An amazing map of the Koch brothers massive political network. On Monday, we took you inside one of the biggest political operations in the country – a sprawling network of politically active nonprofit groups backed by the billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch and other conservative donors. Working with Robert Maguire, a researcher at the Center for Responsive Politics who tracks nonprofits, we calculated that a coalition of 17 groups raised at least $407 million in the 2012 election cycle. Much of that was spent on get-out-the-vote efforts and ads attacking President Obama and congressional Democrats. Tracing the flow of money required pouring through hundreds of pages of tax returns and mapping out the connections between the groups. Much of the money was transferred to LLC subsidiaries, known as disregarded entities, that are wholly owned by the recipient groups.
The network also gave millions of dollars to other outside groups allied with the GOP. Below is the source graphic, by Robert Maguire of the Center for Responsive Politics. Our sad “Mad Men” revolution: How consumerism co-opted rebellion. Aspiring writers of my generation regarded — still regard — Lewis Lapham as the greatest essayist of our time. We tried to emulate everything from his glittering sentences to his rugged skepticism to his sartorial elegance. For many years he was editor of Harper’s Magazine; today he runs Lapham’s Quarterly, which has just released a new issue on “Revolutions,” filled with historical writings on the subject in question. Back in March, Lewis asked me to join him in a public conversation at Book Court bookstore in Brooklyn to celebrate the launch of the issue; what follows is an edited transcript of the proceedings.
Thanks to Book Court for making the recording available to us. Lewis Lapham: As has been stated, we have no prepared script. The current issue of Lapham’s Quarterly talks about revolutions of various kinds — political, scientific, technological. Tom has written about this, although he may not know it, but he has, over the last 20 years? A long time. The founder of the Tea Party. Why the Justice Department Inspector General Report on Mortgage Fraud Matters. By David Dayen, a lapsed blogger, now a freelance writer based in Los Angeles, CA. Follow him on Twitter @ddayen Hello, folks!
As Yves is off explaining the world to Washington, I’m manning the controls for a couple days. This allows me to ensure that NC has that whole Justice Department IG report on mortgage fraud covered. But because I don’t feel the coverage so far has plumbed the depths of this corruption, and because it’s still happening, it’s not worth going silent just yet. 1. You can clearly see that this focuses on a small corner of the much more widespread fraud that has gone on for over a decade now. I could go on. That’s not true of the various types of bank-driven frauds.
Some observers use the term “mortgage fraud” to include mortgage-backed securities fraud, which involves wrongdoing related to the packaging, selling, and valuing of residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities. That’s an absurd justification. 2. This is stunning. Begun considering! 3. 4. 5. Free Trade Supporter Cato Institute Says Drop Corporate Sovereignty Provisions In Trade Agreements. From Brooklyn to Bo-Kaap - Rolling Stone South Africa.
Music Exchange, one of South Africa's premier music, film, and entertainment conferences, was held in Cape Town's City Hall this weekend. The three-day conference, which describes itself as "a catalyst between the artistically anchored worlds of entertainment, film, music, and academia," welcomed critically-acclaimed and commercially successful U.S. Hip Hop recording artist and actor Mos Def (a.k.a. Yasiin Bey). After being born in New York City in 1973—and living in Brooklyn for 33 years of his life—Mos Def left "The City That Never Sleeps" (New York) to take up residence in "The Mother City" (Cape Town). Can you give people in Cape Town a sense of what it was like growing up for you in New York City? I was born in Brooklyn, New York City. [When I was a teenager], New York City was a crazy place. What do you mean it was a different time? What are some of your earliest Hip Hop or artistic memories?
And then, I heard "Planet Rock," by Afrika Bambaataa and the Soulsonic Force. H. Comcast spreads cash wide on Capitol Hill - Tony Romm. There’s little that tends to unite a leading liberal like Dick Durbin and a conservative firebrand like Ted Cruz. But when the two senators join their colleagues for a hearing this month on Comcast’s $45 billion bid for Time Warner Cable, many of them will have something in common — they’ve each collected Comcast cash. Continue Reading The Philadelphia cable giant historically has been a major Beltway player, and it’s sure to strengthen its political offense in order to sell the new, controversial megadeal.
