Common Sense 2009
August 21st, 2009
by Larry Flynt from Hustlersworld.com
The American government — which we once called our government — has been taken over by Wall Street, the mega-corporations and the super-rich. They are the ones who decide our fate. It is this group of powerful elites, the people President Franklin D. Roosevelt called “economic royalists,” who choose our elected officials — indeed, our very form of government. Both Democrats and Republicans dance to the tune of their corporate masters. In America, corporations do not control the government. In America, corporations are the government.
This was never more obvious than with the Wall Street bailout, whereby the very corporations that caused the collapse of our economy were rewarded with taxpayer dollars. So arrogant, so smug were they that, without a moment’s hesitation, they took our money — yours and mine — to pay their executives multimillion-dollar bonuses, something they continue doing to this very day. They have no shame. They don’t care what you and I think about them. Henry Kissinger refers to us as “useless eaters.”
But, you say, we have elected a candidate of change. To which I respond: Do these words of President Obama sound like change?
“A culture of irresponsibility took root, from Wall Street to Washington to Main Street.”
There it is. Right there. We are Main Street. We must, according to our president, share the blame. He went on to say: “And a regulatory regime basically crafted in the wake of a 20th-century economic crisis — the Great Depression — was overwhelmed by the speed, scope and sophistication of a 21st-century global economy.”
This is nonsense.
The reason Wall Street was able to game the system the way it did — knowing that they would become rich at the expense of the American people (oh, yes, they most certainly knew that) — was because the financial elite had bribed our legislators to roll back the protections enacted after the Stock Market Crash of 1929.
Congress gutted the Glass-Steagall Act, which separated commercial lending banks from investment banks, and passed the Commodity Futures Modernization Act, which allowed for self-regulation with no oversight. The Securities and Exchange Commission subsequently revised its rules to allow for even less oversight — and we’ve all seen how well that worked out. To date, no serious legislation has been offered by the Obama administration to correct these problems.
Instead, Obama wants to increase the oversight power of the Federal Reserve. Never mind that it already had significant oversight power before our most recent economic meltdown, yet failed to take action. Never mind that the Fed is not a government agency but a cartel of private bankers that cannot be held accountable by Washington. Whatever the Fed does with these supposed new oversight powers will be behind closed doors.
Obama’s failure to act sends one message loud and clear: He cannot stand up to the powerful Wall Street interests that supplied the bulk of his campaign money for the 2008 election. Nor, for that matter, can Congress, for much the same reason.
Consider what multibillionaire banker David Rockefeller wrote in his 2002 memoirs:
“Some even believe we are part of a secret cabal working against the best interests of the United States, characterizing my family and me as ‘internationalists’ and of conspiring with others around the world to build a more integrated global political and economic structure — one world, if you will. If that’s the charge, I stand guilty, and I am proud of it.”
Read Rockefeller’s words again. He actually admits to working against the “best interests of the United States.”
Need more? Here’s what Rockefeller said in 1994 at a U.N. dinner: “We are on the verge of a global transformation. All we need is the right major crisis, and the nations will accept the New World Order.” They’re gaming us. Our country has been stolen from us.
Journalist Matt Taibbi, writing in Rolling Stone, notes that esteemed economist John Kenneth Galbraith laid the 1929 crash at the feet of banking giant Goldman Sachs. Taibbi goes on to say that Goldman Sachs has been behind every other economic downturn as well, including the most recent one. As if that wasn’t enough, Goldman Sachs even had a hand in pushing gas prices up to $4 a gallon.
The problem with bankers is longstanding. Here’s what one of our Founding Fathers, Thomas Jefferson, had to say about them:
“If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issuance of their currency, first by inflation, and then by deflation, the banks and the corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their father’s conquered.”
We all know that the first American Revolution officially began in 1776, with the Declaration of Independence. Less well known is that the single strongest motivating factor for revolution was the colonists’ attempt to free themselves from the Bank of England. But how many of you know about the second revolution, referred to by historians as Shays’ Rebellion? It took place in 1786-87, and once again the banks were the cause. This time they were putting the screws to America’s farmers.
