Politics

Who Deserves The Help–Corporate America or American People?

/ Dawn Kasal-Finley / Leave a comment

And the two are very very different.  In the NY Times this morning there is an article about the loss of 80,000 jobs in March.  With a recession so obviously hanging out at the end of the bar, just finishing his drink waiting to let everyone see that he certainly is indeed in our midst, everyone is trying to create more consumer confidence.  Maybe if things we bought were made in America without lead paint or magnets that are so small they fall off and our kids can die from swallowing them, we might have more consumer confidence–but this certainly isn’t what this post is about. 

It is in these situations of crisis that are polar differences are never more clearly seen.  At times like this, I am often reminded why I am a Democrat.  With more jobs being lost and the cost of goods skyrocketing–because the cost of gas is so high–and just so you know the execs at the big 5 oil companies aren’t to blame for the high prices–its the high price of crude that is to blame.  They’d like us to ignore the 100+ billion dollars in profits they made last year.  Really, I am pretty sure they don’t know how that happened.  As they try to preserve the 10 million dollars in tax breaks that they still need to ensure the stability of the industry.  Are you fucking kidding me?  I know where that 10 million could be spent to actually benefit the American people, because right now the only one benefiting is an industry that certainly isn’t passing along any of it profits to those who struggle to keep their gas stations open (the average gas station only profits one penny per gallon of gas) while lining the pockets of those who sit at the top trying to figure out how they are making so much money.  Maybe their making all that money–selling it at really high prices?  Just a guess. 

Back to what originally got me going on this topic.  There was a call from Pelosi to act immediately with an additional stimulus package to help Americans.  The Dems (Clinton and Obama) want to increase the length of time someone can collect unemployment–seems fair in this type of job market.  The GOP (McCain) will support tax breaks and less regulation for companies (i.e. oil companies and others that are lots of money already)–he believes (as does the GOP on the whole) that if companies have more money they will create more jobs.  Really?  I pretty sure they only care about profit margin and if creating more jobs weakens that margin?  They aren’t creating more jobs.  I am certainly not an economist, but I don’t understand the idea of giving tax breaks to companies and hoping they will employ more people–while at the same time Congress won’t increase minimum wages because that would hurt the same companies. It just doesn’t make sense that we can trust companies in our frenzy of Capitalistic greed to be fair.  How could we reallly expect fairness when the average CEO makes in one day what an average employee makes in one year?  But let’s give them tax breaks and less regulation. 

So, who deserves the help of the government?  The people who they swear to represent (that is us those who elect or don’t elect (in some cases) them) or the companies (read as lobbyists) who line their pockets?  I have learned a long time ago that money buys access and as we Americans have less money and companies have more and more money–the companies have the access and those with the access determine what happens.  Just think back to Cheney’s response to the idea that 2/3 of the American people thought we should pull out of Iraq “SO WHAT.”  It angers me and saddens me and scares me that as days and years pass–the American people seem to be less and less important to the government we are suppose to trust to take care of us. 

Is a revolution coming????

I’m Just Going To Say It

/ Dawn Kasal-Finley / 6 Comments

I am not proud to be an American.  There the cat is out of the bag.  I am quite sickened as of late for what our country seems to stand for.  I know there are those of you who are preparing right now to stop. reading. my. words.  But before you stop reading let me just say that I am also not very proud to be a human being at this time either. 

We live in a time of great excess…for those who have and a time of great pain and sadness for those who do not have.  I have felt this sadness at what has become America’s values–greed and violence (military) in the name of our nation’s security.  I am tired of our double-speak in terms of our foreign policy and our turning of a blind eye to those who we bear responsibility for taking care of.  I watched HDNet’s World New last night and was really shocked, angered, and saddened by the state of things in New Orleans.  The number of homeless has increased by 100% since Katrina–you know that hurricane the decimated New Orleans and where we waited and waited and waited to help those POOR PEOPLE.  Those poor people are still waiting for our help.  There are now over 12,000 homeless (up from 6,000) and there is basically no affordable housing–we rebuilt the rich areas first and somehow have forgotten about the poor/affordable parts of town.  Rents that use to cost 3-4 hundred a month are not up to 9-15 hundred a month.  People who work jobs cannot even afford to have a place to live.  Really America?  This disgusts me.  Especially as I watch a 10 minute interview with Carnie Wilson about her weight issues.  Really America?  This is what matters to us?  Why don’t we interview some of the homeless who can’t get a place to live and without a place to live its hard to get a job–if you don’t already have one.  You can’t get a job without a phone.  How are they going to call you?  You can’t get a job if you can’t get a shower and some clean clothes.  Why do we look at the homeless as though they are somehow less human?  It is sad and it scares me that this is what our country is.  For what we spend in one month in Iraq we could rebuild the entire 9th ward and give affordable housing to our citizens.  Oh wait.  I forgot.  They don’t really have anything our government wants for needs.  Iraq has oil.

