The Bern Identity

nitro said:
The video implies all sorts of things. The most important message is that America is not a true Democracy in the sense that majorities don't always get their way - mob rule. That instead, America also protects the right of minorities, at least Constitutionally (legally).

He then goes on to show how a Social Democracy is what Hilter sold the German people. He argues that Nazi Germany in some sense was in the 1930s the path that the Bern is leading us down. This eventually led to the atrocities against the Jews, the one percent of Germany at that time. Rich people in the US have also stated this fear- that one day they will be led to the Guillotine. It is up to us to critically think if the analogy buys us something. Does the Bern need to refine his stance? Clarify it?

It is reasonably argued from all points of view, and it holds enough together to reflect on, imo - something that is not easy to do when mixing Legal, Economics, Political Philosophy, and The Social Contract - systems that are often at odds with each other by definition. My problem is that it does not address what it means for a state to be moral. There are inconsistencies and obfuscation of facts that are contradictory, but they are not terrible.

It is not a bad video imo. The second one mixes fact with fiction.
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Good summary.

I think that he makes a good point regarding the history of socialism and communism. I have also made similar points previously on this forum and others.

Every single time throughout history a socialist government has turned into a dictatorship, oligarchy or an aristocracy given enough time. The promise is always this time it will be different.

You can see examples of oligarchies at all of the unions in the United States.
 
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Here is a partial list of 2014 total pay to some of the oligarchs :

Name Total Pay, 2014 Union
William Trent $1,132,607 Independent Pilot Association
Donald Moak $825,539 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
Jay Roth $824,475 Directors Guild Of America Inc
Ed Power $697,714 Boilermakers AFL-CIO
Gary Voice $680,721 State County & Muni Empls AFL-CIO Local Union 3930
Terence O’Sullivan $670,403 Laborers
Newton Jones $639,034 Boilermakers AFL-CIO
David P. White $586,079 SAG-AFTRA
John Niccollai $579,828 Food & Commercial Wkrs Local Union 464
Peter Hasho $574,501 Int’l Brotherhood Of Trade Unions
Robert Scardelletti $564,194 Transportation Communications Union/Iam, AFL-CIO
Rhonda Weingarten $557,875 Teachers AFL-CIO
Armand Sabitoni $556,140 Laborers
William Mcdonough $544,137 Food & Commercial Wkrs
Dennis Van Roekel $541,632 National Education Assoc.
William Hite $522,988 Plumbers AFL-CIO
Harold Daggett $515,901 Longshoremens Assoc. AFL-CIO
David Young $512,026 Writers Guild West
Joseph Maloney $501,392 Boilermakers AFL-CIO
Jonathan Cohen $498,255 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
T Warren Fairley, Jr. $493,007 Boilermakers AFL-CIO
Bruce York $489,852 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
Kelly Richardson $489,330 Air Traffic Controllers AFL-CIO
James Callahan $488,377 Engineers, Operating, AFL-CIO
J Tom Baca $483,779 Boilermakers AFL-CIO
Joseph Nigro $479,268 Sheet Metal, Air, Rail And Transportation Workers
Lori Ames $467,010 United Service Workers Union, IUJAT
Edward Byrne Sr $462,057 United Service Workers Union, IUJAT
Matthew Loeb $459,616 Stage & Picture Operators AFL-CIO
Joseph Sellers $459,184 Sheet Metal, Air, Rail And Transportation Workers
Douglas J Mccarron $455,102 Carpenters
Stephen Knott $452,565 Longshoremens Assoc. AFL-CIO
Richard Johnson $449,716 Transportation Communications Union/Iam, AFL-CIO
Benny Holland Jr $440,759 Longshoremens Assoc. AFL-CIO
Joseph Mancinelli $439,072 Laborers
Lori Garver $438,167 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
Jean Bruny $435,845 Food & Commercial Wkrs Local Union 888
William Roberts $435,377 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
Mark Mcmanus $434,735 Plumbers AFL-CIO
Terrence Healy $432,918 Laborers
Paul Rinaldi $428,408 Air Traffic Controllers AFL-CIO
Lawrence Mcmanamon $420,733 Boilermakers AFL-CIO
Stephen Kelly $420,552 Plumbers AFL-CIO
Frank Bail $420,206 Retail Wholesale, Dc, Ufcw Local Union 1102
Edwin Hill $418,478 Electrical Workers Ibew AFL-CIO
Kenneth Rigmaiden $417,540 Painters AFL-CIO
John Previsich $414,408 Sheet Metal, Air, Rail And Transportation Workers
Betty Ginsburg $413,301 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
Jon Davis $412,793 Laborers
John Stocks $412,398 National Education Assoc.
Sean Mcgarvey $411,878 Bldg & Constrn Trades Dept AFL-CIO
Jim Johnson $408,313 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
Walter Wise $408,257 Iron Workers AFL-CIO
James Grogan $406,623 Insulators AFL-CIO
Phil Barbarello $405,532 Air Traffic Controllers AFL-CIO
Ana Mcahron-Schulz $402,568 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
John Telford $396,371 Plumbers AFL-CIO
Andris J Silins $393,009 Carpenters
Frank Hanley $390,553 Food & Commercial Wkrs Local Union 464
William Creeden $390,259 Boilermakers AFL-CIO
Ron Kutak $387,410 Stage & Picture Operators AFL-CIO Local Union 700
Patrick Finley $386,357 Plasterers & Cement Masons AFL-CIO
Joel Parker $386,184 Transportation Communications Union/Iam, AFL-CIO
Salvatore Chilia $384,120 Electrical Workers Ibew AFL-CIO
Tyler Brown $383,826 Boilermakers AFL-CIO
John Baker $379,569 Longshoremens Assoc. AFL-CIO
James Hoffa $379,411 Teamsters
Liz Koby $377,328 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
Thomas Bethel $376,671 American Maritime Officers, SIUNA
Thomas Callahan $376,625 Engineers, Operating, AFL-CIO Local Union 15
Keith Hagy $375,542 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
Michael Robbins $374,425 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
Theodore Green $373,581 Laborers
Douglas Banes $372,562 Carpenters
Linda Canan Stephens $371,390 State County & Muni Empls AFL-CIO
Larry Cann $371,236 Plumbers AFL-CIO
Gerald Owens $370,212 Longshoremens Assoc. AFL-CIO
Murray Morrissey $367,740 Retail Wholesale, Dc, Ufcw Local Union 338
David Krieger $367,433 Air Line Pilots Assoc. AFL-CIO
 
