Progressive Calendar 02.10.11
From: David Shove (shove001tc.umn.edu)
Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2011 15:45:00 -0800 (PST)
              P R O G R E S S I V E   C A L E N D A R   02.10.11

1. Egypt/Tunisia    2.10 7pm
2. Dissent/US/India 2.10 7pm

3. Kevin Zeese - Obama "becoming" business friendly

--------1 of 3--------

From: Socialist Appeal <new [at] socialistappeal.org>
Subject: Egypt/Tunisia 2.10 7pm

EVENT THURSDAY: The Uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia and the Arab
Revolution, February 10th, 7 pm, Mayday Books, 301 Cedar Ave S, MLPS

The Uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia and the Arab Revolution
February 10th, 2011

A forum on the magnificent revolutionary events in North Africa and
what it means for the Middle East
Thursday, February 10th, 7 pm
Mayday Books (301 Cedar Ave. S in Minneapolis' West Bank)

The heroic movement of the Tunisian masses has transformed the atmosphere
in the Middle East. In this key strategic country of the Arab World,
millions of ordinary men and women, young and old, workers, peasants,
students, and urban poor, have entered the stage of history and risen up
against the U.S.-backed dictator, toppling him in just a few weeks despite
the regime's brutal repression. Armed with only sticks and stones, they
have set up barricades and neighborhood defense committees, and even taken
over the government of entire towns, replacing the old authorities with
democratically elected people's councils. This is yet another example of
the unstoppable power of the working class once it moves into action. But
the movement is still ongoing and spreading throughout the region.

Now the Egyptian masses are rising up, casting aside their fear and openly
confronting the hated police of the Mubarak dictatorship. In Algeria,
Yemen, Jordan and even in Saudi Arabia, protests are erupting. The Arab
revolution is just beginning, with profound implications for the entire
region and the world.

Come join us to learn more about these exciting events and the latest
developments. John Peterson of the Workers International League and
Socialist Appeal magazine will introduce the discussion.

This event is free and open to the public. Donations to Mayday Books for
the generous use of their space appreciated. We will also be holding a
collection to support the work of Marxist.com in its reporting and
analysis of the unfolding events in North Africa.

For more information, please contact wil [at] socialistappeal.org This e-mail
address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to
view it or call 612-424-3897 (WIL) or 612-333-4719 (Mayday Books).


--------2 of 3--------

From: Karthik Ramanathan <ramanath.karthik [at] gmail.com>
Subject: Dissent/US/India 2.10 7pm

"Dissent and repression in the US and India", Feb 10 (Thursday), 7-8.30pm,
Blegen Hall, UoM

Dissent and Repression in the US and India
February 10, 2011; 7-8.30 PM
445 Blegen Hall, UoM West Bank 269 19th Avenue S, Minneapolis, MN 55455

On September 24, 2010, FBI raided the homes of peace activists in
Minneapolis and Chicago, seizing computers, phones and large amount of
documents and personal items. Since then, 23 activists in both these
cities have been subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury. No one has been
charged and lacking any material evidence, the United States government is
clearly carrying out a campaign of intimidating people, who did little
more than speak out for peace and justice.

On December 24, 2010, Dr. Binayak Sen, a renowned physician, public
health and human rights activist, was sentenced to life in prison by a
sessions court in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh on baseless charges of
"sedition" and "conspiracy against the state". This extreme action
comes on top of the arrest and conviction of several political and human
rights activists in different parts of India in the last few years.

Come find out more about these cases and the context in which these acts
of repression and silencing of dissent are occurring in the US and in
India!

Panelists
Jess Sundin, Anti-War Committee
Michelle Gross, Communities United Against Police Brutality
Lalit Batra, International Campaign to Free Binayak Sen

For more info: contact Lalit Batra (612-229-3358) lalitbatra [at] gmail.com or
Karthik Ramanathan (978-996-2292) ramanath.karthik [at] gmail.com


--------3 of 3--------

The False Narrative of the Corporate Media
Obama Becoming Business Friendly
by Kevin Zeese
Dissident Voice
February 10th, 2011

The unrelenting narrative from the corporate media - that Obama must mend
fences with American business - is disconnected from the reality of
Obama's policies and appointments.  It is inconsistent with the rise in
the stock market, the record profits and the hordes of cash big business
is sitting on.

There is no question that small businesses are still being choked by the
unavailability of credit and that the lack of job creation is preventing a
real economic recovery, but the businesses Obama spoke to when he visited
the Chamber of Commerce are not in that category.  In recent years, the
national Chamber has evolved into a spokesperson for transnational
corporations, not Main Street America's businesses. They have pushed U.S.
job killing policies that send jobs overseas so transnational corporations
can reap the biggest profits from the cheapest labor.

Rather than scolding the Chamber for killing American industry, Obama
kow-towed to them.  He seeks to raise $1 billion for his re-election
campaign and neutralize opposition from concentrated corporate capital.
As a result his promises to the Chamber were a policy agenda that will
fail to ignite the U.S. economy but continue to grow the power of
concentrated corporate interests, especially transnational corporations.

The business agenda Obama promised will be good for big business interests
but bad for the U.S. economy, workers and small business interests. It
included:

.  A freeze on domestic spending for five years, excluding the military
and national security.  This McCain campaign promise opposed by Obama
during his campaign will result in austerity budgets for programs that
attempt to meet the needs of Americans while the military and national
security budgets continue to devour more and more federal spending. In
fact, Obama failed to mention the urgent need to dramatically reduce the
rapidly rising military and intelligence budgets, which make up more than
half of federal discretionary spending, so as not to offend the Military
Industrial Complex.