I know I sound bitter.  And I am.  We were so quick to step into Iraq and get rid of Sadaam.  Was he a horrible leader?  Yes.  He killed innocent people, etc.  But what about the atrocities in Darfur?  The Congo?  Oh wait.  They don’t have anything we want and we certainly cannot benefit from helping them.  It sickens me.  We don’t like Castro and we despise North Korea–but Saudi Arabia we like them.  Oh yeah…They have oil.  

I am tired of the party line.  We are free…etc.  Really?  Tell that to those in New Orleans who can’t get a place to live or a job or any help.  We are free to make money off of others.  We are free to make and hoard as many resources as we can.  We are free to marginalize those who don’t matter and free to turn a blind eye when we see gross injustice.  We are free to play on our own field and keep out the riff raff.  We only take care of those who can take care of themselves.  We only take into account those who have something to offer.  We are a nation of hypocrites. 

I want to live in a world where others matter.  Where others are respected and accounted for.  I want my son to see all people as people and realize that all people deserve respect.  We are one of the richest countries in the world and we can’t even feed and house all of our people.  No.  Why you ask?  Altruism isn’t profitable. 

Reason 4,345,235,235,123 For Why I Dislike The Media

/ Dawn Kasal-Finley / 5 Comments

Where to start…Okay let’s just jump right in with Spitzer.  I mean really who doesn’t love a little ‘paid for sex’ sleaze?  I totally understand why he is a story.  He really is the epitome of hypocrisy in regards to this type of conduct.  Yes, he is still human, but the hypocrisy is important to expose so that we as Americans remind ourselves that those so often in power are in it for themselves.  My issue with this whole scandal is the negative focus on his wife and the labelling of the prostitute as the “woman who brought down a governor.”  I will not get into a petty debate about who went down on whom.  At $1000 bucks an hour–my money is on her being the one to go down…

But I digress.  Once the scandal broke the CBS Early Show had on two WOMEN to analyze and discuss why MEN CHEAT.  And more specifically, why powerful men cheat.  I have a problem when women who aren’t experts in male behavior–neither was a psychiatrist or a sex therapist.  Their reason was of course that men cheat and more importantly powerful men cheat because they can and because it makes them feel more powerful.  I think this is a crassly simplistic view at why people cheat.  There are many complex issues as to why men and women cheat–both powerful and run of the mill.  But that is a topic for another day.  My main problem with this CBS piece was that one of the women–a staunch radical, bra-burning feminist–railed on Spitzer’s wife for standing next to him when he was giving his press conference.  She was enraged that this woman would stand by her man [she must not be strong enough to stand up for her self she implied].  She said that by standing by her man she was sending a message to all women that it is okay what her husband did.  I too think that is a gross simplification of the situation. 

One of the things I have very recently learned and come to understand is that you can accept what people have done, feel, believe, without condoning it.  You can respect a person, institution, vows, without condoning the behavior.  Mrs. Spitzer vowed to be married for better or worse.  By standing next to her man she was not saying it was okay what he did, but she was respecting the institution of marriage.  I was impressed to see that marriage still means something.  I am sure she is angry, pained, hurt, humiliated, and a long list of other adjectives, but that is private and who are we to judge her for her choice to respect her vow.  She has more than herself to think about–her children, her own feelings about the sanctity of marriage.  We should not throw stones.  Lets focus on the real issue…Oh yeah, paying for sex is really not that scandalous it has been happening for as long as there have been money/goods to trade. 