Daniel Shays was a farmer in western Massachusetts. Like many other farmers of the day, he was being driven into bankruptcy by the banks’ predatory lending practices. (Sound familiar?) Rallying other farmers to his side, Shays led his rebels in an attack on the courts and the local armory. The rebellion itself failed, but a message had been sent: The bankers (and the politicians who supported them) ultimately backed off. As Thomas Jefferson famously quipped in regard to the insurrection: “A little rebellion now and then is a good thing. The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.”
Perhaps it’s time to consider that option once again.
I’m calling for a national strike, one designed to close the country down for a day. The intent? Real campaign-finance reform and strong restrictions on lobbying. Because nothing will change until we take corporate money out of politics. Nothing will improve until our politicians are once again answerable to their constituents, not the rich and powerful.
Let’s set a date. No one goes to work. No one buys anything. And if that isn’t effective — if the politicians ignore us — we do it again. And again. And again.
The real war is not between the left and the right. It is between the average American and the ruling class. If we come together on this single issue, everything else will resolve itself. It’s time we took back our government from those who would make us their slaves.
Mr. Flynt penned this opinion piece for The Huffington Post
Larry is truly on of the good guys. However, it’s too late to save America – It’s ruined beyond repair.
I think it’s funny that the country was already ruined when Obama took office but people just replaced Bush’s name with Obama’s.
See, it’s not the man in charge that’s at fault, it’s the system. The U.S. is way too big to be managed by 500 or so politicians.
Out national debt is simply too large for the country to flourish any longer. What do individuals do when they rack up so much debt they can never pay it off? They do one of two things: They either declare bankruptcy or rid themselves of this earth. The U.S. will probably do both.
The British Empire is said to have officially ended when the US threatened to flood the international markets with British Pounds during the Suez Canal crisis. Now look at them, that’s exactly the future of the U.S.
If one thing can be said about Mr. Flynt, is that he’s quite the hustler…
Ummm, I wonder how ‘well’ he pays ALL of his employees? Do all of them, from the biggest exec, to the janitor, have the best benefits package possible so they might retire someday to the ‘good life’? Unlike the average worker who during the past 8 years saw their wages stagnate and/or simply fall behind increases in Cost Of Living and other economic indicators, I’m sure (eyes rolling) that Larry gave them all fabulous raises above and beyond said economic indicators.
Oh and guess Larry didn’t make ANY money from ANY investment he made with the very same ‘Wall Street Bankers’ he’s perfectly willing to throw under the bus now that it’s all blown up in everyone’s face. Yea, I’m sure Larry just put his millions in a regular old savings account (making something anywhere from 1.5% to .01% a year in interest) because he didn’t want to deal with a bunch of Well-Dressed Crooks running hedge funds and global investment houses.
Yup, I’m sure Larry has never cut any corners, crafted any backroom deals, or otherwise, screwed over us rubes on ‘Main Street’.
Sure, some of what Larry says convinces me that he at least watches PBS and reads the NYT/LA Times (instead of others who seem to only get their news from Fox and Rush). Yet at the end of the day, he’s just another rich guy unable or unwilling to put his money where his mouth is and either shit or get off the political pot.
Here’s my take on the economy, our country sold us out to the Chinese, who have there Yen artifically peged lower then the dollar, so that our bussinesses can’t compete with them selling us our goods cheaper, they’re getting rid of the midle class. The midle class and NOT the RICH our the backbones of America. The Midle class supports the RICH! And if people like Larry and others were as smart, they’d realize that they need to have a midle class, to survive. Because poor people do not give them the money that has made them rich. Obama NEEDS to stop the illigal trade practices of the Chinese, by STOPING trade with them. Because they said that they’d take over America without firring a single bullet, and they have, and they have also distroyed biz all over America, with the help of giant chains like Wall Mart and Target. We need to stop trade with Foriegn country’s, and bring all the jobs and even the ones we think no one wants back to America. So everyone here in our country, can have jobs and futures. Stop being so f*cking selfish, and realize that if America doesn’t stop forien trade with other Country’s, whom use slave labor to make products we could make here legally, welcome to the next great depression. Hey and get this, China has a million man standing army, with two new battle ships in case America ever did try to stop the flow of trade between us and them.
