On January 20, 2017, Donald J. Trump will be inaugurated as president of the United States. A large portion of the Amerikan people are justifiably angry and disgusted by Trump’s victory. Tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of the disgruntled will be in Washington, DC, to make their voices heard in their anti-Trump rallies and marches.
Donald Trump is a businessman, a TV entertainer as well as a liar, a narcissist, a racist, a misogynist, a wheeler/dealer, etc . . . a man perfectly fit for the job of president of the Unites States.
Donald Trump is the end result of a capitalistic society as are our beloved Bill and Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Richard, “Tricky Dick” Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and his renowned son, George W. Bush, etc., etc., etc. These are people we honor despite the damage, destruction, and death they have brought upon the people around the globe, including the people right here in the US.
Yet, if Hillary had been elected, how many of us would be planning to march on Washington? I have no doubt that most people would have admired her for being the first woman president in US history, just as we were overwhelmed with joy when Obama became the first African-American president in US history.
What Trump presents that the others have succeeded in avoiding is he is blunt, coarse, insulting, and in your face.
Since 1776, the US, under several different administrations, Democrat and Republican, have been at war for 214 years. Despite the meaningless rhetoric, no administration has attempted to deal honestly with racism in the US. Since WW2, the labor movement and the ability of workers to organize has been seriously neutralized. Since 1776, the US has been involved in class warfare where the elite, with the help of the political class, has robbed and exploited workers for their own benefit.
Admittedly, there are differences between the two parties. Democrats are kinder, gentler capitalists who would provide greater support to the working class on some domestic issues. But Democrats are also indebted to the elite class who have financed their political campaigns.
Cory Booker, senator from New Jersey, is a perfect example. Generally considered a liberal, he along with 13 other Democrats voted against legislation that would have allowed the government to negotiate drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry and, thus, allow for lower drug prices. Booker received more than $200,000 from the industry.
Trump’s election to the presidency will create hardships for many working people. But, the Democrats are not the solution. They have betrayed the workers, taking their support for granted, for many decades. The current plight of workers today is a result of being abandoned by both parties.
Barack Obama is the latest example of why, if we limit our struggle by focusing on an individual, we miss the real struggle . . . capitalism. For many, especially Democrats, Obama has been lauded as the best president ever. WHY?
Unlike Trump, Obama shakes your hand, smiles, makes excellent speeches and then abandons you. With Obama, it’s easy to think you have a friend. But what has Obama contributed to the working class over the past 8 years.
In 2009, when he took office, one of Obama’s first actions was to appoint Larry Summers and Tim Geithner, two of the authors of the economic meltdown in 2008, to influential positions in his administration. His administration then began to spend over $700 billion to bail out the banks and the insurance companies that had committed prosecutorial crimes. Not one man or woman was ever held responsible for the crimes they committed.
And, there was silence.
Meanwhile, back on the farm, millions of homeowners were experiencing foreclosures on their homes and many retired working people watched their pension funds go bankrupt. Did the Obama administration see fit to bail these people out of their misery? NO!
And, there was silence.
One of the first pursuits Obama took was in the area of health insurance where over 30 million people were without health coverage because they could not afford the premiums. Despite the fact that as many as 72% of the American people expressed their support for a public option, an option for the consumers who could not afford the costs of private insurance coverage, Obama removed that option immediately from consideration as soon as negotiations began.
What came out of those negotiations was the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or better known as Obamacare. The act did offer consumers several important benefits that were not previously available. However, it turned out to be a boondoggle for the insurance companies who were allowed a strong, influential voice in the final document.
And, there was silence.
The ACA mandates that everyone must buy health insurance. This mandate ensured the insurers millions of new customers. Also, because there was no public option, there was nothing in place to control the costs of health insurance. As has been recently noted, the premiums have gone up significantly and some of the consumers have not been able to maintain their coverage.
And, still there is silence.
When Obama took office, the US was at war with Iraq and Afghanistan. As a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, Obama has expanded US military engagement to include the bombing of Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Pakistan, Yemen, Syria, and Afghanistan. This does not include the billions of dollars sent to Israel to help it build its military. Israel has used its military hardware to bomb and destroy Gaza in 2014.
And, there was silence.
Being a man of peace, Obama expanded the drone program which he claimed was more humanitarian and would reduce collateral damage. Thousands of ordinary citizens died or were maimed.
And, there was silence.
When police around the country, on what appeared to be a daily basis, were shooting and killing unarmed black men and women, Obama remained silent as did his Justice Department.