Now onto the “woman who brought down a governor.”  Shame on you media.  She didn’t come forward and rat him out.  Stop playing it up like it is her fault.  She was just a girl doing her job.  The guy got caught–by the IRS or some other financial group looking at money going out and seeing suspicious activity.  Then when he came forward and admitted what he did, the hounds were released and they didn’t stop until they tracked this woman down.  Why the hell do we care?  Sure taking money for sex is “illegal” but come one.  Leave her alone.  It is not her fault.  I don’t think high-class escorts cold call like those annoying Edward Jones folks who canvas neighborhoods looking for business.  I am pretty sure he sought her out.  Just a guess, but I think that just might be the way it happened.  So, if that is the case…how is it her fault?  Isn’t it the fault of Spitzer who chose to spend huge amounts of money for sex?  I might be going out on a limb here, but shouldn’t we be looking at him as the person at fault and not this chick just trying to make a living? 

These are just a few of the reasons.  I could go on, as I got really pissy at GMA this morning when Chris was interviewing an Obama staffer about Obama’s retired minster’s political views.  Isn’t there still a war going on in the middle east?  Isn’t there still a terrible genocide happening in Darfur?  Aren’t people in New Orleans still struggling to rebuild?  Isn’t our countries dependency on oil crippling our economy? 

 I guess it is still sex that sells and like Kennedy learned in the 60’s if you aren’t a protestant or an evangelical christian your relgious and political values are challenged at every turn.  I happen to think Obama’s “radical” minister speaks a lot of truths that those fat, rich white fellas don’t want to admit.  What do you think? 

Such A Dark and Racist History The US Has

/ Dawn Kasal-Finley / 5 Comments

I consider myself and educated person.  I have read extensively and my liberal arts education exposed me to many things that I certainly didn’t learn in high school.  Sadly, there is so much more that I didn’t know.  I am taking the first class toward my doctorate this semester and it is a really great educational foundations course.  The course examines society and social justice not only in education, but throughout history.  I am currently reading and amazing book about our countries deeply rooted racist history–Deculturalization and the Struggle For Equality.  The book begins with an overview of the atrocities that our forefathers founded this country on.  We are all taught that Columbus discovered America–sadly we are not commonly taught that he discovered America only to find out that there were already people living here who had lived here successfully for thousands of years.  These “savages” were seen as less than human as they had not accepted Jesus and Christianity into their lives.  Our heavily religious Puritan founders believed that they were better than the Native Americans and set forth to convert them to Christianity and to their own protestant beliefs in hard work (i.e. constant work) and the accumulation of wealth–personal wealth certainly not wealth of the community/tribe.  These values were in direct opposition with that of the native Americans who believed in sharing everything with each other and with working when they needed to but relaxing when they could.  

Fast forward to the writing of the constitution, after which we successfully rid “our” land of these “savages” who were less than human.  Our founding fathers–these gentlemen we revere as “GREAT” men believed “that citizenship should be limited to free whites.  This agreement was based on the opinion that a republican form of government could only survive with a homogeneous white population.”  Native Americans were not granted American citizenship until 1924–yes the recent 1924–and even then there were second class citizens.  They are still treated that way. 

I could go on and on about the repression of the non-whites who helped build this country but we know much of that.  We took the land from the native americans under the belief that if they weren’t using it or making improvements to the land then the white man had every right to take it for their own use. 

All of this racism happened sadly in the name of God and Jesus.  The native american had a different believe system than our Anglo founders.  Because of that they were wrong and we had every right to take what they had and to control and convert them.  The same thing then happened with Africans, Chinese and Central Americans.  What happened to the Native americans was a genocide perpetrated under the name of Jesus.  How are our founders different than those who wage war now in the name of God?  We are civilized.  We are white. 

I often wonder why we cannot learn to tolerate and accept each other differences and all?  Well the history is there and it goes beyond the racism in America but speaks more to the racism around the world–both ethnic and religious.  As long as one group feels that they are superior to another group we will not know harmony.  As long as we try to assimilate people into the world we accept–not just expecting these groups to learn our language–but expecting them to take our values as their own we will continue to struggle with racism. 

This is what makes Obama a man for change.  I see the importance of his campaign and his success now.  I could keep writing on this topic but I will hold off for now as I can’t imagine anyone is still reading at this point.  If you are, still reading that is, how do we combat hundreds of years of racism?