Kucinich: The Political Theater of Debt, Roots Action on Debt

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/07/15

Debt Political Theater Diverts Attention While Americans' Wealth Is Stolen

by Dennis Kucinich

CommonDreams.org: July 15, 2015

The rancorous debate over the debt belies a fundamental truth of our economy -- that it is run for the few at the expense of the many, that our entire government has been turned into a machine which takes the wealth of a mass of Americans and accelerates it into the hands of the few. Let me give you some examples

Take war. War takes the money from the American people and puts it into the hands of arms manufacturers, war profiteers, and private armies. The war in Iraq, based on lies: $3 trillion will be the cost of that war. The war in Afghanistan; based on a misreading of history; half a trillion dollars in expenses already. The war against Libya will be $1 billion by September.

Fifty percent of our discretionary spending goes for the Pentagon. A massive transfer of wealth into the hands of a few while the American people lack sufficient jobs, health care, housing, retirement security.

Our energy policies take the wealth from the American people and put it into the hands of the oil companies. We could be looking at $150 a barrel for oil in the near future.

Our environmental policy takes the wealth of the people -- clean air, clean water -- and puts it in the hands of the polluters. It's a transfer of wealth, not only from the present but from future generations as our environment is ruined.

Insurance companies, what do they do? They take the wealth from the American people in terms of what they charge people for health insurance and they put it into the hands of the few.

We have to realize what this country's economy has become. Our monetary policy, through the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, privatized the money supply, gathers the wealth, puts it in the hands of the few while the Federal Reserve can create money out of nothing, give it to banks to park at the Fed while our small businesses are starving for capital.

Mark my words -- Wall Street cashes in whether we have a default or not. And the same type of thinking that created billions in bailouts for Wall Street and more than $1 trillion in giveaways by the Federal Reserve today leaves 26 million Americans either underemployed or unemployed. And nine out of ten Americans over the age of 65 are facing cuts in their Social Security in order to pay for a debt which grew from tax cuts for the rich and for endless wars.

There is a massive transfer of wealth from the American people to the hands of a few and it's going on right now as America's eyes are misdirected to the political theater of these histrionic debt negotiations, threats to shut down the government, and willingness to make the most Americans pay dearly for debts they did not create.

These are symptoms of a government which has lost its way, and they are a challenge to the legitimacy of the two-party system.

Dennis Kucinich is US Congressman from Ohio and a former presidential candidate.

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The phony debt ceiling crisis is an excuse to cut human services. But there can be no excuse for cutting Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid. Share this action on Facebook Share this action on Twitter Dear Ed , RootsAction supporter Naomi Klein pulls no punches in her comments about the debt ceiling charade happening in Washington: "Using trumped up crisis to raid the public purse and attack the basic rights and benefits is a very old trick - but rarely is the shock doctrine tactic wielded as brazenly as in the pseudo debate about the debt ceiling. This is naked class war, waged by the ultra rich against everyone else, and it's well past time for Americans to draw the line." If you haven't signed a letter to your Congressmember demanding real budget solutions, please do it today. And share this with your friends and family. ---------------------------------- Obsessing with the debt ceiling at a time like this is a lethal fraud. Join the RootsAction campaign to push back against the entire framing of the deficit debate. The United States and other countries have done okay in deeper debt before. The phony debt ceiling crisis is one more excuse to further shred the social safety net and deepen wealth concentration at the top. Yet already, unemployment, foreclosures, homelessness, and suicide rates are on the rise. And, the share of wealth held by the poorest Americans is shrinking rapidly.   Last month a man in North Carolina robbed a bank of $1 in order to obtain healthcare in prison. He had applied for help from the government without luck. Imagine how many people are just that desperate but haven't resorted to solutions that made the news. Send a clear message to Congress and the President: Never mind the debt ceiling! Raise the safety net! You will have the option to add your own story or the story of people you know to your message. We're looking for stories the corporate media miss. We'll feature some of them on our website. Please forward this email to anyone who might be interested in the information or have a story to tell. And please stay in touch.  In the next few weeks, you'll find a wealth of "Push Back" information, tools, resources, stories and action items posted at: www.RootsAction.org/limit.   Sincerely, Aimee, David, Sarah and the RootsAction team Resources: Trickle-Down Cruelty and the Politics of Austerity Bernie Sanders to Obama: Keep Your Word on Social Security Hawk Nation: A Guide to the Catastrophic Debt Ceiling Debate Letter of Experts Opposed to Cuts in Social Security Benefits     To stop ALL email from RootsAction, click here to remove yourself from our list. To modify your email communication preferences or update your personal profile, visit your subscription management page at: http://hq-salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/6503/profile/

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