And the people still remained silent.
It became known that Obama met every Tuesday morning with his advisers to draw up a “kill” list . . . a list of those men or women that were to be targeted for assassination because they allegedly were an “imminent” threat to the security of the US. This list included American citizens.
And, there was silence.
I could go on with more examples of actions or inactions taken by Obama that were unconstitutional or against international law. Yet, we, the American people did not take to the streets . . . after all he was “the best president ever.”
If elected, what would Hillary Clinton offer us? During her campaign, she attempted to ride the popularity of Obama’s coattails. So, one can only assume that much of Obama’s policies would continue. If anything would be different, it would be her hawkish attitude that was evident in her comments regarding escalating US military presence and activity in Syria (e.g., the pursuit of a “no-fly zone”) as well as a hardening position regarding Russia, a strategy that could result in a war with Russia.
Would there be the same level of concern about what would happen under her leadership? Would millions of people be planning on letting her know our anger and concerns regarding her policies and her war mongering? Or, would we instead, gather together to celebrate her victory?
The reality, which we should never forget, is that it matters not who sits in the White House . . . their policies and decisions will not be for our well being. The agenda is world domination, control of resources and markets, for the benefit of the capitalist class. As long as we function under the umbrella of capitalism, there will be no vehicle available to protect and serve the working class.
We have to realize that if we are successful in ridding ourselves of this dangerous and insulting man, Donald Trump, there is another waiting to step forward in his place who might be nicer and kinder but representing the same capitalist ideology . . . honoring the pursuit of and accumulation of individual wealth. Community and cooperation are secondary if present at all within the capitalist ideology.
To make a real difference in our lives, we must go beyond rebelling against any individual representative of capitalism and attack and defeat capitalism as the framework from which, we as a nation, function.
We should not continue to accept the notion that we are 99% against the 1%. There can no longer be a 1% that controls and enjoys the nation’s wealth while the workers struggle to survive. We must begin to function within the concept of being 100% and all of us sharing and benefitting from the assets and wealth of this country.
The answer my friends is blowing in the wind . . . it is socialism.
Dave Alpert has masters degrees in social work, educational administration, and psychology. He spent his career working with troubled inner city adolescents.
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It’s not about Trump
Posted on January 17, 2017 by Dave Alpert
On January 20, 2017, Donald J. Trump will be inaugurated as president of the United States. A large portion of the Amerikan people are justifiably angry and disgusted by Trump’s victory. Tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of the disgruntled will be in Washington, DC, to make their voices heard in their anti-Trump rallies and marches.
Donald Trump is a businessman, a TV entertainer as well as a liar, a narcissist, a racist, a misogynist, a wheeler/dealer, etc . . . a man perfectly fit for the job of president of the Unites States.
Donald Trump is the end result of a capitalistic society as are our beloved Bill and Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Richard, “Tricky Dick” Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and his renowned son, George W. Bush, etc., etc., etc. These are people we honor despite the damage, destruction, and death they have brought upon the people around the globe, including the people right here in the US.
Yet, if Hillary had been elected, how many of us would be planning to march on Washington? I have no doubt that most people would have admired her for being the first woman president in US history, just as we were overwhelmed with joy when Obama became the first African-American president in US history.
What Trump presents that the others have succeeded in avoiding is he is blunt, coarse, insulting, and in your face.
Since 1776, the US, under several different administrations, Democrat and Republican, have been at war for 214 years. Despite the meaningless rhetoric, no administration has attempted to deal honestly with racism in the US. Since WW2, the labor movement and the ability of workers to organize has been seriously neutralized. Since 1776, the US has been involved in class warfare where the elite, with the help of the political class, has robbed and exploited workers for their own benefit.
Admittedly, there are differences between the two parties. Democrats are kinder, gentler capitalists who would provide greater support to the working class on some domestic issues. But Democrats are also indebted to the elite class who have financed their political campaigns.
Cory Booker, senator from New Jersey, is a perfect example. Generally considered a liberal, he along with 13 other Democrats voted against legislation that would have allowed the government to negotiate drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry and, thus, allow for lower drug prices. Booker received more than $200,000 from the industry.
Trump’s election to the presidency will create hardships for many working people. But, the Democrats are not the solution. They have betrayed the workers, taking their support for granted, for many decades. The current plight of workers today is a result of being abandoned by both parties.
Barack Obama is the latest example of why, if we limit our struggle by focusing on an individual, we miss the real struggle . . . capitalism. For many, especially Democrats, Obama has been lauded as the best president ever. WHY?