Yet even before announcing its plans for Time Warner Cable, Comcast had donated to almost every member of Congress who has a hand in regulating it. (Earlier on POLITICO: Netflix, Comcast cut deal for smoother service) In fact, money from Comcast’s political action committee has flowed to all but three members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Comcast stresses its donations are a function of its business. (Also on POLITICO: Full technology policy coverage)
American finance grew on the back of slaves. BY Edward E. Baptist and Louis Hyman March 7, 2014 12:32AM Last weekend we watched the Oscars and, like most people, were pleased that “Twelve Years a Slave” won Best Picture. No previous film has so accurately captured the reality of enslaved people’s lives. Yet though Twelve Years shows us the labor of slavery, it omits the financial system — asset securitization — that made slavery possible. Most people can see how slave labor, like the cotton-picking in “Twelve Years A Slave,” was pure exploitation. Recently, the assets behind these bonds were houses. Every year or two, somebody discovers that a famous bank on Wall Street profited from slavery. In the 1830s, powerful Southern slaveowners wanted to import capital into their states so they could buy more slaves. First, American planters organized new banks, usually in new states like Mississippi and Louisiana. More recently, history repeated itself — or more accurately, continued.
Then the crash of 2008 came. Edward E. Bernanke’s $250,000 fee for speech puts him near top of food chain - Capitol Report. Getty Images Ben Bernanke Former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s reported $250,000 for a speech in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday puts him in rarefied air of public speakers, experts said. With one speech, Bernanke exceeded his $199,700 annual salary as Fed chairman in 2013. Former President Bill Clinton is said to receive more for a speech. Hillary Clinton is close, pulling down a reported $200,000 for each appearance. Bernanke’s predecessor Alan Greenspan received a reported $250,000 for his first speech in February 2006 that moved markets. Former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker, who served at the Fed from 1979-1987, still commands $40,000 for a speech. Bernanke gave a speech in South Africa Wednesday and will speak in Houston on Friday. Matt Eventoff, owner of Princeton Public Speaking, a firm that trains executives to give speak in public, said Bernanke will be highly desirable as a speaker for at least the next two years.
Bernanke will create electricity for an event. . – Greg Robb. Buffett: ‘Mother lode of opportunity’ is in the U.S. - The Wall Street Journal. By Anupreeta Das Warren Buffett and his business partner Charles Munger have long been bullish on the U.S., building a “rock-solid foundation” for Berkshire Hathaway Inc. with calculated bets on the country’s economic future. In 2013, those efforts paid off handsomely for Berkshire /quotes/zigman/219651/delayed/quotes/nls/brk.a BRK.A +0.10% /quotes/zigman/583979/delayed/quotes/nls/brk.b BRK.B +0.24% shareholders as the conglomerate posted a record annual profit, aided by a generous tailwind from the improving U.S. economy, which expanded at a 2.4% annual rate in the fourth quarter. Warren Buffett, pictured in 2013 “Though we invest abroad as well, the mother lode of opportunity resides in America,” Mr.
Buffett wrote in his annual letter to shareholders, released Saturday along with Berkshire’s fourth-quarter and annual report. The “dynamism embedded in our market economy will continue to work its magic,” Buffett wrote. An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com Volume: 233.00. Thrown in jail for being poor: the booming for-profit probation industry | Money. In January 2013, Clifford Hayes, a homeless man suffering from lupus and looking for a night off the streets, walked into the sheriff’s office in Augusta, Georgia.
It was a standard visit: he needed police clearance, a requirement of many homeless shelters, to stay overnight at the Salvation Army. Hayes expected to go straight to the shelter. Instead, he was handcuffed and later thrown in jail. Hayes hadn’t committed a crime – or at least, he hadn’t in many years since 2007, when he committed several driving-related misdemeanor offenses, for which he pled guilty and was put on probation. That probation left him $2,000 in debt for court fines – and fees he was supposed to pay to a private company the state hired to monitor him until his probation ended. Hayes needed to pay $854 to the court to avoid a jail sentence; because he had no money except a $730-a-month disability check, he was thrown in Richmond County lockup. $1,000 in probation fees for stealing a $2 can of beer Prone to abuse.
