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Disappointment on the left! Disappointment on the right!So here we are almost a year into the new administration's term. And what do we have to celebrate on the left? Well, we passed the Lilly Ledbetter Act which protects women from discrimination at work in terms of pay and work rules. We saw protections for credit card users pass, eliminating unreasonable interest rate hikes. We saw torture Finally taken off of the table as something our government would do to captured persons in our care. And we saw several other pieces of legislation pass which were so innocuous you would have to research them on the internet to even know what they were. But what of our major issues? NO end to troop deployments in The Middle East. NO immediate closing of GITMO (but it's on the horizon). No reversal of rising unemployment rates. And NO access to basic health care for each and every American. Not much to strike up the band and have a parade about. Let's walk across to the right side of politics. Blocked health care reform so far..... just what large health insurance and pharmaceutical companies wanted. No likely passage of Cap in Trade, allowing pollution levels to continue at current levels for the foreseeable future, but which allow corporations to not have to invest money in energy reduction measures. A monumental victory in Massachusetts which appears even more monumental if you ignore the monumental loss in New York's 23d Congressional District. And a blockage of the nominee who was to head up the TSA; a nominee who was unanimously approved by democrats out of committee (Joe Lieberman said he brought "nearly three decades of experience in public safety, homeland security, and intelligence, carried out at all levels of government and, indeed, in academia.") And today, the conservative-leaning Supreme Court landed a doozy for the err.... ummm.... people? So This is what "strict constructionist judges" do? Drown out our meager campaign contributions with the wheel barrows of corporate campaign cash? Look who applauded this opinion and who derided it. I especially like The Republican Senate minority leader's take on this reversal of years and years of precedent which protected an individual's ability to compete in the financing of campaigns. "With today's monumental decision, the Supreme Court took an important step in the direction of restoring the First Amendment rights of these groups by ruling that the Constitution protects their right to express themselves about political candidates and issues up until Election Day." — Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. You see that folks? Mitch McConnell has insured Bank of America, Citibank, AIG, CIGNA, United Healthcare, Phizer, Johnson and Johnson, and many other mega companies that they will be protected by him and his fellow conservatives who happen to sit on the bench. Real quick my fellow beloved bloggers: Look in your wallets. Shake out the change in the pockets of those jeans on the floor or in the hamper. Now go on line and quickly look at your bank balances. Check your net worth on Quicken. Now compare the numbers you just scanned to these: Pharmaceutical company revenue in millions for the first half of 2009 Now, this is Wikepedia, but I suspect the numbers are fairly accurate. And keep in mind this is NOT net worth; this is just their profits for the first half of 2009; profits made, in large part, by holding the cost of their product to us as high as possible. So, let's wrap our hands around this: The party in the minority that feels it is a party of the people has: 1) Blocked insurance reform to date ensuring that the status quot is maintained...just like big pharma and big insurance companies wanted. 2)Blocked measures to reduce energy consumption of large corporations....just like large corporations wanted. 3) Blocked the placement of leadership in the TSA because he just might possibly support unions.... just like anyone with explosive underwear would want. and 4) Guaranteed, through their "strict constructionist" and "*conservative" supreme court justices, that poor little Johnson and Johnson will be able to donate as much money as they possibly can to defeat healthcare reform, pre-existing condition legislation, and/or cost controls like allowing importation of drugs at each and every opportunity. Really makes you wonder who is actually on the side of the individual. It makes you wonder who will send people to Washington and who those folks will be beholden to. I can't wait to hear and read the reaction by those among us who feel we, as individuals, should be represented in Washington, and not special interest and big business. Cheers, Hack kevin king's blog | login to post comments
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