You
know, at this late date being confronted with the mess in front of us, I
am getting all kinds of accusations tossed my way by those who
supported Hillary Clinton that because I didn't fall for Wall Street's
trap and back her, I am now somehow responsible for Trump and this cabal
of racist bigoted fascist imperialist warmongers occupying the oval
office who are hell-bent on undermining the U.S. Constitution and Bill
of Rights as they engage in their seditious actions intended to provide
Wall Street the authority to govern through open dictatorship.
This has been my response to these people who have sat along the sidelines of the class struggle barking like dogs acquiescing and falling into this two-party trap as the caravan passes by:
I objected to the entire election as a farce and fiasco rigged by Wall Street as part of the two-party trap set by Wall Street for us. Because I refused to support a corrupt, lying, Wall Street warmonger like Hillary Clinton does not make me responsible for the outcome of this "election."
In fact, those who claimed to be "Progressives for Obama" when Obama himself was nothing but a lying, deceitful Wall Street warmonger--- exposed by his own words they didn't want to believe; and then told us Clinton was the legitimate alternative to Trump are the ones who set us up for an "election" of Clinton versus Trump. In fact, all along I said Trump was nothing but a Wall Street imperialist warmonger, a racist bigot and a fascist creep.
In fact, I called for creating a new working class based people's party.
In fact, Wall Street selected the president just as it always has for over one-hundred years.
In fact, I repeatedly circulated what both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump were saying and explained how they were each nothing but Wall Street imperialist warmongers.
In fact, I repeatedly circulated educational materials like this exposing the nature of U.S. politics: http://collections.mnhs.org/.../art.../47/v47i04p154-161.pdf
Am I correct in recalling that you succumbed to the lie that Obama was a candidate progressives should be supporting and then supported Hillary Clinton without trying to educate voters to the truth of what was going on?
In fact, I encouraged working people to unite in movements around real solutions to our problems like this:
Campaign for a “21st Century Full Employment Act for Peace and Prosperity”
We are fed up with politicians campaigning on promises of “Jobs, Jobs, Jobs” and then failing to make themselves legislatively responsible for attaining and maintaining full employment.
We are fed up with our tax dollars being squandered on militarism and wars instead of being used to create jobs by solving the problems of the people and defending our living environment… its time to beat swords into ploughshares. Put people to work solving the problems of the people.
A National Public Health Care System would create over twelve-million new jobs paying real living wages providing people with free health care--- general medical, eyes, ears, dental and mental health--- through a network of neighborhood and community health care centers; this is a better use of our tax-dollars than wasting our human and financial resources on a far flung empire of over 800 U.S. military bases around the world. Or, it could be financed the same way Social Security is financed. Public funding. Public administration. Public delivery… nothing controversial; just like public education.
A National Public Child Care System would create over three-million new jobs providing working class families with free child care.
We need to restore WPA and CCC.
We insist Congress and the president enact full employment legislation which makes them legislatively responsible for attaining and maintaining full employment; assure everyone who wants a job employment at real living wages in line with the actual cost-of-living.
Full employment would provide stability for Social Security; everyone paying in; everyone getting something out.
In fact, I wrote two statements that were distributed at two AFL-CIO national conventions, one on health care, the other challenging the betrayal of Trumka and the millionaire labor leaders with their pathetic non-struggle "pragmatic" imperialist ideology.
Here is one of those statements:
A viewpoint by Alan Maki, a union,
peace, environmental and civil rights activist;
retired member of UNITE-HERE Local 17.
“The U.S. has not just misplaced its
priorities. When the most powerful country ever to inhabit the earth finds it
so easy to plunge into the horror of warfare but almost impossible to find
adequate work for its people or to properly educate its young, it has lost its
way entirely.”
I ask: What ever happened to William Winpisinger’s “Rebuild America Act” and the “peace
dividend?” The
AFL-CIO should bring back to life its Committee on Conversion--- from military production to producing for human needs;
swords into plowshares is what was advocated by the late International Association
of Machinist’s President, William Winpisinger. Where is this advocacy for peace
and reordering our Nation’s priorities now?
In fact, I was constantly explaining how whatever the outcome of the election the American people would be the big losers.
In fact, when many of you were content to sit out the struggle, content to simply "support" one of the Democratic Party candidates over the other, I was involved both inside and outside the Democratic Party; I was involved in both areas of struggle and not once did I see any of the "Progressives for Obama" who later "supported" Bernie and then Hillary.
Tell us what you did over the last ten years or so to try to help avert the outcome of where we are at now.
Even at this late date, what are you doing to stop Trump, defend democracy and win struggles for reforms? Let's here what you have in mind.
Anyone can read what I have written in letters to the editor, leaflets I have distributed, seen my active participation as an engaged citizen in a variety of struggles and determine that I bear no responsibility for Trump being elected.
But, the dogs will continue to bark as the caravan passes by.
This has been my response to these people who have sat along the sidelines of the class struggle barking like dogs acquiescing and falling into this two-party trap as the caravan passes by:
I objected to the entire election as a farce and fiasco rigged by Wall Street as part of the two-party trap set by Wall Street for us. Because I refused to support a corrupt, lying, Wall Street warmonger like Hillary Clinton does not make me responsible for the outcome of this "election."
