Democrats Outnumber Republicans 72m to 55m in Registered Voters

Wow. Didnt know that.

Clipped from en.wikipedia.org

Political party strength in U.S. states From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Registered Democrats, Republicans and independents in the United States as of January 2004.[1] Throughout most of the 20th century, although the Republican and Democratic parties alternated in power at a national level, some states were so overwhelmingly dominated by one party that nomination was usually tantamount to election. This was especially true in the Solid South, where the Republican Party was virtually nonexistent for the best part of a century, from the end of Reconstruction in the late 1870s to the 1960s. Conversely, the New England states of Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire were Republican bastions, as were some Midwestern states like Iowa and North Dakota. However, in the 1970s and 1980s, the increasingly conservative Republican Party gradually overtook the Democrats, whose support had been eroded by the Civil rights movement and its perceived liberal social policies. In the 1990s, the Republicans finally overtook the Democrats in holding majorities in statehouses and governorships in the South. In New England, the opposite trend took place; the former Republican strongholds of Maine and Vermont became solidly Democratic, as did formerly Republican areas of New Jersey, New York, and other states. Currently, the majority of the overall number of seats held in the state legislatures has been switching between the two parties every few years. As of the U.S. gubernatorial elections of 2010, the Republican party holds an outright majority of approximately 440 with 3,890 seats (53% of total) compared to the Democratic party's number of 3,450 (47% of total) seats elected on a partisan ballot.[2] Of the 7,382 seats in all of the state legislatures combined, independents and third parties account for only 15 members, not counting the 49 members of the Nebraska Legislature, which is the only legislature in the nation to hold non-partisan elections to determine its members. Due to the results of the 2010 elections, Republicans took control of an additional 19 state legislative chambers, giving them majority control of both chambers in 25 states versus the Democrats' majority control of both chambers in only 16 states, with 8 states having split or inconclusive control of both chambers (not including Nebraska); previous to the 2010 elections, it was Democrats who controlled both chambers in 27 states versus the Republican party having total control in only 14 states, with eight states divided and Nebraska being nonpartisan.[3] Read more at en.wikipedia.org

 

NRA and Guns in the USA

Another disgraceful problem in the US cause by the fear mongering right wing political apparatus that supports this unhealthy hobby of owning a gun.

Clipped from en.wikipedia.org

Gun violence in the United States From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article is about gun violence in the United States. For gun violence globally, see Gun violence. 1901 assassination of President William McKinley by Leon Czolgosz, using a revolver, at the Pan-American Exposition reception in Buffalo, New York. McKinley died eight days later from his wounds. Gun violence in the United States is an intensely debated political issue in the United States. Gun related violence is most common in poor urban areas and in conjunction with gang violence, often involving juveniles or young adults.[1][2] Gun violence is not new in the United States, with the assassinations of President Abraham Lincoln in 1865, and of Presidents James Garfield, William McKinley, and John F. Kennedy. High profile gun violence incidents, such as the assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and, more recently, the Columbine High School massacre, the Beltway sniper attacks, the Virginia Tech massacre, and the 2011 Tucson shooting, have also fueled debate over gun policies.[3] Read more at en.wikipedia.org

 

Is Corporate Tyranny Destroying America? Pt 3

Although the United States has the second highest statutory corporate tax, the background paper reports that U.S. corporate income tax revenue (federal and state) as a percentage of GDP paradoxically is much lower than the OECD average — 2.2 percent in the United States versus an OECD average of 3.4 percent — over the 2000-2005 period. In short, the OECD data present a conundrum — the United States has the second highest combined statutory corporate tax rate among OECD countries, yet is tied with Hungary in raising the fourth lowest amount of combined corporate income tax revenue relative to GDP in 2004

Clipped from www.taxanalysts.com

The Corporate Tax Conundrum by Peter R. Merrill In conjunction with a conference on business taxation and global competitiveness, the Treasury Department on July 26, 2007, released a background paper on the taxation of business income in the United States. The background paper describes the taxation of corporate and noncorporate businesses in the United States, compares the U.S. corporate tax system with that of its major trading partners, and describes the major economic distortions caused by the U.S. rules for taxing income from capital. The background paper reports that the United States has the second highest combined (federal and state) statutory corporate income tax rate among the 30 member countries of the OECD. At 39 percent, the U.S. combined statutory corporate tax rate is reported to be 8 percentage points higher than the OECD average. More recent data collected by the OECD show that the OECD average corporate tax rate has fallen to 28.4 percent in 2006, almost 11 percentage points below the U.S. tax rate. This gap continues to widen. Legislation has been enacted further reducing corporate tax rates in Germany (from 38.9 percent to 29.8 percent), the United Kingdom (from 30 percent to 28 percent), and Denmark (from 28 percent to 25 percent). Read more at www.taxanalysts.com

 

Is Corporate Tyranny Destroying America? Pt 2

Why do larger corporations pay fewer taxes as a percentage of their revenues than smaller businesses?