.  Obama continued the falsehood that Social Security and Medicare are the
driving force of deficit spending, when, in fact, both are contracts with
American workers for essential health care and retirement services funded
by payroll taxes. This contract, paid for by American workers, must be
honored. Social Security in particular has built up over $2.5 trillion
worth of Treasury Bonds at the end of fiscal 2009. These produce more than
$100 billion annually in interest. Social Security will continue to remain
solvent by merely raising the cap on the Social Security tax so the
wealthy pay their share will ensure retirement security long into the
future.  To really control debt the U.S. must lower health care costs. The
Obama reforms will not do this.  Only improving and expanding Medicare to
cover all Americans will accomplish this objective.  If you are concerned
with deficit spending, you should support single payer health care.

.  Obama promised to reduce the corporate tax, another McCain campaign
proposal that the Obama campaign called a "gift basket" for corporate
America. In fact, 72 percent of foreign corporations and about 57 percent
of U.S. companies doing business in the United States paid no federal
income taxes for at least one year between 1998 and 2005. Revenue from the
corporate income tax fell from between 5 and 6 percent of GDP in the early
1950s to 2.1 percent of GDP in 2008. At a time when corporations are
seeing record profits and sitting on huge cash reserves, of $2 trillion,
while failing to hire Americans, Obama gently urged them to get back into
the economy was inadequate.

.  Obama promised less regulation, pledging to reduce regulation without
pointing out that the deregulation era that began with Reagan and
continued with every president, Democrat and Republican, was a primary
cause of the economic collapse, as even Alan Greenspan, the former
libertarian-leaning Federal Reserve Chairman has admitted.

.   Obama promised more corporate trade agreements with developing
nations. These types of trade agreements have created a huge trade deficit
and the net loss of 5.1 million manufacturing jobs and 43,000 factories
since America started its experiment with the current trade model in the
1990s. The Korea pact which Obama trumpeted is projected to cost another
159,000 U.S. jobs.

The Chamber speech and Obama's recent appointments have the media claiming
a new business agenda. His recent appointments of William Daley, a JP
Morgan executive and former board member of the Chamber of Commerce as his
chief of staff, Gene Sperling, formerly with Goldman Sachs, to head
Obama's National Economic Council, and Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of General
Electric to head the Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, are certainly
pro-business. The latter selection is particularly obnoxious since GE has
cut 10,000 jobs in the U.S. while creating 30,000 jobs in India in the
last decade.

But these appointments are consistent with the appointments in his first
two years. The previous chief of staff,  Rahm Emanuel, received more
donations from Wall Street than any other member of Congress.  His
Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geitner, was the president of the Federal
Reserve Bank of New York where the failure to control Wall Street gambling
was the chief cause of the economic collapse.  Larry Summers was appointed
head of the National Economic Council even though he played a large role
in deregulating the derivatives market and repeal of Glass-Steagall, two
major contributors to the economic collapse.

And, his policy proscriptions have also been in favor of concentrated
businesses. His health reform gives hundreds of millions to the insurance
industry in new annual tax subsidies and strengthens their grip on health
care.  His financial reform was inadequate, did not confront the causes of
the collapse and was applauded by the financial industry. He has failed to
deal with urgent environmental issues and did not even mention climate
change in the State of the Union.  Wars have escalated, expanding to a
third front Pakistan, while escalating in Afghanistan and failing to truly
get out of Iraq.  Obama has produced record weapons and war budgets,
record intelligence budgets and record arms sales.

While Obama is a brilliant communicator who suggests a progressive agenda
rhetorically, his appointments and policy proscriptions have been
consistently corporatist in nature favoring big business over the
necessities of the American people.

The corporate media spin that Obama is now becoming business friendly is
false.  He has always been business friendly.  Every proscription to
critical issues facing the nation has consistently been to add to the
profits of concentrated corporate power.  What Obama is doing now is
laying out his continuing agenda for big business to position him with
them for the next election.

Americans who hope that a different President Obama will appear if he is
re-elected need to keep the agenda laid out before the Chamber of Commerce
in mind.  These are the promises he is making to the big business
community as he begins preparation for his re-election.  The billion
dollars he seeks for his re-election campaign will come primarily from
concentrated corporate capital and they will not donate unless they are
assured that their agenda is Obama's

Kevin Zeese is executive director of Voters for Peace.

[Obama is a lying sack of compost that acts against everything liberals
*claim* they hold dear. Nevertheless they are going to cueue up and vote
for him in 2012, and scream holy hell down upon the left that moves beyond
him. No profiles in courage there. They are slaves on their knees praying
to the masters to love them, or at least spare them. Lots of
"accommodation" and "peace in our time" for them, but not a thing done for
the good of the future or those who will have to live in it. A porcine
passel of potatoes, blithering their lives away on overstuffed couches.
-ed]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

   - David Shove             shove001 [at] tc.umn.edu
   rhymes with clove         Progressive Calendar
                     over 2225 subscribers as of 12.19.02
              please send all messages in plain text no attachments

                          vote third party
                           for president
                           for congress
                           for governor
                          now and forever


                           Socialism YES
                           Capitalism NO


 To GO DIRECTLY to an item, eg
 --------8 of x--------
 do a find on
 --8

 Research almost any topic raised here at:
  CounterPunch    http://counterpunch.org
  Dissident Voice http://dissidentvoice.org
  Common Dreams   http://commondreams.org
 Once you're there, do a search on your topic, eg obama drones


  • (no other messages in thread)

Results generated by Tiger Technologies Web hosting using MHonArc.