Trump and Sanders Have a Point About Trade With China
When U.S. imports rise, so do unemployment and disability payments.

As the presidential primaries land in New York Tuesday, Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump have been hammering home their arguments that free trade--especially with China--has harmed a lot of ordinary Americans, even as it lowered prices for consumers. They have a point, according to research by three economists who studied what happened to the U.S. when imports from China soared.

The chart below comes from "The China Shock: Learning from Labor Market Adjustment to Large Changes in Trade," a paper by David Autor of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, David Dorn of the University of Zurich, and Gordon Hanson of the University of California-San Diego. It's been getting a lot of attention since its release in January, including in this article I wrote for Bloomberg Businessweek.

The bars show what happened from 1990 and 2007, as imports from China killed U.S. jobs. The chart takes the dollar value of imports from China and divides that sum by the number of American workers. Then it compares that number with the attendant increase in government transfer payments such as unemployment, disability, and retirement benefits.

effect.png


Here's the math: Statistically speaking, for each $1,000-per-worker increase in annual imports from China, there's a roughly $58-per-capita increase in annual transfer payments. Those payouts aren't giveaways: They're partial compensation to workers, their families, and communities for the losses suffered when their jobs went away...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...-have-a-point-about-trade-with-china-in7dreik

 
Ben & Jerry arrested protesting obscene amounts $$$$ in politics buying candidates.


Ben & Jerry Arrested

"WASHINGTON — The co-founders of Ben & Jerry's have been arrested at the U.S. Capitol as part of ongoing protests in Washington about the role of money in politics.

Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield were among approximately 300 people who were arrested Monday as part of protests by a group called Democracy Awakening.

The Vermont-based ice cream company's website says the purpose of the protests is to make sure everyone's voice is heard "and that power in this country is returned to the people."

U.S. Capitol Police say those arrested were charged with crowding, obstructing or incommoding, which is unlawful demonstration activity. They were processed on the scene and released.

Police say they've arrested more than 1,200 people since the protests began April 11..."

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/co...-arrested-at-us-capitol/ar-BBrW5tb?li=BBnb7Kz
 
nitro said:
That one is horribly argued and poorly presented. There are so many elementary logic mistakes I don't know where to start.
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Like to hear your thoughts regarding "so many elementary logic mistakes". Can you give just a few examples?
 
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