Walmart not only squeezes its supply chain so hard they cannot generate a profit and end up going out of business or getting acquired until there are only 2-4 players in that sector, but they also force small local businesses out of business by pricing them out of the market. There are at least 5 billionaires in the wealthiest 400 Forbes list that are from the Walton family. Thousands of small entrepreneurs forced to their knees so that the pwoer and wealth can be concentrated in the hands of a few.

How does this happen? Lobbyist. Consultants paid for by large companies influence the laws in the favor of the large companies.

High Corporate Tax Rate Is Misleading - Investing - Economy - SmartMoney.com

URL:  http://www.smartmoney.com/investing/economy/high-corpor...

 

 

Between 2000 and 2005, U.S. corporate taxes amounted to 2.2% of the GDP. The average for the 30 mostly rich member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development was 3.4%

Is Corporate Tyranny Destroying America? Pt 1

We seem to be complaining a lot lately about these items:

Healthcare - costs are skyrocketing as corporate profits are on the rise

Salaries, Benefits, and Work Opportunities for Middle America - pensions, unions, real wages are under fire as the financial crisis puts pressure on govt budgets

Wellness - sedentary lifestyles, extensive travel,

Food Quality - lower quality food caused by corporations seeking to strengthen profits by increasing production.

Environmental pollution - for example that caused by bp's oil spill in the gulf

Public education - maybe not caused by corporate tyranny :) unions could be to blame more than anything. The Race to the Top program supporting charters is a step in the right direction. Interesting how the education budget is always a target and military spending is not.

Workplace Safety - mining incidents as a result of cuts for better profitability and a cost relationship between the Govt agency that is supposed to be a watchdog, not a facilitator.

Lobbyists affect on congress and the laws may explain Govts poor performance in these areas.

Reagan said Govt is the problem and since then the GOP and supply side trickle down economics have rule the day, only creating a massivy widening gap between the rich and the poor.

Socialism is Successful? South America's Middle Class Boosts Economies : NPR

URL:  http://www.npr.org/2011/03/01/134154387/South-Americas-...

 

 

Remember all the bad press about all the socialist dictators booting our DEA and oil companies from their countries, you know the same countries that we looted with our special consultants and the IMF and World Bank...

Now they are seeing progress. Rising middle class, despite the efforts of the right wing elites who have been in power since the Spaniards left.

Libya - Like Egypt or Like Venezuela? - Must See a film by Oliver Stone

URL:  http://southoftheborderdoc.com/

 

 

South of the Border - a film by Oliver Stone - Extremely relevant documentary about Latin America. Watch the movie. Hear how South american leaders are depicted, then read this news from today.

http://www.npr.org/2011/03/01/134154387/South-Americas-Middle-Class-Consumers-Boost-Economies

Halliburton - Pure Evil

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halliburton

 

 

Why dont the deficit hawks take a chunk out of Halliburton's contracts to cut the US govt deficit?

CACI - Military Outsourced - Good $$ for Govt Work Outsourced

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CACI

 

 

On 9 June 2004, a group of 256 Iraqis sued CACI International and Titan Corporation (now L-3 Services, part of L-3 Communications) in US federal court. The plaintiffs, former prisoners, allege that the companies directed and participated in torture, war crimes, crimes against humanity, sexual assault, as well as cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment at Abu Ghraib prison. The US Government had hired CACI and Titan to provide interrogation and translation services at military prisons in Iraq.[4]

Budget Deficit a Result of Govt Outsourcing to Private Companies

GOPs idealogy in play - Govt cannot solve the problem, Govt is the problem - From there, everything should be outsourced to private companies. Gee, I wonder why the government is running a deficit. If non-profit activities are turned into profit generating activities, OF COURSE IT WILL COST MORE YOU IDIOT!

Efficencies - thats why it made sense. Govt is inefficient. Reagan screwed us with those words.

