David Talbot: After 60 years, the major media still won’t tell the truth about the JFK assassination

[John Cotter]

On 5/14/2024 at 4:53 AM, Richard Bertolino said:

Everything mainstream is a scam, every little thing. Well, maybe the weather and sports scores are real. The dystopia is here.

Yes, it’s all a tissue of big lies.

'A big lie (German: große Lüge) is a gross distortion or misrepresentation of the truth primarily used as a political propaganda technique. The German expression was first used by Adolf Hitler in his book Mein Kampf (1925) to describe how people could be induced to believe so colossal a lie because they would not believe that someone "could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously"'. (Wikipedia)

Example: The big lie of Western democracy.

It’s not democracy. it’s plutocracy.

Edited May 15 by John Cotter

[Paul Brancato]

3 hours ago, John Cotter said:

Yes, it’s all a tissue of big lies.

'A big lie (German: große Lüge) is a gross distortion or misrepresentation of the truth primarily used as a political propaganda technique. The German expression was first used by Adolf Hitler in his book Mein Kampf (1925) to describe how people could be induced to believe so colossal a lie because they would not believe that someone "could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously"'. (Wikipedia)

Example: The big lie of Western democracy.

It’s not democracy. it’s plutocracy.

That’s right - 100%

[Ron Bulman]

On 5/15/2024 at 5:20 PM, John Cotter said:

Yes, it’s all a tissue of big lies.

'A big lie (German: große Lüge) is a gross distortion or misrepresentation of the truth primarily used as a political propaganda technique. The German expression was first used by Adolf Hitler in his book Mein Kampf (1925) to describe how people could be induced to believe so colossal a lie because they would not believe that someone "could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously"'. (Wikipedia)

Example: The big lie of Western democracy.

It’s not democracy. it’s plutocracy.

At least it's not an oligarchy?  I know not if that gives us some hope for Democracy yet or not.  It could depend on fate, sometimes not kind to history.  Though I maintain Faith.

[Joe Bauer]

13 hours ago, Ron Bulman said:

A big lie (German: große Lüge) is a gross distortion or misrepresentation of the truth primarily used as a political propaganda technique. The German expression was first used by Adolf Hitler in his book Mein Kampf (1925) to describe how people could be induced to believe so colossal a lie because they would not believe that someone "could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously"'. (Wikipedia)

Welcome to today's world.

[Ben Green]

The herd is powerful - and when the herd moves, it moves. It takes something to go against the herd.

[Joe Bauer]

Plutocracy in action.

Billionaire Michael Bloomberg ( latest net worth estimates of 106 billion dollars ) entered the 2020 Democratic primary late starting in November 2019 and ending his run in March 2020.

Bloomberg spent a record almost 1 BILLION dollars ( 930 million?) to finance a very brief 4 and 1/2 month long late entry Democratic party primary campaign run.

1 billion dollars ?

An all-time record primary financial commitment. Mind boggling in it's hugeness. Again, for just a 4+ month long campaign?

Way, WAY more than all the other candidates spent in their "year long" runs combined!

I kept wondering why Bloomberg would do this.

And so late in the primary.

He certainly knew he would not garner more than 10% of any state primary vote. At one point he did manage to match Elizabeth Warren's one state vote total of 11%.

So, why enter the primary field at all? And spending so much on it that none of it made practical sense?  

It has been reported that Bloomberg shared the deep concern Wall Street fear of a Bernie Ward and Elizabeth Warren presidency as a real threat to it's power, influence and wealth.  The ultimate threat.

A re-elected Trump wasn't a threat to them at all. Trump loves Wall Street. Trump's first act in his 2016 presidency was to give our top 1% wealthy the largest tax cut in their history. Warren Buffet states he was 23 billion dollars richer the second Trump's tax cut took effect.

Wall Street friendly Joe Biden wasn't a threat either. In fact, Biden was their preferred candidate.

Both Warren and Sanders talked of trying to get some meaningful regulatory control over Wall Street's lack of such and their almost unfettered power and influence beyond that of the majority of average Americans. A playground for massive fraud abuse by the likes of Bernie Madoff, Milken and so many others.

