American Ruling Class

Government of the People, by the People, for the People. NOT.

"Does voting mean that government is by the people? Ask yourself what influence you have on any legislation by your vote or by your vote in conjunction with others. Many members of Congress frequently do not even have an influence, neither reading the massive bills nor knowing what is in them. A few members and lobbyists are writing laws in the dead of night. Hearings are rigged. What influence do you have on what a president decides? What influence do you have on what a Supreme Court says is or is not law? What influence do you have on what a Congress legislates? What influence do you have on who is elected to office and who your representatives are?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGovernment of the People, by the People, for the People. NOT.

Obama toasts Bush: ‘We are surely a kinder and gentler nation because of you’

"In a rare and warm appearance, former President George H.W. Bush returned to the White House on Monday. The 89-year-old was there to hand out the 5,000th award from his 'Points of Light' Foundation, but the celebration also recognized the 41st president’s legacy of charity and altruism. President Barack Obama credited the 89-year-old Bush with sparking a 'national movement' to advance volunteerism and community service as the 41st president of the United States, joined Obama onstage." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama toasts Bush: ‘We are surely a kinder and gentler nation because of you’

Goldman Sachs quarterly profits more than double to $1.93bn

"Investors had feared that the looming prospect of an end to the US Federal Reserve’s $85bn-a-month bond-buying programme would impact profits at Wall Street’s major banks. However, Goldman Sachs navigated the turbulent quarter better than they expected. Profits climbed to $1.93bn (£1.28bn), from $962m in the same period last year, while revenues rose from $6.6bn to $8.6bn. Goldman Sachs employees were paid $253,691 on average, although the bank’s highest earning staff take home considerably more than that. Michael Sherwood, co-chief executive of Goldman Sachs and head of its London operation, received $15.8m as a share bonus alone last year." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGoldman Sachs quarterly profits more than double to $1.93bn

Congressional Picks for DHS Head Include Backers of Mass Surveillance

"Lawmakers on the House Homeland Security Committee are suggesting individuals who have supported programs similar to National Security Agency digital surveillance initiatives. Among the people ranking Democrat Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Tenn., would prefer, according to minority committee aides, is Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Calif., a committee member who supported the divisive Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act, known as CISPA. The measure, which the House approved by a 288-127 vote in April, would allow the intelligence community to monitor the metadata of private emails for threat signatures or indicators of malicious software." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCongressional Picks for DHS Head Include Backers of Mass Surveillance

Stop Ray Kelly from leading Homeland Security Department

"If you thought Big Brother couldn’t possibly get bigger, and if you thought this Dr. Strangelove era couldn’t possibly get any Strangelovier, welcome to the debate over the next head of Homeland Security. Lost in the noise is the fact that in the midst of disclosures about the Obama administration’s sprawling — and potentially illegal — national security state, a Kelly nomination would put a national surveillance apparatus fit for a sci-fi satire in the hands of a comic-book-worthy thug. Five parts of the police commissioner’s record paint a picture of Kelly that seems almost too cartoonish to be accurate. But, alas, it is Kelly’s undisputed record." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingStop Ray Kelly from leading Homeland Security Department

Bill Gates Foundation is Warren Buffett’s Tax Laundromat

"Well, this helps explain Buffett's huge donations to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. According to Francine McKenna, a CPA, the Gates Foundation is Warren Buffet's personal tax laundromat. The donations for tax deductions reduce his future estate taxes. At the same time, the Foundation gets the donations on full market value basis. Thus, it can sell immediately with no tax, while Buffett gets the deductions. It should be noted that this maneuver is coming from a guy who regularly calls for 'shared sacrifice' and higher taxes on people earning more than $1 million." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBill Gates Foundation is Warren Buffett’s Tax Laundromat

Now Available for You to Buy: America’s Most Expensive Home, $190 Million

"The Greenwich, CT house has 12 bedrooms and comes with 50 acre of grounds. The house is currently owned by timber industrialist John Rudey, reports the UK's MailOnline. The estate once belonged to Harriet Lauder Greenway, whose father went into business with steel magnate Andrew Carnegie. The three story property was built in 1896 and still has speaking tubes from pre-electricity days and sleeping porches used to cool off before the invention of air conditioning as well as an elaborate solarium. There is 15,000 feet of living space." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNow Available for You to Buy: America’s Most Expensive Home, $190 Million

From Murder to Mob Ties, Three N.Y. Politicians Make Unlikely Comebacks

"Disgraced former New York politicians Eliot Spitzer, left, and Anthony Weiner are looking to make their comebacks. Spitzer, the former governor, is now running for the office of New York City comptroller while the former U.S. congressman is running for mayor of New York. These men are only recent examples in a long history of New York politicians who have had to redefine their careers after scandal." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFrom Murder to Mob Ties, Three N.Y. Politicians Make Unlikely Comebacks

Paul Craig Roberts: Coup d’etat

"During my professional life it was Soviet Russia that persecuted truth tellers, while America gave them asylum and tried to protect them. Today it is Washington that persecutes those who speak the truth, and it is Russia that protects them. It is not the US that is damaged by Snowden’s revelations. It is the criminal elements in the US government that have pulled off a coup against democracy, the Constitution, and the American people who are damaged. It is the criminals who have seized power, not the American people, who are demanding Snowden’s scalp. The Obama Regime, like the Bush/Cheney Regime, has no legitimacy." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPaul Craig Roberts: Coup d’etat

Insider Speaks About Booz Allen, The Employer of Edward Snowden

"'If I was a little younger and a little crazier that would have been me. I know exactly why he did it,' was the comment that a former long-time Booz Allen Hamilton employee greeted me with, when I put a phone call into him to get his take on the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, an employee of Booz Allen. My source had previously told me, before he left, that he was leaving Booz Allen because security at the firm was getting oppressive. My source tells me that Booz Allen always had important USG contracts, but they really picked up when the Carlyle Group bought Booz Allen. That's when you really started to see the Penatgon and CIA contracts flow in, he said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingInsider Speaks About Booz Allen, The Employer of Edward Snowden