You lost me at, “Here’s my take on the economy…”
Porn economist now. What next, text-messaging analologist? (is that a werd?)
“If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issuance of their currency, first by inflation, and then by deflation, the banks and the corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their father’s conquered.”
That is not an argument for more regulated currencies that has proven a disaster in the Third World, Larry, that is an argument for no Central Banking at all and no compulsory currency.
“Sure, some of what Larry says convinces me that he at least watches PBS and reads the NYT/LA Times”
Actually the NYT and even more the LA Times are even bigger pieces of propaganda, especially on economics that Fox and Rush are.
At least we know were Fox is coming from.
The argument for replacing the Fed by a more central bank is failed one as history has proven time after time abroad, American supposely exceptionalism made the left think it can be different.
Stick to porn Larry. And you are a capitalist too.
Harvey Dent’s right, let’s print money with nothing really backing it, let’s borrow more money from the Chinese, and let’s give millions of people health care, when we haven’t even begun to figure out what to do about the economy. A health care plan which will put people out of work. Who? People who work for private HMO’s. Oh, and while were at it, let’s have an open border, so every dirt poor imigrant with no paper’s, can come running across the border, for FREE health care, so they can have more kids at our expense. Makes perfect sence to me, doesn’t it make sence to you?
Oh yes, Mr. Dent…it’s ALL just a bunch of propaganda! How’s the tin-foil hat fitting you today?
What convinces me that Larry gets his news from a wide variety of sources, (which is what my sentence in it’s full context points to) is his mention of the Glass-Steagall Act and the Commodity Futures Modernization Act (two pieces of legislation that Conservatives and the Right would rather not talk about…as they know it benefited the wealthy over the Middle Class).
Anyhow, watch out for those sneaky black helicopters as you work on your fallout shelter for the coming war between humans and the reptilian aliens who secretly live among us and have infiltrated the highest levels of global government and banking…
sophia, i was surfing the web the other day, and found a gallery of you fucking tt boy’s uncle dirty harry out by a pool. sorry to get off topic folks.
Yep, that was like forever ago!? Why the suden interest? From an X anal queen. Dirty H is a really nice guy… I’m assuming you liked it but that was another life ago…
“Oh yes, Mr. Dent…it’s ALL just a bunch of propaganda!”
No tin foil hat, just common sence and a knoledge of history and economics.
Sammy, Im sorry, the US media, while alway having liberal bias as most media types have, it just goes with the job description has seased to do any kind of responsible journalism. Even the Mancherter Guardian, the mouthpiece of Britain looney left has been more accurate and impartial in their coverage of the crisis, and the Democrats come just as bad as Republicans.
The fact is that they are deflecting the crisis blame on Wall Street where the real culprits are in monetary policy.
And Obama is like Bush on steroids, even letting Helicopter Bernake call the shots again, creating Helicopter mark II. And most likely he will get relected. Oh, poor Mr Krugman. Of course that will create a “recovery” in the same way the Bush years created a real state “boom”, and huge, huge bubbles. And with overvalued dollars there is no real incentive for US business to produce goods and services in the US when they can bought them from aboad, so lets keep buyings things from China and India.
The deregulation means little, regulators often come from the industries they are regulating, for example see Premier Obambi using the Goldman and Sachs people to “clean” Wall Street. And regulators even when honest often cannot get a perfect knowlege of the market they are regulating anyways.
No alien invasion, but the next crisis, after the “recovery” ballom burts is going to be huge, like Germany 1923 and US 1929 rolled into one.
2012 looms closer and closer.
So we should switch to the Mayan currency to head of a global meltdown???
NO, right now all currencies are unsafe.
The damage is already done. Is not a question of when it will happen. The burst on the biggest bubble of all, the US dollar. The evil genius that invented the derivatives are boy scouts compared to the US FED.
Probably a mix of currencies and precious metals like gold and silver to keep us safe.
I was making a joke…as conspiracy nuts believe the world will end in 2012 (as that’s when the ‘all-knowing’ Mayan calendar stops).
