Welfare-Warfare State

It’s Time to End the Paid Militarization of the NFL

"Between 2012 and 2015, the DOD shelled out $53 million to professional sports—including $10 million to the NFL—on 'marketing and advertising' for military recruitment. To be sure, some of that was bona fide advertising. But many of those heart-tugging ceremonies honoring heroes and recreating drills and marches and flyovers are what the report denounced as propaganda. Of course, this being government, no one is really sure how much has been spent or where the money went."

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GOP bid to rewrite tax code falters

"The GOP's dreams have collided with interest-group lobbying and the tax system's reality. Politicians all profess to hate the tax code, but they don't agree on exactly what they hate. Voters gripe about complexity but are wary of losing cherished breaks that are woven into the economy." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGOP bid to rewrite tax code falters

WaPo: The U.S. will never win the war in Afghanistan

"Obama signed off on a surge that ended with 100,000 U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. His generals also promised to break the stalemate. Today, the Taliban controls more of the country than it has since 2001. Why are we still there? We went into Afghanistan after 9/11 to get Osama bin Laden and to punish the Taliban for harboring al-Qaeda. Now bin Laden is dead; al-Qaeda is dispersed; the Taliban has been battered. The United Nations reports that there were more than 11,000 war-related civilian casualties last year, and 660,000 Afghans were displaced, adding to the country’s massive refugee crisis. The war has now cost us over $1 trillion, making it the second-costliest U.S. war." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWaPo: The U.S. will never win the war in Afghanistan

Trump administration is looking at 50- and 100-year bonds

"The Treasury disclosed that it is studying the possibility of ultra-long bonds, with maturities greater than 30 years, currently the bond with the longest maturity. It also said it is preparing for the time when the Fed begins to reduce its giant $4.5 trillion balance sheet — by buying fewer Treasurys and mortgage securities, and perhaps ultimately even unloading the ones it holds." Continue reading →

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Ron Paul: Greece Today, America Tomorrow?

"While most commentators have focused on Greece’s welfare state, much of Greece’s deficit was caused by excessive military spending. Greece’s military budget remains among the largest in the European Union. Despite all the handwringing over how the phony sequestration cuts have weakened America’s defenses, the United States military budget remains larger than the combined budgets of the world’s next 15 highest spending militaries. Little, if any, of the military budget is spent defending the American people from foreign threats. Instead, the American government wastes billions of dollars on an imperial foreign policy that makes Americans less safe." Continue reading →

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Gerald Celente on Marijuana Legalization and OccupyPeace

"We're initiating a project called OccupyPeace.us. And it's based on three words: No foreign entanglements. Those are the three words spoken by the Founding Fathers of this country. We want to rebuild America and the way we want to do it is we're working to build an OccupyPeace movement based on no foreign entanglements and we're working to push the United States more in line with a direct democracy like Switzerland. You want to go to war? Let the people vote. You want a defense budget? Let the people vote on it. You want to bail out the banks? Let the people vote. If we can bank online we can vote online. It could be more open than any other system in the world." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGerald Celente on Marijuana Legalization and OccupyPeace

Finance Goes From Foe to Friend in Hollande Government

"During his election campaign in 2011, President Francois Hollande famously called finance his 'greatest adversary.' In a speech today, French Finance Minister Michel Sapin called finance 'a friend,” quickly specifying that he was talking about 'good finance.' The new stance comes as the president’s popularity is at a record low and his economic policies have drawn the ire of members of his own Socialist Party and of allied groups. Recovery remains anemic and joblessness is at a record high. Global finance, however, has stuck with Hollande. Investors have piled into French bonds, giving Hollande’s government borrowing costs that are close to the lowest on record." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFinance Goes From Foe to Friend in Hollande Government