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LABORnotes 11 12 2012 “Seniors and supporters demonstrated in nearly 100 cities to stave off cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. They demanded “hands off” the programs and an end to tax cuts for the top 2%. If Congress and the President reach a “grand bargain” in the lame-duck session, seniors, the poor, and the disabled will pay for it—and it won’t be a good buy. … a deal that would give the Republicans something they want—cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid—in exchange for something the president wants: letting the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthy expire on December 31.”
After months of vigorous campaigning for Obama, the AFL-CIO and allies made a “hard pivot” and held picket lines and other actions in close to 100 cities November 8, demanding that the lame-duck Congress keep its hands off.”
Obama has already given away the game. In exchange for a minor tax hike for the rich he’ll let the Republicans begin the process of gutting Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid in much the same way and for the same reasons he gutted the ‘single payer’ and ‘public option’ alternatives, abandoning health care reform for insurance reform. (In the late forties and the 1950′s tax rates on the rich were realistic as you can see in the graph below (2). Two things are of note – the low tax rates just before the Depressions of 1929 and 2007 and the 90% tax rates on the rich under Truman and Eisenhower.
A look at what would happen if we fall off the fiscal cliff was recently published by the Washington Post, and deserves serious study.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/what-going-over-the-fiscal-cliff-would-mean—/2012/11/11/5cc99fbe-2c2f-11e2-a99d-5c4203af7b7a_graphic.html
Whether Obama and Congress push us off the fiscal cliff or drop the Austerity Bomb the wages and benefits of workers will continue to fall catastrophically, the Depression will deepen (3) and unemployment will rise (4), as they did in Europe under the impact of German ordered austerity measures.
A few months ago I published a post with the title Καλώς ήλθατε στην Ελλάδα! (Welcome to Greece). We’re a lot closer to that situation now. In fact, we face a crisis. Since the Carter and Reagan administrations the looters -the ruling class – have campaigned to lower wages and bust unions, (5) and make no mistake about it this latest development will be a major blow to our standard of living and a big victory for the rich.
It will also inevitably deepen the radicalization and expose the misleaders of the AFL-CIO and CTW, creating new openings for the growing union left and the smoldering movement of the un and underemployed. Now the tables will be turned and for the looters and the banksters things are about to get interesting, in the Chinese way.
(1) Brian Beutler of Talking Points Memo seems to have been the first to use the phrase “austerity bomb” for what’s scheduled to happen at the end of the year.AMERICAblog.com
(2) http://taxtherich2012.org/uploads/2/9/2/1/2921341/2069710.jpg?621
(3) http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/11/14/opinion/111412krugman1/111412krugman1-blog480.jpg
(4) http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/11/15/opinion/111512krugman1/111512krugman1-blog480.jpg
(5) http://my.firedoglake.com/donal1944/2011/10/06/the-perfect-storm/
10 Comments
I am too tired to make a meaningful comment, but not to tired to hit the “recommendation” button.
This fiscal cliff situation needs to be examined, and then denounced. Trillions were given to the biggest Bankers – and they are still sitting on most of it. Make them return the monies looted from the rest of us. Raise the taxes on the wealthy. And have the Big financial firms pay back the trillions that Bernanke “digitally created” on their behalf.
Thank you Bill Perdue…Obama has been POTUS since early 2009 and is POTUS now…Obama owns what was given to Wall St. and Big Banks since 2009 and what was not done to Wall St. and Big Banks since 2009. Blaming this on the Rs is dishonest and political deception with hypocrisy powering much of it. Recommended.
The false premise in all this being that USA is a poor nation that cannot afford to do what needs to be done to help the bottom two thirds of Americans in ways that actually matter. Making better schools and schooling a prime goal. Reshape and remix what will done about making employment opportunities equitable combined with overhauling the entire edifice of retirement and social security and retirement health security. Instead of raising SS entry and retirement thresholds it would make better sense to lower them to 55 and allow for the stability this would mean for millions of Americans suffering this 2008 Depression. Also helps to create employment opportunities and mobility options for still need to work Americans.
The USA is not poor. USA just has poor leadership and governance. If indeed austerity is so dire a requirement then it is time to reduce the Pentagon by half,empty out the bloated militarism the Pentagon and CIA have so needlessly wasted so much Americans treasure and potential on.
SS and Medicare are not what need to be cut — American Empire and Militarism is — where is Barack Obama this weekend? Obama is in SE Asia peddling American Empire,American Militarism and TPP. Funny how there is no talk of austerity or defict dangers while POTUS Obama,SoD Panetta and SoS Clinton are in SE Asia this week and weekend. Actually not funny in any comical sense but surely reveals the nature of how false all this austerity,deficit and cut SS/MC is. If USA has money to run Empire all over the planet it has money for SS and MC,money for doing Medicare For All and money to help poor,near poor and near retirement age and retired Americans. Why not?
Barack Obama has not worked to curb Wall St. abuses and it is plainly obvious Eric Holder does what Barack Obama wants done or not done. Reportedly Eric Holder is staying on as AG.
Playing R vs. d flimflam BS at this point and trying to absolve Barack Obama of what Obama as POTUS has done,is doing or seeks still to do is some kind of simpletons denial. Barack Obama owns what Obama has done and not done and it would be an improvement to see the Blame It On The Rs BS being denounced for what it is. Barack Obama has been POTUS since early 2009. Stop blaming what Obama has done and not done on the Rs. Barack Obama is a D POTUS.
“he’ll let the Republicans begin the process of gutting Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid”
That Obama is so helpless….NOT….it is himself (the royal himself) who is beginning the process of gutting SS (already begun with payroll tax shinanigans) and M/M. The repubs are just convenient “bad cop” to Obie’s “helpless ‘I had to do it’ good cop.”
Recommended.
Could we not slam the gates and deny re-entry to our warlords? It seems to me there is precedent for this. Surely they should be on the people’s no-fly list by now. And isn’t there some judiciary in one of those countries that would arrest them for the international war crimes they have perpetrated? One of those leetle Pacific atolls (uninhabited of course) might be a fitting diminishing spot for them to spend eternity. (Half the island goes, then half again, then ….to infinity.)
Let them eat coconuts.
I saw what may have been a Ted Rall cartoon recently. One fellah is saying to the other fellah: “Just look at the mess Obama has inherited from Obama!”
I like it, juliania. But for now, what we can do is render their clothes of power and lies back to an invisible state. One naked, they will will flee the premises, perhaps head to Abu Dhabi.
In some versions of hell, we’re consigned to spend eternity with those exactly like ourselves. ;o)
Pretty sure you meant “tax hike” here, Bill. But don’t worry…with Obanka in charge it will be a tax cut in the end, anyway.
Rich people pay taxes? Corporations pay taxes? Un-American! The Obama rises above petty politics…he gets the 99% to elect him and then he does the work for the 1%. He’s a uniter, everybody!
, shootthatarrow and juliana. Thanks, This is the opening of a big battle, an attack by the banksters on workers. From now on things are going to get very serious.
Thanks, I’ll fix it.
The sole advantage of the election of Obama is going to be a greater sense of anger by his supporters.
Dood! Rec’d.