DON'T LET MANKIND CAVE!

In the beginning, no not that beginning, the beginning of homo sapien man's history on Earth believed to be around 500,000 years ago, when we were still living, or rather cowering in caves.

We survived by using our advanced, for the time, brains and intelligence.

We were cunning.

We had to be because we were not stronger than most of the animals in our surroundings and certainly not faster than the predators of the time.

We were not more deserving of life than any of the other creatures on Earth and so we both respected and feared them and learned to live with them.

Eventually we even conquered our environment.

We did this by using the resources we found around us and by inventing ways to bend nature to our will.

But the main reason we survived was our ability to work as a team and not by an 'every man for himself' mentality!

Our individual skills were discovered and utilized for the good of all.

Some were 'hunters', others 'gatherers' and the community thrived.

Community is still important and works somewhat unnoticed behind the scenes.

How many of us weave our own clothing?

Who among us can say we built the car in which we get around?

And can any individual boast he or she paved the road upon which we drive?

These skills and so many others have become normal, expected.

The loss of any of them casues much distress and even anger.

Scientists and engineers live by a simple rule: Necessity is the mother of invention.

But that's nothing new.

It started half a million years ago in the caves of winter when the cold threatened our very existence.

No one can say who invented fire or rather how it was found and tamed but it happened.

And suddenly that knowledge spread like a wondrous virus and all mankind was aware of the life saving tool.

The dissemination of knowledge kept and keeps the human race alive!

But imagine if suddenly we lost the ability to invent or the desire to seek out solutions necessary to our very survival.

Imagine becoming that complacent!

Could we live long and prosper in a world where science and fact were no longer revered but rater shunned?

How long would we stay at the top end of the food chain if we reverted to the 'every man for himself' mentality?

In the Spring of 1953 Sir Edmund Hillary and his Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay became the first two humans to reach the summit of Mount Everest.

Did they set up shop and deny others entry?
Of course not!

Reaching the pinnacle of any endeavor is to be celebrated by all but not held as a personal trophy or private club of one.

Too many have reached their own personal best by employing the labors of others then refusing to acknowledge their input.

They hold onto the bulk of the profits produced by the workers' labors as if they had nothing to do with the success of the venture.

In 1914 Henry Ford paid his workers the unthinkable amount of $5 per day, way over the going rate, claiming that he wanted them to be able to afford a Ford!

Sales of the Model T and others soared.

A few years ago it was reported that the World's wealthiest family and owners of Wal*Mart paid their workers just enough so that they could only afford to shop at Wal*Mart.

While that has since changed it only did so as a result of the public shaming and protests.

Of course the founder of a company or inventor of a 'better mousetrap' should be lauded and allowed to retain the 'lion's share' of the profts generated by his or her endeavor but not to the point of a predatory practice of below poverty wages for their workers.

It is in our nature to push the envelope, to try to do the unthinkable or previously impossible.

Once we attain the summit, we must welcome others, for that is how humanity moves ahead.

This idea was famously voiced in 1675 by Sir Isaac Newton.

After receiving praise for his discovery and explanation of the force of gravity he humbly said, "If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants."

A rising tide is said to lift all boats, not just luxury yachts!

We must not lose sight of reality lest we fail to see the forest for the trees! And protecting both the tress and the forest should always be a priority.

But now the shoulders we once stood upon are forgotten.

Facts no longer matter or are belittled as fake!

Fire, once our savior, has become the harbinger of doom in many places.

Our planet is warming at an alarming pace and, like the fabled Nero of Rome, we sit idly by and watch it happen.

We heatedly debate its cause while ignoring the steps we could be taking to stem the tide.

What will it take for our leaders to understand the life-threatening nature of the problem and act before it's too late?

Or is it already too late?

For the sake of mankind, the World must join together and take control of our environment back from the captains of industry who seem only to care about their own personal wealth.

But in case they fail, where are those caves again?

Enough Aid to Profitable Businesses!

I fully understand why people don’t want to give money away. And I especially understand why people do not want their money going to those who do nothing to deserve a handout!

The main difference between the liberal stance and that of the conservative is the amount of help if any those in need should get from government and how we define the group we consider to be in need.

On the one hand the conservative believes that everyone should have to work for what they get and if they do work but still do not get enough then it is their fault.

The liberal feels that if the person works for a living and still cannot get enough on which to live then either the employer or the government must step in and fix the problem.  Without one or the other our homeless population will grow and our overall quality of life will diminish.

But if the government steps in and fixes the problem with public funds, also known as our tax dollars then the two groups become opposite sides of an ongoing argument.

I personally do not want anyone who does nothing to get my money, either directly through a handout or indirectly through my tax dollars.

But I also understand the reality of America today and realize the dilemma would not be relevant were it not for the greed of our large multinational corporations and their smaller cousins in private business.

Family owned concerns are notorious for nepotism. If you work for such a firm and are not related to the owner you must expect little or no compensation for your efforts. This will be doubly painful when you realize a relative of the owner gets promoted for merely showing up to work!  Sadly I know this personally and all too well in all the jobs I ever had especially my last position!

Large corporations act in a similar fashion except they replace relatives with politically connected donors.  If you can do something for the corporation you will receive many perks in exchange for expected regulatory relief!  Don’t deliver relief; don’t expect any more free vacations or ‘no-show’ jobs for your spouse!

The funny thing about the ongoing fight between the liberal and the conservative is that we actually agree on the main premise!  We just don’t articulate who the recipient of our tax dollar really is, the politician!

One look at how much Congress has done since President Obama was sworn into office January 2009 will show any sane individual how much of our tax dollars have gone to pay the salaries and benefits of those who have done nothing but block progress.

