create the foundation for long-run economic growth by increasing investment in early childhood education, quality child care, infrastructure, public transit, rural broadband connectivity and research and development.

And before we go, do you need to be reminded that you are not a millionaire?

Rebalance the tax code by repealing the Bush-era tax cuts for top earners and by taxing capital gains and dividends as ordinary income.

Who wrote this strange report?

Demos, EPI and The Century Foundation have produced a budget blueprint for economic recovery and fiscal responsibility. The blueprint prioritizes a strong economic recovery because widespread job creation and robust economic growth are essential to successful deficit reduction. Investing in America's Future is a project of Demos, EPI and The Century Foundation.

We will not have a strong economy unless and until the middle class is strong again. Policies that result in weakening the middle class even further will not help. But those will be the only policy options presented to us by politicians and the corporate media.

Well? What Are You Waiting For?!

We've got a lot of work to do if we're going to undo all the progress we made in the 20th century...

Farmers: Does Dan Soucek Hate Us, Too?

And one more thing, also from Watauga Watch:

On state budgeting and priorities, Soucek said education is a top priority, but then when asked where he'd cut the state budget, he suggested eliminating the Golden Leaf Foundation, which he said would save $570 million. Which we reckon would make the $150,000 grant from the Golden Leaf Foundation for laptops for Watauga High School students just more needless pork.

This is the Golden Leaf Charter:

The Golden LEAF Foundation was formed under a charter established by the North Carolina General Assembly. According to the charter, the Golden LEAF Foundation “shall promote the social welfare and lessen the burdens of government [by using its funds] to provide economic impact assistance to economically affected or tobacco-dependent regions of North Carolina in accordance with the Consent Decree [between the state of North Carolina and cigarette manufacturers].”

Activities to be supported include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Education assistance for tobacco farmers and other workers affected or projected to be affected by a decline in production of tobacco products.


• Job training and employment assistance for tobacco farmers and other workers dependent on tobacco farming, production and sales to transition to other sources of income.


• Scientific research to develop new uses for tobacco or for the development of alternative cash crops.


• Economic hardship assistance experienced by tobacco farmers, quota owners, their families and others as a result of decline in quota and/or production of tobacco or tobacco products.


• Public works and industrial recruitment to local governments for upgrading utilities, transportation, and other public service infrastructure to attract new businesses or for more general economic development purposes.


• Health and human services to improve health care and other social services needed to maintain the stability of tobacco-dependent communities.


• Community assistance in the form of grants and/or loans to economically depressed and deteriorating tobacco-dependent communities, to be used exclusively for public purposes.

What Would You Cut?

Why would a freedom-loving Teabagger threaten to sue a radio station for showing a video of an interview that the Teabagger voluntarily agreed to do at the radio station? Maybe because it reveals a little too much about the Teabagger? We could have sworn that Teabaggers/conservatives were against frivolous lawsuits. To top it all off, the Teabagger was being interviewed by a conservative talk show host.

Oh, the evil media! Things get fun at about 4:36. Grab some popcorn.