----- Original Message -----
From: Ken Brown
To: Barrack Obama ; moveon.org ; Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy ; Senator_Clinton@clinton.senate.gov ; senator@schumer.senate.gov
Cc: editorials@newsday.com ; editor@blackstarnews.com ; info@amsterdamnews.org ; news@blackstarnews.com ; abc.news.magazines@abc.com ; info@wbai.org ; Arianna@ariannaonline.com ; tothecontrary@pbs.org ; LOUDOBBS@CNN.COM ; pov@pbs.org
Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2009 6:06 AM
Subject: Broken Economy - Fix or Replace
The implication being that the economy is fixable (Fixable AGAIN, like an old truck that keeps breaking down under an ever increasing workload?) or Replaceable (How and With what??). In reality THE ECONOMY IS NOT FIXABLE without replacing or upgrading large parts.
1. The economic self destruct system
(RED ALERT 2008) is still counting down. Remember over 70% of our economy is based on, and supported by, consumer spending. AND a large part of that consumer spending is on useless unnecessary junk. The corporate controlled media "buy, buy, buy" propaganda causes people to not only buy "stuff" they don't need, but to go into debt to do it. More-over, most of the junk sold is imported (jobs exported). Is it possible to think of a less solid foundation for an economic system?2. Rebuilding that economic system
will be an expensive maintenance of the excessive resource consumption that is globally self destructive. Out of control capitalism, like out of control wildfires, can exhaust the worlds resources even faster than the present world wide exponential population growth. Wars over resources (diamonds, gold, oil, . . . , water) controlled by global corporations will escalate. Don't forget: Weapons research, development and sales is another major part of our economy. The conflict of interest is so egregious that I have repeatedly called for the owners of weapons manufacturing corporations to be scrutinized more than the owners of gambling casinos.3. Building a new economic system
that is based on more solid foundations requires recognition that capitalism is not the best solution to every human need. A corporation's only legal mandate is to make money for its owners. If that helps people, great. If not, too bad. Without laws that are enforced, these corporations will continue to harm people; from safety to fraud; from pollution to hoarding resources, from obscene salaries to slave labor. We must not forget that Greed powers capitalism. Greed, like fire, can be useful IF, like fire, it is carefully contained and controlled. Out of control greed causes and maintains wars for profit. Out of control greed spreads like wildfire. One of the greed controls of the past (click history of high taxes on the rich) has been removed. It forced the rich to pull us all up with them as they get richer and richer.4. Capitalism should not be permitted to act contrary to people needs
. This goes far beyond labor laws, safety laws, pollution laws, etc. Capitalism should not be in health care, education, prisons, etc. It should not be profitable to restrict health care. It should not be profitable to sell textbooks filled with lies and distortions, or to produce and market worthless "standardized tests". It should not be profitable to repress real education in order to keep people ignorant enough to be more easily suckered into repeatedly buying "stuff" they don't need and can't afford. It should not be profitable to have more people in jails. It should not be profitable to have multibillion dollar ILLEGAL CORPORATIONS.5. ILLEGAL CORPORATIONS are a large part of our economy
. Illegal corporations fund, indirectly, the prison industrial complex. Illegal drugs was a $15 billion a year business 10 years ago. Because of the war on drugs, we have (1) a growing funding, in the billions, for the "Incarceration Contractors", (2) a growing number of state and federal "correction officers" and staff feeding the growth of entire communities (towns) whose only income derives from prison population growth, and (3) a large and growing prosecution and law enforcement army of professionals and employees whose livelihood depends on increasing crime (!!??).5a. Note that none of the $15 billion a year ends up in the Black Community
, while the Black Community is suffering the most casualties (dead and incarcerated where blacks are given AIDS) in this "war on drugs" that is actually a war on blacks. The fact is that every time we catch someone in the drug trade, there are 50 people fighting in line to TAKE HIS PLACE --- to live the "High Life", if only for a little while. And the winner knows how the last ones got caught. It will be more costly to catch the new drug organization and the cost of drugs went up, which invites more investment at all levels thus continuing the cycle. Should we legalize drugs and let the users kill themselves rather than having an ever growing law enforcement army that kills people instead? Well, the biggest users are white suburbanites, while those being killed and incarcerated by the "enforcement" armies are inner city poor Black and Latino.6. Then we have corporations trying to corner the market of growing food