At some point anti-Wall Street agenda promoting Warren and Sanders were garnering as many votes as Biden in the early Democratic primaries. Warren and Sanders were both beating Biden in the debates and in debate polls. Biden was looking more and more like a defeated primary candidate.

Talk about shaking up the Wall Street icons!

At Biden's lowest popularity point, all of a sudden Bloomberg enters the Democratic party primary race?

His billion dollar campaign did at one point garner him 10% of the votes.

And guess who gained and lost because of Bloomberg's entering the field and siphoning off of those votes?

Bernie Ward and especially Elizabeth Warren lost votes.

Biden gained.

Biden gained enough momentum that Super Tuesday was a given in his favor.

Sanders and Warren were history. 

I believe Bloomberg's late, brief and mind boggling billion dollar funded entry into the Democratic primary had one agenda in mind. To blunt the Sanders/Warren vote gains and enhance Biden's.

Point offered that Wall Street super wealth and influence ( effecting who ends up being our presidential election candidates ) are stark reinforcing examples of the proposition made here that we are more a plutocratic run society than we know and understand.

Edited May 20 by Joe Bauer

[John Cotter]

On 5/20/2024 at 6:26 PM, Joe Bauer said:

Plutocracy in action.

Billionaire Michael Bloomberg ( latest net worth estimates of 106 billion dollars ) entered the 2020 Democratic primary late starting in November 2019 and ending his run in March 2020.

Bloomberg spent a record almost 1 BILLION dollars ( 930 million?) to finance a very brief 4 and 1/2 month long late entry Democratic party primary campaign run.

1 billion dollars ?

An all-time record primary financial commitment. Mind boggling in it's hugeness. Again, for just a 4+ month long campaign?

Way, WAY more than all the other candidates spent in their "year long" runs combined!

I kept wondering why Bloomberg would do this.

And so late in the primary.

He certainly knew he would not garner more than 10% of any state primary vote. At one point he did manage to match Elizabeth Warren's one state vote total of 11%.

So, why enter the primary field at all? And spending so much on it that none of it made practical sense?  

It has been reported that Bloomberg shared the deep concern Wall Street fear of a Bernie Ward and Elizabeth Warren presidency as a real threat to it's power, influence and wealth.  The ultimate threat.

A re-elected Trump wasn't a threat to them at all. Trump loves Wall Street. Trump's first act in his 2016 presidency was to give our top 1% wealthy the largest tax cut in their history. Warren Buffet states he was 23 billion dollars richer the second Trump's tax cut took effect.

Wall Street friendly Joe Biden wasn't a threat either. In fact, Biden was their preferred candidate.

Both Warren and Sanders talked of trying to get some meaningful regulatory control over Wall Street's lack of such and their almost unfettered power and influence beyond that of the majority of average Americans. A playground for massive fraud abuse by the likes of Bernie Madoff, Milken and so many others.

At some point anti-Wall Street agenda promoting Warren and Sanders were garnering as many votes as Biden in the early Democratic primaries. Warren and Sanders were both beating Biden in the debates and in debate polls. Biden was looking more and more like a defeated primary candidate.

Talk about shaking up the Wall Street icons!

At Biden's lowest popularity point, all of a sudden Bloomberg enters the Democratic party primary race?

His billion dollar campaign did at one point garner him 10% of the votes.

And guess who gained and lost because of Bloomberg's entering the field and siphoning off of those votes?

Bernie Ward and especially Elizabeth Warren lost votes.

Biden gained.

Biden gained enough momentum that Super Tuesday was a given in his favor.

Sanders and Warren were history. 

I believe Bloomberg's late, brief and mind boggling billion dollar funded entry into the Democratic primary had one agenda in mind. To blunt the Sanders/Warren vote gains and enhance Biden's.

Point offered that Wall Street super wealth and influence ( effecting who ends up being our presidential election candidates ) are stark reinforcing examples of the proposition made here that we are more a plutocratic run society than we know and understand.

Yes, that’s it. They shot down democracy in the 1960s with bullets. It’s probably harder to do it that way now with cameras etc everywhere.

The test is, Cui bono? (Who benefits?)

In a real democracy the answer should be all the people equally, since equality is the fundamental principle of democracy.

In our Western pseudo-democracies, only the rich benefit. The non-rich “benefit” only to the extent that they’re needed as wage slaves.

Edited May 21 by John Cotter