2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumA Tale of Two Economies: The Clooney's Fundraiser for Hillary Clinton
The Clooneys Fundraisers for Hillary Clinton: A Tale of Two Economies
The contrast between the upcoming George Clooney-Hillary Clinton $353,000 fundraiser and the fast-growing California homeless population illustrates an overlooked and nasty aspect of the presidential campaign and of current politics.
The event is not actually a $353,000 fundraiser. On April 15, the actor and his wife, Amal, an attorney, will host a gathering in San Francisco for which a couple must raise or contribute $353,400 for two seats at the head table. Annie Karni and Kenneth P. Vogel noted in Politico that this is more than four times the average income in San Francisco. Crummier tickets cost less, but are the savings worth the diminished prestige?
The next night, a few hundred miles to the south, the Clooneys will open their Los Angeles mansion for another such event, where guests can dine at the Clooneys table for $33,400. B- and C-level seats presumably cost less.
The money goes, Karni and Vogel reported, to the Hillary Victory Fund. Fund beneficiaries are the Clinton presidential campaign, the Democratic National Committee and 32 state party committees.
Why exactly do I call all this nasty? And why did Bernie Sanders, Clintons opponent for the Democratic presidential nomination, denounce it as obscene? Hes raising plenty of money the digital way. And the money for the national committees goes to a good causereversing the right-wing tide that has given ultraconservatives control of Congress and a large number of statehouses. The latter development is responsible for the wave of laws limiting abortion rights across the country.
The staggering ticket prices are nasty and obscene because they illustrate the huge gap between the extremely rich Democrats and the very poora gap that will be on display for the rest of the nation if Clinton and Sanders, as expected, fight it out in the June 7 California presidential primary.
The donors will not only get status for their money. They also will get access to political leaders that the poor will never have.
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.....homeless encampments continue to multiply on sidewalks, under freeway overpasses and in parks.
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The luxury of the Clooney-Clinton fundraisers illustrates the gap between the growing number of poor and the indifferent rich, who prosper in this unequal economy. They are obscene symbols of whats wrong with our politics.
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/the_clooneys_fundraisers_for_hillary_clinton_a_tale_two_economies_20160330
yourpaljoey
(2,166 posts)They surely know better
jwirr
(39,215 posts)so good to me anymore.
840high
(17,196 posts)jwirr
(39,215 posts)840high
(17,196 posts)was a heart throb in my younger years.
CorporatistNation
(2,546 posts)Fourteen Defining
Characteristics Of Fascism
By Dr. Lawrence Britt
Source Free Inquiry.co
5-28-3
Dr. Lawrence Britt has examined the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia) and several Latin American regimes. Britt found 14 defining characteristics common to each:
1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.
4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread
domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.
5. Rampant Sexism - The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.
6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.
7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
8. Religion and Government are Intertwined - Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.
9. Corporate Power is Protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.
10. Labor Power is Suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.
11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.
12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.
13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption - Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.
14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.
From Liberty Forum
yourpaljoey
(2,166 posts)upaloopa
(11,417 posts)I work with HUD homeless grants in Santa Barbara County. We all pay for the grants through our taxes. My work helps keep many chronically homeless in shelter.
I doubt anyone replying to this OP has any idea of what work is done for homeless in CA.
But use your ignorance to attack Hillary it has no consequences!
MrWendel
(1,881 posts)don't cloud the issue with facts!
Wilms
(26,795 posts)I mean that.
And I'm wishing you a lighter case load and increased funding through the efforts of the Sanders Administration.
upaloopa
(11,417 posts)840high
(17,196 posts)you annoy me - I like you. Thanks for helping people.
jillan
(39,451 posts)cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)WhiteTara
(29,722 posts)dana_b
(11,546 posts)from his supporters.
Who is rEALLY more powerful? One person with $335K or thousands contributing up to $335K?
dubyadiprecession
(5,722 posts)Lived.
Tierra_y_Libertad
(50,414 posts)cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)appalachiablue
(41,170 posts)PowerToThePeople
(9,610 posts)We need to eradicate that ideology from the party.