Unlike Trump, Obama shakes your hand, smiles, makes excellent speeches and then abandons you. With Obama, it’s easy to think you have a friend. But what has Obama contributed to the working class over the past 8 years.
In 2009, when he took office, one of Obama’s first actions was to appoint Larry Summers and Tim Geithner, two of the authors of the economic meltdown in 2008, to influential positions in his administration. His administration then began to spend over $700 billion to bail out the banks and the insurance companies that had committed prosecutorial crimes. Not one man or woman was ever held responsible for the crimes they committed.
And, there was silence.
Meanwhile, back on the farm, millions of homeowners were experiencing foreclosures on their homes and many retired working people watched their pension funds go bankrupt. Did the Obama administration see fit to bail these people out of their misery? NO!
And, there was silence.
One of the first pursuits Obama took was in the area of health insurance where over 30 million people were without health coverage because they could not afford the premiums. Despite the fact that as many as 72% of the American people expressed their support for a public option, an option for the consumers who could not afford the costs of private insurance coverage, Obama removed that option immediately from consideration as soon as negotiations began.
What came out of those negotiations was the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or better known as Obamacare. The act did offer consumers several important benefits that were not previously available. However, it turned out to be a boondoggle for the insurance companies who were allowed a strong, influential voice in the final document.
And, there was silence.
The ACA mandates that everyone must buy health insurance. This mandate ensured the insurers millions of new customers. Also, because there was no public option, there was nothing in place to control the costs of health insurance. As has been recently noted, the premiums have gone up significantly and some of the consumers have not been able to maintain their coverage.
And, still there is silence.
When Obama took office, the US was at war with Iraq and Afghanistan. As a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, Obama has expanded US military engagement to include the bombing of Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Pakistan, Yemen, Syria, and Afghanistan. This does not include the billions of dollars sent to Israel to help it build its military. Israel has used its military hardware to bomb and destroy Gaza in 2014.
And, there was silence.
Being a man of peace, Obama expanded the drone program which he claimed was more humanitarian and would reduce collateral damage. Thousands of ordinary citizens died or were maimed.
And, there was silence.
When police around the country, on what appeared to be a daily basis, were shooting and killing unarmed black men and women, Obama remained silent as did his Justice Department.
And the people still remained silent.
It became known that Obama met every Tuesday morning with his advisers to draw up a “kill” list . . . a list of those men or women that were to be targeted for assassination because they allegedly were an “imminent” threat to the security of the US. This list included American citizens.
And, there was silence.
I could go on with more examples of actions or inactions taken by Obama that were unconstitutional or against international law. Yet, we, the American people did not take to the streets . . . after all he was “the best president ever.”
If elected, what would Hillary Clinton offer us? During her campaign, she attempted to ride the popularity of Obama’s coattails. So, one can only assume that much of Obama’s policies would continue. If anything would be different, it would be her hawkish attitude that was evident in her comments regarding escalating US military presence and activity in Syria (e.g., the pursuit of a “no-fly zone”) as well as a hardening position regarding Russia, a strategy that could result in a war with Russia.
Would there be the same level of concern about what would happen under her leadership? Would millions of people be planning on letting her know our anger and concerns regarding her policies and her war mongering? Or, would we instead, gather together to celebrate her victory?
The reality, which we should never forget, is that it matters not who sits in the White House . . . their policies and decisions will not be for our well being. The agenda is world domination, control of resources and markets, for the benefit of the capitalist class. As long as we function under the umbrella of capitalism, there will be no vehicle available to protect and serve the working class.
We have to realize that if we are successful in ridding ourselves of this dangerous and insulting man, Donald Trump, there is another waiting to step forward in his place who might be nicer and kinder but representing the same capitalist ideology . . . honoring the pursuit of and accumulation of individual wealth. Community and cooperation are secondary if present at all within the capitalist ideology.
To make a real difference in our lives, we must go beyond rebelling against any individual representative of capitalism and attack and defeat capitalism as the framework from which, we as a nation, function.
We should not continue to accept the notion that we are 99% against the 1%. There can no longer be a 1% that controls and enjoys the nation’s wealth while the workers struggle to survive. We must begin to function within the concept of being 100% and all of us sharing and benefitting from the assets and wealth of this country.
The answer my friends is blowing in the wind . . . it is socialism.
Dave Alpert has masters degrees in social work, educational administration, and psychology. He spent his career working with troubled inner city adolescents.