They say the opposite of PRO-gress is CON-gress and they happen to be right!

While the conservative media drones on about the takers of the country being the lower middle class and the poor they skillfully neglect to point out just how little has been done by the highly paid members of the Republican Party over the last decade!

And corporations do not get a pass in this fight!  Walmart is the largest offender costing the American tax payer millions of dollars every year by not paying their workers a fair salary.  Now if the Walton family was hurting I would say they must be allowed to work things out but this group of greedy scions is listed as the wealthiest family in the history of the Earth!

When Walmart pays a worker a low salary and demands he or she work longer hours or overtime after clocking out or other scams they are causing those people to find other ways to feed themselves let alone their families!  Often these poverty stricken workers look to Uncle Sam for assistance in the form of food stamps.  And food stamps are paid for out of the general fund which is funded by our tax dollars.  A simple straight line of logic then shows that Walmart does not pay workers enough to live because they know that the government will pick up the slack!

And to throw more excrement in into the face of the American taxpaying public this wealthiest family in the history of the Earth PAYS LESS TAX THAN YOU DO!

If we could remove tax loopholes and start collecting the fair tax dollars from this corporation and so many other incredibly profitable ones the U S deficit would all but disappear!

So back to the original comparison between conservatives and liberals, we agree on more than either side realizes!  We just don’t point at the right culprit!

If all workers were paid enough money to live a modest but debt free life the U S government would be able to suspend most aid programs thereby lowering the tax on the dwindling middle class. But more importantly they would be able to start collecting revenue from an entirely new group of tax payers proud to do their part for the future of America!

Ford Vs Walton

As I read about New York City's latest successful attempt to block a new Wal*Mart store from opening in another city neighborhood I had a random thought.
Many people out there seem to think that Congress should take their cues from the Walton family and run America as they run their company.
After all, as the argument goes, look how successful they are and what tremendous profits they generate. Imagine doing that on a country level!!
I did and broke out in a cold sweat.
I am not telling those of you who shop at Wal&Mart to stop.  I realize the prices may be tempting and the perceived savings too great to pass up.  Just understand they are not the selfless philanthropists you may think they are nor are they really helping the American economy as much as some think.
Forget that they share their humongous profits with China and import inferior products.
Forget that they turned blind eyes to working conditions over there until watch dog groups blew whistles.
Forget the sub-human working conditions in their 'behind the public eye' warehouses in the states
Remember only this, as the wealthiest family in the world they pay and treat their workers like scum.
Henry Ford was not the nicest man alive back in his day but one thing he did was pretty cool!
He famously paid the workers on his assembly lines more money than was the norm of the day but he made sure it was enough so that they could afford to buy the cars they helped produce!
The Wal*Mart famously pays their workers just enough so that they can only afford to buy at Wal*Mart.

It's Great to be in the USCA

There is a sinister movement afoot in America and it is surely on a course to change the way we live for years to come.
The movement is insidious.
It is attacking us on many different fronts.
And while each individual attack is brought up in the news or on the web nobody seems to be putting two and two together.
Nobody is talking about the cohesive factor involved in this well planned war on the American Dream and our very way of life.  
But it is not a very well kept secret nor are the people or groups waging the war even trying to keep it thus.
I am talking about the very real war on the Middle Class and all people not considered wealthy.
The evidence is simple and the examples are abundant.
From Governor Scott Walker and his band of puppets doing the bidding of the billionaire Koch brothers by stealing away the long fought for rights of the individual to the silly idiot Governor of Maine, LePage removing a mural from government property because it had the audacity to celebrate a worker's movement and decry child labor.  (Maine voters better turn a NEW page and soon or they will find themselves in big trouble.)
Justice Thomas of the once revered and fair Supreme Court is a staunch supporter of his old company Monsanto in its fight against individual farmers and will fight for anything spouse Ginny espouses.  (Virginia is of course a staunch tea bagger.)
Fellow co-conspirator Justice Scalia is sure to vote in favor of Wal*Mart in their defense against a class action lawsuit brought by women who have been discriminated against by that giant corporation - no matter what the evidence says!  He has already hinted as much in previously released statements.
And many more chinks in the armor (I mean that in non-racial terms) of the American fabric may be found without hard investigative digging.  Just Google 'Individual rights and Ohio' or 'Assault on the EPA' if you like.
In fact a simple extrapolation of these events will lead us to a future eerily reminiscent of a fascist state where any gathering of like minded individuals discussing the shortcomings of the government will be found guilty of sedition!
It sounds a bit far fetched if not totally paranoid but the movement is definitely in that direction.
And as with any political movement it runs on funds.
So which side of this conflict would be able to last the longest?
Which group can afford to keep the fight going until they attain their goal and grab the brass ring?
As silly as it sounds the future could hold a time when a family of five or more sitting around the dinner table will be too frightened to discuss politics lest they be imprisoned.
"Step away from the meatloaf, little Bobby and place your hands on the table where I can see them!  You have the right to remain..."
Of course the above is all the alarmist rantings of a delusional conspiracy theorist, right?
I mean the government is not out to get you.
They will not infringe on any of your rights as long as you continue to file your taxes every April.
Oh, and speaking of taxes and that whole 'no taxation without representation' thing, where does that leave the likes of GE and Exxon?  I wonder what they are doing with all that cash they don't pay to the IRS?
The architects of this movement have worked long and hard.  They have planned their attack for a quite some time, tweaking and reworking but always with an eye toward the goal.  And finally they are poised to reap the rewards of their patience.
Every American voter must keep this in mind when he or she pulls the curtain closed on November 6th, 2012 or be prepared to bow down to the United States of Corporate America and avow their support for the USCA!