Sean Ash Liberal Democrat activist interview. The subprime education crisis. The NY Federal Reserve’s Household Debt & Credit Report shows that student debt is rising fast and is now at an all-time high: Household Debt and Credit Developments as of Q4 2013: That’s a good thing, isn’t it? It shows that lots of young people are signing up for college instead of sitting around at home doing nothing or doing dead-end jobs. But all is not well. Here are the figures on delinquent loans from the same report. 90+ day delinquency rates: So, more than one-tenth of people with student loans are in arrears.
The Wall Street Journal says that the rise in student credit has been concentrated most among those with poor credit records (my emphasis): “Of the 12% overall rise in student debt, a third—or four percentage points—came from borrowers with the worst credit history, or those with credit scores of 620 or lower. And the eventual delinquency rate may well be higher: Oh dear. I am not convinced. Source: Citi via Business Insider For once I agree with Zero Hedge. Related reading: Will China shake the world again? 17 February 2014Last updated at 05:24 ET China's exceptional growth has been fuelled by massive debt and government subsidies as Robert Peston reports from Wuhan Unless you are an aficionado of the great moments of Chinese Communist history, you probably won't have heard of Wuhan (it is the site of Chairman Mao's legendary swim across the Yangtze).
But perhaps more than any other Chinese city, it tells the story of how China's remarkable three decades of modernisation and enrichment, its economic miracle, is apparently drawing to a close, and why there is a serious risk of a calamitous crash. In Wuhan I interviewed a mayor, Tang Liangzhi, whose funds and power would make London's mayor, Boris Johnson, feel sick with envy. The rate of infrastructure spending in Wuhan alone is comparable to the UK's entire expenditure on renewing and improving the fabric of the country.
The middle of town is being demolished to create a high tech commercial centre. Third wave “Start Quote End Quote. These 6 Corporations Control 90% Of The Media In America. Review: Black in Latin America, Mexico & Peru: The Black Grandma in the Closet, P1, Mexico. McCarthyism Made Us Veer Away From a Systemic Doctrine for Change - Ralph Nader on RAI (1/3) Understanding the Imperialist System Changed My Life - Gar Alperovitz on Reality Asserts Itself (1/5) James Baldwin and Dick Gregory: "Baldwin's Nigger" (1969) Ends and Means: History & Consequences of Anti-Communism. The terrifying surveillance case of Brandon Mayfield. During a live Web chat in late January, National Security Agency whistle-blower Edward Snowden explained one of the least discussed dangers of bulk collection.
By indiscriminately sweeping up the call records and the international communications of Americans, the government has the ability to engage in retroactive investigation, or mining the historical data of targets for any evidence of suspicious, illegal or simply embarrassing activities. It is a disturbing capability that should make even those fully convinced of their own propriety to think twice before uttering out loud, “What do I have to fear if I have nothing to hide?” But there’s another danger that Snowden didn’t mention that’s inherent in the government’s having easy access to the voluminous data we produce every day: It can imply guilt where there is none. To get a better sense of the dangers, consider the case of Brandon Mayfield.
FBI agents broke into Mayfield’s home and law office. Neoliberalism as a Water Balloon. Beyond Neoliberal Miseducation | Blog, Perspectives. Gan Golan of Los Angeles holds a ball and chain representing his college loan debt at an Occupy DC demonstration in Washington, DC. October 6, 2011. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) This post originally appeared at Truthout. It draws from a number of ideas in Henry A.