by pushing genetically modified crops that can only be reproduced by paying the owner corporation every year forever, or starve since nothing else can grow where these special crops have grown. Other corporations are injecting cattle and poultry with steroids and antibiotics that do not dissipate in the human body, causing obesity and early puberty. These corporations contribute to a growing fitness industry. Look again at how dangerous it is to have profit making corporations controlling our entire food supply. Should we nationalize them? If not, how do we keep them from wreaking havoc? Similarly, how do we keep corporations from cutting down all the trees on earth, or how do we stop oil and mining corporations from killing people with pollution, contamination and lies?7. We must never forget that capitalism thrives on slavery
(see U.S. history). Capitalism "harnesses" labor to produce profit and wealth for the few. That "harness" often makes it difficult to distinguish slave labor from actual slavery. This is because capitalism requires the existence of an underclass. It is necessary in order to have a constant source of cheap (cheaper, cheapest) labor. The "train wreck" comes with the elimination or reduction in labor requirements through technology, automation and increased efficiencies.8. The "Train Wreck": THERE WILL NEVER AGAIN BE ENOUGH JOBS TO GO AROUND
(automation and efficiencies versus exponential population growth) no mater how much "stuff" we sell. Is it clear now that radical change (capitalism's profits versus peoples' needs) will be required?9. Solution part 1 --- IMMEDIATELY DOUBLE THE TAXES OF THE RICH,
make it permanent (click RE-TAX the RICH) and close all loopholes with Excess Resources Taxes. Any future attempt to again reduce the taxes of the rich must be considered purchased by the rich, as they have done repeatedly in the past. Reinstall this greed control fire wall of making sure the greedy give back to support and rehabilitate THE POOR casualties of capitalism and help prevent their greed wars causing more "economic storms" (recessions and depressions).10. Solution part 2 --- Surcharge the rich immediately
. These surcharges can be reduced over time --- "you know", like the surcharges on our bills are reduced. (1) 10% surcharge to pay for free health care for everyone. (2) 10% surcharge to pay for free education through the PhD. (3) 10% surcharge to pay for the rehabilitation of casualties of capitalism: our returning troops, unemployment, retraining, social security, affordable housing, environmental restoration, bringing back industry, etc. (many more).11. Solution part 3 --- Immediately "reinstall" all oversight and controls over all corporate activities.
The very idea of allowing greed powered capitalism to regulate itself is absurd on the face of it. It should not require an economist to tell us that people will cheat if they can. Any casino pit boss could tell you that people will cheat if you don't watch them. "Reinstall", as we do "Windows" on a crashed PC: FCC, FDA, SEC, etc. This means removing corporate control of the media, food safety, the stock markets, etc. Break up conglomerates. "Reinstall" anti-trust. Separate the banks from credit card companies and from investment companies. If a corporation is "too big to allow it to fail" (present bailout blackmail talk), then it is too big to allow it to exist. Our constitution requires the "separation of powers" and for the same reason me must have the separation and/or limitation of corporate and individual power.12. Solution part 4 --- End Plutocracy and return Democracy worldwide.
This must be a legally mandated ongoing effort: Terminate the control of the people by the rich. Without control of the media, the rich cannot tell the people what to do, how to think and vote. Warning: With digital TV comes significantly improved "subliminal" brainwashing capabilities. Without control of our legislators, the rich could not so easily control our government. Impose immediately: Adequate EQUAL TIME FREE to, and for, campaigning candidates as an FCC requirement for licensing. End politicians spending 80% of their time raising money for the next election. The millions of dollars corporations give candidates, directly and indirectly, is money that could help the poor or pay for education, etc. This money does not help the people. It subverts the system that is supposed to represent the will of the people. The purpose of that subversion is to make the rich richer faster. (click MONEY video to see who else is worshipping greed)13. Solution part 5 --- Begin serious LONG RANGE PLANNING
. This cannot be done unless we begin serious medium range planning. The world is too big with too many problems to be left to chance, panic solutions or the clashes of power mad nuts. "Let's get serious; FOR REAL" (Hip-Hop quote). Freedom, Democracy and Capitalism - A 6 Way TUG of War gives some short, medium and long term solution outlines. The earth's resources are increasing slowly, if at all. The earth's population is increasing faster every year. TRAIN WRECK! LONG RANGE PLANNING is our only way to avoid these TRAIN WRECKS, any one of which could lead to our extinction.The world needs to have and discuss the above information. It is up to you to make that happen. Add your comments and forward it to everyone including your elected officials and local media.
Orishanimi Kenneth N. Brown
Advanced Research Consultants, Inc.
(Not just another Think Tank)