In fact, those who claimed to be "Progressives for Obama" when Obama himself was nothing but a lying, deceitful Wall Street warmonger--- exposed by his own words they didn't want to believe; and then told us Clinton was the legitimate alternative to Trump are the ones who set us up for an "election" of Clinton versus Trump. In fact, all along I said Trump was nothing but a Wall Street imperialist warmonger, a racist bigot and a fascist creep.
In fact, I called for creating a new working class based people's party.
In fact, Wall Street selected the president just as it always has for over one-hundred years.
In fact, I repeatedly circulated what both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump were saying and explained how they were each nothing but Wall Street imperialist warmongers.
In fact, I repeatedly circulated educational materials like this exposing the nature of U.S. politics: http://collections.mnhs.org/.../art.../47/v47i04p154-161.pdf
Am I correct in recalling that you succumbed to the lie that Obama was a candidate progressives should be supporting and then supported Hillary Clinton without trying to educate voters to the truth of what was going on?
In fact, I encouraged working people to unite in movements around real solutions to our problems like this:
Campaign for a “21st Century Full Employment Act for Peace and Prosperity”
We are fed up with politicians campaigning on promises of “Jobs, Jobs, Jobs” and then failing to make themselves legislatively responsible for attaining and maintaining full employment.
We are fed up with our tax dollars being squandered on militarism and wars instead of being used to create jobs by solving the problems of the people and defending our living environment… its time to beat swords into ploughshares. Put people to work solving the problems of the people.
A National Public Health Care System would create over twelve-million new jobs paying real living wages providing people with free health care--- general medical, eyes, ears, dental and mental health--- through a network of neighborhood and community health care centers; this is a better use of our tax-dollars than wasting our human and financial resources on a far flung empire of over 800 U.S. military bases around the world. Or, it could be financed the same way Social Security is financed. Public funding. Public administration. Public delivery… nothing controversial; just like public education.
A National Public Child Care System would create over three-million new jobs providing working class families with free child care.
We need to restore WPA and CCC.
We insist Congress and the president enact full employment legislation which makes them legislatively responsible for attaining and maintaining full employment; assure everyone who wants a job employment at real living wages in line with the actual cost-of-living.
Full employment would provide stability for Social Security; everyone paying in; everyone getting something out.
In fact, I wrote two statements that were distributed at two AFL-CIO national conventions, one on health care, the other challenging the betrayal of Trumka and the millionaire labor leaders with their pathetic non-struggle "pragmatic" imperialist ideology.
Here is one of those statements:
A viewpoint by Alan Maki, a union,
peace, environmental and civil rights activist;
retired member of UNITE-HERE Local 17.
I offer this for
discussion about Peace, Equality,
Full Employment, Universal Health Care and Protection
of the Environment.
This is my response to the
invitation extended by the AFL-CIO to all people and organizations to comment
on its White Paper, “Prosperity Economics, Building An Economy For All”
by Jacob S. Hacker and Nate Loewentheil, intended to create discussion about
the direction of organized labor and the kind of country we all want to live in
where peace, social and economic justice for working people prevail.
Democracy---
as well as social, economic and environmental justice--- require no less than a
full and broad discussion of these important concerns and issues.
I agree with the concept of “prosperity economics” by “building an economy that works for everyone.” There are several very basic facts left out of this “White Paper” and it is very hazy, vague and nebulous as to what our concrete and specific goals and objectives are to be and what kind of movement and struggle it will take for the working class--- organized and unorganized together--- to create a prosperity economics for us all.
I agree with the concept of “prosperity economics” by “building an economy that works for everyone.” There are several very basic facts left out of this “White Paper” and it is very hazy, vague and nebulous as to what our concrete and specific goals and objectives are to be and what kind of movement and struggle it will take for the working class--- organized and unorganized together--- to create a prosperity economics for us all.
The
“White Paper” does not clearly articulate our main enemy: Wall Street. The
“White Paper” doesn’t reflect the fact that we, as working people, are engaged
in a social, political and economic struggle for power with the intent to
replace Wall Street’s dominance over every aspect of our lives--- in our schools, at work and in our communities.
Let’s
state right up front workers create all wealth but workers have had no say in
how this wealth is distributed and used. This needs to change. Democracy
requires no less.
Let’s
also put it right out there before the American people that militarism and wars
are squandering the wealth of our Nation to such a large extent we don’t have
the resources to solve our many domestic problems. These dirty imperialist wars
are killing our jobs and our standard of living just like they
kill people.
Militarism and
wars are a major contributing factor to the world-wide collapsing capitalist
economy. No nation can continue to endlessly use the wealth of its nation to
prepare for wars and to fight wars. This is sheer insanity.
Wall
Street’s greedy drive for profits results in wars which exacerbates our
problems.
Detroit goes broke; the rest of our cities are sure to follow
as Wall Street wallows in profits.
Working
people go without adequate health care; insurance and pharmaceutical companies
get fabulously wealthy. Earlier retirement and shorter workweeks/longer
vacations with no cut in pay create jobs and would keep us healthier, too.