Giroux’s newest book, Neoliberalism’s War on Higher Education. As universities turn toward corporate management models, they increasingly use and exploit cheap faculty labor while expanding the ranks of their managerial class. Henry Giroux on the School-to-Prison Pipeline A number of colleges and universities are drawing more and more upon adjunct and nontenured faculty — whose ranks now constitute 1 million out of 1.5 million faculty — many of whom occupy the status of indentured servants who are overworked, lack benefits, receive little or no administrative support and are paid salaries that increasingly qualify them for food stamps. 4 Andrew Martin and Andrew W. 8 Cited in Richard J. 10 See, Henry A. 13 Leopold, Crazy Country.
Behind Every Great Fortune There Is a Crime. Honoré de Balzac? Mario Puzo? Pierre Mille? Frank P. Walsh? Samuel Merwin? Dear Quote Investigator: The popular 1969 novel “The Godfather” by Mario Puzo recounted the violent tale of a Mafia family, and the epigraph selected by the author was fascinating: Behind every great fortune there is a crime. While searching I found a few different versions of this saying. Behind every great fortune lies a great crime Every great fortune begins with a crime At the root of every great fortune there was a crime. Should Balzac really be credited with this saying? Quote Investigator: QI believes that this adage was inspired by a sentence that was written by Honoré de Balzac, but the expression has been simplified in an evolutionary process. Le secret des grandes fortunes sans cause apparente est un crime oublié, parce qu’il a été proprement fait.
Balzac published a series of interlinked novels called “La Comédie Humaine” or “The Human Comedy”, and “Le Père Goriot” was part of this series. A LIE AGREED UPON: DAVID MILCH'S DEADWOOD. The top of the world. The core message of this enormous and enormously important book can be delivered in a few lines: Left to its own devices, wealth inevitably tends to concentrate in capitalist economies. There is no “natural” mechanism inherent in the structure of such economies for inhibiting, much less reversing, that tendency. Only crises like war and depression, or political interventions like taxation (which, to the upper classes, would be a crisis), can do the trick. And Thomas Piketty has two centuries of data to prove his point. In more technical terms, the central argument of Capital in the Twenty-First Century is that as long as the rate of return on capital, r, exceeds the rate of broad growth in national income, g—that is, r > g—capital will concentrate.
It is an empirical fact that the rate of return on capital—income in the form of profits, dividends, rents, and the like, divided by the value of the assets that produce the income—has averaged 4–5 percent over the last two centuries or so. The Koch brothers are dead wrong: Half of America is living in or near poverty. PHOTO ESSAY: 40 Photos That Give A Window Into Black Life In Chicago In The ’70s. The Network For Public Education | NPE 2014 National Conference: Diane Ravitch Keynote Address (Video) Henry Giroux just destroys America's neoliberal economy. Rhetorically, but it's a start! by This is Hell! William Davies: A Bibliographic Review of Neoliberalism. Will Davies’s TCS Glossary entry on Neoliberalism. Washington Center for Equitable Growth | Dialogue: Eleven (so Far) Worthwhile Reviews of and Reflections on Thomas Piketty’s “Capital in the Twenty-First Century”: Wednesday Focus: March 26, 2014.
Legalizing Oppression - Chris Hedges. The Three Reasons Why Americans AREN'T Rising Up in Open Revolt (Robert Reich) Women's rights country by country - interactive | Global development. Gates Is Funding USDOE Conferences and “Innovations” The Techtopus: How Silicon Valley’s most celebrated CEOs conspired to drive down 100,000 tech engineers’ wages. The scariest thing about fracking is the risk nobody is talking about. Unpaid Interns with Guns. Ownership of WaPo by CIA Contractor Puts U.S. Journalism in Dangerous Terrain. The 20 Richest Americans Are Greedy Takers—Not Inspirational 'Makers' Consumer spending split between haves, have nots. Inside 'Billionaires Row': London's rotting, derelict mansions worth £350m | Society. Still Broken Five Years Later. Russell Brand at the Cambridge Union. Richard Thompson - Old Grey Whistle Test Interview - 1984. Richard Thompson - Solitary Life - Documentary pt.01/07. Richard Thompson in Conversation and Performance at Techonomy 2012.
Chief Seattle's Speech of 1854 - Version 1. How Wolves Change Rivers. Garbage Warrior - Full Length Documentary.