Clipped from en.wikipedia.org

Blackwater Worldwide From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Xe Services LLC Type Private military security firm Industry Private military and security contractor Founded 1997 Founder(s) Erik Prince Al Clark Headquarters Moyock, North Carolina, USA[1] Area served Worldwide Products law enforcement training, logistics, Close quarter training, and security services Services Security management, full-service risk management consulting Revenue Unknown Operating income Unknown Net income Unknown Employees Unknown Divisions 9 Website www.xecompany.com/ Xe Services LLC (pronounced /ˈziː/ zee) is a private military company founded as Blackwater USA in 1997 by Erik Prince and Al Clark.[2][3] The company has a wide array of business divisions, subsidiaries, and spin-off corporations but the organization as a whole has aroused significant controversy.[4][5][6][7][8] The Iraq War documents leak showed that Blackwater employees committed serious abuses in Iraq, including killing civilians.[9] Altogether, the documents reveal fourteen separate shooting incidents involving Blackwater forces, which resulted in the deaths of ten civilians and the wounding of seven others, not including the Nisoor Square massacre that killed seventeen civilians. A third of the shootings occurred while Blackwater forces were guarding US diplomats.[10] In October 2007, Blackwater USA was renamed Blackwater Worldwide. It announced on February 13, 2009 that it would operate under the new name "Xe." In a memo sent to employees, President Gary Jackson wrote that the new name "reflects the change in company focus away from the business of providing private security." A spokesperson for the company stated that it feels the Blackwater name is too closely associated with the company's work in the occupation of Iraq.[11] Spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell said there was no meaning in the new name, which the company took over a year to arrive at in an internal search.[12] Xe is currently the largest of the U.S. State Department's three private security contractors. Of the 987 contractors Xe provides, 744 are U.S. citizens.[13][14] At least 90% of the company's revenue comes from government contracts. Xe provided security services in Iraq to the United States federal government, particularly the Central Intelligence Agency[1] on a contractual basis. They no longer have a license to operate in Iraq: the new Iraqi government made multiple attempts to expel them from the country,[15] and denied their application for an operating license in January 2009.[16] However, the company is still under contract with the State Department and some Xe personnel were working legally in Iraq at least until September 2009.[17] The company was purchased on December 17, 2010 by USTC Holdings, an investment group. Erik Prince will no longer have an equity stake in or involvement in the management or operation of Xe.[18] Read more at en.wikipedia.org

 

Effective Tax Rate for MegaCorp - GE - Less Than You Pay!

http://www.tax.com/taxcom/taxblog.nsf/Permalink/MSUN-8DEKQP?Op...

 

 

This ought to surprise you.

Effective Tax Reform is Impossible As Wealthy Defend Their Riches

http://www.tax.com/taxcom/taxblog.nsf/Permalink/JTHE-8BSS5Z?Op...

 

 

...real reform is pretty much impossible as long as Wall Street has the entire political class on its payroll. "The items that matter most to the rich and powerful will not be called into question because their interests are being protected," he writes. Protected, that is, by government officials hoping for a lucrative private sector gig after they finish serving the public...

Lobbying - This is where our senators and congressmen go after they "serve". Lobbying on behalf of the multi-billion dollar corporations that are at the heart of nearly every American issue

Fact or Fiction? Middle class is subsidizing millionaires

URL:  http://www.forbes.com/2004/02/12/0212chat_transcript.html

 

 

Most Americans believe what turns out to be a myth--that we heavily tax the highest-income Americans to subsidize the poor. What the government's data show is that the middle class and upper middle class--people making $30,000 to $500,000 per year--are subsidizing the highest-income taxpayers. Tax rates on the middle and upper middle classes are rising, the government's data show, but for the people who make millions per year, effective tax rates are falling dramatically

FREE LUNCH: HOW THE WEALTHIEST AMERICANS ENRICH THEMSELVES AT GOVERNMENT EXPENSE AND STICK YOU WITH THE BILLS

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/01182008/profile.html

 

 

Budget Deficit Solved: Collect On Taxes Owed

http://www.thenation.com/article/158874/us-uncut-hits-streets

 

 

There’s a building in the Cayman Islands that houses supposedly 12,000 US-based corporations. That’s either the biggest building in the world or the biggest tax scam in the world

US Uncut Points Out Corporate Welfare State

http://www.thenation.com/article/158874/us-uncut-hits-streets

 

 

America’s two-tier economy in which workers are expected to shoulder the burden of deficit while corporations continuously skirt liability

Forbes - William Koch - Fighting Clean Energy?

URL:  http://www.forbes.com/profile/william-koch

 

 

Forbes - Rupert Murdoch - Bankrolling the Right Wing

URL:  http://www.forbes.com/profile/rupert-murdoch

 

 

and inciting the masses in the wrong direction...

Forbes - David Koch - bankrolling the right wing

URL:  http://www.forbes.com/profile/david-koch

 

 

Do you benefit from the subsidies and tax loopholes this guy does?