Our
public institutions like public education fall apart, crumble and collapse just
like our roads, highways and bridges because we are constantly feeding a war
machine intended to fight never-ending wars waged to protect Wall Street’s
assets and profits.
We don’t need, and can’t afford, 800 foreign military bases dotting the globe.
We don’t need, and can’t afford, 800 foreign military bases dotting the globe.
Prosperity for all begins with the recognition peace is required to
achieve full employment.
Full
employment is about the government seeing to it that jobs are created for all
at real living wages. It is about putting people to work by creating massive universal
social programs like National Public Health Care, not job destroying
legislation like Obama-care as detrimental to our health and jobs as wars
without providing real health care reform while pushing the price of health
care up instead of its stated intent to push prices down.
Eliminating
militarism and wars eliminates the largest carbon footprint contributing to
global warming and climate change as the Military Industrial Complex wastes our
precious resources in a huge, monstrous complex that ruins our environment---
power generation, mining, manufacturing, the resources like oil and gas
required to fight wars. Preparation for war, and war itself, creates a mammoth
sized carbon footprint destroying our living environment while creating massive
joblessness and poverty and ill health for our people as our air, water and
land gets polluted.
The Wall Street selected politicians talk about “jobs, jobs, jobs” when their hidden agenda is really “profits, profits, profits” and “war, war, and more war.”
The Wall Street selected politicians talk about “jobs, jobs, jobs” when their hidden agenda is really “profits, profits, profits” and “war, war, and more war.”
The
time has come to make politicians legislatively responsible for full employment
and peace because prosperity economics requires: peace and full employment--- a
healthy people and a healthy environment.
Therefore,
I propose that a central goal of the American labor and working class movement
needs to be the building of an economy for all that is inseparably linked to
peace and full employment which must include:
A
Minimum Wage tied to all cost of living factors indexed to inflation. Jobs or a
living income for all.
National
Public Health Care. Protect, defend and expand Social Security programs.
Legislation
prohibiting lockouts and scabbing. Repeal of “At-Will Employment”
legislation--- the primary obstacle to worker empowerment and union organizing.
End racism... Enforcement of Affirmative Action.
Price
controls are needed for food, gas, home heating fuels and electricity.
A
healthy economy means a healthy living environment and a healthy planet. We
need a quality of life index.
The
two-party system is a trap for working people. We must free ourselves from the
Democrats and Republicans. A working class based people’s party is required if
we are going to have a prosperity economics that works for all of us. We can
learn a thing or two about health care and politics from our Canadian Brothers
and Sisters.
We
are now at a crossroads.
We
will have an economy that serves Wall Street or we will have an economy that
works for the rest of us--- we can’t have both just like we can’t have both war
and full employment.
I encourage the use of the proposed Full Employment Act of 1945 pushed by the CIO unions and authored by liberal Texas Congressman Wright Patman and the associated hearing testimonies to broaden this discussion:
I encourage the use of the proposed Full Employment Act of 1945 pushed by the CIO unions and authored by liberal Texas Congressman Wright Patman and the associated hearing testimonies to broaden this discussion:
I
also call to your attention the excellent Op-Ed piece by Bob Herbert, “Losing
Our Way,” his last piece in the New York Times (March 25, 2011), which
declares:
“The U.S. has not just misplaced its
priorities. When the most powerful country ever to inhabit the earth finds it
so easy to plunge into the horror of warfare but almost impossible to find
adequate work for its people or to properly educate its young, it has lost its
way entirely.”
I ask: What ever happened to William Winpisinger’s “Rebuild America Act” and the “peace
dividend?” The
AFL-CIO should bring back to life its Committee on Conversion--- from military production to producing for human needs;
swords into plowshares is what was advocated by the late International Association
of Machinist’s President, William Winpisinger. Where is this advocacy for peace
and reordering our Nation’s priorities now?
Thank
you for allowing me to share with you my critique of the AFL-CIO’s “White
Paper.”
In
solidarity and struggle.
For
peace, equality, full employment, universal health care, ending racism
and protection of the environment.
Alan L. Maki
Check out my blog:
Thoughts From
Podunk
http://thepodunkblog.blogspot.com/
E-mail: red_finn@live.com
Phone: 651-587-5541
(end)
In fact, I was constantly explaining how whatever the outcome of the election the American people would be the big losers.
In fact, when many of you were content to sit out the struggle, content to simply "support" one of the Democratic Party candidates over the other, I was involved both inside and outside the Democratic Party; I was involved in both areas of struggle and not once did I see any of the "Progressives for Obama" who later "supported" Bernie and then Hillary.
Tell us what you did over the last ten years or so to try to help avert the outcome of where we are at now.
Even at this late date, what are you doing to stop Trump, defend democracy and win struggles for reforms? Let's here what you have in mind.
Anyone can read what I have written in letters to the editor, leaflets I have distributed, seen my active participation as an engaged citizen in a variety of struggles and determine that I bear no responsibility for Trump being elected.
But, the dogs will continue to bark as the caravan passes by.