Otherwise, have fun down in the bomb shelter…and don’t forget, you’re only paranoid if someone is out to get you!
sophia, no sudden interest i was just surfing one of the sex galleries, and they had your gallery. in his movies dirty harry does those rough sex movies and acts mean, i guess thats for the role. i also found another one today of you posing as a baseball player in a lockeroom. if you don’t know freeones.com has alot of your stuff on it. their little bio on you says your in your mid 40’s is last right? you’re arounf my age by a couple years. bye.
“was making a joke…as conspiracy nuts believe the world will end in 2012 ”
Actually Alan Greenspan said inflation will be seen in 2012!
That is even worse!
I say inflation has started now, the “recovery” is not in full swing and oil and gold prices are already going up.
Nope still 30 somthing, they just made me do the MILF stuff, can you please shut-up about the porn, what is that your last LAME attempt to try to hurt me, well I don’t care. And if you didn’t like the pics why are you looking for me in galleries? Yes we are almost the same age, what does my porn past or my age have to do with THIS story? Welcome to growing old and alone…
lame attempt to hurt you? as usual you’re way off misinterpreting things (other examples: posts by marley mason and holly randall) and think someone’s attacking you (many examples of this) when they’re not… pornfan is actually interested enough in you to talk to you and was merely making conversation, he even said “bye” which was so cute, right?…, and then you say please stop talking about porn,
this is a porn talk site and you ask someone to stop talking about porn
maybe you shouldn’t talk on porn sites if you don’t want to talk about porn
Btw, interestingly the last time I posted a few days back I was quoting Rockerfella from this very article by Larry Flynt (before Cindi put this up right after) which I saw posted on Alex Jones’ infowars . com website. I always love it when porn is mixed with conspiracy.
“We are on the verge of a global transformation. All we need is the right major crisis, and the nations will accept the New World Order.”
It’s the old “control through chaos” paradigm.
I personally like to believe that the conspiracy nut truth seekers waking people up to the megascams might have prevented another 9-11 inside job. But I guess we’ll never know.
also, Re: post 3:
“Here’s my take on the economy, our country sold us out to the Chinese, who have there Yen artifically peged lower then the dollar”
That’s brilliant, perdió mariposa, but Yen is Japanese…
that was “funney”
sophia, jeremiah is right. i’m just trying to make conversation. i was’nt looking for you specificaly. if your porn past bothers you i won’t bring it up. remember a few weeks ago i apologized to you when i cut you down, when you and jeremiah was bickering back and forth a couple of months ago.
watch out pornfan, you’re now on her “backstaper” status list
jeremiah, like i said i was just trying to be nice. oh well you know her better than i.
Sorry pornfan, I’m supper sensitive, my dad was in the hospital for 4 day’s, and I had to stay home to watch my granma at nite, and help her in the morning somtimes, before her nurse arived, which included changing her clothes and putting on her depends and changing her bed sheets. Why? Because my Aunt and father have not found a night time nurse for her yet. It was stresful, because I thought my father might have surgery and my father depends on me a lot, which is hard on me. I’m very sorry for snaping off on you, and didn’t awnser back because I work in west wood and got back late and then I decided to watch a movie with my dad, who is out of the hospital now. The whole situation scared me to death, my dad really is the backbone of my family, and refuses to put his mother in a home, and I do respect him for being brave enough to try to do the right thing for him. But I’m not really sure if his motives for taking care of my granma, is the best thing for her? But srtill I’m really glad nothing happened to him, because I really wouldn’t want to be the one to make the decision to put her in a home. No one in my family does. It’s a really hard part of life that my family and I are going threw now, it happens to every family. I know I’m no special case, but I’ve been taking care of her on Saturday’s for almost 3 years and I’m tired…
yes we both know that already,
let’s not go there…
I’m supper sensitive, too. What’s for dinner?
Where did all of Cali’s job’s go? Seem’s like everybody who’s not rich, is hurting..? Are we in a depression?
sophia, i can relate about not putting her in a home. my brother and i had to put my mom in a home, because it got to a point she could stay home by herself and she kept falling which is obviously dangerous. mom was wheel-chair bound and stuck out there for little over three years until she passed way. she hated it all the while.