The resolute advocacy of austerity in spite of zero evidence that it “works” makes me wonder if there isn’t some sort of underlying intention on the part of elites to finally, once and for all, eradicate the social safety net and consign the middle class to a precarious, insecure existence that requires literal fealty to the “job creators”? I don’t mean as an unwitting byproduct of their failed policies, I mean as a conscious strategy. What do you say? Ever hear any of the financial elites talking that way?

But wait, there’s more: evidently, last November, the Komen Foundation decided to no longer fund embryonic stem-cell research, which kind of transforms them from a charity into a seriously anti-choice advocacy group with tax-exempt status. Their decision has serious implications for cancer research:

“That means the loss of $3.75 million to the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, $4.5 million to the University of Kansas Medical Center, $1 million to the U.S. National Cancer Institute, $1 million to the Society for Women’s Health Research, and $600,000 to Yale University. That’s a loss of nearly $12 million dollars in research money to eradicate breast cancer this year alone.”

Go here for more:
,http://www.care2.com/causes/susan-g-komen-foundation-also-stops-funding-embryonic-stem-cell-research.html>

After reading this thread, It suddenly occurs to me how much damage a left-wing version of James O’Keefe, with maybe a set of ethics to go with his button-cam, could do to these closet racist thugs. Mingle with them at the Washington weenie parties or the Press Club bar, get them spewing their pure racist/fascist crapola unburdened by the bogus ‘civility’ and cutesy circumlocution that publication tends to require, and post their ramblings, unedited, on Youtube. Imagine Brooks, Nooners, Norquist, Douthat, even John-Fricking-ROBERTS??….marginalized and held up to justified ridicule by their own poisonous uncensored eliminationist blurts.

Whuh…..wuzzat? Was I dreaming again? More eggnogg, dammit! And thanks, TBogg, for a wonderful year of lolz. Cheers for ’12!!

I just sent Face the Nation a note, because of their lineup today and EVERY Sunday (if you look at their webpage on who they’ve featured in the past, it’s a sea of Republican crackpottery). My subject line was “Face the REPUBLICANS” and predictably (because it’s true) I invoked the spirit of Murrow and strenuously objected to the uniformly pinched, narrow and vicious (since they’re Republicans, after all) vein of “opinion” that constitutes FTN today.

Hey, listen, if everybody here went to the FTN website and left them a comment, in addition to just bitching amongst ourselves, it might give them the idea that there’s an untapped audience they never even thought of appealing to–regular Americans!

Just sayin.

Since it’s become clear to me the Dems are as corrupt as the R’s, I’ve been doing 2 things: one, financially (as best I can) increasing support for causes I believe in (including ACLU, who I hope will stand in for the moribund “justice” department Obama has created) and typing my little fingers off whenever I see something I don’t like, to let relevant people know about my displeasure. It’s a little expensive in time and money, but it feels much better than sitting here “taking it.”

Rafe, ya got nothin. Go away.

For those who don’t know the downtown area, the section around Wall Street was solid business, and bars to cater to the business crowd, until the 90s; in other words, virtually closed, silenced, and deadsville (except for the bars) after approximately 630pm. Then came the real estate boom, the glut of office space, and the wholesale conversion of office space into residential coops and condos, especially in the Wall Street area, most of them being of the luxury variety, particularly in and around the square where all this is happening.

I don’t particularly expect people who can buy at those levels of luxury to care thruppence for OWS, particularly since choosing to live in an area like that more or less implies you’re working in finance. Frankly, I wouldn’t put an awful lot of weight on these “neighbors’” objections…not the way I would to, say, neighborhood resistance to a fracking plant trying to locate nearby. I could be wrong, but it sounds like another case of the Lords of Finance objecting to the rabble on their doorsteps, and picking any lame excuse (“drumming”? O the humanity) to do it. If the drumming is limited to 2 hours a day, it’s a non-issue. What else ya got?? Want to trot out the “dirty hippie” meme again?

Dave? Dave? Got an open question for you!

Hey Dave, let me know when you figure out if any of that “education and childcare” appropriation you mentioned so proudly, ever GOT to anyone. I kind of think it was intended mostly as a sop to the consciences of the thugs and goons (democrat and repubublican) that passed the bill–but if any of it ever helped anyone, I’d love to know about it.

What’d you guys do to Dave H? I turn my back for 45 minutes and he’s gonzo! No stamina, that guy.

Thanks, Dave, and BOY you’re a dab hand with sources (Bill Clinton, no less), which I appreciate. Actually, going back and reading my own source more carefully, I ran into this:

“The reconstituted CCDBG [Child Care and Development Block Grant] consists of two funding streams: (1) $15 billion over seven years in a capped state entitlement (money guaranteed to the states), which requires a state match; and (2) $7 billion over seven years in discretionary funding for which Congress must appropriate specific amounts each year.”

So, $15 billion, yay! But: “…which requires a state match…” Uh-oh! Wonder how many states actually did match the money? I’m genuinely curious–if states didn’t match the money, they didn’t GET the money, right? Unless I’m misunderstanding something, money not matched doesn’t get to the people it’s supposed to help, right? Just wondering how much of that $14 million (or, per my source, $15 million) ever got spent? You don’t happen to have a source for that, do you?

Hmm, Dave, doing a lot of googling here, and finding nothing about a $14 million childcare piece. However, I did find this, is THIS what you’re talking about? It’s an executive summary on the new law from the National Association of Social Workers, outlining the new law, and mentioning that it…

“…Eliminates entitlement to child care for parents receiving cash assistance and for those
making the transition from welfare to work. Since these open-ended funding streams are
capped under the new law, states have a limited amount of child care dollars. Due to the
law’s greatly expanded work requirements and the subsequent increased need for child
care, CBO estimates that child care funding will fall $1.8 billion short of what is needed,
even if Congress appropriates the full discretionary amount authorized.”

That kind of sounds like the opposite of what you’re saying. Got a source I can check?

David–

WHAT “training and childcare?” You mentioned that twice in 2 different posts above–you must know something I don’t. What programs were those, and did they actually PROVIDE “training and childcare”?